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south the boundary of the Tunisian Sahara is undetermined, but it may be roughly placed at 31° N. This would give, therefore, a greatest length of something like 44o m. The country lies between 11' 4o' E. and 7° 35' E. The See also:

AVERAGE

average length is about 300 m., an i1 the average breadth 15o m.; consequently the See also:

AREA

area may be estimated at 50,000 sq. m. (For See also:

map, see ALGERIA.) See also:

PHYSICAL

Physical Features.—Geographically speaking, Tunisia is merely the eastern prolongation of the Mauretanian See also:

PROJECTION

projection of See also:

NORTHERN

northern Africa, of that See also:

STRIP

strip of mountainous, fertile and fairly well-watered. country north of the Sahara See also:

DESERT

desert, which in its See also:

FLORA

flora and its See also:

FAUNA

fauna, and to some extent in its human See also:

RACE

race, belongs rather to See also:

EUROPE

Europe than to Africa. Tunisia is divided into the following four fairly distinct regions: I. On the north and north-See also:

west the Aures mountains of Algeria are prolonged into Tunisia, and constitute the mountainous region of the north, which lies between the Majerda See also:

RIVER

river and the See also:

sea, and also includes the vicinity of the See also:

CITY (through Fr. cite, from Lat. civitas)

city of Tunis and the See also:

peninsula of the Dakhelat el Mawin, which terminates in Ras Addar (Cape Bon). This first See also:

DIVISION (from Lat. dividere, to break up into parts, separate)

division is called by the See also:

French " the Majerda Mountains." It includes within its limits the once famous See also:

DISTRICT

district of the "Kroumirs,"2 a tribe whose occasional thefts of See also:

CATTLE (Norman Fr. catel, from Late Lat. capitale, wealth or property, a word applied in the feudal system to movable property and particularly to live stock, and surviving in its wider meaning as " chattel " or " chattle ")

cattle across the frontier gave the French an excuse to invade Tunisia in 1881. The highest point which the mountains attain in this division of Tunisia is about 4125 ft., near See also:

Ain Draham in Kroumiria. The country, however, about See also:

BIZERTA (properly pronounced Ben Zert; Fr. Bizerte)

Bizerta is very mountainous, though the summits do not attain a greater See also:

ALTITUDE (Lat. altitudo, from altus, high)

altitude than about 3000 ft.

The district between Bizerta and the Gulf of Tunis is a most attractive country, resembling greatly the mountainous regions of South See also:

WALES (Cymru, Gwalia, Cambria)

Wales. It is well watered by streams more or less perennial. The See also:

PRINCIPAL

principal river, the Majerda, is formed by the junction of the See also:

Wad Malleg and the Wad Kkallad. It and its 1 It is possible that Ras-See also:

BEN (from Old Eng. bennan, within)

ben-Sekka, a little to the west of Cape Blanc, may be actually the most northerly point. 2 The French seem systematically unable to See also:

MASTER (Lat. magister, related to tnagis, more, as the corresponding minister is to minus, less; the English form is due partly to the O. Eng. maegister, and partly to O. Fr. maistre, mod. maitre; cf. Du. meester, Ger. Meister, Ital. maestro)

master certain sounds See also:

FOREIGN

foreign to their own See also:

LANGUAGE (adapted from the Fr. langage, from langue, tongue, Lat. lingua)

language, or sounds which they suppose to be foreign. Thus the " w," though constantly represented in French by " nu," is continually changed by them into " v " when they transcribe foreign See also:

LANGUAGES

languages, just as the See also:

Greek x and the See also:

German and Scottish " ch " is almost invariably rendered by the French in Algeria and Tunis as " kr." Add to this the insertion of vowel sounds where they are lacking in the Arabic and you derive from the real word Khmir the See also:

MODERN

modern French See also:

TERM

term of Kroumir. In like manner sebkha, a See also:

salt See also:

lake, is constantly written by the French as sebkra. `ributaries rise in the Majerda and Aures mountains. Flowing their See also:

VOLUME

volume that in several places they See also:

FORM (Lat. forma)

form actual ever-flowing north-See also:

east the Majerda forms an extensive See also:

PLAIN (O. Fr. plain, from Lat. plenum)

plain in its See also:

LOWER

lower course, See also:

rivers. Only for the intervention of See also:

man these rivers would at all reaching the sea near the ruins of See also:

UTICA

Utica. Vegetation is abundant, times find their way into the adjoining depressions, which they and recalls that of the more fertile districts of See also:

SOUTHERN

southern See also:

Spain and would maintain as lakes of See also:

WATER

water. But for a See also:

long See also:

period past the of See also:

Italy.

On the higher mountains the flora has a very See also:

ENGLISH

English See also:

FRESHWATER

freshwater streams (which predominate) have been used for See also:

CHARACTER (Gr. xapareri7p, from xap&crew, to scratch)

character, though the actual See also:

SPECIES

species of See also:

PLANTS

plants may not be the See also:

IRRIGATION (Lat. in, and rigare, to water or wet)

irrigation to such a degree that very little of the See also:

PRECIOUS (O. Fr. precios, mod. precieux, Lat. pretiosus, of high value or price, pretium)

precious water is same. allowed to run to See also:

WASTE (O. Fr. wast, guast, gast, gaste; Lat. vastus, vast, desolate)

waste into the lake basins; so that these latter 2. The central See also:

plateau region, stretching between the Majerda receive only a few salt streams, which See also:

DEPOSIT (Lat. depositurn, from deponere, to lay down, to put in the care of)

deposit on their See also:

SURFACE

surface the valley and the mountains of Gafsa. The average See also:

ELEVATION

elevation of this salt they contain and then evaporate. This abundant See also:

SUPPLY (through Fr. from Lat. supplere, to fill up)

supply of country is about 2000 ft. The See also:

CLIMATE

climate, therefore, in parts is ex- fresh' warm water maintains oases of extraordinary luxuriance in ceedingly See also:

COLD (in O. Eng. cald and ceald, a word coming ultimately from a root cognate with the Lat. gelu, gelidus, and common in the Teutonic languages, which usually have two distinct forms for the substantive and the adjective, cf. Ger. Kolte, kalt, Dutch koude

cold and See also:

BLEAK, or BLICK (Alburnus lucidus)

bleak in See also:

winter, and as it is very See also:

wind-swept a country where See also:

RAIN (O.E. regn; the word is common to Teutonic languages, cf. Ger. Regen, Swed. and Dan. regn; it has been connected with Lat. rigare, to wet, Gr. 13pixeav)

rain falls very rarely. Perennial streams of the and parched in summer by the terrible qibli or " See also:

SIROCCO

sirocco " it is description referred to are found between the Algerian frontier much less attractive in See also:

APPEARANCE (from Lat. apparere, to appear)

appearance than the favoured region on the and See also:

GABES

Gabes on the See also:

COAST (from Lat. costa, a rib, side)

coast. The See also:

TOWN

town at Gabes itself is on the fringe northern littoral. Although it is almost always covered with some of a splendid See also:

OASIS (Gr. &toss, the name given by Herodotus to the fertile spots in the Libyan desert: it probably represents an Egyptian word, cf. Coptic ouahe, ouih, to dwell, from which the Egyptian Arabic sod is derived)

oasis, which is maintained by the water of an ever-See also:

KIND (O. E. ge-cynde, from the same root as is seen in " kin," supra)

kind of vegetation, trees are relatively rare. A few of the higher See also:

RUNNING

running stream emptying itself into the sea at Gabes after a course mountains have the See also:

ALEPPO (native Haleb)

Aleppo See also:

PINE (Lat. Pinus, Gr. srlrur)

pine and the See also:

JUNIPER

juniper; elsewhere only of not more than 20 M. an infrequent See also:

WILD, JONATHAN (c. 1682-1725)

wild See also:

TEREBINTH

terebinth is to be seen. In these two regions All this region See also:

ROUND (O. Fr. rond, Lat. rotundus, the Fr. is the source also of Du. rond; Ger., Swed., Dan. and Nor. rond)

round the shats has been called the Jerid " the date See also:

palm is never met with growing naturally wild. Its pre- from the See also:

time of the Arab occupation.

" Jerid " means in Arabic sence is always due to its having been planted by man at some time a " palm frond " and inferentially "a palm See also:

grove." The Jerid. or another, and therefore it is never seen far from human habitations. The fame of this Belad-el-Jerid, or " Country of the These central uplands of Tunisia in an uncultivated See also:

state are covered Date Palms," was so exaggerated during the 17th and 18th centuries with alfa or See also:

ESPARTO, or SPANISH GRASS

esparto grass; but they also grow considerable amounts that the See also:

EUROPEAN

European geographers extended the designation from this of cereals—See also:

wheat in the north, See also:

BARLEY (Hordeum sativum)

barley in the south. The range of small area in the south of Tunisia to See also:

COVER (from the Fr. convert, from couvrir, to cover, Lat. cooperire)

cover much of inner Africa. the Saharan See also:

ATLAS

Atlas of Algeria divides (roughly speaking) into two With this country of Jerid may be included the See also:

ISLAND (O.E. ieg =isle, +land')

island of See also:

JERBA

Jerba, at the Tunisian frontier. One See also:

BRANCH (from the Fr. branche, late Lat. branca, an animal's paw)

branch extends northwards up which lies See also:

close to the coast of Tunisia in the Gulf of Gabes. The this frontier and north-eastwards across the central Tunisian See also:

PRESENT

present writer believes that the date palm was really indigenous table-See also:

LAND

land, and the other continues south-eastwards between Gafsa to this district of the Jerid, as it is to countries of similar descripand the salt lakes of the Jerid. The greatest altitudes of the whole of tion in southern See also:

MOROCCO

Morocco, southern Algeria, parts of the Tripoli-Tunisia are attained on this central table-land, where Mt Sidi See also:

TAINE, HIPPOLYTE ADOLPHE (1828-1893)

taine, See also:

EGYPT

Egypt, See also:

MESOPOTAMIA (Mevoaora)

Mesopotamia, southern See also:

PERSIA

Persia and north-western See also:

Ali bu Musin ascends to about 5700 ft. About 30 M. south of the See also:

India; but that north of the See also:

LATITUDE (Lat. latitudo, latus, broad)

latitude of the Jerid the date did not city of Tunis is the picturesque See also:

mountain of Zaghwan, approxi- grow naturally in See also:

MAURETANIA

Mauretania, just as it was foreign to all parts of mately 4000 ft. in altitude, and from whose perennial springs Europe, in which, as in true North Africa, its presence is due to comes the water-supply of Tunis to-See also:

day as it did in the time of the the See also:

hand of man. To some extent it may be said that true North Carthaginians and See also:

Romans. North-east of Zaghwan, and nearer Africa lies to the north of the Jerid country, which, besides its Tunis, is the See also:

JEBEL (plur. jibed)

Jebel Resas, or Mountain of See also:

Lead, the height of which Saharan, Arabian and See also:

Persian See also:

AFFINITIES

affinities, has a See also:

TOUCH (derived through Fr. toucher from a common Teutonic and Indo-Germanic root, cf. " tug," " tuck," O. H. Ger. zucchen, to twitch or draw)

touch about it of is just under 4000 ft. real Africa, some such touch as may be observed in the valley of 3. The'See also:

SAHEL

Sahel. This well-known Arab term for coast-See also:

belt (which the See also:

Jordan. In the oases of the Jerid are found several species of in the plural form reappears as the See also:

FAMILIAR (through the Fr. familier, from Lat. familiaris, of or belonging to the familia, family)

familiar " See also:

SWAHILI (Wa-Swahili, i.e. coast people, from the Arabic sail, coast)

Swahili " of See also:

ZANZIBAR

Zanzibar) tropical See also:

AFRICAN

African mammals and two or three of Senegalese birds, is applied to a third division of Tunisia, viz. the littoral region and the vegetation seems to have as much See also:

affinity with tropical stretching from the Gulf of Hammamet to the south of See also:

SFAX (Arabic Asfakis or Safakus, the cucumbers)

Sfax.

It Africa as with Europe. In fact, the country between the Matmata is a region varying from 30 to 6o m. in breadth, fairly well watered See also:

HIGHLANDS, THE

highlands and the strait separating Jerba from the mainland is and fertile. In a less marked way this fertile coast region is See also:

con- singularly African in the character and aspect of its flora. To the tinued southwards in an ever-narrowing belt to the Tripolitan south of the Jerid the country is mainly desert—vast unexplored frontier. This region is relatively See also:

FLAT (a modification of O. Eng. flet, an obsolete word of Teutonic origin, meaning the ground beneath the feet)

flat, in some districts slightly tracts of shifting See also:

sand, with rare oases. Nevertheless,: all this marshy, but the water oozing from the See also:

SOIL

soil is often brackish, and southern district of Tunisia bears See also:

EVIDENCE (Lat. evidentia, evideri, to appear clearly)

evidence of once having been. in places large shallow salt lakes are formed. Quite close to the subject to a heavy rainfall, which scooped out deep valleys in the sea, all along the coast from Hammamet to Sfax, there are See also:

GREAT

great See also:

ORIGINAL

original table-land, and has justified the present existence of imfertility and much cultivation; but a little distance inland the country mense watercourses—watercourses which are still, near their origin, has a rather wild and desolate aspect, though it is nowhere a desert favoured with a little water. until the latitude of Sfax has been passed. Hot and See also:

MINERAL

mineral springs may be almost said to constitute one of 4. The Tunisian Sahara. This occupies the whole of the southern the specialities of Tunisia. They offered a singular attraction to division of Tunisia, but although desert predominates, it is by no the Romans, and their presence in remote parts of the M/neral means all desert.

At the south-eastern extremity of Tunisia there country no doubt was often the principal causeof See also:

ROMAN

Roman Springs. is a See also:

CLUMP

clump of mountainous country, the wind-and-water-worn See also:

settlement. Even at the present day their value is fragments of an See also:

ancient plateau, which for convenience may be much appreciated by the natives, who continue to bathe in the ruined styled the Matmata table-land. Here altitudes of over 3000 ft. are I Roman See also:

BATHS

baths. The principal mineral springs of medicinal value reached in places, and in all the upper parts of this table-land there are those of Korbus and Hammam Lif (of remarkable efficacy in is fairly abundant vegetation, grass and herbage with See also:

low junipers, rheumatic and syphilitic affections and certain skin diseases), but with no pine trees. Fairly high mountains (in places verging of the Jerid and Gafsa, of El Hamma, near Gabes, and of various on 4000 ft.) are found between Gafsa and the salt lakes of the I sites in the Kroumir country. Jerid. I Climate.—The rainfall in the first See also:

GEOGRAPHICAL

geographical division is See also:

PRETTY

pretty These salt lakes are a very curious feature. They stretch with I See also:

CONSTANT, BENJAMIN (1845-1902)

constant, and may reach a yearly avera e of about 22 in. Over only two See also:

SHORT, FRANCIS JOB (1857– )

short breaks in a See also:

LINE

line from the Mediterranean at the Gulf of Gabes to the Algerian frontier, which they penetrate for a considerable distance. They are called by the French (with their usual inaccuracy of See also:

PRONUNCIATION (Lat. pronuntiatio, from pronuntiare, proclaim, announce, pronounce)

pronunciation and spelling) " chotts "; the word should really be the Arabic shat, an Arab term for a broad See also:

canal, an See also:

ESTUARY (from the Lat. aestuarium, a place reached by aestus, the tide)

estuary or lake. These shats however are, strictly speaking, not lakes at all at the present day. They are smooth de-pressed areas (in the See also:

case of the largest, the Shat el Jerid, lying a few feet below the level of the Mediterranean), which for more than See also:

HALF

half the See also:

YEAR

year are expanses of dried mud covered with a thick incrustation of See also:

white or See also:

grey salt.

This salt covering gives them meshes. at a distance the appearance of big sheets of water. During the winter. however, when the effect of the rare winter rains is See also:

FELT (cognate with Ger. Filz, Du. vilt, Swed. and Dan. fill; the root is unknown; the word has given Med. Lat. filtrum, " filter ")

felt, there may actually be 3 or 4 ft. of water in these chats, which by liquefying the mud makes them perfectly impassable. Otherwise, for about seven months of the year they can be crossed on See also:

FOOT

foot or on horseback. It would seem probable that at one time these shats (at any See also:

RATE

rate the Shat el Jerid) were an inlet of the Mediterranean, which by the elevation of a narrow strip of land on the Gulf of Gabes has been cut off from them. It is, however, a region of past volcanic activity, and these salt depressions may be due to that cause. Man is probably the principal See also:

AGENT (from Lat. agere, to act)

agent at the present day in causing these shats to be without water. All round these salt lakes there are numerous springs, gushing from the sandy hillocks. Almost all these springs are at a very hot temperature, often at boiling point. Some of them are charged with salt, others are perfectly fresh and sweet, though boiling hot. So abundant is the second and third divisions the rainfall is less constant, and its yearly average may not exceed 17 in. The mean See also:

ANNUAL

annual temperature at See also:

Susa is 75° F., the mean of the winter or See also:

RAINY, ROBERT (1826-1906)

rainy See also:

SEASON (0. Fr. seson, seison, mod. saison, Lat. satio, sowing time, the spring, from serere, to sow; in Late Lat. the word is found with its present meaning, the spring being considered as particularly the season of the year)

season 6o° and of the hot season 97°. At Tunis the temperature rarely exceeds 90°, except with a wind from the Sahara.

The prevailing winds from May to See also:

SEPTEMBER (Lat. septem, seven)

September are east and north-east and during the See also:

REST (O. Eng. rest, reste, bed, cognate with other Teutonic forms, e.g. Ger. Rast, Riiste, rest, and probably Gothic Rasta, league, i.e. resting or stopping place)

rest of the year north-west and east. A rainy season of about two months usually begins in See also:

JANUARY

January ; the See also:

SPRING (from " to spring," " to leap or jump up," " burst out," O. Eng., springau, a common Teut. word, cf. Ger. springer, possibly allied to Gr. QnrFpxecOac, to move rapidly)

spring season of verdure is over in May; summer ends in See also:

OCTOBER

October with the first rains. Violent winds are See also:

COMMON

common at both equinoxes. In the Tunisian Sahara rain is most uncertain. Occasionally two or three years may pass without any rainfall; then may come floods after a heavy down-fall of a few See also:

WEEKS, EDWIN LORD (1849-1903)

weeks. Perhaps if an average could be struck it would amount to 9 or 10 in. per annum. [See also:

GEOLOGY (from Gr. yp7, the earth, and Abyor, science)

Geology.—The greater part of Tunisia is composed of sandstones, marls and loosely stratified deposits belonging to the See also:

PLIOCENE (from the Gr. sr?eiov, mere, and xatvbs, recent)

Pliocene and See also:

QUATERNARY

Quaternary periods. The See also:

OLDEST

oldest strata, consisting of gypsiferous marls, are referred to the See also:

MUSCHELKALK

Muschelkalk and show an See also:

ALTERNATION (from Lat. alternare, to do by turns)

alternation of See also:

LAGOON (Fr. lagune, Lat. lacuna, a pool)

lagoon with marine conditions. The See also:

LIAS

Lias and Oolite formations are well represented, but the Sequanian and Kimmeridgian subdivisions are absent. Lower Cretaceous rocks, consisting of thick limestones, shales and marls, occur in Central Tunisia. The fossils show many notable affinities with those in the Lower Cretaceous of the See also:

PYRENEES [Span. Pirineos, Fr. Pyrenees]

Pyrenees. Limestones and marls represent the stages Cenomanian to Upper Senonian..

The fossils of the Cenomanian have affinities with those in the Cenomanian of Spain, Egypt; See also:

MADAGASCAR

Madagascar, See also:

MOZAMBIQUE [Sao Sebastiao de Mocambique]

Mozambique and India. The Senonian consists of a central facies with Micrasler peini; a meridional facies with Ostrea; and a northern facies See also:

DEVELOPED

developed round Tunisia with large forms of Inoceramus and echinoids. Phosphatic deposits are well developed among the Lower See also:

EOCENE (Gr. *In, dawn, icauvos, recent)

Eocene rocks. The See also:

MIDDLE

Middle Eocene is characterized by the presence of Ostrea bogharensis and the Upper Eocene by highly fossiliferous sandstones and marls. The Oligocene and See also:

MIOCENE

Miocene formations are present, but the Upper Miocene is confined to the coast. Quaternary deposits cover much of the desert regions.'] Minerals.—See also:

COAL

Coal has been discovered in the Khmir (" Kroumir ") country, but the principal mines at present worked in Tunisia are those of See also:

COPPER (symbol Cu, atomic weight 63.1, H=1, or 63.6, O = 16)

copper, lead and See also:

ZINC

zinc. Zinc is chiefly found in the form of See also:

CALAMINE

calamine. See also:

IRON [symbol Fe, atomic weight 55.85 (0=16)]

Iron is worked in the See also:

Kef district. Valuable deposits of See also:

PHOSPHATES

phosphates are present, chiefly in the south-west of Tunisia, in the district of Gafsa. See also:

MARBLE (from Lat. marmor, Gr. pApµapos, shining stone)

Marble is found in the valley of the Majerda (at Shemtu), at Jebel Ust (about 35 M. south of Tunis), and at Jebel Dissa, near Gabes. The See also:

MARBLES

marbles of Shemtu are the finest See also:

PINK

pink Numidian marbles, which were much esteemed by the Carthaginians and Romans. It has been sought to See also:

WORK

work again the ancient quarries of Shemtu, but it was found that the marble had been spoilt by ferruginous and calcareous See also:

VEINS

veins.

Flora.—The flora of Tunisia is very nearly identical with that of Algeria, though it offers a few species either See also:

PECULIAR

peculiar to itself or not found in the last-named country. On the whole its character is less Saharan than that of parts of Algeria, for the influences of the desert do not penetrate so far north in Tunisia as they do in Algeria. There are very few patches of real See also:

FOREST

forest outside the Khmir country,' though it is probable that in the time of the Romans the land was a See also:

GOOD, JOHN MASON (1764-1827)

good See also:

DEAL

deal more covered with trees than at the present day, Some authorities, however, dispute this, in a measure, by saying that it was not naturally forested, and that the trees growing represented orchards of See also:

OLIVES, MOUNT OF, or MOUNT OLIVET ("Opus 'EXc uwos or riov 'EXauav; mod. Jebel-et-Tur)

olives or other See also:

FRUIT (through the French from the Lat. fructus; frui, to enjoy)

fruit trees planted by the Romans or romanized See also:

BERBERS

Berbers. But in the Majerda Mountains there are dense primeval forests lingering to the present day, and consisting chiefly of the See also:

cork See also:

OAK (O. Eng., (lc)

oak (Quercus ruber), and two other species of oak (Quercus mirbeckii and Q. See also:

KERMES (Arab. girmiz; see CRIMSON)

kermes), the pistachio or terebinth See also:

tree, the See also:

SUMACH

sumach (Rhus pentaphila), and other species of Rhus which are widely spread. In the mountains of Khmiria and the central plateau there are also the See also:

ALDER

alder, the See also:

poplar, the Aleppo pine, the caroub, the See also:

TAMARISK

tamarisk, the See also:

MAPLE, SIR JOHN BLUNDELL, BART

maple, the See also:

NETTLE (0. Eng. netele, cf. Ger. Nessel)

nettle-tree, several willows and junipers. The See also:

JUJUBE

jujube-tree (Zizyphus) is found at various places along the eastern littoral, The 'rtama See also:

SHRUB

shrub is met with in sandy districts, especially in the Sahara, but also right up to the north of Tunisia. The wild See also:

OLIVE (Olea europaea)

olive, the wild See also:

CHERRY

cherry, two species of wild plums, the See also:

MYRTLE

myrtle, the See also:

IVY (A.S. ifig, Ger. Epheu, perhaps connected with apium, anent)

ivy, arbutus, and two species of See also:

HOLLY (Ilex Aquifolium)

holly are found in the mountains of Khmiria,. at various sites at high elevation near Tunis and Bizerta, and along the mountainous belt of the south-west which forms the frontier region between Tunisia and Algeria. The present writer, See also:

RIDING

riding up to these frontier mountains from the thoroughly Saharan country round Gafsa, found himself surrounded by a flora very reminiscent of See also:

SWITZERLAND

Switzerland or See also:

England. On the other hand, the flora of the shat region, of the south-eastern littoral, and of the Kerkena islands opposite Sfax, is thoroughly- Saharan, with a dash, as it were, in places of an African See also:

ELEMENT (Lat. elementum)

element. The date palm grows wild, as has been already related, in Jerba. The only other species of palm found wild in Tunisia is the Chamaerops humilis, or See also:

DWARF (A.S. dweorg, D. dwerg, Icel. dvergr)

dwarf palm, which is found on the mountains of the north at no very great altitude. The wild See also:

FLOWERS, ARTIFICIAL

flowers of the north of Tunisia are so extremely beautiful during the months of See also:

FEBRUARY

February, See also:

March and See also:

APRIL

April as to constitute a distinct attraetion in themselves?

' See, L. Pervinquiere, L'Etude geologique de la Tunisie centrale (See also:

Paris, 19o3); G. See also:

ROLLAND, JOHN (fl. 1560)

Rolland, " See also:

CARTE, THOMAS (1686-1754)

Carte geologique du littoral See also:

NORD

nord de la Tunisie," See also:

Bull. See also:

soc. geol. de la France (1888), vol. xvii.; H. H. See also:

Johnston, " A See also:

JOURNEY (through O. Fr. jornee or journee, mod. Fr. journee, from med. Lat. diurnata, Lat. diurnus, of or belonging to dies, day)

Journey through the Tunisian Sahara," Geog. Journ. (1898), vol. xi.; Carte geologique de la regence de Tunis, 1:800,000 with notes (Tunis, 1892). ' See also:

List of Plants commonly met with in northern Tunisia: See also:

ADONIS

Adonis microcarpa, DC. Lycium europaeum, L. Nigella damascena, L. Solanum sodomaeum, L. Fumaria spicata, L.

Celsia cretica, L. Cistus halimifolius, L. Linaria, sp. allied to L. reflexa, Silene rubella, L. Desf. See also:

OXALIS

Oxalis cernua, Thunb. Linaria triphylla, L, See also:

var. See also:

GERANIUM

Geranium tuberosum, L. Orobanche, sp. Malva sylvestris, L. Trixago a/ ula, Stev. Tetragonolobus purpureus, Moench. Cynomorium coccineum.

Retama retam, See also:

Webb." Plantago albicans, L. Fedia cornucopiae, Gaertn. See also:

EUPHORBIA

Euphorbia serrata, L. Helichrysum Stoechas, DC. Ophrys fusca, See also:

LINK

Link. See also:

CENTAUREA

Centaurea (Seridia), sp. Orchis papilionacea, L. Urospermum Dalechampi, Desf. Romulea bulbocodium, Sebast. and See also:

SCORZONERA (Scorzonera hispanica)

Scorzonera alexandrina, Boiss. Mauri. Stachys hirta, L. See also:

GLADIOLUS

Gladiolus byzantinus, See also:

Mill.

Stachys, sp. not identified. Ornithogalum umbellatum, L. Anagallis collina, Schousb. See also:

ALLIUM (Lat. for " garlic ")

Allium roseum, L. Convolvulus tricolor, L. Asphodelus fistulosus, L. Solenanthus lanatus, DC. Muscari comosum, Mill. Fauna.—The fauna of Tunisia at the present day is much See also:

IM(K2+a2+h2—2 ah cos 0)

im• poverished as regards mammals, birds and See also:

REPTILES (Lat. Reptilia, creeping things, from reptilis; ref ere, to creep; Gr. Ep7rety, whence the term " herpetology," for the science dealing with them)

reptiles. In 188o the present writer saw lions killed in the north-west of Tunisia, but by 1902 the See also:

lion was regarded as practically See also:

EXTINCT

extinct in the regency, though occasional rumours of his appearance come from the Khmir Mountains and near Feriana. Leopards of large See also:

SIZE

size are still found in the north-west of central Tunisia. The See also:

CHEETAH

cheetah lingers in the extreme south of the Jerid; so also does the See also:

caracal See also:

LYNX (Lat. Lynx, Gr. airy, probably connected with X hovewv, to see)

lynx.

The pardine lynx is found fairly abundantly in the west of Tunisia in the mountains and forest. The striped See also:

HYENA

hyena is scattered over the country sparsely. The See also:

GENET

genet and the common See also:

jackal are fairly abundant. The common See also:

ICHNEUMON (Gr. ixveu)

ichneumon is rare. The zorilla, another purely African species, is found in the south of Tunisia. The See also:

BARBARY

Barbary See also:

otter is present in the Majerda and in some of the salt lakes. The Tunisian See also:

HEDGEHOG, or URCHIN

hedgehog is peculiar to that country and to Algeria. There is a second species (Erinaceus deserti) which is common to all North Africa. In the south of Tunisia, especially about the shats, the See also:

ELEPHANT

elephant-See also:

SHREW

shrew (Macroscelides) is found, an See also:

animal of purely African affinities. Tunisia does not appear to possess the Barbary See also:

APE (Old Eng. ape; Dutch aap; Old Ger. a ffo; Welsh epa; Old Bohemian op; a word of uncertain origin, possibly an imitation of the animal's chatter)

ape, which is found in Algeria and Morocco. Natives of Morocco and of the Sahara oases occasionally bring with them See also:

young baboons which they assert are obtained in various Sahara countries to the south and south-west of Tunisia. These baboons appear to belong to the Nubian species, but they cannot be considered indigenous to any part of Tunisia.

The See also:

PORCUPINE (Fr., pore-epic, " spiny pig ")

porcupine and a large Octodont rodent (Ctenodactylus), the See also:

JERBOA

jerboa (two species), the See also:

hare, and various other rodents are met with in Tunisia. The wild See also:

BOAR (0. Eng. bar; the word is found only in W. Ger. languages, cf. Dutch beer, Ger. Eber)

boar inhabits the country, in spite of much persecution at the hands of " chasseurs." The forested regions shelter the hand-some Barbary red See also:

deer, which is peculiar to this region and the adjoining districts of Algeria. In the extreme south, in the Sahara desert, the See also:

ADDAX

addax See also:

ANTELOPE

antelope is still found. The See also:

HARTEBEEST

hartebeest appears now to be quite extinct; so also is the leucoryx, though formerly these two antelopes were found right up to the centre of Tunisia, as was also the See also:

OSTRICH

ostrich, now entirely absent from the country. In the marshy lake near Mater (north Tunisia), round the mountain island of Jebel Ashkel, is a See also:

HERD (a word common to Teutonic languages; the O. Eng. form was heord; cf. Ger. Herde, Swed. and Dan. hjord; the Sans. ca'rdhas, which shows the pre-Teutonic form, means a troop)

herd of over 50 buffaloes; these.. are said to resemble the domestic (See also:

INDIAN

Indian) See also:

BUFFALO

buffalo of the See also:

LEVANT

Levant and Italy, and to have their origin in a See also:

GIFT (a common Teutonic word, cf. Ger. die Gift, gift, das Gift, poison, formed from the Teut. stem gab-, to give, cf. Dutch geven, Ger. geben; in O. Eng. the word appears with initial y, the guttural of later English is due to Scandinavian influence)

gift of domestic buffaloes from a former See also:

king of See also:

Naples to a See also:

BEY (a modern Turk. word, the older form being beg, cf. Pers. baig)

bey or See also:

DEY (an adaptation of the Turk. dai, a maternal uncle)

dey of Tunis. Others again assert the buffaloes to have been there from time immemorial ; ' in which case it is very desirable that a specimen should be submitted for examination. [An allied form with gigantic horns is found fossil in Algeria.] They are the private See also:

PROPERTY

property of the bey, who very properly preserves them. Far down in the Sahara, to the south of Tunisia, the See also:

ARABS

Arabs See also:

REPORT (O.Fr. report or raport, modern rapport, from O.Fr. reporter, mod. rap porter, Lat. reportare, to bring back, in poetical use only, of bringing back an account, news, &c.)

report the existence of a wild See also:

ass,' apparently identical with that of See also:

NUBIA

Nubia. Roman mosaics show representations not only of this ass, but of the See also:

ORYX (Gr. opvE, a pickaxe, hence applied to the animal)

oryx, hartebeest, and perhaps of the addax. The dorcas gazelle is still common in the south of Tunisia; but perhaps the most interesting ruminant is the magnificent See also:

UDAD, AOUDAD

udad, or Barbary See also:

sheep, which is found in the sterile mountainous regions of south Tunisia. The birds have been ably}' illustrated by Mr See also:

WHITAKER, JOSEPH (1820-1895)

Whitaker in the See also:

IBIS

Ibis See also:

MAGAZINE

magazine of the ]3ritisl'i Ornithological See also:

Union. They are, as a See also:

RULE

rule, common to the south Mediterranean region.

A beautiful little See also:

BIRD

bird almost peculiar to the south of Tunisia and the adjoining regions of Algeria, is a species of See also:

bunting (Fringilla), called by the Arabs bu-habibi.' This little bird, which is about the size of the See also:

LINNET, O

linnet, has the See also:

head and back silvery See also:

BLUE (common in different forms to most European languages)

blue, and the rest of the plumage See also:

CHOCOLATE

chocolate red-See also:

brown. It is of the most engaging tameness, being fortunately protected by popular sentiment from injury. It inhabits the Jerid, and ex-tends thence across the Algerian frontier. Among reptiles the See also:

EGYPTIAN

Egyptian See also:

COBRA (Naja tripudians)

cobra seems to be indigenous in the south, where also is found the dreaded horned See also:

VIPER

viper. Some nine or ten other species of See also:

SNAKES

snakes are present, together with an abundance of lizards, including the Varanus, and most species of Mediterranean tortoises are represented. The coasts are very See also:

rich in See also:

fish, and the See also:

TUNNY (Thunnus thynnus)

tunny See also:

FISHERIES

fisheries of the north are one of the principal See also:

SOURCES

sources from which the See also:

WORLD

world's supply of tunny is derived. Inhabitants.—The natives of Tunisia at the present day belong mainly to two See also:

STOCKS

stocks, which may be roughly classified as the See also:

BERBER

Berber (q.v.) and the Arab (q.v.), about two-thirds being of Berber and the remaining third of Arab descent. But, the Berbers of to-day are little more than an incomplete See also:

FUSION

fusion of some four earlier and once See also:

INDEPENDENT

independent stocks. These four divisions taken in the See also:

order of their assumed priority of invasion or habitation are: (1) the "See also:

NEANDERTHAL

Neanderthal " type, which is found in the districts of the shats and the adjoining Matmata table-land in the south, and in the " Kroumir country of the Echium sericeum, Vahl. Arum italicum, Mill. Echium maritimum, Willd. Lagurus ovatus, L.

Anchusa italica, See also:

Retz. To this list should also be added the common wild See also:

TULIP (Tulipa)

tulip, the See also:

ITALIAN

Italian See also:

CYCLAMEN

cyclamen, the common See also:

SCARLET

scarlet See also:

POPPY

poppy, the See also:

FENNEL

fennel, wild See also:

CARROT

carrot and many varieties of See also:

THISTLE

thistle, some of gorgeous colouring. " See also:

FATHER

Father of my friend." north-west;' (2) See also:

ORDINARY (med. Lat. ordinarius, Fr. ordinaire)

ordinary Berbers, dolichocephalous, and of brown complexion, found over the greater part of Tunisia, especially in the east and south centre; (3) the short-headed Berbers, found in part of the Matmata country, part of the Sahara, the island of Jerba, the Cape Bon Peninsula, and the vicinity of Susa, Kairwan, and Sfax; (4) Berbers of a blond type, that is to say, with a tendency to brown or yellow moustaches, brown See also:

beard and head See also:

HAIR (a word common to Teutonic languages)

hair, and grey eyes. These are met with in the west and north-west of Tunisia, and in one patch on the coast of the Cape Bon Peninsula, near Nabeul. The Arabs of more or less unmixed descent are purely nomads. They are met with in a long strip of country south of the Majerda, between the Algerian frontier and the sea-coast north of Susa; also inland, to the south-west of Susa, and near Kef; also in another long strip between the vicinity of Sfax on the north and the Jerid on the south. They are descended from the second Arab invasion which began in the rrth See also:

CENTURY (from Lat. centuria, a division of a hundred men)

century (see See also:

HISTORY

History). The extreme south of Tunis is ranged over by Berber Tawareg2 or Tamasheq. Berber dialects are still spoken in Tunisia in the island of Jerba, in the Matmata country, and in the Tunisian Sahara. Elsewhere to a remarkable degree the Arabic language has extinguished the Berber See also:

TONGUE (O. Eng. lunge)

tongue, though no doubt in vulgar Tunisian a good many Berber words remain. Short vocabularies of the Berber spoken in the Tunisian Sahara have been published by See also:

Sir H. H.

Johnston in the Geog. Journ. (1898), vol. xi., and by Mr G. B. See also:

MICHELL, JOHN (1724-1793)

Michell in the Journ. African Soc. (1903). The Berbers are organized in tribes with purely democratic See also:

government and See also:

LAWS

laws of their own, which are not those of the See also:

KORAN

Koran. On the north-eastern littoral of Tunisia the See also:

POPULATION (Lat. populus, people; populare, to populate)

population is very mixed. The inhabitants of the Cape Bon Peninsula show evident signs of Greek See also:

BLOOD

blood arising from Greek invasions, which began in prehistoric times and finished with the downfall of the See also:

BYZANTINE

Byzantine See also:

EMPIRE

Empire in North Africa. The presence of the Romans, and the constant introduction of. the Italians, first as slaves, and quite recently as colonists, has also added an Italian element to the north Tunisian population. But from the fact that the bulk of the Tunisian population belongs to the Iberian See also:

section of the Berbers, and to this being no doubt the fundamental stock of most Italian peoples, the intermixture of the Italianized Berber with his African See also:

BROTHER

brother has not much affected the physique of the See also:

PEOPLE

people, though it may have slightly tinged their See also:

MENTAL

mental characteristics.

The Phoenicians have See also:

LEFT

left no marked trace of their presence; but inasmuch as they were probably of nearly the same race as the Arabs, it would not be easy to distinguish the two types. Arab and Berber have mingled to some extent, though no considerable fusion of the two elements has taken See also:

PLACE (through Fr. from Lat. platea, street; Gr. IrAar6s, wide)

place. In fact, it is thought by some French students of the country that the Arab element will probably be eliminated from Tunisia, as it is the most unsettled. It is considered that these nomads will be gently pushed back towards the Sahara, leaving cultivable Tunisia to the settled Berber stock, a stock fundamentally one with the peoples of Mediterranean Europe. The inhabitants of the coast towns belong, in large, part,. to the class generally known as " See also:

Moors." The pure See also:

TURKS

Turks and the Kuluglis (sons of See also:

TURKISH

Turkish fathers by Moorish See also:

WOMEN

women or slave girls) are no longer numerous. Among the " Moors " the descendants of the Andalusian refugees form an exclusive and aristocratic class. The present population of Tunisia See also:

numbers approximately 2,000,000, and consists of: 620,000 Berbers, more or less of pure race, say . . Arabs, „ . 500,000 Mixed Arab and Berber peoples, say . . . . 520,000 ' In this Matmata country are the celebrated See also:

TROGLODYTES (rpcay?oSurat, from rpwyXn, hole, Svw, creep)

Troglodytes, people living in caves and underground dwellings now, much as they did in the days when the See also:

early Greek geographers alluded to them. See " A Journey in the Tunisian Sahara," by Sir H.

H. Johnston, in the Geog. Journ. (See also:

JUNE

June 1898). t Tawareq (See also:

TUAREG, or TAWAREK (more properly Tawarik, the collective form of tarki, from Arabic terek, to give up)

Tuareg) is the Arab designation of the Libyan or Desert Berbers. It is the plural form of Tarqi, " a raider." The Tawareq See also:

CALL (from Anglo-Saxon ceallian, a common Teutonic word, cf. Dutch kallen, to talk or chatter)

call themselves by some variant of the See also:

root Masheq—Tamasheq, Imoshagh, &c. Moors " (chiefly the population of the principal cities, of mixed Roman, Berber, See also:

SPANISH

Spanish, See also:

MOOR

Moor and See also:

Christian races), say rio,000 Sudanese negroes and natives of Morocco, Tripoli and See also:

TURKEY

Turkey, say 40,000 See also:

Jews (mostly natives of Tunis, indeed, some descended from families settled at See also:

Carthage before the destruction of See also:

Jerusalem) . . . 68,000 Europeans (Christians) 2 163,000 Towns. Besides the See also:

capital, Tunis, the See also:

CHIEF (from Fr. chef, head, Lat. caput)

chief towns of Tunisia are Sfax, Susa and Kairwan. These places are noticed separately, as are also See also:

GOLETTA [LA GOULETTE]

Goletta (formerly the See also:

PORT

port of Tunis), Bizerta (a See also:

NAVAL

naval port and See also:

ARSENAL

arsenal), Kef, See also:

PORTO

Porto See also:

FARINA, SALVATORE (1846– )

Farina, and the ruins at Carthage and $beitla (Sufetula). Other towns of Tunisia are, on the east coast, Nabeul, pop. about 5000, the ancient Neapolis, noted for the mildness of its climate and its pottery manufactures; Hammamet with 3700 inhabitants; See also:

MONASTIR, or BITOLIA

Monastir (the Ruspina of the Romans), a walled town with 5600 inhabitants and a See also:

trade in cereals and See also:

OILS (adopted from the Fr. oile, mod. huile, Lat. oleum, olive oil)

oils; Mandiya or Mandia (q.v.; in ancient See also:

CHRONICLES, BOOKS OF

chronicles called the city of Africa and sometimes the capital of the country) with 8500 inhabitants, the fallen city of the See also:

Fatimites, which since the French occupation has risen from its ruins, and has a new See also:

HARBOUR (from M.E. hereberge, here, an army; cf. Ger. Heer and -beorg, protection or shelter. Other early forms in English were herberwe and haiborow, as seen in various place names, such as Market Harborough.. The French auberge, an inn, derived through

harbour (the ancient Cothon or harbour, of Phoenician origin, cut out of the See also:

rock is nearly dry but in excellent preservation); and Gabes (Tacape of the Romans, Qabis of the Arabs) on the Syrtis, a See also:

GROUP

group of small villages, with an aggregate population of 16,000, the port of the Shat country and a See also:

DEPOT (from the Fr. depot, Lat. depositum, laid down; the French accent marks are usually dispensed with in English)

depot of the esparto trade.

The chief town of the Majerda See also:

basin is See also:

Beja (pop. 5000), the ancient Vaga, an important See also:

corn See also:

MARKET (Lat. mercatus, trade or place of trade)

market. The principal See also:

MOSQUE (through Fr. mosquie; Span. mezquila, from Arab. masjid, sajada, to adore)

mosque at Beja was originally a Christian See also:

BASILICA

basilica, and is still dedicated to Sidna Aissa (our See also:

Lord Jesus). Gafsa, in the south of Tunisia, is a most interesting old Roman town, with hot springs. It is in railway communication with Sfax. West of Gafsa are immense beds of phosphates. Almost all the towns of Tunisia were originally Roman or romanized Berber settlements; consequently the remains of Roman buildings form a large part of the material of which their existing structures are composed. Antiquities and See also:

Art.—The principal Roman and other ruins in the regency, are the aqueducts near the capital (Tunis) and the See also:

temple at Zaghwan, described under Tunis city; the great See also:

RESERVOIR

reservoir near Carthage (q.v.); the See also:

AMPHITHEATRE (Gr. 441, around, and O&arpov, a place for spectators)

amphitheatre at El Jem (see SusA); the temples and other ruins of See also:

SBEITLA (anc. Sufetula)

Sbeitla (q.v.); the ruins of Dugga, near Tebursuk, in the north-west of the regency (the amphitheatre of Dugga, the ancient Thugga, is a magnificent spectacle) ; the baths, amphitheatre and temples of Feriana (the ancient Thelepte); the whole route between Feriana (which is in the south of Tunisia, 33 in. north-west of Gafsa) and See also:

TEBESSA (the Roman Theveste)

Tebessa in Algeria is strewn on both sides with Roman ruins; the old houses and other ruins at and near Thala; the baths and other ruins of Gafsa; the baths at Tuzer, El Hamma and Gabes. There is an interesting Phoenician See also:

BURIAL

burial-ground near Mandia. There are Roman ruins, scarcely known, in the vicinity of Beja and the country of the Mogods (the district behind Cape Serrat). In short, Tunisia is as much strewn with Roman remains as is Italy itself. Saracenic art has perhaps not attained here the high degree it reached in western Algeria, Spain and Egypt; still it presents much that is beautiful to see and worthy to be studied.

.One of the most ancient, as it is one of the loveliest fragments, See also:

STRANGE, SIR ROBERT (1721-1792)

strange to say, is found at Tuzer, in the Jerid, the mahrab of a ruined mosque.4 There are some very beautiful doorways to mosques and other specimens of Moorish art at Gabes. Examples of this art found at Tunis and Kairwan have been noticed under those headings. But the visible remains of Saracenic art in Tunis and its vicinity are of relatively See also:

RECENT

recent date, the few mosques which might offer earlier examples not being open to inspection by Christians. It may be noted, however, as a See also:

general See also:

CONDITION (Lat. condicio, from condicere, to agree upon, arrange; not connected with conditio, from condere, conditum, to put together)

condition that the native towns and villages of Tunisia, where they have not been spoiled by the shocking tastelessness of Mediterranean Europe, are exceedingly picturesque, and offer exceptional attractions to the painter. See also:

INDUSTRIES

Industries.—See also:

Agriculture is the principal See also:

INDUSTRY (Lat. industria, from indu-, a form of the pre, position in, and either stare, to stand, or struere, to pile up)

industry. Oats, wheat and barley are the chief crops in the north. In the central region 8 Of recent introduction for the most part, consisting (See also:

CENSUS (from Lat. censere, to estimate or assess; connected by some with centum, i.e. a count by hundreds)

census of 1906) of 81,156 Italians, 34,610 French, 10,330 Maltese, about r000 Greeks and the See also:

REMAINDER, REVERSION

remainder See also:

BRITISH

British, German, See also:

AUSTRIAN

Austrian, &c. The French See also:

army of occupation (20,360 men) is not included in these figures. Since this was written the mahrab in question has been removed to Paris. the olive is largely cultivated, in the south the date-palm. Viticulture is also of importance; almonds, oranges, lemons, &c., are also grown for export. The alfa and cork industries employ large numbers of persons, as do also the sardine, See also:

ANCHOVY (Engraulis encrasicholus)

anchovy and tunny fisheries.

The fisheries are in the hands of Italians, Maltese and Greeks. There are large herds of cattle and flocks of sheep and goats. About 6o,000 acres are cultivated by French immigrants and about 15,000 acres by Italians. Among native industries may be mentioned the See also:

SPINNING (from O. Eng. spinnen, to spin, cf. Ger. spinnen, &c., the Teut. root is seen, to draw out, cf. span, spider)

spinning and See also:

WEAVING

weaving of See also:

WOOL, WORSTED AND WOOLLEN MANUFACTURES

wool for clothing, See also:

CARPET

carpet-weaving, the manufacture of pottery, slippers and See also:

MATTING

matting, See also:

SADDLE (a word common to Teutonic languages, cf. Ger. Sattel, Dut. zadel, also in Russ. siedlo and Lat. sella, for sedla; it is not derived directly from Lat. sedile, which means a chair, but all the words are to be referred to the root sad-, which gives

saddle-making and See also:

leather See also:

EMBROIDERY (M.E. embrouderie, from O. Fr. embroder, Mod. Fr. broder)

embroidery. See also:

SILK

Silk-weaving, formerly important, is declining. In 1907 the number of mines working was 32. The export of phosphates See also:

rose from 445,000 tons in 1904 to 1,267,000 tons in 1908. The export of coal in that year was 74,000 tons, and copper ore 937 tons (vide supra, § Minerals). See also:

Commerce.—The commerce of Tunisia has thriven under the French See also:

PROTECTORATE

protectorate, having risen from an annual See also:

TOTAL

total of about £1,700,000 in 1881 to £8,687,000 in 1908. British trade with Tunisia has nearly tripled since the See also:

ESTABLISHMENT (0. Fr. establissement, Fr. etablissement, late Norm. Fr. establishement, from O. Fr. establir, Fr. etablir, Lat. stabilire, to make stable)

establishment of the French protectorate. It stood at over £600,000 in annual value during the year 1898. In 1908 the total trade with Great See also:

BRITAIN (Gr. Hperavuml vi7vot, Bperravia; Lat. Britannia, rarely Britannia)

Britain and See also:

Malta amounted to £914,000.

In the same year the imports from France exceeded £2,750,000 and the exports to France £1,685,000. From Algeria the imports were £656,000; to Algeria the exports were £185,000. The principal exports are olive oil, wheat, esparto grass, barley, See also:

SPONGES

sponges, See also:

DATES

dates, fish (especially tunny), hides, horses, wool, phosphates, copper, zinc and lead. The imports consist mainly of European manufactured goods (especially British See also:

cotton), machinery, See also:

FLOUR

flour, See also:

ALCOHOL

alcohol, See also:

SUGAR

sugar, See also:

TIMBER

timber, coal and See also:

PETROLEUM (Lat. Petra, rock, and oleuin, oil)

petroleum. About half the See also:

SHIPPING

shipping trade is in the hands of the French; in 1908, of the total See also:

TONNAGE

tonnage of See also:

SHIPS

ships entered, 4,155,009, French vessels represented 1,905,000 tons, Italian vessels 1,422,000 tons and British vessels 299,000 tons. Communications.—The French have made since 1882 about 2000 M. of good roads. The first railway built (1871–1872) was that between Goletta and Tunis. This line, with the extensions to La Marsa and Bardo, is 211 M. in length. It was constructed by an English See also:

COMPANY

company, which in 188o sold it to an Italian company, despite the keen competition of French rivals (see History, below). The See also:

CONVERSION (Lat. conversio, from convertere, to turn or ,change)

conversion of Tunis into a seaport (1893) destroyed the importance of this line, which was then sold to the French See also:

Bone-Guelma Company (Bone-Guelma et Prolongements), which owns the See also:

MAJORITY (Fr. majorite; Med. Lat. majoritas; Lat. major, greater)

majority of the See also:

RAILWAYS

railways in Tunisia. The second railway connects the capital with the frontier of Algeria, where, at Suk Ahras, it joins the See also:

main line to See also:

CONSTANTINE

Constantine, See also:

ALGIERS (Fr. Alger, Arab. Jezair, i.e. The Islands)

Algiers, &c. This line was built by the Bone-Guelma Company.

The concession was obtained in 1877, and the line, 191 M. long, was finished in 1880. A branch line (8 m.) connected Beja with this railway, and another (II m.) ran from Tunis to Hamman-el-Enf, a favourite seaside resort of the Tunisians. For the next twelve years there was a pause in railway construction followed by the opening, in 1892, of the line between Susa and Moknine (30 m.). Then came the continuation of the line from Hamman-el-Enf to 1-Iammamet and along the Sahel to Susa (93 m.), and the See also:

BUILDING

building of a line from Susa to Kairwan, 31 M. (the last-named line superseded a See also:

HORSE (a word common to Teutonic languages in such forms as hors, hros, ros; cf. the Ger. ross)

horse-See also:

TRAMWAY

tramway built by the French army during the See also:

CAMPAIGN

campaign of 1881). A branch line to Bizerta (432 m.) from Jedeida on the main Algeria-Tunis line was also built as well as one from Tunis to Zaghwan (44 m.). A short line, branching from the Tunis-Zaghwan line, was carried south-west to See also:

PONT (or KYLPONT), ROBERT (1524–1606)

Pont du Fahs. These with a few short branch lines were built between 1892 and 1900 by the Bone-Guelma Company. In 1906 was opened a continuation of the line from Pont du Fahs to Kef and thence south-west to Kalaat-es-Senam, a place midway between Kef and Tebessa, the centre of the Algerian phosphate region. A branch from the Kef line runs to the phosphate mines of Kalaa-Jerda. Another railway (completed by 1900) runs from Sfax, along the coast to Mahres, thence inland to Gafsa and the phosphate mines of Metalwi. This line, 151 m. long, was for some years isolated from the general Tunisian See also:

SYSTEM

system.

The total mileage of the Tunisian railways was computed to be 1060 m. by the See also:

FINISHING

finishing of the Susa-Sfax, Gabes-Tebessa lines in 1909. Extensions of the railway system are contemplated to Gabes and, beyond, to the Tripolitan frontier. In the south communication is maintained chiefly by See also:

CAMEL (from the Arabic Djemal or the Heb. Gamal)

camel caravans. Posts and Telegraphs.—The whole of Tunisia is covered with a network of See also:

TELEGRAPH (Gr. Tike, far, and rypaq5eiv, to write)

telegraph lines (2500 m.), and there are telephones working in most of the large towns. The telegraph system penetrates to the farthest French See also:

POST

post in the Sahara, is connected with the Turkish system on the Tripolitan frontier and with Algeria, and by See also:

cable with See also:

SICILY (Ital. Sicilia)

Sicily, Malta, See also:

SARDINIA (Gr. 'IXs'o"uva, from a fancied resemblance to a footprint in its shape, Ital. Sardegna)

Sardinia and See also:

MARSEILLES

Marseilles. There is an efficient post See also:

OFFICE (from Lat. officium, " duty," " service," a shortened form of opifacium, from facere, " to do," and either the stem of opes, " wealth," " aid," or opus, " work ")

office service, with about 400 post offices. See also:

FINANCE

Finance.—The principal See also:

BANK

bank is the Banque de Tunisie. The coinage formerly was the caroub and piastre (the latter See also:

worth about 6d.), but in 1891 the French reformed the coinage, substituting the See also:

FRANC

franc as a unit, and having the See also:

MONEY

money minted at Paris. The values of the coinage are pieces of 5 and 10 centimes in See also:

BRONZE

bronze, of 50 centimes, I franc and 2 francs in See also:

SILVER

silver, of lo francs and 20 francs in See also:

gold. The See also:

INSCRIPTIONS (from Lat. inscribere, to write upon)

inscriptions are in French and Arabic. The public See also:

DEBT (Lat. debitum, a thing owed)

debt was consolidated in 1884 into a total of £5,7o2,000, guaranteed by France, and bearing 4% See also:

INTEREST

interest. In 1888 it was converted into a See also:

LOAN (adapted from the Scandinavian form of a word common to Teutonic languages, cf. Swed. Mn, Icel. lan, Dut. leen; the O.E. laen appears in " lend," the ultimate source is seen in the root of Gr. Xeiaecv and Lat. linquere, to leave)

loan paying 31% interest, and in 1892 another conversion reduced the rate of interest to 3 %.

In 1902 a new loan of £1,800,00o was issued at 3%. At the beginning of 1907 the total Tunisian debt was £9,287,260; in that year the government was authorized to See also:

contract another loan of £5,000,000 at 3% (L3,000,000 being guaranteed by France) for railways, roads and colonization. The weights and See also:

MEASURES

measures are those of France. The See also:

revenue for the year 1900 was £1,456,640, and the See also:

EXPENDITURE

expenditure was £1,452,597. In 1910 receipts and expenditure balanced at about £1,888,000 each. The principal sources of revenue are See also:

DIRECT

direct See also:

taxation, See also:

STAMP (from " to stamp," to strike or tread heavily, hence to impress, O. Eng. stempen, Du. stampen, Ger. stampfen, whence, O. Fr. estamper, mod. etamper)

stamp and See also:

DEATH

death duties, customs, port and lighthouse dues, See also:

OCTROI (0. Fr. octroyer, to grant, authorize; Lat. auctor)

octroi and See also:

TITHES

tithes, See also:

TOBACCO

tobacco, salt and See also:

GUNPOWDER

gunpowder monopolies, postal and telegraph receipts, and revenue from the state domains (lands, fisheries, forests, mines). The See also:

CIVIL

civil list paid to the Bey of Tunis amounts to £36,00o per annum, and the endowment of the princes and princesses of the beylical See also:

FAMILY

family to £31,200 a year more. See also:

ADMINISTRATION (Lat. administrare, to serve)

Administration.—From a native's point of view Tunisia still appears to be governed by the Bey of Tunis, his Arab ministers and his Arab officials, the French only exercising an indirect—though, a very real—See also:

CONTROL (Fr. contrdle, older form contre rolle, from Med. Lat. contra-rotulus, a counter roll or copy of a document used to check the original; there is no instance in English of the use of " control " in this, its literal, meaning)

control over the indigenous population (Mahommedans and Jews). But all Christians and foreigners are directly governed by the French, and the native administration is supervised by a See also:

STAFF (O. Eng. staef, cf. Du. staf, Ger. Stab, &c.; Icel. stafr meant also a written letter, and O. Eng. stafas, the letters of the alphabet; " stave," one of the thin pieces of wood of which a cask is made, is a doublet)

staff of thirteen French controleurs and their French and Tunisian subordinates. Seven of the departments of state have Frenchmen at their head, the other two, Tunisians: thus the larger proportion of the Bey-'s ministers are French. France is directly represented in Tunisia by a See also:

MINISTER (Lat. minister, servant)

minister See also:

RESIDENT

resident-general, and by an assistant resident. The French resident-general is the virtual See also:

VICEROY (from O. Fr. viceroy, mod. viceroi, i.e. Lat. vice, in place of, and roy or roi, king)

viceroy of Tunisia, and is minister for foreign affairs.

Besides Mussulman (native) See also:

SCHOOLS

schools there were in the regency, in 1906, 158 public schools, 5 lycees and colleges and 21 private schools. At these schools were 22,000 pupils (13,000 boys), all See also:

SAVE, or SAVA (Ger. Sau; Hungarian Szdva; Lat. Savus)

save 3500 Mussulmans being Europeans or Jews. History.—The history of Tunisia begins for us with the establishment of the Phoenician colonies (see See also:

PHOENICIA

PHOENICIA and CARTHAGE). The Punic settlers semitized the coast, but left the Berbers of the interior almost untouched. The Romans entered into the heritage of the Carthaginians and the See also:

VASSAL (Fr. vassal, vassaut, vassault, &c,)

vassal See also:

KINGS, FIRST AND SECOND BOOKS OF

kings of See also:

NUMIDIA

Numidia, and Punic speech and See also:

CIVILIZATION

civilization The gave way to Latin, a See also:

CHANGE (derived through the Fr. from the Late Lat. cambium, cambiare, to barter; the ultimate derivation is probably from the root which appears in the Gr. «a urmu', to bend)

change which from the time See also:

Province of of See also:

Caesar was helped on by Italian colonization; to-"Afa•" this region the Romans gave the name of "Africa," apparently a latinizing of the Berber term " Ifriqa," " Ifrigia " (in modern Arabic, Ifrigiyah). Rich in corn, in herds, and in later times also in oil, and possessing valuable fisheries, mines and quarries, the province of Africa, of which Tunisia was the most important part, attained under the empire a prosperity to which Roman remains in all parts of the country still See also:

bear See also:

witness. Carthage was the second city of the Latin part of the empire, " after See also:

Rome the busiest and perhaps the most corrupt city of the West, and the chief centre of Latin culture and letters." In the early history of Latin See also:

CHRISTIANITY

Christianity Africa holds a more important place than Italy. It was here that Christian Latin literature took its rise, and to this province belong the names of See also:

TERTULLIAN (c. 155-c. 222)

Tertullian and See also:

CYPRIAN, SAINT [Caecilius Cyprianus, called THASCIUS] (c. 200–258)

Cyprian, of See also:

Arnobius and Lactantius, above all of See also:

Augustine. Lost to Rome by the invasion of the See also:

VANDALS (Lat. Vandili or Vandilii)

Vandals, who took Carthage in 439, the province was recovered by See also:

BELISARIUS (c. 505–565)

Belisarius a century later (533-34), and remained Roman till the Arab invasions of 648-69. The conqueror, 'Ogba-See also:

bin-Nafa, founded the city of Kairwan (673) which was the See also:

RESIDENCE (Latin residere, to remain behind, to dwell, reside)

residence of the See also:

GOVERNORS

governors of " Ifrigiyah " under the Omayyads and thereafter the capital of the Aghlabite princes, the conquerors of Sicily, who ruled in merely nominal dependence on the See also:

ABBASIDS

Abbasids. The Latin element in Africa and the Christian faith almost disappeared in a single See also:

GENERATION (from Lat. generare, to beget, procreate; genus, stock, race)

generation;) the Berbers of the [r The North African See also:

Church was not utterly swept away by the Moslem See also:

CONQUEST

conquest, though its numbers at that time were Very greatly diminished, and thereafter See also:

fell gradually to vanishing point, partly by See also:

EMIGRATION (from Lat. emigrare; e, ex, out of, and migrare, to depart)

emigration to Europe. Its episcopate in the loth century still numbered See also:

THIRTY

thirty members, but in 1076 the Church could not provide three bishops to consecrate a new member of the episcopate, • and for that purpose See also:

Gregory VII. named two bishops to See also:

ACT (Lat. actus, actum)

act with the See also:

ARCHBISHOP (Lat. archiepiscopus, from Gr. apxceatorcoros)

archbishop of Carthage.

In the 13th century the native episcopate had disappeared. Abd ul-Mumin, the Almohade conqueror of Tunisia, compelled many of the native Christians to embrace See also:

ISLAM

Islam, but when Tunis was captured by See also:

Charles V. in 1535, there were still found in the city native Christians, the last remnants of the mouttains, who had never been latinized and never really christianized, accepted Islam without difficulty, but showed And, con- their stubborn See also:

NATIONALITY

nationality, not only in the character quest and of their Mahommedanism, which has always been Berber mixed up with the See also:

WORSHIP (i.e. " worth-ship," O. Eng. weor8scipe)

worship of living as well as Dynasties. dead See also:

SAINTS, BATTLE OF THE

saints (marabouts) and other peculiarities, but also in See also:

POLITICAL

political movements. The empire of the Fatimites (q.v.) rested on Berber support, and from that time forth till the See also:

ADVENT (Lat. Adventus, sc. Redemptoris, " the coming of the Saviour ")

advent of the Turks the dynasties of North Africa were really native, even when they claimed descent from some illustrious Arab stock. When the seat of the Fatimite Empire was removed to Egypt, the Zirites, a See also:

house of the Sanhaja Berbers, ruled as their lieutenants at Mandia, and about 1050 Mo'izz the Zirite, in connexion with a religious See also:

MOVEMENT

movement against the Shi'ites, transferred his very nominal See also:

ALLEGIANCE (Mid. Eng. ligeaunce; med. Lat. ligeantia, &c.; the al- was probably added through confusion with another legal term, allegeance, an allegation; the Fr. allegeance comes from the English; the word is formed from " liege," of which the derivatio

allegiance to the Abbasid caliphs. The Fatimites in revenge let loose upon Africa about A.D. 1045 a vast See also:

HORDE

horde of Beduins from Upper Egypt (Beni Hilal and Solaim), the ancestors of the modern nomads of Barbary. All North Africa was ravaged by the invaders, who, though unable to found an empire or overthrow the settled government in the towns, forced the agricultural Berbers into the mountains, and, retaining from generation to generation their lawless and predatory habits, made order and prosperity almost impossible in the open parts of the country until its effective occupations by the French. The Zirite See also:

DYNASTY (Gr. &vvaareta, sovereignty, the position of a hevnori7r, lord, ruler, from SuvaaBay to be able, Suvaµas, power)

dynasty was finally extinguished by See also:

Roger I. of Sicily, who took Mandia in 1148 and established his authority over all the Tunisian coast. Even Moslem historians speak favourably of the See also:

Norman rule in Africa; but it was brought to an early end by the Almohade See also:

CALIPH, CALIF

caliph Abd ul-Mumin, who took Mandia in 1160. The Almohade Empire soon began to decay, and in 1336 See also:

Abu Zakariya, See also:

prince of Tunis, was able to proclaim himself independent and found a dynasty, which subsisted from Abu Hafs, the ancestor of Abu Zakariya, a Berber chieftain who had been one of the intimate disciples of the Almohade See also:

MANDI

mandi) assumed the See also:

TITLE (0. Fr. title, mod. titre, from Lat. titulus)

title of Prince of the Faithful, a dignity which was acknowledged even at See also:

MECCA (Arab. Makkah)

Mecca, when in the days of Mostanir, the second Hafsite, the fall of See also:

BAGDAD, or BAGHDAD

Bagdad left Islam without a titular head. In its best days the empire of the Haf sites extended from See also:

TLEMCEN

Tlemcen to Tripoli, and they received See also:

HOMAGE (from homo, through the Low Lat. hominaticum, which occurs in a document of 1035)

homage from the Merinids of See also:

FEZ (Fes)

Fez; they held their own against repeated Frankish invasions, of which the most notable were that which cost St See also:

Louis of France his See also:

LIFE

life (1270), and that of the See also:

DUKE (corresponding to Fr. duc, Ital. duca, Ger. Herzog)

duke of See also:

Bourbon (1390), when English troops took part in the unsuccessful See also:

SIEGE (0. Fr. sege, siege, mod. siege, seat, ultimately from sedere, to sit, cf. Class. Lat. obsidium, a siege)

siege of Mandia. They adorned Tunis with mosques, schools and other institutions, favoured letters, and in general appear to have risen above the usual level of Moslem sovereigns.

But their rule was troubled by continual See also:

WARS

wars and insurrections; the support of the Beduin Arabs was imperfectly secured by See also:

PENSIONS

pensions, which formed a heavy See also:

BURDEN, or BURTHEN

burden on the finances of the state;' and in later times the dynasty was weakened by family dissensions. See also:

Leo See also:

AFRICANUS, SEXTUS JULIUS

Africanus, See also:

writing early in the 16th century, gives a favourable picture of the " great city " of Tunis, which had a flourishing manufacture of See also:

FINE

fine See also:

CLOTH

cloth, a prosperous See also:

COLONY (Lat. colonia, from colonus, a cultivator)

colony of Christian traders, and, including the suburbs, nine or ten thousand hearths; but he speaks also of the decay of once flourishing provincial towns, and especially of agriculture, the once powerful Church. Traces of Christianity remained among the See also:

KABYLES, or KABAIL

Kabyles till after the conquest of See also:

Granada 492), when the in-See also:

FLUX (Lat. fluxus, a flowing; this being also the meaning of the English term in medicine, &c.)

flux of Andalusian Moors from Spain completed the conversion of those tribes. It may be added that down to the early years of the 19th century it was alleged that some of the Tuareg tribes in the Sahara professed Christianity (see e.g. See also:

HORNEMANN, FREDERICK (fl. 1796–1800)

Hornemann's Travels). For the North African Church after the Moslem conquest, see . See also:

MIGNE, JACQUES PAUL (1800-1875)

Migne, Pat. See also:

lat. ; and Mas Latrie, Afrique septentrionale. Their See also:

INFORMATION (from Lat. informare, to give shape or form to, to represent, describe)

information is summarized in the introduction to vol. ii. of See also:

AZURARA, GOMES EANNES DE (?-1474)

Azurara's See also:

DISCOVERY

Discovery and Conquest of See also:

GUINEA

Guinea, See also:

HAKLUYT, RICHARD (c. 1553—1616)

Hakluyt Society's edition (1899).—ED.] ' In the 13th and 14th centuries the Hafsites also paid See also:

TRIBUTE (Lat. tributurn, a stated payment, contribution)

tribute to Sicily for the freedom of the sea and the right to import Sicilian corn—a clear See also:

PROOF (in M. Eng. preove, proeve, preve, &°c., from O. Fr . prueve, proeve, &c., mod. preuve, Late. Lat. proba, probate, to prove, to test the goodness of anything, probus, good)

proof of the decline of Tunisian agriculture.greater part of the open country lying waste for fear of the Arab marauders. Taxation was heavy, and the revenue very considerable: See also:

Don Juan of See also:

Austria, in a report to See also:

Philip II., states that the land revenue alone under the last Hafsite was 375,935 ducats, but of this a great part went in tribute to the Arabs. The conquest of Algiers by the Turks gave a dangerous See also:

NEIGHBOUR (O. Eng. neahgebiir, from Walt, " nigh," " near ")

neighbour to Tunisia, and after the death of Mohammed the Hafsite in 1525 a disputed See also:

SUCCESSION (Lat. successio, from succedere, to follow after)

succession supplied Khairad-Din See also:

BARBAROSSA ("Redbeard")

Barbarossa with a pretext for occupying the conquest, est. city in the name of the See also:

SULTAN (an Arabic word meaning " victorious " or " a ruler," sultat, dominion)

sultan of See also:

Constantinople.

Al-See also:

HASAN

Hasan, the son of Mahommed, sought help from the See also:

EMPEROR (Fr. empereur, from the Lat. imperator)

emperor, and was restored in 1535 as a Spanish vassal, by a force which Charles V. commanded in See also:

PERSON, OFFENCES AGAINST THE

person, while See also:

ANDREA, GIOVANNI (1275-1348)

Andrea See also:

DORIA, ANDREA (1466-156o)

Doria was See also:

ADMIRAL

admiral of the See also:

FLEET

fleet. But the conquest was far from See also:

COMPLETE

complete, and was never consolidated. The Spaniards remained at Goletta and made it a strong fortress, they also occupied the island of Jerba and some points on the south-east coast; but the interior was a See also:

PREY (0. Fr. preie, mod. proie, Lat. praeda, booty, from prae and the root hed—seen in prehendere, prendere, to grasp)

prey to anarchy and civil See also:

war, until in 1570 'Ali-See also:

PASHA

Pasha of Algiers utterly defeated Hamid, the son and successor of I;Iasan, and occupied Tunis. In 1573 the Turks again retreated on the approach of Don Juan, who had dreams of making himself king of Tunis; but this success was not followed up, and in the next year Sultan See also:

SELIM

Selim II. sent a strong expedition which drove the Spaniards from Tunis and Goletta, and reduced the country to a Turkish province. Nevertheless the Spanish occupation left a deep impression on the coast of Tunis, and not a few Spanish words passed into Tunisian Arabic. After the Turkish conquest, the civil administration was placed under a pasha; but in a few years a military revolution transferred the supreme See also:

POWER [WILLIAM GRATTAN] TYRONE (1797-1841)

power to a Dey elected by the See also:

JANISSARIES (corrupted from Turkish yeni cheri, new troops)

janissaries, who formed the army of occupation. The government of the Deys lasted till 1705, but was soon narrowed or Rise of the overshadowed by the authority of the Beys, whose Beys. proper See also:

FUNCTION

function was to See also:

MANAGE

manage the tribes and collect tribute. From 1631 to 1702 the office of Bey was hereditary in the descendants of See also:

MURAD, or AMURATH

Murad, a Corsican renegade, and their rivalry with the Deys and See also:

INTERNAL

internal dissensions kept the country in constant disorder. See also:

IBRAHIM

Ibrahim, the last of the Deys (1702-1705), destroyed the house of Murad, and absorbed the beyship in his own office; but, when he fell in See also:

BATTLE

battle with the Algerians, Hussein b. the son of a Cretan renegade, was proclaimed See also:

SOVEREIGN

sovereign by the troops under the title of " Bey," and, being a prince of See also:

ENERGY (from the Gr. ivipyela; iv, in, ipyov, work)

energy and ability, was able to establish the hereditary See also:

SOVEREIGNTY

sovereignty, which has lasted without change of dynasty to the present time .2 Frequent wars with Algiers form the chief incidents in the internal history of Tunisia under the Beys. Under Deys and Beys alike Tunisia was essentially a pirate state. Occasionally acts of chastisement, of which the See also:

BOMBARDMENT

bombardment of Porto Farina by See also:

Blake in 1655 was the most notable, and repeated See also:

TREATIES

treaties, extorted by -European See also:

POWERS, HIRAM (1805-1873)

powers, checked from time to time, but did not put an end to, the habitual piracies, on which indeed the public revenue of Tunis was mainly dependent. The powers were generally less concerned for the captives than for the acquisition of trading privileges, and the Beys took See also:

ADVANTAGE

advantage of the commercial rivalry of England and France to See also:

PLAY

play off the one power against the other.

The See also:

RELEASE (O.Fr. reles, variant of relais, from relaisser, to release, let go, Lat. relaxare)

release of all Christian slaves was not effected till after the bombardment of Algiers; and the definite See also:

ABANDONMENT (Fr. abandonnement, from abandonner, to abandon, relinquish; abandonner was originally equivalent to mettred banddn, to leave to the jurisdiction, i.e. of another, bandon being from Low Latin bandum, bannum, order, decree, " ban ")

abandonment of piracy may be dated from the presentation to the Bey in 1819 of a collective See also:

note of the powers assembled at See also:

Aix-la-Chapelle. The government had not See also:

ELASTICITY

elasticity enough to adapt itself to so profound a change in its ancient traditions; the finances became more and more hopelessly embarrassed, in spite of ruinous taxation; and attempts at European innovations in the See also:

court and army made matters only worse, so long as no See also:

ATTEMPT (Lat. adtemptare, attentare, to try)

attempt was made to improve 2 Muhammad VI. es Sadok, the reigning Bey at the time of the French occupation, died in October 1882, and was succeeded by his brother Ali IV. This prince reigned until 19o2, the See also:

THRONE

throne then passing to his son Muhammad VII. el Hadi, who died in 19o8, when his See also:

cousin Muhammad VIII. en Nasr (b. 1855) became Bey. The till the advent of the Turks. The Hafsites (so called ffafaltes. the internal condition of the country. In the third See also:

QUARTER (through Fr. from Lat. quartarius, fourth part)

quarter of the 19th century not more than a tenth part of the fertile land was under cultivation, and the yearly See also:

charge on the public debt exceeded the whole annual revenue. In these circumstances only the rivalry of the European powers that had interests in Tunisia protracted from year to year the inevitable revolution. The French began to regard the dominions of the Bey as a natural See also:

ADJUNCT (from Lat. ad, to, and jungere, to join)

adjunct to Algeria, but after the See also:

CRIMEAN

Crimean War Turkish rights over the regency of Tunis were revived.. After the Franco-German War the embarrassed Bey turned towards Great Britain for See also:

ADVICE (Fr. avis, from Lat. ad, to, and visum, viewed)

advice, and a British protectorate—suggested by the proximity of Malta—was not an impossibility under the remarkable See also:

INFLUENCE (Late Lat. influentia, from influere, to flow in)

influence of the celebrated Sir See also:

Richard See also:

Wood, British See also:

DIPLOMATIC

diplomatic agent at the court of Tunis from 1855 to 1879. The railways, lighthouses, See also:

gas and waterworks and other concessions and industries were placed in British hands.

But in 1878, at the See also:

CONGRESS (Lat. congressus, coming together, from congredi; cum, with, and gradus, step)

Congress of See also:

Berlin, Lord See also:

Salisbury agreed to allow France a " See also:

FREE

free hand " in Tunisia in return for French acquiescence in the British See also:

LEASE (derived through the Fr. from the Lat. laxare, to loosen)

lease of See also:

Cyprus. After 1862, however, the See also:

KINGDOM

kingdom of Italy began to take a deep interest in the future of Tunisia. When the country occupation went bankrupt in 1869, a triple control was estab- by the lished over Tunisian finances, with British, French French. and Italian " controllers." In 1880 the Italians bought the British railway from Tunis to Goletta. This and other actions excited the French to act on the See also:

SECRET (Lat. secretum, hidden, concealed)

secret under-See also:

STANDING

standing effected with the British foreign minister at the Berlin Congress. In 1881 a French force crossed the Algerian frontier under pretext of chastising the independent Khmir or Kroumir tribes on the north-east of the regency, and, quickly dropping the See also:

MASK (Fr. masque, apparently from med. Lat. mascus, masca, spectre, through Ital. maschera, Span. mascara)

mask, advanced on the capital and compelled the Bey to accept the French protectorate. The actual conquest of the country was not effected without a serious struggle with Moslem fanaticism, especially at Sfax; but all Tunisia was brought completely under French See also:

jurisdiction and administration, supported by military posts at every important point. In 1883 the new situation under the French protectorate was recognized by the British government with-See also:

DRAWING

drawing its consular jurisdiction in favour of the French courts, and in 1885 it ceased to be represented by a diplomatic See also:

OFFICIAL (Late Lat. QJicialis, for class. Lat. apparitor, from officium, office, duty)

official. The other powers followed suit, except Italy, which did not recognize the full consequences of the French protectorate until 1896. In 1884 a thorough reform of the government and administration of the country was begun under the direction of a succession of eminent French residents-general. In 1897 Great Britain surrendered her commercial treaty with Tunisia and agreed (subject to a See also:

SPECIAL

special temporary See also:

PRIVILEGE

privilege regarding cotton goods) to allow her commerce and all other relations with Tunisia to be subjected to the same conditions as those affecting all such relations between Britain and France. The French protectorate over Tunisia, based on the treaty signed by the Bey at Bardo on the 12th of May 1881 and cons Relations firmed by the treaty of La Marsa (June 8, 1883), was with not recognized by Turkey, which claimed the regency Turkey. as part of the See also:

OTTOMAN

Ottoman dominions. The protests of the See also:

PORTE, THE SUBLIME (Arab. babi-'ali, the high gate, through the French translation la sublime porte)

Porte were ignored by the French, and in 1892 Turkey so far recognized the actual situation as to determine the Tunisia-Tripoli frontier as far south as See also:

GHADAMES, GADAMES

Ghadames.

South of that point the Saharan frontiers of Algeria, Tunisia and Tripoli remained undefined. Working eastward from Tunisia and Algeria the French occupied several points to which Turkey laid claim. Thus the oasis of See also:

JANET, PAUL (1823—1899)

Janet, S.S.W. of Rhat, was occupied in 1906. The See also:

ACTION

action of France led to See also:

COUNTER

counter-action by Turkey and to _various frontier incidents. Janet was re-occupied by Ottoman troops in the summer of 1910, but in deference to French protests the troops were withdrawn pending the delimitation of the frontier. At the same time Turkey maintained the claim that Tunisians were Ottoman subjects. Frontier troubles had however little effect on the remainder of the protectorate. In 1904-1905 there were famines and some native discontent in the south of Tunisia; but in general the country has prospered amazingly under the French protec-399 torate. The native dynasty has been strengthened rather than weakened, and Tunisia may be pointed out as the best and wisest example of French administration over an See also:

ALIEN (Lat. alienus)

alien land and race. Though on a smaller See also:

scale it is worthy to be set as a See also:

PENDANT (through Fr. from Lat. pendere, to hang)

pendant to the British work in Egypt.

End of Article: TUNISIA (Regency of Tunis)

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