Part 35

=Booksellers.= _Jourdan_, Place du Gouvernement and Rue Cléopâtre 1; _Chaix_, Rue d’Isly 11bis; _Relin_, Rue d’Isly 11; _Ruff_, Rue Bab-Azoun 10; _Carbonnel_, _Ledoux_, both Boul. de la République (Nos. 2 & 7).—=Newspapers= (5 c.). _La Dépêche Algérienne_ (morning); Les Nouvelles, _Le Cri d’Alger_ (evening). For strangers, _The North African News_ (Sat.; 25 c.).

=Shops= (caution almost as necessary as at Tunis; comp. p. 331). PHOTOGRAPHS AND VIEWS. _Geiser_, Place de Chartres 2; _A. Wollenweider_, Rue du Divan 4; _Hyam_, Station Sanitaire (Pl. A, 6).—ORIENTAL ARTICLES (partly made in France and Germany; also Indian, Japanese, and Turkish wares). _Ratto_ (goldsmith), Rue Socgémah 12; _Pohoomull Frères_, Rue Bab-Azoun 11; _Ratto-Magana_, Rue de l’Etat Major 5; _Miss Jockyl_, English Club Buildings, Mustapha-Supérieur.—EMBROIDERY. _Mme. Hémery_, Rue Michelet 89, Mustapha-Supérieur.—COPPER AND BRASS WORK. _Zagha_ (from Damascus), Rue Bruce 27; _Nassan_, Place Malakoff.

=Theatres.= _Théâtre Municipal_ (Pl. 26; C, 3), Place de la République, for operas, operettas, and dramas, closed in summer; _Kursaal_ (Pl. C, 1), Esplanade de Bab-el-Oued (tickets sold in advance at 4 Boul. de la République.—_Casino Music Hall_), Rue d’Isly 9 (fauteuil 2½ fr.).—_Fêtes Mauresques_ at the Kasba, arranged by the Comité d’Hivernage (p. 219), with native musicians and dancers (adm. 5 fr.).

=Band= plays in winter, Sun. and Thurs., 4–5, in the Place du Gouvernement; in summer (May-Oct.), on Mon., Wed., and Sat., from 8 to 10.30, in the Place de la République (Square Bresson), and on Sun., Tues., and Thurs., from 8 to 10.30, in the Place du Gouvernement.

=Golf Club=, with good nine hole course, near the Pens. Villa Olivage (p. 217).—SKATING RINK at the corner of Boul. Carnot and Rue Waïsse (Pl. C, 4).

=Churches.= _English_ (_Ch. of the Holy Ghost_; p. 230), Rue Michelet (Pl. A, 7), to the N. of the Alexandra Hotel (p. 217); Sun. services at 8 and 11.30 or 9.45 a.m.; chaplain, _Rev. A. P. Cronyn, M. A._—_Presbyterian_ (_St. Andrew’s_; Pl. 7, A 6) also Rue Michelet, Sun. service at 10.30 a.m.; minister, _Rev. T. E. Jubb_, M. A.

=Sights=, with days and hours of admission:—

_Archevêché_ (p. 224), all day; fee ½–1 fr.

_Bibliothèque Nationale_ (p. 225), week-days 1–6; closed Aug. and Sept.

_Conseil Général_ (p. 224), apply to secretary; week-days 8–11 and 1–5.

_Jardin d’Essai_ (p. 232), all day (_Zoologie_ 50 c.).

_Kasba Barracks_ (p. 227), apply to Etat-Major, Rue de la Marine 11.

_Medersa_ (p. 228), except during lectures; closed Sun., Frid., and on great Mohammedan festivals.

_Mosquée de la Pêcherie_ (p. 223), at any time except during prayers.

_Mosque, Great_ (p. 224), as above.

_Mosque of Sidi Abderrahmân_ (p. 228), Sun., Mon., Tues., 8–12 and 2–3; closed on the chief Mohammedan holidays.

_Musée Municipal des Beaux-Arts_ (p. 226), daily, except Friday.

_Museum_ (p. 229), daily, except Mon., 1–4 (1st April to 15th July 2–5; closed 16th July to 30th Sept.).

_Palais d’Eté du Gouverneur_ (p. 230), in his absence; fee ½–1 fr.

_Palais d’Hiver du Gouverneur_ (p. 225), as above.

_Synagogue_ (p. 227), all Frid., Sat. after 12, at other times apply to keeper, 30–50 c.

As to visiting the _Mosques_, see p. 174.—Men are not admitted to the _Mohammedan Cemeteries_ (p. xxvi) on Frid. and holidays 12–6.

TWO DAYS. 1st. Forenoon, _Place de la République_, _Boul. de la République_, _Place du Gouvernement_, _Great Mosque_, _Archevêché_ (pp. 222–224), *_Kasba Quarter_ (pp. 226, 227), *_Mosque of Sidi-Abderrahmân_ (p. 228), and *_Jardin Marengo_ (p. 224). Afternoon, _Mustapha-Supérieur_ with the *_Museum_ (pp. 228–230).—2nd. Forenoon, _Mohammedan Cemetery_ at _Belcourt_ (p. 232), *_Jardin d’Essai_ (p. 232). Afternoon, _Notre-Dame d’Afrique_ (p. 236) or _Bouzaréah_ (p. 235).

_Algiers_, French _Alger_, Ital. _Algéri_, the capital of the French colony of Algeria, with 154,000 inhab. (incl. 35,200 foreigners, mostly Italians and Spaniards, 33,200 Mohammedans, and 12,500 Jews), seat of the archbishop of Algeria, a fortress, and a naval harbour, lies in 36°47′ N. lat. and 3°2′ E. long., on the W. side of the nearly semicircular *_Baie d’Alger_, which is bounded on the W. by the _Pointe Pescade_ (p. 237), and on the E. by _Cape Matifou_ (p. 248). It is the most important coaling-station on the whole coast, and shares with Oran the chief trade of Algeria. The town extends along the slopes of the _Sahel of Algiers_, a range of hills about 44 M. long, culminating in _Mt. Bouzaréah_ (p. 235), continued beyond the mouth of the _Oued el-Harrach_ by low sand-hills, and separated from the Tell Atlas by the _Mitidja_ (p. 169). With regard to climate, see pp. 170, 172.

On the site of the Roman _Icosium_, an unimportant place on the road to Tipasa and Cæsarea (Cherchell, p. 244), _Bologgîn ez-Ziri_ (p. 323), about 940 (about the same date as the foundation of Miliana and Médéa) founded the new colony of _Al-Jezaïr Beni Mezghanna_, so called from the adjacent coast-islands (jezîra, pl. jezaïr) and from the Berber tribe of the Beni Mezghanna who dwelt in this region. It is recorded that in the 11th cent. the inhabitants of the new settlement used the old Roman baths, of which there is now no trace, for their amusements and an old Christian basilica for their worship. From that time the history of Al-Jezaïr is a blank down to the end of the 15th cent., when it began to serve the Moorish exiles from Spain (afterwards called Tagarins here) as a base of their retaliatory expeditions against Spain. In 1509 or 1510 the Spaniards, in the course of their victorious career, occupied the largest of the coast-islands, where they erected the fortress of _El-Peñón_, and conquered the Mitidja which had recently been colonized by the Arabian tribe of the Tsaliba. The little town, called _Argel_ by the Spaniards, was inhabited by Mohammedans, who in 1516 summoned to their aid, from Djidjelli, _Horuk (Arudj) Barbarossa_, a Turkish pirate of Christian descent. Horuk complied with the request and established himself at Al-Jezaïr, where, after repelling a Spanish expedition under Diego de Vera (1516), he erected the Jenina as his residence and the Kasba as his citadel.

Having fallen in a battle with the Spaniards near Tlemcen (p. 187), Horuk was succeeded by his brother _Kheireddin Barbarossa_ (1518–36), who became the real founder of the new barbaresco or piratical state. As a vassal of the sultan of Turkey he extended his sway over the greater part of Algeria. He defeated Hugo de Moncada, the Spanish viceroy, in 1519, and in 1530, after having stormed the fortress of Peñón, he constructed the Jetée de Kheireddin with its materials and with others from Rusguniæ (p. 248) and Tipasa, thus creating the first harbour of Algiers. Thenceforwards for three centuries the ‘Algerian pirates’ were the terror of the seas, to whom, for protection of their trade, England, Holland, the Hanseatic towns, and other maritime countries ignominiously consented to pay tribute. Fourteen times the European powers, from the time of the fruitless campaign of Charles V. in 1541 to the British expedition of 1824, had besieged and bombarded Algiers in vain. The beys (or, after 1600, deys) had succeeded in maintaining their position, and in 1627 had even carried their piratical expeditions as far as Iceland. It was not till 1830 that these barbarous piracies were put a stop to by the French, and that the way was thus paved for conquest of the whole of Algeria.

The most stirring events in the recent history of Algeria were the conquest of Constantine (1837), the protracted struggles against _Abd el-Kâder_ (1839–47), the defeat of his Moroccan allies on the Oued Isly (1844), the subjection of Great Kabylia (1856–7), the revolts of the natives in 1871–2, the rising of _Bou-Amama_ in S. Oran (1881), the occupation of the Sahara as far as Tidikelt and the Tuat oases (1892–1901), and lastly the French advance towards Morocco (comp. p. 96).

The Algiers of the Turkish period consisted solely of the triangular quarter on the slope of the _Kasba Hill_, between the old landward gates, _Bab Azoun_ on the S. and _Bab el-Oued_ on the N., with the _Sûk_ or Market Street (now Rue Bab-Azoun and Rue Bab el-Oued) as its nucleus. Between these two gates ran the old Turkish wall, on whose site lie the Boul. Gambetta (Pl. B, C, 3), on the S., and the Boul. Valée (Pl. C, 2), on the N. The French ramparts constructed in 1845 extended the town as far as the present Boul. Laferrière (Pl. C, 4, 5) to the S., and to the Boul. du Général Farre to the N. (Pl. C, 1). Since the demolition of these fortifications in 1904 the industrial suburbs on the coast and the lofty villa-suburbs, _Quartier d’Isly_ (Pl. B, 4, 5), _Télemly_ (Pl. A, 5, 6), and _Mustapha-Supérieur_ (Pl. A, 7, 8), which last is little frequented except in winter, have all been brought within the precincts of the town.

a. Lower Quarter of the Old Town.

The chief business parts of the town are the arcades, with their numerous shops, in the Rue Bab-Azoun (Pl. C, 2, 3) and Rue Bab el-Oued (Pl. C, 2; p. 224), the Place du Gouvernement (Pl. C, 2; p. 223), the focus of all the tramways, and above all the spacious PLACE DE LA RÉPUBLIQUE (Pl. C, 3), with the gardens of _Square Bresson_ (band, see p. 220), adorned with bamboos and magnolias, the _Théâtre Municipal_ (p. 220), and the most showy cafés. Between these two places and the sea, at a height of 65 ft. above the quay and its warehouses, run the uniform rows of houses of the BOULEVARD DE FRANCE (Pl. D, 2; p. 223), the BOULEVARD DE LA RÉPUBLIQUE, completed in 1866, and the BOULEVARD CARNOT (Pl. C, 3, 4), with the new _Préfecture_ (Pl. 23; C, 4) in the Moorish style (1910). These streets, together 1 M. long, form a coast-promenade, whence in clear weather we enjoy a splendid *View of the blue bay, the Atlas Mts. of Blida, and the distant Jurjura chain (p. 258). In stormy weather, however, the Rampe de l’Amirauté (Pl. D, 2; p. 223) and the Boul. Amiral Pierre (Pl. C, D, 1, 2; p. 224) attract many walkers.

The sole =Harbour=, prior to the French period, was the _Ancien Port_, or _Darse de l’Amirauté_ (Pl. D, 2), constructed by Kheireddin Barbarossa, once a nest of piratical vessels, and now a torpedo-boat station and anchorage for yachts and fishing-boats. The new _Port de Commerce_ and _Port Militaire_, 213 acres in area, with the _Quai de la Marine_, which was extended in 1908, have been formed since 1848 at a cost of 46 million francs. They are protected by the wave-beaten _Jetée du Nord_, 984 yds. long, the prolongation of the old Jetée of Kheireddin (comp. p. 221), and by the Jetée du Sud, 1350 yds. in length. The entrance is 268 yds. in breadth. A second commercial harbour, the _Arrière-Port_ (Pl. C, D, 5, 6), was begun in 1898, but is still uncompleted.

The harbour is approached by the _Rampes Magenta_, descending from Boul. Carnot to the principal railway-station (p. 217), by the _Rampes Chasseloup-Laubat_, connecting the Boul. de la République with the Douane (Pl. D, 3) and with the warehouses and offices of the French steamboat-companies, and by the _Rampe de l’Amirauté_ (Pl. D, 2), on the old Jetée of Kheireddin. This jetty or quay, the oldest of all, connects the old Porte de France on the mainland (once the Turkish sea-gate) with what was once the island of Peñón (p. 221), now the _Presqu’île de l’Amirauté._ Walkers may descend also by the _Escaliers du Bastion Central_, opposite the Square Bresson (p. 222), or from the Place du Gouvernement by the _Escaliers de la Pêcherie_, past the mosque of that name and the _Fish Market_, which is worth seeing in the early morning.

On the Quai du Nord, between the approach to the fish-market and the old Porte de France, a pretty _Turkish Fountain_ has been preserved. Adjoining the neo-Moorish _Palais de l’Amirauté_ (Pl. D, 2) is the Turkish _Gate_, with two heraldic animals (panthers?), an interesting relic of the Bordj Ras el-Moul which was burned down in 1816. We notice also several muzzle-loading guns built into the wall, now serving as bulkheads or as posts for mooring vessels. Visitors are not admitted to the _Phare_ (Pl. D, 2; lighthouse), a relic of the Turkish fort erected in 1544 on the site of the Spanish castle of Peñón, nor to the small _Station Zoologique_ (Pl. D, 2).

We now follow the Boul. de France, past the handsome _Palais Consulaire_ (Pl. 19, D 2; chamber of commerce, exchange, etc.), to the—

PLACE DU GOUVERNEMENT, the noisiest place in the town, crowded with natives at all hours (concerts, see p. 220). The equestrian statue, in bronze, of the _Duke of Orleans_ (1810–42), a distinguished general in the Algerian campaigns, is by the Piedmontese Carlo Marocchetti (1845). Behind the statue, and half concealed by the Boul. de France, is the curiously incongruous—

=Mosquée de la Pêcherie= (Pl. 16, D 2; Arabic _Jâma el-Jedid_, new mosque), erected by Turkish architects in 1660 for adherents of the Hanefite ritual (p. 445). It is a cruciform building with nave and aisles, a huge central dome tastelessly painted inside, a rich marble pulpit of Italian workmanship, and a square minaret (now clock-tower). Entrance in the Rampe de la Pêcherie (adm., see p. 220).

A few paces to the E. of the Place du Gouvernement, adjoining the Rue de la Marine (Pl. D, 2), the harbour-street of the Turkish and early French period, is the small Place de la Pêcherie, the site of the pirates’ _Slave Market_.

Close by is the =Great Mosque= (Pl. 15, D 2; Arabic _Jâma el-Kebîr_), the oldest and largest mosque in the town, founded in 1018 for believers in the Malekite ritual, but often altered since then. Both the mosque and its minaret, originally built by the Abdelwadite Abû Tâkhfîn (p. 190) in 1322–3, have now been modernized. The entrance is by a portico in the Rue de la Marine, erected in 1837 with materials from a mosque of the Jenina (p. 225), leading into a court, embellished with a Turkish fountain, and to the unadorned sacred building itself, with its eleven aisles or arcades and horseshoe arches resting on low pillars.

The quarter to the N.W. of the Rue de la Marine, between Boul. Amiral-Pierre (Pl. C, D, 1, 2) and Rue Bab el-Oued (see below), is inhabited mainly by Italians and natives and still contains many mediæval features in its sombre lanes and passages. Soon after entering it, we come to a pleasing _Turkish House_, Rue Duquesne, No. 15, in the small square of that name, with a marble portal and a two-storied court.

The building of the =Conseil Général= (Pl. 5a, D 2; adm., see p. 220), close by, Rue de la Charte No. 5, a good example of Moorish-Turkish architecture, with its Renaissance portal, was the British consulate in the Turkish period. No. 29, in the adjoining Rue d’Orléans, has a remarkably rich Italian Renaissance portal.

The short Rue du Quatorze-Juin, the last houses in the Rue des Consuls (Pl. D, 2), occupied by the other European consuls in the Turkish period, and the adjacent narrow Rue Navarin and Rue Jean-Bart, all have the character of the Kasba quarter (p. 227).

The narrow passage called Rue des Postes leads here to the Rue Volland (Pl. C, 1), the cross-street between Boul. Amiral-Pierre and the AVENUE BAB EL-OUED (Pl. C, 1). Here, on the right, are the barracks and the _Kursaal Theatre_ (p. 220), and on the left the _Lycée National_, on the site of the Turkish janissaries’ barracks.

The Rampe Valée ascending hence to the Kasba quarter skirts the *=Jardin Marengo= (Pl. C, 1), a public park, laid out in 1834–47 on the site of the Mohammedan cemetery; the grounds, with their wealth of palms, yuccas, and bamboos, climb the hill-side as far as the mosque of Sidi Abderrahmân (p. 228).

We now return by the RUE BAB EL-OUED (Pl. C, 2; p. 222) to the Place du Gouvernement. Halfway, in the Rue de la Kasba (p. 227), rises on the right the church of _Notre-Dame des Victoires_ (Pl. 8; C, 2), formerly a mosque (_Jâma Bitchnîn_, of 1622).

From the W. side of the Place du Gouvernement (p. 223) the Rue du Divan and Rue du Soudan lead to the small PLACE MALAKOFF, on the E. side of which, between these streets, rises the—

*=Archevêché= (Pl. 1, C 2; archbishop’s palace), the finest and but little modernized relic of the _Jenina_ founded by Horuk Barbarossa (p. 221) in 1516. In the course of centuries this residence of the beys was gradually extended to the Rue Jenina and the Rue Socgémah, and in 1816 was at length superseded by the Kasba (p. 227). The entrance is by the Renaissance portal (adm., see p. 220; apply to the concierge).

The fine court, with its two stories and horseshoe arches resting on slender winding columns, is remarkable for its harmonious proportions. The walls are adorned with tiles of little value, but the rich wrought-iron gratings of the windows deserve notice. The upper story, whose galleries have small domed chambers at the four corners, is adjoined by rooms sumptuously decorated like those of the Alcázar at Seville (p. 61). We note in particular the lavish ornamentation in stucco, the elegant window-shutters, restored in part, and the beautiful ceilings in cedar and oak panelling. The room converted into a chapel has been materially altered.

The =Cathedral= (Pl. 3, C 2; _St. Philippe_), on the W. side of the same Place, built since 1843 in a strangely mingled Moorish and Romanesque style, occupies the site of the _Ketshâwa Mosque_ erected by Hassan Pasha in 1791 (see below). The façade is adorned with two towers resembling minarets. The first chapel contains the bones of the so-called Gerónimo, a Christian Arab (comp. p. 230), who is said to have been immured alive in 1569.

The _Palais d’Hiver du Gouverneur_ (Pl. 21, C 2; adm., see p. 220), built by Hassan Pasha (1791–9), like the National Library (see below), is one of the latest specimens of Moorish-Turkish architecture in Algeria; but it has been entirely remodelled to suit its present purpose and has been provided with a new façade. Above the old portal, Rue du Soudan No. 5 (now Bureau Arabe; see p. 174), is a pretty carved projecting roof. No. 7, next door, has a rich marble portal. The roof affords a good survey of the whole of the Jenina buildings.

To the N. of the Place Malakoff, in the Rue de l’Etat-Major, No. 12, on the left, is the—

=National Library= (Pl. 2; C, 2), in the old palace of Mustapha Pasha (1799–1805), containing about 40,000 vols. and 2000 MSS. Adm., see p. 220. Librarian, M. E. Maupas.

Adjoining the vestibule (skiffa), adorned with clustered columns and Delft fayence, on the left, is the two-storied *Quadrangle, similar to that of the archiepiscopal palace. In the gallery of the first floor are views of Old Algiers (including the bombardment by the British fleet in 1824). Adjacent are two small reading-rooms containing a valuable collection of Arabic, Berber, and Turkish MSS. (shown only on application to the curator M. Abdeltif). The charters of the Turkish period also are important.

The _Bureaux du Gouvernement_, Rue Bruce 10, which once belonged to the Jenina buildings, also are worth seeing (apply to the governor’s secretary). So, too, is the pleasing _Dwelling House_, Rue Socgémah 12 (now owned by M. Ratto, goldsmith; p. 220).—The old _Dâr Soof_ (wool-exchange), Rue de l’Intendance 1, one of the most ornate Mauro-Turkish buildings in the town, is now a private house and can be seen only by special introduction.

We now turn to the E. to visit the Rue de Chartres or the Rue de la Lyre (Pl. C, 2, 3), which, like the neighbouring Rue Randon in the Kasba quarter (p. 227), contain countless little shops kept by Jews and Mozabites (p. 216). The _Marché de Chartres_ and the _Marché de la Lyre_ (Pl. 14; C, 3) are the chief provision markets. In the afternoon the former is devoted to the sale of second-hand goods. The Rue de Chartres and the two flights of steps in the Place de la Lyre, next to the theatre, lead back to the Place de la République (p. 222).

To the S. of the Place de la République are the new quarters of the town. At the beginning of the RUE DE CONSTANTINE (Pl. C, 3, 4), on the left, is the new _Palais de Justice_ (Pl. 20; C, 3), in the pseudo-classical style. On the right is the new-Romanesque church of _St. Augustin_ (Pl. 9; C, 3).

At the back of this church runs the Rue Dumont-d’Urville (Pl. C, 3), passing almost immediately on the left the Rue de Tanger, in which rises the small _Mosque of the Mozabites_ (p. 216), and leading to the long and monotonous RUE D’ISLY (Pl. C, 4). The latter crosses the Place d’Isly. (Pl. C, 4), where a monument has been erected to _Marshal Bugeaud_ (1784–1849), the conqueror of Abd el-Kâder (p. 221).

Farther on in the Rue de Constantine, on the left, at No. 32 is the _Musée Municipal des Beaux-Arts_ (adm., see p. 220), containing a small collection of pictures mostly by French painters.

The Rue de Constantine and Rue d’Isly reach the boundary of the old town at the new _Post Office_ (Pl. 22, C, 4; p. 219), a neo-Moorish building (1910), on the N. side of the BOULEVARD LAFERRIÈRE (Pl. C, 4, 5; p. 222), or Boul. Militaire Sud. To the right, above, are the handsome offices of the _Dépêche Algérienne_ (p. 220), in the neo-Moorish style. The open space on the left, down by the sea, is destined for the future _Central Station_.

From Boul. Laferrière to _Mustapha-Supérieur_, see pp. 231, 230; to _Belcourt_ and _Le Hamma_, see p. 232.

b. The Kasba.

To avoid the steep ascents in the Kasba Quarter we take the tramway (No. 6, p. 219) to the Prison Civile, glance at the Mohammedan Cemetery and the Kasba Barracks, and then descend from the Boul. de la Victoire by one or other of the streets (very slippery in wet weather) between the Rue de la Kasba (Pl. C, 2) and Boul. Gambetta (Pl. B, C, 3). It should be noted that all the ascending streets lead to the Boulevard de la Victoire, and the descending streets to Rue Randon or Rue Marengo. Ladies in particular may sometimes gain admission to one of the better Moorish houses (comp. p. xxvi), where they should not omit to see the view from the roof. A walk through the Kasba quarter by moonlight is delightful, but safe only for a considerable party.

The *=Kasba Quarter= (Pl. B, C, 2, 3), the almost unaltered main portion of old Algiers, bounded by the Rue Randon, Rue Marengo, and Boul. de la Victoire, lies on the hill-side below the _Kasba_, the old castle and afterwards the residence of the Turkish rulers, and still presents a highly attractive picture of Oriental life, though partly inhabited by Maltese and Spaniards as well as by Mohammedans of various races and creeds (p. 171). A few streets only, with small mosques, coffee-houses, and shops, show signs of life in the daytime, and that chiefly on Fridays and Sundays. Most of the streets, however, often only 6–7 ft. wide, with their jutting upper stories and balconies supported by brackets of beams, and the numerous blind alleys and sombre vaulted passages are shrouded in silence, while their bare, almost windowless walls and their closed doors, marked with the sign of the warning hand (p. 81), enhance their impenetrable mystery.