Iron County register. [volume] (Ironton, Iron County, Mo.) 1867-1965, 1889-02-28
C0RSICA'S CAPITAL.
TIE STRANGE AND INTERESTING
OLD CITY OF AJACCIO.

OLD CITY OF AJACCiO.
Its Huge Oblong Houses-An Island of
Orchnrt,s-The Chestnut a Staple Food
for Man and Beast.
The island of Corsica is most striking
and imposing in its nature and scenery
a compact cluster of mountains, rising
from the blue depths of the Mediter-
ranean and uniting III a small space all
the characteristics of mountainous re-
gions it NAV be considered as their epit-
ome-a pocket edition of Switzerland or
Norway Only 100 miles from one slen-
der tip to the other and about half as
wide. il contains magnificent chain OF
snowclad heights, browning a lofty
plateau that embraces nearly the
whole island. Monte Rotondo is 9,033
feet high, Monte d'Oro $500, while Monte
Cinto and others almost equal these. In
deed, some calculations have made
Monte Cinto the highest. Beside those
have named have just counted on the
map seven peaks of about 1880 feet each.
Following the general plan Of the earth 5
arrangement, as exempiisied In Italy.
Norway and our own country, the
mountain chain runs nearly north and
south. nearer to the western than to the
eastern coast. To the west the declivity
is more steep and abrupt, to the east
more gentle sloping out into aIluvial
plains: to the west the deep harbors and
lofty promontories. to the east the more
fertile and thickly inhabited regions.
WHAT THE TREES ARE.
Not more than one-tenth of the soil is
cultivated. but there are no deserts and
but a small proportion of barren heights;
the mild climate and humid air have
wrapped the island in 4 robe of luxuriant
forests. These forests are the pride and
glory of Corsica and are quite uneIualed
liz Europe. Chestnut trees grow in such
abundance that their fruit forms the
staple food of the inhabitants, eaten
roasted or boiled during the season and
ground into -four for preservation, chest
nut flour costing in the market only
about half as much as wheat flour, and
seinG used chiefly in the form of polenta,
or rorridge. though the natives boast of
twenty-five different ways of cooking
chestnuts The nuts also serve as food
for the horses and mules. and their
cheapness and ease of production have
done much to keep the native population
in an indolent and degraded state, an eff
feet similar 10 that of the bananas and
yams of the West Indies upon the people
of those countries. The finest timber
trees also ahound-they supply most of
the French and Italian navy yards and
have been renowned from the most an
cient times. beach, pine, cork, larch and
oak. One species of oak (Quercus ilex)
whicll bears q small leaf like holly,
prickly at the edges, is especially valu
able. The wood is very dark, and SC
heavy that cubic foot of it will weigh
seventy pounds; the famous oak of
Great Britain only weighing fi9ty-fve
pounds to the foot. There is one species
of pine that formerly grew here so luxu-
riantly that it was known as the tree of
Corsica, and attained an enormous
size, but unfortunately it is now almost
extinct. in consequence of fires and care
less treatment. This wonderful forest
region we have not yet seen, as it exists
chiefly in the interior of the island,
where there are counted forty-four
forests belonging to private domains and
167 belonging 10 the community. Near
the shore the hills are almost entirely
covered with olive groves, the valleys
between them being laid out in fields
and gardens, but everywhere, by the
shore and inland, where there is nothing
else, there is '.macchie." This maccIlie
otherwise spelt ''makis" and called
scrub by the English. is really more like
jungle; thick interviewer growth of
bush and tree, myrtle, arbutus, heath,
oleander, scrub oak, prickly pear and a
thousand other shrubs, forming an al
most impenetrable wilderness, which
has played an important part in Corsi-
can history and manners.
OF RESPECTABLE ANTIQUITY
Ajaccio lies curving along the edge of
the bay of the same name, in the form
of q horseshoe, the hills rising close be-
hind II IF hoe bI1t fbroo M fo,rr rrooJ