, 1877-08-17
The Rock Of Gibraltar.

N
The whole height of the north front of
the rock about ,4j0 feet is seen: and il
looks so grand and 80 strong that we do
not wonder that the Spaniards do no,
like its being out of their hands. Aswe
re-entered the town We passed through
the market place which lies bctUeen the
outer and the inner gates, near the
landing place The market is sun.
piled from Tangiers in Africa. Alyecirss
and San Rogue in Spain. We saw on
the stalls beef, mutton and kid; fish
mulIet, sardines, sOleS, crabs and oysters.
fruit-Oranges, lemons, dates; aud yeg.
etabIes-pOtatoes, artichokrs, tomatoes
onions, lettuces, celery. Everybody goes
to market. We saw the officers wives
driving away in their little pony car.
riagcs, taking their marketings along
with them. We went to see the famous
galleries cut ont in the rock, and to
mount to the signal station on the central
peak of the rock.
Walking was out of the question: so
the guide got donkeys, each with a
species Of little chair on its back, and
man to lead it. Through narrow streets,
or lanes, as they are called, we mounted
up to the northern part Of the town,
passing through the old Moorish wall
into the part of the rock called the Cas-
tie. Here the permission to visit the
galleries was shown, and soldier came
for our guide. Then we mounted (still
on the donkeys through the long tun-
n o. la w i,h lol
in the solid rocks. At very short inter.
walls there were openings, like small,
hollowed-out rooms, with holes for WIN
dows. But on the floor of each little
room stood cannon, the mouth of which
pointed out through the window-like
opening. All round on the floor were
heaps of shells and balls. The whole of
the galleries look over the isthmus, or the
sea close to it, and so face Spain. The
cannon are quite modern, and work is al
ways going on rengthening the fortiti-
cations, making new openings, etc. The
soldier who was with US said that the
smoke blew back into the galleries when
the guns were fired, and filled the gal
leries so that the men could hardly see.
The largest of the galleries that we saw
is a great chamber called st. Georges
Hall, and here were five cannon pointing
in different directions. Under this hall
is another like it called CORVALLIS Hall.
to which a long staircase that we did not
descend, led down. After we had passed
through the galleries, the last of which
we walked through, we az lin mounted
our donkeys, and once mole climbed the
hillside, past various stations and out
looks, till we came to the little platform
on which the signal station is built. Here
is small house where the signal man
lives with his wife and family. The
pavement of the platform covers tank
filled with rain-water. On the platform
stand the two guns, from one of which
the morning and evening guns are fired.
There is also the signal staff, and the little
shed where the telegraph is worked. A
small water trough has been made, from
which the monkeys-the only ones in
Europe-drink.
A book has been kept since 1856,
showing the numbers OF the monkeys
seen, and what they were doing at the
time of the observation. There were
only four to be seen at the time when the
book was begun to be kept; now there
are about twenty-one. Sometimes for
days together they are not seen. When
we paid our visit they had not been seen
since the visit of the Prince of Wales to
Gibraltar; the soldiers thought the firing
of the cannon and the illuminations had
frightened them too much. There are
many caves and holes in the rock where
they can take shelter; they only come
out when they want water On the rock,
near the signal station, there is also an
eagles nest, where for some time past a
pair of eagles have, year by year, reared
their young ones. The eaglets 60; the
old ones stay. We looked through the
telescope aud saw the nest.