New-York tribune. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1866-1924, 1894-11-25

agos tho country WAS still covered with trees
ard that there was a LAYER Of soil sufficient to
raise food for men and for wild animals bu'
nc tho nrocess of deforestation went on. the area
~ nroductive land decreased Even in recent
times the region more nhabitable imam d.
present THE we.l-built farmhouses says the
author with their plgeonres Ike towers the
extensive outbuildings. dating all from 'ne
Renaissance. tell the same tae-that the pros
perity and population Of the Causes were lar
greater formerly than they are at present More
over again and again have J come upon the re-
! mains of walls and accumulations or stones co'-
! Iectcd from the ground for agricultural purposes
| testifvIng to former cultivation. where now grow
! only few juniper and box bushes. the great
! ravages among the forests are matter oi coi"-
| paratively recent history. In the hatred awak-
! ened against the great landholders by the heNo-
| Iution the woodlands suffered, and century has
! suffced to sweep away the soil which had slowly
! gathered for ages. Thus nature was covering
! the submites of the wild cliffs and p.ateaus
| with a film Of beauty. The hand or man mas
thwarted her and wasted her resources But ste
! ie still sraphic and wonderful in the depths. In
general Mr. Barring Gould speaks OF THIS uhuer-
ground world from hearsay He thought Of his
creditors he says and preferred to stay on the
oarth's surface until he could .iquldate their
claims But he translates considerable portions
Of the narrative Of Mr.. Martel. whom he calls
the Columbus Of the neither world TINS brave
cxplorer descended by ropes Into dark aDySSeS
which no living man. perhaps, had entered De-
fore him. wandered in galleries that resemoeu
! on "A vaster scale the catacombs or Rome noa'eu
/ down subterranean rivers, measured the eNpaiS'
of hidden lakes. clambered over GINS 10 aNolu
irnn,ssable waterfalls and studied the beauty OF
the cavern roofs sides and floors. Many or the
/ caverns have a strange history as the lurking
place ~ robbers the refuge OF the nunted OF
/ the oppressed A farmer at Reilhac found cave
| ON his land which had been closed with wall,
explored IT, and found that 1t had been dwell
lne-place for mon for long ages. In the refuse
! heaps there were relics which showed that one
generation after another had occupied it. from
/ the DAYS when the reindeer was hunted IN the
nelghborhool down through the epoch Of polished
stone to the times Of the Gauis-that H. from the
Ice Ag. 10 the dawn Of recorded history How
! lone the interval was can only be- imagined.
The peasants who stlll eke out Subsistence on
| TIM. Causes are supposed to be tn" direct de-
sccndants OF the aboriginal inhabt1ni', the
/ Iberians and llgurians. They east down without
/ c,mpunction the doluens which their remote an
cesiors raised with such difficulty. II Is not t.
be Imagined that their blood has remained pure.
| Top many morr powerful races have overrun
| their country the fa.r-haircd Gauls the Romans.
! The V.sgoihs But the prmeval strain was
/ persistent one II could not dominate IN ppll'l'S
| or war bu, f. conquered in the veins Of the peo-
/ rlc Tn, tendencies Of this ancient race ar" -
disintegration Tn people have spoken many
! languages in thcir time; and even now village
differs from village IN speech ani their dialect ~
the Iangue T. DC is undergoing great changes In
| accordance with their ancient law, they divide
/ their farms among their children. and IN" proc
/ ess has reduced their holdings - the bounds II
/ starvation Consequently increase II population
/ is rcprcssed The old nobility Tx" IL mansions
IL IN ruins Ru, rner" was time when this
/ strange race now 49, tho bottom ~ the socia'
scale on these high rocky plains. was fuiI ot re-
/ markablc energy. They spread over great part
/ II the world either by migration or otherwise.
/ polm.ns ami menhirs their charac ieristl" pro
! duct.ons are found in Tartary. In India. In Paes-
/ tin. In Northern Africa. on the western coast OF
/ Europe and H. Great Britain. MI Barring
/ Gould follows French archaeologsis In tracing
IN. origln ~ these dolmen builders 10 Asia and
in relating them to tribes which still raise sim
liar ton,bs and monuments In IIinlostan and
Madagascar As the tribes alluded = In iiindos-
tan are 4 Monaghan origin. the vanished or
depressed races Of Europ" which once raised mo-
mortal stones are supposed also 20 have been III"
bv a people Ike the rsquimaux then came the
Mngoll,ns and later N" peoples ~ lighter skin.
who have successfully dominated Europ" Tn"
tall stone columns have been succeeded I'm turn 10y
savage nuts Gin dwellings castles and churches
stu standing which are wonderful memorials ~
| n.iia.val art And now that troublesome icono-
clasi the r"stpror. has gone T. work on IN"
| churches Whatever n, has made II them II Is
plain in Mr. Barring -Goulls opinion. that h" mas
not made them like VIVA, they wcrs In their
primo The castles and fortified caves and lodges
II the cns point 10 the period II m" iii"Val
war; particularly to the long ocrupata IA by Eng
ush forces and 10 conflicts In which figured Henry
H. Richard the Lion-heartei and Edward the
Black Prince Those times IF anarchy When
the country was not oyerrun 10y regular armies
II was infested by bands n merccnary soldiers
who had turned robbers They were organized
under a captain In each ease. and were ready Tor
any exploit that promised spoil Castles We're
stormci villages burned. cities sacked and fields
laid waste II lid not matter whether the rest u
the world was at peace or not. there was sure t.
he war In this distressed region. The opportuni-
ties which II offered for defence for hiding
made II the home ~ the bandit After the Eng
ush had disappeared and the free companies Of
{ mercenares had harried the land the ter
rOrs Of the religious wars. one cannot wonder
that the land H. barren and the inhabitants SUB
duei though picturesque. In modern times Mr.
Barring Gould picks only one great Caussen-
ard Joachim Murat.
These volumes full Of entertainment ana
they touch every point about which the tray
cllcr IL likely to be curious when he ventures into
these strange limestone deserts. where so much
that he describes seems Ia reverse the usual order
Of things. 4 place where the rivers run under
ground and the sewers the surface where oaks
have t. De planted not for their fruit. but for
their parasites not for acOrns but for truites,
atiIl md fh.
earth, so far fertility IL concerned. has always
been changing for the worse. must attract those
who love travel And II is almost virgin ground
The globe-trotter on his rounds has been missing
II all these