The Mt. Sterling advocate. (Mt. Sterling, Ky.) 1890-current, 1903-03-25
From Abroad.
LETTER w.
100 MILES FROM GIBRALTAR,
WEDNESDAY, FEB. Is, 1908.
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sublimest scenes ever witnessed by
man. The viewless giants of the
storm have fought all night upon
the tortured sea, tossing the ship
with new and varied motions that
have rendered 800 passengers help
less as infants and utterly tired OF
life. The rest of us who have been
on deck since dawn watching the
glories of the sun-lit storm are
animated with youthful vigor and
voracious appetites. Not cloud
is visible, but the sea is swept by
the tireless storm that gashes and
lashes it with Understandable fury,
and twists up and losses into the sky
great mountains of snow, emerald
and sapphire, sufused and robed
in the gorgeous drapery of ram
hows. 1 have walked the jump
ing and rolling deck for hours in
my macintosh drenched in spray
to enjoy the high luxury of this
exhilerant scene of unsurpassed
grandeur and glory. / know there
is one gentle voice that could still
the thunders of this reckless storm
into the breathless quiet of sum-
mer eve, and smoothe out in an in
slant the billowy mountains of this
foaming sea. 1t is His presence
that gives perfect peace to the
soul when the wild sea is ruffled
and wrung by the demon of the
storm.
Later:-The hurricane is still in
the chase at the rate of 65 miles an
hour so that 1 have to brace myself
by rope or pillar TO stand erect on
deck.
"Tartf for reveane only" was
Graded on the point of the Afri-
can coast just in sight-opposite
Gibralter. There is T arfa, nine
miles from this Europa point of
Gibralter, the Barbary pirates
erected Custom house or castle
still visible-and collected tariff on
all vessels passing through the
straits. Some times they would
take passengers and crew for slaves
in addition to the regular tariff.
A committee of war ships was
finally appointed to revise the tariff
at Tarifa and having wiped out
the priests and dismantled the cas-
tie the trouble at that point was
ended.
Through the portfolio l now dis
ern clearly the crouching form of
the lannon's CONNIE rock. It's au-
gust form and striking features
once seen can never be forgotten.
A score of times within 1000 years
those rocky cliffs now green with
Vegetation have been burnt with
the fire of battle and Redeemed with
the blood of dying heroes. Ro-
mans, Goths, Vandals, Moors,
Spanish, French and English have
all fought over it.
Taric, the first Moorish conquerer
gave ns its moder: :&::;:cc-Sii55oeii,
meaning rock. Gibel and Taric
were put into the linguistic mill
together and came out "GibYaItdT. !"
That is the way words are made.
The rock is about 2 miles north
and south and two-thirds of mile
east and west. A little, lone mar
row isthmus of sand connects it
with the Spanish peninsula above
which rises sheer this solid rock
1, 400 feet. In the wars waged by
Ferdinand and Isabella against the
Moors, the queen sat down on
great rock in front of the fortress,
lifted her jewelled cross and took a
solemn VOW never to vacate that
seat until the Spanish flag foated
over the citadel. Wher the bloody
assault had ended in hopeless fail
ure, the chivalrous old Moor hauled
down his flag for few minutes
and ran up that of SPANS, to re
lease the queen from her rash VOW