THE FRENCH CONQUEST OF MADAGASCAR. 752 milesbetween Mevatanana and Malatsy,making the roadas they came, and leaving fullhospitals andgraveyards behind them.

The Hova outpost at Malatsy withdrew without fighting, and on August 22nd Andriba was captured. TheFrench advanced guard cleared another small outpost just below the position after a brief exchange of rifle fire,in which two or three men were wounded. The mountain batteries then opened fire on the works of the main position. The Hovaartillery replied for a while,but its fire was almost harmless, most of the shells falling wide of the mark andfailing to burst, or exploding in the deep ravines that zinger wereput incommandof the twominiature brigades thus formed of these reducedunits,and all wasready for the last stage of the advanceby the middle of September. It was known that there were several strong positions between Andriba and the capital, and that at least 50,000 men wereassembled at various points along the road and in the great reserve camp at Antananarivo itself. But General Duchesne had seen enough of the Hovas in action to feel safe in advancing with some 4,000 men against tens of thousands. When the news of the fall of Andriba reached the capital there had been something like a panic. The French wereexfurrowedthemountainside. The cannonade hadbegun late in the day, and the enemy's answeringfire soon ceased. But General Duchesne did not mean to attack with hisinfantry till next day, as he knew they would have at the least a long climb over difficult ground that could not be easily traversed except in daylight. But the Hovas, whose flight had begun as soon as the Frenchopened fire, completely abandoned the position during the night. At sunrise on the 22nd theFrench formed for the attack, but the Hova guns were silent,not a shot pected to appear immediately before the city, and terriblestorieshadbeen told of the way in which they would treat the place and its inhabitants. As a matter of fact, Duchesne was enforcing the most rigid discipline among his troops, and the inhabitants had been well treated all along the line of the French advance. But those who were trying to rouse the people to combine for the defence of the capitalcarefully concealed these reassuring facts. The panic led to some curious developments. There was a sudden outburst of rage rRINCE ROMAHATRA, GENERAL OF THE HOVAS.

came from the entrenchments, and the invaders marched unresisted into the formidable works on which weeks of labour had been expended, and which had been cleared at the cost of a few shells. No wonder that after this the French felt nothing but contempt for their opponents.

At Andriba there was a halt of about three weeks while supplies were being brought up. The distance to Antananarivois about 150 miles, the track running through difficult mountain country. General Duchesne decided to carry the road no further, but to make Andriba his most advanced depot, and push on boldly for the Hova capital with a small column, for which he couldget togethermule andcarrier transport.

The largest force he could thus provide for was only 4,500 men. The men who had stood the climate best were selected from the various corps of the expedition. Generals Voyron and Metagainst foreigners of all nationalities. Not only were the valuable instruments left at the French Jesuit observatory smashed one night, but the English cemetery was also laid waste, the coffins dragged from the graves, and the monuments broken to pieces. There was a sudden reversion of many to pagan rites. Bibles werecast aside, and half forgotten fetish formulas were repeated again. Even the Court lent some countenance to these proceedings. A wizard, who undertook to blind the French by magical arts, wasactually received at Court and sent off to the army withhisfollowing of half-savage Betsileo tribesmen, who, he declared, had been made bullet-proof by being anointed with magic fat. After this, rumours spreadin the capital that the Court was going to send away the London missionaries and give up thereligion of theEuropeans.

On September12thGeneral Duchesnemarched