The Rock Island Argus. (Rock Island, Ill.) 1877-1885, 1884-01-19
olics, whose religion now prevails here,
have made the mos; of them.
Tho bioboc+ ,,oipt Of Malta is 7, "a feet

olics, whose religion now prevails here,
have made the most of them.
The highest point of Malta is 80 feet
above sea level. There are not many
trees visible excepting in the wallcd-in
gardens OF the wealtny Maltese, but in
such enclosures oranges, lemons, figs.
pomegranates and drg-applsS flourish.
The potatoes raised in the island are of
the best, and its string beans, peas and
beets are not surpassed anywhere.
Olives do well here and grow wild. In
short, it is a climate most favorable for
vegetables and semi-tropical fruits and
flowers. The pumpkins are high in
color but low in taste. A sawdust pud-
ding would be as palatable as Maltese
pumpkin pie The 'fields" of the NAL
tese peasant are inclosed in stone walls
and will not average more than half an
acre each. Two-thirds of the surface of
Malta is rock. and the soil of these fields
has mostly been made" 1t takes a
mans lifetime to change rock floor
into fertile farm" but the Maltese
are patient and Industrious They love
their island They affectionately call
World; but to the naked eye of the trav-
eler the appropriateness of the term is
not apparent.
When 1 first came here the dreary
grayness of the barren landscape, the
burnt yellow soil, the intense white and
tiresome yellow Of the low, unlovely
houses. the scanty foliage and the i'm
prisoning sea surrounding it all gave
me feeling of loneliness and home
sickness, to which | succumbed at once
and went to bed with the heartache. I
thought of certain placid lake girdled
by evergreens, through which in the
dreamy Indian summer time all the
possibilities of glowing colors were
sprinkled in profusion, and the heart
less landscapes of my island abode was
blotted out of sight by tears. But soon
got to know that Malta was not devoid
of beauty-a beauty peculiarly its own.
1t has an atmosphere of color that makes
an impression deeper than that of form,
and the very scenes that first repelled
me soon assumed a fairness and vivid
ness that won my warm admiration. 1t
was an honest victory for Malta. In
spite OF myself, against my will, [ have
come to feel and appreciate the lowell
ness that rests on rock and sea, in skv
and air and climate. | never tire OF the
sunsets and twilights. And l have
found life and health and hope here,
and, therefore, there is warm enthu-
siasm in my tone when | say, Viva
Malta
These Islands once formed part of q
much larger tract of land and probably
belonged to Africa or Europe, perhaps
both. 1t is evident that Malta has
diminished in size during the h storic
period On the southern shore are to
be seen cart tracks which abruptly end
at the very edge Of a cliff eighty feet
high. Similar ruts are elsewhere found
throughout the island. Volcanic action,
doubtless, has submerged the country
that once made Aaila part of main
land. Orc writer claims Malta to be q
bit OF the classic Island OF Atlantis. Its
known history i; classic enough for or
dinary purposes. Its first inhabitants
(of which there is any recOrd) were the
giants who dar to war with Jupiter
Homer says these first gigantic inhab-
itants (Cyclops) were named Phpacians,
and called the island Hyperia. Calypso
the fas mating nymph-had a resi-
dence here in which she entertained
Ulysses on his return from the siege of
Troy, while his wife Penelope was wait
ing for him at home engaged in plain
needlework and shirt-making. called
at Calypso's residence one day, but
she was out She lived in q wet cave
| Cor n. J. Triiune,