Watertown republican. [volume] (Watertown, Wis.) 1860-1906, 1875-07-21
A GREAT PROJECT.


Retaining the Greatest Of Sandy Deserts
Wonders of the Sahara-The MedIter-
ranean to be Turned into the Desert.
Paris Correspondence of the London Times.
A railway between Algeria and Sene-
gal, via Timbuctoo, appears startling
project, yet such was the scheme sug-
gested on Thursday night in a lecture
at the Halle des Conferences by M.
Paul Soleillet. who maintained that
valuable merchandise from America,
destined for Southern and Eastern Eu-
rope, would adopt that route, and thus
restore to the Mediterranean the i'm
portance necessary to the influence of
the Latin races. NJ. Soleillet started on
an expedition from Algiers in Deem
Der; 1872, his intention being to reach
st. Louis, Senegal, via Timbuctoo,
but owing to the opposition of an IL
surgent chief he was unable to pene-
trate further than Calah about 1000
kilometres from Algiers). The latter
portion of the route had never before
been trod by Europeans. He declares
it mistake to imagine the Sahara
long, continuous tract of sand. He found
along great part of the way fertile
soil, producing both an African and
European clora, including cereals,
which are grown in gardens, but have
to contend with a dry climate At one
point, however, he and his four COM
panions had to dismount to make
track for their animals, and at another
the plain was covered by stones of diff
ferent colors, one tint succeeding
another.
He believes the dunes are not formed
by the action of the wind, but are rocks
decomposed by atmospheric agencies.
This is shown hy their variety of height
and form, and by the undoubted dura-
bility for at least several centuries of at
least one of these dunes. He was
struck in traversing these sandy regions
with the sharp outline of distant OBJ
jects, and with the colors of certain
stars, which had the same tints to the
naked eye as they present through a
telescope,
He speaks sanguinely of the intelli-
gence of the Berbers and their capabili-
| ty of being civilized. The Mussulman
clergy he describes as possessing great
power. They are. the sole judges Of
| questions Of morality, and excommuni-
cation is the severest punishment
known, while the most heinous offence
is marriage with foreign women, pre-
JUDGE he attributes to Jewish tribe
converted to Mohammedanism which
he thinks probably settled there before
the Christian era.
BE found no dangerous animal in the
Sahara, the ostrich and the gazelle be-
ing the largest of the fauna. His'expe-
dition was ill-timed on account of ali in
surrection against the Emperor of
Morocco having broken out, but he pro-
poses to make second attempt to reach
Senegal. and he suggests that French
consuls or residents should be stationed
along the route as toci of commerce and
civilization, FOR the inhabitants are Sc
dentary and have adopted division Of
labor, and, though slavery exists, this
must be regarded as an initial step il
advancement.
It may be added that an Italian expe
dition, got up by private individuals,
has arrived at Tunis for the purpose Of
ascertaining the feasibility Of turning
the waters of the Mediterranean into
the Tunisian Sahara, project advo
Gated by NJ. de Lesseps before the
French Academy of Sciences last au
tumn. The question at issue is whether
the lakes or schouts were connected in
classical times b-a a S canal with the GIL Ia1,
separated by an isthmus twenty-one
kilometres broad. The explorers viii
take the levels of these lakes and ascer
tain whether canal is practicable Il
would be great advantage to Algeria
by opening up the province of Constan.
tine to trade.
The Bey of Tunis has shown grea!
courtesy to the explorers, and placed an
escort at their service. It may be re
membered that an expedition assisted
by the French Government is about to
cross Africa obliquely from Congo to
Nubia.