‘Ranìvo, an interesting and beautiful young woman of one of the first families, for she belonged to the tribe or clan from which the reigning family traced their descent; the queen herself, therefore, wished to save her. When questioned she said: “I cannot serve the idols: God alone will I serve, as long as my life shall last; for God alone has given me life and spirit--a higher spiritual life to worship Him; and for that reason I worship God.” ‘“You are wrong in your mind, or ill,” said the examining officer, “or you are under some charm; and you should consider well lest the queen hate you, and you should destroy yourself for no purpose.” ‘“I am not deranged,” she replied, “nor am I ill.” Then addressing her father, who was present, she said: “You indeed love me, O father, but God has given me a spirit to worship Him, and I should be filled with fear if I were to cease to pray to Him; therefore I shall not cease to worship Him, lest I should die everlasting death.” ‘“Bind her!” said the officer; and she was bound like the others. ‘The queen, anxious to save her, had with that view ordered her to be placed so that she might see her fellow Christians hurled from the fearful height, expecting that that would frighten her into submission. After they had all been hurled over, she was led by the executioner to the edge of the rock, and directed to look down upon the mangled bodies of her friends. She did so, but the sight did not lead her to waver in mind; for she still declined to take the required heathen oath necessary to save her life. “Dispatch me,” she said, “for my companions have already gone.” Her relatives entreated her to comply with the queen’s demand, and so save her life; but she said she could not take the oath, and she preferred to follow her martyred friends. They thought her insane, and reported to the queen to this effect, and hence her life was saved[16].’ A younger brother of Ranìvo was a great friend of mine for many years, and I got him to write a sketch of the life of his sister for our Malagasy monthly, _Good Words_. ‘The mangled and scarcely lifeless bodies of Ranìvo’s Christian companions, who had been hurled over the precipice, were dragged to the spot on the top of the Fàravòhitra hill, on which the four nobles had been burned, and there consumed in one vast pile. The lurid flames of this funeral pyre were intended to spread awe and terror among the inhabitants of the numerously peopled villages around from which they were visible[17].’