[Illustration: FORTIFICATIONS AT GIBRALTAR
_This, the key to the Mediterranean, is one of the most important coast
fortresses in the world. It has been in possession of Great Britain
since 1704._]
And when we reach Gibraltar the change of scene and life is abrupt and
almost startling. If we go to Gibraltar by the road from Spain, we
cross a narrow strip called Neutral Ground. It is arbitrarily fixed
territory between Spanish and British ground. It is so low that it can
hardly be seen from a distance. The effect is to make Gibraltar seem
like an island. In case of emergency it would not be difficult to blow
up this neutral strip and make an actual separation.
The rock of Gibraltar has been for years the symbol of stability and
of strength. It is in a military sense the “key to the Mediterranean.”
It was taken by the British in 1704, during the war of the Spanish
Succession, by Admiral George Rooke, who commanded the British fleet.
It has been fortified by the English government in a manner that is
most discouraging to anyone contemplating a hostile advance through the
straits.
[Illustration: VIEW ACROSS THE NEUTRAL GROUND BETWEEN GIBRALTAR AND
SPAIN
_In the distance is seen the misty outline of the Rock_]
The shape of Gibraltar is that of an enormous lion. As Thackeray says,
“It crouches there, to guard the passage for its British mistress.” At
the base of the rock are batteries; up on the summit are guns of heavy
caliber, and over its face are holes through which cannon muzzles look
out across the water like sullen and malignant eyes.
Gibraltar is over 1,400 feet high and is composed of limestone.
Under its present conditions of fortification it is declared to be
impregnable. It looks it. At the foot of the great rock is a town
of 30,000 inhabitants, of whom 6,500 are soldiers, composing the
British garrison. In this town is to be found a cosmopolitan mixture
of men, and the character of it shifts from time to time according to
conditions of traffic through the straits. There is enough to entertain
a visitor for a day. Life there for a long time must grow monotonous.
The impressions, however, of a single day at Gibraltar are not
forgotten. You carry away the conviction that, whatever might happen to
anything else in this world, Gibraltar is likely to stay.