Fig. 124.—THE PORT OF MALTA.
Scale 1 : 49,000.
LA VALETTA, MALTA.
The great military part played by Malta began when the Knights of St. John, after their expulsion from Rhodes in 1522, installed themselves upon the island, and converted it into the bulwark of the Christian world. In the beginning of this century Malta passed into the possession of the English, who may survey thence, as from a watch-tower, the whole of the Mediterranean, from Gibraltar to Smyrna {337} and Port Said. The excellent port of La Valetta singularly facilitates the military and commercial part which Malta is called upon to play in the world of the Mediterranean. It is sufficiently spacious to shelter two entire fleets, and its approaches are defended by fortifications rendered impregnable by the successive work of three centuries. There are, besides, all the facilities required by merchantmen, including a careening dock larger than any other in the world. The commerce of the island is rapidly increasing; it is one of the great centres of steamboat navigation, and submarine telegraphs connect it with all parts of the world.[115]
The city of La Valetta has retained all its ancient picturesqueness, in spite of its straight streets and the walls which surround it. Its high white houses, ornamented with balconies and conservatories, rise amphitheatre-like on the slope of a hill; stairs lead from landing-place to landing-place to the summit of this hill; and from every street we behold the blue sea, with its large merchantmen and crowds of smaller vessels. Gondolas, having two huge eyes painted upon the prow, glide noiselessly over the waters, and curious vehicles roll heavily along the quays. Maltese, English soldiers, and sailors of every nation crowd the streets. Now and then a woman glides rapidly along the walls. Like all Christian women of the East, she wears the faldetta, a sort of black silk domino, which hides her sumptuous dress, and coquettishly conceals her features.
Malta beyond the walls of the town is but a dreary place of abode. The country rises gently towards the south, in the direction of Città Vecchia and the hills of Ben Gemma. Grey rocks abound, a fine dust covers the vegetation, and the white walls of the village glisten in the sun. There are no trees, except in a few solitary gardens, where the famous mandarin oranges grow. Nor are there any rivers. The soil is scorched, and it is matter for astonishment that it should yield such abundant harvests of cereals, and clover (sulla) growing to the height of a man. Carnation tints delight the eye during the season of flowers. The Maltese peasants, small, wiry, and muscular, are wonderfully industrious. They have brought the whole island under cultivation, the cliffs alone excepted, and, where vegetable soil is wanting, they produce it artificially by triturating the rocks. In former times vessels coming from Sicily were bound to bring a certain quantity of soil as ballast. But in spite of their careful cultivation, the inhabitants of Malta, Gozzo, and Comino (thus named from cumin, which, with cotton, is the principal crop of the island), the produce hardly suffices for six months’ consumption, and the islanders are largely dependent upon Sicily for their food. Navigation and the fisheries contribute likewise towards the means of subsistence, but the Maltese would nevertheless perish on their island if the surplus population did not emigrate to all the coast lands of the Mediterranean, and especially to Algeria, where the Maltese, as everywhere else, are distinguished for thrift and industry. {338}
In winter this exodus is in some measure compensated for by the arrival of many English families, who visit the island for the sake of its dry and mild climate. February is the finest month, and the island is then resplendent with verdure, but the scorching heat of summer soon dries up the vegetation.
A governor appointed by the Crown exercises executive functions, and enjoys the privilege of mercy. He is assisted by a Council of seven members, by whom all laws are discussed and voted. The lord-lieutenant of each district is chosen amongst the Maltese nobles, and deputies appointed by the governor manage the affairs of the villages. Italian is the language used in the courts, with the exception of the Supreme Court, into which English was introduced in 1823.