We were next bound to the coast of Madagascar, Captain Frankland having instructions to endeavour to open up a trade with the people, and to gain all the information he could collect regarding them.  Madagascar is larger than Great Britain and Ireland combined, and contains three millions of inhabitants.  In 1817, a treaty was entered into between the governor of the Mauritius and Radama, who was king of part of the country.  The king consented to the abolition of the slave trade; and in return, he was supplied with arms and ammunition, and military instructors were sent to drill his army.  The London Missionary Society also sent over a body of highly intelligent men, some to instruct the people in Christianity, and others more particularly in a variety of useful arts.  A considerable number of Malagasy youths were sent on board English ships of war to be instructed in seamanship, while others were carried to England to receive a more finished education.  It is a remarkable fact, that, although when the missionaries arrived in 1818 letters were totally unknown, in ten years from 10,000 to 15,000 natives had learned to read, many of them to write, and several had made some progress in English.  This speaks well for the zeal and excellence of the system employed by the missionaries, and for the talent of the natives.