The country between Ambòhipèno and Màhamànina was varied by low hills in all directions, and patches of wood, the traveller’s tree appearing in great numbers. The fruit of this beautiful tree was seen very conspicuously, forming three or four clusters of sheaths, about a dozen in each, much resembling the horns of a short-horned ox. These project from between the leaf-stalks, two in full bloom, and the other two generally dying off, or shedding the seeds, or rather the seed-pods. These are oval in shape, about two inches long, and yellow in colour, something like very large dates. These, when ripe, open and show each pod dividing into three parts, each of which is double, thus containing six rows of seeds about the size of a small bean. But what seems very curious is, that each seed is wrapped in a covering exactly like a small piece of blue silk with scalloped edges. I could not get these, however, without some difficulty from the ants, which swarmed all over trunk, leaf-stalks, and leaves, and resented vigorously any intrusion into their domains. [Sidenote: A LARGE GOVERNMENT HOUSE] At Màhamànina we found old friends in the governor and his wife. The _làpa_ or government house was the largest and finest house I had ever seen in Madagascar, except the chief palace in the capital. It was three storeys high, entirely of timber, with stout verandah posts and very high-pitched roof; and everything here, gateways, guard-houses and stockades, was of the most substantial character, and made of fine massive timbers. After two days’ stay we proceeded farther south, and at the village where we encamped for the night we noticed a new style of coiffure among the women. Some of them had their hair done in two rows of little balls, while behind the head there was a piece of hollow wood ornamented with brass-headed nails and fastened into the hair. In this they kept their needles and other small property. Beads also were a good deal worn, and they had the _lòndo_ or square mat on the back. At one village the young women wear round the breast a broad band of neatly woven straw, ornamented with a variety of patterns in different colours. It was rather difficult to understand the talk of the people; the nasal _n_, the peculiar intonation, and the pronouns and adverbs being all different from the Hova forms, made their conversation a puzzle to us. Some, if not all the people here, are a Sàkalàva colony from the west of the island. [Sidenote: EVIDENCE OF VOLCANIC ACTION]