Greene County herald., 1913-03-14


ANA loon, one OF the newest OF
8Nl the wonderful inventions
- of man, has just afforded
another ultra-modern continuance
the camera-its first chance to snap
group of dwellings as old in style as
any that man ever built for himself.
1t was the Italian dirigible balloon
"P 2" that accomplished the feat and
gave the italian invaders Of Tripoli
additional reason for patting them
selves on the back and feeling like the
vanguard ot progress. While the bal
doom hovered high over the arid waste
that lies back of the Mediterranean
coast of northern Africa, the pho
tographer trained his camera on a lot
Of holes in the desert-apparenty bur
Fowed by animals. Instead of being
that, however, they were all that was
visible Of villages teeming with hu-
man beings. of troglodyte villages,
whose inhabitants dig deep into the
earth to find home just as their
forefathers> did thousands of years
ago. when the dirigible balloon and
the camera and the Italian nation
were things undreamed of
This unique picture of underground
dwellings taken from point far up in
the air by the latest European visitor
to the cavemen has aroused renewed
interest in these African troglodytes,
whom only a few travellers have ever
beheld.
This most recent visitor sojourned
among the cave-dwellers OF Matmata,
back of the Mediterranean coast of
Tunisia. and from these struck still
:. further inland TO the places where the
climbing trogIodytes" dwell and the
nomads of the desert store their grain
and other valuables in storehouses
which. though built above the ground,
are fashioned exactly like the under
ground homes of their neighbors. thus
leading scientists to believe that
their ancestors burrowed into the
ground
Curious, indeed. are the tales brought
back by this latest adventurer into the
land of the trogiodytes. When he APP
preached the underground dwellings of
Matmata all the women whom he en-
countered ran away, covering their
faces as they went. He was taken
fnto homes deep down in the earth, yet
furnished with carpets hanging from
the earthen walls. with modern tables
and benches.
But those who went before him
have given us more minute details as
to this extraordinary people. In 1911
an American. pointed out on every
side as the first of his race to venture
tnto the Matmata region and the des-
ert spaces hidden behind it, sojourned
for some time with the kaid, or chief
tain. of Matmata. travelled with guides
provided by this local potentate far
anto the hinterland and gathered the
materials for q long account OF his
wanderings. to say nothing of splen-
did series OF pictures. Previous to
this visit the troglodytes had enter
tanned two French archaeologists and,
still earlier-far. back in the nineties.
when they we're scarcely known at
all TO the outside world-they opened
their curious abodes to Brunn, Dan
isfs explorer, who also lived with the
kaid Of bis day and gave an interest
Ing account Of what he saw.
Frank Edward Johnson is the man
who can lay claim to being the only
American who has lived among the
cavemen OF northern Africa While
he was in Tripoli some years ago he
became quite chummy with the kaid
of Matmata, an intelligent native,
whom the French masters of the land
had appointed to rule over an inland
tribe. This native later became kaid
OF Matnata and, happening to read
En- some American magazines an ar
ticle by MIR. johnson on troglodytes,
ne wrote to the author at his home in
Norwich, Conn, that he would i'm.
prove his knowledge OF the subject by
paying his old friend q visit Il am
D.. trogiodyte myself" the writer OF
the letter remarked SO Mr.. johnson
aeft his Connecticut home, sailed
across the sea to Tunis, transferred
90 small coasting steamboat, which
landed him at the desert port Of
(iabes, and after a wearisome journey
over the sands, found himself within
view or the village OF Matmata. Or
rather, he didn't ind himself within
view OF ft nc was there, but he
couldn't nee A.
'11aGiRe atriwinG ak q. town OF 5000