■<;i>ffy
 
 
 LIBRA RY 
 
 OF THE 
 
 U N I VERSITY 
 
 or 1 LLl NOI5 
 
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 OF THE
 
 BULGAEIAXS. 
 Christian f.c-T ViaJia . Christian Ir.dics from Skodra. llchammedans from Viddir. A native of Koyatepe.
 
 THE EARTH AND ITS INHABITANTS 
 
 THE 
 
 UNIVERSAL GEOGRAPHY 
 
 Bv KLISEE RECLUS 
 
 % 
 
 XI 
 
 EDITED 
 
 Br E. G. RAVENSTEIN, F.R.G.S., F.S.S., Etc. 
 
 ^ 
 
 VOL. I. 
 
 SOUTHERN EUROPE 
 
 (GREECE, TURKEY IX EUROPE, RUMANIA, SERVIA. ITALY, SPALN 
 AND PORTUGAL) 
 
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 ILLUSTRATED BY NUMEROUS ENGRAVINGS AND MAPS 
 
 LONDON 
 J. S. VIRTUE & CO., Limited, 294, CITY ROAD
 
 LONDON : 
 
 PI1INT2D Bt J. 8. VIKTUK AND CO., LIMITED. 
 
 CITY ROAD.
 
 CONTENTS. 
 
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 VI. 
 
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 VII. 
 
 rAGE 
 
 I 
 
 Intuoductoky Remahks 
 
 EUROPE. 
 Extent and Boixhaiues 
 N.\TuitAL Divisions and Mountain.^ 
 The SLvuiTiME Kecions . 
 
 Climate 
 
 Lmiaiutants 
 
 THE lIEDITEKUAyEAN. 
 
 Hyukology 
 
 Anlmal Liie, F18HEU1ES, and Salt-i'ans 
 
 CoMMEKtE AND NAVIGATION . 
 
 GKEECE. 
 Genehal Aspects . 
 
 COXTINENTAL GkEECE 
 
 The Mokea, ok Peloponnesus 
 
 The Islands of the iEoEAN Sea . 
 
 The Ionian Isles . 
 
 The Phesent and Futl'ue of Gkeece . 
 
 govhknment and political divisions . 
 
 TURKEY IN EUROPE. 
 General Aspects 87 
 
 C'UETE AND the IsLANKS OF THE AlUHI 
 lEI.AGO 
 
 TrKKEV OF THE GllEEKS (ThUACIA, JIalE 
 llONIA, AND ThF.SSALv) 
 
 AllCANIA AMI ICl'iUIS 
 
 90 
 
 ll.i 
 
 V. The Illyrian Alps, Bosnia, and IIehze- 
 
 OOVINA l'-f> 
 
 VI. BlLGAUIA 131 
 
 A'll. Present Position and Pkospects of 
 
 TlKKEY 145 
 
 VIII. G0VEUN.MENT AND Administuation . 150 
 
 RUMANIA 1.5.5 
 
 SERVIA AND MONTENEGRO . . 172 
 
 ITALY. 
 
 I. Geneual Aspects 183 
 
 II. The Basin of the Po: Piemont, Lom- 
 
 BAllDY, VeNETIA, AND EmILIA . . 189 
 
 HI. LlOUKIA AND THE RlVIEIlA OF GeNOA . '230 
 
 IV. Tuscany 239 
 
 V. The Roman Apennines, the Valley 
 of the Tiheu, the Marches, and 
 
 the Abruzzos 2-57 
 
 VI. Southepjj Italy : Naples . . . 28G 
 
 VII. Sicily 309 
 
 VIII. Sardinia 338 
 
 IX. The Present and Future of Italy . 35'2 
 X. Government AND Administration . 358 
 V 
 CORSICA 3G3 
 
 SP.UN. 
 
 I. General A'^pects 370 
 
 II. The Castiles, I, eon, and Estremaduha 377 
 HI. ASDALISIA 391
 
 CONTENTS. 
 
 PAGE I 
 
 IV. The Mediteueanean Slope : Murcia j 
 
 AND Valencia 414 
 
 V. The Bale.iric Islands .... 423 I 
 VI. The Valley of the Ebko : Akagon and 
 
 Catalonia 427 
 
 VII. Basoue Provinces, Navakra, and Lo- 
 
 GRoSo 439 
 
 VIII. Santander, the Asturias, and Galicia . 448 
 IX. The Present and Future of Spain . 460 
 X. Government and Administration . 465 
 
 PORTUGAL. 
 
 I. General Aspects ..... 469 
 II. Northern Portugal .... 473 
 
 III. The Valley of the Tagus . . . 482 
 
 IV. Southern Portugal .... 490 
 V. The Present and Fut'.re of Portugal 496 
 
 VI. Government and Administration . 498 
 
 INDEX 501
 
 LIST OF ILLUSTPvATIOXS. 
 
 MArS PEIXTED IX COLOUES. 
 
 1. Ethnographical Map of Europe . .18 
 
 2. Turkty-in-Eiuxppc and Greece . . .85 
 
 3. The Bosjihurus and Constantinople . 98 
 
 4. Ethnographical Map of Turkey . .148 
 
 P.«08 
 
 5. luUy 183 
 
 6. The Delta of the Po 210 
 
 7. The Bay of Xaples 288 
 
 8. Spain and Portugal 385 
 
 PLATES. 
 
 Peasants from the En\-irons of Athens Tufact pagi 53 
 Const;intinople and the Golden Horn, from the 
 
 Heights of E>-ub 99 i 
 
 AlUuiians 118 
 
 Wi;Jthy .\mauts 124 
 
 Turkish Muleteers in the Uerzegorina . . 127 
 
 Tirnova 133 
 
 Bulg^irians 1 38 
 
 JIussuhiuui of Adrianople, and Mussulman Lady | 
 
 of I'riiirend 147 ' 
 
 Wallachians (Valakhs) 162 I 
 
 Belgrade 174 
 
 Tlic Pennine Alps, as seen from the Becca di 
 
 Nona (Pic Carrel), 10,380 feet . . 195 i 
 
 Venice 207 ' 
 
 The Palace at Fcrrara ... . 228 
 
 Verona 229 
 
 Peaijunts of the Abruzzos 2.58 
 
 Xaples Tofaeepaijc 300 
 
 Capri, seen from Massa Luliixns^^^ . . . 302 
 Amalfi 304 
 
 La Valetta, M:Uta 337 
 
 Peasants of Toledo, OistUe . .390 
 Roman Bridge at Alcantara .391 
 Gorge de los Gaitanes, Detilc of Guadiilhorce . 399 
 Peas;ints of Cordova, And:ilusia .... 406 
 Gibraltar, as seen from the " Lines " . . .414 
 Peasants of La Hucrta, and Cigarrera of Valen- 
 cia 419 
 
 Women of Ibiza, Balc;iric Isles . . .425 
 
 Monserrat, Catalonia . . . . .431 
 
 Barcelona, seen from the Castle of Monjuich . 437 
 Gorges of Pancoibo ...... 440 
 
 Los Pas.'.g« 447 
 
 Oporto 478 
 
 Lisbon 4S4
 
 LIST OF ILLUSTKATIONS. 
 
 ILLUSTEATIONS IN TEXT. 
 
 EUROPE. 
 
 1. The Natural Boundary of Europe . . 7 
 
 2. The Relief of Eui-ope 8 
 
 3. Development of Coast-lines relatively to 
 
 Area 11 
 
 4. The Isothermal Zone of Europe . . .17 
 
 THE MEDITERRANEAN. 
 
 5. The Depth of the Mediterranean . . 24 
 
 6. The Strait of Gibraltar . . . .26 
 
 7. Principal Fisheries of the Mediterranean . 30 
 
 8. Ste:imer Routes and Telegraphs . . .34 
 
 GREECE. 
 Matnote and Svahtan . . . .42 
 Foreign Elements in the Population of 
 
 Greece -14 
 
 Mount Parnassus anu Delphi . .46 
 
 Lower Acarnania 49 
 
 Thermopylaj 50 
 
 Lake Copais ...... 52 
 
 The Acropolis or Athens . . .54 
 Athens and its Long Walls . . .55 
 
 Ancient Athens 56 
 
 Mount Taygetvs 58 
 
 Lakes Phenoa and Stymphalus . . .60 
 The Plateau of Mantinea . . . .62 
 Bifurcation of the Gastuni . . . .63 
 The Valley of the Eurotas .... 67 
 
 Euripus and Chalcis 70 
 
 Nea Kaimeni ...... 72 
 
 Corfu 76 
 
 The Channel of Santa JIaura . . .77 
 Argostoli 79 
 
 TURlvEY IN EUROPE. 
 
 The Gokge of Hagio Rumeli . . .91 
 Ci-ete, or Candia . . . . .93 
 
 The JEgenn Sea 95 
 
 Geological Map of the Peninsula of Con- 
 stantinople 99 
 
 The HelK'spont, or Dardanelles . . . 105 
 
 Mount Athos 108 
 
 Mount Olympus HO 
 
 Mount 01)-mpus and the Valley of Tempo 111 
 
 Southern Epirus 117 
 
 Suhterranean Beds of the Affluents of the 
 
 Narenta 128 
 
 Mount Vitosh 132 
 
 39. Delta of the Danube 137 
 
 40. Comparative Discharge of the Mouths of 
 
 the Danube 138 
 
 41. Commercial Highways converging upon 
 
 Constantinople . . . . .150 
 
 42. The Turkish Empire 151 
 
 RUMANIA. 
 
 43. The Rumanians . 
 
 44. The Rivers Shil and Olto . 
 
 45. The Danube and Yalomitza 
 
 156 
 
 158 
 161 
 
 4C. Ethnological Map of MoldaWan Bessarabia 164 
 
 47. Bucharest 169 
 
 SERVIA jVND MONTENEGRO. 
 
 48. Confluence of the Danube and Save . .174 
 
 49. Montenegro and the Lake of Skodi-a . . 180 
 
 ITALY. 
 
 50. Rome and the Roman Empire . . . 186 
 .51. Monte Viso 189 
 
 52. Grand Paradis 191 
 
 53. Plain of Debris between the Alps and 
 
 Apennines . . . . . .192 
 
 54. Slope of the VaUey of the Po . . . 193 
 
 55. Mud Volcanoes of the Northern Apennines 194 
 
 56. Ancient Glaciers of the Alps . .195 
 
 57. Serra of Ivrea and Ancient Glacier Lakes 
 
 of the Dora 196 
 
 58. Ancient Lakes of Verbano .... 197 
 
 59. Lake Como 198 
 
 60—62. Sections of Lake Como . . .199 
 
 63. Villa Seubelloni 201 
 
 64. Beech and Pine "Woods of Ravenna . . 203 
 
 65. Shingle Beds of the Tagliamento, &c. . 205 
 
 66. Old Bed of the Piave 206 
 
 67. Lagoons of Venice 207 
 
 68. Colonies of the Roman Veterans . . 209 
 
 69. The Po between Piaeenza and Cremona . 211 
 
 70. German Conununes of Northern Italy . 216 
 
 71. Monte Rosa 217 
 
 72. The Lagoons of Comacchio . . . 220 
 
 73. The Fisheries of Comacchio . . . 221 
 
 74. Mouth of the Adige Valley . . .223 
 
 75. The Passages over the Alps . . . 224 
 
 76. ITie Lakes and Canals of Mantua • .227 
 
 77. Palmanova 229 
 
 78. Junction of the Alps and Apennines . . 231 
 
 79. Genoa and its Suburbs .... 234 
 
 80. Genoa 235
 
 LIST OF ILLUSTRilTIONS. 
 
 Slope 
 
 81. The Gulf of Siwzia . 
 
 82. The Golfolino of the Au\o 
 
 83. Defiles of the .iVrno . 
 
 84. Monte Argentaro 
 
 85. Val di Chiana . 
 
 86. The Lake of Bientina 
 
 87. The Malarial Kegions 
 
 88. Flouenxe .... 
 
 89. The Uarbour of Leghorn . 
 
 90. The Lake of Bolsona . 
 
 91. La Montagna d'Albano 
 9'2. Ancient Lake of Fucino 
 
 93. Lake of Trasiineno . 
 
 94. C.iMP.lGXA OF ItOMB . 
 
 9-5. Pontine JLarshes 
 
 96. Ancient Lakes of the Tiber and Topino 
 
 97. Cascades of Terni . 
 93. The Delta of the Tiber 
 99. Peas.vsts of the Kcman Campagxa 
 
 100. Rome 
 
 101. The Hills of Rome . 
 
 102. Ci\-ita Vecchia .... 
 
 103. Valleys of Erosion on the Western 
 
 of the Apennines . 
 lot. Rimini and San Marino 
 lOo. Monte Gargano .... 
 
 106. ^Vshes of the Campania 
 
 107. Ercption of Mount Vesuvius 
 
 108. Educational Map of Italy . 
 
 109. Pompeii ..... 
 
 110. The Marshes of Salpi 
 
 111. Harbour of Brindisi in 1871 
 
 112. Harbour of Taranto . 
 
 113. Strait of Messina 
 
 1 14. Profile of Mount Etna 
 
 115. Lava Stream of Catania 
 
 1 16. Subsidiary Cones of Mount Etna 
 
 117. The Maccalubas and Girgenti 
 
 118. Palermo akd Monte Pellegrixo 
 
 119. Trapani and Marsala 
 
 120. Sj-racuse 
 
 121. Temi'LE of Concord at Gibgenti 
 
 122. The Central Portion of the iEoIian Islands 
 
 123. The Mediterranean to the South of Sicily . 
 
 124. The Port of Malta . 
 
 125. The Sea to the South of Sardinia 
 
 126. Strait of Bonifacio 
 
 127. LaGiara . 
 
 128. District of Iglcsias 
 
 129. Cagliari . 
 
 130. Port of Terranova 
 
 131. Navigation of Italy 
 
 132. Commercial Routes of Itiily 
 
 133. Submarine Plateau between Coraic 
 
 Tuscany 
 
 PAOK 
 
 . 237 
 
 . 240 
 
 . 241 
 
 . 243 
 
 . 244 
 
 . 245 
 
 . 247 
 
 . 252 
 
 . 255 
 
 , 260 
 
 261 
 
 263 
 
 264 
 
 265 
 
 267 
 
 269 
 
 270 
 
 271 
 
 272- 
 
 276 
 
 278 
 
 281 
 
 283 
 285 
 287 
 289 
 292 
 297 
 301 
 305 
 307 
 308 
 310 
 311 
 313 
 314 
 317 
 324 
 326 
 328 
 329 
 332 
 334 
 336 
 339 
 340 
 345 
 348 
 350 
 351 
 355 
 356 
 
 FIO. PAOB 
 
 134. Profile of the Road from Ajaccio to Bastia 305 
 ise. Bastia 368 
 
 SPAIN. 
 
 136. Table-lands of Iberian Peninsula . . 371 
 
 137. Dehesiis near Madi'id ..... 375 
 
 138. Density of Population .... 376 
 
 139. Profile of RjiUway from Bayonne to Cadiz 379 
 
 140. SieiTas de Gredos and dc Gata . . .380 
 
 141. Defile of tub Tajo . . . .382 
 
 142. Steppes of New Castile . . . .384 
 
 143. Salamanca 388 
 
 144. The Alcazar of Segovia . . . 389 
 
 145. Toledo 390 
 
 146. Madrid and its Environs . . . .392 
 
 147. Aranjuez 394 
 
 148. Basins of the Guadiana and 6uadalqui\-ir . 395 
 
 149. The Pass of Despenaperros . . . 396 
 
 150. The Sierra Nevada . . . .397 
 
 151. The Mouth of the Guadalquivir. . .399 
 
 152. The Steppes of Ecija 402 
 
 153. Zones of Vegetation on the Coast of Anda- 
 
 lusia 403 
 
 154. The Mines of Iluelva 406 
 
 155. The Aliiambra 408 
 
 156. Cadiz and its Roadstead . . . .411 
 
 157. Gibraltar 413 
 
 158. Steppes of Miircia 416 
 
 159. The Palm Grove of Elche . . .418 
 IGO. The Palm Grove of Elche and the Iluertas 
 
 ofOrihuela 419 
 
 161. Ruins of the Dyke above Lorca . . 420 
 
 162. Peasants op Murcia .... 421 
 
 163. The Harbour of Cartagena . . . 423 
 
 164. ITie Grao de Valencia . . . .424 
 
 165. The Balearic Islands 426 
 
 166. View of Ibiza 427 
 
 167. The Pytiuses 42S 
 
 168. Port Miihon 430 
 
 169. The Delta of the Ebro .... 435 
 
 170. The Steppes of Aragon .... 436 
 
 171. The Environs of Barcelona .440 
 
 172. The Sand-banks of Mataro . . .441 
 
 173. Andorra 443 
 
 174. Jaizquibel 445 
 
 175. Azcoitia and Azpeitia .... 447 
 
 176. The Environs of Bilbao .... 441 
 
 177. St. Sebastian 450 
 
 178. St. Sebastian 451 
 
 179. (iuctaria 452 
 
 180. Guernica 453 
 
 181. Pass of Reinosa 454
 
 LIST OF ILLUSTRATIONS. 
 
 182. Penas do Europa 4oU 
 
 183. Ilias of La Corufia and Ferrol . . . 458 
 
 184. Santona and Santander . . . .40 
 
 185. Oviedo and Gijon 462 
 
 186. Tower of Hercules .... 463 
 
 187. Kia de Vigo 464 
 
 188. Railroads of the Iberian Peninsula . . 465 
 
 189. Foreign Commerce of the Iberian Peninsula 466 
 
 190. Diagram e.xhibiting the Extent of the Caa- 
 
 tilian Language 467 
 
 PORTUGAL. 
 
 191. Rainfall of the Iberian Peninsula 
 
 192. Portuguese Types (Peasants) 
 
 193. The Valley of the Limia, or Lima 
 
 194. Dunes of A voire 
 
 195. Oporto and the Paiz do Vinho . 
 
 470 
 472 
 475 
 476 
 478 
 
 196. Sao Joiio da Foz and the Mouth of the 
 
 Douro 480 
 
 197. COIMBRA 482 
 
 198. The Estuary of the Tejo (Tagus) . .483 
 
 199. Peniche and the Berlingiis . .485 
 
 200. Mouth of the Tejo 486 
 
 201. Zones of Vegetation in Portugal . . 488 
 
 202. Castle of Penka de Cintra . . . 489 
 
 203. Monastery of the Knights of Christ at 
 
 Thomar 491 
 
 204. Estuary of the Sado 492 
 
 205. Serra de Monchique and Promontory of 
 
 Sagres 493 
 
 206. Geology of Algarve 494 
 
 207. Faro and Ta^-ira 496 
 
 208. Geographical Extent of the Portuguese 
 
 Language 497 
 
 209. Telegraph from Lisbon to Rio de Janeiro. 498
 
 A UNIVEESAL GEOGEAPHY. 
 
 IXTKODUCTOEY EEMAEKS* 
 
 TR earth is but as an atom in space, a star amongst stars. Yet, to us 
 \i-ho inhabit it, it is still without bounds, as it was in the time of 
 our barbarian ancestors. Nor can we foresee the period when the 
 ^ybole of its surface will be known to us. We have been taught 
 I by astronomers and geodesists that our planet is a sphere flattened 
 at the poles, and physical geographers and meteorologists have applied their 
 powers of inductive reasoning to establish theories on the direction of the winds 
 and ocean currents within the polar regions. But hitherto no explorer has 
 succeeded in reaching the extremities of our earth, and no one can tell whether 
 land or sea extends beyond those icy barriers which have frustrated our most 
 determined efforts. Thanks to the struggles of indomitable seamen, the pride of 
 our race, the area of the mysterious regions around the north pole has been 
 reduced to something like the hundredth part of the earth's surface, but in the 
 south there still remains an unknown region of such vast extent, that the moon, 
 were she to drop upon our planet, might disappear within it without coming into 
 contact with any part of the earth's surface already known to us. 
 
 And the polar regions, which present so many natural obstacles to our 
 explorers, are not the only portions of the earth not yet known to men of science. 
 It may be Inmiiliating to our pride as men, but we feel constrained to admit that 
 among the countries not j-et known to us there are some, accessible enough as 
 far as natural obstacles are concerned, but closed against us by our fellow-mcu ! 
 There are peoples in this world, dwelling in towns, obeying laws, and ha'i-ing 
 customs comparatively polished, but who choose to live in seclusion, and are as 
 little known to us as if they were the inhabitants of some other planet. Their 
 frontiers are closed by war and its horrors, by the practice of slavery, by religious 
 
 • Hou2eau, " Histotre du Sol de I'Europe." — Carl Eitter, 
 Lags dcr HaupsUdle Europa'e." 
 
 vol.. I. -. B 
 
 'Europa." — Kohl, "Die Googiaphjsche
 
 2 INTEODUCTOEY EEMAEKS. 
 
 fanaticism, and even commercial jealousy. "We have heard of some of these 
 peoples by vague report, but there are others concerning whom we absolutely 
 know nothing. And thus it happens that in this age of steam, of the printing 
 press, of incessant and feverish activity, we still know nothing, or very little, of 
 the centre of Africa, of a portion of Australia, of the interior of that fine and 
 no doubt most fertile island of New Guinea, and of vast table-lauds in the centre 
 of Asia. Nay, even the country which most men of learning love to look upon as 
 the cradle of our Aryan ancestors is known to us but very imperfectly. 
 
 As regards most covmtries which have been visited by travellers, and figure 
 more or less correctly upon our maps, a great amount of further research is 
 required before our knowledge of their geography can be called complete. Years 
 wiU pass ere the erroneous and contradictory statements of our explorers con- 
 cerning them have been set right. A prodigious amount of labour must be 
 performed before their climate, their hydrography, their plants and animals, can 
 be thoroughly known to us. Minute and S3'stematic researches have to be 
 conducted to elucidate the slow changes in the aspects and physical phenomena 
 of many countries. The greatest caution vdll have to be exercised in distinguishing 
 between changes due to the spontaneous action of natural causes and those brought 
 about by the hand of man. And all this knowledge we must acquire before we 
 can boast that we know the earth, and all about it ! 
 
 Nor is this all. By a natural bent of our mind, all our studies are carried 
 on with reference to Man as the centre of all things. A knowledge of our planet 
 is, therefore, imperfect as long as it is not joined to a knowledge of the various 
 races of man which inhabit it. The earth which man treads is but imperfectly 
 known, man himself even less so. The first origin of races is shrouded in absolute 
 darkness, and the most learned disagree with reference to the descent, the 
 amalgamation, the original seats, and migratory stages of most peoples and 
 tribes. What do men owe to their surroundings ? What to the original seats 
 of their ancestors, to inborn instincts of race, to a blending mth alien races, 
 or to influences and traditions brought to bear upon them from beyond ? We 
 hardly knowj and as yet only a few rays of light begin to penetrate this darkness. 
 Unfortunately our erroneous views on many of these questions are not due solely 
 to ignorance. Contending passions and instinctive national hatreds too frequently 
 obscure our judgment, and we see man as he is not. The far-off' savages assume 
 the shape of dim phantoms, and our near neighbours and rivals in the arts of 
 civilisation appear repulsive and deformed of feature. If we would see them as 
 they really are, we must get rid of all our prejudices, and of those feeUngs of 
 contempt, hatred, and passion which still set nation against nation. Our fore- 
 fathers, in their wisdom, said that the most difficult thing of all was to know 
 one's self Surely a comprehensive study of manldnd is more difficult stiU. 
 
 We are thus not in a position at present to furnish a complete account of the 
 earth and its inhabitants. The accomplishment of this task we must leave to the 
 future, when fellow-workers from aU quarters of the globe will meet to write 
 the grand book embodying the sum of human knowledge. For the present an
 
 rXTEODUCTOUY KE5IAEKS. 8 
 
 indiA-idual author must rest content with giving a succinct account of the Earth, 
 in which the space occupied by each country shall be proportionate to its impor- 
 tance, and to the knowledge we possess with respect to it. 
 
 It is natural, perhaps, that each nation should imagine that in such a 
 description it ought to be accorded the foremost place. Every barbarous tribe, 
 however small, imagines itself to occupy the very centre of the earth, and to be the 
 most perfect representative of the human race. Its language never fails to bear 
 witness to this naive illusion, born of the very narrowness of its horizon. The 
 river which irrigates its fields is called the "Father of Waters," the mountain 
 which shelters its camp the "Navel," or "Centre of the Earth;" and the names 
 by which primitive races designate their neighbours are terms of contempt, for 
 thej- look down upon them as their inferiors. To them they are "mute," "deaf," 
 "unclean," "imbecile," "monstrous," or "demoniac." The Chinese, one of the 
 most remarkable peojjles in some respects, and certainly the most important of all 
 as far as mere numbers go, are not content with having bestowed upon their 
 country the epithet of " Flower of the Centre," but are so fully convinced of its 
 superiority as to have fallen into the mistake (very excusable under the circum- 
 stances) of deeming themselves to be the " Sons of Heaven." As to the nations 
 thinly scattered around the borders of their " Celestial Empii'e," they know them 
 merely as "dogs," "swine," "demons," and "savages." Or, more disdainful still, 
 they designate them by the four cardinal points of the compass, and speak of the 
 "unclean" tribes of the west, the north, the east, and the south. 
 
 If in our description of the Earth we accord the first place to civilised Europe, 
 it is not because of a prejudice similar to that of the Chinese. No ! this place 
 belongs to Europe as a matter of right. Europe as yet is the only continent the 
 whole of whose surface has been scientifically explored. It possesses a map 
 approximately correct, and its material resources are almost fully known to us. 
 Its population is not as dense as that of India or of China, but it nevertheless 
 contains about one-fourth of the total population of the globe ; and its inhabitants, 
 whatever their failings and vices, or their state of barbarism in some respects, still 
 impel the rest of mankind as regards material and mental progress. Europe, for 
 twenty-five centuries, has been the focus whence radiated Ai'ts, Sciences, and 
 Thought. Nor have those hardy colonists who carried their European languages 
 and customs beyond the sea succeeded hitherto in giving to the New World an 
 importance equal to that of "little" Europe, in spite of the virgin soil and vast 
 area which gave them scope for unlimited expansion. 
 
 Our American rivals may be more active and enterprising than we are — they 
 certainly are not cumbered to the same extent by the traditions and inheritances 
 of feudal times — but they are as yet not sufiiciently numerous to compete with us 
 as regards the totality of work done. They have scarcely been able hitherto to 
 ascertain the material resources of the country in which they have made their 
 home. " Old Europe," where every clod of earth has its history, where every man 
 is the heir of a hundred successive generations, therefore still maintains the fii-st 
 place, and a comparative study of nations justifies us in the belief that its moral 
 
 B 2
 
 4 lM'x>ULiUCruKY REMARKS. ' 
 
 ascendancy and industrial preponderance will remain with it for many years to come. 
 At the same time, we must not shut our eyes to the fact that equality wUl obtain 
 in the end, not only between America and Europe, but also between these two and 
 the other quarters of the world. The intermingling of nations, migrations which 
 have assumed prodigious proportions, and the increasing facilities of intercourse 
 must in the end lead to an equilibriiun of population being established throughout 
 the world. Then wUl each country add its proper share to the wealth of mankind, 
 and what we caU civilisation will have "its centre everywhere, its periphery 
 nowhere."' 
 
 The central geographical position of Europe has undoubtedly exercised a 
 most favourable influence upon the progress of the nations inhabiting it. The 
 superiority of the Europeans is certainly not due to the inherent virtues of the 
 races from which they sprang, as is vainly imagined by some, for in other parts of 
 the ancient world these same races have exhibited far less creative genius. To 
 the happy conditions of soil, climate, configuration, and geographical position the 
 inhabitants of Europe owe the honour of halving been the first to obtain a 
 knowledge of the earth in its entirety, and to have remained for so long a period 
 at the head of mankind. Historical geographers are, therefore, right when they 
 insist upon the influence which the configuration of a country exercises upon the 
 nations who inhabit it. The extent of table-lands, the heights of mountain 
 ranges, the direction and volume of rivers, the vicinity of the ocean, the indenta- 
 tion of the coast-Hne, the temperature of the air, the abundance or rarity of rain, 
 and the correlations between soil, air, and water — all these are pregnant with 
 effects, and explain much of the character and mode of life of primitive nations. 
 They accoimt for most of the contrasts existing between nations subject to 
 different conditions, and point out the natural highways of the globe which 
 nations are constrained to foUow in their migrations or warlike expeditions. 
 
 At the same time, we must bear in mind that the influence exercised upon 
 the history of mankind by the general configuration of land and sea, or any 
 special features of the former, is subject to change, and depends essentially upon 
 the stage of culture at which nations have arrived. Geography, strictly speaking, 
 confines itself to a description of the earth's surface, and exhibits the various 
 nations in a passive attitude as it were, whilst Historical Geography and statistics 
 show man engaged in the struggle for existence, and striving to obtaia the mastery 
 over his surroundings. A river, which to an uncultured tribe would constitute an 
 insurmountable barrier, becomes a commercial high-road to a tribe further advanced 
 m culture, and in process of time it may be converted into a mere canal of 
 irrigation, the course of which is regulated by man. A mountain range frequented 
 by shepherds and huntsmen, and forming a barrier between nations, may attract, 
 m a more civilised epoch, the miner and the manufacturer, and in course of time 
 wUl even cease to be an obstacle, as roads wiU traverse it in all directions. Many a 
 creek of the sea, which afforded shelter of yore to the small vessels of our ancestors, 
 IS deserted now, whilst the open bays, which vessels dreaded formerly, have been 
 protected by enormous breakwaters, and have become the resort of our largest ships.
 
 INTEODTJCTORY EEMAEKS. 6 
 
 Innumerable changes such as these have been effected by man in all parts of 
 the world, and they have revolutionised the correlations existing between man and 
 the land he lives in. The configuration and height of mountains and table-lands, 
 the indentation of the coasts, the dispo>;ition of islands and archipelagos, and the 
 extent of the ocean — these all lose their relative influence upon the history of 
 nations in proijortion as the latter emancipate themselves and become free 
 agents. Though subject to the condition of his dwelling-place, man may modify 
 it to suit his own purpose ; he may overcome nature as it were, and convert the 
 energies of the earth into domesticated forces. As an instance we may point to 
 the elevated table-lands of Central Asia, which now separate the countries and 
 peninsulas surrounding them, but which, when they shall have become the seats of 
 human industry, will convert Asia into a real geographical unit, which at present 
 it is only in appearance. Massy and ponderous Africa, monotonous Australia, and 
 Southern America with its forests and waterfalls, will be put on something like an 
 equality ■with Europe, whenever roads of commerce shall cross them in all 
 directions, bridging their rivers, and traversing their deserts and mountain ranges. 
 The advantages, on the other hand, which Europe derives from its backbone of 
 mountains, its radiating rivers, the contours of its coasts, and its generally well- 
 balanced outline are not as great now as they were when man was dependent 
 exclusively upon the resources furnished by nature. 
 
 This gradual change in the historical importance of the configuration of the 
 land is a fact of capital importance which must be borne in mind if we would 
 understand the general geography of Europe. In studying space we must take 
 account of another element of equal value — time.
 
 EUROPE. 
 
 I. — Extent and Boundaries. 
 
 HE dwellers on the eastern shores of the jrediterranean Sea mnst 
 liave learnt, in the course of their first warlike and commercial 
 expeditions, to distinguish between the great continents ; for within 
 the nucleus of the ancient world Africa is attached to Asia by a 
 narrov/ band of arid sand, and Europe separated from Asia Minor 
 by seas and channels difficult to navigate on account of dangerous currents. The 
 division of the known world into three distinct parts coidd not fail to impress itself 
 upon the minds of those infant nations, and when the Greeks had attained a state 
 of maturity, and historical records took the place of myths and oral traditions, the 
 name of Europe had probably been transmitted through a long series of genera- 
 tions. Herodotus naively admits that no mortal could ever hope to find out the 
 true meaning of this name, bequeathed to us by our forefathers ; but this has not 
 deterred our modern men of learning from attempting to explain it. Some 
 amongst them consider that it was applied at first to Thrace with its "large 
 plains," and subsequently extended to the whole of Europe ; others dei'ive it from 
 one of the surnames of Zeus with the " large eyes," the ancient god of the Sun, 
 specially charged with the protection of the continent. Some etymologists believe 
 that Europe was designated thus by the Phoenicians, as being the country of 
 " white men." We consider it, however, to be far more probable that its name 
 originally meant simply "the West," as contrasted with Asia, "the East," or 
 " country of the rising sun." It is thus 'that Italy first, and then Spain, bore the 
 name of Hesperia ; that Western Africa received the name of El Maghreb from 
 the Mohammedans, and the plains beyond the Mississippi became known in our 
 own times as the " Far West." 
 
 But, whatever may be the original meaning of its name, Europe, in all the 
 myths of the ancients, is described as a Daughter of Asia. The Phoenicians were 
 the first to explore the shores of Europe, and to bring its inhabitants into contact 
 with those of the East. When the Daughter had become the superior of her
 
 EXTENT AND BOHSDAEIES. 7 
 
 Motber in civilisation, and Greek voyagers were following up the explorations 
 begi'n by the mariners of Tyre, all the known countries to the north of tho 
 Mediterranean were looked upon as dependencies of Europe, and that name, which 
 was originally confined to the Thraco-Hellenic peninsula, was made to include, in 
 course of time, Italy, Spain, the countries of the Gauls, and the hyperborean 
 
 Fig. 1. — Thb Xatural Bousdart of Eubope. 
 Sciile 1 : 21,9(»,00a 
 
 
 >s^>-^ 
 
 { r- ■ - 
 
 r^^. 
 
 The zone of depression extending from the Black Sea to tho Gulf of Obi is shaded. The darker sh.. 
 to the north of the Caspian shows the area depressed below the level of the Mediterranean. 
 oO 3Ijles. 
 
 regions beyond the Alps and the Danube. Strabo, to whom were known already 
 the most varied and fruitful portions of Europe, extends it eastward as far as the 
 Palus ilax)tis and the Tanais.* 
 
 • Modem Sea of Azof and Eirer Don.
 
 8 EUEOPB. 
 
 Since that epoch the limits between Europe and Asia have been shifted hy 
 geographers still flirther to the east. They are, however, more or less con- 
 ventional, for Europe, though bounded on three sides by the ocean, is in reality 
 but a peninsula of Asia. At the same time, the contrasts between these two parts 
 of the world fully justify scientific men in dividing them into two continental 
 masses. But where is the true line of separation between them ? Map-makers 
 generally adopt the political boundaries which it has pleased the Eussian 
 Government to draw between its vast European and Asiatic territories, and others 
 adopt the summits of the Ural Mountains and of the Caucasus as the boundary 
 
 Fig. 2. — The Relief op Europe. 
 According to Houzeau, Bcrghaus, Kiepcrt, Olsen, and others. Scale 1 : CO.OOO.OOn 
 
 IM/Mrf vp toBoOteet abovx-Scd level 
 ^BS^a tfss than CSOfcet in depUi . 
 
 S29 Liad depress^ hehwltn^ of Utediterraneai^ 
 E3Jij nsor. than liOO [rtt m depLh 
 
 between the two continents ; and although, at the first glance, this delineation 
 appears more reasonable than the former, it is in reality no less absurd. The 
 two slopes of a mountain chain can never be assigned to different formations, and 
 they are generally inhabited by men of the same race. The true line of sepa- 
 ration between Europe and Asia does not consist of mountains at all, but, on the 
 contrary, of a series of depressions, in former times covered by a channel of the 
 sea which united the Mediterranean with the Arctic Ocean. The stejjpes of 
 the Manych, between the Black Sea and the Caspian, and to the north of the 
 Caucasus, are still covered in part with salt swamps. The Caspian itself, as well as 
 Lake Aral and the other lakes which we meet with in the direction of the Gulf of 
 Obi, are the remains of this ancient arm of the sea, and the intermediate regions 
 still bear the traces of having been an ancient sea-bed. 
 
 There can be no doubt that vast changes have taken place in the configuration
 
 NATUEAL DIVISIONS AND MOUNTAINS. 9 
 
 / 
 
 of Europe, not only during more ancient geological periods, but also within 
 comparatively recent times. "We have already seen that a vast arm of the sea 
 formerlv separated Europe from Asia ; it is equally certain that there was a time 
 when it was joined to Anatolia by an isthmus, which has since been converted into 
 the Bosphorus of Constantinople ; Spain was joined to Africa until the waters of 
 the Atlantic invaded the Mediterranean ; Sicily was probably connected with 
 ilaiiritania ; and the British Islands once formed a portion of the mainland. The 
 erosion of the sea, as well as upheavals and subsidences of land, has effected, and 
 still effect, changes in the contours of our coasts. Numerous soundings in the 
 seas washing Western Europe have revealed the existence of a submarine plateau, 
 which, from a geological point of view, must be looked upon as forming an integral 
 portion of our continent. Bounded by abyssal depths of thousands of iiithoms, 
 and submerged one hundred fathoms at most below the waters of the ocean, this 
 pedestal of France and the British Islands must be looked upon as the foimdation 
 of an ancient continent, destroyed by the incessant action of the waves. If the 
 shallow portions of the ocean, as well as those of the Mediterranean Sea, were to be 
 added to Europe, its area would be increased to the extent of one-fourth, but it 
 would lose, at the same time, that wealth in peninsulas which has secured to Europe 
 its historical superiority over the other continents. 
 
 If we supposed Europe to subside to the extent of one hundred fathoms, its 
 area would be reduced to the compass of one-half. The ocean would again cover her 
 low plains, most of which are ancient sea-beds, and there would remain above the 
 waters merely a skeleton of plateaux and mountain ranges, far more extensively 
 indented by bays and fringed by peninsulas than are the coasts existing at the 
 present time. The whole of Western and Southern Europe would be converted 
 into a huge island, separated by a wide arm of the sea from the plains of interior 
 Eussia. From an historical as well as a geological point of view, this huge 
 island is the true Europe. Eussia is not only half Asiatic on account of its 
 extremes of temperature, and the aspect of its monotonous plains and interminable 
 steppes, but' is likewise intimately linked with Asia as regards its inhabitants and 
 its historical development. Russia can hardly be said to have belonged to Europe 
 for more than a hundred years. It was in maritime and mountainous Exirope, 
 with its islands, peninsulas, and valleys, its varied features and unexpected 
 contrasts, that modem civilisation arose, the result of innumerable local civilisa- 
 tions, happilv im^ited into a single current. And, as the rivers descending from the 
 mount-ains cover the plains at their foot with fertile soU, so has the progress 
 accomplished in this centre of enlightenment gradually spread over the other 
 continents to the very extremities of the earth. 
 
 II. — Natural Divisioxs axd MorxxAiNS. 
 
 The Europe alluded to includes France, Germany, England, and the three 
 Mediterranean peninsulas, and constitutes several natural divisions. The British 
 Islands form one of these. The Iberian peninsula is separated scarcely less
 
 10 EUEOPB. 
 
 distinctly from the remainder of Europe, for between it and France rises a 
 most formidable range of mountains, the most difficult to cross in all Europe ; and 
 immediately to the north of it a depression, nowhere exceeding a height of 
 650 feet, extends from the Mediterranean to the Atlantic Ocean. The 
 geographical imity of Europe is represented to the full extent only in the S3'stem 
 of the Alps, and in the mountains of France, Germany, Italy, and the Balkan 
 peninsula which are connected with it. It is there we must seek the framework 
 of continental Europe. 
 
 The Alps, whose ancient Celtic name probably refers to the whiteness of their 
 snowy summits, stretch in an immense curve, more than 600 miles in length, 
 from the shores of the Mediterranean to the plains of the Danube. Thej' consist 
 in reality of more than thirty mountain masses, representing as many geological 
 groups, and joined to each other by elevated passes ; but their rocks, whether 
 they be granite, slate, sandstone, or limestone, form one continuous rampart rising 
 above the plains. In former ages the Alps were higher than they are now. This 
 is proved by an examination of their detritus and of the strata disintegrated 
 by natural agencies. But, whatever the extent of detrition, they still rise in 
 hundreds of summits beyond the line of perennial snow, and vast rivers of ice 
 descend from them into every upland valley. Looked at from the plains of 
 Piedmont and Lombardy, these glaciers and snow-fields present the appearance of 
 sparkling diadems encircling the mountain svunmits. 
 
 In the eastern portion of the Alpine system — that is to say, between the 
 Mediterranean and Mont Blanc, the culminating point of Europe — the average 
 height of the mountain groups gradually increases from 6,500 to more than 
 13,000 feet. To the east of Mont Blanc the Alps change in direction, and, 
 beyond the vast citadels represented by Monte Rosa and the Bernese Oberland, 
 they gradually decrease in height. To the east of Switzerland no summit exceeds 
 a height of 13,000 feet, but this loss in elevation is fully made up by increase of 
 breadth. And whilst the general direction of the principal axis of the Alps 
 remains north-easterly, very considerable mountain chains, far exceeding the 
 central mass in breadth, are thrown off towards the north, the east, and the 
 south-east. A line drawn across the true Alps from Vienna has a length of no 
 less than 250 miles. 
 
 In thus spreading out, the Alps lose their character and aspect. "We no longer 
 meet with grand mountain masses, glaciers, and snow-fields. Towards the north 
 they gradually sink down into the valley of the Danube ; towards the south they 
 branch out into secondary chains, resting upon the arched plateau of Turkey. 
 But, in spite of the vast contrasts ofiered by the true Alps and the moimtains of 
 Montenegro, the Hfemus, the Rhodope, and the Pindus, all these mountain chains 
 nevertheless belong to the same orographical system. The whole of the Balkan 
 peninsula must be looked upon as a natural dependency of the Alps ; and the same 
 applies to Italy, for the chain of the Apennines is nothing but a continuation 
 of the Maritime Alps, and we hardly know where to draw the line of separa- 
 tion between them. The Carpathians, too, must be included among the
 
 NATUEAL DIVISIONS AND MOUNTAINS. 11 
 
 mountain chains forming part of the system of the Alps. They have been 
 gradually separated from them through the continuous action of water, but there 
 can be no doubt that, in former times, the semicircle of mountains known as the 
 Little Carpathians, the Beskids, the Tatra, the Great Carpathians, and the Transyl- 
 vanian Alps was joined, on the one hand, to the Austrian Alps, and on the other 
 to spurs descending from the Balkan. The Danube has forced its waj' through 
 these mountain ramparts, but the passages, or "gates," are narrow; they arc strewn 
 with rocks, and commanded by what remains of the ancient partition ranges. 
 
 The configuration of the Alps, and of the labyrinthine mountain ranges branching 
 ofE from them towards the east, could not fail to exercise a most powerful influence 
 upon the history of Europe and of the entire world. The only high-roads known 
 to barbarians are those traced out by nature herself, and they were consequently 
 able to penetrate into Europe only bj' sea, or through the vast plains of the north. 
 Having penetrated to the westward of the Black Sea, their progress was first 
 stopped by the lakes and difficult swamps of the Danubian valley ; and, when 
 they had surmounted these obstacles, they found themselves face to face with a 
 barrier of high mountains, whose intricate wooded valleys and declivities led up 
 to the inaccessible regions of eternal snow. The Alps, the Balkan, and all the 
 other advanced chains of the Alpine system constituted an advanced defensive 
 barrier for "Western Europe, and the conquering nomad tribes who threw them- 
 selves against it did so at the risk of destruction. Accustomed to the boundless 
 horizon of the steppes, they did not venture to climb these steep hills — thev 
 turned to the northward, where the vast plains of Germania enabled successive 
 swarms of immigrants to spread over the countrj'with greater ease. And as to the 
 invaders, whom blind rage of conquest impelled to engage in the defiles of these 
 mountains, they found themselves caught as in a trap ; and this accounts for the 
 varietj' of nations, and of fragments of nations, whose presence has converted the 
 coimtries of the Danube into a sort of ethnological chaos. And as the debris 
 carried along bj' the current is deposited in the eddy of a river, so were these 
 fragments of nearly every nation of the East accumulated in raotlej' disorder in 
 this comer of the continent. 
 
 To the south of this great mountain barrier the migrations between Europe 
 and Asia could take place only by sea — a high-road open to those nations alone 
 who were sufficiently advanced in civilisation to have acquired the art of building 
 ships. Whether pirates, merchants, or warriors, they had raised themselves long 
 ago above a state of primitive barbarism, and even their voyages of conquest added 
 something to the stock of human knowledge. Moreover, owing to the difficulties 
 of navigation, they migrated only in small bodies. At whatever point thej' settled 
 they came into contact with populations of a different race from their own, and this 
 intercourse gave birth to a number of local civilisations, each bearing its own stamp, 
 and nowhere did their influence preponderate. Every island of the Archipelago, and 
 every valley of ancient Hellas, differed from its neighbours as regards social con- 
 dition, dialect, and customs, but they all remained Greek, in spite of the Phoenician 
 and other influences to which they had been subjected. It is thus owing to tho
 
 12 EUEOPB. 
 
 configuration of the mountain cuains and coast-lines that the civilisation which 
 developed itself gradually in the ^lediterranean countries to the south of the Alps 
 was, upon the whole, more spontaneous in its nature, and offered more variety 
 and greater contrasts, than the civilisation of the far less advanced nations of the 
 north, who were moving from place to place on vast plains. 
 
 The wide range of the Alps and of their advanced chains thus separated two 
 distinct worlds, in which historical development went on at a different rate. At 
 the same time, the separation between the two slopes of the Alpine system was by 
 no means complete. IN'owhere in the Alps do we meet with cold and uninhabited 
 plateaux, as in the Andes and in Tibet, whose enormous extent forms almost 
 insurmountable barriers. The Alpine masses are cut up everywhere into mountains 
 and valleys, and the climate of the latter is sufficiently mild to enable man to 
 exist in them. The mountaineers, who easily maintained their independence, 
 owing to the protection extended to them by nature, first served as intermediaries 
 between the peoples inhabiting the opposite lowlands. It was they who eflfected 
 the rare exchanges of produce which took place between the North and South, 
 and who opened the first commercial high-roads between the summits of the moun- 
 tains. The direction of the valleys and the dee 3I3' cut mountain passes even then 
 indicated the grand routes by which the Alps would be crossed, at a future period, 
 for the purposes of commerce or of war. That portion of the Alps which lies 
 between the mountain masses of Savoy and of the Mediterranean would natu- 
 rally cease first to form an obstacle to military expeditions. The Alps there 
 are of great height, it is true, but they are narrower than anywhere else ; besides 
 which, the climate on the two opposite slopes is similar, and assimilates the mode 
 of life and the customs of the people dwelling there. Far more formidable, as a 
 natural barrier, are the Alps to the north-east of Mont Blanc, for they constitute a 
 climatic boundary. 
 
 The other mountain ranges play but a secondary or local part in the history of 
 Europe, when we compare them with the Alps. Still, the influence which they 
 have exercised upon the destiny of nations is no less evident. The table-lands and 
 snow-fields of the Scandinavian Alps form a wall of separation between Norwegians 
 and Swedes. The quadrangular mountain fort of Bohemia, in the centre of Europe, 
 which shelters the Chechians, is almost entirely enclosed by Germans, and resembles 
 an island fretted by the waves of the ocean. The hills of "Wales and of Scot- 
 land have afforded a shelter to the Celtic race against the encroachments of 
 Anglo-Saxons, Danes, and Normans. The Bretons, in France, are indebted to 
 their rocks and landcs for the fact of their not having yet become wholly French ; 
 whilst the table-land of Limousin, the hills of Auvergne, and the Cevennes con- 
 stitute the principal cause of the striking contrast which still exists between 
 the inhabitants of Northern and of Southern France. The Pyrenees, next to 
 the Alps, constitute the most formidable obstacle to the march of nations in 
 Europe ; they would have remained an insurmountable rampart down to our 
 own time, were it not easy to pass round them by their extremities abutting upon 
 the sea.
 
 THE MAUITIME KEGIONS. 18 
 
 III. — The Maritime Kegions. 
 
 The valleys which radiate in all directions from the great central masses of the 
 Alps are admirably adapted for imparting to almost the whole of Europe a 
 remarkable unity, whilst they offer, at the same time, an extreme variety of aspects 
 and of physical conditions. The Po, the Rhone, the Rhine, and the Danube 
 traverse countries having the most diverse climates, and yet they have their 
 sources in the same mountain region, and the fertilising alluvium which they 
 deposit in their valleys results from the disintegration of the same rocks. Minor 
 valleys cut up the slopes of the Alps and of their dependent chains, and carry 
 towards the sea the waters of the moimtains and the triturated fragments of their 
 rocks. Running waters are visible, wherever we cast our eyes. There are 
 neither deserts, nor sterile plateaux, nor inland lakes and river basins such as we 
 meet with in Africa and Asia. The rivers of Europe are not flooded as are those 
 of certain portions of South America, which deluge half the country with water. 
 On the contrary, in the scheme of her rivers Europe exhibits a certain degree of 
 moderation which has favoured the work of the settler, and facilitated the rise of 
 a local civilisation in each river basin. Moreover, although most rivers are suffi- 
 ciently large to have retarded migration, they are not sufficiently so to have 
 arrested it for any length of time. Even when roads and bridges did not exist, 
 barbarian immigrants easily made their way from the shores of the Black Sea to 
 those of the Atlantic. 
 
 But Europe, in addition to the advantages due to its framework of mountains 
 and the disposition of its river basins, enjoys the still greater advantage of possess- 
 ing an indented coast-line. It is mainly the contours of its coasts which impart to 
 Europe its double character of unity and diversitj', which distinguish it amongst 
 continents. It is "one" because of its great central mass, and "diversified" 
 because of its numerous peninsulas and dependent islands. It is an organism, if 
 we may say so, resembling a huge body furnished with limbs. Strabo compared 
 Eui'ope to a dragon. The geographers of the period of the revival of letters 
 compared it to a crowned virgin, Spain being the head, France the heart, and 
 England and Italy the hands, holding the sceptre and the orb. Russia, at that 
 time hardly known, is made to do duty for the ample folds of the robe. 
 
 The area of Europe is only half that of South America, and one-third of that 
 of Africa, and yet the develoj)ment of its coast-lines is superior to that of the two 
 continents taken together. In proportion to its area the coasts of Europe have 
 twice the extent of those of South America, Australia, and Africa ; and although 
 they are to a small extent inferior to those of North America, it must be borne 
 in mind that the arctic coasts of the latter are ice-bound during the greater 
 portion of the year. A glance at the subjoined diagrams will show that Europe, 
 as compared with the two other continents washed by the Arctic Ocean, enjoys the 
 immense advantage of possessing a coast-lino almost wholly available for purposes 
 of navigation, whilst a large portion of the coasts of Asia and America is altogether 
 useless to man. And not only does the sea penetrate into the very heart of
 
 14 
 
 EUEOPE. 
 
 temperate Europe, cutting it up into elongated peninsulas, but these peninsulas, 
 too, are fringed with gulfs and miniature inland seas. The coasts of Greece, of 
 Thessaly, and of Thrace are thus indented by bays and gulfs, penetrating far into 
 the land; Italy and Spain likewise possess numerous bays and gulfs; and the 
 peninsulas of Northern Europe, Jutland and Scandinavia, are cut up by the waters 
 of the ocean into numerous secondary peninsulas. 
 
 3. — Development op Coast-lines iuslatively to Area. 
 
 SOUTH AMERICA 
 
 NORTH AMERICA 
 
 Europe. 
 4,00.5,100 
 3,758,300 
 
 Asia. 
 17,308,400 
 15,966,000 
 
 18,600 
 17,610 
 1 : 2-5 
 
 34,110 
 28,200 
 1 : 2-5 
 
 Africa. 
 
 11,542,400 
 
 11,293,030 
 
 16,480 
 
 16,480 
 
 1 : 1-4 
 
 N. America. 
 9,376,850 
 7,973,700 
 
 S. America. 
 6,803,570 
 6,731,470 
 
 30,890 
 26,510 
 1 ; 31 
 
 16,390 
 10,390 
 1 : 1-8 
 
 2,934,500 
 10,570 
 14,400 
 1: 1-7 
 
 Total area, square miles . 
 Mainland „ 
 
 Development of coast-liue, 
 
 miles 
 
 Accessible coasts .... 
 Ratio of the geometrical to 
 
 the actual contour . . . 
 
 The shaded circles I'cpresent the various continents ; the outer circle represents the actual extent of 
 coast-line. The blank space between the two concentric cii-cles represents graphically the diflerence 
 between the smallest possible or geometrical contour of a country having the area of the respective 
 continents, and the actual contour as exhibited in the existing coast-lines. Europe, beiug in reality only 
 a peninsula of Asia, hardly admits of this comparison. 
 
 The islands of Europe must be looked upon as dependencies of that continent, 
 for most of them are separated from it only by shallow seas. Candia and the 
 islands scattered broadcast over the JEgean Sea, the Archipelagos of the Ionian 
 Sea, and of Dalmatia, Sicily, Corsica and Sardinia, Elba, and the Baleares, are in 
 reality but prolongations, or maritime out-stations, of neighbouring peninsulas. To 
 the islands of Sealand and Fycn, at the entrance to the Baltic, Denmark owes
 
 THE JIAErrnTE EEGION. 15 
 
 most of her commercial and political importance. Great Britain and Ireland, 
 wliich actually formed a portion of the European continent in a p;ist age, cannot 
 be looked upon otherwise than as dependencies of it, although the isthmus which 
 once joined them has been destroyed by the waters of the ocean. England has 
 actuallv become the grand commercial emporiiun of Europe, and plays now the 
 same part in the world's commerce that Greece once played in that of the more 
 restricted world of the Mediterranean. 
 
 It is a remarkable fact that each of the European peninsulas should hare 
 enjoyed in turn a period of commercial preponderance. Greece, the " most noble 
 individuality of the world of the ancients," came fii'st, and when at the height of 
 her power governed the ilediterranean, which at that time meant nearly the whole 
 imi verse. During the Middle Ages Amalfi, Genoa, and Venice became the com- 
 mercial agents between Europe and the Indies. The discovery of a passage round 
 the Cape and of America diverted the world's commerce to Cadiz, Seville, and 
 Lisbon, on the Iberian peninsula. Subsequently the merchants of the small 
 Dutch Republic seized a portion of the heritage of Spain and Portugal, and the 
 wealth of the entire world was floated into the harbours of their sea-bound islands 
 and peninsulas. In our own days Great Britain, thanks to its favourable geo- 
 graphical position, in the very centre of great continental masses, and the energy 
 of its people, has become the great mart of the world. London, the most populous 
 city of the world, is also the great centre of attraction for the treasures of man- 
 kind; but there can be no doubt that sooner or later it will be supplanted, in 
 consequence of the opening of new commercial high-roads, and changes in the 
 political preponderance of nations. Perhaps some city of the United States will 
 fake the place of London ia a future age, and thus the American belief in the 
 westward march of civilisation will be verified ; or we may possibly return to the 
 East, and convert Constantinople or Caii'o into the world's emporium and centre of 
 intercourse. 
 
 But, whatever may happen in the future, the great changes which have taken 
 place in the relative importance of the peninsulas and islands of Europe in the 
 short span of twenty centuries, sufficiently prove that geographical features 
 exercise a varying influence at different epochs. That which at one time was 
 looked upon as a great natural advantage may become, in course of time, a serious 
 disadvantage. Thus the numerous inlets and gulfs enclosed by mountain chains, 
 which favoured the rise of the cities of Greece, and gave to Athens the dominion 
 of the Mediterranean, now constitute as many obstacles to their connection with 
 the existing system of European communications. That which in former times 
 constituted the strength of the country has become its weakness. In primitive 
 times, before man ventured upon the seas, these bays and gulfs formed insur- 
 mountable obstacles to the migration of nations ; at a later date, when the art of 
 navigation had been acquired, they became commercial high-roads, and were 
 favourable to the development of civilisation ; and at the present time they are 
 again obstacles in the way of oui- road-builders and railway engineers.
 
 16 EUEOPE. 
 
 IV. — Climate. 
 
 The influence exercised by the relief of the land and the configuration of the 
 coasts varies in different ages, but that of cliraate is ijermanent. In this respect 
 Europe is the most favoured region of the earth, for during a cycle of unknown 
 length it has enjoyed a climate at once the most temperate, the most equable, and 
 the most healthy of all continents. 
 
 Owing to the inland seas which penetrate far into the land, the whole of 
 Europe is exposed to the modifying influence of the ocean. With the exception 
 of Central Russia, no part of Europe is more than 400 miles from the sea, and, as 
 most of the mountains slope from the centre of the continent towards its circum- 
 ference, the influence of the sea breezes is felt throughout. And thus continental 
 Europe, in spite of its great extent, enjoys the advantages of an insular climate 
 throughout, the winds passing over the ocean moderating the heat of summer and 
 tempering the cold of winter. 
 
 The continuous north-easterly movement of the waters of the Atlantic likewise 
 has a favourable effect upon the climate of Europe. After having been heated by 
 a tropical sun in the Gulf of Mexico, the gulf-stream issues through the Strait of 
 Florida, and, spreading over the Atlantic, takes its course towards the coasts of 
 Europe. This enormous mass of warm water, equal in volume to twenty million 
 rivers as large as the Rhone, brings the warmth of southern latitudes to the 
 western and northern shores of Europe. Its influence is felt not only in the 
 maritime countries of Western Europe, but to some extent as far as the Caspian 
 and the Ural Mountains. 
 
 The currents of the air exercise as favourable an influence upon the climate of 
 Europe as do those of the ocean. The south-westerly winds predominating on the 
 coasts pass over the warm gulf-stream, and, on reaching Europe, they part with the 
 heat stored up by them between the tropics. The north-westerly, northerly, and 
 even north-easterly winds, which blow during a portion of the year, are less cold 
 than might be expected, for they, too, have to cross the warm waters of the gulf- 
 stream. And lastly, there is the Sahara, which elevates the temperature of a 
 portion of Europe. 
 
 The increase in temperature due to the combined influence of winds and 
 ocean currents amounts to 40°, 60°, and even 60°, if we compare Europe with 
 other parts of the world lying under the same latitudes. Nowhere else, not even 
 on the western coast of North America, do the isothermals, or lines of equal annual 
 temperature, ascend so high towards the arctic regions. The inhabitants of 
 Europe, though they may live 900 to 1,200 miles farther away from the equator, 
 enjoy as mUd a climate as do those of America, and the decrease of temperature 
 on going northward is far less rapid than in any other part of the globe. This 
 uniformity of temperature constitutes one of the most characteristic features of 
 Europe. The whole of it lies within the temperate region bounded by the 
 isothermal lines of 32° F. and 68° F., whilst in America and Asia that privileged 
 zone has only half this extent.
 
 CLIMATE. 
 
 17 
 
 This remarkable uniformity in the climate of Europe is exhibited not only in 
 its temperature, but likewise in the distribution of its rains. The seas vrashiuj 
 the shores of Europe supply all parts of it with the necessary amount of moisture. 
 There is no rainless district, nor, with the exception of a portion of the maritime 
 region of the Caspian and a small corner of Spain, anj' district where droughts 
 occasionally entail the entire loss of the harvest. Eains full not only regularly 
 every year, but in most countries they occur in every season, the only exception 
 being the coimtries of the Mediterranean, where autumn and winter are the real 
 rainy seasons. Moreover, in spite of the great diversity in the physical features of 
 Europe, the amount of rain is scarcely anywhere excessive, whether it descends as 
 a fine drizzle, as in Ireland, or in heavy showers, as in Provence and on the 
 
 Fig. 4. — The Isotrebhal Zoke or Eubope. 
 Scale 1 : 60,000,000. 
 
 >U>65ofl. 6i<>lo3?8on. JiSo to 63«o fl. orrr 656o ft. 
 
 southern slope of the Alps. The annual rainfall scarcely ever exceeds thirty-nine 
 inches, except on the flanks of certain mountain ranges which aiTest the passage 
 of currents charged with moisture. This uniformity and moderation in the rain- 
 fall exercise a regulating influence upon the course of the rivers, for even the 
 smallest amongst them, at all events those to the north of the Pyrenees, the Alps, 
 and the Balkan, flow throughout the year. They rise and fall generally within 
 narrow limits, and inundations on a vast scale are as rare as is want of water for 
 purposes of irrigation. In consequence of this regularity, Europe is able to derive 
 a greater advantage from its waters than other continents where the amount of 
 precipitation is more considerable. The Alps contribute much towards main- 
 
 VOL. I. c
 
 IS ETJEOPE. 
 
 taining a regular flow of the rivers ; tie excess of humidity which falls to their 
 share is stored up in the shape of snow and ice, which descend slowly into the 
 Talleys, and melt during the heat of summer. This happens just at a time when 
 the rivers gain least from rain, and lose most by evaporation, and some amongst 
 tiem woidd drv up if the ice of the mountains did not come to the aid of the 
 waters descending from the sky. It is thus that a sort of balance is established in 
 the economy of European rivers. 
 
 The climate of Europe is thus characterized by uniformity as a whole, and by a 
 compensatoiT action in its contrasts. Regularity and freedom from excess, sucii 
 as are not known in other continents, mark its ocean currents, its winds, its 
 temperature and rains, and the course of its rivers. These great advantages 
 have benefited its inhabitants in the past, and will not cease to do so in the 
 future. Though small in extent, Europe possesses by far the largest area of 
 acclimation. Man mav migrate from Russia to Spain, or from Ireland to Greece, 
 without exposing himself to any great risk of life. The inhabitants of the 
 Caucasus and the Urol Mountains were thus able to cross the plains and mountains 
 of Europe, and to establish themselves on the shores of the Atlantic. Soil and 
 climate are equally propitioiis to man, and enable him to preserve his physical and 
 intellectual powers wherever he goes. A migratory people might found new 
 homesteads in any part of Europe. Their companions of travel — the dog, the 
 horse, and the ox — would not desert them on the road, and the seed-corn which 
 they carry with them would yield a harvest wherever confided to the earth. 
 
 T. IXHABITAXTS. 
 
 A STTDT of the soil and a patient observation of climatic phenomena enable us 
 to appreciate the general influence exercised by the nature of the country upon 
 the development of its inhabitants ; but it is more diiBcult to assign to each race 
 or nation its due share in the progress of European civilisation. !No doubt, in 
 their struggles for existence, diflerent groups of naked and ignorant savages must 
 have been acted upon difierently, according to their numbers and physical strength, 
 their inborn intelligence, their tastes and mental tendencies. But who were those 
 primitive men who first turned to account the natural resources of the country in 
 which they dwelt ? We know not ; for, if we go back for a few thousand years, 
 every fijct is shrouded in darkness. We know nothing even as regards the origin 
 of the leading nations of Europe. Are we the " sons of the soil," and the " shoots 
 of oak-trees," as told in the poetical language of ancient tradition, or are we to 
 look upon the inhabitants of Asia as the ancestors to whom we are indebted for 
 our languages, and for the rudiments of our arts and sciences ? Or did those 
 inunigrants from a neighbouring continent settle down amongst an indigenous 
 population? Xot many years ago the Asiatic origin of European nations was 
 accepted as an established fact, and the original seats of our forefathers were 
 pointed out upon the map of Asia, Rut now most men of science are agreed to
 
 ETHNOGRAPHICAL MAP 
 
 F 
 
 E~DHDP1 
 
 l^'.GBa^-euslem.FR G.S 
 
 BASK. 
 
 CATCASIAN' 
 \ KAMITO-SE.\aTH: 
 ■ TNDO-(;F.RMA^■K"
 
 t C? LIMITED
 
 ^:
 
 INTIABITANTS. 10 
 
 seek our ancestors upon the very soil ^vhich we, their descendants, still occupv. 
 Caverns, the shores of oceans and lakes, and the alluvial beds of our rivers have 
 yielded the remains of human industry, and even human skeletons, which clearly 
 prove that long before these supposed immigrations from Asia there existed in 
 Europe tribes who had alre;idy made some progress in human industry. Even in 
 the childhood of history there existed tribes who were looked upon as aborigines, and 
 some of their descendants — as, for instance, the Basks — have nothing in common 
 with the invaders from the neighbouring continent. Nor is it universally admitted 
 that the Aryans — that is, the ancestors of the Pelasgians, the Greeks, the Latins, 
 Celts, Germans, and Slavs — are of Asiatic origin. Similarity of language niaj- 
 justify our belief in the common origin of the Aryans of Europe, the Persians, and 
 the Hindoos, but it does not prove that their ancestral home should be looked for 
 somewhere near the sources of the Oxus. Many men of learning * look upon the 
 Ajyans as aborigines of Europe, but certainty on this point does not exist. Xo 
 doubt, in prehistoric times, intermigrations between the two continents were 
 frequent ; but we hardly know what directions they took, and can speak with 
 certainty only of those migrations of peoples which are related by history. Wo 
 thus know that Europe sent forth to other continents Galatians, Macedonians, and 
 Greeks, and more recently inniunerable emigrants of all nationalities, and received 
 in turn Huns, Avares, Turks, Mongols, Circassians, Jews, Ai-menians, Moors, 
 Berbers, and members of many other nations. 
 
 Leaving out of consideration the smaller families of nations, as well as the 
 members of races who have not attained a national existence, Europe may 
 be described as consisting of three great ethnological divisions, the principal 
 boundary between which is formed by the Alps, the Carpathians, and the 
 Balkan. 
 
 The first of these great families of European nations, the members of which 
 speak Greco-Latin languages, occupies the southern slopes of the Balkan and of the 
 Alps, the Iberian peninsula, France, and a portion of Belgivun, as well as a few 
 detached territories within the limits of the ancient Eoman empire, altogether 
 surrounded by alien nations. Such are the plains of the Lower Danube and a 
 portion of Transylvania, which are inhabited by the Rumanians, and a few 
 secluded Alpine valleys inhabited by " Romans." On the other hand, fragments 
 of two ancient nations have maintained their ground in the midst of Latinised 
 populations, viz. the Celtic inhabitants of Brittany, and the Basks of the Pyrenees. 
 Generally speaking, however, all the inhabitants of South-western Eui-ope, whether 
 of Celtic, Iberian, or Ligurian race, speak languages derived from the Latin, and 
 whatever diffeieaces existed originally between these various populations, this 
 community of language has more or less obliterated them. 
 
 The Teutonic nations form the second great group. They occupy nearly the 
 whole of Central Europe to the north of the Alps, and extend through Holland and 
 Flanders to within a short distance of the Straits of Dover. Denmark and the 
 great Scandinavian peninsula, as well as Iceland, belong to the same group, and 
 
 • Latham, Beufey, Cuno, Spiegel, and others. 
 c 2
 
 20 
 
 EUEOPE. 
 
 the bulk of the inhabitants of the British Islands are likewise generally included 
 in it. The latter, however, should rather be described as a mixed race, for the 
 aboriginal Celtic population of these islands, which now exists pure only in a few 
 remote districts, has amalgamated -with Anglo-Saxon and Danish invaders, and 
 the language of the latter has become mixed with meditcval French, the 
 resulting idiom being almost as much Latin as Saxon. The development of 
 national characteristics has been favoured by the isolation in which the inha- 
 bitants of the British Islands found themselves, and they differ essentially from 
 continental neighbours — the Scandinavians, Germans, and Cclto-Latins — in lan- 
 guage and customs. 
 
 The Slavs, or Slavonians, form the third group of European nations. They are 
 less numerous than the Greco-Latins, but the territories they occupy are fiir more 
 extensive, for they spread over nearly the whole of Russia, over Poland, a large 
 portion of the Balkan peninsula, and about one-half of the Austro-Hungarian 
 monarchy. All the great plains to the east of the Carpathians are inhabited by 
 Slavs, either pure or mixed with Tartars and Mongols. To the west and south 
 of the mountains the race is split up into numerous small nations, and in the 
 valley of the Danube these come into contact with Rumanians, as well as with 
 Turks and Magyars, the two latter being of Asiatic origin, and these separate the 
 Slavonians of the north from the Slavonians of the south. In the north, Finns, 
 Livonians, and Lithuanians interpose between the Slavonians and the Germanic 
 nations.* 
 
 Race and language, however, arc not always identical. Members of one race 
 frequently speak the language of another, and race and linguistic boundaries, 
 therefore, differ frequently. As for the political boundaries, they scarcely ever 
 follow those natural features which would have been selected had their settlement 
 been intrusted to the spontaneous action of the different nations. They hardly 
 ever coincide with the boundaries of races or of languages, except in the case of a 
 few high mountain ranges or of arms of the sea. On many occasions the countries 
 of Europe were arbitrarily split up in consequence of wars or diplomatic arrange- 
 ments. A few peoples only, protected by the nature of their country as well as 
 
 Population of Europe, about 305,000,000 :— 
 
 Greeo-Latin. 
 
 Greeks . . . 2,600,000 
 
 Albanians 
 
 1,250,000 
 
 Italians . 
 
 27,700,000 
 
 French . 
 
 39,700,000 
 
 Spaniards and For 
 
 
 tuguese 
 
 20,210,000 
 
 Rumanians . 
 
 8,400,000 
 
 Itliaetians ("Romans") 42,000 
 99,902,000 
 
 Finns 
 Osmanli . 
 Jilagyars . 
 Tartars . 
 Calmucks 
 
 Gennanic. 
 Germans . . 63,400,000 
 Dutch and Flemish 6,720,000 
 Scandinavians . 5,640,000 
 Anglo-Saxons . 30,600,000 
 
 96,360,000 
 
 4,700,000 
 
 Celts . 
 
 1,300,000 
 
 Basks 
 
 6,770,000 
 
 Letts, &c. 
 
 2,500,000 
 
 Armenians 
 
 100,000 
 
 Gipsies . 
 
 
 Circassians 
 
 Included above are 4,500,000 Jews. 
 
 Slavonic, 
 Russians 
 Poles . 
 Czechians, ciu. 
 .Servians 
 Slovenes 
 Bulgarians . 
 
 59,000,000 
 11,800,000 
 6,750,000 
 5,750,000 
 1,200,000 
 3,100,000 
 
 87,600,000 
 
 1,600,000 
 700,000 
 
 2,900,000 
 280,000 
 690,000 
 400,000
 
 INHABITANTS. 21 
 
 hv ihcir valour, have maintained tbcir independence since the age of great migra- 
 tions, but many more have been swept away by successive invasions. Many others, 
 again, have alternately seen their frontiers expand and contract more than onco 
 even during a generation. 
 
 The so-called " balance of European powers," founded as it is iipon the rights 
 of war and ambitious rivalries between nations, is necessarily unstable. Nations 
 eminently fit to lead a common political existence are torn asunder on the one 
 side, whilst the most heterogeneous elements are thrown together on the other. In 
 those political arrangements the nations themselves are never consulted, but their 
 wishes and inclinations must nevertheless prevail in the end, and the artificial 
 edifice raised by warriors and statesmen will come to the ground. A true 
 " balauce of jjower " will only be established when every nation of the continent 
 shall have become the arbiter of its own destinies, when every pretended right of 
 conquest shall have been siirrendered, and neighbouring nations shall be at liberty 
 to combine for the management of the afiuirs they have in common. Our arbitrarj- 
 political divisions, therefore, possess but a transitory value. They cannot altogether 
 be ignored ; but in the following descriptions we shall, as far as possible, adhere 
 to the great natural divisions as defined by mountains and valle^-s, and by the 
 distribution of nations having the same origin and speaking the same language. 
 But even these natural boundaries lose their importance in countries like 
 Switzerland, inhabited by nations speaking diS'erent languages, but held together 
 by the strongest of all ties — the common enjoyment of freedom. 
 
 From an historical point of view a description of Europe should commence with 
 the maritime countries of the Mediterranean. It was Greece which gave birth to 
 our European ci\'ilisation, and which at one time occupied the centre of tlie known 
 world. Her poets first sang the praises of venturesome navigators, and her 
 historians and philosophers collected and classified the information received with 
 respect to foreign countries. In a subsequent age, Italy, in the very centre of the 
 Mediterranean, took the place of Greece, and for fifteen centuries maintained 
 herself therein : Genoa, Venice, and Florence succeeded Eome as the leaders of 
 the civilised world. During that period the surrounding nations gravitated 
 towards the Mediterranean and Italy ; and it was only when the Italians 
 themselves enlarged the terrestrial sphere by the discovery of a new world beyond 
 the ocean that this preponderance passed away from them, to remain for a short 
 time with the Iberian peninsula. Greece had been the mediator between Europe 
 and the ancient civilisations of Asia and Africa ; Spain and Portugal became the 
 representatives of Europe in America and the extreme Orient ; historical develop- 
 ment in its progress had followed the axis of the Mediterranean from east to west. 
 
 It will be found natural, imder these circumstances, when we describe the three 
 Mediterranean peninsulas in the same volume, particularly as they are peopled 
 almost exclusively by Greco-Latin nations. France, though likewise Latinised, 
 nevertheless occupies a distinct position. It is a Mediterranean country only as 
 respects Provence and Langucdoc, the rest of its territory sloping towards the 
 Atlantic. Its geographical position and history have made France the great
 
 22 
 
 EUROPE. 
 
 European thoroughfare iipon which the nations of the Mediterranean rnd of the 
 Atlantic meet to exchange their products and to fight their battles. Ideas are 
 imported into France from all parts of Europe, and she is called upon to act the 
 part of an interpreter between the nations of the North and of the South. Next to 
 France we shall describe the Germanic countries of Europe, the British Islands, 
 and Scandinavia ; and lastly, the immense empire of Russia.
 
 THE MEDITERRANEAN. 
 
 I. — Hydrology. 
 
 TlEECE and its insular satellites prove sufficiently that the unstable 
 floods of the IMediterranoan have exorcised a greater influence upon 
 the march of history than did the solid land upon which man trod. 
 Western civilisation would never have seen the light had not the 
 waters of the Mediterranean washed the shores of Egypt, Phoenicia, 
 Asia Minor, Hellas, Italy, Spain, and Carthage. The western nations would have 
 remained in their primitive barbarism if it had not been for the Mediterranean, 
 which joined Europe, Asia, and Africa ; facilitated the intercourse between Aryans, 
 Semites, and Berbers ; and rendered more equable the climate of the surrounding 
 countries, thus facilitating access to them. For ages it appeared almost as if man- 
 kind could prosper only in the neighbourhood of this central sea, for beyond its 
 basin only decaj'ed nations were to be met with, or tribes not yet awakened to mental 
 activity. " Like frogs around a swamp, so have we settled down on the shores of 
 this sea," said Plato ; and the sea he refers to is the Mediterranean, It is thereiore 
 deserving of description quite as much as the inhabited countries which surround 
 it. Unfortunately many mysteries still remain hidden beneath its waves. * 
 
 From an examination of the coasts, as well as from tlic traditions of the people 
 inhabiting them, we learn that the Mediterranean has varied frequently in its 
 contours and extent. The straits which connect its waters with those of the 
 ocean have frequently changed their position. At a time when peninsulas like 
 Greece, and even islands like JIalta, formed part of continental masses — and that 
 they did so in a comparatively "recent geological epoch is proved by their fossil 
 fauna — the waters of the Mediterranean covered largo portions of Africa, of 
 Southern Russia, and even of Asia. The researches of Spratt, Fuchs, and others 
 have satisfactorily proved that towards the close of the miocene age a vast frcsh- 
 
 • W- H. Smith, "The Jlediterranean." — Bureau de la Halle, "Geographie Physique do la Mcr 
 Noire et de la Mediterranee." — Bottger, " Das Mittelmcer."
 
 24 
 
 THE MEDITERRANEAN. 
 
 water laks stretclied from the banks of the Aral, across Eussia, the plains of the 
 Danube and the Archipelago, as far as Syracuse in Sicily. Then came the briny 
 waters of the ocean. There was a time when the Black Sea and the Caspian 
 connected the Archipelago with the Gulf of the Obi. At another epoch the gulfs 
 of the Syrtes penetrated far inland, and a large portion of what is now the Libyan 
 and Saharan desert was then covered with water. The Strait of Gibraltar, which 
 was torn asunder by Hercules according to the traditions of the ancients, is in 
 reality but of recent origin, and has taken the place of a more ancient strait which 
 joined the Mediterranean to the Red Sea and Indian Ocean : this strait has been 
 restored by human hands, and is known now as the Suez Canal. The coast-lines of 
 the Mediterranean are undergoing perpetual change, owing to the upheaval or 
 subsidence of the countries surrounding it. The Nile, the Po, the Rhone, and 
 other rivers incessantly enlarge the alluvial plains at their mouths, and still 
 further encroach upon the sea. Actually the Mediterranean, with its subordinate 
 
 Fig. 5.- 
 
 -The Depth of the Meditekbaxean. 
 Fi-om a Chart by M. Delesse. 
 
 seas from the Strait of Gibraltar to the Sea of Azof, covers an area about thirty 
 times that of the British Islands. This area is small if we compare it with the 
 immense development of the coasts and the wealth in peninsulas, which impart an 
 aspect of life and independence to at least one-third of the ancient world. The 
 Mediterranean, though it takes precedence of all the oceans, in consequence of the 
 part it has played in history, nevertheless only covers an area one-seventieth that 
 of the Pacific* It is broken up, moreover, into several separate seas, some of them 
 so small in extent that the na\'igator hardly ever loses sight of the land. In the 
 
 Area of the Mediterranean basin : — 
 
 (Europe 
 Africa : : : 
 , Mediterranean Sea 
 
 683,500 square miles. 
 
 232,000 „ 
 
 1,737,500 „ 
 
 1,153,300 „ 
 
 3,806,300
 
 nYDEOLOGY. 25 
 
 cast wc have the Bl:ick Sea, with its two dependencies, the Seas of Azof and of 
 Sfarmara. The Aigean Sea, or Archipelago, with its numerous islands, extends 
 between the deeply indented coasts of Greece, Asia Minor, and Crete. Tho 
 Adriatic stretches towards tho north-west, between the Balkan peninsula and 
 Italy ; and the Mediterranean proper is divided into two separate basins, which 
 might appropriately bo called the riicrnician and Carthaginian Seas, or the Greek 
 and Roman Mediterraneans. Each of these basins is again subdivided, tho one by 
 Crete, tho other by tho two islands of Sardinia and Corsica. These various 
 subdivisions of the Mediterranean differ in area, and still more in depth. The Sea 
 of Azof almost deserves the name of " Swamp," which was bestowed upon it by 
 the ancients, for if a ship sinks in it the masts remain visible above the water. 
 The Black Sea has a maximum depth of over 1,000 fathoms, but the narrow strait 
 which joins it to the Sea of Marmara is shallower than many a European river. 
 The cavity filled by the Sea of Marmara is far inferior to that of many an inland 
 lake ; and the Dardanelles, like tho Bosphorus, are hardly wider than a river. In 
 the Archipelago and tho eastern basin of the Mediterranean proper the depth 
 corresponds with the protuberance of the land. Abyssal dejjths and "pits" of 260 
 and even of 540 fathoms are to be found in close proximity to the scarped 
 mountain islands of the Cyclades, whilst on the low coasts of Egj'pt the water 
 deepens only gradually, until in the centre of the Levantine Sea it attains a depth 
 of 1,750 fathoms. The maximum depth — 2,170 fathoms — is attained between 
 Crete and ilalta. If the whole of the waters of the Mediterranean were to be 
 collected into an aqueous si^here, the latter would have a diameter of 90 miles ; 
 if it fell down upon the earth, it would not even wholly cover a country like 
 Switzerland. 
 
 The Ionian Sea is scjDarated from the Adriatic by a submarine ridge rising in 
 the Strait of Otranto, and bounded on the west by a shoal or submarine isthmus, 
 already referred to by Strabo, which joins Sicily to Tunis. This isthmus forms 
 the true geological boundary between the western and eastern basins of the 
 Mediterranean, which are connected here by a narrow breach only, the depth of 
 which hardly exceeds 100 fathoms. The western of these basins is the smaller and 
 shallower of the two, but nevertheless it attains a depth of 1,100 fathoms in the 
 Tyrrhenian, and of 1,360 fathoms and even 1,6-10 in the Balearic Sea, and is 
 separated from the waters of the Atlantic by a submarine ridge lying outside tho 
 Strait of Gibraltar, and joining Europe to Africa.* 
 
 This subdivision of the Mediterranean into separate basins, divided from each 
 other by shoals or submarine ridges, by islands and promontories, sufficiently 
 explains the contrasts between the phenomena of the open ocean and those observed 
 here. In the Mediterranean, it is well known, the tides are almost everywhere 
 irregular and uncertain. To the east of the Narrows of Gibraltar, in the sea 
 extending between Andalusia and Morocco, the tides are hardly felt at all, and 
 
 Western basin. 
 • Area . . . 365,200 
 
 Greatest depth, fathoms 1,640 
 Average depth, „ . 640 
 
 Eastern basin. 
 
 Adriatic. 
 
 ArcbipeLigo. 
 
 Bkck Sea. 
 
 Mediterranean. 
 
 602,000 
 
 60,200 
 
 60,600 
 
 185,300 
 
 1,163,300 
 
 2,170 
 
 605 
 
 640 
 
 1,070 
 
 2,170 
 
 960 
 
 110 
 
 320 
 
 320 
 
 640
 
 2G THE MEDITEEEANEAN. 
 
 they are, moreover, interfered with to such an extent by currents that it is exceed- 
 ingly difficult to determine their amplitude, or the establishment of the various 
 ports. Nevertheless the rise and fall of the tidal wave are suificiently marked to 
 have attracted the attention of Greek and Italian navigators. On the coasts of 
 Catalonia, France, Liguria, Naples, Asia Minor, Syria, and Egypt the oscillation 
 is hardly perceptible, but on those of Eastern Sicily and of the Adriatic the tide 
 sometimes rises three feet, and, if accompanied by storms, may even attain a height 
 of ten feet in certain localities. The Straits of ^lessina and of Euripo (Euboea) have 
 their regidar tides, and in the Gulf of Gabes the waters rise and fall with the same 
 regularity as in the open ocean. In the Black Sea, however, no tidal movements 
 
 Fig. 6. — The Strait of Gibraltar. 
 According to Eobiquet, Eandcgger, and others. Scale 1 : 750,000. 
 
 J)eptYi less ihan no fathoms 
 Depth no to 170 fathoms 
 
 ^^ Dfpth i-jo to 55o fathom 
 E^S Depth over SSo fathoms 
 
 25 Miles. 
 
 whatever have been discovered hitherto. It is nevertheless probable that more 
 careful observations will lead to the discovery of a feeble tide, for it is believed 
 that this phenomenon exists even on Lake Michigan, which has only one-iifth the 
 area of the Black Sea. 
 
 The Mediterranean differs not only from the open ocean with respect to the 
 feebleness and irregularity of its tides, but it is likewise without a great stream- 
 current keeping in constant circulation the whole body of its waters. The currents 
 which have been observed in various divisions of the Mediterranean can be ascribed 
 only to local causes. An Italian geographer of the last centurj^, Montanari, has
 
 HYDEOLOGT. 27 
 
 advanced an liypotliesis of a great circuit current wLich entered the !Mcdi!jrr.iiioan 
 through the Strait of Gibraltar, and, after having washed the shores of Africa as 
 far as Egypt, returned to the west along those of Asia and Europe ; but careful 
 obsei"vers have vainly endeavoured to discover its existence. They have met only 
 with local currents, produced by an indraught of the waters of tho Atlantic, by 
 winds, by the floods of rivers, or by an excess of evaporation. One of these 
 currents sets along the coasts of Slorocco and Algeria from west to east ; anolhcr 
 flows along the Italian coast of the Adriatic from north to south ; and a third 
 from the mouth of the Rhone in the direction of Cette and Port Vendres. In 
 fact, the configuration of the sea-bottom, and particularly the shoal between Sicilj' 
 and Tunis, precludes the existence of any but surface currents in the Mediter- 
 ranean. 
 
 Amongst the local currents the existence of which has been most clearly 
 established are those which convey the waters of the Sea of Azof into the Black 
 Sea, and those of the latter into the Archipelago. The Don more than makes up 
 for the loss by evaporation in the Sea of Azof, and its surplus waters find an exit 
 through the Strait of Kerch into the Black Sea. Similarly the waters of the 
 Dniester, tho Dnieper, the Bion, and of the rivers of Asia Minor, and, above all, of 
 the Danube, which by itself conveys a larger volume of water into the Black Sea 
 than all the others combined, are discharged through tho Bosphoiiis and the 
 Dardanelles into the Archipelago. On the other hand, the Archipelago returns to 
 the Black Sea, by means of a submarine coimter-current and of lateral surface 
 currents, a certain quantity of salt water for the fresh water which it receives in 
 excess. This exchange accounts for the salineness of the waters of the Black 
 Sea. The volume of fresh water discharged into it hy the Danube and other 
 rivers is so large that in the course of a thousand years its waters would become 
 perfectly fresh, if there did not exist these compensatory highly saline counter- 
 currents. 
 
 Analogous pnenomena take place at the other extremity of the Mediterranean. 
 Evaporation there is excessive, owing to the neighbourhood of the burning sands 
 of the deserts, the winds from which blow freely over the sea, absorbing the 
 vapours and dispersing the clouds. The loss by evaporation amounts to at least 
 seven feet in the course of a year, and as the annual rainfall is estimated to amount 
 to twentj' inches only, and the volume of water discharged annually by all the 
 tributary rivers of the Mediterranean, if uniformly spread over its surface, would 
 hardly exceed ten inches in depth, there exists thus an excess of evaporation 
 amounting annually to more than four feet ; and this excess has to be made good 
 by an inflow of the waters of the Atlantic, which takes place through the Strait of 
 Gibraltar, whose volume far exceeds that of the Amazon in a state of flood. This 
 inflow of the waters of tho Atlantic is felt, as a current, as far as the coasts of 
 Sicily, and, like all other currents, it is bounded by lateral currents flowing in a 
 direction contrary to that of the main current. During ebb the insetting Atlantic 
 current takes up the whole of the strait, but when the tide rises the Mediterranean 
 resists more successfully the pressure of the ocean, and this struggle gives birth to
 
 23 THE MEDITEEEANEAN. 
 
 two counter-currents, one of which skirts the coast of Europe, the other that of 
 Africa between Ceuta and Cape Spartel ; the latter is the larger and more powerful 
 of the two. In addition to these, there exists a submarine current, which convej's 
 the highly saline and heavier waters of the Mediterranean out into the Atlantic. 
 
 The quantity of salt held in solution in various parts of the Mediterranean 
 differs widely, as the submarine ridges and shoals which divide it into separate 
 basins do not permit its waters to mingle as freely as in the open ocean. Owing 
 to the excess of evaporation, the quantity of salt is greater on the whole than in the 
 Atlantic, and this is the case more particularly on the coast of Africa. But in the 
 Black Sea it is far less, and near the mouths of some of the largo rivers which 
 enter that sea the water is almost fresh.* 
 
 The temperature of the Mediterranean is affected bj^ the same causes which 
 produce its varying salineness, viz. the existence of shoals and banks, which 
 separate it into distinct sub-basins. In the open ocean the currents convey to all 
 latitudes largo bodies of water, some of them heated by a tropical sun, others cooled 
 by contact with the ice of the polar regions. But these layers of unequal density 
 are regularly superimposed one upon the other, owing to the differences in their 
 temperature : the warm water remains on the surface, whilst the cold water 
 descends to the bottom. In the Mediterranean an analogous superimpositlon 
 exists only to a depth of 110 fathoms, which is the depth of the Atlantic current, 
 flowing into it through the Strait of Gibraltar. If a thermometer be lowered to a 
 greater depth it will indicate no further decrease of temjDerature, and the immense 
 body of water, remaining almost still at the bottom of the Mediterranean, has an 
 equable temperature of about 56° F. Observations made at depths A-arying 
 between 110 and 1,G40 fathoms have always exhibited the same result. Professor 
 Carpenter believes, however, that the abj'ssal waters of some of the volcanic regions 
 have a somewhat higher temperature, which may be due to the presence of lava in 
 a state of fusion. 
 
 II. — Animal Life. Fisheries and Salt Pans. 
 
 Another remarkable feature of the abyssal waters of the Mediterranean consists 
 in their poverty of animal life. No doubt there is some life ; the dredgings of the 
 Porcupine and the telegraph cables, which, on being brought to the surface, were 
 found to be covered with shells and polypes, prove this. But, comjjared with those of 
 the ocean, the depths of the Mediterranean are veritable deserts. Edward Forbes, 
 who explored the waters of the Archipelago, arrived at the conclusion that their 
 abyssal depths were entirely devoid of life, but he was wrong when he assumed an 
 exceptional case like this to represent a universal law. Carpenter thinks that 
 this absence of life in the depths of the Mediterranean is due to the great quantity 
 of organic remains which is carried into it by the rivers. These remains absorb 
 the oxygen of the water, and part with their carbonic acid, which is detrimental to 
 
 • Quantity of salt held in solution in the Atlantic, 36 parts in 1,000 ; in the Mediterranean (mean), 
 38 parts ; in the Black Sea, 16 parts.
 
 ANIMAL LIFE. 29 
 
 auiiual life. In niimerous instances tho water of the Mediterranean contains only 
 one-fourth tlie normal quantity of the former gas, but fifty per cent, in excess of 
 the latter. To the presence of these organic remains the Mediterranean is 
 probably indebted for its beautiful azure colour, so different from the black waters 
 of most oceans. This blue, then, which is justly celebrated by poets, would thus be 
 caused by the impurity of the water. M. Delesse has shown that the bottom of 
 nearly the whole of the Mediterranean is covered with ooze. 
 
 The regions of the Mediterranean immediately below the surface abound in animal 
 life, particularly on the coasts of Sicily and Southern Italy; but nearly all i^pecies, 
 whether fish, testacea, or others, are of Atlantic origin. The Mediterranean, in 
 spite of its vast extent, as far as its fauna is concerned, is nothing but a gulf of the 
 Lusitanian Ocean. Its longitudinal extension and the similaritj- of climate in its 
 various portions have favoured the migration of animals through the Strait of 
 Gibraltar as far as the coasts of S}Tia. At the same time, animal life is most 
 varied near this point of entrj', and the species met with in the western basin are 
 generally of greater size than those which exist in the eastern. A very small pro- 
 portion of non -Atlantic species recalls the fiict that the Mediterranean formerly 
 communicated with the Red Sea and the Indian Ocean. But amongst a total of 
 more than eight hundred molluscs there are only about thirty which have reached 
 the seas of Greece and Sicily through the ancient straits separating Africa from 
 Asia, instead of through the Strait of Gibraltar.* The diminution in the number 
 of species in an easterly direction becomes most striking when we reach the narrow 
 channel of the Dardanelles and the Bosphorus. The Black Sea, in fact, differs 
 essentially from the Mediterranean proper as regards temperature. It is refri- 
 gerated by north-easterly winds sweeping over its surface, to the extent even of 
 portions of it becoming now and then covered with a thin coating of ice, adhering 
 to the coast. The Sea of Azof has frequently disappeared beneath a thick crust of 
 ice, and even the whole of the Black Sea has been frozen over in winters of 
 exceptional severity. The cold surface waters, together with those conveyed into 
 the Black Sea by large rivers, descend to the bottom, and prove most detrimental 
 to animal life. Echinodermata and zoophytes are not-met with at all in the Black 
 Sea; certain classes of molluscs, already rare in the Levantine Sea and the 
 Archipelago, are likewise absent ; and the total number of species of molluscs is 
 only one-tenth of what it is in the Mediterranean. Fish are numerous as far as 
 individuals go, but their species are few. In fact, the fauna of the Black Sea 
 appears to resemble that of the Caspian, from which it is cut off", rather than that 
 of the Greek seas, with which the Sea of Marmara connects it. 
 
 In addition to the species which have found a second home in the Mediterranean, 
 there are some that must still be looked upon as visitors. Such are the sharks, 
 which extend their incursions to the seas of Sicily, to the Adriatic, and even to the 
 coasts of Egypt and Syria. Such, also, are the larger cetacea — whales, rorquals, 
 and sperm whales — whose visits, however, are confined now to the Tyrrhenian 
 
 • There are found in the Mediterranean 444 fpecies offish (Gooiwin Auslcn), 850 species of moUusc3 
 (Jefircys), and about 200 species of foiaminiferse.
 
 yO THE MEDITEEEANEAX. 
 
 basin, and become less frequent from century to century. The tunny -fisb of the 
 Mediterranean are also visitors from tbe coasts of Lusitania. First-rate swimmers, 
 they enter througli the Strait of Gibraltar in spring, ascend the whole of the 
 Mediterranean, make the tour of the Black Sea, and return in autumn to the 
 Atlantic, after having accomplished a journey of some 5,600 miles. In the opinion 
 of the fishermen the tannics go upon their travels in three immense divisions or 
 shoals, and it is the central shoal which visits the coasts of the Tyrrhenian Sea, 
 and consists of the largest and strongest fish. Each of the three divisions appears 
 to be composed of iudividu.ils about the same age. For mutual protection they 
 swim in troops, for they are preyed upon by enemies innumerable. Dolphins and 
 other fish of prey follow their track, but their great destroyer is man. In the 
 summer the tunny fisherj^ or ionnaro, is carried on in numerous bays of Sicih', 
 Sardinia, Naples, and of Provence. Enormous structures consisting of nets 
 
 Fig. 7.— The Pkincipal Fisheries of the Mediteuranean. 
 Scale 1 : 38,300,000. 
 
 > Cr. S" 
 
 !5" So» 35° 
 
 enclose these bays, and they are ingeniously arranged so as to close gradually 
 around the captured fish, which, passing from net to net, find themselves at last in 
 the " chamber of death," where they are massacred. Millions of pounds of flesh 
 are annually obtained from these floating " slaughter-houses," yet the tunny 
 appears year after year in multitudes, and on the same coasts. There may have 
 been a slight decrease in the number, but their closely packed masses still invade 
 the " Golden Horn " of Byzance and other bays, as they did when first they 
 attracted the attention of Greek naturalists. 
 
 Next to the tunny fisheries those of the sardines and anchovies are most 
 important. Sea-urchins and other products of the sea are eaten by the inhabitants 
 of the coasts, particularly in Italy, but there is no part of the Mediterranean where 
 animal life is so abundant and so prodigious in quantity as on the celebrated 
 banks of Newfoundland, or on the coasts of Portugal or of the Canaries. 
 
 A large number of fishing-boats are engaged, not in the capture of fish, but in
 
 COMMERCE AND NAVIGATION. 81 
 
 the collection of articles of dress or of tbo toilet. The purple-shell fisheries on the 
 coasts of Phoenicia, the Peloponnesus, and Greece are no longer carried on, but 
 hundi-eds of bouts are employed annually during the fine season in fishing for coral 
 or sponges. 
 
 Coral is found most abundautlj- in tlie western portion of the Mediterranean, 
 and the Italian fishermen do not confine themselves to their own shores — to Sicily, 
 Najilcs, and Sardinia — but also yisit the Strait of Bonifacio, the sea off St. Tropez, 
 the vicinity of Cape Crcus in Spain, and the waters of Parbary. Ordinary 
 sponges are collected in the Gulf of Gabes, and at the other extremity of the 
 Mediterranean, on the coasts of Syria and Asia Minor, and in the straits winding 
 between the Cyclades and Sporades. Sponges are usually found at a depth of 
 from 12 to 150 feet, and can be gathered b}' divers ; whilst coral occurs at far 
 greater depths, and has to be wrenched ofi" with an iron instrument, which brings 
 up its fragments, mixed with ooze, seaweeds, and the remains of marine animal- 
 culrc. This industry is still in a state of barbari.sm : those devoted to it are not as 
 yet sufficiently acquainted with the sea and its inhabitants to enable them to carry 
 on the sponge and coral fisheries in a rational manner. Yet this they must aim 
 at : they must learn how to deprive Proteus, the ever-changing deity, of his 
 dominion over the inhabitants of the deep. 
 
 Next to the fisheries, the preparation of sea salt constitutes one of the leading 
 industries of the Meditei-rancan coast-lands. But this industrj', too, is frequently 
 carried on in a primitive way, and only in the course of the ^oresent century have 
 scientific methods been introduced in connection with it. The Mediterranean is 
 admirably suited for the production of salt, for its waters have a high temperature, 
 they hold a very largo quantity of salt in solution, the rise and fall of the tides are 
 inconsiderable, and flat seashores alternate with steep coasts and promontories. 
 The most productive salt marshes of the Mediterranean are probably those on the 
 Lagoon, or Etang de Thau, near Cette, and on the littoral of Hyeres ; but consider- 
 able ones may also be met with on the coasts of Spain, in Italj^ in Sardinia, 
 Sicily, Istria, and even on the "limans" of Bessarabia, bordering upon the Black 
 Sea. The annual production of salt is estimated at more than a million tons, and 
 exceeds, therefore, the entire tonnage of the commercial marine of France.* But 
 this quantity, large as it is, is infinitesimal if we compare it with the saline 
 contents of the sea, and science will enable us one daj' to raise a far more abundant 
 treasure from its sterile depths.f 
 
 III. CoMMEnCE AND NAVIGATION. 
 
 Whatever advantages may be yielded by fisheries and salt-works, they shrink 
 into insignificance if we compare them with the great gain — material, intellectual, 
 
 • The production of suit on the coasts of the Mediterranean is thus distributed among its coast- 
 lands ;— Spain, 200,000 tons ; France, 250,000 tons ; Italy, 300,000 tons ; Austria, 70,000 tons ; Eussia, 
 120,000 ; other countries, 200,000 tons. Total, 1,140,000 tons, valued at £480,000. 
 
 t The annual produce of the fisheries has been estimated at £3,000,000, of the coral fisheries at 
 £640,000, of the sponge Cbhcries at £40,000. Total, £3,080,000;
 
 82 THE MEDITEEEANEAN. 
 
 and moral — wliich mankind lias derived from the navigation of this inland sea. 
 It has repeatedly been pointed out by historians that the disposition of the coasts, 
 islands, and peninsulas of the Mediterranean of the Phoenicians and Greeks admi- 
 rably favoured the first essays in maritime commerce. Many causes have con- 
 tributed to make this sea the cradle of Euiopean commerce: the faint summits of 
 distant lands visible even before the port has been quitted ; numerous nooks along 
 the coasts where a safe refuge may be foimd in case of storms ; regular land and 
 sea breezes ; an equability of climate which makes the sailor feel at home wherever 
 business takes him ; and, moreover, a great variety of productions resulting from 
 the diverse configuration of the Mediterranean coast-lands. And this commerce, 
 does it not lead to a peaceful intercourse between peoples on neutral ground, and 
 to mutual enlightenment, brought about by an interchange of ideas ? Every 
 coast-line which facilitates the intercourse between nations is, therefore, of immense 
 value as a means of developing civilisation. 
 
 Civilisation for many centuries marched from the south-east towards the north- 
 west, and Phosnicia, Greece, Italy, and France have successively become great 
 centres of human intelligence. This historical phenomenon is due to the configura- 
 tion of the sea, which has been the vehicle of migratory nations. In fact, the axis 
 of civilisation, if this expression be allowed, has become confounded with that axis 
 of the Mediterranean which extends from the coast of Syria to the Gulf of Lions, 
 on the coast of France. But the Mediterranean has ceased to be the only centre of 
 gravitation of Europe, which sends its merchantmen now to the two Americas and 
 the farthest East ; and civilisation no longer marches in that general line from east 
 to west, but rather radiates in all directions. Civilising streams depart from 
 England and Germany towards Northern America, and from the Latinised countries 
 of Europe towards Southern America. Their direction is still westerly, but they 
 have been deflected towards the south, to meet the conditions imposed by climate 
 and the geographical configuration of land and sea. 
 
 It is interesting to trace the changes which have occurred in the historical 
 importance of the Mediterranean. As long as that sea remained the great highway 
 between nations, the commercial republics were content to extend this highway 
 towards the east, by establishing caravan routes to the Gulf of Persia, to India, and 
 to China. In the Middle Ages Genoese factories dotted the coasts of the Black Sea, 
 and extended thence through Trans-Caucasia as far as the Casjjian. European 
 travellers, and particularly Italians, at that time crossed Western Asia in all 
 directions ; and many a route hardly known in our days was then frequented almost 
 daily. But for several centuries direct commercial intercourse with Central Asia 
 has dwindled down to small proportions. 
 
 The Mediterranean had ceased to be a great ocean highway. Our navigators, 
 no longer dreading a boimdless sea, took their ships into every part of the ocean. 
 The diflicult and perilous land routes were abandoned, the once busy markets of 
 Central Asia became solitudes, and the Mediterranean itself a veritable blind alley, 
 as far as the world's commerce was concerned. This condition of affairs lasted for 
 many years, but since the middle of this century our relations with the East have
 
 COMMEECE AXD NAVIGATIOX. 83 
 
 been renewed, and the lost ground is rapidly being recovered. "Within the last 
 year a great commercial revolution has been effected through the oiiening of one 
 of the ancient gates of the Mediterranean, and the Suez Canal has become tho 
 great highway of steamers between "Western Europe, the Indies, and Australia. 
 Possiblj', at no distant future, a similar canal will enable our merchantmen to 
 proceed from the BlacK Sea to the Caspian, and perhaps even tj the Amu and the 
 Syr, in the very heart of the ancient continent. 
 
 It is thus that the great centres of intercommunication, or vital points of our 
 planet, as we should like to call them, become shifted in the course of time. Port 
 Said, an improvised town on a desert shore, has thus become a centre of attraction 
 for travellers and merchandise, whilst the neiglibouring cities of Tyro and Sidon 
 have dwindled down into miserable villages, with nothing to indicate the proud 
 position they held in the past. Carthage, too, has perished, and Venice decayed. 
 Many a thriving place on the shores of the Mediterranean has been reduced to 
 insigniticance through the silting up of its harbour, the employment of larger 
 vessels, the loss of independence, or through political changes of all kinds. But 
 in nearly every instance some neighbouring town has taken the place of these 
 decayed harbours, and most of the great routes of commerce have maintained their 
 original directions, and their terminal points, as well as intermediate stations, have 
 remained in the same localities. 
 
 There are, moreover, certain places which ships are almost obliged to frequent, 
 and where towns of importance arise as a matter of course. Such are the Straits of 
 Gibraltar and of Messina ; such, also, are places like Genoa, Trieste, and Saloniki, 
 which occupy the bottom of gulfs or bays penetrating far into the land. Ports 
 offering the greatest facilities for embarking merchandise intended for foreign 
 countries, such as Marseilles and Alexandria, are likewise natural centres of 
 attraction to merchants. One town there is in the Mediterranean which enjoys at 
 one and the same time every one of the geographical advantages which we have 
 pointed out, for it is situated on a strait connecting two seas and separating two 
 continents. This town is Constantinople, and despite the deplorable maladminis- 
 tration under which it suffers, its position alone has enabled it to maintain its 
 place amongst the great cities of the world. 
 
 The ports of the Mediterranean no longer enjoy a monopoly of commerce as 
 they did for thousands of years, but the number of ships to be met with in that 
 inland sea is, nevertheless, proportionately far greater than what we meet with on 
 the open oceans. The commercial marine of the Mediterranean numbers thirty- 
 seven thousand vessels, of a capacity of two million seven hundred and ninety-six 
 thousand tons, without counting lishing-boats. This is more than one-fourth of 
 the entire commercial marine of the world, as respects the number of ships, and 
 one-sixth of it as regards tonnage. This inferiority of tonnage is due to the small 
 vessels of ancient types which still maintain their ground in Greece and Italy, and 
 ■which possess certain advantages for the coasting trade. 
 
 To this marine of the Mediterranean should be added the vessels belonging to 
 foreign ports, which visit it for purposes of trade, and amongst which those of 
 
 VOL. I. V
 
 81 THE MEDITEEEANEAN. 
 
 England take the most prominent rank. The Government of Great Britain has 
 even taken care to secure itself a place amongst the Mediterranean powers. It has 
 occupied Gibraltar, at the western entrance to this basin, and taken possession of 
 Malta, which commands its centre ; and although the eastern entrance, formed by 
 the Suez Canal, is not in its possession, its garrisons on Perim and the rock of Aden 
 are able at any moment to close up the only approach to it which leads from the 
 Indian Ocean through the Red Sea. 
 
 The share which England takes in the commerce of the Mediterranean is 
 considerable, but it is surpassed by far by that of France and Italy. A sovereign 
 who aspired to the dominion of the world once spoke of the inland sea extending 
 from the Strait of Gibraltar to Egypt as a " French lake ; " but with equal justice 
 might it be called a Greek, a Dalmatian, or Spanish lake, and with still greater 
 an Italian lake. The pirates of Barbary were, in reality, the last " masters " of the 
 Mediterranean : their swift vessels presented themselves unexpectedly before the 
 
 Fig. 8. — Steamer Eoutes and Telegraphs in the Mediterranean. 
 Scale 1 : 45,000,000. 
 
 coast towns, and carried off their inhabitants. But since their predatory fleets 
 have been destroyed, the Mediterranean has become the common property of the 
 world, and the meshes of an international network of maritime highways become 
 closer from year to year. The merchantmen no longer pursue their voyages in 
 company as they did in former times, discharging their cargo from port to port, 
 for a single vessel may venture now into any portion of the Mediterranean in 
 safetj'. Still there remain the dangers of reefs and of storms. The art of naviga- 
 tion has made vast progress ; most of the capes, at least on the coasts of Europe, are 
 lit up by lighthouses ; the approaches to the ports are rendered easy by Kghtships, 
 buoys, and beacons ; but shipwrecks are nevertheless of frequent occurrence. Even 
 large vessels founder sometimes, without leaving a stray plank behind to indicate 
 the place of their disappearance. 
 
 Steamers travelling along prescribed routes are now gradually taking the 
 place of sailing vessels, and where they cross at frequent intervals they may be
 
 COMMERCE AND NAVIGATION. 35 
 
 likened to ferry-boats crossing a river. The regularity and speed of these steam 
 ferries ; the facilities which they afford for the conveyance of luercliandiso ; the 
 increasing number of I'aihvays which convey the produce of the interior to the 
 seaports ; and lastly, the submarine telegraphs, which have established instantaneous 
 means of commimication between the principal ports, all contribute towards the 
 growth of Mediterranean commerce. This commerce, including imports and 
 exports, and the transit through the Suez Canal, actually amounts to about 
 £353,000,000, a year.* This may not be much for a maritime population of a 
 hundred millions, but a perceptible increase is taking place from year to year. We 
 should also bear in mind that, face to face with the busy peninsulas of Europe, there 
 lies torrid Africa, an inert mass, avoided by the sailors of our own age as much as 
 it was by those of ancient Greece. Its coasts are hardly ever visited, with the 
 exception of those portions which extend from Orun to Tunis, and from Alexandria 
 to Port Said. It is matter of surprise, too, that certain localities which formerly 
 attracted crowds of vessels, such as Cyrenaica, Cyprus, and beautiful Crete, at the 
 very entrance to the Archipelago, should still remain outside the ordinary track 
 of our steamers. 
 
 • Shipping and commerce of the Mediterranean (estimated) : — 
 
 
 CojIMEKCIAL SIaUIXE. 
 
 SaU-vessels. Stcameis. Tonnage. 
 
 E.VTErED AKD 
 
 Cleaked. 
 Tons. 
 
 Valce of Expobts 
 
 AXD iMTOlilS. 
 
 £ 
 
 Spain (Mediterranean) 
 
 2,500 
 
 100 
 
 250,000 
 
 5,000,000 
 
 24,000,000 
 
 Franco ., 
 
 4,000 
 
 230 
 
 300,000 
 
 6,000,000 
 
 80,000,000 
 
 Italy 
 
 IS.SOO 
 
 140 
 
 1,030,000 
 
 21,000,000 
 
 104,000,000 
 
 Austria .... 
 
 3,000 
 
 92 
 
 380,000 
 
 8,000,000 
 
 1?,000,000 
 
 Gneco .... 
 
 5,400 
 
 20 
 
 502,000 
 
 8,500,000 
 
 8,000,000 
 
 Turkey in Europe and A^ia 
 
 2,200 
 
 10 
 
 210,000 
 
 25,000,000 
 
 24,000,000 
 
 Rumania .... 
 
 
 
 — 
 
 
 1,300,000 
 
 8,000,000 
 
 Russia (Mediterranean) 
 
 500 
 
 50 
 
 50,000 
 
 2,000,000 
 
 24,000,000 
 
 Egjpt 
 
 100 
 
 25 
 
 15,000 
 
 4.100,000 
 
 20,000,000 
 
 Malta and Gibraltar . 
 
 200 
 
 13 
 
 39,000 
 
 12,000,000 
 
 23,000,000 
 
 Algeria .... 
 
 170 
 
 — 
 
 10,000 
 
 2,000,000 
 
 16,000,000 
 
 Tunis, Tripuli, &c. . 
 
 500 
 
 680 
 
 10,000 
 
 500,000 
 
 4,000,000 
 
 
 37,370 
 
 2,796,000 
 
 95,300,000 
 
 353,000,000 
 
 T) 2
 
 GREECE. 
 
 I. — Gener.u. Aspects. 
 
 REEOE, within its confined political boundaries, to the south of the 
 Gulfs of Arta and Volo, is a country of about nineteen thousand 
 square miles, or at most equal to the ten-thousandth jDart of the 
 earth's surface. Within the vast empire of Russia there are many dis- 
 tricts more extensive than the whole of Greece, but there is nothing 
 which distinguishes these from other districts which surround- them, and their names 
 call forth no idea in our mind. The little country of the Hellenes, however, so 
 insignificant upon our maps — how many memories does it not awaken ! In no 
 other part of the world had man attained a degree of civilisation equally har- 
 monious in all respects, or more favourable to individual development. Even 
 now, though carried along within an historical cycle far more vast than that of 
 the Greeks, we should do well to look back frequently in order to contemplate 
 those small nations, who are still our masters in the arts, and first initiated us into 
 science. The city which was the " school of Greece " still remains the school of 
 the entire world ; and after twenty centuries of decay, like some of those extinct 
 stars whose luminous rays yet reach the earth, still continues to enlighten us. 
 
 The considerable part played by the people of Greece during many ages must 
 imdoubtedly be ascribed to the geographical position of their country. Other 
 tribes having the same origin, but inhabiting countries less happily situated — such, 
 for instance, as the Pelasgians of Illyria, who are believed to be the ancestors of 
 the Albanians — have never risen above a state of barbarism, whilst the Hellenes 
 placed themselves at the head of civilised nations, and opened fresh paths to their 
 enterprise. If Greece had remained for ever what it was during the tertiary 
 geological epoch — a vast plain attached to the deserts of Libya, and run over by 
 lions and the rhinoceros — would it have become the native country of a Phidias, 
 an .Jilschylos, or a Demosthenes ? Certainly not. It would have shared the fate 
 of Africa, and, far from talring the initiative in civilisation, would have waited for 
 an impulse to be given to it from beyond.
 
 GENERAL ASPECTS. 87 
 
 Greece, a sub-peninsula of the peninsula of the Balkans, was even more 
 completely protected by transverse mountain barriers in the north than was 
 Thracia or Macedonia. Greek culture was thus able to develop itself without fear 
 of being stifled at its birth by successive invasions of barbarians. Mounts 
 Olvmpus, Pelion, and Ossa, towards the north and east of Thessaly, consti tutcd the 
 first line of formidable obstacles towards Macedonia. A second barrier, the steep 
 rant^ of the Othrys, runs along what is the present political boundary of Greece. 
 To the south of the Gulf of Lamia a fresh obstacle awaits us, for the range of the 
 (Eta closes the passage, and there is but the narrow pass of the Thermopylae 
 between it and the sea. Having crossed the mountains of the Locri and descended 
 into the basin of Thebae, there stiU remain, to be crossed the Fames or the 
 spurs of the Cithiseron before we reach the plains of Attica. The " isthmus " 
 beyond these is again defende<l by transverse barriers, outlying ramparts, as it 
 were, of the mountain citadel of the Peloponnesus, that acropolis of all Greece. 
 Hellas has frequently been compared to a series of chambers, the doors of which 
 were strongly bolted ; it was difficult to get in, but more difficult to get out again, 
 owing to their stout defenders. Michelet likens Greece to a trap having three 
 compartments. You entered, and found yourself taken first in Macedonia, then in 
 Thessaly, then between the Thermopylte and the isthmus. But the difficulties 
 increase beyond the isthmus, and Lacedaemonia remained impregnable for a long 
 time. 
 
 At an epoch when the navigation even of a land-locked sea like the .^gean 
 was attended with danger, Greece found herself sufficiently protected against the 
 invasions of oriental nations ; but, at the same time, no other country held out such 
 inducements to the pacific expeditions of merchants. Gulfs and harbours facili- 
 tated access to her iEgean coasts, and the numerous outlying islands were available 
 as stations or as places of refuge. Greece, therefore, was favourablj- placed for 
 entering into commercial intercourse with the more highly civilised peoples who 
 dwelt on the opposite coasts of Asia Minor. The colonists and voyagers of Eastern 
 Ionia not only supplied their Achaean and Pelasgian kinsmen with foreign com- 
 modities and merchandise, but they also imparted to them the myths, the poetry, 
 the sciences, and the arts of their native country. Indeed, the geographical 
 configuration of Greece points towards the east, whence she has received her first 
 enlightenment. Her peninsulas and outlying islands extend in that direction ; the 
 harbours on her eastern coasts are most commodious, and afford the best shelter ; 
 and the mountain-surrounded plains there ofier the best sites for populous cities. 
 Greece, at the same time, does not share the disadvantage of Turkey, which is 
 almost cut off from the western world by a mountain region difficult to cross. 
 The Ionian Sea, to the west of the Peloponnesus, it is true, is, comparatively 
 speaking, a desert ; but farther north the Gulf of Corinth almost cuts in two the 
 Greek peninsula, and the sight of the distant mountains of Italy, which are visible 
 from the Ionian Islands, must have incited to an exploration of the western seas. 
 The Acamanians, who knew how to build vaults long before the Komans, were 
 thus brought early into contact with the Italians, to whom they imparted their
 
 83 GEBECE. 
 
 knowledge, find at a subsequent period the Greeks became the civilisers of tbe 
 whole westeru world of the Mediterranean. 
 
 The most distinctive feature of Hellas, as far as concerns the relief of the 
 ground, consists in the large niimber of small basins, separated one from the other 
 by rocks or mountain ramparts. The features of the ground thus favoured the 
 division of the Greek people into a multitude of independent republics. E very- 
 town had its river, its amphitheatre of hills or mountains, its acropolis, its fields, 
 pastures, and forests, and nearly all of them had, likewise, access to the sea. All 
 the elements required by a free community were thus to be found within each of 
 these small districts, and the neighbourhood of other towns, equally favoured, kept 
 alive perpetual emulation, too frequently degenerating into strife and battle. The 
 islands of the iEgean Sea, like^\'ise, had constituted themselves into miniature 
 republics. Local institutions thus developed themselves freely, and even the 
 smallest island of the Archipelago has its great representatives in history. 
 
 But whilst there thus exists the greatest diversity, owing to the configuration 
 of the ground and the multitude of islands, the sea acts as a binding element, 
 washes every coast, and penetrates far inland. These gulfs and numerous harbours 
 have made the maritime inhabitants of Greece a nation of sailors — amphibife, as 
 Strabo called them. From the most remote times the passion for travel has always 
 been strong amongst them. When the inhabitants of a town grew too numerous 
 to support themselves upon the produce of their land, they swarmed out like bees, 
 explored the coasts of the Mediterranean, and, when they had found a site which 
 recalled their native home, they built themselves a new city. It was thus Greek 
 cities arose in himdreds of places, from the Mseotis Palus to beyond the columns of 
 Hercules — from Tanais and Panticapa3um to Gades and Tingis, the modern Tangier. 
 Thanks to those numerous colonies, some of them more powerfid and renowned than 
 the mother towns which gave birth to them, the veritable Greece, the Greece of 
 science and art and republican independence, in the end overflowed its ancient 
 cradle, and sporadically occupied the whole circimiference of the Mediterranean. 
 The Greeks held the same position relatively to the world of the ancients which 
 is occupied at the present time by the Anglo-Saxons with reference to the entire 
 earth. There exists, indeed, a remarkable analogy between Greece, with its archi- 
 pelago, and the British Islands, at the other extremity of the continent. Similar 
 geographical advantages have brought about similar results, as far as commerce 
 is concerned, and between the ^gean and the British seas time and space have 
 'effected a sort of harmonj'^. 
 
 The admiration with which travellers behold Greece is due, above all, to the 
 memories attaching to every one of its ruins, to the smallest amongst its rivulets, 
 and the most insignificant rock in its seas. Scenery in Provence or Spain, though 
 it may surpass in grace or boldness of outline anything to be seen in Greece, is 
 appreciated only by a few. The mass go past it without emotion, for names like 
 Marathon, Leuctra, or Platseae are not connected with it, and the rustle of bygone 
 ages is not heard. But even if glorious memories were not associated with the
 
 GENERAL ASPECTS. 89 
 
 coasts of Greece, their beauty would nevertheless entitle them to our admiration. 
 In tho gulf of Athens or of Argos the artist is charmed not only with the azure 
 blue of tho waters, the transparency of the sky, the ever-changing perspective 
 along the shores, and the boldness of the promontories, but also with the pure aud 
 graceful profile of the mountains, which consist of layers of limestone or of marble. 
 TVe almost fancy wc look upon architectural piles ; and the temj^les with which 
 many a summit is adorned appear to epitomize them. 
 
 It is verdure and the sparkling water of rivulets which we miss most on tho 
 shores of Greece. Nearly all the mountains near the coast have been despoiled of 
 their large trees. There remain only bushes, mastic, strawbcrr}-, and juniper 
 trees, and evergreen oaks ; even the carpet of odoriferous herbs which clothes tho 
 declivities, and upon which the goat browses, has in many instances been reduced 
 to a few miserable patches. Torrents of rain have carried away the mould, and 
 the naked rock appears on the surface. From a distance we only see greyish 
 declivities, dotted here and there with a few wretched shrubs. Even in the daj's 
 of Strabo most mountains along the coasts had been robbed of their forests, and one 
 of owe modern authors says that " Greece is a skeleton only of what it used to be ! " 
 By a sort of irony, geographical names derived from trees abound throughout 
 Hellas and Turkey : Carytc is the " town of wahiut-trees," Valanidia that of the 
 Yalonia oaks, Kyparissi that of cypresses, Platanos or Plataniki that of plane- 
 trees. Everywhere we meet with localities M'hose appellation is justified b}'' 
 nothing. Forests at the present day are confined almost entirely to the interior 
 and to the Ionian coast. The (Eta Jlountains, some of the mountains of JEtolia, 
 the hills of Acamania, and Arcadia, Elis, Trijjhylia, and the slopes of the Taygetus, 
 in the Peloponnesus, still retain their forests. And it is only in these forest 
 districts, visited solely by herdsmen, that savage animals, such as the wolf, the fox, 
 and the jackal, are now met with. The chamois, it is said, still haunts the recesses 
 of the Pindus and (Eta Mountains ; but the wild boar of the ErjTnanthus, which 
 must have been a distinct species if we are to judge bj' antique sculjDtures, exists 
 no more in Greece, and the lion, still mentioned by Aristotle, has not been seen 
 for two thousand years. Amongst the smaller animals there is a turtle, common 
 in some parts of the Peloponnesus, which the natives look upon with the same 
 aversion as do many western nations upon the toad and the salamander. 
 
 Greece is a small country, but the variety of its climate is nevertheless great. 
 Striking differences in the climate of different localities are produced by the 
 contrasts between mountains and plains, woodlands and sterile valleys, coasts 
 having a northern or southern aspect. But even leaving out of sight these 
 local differences, it may safely be asserted that the varieties of climate which we 
 meet with in traversing Greece from north to south are scarcely exceeded in any 
 other region. The mountains of iEtolia, in the north, whoso slopes are covered 
 with beech-trees, remind us of the temperate zone of Europe, whilst the peninsulas 
 and islands towards the east and south, with their thickets of fig and olive trees, 
 their plantations of oranges and lemons, their aloe hedges and rare palm-trees, 
 belong to the sub-tropical zone. But even neighbouring districts occasionally
 
 40 GEEECE. 
 
 differ strikingly as regards climate. In the ancient lake basin of Bceotia the winters 
 are cold, the summers scorching, whilst the temperature of the eastern shore of 
 Euhoea is equable, owing to the moderating influence of sea breezes. Within a 
 narrow compass Greece presents us with the climates of a large portion of the 
 earth, and there can be no doubt that this diversity of climate, and the contrasts of 
 every kind springing from it, must have favourably influenced the intellectual 
 development of the Hellenes. A spirit of inquirj' was called forth amongst them 
 which reacted upon their commercial tastes and industrial proclivities. 
 
 The diversity of the cKmate of the land, however, is compensated for, in 
 Greece, by a uniformity in the climate of the maritime districts. As in a mountain 
 valley, the winds of the iEgean Sea blow alternately in contrary directions. 
 During nearly the whole of summer the atmospiheric currents of Eastern Europe are 
 attracted towards the African deserts. The winds from the north of the Archi- 
 pelago and Macedonia then speed the navigator on his voyage to the south, and on 
 many occasions the conquering tribes of the northern shores of that sea have 
 availed themselves of them in their improvised attacks upon the inhabitants of the 
 more southern districts of Asia Minor and of Greece. These regular northerly 
 currents, kno'wn as etesian or annual winds, cease on the termination of the 
 hot season, when the sun stands above the southern tropic. They are, moreover, 
 interrupted every night, when the cool sea air is attracted by the heated surface of 
 the land. When the sun has set the wind gradually subsides ; there is a calm, 
 lasting a few moments ; and then the air begins to move in an inverse direction — 
 " the land begins to blow," as the sailors say. Nor is this regular wind without 
 its counter-current, known as the embates, or propitious south-easterly breeze of 
 which the poets sing. General winds and breezes, moreover, are deflected from 
 their original directions in consequence of the configuration of the coast and the 
 direction of mountain chains. The Gulf of Corinth, for instance, is shut in by 
 high mountains on the north and the south, and the winds alternately enter it 
 from the east or west — a phenomenon likened by Strabo to the breathing of an 
 animal. 
 
 The rains, like the winds, deviate in many places from the average, and whilst 
 the water pours down into some mountain valleys as into a funnel, elsewhere the 
 clouds drift past without parting with a drop of their humid burden. Contrasts 
 in the amount of precipitation are thus added to those resulting from differences 
 of configuration and variety of climate. As a rule, rain is more abundant on the 
 western shores of Greece than on the eastern, and this fact accounts for the smiling 
 aspect of the hills of Elis, as compared with the barren declivities of Argolis and 
 Attica. Thunder-storms, driven before the winds of the Mediterranean, likewise 
 recur with greater regularity in the western portion of the peninsula. In Elis and 
 Acarnania the roll of thimder may be heard in spring daily, for whole weeks, in 
 the afternoon. No sites more apposite could have been found for temples dedicated 
 to Jupiter, the god of lightning. 
 
 The ancient inhabitants of the Cyclades, and probably, also, those of the coasts
 
 GENERAL ASPECTS. 41 
 
 of Ilcllas and Asia Minor, had already attained a considerable amount of culture 
 long before the commencement of our historical records. This has been proved by 
 excavations made in the volcanic ashes of Santorin and Therasia. At the time 
 their houses were buried beneath the ashes, the Santoriniotcs had begun to pass 
 from the age of stone into that of copper. Thej' knew how to build arches of 
 stone and mortar, they manufactured lime, used weights made of blocks of lava, 
 wove cloth, made pottery, dyed their stufl's, and ornamented their houses with 
 frescoes ; they cultivated barley, peas, and lentils, and had begun to trade with 
 distant countries. 
 
 "We do not know whether these men were of the same race as the Hellenes ; 
 but thus much is certain — that at the earliest dawn of history the islands and 
 coasts of the iEgcan Sea were peopled by various families of Greeks, whilst the 
 interior of the country and the western shores of the peninsida were inhabited by 
 Pelasgians. These Pelasgians, moreover, were of the same stock as the Greeks, 
 and they spoke a language derived from the same source as the dialects of the 
 Hellenes. Both were Aryans, and, unless natives of the soil, they must have 
 immigrated into Greece from Asia Minor by crossing the Hellespont, or by way of 
 the islands of the Archipelago. The Pelasgians, according to tradition, sprang 
 from Mount Lycacus, in the centre of the Peloponnesus ; they boasted of being 
 "autochthons," "men of the black soil," "children of oaks," or "men born before 
 the moon." All around them lived tribes of kindred origin, such as the ^olians 
 and the Leleges, and these were afterwards joined by lonians and Achtcans. 
 The lonians, who, in a subsequent age, exercised so great an influence over the 
 destinies of the world, only occupied the peninsula of Attica and the neighbouring 
 Euba?a. The Acha?ans for a long time enjoyed a preponderance, and in the end 
 the Greek clans collectively became known by that name. Later on, when the 
 Dorians had crossed the Gulf of Corinth where it is narrowest, and established 
 themselves as conquerors in the Peloponnesus, the Amphictyons, or national 
 councils, sitting alternately at Thermopylce and Delphi, conferred the name of 
 Hellenes, which was that of a small tribe in Thessaly and Phthiotis, upon all 
 the inhabitants of the peninsula and the islands. The name of Greek, which 
 signifies, perhaps, "mountaineer," "ancient," or "son of the soil," gradually 
 spread amongst the nation, and in the end became general. The lonians of Asia 
 Minor, and the Carians of the Sporades, emulated the Phoenicians by trading from 
 port to port amongst these half-savage tribes, and, like bees which convey the 
 fecundating pollen from flower to flower, they carried the civilisation of Egypt and 
 the East from tribe to tribe. 
 
 Phoenician merchants and Roman conquerors scarcely modified the elements 
 composing the ijopulation of Hellas, but during the age of migrations barbarians 
 in large numbers penetrated into Greece. For more than two centuries did the 
 Avares maintain themselves in the Peloponnesvis. Then came the Slavs, aided, on 
 more than one occasion, by the plague in depopulating the country. Greece became 
 a Slavonia, and a Slavonian language, probably Servian, was universally spoken, 
 aa is proved by the majority of geographical names. The superstitions and legends
 
 42 
 
 GEEECE. 
 
 of the modern Greeks, as has been remarked by many authors, are not simply a 
 herita-e derived from the ancient Hellenes, but have become enriched by phantoms 
 
 Pier. 9. — Mainote and Spartan. 
 
 and vaniplres of Slav Invention, The dress of the Greeks, too, is ^ j^S-y ^^^^^^^^^ 
 northern conquerors. But. in spite of this, the polished language of the Hellenes
 
 Gias'EBAL ASPECT?. 43 
 
 lias regained by degrees its ancient preponderance, and the race has so thoroughly 
 amalgamated these foreign immigrants, that it is impossible now to trace any 
 Servian elements in the population. But hardly had Hellas escaped the danger of 
 becoming Slav when it was threatened with becoming Albanian. This occurred 
 during the dominion of Venice. As recently as the commencement of the present 
 century Albanian was the dominant language of Elis, Argos, Bceotia, and Attica, 
 and even at the present day a hundred thousand supposed Hellenes still spe;ik 
 it. The actual population of Greece is, therefore, a very mixed one, but it is 
 difficult to say in what proportions these Hellenic, Slav, and Albanian elements 
 have combined. The Maiuotes, or Maniotes, of the peninsula terminating in 
 Cape Matapan, are generally supposed to be the Greeks of the purest blood. 
 They themselves claim to be the descendants of the ancient Spartans, and amongst 
 their strongholds they still point out one which belonged to " Signor Lycurgus." 
 Their Coimcils of Elders have preserved from immemorial times, and down to 
 the war of independence, the title of Senate of Laceda^monia. Every Mainote 
 professes to love unto death " Liberty, the highest of all goods, inherited from 
 our Spartan ancestors." Nevertheless, a good many localities in Maina bear 
 names derived from the SerA-ian, and these prove, at all events, that the Slavs 
 resided in the country for a considerable time. The Mainotes practise the 
 rendeifa, as if they were ilontenegrins. But is not this a common custom 
 amongst all uncivilised nations ? 
 
 However this may be, in spite of invasions and intermixture with other 
 races, the Greeks of to-day agree in most points with the Greeks of the past. 
 Above all things, they have preserved their language, and it is truly matter 
 for surprise that the vulgar Greek, though derived from a rural dialect, should 
 differ so slightly only from the literary language. The differences, analogous 
 to what may be observed with respect to the languages derived from the Latin, 
 are restricted almost to two points, viz. the contraction of non-accentuated 
 syllables and the use of auxiliary verbs. It was, therefore, easy for the modern 
 Greeks to purify their language from barbarisms and foreign terms, and to 
 restore it gradually to what it was in the time of Thucydides. Xor has the 
 race changed much in its physical features, for in most districts of modem 
 Greece the ancient types may yet be recognised. The Bceotian is still distin- 
 guished by that heavy gait which made him an object of ridicule amongst 
 the other Greeks ; the Athenian youth possesses the suppleness, grace of move- 
 ment and bearing which we admire so much in the horsemen sculptxired on 
 the friezes of the Parthenon ; the Spartan women have preserved that haughty 
 and vigorous beauty which constituted the charm of the virgins of Doris. As 
 regards morals, the descent of the modem Hellenes is equally evident. Like 
 their ancestors, they are fond of change, and inquisitive ; as the descendants 
 of free citizens, they have preserved a feeling of equality ; and, still infatuated 
 with dialectics, they hold forth at all times as if they were in the ancient 
 market-place, or Agora. They frequently stoop to flattery : like the ancient 
 Greeks, too, they are apt to rate intellectual merit above purity of morals.
 
 44 
 
 GREECE. 
 
 Like sage Ulysses of the Homeric poem, tliej- well know Low to lie and clieat 
 with grace ; and the truthful Acarnanian and the Mainote, who are " slow to 
 promise, but sure to keep," are looked upon as rural oddities. Another 
 trait in the character of the modern and ancient Greeks, and one which 
 distinguishes them from all other Europeans, is this — that they do not allow 
 themselves to be carried away by passion, except in the cause of patriotism. 
 The Greek is a stranger to melancholy : he loves life, and is determined to enjoy 
 it. In battle he .may throw it away, but suicide is a species of death 
 unknown amongst the modern Greeks, and the more unhappy they are, the 
 more they cling to existence. They are very seldom afflicted with insanity. 
 
 Fig. 10. — Foreign Elements in the Popvlation of Greece. 
 
 iMini Albanians 
 
 I FrencK, llalians 
 
 iTurts 
 
 Walachians 
 
 In spite of the diverse elements which compose it, the Greek nationality is 
 one of the most homogeneous in Europe. The Albanians, of Pelasgian descent 
 like the Greeks, do not cede to the latter in patriotism ; and it was they — the 
 Suliotes, Hydriotes, Spezziotes — who fought most valiantly for national independ- 
 ence. The eight hundred flimilies of Rumanian or Kutzo-Wallachian Zinzares 
 who pasture their herds in the hills of Acarnania and iEtolia, and are known as 
 Kara-Gunis, or " black cloaks," .speak the two languages, and sometimes marry 
 Greek girls, though they never give their own daughters in marriage to the 
 Greeks. Haughty and free, they are not sufficiently numerous to be of any great 
 importance. To foreigners the Greeks are rather intolerant, and they take no 
 pains to render their stay amongst them agreeable. The Turks — who were 
 numerous formerly in certain parts of the Peloponnesus, in Boeotia, and iu the
 
 CONTINENTAL GEEECE. 46 
 
 island of Eutoca, and wliose presence recalled an unbuppy period of servitude — 
 have fled to a man, and only the fez, the narghile, and the slippers remind us of 
 their former presence. The Jews, though met with in every town of the East, 
 whether Slav or Mussulman, dare hardly enter the presence of the Greeks, who 
 arc, moreover, their most redoubtable rivals in matters of finance : they are to be 
 found only in the Ionian Islands, where they managed to get a footing during 
 the British Protectorate. In this same Archipelago we likewise meet with the 
 descendants of the ancient Venetian colonists, and with emigrants from all parts 
 of Italy. French and Italian families still form a distinct element of the popu- 
 lation of Naxos, Santorin, and Syra. As to the Maltese porters and gardeners 
 at Athens and Corfu, they continue for the most part in subordinate positions, 
 and never associate with the Greeks. 
 
 The homogeneous character of the population of Greece does not admit of 
 that country being di\-ided into ethnological provinces, like Turkey or Austro- 
 Hungary, but it consists geographically of four distinct portions. These are 
 (1), continental Hellas, known since the Turkish invasion as Rumelia in 
 remembrance of the "Roman" empire of Byzantium; (2), the ancient Pelopon- 
 nesus, now called the Morea, perhaps a transposition of the word " Pomca," or 
 from a Slav word signifying " sea coast," and applied formerly to Elis ; 
 (3), the islands of the iEgcan Sea ; (4), the Ionian Islands. In describing the 
 various portions of Greece we shall make use, in prefprence, of the ancient names 
 of mountains, rivers, and towns ; for the Hellenes of our own day, proud of the 
 glories of the past, are endeavouring gradually to get rid of names of Slav or 
 Italian origin, which still figure upon the maps of their country.* 
 
 II. — Continental Greece. 
 
 The Pindus, which forms the central chain of Southern Turkey, passes over 
 into Greece, and imparts to it an analogous orograiDhical character. On both 
 sides of this conventional boundary we meet with the same rocks, the same 
 vegetation, the same landscape features, and the same races of people. By 
 dividing Epirus and handing over Thessaly to the Turks, European diplomacy 
 has paid no attention to natural features. The eastern portion of the boundary 
 is made to follow the line of water parting over the range of the lofty Othrys, 
 commanding the plain of the Sperchius. Westward of the Pindus the bouudarr 
 
 • Greece within its political limits : — 
 
 
 
 Area. 
 
 Populition 
 
 
 
 
 Bq.m. 
 
 11H70). 
 
 Density. 
 
 Continental Greece 
 
 
 . 7,558 
 
 4liG,918 
 
 62 
 
 Peloponnesus . 
 
 
 8,288 
 
 645,339 
 
 66 
 
 .Sgoan Islands 
 
 
 2,500 
 
 205,840 
 
 82 
 
 Ionian Islands 
 
 
 1,007 
 
 218,879 
 
 217 
 
 Army, navy, and sailors 
 
 
 
 
 20,868 
 
 — 
 
 
 Total 
 
 . 19,353 
 
 1,457,894 
 
 75
 
 40 
 
 GREECE. 
 
 crosses transversely the valley of the Achelous, and the hills which separate it 
 from the Gulf of Arta. 
 
 The isolated summit of Mount Tymphrestus, or Yelukhi, which rises where 
 the grand chain of the Othrys branches off from the Pindus, is not the culmi- 
 nating point of continental Greece, hut it is a centre from which the principal 
 mountain spurs and rivers radiate. Within its spurs lies hidden the charming 
 valley of Karpenisi, and an elevated ridge joins them, towards the south-east, 
 to the most important mountain mass of modern Greece, viz. the group sur- 
 mounted by the snow-clad pyramids of the Vardusia and Khiona, whose slopes 
 are covered with dark firs, and to the superb Katavothra, the ffita of the 
 ancients, on which Hercules built his funeral pile. The mountains of "N'ardusia 
 
 Fisr. 11. — Mov.NT PAKXAssrs and Delphi. 
 
 and Khiona are face to face with the fine mountain masses of Northern Morea, 
 likewise wooded and covered with snow during the greater part of the year. 
 
 The mountains of ^tolia, to the west of the Velukhi and the Vardusia, are 
 for less elevated, but they are rugged, and form a veritable chaos of rocks, 
 savage defiles, and thickets, into which only "WaUachiau herdsmen venture. In 
 Southern ^tolia, on the shores of the lakes and along the rivers, the country is 
 more accessible, but mountains rise there likewise, and by tortuous ridges they 
 are brought into connection with the system of the Pindus. Those on the coast 
 of Acarnania, opposite to the Ionian Islands, are steep, covered with trees and 
 shrubs ; they are the mountains of the " Black Continent " mentioned by Ulysses.
 
 CONTIXEXXAL GREECE. 47 
 
 To the cast of the Achelous there is another coast chain, well known to mariners : 
 this is the Zygos, the southern slopes of which, arid and austere, are seen from 
 oflF Jlissolonghi. Still further to the east another range comes down to the 
 seashore, and, together with tho promontories on the opposite coast of the Morea, 
 forms the narrow entrance to the Gulf of Corinth. Close to this entrance, on 
 the ^tolian side, there rises bold Mount Varassova, a huge block of rock. Local 
 tradition tells us that the Titans endeavoured to throw this rock into the sea, so 
 that it might form a bridge between the two coasts ; but the rock proved too 
 heavy, and it was dropped where we now see it. 
 
 Towards the ^-Egean Sea the mountain mass of the Katavothra is continued 
 by a coast range running in a direction parallel to the mountains of the island of 
 Euboea. This range should be described rather as a series of mountain-groups 
 separated from each other by deep hollows, extensive depressions, and even by 
 river valleys. These mountains, though low and intersected by numerous roads, 
 are nevertheless difficult of access, for their slopes are steep, their promontories 
 abrupt, and their precipices sudden, and in the times of the ancient Greeks a 
 small nimiber of men repeatedly defended them against large armies. At one 
 extremity of this range is the j^assage of Thermopylae ; at the other, on the 
 eastern foot of the Pentelicus, the famous plain of Marathon. 
 
 The mountain groups on the northern shore of the Gulf of Corinth, and to 
 the south of Bocotia, may be looked upon as a range running parallel with that 
 following the channel of Euboea, but far more beautiful and picturesque. Every 
 one of its summits recalls the sweet memories of poetry, or conjures up the 
 image of some ancient deity. To the west we find ourselves in the pre- 
 sence of "double-headed" Parnassus, to which fled Deucalion and Pyrrha, the 
 ancestors of the Greeks, and where the Athenians ■ celebrated their torchlight 
 dances in honour of Bacchus. From the summits of the Parnassus, which rival 
 in height those of the Khiona, raising its pyramidal head towards the north-west, 
 nearly the whole of Greece, with its gulfs, islands, and moxmtains, lies spread out 
 below us, from the Thessalian Olympus to the Taj-getus, at the extremity of the 
 Peloponnesus ; and close by, at our feet, lies the admirable basin of Delphi, the 
 place of Peace and Concord, where Greeks forgot their animosities. The 
 mountain group towards the east next to Parnassus is quite equal to it. The 
 valleys of the Helicon, the seat of Apollo and the Muses, are still the most 
 verdant and the most smiling in all Greece. The eastern slope of the Helicon is 
 more especially distinguished for its charming beauty, its woods, its verdant 
 pastures, gardens, and murmuring springs, which contrast most favourably with the 
 bare and arid plains of Bffiotia. If Mount Parnassus may boast of the Castalian 
 spring, Moxmt Helicon possesses that of Hippocrene, which burst forth from the 
 groimd when struck by the hoof of Pegasus. The elongated summit of the 
 Cithaeron, the birthplace of Bacchus, joins the mountains of Southern Ba?otia 
 to those of Attica, whose marble has become famous through the neighbourhood 
 of the city which they shelter. Mount Parnes rises to the north of Athens ; 
 to the east of it, like the pediment of a temple, rises the Pentelicus, in which are
 
 48 
 
 GEEECE. 
 
 the quarries of Pikermi, rendered famous through their fossil bones ; on the 
 south ajDpears Mount Hj-mettus, celebrated for its flowers and its bees. Farther 
 away, the Laurium, with its rich argentiferous slags, stretches towards the south- 
 east, and terminates in Cape Sunium, consecrated in other days to Minerva 
 and Neptune, and still surmounted by fifteen columns of an ancient temple. 
 
 Another isolated mountain group to the south of Attica, and occupying the 
 entire width of the Isthmus of Megara, served the Athenians as a rampart of 
 defence against their neighbours of the Peloponnesus. This is the mountain 
 group of Gerania, the modern Pera Khora.* Having passed beyond it, we find 
 ourselves upon the Isthmus of Corinth, properly so called, confined between the 
 Gulfs of Athens and of Corinth. It is a narrow neck of land, scarcely five miles 
 across, whose arid limestone rocks hardly rise two hundred feet above the sea. This 
 neutral bit of territory, lying between two distinct geographical regions, naturally 
 became a place for meetings, festivals, and markets. The remains of a wall 
 built by the Peloponnesians across the isthmus may still be traced, as may also 
 the canal commenced by order of Nero. 
 
 Tiie limestone mountains of Greece, as well as those of Epirus and of Thessaly, 
 abound in lakes, but all the rivers are swallowed up in "sinks," or Mtarothras, 
 leaving the land dry and arid. Southern Acarnania, a portion of which is 
 known as Xeromeros, or the "arid country," on account of the absence of run- 
 ning water, abounds in lake basins of this kind. To the south of the Gulf of 
 Arta, which may not inaptly be described as a sort of lake communicating with the 
 sea through a narrow opening, there are several sheets of water, the remains of an 
 inland sea, silted up by the alluvial deposits of the Achelous. The largest of these 
 lakes is known to the natives as Pelagos, or "big sea," because of its extent and 
 the agitated state of its waters, which break against its coasts. This is the 
 Trichonius of the ancient jEtolians. Ilej)uted unfathomable, it is, in truth, very 
 deep, and its waters are perfectly pure ; but they are discharged sluggishly into 
 another basin far less extensive, and surrounded by pestilential marshes, and 
 through a turgid stream they even find their way into the Achelous. The hills 
 surrounding Lake Trichonis are covered with villages and fields, whilst the locality 
 around the lower lake has been depopulated by fever. The country, nevertheless, 
 is exceedingly beautiful to look upon. Hardly have we passed through a narrow 
 gorge, or klisuva, of Mount Zygos before we enter upon a bridge over a mile 
 in length, which a Turkish governor caused to be thrown across the swamps 
 separating the two lakes. This viaduct has sunk down more than half its 
 
 Altitudes of mountains in continental Greece (in feet) : — 
 
 Gerakavuni (Othrys) 
 Velukhi (Tymphrestus) 
 Khiona .... 
 Vardusia 
 Katavothra (ffita) 
 Mountains of Acarnania 
 Yarassova 
 
 6,673 
 7,610 
 8,186 
 8,242 
 6,560 
 6,216 
 3,010 
 
 Liakura (Parnassus) 
 
 Pala;o\Tini (Helicon) 
 
 Elatea (Cithaeron) . 
 
 Parnes . 
 
 Pentelicus 
 
 Hymettus 
 
 Gerania (Pera Khora) 
 
 8,068 
 6,738 
 4,630 
 4,645 
 3,693 
 3,400 
 4,482
 
 CONTINENT.VL GREECE. 49 
 
 height into the mud, but it is still sufficiently elevated to enable the eye freely 
 to sweep over the surface of the waters, and to trace the coasts which bound them. 
 Oaks, planes, and wild olive-trees intermingle beneath us, their branches hung 
 with festoons of wild vine, and these, with the blue waters of the lake and 
 the mountains rising beyond it, form a picture of great beauty. 
 
 Another lake basin lies to the south of the Zygos, between the alluvial 
 lands of the Achelous and the Fidari. It is occupied by a swamp filled with fresh, 
 brackish, or salt water; and since the days of ancient Greece, this swamp, 
 owing to the apathy of the inhabitants, has continued to increase in extent at 
 the expense of the cultivated land. Missolonghi the heroic is indebted for its 
 name to its position near these marshes, for the meaning of it is "centre of 
 marshes." A barrier, or ramma, here and there broken through by the floods, 
 
 Fig. 12. — Lower Acarn.vxia. 
 Scale 1 : SOO.OOO. 
 
 separates the basin of Missolonghi from the Ionian Sea. During the war of inde- 
 pendence every opening in this barrier was protected by redoubts or stockades, 
 but at present the only obstruction consists of the reed barriers of the fishermen, 
 which are opened in spring to admit the fish from the sea, and closed in summer 
 to prevent their escape. Missolonghi, though surrounded by brackish water, is a 
 healthy place, thanks to the breezes from the sea ; whilst a heavj- atmosphere 
 charged ii\-ith miasmata hangs perpetually over the bustling little town of 
 ^toliko (Anatolikon), which lies farther to the north-west in the midst of the 
 swamps, and is joined to the dry land by two bridges. Between ^toliko and 
 the river Achelous may be observed a large number of rocky eminences, rising 
 like pyramids above the plain. These are no doubt ancient islands, such as 
 still exist between the mainland and the island of St. ilauro. The mud brought 
 down by the Achelous has gradually converted the intervals between these 
 
 VOL. I. B
 
 50 
 
 GREECE. 
 
 rocks into dry land. In former times the commercial city of (Eniadrc occupied 
 one of these islets. The geological changes already noticed by Herodotus are 
 thus still going on under our eyes, and the muds of the Achelous, to which it 
 owes its modern name of Aspro, or " white," incessantly extend the land at the 
 expense of the sea. 
 
 The Achelous, which the ancients likened to a savage bull, owing to its 
 rapid current and great volume, is by far the most important river of Greece. 
 One of the great feats ascribed to Hercules consisted in breaking off one of 
 the horns of this bull ; that is to say, he embanked the river, and thus protected 
 the lands which it used to inundate. The neighbours of the Achelous, the 
 
 Fig. 13.— Thermopyl.¥,. 
 From the French Staff Map (1852). Scale 1 ; 330,000. 
 
 1 khu, 
 
 -■ . '"'/„ 
 
 M 1 \^^^ K 
 
 Ancient Coast 
 .Ancient Rrver b' 
 
 } According to Leake 
 
 rapid Fidari (Evenu.?, on the banks of which Hercules killed the centaur 
 Nessus, for offering violence to Dejanira) and the Jlornos, which rises in the 
 snows of the (Eta, cannot compare with it. Still less is it equalled by the 
 Oropus, the Cephissus, and the Ilissus, " wet only when it rains," which flow 
 eastward into the iEgean Sea. The principal river of Eastern Greece, the 
 Sperchius, is inferior to the Achelous, but, like it, has extensively changed the 
 aspect of the plain near its month. When Leonidas and his three hundred heroes 
 guarded the defiles of Thermopylre against the Persians, the Gulf of Lamia 
 extended much farther into the land than it does now. But the alluvial deposits 
 of the river have extended its delta, and several rivulets which formerly flowed
 
 COXTIXEXTAL GBEECE. 51 
 
 directly into the sea have now to be numbered amongst its tributaries ; tbe sea baa 
 retired from the foot of tbe Callidromus for a distance of several miles ; and the 
 narrow pass of ThermopylaD has been converted into a plain sufficiently wide 
 to enable an entire army to manopuvre upon it. The hot springs which gush 
 from the rocks, by forming deposits of calcareous tufa, may likewise have con- 
 tributed towards this change of coast-line; nor are more violent convulsions of 
 nature precluded in a volcanic region like this, subject to frequent earthquakes. 
 Sailors still point out a small island in this neighbourhood, formed of scoriae, 
 from which the incensed Hercules hurled his companion, Lichas, into the ocean, 
 not springs abound on the opposite coast of Euboea, and the incrustations 
 fonucd by them are so considerable as to assume the appearance of glaciers 
 when seen from a distance. A bathing establishment e.\ists now near the hot 
 sulphur springs of Thermopyla?, and strangers are thus enabled to explore this 
 region, so rich in memories of a great past. The pedestal, however, upon 
 which reposed the figure of a marble lion, placed there in honour of Leonidas, 
 has been destroyed by ruthless hands, and utilised in the construction of a 
 mill ! 
 
 The basin of the Cephissus, enclosed by the chains of the (Eta and Parnassus, 
 is one of the most remarkable from an hydrological point of view. The river 
 first flows through a bottom-land formerly a lake, and then, forcing for itself a 
 passage through a narrow defile commanded by the spurs of Mount Parnassus, 
 it winds round the rock upon which stood the ancient city of Orchomenus, and 
 enters upon a vast plain, where swamps and lakes are embedded amidst culti- 
 vated fields and reed-banks. These swamps are fed, likewise, by numerous 
 torrents descending from the Helicon and other mountains in its vicinity. 
 One of these is the torrent of Livadia, into which the bounteous springs 
 of Memory and Oblivion — Mnemosyne and Lethe — discharge themselves. In 
 summer a large portion of the plain is dry, and it yields a bountiful harvest 
 of maize, the stalks of which are sweet like sugar-cane. But after the heavy 
 rains of autumn and winter the waters rise twenty, and even twenty-five feet, 
 and the plain is converted into a vast lake, ninety-six square miles in extent. The 
 myth of the deluge of Ogyges almost leads us to believe that the rising floods 
 occasionally invaded every valley which debouches into this basin. To tho 
 ancients the shallower part of this lake was known as Cephissus, and its deep 
 eastern portion as Copais, from Copce, a town occupying a promontory on its 
 northern shore, and now called Topolias. 
 
 The importance of regulating the floods jujt referred to, and of preventing 
 the sudden overflow of the waters to the destruction of the cultivated fields, 
 may readily be imagined. The ancient Greeks made an eSbrt to accomplish this 
 task. To the east of the large Lake of Copais there is another lake basin, about 
 one hundred and thirty feet lower, and encompassed by precipitous rocks, incapable 
 of cultivation. This basin, the Hylice of the Bmotians, appears to be made by 
 nature for receiving the superabundant waters of the Copais. The remains of a 
 canal may still be traced in the plain, which was evidently intended to convey into 
 
 e2
 
 52 
 
 GEEECB, 
 
 it tlie floods of the Copais, but it appears never to liave been completed. No 
 doubt care was taken to keep open the various katavothras, or subterranean 
 channels, through which the waters of the Copaic lake discharge themselves into 
 the sea. One of these, on the north-western shore of the lake, and close to 
 the rock of Orchomenus, swallowed up the river Melas, and conveyed its waters 
 to the Gulf of Atalanta. Farther to the east other subterranean channels flow 
 towards Lakes Hylice and Paralimni, but the most important of these channels 
 are towards the north-east, in the Gulf of Kokkino. In that extreme angle of 
 the lake, the veritable Copais, the waters of the Cephissus rush against the foot 
 of Mount Skroponeri, and are swallowed up by the ground so as to form a sub- 
 terranean delta. To the south there is a cavernous opening in the rock, but 
 this is merely a sort of tunnel passing underneath a promontory, and, except 
 
 Fig. 14. — Lake Copais. 
 Fi-om the Frencli StafE Map. Scale 1 : 500,000. 
 
 if 
 
 during the rainy season, it may be traversed diy-shod. Beyond this, another 
 opening swallows up one of the most important branches of the Cephissus, 
 •which makes its reappearance in the shape of bounteous springs pouring their 
 waters into the sea. Two other branches of the river disappear in the rocks 
 about a mile farther north. They join soon afterwards, and flow northwards 
 beneath the bottom of a sinuous valley. The old Greek engineers dug pits in this 
 valley, which enabled them to descend to the subterranean waters, and to clear away 
 obstructions interfering with their flow. Sixteen of these pits have been discovered 
 between the opening of the katavothra and the place where the waters reappear. 
 Some of these are still thirty to one hundred feet in depth ; but most of them have 
 become choked up with stones and earth. These ancient engineering works, which 
 Crates vainly endeavoured to restore in the time of Alexander, may possibly data
 
 ^" THE 
 
 'TY of ILLINOIS.
 
 I 
 
 PEASANTS FKOII THE ENVIEONS OF ATHENS.
 
 CCXTIKENTAL GREECE. 53 
 
 from the mythical age of King Minyas of Orchomenus,* and the successful drain- 
 ing of these marshes may account for the well-filled treasury of that king spoken 
 of by Homer. Thus the ingenuity of the Homeric age had succeeded in accom- 
 plishing a work of the engineering art which baffles our modern men of science ! 
 
 The whole of "Western Greece, filled as it is by the mountains of Acarnania, 
 ^tolia, and Phocis, is condemned by nature to play a very subordinate part to 
 the eastern provinces. In the time of the ancient Greeks these provinces were 
 looked upon almost as a portion of the world of the barbarians, and even in our 
 own days the ^toUans are the least cultivated of all the Greeks. There is no 
 commerce except at a few privileged places close to the sea, such as Missolonghi, 
 JEtoliko, Salona, and Galaxidi. The latter, which is situated on a bay, into 
 which flows the Pleistus, a river at one time consecrated to Neptune, although 
 quite dry during the greater part of the year, was, up to the war of inde- 
 pendence, the busiest seapor ton the GuK of Corinth. As for Xaupactus, or Epakto, 
 (called Lcpanto by the Italians), it was important merely from a strategical point 
 of view, on account of its position at the entrance of the Gulf of Corinth, which 
 is sometimes named after it. Many naval engagements were fought to force the 
 entrance into the gulf, defended by the castles of Rumelia and Morea — the ancient 
 Ehium and Antirrhium. A curious phenomenon has been observed in connection 
 with the channel which forms the entrance to the Gulf of Corinth. Nowhere 
 more than 36 fathoms in depth, it is subject to perpetual changes in its width, 
 owing to the formation of alluvial deposits bj* maritime currents. What one 
 current deposits is carried away by the other. At the epoch of the Peloponnesian 
 war this channel was 7 stadia, or about 1,200 yards, wide ; at the time of 
 Strabo its width was only 5 stadia ; whilst in our own days it is no less than 
 2,200 yards from promontory to promontory. The entrance of the Gulf of Arta, 
 between the Turkish Epirus and Greek Acarnania, does not present the same 
 phenomena, and its present width is about equal to that assigned to it by every 
 ancient author ; that is to say, about 1,000 yards. 
 
 The valleys and lake basins of Eastern Greece, and more especially its position 
 between the Gulf of Corinth, the iEgean Sea, and the channel of Euba-a, which 
 almost convert it into a peninsula, sufficiently account for the prosjjerity of that 
 country. "With its cities of Thebes, Athens, and Megara, it is essentially a 
 land of historical reminiscences. The contrast between the two most important 
 districts of this region — Boeotia and Attica — is very striking. The first of these 
 is an inland basin, the waters of which are collected into lakes, where mists 
 accumulate, and a rich vegetation springs forth from a fat alluvial soil. Attica, 
 on the other hand, is arid. A thin layer of mould covers the terraces of its rocky 
 slopes ; its valleys open out into the sea ; the summits of its mountains rise into 
 an azure sky; and the blue waters of the iEgean wash their base. Had the 
 Greeks been fearful of the sea ; had they confined themselves, as in the earliest 
 
 • Orc;.omcnu3, a tjxn on the Cejihiiaa', the capital of Northern Boeotia, destrorcd by the Thebana 
 371 B.C.
 
 54 
 
 GREECE. 
 
 ao-es, to the cultivation of the soil, Boeotia, no doubt, would have retained the 
 preponderance which it enjoyed in the time of the IMinysc of wealthy Orchomenus. 
 But the progress of navigation and the allurements of commerce, which proved 
 irresistible to the Greeks, were bound by degrees to transfer the lead to the 
 men of Attica. The city of Athens, which arose in the midst of the largest 
 plain of this peninsula, therefore occupied a position which assured to it a grand 
 future. 
 
 The choice of Athens as the modern capital of Greece has been much 
 criticized. Times have changed, no doubt, and the natural centres of commerce 
 have become shifted, in consequence of the migrations of nations. Corinth, on 
 
 The Acropolis of Athens. 
 
 the isthmus joining continental Greece to the Peloponnesus, and commanding two 
 seas, undoubtedly deserved the preference. Its facilities for communicating with 
 Constantinople and the Greek maritime districts still imder the rule of the 
 Osmanli, on the one hand, and with the western world, from which now proceed 
 all civilising impulses, on the other, are certainly greater than those of Athens. 
 If Greece, instead of a small centralised kingdom, had become a federal republic, 
 which would have been more in accordance with her genius and traditions, there 
 is no doubt that other towns of Greece, more favourably situated than Athens 
 for establishing rapid communications with the rest of Europe, would soon have 
 surpassed that town in population and commercial wealth. Athens, however, 
 has grown upon its plain, and, by the construction of a railway, it has become even
 
 CONTINENTAL GREECE. 
 
 65 
 
 a maritime city, as iu ancient days, when its triple walls joiuctl it to the ports of 
 the Pii-icus and l*halerum. 
 
 But how great the difference between the monuments of the ancient city and 
 of the modern ! The Parthenon, though gutted by the shells of tlic Venetian 
 Morosiui, and robbed since of its finest sculptures, still retains its pure and simple 
 beauty, which agrees so well with the sobriety of the surrounding landscape — still 
 remains the finest architectural work of the world. By the side of this 
 majestic ruin, on the same plateau of the Acropolis, where the mariner in the 
 Gulf of -I'Egiua saw the gilt spear-head of Athene Promachcs glitter iu the sun, 
 there rise other monuments, the Erechtheum and tlio Propyhea, hardly inferior 
 to it, and dating likewise from the great period of art. Ouf.':idc the city, on a 
 
 Fig. 16. — Athens and its Lono Walls. 
 AccordinK to Kicpcrt and ScbniiJt. Scale 1 : 111,000. 
 
 -r 
 
 
 promontory, rises the temple of Theseus, the best-preserved monument of Greek 
 antiquity. Elsewhere, on the banks of the Ilissus, a group of columns 
 marks the site of the magnificent temple of Olympian Jupiter, which it took the 
 Athenians seven hundred years to build, and which their degenerate descendants 
 made use of as a quarry. Remarkable remains have been discovered in many 
 other parts of the ancient city, and the least of them are of interest, for they 
 recall the memory of illustrious men. On such a rock sat the Areopagus Avhich 
 condemned Socrates ; from this stone tribune Demosthenes addressed the multi- 
 tude ; and here walked Plato with his disciples ! 
 
 A similar historical interest attaches to nearly every part of Attica, whether 
 we visit the city of Eleusis, where the mvsteries of Ceres were celebrated, or the
 
 56 
 
 GREECE. 
 
 city of Megara, witli its double Acropolis, or whether we explore the field of 
 Marathon and the shores of the island of Salamis. Even beyond Attica the 
 memories of the past attract the traveller to Platasa, to Leuctra, Chteronea, Thebes 
 of GEdipus, and Orchomenus of Minyas, though, in comparison with what these 
 districts were in other times, they are now deserts. In addition to Athens and 
 Thebes, there are now only two cities in eastern continental Greece which are of 
 any importance. These are Lamia, in the midst of the low plains of the 
 Sjoerchius, and Livadia, in Bceotia, at one time celebrated for the cavern of 
 Trophonius, which archfcologists have not yet succeeded in identifying. The 
 island of iEgina, which belongs to Attica, offers the same spectacle of decay and 
 depopulation as the mainland. Anciently it supported more than two hundred 
 thousand inhabitants ; at present it hardly numbers six thousand. But the island 
 
 Fig. 17. — Ancient Athens. 
 According to Kiepert and Sclimidt. Scale 1 : S0,000. 
 
 K ;:. t;vi :i:g :i'\' /' . 
 
 -\ \. Ai... , ,..,/.. 
 
 still retains the picturesque ruin of its temple of Minerva, and the prospect which 
 it aifords of the amphitheatre of hills in Argolis and Attica is as magnificent 
 as ever. 
 
 III. — The Morea, or Peloponnesus. 
 
 Geographically the Peloponnesus well deserves the name of i.sland, which was 
 bestowed upon it by the ancients. The low Isthmus of Corinth completely severs 
 it from the mountainous peninsula of Greece. It is a world in itself, small 
 enough as far as the mere space is concerned which it occupies upon the map, 
 but great on account of the pa^rt it has played in the history of humanity.
 
 THE MOREA, OR PELOPONNESUS. 57 
 
 On entering the Peloponnesus from the Isthmus of Corinth, we see rising in 
 front of us the mountain rampart of Oncium, which defended the entrance of the 
 peninsuhi, and upon one of whose promontories was built the nearly impregnable 
 citadel of Corinth. These mountains form part of the general moufituin system of 
 the whole island, and, sheltered by them, its inhabitants could live in security. 
 The principal mountain mass, whence all other chains radiate towards the 
 entrances of the peninsula, is situated in the interior of the country, about 
 forty miles to the west of Corinth. There Mount Cyllene of the ancient Greeks, 
 or Zvria, rises into the air, its flanks covered with dark pines ; and farther away 
 still, the Khelmos, or Aroauian Mountain, attains even a more considerable 
 height, its snows descending into a valley on its northern slope, where they give 
 rise to the river Styx, the cold waters of which prove fatal to perjurers, and dis- 
 appear in a narrow chasm, one of the entrances to Hades. A range of wooded 
 peaks, to the west of the Khelmos, connects that mountain with the Olonos (Mount 
 Erj-manthus), celebrated as the haunt of the savage boar destroyed by Hercules. 
 All these mountains, from Corinth as far as Patras, form a rampart running 
 parallel with the southern shore of the gulf, in the direction of which they throw 
 off spurs enclosing steep valleys. In one of these — that of Buraikos — we meet 
 with the grand caverns of Mega-Spileon, which are used as a monastery, and 
 where the most curious structures may be seen built up on every vantage-ground 
 offered by the rocks, suggesting a resemblance to the cells of a vast nest of 
 hornets. 
 
 The table-land of the Peloponnesus is thus bounded towards the north by an 
 elevated coast range. Another chain of the same kind bounds it on the east. 
 It likewise starts from Mount Cyllcue, and extends southward, its various portions 
 being known as Gaurias, Malevo (Mount Artemisium), and Parthenion. It is then 
 broken through by a vast depression, but again rises farther south as the range 
 of Hagios Petros, or Parnon, to the east of Sparta. Getting lower by degrees, it 
 terminates in the promontory of Malea, opposite to the island of Cerigo. It was 
 this cape, tradition tells us, which formed the last refuge of the Centaurs ; that 
 is to say, of the barbarian ancestors of the modern Tsakonians. Xo promontory 
 was more dreaded by Greek navigators than this Cape Malea, owing to sudden 
 gusts of wind, and an ancient proverb says, "When thou hast doubled the cape 
 forget the name of thy native land." 
 
 The mountains of Western Morea do not present the regularity of the eastern 
 chain. They are cut through by rivers, and to the south of the Aroanian Moun- 
 tains and the Erymanthus they ramify into a multitude of minor chains, which 
 now and then combine into mountain groups, and impart the most varied aspect 
 to that portion of the plateau. Everywhere in the valleys we come unexpectedly 
 upon landscapes to which an indescribable charm is imparted by a group of trees, 
 a spring, a flock of sheep, or a shepherd sitting upon a heap of ruins. We are in 
 beautiful Arcadia, sung by the poets. Though in great part deprived of its woods, 
 it is still a beautiful country ; but more charming stiU. are the eastern slopes of the 
 plateau, which descend towards the Ionian Sea. There luxuriant forests and
 
 63 
 
 GEEECE. 
 
 sparkling rivulets add an element of beauty to blue waves, distant islands, and a 
 transparent sky, wbicb is wanting in nearly every otber part of maritime Greece. 
 
 The table-land of Arcadia is commanded on tLe west by pine-clad Mocnalus, 
 and boimded on the south by several mountain groups which give birth to 
 separate mountain chains. One of these mountain masses — the Kotylion, or 
 Palceocastro — thus gives rise to the mountains of Messenia, amongst which rises the 
 famous Ithome, and to those of ^galeus, which spread over the peninsula to the 
 west of the Gulf of Coron, and reappear in the sea as the rocky islets of Sapienza, 
 
 Fi>. 18. — MovKT Taygeti's. 
 
 Cabrera, and Venetikon. Another mountain mass, the LycoDus, or Diaforti — the 
 Arcadian Olympu.s, which the Pelasgians claim for their cradle — and which rises 
 almost in. the centre of the Peloponnesus, is continued westward of Laconia by an 
 extended mountain chain, the most elevated and most characteristic of all the 
 llorea. The highest crest of these mountains is the famous Taygetus, known also 
 as Pentedactylos (five thumbs), because of the five peaks which surmount it; or as 
 St. Elias, in honour, no doubt, of Helios, the Dorian sun-god. A portion of the 
 lower slopes of this mountain is clothed with forests of chestnuts and walnuts,
 
 THE MORE A, OB PELOPONNESUS. 69 
 
 interspersed with cypresses and oaks ; but its crest is bare, and snow remains 
 upon it during three-fourths of the year. The snows of Taygetus direct the 
 distant mariner to the shores of Greece. On approaching the coast, he sees rising 
 above the blue waters the spurs and outlying ridges of the Kakavuni, or " bad 
 mountain." Soon afterwards he comes in sight of the promontory of Tainaron, 
 with its two capes of Matapan and Grasso — immense blocks of white marble more 
 than six hundred feet in height, upon which the quails settle in millions after their 
 fatiguing journey across the sea. Into the caverns at its foot the waters rush 
 with a dull noise which the ancients mistook for the barking of Cerberus. 
 Cape ^latapou, like ilalea, is dreaded amongst mariners as a great " destroyer 
 of men." 
 
 The three southern extremities of the Peloponnesus are thus occupied by high 
 mountains and rocky declivities. The peninsula of Argolis, in the east, is likewise 
 traversed by mountain ranges, which start from Moimt Cj-Uene, similarly to the 
 Gaurias and the mountains of Arcadia. The whole of the Peloponnesus is thus 
 a country of table-lands and mountain ranges. If we except the plains of Elis, 
 which have been formed by the alluvial deposits carried down by the rivers of 
 Arcadia, and the lake basins of the interior, which have been filled up in the 
 course of ages, we meet with nothing but mountains.* The principal mountain 
 masses — the Cyllene, the Taygetus, and Parnon — are composed of crystalline 
 schists and metamorphic marbles, as in continental Greece. Strata of the Jurassic 
 age and beds of cretaceous limestone are here and there met with at the foot 
 of these more ancient rocks. Near the coast, in Argolis, and on the flanks of 
 the Taygetus, irruptions of serpentines and porphyries Lave taken place, whilst 
 on the north-eastern coast of Argolis, and especially on the small peninsula of 
 Methone, there exist recent volcanoes — amongst others, the Kaimenipclra, which 
 31. Fouque identifies with the fire-vomiting mouths of Strabo, and which had its 
 last eruption twenty-one centuries ago. These volcanoes are, no doubt, the vents 
 of a submarine area of disturbance which extends through Milos, Suntoriu, and 
 Isisyros, to the south of the ^gean Sea. 
 
 The sulphur springs which abound on the western coast of the Peloponnesus 
 are, perhaps, likewise e^•idenccs of a reaction of the interior of the earth. 
 
 It is the opinion of several geologists that the coasts of Western Greece are 
 being insensibly upheaved. In many places, and particularly at Corinth, we meet 
 with ancient caverns and sea beaches at an elevation of several feet above the sea- 
 level. It is this upheaval, and not merely the alluvial deposits brought down bv 
 rivers, which explains the encroachment of the land upon the sea at the mouth of ihe 
 Achelous and on the coast of Elis, where four rocky islets have been joined to the 
 land. Elsewhere a subsidence of the land has been noticed, as in the Gulf of 
 
 * Heights of the principal monntaius in the Peloponnesus (in English feet) : — 
 
 Lj-caeus (Diaforti) .... 4,660 
 
 ItJiome 2,630 
 
 Taygetus 7,904 
 
 Arachnaius (Arguli^i) . . , 3,933 
 
 Mean height of peninsula . . . 2,000 
 
 CyUene (Zvria) 
 
 . 8,940 
 
 Aroanian Mountain (Chehnos^ 
 
 . 7,726 
 
 Erymanlhus (Olonos) 
 
 . 7.297 
 
 Artemisium (Malero) 
 
 . 5,814 
 
 Paroon (ilagios I'etxos) . 
 
 . G,3oa
 
 60 
 
 f}EEBCE. 
 
 Slarathonisi and on the eastern coast of Greece, where the ancient peumsuhi of 
 Elaphonisi has been converted into an island. But even there the fluvial deposits 
 have encroached upon the sea. The city of Calamata is twice as distant from the 
 seashore now as in the days of Strabo, and the traces of the ancient haven of 
 Helos, on the coast of Laconia, are now far inland. 
 
 The limestone rocks of the interior of the Peloponnesus abound as much in 
 chasms, which swallow up the rivers, as do BcEotia and the western portion of the 
 whole of the Balkan peninsula. Some of these katavothras are mere sieves, hidden 
 beneath herbage and pebbles, but others are wide chasms and caverns, through which 
 the course of the underground waters may be readily traced. In winter wild birds 
 post themselves at the entrances of these caverns, in expectation of the prey which 
 the river is certain to carry towards them ; in summer, after the waters have 
 retired, foxes and jackals again take possession of their accustomed dens. The 
 
 JFig'. 19. — Lakes Phenea and Stymphalvs. 
 From the French Staff Map. Scale 1 : 500,000. 
 
 water swallowed up by these cliasnis on the plateau reappears on the other side of 
 the mountains in the shape of springs, or IxepliaJaria {liepJialovri/sk). The water 
 of these springs has been puriiied by its passage through the earth, and its 
 temperature is that of the soil. It bursts forth sometimes from a crevice in the 
 rocks, sometimes in an alluvial plain, and sometimes even from the bottom of the 
 sea. The subterranean geography of Greece is not yet sufficiently known to 
 enable us to trace each of these kephalaria to the katavothras which feed them. 
 
 The ancients were most careful in keeping open these natural funnels, for, by 
 facilitating the passage of the water, thej' prevented the formation of swamps. 
 These precautions, however, were neglected during the centuries of barbarism 
 which overcame Greece, and the waters were permitted to accumulate in many places 
 at the expense of the salubrity of the country. The plain of Pheneus, or Phonia, a 
 vast chasm between the Aroanian Mountains and the Cj'llene, has thus repeatedly 
 been converted into a lake. In the middle of last century the whole of this basin
 
 THE MOREA, OE PELOrOXXESUS. 01 
 
 was filled with water to a depth of more than 300 feet. In 1828, when this sheet of 
 water had already become considerably reduced, it was still 6 miles long and 150 feet 
 in depth. At length, a few years afterwards, the subterranean sluices opened, 
 the waters disappeared, and there remained only two small marshes near the places 
 of exit. But in 1850 the lake was again 200 feet in depth. Hercules, we are told, 
 constructed a canal to drain this valley and to cleanse its subterranean outlets, but 
 the inhabitants content themselves now with placing a grating above the " sink- 
 holes," to prevent the admission of trunks of trees and of other largo objects 
 carried along by the floods. 
 
 To the east of the valley of Pheneus, and on the southern foot of ilount Cyllene, 
 there is another lake basin, celebrated in antiquity because of the man-eating birds 
 which infested it, until they were exterminated by Hercules. This is the 
 Stymphalus, alternately lake and cultivated land. During winter the waters 
 cover about one-third of the basin ; but it happens occasionally, after heavy rains, 
 that the lake resumes its ancient dimensions. There is only one katavothra through 
 which the waters can escape, and this, instead of being near the shore, as usual, is 
 at the bottom of the lake. It swallows up not only the water of the lake, but like- 
 wise the vegetable remains carried into it, and the mud formed at its bottom ; and 
 this detritus is conveyed through it to some subterranean cavity, where it putrefies 
 slowly, as may be judged from the fetid exhalations proceeding from the kata- 
 vothra. The water, however, is purified, and when it reappears on the surface, 
 close to the seashore, it is as clear as crystal. 
 
 There are many other lake basins of the same kind between the mountains of 
 Arcadia and the chain of the Graurias. They all have their swamps or temporary 
 lakes, but the katavothras, in every instance, are sufficiently numerous to prevent 
 an inundation of the entire valley. The most important of these lake basins is 
 formed by the famous plain of Mantinea, upon which many a battle was fought. 
 From an hydrological point of view this is one of the most curious places in the 
 world ; for the waters which collect there are discharged into two opposite seas — 
 the Gulf of Xauplia on the east, and in the direction of the Alpheus and the Ionian 
 Sea towards the west. There may exist even some subterranean rivulet which 
 discharges itself, towards the south, into the Eurotas and the Gulf of Laconia. 
 
 The disappearance of the waters underground has condemned to sterility several 
 parts of the Peloponnesus, which a little water would convert into the most fertile 
 regions of the globe. The surface waters quickly suck up and form subterranean 
 rivers, hidden from sight, which only see the light again, in most instances, near the 
 seashore, when it is impossible to utilise them. The plain of Argos, though sur- 
 rounded by a majestic amphitheatre of well-watered hiUs, is more sterile and arid 
 even than are Megara and Attica. Its soil is always dry, and soaks up water like 
 a sieve, which may have given rise to the fable of the Danaids. But to the south 
 of that plain, where there is but a narrow cultivable strip of land between the 
 moimtains and the seashore, a great river bursts forth from the rocks. This is the 
 Erasinus, or the " amiable," thus called on accoimt of the purity of its water. 
 Other springs burst forth at the smithem extremity of the plain, close to the defile
 
 62 
 
 GREECE. 
 
 of Lerna, which, like that of the Erasinus, are supposed to be fed from Lake Stym- 
 phalus. Close to them is a chasm filled with water, said to be unfathomable. It 
 abounds in tortoises, and Tenomous serpents inhabit the adjoining marsh. These 
 are the hephalaria, or " heads," of the ancient hydra of Lerna, which Hercules 
 found it so difficult to seize hold of. Still farther south there is another spring 
 which rises from the bottom of the sea, more than three hundred yards from the 
 
 Fig. 20.— The Plateau of Ma\tinea. 
 From the French Staff Map. Scale 1 : 400,nno. 
 
 K. Katavothras. 
 
 shore. This spring — the Doinrc of the ancients, and Anavula of modern Greek 
 mariners — is, in reality, but the mouth of one of the rivers swallowed up by the 
 katavothras of Mantinea. "When the sea is still it throws up a jet rising to a 
 height of fifty feet. 
 
 Analogous phenomena may be witnessed in the two southern valleys of the 
 peninsula, those of Sparta and Messenia. The Li, or Eurotas, is, in realitj', but a large 
 rivulet, which discharges itself into the Gulf of SCarathomsi. at the end of a gorge,
 
 THE MORE A, OR PELOPONNESUS. 
 
 6S 
 
 through which the waters of the I.nke of Sparta forccil themselves a passage during 
 some ancieut dehige ; but it is only on rare occasions that its volume of water is 
 sufficient to remove the bar which obstructs its mouth. The Vasili-Potamo (" royal 
 river "), on the other hand, which bursts forth at the foot of a rock a short distance 
 from the Eurotas, though its whole course does not exceed five miles, discharges a 
 considerable volume of water throughout the year, and its mouth is at all times 
 open. As to the river of Messenia, the ancient Pamisus, now called Pirnatza, it is 
 the only river of Greece, besides the Alphcus, which forms a harbour at its mouth, 
 and it can be ascended by small vessels for a distance of eight miles ; but this 
 advantage it owes exclusively to the powerful springs of Ilagios Floros, whicli are 
 fed by the mountains on the east. These springs, whicli form a largo s^^•;^np 
 
 Fig. 21.— BiFuncATioN of the Gastuni. 
 From tho Frcoch Staff Map. Scale 1 : 400,000. 
 
 where they rise to the surface, are the real river, if volume of water is to bo decisive, 
 and the country watered and fertilised by them was called the " Happy " by the 
 ancients, on account of its fertility. 
 
 The western regions of tho Peloponnesus receive more rain, and they are 
 likewise in the possession of the most considerable river, the Alpheus, now called 
 Ruphia, from one of its tributaries. The latter, the ancient Ladon, conveys a 
 larger volume of water towards the sea than the Alphcus. It was as cele- 
 brated amongst the Greeks as was the Pcneus of Thessaly, on account of tho 
 transparency of its waters, and the smiling scenery along its banks. It is partly 
 fed by the snows of Mount Erymanthus, and, like most rivers of the Jlorea, derives 
 a portion of its waters from subterranean tributaries rising on the central plateau. 
 The Ladon thus receives the waters of Lake Phcnea, whilst the Alpheus proper
 
 Gl GEEEOE. 
 
 is fed in its U2:>per course from katavothras ou the shores of the ancleut lakes of 
 Orchomenus and Mantinea. Having traversed the basin of Megalopolis, anciently 
 a lake, it j)'isscs through a series of picturesque gorges, and reaches its lower 
 valley. A charming tradition, illustrative of the ties of amity which existed 
 between Elis and Syracuse, makes this river plunge beneath the sea and reappear 
 in Sicily, close to the fountain of his beloved Arethusa. The ancient Greeks, 
 who witnessed the disappearance of so many rivers, would hardly have looked 
 upon this submarine course of the Alpheus as a thing to wonder at. 
 
 The Alpheus and all other rivers of Elis carry down towards the sea immense 
 masses of detritus, which they spread over the plains extending from the foot 
 of the mountains to the seashore. The ruins of Olympia disappeared in this 
 manner beneath allvivial deposits. They have all frequentlj' changed their beds, 
 and not one amongst them has done so more freq\iently than the Peneus, or river of 
 Gastuni. Anciently it discharged its waters to the north of the rocky promontory 
 of Chelonatas, whilst in the present day it turns abruptly to the south, and enters 
 the sea at a distance of fifteen miles from its ancient mouth. Works of irrigation 
 may partly account for this change, but there can bo no doubt that nature unaided 
 has by degi-ees much modified the aspect of this portion of Greece. Islands 
 originally far in the sea have been joined to the land ; numerous open bays have 
 gradually been cut off from the sea by natural embankments, and transformed 
 into swamps or lagoons. One of the latter extends for several leagues to the 
 south of the Alpheus, and is divided from the sea by a fine forest of pines. 
 These majestic forests, in which the Triphylians paid honour to their dead, the 
 surrounding hills dotted over with clumps of trees, and Mount Lyeseus, from 
 whose flanks are precipitated the cascades dedicated to Neda, the nurse of Jupiter, 
 render this the most attractive district of all the Morea to a lover of nature. 
 
 The Peloponnesus presents us with one of the most striking instances of the 
 influence exercised by the nature of the country upon the historical development 
 of its inhabitants. Held to Greece by a mere thread, and defended at its entrance 
 by a double bulwark of mountains, this "isle of Pelops" naturally became the 
 seat of independent tribes at a time when armies still recoiled from natural 
 obstacles. The isthmus was open as a commercial high-road, but it was closed 
 against invaders. 
 
 The relief of the peninsula satisfactorily explains the distrib 'tion of the 
 tribes inhabiting it, and the part they played in history. The whole of ^he interior 
 basin, which has no visible outlets towards the sea, naturally became the home 
 of a tribe who, like the Arcadians, held no intercourse with their neighbours, and 
 hardly any amongst themselves. Corinth, Sicyon, and Achaia occupied the sea- 
 shore on the northern slopes of the mountains, but were separated by high trans- 
 versal chains. The inhabitants of these isolated valleys long remained strangers 
 to each other, and when at length they combined to resist the invader, it was 
 too late. Elis, in the west, with its wide valleys and its insalubrious plains 
 extending along a coast having no havens, naturally played but a secondary part
 
 THE MOEEA, OR PELOPONNESUS. 06 
 
 in the history of the pcninsuhi. Its inhabitants, exposed to invasions, owing 
 to their country being without natural defences, would soon have been enslaved, 
 had they not placed themselves under the protection of all the rest of Greece 
 by converting their plain of Olympia into a place of meeting, where the Hellenes 
 of Europe and of Asia, from the continent and from the islands, met for a few 
 days' festival to forget their rivalries and animosities. The basin of Argos and 
 the mountain peninsula of Argolis, on the eastern side of the Peloponnesus, on 
 the other hand, are districts having natural boundaries, and are easily defended. 
 Hence the Argolians were able to maintain their autonomy for centuries, and even 
 in the Homeric age they exercised a sort of hegemony over the remainder of 
 Greece. The Spartans were their successors. The country in which they 
 established themselves possessed the double advantage of being secure against 
 every attack, and of furnishing all they stood in need of. Having firmly 
 established themselves in the beautiful vallej' of the Eurotas, they found no 
 difficulty in extending their power to the seashore, and to the unfortunate Helos. 
 At a later date they crossed the heights of the Taygetus, and descended into the 
 plains of Messenia. That portion of Greece likewise formed a natural basin, 
 protected by elevated mountain ramparts ; and the Messenians, who were kinsmen 
 of the Spartans and their equals in bravery, were thus able to resist for a century. 
 At length they fell, and all the Southern Peloponnesus acknowledged the supremacy 
 of Sparta, which was now in a position to assert its authority over the whole of 
 Greece. Then it was that the mountain-girt plateau on the road from Laceda^monia 
 to Corinth, upon which stood the cities of Tegea and Mantinea, and which was 
 made by nature for a field of Mars, became the scene of strife. 
 
 The Peloponnesus, with its sinuous shores, forms a remarkable contrast to 
 Attica. Its characteristics are essentially those of a continent, and anciently 
 the Peloponnesians were mountaineers rather than mariners. Except in Corinth, 
 where the two seas nearly join, and a few towns of Argolis, which is another 
 Attica, there were no inducements for the inhabitants to engage in maritime 
 commerce ; and in their mountain valleys and upland plains they were entirely 
 dependent upon the rearing of cattle and husbandry. Arcadia, in the centre 
 of the peninsula, was inhabited only by herdsmen and labourers ; and its name, 
 which originally meant " country of bears," has become the general designation 
 for an emir atly pastoral country. The Laconians also, separated from the 
 sea by rocky mountains which hem in the vallcj' of the Eurotas at its point of 
 issue, preserved fur a long time the customs of warriors and of cultivators of 
 the soil, and took to the sea only with reluctance. " When the Spartans placed 
 Eurotas and Taygetus at the head of their heroes," says Edgar Quinet, "they 
 distinctly connected the features of the valley with the destinies of the people 
 by whom it was occupied." 
 
 In the very earliest ages the Phoenicians already occupied important factories 
 on the coasts of the Peloponnesus. They had established themselves at Nauplia, 
 in the Gulf of Argos ; and at Cranoc, the modern Sfarathonisi or Gythion, in 
 Laconia, they purchased the shells which they required to dye their purplo
 
 66 GEEECE. 
 
 cloths. The Greeks themselves were in possession of a few busy ports, amongst 
 which was " sandy Pylos," the capital of Nestor, whose position is now held by 
 Navarino, on the other side of the gulf. At a subsequent date, when Greece had 
 become the centre of Mediterranean commerce, Corinth, so favourably situated 
 between the two seas, rose into importance, not because of its political influence,. 
 its cultivation of the arts, or love of libertj', but through the number and wealth 
 of its inhabitants. It is said that it had a population of three hundred thousand 
 Bouls within its walls. Even after it had been razed by the Romans it again 
 recovered its ancient pre-eminence. But the exposed position of the town has 
 caused it to be ravaged so many times that all commerce has fled from it. In 1858, 
 when an earthquake destroyed Corinth, that once famous city had dwindled down 
 into a poor village. The city has been rebuilt about five miles from its ancient site, 
 on the shore of the gulf named after it, but we doubt whether it will ever resume 
 its ancient importance unless a canal be dug to connect the two seas. The high- 
 roads from Marseilles and Trieste to Smyrna and Constantinople would then lead 
 across the Isthmus of Corinth, and this canal might attract an amount of shipping 
 equal to that which frequents other ocean channels or canals similarly situated. 
 But for the present the isthmus is almost deserted, and onlj' the passengers who are 
 conveyed by Greek steamers to the small ports on its opposite shores cross it. 
 The ancients, who had failed in the construction of a canal, and who made no 
 further efibrt after the time of Nero, because they imagined one of the two seas 
 to be at a higher level than the other, had provided, at all events, a kind of 
 tramway, by means of which their small vessels could be conveyed from the Gulf 
 of Corinth to the JEgean Sea.* 
 
 After the Crusades, when the powerful Republic ot Venice had gained a 
 footing upon the coasts of Morea, flourishing commercial colonies arose along 
 them, in Arcadia, on the island of Prodano (Prote), at Navariuo, Modon, Coron, 
 Calamata, Malvoisie, and Nauplia in Argolis. At the call of these Venetian 
 merchants the Peloponnesus again became a seat of trade, and resumed, to some 
 extent, that part in maritime enterprise which it had enjoyed in the time 
 of the Pha3nicians. But the advent of the Turk, the impoverishment of the soil, 
 and the civil wars which resulted therefrom, again forced the inhabitants to break 
 off all intercourse with the outer world, and to shut themselves up in their island 
 as in a prison. Tripolis, or Tripolitza, in the very centre of the peninsula, and 
 called thus, it is said, because it is the representative of three ancient cities — 
 Mantinea, Tegea, and Pallantium — then became the most jiopulous place. Since 
 the Greeks have regained their independence life again fluctuates towards the sea- 
 shore as by a sort of natural sequence. Patras, close to the entrance of the Gulf of 
 Corinth, and near the most fertile and best-cultivated plains on the eastern shore, 
 is by far the most important city at present, and, in anticipation of its future 
 extension, the streets of a new to'mi have been laid out, in the firm belief that it 
 will some day rival Smyrna and Trieste in extent. 
 
 * The isthmus is 6,496 yards wide, and rises to a height of 250 feet -where it is narrowest, its mean 
 height being 130 feet.
 
 THE MOREA, OR PELOPONNESUS. 
 
 07 
 
 The otlicr towns of the peninsula, even those which exhibited the greatest 
 activitj' during the dominion of the Venetians, arc but of very secondary 
 importance, if we compare them with this emporium of the Peloponnesus. u-Egium, 
 or Vostitza, on the Gulf of Corinth, is a poor port, less celebrated on account 
 of its commerce than in consequence of a magnificent plane-tree, more than 
 fifty feet in girtli, the hollow trunk of which was formerly used as a prison. 
 Pyrgos, close to Alphea, has no port at all. The fine roadstead of Xavarino, 
 defended against winds and waves by the roclvy islet of Sphacteria, is but littlo 
 
 Fig. 22. — The Valley of the Ei-eotas. 
 F;om llic Fionch SUiff Mup. Scale 1 : 370,000. 
 
 frequented, and the merchantmen riding at anchor there never outnumber the 
 Turkish men-of-war at the bottom, where they have lain since the battle fought in 
 1828. Modon and Coron have likewise fallen off. Calamata, at the mouth of the 
 fertile valleys of Mcssenia, has an open roadstead only, and vessels cannot 
 always ride in safety upon it. The celebrated Malvoisie, now called Jloneravasia, 
 is hardly more than a heap of ruins, and the vinej-ards in its neighbourhood, 
 ■whicli furnished the exquisite wine named after the town, have long ceased 
 to exist. Xauplia, whicli was the capital of the modern kingdom of Greece 
 during the first few years of its existence, possesses the advantage of a well- 
 
 F 2
 
 68 GEEECE. 
 
 sheltered port ; but its walls, its tastions, and its forts give it the character of a 
 military town rather than of a commercial one. 
 
 The towns in the interior of the country, whatever glories may attach to them, 
 are hardly more now than large villages. The most celebrated of all, Sparta, thanks 
 to the fertility of its aavirons, promises to become one of the most prosperous 
 cities of the interior of the Peloponnesus. Sparta — that is, the " scattered city," 
 — was named thus because its houses were scattered over the plain, defended only 
 by the valour of their inhabitants, and not by walls. In the IMiddle Ages Sparta 
 was supplanted by the neighbouring Mistra, whose decayed Gothic buildings and 
 castles occupy a steep hill on the western side of the Eurotas ; but it has now reco- 
 vered its supremacy amongst the towns of Laconia. Argos, which is more ancient 
 even than the city of Lacedcemon, has likewise risen anew from its ruins ; for the 
 plain in which it lies, though occasionally dried up, is of great natural fertility. 
 
 Strangers, however, who explore the countries of the Peloponnesus, do not go 
 in search of these newly risen cities, where a few stones only remind them of 
 the glories of the past, but are attracted by the ancient monuments of art. 
 In that respect Argolis is one of the richest provinces of Greece. Near to Argos 
 the seats of an amphitheatre are cut into the steejD flanks of the hill of Larissa. 
 Between Argos and Nauplia a small rock rises in the middle of the plain, which 
 is surmounted by the ancient Acropolis of Tiryns, the Cyclopean walls of which 
 are more than fifty feet in thickness. A few miles to the north of Argos are the 
 ruins of Mycenae, the city of Agamemnon, where the celebrated " Gate of Lions," 
 coarsely sculptured when Greek art first dawned, and the vast vaults known as 
 the Treasury of the Atrides, mainly attract the attention of visitors. These 
 vaults are amongst the oldest and best-preserved antiqiiities of Greece. Tliey 
 exhibit most solid workmanship, and one of the stones, which does duty as a lintel 
 over the entrance-gate, weighs no less than one hundred and sixty-nine tons. At 
 Epidaurus, in Argolis, on the shores of the Gulf of iEgina, and close to the most 
 famous temple of ^sculapius, we still meet with a theatre which has suffered 
 less from time than any other throughout Greece. Shrubs, interspersed with 
 small trees, surround it ; but we can still trace its fifty-four rows of white 
 marble seats, capable of affording accommodation to twelve thousand spectators. 
 Amongst other famous ruins of Argolis are the beautiful remains of a temple of 
 Jupiter at Nemea, and the seven Doric columns of Corinth, said to be the oldest 
 in all Greece. But the most beautiful edifice of the poninsida must be sought for 
 near Arcadian Phigalia, in the charming valley of the Neda. This is the temple 
 of Bassaj, erected by Ictiuus in honour of Apollo Epicurius, and its beauty 
 is enhanced by the oaks and rocks which surround it. 
 
 Citadels, however, are the buildings we most frequently meet with ; and many 
 a fortified place, with its walls and acropolis, yet exists as in the days of 
 ancient Greece. The walls of Phigalia and Messenia still have their ancient 
 towers, gates, and redoubts. Other fortifications were utilised by the Crusaders, 
 Venetians, or Turks, and by them furnished with crenellated walls and keeps, 
 which add another picturesque feature to the landscape. One of these ancient
 
 TIIE ISLANDS OF THE iEGEAN SEA. 09 
 
 fortrei-ses, transformed during the Middle Ages, rises at the very gates of 
 the Peloponnesus — namely, the citadel of Corinth, the strongest and most com- 
 manding of all. 
 
 Several of the islands of the iEgcan Sea must be looked upon as natural depend- 
 encies of the Peloponnesus, to which submarine ledges or shoals attach them. 
 
 The islands along the coast of Argolis, which arc inhabited by Albanian 
 seamen, who were aniongst the foremost to fight the Turk during the struggle for 
 Hellenic independence, have lost much of their former commercial importance. 
 I'oros, a small Albanian town on a volcanic island of the same name, which the 
 revolted people chose for their capital, is, however, still a bustling place, for 
 it has an excellent harbour, and the Greek Government has made it the principal 
 naval station of the kingdom. Hydra, on the other hand, and the small island 
 of Spezzia, next to it, have lost their former importance. They are both rocky 
 islands, without arable soil, trees, or water, and yet they formerly supported a 
 population of fifty thousand souls. About 1730 a colony of iVlbanians, wcarj' of 
 the exactions of some Turkish pasha on the mainland, fled to the island of Hydra. 
 They were left in peace there, for they agreed to pay a trifling tribute. Their 
 commerce — leavened, to be sure, vrith a little pii'ac)' — assumed large dimensions, 
 and immediately before the war of independence the Albanians of Hj'dra owned 
 nearly 400 vessels of 100 to 200 tons each, and they were able to send over 200 
 vessels, armed with 200 guns, against the Turks. By engaging so enthusiastically 
 in this struggle for liberty, the Hydriotes, without suspecting it, wrought their awn 
 ruin. No sooner was the cause of Greece triumphant than the commerce of Hydra 
 was transferred to Syra and the Piricus, which are more favourably situated. 
 
 Cythera of Laconia, a far larger island than either of those mentioned, and 
 better kno^vn bj' the Italian name of Cerigo, formed a member of the Septinsular 
 Republic, although not situated in the Ionian Sea, and clearly a dependency of 
 the Peloponnesus. Cythera is no longer the island of Venus, and its voluptuous 
 groves have disappeared. Seen from the north, it resembles a pile of sterile 
 rocks. It nevertheless yields abundant harvests, possesses fine plantations of 
 olive-trees, and populous villages. Cerigo, in former times, enjoyed considerable 
 importance, owing to its position between the Ionian Sea and the Archipelago ; 
 but Cape Mulea has lost its terrors now, and the harbour of refuge on the 
 island is no longer sought after. Heaps of shells, left there bj^ Phoenician manu- 
 facturers of purple, have been found on the island ; and it was the Phoenicians 
 who introduced the worship of Venus Astarte. 
 
 IV. — The Islands of the ^gean Sea. 
 
 Islands and islets are scattered in seeming disorder over the ^gean Sea, the 
 name of which may probably mean "sea of goats," because these islands 
 appeared at a distance like goats. By a singxdar misapplication the modern term
 
 70 
 
 GEEECE. 
 
 Archipelago, instead of sea, is now used to designate these groups of islands. 
 The Sporades, in the north, form a long range of islands stretching in the 
 direction of Mount Athos. The island of Scyros, farther south, the birthplace of 
 Achilles and place of exile of King Theseus, occupies an isolated position; the 
 large island of Euhoea extends along the coast of the continent ; and in the 
 distance rise the white mountains of the Cycladcs, likened by the ancient Greeks 
 to a circle of Oceanides dancing around a deity. 
 
 All these islands are so many fragments of the mainland. This is proved by 
 
 Fig. 23. — EuRirus Asu Ciialcis. 
 Scale 1 : 220,000. 
 
 their geological structure, or by shoals which attach them to one nearest coast. The 
 Northern Sporades are a branch of Mount Pclion. Eubooa is traversed by limestone 
 mountains of considerable height, running parallel to the chains of Attica, 
 Argolis, Mount Olympus, and Mount Athos. Scyros is a rocky mountain mass, 
 whose axis runs in the same direction as that of the central chain of Euboea. 
 The summits of the Cyclades continue the ranges of Euboea and Attica towards 
 the south-east, and the same micaceous and argillaceous schists, limestones, and 
 crystalline marbles are found in them. They arc, indeed, " mountains of Greece
 
 THE ISLANDS OF THE iEGEAX SE.V. 71 
 
 scattered over tbe sea." If Atheus may boast of the quarries of Mount Pcntelicus, 
 tlic Cvcladcs produce the glittering marbles of Naxos, and the still more beautiful 
 ones of Pares, from which were chiselled the statues of heroes and of gods. 
 Curious caverns are met with in Iho limestone of the islands, especially that of 
 Antiparos, the existence of which was not known to the ancients, and the Cave of 
 Sillaka, on the island of Cythnos, or Thermia, celebrated for its hot springs. 
 Granite is found on some of the islands, and particularly in the small island of 
 Delos, dedicated to the worship of Apollo and Diana. In the south, finally, 
 the Cycladcs are traversed by a chain of volcanic islands, extending from the 
 peninsula of Methana, in xirgolis, to Cos and the shores of Asia Minor. 
 
 Euboca may be looked upon almost as a portion of the continent, for the strait 
 which separates it from the mainland resembles a submerged longitudinal valley, 
 and is nowhere of great depth or width. At its narrowest part it is no more 
 than two hundred and fourteen feet across, and from the most remote timesj, 
 Chalcis, the capital of the island, has been joined to the mainland by a bridge 
 The irregular tidal currents flowing through this strait were looked upon ai 
 marvellous by the Greeks, and Aristotle is said to have flung himself into it 
 because he was unable to explain this phenomenon. The Italian name of the 
 island, Xegroponte, is formed by a series of corruptions from Euripus, by which 
 name the ancients knew the strait between the island and the mainland. Eubcea 
 has at all times shared in the vicissitudes of the neighbouring provinces of Attica 
 and BoDotia. TThen the cities of Greece were at the height of their glory, those 
 of Eubcea — Chalcis, Eretria, and Cerinthus — enjoyed likewise a high degree of 
 prosperity, and dispatched colonies to all parts of the Mediterranean. Later on, 
 when invaders ravaged Attica, Eubcea shared the same fate, and at present it 
 participates in every political and social movement of the neighbouring continent. 
 
 In Northern Eubcea there are forests of oaks, pines, elms, and plane-trees ; 
 the villages arc embedded in orchards ; and the surroimding country resembles 
 what we have seen in Elis and Arcadia. But in the Cyclades we look in vain for 
 charming landscapes. Foliage and running water abound, only in a very few 
 spots. Arid rocks, more arid even than those on the coast of Greece, predomi- 
 nate, and only in a few favoured spots do we meet with a few olive-trees, valonia 
 oaks, pines, and fig-trees. Everywhere else the bills are naked. And yet these 
 islands arouse feelings of devotion in us, for their names are great in history. 
 The highest summits of most of them have been named after the prophet 
 Elias, the biblical successor of Apollo, the god of the sun ; and justly so, for the 
 sun reigns supreme upon these austere rocks, and his scorching rays destroy every 
 vestige of vegetation. 
 
 Antimilos, one of the uninhabited islands of this group, still affords an asylum 
 to the wild goat {Capra Caucasica), which has disappeared from the remainder of 
 Europe, and is met with only in Crete, and perhaps Ehodes. "Wild pigs likewise 
 haunt the rocks of Antimilos. Eabbits were introduced from the "West, and aboimd 
 in the caverns of some of the Cyclades, and especially on Myconus and Delos. 
 The ancient authors never mention these animals. It ia a curious fact that
 
 72 
 
 GEEECE. 
 
 tares and rabbits never inhabit the same island, with the sole exception of 
 Audros, where the hares occupy the extreme north, whilst the rabbits have their 
 burrows in the southern portion of the island. As a curiosity, we may also 
 mention that a large species of lizard, called crocodile by the inhabitants, is found 
 on the islands, but not on the neighbouring continent, and we may conclude from 
 this that the Cyclades were separated from the Balkan peninsula at a very remote 
 period. 
 
 A chain of volcanic Islands bounds the Cyclades towards the south, where they 
 are sejDarated from Crete by an ocean trough of great depth. Milos is the most 
 important of these islands. It has an irregularly shaped crater, which has been 
 
 Fig. 24. — Nea Kaimeni. 
 According to Danfalik. 
 
 ffwBCT Upheaved, without volcanic phenomena. 
 
 tp^SB TJpheavsd, attended by fumaroles and eruptions. 
 
 niBI Ancient Coast (Mount George, 400 feet). 
 
 Invaded by the sea, and forms there one of the safest and most capacious harbours 
 of refuge in the Mediterranean. Milos has had no eruption within historic times, 
 but the existence of solfataras and of hot springs proves that its volcanic forces are 
 not yet quite extinct. 
 
 The actual centre of volcanic activity has to be looked for In a small group of 
 Islands known as Santorin, and Ij'ing midway between Europe and Asia. These 
 Islands consist of marbles and schists, similar to those of the other Cyclades, and 
 they surround a vast crater no less than twelve hundred and eighty feet In depth. 
 The crescent-shaped island of Thera, on the east, presents bold cliffs towards the 
 crater, while its gentle outer slopes are covered with vineyards producing exquisite 
 wine. Therasia, on the west, rises like an Immense wall ; and the islet of
 
 THE ISLANDS OF THE ^GEAN SEA. 78 
 
 Aspronisi, between the two, indicates the existence of a submarine partition wall 
 which separates the crater from the open sea. The submarine volcano occupies 
 the centre of this basin. It remains quiescent for long periods, and then 
 suddenly arousing itself, it ejects immense masses of scoriae. It is nearly twenty- 
 one centuries since the first island rose to the surface in the centre of this 
 basin. This island is known now as Pala?a Eaimeni, or the "old volcano." Three 
 years of eruptions in the sixteenth century gave birth to the smallest of the three 
 islands, Mikra Kaimeni. A third cone of lava, Xca Kaimeni, rose in the eighteenth 
 century ; and quite recently, between IS66 and 1870, this new island has more 
 than doubled its size, overwhelming the small village of Yolkario and its port, and 
 extending to within a very short distance of Slilu-a Kaimeni. No less than half a 
 million of partial eruptions occurred during those five years, and the ashes were 
 sometimes thrown to a height of four thousand feet. Even from Crete clouds of 
 ashes could be seen suspended in the air, black during the day, and lit up by night. 
 
 Thousands of spectators hastened to Santorin from all quarters of the world to 
 witness these eruptions, and amongst them were several men of science — Fouque, 
 Gorceix, Reiss, Stiibel, and Schmidt — whose observations have proved of great 
 service. The crater of Santorin appears to have been produced by a violent 
 explosion which shattered the centre of the ancient island, and covered its slopes 
 ■with enormous masses of tufa.* 
 
 Southern Eubcea and the vicinity of Port Gavrion, on the island of Andros, 
 are inhabited by Albanians, but the population in the remainder of the Archi- 
 pelago is Greek. The families of Italian or French descent on Scyros, Syra, 
 j^axos, and Santorin are not sufficiently numerous to constitute an element of 
 importance. They claim to be of French descent, and are known in the Archi- 
 polago as Franks, and during the war of independence they claimed the pro- 
 tection of the French Government. In former times nearly the whole of the 
 land was held by these Franks, who had taken possession of it during the Middle 
 Ages, and these large estates are made to account for the sparse population of 
 Naxos, which supported a hundred thousand inhabitants formerly, but is now 
 hardly able to support one-seventh that number. 
 
 The Cyclades are farther removed from the coast of Greece than Euboca, and 
 they have not always shared in the historical dramas enacted upon the neigh- 
 bouring continent. Their position in the centre of the Archipelago naturally 
 caused them to be visited by all the nations navigating the Mediterranean, and 
 their inhabitants were thus subjected to the most diverse influences. In ancient 
 times the mariners of Asia Minor and of Phoenicia called at the Cyclades on their 
 voyages to Greece ; during the Middle Ages the Byzantines, the Crusaders, the 
 Venetians, the Genoese, the Knights of Rhodes, and the Osmanli were masters 
 
 • Principal altitudes of the islands of Greece : — 
 
 rect. 
 Mount Delphi, on Euboca . . 5,730 
 Mount St. Elias, on Eubcea . . 4,810 
 Mount Kokhilas, on Scjtos . . 2,.5G5 
 Mount KoTori, on Andros . . 3,200 
 
 Feet. 
 Mount Oiia, on Kaxos . . . 3,290 
 Mount St. Elias, on Siphnos . . 2,280 
 Mount St. Elias, on Nios . . .2,410 
 Mount St. Elias, on Santorin . . 1,887
 
 74 aEEECE. 
 
 there in turn ; and in oui- own days the nations of "Western Europe, with the 
 Greeks themselves, hold the preponderance in the Archipelago. 
 
 These historical yicissitudes have caused the centre of gravity of the Cyclades 
 to be shifted from island to island. In the time of the ancient Greeks, Delos, the 
 island of Apollo, was looked upon as the " holy land," where merohants congre- 
 gated from all quarters, carried on business in the shadow of sanctuaries, and 
 held slave markets at the side of the temples. The sale of human flesh became 
 in the end the main feature of the commerce of Delos, and in the time of the 
 Roman emperors as many as ten thousand slaves were bartered away there in a 
 single day. But the markets, the temples, and monuments of Delos have vanished, 
 and its stony soil supports now only a few sheep. During the Middle Ages Naxos 
 enjoyed the predominance ; and at present, Tinos, with its venerated church 
 of the Panagia and its thousands of pilgrims, is the " holy land " of the Archi- 
 pelago; whilst Hermopolis, on Syra, though without trees or water, holds the 
 position of commercial metropolis of the Cyclades. The latter was a town of no 
 importance before the war of independence ; but it remained neutral during that 
 struggle, and thus attracted numerous refugees from other islands, and, thanks to 
 its central position, it has since become the principal mart, dockyard, and naval 
 station of the ^gean Sea. Whether travellers proceed to Saloniki, Smyrna, 
 Constantinople, or the Black Sea, they must stop at Hermopolis. The town 
 formerly occupied the heights only, for fear of pirates, but it has descended now 
 to the foot of the hill, and its quays and warehouses extend along the sea- 
 shore. 
 
 Commerce has peopled the naked rocks of Syra, but it has not yet succeeded in 
 developing the resoui'ces of the Archipelago as in ancient times. Euboea is no 
 longer " rich in cattle," as its name implies, and only exports corn, wine, fruit, 
 and the lignite extracted from the mines near Kumi. The gardens of Kaxos 
 yield oranges, lemons, and citrons ; Scopelos, Andros, and Tinos, the latter one of 
 the best cultivated amongst the islands, export wines, which are excelled, however, 
 by those of Santorin, the Calliste of the earliest Greeks. The volcanic and other 
 islands of the Cyclades export millstones, china clay, lavas, and cimolite, this being 
 used in bleaching. Naxos exports emery, and that is all. The marbles of Pares 
 even remain untouched, and the excellent harbour of that island only rarely sees a 
 vessel. The inhabitants of the Cyclades confine themselves to the cultivation of 
 the soil, and to the breeding of a few silkworms, the surplus population of Tinos, 
 Siphnos, and others emigrating annually to Constantinople, Smyrna, or Greece, to 
 work as labourers, cooks, potters, masons, or sculptors. But whilst some of the 
 islands can boast of a surplus population, there are others which are the abode of 
 a few herdsmen only. Most of the islands between Naxos and Amorgos are 
 hardly more than barren rocks. Antimilos, like Delos, is merely a pasture* 
 ground sown over with rocks. Serphos and Giura are still dreary soKtudes, as in 
 the time of the Roman emperors, when they were set aside as places of exile. 
 Serphos, however, possesses iron of excellent quality, and may, in consequence, 
 again become of some importance. On Autiparos there are leacl mines.
 
 THE IONIAN ISLES. 75 
 
 V. — The Ioman Isi.es. 
 
 The island of Corfu, on tlic coast of Eijirus, and tlic whole of tlio Arcliipclago 
 to the west of continental and peninsular Greece, down to the island of Cythora, 
 which divides the waters of the Ionian Sea from those of the iEgean, havo 
 passed through the most singular political vicissitudes in the course of the last 
 century. Corfu, thanks to the protection extended to it by the Venetian Republic, 
 is the only dependency of the Balkan peninsula which successfully resisted the 
 assaults of the Turk. When Venice was handed over to the Austrians by 
 Bonaparte in 1797, Corfu and the Ionian Islands were occupied by the French. 
 A few years afterwards the Russians became the virtual masters in these islands, 
 which they formed into a sort of aristocratic republic imder the suzerainty of 
 the Porte. In 1807 the French once more took possession of them ; but the 
 English captured one after the other until there remained to them only Corfu, 
 and this, too, had to be given up in 181-1. The Ionian Islands were then converted 
 into a " Septinsular Republic," governed by the landed aristocracy, supported by 
 British bayonets. Twice did England alter the constitution of this republic in a 
 democratic sense, but the patriotism of the islanders refused to submit to British 
 suzerainty ; and, when Great Britain parted with her conquest, the Ionian Islands 
 annexed themselves to Greece, and they now form the best educated, the 
 wealthiest, and the most industrious portion of that kingdom. England, no doubt, 
 consulted her own interests when she set free her Ionian subjects; but her action 
 is nevertheless deserving of approbation. England exhibited her faith in the 
 axiom that moral influence is superior to brute force, and yielded with perfect 
 good grace, not only the commercial ports of the islands, but likewise the citadel 
 of Corfu, which gave her the command of the Adriatic. This magnanimous 
 polic}- has not hitherto met with imitators in other countries, but England herself 
 has still many opportunities of applying it in other parts of the world. 
 
 Corfu, the ancient Corcyra, has alwaj's held the foremost place amongst the 
 Ionian Islands. It owes this position to the vicinity of Italy, and to the commer- 
 cial advantages derived from an excellent port and a vast roadstead almost 
 resembling an inland lake. The inhabitants are fond of appealing to Thucydides 
 in order to prove that Corfu is the island of the Phnsaces of Ulysses. They even 
 pretend to have discovered the rivulet in which beauteous Nausicaa washed the 
 linen of her father, and the shaded walks near the city are known bj' thcni as the 
 gardens of ^Vlcinous. Corfu is the only one of the islands which can boast of a 
 small perennial stream, the Messongi, which is navigable for a short distance in 
 barges. The hills, which are placed like a screen in front of the plains of 
 Epirus, are exposed to the full force of the south-westerly winds, which bring 
 much rain ; the vegetation, consequently, is rich : orange and lemon trees forjn 
 fragrant groves around the city, vines and olive-trees hide the barren ground of 
 the hills, and waving fields of corn cover the plains. Corfu, unfortunately, is 
 exposed to the hot sirocco, blowing fronx the south-cast, and this very much 
 curtails its advantages as a winter station for invalids.
 
 76 
 
 GEEECE. 
 
 The city occupies a triangular peninsula opposite tlie coast of Epirus, and 
 is the largest, and commercially the most important, of the former republic. It 
 IS strongly fortified, and its successire possessors — Venetians, French, Prussians, 
 and English — have sought to render it impregnable. A beautiful prospect may 
 be enjoyed from its bastions ; but far superior is that from Mount Pantokratoros, 
 the "commandant," for it extends across the Strait of Otranto to Italy. The 
 commercial relations with the latter, as well as the traditions of Venetian 
 
 Fii?. 25. — CoKFU. 
 
 dominion, have converted Corfu into a city almost half Italian, and numerous 
 families residing in it belong to both nations, the Greek and the Italian, by 
 descent as well as language. Italian remained the official language of the island 
 until 1830. Maltese porters and gardeners constitute a prominent element amongst 
 the cosmopolitan population of the city. 
 
 Corfu formerly owned the town of Butrinto and a few villages on the mainland ; 
 but an English governor thought fit to surrender them to the terrible Ali Pasha,
 
 THE IONIAN ISLES. 
 
 77 
 
 nnd tlio only dependencies of Corfu at present are tlic siuall islets near it, viz. 
 Othonus (Fano), SalmastracI, and Ericusa, in tlic north ; Paxos, with its caverns, 
 and Antipaxos, the rocks of which exude asphalt, on the south. Paxos is said to 
 produce the hest oil in "Western Greece. 
 
 Leucadia, Cephalonia, Ithaca, Zante, and a few smaller islands, form a 
 crescent-shaped archipelago off the entrance to tlie Gulf of Patras. They aro 
 the summits of a half-submerged chain of calcareous mountains, alternately 
 flooded by the rains or scorched by the sun. Their valloj's, like those of Corfu, 
 produce oranges, lemons, currants (" Coi-inthians"), wine, and oil, which form the 
 objects of a brisk commerce. The inhabitants very much resemble those of Corfu, 
 the Italian clement being strongly represented, except on Ithaca. 
 
 Leucadia, or the "white island," thus called because of its glittering chalk 
 cliffs, is evidently a dependency of the continent. The ancients looked upon it as 
 
 Fig. 20. — The Channel of S.«ta Mauiu. 
 From the French Staff Map. 
 
 Scale 1 : 200,000. 
 
 a peninsula converted into an island by Corinthian colonists, who cut a canal 
 through the isthmus which joined it to the mainland ; but this legend is not 
 borne out by an examination of the localitj'-. These Corinthians probably merely 
 dug a navigable channel through the shallow lagoon which separates the island 
 from the coast, and does not exceed eighteen inches in depth. In fact, if there 
 were any tides in the Ionian Sea, the island of Leucadia would be converted twice 
 daily into a peninsula. A bridge, of which there still exist considerable 
 remains, formerly joined the island to the mainland near the southern extremity 
 of the lagoon, whilst an island occupied by the citadel of Santa Maura — a name 
 sometimes applied to the whole of the island — defended its entrance to the north.
 
 78 GREECE. 
 
 Until recently this was the only spot in Western Greece where a grove of date- 
 trees might be seen. A magnificent aqueduct of two hundred and sixty arches, which 
 was also used as a viaduct, joined the citadel to Amaxiki, the chief town and harbour 
 of Leucadia. This monument of Turkish enterprise — it was constructed in the 
 reign of Bajazet — has sustained much injury from earthquakes. Amaxiki might 
 be supposed to be haunted by fever, owing to the salt swamps and lagoons which 
 surround it ; but .such is not the case : on the contrary, it is a comparatively 
 healthy town, and its women are noted for freshness of complexion and beauty. 
 To the south of it rise the wooded mountains which terminate in the promontory 
 of Leucate (Dukato), opposite to Cephalonia. On the summit of this promontory 
 stood a temple of Apollo, whence, at the annual festival of the god, a condemned 
 criminal was hurled as an expiatory victim. It was celebrated, also, as the lover's 
 leap, whence lovers leaped into the sea to drown their passion. 
 
 Cephalonia, or rather Cephallenia, is the largest of the Ionian Islands, and its 
 highest summit — Mount ^nus, or Elato — is the culminating point of the entire 
 Archipelago. Mariners from the centre of the Ionian Sea can see at one and the 
 same time Mount ^tua in Sicily and this mountain of Cephalonia. The forests of 
 conifers, to which the latter is indebted for its Italian name of Montenero, have for 
 the greater part been destroyed by fire, but there still remain a few clumps of 
 magnificent firs. On its summit may be seen the remains of a temple of Jupiter. 
 The island is fertile and populous, but suffers much from want of water. All its 
 rivers dry up in summer, the calcareous soil sucking up the rain, and most of the 
 springs rise from the bottom of the sea, far away from the fields thirsting after 
 water. On the other hand, two considerable streams of sea-water find their way 
 into the bowels of the island. 
 
 This curious phenomenon occurs a short distance to the north of Argostoli, a 
 bustling town, having a safe but shallow harbour. The two oceanic rivers are 
 sufliciently powerful to set in motion the huge wheels of two mills, one of which 
 has been regularly at work since 1835, and the other since 1859. Their combined 
 discharge amounts to 35,000,000 gallons daily, and naturalists have not yet 
 decided whether they form a vast subterranean lake, in which beds of salt are 
 constantly being deposited, or whether they find their way through numerous 
 threads, and, by hydrostatic aspiration, into the subterranean rivers of the island, 
 rendering their water brackish. The latter is the opinion of Wiebel, the geologist, 
 and thus much we may assume for certain — that these subterranean waters and 
 caverns arc one of the principal causes of the eevere earthquakes which visit 
 Cephalonia so frequently. The island of Asteris, between Cephalonia and Ithaca, 
 upon which stood the city of Alalkomencc, exists no longer, and was probably 
 destroyed by one of those earthquakes. 
 
 Ithaca of " divine Ulysses," the modern Theaki, is separated from Cephalonia 
 by the narrow channel of Yiscardo, thus named after Robert Guiscard. The 
 island is small, and all the sites referred to in the Odyssey are still pointed out 
 there, from the spring of Arethusa to the acropolis of Ulysses; but the black forests 
 which clothed the slopes of Mount Neritus have disappeared. The inhabitants are
 
 THE IONIAN ISLES. 
 
 79 
 
 excessively proud of tlieir little island, rendered so famous by the poetry of Homer, 
 and in every family we meet with a Penelope, a Ulysses, and a Telemachus. But 
 the present inliabitants have no claim whatever to be the descendants of the crafty 
 son of Laertes, for during the Middle Ages their ancestors were exterminated by 
 invaders, and in lo04 the deserted fields were given, by the Senate of Venice, to 
 colonists drawn from the mainland. Most of those immigrants came from Epirus, 
 and the dialect spoken bj' the islanders is much mixed with Albanian words. At 
 
 Fig. 27.— AUGOSTOLI. 
 According to Wicbel. 
 
 the present time the island is well cultivated, and Vathy, its chief port, carries on 
 a brisk commerce in raisins, currants, oil, and wine. Ithaca, as in the daj's of 
 Homer, is the " nurse of valiant men." The inhabitants are tall and strong, and 
 Dr. Sc-hliemann is enthu.siastic about the high standard of virtue and morality pre- 
 vailing amongst them. There arc neither rich nor poor, but they arc great 
 travellers, and natives of Ithaca are met with in every populous city of the East. 
 
 " Zante, fior del Levante," say the Italians. And, indeed, this ancient island, 
 Zacynthus, is richer in orchards, fields, and villas than any other of this Archi- 
 pelago. An extensive plain, bounded bj' ranges of hills, occupies the centre of this 
 " golden isle " — a vast garden, abounding in vines, yielding currants of superior 
 qualit}-. The inhabitants are industrious, and not content with cultivating their 
 own fields, they assist also in the cultivation of those of Acarnania, receiving 
 wages or a share of the produce in return. The city of Zante, on the eastern coast 
 of the island, facing Elis, is the wealthiest and cleanest town in the Archipelago.
 
 80 GEEEGB. 
 
 Unfortunately it suffers frequently from earthquakes, to -which a volcanic origin is 
 ascribed. Nor is this improbable, for bituminous springs rise near the south-eastern 
 cape of the island, and though worked since the days of Herodotus, they still yield 
 about a hundred barrels of pitch annually. Oil springs discharge themselves close 
 to the shore, and even at the bottom of the sea ; and near Cape Skinari, in the 
 north, a kind of rank grease floats on the surface of the waters. 
 
 The only islets dependent upon Zante are the Strivali, or the Strophades, to 
 which flew the hideous harpies of ancient mythology.* 
 
 VI. — The Present and the Future of Greece. 
 
 The Greeks, although they have not altogether fulfilled the expectations of 
 Philhcllenes, have nevertheless made great strides in advance since they have 
 thrown off the yoke of the Turks, The deeds of valour performed during the war 
 of independence recalled the days of Marathon and Platoea ; but it was wrong to 
 expect that a short time would suffice to raise modern Greece to the intellectual 
 and artistic level of the generation which gave birth to an Aristotle and a 
 Phidias. Nov can we expect that a nation should throw off, in a single genera- 
 tion, the evil habits engendered during an age of servitude, and digest at once the 
 scientific conquests made in the course of twenty centuries. Wo should likewise 
 bear in mind that the population of Greece is small, and that it is thinly scattered 
 over a barren mountain region. The numerous ports, no doubt, offer great facilities 
 for commerce, nor have their inhabitants failed to avail themselves of them ; but 
 there is hardly a country in Europe which offers equal obstacles to a development 
 of its agricultm-al and industrial resources. The construction of roads, owing to 
 the mountains, meets with difficulties everywhere, whilst the blue sea invites its 
 beholders to distant climes and commercial expeditions. No immigration from the 
 neighbouring Turkish provinces has consequently taken place, whilst many 
 Hellenes, and more especially natives of the Ionian Islands and the Cycladcs, 
 annually seek their fortune in Constantinople, Cairo, and even distant India. Men 
 of enterprise leave the coimtry, and there remains behind only a horde of intriguers, 
 who look upon politics as a lucrative business, and an army of government officials, 
 who depend upon the favour of a minister for future promotion. This state of 
 affairs explains the singular fact that the most prosperous Greek communities exist 
 beyond the borders of the kingdom of Greece. These foreign communities are 
 better and more liberally governed than those at home. In spite of the Pasha, 
 who enjoys the right of supervision, the administration of the smallest Greek com- 
 
 * Ionian Islands : — 
 
 Area. Inhabitants. 
 
 Sq. m. Highest Monntains. Feet. (1870.) 
 
 Corfu 224 Pantokratoroa . , . 3,2S0 72,450 
 
 Paxos and Antiiaxoa , . 27 3,600 
 
 Leucadia . . . .183 Nomali .... 3,870 21,000 
 
 Cephalonia . . , .292 Elato .... 5,310 67,500 
 
 Ithaca 42 Neriton .... 2,640 10,000 
 
 Zanta . . , .162 Sknpoj .... . 1,300 44,500
 
 THE PRESENT AND THE FUTURE OF GREECE. 
 
 81 
 
 munitv in Thracia or Macedonia might serve as a pattern to the independent and 
 sovereign kingdom of Greece. Every one there takes an interest in the prosperity 
 of the commonwealth ; but in Greece a rapacious bureaucracy takes care only of its 
 own advancement, the electors are bribed, and the expenses thus illegally incurred 
 are recovered by illegal exactions and robbcrv, such as have prevailed for many 
 years. 
 
 The actual population of Greece may amount to 1,500,000 souls ; that is to say, 
 it includes about two-fifths of all the Greeks residing in Europe and Asia. Tho 
 population is less dense than in any other country of Europe, including Turkey. 
 Greece, at the epoch of its greatest prosperity, is said to have supported 6,000,000 
 or 7,000,000 inhabitants. Attica was ten times more populous at that time, and 
 many islands which now support only a few herdsmen could then boast of 
 populous towns. Sites of ancient cities abound on the barren plateaux, on the 
 banks of the smallest rivulet, and crown every promontory throughout the ancient 
 countries of the Hellenes, from Cyprus to Corfu, and from Thasos to Crete. 
 
 The countrj', however, is being gradually repeopled. Before the war of inde- 
 pendence, the population, including the Ionian Islands, amounted, perhaps, to 
 1,000,000 ; but battles and massacres diminished it considerablj', and in 1832 the 
 nimiber of inhabitants was 950,000 at most. Since that epoch there has been an 
 annual increase varying between 9,000 and 14,000 souls. This increase, however, 
 is spread very unequally over the country. The towns increase rapidly, but 
 several islands, and more especially Andros, Santorin, Hydra, Zante, and Leucadia, 
 lose more inhabitants by emigration than they gain by an excess of births over 
 deaths. The swamp fevers prevailing in continental Greece much retard the 
 increase of population. Natui-ally the climate is exceedingly salubrious, but the 
 water, in many localities, has been permitted to collect into pestilential swamps, 
 and the draining of these and their cultivation would not only add to the wealth 
 of the country, but would likewise free it from a dire plague.* 
 
 Unfortunately agriculture progresses but slowly in Greece, and its produce is 
 not even sufficient to support the population, still less to supply articles for export. 
 And yet the cultivable soil of Greece is admirably suited to the growth of vines, 
 fruits, cotton, tobacco, and madder. Figs and oranges are delicious ; the wines of 
 Santorin and the Cyclades are amongst the finest produced in the Mediterranean ; 
 the oil of Attica is as superior now as when Athene planted the sacred olive-tree ; 
 
 Population of the principal towns of Greece (1870) :— 
 
 Tuwiis, ropul^iiinn. 
 
 Athens and IMrasus . . . 39,000 
 
 Patras 26,000 
 
 Corfu 24,000 
 
 Hermopolifl, or Syr;\ . . . 21,000 
 
 Zante 20,500 
 
 Lixuri (Cephalonia). . . 14,000 
 
 P)Tgo9, or Letrini .... 13,600 
 
 Tripolifl, or TripoUtza . . . 11, -500 
 
 Chalcis, in Eubcca .... 11,000 
 
 Sparta 10,700 
 
 Argos 10,600 
 
 VOL. I. 
 
 Towns. 
 Argostoli (Cephalonia) 
 Calamata 
 
 Ilistiasa, in Euhoea . 
 Karystos, in Euboea 
 iEgion, or Vostilza . 
 Nauplia . 
 Spczzia . 
 
 Kranidhi, in Argolis 
 Lamia 
 Missolonghi 
 Androa . 
 
 Population. 
 9,500 
 9,400 
 8,900 
 8,800 
 8,800 
 8,500 
 8,400 
 8,400 
 8,300 
 7,500 
 9,300
 
 82 GREECE. 
 
 but, excepting a little cotton grown in PhtWotis, and tlie raisins known as 
 currants or Corinthians, which are exported from the Ionian Islands and Patras 
 to the annual value of about £1,500,000, agriculture contributes but little 
 towards the exports. One of the principal articles is the valonia, a species of acorn 
 picked up in the forests, and used by tanners. 
 
 In a country so far behindhand in agriculture manufactures cannot be 
 expected to flourish. All manufactured articles have consequently to be imported 
 from abroad, and especially from England. Greece does not even possess tools to 
 work its famous marble quarries, though thej' are richer than those of Carrara. 
 There is only one metallurgical establishment in the whole of the kingdom — that 
 of Laurion. The ancients had been working argentiferous lead mines in that 
 part of the country for centuries, and vast masses of unexhausted slag had 
 accumulated near them. This waste is now being scientifically treated in the 
 smelting-works of Ergastiria, and nearly ten thousand tons of lead, and a consider- 
 able quantity of silver, are produced there annually. Quite a brisk little town 
 has arisen near the works, and its harbour is one of the busiest in all Greece. 
 But the founders of this flourishing concern had to struggle against jealousies, 
 and the " Laurion question " nearly embroiled the Governments of France and 
 Italy with Greece.* 
 
 The Greeks do not support themselves by agriculture, nor can they boast 
 of manufactories, and they would be doomed to starvation if they did not maintain 
 six thousand vessels acting in the lucrative business of ocean carriers throughout 
 the Mediterranean. This Greek mercantile marine is superior to that of Russia, 
 almost equal to that of Austria, and six times larger than that of Belgium, and 
 we should bear in mind that many vessels sailing under Turkish colours are 
 actually owned by Greeks. The ancient instinct of the race comes out strongly 
 in this coast navigation. The large fleets of swift ocean steamers belong to the 
 powerful companies of the "West, and the Greeks are content to sail in small 
 vessels suited to the requirements of the coasting trade, which hardly ever 
 extend their voyages beyond the limits of the ancient Greek world. None can 
 compete with them as regards low freight, for every sailor has an interest in the 
 cargo, and all of them are anxious to increase the profits. One may have 
 furnished the wood, another the rigging, a third a portion of the cargo, whilst 
 their fellow-citizens have advanced money for the purchase of merchandise, 
 without requiring any bond except their word of honour. On many of these 
 vessels all are partners, all work alike, and share in the proceeds of the venture. 
 
 But, whatever the sobriety and intelligence of these Greek mariners, they 
 cannot escape the fate which has overtaken the small trader and the handicrafts- 
 man throughout the world. The cheap vessels of the Greeks may be able to contend 
 for a long time against the steamers of powerful companies, but in the end they 
 must succumb. The co;mtry will lose its place amongst the commercial nations 
 of the world unless its agricultural and industrial resources are quickly developed, 
 
 * Commerce of Greece (1873) : — Mercantile marine: 6,135 vessels of 419,350 tons ; entered, 112,814 
 vessels of 6,336,487 tons; imports, £4,166,239 ; exports, £2,721,877.
 
 THE PRESENT AND TEE FUTURE OF GREECE. 88 
 
 and railways are const rucfcd to convoy' the products of the interior to the sea- 
 coast. Greece, even now, has only a few carriage roads, not so much because the 
 mountains oflfer insurmountable obstacles, but because its heedless inhabitants 
 are content with the f.icilities for transport offered by the sea. It would be 
 impossible in our day to travel from the Pylos to Laceda.^mon in a chariot, us was 
 done by Telemachus ; for the road connecting these places leads along precipices 
 and over dangerous goat paths. Greece and Servia are the European states 
 which remained longest without a railway, and even now the former is content 
 with a short line connecting Athens with its harbour. It has certainly been 
 proposed to construct several lines of the utmost importance, but, owing to the 
 bankrupt condition of the Greek exchequer, these works have not j'ot been begun. 
 The public income is not sufficient to meet the expenditure, the debt exceeds 
 £15,000,000, and the interest on the loans remains unpaid.* 
 
 The poverty of the majority of the inhabitants of Greece is equal to that of 
 the State. The peasants are impoverished by the payment of tithes, and of a 
 Government impost double or even treble their amount. Though naturally very 
 temperate, they are hardly able to sustain life ; they dwell in unwholesome dens, 
 and are frequently unable to put by sufficient means for the purchase of clothing 
 and other necessaries. The young men of the poorest districts of Greece thus 
 find themselves forced to emigrate in large numbers, either for a season or for 
 an indefinite period. Arcadi.i may be likened in this respect to Auvergne, to 
 Savoy, and to other mountain countries of Central Europe. The .^Etolians, how- 
 ever, exchange their fine savage valleys for foreign cities only very reluctantly, 
 though they, too, suffer intensely from the weight of taxation. In ancient times, 
 before their spirit was broken by servitude, they would have resisted the tax- 
 gatherer with arms in their hands. They now content themselves with sallying 
 forth from their villages, in order to pile up a heap of stones by the side of the 
 high-road, as a testimony of the injustice with which they have been treated. 
 Th's heap of stones is anathema. Every peasant passing it religiously adds a 
 stone to this mute monument of execration, and the earth, the common mother of 
 all, is thus charged with the task of vengeance. 
 
 Ignorance, the usual attendant of poverty, is great in the rural districts of 
 Greece, and especially in those difficult of access. In Greece, as in Albania and 
 Montenegro, they believe in perfidious nymphs, who secure the affections of young 
 men, and then drag them down below the water ; they believe in vampyres, in 
 the evil ej^e and \\-itchcraft. But the Greeks are an inquiring race, anxious 
 to leam, in spite of their poverty. The peasant of Ithaca will stop a traveller of 
 education on the road, in order that he may read to him the poetry of Homer. 
 Elementary schools have been established in nearly every village, in spite of the 
 poverty of the Government. If no school buildings can be secured, the classes 
 meet in the open air. The scholars, far from playing truant, hardly raise their 
 eyes from the books to notice a passing stranger or the flight of a bird. The 
 scholars in the superior schools and at the University of Athens are equally 
 • Public income (187o), £1,404,053; ctponditura, £1,409,288 ; debt, £1.5,232,202. 
 
 g2
 
 84 GKEECE. 
 
 conscientious and assiduous. It may be that some of them merely aspire to become 
 orators, but they certainly do not resort to a city on the pretence of study, 
 whilst in reality they yield themselves up to debauchery. Amongst the students 
 of the University of Athens there are many who work half the night at some 
 handicraft, others who hire themselves out as servants or coachmen, to enable 
 them to pursue their studies as lawyers or physicians. 
 
 This love of study cannot fail to secure to the Greek nation an intellectual 
 influence far greater than could be looked for from the smallness of its 
 numbers. The Greeks of the East, moreover, look upon Athens as their intel- 
 lectual centre, whither they send their sous in pursuit of knowledge. They found 
 scholarships in connection with the schools of Athens, and largely contribute 
 towards their support. And it is not only the rich Greek merchants of Trieste, 
 Saloniki, Smyrna, Marseilles, and London who are thus mindful of the true 
 interests of their native country, but peasants of Thracia and Macedonia, too, 
 devote their savings to the promotion of public education. The people themselves 
 support their schools and museums, and pay their professors. The Academy of 
 Athens, the Polytechnic School, the University, and the Arsakeion, an excellent 
 ladies' college — these all owe their existence to the zeal of Greek citizens, and not 
 to the Government. It may readily be understood from this how carefully these 
 institutions are being watched by the entire nation, and how salutary must be the 
 influence of young men and women returning to their native pro\'inces after they 
 have been educated at them. 
 
 It is thus a common language, common traditions, and a common hope for 
 the future that have made a nation of the Greeks in spite of treaties. Greek 
 patriotism is not confined to the narrow limits laid down by diplomacy. Whether 
 they reside in Greece proper, in European or Asiatic Turkey, the Greeks feel as 
 one people, and they lead a common national life independently of the Govern- 
 ments of Constantinople and Athens. Nay, amongst the Greeks dwelling in 
 foreign lands this feeling of nationality is, perhaps, most intense, for they are not 
 exposed to the corrupting influence of a bureaucracy. They have more carefully 
 guarded the traditions and practices of municipal government, and are practically 
 in the enjoyment of greater individual Hberty. The Greek nation, in its entirety, 
 numbers close upon 4,000,000 souls. Its power, already considerable, is growing 
 from day to day, and is sure to exercise a potent influence upon the destinies of 
 Mediterranean Europe. 
 
 We are told sometimes that community of religion might induce the Greeks 
 to favour Russian ambition, and to open to that power the road to Constantinople. 
 Nothing can be further from the truth. The Hellenes will never sacrifice their 
 own interests to those of the foreigner. Nor do there exist between Greece and 
 Hussia those natural ties which alone give birth to true alliances. Climate, 
 geographical position, history, commerce, and, above all, a common civilisation, 
 attach Greece to that group of European nations known as Greco-Latin. In 
 tripartite Europe the Greeks will never range themselves by the side of the 
 Slav, but will be found amongst the Latin nations of Italy, France, and Spain
 
 __.

 
 OOVEENMENT AND POLITICAL DI^^SIONS. 86 
 
 Til. — Government and Political Divisions. 
 
 The protecting powers have bestowed upon Greece a parliamentary and constitu- 
 tional Government, modelled upon West European patterns. Theoretically 
 the King of the Greeks reigns, but does not govern, and his ministers are 
 responsible to the Chambers, whose majority changes with the fluctuations of 
 public opinion. In reality, however, the power of the King is limited only 
 by diplomacy. Nor do those "Western institutions respond to the traditions 
 and the genius of the Greeks, and although the charter has been modified 
 three times since the declaration of independence, it has never been strictly 
 adhered to. 
 
 In accordance with the constitution of 1864, every Greek citizen possessing 
 any property whatever, or exercising a profession, has a right to vote on attaining 
 his twenty-fifth year, and becomes eligible as a deputy at thirty. The deputies, 
 one himdred and eighty-seven in number, are elected for four years, and are paid 
 for their services. The civil list of the King, inclusive of a subvention granted by 
 the protecting powers, amounts to £-46,000 a year. 
 
 The orthodox Greek Church of Hellas is independent of the Patriarch of 
 Constantinople. It is governed by a Holy Synod, sitting in the capital, and 
 presided over by an archbishop as metropolitan. A royal commissioner is present 
 at the meetings of the Sjmod, and countersigns every proposition that is carried. 
 Decisions not bearing this official signature are void. The King, on the other 
 hand, is permitted to dethrone or remove a bishop only by consent of the Synod, 
 and in accordance with the canon law. The constitution guarantees religious 
 liberty, but this official Church nevertheless exercises considerable powers, and 
 frequently calls upon the civil authorities to give force to its decrees. The 
 Synod carefully watches over the observance of religious dogmas ; it points out to 
 the authorities heretical or heterodox preachers and writers, and demands their 
 suppression ; exercises a censorship over books and religious pictures ; and calls 
 upon the civil tribimals to punish ofienders. 
 
 There are no longer any Mohammedans in Greece, except sailors or tra- 
 vellers, and the last Turk has quitted Eubcea. The only Church besides 
 the established one which can boast a considerable nimiber of adherents is 
 the Eoman Catholic. It prevjiils amongst the middle classes on Naxos, and on 
 several others of the Cyclades, and is governed by two archbishops and four 
 bishops. 
 
 Greece is divided into thirteen nomes, or nomarchies, and these, again, 
 into fifty-nine eparchies. Each eparchy is subdivided into districts, or dimes 
 (dimarchies), and the latter into parishes, governed by paredres, or assistant 
 dimarchs. These officials are appointed by the King, and are in receipt of small 
 emoluments. The number of officials is proportionately greater in Greece than 
 in any other part of Europe. They form the sixtieth part, or, including their 
 families, the twelfth part of the population, and although their pay is small, they 
 swallow up between them more than half the public income.
 
 86 
 
 GEEECE. 
 
 The thirteen nomes and fifty-niue eparchies of Greece, with their population 
 in 1870 :— 
 
 Eparchies. Population. 
 
 Mantinea 46,174 
 
 Kynuria 26,733 
 
 Gortynia 41,408 
 
 MegalopoUa 17,425 
 
 Arkadia 
 
 131,740 
 
 Lakedsemon . • ... 46,423 
 
 Gythion 13,957 
 
 Xtylos ((Etylos) 26,540 
 
 Epidauroa Limera 18,931 
 
 Lakonia 105,851 
 
 Kalamaj 25,029 
 
 Messiai 29,529 
 
 Pylia 20,946 
 
 Trij.hylia 29,041 
 
 Olynipia 25,872 
 
 Messenia 130,417 
 
 Nauplia 15,022 
 
 Argoa 22,138 
 
 Korintbia 42,803 
 
 Spetsae :ind Hermionis .... 19,919 
 
 Hydra and Trizinia .... 17,301 
 
 Kythyra 10,637 
 
 Arc-olis and Korin*lui 
 
 127.820 
 
 Syros ....... 30,643 
 
 Kea 8,687 
 
 Andros ....... 19,674 
 
 Tinoa 11,022 
 
 Naxos 20,582 
 
 Thira (Thera, Santorin) . . . 21,901 
 
 MUoa 10,784 
 
 Kykladfcs 
 
 123,293 
 
 Attiki 76,919 
 
 ..aEuina 6,103 
 
 Megaris 14,949 
 
 Thiva (Thebx-) 20,711 
 
 Livadia ....... 18,122 
 
 Atliki and Viotia (Boeotia) . 136.804 
 
 Eparchies, 
 Khalkis . 
 Xerochorion 
 Karystia 
 Skopelos 
 
 Euria (Eiiboea) 
 
 Phtbiotia 
 Pamasia 
 Lokris . 
 Doria 
 
 PbtMotia and Pbokia 
 
 Meaolongion (Missolonghi) 
 
 Valtoa . 
 
 Tricbonia 
 
 Evrytaiiia 
 
 Navpaktia 
 
 Vonitza and Xeromeroa . 
 
 Akarnania and ^Etolia 
 
 Patraa . 
 ^gialia . 
 Kalavryta 
 Ilia (Elia) 
 
 Achaia and Ilia (Elia) 
 
 Kerkyra (Corfu) 
 
 Mesi 
 
 Oroa 
 
 Paxi (Paxos) . 
 
 Leucaa (Santa Slaiira) 
 
 Kerkyra (Corfu) 
 
 Kranaia . 
 Pali 
 Sami 
 Itaki . 
 
 Kephallinia 
 Zakynthos (Zante) 
 
 Popnlation. 
 . 29,013 
 . 11,215 
 . 33,936 
 . 8,377 
 
 82.541 
 
 26,747 
 20,368 
 20,187 
 49,119 
 
 106,421 
 
 18,997 
 14,027 
 14,493 
 33,013 
 22,219 
 18,979 
 
 121,693 
 
 46,527 
 12,764 
 39,204 
 61,0i;6 
 
 149,561 
 
 25,729 
 21,754 
 24,983 
 3,582 
 20,892 
 
 . 96,940 
 
 , 33,358 
 
 . 17,377 
 
 . 16,774 
 
 . 9,873 
 
 , 77.382 
 . 44,557 
 
 The modern nomenclature bas been adopted in the above table.
 
 TURKEY IN EUROPE. 
 
 I. — General Aspects.* 
 
 HE Balkan peninsula is, perhaps, that amongst the three great 
 peninsulas of Southern Europe which enjoys the greatest natural 
 advantages, and occupies the most fovourahlo geographical position. 
 In its outline it is far less unwieldy than Spain, and even surpasses 
 Italy in variety of contour. Its coasts are washed by four seas ; they 
 abound in gulfs, harbours, and peninsulas, and are fringed by numerous islands. 
 Several of its valleys and plains vie in fertility with the banks of the Guadalquivir 
 and the plains of Lorabardy. The floras of two climes iutcrminglc on its soil, and 
 add their charms to the landscape. The mountains of Turkey do not yield to those 
 of the two other peninsulas in graceful outline or grandeur, and most of them are 
 still covered with virgin forests. If they are loss accessible than the Apennines of 
 Italy or the sierras of Spain, that is o^^-ing simply to the want of roads; for they 
 are, as a rule, of moderate elevation, and the plateaux from which they rise are 
 narrower and more extensively intersected by valleys than is the table-land of 
 Castile. Both Spain and Italy are closed in the north by mountain barriers 
 diflScult to cross, whilst the Balkan peninsula joins the continental trunk by almost 
 imperceptible transitions, and nowhere is it separated from it by well-defiaed 
 natural boundaries. The Austrian Alps extend without a break into Bosnia, and 
 the Carpathians cross the Danube in order to clfect a junction with the system of 
 the Balkan. To the cast of the " Iron Gate " there are no mountains at all, and 
 Turkey is bounded there by the broad valley of the Danube. 
 
 • AulhcriticB : — H. Pashley, " Travels in Crete ; " luuilin, " Description Physique de I'lle de Cr6te ; " 
 G. Perrot, " L'lle de Cr^te; " Viquesnel, " Voyiigc dans la Turqiiie d'Europe ; " Ami Bou^, " La Turquie 
 d'Kiirope;" A. Dumont, "Le Balkan et rAdrialiquo ; " Lojcan, " Ethnograpbie de la Turquie d'Europe j" 
 Vim Uiimmer, " Konbtantinopel nnd der Bosporus;" P. Jo Tchiliatehef, "Le Bospliore ; " lleuzey, 
 " Voyage nrchiolngique on Macedoino ; " Fansliawe Tozer, " Researches in the Highlands of Turkey ; " 
 Barth, " lieiscn in der europaischen Tiiiki-i ; " Von llahn, " Alliancsis<he Studien ; " Hecquard, " Ilis- 
 toiro et Description de la Ilautc-Albanie ; " Dora d'lhtiia, " Xutionalite albanaisc ; " F. llaurer, " lieiso 
 duri h Bosnien , " F. de Sainte-llaric, " L'lXerzegovinc ; " Kanilz, " Donau-Bulgaricn und der Balkan ; " 
 II. Kiepert, Map of Turkey in Europe.
 
 88 TURKEY IN EUEOPB. 
 
 The proximity and parallelism of the coasts of two continents confer upon the 
 Balkan peninsula an advantage unrivalled, pei'haps, throughout the world. It is 
 separated from Asia only by the narrow channel which joins the Black Sea to the 
 ^gean Sea : this channel is an ocean highwaj', and yet forms no serious obstacle 
 to the migration of nations from continent to continent. If the Black Sea were 
 larger than it is at present ; if it still formed one sea with the Caspian, and extended 
 far into Asia, as it did in a past age, then Constantinople would necessarily become 
 the great centre of the ancient world. That proud position was actually held by 
 it a thousand years ago, and even if it should never recover it, its geographical 
 position alone insures to it an importance for all time to come. If the city were 
 to be razed to day, it would arise again to-morrow at some other spot in the neigh- 
 bourhood. In the dawn of history powerful Ilion kept watch at the entrance of 
 the Dardanelles : it survives in the city on the Bosphorus ; and had there been no 
 Byzantium, its mantle would have descended upon some other town in the same 
 localitj% 
 
 We know the part played by ancient Greece in the history of human culture. 
 Macedonia and Thracia, the two other countries bordering upon the -^gean, have 
 played their part too. It was those provinces which, after the invasion of the 
 Persians, gave birth to the movement of reaction which led the armies of Alexander 
 to the Euphrates and Indus. The power of the Romans survived there for a 
 thousand years after Eome itself had fallen, and the precious germs of civilisation, 
 which at a later period regenerated Western Europe, were nurtured there. It is 
 true, alas ! that the Turk has put a stop to every enterj^rise of a civilising nature. 
 These conquerors of Turanian race were carried into the Balkan peninsula in the 
 course of a general migration of nations towards the west, which went on for 
 three thousand years, and was attended by perpetual broils. It is now five 
 hundred years since the Turks obtained a footing in the peninsula, and for more 
 than four hundred years they have been its masters, and during that long period 
 the old Roman empire of the East has been severed, as it were, from the rest of 
 Europe. The normal progress of these highly favoured countries has been inter- 
 rupted by incessant wars between Christians and Mohammedans, by the decay of 
 the nations conquered or enslaved by the Turks, and bj' the heedless fatalism of the 
 masters of the country. But the time is approaching when that important portion 
 of Europe will resume the position due to it amongst the countries of the earth. 
 
 Yast tracts of the Balkan peninsula are hardly better known to us than the 
 wilds of Africa. Kanitz found rivers, hills, and mountains figuring upon our 
 maps which have no existence. Another traveller, Lejean, found that a pretended 
 low pass through the Balkans existed only in the imagination. Russian geodesists 
 engaged upon the measurement of an arc of a meridian found that Sofia, one of 
 the largest and best-known cities of Turkey, had been inserted upon the best maps 
 at a distance of nearly a day's journey from its true position. The entire chain of 
 the Balkans had to be shifted considerably to the south, in consequence of explora- 
 tions carried on within the last few years. Men of science have hardly ventured 
 yet to explore the plateaux of Albania or Mount Pindus, and much remains yet to
 
 GENERAL ASPECTS, 89 
 
 be done before our knowledge of the topography of the Balkan peninsula can be 
 called even moderately complete. The voyages and explorations of a host of 
 travellers * have, however, made known to us its general features and its geological 
 formations. Their task was by no means an easy one, for the mountain masses and 
 mountain chains of the peninsula do not constitute a regular, well-defined system. 
 There is no central range, with spurs running out on both sides, and gradually 
 decreasing in height as they approach the plains. Nor is the centre of the penin- 
 sula its most elevated portion, for the culminating summits are dispersed over the 
 country apparently without order. The mountain ranges run in all the directions 
 of the compass, and we can only say, in a general way, that those of Western Turkey 
 run parallel with the Adriatic and Ionian coasts, whilst those in the east meet the 
 coasts of the Black Sea and the Jilgean at right angles. The relief of the soil and 
 the water-sheds make it appear almost as if Turkey turned her back upon con- 
 tinental Europe. Its highest mountains, its most extensive table-lands, and its most 
 inaccessible forests lie towards the west and north-west, as if they were intended to 
 cut it off from the shores of the Adriatic and the plains of Hungary, whilst all its 
 rivers, whether they run to the north, east, or south, finally find their way into the 
 Black Sea or the JEgean, whose shores face those of Asia. 
 
 This irregularity in the distribution of the mountains has its analogue in the 
 distribution of the various races which inhabit the peninsula. The invaders or 
 peaceful colonists, whether they came across the straits from Asia Minor, or along 
 the valley of the Danube from Scythia, soon found themselves scattered in 
 numerous valleys, or stopped by amphitheatres having no outlet. They failed to 
 find their way in this labyrinth of mountains, and members of the most diverse races 
 settled down in proximity to each other, and frequently came into conflict. The 
 most numerous, the most warlike, or the most industrious races gradually extended 
 their power at the expense of their neighbours ; and the latter, defeated in the 
 struggle for existence, have been scattered into innumerable fragments, between 
 which there is no longer any cohesion. Hungary has a homogeneous population, 
 if we compare it with that of Turkey ; for in the latter country there are districts 
 where eight or ten different nationalities live side by side within a radius of a few 
 miles. 
 
 Time, however, has brought some order into this chaos, and commercial inter- 
 course has done much to assimilate these various races. Speaking broadly, Turkey 
 in Europe may now be said to be divided into four great ethnological zones. The 
 Greeks occupy Crete, the islands of the Archipelago, the shores of the iEgean Sea, 
 and the eastern slopes of Mounts Pindus and Olympus ; the Albanians hold the 
 count ry between the Adriatic and Mount Pindus ; the Slavs, including Servians, 
 Croats, Bosnians, Herzegovinians, and Tsernagorans (Montenegrins), occupy the 
 Illyrian Alps, towards the north-west ; whilst the slopes of the Balkan, the 
 Despoto Dagh, and the plains of Eastern Turkey belong to the Bulgarians, who, 
 as far as language goes, are Slavs likewise. As to the Turks, the lords of the land, 
 
 • We mention P«lma, Vaudoncourl, Lapio, Bouc, Yiqiicsncl, Lcjcan, Knnitz, Barlb, Hochstettcr, 
 and Abdullah Uey.
 
 90 TURKEY IN EUEOPE. 
 
 they are to be met with in most places, and particularly in the large towns and 
 fortresses ; but the only portion of the country which they occupy to the exclusion 
 of other races Is the north-eastern corner of the peninsula, bounded by the Balkans, 
 the Danube, and the Black Sea. 
 
 II. — Crete and the Islands of the Archipelago. 
 
 Crete, next to Cyprus, is the largest Island Inhabited by Greeks. It is a natural 
 dependency of Greece, but treaties made without consulting the wishes of the people 
 have handed It over to the Turks. It is Greek in spite of this, not only because 
 the majority of Its inhabitants consider It to be so, but also because of its soil, its 
 climate, and Its geographical position. On all sides It Is surrounded by deep seas, 
 except towards the north-west where a submarine plateau joins It to Cythera and 
 the Peloponnesus. 
 
 There are few countries in the world more favoured by nature. Its climate is 
 mild, though sometimes too dry In summer ; its soil fertile in spite of the waters 
 being swallowed up by the limestone rocks ; its harbours spacious and well sheltered ; 
 and its scenery exhibits both grandeur and quiet beauty. The position of Crete, at 
 the mouth of the Archipelago, between Europe, Asia, and Africa, seems to have 
 destined that Island to become the great commercial emporium of that part of the 
 world. Aristotle already observed this, and. If tradition can be trusted, Crete 
 actually held that position for more than three thousand years. During that time 
 it "ruled the waves; " the Cyclades acknowledged the sway of Minos, Its king; 
 Cretan colonists established themselves in Sicily ; and Cretan vessels found their 
 way to every part of the Mediterranean. But the Island unfortunately became 
 divided Into Innumerable ■ small republics jealous of each other, and was therefore 
 unable to maintain this commercial sujaremacy in the foco of Dorian and other 
 Greeks. At a subsequent period the Romans subjected the Island, and it never 
 recovered Its independence. Byzantines, Arabs, Venetians, and Turks have held 
 it In turn, and by each of them It has been laid waste and impoverished. 
 
 The elongated shape of the Island, and the range of mountains which 
 runs through it from one extremity to the other, enable us to understand how 
 it was that at a time when most Greeks looked upon the walls of their cities 
 as synonymous with the limits of their fatherland, Crete became divided into 
 a multitude of small republics, and how every attempt at federation (" syncretism ") 
 miserably failed. The inhabitants, in fact, were more effectually separated 
 from each other than if they had Inhabited a number of small Islands forming 
 an archipelago. Most of the coast valleys are enclosed by high mountains, 
 the only easy access to them being from the sea, and communications between 
 the towns occupying their centres are possible only by crossing difficult mountain 
 paths easily defended. In all Crete there exists but one plain deserving the 
 name, viz. that of Messara, to the south of the central mass of mountains. It 
 is the granary of the island, and the leropotamo, or "holy river," which traverses 
 it, has a little water even in the middle of summer.
 
 CRETE AND THE ISLANDS OF TUB ARCHIPELAGO. 
 
 91 
 
 The contour of Crete corresponds in a remarkable manner with the height 
 of its mountains. AVhcre these are high, the ishind is broad ; where they sink 
 down, it is narrow. In the centre of the island rises Mount Ida (Psiloriti), where 
 Jupiter was educated by the Corybantes, and where his tomb was shown. Its 
 lofty summit, covered with snow almost throughout the year, its gigantic 
 buttresses, and the verdant valleys at its base render it one of the most imposing 
 mountains in the world ; but it was still more magnificent in the time of the 
 
 Fig. 28. — The Gobob of Haoio Rimeli. 
 
 ancient Greeks, when forests covered its slopes, and justified its being called Slount 
 Ida, or " the wooded." On the summit of this mountain the whole island lies 
 spread out beneath our feet ; the horizon towards the north, from Jtlount Taygctus 
 to the shores of Asia, is dotted with islands and peninsulas; and in the south a 
 wide expanse of water extends beyond the barren and inhospitable island of Gaudo. 
 The Leuca-Ori, or " White Mountains," in the western extremity of the island, 
 are thus called on account of the snow which covers their summits, or because
 
 92 TUEKEY IN EUROPE. 
 
 of their white limestone cliffs. They are exceedingly steep, and perfectly bare, 
 hardly any verdure being met with even in the valleys at their foot. They are 
 known, also, as the Mountains of the Sphakiotes, the descendants of the ancient 
 Dorians, who have retired into their fastnesses, where they are protected by 
 nature against every attack. Some of their villages are accessible only by 
 following the stony bed of mountain torrents leaping down from the heights 
 in small cascades. During the rains the water rushes down these ravines in 
 mighty torrents. The " gates are closed " then, as it is said. One of these gates, 
 or pharynghi, is that of Hagio Rumeli, on the southern slope of the Leuca-Ori. 
 When rain threatens it is dangerous to enter these gorges, for the waters rush 
 down and carry everything before them. During the war of independence 
 the Turks vainly endeavoured to force this " gate " of the strong mountain citadel. 
 The level pieces of ground on these heights are sufEciently extensive to support 
 a considerable population, if it were not for the cold. The villages of Askyfo 
 occupy one of these plains, which is surrounded on all sides by an amphitheatre 
 of mountains. In former times this cax-ity was occupied by a lake. This is 
 proved by ancient beaches and by other evidence. But the waters of the lake 
 found an outlet through some katavothras {hhonos, "sinks'"), and discharged 
 themselves into the sea. 
 
 The remaining mountains of the island are less elevated and far less sterile 
 than the White Mountains. The most remarkable amongst them are the Lasithi, 
 and, still farther west, those of Dicte, or Sitia, a sort of pendant to the Mountains of 
 the Sphakiotes. Eaised sea-beaches have been traced along their northern slopes, 
 covered with shells of living species, and they prove that that portion of the 
 island has been upheaved more than sixty feet during a recent geological epoch. 
 The northern coast, between the White Mountains and Mount Dicte, offers a 
 greater variety of contour than does the south coast. Its capes, or acroteria, 
 project far into the sea, and thence are gulfs, bays, and secure anchorages. For 
 these reasons most commercial cities have been built upon that side of the island, 
 which faces the Archipelago and presents a picture of life, whilst the south coast, 
 facing Africa, is comparatively deserted. All the modern cities on the northern 
 coasts have been buUt upon the sites of ancient ones. Megalokastron, better 
 known by its Italian name of Candia, is the Heracleum of the ancients, the 
 famous haven of Cnossus. Eetimo, on the western front of Mount Ida, is easily 
 identified with the ancient Rithymna ; whilst Khanea (Canea), whose white 
 houses are almost confounded with the arid slopes of the White Mountains, 
 represents the Cydonia of the Greeks, famous for its forests of quince- trees. 
 Canea is the actual capital, and although not the most populous, it is never- 
 theless the most important and the busiest city of the island. It has a 
 second haven to the east, Azizirge, on Suda Bay, one of the best sheltered on the 
 island, and promises to become one of the principal maritime stations on the 
 Mediterranean.* 
 
 • Heights of principal mountains : — Aspra Vuna (WTiite Mountain of Leuca-Ori), 8,100 feet ; Peiloriti, 
 or Ida, 8,000 feet; Lasithi, or Dicte, 7,100 feet. Towns :—Uanea, 12,000 inhabitants; Megalokastron, 
 12,000 ; Retimo, 9,000. Total population of the island, 210,000.
 
 CRETE AND THE ISL.UTOS OF THE ARCHIPELAGO. 
 
 93 
 
 Crete has certainly lost much in population and wealth, and the epithet of 
 the " isle of a hundred cities," which it received from the ancient Greeks, no longer 
 applies to it. Miserable villages occupy the sites of the ancient cities, their 
 houses built from the materials of a single ruined wall, whilst immense quarries 
 had to be opened in order to supply the building materials required in former 
 times. The famous "labyrinth" is one of the most considerable of these ancient 
 quarries. Crete, in spite of its great fertility, exports merely a few agricultural 
 products, and nothing now reminds us of the fruitful island upon which Ceres 
 gave birth to Plutus. The peasants are the reputed owners of the land, but they 
 take little heed of its cultivation. Their olives yield only an inferior oil, and 
 though the wine they make is good in spite of them, it is no longer the Malvoisie 
 so highly prized by the Venetians. The cultivation of cotton, tobacco, and of 
 fruit of all sorts is neglected. The only progress in agriculture which can bo 
 recorded during the present centurj- consists in the introduction of orange-trees, 
 
 Fig. 29. — Crete, or Caxdia. 
 
 Ji-.t.or <,r 
 
 
 2^ 
 
 i%~^x.^ 
 
 
 
 ^^S^^Imr^S^fe^ 
 
 afe^OK.ASTROS 
 
 ' ^ 
 
 ^SSHI^^S^^^^ 
 
 ^^^^^^B" 
 
 -'>*..A^*'''Va^SjE 
 
 ■Hl^^^^ '^ 
 
 ^^^M 
 
 M.^^ 
 
 ^l^sm^ 
 
 » 
 
 '^ 
 
 
 
 iV 
 
 ?S" 
 
 r6- 
 
 Scale 1 : 2 470,000. 
 The district inliabited by Mohammedans is shaded vertically. 
 
 whose delicious fruit is highly appreciated throughout the East. M. Georges 
 Perrot has drawn attention to the singular fact that, with the exception of the 
 olive-trees and the vine, the cultivated trees of the island are confined to 
 particular localities. Thus chestnuts are met with only at the western extremity 
 of the island ; vHgorous oaks and cj-presses are confined to the elevated valleys of 
 the Sphakiotes ; the valonia oaks are met with only in the province of Retimo ; 
 Mount Dicte alone supports stone-pines and carob-trees ; and a promontory in 
 South-eastern Crete, jutting out towards Africa, is surmounted by a grove of 
 date-trees — the finest throughout the Archipelago. 
 
 The inhabitants of Crete and the neighbouring islets are still Greek, in spite of 
 successive invasions, and they still speak a Greek dialect, recognised as a corrupted 
 Dorian. The Slavs, who invaded the island during the Middle Ages, have left 
 no trace except the names of a few villages. The Arabs and Venetians, too, have 
 been assimilated by the aboriginal Cretans; but there still exist a considerable
 
 94 TUTvKEY IN EUEOPE. 
 
 number of Albanians, the descendants of soldiers, who have retained their 
 language and their customs. As to the Mohammedans or pretended Turks, who 
 constitute about one-fifth of the total population, they are, for the most part, the 
 descendants of Cretans who embraced Islamism in order to escape persecution. 
 They are the only Hellenes throughout the East who have embraced, in a body, 
 the religion of their conquerors ; but since religious persecution has subsided 
 several of those Mohammedan Greeks have returned to the religion of their 
 ancestors. The Greeks of Crete are thus not only vastly in the majority, but 
 they hold the first place also in industry, commerce, and wealth ; it is they who 
 buy up the land, and the Mohammedan gradually retires before them. All 
 Cretans, with the exception of the Albanians, speak Greek, and only in the capital 
 and in a portion of Messara, where the Mohammedans live in compact masses, has 
 the Turkish language made any progress. 
 
 We need not be surprised, therefore, if the Greeks lay claim to a country in 
 which their preponderance is so marked. But, in spite of their valour, they were 
 no match against the Turkish and Egyptian armies which were brought 
 against them. 
 
 The Cretans arc said to resemble their ancestors in the eagerness with which 
 they do business, and in their disregard of truth. They may possibly be " Greeks 
 amongst Greeks — liars amongst liars ; " but they certainly cannot be reproached 
 with being bad patriots. On the contrary, they have suflfered much for the sake 
 of their fatherland, and during the war of independence their blood was shed in 
 torrents on many a battle-field. The vast cavern of Melidhoni, on the western 
 slope of Moimt Ida, was the scene of one of the terrible events of this war. 
 In 1822 more than three hundred Hellenes, most of them women, children, 
 and old men, had sought refuge in this cavern. The Turks lit a fire at its 
 mouth, and the smoke, penetrating to its farthest extremity, suSbcated the unfortu- 
 nate beings who had hoped to find shelter there. 
 
 The profound " Sea of Minos," to the north of Crete, separates that island 
 from the Archipelago. All the islands of the latter have been assigned to the 
 kingdom of Greece — Astypalsea, vulgarly called Astropalaea or Stampalia, alone 
 excepted, which still belongs to the Turks. The ancients called this island the 
 " Table of the Gods," although it is only a barren rock. It clearly belongs to 
 the eastern chain of the Cyclades, as far as geological formation and the 
 configuration of the sea-bottom go ; but the diplomats allowed its fifteen hundred 
 inhabitants to remain under the dominion of Turkey. 
 
 Amongst the other islands inhabited by Greeks, but belonging to Turkey, 
 Thasos is that which lies nearest to the coast of Europe, The strait which 
 separates it from Macedonia is hardly four miles across, and in its centre there is 
 an island (Thasopulo), as well as several sand-banks, which interfere much with 
 navigation. Though a natural dependency of Macedonia, this island is governed 
 by a mudir of the Viceroy of Egypt, to whom the Porte made a present of it. 
 When Mohammed II. put an end to the Byzantine emj^ire, Thasos and the neigh-
 
 CRETE AND THE ISLANDS OF THE ARCHirELAGO. 95 
 
 liouring islands formed ;i iJiiiicijJulity, tlic properly of the- Italian family of the 
 Gateluzzi. 
 
 Tbasos is one of those countries of the ancient world the present condit'on of 
 
 Fig. 30.— Thk iKoEAN Sea. 
 Accoidiug to Bobiquct. Scale, 1 : 5,170,000. 
 
 
 S.ilomla i 
 
 The map is shaded to express the depth of the sea. The p-ilest tint indio.itps a rliplh ..f li'-^s than 65 fathoms; the next tint 
 a depth of 1>5 to 275 fiithoms ; the next a depth of 275 to .550 fathoms ; and the darkest tint a depth of over 550 fathoms. 
 
 which contrasts most unfavourahly with former times. Thasos, an ancient Pho?- 
 nician colonj', was once the rival, and subsequently the wealthy and powerful ally, 
 of Athens : its hundred thousand inhabitants worked the gold and iron mines of
 
 96 TUEKEY IN EUEOPE. 
 
 the island ; they quarried its beautiful white marble ; cultivated vineyards yielding 
 a famous wine ; and extended their commercial expeditions to every part of the 
 ^gean Sea. But now there are neither mines nor quarries, the vines yield only 
 an inferior product, the agricultural produce hardly suffices for the six thousand 
 inhabitants of the island, and the ancient haven of Thasos is frequented only by 
 the tiniest of vessels. The island has recovered very slowly from the blow 
 inflicted upon it by Mohammed II., who carried nearly the whole of its inhabitants 
 to Constantinople. Thasos after this became a haunt of pirates, and its inha- 
 bitants sought shelter within the mountains of the interior. They are Hellenes, 
 but their dialect is very much mixed with Turkish words. Unlike other Hellenes, 
 they are not anxious to improve their minds. They are degenerate Greeks, and 
 they know it. " We are sheep and beasts of burden," they repeatedly told the 
 French traveller, Perrot. 
 
 Tliasos, however, is the only island of the Archipelago where wooded moun- 
 tains and verdant landscapes survive. Rains are abundant, and its vegetation 
 luxuriant. Eunning streams of water murmur in every valley ; large trees throw 
 their shade over the hill-sides ; the villages near the foot of the mountain are 
 hidden by cypresses, walnut, and olive-trees ; the valleys which radiate in all 
 directions from the centre of the island abound in planes, laurels, yoke-elms, and 
 vigorous oaks ; and dark pine forests cover the higher slopes of the hills, the 
 glittering barren summits of Mount St. Elias and of other high mountains alone 
 rising above them. 
 
 Samothrace, though smaller than Thasos, is much more elevated. Its mouu- 
 tains are composed of granite, schists, limestones, and trachyte, and form a sort 
 of pendant to Mount Athos, on the other side of the jEgean Sea. If we approach 
 Samothrace from the north or the south, it presents the appearance of a huge 
 coffin floating upon the waters ; from the east or west its profile resembles a 
 pyramid rising from the waves. From its summit Neptune watched the fight 
 of the Greeks before Troy. In the dark oak forests of the Black Moimtains 
 were carried on the mysteries of Cybele and her Corybantes, as well as the Cabiric 
 worship, which was intimately connected with them, and Samothrace was to the 
 ancient Greeks what Moimt Athos is to the modems — a sacred land. Numerous 
 ruins and inscriptions remain to bear witness to the zeal of devout travellers 
 from all parts of the world. But with the downfall of the heathen temples the 
 pilgrims disappeared. There is only one village on the island now. Its inha- 
 bitants lead a secluded life, and the only strange faces they see are those of the 
 sponge-fishers who frequent the island during summer. The entire absence of 
 harbours, and the dajigerous current which separates Samothrace from Imbro, 
 keep off the mariner, and though the valleys are extremely fertile, they have 
 not hitherto attracted a single immigrant from the neighbouring continent. 
 
 Imbro and Lemnos are separated from Samothrace by a deep sea, and appear 
 to continue the range of the Thracian Chersonesus. Imbro, which is nearest 
 to the continent, is the more elevated of the two islands, but its St. Elias does not 
 attain half the height of the mountains of Samothrace. There are no forests
 
 CEETE AND THE ISLANDS OP THE ARCUirELAGO. 07 
 
 upon the slopes of this mountain, the valleys arc covered with stoi'c-s, and hardly 
 an eighth of the surface of the island is capable of cultivation. Still, the position 
 of Imhro, close to the mouth of the Dardanelles and upon an international ocean 
 highway, will always secure to it a certain degree of importance. The majority 
 of the inhabitants live in a small valley in the north-eastern portion of the 
 island, and though the rivulet which flows through this valley regularly dries 
 up in summer, it is nevertheless called emphatically the Megalos Potamos, or 
 " big river." 
 
 Lemnos, or Linini, is the largest island of Thracia, and at the same time the 
 least elevated and the most barren. You may walk for hours there without 
 seeing a tree. Even olive-trees are not met with in the fields, and the village 
 gardens can boast but of few fruit trees. Timber has to be procured from Thasos 
 or the continent. Lemnos, in spite of all this, is exceedingly fertile ; it produces 
 barley and other cereals in plenty-, and the pastures amongst its hills sustain 
 40,000 sheep. The island consists of several distinct mountain groups of volcanic 
 origin, 1,200 to 1,500 feet in height, and separated by low plains covered with 
 scoritE, or by gulfs penetrating far inland. In the time of the ancient Greeks 
 the volcanoes of Lemnos had not yet quenched their fires, for it was in one of 
 them that Yuleun, when hurled from heaven, established his smithy, and, with 
 the assistance of the Cyclops, forged his thunderbolts for Jupiter. About the 
 beginning of our era Mount Mosychlos and the promontory of Chrj'se were 
 swallowed up by the sea, and the vast shoals which extend from the eastern part 
 of the island in the direction of Imbro probably mark their site. Since the disaj)- 
 pearance of Moimt Mosychlos, Lemnos has not again sufiered from volcanic erup- 
 tions or earthquakes. The majority of the inhabitants are Greeks, and the Turks 
 who have settled amongst them are being evicted by the conquered race, which is 
 superior to them in intelligence and industry. Commerce is entirely in the hands 
 of the Greeks. Its principal seat is at Kastro — the ancient Myrhina — which 
 occupies a headland between two roadsteads. Sealed earth is one of the articles 
 exported, and is found in the mountains. In ancient times it was much prized 
 as an astringent, and is so still throughout the East. It is not considered to possess 
 its healing qualities unless it has been collected before sunrise on Corpus Christi 
 day. 
 
 The small island of Stratio (Haglos Eustrathios) depends politically and 
 commercially upon Lemnos. It, too, is inhabited by Greeks. As to the islands 
 along the coast of Asia Minor, they form a portion of Turkey in Europe as 
 far as their political administration is concerned, but geographically they belong 
 to Asia.* 
 
 • The islanas of Thracia : — 
 
 
 8q. m. 
 
 Inhabitants. 
 
 Highest Mountains. 
 
 Feet. 
 
 Thasos . 
 
 . 74 
 
 10,000 
 
 Mount Ipsario . 
 
 . 3,000 
 
 Samothrace . 
 
 . 6G 
 
 200 
 
 Mount Phcngari . 
 
 . 5,240 
 
 Imbro . 
 
 . 85 
 
 4,000 
 
 Mount St. Ellas . 
 
 . 1,950 
 
 Lemnos 
 
 . 170 
 
 22,000 
 
 Mount Skopia . 
 
 . 1,410 
 
 VOL. I. 
 
 
 H 
 

 
 98 TURKEY IN EUEOPE. 
 
 III. — Turkey of the Greeks (Thracia, Macedonia, and Ttiessaly). 
 
 The whole of the iEgean seaboard of European Turkey is occupied by Greeks, 
 and this proYes the great influence which the sea has exercised upon the migra- 
 tions of the Mediterranean nations. Thessaly, Macedonia, Chalcis, and Thrace 
 are more or less Greek countries, and eYcn Constantinople lies within Greece, 
 as defined by ethnological boundaries. The geographical distribution of race 
 there does not, in fact, coincide with the physical features of the country — its 
 mountains, riYcrs, and climate. The Turkey of the Greeks is, in reality, no 
 geographical unit, and the only tie which unites it are the waters of the Archi- 
 pelago, which wash all its shores. 
 
 Nowhere else does the Balkan peninsula exhibit such varied features as on the 
 shores of the Mgean Sea, and of the adjoining basin of the Sea of Marmara. 
 Blufis, hills, and mountain masses rise abruptly from the plain ; arms of the 
 sea extend far inland ; and ramified peninsulas project into the deep waters of the 
 ocean. It appears almost as if nature were making an effort to create an archipelago 
 similar to that in the south. 
 
 The tongue of land upon which Constantinople has been built offers a 
 remarkable example of the features which characterize the coast lands of this 
 portion of Europe. Geologically the whole of this peninsula belongs to Asia. 
 Its hollow hills are sejjarated from the granitic mountains of Europe by a wide 
 plain covered with recent formations, and the wall of Anastasius, now in ruins, 
 which was built as a defence to the city, approximately marks the true boundary 
 between Europe and Asia. The rocks on both sides of the Bosphorus belong 
 to the Devonian formation. They contain the same fossils, exhibit the same 
 outward aspects, and date from the same epoch. A patch of volcanic rocks at 
 the northern entrance to the Bosphorus likewise exhibits the same characteristics 
 on both sides of the strait, and there cannot be the least doubt that this European 
 peninsula at a former epoch constituted a portion of Asia Minor, but was severed 
 from it by an irruj^tion of the waters. 
 
 ApoUo himself, it is said, pointed out the site where to build the city 
 which is now known as Constantinople, and no better could have been found. 
 In fact, the city occupies the most favoured spot on the Bosphorus. It stands on 
 a peninsula of gently undulating hills, boimded by the Sea of Marmara and by 
 the curved inlet called, from its shape, its beautj', and the valuable cargoes 
 floating upon its waters, the "Golden Horn." The swift current of the Bosphorus 
 penetrates into this inlet, and sweeps it clean of all the refuse of the city. It then 
 passes into the open sea at the extreme angle of the peninsula, and sailing vessels 
 are thus able to reach their anchorage without having to struggle against a 
 contrary current. This haven not only affords a secure anchorage to a multitude 
 of vessels, biit it likewise abounds in fish ; for, in spite of the constant agitation 
 of its waters by the oars of caiques and the paddles or screws of steamers, it 
 is visited annually by shoals of tunnies and other fish. The haven of Con- 
 6tantijiople, though easy of access to peaceable merchantmen, can readily be
 
 TURKEY OF THE GEEEKS. 
 
 09 
 
 closed ill case of war. Tlie surrounding heights command every approach to 
 it, and a chain has more than once heen drawn across the narrow entrance to 
 its roadstead when the city was besieged. The latter, too, can be defended 
 easily, for it is built upon hills, bounded on the land side by an extensive 
 plain. An assailant, to insure success, must dispose not only of an army, but 
 
 Fig. 31.— Geological M.\r ok the Penixsi-la of CoxsTANTixorLE. 
 According to F. von Hoclistcttcr. Scale 1 : 1,370,000. 
 
 BLACK SEA 
 
 
 SEA 
 
 O F 
 
 31 A I\ M A R 
 
 G. of Ismid 
 
 ..._J 
 
 Quaternary 
 
 Crystallii 
 
 also of a powerful navy. In addition to all these natural advantages of its 
 site, Constantinople is in the enjoj'meut of a climate far sujicrior to that of 
 the cities of the Black Sea, for it is screened by hills from cold northerly 
 winds. 
 
 In the dawn of historj', when migration and commerce marched only at a 
 slow pace, a site as favoured as that of Byzantium was capable only of attracting 
 the dwellers in its immediate neighbourhood. But after commerce had become 
 developed, the blind alone — so said the oracle of Apollo — could fail to appreciate 
 the great advantages held out by the Golden Horn. Indeed, Constantinople 
 lies not only on the ocean highway which connects the world of the Mediter- 
 ranean with the Black Sea, but also on the high-road which leads from Asia 
 into Europe. Geographically it may be described aa occupjang a position at 
 
 h2
 
 100 TURKEY IN EUUOPE. 
 
 the mouths of the Danuhe, Dniester, Dnieper, Don, Elon, and Kizil Irniak, whose 
 common outlet is the Bosphorus. When Constantino the Great constituted 
 it the metropolis of the Eoman empire, it grew rapidly in population and wealth ; 
 it soon became the city of cities ; and its Turkish appellation, Stamboul, i3 
 nothing but a corruption of the expression es tarn jjolin, used by the inhabitants 
 to denote their going into the city. Amongst the distant tribes of Asia it repre- 
 sents Eome. They know it by no other name than that of " Eura," and the 
 country of which it is the capital they call " Eumelia." 
 
 Constantinople is one of the most beautiful cities in the woli'ld : it is the 
 "paradisiacal city" of Eastern nations. It may compare with Naples or Eio de 
 Janeiro, and many travellers accord it the palm. As we approach the entrance 
 of the Golden Horn, seated in a caique more graceful than the gondolas of 
 Venice, the vast and varied panorama around us changes with every stroke 
 of the oars. Beyond the white walls of the Seraglio and its masses of verdure 
 rise here, amphitheatrically on the seven hills of the peninsula, the houses of 
 Stamboul— its towers, the vast domes of its mosques, with their circlets of smaller 
 domes, and its elegant minarets, with their balconies. On the other side of the 
 haven, which is crossed by bridges of boats, there are more mosques and towers, 
 seen through a forest of masts and rigging, and covering the slope of a hill whose 
 summit is crowned by regularly built houses and the palatial residences of Pera. 
 On the north vast villa-cities extend along both shores of the Bosphorus. 
 Towards the east, on a promontory of Asia, there is still another city, cradled 
 amidst gardens and trees. This is Scutari, the Asiatic suburb of Constantinople, 
 with its pink houses and vast cemetery shaded by beautiful cypress groves. 
 Farther in the distance we perceive Kadi-koei, the ancient Chalcedon, and the 
 small town of Prinkipo, on one of the Princes' Islands, whose yellow rocks and 
 verdant groves are reflected in the blue waters of the Sea of Marmara. The sheet 
 of water connecting these various portions of the huge city is alive with vessels 
 and boats, whose movements impart animation to the magnificent picture. The 
 prospect from the heights above the town is still more magnificent. The coasts of 
 Europe and Asia are beneath our feet, the eye can trace the sinuosities of the 
 Bosphorus, and far away in the distance looms the snow-capped pyramidal summit 
 of Mount OljTupus, in Bithynia. 
 
 But this enchantment vanishes as soon as we penetrate into the streets of 
 Constantinople. There are many parts of the town with narrow and filthy streets, 
 which a stranger hesitates to enter. It is, perhaps, a blessing, from a sanitary 
 point of view, that conflagrations so frequently lay waste and scour large portiona 
 of the city. Scarcely a night passes without the watchman on the tower of the 
 Seraskieriate giving the alarm of fire, and thousands of houses are devoured 
 by that element every year. The city thus renews itself by degrees. It rises 
 from its ashes purified by the flames. But formerly, before the Turks had built 
 their city of stone on the heights of Pera, the quarters destroyed by fire were 
 rebuilt as wretchedly as they were before. It is different now. The use of stone 
 has become more general ; wooden structures are being replaced by houses built
 
 TUEKET OF THE GBEEKS. 101 
 
 of a fossilifcrous wliite limestone, which is quarried at the very gates of the city ; and 
 free use is made of the blue and grey marbles of Marmara, and of the flesh-coloured 
 ones of the Gulf of Cyzica, in Asia Jlinor, in decorating the palaces of the great. 
 
 Nearly every vestige of the monuments of ancient Byzantium has been swept 
 away by fires or sieges. There only exists now the precious tripod of bronze, with 
 its three serpents, which the PlatoDans had placed in the temple of Delphi in 
 commemoration of their victory over the Persians. The relics of the epoch 
 of the Byzantine emperors are limited to columns, obelisks, arches of aqueducts, 
 the breached walls of the city, the remains of the palace of Justinian, only 
 discovered recently, and the two churches of Santa Sophia, which have been 
 converted into mosques. The grand church of Santa Sophia, close to the 
 Seraglio, is no longer the most magnificent edifice in the universe, as it was 
 in the time of Justinian, for even the neighbouring mosque of Sultan Ahmed 
 far exceeds it in beauty and elegance. It is a clumsy building, supported by 
 buttresses added at various times to keep it from falling. The character of the 
 interior has been changed by the Turks, who have introduced additional pillars, 
 and the once bright mosaics have been covered over ; but the dome never fails to 
 strike the beholder : it is a marvel of sti-ength and lightness. 
 
 The Seraglio, or Serai, near Garden Point, may boast of fine pavilions and shady 
 walks, but the dark memories of crime will always cling to it. The spot from 
 which sacks containing the bodies of living sultanas or odalisks were hurled into 
 the dark waters of the Bosphorus is still pointed out to the traveller. Far more 
 attractive than this ancient residence of the sultans are the marvellous structures 
 in the Arab or Persian style which line the shores of the Bosphorus, and which 
 impart to the suburbs of Constantinople an aspect of oriental splendour. 
 
 The bazaars are amongst the most curious places in the city, not so much 
 because of the rich merchandise which is displaj^ed in them, but because they are 
 frequented by a variety of nations such as cannot be met with in any other city 
 of the world. The capital of the Ottoman empire is a centre of attraction not only 
 to the inhabitants of the Balkan peninsula, but also to those of Anatolia, 
 Syria, Arabia, Eg} pt, Tunis, and even of the oases. There are " Franks " from 
 every country of Europe, drawn thither by a desire to share in the profits of the 
 ever-increasing commerce of the Bosphorus. This mixture of races is rendered 
 still greater by the surreptitious importation of slaves ; for, whatever diplomatists 
 may assert, there can be no doubt that the " honourable guild of slave-dealers " 
 still does an excellent business in negresses, Circassians, and white and black 
 eunuchs. Kor is anything else to be expected amongst a people who look upon 
 a well-stocked harem as a sign of respectability. Dr. Millingen estimates the 
 number of slaves at Constantinople at 30,000 souls, most of whom have been 
 imported from Africa. From an anthropological point of \'iew it is certainly very 
 remarkable that the negro should not have taken root in Constantinople. In the 
 course of the last four centuries a million of negroes at least have been imported, 
 and yet, owing to difficulties of acclimation, ill-usage, and want, they would die 
 out but for fresh importations.
 
 102 TUEKEY IN EUEOPE. 
 
 Our statistics do not enable us to classify the 600,000 inhabitants of Constan- 
 tinople and its suburbs according to race.* One of the princijjal sources of error 
 in estimates of this kind consists in our confounding Mussulmans with Turks. In 
 the provinces it is generally possible to avoid this error, for Bosnians, Bulgarians, 
 and Albanians recognise each other as members of the same race, whatever religious 
 differences may exist between them. But in the turmoil of a great city this 
 distinction is no longer made, and, in the end, all those who frequent the mosques 
 are lumped together as if thej' were members of the saine race. Of the supposed 
 Osmanli of Constantinople a third, perhaps, consists of Turks, whilst the remaining 
 two-thirds are made up of Arnauts, Bulgarians, Asiatics, and Africans of various 
 races. Amongst the boatmen there are many Lesghians from the Caucasus. The 
 Mohammedans, if not in the minority already, will be so very soon, for they lose 
 ground almost visibly. In old Stamboul, in which a Frank hardly dared to enter 
 some twenty years ago, they still enjoy a numerical preponderance, but in the 
 " agglomeration of cities " known as Constantinople, and extending from Prinki230 
 to Therapia, they are outnumbered by Greeks, Armenians, and Franks, and 
 certain quarters of the town have been given up to the Christians altogether. 
 
 The Greeks are the most influential, and perhaps most numerous, element 
 amongst the raj^as. Their head-quarters, like those of the Turks, are at Stamboul, 
 where they occupy a quarter of the town called Phanar, from an old lighthouse. 
 The Greek patriarch and the wealthiest Greek families reside there. These 
 Phanariotes, in former times, almost monopolized the government of the Christian 
 provinces of Turkey, but they fell into disfavour after the Greek war of liberation. 
 The religious influence, too, which they exercised until quite recently, has been 
 destroyed in consequence of the separation of the Servian, Rumanian, and 
 Bulgarian Churches from the orthodox Greek Church — a separation brought about 
 almost entirely through the rapacity of the Greek patriarch and his satellites. 
 If the Greeks would continue to preserve their pre-eminence amongst the races of 
 Constantinople, they must trust, in the future, to their superior intelligence, their 
 commercial habits, education, patriotism, and unanimity. To the Turks the 
 members of the orthodox Church are known as the " Roman nation," and they 
 enjoy a certain amount of self-government, exercised through their bishops, 
 which extends to marriages, schools, hospitals, and a few other matters. 
 
 The "nation" of the Armenians is likewise very strong at Constantinople, and, 
 like that of the "Romans," it governs itself through an elective Executive 
 Council. Much of the commerce of Constantinople passes through the hands of 
 Ai-menians, w.ho, though they came to that city almost simultaneously with the 
 Turks, have down to the present day preserved their peculiar manners. They are 
 cold and reserved, and fuU of self-respect, differing widely from their rivals in 
 trade, the Jews, who sHnk furtively to their poor suburb of Balata, at the upper 
 
 • Consul Sax (1873) estimates the population as follows : — Stamboul,'210,000 ; Pera, 130,000 ; European 
 suburbs, 150,000; Asiatic suburbs, 110,000; total, 600,000 souls, including 200,000 Mohammedans. 
 Dr. Yakshity, on the other hand, estimates the population of Constantinople (exclusive of its Asiatic 
 suburbs) at 358,000 souls, of whom 193,540 are Mohammedans, 144,210 oriental Christians, and 30,000 
 Franks.
 
 TUEKEY OP THE GREEKS. 108 
 
 extremity of the Golden Horn. The Armenians aie clannish in the extreme, they 
 readily assist each other, and, like the Parsees of Bombay, delight in acts of 
 munificence. But, unlike the Greeks, they arc not sustained in their undertakings 
 by an ardent belief in the destinies of their race. Most of them are not even 
 able to speak their native language freely, and prefer to converse in Turkish or 
 Greek. 
 
 The Franks are much inferior in number to either of the races named, but 
 their influence is nevertheless far more decisive. It is through them that Constan- 
 tinople is attached to the civilisation of Western Europe, and their institutions are 
 by degrees getting the better of the fatalism of the East. It is they who built 
 the manufiicturing suburbs to the west of Constantinople and near Scutari, and 
 who introduced railways. Every civilised nation of the world is represented 
 amongst them — Italians and French most numerously ; and to the Americans is 
 due the credit of ha%-ing established the first geological museum in Turkey, 
 in connection with Robert College. 
 
 Constantinople, owing to the influx of strangers, is steadily increasing in popu- 
 lation, and one b}' one the villages in its vicinity are being swallowed up by the 
 city. The whole of the Golden Horn is surrounded by houses now, and they 
 extend far up the valleys of the Cydaris and Barbyzes, which fall into it. 
 Industrial establishments extend along the shores of the Sea of Marmara, from the 
 ancient fort of the Seven Towers far to the west, and from Chalcedon to the 
 south-east, in the direction of the Gulf of Nicomedia. Both banks of the 
 Bosphorus are lined with viUas, palaces, kiosks, cafes, and hotels. This remarkable 
 channel extends for nineteen miles between the shores of Europe and of Asia. 
 Like a huge mountain valley it winds between steep promontories, now contract- 
 ing and then expanding, until it finally opens out into the vast expanse of the 
 Black Sea. "When northern winds hm-1 the agitated waters of the latter against 
 the sombre Clio's which guard the entrance to the Bosphorus, the contrast between 
 this savage sea and the placid waters of the strait and its charming scenery is 
 striking indeed. At every turn we are arrested by imexpected charms. Rocks, 
 palaces, woods, vessels of every description, and the curious scafibldings of 
 Bidgarian fishermen succeed each other in infinite variety. 
 
 Amongst the innumerable country residences which nestle on the shores of the 
 Bosphorus, those of Balta-Liman, Therapia, and Buyukdere are the best known, 
 for they have been the scenes of historical events ; but there is no spot throughout 
 this marine valley which does not excite admiration. These marvels of nature 
 will, before long, have added to them a marvel of human ingenuity. The width 
 of the channel between the castles of Rumili and Anadoli is only 600 yards. 
 It was here Mandroclus of Samos constructed the bridge of boats across which 
 Darius marched his armj' of 700,000 men when he made war upon the Scythians, 
 and on this identical spot it is proposed now to construct a railway bridge which 
 will join the railways of Europe to those of Asia. A cvirrent runs through the 
 Bosphorus, from the Black Sea to the Sea of Marmara, at a rate of from two to six 
 miles an hour ; and although several geographers conclude from this that the level
 
 lOi TUEKEY IN EUEOPE. 
 
 of tlio former is higher than that of the latter, this rnTist by no means he looked 
 upon as an established fact. We have already noticed the exchange between the 
 waters of the Mediterranean and of the open Atlantic, which takes place through 
 the Strait of Gibraltar. A similar exchange is going on here, and the outflowing 
 surface current is compensated for by an inflowing under-current. 
 
 The outlying houses and villas of Constantinople extend northwards along the 
 Bosphorus as far as the two Genoese castles of Rumili-kavak and Anadoli-kavak. 
 This extension coincides with the geological features of the ground, for no sooner 
 have we turned our backs upon the houses than we find ourselves shut in between 
 cliffs of dolerite and porphyry, which extend as far as the Black Sea, where they 
 terminate in the precipices of the Cyanese, or Symplegades, the famous rocks which 
 opened and shut, crushing the vessels that ventured to pass through the strait, 
 until Minerva fixed them for ever. These volcanic rocks are barren, but the 
 Devonian strata to the south of them are beautifully wooded. The Turks, unlike 
 the Spaniards and other Southern nations, love and respect nature ; plane-tree?, 
 cypresses, and pines still shade the shores of the Bosphorus ; and the vast forest of 
 Belgrad covers the hills to the east of Constantinople, from which the city draws 
 its supply of water. Birds, too, are better protected than in many a Christian 
 land. The plaintive cooing of doves is heard wherever we turn, flights of 
 swallows and aquatic birds skim over the sui-face of the Bosphorus, and now and 
 then we encounter a grave stork perched upon the top of a tree or of a minaret. 
 
 The whole aspect of the place is southerly, yet the climate of Constantinople 
 has its rigour. The cold winds of the steppes of Russia freely penetrate through 
 the strait, and the thermometer has been known to fall four degrees below zero in 
 the winter. The neighbouring sea renders the climate more equable than it would 
 otherwise be ; but as the winds, from whatever direction they blow, meet with no 
 obstacle, sudden changes of temperature are freqiient. The average temperature 
 varies very considerably in different years. Sometimes it sinks to the level of 
 that of Pekin or Baltimore, at others it is as high as that of Toulon or of Nice. In 
 exceptional cases the Bosphorus has become covered with ice, but thaws always set 
 in rapidly, and then may be witnessed the magnificent spectacle of masses of ice 
 striking against the walls of the Seraglio, and floating away across the Sea of 
 Marmara. In a.d. 762 these masses of ice were so stupendous that they became 
 wedo-ed in the Dardanelles, and the tepid waters of the ^Slgean Sea then assumed 
 the aspect of a bay of the Ai-ctic Ocean. 
 
 The geological features of the coast region of the Sea of Marmara differ 
 essentially from those of the rest of Turkey. Low ranges of hills rise close to the 
 coast, increasing in height towards the west, until they attain an elevation of 
 2,930 feet in the Tekir Dagh, or " holy mountains," the grey slopes of which, 
 covered here and there with patches of shrubs or pasturage, are visible from afar. 
 
 A narrow neck of land joins the peninsula of Gallipoli — the Thracian 
 
 * Length of the Bosphorus, 98,500 feet, or 18-6 miles; average -width,' 5,250 feet; average depth, 
 90 feet; greatest depth, 170 feet.
 
 TURKEY OF THE GREEKS. 
 
 105 
 
 Chersonesiis of the ancieufs — to this coast range. Tliis peninsula is composeil of 
 quaternary rocks, which differ in no respect from those met with on the shore 
 of Asia opposite. Anciently a huge fresh-water lake covered ii portion of Thracia 
 nnd more than half the area now occupied hy the il"]gean Sea. '^^'llen tlio land 
 first emerged above the waters, the Cliorsonesus formed an integral portion of 
 Asia. Subsequently the waters of the Black Sea, which had forced themselves a 
 passage through the Bosphorus, likewise found their way through the Hellespont 
 into the J\gcan Sea. The geological formation of the country and the configura- 
 tion of the sea-bottom prove this to have been the case, and this irruption of the 
 waters was attended, probably, by volcanic eruption?, traces of which still exist on 
 
 Vig. 32. — The IIellesi-j-nt, ou Daud.welles, and the Gi'H' oi- Sahos. 
 Scale 1 : 1,220,000. 
 
 
 
 
 
 Thu Juik tUudiiig expresses a depth exceeding; 55 fuUioiu 
 -^^_^_^^^_^^^^^__ 30 Statute Miles. 
 
 the islands of the Sea of Marmara and near the mouth of tlio Jfaritza, the former 
 to the east, the latter to the west of the peninsula. 
 
 If the statements of Pliny and Strabo may be relied npon, the Hellespont must 
 have been much narrower in former times than it is now. At Abydos — the 
 modern Naghara — the width is said to have amounted to seven stadia, or less than 
 a mile, ancientlj-, whilst at the present time it is 6,500 feet. It was here Xerxes 
 constructed his double bridge of boats. The strait is deep at that spot, and its 
 current strong, but no wooden ship could hope to force a passage if covered by the 
 guns in the batteries on both coasts. The Hellespont, like the Bosphorus, has two
 
 106 TURKEY IN EUEOPB. 
 
 currents flowing through it. In winter, when the rivers which flow into the 
 Black Sea are frozen up, and the Sea of Marmara is no longer fed by the waters 
 of the Bosphorus, a highly saline under-current penetrates from the ^gean Sea 
 into the Dardanelles, whilst a feebler current of comparatively fresh water flows in 
 a contrary direction on the surface.* 
 
 Gallipoli, the Constantinople of the Hellespont, stands near the western 
 extremity of the Sea of Marmara. It is the first city which the Turks captured 
 upon the soil of Europe ; but though they settled down there nearly a hundred 
 years earlier than they did at Constantinople, they are no more in the majority 
 here than they are in the capital. Gallipoli, like Rodosto and other towns on the 
 Sea of Marmara, is inhabited by Mohammedans of various races, by Greeks, 
 Armenians, and Jews, forming separate communities dwelling within the walls of 
 the same town. The country population consists almost exclusively of Greeks, 
 who are the proprietors and cultivators of the land ; and in sight of the coasts of 
 Asia, and within that portion of the Balkan peninsula which has been lono-est 
 under the rule of the Turk, the Greek is stronger numerically than anywhere else 
 to the north of Mount Pindus. He does not there confine himself to the coast, 
 and, if we except a few Bulgarian Aillages and the larger towns, the whole of 
 Eastern Thracia belongs to him. 
 
 The lowlands of this region form a vast triangular plain, bounded by the Tekir 
 Dagh and the coast range on the south, by ofishoots from the Rhodope on the west, 
 and by the granitic mountains of Stranja on the east. This is one of the dreariest 
 districts of all Turkey. Swamijy depressions and untQlcd land recall the steppes 
 of Russia ; and in summer, when the wind raises clouds of dust, we can imagine 
 ourselves in the midst of a desert. The dreary monotony of this plain is relieved 
 only by the pale contours of distant mountains, and by innumerable artificial 
 mounds of unknown origin. So numerous are these tumuli that they form an 
 essential feature of the landscape, and no artist could convey a just idea of it 
 without introducing into his picture one or more of them. 
 
 Near the northern extremity of this unattractive plain, at the confluence of the 
 Maritza and Tunja, lies the city of Adrianople, enveloped in trees, whose sight 
 delights the eye of the weary traveller. Adrianople, in reality, consists of a 
 number of villages, separated from each other by orchards, poplars, and cypresses, 
 above which peep out the minarets of some hundred and fifty mosques. The 
 sparkling waters of the Maritza and Tunja, of rivulets and of aqueducts, lend 
 animation to the picture, and render Adrianople one of the most delightful places. 
 But it is more than this. It is the great centre of population in the interior 
 of Turkey, and its favourable geographical position has always secured to the city 
 a certain amount of importance. The ancient city of Orestis, the capital of the 
 Kings of Thracia, stood on this site, and was succeeded by the Hadrianopolis of the 
 Romans, which the Turks changed into Edirneh, and made their capital until 
 Constantinople fell into their power. The old palace of the Sultan, built in the 
 
 _ • Dimensions of the Dardanelles ;— Length, 42-3 miles; average width, 2-7 miles, or 13,100 feet; 
 minimum width, 6,400 feet; average depth, 180 feet; greatest depth, 320 feet.
 
 TURKEY OF THE GREEK?. 107 
 
 Persian style towards the close of the fourteenth century, still remains, though in 
 a dilapidated condition. But here, likewise, the Osmanli are in the minority. 
 The Greeks are their equals in numbers, and far surpass them in intelligence, 
 whilst the Bulgarians, too, muster strongly, and, as in other towns of the East, we 
 meet with a strange mixture of races, from Persian merchants down to gipsy 
 musicians. The Jews are proportionately more numerous in Adrianoplo than in 
 any other town of Turkey, and, strange to relate, they differ from their co-reli- 
 gionists in every other part of the world by a lack of smartness in business 
 transactions. A local proverb says that " it requires fen Jews to hold their own 
 against one Greek; " and not Greeks alone, for Wallachians, and oven Bulgarians, 
 are able to impose upon the poor Israelite at Adrianople. 
 
 The communications between Adrianople and Midea, the ancient Greek colony, 
 famous for its subterranean temples, and with other cities on the Black Sea, are 
 diflBcult. Its natural outlets are towards the south — on the one hand to Rodosto, 
 on the Sea of Marmara ; on the other, down the Maritza valley to the Gulf of Saros. 
 The r.iilway follows the latter, and the Kumclian Eailway Company has constructed 
 an artiticial harbour at Dede Aghach, enabling merchantmen to lie alongside 
 a pier. The allurements of commerce, however, have not hitherto induced the 
 inhabitants of Enos to exchange their walled and turreted acropolis for the marshy 
 tract on the Lower Maritza, with its deadly atmosphere. 
 
 The zone occupied by the Greeks grows narrower as we go west of the Maritza, 
 where the Rhodope Mountains form a kind of international barrier. Only the 
 coast is occupied there by Greek mariners and fishermen, whilst the hills in sight 
 of it are held almost exclusively by Turkish and Bulgarian peasants and herdsmen. 
 The marshy littoral districts, the small valleys on the southern slopes of the 
 mountains, and a few isolated hills of volcanic or crystalline formation constitute 
 a narrow band which connects the Greeks of Thracia with their compatriots of 
 Chalcidice and Thessaly. The Yuruks, or " "Wanderers," a Turkish tribe which 
 has retained its nomadic habits down to the present day, sometimes even extend 
 their excursions to the sea-coast. Their principal seat is in the Pilav Tepe, a 
 mountain mass to the north-west of Thasos, famous in the time of the Macedonian 
 kings for its mines of gold and silver. A wide plain extends immediately to the 
 west of these mountains, watered by the Strj-mon, or Karasu, and is of marvellous 
 fertility. Seres, a considerable city, occupies its centre, and hundreds of \-illages, 
 surrounded by orchards, rice, and cotton fields are scattered over it. Looked at 
 from the heights of the Rhodope, this plain assumes the appearance of a huge 
 garden-city. Unfortimately many parts of it are very insalubrious. 
 
 The triple peninsula of Chalcidice has no connection whatever with the 
 Rhodope, and is attached to the mainland by an isthmus covered with lakes, 
 swamps, and alluvial plains. It extends far into the sea like a huge hand spread 
 out upon the waters. Chalcidice is a Greece in miniature, with coasts of fantastic 
 contours, deep bays, bold promontories, and mountains rising in the midst of 
 plains, like islands in an archipelago. One of these mountain masses rises in the 
 trunk of the peninsula, and culminates in Mount Kortach, whilst each of its three
 
 108 
 
 TURKEY IN EUROPE. 
 
 ramifications possesses its own system of scarped hills. Greelc in aspect, this 
 curious appendage to the continent is Greek, too, in its population ; and, a rare 
 thing in Turke}', all its inhabitants are of the same race, if we except the Turks 
 in the town of Nisvoro and the Slav monks of Mount Athos. 
 
 The easternmost of the three tongues of land of Chalcidice, which jut out 
 far into the waters of the jEgean, is almost entirely detached. Only a low and 
 narrow neck of land connects it with the mainland, and it was across this 
 isthmus that Xerxes dug a canal, 3,950 feet in length, either to enable his fleet to 
 avoid the dangerous promontory of IMount Athos, or to give the awe-struck 
 inhabitants a proof of his power. This is the peninsula of Hagion Oros, the 
 Monte Santo of the Italians. At its extremity rises a limestone mountain, one of 
 the most beautiful in the Eastern Mediterranean. This is the famous Mount 
 
 Fig. 33. — The Penixsvla of jMovnt Athos. 
 Scale 1 : 1,020,000. 
 
 Athos, which an ancient sculptor proposed to convert into a statue of Alexander, 
 holding a city in one hand and a spring in the other, and which Eastern legends 
 point out as the " exceeding high mountain " to which the devil took Jesus, to 
 show him " all the kingdoms of the world." But whatever old legends may say, 
 the panorama is not as vast as this, though the shores of Chalcidice, Macedonia, 
 and Thracia lie spread out beneath our feet, and the eye can range across the blue 
 waters of the .^gean Sea from Mount Olympus, in Thessaly, to Mount Ida, in 
 Asia Minor. The bold outlines of the fortified monasteries which appear here and 
 there, in the midst of chestnuts, oaks, or pines, on the slope of the mountain, 
 contrast most happily with the faint outline of the coasts on the distant horizon.* 
 This peninsula, which a traveller has compared to a sphinx crouching upon 
 the bosom of the sea, is the property of a republic of monks, who govern them- 
 * Altitudes :— Mount Pilav Tepe, 6,183 feet; Kortach, 3,893 feet; Athos, 6,786 feet.
 
 TUEKET OF THE GREEKS. 109 
 
 selves according to their own fancy. In return for a tribute, which they pay to 
 the Porte, they alone have the right to live there, and .strangers require their 
 permission before they are allowed to enter. A company of Christian soldiers is 
 stationed at the neck of the peninsula to prevent the sacred soil being desecrated 
 by the footsteps of a woman. Even the Turkish governor cannot gain admittance 
 without leaving his harem behind him. For fourteen hundred years, we are told 
 in the chronicles of Mount Athos, no female has set foot upon this sacred soil, and 
 this prohibition extends to animals as well as to human beings. Even the presence 
 of poultry would profone the monasteries, and tlie eggs eaten by the monks are 
 imported from Lemuos. "With the exception of a few purveyors, who reside at 
 the village of Karyes, the G,000 inhabitants of the peninsula are monks, or 
 their servants, and they live in the monasteries, or in the hermitages attached to 
 the 935 churches and chapels. Nearly aU the monks are Greeks, but amongst 
 the twenty large mqnasteries there are two which were built by the ancient 
 sovereigns of Servia, and one which was founded by Russia. Most of these 
 edifices occupv promontories, and, with theii' high walls and strong towers, they are 
 exceedingly picturesque. One amongst them, that of Simopetra, appears to be 
 almost inaccessible. It is in these retreats the good fathers of the order of St. 
 Basil spend their lives in contemplative inaction. They are bound to pray eight 
 hours in the day and two in the night, and during the whole of that time they 
 are not allowed to sit. They have, therefore, neither time nor strength for study 
 or manual labour. The books in their libraries are incomprehensible mysteries 
 to them, and, in spite of their sobriety, they might die of starvation if there were 
 not lay-brothers to work for them, and numerous farms on the mainland which 
 are their property. A few shiploads of hazel nuts is all this fertile peninsula 
 produces. 
 
 The ancient cities of Olvnthus and Potidjea, on the neck of the western 
 peninsula of Chalcidice, have dwindled down into insignificant villages ; but the 
 city of Therma, called afterwards Thessalonica, and now known as Saloniki, still 
 exists, for its geographical position is most favourable, and after every siege and 
 every conflagration it again rose from its ashes. Vestiges of every epoch of 
 history may still be seen there : Cyclopean and Hellenic walls, triumphal arches, 
 and remains of Roman temples, Byzantine structures, and Venetian castles. Its 
 harbour is excellent, its roadstead well sheltered ; and the high-roads into Upper 
 Macedonia and Epirus lead from it along the valleys of the Vardar and Inje 
 Karasu. These favourable circumstances have not been without their influence, 
 and Saloniki, next to Constantinople and Adrianople, is the most important city 
 of European Turkey. Its population is mixed, like that of other cities in the East, 
 and Jews are exceptionally numerous. Most of them are the descendants of 
 Spanish Jews, expelled by the Inquisition, and they still talk Spanish. Many 
 have outwardly embraced Mohammedanism to escape persecution, but the true 
 Mussulman spurns these converts with disdain. They are generally known as 
 " Mamins." 
 
 The commerce of Saloniki is important even now, but greater things are
 
 110 
 
 TURKEY IN EUKOPE. 
 
 exiaected of the future. Like Marseilles, Trieste, and Briudisi, Saloniki aspires to 
 become a connecting link in the trade between England and the East. It actually 
 lies on the most direct road between the Channel and the Suez Canal, and once 
 connected by railways with the rest of Europe, it is sure to take a large share 
 in the world's commerce. This emporium of Macedonia is interesting, too, from 
 an ethnological point of view, for, with the exception of Burgaz, on the Black 
 Sea, it is the only place where the Bulgarians, the most numerous race of 
 European Turkey, have reached the sea-coast. Everywhere else they are cut o£E 
 from it by alien races, but Saloniki brings them into direct contact with the 
 
 ]\IorNT Olympus. 
 
 remainder of Europe. Saloniki, however, not only suffers from bad government, 
 but also from the marshes which surround it, and in summer many of its inha- 
 bitants flock to the healthier town of Kalameria, to the west. Miasmatic swamps 
 unfortunately occupy a large portion of the northern coast of the ^gean, and 
 they separate the interior of Macedonia more effectively from the coast than do its 
 mountains. There is hardly any commerce except at Saloniki. 
 
 On the western shores of the Gulf of Saloniki, beyond the ever-changing 
 mouths of the Yardar and the briny waters of the Inje Karasu, or Haliacmon, the 
 land gradually rises. Hills are succeeded by mountains, until bold precipices
 
 TUBKEY OF THE GREEKS. 
 
 Ill 
 
 approach close to the coast, and summit rises beyond summit, u^ to the triple peak of 
 Mount Oh"mpus. Amongst the many mountains which have borne this name, this 
 is the highest and the most beautiful, aud the Greeks placed upon it the court of 
 Jupiter and the residence of the gods. It was in the plains of Thcssaly, in the 
 shadow of this famous mountain, that the Greeks lived in the springtide of their 
 historj-, and their most cherished traditions attach themselves to this beautiful 
 country. The mountains which had sheltered the cradle of their race remained 
 to them for ever afterwards the seat of their protecting deities. But Jupiter, 
 Bacchus, and the other great gods of antiquity have disappeared now, and 
 
 Fig. 35. — Morsi Oi-VMrvs axd the Vallet of Tempe. 
 AccoidiB^ to HcQzcy and EJ^pert. Scale 1 : G60,0OO. 
 
 monasteries have been built in the woods which witnessed the revels of the 
 Bacchantes. 
 
 Until recently the upper valleys of Mount Olympus were inhabited only by 
 monks, and by klephtes,or bandits, who sought shelter there from the Arnaut 
 soldiers sent in their pursuit. The mountain, in fact, constitutes a world apart, 
 surrounded on all sides by formidable decli%-ities. Forty-two peaks form the 
 battlements of this mountain citadel, fifty-two springs rise within it, and the 
 bold klepht is secure within its fastnesses from the abhorred Turk. 3Iagnificent 
 forests of laurel-trees, planes, and oaks cover its lower maritime slopes, and in 
 times of trouble they have served as a refuge to entire populations. But Italian
 
 112 TURKEY IN EUROPE. 
 
 speculators have purcLased these forests, and the time is not, perhaps, very distant 
 when Mount Olympus, deprived of its verdure, will be reduced to a barren mass of 
 rock, like most of the mountains of the Archipelago. Wild cats abound on the 
 lower slopes of Olympu.s, chamois still climb its rugged pinnacles, but bears are no 
 longer met with : St. Denys, who dwelt upon the mountain, required beasts to ride 
 upon, and changed them into horses ! 
 
 Xenagoras, an ancient geometrician, was the first to measure the height of 
 Mount Olympus, but his result, 6,200 feet, is far from the truth, for the highest 
 summit attains an elevation of 9,750 feet.* It maj-^ possibly be the culminating 
 point of the Balkan peninsula. Snow remains in some of its crevices throughout 
 the year, and no human being hitherto appears to have succeeded in ascending its 
 highest pinnacle. According to the Greek legend, even Pelion heaped ujion Ossa 
 did not enable the Titans to reach the abode of the gods, and, in reality, the 
 combined height of these two mountains hardly exceeds that of Olympus. But, 
 in spite of this inferior height, "pointed" Ossa and "long-stretched" Pelion, 
 known to us moderns as Xisovo and Zagora, impress the beholder, because of 
 their savage valleys, their precipitous walls of rock, and cliffy promontories. 
 
 These mountains continue southv/ard through the hook-shajaed peninsula of 
 Magnesia, and terminate opposite the island of Euboea. They formed a strong 
 bulwark of defence in the time of ancient Greece. The hordes of the barbarians 
 stopj)ed in front of this insurmountable barrier. They were compelled to seek a 
 practicable road to the west of it, through the valley of the Peneus, which is rightly 
 looked upon as the natural frontier of Hellas. Hence the great strategical impor- 
 tance of Pharsalus, in Southern Thessaly, which protects the gorges of the Othrys 
 and the only access to the plains of the Sperchius. The pass of Petra, at the 
 northern extremity of Olympus, was carefully guarded for similar reasons. 
 
 A large portion of the area bounded by the crystalline rocks of Olympus and 
 Ossa, and by the cretaceous range of the Pindus, running parallel with the former, 
 consists of plains originally covered by vast lakes. The Gulf of Volo approaches close 
 to the shrunken remains of one of these lakes — that of Karla, or Boebeis — into which 
 the waters of the swampy plain of Larissa discharge themselves. The dwellers on 
 the shores of this lake say that a duU rumbling noise may now and then be heard 
 at its bottom, which they ascribe to the bellowing of some invisible animal, 
 but which is more probably the gurgling sound of the water penetrating into a 
 sink-hole. Other lake basins are met with at the foot of Olympus towards the 
 west and north-west, and some of the valleys of the upper tributaries of the Peneus 
 are covered with alluvium left behind by the receding waters. Hercules, according 
 to some — IS^eptune, according to others — drained all these lakes of Thessaly into 
 the ^gean, by opening the narrow gorge between Oljonpus and Ossa, known to 
 the ancients as the Valley of Tempe. This narrow valley is due, no doubt, to the 
 slow erosive action of water. To the Hellenes it realised their ideals of refreshing 
 coolness and beauty, and once every nine years an embassy arrived from Delphi 
 to pluck the laurel-leaves destined for the victors in the Pythian games. The 
 • Mount Olympua, 9,750 feet ; Mount Oasa, 5,250 feet; Mount Pelion, 5,130 feet.
 
 TURKEY OF THE GREEKS. 113 
 
 Valley of Tcnipe is indeed most beautiful ; the transparent and rapid waters of the 
 Peneus, the foliage of the planes, the shrubberies of laurel-roses, and the red-hued 
 cliffs — these combine frcquontl}', and form pictures which delight the senses and 
 impress the mind. But, taken as a whole, this narrow and sombre valley fairly 
 deserves its modern name of Lykostomo, or " wolf's gorge." Even in Thessaly, 
 and, above all, in the Pindus, there are localities more smiling and more beautiful 
 than this famous Valley of Tempo. 
 
 The upper valleys of the Peneus, or Salembria, abound in natural curiosities, 
 such as defiles, sinks, and caverns. To the north-west of Moimt Olympus, the 
 turbid Titaresius flows through the narrow gorge of Sarauta Poros, or of the 
 Four Fords, which was looked upon in former times as one of the gates of hell. 
 
 To the west, on the Upper Peneus, are the limestone hills of Khassia, rising 
 to a height of 5,000 feet, and the elevated spurs of Mount Pindus, which have 
 become celebrated through the " works of the gods," or thcoktista, which surmount 
 them. These "works" consist of isolated towers, crags, and pillars, the most famous 
 amongst them being those on the banks of the Peneus, not far from Trikala. 
 Zealous followers of Simeon the Stylite conceived the idea of building their 
 monasteries on the tops of some of the larger of these natural columns or pedestals. 
 Perched on these heights, and condemned never to leave them, they receive their 
 provisions and visitors in a basket attached to the end of a long rope, and hoisted 
 aloft by means of a windlass. An aerial voyage of no less than 220 feet has 
 to be performed in order to reach in this manner the monastery of Barlaam, and 
 visitors- are at liberty to effect this ascent by means of ladders fastened against 
 the rocky precipices. The religious zeal, however, which led monks to select 
 these eyries for their habitations is gradually dying out. Out of twenty 
 monasteries which existed formerly, there remain now but seven, and only one of 
 these, that of Meteora, is inhabited by as many as twenty monks. 
 
 Of all the Greek countries which still remain under the dominion of the Turks, 
 there is none which has so frequently sought to regain its indejjendence, none which 
 is claimed by the Ilellenes with equal ardour as a portion of their common father- 
 land and the cradle of their race. Thessaly is, in truth, a portion of Greece, as far 
 as the traditions of the past, a common language, and the general aspects of the 
 country can make it so. But it is a more fertile country, its vegetation is more 
 luxuriant, its landscapes are more smiling and delightful. "We may not frequently 
 meet with the deep blue sky which calls forth our admiration in Southern Greece, 
 for the vapours rising from the ^gean Sea are attracted by Olympus and other 
 mountains ; but this moisture imparts a charm to distant views, and, by protecting 
 the earth against the scorching rays of the sun in summer, it contributes largely 
 towards the fertility of the soU. 
 
 The Greek population of Thessaly is strongly mixed with foreign elements, 
 which it has gradually assimilated. Neither Serbs nor Bulgarians remain now in 
 the country, although the Upper Titaresius is known as Vurgari, or " river of the 
 Bulgarians." The Zinzares, or Macedo-Walakhs, who were so numerous in the 
 Middle Ages, now only occupy a few villages. Though proud of their Roinuu 
 
 vol.. I. I
 
 lU TUEKET IS" EUEOPE. 
 
 descent, they gradually become Hellenized. Most of tlie words by which they 
 designate objects of civilised life are Greek, their priests and schoolmasters preach 
 or teach in Greek, and they themselves speak Greek in addition to their native 
 language. They lose ground, moreover, through an excessive emigration. Even 
 the cultivators of the soil amongst them have not quite given up their nomadic 
 habits, and the roving life of a herdsman or of a pedlar exercises an irresistible 
 attraction upon them. The Turks inhabit in compact masses the lowlands around 
 Larissa, and that town itself is Mussulman to a large extent. The hilly tracts to 
 the north, between the Inje Karasu and the Lakes of Xastoria and Ostrovo, are 
 likewise inhabited by Turks, who differ from the Osmanli of the rest of the 
 empire, and are known as Koniaiides. Tui-ks also occupy a portion of Mount 
 Ossa. It is easy to tell from a distance whether a village is inhabited by Turks 
 or by Greeks. M. Mezieres has observed that " the Turks plant trees for the 
 ^ake of shade, the Greeks for the sake of profit." Near the villages of the former 
 we find cypresses and plane-trees, near those of the latter orchards and vineyards. 
 The Koniarides are believed by some authors to have come to Thessaly and 
 Macedonia as colonists in the eleventh century, by invitation of the Eastern 
 emperor. They govern themselves through democratic representative bodies, and 
 are respected bv all, because of their probity, their hospitality, and their rustic 
 virtues. 
 
 The Greeks are morally inferior to the Turkish peasantry, but they surpass 
 them in intelligence and indxistrv. In the seventeenth century there took place 
 amongst them even a sort of revival similar to the Renaissance of Western Europe, 
 and the love of art was developed sufiBciently far to give rise to a school of 
 painters in the villages of Olympus. Faithful to their national traditions and the 
 instincts of their race, the Greeks of Thessaly have sought to organize themselves 
 into self-governing commonwealths. In their free towns, or kejihalohhori, they are 
 permitted to elect their town councils, establish schools, and appoint what teachers 
 they like. They know how to get the Turkish pasha not to meddle in their local 
 aSairs. They pay the taxes demanded by the Turks, as their ancestors paid them 
 to Athens or some other Greek city, but in every other respect they are free 
 citizens governing themselves. The contrast between these independent common- 
 wealths and the ehiflihi of Mussulman proprietors cultivated by Greek farmers is 
 most striking. The land of the free proprietors is, as a rule, far less fertile than 
 that included within these chifliks; yet it produces more, and its cultivators live ia 
 comparative ease. 
 
 The Greeks of Thessaly bestow much care upon the education of growing 
 generations. Even the most miserable Greek vUlage in the Pindus can boast of 
 a school, which is visited by the young people up to the age of fifteen. As an 
 instance of the commercial spirit of the Thessalians we may mention the "Weavers' 
 Co-operative Association, formed in the last century in the town of Ambelakia, 
 delightfully situated amongst orchards and vineyards on the southern slopes of the 
 Valley of Tempe. This powerful association wisely limited its dividends to six 
 per cent., and expended the surplus profits upon an extension of its business. For
 
 ALBANIA AND EPIRUS. 
 
 119 
 
 man}' years it enjoj-ed the greatest prosperity, but the wars of the empire, which 
 closed the markets of Germany against it, brought about its ruin. Co-operation 
 likewise partly accounts for the flourishing cloth manufacture of the twenty-four 
 wealthy Greek villages on the peninsula of Magnesia, to the north of the Gulf 
 of Volo. This district, together with that of Vcrria, to the north of the Inje 
 Karasu, is probably the most prosperous in all the Greek provinces of Turkey, 
 and it is at least partly indebted for this prosperity to its happy geographical 
 position, being far away from great strategical high-roads.* 
 
 IV. — Albania and Epiiuis. 
 
 The name of S//kipen\ which the Albanians give to the coimtry they inhabit, is 
 supposed to mean " land of rocks," and no designation could be more appropriate. 
 Stony moimtains occupy the whole of the country, from the frontiers of Monte- 
 negro to those of Greece. The only plain of any extent is that of Scutari 
 (Shkodra), to the south of the Montenegrin plateau, which forms the natural fron- 
 tier of Albania towards the north. The bottom of this depression is occupied by 
 the Lake of Scutari ; and the Drin, the only river of the Balkan peninsula which is 
 navigable for a considerable distance from the sea, debouches upon it. The Drin 
 is formed by the junction of the White and the Black Drin, and in former times 
 it only discharged a portion of its waters temporarily into the Boyana River, which 
 drains the Lake of Scutari. But in 1858 it opened itself a new channel opposite to 
 the village of Miet, about twenty miles above its mouth, and since that time the 
 greater volume of its waters flows in the direction of Scutari, frequently inundating 
 the lower quarters of that town. The marshy tracts on the Lower Drin are 
 dangerous to cross during the heat of summer, and the fevers of the Boyana are 
 the most dreaded along the whole of that coast. 
 
 Most of the southern ramifications of the Bosnian Alps are inhabited by 
 Albanians, but they are separated from their kinsmen in Albania proper by the 
 deep valley of the Drin, a kind of eation similar to those of the Rocky Mountains, 
 enclosed between precipitous walls several thousand feet in height, and hardly ever 
 trodden by the foot of a wanderer. The mountain systems of Bosnia and Albania 
 are only indirectly connected by a series of ranges and plateaux stretching from the 
 mountain of Glieb in a south-easterly direction as far as the Skhar, or Scardus of 
 the ancients. The crest of this latter runs at right angles to most of the ranges 
 of Western Turkey, and although its culminating point is inferior in height to 
 those of Slav Turkey, it is the point of junction between the Balkan and the 
 
 * The following are the prineip il towns of the Greek provinces of Turkey, together with the number 
 of their inhabitants ; — 
 
 Adrianople (Edimeh) 
 Saloniki (Salonica) 
 Seres . . . , 
 Larissa 
 Itodosto 
 
 110,000 
 80,000 
 30,000 
 25,000 
 20,000 
 
 Gallipoli (Geliboli) 
 Trikala (Tirhala) 
 Demotika . 
 Verria 
 Enos 
 
 20,000 
 11,000 
 10,000 
 10,000 
 7,000 
 
 1 2
 
 116 TURKEY IN EUROPE. 
 
 mountain systems of Bosnia and Albania. The Skliar is of great importance, 
 too, in tlie hydrography of Turkey ; for two great rivers, the Bulgarian Morava 
 and the Vardar, descend from its flanks, one flowing to the Danube, the other 
 to the Gulf of Saloniki. Chamois and wild goats are still met with in the 
 Skhar, as in the Pindus and Rhodope, and M. Wiet mentions an animal known 
 to the Mirdits as a lucerhal, which appears to be a species of leopard. 
 
 A mountain region, hardly 3,000 feet in elevation, biit exceedingly diflicult of 
 access, rises to the west of the Skhar, on the other side of the Black Drin : this 
 is the citadel of Upper Albania, the country of the Mirdits and Dukajins. 
 Enormous masses of serpentine have erupted there through the chalk, the valleys 
 are hemmed in by bold precipices, and the torrents rapidly run down the 
 hollowed-out beds on the exterior slopes. As a rule, the direction of the tortuous 
 ranges of this mountain country is the same as that of the southern spurs of 
 the Skhar. They gradually decrease in height, enclosing fine upland valleys, 
 where the waters are able to accumulate. The Lake of Okhrida, the largest sheet 
 of water in Upper Albania, has not inaptly been likened to the Lake of Geneva. 
 Its waters are bluer even than those of its Swiss rival, and more transparent, and 
 fish may be seen chasing each other at a depth of sixty feet beneath its surface : 
 hence its ancient Greek name of Lychnidos. The delightful little town of 
 Okhrida and Mount Pieria, with its old Roman castle, guard its shores, and the 
 white houses of numerous villages peep out amongst the chestnut forests which 
 cover the slopes of the surrounding hills. This lake is drained towards the 
 north through the narrow valley of the Black Drin. If the statements of the 
 inhabitants may be credited, the waters of the double basin of Lake Presba reach 
 Lake Okhrida through subterranean channels. 
 
 The isolated peak of Tomor commands this lake region on the west. To the 
 south of it commences the chain of the Pindus, locally known as Grammos. At 
 first of moderate height, and crossed by niimerous mountain roads affordLug easy 
 communication between Albania and Macedonia, these mountains gradually 
 increase in height as we proceed south, and exactly to the east of Yanina they 
 form the mountain mass of Metzovo, with which the Pindus, properly so called, 
 takes its rise. This mountain mass is inferior in altitude to the peaks of Bosnia or 
 Northern Albania, but it is far more picturesque than either, its slopes being 
 covered with forests of conifers and beech-trees, and the plains extending along its 
 foot having a more southern aspect. Mount Zygos, or Lachmon, which rises in the 
 centre of this mountain mass, does not afford a very extended panorama, but if we 
 climb the craggy peaks of the Peristera-Vuna, or Smolika, near it, we are able to 
 look at the same time upon the waters of the iEgean and Ionian Seas, and even 
 the shore of Greece may be descried beyond the Gulf of Arta. 
 
 A famous lake occupies the bottom of the limestone basin at the western foot 
 of the mountain mass of Metzovo. This is the Lake of Yanina, and nowhere else 
 throughout Epirus do we meet with an equal number of natural curiosities as on 
 the shores of this lake. Its depth is inconsiderable, nowhere exceeding forty feet, 
 and it is fed only by numerous springs rising at the foot of the rocks. There is no
 
 ALBANIA AND EPIEU?. 117 
 
 visible outlet ; but Colonel Leake assures us that each of the two basins into which 
 it is divided is drained by a subterranean channel. The northern lake pours its 
 waters into a sink, or coinikora, and reappears towards the south-west as a 
 considerable river, which flows into the Ionian Sea. This is the Thyarais of the 
 ancients, our modern £alamas. Farther to the south the ancient Acheron bursts 
 from the rocks, and ha\'ing received the nauseous waters of the equally famous 
 Cocvtus, throws itself into the " bay of sweet waters," thus called on account of 
 the large volume of water discharged into it by rivers. 
 
 When the waters of the southern and larger basin of Lake Yanina are low, there 
 is but a single effluent, which plunges down into an abyss, and in doing so turns 
 
 Fig. 36. — SoiTHERX Erinrs 
 According to Kiepcrt, Scale 1 : 1,400,0C«). 
 
 the wheels of a mill. The Cyclopean ruins of the Pelasgic city of Hellas command 
 this huge chasm with its roaring waters. The subterranean river reappears far to 
 the south, and flows into the Gulf of Arta. But when the level of the lake is high, 
 four other sinks swallow up its superabundant waters, and convey them into 
 the main channel, the direction of which is indicated by a few small hikes. The 
 important part plaved in the ravthology of ancient Greece by these subterranean 
 effluents, and particularly by the infernal Acheron and the Cocytus, amply proves 
 the influence exercised by the Pelasgians upon the civilisation of the Hellenes. 
 The myths of the Hellopians became the common property of all Greece, and
 
 118 TUEKEY IN EUEOPE. 
 
 there was no temple in all Hellas more venerated than their sanctuary at Dodona, 
 where the future might be foretold by listening to the rustling of the leaves of 
 sacred oaks. This sacred grove existed, probably, near one of the Cyclopean 
 towns so numerous in the country, if not on the shore of the lake itself. Some, 
 erroneously no doubt, have looked for it near the castle inhabited in the beginning 
 of this century by Ali Tepeleni, the terrible Pasha of Epirus, who boasted of being 
 a " lighted torch, devouring man." 
 
 The mountains of Suli, to the west of the basin of Yanina, attain an altitude 
 of 3,500 feet, but the neighbouring hills are of moderate height, though abrupt and 
 difficult of access, and near the coast they sink down into small rocky promontories, 
 scantily clothed with shrubs and overrun by jackals. Swamps abound near the 
 shore, and during summer their miasmatic air spreads over the neighbouring 
 villages. To the north of the swamps of Butrinto and of the channel of Corfu, 
 and to the west of the isolated peak of Kundusi, however, the coast rises again, and 
 the austere chain of the Chimsera Mala, or Acroceraunii, extends along it. It was 
 dreaded by the ancients on account of its tempests, and the torrents which poured 
 down its sides. Squalls and changes of wind are frequent near the "Tongue 
 (Linguctta) of Hocks," the most advanced promontory of this coast, at the entrance 
 to the Adriatic Sea. These are the " infamoiis rocks " referred to by the Roman 
 poet, upon which many a vessel suffered shipwreck. The channel which separates 
 Turkey at that place from Italy has a width of only 45 miles ; it is less than 100 
 fathoms in depth, and at some former period an isthmus may have united the two 
 countries.* 
 
 The Shkipetars, or Albanians, are subdivided into two leading tribes or nations, 
 the Tosks and the Gheges, both of whom are no doubt descended from the ancient 
 Pelasgians, but have in many places become mixed with Slavs, Bulgarians, and 
 Rumanians, and perhaps even with other nations ; for whilst in some tribes we 
 meet with the purest Hellenic types, there are others the members of which are 
 repvdsively ugly. The Gheges are the purest of their race, and they occupy, 
 imdcr various tribal names, the whole of Northern Albania as far as the river 
 Shkumbi. The territory of the Tosks extends from that river southward. The 
 dialects of these two nations differ much, and it is not easy for an Acroceraunian 
 to understand a Mirdit or other Albanian from the north. Gheges and Tosks 
 detest each other. In the Turkish army they are kept separated for fear of their 
 coming to blows, and, when an insurrection has to be suppressed amongst them, 
 the Turkish Government always avails itself of these tribal jealousies, and is certain 
 of being served with the zeal and fury which hatred inspires. 
 
 Up to the period of the migration of the barbarians, the whole of Western 
 Turkey, as far as the Danube, was held by Albanians. But they were then 
 pushed back, and Albania was entirely occupied by Servians and Bulgarians. 
 
 * Altitudes in Albania :— Feet Feet, 
 
 Skhar 8,200 
 
 Tomor 5,413 
 
 Zygos (Lachmoi)) .... 5,500 
 
 Smolika 5,970 
 
 Kundusi 6,270 
 
 Acroceraunian Mountain . . 6,700 
 
 Lake Okhrida .... 2,270 
 
 Lake of Yanina .... 1,700
 
 ALBANIA AND EPIRUS. lift 
 
 The names of numerous localities throughout the counfiy recall that period of 
 obscuration, during which the name of an indigenous race was not even mentioned 
 by the historian. But when the Osmanli had broken the power of the Serb, the 
 Albanians again raised their heads, and ever since they have kept encroaching 
 upon their Slav neighbours. In the north they have gradually descended into 
 the valley of the Bulgarian Morava, and one of their colonies has even penetrated 
 into independent Servia. Like the waters of a rising ocean, they overwhelm 
 the detached tracts of territory still occupied bj' Servians. This progress of tho 
 Albanians is explained, to a great extent, by the voluntary expatriation of the 
 Servians. Thousands of them, headed by their patriarchs, fled to ITuugary, in 
 order to escape the dominion of the Turks, and the Albanians occupied the wastes 
 they left behind. The Servians still hold their gi'ound near Acroccraunia, on the 
 shores of Lake Okhrida, and in the hills looking down upon the fatal plain of 
 Kosovo, where their ancestors were massacred; but they gradually become 
 Albanians in language, religion, and customs. They speak of themselves as 
 Turks, as do the Arnauts, and apply the name of Sernan only to the Chris- 
 tians dwelling beyond the frontier. On the other hand, many of the customs 
 of the Gheges agree in a remarkable manner with those of their Slav neigh- 
 bours, and this proves that there has taken place a thorough blending of the two 
 races. 
 
 But whilst the Albanians are gaining ground in the north, they are losing it 
 in the south. A large portion of the inhabitants of Southern Albania, though 
 undoubtedly of Pelasgic origin, are Greek by language. Arta, Yanina, and Prevesa 
 are Hellenized towns, and only a few Mohammedan families there still speak 
 Albanian. Ifearly the whole of the tract between the Pindus and the Adriatic 
 coast ranges has become Greek as far as language goes, and throughout the 
 mountain region extending westward to the sea the inhabitants are " bilingual;" 
 that is to say, they speak two languages. The famous Suliotes, for instance, who 
 talk Tosk within the bosom of their familj', make use of Greek in their intercourse 
 with strangers. "Wherever the two races come into contact, it is alwaj-s the 
 Albanian who takes the trouble to learn Greek. 
 
 This influence of the Hellenes is all the more powerful as it meets with 
 support amongst the Zinzares, known also as Macedo-Walakhs, " Limping " 
 Walakhs, or Southern Rumanians, who are met with throughout the country. 
 These Zinzares arc the kinsmen of the Rumanians of Wallachia and Moldavia, and 
 live in a compact body only on the two slopes of the Pindus, to the south and east 
 of the Lake of Yanina. Like the Rumanians of the Danube, they are most 
 probably Latinised Dacians. They resemble the Walukhs in features, character, 
 and disposition, and speak a neo-Latin tongue much mixed with Greek. The 
 Zinzares in the valleys of the Pindus are, for the most part, herdsmen, and wander 
 away from their villages sometimes for months. Others carry on trades, exhi- 
 biting much manual skill and intelligence. Nearly all the bricklayers of Turkey, 
 those of the large towns excepted, are Zinzares; and the same individual sometimes 
 erects an entire house, doing in turn the work of architect, carpenter, joiner,
 
 120 TURKEY IN EUEOPE. 
 
 and locksmith. The Rumanians of the Pindus are likewise esteemed as clever 
 goldsmiths. 
 
 Their capacity for business is great, and the commerce of the interior of 
 Turkey is almost entirely in their hands, as is that of the maiitime districts in 
 those of the Greeks. The "Walakhs of Metzovo are said to have stood formerly 
 under the direct protection of the Porte, and every traveller, whether Mussulman 
 or Christian, was bound to unshoe his horses before he left their territory, for fear 
 " of his carrying away a clod of earth which did not belong to him." Commercial 
 houses conducted by Walakhs of the Pindus are met with in every town of the 
 Orient, and even at Vienna one of the most influential banks has been founded by 
 one of them. Abroad they are generally taken for Greeks, and the wealthier 
 amongst them send their children to Athens to be educated. Siu'rounded by 
 Mussulmans, the Zinzares of the Pindus feel the necessity of attaching themselves 
 to some country through which they might obtain their freedom, and they hope 
 for a union with Greece. It is only quite recently that they have learnt to look 
 upon the Rumanians of the North and the Italians as their kinsmen. They do 
 not, however, set much store upon their nationality, and have no aspirations as 
 a distinct race. There can be no doubt that in the course of ages many of these 
 Macedo-Walakhs have become HeUenized. Nearly all Thessaly was inhabited 
 by Zinzares in the Middle Ages, and Byzantine authors speak of that country as 
 " Great Wallachia." Whether these Zinzares have emigrated to Rumania, as 
 some think, or have become assimilated with the Greeks, the fact remains that at 
 the present day they are not very numerous on the eastern slopes of the Pindus. 
 Thousands of Rumanian families have settled in the coast towns, at Avlona, Berat, 
 and Tirana, embracing Mohammedanism, but still retaining their native idiom. 
 
 If we exclude these Zinzares, the Greeks of Epirus, the Servians, and the few 
 Osmanli dwelling in the large towns, there remain only the semi-barbarous Gheges 
 and Tosks, whose social condition has hardly undergone any change in the course 
 of three thousand years. In their manners and modes of thought these modern 
 Albanians are the true successors of the ancient Pelasgians, and many a scene that 
 a traveller may witness amongst them carries him back to the days of the Odyssey. 
 G. von Hahn, who has most thoroughly studied the Shkipetars, looks upon them 
 as veritable Dorians, whose ancestors, led by the Heraclidse, burst forth from the 
 forests of Epirus to conquer the Peloponnesus. They are as courageous, as war- 
 like, as fond of dominion, and as clannish as were their ancestors. Their dress, 
 likewise, is nearly the same, and the white tunic (fustanelle) neatly fastened 
 roimd the waist fairly represents the ancient chlamys. The Gheges, like the 
 Dorians of old, are addicted to that mysterious passion which the historians of 
 antiquity have confounded, unfortunately, with a nameless vice, and which links 
 men to children by a pure and ideal love, in which the senses have no part. 
 
 There is no modern people respecting whom more astounding acts of bravery 
 are recorded than of the Albanians. In the fifteenth century they had their 
 Scanderbeg, who, though the theatre of his glory was more circumscribed than 
 that of his namesake of Macedonia, was hardly inferior to him in genius, and
 
 ALBAXLV AND El'IRUS. 121 
 
 certainly surpassed him in justness and goodness of heart. Or what nation has 
 ever exceeded in courage the Suliote mountaineers, amongst whom not an aged 
 man, a woman, or a child was found to heg for mercy from Ali Pasha's executioners? 
 Tlie heroism of these Suliote women, who set tire to the ammunition waggons, and 
 then hand in hand precipitated themselves from the rocks, or sought death in the 
 mountain torrents, chanting their own funeral song, will at all times stand forth 
 in history as an astounding fact. 
 
 This valour, unfortunately, is associated amongst many tribes with a fearful 
 amount of savagencss. Human life is held cheap amongst these warlike popula- 
 tions ; blood calls for blood, and victim for victim. They believe in vampires and 
 phantoms, and occasionally an old man has been burnt alive, on suspicion of his 
 being able to kill by the breath of his mouth. Slavery docs not exist, -but woman 
 is held in a state of servitude ; she is looked upon as an inferior being, having no 
 rights or mind of her own. Custom raises a more formidable barriel- between the 
 sexes than do walls and locked doors elsewhere. A young girl is not permitted to 
 speak to a young man ; such an act is looked upon as a crime, which her father or 
 brother may feel called upon to punish by a deed of blood. The parents sometimes 
 consult the wishes of their son when about to marry him, but never those of their 
 daughter. The latter is frequently affianced in her cradle, and, when twelve years 
 of age, she is handed over to a young man on his presenting a wedding outfit and 
 a sum of money fixed by custom, and averaging twenty shillings. From that 
 moment he becomes the absolute master of his bride, though not without first 
 going through the farce of an abduction, as is customary amongst neaiiy all 
 ancient nations. The poor woman, thus sold like a slave, is boimd to work for her 
 husband. She is his housekeeper as well as his labourer, and the national poets 
 compare her to the "ever-active shuttle," whilst the father of the family is 
 likened to the "majestic ram mai'ching at the head of the flock." Yet woman, 
 scorned though she be, and brutalised by heavy work, may traverse the whole 
 country without fear of being insulted, and the life of an unfortunate who places 
 himself under her protection is held sacred. 
 
 Family ties are very powerful amongst the Albanians. The father retains the 
 rights of sovereign lord up to an advanced age, and as long as he lives the 
 earnings of his children and grandchildren are his own. Frequently this com- 
 munism continues after his death, the eldest son taking his place. The loss of a 
 member of the family, and particularly of a young man, gives rise to fearful 
 lamentations amongst the women, who frequently swoon away, and even lose their 
 senses. But the death of persons who have reached the natural limits of human 
 life is hardly mourned at all. The descendants of the same ancestor never lose 
 sight of their parentage. They form clans, called ju/n's or pharas, which are 
 boimd firmly together for purposes of defence or attack, or in the pui-suit of their 
 common interests. Brotherhood hy election is known amongst the Albanians, as 
 well as amongst the Servians and other ancient nations, and its ties are as strong 
 as those of blood. Yoimg men desirous of becoming brothers bind themselves by 
 solemn vows in the presence of theii' families, and, having opened a vein, they
 
 122 TURKEY IN EUROPE. 
 
 drink eacli other's blood. The need of these family bonds is felt so strongly in 
 Albania, that young people brought up together frequently remain united during 
 the remainder of their lives, forming a regular community, having its days of 
 meetings, its festivals, and a common purse. 
 
 But in spite of these family associations and clans, in spite of the enthusiastic 
 love which the Albanian bears his native land, there exists no political cohesion 
 amongst the various tribes. The physical conditions of the country, no less than 
 an unhappy passion for war, have scattered their forces, and rendered them 
 unable, consequently, to maintain their independence. The religious animosities 
 between Mussulman and Christian, Greek and Roman Catholic, have contributed 
 to the like result. 
 
 It is generally suj^posed that the majority of the Albanians are Mohammedans. 
 When the Turks became masters of the country the most valiant amongst them 
 fled to Italy, and the greater part of the tribes that remained behind were compelled 
 to embrace Islamism. Many of the chiefs, moreover, turned Mussulmans, in order 
 that they might continue their life of brigandage, on pretence of carrying on a 
 holy war. This accounts for the fact of the aristocracy of the country being for 
 the most part Mohammedan, and in possession of the land. The Christian peasant 
 who tills it is nominally a free man, but in reality he is at the mercy of his lord, 
 who keeps him at the point of starvation. These Albanian Mussulmans, however, 
 are fanatic warriors rather than religious zealots, and many of their ceremonies, 
 particularly those connected vrith. their native land, differ in nothing from those 
 of their Christian compatriots. They have been converted, but not convinced, and 
 cynically they say of themselves that their " sword is wherever their faith is." 
 
 In many districts the conversion has been nominal only, and zealous Christians 
 have continued to conduct their worship in secret. Many Mohammedans of this 
 class returned to the faith of their fathers as soon as the tolerance of Government 
 permitted them to do so. As to the warlike mountain clans, the Mirdits, Suliotes, 
 and Acroceraunians, they had no need to bend to the will of the Turks, and 
 remained Greek or Roman Christians. The boundary between Gheges and Tosks 
 coincides approximately with the boundary between these two denominations, 
 the Roman Catholics living to the north of the Shkumbi, the orthodox Greeks to 
 the south of the river. The Hellenes and Zinzares in Southern Albania are 
 orthodox Greeks. The hatred between these two denominations of Christians is 
 intense, and this is the principal reason why the Albanians have not succeeded in 
 regaining their independence, as have the Servians. 
 
 Southern Albania and Epirus had feudal institutions up to the close of last 
 century. The chiefs of the clans and the semi-independent Turkish pashas lived 
 in strong castles perched upon the rocks, from which they descended from time 
 to time, followed by bands of servitors. War existed in permanence, and property 
 changed hands continuously, according to the fortunes of the sword. All the 
 Terrible, of Yanina, put a stop to this state of affairs. He reduced high and 
 low to the same level of servitude, and the central Government now wields the 
 power formerly exercised by lords nnd heads of families.
 
 ALBAXIA .A3TO EPIEUS. T23 
 
 If we would become acquaiatcd with a social condition recalling the Middle 
 Ages, we must go amongst the independent tribes of Northern Albania. On 
 crossing the Matis we at once perceive a change. Every one goes armed ; 
 shepherds and labourers carry a carbine on the shoulder ; and even women and 
 children place a pistol in their belts. Families, clans, and tribes have a military 
 organization, and at a moment's notice are ready to take the field. A sheep 
 missing in a flock, an insult oflered in the heat of passion, may lead to war. Not 
 long since the Montenegrin was the most frequent disturber of the peace, for, shut 
 up in his sterile mountains, he was often obliged to turn brigand in order to 
 sustain life, and laid under contribution the fields of his neighbours. The Turks 
 have at all times nourished this hatred between Albanians and Montenegrins. 
 They recompense the warlike ser^"ices of the tribes of the border clans by 
 exempting them from taxation, and allowing them to govern themselves according 
 to their own laws. Let these immunities be touched, and they will make common 
 cause with their hereditary foes of the Black Mountains. 
 
 The Mirdits are tj-pical of the independent tribes of Northern Albania. They 
 inhabit the high valleys to the south of the gorge of the Drin, and, though 
 hardly numbering 12,000 souls, they exercise, in consequence of their warlike 
 valour, a most important influence in all TTestern Turkev. Their country is 
 accessible only through three difiicult defiles, and they hold command of the roads 
 which the Turkish troops must follow when operating against the iloutenegrins. 
 The Sublime Porte, well aware how diflBcult it would be to subdue these redoubt- 
 able mountaineers, has endeavoured to attach them, showering honours upon them, 
 and granting them the most complete self-government. The Mirdits, on their 
 side, though Christians, have at all times fought most valiantly in the ranks of the 
 Turkish army, in Greece and the Morea, as well as against their fellow-Christians 
 of Montenegro. They are formed into three " banners " of the mountains and 
 two of the plains, and in time of war are joined by the five. banners of Lcsh, 
 or Alessio. The banner of the renowned clan of Orosh takes precedence of all 
 others. 
 
 The country of the Mirdits is governed by an oligarchy, of which the Prince 
 or Pasha of Orosh is the hereditary head. His power, however, is merely 
 nominal, for in reality the country is governed by a council consisting of the 
 elders (ceccfiiardi) of the villages, the delegates of the banners, and the heads of 
 clans. The proceedings of this council are regulated by ancient traditions. 
 Wives are taken by force from the enemy, for the members of the five banners 
 look upon each other as relatives, and the Mohammedan girls in the lowland 
 villages look forward with little fear to their being carried off by Mirdit warriors. 
 The rendttta is exercised in an inexorable manner, and blood cries for blood. A 
 violation of hospitality is punished with death. The adulteress is buried beneath 
 a heap of stones, and her nearest relative is bound to deliver the head of her 
 accomplice to the injured husband. It need hardly be said that education is at 
 a very low ebb amongst these savages. There are no schools, and in 1860 hardly 
 fifty Christians of the Mirdit country and of the district of Lesh were able to
 
 124 TUEKEY EST EUROPE. 
 
 read. Agriculture, nevertheless, is in a relatively advanced state. The valleys cf 
 the sterile mountains are cultivated with a certain amount of care, and they 
 produce finer crops than do the fertile plains, inhabited by an indolent population. 
 By a strange contrast, these direct descendants of the ancient Pelasgians, to 
 whom we are indebted for the beginning of civilisation in Europe, still number 
 amongst the most savage populations of our continent. But they, too, must yield 
 in time to the influence of their surroundings. Until recently the Epirotes and 
 southern Shkipetars left their country only in order to lead the easy but degrading 
 life of mercenaries. In the last century the young men of Acroceraunia sold 
 themselves to the King of Naples, to be embodied in his regiment of " Roj'al 
 Macedonians ; " and even in our own days not only Mohammedans, but also Christian 
 Tosks, enter the service of pashas and beys. These men, known as Ai-nauts, may 
 be met with in the most remote parts of the empire — in Armenia, at Bagdad, and 
 in Ai'abia. On the expiration of their term of service, the majority of these 
 veterans retire to estates granted them by Government, and this accounts for 
 the large number of Arnaut villages met with in all parts of the empire. 
 
 But wars are less frequent now, the life of a mercenary offers fewer advantages, 
 and increasing numbers of Albanians leave their country annually in order to gain 
 a living abroad by honest labour. Like the Smss of the canton of Grisons, many 
 Shkipetars descend from their mountains at the commencement of winter in order 
 to work for wages in the plains. Most of these return to their mountain homes in 
 spring, enriched by their earnings ; but there are othei's who remain abroad for 
 years, or who never return. The advantages of a division of labour appear to be well 
 understood by these mountaineers of Epirus and Southern Albania, and each moun- 
 tain valley is noted for the exercise of some special craft. One valley sends forth 
 butchers, another bakers, a third gardeners. A village near Argyrokastro supplies 
 Constantinople with most of its well-sinkers. The district of Zagori, perhaps the 
 home of the ancient Asclepiads, sends its doctors, or rather " bone-setters," into 
 every town of Turkey. Many of these emigrants, when they become wealthy, 
 return to their native land, where they build themselves fine houses in the midst 
 of sterile mountains, and these take the places of the old seigncurial towers, which 
 were erected only for purposes of defence. 
 
 The Albanians are thus being carried along by a general movement of progress, 
 and if once they enter into the common life of Europe, we may expect them to play 
 a prominent part, for they possess a penetrating mind and much strength of 
 character. The Albanians enjoy the advantage of having ready access to the sea, 
 but hitherto they have derived only small benefit from it, not only owing to the 
 disturbed state of the country and the absence of roads, but also because of the 
 alluvial deposits formed by the rivers and the malaria of the marshes. StUl, 
 making every allowance for these disadvantages, they hardly account for the 
 almost entire absence of maritime enterprise. One would scarcely fancy these 
 Epirotes and Gheges to be of the same race as those Hydriote corsairs who launched 
 whole fleets upon the waters of the Archipelago at the time of the war for Hellenic 
 independence, and who still maintain the foremost place amongst the mariners of
 
 WEALTHY AEXAUTb.
 
 ALBANIA AND EPIRUS. 12r, 
 
 Greece. Tlic ports of Albania — Anlivari, Porto Medua (one of the safest on the 
 Adriatic), Durazzo, Avlona, Parga (lost in a forest ol" citron-trees), and even strong 
 Prevcsa, surrounded by more than a hundred thousand olive-trees — can boast but 
 of a tritling commerce, and two-thirds of that arc carried on in Austrian vessels 
 from Trieste. With the exception of the Acroceraunians and the inhabitants of 
 Dulcigno, which is the port of Scutari, no Mohammedan iybanian ventures upon 
 the sea, not even as a fisherman. In spite of the fertility of the soil, there are 
 hardly any articles to export. The mines of the country are unexplored, agricul- 
 ture is in a most backward state, and in Epirus hardly any industry is known 
 except the rearing of sheep and goats. 
 
 At the time of the Eomans these countries were equally forsaken. There was 
 one magniticent citj% Nicopolis, built by Augustus on a promontory to the north 
 of the modem Prevesa to commemorate his victory at Actium. The only other 
 town of importance was Dj^rrhachium, called Durazzo by the Italians. It formed 
 the terminus of the Via Egnatia, which traversed the whole of the Balkan penin- 
 sula from west to east, and constituted the great highway between Italy and the 
 Orient. Avlona may aspire one day to take the place of ancient Dyrrhachium. 
 Its geographical position is superior to that of Durazzo, for it is nearer to Italy, 
 and its deep and secure harbour enjoys the shelter of the island of Suseno and of 
 the Linguotta of Acrocerauuia. 
 
 In the meantime all the commerce of the country is concentrated in Scutari 
 and Yaiiina, and in some other towns of the interior. The most considerable 
 amongst the latter are Prisrend, at the foot of the Skhar, whose nobles boast of 
 their magnificent dresses and fine weapons; Ipek (Pech), Prishtina, Jakovitza 
 (Yakova), in the north-eastern portion of the country, and on roads which lead 
 from Macedonia into Bosnia. Nearer the coast are Tirana, Berat, and Elbasan, 
 the ancient Albanon, whose name recalls that of the entire country. Gyorcha 
 (Koritza), to the south of the Lake of OkLrida, is likewise a place of much trade, 
 thanks to its position on a road joining the Adriatic to the ^gean Sea. Scutari 
 and Yanma occupy sites at the foot of the mountains, whose natural advantages 
 could not fail to attract a numerous population. Yanina, the capital of Ej^irus, is 
 the more picturesque of these two cities. It is situated on the shore of a fine 
 lake, opposite the somewhat heavy masses of the Pindus, but in sight of the 
 mountains of Greece, which are of a "luminous grey, glittering like a tissue of 
 silk." At the time of Ali Pasha, Yanina became the capital of an empire, and its 
 population then exceeded that of Scutari. But the latter has now regained its 
 pre-eminence. It is admirably situated, and the roads from the Danube and the 
 iEgean, from the Lower Drin and the Adriatic, converge upon it. Scutari, or 
 Shkodra, is the first oriental city which a traveller coining from Italy meets 
 with, and the first impression made by its numerous gardens enclosed by high 
 walls, its deserted streets and irregular buildings, is sufficiently curious. Long 
 after he has entered the town, the traveller will remain uncertain as to its 
 whereabouts. But let him climb to the summit of the limestone rock surmounted 
 by the old Venetian castle of Rosapha, and the most magnificent panorama will
 
 126 TUEKEY IN EUEOPE. 
 
 iinfold itself before his eyes. The domes of Scutari, its twenty minarets, the 
 emerald yerdare of the plain, the surrounding amjDhitheatre of fantastically shaped 
 mountains, the ■winding waters of the Boyana and Drin, and the jjlacid surface of 
 the lake glittering in the sun — these all combine to produce a spectacle of rare 
 magnificence. The sea alone is wanting to render this picture perfect, but, though 
 near, it is not within sight.* 
 
 v. — The Illtrtan Alps, Bosnia, and Herzegovina. 
 
 Bosnia, In the north-western corner of Turkey, is the Switzerland of the 
 European Orient, but it is a Switzerland whose mountains do not reach the 
 zone of perennial snow and ice. In many respects the moimtain ranges of Bosnia, 
 and of its southern province, the Herzegovina, resemble those of the Jura. They, 
 too, are composed principally of limestone, and rise in parallel ridges, surmounted 
 here and there by sharp crests. Like the successive ridges of the Jura, they are 
 of unequal height, and, taken as a whole, assume the appearance of a plateau 
 traversed by parallel furrows, and gently sloping in one direction. The most 
 elevated chain of Northern Bosnia is that which separates it from the coast of 
 Dalmatia, and the less elevated ridges running parallel with it gradually decrease 
 in height towards the north-east, in the direction of the plains of the Save. 
 
 Rocks not belonging to the Jurassic system, such as crystalline slates, dolo- 
 mites, tertiary deposits, and serpentine, are met with in various localities, and 
 impart some variety to the orographical features of Bosnia. Several crater-shajjed 
 depressions in the east and south-east separate the mountains of Bosnia from the 
 mountain masses of Servia. The most remarkable amongst these plains is that 
 of Novibazar, into which numerous torrents discharge themselves, and which 
 commands roads diverging in various directions. This is the strategical key of 
 the country, and is destined on this account to become an important railway 
 junction. 
 
 Nearly all the mountain ranges which pass from Carniola and Austrian Croatia 
 into Bosnia increase in height as we advance towards the centre of the peninsula. 
 The bleached pyramid of the Durmitor, close to the northern frontier of 
 Montenegro, attains an elevation of nearly 8,000 feet, and the plateau surrounding 
 it is cut up by deep cavities, some of which, like the troughs of the Herzegovina, 
 open out in one direction, whilst others are completely shvit in by declivities. The 
 Prokletya, or " cursed " mountain, still farther to the south-east, rises to a height 
 even more considerable, and constitutes one of the most formidable mountain 
 masses of all Turkey. A huge depression occupies its centre, the bottom of which 
 is covered by the Lake of Plava. Even in summer patches of snow may be seen 
 on some of the mountains which surround this abyss. But Movmt Kom, the 
 
 * Population of the principal cities of Albania : — Prisrend, 35,000 ; Scutari (Shkodra), 35,000 ; Yaiiina, 
 25,000; JakoTitza (Yakova), 17,000; Ipek (Pech), 16,000; Elbasan, 12,000; Berat, 11,000; Prishtina, 
 11,000; Tirana, 10,000; Koritza, 10,000; Argyrokastro, 8,000; Prevesa, 7,000; Dulcigno, 7,000; 
 Durazzo, 5,000.
 
 THE ILLYRT^N" ALPS, BOSNIA, A>'D HEBZEGOVIN'A. 127 
 
 hjfliest of all, never retains its cap of snow during the whole of the year, for it 
 melts away before the hot African winds to which it is exposed. Mount Kom 
 may possibly turn out to be the culminating point of the Balkan peninsula. It ia 
 certainlv one of the highest summits, and its double peak, rising above the plateau 
 of Montenegro, is descried from afar by the mariner navigating the Adriatic. It 
 has been ascended by several travellers, for its slopes are gentle.* 
 
 The rivers of Bosnia, like those of the Jura, flow between paKiUel mountain 
 ranges towards the north-east, along the furrows traced out for them by nature. 
 But these calcareous mountain ramparts of Bosnia, like those of the Jura, are 
 broken up bv narrow gorges, or cltiscs, through which the pent up waters find 
 a way from furrow to furrow. Instead of taking a serpentine course, as do most 
 rivers flowing through a plain, these rivers of Bosnia change from valley to valley 
 by abrupt bends. Gentle and furious in turns, they gradually reach the lower 
 regions, and are finally swallowed up by the Save. Only one river, the Narenta, 
 finds its way into the Adriatic ; all others, in accordance with the general slope of 
 the country, flow in the direction of the Danube. These river valleys, with their 
 sudden turnings, would be available as natural roads for reaching the plateau, if 
 most of the gorges were not exceedingly difficult of access ; and until regular roads 
 have been constructed, as iu the cluses of the Jura, travellers are obliged to scale 
 steep heights in order to pass from valley to valley. It is this want of practicable 
 roads which renders military operations in Bosnia so difficult and perilous. 
 
 Great armies have at all times remained to the east of the mountain masses 
 referred to, passing from the valley of the Tardar into that of the Morava, whose 
 springs almost intermingle their waters. In that locality we meet with the 
 bed of an ancient lake, through which flows the Sitnitza, one of the up^er 
 tributaries of the Servian Morava : this is the plain of Kosovo, the " field of black 
 birds," which reminds all southern Slavs of painful events. It was there the 
 power of the Servians succumbed in 1389, and, if we may credit ^ftcient heroic 
 songs, more than 100,000 men perished in a single day. Five hundred years have 
 passed away since this great disaster, but the Slavs have never ceased to hope for 
 a day of vengeance, and they look forward to the time when on this very field 
 they may reconquer the independence they have lost. 
 
 The similarity between the mountains of Bosnia and of the Jura is rendered 
 complete by the existence of grottoes, sink-holes, and subterranean rivers. Sink- 
 holes from 60 to 100 feet in diameter, and shaped like funnels, are met with 
 in many localities. Several rivers appear suddenly at the foot of a hill, and, 
 after flowing on for a few miles, disappear again beneath some portal in the rocks. 
 The table-land of the Herzegovina especially abounds in phenomena of this kind. 
 The ground there is pierced by "sinks," or poiiors, which swallow up the water 
 derived from precipitation. " Blind valleys " and " troughs " present everywhere 
 the traces of currents of water and of temporary lakes, and after heavy rains the 
 subterranean basins sometimes rise to the surface, and a river then flows for 
 a time along the valley. As a rule, however, the inhabitants are compelled to 
 • AlUladee :— Mount Kom, 9,350 feet ; Mount Durmitor, 8,860 feet ; Glieb, 5,775 feet.
 
 128 
 
 TURKEY IN EUROPE. 
 
 collect tlie water they require in cisterns, or to fetcli it from long distances. 
 Elsewhere the hydrography of the country is subject to annual changes. Lakes 
 which still figure upon our maps are drained through subterranean passages only 
 recently opened ; other lakes are formed in consequence of some passage, which 
 formerly carried off the surface water, having become choked with alluvium. 
 No more curious river probably exists in the world than the Trebinishtitza, in the 
 "Western Herzegovina. It appears and disajipears many times. One of its branches, 
 flowing at one time on the surface, at others underground, crosses the plains of 
 Kotesi, in turns a parched champaign country or a lake abounding in fish, and 
 
 Fig. 37. — SUBTEKRANEAN BeDS OF THE AFFLUENTS OP THE NarENTA. 
 
 Scale 1 : 1,925,000. 
 
 *'.'-' ■ WouJiB //=• 
 
 
 (ri- 
 
 ll'"' 
 
 ""'' MONTENEGWf 
 
 Subterranean Beds. 
 
 20 Miles. 
 
 enters the Narenta. Other branches pass beneath the mountains, and gush out 
 near the shores of the Adriatic. One of the most famous of these springs is that 
 of Ombra, which pours its waters into the Bay of Gravosa, to the north of 
 Ragusa. 
 
 " Where the rocks finish and the trees appear, there begins Bosnia." So said 
 the Dalmatians formerlj'. But many parts of Bosnia have now lost their clothing 
 of verdure. The table-lands of the Herzegovina and Montenegro, no less than 
 Dalmatia, have been de^oiled of their forests, but Bosnia proper still remains a 
 country of woods. Nearly one-half its area is covered with forests. In the 
 valleys trees have almost disappeared, for the peasant is allowed to wield his axe
 
 THE ILLTEIAN ALPS, BOSXIA, AXD HERZEGOVINA. 129 
 
 without hindrance, but in the virgin forests of tho mountains trees still abound. 
 The principal trees of Europe are met with in these magnificent woods : walnut- 
 trees, chestnut-trees, limes, maples, oaks, beeches, ash-trees, birches, pines, firs, 
 and larches. Austrian speculators, unfortunately, avail themselves of the roads 
 which begin to open up the interior of the country to devastate these forests, 
 which ought to be preserved with the greatest care. The song of birds is but 
 rarely heard in these sombre woods, but wild animals abound in them. They 
 shelter bears, wild boars, and deer, and the number of wolves is so large that their 
 skins form one of the most important articles of Bosnian commerce. Taken as a 
 whole, Bosnia ranks among the most fertile countries of Europe, and few regions 
 surpass it in the beauty of its rural scenery. In some parts of the country, and 
 particularly near the Save, large herds of hogs, almost wild, roam through the 
 oak forests. Hence the epithet of " country of hogs " which the Turks have 
 derisively given to Bosnia. 
 
 With the exception of the Jews, the gipsies, and the few Osmanli officials, 
 soldiers, and merchants in the principal towns, the entire population of the country 
 is of Slav race. The inhabitants of Kraina, near the Austrian frontier, call 
 themselves Croats, but they scarcely diifer from the Bosnian Servians and 
 Raitzes of ancient Eascia, now known as the sandjak of Xovibazar. On the 
 classical soil of Eascia originated most of those cherished pieismas, or popular 
 songs, in which the Southern Slavs have deposited their national traditions. The 
 Herzegovinians, in some respects, differ from their Bosnian kinsmen. They are 
 the descendants of immigrants who came from the banks of the Vistula in the 
 seventh century. Like their neighbours the Montenegrins, they are more voluble 
 in their speech than the Servians proper, and make use of numerous peculiar 
 turns of expression and a few words of Italian which have glided into their 
 language. 
 
 Although most of the Bosnians are of the same race, they are divided by 
 religious animosities, and these account for their state of political serWtude. At 
 the first glance it may cause surprise that the Slavs of Bosnia should not have 
 succeeded in throwing off the Turkish yoke, like their kinsmen of Servia. Their 
 countrj- is more remote from the capital, and far less accessible than Ser\-ia. A 
 conquering army coming from the south has not only to force numerous defiles, 
 but has to contend, too, with the climate, which is tar more severe than that of 
 the remainder of the Balkan peninsula. But, in spite of these great natural 
 advantages from a defensive point of view, every revolt has hitherto failed 
 lamentably. "We need not seek far for the cause of this : Christian and Moham- 
 medan Bosnians are at enmity, and the Christians themselves are split up into 
 Greeks, who are led by their popes, and Romans, who follow blindly their 
 Franciscan priests. In their divided state they fall an easy prey to their 
 oppressors, and servitude has degraded their character. 
 
 The Mussulmans of Bosnia call themselves Turks, but they aie Slavs never- 
 theless, like their Christian compatriots, and, like them, speak Servian with a large 
 admixture of Turkish words. They are the descendants of the nobles who, in 
 VOL. I. K
 
 130 TURKEY IN EITEOPE. 
 
 tlie fifteenth and sixteenth centuries, embraced Islamism in order to save their 
 feudal privileges. They also number amongst their ranks the descendants of 
 brigands, who changed their religion in order to be able to continue their trade 
 without fear of punishment. This apostacy gave to the lords even greater power 
 over their wretched dependants than they had formerly possessed. The hatred of 
 caste was augmented by religious animosity, and they soon surpassed in fanaticism 
 the Mohammedan Turks, and reduced the Christian peasantry to a condition of 
 veritable slavery. A wild pear-tree is still pointed out near one of the gates of 
 Sarajevo, upon which the notables occasionally suspended some unfortunate raya 
 for their amusement. Whether beys or spahis, these Mohammedan Bosnians are 
 the most retrograde element of old Turkey, and on several occasions, as in 1851, 
 they even rose up in rebellion in order to maintain intact their ancient feudal 
 privileges. Sarayevo, as a Mussulman city, stood imder the special protection of 
 the Sultan's mother, and possessed most extravagant pri\aleges, which converted 
 it into a state in the state more hostile to Christianity than the Sublime Porte 
 itself. 
 
 Even in our own days the Bosnian Mussulmans possess far more than their 
 proper share of the land. The country is divided into spaliiUks, or Mussulman fiefs, 
 which are transmitted, in accordance with the custom of the Slavs, indivisibly to 
 all the members of the familj'. The latter choose the most aged or most 
 valorous of their members as their head. Until recently the Christian peasants 
 were compelled to work for these Mussulman communities ; and they were 
 called upon to bear the chief burden of taxation and of other expenses. It ie 
 natural, under these circumstances, that the Christians of Bosnia should shun 
 agriculture in order to devote themselves to trade, and nearly the whole of the 
 commerce is in the hands of the Christians of the Herzegovina and of their 
 co-religionists from Slavonian Austria. The Spanish Jews form commimities in 
 the principal towns, where they carry on their usual commercial pursuits and 
 money-lending on tangible securities. They still talk Spanish amongst themselves, 
 and never mention without emotion the name of the country which sent them into 
 exile. 
 
 The number of Mussulmans hardly exceeds one-third of the total population of 
 Bosnia, and they are said to remain stationary, or even to diminish, whilst the 
 more fecund Christians increase in numbers.* 
 
 For the rest, the Bosnians, in spite of the differences in their religious belief, 
 possess the same natural gifts as their Servian kinsmen, and, whatever destinies 
 may be in store for them, they will in the end rise to the same level of intelli- 
 gence. They are frank and hospitable, brave in battle, industrious, thrifty, of a 
 poetical turn, fast as friends, and true as lovers. The marital ties are respected, 
 
 * According to Blau (1872), Bosnia, including the Herzegovina and Rascia, has 1,150,000 inhabitants, 
 comprising 590,000 Greek Catholics, 164,000 Roman Catholics, 378,000 Mussulmans, 12,300 gipsies, and 
 5,700 Jews. The same author states the population for 1855 to have amounted to 893,384 souls, including 
 286,000 Mussulmans. According to an English Consular Report (1873), the population is 1,084,162, 
 including 461,048 Mussulmana ; and according to Professor Yakshity, 1,357,984 souls, including 474,000 
 Mussulmans.
 
 BUT.OARTA. 131 
 
 and even tlio Mussulmans reject the polygamy permitted by tlio Koran. In tho 
 Herzegovina tho women enjoy much liberty, and in many villaj^es there are even 
 back doors to the houses, in order that they may bo able to gossip with their neigh- 
 bours without going into the street. In Northern Bosnia, however, the Mussulman 
 women are wrapped up closely in white linen sheets, and are hardly able to see 
 a few steps before them. But, in spite of these good qualities, there exists an 
 amount of barbarity, ignorance, suporstition, and fanaticism, amongst Christians 
 and Mohammedans alike, which is truly astounding. Incessant wars, tyranny on 
 the one side, and servitude on the other, have brutalised their manners. The want 
 of roads, the extensive forests, and the precipitous mountains have placed them 
 beyond the reach of civilising- influences. There are hardly any schools, and the few 
 monasteries which supply their places are of little use, for tho monks themselves 
 are steeped in ignorance, and their pnpils at most learn to chant a few hymns. 
 Besides this, the immense consumption of sUbovitza undermines tho health of 
 the people and demoralises them, and it has been estimated that every Bosnian — • 
 man, woman, or child — drinks annually no less than thirty-four pints of this 
 detestable plum-brandy. 
 
 It may be matter for surprise that bustling towns should exist in so rude a 
 country, but the natural resources of Bosnia are so great that a certain amount of 
 local trade was sure to spring up. Isolated as they are, the Bosnians are thrown 
 upon their own resources. They grind their own flour, manufacture their arms, 
 stuffs, and iron implements, and the exchange of these commodities has given 
 rise to commerce in the cities most favourably situated as entrepots, the 
 principal amongst which are Sarayevo, or Bosna Serai, and Travnik, the ancient 
 capital of the country, picturesquely situated at the foot of an ancient castle. 
 Banyaluka, which is connected with Austria by a railway, has some trade with 
 Croatia; Tuzla extracts salt from its abundant brine springs; Zvoruik, which 
 guards the frontier of Servia, also carries on some trade with that country ; Novi- 
 bazar has commercial relations with Albania ; Mostar and Trebinye import a iaw 
 articles from Dalmatia. The populations of these towns have not, however, been 
 solely attracted by trade and industry, for the insecurity of the country has also 
 contributed to that result. There is no part of Europe, the neighbouring Albania 
 and the polar regions of Scandinavia and Russia excepted, which is so rarely 
 visited by strangers, and this isolation will only cease when the proposed inter- 
 national railway shall have joined it to Salouiki and Constantinople.* 
 
 VI. — Bulgaria. 
 
 Thk centre plateau of Turkey is still amongst the least-known countries of 
 the Balkan peninsula, although it is intersected by the great highways which 
 connect Thracia with Bosnia, and Macedonia with the Danube. This plateau, 
 
 * Principal towns of Bosnia :^Sarayovo, 60,000 inhabitants ; Banyaluka, 18,000 inbabitnnts; 
 Zvoruik, 11,000 inhabitants; Travnik, 12,000 inhahitunta ; Novihazar, 9,000 mhabitanlB; Trebinye, 
 9,000 inhabitants ; Moetar, 9,000 inhabitants ; Tuzla, 7,000 inhabitants. 
 
 K 2
 
 132 
 
 TURKEY IK EUROPE. 
 
 known to the ancients as Upper Moesia, consists of a vast granitic table-land, rising 
 to an average height of 2,000 feet. Its surface is diversified by several planinas-, 
 or mountain chains, of small relative height, and by domes of trachyte, the 
 remains of ancient volcanoes. Its numerous depressions were formerly filled with 
 water, and the contours of the ancient lakes can still be traced. They have 
 been gradually filled up by alluvium, or drained bj' rivers. The most remarkable 
 amongst these ancient lacustrine basins are now represented by the fertile plains 
 of Nish, Sofia, and Ikhtiman. 
 
 The superb syenitic and porphyritic mountain group of Yitosh forms the 
 
 Fig. 38. — ilOCNT VlTOSH AND ITS EXVIRONS. 
 
 According to F. von Hochstetter. Scale 1 : 1,058,000. 
 
 r^ i 
 
 
 •V- ^ 
 
 eastern bastion of the McEsian plateau. Immediately to the east of it the deep 
 valley of the Isker pierces the whole of the Balkan Mountains, and, crossing the 
 plain of Sofia, takes its course in the direction of the Danube. The upper valley 
 of this river and the plain mentioned form the true geographical centre of 
 European Turkey. From Sofia diverge some of the most important roads of the 
 peninsula, one leading through the valley of the Isker to the Lower Danube, another 
 along the Morava valley into Servia, a third by way of the Maritza into Thracia, 
 and a fourth down the Struma into Macedonia. It is said that Constantine the 
 Great, struck by these important natural advantages of Sofia, then called Sardica, 
 thought of making it the capital of his empire.
 
 13ULGAIUA. 18a 
 
 The Turks apply the name of Balkans to all the mountain ranges of the 
 peninsula, but geographers restrict that term to the Hremus of the ancients. This 
 mountain rampart begins to the east of the basin of Sofia. It does not form a 
 regular chain, but rather an elevated terrace sloping down gently in the direction 
 of the Danube, whilst towards the south it presents an abrupt slope, it appearing 
 almost as if the plateau on that side had suddenly sunk to a lower level. The 
 Balkan consequently presents the appearance of a chain only wlien looked at 
 from the south. But it« contours even there are only slightly undulating ; there 
 are neither abrupt projections nor rocky pjTamids, and the prevailing character is 
 that of long-stretched mountain ridges. The porpliyritic mountain group of 
 Chatal, which rises to the south of the principal chain, constitutes the only 
 exception to this gentleness of contour. Though inferior in height to the summits 
 of the Balkan, its steep precipices, slashed crests, and chaotic rock masses strike 
 the beholder, and the contrast between this mass of erupted rock and the gentle 
 slopes of the calcareous hills which surround it is very great. 
 
 The uniformity of the northern slopes of the Balkan is such that, in many 
 places, a traveller is able to reach the crest without having come in sight of 
 mountains. TVhen the woods have disappeared from the Balkan, these undulating 
 slopes will be deprived of their greatest charm ; but, as long as the forests ornament 
 them as now, the countr}' will remain one of the most delightful in Turkey. Run- 
 ning streams flow through each valley, bordered by pastui-es as brilliantly green 
 as are those of the Alps ; the villages are built in the shade of beech-trees and 
 oaks ; and nature everywhere wears a smiling aspect. But the plains which extend 
 to the Danube are barren, and sometimes not a single tree is visible. The 
 inhabitants, deprived of wood, are dependent upon cow-dung dried in the sun 
 for their fuel, and they dig for themselves holes in the ground, where they seek 
 protection from the cold of winter. 
 
 The core of the Balkan, between the basin of Sofia and that of Slivno, consists of 
 granite, but the terraces which descend towards the Danube present every geological 
 formation, from the metamorphic to the most recent rocks. The cretaceous formation 
 occupies the largest area in Bulgaria, and the rivers rising in the mountains, in 
 traversing it, form picturesque valleys and defiles. Ancient fortresses defend each 
 of these valleys, and the towns have been built where they debouch upon the 
 plain. Timova, the ancient capital of the tsars of Bulgaria, is the most remark- 
 able of these old bulwarks of defence. The Yantra, on debouching there from the 
 mountains, winds about curiously ; steep clifis form an amphitheatre, in the centre 
 of which rise two precipitous isolated rocks, crowned formerly by walls and towers. 
 The houses of the town are built on the slopes, and its suburbs extend along the 
 foot of the cliffs. 
 
 A singular parallelism has been noticed on the northern slopes of Balkan. The 
 elevated mountain saddles, crests of secondary chains, geological formations, the 
 faults which give rise to the meandering of the rivers, and even the Danube itself, 
 all follow the same direction, from west to east. As a consequence, each of the 
 parallel valleys descending from the Balkans oflFers similar features ; the popula-
 
 134 TUEKEY IN EUROPE. 
 
 tion is distributed in the same manner ; and tlie towns occupy analogous positions. 
 The valley of the Lom offers the only exception to the rule, for its direction is 
 towards the north-west. It debouches upon the Danube at Rustchuk, and its 
 green orchards and gardens are hemmed in by dazzling white cliffs of chalk rising 
 to a height of about 100 feet. 
 
 The symmetry would be almost complete in Northern Turkey if it were not 
 for the detached arid hills of the Dobruja, which force the Danube to make a wide 
 detour to the north. Rising in the low and swampy delta of the Danube, these hills 
 appear to be much higher than they are. In reality they do not exceed 1,G50 feet 
 in height. It is possible that during some very remote geological epoch the 
 Danube took its course to the south of these hills, through the depression which 
 has been utilised for the construction of the first Turkish railway. Trajan, who 
 feared that the Goths might obtain a footing in this remote corner of the Roman 
 empire, constructed one of those lines of fortifications here which are known 
 throughout the countries of the Lower Danube as Trajan's Walls. Remains of 
 walls, ditches, and forts may still be traced along the banks of the marshes, and on 
 the heights commanding them. This country of the Dobruja is the "savage 
 hyperborean region " where Ovid, exiled from Rome, wept for the splendours 
 of the capital. The port of Tomi, the place of his banishment, is the modern 
 Kustenje. 
 
 To the north of the Gulf of Burgas, which is the westernmost extremity of the 
 Black Sea, rise the fine porphyry mountains which terminate in the superb Cape of 
 Emineh. They are sometimes described as an eastern prolongation of the Balkan, 
 but erroneously, for the ancient lacustrine basin of Karnabat, now traversed by a 
 railway, separates them from the system of the Hsomus. The granitic plateaux and 
 mountains of Tunja and Stranja, which command the wide plain of Thracia on the 
 north, are likewise separate mountain ranges. The Southern Balkan is, in reality, 
 without ramifications or spurs, except in the west, where the mountains of 
 Ikhtiman and of Samakov, so rich in iron ore and thermal springs, and other 
 transverse chains, connect it with the mountain mass of the Rhodope. The upper 
 basin of the Marltza River, enclosed between the Balkan and the Rhodope, has the 
 shape of an elongated triangle, whose apex, directed towards the plain of Sofia, 
 indicates the point of junction between the two systems. The whole of this 
 triangular depression, with its lateral ramifications, was formerly occupied by 
 lakes, now converted into bottom-lands of marvellous fertility. The passes near 
 the apex of this triangle are naturally points of the highest strategical and com- 
 mercial importance. Through one of them, still marked by ancient fortifications, 
 and known as Trajan's Gate, passed the old Roman highway, and there, too, the 
 railway now in course of construction will cross the summit between the two slopes 
 of the peninsula. This is the true "gateway of Constantinople," and from 
 the most remote times nations have fought for its possession. The numerous 
 lumuli scattered over the neighbouring plains bear witness to many a bloody 
 struggle. 
 
 The spurs of the Rhodope intermingle with those of the Balkan, and the lowest
 
 BULGARIA. 185 
 
 pass which separates the two still exceeds 3,000 feet in elevation. The l{ilo Dagh, 
 the most elevated mountain mass of the Rhodope, boldly rises at its northern 
 extremity, and, to use the expression of Barth, forms the shoulder-blade of junc- 
 tion. Its height is 9,580 feet. It rises far beyond the region of forests, and its 
 jagged summits, pyramids, and platforms contrast strikingly with the rounded 
 outlines of the Balkan. But the lower heights, surrounded by this imposing 
 amphitheatre of grand summits, are covered with vegetation. Forests of pines, 
 larches, and beech-trees, the haunts of bears and chamois, alternate with clumps of 
 trees and cultivated fields, and the villages in the valleys are surrounded by 
 meadows, vineyards, and oaks. Picturesque cupolas of numerous monasteries 
 peep out amongst the verdure : to their existence the mountain owes its Turkish 
 name of Despoto Dagh, i.e. "mountain of the parsons." The Rilo Dagh, likewise 
 famous on account of its monasteries, has altogether the aspect of the Swiss Alps. 
 The moist winds of the Mediterranean convey to it much snow in winter and 
 spring, but in summer the clouds discharge only torrents of rain, and the snow 
 r ipidly disappears from the flanks of the mountains. These sudden rain-storms 
 are amongst the most remarkable spectacles to be witnessed. In the forenoon the 
 mist which hides the tops of the mountains grows dense by degrees, and heavy 
 copper-coloured clouds collect on the slopes. About three in the afternoon the 
 rain begins to pour down, the clouds grow ^-isiblj' smaller, first one, then another 
 summit is seen through a rent in the watery vapours, until at last the air has 
 become purified, and the mountains are lit up in the sunset. 
 
 To the south of the Eilo Dagh rises the mountain mass of Perim, hardly 
 inferior to it in height. This is the Orbelos of the ancient Greeks, and the rings 
 to which Noah made fast his ark when the waters subsided after the deluge are 
 still shown there, and even Mussulman pilgrims pay their devotions at this 
 venerated spot. It is the last high summit of the Ilhodoi^e. The mountains to 
 the south rapidly decrease in elevation, though the granitic formation to which 
 they belong is spread over a vast extent of country from the plains of Thracia to 
 Albania. The extent of the hilly region connected with the Rhodope is still 
 further increased by numerous groups of extinct volcanoes, which have poured 
 forth vast sheets of trachytic lava. The rivers which flow from the central plateau 
 of Turkey into the ^gean Sea have cut for themselves deep passages through these 
 granites and lavas, the most famous amongst which is the " Iron Gate " of the 
 Vardar, or Demir Kapu, which formerly figured on our majjs of Turkey as a large 
 town. 
 
 The aspect of the crystalline mountain masses to the west of the Vardar is 
 altogether of an Alpine character, for the peaks not only attain a high elevation, 
 liut snow remains upon them during the greater portion of the year. The 
 Gornichova, or Nije, to the north of Thessaly, rises to a height of 6,560 feet ; and 
 the Peristcri, whose triple summit and snow-clad shoulders have been likened to 
 the spread-out wings of a bird, and which rises close to the city of Bitolia, or 
 Monastir, is more elevated still. The mountains of ancient Dardania enclose 
 extensive circular or elliptical plains, and the most remarkable amongst these,
 
 186 TUEKEY IN EUEOPE. 
 
 namely, that of Monastir, has been compared by Grisebach, the geologist, to one of 
 those huge crater lakes which the telescope has revealed to us on the surface 
 of the moon. In most of these plains we meet with swamps or small lakes, 
 the only remains of the sheets of water which at one time covered them. 
 The most extensive of these lakes is that of Ostrovo. The Lake of Kastoria 
 resembles the fllled-up crater of a volcano. In its centre rises a limestone 
 hill joined to the shore by an isthmus, upon which is built a picturesque Greek 
 town. 
 
 According to Viquesnel and Hochstetter, traces of glaciers do not exist in 
 any of these ancient lacustrine basins, or on the flanks of the mountains. It is 
 certainly remarkable that whilst other European mountains — as, for instance, the 
 Voso-es and the mountains of Auvergne — have passed through a glacial epoch, the 
 far more elevated Peristeri, Rilo Dagh, and Balkan, under about the same latitude 
 as the Pyrenees, should never have had their valleys filled by moving rivers 
 of ice.* 
 
 AU the large rivers of European Turkey belong to the Bulgarian regions of 
 the Balkan or Haemus. In Bosnia there are merely small parallel rivers flowing to 
 the Save ; Albania has only turbulent torrents forcing their way through wild 
 gorges, like the Drin ; but the Maritza, the Strymon or Karasu, the Vardar, and 
 the Inje Karasu, which descend from the southern flanks of the Balkans, or 
 oi'iginate in the crystalline mountain masses of the Hhodope, are large rivers, 
 which bear comparison with the tranquil streams of Western Europe. As yet we 
 know but little about their mode of action. The volume of water discharged by 
 them has never been measured, and they are hardly made use of for purposes of 
 navigation or irrigation. They all traverse ancient lake basins, which they have 
 filled up gradually with alluvium, and converted into fertile plains. This work of 
 fiUing up still goes on in the lower portions of these fluvial valleys, where 
 extensive marshes, and even gradually shrinking lakes, abound. One of these 
 lakes, the Takhino, through which the Strymon flows before it enters the -3Egean 
 Sea, is said to be the Prasias of Herodotus, and its aquatic villages were no doubt 
 similar to the pile dwellings discovered in nearly all the lakes of Central 
 Europe. 
 
 The Danube, to the north of the Dohrujn, performs an amount of geological 
 work, in comparison with which that of the Maritza, the Strymon, and Vardar 
 sinks into insignificance. That mighty river annually conveys to the Black Sea 
 a volume of water far in excess of that which is carried down the rivers of all 
 France, and the solids which it holds in suspension are sufilcient to cover an area 
 of ten square miles to a depth of nine feet. This enormous mass of sand and clay 
 is annually deposited in the swamps and on the banks of the delta, and the slow 
 but steady growth of the latter is thus sufficiently explained. Even the ancients 
 
 * Altitudes in Bulgaria, according to Hochstetter, Viquesnel, Bnue, Barth, and others : — Vitcsh, 
 8,080 feet ; Balkan, mean height, 5,600 feet ; Chatal, 3,600 feet ; hills of the Dobruja, 1,650 feet ; 
 Trajan's Gate, 2,625 feet ; Pass of Dubnitza, 3,560 feet ; Rilo Dagh, 9,500 feet ; Perim Dagh, 7,875 feet ; 
 Gomichova, or Nije, 6,560 feet ; Peristeri, 7,700 feet ; basin of Sofia, 1,710 feet; basin of Monastir, 1,820 
 feet ; Lake of Ostrovo, 1,680 feet ; Lake of Kastoria, 2,050 feet.
 
 BULGARIA. 
 
 187 
 
 anticipated a time when the Bhick So;i would be couvertt-d into a .•^liallow pond 
 abounding in sand-banks, and it must, therefore, afford some consolation to our 
 mariners to be told tbat six million years must pass before the alluvium carried 
 down the river wull till the whole of the Black Sea. 
 
 The large triangular plain which the Danube has conquered from the sea has 
 not yet fully emerged from the waters. Lakes, and the remains of ancient bays, 
 half-obliterated branches of the Danube, and the over-changing beds of rivulets, 
 have converted this delta into a domain, half land, half sea. More elevated tracts, 
 consolidated by the attack of the waves, rise here and there above the melancholy 
 mire and reeds, and bear a dense vegetation of oaks, olives, and beeches. AVillows 
 
 Fig. 39. — The Delt.i of tjie Daxihe. 
 Scale 1 : 1,600,000. 
 
 fringe most of the branches of the river which take their winding course through 
 the delta. Eighteen years ago the Danube had six mouths; it has now only 
 three. 
 
 After the Crimean war the Western powers determined that the Kilia branch, 
 which conveys to the Black Sea more than half the volume of the Danube, should 
 thenceforth form the boundary between Rumania and Turkey. The treaty of 
 Berlin (1878) assigns the whole of the delta, which has an area of about 4,000 
 square miles, including the only mouth of the river which is navigable, to 
 Rumania. The mouth of the Kilia is closed by a bar of sand, whiih docs not 
 even permit small vessels to enter it.
 
 138 TURKEY IN EUROPE. 
 
 The southern mouth, that of Khidrillis, or St. George, is likewise inaccessible. 
 The centre branch, that of the Solina, ■which has served the purposes of commerce 
 from time immemorial, can alone be entered by vessels. But even this channel 
 -would not be practicable, in the case of large vessels, if our engineers had 
 not improved its facilities of access. Formerly the depth of -vrater on the bar 
 hardly exceeded a fathom during April, June, and July ; and even at times of 
 flood was at most two or three fathoms. But by bmlding convergent jetties, 
 which guide the waters of the river into the deep sea, the depth of water has 
 been increased to the extent of ten feet, and vessels drawing twenty feet can 
 enter. Sulina is now one of the most important commercial ports of Europe, and 
 a highlv prized harbour of refuge on the Black Sea, which is so much dreaded by 
 mariners on account of its squalls. We are indebted for this great public work 
 to an international commission, which enjoys almost sovereign rights over the 
 Danube as high up as Isikcha.* 
 
 The Bulgarians inhabit the country to the south of the Danube as far as the 
 slopes of Mount Pindus, excepting only certain detached territories in the occu- 
 pation of Turks, WaUachians, Zinzares, or Greeks. In the Middle Ages their 
 
 Fig. 40. CoXTAaATITB DiSCHAHGE OF THE MoVTHS OF THB DaNXBE. 
 
 Kilia MoaUi. SnliiiA Monti. Et. Georee's Month- 
 
 kingdom was even more extensive, for it included the whole of Albania, and had 
 Okhrida for its capitaL 
 
 The origin of the Bulgarians has been a theme of frequent discussion. The 
 Bulgarians of the Byzantines, who laid waste the plains of Thracia about the 
 close of the fifth century, and whose name became a term of opprobrium, probably 
 were a Ugrian race, Uke the Huns, and spoke a language akin to that of the 
 Samoyeds. The name of these savage conquerors is sometimes derived from the 
 Volga, on the banks of which they formerly dwelt ; but their manners and 
 appearance have undergone a singular change, and nothing now indicates their 
 origin. Originally Turanians, they have been converted into Slavs, like their 
 neighbours the Servians and Russians. 
 
 This rapid conversion of the Bulgarians into Slavs is one of the most remark- 
 able ethnological phenomena of the Middle Ages. Even in the ninth century the 
 Bulgarians had adopted the Servian language, and soon afterwards they ceased 
 to speak their own. Their idiom is less polished than that of the Servians, and, 
 possessing no literature, has not become fixed. The purest Bulgarian, it is said, 
 may be heard in the district of Kalofer, to the south of the Balkan. The gradual 
 transformation of the Bulgarians into Slavs is ascribed by some authors to the 
 • Cleared from Sulina (1873), 1,870 reisels of 532,000 tons. Value of cereals eiported, £6,000,000.
 
 BULGARIA. 130 
 
 prodigious facility for iiiiifatiou possessed by tb;it people ; but it is simpler (o 
 assume that, in course of time, the conquering Bulgarians and the conquered 
 Servians became amalgamated, and that, whilst the former gave a name to the 
 new nation, the latter contributed their language, their manners, and physical 
 features. Thus much is certain, that the inhabitants of Bulgaria must now bo 
 looked upon as members of the Slavonian family of nations. Together with the 
 Servians, Croats, and Ilerzegovinians, they are the most numerous people of 
 European Turkey ; and, if the succession to the dominion of the Turks is to bo 
 decided by numbers alone, it belongs to the Servo-Bulgarians, and not to the 
 Greeks. 
 
 The Bulgarians, as a rule, are not so tall as their neighbours the Servians ; 
 they are squat, strongly built, with a large head on broad shoulders. Lejean, 
 liiraself a Breton, and others, consider that they bear a striking resemblance to 
 the peasants of Brittany. In several districts, and notably in the environs of 
 Philippopoli, they shave the head, a tuft of hair alone excepted, which they 
 cultivate and dress into a tail as carefuUj' as the Chinese. Greeks and "Wallachians 
 ridicule them, and manj' proverbial expressions refer to their want of intelligence 
 and polish. This ridicule, however, they hardly deserve. Less vivacious than 
 the Wallachian, or less supple than the Greek, the Bulgarian is certainly not 
 deficient in intelligence. But bondage has borne heavily upon him ; and in the 
 south, where he is oppressed by the Turk and fleeced by the Greek, he looks 
 unhappy and sad ; but in the plains of the north and the secluded mountain 
 villages, where he has been exposed to less suffering, he is jovial, fond of 
 ple.asure, fluent of speech, and quick at repartee. The inhabitants of the northern 
 slopes of the Balkan, perhaps owing to a greater infusion of Servian blood, are 
 better-looking, too, than other Bulgarians, and dress in better taste. A still 
 finer race of men are the Pomakis, in the high valleys of the Ehodope, to the 
 south of Philippopoli. Their speech is Bulgarian, but in no other respect do 
 they resemble their compatriots. They are a fine race of men, with auburn 
 hair, full of energy, and of a poetical temperament. "We almost feel tempted 
 to look upon them as the lineal descendants of the ancient Thracians, especially 
 if it should turn out to be true that in their songs they celebrate Orpheus, the 
 divine musician. 
 
 The Bulgarians, and especially those of the plains, are a peaceable people, 
 recalling in no respect the fierce hordes who devastated the Byzantine empire. 
 They are not warlike, like their neighbours the Servians, and do not keep alive 
 in their national poetry the memory of former struggles. Their songs relate to 
 the events of every-day life, or to the sufferings of the oppressed ; and the " gentle 
 zaptic/i," as the representative of authority, is one of the characters most 
 frequently represented in them. The average Bulgarian is a quiet, hard-working 
 peasant, a good husband and father ; he is fond of home comforts, and practises 
 every domestic virtue. Nearly all the agricultural produce exported from Turkey 
 results from the labour of Bulgarian husbandmen. It is they who have converted 
 certain portions of the plain to the south of the Danube into huge fields of
 
 140 TURKEY IN EUROPE. 
 
 maize and corn, rivalling those of Rumania. It is they, likewise, who, at 
 Eski-Za'ara, at the south of the Balkan, produce the best silk and the best 
 wheat in all Turkey, from which latter alone the bread and cakes placed upon the 
 Sultan's table are prepared. Other Bulgarians have converted the noble plain 
 of Kezanlik, at the foot of the Balkan, into the finest agricultural district of 
 Turkey, the town itself being surrounded by magnificent walnut-trees and by 
 rosaries, which furnish the famous attar of roses, constituting so important an 
 article of commerce throughout the East. Amongst the Bulgarians between 
 Pirot and Turnov (Tirnova), on the northern slope of the Balkan, there exist 
 flourishing manufactures. Each village there is noted for a particular branch of 
 industry. Knives are made at one, metal ornaments at another, earthenware at 
 a third, stuS's or carpets elsewhere ; and even common workmen exhibit much 
 manual dexterity and puritj' of taste. An equally remarkable spirit of enterprise 
 is manifested amongst the Bulgarians and Zinzares of the district of Bitolia, or 
 Monastir. The town itself, as well as Kurshova, Fiorina, and others in its 
 vicinity, arc manufacturing centres. 
 
 The Bulgarians, peaceable, patient, and indu>trious as the}- are, have long 
 borne the subjection in which they were held. But within the last decade or so 
 a feeling of nationality, fostered by younger men who had spent some years in 
 Servia or Rumania, has arisen amongst them. They have learned to look upon 
 each other as members of the same family. The first occasion in which this new- 
 born feeling of nationality was exhibited had reference to a question of religion. 
 AVhen the Turks conquered the country a certain number amongst them turned 
 Mohammedan to escape oppression ; but though they visit the mosques, they never- 
 theless still cling to the faith of their forefathers, venerate the same springs, and 
 put their trust in the same talismans. A few joined the Roman Church, but a great 
 majority remained Greek Catholics. Greek monks and priests, not long since, 
 enjoyed the greatest influence, for during centuries of oppression they had 
 upheld the ancient faith. Their presence vaguely recalled the times of inde- 
 pendence, and their churches were the only sanctuaries open to the persecuted 
 peasant. But the Bulgarians, in the end, grew discontented with a priesthood 
 who did not even take the trouble to acquire the language of its congregations, and 
 openly sought to subject them to an alien nation like the Greeks. Nothing 
 was further from their thoughts than a religious schism. They merely desired 
 to withdraw from the authority of the Patriarch of Constantinople, and to found 
 a National Church of their own, as had been done by the Servians, and even by 
 the Greeks of the new Hellenic kingdom. The Vatican of Constantinople 
 protested, the Turkish Government proved anything but favourable to this 
 movement of emancipation, but in the end the Greek priests were forced to 
 retire — precipitately in some instances — and the new National Church was 
 established. 
 
 The successful issue of this peaceable revolution inspired the leaders of the 
 national movement with confidence, more especially as there was not wanting 
 encouragement from abroad. The Turks succeeded in stamping out a few
 
 BUI.GAEIA. 141 
 
 isolated risings, but they utterly broke down before the Russian battalions who 
 marched to support the claims of their Slav "brethren." The hopes of the 
 originators of the war have only been realised in part ; but the semi-indopcndent 
 principality of Bulgaria which has been created may possibly serve as the 
 nucleus of a future state of larger extent, and even in those parts of Bulgaria 
 which the powers have permitted to remain under the direct rule of the Turks 
 the position of these latter has become exceedingly precarious. The number 
 of Turks in Bulgaria is by no means inconsiderable. In Western Bulgaria, 
 indeed, they are few, but in the East they live in compact masses, and, 
 in conjunction with the Bulgarians who have adopted the language, dress, 
 manners, and modes of thought of their conquerors, they form a majoritj* of the 
 population. 
 
 The Greeks, next to the Turks, are the most important element of the 
 population of Bulgaria. They are not very numerous to the north of the Balkan, 
 where their influence hardly exceeds that of the Germans and Armenians esta- 
 blished in the towns. To the south of the Balkan, though not numerous relatively, 
 they are much more widely distributed. One or two Greeks are met with in 
 every village, carrying on trade or exercising some handicraft. They make 
 themselves indispensable to the locality, their advice is sought for by all, and they 
 impart their own spirit to the whole of the population. Where two or three of 
 these Greeks meet they at once constitute themselves into a sort of community, 
 and throughout the country they form a kind of masonic brotherhood. Their 
 influence is thus far greater than could be expected from their numbers. There 
 are a few important Greek colonies amongst the Bulgarians, as at Philippopoli and 
 Bazarjik, and in a valley of the Rhodope they occupy the populous town of 
 Stanimako, to the exclusion of Turks and Bulgarians. The ruins of ancient 
 buildings, as well as the dialect of the inhabitants, which contains over two 
 hundred Greek words not known to modern Greek, prove that Stanimako has 
 existed as a Greek town for upwards of twenty centuries, and M. Dumont thinks 
 that it is one of the old colonies of Euboea. 
 
 The initiatory part played by the Greeks in Southern Bulgaria is played 
 in the north by the Rumanians. The right bank of the Danube, from Cher- 
 navoda to the Black Sea, is for the most part inhabited by Wallachians, who 
 are gradually gaining upon the Turks. Other colonists are attracted by 
 the fertility of the plains at the northern foot of the Balkan. The Bulgarians 
 r.re careful cultivators of the soil themselves, but the Rumanians never- 
 theless gain a footing amongst them, as they do with the Servians, the 
 Magyars, and the Germans. They are more active and intelligent than the 
 Bulgarians, their families are more numerous, and in the course of a genera- 
 tion they generally succeed in " Rumanising " a village in which they have 
 settled. 
 
 Bulgarians and Turks, Greeks and Wallachians, isolated colonies of Servians 
 and Albanians, communities of Armenians and of Spanish Jews, colonies of 
 Zinzares and wandering tribes of Mohammedan Tsigani, have converted the
 
 142 TUEKEY IN EUROPE. 
 
 countries of the Balkan into a veritable ethnological chaos ; but the confusion is 
 gneater still in the small district of Dobruja, between the Lower Danube and the 
 Black Sea. In addition to the races enumerated, we there meet with Nogai 
 Tartars, who are of purer blood than their kinsmen the Osraanli, and exhibit the 
 Asiatic type in greater purity. Although they cultivate the soil, they have not 
 altogether abandoned their nomad habits, for they wander with their herds over 
 hill and dale. They are governed by an hereditary khan, as at the time when they 
 dwelt in tents. 
 
 After the Crimean war several thousand Nogai Tartars, compromised by the 
 aid which they had rendered the Allies, joined their compatriots in the Dobruja. 
 On the other hand, about 10,000 Bulgarians, terrified at the approach of 
 these much-maligned immigrants, fled the Dobruja, and sought an asylum in 
 Russia, where they were assigned the lands abandoned by the Crimean Tartars. 
 This exchange proved disastrous to both nations, for sickness and grief carried off 
 many victims. More deplorable still was the lot of the Circassians and other 
 Caucasian tribes, who, to the number of 400,000, sought a refuge in Turkey in 
 1864. It was by no means easy to provide accommodation for so large a host. 
 The pasha intrusted with the installation of these immigrants sent many of them 
 to Western Bulgaria, in the vain hope that they would cut off all contact 
 between Servians and Bulgarians. The rayas were compelled to surrender to 
 them their best lands, to build houses for them, and to supply them with cattle 
 and seed-corn. This hospitable reception, compulsory though it was, would have 
 enabled these immigrants to start in their adopted country with a fair chance of 
 success, had they but deigned to work. This, however, they declined. Ilunger, 
 sickness, and a climate very different from that of their mountains, caused them 
 to perish in thousands, and in less than a year about one-third of these refugees 
 had perished. Young girls and children were sold to procure bread, and this 
 infamous traffic became a source of wealth to certain pashas. The harems 
 became filled with young Circassians, who were a drug in the market at that 
 time, and the human merchandise not saleable at Constantinople was exported 
 to Syria and Egypt. These Circassians, after thus suffering from sickness and 
 their own improvident laziness, have played a part by no means glorious during 
 the late war. Most of them appear to have left the country, and in their new 
 homes in Asia Minor they prove as great a terror to the peaceable inhabitants as 
 they did in Bulgaria. 
 
 Other refugees, more kindly treated by fate, have found an asylum in the 
 Dobruja. They are Russian Cossacks, Ruthenians, and Muscovites of the " Old 
 Faith," who left their steppes towards the close of last century in order to escape 
 persecution. The Padisha, more tolerant than the Christian Empress of Russia, 
 generously received them, and granted them land in various parts, of his 
 dominions. The Russian colonies in the Dobruja and in the delta of the Danube 
 have prospered, and one of their settlements on the St. George's branch of the 
 river is known as the " Cossacks' Paradise." Most of these Russians are 
 engaged in the sturgeon fishery and the preparation of caviare. They have
 
 LXJLQAEIA. 143 
 
 proved »ratefiil for the liospitality extended to them, aud havo always fought 
 valiantly in defence of their adopted country. They retain their national 
 dress, their language, and their religion, and do not mix witli the surrounding 
 populations. 
 
 In addition to the above, we meet in the Dobruja with colonies of Germans, 
 Arabs, and Poles, and, in the new port of the Sulina, with representatives of 
 many nations of Europe and Asia. 
 
 There are few countries where the great international high-roads are as plainly 
 traced by nature as in Bulgaria. The first of these roads is formed by the 
 Danube. The Turkish towns along its banks — Yiddin, Shishtova, Rustchuk, and 
 Silistria — are taking an increasing share in European commerce. This highway 
 is continued along the shores of the Black Sea, where there are several commercial 
 harbours, the most important being Burgas, a great grain port. This natural 
 highway, however, has become too circuitous for purposes of commerce. A railway 
 has therefore been built across the isthmus of the Dobruja, from Chernavoda to 
 Kustenje, and a second line connects Eustchuk, on the Danube, with Varna, on the 
 Black Sea, the latter line crossing the whole of Eastern Bulgaria, and touching 
 the towns of Eazgrad and Shumna. A third line, now in course of construction, 
 will cross the Balkans by a depression to the south of Shumna, and traversing the 
 plain in which the towns of Yamboly and Acb-ianople are built, will connect the 
 Lower Danube with the ^gean Sea. A third route, still farther to the west, 
 passes Turnov, or Tirnova, the ancient capital of the tsars of Bulgaria, and runs 
 over the Shipka Pass, of famous memory, to Kezanlik and Eski-Za'ara. 
 
 These railways, already opened for traffic or approaching completion, certainly 
 shorten the journey between Western Europe and Constantinople ; but it is 
 proposed now to avoid the circuitous navigation of the Lower Danube altogether, 
 by joining the railway system of Europe to that of Turkey. One of these pro- 
 posed railways will pass through Bosnia, and dov/n the valley of the Vardar to 
 Saloniki ; another will follow the ancient Roman road, which connected Punnonia 
 with Byzantium, and which was paved in the sixteenth century as far as B(?lgrad. 
 The principal cities along this great highway are Nish, on a tributary of the 
 Morava, close to the frontier of Servia ; Sofia, the ancient Sardica, on the Isker, 
 a tributary of the Danube; Bazarjik, or "the market;" and the fine town of 
 rhilippopoli, with its triple mountain commanding the passage of the Maritza. 
 These towns, on the completion of the railway, cannot fail to become of great com- 
 mercial importance. A hideous monument near Nish will, perhaps, be pointed out 
 to tourists attracted thither on the opening of the railway. It was erected to remind 
 future generations of a deed of " glory." This trophy of Kele-kalesi consists of a 
 tower built of the skulls of Ser^^ans, who, rather than fall alive into the hands of 
 their enemies, blew themselves up together with the redoubt which they defended. 
 A governor of Nish, more humane than his predecessors, desired to remove this 
 abominable piece of masonry, which no raya passes without a shudder, but 
 Mussulman fanaticism forbade it.
 
 14-1 
 
 TUEKEY IN EUROPE. 
 
 The influence of commerce cannot fail to modify largely the manners and 
 customs of a nation as supple and pliable as are the Bulgarians. War has 
 brutalised the Albanians, and slavery degraded the Bulgarians. In the towns, 
 more particularly, they have sunk very low. The insults heaped upon them by 
 Mussulmans, and the contemptuous manner in which they were treated, rendered 
 them abject and despicable in their own eyes. Demoralised by servitude and 
 misery, given up to the mercy of their rich compatriots, the chorhajis, or " givers 
 of soup," they became shameless and low-minded helots. The Bulgarian women, 
 in the towns more particularlj^ presented a spectacle of the most shameful 
 corruption, and their want of modesty, their coarseness, and ignorance fully 
 justified the contempt in which they were held by their Mohammedan sisters. 
 Even as regards education the Turks were in advance of them : not long ago their 
 schools relatively were more numerous, and the instruction given in them was of a 
 superior order. Christian villages, moreover, were never so clean or pleasant as 
 those of the Turks. 
 
 But, whatever may have been the case in the past, things have already begun 
 to mend. The Turks, as a body, maj' still be the superiors of the Bulgarians, as 
 regards probity and a respect for truth, but they work less, and become 
 imjjoverished by degrees. In the country the land gradually passes into the 
 hands of the rayas, in the towns the latter monopolize nearly all the trade. The 
 Bulgarians, moreover, have learnt to appreciate the importance of education ; 
 they have founded schools and colleges, have set up printing presses, and send 
 their young men to be educated at the universities of Europe. The young 
 Bulgarians in the mixed colleges of Constantinople invariably make the most 
 satisfactory progress in their studies. This revival of learning is a most hopeful 
 sign of vitalitj'. If persevered in, the Bulgarian race, which has been dead, as it 
 were, for so many centuries, may again \Aay its part in the world's history. The 
 atrocities of which Bulgaria has recently been the scene may retard this regene- 
 ration, but they certainlj- cannot stop it.* 
 
 The following are the principal towns of Bulgaria, with the number of their inhabitants : — 
 
 Shumna (Shumla) 
 
 Rustchuk 
 
 Philippopoli (Felibe) 
 
 Bitolia (Monastir) 
 
 SkopUe (TTskub) . 
 
 Kalkandelen 
 
 Sofia . 
 
 Vidin . 
 
 Silistria 
 
 Shishtova 
 
 Vama 
 
 Eski-Za'ara 
 
 50,000 
 50,000 
 40,000 
 40,000 
 28,000 
 22,000 
 20,000 
 20,000 
 20,000 
 20,000 
 20,000 
 18,000 
 
 Bazarjik 
 
 Nish 
 
 Veleze (Koprili) . 
 
 Eazgrad 
 
 TumoT (Timova) 
 
 Sliven (Slivno) 
 
 Prilip . 
 
 Kezanlik 
 
 Stanimako . 
 
 Fiorina 
 
 Kurshova 
 
 SuUna 
 
 18,000 
 16,000 
 15,000 
 15,000 
 12,000 
 12,000 
 12,000 
 10,000 
 10,000 
 10,000 
 9,000 
 6,000
 
 PRESENT POSITION AND PROSPECTS OF TURKEY. 146 
 
 VII. — PiiKSKNT Position and PuosrEcrs ok Turkey. 
 
 The events of the last two yours would ulinost make it appear as if the 
 prophecies about the " sick man " were about to be fultillod. Who can doubt 
 that the Turkish empire is largely indebted for its coutiuued existence to the 
 jealousies which divide the councils of Europe ? Still, Turkey, within recent times, 
 has exhibited a wonderful amount of vitality. New provinces have been incor- 
 porated with the empire in Arabia ; a rebellion in the north-western provinces 
 of European Turkey, originating in the niisgoverumeut of the country, but aided 
 and abetted by Eussia, has been suppressed with a strong hand ; and the resistance 
 offered to Eussia herself has proved far more formidable than could have been 
 expected. The fortunes of war, however, have gone against the Ottomans. 
 Their empire has been curtailed, but it has not yet disappeared from the map of 
 Europe, and there are those amongst the politicians who put faith in their 
 capacity for reform, and wlio hope to maintain this Mohammedan power as a 
 bulwark to the cncroachmeuts of Russia. The prospects at present, however, are 
 by no means of a cheering nature. The new principality of Bulgaria will form a 
 focus of attraction to all Bulgarians still remaining mider the direct ride of the 
 Turks. Bosnia, placed under Austrian rule, may almost be looked upon as 
 having been severed from the empire. The Greeks are impatientlj' urging their 
 excessive claims. The old state craft of the Osmanli, which consisted in playing 
 off one nationality against the other, appears to avail no longer. In all parts 
 of the empire revolt is raising its head. Whether Turkish statesmen will attend 
 to the advice of western statesmen, who desire to see the Bos2)horu8 and the 
 Dardanelles in the iwspession of a powerful state antagonistic to Russia, time alone 
 can show. 
 
 And, indeed, what can be expected in an empire in which caprice reigns 
 supreme? The Padishah is lord of the souls and bodies of his subjects ; he is 
 commander-in-chief of the army, supreme judge, and sovereign pontiff. In former 
 times his power was practically limited by semi-independent feudatories, but since 
 the fall of Ali Pasha and the massacre of the janissaries he is restrained only by 
 customs, traditions, and the demands of the Governments of Europe. He is the 
 most despotic sovereign of Europe, and his civil list the heaviest in proportion to 
 the revenues of the country. The household of the late Sultan and of the 
 members of his family was exceedingly numerous. There lived in the Seraglio 
 an army of 6,000 servants and slaves of both sexes, of whom GOO were cooks. 
 These servants, in turn, were surrounded bj^ an army of hangers-on, who were fed 
 from the imperial kitchens, to wliich no less than 1,200 sheep were supplied daily 
 bj' the contractors. 
 
 Current expenses were sufficiently heavy, but more considerable still was the 
 extraordinary expenditure incurred in the construction of palaces and kiosks, the 
 purchase of articles de hue and of curiosities, and for all kinds of prodigalities. 
 The present Sultan, driven thereto by the precarious position of his empire, has 
 limited his expenditure. But will this last ? 
 
 vol.. 1. L
 
 146 TURKEY IN EUROPE. 
 
 Ministers, valis, and other high officials of the empire faithfully follow in the 
 footsteps of their sovereign, and their expenditure always exceeds their salarj', 
 thouo-h the latter is fixed on a most liberal scale. As to the lower officials, their 
 salaries are small and irregularly paid ; but it is understood that they may recoup 
 themselves at the expense of the ratepayers. Everything can be purchased in 
 Turkey, and, above all, justice. The state of the finances is most lamentable ; 
 loans are raised at usurious interest ; and so badly is the country governed that it 
 has been seriously proposed to intrust the management of its finances to a syndicate 
 of the European powers ! * 
 
 Agriculture and industry progress but slowly under such misgovernment. 
 Vast tracts of the most fertile land are allowed to lie fallow ; they appear to be 
 no one's property, and any one may settle upon and cultivate them. But woe to 
 him if he conducts his operations with profit to himself; for no sooner is he 
 observed to become wealthy than his land is laid claim to on behalf of the clergy 
 or of some pasha, and he may consider himself lucky if he escapes a bastinado. 
 The peasants, in many districts, are careful not to produce more than thej' abso- 
 lutely require to live upon, for an abundant harvest would impoverish them — would 
 merely lead to a permanent increase of taxation. The tradesmen in the smaller 
 towns are equally careful to conceal their wealth, if thej' possess any. 
 
 Manj^ Mussulman families have ceded to the mosques their proprietary rights. 
 They thus enjoy merely the usufruct of their lands, but are freed, on the other 
 hand, from the payment of taxes, and the land remains in the possession of their 
 families until they become extinct. These lands are known as vakiifs, and they 
 form about one-third of the area of the whole empire. They contribute actually 
 nothino- towards the revenues of the State. In the end they aggrandise the vast 
 estates of the Mohammedan clergy. Taxation weighs almost exclusively upon the 
 lands cidtivated by the unfortunate Christians ; and in proportion as the vakufs 
 increase, so does the produce of taxation diminish. This must in the end neces- 
 sarily lead to a secularisation of the estates of the clergy ; and even now, to the 
 o-reat horror of the old Turks, the Ottoman Government is timidly extending its 
 hands towards the estates belonging to the mosques of Constantinople. 
 
 The Servian, Albanian, and Bulgarian peasants actually cultivate their land 
 in spite of their masters. A single fact will show this. Certain collectors of 
 tithes, in order to prevent fraud, insist upon the peasants leaving the whole of the 
 harvest upon the fields until they have withdrawn their tenth part. Maize, rice, 
 and corn are exposed there to the inclemencies of the weather and other destruc- 
 tive agencies ; and it frequently happens that the harvest has deteriorated to the 
 extent of one-half in value before the Government impost is levied. Sometimes 
 the peasants allow their grapes or fruit to rot rather than pay the tithes. But it 
 is not the tax-gatherer alone of whose conduct the peasant may complain ; for he 
 is exposed likewise to exactions by the middlemen with whom he comes into 
 contact when selling his produce. " The Bulgarian works, but the Greek holds 
 the plough." So says an ancient proverb ; and this is still true at least of the 
 
 ♦ Receipts for 1874, £20,400,000 : debts .v. 1875, £220,000,000.
 
 ». w ill ^ " »»l» I > »* ^.
 
 MUSSULHAXS OF ADiUANOPLE, AND JIUSSULJIAN LADY OF PMSKENU-
 
 PEESEXT POSITION AND PROSPECTS OF TURKEY. 147 
 
 countries to the south of the Balkan, where the Bulgarian peasant is not always 
 the proprietor of the land he tills. But where he does not directly work for a 
 Greek or Mussulman proprietor, his harvest, even before it is cut, is frequently 
 the projjerty of a usurer ; but he works on from day to day, a wretched slave, in 
 the vain hope of becoming one day a free man. 
 
 The fortuity of the soil on both slopes of the Balkans, in Macedonia, and in 
 Thessaly is, however, such that in spite of mosques and tax-collcK'tors, in spite of 
 usurers and thieves, agriculture supplies commerce with a large quantity of 
 produce. Maize, or "Turkish corn," and all cereals are grown in abundance. 
 The valleys of the Karasu and Yardar produce cotton, tobacco, and dye stuffs ; 
 the coast districts and islands yield wine and oil, whose quality would leave nought 
 to be desired, were a little more care bestowed upon their cultivation ; and forests 
 of mulberry-trees are met with in certain parts of Thracia and Rumelia, and the 
 export of cocoons to Italy and France is increasing from j-ear to year. Turkey, 
 with its fertile soil, is sure to take a prominent part amongst the European states 
 for the variety and superiority of its products. As to its manufactures, they will 
 no doubt be gradually displaced on the opening of new roads of commerce. The 
 manufacturers of arms, stuifs, carpets, and jewellery in the cities of the interior 
 will suffer considerably from foreign competition, and many amongst them will 
 succumb to it, unless they pass into the hands of foreigners. The great fairs, 
 too, which are now held annually at Sli\Tio and other places, and at which 
 merchants from the whole of the empire meet to transact business — as many as a 
 hundred thousand strangers being attracted occasionally to a single spot — will 
 gradually give place to a regular commercial intercourse. 
 
 It is certain that the commerce of Turkey has increased of late years, thanks 
 to the efforts of Greeks, Armenians, and Franks of all nations. The annual 
 value of the exports and imports of the whole of the Ottoman empire in Europe 
 and Asia is estimated at £40,000,000 — a very small sum, if we bear in mind the 
 resources of these countries, their many excellent harbours, and their favourable 
 geographical position. 
 
 The Turks themselves perform but a very small share of the work that is done 
 in their empire. Various causes combine to render them less active than the other 
 races. They are the governing class, and their ambition naturally aspires to the 
 honours and the luxury of /./(./'; that is to say, of sweet idleness. Despising every- 
 thing not Mohammedan, and being, besides, heedless and of a sluggish mind, they 
 but rarely learn foreign languages, and are thus in a certain measure at the mercy 
 of the other races, most of whom speak two or more idioms. Moreover, the 
 fatalism taught in the Koran has deprived the Turk of all enterprise, and once 
 thrown out of his ordinary routine, he is helpless. Polygamy and slavery are 
 likewise two causes of demoralisation. It is true that the rich alone can permit 
 themselves the luxury of a harem, but the poor learn from their superiors to 
 despise women, they become debased, and take a share in that traffic in human 
 flesli which is a necessary sequence of polvgainy. Yet, in spite of the innumerable 
 slaves imported in the course of four centuries from all the regions bordering ujJon 
 
 L 2
 
 148 TURKEY IN EUROPE. 
 
 the Turkish empire ; in spite of the millions of Circassian, Greek, and other girls 
 transplanted into the harems, the Osmanli are numerically inferior to the other races 
 of the peninsula. This dominant race — if the term race be applicable to the product 
 of so many crossings — hardly numbers ten per cent, of the population of European 
 'I'urkey. And this numerical inferiority is on the increase, for, owing to polygamy, 
 the number of children surviving in Mohammedan families is less than in Christian 
 families. We are not in possession of precise figures, but there can be no doubt that 
 the Turks are on the decrease. The conscription, to which they alone are subject, 
 has contributed towards this result, and becomes more difficult from year to year. 
 
 It has often been repeated since Chateaubriand that the Turks liave but camped 
 in Europe, and expect to return to the steppes whence they came. It would thus 
 be a feeling of presentiment which induces the Turks of Stambul to seek burial in 
 the cemetery of Scutari, hoping thus to save their bones from the profanation of 
 the Giaour's tread on his return, as master, to Constantinople. In many places the 
 living follow the examples of the dead, and a feeble current of emigration sets from 
 the Archipelago and the coast districts of Thracia in the direction of Asia, carr}-- 
 ing along many an old Turk discontented with the stir of European life. This 
 migration, however, is but of very small importance, and does not affect the 
 Osmanli of the interior. Nothing is further from the minds of the Turks of 
 Bulgaria, the Yuruks of Macedonia, or the Koniarides, who have inhabited the moun- 
 tains of Rumelia since the eleventh century, than to quit the land which has become 
 their second home. The Turkish element in the Balkan peninsula can be got rid of 
 only by exterminating it ; that is, by treating the Turks more ferociously than they 
 treated the native populations at the time of the conquest. We ought not to for- 
 get, at the same time, that the Turks, though far inferior in numbers to the other 
 races, are nevertheless able to reckon upon the support of millions of Mohammedan 
 Albanians, Bosnians, Bulgarians, Circassians, and Nogai Tartars. The Mussulmans 
 constitute more than a third of the population of European Turkey, and, in spite 
 of differences of race, they hold firmly together. Nor must it be forgotten that 
 they are backed up by 150,000,000 co-religionists in other parts of the world.* 
 
 * Eaces and religions of Turkey in Europe (Ser\-ia, Montenegro, Rumania, and the Dobruja excluded) : 
 
 Total. Mussulmans. Greek Catholics. Roman Catholics. Other Christians. 
 
 Turks (Osmanli and Tartars) . 1,643,000 1,643,000 — — — 
 
 (Servians . 1,160,000 520,000 460,000 180,000 — 
 
 Slavs ... I Bulgarians . 2,48.5,000 600,000 1,805,000 20,000 — 
 
 I Poles, &c. . 6,000 — — 6,000 — 
 
 ( Greeks . . 1,460,000 70,000 l,3y0,000 — — 
 
 Greco-Latins < Rumanians . 16,000 — 15,000 — — 
 
 ( Zinzares . 130,000 — 130,000 — — 
 
 Albanians .... 1,748,000 987,000 561,000 200,000 — 
 
 Armenians .... 111,000 — — 10,000 101,000 
 
 Circassians .... 90,000 90,000 — — — 
 
 Jews 73,000 — — — — 
 
 Tsigani (Gipsies) . . . 93,000 50,000 43,000 — — 
 
 Franks 35,000 — — 30,000 5,000 
 
 Others 50,000 60,000 — -_ _ 
 
 Total . . 9,109.000 4,020,000 4,464,000 446,000 106,000 
 
 According to F. Bianconi (1877) there are (including the districts ceded to Rumania, Servia, and 
 Montenegro) 650,000 Osmanli Turks, 100,000 Tartars, 915,000 Servians, 3,360,000 Bulgarians, 3,020,000 
 Hellenes, 80,000 Rumanians, 80,000 Zinzares, 1,250,000 Albanians (630,000 of whom speuk Greek), 
 110,000 Armenians, 200,000 Circassians, 80,000 Jews. Total, 9,845,000.
 
 PRESENT POSITION AND PROSPECTS OF TUEKEY. 119 
 
 TVe almost dread that the future may give birth to. a struggle of extermina- 
 tion between the races of the peninsula, instead of to institutions enabling these 
 diverse and partially hostile elements to develop themselves in peace and liberty. 
 The Turks themselves begin to see the necessity of such institutions, and, in 
 theory at least, have abandoned their policy of violence and oppression. All the 
 nationalities of the empire, without reference to race or religion, are supposed to be 
 equal before the law, and Christians are admitted to Government offices on the same 
 terms as Mussulmans. Xo doubt these fine laws have for the most part hitherto 
 remained a dead letter, but it would nevertheless be unjust if we denied that much 
 progress towards an equalisation of the various races has been made. 
 
 Fortunately the despotism of the Turks is not the despotism of learning, based 
 upon a knowledge of human nature, and directed to its debasement. The Osmanli 
 ignore the art of " oppressing wisely," which the Dutch governors of the Sunda 
 Islands were required to practise in former times, and which is not quite unknown 
 in other countries. The pashas allow things to take their course as long as they 
 are able to enrich themselves and their favourites, to sell justice and their favours 
 at a fair price, and to bastinade now and then some unlucky wight. They do not 
 inquire into the private concerns of their subjects, and do not call for confidential 
 reports on families and individuals. Their Government, no doubt, is frequently 
 violent and oppressive ; but all this only touches externals. Such a government 
 may not be favourable to the development of public spirit, but it does not interfere 
 with individuals, and powerful national institutions, such as the Greek commune, 
 the Mirdit tribe, and the Slav community, have been able to survive under it. Self- 
 government is, in fact, more widely practised in Turkey than in the most advanced 
 countries of Western Europe. It would have been difficult to force these various 
 national elements under a uniform discipline, and the lazy Turkish functionaries 
 generally leave things alone. The Frankish officials in the pay of the Turkish 
 Government, in faetj more frequently interfere with the prejudices and privileges 
 of the governed than do the Mussulman pashas of the old school. 
 
 It cannot be doubted for a moment that, in a time not very far distant, the 
 non-Mohammedan races of Turkey will take the lead in politics, as they do already in 
 commerce, industry, and education. The Osmanli of the olden school, who still 
 wear the green turban of their ancestors, look forward towards this inevitable 
 residt with despair. They struggle against every measure calculated to accelerate 
 the emancipation of the despised raya, and European inventions, in their eyes, are 
 working a great social transformation to their injury ; and, indeed, it is the raya 
 who profits most from roads, railways, harbours, agricultural and other machines. 
 Bosnians, Bulgarians, and Servians have learnt to look upon each other as 
 brothers ; Albanians and Rimianians are drawn towards the Greeks ; all alike 
 feel themselves as Euro|)eans ; and thus the way is being paved for the Danubian 
 Confederation of the future. 
 
 The approaching completion of the railway from Vienna to Constantinople 
 cannot fail to work a commercial revolution as fur as the trade of a considerable 
 portion of Eastern Europe is concerned. It will form a link in the direct line
 
 150 
 
 TURKEY IN EUROPE. 
 
 between England and India, and fo travellers and merchandise will afford the 
 shortest route from the centre of Europe to the Bosporus. On its opening, Con- 
 stantinople will be enabled to avail itself to the fullest extent of the highways of 
 commerce which converge upon it. Still greater must be the political conse- 
 quences of opening this line, for it will bring the populations of the Balkan penin- 
 sula into more direct and active contact with those of Austro- Hungary and the 
 rest of Europe. 
 
 Fig. 41. — Commercial Highways convergixg upon Constantinople. 
 Scale 1 : 17,100,000. 
 
 VIII. — Government and Administration. 
 
 The Turkish empire occupies a vast area, the greater portion of which is governed 
 by vassals, almost independent of the Sultan at Stambul. The vast territories of 
 Egypt and Tunis are in that position. The interior of Arabia is in possession of 
 the Wahabites ; the coast of Hadramaut is inhabited partly by tribes acknowledg- 
 ing the suzerainty of England ; and even between Syria and the Euphrates there
 
 OOVERNMEXT AM) ADJj:iXiSTIl.VTION. 
 
 1.51 
 
 arc numerous districts only nominallj' under the government of Turkish pashas, 
 but in reality in the possession of predatory Bedwins. The Ottoman empire 
 consists of the European provinces, Asia Minor, Armenia, Kurdistan, the basins 
 of the Euphrates and Tigris, Ilcjaz and i'emen in Arabia, and Tripoli, with 
 Fezzan and Barka, in Africa. These territories cover an area of no less than 
 1,134,010 square miles, but their population being far less dense than that 
 of Western Europe, hardly exceeds 2',',000,000 souls. The newly created 
 principality of Bulgaria is expected to pay tribute, whilst " Eastern Rumelia," 
 
 Fig. 42. — The Turkish Empiue. 
 Scb1« 1 : 56,000,000. 
 
 I'x 
 
 (,. ..--^^ 
 
 
 ■' . " ' ^ f-. A ^ t 
 
 > ^ / 
 
 % 
 
 . tfTK- / 
 
 
 'D.-tt-roai \ 
 
 x\ 
 
 sWaj;., 
 
 in reality a portion of Bulgaria, will enjoy a degree of self-government not 
 granted to the other provinces of the empire. Bosnia has been occupied by 
 the Austrians, who will carry on its administration. The remainder of the 
 country is divided into seven vikiyets, or provinces ; the vilayets are subdivided 
 into miitesarijiiks, or sanjaks ; these latter into /.v/rffs, or cantons ; and the kazas 
 into ra/iies, or parishes. Lcmnos, Imbros, Samothracc, and Astypala;a, with
 
 152 TURKEY IN EUEOPE. 
 
 Rhodes and the islands along the coast of Anatolia, form a separate vilayet. 
 These political divisions, however, are subject to frequent changes.* 
 
 The Sultan, or Padishah, concentrates all powers within his person. He is Emir 
 el mumenin, or head of the faithful, and his conduct is guided solely by the pre- 
 scriptions of the Koran and the traditions of his ancestors. The two most influen- 
 tial persons in the empire, next to him, are the Sheik-el-Islam, or Great Mufti, who 
 superintends public worship and the administration of justice, and the Sadrazam, 
 or Grand Vizier, who is at the head of the general administration, and is assisted 
 by a council of ten ministers, or mushirs. The Kislar Agasi, or chief of the black 
 eunuchs, to whom is confided the management of the imperial harem, is likewise 
 one of the great dignitaries of the empire, and frequently enjoys the very highest 
 influence. The legal advisers of the various ministries are known as mufti. 
 Efendi, hey, and aga are; honorary titles bestowed upon certain Government 
 officials and persons of consideration. The title of pasha, which signifies " grand 
 chief," is given to certain high civil or military functionaries. This title is 
 symbolized by one, two, or three horse-tails attached to the top of a lance, a 
 usage recalling the time when the nomad Turks roamed over the steppes of 
 Central Asia. 
 
 The work of the various ministries is done by councils, and there thus exist 
 a council of state, or shurai dcvlct, councils of accounts, of war, of the navy, of 
 public education, of police, &c. These various councils, in their totality, con- 
 stitute the divan, or government chancery. There is also a supreme court of 
 justice, with sections for civil and criminal cases. The members of these various 
 official bodies are appointed by Government. Each of the subject " nations " 
 is represented on the Council of State by two members, selected by the Sadmzam. 
 
 The vilayet is governed by a rali, the sanjak by a mutesarif, the kaza by u 
 
 * Area and population of the Turkish Empire : — Area, „ , . . Mohammedans 
 
 Square Sliles. Population. percent. 
 
 Constantinople 1,10U 785,000 62 
 
 Adrianople (Edim^h) .... 12,840 681,000 36 
 
 Kosova (Upper Macedonia) . . . 7,672 636,000 62 
 
 Saloniki (Macedonia) .... 24,450 1,282,000 51 
 
 Yanina (Thessaly and Epirus) . . 14,250 1,436,000 35 
 
 Shkodra, or Scutari (Upper Albania) . 13,299 388,000 4.5 
 
 Novibazar (part of Bosnia) . . . 3,259 146,000 63 
 
 Crete, or Candia 3,320 275,000 15 
 
 Total immediate possessions . 80,090 5,529,000 47 
 
 East Eumelia (autonomous pro\'ince) . 13,663 746,000 E6 
 
 Bulgaria (tributary principality) . . 24,660 1,773,000 38 
 
 Bosma and^^erzegovina (administered I 27,367 1,061,000 51 
 
 Turkey in Europe . . . 145,780 9,109,000 44 
 
 Turkey in Asia .... 710,320 15,715,000 83 
 
 Tripoli and Barka (Africa) . . 344,600 1,010,000 100 
 
 ( Samos .... 213 36,000 
 
 Egypt .... 870,000 17,100,000 
 
 Tunis .... 46,000 2,100,000 
 
 Total Ottoman Empire . . 2,116,813 45,070,000 71 
 
 Ceded by the treaty of Berlin (1878) : — To Rumania (Uotjruja, &c.), 5,737 square miles, 221,000 inha- 
 bitants ; to Servia, 4,296 square miles, 367,000 inhabitants; to Montenegro, 1,958 square miles, 116,000 
 inhabitants; to Russia (Kars and Batum), 10,000 square miles, 238,000 inhabitants; to Persia (Kotui), 
 350 square miles, 8,000 inhabitants; to England (Cyprus), 3,650 square miles, 150,000 inhabitants. 
 Total, 25,941 square miles, 1,100,000 inhabitants.
 
 GOVEENMEXT AND ADMINISTRATION. 163 
 
 kaiimilan, the parish by a mudir. Kach of these governors is supposed to act 
 bv advice of a council composed of the leading religious and civilian functionaries, 
 and counting amongst its members several of the principal Mohammedan and 
 non- Mohammedan inhabitants of the district. In reality, however, the vali 
 appoints all these councils, and they are popularly known as tlie " Councils of 
 the Ayes." 
 
 The rules which the supreme Government has deigned to lay down for its own 
 guidance are embodied in the hntti-shcrif oi Gulhane, promulgated in 1S:{!), and in 
 the hutti-humayiim of ISoG. These hatts promise to all the inhabitants of the 
 empire, without distinction of faith, equal rights, but have been carried out 
 hitherto only very partially. A "constitution" was promulgated in December, 
 1876. It provides representative institutions, local self-government, and various 
 improvements, but, like other efforts in the same direction, is likely to remain a 
 dead letter. The Porte has been urged by England to introduce reforms of a 
 most comprehensive nature, but with a Russian army encamped within a few 
 days' march from Constantinople, and a large portion of the country in a state 
 of revolt, it would be bold to predict what the immediate future may bring forth. 
 
 The religious and judicial organization of the country is jealously watched over 
 by the Shcik-el-Islam and the priests, and cannot possibly be changed. The 
 imans are specially charged with the conduct of public worship. They include 
 sheiks, or preachers ; khatibs, who recite the official prayers ; and the imans properly 
 so called, who celebrate marriages and conduct interments. Judges and imans 
 form a body known as ulemas, at whose head is placed a kazi-asker, or chief judge, 
 and who are divided hierarchically into nwllahs, kazis (kadis), and naibs. They are 
 not paid by the State, but fix their own emoluments by lc%ying a tax upon goods 
 under litigation and upon legacies ; that is to say, the law itself encourages them 
 in improbity. Mixed tribunals offer some guarantees to the non-Mohammedan 
 inhabitants of the Ottoman empire. 
 
 The Greek Patriarch of Constantinople, as head of the Church in Turkey and 
 civil director of the Greek communities, wields a considerable influence. He is 
 elected by a synod of eighteen members, which administers the religious budget, 
 and whose decisions in matters of faith are final. The three leading personages 
 of the Latin rite are a patriarch at Constantinople and the two Archbishops of 
 Antivari and Durazzo. The two Armenian Churches have each a patriarch at 
 Constantinople. 
 
 It would endanger the Ottoman power in Europe if Christians were permitted 
 to enter the army without limitation as to numbers. In former times they were 
 excluded altogether, and in lieu of military service they paid a heavy capitation 
 grant. At present it is understood officially that the raya maj- assist in the defence 
 of the country, and may rise even to the dignity oi ferik (general) and mushir 
 (marshal), but in reality the army still consists almost exclusively of Osmanli and 
 Mohammedans of various races. The active army (nizam) hardly numbers more 
 than 100,000 men under arms in peace. It forms seven army corps, of which three 
 are usually stationed in Europe, and is modelled on the Prussian system. The
 
 154 TURKEY IN EUROPE. 
 
 two reserves, the idatydal and redif, hardly exceed another hundred thousand ; but 
 in case of need the army can be increased almost indefinitely by calling out 
 irregulars, or bashi-bozuks, whose name recalls so many scenes of murder and 
 horror. 
 
 The navy is powerful, if we compare it with the mercantile marine, and 
 includes over twenty ironclads ; but of the 50,000 sailors required to man it 
 efficiently hardly a third would be forthcoming in case of need. 
 
 The new principality of Bulgaria, created by the treaty of Berlin, is not as extensive as 
 the tributary Bulgaria provided for by the treaty of Stefano, but it nevertheless includes a very 
 considerable extent of territory, stretching from the new frontiers of Servia to the shores of 
 the Black Sea, and from the Danube to the Balkans and beyond. Its area is 24,660 square 
 miles, its estimated population 1,773,000 souls, of whom hardly more than a million are 
 Christian Bulgarians. Indeed, in the eastern portions of the country, towards the Black Sea, 
 Turks and Mohammedan Bulgarians predominate, and their absorption will not constitute one 
 of the smallest difficulties of the newly created state. Bulgaria is to be governed by an here- 
 ditary prince, to be elected by an assembly of the nobles of the country. It is to assume a 
 portion of the Turkish debt, and to pay an annual tribute, to be determined upon hereafter by 
 the great powers. It will have its own militia, but the fortresses along the Danube, as well as 
 Shumla and Varna, are to be razed, and, with the Turks in possession of the Balkan passes, 
 the country will almost be defenceless. In a large measure it must depend upon the sympathy 
 which the Bulgarians are able to win amongst the Em-opean powers whether they will be able 
 to maintain themselves as an independent community. Sotia, on the Upper Isker, has been 
 fixed upon as the capital. 
 
 Eastern Etjitelia (13,663 square miles, 746,000 inhabitants, of whom 265,000 are 
 Mohammedans), which embraces the upper valleys of the Maritza and the Tunja, and extends 
 in the east to the Black Sea, has been constituted an " autonomous" province, the Christian 
 governor of which will be appointed by the Porte with the consent of the great powers. An 
 international commission is engaged at present (November, 1878) with organizing its adminis- 
 tration. The Turks will be permitted to garrison the Balkan passes, but their troops cannot 
 be quartered upon the inhabitants. This province, too, is to have its militia, with officers 
 appointed by the Sultan. Philippopolis (Felibe) is the capital. 
 
 The number of Christian Bulgarians outside the limits of these newly organized territories 
 is probably half a million.
 
 RUMANIA.* 
 
 HE Rumanians are certainly one of the most curious amougst 
 European nations. The descendants of the conquerors of the 
 ^^> ancient world, they live detached from, and far to the north- 
 east of, the other nations of the Greco-Latin family, and not 
 many years ago they were hardly known by name. The grave 
 events of which the Lower Danube has been the scene since the middle of this 
 century have brought these Rumanians prominently to the fore, and we know 
 now that thej' differ essentially from their neighbours, be they Slav, Turk, or 
 Magyar. They constitute, in fact, one of the most important elements amongst 
 the populations of Eastern Europe, and numerically they are the strongest nation 
 on the Lower Danube, the Bulgarians alone excepted. 
 
 The ethnological boundaries of Rumania are far wider than are the political 
 ones, for they embrace not only Wallachia and Moldavia beyond the Carpathians, 
 but also Russian Bessarabia, a portion of the Bukovina, the greater portion of 
 Transylvania, as well as extensive tracts in the Banat and Eastern Hungarj'. 
 The Rumanians have likewise crossed the Danube, and established themselves in 
 portions of Servia and Bulgaria; and the settlements of their kinsmen, the Zinzares, 
 sporadically extend far south to the hills of Thessaly and Greece. Rumania 
 proper has an area of only 46,709 square miles, but the countries of the Rumanians 
 occupy at least twice that extent, and their numbers exceed 8,000,000, most 
 of whom dwell in a compact mass on the Lower Danube and the adjoining 
 portions of Hungary and Russia. t 
 
 The Roman territories on the Lower Danube almost encircle the mountain 
 
 • Officially called Romania, and frequently spelt Roumania : in French it is Roumanio. 
 
 t Wallachia and Moldavia 4,460,000 
 
 Austro-Uungary 2,896,000 
 
 Bessarahiu and other parts of Russia 600,000 
 
 Servia 155,000 
 
 Turkey ... 200,000 
 
 Greece *fiOO 
 
 Total 
 
 8,315,000
 
 156 
 
 TURKEY IN EUROPE. 
 
 masses of the Eastern Carpathians, as will be seen by a glance at our map, but 
 only about one-half of this territory has been formed into an autonomous state, the 
 remainder belonging to Hungary and Eussia. If the national ambition of the 
 Rumanians were to be realised, the natural centre of their country would not lie 
 within the actual limits of the territory, but at Hermannstadt (called Sibiu by the 
 Wallachians), or elsewhere on the northern slope of the Carpathians. Thrust 
 beyond the Carpathians, and extending from the Iron Gate to the upper affluents 
 of the Pruth, t-he independent Rumanians occupy a country of most irregular 
 shape, and separated into two distinct portions by the river Sereth and one of its 
 tributaries, which join the most advanced spur of the Eastern Carpathians to the 
 great bend of the Lower Danube. To the north of this boundary lies Moldavia, 
 thus named after a tributary of the Sereth ; to the south-west and west is Wallachia, 
 or the " Plain of the Welsh," i.e. of the Latins. This plain, the izara Rumanea&ca, 
 
 Fip;. 43. — The Rumanians 
 
 Jm s. 
 
 B LAC K SEA 
 
 
 ' Servians * ' o- 
 
 Boljfsrians 
 
 or Roman-land proper, is intersected by numerous parallel water-courses, forming 
 as many secondary boundaries, and the river Olto separates it into Great 
 AVallachia to the east, and Little Wallachia to the west. The Danube forms the 
 political boundary down to its delta. It is a wide and sinuous river ; below the 
 Iron Gate, lakes, forests, and swamps render access to its banks almost impossible 
 in many places ; and migratory nations and conquerors, instead of crossing it, as 
 they could easily have done in Austria and Bavaria, rather sought to avoid it by 
 seeking for a passage through the mountains to the north. The abrupt bend of the 
 Lower Danube and its extensive swampy delta still further shielded the plains of 
 Wallachia, and invaders not provided with vessels were thus turned to the north, 
 in the direction of the Carpathians. The lowlands of Moldavia were protected, 
 though in a less degree, by the rivers Dnieper, Bug, Dniester, and Pruth running 
 parallel with each other.
 
 EUMAMA. 157 
 
 But, in spite of these natural bulwarks, it remains matter for surprise, and 
 proves the singular tenacity of the Rumanians, that they preserved their tradi- 
 tions, their language, and nationality, in spite of the numerous onslaughts from 
 invaders of every race to which they were exposed. Ever since the retreat of 
 the Roman legions, the peaceable cultivators of these plains were preyed ujjon so 
 frequently by Goths, Huns, and Pechencges, by Slavs, Bulgars, and Turks, that 
 their extinction as a race appeared to be inevitable. But they have emerged 
 from every deluge which threatened to destroy them, thanks, no doubt, to the 
 superior culture for which they were indebted to their ancestors, and again claim 
 a place amongst independent nations. They have fully justified their old proverb, 
 which says, Romun no pere ! — " the Roman perishes not." 
 
 The Transylvanian Alps lie -within the territory of the Rumanians, who 
 occupy both slopes. Their ujiper valleys, however, are but thinly inhabited, and 
 we may travel for days without meeting with any habitations excepting the rude 
 huts of shepherds. The political boundary traced along the crest of the moun- 
 tains is merely an imaginarj- line, passing through the forest solitudes of vast 
 extent. Excepting near the onlj- high-road, and the paths which join Transyl- 
 vania to the plains of ^Vallachia, these mountains remain in a state of nature. 
 The chamois is still hunted there, and not long since even bisons were met with. 
 The Tsigani penetrates these mountains in search of the brown or black bears 
 which he exhibits in the villages. He places a jar filled with brandy and honey 
 near the beast's haunt, and, as soon as the bear and his family have become help- 
 lessly intoxicated, they are seized and placed in chains. 
 
 The physical configuration of Rumania is extremely simple. In Moldavia low 
 ridges running parallel with the high mountain chain extend from the north-west 
 to the south-east, being separated from each other by the valleys of the Bistritza, 
 Moldava, and Screth, and sinking down gradually into the ^jlains of the Danube. 
 In TTallachia the southern spurs of the Transylvanian Alps ramify w4th remark- 
 able regularity, and the torrents which descend from them all run in the same 
 direction. The rivers, whether they rise at the foot of the hills or traverse the 
 entire width of the mountiiins, such as the Sil, Shil, or Jiul, the Olto or Aluta, 
 and the Buseo, turn towards the east before their waters mingle with those of the 
 Danube. 
 
 The slope of the hiUs is pretty uniform from the crest of the mountains to the 
 plain of the Danube, and the zones of temperature and vegetation succeed each 
 other with singular regularitj'. Summits covered with forests of conifers and 
 birch, and clad with snow during winter, rise near the frontiers of Transylvania. 
 These are succeeded by mountains of inferior height, where beeches and chestnuts 
 predominate, and all the picturesque beauties of European forest scenery are met 
 with. Lower still we come upon gentle hills, with groves of oaks and maples, 
 and their sunny sides covered with vines. Finally, we enter the wide plains of the 
 Danube, with their fruit trees, poplars, and willows. The zone lying between the 
 high mountains and the plain abounds in localities rendered delightful by pic- 
 turesque rocks, luxuriant and varied verdure, and limpid streams. In this "happy
 
 158 
 
 TUEKEY IN EUROPE. 
 
 Arcadia " we meet with most of the large monasteries, magnificent castles with 
 domes and towers, standing in the midst of parks and gardens. As to the plains, 
 they are no doubt barren and monotonous in many places, but the villagers, 
 though their habitations are half buried in the ground, enjoy the magnificent 
 
 Fig. 44.— The Eivehs Shil and Oltd. 
 Scalo 1 ; 1,400,000 
 
 
 
 A- 
 
 1^^ 
 
 prospect of the blue mountains which boimd the horizon. The most characteristic 
 objects in these lowlands are the huge hay-ricks already figured upon Trajan's 
 column at Rome.
 
 RUMANIA. 159 
 
 The Rumanian campagna is a second Lombardy, not because of the high state 
 of its agriculture, but because of the fertility of its soil, the beauty of the sky, and 
 of the distant views. Unfortunately there are no mountain barriers to protect it 
 against the cold north-easterly winds which predominate throughout the year. 
 Extremes of cold and heat have to be encountered.* The vines have to be covered 
 with earth to protect them against the colds of winter; and in South-eastern 
 Wallachia, which is most exposed to the violence of the winds, it happens some- 
 times that herds of cattle and horses, flying before a snow-storm, precipitate 
 themselves into the floods of the Danube. Several districts suffer from want of 
 rain, and are veritable steppes. Amongst these are the plains of the Baragan, 
 between the Danube and Yalomitza, where bustards abound, and a tree is not met 
 with for miles. 
 
 Geologically we meet with a regular succession of formations, from the granite 
 on the moimtain summits to the alluvial deposits along the banks of the Danube. 
 The rocks encountered on these southern slopes of the Carpathians are of the same 
 kind as those found in Galicia on their northern slopes, and they yield the same 
 mineral products, such as rock-salt, g}-psum, lithographic stones, and petroleimi. 
 Tertiary strata predominate in the plains, but to the east of Ploiesti and Bucharest 
 only quaternary deposits of clay and pebbles are met with, in which are found 
 the bones of mammoths, elephants, and mastodons. The muddy rivers which 
 traverse these plains have excavated themselves sinuous beds, and resemble large 
 ditches. 
 
 The plain of Rumania, like that of Lombardy, is an ancient gulf of the sea 
 filled up by the debris washed down from the mountain sides. But though the sea 
 has retired, the Danube remains, pouring out vast volumes of water, and offering 
 great advantages to navigation. At the famous detile of the Iron Gate, where 
 this river enters the plain, its bed has a depth of loo feet, its surface lies 
 66 feet above the level of the Black Sea, and its volume exceeds that of the com- 
 bined rivers of "VTestern Europe, from the Rhone to the Rhine. The Romans, in 
 spite of this, had thrown a bridge across the river, immediately below the Iron 
 Gate, which was justly looked upon as one of the wonders of the world. This work 
 of architecture, which Apollodorus of Damas had erected in honour of Trajan, was 
 pulled down by order of the Emperor Hadrian, who was anxious to save the 
 expenses of the garrison required for its protection. There only remain now the 
 two abutments, and when the waters are low the foundations of sixteen out of the 
 twenty piers which supported the bridge may still be seen. A Roman tower, which 
 has given name to the little town of Turnu Severin, marks the spot where the 
 Romans first placed their foot upon the soil of Dacia. The passage from Servia 
 to Rumania is as important as it was of yore, but modern industry has not yet 
 replaced Trajan's bridge. 
 
 The Danube, like most rivers of our northern hemisphere, presses upon its 
 right bank, and this accounts for the difference between its ^"allachian and Bul- 
 garian banks. The latter, gnawed by the floods, rises steeply into little hills and 
 • Mean temperature at Bucharest, 46' F. ; maximum, 113' F. ; minimum, - 22' F. ; diff.rcncc, Hi" F.
 
 160 TURKEY IN EUEOPE. 
 
 terraces, whilst the former rises gently, and merges almost imperceplibly in the 
 plains of Wallachia. S^yamps, lakes, creeks, and the remains of ancient river beds 
 form a riverine network, enclosing numerous islands and sand-banks. These 
 channels are subject to continual change, and to the south of the Yalomitza 
 may still be seen a line of swamps and lagoons, which marks the course of an 
 ancient river no longer existing. The lowlands on the Wallachian side of the 
 Danube are constantly increasing in extent, whilst Bulgaria continuously suffers 
 losses of territory. The latter, however, is amply compensated for this by the 
 salubrity of its soil and the fine sites for commercial emporiums which it offers. 
 It is said that the beaver, which has been exterminated almost in every 
 other part of Europe, is still common in these half-drowned lands of Wallachia. 
 
 At a distance of thirty-eight miles from the sea, in a straight line, the Danube 
 strikes against the granitic heights of the Dobruja, and abruptly turns to the 
 north, subsequently to spread out into a delta. In the course of this detour it 
 receives its last tributaries of importance, viz. the Moldavian Sereth and the 
 Pruth. Thirty miles below the mouth of the latter the Danube bifurcates. Its 
 main branch, known as that of Kilia, conveys about two-thirds of the entire 
 volume of its waters to the Black Sea, and forms the frontier between Dobruja 
 and Russian Bessarabia. The southern branch, or that of Tulcha, flows entirely 
 through Human territory. It separates into two branches, of which that of Sulina 
 is the main artery of navigation. 
 
 The main branch of the river is of the utmost importance when considering 
 the changes wrought upon the surface of the earth through aqueous agencies. 
 Below Ismail it ramifies into a multitude of channels, which change continuously, 
 new channels being excavated, whilst others .become choked with alluvial deposits 
 carried down by the floods. Twice the waters of the river are reunited into a 
 single channel before they finally spread out into a secondary delta jutting into 
 the Black Sea. The exterior development of this new land amounts to about 
 twelve miles, and supposing the sea to be of a uniform depth of thirty-three feet, it 
 would advance annually at the rate of 660 feet. Yet, in spite of this rapid increase, 
 the coast, at the Kilia mouth, juts out far less to the east than it does in the 
 southern portion of the delta, and we may conclude from this that the ancient 
 gulf of the sea, now filled up by the alluvial deposits brought down by the Kilia 
 branch, was far larger and deeper than those to the south.* On examining a map 
 of the Danubian delta, it will be found that, by prolonging the coast-line of 
 ]3essarabia towards the south, it crosses the delta. This is the ancient coast. It 
 rises above the half-drowned plains like an embankment, through which the 
 branches of the river forced themselves a passage to the sea. The alluvium 
 brought down by the Sulina and St. George's mouths has been spread over a vast 
 plain lying outside this embankment, whilst that carried down through what is at 
 present the main branch forms only a small archipelago of ill-defined islands 
 
 * Mean volume of the Danube (according to C. Hartley), 2,000,000 gallons per second ; maximum 
 volume, 6,160,000 gallons; mean volume of Kilia mouth, 1,276,000 gallons; mean of St. George's mouth, 
 572,000 gallons; mean of Sulina mouth, 176,000 gallons per second. Mean alluvial deposits of Danube, 
 2,119 cubic feet per annum.
 
 RUM.VNIA. 
 
 161 
 
 beyond it. Wc may conclude from this that the latter is of more recent origin 
 than the other arms. 
 
 In the course of its gradual encroachment upon the sea, the river has cut oflf several 
 lakes of considerable extent. On the coast between the mouth of the Dniester and 
 the delta. of the Danube there are several lagoons, or Umanx, of inconsiderable 
 depth, the water of which evaporates during the heat of summer, depositing a thin 
 crust of salt. In their general contiguration, the nature of the surrounding land, 
 and parallelism of the rivers which flow into them, these sheets of water are very 
 much like the lakes met with more to the west, as far as the mouth of the 
 Pruth. These latter, however, arc filled with fresh water, and the sandy barriers at 
 
 Fig. 45. 
 
 -The Danube and Yalomitza. 
 Scale 1 : 1.113,000. 
 
 their lower ends separate them not from the Black Sea, but from the Danube. 
 There can be no doubt that these lakes were anciently gulfs of the sea, similar in all 
 respects to the lagoons still existing along the coast. The Danube, by converting 
 its ancient gulf into a delta, separated them from the sea, and their saline water 
 was replaced by fresh water carried down by the rivers. The existing saline 
 lagoons will undergo the same metamorphosis, in proportion as the delta of the 
 Danube gains upon the sea. 
 
 The plains of Wallachia were defended formerly by an ancient line of fortifi- 
 cations passing to the north of these Danubian lakes and lagoons, and kno\yn as 
 " Trajan's Wall," like the ditches, walls, and entrenched camps in the Southern 
 Dobruja. The inhabitants ascribe their construction to Cajsar, although they are of 
 
 VOL. I. M
 
 162 TTTRKEY IN EUROPE. 
 
 much later date, having been erected by Trajan as a protection against the Visigoths. 
 This ancient barrier of defence coincided pretty nearly with the political boundary 
 between Russian and Rumanian Bessarabia, and extended probably to the west of 
 the Pruth, across the whole of Moldavia and Wallachia. Vestiges of it still met 
 with there are known as the "Road of the Avares." A second wall, still traceable 
 between Leova and Bender, defended the approaches to the valley of the Danube. 
 
 In spite of the diverse races which have overrun, conquered, or devastated 
 their territory, the inhabitants of Rumania, more fortunate than their neighbours, 
 have preserved their unity of race and language. Wallachians and Moldavians 
 form one people, and not only have they kept intact their national territory, but 
 they have actually encroached upon the territories of their neighbours. Through- 
 out Rumania, with the exception of the Dobruja, handed over to Rumania by the 
 treaty recently concluded at Berlin, the inhabitants belonging to alien races are in 
 the minorltj'. 
 
 The origin of this Latin-speaking nation is still shrouded in mystery. Are 
 they the descendants of Getsc and Latinised Daciaus, or does the blood of Italian 
 colonists brought thither by Trajan, of legionaries and Roman soldiers, predomi- 
 nate amongst them ? To what extent have they become amalgamated with their 
 neighbours, the Slavs and Illyrians ? What share had the Celts In the formation 
 of their nationality ? Are the " Little " Wallachians, the " men with the eighty 
 teeth," — so called on account of their bravery, — the descendants of Celts ? We 
 cannot say with certainty, for men of learning like Shafarik and Miklosich differ 
 on all these points. The vast plains at present inhabited by the Rumanians 
 became a wilderness in the third century, when the Emperor Aurelian compelled 
 their inhabitants to migrate to the right bank of the Danube. If it Is true that 
 the descendants of these emigrants ever returned to the seats of their ancestors, in 
 the meantime occupied by Slavs, Magyars, and Pecheneges, when did they do so ? 
 Miklosich presumes that they did so towards the close of the fifth century ; 
 Roesler thinks in the fourteenth, although ancient chroniclers of the eleventh 
 century mention Rumanians as dwelling In the Carpathians. Other authorities 
 deny that there was any re-Immlgration ; they maintain that the residue of 
 the Latinised population sufHcud for reconstituting the nationality. Thus much 
 is certain, that this small people has increased wonderfully, and has become now 
 the preponderating race on the Lower Danube and in Transylvania. 
 
 Even In the seventeenth century the language spoken by the Rumanians 
 was treated as a rural dialect, and Slavonian was used In churches and courts 
 of justice. At the present day, on the contrary, Rumanian patriots are anxious 
 to purge their language of all Servian words, and of Greek and Turkish 
 expressions introduced during the dominion of the Osmanli. The " Romans " 
 of the Danube are endeavouring to polish their tongue, so that It may rank 
 with Italian and French. They have abandoned the Russian characters, 
 and their vocabulary Is being continually enriched by new words derived 
 from the Latin. The idiom spoken in the towns, which was the most Impuj-e
 
 EUMANIA. 1G3 
 
 formerly, in consequence of the influx of strangers, has now become more Latin 
 than that spoken in the country. There are, however, about two hundred 
 words not traceable to any known tongue, and these are supposed to be a remnant 
 of the ancient Dacian spoken at the period of the Roman invasion. The Wal- 
 lachian differs, moreover, from the Latin tongues of Western Europe by always 
 placing the article and the demonstrative pronoun after the noun. The same rule 
 obtains in Albanian and Bulgarian, and Miklosich is probably right when ho 
 looks upon this as a feature of the ancient language of the aborigines. 
 
 These niceties, however, are altogether unnoticed by the mass of the people. 
 The Rumanian peasant is proud of the ancient conquerors of his country, and 
 looks upon himself as the descendant of the patricians of Rome. Several of his 
 customs, at the birth of children, betrothals, or burials, recall those observed by 
 the Romans, and the dance of the Caliishares, it is said, may be traced back to 
 the earliest Italian settlers. The TVallachian is fond of talking about Father 
 Trajan, to whom he attributes all those feats which in other countries are 
 associated with Hercules, Fingal, or Ossian. Many a mountain valley has been 
 rent asunder by Trajan's powerful hand ; and the avalanches descending from the 
 hills are spoken of as Trajan's thunder. The Rumanian completely ignores 
 Getae, Dacians, or Goths, though in the hills we still meet with tiill men having 
 blue eyes and long flaxen hair, who are probably descended from the aboriginal 
 inhabitants of the country. 
 
 The Rumanians have generally fine sunburnt features, fair hair, expressive 
 eyes, a mouth finely shaped, and beautiful teeth. They allow their hair to grow 
 long, and sometimes even prefer to expatriate themselves to sacrificing it to the 
 exigencies of military service. They exhibit grace in all their movements, are 
 indefatigable on the march, and support the heaviest labour without complaining. 
 Even the "Wallachian herdsman, with his sheepskin cap, or cash k la, his wide 
 leather belt used as a pocket, a sheepskin thrown over his shoulders, and drawers 
 which recall those of the Dacians sculptured on Trajan's Column, is noble in his 
 bearing. In the large towns, where much intermixture has taken place with 
 Greeks, Southern Russians, and Magyars, the brown complexion predominates. 
 The Rumanian women are grace itself. They always charm us by taste and 
 neatness, whether they have adopted a modern dress or still patronise the 
 national costume, consisting of an embroidered chemisette, a floating vest, a party- 
 coloured apron, a golden net, and golden sequins placed in the hair. These 
 external advantages are combined in the Rumanian with quickness of appre- 
 hension, a gay spirit, and the gift of repartee, which entitle them to be called the 
 Parisians of the Orient. 
 
 In the midst of this homogeneous Rumanian population wo meet with 
 Bulgarian colonists, whose number has increased recently in consequence of 
 the persecutions of Turks and Greeks. The character of the Bulgarians born in 
 the country has undergone considerable modifications. They are at present the 
 most industrious tillers of the soil, and in tlie vicinity of largo towns they occupy 
 themselves principally with horticulture. Many of these Bulgarians live in that 
 
 M 2
 
 101 
 
 TURKEY IN EUEOPE. 
 
 portion of Bulgaria known as the Dobruja, which the treaty of Berlin has assigned 
 to Rumania in exchange for the Bessarabian portion of Moldavia, which has been 
 restored to Russia. The exchange, by no means a voluntary one, can hardly be 
 said to be disadvantageous to Rumania, which has now acquired the whole of the 
 delta of the Danube, inclusive of the much-coveted Sulina branch, which is kept 
 open as a navigable highway by an international European commission, carrying 
 its own flag, and levying tolls upon ships to defray the expenses incurred by it. 
 The population of the Budzak, or Southern Bessarabia, as shown on our map, is 
 most motley in its character. That of the Dobruja is no less so. Rumanians are 
 met with only in the towns and along the Danube ; the Bulgarians are the prin- 
 cipal cultivators of the soil ; but the bulk of the population consists of Nogai 
 Tartars, who came into the country after the Crimean war. The Bulgarians were 
 forced to surrender to these unwelcome intruders their best fields, and to build 
 
 Fig. 46. — Ethnological Map of Moldavian Bessarabia (ceded to Russia, 1878). 
 Scale 1 : 1,500,000. 
 
 \ 
 
 ^ 1 "^ ) .... 
 
 •^'i 
 
 "«4 
 
 Bnl^srians Hoss 
 
 I\ctunaQUn3 Albanians Uninliabited 
 
 houses for them ; but the Tartars, in spite of the solicitude exhibited on their 
 behalf, did not prosper, and recent events may have induced many amongst them 
 to depart for more congenial regions. 
 
 The Russians met with in the towns of Rumania are generally engaged in 
 commerce, and enjoy a high reputation for honesty. Most of them belong to the 
 old sect of the Lipovani, and fled from Russia about a century ago to escape religious 
 persecution. They nearly all speak Rumanian. Others belong to the sect of the 
 Skoptzi, or " mutilated," which is said to recruit itself by stealing children. These 
 Skoptzi are recognised by their portliness and smooth faces, and at Bucharest they 
 are reputed to be excellent coachmen. 
 
 Magyar Szeklers from Transylvania, known in the country as Chaitghci, are 
 the only other foreign element of the population occupjdng distinct settlements. 
 These Changhei, who first came into the country when the Kings of Hungary 
 were masters of the valley of the Sereth, are gradually becoming Rumanians
 
 RUMANIA. 166 
 
 in dress and language, and would have become so long ago were they not Roman 
 Catholics, whilst the people among whom they live are Greeks. They are joined 
 annually by a few compatriots from Transylvania, attracted by the mild climate 
 and the fertility of the soil. In spring and autumn large bands of Ilunn'arian 
 reapers and labourers descend into the plains of Moldavia. 
 
 The nellcnic element was strongly represented last century, when the 
 government of the country was farmed out by the Sultan to Greek merchants 
 of Constantinople. At the present time the Greeks are not numerous — not 
 exceeding, perhaps, 10,000 souls, even if we include amongst them Ilellenized 
 Zinzares — but they occupy influential positions as managers of estates or 
 merchants, and the export of corn is almost exclusively in their hands. Traces 
 of the ancient government of these Phanariotes still exist in the language of 
 the country, and in the relationships resulting from intermarriages between 
 seignorial families. Far more numerous than these Greeks, and of greater 
 importance, are the members of those homeless nations — the Jews and Tsigani 
 (or gipsies). A few Spanish Jews are met with in the large towns, but the 
 majority are " German " Jews, who have come hither from Poland, Little Russia, 
 Galicia, and Hungary. As publicans and middlemen they come into close 
 contact with the poor people, and they are universally detested, not on accoimt 
 of their religion, but because of the wonderful skill with which they manage to 
 secure the savings of the people. Imaginary crimes of all kinds are attributed 
 to them, and they have repeatedly been exposed to maltreatment on the 
 frivolous charge of having eaten little children at their Passover. The Ruma- 
 nians, however, can hardly manage without these detested Jews, and their laws, 
 by preventing the Jews from acquii-ing land, fortify their commercial monopoly. 
 The Jews, if cert-ain estimates may be credited, constitute one-fifth of the total 
 population of Moldavia. The Armenians, the other great commercial people of 
 the Orient, are represented by a few flourishing colonies, more especially in 
 Moldavia. These Haikanes are the descendants of immigrants who settled in the 
 country at various epochs between the eleventh and seventeenth centuries. They 
 live amongst themselves, and, though not exactly liked by the people, they have 
 known how to avoid becoming objects of hatred. A few Armenians from Con- 
 stantinople, and speaking Turkish, are met with on the Lower Danube. 
 
 The Tsigani, or gipsies, so despised formerly, become merged by degrees in 
 the rest of the population. Xot long ago they were slaves, the property of the 
 State, of boyards, or monasteries. They led a wandering life — working, trafficking, 
 or stealing for the benefit of their masters. They were divided into castes, the 
 principal of which were the lingurari, or spoon-makers ; tirsari, or bear-leaders ; 
 fcrrari, or smiths ; aurari, or collectors of gold dust ; and lautari, or musicians. 
 These latter were the most polished of all, and were employed to celebrate the 
 glory and the virtues of the boyards. They are now the minstrels of the countrj' 
 and the musicians of the town. Yery few in number are the Netotzi, a degraded 
 caste who live in woods or tents, subsist upon the foulest food, and do not bury 
 their dead. The Tsigani were assimilated in ly37 with the peasantry, and since
 
 1G6 TURKEY IN EUEOPE. 
 
 their emancipation nearly all of them lead a settled life, cultivating the soil with 
 great care, or exercising some handicraft. The fusion between Tsigani and 
 Rumanians is making rapid progress, for both races have the same religion and 
 speak the same language. Intermarriages between the two are frequent, and in 
 a time not far off the Tsigani of Rimiania will be a thing of the past. They are 
 supposed still to nimiber between 100,000 and 300,000 souls.* 
 
 The Rumanian nation is still in a state of transition from a feudal to a 
 modern epoch. The revolution of 1848 shook the ancient system to its founda- 
 tion, but did not destroy it. As recently as 1856 the peasants were attached to 
 the soil. They had no rights, but were at the mercy of the boyards and monas- 
 teries whose soil they were doomed to till, ahd lived in miserable hovels. The 
 whole of the country and its inhabitants belonged to five or six thousand boyards, 
 who were either the descendants of the ancient " braves," or had purchased their 
 patents of nobility. Most of these boyards were only small proprietors, and nearly 
 the whole of the land belonged to seventy feudatories in Wallachia, and three 
 hundred in Moldavia. 
 
 This state of affairs led to the most frightful demoralisation amongst masters 
 and serfs, and even the good qualities of the Rumanian — his energy, his gene- 
 rosit}^ and friendliness — were turned into evil. The nobles lived far away from 
 their estates, spending the income forwarded by their Greek bailifi's in debaucherj-- 
 and gambling. The peasants worked but little, for they had no share in the 
 produce of the soil ; they were mistrustful and full of deceit, as are all slaves ; 
 they were ignorant and superstitious, for they depended for their education upon 
 illiterate and fanatical priests. Their popes were magicians, and cured maladies 
 by incantations and holy philtres. As to the monks, some of them were rich 
 proprietors, as rapacious as the temporal lords ; others lived on alms, having 
 exchanged a life of slavery for mendicity. 
 
 Not long ago the Rumanians, deprived of all education except that sup- 
 plied by their doiiias, or ancient songs, were lost almost in medijeval darkness. 
 Even now some of the ancient customs of their ancestors survive in the rural 
 districts. Funerals are attended by hired weeping women, whose shrieks 
 accompany the farewell of relatives. Into the coffin they place a stick upon 
 which to rest when crossing the Jordan, a piece of cloth to serve as a garment, 
 and a coin as a bribe to St. Peter for opening the gate of heaven. Nor are wine 
 and bread forgotten for the journey. Red-haired people are suspected of 
 returning to earth in the guise of a dog, a frog, or a flea, and to penetrate into 
 houses in order to suck the blood of good-looking young girls. In their case it is 
 as well to close the coffin-lid tightly, or, still better, to pierce the throat of the 
 defunct with a stick. 
 
 The peasantry will doubtless no longer be haunted by these hallucinations, for the 
 
 • Approximate population of Rumania, 4,926,000 souls, of whom 3,050,000 were in Wallachia, 
 1,836,000 in MoldaWa, and 221,000 in the Dohruja. There were 4,288,000 Rumanians, 127,000 Turks and 
 Tartars, 70,000 Bulgarians, 15,000 Russians, 50,000 Magyars, 131,000 Tsigani (gipsies), 400,000 Jews, 
 9,000 Armenians, and 50,000 foreigners (30,000 Austrians, 15,000 Greeks, 5,000 Germans, 1,500 French/
 
 RUMANIA. 107 
 
 moral and intellectual progress of the nation has kept pace with its material pros- 
 perity since the peasant has cultivated his own land. Officiallj' made a freeman 
 in 1856, but held for several years afterwards in a kind of limited bondage, the 
 peasant now owns at least a portion of the land. By a law passed in 1802, each 
 head of a family is entitled to a plot of land from seven to sixty-seven acres in 
 extent, and ever since that time the peasants have gained immensely in solf- 
 rosjiect. His land, though still cultivated with the ancient Roman plough, and 
 deprived of manure, produces immense quantities of cereals, the sale of which 
 brings wealth into the country and encourages progress. Rumania is now one 
 of the great corn-exporting countries of Europe, and in favourable years, when 
 the crops are neither eaten up by locusts nor destroyed by frosts, its exports exceed 
 those of Hungary. In less than ten years the export of wheat, maize, barley, and 
 oats has doubled, and the sum annually realised varies between £-J,000,000 and 
 £8,000,000 sterling. 
 
 Unfortunately the peasants eat but little of the corn they grow. They are 
 content with the maize, from which they prepare their niamaliijo and the detestable 
 spirits which cheer their hearts on a hundred and ninety- four annual fete days. The 
 cultivation of the vine, which was altogether neglected formerly, is likewise making 
 progress, and the produce of the foot-hills of the Carpathians is justly esteemed. 
 The time is past now when "Wallachian" and "herdsman" were synonyms 
 throughout the East. StLLl, nearly one-fourth of the area of the country remains 
 imcultivated, and the soil is allowed to lie fallow every third year. Moldavia is 
 better cultivated, upon the whole, than Wallachia, and this is principally owing 
 to the fact of the Moldavian boyards residing upon their estates, and taking a pride 
 in their management. Progress, however, is apparent throughout the country, and 
 there is hardly a large estate without its steam threshing-machine. Even the 
 small proprietors are gradually introducing improved methods of cultivation, and 
 in many villages they have formed co-operative associations for the cultivation of 
 extensive tracts of country.* 
 
 Rumania is essentially an agricultural comitrj'. The ores of the Carpathians 
 are not utilised, for there are no roads which give access to them. The petroleum 
 wells only supplied 3,810,000 gallons in 1873. Four of the principal salt-works 
 are carried on bj' Government, partly with the aid of convict labour, and yield 
 annually 80,000 tons of salt. The fisheries are of some importance. The inha- 
 bitants on the Lower Danube salt the fish which abound in the river and 
 the neighbouring lakes, and prepare caviare from sturgeons. There are no 
 manufactories excepting near the large towns, and the country is noted only for 
 its carpets, embroidered cloth and leather, and pottery. The housewives are 
 famed for their confectionery. 
 
 Commerce is annually on the increase.f Its only outlet in former times was 
 
 • Of the area of Moldo-W'allachia 6,000,000 acres arc corn-lands, 600,000 acres produce wine, tobacco, 
 itc, 6,000,000 consist of forests, 9,000,000 of pastures and meadows, and 8,000,000 are uncultivated. In 
 1874 there were 600,000 horses, 2,900,000 head of cattle, 100,000 buffaloes, 5,000,000 aheep, 1,200,000 piga, 
 and a00,000 goats. 
 
 t Exports, average of 1866—75, £6,700,000 ; imports, £4,300,000.
 
 108 TUEKEY IN EUROPE. 
 
 the Danube. Nearly the whole produce of the country was carried to Galatz, 
 at the bend of the river, upon which the principal routes of the country con- 
 verge. For many j^ears to come the Danube will remain the great commercial 
 highway of the country ; the Pruth, too, is navigable for small steamers as far as 
 Sculeni, to the north of Yassy ; whilst the numerous rivers descending from the 
 Carpathians wiU always prove useful for the conveyance of timber. New outlets 
 have been created by the construction of railways. Rumania is now joined to 
 the railway systems of Austria and Hungarj', and the proposed bridge across the 
 Danube will place it in direct communication with Varna, on the Black Sea. 
 The level nature of the country facilitates the construction of railways, but its 
 inhabitants look upon their extension with a feeling of apprehension, for they 
 fancy that a commercial invasion may bring in its train a military one.* 
 
 The acquisition of the Dobruja has provided the country with another outlet 
 for its produce, for a railway connects Chernavoda, on the Danube, with the port of 
 Kustenje, on the Black Sea, from which more than half a million quarters of wheat 
 are exported annually, and at which the mail-boats from Constantinople call 
 regularly. Formerly, whilst the delta of the Danube was in the hands of the 
 Turks, Rumania had no direct access to the Black Sea, except by means of small 
 vessels, for the mouth of the northern or Kilda branch of the Danube is obstructed 
 by a bar. French engineers proposed to overcome this difficulty by consstructing 
 an artificial harbour at some distance to the north, and connecting it with the 
 river by means of an artificial canal. But no necessity exists now for so costly an 
 enterprise, since Rumania has been placed in possession of the Sulina mouth of 
 the Danube. The town at the mouth of that branch has sprung into existence 
 since 1850, at which time only a lighthouse and a few huts of fishermen occupied 
 its site. It is now one of the busiest grain ports of the Black Sea, frequented 
 annually by 2,200 vessels, amongst which those sailing under the British flag 
 occupy the foremost rank. The depth of the bar averages 20 feet. 
 
 Bucharest (or Bucuresci, pron. Bukureshti), the capital of Wallachia and of the 
 whole of Rumania, already numbers amongst the great cities of Europe. Next to 
 Constantinople and Buda-Pest, it is the most populous town of South-eastern 
 Europe, and its inhabitants fondly speak of it as the " Paris of the Orient." 
 The town not very long since was hardly more than a collection of villages, 
 very picturesque from a distance on account of numerous towers and glittering 
 domes rising above the surrounding verdure, but very unpleasant within. But 
 Bucharest has been transformed rapidly with the increasing wealth of its 
 inhabitants. It may boast now of wide and clean streets, bounded by fine 
 houses, of public squares fuU of animation, and of well-kept parks, and fully 
 deserves now its sobriquet of the " joyful city." 
 
 Yassy (Jasi, or Yashi), which became the capital of Moldavia when Suchova 
 was annexed by Austria, occupies a position far less central than does Bucharest, 
 but the fertility of the surrounding country, the proximity of the navigable 
 
 * Railroads, 1,S00 miles ; high-roads, 2,630 miles ; telegraphs, 2,.5O0 miles ; steamers on the Danube, 
 29, of 7,620 tons burden.
 
 RUMANIA. 
 
 1C9 
 
 Pruth and of Russia, with whicli it maintaius a brisk commtrce, and its position 
 on the high-road joining the Baltic to the Black Sea, have caused it to increase 
 rapidly in population. It is a flourisliing town now, though no longer the seat 
 of an independent government. Built upon the foot-hills of the Carpathians, 
 the city presents itself magniticcntly from afar, and its exterior is not belied by 
 its finer quarters. Jews, Armenians, Eussiaus, Tisigani, Tartars, and Magyars 
 are numerously represented amongst its population, which is semi-Oriental in 
 type. We may almost fancy ourselves standing upon the threshold of Asia. 
 
 Fig. 47. — View op Buchasest. 
 
 LmS^ 
 
 The church of the Three Saints is distinguished for its originality, and is a master- 
 piece of ornamentation in the Jloorish style. 
 
 All the other towns of Rumania are indebted for their importance to their 
 position on commercial high-roads. Botosani, in Northern Moldavia, lies on the 
 road to Galicia and Poland, and the same may be said of Falticcni, whose inter- 
 national fairs are always well attended. Commerce causes the towns on the 
 Danube to flourish. Sulina, at the mouth of the river, has already been 
 mentioned ; Tulcha, at the head of the delta, exports corn, timber, and 
 salt fish ; Galatz, said to be an ancient colony of the Galatians, is now the
 
 170 TURKEY IN EUEOPE. 
 
 most important commercial emporium on the Lower Danube, and seat of the 
 European commissioners for its regulation ; Braila, a poor village as long as the 
 Turks held it, but now important on account of its grain trade, and the literary- 
 centre of the Bulgarians. All these towns, though situated on the banks of the 
 Danube, may be looked upon almost as ports of the Black Sea, through which the 
 produce of the country, and especially its grain, finds an outlet to foreign 
 markets. Giurgiu (Jurjevo) is the port of Bucharest on the Danube ; Turnu- 
 SeA'crinu is the gateway of Wallachia, below tlie great narrows of the river ; 
 Craiova, Pitesci, Ploiesti, Buzeu, and Focsani form the terminal points of the 
 roads descending from the high valleys of Transylvania. Alecsandria, a town 
 recently built in the centre of the plain which extends from Bucharest to the Olto, 
 has become a depot for agricultural produce. 
 
 Formerly, when incessant wars rendered a strong strategical position of 
 greater importance than commercial advantages, the capital of the country was 
 established in the very heart of the Carpathians. In the thirteenth century it 
 was at Campu-Lungu, in the midst of the mountains, and subsequently it was 
 transferred to Curtea d'Argesia, founded by Prince Negoze Bessaraba in the 
 beginning of the sixteenth century. Of this ancient capital there remain now 
 only a monastery and a wonderfid church : the walls, cornices, and towers are 
 covered with sculptures, like the work of a jeweller. Targu-Yestea, or Tirgovist, 
 on the Yalomitza, was the third capital, but of the fine palace built there by the 
 (lomni there remain now only blackened walls.* 
 
 Rumania includes the two ancient priucijjalities of Wallachia and Moldavia, 
 and the province of the Dobruja. It formerly paid a tribute to the Porte, but 
 its independence has been recognised by the treaty of Berlin. The country 
 has placed a member of the HohenzoUern family at the head of the State. The 
 constitution of 1866 confers upon this prince the right of appointing all public 
 functionaries and the officers of the army, of coining money, and of pardoning. 
 All laws require his signature before they can be enforced. He enjoys a civil list 
 of £48,000. 
 
 The legislative powers are vested in two chambers, the members of which are 
 elected by a process designed to favour the interests of the rich. All Rumanians 
 above twenty-one years of age, except servants in receipt of wages, are inscribed in 
 the electoral lists. They are divided into four " colleges," or classes, having widely 
 different privileges. The first college includes all those electors of a district 
 whose income from landed property amounts to £132 a year ; electors having an 
 income of between £44 and £132 form a second college; merchants and 
 
 * Number of inhabitants of the principal towns of Rumania (official f-pelling ; vulgar or phonetic spell- 
 ing in parenthesis) : — 
 
 JT'dWrtf/ifrt.— Bucuresci (Bucharest), 221,800; Ploiesti (Ploeshti), 33,000; Braila, 28,270; Craiova, 
 22,764 ; Giurgiu (Jurjevo, or Giurgevo), 20,860 ; Buzeu (Busau), 11,100 ; Alecsandria, 11,000 ; Campulung, 
 9,900; Pitesci (Piteshti), 8.500; Caricalu, 8.600. 
 
 Moldavia.— 3 3,s,i (Yassy), 90,000; Galati (Galatz), 80,000; Botosani, 39,900; Barladu (Bjrlat), 
 26,600; Focsani, 20,300; Peatra, 20,000; Husi, 18,500; Eoman, 16,900; Falticeni, 15,000; Baeau,' 
 13,000 ; Dorohoi, 10,000. 
 
 Dobruja.— TuXchu, 19,000 ; Mejije, 32,000 ; Babudagh, 4,000 ; Isakcha, 4,000 ; Sulina, 4,000.
 
 RUMANIA. 171 
 
 tradesmen of the towns paying a tax of 23s. annually, Government j)ensioners, 
 half-pay officers, professors and graduates of universities, form the third college ; 
 and the remainder of the electors belong to the fourth college. The first two 
 colleges elect a deputy each for their district ; the third college electa from 
 one to six deputies for each town, according to its size ; the fourth college elects 
 delegates by whom the representatives are chosen. 
 
 The Senate represents more especially the large landed proprietors. Senators 
 must have an income of £35"2, and are elected hy the landed proprietors whose 
 income amounts to at least £132 a year. The universities of Bucharest and 
 Yassy are represented by a senator each, elected by the professors, and the crown 
 prince, the metropolitan, and the diocesan bishops are ejc-officio members of the 
 Senate. Senators are elected for eight, and deputies for four years. 
 
 The Rumanian constitution grants all those rights and privileges usually set 
 forth in documents of that kind. The right of meeting is guaranteed ; there is 
 liberty of the press ; the municipal officers and mayors are elected, but the Prince 
 may intervene in the case of towns inhabited by more than a thousand families ; 
 the punishment of death is abolished, except in time of war ; and education is free 
 and compulsory " wherever there are schools." There is liberty of religion, 
 though there is a State Church, and Christians alone can be naturalised. No 
 marriage is legal unless it has been consecrated by a priest. The Rumanian 
 Church, as far as dogmas are concerned, is that of the Greeks, but it is altogether 
 independent of the Greek patriarch residing at Constantinople, and is governed 
 by its own Synod. Most of the monasteries have been secularised. 
 
 The country is divided into four judicial districts, each ha^-ing a court of 
 appeal, whilst a supreme court sits at Bucharest. The French codes, slightly 
 modified, were introduced in 1865. 
 
 The army is partly modelled upon that of Prussia. All citizens are called 
 upon to serve sixteen years, eight of which are passed in the standing army or its 
 reserve, and eight in the militia. The National Guard includes all men up to 
 fifty not belonging to either of the other categories. By calling out all its men, 
 Rumania can easily send an army of 100,000 men into the field. There are like- 
 wise a few gunboats on the Danube. 
 
 The finances of Rumania are in a more satisfactory condition than those of 
 most other states of Europe. The Government has certainly been li^'ing upon 
 loans, for which eight per cent, has to be paid, and nearlj- the whole of the annual 
 income is spent upon the payment of interest, the army, and the revenue services. 
 The credit of Rumania is, however, good, for the loans are secured upon vast 
 domains, the property of the secularised monasteries, several thousand acres of 
 which are sold every year. The sale of salt and the manufacture of tobacco are 
 Government monopolies.* 
 
 • Average annual exjienditure, 1871—76, £•?, 650,000 , public debt, £19,500,000, including £13,000,000 
 expended upun milwaye ; e8timat«d value of the domaina, £20,000,000.
 
 SERVIA AND MONTENEGRO.* 
 
 Servia. 
 
 tERVIA, like Rumania, was until recently a semi-independent state, 
 paying a tribute of £25,000 a year to the Porte, and submitting to 
 the presence of a Turkish garrison at Mali-Zvornik, on the Bosnian 
 frontier. But even these vestiges of ancient oppression Irritated 
 the national pride to an inconceivable degree, and the moment 
 when a blow might be struck on bclialf of Servia and the neighbouring countries 
 Inhabited by Slavs still groaning under the Turkish yoke was looked forward to 
 with impatience. The blow has been struck, and, thanks to the forbearance of the 
 powers and the support afforded by Russia, Servia has Issued from the struggle 
 with an Increase of territory. 
 
 Servia, within its actual limits, includes only a small portion of the northern 
 slope of the mountains rising in the centre of the Balkan peninsula. It is 
 separated from Austro-Hungary by the Save and the Danube, but no natural 
 boundary divides It from Turkey ; and the valleys of the Morava, the Drina, and 
 the TImok, the former in the centre, the others on the eastern and western 
 frontiers of the country, afford easy access to a foreign Invader. The difficulties 
 to be surmounted by the latter would begin only after he had entered the vast 
 forests, the narrow valleys, and unfathomable klisiiras amongst the mountains. 
 
 The only plains of any extent are on the banks of the Save. Everywhere else 
 the country Is hilly, rocky, or mountainous. The most prominent mountain 
 range Is that which extends from the "Iron Gate" and the defile of Kasan, on 
 the Danube, through Eastern Servia, and forms a marked continuation of the Tran- 
 sylvanlan Alps, with which It agrees in geological structure. In the northern 
 portion of these Servian Carpathians, in the angle formed by the confluence of the 
 Danube and Morava, where masses of porphyry have burst through limestones 
 and schists, we fiijd ourselves In the great mineral region of Servia. Copper, 
 
 * Authorilies : — Kanitz, "Sertien;" Ubicini, "Les Serbes de Turquie;" Cyprien Robert, " I,e3 
 Slaves de Turquie ; " Louis Leger, " Le Monde Slave ; " Lejean, " Visite au Slontenegro."
 
 SEE VIA. 173 
 
 iron, and lead ores are being worked here, especially at Maidanpek and Kuchaina, 
 but the old zinc and silver mines have been abandoned. The valley of the 
 Timok, in the southern portion of this mountain range, is likewise rich in 
 minerals, and gold dust is collected from the sand of the river. There are few 
 valleys which can rival that of the Timok in beauty and fertility, and the basin 
 of Knyashevatz, where the head-streams of the river unite, is more especially 
 distinguished by its rural beauty, sparkling rivulets flowing through the 
 meadows, vines covering the hills, and forests the surrounding mountains. A 
 narrow defile immediately below this basin leads into the valley of Zaichar, near 
 which, at Gamzigrad, there still exist ruins of a Roman fortress, its walls and 
 t-owers of porphyry in a capital state of preservation. Looking northward from 
 this position we perceive the Stol (3,638 feet), whilst in the south-west there rises 
 a huge pvramid of chalk, which might almost be mistaken for the work of 
 human hands. This is the Rtan (4,9-13 feet), at whose foot burst forth the hot 
 springs of Banya, the most frequented and efficacious of all Servia. 
 
 The valleys of the Morava and of its main tributary, the Bulgarian ilorava, 
 divide Servia info two parts of unequal extent. The valley of the Morava forms 
 a natural highway between the Danube and the interior of Turkey, passing 
 through Xish, Leskovatz, and Vranya. A Roman road formerly led along it. 
 Krushevatz, the ancient capital of the Servian empire, occupies the centre of a 
 plain in the valley of the Servian Morava, not far above the defile of Stalaj, 
 where the two Moravas unite at the foot of a promontory crowned with ruins. 
 The remains of the palace of the Servian tsar are still shown there, and it is stated 
 that Krushevatz, at the height of Servian power, had a circumference of three 
 leagues. It is only a poor village now. 
 
 The wildest mountain masses of Servia rise between the two Moravas, their 
 culminating point being the Kopaonik (6,710 feet), which attains a greater height 
 than any other summit between the Save and the Balkans. A wide prospect 
 of incomparable beauty opens from its base and rocky summit, extending south- 
 wards over plains and mountains to the pinnacles of the Skhar and the pyramidal 
 Dormitor. In itself, however, the Kopaonik is quite devoid of beauty, and where 
 its slopes have been deprived of the forests which once covered them, the bare 
 rocks of serpentine present a picture of utter desolation. Its valleys are far from 
 fertile, their inhabitants are sulky and poor, and many amongst them sufi'er from 
 goitre. 
 
 The mountains which extend to the north of the Kopaonik, along both banks 
 of the Ibar, are for the most part still clothed with oaks, beeches, and conifers. 
 The broad valley of the Servian Morava, rivalling in fertility the plains of 
 Lombardy, penetrates into these mountain masses. But they rise again to the 
 north of that river, attaining a height of 3,622 feet in the mourftain mass of 
 Rudnik. Cretaceous rocks predominate, frequently surmounted by granitic 
 peaks. The valleys are narrow and tortuous. This is the famous Sumadia, or 
 " forest region " of Serria, which during the rule of the Turks offered a safe 
 asylum to the persecuted rayas, and in the war of independence became the
 
 174 
 
 TURKEY IN EUKOPE. 
 
 citadel of Servian liberty. The little town of Kraguyevatz, in one of its narrow 
 valleys, was chosen to be the seat of government, and it still retains a gun 
 foundry, supplied with coal from the basin of Chupriya. A secluded capital like 
 this may have suited a people constantly engaged in war, but when Servia entered 
 upon a career of progress the seat of government was removed to Belgrad. 
 This city — the Beograd, or •" white town," of the Servians, the Siiigiduniim of the 
 Romans, and the Alba Gneca of the Middle Ages — is delightfully situated upon a 
 hill near the confluence of the Danube and Save, and overlooks the swampy plains 
 of Syrmia. Belgrad, from its favourable geographical situation, has become a 
 place of much trade, and is likewise an imijortant strategical position. 
 
 To the west of Belgrad we merely meet with hills, and with the fertile plains 
 
 Fig. 48. — Confluence of the Danvbe and Save. 
 Scale 1 : 1,420,000. 
 
 watered by the Kolubara. It is only towards the south-west, on nearing the 
 Drina, that we again find ourselves in the midst of calcareous mountains, attaining 
 a height of 3,6-30 feet, and connected with spurs of the Kopaonik in the south. 
 This is one of the most picturesque portions of the country. Ruins of houses 
 and fortresses abound, amongst which those of Ushitza are the most extensive. 
 These fortresses have, however, failed to protect the country, and no portion of 
 Servia has more frequently been laid waste by ruthless invaders. 
 
 In former times Servia could boast of some of the most extensive oak forest 
 in Europe. " To kill a tree is to kill a Servian," says an ancient proverb, dating 
 probably from the time when the forests afibrded shelter to the oppressed rayas. 
 This proverb, unfortunately, is no longer acted upon. In many parts of the 
 country the forests have disappeared, and the naked rock obtrudes itself as in
 
 -> ■« ,illH»JMllH>|l ._
 
 SERYIA. 175 
 
 Dalraatia and Carniola. A peasant in nccil of a branch cuts down an entire tree, 
 and the herdsmen are not content to feed their bivouac fires with dry sticks, but 
 must needs have an oak. The greatest enemies of the forests, next to herdsmen, 
 arc goats and hogs, the former browt-ing upon small trees and leaves, the latter 
 laying bare the roots. An old tree, thrown down by a tempest or sacrificed to 
 the woodman's axe, is not replaced. Laws for the protection of the forests have 
 certainly been passed, but they are not enforced, and the wood required for fuel 
 has to bo imported, in many instances, from Bosnia. The destruction of the 
 forests has naturally been attended by a deterioration of the climate. Mr. Edward 
 Brown, who travelled in Servia in the seventeenth century, tells us that the 
 Morava was then navigable for the greater part of its course ; but at tlie 
 present time, owing to its irregularities, it is no longer available as a navigable 
 channel. 
 
 Servia, by despoiling the mountains of great forests, has got rid of the wild 
 animals which formerly infested them. Wolves, bears, wild boars, previously so 
 numerous, have almost disappeared, and those stUI met with occasionally are 
 supposed to come from the forests of SjTmia, crossing the frozen Save in winter. 
 The fauna and flora of Servia are gradually losing their original features. The 
 introduction of the domesticated animals and cultivated plants from Austria has 
 given to Ser^•ia a South German aspect. Isor does the climate much diifer from 
 some parts of Southern Gei-many. Servia, though under the same latitude as 
 Tuscany, rejoices by no means in an Italian climate. The Dalmatian or Bosnian 
 mountain ramparts shut out the vivifying south-westerly winds, whilst the dry 
 and cold winds from the steppes of Russia have free access over the plains of 
 AVallachia. Strangers do not readily acclimatise themselves, owing to abrupt 
 changes of temperature.* 
 
 Servia includes within its limits but a small proportion of all the Servians of 
 Eastern Europe, but its inhabitants are probably not far wrong when they look 
 upon themselves as the purest representatives of their race. They are, as a rule, 
 tall, vigorous, with broad shoulders and an erect head. Their features are 
 marked, the nose straight and often aquiline, and the cheek-bones a trifle 
 prominent ; the hair is abundant and rarely black, the eyes are piercing and 
 cold, and a well-cultivated moustache imparts a military air to the men. The 
 women, without being good-looking, have a noble presence, and their semi- 
 oriental costume is distinguished by an admirable harmony of colours. Even 
 in the towns, where French fashions carry the day, Servian ladies occasionally 
 wear the national dress, consisting of a red vest, a belt and chemisette embroi- 
 dered with pearls, strings of sequins, and a little fez stuck jauntily upon the 
 head. 
 
 Unfortunately the custom of the country requires that a Servian woman 
 
 should have an abundance of black hair and a dazzling white complexion. Paint, 
 
 dyes, and false tresses arc universal in town and country. Even in the most 
 
 remote villages the peasant women dye their hair and paint their cheeks, lips, 
 
 • Mean temperature at Belgrad, 48' F. : extremes, 106" and 3'; range, 103' F.
 
 176" TURKEY IN EUEOrE. 
 
 and eyebrows, frequently making use of j)oisonous substances injurious to health. 
 Rich country-people are, moreover, in the habit of making an exhibition of 
 their wealth by means of their clothes, which they overload with gold and silver 
 ornaments and gewgaws of every kind. In some districts brides and young 
 women wear a most extraordinary head-dress, consisting of an enormous crescent 
 of cardboard, to which are attached nosegaj'S, leaves, peacock feathers, and 
 artificial roses with silver petals. This heavy head-dress may sj'mboHze the 
 " burdens of matrimony ; " it certainly exposes the wearer to great incon- 
 venience. 
 
 The Servians are honourably distinguished amongst the people of the East 
 by the nobility of their character, their dignified bearing, and, in spite of recent 
 events, incontestable bravery. For centuries they resisted oppression, and, not- 
 withstanding tTieir isolation and povert}^, they conquered their independence in the 
 beginning of this century. They are said to be idle and suspicious — qualities 
 which their former servitude accounts for — but at the same time honest and 
 truthful. It is difficult to cheat them, but they themselves never cheat. Equals 
 when imder the dominion of the Turks, they are equals still. " There are no 
 nobles amongst us," they say, " for we are all nobles." In their clear and 
 sonorous language, so well suited to oratory, they fraternally address each other 
 in the second person singular. Even prisoners are looked upon as brothers, and 
 it is customary to permit a condemned criminal to visit his family on his giving 
 his word of honour to return to prison. 
 
 The ties of family and friendship are a great power in Servic^. ^t frequently 
 happens that young men who have learnt to like each other take an oath of 
 fraternal friendship, in the manner of the brothers in arms of Scythia, and this 
 fraternity of heart is more sacred to them than that of blood. It is a remarkable 
 fact, and one which speaks favourably for the high moral tone of the Servians, 
 that their deep family affections and friendships do not lead to incessant acts 
 of retaliation and vengeance, as amongst their neighbours the Albanians. The 
 Servian is brave ; he is always armed, but he is also peaceable, and does not 
 demand blood for blood. Still, like other men, he is not perfect. As an 
 agriculturist he follows the more obsolete routine. He is ignorant and super- 
 stitious. The peasants firmly believe in vampires, sorcerers, and magicians, and, 
 in order to guard against their evil influences, they rub themselves with garlic on 
 Christmas-eve. 
 
 Land is held by families in common, as amongst the other Slavs of the South. 
 The ancient zadruga, such as it existed in the Middle Ages, is still preserved, 
 and has never been interfered with by Roman or German laws, as in Dalmatia or 
 Slavonia. On the contrary, the law of Servia protects this ancient form of tenure, 
 and, in cases of a disputed will, relatives by adoption take precedence of those by 
 blood. Servian patriots are desirous to see these ancient customs respected, and 
 the members of the SkupsJitina, or parliament, have never attacked this common 
 proprietorship in the soil, for they look upon it as one of the surest safeguards 
 against pauperism. Servia offers the best opportunity for studying agricultural
 
 SERVI.V. 177 
 
 communities of this klml. Xowlicrc else are the feutures of family life equally 
 delightful. The heavy day's work is fullowetl by au evening devoted to pleasure. 
 The children gather round their parents to listen to the warlike legends of old, 
 or the young men sing, accompanying themselves upon the gtizh. All those 
 belonging to the association are looked upon as members of the family. The 
 staryeshina, or head of the community, has charge of the education of tlio 
 children, whom he is required to bring up as " good and honest citizens, useful 
 to their fatherland." Yet, in spite of all these advantages, the zadnujai decrease 
 from year to year. The demands of commerce and industry interfere with their 
 accustomed routine, and they will hardly survive much longer in their present 
 form. 
 
 A great portion of Eastern Ser\-ia has been occupied by ^allachians, who 
 were invited to the country after the war of independence, when vast districts 
 had been depopulated. These new settlers, being more prolific than their 
 neighbours, gradually gain upon the Servians, and already some of their colonies 
 are met with on the western bank of the Morava. Many SerN-ian villages have 
 become Wallachian as fur as language can make them so. It is a strange fact 
 that these Rumanian colonists should prosper in Servia, whilst Ser\-ian colonists 
 from Hungary and Slavonia do not. 
 
 Zinzarcs, or So'itheru "Wallachians, arc met with in most towns, where they 
 work as masons, carpenters, and bricklayers. 
 
 Bulgarians occupy the upper valleys of the Timok and Morava, in the south- 
 east. They are highly esteemed for their industry, and quicklj' assimilate with 
 the Servians. Xear Alexinatz there is a small colony of Albanians, whilst 
 Tsigani, or gipsies, are met with in all parts of the country. They profess to 
 be Christians, and one of their principal occupations is the manufacture of bricks. 
 The Spanish Jews, so numerous formerly at Belgrad, have most of them retired to 
 Semlin, their jjlaces being filled by German and Hungarian Jews.* 
 
 Taken as a whole, Servia was a prosperous country before the recent war. 
 The population has increased rapidly since the declaration of independence, but 
 is not nearly as dense yet as in the neighbouring plains of Hungary or "Wallachia. 
 Scarcely one-eighth of the area is under cultivation, and agricultural operations 
 are for the most part carried on in the rudest manner. Excepting in the most 
 fertile valleys, such as that of the Lower Timok, the fields are allowed to lie 
 fallow every .second year. The exports of Ser\-ia clearly exhibit the rudimentary 
 condition of its agriculture, for they consist principally of lean pigs, which find 
 their way in thousands to the markets of Germany, and of cattle. The peasant 
 of Servia derives mo.st of his revenue from the sale of these animals. "Within the 
 last few years he has also exported some wheat to the markets of Western Europe. If 
 it were not for the Bulgarian labourers who annually flock to the country in search 
 of field-work, Servia would not produce sufficient corn for its own consumption. t 
 
 • 'Ilie population of Scm.i in 1878 maybe cstiin.-itiJ at 1,724,000 souls, including 1,160,000 Servians, 
 280,000 Uulgariaiis, 100,000 WuUachians, 100 ^tohammeJan Albunians, 30,000 gil>sie8, &c. 
 
 t The exports in 1S74 were valued at £1,400,000, and included 34,104 head of cattle, 271,219 pigs, 
 1,172,571 sheep and goat skins, whi-at, r.iki, \i-. 
 
 vol.. I. M
 
 178 TUEKEY IN EUROPE. 
 
 Industry througliout the country is still in its infancy. The Ssr%-ian despises 
 all manual labour excepting agriculture, and it is for this reason he looks down 
 upon the German mechanics in the towns. Young men of the least education 
 aspire to government employment, and the bureaucratic plague, which has 
 wrought such injury in the neighbouring Austro-Hungarian empire, is thus being 
 developed. There are, however, others who have studied at foreign universities, 
 and who devote their energies to the spread of education at home. The progress 
 made in this respect within the last few years has been enormous. In 1839 the 
 sovereign of the country could neither read nor write, whilst, at the present time, 
 Servia, with its numerous schools and colleges, is becoming the intellectual centre 
 of the Balkan peninsula.* 
 
 The Servians have used their best efforts to remove from their country 
 everything reminding them of the ancient dominion of the Mussulman, and they 
 have nearly accomplished this. The Belgrad of the Turks has been converted 
 by them into a Western city, like Vienna or Buda-Pest ; palaces in European 
 style have arisen in the place of mosques and minarets ; magnificent boulevards 
 intersect the old quarters of the town ; and the esplanade, whei-e the Turks 
 exposed the heads of their victims stuck on poles, has been converted into a 
 park. Shabatz, on the Save, has become a " little Paris ; " Semendria 
 (Smederevo), on the Danube, which gave the signal of rebellion in 1806, has 
 arisen like a phoenix from its ashes ; whilst Posharevatz, known as Passarovitz 
 in the history of treaties, has likewise been transformed. Progress is slower in 
 the interior, but good roads now extend to the most remote corners of the 
 country. 
 
 Servia is an hereditary constitutional monarchy. The Prince, or Kniaz, 
 governs with the aid of responsible ministers and of a senate ; he promulgates 
 the laws, appoints all public functionaries, commands the army, and signs the 
 treaties. He rejoices in a civil list of £20,000. His successor, in the case of 
 there being no male heir, is to be elected by universal suffrage. The Skiipshtina, 
 or national parliament, traces back its origin to the earliest times of a Servian 
 monarchy. It numbers 134 members, of whom one-fourth are nominated by the 
 Prince, and the remainder elected by all male taxpayers. This parliament 
 exercises legislative functions conjointly with- the Prince. In addition to it there 
 exist rural jDarliaments in each of the 1,063 ohshtinas, or parishes, and these enjoy 
 extended rights of local self-government. The constitution provides for the 
 election of a S/nqJshtiiia of 536 members by universal suffrage, should extra- 
 ordinary events make such a meeting desirable. The affairs of the country have 
 hitherto been managed satisfactorily. A revenue of £554,000 sufficed for the 
 requirements of the State, and up to the outbreak of the war there existed no 
 public debt. 
 
 Religious liberty exists, but the Greek Church is declared to be that of the 
 State. It has been independent of the Patriarch of Constantinople since 1376, and 
 
 • There are a university, a military academy, a seminary, an agricultural school, 11 superior schools, 
 and 377 elementary schools, with 567 teachers, and about 20,000 pupils.
 
 MOXTENEGKO. 179 
 
 is governed b_v a synod consisting of the Arelibishop of Bclgrad and the liishopB 
 of Ushitza, Xcgotiu, and Shabatz. The former is appointed by tho Prince. The 
 high dignitaries of the Church are in receipt of salaries, but ordinary priests are 
 dependent upon fees and gifts. The monasteries have been suppressed by a recent 
 decision of the Skiij>!<htiii(t, and their revenues are to be devoted to educational 
 purposes. 
 
 The military forces of the countrj' consist of a standing army of about 4,000 
 men, and of u militia including all men capable of bearing arms up to fifty years 
 of age. The first ban of this militia is called out annually for training, tho second 
 ban only in case of war. Servia is thus able to place an army of 150,000 men in 
 the field, but the efficiency of these badly trained troops leaves much to bo desired, 
 as has been shown by recent events. 
 
 The only towns of importance in old Servia are Belgrad (27,000 inhabitants), 
 Posharevatz (7,000 inhabitants), Shabatz (6,700 inhabitants), and Kraguyevatz 
 (6,000 inhabitants). In that portion of Servia which has been acquired by tho 
 treaty of Berlin, and which is almost exclusively inhabited by Bulgarians and 
 Mohammedan Albanians, are Nish (16,000 inhabitants), in a most fertile district, 
 the ancient capital of all Servia ; Leskovatz (10,000 inhabitants), and Vrauya 
 (9,000 inhabitants), the latter with iron works and armourers' shops. 
 
 MOXTKXEGRO. 
 
 The name Montenegro is a translation of the Servian Tsrnagora, or "black 
 mountains." It is a curious designation for a country of white or greyish 
 calcareous mountains, whose colour even strikes the voyager on the Adriatic. 
 The name, according to some, is to be taken figuratively, and is to be understood 
 as designating a country of " bad " or " black " men ; others are of opinion that 
 it refers to ancient pine forests which have now disappeared. 
 
 The Turks have never succeeded in subjugating the Montenegrins, who found 
 safety in their mountain fastnesses. Occasionally the Montenegrins placed 
 themselves under the protection of a foreign power, such as that of Venice, but 
 they never acknowledged the Sultan as their sovereign. The mountains, how- 
 ever, to which they owe their independence, are at the same time their weakness, 
 for they isolate them from the rest of the world. A high range of mountains, 
 as well as a strip of Turkish territory, separates them from their Servian kinsmen ; 
 another range, held by the Austrians, cuts them off from the Gulf of Cattaro and 
 the Adriatic Sea. The small Lake of Scutari (Skodra) is their sea ; the Zeta and 
 Moracha, which feed it, are their national rivers. If the Montenegrins were 
 permitted to descend into the plains without sacrificing their independence, the 
 arid plateaux now inhabited by them would soon be deserted by all but 
 shepherds. 
 
 The eastern portion of Montenegro, which is known as the Berda, and drained 
 by the Moracha and its tributaries, is comparatively of easy access. The mighty 
 dolomitic pyramids of tho Dormitor (8,550 feet) command its valleys in the 
 
 N 2
 
 180 
 
 TURKEY IN EUROPE. 
 
 north, whilst the rounded lieights of Kom (9,000 feet) bound it on the east. 
 The Berda differs in no respect from most other mountain countries. It is only 
 in the western portion of the country, in Montenegro proper, that we meet with 
 features altogether distinct. We there find ourselves in a labyrinth of cavities, 
 valleys, and depressions, separated by craggy calcareous ridges, abounding in 
 narrow fissures, the hiding-places of adders. Only the mountaineers are able to 
 find their way in this inextricable labyrinth. "When God created the world," 
 they toll you laughing, " he held in his hand a sack full of mountains. Right 
 
 Fig. 49. MONTEXEGRO AND THE LaKE OF SkOUKA. 
 
 Scale 1 : 1,590,000. 
 
 t y 
 
 
 
 above Montenegro the sack burst, and hence the fearful chaos of rocks which j'ou 
 see before you." 
 
 Seen from an immense height, Montenegro resembles a vast honeycomb with 
 thousands of cells, and this appearance is due to aqueous agencies. The water at 
 one spot has scooped out wide valleys, whilst elsewhere its long-continued action 
 has merely succeeded in producing narrow rudinas, or sink-holes. After heavy rains 
 the waters accumulate into lakes, covering fields and pastures, but ordinarily they 
 run off rapidly through sink-holes concealed by brambles, only to reappear again 
 near the seashore as abundant springs of bluish water. The Zeta, the principal 
 river of Montenegro, is fed by rivulets which are swallowed up in the valley of
 
 MONTKNEiilU). LSI 
 
 Kiksith to (lie uortb, and find their way to it through subterranean channels. 
 Similar phenomena have already been noticed in connection with Bosnia (p. 127). 
 The capital of Montenegro, Tsetinye (Cetinje), lies in the very midst of the 
 mountains, in the centre of an ancient lake basin. Formerly it was accessible 
 only by a most difficult mountain path, for the Montenegrins took care not to 
 construct roads, which would open their country to the guns of their enemies. 
 The requirements of commerce, however, have recently induced them to connect 
 it with Cattaro by means of a carriage road. 
 
 The Montenegrins arc the kinsmen of the Servians of the Danube, but their 
 life of almost incessant warfare, the elevation and sterility of their country, as 
 well as the vicinity of the Albanians, have developed special features amongst 
 them. The quiet life of the plains is unknown to the Montenegrin ; he is violent, 
 and ready at all times to take up arms ; in his belt he carries a whole arsenal 
 of pistols and knives, and even when working in the fields he has a c;irbine by 
 his side. Until recently the price of blood was still enacted, and a scratch even 
 had to be paid for. This blood vengeance was transmitted from generation to 
 generation, until the number of victims was equal on both sides, or a monetary 
 compensation, usually fixed at ten sequins, had been accepted. Cases of hereditary 
 vengeance are rare now, but the ancient " custom " could be suppressed only by 
 a law of terrible severity, which punishes murderers, traitors, rebels, thieves twice 
 con\icted, incendiaries, and scoffers at religion alike with death. Compared with 
 the Servian of the Danube, the Montenegrin is a barbarian. Nor is his personal 
 appearance equally prepossessing. The women, however, have regular features 
 and, though less dignified in their carriage than their kinswomen of Servia, they 
 possess, as a rule, more grace and elasticity of movement. They are very 
 prolific, and if a family increases too rapidly it is customary for a friend to 
 adopt one or more of the children. 
 
 Up to the invasion of the Osmanli the upper valleys of Montenegro were the 
 home merely of herdsmen and brigands. But the inhabitants of the lower vallevs 
 were forced to retire to these austere heights in order to escape slavery. They 
 cultivated the soil, bred cattle and sheep, and sometimes robbed their neighbours. 
 But the sterile soil yielded only a scanty harvest, and famines were by no means 
 unfrequent. Bosnian Uskoches, who fled to the mountains in order to escape 
 Mussulman oppression, only added to the misery by reducing to a minimum the 
 share of cultivable soil which fell to the lot of each family. The pastures are 
 still held in common, in accordance with the ancient customs of the Servians. 
 According to a recent census, Montenegro is said to have a population of nearly 
 200,000 souls. This may be an exaggeration, but the country is not even able 
 to support 120,000 inhabitants without drawing supplies from beyond, and the 
 armed incursions into neighbouring districts might thus be excused as an " econo- 
 mical necessity." Death from hunger or on the field of battle was often the only 
 alternative. The Montenegrin always prefers the latter, for he does not fear 
 death, and " May you never die in bed ! " is a wish universidly expressed at the 
 cradle of a new-born infant. If a man is unfortunate enough to die of disease,
 
 182 TURKEY IN EUEOrE. 
 
 or from old age, his friends excuse him euphemistically by charging the " Old 
 Murderer " with his death. 
 
 Recent events have considerably enlarged the frontiers of Montenegro. 
 Niksich and Podgoritza, the old Turkish fortresses, which were always a thorn 
 in the side of the Montenegrins, the one on the northern, the other on the 
 southern frontier, have been surrendered to them ; whilst on the Adriatic they 
 have been granted possession of the port of Antivari for commercial purposes. 
 The Montenegrins are thus enabled to import freely, and without the intervention 
 of the merchants of Cattaro, the powder, salt, and other articles they require, 
 and to export their own produce. Their commerce, even now, is of some importance. 
 They export smoked mutton, sheep and goats, skins, tallow, salt fish, cheese, honey, 
 sumach, insect powder, &c., of an estimated value of £40,000 annually. 
 
 The mountaineers have established friendly relations with their neighbours, from 
 whom they are able now to purchase what they require. In summer they permit the 
 inhabitants of the coast to take their cattle into the hills, whilst in winter they them- 
 selves descend to the seaboard, where they are sure now of a friendly reception. 
 
 The Montenegrins, like their neighbours the Albanians, frequently leave their 
 country for a time in order to seek work in the great cities of the East. Thou- 
 sands of them are to be met in Constantinople, where they manage to live 
 on friendly terms with the Turks, their " hereditary enemies." The}' are even to 
 be found in Egypt. 
 
 The Tsigani are the only strangers met with in the country. They resemble 
 the Servians in language, dress, religion, and customs, and only differ from them 
 by working at a useful trade, that of smiths. Their industry, however, causes them 
 to be objects of disdain, and they are not permitted to intermarry with Servians. 
 
 The government of Montenegro is a curious mixture of democratic, feudal, and 
 despotic institutions. The citizens fancy that they are equals, but they are not, 
 for certain families exercise a powerful Influence. The sovereign, who apjjro- 
 priates about half the revenue of the counti-y, and receives 8,000 ducats annually 
 from Russia in addition, appoints the members of the Senate, or Sovyet. The 
 Skujjshtiiia includes the ghivars, or chiefs, of the thirty-nine tribes [plcmena), but 
 has hitherto limited itself to applauding the " speech from the throne." There 
 is a body-guard of a hundred men, and the whole of the male population is 
 bound to take the field under the leadership of Serdars. The country is divided 
 into eight nahies, or districts, of which four (Bielopavlichka, Uskochka, Morachka, 
 and Yasoyevichka, with the country of the Kuchi) constitute the Berda, and 
 four (Katunska, Liesanska, Riechka, and Tsermnichka) belong to Montenegro 
 proper. Each of these districts is placed under a hniaz. The families and 
 associations of families {hrastcoH) are governed by Jiospodars and starshinas, 
 dependent upon the tribal chiefs, or glacars. 
 
 To these districts must now be added the territories ceded by the treaty of 
 Berlin (1,958 square miles, with 116,000 inhabitants), including the towns of 
 Niksich, Podgoritza, and Antivari. These districts are almost exclusively inha- 
 bited by Slavs, but amongst them are several thousand Mohammedans.
 
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 ITALY.* 
 
 I. — General Aspects. 
 
 HE limits of the Italian peninsula have been most distinctly traced 
 by nature. The Alps, which bound it in the north, from the 
 promontories of Liguria to the mountainous peninsula of Istria, 
 present themselves like a huge wall, the only breaches in which 
 are formed by passes situated high up in the zones of pines, 
 pastures, or eternal snows. Italy, like its two sister peninsulas of Southern 
 Europe, thus constitutes a world of its own, destined by nature to become the 
 theatre of a special evolution of humanity. Its delightful climate, beauteous 
 skies, and fertile fields distinguish it in a marked manner from the countries 
 lying beyond the Alps ; and an inhabitant of the latter who descends the sunny 
 southern slope of this dividing range cannot fail to perceive that everything 
 around him has changed, and that he has entered a "new world." 
 
 The protecting barrier of the Alps and the sea which bounds it have 
 imparted to Italy a distinct individuality. All its coxmtries, from the plains of 
 Lombardy to the shores of Sicily, resemble each other in certain respects. There 
 is a sort of family likeness about them ; but still what delightful contrasts, what 
 
 • Authorities : — Zuccagni Orlandini, " Corografia fisica, storica e statistica dell' Italia e dello sue 
 Isole;" Mannocehi, " Descrizioned' Italia;" Amato Amati, "L'ltaliasotto I'aspctto fisico, etorico, artistico 
 e etatistico;" Taine, " Voyage en Italie ; " Gregorovius, " Wanderjahre in Italien," " Geschichte der Stadt 
 Rom; " Ann. di Salazzo, "Le Alpi che cingono 1' Italia ; " Catfcineo e Lombardini, "Notizia naturali e 
 civili sula Lombardia ; " Lombardini, " Pianura subapeiinina," "Condizione idraalica del Po ; " Martins, 
 Gastaldi, "Terrains superticicls de la vallee du Po ; " De Sloitillet, " Anciens glaciers du versant meri- 
 dional des Alpes," "Memoires divers;" Bertolotti, " Liguria maritima ; " Targiooi Tozzclti, "Voyage 
 en Toscane;" SalvagnoU Marchetti, "Maremme Toscane;" Noel des Vorgers, " L'Etrurie et les 
 Etrosques ; " Beule, " Fouilles et decouvertes ; " Giordano, " Roma e suo territorio ; " Ponzi, " Histoire 
 natun-lle du Latium ; " De Prony, " Marais Ponlins ; " Works of D'Amptre and Stendbil, kc. ; Davies, 
 " Pilgrim;ige of the Tiber ; " Francis Wey, " Rome ; " Spallanzani, " Voyage dans les Deux-Siciles ; " 
 Smyth, " .Sicily and its Islands;" Dolomieu, " Voyage aux ties de Lipari ; " De Quatrefages, "Souve- 
 nirs d'un naturaliste ; " La Marmora, "Voyage en Sardaigne, Description stutistique, physique et 
 politique de I'ile;" Mantegazza, "Profili e pacsaggi dellit Sardegna ; " Von Maltzan, " Ileiee auf der 
 In»el Sardini n ; " Spano, " Ilinerario della Sardegna ; " Correnti e Maestri, " Statistica dell' Italia."
 
 184 ITALY. 
 
 picturesque variety, do we not meet with ! Most of these contrasts are due to 
 the Apennines, which branch oif from the southern extremity of the French Alps. 
 At first they run close to the seashore, like a huge wall supported at intervals 
 by powerful buttresses ; subsequently they traverse the whole of the peninsula. 
 At times they are reduced to a narrow ridge, at others they sj^read out into vast 
 masses, rising in plateaux or ramifying into chains and promontories. Hiver 
 valleys and plains intersect them in all directions ; lakes and filled-up lake basins 
 are spread out at the foot of their cliffs ; and numerous volcanoes, rising above the 
 general level, contrast, by their regular form, with the rugged declivities of 
 the Apennines. The sea, following these sinuosities in the relief of the ground, 
 forms a seiies of bays, arranged with a certain degree of symmetry. In the 
 north these bays do not much encroach upon the land, but in the south they 
 penetrate deeply, and almost form veritable gulfs. There once existed an Italy 
 of granitic rock.'^, but it exists no longer, for the rocks of the Apennines and of 
 the plains teach us that the Italy of the present Is of recent origin, and that the 
 many islands of which it consisted formerly were united into a single peninsula 
 as recently as the Eocene epoch. 
 
 Italy, compared with Greece, exhibits much sobriety in its configuration. 
 Its mountains are arranged in more regular ridges, its coasts are less indented, its 
 small archipelagos bear no comparison with the Cyclades, and its three great 
 dependent islands, Sicily, Sardinia, and Corsica, are regular in their contours. 
 Indeed, its contours mark its intermediate position between joyous Greece and 
 severe Iberia. Thus there exists a correspondence between geographical position 
 and contours. 
 
 Italy, as a whole, contrasts in a remarkable manner with the Balkan penin- 
 sula. The former faces the ^gean, and looks towards the east, whilst in the 
 truly peninsular portion of Italj% to the south of the plains of Lombard}^ the 
 westerly slopes ofier most life. Secure harbours are most numerous on the shores 
 of the Tyrrhenian, and the largest and most fertile plains slope down towards 
 that sea. It results from this that the western slopes of the Apennines have 
 given birth to the most enterprising and intelligent pcjpulatlons, who have t-.iken 
 the lead in the political history of their country. The west represents the light, 
 whilst the east, bounded as it is by the Adriatic, an Inland sea almost, a simple 
 gulf, represents the night. True, the plains of Apulia, though on the east, are 
 wealthier and more populous than the mountain regions of Calabria, but the 
 vicinity of Sicily, nevertheless, even there insures the preponderance of the 
 western littoral. Whilst Greece was in the height of her glory, whilst every 
 initiative went forth from Athens, the cities of Asia Minor, and the islands of the 
 ^gean, those republics which looked towards the east, such as Tarentum, Locri, 
 Sybaris, Syracuse, and Catania, enjoyed a pre-eminence over the cities on the 
 western littoral. The physical configuration of Italy thus facilitated the march 
 of civilisation from the south-east to the north-west, from Ionia to Gaul. The 
 Gulf of Taranto and the eastern coasts of Greater Greece and Sicily were freely 
 exposed to Hellenic influences, whilst further north the peninsula faces about to
 
 GENERAL ASrECTS. 185 
 
 the west us it were. Tlii'ic can \iv no doulit that (Irvsc features gii'ally lacililatcd 
 the expansion of ideas in the direction of Western Kiiropc, and that if it had heen 
 otherwise civilisation would have taken another direction. 
 
 For nearly two thousand years, from the fall of Curthaj^e to the discovery 
 of America, Italy remained the centre of the civilised world. It maintained its 
 hen;emony either hy conquest and organization, as in the case of the " Eternal 
 City," or by the power of its genius, the relative liberty of its institutions, its 
 sciences, art.s, and commerce, as in the times of Florence, Genoa, and Venice. 
 Two of the greatest events in history, the political unification of the Mediter- 
 ranean world under the laws of Rome, and ut a later epoch the regeneration 
 of the human mind, so appropriately termed " Renaissance," originated in 
 Italv. It behoves us, therefore, to inquire into the geographical conditions 
 wliicli may account for tliis preponderance during these two ages in the life of 
 mankind. 
 
 !Mommsen and others have pointed out the favourable position of Rome as an 
 emporium. From the very first that city became the commercial centre of the 
 neiglibouring populations. Built in the centre of a circus of hills, and on the 
 banks of a navigable river, not far from the sea, it likewise possessed the advan- 
 tage of lying on the frontiers of three nations — I^atlns, Sabines, and Etruscans. 
 TVTien Rome had conquered the neighbouring territories it undoubtedly rose into 
 importance as a place of commerce. This local traffic, however, would never have 
 converted Rome into a great city. Its position is not to be compared with that 
 of places like Alexandria, Constantinople, or Bombay, upon which the world's 
 commerce converges as a matter of course. On the contrary, its situation hardly 
 favours commerce. The Apennines, which environ the territory of Rome in a 
 huge semicircle, constituted a formidable obstacle until quite recently, and were 
 avoided by merchants ; the sea near Rome is treachcious, and even the small galleys 
 of the ancients could not enter the inefficient harbour at Ostia without risk. 
 
 The power of Rome, therefore, depended but in a small measure upon com-, 
 mercial advantages resulting from geographical position. It is its central 
 position to which that city is mainly indebted for its greatness, and which 
 enabled it to weld the whole of the ancient world into a political whole. Three 
 concentric circles drawn around the city correspond with as many phases in its 
 development. During their first struggles for existence the Romans enjoyed 
 the advantage of occupying a basin of limited extent, shielded on all sides by 
 mountains. "When Rome had exterminated the inhabitants of these mountains 
 the remainder of Italy naturally gravitated towards her. The plains of Cis- and 
 Transpadana in the north presented no obstacles, whilst the resistance of the 
 uncivilised tribes of the mountain regions of the south was soon broken, for they 
 found no support amongst the Greek colonies scattered along an extensive coast. 
 Nor were the populations of Sicily, Sardinia, and Corsica sufficiently united to 
 oifer an effective resistance to the organized forces of the Romans, who were thus 
 able to extend their power over all the countries comprehended within the second 
 concentric circle referred Vo.
 
 186 
 
 ITALY. 
 
 It happened that the phiins of Northern Italy and Sicily were both rich 
 granaries, which enabled the Eomans to push forward their conquests. The whole 
 world of the Mediterranean gravitated towards Eonie and Italy : Illyria, Greece, 
 and Egypt iu the east, Libya and Mauritania in the south, Iberia in the west, 
 Gaul in the north-west, and the transalpine countries in the north. 
 
 Rome maintained her power and influence as long as the Mediterranean 
 constituted the world ; but, in proportion as the borders of the known world were 
 enlaro-ed, so did Rome lose the advantages which a central position had conferred 
 upon her. Even during the latter days of the Roman empire Milan and Ravenna 
 usurped the position once held by Rome, and the latter became the capital of 
 
 Ficr. 50. — Rome axd the Roman ExiriRE. 
 
 CisapenrunO' /talu 
 
 CLsaiftne /Uilie 6i^ Utmuxn brnpir* 
 
 the Ostrogothic kingdom, and subsequently the seat of the Byzantine exarchs. 
 Rome, the city of the Caesars, had fallen for evermore ! True the emperors were 
 succeeded by the popes, but the real masters of the " Holy Roman Empire " 
 resided beyond the Alps, and only came to Italy to have their power consecrated. 
 Even in Italy itself Rome ceased to be the leading town, its place being taken by 
 Pavia, Florence, Genoa, Milan, Venice, Bologna, and even Turin. 
 
 The unity of Italy has been realised in the course of this century, and, 
 excepting a few Alpine valleys, its political boundaries coincide with its natural 
 ones. It may surprise us that this unity should not have been established long 
 ago, but the geographical configuration of Italy readily lends itself to the
 
 GENERAL ASPECTS. 187 
 
 establishment of small ttiitos. Its islands, its mountaiu-houiul plain--, and coast 
 districts, shut ofi"lrom the interior of the country by abrupt mountains, formed as 
 many centres where populations of diverse origin were able to lead a life inde- 
 pendently of their neighbours. Now and then the whole of Italy acknowledged 
 a single master, but it only did so on conipulsion. That spirit of nationality 
 which has given birth to a united Italy only animated very few citizens of the 
 medifcval republics. They might unite to resist a common danger, but no sooner 
 was it past than they went their separate ways, or, still worse, fought amongst 
 themselves about some trifle. 
 
 Cola di Rienzi, tlie tribune of Rome, appealed to the cities of Italy in the 
 middle of the fourteenth century; ho adjured them to "throw off the yoke of the 
 tyrant, and to form a holy national brotherhood, whose object should be the 
 liberation of Rome and the whole of Italy." His messengers, carrying a silver 
 wand, went to every city with greetings of amity, and asked that deputies should 
 be sent to the future parliament of the Eternal City. Rienzi, full of the 
 memories of the past, declared that Rome had not ceased to be the " mistress of 
 the world," and had a natural right to govern all nations. It was his aim to 
 resuscitate tbe past, not to evoke a new life, and his work disappeared like a 
 dream. Florence and Venice, the most active cities of that ^Jeriod, looked upon 
 him as a visionary. " Siamo Veneziani, poi Cristiaiii," said the proud citizens 
 of Venice in the fifteenth century. They, whose sons fought so valiantly for 
 Italian independence, never thought of calling themselves Italians. At the same 
 time we must bear in mind that the impulse which has made Italy one did not 
 originate with the masses, for there are still millions of Sicilians, Sardinians, 
 Calabrians, and even Lombards who do not ajiprcciatc the vast changes which 
 have taken pilace. 
 
 If Italy no longer remains a " geographical expression," it is owing in a 
 large measure to frequent foreign invasions. Spaniards, French, and Germans 
 in turn have seized the fertile plains of Italy, and their hard oppression has 
 taught the Italians to look upon each other as brothers. The Alps might be 
 supposed to offer an effective protection against such invasions, but they do not. 
 They are steepest on the Italian side, whilst their exterior slopes, towards France, 
 Switzerland, and German Austria, are comparatively gentle. Invaders, tempted 
 by the delightful climate and the wealth of Italy, were able to reach easily 
 the Alpine passes, whence they rushed down upon the plains ; and thus the 
 "barrier of the Alps" is a barrier only to the Italians, and has always been 
 respected by them, excepting during the Roman empire. Nor is there any reason 
 whj' they should cross it, for there is no country beyond equal to their own. 
 French, Swiss, and Germans, on the other hand, have always looked upon Italy 
 as a sort of paradise. It was the countr}' of their dreams ; thcj' yielded frequently 
 to their desire to possess it, and dyed its coveted plains with blood. 
 
 Italy, exposed as it is to attacks from beyond, and no longer situated in the 
 centre of the known world, has definitively lost its primato, or foremost place 
 amongst nations, which some of its sons, carried away by an exclusive patriotism.
 
 188 ITALY. 
 
 would restore to it. But thougli no louj^er the most powerful nation, and 
 eclipsed in industry, commerce, and even literature and science, it still remains 
 unrivalled in its treasures of art. There is no other country in the world 
 which can boast of an equal number of cities remarkable on account of their 
 buildings, statues, paintings, and decorations of every kind. There are provinces 
 where every village, every group of houses even, delights the eye either by a 
 fi-esco painting or a work of the sculptor's chisel, a bold staircase or picturesque 
 balcony. The instinct for art has passed into the blood of the people, and we 
 need not wonder if an Italian peasant builds his house and plants his trees so as 
 to bring them into harmony with the surrounding landscape. This constitutes the 
 greatest charm of Italy ; everywhere art goes hand in hand with nature. How 
 many artists are there not in Lombardy, Venetia, or Tuscany who would have 
 become famous in any other country, but whose names will never be remem- 
 bered, in consequence of their overwhelming numbers, or because their lot was 
 cast in some remote village ! 
 
 Italy owes the rank it has held for more than two thousand years not 
 merely to its monuments and works of art, which attract students from the 
 extremities of the earth, but also to its historical associations. In a country which 
 has been inhabited for centuries by a civilised people there cannot be a town 
 the origin of which is not lost in the darkness of tradition. The modern cities 
 have replaced the Roman towns, and these latter rose upon the ruins of some 
 Greek, Etruscan, or Gallic settlement. Every fortress, every country house, 
 marks the site of some ancient citadel, or of the villa of a Roman patrician ; 
 churches have replaced the ancient temples^ and though the religious rites have 
 changed, the altars of gods and saints arise anew in the spots consecrated of old. 
 An exanjination of these relics of all ages is full of interest, and only the most 
 obtuse can I'esist the influence of the historical reminiscences which surround him. 
 
 Italy, after a long period of decay and foreign domination, has again taken its 
 place amongst the foremost modern nations. The aspect of the peninsula has 
 undergone many changes since it received the name of Vitalia, or Italia, from the 
 herds of cattle which roamed over it. Its well-cultivated plains, carefully tended 
 gardens, and busy cities entitle it now to some other appellation. The passes of 
 the Alps and its central position give Italy the command of all the routes which 
 converge from France, Germany, and Austria upon the Gulfs of Genoa and 
 Venice. Its quarries, sulphur and iron mines, its wines and agricultural produce 
 of every description, and its industry afford ever-growing resources. Its men of 
 learning and inventors may fairly claim to be on a level with those of other 
 countries. The population increases rapidly. It is not only more dense than in 
 France, but also sends a considerable contingent of emigrants to the solitudes of 
 Southern America.* 
 
 ♦ Area of the kingdom of Italy, 114,413 square miles ; population in 187-3, 27,482,174.
 
 THE 15ASIN OF THE PO. 
 
 18f) 
 
 II. — Tin: Basin ok iiik Po. 
 
 PiKMONT,* LoMliAKDV, Vl.M 1 1 A, AM) EmII.IA. 
 
 The valley of the Po is frequently spoken of us Upper Italy, because it occupies 
 the no'"thern portion of the peninsula, but might more appropriately be termed 
 the Italian Netherlands, for its elevation is less than that of any other group of 
 provinces. It is a river valley now, but during the Pliocene epoch it still formed 
 
 Fiir. 51. — JIoNTE Vl.<0 AS IT AITEAlli! FROM ChIAIFUEDO. 
 
 a gulf of the sea. This gulf was gradually filled up by the alluvium brought 
 down by the rivers, and upheaved by subterranean forces above the surface of the 
 waters, the erosive action of the mountain torrents continuing all the while ; 
 and thus, in the course of ages, the basin of the Po assumed its gentle and 
 regular slope towards the sea. As long as the watere of the Adriatic penetrated 
 the valleys between Monte Eosa and ilonto Viso, Italy was attachetl to the Alps 
 • Pie di Moato, Piedmont, or Piemonte, i.e mountain-foot.
 
 190 ITALY. 
 
 of continental Europe only by a narrow neck of land formed by the Ligurian 
 Apennines. 
 
 No other region of Europe can rival the valley of the Po as regards the 
 magnificence of its distant prospects. The Apennines in the south raise their 
 heads above the region of forests, their rocks, woods, and pasturages contrasting 
 with the uniform plain spread out along their foot ; whilst the snow-clad Alps 
 rise in all their sublimity from the Col di Tenda in the west to the passes of Istria 
 in the east. The isolated pyramid of Monte Vise (thus called from the beautiful 
 prospect which may be obtained from its summit) koks down upon the fields of 
 Saluzzo, and the small lakes in its pasturing region feed a roaring rivulet which 
 subsequently assumes the name of Po. Enormous buttresses to the north-west of 
 Turin support the ice-clad Grand Paradis, near which peeps out the Grivola, 
 perhaps the most charming, the most gracefully chiselled of all Alpine peaks. 
 Eight in the bend of the Alpine chain rises the dome of Mont Blanc, like an 
 island above a sea of mountains. Monte Rosa, crowned with a seven-pointed 
 diadem, pushes its spurs far into Italy. Then come the Spliigen, the Ortler, the 
 Adamello, the Marmolade, and many another summit distinguished for some 
 special beauty. When from the top of the dome of Milan we behold spread 
 out around us this magnificent amphitheatre of mountains rising above the 
 verdant plain, we may well rejoice that we should have lived to contemplate so 
 grand a scene. 
 
 Geographically the Alps belong to the countries which surround Italy. From 
 the south we seize at a glance the entire slope of the mountains, from the vine- 
 yards and plantations of mulberry-trees to the forests of beech and larch, the 
 pastures, the naked rocks, and the dazzling fields of ice. But the cultivator only 
 ventured into this difiicult region when forced by poverty. The features of the 
 northern slope are quite different. There the land rises gradually, and the valleys 
 are less fertile, but the inhabitants can easily reach the heads of the passes, 
 whence they look down upon the inviting plains of Italy. It is this structure of 
 the Alps which explains lhe preponderance of the Germanic and Gallic elements 
 throughout their extent, and whilst Italian is spoken only in a few isolated 
 localities beyond this mountain barrier, the French and German elements are 
 largely represented on their inner slopes. 
 
 Italy can only claim a few Alpine mountain masses within the basin of the 
 Po, the Adige, and the rivers of Venetia. The most important of these, alike on 
 account of its height, its glaciers, and springs, is the Grand Paradis, which rears 
 its head to the south of the Dora Baltea, between the masses of Mont Blanc and 
 the plains of Piemont. An Englishman, Mr. Mathews, may claim to be the first 
 discoverer of this mountain giant, which even on the Sardinian staff map, 
 published only recently, is confounded with Mont Iseran, a far less noble .summit 
 twenty-five miles to the west of it. 
 
 None of the other Alpine summits on Italian territory can compare in height 
 with the Grand Paradis, for though the Italian language extends in numerous 
 instances to the central chain of the Alps, the political boundaries of Italy do not.
 
 THE BASIX OF TUE PO. 
 
 191 
 
 Switzerland holds possession of tlie valley of the Upper Ticino, whilst Austria still 
 possesses the Upper Adige. The only rivers rising on the southern slope ot the 
 Alps, and belonging in their entirety, or nearly so, to Italy, are the Tagliamento 
 and the Piave. In consequence of this violation of the natural frontiers there 
 are many snow-clad Alpine summits which, though geographically belonging to 
 Italy, are situated on the frontiers of the present kingdom, or even within 
 Swiss or Austrian territory. Amongst these are the giant summits of the Ortler, 
 the Marmolade, and the precipitous Cimon delLi Pala. The iloute delhi Disgrazia, 
 
 Fig. 52. — Gb.\si) Pakadis. 
 From the Map of Xhe PVeach Alpine Club. Scale 1 : 223,000. 
 
 •. -^fe^i 
 
 
 . ■.'<-. . .: . . /^^wv:^ 
 
 however, to the south of the Bernina, is an Italian mountain ; such is also, for the 
 greater part, the mountain mass of the Camonica, bounded on the north by the 
 Pasa of Tonale, which plays so prominent a part in legendary history, and is 
 commanded by the Adamo, or Adamcllo, whose glacier streams creep down to 
 the Upper Adige. Farther to the east, in the valley of the Piave, the obelisk 
 surmounting the huge pyramid of the Antelao pierces the line of perennial snow, 
 and there are other peaks scarcely inferior to it in height. 
 
 Most of the Alpine groups lying within Italy and between the main chain and
 
 192 
 
 ITALY. 
 
 tlie plains do not exceed the Apennines in height, and only a few amongst them 
 are covered with perennial snow. But the prospects which may be enjoyed from 
 them are all the more charming for this reason, for we find ourselves between two 
 zones, with cultivated valleys, towns, and villages at our feet, and a panorama of 
 bare and snowy summits bounding the view to the north. Several of these 
 mountains deservedly attract large numbers of tourists. Favourites amongst 
 them are the hills rising above the blue lakes of Lombardy, such as the Motterone 
 on Lago Maggiore, the pyramidal Gcneroso rising in the midst of verdant fields 
 on the Lake of Lugano, the superb hills between the two arms of the Lake of 
 Como and the fertile plains of the Brianza, and Monte Baldo, advancing its 
 buttresses like lions' claws into the waters of the Lake of Garda. The mountains 
 of the Val Tellina, or the Orobia range, to the south of the valley of the Upper 
 Adda, being remote from towns and customary highways, are less frequently 
 
 Fig. 53. — The Pl.^in of Dehuis hetween the Alps and the Ai'e.n.nines. 
 According to Zolliltofer. 
 
 yyyJ.^l»g ^ | ^t.^^U l ^^||j^^^ 
 
 visited than they deserve. Standing at their foot, we may almost fimcy being in 
 the Pyrenees. As to the dolomites, on the frontiers of Venetia and the Tyrol, 
 they are unique. Their fantastically shaped rocks, delicately tinted with pink 
 and other colours, contrast marvellously with the green of beeches and firs, or 
 the blue waters of the lakes. Richthofen and others look upon these isolated 
 mountain masses as ancient coral islands, or atolls, upheaved to a height varying 
 between 6,500 and 10,400 feet ; and, whatever their geological origin may be, 
 they certainly contribute much towards the beauty of the Alpine regions. 
 
 If we descend the Italian sloj^e of the Alps, we pass gradually from the more 
 ancient to the most recent geological formation, until we finally reach the alluvial 
 plain. Metamorphic rocks, rerrucano, dolomites, and other rocks overlie the 
 granites, the gneiss, and the schists of the more elevated mountain masses. These 
 are succeeded by beds of Triassic and Jurassic age. Lower still we meet with
 
 THE BASIX OF THE TO. 
 
 193 
 
 terraces and hills composed of tertiary marls, clays, and conglomerates. Moute 
 Bolca, so famous amongst geologists on account of its fossils, belongs to this 
 formation.* The whole of the plain of Lombardy and Piemont, with the 
 exception of the isolated hillocks rising in it, and a few marine deposits near its 
 margin, consists of debris brought down by the rivers. The depth of this accu- 
 mulation is not yet known, for hitherto no borings have pierced it ; but if we 
 suppose the slopes of the .cUps and the Apennines to continue uniformly, it would 
 amount to no less than 4.130 feet. The two diagrams (Fig. 53) are intended to 
 illustrate this feature. In the upper of these the heights are exaggerated ten- 
 fold ; in the lower both the horizontal and the vertical scales are the same. A 
 glance at this diagram reveals the astounding fact that the volume of this debris 
 almost equals that of the existing mountain systems. 
 
 Fig. 54. — Slope of the Valley of the Po. 
 The Teitical scale ia tea tiines larger th-n the horizontal. 
 
 'C* 
 
 The vast plain stretching from the Adriatic to the foot of the Monte Rosa and 
 the Tiso may boast of its peninsulas, its islands, and even its archipelagos, as if 
 it were a sea. The tertiary hills of Northern ilonferrato, to the east of Turin, 
 attain a height of 1,600 to 2,000 feet, and the valley of the Tanaro completely 
 eeparates them from the Ligurian Alps and the Apennines. Even at the very 
 foot of the Alps, as at Cavour and elsewhere, isolated granitic or porphyritic 
 pyramids and domes rise in the midst of the plain sloping down towards the Po.t 
 The hump-backed Bosco Montello, to the south of the Piave, is another isolated 
 hill ; and on the banks of the Po may be seen a hillock of pebbles and marine 
 sands, abounding in fossils, which bears the -s-illage of San Colombano and its 
 vineyards. Several volcanic peaks, surrounded by cretaceous formations, rise in 
 the midst of the plains to the east of the Lake of Garda. The craters of the 
 Berici, near Vicenza, and of the Euganean Hills, near Padua, have not vomited 
 
 • Principal Alpice sommits of Italy : — Monte Viso, 12,585 feet ; Grand Paradis, 13,271 feet; Monta 
 della Diagrazia, 11,840 feet; Adamello, 11,677 feet; AnteUo, 10,680 feet; Briinone (Orobia range), 
 10,370 feet; Generoso, 5,670 feet ; Monte Baldo, 7,310 feet; Monte Bolca, 3,143 feet. 
 
 t Altitudes :— Source of the Po, 6,400 feet; Saluzzo, 1,200 feet; Turin, 755 feet; Pavia (mouth of 
 Ticino\ 330 feet ; Piacenza, 217 feet ; Cremona, 130 feet ; Mantua, 89 feet ; Ferrara, 20 feet, 
 VOL. 1. o
 
 194 
 
 ITALY. 
 
 flames witliiu the historical epoch , but the hot and the gas springs which issue 
 from clefts in the trachytic and basaltic rocks prove sufficiently that volcanic 
 forces. are not yet quite extinct in that part of Italy. Earthquakes occur fre- 
 quently in the neighbouring Alps, and particularly near Belluno and Bassano. 
 
 A similar volcanic zone extends along the northern slope of the Apennines, 
 which bound the vaUey of the Po on the south. Hydrogen gas escapes from 
 fissures in the rocks to the south of Modena and Bologna, and is utilised in 
 several instances in the manufacture of lime, and for other purposes. These gas 
 springs of Pietra Mala, Porretta, and Barigazzo were known by the ancients and 
 during the Middle Ages as " fiery springs," and they illuminated the path of the 
 traveller overtaken by the night. Lower down the slope, almost on the verge of 
 
 Fig. 53. — Mud Volcanoes and Hot Spr'Xgs of the Northekx Apexxixes. 
 Scale 1 : 1,160,000. 
 
 Eydiogen Springs. Mud Vulcinoes. Hot Springs. 
 __— 10 Miles. 
 
 the plains, we meet with a line of mud volcanoes, or bonihi, the most famous of 
 which are those of Sassuolo, near Modena. The largest of these, that of Mirano, 
 has no less than forty craters. The ancient gulf of the sea, now converted into 
 a plain, is thus skirted by volcanic cones, mud volcanoes, hot springs, and deposits 
 of sulphur. As high up as Piemont, and notably at Acqui, we meet with hot 
 springs, attesting that volcanic activity is not yet altogether extinct. 
 
 The valleys of the Alps and the plains extending along their foot were filled, 
 in a former geological epoch, with huge glaciers, descending from what was 
 anciently the immense glacial region of Cential Europe. There is not a valley 
 between that of the Tanaro in the west, and that of the Isonzo descending from the 
 mountains of Carinthia, but contains accumulations of debris carried down by the
 
 THE BASIX OF THE PO. 
 
 193 
 
 glaciers, and now covered with vcgeUitiou. Most of these ancient glaciers 
 exceeded those of the Monte Kosa and the Finbteraarhorn iu extent, and several 
 of them rivalled the existing glaciers of the Himalaya. If we would gain a 
 notion of what the Alps were like during this glacial epoch, we must go to Green- 
 land or to the Antarctic regions. 
 
 One of the smallest of these ice streaiU!=, that which descended from the 
 mountains of Tenda in the direction of Ouneo, had a length of thirty miles. 
 That which brought down the ice of Mont Geuevre, Mont Tabor, and ilont Cenis 
 had twice that length, and its moraines formed a veritable amphitheatre of 
 hUls, locally known as regioue alia pielre, or stony region. Farther north the 
 streams of ice descending from the I'cuuinc Alps between the Grand Paradis and 
 
 Fig. 56. — The Anxiext Glaciers of tile Alps. 
 Scale 1 : 4,800,000. 
 
 Mont Elanc united in a single stream eighty miles iu length, and spread over the 
 plain far beyond Ivrea. The alluvial accumulation of this ancient glacier rises 
 1,100 and even 2,130 feet above the valley through which the Dora Baltea now 
 flows. One of its lateral moraines, known as the Serra d' Ivrea, forms a regular 
 rampart to the east of the river, eighteen miles iu extent. Its slopes are now 
 covered with chestnuts. The western ra^^ne (Colle di Brossa) is less prominent, 
 because it is inferior in height ; but the frontal ravine, forming a complete demi- 
 circle, can still be traced readilj'. In the debris accumulated at the foot of this 
 ancient glacier, rocks derived from Mont Blanc are mixed with others brought 
 down from Mont Cerrin. And yet it was but a dwarf when compared with 
 the ancient twin glacier of the Ticino and the Adda, which -extended from the 
 Simplon to the Stelvio, filled up the cavities now occupied by the Lago Maggiore
 
 196 
 
 ITALY. 
 
 and the Lake of Como, sent a lateral branch to the tortuous bed of the Lake of 
 Lugano, and finally, after a course of from 100 to 120 miles, debouched upon the 
 plain of Lombard}'. The glacier of the Oglio was small in comparison with it, 
 but it was exceeded by that of the Adige, the most considerable of all on the 
 southern slope of the Alps. This river of ice, from the mountaias of the 
 Oetzthal, where it originated, to its terminal moraine to the north of Mantua, 
 had a length of 175 miles. One of its branches descended towards the east, down 
 
 Fig. 57. — The Serra of IrKEA axd the Axciext Glacier Lakes of tub Dora. 
 From the SardiDian Staff Map. Scale 1 : 250,000. 
 
 the valley of the Drave, as far as where the town of Klagenfurt now stands. Its 
 main stream filled up the cavity of the Lake of Garda, pushing along a formidable 
 rampart of elevated moraines. 
 
 The hand of man is scarcely able to make an impression upon the vast accumu- 
 lations heaped up by the action of the glaciers. The hills of Solferino, of Cavriana, 
 and Somma Campagna, so often named in connection with battles, are nothing but 
 debris brought down from the flanks of the AIjds, and they were much higher 
 formerly than they are now.
 
 TEE BASIN' OF THK PO. 
 
 197 
 
 Some of the erratic blocks were as largo as houses, but, being used as quarries, 
 they are fast disappearing. One of them at Pianezza, at the mouth of the 
 Susa valley, is 80 feet long, 40 feet broad, and 46 feet high, and a chapel has 
 been built upon it. The huge erratic blocks in the hills between the two arms of 
 the Lake of Como have supplied materiiJs for the monolithic columns of the 
 churches and palaces in the enWrons. The slopes of the hiUs of Turin facing the 
 Alps are likewise covered with erratic blocks. 
 
 "When the glaciers retired into the upper valleys of the Alps, the soil which 
 they covered was left bare, and the depressions now occupied by the beautiful 
 
 Fig. 68. — A.NCIENT Lakes of Veuhaso. 
 
 lakes of Lombardy were revealed. These depressions, whose bottom even now 
 sinks down below the level of the ocean, were formerly arms of the sea, in 
 character very much like the fiords of Norwaj'. That such was the case is proved 
 by the presence, in every one of the Lombard lakes, of a sardine (the agone), 
 which naturalists consider to be a sea fiah. In Garda Lake, moreover, there still 
 dwell two marine fishes which have adapted themselves to their new condition of 
 life, as well as a small marine shell-fish. 
 
 The number of these Alpine lakes was much larger formerly, and those 
 which still exist .shrink from year to vear. In Upper Piemont alluvial deposits 
 have long ago filled up the lakes, and there now only remain a few pools of
 
 198 
 
 ITALY. 
 
 water to indicate their site. The first sheets of water to which t'le term " lake" 
 may fairly be applied are met with on both banks of the Dora Baltea (see 
 Fig. 57). The little basin of Candia and the shallow Lake of Azeglio, to the west 
 and east of the river, are the only remains of Lacus Clkms, which covered an area 
 of several hundred square miles until its waters broke through the semicircular 
 terminal moraine which bounded it on the south. The Dora Baltea formerly 
 escaped from this lake in the south-cast, its present course only dating from the 
 fourteenth century. 
 
 Fig. 59. — The Upper Extremity of the Lake of Como. 
 Scale 1 : 148,000. 
 
 
 '\^. 
 
 The dotted tract has become dry land fince 1833. 
 
 Since this reservoir has been drained, the first lake of importance in the west 
 is that of Verbano, very inappropriately called Lago Maggiore, or the " principal 
 lake," as that of Garda exceeds it in extent. Ancient beaches, at an elevation of 
 1,300 feet above the sea, prove that the waters of the lake have considerably 
 subsided, and that its area was much larger formerly ; and it curiously ramified 
 with neighbouring lake basins, now merely connected with it by rivers. The 
 ancient moraine at the foot of this lake, and through which the Ticino has exca- 
 vated itself a passage, still rises ti a height of 980 feet.
 
 THE BASIN OF THE TO. 
 
 199 
 
 Centuries elapsed l>efore the changes whicli we now perceive were accom- 
 plished. Still they proceeded at a sufficiently rapid rate. Even now the allu- 
 vium carried down by the Ticino and the Maggia continually encroaches upon 
 the Lago Maggiore. Seven hundred years ago the \-illage of Gordola stood on 
 the shore of the lake : it is now nearly a mile away from it. The landing-places 
 of Magtidino, at the mouth of the Ticiuo, have to be continually shifted, for the 
 lake retires steadily. Only sixty years ago barges were able to receive their 
 cargoes at a wharf nearly half a mile higher up than the present one. The Gulf 
 
 Fig. 60. — Section of the Xortiierx Portiox of I.ake Coxo. 
 Scale 1 : 35,000. 
 
 Fig. 61. — Sectios of the L.\ke of Lbcco, xeab the Blfvecaiios. 
 Scale 1 : S5,000. 
 
 Fig. 62. — LoxornrDDTAL Sectiox of Laxb'Coho. 
 Horizontal scale 1 : 50,000. Vertical scale 1 : 500,000. 
 
 11 
 
 of Locarno is gradually being separated from the main sheet of water by alluvial 
 deposits brought down by the ifaggia. 
 
 The Lario, or Lake of Como, which rivals the ilaggiore by its beauty, is 
 likewise being gradually silted up. In the time of tie Romans the navigation 
 extended as far as Summolacus (lake-head), the modem Samolaco. But the 
 torrent of Mera gradually converted most of the upper extremity of the lake into 
 an alluvial plain, whilst the alluvial deposits carried down by the Adda cut oflf 
 the remainder from the main body of water. There now remains only the Lacus
 
 200 ITALY. 
 
 Bimidiatus, or Lake of Mezzola, which is shrinking from year to year, and will 
 finally disappear altogether. The miasmata rising from the swamps at the mouth 
 of the Adda have frequently depopulated the environs, and the ruined fort of 
 Fuentes, at the mouth of the river, built to defend the Val Tellina, was hardly 
 ever more than a hospital for its fever-stricken garrison. 
 
 The south-eastern arm of the lake, that of Lecco, through which the Adda 
 makes its escape to the south, has likewise been divided into a series of separate 
 basins. Nature, which would convert these lakes into bottom-lands at no distant 
 date, is being aided here by the works of man. The barrier which obstructed the 
 free egress of the Adda has been cleared awaj', the structures of fishermen have 
 been removed, and, in consequence of these and other engineering measures, the 
 once-dreaded rises of the lake have been reduced to a minimum, and the southern- 
 most of the lake basins, that of Brivio, has been converted into dry land. The 
 large Lake of Brianza, which extended formerly far to the south-west, has like- 
 wise been partially drained, and there now remain only a few lakelets of small 
 extent. 
 
 "We know sufficient of the bottom of the Lake of Como to enable us to judge 
 of the manner in which it is becoming gradually filled up with alluvium. The 
 mud deposited in its northern portion has filled up all the original inequalities of 
 the soil, and even in the centre of the lake, and in its south-eastern arm, the 
 bottom is almost a perfect level. In the Como arm, however, which receives no 
 tributarv river of any importance, the bottom is still full of inequalities. These 
 differences amply prove to us the geological agency of the rivers, which must 
 terminate in the lake being converted into a bottom-land, with a river flowing 
 through its centre. The third of our diagrams (Fig. 62) shows that the greatest 
 depth now hardly exceeds 1,300 feet, whilst, if we may judge from the slopes of 
 the hills which bound it, the depth in former times cannot have been less than 
 2,300 feet. 
 
 The Sebino, or Lake of Iseo, and the lakelet of Idro, which are fed bj' the 
 glacier streams of the Adamello, exhibit the same features as the lakes farther to 
 the west. The Benaco, or Lake of Garda, however, the most extensive of these 
 Alpine lakes, is very stable as regards its outline and the configuration of its 
 bottom, a fact sufiiciently explained by the small size of its tributary streams as 
 compared with its vast area. The old Alpine lakes of the Venetian Alps have 
 disappeared long ago, and there remain only a few ponds, filling cavities in the 
 dolomitic rocks and peat bogs, to indicate their ancient sites.* 
 
 * Italian Alpine lakes having an area of more than five square miles : — 
 
 Name. 
 Late of Orta 
 
 Verhano, or Lsgo Maggiore 
 Lake of Varese . 
 Ceresio, or Lake of Lugano 
 Lario, or Lake of Como 
 Sebino, or Lake of Iseo 
 Lake of Idro 
 Benaco, or Lake of Garda . 
 
 Average Area. 
 
 Average Altitude Depth 
 
 Feet. 
 
 Capacity. 
 
 Sq. MUes. 
 
 Feet. 
 
 Max. 
 
 Average. 
 
 Millions of Galls. 
 
 0-4 
 
 1,122 
 
 820 (?) 
 
 490 (?) 
 
 462,000 
 
 81-4 
 
 646 
 
 1,230 
 
 690 
 
 9,680,000 
 
 6-2 
 
 771 
 
 85 
 
 33 
 
 35,200 
 
 19-3 
 
 889 
 
 950 
 
 490 
 
 1.. 584,000 
 
 60-2 
 
 663 
 
 1,352 
 
 810 
 
 7,700,000 
 
 23-0 
 
 646 
 
 980 
 
 490 
 
 1 980,000 
 
 .5-4 
 
 1,240 
 
 400 (?) 
 
 (?) 
 
 CO 
 
 iis-s 
 
 226 
 
 960 (r) 
 
 490 
 
 9,900,000
 
 THE BASIX OF THE PO. 
 
 201 
 
 These lacustrine basius, like all other reservoirs of the same kind, regulate the 
 outflow of the torrents which empty into them. During the freshets they store 
 up the superabundant waters, and only part with them in the drj' season, and 
 upon their difference of level in different seasons depend the oscillations of the 
 emissary rivers which issue from them. In the case of the Lake of Garda, which 
 drains but a small area in proportion to its size, this diflFerence is small, and 
 throughout the year the pellucid waters of the Mincio flow tranquilly beneath the 
 
 Fig. 63. — Villa Sbbbblloni, on the Pskinscla op Bbilaoio, Laeb op Como. 
 
 blackened ramparts of Peschiera. .Such is not the case as regards either the Lago 
 Maggiore or the Lake of Como, for the volume of water discharged into them 
 is so considerable that their level in summer and winter varies to the extent 
 of several yards, and corresponding differences may be observed in the rivers 
 issuing from them. Lake Como rises no less than 12 feet, and increases 
 70 square miles in area, whilst the Lago Maggiore sometimes rises 22 feet, and
 
 202 ITALY. 
 
 increases to tlie extent of one- fifth. The volume of the Tieino, when at its highest, 
 almost equals the average volume of the Nile, and if it were not for the regulating 
 influence of the lake from which it issues, it would alternately convert the plains 
 of Lombardy into a sheet of water and leave them an arid tract of land.* 
 
 The Alpine lakes of Italy thus play an important part in the economy of 
 the country. They render the climate more equable, serve as high-roads of 
 commerce, and, being the centres of animal life, attract a dense popvdation. But 
 it is not this which has rendered these lakes famous, which has attracted thou- 
 sands of wanderers ever since the time of the Romans, and caused villas and 
 palaces to rise on their shores : it is their incomparable beauty. And, indeed, 
 there are few spots in Europe which bear comparison with the delightful Gulf of 
 Pallanza, over which are scattered the Borromean Islands, or with the peninsula 
 of Bellagio, which may be likened to a hanging garden suspended within sight 
 of the snow-clad Alps, and affording a prospect of the rock-boimd shores of the 
 Oomo Lake, cultivated fields, and numerous villas. Perhaj)s even more delightful 
 is the peninsula of Sermiono, jutting out into the azure waters of the Garda Lake, 
 like the tender stalk of a flower developing into a many-coloured petal. 
 
 Most of the lakes in the plain have been drained into the neighbouring rivers. 
 The Lake of Gerondo, mentioned in mediaeval records, has dwindled down into a 
 small swamp, or most, now, and its populous island of Fulcheria has become merged 
 in the plain of Lombardy. The lakes on the southern bank of the Po, above 
 Guastalla, have likewise been drained ; and if the two shallow lakes of Mantua 
 still exist, this is entirel}"^ due to the embankments raised in the twelfth century. 
 It would have been much better, and would have saved the city the horrors of 
 many a siege, if these lakes had been allowed to disappear likewise. 
 
 The lagoons along the Adriatic have decreased in extent in the course of 
 centuries, and whilst new lagoons are being formed, the old ones are gradually 
 being converted into dry land. The old maps of the Venetian littoral difier 
 essentially from our modern ones, and yet all the vast changes they indicate have 
 been wrought in the course of a few centuries. The swamps of Caorle, between 
 the Piave and the Gulf of Trieste, have changed to an extent which prevents us 
 from restoring the ancient topography of the country ; and if the lagoons of Venice 
 and Chioggia exhibit a certain permanence of contour, this is only on account of 
 the incessant interference of man. The ancient lagoon of Brondolo has been dry 
 land since the middle of the sixteenth century. The large lagoon of Comacchio, 
 to the south of the Po, has been cut up into separate portions by alluvial embank- 
 ments formed by the agency of rivers and torrents. For the most part it consists 
 now of val/i, or alluvial deposits, but there still remain a few profound cavities, or 
 chiari, which the rivers have not yet succeeded in filling up. Formerly these 
 
 * Volume of Adda and Tieino at their point of egress from the Alpine lakes, according to Lom- 
 bardini : — 
 
 Adda. — Average -6,600, minimum .567, maximum 29,000 cuTiic feet per second. Tieino. — Average 
 11,400, minimum 1,770, maximum 77,400 cubic feet per second.
 
 THE IJASIX OF TIIR TO. 
 
 208 
 
 Fig. 04. — nEEcii ANMi Pine Woods of Kavenna. 
 So lie t: 2 4"0,<iOO. 
 
 lagoons exlcnded far (o the south in ihe direction of Ravonnu, and, according to 
 Strabo and other ancient writers, 
 that ancient city once occupied a 
 site very much like that of Venice 
 or Chioggia in our own days. 
 
 There can be no doubt that these 
 lagoons were anciently separated 
 from the Adriatic by a narrow strip 
 of land over 120 miles in length, 
 and similar to what we still meet 
 with on the coasts of Carolina and 
 of the Brazils. This ancient barrier 
 still exists in the luli of Venice and 
 Comacchio, which are pierced at 
 intervals, admitting the vivifying 
 floods of the open sea. Elsewhere 
 the traces of this ancient beach 
 must be looked for on the mainland. 
 The low delta of the Po is traversed 
 from north to south by a range of 
 dunes constituting the continuation 
 of the lidi of Venice, and extend- 
 ing into the swamps of Comacchio, 
 where they form a natural embank- 
 ment running parallel with the 
 coast. These dunes, between the 
 Adige and Cervia, are covered with 
 sombre pine woods, replaced here 
 and there by oaks. The underwood 
 mainly consists of hawthorns and 
 juniper-trees, and wild boars still 
 haunt it. 
 
 No sooner have the lagoons pro- 
 tected by these barriers been con- 
 verted into dry land than the sea 
 seizes upon the sand, and forms it 
 into new curvilinear barriers similar 
 to the former ones. The principal 
 range of dunes to the east of 
 Ravenna, which is about 20 miles 
 in length, and varies in width 
 between ofl and 3,300 yards, has 
 thus two other ranges of dunes 
 running parallel with it, one of them being still in course of formation . Signer 
 
 ezza S3 iLZD 
 
 rine ^Vuods. E^wumpe. litecb.
 
 204 ITALY. 
 
 Pareto has estimated the annual advance of the land at 7| feet, and at much more 
 near the mouths of rivers. 
 
 The sea thus marks by a series of barriers its successive recoils. Sometimes, 
 liowever, the sea gains upon the land in consequence of a gradual subsidence of the 
 Venetian shore, the cause of which has not yet been elucidated. Thus the gravel 
 bank of Cortellazzo, opposite the swamps of Caorle, appears to have anciently 
 been a lido which has sunk nearly 70 feet below the level of the sea. The islands 
 which fringed the littoral of Aquileja during the Middle Ages have almost wholly 
 disappeared. In the time of the Romans these islands were populous ; there 
 were forests and fields upon them, and the inhabitants built ships. The chronicles 
 of the Middle Ages tell us that the Doge of Venice and the Patriarch of Aquileja 
 hunted stags and wild boars upon them, much to the scandal of the inhabitants. 
 At the present day the dunes Avhich of yore protected these islands have almost 
 wholly disappeared, the forests have been supplanted by reeds, and Grado is 
 the only place on the littoral which may still boast of a certain number of inha- 
 bitants. Piers, walls, mosaic i^avements, and even stones bearing inscriptions, 
 which are found occasionally at the bottom of the sea or of swamps, prove that 
 the mainland was formerly more extensive there. Farther to the west the 
 littoral of Venice bears evidence of a similar subsidence. Artesian wells sunk in 
 the city of the lagoons have led to the discovery of four beds of turf, the deepest 
 no less than 420 feet below the level of the sea. The subterranean church of 
 St. Mark has within historical times been converted into a submarine church, and 
 streets and buildings are gradually sinking beneath the waters of the lagoons. 
 If it were not for the alluvium brought down by the rivers, the sea would con- 
 tinually encroach upon the land. Ravenna, too, participates in this subsidence, 
 which Signer Pareto estimates to amount to 0-60 inch in the course of a century. 
 
 Amongst the geological agents constantly at work to modify the surface of the 
 earth, the rivers and torrents irrigating the plain lying at the foot of the Alps are 
 the most active, and no other country of Europe, HoUand alone excepted, can 
 compare in this respect with Northern Italy. 
 
 The torrent of Isonzo offers one of the most striking instances of these geo- 
 logical revolutions. It is said to have formerly communicated through subter- 
 ranean channels with the Istrian Timavo, and that its existence as a separate river 
 does not date very far back. Ancient writers do not enumerate the Isonzo amongst 
 the rivers flowing into the Adriatic. It is first mentioned in a document of the 
 sixth century as a river irrigating some inland valley. On Peutinger's Table we 
 meet with a station, Ponte Sonti, far to the east of Aquileja, and near the sources 
 of the Timavo. The chronicles are silent with respect to the peripatetics of this 
 river, but a careful examination of the surrounding hills justifies the assumjDtion 
 that the valley of Tolmein, on the Upper Isonzo, was formerly a lake which over- 
 flowed towards the north-west through the narrows of Caporetto, and that its 
 pent-up waters found their way through the Natisone into the Adriatic. Subse- 
 quently they opened themselves a passage to the south, and another lake was
 
 THE BASIN OF THE PO. 
 
 205 
 
 formed at the confluence of Isonzo and Wippach. This Like communicated by 
 subterranean channels with the Timavo, but it has now disappeared, and the Isonzo 
 flows directly into the sea, its bed wandering continuously towards the east. The 
 alluvium carried down by this river has formed the peninsula of Sdobba, and 
 joined several old isLinds to the mainland. 
 
 The Tagliamcnto is even a more active geological agent than its neighbour just 
 beyond the frontier. The debris deposited at the mouth of the narrow gorge in 
 which it rises covers many square miles of a once fertile plain. In summer its 
 ■waters trickle through these accumulations of shingle, but after heavy rain the 
 river is converted into a powerful torrent several miles in width, and all the more 
 formidable as its bed lies higher than many parts of the surrounding country. 
 The Meduna and Zelliue, to the west of the Tagliamcnto, are equally destructive, 
 
 Fig. Go. — Shingle Beds of the Tagmamento, the Medvxa, and Zeli.ixe. 
 From the Austrian Staff Slap. Scale 1 : 290,000. 
 
 Shingle Beds. Meadows. Pasturea. 
 ^-^^^_^— ___^ 5 Miles. 
 
 and an extensive tract at their confluence is covered with shingles. Lower down, 
 in the lagoons, these torrents have thrown up huge embankments of sand on either 
 side of their ancient beds. The alluvium brought down by these torrents to the 
 sea is in every instance deposited to the west, a circumstance accounted for by the 
 direction of the coast current. 
 
 The Piave, the most considerable river to the east of the Adige, is likewise a 
 most active geological agent, converting fertile fields into sterile shingle tracts, 
 filling up swamps, and carrying large quantities of matter into the sea. At its
 
 206 ITALY. 
 
 mouth the land gains rapidly upon the sea, and Heraclea of the Yeneti, now 
 known as Cittanova, which was a seaport once, at the present time lies far inland. 
 
 The Piave was formerly supposed to have changed its bed in the same manner 
 as the Isonzo. Below the Capo di Ponte, a wild defile in the Dolomite Alps, the 
 Piave flows towards the south-west, past Belluno, and lower down is joined by the 
 Cordevole. It was, however, supposed that the river originally flowed through the 
 valley of Rai, immediately to the south of the Capo di Ponte, and that the Meschio 
 and Livenzo constituted its lower course. Earthquakes or landslips were supposed 
 to have created a barrier across that valley, and the small lakes still seen there were 
 looked upon as remains of the ancient river bed. But M. de Mortillet has shown 
 
 Fig. 66. — The supposed Old Bed of the Piave. 
 From the Austrii.n Staff Map. Scale 1 : 550,000. 
 
 /fci?' I 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 i 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 ln.Mil,,s. 
 
 
 
 
 that this hypothesis is untenable, for the barrier referred to is mei'ely the moraine of 
 an ancient glacier, and there exist no traces whatever of landslips. 
 
 At the same time it cannot be doubted that extensive changes have taken place 
 in the basin of the Piave. Thus in 1771 the course of the Cordevole, its most 
 important tributary, was obstructed for a time by a landslip which carried the 
 verdant terraces of Pezza down into the valley. Two villages were destroyed, and 
 two others overwhelmed by the rising floods of the river. 
 
 The Brenta, which rises in the beautiful Sugana valley of the Tyrol, has at all 
 times been a source of anxiety to the Venetians on account of its irregularities. 
 Formerly it entered the lagoons at Fusina, and its alluvium filled up the canals
 
 THE BASIN OF THE PO. 
 
 2U7 
 
 and infected the air. The Paduaus and other inhabitants of the lowlands were 
 anxious to divert it by the most direct course into the lagoons, so as to 
 avoid inundations, whilst the Venetians were solicitous to get rid of a river whicu 
 threatened to fill up their lagoons and render them insalubrious. These conflict- 
 ing interests gave rise to numerous ware. The possession of the coast became a 
 question of existence to the Venetians, and no sooner had they obtained it than 
 
 Fig. 67. — The Lagoons of Venicb. 
 
 Sc;ae 1 : S»<,000. 
 
 they set about "regulating" the Lower Brenta. By means of two canals, the 
 Brenta Nuova, or Brentone, and the Brenta Nuo^•issima, the river was conducted 
 right round the lagoons to the port of Brondolo, a few miles to the north of the 
 Adige. But the river, whose course had thus been considerably lengthened, 
 gradually filled up the bed in its upper course, and it was found impossible to
 
 203 ITALY. 
 
 confine it witliin its lateral embankments. They were broken through by the 
 floods no less than twenty times between 1811 and 1859, and, as the channel of 
 the river became more and more choked, a more frequent recurrence of such 
 disasters was naturally expected. It was then resolved to shorten the course of the 
 river to the extent of ten miles, by diverting it into a portion of the lagoon of 
 Chioo-o-ia. The danger of irruptions has thus been averted for a time, but the 
 fisheries of Chioggia have been completely destroyed, and fever is a frequent visitor 
 in the towns of the littoral. 
 
 There can be no doubt that but for the efforts of the Venetian engineers the 
 lagoons of the Lido, Malamocco, and Chioggia would long ago have been con- 
 verted into dry land. Venice has at all times been aUve to the necessity of 
 preserving its precious inland sea. The Venetian engineers were not content with 
 turning aside the torrents which formerly poui-ed their waters into the lagoons ; 
 they have also, by means of canals, moved the mouths of the Sile and Piave to the 
 east, thus securing the ports of the Lido from the dreaded alluvium of the rivers. 
 They even conceived the gigantic project of a huge encircling canal for the inter- 
 ception of all the Alpine torrents between the Brenta and Isonzo. This project, 
 however, has never been carried out. The debris carried southward by the coast 
 current has silted up the port of the Lido, which was abandoned towards the close 
 of the fifteenth century, when a new military port was constructed eight miles 
 farther south, at the canal of Malamocco, and it is now protected by a pier 
 extending 7,200 feet into the sea. 
 
 The torrents which descend from the slopes of the Apennines to the south 
 of the delta of the Adige and Po are as erratic in their course as those of 
 Venetia. The Trebbia, the Taro, and other rivers irrigating the districts of 
 Piacenza and Parma only cross a narrow plain between the mountains and the Po, 
 and do not much modify the topography of the country. But this cannot be said 
 of the rivers flowing through the vast plains of Modena, Bologna, Ferrara, and 
 Imola. They are constantly changing their beds, and the remains of embank- 
 ments met with all over the countr}' prove that all efforts to confine them pei-ma- 
 nently have proved abortive. Modena itself was once destroyed by the floods of the 
 Secchia. The Tanaro, the Reno, and other rivers flowing towards the north-west, 
 either into the canal encircling the lagoons of Comacchio or direct into the 
 sea, all have a history attached to them ; they are blessed for their fertilising 
 alluvium, cursed on account of their destructive floods. One of them, probably 
 the Fiumicino, is the famous Rubicon which bounded the Italy of the Romans, 
 and which was crossed by Ca?sar when he pronounced the fatal words, "Alea 
 jacta est." 
 
 The Reno is the most erratic, the most dangerous of all these Apenniue rivers. 
 The bed of debris deposited by it in the plain measures 20 miles across from east 
 to west. Its volume varies between 35 and 49,500 cubic feet a second, according 
 to the season, and its bed is in places no less than 30 feet above the adjoining 
 country. The destruction of the forests has augmented the danger of its inunda- 
 tions. The engineers, puzzled by its irregular floods, have proposed the most
 
 TlIK ]'.ASIX OF TlIK I'd. 
 
 209 
 
 opposite plans for suliduiiii;- lliis k'rriblo scourge. Tlie river Las been turaed 
 into the I'o ; then eastward, direct into the sea. Recently it has been i)roposed to 
 divert it to the lagoons of Comacchio. But all these diversions uro attended 
 with disadvantages, and whilst the inhabitants of one district congratidate them- 
 selves upon having got rid of so troublesome a neighbour, those of another complain 
 of its inundations, see their fisheries destroyed, and their navigation interfered 
 widi. 
 
 liombardiiii, the famous hydraulic engineer, has shown liow wo may discover 
 the places to which the soil of the lowlands of Emilia has been conveyed by the 
 toi-rents, and trace the ancient shores of the lagoon of Padua, now converted into 
 dry land. A truvellcr following tlie I'lmilian causeway from Cesenu to Bologna 
 
 Fig. 68. — Colonies of the Ro.m.vn Ykteuans. 
 Scale 1 : 35P,000. 
 
 can hardly help noticing the quadrangular fields on bis right, all of them of the 
 same size. Looked at from the spurs of the Apennines, the plain resembles a huge 
 draught-board, the squares of which are covered alternately with verdure and 
 ripening crops. We learn from the topographical majis that these fields are 
 exactly of the same size, and thei-e can be no doubt that we have here before us the 
 fields which, according to Livy, were taken from the Gauls and distributed amongst 
 Roman militarj' settlers. A sinuous line marks, in the direction of the Po, the 
 shore of an ancient lake. The rectangular fields, laid out by the cadastral sur- 
 vcj'ors of ancient Rome, cease there, and wc find ourselves again amidst the usual 
 labyrinth of ditches and tortuous roads. This lake has been filled up long ago by 
 the debris brought down by the torrents, 
 vol.. I. p
 
 210 ITALY, 
 
 The Po, proportionately to the area it drains and its length, has undergone 
 fewer changes than either the Piave or the Reno, but looking to the populous 
 cities which line its banks, and to the fertility of its fields, the least of these is of 
 some importance. 
 
 The torrent fed by the snows of Monte Viso is usually looked upon as the head 
 stream of Father Po, as the ancient Romans called the river ; but the Mastra, 
 Varaita, and Clusone are quite equal to it in volume, and feed as many canals of 
 irrigation. Indeed, these canals would quickly drain the Po if it were not for a 
 bountiful supply of snow-water brought down by the Dora Riparia, the Stura, the 
 Orca, and the Dora Baltea from the glaciers of the Alps. Lower down, the Po 
 receives the Sesia from the north, and the Tanaro, which is fed by streams rising 
 in the Apennines and the Alps. Then comes the Ticino, by far the most impor- 
 tant tributary of the Po, " without which," as the river fishermen say, " il Po non 
 sarcbbe Po." 
 
 The Po, after its junction with the Ticino, exhibits no longer the features of a 
 mountain torrent ; the pebbles have been triturated into the finest dust, and no 
 piled-up masses of debris are met with along its banks. If it were not for its 
 dykes, or argini, it might spread itself freely over the plain. These artificial 
 embankments rival those of the Netherlands, and date back to the most remote 
 ao-es. Lucian refers to them as if they, had existed from time immemorial. 
 Durino- the great migration of peoi^les they were allowed to decay, and only in the 
 course of the ninth century were measures taken to restore them. In 1480 the 
 "•reat work had been achieved. Its importance maj^ be judged from the fact that 
 these embankments protect 3,000,000 acres of the most fertile land, yielding 
 annually more than £8,000,000 sterling's worth of agricultural produce. Most 
 of the towns have been built upon artificial platforms or terraces, and up to the 
 beginning of this century they have never been known to suffer from floods ; but 
 whether owing to the devastation of the forests or to the closing up of all breaches 
 in the dykes, the floods rise higher now than they did of j'ore, and it has been 
 found necessary to throw up embankments around Revere, Sarmide, Ostiglia, 
 Governolo, Borgoforte, and other places. 
 
 Continuous embankments begin at Cremona, and they extend not only along 
 both banks of the Po, but also along the lower course of its tributaries. The main 
 dykes have a length of nearly 650 miles. In addition to these there are smaller 
 dykes traversing the space between these /roh/i, or main dykes, in all directions, 
 and enclosing willow plantations, fields, a;d even vineyards. In fact, the river 
 extends to the foot of the main dykes only in a few localities. It is ordinarily 
 only 650 to 1,600 feet wide, whilst the dykes are several miles apart, to allow the 
 river to spread during the inundations. The land thus lying within the dykes has 
 been divided by the \allagers into (jolenc, and is protected by smaller dj'kes against 
 ordinary floods. The rules laid down for the construction of embankments have 
 been drawn up in the general interest, and are sufiiciently precise, but they are not 
 always observed. The old system, embodied in the dreadful proverb, " Vita mia, 
 morte tua," is not yet qiiite extinct. Formerly the peasants were in the habit of
 
 DE LTA 
 
 H°| 8o- £ of Cf . 
 
 Engr bv Erhard 
 
 LONDON. J
 
 THE PO 
 
 -.^^ raile 
 
 
 Vulle 
 djpl Mazuno 
 

 
 THE BASIN OF TlIK TO. 
 
 211 
 
 crossing over to the other bank, juul deliberately eutting llirougli the embankments 
 there, thus saving their own crops by ruining their neighbours'. 
 
 The width of the bed of inundation enclosed between these embankments 
 grows less in proportion as we descend tho river, and in the case of the arms of 
 the delta does not exceed 900 to l.OOO feet. This is not sufficient to eiuiblo the 
 waters to escape during extraordinary floods, when they sometimes rise 2o and 
 even 30 feet. JJesides, it frequently hajipens that the villagers fail to keep the 
 embankments in thorough repair, and sometimes entire districts are ruined because 
 the mole-tracks were not stopped up. A breach in the embankment, unless 
 
 Fig. GO —The Po iietween Piacenza Avp Ciiemona. 
 From the Austrian St,ifl Map. Realc 1 ; a25,(K)0. 
 
 K-wJEurOwmw 
 
 H- 
 
 lit" 
 
 
 
 le; 
 
 
 CoAal/Sigtmc 
 Qutelnovo 
 f ^ 
 
 / ♦ 
 
 lit 
 
 
 ^ 
 
 j^^L^ 
 
 ^M 
 
 
 
 .i 
 
 du 
 
 ^^^^H 
 
 g^sf® 
 
 
 a: 
 
 
 bUcSm 
 
 ^^^ 
 
 ""n^ 
 
 
 
 »>■ 
 
 / 7 
 
 ^ xv~^ /^^^/ 
 
 / y^V.dJen 
 
 zoj* 
 
 tS> 
 
 s- 
 
 »01 
 
 bo|- 
 
 1.V 
 
 
 
 E38 czsi sa ^ E=a 
 
 Meadows. Swamps. Woods. Uice-tields. Canals and 
 Dykes. 
 
 quickly filled up, produces untold misery. The crops are destroyed, tho villages 
 levelled with the ground, the soil is torn up and carried oflP, and the inhabitants 
 are swept away by famine and its fearful attendant, typhus fever. These great 
 floods of the Po and the earthquakes of Calabria arc the two plagues of Italy. In 
 1872 1,200 square miles between the Sccchia and tlie sea were converted into a 
 lake. Two years afterwards there still remained pools of water. 
 
 In these great disasters the inhabitants arc afforded an opportunity of exhibiting 
 their valour, and it is always the most energetic who succeed in protecting their 
 property from being washed away by tho floods. During the flood just referred 
 
 r 2
 
 212 ITALY. 
 
 to, tlic inhabitants of the little town of Ostiglia fought successfully with the 
 rising waters, whilst many of their neighbours succumbed. The town stands close 
 to the froMo, and there is no second line of dykes to protect it. The dyke 
 threatened to give way. The inhabitants at once set about throwing up a second 
 barrier. All the able-bodied men of the place, 4,000 in number, turned out to 
 work, headed by their mayor. They worked day and night, and, as the floods 
 carried away the old dyke, the new one rose in its rear. The victory was won ; the 
 floods retired, and their houses were safe. 
 
 Some of these breaches in the dykes have led to permanent changes in the 
 course of the river, and these divagations have been most considerable in the delta. 
 During the time of the Romans, and up to the thirteenth century, the Po di Volano 
 was the principal branch of the river, whilst now it has dwindled down to an 
 insignificant ditch which can hardly be traced through the swamps of Comacchio. 
 Two other branches, farther to the south, are used now as carriage roads. In the 
 eighth century the Po di Primaro, which enters the sea to the north of Ravenna, 
 took the place of these old channels. Another bifurcation ensued in 1152, 
 when the embankment at Ficcarolo was destroyed, it is said, by the people living 
 above that town, and the main channel of the river, the Maestra, deserted the 
 walls of Ferrara in the midst of its swamps, and united itself with the channels of 
 the Adige. Breaches in the embankments usually take place in October or 
 November, and generally at the same places. The danger is always greatest at 
 Corbola, where the Po di Maestra bifurcates. 
 
 The Adige is quite as great a wanderer as the Po. Scarcely has that river left 
 its defile, or chiusa, of calcareous mountains and the fortifications of Verona than it 
 begins its erratic course over the plain. In the time of the Romans the Adige 
 flowed much farther to the north, along the foot of the Euganean Hills, and entered 
 the sea at Brondolo. In 587 the river broke through its embankments, and its main 
 branch took the direction which it maintains up to the present day, entering the 
 sea at Fossone. But new channels opened repeatedly towards the south, until the 
 Adige and Po conjointly formed but one delta. The Polesina of Rovigo, between 
 the two rivers, and that of Ferrara, are low tracts of alluvial land. The courtyard 
 of the Castle of Ferrara, which occupies one of the most elevated sites in these plains, 
 is nine feet lower than the highest level of the Po when flooded. 
 
 The frequent inundations caused by the Po and the numerous changes of its bed, 
 by spreading the alluvium all over the country, have raised the whole of the plains 
 to about the same level. But now, when all the arms of the Po are confined within 
 embankments, most of the alluvium brought down by the floods is deposited on the 
 coast of the Adriatic. The land, therefore, gains much more rapidly upon the 
 sea than it did formerly. The series of dunes marking the ancient shore now lies 
 fifteen miles inland, and the new land formed annually is estimated at 280 acres. 
 In exceptional years the quantity of solid matter carried by the river into the sea 
 amounts to 3,531,000,000 cubic feet; on an average it is 1,623,000,000 cubic feet, 
 sufiicient to form an island ten square miles in area in ten feet of water. The Po, 
 next to the Danube, is the most active geological agent amongst all the rivers
 
 THE BASIN OF THE PO. 213 
 
 entering the Mediterranean.* Tlic libonc is inferior to it, und so is the Nile. At 
 the present rate of progress, the Po, in the course of a thousand years, will throw a 
 tongue of land six miles wide across the Adriatic, converting the Gulf of Trieste 
 into an inland sea. 
 
 Xorthern Italy, in addition to these numerous rivers, possesses one of the most 
 extensive systems of canals in the world, which has served as a pattern to all the 
 rest of Europe. Lombardy, portions of Picmont, the Campagna of Turin, the 
 I^omellina on the Ticino, and the Polesinas of Ferrara and Eovigo possess a 
 wonderful ramification of irrigation, which carries fertile alluvium to the exhausted 
 fields. In the Middle Ages, when the remainder of Europe was still shrouded in 
 darkness, the Lombard republics already practised the art of irrigation on the 
 vastest scale, and drained their low-lying plains. Milan, after she had thrown off 
 the yoke of her German oppressors, towards the close of the twelfth century, con- 
 structed the Ndfiylio Gramle, a ship canal derived from the Ticino, thirty miles 
 distant — probably the first great engineeiing work of the kind in Europe. In the 
 beginning of the thirteenth century the superabundant waters of the Adda were 
 utilised in filling the Muzza Canal. The same river, at a subsequent period, was 
 made to feed another canal, the Martesana, which was constructed by the great 
 Leonardo da Vinci. The art of surmounting elevations of the ground by means of 
 locks had been discovered by Milanese engineers about a century before that time, 
 and was applied to the construction of secondary canals. Amongst works of more 
 recent date are the miviglio from Milan to Pavia ; the Cavour Canal, fed by the Po, 
 below Turin ; and the Canal of Verona, derived from the Adige.f 
 
 Not only the rivers of Northern Italy, l)ut also the springs, ov fontanelle, however 
 small, which burst forth at the foot of the Alps, are utilised for purposes of 
 irrigation. Virgil alludes to these springs in his Bucolics, where he says, 
 " Children, stop the water ; the meadows have drunk enough." Lombardy 
 is indebted to these springs for her fine prairies, or marcite, which .sometimes 
 yield eight crops a year. The great Adriatic plain has indeed imdergone vast 
 changes through the work of man. Originally it was a swamp siu-rounded by 
 forests and heaths, but is now one of the best-cidtivated countries of Europe. 
 One of its great features consists in plantations of mulberries, the uniformity of 
 which is relieved in many districts — and especially in the Brianza of Como, that 
 
 * Principal rivers of Xorlhem Italy :— 
 
 I-en(* h. Arci of Basin. Volume in Cub'c Feet per Second. 
 
 Allies. Sq. Miles. Maximum. Minimum. Avemge. 
 
 Isonzo .... 80 1,235 — — 4,240? 
 
 'I'Hgliamento .... 105 SCO — — 6,300 P 
 
 Livenz.i 72 795 25,400 — 1,400? 
 
 Piave 134 2,010 — — 11,300 
 
 Sile 37 640 1.550 350 700 f 
 
 Brenta 105 1,510 30,000 137 1,930 
 
 Baech'glione .... 74 187 320 — 1,270 
 
 Adige 246 8,648 85,000 70 16,950 
 
 Po 416 20,799 182,500 550 60,700 
 
 Reno 112 1,9.!0 63,500 35 8,300 
 
 t Average volume of tlie canals of the valley of the Po (cubic feet per second) : — Muzza, 2,153 ; 
 Naviglio Grande, 1,800; Canal Cavoui-, 1,482; Martesana, 918 cubic feet.
 
 214 ITALY. 
 
 gardeu of Italy — by groups of tall trees, little lakes, and sinuous valleys. There 
 still remain extensive heaths covering the moraines of ancient glaciers, which 
 become more and more sterile from year to year ; but the engineers are consider- 
 ing schemes for irrigating them by means of the fertilising waters of the Alpine 
 lakes. 
 
 The irrigated area in the valley of the Po nearly amounts to 5,000 square 
 miles, and the water it absorbs everj' second is estimated at ?5, 000,000 cubic 
 feet, equal to about one-third of the volume of the Po. If the proposed works 
 of irrigation are carried out, the Po, which now plays so important a part in the 
 economy of the country by its floods and alluvial deposits, will be reduced to 
 the dimensions of a small river. 
 
 The evaporation from the numerous rivers and canals of the country fills the 
 air with moisture. Rains are less frequent than on the Atlantic coasts of England 
 and France, but the clouds, driven by southerly winds against the cool slopes of 
 the Alps, discharge themselves in torrents. The quantity of rain that falls in the 
 upper Alpine valleys equals that of the most humid districts of Portugal, the 
 Hebrides, and Norway, and the rainfall in the plains of Lombardy is equal to that 
 of Ireland. The annual rainfall in the basin of the Piave is estimated at five feet, 
 exclusive of what may evaporate or be absorbed by plants. These rains are not 
 confined to certain seasons, though it has been observed that they are most 
 abundant in May and October, and least so in February and July.* 
 
 As regards the direction of the winds, the great plain bounded by the Apen- 
 nines and the Alps resembles an Alpine valley, the winds either blowing up it 
 from east to west, or in an inverse direction. The winds descending from the 
 Alps rarely bring rain, for they have deposited their moisture on the western 
 slopes, but those coming from the Adriatic are generally charged with moisture. 
 Nevertheless, owing to the great extent of the plains and the numerous breaks in 
 the mountain chains, this rule is frequently interfered with. In the Alpine valleys 
 the ascending and descending currents are far more regular, and the navigators on 
 the lakes fully avail themselves of this circumstance. 
 
 The forty-fifth degree of north latitude intersects the valley of the Po, but the 
 climate, nevertheless, is not as mild as might be expected from this circiimstance, 
 and the range of temperature is great. In the Val Tellina the temperature some- 
 times rises above 90°, and frequently falls below freezing point. In the plain the 
 climate is less austere, but it is notwithstanding continental in its character ; and 
 Turin, Milan, and Bologna are for this reason the least pleasant cities of Italy to live 
 in. A few favoured spots on the Alpine lakes, such as the Borromean Islands, are 
 an exception to this rule, and enjoy an equable climate, thanks to the moderating 
 influences of a vast expanse of water. In the Gulf of Pallanza the thermometer 
 never falls below 40° F., and we must go as far as Naples if we would meet with 
 a climate equally favourable to vegetation. Venice, too, is a privileged spot, 
 thanks to the ^^cinity of the Adriatic, and is healthy, too, in spite of the lagoons 
 
 * Humidity of the air at Milan, 74-5 per cent. ; annual rainfall at Milan, £8 8 in. ; at Turin, 31-8 in. ; 
 at Tolmezza, on the Upper Tagliamento, 82-3 m.
 
 THE l^ASIX OF THE TO. 216 
 
 whicli sunouiul it. It is reinurkablo that thcso brackish lakes uiid swamps of 
 Northern Italy do not give riso to the dreaded malarial fevers. Venice undoubtedly 
 owes its healthiness to the tides, which are higher there than in the Tyrrhenian 
 Sea, and perhaps, also, to the cold winds descending from the Alps. Cumacchio, too, 
 is a healthy place, and young natives of the I'olesina sufl'eiing from consumption 
 are sent there to recover their health. Wherever the engineers have cut up tho 
 connection between the lagoons and the open sea, marsh fever has made its 
 appearance. The swamps of Ravenna and Cervia breed malignant fevers, especially 
 where avaricious landowners have cut down tho protecting rows of pines and oaks. 
 A heavy niiasmal air hangs likewise over tho environs of Fcrrara and Malalbcrgo, 
 at the head of the I'aduan delta. 
 
 Tho Alpine valleys are tho most unhealthy spots of Xorthcrn Italy, for they 
 are deprived of sunlight. Goitre and idiotcy arc frequent there, and in the valley 
 of Aosta nearly all the women are alllictcd with tho former, owing, perhaps, to the 
 water which flows over niagncsiau rocks. The inhabitants of districts traversed 
 by numerous canals suffer from diseases traceable to miasmal eiUuvia. The food of 
 the peasantry is not sufficiently nourishing or varied to counteract these deleterious 
 influences, and many die of yellaijrc, an incurable skin disease, only known in coun- 
 tries where the flour of maize, in the diluted form oi poknfa, constitutes the principal 
 article of food. In the province of Cremona one in every twenty-four inha- 
 bitants is afflicted with this malady. The sanitary condition of the people is even 
 worse in the rice-fields of Milan and the Polesina. The women there frequently 
 stand for hours in tepid putrefying water, and aro obliged from time to time to 
 pick ofl'the leeches which creep up their legs.* 
 
 Eut in spite of maladies, misery, and famines, always fiUowing in tho train of 
 the inundations, the fertile plain of tho Po is one of tho most densely peopled 
 portions of Europe. Every plot of ground there has been utilised. The forests, 
 very much reduced in size, harbour no game, except, perhaps, on the Alpine slopes, 
 and even small birds are rare. Not ovUy snipes, quails, and thrushes are shot or 
 trapped, but also nightingales and swallows. TschuJi estimates the number of 
 singing birds annually killed on the shores of the Lago Maggiore at GO.OOO; and 
 at Bergamo, Verona, Chiaveuna, and IJrescia they are slain by millions, tho nets 
 being spread in the hedges of every hill, 
 
 Tho population of the valley of tho Po is composed of tho most diverse 
 elements. Amongst its ancestors were Ligurians, probably the kinsmen of our 
 Basks ; Etruscans, famous for their works of irrigation ; Gallic tribes, whose 
 peculiar intonation is still traceable in the rural Latin spoken in Northern Italy ; 
 and Celtic Ombrians, the most remote of all, and looked upon by historians as tho 
 aboriginal inhabitants of the country. 
 
 The German invasions during the first centuries of our era have left a perma- 
 
 • 5Ie:<n annual temperature of Turin, 53-10' F.; hottest month (April), "SIS"; coldest month 
 (Janiiar)-), 33-10'. Milan: mean, Uor; July, 7l-8t°; January, 23-2C'. Venice : mean, 65-52' F. ; July, 
 2506' ; January, 35-28'.
 
 216 
 
 ITALY. 
 
 nent mnrk upon the population of Nortliern Italy. The many tall men met with 
 in the valley of the Po are proofs of this TransaliDine influence. The Goths and 
 Yandals, Herulians and Longohards, or Lomhards, soon became merged in the 
 latinised masses, but their position as conquerors and feudal lords gave them au 
 influence which their mere numbers would not have insured them. The ancient 
 history of Lombardy is a continual struggle between the towns and these feudal 
 lords, and as soon as the latter had been defeated — that is to say, about the 
 beginning of the tenth century — Geraaan was superseded everywhere by Italian. 
 
 Fig. 70. — The Gekm.vx Commixes of Noutheun It.ii.y. 
 Scale 1 : 650,000. 
 
 Family and topogi'aphical names of Lombard origin arc very common on the left 
 bank of the Po, and as far as the foot of the Apeninnes. Marengo, for instance, is 
 a corruption of the German Mehring. 
 
 This German influence upon manners and language has been most enduring in 
 the Friuli, or Furlanei, a district bounded by the Adriatic, the Carniolan Aljjs, and 
 the plateau of the Karst, or Carso. The Friulians were even looked upon as a 
 distinct race, though their ancestors, like those of most Italians of the north, were 
 Latinised Celts. Frequent intermarriages with their Slovenian neighbours con-
 
 THE 15ASIX 01' Till'; PO. 
 
 217 
 
 trilmtid ill some measure to produce a type distinct from tluit of Venice orTrevIso. 
 The number of these Friuliuns still speaking their own dialect does not now exceed 
 50,000 souls. 
 
 Amongst the numerous German colonies of which traces have been f> mud in 
 the plains of Northern Italy and on the southern slopes of the Alps, the " Thirteen 
 Communes" to the north of Verona, and the " Seven Communes " in the deep 
 valleys to the north-west of IJassinio, arc the most considerable. The homines 
 
 I'igr. 71. — JIoNTE UosA, AS srEX riioM Oaicouo. 
 
 Ti'iifoiiici of these two districts arc supposed to be the descendants of tlie Cimbrians 
 defeated by Marius, and blue eyes and fair hair still prevail amongst them, but in 
 all other respects tlioy resemble the Italians of the plains, and only a few old 
 women amongst them still talk the language of their ancestors, which is said to 
 resemble the dialect spoken on the Tegcrn Lake, in Bavaria. Nor were they 
 the champions of German authority on Italian soil. On the contrary, they wei-e 
 charged by the Eepublic of Venice with the defence of the northern frontier, and
 
 218 ITALy. 
 
 have always valiantly auquitted themselves of this duty. In return, they were 
 granted self-government and exemption from military service. But neither the 
 Repuhlic of Venice nor Austria was able to protect these German colonies against an 
 invasion of the " "Welsh " or Italian element, and there do not now exist any non- 
 Italian communities to the east of the great lakes. To the north of Piemont, however, 
 in the valleys descending from Monte Eosa and in the valley of Pommat, where the 
 Toce forms one of the most beautiful waterfalls, German colonies still maintain 
 their gromid. They, too, would long ago have lost their language were it not for 
 the support they receive from the Germans occup3ung the Swiss valleys on the 
 northern slopes of the Alps. Alagna,. or Olen, one of these German villages, 
 preserved its ancient customs until quite recently. For centuries there had been 
 no lawsuit there ; contracts, testaments, and other legal documents were unknown ; 
 and everything was regulated by " custom ; " that is, by the absolute authority of 
 the heads of flimilies. 
 
 The French element is far more numerous on the Italian slope of the Alps than 
 the German. The inhabitants of the valley of Aosta, between the Grand Paradis 
 and the Monte Eosa, of the upper valleys of the Dora Eiparia, C'luson, Pelice, 
 and Yaraita, speak French, and are of the same origin as the Savoyards and 
 Dauphinois on the western slope of the Alps. The configuration of the ground 
 has facilitated this pacific invasion of the western Celts, numbering about 120,000 
 souls. They descended from the passes, and occupied the whole of the forest and 
 pastoral region down to the foot of the hills, the last mountain defile, in many 
 instances, forming their boundary. But the French language is steadily losing 
 ground, for the official language is Italian, and every village has ah-eady two 
 names, of which the modern Italian one is used by preference. The Yaudois, or 
 "\Yaldenses, in the valleys of Pelice (Pellis) and Cluson, above Pinerolo (Pignerol), 
 alone resist this Italianisation with a certain amount of success, for they have a 
 literature and history, and are held together by strong religious ties. Their sect 
 was persecuted as early as the thirteenth century, long before the Eeformation, and 
 ever since, until their final emancipation in 1848, they have struggled against 
 adversity. Many times it was thought they had been exterminated, but they 
 always rose again, and in history they occupy a rank far out of proportion to their 
 small numbers. 
 
 The bulk of the population are engaged in agriculture, which need not be 
 wondered at if we bear in mind the fertility of the soil, the abundant supply of 
 water, and the improvements effected in bygone ages. The labour invested in 
 every kind of agricultural improvement, such as canals, embankments, terraces, or 
 ronchi, built up like steps on the slope of every hill, has been immense, and defies 
 computation. The mode of cultivation, moreover, entails a vast amount of labour, 
 for the peasant knows not the iron plough, but tills his field with the spade : he is 
 a gardener rather than an agriculturist. The agricultural produce is immense ; 
 its annual value is estimated at £80,000,000 sterling, and it furnishes large quan- 
 tities for exportation. Cereals, forage, mulberry leaves and cocoons, vegetables 
 and fruit, and cheese, including the famous Parmesan, are the principal products.
 
 TIEE B.VSIX OF THE PO. 219 
 
 Lombanly and riemont occupy the first rank in the wurld for cerUiin kinds of 
 agricultural protluce, and they are almost the only countries in Kurope in whith 
 rice, introduced in tho beginning of the sixteenth century, is extensively grown. 
 The vineyards, on the other hand, arc not as carefully tended as they might be, 
 and the wines, with the exception of those of Asti, Monferrato, San Colombano, 
 and Udine (the pico/i/o), are of small repute. 
 
 The valley of the Po divides itself into several well-marked agricultural 
 provinces. In the Alpine valleys, between Col di Tenda and ilonte Tricorno, the 
 greater portion of the forests and pastures is held in common, but nearly every 
 mountaineer is likewise the free proprietor of a bit of meadow or land, which his 
 labour has converted into a garden. The social condition of these mountaineers 
 thus resembles that of the French peasiintry ; for they, likewise, enjoy the advan- 
 fciges of a minute division of the land amongst freehold proprietors. The hilly tracts 
 along the foot of the mountains are divided into farms of moderate size. Tho 
 peasant no longer owns the land, but, in accordance with old feudal customs, he 
 shares in its produce. In the plain, where it is necessary to keep up a complicated 
 system of canals, nearly all the land belongs to rich capitalists, who cut it up into 
 numerous small farms, and for the most part reside in the towns. These small 
 farmers have no resources of their own, and are hardly above tho rank of agricul- 
 tural labourers. Though they cultivate the most fertile region of Xorthern Italy, 
 they are miserably fed, frequently decimated by disease, and least alive to tho 
 advantages of education. The contrast between these miserable peasants and the 
 mountaineers of Vaudois and the Val TcUina is great indeed. 
 
 Periodically many of the mountaineers migrate to the towns and neighbouring 
 countries in search of work, and a proverb tells us that there is no country in the 
 world " without sparrows or Bergamosks." But though the natives of the hills of 
 Bergamo furnish a numerous contingent of these migrants, they are outnumbered 
 by Friulians, inhabitants of the shores of tho Lago Slaggiore, and Piemontese. 
 The latter cross the passes of the Western Alps in large numbers in search of 
 work at Marseilles and other towns of Southern France, and, small wages sufficing 
 for their frugal wants, they are not particularly liked by their French fellow- 
 workmen. 
 
 The metallic wealth of Xorthern Italy is but small. The only mines of note 
 are those which formerly supplied the famous armourers of Brescia with iron, and 
 the gold diggings of Anzasca, at the foot of Monte Kosa, where 5,000 slaves were 
 kept at work by the Romans, and which are not yet quite exhausted. Marble, 
 gneiss, granite, potters' clay, and kaolin are, however, found abundantly. In 
 former times silks, velvets, carpets, glass, porcelain, metal-work, and other art 
 productions of the workmen of Venice and Lombardy enjoyed a very high reputa- 
 tion. These ancient industries decayed with the downfall of the old republics, 
 but there are signs now of their revival. The want of coal or other fuel for setting 
 in motion the machinery of modern factories is compensated for, to some extent, 
 bj' an abundant water power, and this explains why nearly all the importiint 
 manufactories are met with at the debouchures of the .iVJpinc valleys.
 
 220 
 
 ITALY. 
 
 Amongst tlie ancient industries of the country not yet extinct, the fisheries of 
 the lagoons of Comacchio occupy a foremost phice. The Canal of Magnavacca, 
 now hardly navigable, admits the waters of the sea into the Canal Palotta, which 
 may be described as the great artery of these lagoons. It was constructed in 
 1631 — 34, and, by an ingeniously designed system of ramifying canals, carries the 
 vivifying floods to the most remote parts of the lagoons. The various basins, 
 or ralli, of the lagoons are thus filled with sea-water, and constitute as many 
 
 Fi,n'. 72. — The Lagoons of Comacchio. 
 
 .Sc:ile 1 : 20o,fKjO, 
 
 /^^^ 
 
 ,, 
 
 <nr i 
 
 - - A 
 
 ^ 
 
 ^^£^~ "'' 
 
 •^ 1| 
 
 ^^*^"/;^- ; 
 
 
 m^m^'^ 
 
 breeding beds, where the fish come from the sea multiply abundantly. A labyrinth 
 of canals provided with flood-gates cuts off their retreat to the sea, and they are 
 caught in immense numbers when the fishing season arrives. Spallanzani has seen 
 00,000 pounds of fish taken in a single bed, or rallc, within an hour ; but some- 
 times the draught is even more considerable, and the fish are actually used as manure. 
 The fishing population of Comacchio numbers about 5,000 individuals, most of 
 them distinguished by tall stature, great strength, and suppleness. Coste, the 
 fish-breeder, mentions it as a curious fact that this secluded colony of fishermen
 
 THE BASIN OF THE TO. 
 
 221 
 
 should have retaiued these characteristic features for centuries, though sustained 
 exL-lusivcly by fishing, and living upon mullets, eels, and acqitadelle. Unfortunately 
 these fishermen are not the proprietors of the ponds, for they belong to the State 
 or to rich private individuals. The workmen live in large barracks away from the 
 town, to which they return only at stated intervals, and even their wives and 
 relatives arc not permitted to visit tliem in their places of exile. 
 
 Fig. 73. — The FisiiEiiiEs or C'umacciiiu. 
 Scale 1 : 7S,000. 
 
 
 1)1 LIDO 
 
 The enormous population of the valley of the Po, which almost equals that of 
 the remainder of continental Italy, is very unequally distributed ; but, except in 
 the high and cold Alpine valleys, the inhabitants live in towns, dozens of which 
 may be seen peeping out amidst the verdure if we ascend a high tower. There 
 are scarcely any villages or hamlets. The farmers alone live in the country, 
 completely isolated from each other, whilst the numerous landed proprietors throng 
 the towns, and impart to them an aspect of wealth which similar places in other
 
 222 ITALY. 
 
 parts of Europo cannot boast of. No otber countrj' in tlic world is as densely 
 popidated, and in Lombardy the number of towns is relatively larger tiian any- 
 where else.* 
 
 Lar^T-e towns, too, are miraeroiis, and many of them enjoy a deserved reputation 
 amono-st the cities of the world on account of their monuments, art treasures, and 
 historical associations. Their number is partly accounted for by the density of the 
 population, and by the facilify with which the inhabitants were able to shift their 
 abodes, according to the hazards of war or the vicissitudes of events. And this 
 accounts, too, for the large number of towns which became famous as the capitals 
 of republics, or as royal and ducal residences. 
 
 Several of the towns at the base of the Alps occupy sites marked out for them 
 by nature. Such are the towns at the months of the valleys or defiles, which were 
 places of defence as well as staples of commerce. Ariminum, the modern Ilimini, 
 nt the southern extremity of the great plain of the Po, was one of these, for during 
 the reign of the Roman it defended the narrow littoral passage between the 
 Adriatic and the Apennines. The Flaminian Road there reached the sea, the 
 Emilian Road thence departed for the north-west, as did also the littoral road of 
 Ravenna. When Rome had ceased to be the capital of the world, and Italy was 
 divided into small hostile states, the towns in the southern part of the plain, 
 or near the passes over the Po, such as Ferrara and Bologna, retained their 
 strateo-ical importance. Piacenza, which defends the passage of the Po between 
 PiemoJit and Emilia, remains a first-rate fortress to the present day ; Alessandria, 
 near the confluence of the Tanaro and Bormida, and in a plain famous for many 
 a bloody battle, was likewise destined to become a formidable fortress, though 
 derisively called a " city of straw." Every valley debouching from France or 
 Austria was locked at its mouth by a strong fort ; but most of these places, such as 
 Vinadio, Pinerolo, Fenestrella, and Susa, have become imtenable, owing to the 
 range of modern artillery. 
 
 The defences of the road over the Brenner, ever since the downfall of the 
 Roman empire, had to be looked to most carefully, for the plain between the 
 Mincio and the Adige, to the south of the Lake of Garda, is the least-protected part 
 of Italy from a military point of view. History has proved this. Well might 
 the peaceable inhabitants of the plain consecrate this Alpine road to the gods, and 
 intrust its defence to the neighbouring tribes. But the northern barbarians were 
 not to be stopped by altars ; and many a time they swept down it like an avalanche, 
 pillaging the towns and massacring the inhabitants. No spot on the earth's surface 
 h;)s been so frequently saturated with human blood. Most of the battles for the 
 possession of Italy, down to our own days, were fought near the mouth of the 
 upper valley of the Adige. Hardly a town or a village of this small district but 
 
 
 Area, Square Miles. 
 Dec. 31st, 1875. 
 
 Population. 
 
 Density. 
 
 riemont . 
 
 11,308 
 
 2,995,213 
 
 265 
 
 Lomtardy 
 
 9,084 
 
 3,553,913 
 
 391 
 
 Venice . 
 
 9,060 
 
 2,733,406 
 
 302 
 
 Emilia 
 
 7,921 
 Total 37,373 
 
 2,153,381 
 
 272 
 
 
 11,435,913 
 
 306
 
 THE BASIN OV THE I'O. 
 
 223 
 
 has gained a mournful notoriety in the dark pages of liinnun history. It is there 
 we must seek for the battle-fields of Castiglione, Lonato, Rivoli, Sulferino, aud 
 Cuslozza. AVhen the Austrians held Lombardy and Venice, they took caro to 
 protect this district by the four fortresses known as the Quadilatcral (Verona, 
 I'eschiera, Mantua, and Legnago) and other works. These constituted the "key 
 of the house," of which Italy has now repossessed herself. 
 
 The configuration of the country which rendered these defiles of the Alps 
 of importance strategically, likewise insured their commercial importance. The 
 fortresses were placed there to defend the passes, the commercial entrepots to 
 
 Fij;. 74.~MoiTii OK THE Adioe Vallfy. 
 From the Austriaa Staff ILip. Scale 1 ; 397,000. 
 
 Marstee. KS» Rjc GeUs 
 
 , 10 SlUes. 
 
 intercept the trade. The rank of these places of commerce depends essentially 
 upon the number and the importance of the roads which converge upon them. 
 Turin, upon which converge all the Alpine roads from Mont Blanc to the 
 Apennines, naturally became one of the vital points of European commerce. 
 Milan, to which lead the seven great Alpine routes of the Simplon, the Gotthard, 
 the Bernardino, the Spliigen, the Julier, the Maloya, and the Stelvio, was marked 
 out by nature as a commercial emporium. Bologna, too, which was separated by 
 the swamps of the Po from the Alpine passes, has risen into importance sinco 
 railways have joined it to Vienna, Paris, Marseilles, and Naples.
 
 224 
 
 ITALY. 
 
 The valley of the To would never have attained its importance in the history 
 of Europe unless roads had been constructed for traversing the obstructive moun- 
 tains which surround it on all sides except towards the east, where it opens out 
 upon the Adriatic. No other district of Europe is so completely hemmed 
 in by natural obstacles as is this, but the construction of carriage roads and railways 
 has converted Northern Italy into one of the great centres of European commerce. 
 Venice gives it the command of the Adriatic, the Apennine railways connect it 
 with Genoa, Savona, the Gulf of Spezia, and the Tyrrhenian, and it thus commands 
 the two seas which wash the shores of Italy. Other railways cross the Alps, and 
 put it into communication with France and Germany. This central position, 
 joined to the natural fertility of the country, has converted Northern Italy into one 
 
 Fig. 75. — The Passages over the Alps. 
 Scale 1 : 6,000,000. 
 
 of the most flourishing portions of Europe. Human hands have conquered 
 original geographical disadvantages, and the true centre of Italy is in the ancient 
 Cisalpine Gaul, and not at Rome. Had the Italians been guided in the choice of 
 their capital by actual importance, and not by historical tradition, they would 
 have chosen one of the great cities of their northern plain. 
 
 Turin, though an old town, seeing that it was burnt by Hannibal, is never- 
 theless a modern city, if we compare it with other towns of Italy. Its straight and 
 broad streets almost give it the appearance of a town of the New World. Until 
 made a ducal residence, Turin was but a small provincial town. During the time of 
 the Romans, and even during the Middle Ages, the great high-road between Italy 
 and Gaul led along the coast of the Gulf of Genoa. The passage of the Alps 
 was looked upon with dread by travellers. Still some traffic went on even in these
 
 THE BASIN OF THE TO. 225 
 
 early days, and small towns sprang into existence at the foot of each Alpine 
 pass. Amongst these were Mondovi, the triple town built on three hills ; Cuueo, 
 favourabh' placed upon a terrace between the Stura and Gesso, in which rise 
 the hot sulphur springs of Valdiera ; Saluzzo, on the gentle slope of the foot- 
 hills of Monte Viso ; Pinerolo, with its ancient castle, so often converted into a 
 prison of state ; Susa, the Italian key of Mont Cenis ; Aosta, still abounding in 
 Roman antiquities ; Ivrca, built on a site formerly occupied by a glacier 
 descending from Monte Rosa ; and Riella, with its flourishing woollen industry. 
 The towns lower down in the plain, upon which several of these Alpine roads 
 converged, likewise attained some local importance. In Upper Piemont there are 
 Fossano, on a heap of shingle at the junction of the roads of Mondovi and Cuneo ; 
 SaNngliano, lower down, where the roads of the Po and Maira valleys join ; and 
 Carmagnola, which commands one of the principal roads over the Apennines. 
 Novara, the commercial outlet of the Lago Maggiore, and in the midst of one of 
 the most productive agricultural districts, is the most populous town of Eastern 
 Piemont. Tercelli, on the Sesia, and below the confluence of the rivulets descend- 
 ing from Monte Rosa, enjoys natural advantages similar to those of Xovara. 
 Casale, the ancient capital of Monferrato, defends one of the principal passages of 
 the Po. 
 
 But Turin, owing to its favourable position, has become the great emporium 
 of the valley of the Upper Po. Its commerce has grown immensely, since the 
 town no longer enjoys the perilous honour of being the capital of a kingdom, 
 and the places vacated by the court and Government officials have been filled up 
 quickl}' by immigrants carried thither by the railways. Its libraries, a fine 
 museum, and various learned societies entitle it to rank as one of the intellectual 
 centres of the peninsula, whilst its manufactures of silks and woollens, of paper 
 and other articles, are of great importance. The environs of Turin are delightful. 
 From the hill of the Superga, a few mUes to the east of the city, and crowned by 
 a sumptuous church, may be enjoyed one of the finest panoramas of the Italian 
 Alps. The numerous small towns in its vicinity, such as Moncalieri, Chieri, and 
 Carignano, abound in villas and participate in the prosperity of the capital. As 
 to the towns in the valley of the Tanaro, in the south, thej' form a group apart, 
 and are the natural intermediaries between the valley of the Po and the port of 
 Genoa. Alessandria, a strong fortress of hideous regularity, which has superseded 
 the old fortresses of Tortona and Xovi, is the terminus of eight railways, and one 
 of the busiest places of Italy. The neighbouring cities of Asti, famous for its 
 sparkling wines, and Acqui, celebrated from the time of the Romans for its hot 
 springs, are likewise important for their commerce.* 
 
 Milan, the capital of Lombardy, is in every respect one of the leading cities of 
 Italy. In population it is inferior to Naples, in commerce it is outstripped only 
 
 • Population of the principal towns of Piemont (1871) :— Turin, 192,442; Alessandria, 29,102; 
 Kovara, 24,185 ; Vcreelli, 20,626; Casale Monferrato. 20,436; Asti, 19,466; Xovi Ligure, 12,162; 
 Mondovi, 11,958; Cuneo, 11,859; Pinerolo, 11,832; Biella, 11,814; Saluzzo, 9,796; SavigUano, 9,544 ; 
 Bra, 9.196; Alba, 9,147; Chieri, 8,986; Tortona, 8,620, Acqui, 8,332; Fossano, 7,272; Cann'airnolai 
 3,830.
 
 226 ITALY. 
 
 by Genoa, but in industry it is the equal of both. Its scientific and literary life 
 entitles it, probably, to the first rank amongst the cities between the Alps and Sicily. 
 In the most remote times Milan was an important town of the Celts, and since 
 then the advantages of its position have given it the preponderance amongst all 
 other cities of Northern Italy. Its power during the Middle Ages gained it the 
 epithet of the " Second Rome." At the close of the thirteenth century it had 
 200,000 inhabitants, whilst London had not then a sixth of that number. Milan 
 stood in want of water, for it was dependent upon the feeble stream of the Olona, 
 and its citizens created the Naviglio Grande and the Martesana, veritable rivers, 
 which furnish a quantity of water double that of the Seine at Paris during 
 summer. They likewise erected magnificent monuments, but most of these have 
 perished during innumerable wars, and the aspect of Milan is now that of a 
 modern town of Western Europe. Its most famous building, the " Duomo," with 
 its prodigious crowd of statues, its finely chiselled marbles and granites, must be 
 looked upon as a marvel of architecture, though from an artistic point of view it is 
 hardly more than an elaborately carved trinket out of all proportion. The stones 
 for this edifice were quarried on the Lago Maggiore, near the mouth of the Toce. 
 
 The capital of Lombardy, proud of the past and confident of the future, boasts 
 of never yielding servilely to impulses given from beyond. It has its own opinions, 
 manners, and fashions, and anything accepted from abroad is moulded in accord- 
 ance with local traditions. The other towns of Lombardy likewise maintain their 
 local character, are proud of their traditions, and glory in the annals of the past. 
 Como, on the beautifid lake named after it, the ancient rival of Milan, gains 
 wealth by spinning silk and exporting the agricultural produce of the Brianza. 
 Monza, surrounded by parks and villas, is the coronation city. Pavia, with its 
 525 towers, now in. ruins, remembers the time when it was the residence of 
 the Lombard kings, and proudly points to the imiversity, one of the oldest in 
 Europe, and to the Certosa (Chartreuse), one of the most sumptuous monasteries 
 of Italy. Vigevano, on the other side of the Ticino, rejoices in a fine castle. Lodi, 
 in the eleventh century, was the most powerful city of Italy next to Milan, and 
 carried on a war of extermination with the latter ; it is still a busy place. 
 Cremona, an old republic, boasts of its torrazzo, or tower, 393 feet in height, the 
 loftiest in Europe until Gothic cathedrals were built. Bergamo, on a hill com- 
 manding the rich plains of the Brembo and Serio, produced a larger number of 
 great men than any other town except Florence ; and Brescia, the armourers' 
 to-mi, more haughty still, proclaims herself to be the mother of heroes. 
 
 Mantua, on the Mincio, is one of the fortresses of the Quadrilateral, and can 
 hardly be said to belong to Lombard}^, though included within its political bound- 
 aries. It is essentially a military town. It has lost much of its old commerce, 
 though Jews are more plentiful there than in any other inland city of Italy. Its 
 swamps, woods, rice-fields, ditches, and fortified canals are productive of a degree 
 of humidity exceptional even in Lombardy, and the inhabitants consequently 
 eschew this ancient birthplace of Virgil. Strikingly different is the character of 
 the towns situated in the heart of the mountains, such as Sondrio, the capital of the
 
 THE J5ASIN OF TIIH TO. 
 
 227 
 
 ^'al Tolliiia, or deliglitful Salo, on the Lake of Garda, willi its group of villas 
 scattered amongst groves of oraugc-trces.* 
 
 The physiognomy of the hirgc towns of Emilia, beyond the Po, offers far fewer 
 peculiarities, for, as most of them arc situated along the great Emilian highway, 
 they have been exposed for ages to the levelling influences of travelling merchants 
 and soldiers. Piacenza, a sorry place us a fortress, carries on an important corn- 
 Fig. 76. — The Lakes and Canals op Mantua. 
 From the Austrian Staff Map. Scale 1 : 198,000. 
 
 mm f:5s fm Wi \^ 
 
 iUadowa. Swampa. 'Woods. Kice-flelds. Canals and Dykes. 
 -^— .— ^^^— 2 Miles. 
 
 raerce. Parma, an old ducal residence, has a ricli library, a museum, and 
 wonderful frescoes by Correggio in its churches. Reggio, another important 
 
 • ropulationofthetownsof Lombaray (1871):— Milan (Milano), 261,985; Brescia, 38,006 ; Bergamo 
 34,555; Cremona, 30,919; Pavia, 29,618; Mantua (Mantova), 26,687; Como, 24,350; Lodi, 19,088; 
 Monza, 17,431; Vigevano, 14,096; Busto Arsizio, 12,909; Varese, 12,605; Voghera, 11,903; Trev'iglio,' 
 
 Q 2
 
 228 ITALY. 
 
 station on the Emilian highway, is famous as the birthplace of Ariosto. Modcna 
 has its museum, and the precious collection of books and manuscripts known as the 
 Bibliotcca Edense. Bologna the " Learned," which has taken the word " Libertas " 
 for its motto, still remains one of the most interesting of Italian cities. There are 
 its Etruscan cemetery, its palaces and mediaeval buildings, and its two leaning 
 towers, which will most certainly come down in the end. Bologna is one of the 
 great railway centres, carries on much commerce, and increases rapidly in popula- 
 tion. It would have made a far better capital than Rome. Of late years the 
 environs of the city have been frequently flooded by the Eeno, and these disasters 
 have cost Bologna its ancient epithet of " the Fat." 
 
 Near this bustling place there are others, now stagnant, which can point only 
 to buildings in proof that they, too, were once flourishing, Ferrara, the ancient 
 capital of the Estes, has fallen from its high estate since the Po has deserted it, 
 but still remains a place of some importance. Ravenna has not been deserted by 
 the Po, but by the sea, with which it communicates now by a canal seven miles 
 in length, and navigable for ships drawing thirteen feet of water. The town 
 became the capital of Honorius and Theoderic the Goth, on account of the protec- 
 tion offered by the surrounding marshes. To the exarchs it is indebted for its 
 curious Byzantine edifices, so rich in mosaics. As to the ancient Etruscan city of 
 Adria, on Venetian soil, to the north of the Po, it could hardly have claimed at 
 any period during the last two thousand years to give a name to the neighbouring 
 sea. It lies now at a distance of fourteen miles from it, and even in the time of 
 the Romans it must have been surrounded by lagoons or swamps, for how else can 
 we explain its epithet of " Town of the Seven Seas ? " Porto, at the foot of the 
 Euganean Hills, may owe its name to an ancient lake or river. 
 
 Towns famous on account of their history, and still populous, are most crowded 
 together in the southern angle of the plain, usually known as the Eomagna. The 
 towers and crenellated walls of Imola rise there on the banks of the Santerno. 
 Lugo, the " town of the beautiful Romagnese," occupies the centre of the district 
 of Ravenna, and has much trade. Faenza, on the Emilian Road, is a large village 
 rather than a town, though it has given its name to a particular kind of porcelain 
 (faience). Forli is, next to Bologna, the most populous city of Romagna. Cesena 
 is known for the excellence of the hemp grown in the neighbourhood. Rimini, 
 where the Emilian Road reaches the sea, still has a few Roman ruins, including a 
 triumphal arch. The inhabitants of the Romagna are distinguished bj- great 
 energy. Their passions are violent, and as frequently lead them into crime as to 
 deeds of heroism.* 
 
 In Yenetia there are several provincial towns of importance. Padua abounds 
 in monuments of art, possesses a university, and was formerly the rival of Venice. 
 Vicenza is embellished by the palaces erected by Palladio. Treviso and Belluno 
 are towns of some importance, the one on the Sile, the other in the upper valley 
 
 • Population of the principal towns of Emilia (1S7I) :— Bologna, 89,104 ; Parma, 4i,91o ; Piacenza, 
 34,908; Ferrara, 33,327; Modena, 30,8.54; Faenza, 23,7.52; Ravenna, 21,774; Reggio, 19,131; Imola, 
 IS,1S9; Cesena, 17,594; Forli, 15,324; Rimini, 9,747; Lugo, 8,664; Comacchio, 7,007.
 
 J 
 
 
 j
 
 THE BASIN OF THE PO. 
 
 . 77. — Palmaxova. 
 ScUe 1 : W.11I0. 
 
 of the Piare. At TJdine is pointed out a mound of earth said to have been 
 thrown up. by Attila, from which he coutemphited the conflagration of Aquileja. 
 Palmanora, on the Austrian frontier, is a regularly built fortress. Verona, at the 
 other extremity of Venetia, has played an important part in the history of Italy, 
 but its commerce and industry have fallen into decay. It hardly fills up the space 
 enclosed by walls and bastions, and its present population is quite out of propor- 
 tion to the multitude of its public buildings dating from the Middle Ages, and 
 the dimensions of its Roman amphitheatre, capable of seating 50,000 spectators. 
 Amongst all the cities of Venetia it is Venice itself, the " Queen of the Adriatic," 
 which has suffered least in the course of ages. 
 
 Venice is a very ancient city. The remains of Roman buildings discovered 
 on the island of San Giorgio, far below the present level of the sea, and therefore 
 referred to in proof of the slow subsidence of the Venetian coast, prove to us 
 that the mud islands of the gulf supported a population long before the invasion 
 of the Barbarians. These half-drowned 
 lands may have attracted the coast popu- 
 lation at an early age, for they aflbrded 
 security against attack, and offered great 
 advantages for carrying on commerce. 
 Nevertheless, the Venice of our time only 
 dates from the commencement of the ninth 
 century, when the government of this ma- 
 ritime republic was established upon the 
 islands separated from the sea by the 
 lidi, and from the mainland by estuaries 
 and swamps. This unique position ren- 
 dered Venice almost impregnable ; and 
 whilst the rest of Europe was being deso- 
 lated by war, Venice sent forth its com- 
 mercial and warKke expeditions to every 
 
 part of the Mediterranean, established factories, and built fortresses. Js"ot with- 
 out arduous struggles, it became the most powerful and wealthiest of tho 
 commercial republics of Italy. It was largely indebted for this success to its 
 favourable geographical position, almost in the centre of the mediceval world. Its 
 commerce brought the Venetians into contact with nearly every nation, and they 
 had no prejudices against foreigners. The Armenians were admitted to their city, 
 and an alliance was made even with the Turks. At the time of the Crusades the 
 Venetian Republic occupied the foremost position amongst the states of Europe, 
 and its ambassadors enjoyed a vast amount of influence. This influence was sus- 
 tained by enormous material forces. Venice had a navy of 300 vessels, manned 
 by 36,000 sailors, and the riches of the world, whether obtained by legitimate 
 commerce or by violence, were accumulated in its '2,<l00 palaces and "200 churches. 
 Even one of the islets upon which the city is built would have purchased a 
 kingdom of Asia or Africa. One of the most sumptuous cities of the West had
 
 230 ITALY. 
 
 arisen upou banks of imid, inhabited formerly only by poor fishermen. The larch 
 forests of Dalmatia had been cut down, and converted into piles upon which to build 
 palaces. More than 400 bridges of marble joined Island to island, and superb 
 embankments of granite defended this marvellous city against the encroachments 
 of the sea. Great achievements in the arts contributed their share in making 
 Venezia la Bella a city without its equal. 
 
 But geographical discoveries, in which Venice itself took a leading share, 
 undermined the power of the Italian Republic. When Africa had been circum- 
 navigated and the New World discovered, the Mediterranean ceased to be the 
 great commercial sea of the world. Venice was doomed to die. It no longer 
 monopolized the road to India, and the increasing power of the Turks crippled its 
 Eastern trade. Still, so great were its resources, that it maintained its inde- 
 pendence for more than three hundred years after it had lost its factories, and 
 only fell when shamefully deserted by General Bonaparte, its supposed ally. 
 
 The decadence of Venice was most remarkable during the dominion of Austria. 
 In 1840 the city had less than 100,000 inhabitants, hundreds of its palaces were 
 in ruins, the grass grew in its squares, and seaweeds encvimbcred its landing- 
 places. Since that time it has been gradually recovering. A bridge of 222 arches 
 and 2,000 feet in length connects it with the mainland, and its commerce, though 
 not equal to that of Trieste, is nevertheless of considerable importance.* The 
 manufacture of looking-glasses, lace, and other articles has imparted fresh Life to 
 Venice, and there, as well as in other towns of the lagoons (Malamocco, Burano, 
 Murano, and Chioggia), thousands of workmen are busy in the production of 
 those gay -looking glass beads which find their way into every part of the world, 
 and which in certain countries of the East and in Central Africa take the place 
 of coin. But Venice, though less populous and active than of yore, still rejoices 
 in its delightful climate and its bright skies. Its gaiety and fetes arc not yet 
 thincTS of the past, and its palaces, built in a style half Italian, half Moorish, still 
 contain the priceless masterpieces of Titian, Tintoretto, and Paul Veronese.! 
 
 III. — LlGURIA AXn THE RlVIERA OF GeNOA.+ 
 
 LiGURiA is but a narrow slip of land if we compare it with the broad plain of 
 the Po, but it is one of the most clearly defined districts of Europe, and its inhabit- 
 ants have retained many original traits. The contrast between the Padane plains 
 and the littoral region beyond the barren Apennines is striking, but if we 
 travel in the direction of Provence or of Tuscany the landscape changes only 
 by degrees. The rampart of the Apennines surrounds the whole of the Gulf of 
 
 * Tonnage of vessels which entered and cleared (including the coasting trade) : — 588,095 tons in 
 1865; 1,070,600 tons iu 1875. Value of imports by sea (1874) :— £5,960,200 ; of exports, £2,848,040. 
 
 t Population of the principal towns of Venetia (1871): — Venice (Venezia), 128,901 ; Verona, 65,876; 
 Padua (Padova), 52,011; Vicenza, 26,994; Udine, 22,692; Chioggia, 19,841; Treviso. 18,547; Cavarzere, 
 12,336; Vittorio (formerly called Ceueda), 10,533; Adria, 9,834; Rovigo, 7,974; Feltre, 6,570; Bellimo, 
 5,770 ; Este, 5,743. 
 
 X Area, 2,153 square miles ; population (1871), 843,250 ; density, 391.
 
 LIGURIA AND TUE RIVIERA OE GEXOA. 
 
 231 
 
 Genoa, and there is not a single break in it. These mountains arc very different in 
 character from the Alps, though joined to them as the branch of a tree is united to 
 its trunk. It is not possible to tell where one chain ends and the other begins. If 
 the main direction of the mountain is to be the criterion, the Ligurian Apennines 
 may be said to begin at the frontier of France, near the sources of the Tinea and 
 Vesubio ; but if great height, pastures, and perennial snow are considered sufficient 
 to constitute an Alpine region, then the Apennines only begin to the east of the 
 Col di Tenda, for the fine summits of the Clapier, Fenetre, and Gordalcsque, to the 
 west of that pass, attain a height of 10,000 feet. They are quite Alpine in their 
 character, and maj- boast even of small glaciers, the most southerl}' in the mountains 
 of Central Europe. Geologists usualh- draw the line where cretaceous and tertiary 
 
 Fig. 7S. — The Juxctios of Alps axi> Apkxx'nts. 
 Scale 1 : 1,600,000. 
 
 rocks take the place of the crystalline rocks of the Alps. Lut this, too, is only a 
 conventional division, for these crystalline rocks, which constitute the crest of the 
 Alps in the west, extend f;ir to the east, and occasionally they break through the 
 sedimentary formations which overlie them, and rise into summits similar to those 
 of the Alps. Thus the granitic summits of the mountains of Sj)ezia remind us of 
 the mountain mass near the Col di Tenda. 
 
 The chain of the Ligurian Apennines is by no means of uniform height, but, like 
 that of the Alps, it consists of mountain masses separated by passes. The lowest of 
 these passes is that to the west of Savona, named indifferently after one of the 
 neighbouring villages, Altare, Carcara, or Cadibona. This pass is hardly more 
 than 1,C00 feet in height, and is popularly looked upon as constituting the boundary 
 between the Alps and Apennines. The possession of this pass during war has
 
 232 ITALY. 
 
 always been considered of great importance, for it commands the approaches to 
 Genoa and the upper valleys of Piemont, and the Tanaro and Bormido, which rise 
 near it, have often run with blood. 
 
 The Apennines to the east of this pass have an average height of 3,300 feet, and 
 beyond the Pass of Giovi (1,538 feet), through which the road leads from Genoa to 
 the northern plains, many summits attain a height of 4,500 feet. Several spurs, 
 abounding in ravines, extend here to the north. The main chain, at the same time, 
 retires from the coast, and the Pass of Pontremoli, which separates the Ligurian 
 from the Tuscan Apennines, and through which leads the road from Parma to 
 Spezia, is no less than thirty miles from the sea. In this eastern portion of the 
 Genoese Apennines a spur detaches itself from the main chain, and terminates in the 
 fine promontory of Porto Venere, a magnificent rock of black marble, surmounted 
 formerly by a temple of Venus. This spur, which protects the Gulf of Spezia 
 against westerly winds, has at all times constituted an obstacle to the intercourse 
 between neighbouring peoples, not so much on account of its height, but because 
 of its steepness. In some places the crest of the Apennines is hardly more than 
 four miles from the sea. The slope, in such places, is exceedingly steep, and roads 
 can ascend it only in numerous windings.* 
 
 The small width of the maritime slope of the Ligurian Apennines accounts for 
 the absence of perennial rivers. The most considerable streams to the east of the 
 Roya, which runs for the greater part through French territory, such as the Taggia 
 or the Centa, only assume the appearance of rivers when the snows melt, or after 
 heavy rains. , Ordinarily they are but small streams, closed at the mouth by bars 
 of pebbles. Between Albenga and Spezia, for a distance of 160 miles, there arc 
 only torrents, and in order to meet again with a real river we must go beyond the 
 Gulf of Spezia. This river is the Magra, which separates Liguria from Etruria, 
 and which, up to the epoch of Augustus, formed the boundary of Italy. Its 
 alluvium has converted an ancient bay of the sea into a lake, and formed a beach, 
 1,300 yards in width, in front of the ancient Tyrrhenian city of Luni, w'hich 
 formerly stood on the seashore. 
 
 The want of great rivers in Liguria is compensated for to some extent by sub- 
 terranean water-courses. Several sj)rings rise from the bottom of the sea, at some 
 distance from the shore. The springs of La Polla, in the Gulf of Spezia, are amongst 
 the most bountiful amongst them. They have been isolated by the Italian Govern- 
 ment from the surrounding salt water, and their water is supplied to ships. 
 
 Owing to the absence of rivers, the sterility of the soil, and the steep escarpments, 
 this portion of the Mediterranean coast region contrasts strikingly with other parts 
 of temperate Europe. Having reached the summit of the mountains beyond the 
 magnificent chestnut forests at the head-streams of the EUero, the Tanaro, and the 
 Bormida, we look dowTi upon a scene almost African in its character. Scarcely a 
 blade of grass is to be seen between Nice and Spezia, and only the grass-plots, kept 
 up at great expense in some pleasure-gardens, remind us that Piemont and Lom- 
 
 * Principal altitudes in Liguria :—Clapier de Pagarin, 10,073 feet; Col di Tenda, 6,146 feet; Monte 
 Carsino, 8,794 feet; Col d'Altare, 1,600 feet; Col di Giovi, 1,538 fret; Monte Penna, 5,709 feet.
 
 LIGUEIA AND THE RIVIERA OF GENOA. 233 
 
 bardy are near at hand. Pines and brambles would have remained the only 
 verdure in these Ligurian valleys and ravines it' it were not for tho transformation 
 wrought by gardeners and agriculturists. Strange to say, trees do not ascend to 
 the same height on the slopes of the Apennines as in tho Alps, though the mean 
 temperature is far higher, and at an altitude at which the beech still attains noblo 
 proportions in Switzerland we find it here stunted in growth. Larches are hardly 
 ever seen. 
 
 The sea is as sterile as the land. There are neither shallows, islands, nor sea- 
 weeds affording shelter to fish. Tho cliffs descend precipitously into the sea, and 
 the narrow strips of beach, extending from promontory to promontory, consist only 
 of sand without the admixture of a single shell. The Genoese fishermen, therefore, 
 resort to distant coasts, those of the "Ponente,"or west, going to Sicily, whilst 
 those of Camogli, on the Riviera di Levauto, visit the coasts of Tuscany. This 
 sterility of land and sea accounts for the large number of Genoese met with iu 
 other parts of the world. 
 
 But though an unfruitful country, Liguria is exceedingly picturesque. A 
 traveller availing himself of the railway between Nice and Genoa, which follows 
 the sinuosities of the coast and pierces the promontories in numerous tunnels, is 
 brought within reach of the most varied scenery. At one time the line runs close 
 to the beach, with tho foam of the sea almost touching the track on the one side, 
 while tamarisks bearing pink blossoms overshadow it from the other. Elsewhere 
 we creep up the steep slope, and obtain a view of the cultivated terraces raised at 
 immense labour by the peasantry, whilst the bluish sea is seen afar to the right, 
 almost hidden by a grove of olive-trees, and stretching away until lost in the direc- 
 tion of Corsica. Towns, ^•illages, old towers, villas, ship-yards, and other industrial 
 establishments impart an almost infinite variety to the scenery. One town occupies 
 the top of a hill, and, seen from below, its old walls and towers stand out boldly 
 against the sky ; another is built amphitheatrically, close to the strand upon which 
 the fishermen have drawn their boats ; a third is hidden in a hollow, and sur- 
 rounded by vines, olive, orange, and lemon trees. A date-tree here and there 
 imparts an oriental aspect to the landscape. Bordighera, a small place close 
 to the French frontier, is quite surrounded by palm-trees, whose fruit, however, 
 but rarely ripens. 
 
 The climate of Albenga, Loana, and some other places on the Genoese coast is 
 far from salubrious, on account of the miasmata exhaled by sheets of stagnant 
 water left behind by freshets. Even Genoa cannot boast of an agreeable climate, 
 not because there are marshes near it, but because the southerly winds charged 
 with moisture are caught there by the semicircle of mountains, and are made to 
 discharge their superabundant humidity. The number of rainy days at Genoa 
 averages 121 a year. There are, however, several towns along this coast protected 
 by the mountains against the north, and yet out of the usual track of the moisture- 
 laden southerly winds, whose climate is exceptionally delightful.* Bordighera 
 
 • Average femperature of Genoa, 608' F. ; days with rain, 121; rainfull, 45 iiuhes. Average 
 temjK'rature of San Remo, 62-6 ; days with rain, -15 ; rainfiiU, 3-15 in.
 
 234 
 
 ITALY. 
 
 and San Remo, near the Frencli frontier, are the rivals of Mentone as regards 
 climate • and Nervi, to the east of Genoa, is likewise a favourite place of resort, on 
 account of its clear sky and pure atmosphere. Villas and castles rise on every 
 promontory and in every valley of these favoured districts. For a dozen miles 
 on either side of Genoa the coast is lined by villas. The population of the city 
 has overflowed the walls which once confined it, and is establishing itself in popu- 
 lous suburbs. The long street which winds between factories and gardens, scales 
 promontories, and descends into valleys, will continue to grow in length until it 
 extends along the whole coast of Liguria, for the charms of the country attract 
 men of leisure from every quarter of Europe. 
 
 Fig. 79. — Genoa and its Suburbs. 
 Prom the Sardinian Staff Map. Scile 1 : 100,000. 
 
 MED! T E 
 
 ^ H 
 
 
 y^a- 
 
 "Epbard! 
 
 The historical development of the ancient Ligurians, who were probably of 
 Iberian race, was largely influenced by the nature of the country they 
 inhabited. The cultivable land being only of small extent, the superabundant 
 popidation was forced to look to the sea for a livelihood, and engaged in navigation 
 and commerce. Antium, the modern Genoa, was an " emporium " of the Ligu- 
 rians ever since the time of the Romans, and its vessels frequented every corner of 
 the Tyrrhenian Sea. In the Middle Ages the Genoese flag was carried into every 
 part of the known world, and it was Genoa that gave birth to Christopher Columbus, 
 whose name is inscribed upon the first page of modern history as the discoverer of 
 America. It was a Genoese, too, Giovanni Gabotto, or Cabot, who afresh discovered 
 the coast of North America five centuries after its original discovery by the
 
 LIGURIA AND THE EniEEA OF GENOA. 
 
 285 
 
 Northmen. Tlic hardy mariners of Genoa have thus navigated the seas from the 
 most remote times. Even now they almost monopolize the navigation of the great 
 rivers of the Argentine Republic. The Genoese likewise enjoy a high reputation 
 as gardeners, and are met with in every large town of the Mediterranean. 
 
 As long as the Apennines were not crossed by practicable carriage roads, 
 Genoa possessed no advantages whatever over the other ports of Liguria, but ever 
 since it has been placed in easy communication with the fertile plains of 
 Lombardy and Piemont, the great advantages of its geographical position have 
 
 Fiff. 80.— View of Genoa. 
 
 told upon its development. Pisa was the only republic on the western coa"st of 
 Italy which contested this superiority of Genoa, but was defeated after a sanguinary 
 struggle. The Genoese possessed themselves of Corsica, the inhabitants of which 
 were treated most cruelly ; they took Minorca from the Moors, and even captured 
 several towns in Spain, which they restored only after important commercial 
 privileges had been granted them. In the ^'Egean Sea the nobles of Genoa 
 became the proprietors of Chios, Lesbos, Lemnos, and other islands. At Constanti- 
 nople the Genoese merchants were as powerful almost as the Emperor. Kaffa, in
 
 236 ITALY. 
 
 the Crimea, was one of their wealthy colonies. Their factories and towers were 
 met along every commercial high-road in Asia Minor, and even in the recesses of the 
 Caucasus. The possession of the Black Sea gave them the command of the trade 
 with Central Asia. These distant colonies explain the use of a few Arab, 
 Turkish, and Greek terms by the Genoese, and though the dialect spoken by 
 them is decidedly Italian, the intonation is French. 
 
 Nevertheless Genoa, though more powerful than Pisa, failed in wresting the 
 command of the sea from the Venetians, who enjoyed immense advantages 
 through their connection with Germany. Her political influence has never 
 equalled that of Venice, nor has she produced as many men eminent in Kterature 
 and art as has her Adriatic rival. The Genoese had the reputation in former 
 times of being violent and false, fond of luxury and power, and indifferent to 
 everything which did not enrich them. " A sea without fish, mountains with- 
 out forests, men without faith, women without modesty — thus is Genoa," was a 
 proverb ever in the mouth of the enemies of the Ligurian city. The dissensions 
 amongst the noble families of Genoa were incessant, but the Bank of St. George 
 never allowed civil strife to interfere with business. Wealth flowed into the city 
 without any cessation, and enabled its citizens to construct those palaces, marble 
 arcades, and hanging gardens which have won for it the epithet of la Si(perba. In 
 the end, however, ruin overtook the Bank, and that justly, for it had supplied 
 princes with money to enable them to wage war, and its bankruptcy in the middle 
 of the eighteenth century rendered Genoa politically impotent. 
 
 The capital of Liguria, in spite of its small extent, its sinuous streets, its ramparts, 
 stairs, and dirty narrow quays, may justly boast of palaces equally remarkable for 
 the splendour and originality of their architecture. Many of these magnificent 
 buildings appeared to be doomed to ruin during the decay of the town, but, on the 
 return of more prosperous times, the citizens again devoted themselves to the 
 embellishment of their city. Genoa is the busiest port of Italy.* Its shijjowners . 
 possess nearly half the Italian mercantile marine, and three-fourths of the vessels 
 annually built in Italy are furnished from its ship-yards. The harbour, though 
 320 acres in extent, no longer suffices for the hundreds of sailing vessels and 
 steamers which crowd into it. Nor is it sufiiciently sheltered against the winds, 
 and it has therefore been proposed to construct a vast breakwater far beyond its 
 present limits. Genoa fancies that its interests are not sufficiently attended to by 
 the Central Government. A second railway across the Apennines is urgently 
 demanded, in order to manage the traffic that will be created by the opening of 
 the direct railway through Switzerland, which will place Genoa in direct com- 
 munication with Western Germany. 
 
 In the meantime Genoa is expanding in all directions. Its factories of maca- 
 roni, paper, silks and velvets, soap, oil, jewellery, metal-work, pottery, ornamental 
 flowers, and other objects are ever increasing ; and orrar del Genoes — Genoese 
 
 * Tonnage of vessels which enlered and cleared (including coasting vessels) :— 1861, 1,936,764 ; 1867, 
 2,330,000; 1875, 3,109,796 tons. In the last-named year 3,144 sailing vessels and 970 steamers entered 
 in the coast trade, 1,462 sailing vessels and 860 steamers from abroad.
 
 LIGtnRiA .VXD TRK RmEIlV OF GEXOA. 
 
 287 
 
 industry — is a marvel now, as it was in the Middle Ages. San Pier d'Arenu 
 (Sampierdarena), to the west, has become a veritable manufacturing town. Corui- 
 
 Fig. SI.— TiiK GiLF OF Spbzia. 
 From thr Pardiniin Stiff Mi»p. Scale I : 90,000. 
 
 -:^..a.rf/7~3r 
 
 
 \/ 
 
 'ly 
 
 V 
 
 I.Jiaret 
 
 '^ F. StJlLiTia 
 
 
 Porlcvcncre Vi" 
 
 > 
 
 I . Palmaria 
 
 
 1 dc I . 
 
 gliano, Rivarolo, Sestri di Ponente with its large ship- yards, Pcgli, and Toltri are 
 populous towns, having spinning-mills and foundries. Savona, whose port was
 
 238 ITALY. 
 
 filled up b}' the jealous Genoese, occupies the bottom of a vast bay. It has glass- 
 works and potteries, and is connected by a railway witb Turin. Elsewhere on the 
 Riviera di Ponente the towns are crowded closely together. Such is the case with 
 the twin cities of Oneglia and Porto Maurizio, the one built on the beach, the other 
 on a steep hill close by, and known as the " Fountains of Oil," because of their 
 extensive plantations of olives. At San Eemo, however, olives are more plentiful 
 
 stm.* 
 
 On the Riviera di Levante town joins town like pearls in a necklace. Albaro, 
 with its charming mansion. Quarto, whence departed the expedition which took 
 Sicily from the Bourbons, and Nervi, a health resort for persons suffering from 
 pulmonary diseases, constitute a long-stretching suburb of Genoa, extending in the 
 direction of Recco and Camogli, two towns abounding in shipping. The rocky 
 promontory of Porto Fino, thus named after the dolphins which formerh' fre- 
 quented it, imposes an insurmountable obstacle to the further extension of Genoa 
 in this direction. Having traversed the tunnel leading through this promontory, 
 we reach another group of towns, viz. Rapallo, the industrious ; Chiavari, a great 
 place of trade ; Lavagna, with its famous quarries of grey slates ; and Sestri di 
 Levante, a town of fishermen. 
 
 The coast beyond Sestri is but sjiarsely inhabited, for there bold cliffs approach 
 the sea ; but having doiibled the superb cape of Porto Venere, we enter the fine 
 Gulf of Spezia,t with its numerous forts, ship-yards, arsenals, and other build- 
 ings. The Italian Government has been busy ever since 1861 in converting this 
 gulf into a first-rate naval arsenal, but no sooner has a portion of the work been 
 completed than the progress made in the arts of destruction compels the engineers 
 to remodel it — a very costly task. "Whatever future may be in store for 
 Sjiezia as a mihtary port, it has none as a commercial one, for though it affords 
 excellent shelter to vessels, no railway connects it with the fertile countries be}'ond 
 the Apennines, and its exports are limited to the produce of the valleys in its 
 immediate vicinity. Sj)ezia is indebted for its high rank amongst the cities of 
 Italy to its beautiful gulf, the rival of the Bay of Naples and the roadstead of 
 Palermo. From the summit of the marble hill above the decayed town of Porto 
 Venere we look down upon a marvellous succession of bays and promontories, and 
 far in the distance the mountains of Corsica rise indistinctly above the blue waters. 
 Looking to the east, we behold the picturesque towns on the opposite side of 
 the gulf embedded in groves of olive-trees and cypresses, the Apuanic Alps 
 and the Apennines bounding the horizon. Right opj^osite is the charming 
 town of Lerici, and to the south of it the shore upon which Bj'ron reduced to 
 ashes the body of his friend Shelley : no spot more appropriate for this mournful 
 holocaust. 
 
 * Annual produce of olive oil in the province of Porto Maurizio, which includes San Eemo, 778,500 
 gallons. 
 
 t Population of the principal towns of Liguria (1871) : — Genoa (Geneva), 132,521 ; Savona, 24,851 , 
 Spezia, 15,636; San Pier d' Arena, 15,568; Sestri Ponente, 9,605; San Kemo, 9,017; Chiavari, 8,414; 
 Oneglia, 7,944,
 
 TUSCANY. 239 
 
 IV.— TlSCANY. 
 
 TvscAXY, like Liguria, lies on the southern slope of the Apennines, but is of far 
 greater width, for that back-bone of Italy retreats there from the Gulf of Genoa, 
 and stretches right across the brojidest part of the peninsula to the Adriatic. 
 Besides this there are several detached plateaux and mountain ranges to the south 
 of the valley of the Amo.* 
 
 The Apennines of Tuscany are of very unequal height, and they are traversed 
 by numerous low passes, which could easily be converted into carriage roads. 
 Speaking generallv, thev consist of a series of elongated and parallel mountain 
 masses, separated from each other by valleys, through which flow the head-streams 
 of the Serchio and the Amo. The first important mountain mass of the main 
 chain near the frontiers of Liguria, which is commanded by the Orsajo and Succiso, 
 is thus separated by the valley of the Magra from the parallel range of Lumigiana. 
 The chain of Garfagnana, to the north of the plains of Lucca, has for its pendant 
 the Alps of Apuana. Monte Cimone, farther east, and the other summits of the 
 Alpe Apennine to the north of Pistoja and Prato, are attended by the parallel 
 ridges of the Monti Catini and Monte Albano, on whose slope is the famous grotto 
 of Monsimmiano, with a thermal spring. A fourth mountain mass, that which the 
 direct road from Florence to Bologna crosses in the Pass of Futa, has likewise its 
 lateral chains, viz. the Monte Mugello, to the south of the Sieve ; the Prato Magno, 
 encircled by the Upper Amo ; and the Alps of Catenaja, between the Arno and the 
 Tiber.t 
 
 The Apennines of Tuscany in many places attain a height of 5,000 feet, and are 
 quite Alpine in their aspect, the upper slopes remaining covered with snow for 
 more than half the year. They owe much of their grandeur to the precipitous slopes 
 and fantastic profiles of the calcareous rocks which enter so largely into their com- 
 position. The forests of chestnuts, fijs, and beeches which formerly clothed the 
 whole of the range have not yet been entirely destroyed. The beautiful woods 
 which cover the slopes of Prato Magno have impressed the mind of many a 
 poet; and, since Milton sang the delights of Yallombrosa, the "shaded vale" 
 has become a proverbial name for everything sweet and touching in the poetry of 
 nature. Farther to the west the monastery of the Campo di Maldulo (Camaldoli) 
 occupies one of the most beauteous spots in all Italy, the woods and meadows of 
 which have been celebrated bv Ariosto. From the summit above the convent both 
 the " Tuscan and the Slavonian Sea " can be seen, as that poet tells us. 
 
 The barren escarpments and forests of the Apennines form a charming contrast 
 to the valleys and rounded hills of Lower Tuscany, where nearly every height is 
 
 * Area of Tuscany. 9,2S7 square miles; population (1S71), 1,9S3,S10; denatr, 214. 
 
 t Altitudes (in English feet) : — 
 
 Apmninet. — Alps of Succiso, 6.625 ; Alps of Camporaghena (Garfagnana), 6,565 ; Monte Cimone, 7,1 i 1 ; 
 Monte Falterone, or Falterona, 5,407. 
 
 Pa«a.— Pass of PontremoU, or La Cisa (Sarzana to Panna), 3,410; Pass of Fiumalbo (Lucca to 
 Modena), 3,940 ; Pass of Futa, or Pietramala (Florence to Bologna), 3,002 ; Pass of Camaldoli, 3,290. 
 
 Ami-Apmninei.—V\aaiaao (Alpe Apuana), 6,60S; Pietra Marina (Monte Albano), 1,886; Prato Magno, 
 6,183 ; Alpe di Catecaja, 4,595 feet.
 
 240 
 
 ITALY. 
 
 surmounted by the ruins of a mediaeval castle ; graceful villas are scattered over the 
 verdant sloiDes, farmhouses stand in the midst of vineyards and pointed cypresses, 
 and every cultivable spot is made to j'ield a rich harvest. Historical associations, 
 the taste of its inhabitants, the fertility of the soil, an abundance of running water, 
 and the sweetness of the climate all combine in making Central Tuscany one 
 of the most privileged regions of Italy. Protected by the rampart of the Apen- 
 nines against cold northerly winds, this region faces the Tyrrhenian Sea, whence 
 blow warm and humid winds of tropical origin. The rains they bring are not 
 
 Fig. 82. — The Golfolino of the Arno, near Signa. 
 
 excessive, thanks to the screen formed by the mountains of Corsica and Sardinia, 
 and the happy disposition of the detached hills near the coast. The climate of 
 Tuscany is essentially temperate, and to its equability, no less than to the natural 
 beauty of their abode, the Tuscans owe, no doubt, much of their gaiety, their good- 
 nature, fine taste, poetical feeling, and facile imagination. 
 
 The valley of the Arno completely separates the hills of Southern Tuscany, 
 usually known as the " Sub-Apennines," from the principal chain of the mountains. 
 This valley, with its defiles and ancient lake basins, may be likened to a moat
 
 TUSCAXT. 
 
 2a 1 
 
 bounding the wall of the Apennines. Tlio vale of Chiana, originally an arm ol the 
 sea, and then a lake, forms the uppermost portion of the zone which separates the 
 Apennines from the hills of Southern Tuscany. Then follows the Campagna of 
 Florence, an ancient lake basin, which it would be easy to flood again by building 
 a dam across the defile of the Golfolino, through which the river makes its escape, 
 and which was rent asunder by the " Egyptian Ilorculcs." Castruccio, the famous 
 commander of the Luccans, actually proposed to flood the plains of Florence in the 
 fourteenth century by constructing a dam across this defile; but happily his 
 engineers pronounced the scheme to be impracticable, for they supposed the 
 difierence of level to amount to 288 feet, whilst in reality it is only fifty. 
 
 The Sub-Apcnnine hills to the south of the Arno are of rounded contours, of a 
 gloomy grey colour, and devoid of all verdure, ■\l^'hilst the Apennines consist exclu- 
 sively of Jurassic and cretaceous rocks, the Sub-Apennines are of tertiary formation, 
 their sandstones, clays, marls, and pudding-stones being pierced here and there by 
 serpentine. "Well-defined ranges can hardly be said to exist. Southern Tuscany, 
 
 Fig. S3. — Defiles of the Arno. 
 From the Austrian Staff Map. Scale 1 : 2S5,CN)0. 
 
 indeed, may be described as a table-land intersected by rivers in all directions, sur- 
 mounted by irregular groups of hills, and pierced by " sinks," which swallow up 
 some of the rivers. The cavities of the Ingolla form one of these sinks, ia which 
 several rivulets lose themselves, to reappear lower down as the source of the Elsa 
 Viva, one of the principal tributaries of the Amo. The most elevated hills of this 
 Sub-Apennine region form the water-parting between the Amo, the Cecina, and the 
 Ombrone, and in the Poggio di Montieri, a mountain abounding in copper, they 
 attain an elevation of -S.-S^^ feet. The Labbro (3,81-5 feet), Cetona (3,0-30 feet), and 
 Monte Amiata (5,4-30 feet), to the south of the Ombrone valley, rise to a greater 
 height, but geologically they belong already to Central Italy. The Cetona is a 
 Jurassic outlier surrounded by recent formations. Monte Amiata, a trachytic cone, 
 is the most elevated volcano of continental Italy. It no longer vomits lava, but 
 numerous hot springs and solfataras prove that the volcanic forces are not yet quite 
 extinct. The Radicofani (2,9-50 feet) is likewise an extinct volcano, whose lava 
 resembles petrified froth, and can be cut with a hatchet. 
 
 Subterranean agencies must indeed be very active in Tuscany, for metalliferous 
 
 VOL. I. K
 
 242 ITALY. 
 
 veins ramify in all directions, and the number of mineral springs of every descrip- 
 tion is larger than in any other part of Italy. Amongst these springs there are 
 several of world-wide reputation, as, for instance, those of Monte Catini, of San 
 Giuliano, and of the Bagni di Lucca. The brine springs of Tuscany are very 
 productive ; but the most curious, and at the same time most useful, springs of all 
 are the famous lagoni, in a side valley of the Cecina, and at the northern foot of the 
 Poggio di Montieri. From a distance dense clouds of white vapour are seen roll- 
 ing over the plain, and the bubbling noise made by gases escaping through the 
 ponds, or higoni, is heard. These ponds contain various salts, silica, and boracic 
 acid, which is of great value in the manufacture of china and glass, and yields a 
 considerable revenue to Tuscany. Nowhere else in Europe, except, perhaps, in 
 the crater of the Eolian Vulcano, is boracic acid met with in sutHcient quantities 
 to repay the labour of extracting it. In Tuscany, however, there are several other 
 localities where it might be won with advantage, as, for instance, near Massa 
 Maritima, to the south of the Montieri. 
 
 The subterranean fermentation of which Tuscany is the scene is no doubt due 
 in a large measure to the changes which have taken place in the relative propor- 
 tions of land and sea. Several isolated hills rise near the coast like islands from 
 the sea, and these have evidently been joined to the mainland by the alluvial 
 deposits brought down by the rivers. The Monti Serra (3,000 feet), to the east of 
 Pisa, between the Arno and the Serchio, are almost insulated even now, for they 
 are surrounded by swamps, and the level of the Lake of Bientina, at their eastern 
 foot, is scarcely thirty feet above that of the Mediterranean. The heights along 
 the coast to the south of Leghorn are not quite so isolated, but, the lowland which 
 connects them with the table-land of the interior is only of small elevation. The 
 promontory, however, whose extremities are occupied by the towns of Populonia 
 and Piombino (G53 feet), is joined to the mainland only by a low plain of sand. 
 The most perfect type of these ancient islands is presented to us in the superb 
 Monte Argentaro, at the southern extremity of the Tuscan littoral, which rises 
 boldly from the sea to a height of 2,085 feet, and is attached to the mainland by 
 two narrow strips of land covered with pine-trees, enclosing a lake of regular 
 shape : in the midst of it, on a fragment of the ancient beach, is built 
 the town of Orbetello. This lake, which looks almost as if it were the work 
 of a generation of giants, has been converted into an eel-pond, and millions of fish 
 are caught in it every year. Towards the west of this mountain, in the direction 
 of Corsica, lie the islands of Giglio and Monte Cristo (2,062 feet) and the rock 
 of Formica. The island of Elba, farther north, forms a small world of its own. 
 
 The rivers of Tuscany have wrought great changes in the plains through which 
 they flow, and along the sea-coast. Their labour has been facilitated by the nature 
 of the soil which they traverse. The least rain converts the barren hill-slopes 
 into a semi-fluid paste, which is carried by the rivers down to the sea. The 
 mouth of the Arno has thus been pushed forward to the extent of seven miles in 
 the course of a few centuries. In former times the Serchio and the Arno united 
 liefore they flowed into the sea, but the Pisans diverted the former river to the
 
 TUSCANY. 
 
 243 
 
 north, in order to rid themselves of its unwelcome deposits. Pisa, in the time of 
 Strabo, stood at a distance of only twenty Olympian stadia from the Tyrrhenian 
 Sea, and when the casciiia of San Rossore was built, towards the close of the eleventh 
 centiiry, its walls were close to the beach, which is now at a distance of three 
 miles. Extensive plains intersected by dunes, or tomboli, and partly covered with 
 forests of pines, have been added to the land in the course of centuries. These 
 sandy wastes have become the home of large herds of horses and half-wild cattle, 
 and the camel has been acclimatised there, it is said, since the Crusades. These 
 
 Fig. 84. — Monte Argektaro. 
 Fh>m the French Chart. Scale 1 : 168,000. 
 
 U*la> 
 
 ^JTT ^ * f1 
 
 changes in the coast-line may not, however, be due exclusively to the agency of 
 the rivers, for there exists evidence of a,n upheaval of the land. The building 
 stone known at Leghorn as panchina is clearly of marine origin, and the shells 
 which enter into its composition are still met with in the Tyrrhenian Sea. 
 
 Amongst the changes effected by human agency in the basin of the Amo- 
 those referring to the Val di Chiana arc, perhaps, the most important. This 
 depression connects the basins of the Amo and Tiber, and may possibly have served 
 as an outlet to the former river before it had opened itself a way through the 
 
 R 2
 
 244 
 
 ITALY. 
 
 gorge beloTv Florence. Formerly the water-parting between the two rivers was 
 close to the Arno. A small portion of its drainage was carried to the Tuscan 
 river, but by far the greater portion of the vale was occupied by stagnant pools, 
 
 Fig. 85. — Val m Chiana. 
 From the Austrian Staff Map. Scale 1 : 213,000. 
 
 extending to the south as far as the latitude of Montepulciano, a distance of twenty 
 miles. The whole of this region was a breeding-place of fever. Dante and other 
 Italian writers speak of it as an accursed place. The inhabitants made vain 
 attempts at drainage. The illustrious Galileo, when consulted on the subject.
 
 TUSCANY. 
 
 245 
 
 declared that nothing could be done to mend this evil ; and though Torricelli 
 conceived that it would be possible to drain the valley, he took no steps to put his 
 theories into practice. 
 
 About the middle of the eighteenth century the work of drainage was at 
 length seriously taken in hand, directed by Fossombroni, the celebrated engineer. 
 "^yarp6," or colimte, were thrown up at the outlet of each lateral ravine between 
 which the debris carried down from the flanks of the mountains was deposited. 
 The swamps gradually tilled up, and the soil became firm. By constructing 
 a dam {argiiie) across the vale at the point chosen for the new water-parting, 
 an outfall was created, and a line of stagnant swamps was thus converted into 
 a pure rivulet. The valley, at one time a hotbed of fever, has now become one of 
 
 Fig. S6. — The Lake of Bientixa. 
 From the Austriaa Stafl Map. Scale I : 3S,iXiO. 
 
 the most salubrious districts of Italy. The newly won lands were at once taken 
 possession of by agriculturists, and 500 square miles were thus added to the pro- 
 ductive area of Tuscany. Tillages, formerly inhabited by fever-stricken wretches, 
 have become wealthy towns, and the success of this hoiiification, or reclama- 
 tion, has been thorough. The torrents are under control now, and have already 
 deposited 17,6-50 million cubic feet of alluvium over an area of 50,000 acres, as if 
 they were intelligent workmen. The same system of drainage has been success- 
 fully applied in other parts of Italy, and particularly near Grosseto, on the right 
 bank of the Ombrone. 
 
 Amongst the great drainage works which will evermore contribute to the glory 
 of Tuscan engineers, the innumerable canals draining the plains of Fucecchio,
 
 246 ITALY. 
 
 Pontedera, Pisa, Lucca, Leghorn, and Viareggio, each of which was formerly 
 occupied by its lake, deserve to be noticed. One of the most difficult of these 
 lakes is that of Bientina, or Sesto, to the east of the Pisan hills, which is supposed 
 to have been formed by an overflow of the Serchio. In former times this lake had 
 two effluents, one running north to the Serchio, the other south to the Arno. The 
 outfall left nothing to be desired in ordinary times, but after heavy rains the two 
 effluents were converted into inflowing rivers, and if the sluices had not been 
 closed, the Arno and the Serchio would have rejoined each other in this inland sea. 
 The Bientina, during such freshets, covered six times its ordinary area, and in 
 order to save the fertile fields of Tuscany it became absolutely necessary to create 
 a third effluent. The engineers conceived the happy idea of conveying this new 
 effluent through a tunnel, passing beneath the Arno, three feet in width, into an 
 ancient bed of that river, now supplanted by the Colombrone. 
 
 In most of these enterprises it was necessary to struggle on in spite of the 
 miasmatic atmosphere, which hung more particularly over the littoral zone, 
 where the fresh inland water mingles with the salt water of the Mediterranean. 
 The blending of the two waters destroyed the fresh-water plants and animals, and 
 the deleterious gases arising from their decomposition poisoned the atmosphere. 
 About the middle of last century an engineei-, Zendrini, proposed to construct 
 sluices separating the fresh from the salt water. This was done, and the fevers at 
 once disappeared. In 1768, the sluices having been allowed to fall out of repair, 
 the miasmatic scourge immediately reappeared, and it was not until they had 
 been repaired that the sanitary condition of the villages along the coast was 
 improved. Twice since neglect to keep the sluices in a proper condition has 
 been punished with the same results ; but from 1821 they have been maintained 
 in thorough order, and the sanitary condition of the country has ever since been 
 most satisfactory. Viareggio, in the centre of this malarial district, was up to 
 1740 hardly more than a hamlet, avoided on account of its insalubrity, but is now 
 a seaside town, the favourite resort of numbers of visitors. 
 
 Much has been done, no doubt, in draining the laud, but there is still room 
 for many improvements. The Maremma, a tract between Piombino and Orbetello, 
 remains one of the most insalubrious regions of Europe, in spite of what has been 
 done by sanitary engineers. The inhabitants never reach a high age, and 
 though they descend to the plain only when it is absolutely required for culti- 
 vating their fields, they frequently carry away with them the germs of disease. 
 In the two summers of 1840 and 1841 no less than 36,000 persons suflfered from 
 fever amongst a total population of 80,000 souls, most of whom reside in villages 
 built on hills, and only rarely visit the pestilential plain. In order to escape the 
 pernicious influence of the poisonous air, it is necessary to reside constantly at an 
 elevation of 325 feet above the sea, and even that does not alwaj's suffice, for 
 the episcopal city of Sovana is notoriously unhealthy, though built at that 
 height. Fevers occur frequently at a distance from the swamps, and Salvagnoli 
 Marchetti is of opinion that they are due to the nature of the soil. The malaria 
 is said to creep up clayey hills permeated by empyreumatic substances ; it likewise
 
 TUSCAXY. 
 
 247 
 
 poisons the air of districts abounding in saline springs, and still more that near 
 deposits of alum. Southerly winds are likevrise most pernicious, and fevers 
 rise highest in the valleys which are exposeil to them. Places, on the other 
 hand, which are fully open to the sea breeze are quite free from malaria, even 
 if swamps are near, as at Orbetello and Piombino. 
 
 It is generally admitted that the coasts of Etruria did not suffer from malaria 
 whilst the ancient Tyrrhenian cities were prosperous. The excavations made 
 
 Fia;. ST.— The >rAnui.u. Regions. 
 From the .\ustrian Staff SLip. Scale 1 : 2,700,0X1. 
 
 Eoridcrcd salubrious. 
 
 recently in connection with the railways have revealed a complete system of 
 subterranean canals, which formerly drained the whole of the ilaremmas. 
 Populonia and other large cities, of which only a few ruins are found now, could 
 certainly not have existed if the climate had been as unhealthy as at present. 
 The ancient Etruscans were famous as hydraulic engineers. They embanked 
 torrents, drained swamps, and rendered the country cultivable, but their engineering 
 works were allowed to decay soon after they had been subjected, and the country 
 returned to its primitive savageness. On the other hand, there are many towns
 
 248 ITALY. 
 
 which were considered healthy during the Middle Ages, but are now desolated by 
 fever. Massa Maritima, to the south-west of the Montieri mountain, was rich 
 and populous as long as it maintained its republican liberties ; but no sooner had 
 it been enslaved by Pisans and Sienese than its drainage works were allowed to 
 fall into decaj^ and in the end it found itself reduced to the " shadow of a town." 
 Sanitary works carried out recently have brought back some of its ancient pros- 
 perity. 
 
 Amongst the causes which have contributed most materially towards a 
 deterioration of the climate may be mentioned the destruction of the mountain 
 forests and the rapid increase of alluvial lands resulting from it. The monasteries 
 of Tuscany, which imtil quite recently were the owners of the fish-ponds in the 
 Maremmas, energetically protested againt the construction of embankments or 
 other drainage works, which they conceived would interfere with their cherished 
 Lenten food. Several of the inland towns rejoiced in the possession of some 
 unhealthy swampy tract, to which obnoxious persons might be banished with a 
 certainty of their dying. Even the Kings of Spain established a penal establish- 
 ment at one of the most deadly spots on this coast, and banishment to Talamone, 
 at one time a flourishing port of the Republic of Siena, was tantamount to a 
 sentence of death. 
 
 Many attempts were made to reclaim these lands. Macchiavelli and other 
 statesmen of Tuscany thought that the former salubrity of the climate could be 
 restored by merely repeopling the country. Colonists were sent for from other 
 parts of Italy, and even from Greece and Germany, but they soon succumbed to 
 the climate. Since that time considerable progress has been made in rendering 
 these marshy districts more salubrious. Trees have been planted, and, in com- 
 bination with proper drainage, they have rendered many districts habitable which 
 were not so formerly. Populonia is a case in point. FoUonica, where there are 
 furnaces in which the iron ores of Elba are smelted, is likewise looking up, 
 though its inhabitants still fly the place on the approach of the fever season. 
 
 The Etruscans, or Tyrrhenians, were the ancestors of the Tuscans, and long 
 before the dominion of the Romans they were the preponderating race of all 
 Italy. They occupied not only the whole of the southern slope of the Apennines 
 as far as the Tiber, but had also founded a confederation of twelve towns in the 
 Campagna, of which Capua was the head, and as traders and pirates they held 
 possession of the Tyrrhenian Sea, stUl named after them. The island of Capri 
 was one of their most advanced outposts towards the south. The Adriatic was 
 likewise their own, for Adria, Bologna (called Felsina by them), Ravenna, and 
 Mantua were Etruscan colonies, and the Rhajtians in the Alpine valleys were their 
 allies, and perhaps kinsmen. But who were the Etruscans ? They have been 
 classed with Aryans, Ugrians, and Semites ; with Greeks, Germans, Scythians, 
 Egyptians, and Turks. The Etruscan inscriptions on ancient monuments, though 
 very legible, have not hitherto been deciphered satisfactorily. If Corssen's inter- 
 pretation is accepted, their language resembled the Latin tongues ; but this
 
 TUSCAXY. 249 
 
 philologist, after all, may not be eutitlod to be called the " (Jildipus of the 
 Etruscan sphinx." 
 
 The most common type of the Etruscans, as transmitted to us on cinerary 
 vases, is that of squat men, often inclining to obesity, with broad shoulders, pro- 
 minent face, curved nose, broad retreating forehead, dark complexion, dolicho- 
 cephalous skull, and curly hair. This tN-pe is neither Ilellenic nor Italian. 
 Amongst their monuments there are none of those curious structures known as 
 nuraghi, which abound in Malta, Sardinia, and Pantellaria, but dolmens are 
 numerous. The sepulchral monuments, of which many thousands have already 
 been brought to light, prove that the arts had attained a high degree of develop- 
 ment in ancient Etruria. The paintings in the interior of the vaults, the bas-reliefs 
 on tue sarcophagi, the vases, candelabra, pottery, and bronzes, resemble similar 
 work produced bj' the genius of Greek artists. The arrangement of their dwelling- 
 houses, though not devoid of originality, proves the intimate connection existing 
 between the civilisations of the Etruscans and early Greeks. It was the Etruscans 
 who initiated Rome into the arts. The Cloaca llaj-ima, the most ancient monument 
 of the Eternal City, the wall named after Servius Tullius, the ilamertine prison, 
 and, in fact, all the remains of the Rome of the kings, were their work. It was 
 they who erected the temples, supplied the statues to deities, built the dwelling- 
 houses, and furnished them with articles of ornament. Even the she-wolf of 
 bronze, now in the Capitoline Museum, and a symbol of the Roman people, appears 
 to be of Etruscan workmanship. 
 
 The Tuscans of our day differ, howeve-, in many respects from their Etruscan 
 ancestors. These latter, to judge from the paintings in their sepulchral cities, 
 were an austere race. They appear, likewise, to have been a nation of cooks and 
 gluttons. Ifeither of these qualities can be laid to the charge of their descend- 
 ants. The modern Tuscan is of an amiable and kindly disposition, he is pos- 
 sessed of wit and artistic tastes, easy to move, and altogether perhaps a trifle too 
 pliant of character. The Tuscans of the plain, but not those of the Maremmas, 
 are the most gentle of Italians ; they " live and let live," and are exceedingly 
 good-natured. A singular trait distinguishes them from the rest of the Italians : 
 though brave when carried away by passion, they turn with horror from a dead 
 body. In this we may trace the persistence of ancient superstitions, for though 
 the Tyrrhenians concealed their tombs, the worship of the dead was the most 
 prominent of their religious observances. 
 
 The modem Tuscans, like their ancestors, have known a time when they took 
 the lead amongst the people of Italy, and even now they stand at the head of the 
 nation in certain respects. After the decadence of Rome, when civilisation 
 gravitated towards the north, the valley of the Amo became one of the great 
 centres of the world's acti\-ity. At that time the passage of the Alps was still 
 difficult, but communications bv sea were established between Tuscany, France, 
 and Spain. The Apennines not onlv sheltered the fertile valleys opening upon 
 the Tyrrhenian against cold northerly winds, but also against the hordes of 
 barbarian invaders. Tuscanv was, indeed, a favoured region, and its intelligent
 
 250 ITALY. 
 
 inhabitants made the most of the natural advantages they possessed. " Work " 
 was the great law of the Florentines, and all, without exception, were expected to 
 engage in it. Whilst Pisa disputed the dominion of the sea with Genoa and 
 Venice, Florence became the head-quarters of commerce, and its bankers extended 
 their operations to every part of Europe. 
 
 But Tuscany was more than a commercial and industrial country. What 
 Athens had been to the world two thousand years ago, republican Florence 
 became during its period of prosperity, and for the second time in the history of 
 mankind there arose one of those centres of light the reflected rays from which still 
 illuminate our own times. Arts, letters, sciences, and political economy — every- 
 thing, in fact, that is noble in this world was cultivated with an energy to 
 which nations had been strangers for a long time. The pliant genius of the 
 Tuscans revelled in every species of work, and amongst the names great in 
 history Florence may fairly claim some of the greatest. Where are the men that 
 have exercised a greater influence in the world of art and intellect than Giotto, 
 Orgagna, Masaccio, Michael Angelo, Leonardo da Vinci, Andrea del Sarto, 
 Brunelleschi, Savonarola, Galileo, or Macchiavelli ? It was a Florentine, too, 
 Amerigo Vespucci, who gave his name to the New World, and justly so, for it 
 was Vespucci through whom the discoveries made by the Spaniards first became 
 known, and who, in 1501, bestowed the name of Ifovus Mundus upon the newly 
 discovered countries, whilst Columbus died in the belief that he had reached the 
 eastern coast of Asia. 
 
 The dialect of Florence has become the polished language of the whole of 
 Italy, and it is curious that this honour should not have been carried ofi' by Rome. 
 But whilst Florence cultivated the arts and sciences, and through her great writers 
 exercised an immense influence, the city of the popes yielded herself uj) to the 
 worship of the past, and its literature was written in a dead language, more or less 
 successfully imitated from that of Cicero. The dialect of Rome never became a 
 language like that of Florence, but Italian is nevertheless indebted to Rome for 
 its musical pronunciation, that of the Tuscans being harsh and guttural. Hence 
 the old proverb, " Lingua Toscana in bocca Romana." The delicate, pure poetry 
 breathed in the ritornelli which Tuscan peasants chant in the evening is highly 
 appreciated by all admirers of Italian, and the influence which the fine dialect of 
 the Florentines exorcised upon the unification of Italy can hardly be over- 
 estimated. The worshippers of Dante are almost justified in saying that Italian 
 unity dates from the day on which the great poet first expressed himself in the 
 firm and sonorous language which he had forged out of the various dialects spoken 
 throughout the peninsula. 
 
 The geograiDhical position of Tuscany accounts for the influence it has exer- 
 cised upon Italy and the rest of the world, whilst its topography gives us the key 
 to the local history of the country. The Apennines and the mountains to the 
 south of the Arno divide it into a number of separate basins, each of which gave 
 birth to a small state or republic. At the time of the T3'rrhenian8 Etruria formed
 
 TUSCAXY. 251 
 
 a confederation of cities, whilst during the ^liddle Ages it was divided into 
 numerous small republics, frequently at war with each other. Since that time 
 many changes have taken place in the relative importance of the various towns, 
 but even now most of the free cities of the Middle Ages, and even some founded 
 by the ancient Etruscans, occupy a high rank amongst the provincial towns of 
 Italy. 
 
 Florence (Firenze) is not one of these ancient cities of the Tyrrhenians ; it is 
 merely a Roman colony of comparatively modern origin. In the time of the 
 Empire it was of small importance, for Fiesole, on a hill to the north, remained 
 the leading town of the country until destroyed by the Florentines, who carried 
 its columns and statues to their own town. The rapid growth of Florence during 
 the Middle Ages is due to its position on the highway which connects Germany, 
 Lombardy, and even Bologna with Southern Italy. As long as Rome was the 
 capital of Italy travellers starting from the valley of the Tiber crossed the Apen- 
 nines in the direction of Ancoua and Ariminum. But after the fall of Rome, 
 when barbarian hordes inundated the country from the north, the high-roads 
 connecting the plains of Lombardy with the valley of the Arno rose into impor- 
 tance. This great military highway became simultaneously a high-road of com- 
 merce, and it was only natural that a great emporium should spring up on the 
 site occupied by Florence. The " city of flowers " prospered, and became the 
 marvel which we still admire. But the wealth of the growing commonwealth 
 proved its destruction. The rich bankers grasped at political power, the Medici 
 assumed the title of princes, and though the arts continued to flourish for 
 awhile, public virtues decayed, the citizens became subjects, and intellectual life 
 ceased. 
 
 Florence, as in the days of republican liberty, owes much of its wealth to the 
 industry of its inhabitants. There are manufactories of silks and woollen goods, 
 of straw hats, mosaics, china, cut stones (pierra dura), and other objects, all of 
 them requiring workmen possessed of taste and manual dexterity. But neither 
 these industries nor the commerce carried on by the town would have raiced 
 Florence above the level of other populous Italian cities. The prominent position 
 it holds is due entirely to the beauty of its monuments, which attract to it the 
 lovers of art from every quarter of the world. Not even Venice is equally rich in 
 architectural masterpieces of the Middle Ages and the Renaissance. The museums 
 of Florence " la Bella " — such as the Uflizi and Pitti galleries, and the Academy 
 of Arts — are amongst the richest in Europe, and contain some of the most highly 
 prized treasures of art ; its libraries abound in curious manuscripts and rare 
 old books. Xay, the very streets and piazzas of the town, with their palaces, 
 towers, churches, and statues, may be likened to a huge museum. Brunelleschi's 
 Duomo ; Giotto's Campanile, which was to " surpass in beauty all imagination can 
 conceive ; " the Baptistery, with its incomparable doors of brass ; the Piazza della 
 Signoria ; the monastery of San Marco, now a museum ; the gloomj- palace of the 
 Strozzi ; and numerous other buildings of superior merit make Florence the 
 delightful place it is. Its charms are enhanced by the beauty of the surrounding
 
 252 
 
 ITALY, 
 
 country, and the traveller wiU always recall with pleasure the walks along the 
 Arno, the hills of San Miniato and Bello Sguardo, and the picturesque spur upon 
 which lie the villas and ruins of Etruscan Fiesole. Unfortunately the climate of 
 Florence leaves much to be desired ; the wind changes abruptly, and the heat in 
 summer is overpowering. II caldo di Firenze has become proverbial throughout 
 Italy. Narrow streets, and to some extent the disregard of the laws of hygiene, 
 cause the mortality to exceed that of nearly every other town on the Continent. 
 
 Fig. 88. — Flokence : the Duomo and Palazzo Vecchio. 
 
 During the Middle Ages pestilence was a frequent visitor, and Boccaccio tells us 
 that in a single season nearly 100,000 inhabitants, or two-thirds of the entire 
 population, were swept away by it. Targioni Tozetti contrasts the site of 
 Empoli, a small town to the west, with that of Florence, and regrets that a 
 project for removing Florence thither should not have been carried out, as proposed 
 in 1260. 
 
 The only town of any importance in the upper valley of the Arno is Arezzo, 
 an ancient city of the Etruscans, and at one time the capital of one of the most 
 prosperous republics of the Middle Ages. The inhabitants ascribe to the " subtile
 
 TUSCANY. 253 
 
 air they breathe the subtility of their spirits," and indeed the list of famous men 
 connected with the town is very long. The present Arezzo, however, is a decayed 
 place, and lives upon the memories and the monuments of a past age. Cortona, 
 farther south, near the Lake of Trasimcno, claims to be the most ancient city of 
 Italy ; but all traces of its former greatness have disappeared. Siena, which 
 formerly governed the whole of the hilly tract between the Arno and Ombrone, 
 has fallen from her high estate, not without the fault of its ovsii citizens, who were 
 continually quarrelling amongst themselves. Siena no longer rivals Florence in 
 population, power, or industry, but may still compare with the city on the Arno 
 as regards its public buildings — many of them in the Gothic style — its works of 
 art, its quaint streets and piazzas, and its magnificent position on the slopes of 
 three hills. Chiusa, one of the most powerful towns of ancient Etruria, is of no 
 importance now, and only attracts antiquarians in search of its ancient tombs. 
 The vineyards of Montepulciano, on the same side of the vale of Chiani, 23roduce 
 the "king of wines." Yoltorra is only a small town now, interesting, however, 
 on account of its cyclopean walls and a museum abounding in Etruscan antiquities. 
 The environs are dreary in the extreme. Salt-works, yielding from 7,000 to 8,000 
 tons a year, quarries of alabaster, copper mines at Monte Catini, sulphur springs, 
 and the famous lagoni di Monti Cerbo/i (see p. 242), are in the neighbourhood. 
 
 The cities at the foot of the Apennines, on the other side of the Arno, have 
 retained their importance, for they are favourably situated for commerce. Prate, 
 where the valley of the Arno is widest, is the centre of a rich agricultural district. 
 The quarries of sei-pentine in the neighbourhood have furnished building stones 
 for many of the most beautiful edifices of Tuscany, including the cathedral of 
 Prato, celebrated on account of Donatello's marvellously scvdptured pulpit. 
 Pistoja, where the railway descends from the Apennines, is a busy manufacturing 
 town. Other towns of some importance are Pescia, Capannori, in the " garden of 
 Italy," and Lucca the industrious, with its celebrated pictures by Fra Bartolommeo. 
 
 The basin of the Scrchio is of i no on. parable productiveness since its marsh lands 
 have been brought under cultivation. From the ramparts of Lucca one of the 
 most charming views may be enjoyed. On the one hand we have the towers and 
 cupolas of the town, on the other fertile fields and orchards, with white houses 
 peeping through the verdure, and distant hills surmounted by old towers. The 
 impression made by this view is one of perfect peace. In a countrj- so fertile and 
 beautiful, it would seem,' the people ought to be happy, and, if enthusiastic writers 
 can be believed, such is really the case, and the peasants of Lucca and of Lower 
 Tuscany in general enjoy advantages denied to their class elsewhere in Italy. 
 They are farmers for the most part, but hold their land by long lea es, and their 
 share of its produce is regulated by ancient custom. The land, however, does not 
 suffice for their wants, and they emigrate in thousands in search of work. Manj' 
 of these emigrants work as grinders. 
 
 The inhabitants of the Upper Serchio valley, known as the Garfagnana, are as 
 industrious as those near Lucca, which is the natural outlet for its produce. The 
 slopes and spurs descending from the Apennines and Apuanic Alps are cultivated
 
 254 ITALY. 
 
 in terraces. Castelnuovo, the chief town of this valley, occupies one of the 
 most delightful spots of this picturesque district. The common people near it are 
 said to speak the best Italian, superior even to that of the Sienese. 
 
 The valley of the Magra is far more frequented than that of Garfagnana, for 
 the high-road from Parma to the Gulf of Spezia leads through it. In its upper 
 portion, in the heart of the Apennines, stands the small town of Pontremoli. Its 
 inferior portion, known as the Luuigiana, from the ancient city of Luni, is as 
 beautiful as the parallel valley of the Serchio. At Sarzana it opens upon the 
 sea, and to the south of that charming town, where the Apuanic Alps approach 
 close to the sea, leaving only a narrow passage of some note in history, are situated 
 the towns of Carrara and Massa. Carrara, the " Quarry," has replaced Luni as 
 the place from whence the white marbles so highly esteemed by sculptors are 
 exported, and choice blocks of which sometimes fetch £80 a cubic yard. No less 
 than 720 quarries perforate the neighbouring hills, and about 300 of these are 
 being worked now. The town may be likened to an agglomeration of scidptors' 
 studios, and its Academy has trained artists of high reputation. Massa enjoys 
 a better climate than Carrara, but its marbles are less highly esteemed. As to 
 the marbles of Serravezza, which are quarried in the Altissimo and other moun- 
 tains of the Apuanic Alps near the town of Pietra Santa, they are in many 
 instances as beautiful as those of Carrara. Michael Angelo highly appreciated 
 them, and had a road constructed to facilitate access to them. The quarries and 
 mines in the neighbourhood also j-ield slates, iron, lead, and silver.* 
 
 These towns at the foot of the Apuanic Alps were bound to prosper in pro- 
 portion as the country increased in wealth, whilst Pisa, the great commercial 
 republic of mediajval Tuscanj% was doomed to decay, owing to the silting up of 
 its harbour. This Porto Pisano was situated about ten miles to the south of 
 what was then the mouth of the Arno. In 1442 its depth had been reduced to 
 five feet, a century later only rowing boats could enter it, and soon after it was 
 abandoned definitely. There are no traces of it now, and its very site is 
 disputed. But though Pisa is dead — Pisa morta — the city still possesses admi- 
 rable monuments of its past grandeur. It has a wonderful cathedral ; an elegant 
 baptistery ; its Campo Santo, with the famous frescoes of Orgagna and Gozzoli ; 
 and a leaning tower commanding a view of the Pisan hills and the alluvial plains 
 of the Arno and Serchio. Its commerce has dwindled away, but it is still the 
 capital of a rich agricultural distric*, and its vmiversity is one of the best in 
 Italy. It possesses, moreover, that which no change in the commercial high- 
 ways can deprive it of, a mild climate, and during winter attracts numerous 
 visitors from the north. 
 
 Leghorn, or Livorno, has inherited the commerce of Pisa. It is the natural 
 outlet of the fertile districts of Tuscan}', and its commerce is far more important 
 than might be supposed from the unfavourable configuration of the coast, and 
 is surpassed only by that of Genoa and Naples. t Thousands of Spanish and 
 
 * 134,000 tons of marble were quarried in 1873, valued at nearly i.'oOO,000 sterling. 
 + In 1873 5,466 Teasels of 920,626 tons entered : 5,314 vessels of 901,533 tons cleared, inclusive of 
 coasting vessels.
 
 TUSCANT. 
 
 255 
 
 Portuguese Jews who found a refuge here have contributed in no small measure 
 to the development of the resources of the tow-n. From an architectural point of 
 view, Leghorn is one of the least interesting cities of Italv, but as the outcome of 
 human labour it is one of the most curious. Before the city could be built, the 
 swamps whi^h occupied its site had to be drained, and an artificial harbour had 
 to be excavated for the protection of vessels. Numerous canals intersect the 
 north-western portion of the town, which is known as Xew Venice. A huge 
 breakwater marks the entrance to the harbour, and on a sand-bank in the oflBng 
 rises the tower of Meloria, which recalls the naval engagement in which the fleet 
 of the Pisans was destroyed by the Genoese. 
 
 Fig. 89. — The Harbocb of Leghokx. 
 Scale 1 : 113,000. 
 
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 H/^Wi 
 
 
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 1 
 
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 id-is 1 
 
 Insular Tuscany consists of Elba and several smaller islands, which mark the 
 site of an isthmus that formerly joined the mainland to Corsica, and contribute 
 greatly towards the beauty of the Tuscan littoraL 
 
 Elba, once the miniature kingdom of Napoleon, is larger than all the other 
 islands together.* An ancient dependency of the Etruscan city of Populonia, 
 Elba rises above the blue waters of the Tyrrhenian a picturesque group of 
 moimtains. A narrow and dangerous strait separates its steep coasts from the 
 promontory of Piombino, where passing vessels were formerly obliged to pay toll. 
 
 The granitic heights of Monte Capanne, the eastern extremity of the island. 
 
 • Area, 85 squaro miles; population, 21,722 eoult.
 
 256 ITALY. 
 
 attain an elevation of 3,303 feet ; the dome-shaped hills of serpentine at the other 
 extremity are 1,600 feet in height, and the centre of the island is occupied by 
 hills of various formations, covered with brushwood. The variety of rocks is very 
 great, taking into account the small extent of the island. Associated with the 
 granites and serpentine, we meet with beds of kaolin, and with marble similar 
 to that of Carrara. Remarkable crystals and precious stones abound to such 
 an extent, that Elba has been likened to a " mineralogical cabinet " on a 
 vast scale. 
 
 Formerly, when the sea was infested by pirates, the inhabitants retreated 
 to the recesses of the interior, or to the summits of steep promontories, where the 
 picturesque ruins of ancient fortifications may still be seen. Several of the old 
 inland villages continue to be inhabited ; amongst others, that of Capoliberi, the 
 " Mountaia of the Free," which is looked upon as a sort of acropolis. After 
 the suppression of piracy the islanders came down to the marina, or coast, 
 and established themselves in the towns of Porto Ferrajo, Porto Longone, 
 Marciana, and Rio. The resources of the island are considerable, and afford 
 plenty of occupation to fishermen, salt-makers, wine-growers, and gardeners. The 
 inhabitants are hospitable, and, though neighbours of the fierce Corsicans, they 
 possess all the gentleness of Tuscans. 
 
 Elba is not, however, so much noted on account of its fisheries, vineyards, salt- 
 works, or commerce, as because of its rich deposits of iron ore. The russet- 
 coloured cliffs of ironstone are visible from the mainland. The huge excavations 
 made by the miners, many of whom are convicts, resemble the craters of extinct 
 volcanoes, and the reddish brown, violet, or blackish colour of the rocks helps 
 the illusion. Of the quantity of ore carried away from here in the course of 
 twenty- five or thirty centuries we can hardly form a conception. The ironstone 
 is bedded in layers, differing in colour according to the nature of the earthy 
 ingredients, and rising into hills 600 and more feet in height, the slopes of 
 which are covered with brushwood (macc/u'e). Shovels and spades are the only 
 mining tools required in clearing away these heaps of ore, of which at least 
 100,000,000 tons remain. By regular mining operations 500,000 tons might 
 be obtained annually during twenty centuries. The annual produce at present 
 hardly exceeds 100,000 tons. The ore is more particularly suited to the manu- 
 facture of steel. Loadstones abound near Capo Calamita. The mariners of 
 the Mediterranean formerly made use of them in the construction of a primitive 
 ship's compass, by placing them in a piece of cork, which they allowed to float 
 in a basin of water. 
 
 The smaller islands of the Tuscan archipelago are — Giglio, with quarries 
 of granite; Monte Cristo, a pj-ramidal rock rising 2,130 feet above the sea-level; 
 Pianosa, with an agricultural penal settlement ; Capraja, with a small town 
 built within an amphitheatre of pink-coloured granite ; and Gorgona (987 feet).* 
 
 * Population of the principal towns of Tuscany (in 1871) :— Florence (Firenzc), 167,093; Leghorn 
 (Livorno), 89,462; Pisa, 41,796; Siena, 22,965; Lucca, 21,286; Prato, 15,924; Carrara, 10,848; Pistoja, 
 12,966; Aiezzo, 11,151; Viareggio, 9,983 ; Pontedera, 7,991 ; San Casciano, 6,862 ; Fnjano del'a Chiana,
 
 XnE APEXNINES, TIBER, MARCHES, AND ABRUZZOS. s>!,7 
 
 V. — TiiK Roman Apknnines, thk Vai.i.ey of tiik Tihf.i!, tiik Marciiks, and 
 
 THE AUKUZZOS. 
 
 That portion of the Italian peninsula which has Rome for its centre may be 
 likened to the trunk of the body, for it is there the Apennines attain their greatest 
 height, and nowhere else to the south of the Po are rivers of equal magnitude met 
 with.* 
 
 The main rampart of the Apennines runs parallel to the coast of the Adriatic. 
 To the mariner, who sees these mountains rise above the verdure of the littoral 
 region, they have an appearance of the greatest regularity. Summit rises beyond 
 summit, one lateral chain succeeds to the other, and every one of the numerous 
 valleys descends perpendicularly to the coast. The slope throughout is steep, and 
 the geological strata, whether of Jurassic, cretaceous, or tertiary age, succeed each 
 other regularly from the snow-clad summits down to the promontories of the 
 coast. The only irregularity consists in a detached group of hills (1,880 feet) lo 
 the south of Ancona, above which the axis of the Apennines changes its direction. 
 This region of Italy is the natural counterpart of Liguria. The position of 
 Ancona corresponds with that of Genoa, and the coast, which extends on the one 
 hand to Emilia, and on the other towards the peninsula of Monte Gargano, may 
 fairly be likened to the " Ri\-ieras " of Genoa, with this exception, that its direction 
 is inverse. The territory between the mountains and the coast is narrow, the 
 littoral road frequently winds round promontories, and the towns extend up the 
 hill-sides. Still this portion of Italy is not as strongly protected by nature as 
 Liguria. Towards the north it expands upon the plain of the Po, whilst the 
 terraces at the foot of the main range of the Apennines afford easy access from 
 the west. During the whole of the Middle Ages and down to our own cays 
 neighbouring states have fought for the possession of this territory, which has 
 become known, from this circumstance, as the " Marches ; " that is, the disjmted 
 frontier districts, where every town is a fortress perched on the top of a hill. 
 
 The Apennines forming the boundary between the Marches and Latium, or 
 Rome, like those of Etruria, are grouped in separate mountain masses. The first 
 of these commands the valley of the Tiber in the east ; it extends in the north to 
 Monte Comoro (3,828 feet) and the Fumajolo, or head-stream of the Tiber, and in 
 the south to Monte Verone (-3,006 feet). Though inferior in height to other parts 
 of the Apennines, these mountains are known as the Alpe tlclla Luna. A gap, 
 
 6,127; Empoli, 5,949 ; Volterrn, 5,796 ; Masea Maritima, 5,766 ; Porto Ktn-a"o, 5,779 ; Fucceihio, 5,755; 
 Figline Valdamo, 5,673; Montalcino, 5,186; Pontassievo, 5,14J ; Pontelungo, 5,039; Buti, 5,029; 
 Miusa, 4,786; Orbelello, 4,674 ; Ponlremoli, 4,473. 
 
 • Home . 
 Umbrii 
 Marches 
 Abruzzoa 
 
 Area, Square 
 Milex. 
 
 P. pulation 
 
 (IWl). 
 
 DenBit; 
 
 4,652 
 3,720 
 3,751 
 4,898 
 
 836,700 
 549,600 
 915,420 
 918.770 
 
 184 
 148 
 214 
 188 
 
 3,220,490
 
 258 ITALY. 
 
 throuo-h which passes the road from Perugia to Fano, separates them from Monte 
 Catria (5,585 feet). At that point the Apennines bifurcate, and two parallel 
 ranges can he traced thence for a distance of 120 miles, as far as the transverse 
 rano-e of the Majella (9,158 feet), which reunites them, and from which radiate 
 the mountains of Southern Italy. These parallel chains belong to the Jurassic and 
 cretaceous formations, and neither of them forms a water-parting, for whilst the 
 Nera and other rivers tributary to the Tiber force themselves a passage through 
 the western one, that on the east is broken by mmierous gorges, through which 
 rivers and torrents find their way into the Adriatic. The most considerable 
 of these rivers is the Pescara, which rises on the plateau of the Abruzzos, where it 
 is known as the Aterno, and traverses the eastern range where it is highest. The 
 gorge excavated by this river is suiBciently wide to afibrd space for a railway 
 joining the Adriatic to the basin of the Tiber. 
 
 The plateau of the Abruzzos, enclosed by these parallel ranges, may be looked 
 upon as the natural citadel of Central Italy. On its western side rise the double 
 pyramids of Monte Velino (8,157 feet) ; in the north Monte Yettore (8,131 feet) 
 forms the termination of the range of the Sibillini ; in the east rises the culminat- 
 ing point of the Apennines, a mountain covered with snow the greater part of the 
 year, and appropriately called the " Great Eock of Italy " — " Gran Sasso d'ltalia " 
 (9,518 feet). The fact that this magnificent mountain is the highest in all Italy 
 has been known from times immemorial. The Romans conceived they had dis- 
 covered the " umbilic of Italy " in a small lake near it, upon which floated an island 
 formed of rank vegetation. The Marsi and their allies, when they took up arms 
 against their Roman oppressors, chose Corfinium, in its neighbourhood, for the seat 
 of their empire, and surnamed it Italica ; and there, too, the first movements 
 which led to the resurrection of modern Italy took place. The Gran Sasso, as 
 seen from the Adriatic, affords a magnificent spectacle. Its calcareous masses 
 cannot boast of much beauty of profile, but this is compensated for by the fine 
 Alpine region extending beneath its summit, which remains the haunt of bears and 
 chamois, and where rare j)lants in the meadows remind us of Switzerland. Forests 
 of beeches and pines are still met with in a few places, and are all the more 
 appreciated as forests no longer exist in the lowland regions. This universal 
 destruction of the forests is one of the great misfortunes of Italy. In many parts 
 of the Roman Apennines even the soil has been washed away, and only in a few 
 crevasses do we meet with brooms and briers. 
 
 The valleys on the western slope of the Apennines are enclosed between 
 calcareous spurs of the main range, some of which attain a considerable elevation. 
 The Tiber itself thus passes between two lofty mountains, rising at the lower 
 extremity of two of these Sub-Apennine spurs, and forming a kind of triumphal 
 gateway. These are the Soracte (2,270 feet) and Gennaro (4,1G2 feet). These 
 fine mountains, with the Sabine Hills and the volcanic groups near them, form 
 the horizon of the Roman Campagna, and their natural beauties are enhanced by 
 the memories of art and history which attach to them. 
 
 Several ranges of hills and detached mountain groups of calcareous formation.
 
 PEASANTS (IF Tin; AISIH'ZZOS.
 
 THE APENXIXES, TIBEK, MARCHES, ANI* ABEUZZOS. 259 
 
 like the Sub- Apennines, border upon the shore of the Tyrrhenian Sea and the 
 marshes whicli extend along it. 8uth are the hills, rich in alum, which aro 
 grouped around the ancient trachytic cone of the Tolfa. Such, too, are the Monte 
 Lepini (4,845 feet), the naked crest of which has been likened to an ass's back — 
 sc/iiena (/'asiiw — and which bound the Pontine Marshes on the east. In some 
 of the recesses of these hills there still exist forests of chestnut-trees and beeches, 
 where the descendants of the ancient Volsci may pasture their hogs ; but almost 
 everywhere else the hill-sides are bare of vegetation, and the scorching rays of 
 the sun have split the rocks into innumerable angular fragments. To the east of 
 the marshes rises a summit with ten pinnacles, covered with dense shrub on the 
 land side, but barren towards the sea, a few stunted palms excepted, which grow 
 in the fissures of the rock. This isolated hill, a counterpart of the Argcnfaro of 
 Tuscany, is the Circello (1,729 feet), famous as the residence of the enchantress 
 Circe. The grotto where she changed human beings into animals is still pointed 
 out there to the curious, and the remains of cyclopean walls recall the mythical 
 age of the Odj-ssey. The ancient Greeks, who were but imperfectly acquainted 
 with Italy, looked upon this dreaded promontory of Circe as one of the most 
 important islands of the "NVestern Cyclades. 
 
 During the glacial period the sea, in which have been deposited the chalk and 
 other rocks composing the Sub- Apennines, was the scene of volcanic action on a 
 grand scale. The matter ejected was heaped up in a line of volcanic cones, 
 running in a direction nearly parallel with the Apennines and the coast of the 
 Mediterranean. These cones arc joined to each other by thick layers of tufa, 
 which cover the whole of the plain as far as the foot of the calcareous mountains, 
 and extend for a distance of nearly 120 miles, from Monte Amiata, in Tuscany, to 
 the mountains of Albano, -being interrupted only by the alluvial valley of the 
 Tiber. Ponzi and other geologists are of opinion that this tufa was ejected from 
 submarine volcanoes, carried away by the currents, and equally distributed over 
 the depressions of the sea-bottom. No fossils have been discovered in it hitherto, 
 which is accounted for by the presence of icebergs, which prevented a development 
 of animal life. 
 
 This volcanic region is remarkable on account of its numerous lakes. The 
 largest of these, that of Bolcena, was formerly looked upon as an ancient crater. 
 This crater would have exceeded by far the largest volcanic vents met with in 
 the Andes or in Java, for it has a circumference of twenty-five miles, and covers 
 an area of forty-four square miles. Modern geologists, however, look upon this 
 crateriform lake as a basin of erosion, and though it occupies the centre of a 
 plateau formed of ashes, scoria?, and lava, these do not form a steep edge towards 
 the lake, as in the case of veritable craters in the same district. One of the most 
 remarkable of these latter is that of Latera, to the west of the lake, in the centre 
 of which rises a cone of eruption, the Monte Spignano, which has a diameter 
 of nearly five miles. 
 
 The district of the Bolsena is likewise remarkable on account of its vertical 
 precipices of tufa and lava. Its picturesque towns and villages are perched upon 
 
 s2
 
 2G0 
 
 ITALY. 
 
 bold promontories looking down on the valleys. The old town of Bagnorea 
 occupies the extremity of an immense mole, and is joined to the new town by a 
 giddy path, bounded by steep precipices, which timid travellers do not care to 
 venture upon. Orvieto stands on an isolated rock resembling a fortress. Pittigliano 
 is surrounded by precipices : by cutting away a few yards of the narrow isthmus 
 which joins it to the rest of the plateau, access to it would be impossible to all but 
 birds. In the Middle Ages, when nobles and towns were continually at war, the 
 capture of one of these eyries was looked upon as a grand achievement. 
 
 Lake Bolsena discharges its surplus waters through the Marta into the 
 Mediterranean. The fine Lake of Bracciano, to the south of it, gives rise to 
 the Arrone. It, too, appears to be a basin formed by a subsidence of the ground 
 or erosion, and not a crater. The Lake of Vico, on the other hand, clearly 
 
 Fig. 90. — The Lake of Bolseva. 
 Scale 1 : 457,000. 
 
 occupies an ancient volcano, though its rampart has been gutted towards the east. 
 Close to the lake, and within the encircling rampart, rises Monte Venere, a perfect 
 cone, the gentle slopes of which are luxuriantly wooded. Formerly the lake 
 surrounded this cone, but the breach through which its emissary escapes to the 
 Tiber having gradually been deepened, the waters of the lake subsided. Tradition 
 says that an ancient city lies at its bottom. 
 
 On crossing the Tiber we reach the beautiful volcanic group of Albano, 
 within the great crater of which may still be traced the remains of several 
 secondary craters, some of them occupied by lakes. The principal one of these, 
 Monte Cavo (2,790 feet), rises in the very centre of the exterior rampart. 
 Tradition points it out as one of Hannibal's camps. The exterior slopes of the 
 mountain consist of pozzuolana, small stones, and ashes, through which the 
 torrents have dug out furrows in divergent directions. The diversity of these
 
 TIIK ArKXNINES, TIHEU, MAKCUK.S, AND AUltl'ZZOS. 
 
 261 
 
 volcanic products enables us (o tnu'c flie phases of activity of this Roman 
 Vesuvius, which was active at a much more recent epoch than the volcanoes 
 farther north, and sent its streams of lava to the vcrj' gates of Rome. 
 
 The Lake of Albano discharges its surplus waters through a tuiniel T.fitJO feet 
 in length, which has been in exigence for more than twenty-two centuries. The 
 
 Fig. 91. — Voi.c.txoES or Latum. 
 
 From the Auatrian Staff Msp. 
 
 Scale I ; 294,000. 
 
 lake is famous on account of a small crab, large numbers of which arc forwarded 
 to Rome during Lent. It is the only species of this animal hitherto discovered in 
 fresh water, and zoologists conclude from this that the crater now occupied by the 
 lake formerly communicated with the sea, but was separated from it by slow 
 upheavals and the ejection of volcanic products. Flint implements and vases of 
 baked clay, discovered in the thick layers of volcanic peperino, prove that at the
 
 262 ITALY. 
 
 period of the earliest eruptions the country was already inhabited by a civilised 
 population. Some of the vases referred to are doubly precious, for they present 
 us with delineations of the houses of that prehistoric epoch. Roman coins and 
 clasps of bronze, discovered in the upper layers of lava, prove that these are 
 comparatively recent. In fact, the most diverse developments of civilisation have 
 left their traces in these ancient craters. Alba Longa and other towns of the Latins 
 have been replaced by Roman cities ; then came the castles of the popes, and of 
 other high dignitaries of the Church ; and at present these hills are one of the 
 chief resorts of the crowds of strangers who flock to Rome from every quarter of 
 the world. On the culminating point of Monte Cavo stood the famous temple of 
 Jupiter Latialis, where the Latins celebrated their federal Feriao. The last 
 remains of this temple were swept away in 1783, to be used in the construction 
 of a church. From its site the eye embraces a view extending to the hills of 
 Sardinia. 
 
 The Lake of Nemi no longer reflects in its bluish waters the foliage of 
 luxuriant trees, or the walls of that dreaded temple of Diana whose priest was 
 only allowed to assume ofiice after he had killed his predecessor in a duel. It, too, 
 has its subterranean emissary, like the Lake of Albano. As to the Regillus, 
 famed for the defeat of the Latins by the Romans, it has dried up, whilst the 
 incrustating Lake of Tartari and that of the Solfatara, with its floating islands, 
 are mere shallow ponds, which owe their fame almost exclusively to the vicinity 
 of Tivoli. 
 
 All these volcanic lakes are of considerable depths, whilst the lakes in the 
 calcareous regions are shallow.* One amongst them, that of Fucino, has been 
 drained recently, and the same fate is in store for that of Trasimeno. Lake 
 Fucino originally occupied an area of 104 square miles, and its surplus waters 
 discharged themselves towards the north-west into the Salto, a tributary of the 
 Tiber. At an epoch not known to us the dimensions of the lake became less. It 
 no longer discharged an efiluent, but its waters rose and fell according to whether 
 the seasons were wet or dry. Occasionally they rose as much as 50 feet, and two 
 cities, Marruvium and Pinna, are said to have been swallowed up during one of 
 these floods. At other times it was reduced to a swamp. The ancient Romans, 
 desirous of suppressing a hotbed of fever, and of gaining fertile soil for agriculture, 
 attempted to drain this lake. Claudius employed 30,000 slaves for eleven years 
 in cutting a passage through the mountains from it to the Liri. This great work 
 was carried on under the direction of the greedy Narcissus, but it turned out a 
 failure, for after a short time the tunnel became choked. In the thirteenth 
 century an attempt was made to reopen this tunnel, but the drainage of the lake 
 has only been achieved quite recently, in accordance with plans designed by 
 M. de Montricher, and carried out at the expense of Prince Torlonia. Between 
 
 * Volcanic Lakes : — Bolsena: area, 42 sq. m. ; height, 995 ft. ; depth, 460 ft. Bracciano : area, 22 sq. m. ; 
 height, 495 ft. ; depth, 820 ft. Albano: area, 2-3 sq. m.; height, 1,000 ft.; depth, 466 ft. Nemi: area, 
 0-8 sq. m. ; height, 1,108 ft.; depth, 164 ft. Shallow Lakes: — Trasimeno: area, 46 £q. m. ; height, 
 »43 ft. ; depth, 21 ft. Fucino ttn 1860) : area, 61 sq. m. ; height, 2,300 ft. ; depth, 92 ft.
 
 THE ATEXXIXES, TIBER, MAltcUES, AND ABBUZZOS. 
 
 263 
 
 1855 and 1869 a new tunnel was excavated on the site of the ancient one, and 
 nearly 150,000,000 cubic yards of water were conveyed through it into the Liri, 
 and thence to the sea. The whole of the ancient lake bed has been converted into 
 smiling fields, traversed in all directions by carriage i-oads ; houses have been 
 erected on spots formerly covered with water ; fruit and ornamental trees have 
 been planted ; and the salubrity of the country leaves nothing to be desired 
 now. Some idea of the progress made in the art of engineering since the time 
 of the Romans may be formed by comparing this new tunnel with the old one. 
 The latter was 18,500 feet in length, had an average section of 12 square yards, 
 and cost (according to M. Rotrou) £9,840,000. The new tunnel has a length of 
 20,680 feet, a section of 2-1 square yards, and cost £1,200,000. 
 
 Jb'ig. 92. — The Ancient Lake of Ficino. 
 Scale 1 : 412,000. 
 
 The Lake of Perugia, better known as the Lake of Trasimeno, on account of 
 the terrible memories which attach to it, still retains nearly the dimensions which 
 it had at the dawn of history. If this lake were to rise only a few feet, its 
 surplus waters would find their way into the Tresa, a tributary of the Tiber ; but 
 its basin is shallow, and evaporation sufiices for carrying ofi' the water conveyed 
 into it by its tributary rivulets. Amongst these is the famous Sanguinetto, on 
 the banks of which the armies of Hannibd and Flaminius were engaged in battle, 
 when, 
 
 " beneath the fray, 
 An earthquake reeled unbeededly away." 
 
 The lake, with its islands and charming contours, is beautiful to look upon, 
 but the low hills surrounding it are sterile, the climate is insalubrious, its waters 
 harbour but few fish, and the inhabitants on its shores look impatiently forward
 
 264 
 
 ITALY. 
 
 to the time when the engineers will fulfil their promise of winning for agriculture 
 30,000 acres of fertile land now covered by the waters of the lake. 
 
 But far more urgent, on sanitary and economical grounds, are the claims of 
 the Eoman Campagna ; that is, of the region lying between the Tolfa of Civita 
 Vecchia, Monte Soracte, the Sabine Hills, and the volcanoes of Latium. Slavery 
 and maladministration have converted a fertile region into a desert extending to 
 the very gates of Rome. Painters are enraptured with this Roman Campagna ; 
 they admire its melancholy aspect, its picturesque ruins hidden beneath brambles, 
 
 Fig. 93. — Lake of Trasimeno. 
 
 From the Austrian Staff Map. 
 Scale 1 : 260,000. 
 
 its solitary pines, its pools reflecting the purple clouds, and visited by thirsty 
 buffaloes. True this region, bounded by hills of bold contours, is full of grandeur 
 and sadness ; but the air that hangs over it is deadly, the soil and climate of 
 this Agro Momaiio have deteriorated, and fever now reigns there supreme, -vn.^' - 
 Two thousand years ago the Roman Campagna, which covers an area of 
 600,000 acres to the north of the Tiber, and extends from the sea to the moun- 
 tains, was a fertile and carefully cultivated country. Then its inhabitants were 
 reduced to the condition of serfs, the Roman patricians appropriated the land, and 
 
 «^^0
 
 Till-: APENNINES, TIBER, LLVRCHES, .VND AbBUZZOS. 
 
 265 
 
 covered it with villas and parks. When these magnificent residences were given 
 up to pillage and to flames, the cultivators of the soil dispersed, and the country 
 immediatolv became a desert. Since that epoch most of the Agro is held in 
 mortmain by ecclesiastical corporations or princely families, and whilst all the 
 rest of Europe has been making progress, the Campagna has become even more 
 sterile and insalubrious. Swamps continually invade the lowlands, and an atmo- 
 sphere charged with miasmata hangs evea above the hills. Malaria has already 
 knocked at the gates of Rome, and the fevers produced by it decimate the popula- 
 tion of its suburbs. 
 
 Fig. 94.— The Rum.w CA.Miwox.t. 
 
 Not a village, not even a hamlet, is met with throughout this afflicted region. 
 The only buQdings are the wretched storehouses of the proprietors, whose wide 
 domains are roamed over by herds of half-wild grey cattle, said to have been 
 introduced into Italy by the Huns, and distinguished by immense horns, fre- 
 quently suspended in the huts of the peasantry, who fancy that they keep off the 
 " evil eye." The" soil of these neglected pastures consists of alluvium mixed with 
 volcanic debris and marls, but only a few patches are cultivated. The farmers and 
 labourers who engage in this labour carry their lives in their hands, and are 
 frequently struck down by fever before thej- are able to regain their villages in
 
 266 ITALY. 
 
 tlie hills. What can be done to restore to this region its fertility, salubrity, and 
 population ? No doubt it will be necessary to drain the marshes, and to plant 
 trees capable, like the Eucal3^ptus, of absorbing the poisonous miasmata ; and this 
 has been done, with a considerable amount of success, since 1870, near the abbey 
 of Tre Fontane. But, above all, it will be necessary to interest the cultivator 
 of the soil in its productiveness. Even in the most salubrious districts of the 
 ancient Papal dominions the population is being decimated b)' misery and the 
 maladies following in its train. In the valley of Sacco, to the south-east of Ronie, 
 which abounds in cereals, vines, and fruit trees, the cultivator of the soil is 
 restricted to a diet of maize, for proprietors and money-lenders eat up the rest of 
 his produce. 
 
 An uncultivated and insalubrious region extends, likewise, along the sea to the 
 south of the Tiber. Poisonous vapours arise from the stagnant waters separated 
 by dunes from the sea, and in order to escape them it is necessary to seek a refuge 
 in the hills of the interior, or even on jetties built out into the sea, as at Porto 
 d'Anzio. The palaces which formerly lined the shore from Ostia to Nettuno, and 
 from the ruins of which have been recovered some of our most highly valued 
 art treasures, such as the Gladiator and Apollo Belvedere, have been buried 
 long ago beneath the dunes or in the swamps. The most dreaded of these 
 malarial districts lies at the foot of the Monti Lepini, and extends from Porto 
 d'Anzio to Terracina. It is known as the Pontine Marshes, from an ancient city 
 named Pometia, which no longer exists. No less than twenty-three cities 
 formerly flourished in what is now a deserted and deadly country, but which was 
 the most prosperous of the districts held by the confederation of the Volsci. The 
 Roman conquerors created " peace and solitude " at the same time. Four 
 hundred and forty years after the building of Rome, when Ajjpius constructed 
 his famous road to Terracina, the country was only a swamp. Various attempts 
 have been made since to reclaim this region, but it still remains the haunt of 
 boars, deer, and semi- savage buffaloes, whose ancestors were imported from Africa 
 in the seventh century. The canals dug during the reign of Augustus appear to 
 have been of little use ; the works undertaken by Theodoric the Goth were more 
 efficacious; but stagnant waters and malaria in the end regained the mastery. The 
 engineers employed by Pius VI. towards the close of the eighteenth century 
 failed likewise, and this district of 290 square miles remains a wilderness to the 
 present day. If a brigand seeks refuge in it, pursuit is stopped, and he is allowed 
 to die in peace. 
 
 In order to drain these marshes an accumulation of difficulties will have to be 
 surmounted. A range of wooded dunes bounds the marshes on the west. Having 
 crossed these, we enter a second zone of marshes, which are separated from the sea 
 by a second range of dunes, extending northward from the Monte Circello, and like- 
 wise densely wooded. These two formidable barriers would have to be surmounted 
 in order to drain the marshes towards the west. Nor are the prospects more pro- 
 mising in the direction of Terracina, for there, too, every outlet is stopped by dunes. 
 The streams and canals crossing the marshes are, moreover, choked up with a dense
 
 THE APEXXIXES, TIBEB, MAKCEES, AND ABRUZZOS. 
 
 267 
 
 growth of aquatic plants, which impedes the circulation of the water, feeble though 
 it be. Herds of buffaloes are sometimes driven into these streams to trample down 
 the vegetation, but neither this barbarous procedure nor the more regular process 
 of mowing has availed against its rapid and luxuriant growth, and the water 
 
 Fig. 95. — The Postixb Marshes. 
 ecrde I : SSO.OOO. 
 
 remains stagnant. Eains are not only heavy in this portion of Italy, but the 
 superabundant waters of neighbouring river basins actually find their way through 
 subterranean channels into the depression occupied by the Pontine Marshes. 
 This happens after heavy rains in the case of the Sacco, a tributary of the 
 Garigliano, and of the Teverone, a tributary of the Tiber, and to this circumstance
 
 268 ITALY. 
 
 must be ascribed the curious fact first ascertained by M. de Prony, viz. that the 
 vohime of water annually discharged by the Badino, which drains the marshes, 
 exceeds by one-half the whole of the rain which annually descends upon them. 
 When this happens the whole of the country is under water. Another danger 
 arises during dry weather. It happens then occasionally that the parched 
 vegetation is ignited through the carelessness of herdsmen ; the fire communicates 
 itself to the turfy soil, and the latter smoulders until the subsoil water is reached. 
 In this manner tracts of land which were looked upon as secure against every 
 inundation are converted into marsh. During the greater portion of the year 
 the Pontine Marshes present the appearance of a plain covered with herbage and 
 flowers, and it is matter for surprise that a country so fertile should be without 
 inhabitants. The town of Ninfa, which was built in the eleventh century, near 
 the northern extremity of the plain, has since been abandoned, its walls, houses, 
 and palaces still remaining, covered with ivy and other creeping plants. 
 
 There can be no doubt that our engineers would be able to reclaim this desolate 
 region. The system adopted in the case of the valley of the Chiana may not 
 be practicable, but other, if more costly, means may be devised. Whatever the 
 outlay, it is sure to he productive, for even now the marshes yield rich harvests of 
 wheat and maize. 
 
 The Tiber, or Tevere, the great river of the Romans, has defied all attempts 
 at correction down to our own days, and its sudden floods are said to be even more 
 formidable now than they were in the days of the Republic. Ever since the time 
 of Ancus Martius there has been going on a struggle against the alluvium brought 
 down by the river, and it vrill need ail the skill of the Italian engineers to master 
 this difiicult problem. 
 
 The Tiber is by far the most important river of the peninsular portion of Italy, 
 aad its basin is the most extensive.* It is, too, the only river that is navigable 
 in its lower course, from Ostia to Fidenae. The Tiber rises on the western slope 
 of the Alpe della Luna, in the latitude of Florence. The valley through which 
 it flows, whilst in the heart of the Apennines, is of surpassing beauty ; at one time 
 it expands into broad and fertile basins, at others it is hemmed in by precipitous 
 rocks. Below the charming basin of Perugia the Tiber receives the Topino, 
 f jrmed by the confluence of several streams in the old lacustrine basin of Foligno, 
 oae of the most delightful districts of all Italy, situated at the foot of the Great 
 Apennines and of the Col Fiorito, which leads across them. The Clituuo (Cli- 
 tumnus) debouches upon this plain, famous on account of its pellucid waters : — 
 
 "The most living crj-stal that was e'er 
 The haunt of the river nymph, to gaze and lave 
 Her limbs." 
 
 The ruins of a beautiful temple still remain near the source of this river, but the 
 miraculous power of the latter of changing into a brilliant white the wool of the 
 sheep grazing upon its sacred banks has gone for ever. 
 
 • Basin, 6,475 square miles; length, 260 miles, of which CO are navigahlo.
 
 THE APENNINES. TIUEK, MARCUES, AND ABRUZZOS. 
 
 209 
 
 The Nera is the most important tributary of Ihe Tiber; " it gives it to drink," 
 as the Italian proverb says, and rivals it in volunio. It is formed by the junction 
 of several streams descending from the Sibylline ilountaius, Monte Velino, and 
 the Sabine Hills. About two thousand years ago, it is said, most of these rivulets 
 did not reach the Tiber; they were intercepted in the plain of Ilieti, wlierc they 
 
 Fi". 96. — Ancient LActsTiiiNE Basins op thk Tiheu anh Toi'Ino. 
 
 formed the Lacus Vel'nus, represented at the present day by a few ponds and 
 marshes scattered over the fertile fields of the " Garden of Eoses." A breach 
 effected in the calcareous rocks, and several times enlarged since, allowed the 
 pent-up waters of the Velino to escape to the Nera, and in doing so they formed 
 those beautiful cascades of Marmora, above Terni, whose charms have been 
 celebrated by poets and painters. The river falls down a perpendicular height of
 
 270 ITALY. 
 
 542 feet in a single sheet, and tlien rushes down, over heaped-up blocks of rock, 
 Fig. 97. — The Cascades of Tehni. 
 
 until it joins the more placid waters of the Nera. Far less grand, but perhaps
 
 THE APENNINES, TIBER, MARCUES, AND ABRUZZOS. 
 
 271 
 
 more charming, are the numerous cascateHas of the Anio, or Tevcronc, the last 
 affluent of any importance which the Tiber receives above Rome. Standing on the 
 verdant hill upon wliich is built the picturesque town of Tivoli, silvery cascades 
 may bo seen to escape in every direction. Some of thorn glide down the polished 
 rocks; others shoot forth from gloomj' arches, remuiii suspended an instant in tho 
 air, and then disappear again beneath the foliage; but every one of them, whether 
 
 Fig. 98. — The Delta of the Tiheh. 
 According to Darondcau ilSGl) and DcuJHrdias. 
 
 
 
 -■. -'/^«?^-^ ::-o' -■-;^fe^i:^/>>i?■•^v 
 l^ '■■■-■•.. ..._^ _,..^ "^^^l/«^t^?:'-'':^ ;:i 
 
 ■'^ ^"■' """■■■■■•••.. '*'^^>'%fi^^-^-^v*3^ 
 
 - - -•-., ■-.. •-.t!^-^j*,»r»-iiv 
 
 a powerful jet or a mere thread of water, possesses some charm of its own, and, 
 ds a whole, they form one of the most delightful spectacles to be witnessed in 
 Italy. It is these cascades which have rendered Tivoli famous throughout the 
 vorld ; and in spite of the popular rhyme — 
 
 " Tivoli di mat conforto, 
 O piove, o lira vento, o 6uon» a mortu'. " —
 
 •272 
 
 ITALY. 
 
 modem residences have taken the place of the villas of the ancient Roman., 
 j?;„ (59., — Peasants of tht' Eomax Campagna. 
 
 amon-st which that of Hadrian was the most sumptuous. Its ruins, to the west 
 of Tivoli, cover an area of three square miles. Recently it has been proposed to
 
 THE APENNINES, TIBER, MARCHES, AND ABRUZZOS. 273 
 
 utilise the great water power of the Anio far more extensively tlian has 
 been done hitherto. The ancients contented themselves with quarryin" the 
 concretionary limestone, or travertin, deposited by the calcareous waters of 
 the river, sometimes to the depth of a Inindrcd feet. They made use of this 
 stone for the construction of their public buildings. Travertin, when first 
 quarried, is white ; after a certain time it turns yellow, and subsequently assumes 
 a beautiful roseate hue, which imparts a character of majesty to the edifices 
 constructed of it. 
 
 Below their confluence with the Anio, the yellow waters of the Tiber, 
 discoloured by the clay brought down from the plains of Umbria, rush beneath 
 the bridges of Rome. Soon afterwards the river winds round the last hills, 
 which formerly bounded an ancient gulf of the sea, now silted up. The influence 
 of the tides makes itself felt. At the head of the Sacred Island, formerly 
 dedicated to Venus, and famous for its roses, but now a dreary swamp covered 
 with reeds and asphodels, it bifurcates. The principal branch, the old Tiber, 
 passes to the south of this island. Ostia, which was the port of the river durin* 
 the early days of Rome, is buried now beneath fields of cereals and thistles, at 
 a distance of five miles from the sea. Excavations made there since 1855 have 
 laid bare several temples, tombs, and warehouses. The merchants of Rome were 
 compelled to abandon that city two thousand years ago, on account of a bar formed 
 at the mouth of the river. 
 
 The Roman emperors, anxious to have an outlet into the sea, ordered a ship 
 canal to be excavated to the north of Ostia. This is the Fiumicino, which the 
 erosive action of the Tiber has converted into a small river. Claudius had huge 
 docks excavated to the north of this canal, and a new Ostia arose near them. 
 Trajan opened another port to the south-east of it, whicli remained for several 
 centuries the port of Rome. But it, too, has been silted up for about a thousand 
 years, and the alluvium brought down by the Tiber is continually encroaching 
 upon the sea, the rate of progress being about three feet annually at the mouth 
 of the Fiumicino, and ten feet at that of the old Tiber. Extensive ruins of 
 palaces, baths, and storehouses exist near the ancient port of Trajan, and several 
 works of art have recently been excavated there. 
 
 The mouth of the Tiber is thus closed by a bar, like that of all other rivers which 
 flow into the Mediterranean ; and the Romans, instead of being able to make use 
 of their river for communicating with the sea, are obliged to have recourse to more 
 distant harbours. In former times they kept up this communication with Sicily, 
 Greece, and the Orient through Antium, Anxur (Terracina), and even Puteoli; 
 but since the countries of the North have risen into political and commercial 
 importance, Civita Vecchia has become the great maritime entrepot of the valley 
 of the Tiber. It is well known that Garibaldi has conceived the stupendous 
 project of converting Rome into a great maritime city. The stagnant waters of 
 the Campagna are to be carried off' by means of a huge sanitary canal, the bed of 
 the Tiber is to be deepened, and an artificial harbour capable of receiving the 
 largest vessels is to be constructed far out in the Mediterranean. 
 
 VOL. I. T
 
 274 ITALY. 
 
 The execution of this vast scheme is no doubt attended with immense diffi- 
 culties, not the least amongst which are the annual floods of the Tiber. Ancient 
 writers tell us that these inundations were dreaded not only because of the damage 
 done directly, but also because of the great quantities of animal and vegetable 
 deposits which remained in the fields after the subsidence of the waters. The nature 
 of these floods has continued the same down to the present time. At Rome, though 
 its distance from the sea is only twenty-two miles, the river frequently rises forty or 
 fifty feet, and in December, 1598, it rose sixty-five feet ! How is this huge volume 
 of water to be disposed of after it has passed beneath the bridges of Ronie ? If 
 the destruction of the forests in the Apennines is one of the principal causes of 
 these floods, will it be sufficient to replant them ? Or would it be preferable 
 to restore some of those ancient lakes into which numerous rivers discharged 
 themselves, which now take their course to the sea ? The difficulties are great 
 indeed, for the western slope of the Apennines is exposed to the rain-bearing 
 westerly and south-westerly winds, and the floods of everj' one of the numerous 
 tributaries of the Tiber take place simultaneously, and combine to form one vast 
 inundation. 
 
 It is by no means difficult to account for the great floods of the Tiber which 
 take place in winter, but the condition of the river during summer has for a long 
 time baffled inquiry. The level of the river during the dry season is far higher 
 than could possibly be accounted for by the small quantity of rain which falls 
 within its basin. Its volume in summer is never less than half its average 
 volume, a phenomenon not hitherto observed in the case of any other river. The 
 Seine has a basin five times larger than that of the Tiber, and its average volume 
 is almost double ; yet, after a continuance of dry weather, its volume is only a 
 third or fourth of the Italian river. This perennity of the Tiber can only be 
 accounted for by assuming that it is fed, during the dry season, from subterranean 
 reservoirs, in which the water is stored up during winter. These reservoirs must 
 be very numerous, if we are to judge by the numerous " sinks," or " swallows," 
 met with on the calcareous plateaux of the Apennines. One of these sinks, 
 known as the " Fountain of Ital}-," near Alatri, close to the Neapolitan frontier, 
 has the appearance of a huge pit, 160 feet in depth and 300 feet across. Its 
 bottom is occupied by a forest, and numerous springs give rise to luxuriant 
 herbage, upon which sheep lowered by means of ropes feed with avidity. It is 
 from sinks like this that the rivers of the country, the Tiber and the Sacco, are 
 fed. It has been computed by Venturoli and Lombardini, the engineers, that 
 about three- fourths of the liquid mass of the Tiber during winter are derived from 
 subterranean lakes hidden in the depths of the Apennines. The volume of water 
 annually supplied from this source to the Tiber would fill a basin having an area 
 of 100 square miles to a depth of 80 feet ! * 
 
 Primitive Rome is to a large extent indebted for her power to the Tiber, not 
 
 •Annual rainfaU at Rome, 30-7 inches; at the foot of the Apennines, 43-3 in. ; on the summits, 
 94'.5 in. Volume of the Tiber : average 10,180 cubic ft. ; maximum, 60,400 cubic ft. ; minimum, 4,650 
 cubic ft., a second.
 
 THE APENNINES, TIBER, MABCHES, AND ABBUZZOS. 275 
 
 because that river is navigable, but because it traverses the centre of a vaet basin, 
 of which Rome is the natural capital. Rome, moreover, occupied a central 
 position with regard to the whole of Italy and the world of the ancients ; but, as 
 has already been pointed out, Rome no longer lies upon any of the great high- 
 roads of nations. That city certainly occupies not only the centre of Italy, 
 but of all the countries surrounding the Tyrrhenian Sea ; and its climate would 
 leave little to be desired, if it were not for the insalubrity of the Campagna. Still 
 Rome, though the residence of two sovereigns, the King of Italy and the Pope, ia 
 not even the principal city of the peninsula, and still less so the capital of the 
 Latin race. It is said that during the Middle Ages, when the popes resided 
 at Avignon, the population of Rome was reduced to 17,000 souls. Gregorovius, 
 than whom no one is better acquainted with that epoch in the history of Rome, 
 doubts this; but there can be no doubt that after the sack ordered bj- the Con- 
 stable of Bourbon its population was reduced to .30,000 souls. More recently 
 Rome has increased rapidly, but it is still very inferior to Naples, and even to 
 Milan. 
 
 From the very first the Romans were a mixed race. The myth of Romulus 
 and Remus, the rape of the Sabine women, and incessant internal conflicts bear 
 evidence to this fact. The remains of ancient cities, cyclopean walls, burial- 
 grounds, urns, vases, and ornaments prove that on the right bank of the Tiber 
 the Etrurians were at least as strong as the Italians. Elsewhere the Gauls 
 predominated, and from an intermixture of all these various peoples sprang the 
 primitive Roman. 
 
 When Rome had reached the zenith of her power things wore a different 
 aspect, and thousands of foreigners became amalgamated with the Latins, Gauls, 
 Iberians, Mauritanians, Greeks, Syrians, and Orientals of every race and climate ; 
 slaves, freemen, and citizens flocked towards the capital of the world, and 
 modified the character of its inhabitants. Towards the close of the Empire there 
 were more strangers within the walls of Rome than Romans, and when the empire 
 of the "West broke to pieces, and the empress-city was pillaged repeatedly by 
 barbarian hordes, the Italians had already become mixed with the most diverse 
 elements. This endless mixture between diflferent races, victors and vanquished, 
 masters and slaves, accoimts, perhaps, more satisfactorily for the great changes 
 which have taken place in the course of two thousand years in the character and 
 spirit of the Romans. Still the Romans on the right bank of the Tiber, the 
 so-caUed Trasteverini, have preserved the old Roman type, as transmitted to us in 
 statues and on medals. 
 
 Rome is great because of its past, and its ruins are more attractive than its 
 modern buildings ; it is a tomb rather than a living city. These monuments, 
 raised by the former masters of the world, strongly impress the imagination. The 
 sight of the Coliseum arouses an admiration akin to terror, unless we look upon 
 this formidable edifice as a mere heap of stones. The thought that this vast arena 
 was crowded with men who sought to kill each other, that the steps surroundiBg 
 it were occupied by 80,000 human beings who delighted in this butchery and 
 
 T 2
 
 276 
 
 ITALY. 
 
 encouraged it by their shouts, calls up an amount of baseness, ferocity, and 
 frenzy, whose existence could not fail to sap the foundations of Roman civilisation, 
 and make it an easy prey to the barbarian. The Forum awakens memories ol 
 quite a different nature. Abominations were practised there, too, but its history 
 as a whole exhibits it as the true centre of the Roman world. It was from this 
 spot that the first impetus was given to the nations of the West ; it was here that 
 
 FiR^ 100.— Rome. 
 
 the ideas imported from every quarter of the world bore fruit. The walls, 
 columns, temples, and churches which surround the Forum relate in mute lan- 
 guage the principal events in the history of Rome ; and if we search beneath 
 existing edifices we meet with structures more ancient, which take us back to a 
 period still more remote, for edifice has succeeded edifice on this spot, where 
 pulsated the life of the Roman people. And thus it is throughout Rome. Every 
 ancient monument, arcade, or broken column, every stone, bears witness to some
 
 THE APEXXDfES, TIBER, MABCHES, AND ABEUZZOS. 277 
 
 historical event, and though it may be difficult sometimes to interpret these 
 witnesses of the past, the truth is elicited by degrees. 
 
 In spite of pillage and wholesale destruction, there still exist numcrouB 
 ancient monuments, of which the Pantheon of Agrippa is one of the most 
 marvellous. The Vandals, who are usually charged with the work of destruction, 
 pQlaged the city, it is true, but they demolished nothing. The systematical 
 destruction had begun long before their time, when the materials for building the 
 first church of St. Peter were taken from the Circus of Caligula, and from other 
 monuments near it. The same plan was pursued in the construction of innume- 
 rable other churches and buildings of every kind. Statues were broken to pieces 
 and used for making lime, and in the beginning of the fifteenth century there only 
 remained six of them in all Rome, five of marble and one of bronze. The invasion 
 of the Xorraans in 1084, and the numerous wars of the Middle Ages, which were 
 frequently attended by pillage and conflagrations, wrought further havoc, but so 
 large had been the number of public buildings and monuments, that on the revival 
 of art in the sixteenth century many stiU remained for study and imitation. Since 
 that time the architectural collection enclosed by the walls of Rome has been 
 guarded with the utmost care, and still further enriched by the masterpieces of 
 Michael Angelo, Bramante, and others. 
 
 On the Palatine Hill the most curious remains of ancient Rome, including the 
 foundations of the palaces of the Cx'sars and of the walls of Roma Qiiadrata, have 
 recently been laid open. It was on this hiU, so rich in precious relics, that the 
 first Romans built their city, in order to aflford it the protection of steep escarp- 
 ments, and of the marshes on the Tiber and Yelabro. "WTien Rome grew more 
 populous it became necessary to descend from this hill. The town spread over 
 the valley of the Velabro, which had been drained by Tarquin the Etruscan, and 
 then climbed up the surrounding hills. A small island in the Tiber occupied its 
 centre. This the Romans looked upon as a sacred spot. They enclosed it by a 
 masonry embankment, shaped like a ship, erected an obelisk in its centre to 
 represent a mast, and a temple of J^sciJapius upon the poop. This island was 
 likened to a vessel bearing the fortunes of Rome. 
 
 There is still another Rome, the subterranean one, which is well worth study, 
 for we learn more from it about early Christianity than from all the books that 
 have been written. The crypts of the Christian burying-places occupy a zone 
 around the city a couple of miles in width, and embrace about fifty distinct 
 catacombs. Signor Rossi estimates the length of the subterranean passages at 
 360 miles. They are excavated in the tufa, and are, on an average, a yard in width, 
 but thev include chambers which served as oratories, and numerous tiers of niches for 
 the bodies. The inscriptions, bas-reliefs, and paintings of these cities of the dead 
 were at all times respected by the pagans, and fortunately the entrances to them 
 were closed up at the time the Barbarians invaded Rome. This saved their 
 contents from destruction, and everything was found intact when they were first 
 reopened towards the close of the sixteenth century. These tombs prove that the 
 popular belief of the Christians of that time was very different from what it is
 
 278 
 
 ITALY. 
 
 represented to have beea by contemponmeous writers, who belonged to a different 
 class of society from that of the majority of the faithful. A serene gaiety reigns 
 throughout, and lugubrious emblems find no place there. We neither meet with 
 representations of martyrdoms nor with skeletons or images of Death ; even the cross, 
 which at a later epoch became the great symbol of Christianity, is not seen there. 
 The most common symbols met with are those of the Good Shepherd carrying a 
 lamb upon his shoulders, and the vine decked with leaves. In the oldest 
 
 Fisr. 101.— The Hills of Rome. 
 
 catacombs, which date back to the second and third centuries, the figures are 
 Greek in character, and abound in heathen subjects. One represents the Good 
 Shepherd surrounded by the Three Graces. There are two Jewish catacombs, 
 likewise excavated in the tufa, and they enable us to compare the religious notions 
 which prevailed at that time amongst the followers of the two religions. 
 
 By an absurd predilection for mystical numbers, Rome is even now spoken of 
 as the "City of the Seven HiUs," although it lost all claim to such a designation
 
 THE APENNINES, TIBER, MARCHES, AND ABEUZZOS. 279 
 
 after it had outgrown the walls huilt by Servius TiiUiiis. Independently of 
 Monte Testaccio, which is merely a heap of potsherds, there arc at least nine 
 hills within the walls of actual Rome, viz. the Aventiuo, to which the plebeians 
 retired during their feeble struggles for independence ; the Palatine, the ancient 
 seat of the Cirsars ; the Capitolino, surmounted by the temple of Jupiter; Monte 
 Celio (Ca'Iius) ; the Esipiilino ; Viminale ; (iuirinule ; Citorio ; and the I'iucio, 
 with its public gardens. Besides these, there are two hills on the opposite bank 
 of the Tiber, viz. Moutc Gianicolo (Janiculum), the highest of all, and the 
 Vatican, which derives its name from the Latin word rates, a soothsayer, it having 
 once been the seat of Etruscan divination. 
 
 Faithful to its traditions, the last hill has ever since remained the place of 
 vaticinations. "When the Christian priests left the obscurity of the catacombs they 
 established themselves upon it, and thence they governed Rome and the Western 
 world. The Papal palace, abounding in treasures of art, was built upon it, and close 
 to it stands the resplendent basilica of St. l*eter, the centre of Catholic Christen- 
 dom. A long arcade connects the palace with the Castle of Sunt' Angelo, the 
 ancient mausoleum of Hadrian. The guns of this fortress no longer defend the 
 Vatican, for the temporal power of the pontiffs is a thing of the past ; but their 
 sumptuous church of St. Peter, with its dome rising high into the air, and visible 
 even from the sea, its statues, marbles, and mosaics, bears witness to the fact that 
 the riches of all Christendom formerly found their way to Rome. St. Peter's alone 
 cost nearly £20,000,000 sterling, and is only one out of the 3G5 churches 
 of the city of the popes. At the same time, the admiration which their 
 sumptuous edifice arouses is not without its alloj'. A multiplicity of ornaments 
 dwarfs the proportions of this colossal building, and, more serious still, instead of 
 its being the embodiment of an entire epoch of its faith and ideas, it is repre- 
 sentative only of a transitory phase in the local history of Catholicism, of an age of 
 contradictions, when the paganism of the Renaissance and the Christianity of the 
 Middle Ages allied themselves in order to give birth to a pompous and sensuous 
 nco-Catholicism suited to the tastes and caprices of the century. How different is 
 the impression wo derive from this building from that which the sombre nave of 
 a Gothic cathedral makes upon us! It is a remarkable fact that the quarter 
 of Rome in which the church of St. Peter is built is the only portion 
 of the city which was laid waste by the Mussulmans in 846, who are thus 
 able to boast of having sacked Papal Rome and taken possession of 
 Jerusalem, whilst the tomb of Mohammed has ever remained in the hands of the 
 faithful. As to the Jews, they did not come to Rome as conquerors. Shut up in 
 their filthy Ghetto near the swampy banks of the Tiber, and not far from that 
 arch of Titus which reminded them of the destruction of their temple, they have 
 been the objects of hatred and persecution during nineteen centuries. They have 
 surN^ved, thanks to the power of their gold, and since their liberation from bondage 
 they contribute even more to the embellishment of the Italian capital than do 
 their Christian fellow-citizens. 
 
 Our nineteenth century is not favourable to the creation of edifices fit to rival
 
 280 ITALY. 
 
 the Coliseum or St. Peter's, but there are works of another nature, not less 
 deserving of attention, whicli may distinguish this third era in the history of 
 Rome. Above all, it will be necessary to protect the city against the floods 
 of the Tiber, and to improve its sanitary condition. The bed of the river will 
 have to be deepened, embankments constructed, and a system of drainage 
 established. 
 
 It is well known that the quantity of water supplied to the Rome of the 
 ancients was prodigious. In the time of Trajan nine grand aqueducts, having a 
 total length of 262 mUes, supplied about 4,400 gallons of water per second, and 
 this quantity was augmented to the extent of one-fourth by canals subsequently 
 constructed. Even now, although most of these ancient aqueducts are in 
 ruins, the water supply of the capital of Italy is superior to that of most other 
 cities.* But if the time should ever come when Rome will occupy the whole of 
 the space enclosed within its walls, if ever the Formn shoidd again become the 
 centre of the city, then the want of water will be felt there as much as in most of 
 the other great towns of Europe. 
 
 Irrespectively of the insalubrity of the environs, there is another reason why 
 modern Rome cannot compare with the ancient city. Its streets no longer 
 radiate from a centre towards all the points of the compass, as they did of 
 yore. The Appian Road, which on first leaving the city passes through a curious 
 avenue of tombs, is t3'pical of the old roads, constructed in straight lines, and 
 shortening distances. It is true that these ancient highway's have been super- 
 seded by railways, but they are still few in number, and Rome is not situated 
 on a tnmk line. Elsewhere railways were built from the capital of the country 
 towards its periphery ; in Italy, on the contrary, it was Florence, Bologna, and 
 Naples which constructed lines converging upon Rome. 
 
 Rome is one of those large cities which are least able to exist upon their own 
 resources, and having no port, and its immediate vicinity being rendered unin- 
 habitable by miasmata, it has attached to it outlying places, and occupies a 
 position similar to that of a spider in the centre of its web. Its gardens, its rural 
 retreats, and its industrial establishments are all in the hiU towns of Tivoli ; at 
 Frascati (near which are the ruins of Tusculum) ; at Marino (where the confederated 
 nations of Latium held their meetings) ; at Albano (joined by a magnificent viaduct 
 to Ariccia) ; at VeUetri (the old city of the Volsci) ; at Palestrina (more ancient than 
 either Alba Longa or Rome, and occupying the site of a famous temple of Fortune, 
 the pride of ancient Prseneste). Its watering-places are at Palo, Fiumicino, and 
 Porto d'Anzio, which adjoins the little town of Nettune, so famous because of -the 
 
 * Water supply of some leading cities (in gallons) : — 
 
 
 Per Second. 
 
 Per Day. 
 
 Per Inhabitant. 
 
 Borne (1869) . 
 
 481 
 
 41,580,000 
 
 208 
 
 Paris (1875) . 
 
 904 
 
 78,100,000 
 
 44 
 
 London (1874) 
 
 1,262 
 
 110,000,000 
 
 27-5 
 
 Glasgow (1874) 
 
 373 
 
 32,482,500 
 
 62 
 
 Washington (1870) 
 
 741 
 
 66,000,000 
 
 660
 
 THE APENNINES, TIBER, MAECHES, AND ABEUZZOS. 
 
 281 
 
 haugtty beauty of its women. Its only seaport is Ci\-ita Vecchia, a dreary town 
 on the Tyrrhenian Sea, with a magnificent harbour.* The ancieftt harbours to the 
 south of the Tiber are very little resorted to in our day. Terracina, hidden amidst 
 verdure at the foot of white cliffs, is only used by Rome-bound travellers coming by 
 the coast road from the south.t Nearly every other town of Latiiim is built on 
 one or other of the two great roads, of which one lead* northward to Florence, whilst 
 the other penetrates the valley of the Sacco towards the south-east, and finally issues 
 upon the campagna of Naples. Viterbo, the " city of nice fountains and pretty 
 girls," is the principal town in the north. Alatri, on the slope of the Garigliano, 
 
 Fig. lOi. — CrriTA Vecchia. 
 
 and commanded bv a superb necropolis enclosed by cyclopean walls, occupies a 
 simQar position in the south. In the east, in one of the most charming valleys of 
 Sabina, traversed by the ever-cool waters of the Anio, lies Subiaco, the ancient 
 Sublaqueum, thus named after the three reservoirs constructed by Xero, who used 
 to fish trout in them with a golden net. It was in a holy cave (sacro sj)ecti) near 
 Subiaco that Benedict established his famous monastery, which preceded the still 
 more famous monastery of Monte Casino, and conjointly with that of Lerins, in 
 Provence, became the cradle of monachism in the West.^ 
 
 • Value of exports and imports 1863, £1,348,000; 1S68, 999,6C0. 
 
 + Tonnage of vessels which entered and cleared at the potts of Latiam in 1873 : — Civita Vecchia 
 620,000 (1875, 600,351) ; Fiumicino, 63,000 ; Porto d'Anzio, 30,900 ; Terracina, 335,000 tons. 
 
 I Towns of Latiam (1871) :— Rome, 229,356 (1376, 264,280); Viterbo, 16,326; Velletri, 14,798; 
 Civita Vecchia, 10,484; Ferentiao, 8,360; TivoU, 7,730; Frosinone, 7,714 ; Subiaco, 6,990; Sezze, 6,659; 
 Alatri, 6,39" inhabitants.
 
 282 ITALY. 
 
 Perugia, the capital of Umbria, on the road from Rome to Ancona, is one of the 
 ancient cities of the Etruscans, and excavations carried on in its vicinity have 
 revealed tombs of the highest interest. After every war and disaster this city 
 has arisen from its ruins, for its position in the midst of a fertile plain, and at the 
 point of junction of several natural high-roads, is most favourable. It is both a 
 Roman and a Tuscan city, and at the period of the Renaissance it gave birth to 
 one of the great schools of painting. There still remain numerous monuments at 
 Perugia which date back to that famous epoch, and although no longer one of the 
 artistic head-quarters of Italy, it is still the seat of a university ; its trade, espe- 
 cially in raw silk, is active ; and its clean houses and streets, its pure atmosphere, 
 and charming inhabitants annually attract to it a large number of the foreigners 
 who spend the winter at Rome. Perugia has by far outstripped its rival, Foligno, 
 which was formerly the great commercial mart of Central Italj% and still carries 
 on a few branches of industry ; amongst others, the tanning of leather. As to 
 Assisi, it is justly famous because of its temple of Minerva, and its gorgeous 
 monasteries decorated with the frescoes of Cimabue and his successor, Giotto, 
 the last of the Greek and the first of the Italian painters. Assisi is only a small 
 place now, but its environs are fertile and densely inhabited. It gave birth to 
 Francesco d'Assisi, the founder of the order of St. Francis. 
 
 Other towns of Umbria, though not now of much importance, may boast of 
 having once played a great part in history, or of possessing beautiful monuments. 
 Spoleto, the gates of which Hannibal sought in vain to force, has a superb basiHca, 
 a Roman viaduct carried across a deep ravine, and mountains clad with pines and 
 chestnuts. Terni is proud of its famous cascade (see p. 270). Orvieto, to the 
 north of the Tiber, near the frontier of Tuscany, is haughty and dirty, but justly 
 famous on account of its marvellous cathedral, one of the most costly and tasteful 
 buildings in the world. Citta di Castello, on the Uppar Tiber, and Gubbio, in the 
 very heart of the mountains, are the two principal towns in the Umbrian Apen- 
 nines. Both are delightfully situated, and possess efiicacious mineral sjjrings. 
 At Gubbio are shown the famous " Eugubian Tables," seven plates of bronze 
 covered with Umbrian characters, and the only relics of that kind known to exist. 
 The little town of Fratta, now known as Umbertide, half-way between Perugia 
 and Citta di Castello, is only of local importance.* 
 
 Ancona is the Adriatic port of the Roman countries. It is an ancient city of 
 the Dorians, which still retains the name given it by its founders, on account of its 
 being situated at the " angle " formed by the coast between the Gulf of Yenice 
 and the Southern Adriatic. A fine triumphal arch near the mole attests the 
 importance which Trajan attached to the possession of this port. Thanks to its 
 favourable position and the labour bestowed upon the improvement of its harbour, 
 Ancona is one of the three great places of commerce on the Adriatic; it ranks next 
 to Venice, and is almost the equal of Brindisi, though not one of the stages on the 
 road to India. Its commerce is fed by Rome, the Marches, and Lombardy ; and 
 
 * Population of the principal towns of Umtria (1871) :— Perugia, 16,708 ; Rieti, 12,905 ; Temi, 12,419 ; 
 FoHgno, 8,471 ; Spoleto, 7,490 ; Orvieto, 7,423 ; Citta di Ci.steUo, 6,588 ■ Assisi, 6,225 ; Gubbio, 5,343.
 
 TUE APENNINES, TI15EE, ALVKCUES, AND ABRUZZOS. 
 
 amongst its exports are fruits, oil, asiilialt from tlio Abruz/os, sulpliur from tbo 
 Apeniiiucs, and silk, " tlic very best in the world," if the native estimate of its (juality 
 can be aceopted.* The other ports along this coast offer but little shelter, and 
 their eonimcrce is small. Pesaro, the native town of Kossini, is only visited by 
 vessels of twenty or thirty tons. Fano merely admits barges. The small river 
 port of Sinigaglia (Scnigallia) was formerly much frequented during the fair, at 
 which commodities valued at £1,000,000 sterling used to change hands, but since 
 its abolition in 1870 it has been deserted. 
 
 With the exception of Fabbriono, which occupies a smiling valley of the 
 
 -Valleys of Erosion on the Western Slopb of the Apennines. 
 Scale 1 : 40C.000. 
 
 Apennines, and of Ascoli-Piceno, on the river Tronto, the inhaid towns of the 
 Marches are built upon the summit of hills, but extend through their suburbs to 
 the cultivable plain.*. The princijial among.st them arc Urbino, whose greatest 
 glory consists in ha'N'ing been the birthplace of Raftacl, and which, like its neighbour 
 Pesaro, formerly produced a kind of faience much valued by connoisseurs ; Jesi ; 
 Osimo ; Macerata ; Recanati, the native place of Leopardi ; and Fermo. One of the 
 most famous of these hill towns is Loreto, formerly the most-frequented place of 
 pilgrimage in the Chri.stian world. Before the Reformation, and at a time when 
 
 • Tonnage of vessels which entered and cleared from Ancona in the const and forlegn trade : 258,292 
 tons in 1858, 372,877 tons in 18G7, 751,'')80 tons in 1S75.
 
 284 ITALY. 
 
 travelling was far more difficult than now, as many as 200,000 devotees visited 
 the shrines of Loreto every j'ear. They were shown there the veritable house in 
 which the Virgin Mary was born, and which was carried by angels to the spot it 
 now occupies, and where it is sheltered by a magnificeutlj' decorated dome. At 
 Castelfidardo, close by, was fought the battle which cost the Pope the greater part 
 of the "patrimony of St. Peter." 
 
 There are only a few towns in the uplands of the Abruzzos. The principal of 
 these is Aquila, founded in the thirteenth century by the Emperor Frederick II. 
 The other towns are difficult of access, and, far from attracting inhabitants from 
 beyond, they send their vigorous sons to the lowlands, where they are known as 
 Aquilani, and highly appreciated as terrace gardeners. The most poimlous places 
 are met with in the lower valley of the Aterno, or command the road leading to 
 the coast and the fertile fields of the Adriatic slope. Solmona is embedded in a 
 huge garden, anciently a lake, and overlooked in the south by the steep scarps of 
 Monte Majella. Popoli, at the mouth of a defile, where the Aterno assumes the 
 name of Pescara, is one of the busiest places between the sea and the uplands. 
 Chieti, lower down on the same river, is said to have been the first town in the old 
 Neapolitan province to introduce steam into its spinning-mills and other factories. 
 Teramo and Lanciano are likewise places of some importance, but the only ports 
 along the coast, Ortona and Yasto, are merely frequented by small coasting vessels.* 
 
 A small district in the Marches, joined to the coast by a single road, has 
 maintained its independence through ages. Monte Titano, which rises in one of 
 the most beautiful parts of the Apennines, and the base of which has been used as 
 a quarry since time immemorial, bears upon its summit the old and famous city 
 of San Marino. From its turreted walls the citizens can see the sun rise above 
 the Illyrian Alps. San Marino, with some neighbouring hamlets, constitutes a 
 " most illustrious " republic, and is now the only independent municipality of 
 Italy. Named after a Dalmatian mason who lived as a hermit on Monte Titano, 
 San Marino has existed as a sovereign state from the fourth century, its citizens 
 having at all times known how to turn to advantage the jealousies of their neigh- 
 bours. The constitution of this republic, however, is anything but democratic. 
 The citizens, even though they be landed proprietors, have no votes, and are at 
 most permitted to remonstrate. The supreme power is vested in a Council of sixty 
 members, composed of nobles, citizens, and landowners. The title of councillor is 
 hereditarj' in the family, and when a family becomes extinct the remaining fifty- 
 nine choose another. The Council appoints the various officials, including a captain 
 for the town and one for the country. San Marino has its little army, its budget, 
 and its monopolies. A portion of its income is derived from the sale of titles and 
 of decorations, and on the payment of £1,400 it has even created dukes, who take 
 rank with the highest nobility of the kingdom. Taxation is voluntary. When 
 the public chest is empty a drummer is sent round the town to invite contribu- 
 
 • Towns of the Marches having over 10,000 inhabitants: — Ancona, 35,111 ; Jesi, 13,472; Sinigaglia, 
 11,173; Ascoli-Piceno, 11,373; Fermo, 15,862; Macerata, 11,194; Pesaro, 12,375; "Urbino, 10,194. 
 
 ^4n<;zw;— Lanciano,.15,432; Chieti, 14,321 ; Acjuila, 13,513 ; Campobaaso, 13,345 ; Sohnona, 12,583 ; 
 Vasto, 10,093.
 
 THE APEXXTN'ES, TIBER, ^[AKCIrE^;. AND ABRUZZOS. 
 
 286 
 
 tions. Thougli perfectly independent, this republic accepts a subsidy iVoin Italy, 
 and claims the special protection of the King. Its criminals arc shut up in an 
 Italian prison, its public documents are printed in Italy, and an Italian judge 
 occupies the bench of the republican pra'toriuni. There is no prlnting-oflico in the 
 
 Fig. 101. — liiMiNi AND San Marino. 
 Scale 1 : 260,000. 
 
 little state, for the Council is afraid that books objectionable to the surrounding 
 tingdom might be issued from it.* 
 
 • Area of San Marino, 21 square miles; population (1874), 7,816.
 
 286 ITALY. 
 
 VI. — Southern Italy, Naples. 
 
 Amongst the various states which have been welded into the modern kingdom of 
 Italy, Najjles, though second to others in population and industry, occupies the 
 largest area.* It embraces the whole southern half of the peninsula, and its coast 
 has a development of 995 miles. Formerly the country was better known than 
 any other portion of Italy as Magna Groocia, but now many parts of it are scarcely 
 known at all. 
 
 The Apennines of Naples can hardly be described as a mountain chain. They 
 consist rather of distinct mountain groups joined by transverse ranges, or by 
 elevated saddles. In the first of these groups the serrated crest of the Meta 
 (7,364 feet) rises above the zone of trees, and is separated from the Abruzzos by 
 the deep valley of the Sangro, which flows to the Adriatic. Farther to the south, 
 beyond the valley of Isernia, which gives birth to the Volturno, rise the mountains of 
 the Matese, culminating in the Miletto (6,717 feet), the last bulwark of the Samnites. 
 Other summits, less elevated, but equally steep and imposing, rise near Benevento 
 and Avellino. They abound in savage defiles, in which many a bloody battle has 
 been fought. The valley of the " Furcae Caudinse," where the Romans humbled 
 themselves before the Samnites, and made promises which they never meant to 
 keep, may still be recognised on the road from Naples to Benevento. The memory 
 of this event lives in the Caudarola Road, and the village of Forchia d' Arpaia. This 
 mountain region, which might filly be called after its ancient inhabitants, is con- 
 nected in the south with a transversal chain, running east and west, and termi- 
 nating in Cape Campanello, to the south of the Bay of Naples. The beautiful 
 island of Capri, with its white clifis and caverns flooded by the azure waters of 
 the Mediterranean, lies oflf this cape. 
 
 The eastern slope of the cretaceous mountains of Naples is gentle, and gradually 
 merges in argillous tavocjUcri, or table-lands, deposited during the Pliocene 
 epoch. The tavo(jUere de la Puglia is, perhaps, the most sterile and dreary 
 portion of Italy. It is cut up into terraces by deep ravines, through which 
 insignificant streams find their way to the Adriatic, and the centres of population 
 must be looked for at the mouths of valleys or along the high-roads. The country 
 itself is a vast solitude, deserted by all except nomad herdsmen. There are no 
 shrubs, and a kind of fennel, which forms the hedges separating the pasturing 
 grovmds, is the largest plant to be seen. Hovels, resembling tombs or heaps of 
 stone, rise here and there in the midst of these plains. Fortunately the old feudal 
 customs which prevented the cidtivation of these plains, and compelled the moun- 
 taineers to keep open wide paths, or tratturi, through their fields for the passage 
 of sheep, have been abolished, and the aspect of the f avogliere improves from year 
 to year. 
 
 These tavoglieri completely separate the mountains of the peninsula of Gargano 
 — the " spur " of the Italian " boot " — from the system of the Apennines. The 
 northern slopes of these rugged mountains are still clad with forests of beeches 
 * Area, exclusive of the Abruzzos, 28,002 square miles; population, 6,251,750.
 
 SOUTHERN ITALY, NAPIJES. 
 
 287 
 
 and pines, which supply the best pitch of Italy, and by thickets of carob-trees and 
 other plants, whose flowers are transformed by the bees into delicious honey ; but 
 the very name of the most elevated summit — Monte Calvo (5,150 feet), or " bald 
 mountain " — proves that the deplorable destruction of forests has been going on 
 here as in the rest of the peninsula. In former times the recesses of Monte 
 Gargano were held bj- Saracen pirates, and they defied the Christians there for a 
 long time, in spite of the many sanctuaries which hud been substituted for the 
 ancient heathen temples. The most famous of these was the church on Monto 
 Sant' Angelo, at the back of Manfredonia, which was frequently resorted to by the 
 navigator about to leave the shelter of the bay for the dangerous coasts of Balmntia 
 or the open sea. 
 
 Fig. 105. — MosTB Gjl&oaso. 
 Scale I : 9SO,000. 
 
 lJ-3.iEott< 
 
 *&:. 
 
 The Neapolitan Apennines terminate in the south with the ancient volcano of 
 Monte Yultur (4,356 feet). Farther south the country graduallj- sinks down 
 into a table-land intersected by deep ravines, which discharge their waters in three 
 directions — towards the Bay of Salerno, the Bay of Taranto, and the Adriatic. 
 The Ap)ennines, far from bifurcating, as shown on old maps, are cut in two by 
 the low saddle of Potenza, and on the peninsula forming the " heel " of Italy only 
 low ridges and terraces are met w4th. 
 
 The peninsula of Calabria, however, is rugged and mountainous. The Apen- 
 nines, near Lagonegro, again rise above the zone of forests. Monte Polino 
 (7,656 feet) is the highest summit in Naples. The group of which it forms the
 
 288 ITALY. 
 
 centre occupies the entire width of the peninsula, and along its western coast it 
 forms a wall of cliffs even less accessible than those of Liguria. Towards 
 the south it opens out into wooded valleys, where the inhabitants collect manna, 
 an esteemed medicinal drug. The deep valley of the Crati separates these 
 mountains from the Sila (5,863 feet), which is composed of granites and schists, 
 and still retains its ancient forests, haunted by brigands. The shepherds who 
 pasture their flocks in the clearings of these woods are said to be the descendants 
 of the Saracens, who formcrlj- occupied this " Country of Eosin," by which name 
 it was known to the Greeks. 
 
 To the south of the isolated Sila the peninsula narrows to a neck of small 
 elevation, where raised beaches attest the successive retreats of the sea. A 
 third mountain mass, of crystalline formation, rises to the south of this depres- 
 sion, its furrowed slopes clad in forests. This is the Aspromonte (6,263 feet), or 
 " rugged mountain." One of its spurs forms the palm-clad promontory of Sparti- 
 vento, or " parting of the winds." 
 
 Naples, like Latium, has its volcanic mountains, which form two irregular ranges, 
 one on the continent, the other in the Tyrrhenian Sea, and are, perhaps, connected 
 beneath the sea with the volcanic mountains of the Liparic Islands and Mount 
 Etna. One of these is Mount Vesuvius, the most famous volcano of the world, not 
 because of its height or the terror of its eruptions, but because its history is that 
 of an entire population who have made its lavas their home. 
 
 Scarcely have we left the defile of Gaeta and entered upon the paradisiacal 
 Terra di Lavoro than we come upon the first volcano, the Rocca Monfina (3,300 
 feet), which rises between two calcareous mountains, one of which is the Massico, 
 whose wines have been sung by Horace. No eruption of this volcano is on 
 record, and a village now occupies its shattered crater. To judge from the 
 streams of lava which surround its trachytic cone, its eruptions must have 
 been formidable. Th3 entire Campania is covered to an unascertained depth 
 with ashes ejected from it, and the marine shells found in them prove that the 
 whole of this region must have been upheaved at a comparatively recent 
 epoch. 
 
 The hills which rise to the south of the Camjxinia cannot boast of the grandeur 
 of the Rocca Monfina, but they have been looked upon from the most remote 
 times as one of the great curiosities of our earth. Standing upon the com- 
 manding height of the Camaldoli (518 feet), the Phlegrean Fields lie at our 
 feet. Acquainted as we now are with the far more formidable volcanoes of Java 
 and the Andes, this verdant sea-bound country may not strike us as a region of 
 horrors. But our Greco-Roman predecessors looked upon it with very different 
 eyes, and being unable to account for the phenomena they witnessed, they 
 ascribed them to the gods. The quaking soil, the flames bursting forth from 
 hidden furnaces, the gaping funnels communicating with unexplored caverns, lakes 
 which disappeared at irregular intervals, and others exhaling deadly gases — all 
 these things left their impress upon ancient mythology and poetry. At the time 
 of Strabo the shores of the Bay of Baiae had become the favourite resort of
 
 
 
 Capo.Mlsi-n* 
 
 HP 
 
 ^'CV-. ^ -'Or ' ^-^T^' ' -, 
 
 Engr l)vEr"harcl 
 
 l)e).tlL- l<. J.. II 
 
 :<<> lu :C.i. n. a3o to ii;<»i>rt.
 
 Ih.iMlll.v A.\-uUrinin a/U^ />r/-./. . 
 'h.tr-fr uAii tAr .U.apeUtiin .ntx^ .Hap
 
 SOUTHERN' ITALY, NAPLES. 
 
 269 
 
 voluptuaries, and sumptuous villas rose upon every promontory ; but the terrors 
 inspired by hidden flames and mysterious caverns had not yet departed. A 
 dreaded oracle was said to have its seat there, guarded by Cimmerians, to whom 
 strangers desirous of consulting the gods had to apply. These troglodyt;e were 
 doomed never to behold the sun, and only quitted their caverns during the niglit. 
 
 Fig. 106. — Tub Askes ok thk Cvmi-.v-nia. 
 .\ccurding to Ciri Vogt. Scde 1 : 83S,100. 
 
 [ 1 Tur, a 
 
 [ 1 axtlni 
 
 Ll- Trachyte 
 ' 10 Sliles. 
 
 The Phlegrean Fields were likewise supposed to have been the battle-ground of 
 giants struggling for the possession of the fertile plains of the Campania. During 
 the iliddle Ages Pozzuoli was looked upon as the spot from which Christ descended 
 into hell. 
 
 The number of craters still distinguishable is twenty. If we were to suppose 
 
 ^OL. I. D
 
 290 ITALY. 
 
 the country to be deprived of its vegetation, its aspect would resemble that of the 
 surface of the moon. Even the city of Naples occupies an ancient crater, the 
 contours of which have become almost obliterated. To the west of it several old 
 craters can still be traced, one of them occupying a pvomontorv of tufa, surmounted 
 by what is called the tomb of Virgil. Passing through the famous grotto of 
 Posilipo, we tind ourselves in the Phlegrean Fields. On our left rises the small 
 conical island of Nisita, its ancient crater invaded by the sea. Farther on we 
 reach the crater known as the Solfatara, the Forum Vulcani of the ancients. Its 
 last eruption took place in 1198, but it still exhales sulphuretted hydrogen. The 
 Park of Astroni lies to the north. The interior slope of its enclosing wall is exceed- 
 ingly steep, so as to render impossible the escajie of the deer and bo.irs which 
 are kept within. The only access is through an artificial breach. Another crater, 
 less regular in shape, is now filled with the bubbling waters of the Lake of 
 Agnano. Near it is the famous Grotto of Dogs, with its spring of carbonic acid. 
 Other springs of gas and sulphurous water rise in the neighbourhood, and to 
 them Pozzuoli is indebted for its name, which, is said to mean the " town of 
 stinks." The town, in turn, has given its name to the earth known as pozzuolana, 
 which supplies an excellent material for the manufacture of cement. 
 
 The coast of Pozzuoli has undergone repeated upheavals and subsidences, in 
 proof of which the three columns of the temple of Serapis are usually referred to. 
 At a time anterior to the Romans this temple, together with the beach upon which 
 it .stands, sank beneath the waters of the sea, and its columns must have been expoised 
 to their action for many years, perhaps centuries, for up to a h^ht of twenty 
 feet they are covered with tubes of serpulse, and perforated by innu'JTJ&rable holes 
 bored by pholadidse. In the course of time it rose again slowly aboveS"&e waters. 
 This happened, perhaps, in 1538, when the Monte Nuovo sprang into existel),ce.. In 
 the short period of four days this new volcano, 490 feet in height, rose above- the 
 surrounding plain, and buried the village of Tripergola beneath its ashes. A beach 
 now known as La Starza was formed at the foot of the cliffs, and two sheets of • 
 water to the west of Monte Nuovo were cut oiF from the sea. One of these, the Lago 
 Lucrino, is flxmous for its oysters ; the other is the Lago d'Averno, which Virgil, in 
 conformity with antique legends, described as the entrance to the infernal regions. 
 It occupies an ancient crater, and its pellucid waters abound in fish. There are no 
 exhalations of poisonous gases now, and birds fly over the lake with impunity. Still 
 its vicinity is haunted by the memories of the old pagan mythology. Lake Fusaro 
 is referred to by the ciceroni as the Acheron ; close to it they point out the den of 
 Cerberus ; the sluggish stream of Acqua Mortahas been identified with the Cocytus ; 
 Lake Lucrino, or rather a spring near it, with the Styx ; and the remains of a sub- 
 terranean passage which connected the Averno with the sea are pointed out as the 
 %vhilom grotto of the Sibyl. The inhabitants of Cumse, which was founded by a 
 colony from Chalcis, and the ruins of which still exist on the Mediterranean coast, 
 to the east of Pozzuoli, brought with them the myths of Hellas, and Grecian poetry, 
 which took possession of them, has kept their memory alive. 
 
 It is quite proper that this region of Tartarus should have its contrast in Elysian
 
 SOUTHERN ITALY, XArT,ES. liOl 
 
 Fields, and tbis Jiame has ULtuully been bestowed upon a portion of the peninsula 
 of Baioe, wbieb formed the chief attraction of the voluptuous llomaus, and where 
 Marius, Ponipey, Ciesar, Augustus, Tiberius, Chuidius, Agrippina, Nero, and 
 others had their palaces. Many a fearful tragedy has been enacted in these 
 sumptuous buildings. But hardly a trace of them exists now ; nature bus 
 resumed possession of the country, and the hills of tufa and volcanoes are the 
 only curiosities of the peninsula. Cape Miseno is one of these old volcanoes, and 
 from its summit may be enjoyed one of the most deliglitful prospects in the world. 
 The whole of the Bay of Naples — "a bit of heaven fallen upon our earth" — lies 
 spread out beneath us, and Iscbia the joyous, formidable Capri, the promontory of 
 Sorrento, Mount Vesuvius, and the houses and villas of Naples fill up the space 
 bounded by the sea and the distant Apennines. 
 
 The island of Procida joins the Phlegreau Fields to the chain of island volcanoes 
 lying off the Bay of Gaeta. Tschia is the most import-mt of these, and its volcano, 
 the Epomeo (2,520 feet), almost rivals Mount Vesuvius in height. One of its 
 most formidable eruptions occui-red in 1302, at a time when Mount Vesuvius 
 was quiescent, but after the latter resumed its activity Iscbia remained in 
 repose. Similarly, when the Monte Nuovo was ejected from the earth, the huge 
 volcano went to sleep for no less a period than one hundred and thirty years. 
 Iscbia has known no eruption for five centuries and a half, and the gases escaping 
 from its thirtj' or forly hot springs are now the only signs of volcanic activity. 
 
 Iscbia has certainly been upheaved during a comparatively recent epoch, for 
 its tracbytic lavas rest in many places upon clays and marls containing marine 
 shells of living Mediterranean species. Some of these have been found at a height 
 of nearly 2,000 feet. At the present time the tufa rocks of Iscbia, and of the other 
 volcanic islands to the west of it, are being washed away by the sea. Ventotene, 
 the ancient Pandataria, to which the Roman princesses were exiled, is hardly 
 more now than a heap of scoria?. Ponza, likewise a place of exile of the Romans, 
 has been separated by the erosive action of the sea into a number of smaller 
 islands. Its lavas overlie Jurassic rocks, similar in all respects to those of Monte 
 Circello on the coast nearest to it. 
 
 Mount Vesngius (4,100 feet), the pride and dread of the Neapolitans, was like- 
 wise an island during prehistoric times. The marine shells found in the tufa of 
 Monte Somma prove this, and on the east the volcano is still surrounded by plains 
 but little elevated above tbe sea. Formerly the mountain was covered with, 
 verdure to its very summit, but the explosion of a.d. 79 shattered its cone, and 
 the ashes thrown up into tbe air shroudtxl the whole of the country in darkness. 
 Even at Rome the sun was hidden, and an age of darkness was believed to have 
 set in. When at length the light reappeared, the face of the country was found 
 to have undergone a marvellous change. The mountain had lost its shape, the 
 fertile fields were hidden by masses of debris, and entire towns had been buried 
 beneath ashes. 
 
 Since that terrible event Mount Vesuvius has vomited lavas and ashes on many 
 occasions. No periodicity has been traced iu these outbursts, and the intervals 
 
 u 2
 
 292 
 
 ITALY. 
 
 of repose were generally of sufficient duration to enable vegetation to resume its 
 sway. But these eruptions have become more frequent since the seventeenth 
 century, and hardly a decade passes by without one or more of them. Each of them 
 modifies the contours of the mountain, whose great central vent has undergone 
 many changes. The crescent- shaped mass of debris which surrounds the old 
 crater, known as the Atrio del Cavallo, was undoubtedly of loftier height 
 previously to the great outburst of 79 than it is now. The vicinity of Najjles has 
 facilitated a study of the phenomena attending volcanic eruptions, and an 
 observatory, permanently occupied, has been built close to the cone of eruption. 
 
 The neighbourhood of Mount Vesuvius, like that of all other volcanoes, abounds 
 in hot and gas springs, but there are no subsidiary craters. The nearest volcano 
 
 Fie. 10". — Eruption op Morvr VEStxvirs, April 26th, 1S72. 
 
 
 
 is Monte Vultur (4,356 feet), a regular cone on the eastern slope of the peninsula. 
 Its dimensions are larger than those of Yesuvius, but no eruptions are on record, 
 though a slight escape of carbonic acid is still going on from the two lakes which 
 occupy the bottom of its vast crater. On a line connecting Ischia, Vesuvius, and 
 Monte Vultur, and about half-way between the two latter, we meet with the most 
 abundant carbonic acid spring of Italy. The gas escapes with a hissing noise 
 from, the pond of Ansanto, and the ground around the spring is covered with the 
 remains of insects, killed in myriads on coming within the influence of the 
 poisonous air. Near it the Romans erected a temple in honour of Juno the 
 Mephitic. 
 
 The disasters resulting from volcanic eruptions are great, no doubt, but they
 
 SOUTHERN ITALY, X-U>LES. 298 
 
 are exceedeil by those caused by earlh(iuukos. Some of these are uiujucstiou- 
 ably caused by a subterranean displacement of lava, and thus, when Vesuvius 
 begins to stir, Torre del Greco and other towns at its foot incur the risk 
 of being buried beneath ashes or destroyed by earthquakes. But the Basili- 
 cata and Calabria — that is to say, the two provinces lying between the vol- 
 canic foci of Vesuvius and Etna — have many times been shaken by earthquakes 
 whose origin cannot be traced to volcanic agencies. Out of a thousand earth- 
 quakes recorded in Southern Italy during the last three centuries, nearly all 
 occurred in the provinces named, and they were occasionally attended by the most 
 disastrous results. The earthquake of 1S")7 cost the lives of 10,000 persons at 
 Potenza and its vicinity, but the most disastrous of these events happened in 1785 
 in Southern Calabria. The first shock, which proceeded from a focus beneath the 
 town of Oppido, in the Aspromonte Mountains, only lasted a hundred seconds, but 
 within that short space of time 109 towns and villages were overthrown, and 
 (32,000 of theii- inhabitants buried beneath their ruins. Crevasses opened in the 
 ground ; rivers were swallowed up, to reappear again lower down as lakes ; liquid 
 claj' flowed down the hill-slopes like lava, converting fertile fields into unproductive 
 wastes. The commotion of the sea added to these horrors. Many of the inha- 
 bitants of Scilla, afraid to remain on the quaking land, fled to their boats, when an 
 enormous mass of rock detached itself from a neighbouring moimtain, and, 
 tumbling into the sea, produced a wave which upset the boats and cast their 
 fragments upon the shore. "Want of food brought on famine, and typhus, as 
 usual, came in its train. 
 
 "We are not )'ct able to predict earthquakes, and can only provide against them 
 by a suitable construction of our dwellings. There exists, however, another cause 
 of misery and depopulation which the Neapolitans might successfully combat, 
 as was done by their ancestors. In the time of the Greeks the swamj)s along 
 the coast were certainly less extensive than they are now. War, and a return 
 towards barbarism, have caused the rivers to be neglected, and to produce a 
 deterioration in the climate. Baia, a place once famous on account of its healthi- 
 ness, has become the home of malaria. Sybaris, the town of luxury and pleasure, 
 has been supplanted by a fever-plain " which eats more men than it is able to 
 nourish." These paludial miasmata, poverty, and ignorance decimate the popu- 
 lation of the Puglia, Basilicata, and Calabria. Even certain Asiatic diseases, such 
 as elephantiasis and leprosy, ravage the country, which, from its rare fertility 
 and fine climate, ought to be in the enjoyment of the greatest prosperity. 
 
 Continental Sicily is indeed a favoured region, and its eastern slopes more 
 especially might be converted into one huge garden, for the rainfall there is 
 abundant. Naples enjoys a semi-tropical climate, and its winter temperature is 
 hardly inferior to the annual mean of London. Snow verj- rarely falls, and only 
 remains on the tops of the hills for a few weeks.* The vegetation along the coast 
 is of tropical luxuriance. Oranges and lemons bear excellent fruit ; date-palms 
 uplift their fan-shaped leaves, and sometimes bear fruit ; the American agave 
 ♦ Mean annual tcmpirature of Naplwi, G2' F. ; extremes, 23' and 104'; raiufull, 37 inches.
 
 294 ITALY. 
 
 stretches forth its candelabra-like branches; sugar-cane, cotton, and other industrial 
 plants, which elsewhere in Europe are scarcely ever met with outside hothouses, 
 gi'ow in the fields. In the forests of Calabria the olive-tree affords as much shade 
 as does the beech with us. Even the bare rocks on the coast yield excellent 
 grapes and garden fruits. Naples, Sicily, Andalusia, and certain districts of 
 Greece and Asia Minor realise our beau ideal of the sub-tropical zone, and only 
 the heaths on the Adriatic slo^De and the upper valleys of the Apennines remind 
 us that we are still in Central Europe. 
 
 This delightful country is inhabited by a people having the most diverse 
 origin. It is now 2,300 years since the Samnites occupied the whole of it 
 from sea to sea. They were more numerous than the Romans, and might have 
 conquered the whole of Italy had there been more cohesion amongst them, and 
 some of that talent for organization which constituted the strength of their 
 adversaries. But they were split into five tribes, each speaking a difierent 
 dialect ; and whilst the Samnites of the hills quarrelled with their kinsmen in the 
 plains, the latter were at enmity with the Hellenized Samnites who lived near 
 the Greek towns on the coast. 
 
 The whole of the coast of Southern Italy, from Cumae — founded more than a 
 thousand years before our era — to Sipuntum, of which some ruins remain near the 
 modern Manfredonia, was dotted with Greek colonies. In these districts of 
 Southern Italy the bulk of the population is of very different origin from that 
 of other parts of the peninsula. To the north of Monte Gargano, Celtic, 
 Etruscan, and Latin elements preponderate, whilst Hellenes, Pelasgians, and 
 kindred races dominate in the south. Not only did civilised Greeks found their 
 colonies there, but the aboriginal population, the lapygians, spoke a dialect akin 
 to the Hellenic, and Mommsen njay be right when he conjectures that these 
 lapygians were of the same origin as the modern Albanians. 
 
 At a subsequent date these southern Italians had to bow down before the 
 Romans, who founded military colonies amongst them, but never succeeded in 
 completely Latinising them. When the Roman Empire fell to pieces the Cassars 
 of Byzantium still maintained themselves for a long time in Southern Italy, and the 
 Greek language again preponderated, but gradually Romance dialects gained the 
 upper hand. The inhabitants returned to a state of barbarism, but they retained 
 to a great extent their language and customs, and even now there are districts in 
 the south which arQ Italian in appearance rather than in reality, and in eight 
 villages of the Terra d'Otranto the Hellenic dialect of the Peloponnesus is still 
 spoken. Towns like Naples, Nicastro, Taranto, Gallipoli, Monopoli, and others, 
 whilst preserving their sonorous Greek names, have also retained many features 
 which recall the times of Magna Graecia. 
 
 Reggio — that is, the " city of the strait " — appears to have retained the use of 
 Greek much longer than any other town, and its patricians, who boasted of being 
 pure lonians, still spoke the language of their ancestors towards the close of the 
 thirteenth century. In several remote towns of the interior Greek was formerly 
 in common use. The old popular songs of Bova, a small town near the southern
 
 SOUTHEKX ITALY. NAPLES. 205 
 
 oxtremity of Italy, aro In au loaiun dialect more like tlio language of Xcuophon 
 than is modern Greek. Down to a very recent date the peasants near lloccafortc del 
 Greco, Coudofuri, and Cardeto spoke Greek, and when they appeared before a magis- 
 trate they required au interpreter. At the present day all young people speak 
 Italian; the old language has been forgotten, but the Greek lyj)o remains. The 
 men and women of Cardeto are famous for their beauty, more especially (ho latter. 
 " They are Minervas," we are told by a local hi.storian. Their principal livelihood 
 consists in acting as wet nurses to the diildren of the citizens of Iveggio. The 
 women of Bagnara, between Scilla and l*almi, are likewise of wondrous beauty, 
 but their features are stern, betraying Arab blood, and tlicy are destitute of llio 
 noble placidity of the Greek. 
 
 It is said that the women of the Hellenic villages of Calabria are still in the 
 habit of executing a sacred dance, which lasts for hours, and resembles the repre- 
 sentations we meet with on ancient vases, only they dance before the church 
 instead of the temple, and their ceremonies aro blessed by Christian priests. 
 Funerals are aceompaiied by weejjing women, who collect their tears in lachry- 
 matories. Elsewhere, as in the environs of Taranto, the children consecrate the 
 hair of their head to the manes of their ancestors. Old morals, no less than old 
 customs, have been preserved. Woman is still looked upon as an inferior being, 
 and even at Reggio the wives of citizens or noblemen who respect ancient 
 tradition confine themselves to the gyna)ceum. They do not visit the theatre, go 
 out but rarely, and when they walk abroad are attended by barefooted servants, 
 and not by their husbands. 
 
 In :i(l(litii)n to Samnites, lapygians, and Greeks, wlio form the bulk of the 
 population of Southern Italy, we meet with Etruscans in the Campania ; Saracens 
 in the peninsula of Gargano, in the Campania, the marina of Reggio, Bagnara, 
 and other coast towns ; Lombards in Benevento, who retained their language down 
 to the eleventh century ; Normans, from whom the shepherds on the hills are 
 supposed to be descended ; and Spaniards in several coast towns, especially at 
 Barletta, in Apulia. The Albanians have probably furnished the largest contingent 
 of all the strangers now domiciled in Southern Italy. Thoy are numerous on the 
 whole of the eastern slope of the peninsula, from the promontory of Gargano to 
 the southernmost point of Calabria. One of their clans came to Ital}' in 1-140, 
 but the bulk of them only arrived during the second half of the fifteenth century, 
 after the heroic resistance made by Scanderbeg had been overcome by the Turks. 
 The conquered Skipetars were then compelled to expatriate themselves in order to 
 escape the yoke of the Turks, and they were received with open arms by the Kings 
 of Naples, who granted them several deserted villages which are now amongst 
 the most flourishing of Southern Italy. The descendants of these Skipetars, who 
 are principally domiciled in the Basilicata and Calabria, rank among the most 
 useful citizens of the country. They take the lead in the intL'llectual regenera- 
 tion of the old kingdom of Naples, and were the first to join the liberating army 
 of Garibaldi. Many have become Italianised, but there are still over 80,OU0 who 
 have neitlier Ibruotten their orijjin nor their lann-uatje.
 
 206 ITALY. 
 
 The Neapolitans are undoubtedly one of the finest races of Europe. The 
 Calabrians, the mountaineers of Moliso, and the peasants of the Basilicata are so 
 well proportioned, erect, supple of limb, and agile, that their low stature, as com- 
 pared with the races of the North, can hardly be a subject of reproach ; and the 
 nobility and expression of the faces of Neapolitan women fully compensate for 
 the irregularity we frequently meet with. The faces of the children, with their 
 large black eyes and well- formed lips, beam with intelligence, but the wretched 
 existence to which too many of them are condemned soon degrades their physiog- 
 nomy. Supremely ignorant, the Neapolitan is, nevertheless, most admirably gifted 
 by nature. The country which has produced so many great men since the days 
 of Pythagoras is in nowise inferior to any other ; its philosophers, historians, and 
 lawyers have exercised a powerful influence upon the march of human thought ; 
 and the number of great musicians which it has produced is proportionately large. 
 
 Still, in many respects, the inhabitants of Southern Italy hold the lowest 
 rank amongst the nations of Europe. Ever since the annihilation of the Greek 
 republican cities the country has been subjected to foreign masters, who have either 
 devastated it or systematically oppressed its inhabitants. With the exception of 
 Amalfi, no other town was granted the privilege of governing itself for any 
 length of time. The very position of the country exposed it to dangers. Placed 
 in the centre of the Mediterranean, it was on the high-road of every pirate or 
 invader, whether Saracen or Norman, Spaniard or Frenchman, and the absence 
 of any natural cohesion between its various districts prevented its i:)opulation from 
 organizing a united resistance against the attacks of foreign invaders. Southern 
 Italy has not the river basins of Lombardy, Tuscany, Umbria, or Rome ; there 
 exists no centre of gravity, so to say, and the country is split up into separate 
 sections having nothing in common. 
 
 The government under which the Neapolitans lived until quite recently was 
 most humiliating. " I do not require my people to think," said King Ferdi- 
 nand li. of Naples. Ideas which did not commend themselves to the authorities 
 were punished as crimes, and only mendicity and moral depravity were allowed 
 to flourish. Science was compelled to live in retirement; history to seek a refuge 
 in the catacombs of archocology ; and literature was corrupt or frivolous. Of the 
 Neapolitans who did not expatriate themselves only a very small number became 
 eminent. Schools were hardly known outside the large towns, and where thej^ did 
 exist they were placed under the supervision of the police. Men able to read and 
 write were looked at askance, and, to escape being accused of belonging to some secret 
 societj% they were compelled to turn hypocrites. Old superstitions exist in full force, 
 and the heathen hallucinations of Greeks and lapygians still survive. The idola- 
 trous Neapolitan casts himself down before the statue of St. Januarius, but heaps 
 imprecations upon the head of his saint if his miraculous blood does not quickly 
 liquefy. Similar superstitions exist in nearly every town of Naples. Every one 
 of them has its patron saint or deity, who, if he should fail to protect his people, 
 is treated as a common enemy. As recently as 1858 the villagers of Calabria, 
 irritated by a drought, put their venerated saints into prison ; and Barletta,
 
 SOUTHEKN ITALY, XAPLES. 
 
 297 
 
 about the same period, had the melancholy honour of being the lust town in 
 Europe in which Protestants were burned ulive. Such is the fanaticism still met 
 with in the second half of the nineteenth century ! * 
 
 Fig. 108.— EnvcATioNAL U\v oi Italy. 
 
 S .. T ,.V 
 
 SWIIZ^ERLAKO ^TY ROL a^3<R ' n r « ,^ '. ^ 
 
 HUNGARY I 
 
 AFRICA 
 
 I 
 
 CJ 
 
 
 L.J 
 
 70.3. p* 
 
 tO-JU JJ.C. 
 
 9°">°P' 
 
 Dnlmalia, Cnminla, 
 
 Bofnia, 
 
 Abnizzos, Apulia, 
 
 Aft-icJ, 
 
 Culabrii. 
 
 Btiailicata 
 
 Sicily. 
 
 
 Lalium. 
 
 
 PwitzerLmd, Ain, Iwre, Cnitiivi. Tyrol, iBtria, 
 
 Doubs, Biimcii and Hantts Alpe« Moritjmcs. Croatia. Emilia, 
 
 Jon. AlpcK. niiuic Savoie, Lig1lril^ Lomlmi'df. Vcnttia, Murckes, 
 
 Var, StjTia, CarinUiia, Ttiscauy, Campania, 
 
 Bungai^-, PiemoDt. XJmbria. 6urdiniu. 
 
 • In 1S68 69 per cent, of the men and 88 per cent, of the ■n-omcn mnrried in the Cumjaria, the most 
 educated province of Naples, were not able to sign their names. In the Biisilicala the proportions were 
 8d and OC per cent. !
 
 298 ITALY. 
 
 One of the great superstitions of the Neapolitans refers to the " evil eye." 
 The unfortunate being who happens to have a nose like a battle-axe and large 
 round eyes is looked upon as ajetfatore, and is avoided as a fatal being. If by 
 any evil chance his glance happens to fall upon any unfortunate person, it is con- 
 sidered necessary to counteract it by the influence of an amulet resembling the 
 fascinum of the ancients, or by some other means no less potent. Coral amulets 
 are looked upon as most efiicient, and many who pretend not to believe in 
 their virtues are the first to make use of them. The peasants of Calabria wear 
 an image of their patron saint upon the chest, and shield tlieir cattle and houses by 
 means of the images of saints or household gods. At Reggio a cactus may be 
 seen near the door or on the balcony of every house, which has" been placed 
 there to keep ofi" evil influences, and is universall}' known as I'a/bcro del inal' occliio 
 (the tree of the evil eye). 
 
 Next to superstition, the great scourge of Southern Italy js brigandage. The 
 very name of Calabria conjures up in our imagination picturesque brigands armed 
 with carbines. Unfortunately this Calabrian brigand is no myth, invented to serve 
 the purposes of the stage. He really exists, and neither the severity of the laws 
 put in motion against him nor political changes have brought about his exter- 
 mination. On many occasions, after a successful hunt for brigands had been 
 carried on, the authorities felicitated the selves upon having rid the country ol' 
 this scourge, but it regularly revived. 
 
 In Sardinia and Corsica the peasant takes up arms from a desire for vengeance, 
 but in Calabria from poverty. Feudalism, though abolished in name, still 
 flourishes in that country. Nearly the whole of the soil belongs to a iew groat land- 
 owners, and the peasant, or caj'ore, is condemned to a life of ill-remunerated toil. 
 In years of plenty, when the r3'e, chestnuts, and wine suffice for the wants of his 
 family, he works without grumbling, but in years of dearth brigandage flourishes. 
 The brigand, or gualano, looks upon the feudal lord as the common enemy, steals his 
 cattle, sets fire to his house, and even takes him prisoner, releasing him only on 
 payment of a heavy ransom. Some of these bandits become veritable wild beasts, 
 thirsting after blood ; but, as long as they confine themselves to avenging wrongs, 
 they may count upon the complicity of all other peasants. The herdsmen of the 
 mountains supply them with milk and food, furnish them with information, and 
 mislead the carabiniers sent in pursuit of them. All the poor are leagued in 
 their favour, and refuse to bear witness against them. Moreover, most of these 
 Neapolitan bandits, conscientious in their own way, are extremely pious. They 
 swear by the Virgin or some patron saint, to whom they promise a portion of their 
 booty, and religiously place the share promised upon the altar. Not content with 
 wearing amulets all over the body to turn aside bullets, they are said sometimes 
 to place a consecrated wafer in an incision they make in their hand, in the belief 
 that this will render deadly their own bullets. 
 
 The fearful poverty of the South Italian peasantry has led to another practice, 
 even worse than brigandage. Foreign speculators. Christians as well as Jews, travel 
 the country, and particularly the Basilicata, in order to purchase children, whom
 
 SOUTHERX IT.VLY, NAPLES. 299 
 
 their poverty-stricken parents are ready to part with for u trifle. The more intel- 
 ligent and prettier the child, the greater the likelihood of its passing into the 
 hands of these dealers in human flesh. The latter are threatened with the 
 penalties of the law, but custom and ignoble accomplices enable them to evade 
 them, and to carry their living merchandise to France, England, Germany, and 
 even America, where the children are converted into acrobats, street musicians, 
 or simple mendicants. The chances of this shameful commerce have been carefully 
 calculated, and the losses arising from deaths and the cost of travelling are more 
 than covered by the earnings of the children. Viggiano, a small town of the 
 Basilicata, is more especially haunted by these traffickers, for its inhabitants 
 possess a natund gift for music. 
 
 Voluntary emigration is on the increase, and if it were not for the obstructions 
 placed in the way of young men liable to the conscription, certain districts would 
 become rapidly depopulated in favour of South America. Only the poorest peasimts 
 remain behind. This emigration influences in a large measure the customs of the 
 country, and, conjointly with railways and factories, will no doubt bring about an 
 assimilation of Southern Ital_v to the rest of the peninsula. Brigandage and the 
 traffic in children will doubtless disappear, but the proletarianism of manufacturing 
 towns is likely to be substituted for them. 
 
 For the present Naples is almost exclusively an agricultural country. The 
 Tavolieri of Puglia, and the hills which command them, remain for the most part 
 a pastoral coimtry, but the greater portion of the productive area of Naples is 
 under cultivation. As in the time of the Romans, cereals, with oil and wine, 
 form the principal produce ; but, in addition to these, tobacco, cotton, madder, and 
 several other plants used in manufactures, are grown. With some care these pro- 
 ducts might attain a rare degree of excellence. Even now the oil of the Puglia 
 co»npet€s successfully with that of Nice, and the wines grown on the scoriae of Mount 
 Vesuvius enjoy their ancient celebrity, the Falernian of Horace, grown in the 
 Phlegrean Fields, disputing the pre-eminence with the Lachrymae Christi of 
 Vesuvius and the white wine of Capri. 
 
 The agricultural products of Naples are almost exclusively derived from the coast 
 region, and commerce is principally carried on in coasting vessels. The interior is 
 sterile to a great extent, and there are no metalliferous veins to attract population. 
 
 Southern It Jy has no natural centre, and, as its life has at all times been 
 eccentric and maritime, it is but natural that all the large towns should have 
 sprung up on the coast. Two thousand years ago, when Greece was a civilised 
 country and Western EuropM; sunk in barbarism, the most important towns lay 
 on the Ionian Sea facing the east. But, when Rome became the mistress of the 
 world. Magna Gra^cia was forced to face about, and Naples became the successor 
 of Sybaris and Tarentum. This position of vantage it has retained even to the 
 present day, when Western Europe has become the focus of civilisation. The 
 wave of history has passed over Tarentum and Sybaris, and whilst the fine port of 
 the former is now deserted, the latter, at one time the largest city of all Italy, has 
 entirely disappeared.
 
 800 ITALY. 
 
 Naples, the " new town " of the Curax-ans, has for centuries been the most 
 populous town of Italy, and even now the number of its inhabitants is double 
 that of Rome. In the days of Strabo Naples was a large town. Greeks wlio 
 had made money hy teaching or otherwise, and who desired to end their days in 
 peaceful repose, used to retire to that beautiful town, where Greek manners pre- 
 dominated, and the climate resembled that of their native country. Many Romans 
 followed this example, and Naples, together with the numerous smaller towns 
 dotting the shores of its magnificent bay, thus became a place of repose and 
 pleasure. At the present day it attracts men of leisure from every part of the 
 world, who revel in its beauties and enjoy the noisy gaiety of its inhabitants — 
 "masters in the art of shouting," as Alfieri called them. The prospect from the 
 heights of Cajjodimonte and the other hills surrounding the immense city is full 
 of beauty : promontories jut out into the blue waters, islands of the most varied 
 colours are scattered over the bay, shining towns stretch along the foot of ver- 
 dant hills, and vessels ride upon the waves. Looking inland, we behold the 
 grey summit of Vesuvius, which, lurid at night, and always threatening, imparts a 
 modicum of danger to the voluptuous picture. 
 
 The Neapolitans are indeed a happy people, if such a term may be applied to any 
 fraction of mankind. They know how to enjoy the gifts of nature, and are content, 
 if need be, with very little. Naturally intelligent, they are equal to any enter- 
 prise ; but, as they hate work, they soon give up what they have begun, and make 
 sj)ort of their want of success. Travellers were formerly fond of describing that 
 curious type, the lazzurone, the idle man of pleasure, who, enveloped in a rag, slept 
 on the beach or in the porch of a church, and disdained to work after he had 
 earned the pittance sufficing for his simple wants. There still remain a few repre- 
 sentatives of this type, but the material exigencies of our time have absorbed the 
 majority of these idle tatterdemalions, and converted them into labourers. Others 
 have succumbed to disease, for they knew nothing of sanitary laws, and dwelt in 
 damp cellars, or ham, beneath the palaces of the wealthy. Naples contributes her 
 fair share towards the industrial products of the peninsula. The principal articles 
 manufactured are macaroni and other farinaceous pastes, cloth, silks known as 
 gros de Naples, glass, china, musical instruments, artificial flowers, ornaments, 
 and everything entering into the daily consumption of a huge city. Its workers 
 in coral are famous for their skill ; and Sorrento, near Naples, supplies the much- 
 prized workboxes, jewel cases, and other articles carved in palm-wood. The ship- 
 yards of Castellamare di Stabia are more busy than any others in Italy, those of 
 Genoa and Spezia alone excepted. The sailors of the bay are equal to the Ligurians 
 in seamanship, and surpass them as fishermen. The inhabitants of Torre del Greco, 
 who engage in coral-fishing, are well acquainted with the submarine toiiography 
 of the coasts of Sardinia, Sicily, and Barbary, and the least movement of the air 
 or water reveals phenomena to them which remain hidden to all other eyes. They 
 own about 400 fishing-boats, which depart in a body, and their return after a suc- 
 "cessful season presents a spectacle which even Italy but rarely affords.* 
 
 * In 1873 theie were 363 fiahing-boiits, and 90,000 lbs. of coral, valued at £92,000, were obtained.
 
 SOUTHEEX ITALY. NAPLES. 
 
 SOI 
 
 Naples, \rith its magnificent bay, and the fertile tracts of the Campania and 
 the Terra di Lavoro near it, could hardly fail to become a preat coiiinicrcial city, 
 and if it holds an inferior rank in that respect to Genoa, this is owing to its not 
 being placed upon a great high-road of international commerce. The country 
 depending upon it is of comparatively small extent ; only a single line of rails 
 
 Fis. 109.— PojiPEii. 
 F^iTi the XcaiMliUn SUA ILip. Seale 1 : 3S.00O. 
 
 vO ^ Mi^ 
 
 il yt.^'' 
 
 }^^' \Hn*^l*tA» -"~^^^.- "r. 
 
 Si ^B » c <> <iTyty ^\. s^JS^ -^^ 5^<>^ 
 
 crosses the Apennines ; and travellers who follow the mountain road to Taranto 
 are not, even now, quite safe from brigands. The foreign commerce of the city is 
 carried on principally with England and France, and the coasting trade is 
 comparatively of great importance.* 
 
 The u nversity is one of the glories of Naples. Founded in the first half of 
 
 • In I8&4 10,694 vessels, of 1,496,500 tons burden, entered and cleared the port of Kaple:$ ; in ISrS 
 11.2SS ressels. of 2.922,9-2-2 toDB.
 
 302 ITALY. 
 
 the thirteenth century, it is one of the oldest of Italy, tut has had its periods of 
 disgraceful decay. Up to a recent period, when archaeology and numismatics were 
 the only sciences not suspected of revolutionary tendencies, it was a place of intel- 
 lectual corruption, but its regeneration has been brought about with marvellous 
 rapidit}''. The young Neapolitans now study science with a zest sharpened by 
 ab.stinence ; and, if the rather gushing eloquence of the South could be trusted, 
 Naples has become the greatest seat of learning in the world. Thus much is 
 certain, that the 2,000 students of the university will give a great impulse to the 
 " march of ideas." 
 
 Naples possesses an admirable museum of antiquities, open to all the world, and, 
 more precious still, the ruins of Pozzuoli, Baiae, and Cumse, and catacombs no less 
 interesting than are those of Rome ; and, above everything else, the Roman city of 
 Pompeii, which has been excavated from the ashes of Mount Vesuvius, beneath 
 which it lay buried for seventeen centuries. It is not mei'ely a City of the Dead, 
 with its streets and tombs, temples, markets, and amphitheatres, which these 
 excavations have restored to us, but they have likewise given us an insight into 
 the life of a provincial Roman city. When we gaze upon inscriptions on walls 
 and waxed tablets, at work interrupted, at mummified corpses in the attitude 
 of flight, we almost feel as if we had been present at the catastrophe which 
 overwhelmed the town. No other buried city ever presented us with so striking a 
 contrast between the tumult of life and the stillness of death. In spite of a hundred 
 years of excavation, only one-half of the city has yet been revealed to us. Hercu- 
 laneum is buried beneath a layer of lava sixty^ feet in thickness, upon which the 
 houses of Resina, Portici, and other suburbs of Naples have been built, and but 
 very few of its mysteries have been revealed to us. Of Stabia;, which lies hidden 
 beneath the town of Castellamare, close to the beach, we know hardly anything. 
 
 Numerous populous towns cluster around Naples, rivalling it in beauty. To 
 the south, on the shores of the bay, are Portici, Resina, Torre del Greco, Torre 
 dell' Annunziata, Castellamare, and sweet Sorrento, with its delicious climate, its 
 dehghtful villas and olive groves. Ofi" Cape Campanella, facing the volcanic 
 islands of Ischia and Procida, at the other extremity of the bay, rise the bold cliffs 
 of Capri, full of the memories of hideous Tiberius, the Timbcrio of the natives. 
 Another bay opens to the south of that barren mass of limestone, its entrance 
 guarded by the islets of the Sirens, who sought in vain to cast their spell over 
 sage Ulysses. This bay is hardly inferior in beauty to that of Naples ; its shores 
 are equally fertile, but neither of the three cities, Pacstura, Amalfi, or Salerno, 
 which successively gave a name to it, has retained its importance for any length of 
 time. Amalfi, the powerful commercial republic of the Middle Ages, whose code 
 was accepted by all maritime nations, is almost deserted now, and only shelters a 
 few fishing-smacks within its rocky creek. In a delightful valley near it stands 
 the old Moorish city of Ravello, almost as rich as Palermo in architectural 
 monuments. Salerno is much more favourably situated than Amalfi, for the road 
 of the Campania debouches upon it. The town is said to have been founded by a 
 son of Noah, and when the Normans occupied the country in the eleventh century
 
 SOUTHERN ITALY, NAPLES. 303 
 
 thev made it their capitiil. But its anoii-iit sploudours bavc }joue. Its uiiivur.sity, 
 at one time the repn'seiitativc of Arab science, aud tho most famous in Kuropo for 
 its medical faculty, has made no sign for ugcs, and Salei-no has now no claim 
 whatever to the title of " Ilippocratic town." It aspires, however, to rise into 
 importance through commerce and industry, and a breakwater and piers might 
 convert it into a formidable rival of Xaplcs. The iuhabitanis are fond of repeating 
 a local ])roverb — 
 
 " NVhcn Siileriio n port dotli obUiin 
 TImt of Niipk-s will be iiianu." 
 
 Pajstum, or Posidonia, the ancient mistress of the bay, stood to tho south-east 
 of Salerno. It was founded by the Sybaiites on the ruins of a more ancient town 
 of the Tyrrhenians. The Roman poets sang this " city of roses " on account of 
 its cool springs, shady walks, and mild climate. It was destroyed by the Saracens 
 in 015, and its ruins, though amongst the most interesting of all Italy, dating 
 as they do from a period anterior to that of Home, were known only to shepherds 
 and brigands up to the middle of last century. Its throe temples, tlic most 
 important of which was dedicated to Neptune, or Poseidon, are amoagst the most 
 imposing of continental Italy, their effect being heightened by the solitude which 
 surrounds them and the waves whicii wash their foundations. The traveller, 
 however, cannot afford to remain for any length of time within their vicinity, for 
 the site of the ruins is surrounded by marshes, the exhalations from which sadly 
 interfere with th*^ excavations going on. 
 
 Numerous towns and villages are dotted over the champaign country separating 
 Mount Vesuvius from the foot-hills of the Apennines. Starting from Viefri, a 
 suburb of Salerno on the banks of a narrow ravine, we ascend to Cara, a fa\(Hirito 
 summer retreat, abounding in shade-trees. Near it is a monastery famous 
 amongst antiquaries on account of its ancient parchments and diplomas. Ou 
 descending to the plain of the Sarno we pass Nocera, a country residence of the 
 ancient Romans ; Pagani, still situated within the region of woods ; Angri, which 
 manufactures yarns from cotton grown in its environs; and Scafati, more indus- 
 trious still. Near it may be seen the ruins of Pompeii, the town of Torre dell' 
 Annunziata, and, on the southern slope of Vesuvius, the houses of Bosco Tre Case 
 and Bosco Reale. There arc savants who believe they can trace in the veins of 
 the inhabitants of Nocera and the neighbourhood the Arab and Berber blood of 
 the 20,000 Saracens who were settled hero by the Emperor Frederick II. 
 
 The valley of the Sarno, above Nocera, is densely peopled as far as the foot of 
 the Apennines, and another chain of villages extends northwards to the town of 
 Avellino, the fields of which are enclosed by hedges of filbert-trees {arcllana in 
 Italian), and which is important on account of its intermediary position between 
 the mountains and the plain. The population, however, is densest in that portion 
 of the Canipagna known as the " Happy " (Felice), which extends between 
 Vesuvius and Monte Vergine. Sarno, named after the river, though far away 
 from it, abounds in cereals, vines, fruit, and vegetables, and manufactures cotton 
 Btufis and raw silk. Palma stands in the midst of fertile fields ; Ottajano, tho
 
 304 ITALY. 
 
 town of Octaviiis, on the lower slope of the Somma of Vesuvius, is famous for its 
 wines ; Nola, where Augustus died, and which gave birth to Giordano Bruno, has 
 fertile fields, but is better known through the fine Greek vases found in its ruins, 
 and on account of the remains of an amphitheatre built of marble, and of greater 
 size than that of Capua. 
 
 Famous Capua, the ancient metropolis of the Campania, at one time the rival 
 of Rome, with half a million inhabitants dwelling within its walls, has been com- 
 pletely stripped of its former splendours. Its name is applied now to a sullen 
 fortress on the Volturno, the CdifHiimm of the Romans ; and Santa Maria, which is 
 the representative of the veritable Capua, offers no " delights " other than those of a 
 large village. In its environs, however, may still be seen the ruins of a fine amphi- 
 theatre, a triumphal arch, and other remains of a vast city. Caserta, the " town of 
 pleasure " of the modern Campania, lies farther to the south. It boasts of a large 
 palace, shady parks, and vast gardens ornamented with statues and fountains, and 
 was the Versailles of the Neapolitan Bourbons. An aqueduct supplies it with 
 water from a distance of twenty-five miles, and crosses the valley near Maddaloni 
 by means of a magnificent bridge, built about the middle of last century by Vanvi- 
 telli, and one of the masterpieces of modern architecture. 
 
 The great Roman highway bifurcates to the north of Capua and the Volturno. 
 One branch turns towards the coast ; the other, along which a railway has been 
 built, skirts the volcano of Rocca Monfina, follows the valley of the Garigliano 
 and of its tributary the Sacco as far as the eastern foot of the volcano of Latiuni, 
 and then descends into the Campagna of Rome. Historically the coast road is the 
 more famous of the two. It first passes close to Sessa, the ancient city of the 
 Aurunci, whose acropolis stood in the crater of the Rocca Monfina. It then turns 
 towards the coast, and having crossed the Garigliano near its mouth, where it 
 is bounded by insalubrious marshes, it penetrates the defile of Mola di Gaeta, 
 ofRciully called Formia, in memory of ancient Formia?, where Cicero Hved and 
 died. Travellers coming from Rome first look down from this spot upon the 
 beauties of the Campania, and see stretched out before them the Bay of Gaeta, with 
 the volcanic islands of Ponza, Ventotene, and Ischia in the distance. Gaeta, a 
 fortress which guards this gateway to the Neapolitan paradise, is built on the 
 summit of Monte Orlando, occupying a small peninsula attached to the mainland 
 by an isthmus only 800 yards in width. The port of Gaeta is well sheltered 
 against westerly and northerly winds, and is much frequented by coasting vessels 
 and fishing-smacks ; but Gaeta itself is better known as a fortress. It was here 
 the kingdom of the two Sicilies was put an end to by the abdication of Francis II. 
 in 1861. 
 
 Towns of some importance are likewise met with on following the eastern road 
 from Naples to Rome. The most considerable amongst them is San Germane, the 
 name of which has recently been changed into Casino, in honour of the famous 
 monastery of that name occupying a terrace to the west of the town, and affording a 
 glorious prospect of hills and valleys. This monastery was founded in the sixth 
 century by St. Beunet, or Benedict, and its rules have been accepted throughout
 
 SOUTHEEN ITALY, KAPLES. 
 
 805 
 
 Ihe Eastern Church. Xo body of inon has ever exercised a greater iutiiieiicc upon 
 the history of Catholicism than these Benedictine monks of Jlonte Ca-sino. At the 
 height of its power the order held vast estates throughout Italy, and many popes 
 and thousands of Church dignitaries have been furnished from its ranks. Tho 
 library of Monte Casino is one of the most valuable in Europe, and the services 
 formerly rendered to science by the Benedictines have saved this monastery from 
 disestablishment, a favour likewise extended to the monastery of La Cava and the 
 Charter-house of Pavia. 
 
 There are but few towns of importance in the mountain region of Xaples. 
 Arpino, the ancient Arpinum, the birthplace of Cicero and Marius, with cyclopean 
 
 Fig. 110. — The Marshes of Salpi. 
 Scale 1 : 223,000. 
 
 Li ajl Wor^ m prtwTtja 
 
 = .! Miles. 
 
 walls built by Saturn, is the most populous place in the upper valley of the Liri, 
 to the south of the mountains of Mantese. Benevento occupies a central position 
 on the Calore, the principal tributary of the Volturno, and several roads diverge 
 from it. The ancient name of this place was Malevcntitm, but in spite of its change 
 of name the town has frequently suffered from sieges and earthquakes, and of all 
 the great edifices of its past there now remains only a fine triumphal arch erected 
 in honour of Trajan. The city walls, nearly four miles in circumference, have for 
 the most part been constructed from the fragments of ancient monuments. 
 
 Ariano, to the east of Benevento, and also in the basin of the Yolturno, is 
 built upon three hills commanding a magnificent prospect, extending from the 
 
 vol,. I. X
 
 806 ITALY. 
 
 often snow-clad Matese Mountains to the cone of the Yultur. It lies on the rail- 
 road connecting Naples with Foggia and the Adriatic, and carries on a considerable 
 trade. Campobasso, the capital of Molise, is likewise an important commercial 
 intermediary, though still without a railway. 
 
 The commercial towns on the Adriatic slope of the Apennines are of greater 
 importance than those to the east. Foggia, on the Tavoglieri di Puglia, upon 
 which converge four railwaj^s and several high-roads, is a great mart for provisions, 
 and in importance and wealth, though not in population, is the second city of 
 Naples. Several smaller towns surround it like satellites, such as San Severo, 
 Cerignola, and Lucera, which became wealthy in the thirteenth century, when the 
 Saracens, exiled from Sicily by Frederick II., settled here. Foggia, however, and 
 its sister cities, in spite of the proximity of the Bay of Manfredonia, have no direct 
 outlet to the sea, for the coast for a distance of thirty miles, from Manfredonia to 
 the mouth of the Otranto, is fringed by insalubrious lagoons and marshes. The 
 reclamation of these is absolutely necessary to enable Southern Italy to develop 
 its great natural resources. The largest of these lagoons or marshes, that of 
 Salpi, has been reduced to the extent of one-half by the alluvium conveyed into it 
 by the rivers Carapella and Ofanto, but as long as the new land remains unculti- 
 vated deadly miasmata will not cease. At the eastern extremity of this marsh 
 stood the ancient city of Salapia. 
 
 At the extremity of the peninsula of the Gargano, to the north of these marshes, 
 are the harbours of Manfredonia and Vieste, very favourably situated for sailing 
 vessels compelled by stress of weather to put into port. The first harbour to the 
 south of the marshes is Barletta, near which is the " Field of Blood," recalling the 
 battle of Cannae. Barletta exports cereals, wines, oil, and fruit, partly grown on 
 the old feudal estates near the inland towns of Andria, Corata, and Ruvo. The 
 latter, the ancient Rubi, has yielded a rich harvest of antiquities of every kind. 
 The other coast towns to the south-east of Barletta are — Trani, which carried on 
 a considerable Levant trade towards the close of the Middle Ages ; Bisceglia ; 
 Molfetta ; Bari, the most populous town on the Adriatic slope of Naples ; and 
 Monopoli, all of which are much frequented by coasting vessels. Tasano, near 
 Monopoli, occupies the site of the ancient port of Gnatia, and, like Rubi, has 
 well repaid the search for archaeological remains. 
 
 Brindisi, at the northern extremity of the peninsula of Otranto, in the time 
 of the Romans and during the Crusades, was one of the great stations on the 
 route from Western Europe to the East, and is likely again to occupy that 
 position. It lies at the very entrance to the Adriatic. Its roadstead is excellent, 
 and its harbour one of the best on the Mediterranean. The entrance is narrow, 
 and was formerly choked up with the remains of wrecks and mud, but is now 
 practicable for steamers of the largest size. The two arms of the harbour bear 
 some resemblance to the antlers of a stag, and to this circumstance the town is 
 indebted for its name, which is of Messapian origin, and means " antler-shaped." 
 Brindisi has recently become the European terminus of the overland route to 
 India, and many new buildings have risen in honour of this event, which it
 
 SOUTIIEUX ITALY, NAPLES. 
 
 807 
 
 was expected would convert the town into an enipoiiuiu of Eustcrn trade. These 
 expectations have not been realised. Several thousand hurried travellers pass 
 that way everj' year, but Marseilles, Genoa, and Trieste have lost none of their 
 importance as commercial ports in consequence. Slorcover, when the Turkish 
 railways are completed, the position now held by Briudisi will most likely bo 
 transferred to Saloniki or Constantinople.* 
 
 Taranto, or Tarent, on the gulf of the same name, is making an effort, like 
 Brindisi, to revive its ancient commercial activity. Its harbour, the Pircolo Mure, 
 or " little sea," is deep and perfectly sheltered, and its roadstead, or Maye Grande, 
 is fairly protected by two outlying islands against the surge. As atSpczia, springs 
 
 Fig. in.— The Hahhoi'r of Riundisi in 1871. 
 Scale I : 86,000. 
 
 'YlAy<.M^^^ 
 
 — iJ— ,C -c 33 /i,- 
 
 2 JIUes. 
 
 of fresh water, known as Citro and Citrello, rise from the bottom of the harbour 
 as well as in the roadstead. The geographical position of Tarent enables it suc- 
 cessfully to compete with Bari and the other ports of the Adriatic for the com- 
 merce of inland towns like Matera, Gravina, and Altamura, and it ajipears to be 
 destined to become the great emporium for the Ionian trade. No other town of 
 Italy offers equal facilities for the construction of a port, but the two channels, one 
 natural and the other artificial, which join the two " seas" have become choked, 
 and only small craft are now able to reach the harbour. Modern Tarent is a small 
 town, with narrow .streets, built lo the east of the Greek city of that name, on the 
 
 • In 1862 1,100 vessels, of 7.5,000 tons, ertfred and cleared at Brindisi; in 187.5 1,342 vessels, 
 Loclusive of 396 steamers, of 771,096 tone, in the foreign trade 
 
 X 2
 
 808 
 
 ITALY. 
 
 limestone rock bounded by the two channels. Its commerce has been slowly- 
 increasing since the opening of the railway, its industry being limited to fishing, 
 oj'ster-dredging, and the manufacture of bay-salt ; and the Tarantese enjoy the 
 reputation of being the most indolent people in Italy. The heaps of shells on the 
 beach no longer supply the purple for which the town was formerly famous ; but 
 the inhabitants still make use of the byssus of a bivalve in the manufacture of 
 very strong gloves. 
 
 The only towns of any importance in the peninsula stretching southwards 
 from Brindisi and Tarent are Lecco and Gallipoli, the former surrounded by 
 cotton plantations, the latter — the Kallipolis, or "beautiful city," of the Greeks — 
 picturesquely perched on an islet attached by a bridge to the mainland. The 
 surrounding country, owing to the want of moisture, is comparatively barren. 
 
 Fig. 112. — The Harbouk of Taiianto. 
 Scale 1 : 208,000. 
 
 The western peninsula of Naples is far better irrigated than that of Otranto, 
 but this advantage is counterbalanced to a large extent by the mountainous 
 nature of the country, and by its frequent earthquakes. Potcnza, a town at the 
 very neck of this peninsula, half-way between the Gulf of Tarent and the Bay 
 of Salerno, most happily situated as a place of commerce, has repeatedly been 
 destroyed by earthquakes, and its inhabitants have only ventured to rebuild it in 
 a temporarj' manner. 
 
 The famous old cities of Calabria, such as Metapontum and Heraclea, have 
 ceased to exist. Sybaris the powerful, with walls six miles in circumference, and 
 suburbs extending for eight miles along the Crati, is now covered with alluvium 
 and shrubs — "its very ruins have perished." The city of the Locri, to the south 
 of Gerace, which existed until the tenth century, when it was destroyed by the 
 Saracens, has at least retained ruins of its walls, temples, and other buildings.
 
 SICILY. aoo 
 
 The only one of tliese old cities still in existence is Cotrone, the iincieut Cro- 
 tona, the " gateway to the granary of Calabria." In travelling along the coasts 
 of Greater Greece we feel astonished at the few ruins of a past which exercised so 
 powerful an influence upon the history of mankind. 
 
 The existing towns of Calabria cannot compare in importance with those of a 
 past age. Rossano, near the ruins of Sybaris, is the small capital of a district, and 
 is visited only by coasters. Coscnza, in the beautiful valley of Crati, at the foot 
 of the wooded Sila, keeps up its communications with Naples and Messina through 
 the harbour of Paola. Catanzaro exports its oil, silk, and fruit either by way 
 of the Bay of Squillace, ou the shores of which Hannibal had pitched his camp, 
 or through Pizzo, a small jwrt at the southern extremity of the Bay of Suuta 
 Eul'emia. Reggio, nestling in groves of lemon and orange trees at the foot of the 
 Aspromonte, is the most important town of Calabria. It stands ou the narrow 
 strait separating the mainland from the island of Sicily, and could not fail to 
 absorb some of the commerce passing through that central gateway of the Medi- 
 terranean. Messina and Eeggio mutually complement each other, and the 
 prosperity of the one must result in that of the sister city.* 
 
 YII.— Sicily. 
 
 TiiE Trinacria of the ancients, the island with the " three promontories," is 
 clearly a dependency of the Italian peninsula, from which it is separated by a 
 narrow arm of the sea. The Strait of Slessina, where narrowest, is not quite two 
 miles in width. It can be easily ci'ossed in barges, and, with the resources at our 
 command, a bridge might easily be thrown across it, Ijiilar enterijrisea having 
 succeeded elsewhere. It can hardly be doubted that before the close of this 
 centurv either a tunnel or a bridge will join Sicily to the mainland, and human 
 industry will thus restore in some way the isthmus which formerly joined the 
 Cape of Faro to the Italian Aspromonte. We know nothing about the period when 
 this rupture took place, but to judge from the ancient name of the strait — 
 Heptastadion — it must have been much narrower in former times, t 
 
 • Towns of Naples having over 10,000 inhabitants (in 1870) :— Naples (Napoli), 421,803; Ban, 
 49,423; Foggia, 34,181; AnJria, 32,078; Reggio, 29,834; Barletta, 27,414 ; MolfelU, 26,516; Corato, 
 '.6,018; Trani, 24,020 ; Bitonto, 23,087 ; Taranto, 22,858 ; Castellumiire di SUibia, 22,037 ; Cerignola, 
 21,739; Lecee, 21,081 ; .Salemo, 20,011; Aversa, 19,734; Bisccglia, 19,007; Torro del Greco, 18,950 ; 
 Catanzaro, 18,781 ; Pctenza, 18,513; Gaeta, 18,385; Avellino, 18,260; Gerlizzi, 18,175; Maddaloni, 
 17,578; Afragola, 17,541; Francavilla Fontana, 17,457; Benevcnlo, 17.370; Altamura, 17,004; Santa 
 Maria Capu» Vctere, 16,785; San Severo, 16,545; Torre Annunziala, 15,321; Ruvo di Puglia, 15,055; 
 Monte Sant' Acgelo, 14,902; Rossano, 14,818 ; San Marco in Lamis, 14,540 ; Cosenza, 14,522 ; Caserta 
 14,578; Canosa di Puglia, 14,458; Ostirni, 14,422; Ariano di Puglia, 14,347; Matera, 14,262; 
 Monopoli, 13,800; Minerv-ino Murge, 13,630; Martina Franca, 13,440; Campobasso, 13,345; Brindisi, 
 13,194; Lucera, 13,064; Acerra, 12,858; Ceglia Messacapio, 12,582; Gioja del Colla, 12,442; Pagani, 
 12,208; Fasuno, 12,190; Capua, 12,174 ; Citlanova, 12,137 ; Palo di Colla, 11,887 ; Mola di Bari, 11,775; 
 Pozzuoli, 11,751; Rionera in Voltara, 11,520; AmalS. 11,225; Resina, 11,132; Sarno, 10,933; Sun 
 Giovanni del Tcduccio, 10.898 ; Nola, 10,771 ; Giugliano in Campania, 10,751 ; L luria, 10,009 ; 
 Frattamaggiorc, 10,480 ; Corigliuno Calabro, 10,481; Nicastro, 10,418 ; Cairano, 10,081 ; Mouttcorvo, 
 10,020; Conversano, 10,012. 
 
 t Jlinimum width of the Strait of Meeeina, 10,330 feet ; maximum depth, 1,090 feet ; average depth, 
 246 feet.
 
 810 
 
 ITALY. 
 
 From an historical point of view Sicily may still be looked upon as a portion 
 of the mainland, for the strait can be crossed almost as easily as a wide river. On 
 the other hand, it enjoys all the advantages of a maritime position. Situate in the 
 
 Fig. 113.— The Strait op Messin.^. 
 Scale I : 156,000. 
 
 T YPvR HENIAN 
 
 SEA 
 
 
 ,*^?».i-^CalK.ai Faro 4, 
 
 very centre of the Mediterranean, between the Tj'rrhenian and the eastern basin, 
 it commands all the commercial high-roads which lead from the Atlantic to the 
 East. Its excellent harbours invite navigators to stay on its coasts ; its soil ia
 
 SICILY. 811 
 
 exceedingly fertile; the most varied natural resources insure the existence of ita 
 inhabitants ; and a genial climate promotes the development of life. Hardly a 
 district of Europe appears to be in a more favourable position for supporting a 
 dense population in comfort. Sicily, indeed, is more densely j)opulated and 
 wealthier than the neighbouring island of Sardinia or either of the Neapolitan 
 provinces, the Campania alone excepted, and rivals in importance the provinces 
 of Northern Italy.* 
 
 Sicil}', whenever it has been allowed to rejoice in the possession of peace and 
 freedom, has always recovered with wonderful rapidity ; and it would certainly 
 now be one of the most prosperous countries if wars had not so frequently devas- 
 tated it, and the yoke of foreign oppressors had not weighed so heavily upon it. 
 
 The triangular island of Sicily would possess great regularity of structure 
 if it were not for the bold mass of Mount Etna, which rises above the shores of the 
 Ionian Sea at the entrance of the Strait of Messina. From its base to the summit 
 of its crater, that huge protuberance forms a region apart, differing from the rest 
 of Sicily not only geologically, but also with respect to its products, cultivation, 
 and inhabitants. 
 
 Ancient mariners mostly looked upon the Sicilian volcano as the highest 
 mountain in the world ; nor did they err much as respects the world known to 
 
 Fisr. 114. — Pkoflle op Mount Etna. 
 
 them, for onlj' at the two extremities of the Mediterranean, in Spain and Syria, do 
 we meet with mountains exceeding this one in height ; and Mount Etna is not only 
 remarkable from its isolated position, but likewise by the beauty of its contours, the 
 lurid sheen of its incandescent lavas, and the column of smoke rising from its 
 summit. From whatever side we approach Sicily, its snowy head is seen rising 
 high above all the surrounding mountains. Its position in the very centre of the 
 Mediterranean contributed in no small measure to secure to it a pre-eminenco 
 amongst mountains. It was looked upon as the " pillar of the heavens," and at a 
 later epoch the Arabs only spoke of it as el Jehel, " the mountain," which has 
 been corrupted by the people dwelling near it into " Mon gi bello." 
 
 The mean slopes of Mount Etna, prolonged as they are by streams of lavas 
 extending in every direction, are very gentle, and on looking at a profile of this 
 mountain it wiU haidlj' be believed that its aspect is so majestic. It occupies, 
 in fact, an area of no less than 460 square miles, and its base has a develop- 
 ment of about 80 miles. The whole of this space is bounded by the sea, and by 
 the valleys of the Alcantara and Simeto. A saddle, only 2,820 feet in height, 
 connects it in tlie north-west with the mountain system of the remainder of Italy. 
 Small cones of eruption are met with beyond the mass of the volcano to the north 
 
 • Area of Sicily, ll,29u bquaro miks ; populution in 187U, 2,566,300 eoula ; density, 227.
 
 312 1T.ILY. 
 
 of the Alcantara, and streams of lava having filled up the ancient valley of the 
 Simeto, that river was forced to excavate itself another bed through rocks of 
 basalt, and now descends to the sea in rapids and cascades. 
 
 An enormous hollow, covering an area of ten square miles, and more than 3,000 
 feet in depth, occupies a portion of the western slope of the volcano. This is the 
 Val di Bove, a vast amphitheatre of explosion, the bottom of which is dotted over 
 with subsidiary craters, and which rises in gigantic steps, over which, when the 
 mountain is in a state of eruption, pour fiery cascades of lava. Lyell has shown 
 that this Val di Bove is the ancient crater of Mount Etna, but that, at some 
 period not known to us, the existing terminal vent opened a couple of miles farther 
 west. The steep sides of the Yal di Bove enable us to gain a considerable insight 
 into the history of the volcano, for the various layers of lava may be studied there 
 at leisure. The cliffs upon which stands the town of Aci Reale afford a similar 
 opportunity for embracing at one glance a long period of its history. These cliffs, 
 over 300 feet in height, consist of seven distinct layers of lava, successively poured 
 forth from the bowels of Mount Etna. Each layer consists nearly throughout 
 of a compact mass, affording no hold for the roots of plants, but their surfaces 
 have invariably been converted into tufa, or even mould, owing to atmospheric 
 agencies which operated for centuries after each eruption. It has likewise been 
 proved that these cliffs not only increased in height in consequence of successive 
 eruptions, but that they were also repeatedlj^ upheaved from below. Lines of 
 erosion resulting from the action of the waves can bo distinctly traced at various 
 elevations above the present level of the Mediterranean. The lavas, too, have 
 undergone a change of structure since they were poured forth, as is proved by 
 beautiful caverns enclosed by prismatic columns of basalt, and by the islet of the 
 Cyclops, near Aci Trezza. 
 
 During the last two thousand years Mount Etna has had more than a 
 hundred eruptions, some of them continuing for a number of years. Hitherto it 
 has not been possible to trace any regularity in these eruptions. They appear to 
 occur at irregular intervals, and the quantity of lava poured forth from the prin- 
 cipal or any subsidiary cone varies exceedingly. The most considerable stream 
 of lava of which we have any record was that which overwhelmed the city of 
 Catania in 16G9. It first converted the fields of Nicolosi into a fiery lake, then 
 enveloped a portion of the hill of Monpilieri, which for a time arrested its progress, 
 and finally divided into three separate streams, the principal of which descended 
 upon Catania. It swept away a part of that town, filled up its port, and formed a 
 promontory in its stead. The quantity of lava poured forth on that occasion has 
 been estimated at 3,532 millions of cubic feet ; and nearly 40 square miles of 
 fertile land, supporting a population of 20,000 souls, were converted into a stony 
 waste. The double cone of Monti Ross-i, with its beautiful crater now grown over 
 with golden-flowered broom, was formed by the ashes ejected during that great 
 eruption. More than 700 subsidiary cones, similar to the Monti Rossi, are 
 scattered over the exterior slopes of Mount Etna, and bear witness to as many 
 eruptions. The most ancient amongst them have been nearly obliterated in the
 
 SICILY. 
 
 818 
 
 course of agt's, or burie 1 beneath streams of luv:>, but the others still retain their 
 conical shape, and rise to a height of many hundred feet. .Several amongst them 
 are now covered with forests, and the craters of others have been converted into 
 gardens — delightful cup-shaped hollows, where villas shine like gems set in 
 verdure. 
 
 Most of these subsidiary cones lie at an elevation of between 3,3(10 and (i,000 
 feet above the sea, and it is there the internal forces make themselves most strongly 
 felt. As a rule the subterranean activity is less violent near the summit, and 
 during most of the eruptions the grc;it terminal crater merely serves as a vent, 
 
 Fig. 115. — TuE Lava Stubau or Catania. 
 Scale 1 : iMi>.(M). 
 
 r^- 
 
 /- 
 
 ATAWA: 
 
 through which the aqueous vapours and gases make their escape. Fumaroles 
 surrounding it convert the soil into a kind of pap, and the substances which escape 
 from them streak the scoriae with brilliaiit colours — scarlet, yellow, and emerald 
 green. The internal heat makes itself felt on many parts of the exterior slopes. 
 It converts loose rocks into a compact mass, far less difficult to climb than are 
 the loose cinders of Mount Vesuvius. Travellers ascending the mountain need 
 fear nothing from volcanic bombs. Showers of stone are occasionally ejected from 
 the principal vent, but this is quite an exceptional occurrence. If it were not so, 
 the small structure above the precipices of the Val di Bove, which dates from the
 
 314 
 
 ITALY. 
 
 time of the Eomans, and is known as the " PhilosojAer's Tower," would long ago 
 have been buried beneath debris. A meteorological observatory might therefore be 
 established with safety on the summit of this mountain, and no better station could 
 be found for giving warning of approaching storms. 
 
 The summit of Moimt Etna, 10,866 feet in height, does not penetrate the zone 
 of perennial snow, and the heat emitted from the subterranean focus soon melts 
 the incipient glaciers which accumulate in hollows. Nevertheless the upper half 
 of the mountain is covered with a shroud of white during a great part of the year. 
 It might be imagined that the snow and copious rains woidd give birth to numerous 
 rivulets descending from the slopes of the volcano ; but the small stones and 
 cinders which cover the solid beds of lava promptly absorb all moisture, and 
 springs are met with only in a few favoured spots. They are abimdant on 
 
 Fiij. 116. — Subsidiary Cones op Mount Etna. 
 
 ^^ 
 
 t.1 
 
 Jft^ Intrili'o' 
 
 
 the lower slopes, or in the immediate vicinity of the sea. One of these is the 
 fountain of Acis, which issues from the chaos of rocks which Polyphemus is 
 said to have hurled at the ships of sage Ulysses. Another gives birth to the 
 river Amenano, which rises in the town of Catania, and hastens in silvery cascades 
 towards its port. ^Tien we look at these clear springs in the midst of black sands 
 and burnt rocks we are able to comprehend the fancy of the ancient Greeks, who 
 regarded them as divine beings, in whose honour they struck medals and raised 
 statues. 
 
 Though running streams are scarcely met with on the slopes of Mount Etna, 
 its cinders retain a sufficient quantity of moisture to support a luxuriant vegetation. 
 The mountain is clad with verdure except where the surface of the lava is too 
 compact to be penetrated by the roots of plants. Only the highest regions, which 
 are covered with snow during the greater part of the year, are barren. It is
 
 SICILY. 815 
 
 a remarkable fuct that the flora of the Alps should not be met with ou Mount Etna, 
 although the temperature suits it exactly. 
 
 Formerly the volcano was surrounded by a belt of forests occupying the zone 
 between the cultivated lands and the region of snow and cinders. Such is the 
 case no longer. On the southern slope, which is that usually ascended by tourists, 
 there are no forests at all, and only the trunk of some ancient oak is occasionally 
 met with. On the other slopes groves of trees are more frequent, particularly in 
 the north, where there remain a few lofty trees, which impart quite an alpine 
 character to the scenery. But the wood-cutters prosecute their work of exter- 
 mination without mercy, and it is to be feared that the time is not very distant 
 when even the last vestiges of the ancient forests will have disappeared. The 
 magnificent chestnuts on the western slopes, amongst which could be admired until 
 recently the " tree of the hundred horses," bear witness to the astonishing fertility 
 of the lava. If the cultivators of the soil only desired it, a few years would 
 suflSce to restore to Mount Etna its ancient covering of foliage. 
 
 The cultivated zone occupying the lower slopes of the mountains presents in 
 many places the appearance of a beautiful garden. There are groves of olive, 
 orange, lemon, and other fruit trees, in the midst of which rise clumps of palms, 
 and villas, churches, and monasteries peep out from this mass of verdure. The 
 fertility of the soil is so great that it supports a population three or four times more 
 numerous than that in any other part of Italy. More than 300,000 inhabitants 
 dwell on the slopes of a mountain which might be supposed to inspire terror, and 
 which actually bursts at intervals, burying fertile fields beneath a fiery deluge. 
 Town succeeds town along its base like pearls in a necklace, and when a stream 
 of lava effects a breach in this chain of human habitations it is closed up again as 
 soon as the lava has had time to cool. From the rim of the crater the mountain 
 climber looks down with astonishment upon these human ant-hills. The con- 
 centric zones of houses and verdure contra>t curiouslj- with the snows and ashes 
 occupying the centre of the picture, and with the barren limestone rocks beyond 
 the Simeto. And this is only a small portion of the vast and marvellous prospect, 
 embracing a radius of 124 miles. "Well may the beholder be enchanted by the 
 unrivalled spectacle of three seas, of a deeper blue than the skies, washing the 
 shores of Sicily, of Calabria, and of the islands of ^olia. 
 
 Moimt Pelorus, which forms a continuation of the chain of the Aspromonte of 
 Calabria, is of very inferior height to ilount Etna, but it had existed for ages 
 when the space now occupied by the volcano was only a bay of the sea. It 
 was formerly believed that a crater existed on the highest summit of Pelorus 
 dedicated to Neptune, and now to the " Mother of God," or JDinna Mare 
 (3,600 feet), but such is not the case. These mountains consist of primitive sind 
 transition rocks, with beds of limestone and marble on their flanks. They first 
 follow the coast of the Ionian Sea, where they form numerous steep promontories, 
 and then, turning abruptly towards the west, run parallel with that of the ^olian 
 Sea. Their culminating point, near the centre, is known as Madonia (6,336 feet), 
 and the magnificent forests which still clothe it impart to that part of the island
 
 316 ITALY. 
 
 quite a nortliern aspect, and we might almost faucy ourselves in the Apennines or 
 Maritime Alps. Limestone promontories of the most varied profile advance into 
 the blue waters of the sea, and render this coast one of the most beautiful of the 
 Mediterranean. We are seized with admiration when we behold the enormous 
 quadrangular block of Cefalu, the more undulating hill of Termini, the vertical 
 masses of Coltafano, and above all, near Palermo, the natural fortress of Monte 
 Pellegrino (1,970 feet), an almost inaccessible rock, upon which Hamilcar Barca 
 resisted for three years the efforts of a Roman army to dislodge him. Monte San 
 Giuliano (2,300 feet), an almost isolated limestone summit, terminates this chain 
 in the west. It is the Eryx of the ancients, who dedicated it to Venus. 
 
 The mountains which branch off from this main chain towards the south gra- 
 dually decrease in height as they approach the sea. The principal .slopes of the 
 island descend towards the Ionian and Sicilian Seas, and all its perennial rivers — 
 the Platani, Salso, and Simeto — flow in these directions. The rivers on the 
 northern slope are mere fiiimare, formidable after heavy rains, but lost in beds of 
 shingle during the dry season. The lakes and swamps of the island are likewise 
 confined to the southern slope of the mountains. Amongst them are the pantani, 
 and the Lake, or biviere, of Lentini, which is the most extensive sheet of water in 
 Sicily ; the Lake of Pergusa, or Enna, formerly surrounded by flowery meadows in 
 which Proserpine was seized by Pluto ; the biviere of Terranova ; and several 
 marshy tracts, the remains of ancient bays of the sea. This southern coast of the 
 island contrasts most unfavourably with the northern, for, in the place of pic- 
 turesque promontories of the most varied outline, we meet with a monotonous sandy 
 shore, devoid of all shade. Natural harbours are scarce there, and during the 
 winter storms vessels frequenting it are exposed to much danger. 
 
 The southern slope of SicUy, to the south of the Madonia, consists of tertiary 
 and more recent rocks, abounding in fossil shells mostly belonging to species still 
 living in the neighbouring sea. In the hills to the south of Catania these tertiary 
 rocks alternate with strata of volcanic origin, which are evidently derived from 
 submarine eruptions. This process is still going on between Girgenti and the 
 island of Pantellaria, where the submarine volcano of Giulia or Ferdinandea occa- 
 sionally rises above the surface of the sea. It was seen in 1801, and thirty years 
 later it had another eruption, resulting in the formation of an island four miles in 
 circumference, which was examined by Jussieu and Constant Prevost. In 1863 it 
 appeared for the third time. But the waves of the sea have always washed away 
 the ashes and cinders ejected on these occasions, spreading them in regular layers 
 over the bottom of the sea, and thus producing an alternation of strata similar to 
 that observed at Catania. In 1840 the summit of this submarine volcano was 
 covered with only six feet of water, but recently no soundings were obtained at a 
 depth of fifty fathoms. 
 
 This submarine volcano is not the only witness to the activity of subter- 
 ranean forces in Southern Italy We meet there with mineral springs discharging 
 carbonic acid and other gases, which prove fatal to the smaller animals venturing 
 within their influence, and with a naphtha lake near Palagonia, from which escape,
 
 SICILY. 
 
 817 
 
 likewise, irrcspirable gases. A similar phenomenon may be witnessed in 
 connection with the Lake of Pergusa, which occupies an ancient crater about four 
 ttiies in circumference, and usually abounds in tench and eels. From time to 
 
 -The Maccalubas and Girgenti. 
 Scale I : 100,000. 
 
 ^tAwyw^JVI 
 
 Cainitim- 
 
 time, however, an escape of poisonous gases appears to take place from the bottom 
 of the lake, which kills the fish, whose carcasses rise to the surface. Another 
 of these sakes has made its appearance farther west, near the Palazzo Adriano,
 
 318 ITALY. 
 
 and, indeed, the whole of underground Sicily appears to be in a state of chemical 
 effervescence. 
 
 Next to Mount Etna the great centre of volcanic activity in Sicil}' appears to 
 be near Girgenti, at a place known as the Maccaluhas. The aspect of this spot 
 changes with the seasons. In summer bubbles of gas escape from small 
 craters filled with liquid mud, which occasionall}' overflows, and runs down the 
 exterior slopes. The rains of winter almost obliterate these miniature volcanoes, 
 and the plain is then converted into one mass of mud, from which the gases escape. 
 At the beginning of this century the soil was occasionally shaken by earthquakes, 
 and on these occasions jets of mud and stones were ejected to a height of ten or 
 twenty yards. The Maccaluhas appear now to be in a state of quiescence, for 
 these mud volcanoes also seem to have their regular periods of rest and activity. 
 
 The deposits of sulphur, which constitute one of the riches of Sicily, undoubt- 
 edly owe their existence to these subterranean lakes of seething lava. These 
 sulphur beds are met with in the tertiary strata extending from Centorbi to 
 Cattolica, in the province of Girgenti. They date from the ejDOch of the Upper 
 Miocene, and are deposited ujjon layers of fossil infusoria exhaling a biturainaus 
 odour. Geologists are not yet agreed on the origin of these sulphur beds, but it 
 is most likely that they are derived from sulphate of lime carried to the surface 
 by hot springs. In the same formation beds of gypsum and of rock-salt are 
 met with, and the latter may frequently be traced from a saline effervescence 
 known as occhi di sale (" eyes of salt "). 
 
 Sicily, like Greece, enjoys one of the happiest climates. The heat of summer 
 is tempered by sea breezes which blow regularly during the hottest part of each 
 day. The cold of winter would not be felt at all if it were not for the total 
 absence of every comfort in the houses, for ice is not known, and snow exceedingly 
 rare. The autumn rains are abundant, but there are many fine days even during 
 that season. The prevailing winds from the north and west are salubrious, but 
 the sirocco, which usually blows towards the south-east, is deadly, especially when it 
 reaches the northern coast. It generally blows for three or four days, and during 
 that time no one thinks of clarifying wine, salting meat, or painting houses or 
 furniture. This wind is the great drawback to the climate. In some parts of 
 Sicily the exhalations from the swamps are dangerous, but this is entirely the fault 
 of man. It is owing to his neglect that Agosta and Syracuse suffer from fevers, 
 and that death forbids the stranger to approach the ruins of ancient Himera.* 
 
 Temperature and moisture impart to the vegetation of the plains and lower 
 valleys a semi-tropical aspect. Many plants of Asia and Africa have become 
 acclimatized in Sicily. Groups of date-palms are seen in the gardens, and the 
 plains around Sciacca, almost African in their appearance, aboimd in groves of dwarf 
 palms, or giummare, to which ancient Selinonte is indebted for its epithet of 
 Pahnosa. Cotton grows on the slopes of the hills up to a height of 600 feet above 
 the sea ; bananas, sugar-cane, and bamboos do not require the shelter of green- 
 
 • Mean annual temperature at Palermo and Jlessina, 64° F. ; at Catania and Girgrnti, 68" F. ; riinfall 
 at Palermo, 26 inches.
 
 SICILY. 819 
 
 houses; the Victoria regia covers the pouds with its huge leaves and flowers; the 
 papyrus of the Js'ile, which is not known anywhere else in Europe, chokes up the 
 bed of the Anapo, near Syracuse : formerly it grew also in the Oreto, near Palermo, 
 but it does so no longer. The cactus of IJarbury {Cactus opuntia) has become the 
 most characteristic plant of the coast districts of Sicily, and is rapidlv covering the 
 most unpromising beds of lava. These and other plants flourish most luxuriantly on 
 the southern slopes of Mount Etna, where the orange-tree bears fruit at a height 
 of 1,700 feet, and the larch ascends even to 7,400 feet. These slopes facing 
 the African sun are the hottest spots in Europe, for the volcano shelters them 
 from the winds of the north, whilst its dark-coloured scoria^ and cinders absorb 
 the raj-s of the mid-day sun. 
 
 Those portions of Sicily which are clothed with trees or shrubs are always 
 green, for orange-trees, olive-trees, carob-trees, laurels, mastic-trees, tamarisks, 
 cypresses, and pines retain their verdure even in winter, when nature wears a 
 desolate aspecf in our own latitudes. There is no " season," so to say, for with a 
 little care all kinds of vegetables can be had throughout the year. The gardens 
 around Syracuse are famous above all others, because of the striking manner in 
 which they contrast with the naked rocks surrounding them. The most delightful 
 amongst them is the Intagliafdla, or Latomia </<•' Greci, which occupies an old quarry 
 where Greek slaves dressed the stones used in erecting the palaces of S^-racuse. 
 The vegetation there is most luxuriant ; the trunks of the trees rise above masses 
 of shrubs, their branches are covered with creeping plants, flowers and ripening 
 fruit cover the paths, and birds without number sing in the foliage. This earthly 
 paradise is surrounded by precipitous walls of rock covered with ivy, or bare and 
 white as on the day when Athenian slaves were at work there. 
 
 Sicily lies on the high-road of all the nations who ever disputed the command of 
 the Mediterranean, and its population consequently consists of a mixture of the 
 most heterogeneous elements. Irrespectively of Sicani, Siculi, and other aboriginal 
 nations, whose position amongst the European family is uncertain, but who 
 probably spoke a language akin to that of the Latins, we know that Phoenicians 
 and Carthaginians successively settled on its shores, and that the Greeks were 
 almost as numerous there as in their native country. Twenty-five centuries have 
 passed since the Greeks founded their first colony, Xaxos, at the foot of Mount 
 Etna. Soon afterwards Syracuse, Leontini, Catania, Megara Hyblaoa, Messina, and 
 other colonies sprang into existence, until the whole of the Littoral region was in 
 the hands of the Greeks, the native populations being pushed back into the interior. 
 In Sicily the Greek met with the same climate, and with rocks and mountains 
 similar in aspect to those of his native home. The " Marmorean " port and the 
 wide bay of Syracuse, the acropolis and Mount Hybla, do they not recall Attica or 
 the Peloponnesus ? The fountain of Arethusa, on the island of Ortygia, which is 
 supplied through underground channels, reminds us of the fountain of Erasinos and 
 of many others in Hellas, which find their way through fissures in the limestone 
 rocks to the seashore. The Syracusans said that the river Alpheus, enamoured of
 
 320 ITALY. 
 
 the nymph Arethusa, did not mingle its waters with those of the Ionian, hut found 
 its way through subterranean channels to the coast of Sicily, where it rose again 
 at the side of the fountain dedicated to the object of his adoration, bringing 
 the flowers and fruits of beloved Greece. This legend bears testimony to the 
 great love which the Greek bore his native land, whose very fountains and 
 plants were supposed to follow him into his new home. 
 
 If we may judge from the number of inhabitants with which the principal 
 towns were credited at that time, Sicily must have had a population of several 
 millions of Greeks. The Carthaginian merchants and soldiers, on the other hand, 
 though they were the masters of portions of the island for two or three centuries, 
 never settled upon It, and only a few walls, coins, and inscriptions bear witness now 
 of their ever having been present. It has been very judiciously remarked by 
 M. Dennis that the most striking evidence of their reign is presented in the 
 desolate sites of the cities of Ilimera and Selinus. At the same time we must not 
 forget that the Carthaginians, by intermingling with the existing population, 
 materially affected the ulterior destinies of the island. The Romans, wlio held 
 Sicily for nearly seven centuries, did so in a still higher degree. Vandals and 
 Goths likewise left traces behind them. The Saracens, themselves a mixed race, 
 imparted their Southern impetuosity to the Sicilians, whilst their conquerors, the 
 Normans, endowed them with the daring and indomitable courage which at that 
 period animated these sons of the Xorth. In 1071, when the Xormans laid siege 
 to Palermo, no less than five languages were spoken on the island, viz. Arabic, 
 Hebrew, Greek, Latin, and vulgar Sicilian. But Arabic was the tongue of the 
 civilised inhabitants, and even during the dominion of the Normans inscriptions 
 upon palaces and churches were inscribed in it. It was at the court of King 
 Roger that Edrisi wrote his " Geography," one of the great monuments of science. 
 In 1223 the last Arabs were made to emigrate to Naples, but by that time much 
 Arab blood already flowed through the veins of the inhabitants. 
 
 Later on, the character of the population was still further modified by French, 
 Germans, Sjianiards, and Aragonese, and all this helped to make them a people 
 differing in appearance, manners, habits, and feelings from their Italian neigh- 
 bours. These islanders look upon every inhabitant of the mainland as a foreigner. 
 The absence of roads on the island enabled the difierent groups of its population 
 to maintain their distinct idioms and character during a very long period. The 
 Lombards whom the Romans transplanted to Benevento and Palermo spoke their 
 native dialect long after it had become extinct in Lombardy. Even now there 
 are about 50,000 Sicilians who speak this ancient Lombard tongue. At San 
 Fratello, on a steep hill on the northern coast, this idiom is spoken with the 
 greatest purity. Xor has the Italian wholly supplanted the vulgar Sicilian in the 
 interior of the island. "We meet with many Greek and Arab words. One of the 
 most curious words is that of ral, which is applied to various districts of Sicily, 
 and is supposed to have been derived from vaU,>t\ie Arab term for "governor." 
 The Sicilian idiom is less sonorous than the Italian. Vowels standing between 
 consonants are frequently suppressed, and the o, and even the a and ;' {ce), are
 
 SICILY. 821 
 
 changed into oo, which renders the speech hard and indistinct. The language 
 lends itself, however, admirably to poetry, and the Sicilian popular songs arc quite 
 equal in natural grace and delicacy to the much-admired rixpr/ti of Tuscany. 
 
 Of all the emigrants who have settled on the island the Albanians alone have 
 not become merged in the general population. Locally known as Greci, they still 
 form separate communities, speaking their own language and observing special 
 religious rites, in several of the towns of the interior, and more especially at 
 Piana de' Greci, which occupies a commanding hill to the south of Palermo. 
 Nor is the fusion amongst the other races as complete as it appears to be at the 
 first glance. The population around Mount Etna, who are, perhaps, more purely 
 Greek in blood than the Greeks themselves, are noted for their grace, gaiety, and 
 sweetness of disposition. They are the most intelligent portion of tho population 
 of Sicily. Those of Trapani and San Giuliani are said to be the best-looking, and 
 their women delight the stranger by the regularity and beauty of their features. 
 The Palermitans, on the other hand, in whose veins flows much Arab blood, are 
 for the most part unprepossessing in their appearance. Thcj' open their house but 
 rarely to strangers, and jealously shut up their women in its most retired part. 
 
 The most ferocious usages of war, piracy, and brigandage have kcjit their 
 ground longer at Palermo and its environs than anywhere else. The laws of tlie 
 oincrta, or "men of heart," make vengeance a duty. A chi ti toglic il 2)a>ie, c fit 
 toglili la vita ! (" Take the life of him who has taken j'our bread ! ") is its funda- 
 mental principle ; but in practice Palermitan vengeance is far from possessing the 
 simplicity of the Corsican vendetta, for it is complicated by the most atrocious 
 cruelties. No less than foiu' or five thousand Palermitans are said to be afliliated 
 to the secret league of the mnffia, whose members subsist upon every kind of 
 roguery. Up to 1SG5 the brigands were masters in the environs of that town. 
 They virtuaUy laid siege to the to\vn, separating it from its more distant suburbs. 
 Strangers were afraid to leave lest they should be murdered or captured by 
 bandits ; and no farmer could harvest his corn or olives, or shear his sheep, 
 without paying toll to these highwaymen. More than ten years have passed 
 since then, but in spite of measures of exceptional severity the maffia still exists. 
 
 The history of this association, which dates its origin back to the time of the 
 Norman kings, remains yet to be written. It has always flourished most in time 
 of political troubles, and consequent miser}'. No doubt things have grown worse 
 in the course of the last twenty years ; taxes have been increased, the conscrip- 
 tion established, and many abrupt changes, such as are inseparable from a new 
 political regimen, have been introduced. The people, accustomed to put up with 
 ancient abuses, have not yet learnt to bear the burdens imposed in connection 
 with the annexation of the island to the kingdom of Italy. Nevertheless the 
 Sicilians grow more Italian from day to day. Community of language and of 
 interests attiiches the island to the peninsula, and the time is not far distant when 
 both countries will gravitate in thfc same orbit. Italy is most highly interested iu 
 establishing feelings of friendship with tlie inhabitants of the islaiul, and in deve- 
 loping its resources. The rapid increase of the populatiim, whicli is said to have 
 
 VOL. I. V
 
 322 ITALY. 
 
 tripled since 1734, boars witness to the great natural ricLcs of the countrj' ; and 
 what might not be achieved if the barbarous processes now in force there were 
 superseded by the scientific methods of our own time ? 
 
 Sicily was the favourite haunt of Ceres, and in the plain of Catania this 
 beneficent goddess taught man the art of cultivating the soil. The Sicilians have 
 not forgotten this teaching, for nearly half the area is covered with corn-fields ; 
 but they have not improved their system of cultivation since those fabulous times, 
 and improvements can hardly be eSected as long as the restrictions imposed by 
 the feudal tenure introduced by the Normans are allowed to exist. The agricul- 
 tural implements are of a primitive kind, manure is hardly known, and the 
 fate of the crops depends entirelj' upon nature. "When travelling through the 
 country districts of Sicily, we are struck by not meeting with isolated houses. 
 There are no villages, for all the cultivators of the soil live in towns, and are 
 content to travel daily to their fields, which are occasionally at a distance of six 
 miles. Sometimes they pass the night there, in a cavern or a ditch covered 
 with boughs, and at harvest-time the labourers sleep in improvised sheds. This 
 absence of human habitations imparts an air of solemn sadness to vast corn-fields 
 covering valleys and slopes, and we almost fancy we are wandering through a 
 deserted country, and wonder for whose benefit the crops are ripening. 
 
 Corn-fields cover a greater area than that devoted to the cultivation of all 
 other objects put together; nevertheless the latter articles represent a higher 
 pecuniary value. The orchards, vineyards, and gardens near the towns are a 
 far greater source of wealth than the distant corn-fields. In former times wheat 
 was the principal article of export ; now Sicily is no longer a granary, but promises 
 to become a vast emporium of fruit. Even now the crop of oranges grown there, 
 which consists of seven kinds, subdivided into four hundred varieties, represents a 
 value of £2,000,000 a year. The marvellous gardens which surround Palermo are 
 steadily increasing at the expense of the ancient plantations of ash, and ascend 
 the hills to a height of 1,150 feet. Hundreds of millions of oranges are exjjorted 
 annually to Continental Europe, England, and America, and the inferior sorts are 
 converted into essential oils, citric acid, or citrate of lime. The last is used in 
 printing stufis, and Sicily enjoys a monopoly in its manufacture. 
 
 Sicily likewise occupies a foremost place as a vine-growing country, and 
 supplies more than a fourth of the wine produced throughout Italy. The cultiva- 
 tion of the vine, which is carried on to a large extent by foreigners, is much better 
 understood there than on the neighbouring peninsula, and the wines exported 
 from Marsala, Syracuse, Alcamo, and Milazzo are justly held in high estimation. 
 An excellent wine is also grown on the south and western slopes of Mount Etna, 
 to which the heat of the sun imparts much fire. England and non-Italian Europe 
 are the great consumers of the wines of Sicily, as they are of its oils, almonds, 
 cotton, safiron, sumach, and manna, extracted, like that of the Calabrias, from a 
 kind of ash. Raw silk, which Sicily was the first to produce in Europe, is like- 
 wise exported in considerable quantities. 
 
 Sulphur is the great mineral product of the island. The beds vary much in
 
 SICILY. 828 
 
 rlctness, but even where they contain only five or six per cent, a light brought to the 
 walls of the mine will cause the sulphur to boil like pitch. The blocks extracted 
 from the mine are piled up in the open air, where they remain exposc<l to the 
 destructive action of the atmosphere. The fragments are then hcnped up over the 
 flame of a furnace, which causes the stones to split, the melted sulphur flowing 
 into moulds placed beneath. Ey this primitive process only two-tliirds of the 
 sulphur contained in the rock are extracted, but it proves nevertheless mott 
 remunerative. About 2t)0,0U0 tons of sulphur, or more than two-thirds of the 
 sulphur required for manufacturing purposes throughout Europe, are annually 
 exported from Sicily, and the known deposits of the island have been computed 
 to contain from 40,000,000 to 50,000,000 tons. To the north of Girgcnti and 
 in other parts of Sicily sulphureous plaster has been used in the construction of 
 the houses, and the atmosphere there is at all times impregnated with an odour 
 of sulphur. 
 
 Eock-salt is met with in the same formations as the sulphur, and in 
 quantities almost inexhaustible, but salt is not a rare article, and even the Sicilians 
 prefer to gather it from the salt swamps extending along the coast, the most 
 productive of which are near Trapani, at the western extremity of the island. At 
 the same spot the sea yields the best coral of Sicily. The tunny fishery is carried 
 on mostly in the great bays between Trapani and Palermo, while most of the sword- 
 fish are captured in the Strait of Messina. The seas of Sicily abound in fish, 
 and the islanders boast of being the most expert fishermen of the Western 
 Mediterranean. 
 
 Until recently communications in Sicily were kept up almost exclusively by sea. 
 In 1866 the onlj- carriage road of the island, which connects Messina with 
 Palermo, was hardly made use of by travellers, and even now the most important 
 mines of sulphur and salt communicate with the seashore only by mule-paths ; 
 and the inhabitants are actually opposed to the construction of roads, from fear of 
 tlieir interfering with the existing modes of transport. The road which connects 
 the harbour of Terranova with Caltanissetta has been under construction for 
 twenty years, although it is the only one which joins the interior of the "country 
 to the sea-coast. Eailways to some extent supply this deficiency of roads, but are 
 being built very slowly, hardly more than 250 miles being at present open for 
 traffic. 
 
 Palermo the " happy," the capital of Sicily, is one of the great towns of Italy. 
 At the time of the Arabs it surpassed all towns of the peninsula in population, but 
 at present, though increasing rapidly, it yields to Naples, illlun, and Rome. Ko 
 other town of Europe can boast of an equally delicious climate, nor is any fairer to 
 look upon from a distance. Bold barren mountains enclose a marvellous garden, 
 the famous "shell of gold" (conca d'oro), from the midst of which rise towers 
 and domes, palms with fan-shaped leaves, and pines, commanded in the south by 
 the huge ecclesiastical edifices of Monreale. Termini is the only city of Sicily 
 which rivals Palermo in the beauty of its site, and it truly merits its epithet of 
 spkndissime. 
 
 V 2
 
 824 
 
 ITALY. 
 
 Bat the beauty of the country contrasts most painfully with the misery and 
 filth reigning in most of the quarters of the capital. Palermo has its sumptuous 
 edifices. It boasts of a cathedral la\ashly decorated ; its royal palace and pala- 
 tine chapel, covered with mosaijcs, and harmoniously combining the beauties of 
 Byzantine, Moorish, and E.oman art, are unique of their kind ; the church of 
 Monrealc, in one of its suburbs, may challenge Ravenna by the number of its 
 
 Fis;. US.— Paleumo avd Moxte Pellegkino. 
 
 mosaics. There arc Moorish palaces, a few modem monuments, and two broad 
 streets, which a Spanish governor had made in the shape of a cross. But, besides 
 these, we only meet with dark and narrow streets and wretched tenements, the 
 windows of which are stuffed with rags. Down to a recent period Palermo was unde- 
 servnng its Greek name of "Port of all Nations." Enclosed within mountains, and 
 having no communications with the interior, its commerce was merelj' local, and 
 its exports were limited to the produce of its fisheries and of its gardens. Though
 
 SICILY. 325 
 
 far moro populous than Genoa, its conuncruo is only liall' that of tlic Li"uriaii tity. 
 but it 18 rapidly on the increase. 
 
 Trapani, a colony of the Ciirtha{i;inians like Palermo, and Marsala, so famous for 
 its wines, at the western extremity of tho island, arc proportionately far busier 
 than tho capital. Trapani, built on a sickle-shaped promontory, carries on a lively 
 trade. Tho salt marshes near it are amongst tho most productive in all Italy;* 
 tunny, coral, and sponge fishing is carried on ; and the artisans of tho town are 
 skilled as weavers, masons, and jewellers. The harbour is one of tlio best in Italy ; 
 the roadstead is well sheltered by the outlying J'lgadian Islands; and the ambition 
 of tlie inhabitants, who desire to look forward to a thno when Trapani will be the 
 principal cmporimn for the trade with Tunis, is likely to be realised on tho comple- 
 tion of a railway to Messina. The harbour of Mazzara, tho outlet for the produce 
 of tho inland towns of Castelvetrano and Salemi, lies closer to Tunis, but its shelter 
 is indifferent. As to Marsala — tho "^lars ed Allah," or God's haven, of tho Arabs 
 — its port was filled up by Charles V., and has only recently been reconstructed. 
 It is, however, not of sufHcient depth for large vessels, and only salt and wine are 
 exported from it to France and England. Marsala occupies tlic site of the ancient 
 city of Lilybieum, which had a population of 900,000 souls when Diodorus iSiculus 
 wrote his Geography. It has reccntl}' become famous in consequence of tlie 
 lauding there of Garibaldi and his thousand followers in 1860, and its bein"' 
 the spot from which they entered upon tho triumphant march which ended in the 
 battle of the Volturno and the capture of Gaeta. 
 
 Messina the " noble " is the great commercial centre of Sicily, and tlie only 
 port of that island where vessels of all nations meet. Messina is a stage on the 
 ocean high-roads which join or connect AVestern Europe and tlic Levant. Its 
 roadstead is one of the safest, and vessels in distress are certain to find protection 
 there. Moreover, vessels coining from the Tyrrhenian, and fearful of encounter- 
 ing the daogerous currents of the strait during a storm, may easily find shelter at 
 ililazzo, to the north of it. The port of Messina is formed by a sickle-shaped 
 tongue of land, making a natural breakwater.t There are few cities in Europe 
 which are more exposed to the destructive action of earthquakes than Messina, 
 and the traces of the great shock of 1783, which swamjjed the vessels in the 
 harbour, undermined the palaces along the seashore, and caused the death of 
 more than a thousand persons, have not yd entirely disappeared. 
 
 Catania, the sub-Etnean, as its Greek name implies, is menaced not only by 
 earthquakes, but also by volcanic eruptions. It, too, enjoys a high amoimt of 
 commercial prosperity, and exports the surplus produce of the towns situated at 
 the foot of tho volcano, among which are Acireale, with its orange groves; Giarre, 
 with its dusty streets ; Paterno, abounding in thermal springs ; Aderno, on the 
 
 • The salt marshes of the province of Trapani cover an area of 2,100 acres, and yielded, in 1865, 
 65,000 tons of salt, valued at £24,200. 
 
 t In 1862 27,596 vessels, of 1,825,232 tons hurden, entered and cleared from Sicilian ports; in 1869 
 34,989 vessels, of 2,869,327 tons; in 1873 70,974 vessels, of 5,942,700 tons. In 1875 the number of 
 Teasels and tonnage which entered and cleared was — at Messina, 9,213 vessels, of 2,335,144 tons; at 
 Palermo, 11,692 vessels, of 1,812,190 tons; at Catania, 5,137 vessels, of 629,539 tons; and at Trapani, 
 5,407 vessels, •f 288,475 tons.
 
 R26 
 
 ITALY. 
 
 summit of a rock of lava; Bronte, at the junction of two streams of scorife ; and 
 Randazza, commanded by an ancient Xorman castle. Catania also monopolizes 
 the export of the produce of the inland districts of Eastern Sicily ; it is the great 
 railway centre of the island, and several carriage roads converge upon it. Its port 
 has wrown too small for the business carried on there, and it is proposed to enlarge 
 it by means of piers and breakwaters. 
 
 It is quite natural that on an island, no locality of which is more than forty miles 
 
 Fig. 119. — Tbapaxi asd Maksala. 
 Scale 1 : 270,000. 
 
 from the sea, all great towns should be met with on the coast, where there are 
 greater facilities for commerce. Still a few centres of population sprang up in the 
 interior, either in the midst of the most fertile districts or at the crossings of the 
 most-frequented lines of communication. Nicosia, the Lombard city, is thus a 
 natural place of passage between Catania and the northern coast of the island. 
 Corleone occupies a similar position with respect to Palermo and the African slope
 
 SICILY. 827 
 
 of the island. Castro Giovanni, tlio ancient Enna, likewise occupies a privileged 
 position, for it stands on an elevated plateau in the very centre of the island ; a largo 
 stone near it is said by the inhabitants to be an ancient altar of Ceres. Piazza 
 Armcrina ropukiifissimc, and Caltagirone, surnamed fii (jratimma on account of 
 the fertility of its fields, are both populous towns, which carry on a considerable 
 commerce through Terranova, in the building of which the stones of the old temples 
 of Gela have been utilised. Caltauissetta, farther to the west, and its neighbour 
 Canicatti, export their produce through the port of Licata. 
 
 In the south-eastern corner of Sicily there are likewise several inland towns of 
 some importance, amongst which Ragusa and Modica are the most considerable. 
 Comiso, an industrious place, lies farther to the west, and is surrounded by cotton 
 plantations. The valley of the Ilipparis, sung by Pindar, separates it from 
 Vittoria, the saline plains of which furnish much of the soda exported to 
 Marseilles. Note, like most towns in that part of Sicily, is at some distance from 
 the coast, but its twin city, Avola, stands upon the shore of the Ionian Sea. Noto 
 and Avola were both overthrovm by the earthquake of 1G93, and have been 
 rebuilt with geometrical regularity near their former sites. The fields of Avola, 
 though not very fertile by nature, are amongst the best cultivated of the island, 
 and it is there onlj' that the production of the sugar-cane has attained to any 
 importance. 
 
 On the northern slope of the hills forming the back-bone of the island there 
 are several other towns inhabited by the agricultural population. Lentini, the 
 ancient Leontium, which boasts of being the oldest city in the island, is at pre- 
 sent only a poor place, having been wholly rebuilt since the earthquake of 1693. 
 Militello has been restored since the same epoch, and Grammicheli was founded in 
 the eighteenth century to aflford a shelter for the inhabitants of Occhiala, which was 
 destroyed hy an earthquake. Vizzini and Licodia di Vizzini are remarkable on 
 account of the beds of lava near them, which alternate with layers of marine fossils, 
 and Mineo stands near a small crater of the swamp of Palici. The popular songs 
 of Mineo arc famous throughout Sicily. The marvellous " stone of poetry " is 
 shown near it, and all those who kiss it are said to become poets. 
 
 Southern Sicily is poor in natural ports, and formerly, along the whole of that 
 part of the coast which faces Africa, there were only open roadsteads and beaches. 
 On the Ionian coast, however, two excellent harbours are met with, viz. those of 
 Agosta and Syracuse, which are very much like each other in outline and general 
 features. Agosta, or Augusta, the successor of the Greek city of Megara Ilybltca, 
 is now nothing more than a fortress besieged by fever. Syracuse, the ancient 
 city of the Dorians, and at one time the most populous and wealthy city of 
 the Mediterranean, has been reduced to a simple provincial capital. That 
 city, whose inhabitants even during the last century celebrated their great 
 victory over the Athenians, is now hardly more than a heap of ruins. Its 
 " marble port," formerly surrounded by statues, is now frequented only by small 
 boats, and its great harbour, la-rge enough for contending squadrons, lies 
 deserted. All that remains of it is contained in the small island of Ortygia,
 
 328 
 
 ITALY. 
 
 separated from the mainland by fortifications, a ditch, and the swamps of 
 Syraca. The vast peninsula of limestone formerly occupied by the city is at pre- 
 sent inhabited only by a few farmers, whose houses stand near the canals of irri- 
 gation. The grand edifices erected by the inhabitants of ancient Syracuse are 
 
 Fig. 120. — Sybacuse. 
 Scale 1 : 100,000. 
 
 now represented by the ruins of columns on the banks of the Anapo rising from 
 the " azure" fountain of Cyane; by the fortifications of the EpipoloB and Euryelum 
 erected by Archimedes, and now known as Belvedere ; by the remains of baths, an 
 enormous altar large enough for hecatombs of sacrifices, an amphitheatre, and an 
 admirable theatre for 25,000 spectators, who were able to .see at a glance from their
 
 SICILV. 
 
 329 
 
 scats tlie whole of the ancicut city, with its temples and fleets of incruhaiitiuen. 
 Nothing, however, is better calculated to convey an idea of the ancient grandeur 
 of the city than the vast quarries or lauiitmim and the subterranean catacombs, 
 more extensive than those of Naples, and not yet wholly exploretl. In former 
 times the summit of the island of Ortygia was occupied by an acropolis, in wl ' j 
 stood a temple of Minerva, a rival of the rartheuon of Athens. Sailors, on leav.jg 
 
 Fig. 121. — TtMPLE oy C0.M.OIID AT UlllCENTI. 
 
 the port, were bound to look towards this temple, holding in their hands a vase of 
 burning charcoal taken from the altar of Juno, which they flung into the sea 
 when they lost sight of it. Portions of the temple still exist, but its beautiful 
 columns have been covered with plaster and incorporated in an ugly church. 
 
 There are other Hellenic ruins in Sicily, which, in the eyes of artists, make that 
 island a worthy rival of Greece itself. Girgenti, the ancient Acragas, or Agri-
 
 330 ITALY. 
 
 gente, whicli numbered its inhabitants by hundreds of thousands, but is now a 
 poor place like Syracuse, possesses ruins of at least ten temples or religious edifices, 
 of which that dedicated to Olympian Jupiter was the largest in all Italy, and 
 has been made use of in the construction of the present mole. Another, that 
 dedicated to Concord, is in a better state of preservation than any other Greek 
 temple outside the limits of Hellas. The modern city occupies merely the site of 
 the ancient acropolis, and is built uj)on a layer of shelly sandstone, which descends 
 in steps towards the sea. The cathedral has been built from materials taken from 
 a temple of Jupiter Atabyrios, and its baptismal font is an ancient sarcophagus 
 upon which are represented the loves of Phaedra and Hippolytus. Li former times 
 Agrigente reached to within a couple of miles from the sea. The modern port, 
 named ia. honour of one of the most famous sons of the city, lies to the west of the 
 ancient Hellenic Emporium, at a distance of four miles from the city. It is the 
 busiest harbour on the southern coast, and large quantities of sulphur are exported 
 from it (see Fig. 117, p. 317). 
 
 Sciacca, another seaside town farther to the west, in one of those localities of 
 the island most exposed to earthquakes, boasts of being the modern representative 
 of Selinus, though that Greek city was situated about fourteen miles farther west, 
 to the south of Castelvetrano. Its seven temples have been overthrown by earth- 
 quakes, but they still present us with remains of the purest Doric style. The 
 metopes of three of them have been conveyed to Palermo, where they form the 
 most precious ornaments of the museum. 
 
 Segesta, on the north coast, no longer exists, but there still remain the ruins of 
 a magnificent temple. Other remains of Greek art abound in all parts of the 
 islands, and there are also monuments erected by the Romans. If we contrast 
 these ancient edifices with those raised since by Byzantines, Moors, Normans, 
 Spaniards, and Neapolitans, we are bound to admit that they exhibit no progress, 
 but decadence, Alas ! how very much iufefiior are the inhabitants of modern 
 Syracuse in comparison with the fellow-citizens of an Archimedes ! 
 
 Sicily ofi'ers most striking examples of towns changing their positions in con- 
 sequence of political disturbances. When the ancient Greek cities were at the 
 height of their power they boldly descended to the very coast ; but when war and 
 rapine got the upper hand — when Moorish pirates scoured the sea, and brigandage 
 reigned in the interior — then it was that most of the cities of Sicily took refuge on 
 the summits of the hills, abandoning their low-lying suburbs to decay, and 
 allowing them finally to disappear. Girgenti is a case in point. Some of the 
 towns occupy sites of much natural strength, and are almost inaccessible. Such 
 are Centuripe, or Centorbi, which stretches along the edge of a rock to the west of 
 the Simeto, and San Giuliano, the town of Astarte, which stands on the summit of 
 a pyramidal rock 1,200 feet in height above Trapani. But, on the return of 
 peace, the inhabitants abandoned their eyries and came back to the plain or coast. 
 All along the northern coast, from Palermo to Messina, the towns on the marina, 
 or beach, kept increasing at the expense of the borgos occupying the summits of the 
 mountains, and in many instances the latter were deserted altogether. Cefalu
 
 THE iEOLIAN OR LIPARIC ISL.VXDS. 831 
 
 affords a striking; illustration of this change. The modern city nestles at the foot 
 of a bold promontory, upon the summit of which may still be seen the crencUated 
 walls of the old town, within which nothing now remains excepting a small 
 Cyclopean temple, tho most venerable ruin of all Sicily, which has resisted the 
 ravages of thirty centuries.* 
 
 TiiK JEoLiAN OK Lu'akk; Islands. 
 
 The JEolian or Liparic Islands, though separated from Sicily by a strait more 
 than 300 fathoms in depth, may nevertheless be looked upon as a dependency of 
 the larger island. Some of tliosc volcanic ishtuds, " born in the shadow of Mount 
 Etna," lie on a lino connecting that volcano with Mount Vesuvius, and they 
 originated probably during the same convulsion of nature. Thcj' all consist of 
 lavas, cinders, or pumice, ejected from volcanoes. Two amongst them, Vulcano and 
 Stromboli, are still active volcanoes, and the flames and undulating columns of 
 smoke rising from them enable mariners and fishermen to foretell changes of 
 temperature or wind. It is probable that this intelligent interpretation of volcanic 
 phenomena was the reason why these islands were dedicated to iEolus, the god of 
 the winds, who there revealed himself to mariners. 
 
 Lipari, the largest and most central of these islands, is at the same time the 
 most populous. A considerable town, commanded by an ancient castle, rises like 
 an amphitheatre on its northern shore. A well-cultivated plain, abounding in 
 olive-trees, orange-trees, and vines, surrounds the town, and the slopes of the hills 
 are cultivated almost to their very summits. The population, as in Sicily, has 
 been recruited from the most diverse elements since the time that Greek colonists 
 from Rhodes, Cnidus, and Sclinus entered into an alliance with the aboriginal inha- 
 bitants. This intermixture of races is proceeding now as much as ever, for commerce 
 continually introduces fresh blood, and many Calabrian brigands have been con- 
 veyed to the island, where thej' have become peaceable citizens. The population 
 is now permitted to multiply in peace, for the volcanoes of Lipari have been 
 quiescent for centuries. The Lipariotes have a legend according to which St. 
 Calogero chased the devils from the islands, and shut them up in the furnaces of 
 Vulcano, and we may infer from this that the last volcanic eruption took place soon 
 after the introduction of Christianity ; that is to say, about the sixth centurj'. The 
 existence of subterranean forces manifests itself now only in thermal springs and 
 
 • Towns of Sicily having more than 10,000 iuh.ihitants (in 1871) :— rulermo, 180,400 ; SIcssina, "1,921 ; 
 Catania, 84,397; Marsala, 31,202; Modica, 33,109; Trupani, 28,052; Acireale, 20,092; Caltiigirono, 
 25,978; Kagusa Superioro, 21,494 ; Caltanissotta, 21,404; Ciinicatti, 20,908; Alcamo, 20,890 ; Ciislelve- 
 Irano, 20,420; Partinico, 20,098; Syracuse (Siracusa), 20,035; Termini Imerese, 19,040; Girgenti, 
 19,003; Sciacca, 18,896; Piazza Annerina, 18,252; Vittoria, 17,528; Giarre, 17,414; Comiso, 10,094; 
 Corleone, 10,150; Licata, 15,906; Fuvara, 15,233; Vizzini, 14,942 ; Terranova di Sicilia, 14,911; 
 Patemo, 14,790; Noto, 14,707; Aderno, 14,073; Bronte, 14,589; Nicosia, 14,544; Ciistrogiovauni, 
 14,511 ; Barcellona Pozzo di Gotto, 14,471 ; Salemi, 14,090; Palma di llontechiaro, 13,497 ; Monreale, 
 13,496; Gangi, 13,057; San Cataldo, 12,899; Biancavilla, 12,631; Partana, 12,407; Mazzara del Yallo, 
 12,155; Leonforte, 12,010; Mazzarino, 11,951 ; Avola, 11,012; Agira, 11,870; Bagheria, 11,051 ; Riesi, 
 11,548; Agosta, 11,382; CasttUamare del Golfo, 11,280; Mistrettn, 11,218; Racalmuto, 11,012; 
 Niscemi, 10,750; Sciecli, 10,724 ; Lentini, 10,578 ; Cefalu, 10,194 ; Froina, 10,193; Gramnuchili, 10,192 ; 
 Pietraperzia, 10,149; Palazzolo Acreide, 10,132.
 
 332 
 
 ITALY. 
 
 steam jets, which have been visited from the most ancient times for the cure of 
 diseases. Earthquakes, however, are of frequent occurrence, and that of 1780 so 
 much frightened the inhabitants that with one accord they dedicated themselves to 
 the Virgin Mary. Dolomieu, who visited Lipari in the year following, found them 
 wearing a small chain on the arm, by means of which they desired to show that 
 they had become the slaves of the " Liberating Virgin. " 
 
 Lipari is a land of promise to the geologist, on account of the great variety of 
 its lavas. Monte della Castagna is wholly composed of obsidian. Another hill, Monte 
 Bianco, consists of pumice, and, when seen from a distance, has the appearance of 
 
 Fio;. 122. — The Central Poktion of the ^olian Islands. 
 
 being covered with snow. The streams of pumice which fill every ravine extend 
 down to the sea, and the water is covered with this buoyant stone, which drifts 
 sometimes as far as Corsica. Lipari supplies nearly the whole of Europe with 
 pumice.* 
 
 Vulcano, to the south of Lij)ari, from which it is separated by a strait less than 
 a mile across, contrasts strangely with its smiling neighbour. Vulcano, with the 
 exception of a few olives and vines growing on the southern slopes, consists wholly 
 of naked scorice, and this circumstance probably led to its being dedicated to 
 Vulcan. Most of its rocks are black or of a reddish hue like iron, but there are 
 
 * Area and population of the Liparic Islands : — Lipari, 12--1 square miles, 14,000 inhabitants ; Vul- 
 cano, 97 square miles, 100 inhabitants ; Panaria and neighbouring islets, 77 square miles, 200 inhabit- 
 ants; Stromboli, 7'7 square miles, 600 inhabitants; Salina, 10-8 square miles, 4,500 inhabitants; Felicudi, 
 6 9 square miles, 800 inhabitants; Alicudi, 3 square miles, 300 inhabitants. Total, 57'2 square miles, 
 18,400 inhabitants.
 
 THE JEOLIAX OR LIPARIC ISLANDS. 335 
 
 others which are scarlet, yellow, or white. At the northern extremity of the 
 island rises the Vulcanello, a small cone which appeared ahovo the surface of the 
 sea nobody knows when, and which an isthmus of reddish cinders united about the 
 middle of the thirteenth century to the principal volcano of the island. This 
 central mountain of the island has a crater about 1,800 yards in circumference, 
 from which steam continually escapes. The atmosphere is charged witli sul- 
 phurous vapours difficult to breathe. From hundreds of small orifices jets of 
 steam make their escape with a throbbing and hissing noise. Some of these 
 fumaroles have a temperature of GIO" F. Jets of a lower temperature aro 
 met with in other parts of the island, and even at the bottom of the bay. Violent 
 eruptions are rare, and in the eighteenth century only three occurred. The last 
 eruption took place in 1873, after a repose of a hundred j'cars. Until recently the 
 only inhabitants of Vulcano were a few convicts, who collected sulphur and 
 boracic acid, and manufactured a little alum. But an enterj»rising Scotchman has 
 now taken possession of this grand chemical laboratory. He has built a large 
 manufactory near the port, and a few trees planted around his Moorish residence 
 have somewhat improved the repulsive aspect of the coun(jy. 
 
 Stromboli, though smaller than either Lipari or Vulcano, is nevertheless 
 more celebrated, on account of its frequent eruptions. For ages back scarcely 
 any mariners have passed this island without seeing its summit in a state of 
 illumination. At intervals of five minutes, or less, the seething lava filling its 
 caldron bubbles up, explosions occur, and steam and stones are ejected. These 
 rhythmical eruptions form a most agreeable sight, for there is no danger about 
 them, and the olive groves of the Stromboliotos have never been injured by a 
 stream of lava. The volcano, however, has its moments of exasperation, and 
 its ashes have frequently been carried to the coast of Calabria, which is more 
 than thirty miles off. 
 
 Panaria and the surrounding group of islands between Stromboli and Lipari 
 have undergone many changes, if Dolomieu and Spallanzani are correct in 
 saying that they originally formed only a single island, which was blown into 
 fragments by an eruption having its centre near the present island of Dattilo. 
 A hot spring and an occasional' bubbling up of the sea-water prove that the 
 volcanic forces are not yet quite extinct. 
 
 As regards the small eastern islands of the archipelago, Salina, Fclicudi, and 
 Alicudi, the last of which resembles a tent pitched upon the surface of the 
 water, history furnishes no records of their ever having been in any other than a 
 quiescent state. The island of Ustica, about thirty miles to the north of Palermo, 
 is likewise of volcanic origin, but is not known ever to have had an eruption. It 
 ' is one of the most dreaded places of exile in Italy. Near it is the uninhabited 
 island of Medico, the ancient Osteodcs, where the mercenaries deserted by the 
 Carthaginians were left to die of starvation.
 
 334 
 
 ITALY. 
 
 The Acadian Islands. 
 
 Off the western extremity of Sicily lie shallows, sand-banks, and calcareous islands 
 of the same composition as the adjoining mainland. These are the ^gades, 
 or Goat Islands, named after the animals which climb their steep escarpments. 
 Favignana, near which the Romans won the naval victory which terminated the 
 first Punic war, is the largest of these islands. Its steep cliifs abound in caverns, 
 in which heaps of shells, gnawed bones, and stone implements have been found, 
 dating back to the contemporaries of the mammoth and the antediluvian bear. 
 Conflicts between contrary winds are frequent in this labyrinth of rocks and 
 shoals, and the power of the waves is much dreaded. The tides are most irregular, 
 
 Fig. 123. — The Mediterhaneav to the SorTii op Sicily. 
 Scale 1 : 4,000,000. 
 
 
 j(X;.j//iV.?^rn-r&a-.' 
 
 -^L. 
 
 I DeplK O . a fal/u>mj 
 
 I „ « - IJJ .. 
 
 and give rise to dangerous eddies. The sudden ebb, locally known as maruhia, or 
 " tipsy sea " {mnve iihhrlaco ?), has been the cause of many shipwrecks. 
 
 Pantellaria. 
 
 Pantellaria rises in the very centre of the strait which unites the Western 
 Mediterranean with the Eastern. The island is of volcanic origin, abounds in 
 thermal springs, and, above all, in steam jets. Placed on a great line of navigation, 
 Pantellaria might have become of importance if it had possessed a good harbour 
 like Malta. To judge from certain ruins, the population was more considerable
 
 MALTA AXD OOZZO. 835 
 
 formerly than it is now. There exist iibout a thousand odd edifices, called scsi by 
 the inhabitants, which are supposed to be ancient dwellings. Like the iiuraij/ii of 
 Sardinia, they have the shape of hives, and are built of huge blocks of rock 
 without mortar. Some of them are twenty-five feet high and forty-five feet wide ; 
 and Rossi, the archaeologist, thinks that they date back to the stone age, for pieces 
 of worked obsidian have been foimd in them. 
 
 From the top of Pantellaria we are able to distinguish the promontories on the 
 Tunisian coast, but though it is nearer to Africa than to Europe, the island never- 
 theless belongs to the latter continent, as is proved by the configuration of the 
 sea-bottom. This cannot be said of Linosa, an island with four volcanic peaks 
 to the west of Malta, and still less of the Pelagian Islands. The latter, consisting 
 of Lampedusa and a satellite rock called Lampion, owe their names (Lamp-bearer 
 and Lamp) to the light which, legends tell us, was kept burning by a hermit or 
 angel for the benefit of mariners. In our own days this legendary lamp has been 
 superseded by a small lighthouse marking the entrance to the port of Lampedusa, 
 •where vessels of three or four hundred tons find a safe shelter. 
 
 About the close of the eighteenth century the Russians proposea to establish 
 a military station on Lampedusa to rival that of Malta, but this project was never 
 carried out, and has not been taken up by the Italian Government. The popu- 
 lation consists of soldiers, political exiles, criminals, and a few settlers, who speak 
 Maltese.* 
 
 Malta and Gozzo. 
 
 Malta, though a political dependency of Great Britain, belongs geographically to 
 Italy, for it rises from the same submarine plateau as Sicily. About fifty miles to 
 the east of the island the depth of the sea exceeds 1,500 fathoms, but in the north, 
 in the direction of Sicily, it hardly amounts to eighty, and there can be no doubt 
 that an isthmus formerly united Malta to continental Europe. Geologists are agreed 
 that the land of which Malta and Gozzo are now the only remains must formerly 
 have been of great extent, for amongst the fossils of its most recent limestone 
 rocks have been found the bones of elephants and other animals which only 
 inhabit continents. Even now the island is slowly wasting away, and its steep 
 cliflfs, pierced by numerous grottoes, locally known as g/uir, are gradually crumbling 
 into dust. 
 
 Placed in the very centre of the Mediterranean, and possessed of an excellent 
 port, Malta has at all times been a commercial station of much importance. It 
 has been occupied by all the nations who succeeded each other in the possession 
 of the Mediterranean — Phoenicians, Carthaginians, Romans, and Greeks. But long 
 before that time the island must have been inhabited, for we meet with grottoes 
 excavated in the rocks, and with curious edifices resembling the nuraghi of 
 Sardinia, and it is just possible that the descendants of these aborigines still 
 
 * Pantellaria, 39-7 equare miles, 6.000 inhabitants ; Linosa, 4-6 square miles, 900 inhaliitanta ; 
 Lampedusa, 3 square miles, 600 inhabitants.
 
 836 
 
 ITALY. 
 
 constitute the principal element of the existing population, which, at all events, 
 is very mixed, and during the domination of the Saracens almost became Arab. 
 The language spoken is a very corrupt Italian, containing many Arabic words. 
 The great military part played by Malta began when the Knights of St. John, 
 
 Fig. 124.— The Port of Malta. 
 Scile 1 : 49,000. 
 
 l^-o.-^lKS-KolOr 
 
 -V 
 
 
 \^ 
 
 
 '} 
 
 r^W)»^ 
 
 %f, 
 
 ^< 
 
 .-^' ' ^^"^ > 
 
 
 ^ 
 
 after their expulsion from Rhodes in 1522, installed themselves upon the island, 
 and converted it into the bulwark of the Christian world. In the beginning of this 
 century Malta passed into the pos.sesfsion of the English, who may survey thence, 
 as from a watch-tower, the whole of the Mediterranean, from Gibraltar to Smyrna
 
 MALTA AND GOZZO. 887 
 
 and Port Said. The excellent port of La Vuletta singularly facilitates the mili- 
 tary and commercial part wLich Malta is called upon to play in the world of the 
 Mediterranean. It is suflSciently spacious to shelter two entire fleets, and its 
 approaches are defended by fortifications rendered impregnable by tho successive 
 work of three centuries. There arc, besides, all tho facilities required by merchant- 
 men, including a careening dock larger than any other in the world. The 
 commerce of the island is rapidly increasing ; it is one of the great centres of 
 steamboat navigation, and submarine telegraphs connect it with all parts of the 
 world.* 
 
 The city of La Yaletta has retained all its ancient picturesqueness, in spite 
 of its straight streets and the walls which surround it. Its high white houses, 
 ornamented with balconies and conservatories, rise amphitheatre-like on the slope 
 of a hill ; stairs lead from landing-place to landing-place to the summit of this 
 hill ; and from every street we behold the blue sea, with its large merchantmen and 
 crowds of smaller vessels. Gondolas, having two huge eyes painted upon the prow, 
 glide noiselessly over the waters, and curious vehicles roll heavily along the 
 quays. Maltese, English soldiers, and sailors of every nation crowd the streets. 
 Now and then a woman glides rajDidly along the walls. Like all Christian women 
 of the East, she wears the fahleff a, a sort of black silk domino, which hides her 
 sumptuous dress, and coquettishly conceals her features. 
 
 Malta beyond the walls of the town is but a dreary place of abode. The 
 country rises gently towards the south, in the direction of Citta Yecchia and the 
 hills of Ben Gemma. Grey rocks abound, a fine dust covers the vegetation, and 
 the white walls of the village glisten in the sun. There are no trees, except in a 
 few solitary gardens, where the famous mandarin oranges grow. Nor are there 
 any rivers. The soil is scorched, and it is matter for astonishment that it should 
 yield such abundant harvests of cereals, and clover {std/a) growing to the height 
 of a man. Carnation tints delight the eye during the season of flowers. The 
 Maltese peasants, small, wiry, and muscular, are wonderfully industrious. They 
 have brought the whole island under cultivation, the cliffs alone excepted, and, 
 where vegetable soil is wanting, they produce it artificially by triturating the rocks. 
 In former times vessels coming from Sicily were bound to bring a certain quantity 
 of soil as ballast. But in spite of their careful cultivation, the inhabitants of 
 Malta, Gozzo, and Comino (thus named from cumin, which, with cotton, is the 
 principal crop of the island), the produce hardly sufiices for six months' consump- 
 tion, and the islanders are largely dependent upon Sicily for their food. Navi- 
 gation and the fisheries contribute likewise towards the means of subsistence, but 
 the Maltese would nevertheless perish on their island if the surplus population 
 did not emigrate to all the coast lands of the Mediterranean, and especially to 
 Algeria, where the Maltese, as everywhere else, arc distinguished for thrift and 
 industry. 
 
 • The tonnage of vessels which enter and clear annually from foriign jiorta amnmls to 1,3(10,000 
 tons; the value of dutiable articles imported is nearly £9,000,000 sterling, and the value of the exports 
 about the same.
 
 338 ITALY. 
 
 In winter this exodus is in some measure compensated for by the arrival of 
 many English famihes, who visit the island for the sake of its dry and mild 
 climate. February is the finest month, and the island is then resplendent with 
 verdure, but the scorching heat of summer soon dries up the vegetation. 
 
 A governor appointed by the Crown exercises executive functions, and enjoys 
 the privilege of mercy. He is assisted by a Council of seven members, by whom 
 all laws are discussed and voted. The lord-lieutenant of each district is chosen 
 amongst the Maltese nobles, and deputies appointed by the governor manage 
 the affairs of the villages. Italian is the language used in the courts, with the 
 exception of the Supreme Court, into which English was introduced in 1823. 
 
 The revenues of the island, about £170,000 annually, are not sufficient to cover 
 the military expenses, and the deficiency is made up by the imperial treasury. 
 
 Most of the inhabitants are Roman Catholics. The bishop is appointed by the 
 Pope, and enjoys an income of £4,000.* 
 
 YIII. — Sardinia. 
 
 It is a curious fact that an island so fertile as Sardinia, so rich in metals, and so 
 favourably situated in the centre of the Tyrrhenian Sea, should have lagged 
 behind in the race of progress as it has. When the Carthaginians held that 
 island its population was certainly more numerous than it is now, and the fearful 
 massacres placed on record by the historians of Rome testify to this fact. Its 
 decadence was sudden and thorough. In part it may be accounted for by the 
 configuration of the island, which presents steep cliffs towards Italy, whence 
 emigrants might have arrived, whilst its western coast is bounded by marshes 
 and insalubrious swamps. But the principal cause of this torpor, which endured 
 for centuries, is traceable to the actions of man. The conquerors who succeeded 
 the Romans and Bj'zantines in the possession of the island, whether Saracens, 
 Pisans, Genoese, or Aragonese, monopolized its produce solely with a view to 
 their own profit, and further mischief was wrought by the pirates of Barbary, who 
 frequently descended upon its coasts. As recently as 1815 the Tunisians landed 
 upon Sant' Antioco, massacring the inhabitants, or carrying them into slavery. 
 The coast districts became depopulated, and the inhabitants retired to the interior, 
 where, oppressed by their feudal lords, they led a life of isolation from the rest of 
 Europe. It is hardly a generation since Sardinia began to participate in the 
 general progress made throughout Italy. 
 
 Sardinia is nearly as large as Sicily, but has only a fourth of its population, t 
 Geographically it is more independent of Italy than the southern island, and a 
 profound sea, more than 1,000 fathoms in depth, divides it from the African 
 continent. Sardinia with Corsica forms a group of twin islands, which is sepa- 
 rated from the Tuscan archipelago by a narrow strait only 170 fathoms in depth. 
 
 * Area of Malta, Gozzo, and Comino, 14G tquiire miles ; population 119,081, inclusive of 7,309 military 
 and their families. 
 
 t Area, 9,440 square miles ; population (1871), 630,500.
 
 SARDINIA. 
 
 839 
 
 The geological structure of the two islands is identical, and there can bo no doubt 
 that the islands and rocks in the Strait of lioiiifucio are the remains of an isthmus 
 
 Fig. 125. — The Si:.\ to the Soitu of Saui inh. 
 
 
 <"'-Jpxp<irew ft* 
 
 ,<-^^ 
 
 Xmns 
 
 'v-J^ 
 
 ^@^^^ '^^J^^^^^ 
 
 ' A\__2ni 
 
 ^S Depth ooer jtao. 
 
 destroyed by the sea. On the other hand, we learn from a study of the geology of 
 Sardinia that at a period not very remote that island must have consisted of 
 several separate islands. The principal island formed a southerly continuation 
 
 22
 
 340 
 
 ITALY. 
 
 of the mountains of Corsica, whilst the smaller ones lay to the west. Alluvial 
 deposits, volcanic eruptions, and perhaps, al.so, an upheaval of the soil, have 
 converted the shallow straits which separated them into dry land. 
 
 The mountains of Sardinia may be said to begin with the islands of Maddalena 
 and Caprcra, in the Strait of Bonifacio, and in the mountain mass of the Gallura 
 they attain already a considerable height. A depression separates these from the 
 southern portion of the great back-bone of the island, which stretches along the 
 whole of the eastern coast, and terminates abruptly at Cape Carbonaro. These 
 mountains, like those of Corsica, consist of crystalline rocks and schists ; but 
 whilst the slope on the latter island is steepest towards the west, the reverse is the 
 case on Sardinia, and that island may almost be said to turn its back uf)on Italy. 
 
 Fig. 126. — The Strait cf Bonifacio. 
 fcile 1 : 300.000. 
 
 .^^ 
 
 
 '^^'X'^^T 
 
 Ide la Wadalena'\ 
 
 The general slope of the island is towards the west, and its occupation bj' Spain 
 could therefore be justified by purely geographical arguments. 
 
 The highest summits of the island are found in the central portion of this 
 crystalline chain, where the Gennargentu, or " silver mountain," rises to a height of 
 6,116 feet. A little snow remains in the crevices of this mountain throughout the 
 summer. The inhabitants of Northern Sardinia formerly imagined that their own 
 Gigantinu, or " giant," in the mountains of Limbarra, constituted the culminating 
 point of the island, but careful measurements have shown that that superb peak 
 only attains an elevation of 4,297 feet. 
 
 The secondary mountain groups in the western portion of the island are 
 separated from the main chain by recent geological formations. The granitic
 
 SARDINIA. 841 
 
 region of La Nurra, to tlie west of S;»ssari, ulinost uuiuhubited in spite of its 
 fertile valleys, and the island of Asinara adjoining it, wliiih abounds in turtles, 
 are amongst these insulated mountain regions. Another, intersected by the 
 beautiful valley of Domus Xovas, occupies the south- we*teru extremity of the 
 island. Geologists look upon it as the most ancient porlion of the island, and 
 the plain of Campidano, which now occupies the site of an ancient arm of the sea, 
 is of quaternary formation. The transversal range of Marghine occupies the 
 centre of the island, and there, too, we meet with \ast limestone plateaux pierced 
 by volcanic rocks. The ancient craters, however, no longer emit lava, nor even 
 gases, and the villagers have tranquilly built their huts within them. Thermal 
 springs alone indicate the existence of subterranean forces. Volcanic cones of 
 recent age are met with in the north-western portion of the island, as well as in 
 the valley of the Orosei, on the east coast. The trachytic rocks of the islands of 
 San Pietro and Sunt' Antioco are of greater age. They sometimes present the 
 appearance of architectural piles, especially at the Cape of Columns, which is, 
 however, rapidly disappearing, as the stone is being quarried to be converted into 
 pavement. On Sant' Antioco, which a bridge joins to the mainland, there are 
 deep caverns, the haunts of thousiinds of pigeons, which are caught by spreading 
 a net before their entrance. 
 
 In addition to the changes wrought by volcanic agencies, Sardinia exhibits 
 traces of a slow upheaval or subsidence due to the expansion or contraction of the 
 upper strata of the earth. Raised beaches have been discovered by La Marmora 
 near Cagliari, at an elevation of 243 and 322 feet above the sea-level, where 
 shells of living species are found together with potsherds and other articles, 
 proving that when this upheaval took place the island was already inhabited. 
 Elsewhere there exist traces of a subsidence, and the old Phoenician cities of Xora, 
 to the south-west of Cagliari, and Tharros, on the northern peninsula of the 
 Gulf of Oristuno, have become partly submerged. 
 
 Amongst the rivers of the island there is only one which deserves that 
 name. This is the Tirso, or Fiume d'Oristano, which is fed bj' the snows of the 
 Gennargentu and the rains which descend on the western mountain slopes. Other 
 rivers of equal length are hardly more than torrents, which at one time invade the 
 fields adjoining them, and at another shrink to a thin thread of water meandering 
 between thickets of laurel-trees. Most of the river beds are dry during eight 
 months of the year, and even after rain the water docs not find its way into the 
 sea, but is absorbed by the littoral swamps. 
 
 All these swamps have brackish water. The largest amongst them communicate 
 freely with the sea, at least during the rainy season, but others are separated from 
 it by a strip of sand. But these, too, are brackish, for the sea-water percolates 
 through the soil, and keeps them at the same level. The water of the inland 
 swamps is likewise saturated with saline substances derived from the surrounding 
 soil. They generally dry up in summer, but the coating of salt which then appears 
 is hardly dry enough to repay the labour of collection and refinement. The only 
 Siilt m:irshcs actually explored are those of Cagliari and of Carlo-Forte, on San
 
 842 ITALY. 
 
 Pietro. Tliey liave been leased to a Fi-encli companj', and yield annuallj' nearly 
 120,000 tons of salt. 
 
 Swamps and marshes envelop nearly the whole of the island in a zone of mias- 
 mata, which are carried by the wind into the interior, producing fever even in thi 
 more elevated mountain districts. There are localities on the island the air ol 
 which no stranger can breathe with impunity. The coast districts of Sardinia, 
 with their stagnant M'aters, are, in truth, the most unhealthy in Italy, and quite 
 one-fourth of the area of the island is exposed to the scourge of malaria, whicl 
 sufficiently accounts for the small population of the island and the little progress 
 made. 
 
 Even when Sardinia was at the height of its prosperity, and supplied Rome 
 with an abundance of corn, cheese, pork, lead, copper, iron, and textile fabrics, 
 it was noted for its unhealthiness, and the emperors exiled to it those whom they 
 desired to get rid of. Then, as now, the landed proprietors, about the middle of 
 June, retired to the towns, the walls of which offered some protection against the 
 poisonous air. The Italian Government officials are sent to the island as a punish- 
 ment, and for the most part look upon themselves as condemned to death. Even 
 the native villagers are bound to observe the greatest precautions, and wear gar- 
 ments of skin or leather which are impenetrable to rain, mist, and dew. They 
 are dressed most warmly during the hottest part of the year as a protection against 
 the climate, and in their long 7naifrucas of sheepskin they almost look like Wal- 
 lachian herdsmen. 
 
 Ancient geographers, as well as the Sardinians themselves, ascribe the unhealthi- 
 ness of the climate to the rarity of north-easterly winds. The mountains of Lim- 
 barra, in the north of the island, are popularly supposed to act as a sort of screen, 
 which diverts this health -bringing wind, to the great detriment of Lower Sardinia; 
 and there appears to be much truth in this j^opular notion. South-westerly 
 winds, or libecclos, are almost equally rare, and when they blow they do so with 
 tempestuous violence. 
 
 The regular winds of Sardinia blow from the north-west or south-east. The 
 former is known as the maestrak, the latter as the levante or sirocco, called maledetto 
 leva life by the inhabitants of Southern Sardinia. It becomes charged with moisture 
 during its passage across the Mediterranean, and its temperature is in reality much 
 less than might be supposed from the lassitude produced by it. The maestrale, on 
 the other hand, is hailed with joy, for it is an invigorating wind. On reaching the 
 coast it generally- parts with its moisture, and when it arrives at Cagliari it is per- 
 fectly dry. The capital of Sardinia is indebted to this wind and to sea breezes 
 for its low temperature (62-rt° F.), which is far lower than that of Genoa. 
 
 Hurricanes are comparatively rare, and hailstorms, which work such damage 
 elsewhere, are hardly known. Most of the rain falls in autumn ; it ceases in 
 December, when the pleasantest season sets in. These are the " halcyon daj'S " 
 of ancient poets, when the sea calms down in order that the sacred bird may buQd 
 his nest. But these pleasant days are succeeded by a wretched spring. Februarj', 
 the " double-faced month " of Sardinian mariners, brings capricious frosts, to which
 
 SAKDINIA. 8d8 
 
 succeed, ill Marcli and Ai)iil, abrupt cluuiges of (ompcMMturo, winds, and rain. 
 Vegetation in consequence is iar niure backward than niiglit be sujiposed fVoni the 
 latitude. 
 
 The vegetation of Sardinia resend)h\s that of the other i.shiuds of the Mediter- 
 ranean. The forest iu the highhind vaUeys of the interior and on the trackless 
 mountain slopes consists of pines, oaks, and holm-oaks, mixed hero and there with 
 yoke-elms and maples. The villages are surrounded by chcstnut-treea and groves 
 of magnificent walnut-trees. The hill-tops, robbed of their forests, are covered 
 with odoriferous plants and thickets of myrtles, strawberrj'-trees, and heather. It 
 is there the bees collect the bitter honey so much despised by Horace. Vast tracts of 
 uncultivated laud near the seashore arc covered with wild olive-trees, which only 
 need grafting to yield excellent fruit. All the fruit trees and useful plants of the 
 Mediterranean flourish iu Sardinia. Almond and orange trees, introduced by 
 the Jloors at the close of the eleventh century, flourish vigorously. The orange 
 groves of Millis, which are protected by the extinct volcano of Monte Ferru, are, 
 perhaps, the most productive on the shores of the Mediterranean, and in good 
 seasons yield 60,000,000 oranges. The gardens of Domus Novas, Ozieri, and 
 Sassari are of surprising fertility. In the southern part of tlie island, wherever the 
 cultivated fields gain upon the lands covered with rock-roses, fennel, and lilies, 
 they are fenced iu with fig-trees. The fan-shaped foliage of the date-palm is seen 
 near every town, and more especially in the environs of Cagliari. By a curious 
 contrast the dwarf palm is not met with in the southern lowlands of tlie island, 
 though their climate is almost African, but forms dense thickets in the solitudes of 
 Alghero, in the north of the islands. The inhabitants eat the roots of this tree, as 
 do also the Mooi's. 
 
 Although all the plants of neighbouring countries become easily acclimatized in 
 Sardinia, that island is naturally poorer in sj^ecies than are continental regions 
 lying under the same latitude. There is nothing special about its flora, for the 
 island is probably only a remnant of a larger tract of land which formerly joined 
 Europe to Africa. As to the fiimous plant mentioned by ancient writers, which, 
 eaten by mistake, produced fits of " sardonic laughter," or even death, it does not 
 appear to be peculiar to the island. ]\Iimaut thinks, from the descrii^tious of 
 Plinj' and I'ausanias, that the large-leafed water-parsley (Stum latifolium) is 
 referred to. 
 
 The number of species of animals, like tliat of plants, is smaller in Sardinia 
 than on the neighbouring continent. There are neither bears, badgers, polecats, 
 nor moles. Vipers or venomous serpents of any description do not exist, and the 
 only animal to be dreaded is the tarentula {arza, or aryia), a sting from which 
 can be cured only by dancing until completely exhausted, or by immersion in 
 dung. The ordinary frog, though common in Corsica, does not exist, but European 
 butterflies are numerous. The inovfflon, which is, perhaps, the ancestor of our 
 dome.stic sheep, and has been exterminated in nearly all the islands of the 
 Mediterranean, still lives in the mountains of Corsica and Sardinia. Wild horses 
 roamed over Sant' Antioco as recently as the beginning of this centur}'; myriads
 
 344 ITALY. 
 
 of rabbits bxirro'n- in the small islands lining the coast ; and wild goats with long 
 horns and j-ellow teeth inhabit the limestone island of Tavolara, in the Gulf of 
 Terranova. These goats are descended from domestic animals abandoned at some 
 former period. Caprera, the residence of Garibaldi, is named after the goats 
 which formerly inhabited it, and animals of that kind recently introduced there 
 quickly returned to a state of nature. 
 
 Naturalists have observed that the mammals of Sardinia are smaller than the 
 same species living on the continent. The goat is the only exception to the rule. 
 The stag, deer, wild boar, fox, wild cat, hare, rabbit, marten, and weasel are all oi 
 them smaller than the continental varieties. The same rule applies to domesticated 
 animals, with the exception of the pig, which grows to a great size, especially where 
 it is allowed to roam through oak forests. There is a variety of this animal 
 whose hoofs are not cloven, and which ought, therefore, to be classed amongst soli- 
 peds. The horses and asses of Sardinia are dwarfs. But the horse is distinguished 
 by great sobriety, sureness of foot, vigour, and endurance. If in addition to these 
 advantages it possessed a more attractive exterior, it would rank among the most 
 highly appreciated horses of Europe. As to the donkeys, though hardly larger 
 than a mastiff, they are brave little animals, and frequently share with their 
 masters the only room of their abode. The old-fashioned mills, resembling in 
 every respect the Eoman bas-reliefs which may be seen in the Vatican, are 
 propelled by these donkeys, which thus materially contribute towards the support 
 of their proprietors. 
 
 Sardinia abounds more than any other country of Western Europe in pre- 
 historic remains. There are megaliths, known as "giants' stones," "altars," or 
 " long-stones," as in Brittany, scarcely any of them showing traces of the chisel. 
 Dolmens, however, are rare, and the genuineness of all is doubted Amongst 
 these monuments there are, perhaps, some which were connected with the worship 
 of some Eastern deity, for Phojnicians and Carthaginians stayed for a considerable 
 time upon the island, where the}' founded Caralis, Nora, Tharros, and other towns ; 
 and even during the time of the Romans it was customary to place Punic inscrip- 
 tions upon the tombstones. The ruins of Tharros have yielded golden idols and 
 other articles in large numbers, most of them being of Egyptian origin. But the 
 principal witnesses to the civilisation of the ancient Sards are the curious 
 structures kno-mi as nuraghi. They generally occupy the hill-tops, and, seen from 
 a distance, resemble pyramids. The limestone plateau of Giara, near the centre of 
 the island, is surrounded by masonrj- structures of this description, which abound 
 also in other portions of the island, the number still existing being nearly 4,000. 
 They are most numerous in the basaltic region to the south of Macomer, 
 and are mat with for the most part in fertile districts, far away from the arid 
 steppes. 
 
 The origin and uses of these nuraghi have been a subject of much discussion, but 
 archseologists now almost universally adopt the views of Signer Spano, the indefa- 
 tigable explorer of Sardinian antiquities. According to him these nuraghi were 
 dwellings, and their Phoenician name simply means " round house." The rudest
 
 SABDIXIA. 
 
 315 
 
 among them, dating back probably for forty centuries, contain but a single chamber. 
 They were erected during the age of stone, when man first gave up his cavern 
 dwellings. Tlie more recent constructions date back to the age of bronze, and even 
 of iron. More skill is exhibited in their structure, though no mortar has been 
 used, and they contain two or more chambers, forming as many floors, and accessible 
 by means of stone stairs. The ground floor of some is large enough for the accom- 
 modation of forty or fifty persons, and is furnished with antechambers and small 
 semicircular recesses. The nuraghi of Su Domu or S'Orcu, near Domus Novas, 
 which has recently been demolished, contained ten chambers and four courtyards ; 
 
 Fig. 127.— La Giaba 
 
 Scale 1 : ««,G40. 
 
 ^^^^^^RiETl 
 
 8° 30 E.of Or 
 
 A Sur<t.jhi 
 
 it was a fortress as well as a dwelling-place, capable of accommodating a hundred 
 persons and standing a siege. The dwellings of the modern Albanians and of the 
 Swaneti in the Caucasus still resemble these ancient abodes. 
 
 The rubbish which accumulated la these nuraghi has jielded a multitude of 
 objects which throw light upon the dailj* life of the inhabitants, and bear witness to 
 their relative civilisation. The lower strata only contain hand-made utensils, stone 
 arms, and pottery, but in the upper and :nore recent layers many articles of bronze 
 have been found. Other monuments of eyclopean structure stand near these 
 ancient dwellings. They are popularly known as " giants' tombs," and Signor
 
 346 ITALY. 
 
 Sapi, who has examined a large number of them, has discovered in every instance 
 the ashes of human beings. 
 
 Though very superstitious, the Sardinians have no legends respecting these 
 dwellings of the aborigines, and at most attribute them to the devil. This 
 absence of traditions is no doubt traceable to the almost total annihilation of 
 the inhabitants by successive conquerors. The Carthaginians showed no mercy 
 to the aborigines, and during the first centuries of Roman rule massacres and 
 forcible emigration were the order of the daj', and the gaps thus created were filled 
 up by Italian colonists and exiles. 
 
 The ancient Sards were most likely Iberians. They are of low stature, and 
 the climate, which has stunted the growth of wild and domesticated animals, 
 appears to have influenced man likewise ; but they are well proportioned and 
 muscvdar, have an abundance of black hair and strong beards, and scarcely ever 
 grow bald. There are minor diftcrences in the Sards of the two provinces. Those 
 of the north have generally oval features and an aquiline nose, whilst those near 
 Cagliari, who are probably more mixed, have irregular features and prominent 
 cheek-bones. 
 
 The inhabitants of the interior of the island are, perhaps, of jjurer race than any 
 other Europeans. Their ancestors, no doubt, were of the most diverse origin, but 
 most invasions which took place after the Roman era stopped short at the coast. 
 The Vandals paid a visit to Sardinia, but all the other Germanic tribes, who 
 ravaged nearly every other coimtrj^ of Western Europe, spared that island, and 
 its inhabitants were thus able to preserve their manners and language. The 
 Moors, Pisans, Genoese, Catalonians, and Spaniards, who successively invaded the 
 island, never penetrated beyond the coast. There is only one exception to this 
 rule, viz. that of the Barbaricini, who inhabit the mountain district of Barbagia, 
 in the verj^ centre of the island, and who are supposed to be the descendants of 
 Berbers expelled from Africa by the Vandals. "When they came to the island 
 they were still pagans, and they intermarried with their neighbours, the Ilienses, 
 an aboriginal tribe, pagans like themselves. They were converted to Christianity 
 in the seventh century, and the sombre dress worn by their women reminds us of 
 Barbary. 
 
 Of all the idioms derived from the Latin, that spoken in Sardinia has most 
 resemblance to the language of the ancient Romans. More than five hundred 
 words are absolutely identical. There are likewise a few Greek words not met 
 with in any other Latin idiom, as well as t«'0 or three words which have no 
 affinity with any other European tongue, and which are, perhaps, derived from the 
 language spoken by the aborigines. The two leading dialects, those of Logoduro, 
 in the north, and of Cagliari, are directly derived from the Latin, and are, perhaps, 
 most nearly related to Spanish. At Sassari, and in some of the neighbouring coast 
 districts, an Italian dialect is spoken which is very much like that of Corsica or 
 Genoa. At Alghero the descendants of the Catalonian immigrants who settled 
 there about the middle of the fourteenth century still speak their old Provencal. 
 The Maurclli, or Maiorddns, in the environs of Iglesias, who are probably Berbers,
 
 SAEDIXTA. 317 
 
 and can be recognisod by their n-irrow skulls make use of a few African words. 
 Maltzan looks upon the inhabitints of the fertile district of Millis as the purest 
 representatives of African immigrants, and it was they who introduced the cultiva- 
 tion of the orange into Sardinia. 
 
 The Sardinians of the interior not only retain their ancient language, but like- 
 wise many of their ancient customs. Their dances are still the same as in the 
 time of Greece. In the north the steps are regulatetl by the human voice, the 
 chanters occupying the centre of the ring. In the south a musical instrument, 
 the lauiiedda, is used, which is nothing but an ancient flute, made of two or three 
 reeds. The customs observed at christenings, weddings, and funerals arc likewise 
 of remote date. Marriage, as amongst nearly all the ancient inhabitants of 
 Europe, is preceded by a feigned abduction of the bride. The latter, after she has 
 entered the house of her husband, must not stir from her place during that day, 
 nor speak a single word. Mute as a statue, she is no longer a sentient being, 
 but a "thing," the property of her husband. She is not permitted to see her 
 relatives during three days, and in the south many women partly conceal their 
 features. 
 
 The mountaineers likewise observe the lugubrious ceremony of a wake, called 
 iitio or aftifo. Women, who are either the friends of the deceased or are engaged 
 for the purpose, penetrate the mortuary chamber, tear their hair, howl, and 
 impro^-ise h\Tnns of mourning. These old pagan ceremonies become truly terrific 
 when the deceased has been the A-ictim of assassination, for in that case the 
 mourners swear to take the life of the murderer. Up to the beginning of this 
 century the practice of the vendetta annually cost the lives of hundreds of young 
 men. At the present day it is confined to the most secluded parts of the island, 
 and in the mountain districts of Xuoro and La Gallura it is customary at 
 christenings to place a few bullets in the swaddling-clothes of the infants, 
 these consecrat«d bullets being supposed never to miss their mark. Another 
 custom still more barbarous has ceased to be observed since the beginning of 
 the last century. Women, called "finishers" {accabaJiire), were employed to 
 hasten the end of dving persons, a practice which often led to the most atrocious 
 deeds. 
 
 The peasant of Sardinia, though not the proprietor of the soil, is nevertheless 
 permitted to enjoy the result of his labour. The feudal system existed up to 1840, 
 and many traces of it still survive. The great barons, most of them of Spanish 
 extraction, were almost the absolute masters of the country, and up to 1836 they 
 administered the law, had their prisons, and erected gallows as a s}-mbol of their 
 power. The peasants, however, were not tied to the land, but could migrate at 
 pleasure, and custom granted them a fair share of the produce of the soil. By 
 nrtue of an adempririo they were permitted to cut wood in the forests, to pasture 
 their sheep on the hills, and to bring into cultivation the waste lands of the plains. 
 Agriculture was carried on in the most primitive fashion, for the great lords of 
 the land usuallv resided abroad, and the management of their estates was left to 
 baUifis. Government has now become the proprietor of most of the unenclosed
 
 348 ITALY. 
 
 land, 80,000 acres of which have been ceded to the Anglo-Italian Company, which 
 has undertaken to provide the island with a network of railway's. 
 
 In the more densely populated districts the division of the land is exceedingly 
 minute, and this subdivision is still progressing at a most disastrous rate. The 
 nomad herdsmen, on the other hand, possess no land of their own, though, if 
 inclined, they are at liberty to enclose a plot. But vague proprietary rights like 
 these render the careful cultivation of the soil impossible. It has been seriously 
 proposed to expropriate the whole of the land, and to sell it to a few enterprising 
 capitalists, but this would simply amount to a restoration of the old feudal times, 
 
 Fig. 128. — District of Iglesias. 
 Scale 1 : 420,800. 
 
 
 l.S.Pielro_^j*' '^- P/*' 
 
 TlUin, fisher... J ' , \ '\^ 
 
 t« 
 
 
 IS. .\nUoco 
 
 1^ TuanyFi.K. r^ 
 
 M . ^^^-K ^^"'^'^• 
 
 ^ 
 
 ^z 
 
 y 
 
 and poverty, which is great even now, would become greater. There are villages in 
 the district of Ogliastra where the peasants eat bread made of the acorns of Qucrcus 
 ilex, the dough being kneaded with water containing a fatty clay. This is, perhaps, 
 the only instance of earth-eating in Europe. The Spaniards, too, eat acorn bread, 
 but they use the fruit of Qiterciis halMa, which is reallj' edible, and are careful 
 not to mix its flour with earth. 
 
 The Sardinians, even when they are the owners of pasture-grounds or of fields, 
 never live in the country. Like the Sicilians, they are concentrated in towns or 
 large villages, and neither hamlets nor isolated farmhouses are met with. Even
 
 SARDINIA. 349 
 
 the shepherds in the moimtaius build their huts in groups called iitazzi, and 
 combine for mutual {jrotection into ciixsorf/ic. Members of these associations, when 
 they lose their cattle from disease or any other cause, may claim one or more 
 beasts from every one of their comrades living within the same district or canton. 
 In other parts of the island — as, for instance, near Iglesias — the produce of the 
 orchards is looked upon as common property. The mountaineers, though poor, 
 practise the ancient virtue of hospitality, and though the dwellings are rude, they 
 find means of making a stranger staying amongst them comfortable. 
 
 The products of Sardinia form but a small proportion of those of all Italy. 
 Most of the peasants only work by fits and starts, and hardly more than a fourth 
 of the area of the island has been brought under cultivation. It sometimes 
 happens that the crops are destroyed by the scorching heat of the sun, or eaten up 
 by locusts, which come in swarms from Africa. Except near Sassari no attempt is 
 made to improve the produce. The olive-tree alone is cultivated with some care, 
 for the grower of a certain number of these trees may claim political privileges, 
 and even the title of " Count," and thousands of proprietors have converted their 
 sterile steppes into productive olive groves. The millions of oranges grown in the 
 gardens of Millis and elsewhere are taken entirely for home consumption. 
 Commercially these oranges are of less importance than the saline plants collected 
 in the marshes of the coast districts, and the ashes of which are exported to 
 Marseilles to be converted into soda. 
 
 The working of granite and marble quarries yields some profit, but the mines, 
 which were of such importance in the time of the Romans, are hardly touched 
 now. There is only one iron mine, that of San Leone, where work has been carried 
 on seriously by a French company since 1S22. It yields about 50,000 tons of ore 
 annually, and the oldest railway of the island connects that mine with Cagliari. The 
 district of Iglesias, where the Romans founded Plumbca and Metalla, and the 
 Pisans searched for silver, has recently regained some of its ancient importance on 
 account of its lead and zinc mines. The waste of the old mines is likewise being 
 scientifically treated by French, English, and Italian companies, to whom mining 
 claims have been ceded, and a curious stalactite cavern which traverses the hill 
 near Domus Xovas has been utilised in gaining access to the scoriae. Iglesias is 
 riipidly growing into a city of modern aspect, the village of Gonessa is already a 
 respectable town, and the little harbour of Porto Scuso, until recently almost 
 deserted, is now crowded with small craft employed in carrj-ing annually 900,000 
 tons of lead and ziuc ore to the roadstead of Carlo-Forte. Unfortunately the 
 miners, especially those from abroad, frequently succumb to the climate. 
 
 The fisheries, being for the most part carried on in the bays exposed to the 
 sea breezes, are not attended by the same dangers. Certain portions of the coast 
 abound in fish, such as the Bay of Cagliari, and the narrow arms of the sea in the 
 .archipelago of the Maddalena, which the ancients searched for purple shells. 
 Anchovies and "sardines" periodically visit the coasts, and as many as 50,000 
 tunny-fish are sometimes caught in a single season. The swamps or lagoons like- 
 wise yield fish, which are caught in nets spread at the openings of the channels
 
 350 
 
 ITALY. 
 
 communicating with the sea. The swamp of Cagliari abounds in shad, that of 
 Oristano in mullets and eels, and that of Alghero in pike and gold fish. The fisheries 
 of Sardinia are consequently of much importance, but most of their profits are 
 reaped by strangers. Corsicans fish near La Maddalena, Genoese around San 
 Pietro, and Italians monopolize the coral fisheries. These latter, too, collect the 
 Pinna nohilis, a shell, the silky bj^ssus of which is converted into stuiJ for garments. 
 -Nor do the Sardinians lake to the sea as sailors, and the commerce of the island 
 
 Fig. 129. C.iOLI.lRI, .\S SEEN FROM THE P-\SS OF BoNERIA. 
 
 is carried on almost exclusively in Genoese and other Italian vessels. Out of 
 2,400 proverbs collected by Spano, only three refer to the sea ! * 
 
 The inhabitants of the northern " Cape " of Sassari, or di Sopra, claim to be 
 more iatelligent and civilised than those of the southern "Cape" of Cagliari, or 
 di Sotto. The former do not call themselves Sardinians at all, but =ipply that 
 name, which to them is synonymous with barbarians, to the inhabitants of the 
 
 * In 1873 11,256 vessels, of 1,08 ,000 tons, ei.tered and cleared the five ports of the island. In 1875 
 2,516 vessels, of 504,756 tons, entcrtd and cleared at Cagliari a]one, the increase since 1861 having been 
 nearly 100 per cent.
 
 SAEDIXIA. 
 
 851 
 
 interior and of the south. In former times tlieso two sections of the popuhition 
 h;ited eacli other, and the spirit of the vendetta, which set family against family, 
 village against village, made its influence felt all over the island. This old 
 animosity has not yet completely died out ; but the people of Sussari can no 
 longer claim to he the superiors of their southern neighbours. They certainly 
 are better agriculturists and more industrious, but the southerners possess the 
 richest mines, their portion of the island is most productive, and it is the seat of 
 the capital. 
 
 Cagliari, the ancient CuralU, has remained the great emporium of the island 
 since the days of Carthage. Only a few idols, sepulchral chambers, the ruins of 
 
 Fig. 120. — The Port of Teuk.vnova. 
 Pcale 1 : "50.000. 
 
 ^1 ^^J^^^Jfi X'^r ^^ 
 
 an aqueduct, and an amphitheatre excavated in the rock, recall the dominion of 
 Carthaginians and Romans, but it could not be deprived of its excellent harbour 
 and magnificent roadstead. The town was only a short time under the rule 
 of the iloor-, but its phj-siognoniy is almost more oriental than that of any city 
 in Europe, many of its houses being provided with cupolas and balconies over- 
 hanging the streets. Its position as a place of commerce is most favourable, for 
 it lies on the ocean highway connecting Sicily with the Balearic Islands, and the 
 coast of Africa is within a day's sail. It is sure to prosper, especially if a serious 
 effort is made to drain the marshes and to transform the plain of the Campidano 
 into a fertile garden. The latter, an ancient arm of the sea, extends to the 
 south-cast towards Oristano, the " town of potters." During the Middle Ages
 
 852 ITALY. 
 
 the latter was the seat of the mosi; powerful lords of the island, and it was thence 
 Eleonora promulgated her famous Carta de logii, which became the i3ublic law of 
 the whole island. Oristano has an excellent harbour, sheltered by the peninsula 
 of Tharros, upon which the Phoenicians had founded one of their settlements ; its 
 fields are fertile, and, to bring about a return of its ancient prosperity, it is only 
 necessary to drain the marshes which now hem it in. In former times fires were 
 lio-hted upon the walls of the town during the season of malaria, to purify the atmo- 
 sphere ; but the vast forests from which the fuel for these fires was procured have 
 disappeared, and this portion of Sardinia is no longer entitled to its ancient 
 epithet of "Arborea." It is said that in the marshes of Nurachi, to the north- 
 east of Oristano, may be heard now and then a noise resembling the bellowing 
 of a bull. This noise is probably produced by the passage of air through some 
 subterranean cavern, and similar phenomena have been observed on the coast of 
 Dalmatia. 
 
 Sassari the delightful, the rival of Cagliari, is embosomed amidst olive-trees, 
 gardens, and country houses. It alone, of all the towns of the island, could boast 
 of a republican government during the Middle Ages, and the public spirit of its 
 present inhabitants is, perhaps, traceable to this circumstance. Its geographical 
 position, however, is far less favourable than that of Cagliari, for a zone of 
 swamps separates it from the sea. It might export its produce through the port 
 of Alghero or the excellent harbour of Porto Conto, to the south of the 
 mountains of La Nurra ; but facility of access has dictated its choice of Porto 
 Torres, a miserable village on the swampy shore of the Gulf of Asinara. Porto 
 Torres occupies the site of a Roman city, and the arches of a huge aqueduct and 
 the columns of a Temple of Fortune still rise above the reeds. This old port 
 certainly offers great facility for the export of the olive oil of Sassari and the 
 wines of Tempio, as respects France and Genoa ; but the intricatp„navigation of 
 the Strait of Bonifacio separates it from the nearest Italian coast. Italy has 
 therefore determined to create an additional port on the east coast of the island, 
 and the Bay of Terranova has been selected for that purpose. 0/bia, which at 
 the time of the Romans had no less than 150,000 inhabitants, occujjied the site 
 of the present town, which the Italians fondly imagine may become the great 
 emporium of the island. Its port is certainlj' well sheltered, and the roadsteads 
 of the archipelago of La Maddalena near it afford additional accommodation ; but 
 seriously to improve the condition of Sardinia it will be necessary, above all things, 
 to drain its di-eary swamps, and to " transform their poisonous exhalations into 
 bread." * 
 
 IX. — The Present and Future of Italy. 
 
 No impartial spectator can deny that Italy, since it has again taken its place 
 among the nations of Europe, promises great things for the future. Even its 
 
 * Population of the principal towns of Sardinia (1871) : — Cagliaii, 31,9 5; Sassari, 30,.542 ; Alghero, 
 8,769; Ozieri, 7,965 ; Iglesias, 7,191 ; Oiis'.ano, 6,963 ; Terranova, 1,976.
 
 THE PBESEXT AND FUTUEE OF ITALY. 853 
 
 political regeneration has brought to the surface men of the highest iutellect, 
 courage, zeal, and public spirit. There arc some amongst them whom posterity 
 will look ujwn as a credit to all muukiud. Possibly this period of excitement 
 and nervous activity may bo succeeded by a sort of moral collapse, such as 
 generally takes place after every great crisis in the life of a nation. But this 
 need not render us anxious for the future, for generations exhausted by tho cflforta 
 they have made will be succeeded by others esiger to continue the work their pre- 
 decessors have begun. 
 
 In sciences and arts the native country of Volta, Cialdi, Secchi, Rossini, Verdi, 
 and Vela occupies even now a position of equality with the most advanced nations 
 of Europe. The It;ilian of the present day is able to refer without shame to the 
 two great centuries of the Renaissance, for he has entered upon a second period 
 of regeneration, and the names of contemporaries can be mentioned by tho side 
 of the great names of the past. Italy has its skilful painters and sculptors, 
 its celebrated architects and unrivalled musicians. The great works achieved by 
 its engineers are deserving the study of foreigners. Amongst its physicists, 
 geologists, astronomers, and mathematicians there are some of the brightest 
 ornaments of the age, and the assiduity with which universities are frequented 
 insures their having worthy successors. A geographical society only recently 
 established has successfully taken up the work of exploration so gloriously carried 
 on by the Genoese and Venetians. It is not just, therefore, to s;iy ironically 
 that " Italy has been made, but not Italians." Individually the Italians are 
 inferior to no other race of Europe, and the reorganization of the country would 
 have been impos.sible had there been any deficiency in men of mark. 
 
 Italy is more densely inhabited than any other of the great states of Europe, 
 in spite of vast extents of almost iminhabitable mountain tracts and swamps. 
 The population, however, increases less rapidly than in Russia, England, or 
 Germany. It doubles in about a century, whilst that of Russia doubles in fifty, 
 and that of France in two hundred years. Italy thus occupies an intermediate 
 position. In Apulia and Calabria, which are amongst the poorest provinces, the 
 birth rate is highest, whilst in the wealthy Marches and TJmbria it is lowest. On 
 an average the Italian dies when he is thirty-two, and his life is consequently 
 much shorter than that of the average Frenchman or Englishman. 
 
 Agriculture and the development of the natural resources of the soil and the 
 sea engage much more attention than industry properly so called. Nearly 
 fifty per cent, of the total area is under cultivation. The cereals raised do 
 not suffice for the wants of the inhabitants, but other products are exported in 
 considerable quantities. In its production of oil Italy holds a foremost rank as 
 regards quantity, but not always with respect to quality. The amount of fruit 
 grown, such as figs, grapes, almonds, and oranges, is greater than in any other 
 country of Europe. The chestnut forests in the Apennines and AIt^s yield rich 
 harvests. Its mulberry plantations are four times more extensive than those of 
 France, and the raw silk produced in favourable years exceeds in quantity that 
 exported from China. The peninsula is still entitled to its ancient epithet of 
 
 VOL. 1. A A
 
 354 ITALY. 
 
 (Enotria (wine land), but, apart from certain districts of continental Italy and 
 Sicily, the quality of wine produced, owing to carelessness on the part of the 
 growers, is inferior to what it is in France. The cultivation of cotton is com- 
 paratively of small importance. The breeding of animals yields large profits, and 
 Italy is noted throughout Europe for the quality of some kinds of cheese.* 
 
 The working of the iron mines of Elba, the quarrying of marble and granite in 
 the Alps and Apuanic Alps, the extraction of borax and boracic acid in the 
 Tuscan Sub-Apennines, the mining for lead and zinc in Sardinia, and for sulphur 
 in Sicilj',t lead up to industrial pursuits properly so called. These latter extend 
 nearly to everything, from the manufacture of pins to the construction of steam- 
 engines and ships. Italy, however, is eminent only in the production of certain 
 articles de luxe, such as straw bonnets, cameos, coral jewellery, glass, and in the 
 preparation of macaroni and other farinaceous pastes. The manufacture of silk, 
 however, has taken a rapid development in recent years, and Milan has become a 
 dangerous rival of Lyons. In the province of ISTovara, and more especially at 
 Biclla, there are hundreds of woollen factories. The cotton manufacture is not of 
 much importance, and linen-weaving is for the most part carried on as a domestic 
 industry. Italy, in fact, cannot yet be called a manufacturing country. The number 
 of workmen is large, but they mostly labour at home or in smaU workshops,+ and 
 a division of labour, such as exists in England, France, or Germany, is hardly 
 known. Manufactories, however, are rapidly increasing, and economical con- 
 ditions are gradually becoming what they are already in most other countries of 
 Europe. 
 
 Italy possesses a powerful mercantile marine, manned by 150,000 seamen ; but 
 its foreign commerce is far less than might have been expected from its tonnage.§ 
 Most of the vessels are engaged in the coasting trade. The first Italian vessel was 
 seen in the Pacific in 1847, and even now the Italian flag is very inadequately 
 represented in the navigation of the great oceans. Italian patriots are anxious to 
 see the commerce of the country extended to the most distant regions. For the 
 present Italy enjoys a sort of monopoly in the Mediterranean, and any increase of 
 
 * Agricultural statistics of Italy, 1869 (according to Maestri) : — Distribution of Area .-—Fields, vine- 
 yards, and orchards, 27,267,360 acres; olive plantations, 1,371,400 acres; chestnut plantations, 1,445,000 
 acres; forests, 10,210,400 acres; meadows, 2,900,000 acres; pastures, 13,337,000 acres. Annual 
 Troduce .-—Cereals, 205,300,000 hushels (value £84,000,000) ; potatoes, 27,500,000 hushels (£2,000,000) ; 
 wines, 880,000,000 gallons (£44,000,000) ; raw silk, 0,889,437 lbs. in 1873, 0,305,214 lbs. in 1874 ; 
 tohacco, 7,235,000 lbs.; oil, 3,747,850 lbs. (£8,800,000); chestnuts, 14,800,000 bushels. Domesticated 
 Animals (1868) :— 1,196,128 horses, 3,489,125 heads of cattle, 8,674,527 sheep and goats, 1,553,582 
 pigs. 
 
 t Annual mineral produce of Italy (in tons): — Iron, 85,000; copper, 13,000; lead, 32,250; zinc, 
 30,000; coal, 110,750; sulphur, 285,611; salt, 388,000; besides small quantities of tilver, nickel, 
 mercury, &c. 
 
 } Occupations : — Amongst every 1,000 inhabitants there are 342 agriculturists"; 163 miners and 
 artisans; 29 commercial men ; 23 artists and scientific men; 7 priests ; 6 officials ; 1 soldier; 31 " pro- 
 prietors;" 21 domestic servants ; 13 paupers; and 382 without occupation. 
 
 § In 1874 there were 10,929 vessels (including 138 steamers), of a burden of 1,031,889 tons; 37,500 
 vessels, of 7,580,317 tons, entered from or cleared for foreign ports ; 197,896 vessels, of 16,500,000 tons, 
 entered and cleared in the home trade. Of every 1,000 tons engaged in the foreign commerce, 368 sailed 
 ■under the Italian, 266 under the English, and 1 73 under the French flag. The commerce with France 
 engaged 1,779,672 tons; that with England 1,388,300 tons; and that with Austria 998,740 tens.
 
 THE PRESENT AND TUTUHE OF JTALV. 
 
 855 
 
 population or wealth in Noi'tbeni Africa must prove of imincdiate advantage to it. 
 But there can be no doubt that the proposed railway from Antwerp or Calais to 
 Saloniki or Constantinople will seriously affect the transit trade of Italian ports. 
 Nor are Italian shipowners able to compete with their rivals of Marseilles or Trieste 
 when it is a question of speed, for the number of their steamers is very small. 
 
 I'J!;. 131. — Xayigatiox of Italy. 
 
 f 
 
 ^T 
 
 The facilities for carrying on coasting trade have, in some measure, interfered 
 with the development of the inland trade of the country. The construction of 
 railways, however, is gradually bringing about a change. Already five lines of 
 
 A a2
 
 856 
 
 ITALY. 
 
 rails cross the AiDcnuiues, others arc projected, and one of the Italian railvvaj'S, 
 namely, that which pierces the Aljjs in the tunnel of IMont Cenis, and finally 
 follows the eastern coast to Rinaini, lias become a portion of the great European 
 
 Fig'. 132. — EOUTES OF CoMMEltCE OF It.\ly. 
 Scale 1 : 6,000,000. 
 
 highway to India. Nor must the political importance of these railways be under- 
 rated, for they knit together the most distant provinces of Italy, and make the 
 country really one.* 
 
 * In 1876 4,791 miles of railway had been opened for traffic, and 460 miles wove building. ITiere 
 T.-ere also 1,808 miles of canals and navigable rivers, and 77,140 miles of public roads.
 
 niE PRESENT AND PUTl'EE OF ITAT.Y. 857 
 
 The comincreo of Italy has increased rapidly of Lite, but it is still inferior not 
 only to that of England, France, Germany, Austria, and llussia, but likewise to 
 that of much smaller countries, like Belgium and the Netherlands. In 1875 
 the imports, including transit, were estimated at £-18,014,280, the exports at 
 £42,301,800. France participates in this commerce to the extent of 31 per cent., 
 England is represented by 23, Austria by 20, and all the other countries of the 
 world share in the remainder. Recently the commerce with North and South 
 America has assumed considerable proportions, and efforts arc being made to obtain 
 a footing in Eastern Asia. 
 
 The great scourge of Italy consists in the povcrf j- of its peasantry even in 
 the most fertile provinces, as in Lombardy and the Basilicata. Tliesc peasants 
 live in foul hovels, and the united earnings of a whole family are hardly sufficient 
 to procure bread. Chestnuts, and a polenta of maize and paste made of damaged 
 flour, are the principal articles of food, and nothing is left for luxuries, or even 
 comfortable clothing. Eickets and other diseases brought about by an insufficiency 
 of food are common, and, in fact, mortalitj' is very great. Emigration is under 
 these circumstances of immense advantage to the country, for the thousands of 
 Italians who seek work or found new homes in South America, the United States, 
 France, Turkey, Egypt, and elsewhere, not only earn their bread, but also render 
 some assistance to those of their relatives who remain behind. It is said that out 
 of 500,000 Italians living abroad, no less than 100,000 are engaged in art, cither 
 as painters, sculptors, or musicians, the latter being frequently mere street-singers 
 or organ-grinders. 
 
 Ignorance, the usual companion of poverty, is still very great throughout tho 
 peninsula. "We might err in condemning the Italians because of their ignorance 
 of the arts of reading and writing, for, as the heirs of an ancient civilisation, 
 they are more polished in their manners than the educated peasants of tho 
 North. Still this ignorance is most deplorable, for it precludes all jirogress. 
 Nearly two-thirds of the population over ten years of ago are unable to read, and 
 fifty-nine men and seventy-eight women out of every hundred are unable to sign 
 the marriage registers. There are several thousand parishes without elementarj'^ 
 schools, and the number of pupils, instead of amounting to the normal projiortion 
 of one to every six or seven inhabitants, is only one to about eleven.* Education, 
 however, is making fair progress, but its influence upon the diminution of crimes 
 of violence Las hitherto been small. In 1874 Signer Cantelli, the Homo 
 Secretary, stated that there occurred annually 3,000 homicides, 4,000 cases of 
 highway robbery, and 30,000 violent assaults. 
 
 The permanent confusion of luo finances of Italy, attended as it is by heavy 
 and vexatious taxes, must be looked upon as one of the principal causes which 
 retard the development of the country. The national debt may appear a small 
 matter if we compare it with that of France, but it has been raised in tho course 
 
 • ridlic 5f/ioo/j (1S7:!) :— 58,322 elcmcnlan- .ind evening schools, 2,274,909 pupils; 1,0S2 superior 
 schools, 64,044 pupils; 21 universities, 10,000 etuJonts; Col professional, technical, and a: t schools, 
 33,311 students. Total, 60,076 schools, &c., with 2,3-^2,364 pupils nnd sludects.
 
 858 ITALY. 
 
 of a single generation, and is augmenting from year to year. The revenvie 
 increases, but the expenditure does so likewise, and the additional income 
 resulting from an increase of taxation and the sales of Church property is not 
 BufEcient to cover the deficiency. The heavy cost of the army, an absence of 
 sustained efforts in carrying on public works, waste and fraud by public servants, 
 have hitherto prevented the establishment of a balance between income and 
 expenditure, and the paper money issued by Government is nowhere accepted at 
 its nominal value. 
 
 This disorganization of the finances places Italy at the mercy of foreigners, 
 and the arrangements which have to be made from time to time with foreign 
 capitalists are not always of a purely financial nature. The inefficiency of her 
 military and naval organization, moreover, compels her to cultivate foreign alli- 
 ances as expediency may direct, and to these alliances Itaty is, in a large measure, 
 indebted for her political unity.* 
 
 'Nov is this unity even now as perfect as could be desired. The Pope has been 
 deprived of his temporal power ; he resides at the Vatican as a guest ; and the 
 money offered him by the I^iUlian Government, but which has never been accepted, 
 is not tribute, but a gratuity. But, in spite of this, the Pope is still a real power, 
 and his very presence interferes substantially with the permanent establishment 
 of the state. The Catholics of the world have not yet acquiesced in his disesta- 
 blishment, and they allow no opportunity for attacking the new order of things 
 to escape them. Political Europe is consequently much interested in the home 
 affairs of Italy, and feels tempted frequently to intervene. The most expert 
 diplomacy may not be able to avert this danger, and if there is a struggle it will 
 certainly not be confined to the peninsula. 
 
 In the end Italy will no doubt escape from the anomalous position of having 
 for her capital a city which is the seat of a theocratic government claiming the 
 allegiance of the Roman Catholics of the entire world. The geographical 
 conditions of no other country are equally favourable to the development of 
 national sentiments and the maintenance of a national individuality. At the 
 same time the well-defined boundaries of the country deprive it of all force of 
 expansion. Italy will never play a great part beyond the boimds of the Mediter- 
 ranean, and though Italian may obtain a certain preponderance in Tunis, Egj^pt, 
 and the Levant, the noble language of Dante has no chance, as regards univer- 
 sality, when opposed to English, French, Spanish, German, or Russian. 
 
 X. GOVEENMEXT AND ADMINISTRATION. 
 
 The charter promulgated in March, 1848, declares the old kingdom of 
 
 Sardinia to be an hereditary constitutional monarch}'. It has gradually been 
 
 1861. 1873. 1875. 
 
 • Expenditure , . . £24,206,920 £61,704,000 £56,618,000 
 
 Eevenue .... £18,332,880 £52,384,000 £55,499,800 
 
 DiScit .... £5,874,040 £9,340,000 £1,118,800 
 
 National Dd.t . . . £100,000,000 £402,400,000 £460,000,000
 
 GOVERN'MEXT .VXD APMIXISTRATION'. 859 
 
 extended to tlie other portions of tbo peniusula. Like most similar documents, it 
 guarantees equality before tbo law, personal liberty, and inviolability of tl>e domi- 
 cile. Tbe press is free, " subject to a law repressing its abuses ; " tbo rigbt of 
 meeting is recognised, " but not in tbe case of places open to tbe general public ; " 
 and all citizens are promised tbo enjoyment of equal civil and political rights, 
 " except in those cases which shall bo determined by law." 
 
 The executive is intrusted to the King, but no law or ace of government is 
 valid unless countersigned by a minister. The King, as such, is commander of 
 the naval and military forces, he concludes all treaties, and the assent of tbo 
 Chambers is only required if they concern cessions of territory, or entail an 
 expenditure of public money. All Government officials are appointed by tbe King, 
 be may dissolve the Chamber of Deputies, justice is administered in bis name, 
 and he possesses the right of pardon. Ho enjoys the fruits of the Crown lands, 
 and may dispose of his private property without reference to the general laws of 
 the coimtry. The civil list of the King and the members of his family annually 
 exceeds £800,000 ! 
 
 Senators are appointed by the King from amongst ecclesiastical, military, and 
 civil functionaries, persons of wealth, and men who have deserved well of the 
 country. Their number is not limited, and tbcj' must bo forty years of age. 
 Deputies are elected for five years. They must be thirty years of age. Xeither 
 senators nor deputies are in receipt of emoluments, and this may explain the 
 little zeal they exhibit in the performance of their public duties. A quorum, 
 consisting of one-half the members of each bouse plus one, is frequently unattain- 
 able for weeks. 
 
 The franchise is enjoyed bj- professors of universities and colleges, civil 
 servants, knights of orders of cbivalrj', members of the liberal professions, 
 merchants, persons who have an income of £2-4 fi*om money invested in Govern- 
 ment securities, and all others twenty-five years of age, able to read and write, 
 and paying 32s. in taxes. The number of electors is about 400,000, but hardly 
 one-half of them ever go to the poll. 
 
 Each province occupies the position of a " corporation," which may bold 
 property, and enjoys a certain amount of self-government. The " Provincial 
 Councils " consist of from twenty to sixty members, who are chosen by the 
 municipal electors for five years. These Councils usually occupy themselves 
 with tbe material interests of tbe province, and, when not sitting, are represented 
 by a " Deputation " charged with controlling the acts of the prefect. 
 
 The municipal organization is very similar to that of the provinces. The 
 CouncUs are elected for five years : all males of twenty-one years of age paying 
 from 4s. to 20s. in taxes (according to the importance of the municipality), 
 professors, civil servants, members of liberal professions, and soldiers who 
 have been decorated are in the enjoyment of tbe franchise. The Council meets 
 twice a year, and its sittings are held in public if a majority demands it. It 
 appoints a municipal giunia of from two to twelve members, charged with the 
 conduct of current affairs. The mayors, like the provincial prefects, are
 
 CCa ITALY. 
 
 appointed by GoTernment, but must be chosen from the members of tbe Municipal 
 Council. 
 
 The great territorial divisions of the kingdom (see p. 362) consist of G9 
 provinces and 284 circles (circoiidarii), or districts. These latter again are sub- 
 divided into 1,779 judicial districts (iiiaiidamcnfi) and 8,3G0 communes. The 
 central Government is represented in the provinces by a prefect, in the districts 
 by a sub-prefect, and in the commimes by a mayor, or sindaco. This system of 
 administration is very much like that existing in modern France. 
 
 The administration of justice Tvas organized in 1865. In each commnne there 
 is a "Conciliator," appointed for three years by Government, on the presentation 
 of the Municipal Council. A "Pretor " administers justice at the capital of each of 
 the judicial districts : he is assisted by one or more Yice-pretors. Next follow 161 
 civil and correctional courts, 92 assize courts, 2-4 courts of appeal, 25 commercial 
 tribunals, and 4 courts of cassation ; the latter at Florence, Naples, Palermo, and 
 Turin. The Code of Laws is an adaptation of the Code Napoleon, and breathes 
 the same spirit. 
 
 In military matters Prussia has served as a model. Every Italian, on attaining 
 his twentj'-first year, becomes liable to serve in the army or navy. Men embodied 
 in the first category of the standing army [Excrcito 2'>crmanente) remain from three 
 to five years under the colours, according to the arm to which they belong, and six to 
 seven years on furlough. The men of the second category, or reserve of the stand- 
 ing armv, drill fifty days, and are then dismissed to their homes. The " mobilised 
 militia" includes all men up to forty not belonging to the standing army. A 
 "levy en masse," or Milizia stanziole, is provided for by law, but nothing has been 
 done hitherto to render it a reality. The standing army includes 90 regiments of 
 infantry, 20 regiments of cavalry, 14 of artillery, and 1 of engineers, and numbers 
 410,000 men ; the reserve amounts to 180,000 men ; the mobilised militia (247 
 battalions, 24 Alpine companies, 60 batteries, and 10 companies of engineers), 
 277,000, and 234,000 officers and men are stated to be under the colours. The 
 four great fortresses of the north are Yerona, Mantua, Peschiera, and Legnago. 
 These form the famous " Quadrilateral." Venice is likewise a place of great 
 strength, and made an heroic defence in 1849. Palmanova defends the frontier 
 between the Julian Alps and the Gulf of Trieste. Eocca d'Anfo, on an isolated 
 rock to the north of Lake Garda, commands the defiles of the Adige and Chiese. 
 Pizzighettone, on the Adda, is no longer of much importance, now that Italy has 
 acquired possession of the Quadrilateral ; but Alessandria, at the confluence of the 
 Tanaro and Bormida, will always retain its rank as the great strategical centre of 
 Plemont, and one of the strongest places of Europe. Casale may be looked upon 
 as one of its outworks, and together with Genoa defends the passages of the 
 Apennines. Piacenza and Ferrara command Important passages of the Po. The 
 other fortresses of Italy are Ancona In the centre ; Porto Ferrajo in Elba ; Gaeta, 
 Capua, and Taranto in the south ; and Messina in Sicily. 
 
 The navy consists of 21 ironclads (179 guns, engines of 11,310 horse-power, 
 76,842 tons) and 51 wooden steamers, manned by 20,000 seamen. The great
 
 GOVERXMENT AND ADMIXISTBATICN. 861 
 
 naval arsenals and stations arc at Spczia, Genoa, Naples, CastcUamarc di Stabbia, 
 Venice, Ancona, and Taranto. 
 
 The Roman Catholic Church alone is acknowledged by the State, but all other 
 religions are tolerated. The conflict between Church and State is favourable to the 
 spread of Protestantism ; but, apart from the "Waldenscs and a few foreigners in the 
 larger towns, tliere are no Protestants in Italy. Many of those, however, who arc 
 nominally Catholics have ranged themselves amongst the cncniics of their Church, 
 or arc perfectly indiflterent. 
 
 Italy oecuijics quite a special position in the world, owing to its being the seat 
 of the Papacy. Rome is the seat of two governments, viz. that of the King and 
 of the Sovereign Pontiff. The latter, though shorn of liis temporal power, is 
 in principle one of the most absolute monarchs. Once elected Vicar of Jesus 
 Christ by the cardinals met in conclave, he is responsible to no one for his 
 actions, though it is customary for him to listen to the advice of the Sacred 
 College of Cardinals before deciding questions of importance. The Pope alone, of 
 all men, is infallible ; he can efface the crimes of others, " bind and unbind," and 
 holds the keys of heaven and hell, his power extending thus beyond the span of 
 man's natural life. 
 
 The cardinals arc the great dignitaries of this spiritiial government. They 
 arc created by the Pope. Their number is limited to 70, viz. G Cardinal Bishops 
 (who reside at Rome), 50 Cardinal Priests, and 14 Cardinal Deacons. The Cardinal 
 Camcrleiigo represents the temporal 'authority' of the Holy See, and on the death of 
 a pope he takes charge of the Vatican and of tlie Fisherman's Kev, which is the 
 symbol of the power bestowed upon St. Peter and his successors. In special cases 
 the cardinals of the three orders may be convoked to an fficumenical Council. 
 On the death of a pope the cardinals elect his successor, who must be fifty -five 
 years of age, and obtain two-thirds of the votes. His investment with the 
 pallium and tiara, however, only takes place after the assent of the Governments 
 of France, Spain, Austria, and Xaples (now represented by Italy) has been 
 secured. 
 
 In virtue of the formula of " A free Church in a free State," so frequently 
 repeated since Cavour, the Pope is permitted to enjoy sovereign rights. He 
 convokes councils and chapters, appoints all ecclesiastical officers, has his own 
 post-office and telegraph, his guard of nobles and of Swiss, pays no taxes, and 
 enjoys in perpetuity the palaces of the Vatican and Lateran, as well as the villa 
 of Castel-Gandolfo, on the Lake of Aibano. In addition to this, he has been voted 
 by the Italian Parliament an annual " dotation " of £129,000. This grant, how- 
 ever, he has not touched hitherto, but the " Peter's pence," collected by the 
 faithfid in all parts of the world, amount to more than double that sum. 
 
 Italy is divided into 47 archiepiscopal and 206 episcopal sees. There are more 
 than 100,000 secular priests, and in 18C6, when the monasteries and convents were 
 suppressed, their inmates receiving pensions from Government, there were 32,000 
 monks and 44,000 nuns. The ecclesiastical army consequently numbers 170,000 
 souls, and is nearly as numerous as the military force on a peace footing.
 
 3C2 
 
 ITALY. 
 
 The following table exliibits tlie area and population (estimated lor 1875) of 
 great territorial divisions of Italj' : — 
 
 
 Aiea. 
 
 
 
 Area. 
 
 
 
 Square miles. 
 
 Pcpulaticn. 
 
 
 Square miles. 
 
 Pnpulition. 
 
 Piemout . . 
 
 . 11,301 
 
 2,995,213 
 
 Abruzzos— Muliso C,G76 
 
 1,302,966 
 
 Liguiia . . 
 
 2,U5S 
 
 865,254 
 
 Campania . 
 
 . 6,911 
 
 2,807,450 
 
 Lomliardy 
 
 9,08-t 
 
 3,553,913 
 
 Apulia (Puglii 
 
 ) . S,.J39 
 
 1,461,604 
 
 Veaetia (Vunozi 
 
 i) 9,060 
 
 2,733,406 
 
 Basilicata . 
 
 . 4,122 
 
 517,069 
 
 Emilia . . . 
 
 . 7,921 
 
 2,153,381 
 
 Calabria . . 
 
 . C,6G3 
 
 1,229,614 
 
 Umbria . . 
 
 3,720 
 
 563,582 
 
 Sicily . . 
 
 . 11,290 
 
 2,698,672 
 
 Marches , . 
 
 3,748 
 
 930,712 
 
 Sardinia 
 
 . 9,398 
 
 654,432 
 
 Tuscany . . 
 
 9,287 
 
 2,172,832 
 
 Total . 
 
 . 114,407~ 
 
 27,482,174 
 
 Kome (Latiuni) 
 
 4,eoi 
 
 839,074 
 
 

 
 CORSICA.* 
 
 ORSICA, with Sardiuia, forms a world apart. At a remote epoch 
 these two islands were but one, and it is curious to find that 
 Corsica, which politically now forms part of France, is gco- 
 .^^^^ graphically as well as historically much more Italian than its sister 
 I island. A glance at a map is sufficient to convince us that Corsica 
 is a dependency of Italy, for while abj-ssal depths of more than 500 fathoms 
 separate it from Provence, it is joined to the coast of Tuscany by a submarine 
 plateau, the mountains of which rise above the surface of the waters as islands. The 
 climate and natural productions of the island are those of Italy, and the language 
 of its inhabitants is Italian. Purchased from the Genoese, then conquered by 
 main force, Corsica in the end voluntarily united its destinies with those of France. 
 It has now been connected for more than three generations with the latter, and 
 there can be no doubt that most of its citizens look upon themselves as Frenchmen. 
 Though only half the size of Sardinia, Corsica is nevertheless larger than an 
 average French department. The fourth island in size of the Mediterranean, it 
 follows next to Cj-prus, but is far more important than that island, and only yields 
 to Sicily and Sardinia in wealth and population. t It is a country of great natural 
 lieauty. Its mountains, attaining an altitude of over 8,000 feet, remain covered 
 with snow during haK the year, and the view from the summits embraces nearly 
 the whole of the island, its barren rocks, forests, and cultivated fields. Most of 
 the valleys abound in running water, and cascades glitter in all directions. Old 
 Genoese towers, standing upon promontories, formerly defended the entrance to 
 every bay exposed to incursions of the Saracens, but they are hardly more now- 
 adays than embellishments of the landscape. 
 
 Monte Cinto, the culminating point of the island, does not pierce the region of 
 
 * Authoritiet : — Marmoccbi, "Geogiaphie de 1.1 Corse:" GregoroviuB, "Corsica;" Pr. Mt'rim^o, 
 " Voyage en Corse." 
 
 t Area of Corsica, 3,378 square miles; length from north to south, lU miles; width, 62 miles ,■ deve- 
 lopment of coast-line, 300 miles.
 
 8fi4 
 
 COESICA. 
 
 persistent snows. A liuge citadel of granite, whose fastnesses afforded a shelter to 
 the Corsicans during their wars of independence, it rises in the north-western 
 portion of the island. From its summit we can trace the whole of the coast from 
 the French Alps to the Apennines of Tuscany. There are other peaks to tho 
 north and south of it which almost rival it in height.* This main chain of the 
 island consists throughout of crystalline rock. Transverse ridges connect it with 
 a parallel range of limestone mountains on the oast, which extend northward 
 through the whole of the peninsula of Bastia, and shut in, farther south, the old 
 lake basin of Corte, now drained by the Golo, Tavignano, and other rivers. Tho 
 whole of the interior of Corsica may be described as a labyrinth of mountains, and 
 
 Fig. 1.33. — SuBM.iRiN'E Plateau between Corsica and Tuscany. 
 Scale 1 : 1,850,000. 
 
 jry-J-npr-aJii 
 
 %,' 
 
 A^^;'/\x^.v.. 
 
 
 7 A I/o7ii^ Ccisin 
 
 fleptk. o -65 (hthoTTUF 
 
 in order to pass from village to village it is necessary to climb up steep steps, or 
 scale, and to ascend from the region of olives to that of pasturage. The high-road 
 which joins Ajaccio to Bastia has to climb a pass 3,793 feet in height (Fig. 134), 
 and even the road following the populous western coast ascends and descends con- 
 tinuously, in order to avoid the promontories descending steeply into the sea. 
 These physical obstacles sufficiently explain M'hy railways have not yet been 
 built. 
 
 The western coast of the island is indented by numerous gulfs and bays, which 
 resemble ancient fiords partly filled up by alluvial sediment. On the eastern coast, 
 
 * From north to south :— Slonte Padro, 7,846 feet ; Monte Cinto, 8,878 feet ; Paglia Orha, 8,283 feet; 
 Eotondo, 8,607 feet; Monte d'Oro, 7,890 feet; Inoudine, 6,746 feet.
 
 CORSICA. 805 
 
 which faces Italy, the slopes are more gentle ; the rivers are larger and more 
 tranquil, though not one of tliem is navigable; and the ground is more level. 
 This portion of the island is known as Buiula di Dciifro, or " inner zone," in dis- 
 tinction from the Banda di Fiiori, or " exterior (western) zone." Tho eastern coast 
 appears to have been upheaved during a comparatively recent epoch, and ancient 
 gulfs of the sea have been converted into lagoons and swamps, quite as dangerous 
 from their miasmatic exhalations as those of the sister island. If wc add that tho 
 mountains in the west obstruct tho passage of the vivifying mistral, that the heat 
 in stmimer is great, and droughts frequent, we have said enough to account for 
 the insalubrity of the climate.* The maritime basin between Corsica and Italy 
 is almost shut in by mountains, and purifying breezes are rare there. Between 
 Rastia and Porto-Vccchio not a single town or village is met with on the coast, 
 and in the beginning of July the peasantry retire to the hills in order to escape 
 the fever. Only a few guards and the unfortunate convicts shut up in the peni- 
 tentiary of Casabiauca remain behind. Nothing more melancholy can be imagined 
 
 Fig. 131.— ritoriLE OF TILE UolD FKOM AjACClO 10 Ba£IIA. 
 
 than these fertile fields deserted by their inhabitants. Plantations of eucalyptus 
 have been made recently with a \icvr to the amelioration of the climate. 
 
 Owing to the great height of the mountains wc arc able to trace in Corsica 
 distinct zones of vegetation. Up to a moderate height the character of the 
 vegetation is sub-tropical, and resembles that of Sicily or Southern Spain. There 
 arc districts which can be numbered amongst the most fertile of the Mediter- 
 ranean. One of these is the Campo deirOio, or "field of gold," around Ajaccio, 
 where hedges of tree-like cacti separate the gardens and orchards ; such, also, is 
 the country to the north of Bastia, with its aromatic flowers and luscious fruits. 
 Olive forests generally cover the lower lulls, their silvery foliage contrasting with 
 the sombre verdure of the chestnut woods above. Balagna, near Colvi, on tho 
 north-western coast of the island, is famous for its olives, whilst another valley, on 
 the opposite side of the island, near Bastia, can boast of the most magnificent 
 chestnut-trees. Chestnuts, in some parts, constitute the principal article of food, 
 
 * Mean nnniml temperatcie at Bastia, 66*7' F. ; lainfall, 23 iucliee*
 
 366 CORSICA. 
 
 and enable the inhabitants, who are by no means distinguished for their industry, 
 to dispense with the cultivation of cereals. Some political economists have 
 actually proposed to fell these trees, in order that the inhabitants may be forced 
 to work. 
 
 Chestnut-trees grow up to a height of 6,250 feet. The virgin forests which 
 formerly extended beyond them to the zone of pasturage have for the most part 
 disappeared. In the upper Balagna valley, Valdoniello, and Aitone, however, 
 magnificent forests may still be seen, and a larch (Piiius aUissimiis), the finest 
 conifer of all Europe, attains there a height of 160 feet. These splendid trees, 
 unfortunately, are rapidly disajipearing. They are being converted into masts, or 
 sawn into staves and planks. 
 
 The pasturing grounds above these forests are frequented during summer by 
 herdsmen with their flocks of sheep and goats. The agile moufflon is still met 
 with there in a few rocky recesses, and the shepherds assert that wild boars, 
 though very numerous on the island, carefully avoid its haunts. The wolf is 
 unknown in the island, and the bear has disappeared for more than a century. 
 Foxes of large size and small deei complete the fauna of the forest region of 
 Corsica. The malmignafa spider, whose bite is sometimes mortal, is probably of 
 the same species as that of Sardinia and Tuscany ; the tarentula is the same as 
 that of Naples, but the venomous ant known as innafantato appears to be peculiar 
 to the island. 
 
 We know nothing about the origin of the aboriginal inhabitants of Corsica. 
 There are neither nuraghi, as in Sardinia, nor other antiquities enabling us to 
 form an opinion with respect to their manners. But there exist near Sartene and 
 elsewhere several dolmens, or stazzone, menhirs, or stantare, and even avenues 
 of stones, which are similar in all respects to those of Brittany and England. We 
 may assume, therefore, that these countries were formerly inhabited by the same 
 race. 
 
 The inhabitants of Corte, in the interior of the island, and the mountaineers of 
 Bastelica, boast of being Corsicans of the purest blood. At Bastia the type is 
 altogether Italian, but as we travel into the interior we meet men with large 
 fleshy faces, small noses devoid of character, clear complexion, and eyes of a chest- 
 nut colour rather than black. Phococans, Romans, and Saracens, who maintained 
 themselves here until the eleventh century, were succeeded by Italians and French. 
 Calvi and Bonifacio were Genoese settlements, and at Carghese, near Ajaccio, we 
 even meet with a colony of Greek Mainotes, who settled there in the seventeenth 
 century, and whose descendants now speak Greek, Italian, and French. But, in 
 spite of these foreign immigrations, the Corsicans have in a large measure retained 
 their homogeneity. Paoli was rather proud of a Genoese proverb, which said 
 that the " Corsicans deserved to be hanged, but knew how to bear it." History 
 bears, indeed, witness to their patriotism, fearlessness, and respect for truth ; but it 
 also tells us of foolish ambitions, jealousies, and a furious spirit of revenge. Even 
 in the middle of last century the practice of the vendetta cost a thousand lives
 
 COKSICA. aG7 
 
 annually. Entire villages were depopulated, and iu many parts every peasant's 
 house was converted into a fortress, where the men wore constantly on the alert, 
 the women, protected by custom against outrage, sallying forth alone to cultivato 
 the fields. The ceremonies observed when a victim of the vendetta was brought 
 home were terrible. The women gathered round the corpse, and one amongst 
 them, in most cases a sister of the deceased, furiously called down vengeance upon 
 the liead of the murderer. The voccri of death are amongst tho finest national 
 songs. Foreign domination is to blame, no doubt, for the frequency of these 
 assassinations. The judges scut to the country did not enjoy the confidence of the 
 inliabitants, and these latter returned to tho primitive law of retaliation. 
 
 Though Corsica gave a master to France, tho spirit of the people is essen- 
 tially republican. The Romans barely succeeded in enslaving it, and even in 
 the tenth century the greater portion of the island formed a confederation of 
 independent communities known as I'crra del Commune. The inhabitants of each 
 valley formed a pieir (j}Mk), by whom were elected a podesta and the " fathers of 
 the commune." These latter appointed a " corporal," who was charged with the 
 defence of poijular rights. The podestas in turn elected a Council of twelve, who 
 stood at the head of the confederation. This constitution survived conquest and 
 invasion. In the eighteenth century, when fighting heroically against Genoa and 
 France, Corsica declared all citizens equal. It was institutions like these which 
 made Eousseau say that " that little island would one day astonish Europe." 
 Since that time the Napoleonic era has whetted the ambition of tho Corsicans, 
 and they appear to have forgotten their traditions of freedom. 
 
 Corsica is one of the least -poioulatcd departments of France.* The eastern 
 slope of the island, though more fertile and extensive than the western, and 
 formerly densely peopled, is now almost a desert. The Roman colony of Mariana 
 no longer exists, and the Phocajan emporium of Aleria has dwindled down since 
 the thirteenth century into an isolated homestead standing close to a pestiferous 
 swamp. At the present time the great centres of population are on the western 
 coast, which faces France, enjoys a salubrious climate, and possesses magnificent 
 ports. 
 
 The Corsicans certainly appear to deserve the charge of idleness which is 
 brought against them, for they have done but little to develoj) the great resources 
 of their island. Fishing and cattle-breeding they understand best. In many 
 parts agricultural operations are carried on almost exclusively with the help of 
 Italian labourers, known as Lucchesi, because most of them formerly came from 
 Lucca. Thanks, however, to the impulse given by France, a commencement has 
 been made in the cultivation of tbe soil, and olive oil, equal to tho best of Provence, 
 wine, and dried fruits alreadj' constitute important articles of export. t 
 
 Corsica abounds in ores, but they do not appear to be as rich as those of 
 Sardinia. Formerly iron mines alone vrere worked, the ore being conveyed to the 
 
 » Area, 3,378 sqiiru-e miles; population in 1740, 120,3S0 ; in 1S72, 2.50,861. 
 
 i- Auragc aMiiiial product .-—CcTeixia, 2,613,000 bushels; oil, 3,300,000 gallons j wine, 0,600,000 
 S^llon3.
 
 863 
 
 COESICA. 
 
 furnaces near Bastia and Porto Vecchio ; but of late years copper mines have been 
 opened at Castifao, near Corte, and argentiferous lead is being procured from a 
 mine near Argentella, not far from He E,ousse. Red and blue granite, porphyry, 
 alabaster, serpentine, and marble are being quarried. There are many mineral 
 springs, but the only one enjoying a European reputation is that of Orezzo, which 
 rises in the picturesque district of Castagniccia. Its ferruginous water contains 
 a considerable quantity of carbonic acid, and is recommended as efficacious in a 
 host of diseases. 
 
 The most important town of Corsica, though not its capital, is Bastia, thus 
 
 Fiq'. loo. — View of Bastia. 
 
 named from a Genoese castle built towards the close of the fourteenth century on 
 the beach of the hill village of Cardo. Bastia stands about a mile to the north of 
 the two former capitals of the island, viz. Mariana and Biguglia, of which the 
 former has left no trace, whilst the latter has dwindled down to a miserable 
 village. The geographical position of Bastia is excellent, for it is within easy 
 reach of Italy, and frequent communications with that country have exercised a 
 most happy Influence upon Its Inhabitants, who are the most civilised and indus- 
 trious of the whole island. Its harbour Is small, and far from safe, but it is much 
 frequented. The city rises amphitheatrically upon hills, and is surrounded by 
 delightful gardens and numerous tillas.
 
 CORSICA. 8G9 
 
 St. Florcnt, only six miles from Bastia, but on the western coast of the island, 
 has an excellent harbour, but the atmosphere hanging over its marshes is deadly. 
 He Rousse, farther to the west, is the principal port of the fertile district of 
 Balagna. It was founded by Paoli in 1758, in order to ruin Calvi, which had 
 remained faithful to the Genoese. This object has been attained. lie Rousso 
 exports large quantities of oil and fruit, whiLst the old town of Calvi, on its 
 whitish rock, is a place without life, frequently visited by malaria. The coast to 
 the south of Calvi, as far as the Gulf of Sagono, though exceedingly fertile, is 
 almost a desert, and many parts of it suffer from malaria. Ajaccio, however, at 
 one time merely a maritime suburb of Castelvecchio, standing a short distance 
 inland, has risen into great importance. It is the pleasantest and best-built 
 town of the island, and Napoleon, the most famous of its sons, showered favours 
 upon it. The inhabitants fish and cultivate their fertile orchards. They also 
 derive great advantages from a midtitude of visitors, who go thither to enjoy a 
 delicious climate and picturesque scenery. 
 
 The other towns of Corsica are of no importance whatever. Sartcne, though 
 the capital of an arrondissemcnt, is merely a village, and the activity of the dis- 
 trict centres in the little port of Propriano, on the Gulf of Valinco, one of the 
 trysting-places of Neapolitan fishermen. Corte is famous in the history of the 
 island as the birthplace of the heroes of the wars of independence. Porto Vecchio, 
 though in possession of the best harbour of the island, is frequented only by a few 
 coasting vessels, whilst Bonifacio, an ancient ally of the Genoese, is important only 
 because of its fortifications. The prospect from the isolated limestone rock upon 
 which it is built is exceedingly picturesque. The mountains of Limbara stand 
 out clearly against the sky, and in front we look down upon the granitic islets 
 dotting the Strait of Bonifacio, so dangerous to navigators. It was here the 
 frigate La SemUlante foundered in 1855, with nearly a thousand souls on board.* 
 
 • Towns of Corsica (1872) :— Bastia, 17,950; Ajaccio, 16,550; Corte, 5,150; Sart^no, 4,150; iJoui- 
 facio, 3,600; Bastelica, 2,950; Calenzana, 2,000; Calvi, 2,175 inhabitants.
 
 SPAIN.* 
 
 I. — General Aspects. 
 
 HE Iberian peninsula, Spain and Portugal, must be looked upon 
 geographically as one. Differences of soil, climate, and language 
 may bave justified its division into two states, but in the organ- 
 ism of Eurojje these two constitute but a single member, having 
 the same geological history, and exhibiting unity in their physical 
 configuration, t 
 
 Compared with the other peninsulas of Southern Europe, viz. Italy and that of 
 the Balkans, Iberia is most insular in its character. The isthmus which attaches 
 it to the trunk of Europe is comparatively narrow, and it is defined most distinctly 
 by the barrier of the Pyrenees. The contour of the peninsula is distinguished 
 by its massiveness. There are curving bays, but no inlets of the sea penetrating 
 far inland, as in the case of Greece. J 
 
 It was said long ago, and with justice, that Africa begins at the Pyrenees. 
 Iberia, indeed, bears some resemblance to Africa. Its outline is heavy, there are 
 hardly any islands along its coasts, and few plains open out upon the sea. But it 
 is an Africa in miniature, only one-fiftieth the size of the continent upon which it 
 appears to have been modelled. Moreover, the oceanic slope of the peninsula is 
 quite European as to climate, vegetation, and abundance of running water ; and 
 
 * Authorities : — Coollo, F. de Luxan y A. Pascual, " Eesenas Geogrifica, Geologica y Agricola de 
 Espana ; " Baron Da%'illier et Gust. Dore, " Voyage en Espagne ; " De Laborde, " Itineraire Descriptif de 
 I'Espagne ; " Bory de Saint- Vincent, " Eesume Geographique de la Peninsule Iberique ; " De Vemeuil et 
 CoUomb, " Memoires Geologiques sux I'Espagne ; " Ford, " Handbook for Travellers in Spain ; " Fern. 
 Garrido, " L'Espagne Contemporaine ; " Cberbuliez, " L'Espagne Politique ; " Ed. Quinet, " ilea Vacances 
 en Espagne ; " Th. Gautier, " Tras los Montes," " Voyage en Espagne ; " M. Willkomm, " Die PjTe- 
 niiiscbe Halbinsel," " Strand- und Steppengebiete der iberischen Halbinscl ; " George Sand, "Un Hiver a 
 Majorque ; " Ludw. Salvator, " Balearen in Wort und Bild ; " Blade, " Etudes Geographiques sur la 
 Vallee d'Andorre ; " W. von Humboldt, " Urbewohner Spaniens ; " Eug. Cordier, " Organisation de la 
 Famille chez les Basques ; " Paul Broca, " Memoires d'Anthropologie." 
 
 t Ai-ea of the Pberian peninsula, exclusive of the Balearic Islands, 225,605 square miles ; area of Spain, 
 191,104 square miles ; of Portugal (without the Azores), 34,501 square miles. Average height, according 
 to Leipoldt, 2,300 feet. 
 
 X Contour' of peninsula, 2,015 miles, of which 1,301 are on the Atlantic, and 714 on the IMcditerraner.U. 
 Width of the isthmus of the Pyrenees, 260 miles.
 
 GEXEEAL ASPECTS. 
 
 871 
 
 certain features of its flora even justify a belief that at some remote epoch it was 
 joined to the British Islands. African Ilispania only begins in reality with the 
 treeless plateaux of the interior, and more especially with the Mediterranean 
 coasts. There we meet the zone of transition between the two continents. Its 
 general aspect, flora, fauna, and even popidution, mark out that portion of Spain 
 as an integral part of Barbary ; the Sierra Nevada and the Atlas, facing each 
 other, are sister mountains; and the strait which sepanites them is a mere accident 
 in the surface relief of our planet. 
 
 Fig. 130. — Thb Tabli-laxds op thb Iiierian Penissvla. 
 
 Scale 1 : lO.SOO.WO. 
 
 ke"^ 
 
 tir ^ ul Or 
 
 Spain, though nearly surrounded by the sea, is nevertheless essentially con- 
 tinental in its character. Nearly the whole of it consists of table-lands, and only 
 the plains of the Tajo (Tagus) and of Andalusia open out broadly upon the ocean. 
 The coast, for the most part, rises steeply, and the harbours are consequently difli- 
 cult of access to the inhabitants of the interior, a circumstance most detrimental 
 to the development of a large sea-borne commerce. 
 
 Ever since the discovery of the ocean high-roads to America and the Indies, the 
 Atlantic coast of the Iberian peninsula has taken the lead in commercial matters, 
 
 II II 2
 
 372 SPAIN. 
 
 a fact easily accounted for by the physical features of the country. Spain, lilve 
 peninsular Italy, turns her back upon the east. The plateaux slope down gently 
 towards the west ; the principal rivers, the Ebro alone excepted, flow in that direc- 
 tion ; and the water-shed lies close to the Me "iterranean shores. 
 
 * Spain must either have given birth to an aboriginal people, or was peopled by 
 way of the Pyrenees and by emigrants crossing the narrow strait at the columns of 
 Hercules. The Iberian race actually forms the foundation of the populations of 
 Spain. The Basks, or Basques, now confined to a few mountain valleys, formerly 
 occupied the greater portion of the peninsula, as is proved bj-^ its geographical nomen- 
 clature. Celtic tribes subsequently crossed the Pyrenees, and established themselves 
 in various parts of the country, mixing in many instances with the Iberians, and 
 forming the so-called Celtiberians. This mixed race is met with principally in 
 the two Castiles, whilst Galicia and the larger portion of Portugal appear to be 
 inhabited by pure Celts. The Iberians had their original seat of civilisation iu 
 the south ; they thence moved northward along the coast of the Mediterranean, 
 penetrating as far as the Alps and the Apennines. 
 
 These original elements of the population were joined by colonists from the 
 great commercial peoples of the Mediterranean. Cadiz and Malaga were founded 
 by the Phoenicians, Cartagena by the Carthaginians, Sagonte by immigrants from 
 Zacynthe, RoSas is a Rhodian colony, and the ruins of Ampurias recall the Emporium 
 of the Massilians. But it was the Romans who modified the character of the 
 Iberian and Celtic inhabitants of the peninsula, whom they subjected after a 
 hundred years' war. Italian culture gradually penetrated into every part of the 
 country, and the use of Latin became universal, except in the remote valleys 
 inhabited by the Basques. 
 
 After the downfall of the Roman empire Spain was successively invaded by 
 Suevi, Alani, Vandals, and Visigoths, but only the latter have exercised an 
 abiding influence upon the language and manners of the Spaniards, and the 
 pompous gravity of the Castilian appears to be a portion of their heritage. 
 
 To these northern invasions succeeded an invasion from the neighbouring 
 continent of Africa. The Arabs and Berbers of Mauritania gained a footing upon 
 the rock of Gibraltar earlj' in the eighth century, and very soon afterwards nearly 
 the whole of Spain had fallen a prey to the Mussulman, who maintained himself 
 here for more than seven centuries. Moors immigrated in large numbers, and they 
 substantially affected the character of the population, more especially in the south. 
 The Inquisition expelled, or reduced to a condition of bondage, hundreds of 
 thousands of these Moors, but its operations only extended to Mussulmans or 
 doubtful converts, whilst Arab and Berber blood had already found its way into 
 the veins of the bulk of the population. Castilian bears witness to the great 
 influence of the Saracens, for it contains many more words of Arabic than 
 of Visigothic origin, and these words designate objects and ideas evidencing a 
 state of progressive civilisation, such as existed when the Arabs of Cordova and 
 Granada inaugurated the modern era of science and industry in Europe.
 
 GEXEBAL ASPECTS. 373 
 
 During the dominion of the Moors the Jows prospered singuhirly on the soil of 
 Spain, and their number at the time of the first persecution is said to have been 
 800,000. Suppk^ like most of their faith, they Tnanaged to get a footing in both 
 camps, the Christian and Jlohammedan, and enriched themselves at the expense of 
 each. They supplied both sides with money to carry on the war, and, as farmers of 
 taxes, they oppressed the inhabitants. The Christian faith triumphed in the end ; the 
 kings, to pay the cost of their wars, proclaimed a crusade against the Jews ; and the 
 people threw themselves with fury upon their hated oppressors, sparing neither iron, 
 fire, tortures, nor the stake. A few Jewish families may have escaped destruction 
 by embracing Catholicism, but the bulk of that people perished or were driven into 
 exile. 
 
 Far happier has been the lot of the Gipsies, or Gitanos, who are sufficiently 
 numerous in Spain to give a special physiognomy to several large towns. These 
 Gipsies have always conformed outwardly to the national religion, and the Inqui- 
 sition, which has sent to the stake so manj' Jews, Moors, and heretics, has never 
 interfered with them. The Gipsies, in many instances, have settled down in the 
 towns, but they all have traditions of a wandering life, and most highly respect 
 those of their kinsmen who still range the woods and plains. These latter arc 
 proud of their title of riandantcs, or wayfarers, and despise the dwellers in towns. 
 These Spimish Gitanos appear to be the descendants of tribes who sojourned for 
 several generations in the Balkans, for their lingo contains several hundred words 
 of Slav and Greek origin. 
 
 M. dc Bourgoing has drawn attention to the great diversity existing amongst 
 the population of Spain. A Galician, for instance, is more like an Auvergnat 
 than a Catalonian, and an Audalusian reminds us of a Gascon. Most of the 
 iuhabitimts, however, have certain general features, derived from a common 
 national history and ancestry. 
 
 The average Spaniard is of small stature, but strong, muscular, of sui-prising 
 agility, an indefatigable walker, and proof against every hardship. The sobriety 
 of Iberia is proverbial. " Olives, salad, and radishes arc fit food for a nobleman." 
 The physical stamina of the Spaniard is extraordinary, and amply explains the ease 
 with which the couquintadorcs surmounted the fatigues which they were exposed to 
 in the dreaded climate of the New "World. These qualities make the Spaniard the 
 best soldier of Europe, for he possesses the fiery temperament of the South joined 
 to the pli3'sical strength of the North, without standing in need of abundant 
 nourishment. 
 
 The moral qualities of the Spaniard arc equally remarkable. Though careless 
 as to every-day matters, he is very resolute, sternly courageous, and of great 
 tenacity. Any cause he takes up he defends to his last breath. The sons .'dwa3'8 
 embrace the cause of their fathers, and fight for it with the same resolution. 
 Hence this long series of foreign and civil wars. The recovery of Spain from the 
 Moors took nearly seven centuries ; the conquest of Mexico, Peru, and South 
 America was one continued fight lasling throughout a century. The war of inde- 
 pendence which freed Spain from the yoke of Napoleon was an almost unexampled
 
 S74 SPAIX. 
 
 effort of patriotism, and the Spaniards may justly boast that the French did not 
 find a single spy amongst them. The two Carlist wars, too, would have been 
 possible nowhere else but in Spain. 
 
 Who need wonder, after this, if even the lowliest Spaniard speaks of himself with 
 a certain haughtiness, which in any one else would be pronounced presumptuous ? 
 " The Spaniard is a Gascon of a tragic type ; " so says a French traveller. With him 
 deeds always follow words. He is a boaster, but not without reason. He unites 
 quaKties which usually preclude each other, for, though haughty, he is kindly in 
 his manners ; he thinks very highly of himself, but is considerate of the feelings of 
 others ; quick to perceive the shortcomings of his neighbours, he rarely makes 
 them a subject of reproach. Trifles give rise to a torrent of sonorous language, 
 but in matters of importance a word or a gesture suffices. The Spaniard combines 
 a solemn bearing and steadfastness with a considerable amount of cheerfulness. 
 Nothing disquiets him ; he philosophically takes things as they are ; poverty has no 
 terrors for him ; and he even ingeniously contrives to extract pleasure and advantage 
 from it. The life of Gil Bias, in whom the Spaniards recognise their own like- 
 ness, was more chequered than that of any other hero of romance, and yet he was 
 always full of gaiety, which even the dark shadow of the Inquisition, then resting 
 upon the country, failed to deprive him of. " To live on the banks of the 
 ilanzanares," says a Spanish proverb, " is perfect bliss ; to be in paradise is the 
 second degree of happiness, but only on condition of being able to look down upon 
 Madrid through a skylight in the heavens." 
 
 These opposites in the character of the Spaniards give rise to an appearance of 
 fickleness which foreigners are unable to comprehend, and they themselves com- 
 placently describe them as co$as de E^pana. How, indeed, are we to explain so 
 much weakness associated with so many noble qualities, so many superstitions in 
 spite of common sense and a keen perception of irony, such ferocity of conduct in men 
 narui-ally generous and magnanimous ? A Spaniard, in spite of his passions, will 
 resign himself philosophically to what he looks upon as inevitable. Lo que ha de 
 ner no puede /altar, " What is to be -will be," he says, and, wrapped up in his cloak, 
 he allows events to take their course. The great Lord Bacon observed, three hundred 
 years ago, that the " Spaniards looked wiser than they were ; " and, indeed, most 
 of them are passionately fond of gambling, and their apathetic fatalism accounts 
 for many of the ills their country suffers. The rapid decay which has taken 
 place in the course of three centuries has led certain historians to number the 
 Spaniards amongst fallen nations. The edifices met with in many towns and 
 villages speak of a grandeur now past, and the despobhdos and dehesas, which we 
 encounter even in the vicinity of the capital, tell of once fertile fields returned 
 to a state of nature. 
 
 Buckle, in his " History of Civilisation," traces this decay to the physical 
 nature of Spain and to a long succession of religious wars. The Yisigoths defended 
 Arianism against the Franks, and when the Spaniards had become good Catholics 
 their country was invaded by Moors, and for more than twenty generations they 
 struggled against them. It thus happened that patriotism became identical with
 
 GIONKliAL ASl'KCTS. 
 
 875 
 
 absolute obedience to the behests of the Cliurch, for every one, from the King down 
 to the meanest archer, was a defender of the faith rather than of his native soil. 
 The result might have been foretold. The Church not only took possession of most 
 of the land won from the infidels, but it also exercised a baneful influence upon the 
 Government, and, through its dreaded tribunals of the Inquisition, over tlie wholo 
 of society. 
 
 But whilst these long religious struggles tended to the moral and intellectual 
 abasement of the Spaniards, there were other causes which operated in an inverse 
 sense, and these Buckle does not appear to have properly appreciated. The kings, 
 in order to secure the support of the people in their wars against the Mussulmans, 
 found themselves compelled to grant a large measure of liberty. The towns 
 governed themselves, and their delegates, as early as the eleventh century, sat with 
 the nobility and clergy in the Cortes, and voted the supplies. Local government 
 conferred advantages upon Spain then enjoyed only in few pyrts of Europe. 
 
 Fig. 137. — Deuesas in the Knviuo.ns of Maukiu. 
 Sciilu 1 : -1 ji->,i-»X). 
 
 Industry and the arts flourished in these prosperous cities, and a stop was even 
 put to the encroachments of the clergy long before Luther raised his powerful 
 voice in Germany. 
 
 A struggle between the supporters of local government and of a centralized 
 monarchy at length became imminent, and no sooner had the infidels been expelled 
 than civil war began. It terminated in favour of King and Church, for the 
 comuneros of the Castiles met with little support in the other provinces, and their 
 towns were ravaged by the bloodthirsty generals of Charles V. 
 
 The discovery of the New World, which happened about this period, proved a 
 disaster to Spain, for young men of enterprise and daring crossed the Atlantic, 
 and thus weakened the mother country, which was too small to feed such huge 
 colonies. The immense amount of treasure (more than £'2,000,000,000 between 
 1500 and 1702) sent home from the colonies contributed .still further to the rapid 
 decay of Spain, for it corrupted the entire nation. Money being obtainable without
 
 370 
 
 SPAIN. 
 
 work, all honest labour ceased, and when the colonies no longer yielded their 
 metallic treasures the country saw itself impoverished, for the gold and silver 
 had found their way to foreign lands, whence Spain had procured her supplies. 
 
 History affords no other example of so rapid a decadence brought about with- 
 out foreign aggression. The workshops were closed, the arts of peace forgotten, 
 the fields but indifferently cultivated. Young men flocked to the 9,000 monas- 
 teries to enjoy a life of indolence, and "science was a crime, ignorance and 
 stupidity were the first of ■\artues." Population decreased, and the Spaniard even 
 lost his ancient renown for bravery. If the Bourbon kings placed foreigners in 
 
 Fig. 138.— Density of the Pobl-lation of the Iberian Pexinsula. 
 
 all high positions of state, they did so because the Spaniards had become incapable 
 of conducting public business. 
 
 But if we compare the Spain of our own days with the Spain of the Inquisition, 
 we cannot fail to be struck with the vast progress made. Spain is no longer 
 a " happy people without a history," for ever since the beginning of the century 
 it has been engaged in struggles, and diiring this period of tumultuous life It 
 has done more for arts, science, and industry than in the two centuries of peace 
 which succeeded the dark reign of Philip II. No doubt Spain might have done
 
 THE CASTILES, LEON, .VND ESTEEM.VDURA. 877 
 
 even more if the strength of the country liad not been wasted in internal struggles. 
 Unfortunately the geographical configuration of the peninsula is unfavourable to 
 the consolidation of the nation. The littoral regions combine every advantage of 
 climate, soil, and accessibility, whilst the resources of the inland plateaux arc 
 comparatively few. The former naturally attract population ; they abound in 
 large and bustling cities, and are more dousoly populated tlian the interior of the 
 country. Madrid, which occupies a conunandiiig position almost in the goo- 
 metrical centre of the country, has become a focus of life, but its environs are very 
 thinly inhabited. 
 
 This unequal distribution of the population could not fail to exerciso a powerful 
 influence upon the history of the country. Each of the maritime provinces felt 
 sulBciently strong t- lead a separate existence. During the struggles with the 
 floors common interests induced the independent kingdoms of Iberia to co-operate, 
 and facilitated the establishment of a central monarchy ; but, to maintain this unitj' 
 afterwards, it became necessary to ha\e recourse to a system of terrorism and 
 oppression. Portugal, being situated on the open Atlantic, shook off the detested 
 yoke of Castile after less than a century's submission. In the rest of the 
 peninsula political consolidation is making progress, thanks to the facilities of 
 intercommunication and the substitution of Castilian for the provincial dialects ; 
 but it would be an error to suppose that Andalusians and Galicians, Basques and 
 Catalans, Aragonese and Madrilefios, have been welded into one nation. Indeed, 
 the federal constitution advocated by Spanish republicans appears to be best suited 
 to the geographical configuration of the country and the genius of its population. 
 The desire to establish provincial autonomy has led to most of the civil wars of 
 Spain, whether raised by Car/is/s or Intniiishxjciitcs. It is therefore meet that, in 
 our description of Spain, we should respect the limits traced by nature, bearing 
 in mind the fact that the political boundaries of tlie province do not always 
 coincide with water-sheds or linguistic boundaries. 
 
 II. — The Castiles, Leon, and EsxREMAnuRA.* 
 
 The great central plateau of the peninsiJa is bounded on the north, east, and 
 south by ranges of mountains extending from the Cantabrian Pyrenees to the 
 Sierra Morena, and slopes down in the west towards Portugal and the Atlantic. 
 The uplands through which the Upper Duero, the Tajo (Tagus), and the Guadiana 
 take their course are thus a region ajjart, and if the waters of tlie ocean were to 
 rise 2,000 feet, they would be converted into a peninsula attached by the narrow 
 isthmus of the Basque provinces to the French Pyrenees. The vast extent of 
 these plateaux — they constitute nearly half the area of the whole countrj' — accounts 
 for the part they played in history, and their commanding position enabled the 
 Castilians to gain possession of the adjacent territories. 
 
 Area. ropulntion (1870). Density. 
 
 • Biisin of thu DufTO (Leon and Old Castili', ) ,„ r_„ „ -m „«« p,, 
 
 , ■ 11^ ■. It.-. 1 \ } 30,593 sq. m. 2,550,000 GB 
 
 exclusive of Logrono and NintandiT) ) ' ' 
 
 Basins of the Tajo and the Guadiana . . . 41,710 „ 2,270,000 ol
 
 378 SPAIN-. 
 
 The Castiles can hardly be called beautiful, or rather their solemn beauty does 
 not commend them to themajority of travellers. Vast districts, such as the Tierra 
 de Campos, to the north of Valladolid, are ancient lake beds of great fertility, but 
 exceedingly monotonous, owing to the absence of forests. Othei s are covered with 
 small stony hillocks ; others, again, may be described as mountainous. Mountain 
 ranges covered ■n'ith meagre herbage bound the horizon, and sombre gorges, 
 enclosed between precipitous walls of rock, lead into them. Elsewhere, as in the 
 Lower Estremadura, we meet with vast pasture-lands, stretching as far as the eye 
 can reach to the foot of the mountains, and, as in certain parts of the American 
 prairies, not a tree arrests the attention. Looking to the fearful nakedness of 
 these plains, one would hardly imagine that a law was promulgated in the middle 
 of last century which enjoins each inhabitant to plant at least five trees. Trees, 
 indeed, have been cut down more rapidly than they were planted. The peasants 
 have a prejudice against them ; their leaves, they say, give shelter to birds, which 
 prey upon the corn-fields. Small birds, nightingales alone excepted, are pursued 
 without mercy, and a proverb says that " swallows crossing the Castiles must 
 carry provisions with them." Trees are met with only in the most remote 
 localities. The hovels of the peasantry, built of mud or pebbles, are of the same 
 colour as the soil, the walled towns are easily confounded with the rock near them, 
 and even in the midst of cultivated fields we may imagine ourselves in a desert. 
 Many districts sufier from want of water, and villages which rejoice in the posses- 
 sion of a spring proclaim the fact aloud as one of their attributes. Huge bridges 
 span the ravines, though for more than half the year not a drop of water passes 
 over their pebbly beds. 
 
 The Sierra Guadarrama and its western continuation, the Sierra de Gredos, 
 separate this central plateau of Spain into two portions, lying at different 
 elevations. Old Castile and Leon, which lie to the north, in the basin of the 
 Duero, slope down from east to west from 5,600 to 2,300 feet ; whilst New Castile 
 and La Mancha, in the twin basins of the Tajo and the Guadiana, have an average 
 elevation of only 2,000 feet. Li the tertiary age these two plateaux were covered 
 with huge lakes. One of them, the contours of which are indicated by the debris 
 carried down from the surrounding hills, originalh^ discharged its waters in the 
 direction of the valley of the Ebro, but subsequently opened itself a passage 
 through the crystalline mountains of Portugal, now represented by the gorges of 
 the Lower Duero. At another epoch this Lake Superior communicated with the 
 lake which overspread what are now the plains of Xew Castile and La Mancha. 
 The area covered by these two lakes amounted to 30,000 square miles, and Spain 
 was then a mere skeleton of crystalline mountains, joined together by saddles of 
 triassic, Jurassic, and cretaceous age, enclosing these two fresh-water lakes, and 
 bounded exteriorly by the ocean. This geological period must have been of very 
 long duration, for the lacustrine deposits are sometimes nearly a thousand feet in 
 thickness. The miocene strata which form the superficial deposits of these two lake 
 basins of the Castiles are geologically of the same age, for fossil bones of the 
 same great animals — megatheria, mammoths, and hipparions — are found in both.
 
 THE CASTILES, LEON, AND ESTREMADURA. 379 
 
 The Ciintabrian Mountains bound Leon and Old Caslilo towards the north-west 
 and north, but broad mountain ranges run out fruin these immediately to the east 
 of the Pena Labra, and form the water-shod between the basin of the Duero and 
 the head-stream of the Kbro. These ranges are known by various names. They 
 form first the Pdramof: of Lora (.3,542 feet), which slope gently towards the south, 
 but sink down abruptly to the Ebro, which flows here in a gorge nuiny hundred 
 feet in depth. The water-shed to the east of these continues to the mountain 
 pass of the Brujula, across which leads the road (3,215 feet) connecting Burgos 
 with the sea. Beyond this pass the so-called Monies of Oca gradually increase in 
 height, and join the crystalline Sierra de Demanda, culminating in the Pico de 
 San Lorenzo (7,554 feet). Another mountain mass lies farther to the south-east. 
 It rises in the Pico de Urbion to a height of 7,''JU7 feet, and gives birth to the 
 river Duero. The water-shed further on is formed by the Sierra Cebollera 
 
 Fig. 139. — Pkoi'ile or the Railway ihom BAVu.N.sii to Cadiz. 
 (Altitudes in feet.) 
 
 
 --A 
 
 (7,039 feet), which subsides by degrees, its ramifications extending into the basins 
 of the Ebro and Duero. The Sierra de la Moncayo (7,905 feet), a crystalline 
 mountain mass similar to the San Lorenzo, but exceeding it in height, terminates 
 this portion of the enceinte of the central plateau. The broad ranges beyond 
 offer no obstacles to the construction of roads, but there are several rugged ridges 
 to the south of the Cebollera and Moncayo, which force the Duero to take a 
 devious course through the defile of Soria. Numantia, the heroic defence of 
 which has since been imitated by many other towns of the peninsula, stood near 
 that gorge. 
 
 The average height of the mountains separating tlie basin of the Duero from 
 that of the Tajo is more than that of those in the north-east of Old Castile. The 
 mountains gradually increase in height towards the west and south-west, until 
 they form the famous Sierra de Guadarrama, the granitic rocks of which bound the 
 horizon of Madrid in the north. It constitutes a veritable wall between the two
 
 380 
 
 SPAIN. 
 
 Castiles, and the construction of the roads which lead in zigzag over its passes of 
 Somosierra (4,680 feet), Navacerrada (5,834 feet), and Guadarrama (5,030 feet) 
 was attended with difHculties so considerable that Ferdinand VI., proud of the 
 achievement, placed the statue of a lion upon one of the highest summits, and thus 
 recorded that the "King had conquered the mountains." This sierra forms a 
 natural rampart to the north of the plains of Madrid, and many sanguinary- 
 battles have been fought to secure a passage through them. The railway to 
 Madrid avoids them, but the depression of Avila, through which it passes, is 
 nevertheless more elevated than the summit of the Blont Cenis Railway. 
 
 The mountains to the south-west of the Peak of Pefialara (7,870 feet), which 
 
 Fig. 140. — Sierras de Gredos amd de Gata. 
 Scale 1 : 800,000. 
 
 is the culminating point of the sierra, sink down rapidly, and at the Alto de la 
 Cierva (6,027 feet) the chain divides into two branches, of which the northern 
 forms the water-shed between the Duero and the Tajo, whilst the more elevated 
 southern chain joins the Sierra de Guadarrama to the Sierra de Gredos, but is cut 
 in two by the defile excavated by the river Alberche, which rises to the north 
 of it. 
 
 The Sierra de Gredos is, next to the Pyrenees and the Sierra Nevada of 
 Granada, the most elevated mountain chain of Sjjain, for in the Plaza del Moro 
 Almanzor it attains a height of 8,680 feet, and thus reaches far beyond the zone 
 of trees. Its naked summits of crystalline rocks remain covered with snow 
 during more than half the year. The country extending along the southern slope
 
 THE C^VSTILES, LEON, AKI) ESTREMADUEA. 881 
 
 of these mountains is one of the most delightful districts of all Spain. It 
 ahounds in streams of sparkling water ; groups of trees are dotted over the hill- 
 slopes and shield the villages ; and Charles V., when he selected the monastery of 
 St. Yasto as the sjwt where ho proposed to pass the remainder of his days, exhi- 
 bited no mean taste. In former times the foot of the sierra was much more 
 frequented, for the Roman road known as Via Lata (now called Cumi'iio tie la Plutti) 
 crossed immediately to the west of it, by the Puerto de Bafios, and thus joined the 
 valley of the Duero to that of the Tajo. 
 
 The Sierra de Gata, which lies beyond this old road, has a course parallel with 
 that of the Sierra de Gredos, and this parallelism is observable likewise with respect 
 to the minor chains and the principal river beds of that portion of Spain. The 
 Sierra de Gata rises to a height of 5,000 feet in the Pefia de Francia, thus named 
 after a chapel built by a Frankish knight. Within its recesses arc the secluded 
 valleys of Las Batuecas and Las Ilurdes. 
 
 In the eastern portion of 2\ew Castile the country is for the most part undu- 
 lating rather than mountainous, and, if the deep gorges excavated by the rivers 
 were to be filled up, would present almost the appearance of plains. The most 
 elevated point of this portion of the country is the Muela de San Juan (5,900 feet), 
 in the Monies L^niversales, thus called, perhaps, because the Tajo, the Jilcar, the 
 Guadalaviar, and other rivers flowing in opposite directions take their rise there. 
 
 The Sierra del Tremendal, in the district of Albarracin, farther north, is said 
 to be frequently shaken by earthquakes, and sulphurous gases escape there where 
 oolitic rocks arc in contact with black porphyry and basalt. Several triassic 
 hills in the vicinity of Cuenca are remarkable on account of theii- rock-salt, the 
 principal mines of which are those of Minglanilla. 
 
 Farther south the height of land which separates the rivers flowing to the 
 Mediterranean from those tributary to the Tajo and Guadiana is undulating, but 
 not mountainous. We only again meet with real mountains on reaching the head- 
 waters of the Guadiana, Segura, and Guadalimar, where the Sierra Morena, forming 
 for 250 miles the natural boundary between La Mancha and Andalusia, takes its 
 rise. Seen from the plateau, this sierra has the appearance of hills of moderate 
 height, but travellers facing it from the south see before them a veritable mountain 
 range of bold profile, and abounding in valleys and wild gorges. Geographically 
 this sierra belongs to Andalusia rather than to the plateau of the Castiles. 
 
 In the west, judging from the courses of the Tajo and the Guadiana, the country 
 would appear to subside by degrees into the plains of Portugal ; but such is not the 
 case. The greater portion of Estremadura is occupied by a mountain mass con- 
 sisting of granite and other crystalline rocks. The sedimentary strata of the 
 region bounded in the north by the Sierras of Gredos and Gata, and in the south 
 by the Sierra de Aroche, are but of small thickness. In former times these 
 granitic mountains of Estremadura retained pent-up waters of the lakes which then 
 covered the interior plateaux, until the incessant action of water forced a passjigo 
 through them. Their highest summits form a range between the rivers Guadiana 
 and Tajo known as the Sierra of Toledo, and attain a height of 5,115 feet in
 
 382 
 
 SPAIN. 
 
 the Sierra de Guadalupe, famous in other days on account of the image of a 
 miracle-working Virgin Marj% an object of veneration to Estremenos and Chris- 
 tianized American Indians. 
 
 Geologically the series of volcanic hills known as Campo de Calatrava (2,270 
 feet) constitute a distinct group. They occupy both banks of the Guadiana, and the 
 ancient inland lake now converted into the plain of La Mancha washed their foot. 
 
 Fi". 111. — TJEFILE OP THE TaJO IN THE PROVINCE Or GuADALAJARA 
 
 From their craters were ejected trachytic and basaltic lavas, as well as ashes, or 
 negrizales, but acidulous thermal springs are at present the only evidence of sub- 
 terranean activitj\ 
 
 The rivers of the Castiles are of less importance than might be supposed from 
 a look at a map, for, owing to a paucity of rain, they are not navigable. The 
 moisture carried eastward bj' the winds is for the most part precipitated upon the
 
 THE CASTILES, LEON, AND ESTREMADUILV. 888 
 
 exterior slopes of the mountains, only a small proportion reaching tho Ciistilinn 
 plateaux. Evaporation, moreover, proceeds there very rapidly, and if it wore not 
 for springs supplied by the rains of winter there would not bo a single perennial 
 river.* 
 
 Of tho three parallel rivers, the Ducro, tlie Tajo, and the Guadiana, the latter 
 two are the most feeble, for tho supplementary ranges of the Sierras of Grcdos and 
 Guadarrama shut off their basins from the moisture-laden winds of the Atlantic. Yet, 
 in spite of their small volume, the geological work performed by them in past 
 ages was stupendous. Both find their way through tortuous gorges of immense depth 
 from the edge of the plateaux down to tho plains of Lusitania. The gorge of the 
 Duero forms an appropriate natural boundary between Spain and Portugal, for it 
 offers almost insurmountable obstacles to intercommunication. The more con- 
 siderable tributaries of the Duero — such as the Tormes, fed by tho snows of tho 
 •Sierra de Gredos ; the Yeltes ; and the Agueda — likewise take their course through 
 wild defilos, which may be likened to the ca/ioiis of the New World. The Tajo 
 presents similar features, and below its confluence with the Albcrche it enters a 
 deep defile, hemmed in by i)recipitous walls of granite. 
 
 The Guadiana passes through a similar gorge, but oulj- after it has reached 
 the soil of Portugal. The hydrograjDhy of its head-streams, the Giguela and 
 Zancara, which rise in the Serranio of Cuenca, offers curious features ; but, as 
 the}' are for the most part dry during summer, the bountiful springs known as 
 the ojos, or " eyes," of the Guadiana are looked ui)on by the inhabitants as the 
 true source of the river. Thej' are three in number, and yield about four cubic 
 yards of water a second. These springs are popular]}- believed to be fed by the 
 Ruidera, which, after having traversed a chain of picturesque lakelets, disappears 
 beneath a bed of pebbles ; but Coello has shown that after heavy rains this head- 
 stream of the Guadiana actually reaches the Zancara. 
 
 The climate of the Castilian plateaux is quite continental in its character. 
 The prevailing winds of Spain are the same as in the rest of Western Europe, but 
 the seasons and sudden changes of temperature in the upper basins of the Duero, the 
 Tajo, and the Guadiana recall the deserts of Africa and Asia. The cold in winter is 
 most severe, the heat of summer scorching, and the predominating winds aggravate 
 these features. lu winter, the norte, which passes across the snow-covered I'yrenees 
 and other mountain ranges, sweeps the plains and penetrates through every 
 crevice in the wretched hovels of the peasant. In summer a contrary wind, the 
 sofaiio, penetrates through breaks in the Sierra Nevada and Sierra Morena, 
 scorches the vegetation, and irritates man and animals. The climate of Madrid t 
 is typical of that of most of the towns of Castile. The air, though pure, is exceed- 
 ingly dry and penetrating, and persons affected with diseases of the throat run 
 considerable risk during their period of acclimation. " The air of Madrid does 
 not put out a candle, but kills a man," says a jjroverb, and the climate of that 
 city is described as " three montlis of winter and nine of hell." True, in tlic 
 
 * Avrmp;e rainfull at Madrid, 10-7 inchoa; evnpomtion, 72'f> inilii'9. 
 t Mi^an annual tf-niptniture, I'lrO": fxtrcmes, 101° unJ 14" K.
 
 384 SPAIN. 
 
 time of Charles V., Madrid enjoyed the reputation of having an excellent climate, 
 and it is just possible that its deterioration may be ascribable to the destruction of 
 the forests. 
 
 The greatest variety of plants is met with if we ascend from the plains to the 
 summits of the mountains, but taken as a whole the vegetation .is singularly 
 monotonous, for the number of plants capable of supporting such extremes of 
 
 Fig. 142. — The Steppes op New Castile. 
 According to Willkomm. Scale 1 : 1,500,000. 
 
 ,^^^^/^^^ 
 
 temperature is naturally limited. Herbs and shrubs predominate. The thickets 
 in the upper basin of the Duero and on the plateaux to the cast of the Tajo and the 
 Guadiana consist of thyme, lavender, rosemary, hyssop, and other aromatic plants ; 
 on the southern slopes of the Cantabrian Mountains heaths with small pink flowers 
 predominate ; vast areas in the mountaias of Cuenca are covered with Spanish 
 broom, or esparto ; and saline plants abound in the environs of Albacete. These 
 regions are generally described as the "Steppes of Castile," though "deserts"
 
 SPATN 
 
 AND 
 
 PDKTUGAL 
 
 BvE.G KoveTistein.F H a S 
 
 Scale 1:4.000 000 
 
 JXEn^liSlt 
 
 JO^HVU^ LttfUA* nu 
 
 _*£-. 
 
 JiO_ 
 
 ""'■<:, 
 
 HI Sf*ain , cUvided iitto Provbict^ 
 mf Portuifal .divxdtd intc IHstritos tubmnhtrativ 
 iafiiials of Pr-ovini.ea grDistfvit intdrriincJ 
 
 The fuftirrs ejprrs* the Seu^ht* in Kjuflitft Fert 
 
 5(? 
 
 E ic CO LIMITED
 
 THE CASTILES, LEOX, AND ESTREMADURA. 885 
 
 would, perhaps, be a more appropriate teriii. For inilos aroniul tlio villao:c of San 
 Clenaente not a rivulet, a spring, or a tree is met with, and the aspect of the 
 countrj' throughout is exceedingly dreary. The interminable jjlains of I^a Mancha 
 — the " dried-up countrj- " of the Arabs — adjoin these steppes in the west, and 
 there corn-ticlds, vineyards, and pasture-grounds alternate witli stretches of thistles, 
 and the monotony is partly relieved by the windmills, with their huge sweeps slowly 
 revolving overhead. Estremadura and the elopes of the Sierra Morena are princi- 
 pally covered with rock-roses, and from the summit of some hills a carpet oijnralfn, 
 bluish green or brown, according to the season, extends as far as the cyo reaches, 
 and in spring is covered with an abundance of white flowers resembling newlj' 
 fallen snow. 
 
 TToods arc met with only on the slopes of the mountains. Oaks of various 
 species and chestnut-trees occupy the lower zone, and conifers extend bej'ond tliem 
 to the extreme limit of trees. These latter likewise cover the vast tracts of shifting 
 sands which extend along the northern foot of the Sierra Cfuadarrania, and are the 
 analogue of the French landes. 
 
 The remains of the ancient forests still shelter wild animals. In the beginning 
 of this century bears were numerous on the southern slopes of the Cantabriau 
 Mountains ; the thickets of Guadarrama, Gredos, and Gata still harbour wolves, 
 lynxes, wild cats, foxes, and even wild goats. Deer, hares, and other game abound. 
 The oak forests are haunted by wild boars of immense size and strength. Before 
 the downfall of Islam it was thought meritorious to keep large herds of pigs, and 
 a traveller who visits the remote villages of Leon, A^dladolid, and Upper Estrema- 
 dura will find that this ancient custom still survives. The black hogs of Trujillo 
 and Montanchez are famous throughout Spain for their excellent hams. 
 
 The country offers great facilities for the breeding of sheep and cattle ; there 
 are, however, several districts which are admirably suited to the production of cereals. 
 The Tierra de Campos, in the basin of the Duero, is one of them. It owes its 
 fertility to a subterranean reservoir of water, as do also the lucm of Ocafia and 
 other districts in the upper basins of the Tajo and the Guadiana, which are arid only 
 in appearance. The vine flourishes on stony soil, and yields excellent wine, and 
 the same may be said of the olive-tree, which constitutes the wealth of the 
 Campo de Calatrava. Agricultural pursuits would thus appear to offer great 
 advantages; and if thousands of acres are still allowed to lie fallow, if nomad 
 habits still predominate, this is owing to sloth, force of habit, the existence of 
 feudal customs, and sometimes, perhaps, to discouragement produced liy seasons 
 of drought. 
 
 Most of the herds of mcri)ios are obliged to traverse nearly half Spain in 
 search of the food they require. Each herd of about 10,000 sheep is placed 
 in charge of a mayoral, assisted by rahadanes in charge of detachments of from 
 1,000 to 1,200 animals. The shepherds and sheep of Balia, in Leon, are reputed 
 to be the best. In the beginning of April the merinos leave their pasture-grounds 
 in Andalusia, La Mancha, and Estremadura for the north, where they pass the 
 summer, returning in September to the south. It may readily be imagined tbat 
 
 VOL. I. c c
 
 S80 SPAIN. 
 
 these wandering herds do much damage to the fields through which they pass, 
 even though the privileges of the sheep-breeders were abrogated in a large measure 
 in 1836. Spain, however, in spite of every advantage ofiered by nature, is obliged 
 now to import sheep from abroad to improve its flocks. Mules, too, which are 
 almost indispensable in so stony a country, are imported from France. Camels, 
 llamas, and kangaroos have been introduced, but their number has never been 
 large, and the fauna as well as the flora of the Castiles bears the stamp of monotony. 
 
 As is the land, so are its inhabitants. The men of Leon and the Castiles are 
 grave, curt of speech, majestic in their gait, and of even temper. Even in their 
 amusements they carry themselves with dignity, and those amongst them who 
 respect the traditions of the good old time regulate every movement in accordance 
 with a most irksome etiquette. The Castilian is haughty in the extreme, and Yo 
 SOI/ Castellano ! cuts short every further explanation. He recognises no superiors, 
 but treats his fellows on a footing of perfect equality. A foreigner who mixes 
 for the first time in a crowd at Madrid or elsewhere in the Castiles cannot fail 
 in being struck by the natural freedom with which rich and poor converse with 
 each other. 
 
 The Castilian, thanks to his tenacious courage and the central position he 
 occupies, has become the master of Spain, but he can hardly be said to be the 
 master in his own capital. Madrid is the great centre of attraction of the entire 
 peninsula, and its streets are crowded with provincials from every part of 
 Spain. This invasion of the capital, and of the Castiles generally, is explained by 
 the sparseness of the population of the plateaiix, a sparseness not so much due to 
 the natural sterility of the country as to political and social causes. There can 
 be no doubt that the Castiles formerly supported a much denser population than 
 they do now, but the towns of the valleys of the Tajo and the Guadiana have shrunk 
 into villages, and the river, which wa% formerly navigable as far as Toledo, is so 
 no longer, either because its volume is less now than it used to be, or because its 
 floods are no longer regulated. Estremadura, at present one of the poorest 
 pro^-inces of Spain, supported a dense population in the time of the Romans, 
 who founded there the Colonia Augusta Emerita (Merida), which became the 
 largest town of Iberia. During the dominion of the Moors, too, Estremadura 
 yielded bounteous harvests, but the old cities have disappeared, and the fields are 
 now covered with furze, broom, and rock-roses. 
 
 The expulsion of the Moors no doubt contributed towards the decay of these 
 once fertile regions, but the principal cause must be looked for in the growth of 
 feudal, military and ecclesiastical institutions, which robbed the cultivator of the 
 fruits of his labours. Subsequently, when Cortez, Pizarro, and other conquistadores 
 performed their prodigious exploits in the New "VTorld, they attracted the enter- 
 prising youth of the pro\'ince. The peaceable cultivation of the soil was held in 
 contempt, fields remained xmtilled, and 40,000 nomadic shepherds took possession 
 of the country. It is thus the Estremcnos became what they are, the " Indians " 
 of the nation.
 
 THE CASTILES. LEOX, AXD ESiTRE>[ADrR.\. f197 
 
 This decrease of population was unfortunately attended by a return towards 
 barbarism. Three hundred years ago the region on tlio southern slopes of tlie 
 Sierra de Guudarrama was famous for its industry. The linen and dotli of Avila, 
 Medina del Campo, and Segovia were known throughout Europe; Burgos and 
 Aranda del Duero were the seats of commerce and industry; and :Medina do 
 Rio Seco was known as " Little India," on account of the wealth displayed at its 
 fairs. But misgovernment led to the downfall of these industries, the country 
 became depopulated, and its ancient culture dwindled to a thing of the past. At the 
 famous university of Salamanca the great discoveries of Newton and Harvev were 
 still ignored at the close of last century as being " contrary to revealed religion," 
 and the lower classes grovelled in the most beastly superstitions. 
 
 In this very province of Salamanca, close to the Pei'ia de Francia, exist the 
 "barbarous" Batuecas, who are charged with not being able to distinguish 
 the seasons. Nor are the inhabitants of other remote mountain districts of 
 the Castiles what we should call ci\'ilised. Amongst these may be noticed the 
 charros of Salamanca and the famous maragaton of Astorga, most of them 
 muleteers. They only intermarry amongst themselves, and are looked upon as 
 the lineal descendants of some ancient tribe of Iberia. The suggestion that 
 they are a mixed race of Visigoths and Moors is not deserving of attention, 
 for neither in their dress nor in their manners do they remind us of Mussulmans. 
 They wear loose trousers, cloth gaiters fastened below the knee, a short and 
 close-fitting coat, a leather belt, a frill round the neck, and a felt hat with a 
 broad brim. They are tall and strong, but wiry and angular. Their taci- 
 turnity is extreme, and they neither laugh nor sing when driving before them 
 their beasts of burden. It is difficult to excite their passion, but, once roused, 
 they become ferocious. Their honesty is above suspicion, and they may be safely 
 trusted with the most valuable goods, which they will defend against every 
 attack, for they are brave, and skilled in the use of arms. Whilst the men 
 traverse the whole of Spain as carriers of merchandise, the women till tlie soil, 
 which, being arid and rocky, yields but a poor harvest. 
 
 The vicissitudes of history explain the existence of nimierous towns in the 
 Castiles which can boast of having been the capital of the country at one time or 
 other. Xumantia, the most ancient of all those cities, exists no longer, and the 
 learned are not yet agreed whether the ruins discovered near the decayed town of 
 Soria are the remains of the walls demolished by Scipio iEmilianus. But there are 
 several cities of great antiquity which possess some importance even at the present 
 day. Leon is one of these. It was the head-quarters of a Roman legion 
 (sej)fwia gnninn), and its name, in reality a corruption of Icgio, is supposed to be 
 symbolized by the lions placed in its coat of arms. Leon was one of the first 
 places of importance taken from the Moors. Its old walls are in ruins now, and 
 the beautiful cathedral has been transformed into a clumsy cube. Astorga, the 
 "magnificent city " of Asturica Augusta, has fallen even lower than Leon, whilst 
 Palencia (the ancient Pallantia) still enjoys a certain measure of prosperity, owing 
 
 c c 2
 
 388 
 
 SPAIN. 
 
 to its favourable geographical position at the Pisuerga, which has caused it to 
 he selected as one of the great railway centres of the peninsula. 
 
 Burgos, the former capital of Old Castile, points proudly to its graceful cathe- 
 dral and other ancient buildings, but its streets are nearly deserted, and the crowds 
 which congregate occasionally in the churches, hotels, or at the railway station 
 are composed, for the most part, of beggars. In the cathedral are preserved 
 numerous relics, and the Cid, whose legendary birthplace, Bivar, is near, lies buried 
 in it. 
 
 Yalladolid, the Belad Walid of the Moors, at one time the capital of all Spain, 
 enjoys a more favourable geographical position than Burgos. It lies on the Lower 
 
 Fig. 143. — Salamanca and its Despoblados. 
 Scale 1 : 200,000. 
 
 [•^'^ .^/^.^\^^ 
 
 Pisuerga, where that river enters the broad plain of the Duero, at an elevation 
 of less than 600 feet above the sea. There are numerous factories, conducted 
 by Catalans, and the city boasts, like Burgos, of many curious buildings and 
 historical reminiscences. The houses in which Columbus died and Cervantes was 
 born are still shown, as is the beautiful monastery of San Pablo, in which resided 
 Torquemada, the monk, who condemned 8,000 heretics to die at the stake. The 
 castle of Simancas, where the precious archives of Spain are kept, is near this 
 city. 
 
 Descending the Duero, we pass Toro, and then reach Zamora, the " goodly 
 walls " of which proved such an obstacle to the Moors. Zamora, though on the 
 direct line between Oporto and continental Europe, is an out-of-the-way place at
 
 THE CASTn.ES, LE':>X, AND ESTREMADUIU. 
 
 380 
 
 present, and the same may be said oi the famous city of Salamanca, on tbe 
 Tormes, to the south of it. 
 
 S alama nca, the Sulmantica of the Romans, succeeded to Palencia as the scat of 
 a university, and during the epoch of the Renaissance was described as the " mother 
 of virtues, sciences, and arts," and the "Rome of the Costiles." It still deservc:i 
 the latter epithet, because of its magnificent bridge built by Trajan, and the beau- 
 
 Fijt. 144.— The .\t azak or Skgotia. 
 
 tiful edifices dating back to the fifteenth and sixteenth centuries. Its intellectual 
 superiority, however, is a thing of the past. 
 
 Arevalo, and the famous town of Medina del Campo, to the north-east of Sala- 
 manca, carry on a considerable trade with corn, -ivila occupies an isolated hillock 
 on the banks of the Adaja, to the north of the Sierra de Gredos. Avila still preserves 
 its turreted walls of the fifteenth century, and its fortress-like cathedral is a marvel 
 of architecture. There are also curious sculptures of animals, which are ascribed
 
 390 
 
 SPAIN. 
 
 to the aboriginal iuliabitants of the countrj'. Simihu' works of rude art in the 
 Ticinity are known as the "bulls of Giiisaudo," from a village in the Sierra de 
 Gredos. 
 
 Segovia the " circumspect " is situated on an afliueut of the Duero, like 
 Avila, and in the immediate vicinity of the Sierra de Guadarrama. Its turreted 
 walls rise on a scarped rock, supposed to resemble a ship. On the poop of this 
 
 Fig. 145. — Toledo. 
 
 fancied ship, high above the confluence of the Clamores and Eresma, rise the ruins 
 of the Moorish Alcazar, whilst the cathedral, in the centre of the city, is supjjosed to 
 represent the mainmast. A beautiful aqueduct supplies Segovia with the clear 
 waters of the Guadarrama. It is the finest Roman work of this class in Iberia, and 
 far superior to the royal palace of San Ildefonso or De la Granja, in the neighbour- 
 hood of the city. 
 
 Toledo is the most fiimous city to the south of tlic great rampart formed by the
 
 
 'J ' JJ'^'AI / %* ^ til
 
 TUK CASTILE!-, LliUX, AND EsiTUKMAl-l'RA. 301 
 
 Sierras of Guadarrauia, Gredos, and Gata. Tliis is the Cimltid JmjMiia/, the 
 " motlier of cities," the coronet of Spain and the light of the worhl, as it was 
 called by Juan de Padilla, the most famous of its sons. Tradition tells us that it 
 existed long before Uercules founded Segovia, and, like Home, il stands upon seven 
 hills. Toledo, with its gates, towers, Moorish and racdiaval buildings, is indeed a 
 beautiful citj', and its cathedral is of dazzling richness. But, for all this, Toledo is 
 a decayed place, and its famous armourers' shops have been swamped by a 
 Government manufactory. 
 
 Talavera de la Reina, below Toledo, on the Tujo, still possesses some of its 
 ancient manufactures of silk and faience. Puente del .iVi-zobispo and the other 
 towns on the Tajo are hardly more now than large villages. The bridge of Almaraz 
 crosses the river far away from any popidous town, and the old Roman bridge 
 of Alcouetar exists no longer. Alcantara, — that is, //le bridge, — near the Por- 
 tuguese frontier, still remains a monument of the architectural skill of the 
 Romans. It was completed in the year 105, in the reign of Trajan, and its 
 architect, Lacer, appears to have been a Spaniard. Its centre is at an elevation 
 of 160 feet above the mean level of the Tajo, the floods of which, rise occasionally 
 to the extent of a hundred feet. 
 
 All the great towns of Estremadura lie at some distance from the Tajo, and 
 its great volume of water has hitherto hardly been utilised for purposes of 
 irrigation or navigation. On a fertile hill nearlj' twenty miles to the north of 
 this river, the old town of Plasencia may be seen bounded in the distance by 
 mountains frequently covered with snow. Caceres is about the same distance 
 to the south, as is also Trujillo, which received such vast wealth from the con- 
 querors of Peru, but is now dependent upon its pigs and herds of cattle. 
 
 The position of those towns of Estremadui-a which lie on the banks of the 
 Guadiana is more favourable. Badajoz, close to the Spanish frontier, has lost its 
 ancient importance as a fortress since it became a place of commerce on the only 
 railway which as yet joins Spain to Portugal. Merida, on the same railway, is 
 richer in Roman monuments than any other town of Spain, for there are a 
 triumphal arch, the remains of an aqueduct, an amphitheatre, a naumachy, baths, 
 and an admirable bridge of eighty granite arches, 2,600 feet in length ; but in 
 population it is far inferior to Don Benito, a town hardly mentioned in history, 
 higher up the Guadiana, at the edge of the vast jjlain of La Serena. It was founded 
 in the beginning of the sixteenth centur\-, and together with its neighbour, 
 Villanueva de la Serena, derives its wealth from the fertility of the surrounding 
 country. Its fruits, and particularly its water-melons, are much esteemed. The 
 plains on the right bank of the Guadiana abound in phosphate of lime, whieli is 
 exported to France and England. 
 
 The towns of La Mancha are of no historical note, and the province owes 
 its celebrity almost exclusively to Cervantes' creation, the incomparable " Don 
 Quixote." Ciudad Real, an industrious place formerly ; Almagro, known for its 
 point-lace ; Daimiel, near which stood the princiijal castle of the military order of 
 Calatrava ; Manzanares ; and other towns arc iuiportaut principally because of their
 
 392 
 
 SPAIN. 
 
 trade in corn and wine. Almaden, — that is, " the mine," — in a valley on the 
 northern slope of the Sierra Morena, has hecome famous through its cinnahar 
 mines, which for more than three centuries supplied the New "World with 
 mercury, and still yield about 1,200 tons annually. 
 
 Fig. 146. — Madrid and its Emvirons. 
 Pcnle 1 : 200,000. 
 
 Eastern Castile, being at a considerable elevation above the sea-level, and 
 having a rugged surface, cannot support a population more dense than either La 
 Mancha or Estremadura. There are but few towns of note, and even the capital, 
 Cuenca, is hardly more than a third-rato provincial city. Picturesquely perched
 
 THE CASTILES, LEO'S, AND ESTREMADUBA. 893 
 
 upon a steep rock overhanging the deep gorges of the Huecar and Jiicar, it merely 
 lives in the past. The only other towns of note in that part of the country are 
 Guadalajara, with a Eoman acqueduct, and Alcala, the native place of Cervantes 
 and seat of an ancient university, which at one time saw 10,000 students within its 
 walls. Both these towns are situated on the Henares, a tributary of the Tajo, 
 and either would have been fit to become the capital of the kingdom. 
 
 Indeed, at the first glance, it almost appears as if Madrid owed its existence to 
 the caprice of a king. It has no river, for the Manzanares is merely a torrent, its 
 climate is abominable, and its environs present fewer advantages than those of 
 Toledo, the ancient capital of the Romans and Visigoths. But once having been 
 selected as the capital, Madrid could not fail to rise in importance, for it occupies a 
 central position with respect to all other towns outside the basin of the Upper Tajo. 
 Pinto {Ptiitctiini), a short distance to the south of Madrid, is popularlv supposed to 
 be the mathematical centre of the peninsula ; and thus much is certain, that the plain 
 bounded in the north by the Sierra de Guadarrama forms the natural nucleus of 
 the country, and is traversed by its great nattiral highways. 
 
 Toledo occupies a position almost equally central. It was the capital of the 
 country during the reign of the Romans, and subsequently became the capital of 
 the ecclesiastical authorities and of the kings of the Visigoths, and retained that 
 position until it fell into the power of the Moors. During the struggles between 
 Moors and Christians the latter shifted their capital from place to place, according 
 to the varying fortunes of the war, but no sooner had the former been expelled 
 from Cordova than the Christian kings again established themselves in the plain 
 to the south of the Sierra de Guadarrama. They had then to choose between Toledo 
 and Madrid. Toledo no doubt offered superior advantages, but its citizens having 
 joined the insurrection of the comuneros against Charles V., the Emperor-king decided 
 in favour of Madrid. Philip III. endeavoured to remove the capital to Valladolid, 
 but the natural attractions of Madrid proved too strong for him, and the schools, 
 museums, public buildings, and manufactories which have arisen in the latter since 
 then must for ever insure it a preponderating position. The railways, which now 
 join Madrid to the extremiries of the peninsula, countervail the disadvantages 
 of its immediate neighbourhood ; and although the purest Castilian is spoken at 
 Toledo, it is Madrid which, through its press, has insured the preponderance of that 
 idiom throughout Spain. Madrid has long been in advance of all other cities of the 
 peninsula as regards political activity, industry, and commerce, but its growth 
 having taken place during a period devoid of art, it is inferior to other towns with 
 respect to the character of its public buildings. The museimis, however, are 
 amongst the richest in Europe, and make it a second Florence. Immediately 
 outside the public promenades of the Prado and Buen Retiro we find our- 
 selves in a desolate country covered with flints, and this must be crossed by 
 a traveller desirous of visiting the delightful gardens of Aranjuez, the huge 
 Escorial bmlt by Philip II., or the villas in the wooded valleys of the Sierra de 
 Guadarrama. These latter supply Madrid with water, as the neighbouring moun- 
 tains do with ice. Formerly one of the most secluded of these valleys became
 
 394 
 
 SPAIX. 
 
 the seat of a EQOck-kingdom, nominally independent of the Kings of Castile. 
 During the Moorish invasion the inhabitants of the plain of Jarama had sought 
 shelter in the mountains, and the rest of the world forgot all about them. They 
 called themselves Patones, and elected an hereditary king. About the middle of 
 the seventeenth century the last of the line, by trade a carrier, surrendered his 
 wand of authority into the hands of a royal officer, and the valley was placed 
 under the jurisdiction of the authorities at Uceda.* 
 
 III. — Andalusia. t 
 
 Andalusia embraces the whole of the basin of the Guadalquivir, together with 
 some adjoining districts. It is bounded in the north by the Sierra Morena, which 
 
 Vlg. 147. — AUANJUEZ. 
 
 Scale 1 : 75,000. 
 
 in the direction of Portugal becomes a rugged mountain district of crystalline 
 formation intersected by tortuous ravines, and rising in the Sierra de Aracena, 
 north of the mining region of the Rio Tiiito, to a height of 5,500 feet. Farther 
 east the Sierra Morena ascends in terraces above the valley of the Guadalquivir, 
 and on its reverse slope we meet with districts, such as that of Los Pedroches 
 (1,650 feet), hardly less monotonous of aspect than the plains of La Mancha. The 
 
 * Population of the principal towns of the Castiles (1870) :— OM CtistHe : Yalladolid, 60,000 ; Burgoa, 
 14,000; Salamanca, 13,500 ; Palencia, 13,000 ; Zamora, 9,000; Segovia, 7,000 ; Leon, 7,000 ; irila, 6,000. 
 New Castile: Madrid, 332,000; Toledo, 17,500; Almagro, 14,000; Daimiel, 13,000; Ciudad Eeal, 
 12,000; Val de Peiias, 11,000; Almaden, 9,000; Manzanares, 9,000; Cuenca, 7,000; Talavera de la 
 Eeyna, 7,500 ; Guadalajara, 6,000. Estremadura : Badajoz, 22,000 ; Don Benito, 15,000 ; Caceres, 12,000 ; 
 Villanueva de la Serena, 8,000 ; Plasencia, 6,000 ; Merida, 6,000. 
 
 t Area of the basin of the G-uadalquivir, 21,000 square miles; area of Andalusia, 28,370 square miles ; 
 population (1870), 2,719,629 ; density, 91.
 
 ANDALUSIA. 
 
 895 
 
 Punta de Almeuara (5,920 feet), in the Sierra de ^Ucaraz, in the extreme ea.-.t, may 
 be looked upon as the culminating point of this siemi, which is iiidcbtod for its 
 name of " Black Mountain " to the sombre pines which clothe its slopes. 
 
 The line of water-parting does not p;iss through the highest summits of 
 this range. Most of the rivers rise on the plateau, and take their course, by 
 pictiiresque gorges, right through the heart of the mountains. The most famous 
 of these gorges is that of Despeuaperros (•2,444 feet), leading from the dreary 
 plains of La Mancha to the smiling valley of Andalusia. This pass has played a 
 great part in every war. At its foot was fought in 1>'12 the fearful buttle of 
 
 Fig. 148. — ^The Basils of thb Guadhna am) Gi'aualuiivui. 
 Scale 1 : 3,<.«0,(W. 
 
 Navas de Tolosa, in which more than :^00,000 Mussulmans are said to have been 
 slaughtered. 
 
 The mountains which shut in the basin of Andalusia on the ea.-t are cut up 
 by deep river gorges into several distinct masses or chains, of which the Calar 
 del Mundo (5,437 feet), Yelmo de Segura (5,925 feet), and Sierra Sagra (7,675 
 feet) are the principal The southern mountain ranges uniformly extend from east 
 to west. From north to south we cross in succession the Sierras de Maria (6,690 
 feet), de las Estancias, and de los Filabres (6,283 feet), so famous for its marbles. 
 In the west the latter two ranges join the Sierra de Baza (6,236 feet), itself attached 
 to the great culminating range of Iberia, the Sierra Nevada, by a saddle of incon- 
 siderable height (2,950 feet).
 
 396 SPAIN. 
 
 Tte Sierra Nevada consists mainly of schists, througli which eruptions of 
 serpentine and porphyry have taken place. The area it occupies is small, but 
 from whatever side we approach it rises precipitously, and the eye can trace the 
 succeeding zones of vegetation up to that of perennial snows pierced by the peaks 
 of Mulahacen (11,661 feet), Picacho de la Veleta (11,386 feet), and Alcazaba 
 (7,590 feet). Vines and olive-trees clothe the foot-hills ; to these succeed walnut- 
 trees, then oaks, and finally a pale carpet of turf hidden beneath snow for six 
 
 Fig. 149. — The Pass of Despenaperrck. 
 
 months. Masses of .snow accumulate in sheltered LoUuws, and these feiilmpitros, 
 vcntiscas, or snow-drifts, supply Granada with ice. In the Corral de la Veleta there 
 even exists a true glacier, which gives birth to the river Genii, and is the most 
 southerly in all Europe. The more extensive glaciers of a former age have 
 disappeared long ago. To the purling streams fed by the snows of the sierra the 
 Yega of Granada owes its rich verdure, its flowers, and its excellent fruits, and the 
 delightfid valley of Lecrin its epithet of " Paradise of the Alpujarras."
 
 AXDALrSIA. 
 
 897 
 
 Xo other district of Spain so forcibly reminds us of the dominion of the Moors. 
 The principal summit is named after a Moorish prince. On the Picacho tlity lit a 
 beacon on the approach of a Christian army, and in the Alpujanrus, on the 
 southern slope, they pastured their sheep. The Galician and Asturian peasants, 
 who now occupy this district, are superior in no respect to the converted iloors 
 who were permitted to remain at I'jijar, the capital of Alpujarras, when their 
 
 Kg. 150. — The Sieuba Xeva.d.\ .\s 8ke.v tHoii B.iz.i. 
 
 compatriots were driven forth. The natural riches of the mountains remain 
 undeveloped, and they are surrounded bj' a belt of despob/iufos. 
 
 From the Pass of Alhedin (3,300 feet), between Granada and Alpujarra, we look 
 down upon one of the most charming panoramas of the world. It was hero that 
 Boabdil, the fugitive Moorish king, beheld for the last time the smiling plains of 
 his kingdom, and hence the spot is known as the " Last Sigh of the Moor," or the 
 "Hill of Tears." From the highest summits of the sierra, hcrwever, the prospect 
 is exceedingly grand. Standing upon the Picacho de la Yeleta, we see Southern 
 »
 
 398 SPAIN. 
 
 Spain spread out beneath our feet, with its fertile valleys, rugged rocks, and 
 russet-coloured wilds. Looking south, across the blue waters of the Mediterranean, 
 the mountains of Barbary loom out in the distance, and sometimes we are even able 
 to hear the murmuring of the waves as they beat against the coast. 
 
 The mountains around these giants of Granada are very inferior to them in 
 height. The country in the north, which is bounded by the valleys of the Genii, 
 Guadiana Menor, and Guadalquivir, is occupied by an upland intersected by deep 
 ravines, and rising now and then into distinct mountain chains, such as the Sierra 
 Magina (7,047 feet) and Sierra de Jabalcuz, near Jaen (1,800 feet) ; the chain 
 Alta Coloma, farther south, with its wild pass, Puerto de Arenas, between Jaen 
 and Granada ; and the Sierra Susana, close to Granada, which extends westward 
 to the mountain mass of the Parapanda, the great prophet of the husbandmen of 
 
 the Vega : — 
 
 " Cuando Parapanda se pone la montera, 
 
 Llueve, aunque Dios no lo quisiera." 
 
 (" When Parapanda puts on his cap it rains, though God may not wish it.") 
 
 The mountains extending along the coast are cut up by transverse valleys into 
 several distinct masses. The Sierra de Gata, in the south-east, is a detached 
 mountain mass, pierced by several extinct volcanoes. Farther west rises the 
 Sierra Alhamilla, the torrents of which are so rich in garnets that the huntsmen 
 use them instead of shot. Crossing a rivulet, we reach the superb Sierra de Gador 
 (7,620 feet), consisting of schists. 
 
 The Contraviesa (6,218 feet), which separates the Alpujarras from the Mediter- 
 ranean, rises so steeply from the coast that even sheep can hardly climb it. The 
 Sierra de Almijara, beyond the narrow valley of the Guadalfeo, and its western 
 continuation, the Sierra de Alhama (7,003 feet), present similar features. The 
 mountains on the other side of the Pass of Alfarnate or de los Alazores (2,723 
 feet) constitute the exterior rampart of an ancient lake bed, botmded in the north 
 by an irregular swelling of ground known as Sierra de Yeguas. The road from 
 Malaga to Antequera crosses that rampart in the famous Pass of El Torcal (4,213 
 feet), the fantasticall}' shaped rocks of which bear some resemblance to the ruins 
 of an extensive city. Archaeologists have discovered there some of the most curious 
 prehistoric remains of Iberia. 
 
 To the west of the basin of Malaga, drained by the Guadalhorce, the emissary 
 of the ancient lake referred to above, the mountains again increase in height, and 
 in the Sierra de Tolox attain an elevation of 6,430 feet. Snows remain here 
 throughout the winter. From the Tolox mountain chains ramify in all directions. 
 The Sierra Bermeja (4,756 feet) extends to the south-west, its steep promontories 
 being washed by the waves of the sea ; the wUd " Serrania " de Ponda (5,085 feet) 
 extends westward, and is contiaued in the mountain mass of San Cristobal 
 (5,627 feet), which sends branches southward as far as the Capes of Trafalgar and 
 Tarifa. The rock of Gibraltar (1,408 feet), which rises so proudly at the entrance 
 of the Mediterranean, is a geological outlier attached to the mainland by a strip of 
 sand thrown tip by the waves of the ocean.
 
 GORGE DE LOS GAITANES, DEriLE OE GVADAI.EOKCE.
 
 ANT)AT.USIA. 
 
 899 
 
 Erosion has powerfully affected the mountains occupying the country between 
 the basin of the Guadalquivir and the coast. Amonjjst the numerous river gorges, 
 that of the Gaytanos, through which the Guadalhorco tlows from the plateau of 
 Antequera to the orange groves of Alora, is one of the wildest and most magnifi- 
 cent in all Spain. Only torrents enter the Mediterranean, and even of the rivers 
 discharging their waters into the Atlantic there is but one which is of some 
 importance, on account of its great volume and the facilities it offers for navigation. 
 This is the Guadalqui%-ir, which rises in the Sierra Sagra, at an elevation of 5,900 
 feet above the sea-level. Having received the Guadidimar, its current becomes 
 
 Fijr I'll. — The Movtii op the GvAD.iiQrivin. 
 SnUe I : SOO.OO. 
 
 gentle, and it flows through a wide and open valley, thus differing essentially 
 from the rivers of the Castiles, which, on their way to the sea, traverse narrow 
 gorges. Its volume fairly entitles it to its Arab name of "Wad-el-Kcbir, or " large 
 river." The geological work performed by this river and its tributaries has been 
 enormous. Mountain ramparts have been broken through, lakes drained, and 
 immense quantities of soil spread over the valley. Nowhere can this work be 
 traced more advantageously than in the valley of the Genii of Granada, for the 
 fertile district of La Vega was covered by a lake, the jjent-up waters of which 
 opened themselves a passage near Loja.
 
 400 SPAIN. 
 
 The estuary of the river has been gradually filled up by sediment. The tide 
 ascends nearly as far as Seville, where the river is about 250 yards wide. Below 
 that citj' it passes through an alluvial tract known as the marismas, ordinarily a 
 dusty plain roamed over by half-wild cattle, but converted by the least rain into a 
 quagmire. Neither villages nor homesteads are met with here, but the sands 
 farther back are covered with dwarf palms, and lower down a few hills of tertiary 
 formation approach close to the river, their vine-clad slopes affording a pleasing 
 contrast to the surrounding solitude. 
 
 A contraction of the alluvial valley marks the exterior limit of the ancient 
 estuary silted up by the Guadalquivir. Sanliicar de Barrameda, a town of 
 oriental aspect, stands on the left bank, whilst a range of dunes intervenes 
 between the sea and the flat country on the right bank. The mouth of the river 
 is closed by a bar, so that only vessels of small draught can enter it. These 
 Arenas Gordas, or "great sands," are for the most part covered with pines, and, 
 except on their exterior face, they have remained stable since the historical epoch. 
 
 The Guadalquivir is the only river of Spain which is navigable for a consider- 
 able distance above its mouth. Vessels of 200 tons ascend it as far as Seville, a 
 distance of sixty miles. Sanliicar was formerly the great port of Spain, and its 
 coasting trade is still considerable. None of the other rivers of Andalusia are 
 navigable. The Guadalete, which enters the Bay of Cadiz, is a shallow, sluggish 
 stream ; the Odiel and the Rio Tinto are rapid torrents, and their estuary, below 
 Huelva, has been choked up by the sediment brought down by them ; while Palos, 
 so famous as the port from which Columbus started upon his great voyage of dis- 
 covery, has dwindled down to a poor fishing village. 
 
 But what are these changes compared with the great revolution which joined 
 the Mediterranean to the Atlantic ? There can be no doubt that a barrier of 
 mountains separated the two seas. The destructive action of the Atlantic appears 
 to have been facilitated not only by the cavernous nature of the rocks on 
 both sides of the strait, but also by the fact of the level of the Mediterranean 
 having been much lower at that time than that of the Atlantic. Even now the 
 waters of the latter sometimes rush through the strait with astounding velocity 
 (see Fig. 6, p. 26). We cannot tell whether the strait has increased in width during 
 historical times, for ancient geographers are not very precise in their measurements. 
 Thus much, however, is certain, that the general features of the strait have not 
 changed, and the two pillars of Hercules, Calpe and Abyla, may still be recog- 
 nised in modern Gibraltar and Ceuta. 
 
 The rock of Gibraltar does not form the southernmost promontory of Iberia, but, 
 being the most striking object along the strait, it has given its name to it. Mariners 
 look upon it as the true boundary between the Mediterranean and the Atlantic, 
 and it has been likened, not inaptly, to a crouching lion guarding the gateway 
 between the two seas. It rises almost perpendicularly on the east, and the town, 
 with most of the batteries, has been constructed on the western slope, which is 
 more accessible. The famous rock, though a natural dependency of Spain, has 
 become, by right of conquest, one of the great strongholds of England, and its
 
 AXDALVSIA. 401 
 
 importance as a fortress as well as a place of commerco is indisputable. In its 
 caverns have been discovered stone implements and the skeletons of dolicho- 
 cephalous men. 
 
 The frequent intercourse between Andalusia and tho Berber countries on the 
 other side of the strait is explained by vicinity as well as by similarity of climate. 
 ^Vlgarve, Huelva, and the lower valley of the Guadalqui>'ir, as far as Seville and 
 Ecija, that " stewing-pan " or " furnace " of Spain, form one of the hottest dis- 
 tricts of Europe, and the coast, from Algeciras and Gibraltar to Cartagena, Alicante, 
 and the Cabo de la 'Sao, is hardly inferior to it. The country around tho Bay of 
 Cadiz and the hilly districts in the extreme south, which are freely exposetl to the 
 virazoii, or sea breeze, enjoy a more temperate climate. In the two torrid coast 
 regions delineated above frosts are hardly known, and the mean tomijerature of 
 the coolest month reaches 54'^ F. The heat is greatest around the bays exposed 
 to the full influence of the hot African winds, and least on tho Atlantic seaboard, 
 where westerly breezes moderate it. Contrary atmospheric currents naturallv 
 meet in the Strait of Gibraltar, where the wind is generally high, and tempests 
 are frequent in winter. "Westerly winds prevail during winter, easterly winds 
 in summer. The two promontories of Europe and Africa are looked upon by 
 mariners as trustworthy signallers of tho weather : when they are wrapped in 
 clouds or mists rain and easterh* winds may be looked for, but when their pro- 
 files stand out clearly against the blue sky it is a sure sign of fiue weather and 
 westerly winds.* 
 
 The dry and semi-tropical climate of Lower Andalusia frequently exercises a most 
 depressing influence upon Xorthern Europeans. In the plain and along the coast 
 it hardly ever rains during summer, and the heat is sometimes stifling, for the 
 trade winds of the tropics are unknown. At Cadiz the land wind blon-ing from 
 the direction of Medina Sidonia, and hence known as mcdina, is suffocating, and 
 quarrels and even murders are said to occur most frequently whilst it lasts. But 
 the most dreaded wind is the solaiio or kraiite, which is hot as the blast from a 
 furnace. A curious vapour, known as caluia, then appears on the southern 
 horizon, the air is filled with dust, leaves wither, and sometimes birds drop in 
 their flight as if suffocated. 
 
 In the temperate regions of Europe summer is the season of flowers and foliage, 
 but in Andalusia it is that of aridity and death. Except in gardens and irrigated 
 fields all vegetation shrivels up and assumes a greyish tint like that of tho soil. 
 But when the equinoctial autumn rains fall in the lowlands, and snows in the 
 mountains, the plants recover rapidly, and a second spring begins. In February 
 vegetation is most luxuriant, but after March heat and dryness again become the 
 order of the day. Indeed, Andalusia suflers from a want of moisture. There are 
 steppes without water, trees, or human habitations, the most extensive being on 
 
 Mean .^nntul RiinlaU. lUinlalL lUii i M l 
 
 Temp. Year. Oct.— March. April— Sept. 
 
 • Gnmada .... 66' F. 48-5 in. 403 in. 8-2 in. 
 
 Se\-ille 68' ., 2G1 „ 231 „ 30 .. 
 
 Gibraltar .... 70' ., 289 „ 203 „ 86 „ 
 
 VOL. I. » U
 
 402 
 
 SPATX. 
 
 tlie Lower Genii, where the depressions are occupied by salt lakes, as in Algeria 
 or Persia, and cultivation is impossible. Another steppe of some extent stretches 
 to the east of Jaen, and is known as that of Mancha Real. The barren tracts on 
 the Mediterranean slopes are relatively even of greater extent than those in the 
 basin of the Gruadalqui'V'ir. The volcanic region of the Sierra de Gata is a complete 
 desert, where castles and towers erected for purposes of defence are the only 
 buildings. Elsewhere the coast is occupied by saline plains, which support a vege- 
 
 Fig. 152. — The Steppes of Ecija. 
 Scalo 1 ; 750,000. 
 
 tation mainly consisting of salsolacese, pliimbaginea?, and cruciferae, five per cent, 
 of the species of which are African. Barilla, the ashes of which are used in the 
 manufacture of soda, grows plentifully there. 
 
 In the popular mind, however, Andalusia has at all times been associated with 
 fertility. Its name recalls the oranges of Seville, the luxuriant vegetation of the 
 Vega of Granada, the " Elysian Fields," and the " Garden of the Hesperides," 
 which the ancients identified with the valley of the Baetis. The indigenous flora 
 entitles Andalusia to its epithet of the " Indies of Spain," and, in addition to
 
 AXD.VLUSIA. 403 
 
 the tropical plants from Asia and Africa which grow there spontaneously, wo meet 
 with others which have been successfully acclimatized. Dates, bananas, and bam- 
 boos grow side by side with caoutchouc-trees, dragon's-blood trees, jiiaguolias, 
 chiriraoyas, erythrinas, azedarachs ; ricinus and stramonium shoot up into 
 veritable trees ; the cochineal cactus of the Canaries and the ground-nut of tho 
 Senegal do well ; %wect potatoes, cotton, and cofleo arc cultivated with success; 
 and the sugar-cane succeeds in sheltered places. Tho coast between Motril and 
 Malaga is supposed to yield annually £20,000 worth of sugar. 
 
 The fauna of Andalusia presents, also, some African features. Tho molluscs 
 met with in Morocco exist likewise in Andalusia ; the ichneumon may be seen on 
 the right bank of the Lower Guadalquivir and elsewhere ; the chameleon is plen- 
 tiful ; and a species of wild goat is said to be common to the mountains of Morocco 
 and the Sierra Nevada. Nor should avo forget to state that an African monkey 
 
 . Fig. 153. — Zones of Vegetation on the Coast or Amjau^ia. 
 
 i»Vof 
 
 
 
 ^ I 
 
 K i 
 
 V 
 
 ■■^■-^-'"^-rr^--^ 
 
 ,._ L«.il or pale n^o» l-""" "^ "™"6' f"" 
 
 (/«K«.s ^jlmnm) stiU lives on the rock of Gibraltar, but whether ho has been 
 imported has not yet been determined. 
 
 In the dawn of European history Andalusia was probably inhabited by an 
 Iberian race akin to that of the Basques. The Bastula:, Bastarntc, and Bastesae, 
 in the Mils facing the Mediterranean, and the Turdetani and Turdiili of the vaUey 
 of the Ba^tis, bore Euskarian names, as did many of their toA.-ns. But even thus 
 early they must have been a mixed race. Celtic tribes held the lUlls extendmg 
 to the north-west of the B^tis, in the direction of Lusitania ; the Turdetani, 
 who were relatively civiHsed, for they possessed written laws, permitted Phoe- 
 nicians, Carthaginians, and Greeks to settle amongst them, and in the end became 
 thorou<>hly Latinised. Municipal charters discovered at Malaga, and more recently 
 at Osi^a {Cohnia JuUa GeuiUca), prove that the cities of this provmce enjoyed a 
 considerable degree of self-government. 
 
 When the Roman world broke down, Southern Spain was invaded by A andal., 
 
 1) 1) 2
 
 404 SPAIN, 
 
 Byzantines, and Visigoths, to whom succeeded Arabs, Berbers, and Jews. The 
 influence exercised upon the country by the Moors — that is, by a mixed race 
 of Arabs and Berbers — has been more abiding than that of their Teutonic 
 predecessors. They maintained themselves for more than seven centuries, were 
 numerous in the towns, and cultivated the fields conjointly with the ancient 
 inhabitants of the country. When the order of exile went forth against their 
 whole race, Moorish blood circulated in the veins of those who were charged with 
 the execution of this harsh measure. In certain portions of Andalusia, and more 
 especially in the Alpuj arras, where the Mooi's maintained their independence until 
 the end of the sixteenth century, the mixture between the two races hud made 
 such progress that religious profession, and not the colour of the skin, decided 
 nationality. Numerous Arabic words and phrases have found their way into the 
 Andalusian dialect, and the geographical nomenclature of many districts is Arabic 
 rather than Iberian or Latin. Most of the large buildings in the towns are akazan, 
 or mosques, and even the style of modern structures is Arabic, modified to some 
 extent by Roman influences. The houses, instead of looking upon the street, face 
 an interior court, or jjffi'/o, where the members of the family meet by the side of 
 a cool fountain. No further ethnical element has been added to the population 
 since the epoch of the Arabs, for the few German colonists who settled at Carolina, 
 Carlota, and elsewhere did not prosper, and either returned to their native country 
 or became merged in the general popidation. 
 
 The Andalusians have frequently been called the Gascons of Sjiain. They are 
 generally of graceful and supple build, of seductive manners, and fiill of eloquence, 
 but the latter is too frequently wasted upon trifles. Though not devoid of bravery, 
 the Andalusian is a great boaster, and his vanity often causes him to pass the 
 bounds of truth. At the same time he is of a contented mind, and does not allow 
 poverty to affect his spirit. The mountaineers differ in some respects from the 
 dwellers in the plains. They are more reserved in their manners, and the 
 Jadanos, or mountaineers of Jaen, are known as the Galicians of Andalusia. 
 The beauty of the highland women is of a more severe type, and, compared with 
 the charming Gaditanes and the fascinating majas of Seville, the women of 
 Granada, Guadix, and Baza are remarkable for an air of haughty nobleness. 
 
 No doubt there are men in Btctica who work, but as a rule love of labour is not 
 amongst the virtues of the Andalusian. The country might become the great 
 tropical storehouse of Europe, but its immense resources remain undeveloped. To 
 some extent this is explained by the fact that nearly the whole country is owned 
 by great landlords. Many estates, which formerly were carefully cultivated, have 
 been converted into sheep-walks, and for miles we meet neither houses nor human 
 beings. The highlands, too, belong to large proprietors, but are leased to small 
 farmers, who pay one-third of their product in lieu of rent. 
 
 The magnificent orange groves of Seville, Sanlucar, and other towns, the olive 
 groves, vineyards, and orchards of Malaga, supply the world with vast quantities 
 of fruit ; its productive corn-fields have made Andalusia one of the great granaries 
 of the world ; but it is mainly its wines which enable it to take a share in inter-
 
 AXDALUSL\. 406 
 
 national commerce. Immense quantities of the wine known as sherry arc grown in 
 the vineyards of Jerez, to the east of Cadiz. Many of the vineyards belong to 
 Englishmen, and merchants of that nation are busily occupied in blending and 
 other operations peculiar to their trade. Several winos, however, maintain their 
 superior character to the present time. Such are the sweet tinlilla of Rota, 
 manzanilla, and pajavate, made from dried grapes. lu spite of many malpractices, 
 this branch of industry has exercised a most beneficial influence upon the character 
 of the population. Santa Maria, on the Bay of Cadiz, is one of the great wine 
 ports of the world, and Spain has become a formidable rival of its northern 
 neighbour.* 
 
 The ancient manufacturing industry of the country can hardly be said to exist 
 any longer, but mining is still carried on. Strabo exaggerates the mineral 
 wealth of the country, which is nevertheless very great. Nearly all the pro- 
 ductive mining districts of Southern Spain are in the hills. The Sierra do 
 Ga4or is said to contain " more metal than rock." Hundreds of argentiferous 
 lead, copper, and iron mines have been opened there, and in the sierras of 
 Guadix, Baza, and Almeria. K^ear Linares, on the Upper Guadalquivir, there are 
 lead mines yielding about 210,000 tons annually. The silver mines of Constantina 
 and Guadalcanal, in the Sierra Morena, are being worked only at intervals. The 
 coal basins of Belmcz and Espiel, to the north of Cordova, promise to become of 
 great importance, although the output at present hardly exceeds 200,000 tons a 
 year. Deposits of iron and copper exist near them. 
 
 But of all the mines of Spain those situated in the province of Iluelva are 
 the most productive. The Silurian rocks there are wonderfully rich in pyrites of 
 copper. The mines of Eio Tinto strike the beholder by their stupendous extent ; 
 and the existence of ancient galleries, buildings, and inscriptions proves that they 
 have been worked since the most remote time. The invasion of the Vandals 
 temporarily put a stop to the work, which was only resumed va. 1730. The two 
 principal deposits have been computed to contain no less than 300,000,000 tons 
 of ore. The deposits at Tharsis are much less extensive, but within easier reach 
 of Huelva. They contain 14,000,000 tons of iron and copper pyrites, and are 
 worked like an open quarry. The deposit is no less than 450 feet in thickness, 
 and some of the ores yield twenty per cent, of copper. Immense heaps of scoria; 
 have accumulated near the mine, where they are bedded in regukr strata dating 
 back to the time of the Carthaginians. The sulphurous vapours rising from 
 hundreds of furnaces poison the air and destroy the vegetation. The rivers Odiel 
 and Eio Tinto run with ferruginous water which kills the fish ; yellow ochre 
 is thrown up along their banks ; and in their estuary is precipitated a blackish 
 mud consisting of the metal mixed with the sulphur of decomposed marine 
 animals, t 
 
 • Export of wine from Cadiz and Santa Maria :-l!5JS, 3,597,000 gaUons; 1862, 5,115,000 gaUons; 
 1673, 10,446,480 gallons, valued at £2,937,000. 
 
 t In 1873 600.000 tons of pyrites were exported from the district of Hmlra, of wluih 340,000 tons 
 came from the mine of Tharsis.
 
 406 
 
 SPAIN. 
 
 Andalusia, though a desert in comparison with what it might be, rivals Italy 
 in the fame and beauty of its cities. The names of Granada, Cordova, Seville, 
 and Cadiz awaken in our mind the most pleasing memories, for these old Moorish 
 towns have become identified with a great advance in arts and science. 
 
 Fig. loi. — The Mines of Huelva. 
 Scale 1 : 487,300. 
 
 Their advantageous geographical position accounts for their prosperit}', past 
 and present. Cordova and Seville command the fertUe plain of the Guadalquivir, 
 and the roads crossing the gaps of the neighbouring mountains converge upon 
 them ; Granada has its plentiful supply of water and rich fields ; Huelva, Cadiz,
 
 -VNDALUSIA. 407 
 
 Mdiaga, aud Almcria are considerable seaports ; aud Gibraltar occupies a command- 
 ing position between two seas. There are other towns less populoiui, but of 
 great strategical importance, as they command the roads joining the valleys of the 
 Genii and Guadalquivir to the sea. 
 
 Amongst the smaller towns which have played a part in history are .several to 
 the east of Granada, such as Velez Rubio and Velez Blanco, on the Mcditerrancim 
 slope; CuUar de Baza, with its subterranean houses excavated in the gypsum, on 
 the western slope of the Vcrfienfc9, or " the water-shed ; " Huescar, tho heir of an 
 old Carthaginian city ; and Baza, environed by a fertile plain known as lloi/fi, 
 or "the hollow." 
 
 Granada, though it celebrates the anniversary of the entrance of Ferdinand 
 and Isabella, is a very inferior place to what it was as the capital of a Moorish 
 kingdom, when it had 60,000 houses and 400,000 inhabitants, and was tho busiest 
 aud wealthiest town of the peninsula. It is still the sixth city of Spain, but 
 thousands of its ragged inhabitants live in hideous dens, and close to the picturesque 
 suburb of .lUbaicin a mob largely composed of gipsies has settled down in nauseous 
 caverns. Remains of ^Moorish buildings are met with only in the suburb named, but 
 at some distance from the city there still exist edifices which bear witness to the 
 glorious reign of its ancient masters. The Toms Vcnnejus, or " red towers," 
 occupy a hill to the south ; tho Generallfe, with its delightful gardens, crowns 
 another hill farther east ; and between both rise the bastions and towers of the 
 AJhamhra, or "red palace," even in its pi-esent dilapidated condition one of 
 the masterpieces of architecture, which has served as a pattern to generations 
 of artists. From the towers of this magnificent building we enjoy a prospect 
 which indeliblv impresses itself upon the memory. Granada, with its towers, 
 parks, and villas, lies beneath. The course of the two rivers, Genii and Darro, 
 can be traced amidst the foliage, whilst naked hills bound the verdant plain 
 of La Vega, which has been likened to an " emerald enchased in a sapphire." 
 The contrast between these savage mountains and the fertile plain, between tho 
 beautiful city and precipitous rocks, struck the Moors with admiration, for they 
 saw reflected in them their own nature — an outward impassiveness and a hidden 
 fire. Granada, to them, was the " Queen of Cities," the " Damascus of the "West." 
 Xor are the modern Spaniards behind them in their admiration of Granada and 
 its vicinitj-. 
 
 There are other beautiful towns in the basin of the Genii, but none can com- 
 pare with Granada, not even Loja, a " flower in the midst of thorns," an oasis 
 surrounded by rugged rocks and savage defiles. Jaen, however, almost rivals 
 Granada. It, too, was the seat of a powerful Moorish king, the hills surround- 
 ing it are still crowned with the ruins of fortifications buried beneath luxuriant 
 foliage, and the aspect of the town remains oriental to this day. 
 
 The upper valley of the Guadalquivir abounds in cities. Baeza had more than 
 150,000 inhabitants in the time of the Moors, but wars depopulated it, many of 
 the people removing to Granada. Close by is Ubeda, another Moorish town. 
 Higher up in the hills is the mining town of Linares, hardly largo enough to
 
 408 SPAIN. 
 
 shelter 8,000 residents, but actually Inhabited by 40,000. In descending the 
 river we pass Andiijar, famous on account of its alcarrazas, and about twenty miles 
 below the town of Montoro we reach the marble bridge of Alcolea, celebrated 
 for the many battles which have been fought for its possession. 
 
 Cordova dates back to the dawn of civilisation. It has been famous and 
 powerful at all times, and the Spanish noblemen are proud of tracing their 
 origin back to this fountain-head of the " blue blood" (sangre azuJ) which is sup- 
 posed to flow in the veins of Spanish nobles. It was under the Moors that 
 Cordova reached the apogee of its grandeur ; from the ninth century to the close 
 
 Fiff. loj. — The Alhameea. 
 
 of the twelfth it had nearly a million of inhabitants ; and its twenty-four suburbs 
 spread far and wide over the plain and along the lateral valleys. The wealth of 
 its mosques, palaces, and private houses was prodigious ; but, more glorious still, 
 Cordova could boast of being the "nursery of science," for it was the gi-eatest 
 university of the world, abounding in schools and Libraries. Civil wars, foreign 
 invasions, and religious fanaticism led to the dispersion of its libraries, and 
 Cordova can no longer boast of being the first city of Andalusia. Most of the old 
 monuments have perished, but there still exists the marvellous mczquita, or mosque, 
 built at the close of the eighth century by Abder-rahmau and his son. The
 
 AXDATA'SIA. 409 
 
 interior was fitted up in the most lavish manner, the floors being paved with silver, 
 aud the walls covered with gold, precious stones, ivory, and ebony, but a con- 
 siderable portion of the building has been pulled down to make room for a Spanish 
 cathedral. 
 
 The more fertile districts of the province of Cordova aro at some distance from 
 the Guadalquivir, in the hills to the south. Montilla, ono of the towns there, is 
 potcd for its wines, as are Aguilar, Baena, Cabra, and Lucena, the latter boasting 
 likewise of some manufactures. Between Cordova and Seville, a distance of over 
 ninety miles, following the sinuosities of the river, we do not meet with a single 
 town of note, for even Palma del Rio, at the mouth of the Genii, is only a small 
 place, though of some importance as the outlet of Ecija, a large town higher up the 
 GenQ. 
 
 Seville, the reigning queen of Andalusia, boasts of a few remarkable buildings, 
 including the alcazar, a gorgeous cathedral, and the palace known as " Pilate's 
 House," in which the Renaissance is admirably wedded with the iloorish style. 
 But more famous than either of these is Oiralda's Tower, with the saint's revolving 
 statue on the top, like a weathercock. But neither these buildings nor Murillo's 
 fine paintings have won Seville its epithet of "Enchantress." For this it is 
 indebted to its gaiety and to a succession of fetes, amongst which bull-fights figure 
 prominently. Seville became Spanish about the middle of the thirteenth century. 
 Its citizens vallantlj- defended their municiiwl liberties against the King of Castile, 
 but they were defeated, and most of its inhabitants then fled to Barbary. The 
 town was repeopled by Christian emigrants. Triana, however, a suburb with 
 which an iron bridge connects it, is inhabited by gipsies, whose secret tribunal 
 has its seat there. A short distance to the north of Triana are the ruins of the 
 amphitheatre of Italica, the old rival of Seville, and the native town of Silius 
 Italicus, and of the Emperors Trajan, Hadrian, and Theodosius. Coria, another 
 Roman city, which had its own mint during the Middle Ages, lies below Seville. 
 
 Seville has numerous potteries, but its silks and .stuffs interwoven with gold 
 and silver have ceased to command the markets of the world. The largest manu- 
 factory of the place, that of tobacco and cigars, is carried on by Government, and 
 employs several thousand workmen. 
 
 Alcala de Guadaira, to the south-east of Seville, supplies the latter with bread, 
 and its delicious springs feed the aqueduct known as Arcos de Carmona, thus 
 called because it runs parallel with the old Roman road leading to Carmona 
 (Carmo). 
 
 The towns to the south of Seville arc no longer of importance. Utrera, the 
 most considerable amongst them, is a great railway centre, where the line to 
 the marble quarries of Moron, and that passing through the fertile districts of 
 Marchena and Osuna, branch off from the Andalusian main line. The town is 
 well known to aficionados, or sportsmen, on account of the wild bidls which pasture 
 in the neighbouring marinmas. Lebrija, with its fine tower imitated from that of 
 Giralda, is still nearer to these marshes, which extend almost to the mouth of the 
 Guadalquivir.
 
 410 SPAIN. 
 
 Sanliicar de Barrameda, at the mouth of the Guadalquivir, mth its white and 
 pink houses shaded by palms, is not now the great port it was in the time of the 
 Arabs. It may justly boast of having sent forth, in 1519, the first vessel which 
 circiimnavigated the globe, but it is now rather a pleasure resort than a place of 
 commerce. Jerez de la Frontera, in the basin of the Guadalete, is the busiest 
 town between Seville and Ciidiz. It is a neat and showy place, surrounded by 
 immense bodegas, or wine vaidts, in which are stored the wines grown in the fertile 
 valley of Guadalete, and known as sherry. Near Arcos de la Frontera, in the 
 upper part of the valley, is pointed out the site upon which was fought the famous 
 battle which delivered Spain to the Mussulmans. 
 
 The Bay of Cadiz, so well sheltered against winds and waves by the tongue of 
 land which begins at the island of Leon, is surrounded by numerous towns, 
 forming, as it were, but a single city. Eota, on the northern coast of the bay, is 
 encircled by walls of Cyclopean aspect. It is the resort of fishermen, and its 
 vintners, though reputed Boeotians, produce one of the best wines of Spain. 
 Farther south, at the mouth of the Guadalete, is the Puerto de Santa Maria, with 
 its wine stores, at all times a bustling place. Puerto Eeal, the Portus Gaditanus, 
 lies in a labyrinth of brackish channels, and is now merely a landiug-place. The 
 neighbouring dockyard, known as Trocadcro, and the arsenal of Carraca, are fre- 
 quently inhabited only by galley-slaves and their gaolers. The salt-pans near that 
 place are most productive. 
 
 San Fernando is the most important town on the island of Leon, to the south 
 of Cadiz. The initial meridian of Spanish mariners is drawn through its observa- 
 tory. Looking across the navigable channel of San Pedro, which separates the 
 island from the main, we perceive the villas of Chiclana, famous as the training- 
 place of the toreros^ ov bull-fighters, of Andalusia. Turning to the north, we reach 
 the narrow ridge of the Arrecife, which may be likened to a stalk with Cadiz as 
 its expanded flower. Boatmen point out the supposed ruins of a temple of 
 Hercules, now covered by the sea ; and thus much is certain, that the land is at 
 present subsiding, though this subsidence must have been preceded by an \ipheaval, 
 as the peninsula upon which Cadiz has been built rests upon a foimdation of shells, 
 oysters, and molluscs. 
 
 We pass several forts, cross the ramparts of the Cortadura, erected in 1811, 
 and at length fhid ourselves in the famous city of Cadiz, the heir of the Gadir of 
 the Phoenicians, called Gadira b}^ the Greeks, and Gades by the Romans. Cadiz 
 was the leading city of Iberia when that country first became Icnown. Like other 
 cities, it has known periods of decay, but its great geographical advantages have 
 always enabled it to recover quickly. It is the natural outlet of an extensive and 
 fertile region, and its position near the extremity of the continent enables it suc- 
 cessfully to compete with Lisbon for the trade of the New "World. Palos may 
 boast of having sent forth the caravclas which discovered the "West Indies, but it 
 was Cadiz which reaped all the advantages of this discovery, more especially 
 since the Tribunal of the Indies was transferred to it from Seville (1720). In 
 1792 Cadiz exported merchandise valued at £2,500,000 sterling to America,
 
 .\XD.VLUSIA. 
 
 Fig. 156. (.'WU. AND ITS ItoAllSTUI). 
 
 ■Jll 
 
 Scsl« of I ; 1(0000 
 
 B3 (Foods tKi! SaU. farj 
 
 ^F?nArr.-J.->=t. tZ^j/^, Ctimt, it
 
 412 - SPAIN. 
 
 and received precious metals and other articles of a value of £7,000,000 in 
 return. Soon afterwards Spain paid for a commercial monopoly maintained 
 during three centuries by the sudden loss of her colonies, and Cadiz found itself 
 dependent upon its fisheries and salt-pans. But recently fortune has again smiled 
 upon the city, and its harbours are crowded with merchantmen.* Cadiz, with the 
 towns surrounding its bay, has a population of 200,000 souls. The site of the city 
 proper is limited by nature, and its houses have been built to a height of five and 
 six stories. The inhabitants are fond of pleasure, vivacious, and quick at repartee. 
 They have at all times shown themselves to be good patriots, and it was on the 
 island of Leon that the Cortes met to protest against the occupation of the country 
 by the French. 
 
 Almeria, on the Mediterranean coast of Andalusia, rivalled Cadiz in importance 
 as long as it remained in the possession of the Moors, but prosperity fled the place 
 immediately the Spaniards occupied it. Subsequently the town sufiered greatly 
 from the pirates of Barbary, as is proved by the fortress-like cathedral built in the 
 sixteenth century. The aspect of the place, with its narrow streets and old kasha, 
 is quite oriental. 
 
 The towns to the west of Almeria have a tropical climate and tropical produc- 
 tions. Dailas, said to be the first permanent settlement of the Arabs, is famous for 
 its raisins ; to it succeed Adra, at the mouth of the Rio Grande of Alpujarra, 
 Motril, Velez Malaga, and Malaga, embosomed in gardens watered by the 
 Guadalmedina. 
 
 Malaga, like most of the ports on that coast, is of Phojnician origin, and the 
 most populous town of Andalusia. Less rich than Granada, Cordova, and 
 Seville in Moorish monuments, or than Cadiz in historical traditions, it is indebted 
 to its port and to the fertile country surroimding it for its commercial pre- 
 eminence. Its exports, consisting of raisins (jxtsas), almonds, figs, lemons, oranges, 
 wine, olive oil, &c., are the product of the immediate vicinity. There are foundries, 
 sugar refineries, and factories. Seen from the sea, the cathedral appears to be 
 almost as large as the rest of the town, but in the latter must be included not 
 only the houses standing at the foot of the citadel of Gibralfaro, but also the 
 numerous villas dotting the surrounding hills. Nay, even the picturesque towns 
 and watering-places in the neighbouring mountains, such as Alora, Alhaurin, 
 Carratraca, and Alhama, may be looked upon as dependencies of the city, for 
 scarcely any but MalagueTios resort to them. 
 
 Antequera and Ronda, in the interior of the countrj^, belong to the basin of 
 the Mediterranean, for the one stands on the Guadalhorce, which enters the sea 
 near Malaga, whilst the other occupies a position in the upper basin of the 
 Guadiaro, which washes the foot of the hills of San Roque, to the north of 
 Gibraltar. Antequera is one of the most ancient towns of Spain, and acts as an 
 intermediary between Malaga and the valley of the Guadalquivir. On a hill near 
 it stands a curious dolmen, twenty feet in height, known as Cucva del Mcngal. 
 
 • In 1874 3,639 vessels, of 616,060 tons burden, entered ; the imports had a vahiu of £033,700, the 
 exports (consisting for the most part of wine) of £3,116,000.
 
 ANPAIXSIA. 
 
 418 
 
 The picturesque ^roorisli town of Ronda is surrounded on thr«e sides by a gorge 
 600 feet in deptli, 120 to 300 feet wide, and spanned by three bridges, ono Roman, 
 one Arab, and the last (buUt 1740-88) .Spanish. 'Rouda still i^ossesses some 
 
 Fig. 157.— G111R.VLTAB. 
 ivailc 1 : ISO.aX). 
 
 V>" 
 
 r-7-1 
 
 -^■^- 
 
 i^. S.fclibc 
 
 r.JLKAi.V \1 
 
 
 strategical importance, for it defends the road leading from the valley of the Genii 
 to that of the Guadiaro. The BoiuhJios are noted for the skill with which they 
 train horses for mountain travel. They are notorious smugglers, as arc also many
 
 414 SPAIN. 
 
 of the iuhabitants of the small seaport towns of Marbella, Estepona, and Algeciras, 
 near Gibraltar.* 
 
 The rock of Gibraltar, of which the English obtained possession in 1704, has 
 not only been converted into a first-rate fortress, but is likewise a busy place of com- 
 merce. Gibraltar produces nothing except a little fruit, and most of its provisions, 
 including meat and corn, are imported from Tangiers, in Morocco. The inhabit- 
 ants of the town are dependent for their support upon passing vessels, the English 
 garrison, and a brisk contraband trade with Spain. Gibraltar affords very indif- 
 ferent shelter, and only one-fourth of the vessels jDassiug through the strait call 
 there, and even these generally confine themselves to replenishing their stock of 
 coal. Nor is a residence on this picturesque rock very pleasurable, for fevers 
 prevail, and the militarj' character of the place entails numerous restrictions. 
 During the heat of summer many of the English residents — facetiously called 
 " lizards of the rock " — seek refuge at San Roque, a village to the north of the 
 bay, the neighbourhood of which affords excellent sjjort.t 
 
 IV. — The Mediterranean Slope of the Great Plateau. 
 MrRfL\ AND Valencia. J 
 
 In a few hours we are able to travel from the inhospitable jDlateaux to the hot 
 valleys and plains of Murcia and Valencia debouching upon the Mediterranean. 
 
 The spurs from the Sierra Nevada, which approach the coast to the north of 
 the Cabo de Gata, are separated by ramhlas, or torrent beds, and gradually decrease 
 in height as we proceed north. Tlie torrent of Almanzora separates the Sierra do 
 los Filabros from its northern continuation, the Sierra de Almenara, which for a 
 considerable distance runs parallel with the coast. It sends out a spur in the 
 direction of Cartagena, which terminates in Cabo de Palos. The inland ranges 
 run almost parallel with this coast range, and are separated by longitudinal valleys 
 opening out into the great transverse one of the Segura. These ranges are the 
 Sierra de Maria, "el Gigante" (4,918 feet), with the Sierra de Espuua (5,190 feet), 
 the Sierra de Taibilla, the Calar del Mundo (5,440 feet), and the Sierra do Alcaraz 
 
 * Approximate population of the principal towns of Andalusia : — 
 
 Cadiz, 6-2,000 ; Jerez, 35,000 ; Cliiclana, 22,000 ; Puerto de Santa Maria, 18,000 ; San Fernando, 
 18,000; Saulucar do Barramcda, 17,000; Puerto Real, 14,000; Arcoa de la Frontera, 12,000; Algeciras, 
 18,000 ; Medina Sidonia, 10,.500. 
 
 Huelva, 10,000. 
 
 Se-s-illc (Se\-ma), 80,000 ; Ecija, 24,000; Carmona, 18,000; Osuna, 16,000; Utrera, 14,000; Lebrija, 
 12,000 ; Marchena, 12,000. 
 
 Cordova, 45,000; Lucena, 16,000; Montilla, 15,500; Montoro, 12,000; Aguilar, 12,000; Baena, 
 14,500; Cabra, 11,500. 
 
 Jaen, 18,000; Linares, 40,000; Fbeda, 15,000; Baeza, 15,000; Alcali la Real, 11,500; Andi'ijar, 
 9,500. 
 
 Granada, 65,000 ; Loja, 15,000; Motril, 13,500 ; Baza, 13,500. 
 
 Malaga, 92,000 ; Antequera, 30,000 ; Velez Malaga, 15,000 ; Ronda, 14,000. 
 
 Abneria, 27,000 ; Velez Rubio, 13,000. 
 
 t Gibraltar in 1871 had 16,454 inhabitants, exclusive of the military; its annual revenue exceeds 
 £40,000, and the burden of the vessels which enter and clear annually amounts to 3,500,000 tons. 
 X Murcia .... 10,450 square miles. 060,040 inhabitants, or 63 to a sq. m. 
 
 Valencia . . . .8,890 „ 1,401,833 „ 158 „
 
 1 
 
 I
 
 MCHCIA AND VAI.ENCIA. . 415 
 
 (5,910 feet). The ranges to tlio nortli and east of the Segura must be looked upon 
 as continuations of those mentioned. They attain their greatest altitude in the 
 Moncabrer (4,543 feet), and their spurs form several notable promontories, amongst 
 which are the volcanic Pefion do Ifacli and the Cabos de la Xao and San Antonio. 
 Near the latter rises the Mongo ('^,337 feet), which has become known as a crucial 
 trigonometrical station. 
 
 The mountains which dominate the valley of the Jucar present the feature of 
 a denuded plateau, above which rise a few isolated summits. The aspect of the 
 basin of the Guadalaviar is far more moimtainous. On the west it is bounded 
 by the sierras having their nucleus in the Mucla do San Juan (5,280 feet), and to 
 the east rise the imposing mountain masses of the Javalambre (G,5G9 feet) and 
 Pena Golosa ( ,942 feet). The sunmiits of the range which extends from tho 
 latter to the great bend of the Lower Ebro, such as the Muela de Ares (4,332 feet), 
 the Tosal de Encanades (4,565 feet), and Bosch de la Espina (3,868 feet), bear 
 Catalan names. A range of inferior heights runs parallel with it along the coast, 
 the interval between the two forming a strath, or vale. This coast range termi- 
 nates abruptly in the Sierra de Montsia (2,500 feet), close to the delta of the Ebro, 
 and before the pent-up waters of the river had excavated themselves a path to the 
 sea it extended right to the Pyrenees. 
 
 All these mountains are for the most part naked, and shrubs appear lilco black 
 patches upon their whitish slopes. They stand out clearly against the blue and 
 limpid sky, whose transparency has won ilurcia the title of the " most serene 
 kingdom." The climate in the valley of the Segura is even more African in its 
 character than that of Andalusia. There are only two seasons, summer and 
 winter, the latter lasting from October to January, but the temperature throughout 
 the year is equable, owing to the mistral which blows from the cool plateau 
 and the sea breezes. 
 
 The flora, especially along the coast of Murcia, is a mixture of tropical and 
 temperate plants. There are trees which shed their leaves in winter, others which 
 retain their foliage throughout the year, and by the side of wheat, rice, maize, 
 olives, oranges, and grapes are grown cotton, sugar-cane, sweet potatoes, nopals, 
 agaves, and dates. Tropical diseases have found a congenial soil in this country. 
 Yellow fever has been imported occasionally from America. . The putrefying 
 substances left upon the fields after floods poison the air, and the brackish waters 
 of the lagoons, or olhufcras, are the breeding-places of fever. The salt lakes to tho 
 south of the Segura, however, exercise no deleterious influence upon the climate. 
 
 Nowhere else in Spain is the rainfall so inconsiderable. Between Almeria and 
 Cartagena only eight inches fall during the year; in the environs of Alicante and 
 Elche the rains are, perhaps, a trifle more copious ; and at Murcia and Valencia, 
 which lie at the foot of mountains that intercept the moisture-laden winds, they 
 are more abundant still, though even there they do not exceed eighteen inches. 
 Moreover, most of the rain is immediately absorbed by the thirsty air, and only a 
 very small quantity finds its way through ramhha to the sea. The quantity is alto- 
 gether insufficient for agricultural purposes, and if it were not for tho rivers tho
 
 418 
 
 SPAIN. 
 
 The people of Murcia cannot be said to have issued victoriously from the struggle 
 against barren rocks, desiccating winds, and a dry atmosphere. They abandon 
 themselves to a fatalism quite oriental, and make hardly any effort at improvement. 
 Lazily inclined, they take their siesta in and out of time, and even when awake 
 preserve an aspect of impassiveness as if they pursued a reverie. Thej' are not 
 much given to gaiety, and, though neighbours of Andalusia and La Mancha, do 
 not dance. They are fidl of rancour and savage hatred when oS'ended, and have 
 
 Fip;. 159. — The Palm Gkoye of Elche. 
 
 exercised but small influence upon the destinies of Spain. They cannot compare in 
 industry with Catalans, Navarrese, and Galicians, nor in Intelligence with natives 
 of any other part of Spain. The Valencians, on the other hand, are an industrious 
 race. They not only cultivate their plains, but scale the barren slopes of the rocks 
 with their terraced gardens. They are a gay people, famous for their dances. 
 Ferocious instincts are asserted to underlie this outward gaiety, and a proverb says 
 that " the paradise of La Huerta is inhabited by demons," Human Life is held very
 
 \. Ll ^AL„\ L.S.
 
 MUECIA AN1» VALENCIA. 
 
 410 
 
 cheaply at Valencia. Formerly that town supplied the courtiers of l^Iadrid with 
 hired assassins, and the numerous crosses in and around it are evidence of so many 
 murders committed in the heat of passion. In Valencia, however, the use of tlie 
 knife is a tradition of chivalry, as are duels in some other parts of ICurope. The 
 conscience of the murderer is perfectly at ease; he wipes the blood-stained knife 
 upon his girdle, and immediately afterwards cuts his bread with it. The dress of 
 the Valencians consists of loose drawers conKned round the waist by a red or violet 
 scarf, velvet waistcoats with pieces of silver, white linen gaiters leaving the knees 
 and ankles bare, a bright kerchief wrapped round the shaved head, and a low hat 
 
 Tig. IGO. — Tire Taim Gkove of Elciie ank tut IIiEitTAs oi- Ouiiuela. 
 Scale 1 : 400,000. 
 
 O'l»nv,iio 
 
 with brim turned up and ornamented with ribbons. A many-coloured cloak with 
 a broad fringe completes this costume, and, draped in it, even the meanest beggar 
 possesses an air of distinction. In their customs and modes of thought the 
 Valencians differ equally from their neighbours. They speak a Provencal dialect, 
 mixed with many Arabic words, but more closely related to the language of the 
 troubadours than the dialect of the Catalans. 
 
 Agriculture is the leading pursuit of Valencia and Murcia, and a few branches 
 of industry are carried on. ilany hands are occupied in making the white wines 
 of Alicante and the red ones of Vinaroz and Benicarlo ; the grapes of the vine- 
 yards of Dcnia, Javea, and Gandia, to the north of Cabo do la Nao, are converted 
 
 E E 2
 
 420 
 
 SPAIN. 
 
 by a complicated process into raisins-; and the esparto r/rass growing abundantly on 
 the sunny slopes of Albacete and Murcia is employed in the manufacture of mats, 
 baskets, sandals, and a variety of other objects.* There are hundreds of metal- 
 liferous lodes, but only the lead mines in the hills of Herrerias, to the east of 
 Cartagena, are being worked on a large scale, and that by foreigners. Zinc has 
 been worked since 1861, and mines of copper, lead, silver, mercury, and rock-salt 
 
 Fifr. 161. — Rrixs of the Dyke of the PiEseiitoir above Lorca. 
 
 abound at some distance from the coast ; but, from want of means of communication, 
 their exploitation would not pay. 
 
 Valencia is the more industrial province of the two. Albacete manufactures 
 the dreaded iianijas, or long knives; Murcia has silk-mills; Cartagena rope-walks 
 and other establishments connected with shipping ; Jativa has a few paper-mills ; 
 but Valencia and Alcoy are now the great centres of industry. The former manu- 
 
 * 82,000 tons of esparto grass are estimated to have been collected in 1873, of which 07,000 tons -srere 
 exported to England.
 
 MUECIA AND VALENCIA. 421 
 
 factures the pluids worn by the peasantry, silks and liucns, eurtheuwuro uud 
 Fig. 162. — Pkasa-nts op SIiucu. 
 
 glazed tilcj. A. -,, .-upplies most of the paper for making Spanish cigarettes.
 
 422 SPAIN. 
 
 The towns of Albacete and Almansa are important, as lying on the great high- 
 road which connects the plateau of La Mancha with the Mediterranean seahoard- 
 But they cannot vie in wealth and population with the towns situated on the coast, 
 or within twenty-five miles of it. Lorca, the southernmost of these towns, lies 
 picturesquely on the slopes and at the foot of a hill crowned by a Moorish citadel. 
 The old town, with narrow tortuous streets and the remains of Arab palaces, has 
 been "iven iip to Gitanos, and a new town with wide and straight streets built 
 in the fertile plain irrigated by the Guadalentin. A fine road joins Lorca to the 
 small harbour of Aguilas, twenty miles to the south. 
 
 In descendino- the valley of the Guadalentin we pass Totana, the head-quarters 
 of the Gitanos of the country, and Alhama, well known on account of its hot 
 springs, and finally enter the mulberry and orange groves which surround the 
 capital of the province. Murcia, though an extensive city, hardly looks like it, for 
 its streets are deserted, its houses without beauty, and the only objects of interest 
 are the cathedral, the shady walks along the banks of the Segura, and the canals 
 irrio-ating the terrace gardens. Far more interesting is the neighbouring Carta- 
 gena, which was destined by its Punic founders to become a second Carthage 
 in truth, and its magnificent harbour certainly affords great advantages for com- 
 mercial and military purposes. The discovery of the rich lead and silver mines 
 near the town contributed much towards its prosperity. Successive Spanish 
 Governments have attempted to restore to Cartagena its ancient strategical impor- 
 tance. They have constructed docks and arsenals, and erected impregnable 
 fortifications, but, in spite of this, tlie population of the town is hardly a third of 
 what it was in the middle of the eighteenth century. The character of its 
 commerce is almost local, notwithstanding its excellent port, and esparto grass, 
 mats, fruits, and ore constitute the leading articles of export. 
 
 Alicante, though far less favoured by nature, is a much busier place, thanks to 
 the fertility of the huertas of Elche, Orihuela, and Alcoy, and the railway which 
 connects it with Madrid. Only small vessels can approach the quays and piers of 
 the town, nestling at the foot of a steep rock crowned by a dismantled citadel. 
 Laro-er vessels are compelled to anchor in an open roadstead. Other coast towns 
 of Valencia, such as Denia and CuUera, offer still less shelter, but are nevertheless 
 much frequented by coasting vessels. Formerly vessels which entered the Bay 
 of Valencia during winter were bound to exercise the greatest caution, owing to 
 violent easterly and north-north-easterly winds and fogs, for there existed not 
 a single port of refuge. This want has now been supplied by the construction 
 of a port at the mouth of the Guadalaviar, known as El Grao (strand) de Valencia. 
 Valencia, the fourth city of Spain in population, is the natural centre of the 
 most fertile huertas. The " City of the Cid " still preserves its crenellated walls, 
 turrets, gates, narrow and tortuous streets, balconied houses, the windows of which 
 are shaded by blinds, and awnings spread over the streets to protect passers-by 
 from the rays of the sun. Amongst its numerous buildings there is but one which 
 is really curious : this is the Lonja de Seda, or silk exchange, a graceful structure 
 of the fifteenth century. Gardens constitute the real delight of Valencia, and
 
 MUECIA AM) VALENCU. 
 
 423 
 
 the Alameda, which extends along the banks of tho Guadaluviur, is, perhaps, iho 
 finest city promenade in Europe. Tlic commerce of Valencia rivals that of Ciidiz.* 
 To the north of Valencia the cultivable country along the coast is narrow, and 
 incapable of supporting large towns. CastoUon do lu I'lana, at the mouth of tho 
 Mijaros, has attained a certain importance, but farther north we only meet with 
 small places inhabited by fishermen and \Ine-growers. Formerly the coast road 
 was defended by castles, chief among which was Saguutum, famous for its glorious 
 
 Fig. 1G3. — The IIakhovu ok Cautaglna. 
 Pcilo t : M.ooo. 
 
 defence against Ilaimibal. Its site is occupied by the modern town of Murviedro, 
 i.e. "old walls," and its ruins are not very imposing.t 
 
 V. — Thk Balearic Islands. 
 The Balearic Islands arc attached to tho mainland of Spain by a submarine 
 
 * Value of exports and imports in 1867, £2,707,000. 
 
 t Population of Ihc principal towns of the Mediterranean slope between Cabo do Gata and tho 
 Ebro :— Valencia, 108,000; Murcia, 55,000 ; Lorea, 40,000; Alicante, 31,000; Cartagena, 25,000; Ori- 
 huela, 21,000; Castellon de la Plana, 20,000; Alcoy, 10,000; Albacoto, 15,000; Jktiva, 13,000; Alcir», 
 13,000 ; AUuiinsa, 9,000.
 
 424 
 
 SPAIN. 
 
 ■ plateau, and are geographically as well as historically a dependency of Valencia 
 and Catalonia. The ranges of hills traversing these islands have the same direction 
 as those of Murcia and Valencia. On the other hand, the peninsula of La Bafia, 
 at the mouth of the Ebro, extends beneath the sea in the direction of Ibiza, and 
 from this submarine tongue of land rises a group of volcanic rocks. These are the 
 Columbretes, from the Latin coliibraria, signifying " serpents' islets." 
 
 The Baleares are small in area, but favoured by climate, productiveness, and 
 natural beauty. They are the " Happy Islands " of the ancients, and, compared 
 with many of the coast lands, are indeed a favoured region. War and pestilence 
 
 Fig. 161.— El Gkao de Valencia. 
 Pca'.e 1 : 18,000 
 
 have been no strangers to them, but continual troubles have not interfered with 
 their development. 
 
 The Islands consist of two groups, the Pityuses, and the Baleares proper. The 
 name of the latter is said to refer to the expertness of the natives as slingers ; and, 
 when Q. Metellus prepared to land upon them, he took care to shelter his men 
 beneath an awning of hides. The climate is moister and more equable than that 
 of neighbouring Spain. Violent storms occur frequently. 
 
 The structures called talayots (watch-towers) prove that the islands were 
 inhabited before the historic epoch. These were built probably by the same race 
 to whom thenuraghi of Sardinia owe their existence; but the present population is 
 a very mixed one, for every nation of antiquity has successively invaded the island.
 
 WOiIE\ OF IBliJA, BALEArac ISLES.
 
 THE BALEAEIC ISLANDS. 425 
 
 The language spoken is a Catalan dialect resembling that of Limousin. The 
 Majorcans are generally small of stature, but well i)rop«rtioued, and the women of 
 some of the districts are fumed for their beauty and expressive features. Tho 
 peasantry are suspicious and thrifty, but honest and hospitablo ; and their dn-ss, 
 consisting of loose breeches, a belt, a bright-coloured vest, and a goatskin cloak, is 
 picturesque. Dancing to the music of a guitar or flute is their favourite amusement. 
 
 luiZA (Iviz.\),the largest island of the Pity usee, is hardly more than fifty miles 
 from Cabo de la Xao. Its surface is liilly and interstvled by numerous torrent beils. 
 Puerto Magno (Porraany, or Grand Port) lies on the west side, and a similar bay, 
 the trysting-pluce of numerous tlshing-smacks, on the south side. On its shore 
 stands the capital of the island, an ancient Carthaginian colony. A chain of islets 
 and rocks, similar to the Adam's Bridge of Ceylon, joins the southernmost cajK; of 
 Iblza to Formentera Island. The climate is said to be so salubrious that neither 
 serpents nor other noxious reptiles can b?ar it. The population is small, in spite of 
 the fertility of the island. "Watch-towers and castles of refuge near every village 
 recall the time when the inhabitants suffered from Moorish pirates. The islanders 
 are happy, for the central Government leaves them pretty nmch to themselves. 
 
 Mai.lorca, or Majorca, the largest of the group, is the only one which can 
 boast of a regular range of mountains rising precipitously along the north-western 
 coast, and cidminating in the twin peaks of Silla de Torrella (4,940 feet) and 
 Puig Mayor (4, 920 feet). These mountains are amongst the most picturesque in 
 all Europe, and from their summits may be enjoyed a magnificent prospect. Tho 
 mouiilon is said still to haunt their pine woods and recesses. The greater portion 
 of the island consists of a plain lying at an elevation of 150 feet above tho sea- 
 level, and dotted over with isolated j>iii(js, or conical pe.iks, surmounted in many 
 instances by an old church or castle. The eastern extremity of the island is hilly, 
 and the Bee de Farruch (1,863 feet) stQl bears its old Arabic name. Xear it are 
 the wonderful stalactite caverns of Arta, which extend beneath the sea. The 
 extremities of the most depressed portion of the island open out towards two great 
 bays, one in the north-east, the other in the south-west. Palma, the capital of tho 
 island, lies on the former of these, though the other, known as Puerto de Alcudia, 
 would offer greater advantages were it not for the pestilential swamps which 
 surround it. On the iron-bound northern coast there arc no harbours, but coast- 
 ing vessels frequent the creek of Soller, whence they export oranges. 
 
 The peasants, or jia'jcic*, of Majorca have the reputation of being good agricul- 
 turists, but much of the progress made is due to Catalan immigrants. The island 
 produces delicious wines (Benisalem), olive oil, oranges, vegetables, and pigs, all 
 of which find a market at Barcelona or in France. The com grown is not, 
 however, sufficient for the support of the population, and Majorcans as well as 
 " Mahonian " gardeners are met w^th in every town of the Mediterranean. Bay- 
 salt is made at Cape Salinas. Shoes, cottons, linens, baskets, and porous vases are 
 produced ; but the manufacture of mnjolica has ceased. Palma is a busy place of 
 40,000 inhabitants, and its bastioned walls, castle, cathedral, and amphitheatrically 
 built houses present a fine appearance from the sea. The inhabitants are proud of
 
 426 
 
 SPAIN. 
 
 their public buildings, and asseri tbat their h)\ja is superior to that of Valencia. 
 The Chudas, or converted Jews, are a curious element of the population. They 
 occupy a separate quarter, marry amongst themselves, and have preserved their 
 race distinctions and mercantile genius. A large portion of the lauded property 
 of the island has passed into their hands. A railway traversing the rich districts 
 of Santa Maria and Benisalem, to the south of the populous towns of Manacor 
 and Felanitx, connects Palma with Alcudia.* 
 
 Menokca, or MiN0KCA, twenty-four miles to the east of Majorca, is generally 
 
 Fig. 165. — ^The Balearic Islands. 
 Scale 1 : 3,700,000. 
 
 '|J- ro 
 
 
 
 
 
 level, its culminating point, Monte Toro, in the centre of the island, only attaining 
 a height of 1,171 feet. The strong northerly winds which sweep over its plains 
 cause the trees to turn their branches in the direction of Africa, and orange-trees 
 find shelter only in the harrancm, or ravines, which intersect them. The climate is 
 less pleasant than that of the neighbouring island, and the soil less fertile, for, 
 consisting for the most part of limestone, it rapidly absorbs the rain. There are 
 two ports and two cities, one at each extremity of the island, which from time 
 
 * Towns of Majorca :— Palma, 40,000; Manacor, 1.5,000; Felanitx, 10,.500; Lluchmayor, 8,800; 
 PoUenza, 8,000 ; Inca^ 8,000; Soller, 8, 000 ; Santania, 8,000.
 
 AB^VGOX AND CATALONIA. 
 
 427 
 
 immemorial have claimed precedence. Ciudadela (7,500 inhubitautsj enjoys the 
 advantage of closer proximity to ilajorca, but its liarbour is bad. I'ort Muhou 
 (15,000 inhabitants), on the other hand, possesses an admirable port, aud .iVudruas 
 Doria says with reference to it that " June, July, and Mahon are the best porta 
 of the Mediterranean." The English made Mahon a wealthy city, but its trade 
 fell off immediately when they abandoned it in 1802. 
 
 Fig. 166. — View or Iuiza. 
 
 VJ. — The Vallf.y of the Ebro. Aragon and Catai.oma. 
 
 The central portion of the valley of the Ebro is as distinctly separated from the 
 remainder of Spain as is that of the Guadalquivir. It forms a vast depression, 
 bounded by the midland plateau of Spain and the Pyrenees, and if the waters of 
 the Mediterranean were to rise 1,000 feet, this ancient lake, which existed until 
 its pent-up waters had forced themselves a passage through the mountuius of
 
 428 
 
 SPAIN. 
 
 Catalonia, would be converted into a gulf of the sea. The Pyrenees in the north, 
 the barren sloj)es of the plateaux to the south and south-west, form well-defined 
 boundaries, but in the norlh-west the plaia of the Ebro extends beyond Aragon, 
 into a country inhabited by men of a different race. 
 
 Fig. 167.— Thb Pityuses. 
 Scale 1 4 1 000 
 
 
 /. (T^JS 'jpUTYZf?// 
 
 \.br r!'Rspaln,^H.> 
 
 >4' 
 
 nistorically and geographically, Aragon and Catalonia form one of the great 
 natural divisions of Spain, less extensive than the Castiles, but hardly less impor- 
 tant, and far more densely populated.* The political destinies of Aragon and 
 Catalonia have been the same for more than seven centuries, but, in spite of this, 
 
 * Catalonia, 12,483 square miles, 1,778,408 inhabitanls; Aragon, 17,676 square miles, 928,718 
 inhabitants.
 
 ARAGOX AXP CATALONIA. 429 
 
 there exist great contrasts, which have not been without their influence upon the 
 character of the popuhition. Aragon, a country of phiins surrounded by moun- 
 tains, is an inhind province, and its inhabitants have remained for the most part 
 herdsmen, agriculturists, and soldiers. Catalonia, on the other hand, possesses an 
 admirable seaboard. Its natural wealth, joined to favourable geographical position, 
 has developed commerce with neighbouring countries, and more especially with 
 Roussillon and Languodoc. Indeed, seven or eight centuries ago, the Catalans 
 were Provencals rather than Spaniards, and in their language and customs they 
 were closely related to the people to the north of (he Pyrenees. 
 
 In the course of the great political revolution, the most terrible feature of 
 which was the war of the Albigenscs, Catalonia became a prey to the Castilians. 
 As long as the Provencal world maintained its natural centre between Aries and 
 Toulouse, the populations of the Mediterranean coasts, as far as the Ebro, Valencia, 
 and the Baleares, were attracted towards it as to their common focus. Those 
 Christian populations who found themselves placed between Provence on the one 
 hand, and the Arab kingdoms on the other, naturally gravitated towards the 
 former, with whom they possessed community of race, religion, and language. 
 Hence the wide range of the idiom known as Limousin, and its flourishing 
 literature. But when an implacable war had converted several towns of the 
 Albigenses into deserts ; when the barbarians of the North had destroyed the 
 civilisation of the South, and the southern slopes of the Cevennes had been reduced 
 by violence to the position of a political dependency of the valley of the Seine, 
 Catalonia was forced to look elsewhere for natural allies. The centre of gravity 
 was shifted from the north to the south, from Southern France to the peninsula of 
 the Pyrenees, and Castile secured what Provence had lost. 
 
 The plateau to the south of the Ebro has been cut up, through the erosive 
 action of rivers, into elongated sierras and isolated muehis (molars), and its edge is 
 marked by numerous notches, through which these rivers debouch upon the plain. 
 The Sierra de San Just (4,967 feet), now separated from that of Giidar by the 
 upper valley of the Guadalupe, is a remnant of this ancient plateau, as are the 
 Sierras de Cucalon (-1,284 feet), de Vicor, and de la Virgen, which join it to 
 the superb mass of the Moncayo, in the north-west ; and the same applies to the 
 Sierra de Almenara (4,087 feet), which rises to the west of them. 
 
 The granitic moimtain mass of the Moncayo (7,705 feet) has offered greater 
 resistance to the erosive action of the waters than have the cretaceous rocks of the 
 plateau to the east of it. The Moncayo is the storm-breeder of the plains of 
 Aragon, and from its summit the Castillan can look down upon the wide valley of 
 the Ebro. To the Aragonese the plateau is accessible only through the valleys 
 of the Guadalupe, Martin, and Jiloca, and it is these which have enabled them to ob- 
 tain possession of the upland of Turuel, wliich is of such strategical importance, from 
 its commanding position between the basins of the Guadahiviar, Jucar, and Tajo. 
 
 To the north of the Ebro rises the snow-clad range of the Pyrenees, which 
 separates Spain from the rest of Europe. Several spurs descend from this master 
 range into Aragon. But there arc also independent ranges, one of which, that of
 
 430 
 
 SPAIN. 
 
 the Bardenas, rises immediately to the north of the Ebro, right opposite to the 
 gigantic Moncayo. The parallel ridges of the CastsUar and of the " district of the 
 Five Towns" form a continuation of these hillocks to the east of the Aiba, and 
 then, crossing the valley of the Gallego, we reach the barren terraces of the 
 Monegros, upon which rises the insular Sierra de Alcubierra, in the very centre 
 of the ancient lake of Aragon. A saddle, elevated only 1,247 feet above the 
 sea-level, connects the latter with the mountains of Huesca in the north. 
 
 Several mountain masses of considerable height occupy the centre of the 
 country, and separate these riverine hills from the main range of the Pyrenees. 
 They consist for the most part of chalk, through which the bounteous rivers 
 
 Fig. ICS.— PoKT Mahon. 
 Scale 1 : 60,000. 
 
 9--\ r 
 
 'X^^^ 
 
 
 
 ^^ VF?^ 
 
 
 >v4 
 
 '4> Sv 
 
 tabo de la Mola 
 
 Cit/.?1 !*> 
 
 "^ -"^^ i tlal i Ksieta 
 
 aclTarco ;&> 
 
 descending from the Pyrenees have excavated their beds. These channels, with 
 their precipices, defiles, and cascades, form one of the most picturesque mountain 
 districts of Spain. The most famous of these Pyrenean foot-hills is the Sierra de 
 la Pena, which is separated from the Pyrenees by the deep valley of the Aragon. 
 At the eastern extremity of this chain, high above the ancient city of Jaca, rises 
 the pyramidal sandstone mass of the Peiia de Oroel (5,804 feet), from which wo 
 are able to embrace an immense horizon, extending from the Pyrenees to the 
 Moncayo. The wild district which occupies the centre of this magnificent pano- 
 rama is the famous country of Sobrarbe, held in high veneration by patriotic 
 Spaniards, for it was there they commenced their struggles against the Moors.
 
 ABAGON AND CATALONIA. 481 
 
 An elevated saddle connects the Sierra do la Pena with the irregular mountain 
 mass of the Sierra de Santo Domingo, to the south of it, whose spurs descend in 
 terraces into the rugged plain of the Five Towns. It is separated hy a narrow 
 cleft, through which passes the Gallego from the Sierra do Guara, which cxtend.s 
 to the river Ciuca in the east, and .several minor chains run parallel with it. This 
 parallelism in the mountain ranges may be traced, likewise, as far as the river Segrc. 
 
 The Monsech, thus called from its arid calcareous ravines, presents the appear- 
 ance of an unbroken rampart from the south, but is intersected at right angles by 
 the gorges of two Nogueras — the Ixibagorzana and I'allarcsa. The I'efia do San 
 Gervas and the Sierra de IJoumort, wliicli rise to the north of it, are much less 
 regular in their contours, but exceed it in height. 
 
 The Pyrenees terminate with the gigantic mountains surrounding the valley of 
 Andorra, and with the Peak of Carlitte (9,583 feet). Tho Sierra del Cadi (8,322 
 feet) belongs to a detached chain hardly inferior to them in height, and culminat- 
 ing on French soil in the superb pyramid of the Canigou (9,140 feet). Numerous 
 spurs extend from this sierra towards tho sea. 
 
 In this rugged mountain region we meet with gcolosicul formations of every 
 age, from the Silurian to tho cretaceous. Iron, copper, and even gold abound, 
 and might be worked with great profit if roads and railways penetrated into tho 
 upper valleys. A coal-field on the Upper Ter, near San Juan do las Abadesas, 
 is being worked very sluggishly, and others on the western slope of tho Cadi 
 have not even been touched. The famous rocks of salt at Solsona and Cardona lie 
 at tho foot of the Sierra del Cadi, and that of Cardona alone, though it has been 
 worked for centuries, is estimated to contain nearly 400,000,000 cubic yards. 
 
 The abundance of mineral veins is due, perhaps, to the existence of subter- 
 ranean lava lakes. The only volcanic hills in the north of Spain arc those near 
 Olot and Santa Pau, in the upper basin of the Fluvia. Immense sheets of basaltic 
 lava have been ejected there during the tertiarj' age from fourteen craters, one of 
 them, upon which stands the old town of CastelfoUit, forming a huge rampart of 
 picturesque aspect. Jets of steam issue even now from many fissures in the 
 rocks. 
 
 The mountains along the coast of Catalonia resemble in every respect those of 
 Valencia, from -n-hicli they arc separated by the gorge of the Ebro. Near tho 
 mouths of that river the rugged and mountainous region extends about thirty miles 
 inland, as far as the Llanos del Urgel ; but farther north it widens, until it finally 
 merges in the spurs descending from the Pyrenees. The principal summits are 
 the Slont Sant (3,513 feet), the Puig de Montagut (2,756 feet), the Monserrat 
 (4,057 feet), and ilonsony (5,27G feet). The best-known passes are at the liead 
 of the Francoli, through which runs the railway from Tarragona to Lerida, the 
 pass at the head of the Noya, and the Pass of Calaf. 
 
 Of the last-named mountains that of Monserrat is the most famous, for 
 suspended upon one of its flanks hang the remains of the celebrated monastery 
 in which Loyola deposited his sword. Monserrat has lost its prestige as a holy 
 place, but still remains one of the most interesting subjects for the study of
 
 432 SPAIN. 
 
 geologists. It consists of conglomerate, and has been worn by atmospheric 
 agencies into innumerable pillars, pinnacles, and earth pyramids surmounted by 
 huge boulders. Hermitages and the ruins of castles abound, and the prospect 
 ftom the highest summit extends from the Pyrenees to the Balearic Isles. 
 
 Crossing the valleys of the Llobregat and Ter, we reach the swampy plain of 
 Ampurdan, an old gulf of the sea, and with it the north-eastern extremity of 
 Spain, separated from France by the Alberes Mountains. The surrounding hills 
 abound in the remains of ecclesiastical buildings. One of these, near Cabo de 
 Creus, the easternmost promontory of Spain, and the Ajihrodision of the ancients, 
 marks tlie site of a temple of Venus. 
 
 The basin of the Ebro forms a huge triangle, the mountains of Catalonia being 
 the base, whilst its apex lies in the hills of Cautabria, close to the Atlantic. The 
 surrounding hills differ much in height, but the nucleus of all consists of granite, 
 upon which have been deposited sedimentary strata, the silent witnesses of the 
 gradual filling up of the old inland lake. The river itself traverses the very centre 
 of this triangle, at right angles to the Mediterranean, and only when it reaches the 
 mountain barrier separating it from the sea does it wind about in search of an outlet. 
 
 The Fontibre, or "fountain of the Ebro," gives birth at once to a considerable 
 stream, which, fed by the snows of the Pena Labra, rushes with great impetuosity 
 past Reinosa (2,687 feet), then passes through a succession of defiles, and finally, 
 having received the Ega and Aragon with the Argo from the north, emerges from 
 Navarra a great river. Below Tudela (800 feet) it is large enough to feed two 
 canals, viz. that of Tauste, which carries fertility into the once-sterile tracts at 
 the foot of Bardenas, and the navigable Imperial Canal, which follows the valley 
 down to Zaragoza. The ordinary volume of the latter amounts to no less than 494 
 cubic feet per second, but much of this water is sucked up by the calcareous soil. 
 
 The tributary rivers which enter the Ebro in the plains of Aragon compensate 
 for the loss sustained through canals of irrigation. The Jalon, Huervn, Martin, 
 and Guadalupe join on the right ; the Arba, Gallego, and Segre on the left. This 
 last is the most important of all, for it drains the whole of the Pyrenean slope 
 from Mont Perdu to the Carlltte. 
 
 The Ebro, after its junction with the Segre, immediately plunges into the 
 coast ranges of Catalonia, and though the fall thence to the sea amounts to 
 183 feet in 95 miles, no rapids or cataracts are met with. The suspended matter 
 brought down by the river has been deposited in the shape of a delta which juts 
 out fifteen miles into the Mediterranean, covers an area of 150 square miles, and 
 abounds in salt marshes, lagoons, and dead river arms. A canal, twenty-two miles 
 in length, connects the harbour of refuge at Alfaques with the Ebro, but is not 
 available for ships of great draught, owing to the bar which closes its mouth. 
 The other embouchures of the river are likewise closed by bars. 
 
 The volume of the Ebro* decreases annually, on account of the increasing 
 
 • Area of the basin of the Ehro, 25,100 square miles; discharge during floods, 175,000 cubic feet; 
 average, 7,100 cubic feet; during summer, 1,750 cubic feet ; annual rainfall, 18 inches; surface drainage, 
 1-4 inches; proportion between the two, 13 : 1.
 
 ABAGON AN!) CATALONIA. 488 
 
 quantities of water which it is called upon to furnish for purposes of irrigation, 
 and sooner or later it will be reduced to the condition of the rivers of Valencia. 
 
 The productiveness of the irrigated fields of Aragon and Catalonia bears 
 witness to the fertility of the soil. Even saline tracts have been converted into 
 gardens. Tropical plants, agaves, cacti, and a few feathery palms on the coast to 
 the south of Barcelona recall the beautiful landscapes of Southern Spain. The 
 valley of the Ebro holds an intermediate position between Murcia and Valencia 
 and the bleak plateau and mountains of the interior ; but water, except in the 
 immediate neighbourhood of the rivers, is nowhere abundant. On some of the 
 hill-tops may be seen houses the walls of which are dyed red, because it was found 
 more economical to mix the mortar with wine than to convey thither water for that 
 purpose. This deficiency of moisture is a great drawback to certain districts in 
 the lower valley of the Ebro. The greater portion of Bardcnas, the Monegros, and 
 the terraces of Calanda are treeless steppes. Cold and heat alternate abruptly, 
 without reference to seasons, and the climate, in spite of the proximity of the sea, is 
 quite continental in its character. The hot winds, so much dreaded on the coast 
 of Catalonia, do not blow from Africa, but from the parched plains of Aragon. 
 
 The climate of Catalonia, owing to the breezes blowing from the Mediterranean, 
 is far more equable than that of Aragon, and to this circumstance, no less than to 
 differences of race and greater facilities for commerce, this province is indebted 
 for its distinct individuality.* 
 
 Catalonia, being open to invasions from the sea as well as by land, has a much 
 more mixed population than its neighbour Aragon. On the other hand, a con- 
 queror once in possession of the latter had but little to fear expulsion at the 
 hands of new-comers, and the Moors maintained themselves in Aragon three 
 hundred years after they had been expelled from Barcelona. 
 
 The inhabitants of the valley of the Ebro are offensively haughty, of sluggish 
 minds, given to old customs and superstitions, but they are at the same time 
 singularly persistent, and their bravery does credit to their Celtiberian ancestors. 
 These fine broad-shouldered men, who follow their donkeys along the high-roads, 
 the head enveloped in a silken kerchief, and the waist confined by a violet-coloured 
 belt, are at all times ready for a fight. Up to the close of last century it was 
 customary to get up fights between villages in mere wantonness, and the rondallas, 
 a term now employed for open-air concerts, scarcely ever terminated without 
 bloodshed. In trifles the Aragonese are as stubborn as in matters of importance, 
 and they are said to " drive in nails with their head." For several centuries the 
 Aragonese struggled with the Moors, and the kings, dependent as thcj' were upon 
 the support of the people, felt constrained to submit to a considerable limitation 
 of their power. It was Philip II. of Castile who suppressed these ancient pro- 
 vincial privileges, and condemned Aragon to lead a life of intellectual stagnation. 
 
 The Catalans are as self-opinionated as their neighbours the Aragonese ; noisy 
 quarrels frequently take place amongst them; but they rarely come to blows. They 
 
 • Zaragoza : — Mean temperature, 61°; extremes, 106' and 21'; difference, 85'; rainfall, 13-G inches. 
 E.ireelona : — Mean tonpeiature, 63'; extremes, 88' and 32'; difference, 56°; rainfall, 15-7 inches. 
 VOT.. I. F F
 
 434 SPAIX. 
 
 are said to be less firm of character than the Aragonese, yet they succeeded in 
 maintaining their provincial independence much longer. Few towns have stood 
 more sieges than Barcelona, and fewer still have offered a more vaKant defence. 
 The Catalans are undoubtedly industrious. They have not only converted the 
 irrigable valleys facing the sea into gardens, but have likewise attacked the arid 
 mountains, and, by triturating the rocks and carrying thither soil from the plain, 
 have made them produce grapes, olives, and corn. Hence the proverb, "A 
 Catalan can turn stones into bread." Agriculture, however, does not wholly 
 supply the wants of so dense a population, and Barcelona with its suburbs has 
 become a huge manufacturing centre, where cottons, woollens, and other textile 
 fabrics, hardware, chemical preparations, glass, paper, and various articles are pro- 
 duced. The proviuce of Barcelona is the chief seat of the cotton industry in Spain, 
 and fully deserves to be called the Spanish Lancashire.* The Catalans are a 
 migratory race. They are met with not only in every other province of Spain, but 
 in all the Spanish colonies. Everywhere they are reputed for their thrift, and in 
 Cuba are hated as rivals or masters by Creoles and blacks. 
 
 The towns of Aragon and Catalonia present the same contrasts as do the inha- 
 bitants of the two provinces. Those of the former are of solenm and even gloomy 
 aspect, whilst the picturesque cities of the maritime province are full of bustle 
 and mirth. The former represent the Middle Age, the latter our modern era. 
 
 Zaragoza (Saragossa) is most favourably situated in the very centre of the plain 
 of Aragon. It has its Moorish alcazar (the Aljaferia), now used as a barrack; 
 a curious leaning tower similar to that of Pisa ; and fine promenades, including 
 the Coso and shaded walks. But prouder than of all these attractions are the 
 inhabitants of the epithet "heroic," which was bestowed upon their city in con- 
 sequence of the valiant resistance it ofiered in 1808 and 1809, when they not 
 only defended their homes, but also their patron saint, the Virgen del Pilar. 
 
 At Zaragoza a few wide avenues have been cut through the labryinth of tor- 
 tuous streets, but the other towns of the province have preserved their physiognomy 
 of former days. Jaca, in the upper valley of the Aragon, between the Pyrenees 
 and the Sierra de la Pena, with its grey houses, still retains its turreted walls and 
 ancient citadel. It is the old capital of the kingdom of Sobrarbe, but would hardly 
 be mentioned now if it were not for its position at the foot of the Pass of Canfranc, 
 and the neighbouring monastery of La Pena. Huesca, at the base of the hills, the 
 Osca of the Romans, recalls the dominion of the Ausks, or Euskarians. Standing in 
 the midst of an irrigated plain, it still enjoys a certain importance. It boasts of a 
 richly decorated cathedral, deserted monasteries, an old royal palace now occupied 
 by the imiversity, and the remains of a turreted wall. Barbastro, near the river 
 Cinca, occupies a position similar to that of Huesca. The carriage road over the 
 Somport connects it with France. 
 
 The Arab city of Calatayud, on the river Jalon, is commercially the second 
 city of Aragon, and replaces Bilbilis of the Iberians, which stood on a hill near it. 
 
 • In 1873 there were 700 cotton-mills, with 104,000 hands and 1,400,000 spindles, consuming 67,200,000 
 lbs. of cotton.
 
 ALAGON AXD CATALONIA. 
 
 486 
 
 One of its most nauseous suburbs is wholly inhabited by mendicants. Teruel, on 
 the Guadalu\-iar, the chief town of the Maeztrazgo, with its crenellated walls and 
 turrets, resembles a mcditcval fortress. The Arab tower of its church is one of tho 
 curiosities of "untrodden " Spain, and its aqueduct, which crosses a vuUey oa 140 
 arches, is a remarkable work of the sixteenth century. 
 
 Several towns of the interior of Catalonia are equally venerable in their aspect. 
 "Proud " Puigcerda (Puycerda), close to the French frontier, on the Upper Segro, 
 is hardly more than a collection of hovels surrounded by a rampart. The Seo do 
 
 Fig. 169.— The Delta of the Enuo. 
 
 Scale I : 375.000. 
 
 Urgel, in a fertile portion of the same valley, is no doubt of some importance as a 
 fortress, but its streets are dirty, its houses mean, and its mud walls dilapidated. 
 
 Still lower down the Segro we meet with the ancient city of Lerida, whose 
 origin dates back to prehistoric times, and which, owing to its strategical position, 
 has at all times played a prominent part in military history. The gardens of 
 Lerida supply much produce for exportation, but the place cannot rise into impor- 
 tance until the Franco- Spanish coast railway shall have been completed. 
 
 Tortosa, a picturesque city just above the delta of the Ebro, and formerly 
 the capital of an Arab kingdom, commands one of the passages over the Ebrq, 
 
 V v 2
 
 436 
 
 SPAIX. 
 
 and its commerce would increase if the river offered greater facilities for navi- 
 gation. 
 
 Tarragona in the time of the Eomans was the great maritime outlet of the 
 Talley of the Ebro. The city was then nearly forty miles in circumference, with 
 arenas, amphitheatres, palaces, temples, and aqueducts, and a population of hun- 
 dreds of thousands. The ruins of this ancient Tarraco have been made use of in 
 the construction of the modern city, with its clumsy cathedral, towers, decayed 
 ramparts, and Eoman aqueduct intersecting the suburban orange groves. The 
 manufacturing town of Eeus may almost be looked upon as a suburb of it, and is 
 rapidly increasing in population. Near it is the monastery of Poblet, in which 
 are deposited the remains of the Kings of Aragon. 
 
 Fig. 170. — ^The Steppes of Aragon-. 
 According to Willkomm. Scale 1 : 2.000,W10. 
 
 
 
 The country between Tarragona and Barcelona is densely populated. "We pass 
 through the fertile district of El Panades, the equally fertile valley iiTigated by 
 the reddish waters of the Llobregat, with towns and villages iu rapid succession, 
 until we reach the suburbs of Barcelona. The city proper lies on the sea, at the 
 foot of the fortifications crowning the steep heights of Monjuich. There is 
 another citadel of immense size to the east of the city, yet this latter reposes gaily 
 beneath its batteries, which could easily reduce it to ashes. Barcelona boasts of 
 being the great pleasure town of Spaiu. Its population is less than that of 
 Madrid, but there are more theatres and concert halls. The dramatic performances 
 are of a superior class, and the taste of the people is more refined. The public 
 promenades, such as the Eambla, occupying the bed of an ancient torrent, the
 
 I 3
 
 AEAGON AND CATALOXIA. 437 
 
 sea-walls, and the avenues of trees which separate Barcelona from the citadel and 
 the suburb of Barceloneta, are crowded on tine evenings. Barcelona is no doubt 
 the " unique city " of Cervantes, and perhaps " the home of courtesy and of valiant 
 men ; ' but we doubt its being the " common centre of all sincere friendships." 
 Barcelona exceeds all other towns of Spain by its commerce.* The harbour is 
 exposed to southerly winds, and somewhat difficult of access. Barcelona is ever 
 renewing itself. There are broad streets of uniformly built houses, and some 
 quarters, as that of Barceloneta, on a tongue of land to the east of the port, are 
 laid out with all the regularity of an American city. The only architectural 
 monuments of note are a Gothic cathedral and the old palace of the Inquisition. 
 But all around the town, beyond the suburbs with their factories and workmen's 
 dwellings, we meet with numerous villas, occupying delightful nooks in verdant 
 valleys or the steep hill-slopes. No more charming district exists in Spain than 
 that to the north of Barcelona and Badalona, extending as far as Masnou, Mataro, 
 and the riv(?r Tordera. Promontories covered with vines, pines, and cork-oaks, 
 and sometimes crowned by the ruins of a castle, project into the sea ; the valleys 
 are laid out in gardens enclosed with aloe hedges ; toT\Tis and villages follow in 
 rapid succession ; and the boats and nets of fishermen are seen on the beaches. 
 
 ilost towns of the province of Barcelona emulate the manufacturing industry 
 of the capital. Igualada, at the foot of the Monserrat; Sabadell, in a valley, 
 full of factories ; Tarrasa, the old Roman city, near which are the famous baths 
 of La Puda ; Manresa, on the Cardoner rivulet ; Yich, the old primatial city of 
 Catalonia ; and Mataro, on the coast, arc all distinguished for the manufacture 
 of cloth, linens, silks, cotton stuffs, ribbons, lace, leather, hats, faience, glass, or 
 paper. Manufacturing industry has likewise spread into the neighbouring province 
 of Gerona, and notably to the city of Olot ; but the vicinity of the French frontier, 
 the practice of smuggling, and the presence of large garrisons in the fortresses 
 of Gerona and Figueras have hindered its development. Gerona has sustained 
 many a siege, and Figueras, in spite of its huge citadel, has been repeatedly captured. 
 The walls of Rosas are crumbling to pieces, and every vestige of the Greek city 
 of Emporlon has been buried beneath tlie alluvium brought down by the river 
 Fluvia, but it still lives in the name of the surrounding district of Ampurdan.f 
 
 The crest of the Pyrenees constitutes for the most part the political boundary 
 between France and Spain, but there are exceptions to this rule. At the western 
 extremity of the chain Spain enjoys the advantage, for the valley of the Bidassoa, 
 on the French slopes, belongs to it ; but France is compensated in the east by the 
 possession of Mount Canigou and the valley of the Upper Segre. As a rule, 
 however, Spain has the best of the bargain, and this is only natural, as the Pyrenees 
 are most accessible from the south, and the population there is more dense. The 
 
 • Value of exports and imports in 1867, £10,001,000. 
 
 t Population of the principal towns :—.^ra/7on ; Zaragoza, 56,000 ; CalatajTid, 12,000; Hucsca, 10,000; 
 Teruel, 7,000. Catalonia (Catalufia) : Barcelona, 180,000 ; Ecus, 25,000 ; Tortosa, 22,000 ; Matar6, 17,000 ; 
 SabadeU, 15,000; Manresa, 14,000; Tarragona, 13,000; Lorida, 12,000; Vich, 12,000; Badalouu, ll.OUU 
 Igualada, 10,500 ; Olot, 10,000 ; Tarrasa, 9,000 ; Gerona, 8,000 ; Figuil-.is, S.UOO.
 
 438 SPAIN. 
 
 herdsmen of Aragon and the Basque provinces never missed an opportunity of 
 taking possession of pastures on the northern slopes of the mountains, and these 
 encroachments were subsequently ratified by international treaties. 
 
 The valley of Aran, in the very heart of the Pyrenees, is one of these bloodless 
 conquests of Spain. The French Garonne rises in that valley, but the defile 
 through which it leaves it is very narrow and easily obstructed. Up to the 
 eighteenth century the Aranese enjoyed virtual independence; and as they are shut 
 off from the rest of the world by moimtains covered with snow during the greater 
 part of the year, these 21,000 mountaineers would appear to possess more claim to 
 constitute themselves an independent republic than any other people in Europe. 
 
 Farther east there is another moimtain valley which, nominally at least, forms 
 an independent republic. This is Andorra, a territory of 230 square miles, with 
 6,000 inhabitants. A few pastures on the French slope excepted, the whole of 
 this valloy is drained by the beautiful stream of Embalira, or Valira, which joins 
 the Segre in the smiling plain of Seo de TJrgel. Most of the raoimtains of 
 Andorra have been robbed of their trees, and the destruction of the few remaining 
 forests is still going on. The vegetable soil is being rapidly washed away, and 
 the moraines of ancient glaciers gradually slide down the mountain slopes. 
 
 The republic of Andorra is said to owe its existence to a defeat of the Saracens 
 by Charlemagne or Louis lo Debonnaire, but in reality up to the French Revolu- 
 tion the valloy enjoyed no sovereign rights whatever. It was a barony of the 
 Counts of Urgcl and of Aragon. In 1278 it was decided that Andorra should be 
 held jointly by the Bishops of Urgel and the Counts of Foix. In 1793 the French 
 republic declined to receive the custoraaiy tribute, and in 1810 the Spanish 
 Cortes abolished the feudal regime. Andorra thus became an independent state. 
 The inhabitants, however, continue to govern themselves in accordance with old 
 feudal customs, which are not at all reconcilable with the principles of modern 
 republics. The land belongs to a few families. There is a law of entail, and 
 younger brothers become the servants of the head of the family, whose hospitality 
 they enjoy only on condition of their worldug for him. The tithes were only 
 abolished in 1842. The "liberty" of these mountaineers consists merely in exemp- 
 tion from the Spanish conscription and impunity in smuggling ; and, to increase 
 their revenues, they have recently established a gambling-table. Their legitimate 
 business consists in cattle-breeding, and there are a few forges and a woollen factory. 
 
 The republic of Andorra recognises two suzerains, viz. the Bishop of Urgel, 
 who receives an annual tribute of £25, and the French Government, to whom 
 double that sum is paid. Spain and France are represented by two provosts, the 
 commandant of Seo de Urgel exercising the functions of viceroy. The provosts 
 command the militia and appoint the bailiffs, or judges. They, together with a 
 judge of appeal, alternately appointed by France and Spain, and two rahonadores, 
 or defenders of Andorran privileges, form the Cortes. Each parish is governed by 
 a consul, a vice-consul, and twelve councillors elected by the heads of families. A 
 General Council, of which the consuls and delegates of the parishes are members, 
 meets at the \nllage of Andorra. But in spite of these fictions Andorra is an
 
 BASQUE PROYINTES, XAVARILV, AXD LOGBO^U. -139 
 
 integral part of Spain, and the carabineers never hesitate to crose the frontiers of 
 this sham republic. By language, -manners, and customs the Andorrans are 
 Catalans. Exemption from war has enabled them to grow companifively rich. 
 They are intelligent and cunning, and well know how to assume an air of astonish- 
 ment when their interests are at stake. Actitig the fool, in order to take wmo 
 one in or avoid being ensnared, is called by their neighbours " playing the 
 Andorran." Andorra, a neat village, is the capital of the territory, but San Julia 
 de Loria is the most important place, and the head-quarters of tho smugglers. 
 
 YII. — Basqvk Province-;, Navaura, and Locroxo.* 
 
 The Basque provinces (Yascongadas) and the ancient kingdom of Navarra, though 
 scarcely a thirtieth part of Spain, constitute a separate region, not only on account 
 of geographical position, but also because they are inhabited for the most part by 
 a distinct race, having its own language, manners, and political institutions. 
 
 Looked at from a commanding position, the hills connecting the Pyrenees 
 with the Castilian plateau resemble a sea lashed by contrary winds, for there are no 
 prominent mountain ranges. Even the Pyrenees have sunk down to a mean height 
 of 3,000 feet, and the Lohihulz (3,973 feet), where they cease to form the frontier, 
 scarcely deserves to be called a mountain. They extend thence to the Pass of 
 Azpiroz (1,860 feet), where they terminate. The vague range beyond is known as 
 Sierra de Aralar (-4,330 feet), and still farther west by a variety of local names. 
 These mountains are traversed by several low passes, facilitating communication 
 with the valley of the Ebro, the most important of which is the Pass of Orduna 
 (2,134 feet), which is crossed by the railway from Bilbao to Miranda, and dominated 
 by the Pefia Gorbea (5,042 feet) and the Sierra Salvada (4,120 feet). 
 
 The spurs which descend from these mountains towards the Bay of Biscay are 
 likewise very irregular in their features. Slost of them are connected by trans- 
 versal chains, through which the rivers have only with difficulty forced for them- 
 selves an outlet towards the sea. The Bidassoa, for instance, sweeps far to the 
 south, through the valley of Baztan, before it takes its course to the northward, in 
 the direction of its estuary at Fucnterrabia. Within its huge bend it encloses a 
 detached portion of the Pyrenees, the principal summit of which is the famous 
 Mont La Pihune (2,954 feet), on the French frontier. Equally isolated is the 
 Jaizquibcl (1,912 feet), which rises from the plains of Irun, close to the mouth of 
 tho Bidassoa, and from whose summit there is a view of incomparable beauty. 
 It terminates in Cape Higuer, or Figuer, the northernmost point of Cantabria. 
 
 The maritime slope of the Basque countries presents a great variety of geolo- 
 gical formations, including Jurassic limestones and chalk, granites and porphyries. 
 The mineral resources are immense ; copper and lead abound, but the great wealth 
 consists in iron. The mines of Mondragon, in Guipuzcoa, have long been famous, 
 but the most productive mining district is Somorrostro, to the west of Bilbao. 
 
 • Navarra and Basque provinces, C 828 s<iiiarc milts, 700,670 inhabitanto; LogroBo, 1,945 sqiiuro 
 miles, 182,911 inhabitants.
 
 440 
 
 SPAIN. 
 
 The sierras of Aragon running parallel with the Pyrenees extend also into 
 Navarra and the Vascongadas, and are frequently connected with the main range by 
 lateral branches. To the west of Pamplona they spread out into a rugged plateau, 
 surmounted by the Sierra de Andia (4,769 feet), the labyrinthine ramifications of 
 
 Fig. 171. — The Environs op Barcelona. 
 Scale 1 : 100,000. 
 
 which occupy the district of Amezcuas, a region offering great advantages to partisan 
 warfare. The southern chain, not so well defined, bounds the Carrascal, or " country 
 of evergreen oaks," in the south. This region, too, has frequently been the scene of 
 civil war. Farther west the famous defile of Paucorbo lends through the Montes
 
 BASQUE PROVINCES, NA^'AERA, AND LOGRONO. 
 
 441 
 
 Obareucs (4,150 feet) to the plateau of Castile. The saddle of Alsasua (1,955 feet), 
 ovci' which passes the railway from Vitoriu (1,084 feet) to Pamplona (l,y78 feet), 
 connects the Pyrenees with the Sierra do Audia, whilst as to the mountains of the 
 province of Logrono, they arc spurs of the mountain masses forming the northern 
 edge of that plateau, viz. the Sierra de la Demanda in the west, and the Sierra do 
 Cebollera in the east, the latter giving birth to the Sierras do Camero. 
 
 Several of the mountain districts are quite Castilian in their asperity and 
 nakedness, for the forests have been cut down to feed the iron furnaces. In Southern 
 Jsavarra we meet with veritable deserts. Put in the Basque countries and Western 
 Navarra, where it rains copiously, the hills arc clad with forests, the valleys with 
 turf, and rivulets wind amongst groves of elder-trees. Naked precipices of sand or 
 
 Fig. 17i. — The S.vxd-haxks oi Mat.uso. 
 Scale 1 : l-.>5,00rt. 
 
 limestone contrast well with this verdure, from which peep out the small white 
 houses of villages embosomed in orchards, and scattered in the valleys and hill-sides. 
 Moist north-westerly winds are frequent in the Bay of Biscay, and account for 
 the equable temperature of the country. It rains abundantly, and in all seasons. 
 The climate resembles that of Ireland, and, though damp, it is healthy and most 
 conducive to the growth of vegetation. The country is rich in corn, wine, oil, 
 and cattle ; the northern slopes are covered with fruit trees of every kind, and 
 zagcmhta, or cider, is a favourite drink ; and in the more remote valleys of the 
 Pyrenees we meet with some of the most magnificent forests in Spain. That of ^ al 
 Carlos (valley of Charlemagne), near the famous Pass of Roncevaux, or Roncesvalle?, 
 though none of the largest, is reputed for its beauty and legendary associations.
 
 442 SPAIN. 
 
 Who are the Basques, whose bravery is traditional ? "What is their origin ? 
 What their relationship to the other peoples of Europe ? All th«se questions it is 
 impossible to answer. The Basques are a mysterious race, and can claim kinship 
 with no other nation. It is not even certain whether all those who pass by that 
 name are of the same race. There is no typical Basque. 'No doubt most of the 
 inhabitants of the country are distinguished by finely chiselled features, bright 
 and firm eyes, and well-poised bodies, but the difierences in stature, form of skull, 
 and features are very considerable. Between Basque and Basque the differences 
 are as great as between Spaniards, Frenchmen, and Italians. There are tall men 
 and short, brown and fair, long skulls and broad, and almost every district has its 
 distinct type. The solution of this problem is daily becoming more diflacult, for, 
 owing to a continual intermixture with their neighbours, the original type, if there 
 really existed one, is gradually' being obliterated. It is possible that at some remote 
 time the remnants of various races occupied this country, and adopted the language 
 of the most civilised among them. Instances of this kind abound in every people. 
 
 Leaving out of sight the diff'erences existing between the Basques of Spain and 
 those of French Navarra, the Basques may be described as having broad foreheads, 
 straight noses, finely shaped mouths and chins, and well-proportioned figures. 
 Their features are exceedingly mobile, and every sentiment is reflected upon them 
 by a lighting up of the eyes, a movement of the eyebrows, or a trembling of the 
 lips. The women especially are distinguished by the purity of their features; their 
 large eyes, smiling lips, and small waists are universally admired. Even in the 
 towns, where the race is least pure, most of them are strikingly beautiful and full 
 of grace. There are districts where obcsitj' is a veritable phenomenon. Men and 
 women carrj^ themselves nobly ; they are polite to strangers, but alwaj's dignified. 
 
 The Basques call themselves Euskaldunac, or Euskariaus, and their language 
 Euskara, or Eskiiara. The exact meaning of these terms is not known, but in all 
 probability it is "speech." This speech of the Basques difiers in its words and 
 structure from every other language of the world ; but many words have been 
 borrowed from neighbouring languages. Everything with which they became 
 acquainted through foreigners, all ideas imported since prehistoric times, are 
 designated by words not forming part of the original stock of the language. Even 
 the names of domestic animals and metals are of foreign origin. The lan- 
 guage may, perhaps, be classed with the polysynthetic languages of the American 
 Indians, or with the agglutinant idioms of the Altai, and belongs, consequently, to 
 the most remote period of human history. As to the Basques themselves, they 
 declare their speech to be superior to every other, and according to some it was 
 in Euskara that man first saluted the sim. 
 
 For the present we are compelled to look upon the Basques as the last 
 remnant of an ancient race. There are not wanting proofs that the Euskaldunac 
 formerly occupied a far wider territory. No monuments, no inscriptions, nor even 
 legends give a clue to this ; but we find it, after thousands of years, in the names of 
 mountains, rivers, and towns. Euskarian names abound in the Pyrenean valleys 
 of Aran, Bastan, Andorra, and Querol, and in the plain to the north of them.
 
 BASQUE PEOVIXCES, NAVAIIRA, AND LOGltONl). 
 
 •113 
 
 Most writers on Spain identify these Euskarians with the llieriims of the 
 ancients, and they have been credited with being the authors of various inscriptions 
 upon coins written in unknown characters which have been discovered in .Spain 
 
 Fiff. 173. — The Valley of Andoiika. 
 SciUe 1 : ,Tri,OCiO. 
 
 !• V E.af Gr. 
 
 1/ 
 
 Mpf:^ 
 
 n 
 
 ■* hempen Spajtt ft t'idtn:e 
 
 and Southern Franco, and which 'SI. Boudard has shown to be really in Kuskariau. 
 They must thus have occupied the whole of the peninsula and Southern France, 
 and even in Africa traces of their presence have been discovered.
 
 4U SPAIN. 
 
 The extent of territory occupied by Basque-speakiug populations in tlie time 
 of tte Romans is not known, but probably it was not any greater than it is 
 now, for the Euskarians have ever since maintained their independence, and 
 nothing compelled them to adopt the language of their despised neighbours. 
 Bilbao has almost become Spanish, as have also the towns in the plain of Alava. 
 Pampeluna, the Irun of the Iberians, is Euskarian merely by historical tradition, 
 whilst farther east Basque is only spoken in the upper valleys of Roncevaux, 
 Orbaiceta, Ochagavia, and Roncal. The Peak of Anie marks the extreme limit of 
 Basque on both slopes of the Pyrenees. Out of four Euskarian provinces there is 
 only one — viz. Guipuzcoa — where Basque predominates ; but even in that province 
 the inhabitants of the cities of St. Sebastian and Irun speak Castilian. In the south 
 of Navarra and of the so-called Basque provinces the inhabitants have spoken a Latin 
 dialect from time immemorial. Spanish and French are slowly but surely supersed- 
 ing the Basque, and the time when it will be a thing of the past is not very distant.* 
 
 Strabo speaks of the Cantabrians, the direct ancestors of the Basques, with an 
 admiration akin to horror. Their bravery, love of freedom, and contempt of life he 
 looked upon as superhuman qualities. In their wars against the Romans they killed 
 each other to escape captivity, mothers strangled their children to spare them the 
 indignities of slaverj', and jirisoners nailed to the cross burst into a chant of victory. 
 The Basques have never been wanting in courage. History shows that they were 
 superior to the surrounding nations in uprightness, generosity, love of independence, 
 and respect for personal liberty. The serfs of the neighbouring provinces looked 
 upon them as nobles, for in their abject condition they fancied that personal liberty 
 was a privilege of nobility. This equality, however, existed only in Guipuzcoa and 
 Biscay, whilst in Alava and ^N'avarra, where the Moors gained a footing, and Castilian 
 influences made themselves felt later on, there originated a feudal nobility, with 
 its usual train of vassals and serfs. However, all the provinces have jealously 
 watched over their local privileges. At a period when European history was 
 one continual series of wars, the Basques lived in peace. Their small common- 
 wealths were united into a fraternal confederation, and enabled to resist invaders. 
 They were bound to sacrifice life and property in the defence of their common 
 fatherland, and their standards were emblazoned with three bands joined, and 
 the motto, Inirak hat, i.e. " The three (provinces) are but one." 
 
 Nothing exhibits more strikingly the comparative civilisation of these Euska- 
 rians than their respect for personal liberty. The house of a Basque was 
 inviolable, and he could not be deprived of his horse or his arms. At their 
 national meetings all voted, and in some of the valleys even the women were 
 permitted to take part in the discussions. It was not, however, customary for the 
 women to sit down at the same table with the etcheco-jauna, or master of the 
 house, and his sons ; they took their meals separately by the side of the hearth. 
 This old custom is still observed in country districts ; and so strong is the force 
 of tradition, that the wife would almost consider it a disgrace to be seen sitting by 
 
 * In 1875 Basque was spoken ty 556,000 individuals, viz. by 116,000 in France, by 310,000 in tlio 
 three Basque provinces of Spain, and by 100,000 in Navarra.
 
 BASQIT rROVTNTES, XAVARRA. AND LOGEONO. 
 
 445 
 
 the side of her husband on any other occasion than her wedding-dav. On fete- 
 days the women keep apart ; they dance amongst themselves, allowing the men 
 to engage in ruder sports. If a nation may be judged from its pastimes, tho 
 Basques deserve to rank high in our estimation. They are fond of athletic spor(«. 
 and mysteries and pastoral pieces are still performed in the open air. 
 
 F'j- 174.— jAiZQfmrT 
 .■=»ale I : SW.fCP. 
 
 But the Basques have their faults. ^Inxious to retain their ancient privileges, 
 or fueros, they have become the champions of despotism. These fueros date from 
 1332, when deputies from the provinces went to Burgos, and ofiered the title of 
 Lord to Alfonso the Judge, King of Castile. In accordance with the treaty then
 
 446 SPAIN. 
 
 concluded, the sovereign is prohibited from possessing any fortress, village, or 
 even house within the territory of the Euskarians. The Basques are exempt from 
 the conscription, and their militiamen, or miquektes, remain within the provinces 
 except in time of war. The taxes can only be levied with the consent of the pro- 
 vincial juntas, and must be expended within the provinces, except what may be 
 o-ranted as a " gift." Commerce is not subjected to the same restrictions as in the 
 rest of Spain, and there are no monopolies. The municipalities enjoy absolute self- 
 government, carried on by an alcalde, an ayuntamiento, or town council, and jxirienfcs 
 mayovcs, or elders. In appearance this organization is quite democratic, but in 
 reality there exist manj^ feudal usages. In some places the to\\Ti councils are self- 
 elected ; in others they are elected by persons paying a specified amount in taxes, 
 or by nobles of a certain category; in others, again, they are appointed by the lord 
 of the manor. The provincial juntas are elected in most diverse ways. The 
 franchise, far from being universal, is a privilege, and its exercise is attended with 
 puerile formalities. The laws of precedence are rigidly adhered to. 
 
 It is quite clear that the exceptional position of the Basque provinces cannot 
 be maintained. Navarra was assimilated with the rest of Spain in 1839, and this 
 process is progressing irresistibly in the other provinces. If the descendants of the 
 Euskarians decline to share free institutions with the rest of Spain, they can never 
 maintain them on their own behalf. Twice already have they been defeated on an 
 appeal to arms ; but more powerful than war is the influence exercised by industry, 
 commerce, and increased facilities for intercommunication. This fusion is being 
 hastened by emigration and migration, for the Basques not only seek work during 
 winter in the more hospitable lowland districts, but they also emigrate in. thousands. 
 They are very clannish, and at iladrid and elsewhere have founded "Patriotic 
 Societies," but in spite of these they soon become merged with the rest of the 
 population. The few towns are principally inhabited by strangers, for the Basques 
 prefer a coujitry life. Their homesteads are scattered over hill-slopes and through 
 the valleys, and beneath the oaks in front of them the inmates meet after the 
 day's labour to pass their time in music and dancing. 
 
 BUbao, the largest town of the Basque provinces, has at all times proved a 
 rival of Valencia, Santander, and Cadiz. Its exports consist principally of Iron- 
 ores from neighbouring mines. Most of its inhabitants are Spaniards, and during 
 the Carlist wars the environs of the town were frequently stained with blood. It 
 was under its walls that Zumalacarreguy, the Carlist leader, received his deadly 
 wound. The river Nervion connects Bilbao with its harbour at Portugalete. 
 
 St. Sebastian, the largest city of Guipiizcoa, is likewise Spanish. A seaport 
 and fortress defended by a Castilian garrison, it resembles in aspect and language 
 the towns of the interior of the peninsula. Monte OrguUo (475 feet), cro-\vned by 
 the Castle de la Mota, and bristling with fortifications ; the beautiful Baj' of La 
 Concha, to the west of the town, with its fine beach ; the river Urumea, which 
 flows to the east of the citadel, and struggles at its mouth with the foam of the 
 sea ; shady walks and an amphitheatre of verdant hills dotted with villages, render 
 St. Sebastian a delightfid spot, the favourite resort of worn-out and idle cosmo-

 
 BASQUE PBOVIXCES, NAVAEEA, AXD LOGBONO. 
 
 447 
 
 politans. The town itself is devoid of interest, for since its destruction by the 
 English in 1813 it has been rebuilt with monotonous regularity. Its harbour, 
 though frequented by coasting vessels, is shallow and insecmv. The magnificent 
 Bay of Pasages, to the east of the town, might have been converted into a splendid 
 harbour, but its great advantages have never been appreciated, and its mouth 
 is now closed by a bar of alluvium brought down by the Oyarzuu. 
 
 Delightful Fuenterrabia (Foutarabie), with its oscutcheoned houses, is likewise 
 shut off from the sea by a bar, and is indebted for such importance as it possesses 
 to its sea baths and the vicinity of France, which is visible from its battered 
 walls. Irun, the terminal station of the .Spanish railways, close to the French 
 frontier, is an important strategical position ; and Tolosa, with its factories, is the 
 capital of Guipiizcoa. Zarauz, Guetaria (on the neck of a peninsula), and Lcqueitio 
 are seaside resorts. Zumaya, at the mouth of the Urola valley, has quarries of 
 
 Fig. 17J. — AZCOITIA AXD AlPEITIA. 
 Scale 1 : 50.000. 
 
 ?5r 
 
 L.-V^ 
 
 ^ 
 
 gypsnm, which furnish excellent cement. Xear Yergara are ferruginous springs, 
 and a famous college founded in 177G by the Basque Society. The convention 
 which put a stop to the first Carlist war in 1839 was signed here. Durango, like- 
 wise, has frequently been mentioned in connection with the civil wars carried on 
 in the north of Spain. Guernica, in Biscay, boasts of a palace of justice and an 
 old oak beneath which the legislature is in the habit of meeting; but, like all 
 other Basque towns, it is hardly more than a village. 
 
 The centres of population are not more numerous on the southern slope of the 
 Pyrenees. Yitoria, the capital of Alava, on the railway connecting Madrid >vith 
 Paris, is a commercial and manufacturing town. Pamplona, or Pampehma, recalls 
 the name of Pompey, who rebuilt it. It is a fortress, often besieged and captured. 
 Its cathedral is one of the finest in Spain. Tafalla, la for dc Nararra, the ancient 
 capital of the kingdom, has the ruins of a palace, which Carlos the Noble, who
 
 448 SPAIN. 
 
 built it, desired to unite by means of a covered gallery with the palace of OHte, 
 three miles lower down in the same valley. Puente la Reina is celebrated for its 
 wines. Estella, one of the most charming towns of Navarra, commands several roads 
 leading to Castile and Aragon, and its strategical importance is consequently consider- 
 able. The Carlists, during the late war, transformed it into a formidable fortress. 
 Tudela, abounding in wines, Calahorra, and Logrofio, all in the adjoining province 
 of Logrofio, are likewise of some value from a military point of view, for they com- 
 mand the passages over the Ebro. Calahorra, with its proud motto, " I have prevailed 
 over Carthage and Eome," was the great bulwark of defence when Sertorius fought 
 Pompey, but was made to pay deai'ly for its heroism. Besieged by the Romans, its 
 defenders, constrained by hunger, fed upon their women and children, and most of 
 them perished. Though situated in the fertile district of Rioja, beyond the frontiers 
 of the Euskarian language, the history of Calahorra is intimately connected with that 
 of the Basque provinces, for upon its ancient laws were modelled the fueros of Alava.* 
 
 VIII. — Santamier, the Asturias, and Galicia. 
 
 The Atlantic slope of the Cantabrian Pyrenees is a region completely distinct from 
 the rest of Spain. Mountains, hills, valleys, and running waters succeed each other 
 in infinite variety, and the coast throughout is steep, with bold promontories and 
 docj) inlets, into which flow rapid torrents. The climate is moist and salubrious. 
 The Celto-Iberian inhabitants of the country have in most instances escaped the 
 commotions which devastated the other provinces of the peninsula, and the popu- 
 lation, in proportion to the cultivable area, is more dense than elsewhere. This 
 region, being very narrow compared with its length, has been split up into several 
 political divisions, in spite of similarity of physical features. The old kingdom, 
 of Galicia occupies the west, the Asturias the centre, and Santander the east.f 
 
 The mountain region of Santander begins immediately to the east of the 
 Sierra Salvada and the def)ressIon known as Valle de Mena. The Cantabrian 
 Mountains slope down steeply there towards the Bay of Biscay, whilst their 
 height above the upland, through which the Ebro has excavated Its bed, Is but 
 trifling. The Puerto del Escudo attains an elevation of 3,241 feet above Santander, 
 its southern descent to the valley of the Virga hardly exceeding 500 feet. The Pass 
 of Reinosa (2,778 feet), farther west, through which runs the railway from Madrid 
 to Santander, is even more characteristic. An almost imperceptible height of 
 land there separates the plateau from the steep declivity which leads down to the 
 coast, and by means of a canal sixty feet deep, and a mile in length, the waters 
 of the Ebro might be diverted into the river Besaya, which enters the Atlantic 
 at San Martin de Suances. This height of land forms the natural outlet of 
 
 * Population of principal towns (approximately) : — Biscay (Vizcaya) : Bilbao, 30,000. Guipuzcoa : 
 St. Sebastian, 15,000 ; Tolosa, 8,000. Alava: Vitoria, 12,500. Navarra : Pamplona, 22,000; Estella, 
 6,000. Logrono : Logroiio, 12,000; Calahorra, 7,000. 
 
 t Santander .... 2,113 sq.m. 241,581 inhabitants 114 to a sq. m. 
 Asturias .... 4,091 „ 610,883 „ 152 „ 
 
 Galicia .... 11,344 „ 1,989,281 „ 176 „
 
 SANTAXDER, THE ASTUBIAS, .VXD GALK'IA. 
 
 440 
 
 the Castiles to the sea, and its possession is as important to the inhabitants of the 
 plateau as is that of the mouth of a river to a petiple dwelling on its upj)er course. 
 Immcdiatolj- to the east of this pass the aspect of the mountains changes. They 
 rise to a great height, piercing the zone of perennial snow, and their southern 
 escarpments are of great steepness. The Pefia Labra (8,','95 feet) dominates the 
 
 Fig. 176. — ^TuB ExTiBONs of I)aR.\o. 
 Pcnl* 1 : SCO ono. 
 
 Li W cj ..(Crrr,, 
 
 /'\-fy^**%5i!a5^-{^ 
 
 M^^ 
 
 .-t 
 
 first of these mountain masses. Rivers descend from it in all directions : the Ebro 
 in the east, the Pisuerga in the south, and the Xansa, or Tinamenor, in the north- 
 west. Farther west the Pena Prieta rises to a height of 8,"29.j feet, its snows 
 feeding the Carrion and Esla. It is joined in the north to a mountain mass even 
 more considerable, which bears the curious name of Penas de Europa, or " rocks 
 
 VOL. 1. GO
 
 450 
 
 SPAIN. 
 
 of Europe," and culminates in the Torre de Cerredo (8,784 feet), covered with 
 snow throughout the year, and boasting even of a few glaciers, due to the excessive 
 amount of precipitation. 
 
 The valley of La Liebana, at the eastern foot of the Pefias de Europa, resembles 
 a vast caldron of extraordinary depth. Shut in on the west, south, and east by 
 huge precipices rising to a height of 6,500 feet, it is closed in on the north by a 
 transversal chain, through which the waters of the Liebana have excavate<^l for 
 themselves a narrow passage. The village of Potes, in the centre of this valley, 
 lies at an elevation of only 981 feet above the level of the sea. In Santandcr and 
 the Asturias, even more frequently than in the Basque country, we meet with 
 secondary chains running parallel with the coast. These are composed of triassic. 
 
 Fig. 177. — St. Sebastian. 
 Scale 1 : 30.00a 
 
 Jurassic, and cretaceous rocks, and rise like advanced walls of defence in front of 
 the main range of the mountains, which consist of Silurian slates upheaved by 
 granite. It results from this that the course of the rivers is most erratic. On 
 leaving their upper valleys, where they frequently form cascades, their fiirther 
 progress is arrested by these parallel ranges, and they twist about to the east and 
 west until they find an outlet through which they may escape. 
 
 The two funnel-shaped valleys of Yaldeon (1,529 feet) and Sajambre are 
 enclosed between spurs of the Pefias de Europa. Their torrents drain into the 
 Bay of Biscay, but they are most readily accessible from the plateau. Farther 
 west the mountains decrease in height, and their main crest gradualh' recedes 
 from the coast. They are crossed here by the Pass of Pajares (4,471 feet), 
 which connects Leon with Oviedo.
 
 SANTANDER, TUE ASTURL\S, ANT' GAIJriA. 451 
 
 The Asturiuii Mountains arc objects of venerution to ovi-ry piitriotic Spaniard. 
 Beautiful as they are, their lower slopes being covered with chcstnut-frws. walnut- 
 trees, and oaks, whilst higher up forests of beeches and hazel alternate with 
 meadows, their beauty is enhanced by the fact of their having affoi-<led a refuge to 
 the Christians whilst the Moors held the rest of the country. Mount Ansena 
 sheltered St. Telagius and his flock, and at Covadonga ho built himself an abLoy. 
 These " illustrious mountains " do not, however, merely boast of hi.storieal ashoeia- 
 
 tions, delightful villages, herds, and pasluros; tliey hide witliin their bowels a rich 
 store of coal, one of the principal sources of wealth to the Asturias. 
 
 Galicia is separated from the Castilian plateau by a continuation of the Cau- 
 tabrian Pyrenees, which here swerve to the south, and through which the Sil has 
 excavated its bed. To the north of that river they culminate in the Pico de 
 Miravalles (6,3G2 feet), and are crossed by the Pass of Predrafita (3,600 feet), 
 through which runs the main road from Leon to Galicia. 
 
 In Galicia the hills rarely form well-deiinud chains, and mostly consist of 
 
 o G 2
 
 452 
 
 SPAIN. 
 
 primitive rocks or small table-lands, with peaks or summits rising a few hundred 
 feet above the general level of the country. The disposition of the small ranges 
 
 Fig. 179. — GUETARIA. 
 Sc.ile 1 ; 8,000. 
 
 ■ Hixarrin^-' 
 
 
 fc^- 
 
 A-'" 
 
 ^■-^ 
 
 
 ^' '■♦j! 
 
 BAY 
 
 F 
 
 z rr M A r A 
 
 fX 
 
 
 
 
 ~ , — — ■ — , ,— <>«jo 
 
 B A Y 
 
 F 
 
 Z A R A U Z 
 
 ^^f\ Jl 
 
 hiij'ur fi'l 
 
 ,.....S:: ■ ;,^^y'^^i-}..._^6f^Jo^oimm&.::mmM^^ 
 
 generally corresponds with that of the coast. The Sierra de Ranadoiro (3,612 feet), 
 a spur of the Cantabrian Mountains, forms the natural boundary between the
 
 SANTANDKR, THE ASTURLVS, AND GALICIA. 
 
 458 
 
 Asturias and G.ilicia. Wesl of it, the Sierra do Meiru ('2,082 foel) runs in the sanio 
 direction, but the chains which terniiuute in Capes Kstaca de N'aros and Orlegul 
 {i.e. Nortegal, "north cape") run i'roni east to west, and are dominated by tlio 
 jjyramid of ^lontc Cuadraiuon (."5, •'142 feet). Tlie liiils to (lie west of the river Mino 
 
 Fig. 180.— GuBiistCA. 
 Scale I : 100,000. 
 
 
 7"! W«-»l of Crrgnvnih 
 
 
 s " }.>'.. < 
 
 r'.. 
 
 iifeMf^Wv 
 
 Cuir. Oio^ 
 
 (Minho) terminate in the faiiK.iis promontories of Torifiana and Finisterro, or 
 " land's-cnd." This hitter, a steep ditf rising boklly above the waters to the west 
 of the wide Bay of Corcubion, formerly bore a temple of the ancient gods, siuco 
 replaced by a church dedicated to the A'irgin.
 
 45i 
 
 SPAIN. 
 
 The coast of the Asturias abounds in small bays, or rins, bounded by steep cliffs. 
 In Galicia these rias assume vast proportions, and are of great depth. They may 
 fitly be likened to the fiords of ]S'orthern Europe, and their origin appears to be 
 the same. The marine fauna of these Galician rias is Britannic rather than Lusi- 
 tanian, for amongst two hundred species of testacea collected by Mr. MacAndrew 
 there are orly twenty-five which were not also found on the coasts of Britain. 
 Moreover, the flora of the Asturian Mountains is very much like that of Ireland ; 
 
 Fig. 181. — Pass of Reixosa. 
 Scale 1 ; 300,000. 
 
 and these facts go far in support of the hypothesis, started by Forbes, that the 
 Azores, Ireland, and Galicia, anterior to the glacial epoch, were connected by land. 
 The climate, too, resembles that of Great Britain. The rainfall on the exterior 
 slopes of the moimtains is abundant, whilst to the south of them, in the arid plains 
 of Leon and Castile, it hardly rains at all. There are localities in the Asturias 
 where the rainfall amounts to more than six feet annually, a quantity only again 
 met with on the western mountain slopes of Scotland and Norway, and on the 
 southern declivities of the Swiss Alps. There is no season without rain, and
 
 SANTANDEE, THE ASTUBI.VS, AND GALIOIA. 466. 
 
 droughts are exceedingly rare. Equinoctial storms are frequent in autumn, and 
 render the Bay of Biscay dangerous to mariners. The temperature is wiuablc, 
 and fogs, locally known as hrelimns, are as fre»|uent as in the British Islands. 
 These fogs exercise a strong influence ujwn the superstitious minds of the Galiciana, 
 who fancy they see magicians, or uuceiroK, ride upun the clouds, expand into mists, 
 and shrink back into cloudlets. They also believe that the bodies of the dead aro 
 conveyed by the mists from cemetery to cemetery, these fearful nocturnal proces- 
 sions being known to them as entiidcafi, or intndliiiKis* 
 
 In spite of an abundance of running water, the Cantabrian provinces cannot 
 boast of a single navigable river. In the Asturias the littoral zone is too narrow, 
 and the slope too considerable, to admit of torrents becoming tranquil rivers. Nor 
 are the Tambre and Ulla, in Galicia, of any importance ; and the only true river of 
 the country is the Mifio, called Minho by the Portuguese on its lower course, where 
 it forms the boundary between the two states of Iberia. Tlie Jlino is fed from 
 both slopes of the Cantabrian Mountains, the Mifio proper rising on the western 
 slope, whilst the Sil conies from the interior of the country. The latter is the 
 main branch. " The Mifio has the reputation," say the Sjjaniards, "but the Sil 
 has the water." The Sil, before leaving the province of Leon, passes through the 
 ancient lake basin of the Vierzo, now shrunk to a small sheet of water known as 
 the Lago de Carrocedo. It then passes in succession through a wild gorge, u 
 second lake basin, the tunnel of Monte Fui-ado ("pierced mountains"), excavated by 
 the Eomans to facilitate their mining operations, and finally rushes through a 
 gorge intersecting the Cantabrian Mountains, and one of the wildest in all Spain, 
 with precipitous walls more than 1,000 feet in height. Immediately below the 
 confluence with the ^Mifio a second gorge has to be passed, but then the waters of 
 the river expand, and flow into the sea through a wide estuary. Below Tuy, for a 
 distance of about twenty miles, the river is na\igable. But though of small service 
 to navigation, the Mine is nevertheless one of the eight great rivers of the Iberian 
 peninsula, and proportionately to the extent of its basin it is the most copious. t 
 
 The water of this and other rivers is not needed for agricultural purposes, for it 
 rains abundantly in Galicia and the Asturias, and ihc emerald meadows of these 
 provinces are as famous as those of England. The flora, however, is upon the 
 
 • Climate in 1858 : — Oviedo : 750 feet above the eea-Icvcl, mean tomperature, 49-4G° F. ; extremes, 23-9° 
 and 82°; rainfall, SIS inches. Santiago : 720 feet above sea-level, mean teuipinttuii*, 5907' ; extremes, 28° 
 and 96° ; rainfall, 427 inches. 
 
 Area of I.en(rtli of Av<.m»« >.<.n.oa Surfhoe Drainnire 
 
 &q, m. Milc8. Inches. Ciib. ft. pence. IVrceutl 
 
 t Miflo (and Sil) . . 9,650 190 47 17,700 5U 
 
 Duero 38,610 507 20 22,950 40 
 
 Tajo (Tapus) . . . 28,960 556 16 11,600 33 
 
 Ouadiana(andZ(uicara)23,170 653 14 6,680 25 
 
 Guadalqui\-ir . . . 21,240 348 19 9,220 30 
 
 Segiira .... 8,500 217 12 710 10 
 
 Jucar 5,800 318 13 880 15 
 
 Ebro 25,100 406 18 7,100 20 
 
 Total . . 161,030 16 75,810 33
 
 456 
 
 SPAIN". 
 
 whole more southerly in its features than that of the countries to the north of the 
 Bay of Biscay. The orchards produce not only apples, chestnuts, and walnuts, 
 but also oranges, and in a garden at Oviedo dates ripen in the open air. The 
 great moisture, however, prevents certain ijlauts from attaining the commercial 
 importance they would otherwise possess. The mulberry flourishes, but the culture 
 of silk-worms has only yielded indiiferent results, and even the grapes, except in 
 a few favoured localities, yield but sour wine of disagreeable flavour. Cider, on 
 the other hand, enjoys a high reputation, and is even exported to America. 
 
 Fig. 182. — The Pesas de Eubopa. 
 Scule 1 : G60,000. 
 
 The Asturian boasts of having never submitted to the yoke of Mussulmans. 
 Some of the mountain districts preserved their independence throughout, and 
 nowhere could the Arabs maintain themselves for any length of time. Oviedo 
 was called the "city of bishojjs," from the great number of prelates who found a 
 refuge there. The Galicians were equall}' successful in their resistance to the 
 Moors, and the blood of the Celtic inhabitiints of these remote provinces is thus 
 purer than anywhere else in Spain. 
 
 In some districts the customs are said to have remained unchanged since
 
 SA>rr.iNDEE, THE ASTURIAS, AND OALICIA. 457 
 
 the time of the Ivoinaus. Tlie lu-nlsiuon, or raijiicron, of Leiturii'rfdS, on ihv I'jipi r 
 Narcea, form aliuost a distinct tribe. They keep apart from the rest of the Astu- 
 rians, and always marry amongst themselves. Old dialects maintain their ground. 
 The peasants on the coast of Cantabria talk their l)al>/c, and in Galicia the dialects 
 differ even from village to village. The (jdllcgo, especially as spoken near the 
 Miiio, is Portuguese rather than Spanish, but a Lusitanian is nevertheless unable 
 to understand a Galician, owing to the curious sing-song intonation of the latter. 
 
 The country supports a dense population, but there are few towns. Slany of 
 these consist merely of a church, a town-hall, and an inn. The homesteads are 
 scattered over the whole country. This may be due to an innate love of nature, 
 or perhaps, as in the Basque provinces, to the sccuritj' which the country has 
 enjoyed during centuries. Foreign and civil wars have scarcely ever aft'ected these 
 outlying provinces of Spain. The manners are gentle, and the bloodthirst}^ bull- 
 fights of the Castilians unknown. Tlie isolation and peace in which the Cantabrians 
 were permitted to exist did not, however, prove of advantage in all respects. 
 Elsewhere in Europe, nobles, priests, citizens, and the peasantry, when threatened 
 by danger, felt constrained to make concessions to each other. Not so in the 
 Asturias, where the peasants were reduced to the condition of serfs, and sold with 
 the land. At the commencement of this century nearly the whole of the land in 
 the two Asturias was in the hands of twenty-four proprietors, and in the neighbour- 
 ing Galicia the conditions were not much more favourable. Matters have changed 
 since then. The lords have grown poor, the monasteries have been suppressed, 
 and the industrious Asturians and Galicians have invested their hard-earned savings 
 in land. Formerly the feudal lords leased the land to the cultivators, who rendered 
 homage and paid a quit-rent, the lease remaining in force during the reign of two or 
 three kings, for a hundred j'ears, or even for three hundred and twenty-nine years, 
 according to the custom of diflerent districts. These leases, however, frequently 
 led to disputes ; the leaseholders, on the expiration of their leases, often refused to 
 surrender possession, and in numerous instances the law courts sustained thein 
 in this refusal. 
 
 The Galicians on the coast divide their time between the cultivation of the 
 land and fishing. During the season no less than 20,000 men, with 3,000 or 4,000 
 boats, spread their nets in the Bays of La Coruna, Arosa, Pontevedra, and Vigo, 
 where tunny-fish and sardines abound. The local consumption of sardines is enor- 
 mous, and La Coruua alone exports about 17,000 tons annually to America. These 
 pursuits, howcvei-, are not capable of supporting an increasing population, and 
 thousands of Galicians emigrate annually. Thrifty and clannish, they usuallj' 
 succeed in amassing a small competency, and those among them who return exercise 
 a civilLsing influence upon their less-cultivated countrymen. Ignorance and poverty, 
 with all their attendant evils, are great in Galicia, and leprosy and elephantiasis 
 are common diseases. 
 
 One great hindrance to the development of tlic resources of the country consists 
 in the paucity of roads and railwaj's. A beginning has been made, but, looking 
 to the financial condition of Spain, progress will hardly be rapid.
 
 458 
 
 SPAIN. 
 
 Most of the towns of the Asturias are close to the coast. Castro-Urdiales, 
 Laredo, and Santona, immediately to the west of the Basque provinces, have 
 frequently served as naval stations. The roadstead of Santona is one of the most 
 commod ious and best sheltered of the peninsula, and when Napoleon gave Spain 
 to his brother Joseph he retained possession of that place, and began fortifications 
 which would have converted it into a French Gibraltar. 
 
 The great commercial port of the country is Santander, with its excellent 
 harbour, quays, docks, and warehouses, built upon land won from the sea. San- 
 tander is the natural outlet of the Castiles, and exports the flour of Yalladolid and 
 
 Fig. 183.— EiAs OF La Cokuna and Fekrol. 
 Scale 1 ; 210,40O. 
 
 Palencia, as well as the woollen stuffs known as son'anas and koiiesas from the 
 places where they are manufactured. It supplies the interior with the colonial 
 produce of Cuba and Puerto Rico, and its merchants keep up regular intercourse 
 with France, England, Hamburg, and Scandinavia.* The ship-building yards 
 at the head of the bay have lost their former importance, and the manufacture of 
 cigars is now the great industry of the country. Sardinero, a bathing-place 
 to the north of the town, and the hot springs of Alcedo, Ontaneda, Las Caldas 
 de Besaya, in the hills to the south, are favourite places of resort. 
 
 Along the coast to the west of Santander, as far as Gijon, we only meet with 
 
 * Imports (1873), £2,348,720; exports, £2,341,360.
 
 SANTAXDER, THE ASTUBIAS, AXD G ALICIA. 450 
 
 villages, such as San Martin de la Arena (the port of the decayed town of Santillana), 
 San Vicente de la Barquera, Llanes, Rivadcsella, and Last res. Nor is Gijon, with 
 its huge tobacco factory, a place of importance, though formerly it was the capital 
 of all Asturias. It exports, however, the coal brought by rail from Sarna (Langres), 
 and with Aviles, on the other side of the elevated Cabo de Pei'ias, enjoys the 
 advantage of being the port of Oviedo, situatwl in a tributary valley of the Xalon, 
 fifteen miles in the interior. Oviedo has flourishing iron-works, a university, and a 
 tine Gothic cathedral, said to be richer in relics than anj' other church in the 
 world. The mountain of Jfaronca shelters the town against northerly winds, and 
 its climate is delicious. The environs abound in delightful spots. At Cangas do 
 Onis, which was the first capital of the kingdom, founded by St. Pelagius, but 
 now merely a village in a charming valley, are the caverns of Covadonga, in which 
 the ashes of the saint have found a last resting-place, and which are conscipiently 
 objects of the highest veneration to patriotic Spaniards. Trubia, the Government 
 gun and small-arms factory, lies seven miles to the west of Oviedo. 
 
 Cudillero, Luarca, NaA^ia (a place said to have been founded by Hum, the 
 son of Noah), Castropol, and Galician Eivadea are mere fishing villages, and only 
 when we reach the magnificent rias opening out into the Atlantic do we again 
 meet with real towns. The first of these is Ferrol, which was only a village 
 up to the middle of last century, but has since been converted into a great naval 
 station and fortress, bristling with guns, and containing dockyards and arsenals. 
 
 La Coruna, the Groyne of English sailors, depends rather upon commerce, manu- 
 factures, and fishing than upon its militarj- establishments and fortifications. It 
 is one of the most picturesque towns of Spain, and its favourable geographical 
 position will enable it, on the completion of the railway now building, consider- 
 ably to extend its commerce, which at present is almost confined to England.* 
 On a small island near it stands the Tower of Hercules, the foundations of 
 which date back to the Romans, if not Phoenicians. It was from the ria of Coruna 
 that the " Invincible Armada " set out upon its disastrous expedition. 
 
 Each of the rias of Southern Galicia has its port or ports. That of Corcubion 
 is sheltered by the Cape of Finisterre ; on the ria of Noya are the small towns of 
 Koya and Muros ; that of Arosa is frequented by vessels which convey emigrants 
 from the ports of Padron and Carril to La Plata ; the ria of Pontevedra extends 
 to the town after which it is named ; and farther south still, the towns of Vigo 
 and Bayona rise on the shore of a magnificent bay, protected by a group of 
 islands known to the ancients as " Isles of the Gods." Vigo, with its excellent 
 harbour, has become the great commercial port of the country, t but is, perhaps, 
 better known on account of the galleons sunk by Dutch and English privateers. 
 
 Three of the principal inland towns of Galicia — viz. Lugo, Orense, and Tuy — 
 rise on the banks of the Miuo. The old Roman city of Lugo (Lucus Augusti) 
 is enclosed within mediaeval walls, and has warm sulphur springs. Orense, with its 
 superb old bridge, is likewise celebrated for its hot springs, or htirgiu, which are 
 
 • Imports (1873), £310,227: exports, i:210,.i32. 
 t Imports (1873), £873,286; exports, £381,636.
 
 460 
 
 SPAIN. 
 
 said to raise sensibly the temperatiire of the plain in winter, and supply the whole 
 town with water for domestic purposes. Tuy, opposite the Portuguese town of 
 Valenca do Miuho, is important only as a frontier fortress. Santiago de Com- 
 postela, the famous old capital of Galicia, on a hill near the winding banks of the 
 Saria, is the most populous town of North-western Spain. It was here the grave of 
 St. James the apostle was discovered in the ninth century. The attraction which 
 it formerly exercised upon pilgrims was immense.* 
 
 IX. — The Present and Future of Spain. 
 
 Contemporaneous Spain is full of disorder. The political, financial, and social 
 machinery is out of joint, and civil war, active or latent, is carried on almost in 
 every province. The ruin wrought by these incessant domestic wars is incalculable. 
 
 Fig. 184. — Santona ani> San'tanueu. 
 Scale 1 : 360,000. 
 
 Successive (iovemments have had recourse to miserable expedients without being 
 able to disguise the bankrupt condition of the country. The creditors of the State, 
 no less than the Government officials, remained unpaid, and even schools had to 
 be closed because the pittance due to the schoolmaster was not forthcoming. 
 
 But in spite of this apparent ruin real progress has been made. In order to 
 fairly judge Spain we must remember that the period when the Inquisition was 
 permitted to commit its judicial murders is not very remote. In 1780 a woman 
 of Seville was burnt at the stake for " sorcery and witchcraft." At that time the 
 greater part of Spain was held in mortmain, and the cultivation of the remainder 
 
 ♦ Population of towns:— Santander, 21,000; Oviedo, 9,000; Gijon, 6,000; Santiago de Compostela, 
 29,000 ; La Coruiia, 20,000 ; Ferrol, 17,000 ; Lugo, 8,000 ; Vigo, 6,000 ; Orense, 5,000 ; Pontevedra, 4,200.
 
 THE PEESEXT AXD FUTITIE OF SPAIN. iGl 
 
 •was very indifferently attended to. I-noranee was universal, more e.^pet-iuUy ut 
 the universities, where science was lieUl in deri-sion. 
 
 The great events in the beginninj,' of tlie nineteenth century liave n.used tlio 
 Spaniards from their torpor, and the country, in spite of temponiry clu-cks, has 
 increased in population and wealth. Labour is more highly respected now than it 
 was formerly, and whilst monasteries and convents have been emptied, the factories 
 are crowded with workmen. For much of this progress Spam is indebted to 
 foreigners. Millions have been invested by them, and, though the expected profits 
 have scarcely ever been realised, the country at large has permanently pmHled from 
 this inflow of capital. The English have given an immense impetus to agriculture 
 by buying the wines of xVndalusia, the corn and flour of the Castilians, and the 
 cattle of the Galicians. They have likewise developed the mining industry of 
 Huelva, Linares, Cartagena, and Somorrostro. The French have vastly aided 
 the manufacturing industry. Foreign capitalists and engineers have established 
 steamboat lines and railways. The small towns of the interior are awakening 
 from their lethargy, and modern life is beginning to pulsate through their veins.* 
 
 In intellectual matters Spain has made even greater progress. Ignorance is 
 still a great power, especially in the Castilcs, ^^■hcre schoolmasters are little 
 respected, populous towns are without libraries, and catechisms and alnuinacs are 
 the only literature of the peasantry. But the position which Spain now holds in 
 literature and the arts sufficiently proves that the country of Cervantes and 
 Velasquez is about to resume its place amongst the other countries of Europe. In 
 science, however, Spain lags far behind, and Michael Servetus is the only Chris- 
 tian Spaniard whose works mark an epoch in the progress of human knowledge. 
 But the spirit of inquiry at one time alive amongst the Moors of Andalusia may 
 possibly revive among.st their descendants. 
 
 It is very much to be desired that intellectual pi'ogrcss should mollify the 
 manners of the people.t It is a scandal that the " noble science of bull-baiting" 
 should still meet with so large a measure of support in Spain. These buU-fights, as 
 well as the cock-fights so popular in ^\jidalusia, arc sports unworthy a great nation, 
 and should be put down, just as the aitto-da-fes have been put down. 
 
 Since a generation or two Spain has got rid of most of her colonics, which only 
 
 * Of the total area 26-1 per cent. eoneiBts of arable lanJ, 28 of vineyards, 1-7 of olive plantation, 137 
 of meadows and pasture, 16-3 per cent, of woods : 39-4 i>er cent, are uncultivated. Tho total value of 
 agricultural produce is estimated at £80,000,000. 
 
 The produce of the mines in 1871 represented a value of £6,271,000. 
 
 In 1865 there were enumerated 6S0..'i73 horses, 1,020,512 mules, 1,298,331 asses, 2,967,303 heads of 
 homed cattle, 22,468,969 sheep, 4,531,736 goats, 4,531.228 pigs, and 3,104 camels. 
 
 The products of manufactures are estimated by Garrido at £63,480,000 :— ImporU (1871), £22,780,000, 
 (1874) £15,280,000; exports (1871), £17,688,000, (1874) £10,120,000. 
 
 Commercial marine (1874), 2,836 sea-going vessels (inclusive of 212 steamers), of 625,184 tons, besides 
 6,498 lighters (26,000 tons) and 12,000 fishing-bouU. 
 
 Railways, 3,602 miles in 1876. 
 
 t Educational statistics (1870) : — 
 
 Men 
 
 Able to read and write .... 2,414,000 
 
 Able to read only 317,000 
 
 lUiterate 5,035,000 
 
 Women. 
 
 Total. 
 
 716,000 
 
 3,130,000 
 
 389,000 
 
 706,000 
 
 «,803,000 
 
 U,838,0UU
 
 462 SPAIN. 
 
 hindered her moral and material progress. The metroiDolis is no longer called 
 
 Fig. 185.— OviEDo AND Gijox. 
 
 '!cile 1 300 ■» 
 
 upon to uphold slavery, the Inquisition, commercial monopolies, and similar 
 institutions, "devised to insure the happy government of these colonies." These
 
 THE PRESENT AXD FUTUKE OF SPAIN. 408 
 
 latter certainly have had their revolutions and counter-revolutions, but they huTe 
 Fie. 186. — TowiR op ITinrrtrs 'I.ioiiTiiorst). 
 
 made some progress in population and wealth. Unfortunately the entire colonial 
 empire was not lost. Cuba and the I'hilippine Islands are frequently represented
 
 4G4 
 
 SPAIN. 
 
 as adding to the wealth of Spain, and large sums have certainly been paid by 
 them into the treasury. But these results have been achieved at the cost of 
 fearful suflFering and demoralisation to governors and governed, and unless Spain 
 adopts the colonial system of England, by granting self-government to colonies, it 
 will to a certaintj' lose the last slireds of its colonial empire, after having exhausted 
 its strength in vain efforts to maintain it. 
 
 Bat though the colonies be lost, the influence of Spain upon the rest of the 
 world will endure for centuries. Spiin has impressed her genius upon every 
 
 Fi{;. 187.— RiA PE Vioo. 
 Scale 1 : SSi^iXlO. 
 
 
 y^^" \> /^^ 
 
 7^il/, 
 
 ***•: 
 
 country subjected at one time or other to her power. Sicily, Naples, Sardinia, 
 and even Lombardy still exhibit traces of Spanish influence in their architecture 
 and customs. In Spanish America we find towns inhabited by Indians which 
 arc quite Spanish in their aspect, and almost resemble detached portions of Badajoz 
 and Yalladolid. The Indians themselves have adopted the Castilian tongue, and 
 with it Castilian manners and modes of thought. A vast territory, twice the size 
 of Europe, and capable of supporting millions of inhabitants, is occupied now by 
 Spanish-speaking peoples.
 
 GOYEEXMEXT .VXD ADiriXISTEATION. 
 
 ids 
 
 X- GOVEKXMEXT AND AdMIXISTHATION. 
 
 SixcE Se-ptember, 1868, Avlien a rerolutlon upset the Government of Isabella II., 
 Spain has passed through a series of revolutions and convulsions, tcrminatiug in 
 December, 1874, in the accession of Alfonso XII., a son of Isiibella. Soon after- 
 wards the revolt in the Basque provinces raised by Don Carlos, the "legitimate" 
 king of the country, was suppressed, and the work of internal organization could 
 begin. The legislative power is vested in the King and the Cortes. These latter 
 include a Senate and a House of Deputies. The Senate consists of hereditary 
 
 Fig. ISS.— Eailkoads of the Iberux PESixsn_i. 
 Scale 1 : 10,300,000. 
 
 members (such as royal princes and grandees), of life members chosen by the 
 King, and of senators elected by corporations. The members of the House of 
 Deputies are elected for iire years. The President and Vice-President of the Senate 
 are appointed by the Eing, who enjoys the right of dissolving the Cortes on con- 
 dition of fresh elections being ordered within three months. 
 
 These governmental revolutions scarcely affected the administration of the 
 country. The treasury is always empty, the annual receipts do not suffice to pay 
 the interest upon the national debt, taxes have increased, the conscription demands 
 more men than ever, and the schools diminish in numbers.* 
 
 • Revenue (1876-7), £26,300,069 ; estimated expenditnre, £26,251,518, of which more th.in half is for 
 army and navy ; national deM, £420,322,000. 
 
 TOL. I. H H
 
 46G 
 
 SPAIN. 
 
 The political and administrative divisions of the country have remained the 
 same since 1841. Spain is divided into forty-nine provinces, including the 
 Canaries. Each province is subdivided into districts, and has its civil governor. 
 The communes are governed by an alcalde, or mayor, assisted by an aijtintamiento, or 
 municipal council, of from four to twenty- eight members. The judicial adminis- 
 tration is modelled on that of France. There are 9,400 justices of the peace (one 
 for each commune), about 500 inferior courts, 15 courts of appeal, and a supreme 
 court sitting at Madrid. 
 
 For military purposes continental Spain is divided into twelve districts, each 
 
 FijC. 189. — FoilEIGN CoMMEUCE OP THE IllEllUN PeXINSULA. 
 
 Stedin^. 
 
 under a captain-general. These are New Castile, Catalonia, Aragon, Andalusia, 
 Valencia with Murcia, Galicia, Granada, Old Castile, Estremadura, Burgos, 
 Nuvarra, and the Basque provinces. The Balearic Isles, the Canaries, Cuba, 
 Puerto Rico, and the Philippines constitute five additional districts. Military 
 service is compulsory, but substitutes are admitted on ^^aymcnt of a heavy ransom. 
 The annual levy varies exceedingly, and as many as 80,000 men are officially stated 
 to have been levied in a single year, though 60,000 would appear to be the utmost 
 the population can supply. The term of service is seven years in the cavalry and 
 artillery, eight years in tbe infantry, of which three are passed in the "provincial 
 militia." About 100,000 men are supposed to be actually under arms in the
 
 GOYEENMENT AND ADMINISTRATION. 
 
 4ti7 
 
 peninsula, 130,000 arc on furlough, aud 70,000 nion are st-atiuncd iu the coloiiioB, 
 mostly in Cuba, where about one-lburth of the total streugth perish aiiiiuuUv. 
 
 The principal fortresses are St. Sebastiau, Santofia, and SanUinder, on the Huy 
 of Biscay ; Fcrrol, La Corufia, and Vigo, on the rias of Galicia ; Ciudud Umlrlgo, 
 on the Portuguese frontier; Cadiz aud Tarifa, at the entrance of the Strait of 
 Gibraltar ; Malaga, Cartagena, Alicante, and Barcelona, on the Meditornuican ; 
 Figueras, Pamplona, and Zaragoza, at the foot of the Pyrenees. 
 
 The navy consists of 123 steamers, propelled by engines of 24,094 horse-powor, 
 armed with 755 guns, and manned by 14,000 sailors and 5,500 marines. Six 
 of these vessels are ironclad frigates. The number of superior officers is exceed- 
 ingly large, and their salaries weigh heavily upon the treasury. 
 
 Fig. 190.— Diagram exhibiting the Extent or the Castilian Language. 
 ScAle 1 : 3CnuO,000. 
 
 Officially the pri\ilege8 of the nobility have been abrogated. The number of 
 " noblemen " is, perhaps, larger iu Spain than anywhere else in Euroiie, for the 
 population of entire provinces, such as the Vascongadas and the Asturias, chiims 
 to have " blue blood " in its veins. In 1787 no less than 480,000 " gentlemen " 
 were enumerated, not including minors, and if the proportion is the same now, 
 there must exist at the least 3,000,(100 Spaniards who claim to be hidahjox, or 
 " sons of somebody." About 1,500 grandees are privileged by custom to remain 
 covered in the presence of the King, and about 2n0 of these belong to the highest 
 rank. All of these do not, however, owe their rank to birth, for many plebeians, 
 taking advantage of the financial miseries of the country, have succeeded in getting 
 themselves ennobled. The order of the Golden Fleece, founded in 1431 by Philip 
 the Good, is one of the di-stiuctions most coveted by princes and diploiuatisl.-i. 
 
 u 11 2
 
 468 
 
 SPAIN. 
 
 The Roman Catholic religion is that of the State, and its prelates enjoy great 
 privileo-es, but all other confessions are supposed to be tolerated. The schools, 
 unfortunately, still remain in the hands of ecclesiastics, who likewise exercise a 
 censorship with respect to pieces to be produced on the stage. Formerly Spain 
 was the most priest-ridden country in Europe. At the close of last century there 
 were 144,000 priests, 71,000 monks, and 35,000 nuns, but only 34,000 merchants. 
 War and revolutions played havoc with the conventual Institutions, but as recently 
 as 1835 they still harboured 50,000 Inmates. Subsequently the whole of them , 
 were suppressed, and in 1869 the last Spanish monk retired from the Carthusian 
 monastery of Granada to find a refuge In Belgium. Since then, however, the laws 
 of the laud have again been relaxed in favour of monks and priests. There are 9 
 archbishops and 54 bi.^hops. 
 
 AllEA AND PorULATIOX OF SPAIN AND ITS C'oLOXirS. 
 ^^'■"^ Density. 
 
 Area. 
 Sq, m 
 
 Ktw Castile (Castilla) : — 
 Madi-id. . . . 2,997 
 
 Toledo . . 
 
 Guadalajara 
 
 Cucnca . 
 
 Ciudad Keal 
 Old Castile : — 
 
 Santandci- . 
 
 Burgos . . 
 
 Logrono . 
 
 Avila . . 
 
 Segovia 
 
 Soria . . 
 
 Paleneia . 
 
 Valladolid . 
 Leon : — 
 
 Salamanca 
 
 Zamora 
 
 Leon . . 
 
 ESTKEMADVIIA : 
 
 Caceres 
 Badajoz 
 
 Andalvsia : — 
 
 Almcria 
 
 Cadiz . 
 
 Cordova 
 
 Granada 
 
 Huelva . 
 
 Jaen 
 
 Malaga . 
 
 Seville . 
 Valencia : — 
 
 Castellon 
 Plana . 
 
 Valencia . 
 
 Alicante . 
 Murcia: — 
 
 Albacetc . . . 
 
 Slurcia . . . . 
 Balearic Isles : — 
 
 Baleares . . . 
 
 5,586 
 4,870 
 6,725 
 7,8-10 
 
 2,113 
 5,650 
 1,945 
 2,981 
 2,714 
 3,836 
 3,120 
 3,043 
 
 4,940 
 4,135 
 0,167 
 
 8,013 
 8,087 
 
 3,302 
 2,809 
 5,190 
 4,937 
 4,122 
 5,184 
 2,824 
 5,295 
 
 2,440 
 4,352 
 2,098 
 
 5,972 
 4,478 
 
 487,482 
 342,272 
 208,638 
 238,731 
 264,649 
 
 241,581 
 353,560 
 182,941 
 175,219 
 150,812 
 158,699 
 184,668 
 242,384 
 
 280,870 
 250,908 
 350,992 
 
 302,455 
 431,922 
 
 361,553 
 426,499 
 382,652 
 485,340 
 196,169 
 392,100 
 505,010 
 515,011 
 
 296,222 
 665,141 
 440,470 
 
 220,973 
 439,067 
 
 1C2 
 61 
 41 
 35 
 34 
 
 114 
 62 
 
 110 
 152 
 
 180 
 97 
 
 121 
 153 
 210 
 
 37 
 98 
 
 289,225 155 
 
 Area. Popuktion nensil 
 Sq. m. (IbiO). 
 Catalonia (Cataluua) : — 
 
 Lerida .... 4,775 330,348 09 
 
 Gcrona. . . . 2,272 325,110 113 
 
 Barcelona . . . 2,985 762,555 256 
 
 TaiTagona . . 2,451 350,395 113 
 
 Aragon ; — ■ 
 
 Huesca. . . . 5,878 274,023 47 
 Zaragoza (Sai'a- 
 
 gossa) . . 
 Teruel . . . 
 
 6,007 
 5,491 
 
 401,894 
 252,201 
 
 Navarra and Basqve Provinces (Vas- 
 congadas) : — 
 
 318,087 
 187,920 
 180,743 
 103,320 
 
 Navarra . . 
 Vizcaya (Biscay) 
 Guipijzcoa 
 Alava . . . , 
 
 AsTURIAS : — 
 Ovicdo . . . 
 
 Galicia:— 
 
 Orense . . . , 
 Pontevedra . , 
 La Coruiia 
 Lugo . . . . 
 
 Total Spain 
 
 Africa : — 
 
 Canaries . . 
 
 West Coast . , 
 America : — 
 
 Cuba . . . 
 
 Puerto Ivico . 
 
 Oceania: — 
 Philippines . 
 Carolinas . . 
 Pelew Islands 
 Marianas . . 
 
 Total Colonies 
 
 Spain and ") 
 Colonies j 
 
 4,046 
 849 
 
 1,205 
 
 . 45,983 
 . 3,596 
 
 . 65,870 
 534 
 345 
 
 . 417 
 120^403 
 
 283,859 
 35,000 
 
 1,400,000 
 625,000 
 
 6,000,000 
 18,800 
 10,000 
 8,000 
 
 8,380,659 
 
 80 
 221 
 248 
 
 80 
 
 101 
 41 
 
 313,362 25,216,165 80
 
 POETUUAL. 
 
 I. — General Aspecis. 
 
 ORTUGAL, one of the smallest states of Europe, was nevertheless 
 
 during a short epoch one of the most powerful. 
 
 It might appear at the first glance that Portugal ought to be a 
 
 member of a state including the whole of the Iberian peninsula ; 
 
 but it is neither to chance nor to events purely historical that 
 
 Portugal owes its separate existence. The country is one by its climate, fauna, and 
 
 vegetation, and the inhabitants dwelling within it naturally adopted the same sort 
 
 of life, nourished the same ideas, and joined in the same body politic. It was by 
 
 advancing along the coast, from river to river, from the Douro to the Minho and 
 
 Tejo, from the Tejo to the Guadiana, that Portugal constituted itself an independent 
 
 state. 
 
 Soil and climate mark off Portugal very distinctly from the rest of the Iberian 
 
 peninsula. Speaking generally, that country embraces the Atlantic slopes of the 
 
 plateau of Spain, and the limit of the heavy rains brought by westerly winds 
 
 coincides very nearly \^ith the political boundar}' between the two countries. On 
 
 one side of the lino we have a humid atmosphere, frequent rains, and luxuriant 
 
 forests ; on the other a brazen sky, a parched soil, naked rocks, and treeless plains. 
 
 These abundant rains convert the feeble streams flowing from the plateau into great 
 
 rivers. Tlie natural obstacles, such as rapids, which obstruct the principal amongst 
 
 them, are met with near the political frontier of the country. The harbour of 
 
 Lisbon was the kernel, as it were, around which the rest of the country has become 
 
 crystallized. Its power of attraction proved equal to that which caused the rest of 
 
 the peninsula to gravitate towards Madrid and Toledo. 
 
 As frequently happens where neighbouring nations obey different laws and 
 
 are made to fight each other at the caprice of their sovereigns, there is no lovo 
 
 lost between Spaniards and Portuguese. The former, being the stronger, sneer at 
 
 "Portugueses pocos y locos " (small and crack-brained). The Portuguese arc far 
 
 more demonstrative in giWng expression to their aversion. Formerly " Murderer 
 
 • Link uml Iloffmannsogg, "Voyage en Portugal;" Minutuli, 'Toriugal unJ s«inc Kdlonion ; " 
 Vogol, " I-e Portugal ct 8«s Colonies;" Lady Jackson. "Fair LuEitanin ; " Latoucho, "Travels in 
 Portugtd."
 
 470 
 
 PORTUGAL. 
 
 of the Castilians " was a favourite sign-board of houses of entertainment, and the 
 national poetry breathes passionate hatred of the Spaniard. This animosity must 
 interfere with the Iberian union, advocated only by a handful of people. 
 
 Ancient Lusitania was inhabited by Celtic and Iberian tribes, who resisted for 
 a considerable time the conquering arms of Rome. Those dwelling near the coast 
 had been subjected to the influence of Greek, Phoenician, and Carthaginian 
 colonists ; but the influence exercised by the Romans, who forced their language 
 and form of government upon the people, was far more durable. Suevi and 
 
 Fig. 191. — Kaixiall of the Ibekian Peninsula. 
 According to Jelinek and Hann. Scale 1 : 10,300,000. 
 
 Visigoths have left but few traces of their presence. The Mohammedans of 
 various races have largely modified the blood and manners of the inhabitants, 
 especially in Algarve, where they maintained themselves to the middle of the 
 thirteenth century. The numerous ruins of fortresses existing throughout the 
 country bear witness to the severe struggles which took place between these races 
 before uniformity of government and religion was established. 
 
 The Kings of Portugal, taking the advice of the Inquisition, expelled all heretics. 
 The persecution of the Moors was pitiless, but the Jews were occasionally granted 
 a respite. The Spanish Jews settled near the frontier, having outwardly embi-aced
 
 OEXETwVL .\SrKCTS. 47I 
 
 the Christian religion, were perniitteil to reniuin ; but the more (uiiKcieutiuus 
 Jews kept tnio to their faith, and carried the knowledge they possessed to other 
 countries of Europe and to the East. At the time of their exile they were 
 engaged in literature, medicine, and law, as well ils in eonnneree ; at Lisbon they 
 had founded an academy of high repute; it was a Jew who intriKliiced the art of 
 printing into Portugal ; and Spinoza, that noble and jxiwerful thinker, was a Jew 
 of Portuguese extraction. 
 
 But the Portuguese have not only the blood of Arabs, IJerbers, and .lews in 
 their veins, they are likewise much mixed with negroes, more particularly in tho 
 south and along the coast. The slave trade existed long before the negroes of 
 Guinea were exported to the plantations of America. Damianus a Goes estimated 
 the number of blacks imported into Lisbon alone during the sixteenth century at 
 10,000 or 12,000 per annum. If contemporary eye-witnesses can bo trusted, 
 the number of blacks met with in the streets of Lisbon equalled that of tho 
 ■whites. Xot a house but had its negro servants, and the wealthy owned entire 
 gangs of them. The immunity of Portuguese immigrants wlio face the deadly 
 climates of the tropics is sometimes ascribed to this infusion of negro blood, but 
 erroneously as we think. Most of these immigrants come from the mountains of 
 the north, where the race is almost pure ; and if the Portuguese become accli- 
 matized more rapidly than individuals of other nations, they owe it to their sobriety. 
 
 At the present day it is the Galicians who exercise most influence upon the 
 population of Lusitania. They immigrate in large numbers to Lisbon and other 
 towns, where they gain their living as bakers, porters, doorkeepers, and domestic 
 servants. Being ridiculed on account of their uncouth language and rustic 
 manners, they mix but little with the rest of the population. Their numbers, 
 however, are ever increasing, and their thrift and industrj* soon place them in a 
 position of ease. 
 
 The mixture of these diverse elements has not produced a handsome race. The 
 Portuguese possess but rarely the noble mien of the Spaniard. Their features, 
 as a rule, are irregular, the nose is turned up, and the lips are thick. Cripples 
 are rare amongst them, but so are tall men. Squat and short, they are inclined to 
 corpulency. The women cannot boast the fiery beauty of the Spaniards, but have 
 brilliant eyes, an abundance of hair, animated features, and amiable manners. 
 
 Travellers speak highly of the manners, civility, and kindness of the peasantry 
 not yet contaminated by commerce. The cruelties committed by Portuguese 
 conquerors in the Indies and the New "World have given the nation a bad reputa- 
 tion, though, as a rule, the Portuguese has compassion for all sorts of suffering. 
 He is a gambler, but never quarrels ; he is fond of bull-fights, but takes care to 
 wrap up the bull's horns in cork, in order that the animal may be saved for future 
 contests ; and he is exceedingly kind to domestic animals. In their intercourse the 
 Portuguese are good-tempered, obliging, and polished. To tell a Lusitanian that 
 he has been " brought up badly "is to oflend him most seriously. Their oratory 
 is elegant, though ceremonious. Even the peasants express themselves with a 
 facility and command of words remarkable in a people so badly educated. Oaths
 
 472 POnrUGAL. 
 
 .iiid indecent expressions scarcely ever pass tlieir moutb, and, though great talkers. 
 
 Fig. 192.— Portuguese Tvpes : Teasant of Ovar ; Womax of Le^a ; Teasant Woman of Affife. 
 
 
 
 
 \ 
 
 
 and even boasters, they are most guarded in their conversation. Portugal has
 
 VALl.KY?; OF TUE MIXIIO, DOURO, AND MOXDEGO. 473 
 
 produced great orators, and one of her pools, Camrios, is amongst tlio most illus- 
 trious the world has ever seen. On the other hand, Portugal has given birth 
 to no great artist, for Gran Vasco is a mythical personage. C'aiuucs himself avows 
 this when he says, "Our nation is the first because of its great qualilics. Our 
 men are more heroic than other men; our women better-looking than other women ; 
 and we excel in all the arts of peace and war, excepting in the art of painting." 
 
 Portuguese is very much like Castilian as far as root-words and general 
 construction arc concerned, but is far less voluminous and sonorous. Xasul and 
 hissing sounds, which a foreigner finds it difiicult to pronounce, abound, but there 
 are no gutturals. Arab words are less numerous in Portuguese than in Castilian, 
 but the Lusitanians, as well as the Spaniards, still swear by the god of the 
 Mohammedans — Oj-aJa {Ojulu) ; that is, " If Allah wills it." 
 
 The Portuguese cannot compare in numbers with the other nations of Europe, 
 and their influence upon the destinies of the world is consequently small. At one 
 time of their history, however, the)- surpassed all other nations by their maritime 
 enterprise. The Spaniards certainly shared in the great discoveries of the fifteenth 
 century, but it was the Portuguese who made them possible by first venturing to 
 navigate the open ocean. It was a Portuguese, Magalhiies, who undertook the 
 first voyage round the world, terminated only after his death. A similar pre- 
 eminence amongst nations will never be met with again, for the increased facilities 
 of communication exercise a levelling influence upon all. Portugal, therefore, can 
 never again hope to resume the national status which she held formerly, but her 
 great natural resources and favourable geographical position at the extremity of 
 the continent must always insure her an honourable place amongst them. 
 
 II. — XoKTHEUN Pt)inrf:Ai,. The Valleys of the Mimio, 
 
 DoiItO, AND MONDEGO. 
 
 The mountains of Lusitania arc a portion of the great orographical system of 
 the whole peninsula ; but they are not mere spurs, gradually sinking down towards 
 the sea, for they rise into independent ranges ; and the individuality of Portugal 
 is manifested in the relief of its soil quite as much as in the history of its 
 inhabitants. 
 
 The mountains rising in Ihc north-eastern corner of Portugal, to the south of 
 the Minho, may be looked upon as the outer barrier of an ancient lake, which 
 formerly covered the whole of the plains of Old Castile. From the Pyrenees to 
 the Sierra dc Gata this barrier was continuous, and the breaches now existing date 
 only from a comparatively recent epoch, and are due to the erosive action of 
 torrents. The most considerable of these breaches, that of the Douro, could have 
 been eflfected only by overcoming most formidable obstacles. 
 
 The most northern mountain mass of Portugal, that of the Peneda of Gavieiro 
 (4,727 feet), rises abruptly beyond the region of forest, and commands the Sierra 
 Pei'iagache (4,0Go feet) on tlie Spanish frontier to the east, as well as the hills of 
 Santa Luzia (1,814 feet) and others near the coast. Another momitaiu mass rises
 
 474 PORTUGAL. 
 
 immediately to the south of the gorge through which the Limia passes after leaving 
 Spain. This is the Serra do Gerez (4,815 feet), a range of twisted, grotesquely 
 shaped mountains, the only counterpart of which in the peninsula is the famous 
 Serrania de Ronda. This range, together with the Larouco (5,184 feet), to the 
 east of it, must be looked upon as the western extremity of the Cantahrian Pyrenees, 
 and like them it consists of granitic rocks. 
 
 The flora of these northern frontier mountains of Portugal much resembles that 
 of Galicia, and on their slopes the botanist meets with a curious intermingling of 
 the vegetation of France, and even Germany, with that of the Pyrenees, Biscay, and 
 the Portuguese lowlands. On the southern summits, however, and more especially 
 on the Serra de Marao (4,665 feet), which forms a bold promontory between the 
 Douro and its important tributary the Tamega, and shelters the wine districts 
 of Oporto from north-westerly winds, the opportunities for examining into the 
 arborescent flora are but few, for the forests which once clad them have disap- 
 peared. The schistose plateaux to the east of them and to the north of the Douro 
 have likewise been robbed of their forests to make room for vineyards. Most 
 wild animals have disappeared with the forests, but wolves are still numerous, and 
 are much dreaded by the herdsmen. The mountain goat (Capra cegagnis), which 
 existed until towards the close of last century in the Serra do Gerez, has become 
 extinct. The Serra da Cabreira (4,196 feet), to the east of Braga, is probably 
 indebted for its name to these wild goats. 
 
 If the Serra do Gerez may be looked upon as the western extremity of the 
 Pyrenean system, the magnificent Serra da Estrella (6,540 feet), which rises 
 between the Douro and Tejo, is undoubtedly a western prolongation of the great 
 central range of Spain which separates the plateaux of the two Castiles. These 
 " Star Mountains " are attached to the mountains of Sjjain by a rugged table- 
 land, or mem, of comparatively small height. The great granitic Serra da 
 Estrella rises gently above the broken ground which gives birth to the Mondego. 
 It can easily be ascended from that side, and is hence, known as the Serra Mama, 
 " the tame mountain." On the south, however, above the valley of the Zezere, 
 the slopes are abrupt and difiicult of access, and are known for that reason as Serra 
 Brava ; that is, "wild mountain." Delightful lakelets, similar to those of the 
 Pyrenees and Carpathians, are met with near the highest summit of the range, 
 the Malhiio de Serra. The tops of the Serra da Estrella remain covered with snow 
 during four months of the year, and supply the inhabitants of Lisbon with the 
 ice required for the preparation of their favourite sherbet. The orographical 
 system of the Estrella ends with the Serra de Lousao (3,940 feet), for the hills of 
 Estremadura, which terminate in the Cabo da Eoca, a landmark well known to 
 mariners, belong to another geological formation, and consist for the most part of 
 Jurassic strata overlying the cretaceous formation. 
 
 The mountains of Beira and Entre Douro e Minho are exposed to the full 
 influence of the moisture-laden south-westerly winds, and the rainfall is consider- 
 able. The rain does not descend in torrents, as in tropical countries, but pours 
 down steadily. It is more abimdant in winter and spring, but not a month passes
 
 VAIXEYS OF THE MINIIO, DOURO. AM) MONDEGO. 475 
 
 without it. Fogs arc frequent at the mouths of valleys aud along the coast as fur 
 south as the latitude of Coimhra. At that place as much us sixteen fi-et of rain 
 has fallen in a single j-ear, an amount only to be ctjualletl within the tropics. 
 
 The humidity of the air accounts for the great equability of the cliinale of 
 Northern Portugal. At Coimbra the ditfcrence between the coldest and warmest 
 month amounts to but 20^ F. Frosts are severe only on the plateaux cxim>8i-<1 to 
 the north-easterly winds, and the heat becomes unbearable in deep valleys alone, 
 where the air cannot ci-culate freely.* At Penafiel, where the rays of the sun uro 
 
 Fig. 1U3.— The Valley or tub Limia, ok Lima. 
 Scale 1 : sno.nnrt. 
 
 thro^ back by the rocky precipices, the heat is abnost that of a furnace. This, 
 however, is an exception, and the climate generally can be described as temperate 
 Running water is abundant. Camoes has sung the beauties of the holds of 
 Coimhra watered bv the Mondego, the charms of cascades sparkling amidst foliage, 
 and the puritv of "the springs bursting forth from rocks clad w.lh verdure. The 
 Vouga, the affluents of the Douro, the Ave, Cavado, and Lima, likewise t.ike their 
 
 . Ten^perature of Coimbr. (according to CoeU,. -J-^^^"^' i.^J^'.^'Si 'So"; ZTt. 
 «8-9; antln,62-3; coldest month (J--7)^^°■^ = ^°""" ^^^^ SM ; 
 
 70-3 : difference, 201 F.
 
 476 
 
 POETUGAL. 
 
 Tig. 194.— iH-NES OF AvEino. 
 Scale 1 : 400,000. 
 
 devious courses tlirougli smiling landscapes whose beauties are set off bj' rocks and 
 mountains. The Lima, whose delights might well cause Roman soldiers to forget 
 the rivers of their own coimtry, is the only river of the peninsula still in a state 
 of geological transition. All others have drained the lakes which gave birth to 
 them, but in the case of the Lima that old lake basin is still occupied by a swamp, 
 
 known as Laguna Beon, or Antela, the 
 only remains of a mountain-girt inland 
 lake as large as that of Geneva. 
 
 The current of the rivers of Northern 
 Portugal is too great to permit of their 
 being utilised as high-roads of commerce. 
 They have ports at their mouths, but the 
 Douro, which drains nearly a sixth of the 
 Iberian peninsula, is the only one amongst 
 them which facilitates access to an inland 
 district. Mariners dread to approach the 
 coast when the wind blows on shore. 
 Between the Minho and Gabo Carvoeiro, a 
 distance of 200 miles, the coast presents 
 features very much like those of the 
 French landes. Its original indentations 
 and irregularities have been obliterated 
 by barriers of sand. The lower valley of 
 the Youga Avas formerly an inlet of the 
 sea extending far inland. The basin of 
 Aveiro resembles geologically that of 
 Arcachon. Its waters abound in fish, but 
 the Douro is the southernmost river of 
 Europe visited by salmon. The abun- 
 dance of life in certain localities of it is 
 figui-atively expressed by a Spanish pro- 
 verb, which says, " The water of the 
 Douro is not water, but broth." 
 
 The rectilinear beach of Beira-mar is 
 lined for the most part with dunes, the 
 old gulfs behind which are gradually 
 being converted into insalubrious swamps, 
 fringed by heath, ferns, strawberry-trees, 
 ana broom, whilst the neighbouring forests consist of oaks and pines. Formerly 
 these dunes invaded the cidtivated portions of the country, as they still do in France, 
 where like geological causes have produced like results. But long before a similar 
 plan was thought of in France these Portuguese dunes were planted with pines, 
 and as early as the reign of King DIniz " the Iiabourer," at the beginning 
 of the foiu'teenth century, they had ceased to " march."
 
 VALLEYS OF THE MINHO, DOUEO, AND MONDEGO. 477 
 
 The populutioaof the cultivable portions of the basins of the Miulio and Douro 
 is very dense, and in order to maintain themselves the iuhabituuts arc forced (o 
 work zealously. Their country is the most carefully cultivated of llio peninsula. 
 In a large measure this industry is due to the fact of the peasantry being the 
 owners of the land they cultivate, or at least aji'arudos — that is, copyholders — 
 who only pay a few shillings annually to the lords of the niauor.>i. :Many of 
 the peasants are wealthy, and the women are fond of loading themselves with 
 jewellery, amongst which necklaces made in tho Moorish tusto aro most pro- 
 minent. The cultivation of tho fields is attended to with scrupulous care ; and 
 the most ingenious methods aro employed for tho irrigation of tho upper slopes 
 of the hills, which are frequently cut up into terraces, or ycm. These Northern 
 Portuguese arc as distinguished for moral excellence as they aro by industry. 
 Their sweetness of disposition, gaiety, and kindliness aro the theme of universal 
 praise, and as regards their love of dancing and music they aro veritable Theo- 
 tritan shepherds. Challenges in improvised verses form one of the amusements 
 of young men. Nor is the population devoid of physical beauty. The women 
 of Aveiro, though often enfeebled by malaria, have the reputation of being the 
 prettiest in all Portugal. 
 
 The cultivation of the vine and the making of port wine constitute the prnicipul 
 branch of industry of the country. The chief vine-growing district, ordinarily 
 known as Puiz do Viitho, lies to the north of the Douro, between the Serra de 
 Marao and the Tua, and is exjwsed to the full force of the rays of the summer sun. 
 In the middle of the seventeenth century the cultivation of this district had hardly 
 begun. The English had not then learnt to appreciate theso growths, and were 
 content with the various Portuguese wines shiijped from Lisbon. It was only 
 after the treaty concluded by Lord Methuen in 1702 that the cultivation of the 
 vine assiuned certain dimensions in the district of the Douro, and ever since the 
 reputation of port has been on the increase. The Marquis of I'ombal founded a 
 company for the production of wine, and the small town of Pezo da Regoa, on the 
 Corgo, then became famous for its wine fairs, at which fortunes were lost and won, 
 and a town of wine cellars and stores sprang up opposite the town of Porto, or 
 Oporto, near the mouth of the Douro. For more than a hundred years port and 
 sherry have kept their place on the tables of English gentlemen, and nearly all the 
 wine produced on the banks of the Douro finds its way to England or to British 
 colonies. Indeed, up to 1852 the best quality, known as "factory wine," could 
 be exported to England alone. Next to the ICnglish the Brazilians are the best 
 customers of Oporto : they receive nearly 1,000,000 gallons of wine annually.* 
 
 The breeding of mules and fattening of Spanish cuttle f:>r the London market 
 yield considerable profit. Early vegetables are forwarded not only to London, but 
 also to Eio de Janeiro. Manufactures were already of some importanco in tho 
 
 • Production of wino in Portugal before tho appearance of oidinm, in 1863, 10^,600,000 gnllona. 
 Average annual produce of tlic vineyards of Alto-Douro (Oporto) in 1848, 11,726,000 ; in 1870,- 11,374,000 
 gallons. E.xport9 to England, 3,718,000 gallons; Brazil, O9'l,000 gallons. In 1874 Oporto ulono exported 
 6,623,000 gallons, or more than ever before,
 
 478 
 
 POETUGAL. 
 
 Middle Ages, and have recently been much developed by enterprising English 
 capitalists. Oporto has cotton, linen, silk, and woollen mills, foundries and sugar 
 refineries, and its jewellers and glove-makers enjoy a good repute. But agricul- 
 ture, industry and legitimate commerce, and even the smuggling carried on in 
 the frontier district of Bragan(;a do not suffice to support the ever-increasing 
 population, and thousands emigrate annually to Lisbon and Brazil. 
 
 Northern Portugal may be described as the cradle of the existing kingdom, 
 and it was Porto Cale, on the site of Villanova de Gaia, ' the southern suburb 
 of Oporto, which gave a name to all Lusitania. At Lamego, to the south of 
 the Douro, the Cortes met, according to tradition, in 1143, and constituted the 
 new kingdom of which Oporto became the cajDital. When the country recovered 
 its independence after the short dominion of Spain, the Dukes of Bragau^a were 
 
 Fig. 195. — Oporto and the Paiz do Vinho. 
 Scale 1 : 1,000,000. 
 
 »° wJwQf- 
 
 TTg^^f ^M ■!^'""tr;/'->'*v>';w .m:/. 
 
 
 invested with the regal power. Though Lisbon occupies a more central position 
 than Oporto, the latter frequently takes the initiative in political movements, and 
 the success of any revolution is said to depend upon the side taken by the energetic 
 population of the north. If we may accept the estimate of the Porttienses, they are 
 morally and physically the superiors of the Lisbonenses. They alone are the true 
 sons of the great people whose vessels ploughed the ocean during the age of dis- 
 coveries, and there can be no doubt that their gait is more determined, their 
 speech and their glance more open, than those of the inhabitants of the capital. 
 In vulgar parlance, people of Oporto and Lisbon are known as trijx'iros and 
 alfasinhos ; that is, tripe and lettuce eaters. 
 
 Porto, or Porto, the "Port " par exeellence, is the natural capital of Northern 
 Lusitania, the second city of Portugal on account of its population and commerce, 
 the first in manufactures. As seen from the banks of the Douro, here hardly
 
 I
 
 V.U-LEYS OF THE MINUO, DOUEO, .^'D MONDEGU. 479 
 
 more than 200 yards in width, and spanned by a magnificent railway bridge, it 
 rises like a double amphitheatre, whoso summits are crowned by the cathedral 
 and the belfry dos Cleriyos, and the narrow valley separating them coven-d with 
 houses. The lower town has broad streets, intersecting each other at riglit angles, 
 but the streets climbing the hills are narrow and tortuous, and even stairs have 
 frequently to be ascended in order to reach the more elevated quarters of the town. 
 Cleanliness is attended to throughout, and the citizens are most anxious in that 
 respect to insure the praises of their numerous English visitors. Gaia, a long 
 suburb, occupies the opposite side of the river. It abounds in factories and store- 
 houses, and its vast cellars are stated on an average to contain 80,000 pipes of wine. 
 Beautiful walks extend along the river bank and its terraces, and the long reaches 
 of the stream are covered with shipping, and fringed with gardens and villas. The 
 hills in the distance are crowned with ancient convents, fortifications, and villages 
 half hidden amongst verdure. Avintes, famous for the beauty of its women, who 
 supply the town daily with broa, or muize bread, is one of them. Suburbs extend 
 along both banks of the river in the direction of the sea. The river at its mouth 
 is only two fathoms in depth during low water, and dangerous of access when the 
 wind blows from the west. Even at Oporto vessels of 400 or oOO tons are exposed 
 to danger from sudden floods of the river, which cause them to drag their anchors. 
 The port of the Douro has therefore to contend with great difficulties in its rivalry 
 with Lisbon.* 
 
 The small to^vn of Sao Joao da Foz, at the mouth of the Douro, has a light- 
 house, but carries on no commerce. Near it are Mattozinhos and Lc^a, the latter 
 of which boasts of an ancient monastery resembling a fortress, and is much frequented 
 on account of its fine beach and refreshing sea breezes. Espinlio, to the south of 
 the Douro, is another favourite seaside resort, in spite of the all-pervading smell of 
 sardines. The small ports to the north of the Douro are frequented only by coasting 
 vessels or by seaside visitors. The entrance to the ilinho is defended by the castle 
 of Insua, on a small island, as its name implies, and by the ins-ignificaut fortress of 
 Caminha. The river is accessible only to vessels drawing less than six feet. The 
 mouth of the Lima, though even more difficult of access, is nevertheless occupied by 
 a town of some importance — coquettish Vianua do Castello, beautifully ensconced 
 amidst the verdure of its fertile plain. Other towns are Espozende, at the mouth 
 of the Cavado, and YUla do Condc, at that of the Ave. Formerly most of the vessels 
 engaged in the slave trade and those employed in the great maritime enterprises 
 of the Portuguese were built here, and it still boasts of a few ship-yards. 
 
 Amongst the inland towns of Entre Douro e Minho are Ponte do Lima, famous 
 for the beautj' of the surrounding country ; Barcellos, ovcrlianging the shady 
 banks of the Cavado ; and Amarante, celebrated for its wines and peaclies, and proud 
 of a fine bridge spanning the Tamega. But the only towns important on account 
 of their population are Braga and Guimaraes, both placed on commanding heights 
 overlooking a most fertile country. Braga (Bracara Augusta), an ancient Roman 
 colony, the capital of the Galicians, then of the Suevi, and later on the residence of 
 
 • liniwrts aud .xpurts abuut il.OOO.OUO.
 
 480 
 
 PORTUGAL. 
 
 the Kings of Portugal, became the prlmatial city of the whole of the peninsula when 
 the two kingdoms were temporarily united under the same sovereign. But Braga 
 is not only a town of the past, it is even now a bustling place, where hats, linens, 
 arms, and beautiful filigree are manufactured for exportation to the rest of Portugal 
 and the Portuguese colonies. Guimariies is equally as interesting as Braga on 
 account of its monuments and medieval legends. Visitors are still shown the 
 sacred olive-tree which sprang from a seed placed in the soil by King Wamba, 
 when still a common labourer ; and Alfonso, the founder of the Portuguese 
 
 Fi"-. 190.— Sao Joao da Foz and the Mouth op the Doveo. 
 
 Fort Sao vYo^^!^a 
 
 V 
 
 ^' 
 
 ^ 
 
 
 
 Southern 
 
 monarchy, was born in the old castle. Guimaraes is a busy manufacturing town ; 
 it produces cutlery, hardware, and table-linen, and English visitors never fail to 
 purchase there a curiously ornamented box of prunes. Near it are much- 
 frequented sulphur springs, known to the Homans as Aquw Lcvw. But the 
 most famous mineral springs of modern Portugal are the Caldas do Gerez, in a 
 tributary valley of the Upper Cavado. 
 
 The towns of Traz os Monies and Beira Alta are too far removed from high- 
 Ways to have attracted a considerable population. Villa Pioal, on the Corgo, is the 
 busiest place of Traz os Monies, owing to the vineyards in its neighbourhood.
 
 VALLEYS OF THE MINHO, DOURO, AXD MOXDEQO. 481 
 
 Chaves, an old fortress near the Spanish frontier, boasts of one of tliose Roinun 
 bridges which have rendered the century of Trajan famous: it was formerly noted 
 for its mineral springs {Jqiitr Flaviw). l]ragani;a, the old provincial capital, lias a 
 commanding citadel, and, owing to its geographical position, is pn imiwrtan't pluco 
 for smugglers, the legitimate exports fluctuating regularly with the customs' tariflF. 
 It is the most important place in Portugal for the production of raw silk. Lamcgo, 
 a picturesque town to the south of the Douro, opposite the Paiz do Vinho, enjoys 
 a great reputation for its hams ; Almeida, which keeps in check the garrison of 
 Spanish Ciudad Eodrigo, was anciently one of the strongest fortresses of Portugal ; 
 and Vizeu is an important station between the Douro and the Mondego. Its fairs 
 are more frequented than any others in Portugal, and in its cathedral nuiy be seen 
 the famous masterpiece painted by the mythical Gran Vasco. The lierdsmcn 
 around Yizeu are noted for their strength and beauty. Their uncovered heads 
 and bare legs give them an appearance of savagery, but their manners are as 
 polished and dignified as those of the rest of their countrymen. 
 
 Coimbra {JEmiiihim), in Beira-mar, is the most populous town between Oporto 
 and Lisbon. It is known more especially for its university, whose professors and 
 students impart to it the aspect of a mcditcval scat of learning. The purest Por" 
 tuguese is spoken there. The environs are dcliglitful, and in the botanical garden 
 the plants of the tropics mingle with those of the temperate zones. Fi'oni the banks 
 of the Mondego, upon which the city is built, visitors frequently ascend to the Qiiin/a 
 das Lagriino-s ("house of tears"), the scene of the murder of the beauteous Inez 
 de Castro, whose death was so cruelly revenged by her husband, Peter the Judge. 
 
 Few countries in the world can rival the beautiful vallej' of the Mondego, that 
 "river of the Muses" held dear by all the Lusitanians, because it is the only one 
 which belongs to them exclusively. Condeixa, a town near Coimbra, fully 
 deserves to be called the " Basket of Fruit," for its gardens produce most 
 exquisite oranges. In the north the ruins of the monastery of Bussaco occupy a 
 mountain terrace covered with a dense forest of cypresses, cedars, oaks, elms, and 
 exotic trees. This delightful place and the hot sjjrings of Luso, near it, are a 
 favourite summer residence of the citizens of Lisbon and Coimbra. 
 
 Figueira da Fez, the port of Coimbia, is well sheltered, but, like most other 
 ports of Northern Portugal, is obstructed by a bar of sand. It is nevertheless 
 much frequented by coasting vessels, and amongst its exports are the wines of 
 Barraida. Ovar and Aveiro, in the " Portuguese Netherlands," on the banks of a 
 lagoon separated by a series of dunes from the high sea, are the two other ports 
 of this part of the coast. They were important places during the ]\Iiddle Ages, 
 but the shifting bars, which render access to them difficult, have put a slop to their 
 prosperity. The seamen of these two places have a high reputation for daring. 
 They engage hi sardine-fishing, oyster-dredging, and the manufacture of ba}-- 
 salt.* 
 
 • Towns of over 5,000 inha1)itiints in Nortlurn Portugal (18C4) -.—Enlre Domo r Miiiho : Oporto, 
 S6,257 ; Braga, 19,512 ; Pavoa de Var/im, 10,1 10 ; Guiiuaraes, 7,865 ; Villanova do Guia, 7,517 ; Vianna 
 do Castello, 6,049; Mattozinhos, 6.<>!i«. 'i'laz o» Afoiilet : CliaM'S, G,382 ; Bragiiina, 5,111; Villii 
 
 VOL. I. II
 
 482 
 
 PORTUGAL. 
 
 III. — The Valley of the Tkjo (Tagus). 
 
 The lower course of the Tejb, called Tajo in Spain, separates Portugal into two 
 portions differing much in their general aspect, climate, and soil. The valley 
 itself is a sort of intermediary between the north and south, and the vasi; estuary 
 into which the river discharges itself. 
 
 AYhere the Tejo enters Portugal, below the magnificent bridge of Alcantara, it 
 is still hemmed in between precipitous banks, and is neither navigable nor available 
 for purposes of irrigation. Having traversed the defile of Villa Velha do Roduo, 
 
 Fig. 197. — CoiMBRA. 
 
 its valley gradually widens, and after having received its most considerable 
 tributary, the Zezere, it becomes a tranquil stream, abounding in islands and sand- 
 banks, and is navigable during the whole of the year. Below Salvaterra the 
 river bifurcates, its two branches enclosing the marshy island of Lezirias. The 
 vast estuary which begins below this island is an arm of the sea rather than a 
 river; its waters are saline, and between Sacavem and Alhandra there are salt- 
 Real, 5,097. Bcira: Coimbra, 18,147; Ovar, 1 0,-374 ; Co\-ilha, 9,022; Lamego, 8,638; Ilhavo, 8,21.5; 
 JIurtoza, 7,666 ; Vizeu, 6,81.5 ; Castello Branco, 6,583 ; Aveiro, 6,557 ; Mira, 6,014 ; Soure, 5,855 ; Lavos, 
 5,837; Miranda do Corvo, 5,261 ; Tiiiao, 5,097.
 
 VALLEY OF THE TEJO. 
 
 488 
 
 pans. The Tejo affords one of the most striking instances of u river encroaching 
 upon its western bank, which is steep and hilly, whilst the left bank is low. 
 
 The irregular range of hills which forms the back-bouc of the ]K>ninsula 
 enclosed by the Lower Tejo and the ocean is attached to the mountain of Kstrclla 
 bj" a ra^•ined plateau of trifling elevation, crossed by the railway connecting Coimbra 
 with Santarem. From the summit of the Serra do Aire (" wind mountain," 2,'i2'i 
 feet) we look down upon the verdant valley of the Tejo and the recldish-hued 
 plains of Alemtejo beyond it. Monte Junto (2,185 fcHjt), further south, is another 
 commanding summit. The rocky promontory of Carvoeiro is joinetl to the main- 
 
 Fiir. 198.— EsTiAUY or the Tejo (Tauis). 
 Scale 1 : 560,000. 
 
 land by a sandy beach. Upon it stands the little fortress of Teniche, whose 
 inhabitants lead' a life of seclusion, and are engaged in the manufacture of lace. 
 A submarine plateau connects this promontory with Berlinga Island, with an old 
 castle now used as a prison, and with the Farilhaos, dreaded by mariners. 
 
 The bills on the narrow peninsula to the north of Lisbon are of smaU height, 
 but, owing to their rugged character, they present great obstacles to intercom- 
 muiiication. It was here TTellington constructed the famous lines of Torres 
 Vedras, which converted the environs of Lisbon into a vast entrenched camp. To 
 the south of these rise the beautiful heights of Ciutra, celebrated for their palaces, 
 shady vaUeys, delightful climate, and historical associations. Sheets of basalt, 
 
 ii2
 
 484 POETUGAL. 
 
 ejected from some ancient volcano, cover the hills between Lisbon and Sacavem, 
 and the great earthquakes of .1531 and 1755 prove that subterranean forces were 
 then not quite extinct. The second of these earthquakes was probably the most 
 violent ever witnessed in Europe. The very first shock destroyed 3,850 houses in 
 Lisbon, burving 15,000 human beings beneath the ruins ; a minute afterwards an 
 immense wave, nearly forty feet in height, swept off the fugitives who crowded 
 the quay. Only one quarter of the town, that anciently inhabited by the Moors, 
 escaped destruction. The Marquis de Pombal erected a gallows in the midst of the 
 ruins to deter plunderers. From the focus of vibration the oscillations of the soil 
 were propagated over an immense area, estimated at no less than 1,000,000 square 
 miles. Oporto was destroyed in part, the harbour of Alvor in Algarve was silted 
 up, and it is said that nearly all the large towns of Morocco tumbled into ruins. 
 
 The gully which connects the open ocean with the inland sea of Lisbon, and 
 through which the Tejo discharges its waters, separates the cretaceous hills of 
 Cintra from the isolated Serra da Arabida (1,537 feet), to the west of Setiibal, 
 which belong to the same geological formation. These two groups of hills were 
 probably portions of one range at a time when the Tejo still took its course across 
 what are now the tertiary plains of Alemtejo, and reached the sea much farther to 
 the south, through the estuary of the Sado. 
 
 Lisbon (Lisboa), though the number of its inhabitants is less than half what it 
 was in the sixteenth century, exhibits no trace of the havoc wrought in 1755. Even 
 the central portions of the town have risen from the ruins, and huge blocks of 
 houses, imposing by their size, if not by their architecture, have taken the places 
 of the older structures. The present city extends four miles along the Tejo, but 
 including its suburbs, between Poco do Bispo and the Tower of Belem, its extent 
 is nine miles. The city stretches inland a distance of two or three miles, and, 
 like Rome, is said to be built iipon seven hills. A beautiful promenade connects 
 it with Belem. As seen from the Tejo, or from the hills opposite, Lisbon, with 
 its towers, cupolas, and public walks, certainly presents a magnificent spectacle, 
 and there is some truth in the proverb which says — 
 
 " Que nao tem Tisto Lisboa, Nao tcm visto cosa toa ! " 
 
 (" 'Who has not seen Lisbon has not seen a thing of beauty.") 
 
 Unfortunately the interior of the superb metropolis does not correspond with 
 the imposing beauty of its exterior. Lisbon has a noble square, called Largo do 
 Comercio ; it has all the various buildings which one expects to meet with in the 
 capital of a kingdom and an important maritime town ; but, with the exception of 
 the chapel of Sao Joao Baptista, not one amongst them is remarkable for its 
 architecture. The only important structure outside the city is the famous 
 aqueduct Os Arcos das Agoas, which was built by Joao V., the Bei Edificador, 
 in the beginning of the eighteenth century, and sustained no injury during the 
 earthquake of 1755. On approaching the city it crosses a valley on a superb 
 marble bridge of thirty -five arches, the highest of which is 246 feet in height. 
 
 Lisbon is relatively poor in interesting monuments, but few towns can rival it 
 in natural advantages of soil, climate, and geographical position. Its situation is
 
 VALLEY OV TUE lEJO. 
 
 485 
 
 most central; Its harbour, at the- nioutl, uf a navi^^.l.lc river, is one of the most 
 excellent in the world ; and its entrance can be easily defended, the principal works 
 erected lor that purpose being Fort .Sao Juliao and the Tower of iJugio. 
 
 Lisbon is important not only as regards I'ortugal, but also, on ueeount of 
 Its position, with reference to the rest of Euroi)e— nuy, of the entire world. 
 As long as the Mediterranean was the theatre of human history it remained in 
 obscurity, but no sooner had mariners ventured beyond the columns of Hercules 
 than the beautiful harbour at the mouth of the Tejo became one of the principal 
 points of departure for vessels starting upon voyages of discovery. Lisbon betanio 
 
 Fig. 199.— Penriie asu the 13eiu.ino.v8. 
 Sc;ili; 1 : 142,lj(iO. 
 
 
 ,4 -' , 
 ■ ^ 
 
 
 A 
 
 < pftle OmjoUuim 
 
 the most advanced outpo.st of Euroijc on the Atlantic, for it offered greater facilities 
 than any other port for voyages directed to the Azores, Madeira, the Canaries, and 
 the western coasts of Africa. The achievements of Portuguese mariners have passed 
 into history. Vast territories in every quarter of the globe became tributary to 
 little Portugal, and it needed the ejiic force of a Camoes to celebrate these wonder- 
 ful conquests. 
 
 That age of glory lasted but a short time, for proud Lisbon, which had become 
 known to Eastern nations as the " City of the Franks," as if it were the capital of 
 Europe, lost its pre-eminent position towards the close of the sixteenth ceutur}'.
 
 486 
 
 PORTUGAL. 
 
 Portugal capsized suddenly, like a small barge overcrowded with sails. Crushed 
 by the terrible reign of Philip II., enervated by luxury, and grown disdainful of 
 honest labour, as slaveholders always will, Lisbon was constrained to see much of 
 its commerce and most of its valued colonies pass into the hands of Spaniards and 
 Dutchmen. But, in spite of these disasters, Lisbon is still a commercial port of 
 great importance, although as yet no direct line of railway connects it with Madrid 
 and the rest of Europe. England occupies the foremost position amongst the 
 customers of the town, and the Brazilians, whose severance from the mother 
 country was at first looked upon as an irremediable disaster, follow next.* Spain, 
 though it borders upon Portugal for several hundred miles, scarcely enters into 
 commercial relations with it. CivQ wars have, however, driven many Spanish 
 
 Fig. 200. — Mouth of the Tejo (Tagus). 
 Scale 1 : 162,400. 
 
 exiles to Lisbon, and these have already exercised a considerable influence upon 
 manners. Formerly only men were to be seen in the streets of Lisbon, the women 
 being confined almost with the same rigour as in a Mohammedan city, but the 
 example set by Spanish ladies has foimd manj' imitators amongst their Portuguese 
 sisters. The towns in the immediate vicinitj^ of Lisbon are celebrated for their 
 picturesque beauties. 
 
 Portuguese Estremadura, which neither sufEers from northern frosts nor 
 from fogs and aridity, can boast of a climate approaching that of the fabled 
 Islands of the Happy. At Lisbon snow, or " white rain," as it is called, falls 
 
 » In 1874 Lisbon exported 5,900 tons of potatoes, 447,450 gallons of olive oil, 4,400,000 gallons of 
 ■wine, 157,200 bushels of salt, 200,000 tons of copper ore, figs, almonds, oranges, &c. : 4,092 vessels entered 
 the harbour.
 
 VAI,r-i:Y CV TIIK TKJO. 487 
 
 rarely, but it m;>y bo soon glittering on the suiiniiits of the Serrus du J-'.^tnUu 
 and de Lousao. Its fall near the sea-coast is looked upon as an evil omen, and 
 a heavy snow-storm, as recently as last century, frightenwl the inliubitunts of 
 Lisbon to such an extent that they fancied tlio day of judgment liad come, and 
 rushed into the churches. 
 
 The regular alternation between land and sea breezes is likewise an advanlajfo 
 possessed by the neighbourhood of Lisbon. From tho beginning of May through- 
 out the fine season the wind blows from the land in tho morning, by noon it has 
 shifted to the south, iu the evening it blows from tho west and north-west, and 
 during the night from the north. Ilence its name of lietito ro/riro; that is, " rotary 
 wind." As to tlio winds forming part of tho regular system of atmospheric 
 circulation, they blow with far less regularity. Tho polar winds, stopped by tho 
 transversal mountain ranges of the country, either follow the direction of tho 
 coast or are diverted to tho plateaux of Spain, and make their apju'aranco in 
 Portugal as easterly winds. It is these latter which render the summer oppres- 
 sively hot. At Lisbon the thermometer rises occasionally to 100"^ F., and in 17!i8 
 even 104° were observed. Experience has taught us that although tho heat at 
 Rio de Janeiro is in excess of that of Lisbon, the dog-days at the latter place aro 
 more imbearaLlo.* 
 
 The vegetation of the happy district wlierc the climate of North and South 
 intermingle is twofold in its aspect. The date-palm makes its appearance in tho 
 gardens of Lower Estremadura ; the dwarf palm grows in the open air along tho 
 coast ; the agave raises its candelabra-like branches as on tho coast of Mexico ; 
 the camellias are more beautiful than anywhere else in Europe ; and tho hedges aro 
 composed of prickly cacti {NopaF), as in Sicily and Algeria. Tho fruits of tho 
 Mediterranean ripen to perfection ; and even the mango of the Antilles, only 
 recently introduced, has found a congenial climate. The oranges are known as 
 liortoijaUi in several countries as far as Egypt, as if the inhabitants of Portugal 
 had been the first to whom these golden apples were known ; and even the word 
 chintarah, or chantarah, by which the orange is known in some parts of India, is 
 supposed to be a corruption of the name of the Portuguese town of Cintra. 
 
 Belem (Bethlehem) is the nearest of the suburban towns of Lisbon, being 
 separated from it merely by a rivulet named Alcantara, after an old Moorish 
 brido-e. It is the first place beheld by a mariner approaching Lisbon, and itd 
 square tower, built by King John the Perfect, is seen from afar. It was hence 
 Vasco da Gama started upon the memorable expedition which taught tho Portu- 
 guese the road to India, and a magnificent monastery, now converted into an 
 educational institution, was built in commemoration of this glorious event. 
 
 Oeiras, at the mouth of a small rivulet coming down from the heights of 
 Cintra, defends the entrance to the Tejo by means of Fort Siio Juliiio ; Carcavellos, 
 noted for its wines, lies farther on ; and Cascaes, with a small harbour defended by 
 a citadel, brings us to the open ocean. The coast beyond this is protected by 
 
 • Mean temperature of July, 90-G' F. ; ixtreraos o£ tomperaturo, :'T '>' nuJ 102' F. ; rl..uJltM 
 days, loO.
 
 4.§S 
 
 POBTUGAXu 
 
 towers, bat there are no inhabitants. The hills of Cintra, howerer, are one of 
 the most populous districts of the country, and they are much frequented by 
 foreiOTers. TVliether we follow the carriage rood or the tramroad from Lisbon, 
 we pass the castles and villas of Bomfica, the royal palace of Queluz, and 
 the country seats of Bellas, the fountain of which sappUes the capital with water. 
 Cintra itself is snnounded by hoteb and gardens. On a hill to the south 
 of it stands the snmptaoos Castle de la Peoha, whose eccentricities of archi- 
 tectme are softened down by luxuriant masses of Tegetation. Strangers likewise 
 Tiat the ruins of an old Moorish castle and the caverns »f the " Monastery of 
 
 Tis- 201. — Zoy^ts OF TECEttnos n>" PoKrrcii. 
 
 6ta> 1 : e/KAOCXX. 
 
 
 "^^ 
 
 
 ■&^:^^ 
 
 ML D tTERRA^E 
 
 m 
 
 
 Coii:,'' thus named because its walls are covered with cork as a protection against 
 damp. The prospect tnxa. all the surrounding heights is magnificent, and most 
 so from the cliffs terminating in the famous Cabo da Boca, the westernmost point 
 of continental Europe. 
 
 The city of Mafra occupies a sterile plateau not £ar from the seaside resort of 
 Erioeiia. Like Cintra, it boasts of an immense palace, the Escorial of the kings of 
 the house of Braganca, now used as a military schooL Joao V., who erected this 
 Etrocture, with its numerous churches, chapels, and cells, expended for that 
 purpose all the coin he could command, and when he died there was not enough 
 money left in the treasury to pay for a mass for the repose of his souL Far more
 
 VALLEY OF THE TEJO. 
 
 489 
 
 curious than this inmu-nse bunack. with its .-,,2UU windows, is the fursukon 
 monastery of .Ucobaru, about sixty miles iartlier north, which was built in the 
 twelfth century to commemorate the victories over the Moors. Near it stands 
 the monastery of Batalha, which recalls the defeat of the Castilians in the i.lain of 
 Aljubarrota in ViSr>. The portals, cloisters, chapel, and chapter-room abound 
 in sculptures of marvellous finish, though of doubtful taste. 
 
 Leiria, the town nearest to Batalha, occupies a fine site at the confluence of the 
 
 Fif,'. 202.— Castli: dk i.a I'kmia i.i: Cintua. 
 
 rivers Liz and Lena, and is commanded by a Moorish castle, the old residence of 
 King Diniz the " Labourer," who planted the jjinhal of Leiria, the finest forest 
 in Portugal. After a long period of decadence this portion of the country has 
 entered upon a new epoch of activity. At Marinha Grande, near it, there are large 
 glass-works, which communicate by rail with the circular harbour of Concha 
 (shell) de Silo Martinho. 
 
 Thomar, formerly famous on account of its monastery, stands on the eastern
 
 490 PORTUGAL. 
 
 slope of the hills commanding the plains of Batalha and Alcobaca. It is the 
 capital of the Knights of Christ, to whom was conceded the privilege of conquering 
 the Indies and the Xew World. They performed great deeds, but in the end 
 their rapacity led to the decadence of their native country. Thomar is a town of 
 cotton-mills now, but commerce is more active in the places on the Tejo, and 
 notably at Sjjntarem, which, from its "marvellous" hiU, looks down upon the 
 verdant isles of the river and the plains of Alemtejo. Santarem and the neigh- 
 bouring fortress of Abrantes supply Lisbon with vegetables and fruit, and the 
 country around them is a veritable forest of olive-trees. 
 
 The sandy soil and shallow rivers bounded by marshes of the country to the 
 south of the Tejo oppose serious obstacles to the establishment of important towns, 
 and if it were not for the vicinity of Lisbon it would probably be uninhabited. 
 Almada, opposite Lisbon, Seixal, Barreiro, Aldea Gallega, and Alcochete are mere 
 suburbs of the capital, and share in its prosperity or adversity. Setiibal, or 
 St. Ives, however, which lies farther to the south, on the estuary of the JSado, and 
 which has an excellent harbotir, suffers from too great a proximity to Lisbon, for 
 Portugal is not rich enough to feed two ports so close to each other. Cezimbra, 
 on the steep coast which terminates in Cape Espichel, to the west of Setiibal, is 
 likewise a decayed place, and Troja, which preceded Setiibal as the emporium of 
 the Sado, now lies buried beneath the dunes. Excavations recently made on its 
 site have led to the discovery of Roman mosaics and of a street laid out, perhaps, 
 by the Phoenicians ; and Link, the botanist, who visited the spot at the end of last 
 century, stiU found there the ruined courts of Moorish houses. 
 
 Setiibal, though its commercial activity is very much inferior to that of Lisbon, 
 StiU exports muscat wines, delicious oranges, and salt procured from the ponds in 
 its vicinity.* The sea near Setiibal and Cezimbra abounds in fish and other 
 marine animals, and in comparison with it the Mediterranean and Bay of Biscay 
 may almost be described as deserts. Long before scientific men explored the bottom 
 of the sea the fishermen of .Setiibal hauled up from a depth of 300 fathoms 
 immense sharks. Ordinary fish are caught in mj-riads, and the inhabitants of 
 Cezimbra feed their pigs upon sardines. When Portugal was at the height of 
 its commercial prosperity it supplied a considerable portion of Europe with fish, 
 and almost enjoyed a monopoly in cod, which was exported even to Xorway.t 
 
 IV. SorTHEKX PoRTtGAL. AlEMTEJO AND AlGARVE. 
 
 The mountains beyond the Tejo rarely assume the aspect of chains. For the 
 most part they rise but little above the surrounding plateau. This region is 
 the least attractive of all Portugal, and between the Tejo and the mountains 
 -of Algarve there are only plains, monotonous hills, woods, and naked landes. 
 Human habitations are few and far between. The lowlands along the Tejo and 
 
 * In 1870 Portngal productd 320,000 tons of salt, of which lSi,000 tons were from Setiibal. 
 
 t Towns of Estremadura having over 5,000 inhabitants (1864) :— Lisbon, 224,063; Setiibal, 13,134 ; 
 Santamn, 7,820; Torres Xovas, 6,878 : Caparica, 6,311 ; Palmella, 6,260; Cezimbra, 5,797; Abrantes, 
 5,.59C; Cartaxo, 5,218; IiOuri<ial, 5,182.
 
 ALEMTEJO AXl) ALOARVE. 491 
 
 the coast arc covered with a thick hiyer of tine sand resting upon eiay, and tiny 
 still exhihit clumps of maritime pines and holm-oaks, the remains of (he aueient 
 forests which formerly covered tlie whole of the country. Farther inland wo 
 reach the great landes, or c/iariuras, covered witli an infinite variety of phints. 
 There are heaths growing sometimes to a height of six feet, rock-roses, juniper- 
 trees, rosemary, and creeping oaks. But the general aspect of the country is dreary, 
 in spite of the white and yellow flowers which cover it until tlie middle of winter, 
 
 Fig. 203. — MoNASTEUV of tub Knightk oh Chkist at 'I'hhmvk 
 
 
 for there are hardly any cultivated fields. Tiie hills consist for the most part of 
 micaceous schists, and are covered with a monotonous grow^th of lahdanum-yielding 
 rock-roses. This is a western extension of the zone oijaraku, which covers so many 
 hundred square miles of the Sierra Morena and other mountain regions of Spain. 
 
 The Serra de Sao Mamede (3,303 feet), on the confines of I'ortugal, between 
 the valleys of the Tejo and Guadiana, is the highest mountain mass of Southern 
 Portugal, but its granitic ridges, enclosing narrow valleys between them, hardly
 
 492 
 
 POETUGAL. 
 
 rise 1,500 feet above the general level of the plateau. A second grauitic moun- 
 tain mass rises to the south of the depression crossed by the railway from Ijisbon 
 to Badajoz. This is the Serra de Ossa (2,130 feet). An undulating tract of 
 country joins it to other serras, forming steep escarpments towards the vallej's of 
 the Guadiana and Sadiio, and the monotonous plain known as Campo de Beja 
 (870 feet). The fomous Campo de Ourique (700 feet), upon which 200,000 
 Moors, commanded by five kings, were defeated by the Portuguese in the middle 
 of the twelfth century, forms a southern continuation of that plain. This battle, 
 and the massacres which succeeded it, have converted the plains to the south of 
 the Tejo into deserts. 
 
 The hills of that portion of Alemtejo which lies to the east of the Guadiana 
 
 Fig. 204. — EsTU-iuy or the Hxdo. 
 Scale 1 : aSO.OOO. 
 
 ifi lov water 
 
 belong to the sj'stem of the Sierra Moi'ena of Spain. The river which separates 
 them from the hills and plateaux of the west is confined in a deep and narrow 
 gorge. At the P«/c» do Loho ("wolf's leap") it still descends in cataracts, and 
 becomes navigable only at Mertola, thirty-seven miles above its mouth. 
 
 The hills of Southern Alemtejo and Algarve, to the west of the Guadiana, are 
 at first mere swellings of the ground known as cumeadas, or " heights of land," but 
 in the Serra do Malhao (1,886 feet) and the Serra da Mezquita they attain some 
 height. A plateau, traversed by the upper affluents of the Mira, joins the range 
 last mentioned to the Serra Caldeiriio (1,272 feet), supposed to be named after some 
 ancient crater, or " caldron," which terminates, to the north of Caj3e Sines, ■with 
 the Atalaya, or Sentinel (1,010 feet). The principal range continues towards the 
 west, and in the Serra de Monchique (2,963 feet), a mountain mass filling up the
 
 ALEMTEJO AXn AL0ARM3. 
 
 408 
 
 south-western corner of Portugal, it tittnus its culininatinj* point. A stoop lidj^-, 
 known as Espinbavo do Cao (" dog's back "), extends from the bitter in the direction 
 of the Capes of St. Vincent and Sagres. 
 
 The bitter was selected by Henry the Navigator as the seat of the navul school 
 founded by him, and from its heights he watched for the return of the veiiBcls 
 which he dispatched on exploratory expeditions. Associations such us these uro 
 far more pleasurable than those connected with the neighbouring Cape St. Vincent, 
 where Admiral Jervis, in 1797, destroyed a Spanish fleet. 
 
 The hills of Sagres are of volcanic origin, and the subsidciu-e of ])ortion8 of 
 
 Fijj. 205. — Serra de Monthiqve and riioMosToiiv of ."^auheb. 
 Scale 1 : MO.OOO. 
 
 
 
 y T I c 
 
 the coast of Algarve appears to prove that subterranean forces are still active. 
 Wherever this subsidence has been observed the coast is fringed by sand-banks, 
 thrown up by the waves of the sea, the channel separating them from the main- 
 land being navigable for small vessels. 
 
 If a traveller ascend one of the cidminating points of the mountains of Algarve, 
 he cannot fail to be struck with the remarkable contrast existing between the districts 
 to the north and south of him. On the one side he looks down upon vast soli- 
 tudes resembling deserts; on the other he perceives forests of chestnut-trees, 
 numerous villages, towns bordering the seashore, and fleets of fishing-boats rocking 
 upon the blue waves. The contrasts between the inhabitants of these two districU
 
 494 
 
 POETUGAL. 
 
 are scarcely less striking. The inhabitants of Alemtejo are the most solemn of 
 Portuguese, and evc" object to dancing. Very thinly scattered over the landes 
 which they inhabit, they either engage in agriculture or follow their herds of pigs 
 and sheep into the forests of holm-oaks and thickets of rock-roses. In summer 
 they cross the Tejo with their pigs, and pasture them in the mountains of Beira. 
 The population of Algarve, on the other hand, is thrice as dense as that of Alem- 
 tejo, and not only are fields, vineyards, and orchards carefully tended, but the sea 
 likewise is made to yield a portion of its food. The contrast between the two 
 provinces is partly accounted for by the fact that most of the great battles were 
 fought on the undulating plains of Alemtejo. AVhen the Romans held the country 
 Alemtejo suijported a numerous jDopulation, as is proved by the large number of 
 inscriptions found. 
 
 Differences of altitude and geographical position sufficiently account for the 
 
 206. ^Geology of Aloaeve. 
 Scale 1 : l.SOO.OOO. 
 
 ■,^yyyy////^ 
 
 Vertuxnxf , Ailuouim. 
 SvULTian^: CrtuuA 
 
 differences of climate existing between the two provinces. Alemtejo, with its 
 monotonous plains and stunted vegetation, is almost African in its aspect, whilst 
 Algarve, with its forests of olive-trees, groves of date-palms, agaves, and prickly 
 cacti, presents us with tropical features. The mean temperature near the coast is 
 probably no less than G8° F. The Serra de Monchique bars the cool winds of the 
 north, whilst the sandy islands fringing a portion of the coast keep off refreshing 
 sea breezes. The hottest wind of all is that which blows from the east. It is 
 often laden with fever-breeding miasmata, and a proverb says, De Espanlia nem bom 
 vento ncm bom cammenio : "Neither good winds nor good weddings are bred in 
 Spain." 
 
 Villanova de Portimiio, to the south of the Serra de Monchique, has long been 
 looked upon as the hottest place in Europe ; there are, however, several localities 
 in Spain which rival it in that respect. Thus much is certain, that Algarve, with
 
 ALEMTEJO AXD ALGAKVE '^S 
 
 the lower valley of the Guadalquivir and the southern coasts of Andalusia and 
 Murcia, constitutes the most torrid jxirtion of Europe. The Arabs were quite right 
 when they designated Southern Lusitania and the opposite shore of Morocco by the 
 same name of "el Gharb;" that is, the two Algarves, or "eostem districts." 
 Portuguese Algarve, in spite of the conversion of its inhabitants to Christianity, 
 has retained its ancient Moorish name, and the Berber and .Smitic bloo<l is vtry 
 conspicuous there. 
 
 In Upper Alemtejo there are but few towns, and these would be altogether 
 insignificant if it were not for the overland commerce carried on witl» Sjxiin. 
 Crato, which is the most considerable station on the railway which joins the Tejo 
 to the Guadiana, and its neighbour Portalcgre, were formerly imjHjrtaut stages on 
 the great overland route. Elvas, farther to the south, is surrounded by orchards, 
 and defended by forts which were looked upon in the last century as masterpieces 
 of military architecture. It faces the Spanish fortress of Badajoz, as well as 
 Olivenca, which was assigned to Portugal by the treaty of Vienna, but never 
 surrendered by Spain. Estremoz, on a spur of the Serra de Ossa, is famous 
 throughout Portugal for its hitcnros — elegantly modelled earthen jars which 
 difFuse a sweet odour. Montemor looks down from its hill upon vast lundes and 
 monotonous woods. Evora, likewise built on a hill, commands an extensive plain. 
 It was a populous place during the dominion of the Romans, and in the Middle 
 Ages became the second residence of the Kings of Portugal. There exist now only 
 a Roman aqueduct, the ruins of a temple of Venus, Corinthian columns, and the 
 remains of mediocval castles to remind us of its ancient splendours. 
 
 Beja, the ancient Pax Julin or Coloiiia Pacenisis of the Romans, has likewise 
 lost its former importance, but Minas de Sao Domingos, on the peninsula formed 
 by the confluence of the Guadiana and the Chanza, is rapidly increasing, thanks to 
 its mines of pyrites of copper and other minerals, which are being worked by an 
 English company. The ore is conveyed by mil to Pomarao, on the Guadiana, and 
 thence on barges to Villa Real de Santo Antonio, at its mouth, formerly a mere 
 fishing village, but now a busy port. Castro Marim, where the expeditions against 
 the Moors used to be fitted out, is close to it. 
 
 Silves, the ancient Moorish capital of Algarve, lies in the interior of the countrj', 
 far removed from the present highways of commerce. Faro, the modem capital, 
 has the advantage of lying on the seashore, and of possessing a secure harbour, 
 whence small coasters are able to export fruit, tunny-fish, sardines, and oysters. 
 Tavira possesses the same advantages, and exports the same articles: it is said 
 to be the prettiest town of Algarve. Louie, in a delightful inland valley, is a 
 pretty place, and, when invalids have learnt the road to Algarve, may obtain 
 some importance as a winter resort. The Caldas (warm baths) de Monchique (tJOO 
 feet) enjoy a world-wide reputation even now, not only because of their efficacy, but 
 also on account of the delicious climate and charming environs. This district is said 
 to produce the best oranges in Portugal.* 
 
 • Towns of Southern Portugal harin? over 5.000 inhabitant) (ISfrt) -.—Alrmttfa : Erora. 11,965; 
 Elvas, 11.0S6: Esti^moz, l.r.i. Beja, T.OtJO ; IVrtaUgrv, 6,731; Scrpa, 5,595; Moura, 6,489; Ca«t«Ua
 
 49G 
 
 POETUGA.L. 
 
 V. — The Present Axn Future of Portugal. 
 
 Little Portugal no longer shares with her neighbour, Spain, in the dominion of 
 the world, as in the fifteenth century. The secrecy observed with a view to the 
 retention of the monopolj' of trade with countries newly discovered proved in the end 
 most injurious to Portugal, Other nations appeared upon the stage which the 
 Portuguese had dreamt of occupying for ever, and though the latter stUl hold 
 colonies vastly superior in area to the mother country, this is nothing in comparison 
 with what has been irretrievably lost. Vasco da Gama discovered the ocean high- 
 road to India, but the few settlements which Portugal still holds there she owes to 
 
 Fig. 207.— Faro and Tavira. 
 Scale 1 : 500,000. 
 
 ly- 
 
 \ Yuri I 
 
 otitfV'nr 
 
 the favour of England. In the Malay Archipelago Portugal has been supplanted 
 almost completely by the Dutch, and Macao, at the entrance of the Canton River, 
 was hardly more than a slave market imtil quite recently, from which Chinese 
 " emigrants " were exported to Peru. In Africa Portugal holds vast possessions, 
 if we are to believe in oiEcial documents and maps, but in reality only a very 
 small tract of territory is under the dominion of the Portuguese, and most of 
 the commerce is carried on through Dutch and other foreign houses. As to BrazU, 
 it now surpasses the mother country in population and wealth. Madeira and the 
 
 d« Vido, 0,28.5; Campo Maior, 5,277. Algarve : Louie, 12,156; Tavira, 10,90.3; Faro, 8,361; Lagos, 
 7,771; Olhao, 7,025; Alportel, 6,043; Villanova de Portimao, 5,531; Sao BarthQlojneu de Messires, 
 6,318; Monchique, 0,251; Silres, 5,103.
 
 THE TKESEXT AXD FUTlllE OF rORTl'GAL. 
 
 i\n 
 
 Azores, the first conquests made by Lisbon iiavifjntors, are lookc-d upon as intcf^ral 
 portions of Portugal ; tbey eujoy tbe same rigbts, and an? quia> c<qual to it in 
 wealtb.* 
 
 "Wbcn Brazil was lost to Portugjil tbat small country found itself in a ]>o8(tion 
 of lamentable prostration. ICxbausted by foreign and intenuvine warn, itn tinunccs 
 utterly ruine<l, and witbout roads to enable it to export its produce, it migbt bavo 
 disiippearetl from our maps witbout any interest-*, except tbose of a few Knglisb 
 vine-growers and Spanisb smugglers, being afrwled. Even in 18"j1 tbere only 
 existed a single carriage road in the country, namely, tbat wbicb connected Lisbon 
 \ritb the royal palace at Cintra. No attention whatever was jmid to education, 
 and about a generation ago a girl able to read was a phenomenon. At tbe same 
 time we must not forget that these illiterate Portuguese knew how to discuss a 
 
 Ficr. 208. — GFOon»piiirM. F.xtkxt ok thf Poiiti GtE«l! I.ANt.t age. 
 
 86" Co' 
 
 1° 
 
 ^ PV-fnjJul-J 
 
 v 
 
 
 subject witbout quarrelling, bad great command of their language, and were 
 able even to improvise verses of great poetical merit, in all of which respects tbey 
 contrasted favourably with tbe peasantry of Xortbern Europe. 
 
 In the course of the last generation education has made much progress in 
 Portugal ; f and in other respects, too, tbe country has gradually assimilated with the 
 rest of Europe. Roads and railways have been constructed,^ and the latter connect 
 Lisbon not only with tbe leading provincial towns, but also with Spain. The com- 
 merce with the latter country increases regularly with tbe occurrence of civil war, 
 when Portugal profits at tbe expense of the Spanish ports of tbe Mediterranean. 
 
 • For a list cA Portuguoso colonics eoo p. 'lOO. 
 
 t In 1874 tlitrc were 2.649 clpmentar>- nn.l mi.l.llo-< Uiw siliooU, ntlcndiJ by 122.004 popiU, IkmiIo* 
 a unirrrsity and nine spwial srhools, with 4,300 litiidento. 
 
 X In 187.5, 2.237 miles of rayal high-road*, 600 milts of nulroad*. 
 VOL. I. K K
 
 498 
 
 rOETUGAL. 
 
 Fig. 209. — TiLEGEArn fkom Lisbon to liio de 
 Janeiro. 
 
 Much of the oi'diuary commerce with Spain never appears in the customs' registries, 
 for it is carried on by smugglers, who glory in evading the vigilance of the frontier 
 police. 
 
 The commerce of Portugal has increased very much in the course of the last 
 thirty years. More than half of it falls to the share of Great Britain, a circum- 
 stance not to be wondered at when we bear in mind the relative geographical posi- 
 tion of the two countries, for Portugal lies upon the direct route followed by 
 
 English steamers proceeding to the 
 Mediterranean, Western Africa, or 
 Brazil. The assistance which England 
 rendered Portugal during the penin- 
 sular war hus cemented these com- 
 mercial bonds. 
 
 The commercial relations with 
 Brazil, now joined to Lisbon by a 
 submarine cable, are likewise the 
 natural result of the relative positions 
 of the two countries and of the common 
 origin of their populations. Portugal, 
 in fiict, participates in every progress 
 made by its old colony, and its com- 
 merce will assume immense propor- 
 tions when slavery is aholished in 
 Brazil, when the solitudes of the 
 Amazonas resound with the stir of 
 industrious populations, and the coasts 
 of the Pacific are joined to the Atlantic 
 by means of railways crossing the 
 Andes.* 
 
 But, after all, it will be Spain with 
 which the most intimate commercial 
 relations must finally be estabH.shcd, in spite of national prejudices and dynastic 
 interests. The two nations will in the end become one, as the Aragoncse and 
 Castilians, the Andalusians and Manchegos, have become one. It is merely a 
 question of time ; but who can doubt that community of industrial and social relations 
 will lead to a political union ? AYe only trust that this union may be brought 
 about without a resort to brute force, and with due regard to special interests. 
 
 A|i\.rd.' 
 
 Sep Ihs 
 
 ciOj fa4/u>i'i^ imarcf 
 
 VI. GOVERXJIEXT AKD ADMINISTRATION. 
 
 Portugal is an hereditary and constitutional monarch}'. In accordance with the 
 Carta de Ley of 1826, as revised in 1852, the King is charged with the executive, 
 
 * Value cf exports and imports in 1840, £4,016,320; in 1S.5G, £8,127,400; 1873, £12,010,020. 
 The commercial marine consisted in 1875 of 433 vessels (inclusive of 23 steamers), measuring 111,260 
 tons.
 
 govehnmjixt and ADMIXISTIL\TI0X. 490 
 
 and shares the power of making laws with two chambers. Ho receives a civil list of 
 £144,000, enjoys the income from certain Crown lands, and possesses mag^nificont 
 Crown jewels, amongst which the "diamond of Braganca " is the most famous. 
 In default of male heirs the crown descends in the female line. " His most faith- 
 ful Majesty " still claims to bo " King of the two Algarves, Lord of Guinea and of 
 the Conquests." The seven ministers of the Crown are responsible for the Kind's 
 actions ; they may bo impeached by the Chamber of Deputies, and are judged by 
 the Chamber of Peers. A Privy Council of an indefiuito number of members, 
 appointed for life, advises the King in all questions of administration. Tho heir 
 presumptive takes part in its deliberations on attaining his eighteenth year. 
 
 The Chamber of Peers consists of about a hundred members, somo of them 
 hereditary and others appointetl by tho King. Its meetings are presided over by 
 the Patriarch of Lisbon. The Chamber of Deputies is elective, and tho dis- 
 cussion of the budget and granting of supplies are specially reserved to it All 
 males more than twenty-five years of age are entitled to the franchise if they pav 
 4s. (5d. in direct taxes, or 22s. from real estate. Graduates of universities, certified 
 teachers, officers, and priests are not required to possess any property qualification, 
 and they, as well as all married men, become enfranchised on completing their 
 twenty-first year. All electors are eligible as deputies if they pay ISs. in direct 
 taxes, or 90s. from real estate. Every 25,000 inha1)itants are represented by a 
 deputy. The President of the Chamber is selected by the King from five 
 candidates presented by the deputies. Tho latter are entitled to remuneration. 
 
 For judicial purposes the country is di\-ided into twenty-six districts, or 
 comarcas, with eighty-five courts. There are courts of appeal at Lisbon and 
 Oporto, and a supreme court at Lisbon. Parish judges (Juiz cleiio), elected by tho 
 people, exercise the inferior jurisdiction. Juries give their verdict on questions of 
 fact in civil as well as in criminal cases. The principal codes still in force are the 
 "Codigo Alfonsino" of the fifteenth century, the " Codigo Manoelino" (1-513), 
 and the " Codigo Filippino," introduced by Philip IV. of Spain. A Commercial 
 Code was published in 1833. 
 
 The Eoman Catholic religion is that of the State, but Protestant places of 
 worship are suffered to exist in the seaports. The hierarchy includes a patriarch 
 residing at Lisbon, two archbishops at Braga and Evora, and fourteen bishops. 
 The Inquisition was abolished in 1821, and the monasteries, 7-50 in number, as well 
 as most of the convents, were suppressed ic 1834, and their revenues confiscated 
 for the benefit of the State. 
 
 The army numbers l,GoO officers and 3'^,000 men, of whom about two-thirds 
 are under colours during peace. On a war footing it is to be raised to 2,418 
 officers and 70,687 men. All men are obliged to serve either in the army or in 
 the reserve, and exemption can no longer be purchased. The fortresses are 
 numerous, but only a kv< of them are -capable of being defended against modem 
 artillery. The most important are Elvas, Abrdntcs, and Yalenfa, near the Spanish 
 frontier, the fort of Sao Juliao and the citadel of Peniche on tho coast. The navy 
 no longer numbers a thousand vessels, as it did when King Sebastian started for
 
 600 
 
 POETUG.VL. 
 
 the iuviision of Morocco. It consists now of twenty-seven steamers, including an 
 ironclad corvette, and eleven sailing vessels, manned by 3,000 men and armed 
 with 171 guns. 
 
 The public revenue approaches £6,000,000 sterling, and ever since 183-i there 
 has been annually a deficit, which has resulted in a national debt of more than 
 £80,000,000, a burden almost too heavy for a small country like Portugal. The 
 revenue is, however, increasing, a balance between income and expenditure has 
 been established within the last year or two, and the wretched expedient of 
 deducting from 5 to 30 per cent, of the salaries of Government officials could be 
 dispensed with for the first time in 1875. 
 
 Political Divisions, Area, and PorrLATiox. 
 
 rrovince;. 
 
 Districts. 
 
 Area, Sq. Miles. 
 
 ropulation, 1874. 
 
 Density 
 
 
 1 Vianna 
 
 SG-1 
 
 221„049 
 
 256 
 
 Entre Douro e Mini 
 
 \ Braga . 
 
 1,0.54 
 
 346,429 
 
 329 
 
 
 ! Porto . . 
 
 901 
 
 451,212 
 
 600 
 
 
 ) Villa Real . 
 
 1,718 
 
 239,591 
 
 140 
 
 Tiaz OS Monies . 
 
 ' ( Bragan^a . 
 
 2,573 
 
 . 177,170 
 
 — 
 
 
 1 Avciro 
 
 1,216 
 
 272,763 
 
 69 
 
 Beira Alta . . . 
 
 . Vizeu . 
 
 l,fl22 
 
 398,477 
 
 207 
 
 
 ' Coimbra 
 
 1,500 
 
 305,237 
 
 203 
 
 
 1 Guarda 
 ■ \ Castello Branco . 
 
 2,148 
 
 234,912 
 
 109 
 
 Beira Baixa . . 
 
 2,559 
 
 178,703 
 
 69 
 
 
 j L'-ii-ia . 
 
 1,348 
 
 194,944 
 
 U5 
 
 Eitremaduia . • 
 
 . ' Santarem . 
 
 2,651 
 
 217,316 
 
 82 
 
 
 ( Lisbon 
 
 2,936 
 
 491,205 
 
 168 
 
 
 j Portalegre . 
 
 2,497 
 
 109,192 
 
 44 
 
 Alemtejo . . . 
 
 . I ftvoia. 
 
 2,740 
 
 112,477 
 
 41 
 
 
 ' Bfja . 
 
 4,198 
 
 154,327 
 
 37 
 
 Algarve .... 
 
 . Faro . 
 
 Continental Europe . 
 
 1,875 
 34,702 
 
 193,877 
 
 104 
 
 
 4,298,881 
 
 124 
 
 Colonial Pos.s.essions. 
 
 Area, Sq. M 
 
 Azores 921 
 
 Aj-kica; — 
 
 Madeira 310 
 
 Cape Verde Island ..... 1,487 
 
 Senegambia ....... 27 
 
 St. Thome and Principe .... 417 
 
 Fort Ajiida 13 
 
 Angola, Benguela, and Mossamedes . . 312,000 
 
 Moc^mbique and Sofala .... 40,000 
 
 Asia: — 
 
 Goa, &c 1,395 
 
 Damao ........ 30 
 
 Diu . 12 
 
 Timor and Kambing ..... 5,527 
 
 Macao li 
 
 Colonies . . . 362,1 40 
 
 Total, Portugal and Colonies . . . 396,842 
 
 Population. 
 
 Dens ty. 
 
 60,072 
 
 66 
 
 118,609 
 
 383 
 
 90,704 
 
 61 
 
 9,282 
 
 344 
 
 31,692 
 
 75 
 
 700 
 
 54 
 
 2,000,000 
 
 6 
 
 300,000 
 
 8 
 
 474,234 
 
 339 
 
 40,980 
 
 1336 
 
 12,303 
 
 1025 
 
 2.50,000 
 
 45 
 
 71,834 
 
 47-223 
 
 3,460.410 
 
 10 
 
 7,769,291 
 
 20
 
 INDEX 
 
 Abrantcs, 493 
 
 Abruzzos, 2o3 
 
 Achclous, 48 
 
 Adrianojilc, 106 
 
 .£puluin Islands, 33 i 
 
 iEgoiiu Sea, 69, 95 
 
 ^gina, 56 
 
 iEgium, 67 
 
 .^olian Islands, 331 
 
 ^tolia, 33 
 
 JEtoUko, 49, o3, 
 
 Aitone, 366 
 
 Ajaccio, 365, 309 
 
 Albacetc, 420 
 
 Albania, 115 
 
 Albanians, 44, 119, 120; in lUilv, 
 
 295 
 Albano, 2C0 
 Ali-Jila, 3LI3 
 Alc;'uitara, 391 
 Alc-oy, 420 
 AlwsiUidria, 170 
 Alcmtojo, 490 
 Alipine, 490 
 Alhama, 422 
 Alhambra, 407, 408 
 Aliijinto, 417, 422 
 Almadon, 392 
 Almagro, 391 
 Almeida, 481 
 Alnuria, 412 
 Alphcus, 61, 63 
 Alps, 10 
 Al).ujaiT!is, 397 
 Aiiuiranto, 479 
 An.idoli-kavak, 104 
 Ancona, 282 
 An.iilusLo, 304 
 Andorra, 438 
 Andros, 72 
 Anin, 273 
 AnU-qniro, 412 
 Antiniilos, 71 
 Antii)aros, 71 
 AiMnninos, 257 
 Aquila, 284 
 Anigon, 427 
 Arigon .Steppes, 436 
 Anin, 438 
 Aranjuez, 393. 394 
 Arcadi:i, 58, 65 
 Arezzo, 242 
 
 VOL. I. 
 
 Argvntaro, MonU', 243 
 Ai^lis, 59, 65 
 Arg.*, 68 
 ArgustoU, 79 
 Ariano, 305 
 Anuouiana, 102 
 ^Vmo, 210 
 Aiusa, 459 
 ArUt, liuU of, 48, 53 
 Aspronionte, 288 
 Astorjp, 387 
 Asturias, 448 
 Astypalwa, 94 
 Athens, 54 
 Athos, Mount, 108 
 Attica, 53 
 -Aveirv), 476, 481 
 A Vila, 389 
 Azcoitiii, 447 
 Azuf, S.-a uf, 25 
 
 Badajuz, 391 
 
 Bacza, 407 
 
 Balagna, 305 
 
 Bidearic Islands, 423 — 12 
 
 Bidkans, 133 
 
 l>:ir:igan, 159 
 
 Baixillas. 479 
 
 Ifcircolona, 436 
 
 ISari, 306 
 
 liirU tla, 306 
 
 ]kiA\ae I*ro\-iii(es 439 
 
 Basmus, 372, 442 
 
 Bai,-t.liia, 306 
 
 Bastia, 368 
 
 Batalhm 489 
 
 Batui^as, S87 
 
 Bnvuna, 459 
 
 Boja, 495 
 
 Belem, 487 
 
 Btlfmid, 174 
 
 IkllaB, 4-8 
 
 Bi'nevi-nto, 3o5 
 
 Btrda, 179 
 
 Berici, 193 
 
 BcrUiij;ti«, 483 
 
 Bcmarabia, 164 
 
 Bidaswo, 437 
 
 Bir-ntina, 2l5 
 
 Biffuglia, 368 
 
 Billrao, 4 in 
 
 BUay, II.v '.I, 111 
 
 I. I, 
 
 Black ScB,2i 
 Bu-otiA, 53 
 Bulugno, 228 
 Bulsi'un, 250 
 Bunifico, 488 
 Bunifociu, 369 
 Busiiia, 127 
 Bosjihunu, 98 
 Jlotusuui, 169 
 BragH, 479 
 Bniganva, 481 
 Bniila, 170 
 Brinner, 222 
 Briudiid, 3U6 
 Bueharuit, 168 
 Bulgaria, 131 
 Bulguriaiut, 138 
 Burgus, 388 
 Buaueu. 481 
 ButriuU>, 76 
 Buyukderi', 103 
 
 Cabu da Boca, 488 
 
 Ciccres, 391 
 
 fidiz, 401, 110 
 
 (.'alabria, 287. 295, 296, 308 
 
 Odahorra, 4<8 
 
 CaLuuatit, 67 
 
 Calittayud, 434 
 
 Calvi, 369 
 
 Csmiuha, 470 
 
 Campania, 2r>9 
 
 Campo dell' (Im, 365 
 
 Compo de Cliinqut, 492 
 
 (.'ondia, 90 
 
 Conea, 92 
 
 Cantabrian P^Teuei-a, 451 
 
 Capri, 302 
 
 Oipua, 304 
 
 OararcUo*, 487 
 
 OBrdaaa,43l 
 
 C^TKiuve. 366 
 
 Caaibianda, 365 
 
 Oucico. 487 
 
 Caactta,304 
 
 Ouino, 301 
 
 CaiUlfoIUt, 431 
 
 Caat^UCiandulfu, 361 
 
 n.i9i
 
 502 
 
 INDEX. 
 
 Catanzari, 309 
 
 Celtiberians, 372 
 
 Colts, 372 
 
 Cophalonia, 78 
 
 Cepliissus, 51 
 
 Cerigo, 69 
 
 C't'zimbra, 490 
 
 Chalcidiee, 107 
 
 Chalcis, 70, 71 
 
 Chaves, 481 
 
 C'hiana, 244 
 
 Cintra, 483 
 
 Circassians, 142 
 
 Citharon, 47 
 
 Ciudad Kcal, 391 
 
 Cirita Vecclua, 281 
 
 Coimbra, 481 
 
 Coluiubretes, 424 
 
 Comaccliio, 220 
 
 Como, 198 
 
 CVjnstantinople, 88, 98, 1.30 
 
 Copais, 51, 62 
 
 Corcubion, 459 
 
 Cordova, 40G, 408 
 
 Corfu, 75 
 
 Corinth, 57, 66 
 
 Corsica, 363 
 
 Corte, 366, 369 
 
 Coninna, 459 
 
 Cosenza, 3(19 
 
 Cotrono, 309 
 
 Cranz, 65 
 
 Ci-ato, 495 
 
 Crete, 90 
 
 Cuenca, 392 
 
 Cydades, 70 
 
 Cylleno, 57 
 
 Cythora, 69 
 
 Cythnos, 71 
 
 Daimiel, 391 
 Danube, 13G, 159 
 Paidanelles, 105 
 Dcde Aghach, 107 
 Delos, 71, 74 
 Delphi, 47 
 
 Despenapon'os, 395, 396 
 Dobruja, 134, 142 
 Dodona, 118 
 Dolomites, 192 
 Dora Baltea, 19" 
 Douro, 473 
 Drin, 115 
 Drina, 174 
 Duero, 383 
 Durango, 447 
 Durazzo, 125 
 
 Ebro, 427 
 Ebro Delta, 432 
 Eeija, 402 
 VAha, 255 
 Elehe, 417—419 
 Eleusis, 55 
 Elis, 59 
 El Torcal, S9S 
 Elvas, 495 
 Etna, 311 
 Epakto, 53 
 Epidaurus, 68 
 Epinis, 115, 117 
 Erasinus, 61 
 Erymanthus, 57 
 Escorial, 393 
 Espinho, 479 
 Espozcndo, 479 
 Eftrclla, 483 
 
 Estremadura, 377 
 Estremoz, 495 
 Etruscans, 248 
 Eubcca, 70, 71 
 Euganean Ilills, 193 
 Eiiripus, 70 
 Eurotas, 62, 67 
 PJuskurians, 442 
 Evora, 495 
 
 Falticeni, 169 
 Farilliaos, 483 
 Faro, 495 
 Ferdinandea, 316 
 Ferrara, 228 
 Ferrol, 459 
 Figueira da Foz, 481 
 Fiumicino, 271, 273 
 Florence, 251 
 Foggia, 306 
 Fontibre, 432 
 Fucino, 262 
 Fucnterrabia, 447 
 
 Gaota, 304 
 
 Gaia, 479 
 
 Galaxidi, 53 
 
 (ialatz, 169 
 
 (Jalicia, 448 
 
 UallipoU, 106, 308 
 
 Gastuni, 63, 64 
 
 Gata, Sierra de, 381 
 
 Gaytanos, 399 
 
 Genoa, 234 
 
 Gerania, 48 
 
 Gerona, 437 
 
 Gibraltar, 400, 413 
 
 (iibraltar, Strait of, 26 
 
 Gijcm, 459 
 
 Gipsies, 373 
 
 Girgcnti, 329 
 
 Giurgevo, 170 
 
 Giurgiu, 170 
 
 Golden Horn, 98 
 
 Golfolino of Ai-no, 240 
 
 Granada, 407 
 
 Grand Parsidis, 191 
 
 Grao dc Valencia, 424 
 
 Gredos, Sierra de, 380 
 
 Greece, 36 
 
 Greeks in Turkey, 102, 114, 141, l.j 
 
 Guailalajara, 393 
 
 Guadalaviar, 415, 417 
 
 Guadalqui\-ir, 395, 399 
 
 Guadarrama, 378 
 
 Guadiana, 395, 383 
 
 Gubbio, 282 
 
 Guernica, 447, 453 
 
 Guotaria, 447, 452 
 
 Guimaraes, 479, 480 
 
 Guiptizcoa, 446 
 
 Gythion, 65 
 
 Hagio Eumeli, 91 
 
 Helicon, 47 
 
 Hellenes, 41 
 
 Hellespont, 105 
 
 Hercules, Tower of, 459, 463 
 
 Hennopolis, 74 
 
 Herzegovina, 127 
 
 Huelva, 406 
 
 Hydra, 60 
 
 Hylice, 51 
 
 Hymettus, 48 
 
 Iberia, 369 
 i Iberians, 372 
 
 Ibiza, 425, 427 
 He Roussc, 309 
 lUjTia, 127 
 Imbro, 96 
 Insua, 479 
 Ionian Isles, 75 
 Iri, 62 
 Ischia, 291 
 Iseo, 200 
 Isker, 132 
 Ismail, 169 
 Italy, 183 
 Ithaca, 78 
 Iviza, 425, 427 
 
 Jarama, 394 
 Jaizquibel, 439, 445 
 Jerez, 405, 410 
 Jiicar, 416, 417 
 
 Katavothras, 48 
 Kilia, 169 
 Kraguj'evatz, 174 
 Kiaina, 129 
 Krushovatz, 173 
 Kutzo-Wallachians, 44 
 
 Laconia, 69 
 
 La Coruiia, 459 
 
 Lago Maggiore, 198 
 
 Eagoons of Venice, 202, 207 
 
 Ea Mancha, 378, 385, 391 
 
 Lamego, 478, 481 
 
 Lamia, 66 
 
 Larouco, 480 
 
 Laurium, 48 
 
 Lebrija, 409 
 
 Le(,'a, 479 
 
 Leix'o, 308 
 
 Leghorn, 255 
 
 Leiria, 489 
 
 Lemnos, 97 
 
 Lentini, 316 
 
 Leon, 377, 387 
 
 Leijanto, 63 
 
 Lerida, 435 
 
 Leucadia, 77 
 
 Lezirias, 482 
 
 Licbana, 450 
 
 Liguria, 230 
 
 Lima, 475 
 
 Limans, 161 
 
 Limia, 476 
 
 Linares, 405, 407 
 
 Lipari, 331 
 
 Lisbon, 4 84 
 
 Livadia, 66 
 
 LogTono, 439, 448 
 
 Lorca, 417 
 
 Loreto, 283 
 
 Loide, 495 
 
 Lucca, 253 
 
 Lugo, 459 
 
 Ly casus, 68 
 
 Maccalubas, 317 
 Macedonia, 98 
 Madi-id, 392, 393 
 Maffia, 321 
 Mafra, 488 
 Magra, 254 
 Mainotcs, 43 
 Majorca, 425 
 Malaga, 412 
 Malaria, 247 
 Malea, 57 
 Mallorca, 425
 
 Malta, 335 
 
 JIalroisie, 67 
 
 Slanchii Kt^al, 403 
 
 JlanfroJoniii, 306 
 
 >lHntiiu-a, 61, 62 
 
 SI:llltu.l, ^27 
 
 M.irathon, -56 
 
 M;irith.jm«, 65 
 
 Miirclu ua, 409 
 
 JLirclus, 257 
 
 M.tn'mma, 246 
 
 Mtriina, 307, 368 
 
 >hiritza, 1S6 
 
 M inu.ira, Sea of, 104 
 
 M.irvila, 326 
 
 M.iMpan, 59 
 
 M,it.irv>, 437 
 
 Mattozinhos, 479 
 MiJiua del Campo, 389 
 Hiilitorrancan, 23 
 Alegara, 56 
 llcga-Spilcon, 57 
 Mcnorca, 426 
 Mcrida. 391 
 Merinos, 335 
 Mi'ssenia, 66, 68 
 Messina, 32 • 
 Messina, Strait of, 309 
 Meteora, 113 
 Methone, 59 
 Slilan, 225 
 ]Milo8, 72 
 Minho, 455, 473 
 Mine, 455 
 Minon-a, 426 
 Mirdits, 116, 123 
 Miss^ikinghi. 49, 53 
 Slistra, 6S 
 JlolJa>-iii, 157 
 Sloneayo, 429 
 Monehique, 495 
 Mondego, 473 
 Monjuieh, 436 
 Monsemt, 431 
 Slontc Cinto, 363 
 M"nte G;inrano, 287 
 5[ontemor, 4y5 
 Slontenearo, 179 
 Slontc Pellegrino, 316 
 Montepulctano, 263 
 Monte Viso. 189 
 Montieri, 242 
 Slontilla, 409 
 5I<«ors in tSpain, 372 
 Mora\-a, 127, 173 
 Mon-a, 56 
 
 Miirtia, 413, 417 — 420 
 Mjcena;, 68 
 
 Naples, 2S6, 300 
 Kan-nta, 128 
 Naujiaetua, 53 
 Xavarino, 67 
 Xavarra, 439 
 Navas de Toloea, 395 
 Kaxos, 71, 74 
 Xea Kaimeni, 72 
 XiifToponte, 71 
 Nemi^ 68 
 Nicosia, 326 
 Nish, 143 
 N'oya, 459 
 Numancia, 379 
 Niunantia, 387 
 
 Oeiraa, 487 
 Ukhrida, 116 
 
 IKDEX. 
 
 onto, 448 
 01iven.,i«, 495 
 Olot, 437 
 01t.>, 158 
 
 OUnnpum Mount, 110 
 Oporto, 478 
 C)tvns->, 459 
 Utvzza, 3o8 
 Orihuela, 417, 419 
 On-ieto, 282 
 Ostia, 271, 273 
 Osuna, 409 
 Otninto, 306 
 0\-.ir, ^81 
 OWedo, 459 
 
 P»>stuin, 303 
 I'aiz do Vinho, 477 
 Palatine Hill, 277 
 Piileneia, 387 
 Palermo, 322 
 Palniii, 429 
 Palmanov!!, 229 
 Pamisus, 63 
 PanteUaril^ 334 
 P.imassus, 47 
 I'ames, 47 
 P;imon, 67 
 Paros, 71 
 Patones, 394 
 Patras, 66 
 Pelasgians, 41 
 Peloponnesus, 66 
 Pelorus, 315 
 Penagiiehe, 473 
 Pefias dc Kuropa, 449 
 Penens, 64. 113 
 Penha de iHntra, 489 
 Peniche, 4S3 
 Pcntelieus, 47 
 Pergusa, 317 
 Perugia, 263, 282 
 Pesaro, 2S3 
 Pezo da Regoa, 477 
 Phanar, 102 
 Phenea, 63 
 Pheneus, 60 
 Phigalia, 68 
 PhlegTcan Fields, 290 
 Phonia, 60 
 Piave, 191, 205 
 Pietra MiUa, 194 
 Pindus, 45, 116 
 Pimatza, 63 
 Pizzighettone. 360 
 Plasoneia, 391 
 Po, River, 210 
 Po, Valley of, 189 
 Ponuirao, 495 
 Pompeii, 301 
 Ponte de Limn. 479 
 Pontevedra, 4.'>9 
 Pontine Slarslies, 267 
 Pon>s. 69 
 Portiileare, 4'.i5 
 Port M.-ihon, 427 
 Porto, 478 
 Portugal, 469 
 Potcnzii, 308 
 Pozzuoli, 290 
 Prato, -253 
 Previ-sa, 125 
 Prisrtiid, 125 
 Protid:i, 291 
 Prutli, 159 
 I'uigeorda, 435 
 Pvlos, 00 
 
 QUS 
 
 P>Tni«<«, 429 
 Pyrjpj*, 87 
 Pytiiuu, 421, iii 
 
 Queliu, 488 
 
 Umtcui, 129 
 
 lUvenno, 228 
 
 Il.{,-Kii'. 2'J4, 309 
 
 Keiuuui I'uis, 454 
 
 Iteui, 169 
 
 Ituno, 2U8 
 
 Ithium, 53 
 
 Hhodopo, 135 
 
 Itio* of Uklieia, 4<4 
 
 liiuiini, 222 
 
 Itioja, 448 
 
 Itio Tinto, 405 
 
 Rinent, 230 
 
 Kocva d'Anfo, 360 
 
 Rodu«to, 108 
 
 Roman Compugno, 366 
 
 Rome, 274 
 
 Rondo, 413 
 
 Ruxan, 437 
 
 RoU, 405 
 
 Runuinia (Itounianin), 156 
 
 Ituinaniaus, 102 
 
 Ruuiili-kavak, 104 
 
 Uuphia, 63 
 
 Sado, 492 
 
 Sagres, 493 
 
 (ilaguntuni, 423 
 
 SuLuiianiii, 3a8, 389 
 
 Sabuuin, 56 
 
 8aIemo. 302 
 
 Siiluniki, 109 
 
 Salpi, 305 
 
 SalvaU'rm, 482 
 
 Samothrace, 96 
 
 8an Feruundo, 410 
 
 SanlCicar, 400, 410 
 
 San Marino, 2{>4 
 
 •Santa Maura, 77 
 
 Santander, 448, 458 
 
 iSantanm, 490 
 
 Santiago de Compotitela, 460 
 
 Santona, 458 
 
 Santorin, 72 
 
 Sao Joao da Foe, 479 
 
 Saragossa, 434 
 
 Sarave%-o, ISO 
 
 Sam'o, 303 
 
 Sciacca, 330 
 
 Seutari, lis, 125, 1 NO 
 
 Sc\Tos. 70 
 
 SvLino, 300 
 
 Scfpn-ia, 389,390 
 
 Scgii>. 431 
 
 S^■gun^ 416. 417 
 
 ScrbuUuni. 201 
 
 Serchio, 242, 253 
 
 Seivna, 391 
 
 Sereth. 159 
 
 Serra da Entrella. 474 
 
 Serra de Monehiqui-, 492 
 
 Serra do (navx, 474 
 
 SiTria, 172 
 
 Stnians, 119 
 
 Sft6l>ttl, 490 
 
 So»-ille, 409 
 
 Shil, 168 
 
 Sicily, 309 
 
 Sietm Blorena, 39-% 
 
 Sierra Nr«-adii. .'t9t> 
 
 Sil, 456
 
 504 
 
 INDEX. 
 
 Silves, 495 
 SoLrarbe, 430 
 Sofia, 143 
 Soria, 387 
 Spain, 369 
 Spaniards, 373 
 Sparta, 68 
 Spartans, 65 
 Sperchius, 60 
 Spezia, 69, 237 
 Sphakiotea, 92 
 Spolcto, 282 
 Sporades, 70 
 St. Florcnt, 36!/ 
 StromboH, 333 
 Strymon, 136 
 St. Sebastian, 446 
 Stymplialus, 01 
 St. Yuste, 381 
 Styx, 57 
 Siilina, 138 
 Suliotes, 119 
 Sybaris, 308 
 Syi-a, 74 
 Syracuse, 327 
 
 TafaUa, 447 
 
 Tagliamento, 191, 205 
 
 Tagus, see Tajo and Tcjo 
 
 Tajo, 383, 482 
 
 Talavera do la Keina, 391 
 
 Taranto, 307 
 
 Tarragona, 436 
 
 Tavira, 495 
 
 TavogUcre of Puglia, 286, 299 
 
 Taygetus, 58 
 
 Tcjo, 482 
 
 Tempo, 111 
 
 Terni, 270, 282 
 
 Tharsis, 405 
 
 Thasos, 94 
 Thebes, 56 
 Thera, 72 . 
 Therapia, lO'o' 
 Tbermia, 71 
 Thermopylas, 50 
 Thessaly, 98, 111 
 Thomar, 489 
 Thracia, 98 
 Tiber, 257, 268 
 Tierra do Campos, 38o 
 Tirgovist, 170 
 Tirnova, 133 
 TivoU, 271 
 Toledo, 390, 393 
 Tolosa, 447 
 Topino, 269 
 Torres Vedras, 483 
 Toi-tosa, 435 
 Trajan's Wall, 161 
 Trani, 306 
 
 Transylvanian Alps, 157 
 Trapani, 326 
 Trasimeno, 264 
 Trichonis, 48 
 Tripolis, 66 
 Tripolitza, 66 
 Trujillo, 391 
 Tudela, 448 
 Turin, 224 
 
 Turkey in Europe, 87 
 Turkish Empire, 151 
 Turks, 147 
 Tumu Severinu, 170 
 Tuscans, 248 
 Tuscany, 239 
 Tuy, 459 
 Tyn-henian Sea, 248 
 
 Ubeda, 407 
 
 Urbino, 283 
 Utrera, 409 
 
 Valdeon, 450 
 
 Valdoniello, 366 
 
 Valencia, 413, 419, 422 
 
 ValladoUd, 388 
 
 Vardar, 135 
 
 Vendetta, 367 
 
 Venice, 202, 207, 229 
 
 Verbano, 197 
 
 Vergara, 447 
 
 Verona, 229 
 
 Vesuvius, 288, 291 
 
 Vianna do CastcUo, 479 
 
 Vigo, 459 
 
 Vilkof, 169 
 
 ViUa do Conde, 479 
 
 Villanova de Portimao, 494 
 
 Villa Real, 480 
 
 ViUa Real de Santo Antonio, 495 
 
 Vitosh, 132 
 
 Vizcu, 481 
 
 Vostitza, 67 
 
 Vouga, 476 
 
 Vulcano, 332 
 
 Wallachians, 120, 162 
 
 Yalomitza, 161 
 Yanina, 116, 125 
 Y'assy, 168 
 Yuruks, 107 
 
 Zamora, 388 
 Zante, 79 
 Zaragoza, 434 
 Zezere, 482 
 Zinzares, 114, 119 
 Zyria, 67 
 
 KND OF vol.. I. 
 
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