Chap. XXXVIII
Sardinian Electric Telegraph.—The Land Line completed.—Failures in Attempts to lay a Submarine Cable to Algeria.—The Work resumed.—A Trip to Bona on the African Coast.—The Cable laid.—Cagliari an Important Telegraph Station.—Its Commerce.—The return Voyage.—Conclusion.
After completing the land line of telegraph, as already mentioned, the Sardinian Company101 failed in three attempts at laying a submarine cable to connect the wires from Cagliari with the coast of Algeria. We will not here enter into an inquiry as to the causes of these disasters, instructive as it might be if we had space, and this were a fitting opportunity. Suffice it to say that the first experiment failed soon after leaving Cape Spartivento; on the second, the line was laid for about two-thirds of the course, but with such a profuse expenditure of the submarine cable that it was run out, and the enterprise abruptly terminated. A third attempt to renew the operation proved equally unsuccessful.
The project received a severe check from these repeated failures. The company had established their line, by sea and land, as far as Cagliari. So far, well: the communications of the respective Governments with their islands of Corsica and Sardinia were complete. Incidentally, also, England derived some advantage from the stations at Cagliari during the most anxious period of the crisis in Indian affairs. It was one step in advance towards telegraphic communications with India, though a short one. But the main object of the French Government in promoting the enterprise was to link its connection with Algeria by the electric wires; and till that was accomplished, the Company had no claim to be reimbursed for that portion of their expenditure guaranteed in the event of success.
One may imagine the dismay of the shareholders, mostly Italians, in this state of affairs. Their capital must have been greatly, if not altogether, exhausted by the expenditure on previous works and the abortive attempts at laying the African cable. It was now only, in all probability, that they became seriously alive to the difficulties of the undertaking, and the immense risks that must be incurred in laying submarine cables in great depths of water. For it was now known that the depth of the Mediterranean in many parts crossed by the track of submarine cables, is no less than that through which the Transatlantic cable has to be laid.
The prosecution of the scheme was suspended; but meanwhile time was running on, and the period fixed for completing the line had nearly expired. In this event, the government guarantee being forfeited, the concern would become a ruinous affair, as the telegraph traffic of two small islands could not be remunerative for the capital expended in connecting them with the continent. A short extension of the term for completing the undertaking had been obtained; but that was nearly run out before matters were put in a better train.
In this emergency, Mr. Brett, the gérant of the foreign company, who had contracted for and personally superintended the previous attempts to lay the African cable, entered into negotiations for its being undertaken by Messrs. Newall and Co. They had an established reputation, not only as having long been manufacturers of submarine electric cables, the quality of which had been tested by continuous service, but as having, under contracts with the English Government, laid down between five and six hundred miles of cable in the Black Sea during the Crimean war, without a single mishap. They were, therefore, not mere theorists; having acquired by long experience a practical knowledge of submarine telegraphy which had not fallen to the lot of any others who had turned their attention to that branch of the science.
The overtures made on the part of the Sardo-French Company having been favourably received in the course, I believe, of the summer of 1857, Messrs. Newall and Co., nothing daunted by the previous failures, though doubtless fully aware of the difficulties they had to encounter, agreed to lay the African cable for a given sum, taking all risks on themselves. When it is understood that, about the same time, they also contracted with the “Mediterranean Extension Company,” on like terms as to responsibility, to lay down submarine cables between Cagliari and Malta, and from Malta to Corfu, extending over 795 nautical miles, and making, with the African cable, a total of 920 miles, some idea may be formed of the magnitude of the operations undertaken by a single firm. The mileage is more than one third of the distance embraced in the scheme of the great Transatlantic Company; and, as we find that the Mediterranean has its deep hollows as well as the Atlantic, the difficulties were proportionate.
Having entered into these engagements, Messrs. Newall and Co., after completing their contract for one half, 1250 miles, of the Transatlantic cable, lost no time in proceeding with the manufacture of the Mediterranean cables at their works in Birkenhead. Towards the end of August, the African cable, with some portion of the Malta cable, was shipped in the Mersey aboard their steamship Elba, the vessel before employed in laying down the cable between Varna and Constantinople. It should be mentioned that the African cable contained four wires, so that it was more ponderous and less flexible than the Atlantic cable, which has only one.
About this time, the writer happened to hear what was going on. Being then engaged in preparing these Sardinian “Rambles” for the press, he was desirous to make another trip to the island before their publication; and, besides the connection of the Cagliari line of telegraphs with the objects of his work, other circumstances had made him generally interested in the subject of submarine telegraphy. He therefore requested Mr. R.S. Newall’s permission for his joining the expedition, which was kindly granted.
With this preliminary statement, we proceed at once to the scene of action. At the last moment it had been decided, for reasons with which I am unacquainted, but, I believe, on the suggestion of the foreign Governments interested in the project, to start from the African coast, instead of from Cagliari; Cape de Garde, a few miles eastward of Bona, a town on the Tunisian frontier of the French possessions in Algeria, being selected as the point at or near which the submarine cable was to be submerged. The Elba, with the cable on board, anchored off Bona on Saturday, the 5th of September. Three war-steamships, appointed by the foreign Governments to attend and assist in the operations, had arrived some days before, and lay at anchor in the haven of Cazerain. The little squadron consisted of the Brandon, a large frigate under the French flag, with the Monzambano and the Ichnusa, both belonging to the royal Sardinian navy; and on board were the Commissioners appointed by the respective Governments to watch the operations.
It blew hard after the Elba’s arrival, and the ships being detained in harbour, waiting for a favourable wind, opportunities offered of landing at Bona, and making some excursions into the surrounding country. The old Arab town rises from the sea in the form of an amphitheatre, and you see its high embattled walls running up the hill-side and embracing in its enceinte the citadel, or Casbah, crowning the heights; the whole backed by the towering summits and shaggy slopes of the chain of Mount Edough. Within is a labyrinth of narrow streets; that leading direct from the port crossing a steep ridge to the Place d’Armes, a square with a fountain in the centre, overhung with palms and other exotics, and where French architecture is singularly mixed with the Moorish style. On one side stands a mosque, with its tall minaret; on the other, range cafés and restaurants, and magazins de mode, with their lofty fronts, arcades, and balconies. We linger for a moment on the spectacle offered by the various populations which crowd the square from morn to eve, and most after nightfall; a motley crowd of Arabs, Moors, Zouaves, Chasseurs, Jews, and Maltese. In the picturesque contrast of costume it presents, the gayest French uniforms possess no attractions compared with the white and flowing bournous, with even the sheepskin mantle of the poor Arab of the desert, the bright braided caftan of the Moor, the turban, and the fez. But the limits assigned to this work being already exceeded, I may not allow myself to dwell on the numberless objects which attract the attention of a curious traveller, in scenes where the modes and forms of Oriental life are singularly blended with those that bear the freshest European stamp.
Nor is this the place for more than noting an excursion to the picturesque ruins of Hippona, the old Roman city, the Hippo-Regius, where the great St. Augustine laboured in the African episcopate, and ended his days during the sufferings of Genseric’s siege. They stand on a hillock facing the sea, now covered with thickets of wild olive trees and fragments of the buildings. What a plain is that you see from the summit, stretching away in all directions, a vast expanse of grassy meadows on the banks of the river Seybouse; parched indeed now by the torrid heat of an African summer, but of rich verdure after the rains! What prodigious ricks of hay we observe at the French cavalry barracks, as we ride along! What growth of vegetables in the irrigated gardens of the industrious, but turbulent, Maltese! Surely, but for the French inaptitude to colonisation, this part of Algeria, at least, might be turned to good account.
Changing the scene for a moment from the sultry plains, we may just note another excursion, which led to the summit of the pass crossing the chain of Mount Edough. At the top we look westward over a sea of mountains, towards and beyond Constantine, the strongholds of the indomitable Kabyles. Turning homewards, we slowly descend the winding road, among slopes covered with a coarser maquis—still more fitted to endure the drought—than the evergreen thickets of Corsica and Sardinia; the dwarf palm, chamærops humilis, most prevailing. Bona, with its walls and terraces and the Casbah and the minarets, rising above a grove of orchards and gardens, now makes a pleasing picture. Beyond, in the still water of the haven, our little fleet lies at anchor, with the French guardship; outside, the blue Mediterranean is now very gently rippled by the evening breeze.
We are recalled to the ships, and hasten on board, for the wind having changed, with a promise of fair weather, it is decided to commence operations. The point selected for landing the shore-end of the cable was a sandy cove, a little to the eastward of Cape de Garde, or as it is otherwise called Cap Rouge, a literal translation of Ras-el-Hamrah, the name given it by the natives. There is an easy ascent from the cove to Fort Génois, about half a mile distant. The fort, a white square building at the edge of the cliffs, said to have been built by the Genoese to protect their coral fisheries on this coast, was convenient for establishing a temporary telegraph station, wires being run up to it from the end of the submarine cable.
It was a lovely morning, the sun bright in a cloudless sky and the blue Mediterranean calm as a lake, when the little squadron having got up steam, ran along the shore, and successively anchored in the cove. There floated, in happy union, the flags of the three allied Powers recently engaged in very different operations: and the ships, with their boats passing and repassing, formed a lively scene contrasted with that desert shore, on the rocks of which a solitary Arab stood watching proceedings so strange to him.
The Elba’s stern having been brought round to the land, the ship was moored within cable’s length of the sandy beach; but the operation of landing the submarine cable was delayed in consequence of the neglect of the Sardinian company’s agents, whose duty it was to have the land-line of telegraph wires ready to communicate with Port Génois. This occupied the whole day, and I took advantage of it, landing in one of the first boats, to make a long ramble, visiting, in the course of it, Fort Génois, an encampment of Arabs at some distance in the interior, and climbing to the lighthouse on Cape de Garde, commanding, as may be imagined, magnificent views. It was a toilsome march, over rocks and sands, and through prickly thickets, in the full blaze of an African sun at noontide; but the excursion was full of interest, and not without its trifling adventures.
The shore works were not completed till sunset, when, all the boats being recalled to the ships, they got under weigh, the Monzambano towing the Elba, with the Ichnusa ahead, and the Brandon on her larboard bow. The engineers began paying out the cable at eight o’clock, proceeding at first slowly, as the night was dark, and being desirous to try cautiously the working of the machinery. As the water deepened, the cable ran out fast, and the speed was increased, so that by midnight we had run about seventeen miles, with a loss in slack, it was reckoned up to that time, of under twenty per cent, of cable, compared with the distance run.
Few, I imagine, aboard the Elba got much sleep that night. The very idea of sleep was precluded by the incessant roar of the cable, rushing, like a mighty cataract, through the iron channels confining its course over the deck, while the measured strokes of the steam-engine beat time to the roar. Having laid down for two hours, I gave up my cabin to one of our numerous guests; for the French and Italian commissioners being now on board the Elba, besides Mr. Werner Siemens and his staff of German telegraphists, her accommodations were fully tried; and as for languages, she was a floating Babel. Coming on deck at twelve o’clock, the lighthouse on Cape de Garde was still visible. The attendant ships carried bright lanterns at their mastheads, sometimes throwing up signal rockets; and so the convoy swept steadily on through the darkness, the Elba still following in the wake of the Monzambano. Mr. Newall and Mr. C. Liddell, who directed the whole operations, never quitted their post at the break. The telegraphists, from their station amidship, tested the insulation from time to time, speaking to the station at Port Génois. Looking down into the mainhold, which was well lighted up, you saw the men cutting the lashings to release the cable, as, gradually unfolding its serpentine coils from the cone in the centre, it was dragged rapidly upwards by the strain of its vast weight, and rushed through the rings to the vessel’s stern. There the speed was moderated, before it plunged from the taffrail into the depths beneath, by the slow revolutions of a large wheel, round which the cable took several turns.
As day broke and the sun rose magnificently over the Mediterranean, Galita Island came in sight, distant from thirty to forty miles to the eastward; the high lands of Africa being still visible. With the sea perfectly calm, all augured well for the success of the enterprise, except that serious apprehensions were entertained lest the cable, paying out so fast in the great depth of water we were now crossing,—1500 fathoms,—might not hold out to reach the land. Thus we ran on all the morning, the vessel’s speed being increased to between five and six knots per hour, and the strain on the cable to five tons per mile; the depth ranging from 1500 to 1700 fathoms.
Towards the afternoon the land of Sardinia was in sight between fifty and sixty miles ahead, our course being steered towards Cape Teulada, the extreme southern point of the island. By sunset we had reached within twelve miles of the shore, and angles having been carefully taken to fix our exact position, we anchored in eighty fathoms water. Soon afterwards the attendant ships closed in, and anchored near us for the night. The little squadron, well lighted, formed a cheerful group, the sea was smooth as a mill-pond, and the mountains of Sardinia, after reflecting the last rays of the setting sun, loomed heavily in the growing twilight. All hands on board the Elba were glad of rest after thirty-six hours of incessant toil.
In the morning, as we had run out the whole of our cable proper, a piece of the Malta cable was spliced on, with some smaller coils also on board. Meanwhile, the Ichnusa had gone ahead at daybreak to take soundings, and when all was ready we began paying out the cable, being then, as already stated, about twelve miles from the land. All went on smoothly, and there was scarcely any loss of cable by slack. The eye turned naturally, again and again, from anxiously counting the lessening coils in the hold to measure our decreasing distance from the shore, as its hold features and indentations became hourly more distinct. Cape Teulada stood right ahead, a bold headland, with peaked summits 900 feet high. It forms the eastern point of the Gulf of Palmas, and has a long face of precipitous cliffs towards the sea. To the west of this deep inlet appeared the rocky islands of San Antioco and San Pietro, with cliffs of volcanic formation; and the Toro rock stood out a bold insulated object, 500 or 600 feet high, marking the entrance of the Gulf of Palmas, a spacious bay offering excellent anchorage.
We had run ten miles towards a beach under the cliffs, a little to the eastward of Cape Teulada, when the small cable, now in course of being paid out, suddenly parted. The mishap occurred about a mile and a half from the shore, in forty fathoms water, with a sandy bottom. It was provoking enough to have our expectations baulked, when holding on for another half hour we should have succeeded in bringing the cable to land; but, for our comfort, the main difficulties of the enterprise were overcome. The African cable had been securely laid in the greatest depths of the Mediterranean, and the shore-end of the line could be easily recovered in the shallow water. The only question was, whether it should be immediately effected; but for this the weather had become very unfavourable. The wind had been blowing strong from the south-east all the morning; and a gust of it caught the Elba’s stern, and canted it suddenly round, when the small cable snapped like a packthread. Rather a heavy sea was now running, and, on the whole, it was thought advisable to defer the concluding operations until an entirely new end to the cable could be procured from England.
For this purpose, and at the same time to bring out the Malta cable, the Elba was despatched homeward a few hours after the accident happened. Fresh angles having been carefully secured, nothing remained but to take leave of our friends before the squadron parted,—the Brandon for the Levant, and the Sardinian frigates for ports in the island. While all belonging to the Elba considered that the submersion of a cable between Algeria and the coast of Sardinia was virtually a fait accompli, it was almost painful to witness the dismay of the Italians, at the mishap which had occurred to cloud their anticipations. It was evident that they entirely distrusted all assurances of the contractors’ ability to recover the end of the cable, and perfect the line. Their fears were groundless; within a few weeks the new coil was brought from England, and the end of the submerged cable having been grappled at the first haul, the work was completed without any difficulty. Messrs. Newall and Liddell immediately proceeded to lay down the Cagliari and Malta, and the Malta and Corfu cable, 375 and 420 miles respectively; both which they effected with entire success in the months of November and December following, with a very small average waste of cable over the distance, and in depths equally great with those in which the African line was laid.
My own object now being to reach Cagliari, the commander of the Monzambano was kind enough to give me a passage in his fine frigate. I got on board just as the officers and their guests were sitting down to dinner under an awning on the deck. Among them was the old General Della Marmora, whose love of science and devotion to the interests of Sardinia had induced him, though suffering from bad health, to make the voyage for the purpose of witnessing the important experiment. I found that he did not share in the apprehensions of the Italian shareholders on board as to the loss of the cable. The General had long cherished the idea that the ports of Sardinia, and especially Cagliari, are destined to partake largely of the commercial advantages resulting from a variety of recent events. In a little work, already referred to, which he was kind enough to give me102, he points out the fine position of Cagliari, its spacious gulf, with good anchorage, open to the south, and in the highway of all ships navigating the Mediterranean between the Straits of Gibraltar, the Levant, and the Black Sea. A glance at the map, he truly observes, will show no other port, either on the coast of northern Africa, in Sicily, or the south of Italy, which can be its rival. Malta alone competes with it both in position and as a harbour; but he justly asks,—“Can a barren rock like Malta be compared, in a commercial point of view, with an island of such extent, and possessing so many natural resources, as Sardinia?”
The General also points out the advantages offered by the electric telegraph station at Cagliari to masters of ships bound to the Mediterranean, the Levant, and the Black Sea, from the ports of Northern Europe, or, vice versâ, to those coming from the eastward, to induce them to touch at Cagliari. After, perhaps, long and wearisome voyages, they will find, he observes, in their very track, in the heart of the Mediterranean, the means of correspondence, in a few hours, with their families and their owners, receiving news and instructions from home. These facilities he considers of inestimable value; and it strikes us that the area included in the General’s observations will be much extended when the electric wires are carried across the Atlantic, and that American ships are more likely to avail themselves of the advantages offered than those of any other nation.
Without sharing the sanguine anticipations of the excellent General La Marmora as to the speedy regeneration of Sardinia, and the development of her natural resources, undoubtedly great as they are, the remark may be allowed, that it would be a singular and happy event if this island, which appears to have been one of the first, if not the first, station of the earliest maritime people, in their advance towards Western Europe, should, now that the tide of civilisation, so long flowing from the East, has evidently taken a reflex course, become again that centre of commercial intercourse for which its geographical position so well fits it.
Towards evening, the Monzambano was running along the iron-bound coast terminating with Cape Spartivento, the western headland of the Gulf of Cagliari. I know not whether it was from the position of the ruins, or the hazy state of the atmosphere, night coming on, that I failed to make out some Cyclopean vestiges mentioned by Captain Smyth—Mr. Tyndale says they are a large Nuraghe—as standing on one of the most remarkable summits, at an elevation of upwards of 1000 feet, and called by the peasants, “The Giants’ Tower.” “This structure,” observes Captain Smyth, “situated amongst bare cliffs, wild ravines, and desolate grounds, appeared a ruin of art amidst a ruin of nature, and imparted to the scene inexpressible grandeur.” During our passage we had a stormy sky and a strong head-wind, the sun setting gorgeously among masses of purple and orange clouds. There was nothing to relieve the barren aspect of this desert coast but the grey watch-towers from point to point, similar to those we saw on the coasts of Corsica; and, having paced for an hour the frigate’s long flush deck, I was glad to turn-in early, and enjoy the comforts of a state cabin after the fatigues and watches of the two preceding days and nights.
The contrary wind retarded our progress, and it was not till after daylight that, approaching the harbour of Cagliari, I enjoyed the fine view, described in a former chapter, of the city, stretching a long line of suburbs at the base of the heights crowned by the Casteddu, with its towers and domes. The frigate entering the port was moored alongside the government wharf; from which may be inferred the depth of water, and the class of vessels the port is capable of receiving. It now contained only about twenty ships, one only of which, a brig, was under the English flag. The rest were of small burthen, and mostly Genoese and French. General La Marmora states, in the Memoir before quoted, that “since the crosses of Savoy and of Genoa have been united in the same flag,” the Genoese have turned much attention to the trade of Sardinia; and that a company was forming for the improvement of the port of Cagliari, in order to draw to it some part of the corn trade of the Black Sea. Thus the ancient granary of Rome might become the emporium of the trade in corn for Italy and Southern France, and even for Africa; the General observing, with what reason there may be some doubt, that, while only two voyages can be made between the ports of those countries and the Black Sea, three, or even four such, could be accomplished from Cagliari.
It is to be regretted that I did not obtain the latest statistics of the commerce of Sardinia, and the port of Cagliari in particular, from our very intelligent Consul, Mr. Craig; recollecting only his having mentioned that coal is the principal import from England;—France and Genoa, I conclude, supplying manufactured articles and colonial produce. Salt, he said, was the chief export, great part of it being shipped to Newfoundland and Labrador.
I cannot mention Mr. Craig, for the last time in these pages, without an acknowledgment of the many kind offices for which I am indebted to him during the present and preceding visits to Sardinia, nor can I easily forget the pleasure enjoyed in his amiable family circle. Hours so spent in a foreign country have a double charm; for in such agreeable society the traveller breathes the atmosphere, and is restored to the habits, of his cherished home. I have no reason to think that Mr. Craig’s long and valuable services are not duly appreciated by his Government; but it might be wished that, in any re-arrangement of the consular service, they be taken into consideration. It is a sort of honourable exile for a man to spend sixteen years of his life on a foreign service, with a family growing up, who enjoy very rare opportunities of conversing with any of their own countrymen, and still less of their countrywomen, in their mother tongue. I take some liberty in venturing to offer these wholly unauthorized remarks on a subject of some delicacy; and only wish I could flatter myself they have any chance of reaching influential quarters, and not being forgotten. Mr. Craig’s position, respected and esteemed as he long has been, is eligible in many respects; but it might perhaps be improved.
At the Consul-General’s I again met some of the officers of the Ichnusa, to whom, as well as to Boyl commanding the Monzambano, I wish to offer my acknowledgments for many civilities. Lieutenant Baudini, of the Ichnusa and other Sardinian officers who understand English, may chance to peruse this page, and will interpret my sentiments to their brother officers. Commandant Boyl was kind enough to give me a passage to Genoa, being under orders for that port. We had a pleasant run, the style of living on board the Monzambano being excellent, the society agreeable, and enjoying magnificent weather. I have before observed that the officers of the Sardinian navy are intelligent and gentlemanly, and appear to be well up to their profession. The crews are smart, and every thing aboard the ship was in the highest order and conducted with perfect discipline.
Steaming close in-shore along the eastern coast of Sardinia, remarkable principally for its bold and sterile character, there was a striking contrast in the appearance of the same coast of Corsica, which came in sight after crossing the mouth of the Straits of Bonifacio. This was comparatively verdant, not only as regards the fertile plains of the littorale, described in an early chapter, but, even where the mountain ranges approached the Mediterranean south of these extensive plains, the sterile aspect of their towering summits and precipitous cliffs was often relieved by immense forests encircling their bases, while every hillside and slope to the valleys appeared densely clothed with the evergreen macchia, for which Corsica is so remarkable.
Part of this coast was already well known to the homeward bound traveller: again he caught sight of the bold outlines of Elba and Monte Cristo, rising out of the Tuscan sea; again, as on the first evening of these rambles, the white terraces of Bastia reflected the rays of the setting sun. Soon afterwards the mountain ranges of Capo-Corso were veiled in darkness, and, as we ran along the shore nothing was visible but the twinkling lights of the fishermen’s huts in the little marinas, to bring to mind those features which had so fascinated us on our first approach to the island.
Again, farewell to Corsica! Farewell to the twin islands which, like emeralds set in an enamelled vase, deck the centre of the great Mediterranean bason, embraced by the coasts of Italy, France, and Spain,—radiant points midway to Africa, in the great highway to the East, and partaking the varied character of all these climes. It had been my fortune not only to ramble through these islands from north to south, but, in different voyages, to sail round the entire coasts of both, except some part of the west of Sardinia. I can only wish that these pages more adequately represented the impressions made under the opportunities thus enjoyed.
It was again my fortune to approach the lovely bay of Genoa with the earliest morning light; and, taking leave of my good friends on board the Monzambano, I landed before breakfast. To vary the route homeward, instead of crossing the Mont-Cenis, as had been done in frost and snow at a late season of the year in the former tour, I enjoyed the enviable contrast of journeying along the Riviera di Ponente from Genoa to Nice,—that exquisite strip of country between the Apennines and the Mediterranean, studded with orchards, orange groves, vineyards, and gardens; with towns, towers, churches, and convents, nestled in the groves, washed by the sea, or perched high on rocky pinnacles; and all this encircling the lovely Bay of Genoa, the road being carried en corniche along its winding shores and round its jutting points. Of this exquisite scenery no description of mine could convey any adequate idea to those who have not seen it, and those who have will need little memento to bring its varied features to their recollection.
Farewell, a long farewell to, perhaps, the loveliest strip of country in the bright South! The Neapolitan proverb may be applied with equal justice to the Ligurian, as to the fair Campanian, coast,—vedere e pói morire,—a fitting motto wherewith to conclude the tale of an old man’s wanderings.
Pursuing the journey from Nice to Marseilles, in heat and in dust, the express train, by Lyons and Paris, conveyed the Rambler to Calais in about thirty hours, and six more landed him in London.
The End
Footnotes:
1 Dei Costumi dell’Isola di Sardegna, comparate cogli antichissimi Popoli Orientali, par Antonio Bresciani. D.C.D.G. Napoli, 1850.
2 Πολλῶν δ’ ἀνθροπῶν ἲδεν ἂσεα—καὶ νὰον ἐγνῶ. Od. i. 3.
3 Lamartine. See The Island Empire, dedicated to Lord Holland. Bosworth, 1855.
4 In the same way, Ordericus Vitalis represents William the Conqueror to have said in his last moments, when reviewing his life, that he fought against Harold (meaning what English historians call the Battle of Hastings—a name never given to that battle by the Normans) in Epitumo (query Epithymo?), a word only found in the work of Ordericus; referring, probably, as his editor remarks, “to the odoriferous plants found on heaths.”—Forester’s Ordericus Vitalis, Bohn’s Edition, vol. ii. p. 412.
5 Benson’s Corsica, p. 81.
6 The following biographical sketch is compiled from the works of Boswell and Benson, and the compendious Histoire de la Corse, by M. Camille Friess.
7 This appears from the Report of a Committee on the Public Safety made to the Council General of the Department of Corsica in 1851. It says: “La société et l’innocence doivent trouver dans la loi une égale protection; mais l’avantage ne doit pas rester au crime.
“Les acquittements multipliés, et souvent scandaleux, n’ont que trop démontré que notre législation actuelle renferme trop de chances pour l’impunité, et ne présente pas toutes les garanties que la société est en droit de reclamer pour la répression des crimes.
“Elle a pensé qu’en ce qui touche les proportions de la majorité, l’institution du jury devrait être modifiée.”
The proposition was rejected, on the principle which operated when the difficulty of obtaining convictions in Ireland raised a similar question; namely, that such an exceptional measure was inexpedient.
“En ce qui touche l’organisation du jury, le Conseil a pensé que cette proposition ne pouvait être faite que dans un intérêt général pour la France, et qu’en lui donnant un caractère spécial pour la Corse, elle resemblerait trop à une mesure d’exception que le Conseil repousse.”
8 “With all the outrages,” continues Mr. Benson, “of which Galluchio and his followers are guilty, he is by no means void of moral feeling, and is quite a polished character when he enters private society, as I learnt from a French gentleman who had met him at breakfast at the house of a mutual acquaintance. My friend, when he found himself in such company, naturally betrayed a little alarm, but Galluchio reassured him, saying, ‘You and yours have nothing to fear at my hands.’
“I am really afraid to extract from my notes many of the wild adventures of this Corsican Rob Roy. Not long since, a shepherd, personating him, violated a female peasant. The chieftain soon obtained information of the gross outrage that had been committed on his character; and finding the shepherd, took him before the mayor of Bagniola, and this at a time when Galluchio had six sentences of death hanging over him. At the chieftain’s instigation, the shepherd was compelled to espouse the poor girl. Galluchio, after the marriage had been solemnised, said to the shepherd, ‘Remember that you make a good husband. I shall keep a watchful eye over your conduct; and should I hear that your wife receives any maltreatment from you, yourself and your family shall pay with their lives for your misconduct.’ The man little attended to Galluchio’s warning. The chieftain adhered to his threat, and the shepherd, with his father and several other members of the same family, fell victims.”—Benson’s Sketches in Corsica, pp. 23-25.
9 Corsica, by F. Gregorovius. Chap. x. p. 149. of the translation published by Longman & Co.
10 Novelle Storiche Corse, di F.O. Renucci. Bastia, 1838.
11 Novella VIII. L’Amore e la Religion. Renucci, p. 43.
12 Marmocchi. Géographie Politique de l’Ile de Corse, p. 117.
13 In this sanguinary battle, fought in 1768, the Corsicans, under Pasquale and Clemente Paoli, Murati, and their other chiefs, thrice repulsed the French army of 15,000 men under Chauvelin, and forced them to retreat in disorder to Bastia. The garrison of Borgo, a force of 700 men, laid down their arms, and surrendered to the Corsicans.
14 Géographie Physique, p. 57.
15 Norway in 1848-1849, pp. 188, 189. (8vo. Ed., Longman & Co.) Professor Forbes arrives at nearly the same result from the observations of Von Buch and others. Norway and its Glaciers, pp. 207, &c.
16 Professor Forbes (Travels in the Alps) states the average height of the snow-line at 8500 feet.
17 See an Essay by Professor Forbes on Isothermal Lines and Climatology, in Johnstone’s Physical Atlas, p. 17.
18 “Un Arrêt du Conseil du 22 Juin, 1771, avait défendu de planter des châtaigniers dans aucun terrain de l’île susceptible d’être ensemencé de blés ou autres grains, ou d’être converti en prairies naturelles ou artificielles, ou plantés de vignes, d’oliviers, ou de mûriers. Deux ans après cet arrêt fut revoqué par un autre, où l’on reconnaissait que les châtaigniers étaient pour les habitants de certains cantons un moyen d’existence nécessaire dans les temps de disette, et dans tous les temps un objet de commerce avantageux. Ce dernier arrêt fut rendu sur le rapport du célèbre économiste Turgot.”—Robiquet, quoted by Marmocchi, p. 225.
19 Clarke and McArthur’s Life of Nelson, vol. i. pp. 156, &c.
20 Benson’s Sketches of Corsica, p. 97.
21 Lyell’s Elements, vol. ii. c. xxxi.
22 Recherches sur les Ossements fossiles, t. iv. p. 198.
23 Vol. ii. c. xxxi.
26 The article of the Constitutional Act, vesting the sovereignty of Corsica in the king of Great Britain, runs as follows:—
“Il Monarca, e Rè della Corsica, è sua Maestà Giorgio III., Rè della Gran-Bretagna, e li de lui Successori, secondo l’ordine della successione al trono della Gran-Bretagna.”
The oath sworn by the king on accepting the crown and constitution of Corsica was to the following effect:—
“Io sotto scritto Cavaliere Baronetto, &c., &c., Plenipotenziario di S. Maestà Britannica, essendo specialmente autorizzato a quest’effetto, accetto in nome di sua Maestà Giorgio III., Rè Della Gran-Bretagna, la corona e la sovranità della Corsica secondo la Costituzione, &c., questo giorno dicianove Giugno (1704). E giuro in nome di Sua Maestà di mantenere la libertà del popolo Corso, secondo la Costituzione e la Legge.
“(Sottoscritto) Elliot.”
The oath of the president and deputies:—
“Io giuro per me, ed in nome del popolo Corso che rappresento, di riconoscere per mio Sovrano e Rè sua Maestà Giorgio III., Rè Della Gran-Bretagna, di prestargli fede ed omaggio, secondo la Costituzione,” &c.
Compared with the original,
| Pasquale Di Paoli, Presidente. | ||
| Carlo Andrea Pozzo-Di-Borgo, | } | Segretarj. |
| Gio. Andrea Muselli, |
The oath of allegiance was to be taken by all Corsicans in their respective communities.—Benson’s Sketches in Corsica, pp. 193-195.
27 See before, p. 159.
28 Hist. Plant. lib. 1, cap. 8.
29 See Norway in 1848—1849, 8vo., Longman & Co., pp. 36, 37.
30 Lambert’s Genus Pinus, vol. i. p. 18.
31 Walpole’s Turkey, p. 236.
32 Lambert’s Genus Pinus, vol. ii. p. 28.
33 “FORÊT D’ASCO EN CORSE.
“La Forêt d’Asco est située dans l’arrondissement de Corte. Elle est traversée par une rivière au moyen de laquelle on pourrait l’exploiter avec de grands avantages. Cette forêt, une des plus considérables, considérée comme forêt particulière, pourrait fournir deux cents cinquante mille mètres cubes de bois. Elle renferme des arbres de toute dimension. Il y en est qu’on pouvait faire servir pour la marine comme matière de bâtiments. Par sa nature grasse ou résineuse, le bois est employé avec succès pour les chemins de fer, et présente tous les conditions de solidité et de durée. La plus grande partie de la forêt renferme les Pins Larix; il y a aussi une grande quantité de Pins Maritimes. La dimension des arbres maritimes est de 12 à 20 mètres de hauteur; et celle des Pins Larix de 16 à 40 mètres de hauteur, sur une circonférence moyenne de trois mètres.”
At the suggestion of one of our foreign ministers, who drew the attention of Government to the possibility of obtaining supplies of timber for naval purposes from the forests of Corsica in private hands, the author, on his return to England, had some communications with official persons respecting the forests of Signor F——; but the matter dropped. Should it be thought a subject worth inquiry, with a view to commercial enterprise, the author will be happy to put any person applying to him, through his Publishers, in the way of procuring further information.
34 There was no appeal to any personal attachment of the Corsicans to the Bonaparte family, as sprung from among themselves, or to their gratitude for benefits conferred on them, in the address with which, in 1851, the Préfet urged the Council-General to take part in the general movement in France for the abrogation of the article in the Constitution which precluded the advance of Louis Napoleon to supreme power. “Marchons,” he said, “avec la grande majorité de la France vers ce grand jour qui doit rendre le calme aux esprits, la confiance aux intérêts, et la liberté d’action à l’autorité!”
The resolution, passed by a large majority after a warm debate, was thus prefaced:—“Considérant qu’il importe de donner à la France des institutions que ses besoins reclament, et que ses intérêts moraux et matêriels exigent: Considérant que le commerce et l’industrie, ces sources indispensables de l’existence de toute société ne se relèveront de leur affaissement, et ne reprenderont un nouvel essor, qu’autant que la constitution leur promettra un avenir plus assuré: Considérant, en outre, que la souveraineté nationale trouve dans l’article 45 de la Constitution un obstacle légal à la libre manifestation de sa volonté et de sa reconnaissance envers le Président actuel de la Republique, qui a rendu l’ordre et la sécurité au pays par la sagesse et la fermeté de son gouvernement: renouvelle, à la majorité de quarante-deux voix contre quatre, le vœu que la Constitution de 1848 soit revisée, et l’article 45 abrogée.”
35 This family is one of the most ancient in Corsica. Count Pozzo di Borgo, the celebrated diplomatist, was born at Alata, a village near Ajaccio. He commenced his public career under the administration of Pascal Paoli, signed the Anglo-Corsican Constitutional Act as Secretary of State (see before, p. 173.), and was afterwards President of the Corsican Parliament. His subsequent career is matter of history.
36 I find the name spelt indiscriminately Bonaparte and Buonaparte. Napoleon, when young, wrote it both ways. It is spelt Bonaparte in the entry of his baptism in the Register of Ajaccio, which was solemnised (by-the-bye) two years after his birth, the dates being 15 Aug. 1709; 21 July, 1771. His father signed the entry as “Carlo Buonaparte.”
37 An Account of Corsica and Journal of a Tour, by James Boswell, p. 297.
38 Boswell figured in this costume at the Jubilee Shakespeare Festival held at Stratford-on-Avon under Garrick’s auspices.
39 An Account of Corsica and Journal of a Tour, by James Boswell, p. 302.
40 See before, p. 15. and 46.
41 Ridiculously trifling as the origin of this bloody quarrel may appear, the story is very probably founded on fact. Renucci relates another scarcely less absurd. Feuds, similar to those mentioned in the play, had long existed between the Vinconti and Grimaldi families, inhabitants of the village of Monte d’Olmo, in the pieve of Ampugnano. Like good Catholics, however, they met sometimes at mass. The church was sacred and neutral ground; there, at least, the trêve de Dieu might be supposed to be in force. Thither, on some solemn feast, the villagers, indiscriminately, bent their steps. Some had already entered the church, and were engaged in their devotions, many loitered about the door, and the piazza was crowded. Talking about one thing and another, the conversation naturally turned to the ceremonies of the day, and a dispute arose whether the officiating clergy ought to wear the black hoods of the Confraternity in the processions which formed part of the service.
Orso Paolo, one of the Vincenti family, gave it as his opinion that they should wear their surplices, alleging that to be the ancient and fitting custom.
“No!” cried Ruggero Grimaldi, “they ought to wear the black hoods;” giving reasons equally authoritative for his view of the question.
The strife waxed warm. The villagers took one side or the other; “hoods,” and “surplices,” became the party cries. From words they came to blows, and Orso Paolo, the only man of the Vincenti family present, being sore pressed in the struggle, rashly drew out a pistol, and mortally wounded Ruggero Grimaldi’s eldest son.
So the story begins, and as it is one of the few in Renucci’s “Novelle” that are worth translating, we will give the sequel.
The rage and fury of Grimaldi and his party were now worked up to the highest pitch. The mass was interrupted, the church deserted, and the whole village a scene of uproar. Orso Paolo fled as soon as he had fired the fatal shot, pursued by his enemies, who overtook and surrounded him. His fate had been sealed on the spot, but that, quick as lightning, he burst through the throng and darted into a house of which the door stood open. It was the house of Grimaldi, his deadly foe, but there was no other chance of escaping instant death. To close and bar the door, and stand on his defence, was the work of a moment. Corsican houses are strongholds; Orso Paolo was in possession of the enemy’s fortress. He threatens death to the first assailant, and the boldest recoil. What was to be done? It was proposed to set fire to the house, but Ruggero’s youngest son, a child of seven or eight years old, had been left asleep in the house when the family went to church. He would perish in the flames. At that thought Grimaldi became irresolute. Just at this moment the eldest son is brought from the church, bleeding to death from his mortal wound, amidst lamentations and women’s shrieks. At that spectacle Ruggero can no longer contain himself. Frantic with grief, he runs to set fire to his own house. The voice of nature pleading for his remaining child is stifled by passion and resentment. The tears and expostulations of the wretched mother are of no avail; they have no influence over the mind of the infuriated father.
“What are you doing, cruel Ruggero?” she cried, in the midst of sobs and groans; “Is it for you to fill up our cup of misery? Will you destroy the dearest and sweetest of our hopes? One son is gasping his last breath before our eyes, the other, still in infancy, will perish from the transports of your rage. Who, then, will be the support of our miserable old age? Who will defend us from the insults of the powerful?”
“So that Orso Paolo perish, let the world be at an end!” exclaimed Ruggero. Such is the terrible force of the passions in the human breast.
Ruggero’s house is burning, the fire crackles, the flames burst forth, the sparkles fill the air. Vincenti, involved in smoke and flame, rushes from place to place, seeking a retreat to prolong his life for a few moments. All at once he is startled by the wailing cries of a child. He directs his steps towards it, and discovers, with amazement, the son of his cruel enemy. Struck with indignation at the father’s barbarity, he suddenly raises his hand to take vengeance on the child of his relentless adversary. The boy utters a plaintive cry, and stretches its little hands towards him, trembling and frightened.
“Take courage, my boy, take courage!” said Vincenti, snatching him to his bosom; “you see a man who is not deaf to the voice of pity. If Heaven will not protect your innocency, at least you shall die in the arms of a second father.”
Meanwhile, the fire spreads through every part of the building; nothing can resist the fury of the devouring flames. Fanned by the wind, they surge in waves, ever greedy of new food. The roof quivers, the floors crack, the whole falls with a terrible crash. What chance was there for Vincenti’s escape with life? He had abandoned all hopes.
Ruggero, satiated with vengeance, retires to the house of a relation, to which his wounded son had been removed. The spectacle of his sufferings, his imminent danger, and the sobs and lamentations of his inconsolable wife, awaken in his soul the affections of a father. A faint ray of reason penetrates his mind, and he perceives all the horrors of his proceeding. Trouble, remorse, repentance, succeed; his heart is wrung with anguish, and he attempts his own life. Friends interfere to restrain him.
At the news of the atrocity committed by the Grimaldi, in firing the house and leaving their enemy to perish in the ruins, the kinsmen of Orso Paolo assemble and rush to Monte d’Olmo, threatening vengeance on the perpetrators. The Grimaldi rally round Ruggero to shield him from his exasperated enemies. Just then, shouts are raised in the piazza, mingled with the name of Vincenti, and at intervals with gentler sounds which speak to the heart of the wife of Ruggero.
She flies to the window, and exclaiming, “Oh heaven! Orso Paolo! My son! My son! My son!” falls speechless and fainting on the floor. The spectacle which produced this vivid emotion was that of the noble Vincenti, who, scorched, and covered with ashes, and pressing the child firmly to his breast, was hastening on amid the acclamations and evvivas of the populace. He had taken refuge under an arch of the staircase, clasping the child firmly in his arms.
Ruggero’s wife, recovering from her swoon, runs and throws herself into the arms of Vincenti, calling him the preserver and father of her beloved son. Ruggero, full of admiration and gratitude, salutes Vincenti, with a modest humility, invoking his pardon, and begging his friendship. Vincenti embraces him, pardons him, and swears eternal friendship for him. The wounded youth unexpectedly recovers, the two factions become friends, and the generous Vincenti, loaded with praises and benedictions, had the happiness to extinguish an inveterate feud between the two families, and thus restore peace to the community of Castel d’Acqua.
42 Clarke and McArthur’s Life of Nelson, vol. ii. p. 336.
43 The “Ichneusa,” so called from the ancient name of the island. On a subsequent visit to Sardinia I had the pleasure of making an agreeable acquaintance with the officers of the “Ichneusa,” the ship being one of a little squadron then employed in the service of assisting in the laying down the submarine telegraph cable between Cape Teulada and the coast of Algeria, of which I hope to be able to give some account in the sequel. The engineer of the “Ichneusa” was an Englishman, who was often ashore at our hotel while his ship lay in the harbour of La Madelena; an intelligent man, as I have always found the many of his class employed in the royal steam navy of the Sardinian government. I cannot believe that the engineers of the steam-ship “Cagliari” had any complicity with the Genoese conspirators. They worked the ship, no doubt, in compliance with orders enforced by the Italian desperadoes in possession of her with stilettoes at their throats; and it is to be regretted that peremptory measures were not taken by our Government for their release. We can only conclude that the unfortunate engineers were sacrificed to political expediency.
44 Sketch of the Present State of the Island of Sardinia, pp. 187-191 (1827). It is but fair to remark, that Captain (now Admiral) Smyth does not describe any excesses in the festivities he witnessed. We have reason, however, to believe that they have sadly deteriorated, as well as the religious instincts of the Sardes, in the thirty years since they came under Captain Smyth’s observation.
45 The “barancelli” will be noticed hereafter.
46 Mr. Warre Tyndale’s Island of Sardinia, vol. i. p. 313, &c.
47 Cf. Isaiah, i. 8.: “A lodge in a vineyard, and a cottage in a garden of cucumbers.”
48 Gen. xxiv. 11, 15.
49 I Sam. ix. 11.
50 Odyss. lib. x.
51 Asphodels were planted by the ancients near burying-places, in order to supply the manes of the dead with nourishment.
“By those happy souls that dwell
In yellow meads of Asphodel.”
—Pope.
The plant lilio asphodelus belongs to the liliaceous tribe. It flourishes also in Italy, Sicily, Crete, and Africa, some varieties bearing white flowers.
52 αὐτὰρ ἐπεὶ πόσιος καὶ ἐδητύος, &c. Homer, passim.
53 See the sketch in the next page.
[54] “That certain local causes have through all ages tainted the atmosphere of Sardinia, may be gathered from the remarks and sarcasms of a host of early authors. Martial, in mentioning the hour of death, celebrates salubrious Tibur at the expense of this pestilent isle:
‘Nullo fata loco possis excludere: cum mors
Venerit, in medio Tibure Sardinia est.’
“Cicero, who hated Tigellius, the flattering musical buffoon so well described by Horace, thus lashes his country in a letter to Fabius Gallus: ‘Id ego in lucris pono non ferre hominem pestilentiorem putriâ suâ.’ Again, writing to his brother: ‘Remember,’ says he, ‘though in perfect health, you are in Sardinia.’ And Pausanias, Cornelius Nepos, Strabo, Tacitus, Silius Italicus, and Claudian, severally bear testimony to the current opinion. In later times the terse Dante sings:
‘Qual dolor fora, se degli spedali
Di Valdichiana tra ‘l luglio e ‘l settembre
E di maremma, e di Sardinia i mali
Fossero in una fossa tutte insembre,’” &c.
Smyth’s Sardinia, p. 81.
55 See before, pp. 150, 260.
56 The trade in snow is farmed by the Aritzese, it being, like that in salt and tobacco, a royal monopoly, leased for terms of years at a considerable rent. Upwards of 9000 cantars (about 375 tons) are brought down every year from the mountains of Fundada Cungiata and Genargentu, and carried on horseback to all parts of the island. The labour, fatigue, and difficulty attending the conveyance of the snow from those great altitudes are severe; as in the paths where there is no footing for a horse, the men are obliged to carry the burden on their shoulders; and the quantity they can bear is a matter of boast and rivalry among them.
It has been observed in a former chapter that none of the Sardinian mountains rise to what would be the level of perpetual frost. The snow trade must therefore be supplied from deep hollows in the mountains, serving as natural ice-houses, in which it is lodged during the summer.
We have an account of a forest in Scotland held of the Crown by the tenure of the delivery of a snow-ball on any day of the year on which it may be demanded; and it is said that there is no danger of forfeiture for default of the quit-rent, the chasms of Benewish holding snow, in the form of a glacier, throughout the year.—Pennant’s Tour in Scotland, i. 185.
57 “There is among the Sardes a degree of adopted relationship called ‘compare’ (comparatico), a stronger engagement than is known under the common acceptation of the term in other countries.”—Smyth’s Sardinia, p. 193.
58 “The lionedda is a rustic musical instrument formed of reeds, similar to the Tyrrhenian and Lydian pipes we find depicted on the ancient Etruscan vases. It consists of three or four reeds of proportionate lengths to create two octaves, a terce and a quint, with a small mouthpiece at the end of each. Like a Roman tibicen, the performer takes them into his mouth, and inflates the whole at once with such an acquired skill that most of them can keep on for a couple of hours without a moment’s intermission, appearing to breathe and play simultaneously. He, however, who can sound five reeds is esteemed the Coryphæus.”—Ib. p. 192.
59 Ezekiel, viii. 14.
60 Isaiah, i. 29.
61 Isaiah, lxvi. 15-17. Mundos se putabant in hortis post januam.—Vulgate.
62 Ezekiel, viii. 14.
63 Leviticus, xx. 2.
64 Jeremiah, xix. 4, 5.
65 “They sacrificed their sons and their daughters to devils, and shed innocent blood, even the blood of their sons and their daughters, whom they sacrificed unto the idols of Canaan.”—Psalm cvi. 26, 27.
“Shall I give my first-born for my transgression, the fruit of my body for the sin of my soul?”—Micah, vi. 7.
66 2 Kings, xvi. 3.
67 Jeremiah, xxxii. 35.
68 Vol. ii. p. 264.
69 See before, p. 191.—The pine does not flourish in Sardinia. Deal planks for house-building are imported from Corsica.
70 Annual Statement of Trade and Navigation presented to Parliament.
71 The vehicular statistics of Sardinia, ten years before, as summed up by Mr. Warre Tyndale, show three vehicles for hire at Porto Torres, seven at Sassari, four at Macomer, and about twenty at Cagliari. These and about ten private carriages made the total in this island: sufficient, he adds, for the unlocomotive propensities of the inhabitants and their almost roadless country. Things were not much improved at the period of our visit.
72 Memorie Politico-Economiche intorno alla Sardegna nel 1852, di Vincenzo Sala, da Venezia. Seconda Edizione, riveduta dall’Autore.
73 We do not include, in the enumeration of free states, the Swiss confederacy, nor flourishing Holland. Both date their liberties to much earlier times.
74 Norway in 1848 and 1849. Longman and Co.
75 La sua positura nel Mediterraneo la rende intermediara fra l’Africa e l’Europa; fra il porto di Marsiglia da una parte, quelli di Genova e Livorno dall’altra, e per conseguenza potrebbe proccaciarsi un conspicuo reddito dal cabottagio. Se si considera che la francia scarreggia di marina mercantile, relativemente alla sua potenza ed a suoi besogni, non sembrerà per certo un sogno l’asserire che la Sardegna si troverebbe a miglior portata di concorrere a soddisfare le sue bisogne di transporte, principalmente per le coste d’Africa, dove la colonia francese va prendendo sempre maggiore sviluppo, e prenunzia un avvenire fecondo. Si la città di Cagliari e le altre terre littorale possedessero una marina mercantile, quante fonti di richezza non troverebbe la Sardegna lungo le coste d’Italia, di Francia, di Spagna e d’Africa! Non si credono queste visioni o travidementi d’immaginazione; che anzi non temiamo d’affirmare ch’essa potrebbe divenire, un giorno, la piccola Inghilterra del Mediterraneo.—Memorie Politico-Economiche, p. 134.
76 A passage in Aristotle’s work “De Mirabilibus,” (chap. 104.) has been supposed to refer to the Nuraghe. The words are these:—“It is said that in the island of Sardinia are edifices of the ancients, erected after the Greek manner, and many other beautiful buildings and tholi (domes or cupolas) finished in excellent proportions.” Again, Diodorus Siculus informs us (l. iv. c. 29, 30) that “after Iolaus had settled his colony in Sardinia, he sent for Dædalus out of Sicily and employed him in building many and great works which remain to this day.” And in another place (l. v. c. 51) he reckons among these works “temples of the gods,” of which, he repeats, “the remains exist even in these times.” These passages, however, afford but slight grounds for considering that the Nuraghe were built by the Greeks, or even were temples of the gods. The term Θολούς, used by Aristotle, may indeed describe a round building roofed with a dome, but the Nuraghe cannot be considered as corresponding to the Grecian idea of buildings that are “beautiful”—“finished in excellent proportions”—or fitting temples for the gods. Pausanias denies that Dædalus was sent for out of Sicily by Iolaus, and makes it an anachronism. See Tyndale’s Sardinia, vol. i. p. 116.
77 Micah, iv. 8; and see 2 Kings, x. 12, xvii. 9, xviii. 8; and 2 Chron. xxvi. 10, &c.
78 “Apenas se diferenciaba el Ara de la Tumba.
“La graderia (del monumento sepolcrale) se hallaba practicada en el costade occidental per donde se subia para orar, o para sacrificar.”—Dupaix, vol. v. p. 243. 261.
79 We borrow this description from Mr. Tyndale’s work, as well as the illustrations, not finding a sketch of a Sepoltura in our own portfolio.
80 The learned Jesuit disconnects this migration from the expulsion of the Canaanitish tribes by the Israelites under Joshua, considering it to have occurred from one to two centuries before, when the giant tribes east of Jordan were subdued by the Moabites and Amorites, who succeeded to their possessions. Moses relates that “the Emims dwelt therein [that is, in Moab,] in times past, a people great, and many, and tall, as the Anakims; which also were accounted giants, as the Anakims; but the Moabites call them Emims.” Of Ammon, Moses says:—“That also was accounted a land of giants: giants dwelt therein in old time; and the Ammonites call them Zamzummims; a people great, and many, and tall, as the Anakims; but the Lord destroyed them before them; and they succeeded them, and dwelt in their stead even unto this day.”—Deut. ii. 10, 11, 20, 21.
81 Οὓς καλέουσι Γίγαντας ἐπώνυμον ἐν μακάροισι
Οὕνεκα γῆς ἐγενόντο καὶ αἵματος οὐρανίοιο Orpheus.
82 Gen. vi. 1-4.
83 These giant tribes were defeated by Chedorlaomer and the kings allied with him, in the same expedition in which the kings of Sodom and Gomorrah were put to the sword, and Lot, who dwelt in Sodom, was carried off, but afterwards rescued by Abraham. Numbers, xiv. 5. &c.
84 Numb. xiii. 33.; Deut. iii. 11., ix. 2.; Josh. xv. 14.
85 1 Sam. xvii. 4; 2 Sam. xxi. 16-22.
86 ..... “Summo cum monte videmus
Ipsum, inter pecudes vastâ se mole moventem,
Pastorem Polyphemum, et littora nota petentem.
......
Trunca manum pinus regit, et vestigia firmat.
Lanigeræ comitantur oves;....
.... de collo fistula pendet.” Æn. iii. 653, &c.
87 Polypheme’s clan are thus described;—
“Nam, qualis quantusque cavo Polyphemus in antro
Lanigeras claudit pecudes, atque ubera pressat,
Centum alii curva hæc habitant ad littora vulgo
Infandi Cyclopes, et altis montibus errant.” Æn. iii. 641.
88 Father Bresciani has collected all the authorities for the existence of giant races, with great diligence, in the course of his remarks on the Sarde Sepolture. Vol. i. p. 89, &c.
89 De Physicis, iv. 3.
90 Gen. iv. 21, 22.
91 A general idea seems to have prevailed in early times of the prodigious muscular strength possessed by the men of an age still earlier. Thus Turnus, the warlike chief of the Rutuli, is represented in the Æneid as lifting and hurling at the Trojan an immense boundary stone which would defy the united efforts of twelve such men as the earth produced in those days to lift on their shoulders.
“Saxum antiquum, ingens, campo quod forte jacebat,
Limes agro positus, litem ut discerneret arvis.
Vix illud lecti bis sex cervice subirent,
Qualia nunc hominum producit corpora tellus.” Æn. xii. 897.
92 Gen. xi. 4.
93 See before, p. 394.
94 Ordericus Vitalis, vol. i. p. 113. (Bohn’s Antiq. Library.)
95 Ib. vol. i. pp. 130, 338; ii. 149.
96 Circonscrizione amministrativa delle provincie di Terra Ferma e della Sardegna.—Torino, Stamperia Reale, 1850.
97 Atia, the daughter of M. Atius Balbus, by Julia, sister of Julius Cæsar, was the mother of Octavius Augustus.—Suetonius.
98 Cohen, in his Déscription des Médailles Consulaires recently published (Paris, 1857), notices a bronze medal of the same type, of which he says:—“Cette médaille était frappée par les habitans de la Sardaigne, sous le règne d’Auguste, et pour gagner ses bonnes grâces ils y placèrent le portrait de son aïeul en même tems que celui du fondateur de leur patrie.” The cabinet of the British Museum contains a specimen of this bronze medal, “de fabrique très-barbare,” to use Cohen’s description. He does not appear to be aware of the existence of the silver coin, which is of a far better style.
99 Captain Smyth states that in 1798 upwards of 2000 Moors suddenly disembarked on the beach of Malfatano from six Tunisian vessels; when the town was surrounded and taken. Brutality and pillage in all their hideous forms visited every house; and 850 men, women, and children were driven into slavery. The unhappy captives remained at Tunis; and, from the embarrassments of the Sardinian Government, were not ransomed until the year 1805. In 1815 the Tunisians, recollecting the rich booty they had before obtained, reappeared off the port, but finding the garrison well prepared to give them a warm reception, they sheered off.—Sketch of Sardinia, p. 300.
100 Among the other emblems of divinity we find the heads of dogs, cats, apes, and birds, and also rude figures of the boats of Isis, establishing a connection between the Egyptian and Phœnician mythologies. Some exhibit astronomical and astrological symbols. Other images appear to be carrying cakes, a part of the offering made to Astarte, to which Jeremiah alludes:—“The women knead their dough, to make cakes to the queen of heaven.”—Chap. vii. 18.
101 The concern is incorporated under the name of “The Mediterranean Telegraph Company,” but the terms “Sardinian” or “Sardo-French” Company are adopted, as more distinctly indicating the nature of its origin and designs.
102 L’Istmo di Suez, e la Stazione Telegrafico-Electrica di Cagliari; Ragiamento del T. G. Alberto Della Marmora. Torino, 1856.