ALEMTEJO (Spanish Alentejo), a province of Portugal, bounded on the N. by Beira, on the E. by Spanish Estremadura and Andalusia, on the S. by Algarve, and on the W. by the Atlantic and Portuguese Estremadura. It lies between 37° 20' and 39° 40' N. lat., and 6° 45' and 8° 53' W. long., and has an area of 10,225 square miles. Alemtejo is traversed by several mountain ranges, whose height does not generally rise much above 2000 feet, though one of the peaks of the Sierra de Monchique has an elevation of 4050 feet. The principal rivers are the Guadiana, which, crossing the Spanish frontier, flows southward through the province; and the Sado, which rises in the Sierra de Monchique, and flows to the north. Farther northward are the Soro and the Zatas, tributaries of the Tagus. All these rivers receive numerous affluents. There are several extensive plains, notably that of Alemtejo, the largest in Portugal, lying S.W. from the mountains of Portalegre; and that of Ourique, in the southern part of the province. Some portions of these plains are fruitful, others marshy, while large tracts are mere desolate wastes. The climate in the lower parts of the country is exceedingly hot, and is rendered unhealthy in summer by the stagnant marshes. Towards the Spanish frontier the soil is fertile, and in the south the country is covered by extensive forests of oak, pine,· chestnut, cork, and holm, especially on the sides of the Sierras de Monchique and Caldeiraon. In the more fertile parts of the province, grapes, figs, citrons, pomegranates, and other fruits are produced. Wheat, maize, and rice are grown, and some attention is given to the rearing of mules, asses, goats, cattle, and sheep. Agriculture is, however, in a backward state, the sparse population being mostly concentrated ...