in Arabic as _Moktu-el-Hadid_, and was worked very slightly by the
Kabyles, previous to the French occupation. The place is nineteen
miles from Bone, and a railway connects the mine with the harbor. It
is so arranged that the ore, which is piled into the cars at the mine,
can be dumped into the holds of the ships in the harbor.
At first glance, you would not suppose this mountain to be of any
special value. It looks not unlike the famous Iron Mountain of
Missouri, but is more irregular, and is not covered in the same way
with trees and bushes. But as you examine closer, you see that the
mountain is no common affair.
[Sidenote: DESCRIPTION OF THE VALUE OF THE MINES.]
In some places, the mineral crops up above the surface of the ground,
and all that is necessary is to blast it away and cart it off. In
other places, it appears in veins which are always very thick, and
in a slanting position; they rest upon beds of mica-schist, and are
covered with a layer of indurated clay, mingled with nodules of iron
ore. The ore contains sixty-four per cent. of pure iron; the annual
exportation is about half a million tons, and sometimes exceeds that
amount. The profit, clear and clean after deducting every thing, is
about half a million dollars, or one dollar on each ton of ore taken
out. The owners of the mine have a valuable property, and are not
inclined to sell it, or to take in partners.
There are other iron mines in Algeria, but none of them are so large
or so profitable as the one I have just described. The labor is
performed partly by Arab workmen, and partly by Frenchmen. The Arabs
are very largely employed, and are quite industrious and reliable. The
Kabyles are considered the best and can generally command a trifle
more wages than the men of the other tribes for the same work. They
come to the cities in search of employment, and after accumulating a
certain sum of money, return home contented. Their wants are few, and
they live very cheaply.
While I was in Algeria, I made a journey south to the Desert of
Sahara. In the desert proper no mines of iron, gold, or silver are to
be found, but there are some curious mines of salt, which have been
known to the Arabs for thousands of years.
One day the guide called the attention of my companion and myself to a
mountain of a peculiar bluish appearance, unlike those that surrounded
it. Like all the other mountains in the desert, it had not a particle
of vegetation upon it, and we could see no difference between that and
the rest, except in its color. I asked what it was.
“It is the famous mountain of salt,” said the guide.
[Sidenote: HOW THE ARABS OBTAIN THEIR SALT.]
This information caused us to look again, and more intently.
Herodotus, the Greek historian, who flourished more than two thousand
years ago, traveled through this country, and describes five mountains
of salt. This which was before us was one of the five.
As we came nearer, we could see that it presented a rough and broken
surface, and had evidently been thrown up by some violent convulsion
of the earth. That it is the result of an upheaval, is shown by the
presence, at the top, of certain layers of sand and marine shells
which are found lower down in the plain.
The salt stands in pillars and columns, and in great masses many tons
in weight. Salt enough to pickle all the beef in the world could be
obtained from this mountain, and then there would be enough left for
the preservation of the mutton, pork, and other meats that need the
aid of strong brine to keep them properly, and even then there would
be a great deal of salt to spare.
During the winter, the rain loosens the blocks and causes crevices to
form in the mass of salt rock. The Arabs go there in the spring and
break away these blocks by the aid of iron bars; then they knock them
to pieces with large hammers, and thus get them into proper shape for
transportation. For thousands of years, they have thus been at work
on this mountain, taking all they want, but the supply is not by any
means exhausted. The quarries are not constantly worked, as the demand
for the salt is not very great. The mountain is so far from the coast
that it does not pay to carry the salt there, and consequently the
demand is purely local.
There is a similar mountain, though much smaller, some distance away
to the west. It is more curious in some respects, there being a stream
of water which passes it, and has worn a great many pits, caverns, and
cavities in the mass of salt. Before reaching the rock, the stream is
perfectly fresh, but very soon it becomes impregnated with salt. The
stalactites and pillars are very curious in their formation, and when
the sun shines upon them they sparkle like great masses of diamonds.
In some places, the crystals of salt jut over the edge of the little
stream, and occasionally they fall just a little short of forming an
arch.
[Sidenote: THE FRENCH SUPPLY THE DESERT WITH WATER.]
In the desert proper, the French have done something to advance growth
by boring Artesian wells. The great need of the desert is water,
and many thousands of square miles of land, on which there is not a
blade of grass or plant, might be rendered fertile if any means could
be devised to supply them with water. The French have given a great
deal of study to this subject, but as none of them are possessed of
the power of Moses to bring water from a rock where apparently none
existed, they have not yet covered the desert with palm trees and
wheat fields.
The palm tree must have water to keep it alive. The Arabs say it lives
with its head in the fire and its foot in the water; it seems to be
happy with the burning sun of the desert, and not even the hottest
rays which the heavens can pour down can disturb it in the least so
long as its foot is properly bathed. Take away its supply of water,
and it dies in a short time. It must be watered twice a week; there
is generally a ditch around the foot of the tree, and this ditch is
filled either from a canal or with water carried in buckets or skins.
About a barrel full of the liquid is needed for each tree.
It will thus be seen that the limit of a palm oasis in the desert may
be sometimes determined by the water supply. I have seen thousands of
acres of desert land, possessing no value whatever, which would have
been far different had there been a running and reliable stream or
spring in their vicinity.
The French determined to improve the supply of water, and in this
way increase the value of the country both to themselves and the
Arabs. The first attempt was made at the oasis of Tuggurt, in 1856.
The apparatus was taken there on camels’ backs, with a great deal of
trouble, and finally set at work.
After five weeks of labor the drill struck a water course under the
gypsum, at a depth of about two hundred feet. An immense spring gushed
out with such force that very little strength was required for
removing the tools. It flowed about a thousand gallons a minute, and
has been flowing at that rate ever since.
The natives were wild with delight. They danced and sung, and made a
great many manifestations of joy, not only on the occasion of opening
the well, but for days and weeks afterwards. Ever since then, similar
scenes have been enacted in other parts of the desert occupied by
the French, whenever a well is opened. The culture of dates has
been enormously extended by the planting of new groves wherever the
wells are made, and both the natives and their conquerors have found
the enterprise of mutual advantage. Sometimes the wells are salt or
brackish, but the date palm does not mind any little trifle like that.
Whether the water which is supplied to it is fresh or salt, hot or
cold, does not seem to make any difference to the tree. It prospers
and grows and produces fruit all the same.
[Sidenote: INLAND LAKE IN THE DESERT.]
A part of the desert is below the level of the Mediterranean, and
some of the scientific men and others interested in the development
of Algeria, have proposed to dig a canal from the sea, and allow this
empty space to be filled. They would thus create an inland lake on
which steamers could run, and which could furnish a vast supply of
water to groves of palm trees along its shores. But the enterprise is
not likely to be undertaken, for a variety of reasons.
In the first place, the cost would be something enormous, and quite
out of proportion to the result proposed. The cutting or canal would
be more than a hundred miles long, and for quite a distance, forty or
fifty feet deep.
The distance which could be flooded is variously estimated from twenty
to forty thousand square miles. Of course the land covered by the
water would be of no use, and it includes many prosperous oases of
date palms, which would have far more water than they need in order to
bear fruits. To start with, there would thus be a heavy loss.
The effect upon the climate of Europe of the proposed inland sea
has been much discussed. The whole of France owes its warm,
genial climate to the hot winds which blow from Africa across the
Mediterranean, and do not lose their soothing temperature till they
reach the North Sea and the Baltic. Africa thus becomes a vast furnace
to supply Europe with hot air. It is feared by many of the scientific
men who have studied the matter, that the inland sea would partially
or completely change the climate. The winds would absorb the moisture,
and thus form vast rain clouds; instead of conveying warmth and dry
air to southern Europe, they would be cool and laden with rain. The
grapes would decay upon the vines without ripening; sunny France would
be no longer so, and Paris would become as cold as Berlin, and as
dreary as London. Doubtless this is an overstatement of the case, but
the risk that any of these events might happen outweighs the probable
good which the inland sea might accomplish.
[Sidenote: THE SUEZ CANAL.]
Not altogether distinct from mining matters, as it certainly required
a vast deal of excavating, is the Suez Canal—a French enterprise
of the greatest magnitude. The plan for making a canal between the
Mediterranean and Red seas is very old, and has received a great
deal of attention from ancient times to the present. One important
difference between the canal of to-day and those of the olden time
is in its direct course from sea to sea, which makes it altogether
a salt-water canal. The old plans were in favor of tapping the Nile
and connecting the river with the Red Sea, so that a portion of the
route would be a fresh-water one. The size of modern ships rendered it
necessary to abandon the Nile scheme altogether, as the shallowness
of the river would not permit the passage of the ordinary sea-going
vessel, even if we leave unconsidered those vast specimens of the
naval architect’s skill which are the pride and boast of all maritime
nations.
According to Herodotus and other writers, “the first to attempt the
construction of the canal to the Red Sea,” was Pharaoh Necho II, one
of the Egyptian kings, who reigned about six hundred and ten years
before Christ. His canal left the Nile at Bubastis, near Zagazig,
and followed along a valley leading toward the Red Sea, which then
extended much farther inland than it does at present. Pliny estimates
the length of this canal at sixty-two Roman miles, or fifty-seven
English ones, and modern measurements show that these figures were
very nearly correct. Herodotus estimates the distance from the Red Sea
to the mouth of the Nile at one hundred and fourteen miles, and he
says that 120,000 men perished while cutting it. This is probably an
exaggeration or a slip of the pen, as he doubtless meant to say that
that number of men was engaged in the work.
The canal was not finished during the reign of Necho II. The work
was continued by his successors, and finally completed, but it was
neglected, and the drifting sands soon filled the canal and made it
useless. It remained so for centuries, though several attempts were
made to clear it out. It is said to have been re-opened about the
year 1000 of our era, by one of the Arab sultans, but it was again
neglected, with the same result as before.
[Sidenote: PLAN OF NAPOLEON FOR DIGGING A CANAL.]
In modern times, the first to take up the subject and give it careful
attention, was the emperor Napoleon, at the time of his conquest of
Egypt in 1798. He personally examined the traces of the canal made by
Necho and his successors, and ordered one of his engineers to make a
careful survey of the route, to ascertain what difference there might
be between the levels of the two seas.
This engineer reported a difference of thirty feet, and as this would
render it impossible to make a direct canal without locks, a scheme
was projected for making use of a portion of the Nile, as in the olden
time, and having a system of locks where the salt-water canal joined
the river. But the chances of war interfered, as the French were
compelled to evacuate Egypt before the plan had been reported.
Nothing more was done until 1846, when a mixed commission was
appointed to investigate the matter. They exploded the old error of a
difference of level, and showed that the height of the water on each
side was so nearly the same as to make no appreciable difference.
Further than to establish this fact, the commission did not go, except
to draw up some elaborate plans, which never amounted to anything.
[Sidenote: HOW THE CANAL WAS PLANNED AND DUG.]
In 1855, a project was completed by M. de Lesseps, for a canal without
locks, and this is the scheme which has been successfully carried out
by the Suez Canal Company. Some of the details were changed, but none
of them are of any serious consequence.
It would require too much space to record all the diplomatic and
other negotiations that attended the inception of the scheme, and the
various means adopted to secure the funds necessary for conducting the
work. The financial part of it was quite as difficult as the labor of
the engineers, and several times it looked as though the enterprise
must be abandoned altogether. The whole capital required by the canal,
from commencement to completion, was about seventeen million pounds
sterling, or eighty-five millions of dollars!
The work of excavating was begun on the 25th of April, 1859, by a
few laborers who dug a small ditch in the presence of M. de Lesseps
and four directors of the company, on the spot selected for the
Mediterranean mouth of the canal. Immediately after this working,
encampments were established all along the line, and the enterprise
was earnestly pushed. At first, the work was performed without any
machinery. Men and donkeys were the active force, the former armed
with shovels, and the latter having a couple of baskets hung across
their backs.
A native would fill the baskets with sand and drive the donkey on.
They proceeded to where the burden was to be deposited, and when they
arrived there, the baskets were emptied, and the donkey was driven
back for a fresh load.
But it was found that the removal from agriculture and their other
usual employments of the men necessary for digging the canal, was a
serious interference with the affairs of the country. Twenty thousand
men were required every month, and the drain was found to be so great
that, in 1863, the Khedive refused to furnish them.
Matters then came to a stand still, and the company set about
replacing manual labor with machinery. Various machines were devised
before success was reached, and the magnificent dredges were made,
by which the canal was finished. What was at first thought to be
a misfortune proved an advantage, as the dredges were far more
economical than manual labor, and enabled the company to finish the
work much sooner than would have been possible under the old plan.
[Sidenote: THE FINISHING OF THE CANAL.]
The canal was finished in the latter part of 1869, and opened for
traffic on the 17th of November of that year. Forty-eight ships went
from Port Said to Suez, on that day and the next, carrying guests
who had been invited to the ceremonies. All nations of the world may
be said to have taken part in the affair, which was on a magnificent
scale, and cost many thousands of dollars to the Khedive of Egypt
and the canal company. When the ceremonies were over, the canal was
formally opened for business, and has been open ever since.
The canal is a hundred miles long from Suez to Port Said. The
following figures of its dimensions will be found interesting:
FEET.
Width at water line, where banks are low, 328
Width at water line, where banks are high, 190
Width at bottom, 72
Depth, 26
Slope of bank near water line, one foot in five.
At frequent intervals there are wide spaces where ships may pass, and
there are three lakes which were formed by the filling of depressions
in the desert. These lakes are pretty sheets of water, and one of
them—Lake Timsah—has become a pleasure resort where the people of
Cairo go to enjoy salt-water bathing.
The advantages of the canal to the commerce of the world are very
great. The old routes have been partially abandoned for the new one,
and at present the movement of steamers through the canal averages
more than a hundred a month each way, not to speak of sailing ships
and smaller craft. The saving of distance by the canal may be shown by
the following table.
VIA CAPE OF VIA DISTANCE
GOOD HOPE. SUEZ CANAL. SAVED.
England to Bombay (nautical miles), 10,860 6,020 4,840
New York to Bombay, “ “ 11,520 7,920 3,600
St. Petersburg to Bombay, “ “ 11,610 6,770 4,840
Marseilles to Bombay, “ “ 10,560 4,620 5,940
IX.
ADVENTURES OF DIVERS.
GOING UNDER WATER.—PEARL DIVING.—COSTUME OF THE DIVERS.—HOW
THEY DESCEND.—OBTAINING THE PEARL OYSTERS.—DIVING-BELLS.—HOW
THEY ARE MADE.—ADVANTAGES AND DISADVANTAGES.—ADVENTURES
IN DIVING-BELLS.—SUBMARINE ARMOR.—ITS CONSTRUCTION
AND USE.—A DIVER’S ADVENTURE.—A HORRIBLE SIGHT.—THE
DIVER’S STORY.—A PEARL DIVER AND A SHARK.—A NARROW
ESCAPE.—STRATEGY IN THE WATER.—PEARL DIVING.—PREPARATORY
STEPS TO BE TAKEN.—PREPARING FOR THE SEVERE TASK.—TRAINING
THE PAPOOSES IN MEXICO.—HOW TO AVOID SHARKS AND
DOG-FISH.—THE WAYS THAT ARE DARK, AND THE TRICKS
THAT ARE VAIN.
To go under the water is pretty nearly as difficult as to go under
the earth. Man is not made to live in the water, although he has been
known to pass many hours there without touching land. A great many
persons seem to have a dread of water in any shape. They rarely bathe,
and never drink the liquid when they can obtain anything stronger.
It frequently becomes necessary for men to go beneath the surface of
the water, exploring the wrecks of ships, and searching for valuable
things that are to be found with a varying quantity of fathoms above
them. In the East Indies, and in South America, and other parts of the
world, the primitive form of diving without any apparatus whatever has
been popular for many hundreds of years. The pearl divers of the East
are dressed in a costume somewhat resembling that of the famous Greek
Slave, minus her fetters. The diver, when preparing to go below, arms
himself with a pick, with which to break away the pearl oysters. He is
provided with a stone weighing forty or fifty pounds, and attached to
a rope several feet in length. Filling his lungs with air, he grasps
the rope in his hand, and then jumps from the side of the boat into
the water. The weight of the stone carries him down. When he reaches
the bottom, he detaches the oysters from the rocks, places them in
a bag at his side, and then rises with his prize to the surface.
Ordinarily he does not remain more than a minute, or a minute and a
half, below the surface, though instances have been known of pearl
divers who would remain as long as four or five minutes under the
water. Of course he can only remain as long as the air which has been
taken into his lungs will last him, and every one who tries to hold
his breath knows that this cannot be for a long time.
The diver generally closes his nostrils with a split stick, or
something of the sort, to prevent the entrance of the water, and he
is very careful to keep his mouth tightly shut. Water and air do not
mix well in one’s lungs, and no man has ever yet invented a system of
breathing water instead of air. At the depth to which the pearl diver
descends, the pressure of the water causes a very unpleasant sensation
in the ears, and before he has made many subaqueous journeys the drum
of the ear is generally broken. The breakage of the ear-drum causes no
serious injury beyond rendering the person who has undergone it hard
of hearing, and instances have been known of divers becoming entirely
deaf in consequence of the injury to their ears.
[Illustration: PEARL DIVING IN THE EAST INDIES.]
[Sidenote: IMPROVEMENTS IN DIVING.]
[Sidenote: DIVING-BELLS.]
As an improvement upon the primitive form of diving, the Diving-Bell
was invented. It is called a bell on account of its shape, and not
in consequence of any sonorous quality. It is constructed in the
general shape of a bell, or an inverted tumbler; it is lowered, mouth
downwards, into the water by means of ropes attached to a ship, a
boat, or the arm of a derrick projecting over the water. Generally,
however, it is let down from a ship’s side. The earliest diving-bells
had no arrangement for supplying them with air. After the quantity
within the bell was exhausted, the diver gave a signal by means
of a rope, and the bell was drawn to the surface. At present the
diving-bell has a flexible rubber tube attached to it, by which it is
constantly supplied with fresh air, so that a diver may remain several
hours under water without suffering for want of a pure atmosphere.
The foul air is let out through a valve in the top of the bell, and
is constantly rising in the shape of little bubbles. The pure air
is forced down by means of a pump, which must be kept in steady
operation. As long as this pump is at work, and the bubbles are
rising from the bell, those above can be assured that everything is
satisfactory; but let the bubbles cease to rise, and it is instantly
known that something is going wrong.
As the bell descends below the surface, the pressure of the air
becomes very great, being equal to the pressure of the water. A dense
atmosphere of this sort has many peculiarities. It is easy enough
to breathe, but the pressure on the drum of the ear is frequently
inconvenient. An ordinary whisper will sound as loud as the customary
tones of the voice, and if there are two persons in the bell, and one
of them speaks as he would naturally speak in the open air, he will
seem to the other to be shouting with the full power of his lungs. A
slight blow upon any metallic substance within the bell will sound
like a very heavy one, and any noise that would cause no inconvenience
in the open air may become absolutely painful in the dense atmosphere
in the inside of a diving-bell.
A diving-bell must be made very heavy to carry it downward, and large
weights are generally placed around its mouth. A shelf inside serves
as a seat for the occupant, and when it is lowered to the bottom,
the ground can be leisurely surveyed or examined for whatever object
the diver has in view. Sometimes, when two persons descend in a
bell, one of them may leave the bell by diving into the water, and
then returning, but he cannot go very far. Submarine armor, however,
enables him to go quite a distance away from the bell, and return
at his leisure. Submarine armor possesses many advantages over the
ordinary diving-bell. A man encased in a submarine suit can remain
under water for a long time, and move about pretty much as he likes.
[Sidenote: SUBMARINE ARMOR.]