Page:Dictionary of Greek and Roman Geography Volume II.djvu/195

 LIBYA. Nasamones, who inhabited tlie Syrtis and the district east of it (the present gulf of Sidra), crossed the Desert in a westerly direction, and came to a great river which ran towards the rising sun, and had crocodiles in it, and black men inhabiting its bai;ks. Notwithstanding some marvellous circumstances, the nan-ative is probably true In substance ; and, com- bined with the known activity of the Carthaginian trade in slaves, gold-dust, ivory, elephants, &c., ren- ders it likely that the interior was known to the ancients as well as the western coast, within 11° of the equator. But such knowledge as was acquired by travellers was rarely employed by the Greek geographers, who were more intent on accumulating names of places, than on recording the physical features, through which alone names become in- structive. The mountain and river system of Libya Interior has been partly described in the article Atlas ; and the principal features of its indigenous population under the heads Gaetoli and Gahamantes. It will suffice, then, to point out here the effect which the general conformation of the mountains has upon the climate and the rivers. The absence of snow on the Atlas range denies to this continent, in its northern portion at least, the privilege of partial refrigeration, allhoutrh in the loftier regions of the Aethiopian highlands the heat is mitigated by the ice upon their summits. Hence arises the superior volume of the Aethiopian rivers, the tributaries of the Nile, and the milder temperature of the plains surrounding the lake of Dembia, which, although within the tropics, enjoy a perpetual spring. Again, the northern range of Atlas runs so close to the Mediterranean that the watershed is brief and abrupt, and tlie rivers are properly mountain streams, which, after a short course, discharge themselves into the sea. The western slope of the Libyci Montes also presents a succession of terraces, which do not propel the rivers with force enough upon the lowlands to produce a continuous course ; so that eitlier they lose themselves in swamps, or are ab- sorbed by the sands. In some cases, indeed, they concentrate themselves in vast inland lakes, which in their turn drain off their superfluous waters in thread-like rivulets. On the southern inclination of Atlas, there is a similar impediment to the for- mation of large rivers, and not until within a few degrees of the equator, and in districts beyond the bounds of ancient Libya, do we meet with majestic streams, like the Senegal, the Quorra, Sec, rivalling the Nile. On tliis side, indeed, the irrigated por- tions of the lowlands are rich pasture-lands, and the Great Desert is bordered and encroached upon by luxurious patches both of forest and arable land. The more remarkable mountains not included in the Atlas range are the following: — On the northern fron- tier of the Desert, Mons Ater or Niger (Plin. v. .5. s. 5, vi. 30. s. 35), the modern Harusch or Black Moun- tain, which, running from east to west, separated the Oasis Phazania {Fezzaii) from Africa Romana. Westward of this was the Usargala (OvcrdpyaXa opos, Ptol. iv. 6. § 7, &c.), the present Adaineh- kosiiel-wegiad, which ran far into the territory of the Garamantes, and contained the sources of the river Bagrada. This may be regarded as a con- tinuation of the Atlas Major, S. of Numidia and Mauretania. Next, running in a N. direction to the verge of Numidia, and a branch of the Usargala, was Mons Girgiri (rb ri'p7ifiiopos), Tibesti, in which the river Cinyphus arose. Along the Atlantic coast, LIBYA. 179 and parallel with the Greater Atlas, were the follow- ing mountains and headlands: — Mount Sagapola (Sa^oTToAa, Ptol. iv. 6. § 8, &c.), from which the river Subus sprang, to SW. of which was Mount Mandrus (to MdvSpof opos), a long chain of hills, reaching to the parallel of the Fortunate Islands, and containing the fountains of all the rivers that discharge themselves into the Atlantic, from the Salathus to the Massa, or fi-om Cape Non to Cape Bojador. Mt. Caplias (Kd(J)as), 8 degrees to S., from which the Daradas flowed, stretched in a SE. direction far into the Desert : Mount Ryssadius (tJ) 'PvrradSioy opos) terminated i na headland of the same name, probably Cape Blanco, and in it rose the river Stachir. Of all these mountains, however, the most remarkable as regards the Libyan rock system, because it exhibited unquestionable tokens of volcanic action, was that denominated the Chariot of the Gods {Qeuy "Ox^VI^"-), probably the present Kong, or Sierra Leone. This was the extreme point of ancient navigation on the Atlantic: for the Phoe- nician Periplus, if it indeed was actually performed, formed the single exception to the otherwise uni- versal ignorance of the coast beyond. As far as modern discoveries have made known the interior, Libya, from the ocean to the borders of Aegypt, is crossed by a succession of highlands, arising at cer- tain points to a considerable elevation, and sendmg forth terraces and spurs towards the south. It is possible that these may form a continuous chain, but our acquaintance with its bearings is very im- perfect. The ancient geographers distinguished some portions of these highlands by the names of IMount Bardetus (Bdp5T]Tov opos), west of the Lunae Montes; and in the same line, but at a con- siderable interval, M. Mesche (MicrxTJ); Zipha (Zt0d), north of Mesche; and, approaching the Atlantic, Mount Ion ('loi' opos), and Dauehis (AaCx's). In a line with the Chariot of the Gods, and northward of the line of Bardetus, were the elevations Arualtes (6 'ApouccATTjs) and Arangas (6 'Apdyyas), the latter of which ran down to the equatorial line. These, with Mount Thala (jh &dAa opos), and, further eastward, the serrated range entitled the Garamantic Pharanx or Combe (jl TapaixavTiKT] (pdpay^), may be regarded as offsets of the Aethiopian highlands. That these mountains contain considerable mineral wealth is rendered pro- bable by their feeding the sources of rivers in the gold region, and from the copper pyrites discovered on their flanks. That they were the cradles of innumerable streams is also certain from the rich pasture and woodland which mark the confines of the equatorial region of Libya Interior. The voyage of Hanno was undertaken for the purpose of planting upon the coast of the Atlantic, trading stations, and to secure with the regions that produced gold, aromatics, and elephants, a readier communication with Carthage than could be maintained across the Sahara. That this trade was materially impaired when the Romans became masters of Africa, is probable, because the con- quering people had little genius for commerce, and because they derived the same articles of trade through the more circuitous route of Egypt and Aethiopia. Yet the knowledge acquired by the Carthaginians was not altogether lost, and the geographers of the empire have left us some im- portant information respecting the western coast of Libya as far as 11° N. lat. According to Ptolemy, the principal promontories were, beginning from the N 2