The Mediterranean Sea Part of the Atlantic

THE MEDITERRANEAN SEA PART OF THE ATLANTIC The by far the largest and most import ant inland sea in the world, lies between Europe on the north, Africa on the south, and Asia on the east. Its length, from the Straits of Gibraltar to the coast of Syria, is 2,300 miles, and its breadth varies exceedingly—from 1,000 miles between the Gulfs of Taranto and Sidra to 80 miles between Sicily and Tunis. Its broken and irregular northern shores contrast strongly with the bold and regular outline of the North African coast. The coasts of Spain and France are low, except at and near Cape Creux, where the Pyrenees terminate. The Italian coast from Tuscany to Naples is swampy, and borders on the Pontine Marshes. The western and eastern shores of the Adriatic contrast strongly—the former being low, while the latter is moderately high and rocky. The coasts of Greece, Turkey, and Asia Minor are on the whole bold, and the first, especially, being very irregular. That of Egypt is low and sandy. Westwards, the coasts of the Barbary States are generally regular, but containing several bays and harbours. Various parts of the Mediterranean are distin guished by special names—such as the Gulfs of Lions 2 and Genoa, the Adriatic Sea, the Archipelago or ilEgean Sea on the north, the Levant on the east, and the Gulfs of Sidra and Cabes on the south Of the islands, the more important are—the Balearic Isles, Sar dinia, Corsica, Sicily, Malta, the Ionian Islands, Candia, Cyprus and Negropont, and other islands of the Archipelago. The area drained directly into the Mediterranean is only 300,000 square miles, scarcely one-third that drained into the smaller Black Sea. The principal rivers are—the %near (250 m.), Ebro (420 m.), Rhone (490 in.), Arno (150 in.), Tiber (210 in.), Po (460 m.), Adige (250 in.), Vardar, Struma, and the Maritza (320 in.), the Nile (3,000 in.), and the Mejerdah, Roumel, SUM, and Mulwia, from the Atlas Moun tains.

Notwithstanding the immense amount of fresh water dis charged into this sea, its waters are salter than those of the Atlantic —the proportion of saline ingredients being per cent., as against per cent. in the latter. Evaporation must therefore be ex tremely active; and it is indeed computed that three times as much water is evaporated as is supplied by all the rivers entering it Were the Strait of Gibraltar closed, the level of the Mediterranean would be reduced until the amount of evaporation exactly balanced the supply of river-water. As it is, a strong surface-current flows from the Atlantic through the Straits of Gibraltar ; the excess in level which would thus be produced, were there no compensating outflow, is counteracted by a smaller under-current flowing into the Atlantic. As the Mediterranean communicates with the ocean by a channel—the Straits of Gibraltar—lying parallel to the course of the tidal-wave, the tides are slight, the rise scarcely anywhere exceeding a few inches. As a commercial highway the Medi

terranean is most important, lying as it does between the three great continents of the Old World. Its importance in this respect has recently been greatly increased by the construction of the Suez Canal, so that there is now a continuous waterway between the Atlantic and the Indian Oceans. A large proportion of the com mercial, and all the mail and passenger traffic between England and India, now passes through the Canal, the route being about 5,000 miles shorter than that round the Cape of Good Hope.

The

Straits of Gibraltar—bounded on the west by Cape Tra falgar and Cape Spartel, and on the east by Europa Point and Cape Ceuta—connect the Mediterranean with the Atlantic ; the Dar danelles with the Sea of Marmora (170 miles long and 48 miles broad) ; the communication with the Black Sea being completed by the Channel of Constantinople, or Bosphorus. As regards depth, the Mediterranean is on the whole deep, and is divided into two unequal basins by a chain of shoals known as the Skerki, which extend from Sicily to Cape Bon in Africa. This remarkable submarine ridge rises in some places to within a few fathoms of the surface, and in the deepest parts sinks to 140 or 200 fathoms. The Mediterranean has an average depth of 1,200 fathoms in the western, and about 2,000 fathoms in the eastern, basin. The maximum depth in the Strait of Gibraltar is about 500 fathoms. We cannot close this brief sketch of the Mediter ranean better than in the words of Admiral Smyth, who, in his valuable survey, remarks that "the political and social events which have occurred on the shores of this remarkable part of the ocean are closely connected with the history of almost every country in the world ; but, independently of its classical and historical asso ciations, the Mediterranean still confers invaluable advantages upon the numerous occupiers of its coasts, and through them on the interior of the surrounding continents. It is, moreover, the great bond of intercourse between the nations of Europe, Asia, and Africa, although it appears as if destined to keep them asunder. Beautifully diversified with islands, and bounded by ahnost every variety of soil, its products are proportionately various ; and from its communication with the Atlantic, it facilitates commerce with every part of the world." Commercially, the Mediterranean is one of the most im portant water-ways in the world. The following table shows the total value of the imports and exports of the countries bordering on the Mediterranean in the year 1878 :—