ATLAS, a mass of mountain-land in the western part of north Africa. Herodotus mentions a smoking mountain of this name situated on the s.w. of the Little Syrtis, and twenty days' journey westwards from the Garamantes, styled by the natives the " pillars of heaven." By later writers, after the time of Polybius, the name A. was always given to the chain of mountains in n.w. Africa extending from the island of Conte (now cape de Ger) n.w. through Mauritania, and Tingitana (now Fez and Morocco), and including also the heights dispersed through the region of Sahara. It is divided into the Little Atlas and the Great Atlas; the former denominating a secondary range in the country of Sous, and the other, the loftier mountains of Morocco. The A. is not properly a mountain-chain, but rather a very irregular mountainous mass of land formed of many chains running in various directions, meeting in mountain-knots, or connected by yokes, or short chains of inferior height, and diversified still further by several solitary moun tains and groups of mountains. The A. attains its greatest height (13,000 ft.) in Morocco, the only part where it rises above the snow-line, and obtains the name of Jebel-el-Thelj, or Snowy Mountains. Its highest peaks are Miltsin-27 m. s.e. of the
city of Morocco—Bibawan, and Tagherain. The most southern chain diverging here from the central mass bears the name Jebel-Hadnar. The heights approach the sea. and form the promontories out into the Atlantic. From Morocco, the A. gradually decreases in height towards the east. In Algeria, the elevation is only 7673 ft. ' • in Tunis, 4476 ft.; and in Tripoli, 3200 ft. The whole mountain-system is intersected by the valley of the Muluia river, which flows through the n.e. part of Morocco, and 'falls into the Mediterranean. The slopes on the n., Mr., and s. are covered with vast forests of pine, oak, cork, white poplar, wild olive, etc. The valleys are well watered and capable of cultivation with great profit. The A. seems to be chiefly calcareous in its composition. The mineral wealth remains, however, almost wholly unexplored, though copper, iron, lead, antimony, etc., are stated to exist in abundance.