Malagasy for Beginners: A Series of Graduated Lessons and Exercises in Malagasy as Spoken by the Hovas (Classic Reprint)

Excerpt from Malagasy for Beginners: A Series of Graduated Lessons and Exercises in Malagasy as Spoken by the Hovas

been felt. In the following pages an attempt has been made to supply that want.

In many places it will be seen, by those who are conversant with the Rev. W. E. Cousins' "Introduction," that I have been greatly indebted to him for much that appears in this book; and in some consecutive sections I have closely followed his order, simply because I thought it was the beet. Mr. Cousins most readily agreed to all I asked of him, and I desire here to express my indebtedness to him.

There is much that I think will be found put in a new light and simplified in the book The tables are purposely made long, for only by seeing and learning the words can a beginner know the peculiar terminations of passive verbs, verbal nouns, and derivative adjectives, etc.

I think I should adopt a somewhat different grouping of the various passive terminations, were I to write the book again; the first three groups of passive terminations (pp. 20-23) are undoubtedly one. I have found it very difficult at times to keep to one thing at a time, and there is so much overlapping and interweaving in the book that I lay myself open to the charge of "having had no fixed purpose" in my mind. A little thought will show, I think, that "provious intention" has made the book what it is.

I believe that any one going carefully though the book will bo able to enjoy the reading and speaking of Malagasy in a much shorter time than ho could have done without it; and I am sure that ho will afterwards turn to such excellent books as those of the Rev. W. E. Cousins and Pore Aillond, and thank me for having supplied a key to those treasures hitherto closed to beginners.

There are some very annoying slips in the way of spelling that have escaped me in reading the proofs. The list of errata is somewhat long. I trust that the fact that (1) this book is the first of its kind in Malagasy, that (2) it was copied by Malagasy youths, (3) printed by Malagasy, and (4) carried through the press during an exceptional pressure of other duties, will be remembered by those who may be inconvenienced by them.

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