Waters of the Karst

The singular structure of the Karst, the great limestone plateau lying to the north of Trieste, has suggested some engineering operations which might be attended with sensible effects upon the geography of the province. I have described this table land as, though now bare of forests, and almost of vegetation, having once been covered with woods, and as being completely honeycombed by caves through which the drainage of that region is conducted. Schmidl has spent years in studying the subterranean geography and hydrography of this singular district, and his discoveries, and those of earlier cave-hunters, have led to various proposals of physical improvement of a novel character. Many of the underground water courses of the Karst are without visible outlet, and, in some instances at least, they, no doubt, send their waters, by deep channels, to the Adriatic. The city of Trieste is very insufficiently provided with fresh water. It has been thought practicable to supply this want by tunnelling through the wall of the plateau, which rises abruptly in the rear of the town, until some subterranean stream is encountered, the current of which can be conducted to the city. More visionary projectors have gone further, and imagined that advantage might be taken of the natural tunnels under the Karst for the passage of roads, railways, and even navigable canals. But however chimerical these latter schemes may seem, there is every reason to believe that art might avail itself of these galleries for improving the imperfect drainage of the champaign country bounded by the Karst, and that stopping or opening the natural channels might very much modify the hydrography of an extensive region.