54 AUSTRIA-HUNGARY. 



like that of the Provençal mistral, is extraordinary. In 1873 it upset a railway- 

 train above Fiurao, and it finds its way even into the ill-constructed houses hidden 

 in the cavities of the plateau. Mariners fear it, and cautiouslj^ approach the 

 offings of valleys down which it takes its furious course. As a rule it blows from 

 the north-east, but it is frequently deflected by the valleys. Its approach is 

 heralded by puffs of wind and by the purple tint of the sea. The violence of the 

 bora renders the north-eastern coasts of the islands almost uninhabitable, although 

 they abound in excellent harbours, for the spray of the sea, which it whirls before 

 it, proves destructive to vegetation, and only tamarisks resist it. The influence of 

 the bora extends for several miles inland. It appears to blow with greater force 

 now than formerly. On the eastern side of Pago the wine harvest now fails every 

 three or four years, instead of every ten or twelve, as formerly. It is the western 

 slopes of the islands which support the greater part of the population, and are 

 most carefully cultivated. The tides, too, differ from those of other parts of the 

 Adriatic, for in the Quarnero Gulf they only flow once within twenty-four hours, 

 instead of twice, as in the lagoons of Venice and the Gulf of Trieste. 



The climatic differences observed on the plateaux, along the coasts, and on the 

 islands sufficiently account for the differences in the local floras. On the Carso 

 the floras of Germany, Italy, and Croatia mingle ; in the valleys the flora varies 

 much according to elevation and exposure to the sun. The Mediterranean 

 flora, thanks to the numerous inlets of the sea, is most numerously represented, 

 and the marine flora of Dalmatia is richer than that of any other European sea. 

 The fauna, too, presents us with a few species not elsewhere met with. Reptiles 

 are numerous, especially tortoises ; brown bears are met with in the mountains ; 

 foxes and martens descend to the plains ; but the stag and the wild boar have 

 disappeared. The jackal, however, which forms a link between the faunas of 

 Europe and Asia, is still met with on a few islands and in Southern Dalmatia. 

 The sea abounds in fish. The tunny is caught at Grignano, in the Gulf of 

 Trieste ; immense shoals of sardines visit the coast of Istria, and eels ascend the 

 rivers of Dalmatia. A species of crawfish [Nephrops JVorre(jict(.s), formerly supposed 

 to be peculiar to Norway, is caught in the Gulf of Quarnero. 



Inhabitants. 



The two dominant races of the empire are represented in these Adriatic pro- 

 vinces only by soldiers, functionaries, and merchants. With few exceptions, the 

 inhabitants are either Slavs or Italians. The latter, most numerous in Istria, live 

 principally in the maritime region, whilst the Slavs occupy the plateaux. 



We possess little information concerning the Celts and Pelasgians who originally 

 inhabited the country. AVe do not know to whom to ascribe the construction of 

 the castcllicri, or castlets, so numerous in Istria. Thus much is certain — that the 

 Italian element, in the days of ancient Rome, M'as far stronger, for the names of 

 many Slav villages and families in the interior are clearly of Latin origin. The 

 Chiches and other Slav tribes first occupied the plateaux between the ninth and the 

 seventeenth centuries, having been introduced by feudal landowners, Venetians, 



