Page:Encyclopædia Britannica, Ninth Edition, v. 2.djvu/772

706 distinguished; but as we attempt to trace them back towards the interior, it will be found that they often arise in the same knot or cluster of mountain masses, and are in fact only branches radiating from the same point. But as there is no great central chain from which they can be regarded as emanating, it is convenient to describe them separately, the more so as, from the familiarity of the Greek writers with this portion of Asia Minor, almost every range has some distinctive appellation by which it is well known to scholars. It has been already shown that there is no natural limit between the ranges that form the termination of the chain of Taurus on the west, and those that branch off to the ^Egean through Caria. The lofty range of Baba-dagh (known to the ancients as Mount Cadmus) in the interior, on the confines of Phrygia and Caria, is certainly closely connected with the mountains that separate Lycia from the upland valley of the Cibyratis, as well as with the high range now called Boz-dagh (the ancient Salbacum), which descends in a S.W. direction, and forms the boundary between the Cibyratis and Caria. The lower ranges that spread out from thence through the province of Caria, known in ancient times by the appellations of Lida, Grium, and Latmus, may be regarded as only offshoots of this central mass. The ridge of Latmus is, however, in great measure detached, and may be considered as begin ning on the south bank of the Maeander, and terminating towards the S.E. in the elevated plain or plateau on which stand the ruins of Stratonicea. The mountain ranges north of the Maeander are more clearly marked. That which Strabo describes under the name of Messogis arises on the borders of the great central table-land in the neighbourhood of the town of Buladun, and stretches from thence nearly due west for about 75 miles, till it approaches the neighbourhood of Ephesus, where it makes a sudden turn to the S.W., and ends in the bold mountain range and promontory of Mycale (now called Samsoun-dagh), just opposite to the island of Samos. It nowhere rises to any great elevation, but forms a continuous barrier (from 3000 to 4000 feet in height) on the N. side of the valley of the Mseander, which it sepa rates from the parallel valley of the Cayster. Beyond this latter again rises the chain of Mount Tmolus, now known as Boz-dagh, which branches off from Mount Messogis near the point of their common origin, and after sweeping round the sources of the Cayster, holds a course towards the west, till it sinks to the sea in the neighbour hood of Smyrna. Through the greater part of its range it forms the southern boundary of the valley of the Hermus, but near its western extremity there arises a subordinate range of inferior importance and elevation, which separates it from the course of that river. It is this inferior range, which is a mere offshoot of Mount Tmolus, of very little importance in a geographical point of view, that bore in ancient times the name of Sipylus, so celebrated from its connection with the fables of Tantalus and Niobe. North of the valley of the Hermus arise a succession of ranges of no great elevation or importance, which separate it from the valley of the Cai cus, and that again from the Gulf of Adramyttium. All these masses, constituting a very broken and irregular country, may be regarded as connected in an orographical point of view with the interior range of theDemirdji-dagh, Avhich extends through the whole of Mysia from near the Gulf of Adramyttium to the frontiers of Phrygia. It is apparently the Mount Temnus of Strabo, and is connected at its S!E. extremity with the more lofty groups called Ak-dagh and Murad- dagh, which rise out of the elevated plains of Phrygia to a height of about 8000 feet. The last of these mountains contains the sources of the Hermus, and the chain thus described forms the boundary separating that river, and the other streams which flow to the ^Egean, from the Macestus and Rhyndacus, which flow northwards into the Sea of Marmora. The north-western angle of Asia Minor, bounded by a line drawn from the Gulf of Adramyttium to the mouth of the ^Esepus, so as nearly to coincide with the limits of the district known in ancient times as the Troad, is occupied almost entirely by the mountain system of which Mount Ida constitutes the centre. The highest summit the ancient Gargarus, now known to the Turks as Kaz-dagh rises to a height of 5750 feet, and sends out its arms and underfalls in all directions the most lofty ridge being that which extends westward to Cape Lectum, while subordinate ranges fill up the space that spreads northwards to the Dardanelles and the Sea of Marmora. Almost the whole of the northern provinces of Asia Minor, extending along the coast of the Black Sea Bithynia, Paphlagonia, and Fontus are extremely moun tainous, and occupied through the greater part of their extent by successive ranges of mountains, filling up the space between the sea-coast and the borders of the great table-land of the interior. In a general view these may be characterised as forming a series of vast undulations, more or less parallel with the line of coast, which preserves a general direction from west to east. But when examined more in detail, they will be found to be complicated and broken in a manner that renders their description very difficult, while few of them have any historical importance or special geographical interest. It will suffice here to mention a few of the most important. The most westerly of these ranges is that known as the Mysian Olympus, which rises on the borders of Mysia and Bithynia, immediately south of the city of Broussa, and extends in a direction from N.W. to S.E., between the valley of the Rhyndacus and the head-waters of the Gallus, one of the principal tributaries of the Sangarius. It attains a height of about 6400 feet, and is a conspicuous object in the view from Constantinople, as well as from the plains of the interior. After a range of about GO miles it sinks to a comparatively low level, where it joins the table land of Phrygia, but may be considered as continued by subordinate masses which connect it with the range of Demirdji-dagh on the one side, while other elevations branch off from it to the valley of the Sangarius, which separates it from the chain of Ala-dagh, sometimes known as the Galatian Olympus. This is a lofty range which extends pretty continuously from the valley of the Sangarius to that of the Halys, constituting during a considerable part of its course the frontier between Galatia and Paphla gonia. The highest and central portion of the chain rises to between 6000 and 7000 feet, and almost the whole province of Paphlagonia is filled up with the subordinate ranges and offshoots that may be considered as connected with it. From thence it is continued under the name of Kusch-dagh, quite to the left bank of the Kizil Irmak or Halys. That river is indeed, in one part of its course, so closely hemmed in between two opposite ranges of moun tains as to afford no passage for a road. East of the Halys, again, the central and maritime portions of Pontus are traversed by a succession of moun tain ranges, for the most part of no great elevation, but rising progressively as they approach to the great table-land of the interior. Throughout the whole line of coast, from near Samsoun (Amisus) to Trebizond, these mountains de scend so close to the sea as to render the coast line extremely picturesque and varied. But the most important range appears to be that which extends from the neighbourhood of Trebizond, where it attains to an elevation of more than 8000 feet, in a direction towards W.S.W., so as to pass 