151 M. NARROW GAUGE RAILWAY (Comp. des Phosphates et du Chemin de Fer
de Gafsa), in 9¾–10¼ hrs. (27 fr. 20, 20 fr. 65, 14 fr. 60 c.); to
Gafsa, 127 M., in 8–9 hrs. (22 fr. 95, 17 fr. 45, 12 fr. 30 c.;
return-ticket, valid for 5 days, 32 fr. 15, 24 fr. 40, 17 fr. 20 c.).
Railway Restaurant at Graïba only; it is advisable to take provisions.
_Sfax_, see p. 380. The train skirts the inland side of the town and
then runs to the S.W., near the coast. To the left rises the lighthouse
of _Râs Tina_ (p. 405), near the ruins of _Thaenae_, once the chief
harbour for the export of olive-oil from the interior.
18 M. _Oued-Chaffar._ 22½ M. _Maharès_ (pop. 1000), a fishing village
and market for the _Mehadla Tribe_, is the last fruit-tree oasis to the
S.W. of Sfax. Above it rises an old fortified Bordj. On the left, close
to the shore, near the Gabes road (R. 62), is seen the castle of
_Ounga_, with its eight towers, which is said to have been built by the
knights of Malta (p. 398).
Leaving the coast the train runs to the W., through an almost
uninhabited sandy waste, to (39½ M.) _Graïba_ (Rail. Restaurant), from
which a diligence plies to Gabes (p. 389).
In the distance appears the bare S. Tunisian hill-country, with _Jebel
Bou-Hedma_ (2559 ft.). On the left lie the flats of the large _Sebkha
en-Nouaïl_.
61 M. _Mezzouna_, at the N. base of _Jebel Mezzouna_ (1329 ft.), where
alfa abounds. 76½ M. _Maknassi_ (hotel), a village of colonists, with
olive-groves, and an important alfa station, lies in the _Bled
Maknassi_, a monotonous plain on the N. spurs of _Jebel Maknassi_ (1332
ft.). To the N.W. appears _Jebel Majora_ (2871 ft.).
98 M. _Sened_ (1575 ft.), the highest point on the line, with large
alfa-stacks, is the station for Sened (1706 ft.), a village 5 M. to the
S.E., on the olive-clad slope of _Jebel Biadha_ (3248 ft.).
We now descend through cactus plantations, and in spring through
corn-fields, to the _Bled el-Hamra_, a lofty plain to the N. of _Jebel
Oum el-Alleg_ (3839 ft.), in the territory of the great nomadic tribe of
the _Hamama_. 110½ M. _Aïn-Zannouch_, the only station with good
drinking-water. On the right are extensive dunes, formed by
disintegration.
The train rounds _Jebel Orbata_ (p. 385) and then enters the valley of
the _Oued Baïech_.
127 M. =Gafsa.=—The STATION (about 1000 ft.) lies on the left bank of
the stream, 2¼ M. to the S.E. of the old town (diligence twice daily
in ½ hr.).
HOTELS. _Hôtel de France_, Place de la Kasba, R. 3–5, B. ¾, déj. or D.
3, pens. 8–10, omn. 1 fr., plain; _Buffet-Hôtel_, at the station.
POST & TELEGRAPH OFFICE, Place de la Poste.
CARRIAGES (limited in number), 20–25 fr. per day; to Tebessa (p. 315)
or to Kairwan (p. 372) 120 fr.—DILIGENCE to Tebessa, see p. 318.—HORSE
or MULE (3–5 fr. per day), best obtained through the Contrôle Civil,
where tickets for the mosques also are obtained.
_Gafsa_ (1067 ft.; pop. 4500, incl. about 1000 Jews and 360 Europeans),
the ancient _Capsa_, is a peaceful little oasis-town, with two hot
springs (88–91½° Fahr.) and several cold, rising in or near the
river-bed. The old town lies on the edge of the plateau, on the right
bank of the Oued Baïech, which almost everywhere else is dry. It has
formed a valley about 3 M. broad, between _Jebel Orbata_ (3839 ft.; p.
385), on the E., and the spurs of _Jebel Bou-Ramli_ (3609 ft.) on the
N.W., this being the only considerable pass between the S. Tunisian
steppe and the shotts (p. 320). The town is sheltered by _Jebel
Ben-Younès_ (3002 ft.) and _Jebel Assalah_ from the cold N.W. and N.
winds, and like El-Kantara (p. 276) is a portal of the desert. Its mild
climate and beautiful oasis render it a fine winter residence for
persons of moderate requirements.
Capsa is said to be one of the oldest towns in the interior of
Tunisia. Owing to its remote situation in the extreme southern part of
his dominions Jugurtha (p. 321) made it one of his headquarters and
his treasury; but one morning at dawn, after a nine days’ march from
Lares (p. 360), so graphically described by Sallust, it was surprised
by Marius and razed to the ground in 106. Under Augustus the town was
still in ruins, yet in the 2nd cent. it vied with Thelepte (Feriana,
p. 371) as one of the wealthiest towns in S. Tunisia. Through Capsa
ran the important caravan-routes between Tebessa and Gabes, those to
Feriana, Sbeïtla, and Susa, and viâ Tozeur to the Limes Tripolitanus
(p. 412). With the exception of the Piscinæ (see below) all the Roman
structures have been demolished for modern building purposes. The
town-walls were rebuilt by Solomon (p. 315) in Justinian’s reign, and
in the Moorish period were succeeded by a triple mud-built wall, of
which scarcely a trace is left. The Byzantine citadel, built of Roman
materials, was succeeded by the Moorish Kasba, which the French have
now converted into barracks. Since the entry of the French troops in
1881 the mosques have been regarded as desecrated.
From the new _Gafsa-Gare_ quarter a street leads to the Oued Baïech,
crosses it, where native washerwomen and thirsty camels often present an
entertaining scene, and ascends on the border of the oasis (p. 385) to
the old town, dominated by groups of palm-trees and two minarets.
The large Champ de Foire and the _Fondouk_ (p. 281), on the E. side of
the town, are full of life when caravans arrive with their dates from
the Djerid (p. 386). The corn-market in the _Halle aux Grains_ also is
of some importance.
From the Place du Marché (market on Wednesday), at the S. end of the
Champ de Foire, the Rue du Gén.-Philebert leads through the town to the
Place de la Kasba. Here, on the W. side, rises the _Kasba_, with its
towers and white pinnacled walls, once the chief sight at Gafsa, but now
the barracks of military convicts. View from the Poste Optique (adm. on
application). The _Jewish Quarter_ with its narrow streets, lies to the
N.E. of the Place de la Kasba, on the N. side of the town.
The dilapidated Roman PISCINÆ (Arabic _Termid_, from ‘thermæ’) are still
used as baths. The Jewish Bath is fed by the Kasba spring. The largest
basins, supplied by the hot spring outside the Kasba and chiefly used by
the Moslems, are in the _Dâr el-Bey_, to the S.E. of the Place de la
Kasba. The men’s bath (Termid er-Rayel), where the children love to dive
for sou-pieces, is worth seeing. In the beautifully clear water tiny
fish (Chromis, occurring also in the underground waters of the Sahara),
little black snakes, and small tortoises disport themselves among the
bathers.
A little to the S. of the Piscinæ are the _Souks_. Foremost among their
wares are bright-coloured blankets (frechias), burnouses, and carpets
(guétifs), mostly made by the _Hamamas_ (p. 383).
The _Sidi Yakûb Mosque_ (Grande Mosquée), to the S.W. of the Dâr el-Bey,
one of the oldest in Tunisia, is noteworthy for its interior with nave
and eighteen aisles, in the style of the Sidi Okba mosque at Kairwan (p.
374). The minaret, especially towards evening, affords a charming *View
of the town and the oasis, and of the finely shaped hills and the yellow
desert to the S.
The **=Oasis=, nearly 4 sq. M. in area, the richest and greenest
palm-oasis in all Barbary, offers many delightful walks. Most of the
paths conveniently overlook the little gardens lying below them, watered
by numerous runlets from the Piscinæ.
In the shade of the palms grow apricots, peaches, figs, pomegranates,
quinces, almonds, pears, and olives, and here and there oranges and
lemons. The vine, with its vigorous and picturesque tendrils, climbs
up the palm trees or the nettle-trees (Celtis australis) planted for
its support, yielding ripe grapes as early as June. Below all these
trees the soil is carpeted, in the cooler season, with vegetables,
melons, wheat, and barley. The W. margin of the oasis, however, where
water is scarce, yields olives only.
Fine points of view are the hill of _Sidi Bou-Yahia_, crowned with a
kubba, on the N.W. margin of the oasis, the _Ksour Nala_, a spur of
Jebel Ben-Younès, and, separated from the latter by the depression of
the _Foum el-Maza_, _Jebel Assalah_, whence we survey also the steppe
stretching to the N. to Jebel Sidi Aïch.
From Gafsa to _Maâjen Bel-Abbès_ (Feriana), see p. 372; viâ Feriana to
_Tebessa_, see p. 318.
A ROAD leads to the S.E. viâ the olive-oasis of _El-Ksar_ to (3¾ M.)
_Leïla_, a charming little palm-oasis; then, aside from the _Sebkha
d’el-Guettar_, to (12½ M.) =El-Guettar= (952 ft.; two caravanserais;
pop. 1800), a palm and olive oasis at the S. base of _Jebel Orbata_
(3839 ft.; fine view from the Poste Optique; ascent by bridle-path
2½–3 hrs.). The route from El-Guettar to (83 M.) _Gabes_ (p. 389),
leading almost all the way through an arid wilderness, is fit only for
those who are used to fatigue and privations. (Poor quarters at _Bir
Saâd_ and _El-Haffey_ only.)
Beyond Gafsa the train crosses the Oued Baïech and beyond the oasis it
enters the sandy and stony waste between the salt-marsh _Garaet
el-Oglal_ (on the right) and the chain of _Jebel Rosfa_ (1411 ft.) and
_Jebel Jellabia_ (1346 ft.; to the S.). Beyond the dry bed of the _Oued
Melah_ the long range of _Jebel Tarfaoui_ (p. 388) appears far to the
left.
We skirt the S. base of _Jebel Stah_ (2953 ft.), _Jebel Tarfai_ (2166
ft.), and _Jebel Metlaoui_ (1805 ft.), all rich in phosphates. These
hills, overgrown with alfa-grass only, are, like those near Gafsa, a
favourite haunt of the gazelle; the maned sheep (p. 277) also occurs.
151 M. =Metlaoui= (643 ft.; Hôt. Rey, R., déj., D., 3 fr. each, quite
good), Arabic _Metlâwi_, on the S. slope of _Jebel Seldja_, not far from
the _Oued Seldja_ (p. 372), lies in the heart of the S. Tunisian
phosphate-region, which extends to Redeyef (p. 372), to Aïn-Moularès (p.
372), and to Jebel Mrata on the Algerian frontier. The phosphate is
detached from the hill-sides by blasting (foudroyage) and then spread
out to dry on the ground, where it is turned over several times by
ploughs. The works employ about 5000 hands, mostly Italians and natives,
and yield about 800,000 tons per annum. Adm. to the ‘Grande Recette’ of
the works by leave of M. Bursaux, the manager.
Interesting walk or drive to the (3 M.) *=Gorges du Seldja=, a wild
rocky defile (about 4½ M. long) between Jebel Seldja and _Jebel Alima_
(2559 ft.).
For the new railways to _Henchir Souatir_, _Redeyef_, and
_Aïn-Moularès_, see p. 372.