From a distance the Kabyle villages are as fascinating as those imaginary fantastic hill-towns which Maxfield Parrish was wont to paint, but if you object to filth, squalor, and unmentionable stenches you should view them from afar. Seen close at hand their fascination quickly vanishes, and they prove to be but clusters of wretched hovels, one side of each dwelling—usually the better—devoted to the stabling of sheep and cattle, the other occupied by their owners. As the winters are bitterly cold in Kabylia, and as the houses are quite unheated, the close proximity of the live stock has certain advantages, however, for the heat from the crowded stables keeps the temperature in the rest of the house slightly above freezing, and, should the cold become unbearable, the family can always go in and sleep amid the animals! In some villages, I was told, the natives spend the winter nights in vaults beneath their houses, taking the sheep down with them to serve as living comforters. Most of the houses are of rough, flat stones, the crevices filled with mortar made from clay and cow-dung; they are usually chimneyless—for the cooking is done over primitive ovens in the open air—and sometimes windowless as well, for of what use are windows to an illiterate household save to admit undesired fresh air? It was noticeable, however, that even the poorest villages were surrounded by well-cultivated fields and thriving orchards, for the Kabyles are highly successful agriculturists in spite of the discouraging nature of their country and the fact that they are handicapped by implements of the most primitive description. In arts and crafts they are not proficient, though an exception should be made in the case of the Kabyle jewelry, of which I saw some beautiful specimens, fashioned from silver and set with brightly colored native stones and colored enamels. The really fine pieces are becoming extremely scarce, however, the best examples, as is the case with Venetian glass, Turkish carpets, and Persian shawls, being found in the smart shops of the larger cities more readily than in the remote villages where they are made.