TOPOGRAPHY. The kingdom occupies the great er part of the Atlantic slope of the great penin sular tableland. The country has a coat line of nearly 465 miles. The harbors are relatively nu merous, though those in the north arcobstructed by sand bars. The most important are those of Lisbon, in the widened estuary of the Tagus; Oporto, on the Douro, near its mouth ; and Setu bal (the famous salt port), at the head of Bay. Lagos, founded by the Carthaginians. and Villa Nova, both on the south coast: Buarcos and Figueira, at the mouth of the Mondego; and the roadstead of Leixoes near Oporto, where an arti ficial harbor has been built, are smaller ports. It was partly due to the superior situation of the ports for intercourse with West Africa and South America that Portugal stood in the fore front of over-sea enterprises in the greatest era of geographic discovery.
A large part of the interior is filled with moun tains. The country north of the Tagus is most mountainous and elevated. Of the three great mountain systems the fine Serra do Gerez of the north is the western extremity of the Pyrenean system, and the magnificent Serra da Estrella, be tween the Douro and Tagus, is the western pro longation of the great central range of Spain.
They have many offshoots and foothills and the Estrella range traverses the great plain of the Province of Beira. The Tagus di vides Portugal into two portions, which differ much in appearance, climate, and soil. North of the Tagus are imposing mountain chains, trans verse hill ranges, beautiful and fertile valleys; but south of the river the mountains rarely as sume the aspect of ranges and do not rise high above the surrounding plateau. Thus Southern Portugal is the least attractive part of the king dom—a succession of plains, hills, thinly wooded lands, and sandy coastal tracts. It includes, however, the third conspicuous orographic sys tem of the kingdom, the Serra de Sao Mamede. on the border between Portugal and Spain.