Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1907-05-25
Copyright. 1907. by Frank G. Carpenter.)

CONSTANTINE,
Have you ever heard Of this famous City
OF the Air? 1t lies here in the heart of
North Africa about 800 miles east of AL
giers. so miles south of the Mediterranean
and 125 miles north of the Desert of Sahara
1t Is built upon enormous rock at an
altitude of 2,0O0 feet above the sea, and
there Is mighty gorge a thousand feet
deep running round It,
III You could take one Of our American
towns of $4,000 Inhabitants, crowd its
houses together so that they would not
cover more than the area of a half section
farm and then lift the bed rock on which
they stand straight up In the air for 1000
feet you might have some of the conditions
which exist here at Constantine. You
would have to put the houses on mighty
stone platform, and on three sides of It
have rocky walls falling precipitately down
to valley of depth almost twice the
height of the Washington Monument. You
would need a rushing, foaming river to
now through the gorges thus made and
about on every side rolling country end
Ing in the desert-like mountains of the
great Atlas chain. l doubt whether there
Is another such city on earth. 1t Is called
by the Arabs 1.-THE City of the Air" 1t is
the mightiest roof garden known to man.
A Mighty Fort.
Constantine, however, IS far more than
a roof garden 1t is fertilization as we'll
For almost 5000 years it has been the site
of a camp or barracks for soldiers. and the
story of its adventures is written in blood.
1t has successfully withstood eighty sieges,
and when the French took It, about sew
enty years ago. they employed an army of
10000 men. At that time hundreds of its
Arab inhabitants who tried to escape by
letting themselves down over the rocks
were dashed to pieces in the gorges below.
and so many Mohammedan women thus
committed suicide that the river ran blood.
The Kasbah or citadel, which was then the
chief fort of the Arabs. Is now occupied by
several thousand French troops. 1t COM
mands the highest point on the rocky pla-
teau, and Is right over the most precipitous
part of the gorge. In II there are stone
cisterns and granaries built by the Romans
and not far from ii Is a great stone aque-
duct which the Romans made to supply the
place with water in times of peace.
Constantine was a city in the days of the
Phoenicians and under the name of Cirta
II was the capital of a Cartha ginian prov
ince ruled by HannibaPs brother-in-law.
Later on II became the capital OF Numidia.
and as such furnished the famous Numidlan
lions for the gladiatorial shows ofold Rome.
A little more than 800 years after Christ
IT was called Constantine. in honor of the
Roman emperor of that date. and when the
Arabs came in it was made one OF their
capitals -
Notwithstanding all this the city could
not be easily battered to pieces. Modern
guns placed on the opposite heights. would
shatter the buildings, and in rev hours
would sweep the rock clear of both houses
- and people. In the warfare of the past,
however II was almost impregnable, and
the great canyons by which II Is surrounded
formed a barrier which no army could
scale.
In the Gorges.
n YOU would realize how great barrier
they were. come with me down into the
gorges Steps have been gouged out OF the
rocks by the French. There are hanging
walks along the sides of the cliffs, and We
can climb a thousand feet down to where
the River Roummel. known also as the
River of Sands, runs rushing and foaming
along on its way to the Mediterranean sea.
We take carriages and drive far up the
valley and then cross, and come up to the
ladders. The way from here on is rough
and tiresome, but we climb down. down,
down, until at last we are near the water,
rise precipitous black walls, stained by
sewers and springs. and rooted by the sky.
The gorge is about 200 feet wide. narrow
ing in places to $50 feet or less. The rocks
rise almost straight up from the river. and
we are making our way about through a
narrow canyon along this foaming stream.
the noises of the city are unknown. and 1t
II as silent as death. There Is only the
whirring of the wings of the crows. storks
and other birds. they fly across to
their nests in one wall or the other. and
the roaring of the foaming river. as II
dashes on through the rocks. The gorge
changes in character as we go through IL.
Here the cliffs mighty pillars of stone
300 feet high: there they look like great
battlements. and farther on they almost
meet overhead.
At the lower end of the gorge. almost
under the Kasbah. Is natural bridge
somewhat like that of Virginia. Across !,
runs an aqueduct built by the Romans
and at the same place are the remains OF
the Roman road which Joined the city tc
the mainland. This old bridge is still In
good condition. It is right under the iron
bridge of Kantara, which now forms the
chief highway to the city on the rock.
I came here from the Desert of Sahara
by transferring at FL Guerra to the ran