Fort Worth daily gazette. (Fort Worth, Tex.) 1882-1891, 1890-03-15
A PEEP AT ALGIERS.
Trip Across the Mediterranean by Night.
Algiers of To-Day and Yesterday.
Contrasting Scenes Among the Varied Ship
ping-Reminiseences of the Days Of
BarOssa, Booty and 81 God.
For the Gazette.

American people, and for hosts of European
1diers and travellers, nothing can prevent the
Barbary states of North Africa, in general, and
that OF Algiers, in particular from becoming the
winter resort of the whole civilized world.
An outline of Algerian history can be given
IN few sentences. Algeria became a Roman
province at the close of the Roman civil war.
Commerce and agriculture fourished, and
Christianity was in the ascendant. Then, in the
Fifth century, when the Vandals swept in con-
quering hosts upon Roman territory, A1giers
became the scene of awful strife and constant
change of rule. On the incoming of the Seventh
century, Algerians, as well as the people of
nearly all North African states, had sunk into
ferocious barbarism. This was remedied to
some extent during the brief Algerian reign of
ferdinand of Spain, from 1903 to 1916, when
terdlnand died, and that most famous OF all
pirates, Barossa, graduating from brilliant
curriculum of Turkish horrors in piracy,
CURED Algerian rule by force and diplomacy,
and introduced that system of piracy and COM
pulsory tribute which, until late asl83O,
period OF more than 300 years, was not only a
merclieSs scourge to the maritime interests of
the whole world, but carried with it the most
diaoolical outrages upon countless enslaved
Christians known to the history of man. Thirty
thousand of these sufferers labored under lash
an torture threed years to build the great mole
which protected Algiers from their own release
by the maritime powers. and it is a curious fact
that the defiance of this
BUGABoo OF THE MEDITERRANEAN,
leading to the eventful overthrow of the last
stronghold of piracy on earth, came from
Yankee government and was effectively con-
veyed by Yankee frigate bold 1 think it
was in 1915, and under Monroe's administration,
that our government decided to curb Algerian
Pretensions. Commodore Decatur was sent to
the Mediterranean to serve notice the then
Dey of Algiers that from that time forth the
United States merchantmen and battle ships
touching at the port of Algiers should cease to
dent, would ruin Algerian piracies, and the
august Dey parleyed with excellent diploma
cy, finally agreeing to accept from Decatur
an insignificant amount of powder for the sake of
appearances. The answer of the plucky COM
modOre to this elf you succeed in taking
any powder you will get the balls with them!'
And he kept his word. He gave the town hot
bombardment, letting light galore into many
shadoWy mosque, and sailed calmly away. This
spirited example touched the pride of the Eng
hsh, and gave them courage to order the bonn
bardment of Algiers he following year. under
Lord Exmouth. But little came of all this until
France took her turn at Algiers. This was eff
fectuaIly done by the landing of large army
her coast In 1850, followed by such thorough
wock that on July of that year Algiers sur
rendered; France took formal possession of the
country; waged unrelenting though often unsuc-
cessful war upon the savage interior
tribes; finally effected the establish
ment of powerful interior fortress
SEES and splenddly equipped outposts, carry ing
civilization and progress close to the butt end Of
every rifle; until, in 1871, the powerful sheiks
were glad to sue for a permanent armistiCe; mil
wise and benefcent rule, the people of Algiers,
territory as great in area as that of France,
have in less than two d ecades been reclaim ed
from positive barbarism to at least conformity
with civil administration, and put in the line of
such elevation and progress as will at no dis
tant day render this land of tradition and natu-
raj enChantment the most lovely garden spCy of
the whole world-unless, as have said, we viii
make of our nearer Algeria Cuba, its twin-s;s-
ter in languOrous cline radiant POSSIBLE
ties, Paradise park for the
NEW WORLD AND THE OLD.
Your steamer will convey you from Marseilles
to the port of Algiers in tri1e over one days
time. 1t is seldom out of sight of some Medi-
terranean craft. and there is always a conscious
ness of nearness to other human interests and Of
quiet and restfuI companionship upon this great
land-locked ocean which I have ever known
upon other waters. So, too, glimpses of lovely
Minorica and Majorica, the easternmost gems of
the BaIearc islands, still held by Spain. and
midway between the Spanish and African
coasts, their white villages nesting upon
emerald mountain sides, or blending with
the glittering spume at the edges of circling
bays full of winsomeness and delight.
Then far away, before the tropic night settles
softly mon sea and land like perfumed. trans
lucent cloud of darkening pearl, there is spread
before you such reach of grand and glorious
indescribabIe beauty, and not the dread coast of
the old missionary hymn-as renders true pic
turing impossible; the whole changeful piano.
rama of headline, beach, forest. glItterlng vii
lage and noble bay, backed along the rugged
horizon by the eternal peaks Of the Atlas heights
which even under the tropic suns, soar above
ghostly and phantomful with their crowns
of snow and ice, The very air at sea is
odorous as with thyme and balm. The fancy,
ouickened by tradition and the memory of orien-
tai mys ticisms, builds wondrous creations sur
passing the widest and most fabulous tales of
the ''Arabian Nights. - Snug in a steamer
chair one reclines and dreams. Subtle essences
as from lotus flowers mingled with subtler rose
affairs touch the sense and bind IN sleep. The
iToi1 ala6
for YOU are not rudely disturbed and through all
the caressful night, while the stars grow and
glow above and the silent, phOsphorescent sea
pulses and throbs in pale flames beneath, you
near this radiant haven of this radiant land.
Then for a time all is still. The night and
sleep and languorous tropic airs enfold and hold
until the dawn has come. The great steamer
with her silent enginery, softly Juggling at her
anchor chain has drifted with the tide until her
stately PROV mods gracefully to the white city
on the heights. Your chair happens to stand
amdships on the port side. There are sweetest
numberless craft upon the bay. These kiss your
face until your eyes open lazily. as one who re-
grets to awaken and dispel pleasing dream
And yet they open as though you are but know
ing another dream. They awaken upon morn |
ing in Algiers morning so really dream, so |
dreamfully reality, that no pretentious art,
which so far has dawdled only with terrace,
fountain, court. or womans limbs and eyes, has
ever caught for canvas single
RECOGNITION OF ITS GLORY.
Over to the eastward as if from bed of GRIM
on-puTple lava. the great red sun, mere SEEM |
ingly tremendously larger than in northern
chimes. burst from flaming crescent into fam
ing globe above the rim of the sea. Beyond, is
Palestine Like flash the thought links the |
coming of the glorious orb to semblance of that |
u ndving flame of Christianity, kindled in the |
HOLY Land which, this sunlight melts and |
consumes these shadows, shall surely penetrate !
with the glory of the Cross to the darkest places
of the earth. But for this. the very walls, |
built by grooming Christian slaves, would not |
now offer safety to the ships of the |
worlds Christian nations. But what won |
drous magic comes with this sun Of an Al |
giers morning Here between the seas bed of |
crimson and the awakening city are swayfng on |
the gentle tide half thousand ships curious |
of the worlds marine architec- |
ture their yellow spars, but a moment /
since like giant reeds above the cleaning Of a |
shadowy marsh, now pinked from tip to socket |
by the sunlight while it hints, in its play upon |
their colorful ensigns, of the far lands where /
their waiting Ravens lie. These hags-fags OF |
ownership, flags of courtesy, flags that convey |
the etiquette of both sea and port. flags of an |
BY the morning avs give won
derful life movement and color to the masts /
and rigging; while the vessel beneath them, |
from all quarters OF the globe in such quaint |
and interesting variety you Will scarcely find |
in other port. to the thought, In their far-com- |
ing and far-going, are strong and impressive |
thread of circumstance woven into the wool Of |
the worlds mutual relations. Here, ranged |