Page:Africa by Élisée Reclus, Volume 2.djvu/20

 the eighteenth century the French traveller, Lemaire, was already studying the ruins of the old Greek cities. Sections of the seaboard were surveyed by Paul Lucas, Shaw, Bruce, Granger, while in 1811 and 1817, the Italians Cervelli and Della Cella penetrated into the interior, and for the first time recorded systematic observations on the soil, climate, products, and antiquities of the country.

Then came the brothers Beechey, who occupied themselves chiefly with the maritime districts, and the artist Pacho, whose attention was directed mainly to the ruined cities of the plateaux. Cyrenaica was also traversed by Delaporte, De Bourville, Barth, Hamilton, De Beurmann, Gerhard Rohlfs, Murdoch Smith, and Porcher, and of late years it has been successively visited by a great many travellers,

astronomers, geographers and naturalists, nearly all of whom were sent by the Italian Society of Commercial Exploration in Africa, The chief objects of these continuous visits is to prepare the way for the political occupation of the country by the kingdom of Italy.

Between Egypt and the territory of Barka there are no natural frontiers. The hills and plateaux, skirting the north side of the Siwah oasis, are continued westwards, rising gradually into terraced uplands, which, beyond the Gulf of Soloûim, or Mellah, acquire the dignity and title of jebel (mountains). Here is the