TOPOGRAPHY. The coast, over 4000 miles in length (inclusive of the islands), is easily ac cessible from every part of the country. No settlement is remote from salt water, four-fifths of the Kingdom being within 6 miles of the sea. In the north of the Adriatic the coast is low and sandy, bordered by shallow waters, and, except at Venice, not easily accessible to large ship ping. Farther south, near Rimini, spurs from the Apennines reach the shore, which becomes high and rocky. The south and west coasts are generally high, rocky, and picturesque, with many bold promontories. The middle of the west coast, however, has three stretches of low and marshy land, known as the Maremma, the Campagna, and the Pontine marshes. The west coast is varied by bays, gulfs, and other open ings, and is therefore most favorable for com merce. In the northwest is the Gulf of Genoa, on which the wealthy city of Genoa stands. About the middle is the deep emlia-inent with the fortress port of Gaeta. Next is the Bay of Naples, celebrated for its beauty. Beyond this is the Gulf of Salerno, at the head of which stands the port of Salerno. The southeastern end of the Peninsula is deeply indented by the Gulf of Taranto, which cuts off the so-called heel of Italy (ancient Calabria) from the `toe' (modern Calabria). The population is dense on all coasts where fever does not prevail, about 17 per cent. of the inhabitants of Italy living within three miles of the sea.
The Kingdom of Italy falls geographically into two parts, differing from each other in surface features and climate, and, as a consequence, in productions. One part to the north is continen tal; the other to the south consists of a penin sula and various islands. The northern portion contains the great plain of Lombardy, the Val ley of the Po, bordered on the west and north by the Alps. The Alpine region in the extreme northwest of the Kingdom is known as Piedmont. The Peninsula is almost completely filled by the Apennines, which stretch through Central and Southern Italy and are continued through Sicily.
The Alps, beginning at the Gulf of Genoa, ex tend first to the west, then to the north, and finally to the east, towering in lofty summits covered with snow-fields. Their slopes are deep ly scored by valleys, and they present a very abrupt face toward the plain of the Po. The rainfall on them is, as a result, rapidly trans ferred to the plain, making protective works along the river-banks necessary in order to re strain the periodical floods.
The Northern Apennines. which touch the T.i gurian Alps, curve round the Gulf of Genoa and extend to the source of the Tiber. They do not rise above 7220 feet. The Central Apennines, beginning at the source of the 'fiber, soon divide into several chains, forming the rugged moun tain district of the Abruzzi, on the eastern verge of which is the Gran Sasso (9580 feet). the high est peak of the Apennines. The Southern Apen nines stretch to the southeast from the Abruzzi to the coast of the Gulf of Taranto, where they assume a southerly direction, with summits ris ing to a height of more than 7000 feet. The
rugged and 'infertile Apennines form the water shed of the Peninsula; they are bordered, espe cially on the western side, by lower and more productive mountain districts that are grouped under the name of the sub-Apennine region. A number of passes through the Apennines are utilized by the highways across the Peninsula. The Italian Peninsula contains the only active volcano on the Continent of Europe, Vesuvius.
The mountain regions of Italy, with, their ruins, cloisters, storied castles, towered cities, the quietude of their rural scenes, and their aspects picturesque or growl, are among the great charms that draw tourists to Italy. The beauty of the country is enhanced by the singular clearness of the air, which causes the lines of tower and church and castle to stand out with clear-cut perfection, and makes mountains that are miles away appear to be almost within touch. ' The Italian islands are also mountainous. Sicily. nearly filled with the continuation of the .Apennines, has the loftiest volcano in Europe (Mount Etna. about 10,S00 feet). It has not, however, figured so prominently in the history of volcanoes as Vesuvius, near Naples. The moun tains of fertile but unhealthful and neglected Sardinia rise only a little over 5000 feet in height. The Lipari Islands are wholly volcanic in character.
Only about one-third of the surface is made up of plains, most of it being the great Plain of Lombardy. or the Plain of the Po. This plain, about 37,000 square miles in area, is encircled by a steep mountain wall in the form of an arch. The largest and richest farming area, and the greatest industrial development of Italy, belong to this low, almost flat plain. It is watered by the rivers of the Po system, which are fed by many Alpine and Apennine streams, with which the cereal and other crops are irrigated. The plain was at one time a bay of the Adriatic Sea, and was formed of the alluvial deposits of streams from the Alps and Apennines. It is steadily encroaching on the sea. because the Po for centuries has been extending its delta into the Adriatic. During six centuries the Po Delta has increased ISS square miles in area. Recent surveys show that the increase is actively main tained at the present day. According to the cal culations of Professor Marinelli. it will take over one lnindred centuries at the present rate of in crease for the Po to fill imp the whole of the North ern Adriatic above latitude 40° 45' N. The former port of Adria. which gave its name to the Adri atic, now stands about 15 miles inland. The Lombard Plain has a more dense population, and far more active manufacturing and business in terests than the Peninsula. Among the small plains of the Peninsula are those of Tuscany and Apulia, the fertile plain to the north of Naples (the Campania of the ancients), that bordering on the Gulf of Manfrcdonia and the Roman Ca mpagna.