Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1907-05-11
Copyright. 1907. by Frank G. CarpenterD

Copyright. 1907 by Frank G. CarpenterD
BISKRA, Desert Of Sahara.
am at Biskra. the Paris of the Sahara.
This oasis lies lis miles south of the Medi-
terranean sea. in the midst of the desert
At one side of it great sand dunes roll on
and on until they are lost in the yellow
horizon. On the other are the well-worn
stones OF the Oued, or dry river, Biskra,
which becomes flood during the short
rainy part of the year. but which is now so
parched under this African sun that it
would blister your bare feet to cross 1t.
Biskra Is situated on a low plateau, e.
little more than three hundred feet above
the river. To the north of it Is the mighty
wall of the Atlas mountains, which here
rise thousand feet higher than Mount
Washington. In this African sun they ere I
now of a pale yellow, the color Of tine
limestone of which they are made. A little
later they will turn to a hazy blue. chang
ing as the sun drops to primrose and gold
and then dying out through dark purple
into the night.
B.skra is an island in this mighty sea
of the Sahara. The mountain wall Is a part
of the shore of that sea, and the great cliffs
rise almost straight up over 1t. II one had
q glass and would cast his eye along those
mountains he would find a break at the
right. known as the Gorge Of Kantara. 1t
is there that river has burst through the
wall, forming the golden gate to this great
est desert on earth. One comes right out
of the Mountains into the desert, and as he
does so goes through the little oasis Of Kan
tara. which serves, as 1t were, as the green
key to that great golden door.
The Garden of Allah.
Biskra has been rather voluptuously de-
scribed in the novel called THE Garden of
Allah" Under another name it's made
he 81 Of hat ste nd all Of ifs
surroundings are painted in more or less
glowing colors. They are. as a rule, greatly
overdrawn, and the tale Itself has mawk-
ish. sensual sentimentality which leaves a
bad taste in ones mouth. According to it.
the Desert of Sahara is the Garden OF Allah
and Biskra its capital. 1t is the European
capital in reality. 1t is the only part OF this
wild waste OF sand which can be safely and
comfortably reached by Europeans, and
every winter tourists and health seekers by
the thousands come here over the railroad
which the French have built. Large hotels
have been erected for them, and one can
live here comfortably at from two to five
dollars per day. There are altogether a
half dozen hotels and. in addition, casino
and theater. There are frequent concerts
and cafe chantants. while the casino stead
lily runs its roulette and rouge ct noir
tables. so that the place might be called
the Monte Carlo of the Sahara well.
The season begins in November and lasts
until May. 1t is at its liveliest In Febru-
airy. at the time of the races. when horses
donkeys and camels take part At that
time there long distance camel races
run by Arabs on Meharis or fast racing
camelS. which can make twelve or fifteen
miles in an hour. These camels are so tall
and lean that they seem to be all legs.
They have saddles with high supports In
front and behind. and the rider hobs up and
down with q seesaw corresponding to the
ticking of your watch. The starting point
IL supposed to be the oasis of Tougourt,
which is two hundred and ten miles away,
and a fairly good camel ought to cover the
ground in less than day:
The horse races are with Arabian stock
and the riders are Arabs. who in their
skill might even rival President Roosevelt,
and who delight in crosscountry going,
jumping everything on the way.
In French Biskra.
The city of Biskra Is composed of two
towns. One Is known as French Biskra
and the other Old Biskra. The former con-
tains about 300 Europeans and two or
three times that many natives, while the
latter Is altogether native and is numbered
more by the number OF palm trees it owns
than by the number OF its Inhabitants. II
is comprised in six little mud villages scat
tered throughout plantations which sup
port about 10000 date trees.
The French town Is surrounded by walls
and entered by gates 1t has several wide
streets, the chief Of which Is the Rue
Bertha, which runs from the railroad sta
ton past the public gardens and on out
toward the oasis of Tougourt. 1t goes
by the oasis of Old Biskra, which is two
miles on: and upon IL Is a street car line
over which one can ride the whole of that
distance for two cents. Another car line
Will take him for the same money to the
hot springs three and q half miles away
and this 10 far down In the Desert Of Sa-
hara. In the very backwoods of the globe.
The two-cent rate Is made without tickets,
and II Is less than half the nickel which we
pay at home.
l shall send this letter to the United
States for a fve-cent postage stamp, and
i can telegraph from here across the Med
fterranean to Paris for less than You can
send message from New York to Chi
cago. My cab rides cost me thirty cents a
trip or fifty cents an hour. and IL prefer
to move about on a camel the rate viii be
about 81 per day.
When I take Turkish bath In the United
States have to pay ST. with twenty-five or
nifty cents extra for fees. had Moorish