Page:Folk-lore - A Quarterly Review. Volume 2, 1891.djvu/396

 340 any part of the sacred bird, tried to express his gratitude by offering me half the load. I have, however, observed that this bird is not sacred among the Antankàrana, the Bétsimisàraka, and other tribes." It seems pretty certain that the kestrel was formerly worshipped, and a small piece of the legs or wings or body was given by the diviners to be used as a charm, or presented as a sort of sacrifice when praying to the ody, or idol. Many of the ignorant Malagasy still venerate the bird and make supplication to it.

Another noticeable Malagasy hawk, although much less common than the two previously mentioned ones, is the Vòromahèry, or Lesser Falcon, a small but very courageous bird, which has long attracted the attention of the Malagasy for its swiftness and fearlessness. Its native name, which means "Powerful bird", is also that of the tribe of Hova Malagasy who inhabit the capital and its near neighbourhood; and probably from that circumstance this falcon has been adopted as a kind of crest or emblem by the central Government, and it is engraved on some of the official seals. Large metal figures of a bird, popularly supposed to be this Vòromahèry, are fixed on the ridge of the roofs of the two largest royal palaces, and also over the palace gateway. One of the proverbs referring to this falcon has already been quoted. Another says: "Falcon's eggs on the face of the cliff: that which screams out is its young."

The voracious tearing up of their prey is noticed in the names given to several of the Malagasy hawks, those in which the words Firàsa or Fandràsa, the "Tearer" or "Divider", or, more freely, the " Butcher", appear either in these simple forms or combined with other words. This is the name of the Madagascar Sparrow-Hawk, which is also called Vandraskibo, "Quail-eater". Another hawk is termed Parìafòdy, "Disperser-of-cardinal-birds", as it feeds largely on these brightly-coloured little birds; and it is also named Ampamàkalòhanikìbo, "Quails'-head-breaker". Fandràsalàmbo, "Wild-boar-butcher", is the name of other