Part 39

The railway, carried partly through cuttings, intersects the Sahel to the N.E. 26 M. _Corso-Tahtâni_ (118 ft.), ¾ M. from the sea, near the mouth of the Oued Corso. To the left we have a brief outlook towards the sea. In the foreground rise the hills of the Sahel as far as Cape Djinet (p. 253).

The train leaves the coast, passing at places through cuttings and between pleasant hills planted with mimosa, and enters, to the S.E., the vale of the _Oued Bou Merdès_, resplendent in spring with its mantle of golden broom.

30½ M. _Belle-Fontaine_ (167 ft.); the village lies on a fine open hill to the right (466 ft.). We next pass between mimosa-clad hills, backed by wooded mountains, and through a defile which forms the portal of the Isser valley and Great Kabylia (p. 252).

34 M. =Ménerville= (492 ft.; Hôt. Blanchard, plain but good), on the _Col des Beni-Aïcha_, a dirty village of 3000 inhab., is the junction for Tizi-Ouzou (R. 38).

Our line descends to the S.E. into the valley of the _Isser_, and then ascends on its left bank. 38 M. _Souk el-Haad_ (230 ft.).

Beyond (40½ M.) _Beni-Amran_ (420 ft.) begins the grand _Ravine of the Isser_ (Gorges de Palestro or des Beni-Hinni), which pierces the _Massif des Beni-Kalfoun_, 4½ M. long, rivalling the gorge of the Chiffa (p. 215). Views chiefly to the right; but owing to the numerous tunnels we see little of the bold limestone rocks.

48 M. =Palestro= (525 ft.; Hôt. de France, déj. 2 fr., Hôt. du Commerce, both humble), a poor village of 600 inhab. (with Wednesday market), defended by a fort, lies in the fertile central section of the Isser valley. Near it rises _Jebel Tegrimoun_ or _Tegrimont_ (3373 ft.), the highest of the Massif des Beni-Kalfoun (see above), commanding the famous view of the Jurjura Mts. (p. 258).

Beyond (55 M.) _Thiers_ (624 ft.) the train leaves the Isser, offering a glimpse of the head of its valley to the right, and turns to the E. into the tame valley of its tributary _Oued Djemâa_.

61½ M. _Aomar-Dra el-Mizan_ (778 ft.), station for _Aomar_ (1266 ft.) and (7½ M.) _Dra el-Mizan_ (p. 254; diligence).

The train runs to the S. E. along the foot of the _Beni Smaïl Mts._ (p. 254), and then, curving far round to the E., ascends rapidly to the head of the valley of the Djemâa, here called _Oued Bezzit_, and to the _Col de Dra el-Khemis_ (1962 ft.), the saddle between the W. Jurjura range and the hills of Aïn-Bessem (see below). Threading a tunnel the train then descends to the S. to the _Plaine du Hamza_, the upper region of the _Oued Eddous_ valley (called Oued Sahel lower down; p. 251).

76½ M. =Bouïra= (1722 ft.; Rail. Restaur.; Hôt. de la Colonie, R. 2–3, B. ¾–1, déj. 2½, D. 3 fr.; Hôt. des Voyageurs; pop. 7500), a small town with an old Turkish fort and a great Saturday market largely attended by Kabyles (p. 252), is connected by hill-paths with Boghni (p. 254) and Fort-National (p. 257).

A ROAD (diligence twice daily) leads to the S.W. from Bouïra through the valley of the _Oued Lekhal_ to (15½ M.) _Aïn-Bessem_ (2221 ft.) in the _Plaine des Aribs_, and thence to the S. to (29 M.) _Aumale_ (2907 ft.; Hôt. Grossat, R. 2½, déj. 3, D. 3½, pens. 10–12 fr.; Hôt. Raveu; pop. 6100), a little town on the N.E. spurs of _Jebel Dira_ (5938 ft.). This was the ancient _Auzia_, an important station on the Roman road to Mauretania (p. 124), of which numerous epigraphical monuments are now in the Museum.

A beautiful road (p. 248) leads from Aumale to _L’Arba_ and _Algiers_; another to (20 M.) _Sidi-Aïssa_ and (84 M.) _Bou-Saâda_ (p. 270; diligence at 11 a.m., in 22 hrs.).

The train now descends to the E., on the right bank of the Oued Eddous; on the left tower the rocks of the Jurjura (_Jebel Haïzer_ and _Jebel Akouker_, p. 258). 85 M. _El-Esnam._ 93½ M. _El-Adjiba_ (1247 ft.), near the influx of the _Oued Zaïane_ into the Eddous, which now takes the name of _Oued Sahel_ (the ancient _Navasath_).

From El-Adjiba across the _Tizi n-Assoual_ to _Fort-National_, see p. 258.

100½ =M. Maillot= (1477 ft.; Hôt. des Voyageurs, R. 2 fr., déj. or D. 2 fr., Hôt. de la Poste, Hôt. de l’Union, all poor), a small village 2½ M. to the N. of the station (about 1050 ft.; diligence meets some of the trains), lies on the slope of the _Lalla Khedidja_ (7572 ft.; p. 259), the highest peak of the Jurjura, famed for its cedar-forests (comp. p. 210).

From Maillot viâ the _Tirourda Pass_ to _Michelet_, _Fort-National_, and _Tizi-Ouzou_, see R. 39; viâ _Fort-National_ to _Azazga_ (_Bougie_), R. 40.

107 M. =Beni-Mansour= (948 ft.; Rail. Restaurant, déj. or D. 3 fr., good), junction of the main line to Constantine and Biskra (RR. 43, 44) with the Bougie branch, lies on the boundary between the provinces of Algiers and Constantine. Near it is the finely situated old French fort, _Bordj de Beni-Mansour_, now a school. Sunday market near the station.

The Bougie line (change carriages) crosses the _Oued Mahrir_ (p. 269), near its influx into the Oued Sahel, and crosses the latter near the mouth of the _Oued Tixiriden_ (p. 260).

112 M. _Tazmalt_ (902 ft.; Hôt. des Voyageurs), ½ M. to the N.W. of the station, the first village in the province of Constantine, with extensive olive-groves, lies near the _Oued Beni Mellikeuch_. This, like Maillot, is a station for the _Tirourda Pass_ (R. 39).—To the S. of the railway rise the _Beni Abbès Mts._

Below (115 M.) _Allaghan_ (774 ft.) the Sahel valley contracts. On the left rises the _Piton d’Akbou_, crowned with a late-Roman tomb of the 3rd cent, (a step-pyramid on a square base), but not visible from the train. On the right, beyond the mouth of the copious _Oued Bou Sellam_ (p. 269), which rises in the mountains of _Little Kabylia_ (p. 266), the serrated _Jebel Gueldaman_ (2638 ft.) juts far into the valley.

122 M. _Akbou_ (1050 ft.; Hôt. du Sahel; Hôt. Bellevue; pop. 1200; Mon. market), a large village, is the starting-point of a path to the _Col de Chellata_ (p. 260). Grand eucalypti in the environs.

Far away to the left as we proceed towers _Jebel Arbalou_ (p. 262). 126 M. _Azib-ben-Ali-Chérif_ (512 ft.); 128½, M. _Ighzer-Amokran_, at the mouth of the brook of that name. The broad floor of the valley is clothed with meagre underwood.

133 M. _Takritz_, or _Takriets_ (364 ft.), is the station also for _Seddouk_, 5½ M. to the S.E.; 136 M. _Sidi-Aïch_ (295 ft.) has a Wednesday market well attended by the neighbouring _Fenaïa_ (p. 261) and _Beni Himmel_ tribes. Olives abound on the hill-sides farther on; in the valley below is a small grove of fig-trees.

142 M. _Il-Maten_ (361 ft.), on the left bank of the Sahel, whose valley, now called _La Soummam_, is fever-stricken lower down.

On the left bank of the Sahel, near _Tiklat_, a village about halfway between Il-Maten and El-Kseur, are the interesting ruins of the Roman town of _Thubusuctu_ or _Thubusuptus_. Fragments of the walls of the baths, 33 ft. high, are still standing; the great Cisternes d’El-Arouia are 83 yds. long and 41 yds. wide; and there are relics of two aqueducts besides many tombs.

147 M. _El-Kseur-Amizour._ The village of _El-Kseur_ (p. 261) lies ½ M. to the N., on the Azazga road; that of _Oued-Amizour_ is 3¾ M. to the S.E. of the station. 149½ M. _Tombeau de la Neige._

154½ M. _La Réunion_ (53 ft.), on the slope to the left, is near the mouth of the _Oued Rhir_ or _Ghir_. Road (8 M.) to _Toudja_ (p. 262).

The train, running to the N.E., now enters the plain at the mouth of the Sahel. Fine view, to the right, of the _Gulf of Bougie_ and the hills of Little Kabylia. In the foreground, beyond the wooded and fertile _Plaine_, watered by the _Oued Srir_, appears _Jebel Gouraya_ (p. 265).

162 M. _Bougie_, see p. 262.

38. From Algiers to Tizi-Ouzou. From Camp-du-Maréchal to Tigzirt.

From Algiers to _Tizi-Ouzou_, 66½ M., railway in 3½–6¾ hrs.; fares 12 fr., 8 fr. 55, 6 fr. 45 c.; 1st cl. return 16 fr. 90 c. (to Camp-du-Maréchal, 56 M., in 3–5¾ hrs.; fares 10 fr. 10, 7 fr. 20, 5 fr. 40 c.).—From Camp-du-Maréchal to _Dellys_, 19½ M., light railway in ca. 1¾ hr. (2 fr. 35 or 1 fr. 70 c.).—From Dellys to _Tigzirt_, 16 M., diligence in 3 hrs. (at night only).—MOTORING TOURS, comp. p. 173.

The railway to Tizi-Ouzou forms the chief approach to =Great Kabylia= or _Grande Kabylie_, for which the best season is April or May, when the bare limestone peaks of the Jurjura (p. 258) are still capped with their winter snow, while the lower hills are clothed with the fresh verdure of spring. Most travellers are satisfied with a visit to Fort-National and Michelet and the drive across the Tirourda Pass (R. 39) but the long route from Fort-National to Bougie viâ Azazga and Taourirt-Ighil (R. 40) also is quite interesting. Beautiful coast scenery between Dellys and Tigzirt. The ruins at the latter will interest archæologists. The hotel-charges are everywhere disproportionate to the services rendered, and the cuisine is generally indifferent. Fairly good quarters are to be found only at Tizi-Ouzou, Tigzirt, Michelet, Azazga, and Taourirt-Ighil.

The so-called _Kabyles_ (from the Arabic _kebila_, tribe) consisted, as far back as the Roman period, of five Berber tribes, united to form a state with a democratic constitution. In their remote mountain villages (_thaddart_) they successively repelled the attacks of the Romans, the Arabs, and the Turks, and it was not till 1852–7 that the French after protracted struggles succeeded in subduing them. During the Turkish period they were called _Zuawas_, whence the modern French Zouaves derive their name. Their language is a Berber dialect mingled with Latin and Arabic words. The men in the over-peopled W. and S. regions often migrate to the Algerian towns and even to foreign countries as hawkers (_iattaren_), or to the Mitidja as harvest labourers. The women, who are unveiled and often adorned with valuable trinkets, are seen to advantage at the wells. Many of the girls have pretty faces and good figures.

From Algiers to (34 M.) _Ménerville_, see pp. 249, 250. To the left of the train, halfway to Félix-Faure, is the so-called _Mausolée de Blad-Guitoun_, the sadly dilapidated tomb, originally 33 ft. high, of a Christian Berber prince (4th or 5th cent.), in the style of the later Djedar (p. 208), but with an octagonal base. The interior, like that of the Tombeau de la Chrétienne (p. 238), contains a lion in relief, a winding gallery, and a tomb-chamber. The pyramid with its steps has disappeared.

38 M. _Félix-Faure-Courbet._ From the village of Félix-Faure (236 ft.), formerly called _Blad-Guitoun_, near the station, a road (diligence twice daily) leads to the N. through the hilly Sahel to (4½ M.) _Zaatra_ and (5½ M.) _Courbet_ (253 ft.), two villages chiefly inhabited by settlers from Alsace and Lorraine.

The road ends at (8¾ M.) _Port-aux-Poules_ or _Mers el-Hadjadjeh_ (p. 248), a decayed seaport on the site of the Roman _Rusubricari_, the ruins of which have been almost entirely swept away by the waves.

The train crosses the _Isser_ by viaducts of 110 and 160 yds. in length. 40½ M. _Les Issers_ (82 ft.; Hôt. du Marché, Hôt. des Issers, both humble) is the station for _Isserville_ (213 ft.; Hôt. Sigé), which holds a busy Thursday market. Diligence to (24½ M.) _Dra el-Mizan_ (p. 254).

43½ M. _Bordj-Ménaïel_ (53 ft.; Hôt. du Roulage; pop. 1100) holds market on Fridays.

A ROAD leads to the N. from Bordj-Ménaïel through the Isser valley, avoiding the sand-hills at the mouth of the stream, and then skirting _Jebel Djinet_, the ‘frontier pillar’ of Great Kabylia, to (10 M.) the small bay, opening towards the W., of _Mersa Djinet_, near _Cape Djinet_ (164 ft.), whose basalt-quarries have yielded paving-stones for Algiers.

The train leaves the Isser and ascends to the E. in the valley of the _Oued Chender_ to (51 M.) _Haussonvillers_ (492 ft.; Hôt. des Postes), peopled by settlers from Alsace-Lorraine. We are now carried over four viaducts, each over 100 ft. high, and through tunnels on the N. slope of the finely-shaped _Beni Mekla_ hills (2920 ft.), down to the _Sebaou Valley_, the chief valley of Great Kabylia. In the distance appears _Jebel Belloua_ (p. 254).

56 M. =Camp-du-Maréchal= (184 ft.; Hôt. Frœliger), peopled by Alsace-Lorrainers, has a Tuesday and a Thursday market. Cork-tree woods in the environs.

From Camp-du-Maréchal to _Dellys_ and _Tigzirt_, see pp. 254, 255.

We cross the _Bougdoura_. 60½ M. _Mirabeau_ (154 ft.; Hôt. Caratero, humble).

FROM MIRABEAU TO BOGHNI, 18¾ M., light railway (continuation of the line from Dellys), in ca. 1¾ hr. (2 fr. 25 or 1 fr. 65 c.). The train at first runs to the S. on the Dra el-Mizan road (p. 254), through a eucalyptus avenue in the broad and featureless lower valley of the Bougdoura, to beyond (4½ M.) _Tléta_. A little farther on it leaves the highroad and penetrates very narrow cuttings up the winding upper Bougdoura valley, past (12 M.) _Maatkas_, in the territory of the tribe of that name, to (18¾ M.) =Boghni= (755 ft.; Hôt. Ricard, Hôt. Grossiard, both humble). The little village lies in the fertile green valley of the stream, here called _Oued Boghni_, between the lower hills and _Jebel Haïzer_ or _Haïzeur_, the chief peaks of which are _Râs Tachgagalt_ or _Pic Ficheur_ (7044 ft.) to the E. and _Tamgout Haïzer_ (6965 ft.) to the W. From Boghni to _Aïn-Sultan_ and _Fort-National_, see pp. 258, 257.

FROM MIRABEAU TO DRA EL-MIZAN (26 M.). The highroad, beyond the cuttings near Tléta (p. 253), crosses the Bougdoura and runs to the W. for a short time in the valley of the _Oued Aguergoun_, in view of the fine S. slopes of the Beni Mekla Mts. (p. 253). It then bends to the S.W. into the pretty and secluded valley of the _Acif Tléta_ or _Oued Kessari_, which here intersects the lower hills and for a distance of 17 M. contains not a single human habitation. The hill-sides, however, are carefully cultivated by the neighbouring villagers, and are well planted with fig and olive-trees, eucalypti, and cork-oaks. We then ascend a high plateau, with a superb view of Jebel Haïzer (see above), to the village of (26 M.) =Dra el-Mizan= (1525 ft.; Hôt. Bellevue, Hôt. du Commerce, both humble), once famed for its textile fabrics, situated on the N.W. spurs of the _Beni Smaïl Mts._ (p. 250; 10 M. to the W. of Boghni; diligence). A picturesque road (7½ M.; diligence) leads from Dra el-Mizan, to the S.W., across the _Tizi el-Arba_ (beyond this, another view of Jebel Haïzer), to the rail. station of _Aomar-Dra el-Mizan_ (p. 250).

The train next crosses the _Oued Sebt_, approaches the Sebaou after a long bend to the N., and then ascends past the Alsatian village of (64½ M.) _Bou-Khalfa_ (161 ft.), near the wooded W. slope of the finely situated _Jebel Belloua_ (2280 ft.).

66½ M. =Tizi-Ouzou= (620 ft.; Hôt. Lagarde, R. 3–5, B. 1¼, déj. 3, D. 3½, omn. ½ fr., quite good; Hôt. du Square and Hôt. du Roulage, unpretending; pop. 29,620), the chief town and market (Sat.) in the interior of Great Kabylia. Jebel Belloua may be ascended hence, and the poor and dirty Kabyle village at the N. end of the little town may be visited by the curious.

From Tizi-Ouzou to _Fort National_ and _Michelet_ (Tirourda Pass), see R. 39.

* * * * *

The LIGHT RAILWAY TO DELLYS (19½ M.; p. 252) descends to the N. from _Camp-du-Maréchal_ (p. 253) through the broad _Sebaou Valley_, past unimportant stations; then, near the mouth of the stream, it turns to the N.E., away from the highroad, and skirts the coast, which is at first flat and sandy and afterwards bold, and abrupt. To the left rises the lighthouse, famed for its view, on _Cape Bengut_ (207 ft.), a spur of _Jebel Ouamri_ (1227 ft.), composed partly of basalt and other eruptive rocks.

We now proceed to the E., at first through orchards and then on an embankment 26 ft. high, on the brink of a grand abraded terrace, 1 M. long, flanked with narrow perpendicular ledges of sandstone. We then pass through a short tunnel under the ‘dagger-pointed’ _Cape Dellys_.

19½ M. =Dellys= (203 ft.; Hôt. de la Colonie; pop. 3000, of whom 2000 are Mohammedans, mostly Berbers of the Arab type), a quiet little seaport, the W. sea-gate of Great Kabylia, probably on the site of the Roman _Cissi_, rises in terraces with luxuriant gardens on the E. slope of Cape Dellys, at the end of which is a small lighthouse. The deserted harbour is fairly protected against N. and N.W. winds only; the unfinished works at the end of the headland have been destroyed by the waves. Dellys offers little attraction beyond the strikingly beautiful view, stretching as far as Cape Tedlès (p. 256). A few relics of Roman _Cisterns_ and _Thermae_ also may be visited. The _Native Quarter_ is very picturesque. The _Ecole Nationale d’Apprentissage des Arts et Métiers_, numbering many Kabyle pupils, was transferred hither from Fort-National (p. 257) in 1871.

The *COAST ROAD TO TIGZIRT (16 M.; diligence, see p. 252) leads to the E. from Dellys, up and down hill, in many windings, past small headlands and bays and the estuaries of torrents. At first we observe isolated European settlements, but farther on we pass through underwood and the fields and fig-groves of the Kabyle hill-folk. The latter half of the route leads through remains of the _Forêt de Mizrana_.

16 M. =Tigzirt= (66 ft.; Hôt. des Ruines-Romaines, plain; pop. barely 200), a poor little agricultural village founded in 1888, with a lively Wednesday market, occupies part of the site of the ancient _Rusuccuru_. This, as the name indicates, was originally a Berber settlement; it afterwards became a Phœnician seaport. In the late-Roman period it vied with Saldæ (p. 263) as one of the most populous places on this part of the coast, and under the Byzantines it was still fairly prosperous.

The village lies on a low coast-terrace behind _Cape Tigzirt_, a small headland, running out to a storm-beaten rocky island, with which in the Roman period it was connected by a quay. The _Roman Town Wall_ extended from one shore to the other, as did also the shorter _Byzantine Wall_, which was nearer the promontory. The new buildings erected by the Byzantines, now a mass of ruins overgrown by bushes, superseded most of the Roman edifices on the promontory. The sole relic of the latter is a small *TEMPLE (14¾ by 7 yds.) of the time of Septimius Severus, of unusually heavy and massive form, which, according to the inscription, was dedicated to the genius of the municipium of Rusuccuru. The lofty front-wall of the cella, borne by two columns, immediately adjoins the small court of the temple without an intervening vestibule.

The Roman ruins between the two town-walls, on the inland side, have been mostly either destroyed or built over by the modern villagers.

The most important of the old buildings at Rusuccuru is the *BISHOP’S CHURCH, situated close to the Roman town-wall in the E. part of the village. Originally a columnar basilica, 44 by 23 yds., probably of the 5th cent., it is now a picturesque chaos of ruins, with remains of the old mosaic pavement.

The entrances were through the chief portal in the narrow W. vestibule and by three smaller doorways in the wall of the façade, leading into an inner vestibule built into the nave. There are still traces of the two arcades of the nave, borne by clustered columns, all brought from ancient buildings, which rested without bases on stone pedestals. The rich plastic decoration of the imposts, with a touch of the Punic style, is noteworthy. The galleries over the aisles, accessible by outside stairs on the N.E. side only, were ruined by fire at an early period.

On each side of the oldest altar-table at the end of the nave four steps ascended to the choir-recess, where remains of the columns of the later ciborium altar still exist. Two small doors led from the apse into the sacristies, which were shut off from the aisles. The diaconicon, on the left, was adjoined by the quatrefoil-shaped baptistery, also on the left, containing fragments of the old font. The W. portal of the baptistery led into a rectangular hall.

In the late Byzantine period the E. half of the nave was walled off for the use of the greatly reduced congregation, while the old aisles and the sacristies were converted into burial-places.

A few paces to the S. of the bishop’s church, above part of the ancient Roman baths, are relics of a smaller early-Christian _Basilica_, ending in a trilateral apse. Outside of the town lay the E. burial-ground, with an early-Christian _Chapel_ of similar design.

From Tigzirt we may climb, 1 hr. to the N. E., through underwood, to the Berber village of =Taksept=, on the crest of the abrupt _Cape Tedlès_ (870 ft.). Among the stone huts of the villagers are many fragments of Roman buildings, hardly now recognizable, probably the ruins of _Iomnium_, whose harbour lay on the E. side of the promontory. On the highest point of the cape stands the chief landmark of this part of the coast, the so-called _Phare_ or _Mausolée de Taksept_, a late-Roman tomb, still about 29 ft. high, with an octagonal substructure adorned with eight Corinthian columns, above which probably once rose a step-pyramid.

39. From Tizi-Ouzou viâ Fort-National to Maillot or Tazmalt.

65 or 63½ M. ROAD. From Tizi-Ouzou to Fort-National 17 M. (diligence in 4 hrs., at 5 a.m. and 12.30 p.m.; returning at 8.45 and 1.15). From Fort-National to Michelet 12½ M. (diligence in 2½ hrs., at 5.15 p m., returning 6 a.m.). From Michelet to Maillot 35½ M., to Tazmalt 34 M. (no diligence). Carriage from Hôt. Lagarde at Tizi-Ouzou to Fort-National 25–45, to Michelet (two days) 50–75, to Maillot or Tazmalt 125–175 fr.; cheaper at the diligence office of Aug. Passicos (p. 257), who will send a carriage to the Tizi-Ouzou station if ordered by letter or telegram. Mules also may be hired at Michelet (on Frid. they must be ordered in advance). The Tirourda Pass is seldom fit for driving before the end of April.

_Tizi-Ouzou_, see p. 254. The FORT-NATIONAL ROAD descends to the E. into the valley of the Sebaou, where, at the bridge (259 ft.) across its affluent _Oued Aïssi_, we enjoy a splendid *View of the Jurjura Mts. (p. 258). It then branches off to the S.E., a little before the village of _Sikh ou Meddour_, from the Azazga road on the left bank (p. 260), and begins to ascend rapidly to the long _Massif de Fort-National_, the most important branch of the *=Massif Kabyle=, which extends from the Sebaou to the base of the Azerou-Tidjer (p. 259).

The road ascends in short windings, dangerous for motorists descending, at one time following the S.W. slope of the hill above the Oued Aïssi, where we have splendid mountain views, at another running along the N.E. slope, above a second side-valley of the Sebaou. On every side we see countless fig-trees, the favourite fruit-trees of the natives. We pass isolated cottages and a few small Kabyle villages (_Adeni_, _Tamâzirt_, and others), where the curious may obtain access to one or other of the poor and uninviting huts. Lastly, the road ascends by a long bend (cut off by a mule-track) to the N. to the top of the hill.