Vermont phÅ“nix. [volume] (Brattleboro, Vt.) 1834-1955, 1906-08-03
THE ROCK OF GIBRALTAR.
A Correspondent Tells Some Interesting
Facts About Worlds Greatest Rock.

| Gibraltar the fortress, Gibraltar the gar
rison and naval base, Gibraltar the town,
| Gibraltar the market and meeting place
of the races are all but creatures and
phases of the Rock. The Rock is all
| and dominates all.
And what a rock It is-this huge
mass of limestone standing guard at the
| gates of the Mediterranean, rising In |
isolated grandeur from the sea which
| all but surrounds Tits northern face a
| sheer cliff five times the height of our |
| Flatiron building, fronting the level |
| isthmus of neutral ground; on its western |
| side the town clinging precariousy to |
the only possible foothold.
| The Rock has a positive fascination. |
1t appeals to ones sense Of the bigness |
| of nature and of the littleness but SUI |
| premacy of man who has enslaved 1t to |
serve his purposes. AS l came on deck |
and saw-close at hand, it's tremendous
bulk of cold gray notified with green |
| looming up from the monotony of the |
sea, all its natural pillars and buttresses,
| and old-time-man-made intricacies of
ramparts and bastions ilumined by the
setting sun, / thought that no more
wonderful sight could be imagined The
pillar of Hercules, though surpassed, in
grandeur by the peaks of the great noun
tain ranges, has impressed humanity
since the earliest days when with Ceuta,
its twin Is miles across the strait 1t was
regarded with awe by the ancients as
the western boundary Of the world.
|
spectacle to us. We look upon the Rock
with a deep sense of its significance. 1t
appeals to our elemental respect for
force and the symbols of national might.
AS VIC came out that night into the mar
row hillside streets of Gibraltar after
dinner In the Mediterranean club on the
! Ramps" we became instantly conscious
of the chilling shadow of the Rock falling
over us and of its silent cliffs. ominously
suggestive of powerful bastions and inn
| Nroo oh IL, oh a
us, dominating the land and sea with
their threat of Englands might. Its
batteries, new and old its miles of gal
leries and tunnels and tons of masonry,
even though much is obsolete; all these
and the Rock itself stand as a mighty
monument to the power and wealth of its
suzerain and to the stamina and vigilance
of the race of men who in the past
stormed its heights, defended its battle
ments, tunnelled It's bowels and today
hold 1t unchallenged against the world.
And we found that the Rock has other
phases. 1t has an esthetic appeal, but
always with strain OF grimness. From
the deck of our ship we turned and saw
the full moon shining out upon the bay
> from behind the blackness of Gibraltar.
Nothing could surpass the beauty of that
scene-a grim, forbidding indistinguish-
able middle ground-the Rock-a back
ground of the clear dark blue of the sky
4 | from which the moon poured Hood OF
Y light over the crest of the Rock down
Y across the sparkling waters of the bay to
Y our feet. We slept and in the morning
5 light we looked upon the Rock with diff
< | ferent eyes-its grimness was for the
moment gone, it was so peaceful and
still that with the Spanish walls and
Moorish arches of the town printed across
its feet 1t seemed the setting of some
huge stage for romantic drama OF the
Mediterranean.
In Gibraltar the East and the West are
n face to face. The streets of this town
e of 10000, which includes a garrison of
= 5000. are filled with a motley crowd Of
n English. Spanish, Moors and all the other
Mediterranean races. AT evening gun
a fire when the gates are closed and all
d outsiders must leave the town Water
e port street is lively sight. Spanish and
= Moors are hurrying to the north gate
r from which the Spanish town of Los
r. Senior is but a mile distant Shopkeep-
s ers, all perforce subjects of the king, but
It apparently of all nativties, are at their
e doors exchanging compliments or en-
d tlcing prospective customers, and every
II where sauntering through the noisy
d street are the Tommies in their scarlet and
a the tackles in their blue. Suddenly re-
e echoing through the narrow thorough
e fares comes the blare of a dozen bugles
j. and with true British ceremonial the
d keeper of the gates with his keys is es-
t corted on his rounds
e The town of Gibraltar. though fairly
e prosperous and important commercially,
e is thoroughly military In its admnistra-
= ton. The entire territory Rock, garri-
4. son and town, is ruled with strict hand
d | by the governor, an appointee of the
k crown. Owing to its CONSTRUCTED limits
o ard for military reasons no encourage
:. ment is given to the admission of new
d inhabitants. Except in the case of GER
: tain classes of laborers and servants few
but English subjects are allowed to make
Gibraltar their home or place of business
and even they may find it difficult to OBJ
tain the necessary permission of the gov
ernor. Every one must have license
and in the case of an alien this must be
a renewed at very frequent intervals.
The commerce of Gibraltar is largely
the handling and trans-shippng of Span
ID ish and Moorish products and in the sale
er of wines. spirits and tobacco which or
ut account of the absence of duties are very
In cheap. The garrison, the dockyard. the
Sc English men-of-war always in the harboI
ne and the numerous lines and foreign men
an of-war which touch here, all furnish 8
al considerable demand for labor. provis
70 ions, coal and ship chandlering in gen
IN eral There always has been consider
IS able smuggling from Gibraltar into SpaiT
by means of small schooners which carr!
IN their cargoes to unfrequented spots alonl
M the Spanish coast Gibraltar from thu
a sea is made easy of access to the touris
I'd by the Cunard and North German Lloy'
IN lines. BY land the trip to Gibraltar mus
be made by the easy going Spanish rail
he accustomed to fast trains. From Lon
In don to Gibraltar is trip of nearly fou
or days, though the distance is approx
wv mately that between New York and
,d Chicago. The Spanish town of Alger
re ciras where the Moroccan conference 1
N now being held. lies to the westward Q
re the Rock, three miles across the bay
nd Tangier, the port of Morocco, is but
he miles distant and steamers run between
r. the two ports three times a week.
The Rock extends from north to soutl
IN | about three miles and has three distinc
,Ir peaks, each a few feet short of 400 fee
In in height. From east to west the Rocl
re is about three quarters of a mile. Tn
re most familiar aspect is the view OF tn
re northern face from Spanish territory, 4
,is some of the pictures published 4
m America, the level ground at the base o
et the cliff being made to appear as water
,Is The view of the Rock from the sea o
n from the bay is In reality more i'm
r. pressive because much more EXTENSIVE
~ 1t is in this northern face of the Roc
lie that the tunnels open to the public
he known as "The Galleries" exist. Thes