hension of any gross violation of court etiquette. It was now intimated that I must speak, and offer the hasina, or customary offering, without which no stranger approaches the sovereign. The interpreters charged me to speak sufficiently loud for all to hear my speech as well as their interpretation. I first thanked the queen for having invited me to her presence, and hoped that she and her relations were well. When this was interpreted, her Majesty spoke to a tall, grey-headed chief, the queen's speaker, or orator, who stood between her and Rainjohary, the chief minister; and the orator replied that the queen was well, and that all her relations were well, and asked how I was after the journey, and whether I had been ill with the fever. I thanked the queen, saying, I had been slightly indisposed, but was now well; adding, that I had heard much of Madagascar, and of her Majesty, in my own country, where I had had the honour of being presented to my own gracious sovereign, Queen Victoria, of kneeling before her, and kissing her Majesty's hand, the mode by which her subjects on some occasions personally render their homage; that I had wished to visit Madagascar, and now I had the honour of being presented to her Majesty, I begged to repeat my thanks for that honour, and to present my hasina in token of acknowledgment. Taking a sovereign out of my pocket, and throwing open my long loose robe in doing so, I handed the sovereign to one of the officers. The hasina was acknowledged on the part of the queen by a slight inclination of the head. I then said that the English had long cherished sentiments of friendship towards the Malagassy; that forty years ago George IV., king of England, wished to be a friend to King Radama, and sent some of his officers to make a treaty of friendship with him, and to engage with him not to export slaves from his country; that Radama kept that treaty faithfully; and that her Majesty had not deviated from what Radama had engaged to do, and did not allow slaves to be exported from her country. That England did not change in its friendship towards Madagascar; that after the death of George IV. King William IV. reigned in England; and he was friendly to her Majesty's country, as her own ambassadors who had visited his Majesty could testify; and that now Queen Victoria, the present ruler of England, did not change in regard to Madagascar, but was her Majesty's friend, and the friend of the government and people of Madagascar.' Mutual compliments, diplomatically expressed, terminated this interview, at the close of which, in honour of Mr. Ellis, the band struck up our English God save the Queen.' following, though rather long, will repay perusal; it is an account of a dinner party at Antananarivo, of course in the palace, the queen being present. 6 The 'At three o'clock on the day appointed an officer came to conduct me to the dinner; and, after ascending by a somewhat steep path to the crest of the hill on which the house stands, we reached the front court, where the queen's band, in scarlet uniform (apparently English), was stationed beneath the verandah. On entering, I was received by a number of servants dressed in a sort of livery consisting of blue jackets bordered with red. I was politely received by the owner of the house, a number of officers, and other company, among whom were M. Laborde, and the Catholic priest with whom I had breakfasted. When dinner was announced, we were shown to our respective places, which were designated by papers bearing our names placed on the table. Mine was on the left hand of the chief officer, and M. Laborde's was immediately opposite. The The room was large and lofty, furnished with looking-glasses, and other articles of European or Asiatic manufacture, having a large sideboard at one end table was splendidly furnished with porcelain vases, filled with artificial flowers, and silver vases, the size of wine-coolers, along the centre. The covered dishes, spoons, and forks, were all silver; the dishes as well as the vases being of native manufacture, after English patterns, and remarkably well executed. On all these articles, as well as on the handles of the knives, a crown and a bird, the crest of the Hovas, were engraved. 'As soon as all were seated, my friend, the secretary, who sat next me, intimated in English, that as I was a stranger and the queen's guest, I should now propose her Majesty's health, and on a sign from one of the attendants the band in the verandah played the Malagassy "God save the Queen." "The dinner commenced with soup, after which an almost endless variety of viands were served. There must have been upwards of thirty different dishes, handed round in succession; beef in every form, poultry, game, made dishes in great variety, with pastry, all exceedingly well cooked, especially the rice, and the rolls of bread. There was not much wine on the table; the drinking was very moderate, and there were but few toasts. The utmost propriety characterised the deportment of all present; although there were many of the younger members of the aristocracy at the table, the entertainment was more lively, and much less formal, than some at which I had been present in the country. After the desert tea was served in small coffee cups, perhaps instead of coffee, from the supposed preference of the English for tea.' Mr. Ellis did not succeed in gaining from the queen permission for the re-introduction of Christianity into Madagascar; but with singular tact and discretion, he confirmed the favourable impressions her Majesty entertained respecting England and the English, and in an indirect manner made his visit to the capital subservient to many worthy purposes. His photographic apparatus was constantly in demand, of which his book contains abundant and beautiful illustrations. Concerning the Christians, Mr. Ellis gained very authentic information, although the sources whence it was obtained are wisely withheld lest the parties should be involved in difficulty. We cannot better close this article than by presenting to our readers the following tender and graphic narrative, which carries one's mind back to those ancient times when godly men and women took joyfully the spoiling of their goods, or meekly laid down their lives for Christ's sake:— 'It may be sufficient to say, that so far as my opportunities of observing it have extended, the religion of the present is the same as that of the past, and appears to be sincere and satisfactory; a religion derived simply and solely from the teaching of God's holy word, unfolded, applied, and sustained by the operations of the Holy Spirit. Under this Divine influence it appears to have attained a measure of development that is truly marvellous; that it is to be ascribed to this source alone, would appear from the fact, that a large number of those who have suffered became Christians after the missionaries had left the country. I repeatedly passed the places where the martyrs suffered-spots that will be consecrated by the most hallowed and affectionate associations in the minds of the Malagassy throughout all future ages. I had met and conversed repeatedly with their widowed survivors, and their orphan children, as well as with those who witnessed the stedfastness of their faith and the quiet triumph of their death; and from their testimony had derived more than confirmation of all that we had previously heard. 'The authorities in Madagascar, who sought by torture and death to extinguish the Christian faith, by whatever motives they may have been actuated, only imitated the Diocletians of the early ages, and the Alvas, the Medicis, and the Marys, of more recent times; and with corresponding results in the invariable constancy of those who fell, and the subsequent fruits of the imperishable seed which was scattered in the martyr's blood. 'Deeply affecting were the details which I received of the sorrows and of the consolation of the sufferers; of their conduct in the hour of peril, as well as in the day of impeachment and trial; with the noble testimony which they bore, when brought before judges and rulers, for his name's sake. "The following exact and verbatim statements refer to the severe persecution in the year 1849, and will make their own appeal to every heart. They are offered without apprehension, as those to whom they refer have passed into a world where the fury of the oppressor and the cruelty of the persecutor can never enter. ""On the 14th March, 1849, the officer before whom the Christians were examined said, Do you pray to the sun, or the moon, or the earth? "R answered, I do not pray to these, for the hand of God made them. "Do you pray to the twelve mountains that are sacred ? I do not pray to them, for they are mountains. "Do you pray to the ancestors of the sovereigns? "R Kings and rulers are given by God, that we should serve and obey them, and render them homage; nevertheless, they are only men like ourselves; when we pray, we pray to God alone. "You make distinct, and observe the Sabbath-day? "R That is the day of the great God; for in six days the Lord made all his works. But God rested on the seventh, and he caused it to be holy; and I rest or keep sacred that day. “And in a similar manner answered all the Christians. And when a man who had kept aloof saw that one-a woman—did not deny God, and remembered that to deny God was followed by compunction, he went and spoke as the others had done. When these brethren and sisters were bound, the husband of one of them, who had heard their confession, came and said to them, 'Be not afraid, for it is well if for that you die.' He was a soldier from a distance, and not of the number of the accused. Then he was examined, and, as he made the same avowal, they bound him also. And they removed these ten brethren and sisters, and made their bands hard or tight, and confined them each in a separate house. 'The writers of the journal add, “And at one o'clock at night, we met together and prayed. On the 22nd of March, when one had said, Jehovah is God alone, and above every name that is named, and Jesus Christ is also God,' the people cried out mocking. And to another the officer said, 'Rabodampoimerina (the sacred name of our queen) is our god, but not your god. He answered, "The God who made me is my God; but Rabodo is my queen or sovereign.' And when he refused other answer, they said, 'Perhaps he is an idiot, or a lunatic.' He answered, 'I am not an idiot, and have not lost my understanding.' Then there was a commotion and buzz among the people, saying, 'Take him away.' And they took him to prison. "And before it was light, on the following day, the people assembled at A-y. Then they took the eighteen brethren that chose God, and to inherit life, and to become his sons and his daughters, and they bound their hands and feet, and tied each of them to a pole wrapped in mats, and placed them with the other prisoners. And of these united brethren and sisters ten were from Vonizongo. And when the officers, and troops, and judges arrived, they read over the names of each class of prisoners, and then placed them by themselves, and stationed around them soldiers with muskets and spears; and the sentences were then delivered, consigning some to fine and confiscation, others to slavery, others to prison and chains, some to flogging, and eighteen to death-four to be burned, and fourteen to be hurled from the rocky precipice, and afterwards burned to ashes. "And the eighteen appointed to die, as they sat on the ground surrounded by the soldiers, sang the 187th hymn:* When I shall die, and leave my friends, When they shall weep for me, When departed has my life, Then I shall be happy." ""When that hymn was finished, they sang the 154th: • When I shall behold him rejoicing in the heavens,' &c. "And when the sentences were all pronounced, and the officer was about to return to the chief authorities, the four sentenced to be burned requested him to ask that they might be killed first, and then burned. But they were burned alive. "When the officer was gone, they took those eighteen away to put them to death. The fourteen they tied by the hands and the feet to long poles, and carried on men's shoulders. And these brethren prayed and spoke to the people as they were being carried along. And some who beheld them said that their faces were like the faces of angels. And when they came to the top of Nampaminarina, they cast them down, and their bodies were afterwards dragged to the other end of the eapital, to be burned with the bodies of those who were burned alive. "And as they took the four that were to be burned alive to the place of execution, these Christians sang the 90th hymn, beginning, When our hearts are troubled,' each verse ending with 'Then remember us.' Thus they sang on the road. And when they came to Faravohitra, there they burned them, fixed betwixt split spars. And there was a rainbow in the heavens at the time, close to the place of burning. Then they sang in the hymn 158: "There is a blessed land, Making most happy, Nor cause of trouble come.' "That was the hymn they sang after they were in the fire. Then they prayed, saying, O Lord, receive our spirits; for thy love to us has caused this to come to And lay not this sin to their charge.' us. "Thus they prayed as long as they had any life. Then they died, but softly, gently. Indeed, gently was the going forth of their life. And astonished were all the people around, that beheld the burning of them there."' Here reluctantly we pause, omitting many passages marked for quotation. This is in all senses a noble book. Its literary claims are of a high order, whilst its value as an addition to our missionary literature is past all praise. The rare combination of diplomatie skill, rich accomplishments, and a brave but catholic spirit, are unequalled. Side by side with some of our most cherished books shall we place this fascinating volume, to which again and again we shall return to revive the impressions of delight it has left on our minds. We trust Mr. Ellis will be spared to return to Madagascar, and that under the auspices of the young prince who sustains an analogous position to that of our Edward VI., at the time of the Reformation,' Christianity may again exert its peaceful and benignant influence throughout this magnificent island; and then we doubt not again will Tertullian's words be illustrated, that the blood of the martyrs is the seed of the Church. M. 6. 3. *The numbers refer to the collection of printed hymns in the native language. The translation is verbal and literal, not a metrical rendering of the meaning. 153 Athenæ Cantabrigienses.* ALL our readers are doubtless acquainted, at least by report, with Anthony a Wood's great work, to which that before us is intended as the long desiderated complement. Its full title is, 'Athenæ Oxonienses; an exact History of all the Writers and Bishops who have had their Education in the University of Oxford from 1500 to 1695; to which are added, the Fasti, or Annals of the said University.' It was the crowning labour of a tolerably long life spent in antiquarian researches, all centring round the same darling subject the glories of the city where he first drew breath in 1632, and of whose illustrious university he became a matriculated member at the early age of fifteen. His love for archæological pursuits was first kindled by his meeting with Sir William Dugdale's Antiquities of Warwickshire,' on its publication in 1656. He was afterwards introduced to Sir William, and thus gained access to the Cotton Library and the Records in the Tower. Though a man of retired habits, and a very crusty temper, he was also personally acquainted with many others among the literary stars of the Cromwellian and Caroline epochs, whose friendship was invaluable to him in making his collections. To his gossiping brother antiquary Aubrey he was particularly indebted for a large mass of materials, without which his lives of Hobbes and Milton, and many others of his most eminent contemporaries, would have been comparatively blanks. For Aubrey was the Boswell of all the Johnsons of that generation; who, if he saw any one passing in the streets known to have stories to tell about any of the great men of the day, would rather break his neck down stairs, says Anthony a Wood himself, than miss the opportunity of seizing him by the button, and laying him under contribution. It is a pity that the two should ever have quarrelled. But this was a mischance to which all grim old Anthony's friendships were but too liable. South, also, after a pretty close intimacy, suddenly roused his relentless wrath by an untimely joke, which the witty divine unhappily could not keep in, and reaped the fruits of his imprudent escapade in being made the victim of a signal biographical revenge. With all his ruggedness, however, which is often reflected in his style, Anthony a Wood has enriched his country's literature with a genuine classic, which will live when English shall have become what tongues once as widely diffused have long been a dead language, if such should ever be its fate. No other land can boast such a splendid monument of its academical renown; and on all subjects connected with the literary life of the two most eventful centuries in our national history it must ever continue to be the great authority. The profound learning, the unwearied patience of research, and, above all, the unflinching love of truth, which are stamped upon every page, may well make Oxford * Athena Cantabrigienses. By C. H. Cooper, F.S.A., and T. Cooper. Vol. I. 1500-1585. Cambridge. 1858. |