Early to-day we met the tides, some fifty miles from the sea. The marks on the banks did not indicate a high rise of the water, probably from the fact that the land itself has not yet reached the sea level. During the afternoon we pulled steadily along a fine reach of the river for several miles: its direction was nearly north: and some fine hills were in sight, under one of which, with a double head, was the town of MAHABO. At sunset we passed along the east side of a large island; wood and jungle were rich; the mud banks were evidently fertile: the mangrove was thick with its matted roots: and again we saw vast quantities of the _Via_, the great Arum lily, which we had admired so much on the east coast a year ago. At the north end of this reach we turned eastward into a narrow stream for five miles, and at eight o’clock, were landed in the mud at the important town of Marovoay. MAROVOAY contains five thousand people and consists of two towns, the Hova settlement and stockade on the hill, and the trading town on the river bank. The latter is extremely dirty: it is full of hides and offal, sweltering in the burning sun; and is reputed to be extremely unhealthy. How can it be otherwise? A large number of Hindu merchants reside in the town; who responded heartily to salutations in Hindustani, and were greatly surprised and interested to meet an old Calcutta-walla in this out-of-the-way corner of the world. We observed with regret the large number of pure Africans in the town, many of them quite young. The Hova houses within the stockade are large and numerous; the chapel is a spacious building, and near the chapel and the gate of the stockade are two noble tamarind trees.