

APKNN'IS 



The loftier parts of UM Apennines are f.- the most port naked rock. 

 The chain nowhere rches the line of perpetual mow, though in the 

 ratine* of the Gran 8a**o and the Monte Majella mow u Mud to lie all 

 the year r the hurhwt lummiU the snow generally lies 



from November to the end of May. The aide* of the mountain* are 

 in many parU clothed with dens* forests, but not to BO great an extent 

 as in ancient times. As usual, the pined occupy the upper slopes ; 

 lower down are woods of oak of different kinds, and beech ; and near 

 the base and in the valleys chestnuts and holm-oaks flourish. The 

 Central Apennines afford excellent pasturage for sheep and cattle, 

 and are frequented in summer by numerous flocks and herds from 

 the parched plains of Apulia and other leas distant regions. From 

 many of the summits of the Apennines the views are extensive and 

 beautiful, chiefly in consequence of their extent, embracing, as many 

 of them do, the seas and the level parts of Italy ; the immediate 

 aspect of the mountains however is almost invariably dreary and 

 monotonous. The interval* between the Apennine ranges and their 

 offshoots are with a few exceptions very narrow, resembling savage 

 ravines more than valleys ; and it is only on approaching the plains, 

 upon which they abut rather than open, that the influence of a 

 southern climate U discerned in the luxuriant growth of the olive, 

 the mulberry, the cypress, the arbutus, the orange, the citron, and, 

 towards the south, the carob and the palm. 



There is a remarkable difference in the conformation of the eastern 

 and western offshoots of the Apennines : the former run off nearly in 

 straight lines with a continuous slope to the plain of the Po or the 

 coast of the Adriatic, and the numerous rivers and torrents that 

 descend to the sea between them flow under nearly the same bearing 

 from their sources to their mouths. Almost the only exceptions to 

 this are the Tronto and the Aterno or Upper Pescara, both of which 

 flow in longitudinal valleys ; the former northward from the knot of 

 Monte Reale, whence the Gran Sasso d'ltalia springs off to the south- 

 south-east, and the latter south-south-westward through the valley of 

 the Aquila, between the Gran Sasso and Monte Velino. In like 

 manner on the Mediterranean slope of the Northern Apennines the 

 offJMiU, or rather spurs, project from the main chain in a transverse 

 direction ; but they are generally higher however than the offsets that 

 run towards the Po or the Adriatic. But in the Central and Southern 

 Apennines the western offshoot* though presenting great irregularities 

 and variations preserve a general parallelism with the main chain, and 

 by their windings and ramifications they divide the Mediterranean 

 slope into two or more terraces, the waters from which flow through 

 longitudinal valleys, opening into each other in some instances from 

 opposite directions, and reach the coast by a common drain which 

 generally as in the cane of the Arno, the Tiber, the Gariglinno, and 

 the Volturno enters the sea in a direction nearly at right angles to 

 the axis of the Apennines. The mountain region characterised by the 

 peculiarities just enunciated is distinguished by the name of Sub- 

 Apennine ; it extends over a great part of Tuscany, the States of the 

 Church, and Maples, and seems to need a more particular notice. 



The Tuscan Sub-Apennines stretch between the basin of the Tiber 

 and the Arno. They spring from the main range at Monte Comaro, 

 in which the two rivers just named have their sources. From this 

 ]Kiint a range runs between the upper coumes of the Tiber and the 

 Ann) in a southern direction as far as the lake of Perugia, which it 

 incloses, and then turning west divides into two branches. Of these, 

 one runs northward up the right bank of the Upper Chiana to the 

 source of the Ombrone and along the left bank of the Middle Arno, 

 then turning west past Siena and Volterra it sends off several 

 offshoots to the north-west, which separate the streams that feed the 

 Lower Arno on -the left bank, and reaches the sea in the low hills 

 between the basin of the Cecina and the port of Livorno. An offset 

 from this branch runs southward from the neighbourhood of Siena, 

 and separates the basins of the Ombrone and the shore lake of Castig- 

 lione from the basin of the Cecina. The other branch runs south 

 to the before-mentioned Monte Amiata, in which Is the source 

 of the Paglia, a feeder of the Tiber ; from this the range runs south 

 by east as far as the Lake of Bolsena, which divides it into two chains, 

 one running southward between the Fiore and the Marta, (which in 

 the outlet of the lake), and the other subsiding into the plain south 

 of Monte Fiascone. To the south of thin depression of the Sub- 

 Apennines U the volcanic region of the Ciminian Hill.', which lies 

 between the Marta and the Tiber, and extends along the northern 

 edge of the Campagna to the neighbourhood of Civita Vecchia. 

 Another offshoot from Monte Amiata joins Monte Labl.ro ami firms the 

 watershed between the Ombrone on the west and the Albegna and 

 the Flora on the east The principal communications across the 

 Tuscan Bub-Apennines are the roads from Florence to Rome through 

 Siena and Arano. 



The Roman Sub-Aponnine springs from the main chain near Monte 

 y*y between the source* of the Liri and the Salto, which run in 

 opposite directions. H breaks up into several tortuous branches, 

 which preserve a general direction from X.\V. t.,S.K. funning the water- 

 sheds between the Liri and the Sacco, the Salto and the Tiranno, 

 th* Tiranno and UM Teverone. From the mountains near Palestrina 

 sad UM source of the .Sacco, the Monti Lepini, a series of steep hills 

 traversing UM country of tlie ancient Volsci, separates the Sacco and 

 UM Oarigliano from the Tontine Marshes, and terminates southward 



in the steep rocky tongue of land on which the fortress of Oaeta is 

 built Near the western base of the Monti Lepini spring up the 

 Alban Hilla ; these however do not belong to the Apennine system, 

 but are unquestionably of volcanic origin, as are also the hills on 

 which ancient Rome was Imilt 



Lastly, the Neapolitan Sub-Apennino exemplifies the same paral- 

 lelism of the western offshoots with the main chain of the Apennines. 

 Here the Volturno and the Sabbato run through long valleys towards 

 each other, the former from the N.N.W., the latter from the S 

 and after meeting flow to the sea in the transversal drain of the 

 Lower Volturno, which seems to force its way through thr Snl>- 

 Apennine terrace. This terrace is formed on the northern side by a 

 chain which leaves the crest of the Apennines to the north of Venafro, 

 and running southward divides the basins of the Garigliano and the 

 Volturno. Near Teano it divides into two branches, one continuing 

 the range to the sea and the other stretching more easterly to the 

 Lower Volturno, near the town of Cajasso. The southern range of 

 this Sub-Apennino leaves the main chain at the sources of the Ofanto, 

 the Sele} and the Sabbato; it runs north-westward, forming the western 

 edge of the basin of the Sabbato, and strikes the left bank of the Lower 

 Volturno between Caserta and Capua. The southern range of the 

 Neapolitan Sub-Apcnnine and the transverse ridge that terminates in 

 Cape Campanella inclose the volcanic region of Mount Vesuvius. To 

 the south of the transverse ridge the basin of the Sele presents another 

 instance of two opposite valleys throwing their waters into a transverse 

 drain. 



Gtotogital Structure. In the Northern Apennines there are three 

 great deposit*. The lowest is an assemblage of gneiss, mica-slate, 

 clay-slate, talc-elate, and a semi-granular limestone; the next, an 

 assemblage of argillaceous slates, marly sandstones, and slates, sand- 

 stones, and limestones ; and the uppermost consists of a series of 

 marly limestones, and a sandstone called maciffno, with impressions of 

 marine plants. These strata, together with some partial deposits of 

 conglomerate, are all more or less inclined, sometimes nearly vertical, 

 and frequently much contorted, particularly the uppermost strata. 

 Upon these are found deposit* of tertiary formation, usually in hori- 

 zontal stratification ; but they occur only in detached spots of limited 

 extent on the Mediterranean Ride of the chain, while in Piedmont and 

 Lombardy they form a continuous zone, skirting the northern slope 

 of the Apennines, from Ceva on the west to r ornoro on the east. 

 Among the igneous rocks of the Northern Apennines, serpentine is by 

 far the most important, and it is probable that the dislocations and 

 contortions above noticed have been produced by its forcible ejection 

 in a melted state among the strata before mentioned. 



The Central Apennines arc composed chiefly of limestone, which 

 contains very few fossils, and affords very little interest to the 

 geologist ; ita uniformity is absolutely wearisome. It is the sole con- 

 stituent of the Apennines of Tuscany, Romagna, Fabriano, Foligno, 

 and the Abruzzi, and stretches uninterruptedly through the provinces 

 of Basilicata and Ban to the extreme point of Otranto. On the 

 western side of the Apennines the limestone is mostly covered by 

 tertiary and volcanic products, so that it seldom appears far from the 

 central chain, unless when the subordinate branches rise to consider- 

 able heights. On the eastern side the limestone rises in some parts 

 of Apulia to the surface of the ground, in inclined beds, from the 

 central range to the sea-shore. Like most other limestone formations 

 they abound in great caverns. The limestone extends into Calabria ; 

 but the range of Aspromonte is occupied by primary strata, chiefly 

 granite. 



The offshoots of the Apennines are composed chiefly of marls, covered 

 by yellow sand, both abounding in organic remains. The marls 

 contain also beds of lignite and of gypsum, and detached crystals of 

 gypsum ; sometimes they pass into compact limestone, and occasion- 

 ally there are interstratified beds of sandstone. They constitute very 

 frequently the surface of the country, but more usually are covered 

 with sand. The great arenaceous deposit lies generally upon the 

 marl, but sometimes it is seen reposing on the Apennine limestone. 

 It sometimes passes into a calcareous sandstone, and between Florence 

 and Pcggibonzi there is a range of conglomerate belonging to the 

 same deposit, extending 11 miles, the pebbles of which are chiefly 

 limestone. The shells found in the marl and sand are usually in a 

 high state of preservation ; they ore referable to species and families 

 of which the habits ore extremely diversified, some living in deep, 

 others in shallow water some in rivers, others at their mouth. Many 

 are identical with H]K-cicn now inhabiting the adjoining seas, others 

 with species now living in tropical seas. The remains of corals and 

 fishes are not imfrfijucnt, as well as detached bones, and even entire 

 skeletons of whales and other cetacea. The skeleton of a whole 

 21 feet long has been found near Castel Arquato, between Parma and 

 Piacenzn, in tin- marl, and oyster-shells were adhering to a part of the 

 head, showing that it must have loin as a skeleton at the bottom of 

 the sea. Bones of land-animals are frequently met with, and that 

 they were transported to the bed of the sea is evident from their being 

 associated with marine shells, and from the thigh-bone of an elephant 

 having been disinterred, with oyster-shells attached to it, as in the 

 instance of the whale's skeleton mentioned above. 



Besides these marine tertiary deposit*, there are others which arc 

 lacustrine. A formation of this sort occurs in the Upper Vol d'Arno, 



