Malta, which has been called "the master key of the Mediterranean and the Levant," "the stepping-stone to Egypt and the Dardanelles," and "the connecting link between England and India," is one of our Empire's most valuable possessions, and its physical formation has made it for generations past of great maritime value. The island is, in itself, a rock, and all its earth and mould has been imported. In the days when there were no submarines or warships, it was the headquarters of pirates roaming at large in the Mediterranean. These pirate crews, after capturing their prey, used to bring their captures into one of the entrances of the island, now called the Grand Harbour. At the base of the harbour is the town of Valetta, which was catacombed in those early times, and tunnels were made through the island rock. When pirates had brought a ship under cover of the natural harbour to these tunnels, they took all the merchandise ashore and then broke up the vessel, so as to leave no trace of the incident. The crew were usually massacred to a man, and when chase was given, no trace whatever could be found of either the pirates or their captures, and later on their ill-gotten gains would be shipped off from the other end of the tunnel in another part of the island. Looking through between the trees in my sketch of the Casement Gardens, under the Barracks of Floriana, which stand on an eminence overlooking the spot, a portion of the harbour is seen which commands the back moorings, and the water where the P. & O. liners lay up. Beyond the vessel drawn I indicate the island of Fort Manoel, which is an ancient fortress which possesses a very handsome gateway, which may have been built by the Romans. In fact, all over this island are remarkable relics, some of them probably as old as those of Stonehenge, but how or by whom the original materials were brought there or the original buildings constructed is now left by historians to conjecture. [Illustration: CASEMENT GARDENS, MALTA.] Other public gardens are those of Biracca and Floriana. Public establishments include the biggest Fever Hospital in the world, the Castille Prison, and the Governor's Palace. SERGEANTS' MESS. [Illustration: SERGEANTS' MESS AT FLORIANA, MALTA.] The view of the site of the Sergeants' Mess at Floriana gives a good idea of the massive style of architecture and the palatial design of many of the buildings. The big construction of the walls will be noted, and the height of the chimney. All the houses have flat roofs, and on them people sleep at night because of the intense heat. From the roof of this house is obtained the best view of the island. Although Malta is composed entirely of rock, flowers grow profusely, and a variety of creeper, very similar to our own azalea, climbs up the front of the forts, requiring little or no root. A garden of this flower was attached to the Sergeants' Mess house. FORTIFICATIONS. [Illustration: ORDNANCE DEPARTMENT, MALTA.]