The next morning, as soon as the arrangements were completed, the several ships’ companies landed at the same time, and marched in procession to the top of the hill, where the students were formed in a hollow square to hear what Professor Mapps had to say about the Rock. The view was magnificent, for the hill is fourteen hundred and thirty feet above the sea level.
“Young gentlemen, I know that the view from this height is grand and beautiful,” the professor began, “and I cannot blame you for wishing to enjoy it at once; but I wish you to give your attention to the history of the Rock for a few minutes, and then I shall ask Dr. Winstock, who is more familiar with the place than I am, to point out to you in detail the various objects under your eye.”
In addition to the twenty non-commissioned officers who had been detailed to act as guides for the party, quite a number of superior officers, and not a few ladies, formed a part of the professor’s audience. The latter had been attracted by curiosity to follow the students; and the majors, captains, and lieutenants were already on speaking-terms with the principal, the vice-principals, and the professors, though no formal introductions had taken place; and, before the day was over, all hands had established a very pleasant relation with the officers of the garrison and their families.
“When the Phœnicians came to the Rock and to Cadiz, they believed they had reached the end of the world; and here they erected one of the two Pillars of Hercules, which have already been mentioned to you. The Berbers were the original inhabitants of the Barbary States; and Tarìk, a leader of this people, captured the place. He gave his own name to his conquest, calling it Ghebal-Tarìk, or the Hill of Tarìk. This was in 711; but Guzman the Good, the first of the Dukes of Medina Sidonia, recovered it in 1309. Soon after, the Spanish governor of the Rock stole the money appropriated for its defence, employing it in a land speculation at Xeres; and the place surrendered to the Moors. In 1462 another Duke of Medina Sidonia drove out the Moslems; and Spain held the Rock till 1704. In this year, during the war of the Spanish succession, the fortress was attacked by the combined forces of the English and the Dutch. The Spanish garrison consisted of only one hundred and fifty men; but it killed or disabled nearly twice this number of the assailants before the Rock was surrendered, which shows that it was a very strong place even then; and its defences have been doubled since that time. The Spaniards have made repeated attempts to recover possession of the fortress, but without success; and it has been settled that it is entirely impregnable.”
The English officers applauded this last statement; and Dr. Winstock, stepping upon the rock which served the professor for a rostrum, proceeded to point out the objects on interest in sight.
“You have two grand divisions before you,” said the surgeon. “On the other side of the strait is Africa, with its rough steeps. The nest of white houses you see at the head of the deep bay is Ceuta; and the hill is the Mount Abyla of the ancients, on which the other Pillar of Hercules was planted. Turning to the west, the broad Atlantic is before you. Below is the beautiful Bay of Gibraltar, with Algeciras on the opposite side. The village north of us is San Roque; and the lofty snow-capped mountains in the north-east are the Sierra Nevadas, which you saw from Granada. Now look at what is nearer to us. The strait is from twelve to fifteen miles wide. Perhaps you saw some of the monkeys that inhabit the Rock on your way up the hill. Though there are plenty of them on the other side of the strait, they are not found in a wild state in any part of Europe except on this Rock. How they got here, is the conundrum; and some credulous people insist that there is a tunnel under the strait by which they came over.
“Below you is Europa Point; or, rather, three capes with this name. You see the beautiful gardens near the Point; and in the hands of the English people the whole Rock blossoms like the rose, while, if any other people had it, it would be a desolate waste. Stretching out into the bay, near the dockyard, is the new mole, which is seven hundred feet long. The one near the landing-port is eleven hundred feet; but it shelters only the small craft. The low, sandy strip of ground that bounds the Rock on the north is the Neutral Ground, where the sentinels of the two countries are always on duty. This strip of land is diked, so that it can be inundated and rendered impassable to an army in a few moments.”
The doctor finished his remarks, but we have not reported all that he said; nor have we space for the speeches of a couple of the English officers who were invited to address the students, though they gave much information in regard to the fortress and garrison life at the Rock. The crowd was divided into small parties, and spent the rest of the day in exploring the fortifications with the guides. As usual, the doctor had the captain and first lieutenant under his special charge.
“The east and south sides of the Rock, as you observed when we came into the bay from Malaga,” said he, “are almost perpendicular; and at first sight it would seem to be absurd to fortify a steep which no one could possibly ascend. But an enemy would find a way to get up if it were not for the guns that cover this part of the Rock. The north end is also too steep to climb. The west side, where we came up by the zigzag path, has a gentler slope; and this is protected by batteries in every direction.”
“I can see the guns of the batteries; but I do not see any on the north and east sides of the Rock,” said Sheridan.