History of the World/History of the World (Bureau Development, Inc.)(1992).BIN/dp/0031/00315.txt

Text File | 1992-10-11 | 8KB | 136 lines

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$Pretitle{}
$Title{Australia And The Islands Of The Sea
Chapter XXVIII.  The Balearic Isles.}
$Subtitle{}
$Author{Larkin, Dunton}
$Affiliation{}
$Subject{majorca
form
islands
square
miles

}
$Date{}
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Title:       Australia And The Islands Of The Sea
Author:      Larkin, Dunton

Chapter XXVIII.  The Balearic Isles.

     This group consists of five principal islands and some smaller ones, in
the Mediterranean Sea, the three most important being Majorca, Minorca, and
Iviza.  The united area is about two thousand square miles.  They form a
province under the control of Spain, and lie midway between her coast and that
of Algeria.

     Majorca is nearly square in form, the greatest distance from east to west
being sixty miles and from north to south fifty.  Its area is thirteen hundred
square miles.  The highest mountains of the group are those of Majorca, the
loftiest peak attaining a height of forty-eight hundred feet.  The climate is
mild and agreeable, and the extremes of heat and cold are seldom of long
duration.  Fires are rarely required, except in the coldest weather.

     The soil of these islands on the average is exceedingly fertile, and
produces good crops of wheat, barley, olives, almonds, grapes, figs, oranges,
beans, and hemp.  Besides these, a great variety of other fruits and
vegetables are grown for local consumption.

     Pigs and sheep are largely raised in these islands, and form a great
source of wealth; but goats and cattle are scarce, especially in Majorca,
where cow's milk and butter are great luxuries.  In the smaller islands
pastures are provided, and the keeping of cows is fast becoming one of the
chief sources of wealth.

     The principal city, and the capital of the province, is Palma, a
fortified town on the southwest coast of Majorca.  It is built in the form of
an amphitheater, and is surrounded by a wall thirty-six feet thick, with
thirteen bastions and eight gates, three of which front the sea.  The streets
are straight, but narrow.  Most of them are paved, and provided with footways
laid with tiles.  As you approach the city it appears to be a great mass of
yellow and white buildings, with flat roofs or slanting tiled ones.  On the
flat roofs great cages for pigeons may be seen.  The people are very fond of
these birds and tend them with great care.  In the morning the birds are
allowed their freedom, but they all know their homes and return at night to
their respective cages.

     The most imposing object seen on approaching the harbor is the great
cathedral, which stands close to the sea.  It is lofty and of vast size; it is
built of brick, with flying buttresses, manifold small pinnacles, and side
buttresses so large and substantial that they have already outlived centuries.
There is one solitary tower over the north doorway, which has narrow pointed
windows and an open balustrade.  The cathedral was commenced in the thirteenth
century, and was finished at the end of the sixteenth.  It is of a splendid
amber color of an exquisite shade, which can only be produced by the lapse of
time.

     The interior is of the Gothic style of architecture, and on entering it
you are awed not so much by its beauty as by its immensity.  This impression
is heightened by the fact that the whole interior is seen at once.  The
pillars which form the central nave are octagonal and very slender.  They are
architectural wonders, for in no other place are to be seen pillars of so
great height resting on bases so small.  Though the effect cannot be said to
be pleasing, it is certainly wonderful.  Other points of peculiar interest in
this cathedral are the carved wooden reredos, dating from Mediaeval times, and
the tombs of Mallorcan bishops and kings.

     Next to the cathedral, the Longa is the most remarkable building in
Palma.  It is a large, square, Gothic structure, dating from the first half of
the fifteenth century.  At each corner is an octagonal tower with indented
battlements.  From tower to tower runs an openwork, indented gallery of great
beauty.  The entrance is a Gothic doorway of remarkable size.  The interior is
a single square chamber.  The arched roof is supported by fluted pillars,
slender and graceful.  From these start the moldings which gradually form the
arches.  This building was intended for an exchange and was used as such for
many ages.  Later it was employed for public meetings and as a ballroom.
Recently it passed through the hands of restorers and workmen, by whom it was
thoroughly repaired.

     Nearly all traces of Moorish rule and reign have disappeared from Palma.
An old palace with its beautiful courtyard is still to be seen, and also an
old Moorish fountain.  This fountain stands facing a street, and from it runs
a thoroughfare on either side.  A building of conical shape incloses the
water, which is unseen.  On each side of the fountain stands an orange tree,
enlivening the structure with its glossy verdure and golden fruit.

     Of the interior towns and villages of this island, there are few as
interesting as Valdemosa.  Long before the Spanish conquered the island this
place was held in high estimation by the Moors.  Later a king chose these
hills for his summer residence, and built a palace here, which was converted
into a convent in the last part of the fourteenth century. Little remains of
this convent at present, its very chapel having been converted into a
ballroom.  The village is one of the poorest of its size in the island.  While
the convent flourished, provisions were to be had for the asking at the
convent gate.  But this promiscuous charity had an evil effect on the men of
the village.  Many of them found a special protector in one or another of the
rich monks, and preferred the convent's gifts to the scanty wages of mountain
labor.  But the wives and daughters were never allowed inside the cloister
gates, and all the work fell upon them.  This is largely the case still, and
round-shouldered, high-backed women are to be seen everywhere, toiling down
the rugged mountain paths with enormous loads of fagots on their shoulders.

     Besides carrying wood, the women work with the hoe, and gather the olives
and almonds.  They are also employed in the orchards and gardens, for in no
part of the islands is fruit grown in such variety and abundance as here.  The
men now busy themselves as charcoal burners or fishermen, or are employed on
the adjoining farms and estates.

     Minorca is situated about twenty-seven miles northeast of Majorca and has
an area of about two hundred and ninety square miles.  The coast is much
indented with bays on all sides except the south, and the shore in most places
is bold and steep.  It has several excellent harbors, the best one of which is
Port Mahon, the capital of the island.  The climate of Minorca is mild, but
not so equable as that of Majorca.  The soil in general is not very fertile,
that on the plains being scanty and chalky. The chief products are wheat,
barley, wine, oil, potatoes, hemp, and flax. Fruits of all kinds abound,
including melons, pomegranates, figs, and almonds.  Cattle, sheep, and goats
are raised.  Stone is plentiful, and a soft kind is much used in building.
The population numbers about thirty-nine thousand.

     Iviza, though much smaller than the other islands, is the most varied in
scenery and the most fruitful.  Its coasts are much indented and rugged like
those of Minorca, and its products about the same.  It is occupied by about
twenty-one thousand people.