Page:Encyclopædia Britannica, Ninth Edition, v. 10.djvu/602

Rh 584 caves. “ Nothing,” says Captain Brome, “can exceed the beauty of the stalactites ; they form clusters of every im- aginable shape——statuettes, pillars, foliages, ﬁgures. Even the American visitors have been compelled to acknowledge that, as regards beauty and picturesqueness, even the hlammoth Cave would not come near them.” The mam- malian remains of the Genista cave have been investigated by Mr Busk (“Quaternary Fauna of Gibraltar,” in Trans. Qf Zoo]. Soc., vol. 1:. p. 2, 1877), and found to comprise specimens of a bear, probably Ursus fossilis of Goldfuss, a hywna, probably 11. crocuta or spelcea; various species of cats, from the size of a leopard to that of a wild cat. ; a rhinoceros similar to the species found in the valley of the Thames; two forms of ibex ; and the hare and the rabbit. No trace has been discovered of I?/zinoceros tic/zorinus, of ("rams speheus, or of the reindeer, and the only relic of the elephant as yet registered within the peninsula is a per- fect specimen of the penultimate upper molar tooth of Elephas antiquus. For further details see James Smith of J ordanhill “ 011 the geology of Gibraltar,” in Quart. Journ. of Geol. Soc., vol. ii., and G. Busk and Hugh Falconer “ On the Fossil Contents of the Genista Cave,” in Quart. Journ. of Geol. Soc., vol. xxi., reprinted in Falconer’s Paloyontological Jfemoirs, London, 1868. To the voyager entering the straits the rock presents a bare and almost barren aspect, especially when the summer suns have dried up the verdure; but as he approaches he discovers a considerable clothing of vegetation, and closer acquaintance reveals the existence of an extensive ﬂora. Here and there a grassy glen gives shelter to a group of trees, and the villas of the English residents are sur- rounded with luxuriant gardens and copses. Dr E. F. Kelaart in his Flora C'alpensz's (London, 1846) enumerates upwards of 400 ﬂowering plants and ferns as indigenous to Gibraltar, and about ﬁfty as introduced. Of the former a few appear to be species peculiar to the rock. White poplars, the cotton—tree, the pepper-tree or pimenta, the ilex, and the pine are the most noticeable of the larger trees; the bella—sombra (P/L3/tolacca dioica), introduced by General Don, the aloe, and the prickly pear are common; and on the eastern side of the rock the dwarf palm (C/zamcrrops Immilis) covers large areas. Among the fruit trees, which, however, are cultivated rather for ornament than for proﬁt, may be mentioned the almond, the olive, the orange, the lemon, the pomegranate, the ﬁg, and the loquat. In January and February many portions of the rock present a charming sight from the profusion and beauty of the wild ﬂowers. The fauna. of Gibraltar is naturally poor,—rabbits, foxes, partridges, pigeons, and Woodcocks being the principal species. The little Barbary apes, of which every schoolboy has heard, but which not every resident in Gibraltar has seen, are few in number, not more than twenty per- haps, and they usually inhabit the higher and eastern parts of the rock, except when they are driven towards the lower grounds by the cold winds from the north-east. They then do a little damage to the fruit trees; but they enjoy impunity as perfect as that of the storks in Holland or the ibis in Egypt. As to its climate Gibraltar belongs to the subtropical zone, with a dry summer and a rainy season in winter. More than half the rainfall of the year, which only amounts to about 28 or 30 inches, occurs in November, December, and January; and the three months of June, July, and August are hardly refreshed by a shower. The temperature is subject to frequent disturbances: from 93° to 87° is the highest reached (July), and 43° the lowest (February), and the mean for the summer months is from 74° to 79°. In summer the heat is tempered by a sea-breeze which blows from about 10 A..I. till shortly before sunset. Easterly winds or levanters are common from July to November, and during their prevalence every living creature GIBRALTA1-‘t seems to suffer. Heavy dews and thick fogs occur in autumn, and are as disagreeable as they are unhealthy. In the early part of the present century Gibraltar was notori- ously ﬁlthy and ill-drained, and epidemic diseases committed great ravages from time to time; but great improvements have been effected, especially through the sanitary com. mission instituted in 1865. The inhabitants were formerly dependent on the rainfall for most of their water supply, the springs in the rock being both scanty and brackish; but in 1869 an abundant source of fairly good water was found to exist under the sands of the North Front, and pumps and conduits have been constructed for its distribution. In 1876 the quality of the water was reported to be de- teriorating. Besides the private tanks, still numerous throughout the town, there are eight bomb—proof cisterns for rain-water, of a total capacity of 40,000 tons. The navy tank, for the supply of ships, holds from 9000 to 11,000 tons. Gibraltar is emphatically a fortress, and in some respects its fortiﬁcations are unique. On the eastern side the rock needs no defence beyond its own precipitous cliffs, and in all other directions it has been rendered practically impreg- nable. Besides a sea—wall extending at intervals round the western base of the rock, and strengthened by curtains and bastions and three formidable forts, there are batteries in all available positions from the sea—wall up to the summit 1350 feet above the sea ; and a remarkable series of galleries has been hewn out of the solid face of the rock towards the north and north—west. These galleries have an aggregate length of between 2 and 3 miles, and their breadth is sufficient to let a carriage pass. Port-holes are cut at intervals of 12 yards, so contrived that the gunners are safe from the shot of any possible assailants. At the eml of one of the galleries hollowed out in a prominent part of the cliff is St George’s Hall, 50 feet long by 35 feet wide, in which the governor was accustomed to give fétes. Alter- ations, extensions, and improvements are continually taking place in the defensive system, and new guns of the most formidable sort are gradually displacing or supplementing the old—fashioned ordnance. The whole population of Gibraltar, whether civil or military, is subjected to certain stringent rules. For even a day’s sojourn the alien must obtain a pass from the town-major, and if he wish to remain longer a consul or householder must become security for his good behaviour. Licences of residence are granted only for short periods—~ten, ﬁfteen, or twenty days—but they can be renewed if occasion require. Military officers may introduce a stranger for thirty days. A special permit is necessary if the visitor wishes to sketch. Though the town of Gibraltar may be said to date from the 14th century, it has preserved very little architectural evidence of its antiquity. Rebuilt on an enlarged and im- proved plan after its almost complete destruction during the great siege, it is still on the whole a mean-looking town, with narrow streets and lanes and a11 incongruous mixture of houses after the English and the Spanish types. As a proprietor may at any moment be called upon to give up his house and ground at the demand of the military authorities, he is naturally deterred from spending his money on sub- stantial or sumptuous erections. The area of the town is about 100 acres. The public buildings comprise the cathedral of the Holy Trinity, a poor imitation of Moorish architecture; the governor’s house, formerly a Franciscan monastery and still familiarly known as “The Convent"; the exchange ; the courthouse; the civil hospital ; the revenue oflices ; and the garrison library, planned by Colonel Drinkwater in 1703. The library has excellent reading- rooms, and contains from 40,000 to 45,000 volumes. At the north-eastcorner of the town stand the remains of the Moorish castle. Towards the south the lower grounds are