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The Project Gutenberg EBook of Modern Spanish Lyrics, by Various

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Title: Modern Spanish Lyrics

Author: Various

Editor: Elijah Clarence Hills And S. Griswold Morley

Release Date: June 14, 2005 [EBook #16059]

Language: English

Character set encoding: ASCII

*** START OF THIS PROJECT GUTENBERG EBOOK MODERN SPANISH LYRICS ***




Produced by Juliet Sutherland, Miranda van de Heijning,
Renald Levesque and the Online Distributed Proofreading
Team.







                            MODERN SPANISH

                                LYRICS



                 _EDITED WITH INTRODUCTION, NOTES AND
                              VOCABULARY_

                                  BY

                 ELIJAH CLARENCE HILLS, PH. D., LITT.D.
          _Professor of Romance Languages in Colorado College_

                                 AND

                      S. GRISWOLD MORLEY, PH. D.
                       _University of Colorado_



                              NEW YORK
                       HENRY HOLT AND COMPANY

                                1913


                                                               Page iii




PREFACE

The present volume aims to furnish American students of
Spanish with a convenient selection of the Castilian
lyrics best adapted to class reading. It was the intention
of the editors to include no poem which did not possess
distinct literary value. On the other hand, some of the
most famous Spanish lyrics do not seem apt to awaken the
interest of the average student: it is for this reason
that scholars will miss the names of certain eminent poets
of the _siglo de oro_. The nineteenth century, hardly
inferior in merit and nearer to present-day readers in
thought and language, is much more fully represented.
No apology is needed for the inclusion of poems by
Spanish-American writers, for they will bear comparison
both in style and thought with the best work from the
mother Peninsula.

The Spanish poems are presented chronologically, according
to the dates of their authors. The Spanish-American poems
are arranged according to countries and chronologically
within those divisions. Omissions are indicated by rows of
dots and are due in all cases to the necessity of bringing
the material within the limits of a small volume. Three
poems (the _Fiesta de toros_ of Moratin, the _Castellano
leal_ of Rivas and the _Leyenda_ of Zorrilla) are more
narrative than lyric. The _romances_ selected are              Page iv
the most lyrical of their kind. A few songs have been
added to illustrate the relation of poetry to music.

The editors have been constantly in consultation in all
parts of the work, but the preparation of the _Prosody_,
the _Notes_ (including articles on Spanish-American
literature) and the part of the _Introduction_ dealing
with the nineteenth century, was undertaken by Mr. Hills,
while Mr. Morley had in charge the _Introduction_ prior
to 1800, and the _Vocabulary_. Aid has been received from
many sources. Special thanks are due to Professor J.D.M.
Ford and Dr. A.F. Whittem of Harvard University, Don
Ricardo Palma of Peru, Don Ruben Dario of Nicaragua, Don
Rufino Blanco-Fombona of Venezuela, Professor Carlos
Bransby of the University of California, and Dr. Alfred
Coester of Brooklyn, N.Y.

E.C.H.

S.G.M.

                                                                Page v




                              CONTENTS


  PREFACE
  INTRODUCTION:
      I. Spanish Lyric Poetry to 1800
     II. Spanish Lyric Poetry of the Nineteenth Century
    III. Spanish Versification


  ESPANA

  ROMANCES:
    Abenamar
    Fonte-frida
    El conde Arnaldos
    La constancia
    El amante desdichado
    El prisionero
  VINCENTE (GIL) (1470-1540?)
    Cancion
  TERESA DE JESUS (SANTA) (1515-1582)
    Letrilla (que llevaba por registro en su breviario)
  LEON (FRAY LUIS DE) (1527-1591)
    Vida retirada
  ANONIMO
    A Cristo crucificado
  VEGA (LOPE DE) (1562-1635)
    Cancion de la Virgen
    Manana
  QUEVEDO (FRANCISCO DE) (1580-1645)
    Epistola satirica al conde de Olivares
    Letrilla satirica
  VILLEGAS (ESTEBAN MANUEL DE) (1589-1669)
    Cantilena: De un pajarillo
  CALDERON DE LA BARCA (PEDRO) (1600-1681)
    "Estas que fueron pompa y alegria,"
    Consejo de Crespo a su hijo
  GONZALEZ (FRAY DIEGO) (1733-1794)
    El murcielago alevoso                                       page vi
  MORATIN (NICOLAS F. DE) (1737-1780)
    Fiesta de toros en Madrid
  JOVELLANOS (GASPAR M. DE) (1744-1811)
    A Arnesto
  MELENDEZ VALDES (JUAN) (1754-1817)
    Rosana en los fuegos
  QUINTANA (MANUEL JOSE) (1772-1857)
    Oda a Espana, despues de la revolucion de marzo
  SOLIS (DIONISIO) (1774-1834)
    La pregunta de la nina
  GALLEGO (JUAN NICASIO) (1777-1853)
    El Dos de Mayo
  MARTINEZ DE LA ROSA (FRANCISCO) (1787-1862)
    El nido
  RIVAS (DUQUE DE) (1791-1865)
    Un castellano leal
  AROLAS (PADRE JUAN) (1805-1849)
    "Se mas feliz que yo"
  ESPRONCEDA (JOSE DE) (1808-1842)
    Cancion del pirata
    A la patria
  ZORRILLA (JOSE) (1817-1893)
    Oriental
    Indecision
    La fuente
    A buen juez, mejor testigo
  TRUEBA (ANTONIO DE) (1821-1889)
    Cantos de pajaro
    La perejilera
  SELGAS (JOSE) (1821-1882)
    La modestia
  ALARCON (PEDRO ANTONIO DE) (1833-1891)
    El Mont-Blanc
    El secreto
  BECQUER (GUSTAVO A.) (1836-1870)
    Rimas: II
           VII
           LIII
           LXXIII                                              page vii
  QUEROL (VINCENTE WENCESLAO) (1836-1889)
    En Noche-Buena
  CAMPOAMOR (RAMON DE) (1817-1901)
    Proximidad del bien
    iQuien supiera escribir!
    El mayor castigo
  NUNEZ DE ARCE (GASPAR) (1834-1903)
    iExcelsior!
    Tristezas
    iSursum Corda!
  PALACIO (MANUEL DEL) (1832-1895)
    Amor oculto
  BARTRINA (JOAQUIN MARIA) (1850-1880)
    Arabescos
  REINA (MANUEL) (1860-)
    La poesia

  ARGENTINA

  ECHEVERRIA (O. ESTEBAN) (1805-1851)
    Cancion de Elvira
  ANDRADE (OLEGARIO VICTOR) (1838-1882)
    Atlantida
    Prometeo
  OBLIGADO (RAFAEL) (1852-)
    En la ribera

  COLOMBIA

  ORTIZ (JOSE JOAQUIN) (1814-1892)
    Colombia y Espana
  CARO (JOSE EUSEBIO) (1817-1853)
    El cipres
  MARROQUIN (JOSE MANUEL) (1827-)
    Los cazadores y la perrilla
  CARO (MIGUEL ANTONIO) (1843-1909)
    Vuelta a la patria                                        page viii
  ARRIETA (DIOGENES A.) (1848-)
    En la tumba de mi hijo
  GUTIERREZ PONCE (IGNACIO) (1850-)
    Dolora
  GARAVITO A. (JOSE MARIA) (1860-)
    Volvere manana

  CUBA

  HEREDIA (JOSE MARIA) (1803-1839)
    En el teocalli de Cholula
    El Niagara
  "PLACIDO" (GABRIEL DE LA CONCEPCION VALDES) (1809-1844)
    Plegaria a Dios
  AVELLANEDA (GERTRUDIS GOMEZ DE) (1814-1873)
    A Washington
    Al partir

  ECUADOR

  OLMEDO (JOSE JOAQUIN) (1780-1847)
    La victoria de Junin

  MEXICO

  PESADO (JOSE JOAQUIN DE) (1801-1861)
    Serenata
  CALDERON (FERNANDO) (1809-1845)
    La rosa marchita
  ACUNA (MANUEL) (1849-1873)
    Nocturno: A Rosario
  PEZA (JUAN DE DIOS) (1852-1910)
    Reir llorando
    Fusiles y munecas

  NICARAGUA

  DARIO (RUBEN) (1864-)
    A Roosevelt
                                                                page ix
  VENEZUELA

  BELLO (ANDRES) (1781-1865)
    A la victoria de Bailen
    La agricultura de la zona torrida
  PEREZ BONALDE (JUAN ANTONIO) (1846-1892)
    Vuelta a la patria
  MARTIN DE LA GUARDIA (HERACLIO) (1830-)
    Ultima ilusion

  CANCIONES

    La carcelera
    Riverana
    La cachucha
    La valenciana
    Cancion devota
    La jota gallega
    El tragala
    Himno de Riego
    Himno nacional de Mexico
    Himno nacional de Cuba

  NOTES

  VOCABULARY[a]

  [Transcriber's note a: The vocabulary section has
  not been submitted for transcription.}




                          INTRODUCTION                          page xi


                                I

                  SPANISH LYRIC POETRY TO 1800


It has been observed that epic poetry, which is collective
and objective in its nature, always reaches its full
development in a nation sooner than lyric poetry, which is
individual and subjective. Such is certainly the case in
Spain. Numerous popular epics of much merit existed there
in the Middle Ages.[1] Of a popular lyric there are few
traces in the same period; and the Castilian lyric as an
art-form reached its height in the sixteenth, and again in
the nineteenth, centuries. It is necessary always to bear
in mind the distinction between the mysterious product
called popular poetry, which is continually being created
but seldom finds its way into the annals of literature,
and artistic poetry. The chronicler of the Spanish lyric
is concerned with the latter almost exclusively, though he
will have occasion to mention the former not infrequently
as the basis of some of the best artificial creations.

[Footnote 1: The popular epics were written in assonating
lines of variable length. There were also numerous monkish
narrative poems _(mester de clerecia)_ in stanzas of four
Alexandrine lines each, all riming _(cuaderna via)_.]

If one were to enumerate _ab origine_ the lyric
productions of the Iberian Peninsula he might begin
with the vague references of Strabo to the songs of its
primitive inhabitants, and then pass on to Latin               page xii
poets of Spanish birth, such as Seneca, Lucan and Martial.
The later Spaniards who wrote Christian poetry in Latin,
as Juvencus and Prudentius, might then be considered. But
in order not to embrace many diverse subjects foreign
to the contents of this collection, we must confine our
inquiry to lyric production in the language of Castile,
which became the dominating tongue of the Kingdom of
Spain.

Such a restriction excludes, of course, the Arabic lyric,
a highly artificial poetry produced abundantly by the
Moors during their occupation of the south of Spain; it
excludes also the philosophical and religious poetry of
the Spanish Jews, by no means despicable in thought or
form. Catalan poetry, once written in the Provencal manner
and of late happily revived, also lies outside our field.

Even the Galician poetry, which flourished so freely under
the external stimulus of the Provencal troubadours, can be
included only with regard to its influence upon Castilian.
The Galician dialect, spoken in the northwest corner of
the Peninsula, developed earlier than the Castilian of the
central region, and it was adopted by poets in other parts
for lyric verse. Alfonso X of Castile (reigned 1252-1284)
could write prose in Castilian, but he must needs employ
Galician for his _Cantigas de Santa Maria_. The Portuguese
nobles, with King Diniz (reigned 1279-1325) at their head,
filled the idle hours of their bloody and passionate lives
by composing strangely abstract, conventional poems of
love and religion in the manner of the Provencal _canso,
dansa, balada_ and _pastorela_, which had had such a
luxuriant growth in Southern France in the eleventh and
twelfth centuries. A highly elaborated metrical system
mainly distinguishes these writers, but some of               page xiii
their work catches a pleasing lilt which is supposed
to represent the imitation of songs of the people. The
popular element in the Galician productions is slight, but
it was to bear important fruit later, for its spirit is
that of the _serranas_ of Ruiz and Santillana, and of
_villancicos_ and eclogues in the sixteenth century.

It was probably in the neighborhood of 1350 that lyrics
began to be written in Castilian by the cultured classes
of Leon and Castile, who had previously thought Galician
the only proper tongue for that use, but the influence of
the Galician school persisted long after. The first real
lyric in Castilian is its offspring. This is the anonymous
_Razon feyta d'amor_ or _Aventura amorosa_ (probably
thirteenth century), a dainty story of the meeting of two
lovers. It is apparently an isolated example, ahead of its
time, unless, as is the case with the Castilian epic, more
poems are lost than extant. The often quoted _Cantica de
la Virgen_ of Gonzalo de Berceo (first half of thirteenth
century), with its popular refrain _Eya velar_, is an
oasis in the long religious epics of the amiable monk of
S. Millan de la Cogolla. One must pass into the succeeding
century to find the next examples of the true lyric. Juan
RUIZ, the mischievous Archpriest of Hita (flourished _ca_.
1350), possessed a genius sufficiently keen and human to
infuse a personal vigor into stale forms. In his _Libro de
buen amor_ he incorporated lyrics both sacred and profane,
_Loores de Santa Maria_ and _Canticas de serrana_, plainly
in the Galician manner and of complex metrical structure.
The _serranas_ are particularly free and unconventional.
The Chancellor Pero LOPEZ DE AYALA (1332-1407), wise
statesman, brilliant historian and trenchant                   page xiv
satirist, wrote religious songs in the same style and
still more intricate in versification. They are included
in the didactic poem usually called _El rimado de
palacio_.

Poetry flourished in and about the courts of the monarchs
of the Trastamara family; and what may be supposed a
representative collection of the work done in the reigns
of Henry II (1369-1379), John I (1379-1388), Henry III
(1388-1406) and the minority of John II (1406-1454), is
preserved for us in the _Cancionero_ which Juan Alfonso de
Baena compiled and presented to the last-named king. Two
schools of versifiers are to be distinguished in it. The
older men, such as Villasandino, Sanchez de Talavera,
Macias, Jerena, Juan Rodriguez del Padron and Baena
himself, continued the artificial Galician tradition, now
run to seed. In others appears the imitation of Italian
models which was to supplant the ancient fashion.
Francisco Imperial, a worshiper of Dante, and other
Andalusians such as Ruy Paez de Ribera, Pero Gonzalez de
Uceda and Ferran Manuel de Lando, strove to introduce
Italian meters and ideas. They first employed the Italian
hendecasyllable, although it did not become acclimated
till the days of Boscan. They likewise cultivated the
_metro de arte mayor_, which later became so prominent
(see below, p. lxxv ff.). But the interest of the poets of
the _Cancionero de Baena_ is mainly historical. In
spite of many an illuminating side-light on manners,
of political invective and an occasional glint of
imagination, the amorous platitudes and wire-drawn
love-contests of the Galician school, the stiff allegories
of the Italianates leave us cold. It was a transition
period and the most talented were unable to master the
undeveloped poetic language.                                    page xv


The same may be said, in general, of the whole fifteenth
century. Although the language became greatly clarified
toward 1500 it was not yet ready for masterly original
work in verse. Invaded by a flood of Latinisms, springing
from a novel and undigested humanism, encumbered still
with archaic words and set phrases left over from the
Galicians, it required purification at the hands of the
real poets and scholars of the sixteenth century. The
poetry of the fifteenth is inferior to the best prose of
the same epoch; it is not old enough to be quaint and not
modern enough to meet a present-day reader upon equal
terms.

These remarks apply only to artistic poetry. Popular
poetry,--that which was exemplified in the Middle Ages by
the great epics of the Cid, the Infantes de Lara and
other heroes, and in songs whose existence can rather be
inferred than proved,--was never better. It produced the
lyrico-epic _romances_ (see _Notes_, p. 253), which,
as far as one may judge from their diction and from
contemporary testimony, received their final form at
about this time, though in many cases of older origin. It
produced charming little songs which some of the later
court poets admired sufficiently to gloss. But the
cultured writers, just admitted to the splendid cultivated
garden of Latin literature, despised these simple wayside
flowers and did not care to preserve them for posterity.

The artistic poetry of the fifteenth century falls
naturally into three classes, corresponding to three
currents of influence; and all three frequently appear in
the work of one man, not blended, but distinct. One is
the conventional love-poem of the Galician school, seldom
containing a fresh or personal note. Another is the
stilted allegory with erotic or historical                     page xvi
content, for whose many sins Dante was chiefly
responsible, though Petrarch, he of the _Triunfi_, and
Boccaccio cannot escape some blame. Third is a vein of
highly moral reflections upon the vanity of life and
certainty of death, sometimes running to political satire.
Its roots may be found in the Book of Job, in Seneca and,
nearer at hand, in the _Proverbios morales_ of the Jew Sem
Tob (_ca_. 1350), in the _Rimado de Palacio_ of Ayala, and
in a few poets of the _Cancionero de Baena_.

John II was a dilettante who left the government of the
kingdom to his favorite, Alvaro de Luna. He gained more
fame in the world of letters than many better kings by
fostering the study of literature and gathering about him
a circle of "court poets" nearly all of noble birth. Only
two names among them all imperatively require mention.
Inigo LOPEZ DE MENDOZA, MARQUIS OF SANTILLANA (1398-1458)
was the finest type of _grand seigneur_, protector of
letters, student, warrior, poet and politician. He wrote
verse in all three of the manners just named, but he will
certainly be longest remembered for his _serranillas_, the
fine flower of the Provencal-Galician tradition, in which
the poet describes his meeting with a country lass.
Santillana combined the freshest local setting with
perfection of form and left nothing more to be desired in
that genre. He also wrote the first sonnets in Castilian,
but they are interesting only as an experiment, and had no
followers. Juan de MENA (1411-1456) was purely a literary
man, without other distinction of birth or accomplishment.
His work is mainly after the Italian model. The _Laberinto
de fortuna_, by which he is best known, is a dull allegory
with much of Dante's apparatus. There are historical
passages where the poet's patriotism leads him                page xvii
to a certain rhetorical height, but his good intentions
are weighed down by three millstones: slavish imitation,
the monotonous _arte mayor_ stanza and the deadly
earnestness of his temperament. He enjoyed great renown
and authority for many decades.

Two anonymous poems of about the same time deserve
mention. The _Danza de la muerte_, the Castilian
representative of a type which appeared all over Europe,
shows death summoning mortals from all stations of
life with ghastly glee. The _Coplas de Mingo Revulgo_,
promulgated during the reign of Henry IV (1454-1474), are
a political satire in dialogue form, and exhibit for the
first time the peculiar peasant dialect that later became
a convention of the pastoral eclogues and also of the
country scenes in the great drama.

The second half of the century continues the same
tendencies with a notable development in the fluidity of
the language and an increasing interest in popular poetry.
Gomez Manrique (d. 1491?) was another warrior of a
literary turn whose best verses are of a severely moral
nature. His nephew JORGE MANRIQUE (1440-1478) wrote a
single poem of the highest merit; his scanty other works
are forgotten. The _Coplas por la muerte de su padre_,
beautifully translated by Longfellow, contain some
laments for the writer's personal loss, but more general
reflections upon the instability of worldly glory. It is
not to be thought that this famous poem is in any way
original in idea; the theme had already been exploited to
satiety, but Manrique gave it a superlative perfection of
form and a contemporary application which left no room for
improvement.

There were numerous more or less successful love-poets
of the conventional type writing in                          page xviii
octosyllabics and the inevitable imitators of Dante
with their unreadable allegories in _arte mayor_. The
repository for the short poems of these writers is the
_Cancionero general_ of Hernando de Castillo (1511). It
was reprinted many times throughout the sixteenth
century. Among the writers represented in it one should
distinguish, however, Rodrigo de Cota. His dramatic
_Dialogo entre el amor y un viejo_ has real charm, and
has saved his name from the oblivion to which most of his
fellows have justly been consigned. The bishop Ambrosio
Montesino (_Cancionero_, 1508) was a fervent religious
poet and the precursor of the mystics of fifty years
later.

The political condition of Spain improved immensely in
the reign of Ferdinand and Isabella (1479-1516) and the
country entered upon a period of internal homogeneity and
tranquility which might be expected to foster artistic
production. Such was the case; but literature was not the
first of the arts to reach a highly refined state. The
first half of the sixteenth century is a period of
humanistic study, and the poetical works coming from it
were still tentative. JUAN DEL ENCINA (1469-1533?) is
important in the history of the drama, for his _eglogas,
representaciones_ and _autos_ are practically the first
Spanish dramas not anonymous. As a lyric poet Encina
excels in the light pastoral; he was a musician as well
as a poet, and his bucolic _villancicos_ and _glosas_
in stanzas of six-and eight-syllable lines are daintily
written and express genuine love of nature. The Portuguese
GIL VICENTE (1470-1540?) was a follower of Encina at
first, but a much bigger man. Like most of his compatriots
of the sixteenth century he wrote in both Portuguese and
Castilian, though better in the former tongue. He was
close to the people in his thinking and writing               page xix
and some of the songs contained in his plays reproduce the
truest popular savor.

The intimate connection between Spain and Italy during the
period when the armies of the Emperor Charles V (Charles I
of Spain: reigned 1516-1555) were overrunning the latter
country gave a new stimulus to the imitation of Italian
meters and poets which we have seen existed in a premature
state since the reign of John II. The man who first
achieved real success in the hendecasyllable, combined in
sonnets, octaves, _terza rima_ and blank verse, was Juan
BOSCAN ALMOGAVER (1490?-1542), a Catalan of wealth and
culture. Boscan was handicapped by writing in a tongue
not native to him and by the constant holding of foreign
models before his eyes, and he was not a man of genius;
yet his verse kept to a loftier ideal than had appeared
for a long time and his effort to lift Castilian poetry
from the slough of convention into which it had fallen was
successful. During the rest of the century the impulse
given by Boscan divided Spanish lyrists into two opposing
hosts, the Italianates and those who clung to the native
meters (stanzas of short, chiefly octosyllabic, lines, for
the _arte mayor_ had sunk by its own weight).

The first and greatest of Boscan's disciples was his close
friend GARCILASO DE LA VEGA (1503-1536) who far surpassed
his master. He was a scion of a most noble family, a
favorite of the emperor, and his adventurous career,
passed mostly in Italy, ended in a soldier's death. His
poems, however (_eglogas, canciones_, sonnets, etc.),
take us from real life into the sentimental world of the
Arcadian pastoral. Shepherds discourse of their unrequited
loves and mourn amid surroundings of an idealized Nature.
                                                                page xx
The pure diction, the Vergilian flavor, the classic finish
of these poems made them favorites in Spain from the
first, and their author has always been regarded as a
master.

With Garcilaso begins the golden age of Spanish poetry and
of Spanish literature in general, which may be said to
close in 1681 with the death of Calderon. It was a period
of external greatness, of conquest both in Europe and
beyond the Atlantic, but it contained the germs of future
decay. The strength of the nation was exhausted in
futile warfare, and virile thought was stifled by the
Inquisition, supported by the monarchs. Hence the
luxuriant literature of the time runs in the channels
farthest from underlying social problems; philosophy and
political satire are absent, and the romantic drama, novel
and lyric flourish. But in all external qualities the
poetry written during this period has never been equaled
in Spain. Its polish, color and choiceness of language
have been the admiration and model of later Castilian
poets.

The superficial nature of this literature is exhibited
in the controversy excited by the efforts of Boscan and
Garcilaso to substitute Italian forms for the older
Spanish ones. The discussion dealt with externals; with
meters, not ideas. Both schools delighted in the airy
nothings of the conventional love lyric, and it matters
little at this distance whether they were cast in lines of
eleven or eight syllables.

The contest was warm at the time, however. Sa de Miranda
(1495-1558), the chief exponent of the Italian school in
Portugal, wrote effectively also in Castilian. Gutierre de
Cetina (1518?-1572?) and Fernando de Acuna (1500?-1580?)
are two others who supported the new measures. One whose
example had more influence is Diego Hurtado de                 page xxi
Mendoza (1503-1575), a famous diplomat, humanist and
historian. He entertained his idle moments with verse,
writing cleverly in the old style but turning also toward
the new. His sanction for the latter seems to have proved
decisive.

Cristobal de CASTILLEJO (1490-1556) was the chief defender
of the native Spanish forms. He employed them himself in
light verse with cleverness, clearness and finish, and
also attacked the innovators with all the resources of
a caustic wit. In this patriotic task he was for a time
aided by an organist of the cathedral at Granada, Gregorio
Silvestre (1520-1569), of Portuguese birth. Silvestre,
however, who is noted for the delicacy of his poems in
whatever style, was later attracted by the popularity of
the Italian meters and adopted them.

This literary squabble ended in the most natural way,
namely, in the co-existence of both manners in peace and
harmony. Italian forms were definitively naturalized in
Spain, where they have maintained their place ever since.
Subsequent poets wrote in either style or both as they
felt moved, and no one reproached them. Such was the habit
of Lope de Vega, Gongora, Quevedo and the other great
writers of the seventeenth century.

A Sevillan Italianate was Fernando de HERRERA
(1534?-1597), admirer and annotator of Garcilaso. Although
an ecclesiastic, his poetic genius was more virile than
that of his soldier master. He wrote Petrarchian sonnets
to his platonic lady; but his martial, patriotic spirit
appears in his _canciones_, especially in those on the
battle of Lepanto and on the expedition of D. Sebastian of
Portugal in Africa. In these stirring odes Herrera touches
a sonorous, grandiloquent chord which rouses the              page xxii
reader's enthusiasm and places the writer in the first
rank of Spanish lyrists. He is noteworthy also in that
he made an attempt to create a poetic language by the
rejection of vulgar words and the coinage of new ones.
Others, notably Juan de Mena, had attempted it before, and
Gongora afterward carried it to much greater lengths; but
the idea never succeeded in Castilian to an extent nearly
so great as it did in France, for example; and to-day the
best poetical diction does not differ greatly from good
conversational language.

Beside Herrera stands a totally different spirit, the
Salamancan monk Luis DE LEON (1527-1591). The deep
religious feeling which is one strong trait of Spanish
character has its representatives in Castilian literature
from Berceo down, but Leon was the first to give it fine
artistic expression. The mystic sensation of oneness with
the divine, of aspiration to heavenly joys, breathes in
all his writings. He was also a devoted student of the
classics, and his poems (for which he cared nothing and
which were not published till 1631) show Latin rather than
Italian influence. There is nothing in literature more
pure, more serene, more direct or more polished than
_La vida del campo, Noche serena_ and others of his
compositions.

The other great mystics cared less for literature, either
as a study or an accomplishment. The poems of Saint
Theresa (1515-1582) are few and mostly mediocre. San Juan
de la Cruz, the Ecstatic Doctor (1542-1591), wrote the
most exalted spiritual poems in the language; like all the
mystics, he was strongly attracted by the Song of
Songs which was paraphrased by Pedro Malon de Chaide
(1530-1596?). It is curious to note that the stanza
adopted in the great mystical lyrics is one                  page xxiii
invented by Garcilaso and used in his amatory fifth
_Cancion_. It has the rime-scheme of the Spanish
_quintilla_, but the lines are the Italian eleven-and
seven-syllable (cf. pp. 9-12). Religious poems in more
popular forms are found in the _Romancero espiritual_
(1612) of Jose de Valdivielso, and in Lope de Vega's
_Rimas sacras_ (1614) and _Romancero espiritual_ (1622).

There were numerous secular disciples of Garcilaso at
about the same period. The names most deserving mention
are those of Francisco de la Torre (d. 1594?), Luis
Barahona de Soto (1535?-1595) and Francisco de Figueroa
(1536?-1620), all of whom wrote creditably and sometimes
with distinction in the Italian forms. Luis de Camoens
(1524?-1580), author of the great Portuguese epic _Os
Lusiadas_, employed Castilian in many verses with happy
result.

These figures lead to the threshold of the seventeenth
century which opened with a tremendous literary output in
many lines. Cervantes was writing his various novels;
the romance of roguery took on new life with _Guzman de
Alfarache_ (1599); the drama, which had been developing
rather slowly and spasmodically, burst suddenly into full
flower with Lope de Vega and his innumerable followers.
The old meter of the _romance_ was adopted as a favorite
form by all sorts and conditions of poets and was turned
from its primitive epic simplicity to the utmost variety
of subjects, descriptive, lyric and satiric.

From out this flood of production--for every dramatist was
in a measure a lyric poet, and dramatists were legion--we
can select for consideration only the men most prominent
as lyrists. First in the impulse which he gave to
literature for more than a century following stands Luis
de ARGOTE Y GONGORA (1561-1627), a Cordovan                   page xxiv
who chose to be known by his mother's name. His life was
mainly that of a disappointed place-hunter. His abrupt
change of literary manner has made some say that there
were in him two poets, Gongora the Good and Gongora the
Bad. He began by writing odes in the manner of Herrera and
_romances_ and _villancicos_ which are among the clearest
and best. They did not bring their author fame, however,
and he seems deliberately to have adopted the involved
metaphoric style to which Marini gave his name in Italy.
Gongora is merely the Spanish representative of the
movement, which also produced Euphuism in England and
_preciosite_ in France. But he surpassed all previous
writers in the extreme to which he carried the method, and
his _Soledades_ and _Polifemo_ are simply unintelligible
for the inversions and strained metaphors with which they
are overloaded.

His influence was enormous. Gongorism, or _culteranismo_,
as it was called at the time, swept the minor poets
with it, and even those who fought the movement most
vigorously, like Lope and Quevedo, were not wholly free
from the contagion. The second generation of dramatists
was strongly affected. Yet there are few lyric poets worth
mentioning among Gongora's disciples for the reason that
such a pernicious system meant certain ruin to those who
lacked the master's talent. The most important names are
the Count of Villamediana (1580-1622), a satirist whose
sharp tongue caused his assassination, and Paravicino y
Arteaga (1580-1633), a court preacher.

Obviously, such an innovation could not pass without
opposition from clear-sighted men. LOPE DE VEGA
(1562-1635) attacked it whenever opportunity offered, and
his verse seldom shows signs of corruption. It                 page xxv
is impossible to consider the master-dramatist at length
here. He wrote over 300 sonnets, many excellent eclogues,
epistles, and, in more popular styles, glosses,
_letrillas, villancicos, romances_, etc. Lope more than
any other poet of his time kept his ear close to the
people, and his light poems are full of the delicious
breath of the country.

The other principal opponent of Gongorism was Francisco
GOMEZ DE QUEVEDO Y VILLEGAS (1580-1645), whose wit and
independence made him formidable. In 1631 he published
the poems of Luis de Leon and Francisco de la Torre as a
protest against the baleful mannerism in vogue. But he
himself adopted a hardly less disagreeable style, called
conceptism, which is supposed to have been invented by
Alonso de Ledesma (1552-1623). It consists in a strained
search for unusual thoughts which entails forced
paradoxes, antitheses and epigrams. This system, combined
with local allusions, double meanings and current slang,
in which Quevedo delighted, makes his poems often
extremely difficult of comprehension. His _romances de
jaques_, written in thieves' jargon, are famous in Spain.
Quevedo wrote too much and carelessly and tried to cover
too many fields, but at his best his caustic wit and
fearless vigor place him high.

There were not lacking poets who kept themselves free from
taint of _culteranismo_, though they did not join in
the fight against it. The brothers Argensola (LUPERCIO
LEONARDO DE ARGENSOLA, 1559-1613, BARTOLOME LEONARDO DE
ARGENSOLA, 1562-1631), of Aragonese birth, turned to
Horace and other classics as well as to Italy for their
inspiration. Their pure and dignified sonnets, odes and
translations rank high. Juan MARTINEZ DE JAUREGUI             page xxvi
(1583-1641) wrote a few original poems, but is known
mainly for his excellent translation of Tasso's _Aminta_.
He too succumbed to Gongorism at times. The few poems of
Francisco de RIOJA (1586?-1659) are famous for the purity
of their style and their tender melancholy tone. A little
apart is Esteban Manuel de VILLEGAS (1589-1669), an
admirer of the Argensolas, "en versos cortos divino,
insufrible en los mayores," who is known for his attempts
in Latin meters and his successful imitations of Anacreon
and Catullus.

The lyrics of CALDERON (1600-1681) are to be found mostly
in his _comedias_ and _autos_. There are passages which
display great gifts in the realm of pure poetry, but
too often they are marred by the impertinent metaphors
characteristic of _culteranismo_.

His name closes the most brilliant era of Spanish letters.
The decline of literature followed close upon that of the
political power of Spain. The splendid empire of Charles
V had sunk, from causes inherent in the policies of that
over-ambitious monarch, through the somber bigotry of
Philip II, the ineptitude of Philip III, the frivolity of
Philip IV, to the imbecility of Charles II; and the death
of the last of the Hapsburg rulers in 1700 left Spain in
a deplorably enfeebled condition physically and
intellectually. The War of the Succession (1701-1714)
exhausted her internal strength still more, and the final
acknowledgment of Philip V (reigned 1701-1746) brought
hardly any blessing but that of peace. Under these
circumstances poetry could not thrive; and in truth the
eighteenth century in Spain is an age devoted more to the
discussion of the principles of literature than to the
production of it. At first the decadent remnants of          page xxvii
the _siglo de oro_ still survived, but later the
French taste, following the principles formulated by
Boileau, prevailed almost entirely. The history of Spanish
poetry in the eighteenth century is a history of the
struggle between these two forces and ends in the triumph
of the latter.

The effects of Gongorism lasted long in Spain, which, with
its innate propensity to bombast, was more fertile soil
for it than other nations. Innumerable poetasters of the
early eighteenth century enjoyed fame in their day and
some possessed talent; but the obscure and trivial style
of the age from which they could not free themselves
deprived them of any chance of enduring fame. One may
mention, as the least unworthy, Gabriel Alvarez de Toledo
(1662-1714) and Eugenio Gerardo Lobo (1679-1750).

Some one has said that the poetry of Spain, with the
exception of the _romances_ and the drama of the _siglo
de oro_, has always drawn its inspiration from some other
country. Add to the exceptions the medieval epic and the
statement would be close to the truth. First Provence
through the medium of Galicia; then Italy and with it
ancient Rome; and lastly France and England, on more than
one occasion, have molded Spanish poetry. The power of
the French classical literature, soon dominant in Europe,
could not long be stayed by the Pyrenees; and Pope,
Thomson and Young were also much admired. Philip V, a
Frenchman, did not endeavor to crush the native spirit in
his new home, but his influence could not but be felt. He
established a Spanish Academy on the model of the French
in 1714.

It was some time before the reaction, based on common
sense and confined to the intellectuals, could take deep
root, and, as was natural, it went too far and condemned
much of the _siglo de oro_ entire. The _Diario              page xxviii
de los literatos_, a journal of criticism founded in 1737,
and the _Poetica_ of Ignacio de Luzan, published in
the same year, struck the first powerful blows. Luzan
(1702-1754) followed in general the precepts of Boileau,
though he was able to praise some of the good points in
the Spanish tradition. His own poems are frigid. The
_Satira contra los malos escritores de su tiempo_ (1742)
of Jorge Pitillas (pseudonym of Jose Gerardo de Hervas, d.
1742) was an imitation of Boileau which had great effect.
Blas Antonio Nasarre (1689-1751), Agustin Montiano
(1697-1765) and Luis Jose Velazquez (1722-1772) were
critics who, unable to compose meritorious plays or
verse themselves, cut to pieces the great figures of the
preceding age.

Needless to say, the Gallicizers were vigorously opposed,
but so poor were the original productions of the defenders
of the national manner that their side was necessarily the
losing one. Vicente Garcia de la Huerta (1734-1787) was
its most vehement partisan, but he is remembered only for
a tragedy, _Raquel_.

Thus it is seen that during a century of social and
industrial depression Spain did not produce a poet worthy
of the name. The condition of the nation was sensibly
bettered under Charles III (reigned 1759-1788) who did
what was possible to reorganize the state and curb the
stifling domination of the Roman Church and its agents
the Jesuits and the Inquisition. The Benedictine Feijoo
(1675-1764) labored faithfully to inoculate Spain, far
behind the rest of Europe, with an inkling of recent
scientific discoveries. And the budding prosperity,
however deceitful it proved, was reflected in a more
promising literary generation.                                page xxix

Nicolas FERNANDEZ DE MORATIN (1737-1780) followed the
French rules in theory and wrote a few mediocre plays in
accordance with them; but he showed that at heart he was a
good poet and a good Spaniard by his ode _A Pedro
Romero, torero insigne_, some _romances_ and his famous
_quintillas_, the _Fiesta de toros en Madrid_. Other
followers of the French, in a genre not, strictly
speaking, lyric at all, were the two fabulists, Samaniego
and Iriarte. F. Maria de SAMANIEGO (1745-1801) gave to the
traditional stock of apologues, as developed by Phaedrus,
Lokman and La Fontaine, a permanent and popular Castilian
form. Tomas de IRIARTE (1750-1791), a more irritable
personage who spent much time in literary polemics, wrote
original fables (_Fabulas literarias_, 1781) directed not
against the foibles of mankind in general, but against the
world of writers and scholars.

The best work which was done under the classical French
influence, however, is to be found in the writers of the
so-called Salamancan school, which was properly not a
school at all. The poets who are thus classed together,
Cadalso, Diego Gonzalez, Jovellanos, Forner, Melendez
Valdes, Cienfuegos, Iglesias, were personal friends thrown
together in the university or town of Salamanca, but they
were not subjected to a uniform literary training and
possessed no similarity of style or aim as did the men of
the later Sevillan school.

Jose de CADALSO (1741-1782), a dashing soldier of great
personal charm killed at the siege of Gibraltar, is
sometimes credited with founding the school of Salamanca.
He was a friend of most of the important writers of his
time and composed interesting prose satires; his verse
(_Noches lugubres_, etc.) is not remarkable. FRAY DIEGO
GONZALEZ (1733-1794) is one of the masters of                  page xxx
idiomatic Castilian in the century. He admired Luis de
Leon and imitated him in paraphrases of the Psalms. The
volume of his verse is small but unsurpassed in surety of
taste and evenness of finish. The _Murcielago alevoso_ has
passed into many editions and become a favorite in Spain.
The pure and commanding figure of JOVELLANOS (1744-1811)
dominated the whole group which listened to his advice
with respect. It was not always sure, for he led Diego
Gonzalez and Melendez Valdes astray by persuading them to
attempt philosophical poetry instead of the lighter sort
for which they were fitted. He was in fact a greater man
than poet, but his satires and _Epistola al duque de
Veragua_ are strong and dignified.

Juan MELENDEZ VALDES (1754-1817) was on the contrary a
greater poet than man. Brilliant from the first, he was
petted by Cadalso and Jovellanos who strove to develop his
talent. In 1780 he won a prize offered by the Academy for
an eclogue. In 1784 his comedy _Las bodas de Camacho_, on
a subject suggested by Jovellanos (from an episode in _Don
Quijote_, II, 19-21), won a prize offered by the city of
Madrid, but failed on the stage. His first volume of poems
was published in 1785; later editions appeared in 1797 and
1820. He attached himself to the French party at the time
of the invasion in 1808, incurred great popular odium and
died in France. He is the most fluent, imaginative poet of
the eighteenth century and is especially successful in the
pastoral and anacreontic styles. Fresh descriptions of
nature, enchanting pictures of love, form an oasis in
an age of studied reasonableness. His language has been
criticized for its Gallicisms. Jose IGLESIAS DE LA CASA
(1748-1791), a native of Salamanca and a priest, wrote
much light satirical verse, epigrams, parodies                page xxxi
and _letrillas_ in racy Castilian; he was less successful
in the graver forms. Nicasio ALVAREZ DE CIENFUEGOS
(1764-1809) passes as a disciple of Melendez; he was a
passionate, uneven writer whose undisciplined thought and
habit of coining words lead to obscurity. Politically he
opposed the French with unyielding vigor, barely escaped
execution at their hands and died in exile. The verse of
Cienfuegos prepared the way for Quintana. Differing
from him in clarity and polish are Fr. Sanchez Barbero
(1764-1819) and Leandro F. de Moratin, the dramatist
(1760-1828).

One curious result of rationalistic doctrines was the
"prosaism" into which it led many minor versifiers. These
poetasters, afraid of overstepping the limits of
good sense, tabooed all imagination and described in
deliberately prosy lines the most commonplace events. The
movement reached its height at the beginning of the reign
of Charles IV (1788-1808) and produced such efforts as
a poem to the gout, a nature-poem depicting barn-yard
sounds, and even Iriarte's _La musica_ (1780), in which
one may read in carefully constructed _silvas_ the
definition of diatonic and chromatic scales.


                            II

      SPANISH LYRIC POETRY OF THE NINETEENTH CENTURY


Early in the nineteenth century the armies of Napoleon
invaded Spain. There ensued a fierce struggle for the
mastery of the Peninsula, in which the latent strength and
energy of the Spaniards became once more evident. The        page xxxii
French devastated parts of the country, but they
brought with them many new ideas which, together with the
sharpness of the conflict, served to awaken the Spanish
people from their torpor and to give them a new
realization of national consciousness. During this period
of stress and strife two poets, Quintana and Gallego,
urged on and encouraged their fellow countrymen with
patriotic songs.

Manuel Jose QUINTANA (1772-1857) had preeminently the
"gift of martial music," and great was the influence
of his odes _Al armamento de las provincias contra los
franceses_ and _A Espana despues de la revolucion de
marzo_. He also strengthened the patriotism of his people
by his prose _Vidas de espanoles celebres_ (begun in
1806): the Cid, the Great Captain (Gonzalo de Cordoba),
Pizarro and others of their kind. In part a follower
of the French philosophers of the eighteenth century,
Quintana sang also of humanity and progress, as in his ode
on the invention of printing. In politics Quintana was a
liberal; in religious beliefs, a materialist. Campoamor
has said of Quintana that he sang not of faith or
pleasures, but of duties. His enemies have accused him
of stirring the colonies to revolt by his bitter sarcasm
directed at past and contemporaneous Spanish rulers, but
this is doubtless an exaggeration. It may be said that
except in his best patriotic poems his verses lack lyric
merit and his ideas are wanting in insight and depth; but
his sincerity of purpose was in the main beyond question
and he occasionally gave expression to striking boldness
of thought and exaltation of feeling. In technique
Quintana was a follower of the Salamancan school.

The cleric Juan Nicasio GALLEGO (1777-1853) rivaled
Quintana as a writer of patriotic verses. A liberal in
politics like Quintana, Gallego also took the               page xxxiii
side of his people against the French invaders and against
the servile Spanish rulers. He is best known by the ode
_El dos de mayo_, in which he exults over the rising of
the Spanish against the French on the second of May,
1808; the ode _A la defensa de Buenos Aires_ against the
English; and the elegy _A la muerte de la duquesa de
Frias_ in which he shows that he is capable of deep
feeling. Gallego was a close friend of Quintana, whose
salon in Madrid he frequented. Gallego wrote little, but
his works are more correct in language and style than
those of Quintana. It is interesting that although the
writings of these two poets evince a profound dislike and
distrust of the French, yet both were in their art largely
dominated by the influence of French neo-classicism. This
is but another illustration of the relative conservatism
of belles-lettres.

In the year 1793 there had been formed in Seville by a
group of young writers an Academia de Letras Humanas to
foster the cultivation of letters. The members of this
academy were admirers of Herrera, the Spanish Petrarchist
and patriotic poet of the sixteenth century, and they
strove for a continuation of the tradition of the earlier
Sevillan group. The more important writers of the later
Sevillan school were Arjona, Blanco, Lista and Reinoso.
Manuel Maria de ARJONA (1771-1820), a priest well read in
the Greek and Latin classics, was an imitator of Horace.
Jose Maria BLANCO (1775-1841), known in the history of
English literature as Blanco White, spent much time in
England and wrote in English as well as in Castilian.
Ordained a Catholic priest he later became an Unitarian.
The best-known and most influential writer of the group
was Alberto LISTA (1775-1848), an educator and               page xxxiv
later canon of Seville. Lista was a skilful artist and
like Arjona an admirer and imitator of Horace; but his
ideas lacked depth. His best-known poem is probably a
religious one, _A la muerte de Jesus,_ which abounds in
true poetic feeling. Lista exerted great influence as a
teacher and his _Lecciones de literatura espanola_ did
much to stimulate the study of Spanish letters. Felix Jose
REINOSO (1772-1814), also a priest, imitated Milton in
_octava rima_. As a whole the influence of the Sevillan
school was healthful. By insisting upon purity of diction
and regularity in versification, the members of the school
helped somewhat to restrain the license and improve the
bad taste prevailing in the Spanish literature of the
time. The Catalonian Manuel de CABANYES (1808-1833)
remained unaffected by the warring literary schools and
followed with passionate enthusiasm the precepts of the
ancients and particularly of Horace.

In the third decade of the nineteenth century romanticism,
with its revolt against the restrictions of classicism,
with its free play of imagination and emotion, and with
lyricism as its predominant note, flowed freely into Spain
from England and France. Spain had remained preeminently
the home of romanticism when France and England had
turned to classicism, and only in the second half of the
eighteenth century had Spanish writers given to classicism
a reception that was at the best lukewarm. Now romanticism
was welcomed back with open arms, and Spanish writers
turned eagerly for inspiration not only to Chateaubriand,
Victor Hugo and Byron, but also to Lope de Vega and
Calderon. Spain has always worshiped the past, for Spain
was once great, and the appeal of romanticism was             page xxxv
therefore the greater as it drew its material largely
from national sources.

In 1830 a club known as the Parnasillo was formed in
Madrid to spread the new literary theories, much as the
Cenacle had done in Paris. The members of the Parnasillo
met in a wretched little cafe to avoid public attention.
Here were to be found Breton de los Herreros, Estebanez
Calderon, Mesonero Romanos, Gil y Zarate, Ventura de la
Vega, Espronceda and Larra. The influence of Spanish epic
and dramatic poetry had been important in stimulating the
growth of romanticism in England, Germany and France. In
England, Robert Southey translated into English the
poem and the chronicle of the Cid and Sir Walter Scott
published his Vision of Don Roderick; in Germany, Herder's
translation of some of the Cid _romances_ and the Schlegel
brothers' metrical version of Calderon's dramas had called
attention to the merit of the earlier Spanish literature;
and in France, Abel Hugo translated into French the
_Romancero_ and his brother Victor made Spanish subjects
popular with _Hernani_ and _Ruy Blas_ and the _Legendes
des siecles_. But Spain, under the despotism of Ferdinand
VII, the "Tyrant of Literature," remained apparently
indifferent or even hostile to its own wonderful
creations, and clung outwardly to French
neo-classicism.[2] Boehl von Faber,[3] the German consul at
Cadiz, who was influenced by the Schlegel brothers,
had early called attention to the merit of the Spanish
literature of the Golden Age and had even had some of
Calderon's plays performed at Cadiz. And in                  page xxxvi
1832 Duran published his epoch-making _Romancero_. In 1833
Ferdinand VII died and the romantic movement was hastened
by the home-coming of a number of men who had fled the
despotism of the monarch and had spent some time in
England and France, where they had come into contact with
the romanticists of those countries. Prominent amongst
these were Martinez de la Rosa, Antonio Alcala Galiano,
the Duke of Rivas and Espronceda.

[Footnote 2: Cf. _l'Epopee castillane_, Ramon Menendez
Pidal, Paris, 1910, pp. 249-252.]

[Footnote 3: The father of Fernan Caballero.]

In this period of transition one of the first prominent
men of letters to show the effects of romanticism was
Francisco MARTINEZ DE LA ROSA (1787-1862). Among his
earlier writings are a _Poetica_ and several odes in honor
of the heroes of the War of Independence against the
French. After his exile in Paris he returned home imbued
with romanticism, and his two plays, _Conjuracion de
Venecia_ (1834) and _Aben Humeya_ (1836: it had already
been given in French at Paris in 1830), mark the first
public triumph of romanticism in Spain. But Martinez de
la Rosa lacked force and originality and his works merely
paved the way for the greater triumph of the Duke of
Rivas. Angel de Saavedra, DUQUE DE RIVAS (1791-1865), a
liberal noble, insured the definite triumph of romanticism
in Spain by the successful performance of his drama
_Don Alvaro_ (1835). At first a follower of Moratin and
Quintana, he turned, after several years of exile in
England, the Isle of Malta and France, to the new romantic
school, and casting off all classical restraints
soon became the acknowledged leader of the Spanish
romanticists. Among his better works are the lyric _Al
faro de Malta_, the legendary narrative poem _El moro
exposito_ and his _Romances historicos_. The _Romances_
are more sober in tone and less fantastic,--and it should
be added, less popular to-day,--than the legends of         page xxxvii
Zorrilla. After a tempestuous life the Duke of
Rivas settled quietly into the place of director of the
Spanish Academy, which post he held till his death.

Jose de ESPRONCEDA (1808-1842) was preeminently a
disciple of Byron, with Byron's mingling of pessimism and
aspiration, and like him in revolt against the established
order of things in politics and social organization. His
passionate outpourings, his brilliant imagery and the
music of his verse give to Espronceda a first place
amongst the Spanish lyrical poets of the nineteenth
century. Some of his shorter lyrics (e.g. _Canto a
Teresa_) are inspired by his one-time passion for Teresa
with whom after her marriage to another he eloped from
London to Paris. The poet's best known longer works are
the _Diablo mundo_ and the _Estudiante de Salamanca_,
which are largely made up of detached lyrics in which the
subjective note is strikingly prominent. Espronceda was
one of those fortunate few who shine in the world of
letters although they work little. Both in lyric mastery
and in his spirit of revolt, Espronceda holds the place in
Spanish literature that is held in English by Byron. He
is the chief Spanish exponent of a great revolutionary
movement that swept over the world of letters in the first
half of the nineteenth century.

Jose ZORRILLA (1817-1893) first won fame by the reading
of an elegy at the burial of Larra. Zorrilla was a most
prolific and spontaneous writer of verses, much of which
is unfinished in form and deficient in philosophical
insight. But in spite of his carelessness and shallowness
he rivaled Espronceda in popularity. His verses are not
seldom melodramatic or childish, but they are rich in
coloring and poetic fancy and they form a                  page xxxviii
vast enchanted world in which the Spaniards still delight
to wander. His versions of old Spanish legends are
doubtless his most enduring work and their appeal to
Spanish patriotism is not less potent to-day than when
they were written. Zorrilla's dramatic works were
successful on the stage by reason of their primitive
vigor, especially _Don Juan Tenorio_, _El Zapatero y el
rey_ and _Traidor, inconfeso y martir_. This "fantastic
and legendary poet" went to Mexico in 1854 and he remained
there several years. After that date he wrote little and
the little lacked merit.

Gertrudis Gomez de AVELLANEDA (1814-1873) was born in Cuba
but spent most of her life in Spain. Avellaneda was a
graceful writer of lyrics in which there was feeling and
melody but little depth of thought. With her the moving
impulse was love, both human and divine. Her first volume
of poems (1841) probably contains her best work. Her
novels _Sab_ and _Espatolino_ were popular in their day
but are now fallen into oblivion. Some of her plays,
especially _Baltasar_ and _Munio_, do not lack merit.
Avellaneda is recognized as the foremost poet amongst the
women of nineteenth-century Spain.

Two of the most successful dramatists of this period,
Garcia Gutierrez and Hartzenbusch, were also lyric poets.
Antonio GARCIA GUTIERREZ (1813-1884), the author of _El
trovador_, published two volumes of mediocre verses.
Juan Eugenio HARTZENBUSCH (1806-1880) was, like Fernan
Caballero, the child of a German father and a Spanish
mother. Though an eminent scholar and critic, he did not
hesitate in his _Amantes de Teruel_ to play to the popular
passion for sentimentality. He produced some lyric verse
of worth. Manuel BRETON DE LOS HERREROS (1796-1873) was
primarily a humorist and satirist, who turned from           page xxxix
lyric verse to drama as his best medium of
expression. He delighted in holding up to ridicule the
excesses of romanticism. Mention should be made here of
two poets who had been, like Espronceda, pupils of Alberto
Lista. The eclectic poet MARQUES DE MOLINS (Mariano Roca
de Togores: 1812-1889) wrote passively in all the literary
genres of his time. VENTURA DE LA VEGA (1807-1865) was
born in Argentina, but came to Spain at an early age. He
was a well-balanced, cautious writer of mediocre verses
that are rather neo-classic than romantic.

A marked reaction against the grandiose exaggerations of
later romanticism appears in the works of Jose SELGAS
y Carrasco (1824-1882), a clever writer of simple,
sentimental verses. At one time his poetry was highly
praised and widely read, but for the most part it is
to-day censured as severely as it was once praised. Among
the contemporaries of Selgas were the writer of simple
verses and one-time popular tales, Antonio de TRUEBA
(1821-1889) and Eduardo BUSTILLO, the author of _Las
cuatro estaciones_ and _El ciego de Buenavista_. Somewhat
of the tradition of the Sevillan school persisted in the
verses of Manuel CANETE and Narciso CAMPILLO (1838-1900)
and in those of the poet and literary critic Jose AMADOR
DE LOS RIOS.

The Sevillan Gustavo Adolfo BECQUER (1836-1870) wrote
perhaps the most highly polished Spanish verse of the
nineteenth century. His _Rimas_ are charged with true
poetic fancy and the sweetest melody, but the many
inversions of word-order that were used to attain to
perfection of metrical form detract not a little from
their charm. His writings are contained in three small
volumes in which are found, together with the _Rimas_, a
collection of prose legends. His prose work is                  page xl
filled with morbid mysticism or fairy-like mystery. His
dreamy prose is often compared to that of Hoffmann and his
verses to those of Heine, although it is doubtful if he
was largely influenced by either of these German writers.
Becquer sings primarily of idealized human love. His
material life was wretched and it would seem that his
spirit took flight into an enchanted land of its own
creation. Most human beings love to forget at times their
sordid surroundings and wander in dreamland; hence the
enduring popularity of Becquer's works and especially of
the _Rimas_. Becquer has been widely imitated throughout
the Spanish-speaking world, but with little success. In
this connection it should be noted that the Spanish poets
who have most influenced the Spanish literature of the
nineteenth century, both in the Peninsula and in
America, are the Tyrtaean poet Quintana, the two leading
romanticists Espronceda and Zorrilla and the mystic
Becquer.

Like most writers in Latin lands, Juan VALERA y Alcala
Galiano (1824-1905) and Marcelino MENENDEZ Y PELAYO
(1856-1912) began their literary career with a volume or
two of lyric verses. Valera's verses have perfect metrical
form and evince high scholarship, but they are too learned
to be popular. The lyrics of Menendez y Pelayo have also
more merit in form than in inspiration and are lacking in
human interest. Both authors turned soon to more congenial
work: Valera became the most versatile and polished of all
nineteenth century Spanish writers of essays and novels;
and Menendez y Pelayo became Spain's greatest scholar in
literary history. The popular novelist, Pedro Antonio de
ALARCON (1833-1891), wrote lyrics in which there is a
curious blending of humor and skepticism.                      page xli
The foremost Spanish poet of the closing years of the
nineteenth century was Ramon de CAMPOAMOR y Campoosorio
(1817-1901) who is recognized as the initiator in Spain
of a new type of verse in his _Doloras_ and _Pequenos
poemas_. The _doloras_ are, for the most part, metrical
fables or epigrams, dramatic or anecdotal in form, in
which the author unites lightness of touch with depth
of feeling. The _pequeno poema_ is merely an enlarged
_dolora_. Campoamor disliked Byron and he disliked still
more the sonorous emptiness that is characteristic of too
much Spanish poetry.[4] In philosophy he revered Thomas
a Kempis; in form he aimed at conciseness and directness
rather than at artistic perfection. His poetry lacks
enthusiasm and coloring, but it has dramatic interest.

[Footnote 4: Menendez y Pelayo (_Ant. Poetas Hisp.-Am._,
I, p. lv) says: "Al fin espanoles somos, y a tal profusion
de luz y a tal estrepito de palabras sonoras no hay entre
nosotros quien resista."]

The poets Manuel del PALACIO (1832-1895) and Federico
BALART (1831-1905), though quite unlike in genius, won the
esteem of their contemporaries. Palacio wrote excellent
sonnets and epigrams. In his _Leyendas y poemas_ he proved
his mastery of Spanish diction; he had, moreover, the
saving grace of humor which was so noticeably lacking in
Zorrilla's legends. The poet and literary critic, Balart,
achieved fame with his _Dolores_, in which he mourns with
sincere grief the death of his beloved wife. Mention
should also be made of the following poets who deserve
recognition in this brief review of the history of Spanish
lyric poetry: Vicente Wenceslao QUEROL (1836-1889), a
Valencian, whose _El eclipse, Cartas a Maria_, and _La
fiesta de Venus_, evince a remarkable technical skill
and an unusual correctness of diction; Teodoro                page xlii
LLORENTE (cf. p. 279); Jose GALIANO ALCALA whose verses
have delicate feeling and lively imagination; Emilio
FERRARI (b. 1853), the author of _Abelardo e Hipatia_
and _Aspiracion_; the pessimistic poets, Joaquin Maria de
BARTRINA (1850-1880) and Gabino TEJADO; Salvador RUEDA (b.
1857), author of _El bloque_, _En tropel_ and _Cantos
de la vendimia_; and the poet and dramatist, Eduardo
MARQUINA.

After the death of Campoamor in the first year of the
twentieth century, the title of _doyen_ of Spanish
letters fell by universal acclaim to Gaspar NUNEZ DE ARCE
(1834-1903). Nunez de Arce was a lyric poet, a dramatist
and a writer of polemics, but first of all a man
of action. With him the solution of political and
sociological problems was all-important, and his literary
writings were mostly the expression of his sociological
and political views. Nunez de Arce is best known for his
_Gritos del combate_ (1875), in which he sings of liberty
but opposes anarchy with energy and courage. As a satirist
he attacks the excesses of radicalism as well as the vices
and foibles common to mankind.[5] As a poet he is neither
original nor imaginative, and often his ideas are unduly
limited; but he writes with a manly vigor that is rare
amongst Spanish lyric poets, most of whom have given first
place to the splendors of rhetoric.

[Footnote 5: Speaking of Nunez de Arce's satire, Juan
Valera says humorously, in _Florilegio de poesias
castellanas del siglo XIX_, Madrid, 1902, Vol. I, p. 247:
"Esta el poeta tan enojado contra la sociedad, contra
nuestra descarriada civilizacion y contra los crimenes y
maldades de ahora, y nos pinta tan perverso, tan vicioso
y tan infeliz al hombre de nuestros dias, atormentado por
dudas, remordimientos, codicias y otras viles pasiones,
que, a mi ver, lejos de avergonzarse este hombre de
descender del mono, debiera ser el mono quien se
avergonzara de haberse humanado."]

Most writers on the history of European literatures have     page xliii called attention to the fact that at the
beginning of the nineteenth century there was a great
outpouring of lyricism, which infused itself into prose
as well as verse. When this movement had exhausted itself
there came by inevitable reaction a period of materialism,
when realism succeeded romanticism and prose fiction
largely replaced verse. And now sociological and
pseudo-scientific writings threaten the very existence of
idealistic literature. And yet through it all there has
been no dearth of poets. Browning in England and Campoamor
in Spain, like many before them, have given metrical form
to the expression of their philosophical views. And other
poets, who had an intuitive aversion to science, have
taken refuge in pure idealism and have created worlds
after their own liking. To-day prose is recognized as
the best medium for the promulgation of scientific or
political teachings, and those who are by nature poets are
turning to art for art's sake. Poetry is less didactic
than formerly, and it is none the less beautiful and
inspiring.

The _Notes_ to this volume contain historical sketches of
the literatures of Argentina (p. 279), Colombia (p. 285),
Cuba (p. 291), Ecuador and Peru (p. 296), Mexico (p. 307),
and Venezuela (p. 315). It is to be regretted that lack of
space has excluded an account of the literatures of other
Spanish-American countries, and especially of Chile and
Uruguay.


                            III

                  SPANISH VERSIFICATION

Spanish versification is subject to the following general
laws:

(1) There must be a harmonious flow of syllables, in which
harsh combinations of sounds are avoided. This                page xliv
usually requires that stressed syllables be separated by
one or more unstressed syllables.[6]

[Footnote 6: By stress is meant secondary as well as
primary syllabic stress. Thus, _en nuestra vida_ has
primary stress on _vi-_, and secondary stress on _nues-_.]

(2) Verse must be divided into phrases, each of which can
be uttered easily as one breath-group. The phrases are
normally of not less than four nor more than eight
syllables, with a rhythmic accent on the next to the last
syllable of each phrase.[7] Phrases of a fixed number of
syllables must recur at regular intervals. There may or
may not be a pause at the end of the phrase.

[Footnote 7: The unstressed syllable may be lacking, or
there may be two unstressed syllables, after the rhythmic
accent. See under _Syllabication_.]

(_a_) In the n-syllable binary line the phrases may recur
at irregular intervals. In lines with regular ternary
movement phrasing is largely replaced by rhythmic
pulsation (cf. p. lxx).

(3) There must be rime of final syllables, or final
vowels, recurring at regular intervals.

(_a_) In some metrical arrangements of foreign origin the
rimes recur at irregular intervals, or there is no rime
at all. See the _silva_ and _versos sueltos_ under
_Strophes_.

Whether normal Spanish verse has, or ever had, binary
movement, with the occasional substitution of a "troche"
for an "iambic," or vice-versa, is in dispute.[8] That is,
whether in Spanish verse, with the usual movement, (1)
the alternation of stressed and unstressed syllables is
essential, or whether (2) the mere balancing of                page xlv
certain larger blocks of syllables is sufficient. For
instance, in this line of Luis de Leon:

  ya muestra en esperanza el fruto cierto,

is there regular rhythmic pulsation, much less marked
than in English verse, doubtless,--but still an easily
discernible alternation of stressed and unstressed
syllables? If so, there must be secondary stress on _es-_.
Or is _ya muestra en esperanza_ one block, and _el fruto
cierto_ another, with no rhythmic stresses except those on
_-anza_ and _cierto_?

[Footnote 8: There are in Spanish certain types of verses
in which there is regular ternary movement throughout.
These are treated separately. Cf. p. lxx.]


The truth seems to be that symmetry of phrases (the
balancing of large blocks of syllables) is an essential
and important part of modern Spanish versification; but
that, in musical verse of the ordinary type, there is
also a subtle and varied binary movement, while in some
recitative verse (notably the dramatic _romance_ verse)
the binary movement is almost or quite negligible.[9]

[Footnote 9: A count of Spanish verses (none from drama),
by arbitrarily assuming three contiguous atonic syllables
to be equal to-[/-]-(with secondary stress on the middle
syllable), gave the following results (cf. _Romanic
Review, Vol. III_, pp. 301-308):

Common syllabic arrangements of 8-syllable lines:

(1) / _ / _ / _ / (_): Esta triste voz oi.

(2) _ / _ / _ _ / (_): Llorando dicen asi.

(3) _ / _ _ / _ / (_): Mi cama las duras penas.

Of 933 lines, 446 (nearly one-half) were in class (1); 257
in class (2); and 191 in class (3). The remaining lines
did not belong to any one of these three classes.

Common syllabic arrangements of 11-syllable lines:

(1) _ / _ / _ / _ / _ / (_): Veras con cuanto amor llamar
porfia.

(2) / _ / _ _ / _ / _ / (_): Cuantas veces el angel me
decia.

(3) / _ _ / _ / _ / _ / (_): Este matiz que al cielo
desafia.

Of 402 lines, 216 (slightly more than one-half) were in
class (1); 94 were in class (2); and 75 in class (3). The
remaining lines did not belong to any one of these
three classes. Note that, in these arrangements of the
11-syllable lines, the irregularities in rhythm are found
only in the first four syllables.]
                                                              page xlvi
Some poets have used at times a quite regular binary
movement in Spanish verse; but they have had few or no
followers, as the effect was too monotonous to please the
Spanish ear. Thus, Solis:

  Siempre orillas de la fuente
  Busco rosas a mi frente,
  Pienso en el y me sonrio,
  Y entre mi le llamo mio,
  Me entristezco de su ausencia,
  Y deseo en su presencia
  La mas bella parecer.
        (p. 53, ll. 6-12)

The Colombian poet, Jose Eusebio Caro, wrote much verse
thus, under the influence of the English poets.

On the other hand, some recent "decadent" poets have
written verses in which the principle of symmetry of
phrases, or of a fixed number of syllables, is abandoned,
and rhythm and rime are considered sufficient to make the
lines musical. Thus, Leopoldo Lugones (born 1875?), of
Argentina, in verses which he calls "_libres_" (cf.
_Lunario sentimental_, Buenos Aires, 1909):

  Luna, quiero cantarte
  iOh ilustre anciana de las mitologias!
  Con todas las fuerzas de mi arte.

  Deidad que en los antiguos dias
  Imprimiste en nuestro polvo tu sandalia,
  No alabare el liturgico furor de tus orgias
  Ni su erotica didascalia,
  Para que alumbres sin mayores ironias,
  Al poligloto elogio de las Guias,
  Noches sentimentales de _mises_ en Italia.
            (_Himno a la luna_)

This is largely a harking back to primitive conditions,
for in the oldest Castilian narrative verse the rule of
"counted syllables" apparently did not prevail. Cf. the
_Cantar de mio Cid_, where there is great irregularity in
the number of syllables. And, although in the                page xlvii
old _romances_ the half-lines of eight syllables largely
predominate, many are found with seven or nine syllables,
and some with even fewer or more. The adoption of the rule
of "counted syllables" in Spanish may have been due to one
or more of several causes: to the influence of medieval
Latin rhythmic songs;[10] to French influence; or merely
to the development in the Spanish people of a feeling for
artistic symmetry.

[Footnote 10: Such as:

  Stabat Mater dolorosa
  Juxta crucem lachrymosa
  Dum pendebat filius.]

Other poets of to-day write verses in which the line
contains a fixed number of syllables or any multiple of
that number. Thus, Julio Sesto (_Blanco y Negro_, Nov. 5,
1911):

  iComo desembarcan..., como desembarcan
  esas pobres gentes...!
  Desde la escalera de la nave todo Nueva York abarcan
  de un vistazo: muelles, rio, casas, puentes...
  Y despues que todos sus cinco sentidos
  ponen asombrados en ver la ciudad,
  como agradecidos,
  miran a la estatua de la Libertad.
  iElla es la Madona, ella es la Madona,
  que de la Siberia saca a los esclavos,
  que a los regicidas la vida perdona,
  y que salva a muchos de contribuyentes, pobres, perseguidos,
  subditos y esclavos!...

(_La tierra prometida_)

Spanish poets have often tried to write verses in
classical meters with the substitution of stress for
quantity. Thus, Villegas in the following hexameters:

  Seis veces el verde soto corono su cabeza
  de nardo, de amarillo trebol, de morada vioela,
  en tanto que el pecho frio de mi casta Licoris
  al rayo del ruego mio deshizo su hielo.[11]

[Footnote 11: Apparently _trebol_ instead of _trebol_.
These lines are quoted by Eugenio Mele, in _La poesia
barbara in Ispagna_, Bari, 1910.]
                                                            page xlviii
Jose Eusebio Caro wrote similar hexameters, and, strange
to say, made alternate lines assonate:

    iCefiro rapido lanzate! irapido empujame y vivo!
  iMas redondas mis velas pon: del proscrito a los lados,
  haz que tus silbos susurren dulces y dulces suspiren!
    iHaz que pronto del patrio suelo se aleje mi barco!
      (_En alta mar_)

The number of these direct imitations is large; but few
succeeded. They are, at best, foreign to the spirit of
Castilian poetry.

In singing Spanish verses two facts are of especial
interest: that, where the rules of prosody require
synalepha, hiatus sometimes occurs (especially in opera),
thus:

  Recogete--ese panuelo.
  (Olmedo, _Folk-lore de Castilla_, p. 133)

  Y el pajaro--era verde.
  (Ledesma, _Cancionero salmantino_, p. 53)

And that musical accents do not necessarily coincide with
syllabic stresses, even at the end of a phrase. Thus,

  iCuantas veces, vida mia,
  Te asomaras al balcon![12]

  iCuerpo bueno, alma divina,
  Que de fatigas me cuestas!

  iBendiga Dios ese cuerpo,
  Tan llenisimo de gracia!
  (Hernandez, _Flores de Espana_)

[Footnote 12: The grave accent mark (`) indicates a strong
musical accent.]
                                                              page xlix

SYLLABICATION

In most modern Spanish verse there is a fixed number of
syllables in a line up to and including the last stressed
syllable.[13] In counting these syllables consideration
must be given to the following facts:

[Footnote 13: The number of unstressed syllables at the end
of a line is not fixed. See p. lvi.

In order to have the correct number of syllables, poets
sometimes (1) shorten a word or (2) shift the accent:

  (1) ?Ya que mi puro _espirtu_ sucias carnes...
        (Cabanyes, _A Cintio_)

  (2) Puede querer...? _Abrale_...
        (Zorrilla, _Don Juan Tenorio_, primeraa parte, III, 6)
      Deben de ser _angeles_.
        (Lope de Vega, _El mejor alcalde el rey_, II)

Note the artificial separation of lines in some dramatic
_romance_-verse:

      ... Soy un cate-
  Cumeno muy diligente.
  (Calderon, _El Jose de las mujeres_, II)

  De una vil hermana, de un
  Falso amigo, de un infame
  Criado...

(Calderon, _No hay burlas con el amor_, III)]


(1) SYNERESIS

Within a word two or three contiguous vowels usually
combine to form a diphthong or a triphthong respectively
(this is called "syneresis"): _bai|le, rey, oi|go,
ciu|dad, cui|da|do, es|tu|diar, es|tu|diais, dien|te,
lim|pio, gra|cio|so, muy, bien, pue|de, buey_, etc.
Exceptions:

(_a_) A stressed "weak" vowel (_i, u_) may not combine
with a "strong" vowel (_a, e, o_) to form a diphthong:
_di|a_,_ri|e, fri|o, ra|iz, le|i|do, o|i|do,                     page l
con|ti|nu|a, con|ti|nu|e, con|ti|nu|o, ba|ul, sa|bi|a,
sa|bri|ais, ca|i|ais,_ etc.[14]

[Footnote 14: Note that in these combinations the weak
vowel receives the accent mark. Some Spanish-American
poets have sinned grievously, by reason of their local
pronunciation, in diphthongizing a strong vowel with a
following stressed weak vowel, as _maiz, a|taud, oi|do_,
for _ma|iz, a|ta|ud, o|i|do_, respectively, etc.]

Exceptions are rare:

  Su|pe | que | se|ria | di|cho|so |
  (Calderon, _No hay burlas con el amor_, III)

Cf. also _rendios_, etc., where the _o_ of _os_ combines
with the _i_ by synalepha.

(_b_) _ua, uo_, are usually disyllabic, except after _c,
g_, and _j: a|due|a|na, sue|a|ve;_ but _cua|tro, san|ti|guo,
Juan_, etc. Syneresis may occur: _sua|ve_.

(_c_) _ui_ is usually disyllabic, except in _muy:
flu|i|do_.

(_d_) Two unstressed strong vowels, if they follow the
stress, regularly form a diphthong; but if they precede
they may form a diphthong or they may be dissyllabic,
usually at the option of the poet.

  Que | del | em|pi|r=eo e=n | el | ce|nit | fi|na|ba.[15]
    (p. 180, l. 11)
  Las | mar|mo|r=ea=s|, y aus|te|ras | es|cul|tu|ras.
    (p. 138, l. 22)
  La | ne|gra ad|ver|si|dad|, con | fe|rr=ea= | ma|no.
    (p. 144, l. 20)
  El | tiem|po en|tre | sus | plie|gues | r=o|e=|do|res.
    (p. 85, l. 24)                                              page li
  Te | van | a ar|mar | do | c=a|e=|ras | in|cau|ta.
    (p. 40, l. 24)
  La | f=e|a=l|dad | del vi|cio|; pe|ro hu|yo|se...[16]
    (p. 39, l. 14)
  En | tan | fra|gil | r=ea=|li|dad.
    (p. 97, l. 18)
  La | sub|li|me | p=oe=|si|a | re|ver|be|ra.
    (p. 149,1. 19)

[Footnote 15: Note that here poetic usage differs from the
rules for syllabication that obtain in prose. Thus, in
_empireo_ the _i_ receives the accent mark, since it is
held to be in the antepenultimate syllable, but in verse
_empireo_ is regularly trisyllabic.]

[Footnote 16: The _ea_ of _fealdad_ is normally disyllabic
by analogy with _feo_. Cf. (_f_) below.]

(_e_) Two strong vowels, if one is stressed, are usually
disyllabic:

_pa|se|a, re|cre|o, ca|no|a,_ etc.

  A|rran|ca a|rran|ca|, Dios | mi|o,
  De | la | men|te | del | p=o|e=|ta
  Es|te | pen|sa|mien|to im|pi|o
  Que en | un | de|li|rio | cr=e|o=.
    (p. 83, ll. 7-10)
  ?Que | se hi|cie|ron | tus | mu|ros | to|rr=e|a=|dos,
      Oh | mi | pa|tria | que|ri|da?
  ?Don|de | fue|ron | tus | he|roes | es|for|za|dos,
      Tu es|pa|da | no | ven|ci|da?
    (p. 78, ll. 1-4)
  A|na|cr=e|o=n|te, el | vi|no y | la a|le|gri|a.
    (p. 150, l. 4)
  S=a|e=|ta | que | vo|la|do|ra...
    (p. 121, l. 15)
  De o|ro | la | n=a|o= | ga|di|ta|na a|por|ta.
    (p. 39, l. 24)
  Y | no | se es|me|re en | l=o|a=r|la.
    (p. 43, l. 18)
  Don|de a | c=a|e=r | vol|ve|ra.
    (p. 121, l. 22)
                                                               page lii
Syneresis is rare, but may occur,--except in _ea_, _eo_
and _oa_,--provided the second vowel does not receive a
rhythmic accent:

  Es|cri|ba|no al | c=ae=r | el | sol.
                      (p. 109, l. 3)
  C=ae=n | es|ta|llan|do | de | los | fuer|tes | gon|ces.
                      (p. 57, l. 19)
  Cual | na|ve | r=ea=l | en | triun|fo em|pa|ve|sa|da.
                      (p. 40, l. 15)

(_f_) In some words vowels that would normally form a
diphthong are usually disyllabic by analogy with other
forms derived from the same stem: _fi|e_, _fi|o_ (cf.
_fi|o_), _ri|o_, _ri|e|ron_ (cf. _ri|o_), _con|ti|nu|e_
(cf. _con|ti|nu|o_), _di|a|rio_ (cf. _di|a_), _bri|o|so_
(cf. _bri|o_), _hu|i_, _hu|i|mos_ (cf. _hu|yo_), etc.

Syneresis is rare, but possible, as in _brio|so_ for
_bri|o|so_.

(_g_) Prefixes, except _a_-, usually form separate
syllables: _pre|in|ser|to_, _re|im|pri|mir_, _re|hu|sar_;
but _aho|gar_. If the syllable after _a_-is stressed,
dieresis usually occurs:

  A | los | que a|ho|ra a|cla|ma.
                (p. 220, l. 3)
  En | la | sub|li|me | so|le|dad | a|ho|ra...
                (p. 188, l. 3)


(2) DIERESIS

By poetic license vowels that normally form one syllable
may often be dissolved into separate syllables (this is
called "dieresis") at the will of the poet: _glo|rio|so_
or _glo|ri|o|so_, _rui|do_ or _rue|i|do_, etc.[17] See also
(1), _d_, above.

[Footnote 17: Note that the dieresis mark is generally used
in dieresis of two weak vowels, or of strong and weak
vowels where the strong vowel is stressed.]
                                                              page liii
But dieresis is impossible if the diphthong is _ie_ or
_ue_ from Latin _[e]_ and _[o]_ respectively, as in
_bien_, _siente_, _huevo_, _puedo_.


(3) SYNALEPHA

The final vowel or diphthong of one word and the initial
vowel or diphthong of an immediately following word in the
same line usually combine to form one syllable (this is
called "synalepha")[18] as in:

  Cuan|do | re|cuer|do | la | pie|dad | sin|ce|ra
    Con | qu=e e=n | m=i e=|dad | pri|me|ra
  En|tra|b=a e=n | nues|tras | vie|jas | ca|te|dra|les.
                        (p. 137, ll. 19-21)
  La | cien|c=ia au=|daz|, cuan|do | de | ti | s=e a=|le|ja.
                          (p. 143, l. 16)
  iEs|t=a e=s | Es|pa|n=a! A=|to|ni|t=a y= | mal|tre|cha...
                            (p. 147, l. 3)
  Que | mi | can|tar | so|no|ro
  A|com|pa|n=o ha=s|t=a a=|qui|; n=o a=|pri|sio|na|do...
                        (p. 49, ll. 6-7)

[Footnote 18: Note that the union of vowels in separate
words is called synalepha, while the union of vowels
within a word is called syneresis. But synalepha may occur
in combinations of vowels in which syneresis would be
impossible. Compare _te|ni|a_ and _ca|no|a_ with:

  A|si al | man|ce|bo in|te|rrum|pe (p. 94, l. 13).
  Ni | la | mi|ra|da | que | lan|zo al | sos|la|yo (p. 219, l. 8).]

The vowels of three words may thus combine if the middle
word is _a_ (or _ha_) (see also (4), _a_):

  Le | di|j=o e=s|t=e a u=|na | mu|jer.
                              (p. 79, l. 15)
  Sal|v=a a e=s|ta | so|cie|dad | des|ven|tu|ra|da.
                          (p. 143, l. 12)
                                                               page liv
(4) HIATUS

(_a_) Hiatus (i.e. the final vowel of one word and the
initial vowel of the immediately following word form
separate syllables)[19] is caused by the interposition of a
weak unstressed vowel, as in:

  En | sus | re|cuer|dos | de | hiel.
    (p. 84, l. 3)
  De | sus | a|la|mos | y | huer|tos.
    (p. 91, l. 8)
  Y hoy | en | sus | can|ta|res | llo|ra.
    (p. 84, l. 18)

[Footnote 19: Note that hiatus between words is equivalent
to dieresis within a word.]

Note that, similarly, the vowels of three words may not
combine, if the middle word is _y, e_ (or _he_), _o_ (or
_oh_), _u_:

  O|las| de | pla|ta y | a|zul.
    (p. 73, l. 12)
  Que | la al|ma | no|che | o el | bri|llan|te | di|a.
    (p. 180, l. 20)
  ?Quien | cal|ma|ra, | iOh Es|pa|na! | tus | pe|sa|res?
    (p. 79, l. 7)

And in all such expressions as: _o|cio|so e |
i|rri|ta|do_, _Se|vi|lla | u O|vie|do_, etc.

Except when a vowel is repeated:

  Si he es|cu|cha|do | cuan|do ha|bla|bas.
    (Calderon, _No hay burlas con el amor_, III)

In modern Spanish, _h_, being silent, has no effect,
but in older Spanish, _h_ for Latin _f_, being then
pronounced, prevented synalepha, as in:

  Por | el | mes | e|ra | de | ma|yo
  cuan|do | ha|ce | la | ca|lor.
    (p. 7, l. 1-2)
                                                                page lv
Hiatus was common in Old Spanish, except when the first
of two words was the definite article, a personal
pronoun-object or the preposition _de_; or when the vowels
were the same.

(_b_) Hiatus is usual when the initial vowel of the second
word has a strong accent (usually the rhythmic accent at
the end of a line or phrase):

  Pues | en | fin | me | de|jo | una (Calderon).
  Ta|les | fue|ron | ya | es|tos | cual | her|mo|so (Herrera).
  Tal | de | lo | al|to | tem|pes|tad | des|he|cha (Maury).
  No hay | pla|ce|res | en | su | al | ma.
    (p. 85, l. 4)
  Cuan|do | po|bre | de | a|nos | y | pe|sa|res
    (p. 221, l. 9)
  Con|ti|go | se | fue | mi | hon|ra.
    (p. 103, l. 19)
  De | gra|na|das | es|pi|gas|; tu | la | u|va...
    (p. 215, l. 5)
  Por|que es | pa|ra el | ser | que | a|ma.
    (p. 84, l. 9)
  Muy | mas | her|mo|sa | la | ha|llan
    (p. 44, l. 5)
  El | ne|va|do | cue|llo | al|za
    (p. 43, l. 4)
  Por|que | tam|bien | e|ra| u|so.
    (p. 115, l. 9)
  Que en | la | bo|ca, y | so|lo | u|no.
    (p. 52, l. 26)
  Gen|te en | es|te | mon|te | an|da...
  Ya | que | de | tu | vis|ta | hu|ye.
    (Calderon)
  Gi|gan|te | o|la | que el | vien|to...[20]
    (p. 121, l. 23)

[Footnote 20: Synalepha is usually to be avoided when it
would bring together two stressed syllables as in _gigante
ola, querido hijo_, etc.]
                                                               page lvi
But synalepha is possible (especially of _de o-_):

  To|do e|le|va|ba | mi a|ni|mo in|tran|qui|lo.
    (p. 139, l. 22)
  Yo | le | da|re|; mas | no en | el | ar|pa | de o|ro...
    (p. 49, l. 5)

And synalepha is the rule, if stress on the initial
syllable is weak:

  A o|tra per|so|na en | Ma|drid.
    (p. 36, l. 19)
  To|da, to|da e|res | per|fec|ta.
    (p. 44, l. 22)

If the vowels are the same, they usually combine into one:

  Del | sol | en | la al|ta | cum|bre
    (p. 49, l. 13)
  Tem|blar | en | tor|no | de el|: un | ar|co in|men|so...
    (p. 180, l. 10)


(5) FINAL SYLLABLES

In estimating the number of syllables in a Spanish
verse-line one final unstressed syllable after the last
stressed syllable is counted whether it be present or not;
or, if there be two unstressed syllables at the end of
the line, only one is counted.[21] Thus the following are
considered 8-syllable lines although, in fact, one line
has nine syllables and another has only seven:

  La | sal|pi|ca | con | es|com|bros
  De | cas|ti|llos | y | de al|ca|za|res...
  Pa|ra | vol|ver | a | bro|tar...

[Footnote 21: In Spanish, a word stressed on the final
syllable is called _agudo_; a word with one syllable after
the stress is called _grave_ or _llano_; one with two
syllables after the stress, _esdrujulo: farol, pluma,
pajaro_.]
                                                              page lvii
This system of counting syllables obtains in Spanish
because there is one and only one unstressed syllable at
the end of most verse-lines. It would, perhaps, be more
logical to stop the count with the last stressed syllable,
as the French do. For instance, a Spanish 11-syllable
line would be called a "feminine" 10-syllable line by the
French; but the French language has only one vowel (_e_)
that may occur in a final unstressed syllable, while in
Spanish there are several (_a, e, o,_ rarely _i, u_).


RIME

Spanish poetry may be in rimed verse or in blank verse.
(1) Rimed verse may have "consonance," in which there is
rime of the last stressed vowel and of any consonants and
vowels that may follow in the line, as in:

    En las presas
  Yo divido
  Lo cogido
  Por igual:
  Solo quiero
  Por riqueza
  La belleza
  Sin rival.
    (p. 75, ll. 5-12)

  Madre mia, yo soy nina;
  No se enfade, no me rina,
  Si fiada en su prudencia
  Desahogo mi conciencia,
    (p. 51, ll. 10-13)

  iCuan solitaria la nacion que un dia
  Poblara inmensa gente!
  iLa nacion cuyo imperio se extendia
  Del ocaso al oriente!
    (p. 76, ll. 19-22)
                                                             page lviii
    iOh tu, que duermes en casto l=echo=,
  De sinsabores ajeno el p=echo=,
  Y a los encantos de la hermos=ura=
  Unes las gracias del coraz=on=,
  Deja el descanso, doncella p=ura=,
  Y oye los ecos de mi canc=ion=!
    (p. 199, ll. 1-6)

In a diphthong consisting of a strong and a weak vowel
the weak vowel may be disregarded in rime. Cf. above:
_prudencia, conciencia; corazon, cancion; igual, rival_.

(2) Or rimed verse may have "assonance," in which there
is rime of the last accented vowel and of any final vowel
that may follow in the line, but not of consonants.[22]

[Footnote 22: Assonance is rare in popular English verse,
but it occurs in some household rimes; e. g.:

  Little Tommy Tucker,
  He cried for his supper.
  What shall little Tommy Tucker have for his supper?
  Black-eyed beans and bread and butter.

Here the assonance is _u-er_ (final unstressed _-er_ in
standard present-day English represents vocalic _r_).]

Assonance of alternate lines is the usual rime of the
_romances_, as in:

  Cabellos de mi cabeza
  lleganme al corvej=o=n;
  los cabellos de mi barba
  por manteles tengo y=o=:
  las unas de las mis manos
  por cuchillo tajad=o=r.
        (P. 7, ll. 15-20)

Here the assonance is _o_.
                                                               page lix
  iAbenamar, Abenamar,
  moro de la morer=ia=,
  el dia que tu naciste
  grandes senales hab=ia=!
  Estaba la mar en calma,
  la luna estaba crec=i=d=a=:
  moro que en tal signo nace,
  no debe decir ment=i=r=a=.
        (P. 1, 11. 1-8)

Here the assonance is _i-a_.[23]

[Footnote 23: The _romances viejos_ were originally in
lines of approximately sixteen syllables, and every line
then had assonance.]

    Del salon en el angulo obscuro,
  De su dueno tal vez olvid=a=d=a=,
  Silenciosa y cubierta de polvo
        Veiase el =a=rp=a=.
    iCuanta nota dormia en sus cuerdas,
  Como el pajaro duerme en las r=a=m=a=s,
  Esperando la mano de nieve
        Que sabe arranc=a=rl=a=s!
     (P. 122, ll. 12-19)

Here the assonance is _a-a_.

The following rules for assonance should be noted:

_(a)_ In modern Spanish a word stressed on the final
syllable may not assonate with one stressed on a syllable
preceding the final.[24]

[Footnote 24: In the old _romances_ and in the medieval
epic, _a_ could assonate with _a-a._ In singing these
old verses every line was probably made to end in an
unstressed vowel by adding paragogic _e_ to a final
stressed syllable. Thus, _son_ was sung as _sone, dar_ as
_dare, temi_ as _temie_, etc. Cf. Men. Pel., _Ant._ V, 65;
XI, 86, 92; and Men. Pid., _Cantar de mio Cid_, I, 65 f.]

_(b)_ A word stressed on the penult may assonate with one       page lx stressed on the antepenult. Vowels between the
stressed syllable and the final syllable are disregarded,
as in _cruza, cupula (u-a), bane, margenes, arabes (a-e)._

_(c)_ In stressed diphthongs and triphthongs only the
vowels receiving the stress assonate, as in _vale, aire
(a-e), cabellos, suelo (e-o), envolviendo, aposento (e-o),
guardias, alta (a-a), pleito, siento (e-o), mucho, triunfo
(u-o)._

_(d)_ In unstressed diphthongs and triphthongs only the
strong vowels assonate, as in _turba, lluvia (u-a),
licencia, quisierais (e-a), pido, continuo (i-o)_.
Similarly, _e_ or _o_, before another strong vowel, is
disregarded in an unstressed diphthong, as in _modo,
erroneo (o-o), crece, heroe (e-e)_.

_(e)_ In final unstressed syllables, _i_ and _u_ (not in
diphthongs) assonate with _e_ and _o_, respectively, as
in _verde, debil (e-e), amante, facil (a-e), liquido,
espiritu (i-o)_.

(3) In Spanish blank verse (_versos sueltos, libres,
blancos_) there is usually no rime; or if there be rime
it is merely incidental. Blank verse usually consists of
11-syllable lines.

  iOh! icuanto rostro veo, a mi censura,
  De palidez y de rubor cubierto!
  Animo, amigos, nadie tema, nadie,
  Su punzante aguijon; que yo persigo
  En mi satira el vicio, no al vicioso.
        (P. 39, ll. 3-7)

Blank verse is little used in Spanish. It occurs chiefly
in serious satirical or philosophical poems. But separate
_versos sueltos_ are introduced into some varieties of
compositions, such as the _romance, seguidilla, silva_,
etc.[25]

[Footnote 25: The _versos sueltos_ are, with regard to the
absence of rime, in imitation of classic Greek and Latin
verse. They came into Spain by way of Italy during the
Renaissance movement. Abjured by the romanticists, they
were restored to favor by Nunez de Arce.]

                                                        page lxi
VERSE-MEASURES

A. VERSE WITH BINARY MOVEMENT[26]

[Footnote 26: The term "binary" is used here to distinguish
ordinary Spanish verse from that with regular ternary
movement. Cf. p. lxx.]


In modern Spanish this verse is commonly found in lines of
seven, eight or eleven syllables. It may occur in lines
of any length; but in lines of five or six syllables the
binary and ternary movements are generally mingled. In
Old Spanish binary lines of approximately 8+8 and 7+7
syllables were common, and lines of 6+6, or of nine,
syllables were then, as now, also occasionally used.[27]

[Footnote 27: Verses of three or four syllables are
best treated as half-lines, with inner rime (_versos
leoninos_).]

The most popular measure, and the one of most importance
in the history of Spanish verse, is the 8+8-syllable line
of the old _romances_, which was later divided into two
8-syllable lines, and became the most common measure in
the drama and in popular songs. This line usually has
only one rhythmic accent, which falls on the seventh
syllable.[28]

[Footnote 28: By "rhythmic accent" is meant the musical
accent on the last stressed syllable of a phrase and not
syllabic stresses that may occur within a phrase.]

  Mis arreos son las armas,
  mi descanso el pelear,
  mi cama las duras penas,
  mi dormir siempre velar
    (p. 5, ll. 1-4)
                                                              page lxii
Rarely 8-syllable lines are written with a fixed accent on
the third syllable (cf. p. 51, l. 10 f.).[29] There is then
sometimes _pie quebrado_ in alternate lines, as in:

  Hijo mio mucho amado,
    Para mientes;
  No contrastes a las gentes
    Mal su grado.
  Ama: e seras amado;
    Y podras
  Hazer lo que no haras
    Desamado.[30]

[Footnote 29: They are less common in Spanish than in
Italian:

  Sai tu dirme, o fanciullino,
  In qual pasco gita sia
  La vezzosa Egeria mia
  Ch'io pur cerco dal mattino?
      (Paolo A. Rolli)]

[Footnote 30: Note the example of hiatus in this older
Spanish.]

Next to the popular 8-syllable line the most important
measure in modern Spanish verse is that of eleven
syllables, with binary movement, which came to Spain from
Italy in the fifteenth century, and was generally accepted
by the writers of the Siglo de Oro. This 11-syllable line,
though of foreign origin, has held the boards as the chief
erudite measure in Spanish verse for four centuries, and
taken all in all it is the noblest metrical form for
serious poems in modern Spanish. A striking peculiarity
of the line is its flexibility. It is not divided into
hemistichs as were its predecessors, the 14-syllable
Alexandrine and the 12-syllable _arte mayor_ verse; but
it consists of two phrases and the position of the inner
rhythmic accent is usually variable.
                                                             page lxiii
A well constructed line of this type has a rhythmic accent
on the sixth syllable, or a rhythmic accent on the fourth
syllable (usually with syllabic stress on the eighth),
beside the necessary accent in the tenth position.
Generally the inner accent falls on the sixth syllable
approximately twice as often as on the fourth.

  Y con diversas flores va esparciendo... (Leon)
  Y para envejecerse florecieron... (Calderon)
  . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
  Cuna y sepulcro en un boton hallaron... (Calderon)
  Se mira al mundo a nuestros pies tendido... (Zorrilla)

Logically, the close of the first phrase should coincide
with the end of the word that receives the inner rhythmic
accent, and this is usually so, as in:

  ?Que tengo yo, | que mi amistad procuras?... (Lope)
  Son la verdad y Dios, | Dios verdadero... (Quevedo)

But in some lines the rhetorical and the rhythmic accents
do not coincide, as in:

          ... pero huyose
  El pudor a vivir en las cabanas... (Jovellanos)
  Del plectro sabiamente meneado... (Leon)
  Que a mi puerta, cubierto de rocio... (Lope)

The 11-syllable line may be used alone. Cf. the sonnets of
Lope de Vega (p. 14) and Calderon (p. 18), the _Epistola
satirica_ of Quevedo (p. 15), the blank verse of
Jovellanos (p. 38) and Nunez de Arce (p. 144), _et al._
The neo-classic poets of the eighteenth century and some
of the earlier romanticists even used it in _redondillas_
or assonated:                                                 page lxiv

  En pago de este amor que, mal mi gr=ado=,
  Hasta el crimen me lleva en su del=irio=,
  Y a no verse por ti menospreci=ado=
  Mi virtud elevara hasta el mart=irio=...

  ?Por que de nuevo palida tristeza
  Tus rosadas mejillas descol=o=r=a=?
  ?Por que tu rostro en lagrimas se inunda?
  ?Por que suspiras, nina, y te acong=o=j=a=s?
  (Breton de los Herreros, _?Quien es ella?_)

But the poets of the Siglo de Oro and the neo-classic
poets generally used it in combination with 7-syllable
lines, as in Leon's verses:

  iQue descansada vida
  la del que huye el mundanal rueido,
  y sigue la escondida
  senda por donde han ido
  los pocos sabios que en el mundo han sido!

Strophes of three 11-syllable lines and one 5-syllable
line (_versos saficos_) are not uncommon in highly lyric
poems. Usually, in the long lines, the inner accent falls
on the fourth syllable, with syllabic stress on the
eighth, and with cesura after the fifth syllable. Thus:[31]

  Dulce vecino de la verde selva,
  Huesped eterno del Abril florido,
  Vital aliento de la madre Venus,
    Cefiro blando.
    (Villegas, _Al cefiro_)

[Footnote 31: Mele (_op. cit_) states that the Sapphic ode
was introduced into Spain from Italy by Antonio Agustin,
bishop of Tarragona, in the first half of the sixteenth
century, and quotes these lines by Agustin:

  Jupiter torna, como suele, rico:
  Cuerno derrama Jove copioeso,
  Ya que bien puede el pegaseo monte
    Verse y la cumbre.
                                                               page lxv
The romanticists used the _versos saficos_ with rime.
Thus, Zorrilla:

  Huye la fuente al manantial ingrata,
  El verde musgo en derredor lamiendo,
  Y el agua limpia en su cristal retrata
          Cuanto va viendo.
    (p. 86, ll. 3-6)

In the Sapphic strophe of Francisco de la Torre (d. 1594),
the short line has seven syllables, and the long line may
have inner rhythmic accent on the sixth, or on the fourth
syllable. Thus:

  El frio Boreas y el helado Noto
  Apoderados de la mar insana
  Anegaron agora en este puerto
          Una dichosa nave.
  (_iTirsi, Tirsi! vuelve y endereza_)

The Sapphic strophe of Francisco de la Torre has been not
infrequently imitated. Thus, Becquer:

  Volveran las obscuras golondrinas
  En tu balcon sus nidos a colgar,
  Y, otra vez, con el ala a sus cristales
          Jugando llamaran.
    (p. 122, l. 24-p. 123, l. 2)[32]

[Footnote 32: These long lines are especially cantabile, as
most are accented on the third and sixth syllables. Only
one is accented on the fourth and eighth.]

The 7-syllable line is commonly used in combination with
those of eleven syllables (see above). In the seventeenth
century, particularly, the 7-syllable line was used in
anacreontics, artistic _romances, quintillas,_                page lxvi
etc., in imitation of the Italian _settenario_, as in
Villegas' _Cantilena_ beginning:

  Yo vi sobre un tomillo
  Quejarse un pajarillo,
  Viendo su nido amado,
  De quien era caudillo,
  De un labrador robado.

In present-day songs the 7-syllable line is rather rare,
except in combination with lines of five syllables, as in:

  Camino de Valencia,
    Camino largo...

And:

  A la puerta del cielo
    Venden zapatos...

In these lines there is no fixed inner rhythmic accent.

The Old Spanish Alexandrine verse-line was composed of two
7-syllable half-lines. In the thirteenth and fourteenth
centuries numerous monkish narrative poems (_mester de
clerecia_) were written in this measure:

  En el nonbre del Padre,--que fizo toda cosa,
  E de don Jhesu Christo,--Fijo dela Gloriosa,
  Et del Spiritu Sancto,--que egual dellos posa,
  De un confessor sancto--quiero fer vna prosa...
  (Gonzalo de Berceo)

The old Alexandrine fell before the rising popularity of
the _arte mayor_ verse early in the fifteenth century. In
the eighteenth century a 13-syllable Alexandrine appears
in Spanish in imitation of the classic French line. This
later Spanish Alexandrine is not composed of two distinct
half-lines. It also has, like its French                     page lxvii
prototype, alternate couplets of masculine and feminine
lines (_versos agudos_ and _versos llanos_ or _graves_).
Thus, Iriarte:

  En cierta catedral una campana habia
  Que solo se tocaba algun solemne dia
  Con el mas recio son, con pausado compas,
  Cuatro golpes o tres solia dar, no mas.

There is an inner rhythmic accent on the sixth syllable.
Iriarte also revived the older Alexandrine, but without
hiatus:

  Cuando veo yo algunos,--que de otros escritores
  A la sombra se arriman,--y piensan ser autores...

Recent poets have revived the old Alexandrine.[33] Thus,
Ruben Dario uses it, even retaining the hiatus between the
half-lines; but instead of grouping the lines in quatrains
with monorime, as the old monks did, he uses assonance
in alternate lines, which is, so far as I know, without
precedent:

  Es con voz de la Biblia--o verso de Withman
  Que habria que llegar--hasta ti, icazador!
  Primitivo y moderno,--sencillo y complicado,
  Con un algo de Washington--y mucho de Nemrod...
  (p. 211, ll. 1-4)

[Footnote 33: For their use of this line with ternary
movement, see p. lxxix.]

Lines of five or six syllables usually have a mingled
binary and ternary movement:

  Una barquera
  Halle bizarra,
  De pocos anos
  Y muchas gracias.
    (N. Moratin)
                                                            page lxviii
  Sali a las diez
  A ver a Clori
  (No lo acerte):
  Horas menguadas
  Debe de haber...
    (L. Moratin)

Lines of 5+5 syllables (_versos asclepiadeos_) are
occasionally written:

  Id en las alas--del raudo cefiro,
  Humildes versos,--de las floridas
  Vegas que diafano--fecunda el Arlas,
  Adonde lento--mi patrio rio
  Ve los alcazares--de Mantua excelsa.
    (L. Moratin)

The Mexican poet Pesado used the same line in his
_Serenata_:

  iOh tu que duermes--en casto lecho,
  De sinsabores--ajeno el pecho,
  Y a los encantos--de la hermosura
  Unes las gracias--del corazon,
  Deja el descanso,--doncella pura,
  Y oye los ecos--de mi cancion!
  (P. 199, ll. 1-6)

The same measure appears in a patriotic song, _Himno de
Riego_:

  En las cabezas--el proclamo
  La suspirada--constitucion,
  Y enarbolando--marcial pendon,
  A los leales--acaudillo...[34]

[Footnote 34: It should be noted that these latter verses,
like most Spanish patriotic songs, are sung with ternary
movement, thus:

  En las cabezas--el proclamo...]
                                                              page lxix
This 10-syllable measure is cantabile, and its phrases are
too short and too regular to make good recitative verse.

_Versos alcaicos_ differ from the _asclepiadeos_ in that
the former have, in a strophe, two lines of 5 + 5, one of
nine, and one of ten syllables. Thus, in these lines of
Victorio Giner (who probably introduced this strophe into
Spain in the second half of the nineteenth century):

  Y si los nautas, cantando el pielago,
  Con remos hieren y espumas alzan,
    Se aduerme a los ecos sus penas
  Y a los ecos su batel avanza.

Juan Luis Estelrich (_Poesias_, 1900) uses _versos
alcaicos_ with the first two lines of each strophe
_esdrujulo_, in imitation of Carducci:

  Carmen, tu nombre trae al espiritu
  Vuelo de aromas, susurro de arboles,
    Los pios consorcios del cielo,
  Y el cantar melodioso del Lacio.

  (_A Carmen Valera._)[35]

[Footnote 35: Cf. Mele, _op. cit._]

_Romances_ in lines of 6 + 6 (or 6 + 5) syllables occur
in popular Spanish verse, as in the Asturian _romance_ of
_Don Bueso_, beginning:

  Camina don Bueso--mananita fria
  a tierra de moros--a buscar amiga...

(Men. Pel., _Ant._ X, 56: cf. also _Ant._ XI, 102)

This measure was also used in _endechas_, as in _Los
comendadores de Cordoba_ (fifteenth century), beginning:

  iLos comendadores,--por mi mal os vi!
  Yo vi a vosotros,--vosotros a mi...
                                                               page lxx
The 9-syllable line was not well received in Spain, and it
has been little used. Iriarte, in his desire to vary the
metrical constructions of his fables, used it at least
once:

  Sobre una mesa, cierto dia,
  Dando estaba conversacion
  A un Abanico y a un Manguito
  Un Paraguas o Quitasol...

There is certainly no fixed inner rhythmic accent in these
lines. The fact seems to be that the 9-syllable line is
too long to be uttered comfortably in one phrase, or
breath-group, and it is too short to be regularly divided
into parts by cesura.


B. VERSE WITH TERNARY MOVEMENT

Verse with regular ternary movement may occur in lines of
any length, but it is commonly found only in lines of ten,
eleven or twelve syllables. Many ternary lines of five and
six syllables are found, but they are almost invariably
mingled with binary lines. This _rondel antiguo_ (Nebrija,
quoted by Men. Pel., _Ant._ V. 66) is ternary throughout,
it would seem:

  Despide plazer
  y pone tristura;
  crece en querer
  vuestra hermosura.

For mixed movements, see the _serranilla_ on p. 45, l. 9
f.

In lines with _regular_ ternary movement, properly
speaking, every primary stress receives a rhythmic accent,
and these accents are always separated by two                 page lxxi
atonic syllables, as in:

  Yo no se como bailan aqui,
  Que en mi tierra no bailan ansi...

Rarely one finds 6-syllable and 9-syllable lines with
regular ternary movement, and these are probably never of
popular origin. Thus:

  Serena la luna
  Alumbra en el cielo,
  Domina en el suelo
  Profunda quietud...

(Espronceda, _El reo de muerte_, II)

  Y luego el estrepito crece
  Confuso y mezclado en un son,
  Que ronco en las bovedas hondas
  Tronando furioso zumbo...

(Espronceda, _Estudiante de Salamanca_)

Formerly the Spanish 10-syllable line occurred usually in
combination with other lines, as in:

    En la calle de Atocha, iliton!
        Que vive mi dama;
    Yo me llamo Bartolo, iliton!
  Litoque, vitoque, y[36] ella Catanla.
  --En la calle del Sordo, iliton!
       Que vive mi mozo,
    Pues a cuanto le pido, iliton!
  Litoque, vitoque, que siempre esta sordo.

[Footnote 36: There is hiatus here.]

(Quinones de Benavente, _Entremeses, bailes, loas y
sainetes_, quoted by Mila y Fontanals, _Obras completas_,
Vol. V, p. 324 f.)
                                                             page lxxii
Calderon used it in the _Vina del Senor_:

    A la vina, a la vina, zagales;
  Zagales, venid, venid a la vina.
    A la vina, a la vina, zagales,
  Y vaya de jira, de bulla y de baile.
  Zagales, venid, venid a la vina,
  Y vaya de baile, de bulla y de jira.

A recent number of the _Ilustracion Espanola y Americana _
(15 Enero, 1911) contains lines of similar construction by
Don Rafael Torrome:

    Al mirar su carita sonriente,
        Tan dulce y tan buena,
    Siempre observo que mi alma presiente,
        Con duelo y con pena,
    Que mas tarde este mundo inclemente
    Trocara en sentimientos de hiena
  Los puros afectos de su alma inocente.

Iriarte did not hesitate to write fables in these
10-syllable lines alone:

  De sus hijos la torpe Aveturda
  El pesado volar conocia...

And the romanticists of the nineteenth century used it not
infrequently:

  Con inmovil, ironica mueca
  Inclinaron formando en redor...

(Espronceda, _Est. de Sal._)

  Del salon en el angulo obscuro,
  De su dueno tal vez olvidada,
  Silenciosa y cubierta de polvo,
    Veiase el arpa.
         (Becquer, _Rima_ VII)
                                                             page lxiii
In the nineteenth century this line came to be popular in
patriotic songs which are sung by the multitude, while the
crash of the drum marks the rhythmic accents:

  Entonemos festivos cantares,
  Pues el dia feliz ha llegado,
  Que del yugo servil aliviado
  Goza ya el Espanol libertad.

(_La Constitucion_)

  Al combate corred, Bayameses,
  Que la patria os contempla orgullosa;
  No temais una muerte gloriosa,
  Que morir por la patria es vivir.

(Cuban national hymn, cf. p. 251)

The commoner form of verse with 11-syllable ternary lines
is that popularly called "_de gaita gallega_" (Men. Pel.,
_Ant._, V, p. cxcv; X, 141. Cf. also Mila, _op. cit._),
the assumption being that this verse is intimately related
to that type of popular Galician poetry known as the
_muineira_, which was sung to the music of the bagpipe.
These lines are typical of the "_endecasilabos de gaita
gallega_":

  Tanto baile a la puerta del cura,
  Tanto baile que me dio calentura;
  Tanto baile a la puerta del horno,
  Tanto baile que me dieron un bollo.[37]

[Footnote 34: Many Galician _muineiras_ have been
collected: cf. Mila, _op. cit._; Carolina Michaelis de
Vasconcellos, _Cancioneiro de Ajuda_, Vol. II, Halle,
1904; Jose Perez Ballesteros, _Cancionero popular
gallego_, Madrid, 1885.]
                                                             page lxxiv
Menendez y Pelayo (_Ant._ X, 141) gives, in his collection
of _Romances tradicionales de Asturias_, the following one
in ternary 11-syllable lines:

=La tentacion=

  --iAy, probe Xuana de cuerpo garrido!
  iAy, probe Xuana de cuerpo galano!
  ?Donde le dexas al tu buen amigo?
  ?Donde le dexas al tu buen amado?
  --iMuerto le dexo a la orilla del rio,
  muerto le dexo a la orilla del vado!
  --?Cuanto me das, volveretelo vivo?
  ?Cuanto me das, volveretelo sano?
  --Doyte las armas y doyte el rocino,
  doyte las armas y doyte el caballo.
  --No he menester ni armas ni rocino,
  no he menester ni armas ni caballo...

It should be noted that this poem has assonance of the
odd and of the even lines. Men. Pel. says of this popular
11-syllable _romance_ that "su aparicion en la poesia
popular castellana es un fenomeno singular, aun en
Asturias misma, y hasta ahora no se ha presentado mas
ejemplo que este." Note the apparent shifting of stress in
_armas_. Iriarte and L. Moratin did not scorn to use this
line.

Iriarte:

  Cierta criada la casa barria
  Con una escoba muy sucia y muy vieja...

Moratin (in the chorus of _Padres del Limbo_):

  Huyan los anos con rapido vuelo;
  Goce la tierra durable consuelo;
  Mire a los hombres piadoso el Senor...
                                                              page lxxv
The 11-syllable line of ternary movement has had less
vogue in artistic verse than those of ten and twelve
syllables.[38]

[Footnote 38: In _Las hijas del Cid_ E. Marquina has used a
flexible 11-syllable ternary line beginning with either
[\-] - - [\-] or - [\-] - [\-]:

  Sus nombres juntos los llevo en el alma,
  Juntos los guarda tambien mi memoria.

These are blank verses with occasional assonance.]

The Spanish ternary 12-syllable line was formerly used
chiefly in combination with lines of ten or eleven
syllables. Some examples of mingled 10-and 12-syllable
lines have already been given above. Another is:

    Mancebito, perdone las hembras,
  Que comen y beben y no tienen rentas.
  --Pues, mocitas, malditas sean ellas,
    O cosan o labren o caiganse muertas.

A song of mingled 11-and 12-syllable lines begins thus:

  Al pasar la barca, me dijo el barquero:
  Moza bonita no paga dinero.[39]

[Footnote 39: Cf. Mila, _op. cit._ In singing _pasar_,
there is apparently a shifting of stress which is not
uncommon in songs.]

Efforts have been made from time to time to use the
ternary movements in erudite verse, but these, for the
most part, have proven futile. The most serious and the
most successful attempt appears in the use of the _copla
de arte mayor_ in the fifteenth century. The _copla
(metro, versos) de arte mayor_ consists of mingled 12-and
11-syllable lines arranged in strophes of eight lines,
each with consonantal rime according to some definite
scheme. The _arte mayor_ verse attained to its most
perfect form and its greatest popularity in                  page lxxvi
_El laberinto de la fortuna_ (1444?), by Juan de Mena, of
which the following is a strophe:

  Amores me dieron corona de amores
  porque mi nombre por mas bocas ande;
  entonces no era mi mal menos grande,
  quando me dauan plazer sus dolores;
  vencen el seso sus dulces errores,
  mas non duran sienpre, segund luego plazen;
  pues me fizieron del mal que vos fazen,
  sabed al amor desamar, amadores.

(Strophe 106)

The old _arte mayor_ verse has these distinguishing
characteristics:

The line is divided into hemistichs, each of which may
have four, five or six syllables, thus:

  (1) (-) - - - [/-] (-) | (-) - - - [/-] (-),

except that the final syllable of the first hemistich
and the initial syllable of the second may not both be
lacking. These arrangements may also occur (the third is
rare):

  (2) (-) - - - [/-] - - | - - - [/-] (-)

  (3) (-) - - - [/-] | - - - - - [/-] (-).

Examples of types:

  (1) Las grandes fazanas | de nuestros mayores... (Str. 4)
      Vayan de gente | sabidos en gente... (Str. 3)
      Reconoceran | maguer que feroce... (Str. 274)
      Assi que qualquiera | cuerpo ya muerto... (Str. 244)
      Cuya virtud | maguer que reclama...
      Sufren que passen | males e vicios... (Str. 232)

  (2) E vi a Pitagoras | que defendia... (Str. 118)
      Bien como medico | mucho famoso... (Str. 178)

  (3) Quando el senor | es en necessidad... (Str. 258)
                                                            page lxxvii
The initial unstressed syllable of the first hemistich is
lacking in approximately one-third of the lines of the
_Laberinto_. These lines resemble the 11-syllable _gaita
gallega_ verse, and the others resemble the popular
Galician 12-syllable ternary line, for in both the final
unstressed syllable of the first hemistich may fall,[40]
which seems to indicate that the appearance of the _arte
mayor_ verse in Castilian was due to Galician influence.

[Footnote 40: Cf. these Galician _muineiras_, cited by Mila
y Fontanals (_Romania_, VI, p. 47 f.):

    Cando te vexo | na beira do rio,
    Queda o meu corpo | tembrando de frio;
    Cando te vexo | d'o monte n'altura,
  A todo o mon corpo | lle da calentura.
    Isca d'ahi | galina maldita,
    Isca d'ahi | non me mate la pita;
    Isca d'ahi | galina ladrona,
    Isca d'ahi | pra cas de tua dona.]

Again, as in many Galician songs of this type, the ternary
movement of the old _arte mayor_ verse is not strictly
regular. Approximately nine-tenths of the lines in the
_Laberinto_ may be read with regular ternary movement:

  (-) [/-] - - [/-] (-) | (-) [/-] - - [/-] (-),

by giving a rhythmic accent to a syllable with secondary
stress or to a middle syllable in a group of atonics, in a
not inconsiderable number of lines, as in:

  Por las alturas, | collados y cerros...
  Assi que tu eres | la governadora...

In the remaining lines the commonest movement is:

  (-) - [/-] - [/-] (-) | (-) - [/-] - [/-] (-),

as in:

Aquel claro padre, aquel dulce fuente...                   page lxxviii

In the second half of the sixteenth century and in the
seventeenth century, the _arte mayor_ verse was out of
fashion, although it appeared occasionally, as in these
lines of Lope de Vega (a variety of the Sapphic strophe),
with inner rime:

  Amor poderoso en cielo y en tierra,
  dulcisima guerra de nuestros sentidos,
  ioh, cuantos perdidos con vida inquieta
        tu imperio sujeta!

(From first act of _Dorotea_)

In the nineteenth century it was restored to favor by
the romanticists.[41] Good examples are: Espronceda,
_El templario_; Avellaneda, _Las siete palabras_; and
Zorrilla, _A un torreon_ (part). Some writers used it even
in the drama (cf. Gil y Zarate, _Guzman el bueno_). The
modern _arte mayor_ verse is written in 12-syllable lines,
usually with regular ternary movement. Thus:

  iOh Antilla dichosa! | ?que magicos sones,
  Que luz inefable, | que extrana alegria,
  Del cielo destierran los negros crespones,
  Prestando a esta noche | la pompa del dia?

  ?Por que tan ufana, | tan bella la luna
  Con faz refulgente | comienza su giro,
  Y no hay leve sombra | que cruce importuna
  Su trono esmaltado | de plata y zafiro?

(Avellaneda, _Serenata de Cuba_)

[Footnote 41: Iriarte, of course, had written a fable or
two in _arte mayor_ verse. Cf. _Fabula_ XXXIX.]
                                                             page lxxix
  Soldados, la Patria | nos llama a la lid;
  Juremos por ella | vencer o morir;
  Serenos, alegres, | valientes, osados,
  Cantemos, soldados, | el himno a la lid:
  Ya nuestros acentos | el orbe se admire,
  Y en nosotros[42] mire | los hijos del Cid;
  Ya nuestros acentos | el orbe se admire,
  Y en nosotros mire | los hijos del Cid.
        (_Himno de Riego_: cf. p. 242)

[Footnote 42: Note in _nosotros_ the shifting of stress,
which the musical notation indicates clearly.]

Lines of fourteen and fifteen syllables with ternary
movement are never popular, and in artistic verse they
are exceedingly rare. Avellaneda used these measures in
_Soledad del alma_:

  Sale la aurora risuena, de flores vestida,
  Dandole al cielo y al campo variado color;
  Todo se anima sintiendo brotar nueva vida,
  Cantan las aves, y el aura suspira de amor.

  Huyeron veloces--cual nubes que el viento arrebata--
  Los breves momentos de dicha que el cielo me dio...
  ?Por que mi existencia, ya inutil, su curso dilata,
  Si el termino ansiado a su espalda perdido dejo?

Some recent poets have attempted to write ternary
Alexandrine verse. Thus, the Peruvian poet, Jose S.
Chocano (1867-):

      Los Estados Unidos, como argolla de bronce,
  contra un clavo sujetan de la America un pie;
  y la America debe, si pretende ser libre,
  imitarles primero, e igualarles despues.
                                                              page lxxx
  Imitemos ioh Musa! las crujientes estrofas
  que en el Norte se arrastran con la gracia de un tren,
  y que giren las rimas como ruedas veloces
  y que caigan los versos como varas de riel.
          (_La epopeya del Pacifico_)


STROPHES

There are certain conventional combinations of line and
rime known by special names. Those used in modern Spanish
may best be considered under the heads (I) Assonance, (II)
Consonantal Rime, and (III) No Rime.

I. (1) The _romance_ is the most characteristic and
national of all Spanish meters. The proper _romance_
consists of 8-syllable lines with assonance in alternate
lines[43] (cf. pp. 1-8, 42, etc.). The structure of the
_romance_ line has already been treated (p. lxi). In the
old _romances_ there was no division into stanzas, but
poets from the end of the sixteenth century on regularly
employ a pause after every fourth line, thereby creating
a series of quatrains (pp. 42, 60, etc.), except in the
drama (p. 19).

[Footnote 43: Historically, of i6-syllable lines, all
assonating.]

(2) Alternate assonance may be employed with lines of
any length. With 11-syllable lines the verse is called
_romance heroico_ or _real_. Lines of seven syllables make
_versos anacreonticos_. The name _endecha_ is given to
some assonated verse of either six (p. 124) or seven
syllables. When the first three lines of a stanza are
of seven syllables and the last of eleven, the verse is
called _endecha real_. For examples of alternate assonance
in lines of various lengths, see pp. 122 (2 examples),
123, 137, 160, 177.

An _estribillo_, or refrain, may be used in any assonating
verse (p. 45).
                                                             page lxxxi
(3) The use of alternate assonance in lines of fourteen
syllables (pp. 211, 212) is a none too happy device of the
author.

(4) The _seguidilla_ is usually a stanza of seven lines of
seven and five syllables in length, in this order: 7, 5,
7, 5; 5, 7, 5. There is usually a pause after the fourth
line; lines 2 and 4 have one assonance and lines 5 and 7
another. The assonances change from one stanza to another.
See pp. 112 and 120. In some _seguidillas_ the stanzas
consist only of the first four lines described.

II. The native Spanish strophes are usually combinations
of 8-syllable or shorter lines. The 11-syllable line,
itself an importation from Italy, brought with it many
well-known Italian strophes. In none of the pure Italian
forms are lines ending in _agudos_ or _esdrujulos_
permissible.

(1) The _redondilla mayor_ consists of four 8-syllable
lines with the rime-scheme _abba_ (pp. 149, 167), or,
less commonly, _abab_ (p. 136). It is a common and
characteristic Spanish meter. The _redondilla menor_
has the same form expressed in lines of less than eight
syllables. The same rime-schemes are found with lines of
seven or of eleven (pp. 117, 207) syllables, and with
combinations of eleven and seven (p. 134), or eleven and
five (p. 86) syllables; but they are not properly called
_redondillas_.

(2) The _quintilla_ is a 5-line strophe, usually of
8-syllable lines. Only two rimes are used in one stanza,
and not more than two lines having the same rime should
stand together (pp. 26, 114). _Quintillas_ are sometimes
written with lines of other lengths. Examples with eleven
and seven syllables are found on pp. 128, 133 and 148. The
stanza used in _Vida retirada_ (p. 9) is termed _lira_:
cf. _Introduction_, p. xxiii.
                                                            page lxxxii
(3) The _decima_ (or _espinela_) is a 10-line strophe
of 8-syllable lines which may be considered as two
_quintillas_; but there should be a pause after the
fourth line, and the rime-scheme is usually as follows:
_abbaaccddc_.

(4) The _arte mayor_ line has already been described (p.
lxxv). The _copla de arte mayor_ is a stanza of eight such
lines, usually having the rime-scheme _abbaacca_.

(5) The _octava rima_ (Ital. _ottava rima_) is an Italian
form. Each stanza has eight 11-syllable lines with the
rime-scheme _abababcc_. Examples are found of octaves
employing short lines. A variety of the _octava rima_ is
the _octava bermudina_ with the rime-scheme _abbcdeec_,
the lines in _c_ ending in _agudos_.

(6) The _soneto_ (sonnet) is formed of fourteen
11-syllable lines. In the Siglo de Oro it appears as
a much stricter form than the English sonnet of the
corresponding period. The quatrains have the regular
construction _abba_, and the tiercets almost always follow
one of two types: either _cde, cde,_ or _cdcdcd_. See pp.
14, 18, 148, etc.

(7) _Tercetos_ (Italian _terza rima_), the verse used by
Dante in the _Divina Commedia_, are formed of 11-syllable
lines in groups of three, with the rime-scheme _aba, bcb,
cdc_, etc., ending _yzyz_. See p. 15.

(8) The term _cancion_, which means any lyrical
composition, is also applied specifically to a verse
form in which the poet invents a typical strophe, with a
certain length of line and order of rimes, and adheres to
this type of stanza throughout the whole poem. The lines
are of eleven and seven syllables,--the Italian structure.
Of such nature are the poems on pp. 8, 20, 71, 137
(bottom), 174, 190.

The same procedure is employed with lines of any length,   page lxxxiii
but the poem is not then called _cancion_.
For strophes in 10-syllable lines, see p. 199; in
8-syllable lines, pp. 16, 51, 83, 151; in 7-syllables, p.
202.

(9) The _silva_ is a free composition of 11-and 7-syllable
lines. Most of the lines rime, but without any fixed
order, and lines are often left unrimed. See pp. 46, 54,
152, 214 (bottom), etc. A similar freely riming poem in
lines of seven syllables is Villegas' _Cantilena_ (p. 17).

(10) The Asclepiadean verse (p. lxviii) and the Sapphic
(p. lxiv) and Alcaic (p. lxix) strophes have already been
described. These may be rimed, or in blank verse.

(11) Numerous conventional names are given to poems for
some other characteristic than their metrical structure.
Thus a _glosa_ (gloss) is a poem "beginning with a text, a
line of which enters into each of the stanzas expounding
it." A _letra_ may be a short gloss. The name _letrilla_
is applied sometimes to a little poem in short lines which
may be set to music (p. 9), and sometimes to a strophic
poem with a refrain (p. 16). A _madrigal_ is a short
_silva_ upon a light topic, an expanded conceit. The term
_cantilena_ is given to any short piece of verse intended
to be set to music (p. 17). _Serranillas_, in which is
described the meeting of a gentleman with a rustic maiden,
are famous for the examples written by Juan Ruiz and the
Marquis of Santillana. A _villancico_ is a popular poem
with a refrain, usually dealing with an episode celebrated
in a church festival (p. 13).

III. _Versos sueltos, libres_ or _blancos_ (blank verse)
are formed, as in English, of 11-syllable lines, with
occasionally a shorter line thrown in. There is no rime,
but sometimes a couplet may mark the close of an idea. See
pp. 38 and 144, and cf. also p. lx.

                                                                 Page 1


                            ESPANA


                           ROMANCES


             ABENAMAR

      iAbenamar, Abenamar,
      moro de la moreria,
      el dia que tu naciste
      grandes senales habia!
5     Estaba la mar en calma,
      la luna estaba crecida:
      moro que en tal signo nace,
      no debe decir mentira.--
      Alli respondiera el moro,
10    bien oireis lo que decia:
      --Yo te la dire, senor,
      aunque me cueste la vida,
      porque soy hijo de un moro
      y una cristiana cautiva;
15    siendo yo nino y muchacho
      mi madre me lo decia:
      que mentira no dijese,
      que era grande villania:
      por tanto pregunta, rey,                                   page 2
      que la verdad te diria.
      --Yo te agradezco, Abenamar
      aquesa tu cortesia.
      ?Que castillos son aquellos?
5     iAltos son y relucian!
      --El Alhambra era, senor,
      y la otra la mezquita;
      los otros los Alixares,
      labrados a maravilla.
10    El moro que los labraba
      cien doblas ganaba al dia,
      y el dia que no los labra
      otras tantas se perdia.
      El otro es Generalife,
15    huerta que par no tenia;
      el otro Torres Bermejas,
      castillo de gran valia.--
      Alli hablo el rey don Juan,
      bien oireis lo que decia:
20    --Si tu quisieses, Granada,
      contigo me casaria;
      darete en arras y dote
      a Cordoba y a Sevilla.
      --Casada soy, rey don Juan,
25    casada soy, que no viuda;
      el moro que a mi me tiene
      muy grande bien me queria.                                 page 3
      Fonte-frida, fonte-frida,
      fonte-frida y con amor,
      do todas las avecicas
      van tomar consolacion,
5     sino es la tortolica
      que esta viuda y con dolor.
      Por alli fuera a pasar
      el traidor de ruisenor:
      las palabras que le dice
10    llenas son de traicion:
      --Si tu quisieses, senora,
      yo seria tu servidor.
      --Vete de ahi, enemigo,
      malo, falso, enganador,
15    que ni poso en ramo verde,
      ni en prado que tenga flor;
      que si el agua hallo clara,
      turbia la bebia yo;
      que no quiero haber marido,
20    porque hijos no haya, no:
      no quiero placer con ellos,
      ni menos consolacion.
      iDejame, triste enemigo,
      malo, falso, mal traidor,
      que no quiero ser tu amiga,
25    ni casar contigo, no.
                                                                 page 4

          EL CONDE ARNALDOS

      iQuien hubiese tal ventura
      sobre las aguas del mar,
      como hubo el conde Arnaldos
      la manana de San Juan!
5     Con un falcon en la mano
      la caza iba a cazar,
      vio venir una galera
      que a tierra quiere llegar.
      Las velas traia de seda,
10    la jarcia de un cendal,
      marinero que la manda
      diciendo viene un cantar
      que la mar facia en calma,
      los vientos hace amainar,
15    los peces que andan nel hondo
      arriba los hace andar,
      las aves que andan volando
      nel mastel las faz posar.
      Alli fablo el conde Arnaldos,
20    bien oireis lo que dira:
      --Por Dios te ruego, marinero,
      digasme ora ese cantar.--
      Respondiole el marinero,
      tal respuesta le fue a dar:
25    --Yo no digo esta cancion
      sino a quien conmigo va.
                                                                 page 5

            LA CONSTANCIA

      Mis arreos son las armas,
      mi descanso el pelear,
      mi cama las duras penas,
      mi dormir siempre velar.
5     Las manidas son escuras,
      los caminos por usar,
      el cielo con sus mudanzas
      ha por bien de me danar,
10    andando de sierra en sierra
      por orillas de la mar,
      por probar si en mi ventura
      hay lugar donde avadar.
      Pero por vos, mi senora,
      todo se ha de comportar.


         EL AMANTE DESDICHADO

15      En los tiempos que me vi
      mas alegre y placentero,
      yo me partiera de Burgos
      para ir a Valladolid:
      encontre con un Palmero,
20    quien me hablo, y dijo asi:
      --?Donde vas tu, el desdichado?
      ?Donde vas? itriste de ti!
      iOh persona desgraciada,
      en mal punto te conoci!
25    Muerta es tu enamorada,                                    page 6
      muerta es, que yo la vi;
      las andas en que la llevan
      de negro las vi cubrir,
      los responsos que le dicen
5     yo los ayude a decir:
      siete condes la lloraban,
      caballeros mas de mil,
      llorabanla sus doncellas,
      llorando dicen asi:
10    --iTriste de aquel caballero
      que tal perdida pierde aqui!--
      Desque aquesto oi, mezquino,
      en tierra muerto cai,
      y por mas de doce horas
15    no tornara, triste, en mi.
      Desque hube retornado,
      a la sepultura fui,
      con lagrimas de mis ojos
      llorando decia asi:
20    --Acogeme, mi senora,
      acogeme a par de ti.--
      Al cabo de la sepultura
      esta triste voz oi:
      --Vive, vive, enamorado,
25    vive, pues que yo mori:
      Dios te de ventura en armas,
      y en amor otro que si,
      que el cuerpo come la tierra,
      y el alma pena por ti.--
                                                                 page 7

           EL PRISIONERO

      Por el mes era de mayo
      cuando hace la calor,
      cuando canta la calandria,
      y responde el ruisenor,
5     cuando los enamorados
      van a servir al amor,
      sino yo, triste, cuitado,
      que vivo en esta prision,
      que ni se cuando es de dia
10    ni cuando las noches son,
      sino por un avecilla
      que me cantaba al albor.
      Matomela un ballestero,
      idele Dios mal galardon!
15    Cabellos de mi cabeza
      lleganme al corvejon;
      los cabellos de mi barba
      por manteles tengo yo:
      las unas de las mis manos
20    por cuchillo tajador.
      Si lo hacia el buen rey,
      hacelo como senor:
      si lo hace el carcelero,
      hacelo como traidor.
25    Mas iquien ahora me diese
      un pajaro hablador,
      siquiera fuese calandria,                                  page 8
      o tordico o ruisenor:
      criado fuese entre damas
      y avezado a la razon,
      que me lleve una embajada
5     a mi esposa Leonor,
      que me envie una empanada,
      no de truchas ni salmon,
      sino de una lima sorda
      y de un pico tajador:
      la lima para los hierros,
10    y el pico para el torreon!--
      Oidolo habia el rey,
      mandole quitar la prision.


          DON GIL VICENTE


              CANCION

        Muy graciosa es la doncella:
15    icomo es bella y hermosa!
        Digas tu, el marinero
      que en las naves vivias,
      si la nave o la vela o la estrella
      es tan bella.
20      Digas tu, el caballero
      que las armas vestias,
      si el caballo o las armas o la guerra
      es tan bella.
        Digas tu, el pastorcico                                  page 9
      que el ganadico guardas,
      si el ganado o los valles, o la sierra
      es tan bella.


           SANTA TERESA DE JESUS

         LETRILLA QUE LLEVABA POR
         REGISTRO EN SU BREVIARIO

      Nada te turbe;
5     nada te espante;
      todo se pasa;
      Dios no se muda,
      la paciencia todo lo alcanza.
      Quien a Dios tiene,
10        nada le falta.
        Solo Dios basta.


              FRAY LUIS DE LEON

              VIDA RETIRADA

        iQue descansada vida
      la del que huye el mundanal rueido,
      y sigue la escondida
15    senda por donde han ido
      los pocos sabios que en el mundo han sido!
        Que no le enturbia el pecho
      de los soberbios grandes el estado,                       page 10
      ni del dorado techo
      se admira, fabricado
      del sabio moro, en jaspes sustentado.
        No cura si la fama
5     canta con voz su nombre pregonera,
      ni cura si encarama
      la lengua lisonjera
      lo que condena la verdad sincera.
        ?Que presta a mi contento
10    si soy del vano dedo senalado?
      si en busca de este viento
      ando desalentado
      con ansias vivas, y mortal cuidado?
        iOh campo, oh monte, oh rio!
15    ioh secreto seguro deleitoso!
      roto casi el navio,
      a vuestro almo reposo
      huyo de aqueste mar tempestueoso.
        Un no rompido sueno,
20    un dia puro, alegre, libre quiero;
      no quiero ver el ceno
      vanamente severo
      de quien la sangre ensalza o el dinero.
        Despiertenme las aves
25    con su cantar sueave no aprendido,
      no los cuidados graves
      de que es siempre seguido
      quien al ajeno arbitrio esta atenido.
        Vivir quiero conmigo,                                   page 11
      gozar quiero del bien que debo al cielo,
      a solas sin testigo,
      libre de amor, de celo,
      de odio, de esperanzas, de recelo.
5       Del monte en la ladera
      por mi mano plantado tengo un huerto
      que con la primavera
      de bella flor cubierto
      ya muestra en esperanza el fruto cierto.
10      Y como codiciosa
      de ver y acrecentar su hermosura,
      desde la cumbre airosa
      una fontana pura
      hasta llegar corriendo se apresura.
15      Y luego sosegada
      el paso entre los arboles torciendo,
      el suelo de pasada
      de verdura vistiendo,
      y con diversas flores va esparciendo.
20      El aire el huerto orea,
      y ofrece mil olores al sentido,
      los arboles menea
      con un manso rueido
      que del oro y del cetro pone olvido.
25      Tenganse su tesoro
      los que de un flaco leno se confian:
      no es mio ver el lloro
      de los que desconfian
      cuando el cierzo y el abrego porfian.                     page 12
        La combatida antena
      cruje, y en ciega noche el claro dia
      se torna, al cielo suena
5     confusa voceria,
      y la mar enriquecen a porfia.
        A mi una pobrecilla
      mesa de amable paz bien abastada
      me baste, y la vajilla
      de fino oro labrada
10    sea de quien la mar no teme airada.
        Y mientras miserable-
      mente se estan los otros abrasando
      en sed insaciable
      del no durable mando,
15    tendido yo a la sombra este cantando;
        A la sombra tendido
      de yedra y lauro eterno coronado,
      puesto el atento oido
      al son dulce acordado
20    del plectro sabiamente meneado.


                     ANONIMO

              A CRISTO CRUCIFICADO

      No me mueve, mi Dios, para quererte
      El cielo que me tienes prometido,
      Ni me mueve el infierno tan temido
      Para dejar por eso de ofenderte.                          page 13
        Tu me mueves, Senor; mueveme el verte
      Clavado en una cruz y escarnecido;
      Mueveme ver tu cuerpo tan herido;
      Muevenme tus afrentas y tu muerte.
5       Mueveme, al fin, tu amor, y en tal manera,
      Que aunque no hubiera cielo, yo te amara.
      Y aunque no hubiera infierno, te temiera.
        No me tienes que dar porque te quiera;
      Pues aunque lo que espero no esperara.
10    Lo mismo que te quiero te quisiera.


         DON LOPE FELIX DE VEGA CARPIO

             CANCION DE LA VIRGEN

        Pues andais en las palmas,
      Angeles santos,
      Que se duerme mi nino,
      Tened los ramos.
15      Palmas de Belen
      Que mueven airados
      Los furiosos vientos,
      Que suenan tanto,
      No le hagais ruido,
20    Corred mas paso;
      Que se duerme mi nino,
      Tened los ramos.
        El nino divino,
      Que esta cansado                                          page 14
      De llorar en la tierra,
      Por su descanso
      Sosegar quiere un poco
      Del tierno llanto;
5     Que se duerme mi nino,
      Tened los ramos.
        Rigurosos hielos
      Le estan cercando,
      Ya veis que no tengo
10    Con que guardarlo:
      Angeles divinos,
      Que vais volando,
      Que se duerme mi nino,
      Tened los ramos.


                        MANANA

15      ?Que tengo yo, que mi amistad procuras?
      ?Que interes se te sigue, Jesus mio,
      Que a mi puerta, cubierto de rocio,
      Pasas las noches del invierno escuras?
        iOh cuanto fueron mis entranas duras,
20    Pues no te abri! iQue extrano desvario,
      Si de mi ingratitud el hielo frio
      Seco las llagas de tus plantas puras!
        iCuantas veces el angel me decia:
      "Alma, asomate agora a la ventana;
25    Veras con cuanto amor llamar porfia!"
        Y icuantas, hermosura soberana,                         page 15
      "Manana le abriremos," respondia!
      Para lo mismo responder manana.


                DON FRANCISCO DE QUEVEDO

              EPISTOLA SATIRICA Y CENSORIA

Contra las costumbres presentes de los castellanos, escrita al
Conde-Duque de Olivares.

        No he de callar, por mas que con el dedo,
        Ya tocando la boca, o ya la frente,
5       Silencio avises o amenaces miedo.
          ?No ha de haber un espiritu valiente?
        ?Siempre se ha de sentir lo que se dice?
        ?Nunca se ha de decir lo que se siente?
          Hoy sin miedo que libre escandalice
10      Puede hablar el ingenio, asegurado
        De que mayor poder le atemorice.
          En otros siglos pudo ser pecado
        Severo estudio y la verdad desnuda,
        Y romper el silencio el bien hablado.
15        Pues sepa quien lo niega y quien lo duda
        Que es lengua la verdad de Dios severo
        Y la lengua de Dios nunca fue muda.
          Son la verdad y Dios, Dios verdadero:
        Ni eternidad divina los separa,
20      Ni de los dos alguno fue primero.
                                                               page 16

             LETRILLA SATIRICA

        Poderoso caballero
      Es don Dinero.
        Madre, yo al oro me humillo:
      El es mi amante y mi amado,
5     Pues de puro enamorado,
      De contino anda amarillo;
      Que pues, doblon o sencillo,
      Hace todo cuanto quiero,
      Poderoso caballero
10    Es don Dinero.
        Nace en las Indias honrado,
      Donde el mundo le acompana;
      Viene a morir en Espana
      Y es en Genova enterrado.
15    Y pues quien le trae al lado
      Es hermoso, aunque sea fiero,
      Poderoso caballero
      Es don Dinero.
        Es galan y es como un oro,
20    Tiene quebrado el color,
      Persona de gran valor,
      Tan cristiano como moro;
      Pues que da y quita el decoro
      Y quebranta cualquier fuero,
25    Poderoso caballero
      Es don Dinero.
        Son sus padres principales                              page 17
      Y es de nobles descendiente,
      Porque en las venas de Oriente
      Todas las sangres son reales:
      Y pues es quien hace iguales
5     Al duque y al ganadero,
      Poderoso caballero
      Es don Dinero.


    DON ESTEBAN MANUEL DE VILLEGAS

     CANTILENA: DE UN PAJARILLO

        Yo vi sobre un tomillo
      Quejarse un pajarillo,
10    Viendo su nido amado,
      De quien era caudillo,
      De un labrador robado.
      Vile tan congojado
      Por tal atrevimiento
15    Dar mil quejas al viento,
      Para que al cielo santo
      Lleve su tierno llanto,
      Lleve su triste acento.
      Ya con triste armonia,
20    Esforzando el intento,
      Mil quejas repetia;
      Ya cansado callaba,
      Y al nuevo sentimiento                                    page 18
      Ya sonoro volvia.
      Ya circular volaba,
      Ya rastrero corria,
      Ya pues de rama en rama
5     Al rustico seguia;
      Y saltando en la grama,
      Parece que decia:
      "Dame, rustico fiero,
      Mi dulce compania";
10    Y que le respondia
      El rustico: "No quiero."


         DON PEDRO CALDERON DE LA BARCA

                    SONETO

        Estas que fueron pompa y alegria
      Despertando al albor de la manana,
      A la tarde seran lastima vana
15    Durmiendo en brazos de la noche fria.
        Este matiz que al cielo desafia,
      Iris listado de oro, nieve y grana,
      Sera escarmiento de la vida humana:
      iTanto se emprende en termino de un dia!
20      A florecer las rosas madrugaron,
      Y para envejecerse florecieron:
      Cuna y sepulcro en un boton hallaron.
        Tales los hombres sus fortunas vieron:
      En un dia nacieron y expiraron;
25    Que pasados los siglos, horas fueron.
                                                                page 19

        CONSEJO DE CRESPO A SU HIJO
      EL ALCALDE DE ZALAMEA (11, 21)

      Por la gracia de Dios, Juan,
      Eres de linaje limpio
      Mas que el sol, pero villano:
      Lo uno y lo otro te digo,
5     Aquello, porque no humilles
      Tanto tu orgullo y tu brio,
      Que dejes, desconfiado,
      De aspirar con cuerdo arbitrio
      A ser mas; lo otro, porque
10    No vengas, desvanecido,
      A ser menos: igualmente
      Usa de entrambos designios
      Con humildad; porque siendo
      Humilde, con recto juicio
15    Acordaras lo mejor;
      Y como tal, en olvido
      Pondras cosas que suceden
      Al reves en los altivos.
      iCuantos, teniendo en el mundo
20    Algun defecto consigo,
      Le han borrado por humildes!
      Y ia cuantos, que no han tenido
      Defecto, se le han hallado,
      Por estar ellos mal vistos!
25    Se cortes sobremanera,
      Se liberal y esparcido;                                   page 20
      Que el sombrero y el dinero
      Son los que hacen los amigos;
      Y no vale tanto el oro
      Que el sol engendra en el indio
5     Suelo que conduce el mar,
      Como ser uno bienquisto.
      No hables mal de las mujeres:
      La mas humilde, te digo
      Que es digna de estimacion,
10    Porque, al fin, dellas nacimos.


               FRAY DIEGO GONZALEZ

              EL MURCIELAGO ALEVOSO

                   INVECTIVA

        Estaba Mirta bella
      Cierta noche formando en su aposento,
      Con gracioso talento,
      Una tierna cancion, y porque en ella
15    Satisfacer a Delio meditaba,
      Que de su fe dudaba,
      Con vehemente expresion le encarecia
      El fuego que en su casto pecho ardia.
        Y estando divertida,
20    Un murcielago fiero, isuerte insana!
      Entro por la ventana;
      Mirta dejo la pluma, sorprendida,                         page 21
      Temio, gimio, dio voces, vino gente;
      Y al querer diligente
      Ocultar la cancion, los versos bellos
      De borrones lleno, por recogellos.
5       Y Delio, noticioso
      Del caso que en su dano habia pasado,
      Justamente enojado
      Con el fiero murcielago alevoso,
      Que habia la cancion interrumpido,
10    Y a su Mirta afligido,
      En colera y furor se consumia,
      Y asi a la ave funesta maldecia:
        "Oh monstruo de ave y bruto,
      Que cifras lo peor de bruto y ave,
15    Vision nocturna grave,
      Nuevo horror de las sombras, nuevo luto,
      De la luz enemigo declarado,
      Nuncio desventurado
      De la tiniebla y de la noche fria,
20    ?Que tienes tu que hacer donde esta el dia?
        "Tus obras y figura
      Maldigan de comun las otras aves,
      Que canticos sueaves
      Tributan cada dia a la alba pura;
25    Y porque mi ventura interrumpiste,
      Y a su autor afligiste,
      Todo el mal y desastre te suceda
      Que a un murcielago vil suceder pueda.
        "La lluvia repetida,                                    page 22
      Que viene de lo alto arrebatada,
      Tan solo reservada
      A las noches, se oponga a tu salida;
      O el relampago pronto reluciente
5     Te ciegue y amedrente;
      O soplando del Norte recio el viento,
      No permita un mosquito a tu alimento.
        "La duena melindrosa,
      Tras el tapiz do tienes tu manida,
10    Te juzgue, inadvertida,
      Por telarana sucia y asquerosa,
      Y con la escoba al suelo te derribe;
      Y al ver que bulle y vive,
      Tan fiera y tan ridicula figura,
15    Suelte la escoba y huya con presura.
        "Y luego sobrevenga
      El jugueton gatillo bullicioso,
      Y primero medroso
      Al verte, se retire y se contenga,
20    Y bufe y se espeluce horrorizado,
      Y alce el rabo esponjado,
      Y el espinazo en arco suba al cielo,
      Y con los pies apenas toque el suelo.
        "Mas luego recobrado,
25    Y del primer horror convalecido,
      El pecho al suelo unido,
      Traiga el rabo del uno al otro lado,
      Y cosido en la tierra, observe atento;
      Y cada movimiento                                         page 23
      Que en ti llegue a notar su perspicacia,
      Le provoque al asalto y le de audacia.
        "En fin sobre ti venga,
      Te acometa y ultraje sin recelo,
5     Te arrastre por el suelo,
      Y a costa de tu dano se entretenga;
      Y por caso las unas afiladas
      En tus alas clavadas,
      Por echarte de si con sobresalto,
10    Te arroje muchas veces a lo alto
        "Y acuda a tus chillidos
      El muchacho, y convoque a sus iguales,
      Que con los animales
      Suelen ser comunmente desabridos;
15    Que a todos nos doto naturaleza
      De entranas de fiereza,
      Hasta que ya la edad o la cultura
      Nos dan humanidad y mas cordura.
        "Entre con algazara
20    La pueril tropa, al dano prevenida,
      Y lazada oprimida
      Te echen al cuello con fiereza rara;
      Y al oirte chillar alcen el grito
      Y te llamen maldito;
25    Y creyendote al fin del diablo imagen,
      Te abominen, te escupan y te ultrajen.
        "Luego por las telillas
      De tus alas te claven al postigo,
      Y se burlen contigo,                                      page 24
      Y al hocico te apliquen candelillas,
      Y se rian con duros corazones
      De tus gestos y acciones,
      Y a tus tristes querellas ponderadas
5     Correspondan con fiesta y carcajadas.
        "Y todos bien armados
      De piedras, de navajas, de aguijones,
      De clavos, de punzones,
      De palos por los cabos afilados
10    (De diversion y fiesta ya rendidos),
      Te embistan atrevidos,
      Y te quiten la vida con presteza,
      Consumando en el modo su fiereza.
        "Te puncen y te sajen,
15    Te tundan, te golpeen, te martillen,
      Te piquen, te acribillen,
      Te dividan, te corten y te rajen,
      Te desmiembren, te partan, te degueellen,
      Te hiendan, te desuellen,
20    Te estrujen, te aporreen, te magullen,
      Te deshagan, confundan y aturrullen.
        "Y las supersticiones
      De las viejas creyendo realidades,
      Por ver curiosidades,
25    En tu sangre humedezcan algodones,
      Para encenderlos en la noche obscura,
      Creyendo sin cordura
      Que veran en el aire culebrinas
      Y otras tristes visiones peregrinas.                      page 25
        "Muerto ya, te dispongan
      El entierro, te lleven arrastrando,
      Gori, gori, cantando,
      Y en dos filas delante se compongan,
5     Y otros, fingiendo voces lastimeras,
      Sigan de planideras,
      Y dirijan entierro tan gracioso
      Al muladar mas sucio y asqueroso;
        "Y en aquella basura
10    Un hoyo hondo y capaz te faciliten,
      Y en el te depositen,
      Y alli te den debida sepultura;
      Y para hacer eterna tu memoria,
      Compendiada tu historia
15    Pongan en una losa duradera,
      Cuya letra dira de esta manera:

                     _Epitafio_

        "Aqui yace el murcielago alevoso,
      Que al sol horrorizo y ahuyento el dia,
      De pueril sana triunfo lastimoso,
20    Con cruel muerte pago su alevosia:
      No sigas, caminante, presuroso,
      Hasta decir sobre esta losa fria:
      Acontezca tal fin y tal estrella
      A aquel que mal hiciere a Mirta bella."
                                                                page 26

        DON NICOLAS F. DE MORATIN

        FIESTA DE TOROS EN MADRID

        Madrid, castillo famoso
      Que al rey moro alivia el miedo,
      Arde en fiestas en su coso
      Por ser el natal dichoso
5     De Alimenon de Toledo.
        Su bravo alcaide Aliatar,
      De la hermosa Zaida amante,
      Las ordena celebrar
      Por si la puede ablandar
10    El corazon de diamante.
        Paso, vencida a sus ruegos,
      Desde Aravaca a Madrid;
      Hubo pandorgas y fuegos,
      Con otros nocturnos juegos
15    Que dispuso el adalid.
        Y en adargas y colores,
      En las cifras y libreas,
      Mostraron los amadores,
      Y en pendones y preseas,
20    La dicha de sus amores.
        Vinieron las moras bellas
      De toda la cercania,
      Y de lejos muchas de ellas:
      Las mas apuestas doncellas
25    Que Espana entonces tenia.                                page 27
        Aja de Jetafe vino,
      Y Zahara la de Alcorcon,
      En cuyo obsequio muy fino
      Corrio de un vuelo el camino
5     El moraicel de Alcabon;
        Jarifa de Almonacid,
      Que de la Alcarria en que habita
      Llevo a asombrar a Madrid
      Su amante Audalla, adalid
10    Del castillo de Zorita.
        De Adamuz y la famosa
      Meco llegaron alli
      Dos, cada cual mas hermosa,
      Y Fatima la preciosa,
15    Hija de Ali el alcadi.
        El ancho circo se llena
      De multitud clamorosa,
      Que atiende a ver en la arena
      La sangrienta lid dudosa,
20    Y todo en torno resuena.
        La bella Zaida ocupo
      Sus dorados miradores
      Que el arte afiligrano,
      Y con espejos y flores
25    Y damascos adorno.
        Anafiles y atabales,
      Con militar armonia,
      Hicieron salva, y senales
      De mostrar su valentia                                    page 28
      Los moros mas principales.
        No en las vegas de Jarama
      Pacieron la verde grama
      Nunca animales tan fieros,
5     Junto al puente que se llama,
      Por sus peces, de Viveros,
        Como los que el vulgo vio
      Ser lidiados aquel dia;
      Y en la fiesta que gozo,
10    la popular alegria
      Muchas heridas costo.
        Salio un toro del toril
      Y a Tarfe tiro por tierra,
      Y luego a Benalguacil;
15    Despues con Hamete cierra
      El temeron de Conil.
        Traia un ancho liston
      Con uno y otro matiz
      Hecho un lazo por airon,
20    Sobre la inhiesta cerviz
      Clavado con un arpon.
        Todo galan pretendia
      Ofrecerle vencedor
      A la dama que servia:
25    Por eso perdio Almanzor
      El potro que mas queria.
        El alcaide muy zambrero
      De Guadalajara, huyo
      Mal herido al golpe fiero,                                page 29
      Y desde un caballo overo
      El moro de Horche cayo.
        Todos miran a Aliatar,
      Que, aunque tres toros ha muerto,
5     No se quiere aventurar,
      Porque en lance tan incierto
      El caudillo no ha de entrar.
        Mas viendo se culparia,
      Va a ponersele delante:
10    La fiera le acometia,
      Y sin que el rejon la plante
      Le mato una yegua pia.
        Otra monta acelerado:
      Le embiste el toro de un vuelo,
15    Cogiendole entablerado;
      Rodo el bonete encarnado
      Con las plumas por el suelo.
        Dio vuelta hiriendo y matando
      A los de a pie que encontrara,
20    El circo desocupando,
      Y emplazandose, se para,
      Con la vista amenazando.
        Nadie se atreve a salir:
      La plebe grita indignada,
25    Las damas se quieren ir,
      Porque la fiesta empezada
      No puede ya proseguir.
        Ninguno al riesgo se entrega
      Y esta en medio el toro fijo,                             page 30
      Cuando un portero que llega
      De la puerta de la Vega,
      Hinco la rodilla, y dijo:
        Sobre un caballo alazano,
5     Cubierto de galas y oro,
      Demanda licencia urbano
      Para alancear a un toro
      Un caballero cristiano.
        Mucho le pesa a Aliatar;
10    Pero Zaida dio respuesta
      Diciendo que puede entrar,
      Porque en tan solemne fiesta
      Nada se debe negar.
        Suspenso el concurso entero
15    Entre dudas se embaraza,
      Cuando en un potro ligero
      Vieron entrar en la plaza
      Un bizarro caballero,
        Sonrosado, albo color,
20    Belfo labio, juveniles
      Alientos, inquieto ardor,
      En el florido verdor
      De sus lozanos abriles.
        Cuelga la rubia guedeja
25    Por donde el almete sube,
      Cual mirarse tal vez deja
      Del sol la ardiente madeja
      Entre cenicienta nube;
        Gorguera de anchos follajes,                            page 31
      De una cristiana primores;
      En el yelmo los plumajes
      Por los visos y celajes
      Vergel de diversas flores;
5      En la cuja gruesa lanza,
      Con recamado pendon,
      Y una cifra a ver se alcanza,
      Que es de desesperacion,
      O a lo menos de venganza.
10      En el arzon de la silla
      Ancho escudo reverbera
      Con blasones de Castilla,
      Y el mote dice a la orilla:
      _Nunca mi espada venciera_.
15      Era el caballo galan,
      El bruto mas generoso,
      De mas gallardo ademan:
      Cabos negros, y brioso,
      Muy tostado, y alazan,
20      Larga cola recogida
      En las piernas descarnadas,
      Cabeza pequena, erguida,
      Las narices dilatadas,
      Vista feroz y encendida.
25      Nunca en el ancho rodeo
      Que da Betis con tal fruto
      Pudo fingir el deseo
      Mas bella estampa de bruto,
      Ni mas hermoso paseo.                                     page 32
        Dio la vuelta al rededor;
      Los ojos que le veian
      Lleva prendados de amor:
      iAla te salve! decian,
5     iDete el Profeta favor!
        Causaba lastima y grima
      Su tierna edad floreciente:
      Todos quieren que se exima
      Del riesgo, y el solamente
10    Ni recela ni se estima.
        Las doncellas, al pasar,
      Hacen de ambar y alcanfor
      Pebeteros exhalar,
      Vertiendo pomos de olor,
15    De jazmines y azahar.
        Mas cuando en medio se para,
      Y de mas cerca le mira
      La cristiana esclava Aldara,
      Con su senora se encara,
20    Y asi la dice, y suspira:
        --Senora, suenos no son;
      Asi los cielos, vencidos
      De mi ruego y afliccion,
      Acerquen a mis oidos
25    Las campanas de Leon,
        Como ese doncel, que ufano
      Tanto asombro viene a dar
      A todo el pueblo africano,
      Es Rodrigo de Bivar,                                      page 33
      El soberbio castellano.--
        Sin descubrirle quien es,
      La Zaida desde una almena
      Le hablo una noche cortes,
5     Por donde se abrio despues
      El cubo de la Almudena;
        Y supo que, fugitivo
      De la corte de Fernando,
      El cristiano, apenas vivo,
10    Esta a Jimena adorando
      Y en su memoria cautivo.
        Tal vez a Madrid se acerca
      Con frecuentes correrias
      Y todo en torno la cerca;
15    Observa sus saetias,
      Arroyadas y ancha alberca.
        Por eso le ha conocido:
      Que en medio de aclamaciones,
      El caballo ha detenido
20    Delante de sus balcones,
      Y la saluda rendido.
        La mora se puso en pie
      Y sus doncellas detras:
      El alcaide que lo ve,
25    Enfurecido ademas,
      Muestra cuan celoso este.
        Suena un rumor placentero
      Entre el vulgo de Madrid:
      No habra mejor caballero,                                 page 34
      Dicen, en el mundo entero,
      Y algunos le llaman Cid.
        Crece la algazara, y el,
      Torciendo las riendas de oro,
5     Marcha al combate crueel:
      Alza el galope, y al toro
      Busca en sonoro tropel.
        El bruto se le ha encarado
      Desde que le vio llegar,
10    De tanta gala asombrado,
      Y al rededor le ha observado
      Sin moverse de un lugar.
        Cual flecha se disparo
      Despedida de la cuerda,
15    De tal suerte le embistio;
      Detras de la oreja izquierda
      La aguda lanza le hirio.
        Brama la fiera burlada;
      Segunda vez acomete,
20    De espuma y sudor banada,
      Y segunda vez la mete
      Sutil la punta acerada.
        Pero ya Rodrigo espera
      Con heroico atrevimiento,
25    El pueblo mudo y atento:
      Se engalla el toro y altera,
      Y finje acometimiento.
        La arena escarba ofendido,
      Sobre la espalda la arroja                                page 35
      Con el hueso retorcido;
      El suelo huele y le moja
      En ardiente resoplido.
        La cola inquieto menea,
5     La diestra oreja mosquea,
      Vase retirando atras,
      Para que la fuerza sea
      Mayor, y el impetu mas.
        El que en esta ocasion viera
10    De Zaida el rostro alterado,
      Claramente conociera
      Cuanto le cuesta cuidado
      El que tanto riesgo espera.
        Mas iay, que le embiste horrendo
15    El animal espantoso!
      Jamas penasco tremendo
      Del Caucaso cavernoso
      Se desgaja, estrago haciendo,
        Ni llama asi fulminante
20    Cruza en negra obscuridad
      Con relampagos delante,
      Al estrepito tronante
      De sonora tempestad,
        Como el bruto se abalanza
25    Con terrible ligereza;
      Mas rota con gran pujanza
      La alta nuca, la fiereza
      Y el ultimo aliento lanza.
        La confusa voceria                                      page 36
      Que en tal instante se oyo
      Fue tanta, que parecia
      Que honda mina revento,
      O el monte y valle se hundia.
5       A caballo como estaba
      Rodrigo, el lazo alcanzo
      Con que el toro se adornaba:
      En su lanza le clavo
      Y a los balcones llegaba.
10      Y alzandose en los estribos,
      Le alarga a Zaida, diciendo:
      --Sultana, aunque bien entiendo
      Ser favores excesivos,
      Mi corto don admitiendo;
15      Si no os dignaredes ser
      Con el benigna, advertid
      Que a mi me basta saber
      Que no le debo ofrecer
      A otra persona en Madrid.--
20      Ella, el rostro placentero,
      Dijo, y turbada:--Senor,
      Yo le admito y le venero,
      Por conservar el favor
      De tan gentil caballero.--
25      Y besando el rico don,
      Para agradar al doncel,
      Le prende con aficion
      Al lado del corazon
      Por brinquino y por joyel.                                page 37
        Pero Aliatar el caudillo
      De envidia ardiendo se ve,
      Y, tremulo y amarillo,
      Sobre un tremecen rosillo
5     Lozaneandose fue.
        Y en ronca voz:--Castellano,
      Le dice, con mas decoros
      Suelo yo dar de mi mano,
      Si no penachos de toros,
10    Las cabezas del cristiano.
        Y si vinieras de guerra
      Cual vienes de fiesta y gala,
      Vieras que en toda la tierra,
      Al valor que dentro encierra
15    Madrid, ninguno se iguala.--
      --Asi, dijo el de Bivar,
      Respondo--; y la lanza al ristre
      Pone, y espera a Aliatar;
      Mas sin que nadie administre
20    Orden, tocaron a armar.
        Ya fiero bando con gritos
      Su muerte o prision pedia,
      Cuando se oyo en los distritos
      Del monte de Leganitos
25    Del Cid la trompeteria.
        Entre la Monclova y Soto
      Tercio escogido embosco,
      Que, viendo como tardo,
      Se acerca, oyo el alboroto,                               page 38
      Y al muro se abalanzo.
        Y si no vieran salir
      Por la puerta a su senor,
      Y Zaida a le despedir,
5     Iban la fuerza a embestir:
      Tal era ya su furor.
        El alcaide, recelando
      Que en Madrid tenga partido,
      Se templo disimulando,
10    Y por el parque florido
      Salio con el razonando.
        Y es fama que, a la bajada,
      Juro por la cruz el Cid
      De su vencedora espada
15    De no quitar la celada
      Hasta que gane a Madrid.

      DON GASPAR MELCHOR DE JOVELLANOS

                A ARNESTO

     ?Quis tam patiens ut teneat se?
                                JUVENAL

        Dejame, Arnesto, dejame que llore
      Los fieros males de mi patria, deja
      Que su rueina y perdicion lamente;
20    Y si no quieres que en el centro obscuro
      De esta prision la pena me consuma,
      Dejame al menos que levante el grito
      Contra el desorden: deja que a la tinta                   page 39
      Mezclando miel y acibar, siga indocil
      Mi pluma el vuelo del bufon de Aquino.
      iOh! icuanto rostro veo, a mi censura,
      De palidez y de rubor cubierto!
5     Animo, amigos, nadie tema, nadie,
      Su punzante aguijon; que yo persigo
      En mi satira el vicio, no al vicioso.

      Ya la notoriedad es el mas noble
      Atributo del vicio, y nuestras Julias,
10    Mas que ser malas quieren parecerlo.
      Hubo un tiempo en que andaba la modestia
      Dorando los delitos; hubo un tiempo
      En que el recato timido cubria
      La fealdad del vicio; pero huyose
15    El pudor a vivir en las cabanas.

      iOh infamia! ioh siglo! ioh corrupcion! Matronas
      Castellanas, ?quien pudo vuestro claro
      Pundonor eclipsar? ?Quien de Lucrecias
      En Lais os volvio? ?Ni el proceloso
20    Oceano, ni, lleno de peligros,
      El Lilibeo, ni las arduas cumbres
      De Pirene pudieron guareceros
      Del contagio fatal? Zarpa prenada
      De oro la nao gaditana, aporta
25    A las orillas galicas, y vuelve
      Llena de objetos futiles y vanos;                         page 40
      Y entre los signos de extranjera pompa
      Ponzona esconde y corrupcion, compradas
      Con el sudor de las iberas frentes;
      Y tu, misera Espana, tu la esperas
5     Sobre la playa, y con afan recoges
      La pestilente carga, y la repartes
      Alegre entre tus hijos. Viles plumas,
      Gasas y cintas, flores y penachos
10    Te trae en cambio de la sangre tuya;
      De tu sangre ioh baldon! y acaso, acaso
      De tu virtud y honestidad. Repara
      Cual la liviana juventud los busca.
      Mira cual va con ellos engreida
      La impudente doncella; su cabeza,
15    Cual nave real en triunfo empavesada,
      Vana presenta del favonio al soplo
      La mies de plumas y de airones, y anda
      Loca, buscando en la lisonja el premio
      De su indiscreto afan. iAy triste! guarte,
20    Guarte, que esta cercano el precipicio.
      El astuto amador ya en asechanza
      Te atisba y sigue con lascivos ojos;
      La adulacion y la caricia el lazo
      Te van a armar, do caeras incauta,
25    En el tu oprobio y perdicion hallando.
      iAy cuanto, cuanto de amargura y lloro
      Te costaran tus galas! iCuan tardio
      Sera y esteril tu arrepentimiento!
      Ya ni el rico Brasil, ni las cavernas                     page 41
      Del nunca exhausto Potosi no bastan
      A saciar el hidropico deseo,
      La ansiosa sed de vanidad y pompa.
      Todo lo agotan: cuesta un sombrerillo
5     Lo que antes un Estado, y se consume5
      En un festin la dote de una infanta;
      Todo lo tragan; la riqueza unida
      Va a la indigencia; pide y pordiosea
      El noble, engana, empena, malbarata,
10    Quiebra y perece, y el logrero goza
      Los pinguees patrimonios, premio un dia
      Del generoso afan de altos abuelos.
      iOh ultraje! ioh mengua! todo se trafica:
      Parentesco, amistad, favor, influjo,
15    Y hasta el honor, deposito sagrado,
      O se vende o se compra. Y tu, belleza,
      Don el mas grato que dio al hombre el cielo,
      No eres ya premio del valor, ni paga
      Del peregrino ingenio; la florida
20    Juventud, la ternura, el rendimiento
      Del constante amador ya no te alcanzan.
      Ya ni te das al corazon, ni sabes
      De el recibir adoracion y ofrendas.
      Rindeste al oro. La vejez hedionda,
25    La sucia palidez, la faz adusta,
      Fiera y terrible, con igual derecho
      Vienen sin susto a negociar contigo.
      Daste al barato, y tu rosada frente,
      Tus suaves besos y tus dulces brazos,                     page 42
      Corona un tiempo del amor mas puro,
      Son ya una vil y torpe mercancia.


         DON JUAN MELENDEZ VALDES

           ROSANA EN LOS FUEGOS

        Del sol llevaba la lumbre,
      Y la alegria del alba,
5     En sus celestiales ojos
      La hermosisima Rosana,
      Una noche que a los fuegos
      Salio la fiesta de Pascua
      Para abrasar todo el valle
10    En mil amorosas ansias.
      Por do quiera que camina
      Lleva tras si la manana,
      Y donde se vuelve rinde
      La libertad de mil almas.
15    El cefiro la acaricia
      Y mansamente la halaga,
      Los Amores la rodean
      Y las Gracias la acompanan.
      Y ella, asi como en el valle
20    Descuella la altiva palma
      Cuando sus verdes pimpollos
      Hasta las nubes levanta;
      O cual vid de fruto llena
      Que con el olmo se abraza,                                page 43
      Y sus vastagos extiende
      Al arbitrio de las ramas;
      Asi entre sus companeras
      El nevado cuello alza,
5     Sobresaliendo entre todas
      Cual fresca rosa entre zarzas.
      Todos los ojos se lleva
      Tras si, todo lo avasalla;
      De amor mata a los pastores
10    Y de envidia a las zagalas.
      Ni las musicas se atienden,
      Ni se gozan las lumbradas;
      Que todos corren por verla
      Y al verla todos se abrasan.
15    iQue de suspiros se escuchan!
      iQue de vivas y de salvas!
      No hay zagal que no la admire
      Y no se esmere en loarla.
      Cual absorto la contempla
20    Y a la aurora la compara
      Cuando mas alegre sale
      Y el cielo en albores bana;
      Cual al fresco y verde aliso
      Que crece al margen del agua,
25    Cuando mas pomposo en hojas
      En su cristal se retrata;
      Cual a la luna, si muestra
      Llena su esfera de plata,
      Y asoma por los collados                                  page 44
      De luceros coronada.
      Otros pasmados la miran
      Y mudamente la alaban,
      Y cuanto mas la contemplan
5     Muy mas hermosa la hallan.
      Que es como el cielo su rostro
      Cuando en la noche callada
      Brilla con todas sus luces
      Y los ojos embaraza.
10    iAy, que de envidias se encienden!
      iAy, que de celos que causa
      En las serranas del Tormes
      Su perfeccion sobrehumana!
      Las mas hermosas la temen,
15    Mas sin osar murmurarla;
      Que como el oro mas puro
      No sufre una leve mancha.
      Bien haya tu gentileza,
      Una y mil veces bien haya,
20    Y abrase la envidia al pueblo,
      Hermosisima aldeana.
      Toda, toda eres perfecta,
      Toda eres donaire y gracia,
      El amor vive en tus ojos
25    Y la gloria esta en tu cara.
      La libertad me has robado,
      Yo la doy por bien robada,
      Mas recibe el don benigna
      Que mi humildad te consagra.                              page 45
      Esto un zagal la decia
      Con razones mal formadas,
      Que salio libre a los fuegos
      Y volvio cautivo a casa.
5     Y desde entonces perdido
      El dia a sus puertas le halla;
      Ayer le canto esta letra
      Echandole la alborada:
        Linda zagaleja
10    De cuerpo gentil,
      _Muerome de amores
      Desde que te vi_.
        Tu talle, tu aseo,
      Tu gala y donaire,
15    No tienen, serrana,
      Igual en el valle.
      Del cielo son ellos
      Y tu un serafin:
      _Muerome de amores
20    Desde que te vi_.
        De amores me muero,
      Sin que nada baste
      A darme la vida
      Que alla te llevaste,
25    Si ya no te dueles,
      Benigna, de mi;
      _Que muero de amores
      Desde que te vi_.
                                                                page 46

               DON MANUEL JOSE QUINTANA

               ODA A ESPANA, DESPUES DE
                LA REVOLUCION DE MARZO

        ?Que era, decidme, la nacion que un dia
      Reina del mundo proclamo el destino,
      La que a todas las zonas extendia
      Su cetro de oro y su blason divino?
5     Volabase a occidente,
      Y el vasto mar Atlantico sembrado
      Se hallaba de su gloria y su fortuna.
      Do quiera Espana: en el preciado seno
10    De America, en el Asia, en los confines
      Del Africa, alli Espana. El soberano
      Vuelo de la atrevida fantasia
      Para abarcarla se cansaba en vano;
      La tierra sus mineros le rendia,
      Sus perlas y coral el Oceano,
15    Y donde quier que revolver sus olas
      El intentase, a quebrantar su furia
      Siempre encontraba costas espanolas.
        Ora en el cieno del oprobio hundida,
      Abandonada a la insolencia ajena,
20    Como esclava en mercado, ya aguardaba
      La ruda argolla y la servil cadena.
      iQue de plagas! ioh Dios! Su aliento impuro,
      La pestilente fiebre respirando,
      Infesto el aire, emponzono la vida;                       page 47
      La hambre enflaquecida
      Tendio sus brazos lividos, ahogando
      Cuanto el contagio perdono; tres veces
      De Jano el templo abrimos,
5     Y a la trompa de Marte aliento dimos;
      Tres veces iay! Los dioses tutelares
      Su escudo nos negaron, y nos vimos
      Rotos en tierra y rotos en los mares.
      ?Que en tanto tiempo viste
10    Por tus inmensos terminos, oh Iberia?
      ?Que viste ya sino funesto luto,
      Honda tristeza, sin igual miseria,
      De tu vil servidumbre acerbo fruto?
        Asi rota la vela, abierto el lado,
15    Pobre bajel a naufragar camina,
      De tormenta en tormenta despenado,
      Por los yermos del mar; ya ni en su popa
      Las guirnaldas se ven que antes le ornaban,
      Ni en senal de esperanza y de contento
20    La flamula riendo al aire ondea.
      Ceso en su dulce canto el pasajero,
      Ahogo su voceria
      El ronco marinero,
      Terror de muerte en torno le rodea,
25    Terror de muerte silencioso y frio;
      Y el va a estrellarse al aspero bajio.
        Llega el momento, en fin; tiende su mano
      El tirano del mundo al occidente,
      Y fiero exclama: "El occidente es mio."                   page 48
      Barbaro gozo en su cenuda frente
      Resplandecio, como en el seno obscuro
      De nube tormentosa en el estio
      Relampago fugaz brilla un momento
5     Que anade horror con su fulgor sombrio.
      Sus guerreros feroces
      Con gritos de soberbia el viento llenan;
      Gimen los yunques, los martillos suenan,
      Arden las forjas. iOh vergueenza! ?Acaso
10    Pensais que espadas son para el combate
      Las que mueven sus manos codiciosas?
      No en tanto os estimeis: grillos, esposas,
      Cadenas son que en vergonzosos lazos
      Por siempre amarren tan inertes brazos.
15      Estremeciose Espana
      Del indigno rumor que cerca oia,
      Y al grande impulso de su justa sana
      Rompio el volcan que en su interior hervia.
      Sus despotas antiguos
20    Consternados y palidos se esconden;
      Resuena el eco de venganza en torno,
      Y del Tajo las margenes responden:
      "iVenganza!" ?Donde estan, sagrado rio,
      Los colosos de oprobio y de vergueenza
25    Que nuestro bien en su insolencia ahogaban;
      Su gloria fue, nuestro esplendor comienza;
      Y tu, orgulloso y fiero,
      Viendo que aun hay Castilla y castellanos,
      Precipitas al mar tus rubias ondas,                       page 49
        iOh triunfo! iOh gloria! iOh celestial momento!
      ?Con que puede ya dar el labio mio
      El nombre augusto de la patria al viento?
5     Yo le dare; mas no en el arpa de oro
      Que mi cantar sonoro
      Acompano hasta aqui; no aprisionado
      En estrecho recinto, en que se apoca
      El numen en el pecho
10    Y el aliento fatidico en la boca.
      Desenterrad la lira de Tirteo,
      Y el aire abierto a la radiante lumbre
      Del sol, en la alta cumbre
      Del riscoso y pinifero Fuenfria,
15    Alli volare yo, y alli cantando
      Con voz que atruene en rededor la sierra,
      Lanzare por los campos castellanos
      Los ecos de la gloria y de la guerra.
        iGuerra, nombre tremendo, ahora sublime,
20    Unico asilo y sacrosanto escudo
      Al impetu sanudo
      Del fiero Atila que a occidente oprime!
      iGuerra, guerra, espanoles! En el Betis
      Ved del Tercer Fernando alzarse airada
25    La augusta sombra; su divina frente
      Mostrar Gonzalo en la imperial Granada;
      Blandir el Cid su centelleante espada,
      Y alla sobre los altos Pirineos,
      Del hijo de Jimena                                        page 50
      Animarse los miembros giganteos.
      En torvo ceno y desdenosa pena
      Ved como cruzan por los aires vanos;
      Y el valor exhalando que se encierra
5     Dentro del hueco de sus tumbas frias,
      En fiera y ronca voz pronuncian: "iGuerra!
        iPues que! ?Con faz serena
      Vierais los campos devastar opimos,
      Eterno objeto de ambicion ajena,
10    Herencia inmensa que afanando os dimos?
      Despertad, raza de heroes: el momento
      Llego ya de arrojarse a la victoria;
      Que vuestro nombre eclipse nuestro nombre,
      Que vuestra gloria humille nuestra gloria.
15    No ha sido en el gran dia           15
      El altar de la patria alzado en vano
      Por vuestra mano fuerte.
      Juradlo, ella os lo manda: _iAntes la muerte
      Que consentir jamas ningun tirano!_"
20      Si, yo lo juro, venerables sombras;
      Yo lo juro tambien, y en este instante
      Ya me siento mayor. Dadme una lanza,
      Cenidme el casco fiero y refulgente;
      Volemos al combate, a la venganza;
25    Y el que niegue su pecho a la esperanza,
      Hunda en el polvo la cobarde frente.
      Tal vez el gran torrente
      De la devastacion en su carrera
      Me llevara. ?Que importa? ?Por ventura                    page 51
      No se muere una vez? ?No ire, expirando,
      A encontrar nuestros inclitos mayores?
      "iSalud, oh padres de la patria mia,
      Yo les dire, salud! La heroica Espana
5     De entre el estrago universal y horrores
      Levanta la cabeza ensangrentada,
      Y vencedora de su mal destino,
      Vuelve a dar a la tierra amedrentada


          DON DIONISIO SOLIS

        LA PREGUNTA DE LA NINA

10      Madre mia, yo soy nina;
      No se enfade, no me rina,
      Si fiada en su prudencia
      Desahogo mi conciencia,
      Y contarle solicito
15    Mi desdicha o mi delito,
      Aunque muerta de rubor.
        Pues Blasillo el otro dia,
      Cuando mismo anochecia,
      Y cantando descuidada
20    Conducia mi manada,
      En el bosque, por acaso,
      Me salio solito al paso,
      Mas hermoso que el amor.
        Se me acerca temeroso,                                  page 52
      Me saluda carinoso,
      Me repite que soy linda,
      Que no hay pecho que no rinda,
      Que si rio, que si lloro,
5     A los hombres enamoro,
      Y que mato con mirar.
        Con estilo cortesano
      Se apodera de mi mano,
      Y entre dientes, madre mia,
10    No se bien que me pedia;
      Yo entendi que era una rosa,
      Pero el dijo que era otra cosa,
      Que yo no le quise dar.
        ?Sabe usted lo que decia
15    El taimado que queria?
      Con vergueenza lo confieso,
      Mas no hay duda que era un beso
      Y fue tanto mi sonrojo,
      Que irritada de su arrojo,
20    No se como no mori.
        Mas mi pecho enternecido
      De mirarle tan rendido,
      Al principio resistiendo,
      El instando, yo cediendo,
25    Fue por fin tan importuno,
      Que en la boca, y solo uno,
      Que me diera permiti.
        Desde entonces, si le miro,
      Yo no se por que suspiro,                                 page 53
      Ni por que si a Clori mira
      Se me abrasa el rostro en ira;
      Ni por que, si con cuidado
      Se me pone junto al lado,
5     Me estremezco de placer.
        Siempre orillas de la fuente
      Busco rosas a mi frente,
      Pienso en el y me sonrio,
      Y entre mi le llamo mio,
10    Me entristezco de su ausencia,
      Y deseo en su presencia
      La mas bella parecer.
        Confundida, peno y dudo,
      Y por eso a usted acudo;
15    Digame, querida madre,
      Si sentia por mi padre
      Este placido tormento,
      Esta dulce que yo siento
      Deliciosa enfermedad.
20      Diga usted con que se cura
      O mi amor, o mi locura,
      Y si puede por un beso,
      Sin que pase a mas exceso,
      Una nina enamorarse,
25    Y que trate de casarse
      A los quince de su edad.
                                                               page 54

             DON JUAN NICASIO GALLEGO

                  EL DOS DE MAYO

        Noche, lobrega noche, eterno asilo
      Del miserable que, esquivando el sueno,
      En tu silencio pavoroso gime:
      No desdenes mi voz; letal beleno
5     Presta a mis sienes, y en tu horror sublime
      Empapada la ardiente fantasia,
      Da a mi pincel fatidicos colores
      Con que el tremendo dia
      Trace al furor de vengadora tea,
10    Y el odio irrite de la patria mia,
      Y escandalo y terror al orbe sea.
        iDia de execracion! La destructora
      Mano del tiempo le arrojo al averno;
      Mas ?quien el sempiterno
15    Clamor con que los ecos importuna
      La madre Espana en enlutado arreo
      Podra atajar? Junto al sepulcro frio,
      Al palido lucir de opaca luna,
      Entre cipreses funebres la veo:
20    Tremula, yerta, descenido el manto,
      Los ojos moribundos
      Al cielo vuelve, que le oculta el llanto;
      Roto y sin brillo el cetro de dos mundos
      Yace entre el polvo, y el leon guerrero
25    Lanza a sus pies rugido lastimero.                        page 55
        iAy, que cual debil planta
      Que agota en su furor horrido viento,
      De victimas sin cuento
      Lloro la destruccion Mantua afligida!
5     Yo vi, yo vi su juventud florida
      Correr inerme al huesped ominoso.
      ?Mas que su generoso
      Esfuerzo pudo? El perfido caudillo
      En quien su honor y su defensa fia,
10    La condeno al cuchillo.
      ?Quien iay! la alevosia,
      La horrible asolacion habra que cuente,
      Que, hollando de amistad los santos fueros,
      Hizo furioso en la indefensa gente
15    Ese tropel de tigres carniceros?
        Por las henchidas calles
      Gritando se despena
      La infame turba que abrigo en su seno,
      Rueda alla rechinando la curena,
20    Aca retumba el espantoso trueno,
      Alli el joven lozano,
      El mendigo infeliz, el venerable
      Sacerdote pacifico, el anciano
      Que con su arada faz respeto imprime,
25    Juntos amarra su dogal tirano.
      En balde, en balde gime,
      De los duros satelites en torno,
      La triste madre, la afligida esposa.
      Con doliente clamor, la pavorosa                          page 56
      Fatal descarga suena,
      Que a luto y llanto eterno la condena.
        iCuanta escena de muerte! icuanto estrago!
      iCuantos ayes doquier! Despavorido
5     Mirad ese infelice
      Quejarse al adalid empedernido
      De otra cuadrilla atroz. "iAh! ?Que te hice?"
      Exclama el triste en lagrimas deshecho:
      "Mi pan y mi mansion parti contigo,
10    Te abri mis brazos, te cedi mi lecho,
      Temple tu sed, y me llame tu amigo;
      ?Y ahora pagar podras nuestro hospedaje
      Sincero, franco, sin doblez ni engano,
      Con dura muerte y con indigno ultraje?"
15    iPerdido suplicar! iinutil ruego!
      El monstruo infame a sus ministros mira,
      Y con tremenda voz gritando: "ifuego!"
      Tinto en su sangre el desgraciado expira.
        Y en tanto ?do se esconden?
20    ?Do estan ioh cara patria! tus soldados,
      Que a tu clamor de muerte no responden?
      Presos, encarcelados
      Por jefes sin honor, que, haciendo alarde
      De su perfidia y dolo,
25    A merced de los vandalos te dejan,
      Como entre hierros el leon, forcejean
      Con inutil afan. Vosotros solo,
      Fuerte Daoiz, intrepido Velarde,
      Que osando resistir al gran torrente                      page 57
      Dar supisteis en flor la dulce vida
      Con firme pecho y con serena frente;
      Si de mi libre musa
5     Jamas el eco adormecio a tiranos,
      Ni vil lisonja emponzono su aliento,
      Alla del alto asiento,
      Al que la accion magnanima os eleva,
      El himno oid que a vuestro nombre entona,
      Mientras la fama aligera le lleva
10    Del mar de hielo a la abrasada zona.
        Mas iay! que en tanto sus funestas alas
      Por la opresa metropoli tendiendo,
      La yerma asolacion sus plazas cubre,
      Y al aspero silbar de ardientes balas,
15    Y al ronco son de los prenados bronces,
      Nuevo fragor y estrepito sucede.
      ?Ois como, rompiendo
      De moradores timidos las puertas,
      Caen estallando de los fuertes gonces?
20    iCon que espantoso estruendo
      Los duenos buscan, que medrosos huyen!
      Cuanto encuentran destruyen,
      Bramando, los atroces forajidos,
      Que el robo infame y la matanza ciegan.
25    ?No veis cual se despliegan,
      Penetrando en los hondos aposentos,
      De sangre y oro y lagrimas sedientos?
        Rompen, talan, destrozan
      Cuanto se ofrece a su sangrienta espada.                  page 58
      Aqui, matando al dueno, se alborozan,
      Hieren alli su esposa acongojada;
      La familia asolada
      Yace expirando, y con feroz sonrisa
5     Sorben voraces el fatal tesoro.
      Suelta, a otro lado, la madeja de oro,
      Mustio el dulce carmin de su mejilla,
      Y en su frente marchita la azucena,
      Con voz turbada y anhelante lloro,
10    De su verdugo ante los pies se humilla
      Timida virgen, de amargura llena;
      Mas con furor de hiena,
      Alzando el corvo alfanje damasquino,
      Hiende su cuello el barbaro asesino.
15      iHorrible atrocidad!... Treguas ioh musa!
      Que ya la voz rehusa
      Embargada en suspiros mi garganta.
      Y en ignominia tanta,
      ?Sera que rinda el espanol bizarro
20    La indomita cerviz a la cadena?
      No, que ya en torno suena
      De Palas fiera el sanguinoso carro,
      Y el latigo estallante
      Los caballos flamigeros hostiga.
25    Ya el duro peto y el arnes brillante
      Visten los fuertes hijos de Pelayo.
      Fuego arrojo su ruginoso acero:
      "iVenganza y guerra!" resono en su tumba;
      "iVenganza y guerra!" repitio Moncayo;                    page 59
      Y al grito heroico que en los aires zumba,
      "iVenganza y guerra!"  claman Turia y Duero.
      Guadalquivir guerrero
      Alza al belico son la regia frente,
5     Y del Patron valiente
      Blandiendo altivo la nudosa lanza,
      Corre gritando al mar: "iGuerra y venganza!"
        iOh sombras infelices
10    De los que aleve y barbara cuchilla
      Robo a los dulces lares!
      iSombras inultas que en fugaz gemido
      Cruzais los anchos campos de Castilla!
      La heroica Espana, en tanto que al bandido
      Que a fuego y sangre, de insolencia ciego,
15    Brindo felicidad, a sangre y fuego
      Le retribuye el don, sabra piadosa
      Daros solemne y noble monumento.
      Alli en padron cruento
      De oprobio y mengua, que perpetuo dure,
20    La vil traicion del despota se lea,
      Y altar eterno sea
      Donde todo Espanol al monstruo jure
      Rencor de muerte que en sus venas cunda,
      Y a cien generaciones se difunda.
                                                                page 60

      DON FRANCISCO MARTINEZ DE LA ROSA

                     EL NIDO

        ?Donde vas, zagal cruel,
      Donde vas con ese nido,
      Riyendo tu mientras pian
      Esos tristes pajarillos?
5     Su madre los dejo solos
      En este momento mismo,
      Para buscarles sustento
      Y darselo con su pico...
      Mirala cuan azorada
10    Echa menos a sus hijos,
      Salta de un arbol en otro,
      Va, torna, vuela sin tino:
      Al cielo favor demanda
      Con acento dolorido;
15    Mientras ellos en tu mano
      Baten el ala al oirlo...
      iTu tambien tuviste madre,
      Y la perdiste aun muy nino,
      Y te encontraste en la tierra
20    Sin amparo y sin abrigo!--
      Las lagrimas se le saltan
      Al cuitado pastorcillo,
      Y vergonzoso y confuso
      Deja en el arbol el nido.
                                                                page 61

  DON ANGEL DE SAAVEDRA, DUQUE DE RIVAS

          UN CASTELLANO LEAL

           ROMANCE PRIMERO

        "Hola, hidalgos y escuderos
      De mi alcurnia y mi blason,
      Mirad como bien nacidos
      De mi sangre y casa en pro.
5       "Esas puertas se defiendan;
      Que no ha de entrar, vive Dios,
      Por ellas, quien no estuviere
      Mas limpio que lo esta el sol.
        "No profane mi palacio
10    Un fementido traidor
      Que contra su Rey combate
      Y que a su patria vendio.
        "Pues si el es de Reyes primo,
      Primo de Reyes soy yo;
15    Y conde de Benavente
      Si el es duque de Borbon;
        "Llevandole de ventaja
      Que nunca jamas mancho
      La traicion mi noble sangre,
20    Y haber nacido espanol."

        Asi atronaba la calle
      Una ya cascada voz,                                       page 62
      Que de un palacio salia
      Cuya puerta se cerro;
        Y a la que estaba a caballo
      Sobre un negro pisador,
5     Siendo en su escudo las lises
      Mas bien que timbre baldon,
        Y de pajes y escuderos
      Llevando un tropel en pos
      Cubiertos de ricas galas,
10    El gran duque de Borbon:
        El que lidiando en Pavia,
      Mas que valiente, feroz,
      Gozose en ver prisionero
      A su natural senor;
15      Y que a Toledo ha venido,
      Ufano de su traicion,
      Para recibir mercedes
      Y ver al Emperador.

           ROMANCE SEGUNDO

        En una anchurosa cuadra
20    Del alcazar de Toledo,
      Cuyas paredes adornan
      Ricos tapices flamencos,
        Al lado de una gran mesa,
      Que cubre de terciopelo
25    Napolitano tapete
      Con borlones de oro y flecos;
        Ante un sillon de respaldo                              page 63
      Que entre bordado arabesco
      Los timbres de Espana ostenta
      Y el aguila del imperio,
        De pie estaba Carlos Quinto,
5     Que en Espana era primero,
      Con gallardo y noble talle,
      Con noble y tranquilo aspecto.

        De brocado de oro y blanco
      Viste tabardo tudesco,
10    De rubias martas orlado,
      Y desabrochado y suelto,
        Dejando ver un justillo
      De raso jalde, cubierto
      Con primorosos bordados
15    Y costosos sobrepuestos,
        Y la excelsa y noble insignia
      Del Toison de oro, pendiendo
      De una preciosa cadena
      En la mitad de su pecho.
20      Un birrete de velludo
      Con un blanco airon, sujeto
      Por un joyel de diamantes
      Y un antiguo camafeo,
        Descubre por ambos lados,
25    Tanta majestad cubriendo,
      Rubio, cual barba y bigote,
      Bien atusado el cabello.
        Apoyada en la cadera                                    page 64
      La potente diestra ha puesto,
      Que aprieta dos guantes de ambar
      Y un primoroso mosquero,
        Y con la siniestra halaga
5     De un mastin muy corpulento,
      Blanco y las orejas rubias,
      El ancho y carnoso cuello.

        Con el Condestable insigne,
      Apaciguador del reino,
10    De los pasados disturbios
      Acaso esta discurriendo;
        O del trato que dispone
      Con el Rey de Francia preso,
      O de asuntos de Alemania
15    Agitada por Lutero;
        Cuando un tropel de caballos
      Oye venir a lo lejos
      Y ante el alcazar pararse,
      Quedando todo en silencio.
20      En la antecamara suena
      Rumor impensado luego,
      Abrese al fin la mampara
      Y entra el de Borbon soberbio,
        Con el semblante de azufre
25    Y con los ojos de fuego,
      Bramando de ira y de rabia
      Que enfrena mal el respeto;
        Y con balbuciente lengua,                               page 65
      Y con mal borrado ceno,
      Acusa al de Benavente,
      Un desagravio pidiendo.

        Del espanol Condestable
5     Latio con orgullo el pecho,
      Ufano de la entereza
      De su esclarecido deudo.
        Y aunque advertido procura
      Disimular cual discreto,
10    A su noble rostro asoman
      La aprobacion y el contento.
        El Emperador un punto
      Quedo indeciso y suspenso,
      Sin saber que responderle
15    Al frances, de enojo ciego.
        Y aunque en su interior se goza
      Con el proceder violento
      Del conde de Benavente,
      De altas esperanzas lleno
20      Por tener tales vasallos,
      De noble lealtad modelos,
      Y con los que el ancho mundo
      Sera a sus glorias estrecho,
         Mucho al de Borbon le debe
25    Y es fuerza satisfacerlo:
      Le ofrece para calmarlo
      Un desagravio completo.
        Y, llamando a un gentil-hombre,                         page 66
      Con el semblante severo
      Manda que el de Benavente
      Venga a su presencia presto.

            ROMANCE TERCERO

        Sostenido por sus pajes
5     Desciende de su litera
      El conde de Benavente
      Del alcazar a la puerta.
        Era un viejo respetable,
      Cuerpo enjuto, cara seca,
10    Con dos ojos como chispas,
      Cargados de largas cejas,
        Y con semblante muy noble,
      Mas de gravedad tan seria
      Que veneracion de lejos
15    Y miedo causa de cerca.
        Eran su traje unas calzas
      De purpura de Valencia,
      Y de recamado ante
      Un coleto a la leonesa:
20      De fino lienzo gallego
      Los punos y la gorguera,
      Unos y otra guarnecidos
      Con randas barcelonesas:
        Un birreton de velludo
25    Con su cintillo de perlas,
      Y el gaban de pano verde
      Con alamares de seda.                                     page 67
        Tan solo de Calatrava
      La insignia espanola lleva;
      Que el Toison ha despreciado
      Por ser orden extranjera.

5       Con paso tardo, aunque firme,
      Sube por las escaleras,
      Y al verle, las alabardas
      Un golpe dan en la tierra;
        Golpe de honor, y de aviso
10    De que en el alcazar entra
      Un Grande, a quien se le debe
      Todo honor y reverencia.
        Al llegar a la antesala,
      Los pajes que estan en ella
15    Con respeto le saludan
      Abriendo las anchas puertas.
        Con grave paso entra el conde
      Sin que otro aviso preceda,
      Salones atravesando
20    Hasta la camara regia.

        Pensativo esta el Monarca,
      Discurriendo como pueda
      Componer aquel disturbio
      Sin hacer a nadie ofensa.
25      Mucho al de Borbon le debe,
      Aun mucho mas de el espera,
      Y al de Benavente mucho                                   page 68
      Considerar le interesa.
        Dilacion no admite el caso,
      No hay quien dar consejo pueda
      Y Villalar y Pavia
5     A un tiempo se le recuerdan.
        En el sillon asentado
      Y el codo sobre la mesa,
      Al personaje recibe,
      Que comedido se acerca.

10      Grave el conde le saluda
      Con una rodilla en tierra,
      Mas como Grande del reino
      Sin descubrir la cabeza.
        El Emperador benigno
15    Que alce del suelo le ordena,
      Y la platica dificil
      Con sagacidad empieza.
        Y entre severo y afable
      Al cabo le manifiesta
20    Que es el que a Borbon aloje
      Voluntad suya resuelta.
        Con respeto muy profundo,
      Pero con la voz entera,
      Respondele Benavente,
25    Destocando la cabeza:
        "Soy, senor, vuestro vasallo,
      Vos sois mi rey en la tierra,
      A vos ordenar os cumple                                   page 69
      De mi vida y de mi hacienda.
        "Vuestro soy, vuestra mi casa,
      De mi disponed y de ella,
      Pero no toqueis mi honra
5     Y respetad mi conciencia.
        "Mi casa Borbon ocupe
      Puesto que es voluntad vuestra,
      Contamine sus paredes,
      Sus blasones envilezca;
10      "Que a mi me sobra en Toledo
      Donde vivir, sin que tenga
      Que rozarme con traidores,
      Cuyo solo aliento infesta.
        Y en cuanto el deje mi casa,
15    Antes de tornar yo a ella,
      Purificare con fuego
      Sus paredes y sus puertas."
        Dijo el conde, la real mano
      Beso, cubrio su cabeza,
20    Y retirose bajando
      A do estaba su litera.
        Y a casa de un su pariente
      Mando que le condujeran,
      Abandonando la suya
25    Con cuanto dentro se encierra.
        Quedo absorto Carlos Quinto
      De ver tan noble firmeza,
      Estimando la de Espana
      Mas que la imperial diadema.
                                                               page 70
             ROMANCE CUARTO

        Muy pocos dias el duque
      Hizo mansion en Toledo,
      Del noble conde ocupando
      Los honrados aposentos.
5       Y la noche en que el palacio
      Dejo vacio, partiendo,
      Con su sequito y sus pajes,
      Orgulloso y satisfecho,
        Turbo la apacible luna
10    Un vapor blanco y espeso
      Que de las altas techumbres
      Se iba elevando y creciendo:
        A poco rato tornose
      En humo confuso y denso
15    Que en nubarrones obscuros
      Ofuscaba el claro cielo;
        Despues en ardientes chispas,
      Y en un resplandor horrendo
20    Que iluminaba los valles
      Dando en el Tajo reflejos,
        Y al fin su furor mostrando
      En embravecido incendio
      Que devoraba altas torres
      Y derrumbaba altos techos.
25      Resonaron las campanas,
      Conmoviose todo el pueblo,
      De Benavente el palacio                                   page 71
      Presa de las llamas viendo.
        El Emperador confuso
      Corre a procurar remedio,
      En atajar tanto dano
5     Mostrando tenaz empeno.
        En vano todo: tragose
      Tantas riquezas el fuego,
      A la lealtad castellana
      Levantando un monumento.
10      Aun hoy unos viejos muros
      Del humo y las llamas negros
      Recuerdan accion tan grande
      En la famosa Toledo.


                PADRE JUAN AROLAS

               SE MAS FELIZ QUE YO

        Sobre pupila azul, con sueno leve,
15    Tu parpado cayendo amortecido,
      Se parece a la pura y blanca nieve
      Que sobre las violetas reposo:
      Yo el sueno del placer nunca he dormido:
              Se mas feliz que yo.
20      Se asemeja tu voz en la plegaria
      Al canto del zorzal de indiano suelo
      Que sobre la pagoda solitaria
      Los himnos de la tarde suspiro:                           page 72
      Yo solo esta oracion dirijo al cielo:
              Se mas feliz que yo.
        Es tu aliento la esencia mas fragante
      De los lirios del Arno caudaloso
5     Que brotan sobre un junco vacilante
      Cuando el cefiro blando los mecio:
      Yo no gozo su aroma delicioso:
              Se mas feliz que yo.
        El amor, que es espiritu de fuego,
10    Que de callada noche se aconseja
      Y se nutre con lagrimas y ruego,
      En tus purpureos labios se escondio:
      El te guarde el placer y a mi la queja:
              Se mas feliz que yo.
15      Bella es tu juventud en sus albores
      Como un campo de rosas del Oriente;
      Al angel del recuerdo pedi flores
      Para adornar tu sien, y me las dio;
      Yo decia al ponerlas en tu frente:
20            Se mas feliz que yo.
        Tu mirada vivaz es de paloma;
      Como la adormidera del desierto
      Causas dulce embriaguez, huri de aroma
      Que el cielo de topacio abandono:
25    Mi suerte es dura, mi destino incierto:
              Se mas feliz que yo.
                                                                page 73

           DON JOSE DE ESPRONCEDA

             CANCION DEL PIRATA

        Con diez canones por banda,
      Viento en popa a toda vela,
      No corta el mar, sino vuela
      Un velero bergantin:
5       Bajel pirata que llaman,
      Por su bravura, el _Temido_,
      En todo mar conocido
      Del uno al otro confin.
        La luna en el mar riela,
10    En la lona gime el viento,
      Y alza en blando movimiento
      Olas de plata y azul;
        Y ve el capitan pirata,
      Cantando alegre en la popa,
15    Asia a un lado, al otro Europa,
      Y alla a su frente Stambul,
            "Navega, velero mio,
                   Sin temor;
          Que ni enemigo navio,
20        Ni tormenta, ni bonanza
          Tu rumbo a torcer alcanza,
          Ni a sujetar tu valor.
                "Veinte presas
              Hemos hecho                                       page 74
              A despecho
              Del ingles,
              Y han rendido
              Sus pendones
5             Cien naciones5
              A mis pies."
        _Que es mi barco mi tesoro,
      Que es mi Dios la libertad,
      Mi ley la fuerza y el viento,
10    Mi unica patria la mar._

        "Alla muevan feroz guerra
              Ciegos reyes
      Por un palmo mas de tierra:
      Que yo tengo aqui por mio
15    Cuanto abarca el mar bravio,
      A quien nadie impuso leyes.
            "Y no hay playa,
          Sea cual quiera,
          Ni bandera
20        De esplendor,
          Que no sienta
          Mi derecho,
          Y de pecho
          A mi valor."
25      _Que es mi barco mi tesoro..._

        "A la voz de "ibarco viene!"
              Es de ver                                         page 75
      Como vira y se previene
      A todo trapo a escapar;
      Que yo soy el rey del mar,
      Y mi furia es de temer.
5           "En las presas
          Yo divido
          Lo cogido
          Por igual:
          Solo quiero
10        Por riqueza
          La belleza
          Sin rival."
        _Que es mi barco mi tesoro..._

        "iSentenciado estoy a muerte!
15          Yo me rio:
      No me abandone la suerte,
      Y al mismo que me condena
      Colgare de alguna entena,
      Quiza en su propio navio.
20          "Y si caigo,
          ?Que es la vida?
          Por perdida
          Ya la di,
          Cuando el yugo
25        Del esclavo,
          Como un bravo,
          Sacudi."
        _Que es mi barco mi tesoro..._
                                                                page 76
        "Son mi musica mejor
              Aquilones:
      El estrepito y temblor
      De los cables sacudidos,
5     Del negro mar los bramidos
      Y el rugir de mis canones.
            "Y del trueno
          Al son violento
          Y del viento
10        Al rebramar,
          Yo me duermo
          Sosegado,
          Arrullado
          Por el mar."
15      _Que es mi barco mi tesoro,
      Que es mi Dios la libertad,
      Mi ley la fuerza y el viento,
      Mi unica patria la mar._


                     A LA PATRIA

        iCuan solitaria la nacion que un dia
20    Poblara inmensa gente!
      iLa nacion cuyo imperio se extendia
      Del ocaso al oriente!

        iLagrimas viertes, infeliz, ahora,
      Soberana del mundo,
25    Y nadie de tu faz encantadora
      Borra el dolor profundo!                                  page 77

        Obscuridad y luto tenebroso
      En ti vertio la muerte,
      Y en su furor el despota sanoso
      Se complacio en tu suerte.

5       No perdono lo hermoso, patria mia;
      Cayo el joven guerrero,
      Cayo el anciano, y la segur impia
      Manejo placentero.

        So la rabia cayo la virgen pura
10    Del despota sombrio,
      Como eclipsa la rosa su hermosura
      En el sol del estio.

        iOh vosotros, del mundo habitadores,
      Contemplad mi tormento!
15    ?Igualarse podran iah! que dolores
      Al dolor que yo siento?

        Yo, desterrado de la patria mia,
      De una patria que adoro,
      Perdida miro su primer valia
20    Y sus desgracias lloro.....

        Tendio sus brazos la agitada Espana,
      Sus hijos implorando;
      Sus hijos fueron, mas traidora sana
      Desbarato su bando.                                       page 78

        ?Que se hicieron tus muros torreados,
      Oh mi patria querida?
      ?Donde fueron tus heroes esforzados,
      Tu espada no vencida?

5       iAy! de tus hijos en la humilde frente
      Esta el rubor grabado:
      A sus ojos, caidos tristemente,
      El llanto esta agolpado.

        Un tiempo Espana fue; cien heroes fueron
10    En tiempos de ventura,
      Y las naciones timidas la vieron
      Vistosa en hermosura.

        Cual cedro que en el Libano se ostenta,
      Su frente se elevaba;
15    Como el trueno a la virgen amedrenta,
      Su voz las aterraba.

        Mas hora, como piedra en el desierto,
      Yaces desamparada,
      Y el justo desgraciado vaga incierto
20    Alla en tierra apartada.

        Cubren su antigua pompa y poderio
      Pobre hierba y arena,
      Y el enemigo que temblo a su brio
      Burla y goza en su pena.                                  page 79

        Virgenes, destrenzad la cabellera
      Y dadla al vago viento;
      Acompanad con arpa lastimera
      Mi lugubre lamento.

5       Desterrados ioh Dios! de nuestros lares
      Lloremos duelo tanto:
      ?Quien calmara ioh Espana! tus pesares?
      ?Quien secara tu llanto?


            DON JOSE ZORRILLA

                ORIENTAL

        Corriendo van por la vega
10    A las puertas de Granada
      Hasta cuarenta gomeles
      Y el capitan que los manda.
        Al entrar en la ciudad,
      Parando en su yegua blanca,
15    Le dijo este a una mujer
      Que entre sus brazos lloraba:
        --Enjuga el llanto, cristiana,
      No me atormentes asi,
      Que tengo yo, mi sultana,
20    Un nuevo Eden para ti.
        Tengo un palacio en Granada,
      Tengo jardines y flores,
      Tengo una fuente dorada
      Con mas de cien surtidores.                               page 80
        Y en la vega del Genil
      Tengo parda fortaleza,
      Que sera reina entre mil
      Cuando encierre tu belleza.
5       Y sobre toda una orilla
      Extiendo mi senorio;
      Ni en Cordoba ni en Sevilla
      Hay un parque como el mio.
10      Alli la altiva palmera
      Y el encendido granado,
      Junto a la frondosa higuera
      Cubren el valle y collado.
        Alli el robusto nogal,
      Alli el nopalo amarillo,
15    Alli el sombrio moral
      Crecen al pie del castillo.
        Y olmos tengo en mi alameda
      Que hasta el cielo se levantan,
      Y en redes de plata y seda
20    Tengo pajaros que cantan.
        Y tu mi sultana eres,
      Que desiertos mis salones
      Estan, mi haren sin mujeres,
      Mis oidos sin canciones.
25      Yo te dare terciopelos
      Y perfumes orientales;
      De Grecia te traere velos
      Y de Cachemira chales.
        Y te dare blancas plumas                                page 81
      Para que adornes tu frente,
      Mas blancas que las espumas
      De nuestros mares de oriente;
        Y perlas para el cabello,
5     Y banos para el calor,
      Y collares para el cuello;
      Para los labios... iamor!--
        --?Que me valen tus riquezas,
      Respondiole la cristiana,
10    Si me quitas a mi padre,
      Mis amigos y mis damas?
        Vuelveme, vuelveme, moro,
      A mi padre y a mi patria,
      Que mis torres de Leon
15    Valen mas que tu Granada.--
        Escuchola en paz el moro,
      Y manoseando su barba,
      Dijo, como quien medita,
      En la mejilla una lagrima:
20      Si tus castillos mejores
      Que nuestros jardines son,
      Y son mas bellas tus flores,
      Por ser tuyas, en Leon,
        Y tu diste tus amores
25    A alguno de tus guerreros,
      Huri del Eden, no llores;
      Vete con tus caballeros.--
        Y dandola su caballo
      Y la mitad de su guardia                                  page 82
      El capitan de los moros
      Volvio en silencio la espalda.


                       INDECISION

        iBello es vivir, la vida es la armonia!
      Luz, penascos, torrentes y cascadas,
5     Un sol de fuego iluminando el dia,
      Aire de aromas, flores apinadas:
        Y en medio de la noche majestuosa
      Esa luna de plata, esas estrellas,
      Lamparas de la tierra perezosa,
10    Que se ha dormido en paz debajo de ellas.
        iBello es vivir! Se ve en el horizonte
      Asomar el crepusculo que nace;
      Y la neblina que corona el monte
      En el aire flotando se deshace;
15      Y el inmenso tapiz del firmamento
      Cambia su azul en franjas de colores;
      Y susurran las hojas en el viento,
      Y desatan su voz los ruisenores.

        Si hay huracanes y aquilon que brama,
20    Si hay un invierno de humedad vestido,
      Hay una hoguera a cuya roja llama
      Se alza un festin con su discorde ruido.
        Y una pintada y fresca primavera,
      Con su manto de luz y orla de flores,                     page 83
      Que cubre de verdor la ancha pradera
      Donde brotan arroyos saltadores.

        iBello es vivir, la vida es la armonia!
      Luz, penascos, torrentes y cascadas,
5     Un sol de fuego iluminando el dia,
      Aire de aromas, flores apinadas.

            Arranca, arranca, Dios mio,
          De la mente del poeta
          Este pensamiento impio
10        Que en un delirio creo;
          Sin un instante de calma,
          En su olvido y amargura,
          No puede sonar su alma
          Placeres que no gozo.
15          iAy del poeta! su llanto
          Fue la inspiracion sublime
          Con que arrebato su canto
          Hasta los cielos tal vez;
          Solitaria flor que el viento
20        Con impuro soplo azota,
          El arrastra su tormento
          Escrito sobre la tez.
            Porque tu, ioh Dios! le robaste
          Cuanto los hombres adoran;
25        Tu en el mundo le arrojaste
          Para que muriera en el;
          Tu le dijiste que el hombre                           page 84
          Era en la tierra su _hermano_;
          Mas el no encuentra ese nombre
          En sus recuerdos de hiel.
            Tu le has dicho que eligiera
5         Para el viaje de la vida
          Una hermosa companera
          Con quien partir su dolor;
          Mas iay! que la busca en vano;
          Porque es para el ser que ama
10        Como un inmundo gusano
          Sobre el tallo de una flor.
            Canta la luz y las flores,
          Y el amor en las mujeres,
          Y el placer en los amores,
15        Y la calma en el placer:
          Y sin esperanza adora
          Una belleza escondida,
          Y hoy en sus cantares llora
          Lo que alegre canto ayer.
20          El con los siglos rodando
          Canta su afan a los siglos,
          Y los siglos van pasando
          Sin curarse de su afan.
          iMaldito el nombre de gloria
25        Que en tu colera le diste!
          Sentados en su memoria
          Recuerdos de hierro estan.
            El dia alumbra su pena,
          La noche alarga su duelo,                             page 85
          La aurora escribe en el cielo
          Su sentencia de vivir:
          Fabulas son los placeres,
          No hay placeres en su alma,
5         No hay amor en las mujeres,
          Tarda la hora de morir.
            Hay sol que alumbra, mas quema:
          Hay flores que se marchitan,
          Hay recuerdos que se agitan
10        Fantasmas de maldicion.
          Si tiene una voz que canta,
          Al arrancarla del pecho
          Deja fuego en la garganta,
          Vacio en el corazon.

15      iBello es vivir! Sobre gigante roca
      Se mira el mundo a nuestros pies tendido,
      La frente altiva con las nubes toca...
      Todo creado para el hombre ha sido.
        iBello es vivir! Que el hombre descuidado
20    En los bordes se duerme de la vida,
      Y de locura y suenos embriagado
      En un festin el porvenir olvida.
         iBello es vivir! Vivamos y cantemos:
      El tiempo entre sus pliegues roedores
25    Ha de llevar el bien que no gocemos,
      Y ha de apagar placeres y dolores.
        Cantemos de nosotros olvidados,
      Hasta que el son de la fatal campana                      page 86
      Toque a morir... Cantemos descuidados,
      Que el sol de ayer no alumbrara manana.


                    LA FUENTE

        Huye la fuente al manantial ingrata
      El verde musgo en derredor lamiendo,
5     Y el agua limpia en su cristal retrata
              Cuanto va viendo.
        El cesped mece y las arenas moja
      Do mil caprichos al pasar dibuja,
      Y ola tras ola murmurando arroja,
10            Riza y empuja.
        Lecho mullido la presenta el valle,
      Fresco abanico el abedul pomposo,
      Canas y juncos retirada calle,
              Sombra y reposo.
15      Brota en la altura la fecunda fuente;
      ?Y a que su empeno, si al bajar la cuesta
      Halla del rio en el raudal rugiente
              Tumba funesta?


        A BUEN JUEZ MEJOR TESTIGO

           Tradicion de Toledo


                  I

      Entre pardos nubarrones
20    Pasando la blanca luna,
      Con resplandor fugitivo,                                  page 87
      La baja tierra no alumbra.
      La brisa con frescas alas
      Juguetona no murmura,
      Y las veletas no giran
5     Entre la cruz y la cupula.
      Tal vez un palido rayo
      La opaca atmosfera cruza,
      Y unas en otras las sombras
      Confundidas se dibujan.
10    Las almenas de las torres
      Un momento se columbran,
      Como lanzas de soldados
      Apostados en la altura.
      Reverberan los cristales
15    La tremula llama turbia,
      Y un instante entre las rocas
      Riela la fuente oculta.
      Los alamos de la vega
      Parecen en la espesura
20    De fantasmas apinados
      Medrosa y gigante turba;
      Y alguna vez desprendida
      Gotea pesada lluvia,
      Que no despierta a quien duerme,
25    Ni a quien medita importuna.
      Yace Toledo en el sueno
      Entre las sombras confusa,
      Y el Tajo a sus pies pasando
      Con pardas ondas la arrulla.                              page 88
      El monotono murmullo
      Sonar perdido se escucha,
      Cual si por las hondas calles
      Hirviera del mar la espuma.
5     iQue dulce es dormir en calma
      Cuando a lo lejos susurran
      Los alamos que se mecen,
      Las aguas que se derrumban!
      Se suenan bellos fantasmas
10    Que el sueno del triste endulzan,
      Y en tanto que suena el triste,
      No le aqueja su amargura.
        Tan en calma y tan sombria
      Como la noche que enluta
15    La esquina en que desemboca
      Una callejuela oculta,
      Se ve de un hombre que aguarda
      La vigilante figura,
      Y tan a la sombra vela
20    Que entre la sombra se ofusca.
      Frente por frente a sus ojos
      Un balcon a poca altura
      Deja escapar por los vidrios
      La luz que dentro le alumbra;
25    Mas ni en el claro aposento,
      Ni en la callejuela obscura
      El silencio de la noche
      Rumor sospechoso turba.
      Paso asi tan largo tiempo,                                page 89
      Que pudiera haberse duda
      De si es hombre, o solamente
      Mentida ilusion nocturna;
      Pero es hombre, y bien se ve,
5     Porque con planta segura
      Ganando el centro a la calle
      Resuelto y audaz pregunta:
      --?Quien va?--y a corta distancia
      El igual compas se escucha
10    De un caballo que sacude
      Las sonoras herraduras.
      ?Quien va? repite, y cercana
      Otra voz menos robusta
      Responde:--Un hidalgo icalle!
15    Y el paso el bruto apresura.
      --Tengase el hidalgo,--el hombre
      Replica, y la espada empuna.
      --Ved mas bien si me hareis calle
      (Repusieron con mesura)
20    Que hasta hoy a nadie se tuvo
      Iban de Vargas y Acuna.
      --Pase el Acuna y perdone:--
      Dijo el mozo en faz de fuga,
      Pues teniendose el embozo
25    Sopla un silbato, y se oculta.
      Paro el jinete a una puerta,
      Y con precaucion difusa
      Salio una nina al balcon
      Que llama interior alumbra.                               page 90
      --iMi padre!--clamo en voz baja,
      Y el viejo en la cerradura
      Metio la llave pidiendo
      A sus gentes que le acudan.
5     Un negro por ambas bridas
      Tomo la cabalgadura,
      Cerrose detras la puerta
      Y quedo la calle muda.
      En esto desde el balcon,
10    Como quien tal acostumbra,
      Un mancebo por las rejas
      De la calle se asegura.
      Asio el brazo al que apostado
      Hizo cara a Iban de Acuna,
15    Y huyeron, en el embozo
      Velando la catadura.

                 II

      Clara, apacible y serena
      Pasa la siguiente tarde,
      Y el sol tocando su ocaso
20    Apaga su luz gigante:
      Se ve la imperial Toledo
      Dorada por los remates,
      Como una ciudad de grana
      Coronada de cristales.
25    El Tajo por entre rocas
      Sus anchos cimientos lame,
      Dibujando en las arenas                                   page 91
      Las ondas con que las bate.
      Y la ciudad se retrata
      En las ondas desiguales,
      Como en prendas de que el rio
5     Tan afanoso la bane.
      A lo lejos en la vega
      Tiende galan por sus margenes,
      De sus alamos y huertos
      El pintoresco ropaje,
10    Y porque su altiva gala
      Mas a los ojos halague,
      La salpica con escombros
      De castillos y de alcazares.
      Un recuerdo es cada piedra
15    Que toda una historia vale,
      Cada colina un secreto
      De principes o galanes.
      Aqui se bano la hermosa
      Por quien dejo su rey culpable
20    Amor, fama, reino y vida
      En manos de musulmanes.
      Alli recibio Galiana
      A su receloso amante
      En esa cuesta que entonces
25    Era un plantel de azahares.
      Alla por aquella torre,
      Que hicieron puerta los arabes,
      Subio el Cid sobre Babieca
      Con su gente y su estandarte.                             page 92
      Mas lejos se ve el castillo
      De San Servando, o Cervantes
      Donde nada se hizo nunca
      Y nada al presente se hace.
5     A este lado esta la almena
      Por do saco vigilante
      El conde Don Peranzules
      Al rey, que supo una tarde
      Fingir tan tenaz modorra,
10    Que, politico y constante,
      Tuvo siempre el brazo quedo
      Las palmas al horadarle.
      Alli esta el circo romano,
      Gran cifra de un pueblo grande,
15    Y aqui la antigua Basilica
      De bizantinos pilares,
      Que oyo en el primer concilio
      Las palabras de los Padres
      Que velaron por la Iglesia
20    Perseguida o vacilante.
      La sombra en este momento
      Tiende sus turbios cendales
      Por todas esas memorias
      De las pasadas edades,
25    Y del Cambron y Visagra
      Los caminos desiguales,
      Camino a los Toledanos
      Hacia las murallas abren.
      Los labradores se acercan                                 page 93
      Al fuego de sus hogares,
      Cargados con sus aperos,
      Cansados de sus afanes.
      Los ricos y sedentarios
5     Se tornan con paso grave,
      Calado el ancho sombrero,
      Abrochados los gabanes;
      Y los clerigos y monjes
      Y los prelados y abades
10    Sacudiendo el leve polvo
      De capelos y sayales.
      Quedase solo un mancebo
      De impetuosos ademanes,
      Que se pasea ocultando
15    Entre la capa el semblante.
      Los que pasan le contemplan
      Con decision de evitarle,
      Y el contempla a los que pasan
      Como si a alguien aguardase.
20    Los timidos aceleran
      Los pasos al divisarle,
      Cual temiendo de seguro
      Que les proponga un combate;
      Y los valientes le miran
25    Cual si sintieran dejarle
      Sin que libres sus estoques
      En rina sonora dancen.
      Una mujer tambien sola
      Se viene el llano adelante,                               page 94
      La luz del rostro escondida
      En tocas y tafetanes.
      Mas en lo leve del paso,
      Y en lo flexible del talle,
5     Puede a traves de los velos
      Una hermosa adivinarse.
      Vase derecha al que aguarda,
      Y el al encuentro la sale
      Diciendo... cuanto se dicen
10    En las citas los amantes.
      Mas ella, galanterias
      Dejando severa aparte,
      Asi al mancebo interrumpe
      En voz decisiva y grave:

15      "Abreviemos de razones,
      Diego Martinez; mi padre,
      Que un hombre ha entrado en su ausencia
      Dentro mi aposento sabe:
      Y asi quien mancha mi honra,
20    Con la suya me la lave;
      O dadme mano de esposo,
      O libre de vos dejadme."
      Mirola Diego Martinez
      Atentamente un instante,
25    Y echando a un lado el embozo,
      Repuso palabras tales:
      "Dentro de un mes, Ines mia,
      Parto a la guerra de Flandes;                             page 95
      Al ano estare de vuelta
      Y contigo en los altares.
      Honra que yo te desluzca,
      Con honra mia se lave;
5     Que por honra vuelven honra
      Hidalgos que en honra nacen.
      --Juralo,--exclamo la nina.
      --Mas que mi palabra vale
      No te valdra un juramento.
10    --Diego, la palabra es aire.
      --iVive Dios que estas tenaz!
      Dalo por jurado y baste.
      --No me basta; que olvidar
      Puedes la palabra en Flandes.
15    --iVoto a Dios! ?que mas pretendes?
      --Que a los pies de aquella imagen
      Lo jures como cristiano
      Del santo Cristo delante."
      Vacilo un punto Martinez,
20    Mas porfiando que jurase,
      Llevole Ines hacia el templo
      Que en medio la vega yace.
      Enclavado en un madero,
      En duro y postrero trance,
25    Cenida la sien de espinas,
      Descolorido el semblante,
      Viase alli un crucifijo
      Tenido de negra sangre,
      A quien Toledo devota                                     page 96
      Acude hoy en sus azares.
      Ante sus plantas divinas
      Llegaron ambos amantes,
      Y haciendo Ines que Martinez
5     Los sagrados pies tocase,
      Preguntole:
                  --Diego, ?juras
      A tu vuelta desposarme?
      Contesto el mozo:
                        --iSi juro!
      Y ambos del templo se salen.

                  III

10    Paso un dia y otro dia,
      Un mes y otro mes paso,
      Y un ano pasado habia,
      Mas de Flandes no volvia
      Diego, que a Flandes partio.
15      Lloraba la bella Ines
      Su vuelta aguardando en vano,
      Oraba un mes y otro mes
      Del crucifijo a los pies
      Do puso el galan su mano.
20      Todas las tardes venia
      Despues de traspuesto el sol,
      Y a Dios llorando pedia
      La vuelta del espanol,
      Y el espanol no volvia.
25       Y siempre al anochecer,                                page 97
      Sin duena y sin escudero,
      En un manto una mujer
      El campo salia a ver
      Al alto del _Miradero_.
5       iAy del triste que consume
      Su existencia en esperar!
      iAy del triste que presume
      Que el duelo con que el se abrume
      Al ausente ha de pesar!
10      La esperanza es de los cielos
      Precioso y funesto don,
      Pues los amantes desvelos
      Cambian la esperanza en celos,
      Que abrasan el corazon.
15      Si es cierto lo que se espera,
      Es un consuelo en verdad;
      Pero siendo una quimera,
      En tan fragil realidad
      Quien espera desespera.
20      Asi Ines desesperaba
      Sin acabar de esperar,
      Y su tez se marchitaba,
      Y su llanto se secaba
      Para volver a brotar.
25      En vano a su confesor
      Pidio remedio o consejo
      Para aliviar su dolor;
      Que mal se cura el amor
      Con las palabras de un viejo.                             page 98
        En vano a Iban acudia,
      Llorosa y desconsolada;
      El padre no respondia;
      Que la lengua le tenia
5     Su propia deshonra atada.
        Y ambos maldicen su estrella,
      Callando el padre severo
      Y suspirando la bella,
      Porque nacio mujer ella,
10    Y el viejo nacio altanero.
        Dos anos al fin pasaron
      En esperar y gemir,
      Y las guerras acabaron,
      Y los de Flandes tornaron
15    A sus tierras a vivir.
        Paso un dia y otro dia,
      Un mes y otro mes paso,
      Y el tercer ano corria;
      Diego a Flandes se partio,
20    Mas de Flandes no volvia.
        Era una tarde serena,
      Doraba el sol de occidente
      Del Tajo la vega amena,
      Y apoyada en una almena
25    Miraba Ines la corriente.
        Iban las tranquilas olas
      Las riberas azotando
      Bajo las murallas solas,
      Musgo, espigas y amapolas                                 page 99
      Ligeramente doblando.
        Algun olmo que escondido
      Crecio entre la hierba blanda,
      Sobre las aguas tendido
5     Se reflejaba perdido
      En su cristalina banda.
        Y algun ruisenor colgado
      Entre su fresca espesura
      Daba al aire embalsamado
10    Su cantico regalado
      Desde la enramada obscura.
        Y algun pez con cien colores,
      Tornasolada la escama,
      Saltaba a besar las flores,
15    Que exhalan gratos olores,
      A las puntas de una rama.
        Y alla en el tremulo fondo
      El torreon se dibuja
      Como el contorno redondo
20    Del hueco sombrio y hondo
      Que habita nocturna bruja.
        Asi la nina lloraba
      El rigor de su fortuna,
      Y asi la tarde pasaba
25    Y al horizonte trepaba
      La consoladora luna.
        A lo lejos por el llano
      En confuso remolino
      Vio de hombres tropel lejano                             page 100
      Que en pardo polvo liviano
      Dejan envuelto el camino.
        Bajo Ines del torreon,
      Y llegando recelosa
5     A las puertas del Cambron,
      Sintio latir zozobrosa
      Mas inquieto el corazon.
        Tan galan como altanero
      Dejo ver la escasa luz
10    Por bajo el arco primero
      Un hidalgo caballero
      En un caballo andaluz;
        Jubon negro acuchillado,
      Banda azul, lazo en la hombrera,
15    Y sin pluma al diestro lado
      El sombrero derribado
      Tocando con la gorguera;
        Bombacho gris guarnecido,
      Bota de ante, espuela de oro,
20    Hierro al cinto suspendido,
      Y a una cadena prendido
      Agudo cuchillo moro.
        Vienen tras este jinete
      Sobre potros jerezanos
25    De lanceros hasta siete,
      Y en adarga y coselete
      Diez peones castellanos.
         Asiose a su estribo Ines
      Gritando:--iDiego, eres tu!--                            page 101
      Y el viendola de traves
      Dijo--iVoto a Belcebu,
      Que no me acuerdo, quien es!--
        Dio la triste un alarido
5     Tal respuesta al escuchar,
      Y a poco perdio el sentido,
      Sin que mas voz ni gemido
      Volviera en tierra a exhalar.
        Frunciendo ambas a dos cejas
10    Encomendola a su gente,
      Diciendo:--iMalditas viejas
      Que a las mozas malamente
      Enloquecen con consejas!--
        Y aplicando el capitan
15    A su potro las espuelas
      El rostro a Toledo dan,
      Y a trote cruzando van
      Las obscuras callejuelas.

                 IV

        Asi por sus altos fines
20    Dispone y permite el cielo
      Que puedan mudar al hombre
      Fortuna, poder y tiempo.
      A Flandes partio Martinez
      De soldado aventurero,
25    Y por su suerte y hazanas
      Alli capitan le hicieron.
      Segun alzaba en honores                                  page 102
      Alzabase en pensamientos,
      Y tanto ayudo en la guerra
      Con su valor y altos hechos,
      Que el mismo rey a su vuelta
5     Le armo en Madrid caballero,
      Tomandole a su servicio
      Por capitan de lanceros.
      Y otro no fue que Martinez
      Quien ha poco entro en Toledo,
10    Tan orgulloso y ufano
      Cual salio humilde y pequeno.
      Ni es otro a quien se dirige,
      Cobrado el conocimiento,
      La amorosa Ines de Vargas,
15    Que vive por el muriendo.
      Mas el, que olvidando todo
      Olvido su nombre mesmo,
      Puesto que hoy Diego Martinez
      Es el capitan Don Diego,
20    Ni se ablanda a sus caricias,
      Ni cura de sus lamentos;
      Diciendo que son locuras
      De gentes de poco seso;
      Que ni el prometio casarse
25    Ni penso jamas en ello.
      iTanto mudan a los hombres
      Fortuna, poder y tiempo!
      En vano porfiaba Ines
      Con amenazas y ruegos;                                   page 103
      Cuanto mas ella importuna
      Esta Martinez severo.
      Abrazada a sus rodillas
      Enmaranado el cabello,
5     La hermosa nina lloraba
      Prosternada por el suelo.
      Mas todo empeno es inutil,
      Porque el capitan Don Diego
      No ha de ser Diego Martinez
10    Como lo era en otro tiempo.
      Y asi llamando a su gente,
      De amor y piedad ajeno,
      Mandoles que a Ines llevaran
      De grado o de valimiento.
15    Mas ella antes que la asieran,               15
      Cesando un punto en su duelo,
      Asi hablo, el rostro lloroso
      Hacia Martinez volviendo:
      "Contigo se fue mi honra,
20    Conmigo tu juramento;                      20
      Pues buenas prendas son ambas,
      En buen fiel las pesaremos."
      Y la faz descolorida
      En la mantilla envolviendo,
25    A pasos desatentados                    25
      Saliose del aposento.
                                                              page 104
                 V

        Era entonces de Toledo
      Por el rey gobernador
      El justiciero y valiente
      Don Pedro Ruiz de Alarcon.
5     Muchos anos por su patria
      El buen viejo peleo;
      Cercenado tiene un brazo,
      Mas entero el corazon.
      La mesa tiene delante,
10    Los jueces en derredor,
      Los corchetes a la puerta
      Y en la derecha el baston.
      Esta, como presidente
      Del tribunal superior,
15    Entre un dosel y una alfombra
      Reclinado en un sillon,
      Escuchando con paciencia
      La casi asmatica voz
20    Con que un tetrico escribano
      Solfea una apelacion.
      Los asistentes bostezan
      Al murmullo arrullador,
      Los jueces medio dormidos
      Hacen pliegues al ropon,
25    Los escribanos repasan
      Sus pergaminos al sol,
      Los corchetes a una moza                                 page 105
      Guinan en un corredor,
      Y abajo en Zocodover
      Gritan en discorde son
      Los que en el mercado venden
5     Lo vendido y el valor.
        Una mujer en tal punto,
      En faz de grande afliccion,
      Rojos de llorar los ojos,
      Ronca de gemir la voz,
10    Suelto el cabello y el manto,
      Tomo plaza en el salon
      Diciendo a gritos: "iJusticia,
      Jueces; justicia, senor!"
      Y a los pies se arroja humilde
15    De Don Pedro de Alarcon,
      En tanto que los curiosos
      Se agitan al rededor.
      Alzola cortes Don Pedro
      Calmando la confusion
20    Y el tumultuoso murmullo
      Que esta escena ocasiono,
      Diciendo:
                  --Mujer, ?que quieres?
      --Quiero justicia, senor.
      --?De que?
                  --De una prenda hurtada.
25    --?Que prenda?
                      --Mi corazon.
      --?Tu le diste?                                          page 106
                      --Le preste.
      --?Y no te le han vuelto?
                                --No.
      --?Tienes testigos?
                         --Ninguno.
      --?Y promesa?
                    --iSi, por Dios!
      Que al partirse de Toledo
5     Un juramento empeno.
      --?Quien es el?
                      --Diego Martinez.
      --?Noble?
                --Y capitan, senor.
      --Presentadme al capitan,
      Que cumplira si juro.--
10    Quedo en silencio la sala,
      Y a poco en el corredor
      Se oyo de botas y espuelas
      El acompasado son.
      Un portero, levantando
15    El tapiz, en alta voz
      Dijo:--El capitan Don Diego.--
      Y entro luego en el salon
      Diego Martinez, los ojos
      Llenos de orgullo y furor.
20    --?Sois el capitan Don Diego,
      Dijole Don Pedro, vos?--
      Contesto altivo y sereno
      Diego Martinez:                                          page 107
                      --Yo soy.
      --?Conoceis a esta muchacha?
      --Ha tres anos, salvo error.
      --?Hicisteisla juramento
      De ser su marido?--
                          --No.
5     --?Jurais no haberlo jurado?
      --Si juro.--
                    --Pues id con Dios.
      --iMiente!--clamo Ines llorando
      De despecho y de rubor.
      --Mujer, ipiensa lo que dices!...
10    --Digo que miente, juro.
      --?Tienes testigos?
                          --Ninguno.
      --Capitan, idos con Dios,
      Y dispensad que acusado
      Dudara de vuestro honor.--
15      Torno Martinez la espalda
      Con brusca satisfaccion,
      E Ines, que le vio partirse,
      Resuelta y firme grito:
      --Llamadle, tengo un testigo.
20    Llamadle otra vez, senor.--
      Volvio el capitan Don Diego,
      Sentose Ruiz de Alarcon,
      La multitud aquietose
      Y la de Vargas siguio:
25    --Tengo un testigo a quien nunca                         page 108
      Falto verdad ni razon.
      --?Quien?
                --Un hombre que de lejos
      Nuestras palabras oyo,
      Mirandonos desde arriba.
5     --?Estaba en algun balcon?
      --No, que estaba en un suplicio
      Donde ha tiempo que expiro.
      --?Luego es muerto?
                          --No, que vive.
      --Estais loca, ivive Dios!
10    ?Quien fue?
                  --El CRISTO de la Vega
      A cuya faz perjuro.--
        Pusieronse en pie los jueces
      Al nombre del Redentor,
      Escuchando con asombro
15    Tan excelsa apelacion.
      Reino un profundo silencio
      De sorpresa y de pavor,
      Y Diego bajo los ojos
      De vergueenza y confusion.
20    Un instante con los jueces
      Don Pedro en secreto hablo,
      Y levantose diciendo
      Con respetuosa voz:
        "La ley es ley para todos,
25    Tu testigo es el mejor,
      Mas para tales testigos                                  page 109
      No hay mas tribunal que Dios.
      Haremos... lo que sepamos;
      Escribano, al caer el sol
      Al CRISTO que esta en la vega
5     Tomareis declaracion."

                  VI

        Es una tarde serena,
      Cuya luz tornasolada
      Del purpurino horizonte
      Blandamente se derrama.
10    Placido aroma las flores
      Sus hojas plegando exhalan,
      Y el cefiro entre perfumes
      Mece las tremulas alas.
      Brillan abajo en el valle
15    Con suave rumor las aguas,
      Y las aves en la orilla
      Despidiendo al dia cantan.
        Alla por el _Miradero_
      Por el Cambron y Visagra
20    Confuso tropel de gente
      Del Tajo a la vega baja.
      Vienen delante Don Pedro
      De Alarcon, Iban de Vargas,
      Su hija Ines, los escribanos,
25    Los corchetes y los guardias;
      Y detras monjes, hidalgos,
      Mozas, chicos y canalla.                                 page 110
      Otra turba de curiosos
      En la vega les aguarda,
      Cada cual comentariando
      El caso segun le cuadra.
5     Entre ellos esta Martinez
      En apostura bizarra,
      Calzadas espuelas de oro,
      Valona de encaje blanca,
      Bigote a la borgonona,
10    Melena desmelenada,
      El sombrero guarnecido
      Con cuatro lazos de plata,
      Un pie delante del otro,
      Y el puno en el de la espada.
15    Los plebeyos de reojo
      Le miran de entre las capas,
      Los chicos al uniforme
      Y las mozas a la cara.
      Llegado el gobernador
20    Y gente que le acompana,
      Entraron todos al claustro
      Que iglesia y patio separa.
      Encendieron ante el CRISTO
      Cuatro cirios y una lampara,
25    Y de hinojos un momento
      Le rezaron en voz baja.

        Esta el CRISTO de la Vega
      La cruz en tierra posada,
      Los pies alzados del suelo                               page 111
      Poco menos de una vara;
      Hacia la severa imagen
      Un notario se adelanta,
      De modo que con el rostro
5     Al pecho santo llegaba.
      A un lado tiene a Martinez,
      A otro lado a Ines de Vargas,
      Detras al gobernador
      Con sus jueces y sus guardias.
10    Despues de leer dos veces
      La acusacion entablada,
      El notario a Jesucristo
      Asi demando en voz alta:
      --"_Jesus, Hijo de Maria,
15    Ante nos esta manana
      Citado como testigo
      Por boca de Ines de Vargas,
      ?Jurais ser cierto que un dia
      A vuestras divinas plantas
20    Juro a Ines Diego Martinez
      Por su mujer desposarla?_"

        Asida a un _brazo_ desnudo
      Una _mano_ atarazada
      Vino a posar en los autos
25    La seca y hendida palma,
      Y alla en los aires "iSi JURO!"
      Clamo una voz mas que humana.

        Alzo la turba medrosa
      La vista a la imagen santa...                            page 112
      Los labios tenia abiertos,
      Y una mano desclavada.

             CONCLUSION

        Las vanidades del mundo
      Renuncio alli mismo Ines,
5     Y espantado de si propio
      Diego Martinez tambien.
      Los escribanos temblando
      Dieron de esta escena fe,
      Firmando como testigos
10    Cuantos hubieron poder.
      Fundose un aniversario
      Y una capilla con el,
      Y Don Pedro de Alarcon
      El altar ordeno hacer,
15    Donde hasta el tiempo que corre,
      Y en cada un ano una vez,
      Con la mano desclavada
      El crucifijo se ve.


       DON ANTONIO DE TRUEBA

         CANTOS DE PAJARO

        Tengo yo un pajarillo
20    Que el dia pasa
      Cantando entre las flores
      De mi ventana;                                           page 113
      Y un canto alegre
      A todo pasajero
      Dedica siempre.
      Tiene mi pajarillo
5     Siempre armonias
      Para alegrar el alma
      Del que camina...
      iOh cielo santo,
      Por que no haran los hombres
10    Lo que los pajaros!
      Cuando mi pajarillo
      Cantos entona,
      Pasajeros ingratos
      Cantos le arrojan:
15    Mas no por eso 15
      Niega sus armonias
      Al pasajero.
      Tiende las leves alas,
      Cruza las nubes
20    Y canta junto al cielo
      Con voz mas dulce:
      "Paz a los hombres
      Y gloria al que en la altura
      Rige los orbes!"
25    Y yo sigo el ejemplo
      Del ave mansa
      Que canta entre las flores
      De mi ventana,
      Porque es sabido                                         page 114
      Que poetas y pajaros
      Somos lo mismo.


             LA PEREJILERA

        Al salir el sol dorado
      Esta manana te vi
5     Cogiendo, nina, en tu huerto
      Matitas de perejil.
        Para verte mas de cerca
      En el huerto me meti,
      Y sabras que eche de menos
10    Mi corazon al salir.
        Tu debiste de encontrarle,
      Que en el huerto le perdi.
      "Damele, perejilera,
      Que te le vengo a pedir."


      DON JOSE SELGAS Y CARRASCO

             LA MODESTIA

15      Por las flores proclamado
      Rey de una hermosa pradera,
      Un clavel afortunado
      Dio principio a su reinado
      Al nacer la primavera.
20      Con majestad soberana
      Llevaba y con noble brio
      El regio manto de grana,                                 page 115
      Y sobre la frente ufana
      La corona de rocio.
        Su comitiva de honor
      Mandaba, por ser costumbre,
5     El cefiro volador,
      Y habia en su servidumbre
      Hierbas y malvas de olor.
        Su voluntad poderosa,
      Porque tambien era uso,
10    Quiso una flor para esposa,
      Y regiamente dispuso
      Elegir la mas hermosa.
        Como era costumbre y ley,
      Y porque causa delicia
15    En la numerosa grey,
      Pronto corrio la noticia
      Por los estados del rey.
        Y en revuelta actividad
      Cada flor abre el arcano
20    De su fecunda beldad,
      Por prender la voluntad
      Del hermoso soberano.
        Y hasta las menos apuestas
      Engalanarse se vian
25    Con harta envidia, dispuestas
      A ver las solemnes fiestas
      Que celebrarse debian.
        Lujosa la Corte brilla:
      El rey, admirado, duda,                                  page 116
      Cuando ocultarse sencilla
      Vio una tierna florecilla
      Entre la hierba menuda.

        Y por si el regio esplendor
5     De su corona le inquieta,
      Preguntale con amor:
      --"?Como te llamas?"--"Violeta,"
      Dijo temblando la flor.

        --"?Y te ocultas cuidadosa
10    Y no luces tus colores,
      Violeta dulce y medrosa,
      Hoy que entre todas las flores
      Va el rey a elegir esposa?"

15      Siempre temblando la flor,
      Aunque llena de placer,
      Suspiro y dijo: "Senor,
      Yo no puedo merecer
      Tan distinguido favor."

        El rey, suspenso, la mira
20    Y se inclina dulcemente;
      Tanta modestia le admira;
      Su blanda esencia respira,
      Y dice alzando la frente:

        "Me depara mi ventura
25    Esposa noble y apuesta;                                  page 117
      Sepa, si alguno murmura,
      Que la mejor hermosura
      Es la hermosura modesta."

        Dijo, y el aura afanosa
5     Publico en forma de ley,
      Con voz dulce y melodiosa,
      Que la violeta es la esposa
      Elegida por el rey.

        Hubo magnificas fiestas,
10    Ambos esposos se dieron
      Pruebas de amor manifiestas,
      Y en aquel reinado fueron
      Todas las flores modestas.


             DON PEDRO A. DE ALARCON

                  EL MONT-BLANC

        iHeme al fin en la cumbre soberana!...
15    iNieve perpetua..., soledad doquiera!...
      ?Quien sino el hombre, en su soberbia insana,
      A hollar estos desiertos se atreviera?
        Aqui enmudece hasta la voz del viento...;
      Profundo mar parece el horizonte...,
20    Unica playa el alto firmamento...,
      Anclada nave el solitario monte.
        iNada en torno de mi!... iTodo a mis plantas!          page 118
      Obscuros bosques, relucientes rios,
      Lagos, campinas, paramos, gargantas...
      iEuropa entera yace a los pies mios!
        iY cuan pequena la terrestre vida,
5     Cuan relegado el humanal imperio
      Se ve desde estos hielos donde anida
      El _Monte Blanco_, el rey del hemisferio!
        iDe aqui tiende su cetro sobre el mundo!
      El Danubio opulento, el Po anchuroso,
10    El luengo Rhin y el Rodano profundo,
      Hijos son de los hijos del Coloso.
        Debajo de el... los Alpes se eslabonan
      Como escabeles de su trono inmenso:
      Debajo de el... las nubes se amontonan
15    Cual humo leve de quemado incienso.
        iSobre el... los cielos nada mas! La tarde
      Le invidia al verlo de fulgor cenido...
      Llega la noche, y aun su frente arde
      Con reflejos de un sol por siempre hundido.
20      Alla turnan con raudo movimiento
      Una y otra estacion... El permanece
      Mudo, inmovil, esteril. iMonumento
      De la implacable eternidad parece!
        Ni el oso atroz ni el traicionero lobo
25    Huellan jamas su excelsitud nevada...
      Huerfano vive del calor del globo...
      iEn el principia el reino de la nada!
        Por eso, ufano de su horror profundo,
      Dichoso aqui mi corazon palpita...                       page 119
      iAqui solo con Dios..., fuera del mundo!
      iSolo, bajo la boveda infinita!
        iY que sueave, deleitosa calma
      Brinda a mi pecho esta region inerte!...
5     Asi concibe fatigada el alma
      El tardo bien de la benigna muerte.
        iMorir aqui! De los poblados valles
      No retornar a la angustiosa vida:
      No escuchar mas los lastimosos ayes
10    De la cuitada humanidad caida:
        Desparecer, huyendo de la tierra,
      Desde esta cima que se acerca al cielo:
      Por siempre desertar de aquella guerra,
      De eterna libertad tendiendo el vuelo...
15      Tal ansia acude al corazon llagado,
      Al mirarte, ioh _Mont-Blanc!_, erguir la frente
      Sobre un misero mundo atribulado
      Por el cierzo y el rayo y el torrente.
        iTu nada temes! De tu imperio yerto
20    Solo Dios es senor, fuerza y medida:
      iComo el ancho Oceano y el Desierto,
      Tu vives solo de tu propia vida!
        La tierra acaba en tu glacial palacio;
      Tuya es la azul inmensidad aerea:
25    Tu ves mas luz, mas astros, mas espacio...;
      iParte eres ya de la mansion eterea!
        iAdios! Retorno al mundo... Acaso un dia
      Ya de la tierra el corazon no lata,
      Y sobre su haz inanimada y fria                          page 120
      Tiendas tu manto de luciente plata...
        Sera entonces tu reino silencioso
      Cuanto hoy circunda y cubre el Oceano...
        iAdios!... Impera en tanto desdenoso
5     Sobre la insania del orgullo humano.


              EL SECRETO

      "_iYo no quiero morirme!_"
        --Dice la nina,
      Tendiendo hacia su madre
        Dos manecitas
10      Calenturientas,
      Cual dos blancos jazmines
        Que el viento seca...
      Un silencio de muerte
        La madre guarda...
15    iAy! isi hablara, vertiera
        Mares de lagrimas!
        Besa a la nina,
      iY aun le fingen sus labios
        Una sonrisa!
20    Del cuello de la madre
        La hija se cuelga
      Y, pegada a su oido,
        Palida y tremula,
        Con sordo acento,
25    Dicele horrorizada:
        --"_Oye un secreto:_                                   page 121
      _?Sabes por que a morirme
        Le temo tanto?
      Porque luego me llevan,
        Toda de blanco,
5       Al cementerio...,
      iY de verme alli sola
        Va a darme miedo!_"
      --"_Hija de mis entranas!_
        (Grita la madre)
10    _Dios querra que me vivas...;
        Y, aunque te mate,
        Descuida, hermosa;
      Que tu en el cementerio
        No estaras sola._"


       DON GUSTAVO ADOLFO BECQUER

              RIMAS

               II

15      Saeta que voladora
      Cruza, arrojada al azar,
      Sin adivinarse donde
      Temblando se clavara;
        Hoja que del arbol seca
20    Arrebata el vendaval,
      Sin que nadie acierte el surco
      Donde a caer volvera;
        Gigante ola que el viento                              page 122
      Riza y empuja en el mar,
      Y rueda y pasa, y no sabe
      Que playa buscando va;
        Luz que en cercos temblorosos
5     Brilla, proxima a expirar,
      Ignorandose cual de ellos
      El ultimo brillara;
        Eso soy yo, que al acaso
      Cruzo el mundo, sin pensar
10    De donde vengo, ni adonde
      Mis pasos me llevaran.

                     VII

        Del salon en el angulo obscuro,
      De su dueno tal vez olvidada,
      Silenciosa y cubierta de polvo
15         Veiase el arpa.
        iCuanta nota dormia en sus cuerdas
      Como el pajaro duerme en las ramas,
      Esperando la mano de nieve
           Que sabe arrancarlas!
20      iAy! pense; icuantas veces el genio
      Asi duerme en el fondo del alma,
      Y una voz, como Lazaro, espera
      Que le diga: "Levantate y anda!"

                     LIII

      Volveran las obscuras golondrinas
25    En tu balcon sus nidos a colgar,                         page 123
      Y, otra vez, con el ala a sus cristales
             Jugando llamaran;

      Pero aquellas que el vuelo refrenaban
      Tu hermosura y mi dicha a contemplar,
5     Aquellas que aprendieron nuestros nombres...
             Esas... ino volveran!

      Volveran las tupidas madreselvas
      De tu jardin las tapias a escalar,
      Y otra vez a la tarde, aun mas hermosas,
10           Sus flores se abriran;

      Pero aquellas, cuajadas de rocio,
      Cuyas gotas mirabamos temblar
      Y caer, como lagrimas del dia...
             Esas... ino volveran!

15    Volveran del amor en tus oidos
      Las palabras ardientes a sonar;
      Tu corazon de su profundo sueno
             Tal vez despertara;

      Pero mudo y absorto y de rodillas,
20    Como se adora a Dios ante su altar,
      Como yo te he querido... desenganate,
             iAsi no te querran!
                                                               page 124
              LXXIII

        Cerraron sus ojos
      Que aun tenia abiertos;
      Taparon su cara
      Con un blanco lienzo;
5     y unos sollozando,
      Otros en silencio,
      De la triste alcoba
      Todos se salieron.

        La luz, que en un vaso
10    Ardia en el suelo,
      Al muro arrojaba
      La sombra del lecho;
      Y entre aquella sombra
      Veiase a intervalos
15    Dibujarse rigida
      La forma del cuerpo.

        Despertaba el dia
      Y a su albor primero
      Con sus mil rueidos
20    Despertaba el pueblo.
      Ante aquel contraste
      De vida y misterios,
      De luz y tinieblas,
      Medite un momento:
25    "_iDios mio, que solos
      Se quedan los muertos!_"
                                                               page 125
        De la casa en hombros
      Llevaronla al templo,
      Y en una capilla
      Dejaron el feretro.
5     Alli rodearon
      Sus palidos restos
      De amarillas velas
      Y de panos negros.

        Al dar de las animas
10    El toque postrero,
      Acabo una vieja
      Sus ultimos rezos;
      Cruzo la ancha nave,
      Las puertas gimieron,
15    Y el santo recinto
      Quedose desierto.

        De un reloj se oia
      Compasado el pendulo,
      Y de algunos cirios
20    El chisporroteo.
      Tan medroso y triste,
      Tan obscuro y yerto
      Todo se encontraba...
      Que pense un momento:
25    "_iDios mio, que solos
      Se quedan los muertos!_"
                                                               page 126
        De la alta campana
      La lengua de hierro,
      Le dio, volteando,
      Su adios lastimero.
5     El luto en las ropas,
      Amigos y deudos
      Cruzaron en fila,
      Formando el cortejo.

        Del ultimo asilo,
10    Obscuro y estrecho,
      Abrio la piqueta
      El nicho a un extremo.
      Alli la acostaron,
      Tapiaronle luego,
15    Y con un saludo
      Despidiose el duelo.

        La piqueta al hombro,
      El sepulturero
      Cantando entre dientes
20    Se perdio a lo lejos.
      La noche se entraba,
      Reinaba el silencio;
      Perdido en las sombras,
      Medite un momento:
25    _"iDios mio, que solos
      Se quedan los muertos!"_
                                                               page 127
        En las largas noches
      Del helado invierno,
      Cuando las maderas
      Crujir hace el viento
5     Y azota los vidrios
      El fuerte aguacero,
      De la pobre nina
      A solas me acuerdo.

        Alli cae la lluvia
10    Con un son eterno;
      Alli la combate
      El soplo del cierzo.
      iDel humedo muro
      Tendida en el hueco,
15    Acaso de frio
      Se hielan sus huesos!...

        ?Vuelve el polvo al polvo?
      ?Vuela el alma al cielo?
      ?Todo es vil materia,
20    Podredumbre y cieno?
      iNo se: pero hay algo
      Que explicar no puedo,
      Que al par nos infunde
      Repugnancia y duelo,
25    Al dejar tan tristes,
      Tan solos los muertos!
                                                               page 128

            DON VICENTE W. QUEROL

               EN NOCHE-BUENA

            A mis ancianos padres

                    I

        Un ano mas en el hogar paterno
      Celebramos la fiesta del Dios-Nino,
      Simbolo augusto del amor eterno,
      Cuando cubre los montes el invierno
5             Con su manto de armino.           5

                   II

        Como en el dia de la fausta boda
      O en el que el santo de los padres llega,
      La turba alegre de los ninos juega,
      Y en la ancha sala la familia toda
10            De noche se congrega.           10

                   III

        La roja lumbre de los troncos brilla
      Del pequeno dormido en la mejilla,
      Que con timido afan su madre besa;
      Y se refleja alegre en la vajilla
15            De la dispuesta mesa.

                   IV

        A su sobrino, que lo escucha atento,
      Mi hermana dice el pavoroso cuento,                      page 129
      Y mi otra hermana la cancion modula
      Que, o bien surge vibrante, o bien ondula
              Prolongada en el viento.

                   V

        Mi madre tiende las rugosas manos
5     Al nieto que huye por la blanda alfombra;
      Hablan de pie mi padre y mis hermanos,
      Mientras yo, recatandome en la sombra,
              Pienso en hondos arcanos.

                   VI

        Pienso que de los dias de ventura
10    Las horas van apresurando el paso,
      Y que empana el oriente niebla obscura,
      Cuando aun el rayo tremulo fulgura
              Ultimo del ocaso.

                   VII

        iPadres mios, mi amor! iComo envenena
15    Las breves dichas el temor del dano!
      Hoy presidis nuestra modesta cena,
      Pero en el porvenir... yo se que un ano
              Vendra sin Noche-Buena.

                   VIII

        Vendra, y las que hoy son risas y alborozo
20    Seran muda afliccion y hondo sollozo.
      No cantara mi hermana, y mi sobrina
      No escuchara la historia peregrina
              Que le da miedo y gozo.
                                                               page 130
                   IX

        No dara nuestro hogar rojos destellos
      Sobre el limpio cristal de la vajilla,
      Y, si alguien osa hablar, sera de aquellos
      Que hoy honran nuestra fiesta tan sencilla
5             Con sus blancos cabellos.

                    X

        Blancos cabellos cuya amada hebra
      Es cual corona de laurel de plata,
      Mejor que esas coronas que celebra
      La vil lisonja, la ignorancia acata,
10            Y el infortunio quiebra.

                   XI

        iPadres mios, mi amor! Cuando contemplo
      La sublime bondad de vuestro rostro,
      Mi alma a los trances de la vida templo,
      Y ante esa imagen para orar me postro,
15            Cual me postro en el templo.

                   XII

        Cada arruga que surca ese semblante
      Es del trabajo la profunda huella,
      O fue un dolor de vuestro pecho amante.
      La historia fiel de una epoca distante
20            Puedo leer yo en ella.

                  XIII

        La historia de los tiempos sin ventura
      En que luchasteis con la adversa suerte,                 page 131
      Y en que, tras negras horas de amargura,
      Mi madre se sintio mas noble y pura
              Y mi padre mas fuerte.

                   XIV

        Cuando la noche toda en la cansada
5     Labor tuvisteis vuestros ojos fijos,
      Y, al venceros el sueno a la alborada,
      Fuerzas os dio posar vuestra mirada
              En los dormidos hijos.

                   XV

        Las lagrimas correr una tras una
10    Con noble orgullo por mi faz yo siento,
      Pensando que hayan sido por fortuna,
      Esas honradas manos mi sustento
              Y esos brazos mi cuna.

                   XVI

        iPadres mios, mi amor! Mi alma quisiera
15    Pagaros hoy la que en mi edad primera
      Sufristeis sin gemir lenta agonia,
      Y que cada dolor de entonces fuera
              Germen de una alegria.

                   XVII

        Entonces vuestro mal curaba el gozo
20    De ver al hijo convertirse en mozo,
      Mientras que al verme yo en vuestra presencia
      Siento mi dicha ahogada en el sollozo
              De una temida ausencia.
                                                               page 132
                   XVIII

        Si el vigor juvenil volver de nuevo
      Pudiese a vuestra edad, ?por que estas penas?
      Yo os daria mi sangre de mancebo,
      Tornando asi con ella a vuestras venas
5             Esta vida que os debo.

                   XIX

        Que de tal modo la afliccion me embarga
      Pensando en la posible despedida,
      Que imagino ha de ser tarea amarga
      Llevar la vida, como inutil carga,
10            Despues de vuestra vida.

                   XX

        Ese plazo fatal, sordo, inflexible,
      Miro acercarse con profundo espanto,
      Y en dudas grita el corazon sensible:
      --"Si aplacar al destino es imposible,
15           ?Para que amarnos tanto?"

                   XXI

        Para estar juntos en la vida eterna
      Cuando acabe esta vida transitoria:
      Si Dios, que el curso universal gobierna,
      Nos devuelve en el cielo esta union tierna,
20            Yo no aspiro a mas gloria.

                   XXII

        Pero en tanto, buen Dios, mi mejor palma
      Sera que prolongueis la dulce calma                      page 133
      Que hoy nuestro hogar en su recinto encierra:
      Para marchar yo solo por la tierra
              No hay fuerzas en mi alma.


                DON RAMON DE CAMPOAMOR

                 PROXIMIDAD DEL BIEN

        En el tiempo en que el mundo informe estaba,
      Creo el Senor, cuando por dicha extrema
5     El paraiso terrenal formaba,
      Un fruto que del mal era el emblema
      Y otro fruto que el bien simbolizaba.

        Del miserable Adan al mismo lado
10    El Senor coloco del bien el fruto;
      Pero Adan nunca el bien hallo, ofuscado,
      Porque es del hombre misero atributo
      Huir del bien, del mal siempre arrastrado.

        El fruto que del mal el simbolo era
15    Puso Dios escondido y muy lejano;
      Pero Adan lo encontraba donde quiera,
      Abandonando en su falaz quimera,
      Por el lejano mal, el bien cercano.

        iAh! siempre el hombre en su ilusion maldita
20    Su misma dicha en despreciar se empena,                  page 134
      Y al seguirla tenaz, tenaz la evita,
      Y aunque en su mismo corazon palpita,
      iLejos, muy lejos, con afan la suena!


                 iQUIEN SUPIERA ESCRIBIR!

                          I

      --Escribidme una carta, senor Cura.
5             --Ya se para quien es.
      --?Sabeis quien es, porque una noche obscura
              Nos visteis juntos?--Pues.

      --Perdonad; mas...--No extrano ese tropiezo.
              La noche... la ocasion...
10    Dadme pluma y papel. Gracias. Empiezo:
              _Mi querido Ramon_:

      --?Querido?... Pero, en fin, ya lo habeis puesto...
          --Si no quereis...--iSi, si!
      --_iQue triste estoy!_ ? No es eso?--Por supuesto.
15            --_iQue triste estoy sin ti!_

      _Una congoja, al empezar, me viene_...
              --?Como sabeis mi mal?
      --Para un viejo, una nina siempre tiene
              El pecho de cristal.

20    _?Que es sin ti el mundo? Un valle de amargura.
              ?Y contigo? Un eden._
      --Haced la letra clara, senor Cura;
              Que lo entienda eso bien.
                                                               page 135
      --_El beso aquel que de marchar a punto
              Te di_...--?Como sabeis?...
      --Cuando se va y se viene y se esta junto
              Siempre... no os afrenteis.

5     _Y si volver tu afecto no procura,_
              _Tanto me haras sufrir..._
      --?Sufrir y nada mas? No, senor Cura,
              iQue me voy a morir!

      --?Morir? ?Sabeis que es ofender al cielo?...
10           --Pues, si, senor, imorir!
      --Yo no pongo _morir_.--iQue hombre de hielo!
              iQuien supiera escribir!

                        II

      iSenor Rector, senor Rector! en vano
              Me quereis complacer,
15    Si no encarnan los signos de la mano
              Todo el ser de mi ser.

      Escribidle, por Dios, que el alma mia
              Ya en mi no quiere estar;
      Que la pena no me ahoga cada dia...
20            Porque puedo llorar.

      Que mis labios, las rosas de su aliento,
              No se saben abrir;
      Que olvidan de la risa el movimiento
              A fuerza de sentir.
                                                               page 136
      Que mis ojos, que el tiene por tan bellos,
              Cargados con mi afan,
      Como no tienen quien se mire en ellos,
              Cerrados siempre estan.

5     Que es, de cuantos tormentos he sufrido,
              La ausencia el mas atroz;
      Que es un perpetuo sueno de mi oido
              El eco de su voz...

      Que siendo por su causa, el alma mia
10            iGoza tanto en sufrir!...
      Dios mio icuantas cosas le diria
              Si supiera escribir!...

                     III

                   EPILOGO

      --Pues senor, ibravo amor! Copio y concluyo:
              _A don Ramon_... En fin,
15    Que es inutil saber para esto, arguyo,
              Ni el griego ni el latin.


              EL MAYOR CASTIGO

        Cuando de Virgilio en pos
      Fue el Dante al infierno a dar,
      Su conciencia, hija de Dios,
20    Dejo a la puerta al entrar.

        Despues que a salir volvio,
      Su conciencia el Dante hallando,                         page 137
      Con ella otra vez cargo,
      Mas dijo asi suspirando:
        Del infierno en lo profundo,
      No vi tan atroz sentencia
5     Como es la de ir por el mundo
      Cargado con la conciencia.


           DON GASPAR NUNEZ DE ARCE

                  iEXCELSIOR!

      ?Por que los corazones miserables,
          Por que las almas viles,
      En los fieros combates de la vida
10        Ni luchan ni resisten?

      El espiritu humano es mas constante
          Cuanto mas se levanta:
      Dios puso el fango en la llanura, y puso
          La roca en la montana.

15    La blanca nieve que en los hondos valles
          Derritese ligera,
      En las altivas cumbres permanece
          Inmutable y eterna.


                    TRISTEZAS

        Cuando recuerdo la piedad sincera
20            Con que en mi edad primera
      Entraba en nuestras viejas catedrales,                   page 138
      Donde postrado ante la cruz de hinojos
              Alzaba a Dios mis ojos,
      Sonando en las venturas celestiales;

        Hoy que mi frente atonito golpeo,
              Y con febril deseo          5
      Busco los restos de mi fe perdida,
      Por hallarla otra vez, radiante y bella
              Como en la edad aquella,
      iDesgraciado de mi! diera la vida.

10      iCon que profundo amor, nino inocente,
              Prosternaba mi frente
      En las losas del templo sacrosanto!
      Llenabase mi joven fantasia
              De luz, de poesia,
15    De mudo asombro, de terrible espanto.

        Aquellas altas bovedas que al cielo
              Levantaban mi anhelo;
      Aquella majestad solemne y grave;
      Aquel pausado canto, parecido
20            A un doliente gemido,
      Que retumbaba en la espaciosa nave;

        Las marmoreas y austeras esculturas
              De antiguas sepulturas,
      Aspiracion del arte a lo infinito;                       page 139
      La luz que por los vidrios de colores
              Sus tibios resplandores
      Quebraba en los pilares de granito;

        Haces de donde en curva fugitiva,
5             Para formar la ojiva,
      Cada ramal subiendo se separa,
      Cual del rumor de multitud que ruega,
              Cuando a los cielos llega,
      Surge cada oracion distinta y clara;

10      En el gotico altar inmoble y fijo
              El santo crucifijo,
      Que extiende sin vigor sus brazos yertos,
      Siempre en la sorda lucha de la vida,
              Tan aspera y renida,
15    Para el dolor y la humildad abiertos;

        El mistico clamor de la campana
             Que sobre el alma humana
      De las caladas torres se despena,
      Y anuncia y lleva en sus aladas notas
20           Mil promesas ignotas
      Al triste corazon que sufre o suena;

        Todo elevaba mi animo intranquilo
             A mas sereno asilo:
      Religion, arte, soledad, misterio...                     page 140
      Todo en el templo secular hacia
              Vibrar el alma mia,
      Como vibran las cuerdas de un salterio.

        Y a esta voz interior que solo entiende
5             Quien credulo se enciende
      En fervoroso y celestial carino,
      Envuelta en sus flotantes vestiduras
              Volaba a las alturas,
      Virgen sin mancha, mi oracion de nino.

10      Su rauda, viva y luminosa huella
              Como fugaz centella
      Traspasaba el espacio, y ante el puro
      Resplandor de sus alas de querube,
              Rasgabase la nube
15    Que me ocultaba el inmortal seguro.

        iOh anhelo de esta vida transitoria!
              iOh perdurable gloria!
      iOh sed inextinguible del deseo!
      iOh cielo, que antes para mi tenias
20            Fulgores y armonias,
      Y hoy tan obscuro y desolado veo!

        Ya no templas mis intimos pesares,
              Ya al pie de tus altares
      Como en mis anos de candor no acudo.                     page 141
      Para llegar a ti perdi el camino,
              Y errante peregrino
      Entre tinieblas desespero y dudo.

        Voy espantado sin saber por donde;
5             Grito, y nadie responde
      A mi angustiada voz; alzo los ojos
      Y a penetrar la lobreguez no alcanzo;
              medrosamente avanzo,
      Y me hieren el alma los abrojos.

10      Hijo del siglo, en vano me resisto
              A su impiedad, ioh Cristo!
      Su grandeza satanica me oprime.
      Siglo de maravillas y de asombros,
              Levanta sobre escombros
15    Un Dios sin esperanza, un Dios que gime.

        iY ese Dios no eres tu! No tu serena
              Faz, de consuelos llena,
      Alumbra y guia nuestro incierto paso.
      Es otro Dios incognito y sombrio:
20            Su cielo es el vacio,
      Sacerdote el error, ley el Acaso.

        iAy! No recuerda el animo suspenso
              Un siglo mas inmenso,
      Mas rebelde a tu voz, mas atrevido;                      page 142
      Entre nubes de fuego alza su frente,
              Como Luzbel, potente;
      Pero tambien, como Luzbel, caido.

5       A medida que marcha y que investiga
              Es mayor su fatiga,
      Es su noche mas honda y mas obscura,
      Y pasma, al ver lo que padece y sabe,
              Como en su seno cabe
      Tanta grandeza y tanta desventura.

10      Como la nave sin timon y rota
              Que el ronco mar azota,
      Incendia el rayo y la borrasca mece
      En pielago ignorado y proceloso,
              Nuestro siglo--coloso,
15    Con la luz que le abrasa, resplandece.

        iY esta la playa mistica tan lejos!...
              A los tristes reflejos
      Del sol poniente se colora y brilla.
      El huracan arrecia, el bajel arde,
20            Y es tarde, es iay! muy tarde
      Para alcanzar la sosegada orilla.

        ?Que es la ciencia sin fe? Corcel sin freno,
              A todo yugo ajeno,
      Que al impulso del vertigo se entrega,                   page 143
      Y a traves de intrincadas espesuras,
              Desbocado y a obscuras,
      Avanza sin cesar y nunca llega.

        iLlegar! ?Adonde?... El pensamiento humano
5             En vano lucha, en vano
      Su ley oculta y misteriosa infringe.
      En la lumbre del sol sus alas quema,
              Y no aclara el problema,
      No penetra el enigma de la Esfinge.

10      iSalvanos, Cristo, salvanos, si es cierto
              Que tu poder no ha muerto!
      Salva a esta sociedad desventurada,
      Que bajo el peso de su orgullo mismo
              Rueda al profundo abismo
15    Acaso mas enferma que culpada.

        La ciencia audaz, cuando de ti se aleja,
              En nuestras almas deja
      El germen de reconditos dolores.
      Como al tender el vuelo hacia la altura,
20            Deja su larva impura
      El insecto en el caliz de las flores.

        Si en esta confusion honda y sombria
              Es, Senor, todavia
      Raudal de vida tu palabra santa,                         page 144
      Di a nuestra fe desalentada y yerta:
              --iAnimate y despierta!
      Como dijiste a Lazaro:--iLevanta!--


                 iSURSUM CORDA!

                  INTRODUCCION

   A mi buen amigo el ilustre poeta Manuel Reina

                  I. A ESPANA

        Nunca mi labio a la servil lisonja
5     Parias rindio. Ni el exito ruidoso,
      Ni la soberbia afortunada, oyeron
      Falaz encomio de mi humilde Musa.
      Diome su austeridad la honrada tierra
      Donde naci, y el presuroso tiempo
10    Que arrastra y lleva en sus revueltas olas
      Las grandezas humanas al olvido,
      A mi pesar me ensena que en el mundo
      Tan solo a dos excelsas majestades
      Puedo, sin mengua, levantar mi canto;
15    La Verdad y el Dolor.
                               En estas horas
      De febril inquietud, ?quien, Patria mia,
      Merece como tu la pobre ofrenda
      De mi respeto y de mi amor? Postrada
      En los escombros de tu antigua gloria,
20    La negra adversidad, con ferrea mano,
      Comprime los latidos de tu pecho                         page 145
      Y el aire que respiras envenena.
      Como tigre feroz clavo sus garras
      La catastrofe en ti, y en tus heridas
      Entranas sacia su voraz instinto.
5     ?Quien, al mirar tus lastimas, no llora?
      ?Puede haber hombre tan perverso y duro,
      Ni aun concebido en crapulosa orgia
      Por hembra impura, que impasible vea
      Morir sin fe, desesperado y solo,
10    Al dulce bien que le llevo en su seno?
      iNo existe, no!
                         Perdona si movido
      Por la ciega pasion, alla en lejanos
      Y borrascosos dias, cuando airada
      Mi voz como fatidico anatema
15    Trono en la tempestad, quizas injusto
      Contigo pude ser. Pero hoy, que sufres,
      Hoy que, Job de la Historia, te retuerces
      En tu lecho de angustia, arrepentido
      Y llena el alma de mortal congoja,
20    Acudo ansioso a consolar tus penas,
      A combatir con los inmundos buitres,
      Avidos del festin, que en torno giran
      De tu ulcerado cuerpo, y si lo mandas,
      iOh, noble martir! a morir contigo.
25      Pero ?quien habla de morir? ?Acaso
      No eres, Patria, inmortal? Tendras eclipses
      Como los tiene el sol. Sombras tenaces,
      Cual hiperborea noche larga y fria,                      page 146
      Sobre ti pesaran, mientras no llegue
      Tu santa redencion. iHora dichosa
      En que veras con jubilo y ternura
      Nacer el alba, el tenebroso espacio
5     Inundarse de luz, la tierra encinta
      Estremecerse en extasis materno,
      De armonias, aromas y colores
      Poblarse el aire, y palpitar en todo
      La plenitud eterna de la vida!
10      iTen esperanza y fe! Descubridora
      De mundos, madre de indomada prole,
      Tu no puedes morir, iDios no lo quiere!
      Aun tienes que cumplir altos destinos.
      Busca en el seno de la paz bendita
15    Reparador descanso, hasta que cobren
      Tus musculos salud, y en cuanto sientas
      El hervor de tu sangre renovada,
      Ponte en pie, sacudiendo tu marasmo,
      Que como losa del sepulcro, oprime
20    Tu enferma voluntad. Surge del fondo
      De tu aislamiento secular, y marcha
      Con paso firme y corazon resuelto
      Sin mirar hacia atras, siempre adelante.
      Sean la escuela y el taller y el surco
25    Los solos campos de batalla en donde
      Tu razon y tus fuerzas ejercites.
      Entra en las lides del trabajo y vence,
      Que entonces de laureles coronada,
      Mas fecunda, mas prospera y mas grande,                  page 147
      Seguiras, fulgurando, tu camino
      Por los arcos triunfales de la Historia.

                  II. A AMERICA

        iEsta es Espana! Atonita y maltrecha
      Bajo el peso brutal de su infortunio,
5     Inerte yace la matrona augusta 5
      Que en otros siglos fatigo a la fama.
      La que surco los mares procelosos
      Buscandote atrevida en el misterio,
      Hasta que un dia, deslumbrando al mundo,
10    Surgiste, como Venus, de las ondas. 10
      Cegada por tu esplendida hermosura,
      Al engarzarte en su imperial diadema
      Espana te oprimio; mas no la culpes,
15    Porque ?cuando la barbara conquista
      Justa y humana fue? Tambien clemente 15
      Te dio su sangre, su robusto idioma,
      Sus leyes y su Dios. iTe lo dio todo,
      Menos la libertad! Pues mal pudiera
      Darte el unico bien que no tenia.

20      Contemplala vencida y humillada 20
      Por la doblez y el oro, y si te mueven
      A generosa lastima sus males,
      El tragico desplome de una gloria
      Que es tambien tuya, acorrela en su duelo.
25    iEs tu madre infeliz! No la abandone 25
      Tu amor, en tan inmensa desventura.
                                                               page 148

            DON MANUEL DEL PALACIO

                  AMOR OCULTO

        Ya de mi amor la confesion sincera
      Oyeron tus calladas celosias,
      Y fue testigo de las ansias mias
      La luna, de los tristes companera.

5       Tu nombre dice el ave placentera
      A quien visito yo todos los dias,
      Y alegran mis sonadas alegrias
      El valle, el monte, la comarca entera.

        Solo tu mi secreto no conoces,
10    Por mas que el alma con latido ardiente,
      Sin yo quererlo, te lo diga a voces;

        Y acaso has de ignorarlo eternamente,
      Como las ondas de la mar veloces
      La ofrenda ignoran que les da la fuente.


           DON JOAQUIN MARIA BARTRINA

       ARABESCOS Y COMPOSICIONES INTIMAS

15      Oyendo hablar a un hombre, facil es
      Acertar donde vio la luz del sol;
      Si os alaba a Inglaterra, sera ingles,
      Si os habla mal de Prusia, es un frances,
      Y si habla mal de Espana, es espanol.
                                                               page 149
        Si cumplir con lealtad
      Nuestra ultima voluntad
      Es sagrada obligacion,
      Cuando mis ojos se cierren,
5     He de mandar que me entierren
      Dentro de tu corazon.

        Para matar la inocencia,
      Para envenenar la dicha,
      Es un gran punal la pluma
10    Y un gran veneno la tinta.

        Quien vive siempre entre pena
      Y remordimiento y dudas,
      No sabe ver mas que a Judas
      En el cuadro de la cena.


                  DON MANUEL REINA

                     LA POESIA

                 A Teodoro Llorente

15      Como el raudal que corre en la pradera
      Copia en su espejo pajaros y flores,
      La alada mariposa de colores,
      El verde arbusto y la radiante esfera,
        La sublime poesia reverbera
20    Combates, glorias, risas y dolores,
      Odio y amor, tinieblas y esplendores,                    page 150
      El cielo, el campo, el mar... ila vida entera!
        iAsi Homero es la lid; Virgilio, el dia;
      Esquilo, la tormenta bramadora;
      Anacreonte, el vino y la alegria;
5       Dante, la noche con su negro arcano;
      Calderon, el honor; Milton, la aurora;
      Shakespeare, el triste corazon humano!
                                                               page 151


                      ARGENTINA


               DON ESTEBAN ECHEVERRIA

                 CANCION DE ELVIRA

        Crecio acaso arbusto tierno
      A orillas de un manso rio,
      Y su ramaje sombrio
      Muy ufano se extendio;
5     Mas en el sanudo invierno
      Subio el rio cual torrente,
      Y en su tumida corriente
      El tierno arbusto llevo.

        Reflejando nieve y grana,
10    Nacio garrida y pomposa
      En el desierto una rosa,
      Gala del prado y amor;
      Mas lanzo con furia insana
      Su soplo inflamado el viento,
15    Y se llevo en un momento
      Su vana pompa y frescor.
        Asi dura todo bien...
      Asi los dulces amores,                                   page 152
      Como las lozanas flores,
      Se marchitan en su albor;
      Y en el incierto vaiven
      De la fortuna inconstante,
5     Nace y muere en un instante
      La esperanza del amor.


             DON OLEGARIO V. ANDRADE

                    ATLANTIDA

   Canto al porvenir de la raza latina en America

                      VII

        iSiglos pasaron sobre el mundo, y siglos
      Guardaron el secreto!
      Lo presintio Platon cuando sentado
10    En las rocas de Engina contemplaba
      Las sombras que en silencio descendian
      A posarse en las cumbres del Himeto;
      Y el misterioso dialogo entablaba
      Con las olas inquietas
15    iQue a sus pies se arrastraban y gemian!
      Adivino su nombre, hija postrera
      Del tiempo, destinada
      A celebrar las bodas del futuro
      En sus campos de eterna primavera,
20    iY la llamo la Atlantida sonada!
                                                               page 153
        Pero Dios reservaba
      La empresa ruda al genio renaciente
      De la latina raza, idomadora
      De pueblos, combatiente
5     De las grandes batallas de la historia!
      Y cuando fue la hora,
      Colon aparecio sobre la nave
      Del destino del mundo portadora--
      Y la nave avanzo. Y el Oceano,
10    Hurano y turbulento,
      Lanzo al encuentro del bajel latino
      Los negros aquilones,
      iY a su frente rugiendo el torbellino,
      Jinete en el relampago sangriento!
15    Pero la nave fue, y el hondo arcano
      Cayo roto en pedazos;
      iY desperto la Atlantida sonada
      De un pobre visionario entre los brazos!

        Era lo que buscaba
20    El genio inquieto de la vieja raza,
      Debelador de tronos y coronas,
      iEra lo que sonaba!
      iAmbito y luz en apartadas zonas!
      Helo armado otra vez, no ya arrastrando
25    El sangriento sudario del pasado
      Ni de negros recuerdos bajo el peso,
      Sino en pos de grandiosas ilusiones,
      iLa libertad, la gloria y el progreso!
                                                               page 154
        iNada le falta ya! lleva en el seno
      El insondable afan del infinito,
      iY el infinito por doquier lo llama
      De las montanas con el hondo grito
5     Y de los mares con la voz de trueno!
      Tiene el altar que Roma
      Quiso en vano construir con los escombros
      Del templo egipcio y la pagoda indiana,
      iAltar en que profese eternamente
10    Un culto solo la conciencia humana!
      iY el Andes, con sus gradas ciclopeas,
      Con sus rojas antorchas de volcanes,
      Sera el altar de fulgurantes velos
      En que el himno inmortal de las ideas
15    La tierra entera elevara a los cielos!

                     VIII

      iCampo inmenso a su afan! Alla dormidas
      Bajo el arco triunfal de mil colores
      Del tropico esplendente,
      Las Antillas levantan la cabeza
20    De la naciente luz a los albores,
      Como bandadas de aves fugitivas
      Que arrullaron al mar con sus extranas
      Canciones planideras,
      Y que secan al sol las blancas alas
25    iPara emprender el vuelo a otras riberas!

       iAlla Mejico esta! sobre dos mares
      Alzada cual granitica atalaya,                           page 155
      iParece que aun espia
      La castellana flota que se acerca
      Del golfo azteca a la arenosa playa!
      Y mas alla Colombia adormecida
5     Del Tequendama al retemblar profundo,
      iColombia la opulenta
      Que parece llevar en las entranas
      La inagotable juventud del mundo!

        iSalve, zona feliz! region querida
10    Del almo sol que tus encantos cela,
      Inmenso hogar de animacion y vida,
      iCuna del gran Bolivar! iVenezuela!
      Todo en tu suelo es grande,
      Los astros que te alumbran desde arriba
15    Con eterno, sangriento centelleo,
      El genio, el heroismo,
      iVolcan que hizo erupcion con ronco estruendo
      En la cumbre inmortal de San Mateo!

        Tendida al pie del Ande,
20    Viuda infeliz sobre entreabierta huesa,
      Yace la Roma de los Incas, rota
      La vieja espada en la contienda grande,
      La frente hundida en la tiniebla obscura,
      iMas no ha muerto el Peru! que la derrota
25    Germen es en los pueblos varoniles
      De redencion futura--
      entonces cuando llegue,                                  page 156
      Para su suelo, la estacion propicia
      Del trabajo que cura y regenera,
      Y brille al fin el sol de la justicia
      Tras largos dias de vergueenza y lloro,
5     iEl rojo manto que a su espalda flota
      Las mieses bordaran con flores de oro!

        iBolivia! la heredera del gigante
      Nacido al pie del Avila, su genio
      Inquieto y su valor constante
10    Tiene para las luchas de la vida;
      Suena en batallas hoy, pero no importa,
      Suena tambien en anchos horizontes
      En que en vez de curenas y canones
      iSienta rodar la audaz locomotora
15    Cortando valles y escalando montes!
      Y Chile el vencedor, fuerte en la guerra,
      Pero mas fuerte en el trabajo, vuelve
      A colgar en el techo
      Las vengadoras armas, convencido
20    De que es esteril siempre la victoria
      De la fuerza brutal sobre el derecho.
      El Uruguay que combatiendo entrega
      Su seno a las caricias del progreso,
      El Brasil que recibe
25    Del mar Atlante el estruendoso beso
      Y a quien solo le falta
      El ser mas libre, para ser mas grande,
      iY la region bendita,                                    page 157
      Sublime desposada de la gloria,
      Que bana el Plata y que limita el Ande!

        iDe pie para cantarla! que es la patria,
      La patria bendecida,
5     Siempre en pos de sublimes ideales,
      iEl pueblo joven que arrullo en la cuna
      El rumor de los himnos inmortales!
      Y que hoy llama al festin de su opulencia
      A cuantos rinden culto
10    A la sagrada libertad, hermana
      Del arte, del progreso y de la ciencia--
      iLa patria! que ensancho sus horizontes
      Rompiendo las barreras
      Que en otrora su espiritu aterraron,
15    iY a cuyo paso en los nevados montes
      Del Genesis los ecos despertaron!
      iLa patria! que, olvidada
      De la civil querella, arrojo lejos
      El fratricida acero
20    Y que lleva orgullosa
      La corona de espigas en la frente,
      iMenos pesada que el laurel guerrero!
      iLa patria! en ella cabe
      Cuanto de grande el pensamiento alcanza,
25    En ella el sol de redencion se enciende,
      Ella al encuentro del futuro avanza,
      Y su mano, del Plata desbordante
      iLa inmensa copa a las naciones tiende!
                                                               page 158
                   IX

        iAmbito inmenso, abierto
      De la latina raza al hondo anhelo!
      iEl mar, el mar gigante, la montana
      En eterno coloquio con el cielo...
5     Y mas alla desierto!
      Aca rios que corren desbordados,
      Alli valles que ondean
      Como rios eternos de verdura,
10    Los bosques a los bosques enlazados,
      iDoquier la libertad, doquier la vida
      Palpitando en el aire, en la pradera
      Y en explosion magnifica encendida!

        iAtlantida encantada
      Que Platon presintio! promesa de oro
15    Del porvenir humano--Reservado
      A la raza fecunda,
      Cuyo seno engendro para la historia
      Los Cesares del genio y de la espada--
      Aqui va a realizar lo que no pudo
20    Del mundo antiguo en los escombros yertos
      iLa mas bella vision de sus visiones!
      iAl himno colosal de los desiertos
      La eterna comunion de las naciones!
                                                               page 159

                     PROMETEO

                        VII

        iArriba, pensadores! que en la lucha
      Se templa y fortalece
      Vuestra raza inmortal, nunca domada,
      Que lleva por celeste distintivo
5     La chispa de la audacia en la mirada
      Y anhelos infinitos en el alma;
      iEn cuya frente altiva
      Se confunden y enlazan
      El laurel rumoroso de la gloria
10    Y del dolor la mustia siempre-viva!

        iArriba, pensadores!
      iQue el espiritu humano sale ileso
      Del cadalso y la hoguera!
      Vuestro heraldo triunfal es el progreso
15    Y la verdad la suspirada meta
      De vuestro afan gigante.
      iArriba! ique ya asoma el claro dia
      En que el error y el fanatismo expiren
      Con doliente y confuso clamoreo!
20    iAve de esa alborada es el poeta,
      Hermano de las aguilas del Caucaso,
      Que secaron piadosas con sus alas
      La ensangrentada faz de Prometeo!
                                                               page 160

              DON RAFAEL OBLIGADO

                 EN LA RIBERA

      Ven, sigue de la mano
      Al que te amo de nino;
      Ven, y juntos lleguemos hasta el bosque
      Que esta en la margen del paterno rio.

5     iOh, cuanto eres hermosa,
      mi amada, en este sitio!
      Solo por ti, y a reflejar tu frente,
      Corriendo baja el Parana tranquilo.

      Para besar tu huella
10    Fue siempre tan sumiso,
      Que, en viendote llegar, hasta la playa
      Manda sus olas sin hacer rueido.

      Por eso, porque te ama,
      Somos grandes amigos;
15    Luego, sabe decirte aquellas cosas
      Que nunca brotan de los labios mios.

      El ano que tu faltas,
      La flor de sus seibos,
      Como cansada de esperar tus sienes,
20    Cuelga sus ramos de carmin marchitos.
                                                               page 161
      Por la tersa corriente,
      Risuenos y furtivos,
      Como sueltas guirnaldas, no navegan
      Los verdes camalotes florecidos.

5     Solo inclinan los sauces
      Su ramaje sombrio,
      Y las aves mas tristes, en sus copas
      Gimiendo tejen sus ocultos nidos.

      Pero llegas..., y el agua,
10    El bosque, el cielo mismo,
      Es como una explosion de mil colores,
      Y el aire rompe en sonorosos himnos.

      Asi la primavera,
      Del tropico vecino
15    Desciende, y canta, repartiendo flores,
      Y colgando en las vides los racimos.

      iCual suenan gratamente,
      Acordes, en un ritmo,
      Del agua el melancolico murmullo
20    Y el leve susurrar de tu vestido!

      iOh, si me fuera dado
      Guardar en mis oidos,
      Para siempre, esta musica del alma,
      Esta union de tu ser y de mis rios!
                                                               page 162

                        COLOMBIA


                 DON JOSE JOAQUIN ORTIZ

                   COLOMBIA Y ESPANA

        iOh! ireposad en vuestras quietas tumbas,
      Augustos padres de la patria mia,
      Pues bien lo mereceis! La grande obra
      De redencion al fin esta cumplida;
5     Y no llegue a turbar vuestro reposo
      El tumulto de lucha fratricida.

        Hoy a vuestros sepulcros hace sombra
      La bandera del iris, enlazada
      A la de los castillos y leones;
10    Que el odio no es eterno
      En los pobres humanos corazones;
      Y llego el dia en que la madre Espana
      Estrechase a Colombia entre sus brazos,
      Depuesta ya la sana;
15    No sierva, no senora;
      Libres las dos como las hizo el cielo.
      iAh! ?ni como podria                                     page 163
      Hallarse la hija siempre separada
      Del dulce hogar paterno,
      Ni consentir la carinosa madre
      Que tal apartamiento fuera eterno?

5       En esos anos de la ausencia fiera,
      El recuerdo de Espana
      Seguianos doquiera.
      Todo nos es comun: su Dios, el nuestro;
      La sangre que circula por sus venas
10    Y el hermoso lenguaje;
      Sus artes, nuestras artes; la armonia
      De sus cantos, la nuestra; sus reveses
      Nuestros tambien, y nuestras
      Las glorias de Bailen y de Pavia.

15      Si a veces distraidos
      Fijabamos los ojos
      A contemplar las hijas de Colombia;
      En el porte elegante,
      En el puro perfil de su semblante,
20    En su mirada ardiente y en el dejo
      Meloso de la voz, eran retrato
      De sus nobles abuelas;
      Copia feliz de gracia soberana,
      En que agradablemente se veia
25    El decoro y nobleza castellana
      Y el donaire y la sal de Andalucia;
      Y entonces exclamabamos: Un nombre                       page 164
      Terrible, Espana, tienes; ipero suena
      Que dulcemente al corazon del hombre!

        iOh! ique esta santa alianza eterna sea,
      Y el pendon de Castilla y de Colombia
5     Unidos siempre el universo vea!
      Y que al iviva Colombia! que repiten
      El aureo Tajo, y Ebro y Manzanares,
      iResponda el eco que rodando vaya
      Por los tranquilos mares
10    A la iberica playa
      De iviva Espana! con que el Ande atruena
      El Cauca, el Orinoco, el Magdalena!


                DON JOSE EUSEBIO CARO

                      EL CIPRES

        iArbol sagrado, que la obscura frente,
      Inmovil, majestuoso,
15    Sobre el sepulcro humilde y silencioso
      Despliegas hacia el cielo tristemente!
      Tu, si, tu solamente
      Al tiempo en que se duerme el rey del mundo
      Tras las altas montanas de occidente,
20    Me ves triste vagando
      Entre las negras tumbas,
      Con los ojos en llanto humedecidos,
      Mi orfandad y miseria lamentando.                        page 165
      Y cuando ya de la apacible luna
      La luz de perla en tu verdor se acoge,
      Solo tu tronco escucha mis gemidos,
      Solo tu pie mis lagrimas recoge.

5       iAy! hubo un tiempo en que feliz y ufano
      Al seno paternal me abandonaba;
      En que con blanda mano
      Una madre amorosa
      De mi ninez las lagrimas secaba...
10    iY hoy, huerfano, del mundo desechado,
      Aqui en mi patria misma
      Solitario viajero,
      Desde lejos contemplo acongojado
      Sobre los techos de mi hogar primero
15    El humo blanquear del extranjero!
      Entre el bullicio de los pueblos busco
      Mis tiernos padres para mi perdidos;
      iVanamente!... Los rostros de los hombres
      Me son desconocidos.
20    Y sus manes, empero, noche y dia
      Presentes a mis ojos afligidos
      Contino estan; contino sus acentos
      Vienen a resonar en mis oidos.

        iSi, funeral cipres! Cuando la noche
25    Con su callada sombra te rodea,
      Cuando escondido el solitario buho
      En tus obscuros ramos aletea;                            page 166
      La sombra de mi padre por tus hojas
      Vagando me parece,
      Que a velar por los dias de su hijo
      Del reino de los muertos se aparece.
5     Y si el viento sacude impetueoso
      Tu elevada cabeza,
      Y a su furor con susurrar medroso
      Respondes pavoroso;
      En los tristes silbidos
10    Que en torno de ti giran,
      A los paternos manes
      Escucho, que dulcisimos suspiran.

        iArbol augusto de la muerte! iNunca
      Tus verdores abata el boreas ronco!
15    iNunca enemiga, venenosa sierpe
      Se enrosque en torno de tu pardo tronco!
      iJamas el rayo ardiente
      Abrase tu alta frente!
      iSiempre inmoble y sereno
20    Por las concavas nubes
      Oigas rodar el impotente trueno!
      Vive, si, vive; y cuando ya mis ojos
      Cerrar el dedo de la muerte quiera;
      Cuando esconderse mire en occidente
25    Al sol por vez postrera,
      Morire sosegado
      A tu tronco abrazado.
      Tu mi sepulcro ampararas piadoso                         page 167
      De las roncas tormentas;
      Y mi ceniza entonce agradecida,
      En restaurantes jugos convertida,
      Por tus delgadas venas penetrando,
5     Te hara reverdecer, te dara vida.

        Quiza sabiendo el infeliz destino
      Que oprimio mi existencia desdichada,
      Sobre mi pobre tumba abandonada
      Una lagrima vierta el peregrino.


       DON JOSE MANUEL MARROQUIN

       LOS CAZADORES Y LA PERRILLA

10      Es flaca sobremanera
      Toda humana prevision,
      Pues en mas de una ocasion
      Sale lo que no se espera.

        Salio al campo una manana
15    Un experto cazador,
      El mas habil y el mejor
      Alumno que tuvo Diana.

        Seguiale gran cuadrilla
      De ejercitados monteros,
20    De ojeadores, ballesteros
      Y de mozos de trailla;
                                                               page 168
        Van todos apercibidos
      De las armas necesarias,
      Y llevan de castas varias
      Perros diestros y atrevidos,

5       Caballos de noble raza,
      Cornetas de monte: en fin,
      Cuanto exige Moratin
      En su poema _La Caza_.

        Levantan pronto una pieza,
10    Un jabali corpulento,
      Que huye veloz, rabo a viento,
      Y rompiendo la maleza.

        Todos siguen con gran bulla
      Tras la cerdosa alimana,
15    Pero ella se da tal mana
      Que a todos los aturrulla;

        Y aunque gastan todo el dia
      En paradas, idas, vueltas,
      Y carreras y revueltas,
20    Es vana tanta porfia.

        Ahora que los lectores
      Han visto de que manera
      Pudo burlarse la fiera
      De los tales cazadores,
                                                               page 169
        Oigan lo que acontecio,
      Y aunque es suceso que admira,
      No piensen, no, que es mentira,
      Que lo cuenta quien lo vio:

5       Al pie de uno de los cerros
      Que batieron aquel dia,
      Una viejilla vivia,
      Que oyo ladrar a los perros;

        Y con gana de saber
10    En que parara la fiesta,
      Iba subiendo la cuesta
      A eso del anochecer:

        Con ella iba una perrilla...
      Mas sin pasar adelante,
15    Es preciso que un instante
      Gastemos en describilla:

        Perra de canes decana
      Y entre perras protoperra,
      Era tenida en su tierra
20    Por perra antediluviana;

        Flaco era el animalejo,
      El mas flaco de los canes,
      Era el rastro, eran los manes
      De un cuasi-semi-ex-gozquejo;
                                                               page 170
        Sarnosa era... digo mal;
      No era una perra sarnosa,
      Era una sarna perrosa
      Y en figura de animal;

5       Era, otrosi, derrengada;
      La derribaba un resuello;
      Puede decirse que aquello
      No era perra ni era nada.

        A ver, pues, la batahola
10    La vieja al cerro subia,
      De la perra en compania,
      Que era lo mismo que ir sola.

        Por donde iba, hizo la suerte
      Que se hubiese el jabali
15    Escondido, por si asi
      Se libraba de la muerte;

        Empero, sintiendo luego
      Que por ahi andaba gente,
      Tuvo por cosa prudente
20    Tomar las de Villadiego;

        La vieja entonces al ver
      Que escapaba por la loma,
      iSus! dijo por pura broma,
      Y la perra echo a correr.
                                                               page 171
        Y aquella perra extenuada,
      Sombra de perra que fue,
      De la cual se dijo que
      No era perra ni era nada;

5       Aquella perrilla, si,
      iCosa es de volverse loco!
      No pudo coger tampoco
      Al maldito jabali.


         DON MIGUEL ANTONIO CARO

          LA VUELTA A LA PATRIA

        Mirad al peregrino
10      iCuan doliente y trocado!
      Apoyandose lento en su cayado
      iQue solitario va por su camino!

        En su primer manana,
        Alma alegre y cantora
15    Abandono el hogar, como a la aurora
      Deja su nido la avecilla ufana.

        Aire y luz, vida y flores,
        Busco en la vasta y fria
      Region que la inocente fantasia
20    Adornaba con magicos fulgores.
                                                               page 172
        Ve el mundo, oye el rueido
        De las grandes ciudades,
      Y solo vanidad de vanidades
      Halla doquier su espiritu afligido

5       Materia da a su llanto
        Cuanto el hombre le ofrece;
      Ya la risa en sus labios no florece,
      Y olvido la nativa voz del canto.

        Hizose pensativo;
10      Las nubes y las olas
      Sus confidentes son, y trata a solas
      El sitio mas repuesto y mas esquivo.

        A su penar responde
        En la noche callada,
15    La estrella que declina fatigada
      Y en el materno pielago se esconde.

        _iVuelve, vuelve a tu centro!_
        Natura al infelice
      Clama; _ivuelve!_ una voz tambien le dice
20    Que habla siempre con el, amiga, adentro,

        iAy triste! En lontananza
        Ve los pasados dias,
      Y en gozar otra vez sus alegrias
      Concentra reanimado la esperanza.
                                                               page 173
        iImposible! iLocura!...
        ?Cuando pudo a su fuente
      Retroceder el misero torrente
      Que probo de los mares la amargura?

5       Ya sube la colina
        Con mal seguro paso;
      Del sol poniente al resplandor escaso
      El valle de la infancia se domina.

10      iAy! Ese valle umbrio
        Que la paterna casa
      Guarece; ese rumor con que acompasa
      Sus blandos tumbos el sagrado rio;

        Esa aura embalsamada
        Que sus sienes orea,
15    ?A un corazon enfermo que desea
      Su antigua soledad, no dicen nada?

        El pobre peregrino
        Ni oye, ni ve, ni siente;
      De la Patria la imagen en su mente
20    No existe ya, sino ideal divino.

        Invisible le toca
        Y sus parpados cierra
      Angel piadoso, y la ilusion destierra,
      Y el dulce sonreir vuelve a su boca.
                                                               page 174
        iQue muda despedida!
        ?Quien muerto le creyera?
      iMirando esta la Patria verdadera!
      iEsta durmiendo el sueno de la vida!


            DON DIOGENES A. ARRIETA

             EN LA TUMBA DE MI HIJO

5       iEspejismos del alma dolorida!...
      iHermosas esperanzas de la vida
      Que disipa la muerte con crueldad!
        Para enganar las penas nos forjamos
      Imagenes de dicha, y luego damos
10    A la Ilusion el nombre de Verdad.

        Aqui te llamo y nadie me responde:
      Sorda y cruel, la tierra que te esconde
      Ni el eco de mi voz devolvera.
        Asi la Eternidad: sombria y muda,
15    El odio ni el amor, la fe y la duda
      En sus abismos nada alcanzaran.

        Otros alienten la creencia vana
      De que es posible a la esperanza humana
      De la muerte sacar vida y amor.
20      Si es cruel la verdad, yo la prefiero...
      iMe duele el corazon, pero no quiero
      Consolar con mentiras mi dolor!
                                                               page 175
        iHijo querido, la esperanza mia!
      Animaste mi hogar tan solo un dia,
      No volvemos a vernos ya los dos...
        Pues que la ley se cumpla del destino:
      Tomo mi cruz y sigo mi camino...
      iLuz de mi hogar y mi esperanza, adios!


           DON IGNACIO GUTIERREZ PONCE

                       DOLORA

        El angel de mi cielo, mi Maria,
      Que a la primera vuelta de las flores
      Tres anos cumplira, medrosa un dia
10    Busco refugio en mis abiertos brazos,
      Y cuando entre caricias y entre abrazos,
      Que prodigue, con paternal empeno,
      Hubo al fin disipado sus temores,
      Trocando asi en sonrisas sus clamores,
15    Cerro los ojos en tranquilo sueno.

        En silencio quedo la estancia mia;
      Y sintiendome ansioso
      De no turbar el infantil reposo
      De mi bien, en mi pecho reclinado,
20    Inmoviles mis miembros mantenia,
      Y mi amoroso corazon latia
      Al ritmo de su aliento sosegado.
                                                               page 176
        Sobre su faz serena,
      Regadas como limpido rocio
      En el caliz de palida azucena,
      Brillaban gotas del reciente lloro,
5     Y las guedejas de oro
      Del undoso cabello
      Caian arropando su albo cuello.

        Asi nos sorprendio mi tierna esposa.
      Que a la par temerosa
10    De interrumpir mi sueno de ventura,
      Con paso leve recorrio el estrado
      Y sin sentirla yo, vino a mi lado.

        Aquella dulce calma
      Que reinaba entre mi y en torno mio,
15    Llenome al fin de arrobamiento el alma.
      Y se quedo mi mente
      Enajenada en extasis creciente.

        Absorto siempre en ella,
      Con intimo lenguaje la decia:
20    "Eres boton de flor embalsamado
      Con aromas del cielo todavia."
      Y al verla asi, tan bella,
      Con placido embeleso
      A su rosada frente
25    Fuime inclinando para darla un beso;
                                                               page 177
        Pero escuche, de subito, a mi lado,
      Algo como un sollozo;
      Y mirando con ojos sorprendidos,
      Halle los de mi esposa humedecidos
5     Por inefable gozo...
      "No la despiertes," dijome sencilla,
      Y me acerco su candida mejilla.


              DON JOSE MARIA GARAVITO A.

                   VOLVERE MANANA

                          I

        --iAdios! iadios! Lucero de mis noches,
      --Dijo un soldado al pie de una ventana,--
10    iMe voy!... pero no llores, alma mia,
              Que volvere manana.
        Ya se asoma la estrella de la aurora,
      Ya se divisa en el oriente el alba,
      Y en mi cuartel tambores y cornetas
15            Estan tocando _diana_.

                          II

        Horas despues, cuando la negra noche
      Cubrio de luto el campo de batalla,
      A la luz del vivac palida y triste,
              Un joven expiraba.
20    Alguna cosa de _ella_ el centinela
      Al mirarlo morir, dijo en voz baja...                    page 178
      Alzo luego el fusil, bajo los ojos
              Y se enjugo dos lagrimas.

                         III

        Hoy cuentan por doquier gentes medrosas,
      Que cuando asoma en el oriente el alba,
5     Y en el cuartel tambores y cornetas
              Estan tocando _diana_...
        Se ve vagar la misteriosa sombra,
      Que se detiene al pie de una ventana
      Y murmura: no llores, alma mia,
10            Que volvere manana.
                                                               page 179


                        CUBA

              DON JOSE MARIA HEREDIA

            EN EL TEOCALLI DE CHOLULA

        iCuanto es bella la tierra que habitaban
      Los aztecas valientes! En su seno
      En una estrecha zona concentrados
      Con asombro se ven todos los climas
5     Que hay desde el polo al ecuador. Sus llanos
      Cubren a par de las doradas mieses
      Las canas deliciosas. El naranjo
      Y la pina y el platano sonante,
      Hijos del suelo equinoccial, se mezclan
10    A la frondosa vid, al pino agreste,
      Y de Minerva al arbol majestuoso.
      Nieve eternal corona las cabezas
      De Iztaccihual purisimo, Orizaba
15    Y Popocatepec; sin que el invierno
      Toque jamas con destructora mano
      Los campos fertilisimos, do ledo
      Los mira el indio en purpura ligera
      Y oro tenirse, reflejando el brillo
      Del Sol en occidente, que sereno
20    En hielo eterno y perennal verdura                       page 180
      A torrentes vertio su luz dorada,
      Y vio a naturaleza conmovida
      Con su dulce calor hervir en vida.

        Era la tarde: su ligera brisa
5     Las alas en silencio ya plegaba
      Y entre la hierba y arboles dormia,
      Mientras el ancho sol su disco hundia
      Detras de Iztaccihual. La nieve eterna
      Cual disuelta en mar de oro, semejaba
10    Temblar en torno de el: un arco inmenso
      Que del empireo en el cenit finaba
      Como esplendido portico del cielo
      De luz vestido y centellante gloria,
      De sus ultimos rayos recibia
15    Los colores riquisimos. Su brillo
      Desfalleciendo fue: la blanca luna
      Y de Venus la estrella solitaria
      En el cielo desierto se veian.
      iCrepusculo feliz! Hora mas bella
20    Que la alma noche o el brillante dia.
      iCuanto es dulce tu paz al alma mia!

        Hallabame sentado en la famosa
      Choluteca piramide. Tendido
      El llano inmenso que ante mi yacia,
25    Los ojos a espaciarse convidaba.
      iQue silencio! ique paz! iOh! ?quien diria
      Que en estos bellos campos reina alzada
      La barbara opresion, y que esta tierra                   page 181
      Brota mieses tan ricas, abonada
      Con sangre de hombres, en que fue inundada
      Por la supersticion y por la guerra?...

        Bajo la noche en tanto. De la esfera
5     El leve azul, obscuro y mas obscuro
      Se fue tornando: la movible sombra
      De las nubes serenas, que volaban
      Por el espacio en alas de la brisa,
      Era visible en el tendido llano.
10    Iztaccihual purisimo volvia
      Del argentado rayo de la luna
      El placido fulgor, y en el oriente
      Bien como puntos de oro centellaban
      Mil estrellas y mil... iOh! yo os saludo,
15    Fuentes de luz, que de la noche umbria
      Iluminais el velo,
      Y sois del firmamento poesia.

        Al paso que la luna declinaba,
      Y al ocaso fulgente descendia
20    Con lentitud, la sombra se extendia
      Del Popocatepec, y semejaba
      Fantasma colosal. El arco obscuro
      A mi llego, cubriome, y su grandeza
25    Fue mayor y mayor, hasta que al cabo
      En sombra universal velo la tierra.

        Volvi los ojos al volcan sublime,
      Que velado en vapores transparentes,                     page 182
      Sus inmensos contornos dibujaba
      De occidente en el cielo.
      iGigante del Anahuac! ?como el vuelo
      De las edades rapidas no imprime
5     Alguna huella en tu nevada frente?
      Corre el tiempo veloz, arrebatando
      Anos y siglos como el norte fiero
      Precipita ante si la muchedumbre
      De las olas del mar. Pueblos y reyes
10    Viste hervir a tus pies, que combatian
      Cual hora combatimos, y llamaban
      Eternas sus ciudades, y creian
      Fatigar a la tierra con su gloria.
      Fueron: de ellos no resta ni memoria.
15    ?Y tu eterno seras? Tal vez un dia
      De tus profundas bases desquiciado
      Caeras; abrumara tu gran ruina
      Al yermo Anahuac; alzaranse en ella
      Nuevas generaciones y orgullosas,
20    Que fuiste negaran...
                            Todo perece
      Por ley universal. Aun este mundo
      Tan bello y tan brillante que habitamos,
      Es el cadaver palido y deforme
      De otro mundo que fue...

25      En tal contemplacion embebecido
      Sorprendiome el sopor. Un largo sueno,
      De glorias engolfadas y perdidas                         page 183
      En la profunda noche de los tiempos,
      Descendio sobre mi. La agreste pompa
      De los reyes aztecas desplegose
5     A mis ojos atonitos. Veia
      De emplumados caudillos levantarse
      El despota salvaje en rico trono,
      De oro, perlas y plumas recamado;
      Y al son de caracoles belicosos
10    Ir lentamente caminando al templo
      La vasta procesion, do la aguardaban
      Sacerdotes horribles, salpicados
      Con sangre humana rostros y vestidos.
      Con profundo estupor el pueblo esclavo
15    Las bajas frentes en el polvo hundia,
      Y ni mirar a su senor osaba,
      De cuyos ojos fervidos brotaba
      La sana del poder.
                         Tales ya fueron
      Tus monarcas, Anahuac, y su orgullo:
20    Su vil supersticion y tirania
      En el abismo del no ser se hundieron.
      Si, que la muerte, universal senora,
      Hiriendo a par al despota y esclavo,
      Escribe la igualdad sobre la tumba.
25    Con su manto benefico el olvido
      Tu insensatez oculta y tus furores
      A la raza presente y la futura.
      Esta inmensa estructura                                  page 184
      Vio a la supersticion mas inhumana
      En ella entronizarse. Oyo los gritos
      De agonizantes victimas, en tanto
      Que el sacerdote, sin piedad ni espanto,
5     Les arrancaba el corazon sangriento;
      Miro el vapor espeso de la sangre
      Subir caliente al ofendido cielo
      Y tender en el sol funebre velo,
      Y escucho los horrendos alaridos
10    Con que los sacerdotes sofocaban
      El grito del dolor.

                       Muda y desierta
      Ahora te ves, Piramide. iMas vale
      Que semanas de siglos yazgas yerma,
      Y la supersticion a quien serviste
15    En el abismo del infierno duerma!
      A nuestros nietos ultimos, empero,
      Se leccion saludable; y hoy al hombre
      Que ciego en su saber futil y vano
      Al cielo, cual Titan, truena orgulloso,
20    Se ejemplo ignominioso
      De la demencia y del furor humano.


                      EL NIAGARA

      Templad mi lira, dadmela, que siento
      En mi alma estremecida y agitada
      Arder la inspiracion. iOh! icuanto tiempo
25    En tinieblas paso, sin que mi frente                     page 185
      Brillase con su luz!... Niagara undoso,
      Tu sublime terror solo podria
      Tornarme el don divino, que ensanada
      Me robo del dolor la mano impia.

5       Torrente prodigioso, calma, calla
      Tu trueno aterrador: disipa un tanto
      Las tinieblas que en torno te circundan;
      Dejame contemplar tu faz serena,
      Y de entusiasmo ardiente mi alma llena.
10    Yo digno soy de contemplarte: siempre
      Lo comun y mezquino desdenando,
      Ansie por lo terrifico y sublime.
      Al despenarse el huracan furioso,
      Al retumbar sobre mi frente el rayo,
15    Palpitando goce: vi al Oceano,
      Azotado por austro proceloso,
      Combatir mi bajel, y ante mis plantas
      Vortice hirviendo abrir, y ame el peligro.
      Mas del mar la fiereza
20    En mi alma no produjo
      La profunda impresion que tu grandeza.

        Sereno corres, majestuoso; y luego
      En asperos penascos quebrantado,
      Te abalanzas violento, arrebatado,
25    Como el destino irresistible y ciego.
      ?Que voz humana describir podria
      De la sirte rugiente                                     page 186
      La aterradora faz? El alma mia
      En vago pensamiento se confunde
      Al mirar esa fervida corriente,
      Que en vano quiere la turbada vista
5     En su vuelo seguir al borde obscuro
      Del precipicio altisimo: mil olas,
      Cual pensamiento rapidas pasando,
      Chocan, y se enfurecen,
      Y otras mil y otras mil ya las alcanzan,
10    Y entre espuma y fragor desaparecen.

        iVed! illegan, saltan! El abismo horrendo
      Devora los torrentes despenados:
      Cruzanse en el mil iris, y asordados
      Vuelven los bosques el fragor tremendo.
15    En las rigidas penas
      Rompese el agua: vaporosa nube
      Con elastica fuerza
      Llena el abismo en torbellino, sube,
      Gira en torno, y al eter
20    Luminosa piramide levanta,
      Y por sobre los montes que le cercan
      Al solitario cazador espanta.

        Mas ?que en ti busca mi anhelante vista
      Con inutil afan? ?Por que no miro
25    Al rededor de tu caverna inmensa
      Las palmas iay! las palmas deliciosas,
      Que en las llanuras de mi ardiente patria                page 187
      Nacen del sol a la sonrisa, y crecen,
      Y al soplo de las brisas del Oceano
      Bajo un cielo purisimo se mecen?

        Este recuerdo a mi pesar me viene...
5     Nada ioh Niagara! falta a tu destino,
      Ni otra corona que el agreste pino
      A tu terrible majestad conviene.
      La palma y mirto y delicada rosa
      Muelle placer inspiren y ocio blando
10    En frivolo jardin: a ti la suerte
      Guardo mas digno objeto, mas sublime.
      El alma libre, generosa, fuerte,
      Viene, te ve, se asombra,
      El mezquino deleite menosprecia
15    Y aun se siente elevar cuando te nombra.

        iOmnipotente Dios! En otros climas
      Vi monstruos execrables,
      Blasfemando tu nombre sacrosanto,
      Sembrar error y fanatismo impio,
20    Los campos inundar con sangre y llanto,
      De hermanos atizar la infanda guerra,
      Y desolar freneticos la tierra.
      Vilos, y el pecho se inflamo a su vista
      En grave indignacion. Por otra parte
25    Vi mentidos filosofos, que osaban
      Escrutar tus misterios, ultrajarte,
      Y de impiedad al lamentable abismo                       page 188
      A los miseros hombres arrastraban.
      Por eso te busco mi debil mente
      En la sublime soledad: ahora
      Entera se abre a ti; tu mano siente
5     En esta inmensidad que me circunda,
      Y tu profunda voz hiere mi seno
      De este raudal en el eterno trueno.

        iAsombroso torrente!
      iComo tu vista el animo enajena
10    Y de terror y admiracion me llena!
      ?Do tu origen esta? ?Quien fertiliza
      Por tantos siglos tu inexhausta fuente?
      ?Que poderosa mano
      Hace que al recibirte
15    No rebose en la tierra el Oceano?

        Abrio el Senor su mano omnipotente;
      Cubrio tu faz de nubes agitadas,
      Dio su voz a tus aguas despenadas,
      Y orno con su arco tu terrible frente.
20    iCiego, profundo, infatigable corres,
      Como el torrente obscuro de los siglos
      En insondable eternidad!... iAl hombre
      Huyen asi las ilusiones gratas,
      Los florecientes dias,
25    Y despierta al dolor!... iAy! agostada
      Yace mi juventud; mi faz, marchita;                      page 189
      Y la profunda pena que me agita
      Ruga mi frente de dolor nublada.

        Nunca tanto senti como este dia
      Mi soledad y misero abandono
5     Y lamentable desamor... ?Podria
      En edad borrascosa
      Sin amor ser feliz? iOh! si una hermosa
      Mi carino fijase,
      Y de este abismo al borde turbulento
10    Mi vago pensamiento
      Y ardiente admiracion acompanase!
      iComo gozara, viendola cubrirse
      De leve palidez, y ser mas bella
      En su dulce terror, y sonreirse
15    Al sostenerla mis amantes brazos...
      Delirios de virtud... iAy! iDesterrado,
      Sin patria, sin amores,
      Solo miro ante mi llanto y dolores!

        iNiagara poderoso!
20    iAdios! iadios! Dentro de pocos anos
      Ya devorado habra la tumba fria
      A tu debil cantor. iDuren mis versos
      Cual tu gloria inmortal! iPueda piadoso,
      Viendote algun viajero,
25    Dar un suspiro a la memoria mia!
      Y al abismarse Febo en occidente,
      Feliz yo vuele do el Senor me llama,                     page 190
      Y al escuchar los ecos de mi fama,
      Alce en las nubes la radiosa frente.


    "PLACIDO" (DON GABRIEL DE LA CONCEPCION VALDES)

                    PLEGARIA A DIOS

        iSer de inmensa bondad! iDios poderoso!
      A vos acudo en mi dolor vehemente...
5     Extended vuestro brazo omnipotente;
      Rasgad de la calumnia el velo odioso;
      Y arrancad este sello ignominioso
      Con que el mundo manchar quiere mi frente.

        iRey de los Reyes! iDios de mis abuelos!
10    iVos solo sois mi defensor! iDios mio!...
      Todo lo puede quien al mar sombrio
      Olas y peces dio, luz a los cielos,
      Fuego al sol, giro al aire, al norte hielos,
      Vida a las plantas, movimiento al rio.

15      Todo lo podeis vos; todo fenece,
      O se reanima a vuestra voz sagrada;
      Fuera de vos, Senor, el todo es nada
      Que en la insondable eternidad perece;
      Y aun esa misma nada os obedece,
20    Pues de ella fue la humanidad creada.
                                                               page 191
        Yo no os puedo enganar, Dios de clemencia;
      Y pues vuestra eternal sabiduria
      Ve al traves de mi cuerpo el alma mia
      Cual del aire a la clara transparencia,
5     Estorbad que humillada la inocencia
      Bata sus palmas la calumnia impia.

        Estorbadlo, Senor, por la preciosa
      Sangre vertida, que la culpa sella
      Del pecado de Adan, o por aquella
10    Madre candida, dulce y amorosa,
      Cuando envuelta en pesar, mustia y llorosa,
      Siguio tu muerte como heliaca estrella.

        Mas si cuadra a tu suma omnipotencia
      Que yo perezca cual malvado impio,
15    Y que los hombres mi cadaver frio
      Ultrajen con maligna complacencia...
      iSuene tu voz, y acabe mi existencia!...
      iCumplase en mi tu voluntad, Dios mio!


        DONA GERTRUDIS GOMEZ DE AVELLANEDA

                    A WASHINGTON

        No en lo pasado a tu virtud modelo,
20    Ni copia al porvenir dara la historia,
      Ni otra igual en grandeza a tu memoria
      Difundiran los siglos en su vuelo.                       page 192
        Miro la Europa ensangrentar su suelo
      Al genio de la guerra y la victoria,
      Pero le cupo a America la gloria
      De que al genio del bien le diera el cielo.
5       Que audaz conquistador goce en su ciencia
      Mientras al mundo en paramo convierte,
      Y se envanezca cuando a siervos mande;
        iMas los pueblos sabran en su conciencia
      Que el que los rige libres solo es fuerte;
10    Que el que los hace grandes solo es grande!

                      AL PARTIR

        iPerla del mar! iEstrella de Occidente!
      iHermosa Cuba! Tu brillante cielo
      La noche cubre con su opaco velo,
      Como cubre el dolor mi triste frente.
15      iVoy a partir!... La chusma diligente
      Para arrancarme del nativo suelo
      Las velas iza, y pronta a su desvelo
      La brisa acude de tu zona ardiente.
        iAdios, patria feliz, Eden querido!
      Doquier que el hado en su furor me impela,
20    Tu dulce nombre halagara mi oido.
        iAdios!... iya cruje la turgente vela...
      El ancla se alza... el buque estremecido
      Las olas corta y silencioso vuela!
                                                               page 193


                        ECUADOR


                DON JOSE JOAQUIN OLMEDO

                 LA VICTORIA DE JUNIN

                    Canto a Bolivar

        El trueno horrendo, que en fragor revienta
      Y sordo retumbando se dilata
      Por la inflamada esfera,
      Al Dios anuncia que en el cielo impera.

5       Y el rayo que en Junin rompe y ahuyenta
      La hispana muchedumbre,
      Que mas feroz que nunca amenazaba
      A sangre y fuego eterna servidumbre,
      Y el canto de victoria
10    Que en ecos mil discurre, ensordeciendo
      El hondo valle y enriscada cumbre,
      Proclaman a Bolivar en la tierra
      Arbitro de la paz y de la guerra.

        Las soberbias piramides que al cielo
15    El arte humano osado levantaba
      Para hablar a los siglos y naciones,                     page 194
      Templos, do esclavas manos
      Deificaban en pompa a sus tiranos,
      Ludibrio son del tiempo, que con su ala
      Debil las toca, y las derriba al suelo,
5     Despues que en facil juego el fugaz viento
      Borro sus mentirosas inscripciones;
      Y bajo los escombros confundido
      Entre las sombras del eterno olvido
      iOh de ambicion y de miseria ejemplo!
10    El sacerdote yace, el dios y el templo.

        Mas los sublimes montes, cuya frente
      A la region eterea se levanta,
      Que ven las tempestades a su planta
      Brillar, rugir, romperse, disiparse;
15    Los Andes... las enormes, estupendas
      Moles sentadas sobre bases de oro,
      La tierra con su peso equilibrando,
      Jamas se moveran. Ellos, burlando
      De ajena envidia y del protervo tiempo
20    La furia y el poder, seran eternos
      De Libertad y de Victoria heraldos,
      Que con eco profundo
      A la postrera edad diran del mundo:
      "Nosotros vimos de Junin el campo;
25    Vimos que al desplegarse
      Del Peru y de Colombia las banderas,
      Se turban las legiones altaneras,
      Huye el fiero espanol despavorido,                       page 195
      O pide paz rendido.
      Vencio Bolivar: el Peru fue libre;
      Y en triunfal pompa Libertad sagrada
      En el templo del Sol fue colocada."

5       ?Quien es aquel que el paso lento mueve
      Sobre el collado que a Junin domina?
      ?Que el campo desde alli mide, y el sitio
      Del combatir y del vencer desina?
      ?Que la hueste contraria observa, cuenta,
10    Y en su mente la rompe y desordena,
      Y a los mas bravos a morir condena,
      Cual aguila caudal que se complace
      Del alto cielo en divisar su presa
      Que entre el rebano mal segura pace?
15    ?Quien el que ya desciende
      Pronto y apercibido a la pelea?
      Prenada en tempestades le rodea
      Nube tremenda: el brillo de su espada
      Es el vivo reflejo de la gloria;
20    Su voz un trueno; su mirada un rayo.
      ?Quien aquel que, al trabarse la batalla,
      Ufano como nuncio de victoria,
      Un corcel impetuoso fatigando,
      Discurre sin cesar por toda parte?...
25    ?Quien, sino el hijo de Colombia y Marte?

        Sono su voz: "Peruanos,
      Mirad alli los duros opresores                           page 196
      De vuestra patria. Bravos colombianos,
      En cien crudas batallas vencedores,
      Mirad alli los enemigos fieros
      Que buscando venis desde Orinoco:
5    Suya es la fuerza, y el valor es vuestro,
      Vuestra sera la gloria;
      Pues lidiar con valor y por la patria
      Es el mejor presagio de victoria.
      Acometed: que siempre
10    De quien se atreve mas el triunfo ha sido:
      Quien no espera vencer, ya esta vencido."

        Dice; y al punto, cual fugaces carros
      Que, dada la senal, parten, y en densos
      De arena y polvo torbellinos ruedan,
15    Arden los ejes, se estremece el suelo,
      Estrepito confuso asorda el cielo,
      Y en medio del afan cada cual teme
      Que los demas adelantarse puedan;
      Asi los ordenados escuadrones,
20    Que del iris reflejan los colores
      O la imagen del sol en sus pendones,
      Se avanzan a la lid. iOh! iquien temiera,
      Quien, que su impetu mismo los perdiera!

        Tal el heroe brillaba
25    Por las primeras filas discurriendo.
      Se oye su voz, su acero resplandece
      Do mas la pugna y el peligro crece;                      page 197
      Nada le puede resistir... Y es fama,
      iOh portento inaudito!
      Que el bello nombre de Colombia escrito
      Sobre su frente en torno despedia
5     Rayos de luz tan viva y refulgente,
      Que deslumbrado el espanol desmaya,
      Tiembla, pierde la voz, el movimiento:
      Solo para la fuga tiene aliento.

        Asi, cuando en la noche algun malvado
10    Va a descargar el brazo levantado,
      Si de improviso lanza un rayo el cielo,
      Se pasma, y el punal tremulo suelta;
      Hielo mortal a su furor sucede;
      Tiembla y horrorizado retrocede.
15    Ya no hay mas combatir. El enemigo
      El campo todo y la victoria cede.
      Huye cual ciervo herido; y a donde huye
      Alli encuentra la muerte. Los caballos
      Que fueron su esperanza en la pelea,
20    Heridos, espantados, por el campo
      O entre las filas vagan, salpicando
      El suelo en sangre que su crin gotea;
      Derriban al jinete, lo atropellan,
      Y las catervas van despavoridas,
25    O unas en otras con terror se estrellan.

        Crece la confusion, crece el espanto,
      Y al impulso del aire, que vibrando                      page 198
      Sube en clamores y alaridos lleno,
      Tremen las cumbres que respeta el trueno.
      Y discurriendo el vencedor en tanto
      Por cimas de cadaveres y heridos,
5     Postra al que huye, perdona a los rendidos.

        iPadre del universo, sol radioso,
      Dios del Peru, modera omnipotente
      El ardor de tu carro impetueoso,
      Y no escondas tu luz indeficiente!...
10    iUna hora mas de luz!... Pero esta hora
      No fue la del Destino. El dios oia
      El voto de su pueblo, y de la frente
      El cerco de diamantes descenia.
      En fugaz rayo el horizonte dora,
15    En mayor disco menos luz ofrece,
      Y veloz tras los Andes se obscurece.

        Tendio su manto lobrego la noche,
      Y las reliquias del perdido bando,
      Con sus tristes y atonitos caudillos,
20    Corren sin saber donde espavoridas,
      Y de su sombra misma se estremecen;
      Y al fin en las tinieblas ocultando
      Su afrenta y su pavor, desaparecen.

        iVictoria por la patria! ioh Dios! iVictoria!
25    iTriunfo a Colombia y a Bolivar gloria!
                                                               page 199


                       MEXICO


             DON JOSE JOAQUIN DE PESADO

                    LA SERENATA

        iOh, tu, que duermes en casto lecho,
      De sinsabores ajeno el pecho,
      Y a los encantos de la hermosura
      Unes las gracias del corazon,
5     Deja el descanso, doncella pura,
      Y oye los ecos de mi cancion!
        ?Quien en la tierra la dicha alcanza?
      Iba mi vida sin esperanza,
      Cual nave errante sin ver su estrella,
10    Cuando me inundas en claridad;
      Y desde entonces, gentil doncella,
      Me revelaste felicidad.
        iOh, si las ansias decir pudiera
      Que siente el alma, desde que viera
15    Ese semblante que amor inspira
      Y los hechizos de tu candor!
      Mas, rudo el labio, torpe la lira,
      Decir no puede lo que es amor.
        Del Iris puede pintarse el velo;                       page 200
      Del sol los rayos, la luz del cielo;
      La negra noche, la blanca aurora;
      Mas no tus gracias ni tu poder,
      Ni menos puede de quien te adora
5     Decirse el llanto y el padecer.

        Amor encuentra doquier que vuelva
      La vista en torno; la verde selva,
      Florido el prado y el bosque umbrio,
      La tierna hierba, la hermosa nor,
10    Y la cascada, y el claro rio,
      Todos me dicen: amor, amor.
        Cuando te ausentas, el campo triste
      De luto y sombras luego se viste;
      Mas si regresas, la primavera
15    Hace sus galas todas lucir:
      iOh, nunca, nunca de esta ribera,
      Doncella hermosa, quieras partir!


            DON FERNANDO CALDERON

              LA ROSA MARCHITA

      ?Eres tu, triste rosa,
      La que ayer difundia
20    Balsamica ambrosia,
      Y tu altiva cabeza levantando
      Eras la reina de la selva umbria?                        page 201
      ?Por que tan pronto, dime,
      Hoy triste y desolada
      Te encuentras de tus galas despojada?

      Ayer viento sueave
5     Te halago carinoso;
      Ayer alegre el ave
      Su cantico armonioso
      Ejercitaba, sobre ti posando;
      Tu, rosa, le inspirabas,
10    Y a cantar sus amores le excitabas.

      Tal vez el fatigado peregrino,
      Al pasar junto a ti, quiso cortarte:
      Tal vez quiso llevarte
      Algun amante a su ardoroso seno;
15    Pero al ver tu hermosura,
      La compasion sintieron,
      Y su atrevida mano detuvieron.

      Hoy nadie te respeta:
      El furioso aquilon te ha deshojado.
20    Ya nada te ha quedado
      iOh reina de las flores!
      De tu brillo y tus colores.

      La fiel imagen eres
      De mi triste fortuna:
25    iAy! todos mis placeres,
      Todas mis esperanzas una a una
      Arrancandome ha ido                                      page 202
      Un destino funesto, cual tus hojas
      Arranco el huracan embravecido!

      ?Y que, ya triste y sola,
      No habra quien te dirija una mirada?
5     ?Estaras condenada
      A eterna soledad y amargo lloro?
      No, que existe un mortal sobre la tierra,
      Un joven infeliz, desesperado,
      A quien horrible suerte ha condenado
10    A perpetuo gemir: ven, pues, ioh rosa!
      Ven a mi amante seno, en el reposa
      Y ojala de mis besos la pureza
      Resucitar pudiera tu belleza.

      Ven, ven, ioh triste rosa!
15    Si es mi suerte a la tuya semejante,
      Burlemos su porfia;
      Ven, todas mis caricias seran tuyas,
      Y tu ultima fragancia sera mia.


              DON MANUEL ACUNA

                  NOCTURNO

                 A Rosario

                   I

      iPues bien! yo necesito
20    Decirte que te adoro,
      Decirte que te quiero                                    page 203
      Con todo el corazon;
      Que es mucho lo que sufro,
      Que es mucho lo que lloro,
      Que ya no puedo tanto,
5     Y al grito en que te imploro
      Te imploro y te hablo en nombre
      De mi ultima ilusion.

                  II

        Yo quiero que tu sepas
      Que ya hace muchos dias
10    Estoy enfermo y palido
      De tanto no dormir;
      Que ya se han muerto todas
      Las esperanzas mias;
      Que estan mis noches negras,
15    Tan negras y sombrias,
      Que ya no se ni donde
      Se alzaba el porvenir.

                 III

        De noche, cuando pongo
      Mis sienes en la almohada
20    Y hacia otro mundo quiero
      Mi espiritu volver,
      Camino mucho, mucho,
      Y al fin de la jornada
      Las formas de mi madre
25    Se pierden en la nada,                                   page 204
      Y tu de nuevo vuelves
      En mi alma a aparecer.

                 IV

      Comprendo que tus besos
      Jamas han de ser mios;
5     Comprendo que en tus ojos
      No me he de ver jamas;
      Y te amo, y en mis locos
      Y ardientes desvarios
      Bendigo tus desdenes,
10    Adoro tus desvios,
      Y en vez de amarte menos,
      Te quiero mucho mas.

                 V

      A veces pienso en darte
      Mi eterna despedida,
15    Borrarte en mis recuerdos
      Y hundirte en mi pasion;
      Mas si es en vano todo
      Y el alma no te olvida,
      iQue quieres tu que yo haga,
20    Pedazo de mi vida;
      Que quieres tu que yo haga
      Con este corazon!

                 VI

      Y luego que ya estaba
      Concluido tu santuario,                                  page 205
      Tu lampara encendida,
      Tu velo en el altar,
      El sol de la manana
      Detras del campanario,
5     Chispeando las antorchas,
      Humeando el incensario,
      Y abierta alla a lo lejos
      La puerta del hogar...

                VII

        iQue hermoso hubiera sido
10    Vivir bajo aquel techo,
      Los dos unidos siempre
      Y amandonos los dos;
      Tu siempre enamorada,
      Yo siempre satisfecho,
15    Los dos una sola alma,
      Los dos un solo pecho,
      Y en medio de nosotros
      Mi madre como un Dios!

                VIII

        iFigurate que hermosas
20    Las horas de esa vida!
      iQue dulce y bello el viaje
      Por una tierra asi!
      Y yo sonaba en eso,
      Mi santa prometida.
25    Y al delirar en eso                                      page 206
      Con la alma estremecida,
      Pensaba yo en ser bueno
      Por ti, no mas por ti.

                 IX

      Bien sabe Dios que ese era
5     Mi mas hermoso sueno,
      Mi afan y mi esperanza,
      Mi dicha y mi placer;
      iBien sabe Dios que en nada
      Cifraba yo mi empeno,
10    Sino en amarte mucho
      Bajo el hogar risueno
      Que me envolvio en sus besos
      Cuando me vio nacer!

                  X

      Esa era mi esperanza...
15    Mas ya que a sus fulgores
      Se opone el hondo abismo
      Que existe entre los dos,
      iAdios por la vez ultima,
      Amor de mis amores;
20    La luz de mis tinieblas,
      La esencia de mis flores;
      Mi lira de poeta,
      Mi juventud, adios!
                                                               page 207

             DON JUAN DE DIOS PEZA

                REIR LLORANDO

      iCuantos hay que, cansados de la vida,
      Enfermos de pesar, muertos de tedio,
      Hacen reir como el actor suicida,
      Sin encontrar, para su mal, remedio!

5         iAy! iCuantas veces al reir se llora!
      iNadie en lo alegre de la risa fie,
      Porque en los seres que el dolor devora
      El alma llora cuando el rostro rie!

      Si se muere la fe, si huye la calma,
10    Si solo abrojos nuestra planta pisa,
      Lanza a la faz la tempestad del alma
      Un relampago triste: la sonrisa.

      El carnaval del mundo engana tanto,
      Que las vidas son breves mascaradas;
15    Aqui aprendemos a reir con llanto,
      Y tambien a llorar con carcajadas.

                FUSILES Y MUNECAS

        Juan y Margot, dos angeles hermanos,
      Que embellecen mi hogar con sus carinos,
      Se entretienen con juegos tan humanos
20    Que parecen personas desde ninos.
                                                               page 208
        Mientras Juan, de tres anos, es soldado
      Y monta en una cana endeble y hueca,
      Besa Margot con labios de granado
      Los labios de carton de su muneca.

5       Lucen los dos sus inocentes galas,
      Y alegres suenan en tan dulces lazos:
      El, que cruza sereno entre las balas;
      Ella, que arrulla un nino entre sus brazos.

10      Puesto al hombro el fusil de hoja de lata,
      El kepis de papel sobre la frente,
      Alienta al nino en su inocencia grata
      El orgullo viril de ser valiente.

        Quiza piensa, en sus juegos infantiles,
      Que en este mundo que su afan recrea,
15    Son como el suyo todos los fusiles
      Con que la torpe humanidad pelea.

        Que pesan poco, que sin odios lucen,
      Que es igual el mas debil al mas fuerte,
      Y que, si se disparan, no producen
20    Humo, fragor, consternacion y muerte.

        iOh misteriosa condicion humana!
      Siempre lo opuesto buscas en la tierra:
      Ya delira Margot por ser anciana,
      Y Juan que vive en paz ama la guerra.
                                                               page 209
        Mirandolos jugar, me aflijo y callo;
      iCual sera sobre el mundo su fortuna?
      Suena el nino con armas y caballo,
      La nina con velar junto a la cuna.

5       El uno corre de entusiasmo ciego,
      La nina arrulla a su muneca inerme,
      Y mientras grita el uno: Fuego, Fuego,
      La otra murmura triste: Duerme, Duerme.

        A mi lado ante juegos tan extranos
10    Concha, la primogenita, me mira:
      iEs toda una persona de seis anos
      Que charla, que comenta y que suspira!

        ?Por que inclina su languida cabeza
      Mientras deshoja inquieta algunas flores?
15    ?Sera la que ha heredado mi tristeza?
      ?Sera la que comprende mis dolores?

        Cuando me rindo del dolor al peso,
      Cuando la negra duda me avasalla,
      Se me cuelga del cuello, me da un beso,
20    Se le saltan las lagrimas, y calla.

        Sueltas sus trenzas claras y sedosas,
      Y oprimiendo mi mano entre sus manos,
      Parece que medita en muchas cosas
      Al mirar como juegan sus hermanos...
                                                               page 210
        iInocencia! iNinez! iDichosos nombres!
      Amo tus goces, busco tus carinos;
      iComo han de ser los suenos de los hombres
      Mas dulces que los suenos de los ninos!
                                                               page 211


                      NICARAGUA


                   DON RUBEN DARIO

                     A ROOSEVELT

      Es con voz de la Biblia o verso de Walt Whitman
      Que habria que llegar hasta ti, icazador!
      Primitivo y moderno, sencillo y complicado,
      Con un algo de Washington y mucho de Nemrod.
5     Eres los Estados Unidos,
      Eres el futuro invasor
      De la America ingenua que tiene sangre indigena,
      Que aun reza a Jesucristo y aun habla en espanol.

      Eres soberbio y fuerte ejemplar de tu raza;
10    Eres culto, eres habil; te opones a Tolstoy.
      Y domando caballos o asesinando tigres,
      Eres un Alejandro Nabucodonosor.
      (Eres un profesor de Energia
      Como dicen los locos de hoy.)

15    Crees que la vida es incendio,
      Que el progreso es erupcion,
      Que en donde pones la bala
      El porvenir pones.                                       page 212
                                          No.
      Los Estados Unidos son potentes y grandes.
      Cuando ellos se estremecen hay un hondo temblor
      Que pasa por las vertebras enormes de los Andes.
5     Si clamais, se oye como el rugir de un leon.
      Ya Hugo a Grant lo dijo: "Las estrellas son vuestras."
      (Apenas brilla alzandose el argentino sol
      Y la estrella chilena se levanta...) Sois ricos;
      Juntais al culto de Hercules el culto de Mamnon;
10    Y alumbrando el camino de la facil conquista,0
      La Libertad levanta su antorcha en Nueva York.

      Mas la America nuestra que tenia poetas
      Desde los viejos tiempos de Netzhualcoyolt,
      Que ha guardado las huellas de los pies del gran Baco,
15    Que el alfabeto panico en un tiempo aprendio,
      Que consulto los astros, que conocio la atlantida
      Cuyo nombre nos llega resonando en Platon,
      Que desde los remotos momentos de su vida
      Vive de luz, de fuego, de perfume y de amor,
20    La America del grande Moctezuma, del Inca,
      La America fragante de Cristobal Colon,
      La America catolica, la America espanola,
      La America en que dijo el noble Guatemoc:
      "Yo no estoy en un lecho de rosas"; esa America
25    Que tiembla de huracanes y que vive de amor,
      Hombres de ojos sajones y alma barbara, vive
      Y suena. Y ama y vibra; y es la hija del Sol.
      Tened cuidado. iVive la America espanola!                page 213
      Hay mil cachorros sueltos del leon espanol.
      Se necesitaria, Roosevelt, ser Dios mismo,
      El Riflero terrible y el fuerte cazador,
      Para poder tenernos en vuestras ferreas garras.

5     Y, pues contais con todo, falta una cosa: iDios!
                                                               page 214


                        VENEZUELA


                    DON ANDRES BELLO

                A LA VICTORIA DE BAILEN

      Rompe el Leon soberbio la cadena
      Con que atarle penso la felonia,
      Y sacude con noble bizarria
      Sobre el robusto cuello la melena.

5       La espuma del furor sus labios llena
      Y a los rugidos que indignado envia
      El tigre tiembla en la caverna umbria,
      Y todo el bosque atonito resuena.

10      El Leon desperto; itemblad, traidores!
      Lo que vejez creisteis, fue descanso;
      Las juveniles fuerzas guarda enteras

        Perseguid, alevosos cazadores,
      A la timida liebre, al ciervo manso;
      No insulteis al monarca de las fieras

       LA AGRICULTURA DE LA ZONA TORRIDA

15     iSalve, fecunda zona,
      Que al sol enamorado circunscribes                       page 215
      El vago curso, y cuanto ser se anima
      En cada vario clima,
      Acariciada de su luz, concibes!
      Tu tejes al verano su guirnalda
5     De granadas espigas; tu la uva
      Das a la hirviente cuba:
      No de purpurea flor, o roja, o gualda,
      A tus florestas bellas
      Falta matiz alguno; y bebe en ellas
10    Aromas mil el viento;
      Y greyes van sin cuento
      Paciendo tu verdura, desde el llano
      Que tiene por lindero el horizonte,
      Hasta el erguido monte,
15    De inaccesible nieve siempre cano.
      Tu das la cana hermosa,
      De do la miel se acendra,
      Por quien desdena el mundo los panales:
      Tu en urnas de coral cuajas la almendra
20    Que en la espumante jicara rebosa:
      Bulle carmin viviente en tus nopales,
      Que afrenta fuera al murice de Tiro;
      Y de tu anil la tinta generosa
      Emula es de la lumbre del zafiro;
25    El vino es tuyo, que la herida agave
      Para los hijos vierte
      Del Anahuac feliz; y la hoja es tuya
      Que, cuando de sueave
      Humo en espiras vagarosas huya,                          page 216
      Solazara el fastidio al ocio inerte.
      Tu vistes de jazmines
      El arbusto sabeo,
      Y el perfume le das que en los festines
5     La fiebre insana templara a Lieo.
      Para tus hijos la procera palma
      Su vario feudo cria,
      Y el ananas sazona su ambrosia:
      Su blanco pan la yuca,
10    Sus rubias pomas la patata educa,
      Y el algodon despliega al aura leve
      Las rosas de oro y el vellon de nieve.
      Tendida para ti la fresca parcha
      En enramadas de verdor lozano,
15    Cuelga de sus sarmientos trepadores
      Nectareos globos y franjadas flores;
      Y para ti el maiz, jefe altanero
      De la espigada tribu, hinche su grano;
      Y para ti el banano
20    Desmaya al peso de su dulce carga;
      El banano, primero
      De cuantos concedio bellos presentes
      Providencia a las gentes
      Del ecuador feliz con mano larga.
25    No ya de humanas artes obligado
      El premio rinde opimo:
      No es a la podadera, no al arado
      Deudor de su racimo;
      Escasa industria bastale, cual puede                     page 217
      Hurtar a sus fatigas mano esclava:
      Crece veloz, y cuando exhausto acaba,
      Adulta prole en torno le sucede.

       iOh! iLos que afortunados poseedores
5     Habeis nacido de la tierra hermosa
      En que resena hacer de sus favores,
      Como para ganaros y atraeros,
      Quiso naturaleza bondadosa!
      Romped el duro encanto
10    Que os tiene entre murallas prisioneros.
      El vulgo de las artes laborioso,
      El mercader que, necesario al lujo,
      Al lujo necesita,
      Los que anhelando van tras el senuelo
15    Del alto cargo y del honor ruidoso,
      La grey de aduladores parasita,
      Gustosos pueblen ese infecto caos;
      El campo es vuestra herencia: en el gozaos.
      ?Amais la libertad? El campo habita:
20    No alla donde el magnate
      Entre armados satelites se mueve,
      Y de la moda, universal senora,
      Va la razon al triunfal carro atada,
      Y a la fortuna la insensata plebe,
25    Y el noble al aura popular adora.
      ?O la virtud amais? iAh! iQue el retiro,
      La solitaria calma                                       page 218
      En que, juez de si misma, pasa el alma
      A las acciones muestra,
      Es de la vida la mejor maestra!
      ?Buscais durables goces,
5     Felicidad, cuanta es al hombre dada
      Y a su terreno asiento, en que vecina
      Esta la risa al llanto, y siempre iah! siempre,
      Donde halaga la flor, punza la espina?
      Id a gozar la suerte campesina;
10    La regalada paz, que ni rencores,
      Al labrador, ni envidias acibaran;
      La cama que mullida le preparan
      El contento, el trabajo, el aire puro;
      Y el sabor de los faciles manjares,
15    Que dispendiosa gula no le aceda;
      Y el asilo seguro
      De sus patrios hogares
      Que a la salud y al regocijo hospeda.
      El aura respirad de la montana,
20    Que vuelve al cuerpo laso
      El perdido vigor, que a la enojosa
      Vejez retarda el paso,
      Y el rostro a la beldad tine de rosa.
      ?Es alli menos blanda por ventura
25    De amor la llama, que templo el recato?
      ?O menos aficiona la hermosura
      Que de extranjero ornato
      Y afeites impostores no se cura?
      ?O el corazon escucha indiferente                        page 219
      El lenguaje inocente
      Que los afectos sin disfraz expresa
      Y a la intencion ajusta la promesa?
      No del espejo al importuno ensayo
5     La risa se compone, el paso, el gesto;
      No falta alli carmin al rostro honesto
      Que la modestia y la salud colora,
      Ni la mirada que lanzo al soslayo
      Timido amor, la senda al alma ignora.
10    ?Esperareis que forme
      Mas venturosos lazos himeneo,
      Do el interes barata,
      Tirano del deseo,
      Ajena mano y fe por nombre o plata,
15    Que do conforme gusto, edad conforme,
      Y eleccion libre, y mutuo ardor los ata?

        iOh jovenes naciones, que cenida
      Alzais sobre el atonito Occidente
      De tempranos laureles la cabeza!
20    Honrad al campo, honrad la simple vida
      Del labrador y su frugal llaneza.
      Asi tendran en vos perpetuamente
      La libertad morada,
      Y freno la ambicion, y la ley templo.
25    Las gentes a la senda
      De la inmortalidad, ardua y fragosa,
      Se animaran, citando vuestro ejemplo.
      Lo emulara celosa                                        page 220
      Vuestra posteridad, y nuevos nombres
      Anadiendo la fama
      A los que ahora aclama,
      "Hijos son estos, hijos
5     (Pregonara a los hombres)
      De los que vencedores superaron
      De los Andes la cima:
      De los que en Boyaca, los que en la arena
      De Maipo y en Junin, y en la campana
10    Gloriosa de Apurima,
      Postrar supieron al leon de Espana."


             DON JUAN A. PEREZ BONALDE

                 VUELTA A LA PATRIA

                 A mi hermana Elodia

        iTierra! grita en la prora el navegante,
      Y confusa y distante,
      Una linea indecisa
15    Entre brumas y ondas se divisa.
        Poco a poco del seno
      Destacandose va, del horizonte,
      Sobre el eter sereno
      La cumbre azul de un monte;
20      Y asi como el bajel se va acercando,
      Va extendiendose el cerro
      Y unas formas extranas va tomando:                       page 221
      Formas que he visto cuando
      Sonaba con la dicha en mi destierro.

        Ya la vista columbra
      Las riberas bordadas de palmares,
5     Y una brisa cargada con la esencia
      De silvestres violetas y azahares
      En mi memoria alumbra
      El recuerdo feliz de mi inocencia,
      Cuando pobre de anos y pesares
10    Y rico de ilusiones y alegria,
      Bajo las palmas retozar solia
      Oyendo el arrullar de las palomas,
      Bebiendo luz y respirando aromas.

        Hay algo en esos rayos brilladores
15    Que juegan por la atmosfera azulada,
      Que me habla de ternuras y de amores
      De una dicha pasada;
      Y el viento al suspirar entre las cuerdas
      Parece que me dice:--?No te acuerdas?...
20    Ese cielo, ese mar, esos cocales,
      Ese monte que dora
      El sol de las regiones tropicales...
      iLuz! iluz al fin! los reconozco ahora;
      Son ellos, son los mismos de mi infancia,
25    Y esas playas que al sol del mediodia
      Brillan a la distancia,
      iOh inefable alegria!
      Son las riberas de la patria mia.
                                                               page 222
        Ya muerde el fondo de la mar hirviente
      Del ancla el ferreo diente;
      Ya se acercan los botes desplegando
      Al aire puro y blando
5     La ensena tricolor del pueblo mio.
      iA tierra! ia tierra! iO la emocion me ahoga,
      O se aduena de mi alma el desvario!

        Llevado en alas de mi ardiente anhelo,
      Me lanzo presuroso al barquichuelo
10    Que a las riberas del hogar me invita.
      Todo es grata armonia: los suspiros
      De la onda de zafir que el remo agita,
      De las marinas aves
      Los caprichosos giros,
15    Y las notas sueaves
      Y el timbre lisonjero,
      Y la magia que toma,
      Hasta en labios del tosco marinero,
      El dulce son de mi nativo idioma.

20      iVolad, volad veloces,
      Ondas, aves y voces!
      Id a la tierra en donde el alma tengo,
      Y decidle que vengo
      A reposar, cansado caminante,
25    Del hogar a la sombra un solo instante.
      Decidle que en mi anhelo, en mi delirio
      Por llegar a la orilla, el pecho siente                  page 223
      De Tantalo el martirio;
      Decidle, en fin, que mientra estuve ausente
      Ni un dia, ni un instante la he olvidado,
      Y llevadle este beso que os confio,
5     Tributo adelantado
      Que desde el fondo de mi ser le envio.
        iBoga, boga remero! iAsi! iLlegamos!
      iOh, emocion hasta ahora no sentida!
      Ya piso el santo suelo en que probamos
10    El almibar primero de la vida.
        Tras ese monte azul, cuya alta cumbre
      Lanza reto de orgullo
      Al zafir de los cielos,
      Esta el pueblo gentil donde al arrullo
15    Del maternal amor rasgue los velos
      Que me ocultaban la primera lumbre.
      iEn marcha, en marcha, postillon; agita
      El latigo inclemente!
      Y a mas andar el coche diligente
20    Por la orilla del mar se precipita.

        No hay pena ni ensenada que en mi mente
      No venga a despertar una memoria;
      Ni hay ola que en la arena humedecida
      No escriba con espuma alguna historia
25    De los felices tiempos de mi vida.
      Todo me habla de suenos y cantares,
      De paz, de amor y de tranquilos bienes;
      Y el aura fugitiva de los mares                          page 224
      Que viene, leda, a acariciar mis sienes,
      Me susurra al oido
      Con misterioso acento: iBienvenido!




DON HERACLIO MARTIN DE LA GUARDIA

    ULTIMA ILUSION


        Cayo empunando el invencible acero
5     Que corono de lauros la victoria,
      Terror de extranos, de su patria gloria,
      En traidora asechanza el caballero.
        "--Llevad mi espada al pueblo por quien muero,
      Y airado el pueblo vengue mi memoria...
10    Este anillo a... mi amor... La negra historia
      A mi madre callad."--Dijo el guerrero.

        Sucumbio el heroe... iSacrificio vano!
      Que al suspiro final de su agonia
      Besaba el pueblo la traidora mano:
15      iA otro amador la amada sonreia!
      Solo la madre en su dolor tirano
      Al guerrero lloraba noche y dia.

                                                               page 225





                         CANCIONES


[Illustration: Music]

          La Carcelera

      Carcelera, Carcelera,
      Carcelera de mi vida,
      desatame las cadenas
      y echame la despedida.

                                                               page 226


[Illustration: Music]

                        Riverana

      Ya se murio el burro que acarreaba la vinagre;
      Ya lo llevo Dios de esta vida miserable.
        |:Que tu ru ru ru ru
          Que tu ru ru ru ru.:|
      El era valiente, el  era mohino;
      El era el alivio de todo Villarino.
        |:Que tu ru ru ru ru
          Que tu ru ru ru ru.:|

                                                               page 227
[Illustration: Music]
                                                               page 228
[Illustration: Music]
                                                               page 229
[Illustration: Music]

           La Cachucha

      Yo tengo una cachuchita
      que me la dio un cachuchero,
      el que quiera cachuchita
      que se gaste su dinero.
      Vamonos, china del alma,
      vamonos a Gibraltar
      para ver a los moritos
      que se quieren embarcar!

                                                               page 230
[Illustration: Music]
                                                               page 231
[Illustration: music]
                                                               page 232
[Illustration: Music]

         La Valenciana.

      Camino de Valencia,
      camino de Valencia,
      camino largo,
      con las tunas yo me ire,
      con las buenas volvere,
      camino largo;
      a la sombra de un pino,
      a la sombra de un pino,
      nina, te aguardo,
      con las feas yo me ire,
      con las lindas volvere,
      inina, te aguardo!

                                                               page 233
[Illustration: Music]
                                                               page 234
[Illustration: Music]

               Cancion Devota

      A la puerta del Cielo venden zapatos
      para los angelitos que van descalzos.
      Maria, adoraros queria
      y os quiero, adorar el cordero,
      iclaveles, colorados y verdes,
      morados, verdes y colorados!

                                                               page 235
[Illustration: Music]
                                                               page 236
[Illustration: Music]
                                                               page 237
[Illustration: Music]

            La Jota Gallega

      Tanto baile la jota gallega,
          iole, ole, ole, ole!
      tanto baile que me enamore de ella,
          iole, ole, ole!
      tanto baile que me enamore,
          iole, ole, ole, ole!
      tanto baile que me enamore,
          iole, ole, ole, ole!
      tanto baile la jota gallega,
          iole, ole, ole, ole!
      tanto baile que me enamore de ella,
          iole, ole, ole!

                                                               page 238
[Illustration: Music]
                                                               page 239
[Illustration: Music]
                                                               page 240
[Illustration: Music]
                                                               page 241
[Illustration: Music]


                    El Tragala

              CANCION A LOS PANCISTAS

      Tu que no quieres lo que queremos,
      la ley preciosa do esta el bien nuestro,
      tragala, tragala, tragala, perro,
      tragala, tragala, tragala, perro.
      Tu de la panza misero siervo que la ley
      odias de tus abuelos,
      que la ley odias de tus abuelos
      por que en acibar y lloro han vuelto
      tus gollerias y regodeos.

                                                               page 242
[Illustration: Music]
                                                               page 243
[Illustration: Music]
                                                               page 244
[Illustration: Music]
                                                               page 245
[Illustration: Music]
                                                               page 246
[Illustration: Music]


                    Himno De Riego.

      Soldados, la Patria nos llama a la lid,
      juremos por ella vencer o morir. Serenos,
      alegres, valientes, osados, cantemos,
      soldados, el himno a la lid,
      y a nuestros acentos el orbe se admire
      y en nosotros mire los hijos del Cid,
      y a nuestros acentos el orbe se admire
      y en nosotros mire los hijos del Cid.
      Sol-etc.


                                                               page 247
[Illustration: Music]
                                                               page 248
[Illustration: Music]
                                                               page 249
[Illustration: Music]
                                                               page 250
[Illustration: Music]


           Himno Nacional De Mexico

                  JAIME NUNO

      Mexicanos al grito de guerra
      El acero aprestad y el bridon,
      y retiemble en sus centros la tierra
      al sonoro rugir del canon.
      Y retiemble en sus centros la tierra
      al sonoro rugir del canon.
      Cina ioh patria! tus sienes de oliva

      De la paz el arcangel divino,
      Que en el cielo tu eterno destino
      por el dedo de Dios se escribio.
      Mas si osare un extrano enemigo
      profanar con su planta tu suelo
      piensa ioh patria querida! que el cielo
      un soldado en cada hijo te dio,
      un soldado en cada hijo te dio.

                                                               page 251
[Illustration: Music]
                                                               page 252
[Illustration: Music]


               Himno Nacional De Cuba

                  (HIMNO DE BAYAMO)

                   PEDRO FIGUEREDO

      1. iAl combate corred Bayameses!
         Que la patria os contempla orgullosa;
         No temais una muerte gloriosa,
         Que morir por la patria es vivir.
         En cadenas vivir es vivir
         En oprobio y afrenta sumido.
         Del clarin escuchad el sonido;
         A las armas, valientes, corred!

      2. No temais al gobierno extranjero
         Que es cobarde cual todo tirano,
         No resiste el empuje cubano,
         Para siempre su imperio cayo.
         Sea bendita la noche serena
         En que en alegres campos de Yara
         El clarin de la guerra sonara
         Y el cubano ser libre juro.

      3. No se nuble jamas esa estrella
         Que las hijas de Cuba bordaron
         Y que nobles cubanos alzaron
         En su libre y feliz pabellon.
         iGloria y nombre a los hijos de Cuba!
         iGloria y nombre al valiente Aguilera!
         iViva! iViva! la alegre bandera
         Que en los campos de Yara se alzo.


                                                               page 253



NOTES

The heavy figures refer to pages of the text; the light
figures to lines.

[Transcriber's note: In this text file, the bold characters are
represented by the enclosure in a pair of = sign.]


_ROMANCES_. The Spanish _romances viejos_, which
correspond in form and spirit to the early English and
Scotch ballads, exist in great number and variety.
Anonymous and widely known among the people, they
represent as well as any literary product can the spirit
of the Spanish nation of the period, in the main stern and
martial, but sometimes tender and plaintive. Most of them
were written in the fifteenth and sixteenth centuries; the
earliest to which a date can be assigned is _Cercada tiene
a Baeza_, which must have been composed soon after 1368.
Others may have their roots in older events, but have
undergone constant modification since that time. The
_romance popular_ is still alive in Spain and many have
recently been collected from oral tradition (cf. Menendez
y Pelayo, _Antologia_, vol. X).

The _romances_ were once thought to be relics of very old
lyrico-epic songs which, gathering material in the course
of time, became the long epics that are known to have
existed in Spain in the twelfth to fourteenth centuries
(such as the _Poema del Cid_, and the lost _cantares_ of
_Bernardo del Carpio_, the _Infantes de Lara_ and
_Fernan Gonzalez_). But modern investigation has shown
conclusively that no such age can be ascribed to the
_romances_ in their present form, and that in so far as
they have any relation with the epic cycles just
cited they are rather descendants of them than
ancestors,--striking passages remembered by the people and
handed down by them in constantly changing form. Many
are obviously later in origin; such are the _romances
fronterizos_, springing from episodes of the Moorish wars,
and the _romances novelescos_, which deal with romantic
incidents of daily life. The _romances juglarescos_ are
longer poems, mostly concerned with Charlemagne                page 254
and his peers, veritable degenerate epics, composed by
itinerant minstrels to be sung in streets and taverns to
throngs of apprentices and rustics. They have not the
spontaneity and vigor which characterize the better
_romances viejos_.

A few of the _romances_ were printed in the _Cancionero
general_ of 1511, and more in loose sheets (_pliegos
sueltos_) not much later in date; but the great
collections which contain nearly all the best we know were
the _Cancionero de romances "sin ano,"_ (shortly before
1550), the _Cancionero de romances_ of 1550 and the
_Silva de varios romances_ (3 parts, 1550). The most
comprehensive modern collection is that of A. Duran,
_Romancero general_, 2 vols., Madrid, 1849-1851 (vols. 10
and 16 of the _Biblioteca de Autores espanoles_). The best
selected is the _Primavera y flor de romances_ of Wolf and
Hofmann (Berlin, 1856), reprinted in vols. VIII and IX
of Menendez y Pelayo's _Antologia de poetas liricos
castellanos_. This contains nearly all the oldest and best
_romances_, and includes poems from _pliegos sueltos_ and
the second part of the _Silva_, which were not known to
Duran. Menendez y Pelayo, in his _Apendices a la Primavera
y flor (_Antol._ vol. IX) has given still more texts,
notably from the third part of the _Silva_, one of the
rarest books in the world. The fundamental critical works
on the _romances_ are: F. Wolf, _Ueber die Romanzenpoesie
der Spanier_ (in _Studien_, Berlin, 1859); Mila y
Fontanals, _De la poesia heroico-popular castellana_
(1874); and Menendez y Pelayo, _Tratado de los romances
viejos_ (vols. XI and XII of the _Antologia_, Madrid,
1903-1906).

The _romances_, as usually printed, are in octosyllabic
lines, with a fixed accent on the seventh syllable of each
and assonance in alternate lines.

Many English translators have tried their hand at Spanish
ballads, as Thomas Rodd (1812), J. C. Lockhart (1823),
John Bowring (1824), J.Y. Gibson (1887) and others.
Lockhart's versions are the best known and the least
literal.

In the six _romances_ included in this collection the
lyrical quality predominates above the narrative               page 255
(cf. the many rimes in-_or_ in _Fonte-frida_ and _El
prisionero_). _Abenamar_ is properly a frontier ballad,
and _La constancia_, perhaps, belongs with the Carolingian
cycle; but the rest are detached poems of a romantic
nature. (See S.G. Morley's _Spanish Ballads_, New York,
1911.)

=1.--Abenamar= is one of a very few _romances_ which are
supposed to have their origin in Moorish popular poetry.
The Christian king referred to is Juan II, who defeated
the Moors at La Higueruela, near Granada, in 1431. It is
said that on the morning of the battle he questioned one
of his Moorish allies, Yusuf Ibn Alahmar, concerning the
conspicuous objects of Granada. The poem was utilized
by Chateaubriand for two passages of _Les aventures du
dernier Abencerage_.

=I. Abenamar= = _Ibn Alahmar_: see above.

9. The verbal forms in-_ara_ and-_iera_ were used then as
now as the equivalent of the pluperfect or the preterit
indicative.

=II. la=: _la verdad_ is probably understood. Cf. p. 2, l.
I.

=2.--I. diria= = _dire_. In the _romances_ the conditional
often replaces the future, usually to fit the assonance.

5. =relucian:= in the old ballads the imperfect indicative
is often used to express loosely past time or even present
time.

6. =El Alhambra:= in the language of the old ballads _el_,
not _la_, is used before a feminine noun with initial-_a_
or _e_-, whether the accent be on the first syllable or
not.

25. =viuda= in old Spanish was pronounced _viuda_ and
assonated in _i-a_. This expletive =que= is common in
Spanish: do not translate.

27. =grande= merely strengthens =bien=.

=3.--Fonte-frida= is a poem of erotic character, much
admired for its suave melancholy. Probably it is merely an
allegorical fragment of a longer poem now lost. It is one
of those printed in the _Cancionero general_ of 1511. It
was well translated by Bowring. There is also a metrical
version in Ticknor, I, III. This theme is found in the
_Physiologus_, a medieval bestiary. One of these               page 256
animal stories relates that the turtle-dove has but one
mate and if this mate dies the dove remains faithful
to its memory. Cf. _Mod. Lang. Notes_, June, 1904
(_Turtel-Taube_), and February, 1906.

3. In =avecicas= and =tortolica= the diminutive
ending-_ica_ seems to be quite equivalent to-_ito_. Cf.
Knapp's _Span. Gram., 760a_.

4. =van tomar= = _van a tomar_.

7. =fuera=: note that _fue_ (or =fuera=) =a pasar= =
_paso_. This usage is now archaic, although it is still
sometimes used by modern poets: see p. 136, l. 18.

18. =bebia=: see note, p. 2, l. 5.

19. =haber=, in the ballads, often = _tener_. See also
=haya= in the following line.

=4=.--=El Conde Arnaldos=. Lockhart says of "Count
Arnaldos," "I should be inclined to suppose that

  'More is meant than meets the ear,'

--that some religious allegory is intended to be shadowed
forth." Others have thought the same, and the strong
mystic strain in Spanish character may bear out the
opinion. In order that the reader may judge for himself he
should have before him the mysterious song itself, which,
omitted in the earliest version, is thus given in the
_Cancionero de romances_ of 1550, to follow line 18 of the
poem:

  --Galera, la mi galera,
  Dios te me guarde de mal,
  de los peligros del mundo
  sobre aguas de la mar,
  de los llanos de Almeria,
  del estrecho de Gibraltar,
  y del golfo de Venecia,
  y de los bancos de Flandes,
  y del golfo de Leon,
  donde suelen peligrar.
                                                               page 257
Popular poems which merely extol the power of music over
animals are not uncommon.

=I. iQuien hubiese!= _would that one might have_! or
_would that I might have_! Note =iquien me diese!= (p. 7,
1. 25), _would that some one would give me_!: this is the
older meaning of _quien_ in these expressions. Note also
=iQuien supiera escribir!= (p.134), _would that I could
write_! where the modern usage occurs.

22. =digasme= = _dime_ This use of the pres. subj. with
the force of an imperative is not uncommon in older
Spanish.

24.=le fue a dar=: see note, p. 3,1. 7.

=5.=--=La constancia=. These few lines, translated by
Lockhart as "The Wandering Knight's Song," are only part
of a lost ballad which began:

  A las armas, Moriscote,
  si las has en voluntad.

Six lines of it have recently been recovered (Menendez y
Pelayo, _Antologia_, IX, 211). It seems to have dealt with
an incursion of the French into Spain, and the lines here
given are spoken by the hero Moriscote, when called upon
to defend his country. Don Quijote quotes the first two
lines of this ballad, Part I, Cap. II.

8. =de me danar= = _de danarme_.

13. =vos= was formerly used in Spanish as _usted_ is now
used,--in formal address.

=El amante desdichado=. Named by Lockhart "Valladolid." It
is one of the few old _romances_ which have kept alive
in oral tradition till the present day, and are still
repeated by the Spanish peasantry (cf. _Antologia_, X,
132, 192).

=7.=--=El prisionero=. Twelve lines of this poem were
printed in 1511. It seems to be rather troubadouresque
than popular in origin, but it became very well known
later. Lockhart's version is called "The Captive Knight
and the Blackbird."
                                                               page 258
16. This line is too short by one syllable, or has archaic
hiatus. See _Versification_,(4) a.

19. =las mis manos:= in old Spanish the article was often
used before a possessive adjective that preceded its noun.
This usage is now archaic or dialectic.

21. =hacia= is here exactly equivalent to =hace= in 1. 23:
see note, p. 2, 1. 5.

25. =quien...me diese=: see note, p. 4, 1. I.

=8.=--12. =Oidolo habia= = _lo habia oido_.

13. This line is too long by one syllable.

14. Gil Vicente (1470?-1540?), a Portuguese poet who wrote
dramas in both Portuguese and Castilian. A strong creative
artist and thinker, Vicente is the greatest dramatist of
Portugal and one of the great literary figures of the
Peninsula. This Cancion to the Madonna occurs in _El
auto de la Sibila Casandra_, a religious pastoral drama.
Vicente himself wrote music for the song, which was
intended to accompany a dance. John Bowring made a very
good metrical translation of the song (_Ancient Poetry and
Romances of Spain_, 1824, p. 315). Another may be found in
Ticknor's _History of Spanish Literature,_ I, 259.

16. =digas tu=: see note, p. 4, I. 22. =el marinero=: omit
=el= in translation. In the Spanish of the ballads the
article is regularly used with a noun in the vocative.

24. =pastorcico=: see note, p. 3, I. 3.

=9.=--Santa Teresa de Jesus (1515-1582), born at Avila;
became a Carmelite nun and devoted her life to reforming
her Order and founding convents and monasteries. Saint
Theresa believed herself inspired of God, and her
devotional and mystic writings have a tone of authority.
Her chief works in prose are the _Castillo interior_ and
the _Camino de perfeccion_. She is one of the greatest of
Spanish mystics, and her influence is still potent (cf.
Juan Valera, _Pepita Jimenez_; Huysmans, _En route; et
al._). Cf. _Bibl. de Aut. Esp._, vols. 53 and                  page 259
55, for her works. This _Letrilla_ has been translated by
Longfellow ("Santa Teresa's Book-Mark," Riverside ed.,
1886, VI., 216.)

=9.=--Fray Luis Ponce de Leon (1527-1591), born at
Belmonte; educated at the University of Salamanca; became
an Augustinian monk. While a professor at the same
university he was accused by the Inquisition and
imprisoned from 1572 to 1576, while his trial proceeded.
He was acquitted, and he taught till his death, which
occurred just after he had been chosen Vicar-General of
his Order. The greatest of the mystic poets, he wrote as
well religious works in prose (_Los nombres de Cristo, La
perfecta casada_), and in verse translated Virgil,
Horace and other classical authors and parts of the Old
Testament. In gentleness of character and in the purity
in which he wrote his native tongue, he resembles the
Frenchman Pascal. His poems are in vol. 37 of the _Bibl.
de Aut. Esp._ Cf. Ticknor, Period II, Cap. IX, and
_Introduction_, p. xxii. =La vida retirada= is written in
imitation of Horace's _Beatus ille_.

=9=.--17 to =10=.--3. In these lines there is much poetic
inversion of word-order. The logical order would be: _Que_
('for') _el estado de los soberbios grandes no le enturbia
el pecho, ni se admira del dorado techo, en jaspes
sustentado, fabricado del sabio moro_.

5. =pregonera=, as its gender indicates, modifies =voz=.

=12=.--10. In the sixteenth century great fortunes were
made by Spaniards who exploited the mines of their
American colonies across the seas.

II. Note, this unusual _enjambement_; but the _mente_ of
adverbs still has largely the force of a separate word.

=Soneto: A Cristo Crucificado=. This famous sonnet has
been ascribed to Saint Theresa and to various other
writers, but without sufficient proof. Cf. Fouche-Delbosc
in _Revue Hispanique_, II, 120-145; and _ibid._, VI,
56-57. The poem was translated by J.Y. Gibson (_The Cid
Ballads_, etc., 1887, II, 144), and there is also a
version attributed to Dryden.
                                                               page 260
=13=.--Lope Felix de Vega Carpio (1562-1635) was the most
fertile playwright ever known to the world. Alone he
created the Spanish drama almost out of nothing. Born
at Madrid, where he spent most of his life, Lope was an
infant prodigy who fulfilled the promise of his youth. His
first play was written at the age of thirteen. He fought
against the Portuguese in the expedition of 1583 and took
part in the disastrous Armada of 1588. His life was marked
by unending literary success, numerous love-affairs and
occasional punishments therefor. In 1614 he was ordained
priest. For the last twenty years of his life he was the
acknowledged dictator of Spanish letters.

Lope's writings include some 2000 plays, of which perhaps
500 are extant, epics, pastorals, parodies, short stories
and minor poems beyond telling. He undertook to write
in every genre attempted by another and seldom scored
a complete failure. His _Obras completas_ are being
published by the Spanish Academy (1890-); vol. 1 contains
his life by Barrera. Most of his non-dramatic poems are in
vol. 38 of the _Bibl. de Aut. Esp._; others are in vols.
16 and 35. There is a _Life_ in English by H.A. Rennert
(1904). Cf. also _Introduction_, p. xxiv.

=Cancion de la Virgen= is a lullaby sung by the Madonna
to her sleeping child in a palm grove. The song occurs
in Lope's pastoral, _Los pastores de Belen_ (1612). In
Ticknor (II, 177), there is a metrical translation of the
_Cancion_.

The palm has great significance in the Roman
Catholic Church. On Palm Sunday,--the last Sunday of
Lent,--branches of the palm-tree are blessed and are
carried in a solemn procession, in commemoration of the
triumphal entry of Jesus into Jerusalem (cf. John, xii).

14. Ticknor translates these lines as follows:

  Holy angels and blest,
  Through these palms as you sweep,
  Hold their branches at rest,
  For my babe is asleep.
                                                               page 261
The literal meaning is: _Since you are moving among the
palms, holy angels, hold the branches, for my child
sleeps_. When the wind blows through the palm-trees their
leaves rustle loudly.

=14.=--=Manana=: translated by Longfellow (Riverside ed.,
1886, VI, 204).

=15.=--Francisco Gomez de Quevedo y Villegas (1580-1645),
the greatest satirist in Spanish literature, was one of
the very few men of his time who dared criticize the
powers that were. He was born in the province of Santander
and was a precocious student at Alcala. His brilliant mind
and his honesty led him to Sicily and Naples, as a high
official under the viceroy, and to Venice and elsewhere
on private missions; his plain-speaking tongue and
ready sword procured him numerous enemies and therefore
banishments. He was confined in a dungeon from 1639 to
1643 at the instance of Olivares, at whom some of his
sharpest verses were directed.

Quevedo was a statesman and lover of his country driven
into pessimism by the ineptitude which he saw about him.
He wrote hastily on many subjects and lavished a bitter,
biting wit on all. His best-known works in prose are the
picaresque novel popularly called _El gran tacano_ (1626)
and the _Suenos_ (1627). His _Obras completas_ are in
course of publication at Seville (1898-); his poems are in
vol. 69 of the _Bibl. de Aut. Esp._ Cf. E. Merimee, _Essai
sur la vie et les oeuvres de Francisco de Quevedo_ (Paris,
1886), and _Introduction_, p. xxv. For a modern portrayal
of one side of Quevedo's character, see Breton de los
Herreros, ?_Quien es ella_?

=Epistola satirica=: this epistle was addressed to Don
Gaspar de Guzman, Conde-Duque de Olivares (d. 1645),
the favorite and prime minister of Philip IV. It is a
remarkably bold protest, for it was published in 1639 when
Olivares was at the height of his power. His disgrace did
not occur till 1643.

8. Note the double meaning of =sentir=,--'to feel' and 'to
regret.'
                                                               page 262
9. =libre= modifies =ingenio=. Translate: _its freedom_.

16. =Que es lengua la verdad de Dios severo= = _que la
verdad es lengua de Dios severo_.

=16.=--=Letrilla Satirica= was published in 1640.

14. Genoa was then, as now, an important seaport
and commercial center. As the Spaniards bought many
manufactured articles from Genoa, much of their money was
"buried" there.

=17.=--Esteban Manuel de Villegas (d. 1669) was a lawyer
who wrote poetry only in his extreme youth. His _Eroticas
o Amatorias_ were published in 1617, and he says himself
that they were written at fourteen and polished at twenty.
Later the cares of life prevented him from increasing
the poetical fame that he gained thus early. He had a
reputation for excessive vanity, due partly to the picture
of the rising sun which he placed upon the title-page
of his poems with the motto _Me surgente, quid istae_?
_Istae_ referred to Lope, Quevedo and others. Villegas'
poems may be found in vol. 42 of the _Bibl. de Aut.
Esp._ Cf. Menendez y Pelayo, _Hist. de los heterodoxos
espanoles_, III, 859-875.

There is a parody of this well-known =cantilena= by
Iglesias in the _Bibl. de Aut. Esp._, vol. 61, p. 477.

=18.=--Pedro Calderon de la Barca Henao de la Barreda y
Riano (1600-1681) was the greatest representative of the
second generation of playwrights in the _Siglo de oro_. He
took some part in the nation's foreign wars, but his life
was spent mostly without event at court as the favorite
dramatist of the aristocracy. He became a priest in 1651
and was made chaplain of honor to Philip IV in 1663.
There are extant over two hundred of his dramatic works,
_comedias, autos, entremeses_, etc. Calderon constructed
his plots more carefully than Lope and was stronger in
exalted lyric and religious passages; but he was more
mannered, more tainted with Gongorism and less skilled in
creating characters.
                                                               page 263
His _Comedias_ are contained in vols. 7, 9, 12 and 14 of
the _Bibl. de Aut. Esp._; a few of his _autos_ are in vol.
58, and some of his poems are in vols. 14 and 35. Cf.
also _Poesias ineditas_, Madrid, 1881; Menendez y Pelayo,
_Calderon y su teatro_, Madrid, 1884; R.C. Trench,
_Calderon_, London, 1880.

The sonnet, _Estas que fueron..._, is found in _El
principe constante_, II.

=20.=--Diego Tadeo Gonzalez (1733-1794) was born at
Ciudad-Rodrigo. He entered the order of Augustinians at
eighteen, and filled various important offices within the
Order during his life. His duties took him to Seville,
Salamanca and Madrid. From youth he showed a particular
bent for poetry, and Horace and Luis de Leon were his
admiration. He was an intimate friend of Jovellanos,
who induced him to forsake light subjects and attempt a
didactic poem, _Las edades_, which was left unfinished.
Fray Diego's modest and lovable character and his friendly
relations with other men of letters made him an attractive
figure. His poems are in vol. 61 of the _Bibl. de Aut.
Esp._ Cf. _Introduction_, p. xxx.

II. =Mirta= was a lady with whom the author long
corresponded and to whom he addressed many poems. =Delio=
(l. 15) was the name by which Fray Diego Gonzalez was
known among his literary intimates: Jovellanos was called
"Jovino"; Melendez Valdes, "Batilo"; etc.

=21=.--4. =recogellos= = _recogerlos_.

12. =a la ave=: a more usual construction would be _al
ave_, although the sound wouhd be approximately the same
in either case. See also below in line 24, =a la alba=.

=22=.--4. =reluciente=, modified by an adverb, here =
_reluciendo_.

6. =recio=: a predicate adjective with the force of an
adverb.

=26.=--Nicolas Fernandez de Moratin (1737-1780) was born
in Madrid of a noble Asturian family. He studied for the
law and practised it in Madrid, but irregularly, devoting
most of his time to literary work. Besides his                 page 264
poems in the national style (see _Introduction_, p. xxix)
he wrote an epic on the burning of the ships of Cortes and
several plays in the French manner, of which only one,
_Hormesinda_ (1770), ever had a stage production. His
works, with his _Life_ written by his son Leandro, are
printed in vol. 2 of the _Bibl. de Ant. Esp._

=Fiesta de toros en Madrid=. Baedeker's guide-book to
Spain and Portugal says: "Bull-fights were instituted for
the encouragement of proficiency in the use of martial
weapons and for the celebration of festal occasions,
and were a prerogative of the aristocracy down to the
sixteenth century. As the mounted _caballero_ encountered
the bull, armed only with a lance, accidents were very
frequent. No less than ten knights lost their lives at a
single _Fiesta de Toros_ in 1512. The present form of the
sport, so much less dangerous for the man and so much more
cruel for the beast, was adopted about the beginning of
the seventeenth century. The construction, in 1749, of
the first great _Plaza de Toros_ in Madrid definitely
converted the once chivalrous sport into a public
spectacle, in which none took part but professional
_Toreros_." The padded _picador_ of to-day, astride a
blinded, worn-out old hack, is the degenerate successor of
the knight of old. In the seventeenth century bull-fights
in Madrid were sometimes given in the _Plaza Mayor_ (or
_Plaza de la Constitucion_).

6. =Aliatar=: this, like most of the names of persons in
this poem, is fictitious; but in form these words are of
Arabic origin, and it is probable that Moratin borrowed
most of them from the _romances moriscos_. The names of
places, it should be noticed, are also Arabic, but the
places still retain these names. See =Alimenon=, and all
names of places, in the _Vocab._

=28=.--19. =Hecho un lazo por airon=, _tied in a knot [to
look] like a crest of plumes_. This was doubtless the
forerunner of the modern _banderilla_ (barbed                  page 265
dart ornamented with streamers of colored paper).

=30.=--26-28. =Cual... nube= = _cual la ardiente madeja
del sol deja mirarse tal vez entre cenicienta nube_.

=31.=--12. =blasones de Castilla=: as at this time (in the
reign of Alfonso VI) Leon and Castile were united, the
=blasones= were probably two towers (for Castile) and
two lions (for Leon), each one occupying a corner of the
shield.

14. =Nunca mi espada venciera= apparently means: _Never
did he conquer my sword_. This may refer to any adversary,
or to some definite adversary in a previous combat.

26. The best bulls raised for bull-fights come from the
valley of the Guadalquivir.

=32.=--22-26. =Asi... acerquen a..., Como=, _may... bring
to..., just as surely as_.

=33.=--8. Fernando I: see in _Vocab._

=35.=--28. The stanzas of pages 34 and 35 are probably
known to every Spaniard: schoolboys commit them to memory
for public recitation.

=36.=--15. =dignaredes= = _dignareis_. In modern Spanish
the _d_ (from Lat. _t_) of the 2d pers. plur. verb endings
has fallen.

=38.=--4. =Y... despedir= = _y [si no vieran] a Zaida que
le despedia._

13. =cruz=: the cross of a sword is the guard which,
crossing the hilt at right angles, gives the sword the
shape of a cross. The cross swords were held in especial
veneration by the medieval Christians.

Gaspar Melchor de Jovellanos (_or_ Jove-Llanos)
(1744-1811) was one of the loftiest characters and most
unselfish statesmen ever produced by Spain. Educated for
the law, he filled with distinction important judicial
offices in Seville and Madrid. In 1780 he was made a
member of the Council of Orders. He attached himself to
the fortunes of Count Cabarrus, and when that statesman
fell from power in 1790, Jovellanos was exiled to              page 266
his home in Gijon (Asturias). There he devoted himself
to the betterment of his native province. In 1797 the
favorite, Godoy, made him _ministro de gracia y justicia_;
but he could not be other than an enemy of the corrupt
"Prince of the Peace," and in 1798 he was again sent home.
In 1801 he was seized and imprisoned in Majorca and was
not released till the invasion of Spain by the French in
1808. He refused flattering offers of office under the
French, and was the most active member of the _Junta
Central_ which organized the Spanish cortes. Unjustly
criticized for his labors he retired home, whence he was
driven by a sudden incursion of the French. He died a few
days after in an inn at Vega (Asturias).

Jovellanos' best literary work is really his political
prose, such as the _Informe sobre un proyecto de ley
agraria_ (1787) and _Defensa de la junta central_ (1810).
His _Delincuente honrado_ (1773), a _comedie larmoyante_
after the manner of Diderot's _Fils naturel_, had wide
success on the stage. His works are in vols. 46 and 50 of
the _Bibl. de Aut. Esp._ Cf. E. Merimee, _Jovellanos_, in
the _Revue hispanique_, I, pp. 34-68.

=?Quis tam patiens ut teneat se?= _who is so
long-suffering as to control himself?_

21. =prision=: see mention above of Jovellanos'
imprisonment in Majorca.

=39.=--2. It is scarcely accurate to call Juvenal a
=bufon=, since he was rather a scornful, austere satirist
of indignation.

=40.=--26. =cuanto de= is an unusual expression; but if
the line read: _iAy, cuanta amargura y cuanto lloro_, it
would lack one syllable.

=41.=--4-6. =cuesta... infanta=. Evidently the world has
changed little in a hundred years!

=42.=--Juan Melendez Valdes (1754-1817) was born in the
district of Badajoz (Estremadura). He studied law at
Salamanca, where he was guided in letters by Cadalso. In
1780 he won a prize offered by the Academy for                 page 267
the best eclogue. He then accepted a professorship at
Salamanca offered him by Jovellanos. Literary success led
him to petition a position under the government which,
involving as it did loss of independence, proved fatal
to his character. He filled honorably important judicial
posts in Saragossa and Valladolid, but court intrigue
and the caprices of Godoy brought him many trials and
undeserved punishments. In 1808 he accepted a position
under the French, and nearly lost his life from popular
indignation. Later his vacillations were pitiful: he wrote
spirited poems now for the French and now against them.
When they were finally expelled in 1813, he left the
country with them and died in poverty and sorrow in
Montpellier.

Most of his poems are in vol. 63 of the _Bibl. de
Aut. Esp._; others have been published in the _Revue
hispanique_, vols. I. and IV. Cf. his Life by Quintana
in _Bibl. de Aut. Esp._, vol. 19; E. Merimee,
_Melendez Valdes_, in _Revue hispanique_, I, 166-195;
_Introduction_, p. xxx.

=44.=--5. =Muy mas=: this use of _muy_ is not uncommon in
the older classics, but the usual expression now is _mucho
mas_.

28. =benigna=: see note, p. 22, l. 6.

=46.=--Manuel Jose Quintana (1772-1857) was born in
Madrid. He went to school in Cordova and later studied law
at Salamanca. He fled from Madrid upon the coming of the
French. In the reign of Ferdinand VII he was for a time
confined in the Bastile of Pamplona on account of his
liberal ideas. After the liberal triumph of 1834 he held
various public offices, including that of Director General
of Public Instruction. In 1855 he was publicly crowned in
the Palace of the Senate.

See _Introduction_, p. xxxii; Ticknor, III, 332-334;
Blanco Garcia, _La literatura espanola en el siglo XIX_,
2d ed., Madrid, 1899, I, 1-13; Menendez y Pelayo, _D.
Manuel Jose Quintana_, _La poesia lirica al                    page 268
principiar el siglo XIX_, Madrid, 1887; E. Pineyro, _M.-J.
Quintana_, Chartres, 1892; Juan Valera, _Florilegio de
poesias castellanas_, Madrid, 1903, V, 32-38. His works
are in vols. 19 and 67 of _Bibl. de Aut. Esp._

The Spanish people, goaded by the subservience of Charles
IV and his prime minister and favorite, Godoy, to the
French, rose in March, 1808, swept away Godoy, forced the
king to abdicate and placed his son Ferdinand upon the
throne. It was believed that this change of rulers would
check French influence in the Peninsula, but Ferdinand was
forced by Napoleon into a position more servile than that
occupied formerly by Charles.

2. Note the free word-order in Spanish which permits, as
in this line, the subject to follow the verb, the object
to precede.

14. =Oceano=: note the omission of the accent on _e_, that
the word may rime with =soberano= and =vano=; but here
=oceano= still has four syllables.

=47.=--28. =tirano del mundo= = Napoleon Bonaparte.

=48.=--24. By =los colosos de oprobio y de vergueenza= are
probably meant Charles IV and Godoy.

=49.=--29. =hijo de Jimena=: see _Jimena_ and _Bernardo
del Carpio_, in _Vocab._

=50.=--2. =En... y=, _with a... and in_.

=51.=--Dionisio Solis y Villanueva (1774-1834) was born in
Cordova: he never rose higher in life than to be prompter
in a theater. He fought against the French, and he was
exiled for a time by Ferdinand VII. Solis wrote some plays
and translated many from other languages into Spanish. The
best that can be said of Solis as a poet is that his work
is spontaneous and in parts pleasing. Cf. Blanco Garcia,
I, 50 and 61-63; Valera, _Florilegio_, V, 44-46.

=53.=--18-19. =Esta... enfermedad= = _esta dulce deliciosa
enfermedad que yo siento_.
                                                               page 269
25. si puede (here meaning _if it is possible_) is
understood before =que trate=.

=54.=--Juan Nicasio Gallego (1777-1853) was born at
Zamora. He was ordained a priest: later he went to court,
and was appointed Director of His Majesty's Pages. He
frequented the salon of his friend Quintana, and was
elected deputy from Cadiz. In 1814, during the reign of
Ferdinand VII, Gallego was imprisoned for his liberal
ideas and later was banished from Spain. He spent some
years in France and returned to Spain in 1828. Later he
was appointed Perpetual Secretary of the Spanish Academy.

See _Introduction_, p. xxxii; Blanco Garcia, I, 13 f.;
Valera, _Florilegio_, V, 38-44. His poems are in vol. 67
of the _Bibl. de Aut. Esp._ There is also an edition of
his poems by the Academia de la Lengua, Madrid, 1854.

=El Dos de Mayo=: on the second of May, 1808, the Spanish
people, unarmed and without strong leaders, rose against
Napoleon's veteran troops. Aided by the English, they
drove out the French after a long and bloody war, thus
proving to the world that the old Spanish spirit of
independence was still alive. This war is known to the
Spaniards as the _Guerra de la independencia_ and to the
English as the Peninsular War. The popular uprising began
with the seizure of a powder magazine in Madrid by Velarde
and Daoiz (see in _Vocab._). These men and their followers
were killed and the magazine was retaken by the French,
but the incident roused the Spanish people to action.

9. al furor, _in the glare_.

=55.=--4. =Mantua=: a poetic appellation of Madrid. Cf.
article by Prof. Milton A. Buchanan in _Romanic Review_,
1910, p. 211 f. See also p. xxxiii, _Introduction_ to this
volume.

11-12. =?Quien habra... que cuente=, _who may there be to
tell..._

=58.=--26 to =59.=--3. Note how the poet refers to the
various parts of the Spanish peninsula: =hijos de Pelayo=
= the Spaniards in general, or perhaps those                   page 270
of northernmost Spain; =Moncayo= = Aragon, Navarre and
Castile; =Turia= = Valencia; =Duero= = Old Castile, Leon
and Portugal; and =Guadalquivir= = Andalusia. See =Pelayo=
and =Moncayo= and these names of rivers in _Vocab._

5. =Patron= = Santiago, or St. James, the patron saint of
Spain. According to the legend James "the Greater," son of
Zebedee, preached in Spain, and after his death his body
was taken there and buried at Santiago de Campostela. It
was believed that he often appeared in the battle-fields
fighting with the Spaniards against the Moslems.

14-15. =a... brindo felicidad=, _drank in fire and blood a
toast to her prosperity_.

=60.=--Francisco Martinez de la Rosa (1787-1862) was born
at Granada. During the War of Independence he was sent to
England to plead for the support of that country against
the French. Later he was exiled by Ferdinand VII, and was
for five years a prisoner of state in a Spanish prison on
the African coast. After his release he became prominent
in politics, and was forced to flee to France. In 1834 he
was called into power by the queen regent, Maria Cristina.
He represented his country at Paris, and later at Rome,
and held several important posts as cabinet minister.

See _Introduction_, p. xxxvi; Menendez y Pelayo, _Estudios
de critica literaria_, Madrid, 1884, pp. 223, f.; Blanco
Garcia, I, 115-128; Juan Valera, _Florilegio_, V, 56-63.
His _Obras completas_, 2 vols., ed. Baudry, were published
at Paris in 1845. Several of his articles of literary
criticism are in vols. 5, 7, 20 and 61 of the _Bibl. de
Aut. Esp._

3. =riyendo= = _riendo_.

=61.=--Angel de Saavedra, Duque de Rivas (1791-1865) was
born at Cordova. He prepared for a military career. By
reason of his liberal ideas he was compelled to leave
Spain and went to England, France and the Island of Malta.
He returned to Spain in 1834 and became a cabinet              page 271
minister, but was again forced to flee the country. Later
he was welcomed back and represented Spain at Naples. He
retired from politics and was appointed Director of the
Spanish Academy.

See _Introduction_, p. xxxvi; Blanco Garcia, I, 129-153;
Juan Valera, _Florilegio_, V, 184-195. His _Obras
completas_, in 5 vols., were published by the Spanish
Academy, Madrid, 1854-1855, with introductory essays by
Pastor Diaz and Canete. His works were also published in
the _Coleccion de Escritores castellanos_, 1894-.

4. =De... pro= = _en pro de mi sangre y casa_.

=62.=--3. =a la que=: translate, _before which_.

10. =duque de Borbon= is the subject of =estaba=, l. 3.

18. =Emperador= = Charles V.

=64.=--8. =Condestable= = Velasco, Constable of Spain, who
in 1521 defeated the _comuneros_ who had rebelled against
the rule of Charles V.

=65.=--22. =Y con los que=, _with whom_.

23. =estrecho= stands in antithesis to =ancho=: _for his
glory the broad world will be narrow_.

=66.=--18-19. =Y... leonesa= = _y un coleto a la leonesa
de recamado ante_.

=68.=--20-21. =Que... resuelta= = _que es voluntad suya
resuelta (el) que aloje a Borbon_.

=69.=--22. =de un su pariente= is archaic. The regular
expression to-day would be _de un pariente suyo_.

=71.=--Juan Arolas (1805-1849) was born in Barcelona, but
spent most of his life in Valencia. In 1821, when sixteen
years old, Arolas, much against the wishes of his parents,
joined a monastic order. Arolas wrote in all the literary
genres of his time, but he distinguished himself most as a
poet by his romantic "oriental" and love poems.

Cf. _El P. Arolas, su vida y sus versos_, Madrid, 1898, by
Jose R. Lomba y Pedraja; Blanco Garcia, I, 186-189; Juan
Valera, _Florilegio_, V, 121-130. A new edition                page 272
of Arolas' verses was published at Valencia in 1883.

=73.=--Jose de Espronceda (1808-1842), Spain's greatest
romantic poet, was born in Almendralejo (Badajoz). At
the Colegio de San Mateo Espronceda was considered a
precocious but wayward pupil. His poetic gifts won for him
the lasting friendship of his teacher, Alberto Lista.
At an early age he became a member of a radical secret
society, Los Numantinos. Sent into exile to a monastery in
Guadalajara, he there composed the fragmentary heroic poem
_Pelayo_. After his release he went to Lisbon and then to
London. Enamored of Teresa, though another's wife, he fled
with her to Paris, where he took an active part in the
revolution of 1830. Espronceda returned to Spain in 1833,
and engaged in journalism and politics. Worn out by his
tempestuous life, he died at the early age of thirty-four
years.

See _Introduction_, p. xxxvii; E. Rodriguez Solis,
_Espronceda, su tiempo, su vida y sus obras_, Madrid,
1883; Blanco Garcia, I, 154-171; Juan Valera,
_Florilegio_, V, 197-207; Antonio Corton, _Espronceda_,
Madrid, 1906; Philip H. Churchman, _Espronceda's Blanca
de Borbon, Revue hisp._, 1907; and _Byron and Espronceda,
ibid._, 1909. For his poems, see _Obras poeticas_, in the
_Biblioteca amena e instructiva_, Barcelona, 1882; _Obras
poeticas y escritos en prosa, coleccion ordenada por D.
Patricio de la Escosura_, Madrid, 1884.

=79.=--Jose de Zorrilla (1817-1893) was born in
Valladolid. After receiving his secondary education in the
Jesuit Semanario de Nobles he began the study of law;
but he soon turned to the more congenial pursuit of
belles-lettres. In 1855 he went to Mexico where he resided
eleven years. Though a most productive writer, Zorrilla
spent most of his life in penury until, in his old age, he
received from the government an annual pension of 30,000
reales. He became a member of the Spanish Academy in 1885,
and four years later he was "crowned" in Granada.              page 273
Zorrilla died in Madrid in his seventy-sixth year.

See _Introduction_, p. xxxvii; an autobiography,
_Recuerdos del tiempo viejo_, 3 vols.; Fernandez
Florez, _D. Jose Zorrilla_, in _Autores dramaticos
contemporaneos_, 1881, vol. I; Blanco Garcia, I, 197-216;
Juan Valera, _Florilegio_, V, 258-270. For his works, see
_Poesias_, 8 vols., Madrid, 1838-1840; _Obras_, edition
Baudry, 3 vols., Paris, 1852; _Poesias escogidas_,
published by the Academia de la lengua, Madrid, 1894;
_Obras dramaticas y liricas_, Madrid, 1895.

=85.=--10. =Fantasmas= = _como fantasmas_.

=86.=--=A Buen Juez Mejor Testigo=, _A Good Judge, But a
Better Witness_. In Berceo's _Milagros de Nuestra Senora_
there is a similar legend of a crucifix summoned as
witness.

=91.=--4-5. =Como... bane=: this passage is obscure, but
the meaning seems to be, _as a pledge that the river
should so zealously bathe it_.

18. =la hermosa=, according to tradition, was Florinda,
daughter of Count Julian. Roderick (Roderico or Rodrigo),
the last king of the Goths in Spain, saw Florinda bathing
in the Tagus, conceived a passion for her and dishonored
her. In revenge Julian is said to have brought the
Saracens into Spain.

27. =puerta=: this may refer to the Puerta Visagra
Antigua, an ancient Arabic gate of the ninth century, now
closed.

=92.=--12. =Las... horadarle= = _al horadarle las palmas
(al rey)_. According to tradition Alfonso, who became
afterward King Alfonso VI of Leon and Castile, when a
refugee at the court of Alimenon, the Moorish king of
Toledo, overheard the Moorish sovereign and his advisers
talking about the defences of the city. The Moors said
that the Christians, by a siege, could probably starve
Toledo into submission. Upon perceiving Alfonso near at
hand apparently asleep, the Moors, to prove whether he was
really asleep or not, poured molten lead into                  page 274
his hand, and he had sufficient will power to remain
motionless while the lead burned a hole through it.

Mariana (_Historia de Espana, Libro IX, Cap. VIII_)
relates this story, but rejects it and says that the
real cause of Alfonso's nickname ("_el rey de la mano
horadada_") was his extreme generosity.

13. =circo romano=: to the east of the _Hospital de San
Juan Bautista_ of Toledo lies the suburb of Covachuelas,
the houses of which conceal the ruins of a Roman
amphitheater.

15. =Basilica=: in the lower _Vega_, to the northwest
of Toledo, is the hermitage of _El Cristo de la Vega_,
formerly known as the _Basilica de Santa Leocadia_, which
dated from the fourth century. This edifice was the
meeting-place of several Church councils. The ancient
building was destroyed by the Moors and has been
repeatedly rebuilt.

=95.=--21. =el templo=: the _Ermita del Cristo de la
Vega_. See preceding note.

27. =Viase= = _veiase_: _via_, for _veia_, is not uncommon
in poetry.

=105.=--3-5. =Gritan... valor= = _los que en el mercado
venden, gritan en discorde son_ =lo vendido y el valor= (=
_what they have for sale and its price_).

=107.=--13-14. =y... honor= = _y dispensad que (yo) dudara
de vuestro honor acusado_.

=108.=--10. See note, p. 92, l. 15.

=112.=--16. =cada un ano= = _cada ano_.

Antonio de Trueba (1821-1889) was born at Montellano
(Viscaya). At the age of fifteen or sixteen years he
removed to Madrid and engaged in commerce. In 1862 he
was appointed Archivist and Chronicler of the Senorio de
Vizcaya, which post he held for ten years. Trueba, best
known as a writer of short stories, published two volumes
of mediocre verses which achieved considerable popularity
during the author's lifetime, but are now nearly
forgotten.

Cf. _Notas autobiograficas_ in _La Ilustracion Espanola y      page 275
Americana_, Enero 30, 1889; Blanco Garcia, II,
26-28 and 301-308; Juan Valera, _Florilegio_, V, 307-311.
For his verses, see _El libro de los cantares_ (1851) and
_El libro de las montanas_ (1867).

=113.=--14. =Cantos=: note the double meaning of _canto_.

=114.=--Jose Selgas y Carrasco (1821-1882) was born
in Murcia. A writer on the staff of the satirical and
humorous journal, _El Padre Cobos_, Selgas won the
attention of the public by his ironical and reactionary
articles and was elevated to an important political office
by Martinez Campos. He is the author of two volumes of
verses, _La Primavera_ (1850) and _El estio_.

See _Introduction_, p. xxxix; and Blanco Garcia, II,
19-23 and 244-250. For Selgas' verses, see his _Poesias_,
Madrid, 1882-1883.

=117.=--Pedro Antonio de Alarcon (1833-1891) was born
in Guadix. He studied law, served as a volunteer in an
African war and became a writer on the staff of several
revolutionary journals. His writings, which at first were
sentimental or radical, became more subdued in tone and
more conservative with his advancing years. In 1877 he was
elected to membership in the Spanish Academy. Primarily
a journalist and novelist, Alarcon published a volume of
humorous and descriptive verses, some of which have merit.

Cf. Blanco Garcia, II, 62-63 and 452-467; and articles in
the _Nuevo Teatro Critico_ (Sept., Oct. and Nov., 1891).
For his verses, see _Poesias serias y humoristicas_, 3d
ed., Madrid, 1885.

=121.=--Gustavo Adolfo Becquer (1836-1870) was born in
Seville, and became an orphan in his tenth year. When
eighteen years of age he went penniless to Madrid, where
he earned a precarious living by writing for journals and
by doing literary hack-work.

See _Introduction_, p. xxxix; Blanco Garcia, II, 79-86 and
274-277. For his works, see his _Obras_, 5th ed.,              page 276
Madrid, 1898 (with a _Prologo_ by Correa: the _Rimas_ are
in vol. III).

=122.=--12-13. =Del salon... olvidada= = _en el angulo
obscuro del salon, tal vez olvidada de su dueno_. Becquer,
in his striving after complicated metrical arrangements,
often inverts the word-order in his verse. See also
_Introduction, Versification_, p. lxxii.

19. =arrancarlas=: =las= refers to =Cuanta nota=, which
seems to have here the force of a plural.

24. See _Introduction, Versification_, p. lxv.

=124.=--14. =intervalo=: the standard form is _intervalo_.

=126.=--12. =El nicho a un extremo=: the meaning is, _one
end of the recess_, in which the coffin will be placed.
The graveyards of Spain and Spanish America have lofty
walls with niches or recesses large enough to contain
coffins. After receiving the coffin, the niche is sealed
with a slab that bears the epitaph of the deceased.

=128.=--The Valencian Vicente W. Querol (1836-1889) gave
most of his time to commerce, but he occasionally wrote
verses that had the merit of correctness of language and
strong feeling.

Cf. Blanco Garcia, II, 376-378. For his verses, see
_Rimas_ (_Prologo_ by Pedro A. de Alarcon), 1877; _La
fiesta de Venus_, in the _Almanaque de la Ilustracion_,
1878.

7. =O en el que= = _o en el dia en que_: the reference is
to the anniversaries of the wedding day and the saints'
days of the parents.

=129.=--19. =las que... son=, _what is..._

=131.=--15-16. =la que... agonia= = _la lenta agonia que
sufristeis..._

=133.=--Ramon de Campoamor y Campoosorio (1817-1901) was
born in Navia (Asturias). He studied medicine but soon
turned to poetry and politics. A pronounced conservative,
he won favor with the government and received appointment      page 277
to several important offices including that of
governor of Alicante and Valencia.

Cf. _Introduction_, p. xli; Juan Valera, _Obras poeticas
de Campoamor_, in _Estudios criticos sobre literatura_,
Seville, 1884; Peseux-Richard, in the _Revue hispanique_,
I, 236 f.; Blanco Garcia, II, Cap. V. For his works,
see _Doloras y cantares_, 16th ed., Madrid, 1882; _Los
pequenos poemas_, Madrid, 1882-1883; _Poetica_, 1883; _El
drama universal_, 3d ed., Madrid, 1873; _El licenciado
Torralba_, Madrid, 1888; _Obras escogidas_, Leipzig,
1885-1886; _Obras completas_, 8 vols., Madrid, 1901-03.

=135.=--3. =se va y se viene y se esta=: note the use of
=se= in the sense of _people_, or an indefinite _we_.

5. =Y... procura= = _y si tu afecto no procura volver_.

=136.=--18. See note, p. 3, l. 7.

=137.=--Valladolid was the birthplace of Gaspar Nunez de
Arce (1834-1903). When a child, he removed with his family
to Toledo. At the age of nineteen years he entered upon
a journalistic career in Madrid. As a member of the
Progresista party, Nunez de Arce was appointed Civil
Governor of Barcelona, and afterward he became a cabinet
minister.

Cf. _Introduction_, p. xlii; Menendez y Pelayo's essay in
_Estudios de critica literaria_, 1884; Juan Valera's essay
on the _Gritos del combate, Revista europea_, 1875, no.
60; Blanco Garcia, Cap. XVIII; Jose del Castillo, _Nunez
de Arce, Apuntes para su biografia_, Madrid, 1904. For his
works, see _Gritos del combate_, 8th ed., 1891; _Obras
dramaticas_, Madrid, 1879. Most of his longer poems are in
separate pamphlets, published by M. Murillo and Fernando
Fe, Madrid, 1895-1904.

=137.=--=Tristezas= shows unmistakably the influence of
the French poet Alfred de Musset, and especially perhaps
of his _Rolla_ and _Confession d'un enfant du siecle_.

=138.=--16 f. Compare with the author's _La duda_ and
_Miserere_, and Becquer's _La ajorca de oro_.
                                                               page 278
=142.=--1-3. The poet seems to compare the nineteenth
century, amidst the flames of furnaces and engines, to the
fallen archangel in hell.

16. =mistica=, that is, of communion with God, heavenly.

=144.=--=iSursum Corda!=: the lines given are merely the
introduction to the poem, and form about one fourth of
the entire work. They were written soon after the
Spanish-American War. See _Sursum Corda!_, Madrid, 1904;
and also Juan Valera's _Florilegio_, IV, 413 f.

8. The plains of Old Castile may well be called "austere."

=145.=--10-16. Cf. _A Espana_ (1860) and _A Castelar_
(1873).

=147.=--11-19. There are few stronger lines than these in
all Spanish poetry.

=148.=--Manuel del Palacio (1832-1895) was born in Lerida.
His parents removed to Granada, and there he joined a
club of young men known as La Cuerda. Going to Madrid, he
devoted himself to journalism and politics, first as a
radical and later as a conservative.

Cf. Blanco Garcia, II, 40. For his works, see his
_Obras_, Madrid, 1884; _Veladas de otono_, 1884; _Huelgas
diplomaticas_, 1887.

5. =el ave placentera=: a well-known Spanish-American poet
calls this a mere _ripio_ (stop-gap), and says it may mean
one bird as well as another.

The Catalan Joaquin Maria Bartrina (born at Reus in 1850)
published in 1876 a volume of pessimistic and iconoclastic
verses, entitled _Algo_. After his death (1880) his works
were published under the title of _Obras en prosa y verso,
escogidas y coleccionadas por J. Sarda_, Barcelona, 1881.
Cf. Blanco Garcia, II, 349-350.

=148.=--15-19. These lines give expression to the
pessimism that has obtained in Spain for two centuries
past.

=149.=--14. The reference is, of course, to the paintings,
of which there are many, of "The Last Supper" of Jesus.

Manuel Reina (1860-) was born in Puente Genil. Like            page 279
Bartrina, Reina is an imitator of Nunez de Arce, in
that he sings of the degeneracy of mankind. He undertook,
with but little success, to revive the eleven-syllable
_romance_ of the neo-classic Spanish tragedy of the
eighteenth century.

Cf. Blanco Garcia, II, 354-355. For his verses, see
_Andantes y allegros_ and _Cromos y acuarelas, cantos
de nuestra epoca, con un prologo de D. Jose Fernandez
Bremon_.

The Valencian Teodoro Llorente (b. 1836) is best known for
his translations of the works of modern poets. He is also
the author of verses (_Amorosas_, _Versos de la juventud_,
_et al._).

=151=.--=Argentina.= The development of letters was slower
in Argentina than in Mexico, Peru and Colombia, since
Argentina was colonized and settled later than the others.
During the colonial period there was little literary
production in the territory now known as Argentina.
Only one work of this period deserves mention. This is
_Argentina y conquista del rio de la Plata_, etc. (Lisbon,
1602), by Martin del Barco Centenera, a long work in poor
verses and of little historical value. During the first
decade of the nineteenth century there was an outpouring
of lyric verses in celebration of the defeat of the
English by the Spaniards at Buenos Aires, but to all of
these Gallego's ode _A la defensa de Buenos Aires_ is
infinitely superior.

During the revolutionary period the best-known writers,
all of whom may be roughly classified as neo-classicists,
were: Vicente Lopez Planes (1784-1856), author of the
Argentine national hymn; Esteban Luca (1786-1824); Juan C.
Lafinur (1797-1824); Juan Antonio Miralla (d. 1825); and,
lastly, the most eminent poet of this period, Juan Cruz
Varela (1794-1839), author of the dramas _Dido_ and
_Argia_, and of the ode _Triunfo de Ituzaingo_ (_Poesias_,
Buenos Aires, 1879).

The first Argentine poet of marked ability, and one of
the greatest that his country has produced, was the
romanticist (who introduced romanticism into Argentina
directly from France), Esteban Echeverria                      page 280
(1805-1851), author of _Los Consuelos_ (1834), _Rimas_
(1837) and _La cautiva_. The latter poem is distinctively
"American," as it is full of local color. Juan Valera, in
his letter to Rafael Obligado (_Cartas americanas, primera
serie_), says truly that Echeverria "marks the point of
departure of the Argentine national literature." (_Obras
completas_, 5 vols., Buenos Aires, 1870-74).

Other poets of the early period of independence are:
the literary critic, Juan Maria Gutierrez (1809-1878),
one-time rector of the University of Buenos Aires and
editor of an anthology, _America poetica_ (Valparaiso,
1846); Dr. Claudio Mamerto Cuenca (1812-1866; cf. _Obras
poeticas escogidas_, Paris, 1889); and Jose Marmol
(1818-1871), author of _El peregrino_ and of the best of
Argentine novels, _Amalia_ (_Obras poeticas y dramaticas,
coleccionadas por Jose Domingo Cortes_, 3d ed., Paris,
1905).

In parenthesis be it said that Argentina also claims as
her own the poet Ventura de la Vega (1807-1865), who
was born in Buenos Aires, as Mexico claims Juan Ruiz de
Alarcon, and as Gertrudis Gomez de Avellaneda is claimed
by Cuba.

As in Spain Ferdinand VII had driven into exile most of
the prominent writers of his period, so the despotic
president, Juan Manuel Rosas (1793-1877: fell from power
in 1852), drove from Argentina many men of letters,
including Varela, Echeverria and Marmol.

Down to the middle of the nineteenth century it may be
said that the Spanish-American writers followed closely
the literary movements of the mother country. Everywhere
across the sea there were imitators of Melendez Valdes
and Cienfuegos, of Quintana, of Espronceda and
Zorrilla. During the early years of romanticism
some Spanish-American poets,--notably the Argentine
Echeverria,--turned for inspiration directly to the French
writers of the period; but, in the main, the Spanish
influence was predominant. The Spanish-American               page 281
verses, for the most part, showed insufficient preparation
and were marred by many inaccuracies of diction; but
here and there a group of writers appeared,--as in
Colombia,--who rivaled in artistic excellence the poets of
Spain. In the second half of the nineteenth century the
Spanish-American writers became more independent in
thought and speech. It is true that many imitated the
mysticism of Becquer or the pessimism of Nunez de Arce,
but many more turned for inspiration to native subjects
or to the literary works of other lands than Spain, and
particularly of France and Italy.

The extreme in local color was reached in the "_literatura
gauchesca_," which consists of collections of popular or
semi-popular ballads in the dialect of the _gauchos_, or
cowboys and "ranchers," of the Pampas. The best of
these collections,--_Martin Fierro_ (1872), by Jose
Fernandez,--is more artistic than popular. This long
poem, which in its language reminds the English reader of
Lowell's _Biglow Papers_, is the best-known and the most
widely read work by an Argentine author.

The greatest Argentine poets of the second half of the
century have been Andrade and Obligado. Olegario Victor
Andrade (1838-1882), the author of _Prometeo_ and
_Atlantida_, is generally recognized as one of the
foremost modern poets of Spanish America, and probably
the greatest poet that Argentina has as yet given to the
world. In art, Andrade was a disciple of Victor Hugo;
in philosophy, he was a believer in modern progress and
freedom of thought; but above all else was his loyal
patriotism to Argentina. Andrade's verses have inspiration
and enthusiasm, but they are too didactic and they are
marred by occasional incorrectness of speech. _Atlantida_,
a hymn to the future of the Latin race in America, is
the poet's last and noblest work (_Obras_, Buenos Aires,
1887).

It is said of Rafael Obligado (1852-) that he is more          page 282
elegant and correct than Andrade, but his muse
has less inspiration. He has, moreover, the distinction of
showing almost no French influence, which is rare to-day
among Spanish-American writers. Juan Valera regrets
Obligado's excessive "Americanism," and laments the fact
that the poet uses many words of local origin that he,
Valera, does not understand. The poet's better works are,
for the most part, descriptions of the beauties of nature
or the legendary tales of his native land (_Poesias_,
Buenos Aires, 1885).

Among recent poets, two have especially distinguished
themselves. Leopoldo Diaz (1868-) began as a disciple of
Heredia, and has become a pronounced Hellenist, now a rare
phenomenon in Spanish America. Besides many sonnets
imbued with classicism, he has written odes to the
_conquistadores_ and to _Atlantida conquistada_. Like
Dario, Blanco-Fombona and many other Spanish-American
poets of to-day, Diaz resides in Europe; but, unlike the
others, he lives in Morges instead of Paris (_Sonetos_,
Buenos Aires, 1888; _Bajo-relieves_, Buenos Aires, 1895;
_et al._). A complete "_modernista_" (he would probably
scorn the title of "decadent") is Leopoldo Lugones
(1875?-), whose earlier verses are steeped in an erotic
sensualism rare in the works of Spanish-American poets.
He seeks to be original and writes verses on every
conceivable theme and in all kinds of metrical
arrangements. Thus, in _Lunario sentimental_ there are
verses, essays and dramatic sketches, all addressed to
the moon. For an example of his _versos libres_, see
_Introduction_ to this volume, p. xlvi (_Las montanas de
oro, Los crepusculos del jardin_; _Lunario sentimental_,
Buenos Aires, 1909; _Odas seculares_, Buenos Aires, 1910).

For studies of Argentine literature, see Blanco Garcia,
_Hist. Lit. Esp._, III, pp. 380 f.; Menendez y Pelayo,
_Ant. Poetas Hisp.-Am._, IV, pp. lxxxix f.; Juan Valera,
_Poesia argentina_, in _Cartas americanas, primera serie_,
Madrid, 1889, pp. 51-119; _Literatura argentina_,              page 283
Buenos Aires, 1903; _Poetas argentinos_, Buenos Aires,
1904; _Antologia argentina_, B.T. Martinez, Buenos Aires,
1890-91; _Compendio de literatura argentina_, E. Alonso
Criado, Buenos Aires, 1908; _Miscelanea_, by Santiago
Estrada; _La lira argentina_, Buenos Aires, 1824. Other
important works, treating of Spanish-American literature,
are: _Biblioteca hispano-americana_ (1493-1810), Jose
Toribio Medina, 6 vols., Santiago de Chile, 1898-1902;
_Bibliography of Spanish-American Literature_, Alfred
Coester, _Romanic Review_, III, 1; _Escritores
hispano-americanos_, Manuel Canete, Madrid, 1884;
_Escritores y poetas sud-americanos_, Francisco Sosa,
Mex., 1890; _Juicio critico de poetas hispano-americanos_,
M.L. Amunategui, Santiago de Chile, 1861; _La joven
literatura hispano-americana_, Manuel Ugarte, Paris, 1906.

Echeverria: see preceding note.

=Cancion de Elvira.= This Gutierrez calls the "song of the
American Ophelia."

=152.=--Andrade: see note to p. 151.

18. =A celebrar las bodas=, _to be the bride_.

=153.=--3. The Argentines, especially, seem to take
delight in calling themselves a Latin, rather than a
Spanish, race. This may be due to the fact that fully one
third of the population of Argentine is Italian. Both Juan
Valera and Menendez y Pelayo have chided the Argentines
for speaking of themselves as a _raza latino-americana_,
instead of _hispano-americana_.

15. =arcano=, _secret_, seems to have the force here of a
_secret ark_, or _secret sanctuary_, which is broken open
that its secrets may be disclosed.

=154.=--6-10. These lines refer, of course, to the
Christian religion, spoken of symbolically as an _altar_,
which has replaced the heterogeneous pagan cults of
ancient Rome, and which the Spaniards first brought to
America.
                                                               page 284
11. =ciclopeas=: note the omission of the accent on _o_
that the word may rime with =ideas=.

=155.=--5. =Tequendama=: see in the _Vocab_. Several
Colombian poets, including Don Jose Joaquin Ortiz and
Dona Agripina Montes del Valle, have written odes to this
famous waterfall. See Menendez y Pelayo, _Ant. Poetas
Hisp.-Am._, II; and _Parnaso colombiano_, II, Bogota,
1887.

17-18. A revolutionary hero, Antonio Ricaurte (b. 1786),
blew up the Spanish powder magazine on the summit of a
hill near San Mateo, and lost his life in the explosion.
See =Mateo= in _Vocab_.

=156.=--5. The colors of the Peruvian flag are red
and white, mainly red. The red,--symbolical of
bloodshed,--shall be largely replaced by the golden color
of ripening grain,--symbolical of industry.

8. Caracas, where Bolivar was born, lies at the foot of
Mount Avila.

11. This line, and line 16, would indicate that
=Atlantida= was written soon after the war, begun in 1876,
between Chile and the allied forces of Bolivia and Peru,
in which Chile was victorious.

12-15. When this was written there was little immediate
prospect of other railways than the narrow-gage road from
Oruro to the Chilean frontier, about five hundred miles in
length; but now Bolivia has the promise of becoming the
railway center of lines connecting both Argentina and
Chile with Peru. These lines are now completed or
building.

27. Andrade died in 1882, and seven years after his death,
in 1889, the emperor Dom Pedro II was deposed, and a
republican form of government was adopted by Brazil.

=157.=--3. Andrade now sings of his own country, hence
=iDe pie para cantarla!=

8. There is a larger immigration of Europeans into
Argentina than into any other South-American country. The      page 285
immigrants come mostly from northern Italy and
from Spain.

12-16. As the =Atlantida= was the last poetic work of
Andrade, these lines may refer to the treaty of 1881
between Argentina and Chile, by which Argentina acquired
all the territory east of the Andes, including Patagonia
and the eastern part of Tierra del Fuego.

By the conquest and settlement of the broad plains
(_pampas_) and the frozen region of the south, a new world
was created, much as in the United States of America a new
world was created by the acquirement and settlement of the
western plains, mountain lands and Pacific coast.

21. Vast areas in Argentina are given over to the
cultivation of wheat, barley and oats.

=159.=--These are the last stanzas of =Prometeo=, a poem
in which the author addresses the human mind and urges
it to break its bonds and free itself from tyranny and
prejudice: see also in _Vocab_.

=160.=--Obligado: see note to p. 151.

=162.=--=Colombia.= Colombia was formerly known as Nueva
Granada, and its inhabitants are still sometimes called
_Granadinos_. An older and larger Colombia was organized
in 1819, toward the close of the revolutionary war; but
this state was later divided into three independent
countries, viz., Venezuela, Nueva Granada and Ecuador. In
1861 Nueva Granada assumed the name of Estados Unidos de
Colombia, and only recently the Colombian part of the
Isthmus of Panama established itself as an independent
republic. The present Colombia has, therefore, only about
one third the area of the older state of the same name. In
treating of literature, the terms Colombia and Colombian
are restricted to the present-day Colombia and the older
Nueva Granada. The capital of the Republic is Santa Fe de
Bogota, to-day generally known simply as Bogota. It is at
an elevation of 8700 feet above the level of the               page 286
sea, and has a cool and equable climate.

It is generally conceded that the literary production of
Colombia has excelled that of any other Spanish-American
country. Menendez y Pelayo (_Ant. Poetas Hisp.-Am._,
III, _Introd._) speaks of Bogota as the "Athens of South
America," and says further: "the Colombian Parnassus
to-day excels in quality, if not in quantity, that of any
other region of the New World." And Juan Valera in his
_Cartas americanas (primera serie_, p. 121 f.) says: "Of
all the people of South America the Bogotanos are the most
devoted to letters, sciences and arts"; and again: "In
spite of the extraordinary ease with which verses are
made in Colombia, and although Colombia is a democratic
republic, her poetry is aristocratic, cultivated and
ornate." Blanco Garcia characterizes Colombia as one of
the most Spanish of American countries.

During the colonial period, however, Nueva Granada
produced few literary works. Gonzalo Jimenez de Quesada,
the _conquistador_ of New Granada, wrote memoirs, entitled
_Ratos de Suesca_ (1573?), of little historical value. The
most important work of the period is the chronicles in
verse of Juan de Castellanos (b. 1522? in the Spanish
province of Seville). This work is largely epic in
character; and, with its 150,000 lines, it is the longest
poem in the Spanish language. Though for the most part
prosaic and inexact, yet it has some passages of high
poetic worth, and it throws much light on the lives of the
early colonists. The first three parts of the poem, under
the title of _Elegias de varones ilustres de Indias_ (the
first part only was published in 1589), occupies all of
vol. IV of the _Bibl. de Aut. Esp._ The fourth part is
contained in two volumes of the _Coleccion de Escritores
Castellanos_, under the title of _Historia del Nuevo Reino
de Granada_.

In the seventeenth century the colonists were still too
busy with the conquest and settlement of the country to
spare time for the cultivation of letters. A long              page 287
epic poem, the _Poema heroico de San Ignacio de Loyola_,
with much Gongorism and little merit, was published
at Madrid in 1696, after the death of the author, the
Colombian Hernando Dominguez Camargo. A few short lyrics
by the same author also appeared in the _Ramillete de
varias flores poeticas_ (Madrid, 1676) of Jacinto Evia of
Ecuador.

Early in the eighteenth century Sor Francisca Josefa de la
Concepcion, "Madre Castillo" (d. 1742), wrote an account
of her life and her _Sentimientos espirituales_, in which
there is much of the mysticism of Saint Theresa.

About 1738 the printing-press was brought to Bogota by
the Jesuits, and after this date there was an important
intellectual awakening. Many colleges and universities
had already been founded,--the first in 1554. The
distinguished Spanish botanist Jose Celestino Mutis, in
1762, took the chair of mathematics and astronomy in the
Colegio del Rosario, and under him were trained many
scientists, including Francisco Jose de Caldas. An
astronomical observatory was established, the first in
America. In 1777 a public library was organized, and a
theater in 1794. And of great influence was the visit of
Humboldt in 1801. Among the works published in the second
half of the eighteenth century mention should be made
of the _Lamentaciones de Puben_ by the canon Jose Maria
Grueso (1779-1835) and _El placer publico de Santa Fe_
(Bogota, 1804) by Jose Maria Salazar (1785-1828).

During the revolutionary period two poets stand
preeminent. Dr. Jose Fernandez Madrid (d. 1830) was a
physician and statesman, and for a short time president
of the Republic. His lyrics are largely the expression of
admiration for Bolivar and of hatred toward Spain: his
verses are usually sonorous and correct (_Poesias_,
Havana, 1822; London, 1828). The "Chenier" of Colombia was
Luis Vargas Tejada (1802-1829), the author of patriotic
verses, some of which were directed against                    page 288
Bolivar, and of neo-classic tragedies. He died by drowning
at the age of twenty-seven (_Poesias_, Bogota, 1855).

The four most noted poets of Colombia are J.E. Caro,
Arboleda, Ortiz and Gutierrez Gonzalez. A forceful lyric
poet was Jose Eusebio Caro (1817-1853), a philosopher
and statesman, a man of moral greatness and a devout
Christian. In the bloody political struggles of his day he
sacrificed his estate and his life to his conception of
right. He sang of God, love, liberty and nature with
exaltation; but all his writings evince long meditation.
Like many Spanish-American poets of his day Caro was
influenced by Byron. In his earlier verses he had imitated
the style of Quintana (cf. _El cipres_); but later, under
the influence of romantic poets, he attempted to introduce
into Spanish prosody new metrical forms. Probably as a
result of reading English poetry, he wrote verses of 8
and 11 syllables with regular alternation of stressed and
unstressed syllables, which is rare in Spanish. So fond
did he become of lines with regular binary movement
throughout that he recast several of his earlier verses
(_Obras escogidas_, Bogota, 1873; _Poesias_, Madrid,
1885).

Julio Arboleda (1817-1861), "Don Julio," was one of the
most polished and inspired poets of Colombia. He was an
intimate friend of Caro and like him a journalist and
politician. He was a good representative of the chivalrous
and aristocratic type of Colombian writers of the first
half of the nineteenth century. His best work is the
narrative poem _Gonzalo de Oyon_ which, though incomplete,
is the noblest epic poem that a native Spanish-American
poet has yet given to the world. After studying in Europe
he engaged in journalism and politics. He took part in
several civil wars. A candidate for the presidency of the
Republic, he was assassinated before election (_Poesias,
coleccion formada sobre los manuscritos originales, con
prologo por M.A. Caro_, New York, 1883).

The educator and journalist Jose Joaquin Ortiz (1814-1892)     page 289
imitated Quintana in form but not in ideas.
Though a defender of neo-classicism, he did not entirely
reject romanticism. Ortiz was an ultra-catholic, sincere
and ascetic. His verses are impetuous and grandiloquent,
but often lacking depth of thought (_Poesias_, Bogota,
1880).

The poet Gregorio Gutierrez Gonzalez, "Antioco"
(1820-1872), was a jurist and politician. He began as an
imitator of Espronceda and Zorrilla and is the author of
several sentimental poems (_A Julia_, _?Por que no canto?_
_Una lagrima_, _et al._) that are the delight of Colombian
young ladies. His fame will doubtless depend on the rustic
Georgic poem, _Memoria sobre el cultivo del maiz en
Antioquia_. This work is an interesting and remarkably
poetic description of the homely life and labors of the
Antioquian country folk (_Poesias_, Bogota, 1881; Paris,
1908).

The minor poets of this generation are legion. Among these
are: Manuel Maria Madiedo (b. 1815), a sociologist; German
Gutierrez de Pineres (1816-1872), author of melancholy
verses; Jose Maria Rojas Garrido (1824-1883), a noted
orator, one-time president of Colombia; Joaquin Pablo
Posada (1825-1880), perhaps the most clever versifier of
Spanish America, but whose _decimas_ were mostly written
in quest of money; Ricardo Carrasquilla (b. 1827),
an educator and author of genial verses; Jose Manuel
Marroquin (b. 1827), a poet and author of articles on
customs and a foremost humorist of South America (he was
president when Colombia lost Panama); Jose Maria Samper
(b. 1828), a most voluminous writer; Rafael Nunez
(1825-1897), a philosopher and skeptic, and one-time
president of the Republic; Santiago Perez (1830-1900),
educator, journalist and one-time president; Jose Maria
Vergara y Vergara (1831-1872), a Catholic poet and
author of a volume of sentimental verses (_Libro de los
cantares_); Rafael Pombo (1833-1912), an eminent classical
scholar and literary critic, and "perpetual secretary" of
the Colombian Academy; Diego Fallon (b. 1834),                 page 290
son of an English father, and author of several highly
finished and beautiful poems; Pinzon Rico (b. 1834),
author of popular, romantic songs; Cesar Conto (b. 1836),
a jurist and educator; Jorge Isaacs (1837-1895), better
known as author of the novel _Maria_; and Felipe Perez (b.
1834).

In the second half of the nineteenth century, the most
eminent man of letters in Colombia has been Miguel Antonio
Caro (1843-1909), a son of J.E. Caro. A neo-Catholic and
"traditionalist," a learned literary critic and a poet,
the younger Caro, like Bello before him and like his
distinguished contemporary Rufino Jose Cuervo, has worked
for purity of diction and classical ideals in literature.
Caro is also the translator of several classic works,
including one of Virgil which is recognized as the best in
Spanish.

Other poets of the closing years of the century are:
Diogenes Arrieta (b. 1848), a journalist and educator;
Ignacio Gutierrez Ponce (1850), a physician; Antonio Gomez
Restrepo (b. 1856), a lawyer and politician; Jose Maria
Garavito A. (b. 1860); Jose Rivas Groot (b. 1864), an
educator and literary critic, and editor of _La lira
nueva_; Joaquin Gonzalez Camargo (b. 1865), a physician;
Agripina Montes del Valle (b. about the middle of the
nineteenth century) noted for her ode to the Tequendama
waterfall, and Justo Pastor Rios (1870-), a philosophic
poet and liberal journalist.

The "modernista" poet Jose Asuncion Silva (1860-1896) was
a sweet singer, but he brought no message. He was fond of
odd forms, such as lines of 8+8, 8+8+8 and 8+8+4 syllables
(_Poesias, con Prologo de Miguelde Unamuno_, Barcelona,
1908).

    References: Cf.: Menendez y Pelayo, _Ant. Poetas
    Hisp.-Amer._, III, p. 1 f.; Blanco Garcia, III, 332
    f.; Juan Valera, _Cartas Am., primera serie_, p. 121
    f.; _Historia de la literatura (1538-1820) en Nueva
    Granada_, Jose Maria Vergara y Vergara, Bogota, 1867;
    _Apuntes sobre bibliografia colombiana, con                page 291
    muestras escogidas en prosa y verso_, Isidoro Laverde
    Amaya, Bogota, 1882; _Parnaso colombiano_, J.M.
    Vergara y Vergara, 3 vols.; _La lira granadina_, J.M.
    Vergara y Vergara, Bogota, 1865; _Parnaso colombiano_,
    Julio Anez, _con Prologo de Jose Rivas Groot_, 2
    vols., Bogota, 1886-87; _La lira nueva_, J.M. Rivas
    Groot, Bogota, 1886; _Antologia colombiana,_ Emiliano
    Isaza, Paris, 1895.

Ortiz: see preceding note.

=Colombia y Espana=: In this poem, dated July 20, 1882,
the poet begins by recalling the war of independence that
he witnessed as a boy and the heroic figure of Bolivar;
then he laments the fratricidal struggles that rent the
older and larger Colombia; and, finally, in the verses
that are here given, he rejoices over the friendly treaty
just made by the mother country, Spain, and Colombia, her
daughter.

8. The colors of the Colombian flag are yellow, blue and
red.

9. The colors of the Spanish flag are red and yellow. On
the Spanish arms two castles (for _Castilla_) and two
lions (for _Leon_) are pictured.

=164.=--J.E. Caro: see note to p. 162.

=167.=--Marroquin: see note to p. 162.

=Los cazadores y la perrilla=: compare with Goldsmith's
"Elegy on the Death of a Mad Dog."

=168.=--7. =Moratin=: see note to p. 26. _La caza_ is in
_Bibl. de Aut. Esp._, II, 49 f.

=169.=--16. =describilla=, archaic or poetic for
_describirla_.

=171.=--M.A. Caro: see note to p. 162.

=174.=--14-16. =sombria... alcanzaran= = _(siendo la
Eternidad) sombria y eterna, ni el odio ni el amor, ni la
fe ni la duda, alcanzaran nada en sus abismos_.

=179.=--=Cuba.= Although the literary output of Cuba
is greater than that of some other Spanish-American
countries, yet during the colonial period there was
in Cuba a dearth of both prose and verse. The Colegio
Semanario de San Carlos y San Ambrosio was                     page 292
founded in 1689 as a theological seminary and was
reorganized with lay instruction in 1769. The University
of Havana was established by a papal bull in 1721 and
received royal sanction in 1728; but for many years it
gave instruction only in theological subjects. The first
book printed in Cuba dates from 1720. Not till the second
half of the eighteenth century did poets of merit appear
in the island. Manuel de Zequeira y Arango (1760-1846)
wrote chiefly heroic odes (_Poesias_, N.Y., 1829; Havana,
1852). Inferior to Zequeira was Manuel Justo de Rubalcava
(1769-1805), the author of bucolic poems and sonnets
(_Poesias_, Santiago de Cuba, 1848).

The Cuban poet Don Jose Maria Heredia (1803-1839) is
better known in Europe and in the United States than Bello
and Olmedo, since his poems are universal in their appeal.
He is especially well known in the United States, where he
lived in exile for over two years (1823-1825), at first in
Boston and later in New York, and wrote his famous ode to
Niagara. Born in Cuba, he studied in Santo Domingo and
in Caracas (1812-1817), as well as in his native island.
Accused of conspiracy against the Spanish government, he
fled to the United States in 1823, and there eked out a
precarious existence by giving private lessons. In 1825 he
went to Mexico, where he was well received and where he
held several important posts, including those of member
of Congress and judge of the superior court. In Heredia's
biography two facts should be stressed: that he studied
for five years in Caracas, the city that produced Bolivar
and Bello, respectively the greatest general and the
greatest scholar of Spanish America; and that he spent
only twelve years, all told, in Cuba. As he lived for
fourteen years in Mexico, that country also claims him as
her own, while Caracas points to him with pride as another
child of her older educational system.

Heredia was most unhappy in the United States. He admired      page 293
the political institutions of this country; but
he disliked the climate of New York, and he despaired of
learning English. Unlike Bello and Olmedo he was not a
classical scholar. His acquaintance with the Latin poets
was limited, and seldom does a Virgilian or Horatian
expression occur in his verses. Rather did he stand for
the manner of Chateaubriand in France and Cienfuegos in
Spain. Though strictly speaking not a romantic poet, he
was a close precursor of that movement. His language is
not seldom incorrect or lacking in sobriety and restraint;
but his numbers are musical and his thought springs
directly from imaginative exaltation.

Heredia's poorest verses are doubtless his early
love-songs: his best are those in which the contemplation
of nature leads the poet to meditation on human existence,
as in _Niagara_, _El Teocalli de Cholula_, _En una
tempestad_ and _Al sol_. In these poems the predominant
note is that of gentle melancholy. In Cuba his best known
verses are the two patriotic hymns: _A Emilia_ and _El
himno del desterrado_. These were written before the
poet was disillusioned by his later experiences in the
turbulent Mexico of the second and third decades of the
nineteenth century, and they are so virulent in their
expression of hatred of Spain that Menendez y Pelayo
refused to include them in his _Anthology_. Heredia
undertook to write several plays, but without success.
Some translations of dramatic works, however, were well
received, and especially those of Ducis' _Abufar_,
Chenier's _Tibere_, Jouy's _Sila_, Voltaire's _Mahomet_
and Alfieri's _Saul_. The Garnier edition (Paris, 1893) of
Heredia's _Poesias_ contains an interesting introduction
by the critic Elias Zerolo (_Poesias_, N.Y., 1825; Toluca,
1832; N.Y., 1875; Paris, 1893).

The mulatto poet Gabriel de la Concepcion Valdes,
better known by his pen-name "Placido" (1809-1844), an
uncultivated comb-maker, wrote verses which were mostly
commonplace and often incorrect; but some evince
remarkable sublimity and dignity (cf. _Plegaria                page 294
a Dios_). Cf. _Poesias_, Matanzas, 1838; Matanzas, 1842;
Veracruz, 1845; Paris, 1857; Havana, 1886. The greatest
Cuban poetess, and perhaps the most eminent poetess who
has written in the Castilian language, is Gertrudis Gomez
de Avellaneda y Arteaga (1814-1873). Since Avellaneda
spent most of her life in Spain, an account of her life
and work is given in the _Introduction_ to this volume, p.
xxxviii. Next only to Heredia, the most popular Cuban poet
is Jose Jacinto Milanes y Fuentes (1814-1863), who gave in
simple verse vivid descriptions of local landscapes and
customs. A resigned and touching sadness characterizes his
best verse (_Obras_, 4 vols., Havana, 1846; N.Y., 1865).

A lawyer, educator and patriot, Rafael Maria Mendive y
Daumy (1821-1886) wrote musical verse in which there
is spontaneity and true poetic feeling (_Pasionarias_,
Havana, 1847; _Poesias_, Madrid, 1860; Havana, 1883).
Joaquin Lorenzo Luaces (1826-1867) was more learned than
most Cuban poets and fond of philosophizing. Some of his
verse has force and gives evidence of careful study; but
much is too pedantic to be popular (_Poesias_, Havana,
1857). A poet of sorrow, Juan Clemente Zenea,--"Adolfo de
la Azucena" (1832-1871),--wrote verses that are marked by
tender melancholy (_Poesias_, Havana, 1855; N.Y., 1872,
1874).

Heredia was not the only Cuban poet to suffer persecution.
Of the seven leading Cuban poets, often spoken of as "the
Cuban Pleiad," Avellaneda removed to Spain, where she
married and spent her life in tranquillity; and Joaquin
Luaces avoided trouble by living in retirement and veiling
his patriotic songs with mythological names. On the other
hand Jose Jacinto Milanes lost his reason at the early age
of thirty years, Jose Maria Heredia and Rafael Mendive
fled the country and lived in exile; while Gabriel
Valdes and Juan Clemente Zenea were shot by order of the
governor-general.

Since the disappearance of the "Pleiad," the most popular      page 295
Cuban poets have been Julian del Casal, a skeptic
and a Parnassian poet who wrote pleasing but empty verses
(_Hojas al viento_, _Nieve_, _Bustos y Rimas_); and
Francisco Sellen, whose philosophy is to conceal suffering
and to put one's hand to the plow again (_Libro intimo_,
Havana, 1865; _Poesias_, N.Y., 1890). Jose Marti
(1853-1895) spent most of his life in exile; but he
returned to Cuba and died in battle against the Spanish
forces. He wrote excellent prose, but few verses (_Flor y
lava_, Paris, 1910(?)).

    References: Menendez y Pelayo, _Ant. Poetas
    Hisp.-Am._, II, p. 1 f.; Blanco Garcia, III, p.
    290 f.; E.C. Hills, _Bardos cubanos_ (contains a
    bibliography), Boston, 1901; Aurelio Mitjans, _Estudio
    sobre el movimiento cientifico y literario en Cuba_,
    Havana, 1890; Bachiller y Morales, _Apuntes para la
    historia de las letras y de la instruccion publica de
    la Isla de Cuba_, Havana, 1859; _La poesia lirica en
    Cuba_, M. Gonzalez del Valle, Barcelona, 1900; _Cuba
    poetica_, Havana, 1858; _Parnaso cubano_, Havana,
    1881.

Heredia: see preceding note.

5. This is quite true. On the coast of central and
southern Mexico the climate is tropical; on the central
plateau it is temperate; and on the mountain slopes, as at
the foot of Popocatepetl, it is frigid.

13-14. =Iztaccihual= and =Popocatepec= are the popular
names of these mountains, but their official names are
_Iztaccihuatel_ and _Popocatepetel_. These words are of
Nahuatlan origin: see in _Vocab_.

16--18. =do... tenirse= = _donde el indio ledo los mira
tenirse en purpura ligera y oro_.

=181=.--3. This poem was written in the fourth decade of
the nineteenth century, when Mexico was torn by civil war.
There was peace only when some military leader assumed
despotic power.

21. Note that the moon set behind =Popocatepec=, a little
to the south of west from Cholula, while the sun sank
behind =Iztaccihual=, a little to the north of                 page 296
west from the city. This might well occur in summer.

=182.=--14. =Fueron= (lit. _they were_), _they are no
more_. In this Latinism the preterit denotes that a thing
or condition that once existed no longer exists. Cf. _fuit
Ilium_ (_AEneid_, II, 325), "Troy is no more."

=186.=--4-5. =Que... seguir= = _que, en su vuelo, la
turbada vista quiere en vano seguir_.

=190.=--"Placido": see note to p. 179.

=Plegaria a Dios=: this beautiful prayer was written a few
days before the poet's death. It is said that "Placido"
recited aloud the last stanza on his way to the place of
execution, and that he slipped to a friend in the crowd a
scrap of cloth on which the prayer was written.

=191.=--4. =del... transparencia= = _a_ (in) _la clara
transparencia del aire_.

Avellaneda: see _Introduction_, p. xxxviii.

19. =No... modelo= = _(la historia) no [dio] modelo a tu
virtud en lo pasado_.

21. =otra= = _otra copia_.

=192.=--1-2. =Miro... victoria= = _la Europa miro al genio
de la guerra y la victoria ensangrentar su suelo_. The
=genio= was Napoleon Bonaparte.

4. =Al... cielo= = _el cielo le diera al genio del bien_.
Note that =le= is dative and =al genio= accusative. This
otherwise admirable sonnet is marred by the numerous
inversions of the word-order.

=193.=--=Ecuador= is a relatively small and mountainous
country, lying, as the name implies, directly on the
equator. The two principal cities are Guayaquil, a port
on the Pacific coast, and Quito, the capital. Quito is
beautifully situated on a plateau 9300 feet above the
level of the sea. The climate is mild and salubrious,
and drier than at Bogota. The early Spanish colonists
repeatedly wrote of the beautiful scenery and the "eternal
spring" of Quito.
                                                               page 297
All of the present Ecuador belonged to the Virreinato del
Peru till 1721, after which date Quito and the contiguous
territory were governed from Bogota. In 1824 Guayaquil
and southern Ecuador were forcibly annexed to the first
Colombia by Bolivar. Six years later Ecuador separated
from Colombia and organized as a separate state.

In the territory now known as Ecuador the first colleges
were established about the middle of the sixteenth
century, by the Franciscans, for the natives, and by
the Jesuits, as elsewhere in America, for the sons of
Spaniards. Several chronicles by priests and other
explorers were written during the early years of
the colonial period; but no poet appears before the
seventeenth century. In 1675 the Jesuit Jacinto de Evia
published at Madrid his _Ramillete de varias flores
poeticas_ which contains, beside those by Evia, verses
by Antonio Bastidas, a Jesuit teacher, and by Hernando
Dominguez Camargo, a Colombian. The verses are mediocre
or worse, and, as the date would imply, are imbued with
culteranism.

The best verses of the eighteenth century were collected
by the priest Juan de Velasco (1727-1819) and published
in six volumes under the title of _El ocioso de Faenza_.
These volumes contain poems by Bautista Aguirre of
Guayaquil, Jose Orozco (_La conquista de Menorca_, an epic
poem in four cantos), Ramon Viescas (sonnets, _romances_,
_decimas_, etc.) and others, most of whom were Jesuits.

The expulsion of the Jesuits in 1767 caused the closure
of several colleges in Ecuador, and for a time seriously
hampered the work of classical education. But even
before the edict of expulsion scientific study had been
stimulated by the coming of French and Spanish scholars to
measure a degree of the earth's surface at the equator.
The coming of Humboldt in 1801 still further encouraged
inquiry and research. The new spirit was given concrete
expression by Dr. Francisco Eugenio de Santa Cruz y
Espejo, a physician of native descent, in                     page 298
_El nuevo Luciano_, a work famous in the literary and the
political history of South America. In this work Dr.
Espejo attacked the prevailing educational and economic
systems of the colonies, and his doctrine did much to
start the movement toward secession from the mother
country.

Although the poetry of Ecuador is of relatively little
importance as compared with that of several other American
countries, yet Ecuador gave to the world one of the
greatest of American poets, Jose Joaquin de Olmedo. In the
Americas that speak Castilian, Olmedo has only two peers
among the classic poets, the Venezuelan Bello and the
Cuban Heredia. Olmedo was born in Guayaquil in 1780, when
that city still formed part of the Virreinato del Peru.
Consequently, two countries claim him,--Peru, because he
was born a Peruvian, and because, furthermore, he received
his education at the Universidad de San Marcos in Lima;
and Ecuador, since Guayaquil became permanently a part
of that republic, and Olmedo identified himself with the
social and political life of that country. In any case,
Olmedo, as a poetic genius, looms suddenly on the horizon
of Guayaquil, and for a time after his departure there
was not only no one to take his place, but there were few
followers of note.

Olmedo ranks as one of the great poetic artists of Spanish
literature at the beginning of the nineteenth century. He
is of the same semi-classic school as Quintana, and
like him devoted to artistic excellence and lyric
grandiloquence. The poems of Olmedo are few in number
for so skilled an artist, and thoroughly imbued with
the Graeco-Latin classical spirit. His prosody nears
perfection; but is marred by an occasional abuse of
verbal endings in rime, and the inadvertent employment of
assonance where there should be none, a fault common to
most of the earlier Spanish-American poets. Olmedo's
greatest poem is _La victoria de Junin_, which is filled
with sweet-sounding phrases and beautiful images, but
is logically inconsistent and improbable. Even                 page 299
Bolivar, the "Libertador," censured Olmedo in a letter for
using the _machina_ of the appearance at night before the
combined Colombian and Peruvian armies of Huaina-Capac the
Inca, "showing himself to be a talkative mischief-maker
where he should have been lighter than ether, since
he comes from heaven," and instead of desiring the
restoration of the Inca dynasty, preferring "strange
intruders who, though avengers of his blood, are
descendants of those who destroyed his empire."

The _Canto al general Flores_ is considered by some
critics to be the poet's most finished work, though of
less substance and inspiration than _La victoria de
Junin_. This General Flores was a successful revolutionary
leader during the early days of the Republic; and he
was later as bitterly assailed by Olmedo as he is here
praised. Of a different type is the philosophic poem, _A
un amigo en el nacimiento de su primogenito_, which is
filled with sincere sympathy and deep meditation as to the
future. With the coming of middle age Olmedo's poetic
vein had apparently been exhausted, and the Peruvian bard
Felipe Pardo addressed to him an ode in which he sought,
though to no avail, to stimulate the older poet to renewed
activity (_Poesias_, Valparaiso, 1848, Paris, 1853;
_Poesias ineditas_, Lima, 1861).

For a time after Olmedo's muse had become mute, little
verse of merit was produced in Ecuador. Gabriel Garcia
Moreno (1821-1875), once president of the Republic and a
champion of Catholicism, wrote a few strong satires in
the style of Jovellanos. Dolores Veintemilla de Galindo
(1831-1857), who committed suicide on account of domestic
infelicity, left a short poem, _Quejas_, which is unique
in the older Spanish-American literature by reason of its
frank confession of feeling. The reflexive and didactic
poet Numa P. Llona (1832-___) was the author of passionate
outpourings of doubt and despair after the fashion of
Byron and Leopardi (_Poesias_, Paris, 1870;                    page 300
_Cantos americanos_, Paris, 1866; _Cien sonetos_, Quito,
1881). The gentle, melancholy bard, Julio Zalumbide
(1833-1887), at first a skeptic and afterwards a devout
believer in Christianity, wrote musical verse in correct
language but of little force. Juan Leon Mera (1832-1894)
was one of the most prominent literary historians and
critics of the Republic. Besides his _Poesias_ (2d
ed., Barcelona, 1893), Leon Mera left a popular novel,
_Cumanda_ (Quito, 1876; Madrid, 1891), an _Ojeada
historico-critica sobre la poesia ecuatoriana_ (2d ed.,
Barcelona, 1893), and a volume of _Cantares del Pueblo_
(Quito, 1892), published by the Academia del Ecuador,
which contains, in addition to many semi-popular songs in
Castilian, a few in the Quichua language.

A younger generation that has already done some good
work in poetry includes Vicente Pedrahita, Luis Cordero,
Quintiliano Sanchez and Remigio Crespo y Toral.

References: Men. Pel., _Ant. Poetas Hisp.-Amer._, III, p.
lxxxiii f.; Blanco Garcia, III, 350 f.; _Ensayo sobre la
literatura ecuatoriana_, Dr. Pablo Herrera, Quito, 1860;
_Ojeada historico-critica sobre la poesia ecuatoriana_,
Juan Leon Mera, Quito, 1868, 2d ed., Barcelona, 1893;
_Escritores espanoles e hispano-americanos_, Canete,
Madrid, 1884; _Lira ecuatoriana_, Vicente Emilio
Molestina, Guayaquil, 1865; _Nueva lira ecuat._, Juan Abel
Echeverria, Quito, 1879; _Parnaso ecuat._, Manuel Gallegos
Naranjo, Quito, 1879; _America poetica_, Juan Maria
Gutierrez, Valparaiso, 1846 (the best of the early
anthologies: contains a few poems by Olmedo); _Antologia
ecuat._, published by the Academy of Ecuador, with a
second volume entitled _Cantares del pueblo ecuat._
(Edited by Juan Leon Mera), both Quito, 1892.

=Peru.= The literature of Ecuador is so closely associated
with that of Peru, that the one cannot be properly treated
without some account of the other. The Virreinato del Peru
was the wealthiest and most cultivated Spanish colony in
South America, and in North America only Mexico rivaled
it in influence. Lima, an attractive city, thoroughly
Andalusian in character and appearance, was the               page 301
site of important institutions of learning, such as the
famed Universidad de San Marcos. It had, moreover, a
printing-press toward the close of the sixteenth century,
a public theater by 1602, and a gazette by the end of the
seventeenth century. The spread of learning in colonial
Peru may be illustrated by the fact that the Jesuits
alone, at the time of their expulsion in 1767, had twelve
colleges and universities in Peru, the oldest of which
dated from the middle of the sixteenth century and offered
courses in philosophy, law, medicine and theology.

The Peruvians seem to have been content with their lot
as a favored Spanish colony, and they declared for
independence only when incited to do so and aided by
Bolivar of Colombia and San Martin of Buenos Aires. After
the revolution, Peru was torn by internal discord rather
more than other Spanish-American countries during the
period of adolescence; and it was its misfortune to lose
territory after territory. Bolivar took northern Peru,
including the valuable seaport of Guayaquil, and made it
a part of the first Colombia; and largely through the
influence of Bolivar much of Upper Peru was made a
separate republic, that of Bolivia. Lastly, Chile, for
centuries a dependency of Peru, became independent and
even wrested a considerable stretch of the litoral from
her former mistress. It is hard to realize that Peru,
to-day relatively weak among the American countries, was
once the heart of a vast Inca empire and later the colony
whose governors ruled the territories of Argentina and
Chile to the south, and of Ecuador and Colombia to the
north. With the decline of wealth and political influence
there has come to Peru a decadence in letters. Lima
is still a center of cultivation, a city in which the
Castilian language and Spanish customs have been preserved
with remarkable fidelity; but its importance is completely
eclipsed by such growing commercial centers as Buenos
Aires, Montevideo and Santiago de Chile, and by                page 302
relatively small and conservative towns such as Bogota.

In the sixteenth century Garcilasso Inga de la Vega (his
mother was an "Inga," or Inca, princess), who had been
well trained in the Latin classics by Spanish priests,
wrote in excellent prose his famous works, _Florida del
Inca_, _Comentarios reales_ and _Historia general del
Peru_. The second work, partly historical and largely
imaginary, purports to be a history of the ancient Incas,
and pictures the old Peru as an earthly paradise. This
work has had great influence over Peruvian and Colombian
poets. Menendez y Pelayo (_Ant. Poetas Hisp.-Amer._, III,
_Introd._) considers Garcilasso, or Garcilaso, and Alarcon
the two truly classic writers that America has given to
Spanish literature.

In the Golden Age of Spanish letters several Peruvian
poets were known to Spaniards. Cervantes, in the _Canto de
Caliope_ and Lope de Vega in the _Laurel del Apolo_
make mention of several Peruvians who had distinguished
themselves by their verses.

An unknown poetess of Huanuco, Peru, who signed herself
"Amarilis," wrote a clever _silva_ in praise of Lope,
which the latter answered in the epistle _Belardo a
Amarilis_. This _silva_ of "Amarilis" is the best poetic
composition of the early colonial period. Another poetess
of the period, also anonymous, wrote in _terza rima_ a
_Discurso en loor de la poesia_, which mentions by name
most of the Peruvian poets then living.

Toward the close of the sixteenth century and in the
early decades of the seventeenth century, several Spanish
scholars, mostly Andalusians of the Sevillan school, went
to Peru, and there continued literary work. Among these
were Diego Mexia, who made the happiest of Spanish
translations of Ovid's _Heroides_; Diego de Ojeda,
the best of Spanish sacred-epic poets, author of the
_Cristiada_; Juan Galvez; Luis de Belmonte, author of _La
Hispalica_; Diego de Avalos y Figueroa whose                   page 303
_Miscelanea austral_ (Lima, 1603) contains a long poem in
_ottava rima_ entitled _Defensa de damas_; and others.
These men exerted great influence, and to them was largely
due the peculiarly Andalusian flavor of Peruvian poetry.

The best Gongoristic _Poetics_ came from Peru. This is the
_Apologetico en favor de D. Luis de Gongora_ (Lima, 1694),
by Dr. Juan de Espinosa Medrano.

In the eighteenth century the poetic compositions of Peru
were chiefly "_versos de circunstancias_" by "_poetas de
ocasion_." Many volumes of these were published, but no
one reads them to-day. Their greatest fault is excessive
culteranism, which survived in the colonies a half-century
after it had passed away from the mother country. The most
learned man of the eighteenth century in Peru was Pedro de
Peralta Barnuevo, the erudite author of some fifty volumes
of history, science and letters. His best known poem is
the epic _Lima fundada_ (Lima, 1732). He wrote several
dramas, one of which, _Rodoguna_, is Corneille's play
adapted to the Spanish stage, and has the distinction of
being one of the first imitations of the French stage in
Spanish letters. All in all, the literary output of
Peru during the seventeenth and eighteenth centuries is
disappointingly small in quantity and poor in quality, in
view of the important position held by this flourishing
colony. The Peruvian writers, then and now, lack in
sustained effort.

During and immediately following the revolutionary period,
the greatest poet is Olmedo, who was born and educated in
Peru and became a citizen first of the primitive Colombia
and then of Ecuador, only as his native city, Guayaquil,
formed a part of one political division after another.
It is customary, however, to consider Olmedo a poet of
Ecuador, and it is so done in this volume.

After Olmedo, the commanding figure among the classical
poets of Peru is Felipe Pardo y Aliaga (1806-1868). Pardo
was educated in Spain, where he studied with Alberto
Lista. From his teacher he acquired a fondness                 page 304
for classical studies and a conservatism in letters that
he retained throughout his life. In his later years he was
induced to adopt some of the metrical forms invented or
revived by the romanticists, but in spirit he remained a
conservative and a classicist. He had a keen sense of wit
and a lively imagination which made even his political
satires interesting reading. Besides his _Poesias y
escritos en prosa_ (Paris, 1869), Pardo left a number
of comedies portraying local types and scenes which are
clever attempts at imitation of Spanish drama. As with all
the earlier poets of Spanish America, literature was only
a side-play to Pardo, although it probably took his time
and attention even more than the law, which was his
profession. A younger brother, Jose (1820-1873), wrote a
few short poems, but his verses are relatively limited
and amateurish. Manuel Ascension Segura (1805-1871) wrote
clever farces filled with descriptions of local customs,
somewhat after the type of the modern _genero chico_
(_Articulos, poesias y comedias_, Lima, 1866).

The romantic movement came directly from Spain to Peru and
obtained a foothold only well on toward the close of the
first half of the century. The leader of the Bohemian
romanticists of Lima was a Spaniard from Santander,
Fernando Velarde. Around him clustered a group of young
men who imitated Espronceda and Zorrilla and Velarde with
great enthusiasm. For an account of the "Bohemians" of the
fourth and fifth decades in Lima [Numa Pompilio Llona
(b. 1832), Nicolas Corpancho (1830-1863), Luis Benjamin
Cisneros (b. 1837), Carlos Augusto Salaverry (1830-1891),
Manuel Ascension Segura (b. 1805), Clemente Althaus
(1835-1881), Adolfo Garcia (1830-1883), Constantino
Carrasco (1841-1877) and others, see the introduction to
the _Poesias_ (Lima, 1887) of Ricardo Palma (1833-___:
till 1912 director of the national library of Peru).]

Not often could the romanticists of America go back to        page 305
indigenous legend for inspiration as their
Spanish cousins so often did; but this Constantino
Carrasco undertook to do in his translation of the famous
Quichua drama, _Ollanta_. It was long claimed, and many
still believe, that this is an ancient indigenous play;
but to-day the more thoughtful critics are inclined to
consider it an imitation of the Spanish classical drama,
perhaps written in the Quichua language by some Spanish
priest (Valdes?). The 8-syllable lines, the rime-scheme
and the spirit of the play all suggest Spanish influence.
In parenthesis it should be added that Quichua verse is
still cultivated artificially in Peru and Ecuador.

The two men of that generation who have most distinguished
themselves are Pedro Paz-Soldan y Unanue, "Juan de Arona"
(1839-1894), a poet of satire and humor; and Ricardo Palma
(1833-___) a leading scholar and literary critic, best
known for his prose _Tradiciones peruanas_ (Lima, 1875 and
1899).

The strongest representative of the present-day
"_modernistas_" in Peru is Jose Santos Chocano
(1867-___), a disciple of Dario. Chocano writes with much
grandiloquence. His many sonnets are mostly prosaic, but
some are finished and musical (cf. _La magnolia_). He
is more Christian (cf. _Evangeleida_) than most of his
contemporaries, and he sings of the _conquistadores_ with
true admiration [cf. _En la aldea_, Lima, 1895; _Iras
santas_, Lima, 1895; _Alma America_ (_Prologo_ de Miguel
de Unamuno), Madrid, 1906; _La selva virgen_, Paris, 1901;
_Fiat lux_, Paris, 1908].

A younger man is Edilberto Zegarra Ballon of Arequipa
(1880-___), author of _Vibraciones, Poemas, el al._ His
verse is simpler and less rugged than that of the more
virile Chocano.

    References: Men. Pel., _Ant. Poetas Hisp.-Amer._, III,
    p. cxlix f.; Blanco Garcia, III, 362 f.; _Diccionario
    historico y biografico del Peru, formado y redactado
    por Manuel de Mendiburu_, 9 vols., Lima, 1874-80;
    _Coleccion de documentos literarios del Peru_, 11
    vols., Manuel de Odriozola, Lima, 1863-74;                page 306
    _America poetica_, Juan Maria Gutierrez, Valparaiso,
    1846; _Parnaso peruano_, J.D. Cortes, Paris, 1875; _La
    Bohemia limena de 1848 a 1860, Prologo de Poesias de
    Ricardo Palma_, Lima, 1887; _Lira americana,_ Ricardo
    Palma, Paris, 1865.

=193.=--Olmedo: see preceding note.

8. =A=, _with_.

=194.=--15-17. The following is a translation of a note to
these lines which is given in _Poesias de Olmedo_, Garnier
Hermanos, Paris, 1896: "Physicists have attempted to
explain the equilibrium that is maintained by the earth in
spite of the difference of mass in its two hemispheres"
(northern and southern). "May not the enormous weight
of the Andes be one of the data with which this curious
problem of physical geography can be solved?"

=195.=--4. The religion of the ancient Peruvians, before
they were converted to Christianity by the Spaniards, was
based on the worship of the sun. The chief temple of the
sun was at Cuzco.

25. Bolivar was a native of Caracas, Venezuela; but, when
this poem was written, Colombia comprised most of the
present States of Venezuela, Colombia, Panama and Ecuador.
Moreover, Colombia is probably used somewhat figuratively
by the poet to designate the "land of Columbus."

26. The Peruvians and the Colombians were allies. It is an
interesting fact that in the war for independence waged by
the Spanish Americans against Spain, the leaders of the
Americans were nearly all of Spanish descent, while the
majority of the rank and file of the American soldiery
was Indian. To this day, a majority of the population of
Spanish America, excepting only Chile, Argentina and the
West Indian Islands, is indigenous, and their poets still
sing of "indigenous America," but they sing in the Spanish
tongue! See p. 211, l. 7.
                                                               page 307
=196.=--21. See note to p. 162, l. 8. The Peruvian flag
has an image of the _sun_ in its center.

23. It is reported that the first onslaught of the
Spanish-American cavalry failed, partly by reason of their
impetuousness, and that they would probably have been
defeated if Bolivar had not rallied them and led them on
to victory.

=198.=--10. The battle of Junin began at about five
o'clock in the afternoon, and it is said that only night
saved the Spaniards from complete destruction.

11. =El dios oia=: destiny did not permit the god to stay
his course for an hour, but the god left behind him his
circlet of diamonds (the stars).

=199.=--=Mexico.= The Virreinato de Nueva Espana was a
favored colony, where Spanish culture took deepest root.
It had the first institution of learning in America
(opened in 1553 by decree of Charles I) and the first
printing-press (1540?). Some 116 books were printed in
Mexico City during the sixteenth century, most of which
were catechisms or grammars and dictionaries in the native
languages. In the sixteenth and seventeenth centuries
several Spanish poets, mostly Sevillans, went to Mexico.
Among these were Diego Mexia (went to Mexico in 1596);
Gutierre de Cetina, Juan de la Cueva, and Mateo Aleman
(published _Ortografia castellana_ in Mexico in 1609).
_Certamenes poeticos_ ("poetic contests") were held in
Mexico, as in other Spanish colonies, from time to time.
The first of importance occurred in Mexico City in 1583,
to which seven bishops lent the dignity of their presence
and in which three hundred poets (?) competed. After the
discovery and conquest of the Philippines, great opulence
came to Mexico on account of its being on a direct route
of Pacific trade between Europe and Asia, and Mexico
became an emporium of Asiatic goods (note introduction of
Mexican dollar into China).

The first native poet deserving of the name was Francisco      page 308
de Terrazas (cf. Cervantes, _Canto de Caliope_,
1584), who left in manuscript sonnets and other lyrics and
an unfinished epic poem, _Nuevo mundo y conquista_. It is
interesting that in the works of Terrazas and other native
poets of the sixteenth century the Spaniards are called
"_soberbios_," "_malos_," etc. Antonio Saavedra Guzman was
the first in Mexico to write in verse a chronicle of
the conquest (_El peregrino indiano_, Madrid, 1599).
_Coloquios espirituales_ (published posthumously in 1610),
_autos_ of the "morality" type, with much local color and
partly in dialect, were written by Fernan Gonzalez Eslava,
whom Pimentel considers the best sacred dramatic poet of
Mexico. Sacred dramatic representations had been given in
Spanish and in the indigenous languages almost from the
time of the conquest. According to Beristain, at least two
plays of Lope were done into Nahuatl by Bartolome de Alba,
of native descent, and performed, _viz._: _El animal
profeta y dichoso parricida_ and _La madre de la Mejor_.

The first poet whose verses are genuinely American, exotic
and rich in color like the land in which written (a rare
quality in the Spanish poetry of the period), was Bernardo
de Balbuena (1568-1627: born in Spain; educated in
Mexico). Balbuena had a strong descriptive faculty, but
his work lacked restraint (cf. _Grandeza mexicana_, Mex.,
1604; Madrid, 1821, 1829 and 1837; N.Y., 1828; Mex.,
1860). The great dramatist, Juan Ruiz de Alarcon
(1581?-1639), was born and educated in Mexico; but as he
wrote in Spain, and his dramas are Spanish in feeling, he
is best treated as a Spanish poet.

Next only to Avellaneda the most distinguished
Spanish-American poetess is the Mexican nun, Sor Juana
Ines de la Cruz (1651-1695), whose worldly name was Juana
Ines de Asbaje y Ramirez de Cantillana. Sor Juana had
intellectual curiosity in an unusual degree and early
began the study of Latin and other languages. When still a
young girl she became a maid-in-waiting in the viceroy's
palace, where her beauty and wit attracted much                page 309
attention; but she soon renounced the worldly life of the
court and joined a religious order. In the convent of San
Jeronimo she turned for solace to books, and in time she
accumulated a library of four thousand volumes. Upon being
reproved by a zealous bishop for reading worldly books,
she sold her entire library and gave the proceeds to the
poor. Sor Juana's better verses are of two kinds: those
that give evidence of great cleverness and mental
acuteness, and those that have the ring of spontaneity and
sincerity. As an exponent of erotic mysticism, she is most
interesting. In the most passionate of her erotic verses
there is an apparent sincerity which makes it difficult
for the lay reader to believe that she had not been
profoundly influenced by human love,--as when she gives
expression to the feelings of a loving wife for a dead
husband, or laments the absence of a lover or tells of a
great jealousy. In addition to her lyrics Sor Juana wrote
several _autos_ and dramas. Her poems were first published
under the bombastic title of _Inundacion castalida de la
unica poetisa, Musa decima, Sor Juana Ines de la Cruz_,
Madrid, 1689 (vol. II, Seville, 1691; vol. III, Madrid,
1700).

During the first half of the eighteenth century the
traditions of the preceding century persisted; but in the
second half there came the neo-classic reaction. Among the
best of the prosaic poets of the century are: Miguel de
Reyna Zeballos (_La elocuencia del silencio_, Madrid,
1738); Francisco Ruiz de Leon (_Hernandia_, 1755, based on
the _Conquista de Mexico_ by Solis); and the priest Jorge
Jose Sartorio (1746-1828: _Poesias sagradas y profanas_, 7
vols., Puebla, 1832). The Franciscan Manuel de Navarrete
(1768-1809) is considered by Pimentel superior to Sor
Juana Ines de la Cruz as a philosophic poet (the writer of
this article does not so consider him) and is called the
"restorer of lyric and objective poetry in Mexico" (cf.
Pim., _Hist. Poesia Mex._, p. 442). Navarrete wrote in
a variety of styles. His verses are harmonious, but
_altisonante_ and often incorrect. His best                    page 310
lyrics, like those of Cienfuegos, have the personal
note of the romanticists to follow (_Entretenimientos
poeticos_, Mex., 1823, Paris, 1835; _Poesias_, Mex.,
1905).

There were no eminent Mexican poets during the
revolutionary period. Andres Quintana Roo (1787-1851) was
a lawyer and journalist and president of the congress
which made the first declaration of independence. Pimentel
(p. 309) calls him an eminent poet and one of the best of
the period. Two of the most important in the period are:
Manuel Sanchez de Tagle (1782-1847), a statesman given to
philosophic meditation, but a poor versifier (_Poesias_,
1852); and Francisco Ortega (1793-1849), an ardent
republican, who opposed Iturbide when the latter had
himself proclaimed emperor of Mexico in 1821 (_Poesias
liricas_, 1839; cf. _A Iturbide en su coronacion_). To
these should be added Joaquin Maria del Castillo y Lanzas
(1781-1878), one-time minister to the United States
(_Ocios juveniles_, Philadelphia, 1835); and the priest
Anastasio Maria Ochoa (1783-1833), who translated French,
Italian, and Latin (Ovid's _Heroides_) works, and wrote
some humorous verses (_Poesias_, N.Y., 1828: contains two
dramas).

Next to Alarcon, the greatest dramatist that Mexico has
produced is Manuel Eduardo de Gorostiza (1789-1851), who
wrote few lyric verses, but many dramas in verse and
prose. His plays, which are full of humorous contrasts,
were written during his residence in Spain and are,
for the most part, typically Spanish in all respects.
Gorostiza, in manner and style, is considered a bridge
between Moratin and Breton. His best comedy is _La
indulgencia para todos_ (cf. _Teatro original_, Paris,
1822; _Teatro escogido_, Bruxelles, 1825; _Obras
dramaticas_, _Bibl. Aut. Mex._, vols. 22, 24, 26, 45,
Mex.,-1899).

Romanticism came into Mexico through Spain. It was
probably introduced by Ignacio Rodriguez Galvan
(1816-1842), a translator, lyric poet, and                     page 311
dramatist. His lyrics have the merit of sincerity;
pessimism is the prevailing tone and there is much
invective. His _Profecias de Guatimoc_ is considered the
masterpiece of Mexican romanticism (_Obras_, 2 vols.,
Mex., 1851; Paris, 1883). Another well-known romantic
lyricist and dramatist is Fernando Calderon (1809-1845),
who was more correct in form than Rodriguez Galvan
(_Poesias_, Mex., 1844 and 1849; Paris, 1883; Mex., 1902).

The revival of letters in Mexico is generally attributed
to the conservative poets Pesado and Carpio, both of whom
sought to be classic, although they were not altogether so
in practise. Probably the best known Mexican poet, though
certainly not the most inspired, is Jose Joaquin Pesado
(1801-1861). He translated much from Latin, French and
Italian, and in some cases failed to acknowledge his
indebtedness (cf. Pimentel, p. 694). His best translations
are of the Psalms. The _Aztecas_, which were published
as a translation of, or an adaptation from, indigenous
legends, are mostly original with Pesado in all
probability. He is an unusually even writer, and some of
his verses are good (cf. certain sonnets: _Mi amada en la
misa del alba_, which reminds one of Melendez Valdes in
_Rosana en los fuegos_; _Elegia al angel de la guardia de
Elisa_; and parts of _La revelacion_ in _octavas reales_).
Montes de Oca and Menendez y Pelayo consider Pesado the
greatest of Mexican poets; but Pimentel does not (p. 694).
Cf. _Poesias originales y traducciones_, Mex., 1839-40
(most complete), 1886 (introduction of Montes de Oca);
_Biografia de Pesado_, by Jose Maria Roa Barcena, Mex.,
1878. Manuel Carpio (1791-1860) began to write verses
after he had reached the age of forty years, and there is,
consequently, a certain ripeness of thought and also a
lack of feeling in his poetry. His verses are chiefly
narrative or descriptive and generally treat of biblical
subjects. His language is usually correct, but often
prosaic (_Poesias_, Mex., 1849).
                                                               page 312
Minor poets of this period are: Alejandro Arango
(1821-1883), an imitator of Leon (_Versos_, 1879; _Ensayo
historico sobre Fr. Luis de Leon_, Mex., 1866); Ignacio
Ramirez (1818-1879), of Indian race, who was a free lance
in religion and politics, and largely responsible for the
separation of Church and State in Mexico (_Poesias_, Mex.,
1889, and _Lecciones de literatura_, Mex., 1884);
and Ignacio M. Altamarino (1834-1893), an erotic and
descriptive poet (_Obras_, Mex., 1899).

The most popular Mexican poets during the second half of
the nineteenth century have been Acuna, Flores, Peza and
Gutierrez Najera. A materialistic iconoclast, Manuel Acuna
(1849-1873) was uneven and incorrect in language, but
capable of deep poetic feeling. In his _Poesias_ (Garnier,
Paris, 8th ed.) there are two short poems that may live:
_Nocturno_, a passionate expression of disappointment
in love; and _Ante un cadaver_, a poem of dogmatic
materialism. Acuna committed suicide at the age of
twenty-four years. Manuel Maria Flores (1840-1885), an
erotic poet largely influenced by Musset, is very popular
in Mexico (_Pasionarias_, Paris, 1911). Probably the
most widely read poet of the period is Juan de Dios Peza
(1852-1910). His verses are often incorrect and weak, as
he improvised much; but they are interesting, as they
usually treat of homely topics (_Poesias completas: El
arpa del amor_, 1891; _Hogar y patria_, 1891; _Leyendas_,
1898; _Flores del alma; Recuerdos y esperanzas_, 1899,
Garnier, Paris). The romantic pessimist, Manuel Gutierrez
Najera (d. 1888), was tormented throughout life by the
vain quest of happiness and the thirst of truth. His
verses, which are often elegiac or fantastic, are highly
admired by the younger generation of Mexican poets. In
a letter to the writer of this article, Blanco-Fombona
praises Gutierrez Najera above all other Mexican poets
(_Poesias_, Paris, 1909, 2 vols.).

    References: Menendez y Pelayo, _Ant. Poetas
    Hisp.-Amer._, I, p. xiv f.: Blanco Garcia, III, 304
    f.; Francisco Pimentel, _Historia critica de la           page 313
    poesia en Mexico_, Mex., 1892; _Biblioteca
    hispano-americana septentrional_, D. Jose Mariano
    Beristain de Souza, Mex., 1816-21, 3 vols. (has more
    than 4000 titles),--reprinted by Fortino Hipolito de
    Vera, Amecameca, 1883; _Bibliografia mexicana del
    siglo XVI (catalogo razonado de los libros impresos
    in Mexico de 1539 a 1600)_; _Biografias de mexicanos
    distinguidos_, D. Francisco Sosa, Mex., 1884; _Poetas
    yucatecos y tabasquenos_, D. Manuel Sanchez Marmol y
    D. Alonso de Regil y Peon, Merida de Yucatan, 1861;
    _Poetisas mexicanas_, Bogota, 1889; _Coleccion
    de poesias mexicanas_, Paris, 1836; _El parnaso
    mexicano_, 36 vols., R.B. Ortega, Mex., 1886;
    _Biblioteca de autores mexicanos_, some 75 vols. to
    1911, Mex.; _Antologia de poetas mexicanos_, publ. by
    Acad. Mex., Mex., 1894; _Poetas mexicanos_, Carlos
    G. Amezaga, Buenos Aires, 1896; _Los trovadores de
    Mexico_, Barcelona, 1900.

Pesado: see preceding note.

=La Serenata=: see _Introduction, Versification_, p.
lxviii.

=200.=--6-11. These lines of Pesado are similar to those
found in the first stanzas of _Su alma_ by Milanes. See
Hills' _Bardos cubanos_ (Boston, 1901), p. 69.

Calderon: see note to p. 199.

=202.=--Acuna: see note to p. 199.

=204.=--15. The language is obscure, but the meaning seems
to be: _borrarte (a ti que estas) en mis recuerdos_.

19. The forced synalepha of =yo haga= is discordant and
incorrect.

=204.=--23 to =205.=--8. That is, when the altar was ready
for the marriage ceremony, and the home awaited the bride.
The reference, apparently, is to a marriage at an early
hour in the morning,--a favored time for marriages in
Spanish lands.

=208.=--1. =la alma=, by poetic license, since _el alma_
would make the line too long by one syllable.

=207.=--Peza: see note to p. 199.

=211.=--Dario: with the appearance in 1888 of a small
volume of prose and verse entitled _Azul_, by Ruben Dario
(1864-) of Nicaragua, there triumphed in Spanish America
the "movement of emancipation," the "literary                  page 314
revolution," which the "decadents" had already initiated
in France. As romanticism had been a revolt against the
empty formalism of later neo-classicism, so "decadence"
was a reaction against the hard, marmoreal forms of the
"Parnasse," and in its train there came inevitably a
general attack on poetic traditions. This movement was
hailed with joy by the young men of Latin America, who are
by nature more emotional and who live in a more voluptuous
environment than their cousins in Spain; for they had come
to chafe at the coldness of contemporary Spanish poetry,
at its lack of color and its "petrified metrical forms."
With the success of the movement there was for a time a
reign of license, when poet vied with poet in defying the
time-honored rules, not only of versification, but also
of vocabulary and syntax. But as in France, so in Spanish
America, "decadence" has had its day, although traces of
its passing are everywhere in evidence, and the best that
was in it still lingers.

To-day the Spanish-American poets are turning their
attention more and more to the study of sociological
problems or to the cementing of racial solidarity. These
notes ring clear in some recent poems of Dario, and of
Jose S. Chocano of Peru and Rufino Blanco-Fombona of
Venezuela. The lines given in the text are an ode which
was addressed to Mr. Roosevelt when he was president of
the United States from 1901 to 1909. The meter of the poem
is mainly the Old Spanish Alexandrine, but with a curious
intermingling of lines of nine, ten and eight syllables,
and with assonance of the even lines throughout. In all
fairness it should be stated here that Senor Dario, in a
recent letter to the writer of these _Notes_, said: "I
do not think to-day as I did when I wrote those verses"
(Dario: _Epistolas y poemas_, 1885; _Abrojos_, 1887;
_Azul_, 1888; _Cantos de vida y esperanza_, Madrid, 1905;
_El canto errante_, Madrid, 1907).
                                                               page 315
=212.=--8. Argentina and Chile are the most progressive of
the Spanish-American States. The Argentine flag is blue
and white, with a _sun_ in the center; the flag of Chile
has a white and a red bar, and in one corner a white
_star_ on a blue background.

11. This refers, of course, to the colossal bronze Statue
of Liberty by the French sculptor, Frederic Bartholdi,
which stands in New York harbor.

14. In a letter to the writer of these _Notes_, Senor
Dario explains this passage as follows: "Bacchus, or
Dionysius, after the conquest of India (I refer to the
semi-historical and not to the mythological Bacchus) is
supposed to have gone to other and unknown countries. I
imagine that those unknown countries were America. Pan,
who accompanied Bacchus on his journey, taught those new
men the alphabet. All this is related to the tradition
of the arrival of bearded men, strangely dressed, in the
American countries.... These traditions exist in the South
as well as the North."

16. =Que consulto los astros=: the ancient Peruvians and
Mexicans had made considerable progress in the study of
astronomy.

=214.=--=Venezuela.= During the colonial period the
development of literary culture was slower in the
Capitania de Caracas than in Colombia, Peru and Mexico.
The Colegio de Santa Rosa, which was founded at Caracas in
1696, was made a university in 1721. Not till 1806 was the
first printing-press set up in the colony.

Poetry in Venezuela begins with Bello, for the works
of his predecessors had little merit. Andres Bello
(1781-1865) was the most consummate master of poetic
diction among Spanish-American poets, although he lacked
the brilliancy of Olmedo and the spontaneity of Heredia.
Born in Caracas and educated in the schools of his native
city, Bello was sent to England in the year 1810 to
further the cause of the revolution, and he remained in
that country till 1829, when he was called to                  page 316
Chile to take service in the Department of Foreign
Affairs. His life may, therefore, be divided into three
distinct periods. In Caracas he studied chiefly the Latin
and Spanish classics and the elements of international
law, and he made metrical translations of Virgil and
Horace. Upon arriving in England at the age of twenty-nine
years, he gave himself with enthusiasm to the study of
Greek, Italian and French, as well as to English. Bello
joined with the Spanish and Hispano-American scholars in
London in the publication of several literary reviews,
notably the _Censor americano_ (1820), the _Biblioteca
americana_ (1823) and the _Repertorio americano_
(1826-27), and in these he published many of his most
important works. Here appeared his studies of Old French
and of the _Song of My Cid_, his excellent translation of
fourteen cantos of Boiardo's _Orlando innamorato_, several
important articles on Spanish syntax and prosody, and the
best of all his poems, the _Silvas americanas_.

In 1829, when already forty-eight years of age, Bello
removed to Chile, and there entered upon the happiest
period of his life. Besides working in a government
office, he gave private lessons until in 1831 he was made
rector of the College of Santiago. In the year 1843 the
University of Chile was established at Santiago and Bello
became its first rector. He held this important post
till his death twenty-two years later at the ripe age of
eighty-four. During this third and last period of his life
Bello completed and published his _Spanish Grammar_ and
his _Principles of International Law_, works which, with
occasional slight revisions, have been used as standard
text-books in Spanish America and to some extent in Spain,
to the present day. The _Grammar_, especially, has been
extraordinarily successful, and the edition with notes by
Jose Rufino Cuervo is still the best text-book of Spanish
grammar we have. In the _Grammar_ Bello sought to free
Castilian from Latin terminology; but he desired, most of
all, to correct the abuses so common to writers                page 317
of the period and to establish linguistic unity in Spanish
America.

Bello wrote little original verse during these last years
of his life. At one time he became exceedingly fond
of Victor Hugo and even tried to imitate him; but his
classical training and methodical habits made success
impossible. His best poetic work during his residence in
Chile, however, are translations of Victor Hugo, and his
free metrical rendering of _La Priere pour tous_ (from
the _Feuilles d'automne_), is amongst his finest and most
popular verses.

It is interesting that Andres Bello, the foremost
of Spanish-American scholars in linguistics and in
international law, should also have been a preeminent
poet, and yet all critics, except possibly a few of the
present-day "_modernistas_," place his _American Silvas_
amongst the best poetic compositions of all Spanish
America. The _Silvas_ are two in number: the _Alocucion
a la poesia_ and the _Silva a la agricultura de la zona
torrida_. The first is fragmentary: apparently the poet
despaired of completing it, and he embodied in the second
poem an elaboration of those passages of the first work
which describe nature in the tropics. The _Silvas_ are in
some degree imitations of Virgil's _Georgics_, and they
are the best of Spanish imitations. Menendez y Pelayo, who
is not too fond of American poets, is willing to admit
(_Ant._, II, p. cxlii) that Bello is, "in descriptive and
Georgic verse, the most Virgilian of our (Spanish) poets."
Caro, in his splendid biography of Bello (in Miguel
Antonio Caro's introduction to the _Poesias de Andres
Bello_, Madrid, 1882) classifies the _Silvas_ as
"scientific poetry," which is quite true if this sort of
poetry gives an esthetic conception of nature, expressed
in beautiful terms and adorned with descriptions of
natural objects. It is less true of the _Alocucion_, which
is largely historical, in that it introduces and sings
the praises of towns and persons that won fame in the
revolutionary wars. The _Silva a la agricultura_,              page 318
which is both descriptive and moral, may be best described
in the words of Caro. It is, says this distinguished
critic, "an account of the beauty and wealth of nature in
the tropics, and an exhortation to those who live in
the equator that, instead of wasting their strength in
political and domestic dissensions, they should devote
themselves to agricultural pursuits." Bello's interest
in nature had doubtless been stimulated by the coming of
Humboldt to Caracas in the first decade of the nineteenth
century. In his attempt to express his feeling for nature
in poetic terms, he probably felt the influence not only
of Virgil, but also of Arriaza, and of the several poems
descriptive of nature written in Latin by Jesuit priests,
such as the once famous _Rusticatio Mexicana_ by Father
Landivar of Guatemala. And yet there is very little in
the _Silvas_ that is directly imitative. The _Silva a
la agricultura de la zona torrida_, especially, is an
extraordinarily successful attempt to give expression in
Virgilian terms to the exotic life of the tropics, and in
this it is unique in Spanish literature. The beautiful
descriptive passages in this poem, the noble ethical
precepts and the severely pure diction combine to make
it a classic that will long hold an honored place in
Spanish-American letters (_Obras completas_, Santiago de
Chile, 1881-93).

During the revolutionary period the most distinguished
poets, after Bello, of that part of the greater Colombia
which later formed the separate republic of Venezuela,
were Baralt and Ros de Olano. Rafael Maria Baralt
(1810-1860) took part in the revolutionary movement of
secession from the first Colombia; but later he removed to
Spain and became a Spanish citizen. His verses are usually
correct, but lack feeling. He is best known as a historian
and maker of dictionaries. Baralt was elected to
membership in the Spanish Academy (_Poesias_, Paris,
1888).

General Antonio Ros de Olano (1802-1887) also removed to       page 319
Spain and won high rank in the Spanish army. He
joined the romantic movement and became a follower of
Espronceda. Besides a volume of verses (_Poesias_, Madrid,
1886), Ros de Olano wrote _El doctor Lanuela_ (1863) and
other novels. Both Baralt and Ros de Olano were identified
with literary movements in Spain rather than in Venezuela.

Jose Heriberto Garcia de Quevedo (1819-1871) was a
cultivated and ambitious scholar who collaborated with
Zorrilla in _Maria_, _Ira de Dios_ and _Un cuento
de amores_. Among his better works are the three
philosophical poems: _Delirium_, _La segunda vida_ and _El
proscrito_ (_Obras poeticas y literarias_, Paris, 1863).
Among the lesser writers of this period are Antonio Maitin
(1804-1874), the best of Venezuelan romanticists (cf. _El
canto funebre_, a poem of domestic love); Abigail Lozano
(1821-1866), a romanticist and author of musical but
empty verses ("_versos altisonantes_"); Jose Ramon Yepes
(1822-1881), an army officer and the author of legends
in verse, besides the inevitable _Poesias_; Eloy Escobar
(1824-1889), an elegiac poet; and Francisco G. Pardo
(1829-1872), a mediocre imitator of Zorrilla.

Next to Bello alone, the most distinguished poet of
Venezuela is Jose Perez Bonalde (1846-1892), who was a
good German scholar and left, besides his original verses,
excellent translations of German poets. His metrical
versions of Heine, especially, exerted considerable
influence over the growth of literary feeling in Spanish
America (_Estrofas_, N.Y., 1877; _El poema del Niagara_,
N.Y., 1880). At least two other writers of the second half
of the nineteenth century deserve mention: Miguel Sanchez
Pesquera and Jacinto Gutierrez Coll.

Among the present-day writers of Venezuela, Luis Lopez
Mendez was one of the first to introduce into Spanish
America a knowledge of the philosophy and metrical
theories of Paul Verlaine. Manuel Diaz Rodriguez
(1868-___) has written little verse; but he is the best
known Venezuelan novelist of to-day [_Sangre                   page 320
patricia, Camino de perfeccion_ (essays), _Idolos rotos_,
_Cuentos_, 2 vols., _Confidencias de Psiquis_, _Cuentos de
color_, _Sensaciones de viaje_, _De mis romerias_].
The most influential of the younger writers is Rufino
Blanco-Fombona, who was expelled from his native country
by the present _andino_ ("mountaineer") government and now
lives in exile in Paris. At first a disciple of Musset
and then of Heine and Maupassant, he is now an admirer
of Dario and a pronounced _modernista_. His _Letras y
letrados de Hispano-America_ is the best recent work
of literary criticism by a Spanish-American author.
Blanco-Fombona is a singer of youthful ambition, force and
robust love. His verses have rich coloring, but are
at times erotic or lacking in restraint (prose works:
_Cuentos de poeta_, Maracaibo, 1900; _Mas alla de los
horizontes_, Madrid, 1903; _Cuentos americanos_, Madrid,
1904; _El hombre de hierro_, Caracas, 1907; _Letras
y letrados de Hispano-America_, Paris, 1908. Verses:
_Patria_, Caracas, 1895; _Trovadores y trovas_, Caracas,
1899; _Pequena opera lirica_, Madrid, 1904; _Cantos de la
prision_, Paris, 1911).

    References: Menendez y Pelayo, _Ant. Poetas
    Hisp.-Amer._, II, p. cx f.; Blanco Garcia, III, p. 321
    f.; _Resena historica de la literatura venezolana_
    (1888) and _Estado actual de la literatura en
    Venezuela_ (1892), both by Julio Calcano, Caracas; _La
    literatura venezolana en el siglo XIX_, Gonzalo Picon
    Febres, Caracas, 1906; _Parnaso venezolano_, 12
    vols., Julio Calcano, Caracas, 1892; _Biblioteca de
    escritores venezolanos_, Jose Maria Rojas, Paris,
    1875; _Parnaso venezolano_, Barcelona, 1906.

Bello: see preceding note.

1. The _Lion_ symbolizes Spain, since from the medieval
kingdom of Leon modern Spain sprang. The battle of Bailen
(see in _Vocab._) took place in 1808 when Bello was
twenty-seven years of age and still loyal to Spain.

=214.=--16 to =215.=--3. =Que... concibes= = _que
circunscribes el vago curso_ =al= _(= del) sol enamorado,
y (tu), acariciada de su luz, concibes_ =cuanto                page 321
ser= (= every being that) _se anima en cada vario clima._

18. The use of =quien= referring to inanimate objects is
now archaic.

=216.=--19 to =217.=--3. It is said that the banana gives
nourishment to more human beings than does any other
plant. The fruit is taken when it is still green, before
the starch has turned to sugar, and it is boiled, or
baked, or it is ground and made into a coarse bread.

6-8. =En que... bondadosa!= = _en que (la) naturaleza
bondadosa quiso hacer resena de sus favores..._

9. The student should compare this and the following lines
with _Vida retirada_ by Fray Luis de Leon, p. 9.

19. The rime requires =habita=, instead of _habitad_.

22-23. =Y... atada= = _y la razon va atada al triunfal
carro de la moda, universal senora_.

=219.=--10-16. =?Esperareis... ata?= = _?esperareis que
(el) himeneo forme mas venturosos lazos do el interes,
tirano del deseo, barata ajena mano y fe por nombre o
plata, que do conforme gusto, conforme edad, y_ (= both)
_eleccion libre y_ (= and) _mutuo ardor ata los lazos?_
Note that, by poetic license, =ata= agrees in number with
the nearest subject, although it has two.

=220.=--8-11. As this poem was written after the
Spanish-American colonies had revolted against the mother
country, Bello no longer rejoices at the success of
Spanish arms nor grieves over their losses, as he had done
when he wrote _A la victoria de Bailen_.

Perez Bonalde: see note to p. 214.

=222.=--5. The Venezuelan flag is yellow, blue and red
with seven small white stars in the center.

=225.=--=La carcelera=: the words and music of this
song and of the first that follows are taken from the
_Cancionero salmantino_ (Damaso Ledesma), Madrid, 1907.

=227.=--=La cachucha=: the words and music of this song
and of the five that immediately follow are taken              page 322
from _Poesias populares_ (Tomas Segarra), Leipzig, 1862.

=238.=--=El tragala=: (lit., _the swallow it_) a song with
which the Spanish liberals taunted the partizans of an
absolute government.

=242.=--=Himno de Riego=: a song to the liberal general,
Rafael de Riego (1784-1823), who initiated the revolution
of 1820 in Spain and proclaimed at Cabezas de San Juan the
constitution of 1812. Cf. _Versification_, p. lxxix.

=251.=--=Himno Nacional de Cuba=, called also the =Himno
de Bayamo=, on account of the importance of Bayamo (see
in _Vocab._) in the Cuban revolution of 1868. Note the
ternary movement of this song, and see _Versification_, p.
lxxiii.





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