TUNIS Tunis, which is a French protectorate, and has an area of about 50,000 square miles, forms the most easterly section of the Atlas region, but in some respects its physical features differ from those of Algeria. The Tell region may be considered as including not only the northern slopes of the mountains down to the sea, but the valley of the Majerda to the south as well ; the high plateaus are more contracted and irregular than they are further to the west ; and in the Saharan region there are a number of dried-up salt lakes, some of which are below sea-level. On the whole, climatic con ditions are similar to those which prevail in Algeria, though in the Sahel (the east coast region) the rainfall is lower. In the main, the country is agricultural. On the Tell, and especially in the valley of the Majerda, wheat and vines are extensively cultivated, and the cork-oak and the olive flourish ; barley is grown in the drier lands of the Sahel ; on the steppe-lands of the plateau sheep and goats are grazed, and alfa is collected ; in the Saharan region the Djeria group of oases produce some of the finest dates grown.
Minerals, the principal of which are zinc and iron ores and phosphates, are obtained, the two former in the hills of the north west, and the latter on the borders of the Sahara. The manu facture of carpets is carried on in some of the towns, the most important of which are Tunis, Sfax, Bizerta, and Gabes. The principal exports are phosphates, olive oil, hides, cattle, and mineral ores (iron, zinc, and lead) ; while the imports consist mainly of iron and steel goods, cotton fabrics, and food-stuffs. The bulk of the trade is transacted with France, but Italy, the United Kingdom, and Algeria also share in it.