Page:Encyclopædia Britannica, Ninth Edition, v. 10.djvu/85

Rh by invariably subscribing himself “ Inca.” In he removed to Spain, and, having entered the military service, was engaged in the wars against the Moors and Turks. Disappointed in the inadequate recognition of his services by the crown, he retired while still a young man into private life at Cordova, where he gave himself to literature, and produced the learned historical work by which he is now known, the C'omentarios Ir’eales que trafan clcl Origen de los I'ncas, reg/es qzwfueron (lel Peru, de su I dolah'ia, Leg/es, cf'c. ,- con la IIr'stm'ia general ([6 Peru. The first part was in, and the second within a few  of his death, which occurred in. His thorough acquaintance with the language and traditions of his maternal ancestors gave his work an altogether peculiar value. It is, accordingly, the source from which all subsequent writers on the subject have most largely drawn, and still continues to be the chief original authority upon ancient Peru. An inaccurate English translation was published by Sir Paul Rycaut in 1688. There is also a French translation, which was published in 1727.  GARD, a department in the south of France, consisting of part of the old province of Languedoc, is bounded N. by the departments of Lozere and Ardeche, by the Rhone, which separates it from Vaucluse and Bouches-du-th‘me, S. by Hérault and the Mediterranean, and W. by Aveyron. It lies between 43° 27’ 25" and 44° 27’ 20" N. lat., and between 3' 15’ 39" and 4° 50’ 44” E. long. The western and northern districts of the department are occupied by the range of the Cévennes, which on the frontier of Lozére attain a height of 5120 feet. The whole of this region is celebrated for its fruitful valleys, its gorges, its beautiful streams, its vines, and its chestnut, mulberry, and other fruit trees, with which the mountains are often clothed to their summits. From the Cévennes the land gradually declines to the Rhone and Mediterranean. The southern portion, which extends to the sea, and was probably at one time covered by it, is a low plain with numerous lakes and marshes. Besides the Rhone, which bounds the department on the E., and the Ardeche, the lower portion of which forms part of its boundary on the N., the principal rivers are the Ceze, Gard, Vidourle, and Herault. The most northern of these is the Ceze, which rises in the Cévennes, and after a course of about 50 in an  direction falls into the Rhone below Bagnols. The Gard, or Gardon, from which the department takes its name, is also an afﬂuent of the Rhone, and rising in the Cévennes from several sources, traverses the centre of the department, having a length of about 60 miles. In the upper part of its course it ﬂows through a succession of deep mountain gorges, and from the melting of the snows on the Cévennes is subject to inundations, which often cause great damage. Its waters not unfrequently rise 18 or 20 feet in a few hours, and its bed is sometimes increased in width to nearly a mile. The Vidourle flows in a direction from its source near Le Vigan, and after a course of about 50 miles falls into the sea. Below Sornmieres it forms the western boundary of the department. The Hérault has its source and part of its course in this department. The Canal de Beaucaire extends from the Rhone at the town of that name to Aigues Mortes, which communicates with the Mediterranean by means of the Grand-Roubine canal. The climate is generally very mild but is rather changeable, and cold and violent storms of wind are not uncommon. The dopartment is rich in minerals, which constitute one of the chief sources of its wealth. Iron, coal, and argentiferous lead mines are ex- tensively worked; and manganese, zinc, and antimony are found. Great quantities of salt are obtained from the salt marshes along the coast. The gypsum and other quarries employ a considerable number of workmen. The ﬁsheries are very productive. The manufactures are extensive, and include silk, cotton, and woollen fabrics, ironware, hats, gloves, paper, leather, earthenware, and glass. The chief grain crops are wheat, oats, rye, and barley. Lentils, pease, and potatoes are also grown. . Gard is famed for its cattle, its breed of small horses, and its sheep, the wool of which is of a very ﬁne quality. The principal truit trees are the olive and mulberry. The vine is extensively cultivated, and yields excellent red and white wines. Gard is divided into the arrondissements of Nimes, Alais, Uzes, and Le Vigan, with 38 cantons and 347 communes. The chief town is Nimes. The total area is 2256 square miles, and the population in 1866 was 429,747, and in 1876 423,804.  GARDA,, the Italian and ancient Benacus, the largest and most eastern of the great lakes of northern Italy. It is enclosed by Alpine ridges on both sides, except towards the south, where it widens out into the Lombard plain. The northern extremity belongs to the Austrian district of Tyrol, while the remainder is divided between the two old Italian pro- vinces of Venetia and Lombardy. The length of the lake is about 38 miles; its width varies from 2 or 3 miles in the north to 11 or 12 in the south; and its area is esti- mated at 135 square miles. The ordinary elevation of the surface above the level of the sea is 320 feet. but this is increased by 3 or 5 feet by the melting of the Alpine snows at the beginning of summer. The greatest depths are about 900 or 1000 feet. At the northern extremity it receives the waters of the Sarca, a comparatively small ’l‘yrolese stream, and at the south-eastern corner, at Peschiera, its surplus is conveyed by the Mincio to the 1’0. Navigation on the one hand is frequently rendered dangerous by sudden bursts of storm, while on the other hand it is facilitated by the two regular winds called the Ora or Andar and the Sover, of which the former blows from the south from midday to midnight, and the latter from the north from midnight to midday. Especially in its southern quarters, the lake is very rich in ﬁsh, the more important species being the salmon—trout, the carpione (Salmo pmzctatus), the trout, the sardina (Alausa vulgaris), the eel, and the arvole. The principal towns and villages along the Riviera or western side of the lake are—Desenzano, in the south ; Salo, with 4500 inhabitants; Maderno, with 1500 inhabitants; Tos- colano, with 2000, famous for its paper—mills, introduced in 1386 ; Gargnano, with 4000 ; Limone ; and Riva, at the northern extremity, with about 6000. Proceeding south along the eastern side we ﬁnd Torbole, Malcesine, Terri, Garda, which gives its name to the lake, Lacize, and Pesehiera. Dcsenzano and Torri are the chief seats of the ﬁsh trade. Steamers ply regularly from Desenzano to Riva, and from tiva to Peschiera, The scenery of the Garda is not so ﬁne as that of the Lake of Como, but it is remarkable for the luxuriance of the vegetation, especially on the beautiful promontory of Sirmione, which projects from the southern shore, and still contains the ruins of the villa once inhabited by Catullus. The lemon ripens its fruit at several places round the lake, though the trees require to be carefully covered, and even artiﬁcially warmed, during the frosts. The whole number is estimated at about 18,000, and each may produce about 1000 lemons.

1em

“ Fluctibus ctfrc-mz'lro assurgcns, Belwcc, marina."

