Not proofread: Created page with "<section begin="s1"/>streams fall, forming considerable lagoons. For some way beyond the only seaport is Bosa, which has only an open road stead; and at the southern extremity..."
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<noinclude><pagequality level="1" user="Slowking4" /><div class="pagetext">{{rh|{{x-larger| }}|{{x-larger|{{uc|SARDINIA}}}}|{{x-larger|211}}}}<!-- replace "Foo" and "Bar" with the header from the page, delete and input page numbers as appropriate -->
</noinclude><section begin="s1"/>streams fall, forming considerable lagoons. For some way beyond
the only seaport is Bosa, which has only an open road stead; and at
the southern extremity of the Nurra come the Gulf of Alghero and
Porto Conte to the W., the latter a fine natural harbour but
the
not easy of ingress or egress. The northern extremity of the Nurra,
Capo del Falcone, is continued to the N.N.E. by the island of
the
Asinara, about I 1 m. in length, the highest point of which, the Punta
della Scomunica, is 1339 ft. high. This small island serves as a
quarantine station. On the mainland, on the south shore of the
Golfo dell' Asinara, is the harbour of Porto Torres, the only one of
any importance on the north-west coast of Sardinia.
Geology.-Geologically Sardinia consists of two hilly regions of
Pre-Tertiary rock, separated by a broad depression filled with
Tertiary deposits. This depression runs nearly from north to south,
from the Gulf of Asinara to the Gulf of Cagliari. Physically its
continuity is broken by Monte Urticu and several smaller hills which
rise within it, but these are all composed of volcanic rock and are the
remains of Tertiary volcanoes. It is in the south that the depression
remains most distinct and it is there known as the Campidano.
In the north it forms the plain of Sassari. Both to the east and to the
west of this depression the Archean and Palaeozoic rocks which
form the greater part of the island are strongly folded, with the exception
of the uppermost beds, which belong to the Permian system.
In the eastern region this was the last folding which has affected the
country, and the Mesozoic and Tertiary beds are almost undisturbed.
In the western region, on the other hand, all the' Mesozoic beds are
involved in a later system of folds; but here also the Tertiary beds
lie nearly horizontal. There were, therefore, two principal epochs
of folding in the island, one at the close of the Palaeozoic era which
affected the whole of the island, and one at the close of the Mesozoic
which was felt only in the western region. Corresponding with this
difference of structure there is also a difference in the geological
succession. In the western region all the Mesozoic systems, including
the Trias, are well developed. The Trias does not belong,
as might have been expected, to the Alpine or Mediterranean type;
but resembles that of Germany and northern Europe. In the
eastern region the Trias is entirely absent and the Mesozoic series
begins with the Upper Jurassic. .
Granite and Archean schists form nearly the whole of the eastern
hills from the Strait of Bonifacio southwards to the Flumendosa
river, culminating in Monti del Gennargentu. The Palaeozoic rocks
form two extensive masses, one in the south-east and the other in
the south-west. The occur also on the extreme north-western
coast, in the Nurra. Cambrian, Ordovician and Silurian beds have
been recognized, the Upper Cambrian consisting of a limestone which
is very rich in metalliferous ores (especially galena and calamine).
The Permian, which contains workable coal seams, lies unconformable
upon the older beds and seems to have been deposited in
isolated basins (e.g. at Fondu Corrongiu and San Sebastiano), like
those of the Central Plateau of France. The Mesozoic beds are
limited in extent, the most extensive areas lying around the Gulf of
Orosei on the east and west of Sassari in the north. The Tertiary
deposits cover the whole of the central depression, where they are
associated with extensive flows of lava and beds of volcanic ash.
The most widely spread of the sedimentary beds belong to the
Miocene period!
''Climate''.—The climate of Sardinia is more extreme than that of
Italy, but varies considerably in different districts. The mean
winter temperature for Sassari for 1871-1900 was 48° F., the mean
summer temperature 73° F., while the mean of the extremes reached
in each direction were 99° F. and 31-5° F. The island is subject to
strong winds, which are especially felt at Cagliari owing to its
position at the south-east end of the Campidano, and the autumn
rains are sometimes of almost tropical violence. The lower districts
are hot and often unhealthy in the summer, while the climate of the
mountainous portion of the island is less oppressive, and would be
still cooler if it possessed more forest. There are comparatively few
streams and no inland lakes. Snow hardly ever falls near the coast,
but is abundant in the higher parts of the island, though none
remains throughout the summer. The rainfall in the south-west
portion of the island is considerably greater than in other districts.
The mean annual rainfall for Sassari for 1871-1900 was 24-45 in.,
the average number of days on which rain fell being 109, of which
37 were in winter and only 8 in summer-the latter equal with
Palermo, but lower than any other station in Italy.
Malaria.-The island has a bad reputation for malaria, due to the
fact that it offers a considerable quantity of breeding places for the
Anopheles claviger, the mosquito whose bite conveys the infection.
Such are the various coast lagoons, formed at the mouths of streams
1
See A. de la Marmora, Voyage en Sardaigne, vol. iii. (1857);
J. C. Bornemann, “Die Versteinerungen des Cambrischen Schichtensystems
der Insel Sardinien, ” Nova Acta Ie. L-C. Akad. Natur . vol.
li. (1886), pp. 1-148, pls. i.-xxxiii., and fb. vol. lvi. (1891, pp.
£27-528, pls. xix.-xxviii.; A. Tornquist, “ Ezgebnisse einer
ereisung der Insel Sardinien, ” Sitz. k. preuss. Aka . Wiss. (1902),
pp. 808-829, and “ Der Gebirgsbau Sardiniens und seine Beziehungen
zu den jungen, circum-mediterranen Faltenziigen, " ib. (1903),
p. 685-6993 A. Dannenberg, “Der Vulkanberg Mte Ferru in
Sardinien, ” Neue; Jahrb. f. Min. Beil. Bd. xxi. (1906), pp. 1-62, pl. i.
for lack of proper canalization, while much of the harm is also due to
the dis forestation of the mountains, owing to which the rains collect
in the upland valleys, and are brought down by violent torrents,
carrying the soil with them, and so impeding the proper drainage and
irrigation of these valleys, and encouraging the formation of unhealthy
swamps; moreover, the climate has become much more
tropical in character. The mortality from malaria in 1902 was
higher than for any other part of Italy-1037 persons, or 154 per
100,000 (Basilicata, 141; Apulia, 104; Calabria, 77; Sicily, 76;
province of Rome, 27).
Customs and Dress.-The population of Sardinia appears
(though further investigation is desirable) to have belonged in
ancient times, and to belong at present, to the -.so-called Mediterranean
race (see G. Sergi, La Sardegna, Turin, 1907). In the aeneolithic
necropolis of Anghelu Ruju, near Alghero, of 6 3 skulls, 53
belong to the “ Mediterranean ” dolico-mesocephalic type and IO to
a Eurasian brachycephalic type of Asiatic origin, which has been
found in prehistoric tombs of other parts of Europe. The race
has probably suffered less here than in most parts of the Mediterranean
basin from foreign intermixture, except for a few Catalan
and Genoese settlements on the coast (Alghero and Carloforte
are respectively the most important of these); and the population
in general seems to have deteriorated slightly since prehistoric
times, the average cranial capacity of the prehistoric
skulls from the Anghelu Ruju being 1490 c.c. for males and 1308
for females, while among the modern population 6o% of males
and females together fall below 12 5o c.c.; and the stature is
generally lower than in other parts of Italy, as is shown by the
measurements of the recruits (R. Livi, Anlropomelria Mililare,
Rome 1896). Anthropologists, indeed, have recently observed
a large proportion of individuals of exceptionally small stature,
not found in Sardinia only, but elsewhere in south Italy also;
though in Sardinia they are distributed over the whole island, and
especially in the southern half. In the province of Cagliaii
29-99% of the recruits born in 1862 were under .5 ft. 1 in., and
in that of Sassari 21-99 %, the percentage for ten provinces of
south Italy being 24-3 5. These small individuals present apparently
no other differences, and Sergi maintains that the difference
is racial, these being the descendants of a race of pygrnies who
had emigrated from central Africa. But the lowness of stature
extends to the lower animals-cattle, horses, donkeys, &c.and
this may indicate that climatic causes have some part in the
matter also, though Sergi denies this.
The dialects differ very much in different parts of the island, so
that those who speak one often cannot understand those who speak
another, and use Italian as the medium of communication. They
contain a considerable number of Latin words, which have remained
unchanged. The two main dialects are that of the Logudoro in the
north and that of Cagliari in the south of the island.
The native costumes also vary considerably. In the south-east
they have largely gone out of use, but elsewhere, especially in the
mountainous districts, they are still habitually worn. In the
Barbargia the men have a white shirt, a black or red waistcoat and
black or red coat, often with open sleeves; the cut and decorations
of these vary considerably in the different districts. They have a
kind of short kilt, stiff, made of black wool, with a band from back
to front between the legs; under this they wear short linen trousers,
which come a little below the knee, and black woollen leggings with
boots. They wear a black cap, about 1% ft. long, the end of which
falls down over one side of the head. In other districts the costume
varies considerably, but the long cap is almost universal. Thus at
Ozieri the men wear ordinary Jackets and trousers with a velvet
waistcoat; the shepherds of the Sulcis wear short black trousers
without kilt and heavy black sheepskin coats, and the two rows of
waistcoat buttons are generally silver or copper coins. The costume
of the women is different (often entirely so) in each village or district.
Bright colours (especially red) are frequent, and the white chemise
is an integral part of the dress. The skirts are usually of the native
wool (called orbacia). For widows or deep mourning the peculiar
cut of the local costume is preserved, but carried out entirely in
black. The native costume is passing out of use in many places
(especially among the women, whose costume is more elaborate than
that of the men), partly owin to the spread of modern ideas, partly
owing to its cost; and in the Campidano and. in the mining districts
it is now rarely seen. The curious customs, too, of which older
writers tell us, are gradually dying out. But the festivals, especially
those of mountain Villages or of pilgrimage churches, attract in the
summer a great concourse of people, all in their local costumes.
There may be seen the native dances and break-neck horse-racesthe
riders bareback-through the main street of the village. The
people are generally courteous and kindly, the island being still
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