CORSETS 



thieving; ami when they were joined by 

 ad\cnturers I'ruiii the Levant and not a few Christian 

 renegades, who were attracted by the spoils of the 

 Indies, then coming t<> Spain, they stum became 

 a formidable power, and founded citadels and .states 

 <see Ai.tiii :!:>. Trxis, Tumn.i, SAU.KK). Their 



greatest leaders were the l>nthei- I ru j and l\lie\i 

 ed dm Karliarossa, the first pashas of Algiers. 

 l\lie\r ed din rose from a mere captain of a galley 

 to be high admiral of Sultan Suleyman (Soliman 

 the Magnificent), and defeated the combined 

 imperial, papal, and Venetian fleets under Doria 

 oil' Prevesa in 1538. Other famouH corsairs were 

 Dragut (Torghud), a Sardinian who died at the 

 "i Malta; Ochiali (Uluj 'Ali), who fought in 

 the battle of Lepanto, 1571 ; Aidin Reis, or 'Drub- 

 <levil ; ' Sinan of Smyrna ; Salih Reis ; Ramadan ; 

 Ali Piehinin, &c. Many attempts were made to 

 put down the corsairs, from Sir Robert Mansel's 

 expedition in 1621 to the very important expedi- 

 tion against Algiers by the United States under 

 Decatur (q.v.) in 1815 the first serious attempt 

 to put an end to the long established evil 

 followed by Lord Exmouth's victory in 1816 ; but 

 the jealousies of the European powers conspired to 

 assure the pirates' immunity, and the Deys of 

 Algiers levied blackmail upon Christian govern- 

 ments who wished to protect their trade. Noth- 

 ing less than the French conquest could have sup- 

 pressed so long-seated a disorder, which had 

 infected the Mediterranean for more than three 

 centuries, and even carried off captives from Ireland. 

 See BARBAROSSA, GALLEYS, PIRACY, SLAVERY; 

 and Corsairs of the Mediterranean, by Stanley 

 Lane- Poole ( 1889). 



Corsets. See TIGHT-LACING. 



Corsica, the fourth largest island of the Medi- 

 terranean and a French department, is 114 miles 

 long by 52 miles broad, with 300 miles of coast-line. 

 Area, 3378 sq. m. ; pop. (1872) 258,507; (1896) 

 290, 168. Corsica is separated from the twin island 

 of Sardinia, double its size, to the south, by the 

 Strait of Bonifacio. It is 54 miles SW. of Leg- 

 horn and 98 S. from Genoa. Though now part 

 of France, the island belongs geographically, his- 

 torically, and linguistically to Italy. The pro- 

 montory into which the north coast projects runs 

 23 miles north beyond the general north coast-line, 

 and is 6 to 9 miles broad. The interior is a labyrinth 

 of mountains, in which, however, a principal 'chain 

 traverses the whole island from north to south, 

 dividing Corsica into two regions, an eastern and a 

 western zone. These regions are each divided by 

 transverse chains into parallel valleys deeply hol- 

 lowed by watercourses plunging from the high sum- 

 mits. The highest elevations are about the middle : 

 into (8898 feet); Rotondo (8607); Pagli-Orba 

 (8283). On the west side the mountains reach to 

 the coast, but on the east, between mountains and 

 sea, there extend alluvial plains, edged seawards 

 with lagoons and swamps, highly fertile but mala- 

 rious, so that in summer the occupants have to 

 escape to the mountains. In the time of the 

 Romans these plains were densely peopled, and 

 recently eucalyptus plantations are beginning to 

 overcome the malaria. The west zone is occupied 

 mostly with primary strata, granite, and schistose 

 rock ; on the east side the mountains are cretaceous, 

 with serpentine and porphyry. Corsica is watered 

 by numerous streams, none navigable, with cascades 

 glittering in all directions. On the east coast are 

 the Tavignano, 47 miles long, from lake Nino ; and 

 the Golo, 52 miles long. On the west the longest 

 is the Taravo, 34 miles long. 



With the exception of the malarious coasts in 

 the east the climate is highly salubrious. The soil 

 is very fertile, and over 43 per cent, of the entire 

 136 



C01ISO 



497 



area is returned by official statistics a* arable 

 land ; yet in 1887 over 35,000 ton* of tl.,ur, 

 and large quantities of wheat and hay, were 

 imported. < 'orsica presents a succession of climates 

 and vegetation /ones. tin the lower Blopea 

 are olives, oranges, citrons, laurels and vines. 



Higher, up to ti'2M) feet, are magnificent chehtnut- 

 trees ; higher still rise virgin forests of oak, pine, 

 larch, &c. These again are overtopped by pasture*. 

 The highest summits are snow clad for half the 

 year. About one-sixth of Corsica is estimated to 

 be covered with forest, but this includes in many 

 places only confused thickets (mm-rfne) of green 

 oak, arbutus, myrtle, and broom, often serving as 

 the hiding-place of bandits. Campo dell' <>n> 

 around Ajaccio and the country north of Bastia 

 are among the most fertile districts of the Mediter- 

 ranean. The mufflon or wild sheep is found ; also 

 wild boars, large foxes, and .-mall deer, but no 

 wolves or bears. The venomous ant, innufantato, 

 is peculiar to Corsica, where are also the Malmig- 

 nata spider and the tarantula. The minerals of 

 Corsica are yet little worked. Copper and silver- 

 lead mines near Calvi are now being worked by an 

 English company. Sulphide of antimony is success- 

 fully worked in Cape Corso. There are also iron 

 and manganese ores. Among the valuable stones 

 are red and blue granite, porphyry, jasper, alabaster, 

 and marble ; and the Orex/a mineral waters have 

 a high medicinal value. Agriculture is backward. 

 In many parts tillage is carried on almost exclu- 

 sively by Italian labourers ( ' Lucchesi ' ). The chief 

 industries are fishing and rearing of cattle. Raw silk 

 is raised to the amount of about 500 cwt. of cocoons 

 annually. The principal ports are Bastia, Ajaccio, 

 ami Calvi; in 1891-1900 an average of 2060 ships, 

 with a total tonnage of 471,800, entered, and 1642 

 cleared, with a tonnageof 312,000. The chief imports 

 are corn and other food-stuffs, building materials, 

 coals, metal wares, salt, cattle, cheese, fodder, brandy, 

 pottery, glass wares, and paper ; and the chief ex- 

 ports, wine, wood, bark for tanning, olive oil, chest- 

 nuts, and fruits fresh and preserved. There is a 

 railway from Ajaccio to Bastia, with branches to 

 Calvi and Orbo. Corsica is divided into five arron- 

 dissements : Ajaccio, Bastia, Calvi, Corte, Sartene. 

 The capital is Ajaccio, but the most important 

 town is Bastia. The language is a corrupt Italian. 

 Though not industrious, the Corsicans are patriotic 

 and brave. 



In early times known as Cyrnos, Corsica in the 

 8th century fell to the Saracens, who in the llth 

 yielded it to Pisa. Thence it passed to the Genoese. 

 Genoese towers, that defended the bays against 

 Saracen incursions, still add a picturesque trait to 

 the landscape. The Genoese, unable to subdue the 

 Corsicans, who had risen under General Paoli, sur- 

 rendered Corsica to the French, who conquered it in 

 1768 ; since then it has willingly united with France. 



See Boswell'a Account of Corsica (1768 ) ; Ortoli's Contes 

 popul. de rile de Corse (1885); Paul Borde's En Corte 

 (1887); J. W. Barry, Studies in Corsica (1893); L. H. 

 Caird's History of Corsu-a ( 1899 ) ; and for ' the C'orsican, ' 

 BONAPARTE, NAPOLEON. For the C'orsican blood-feud, we 

 VKNDETTA, and Prosper Merimee's powerful picture of 

 Corsican life, Colombo ( 1841 ). 



Corsite, a variety of Diorite (q.v.), composed of 

 anorthite-felspar, hornblende, and a little quartz. 



Corslet, a kind of cuirass, formerly the usual 

 lx>dv-covering of pikemen. It was made chiefly of 

 leather, and was pistol-proof. 



Corsned. See ORDEAL. 



Corso. an Italian word used to express not 

 only the racing of riderless horses, but also the 

 slow driving in procession of handsome equipages 

 through the principal streets of a town, such as 

 almost always takes place in Italy on festivals 



