Washington standard. [volume] (Olympia, Wash. Territory) 1860-1921, 1879-02-15
Gibraltar Impregnabla.

Gibraltar is impregnable. With pro-
visions and water for long siege,
manned by 10, 900 men, all the navies
OF the world combined could make no
impression on her walls. And no army,
however numerous, could approach il
across the narrow sandy strip of neu-
trail ground which connects it with the
mainland. This approach can be sub
merged, and thousand guns from the
galleries along the northern face frown
down upon it.
We had rare opportunity of seeing
in operation the defensive qualities OF
this great fortress. Lord Napier had
just been appointed the commander Of
the fortress. AS is customary for every
new commander, all the batteries had
to be visited and all the guns along the
shore batteries had to be fred. We
were standing on the top of the central
rock at the signal station when this
grand display opened. The command
er, with his staff, commenced with the
southern batteries on the shores, and
passed ON northward from one to an
other along line Of two and a half
miles. First we would see the fire
belching forth; then clouds Of smoke
rising and rolling up the sides of the
rock; then slowly broke upon the ear
the thunder Of the huge guns, which
shook the mountain to its foundations
and re-echoed back from the rock, un-
til it was lost far away amid the mount
aims Of Spain and Africa. About TWEEN
ty artillerymen manned each gun. At
o certain word Of command they put in
the charge; at another they rammed il
home; at another elevated or lowered
her muzzle, as the Lieutenant sighted
her; at another they pull the lanyard
which fires the cap.
It was o magnificent sight, and those
eighteen-ton guns, belching forth fire
and smoke, and shaking the rock by
their thunder, gave one a vivid idea Of
what the terrible reality would be were
the thousands of these black monsters,
bristling all over the great fortress,
turned on some devoted enomy. Ex-
cept from treachery within and from
starvation, Gibraltar never can be
taken.
Its history for two thousand years
past has been o romance. It has been
associated with the great struggles be-
tween Paganism and Christianity, and
between Christianity and Mohammed-
anism. The Ph9nicians, as long ego
as the time of Jonah, knew the Straits.
They called the rock Kalpe. 1t seems
never to have been occupied as for
tress until the Moors, under the fiery
Tarik, took it in I'll. He called il after
his own name, Gebal Tarik, or the Hill
of Tarik, which name, through the
transmutation Of language has become
Gibraltar. An old castle is still stand
ing about halfway up the rock, which
was built by the Moors in the 9th GEN.
fury.
Gibraltar was taken from the Moors in
1909, by Spain, when the arms became
castle with gate, and key hanging
from it, signifying that this was the
key of the Straits, as it has ever since
been. In 1888 the Moors again took the
fortress and held it till 1862. The Eng
lish and Dutch forces took it in the war
of the succession while fighting in the
cause of Archduke Charles in 17O4, and
although at first they considered it q
"barren rock and useless charge"
they have ever since held it. It was
besieged in 1779 by the allied powers
of France and Spain, and the siege
lasted four years. It was fought with
all the skill and with all the accessories
then known on the part of the assault
ants. But on the famous 18th OF Sep
TENDER, 1888, their formidable floating
batteries were destroyed by the English
under old Elliott. He saved the jewel
to the English crown, and here he died.
and here lie was buried, and his moRu-
ment now stands ever overlooking the
scene of his heroic defence.
Gibraltar is an English Colony the
law of England is administered in Glib
raltar. The Judge Advocate has cog
nizance of all cases in civil matters,
and an appeal lies from his decision to
the Privy Council in England in all
cases involving over 9300.
There is large police force, under q
police magistrate, who is charged with
keeping the peace among civilians. but
the military code is administered in the
garrison. -Ne,o York Observer.