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diff --git a/41611-0.txt b/41611-0.txt index 2cc00de..62118c3 100644 --- a/41611-0.txt +++ b/41611-0.txt @@ -1,25 +1,4 @@ -The Project Gutenberg EBook of Gatherings From Spain, by Richard Ford - -This eBook is for the use of anyone anywhere at no cost and with -almost no restrictions whatsoever. 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You may copy it, give it away or -re-use it under the terms of the Project Gutenberg License included -with this eBook or online at www.gutenberg.org/license - - -Title: Gatherings From Spain - -Author: Richard Ford - -Release Date: December 12, 2012 [EBook #41611] - -Language: English - -Character set encoding: UTF-8 - -*** START OF THIS PROJECT GUTENBERG EBOOK GATHERINGS FROM SPAIN *** - - - - -Produced by Chuck Greif and the Online Distributed -Proofreading Team at http://www.pgdp.net (This file was -produced from images available at The Internet Archive) - - - - - -Every attempt has been made to replicate the original book as printed. -Some typographical errors have been corrected (a list follows the text). -No attempt has been made to correct or normalize the printed -accentuation or spelling of Spanish names or words. (etext transcriber’s -note) - - - - -GATHERINGS FROM SPAIN. - -BY THE - -AUTHOR OF THE HANDBOOK OF SPAIN; - -CHIEFLY SELECTED FROM THAT WORK, WITH -MUCH NEW MATTER. - -_NEW EDITION._ - -LONDON: -JOHN MURRAY, ALBEMARLE STREET. - -1851. - - -TO THE - -HONOURABLE MRS. FORD, - -These pages, which she has been so good as to peruse and approve of, are -dedicated, in the hopes that other fair readers may follow her example, - -By her very affectionate -Husband and Servant, -RICHARD FORD. - - - - -PREFACE. - - -Many ladies, some of whom even contemplate a visit to Spain, having -condescended to signify to the publisher their regrets, that the -Handbook was printed in a form, which rendered its perusal irksome, and -also to express a wish that the type had been larger, the Author, to -whom this distinguished compliment was communicated, has hastened to -submit to their indulgence a few extracts and selections, which may -throw some light on the character of a country and people, always of the -highest interest, and particularly so at this moment, when their -independence is once more threatened by a crafty and aggressive -neighbour. - -In preparing these compilations for the press much new matter has been -added, to supply the place of portions omitted; for, in order to lighten -the narrative, the Author has removed much lumber of learning, and has -not scrupled occasionally to throw Strabo, and even Saint Isidore -himself, overboard. Progress is the order of the day in Spain, and its -advance is the more rapid, as she was so much in arrear of other -nations. Transition is the present condition of the country, where -yesterday is effaced by to-morrow. There the relentless march of -European intellect is crushing many a native wild flower, which, having -no value save colour and sweetness, must be rooted up before -cotton-mills are constructed and bread stuffs substituted; many a trait -of nationality in manners and costume is already effaced; monks are -gone, and mantillas are going, alas! going. - -In the changes that have recently taken place, many descriptions of ways -and things now presented to the public will soon become almost matters -of history and antiquarian interest. The passages here reprinted will be -omitted in the forthcoming new edition of the Handbook, to which these -pages may form a companion; but their chief object has been to offer a -few hours’ amusement, and may be of instruction, to those who remain at -home; and should the humble attempt meet with the approbation of fair -readers, the author will bear, with more than Spanish resignation, -whatever animadversions bearded critics may be pleased to inflict on -this or on the other side of the water. - - - - -CONTENTS. - - -CHAPTER I. - -.....PAGE - -A General View of Spain--Isolation--King of the Spains--Castilian -Precedence--Localism--Want of Union--Admiration of Spain--M. Thiers in -Spain.....1 - - -CHAPTER II. - -The Geography of Spain--Zones--Mountains--The Pyrenees--The Gabacho, and -French Politics.....7 - - -CHAPTER III. - -The Rivers of Spain--Bridges--Navigation--The Ebro and Tagus.....23 - - -CHAPTER IV. - -Divisions into Provinces--Ancient Demarcations--Modern -Departments--Population--Revenue--Spanish Stocks.....30 - - -CHAPTER V. - -Travelling in Spain--Steamers--Roads, Roman, Monastic, and Royal--Modern -Railways--English Speculations.....40 - - -CHAPTER VI. - -Post Office in Spain--Travelling with Post Horses--Riding post--Mails -and Diligences, Galeras, Coches de Colleras, Drivers and Manner of -Driving, and Oaths.....53 - - -CHAPTER VII. - -Spanish Horses--Mules--Asses--Muleteers--Maragatos.....65 - - -CHAPTER VIII. - -Riding Tour in Spain--Pleasures of it--Pedestrian Tour--Choice of -Companions--Rules for a Riding Tour--Season of Year--Day’s -Journey--Management of Horse; his Feet; Shoes; General Hints.....80 - - -CHAPTER IX. - -The Rider’s Costume--Alforjas: Their contents--The Bota, and How to use -it--Pig Skins and Borracha--Spanish Money--Onzas and smaller -Coins.....94 - - -CHAPTER X. - -Spanish Servants: their Character--Travelling Groom, Cook, and -Valet.....105 - - -CHAPTER XI. - -A Spanish Cook--Philosophy of Spanish Cuisine--Sauce--Difficulty of -Commissariat--The Provend--Spanish Hares and Rabbits--The -Olla--Garbanzos--Spanish Pigs--Bacon and Hams--Omelette--Salad and -Gazpacho.....119 - - -CHAPTER XII. - -Drinks of Spain--Water--Irrigation--Fountains--Spanish Thirstiness--The -Alcarraza--Water Carriers--Ablutions--Spanish Chocolate--Agraz--Beer -Lemonade.....136 - - -CHAPTER XIII. - -Spanish Wines--Spanish Indifference--Wine-making--Vins du Pays--Local -Wines--Benicarló--Valdepeñas.....145 - - -CHAPTER XIV. - -Sherry Wines--The Sherry District--Origin of the Name--Varieties of -Soil--Of Grapes--Pajarete--Rojas Clemente--Cultivation of Vines--Best -Vineyards--The Vintage--Amontillado--The Capataz--The Bodega--Sherry -Wine--Arrope and Madre Vino--A Lecture on Sherry in the Cellar--at the -Table--Price of Fine Sherry--Falsification of Sherry--Manzanilla--The -Alpistera.....150 - -CHAPTER XV. - -Spanish Inns: Why so Indifferent--The Fonda--Modern Improvements--The -Posada--Spanish Innkeepers--The Venta: Arrival in -it--Arrangement--Garlic--Dinner--Evening--Night--Bill--Identity with the -Inns of the Ancients.....165 - - -CHAPTER XVI. - -Spanish Robbers--A Robber Adventure--Guardias Civiles--Exaggerated -Accounts--Cross of the Murdered--Idle Robber Tales--French -Bandittiphobia--Robber History--Guerrilleros--Smugglers--Jose -Maria--Robbers of the First Class--The Ratero--Miguelites--Escorts and -Escopeteros--Passes, Protections, and Talismans--Execution of a -Robber.....186 - - -CHAPTER XVII. - -The Spanish Doctor: His Social Position--Medical -Abuses--Hospitals--Medical Education--Lunatic Asylums--Foundling -Hospital of Seville--Medical Pretensions--Dissection--Family -Physician--Consultations--Medical -Costume--Prescriptions--Druggists--Snake Broth--Salve for -Knife-cuts.....213 - - -CHAPTER XVIII. - -Spanish Spiritual Remedies for the Body--Miraculous Relics--Sanative -Oils--Philosophy of Relic Remedies--Midwifery and the Cinta of -Tortosa--Bull of Crusade.....236 - - -CHAPTER XIX. - -The Spanish Figaro--Mustachios--Whiskers--Beards--Bleeding--Heraldic -Blood--Blue, Red, and Black Blood--Figaro’s Shop--The Baratero--Shaving -and Toothdrawing.....255 - - -CHAPTER XX. - -What to observe in Spain--How to observe--Spanish Incuriousness and -Suspicions--French Spies and Plunderers--Sketching in -Spain--Difficulties; How Surmounted--Efficacy of Passports and -Bribes--Uncertainty and Want of Information in the Natives.....265 - -CHAPTER XXI. - -Origin of Bull-fight or Festival, and its Religious Character--Fiestas -Reales--Royal Feasts--Charles I. at one--Discontinuance of the Old -System--Sham Bull-fights--Plaza de Toros--Slang Language--Spanish -Bulls--Breeds--The Going to a Bull-fight.....286 - - -CHAPTER XXII. - -The Bull-fight--Opening of Spectacle--First Act, and Appearance of the -Bull--The Picador--Bull Bastinado--The Horses, and their Cruel -Treatment--Fire and Dogs--The Second Act--The Chulos and their -Darts--The Third Act--The Matador--Death of the Bull--The Conclusion, -and Philosophy of the Amusement--Its Effect on Ladies.....300 - - -CHAPTER XXIII. - -Spanish Theatre; Old and Modern Drama; Arrangement of Play-houses--The -Henroost--The Fandango; National Dances--A Gipsy Ball--Italian -Opera--National Songs and Guitars.....318 - - -CHAPTER XXIV. - -Manufacture of Cigars--Tobacco--Smuggling _viâ_ Gibraltar--Cigars of -Ferdinand VII.--Making a Cigarrito--Zumalacarreguy and the -Schoolmaster--Time and Money wasted in Smoking--Postscript on Spanish -Stock.....335 - - - - -GATHERINGS FROM SPAIN. - - - - -CHAPTER I. - - A general view of Spain--Isolation--King of the Spains--Castilian - precedence--Localism--Want of Union--Admiration of Spain--M. Thiers - in Spain. - - -[Sidenote: KING OF THE SPAINS.] - -[Sidenote: LOCALISM OF SPANIARDS.] - -The kingdom of Spain, which looks so compact on the map, is composed of -many distinct provinces, each of which in earlier times formed a -separate and independent kingdom; and although all are now united under -one crown by marriage, inheritance, conquest, and other circumstances, -the original distinctions, geographical as well as social, remain almost -unaltered. The language, costume, habits, and local character of the -natives, vary no less than the climate and productions of the soil. The -chains of mountains which intersect the whole peninsula, and the deep -rivers which separate portions of it, have, for many years, operated as -so many walls and moats, by cutting off intercommunication, and by -fostering that tendency to isolation which must exist in all hilly -countries, where good roads and bridges do not abound. As similar -circumstances led the people of ancient Greece to split into small -principalities, tribes and clans, so in Spain, man, following the -example of the nature by which he is surrounded, has little in common -with the inhabitant of the adjoining district; and these differences are -increased and perpetuated by the ancient jealousies and inveterate -dislikes, which petty and contiguous states keep up with such tenacious -memory. The general comprehensive term “Spain,” which is convenient for -geographers and politicians, is calculated to mislead the traveller, for -it would be far from easy to predicate any single thing of Spain or -Spaniards which will be equally applicable to all its heterogeneous -component parts. The north-western provinces are more rainy than -Devonshire, while the centre plains are more calcined than those of the -deserts of Arabia, and the littoral south or eastern coasts altogether -Algerian. The rude agricultural Gallician, the industrious manufacturing -artisan of Barcelona, the gay and voluptuous Andalucian, the sly -vindictive Valencian, are as essentially different from each other as so -many distinct characters at the same masquerade. It will therefore be -more convenient to the traveller to take each province by itself and -treat it in detail, keeping on the look-out for those peculiarities, -those social and natural characteristics or idiosyncracies which -particularly belong to each division, and distinguish it from its -neighbours. The Spaniards who have written on their own geography and -statistics, and who ought to be supposed to understand their own country -and institutions the best, have found it advisable to adopt this -arrangement from feeling the utter impossibility of treating Spain -(where union is not unity) as a whole. There is no king of _Spain_: -among the infinity of kingdoms, the list of which swells out the royal -style, that of “Spain” is not found; he is King of the Spains, Rex -Hispaniarum, _Rey de las Españas_, not “_Rey de España_.” Philip II., -called by his countrymen _el prudente_, the prudent, wishing to fuse -down his heterogeneous subjects, was desirous after his conquest of -Portugal, which consolidated his dominion, to call himself King of -Spain, which he then really was; but this alteration of title was beyond -the power of even his despotism; such was the opposition of the kingdoms -of Arragon and Navarre, which never gave up the hopes of shaking off the -yoke of Castile, and recovering their former independence, while the -empire provinces of New and Old Castile refused in anywise to compromise -their claims of pre-eminence. They from early times, as now, took the -lead in national nomenclature; hence “_Castellano_,” Castilian, is -synonymous with Spaniard, and particularly with the proud genuine older -stock. “_Castellano á las derechas_,” means a Spaniard to the backbone; -“_Hablar Castellano_,” to speak Castilian, is the correct expression for -speaking the Spanish language. Spain again was long without the -advantage of a fixed metropolis, like Rome, Paris, or London, which have -been capitals from their foundation, and recognized and submitted to as -such; here, the cities of Leon, Burgos, Toledo, Seville, Valladolid, -and others, have each in their turns been the capitals of the kingdom. -This constant change and short-lived pre-eminence has weakened any -prescriptive superiority of one city over another, and has been a cause -of national weakness by raising up rivalries and disputes about -precedence, which is one of the most fertile sources of dissension among -a punctilious people. In fact the king was the state, and wherever he -fixed his head-quarters was the court, _La Corte_, a word still -synonymous with Madrid, which now claims to be the only residence of the -Sovereign--the residenz, as Germans would say; otherwise, when compared -with the cities above mentioned, it is a modern place; from not having a -bishop or cathedral, of which latter some older cities possess two, it -has not even the rank of a _ciudad_, or city, but is merely denominated -_villa_, or town. In moments of national danger it exercises little -influence over the Peninsula: at the same time, from being the seat of -the court and government, and therefore the centre of patronage and -fashion, it attracts from all parts those who wish to make their -fortune; yet the capital has a hold on the ambition rather than on the -affections of the nation at large. The inhabitants of the different -provinces think, indeed, that Madrid is the greatest and richest court -in the world, but their hearts are in their native localities. “_Mi -paisano_,” my fellow-countryman, or rather my fellow-county-man, -fellow-parishioner, does not mean Spaniard, but Andalucian, Catalonian, -as the case may be. When a Spaniard is asked, Where do you come from? -the reply is, “_Soy hijo de Murcia--hijo de Granada_,” “I am a son of -Murcia--a son of Granada,” &c. This is strictly analogous to the -“Children of Israel,” the “Beni” of the Spanish Moors, and to this day -the Arabs of Cairo call themselves _children_ of that town, “_Ibn el -Musr_,” &c.; and just as the Milesian Irishman is “a _boy_ from -Tipperary,” &c., and ready to fight with any one who is so also, against -all who are not of that ilk; similar too is the clanship of the -Highlander; indeed, everywhere, not perhaps to the same extent as in -Spain, the being of the same province or town creates a powerful -freemasonry; the parties cling together like old school-fellows. It is a -_home_ and really binding feeling. To the spot of their birth all their -recollections, comparisons, and eulogies are turned; nothing to them -comes up to their particular province, that is, their real country. “_La -Patria_,” meaning Spain at large, is a subject of declamation, fine -words, _palabras_--palaver, in which all, like Orientals, delight to -indulge, and to which their grandiloquent idiom lends itself readily; -but their patriotism is parochial, and self is the centre of Spanish -gravity. Like the German, they may sing and spout about _Fatherland_: in -both cases the theory is splendid, but in practice each Spaniard thinks -his own province or town the best in the Peninsula, and himself the -finest fellow in it. From the earliest period down to the present all -observers have been struck with this _localism_ as a salient feature in -the character of the Iberians, who never would amalgamate, never would, -as Strabo said, put their shields together--never would sacrifice their -own local private interest for the general good; on the contrary, in the -hour of need they had, as at present, a constant tendency to separate -into distinct _juntas_, “_collective_” assemblies, each of which only -thought of its own views, utterly indifferent to the injury thereby -occasioned to what ought to have been the common cause of all. Common -danger and interest scarcely can keep them together, the tendency of -each being rather to repel than to attract the other: the common enemy -once removed, they instantly fall to loggerheads among each other, -especially if there be any spoil to be divided: scarcely ever, as in the -East, can the energy of one individual bind the loose staves by the iron -power of a master mind; remove the band, and the centrifugal members -instantaneously disunite. Thus the virility and vitality of the noble -people have been neutralised: they have, indeed, strong limbs and honest -hearts; but, as in the Oriental parable, “a head” is wanting to direct -and govern: hence Spain is to-day, as it always has been, a bundle of -small bodies tied together by a rope of sand, and, being without union, -is also without strength, and has been beaten in detail. The much-used -phrase _Españolismo_ expresses rather a “dislike of foreign dictation,” -and the “self-estimation” of Spaniards, _Españoles sobre todos_, than -any real patriotic love of country, however highly they rate its -excellences and superiority to every other one under heaven: this -opinion is condensed in one of those pithy proverbs which, nowhere more -than in Spain, are the exponents of popular sentiment: it runs -thus,--“_Quien dice España, dice todo_,” which means, “Whoever says -Spain, says everything.” A foreigner may perhaps think this a trifle too -comprehensive and exclusive; but he will do well to express no doubts on -the subject, since he will only be set down by every native as either -jealous, envious, or ignorant, and probably all three. - -[Sidenote: DISUNION OF SPANIARDS.] - -[Sidenote: ADMIRATION OF SPAIN.] - -[Sidenote: M. THIERS IN SPAIN.] - -To boast of Spain’s strength, said the Duke of Wellington, is the -national weakness. Every infinitesimal particle which constitutes -_nosotros_, or ourselves, as Spaniards term themselves, will talk of his -country as if the armies were still led to victory by the mighty Charles -V., or the councils managed by Philip II. instead of Louis-Philippe. -Fortunate, indeed, was it, according to a Castilian preacher, that the -Pyrenees concealed Spain when the Wicked One tempted the Son of Man by -an offer of all the kingdoms of the world, and the glory of them. This, -indeed, was predicated in the mediæval or dark ages, but few peninsular -congregations, even in these enlightened times, would dispute the -inference. It was but the other day that a foreigner was relating in a -_tertulia_, or conversazione of Madrid, the well-known anecdote of -Adam’s revisit to the earth. The narrator explained how our first father -on lighting in Italy was perplexed and taken aback; how, on crossing the -Alps into Germany, he found nothing that he could understand--how -matters got darker and stranger at Paris, until on his reaching England -he was altogether lost, confounded, and abroad, being unable to make out -any thing. Spain was his next point, where, to his infinite -satisfaction, he found himself quite at home, so little had things -changed since his absence, or indeed since the sun at its creation first -shone over Toledo. The story concluded, a distinguished Spaniard, who -was present, hurt perhaps at the somewhat protestant-dissenting tone of -the speaker, gravely remarked, the rest of the party coinciding,--_Si, -Señor, y tenia razon; la España es Paradiso_--“Adam, Sir, was right, for -Spain is paradise;” and in many respects this worthy, zealous gentleman -was not wrong, although it is affirmed by some of his countrymen that -some portions of it are inhabited by persons not totally exempt from -original sin; thus the Valencians will say of their ravishing _huerta_, -or garden, _Es un paradiso habitado por demonios_,--“It is an Eden -peopled by subjects of his Satanic Majesty.” Again, according to the -natives, Murcia, a land overflowing with milk and honey, where Flora and -Pomona dispute the prize with Ceres and Bacchus, possesses a _cielo y -suelo bueno, el entresuelo malo_, has “a sky and soil that are good, -while all between is indifferent;” which the _entresol_ occupant must -settle to his liking. - -Another little anecdote, like a straw thrown up in the air, will point -out the direction in which the wind blows. Monsieur Thiers, the great -historical romance writer, in his recent hand-gallop tour through the -Peninsula, passed a few days only at Madrid; his mind being, as -logicians would say, of a _subjective_ rather than an _objective_ turn, -that is, disposed rather to the consideration of the _ego_, and to -things relating to self, than to those that do not, he scarcely looked -more at any thing there, than he did during his similar run through -London: “Behold,” said the Spaniards, “that little _gabacho_; he dares -not remain, nor raise his eyes from the ground in this land, whose vast -superiority wounds his personal and national vanity.” There is nothing -new in this. The old Castilian has an older saying:--_Si Dios no fuese -Dios, seria rey de las Españas, y el de Francia su cocinero_--“If God -were not God, he would make himself king of the Spains, with him of -France for his cook.” Lope de Vega, without derogating one jot from -these paradisiacal pretensions, used him of England better. His sonnet -on the romantic trip to Madrid ran thus:-- - - “Carlos Stuardo soy, - Que siendo amor mi guia, - Al _cielo de España_ voy, - Por ver mi estrella Maria.” - -“I am Charles Stuart, who, with love for my guide, hasten to the heaven -Spain to see my star Mary.” The Virgin, it must be remembered, after -whom this infanta was named, is held by every Spaniard to be the -brightest luminary, and the sole empress of heaven. - -[Sidenote: GEOGRAPHY OF SPAIN.] - - - - -CHAPTER II. - - The Geography of Spain--Zones--Mountains--The Pyrenees--The - Gabacho, and French Politics. - - -From Spain being the most southern country in Europe, it is very natural -that those who have never been there, and who in England criticise those -who have, should imagine the climate to be even more delicious than that -of Italy or Greece. This is far from being the fact; some, indeed, of -the sea coasts and sheltered plains in the S. and E. provinces are warm -in winter, and exposed to an almost African sun in summer, but the N. -and W. districts are damp and rainy for the greater part of the year, -while the interior is either cold and cheerless, or sunburnt and -wind-blown: winters have occurred at Madrid of such severity that -sentinels have been frozen to death; and frequently all communication is -suspended by the depth of the snow in the elevated roads over the -mountain passes of the Castiles. All, therefore, who are about to travel -through the Peninsula, are particularly cautioned to consider well their -line of route beforehand, and to select certain portions to be visited -at certain seasons, and thus avoid every local disadvantage. - -[Sidenote: GENERAL VIEW OF SPAIN.] - -One glance at a map of Europe will convey a clearer notion of the -relative position of Spain in regard to other countries than pages of -letter-press: this is an advantage which every schoolboy possesses over -the Plinys and Strabos of antiquity; the ancients were content to -compare the shape of the Peninsula to that of a bull’s hide, nor was the -comparison ill chosen in some respects. We will not weary readers with -details of latitude and longitude, but just mention that the whole -superficies of the Peninsula, including Portugal, contains upwards of -19,000 square leagues, of which somewhat more than 15,500 belong to -Spain; it is thus almost twice as large as the British Islands, and only -one-tenth smaller than France; the circumference or coast-line is -estimated at 750 leagues. This compact and isolated territory, inhabited -by a fine, hardy, warlike population, ought, therefore, to have rivalled -France in military power, while its position between those two great -seas which command the commerce of the old and new world, its indented -line of coast, abounding in bays and harbours, offered every advantage -of vying with England in maritime enterprise. - -Nature has provided commensurate outlets for the infinite productions of -a country which is rich alike in everything that is to be found either -on the face or in the bowels of the earth; for the mines and quarries -abound with precious metals and marbles, from gold to iron, from the -agate to coal, while a fertile soil and every possible variety of -climate admit of unlimited cultivation of the natural productions of the -temperate or tropical zones: thus in the province of Granada the -sugar-cane and cotton-tree luxuriate at the base of ranges which are -covered with eternal snow: a wide range is thus afforded to the -botanist, who may ascend by zones, through every variety of vegetable -strata, from the hothouse plant growing wild, to the hardiest lichen. It -has, indeed, required the utmost ingenuity and bad government of man to -neutralise the prodigality of advantages which Providence has lavished -on this highly favoured land, and which, while under the dominion of the -Romans and Moors, resembled an Eden, a garden of plenty and delight, -when in the words of an old author, there was nothing idle, nothing -barren in Spain--“nihil otiosum, nihil sterile in Híspaniâ.” A sad -change has come over this fair vision, and now the bulk of the Peninsula -offers a picture of neglect and desolation, moral and physical, which it -is painful to contemplate: the face of nature and the mind of man have -too often been dwarfed and curtailed of their fair proportions; they -have either been neglected and their inherent fertility allowed to run -into vice and luxuriant weeds, which it will show against any country in -the world, or their energies have been misdirected, and a capability of -all good converted into an element equally powerful for evil; but pride -and laziness are here as everywhere the keys to poverty, _altivez y -pereza, llaves de pobreza_. - -[Sidenote: CLIMATE AND ELEVATION OF SPAIN.] - -The geological construction of Spain is very peculiar, and unlike that -of most other countries; it is almost one mountain or agglomeration of -mountains, as those of our countrymen who are speculating in Spanish -railroads are just beginning to discover. The interior rises on every -side from the sea, and the central portions are higher than any other -table-lands in Europe, ranging on an average from two to three thousand -feet above the level of the sea, while from this elevated plain chains -of mountains rise again to a still greater height. Madrid, which stands -on this central plateau, is situated about 2000 feet above the level of -Naples, which lies in the same latitude; the mean temperature of Madrid -is 59°, while that of Naples is 63° 30´; it is to this difference of -elevation that the extraordinary difference of climate and vegetable -productions between the two capitals is to be ascribed. Fruits which -flourish on the coasts of Provence and Genoa, which lie four degrees -more to the north than any portion of Spain, are rarely to be met with -in the elevated interior of the Peninsula: on the other hand, the low -and sunny maritime belts abound with productions of a tropical -vegetation. The mountainous character and general aspect of the coast -are nearly analogous throughout the circuit which extends from the -Basque Provinces to Cape Finisterre; and offer a remarkable contrast to -those sunny alluvial plains which extend, more or less, from Cadiz to -Barcelona, and which closely resemble each other in vegetable -productions, such as the fig, orange, pomegranate, aloe, and carob tree, -which grow everywhere in profusion, except in those parts where the -mountains come down abruptly into the sea itself. Again, the central -districts, composed of vast plains and steppes, _Parameras, Tierras de -campo, y Secanos_, closely resemble each other in their monotonous -denuded aspect, in their scarcity of fruit and timber, and their -abundance of cereal productions. - -[Sidenote: ZONES OF SPAIN.] - -Spanish geographers have divided the Peninsula into seven distinct -chains of mountains. These commence with the Pyrenees and end with the -Bætican or Andalucian ranges: these _cordilleras_, or lines of lofty -ridges, arise on each side of intervening plains, which once formed the -basins of internal lakes, until the accumulated waters, by bursting -through the obstructions by which they were dammed up, found a passage -to the ocean: the dip or inclination of the country lies from the east -towards the west, and, accordingly, the chief rivers which form the -drains and principal water-sheds of the greater parts of the surface, -flow into the Atlantic: their courses, like the basins through which -they pass, lie in a transversal and almost a parallel direction; thus -the Duero, the Tagus, the Guadiana, and the Guadalquivir, all flow into -their recipient between their distinct chains of mountains. The sources -of the supply to these leading arteries arise in the longitudinal range -of elevations which descends all through the Peninsula, approaching -rather to the eastern than to the western coast, whereby a considerably -greater length is obtained by each of these four rivers, when compared -to the Ebro, which disembogues in the Mediterranean. - -The Moorish geographer Alrasi was the first to take difference of -climate as the rule of dividing the Peninsula into distinct portions; -and modern authorities, carrying out this idea, have drawn an imaginary -line, which runs north-east to south-west, thus separating the Peninsula -into the northern, or the boreal and temperate, and the southern or the -torrid, and subdividing these two into four zones: nor is this division -altogether fanciful, for there is no caprice or mistake in tests derived -from the vegetable world; manners may make man, but the sun alone -modifies the plant: man may be fused down by social appliances into one -uniform mass, but the rude elements are not to be civilized, nor can -nature be made cosmopolitan, which heaven forfend. - -[Sidenote: ZONES OF SPAIN.] - -_The first or northern zone_ is the _Cantabrian_, the European; this -portion skirts the base of the Pyrenees, and includes portions of -Catalonia, Arragon, and Navarre, the Basque provinces, the Asturias, and -Gallicia. This is the region of humidity, and as the winters are long, -and the springs and autumns rainy, it should only be visited in the -summer. It is a country of hill and dale, is intersected by numerous -streams which abound in fish, and which irrigate rich meadows for -pastures. The valleys form the now improving dairy country of Spain, -while the mountains furnish the most valuable and available timber of -the Peninsula. In some parts corn will scarcely ripen, while in others, -in addition to the cerealia, cider and an ordinary wine are produced. It -is inhabited by a hardy, independent, and rarely subdued population, -since the mountainous country offers natural means of defence to brave -highlanders. It is useless to attempt the conquest with a small army, -while a large one would find no means of support in the hungry -localities. - -_The second zone_ is the Iberian or eastern, which, in its maritime -portions, is more Asiatic than European, and where the lower classes -partake of the Greek and Carthaginian character, being false, cruel, and -treacherous, yet lively, ingenious, and fond of pleasure: this portion -commences at Burgos, and includes the southern portion of Catalonia and -Arragon, with parts of Castile, Valencia, and Murcia. The sea-coasts -should be visited in the spring and autumn, when they are delicious; but -they are intensely hot in the summer, and infested with myriads of -muskitoes. The districts about Burgos are among the coldest in Spain, -and the thermometer sinks very much below the ordinary average of our -more temperate climate; and as they have little at any time to attract -the traveller, he will do well to avoid them except during the summer -months. The population is grave, sober, and Castilian. The elevation is -very considerable; thus the upper valley of the Miño and some of the -north-western portions of Old Castile and Leon are placed more than 6000 -feet above the level of the sea, and the frosts often last for three -months at a time. - -[Sidenote: GENERAL DROUGHT OF SPAIN.] - -_The third zone_ is the Lusitanian, or western, which is by far the -largest, and includes the central parts of Spain and all Portugal. The -interior of this portion, and especially the provinces of the two -Castiles and La Mancha, both in the physical condition of the soil and -the moral qualities of the inhabitants, presents a very unfavourable -view of the Peninsula, as these inland steppes are burnt up by summer -suns, and are tempest and wind-rent during winter. The general absence -of trees, hedges, and enclosures exposes these wide unprotected plains -to the rage and violence of the elements: poverty-stricken mud houses, -scattered here and there in the desolate extent, afford a wretched home -to a poor, proud, and ignorant population; but these localities, which -offer in themselves neither pleasure nor profit to the stranger, contain -many sites and cities of the highest interest, which none who wish to -understand Spain can possibly pass by unnoticed. The best periods for -visiting this portion of Spain are May and June, or September and -October. - -The more western districts of this Lusitanian zone are not so -disagreeable. There in the uplands the ilex and chesnut abound, while -the rich plains produce vast harvests of corn, and the vineyards -powerful red wines. The central table-land, which closely resembles the -plateau of Mexico, forms nearly one-half of the entire area of the -Peninsula. The peculiarity of the climate is its dryness; it is not, -however, unhealthy, being free from the agues and fevers which are -prevalent in the lower plains, river-swamps, and rice-grounds of parts -of Valencia and Andalucia. Rain, indeed, is so comparatively scarce on -this table-land, that the annual quantity on an average does not amount -to more than ten inches. The least quantity falls in the mountain -regions near Guadalupe, and on the high plains of Cuenca and Murcia, -where sometimes eight or nine months pass without a drop falling. The -occasional thunder-storms do but just lay the dust, since here moisture -dries up quicker even than woman’s tears. The face of the earth is -tanned, tawny, and baked into a veritable terra cotta: everything seems -dead and burnt on a funeral pile. It is all but a miracle how the -principle of life in the green herb is preserved, since the very grass -appears scorched and dead; yet when once the rains set in, vegetation -springs up, phœnix-like, from the ashes, and bursts forth in an -inconceivable luxuriance and life. The ripe seeds which have fallen on -the soil are called into existence, carpeting the desert with verdure, -gladdening the eye with flowers, and intoxicating the senses with -perfume. The thirsty chinky dry earth drinks in these genial showers, -and then rising like a giant refreshed with wine, puts forth all its -strength; and what vegetation is, where moisture is combined with great -heat, cannot even be guessed at in lands of stinted suns. The periods of -rains are the winter and spring, and when these are plentiful, all kinds -of grain, and in many places wines, are produced in abundance. The -olive, however, is only to be met with in a few favoured localities. - -[Sidenote: GEOGRAPHY OF SPAIN.] - -_The fourth zone_ is the Bætican, which is the most southern and -African; it coasts the Mediterranean, basking at the foot of the -mountains which rise behind and form the mass of the Peninsula: this -mural barrier offers a sure protection against the cold winds which -sweep across the central region. Nothing can be more striking than the -descent from the table elevations into these maritime strips; in a few -hours the face of nature is completely changed, and the traveller passes -from the climate and vegetation of Europe into that of Africa. This -region is characterised by a dry burning atmosphere during a large part -of the year. The winters are short and temperate, and consist rather in -rain than in cold, for in the sunny valleys ice is scarcely known except -for eating; the springs and autumns delightful beyond all conception. -Much of the cultivation depends on artificial irrigation, which was -carried by the Moors to the highest perfection: indeed water, under this -forcing, vivifying sun, is the blood of the earth, and synonymous with -fertility: the productions are tropical; sugar, cotton, rice, the -orange, lemon, and date. The _algarrobo_, the carob tree, and the -_adelfa_, the oleander, may be considered as forming boundary marks -between this the _tierra caliente_, or torrid district, and the colder -regions by which it is encompassed. - -Such are the geographical divisions of nature with which the vegetable -and animal productions are closely connected; and we shall presently -enter somewhat more fully into the _climate_ of Spain, of which the -natives are as proud as if they had made it themselves. This Bætican -zone, Andalucia, which contains in itself many of the most interesting -cities, sites, and natural beauties of the Peninsula, will always take -precedence in any plan of the traveller, and each of these points has -its own peculiar attractions. These embrace a wide range of varied -scenery and objects; and Andalucia, easy of access, may be gone over -almost at every portion of the year. The winters may be spent at Cadiz, -Seville, or Malaga; the summers in the cool mountains of Ronda, Aracena, -or Granada. April, May, and June, or September, October, and November, -are, however, the most preferable. Those who go in the spring should -reserve June for the mountains; those who go in the autumn should -reverse the plan, and commence with Ronda and Granada, ending with -Seville and Cadiz. - -[Sidenote: SPANISH MOUNTAINS.] - -Spain, it has thus been shown, is one mountain, or rather a jumble of -mountains,--for the principal and secondary ranges are all more or less -connected with each other, and descend in a serpentising direction -throughout the Peninsula, with a general inclination to the west. -Nature, by thus dislocating the country, seems to have suggested, nay, -almost to have forced, localism and isolation to the inhabitants, who -each in their valleys and districts are shut off from their neighbours, -whom to love, they are enjoined in vain. - -The internal communication of the Peninsula, which is thus divided by -the mountain-walls, is effected by some good roads, few and far between, -and which are carried over the most convenient points, where the natural -dips are the lowest, and the ascents and descents the most practicable. -These passes are called _Puertos_--_portæ_, or gates. There are, indeed, -mule-tracks and goat-paths over other and intermediate portions of the -chain, but they are difficult and dangerous, and being seldom provided -with ventas or villages, are fitter for smugglers and bandits than -honest men: the farthest and fairest way about will always be found the -best and shortest road. - -The Spanish mountains in general have a dreary and harsh character, yet -not without a certain desolate sublimity: the highest are frequently -capped with snow, which glistens in the clear sky. They are rarely clad -with forest trees; the scarped and denuded ridges cut with a serrated -outline the clean clear blue sky. The granitic masses soar above the -green valley or yellow corn-plains in solitary state, like the castles -of a feudal baron, that lord it over all below, with which they are too -proud to have aught in common. These mountains are seen to greatest -advantage at the rise and setting of the sun, for during the day the -vertical rays destroy all form by removing shadows. - -[Sidenote: THE PYRENEES.] - -These geographical peculiarities of Spain, and particularly the -existence of the great central elevation, when once attained are apt to -be forgotten. The country rises from the coast, directly in the -north-western provinces, and in some of the southern and eastern, with -an intervening alluvial strip and swell: but when once the ascent is -accomplished, no _real_ descent ever takes place--we are then on the -summit of a vast elevated mass. The roads indeed _apparently_ ascend and -descend, but the mean height is seldom diminished: the interior hills or -plains are undulations of one mountain. The traveller is often deceived -at the apparent low level of snow-clad ranges, such as the Guadarrama; -this will be accounted for by adding the great elevation of their bases -above the level of the sea. The palace of the Escorial, which is placed -at the foot of the Guadarrama, and at the head of a seeming plain, -stands in reality at 2725 feet above Valencia, while the summer -residence of the king at _La Granja_, in the same chain, is thirty feet -higher than the summit of Vesuvius. This, indeed, is a castle in the -air--a château en Espagne, and worthy of the most German potentate to -whom that element belongs, as the sea does to Britannia. The mean -temperature on the plateau of Spain is as 15° Réaumur, while that of the -coast is as 18° and 19°, in addition to the protection from cutting -winds which their mountainous backgrounds afford; nor is the traveller -less deceived as regards the heights of the interior mountains than he -is with the champaigns, or table-land plains. The eye wanders over a -vast level extent bounded only by the horizon, or a faint blue line of -other distant sierras; this space, which appears one townless level, is -intersected with deep ravines, _barrancos_, in which villages lie -concealed, and streams, _arroyos_, flow unperceived. Another important -effect of this central elevation is the searching dryness and -rarefication of the air. It is often highly prejudicial to strangers; -the least exposure, which is very tempting under a burning sun, will -often bring on ophthalmia, irritable colics, and inflammatory diseases -of the lungs and vital organs. Such are the causes of the _pulmonia_, -which carries off the invalid in a few days, and is the disease of -Madrid. The frozen blasts descending from the snow-clad Guadarrama catch -the incautious passenger at the turning of streets which are roasting -under a fierce sun. Is it to be wondered at, that this capital should be -so very insalubrious? in winter you are frozen alive, in summer baked. A -man taking a walk for the benefit of his health, crosses with his pores -open from an oven to an ice-house; catch-cold introduces the Spanish -doctor, who soon in his turn presents the undertaker. - -[Sidenote: THE PYRENEES] - -As the Pyrenees possess an European interest at this moment when the -Napoleon of Peace proposes to annihilate their existence, which defied -Louis XIV. and Buonaparte, some details may be not unacceptable. This -gigantic barrier, which divides Spain and France, is connected with the -dorsal chain which comes down from Tartary and Asia. It stretches far -beyond the transversal spine, for the mountains of the Basque -Provinces, Asturias, and Gallicia, are its continuation. The Pyrenees, -properly speaking, extend E. to W., in length about 270 miles, being -both broadest and highest in the central portions, where the width is -about 60 miles, and the elevations exceed 11,000 feet. The spurs and -offsets of this great transversal spine penetrate on both sides into the -lateral valleys like ribs from a back-bone. The central nucleus slopes -gradually E. to the gentle Mediterranean, and W. to the fierce Atlantic, -in a long uneven swell. - -This range of mountains was called by the Romans _Montes_ and _Saltus -Pyrenei_, and by the Greeks Πυρηνη, probably from a local -Iberian word, but which they, as usual, catching at sound, not sense, -connected with their Πυρ, and then bolstered up their erroneous -derivation by a legend framed to fit the name, asserting that it either -alluded to _a fire_ through which certain precious metals were -discovered, or because the lofty summits were often struck with -lightning, and dislocated by the volcanos. According to the Iberians, -Hercules, when on his way to “lift” Geryon’s cattle, was hospitably -received by Bebryx, a petty ruler in these mountains; whereupon the -demigod got drunk, and ravished his host’s daughter _Pyrene_, who died -of grief, when Hercules, sad and sober, made the whole range re-echo -with her name; a legend which, like some others in Spain, requires -confirmation, for the Phœnicians called these ranges _Purani_, from -the forests, _Pura_ meaning wood in Hebrew. The Basques have, of course, -their etymology, some saying that the real root is _Biri_, an elevation, -while others prefer _Bierri enac_, the “two countries,” which, separated -by the range, were ruled by Tubal; but when Spaniards once begin with -Tubal, the best plan is to shut the book. - -[Sidenote: THE GABACHO.] - -The _Maledêta_ is the loftiest peak, although the _Pico del Mediodia_ -and the _Canigú_, because rising at once out of plains and therefore -having the greatest apparent altitudes, were long considered to be the -highest; but now these French usurpers are dethroned. Seen from a -distance, the range appears to be one mountain-ridge, with broken -pinnacles, but, in fact, it consists of two distinct lines, which are -parallel, but not continuous. The one which commences at the ocean is -the most forward, being at least 30 miles more in advance towards the -south than the corresponding line, which commences from the -Mediterranean. The centre is the point of dislocation, and here the -ramifications and reticulations are the most intricate, as it is the -key-stone of the system, which is buttressed up by _Las Tres Sorellas_, -the three sisters _Monte Perdido_, _Cylindro_, and _Marboré_. Here is -the source of the Garonne, _La Garona_; here the scenery is the -grandest, and the lateral valleys the longest and widest. The smaller -spurs enclose valleys, down each of which pours a stream: thus the Ebro, -Garona, and Bidasoa are fed from the mountain source. These tributaries -are generally called in France _Gaves_,[1] and in some parts on the -Spanish side _Gabas_; but _Gav_ signifies a “river,” and may be traced -in our _Avon_; and Humboldt derives it from the Basque _Gav_, a “hollow -or ravine;” cavus. The parting of these waters, or their flowing down -either N. or S., should naturally mark the line of division between -France and Spain: such, however, is not the case, as part of _Cerdaña_ -belongs to France, while _Aran_ belongs to Spain; thus each country -possesses a key in its neighbour’s territory. It is singular that this -obvious inconvenience should not have been remedied by some exchange -when the long-disputed boundary-question was settled between Charles IV. -and the French republic. - -[Sidenote: THE PYRENEES.] - -Most of the passes over this Alpine barrier are impracticable for -carriages, and remain much in the same state as in the time of the -Moors, who from them called the Pyrenean range _Albort_, from the Roman -_Portæ_, the ridge of “gates.” Many of the wild passes are only known to -the natives and smugglers, and are often impracticable from the snow; -while even in summer they are dangerous, being exposed to mists and the -hurricanes of mighty rushing winds. The two best carriageable lines of -inter-communication are placed at each extremity: that to the west -passes through Irun; that to the east through Figueras. - -The Spanish Pyrenees offer few attractions to the lovers of the fleshly -comforts of cities; but the scenery, sporting, geology, and botany are -truly Alpine, and will well repay those who can “rough it” considerably. -The contrast which the unfrequented Spanish side offers to the crowded -opposite one is great. In Spain the mountains themselves are less -abrupt, less covered with snow, while the numerous and much frequented -baths in the French Pyrenees have created roads, diligences, hotels, -tables-d’hôte, cooks, Ciceronis, donkeys, and so forth; for the Badauds -de Paris who babble about green fields and _des belles horreurs_, but -who seldom go beyond the immediate vicinity and hackneyed “lions.” A -want of good taste and real perception of the sublime and beautiful is -nowhere more striking, says Mr. Erskine Murray, than on the French side, -where mankind remains profoundly ignorant of the real beauties of the -Pyrenees, which have been chiefly explored by the English, who love -nature with all their heart and soul, who worship her alike in her -shyest retreats and in her wildest forms. Nevertheless, on the north -side many comforts and appliances for the tourist are to be had; nay, -invalids and ladies in search of the picturesque can ascend to the -_Brèche de Roland_. Once, however, cross the frontier, and a sudden -change comes over all facilities of locomotion. Stern is the first -welcome of the “hard land of Iberia,” scarce is the food for body or -mind, and deficient the accommodation for man or beast, and simply -because there is small demand for either. No Spaniard ever comes here -for pleasure; hence the localities are given up to the smuggler and -izard. - -[Sidenote: FRENCH POLICY.] - -The Oriental inæsthetic incuriousness for _things_, old stones, wild -scenery, &c., is increased by political reasons and fears. The -neighbour, from the time of the Celt down to to-day, has ever been the -coveter, ravager, and terror of Spain: her “knavish tricks,” fire and -rapine are too numerous to be blinked or written away, too atrocious to -be forgiven: to revenge becomes a sacred duty. However governments may -change, the policy of France is immutable. Perfidy, backed by violence, -“ruse doublée de force,” is the state maxim from Louis XIV. and -Buonaparte down to Louis-Philippe: the principle is the same, whether -the instrument employed be the sword or wedding ring. The weaker Spain -is thus linked in the embrace of her stronger neighbour, and has been -made alternately her dupe and victim, and degraded into becoming a mere -satellite, to be dragged along by fiery Mars. France has forced her to -share all her bad fortune, but never has permitted her to participate in -her success. Spain has been tied to the car of her defeats, but never -has been allowed to mount it in the day of triumph. Her friendship has -always tended to denationalise Spain, and by entailing the forced enmity -of England, has caused to her the loss of her navies and colonies in the -new world. - -“The Pyrenean boundary,” says the Duke of Wellington, “is the most -vulnerable frontier of France, probably the only vulnerable one;” -accordingly she has always endeavoured to dismantle the Spanish defences -and to foster insurrections and _pronunciamientos_ in Catalonia, for -Spain’s infirmity is her opportunity, and therefore the “sound policy” -of the rest of Europe is to see Spain strong, independent, and able to -hold her own Pyrenean key. - -[Sidenote: THE PYRENEES.] - -While France therefore has improved her means of approach and invasion, -Spain, to whom the past is prophetic of the future, has raised -obstacles, and has left her protecting barrier as broken and hungry as -when planned by her tutelar divinity. Nor are her highlanders more -practicable than their granite fastnesses. Here dwell the smuggler, the -rifle sportsman, and all who defy the law: here is bred the hardy -peasant, who, accustomed to scale mountains and fight wolves, becomes a -ready raw material for the _guerrilleros_, and none were ever more -formidable to Rome or France than those marshalled in these glens by -Sertorius and Mina. When the tocsin bell rings out, a hornet swarm of -armed men, the weed of the hills, starts up from every rock and brake. -The hatred of the Frenchman, which the Duke said formed “part of a -Spaniard’s nature,” seems to increase in intensity in proportion to -vicinity, for as they touch, so they fret and rub each other: here it -is the antipathy of an antithesis; the incompatibility of the saturnine -and slow, with the mercurial and rapid; of the proud, enduring, and -ascetic, against the vain, the fickle, and sensual; of the enemy of -innovation and change, to the lover of variety and novelty; and however -tyrants and tricksters may assert in the gilded galleries of Versailles -that _Il n’y a plus de Pyrénées_, this party-wall of Alps, this barrier -of snow and hurricane, does and will exist for ever: placed there by -Providence, as was said by the Gothic prelate Saint Isidore, they ever -have forbidden and ever will forbid the banns of an unnatural alliance, -as in the days of Silius Italicus: - - “Pyrene celsâ nimbosi verticis arce - Divisos Celtis laté prospectat Hiberos - Atque æterna tenet magnis _divortia_ terris.” - -If the eagle of Buonaparte could never build in the Arragonese Sierra, -the lily of the Bourbon assuredly will not take root in the Castilian -plain; so sings Ariosto: - - ---- “Che non lice - Che ’l giglio in quel terreno habbia radice!” - -[Sidenote: THE PYRENEES.] - -This inveterate condition either of pronounced hostility, or at best of -armed neutrality, has long rendered these localities disagreeable to the -man of the note-book. The rugged mountain frontiers consist of a series -of secluded districts, which constitute the entire world to the natives, -who seldom go beyond the natural walls by which they are bounded, except -to smuggle. This vocation is the curse of the country; it fosters a wild -reliance on self-defence, a habit of border foray and insurrection, -which seems as necessary to them as a moral excitement and combustible -element, as carbon and hydrogen are in their physical bodies. Their -habitual suspicion against prying foreigners, which is an Oriental and -Iberian instinct, converts a curious traveller into a spy or partisan. -Spanish authorities, who seldom do these things except on compulsion, -cannot understand the gratuitous braving of hardship and danger for its -own sake--the botanizing and geologizing, &c., of the nature and -adventure-loving English. The _impertinente curioso_ may possibly escape -observation in a Spanish city and crowd, but in these lonely hills it is -out of the question: he is the observed of all observers; and they, -from long smuggling and sporting habits, are always on the look-out, -and are keen-sighted as hawks, gipseys, and beasts of prey. Latterly -some who, by being placed immediately under the French boundary, have -seen the glitter of our tourists’ coin, have become more humanized, and -anxious to obtain a share in the profits of the season. - -[Sidenote: THE PYRENEES.] - -The geology and botany have yet to be properly investigated. In the -metal-pregnant Pyrenees rude forges of iron abound, but everything is -conducted on a small, unscientific scale, and probably after the -unchanged primitive Iberian system. Fuel is scarce, and transport of -ores on muleback expensive. The iron is at once inferior to the English -and much dearer: the tools and implements used on both sides of the -Pyrenees are at least a century behind ours; while absurd tariffs, which -prevent the importation of a cheaper and better article, retard -improvements in agriculture and manufactures, and perpetuate poverty and -ignorance among backward, half-civilised populations. The timber, -moreover, has suffered much from the usual neglect, waste, and -improvidence of the natives, who destroy more than they consume, and -never replant. The sporting in these lonely wild districts is excellent, -for where man seldom penetrates the feræ naturæ multiply: the bear is, -however, getting scarce, as a premium is placed on every head destroyed. -The grand object is the _Cabra Montanez_, or _Rupicapra_, German -Steinbock, the Bouquetin of the French, the Izard (_Ibex_, becco, bouc, -bock, buck). The fascination of this pursuit, like that of the Chamois -in Switzerland, leads to constant and even fatal accidents, as this shy -animal lurks in almost inaccessible localities, and must be stalked with -the nicest skill. The sporting on the north side is far inferior, as the -cooks of the table-d’hôtes have waged a _guerra al cuchillo_, a war to -the knife, and fork too, against even _les petits oiseaux_; but your -French _artiste_ persecutes even minnows, as all _sport_ and fair play -is scouted, and everything gives way for the pot. The Spaniards, less -mechanical and gastronomic, leave the feathered and finny tribes in -comparative peace. Accordingly the streams abound with trout, and those -which flow into the Atlantic with salmon. The lofty Pyrenees are not -only alembics of cool crystal streams, but contain, like the heart of -Sappho, sources of warm springs under a bosom of snow. The most -celebrated issue on the north side, or at least those which are the most -known and frequented, for the Spaniard is a small bather, and no great -drinker of medicinal waters. Accommodations at the baths on his side -scarcely exist, while even those in France are paltry when compared to -the spas of Germany, and dirty and indecent when contrasted with those -of England. The scenery is alpine, a jumble of mountain, precipice, -glacier, and forest, enlivened by the cataract or hurricane. The -natives, when not smugglers or _guerrilleros_, are rude, simple, and -pastoral: they are poor and picturesque, as people are who dwell in -mountains. _Plains_ which produce “bread stuffs” may be richer, but what -can a traveller or painter do with their monotonous commonplace? - -In these wild tracts the highlanders in summer lead their flocks up to -mountain huts and dwell with their cattle, struggling against poverty -and wild beasts, and endeavouring really to keep the wolf from the door: -their watch-dogs are magnificent; the sheep are under admirable -control--being, as it were, in the presence of the enemy, they know the -voice of their shepherds, or rather the peculiar whistle and cry: their -wool is largely smuggled into France, and when manufactured in the shape -of coarse cloth is then re-smuggled back again. - -[Sidenote: THE RIVERS OF SPAIN.] - - - - -CHAPTER III. - - The Rivers of Spain--Bridges--Navigation--The Ebro and Tagus. - - -[Sidenote: SPANISH RIVERS.] - -There are six great rivers in Spain,--the arteries which run between the -seven mountain chains, the vertebræ of the geological skeleton. These -water-sheds are each intersected in their extent by others on a minor -scale, by valleys and indentations, in each of which runs its own -stream. Thus the rains and melted snows are all collected in an infinity -of ramifications, and are carried by these tributary conduits into one -of the main trunks, which all, with the exception of the Ebro, empty -themselves into the Atlantic. The Duero and Tagus, unfortunately for -Spain, disembogue in Portugal, and thus become a portion of a foreign -dominion exactly where their commercial importance is the greatest. -Philip II. saw the true value of the possession of an angle which -rounded Spain, and insured to her the possession of these valuable -outlets of internal produce, and inlets for external commerce. Portugal -annexed to Spain gave more real power to his throne than the dominion of -entire continents across the Atlantic, and is the secret object of every -Spanish government’s ambition. The _Miño_, which is the shortest of -these rivers, runs through a bosom of fertility. The _Tajo_, Tagus, -which the fancy of poets has sanded with gold and embanked with roses, -tracks much of its dreary way through rocks and comparative barrenness. -The _Guadiana_ creeps through lonely Estremadura, infecting the low -plains with miasma. The _Guadalquivir_ eats out its deep banks amid the -sunny olive-clad regions of Andalucia, as the Ebro divides the levels of -Arragon. Spain abounds with brackish streams, _Salados_, and with -salt-mines, or saline deposits after the evaporation of the sea-waters; -indeed, the soil of the central portions is so strongly impregnated with -“villainous saltpetre,” that the small province of La Mancha alone could -furnish materials to blow up the world; the surface of these regions, -always arid, is every day becoming more so, from the singular antipathy -which the inhabitants of the interior have against trees. There is -nothing to check the power of rapid evaporation, no shelter to protect -or preserve moisture. The soil becomes more and more parched and dried -up, insomuch that in some parts it has almost ceased to be available for -cultivation: another serious evil, which arises from want of -plantations, is, that the slopes of hills are everywhere liable to -constant denudation of soil after heavy rain. There is nothing to break -the descent of the water; hence the naked, barren stone summits of many -of the sierras, which have been pared and peeled of every particle -capable of nourishing vegetation: they are skeletons where life is -extinct; not only is the soil thus lost, but the detritus washed down -either forms bars at the mouths of rivers, or chokes up and raises their -beds; they are thus rendered liable to overflow their banks, and convert -the adjoining plains into pestilential swamps. The supply of water, -which is afforded by periodical rains, and which ought to support the -reservoirs of rivers, is carried off at once in violent floods, rather -than in a gentle gradual disembocation. From its mountainous character -Spain has very few lakes, as the fall is too considerable to allow water -to accumulate; the exceptions which do exist might with greater -propriety be termed lochs--not that they are to be compared in size or -beauty to some of those in Scotland. The volume in the principal rivers -of Spain has diminished, and is diminishing; thus some which once were -navigable, are so no longer, while the artificial canals which were to -have been substituted remain unfinished: the progress of deterioration -advances, while little is done to counteract or amend what every year -must render more difficult and expensive, while the means of repair and -correction will diminish in equal proportion, from the poverty -occasioned by the evil, and by the fearful extent which it will be -allowed to attain. However, several grand water-companies have been -lately formed, who are to dig Artesian wells, finish canals, navigate -rivers with steamers, and _issue shares at a premium_, which will be -effected if nothing else is. - -[Sidenote: SPANISH BRIDGES.] - -The rivers which are really adapted to navigation are, however, only -those which are perpetually fed by those tributary streams that flow -down from mountains which are covered with snow all the year, and these -are not many. The majority of Spanish rivers are very scanty of water -during the summer time, and very rapid in their flow when filled by -rains or melting snow: during these periods they are impracticable for -boats. They are, moreover, much exhausted by being drained off, -_sangrado_--that is, bled, for the purposes of artificial irrigation; -thus, at Madrid and Valencia, the wide beds of the Manzanares and the -Turia are frequently dry as the sands of the seashore when the tide is -out. They seem only to be entitled to be called rivers by courtesy, -because they have so many and such splendid bridges; as numerous are the -jokes cut by the newly-arrived stranger, who advises the townsfolk to -sell one of them to purchase water, or compares their thirsting arches -to the rich man in torments, who prays for one drop; but a heavy rain in -the mountains soon shows the necessity for their strength and length, -for their wide and lofty arches, their buttress-like piers, which before -had appeared to be rather the freaks of architectural magnificence than -the works of public utility. Those who live in a comparatively level -country can scarcely form an idea of the rapidity and fearful -destruction of the river inundations in this land of mountains. The -deluge rolls forth in an avalanche, the rising water coming down tier -above tier like a flight of steps let loose. These tides carry -everything before them--scarring and gullying up the earth, tearing down -rocks, trees, and houses, and strewing far and wide the relics of ruin; -but the fierce fury is short-lived, and is spent in its own violence; -thus the traveller at Madrid, if he wishes to see its Thames, should run -down or take the ’bus as he can, when it rains, or the river will be -gone before he gets there. When the Spaniards, under those blockheads -Blake and Cuesta, lost the battle of _Rio Seco_, which gave Madrid to -Buonaparte, the French soldiers, in crossing the _dry river_ bed in -pursuit of the fugitives, exclaimed,--“Why Spanish rivers run away too!” - -[Sidenote: THE EBRO.] - -Many of these beds serve in remote districts, where highways and bridges -are thought to be superfluous luxuries, for the double purposes of a -river when there is water in them, and as a road when there is not. -Again, in this land of anomalies, some streams have no bridges, while -other bridges have no streams; the most remarkable of these _pontes -asinorum_ is at Coria, where the Alagon is crossed at an inconvenient, -and often dangerous ferry, while a noble bridge of five arches stands -high and dry in the meadows close by. This has arisen from the river -having quitted its old channel in some inundation; or, as Spaniards say, -_salido de su madre_, gone out from its mother, who does not seem to -know that it is out, or certainly does not care, since no steps have -ever been taken by the Corians to coax it back again under its old -arches; they call on Hercules to turn this Alpheus, and rely in the -meantime on their proverb, that all fickle, unfaithful rivers repent and -return to their legitimate beds after a thousand years, for nothing is -hurried in Spain, _Despues de anos mil, vuelve el rio a su cubil_. On -the fishing in these wandering streams we shall presently say something. - -The navigation of Spanish rivers is Oriental, classical, and imperfect; -the boats, barges, and bargemen carry one back beyond the mediæval ages, -and are better calculated for artistical than commercial purposes. The -“great river,” the Guadalquivir, which was navigable in the time of the -Romans as far as Cordova, is now scarcely practicable for -sailing-vessels of a moderate size even up to Seville. Passengers, -however, have facilities afforded them by the steamers which run -backwards and forwards between this capital and Cadiz; these -conveniences, it need not be said, were introduced from England, -although the first steamer that ever paddled in waters was of Spanish -invention, and was launched at Barcelona in 1543; but the Spanish -Chancellor of the Exchequer of the time was a poor red tapist, and -opposed the whole thing, which, as usual, fell to the ground. The -steamers on the Guadalquivir are safe; indeed, in our times, the -advertisements always stated that a mass was said before starting in the -heretical contrivance, just as to this day Birmingham locomotives, when -a railway is first opened in France, are sprinkled with holy water, and -blessed by a bishop, which may be a new “wrinkle” to Mr. Hudson and the -primate of York. - -[Sidenote: THE TAGUS.] - -There is considerable talk in Arragon about rendering the Ebro -navigable, and it has been surveyed this year by two engineers--English -of course. The local newspapers compared the astonishment of the herns -and peasantry, created on the banks by this arrival, as second only to -that occasioned when Don Quixote and Sancho ventured near the same spot -into the enchanted bark. - -There has been still older and greater talk about establishing a water -communication between Lisbon and Toledo, by means of the Tagus. This -mighty river, which is in every body’s mouth, because the capital of the -kingdom of Port wine is placed at its embouchure, is in fact almost as -little known in Spain and out of it, as the Niger. It has been our fate -to behold it in many places and various phases of its most poetical and -picturesque course--first green and arrowy amid the yellow corn fields -of New Castile; then freshening the sweet Tempe of Aranjuez, clothing -the gardens with verdure, and filling the nightingale-tenanted glens -with groves; then boiling and rushing around the granite ravines of -rock-built Toledo, hurrying to escape from the cold shadows of its deep -prison, and dashing joyously into light and liberty, to wander far away -into silent plains, and on to Talavera, where its waters were dyed with -brave blood, and gladly reflected the flash of the victorious bayonets -of England,--triumphantly it rolls thence, under the shattered arches of -Almaraz, down to desolate Estremadura, in a stream as tranquil as the -azure sky by which it is curtained, yet powerful enough to force the -mountains at Alcantara. There the bridge of Trajan is worth going a -hundred miles to see; it stems the now fierce condensed stream, and ties -the rocky gorges together; grand, simple, and solid, tinted by the -tender colours of seventeen centuries, it looms like the grey skeleton -of Roman power, with all the sentiment of loneliness, magnitude, and the -interest of the past and present. Such are the glorious scenes we have -beheld and sketched; such are the sweet waters in which we have -refreshed our dusty and weary limbs. - -[Sidenote: THE TAGUS.] - -How stern, solemn, and striking is this Tagus of Spain! No commerce has -ever made it its highway--no English steamer has ever civilized its -waters like those of France and Germany. Its rocks have witnessed -battles, not peace; have reflected castles and dungeons, not quays or -warehouses: few cities have risen on its banks, as on those of the -Thames and Rhine; it is truly a river of Spain--that isolated and -solitary land. Its waters are without boats, its banks without life; man -has never laid his hand upon its billows, nor enslaved their free and -independent gambols. - -It is impossible to read Tom Campbell’s admirable description of the -Danube before its poetry was discharged by the smoke of our ubiquitous -countrymen’s Dampf Schiff, without applying his lines to this -uncivilised Tagus:-- - - “Yet have I loved thy wild abode, - Unknown, unploughed, untrodden shore, - Where scarce the woodman finds a road, - And scarce the fisher plies an oar; - For man’s neglect I love thee more, - That art nor avarice intrude - To tame thy torrent’s thunder shock, - Or prune the vintage of thy rock, - Magnificently rude!” - -As rivers in a state of nature are somewhat scarce in Great Britain, one -more extract may be perhaps pardoned, and the more as it tends to -illustrate Spanish character, and explain _las cosas de España_, or the -things of Spain, which it is the object of these humble pages to -accomplish. - -The Tagus rises in that extraordinary jumble of mountains, full of -fossil bones, botany, and trout, that rise between Cuenca and Teruel, -and which being all but unknown, clamour loudly for the disciples of -Isaac Walton and Dr. Buckland. It disembogues into the sea at Lisbon, -having flowed 375 miles in Spain, of which nature destined it to be the -aorta. The Toledan chroniclers derive the name from Tagus, fifth king of -Iberia, but Bochart traces it to _Dag_, Dagon, a fish, as besides being -considered auriferous, the ancients pronounced it to be piscatory. Not -that the present Spaniards trouble their head more about the fishes here -than if they were crocodiles. Grains of gold are indeed found, but -barely enough to support a poet, by amphibious paupers, called -_artesilleros_ from their baskets, in which they collect the sand, which -is passed through a sieve. - -[Sidenote: NAVIGATION OF THE TAGUS.] - -The Tagus might easily be made navigable to the sea, and then with the -Xarama connect Madrid and Lisbon, and facilitate importation of colonial -produce, and exportation of wine and grain. Such an act would confer -more benefits upon Spain than ten thousand _charters_ or paper -constitutions, guaranteed by the sword of Narvaez, or the word and -honour of Louis-Philippe. The performance has been contemplated by many -_foreigners_, the Toledans looking lazily on; thus in 1581, Antonelli, a -Neapolitan, and Juanelo Turriano, a Milanese, suggested the scheme to -Philip II., then master of Portugal; but money was wanting--the old -story--for his revenues were wasted in relic-removing and in building -the useless Escorial, and nothing was made except water parties, and -odes to the “wise and great king” who _was_ to perform the deed, to the -tune of Macbeth’s witches, “_I’ll do, I’ll do, I’ll do_,” for here the -future is preferred to the present tense. The project dozed until 1641, -when two other _foreigners_, Julio Martelli and Luigi Carduchi, in vain -roused Philip IV. from his siesta, who soon after losing Portugal -itself, forthwith forgot the Tagus. Another century glided away, when in -1755 Richard Wall, an Irishman, took the thing up; but Charles III., -busy in waging French wars against England, wanted cash. The Tagus has -ever since, as it roared over its rocky bed, like an unbroken barb, -laughed at the Toledan who dreamily angles for impossibilities on the -bank, invoking Brunel, Hercules, and Rothschild, instead of putting his -own shoulder to the water-wheel. In 1808 the scheme was revived: Fro -Xavier de Cabanas, who had studied in England our system of canals, -published a survey of the whole river; this folio ‘_Memoria sobre la -Navigation del Tajo_,’ or, ‘Memoir on the Navigation of the Tagus,’ -Madrid, 1829, reads like the blue book of one discovering the source of -the Nile, so desert-like are the unpeopled, uncultivated districts -between Toledo and Abrantes. Ferd. VII. thereupon issued an approving -_paper_ decree, and so there the thing ended, although Cabanas had -engaged with Messrs. Wallis and Mason for the machinery, &c. Recently -the project has been renewed by Señor Bermudez de Castro, an intelligent -gentleman, who, from long residence in England, has imbibed the schemes -and energy of the foreigner. _Verémos!_ “we shall see;” for hope is a -good breakfast but a bad supper, says Bacon; and in Spain things are -begun late in the day, and never finished; so at least says the -proverb:--_En España se empieza tarde, y se acaba nunca_. - -[Sidenote: DIVISION INTO PROVINCES.] - - - - -CHAPTER IV. - - Divisions into Provinces--Ancient Demarcations--Modern - Departments--Population--Revenue--Spanish Stocks. - - -In the divisions of the Peninsula which are effected by mountains, -rivers, and climate, a leading principle is to be traced throughout, for -it is laid down by the unerring hand of nature. The artificial, -political, and conventional arrangement into kingdoms and provinces is -entirely the work of accident and absence of design. - -These provincial divisions were formed by the gradual union of many -smaller and previously independent portions, which have been taken into -Spain as a whole, just as our inconvenient counties constitute the -kingdom of England; for the inconveniences of these results of the ebb -and flow of the different tides in the affairs of man’s dominion--these -boundaries not fixed by the lines and rules of theodolite-armed land -surveyors, use had provided remedies, and long habit had reconciled the -inhabitants to divisions which suited them better than any new -arrangement, however scientifically calculated, according to statistical -and geographical principles. - -The French, during their intrusive rule, were horrified at this “chaos -administratif,” this apparent irregularity, and introduced their own -system of _départements_, by which districts were neatly squared out and -people re-arranged, as if Spain were a chess-board and Spaniards mere -pawns--_peones_, or footmen, which this people, calling itself one of -_caballeros_, that is, riders on horses _par excellence_, assuredly is -not: nor, indeed, in this paradise of the church militant, can the moves -of any Spanish bishop or knight be calculated on with mathematical -certainty, since they seldom will take the steps to-morrow which they -did yesterday. - -[Sidenote: PROVINCES.] - -Accordingly, however specious the theory, it was found to be no easy -matter to carry departementalization out in practice: individuality -laughs at the solemn nonsense of in-door pedants, who would class men -like ferns or shells. The failure in this attempt to remodel ancient -demarcations and recombine antipathetic populations was utter and -complete. No sooner, therefore, had the Duke cleared the Peninsula of -_doctrinaires_ and invaders than the Lion of Castile shook off their -papers from his mane, and reverted like the Italian, on whom the same -experiment was tried, to his own pre-existing divisions, which, however -defective in theory, and unsightly and inconvenient on the map, had from -long habit been found practically to suit better. Recently, in spite of -this experience among other newfangled transpyrenean reforms, -innovations, and botherations, the Peninsula has again been parcelled -out into forty-nine provinces, instead of the former national divisions -of thirteen kingdoms, principalities, and lordships; but long will it be -before these deeply impressed divisions, which have grown with the -growth of the monarchy, and are engraved in the retentive memories of -the people, can be effaced. - -Those who are curious in statistical details are referred to the works -of Paez, Antillon, and others, who are considered by Spaniards to be -authorities on vast subjects, which are fitter for a gazetteer or a -handbook than for volumes destined like these for lighter reading; and -assuredly the pages of the respectable Spaniards just named are duller -than the high-roads of Castile, which no tiny rivulet the cheerful -companion of the dusty road ever freshens, no stray flower adorns, no -song of birds gladdens--“dry as the remainder of the biscuit after the -voyage.” - -The thirteen divisions have grand and historical names: they belong to -an old and monarchical country, not to a spick and span vulgar -democracy, without title-deeds. They fill the mouth when named, and -conjure up a thousand recollections of the better and more glorious -times of Spain’s palmy power, when there were giants in the land, not -pigmies in Parisian _paletots_, whose only ambition is to ape the -foreigner, and disgrace and denationalize themselves. - -[Sidenote: PROVINCES.] - -First and foremost _Andalucia_ presents herself, crowned with a -quadruple, not a triple tiara, for the name _los cuatro reinos_, “the -four kingdoms,” is her synonym. They consist of those of Seville, -Cordova, Jaen, and Granada. There is magic and birdlime in the very -letters. Secondly advances the kingdom of _Murcia_, with its -silver-mines, barilla, and palms. Then the gentle kingdom of _Valencia_ -appears, all smiles, with fruits and silk. The principality of grim and -truculent _Catalonia_ scowls next on its fair neighbour. Here rises the -smoky factory chimney; here cotton is spun, vice and discontent bred, -and revolutions concocted. The proud and stiff-necked kingdom of -_Arragon_ marches to the west with this Lancashire of Spain, and to the -east with the kingdom of Navarre, which crouches with its green valleys -under the Pyrenees. The three _Basque Provinces_ which abut thereto, are -only called _El Senorio_, “The Lordship,” for the king of all the Spains -is but simple lord of this free highland home of the unconquered -descendants of the aboriginal man of the Peninsula. Here there is much -talk of bullocks and _fueros_, or “privileges;” for when not digging and -delving, these gentlemen by the mere fact of being born here, are -fighting and upholding their good rights by the sword. The empire -province of the _Castiles_ furnishes two coronets to the royal brow; to -wit, that of the older portion, where the young monarchy was nursed, and -that of the newer portion, which was wrested afterwards from the infidel -Moor. The ninth division is desolate _Estremadura_, which has no higher -title than a province, and is peopled by locusts, wandering sheep, pigs, -and here and there by human bipeds. _Leon_, a most time-honoured -kingdom, stretches higher up, with its corn-plains and venerable cities, -now silent as tombs, but in auld lang syne the scenes of mediæval -chivalry and romance. The kingdom of _Gallicia_ and the principality of -the _Asturias_ form the seaboard to the west, and constitute Spain’s -breakwater against the Atlantic. - -[Sidenote: POPULATION] - -It is not very easy to ascertain the exact population of any country, -much less that of one which does not yet possess the advantages of -public registrars; the people at large, for whom, strange to say, the -pleasant studies of statistics and political economy have small charms, -consider any attempt to number them as boding no good; they have a -well-grounded apprehension of ulterior objects. To “number the people” -was a crime in the East, and many moral and practical difficulties exist -in arriving at a true census of Spain. Thus, while some writers on -statistics hope to flatter the powers that be, by a glowing exaggeration -of national strength, “to boast of which,” says the Duke, “is the -national weakness,” the suspicious _many_, on the other hand, are -disposed to conceal and diminish the truth. We should be always on our -guard when we hear accounts of the past or present population, commerce, -or revenue of Spain. The better classes will magnify them both, for the -credit of their country; the poorer, on the other hand, will appeal _ad -misericordiam_, by representing matters as even worse than they really -are. They never afford any opening, however indirect, to information -which may lead to poll-taxes and conscriptions. - -[Sidenote: DIFFERENT RACES.] - -The population and the revenue have generally been exaggerated, and all -statements may be much discounted; the present population, at an -approximate calculation, may be taken at about eleven or twelve -millions, with a slow tendency to increase. This is a low figure for so -large a country, and for one which, under the Romans, is said to have -swarmed with inhabitants as busy and industrious as ants; indeed, the -longest period of rest and settled government which this ill-fated land -has ever enjoyed was during the three centuries that the Roman power was -undisputed. The Peninsula is then seldom mentioned by authors; and how -much happiness is inferred by that silence, when the blood-spattered -page of history was chiefly employed to register great calamities, -plagues, pestilences, wars, battles, or the freaks of men, at which -angels weep! Certainly one of the causes which have changed this happy -state of things, has been the numerous and fierce invasions to which -Spain has been exposed; fatal to her has been her gift of beauty and -wealth, which has ever attracted the foreign ravisher and spoiler. The -Goths, to whom a worse name has been given than they deserved in Spain, -were ousted by the Moors, the real and wholesale destroyers; bringing to -the darkling West the luxuries, arts and sciences of the bright East, -they had nothing to learn from the conquered; to them the Goth was no -instructor, as the Roman had been to him; they despised both of their -predecessors, with whose wants and works they had no sympathy, while -they abhorred their creed as idolatrous and polytheistic--down went -altar and image. There was no fair town which they did not destroy; -they exterminated, say their annals, the fowls of the air. - -The Gotho-Spaniard in process of time retaliated, and combated the -invader with his own weapons, bettering indeed the destructive lesson -which was taught. The effects of these wars, carried on without treaty, -without quarter, and waged for country and creed, are evident in those -parts of Spain which were their theatre. Thus, vast portions of -Estremadura, the south of Toledo and Andalucia, by nature some of the -richest and most fertile in the world, are now _dehesas y despoblados_, -depopulated wastes, abandoned to the wild bee for his heritage; the -country remains as it was left after the discomfiture of the Moor. The -early chronicles of both Spaniard and Moslem teem with accounts of the -annual forays inflicted on each other, and to which a frontier-district -was always exposed. The object of these border _guerrilla_-warfares was -extinction, _talar, quemar y robar_, to desolate, burn, and rob, to cut -down fruit-trees, to “harry,” to “razzia."[2] The internecine struggle -was that of rival nations and creeds. It was truly Oriental, and such as -Ezekiel, who well knew the Phœnicians, has described: “Go ye after -him through the city and smite; let not your eye have pity, neither have -ye pity; slay utterly old and young, both maids and little children and -women.” The religious duty of smiting the infidel precluded mercy on -both sides alike, for the Christian foray and crusade was the exact -counterpart of the Moslem _algara_ and _algihad_; while, from military -reasons, everything was turned into a desert, in order to create a -frontier Edom of starvation, a defensive glacis, through which no -invading army could pass and live; the “beasts of the field alone -increased.” Nature, thus abandoned, resumed her rights, and has cast off -every trace of former cultivation; and districts the granaries of the -Roman and the Moor, now offer the saddest contrasts to that former -prosperity and industry. - -[Sidenote: BUONAPARTE’S INVASION.] - -To these horrors succeeded the thinning occasioned by causes of a -bigoted and political nature: the expulsion of the Jews deprived poor -Spain of her bankers, while the final banishment of the Moriscoes, the -remnant of the Moors, robbed the soil of its best and most industrious -agriculturists. - -Again, in our time, have the fatal scenes of contending Christian and -Moor been renewed in the struggle for national independence, waged by -Spaniards against the Buonapartist invaders, by whom neither age nor sex -was spared--neither things sacred nor profane; the land is everywhere -scarred with ruins; a few hours’ Vandalism sufficed to undo the works of -ages of piety, wealth, learning and good taste. The French retreat was -worse than their advance: then, infuriated by disgrace and disaster, the -Soults and Massénas vented their spite on the unarmed villagers and -their cottages. But let General Foy describe their progress:--“Ainsi que -la neige précipitée des sommets des Alpes dans les vallons, nos armées -innombrables détruisaient en quelques heures, par leur seul passage, les -ressources de toute une contrée; elles bivouaquaient habituellement, et -à chaque gîte nos soldats démolissaient les maisons bâties depuis un -demi-siècle, pour construire avec les décombres ces longs villages -alignés qui souvent ne devaient durer qu’un jour: au défaut du bois des -forêts les arbres fruitiers, les végétaux précieux, comme le mûrier, -l’olivier, l’oranger, servaient a les réchauffer; les conscrits irrités -à la fois par le besoin et par le danger contractaient _une ivresse -morale_ dont nous ne cherchions pas à les guérir.” - - “So France gets drunk with blood to vomit crime, - And fatal ever have her saturnalia been.” - -Who can fail to compare this habitual practice of Buonaparte’s legions -with the terrible description in Hosea of the “great people and strong” -who execute the dread judgments of heaven?--“A fire devoureth before -them, and behind them a flame burneth; the land is the garden of Eden -before them, and behind them a desolate wilderness, yea, and nothing -shall escape them.” - -[Sidenote: REVENUE.] - -No sooner were they beaten out by the Duke, than population began to -spring up again, as the bruised flowerets do when the iron heel of -marching hordes has passed on. Then ensued the civil fratricide wars, -draining the land of its males, from which bleeding Spain has not yet -recovered. Insecurity of property and person will ever prove bars to -marriage and increased population. - -Again, a deeper and more permanent curse has steadily operated for the -last two centuries, at which Spanish authors long have not dared to -hint. They have ascribed the depopulation of Estremadura to the swarm of -colonist adventurers and emigrants who departed from this province of -Cortes and Pizarro to seek for fortune in the new world of gold and -silver; and have attributed the similar want of inhabitants in Andalucia -to the similar outpouring from Cadiz, which, with Seville, engrossed the -traffic of the Americas. But colonisation never thins a vigorous, -well-conditioned mother state--witness the rapid and daily increase of -population in our own island, which, like Tyre of old, is ever sending -forth her outpouring myriads, and wafts to the uttermost parts of the -sea, on the white wings of her merchant fleets, the blessings of peace, -religion, liberty, order, and civilisation, to disseminate which is the -mission of Great Britain. - -The real permanent and standing cause of Spain’s thinly peopled state, -want of cultivation, and abomination of desolation, is BAD GOVERNMENT, -civil and religious; this all who run may read in her lonely land and -silent towns. But Spain, if the anecdote which her children love to tell -be true, will never be able to remove the incubus of this fertile origin -of every evil. When Ferdinand III. captured Seville and died, being a -saint he escaped purgatory, and Santiago presented him to the Virgin, -who forthwith desired him to ask any favours for beloved Spain. The -monarch petitioned for oil, wine, and corn--conceded; for sunny skies, -brave men, and pretty women--allowed; for cigars, relics, garlic, and -bulls--by all means; for a _good government_--“Nay, nay,” said the -Virgin, “that never can be granted; for were it bestowed, not an angel -would remain a day longer in heaven.” - -[Sidenote: THE BOLSA.] - -The present revenue may be taken at about 12,000,000_l._ or -13,000,000_l._ sterling; but money is compared by Spaniards to oil; a -little will stick to the fingers of those who measure it out; and such -is the robbing and jobbing, the official mystification and peculation, -that it is difficult to get at _facts_ whenever cash is in question. The -revenue, moreover, is badly collected, and at a ruinous per centage, and -at no time during this last century has been sufficient for the national -expenses. Recourse has been had to the desperate experiments of usurious -loans and wholesale confiscations. At one time church pillage and -appropriation was almost the only item in the governmental budget. The -recipients were ready to “prove from Vatel exceedingly well” that the -first duty of a rich clergy was to relieve the necessitous, and the more -when the State was a pauper: croziers are no match for bayonets. This -system necessarily cannot last. Since the reign of Philip II. every act -of dishonesty has been perpetrated. Public securities have been -“repudiated,” interest unpaid, and principal spunged out. No country in -the Old World, or even New drab-coated World, stands lower in financial -discredit. Let all be aware how they embark in Spanish speculations: -however promising in the prospectus, they will, sooner or later, turn -out to be deceptions; and whether they assume the form of loans, lands, -or rails, none are _real_ securities: they are mere castles in the air, -_châteaux en Espagne_: “The earth has bubbles as the water has, and -these are of them.” - -For the benefit and information of those who have purchased Iberian -stock, it may be stated that an Exchange, or _Bolsa de Comercio_, was -established at Madrid in 1831. It may be called the _coldest_ spot in -the hot capital, and the _idlest_, since the usual “city article” is -short and sweet, “_sin operaciones_,” or nothing has been bought or -sold. It might be likened to a tomb, with “Here _lies_ Spanish credit” -for its epitaph. If there be a thing which “_La perfide Albion_,” “a -nation of shopkeepers,” dislikes, worse even than a French assignat, it -is a bankrupt. One circumstance is clear, that Castilian _pundonor_, or -point of honour, will rather settle its debts with cold iron and warm -abuse than with gold and thanks. - -The Exchange at Madrid was first held at _St. Martin’s_, a saint who -divided his cloak with a supplicant. As comparisons are odious, and bad -examples catching, it has been recently removed to the _Calle del -Desengaño_, the street of “finding out fallacious hopes,” a locality -which the bitten will not deem ill-chosen. - -[Sidenote: SPANISH “STOCK."] - -As all men in power use their official knowledge in taking advantage of -the turn of the market, the _Bolsa_ divides with the court and army the -moving influence of every _situacion_ or crisis of the moment: clever as -are the ministers of Paris, they are mere tyros when compared to their -colleagues of Madrid in the arts of working the telegraph, gazette, &c., -and thereby feathering their own nests. - -The Stock Exchange is open from ten to three o’clock, where those who -like Spanish funds may buy them as cheap as stinking mackerel; for when -the 3 per cents, of perfidious Albion are at 98, surely Spanish fives at -22 are a tempting investment. The stocks are numerous, and suited to all -tastes and pockets, whether those funded by Aguado, Ardouin, Toreno, -Mendizabal, or Mon, “all honourable men,” and whose punctuality is -_un-remitting_, for in some the principal is consolidated, in others the -interest is deferred; the grand financial object in all having been to -receive as much as possible, and pay back in an inverse ratio--their -leading principle being to bag both principal and interest. As we have -just said, in measuring out money and oil a little will stick to the -cleanest fingers--the Madrid ministers and contractors made fortunes, -and actually “did” the Hebrews of London, as their forefathers spoiled -the Egyptians. But from Philip II. downwards, theologians have never -been wanting in Spain to prove the religious, however painful, duty of -bankruptcy, and particularly in contracts with usurious heretics. The -stranger, when shown over the Madrid bank, had better evince no -impertinent curiosity to see the “Dividend _pay_ office,” as it might -give offence. Whatever be our dear reader’s pursuit in the Peninsula, -let him-- - - “Neither a borrower nor lender be, - For loan oft loseth both itself and friend.” - -Beware of Spanish stock, for in spite of official reports, _documentos_, -and arithmetical mazes, which, intricate as an arabesque pattern, look -well on paper without being intelligible; in spite of ingenious -conversions, fundings of interest, coupons--some active, some passive, -and other repudiatory terms and tenses, the present excepted--the -thimblerig is always the same; and this is the question, since national -credit depends on national good faith and surplus income, how can a -country pay interest on debts, whose revenues have long been, and now -are, miserably insufficient for the ordinary expenses of government? You -cannot get blood from a stone; _ex nihilo nihil fit_. - -[Sidenote: PUBLIC DEBT.] - -Mr. Macgregor’s report on Spain, a truthful exposition of commercial -ignorance, habitual disregard of treaties and violation of contracts, -describes her public _securities_, past and present. Certainly they had -very imposing names and titles--_Juros Bonos_, _Vales reales_, -_Titulos_, &c.,--much more royal, grand, and poetical than our prosaic -_Consols_; but no oaths can attach real value to dishonoured and -good-for-nothing paper. According to some financiers, the public debts -of Spain, previously to 1808, amounted to 83,763,966_l._, which have -since been increased to 279,083,089_l._, farthings omitted, for we like -to be accurate. This possibly may be exaggerated, for the government -will give no information as to its own peculation and mismanagement: -according to Mr. Henderson, 78,649,675_l._ of this debt is due to -English creditors alone, and we wish they may get it, when he gets to -Madrid. In the time of James I., Mr. Howell was sent there on much such -an errand; and when he left it, his “pile of unredressed claims was -higher than himself.” At all events, Spain is over head and ears in -debt, and irremediably insolvent. And yet few countries, if we regard -the fertility of her soil, her golden possessions at home and abroad, -her frugal temperate population, ought to have been less embarrassed; -but Heaven has granted her every blessing, except a good and honest -government. It is either a bully or a craven: satisfaction in -twenty-four hours _à la Bresson_, or a line-of-battle ship off -Malaga--Cromwell’s receipt--is the only argument which these semi-Moors -understand: conciliatory language is held to be weakness: you may obtain -at once from their fears what never will be granted by their sense of -justice. - -[Sidenote: TRAVELLING IN SPAIN.] - - - - -CHAPTER V. - - Travelling in Spain--Steamers--Roads, Roman, Monastic, and - Royal--Modern Railways--English Speculations. - - -Of the many misrepresentations regarding Spain, few are more inveterate -than those which refer to the dangers and difficulties that are there -supposed to beset the traveller. This, the most romantic, racy, and -peculiar country of Europe, may in reality be visited by sea and land, -and throughout its length and breadth, with ease and safety, as all who -have ever been there well know, the nonsense with which Cockney critics -who never have been there scare delicate writers in albums and lady-bird -tourists, to the contrary notwithstanding: the steamers are regular, the -mails and diligences excellent, the roads decent, and the mules -sure-footed; nay, latterly, the _posadas_, or inns, have been so -increased, and the robbers so decreased, that some ingenuity must be -evinced in getting either starved or robbed. Those, however, who are -dying for new excitements, or who wish to make a picture or chapter, in -short, to get up an adventure for the home-market, may manage by a great -exhibition of imprudence, chattering, and a holding out luring baits, to -gratify their hankering, although it would save some time, trouble, and -expense to try the experiment much nearer home. - -As our readers live in an island, we will commence with the sea and -steamers. - -[Sidenote: STEAMERS.] - -The Peninsular and Oriental Navigation Company depart regularly three -times a month from Southampton for Gibraltar. They often arrive at -Corunna in seventy hours, from whence a mail starts directly to Madrid, -which it reaches in three days and a half. The vessels are excellent -sea-boats, are manned by English sailors, and propelled by English -machinery. The passage to Vigo has been made in less than three days, -and the voyage to Cadiz--touching at Lisbon included--seldom exceeds -six. The change of climate, scenery, men, and manners effected by this -week’s trip, is indeed remarkable. Quitting the British Channel we soon -enter the “sleepless Bay of Biscay,” where the stormy petrel is at home, -and where the gigantic swell of the Atlantic is first checked by Spain’s -iron-bound coast, the mountain break-water of Europe. Here _The Ocean_ -will be seen in all its vast majesty and solitude: grand in the -tempest-lashed storm, grand in the calm, when spread out as a mirror; -and never more impressive than at night, when the stars of heaven, free -from earth-born mists, sparkle like diamonds over those “who go down to -the sea in ships, and behold the works of the Lord, and his wonders in -the deep.” The land has disappeared, and man feels alike his weakness -and his strength; a thin plank separates him from another world; yet he -has laid his hand upon the billow, and mastered the ocean; he has made -it the highway of commerce, and the binding link of nations. - -The steamers which navigate the Eastern coast from Marseilles to Cadiz -and back again, are cheaper indeed in their fares, but by no means such -good sea-boats; nor do they keep their time--the essence of -business--with English regularity. They are foreign built, and worked by -Spaniards and Frenchmen. They generally stop a day at Barcelona, -Valencia, and other large towns, which gives them an opportunity to -replenish coal, and to smuggle. A rapid traveller is also thus enabled -to pay a flying visit to the cities on the seaboard; and thus those -lively authors who comprehend foreign nations with an intuitive -eagle-eyed glance, obtain materials for sundry octavos on the history, -arts, sciences, literature, and genius of Spaniards. But as Mons. Feval -remarks of some of his gifted countrymen, they have merely to scratch -their head, according to the Horatian expression, and out come a number -of volumes, ready bound in calf, as Minerva issued forth armed from the -temple of Jupiter. - -[Sidenote: SPANISH ROADS.] - -The Mediterranean is a dangerous, deceitful sea, fair and false as -Italia; the squalls are sudden and terrific; then the crews either curse -the sacred name of God, or invoke St. Telmo, according as their notion -may be. We have often been so caught when sailing on these perfidious -waters in these foreign craft, and think, with the Spaniards, that -escape is a miracle. The hilarity excited by witnessing the jabber, -confusion, and lubber proceedings, went far to dispel all present -apprehension, and future also. Some of our poor blue-jackets in case of -a war may possibly escape the fate with which they are threatened in -this French lake. But no wise man will ever go by sea when he can travel -by land, nor is viewing Spain’s coasts with a telescope from the deck, -and passing a few hours in a sea-port, a very satisfactory mode of -becoming acquainted with the country. - -The roads of Spain, a matter of much importance to a judicious -traveller, are somewhat a modern luxury, having been only regularly -introduced by the Bourbons. The Moors and Spaniards, who rode on horses -and not in carriages, suffered those magnificent lines with which the -Romans had covered the Peninsula to go to decay; of these there were no -less than twenty-nine of the first order, which were absolutely -necessary to a nation of conquerors and colonists to keep up their -military and commercial communications. The grandest of all, which like -the Appian might be termed the Queen of Roads, ran from Merida, the -capital of Lusitania, to Salamanca. It was laid down like a Cyclopean -wall, and much of it remains to this day, with the grey granite line -stretching across the aromatic wastes, like the vertebræ of an extinct -mammoth. We have followed for miles its course, which is indicated by -the still standing miliary columns that rise above the cistus underwood; -here and there tall forest trees grow out of the stone pavement, and -show how long it has been abandoned by man to Nature ever young and gay, -who thus by uprooting and displacing the huge blocks slowly recovers her -rights. She festoons the ruins with necklaces of flowers and creepers, -and hides the rents and wrinkles of odious, all-dilapidating Time, or -man’s worse neglect, as a pretty maid decorates a shrivelled dowager’s -with diamonds. The Spanish muleteer creeps along by its side in a track -which he has made through the sand or pebbles; he seems ashamed to -trample on this lordly way, for which, in his petty wants, he has no -occasion. Most of the similar roads have been taken up by monks to raise -convents, by burgesses to build houses, by military men to construct -fortifications--thus even their ruins have perished. - -[Sidenote: LEGEND OF SANTO DOMINGO.] - -The mediæval Spanish roads were the works of the clergy; and the -long-bearded monks, here as elsewhere, were the pioneers of -civilization; they made straight, wide, and easy the way which led to -their convent, their high place, their miracle shrine, or to whatever -point of pilgrimage that was held out to the devout; traffic was soon -combined with devotion, and the service of mammon with that of God. This -imitation of the Oriental practice which obtained at Mecca, is evidenced -by language in which the Spanish term _Feria_ signifies at once a -religious function, a holiday, and a fair. Even saints condescended to -become waywardens, and to take title from the highway. Thus _Santo -Domingo de la Calzada_, “St. Domenick of the _Paved Road_,” was so -called from his having been the first to make one through a part of Old -Castile for the benefit of pilgrims on their way to Compostella, and -this town yet bears the honoured appellation. - -This feat and his legend have furnished Southey with a subject of a -droll ballad. The saint having finished his road, next set up an inn or -_Venta_, the Maritornes of which fell in love with a handsome pilgrim, -who resisted; whereupon she hid some spoons in this Joseph’s saddlebags, -who was taken up by the Alcalde, and forthwith hanged. But his parents -some time afterwards passed under the body, which told them that he was -innocent, alive, and well, and all by the intercession of the sainted -road-maker; thereupon they proceeded forthwith to the truculent Alcalde, -who was going to dine off two roasted fowls, and, on hearing their -report, remarked, You might as well tell me that this cock (pointing to -his rôti) would crow; whereupon it did crow, and was taken with its hen -to the cathedral, and two chicks have ever since been regularly hatched -every year from these respectable parents, of which a travelling -ornithologist should secure one for the Zoological Garden. The cock and -hen were duly kept near the high altar, and their white feathers were -worn by pilgrims in their caps. Prudent bagsmen will, however, put a -couple of ordinary roast fowls into their “provend,” for hungry is this -said road to _Logroño_. - -[Sidenote: ROAD TO TOLEDO.] - -In this land of miracles, anomalies, and contradictions, the roads to -and from this very _Compostella_ are now detestable. In other provinces -of Spain, the star-paved milky way in heaven is called _El Camino de -Santiago_, the road of St. James; but the Gallicians, who know what -their roads really are, namely, the worst on earth, call the milky-way -_El Camino de Jerusalem_, “the road to Jerusalem,” which it assuredly is -not. The ancients poetically attributed this phenomenon to some spilt -milk of Juno. - -Meanwhile the roads in Gallicia, although under the patronage of -Santiago, who has replaced the Roman Hermes, are, like his milky-way in -heaven, but little indebted to mortal repairs. The Dean of Santiago is -waywarden by virtue of his office or dignity, and especially -“protector.” The chapter, however, now chiefly profess to make smooth -the road to a better world. They have altogether degenerated from their -forefathers, whose grand object was to construct roads for the pilgrim; -but since the cessation of offering-making Hadjis, little or nothing has -been done in the turnpike-trust line. - -Some of the finest roads in Spain lead either to the _sitios_ or royal -pleasure-seats of the king, or wind gently up some elevated and -monastery-crowned mountain like Monserrat. The ease of the despot was -consulted, while that of his subjects was neglected; and the Sultan was -the State, Spain was his property, and Spaniards his serfs, and willing -ones, for as in the East, their perfect equality amongst each other was -one result of the immeasurable superiority of the master of all. Thus, -while he rolled over a road hard and level as a bowling-green, and -rapidly as a galloping team could proceed, to a mere summer residence, -the communication between Madrid and Toledo, that city on which the sun -shone on the day light was made, has remained a mere track ankle-deep in -mud during winter and dust-clouded during summer, and changing its -direction with the caprice of wandering sheep and muleteers; but Bourbon -Royalty never visited this widowed capital of the Goths. The road -therefore was left as it existed if not before the time of Adam, at -least before Mac Adam. There is some talk just now of beginning a -regular road; when it will be finished is another affair. - -[Sidenote: ROAD TO LA CORUNA.] - -[Sidenote: CROSS ROADS.] - -The church, which shared with the state in dominion, followed the royal -example in consulting its own comforts as to roads. Nor could it be -expected in a torrid land, that holy men, whose abdomens occasionally -were prominent and pendulous, should lard the stony or sandy earth like -goats, or ascend heaven-kissing hills so expeditiously as their prayers. -In Spain the primary consideration has ever been the souls, not the -bodies, of men, or legs of beasts. It would seem indeed, from the -indifference shown to the sufferings of these quadrupedal -blood-engines, _Maquinas de sangre_, as they are called, and still more -from the reckless waste of biped life, that a man was of no value until -he was dead; then what admirable contrivances for the rapid travelling -of his winged spirit, first to purgatory, next out again, and thence -from stage to stage to his journey’s end and blessed rest! More money -has been thus expended in masses than would have covered Spain with -railroads, even on a British scale of magnificence and extravagance. - -To descend to the roads of the peninsular earth, the principal lines are -nobly planned. These geographical arteries, which form the circulation -of the country, branch in every direction from Madrid, which is the -centre of the system. The road-making spirit of Louis XIV. passed into -his Spanish descendants, and during the reigns of Charles III. and -Charles IV. communications were completed between the capital and the -principal cities of the provinces. These causeways, “_Arrecifes_”--these -royal roads, “_Caminos reales_”--were planned on an almost unnecessary -scale of grandeur, in regard both to width, parapets, and general -execution. The high road to La Coruña, especially after entering Leon, -will stand comparison with any in Europe; but when Spaniards finish -anything it is done in a grand style, and in this instance the expense -was so enormous that the king inquired if it was paved with silver, -alluding to the common Spanish corruption of the old Roman via lata into -“camino de _plata_,” of plate. This and many of the others were -constructed from fifty to seventy years ago, and very much on the M’Adam -system, which, having been since introduced into England, has rendered -our roads so very different from what they were not very long since. The -war in the Peninsula tended to deteriorate the Spanish roads--when -bridges and other conveniences were frequently destroyed for military -reasons, and the exhausted state of the finances of Spain, and troubled -times, have delayed many of the more costly reparations; yet those of -the first class were so admirably constructed at the beginning, that, in -spite of the injuries of war, ruts, and neglect, they may, as a whole, -be pronounced equal to many of the Continent, and are infinitely more -pleasant to the traveller from the absence of pavement. The roads in -England have, indeed, latterly been rendered so excellent, and we are -so apt to compare those of other nations with them, that we forget that -fifty years ago Spain was in advance in that and many other respects. -Spain remains very much what other countries were: she has stood on her -old ways, moored to the anchor of prejudice, while we have progressed, -and consequently now appears behind-hand in many things in which she set -the fashion to England. - -The grand royal roads start from Madrid, and run to the principal -frontier and sea-port towns. Thus the capital may be compared to a -spider, as it is the centre of the Peninsular web. These diverging -fan-like lines are sufficiently convenient to all who are about to -journey to any single terminus, but inter-communications are almost -entirely wanting between any one terminus with another. This scanty -condition of the Peninsular roads accounts for the very limited portions -of the country which are usually visited by foreigners, who--the French -especially--keep to one beaten track, the high road, and follow each -other like wild geese; a visit to Burgos, Madrid, and Seville, and then -a steam trip from Cadiz to Valencia and Barcelona, is considered to be -making the grand tour of Spain; thus the world is favoured with volumes -that reflect and repeat each other, which tell us what we know already, -while the rich and rare, the untrodden, unchanged, and truly -Moro-Hispanic portions are altogether neglected, except by the -exceptional few, who venture forth like Don Quixote on their horses, in -search of adventures and the picturesque. - -[Sidenote: TRAVELLING.] - -[Sidenote: CONTEMPLATED RAILROADS.] - -The other roads of Spain are bad, but not much more so than in other -parts of the Continent, and serve tolerably well in dry weather. They -are divided into those which are practicable for wheel-carriages, and -those which are only bridle-roads, or as they call them, “of horseshoe,” -on which all thought of going with a carriage is out of the question; -when these horse or mule tracks are very bad, especially among the -mountains, they compare them to roads for partridges. The cross roads -are seldom tolerable; it is safest to keep the high-road--or, as we have -it in English, the furthest way round is the nearest way home--for there -is no short cut without hard work, says the Spanish proverb, “_ho hay -atajo, sin trabajo_.” - -All this sounds very unpromising, but those who adopt the customs of the -country will never find much practical difficulty in getting to their -journey’s end; slowly, it is true, for where leagues and hours are -convertible terms--the Spanish _hora_ being the heavy German -_stunde_--the distance is regulated by the day-light. Bridle-roads and -travelling on horseback, the former systems of Europe, are very Spanish -and Oriental; and where people journey on horse and mule back, the road -is of minor importance. In the remoter provinces of Spain the population -is agricultural and poverty-stricken, unvisiting and unvisited, not -going much beyond their chimney’s smoke. Each family provides for its -simple habits and few wants; having but little money to buy foreign -commodities, they are clad and fed, like the Bedouins, with the -productions of their own fields and flocks. There is little circulation -of persons; a neighbouring fair is the mart where they obtain the annual -supply of whatever luxury they can indulge in, or it is brought to their -cottages by wandering muleteers, or by the smuggler, who is the type and -channel of the really active principle of trade in three-fourths of the -Peninsula. It is wonderful how soon a well-mounted traveller becomes -attached to travelling on horseback, and how quickly he becomes -reconciled to a state of roads which, startling at first to those -accustomed to carriage highways, are found to answer perfectly for all -the purposes of the place and people where they are found. - -Let us say a few things on Spanish railroads, for the mania of England -has surmounted the Pyrenees, although confined rather more to words than -deeds; in fact, it has been said that no rail exists, in any country of -either the new world or the old one, in which the Spanish language is -spoken, probably from other objections than those merely philological. -Again, in other countries roads, canals, and traffic usher in the rail, -which in Spain is to precede and introduce them. Thus, by the prudent -delays of national caution and procrastination, much of the trouble and -expense of these intermediate stages will be economized, and Spain will -jump at once from a mediæval condition into the comforts and glories of -Great Britain, the land of restless travellers. Be that as it may, just -now there is much talk of _railroads_, and splendid official and other -_documentos_ are issued, by which the “whole country is to be -intersected (on paper) with a net-work of rapid and bowling-green -communications,” which are to create a “perfect homogeneity among -Spaniards;” for great as have been the labours of Herculean steam, this -amalgamation of the Iberian rope of sand has properly been reserved for -the crowning performance. - -It would occupy too much space to specify the infinite lines which are -in contemplation, which may be described when completed. Suffice it to -say, that they almost all are to be effected by the iron and gold of -England. However this _estrangerismo_, this influence of the foreigner, -may offend the sensitive pride, the _Españolismo_ of Spain, the power of -resistance offered by the national indolence and dislike to change, must -be propelled by British steam, with a dash of French revolution. Yet our -speculators might, perhaps, reflect that Spain is a land which never yet -has been able to construct or support even a sufficient number of common -roads or canals for her poor and passive commerce and circulation. The -distances are far too great, and the traffic far too small, to call yet -for the rail; while the geological formation of the country offers -difficulties which, if met with even in England, would baffle the -colossal science and extravagance of our first-rate engineers. Spain is -a land of mountains, which rise everywhere in Alpine barriers, walling -off province from province, and district from district. These mighty -cloud-capped _sierras_ are solid masses of hard stone, and any tunnels -which ever perforate their ranges will reduce that at Box to the delving -of the poor mole. You might as well cover Switzerland and the Tyrol with -a net-work of _level_ lines, as those caught in the aforesaid net will -soon discover to their cost. The outlay of this up-hill work may be in -an inverse ratio to the remuneration, for the one will be enormous, and -the other paltry. The parturient mountains may produce a most musipular -interest, and even that may be “deferred.” - -[Sidenote: DIFFICULTIES OF RAILROADS.] - -Spain, again, is a land of _dehesas y despoblados_: in these wild -unpeopled wastes, next to travellers, commerce and cash are what is -scarce, while even Madrid, the capital, is without industry or -resources, and poorer than many of our provincial cities. The Spaniard, -a creature of routine and foe to innovations, is not a moveable or -locomotive; local, and a parochial fixture by nature, he hates moving -like a Turk, and has a particular horror of being hurried; long, -therefore, here has an ambling mule answered all the purposes of -transporting man and his goods. Who again is to do the work even if -England will pay the wages? The native, next to disliking regular -sustained labour himself, abhors seeing the foreigner toiling even in -his service, and wasting his gold and sinews in the thankless task. The -villagers, as they always have done, will rise against the stranger and -heretic who comes to “suck the wealth of Spain.” Supposing, however, by -the aid of Santiago and Brunel, that the work were possible and were -completed, how is it to be secured against the fierce action of the sun, -and the fiercer violence of popular ignorance? The first cholera that -visits Spain will be set down as a passenger per rail by the -dispossessed muleteer, who now performs the functions of steam and rail. -He constitutes one of the most numerous and finest classes in Spain, and -is the legitimate channel of the semi-Oriental caravan system. He will -never permit the bread to be taken out of his mouth by this Lutheran -locomotive: deprived of means of earning his livelihood, he, like the -smuggler, will take to the road in another line, and both will become -either robbers or patriots. Many, long, and lonely are the leagues which -separate town from town in the wide deserts of thinly-peopled Spain, nor -will any preventive service be sufficient to guard the rail against the -_guerrilla_ warfare that may then be waged. A handful of opponents in -any cistus-overgrown waste, may at any time, in five minutes, break up -the road, stop the train, stick the stoker, and burn the engines in -their own fire, particularly smashing the luggage-train. What, again, -has ever been the recompense which the foreigner has met with from Spain -but breach of promise and ingratitude? He will be used, as in the East, -until the native thinks that he has mastered his arts, and then he will -be abused, cast out, and trodden under foot; and who then will keep up -and repair the costly artificial undertaking?--certainly not the -Spaniard, on whose pericranium the bumps of operative skill and -mechanical construction have yet to be developed. - -[Sidenote: BENEFITS OF RAILROADS.] - -The lines which are the least sure of failure will be those which are -the shortest, and pass through a level country of some natural -productions, such as oil, wine, and coal. Certainly, if the rail can be -laid down in Spain by the gold and science of England, the gift, like -that of steam, will be worthy of the Ocean’s Queen, and of the world’s -real leader of civilization; and what a change will then come over the -spirit of the Peninsula! how the siestas of torpid man-vegetation, will -be disturbed by the shrill whistle and panting snort of the monster -engine! how the seals of this long hermetically shut-up land will be -broken! how the cloistered obscure, and dreams of treasures in heaven, -will be enlightened by the flashing fire-demon of the wide-awake -money-worshipper! what owls will be vexed, what bats dispossessed, what -drones, mules, and asses will be scared, run over, and annihilated! -Those who love Spain, and pray, like the author, daily for her -prosperity, must indeed hope to see this “net-work of rails” concluded, -but will take especial care at the same time not to invest one farthing -in the imposing speculation. - -Recent results have fully justified during this year what was prophesied -last year in the Hand-Book: our English agents and engineers were -received with almost divine honours by the Spaniards, so incensed were -they with flattery and cigars. Their shares were instantaneously -subscribed for, and directors nominated, with names and titles longer -even than the lines, and the smallest contributions in cash were -thankfully accepted:-- - - “L’argent dans une bourse entre agréablement; - Mais le terme venu, quand il faut le rendre, - C’est alors que les douleurs commencent à nous prendre.” - -[Sidenote: ANGLO-HISPANO RAILROADS.] - -When the period for booking up, for making the first instalments, -arrived, the Spanish shareholders were found somewhat wanting: they -repudiated; for in the Peninsula it has long been easier to promise than -to pay. Again, on the only line which seems likely to be carried out at -present, that of Madrid to Aranjuez, the first step taken by them was to -dismiss all English engineers and _navvies_, on the plea of encouraging -native talent and industry rather than the foreigner. Many of the -English home proceedings would border on the ridiculous, were not the -laugh of some speculators rather on the wrong side. The City capitalists -certainly have our pity, and if their plethora of wealth required the -relief of bleeding, it could not be better performed than by a Spanish -_Sangrado_. How different some of the windings-up, the final reports, to -the magnificent beginnings and grandiloquent prospectuses put forth as -baits for John Bull, who hoped to be tossed at once, or elevated, from -haberdashery to a throne, by being offered a “potentiality of getting -rich beyond the dreams of avarice!” Thus, to clench assertion by -example, the London directors of the Royal Valencia Company made known -by an advertisement only last July, that they merely required -240,000,000 reals to connect the seaport of Valencia--where there is -none--to the capital Madrid, with 800,000 inhabitants,--there not being -200,000. One brief passage alone seemed ominous in the lucid array of -prospective profit--“The line has not yet been minutely surveyed;” this -might have suggested to the noble Marquis whose attractive name heads -the provisional committee list, the difficulty of Sterne’s traveller, of -whom, when observing how much better things were managed on the -Continent than in England, the question was asked, “Have you, sir, ever -been there?” - -[Sidenote: LONDON RAILROAD MEETINGS.] - -A still wilder scheme was broached, to connect Aviles on the Atlantic -with Madrid, the Asturian Alps and the Guadarrama mountains to the -contrary notwithstanding. The originator of this ingenious idea was to -receive 40,000_l._ for the cession of his plan to the company, and -actually did receive 25,000_l._, which, considering the difficulties, -natural and otherwise, must be considered an inadequate remuneration. -Although the original and captivating prospectus stated “_that the line -had been surveyed, and presented no engineering difficulties_,” it was -subsequently thought prudent to obtain some notion of the actual -localities, and Sir _Joshua_ Walmsley was sent forth with competent -assistance to spy out the land, which the Jewish practice of old was -rather to do before than after serious undertakings. A sad change soon -came over the spirit of the London dream by the discovery that a country -which looked level as Arrowsmith’s map in the prospectus, presented such -trifling obstacles to the rail as sundry leagues of mountain ridges, -which range from 6000 to 9000 feet high, and are covered with snow for -many months of the year. This was a damper. The report of the special -meeting (see ‘Morning Chronicle,’ Dec. 18, 1845) should be printed in -letters of gold, from the quantity of that article which it will -preserve to our credulous countrymen. Then and there the chairman -observed, with equal _naïveté_ and pathos, “that had he known as much -before as he did now, he would have been the last man to carry out a -railway in Spain.” This experience cost him, he observed, 5000_l._, -which is paying dear for a Spanish rail whistle. He might for five -pounds have bought the works of Townshend and Captain Cook: our modesty -prevents the naming another red book, in which these precise localities, -these mighty Alps, are described by persons who had ridden, or rather -soared, over them. At another meeting of another Spanish rail company, -held at the London Tavern, October 20, 1846, another chairman announced -“a fact of which he was not before aware, that it was impossible to -surmount the Pyrenees.” Meanwhile, the Madrid government had secured -30,000_l._ from them by way of _caution_ money; but caution disappears -from our capitalists, whenever excess of cash mounts from their pockets -into their heads; loss of common sense and dollars is the natural -result. But it is the fate of Spain and her things, to be judged of by -those who have never been there, and who feel no shame at the indecency -of the nakedness of their geographical ignorance. When the blind lead -the blind, beware of hillocks and ditches. - -[Sidenote: POST-OFFICE.] - - - - -CHAPTER VI. - - Post-Office in Spain--Travelling with post-horses--Riding - post--Mails and Diligences, Galeras, Coches de Colleras, Drivers, - and Manner of Driving, and Oaths. - - -A system of post, both for the despatch of letters and the conveyance of -couriers, was introduced into Spain under Philip and Juana, that is, -towards the end of the reign of our Henry VII.; whereas it was scarcely -organised in England before the government of Cromwell. Spain, which in -these matters, as well as in many others, was once so much in advance, -is now compelled to borrow her improvements from those nations of which -she formerly was the instructress: among these may be reckoned all -travelling in carriages, whether public or private. - -The post-office for letters is arranged on the plan common to most -countries on the Continent: the delivery is pretty regular, but seldom -daily--twice or three times a-week. Small scruple is made by the -authorities in opening private letters, whenever they suspect the -character of the correspondence. It is as well, therefore, for the -traveller to avoid expressing the whole of his opinions of the powers -that be. The minds of men have been long troubled in Spain; civil war -has rendered them very distrustful and guarded in their _written_ -correspondence--“_carta canta_,” “a letter speaks.” - -There is the usual continental bother in obtaining post-horses, which -results from their being a monopoly of government. There must be a -passport, an official order, notice of departure, &c.; next ensue -vexatious regulations in regard to the number of passengers, horses, -luggage, style of carriage, and so forth. These, and other spokes put -into the wheel, appear to have been invented by clerks who sit at home -devising how to impede rather than facilitate posting at all. - -[Sidenote: PUBLIC CONVEYANCES.] - -Post-horses and mules are paid at the rate of seven reals each for each -post. The Spanish postilions generally, and especially if well paid, -drive at a tremendous pace, often amounting to a gallop; nor are they -easily stopped, even if the traveller desires it--they seem only to be -intent on arriving at their stages’ end, in order to indulge in the -great national joy of then doing nothing: to get there, they heed -neither ruts nor ravines; and when once their cattle are started the -inside passenger feels like a kettle tied to the tail of a mad dog, or a -comet; the wild beasts think no more of him than if he were Mazeppa: -thus money makes the mare and its driver to go, as surely in Spain as in -all other countries. - -Another mode of travelling is by riding post, accompanied by a mounted -postilion, who is changed with the cattle at each relay. It is an -expeditious but fatiguing plan; yet one which, like the Tartar courier -of the East, has long prevailed in Spain. Thus our Charles I. rode to -Madrid under the name of John Smith, by which he was not likely to be -identified. The delight of Philip II., who boasted that he governed the -world from the Escorial, was to receive frequent and early intelligence; -and this desire to hear something new is still characteristic of the -Spanish government. The cabinet-couriers have the preference of horses -at every relay. The particular distances they have to perform are all -timed, and so many leagues are required to be done in a fixed time; and, -in order to encourage despatch, for every hour gained on the allowed -time, an additional sum was paid to them: hence the common expression -“_ganando horas_” gaining hours--equivalent to our old “post -haste--haste for your life.” - -[Sidenote: DILIGENCES.] - -[Sidenote: EXPENSES ON THE ROAD.] - -The usual mode of travelling for the affluent is in the public -conveyances, which are the fashion from being novelties and only -introduced under Ferdinand VII.; previously to their being allowed at -all, serious objections were started, similar to those raised by his -late Holiness to the introduction of railways into the papal states; it -was said that these tramontane facilities would bring in foreigners, and -with them philosophy, heresy, and innovations, by which the wisdom of -Spain’s ancestors might be upset. These scruples were ingeniously got -over by bribing the monarch with a large share of the profits. Now that -the royal monopoly is broken down, many new and competing companies have -sprung up; this mode of travelling is the cheapest and safest, nor is -it thought at all beneath the dignity of “the best set,” nay royalty -itself goes by the coach. Thus the Infante Don Francisco de Paula -constantly hires the whole of the diligence to convey himself and his -family from Madrid to the sea-coast; and one reason gravely given for -Don Enrique’s not coming to marry the Queen, was that his Royal Highness -could not get a place, as the dilly was booked full. The public -carriages of Spain are quite as good as those of France, and the company -who travel in them generally more respectable and better bred. This is -partly accounted for by the expense: the fares are not very high, yet -still form a serious item to the bulk of Spaniards; consequently those -who travel in the public carriages in Spain are the class who would in -other countries travel per post. It must, however, be admitted that all -travelling in the public conveyances of the Continent necessarily -implies great discomfort to those accustomed to their own carriages; and -with every possible precaution the long journeys in Spain, of three to -five hundred miles at a stretch, are such as few English ladies can -undergo, and are, even with men, undertakings rather of necessity than -of pleasure. The mail is organized on the plan of the French -malle-poste, and offers, to those who can stand the bumping, shaking, -and churning of continued and rapid travelling without halting, a means -of locomotion which leaves nothing to be desired. The diligences also -are imitations of the lumbering French model. It will be in vain to -expect in them the neatness, the well-appointed turn-out, the quiet, -time-keeping, and infinite facilities of the English original. These -matters when passed across the water are modified to the heroic -Continental contempt for doing things in style; cheapness, which is -their great principle, prefers rope-traces to those of leather, and a -carter to a regular coachman; the usual foreign drags also exist, which -render their slow coaches and bureaucratic absurdities so hateful to -free Britons; but when one is once booked and handed over to the -conductor, you arrive in due time at the journey’s end. The “guards” are -realities; they consist of stout, armed, most picturesque, robber-like -men and no mistake, since many, before they were pardoned and pensioned, -have frequently taken a purse on the Queen’s highway; for the foreground -of your first sketch, they are splendid fellows, and worth a score of -marshals. They are provided with a complete arsenal of swords and -blunderbusses, so that the cumbrous machine rolling over the sea of -plains looks like a man-of-war, and has been compared to a marching -citadel. Again in suspicious localities a mounted escort of equally -suspicious look gallops alongside, nor is the primitive practice of -black mail altogether neglected: the consequence of these admirable -precautions is, that the diligences are seldom or never robbed; the -thing, however, is possible. - -The whole of this garrisoned Noah’s ark is placed under the command of -the _Mayoral_ or conductor, who like all Spanish men in authority is a -despot, and yet, like them, is open to the conciliatory influences of a -bribe. He regulates the hours of toil and sleep, which latter--blessings, -says Sancho, on the man who invented it!--is uncertain, and depends on -the early or late arrival of the diligence and the state of the roads, -for all that is lost of the fixed time on the road is made up for by -curtailing the time allowed for repose. One of the many good effects of -setting up diligences is the bettering the inns on the road; and it is a -safe and general rule to travellers in Spain, whatever be their vehicle, -always to inquire in every town which is the _posada_ that the diligence -stops at. Persons were dispatched from Madrid to the different stations -on the great lines, to fit up houses, bed-rooms, and kitchens, and -provide everything for table, service; cooks were sent round to teach -the innkeepers to set out and prepare a proper dinner and supper. Thus, -in villages in which a few years before the use of a fork was scarcely -known, a table was laid out, clean, well served, and abundant. The -example set by the diligence inns has produced a beneficial effect, -since they offer a model, create competition, and suggest the existence -of many comforts, which were hitherto unknown among Spaniards, whose -abnegation of material enjoyments at home, and praiseworthy endurance of -privations of all kinds on journeys, are quite Oriental. - -[Sidenote: BEDS FOR TRAVELLERS.] - -In some of the new companies every expense is calculated in the fare, to -wit, journey, postilions, inns, &c., which is very convenient to the -stranger, and prevents the loss of much money and temper. A chapter on -the dilly is as much a standing dish in every Peninsular tour as a -bullfight or a bandit adventure, for which there is a continual demand -in the home-market; and no doubt in the long distances of Spain, where -men and women are boxed up for three or four mortal days together (the -nights not being omitted), the plot thickens, and opportunity is -afforded to appreciate costume and character; the farce or tragedy may -be spun out into as many acts as the journey takes days. In general the -order of the course is as follows: the breakfast consists at early dawn -of a cup of good stiff chocolate, which being the favourite drink of the -church and allowable even on fast days, is as nutritious as delicious. -It is accompanied by a bit of roasted or fried bread, and is followed by -a glass of cold water, to drink which is an axiom with all wise men who -respect the efficient condition of their livers. After rumbling on, over -a given number of leagues, when the passengers get well shaken together -and hungry, a regular knife and fork breakfast is provided that closely -resembles the dinner or supper which is served up later in the evening; -the table is plentiful, and the cookery to those who like oil and garlic -excellent. Those who do not, can always fall back on the bread and eggs, -which are capital; the wine is occasionally like purple blacking, and -sometimes serves also as vinegar for the salad, as the oil is said to be -used indifferently for lamps or stews; a bad dinner, especially if the -bill be long, and the wine sour, does not sweeten the passengers’ -tempers; they become quarrelsome, and if they have the good luck, a -little robber skirmish gives vent to ill-humour. - -[Sidenote: THE GALERA.] - -At nightfall after supper, a few hours are allowed on your part to steal -whatever rest the _mayoral_ and certain _voltigeurs_, creeping and -winged, will permit; the beds are plain and clean; sometimes the -mattresses may be compared to sacks of walnuts, but there is no pillow -so soft as fatigue; the beds are generally arranged in twos, threes, and -fours, according to the size of the room. The traveller should -immediately on arriving secure his, and see that it is comfortable, for -those who neglect to get a good one must sleep in a bad. Generally -speaking, by a little management, he may get a room to himself, or at -least select his companions. There is, moreover, a real civility and -politeness shown by all classes of Spaniards, on all occasions, towards -strangers and ladies; and that even failing, a small tip, “_una -gratificacioncita_,” given beforehand to the maid, or the waiter, seldom -fails to smooth all difficulties. On these, as on all occasions in -Spain, most things may be obtained by good humour, a smile, a joke, a -proverb, a cigar, or a bribe, which, though last, is by no means the -least resource, since it will be found to mollify the hardest heart and -smooth the greatest difficulties, after civil speeches had been tried in -vain, for _Dadivas quebrantan peñas, y entra sin barrenas_, gifts break -rocks, and penetrate without gimlets; again, _Mas ablanda dinero que -palabras de Caballero_, cash softens more than a gentleman’s palaver. -The mode of driving in Spain, which is so unlike our way of handling the -ribbons, will be described presently. - -Means of conveyance for those who cannot afford the diligence are -provided by vehicles of more genuine Spanish nature and discomfort; they -may be compared to the neat accommodation for man and beast which is -doled out to third-class passengers by our monopolist railway kings, who -have usurped her Majesty’s highway, and fleece her lieges by virtue of -act of Parliament. - -First and foremost comes the _galera_, which fully justifies its name; -and even those who have no value for their time or bones will, after a -short trial of the rack and dislocation, exclaim,--“_que diable -allais-je faire dans cette galère?_” These machines travel periodically -from town to town, and form the chief public and carrier communication -between most provincial cities; they are not much changed from that -classical cart, the _rheda_, into which, as we read in Juvenal, the -whole family of Fabricius was conveyed. In Spain these primitive -locomotives have stood still in the general advance of this age of -progress, and carry us back to our James I., and Fynes Moryson’s -accounts of “carryers who have long covered waggons, in which they carry -passengers from city to city; but this kind of journeying is so tedious, -by reason they must take waggons very early and come very late to their -innes, none but women and people of inferior condition used to travel in -this sort.” So it is now in Spain. - -[Sidenote: CARRIAGES AND CARTS.] - -This _galera_ is a long cart without springs; the sides are lined with -matting, while beneath hangs a loose open net, as under the calesinas of -Naples, in which lies and barks a horrid dog, who keeps a Cerberus watch -over iron pots and sieves, and such like gipsey utensils, and who is -never to be conciliated. These _galeras_ are of all sizes; but if a -_galera_ should be a larger sort of vehicle than is wanted, then a -“_tartana_” a sort of covered tilted cart, which is very common in -Valencia, and which is so called from a small Mediterranean craft of the -same name, will be found convenient. - -The packing and departure of the _galera_, when hired by a family who -remove their goods, is a thing of Spain; the heavy luggage is stowed in -first, and beds and mattresses spread on the top, on which the family -repose in admired disorder. The _galera_ is much used by the “poor -students” of Spain, a class unique of its kind, and full of rags and -impudence; their adventures have the credit of being rich and -picturesque, and recall some of the accounts of “waggon incidents” in -‘Roderick Random,’ and Smollett’s novels. - -Civilization, as connected with the wheel, is still at a low ebb in -Spain, notwithstanding the numerous political revolutions. Except in a -few great towns, the quiz vehicles remind us of those caricatures at -which one laughed so heartily in Paris in 1814; and in Madrid, even down -to Ferdinand VII.’s decease, the _Prado_--its rotten row--was filled -with antediluvian carriages--grotesque coachmen and footmen to match, -which with us would be put into the British Museum; they are now, alas -for painters and authors! worn out, and replaced by poor French -imitations of good English originals. - -[Sidenote: THE COCHE DE COLLERAS.] - -As the genuine older Spanish ones were built in remote ages, and before -the invention of folding steps, the ascent and descent were facilitated -by a three-legged footstool, which dangled, strapped up near the door, -as appears in the hieroglyphics of Egypt 4000 years ago; a pair of -long-eared fat mules, with hides and tails fantastically cut, was driven -by a superannuated postilion in formidable jackboots, and not less -formidable cocked hat of oil-cloth. In these, how often have we seen -Spanish grandees with pedigrees as old-fashioned, gravely taking the air -and dust! These slow coaches of old Spain have been rapidly sketched by -the clever young American; such are the ups and downs of nations and -vehicles. Spain for having discovered America has in return become her -butt; she cannot go a-head; so the great dust of Alexander may stop a -bung-hole, and we too join in the laugh and forget that our -ancestors--see Beaumont and Fletcher’s ‘Maid of the Inn’--talked of -“_hurrying_ on featherbeds that move upon four-wheel Spanish -_caroches_.” - -While on these wheel subjects it may be observed that the carts and -other machines of Spanish rural locomotion and husbandry have not -escaped better; when not Oriental they are Roman; rude in form and -material, they are always odd, picturesque, and inconvenient. The -peasant, for the most part, scratches the earth with a plough modelled -after that invented by Triptolemus, beats out his corn as described by -Homer, and carries his harvest home in strict obedience to the rules in -the Georgics. The iron work is iniquitous, but both sides of the -Pyrenees are centuries behind England; there, absurd tariffs prohibit -the importation of our cheap and good work in order to encourage their -own bad and dear wares--thus poverty and ignorance are perpetuated. - -The carts in the north-west provinces are the unchanged _plaustra_, with -solid wheels, the Roman _tympana_ which consist of mere circles of wood, -without spokes or axles, much like mill-stones or Parmesan cheeses, and -precisely such as the old Egyptians used, as is seen in hieroglyphics, -and no doubt much resembling those sent by Joseph for his father, which -are still used by the Affghans and other unadvanced coachmakers. The -whole wheel turns round together with a piteous creaking; the drivers, -whose leathern ears are as blunt as their edgeless teeth, delight in -this excruciating _Chirrio_, Arabicè _charrar_, to make a _noise_, which -they call music, and delight in, because it is cheap and plays to them -of itself; they, moreover, think it frightens wolves, bears, and the -devil himself, as Don Quixote says, which it well may, for the wheel of -Ixion, although damned in hell, never whined more piteously. The doleful -sounds, however, serve like our waggoners’ lively bells, as warnings to -other drivers, who, in narrow paths and gorges of rocks, where two -carriages cannot pass, have this notice given them, and draw aside until -the coast is clear. - -We have reserved some details and the mode of driving for the _coche de -colleras_, the _caroche_ of horse-collars, which is the real coach of -Spain, and in which we have made many a pleasant trip; it too is doomed -to be scheduled away, for Spaniards are descending from these coaches -and six to a chariot and pair, and by degrees beautifully less, to a -fly. - -[Sidenote: THE COCHE DE COLLERAS.] - -Mails and diligences, we have said, are only established on the -principal high roads connected with Madrid: there are but few local -coaches which run from one provincial town to another, where the -necessity of frequent and certain intercommunication is little called -for. In the other provinces, where these modern conveniences have not -been introduced, the earlier mode of travelling is the only resource -left to families of children, women, and invalids, who are unable to -perform the journey on horseback. This is the _festina lentè_, or -voiturier system; and from its long continuance in Italy and Spain, in -spite of all the improvements adopted in other countries, it would -appear to have something congenial and peculiarly fitted to the habits -and wants of those cognate nations of the south, who have a -Gotho-Oriental dislike to be hurried--_no corre priesa_, there is plenty -of time. _Sie haben zeit genug._ - -[Sidenote: THE MAYORAL.] - -The Spanish vetturino, or “_Calesero_,” is to be found, as in Italy, -standing for hire in particular and well-known places in every principal -town. There is not much necessity for hunting for _him_; he has the -Italian instinctive perception of a stranger and traveller, and the same -importunity in volunteering himself, his cattle, and carriage, for any -part of Spain. The man, however, and his equipage are peculiarly -Spanish; his carriage and his team have undergone little change during -the last two centuries, and are the representatives of the former ones -of Europe; they resemble those vehicles once used in England, which may -still be seen in the old prints of country-houses by Kip; or, as regards -France, in the pictures of Louis XIV.’s journeys and campaigns by -Vandermeulen. They are the remnant of the once universal “coach and -six,” in which according to Pope, who was not infallible, British fair -were to delight for ever. The “_coche de colleras_” is a huge cumbrous -machine, built after the fashion of a reduced lord mayor’s coach, or -some of the equipages of the old cardinals at Rome. It is ornamented -with rude sculpture, gilding, and painting of glaring colour, but the -modern pea-jacket and round hat spoil the picture which requires -passengers dressed in brocade and full-bottomed wigs; the fore-wheels -are very low, the hind ones very high, and both remarkably narrow in the -tire; remember when they stick in the mud, and the drivers call upon -Santiago, to push the vehicle out _backwards_, as the more you draw it -forwards the deeper you get into the mire. The pole sticks out like the -bowsprit of a ship, and contains as much wood and iron work as would go -to a small waggon. The interior is lined with gay silk and gaudy plush, -adorned with lace and embroidery, with doors that open indifferently and -windows that do not shut well; latterly the general poverty and _prose_ -of transpyrenean civilization has effaced much of these ornate -nationalities, both in coach and drivers; better roads and lighter -vehicles require fewer horses, which were absolutely necessary formerly -to drag the heavy concern through heavier ways. - -[Sidenote: THE ZAGAL.] - -[Sidenote: DRIVING IN SPAIN.] - -The luggage is piled up behind, or stowed away in a front boot. The -management of driving this vehicle is conducted by two persons. The -master is called the “_mayoral_;” his helper or cad the “_mozo_,” or, -more properly, “_el zagal_,” from the Arabic, “a strong active youth.” -The costume is peculiar, and is based on that of Andalucia, which sets -the fashion all over the Peninsula, in all matters regarding -bull-fighting, horse-dealing, robbing, smuggling, and so forth. He wears -on his head a gay-coloured silk handkerchief, tied in such a manner that -the tails hang down behind; over this remnant of the Moorish turban he -places a high-peaked sugarloaf-shaped hat with broad brims; his jaunty -jacket is made either of black sheepskin, studded with silver tags and -filigree buttons, or of brown cloth, with the back, arms, and -particularly the elbows, welted and tricked out with flowers and vases, -cut in patches of different-coloured cloth and much embroidered. When -the jacket is not worn, it is usually hung over the left shoulder, after -the hussar fashion. The waistcoat is made of rich fancy silk; the -breeches of blue or green velvet plush, ornamented with stripes and -filigree buttons, and tied at the knee with silken cords and tassels; -the neck is left open, and the shirt collar turned down, and a gaudy -neck-handkerchief is worn, oftener passed through a ring than tied in a -knot; his waist is girt with a red sash, or with one of a bright yellow. -This “_faja_,"[3] a _sine quâ non_, is the old Roman zona; it serves -also for a purse, “girds the loins,” and keeps up a warmth over the -abdomen, which is highly beneficial in hot climates, and wards off any -tendency to irritable colic; in the sash is stuck the “_navaja_,” the -knife, which is part and parcel of a Spaniard, and behind the “_zagal_” -usually places his stick. The richly embroidered gaiters are left open -at the outside to show a handsome stocking; the shoes are yellow, like -those of our cricketers, and are generally made of untanned calfskin, -which being the colour of dust require no cleaning. The _caleseros_ on -the eastern coast wear the Valencian stocking, which has no feet to -it--being open at bottom, it is likened by wags to a Spaniard’s purse; -instead of top boots they wear the ancient Roman sandals, made of the -_esparto_ rush, with hempen soles, which are called “_alpargatas_,” -Arabicè _Alpalgah_. The “_zagal_” follows the fashion in dress of the -“_mayoral_,” as nearly as his means will permit him. He is the servant -of all-work, and must be ready on every occasion; nor can any one who -has ever seen the hard and incessant toil which these men undergo, -justly accuse them of being indolent--a reproach which has been cast -somewhat indiscriminately on all the lower classes of Spain; he runs by -the side of the carriage, picks up stones to pelt the mules, ties and -unties knots, and pours forth a volley of blows and oaths from the -moment of starting to that of arrival. He sometimes is indulged with a -ride by the side of the mayoral on the box, when he always uses the tail -of the hind mule to pull himself up into his seat. The harnessing the -six animals is a difficult operation; first the tackle of ropes is laid -out on the ground, then each beast is brought into his portion of the -rigging. The start is always an important ceremony, and, as our royal -mail used to do in the country, brings out all the idlers in the -vicinity. When the team is harnessed, the mayoral gets all his skeins of -ropes into his hand, the “_zagal_” his sash full of stones, the helpers -at the venta their sticks; at a given signal all fire a volley of oaths -and blows at the team, which, once in motion, away it goes, pitching -over ruts deep as routine prejudices, with its pole dipping and rising -like a ship in a rolling sea, and continues at a brisk pace, performing -from twenty-five to thirty miles a-day. The hours of starting are early, -in order to avoid the mid-day heat; in these matters the Spanish customs -are pretty much the same with the Italian; the _calesero_ is always the -best judge of the hours of departure and these minor details, which vary -according to circumstances. - -Whenever a particularly bad bit of road occurs, notice is given to the -team by calling over their names, and by crying out “_arré, arré_,” -gee-up, which is varied with “_firmé, firmé_,” steady, boy, steady! The -names of the animals are always fine-sounding and polysyllabic; the -accent is laid on the last syllable, which is always dwelt on and -lengthened out with a particular -emphasis--_Căpĭtănā-ā_--_Băndŏlĕrā-ā_--_Gĕnĕrălā-ā_--_Vălĕrŏsā-ā_. -All this vocal driving is performed at the top of the voice, and, -indeed, next to scaring away crows in a field, must be considered the -best possible practice for the lungs. The team often exceeds six in -number, and never is less; the proportion of females predominates: there -is generally one male mule making the seventh, who is called “_el -macho_,” the male par excellence, like the Grand Turk, or a substantive -in a speech in Cortes, which seldom has less than half a dozen epithets: -he invariably comes in for the largest share of abuse and ill usage, -which, indeed, he deserves the most, as the male mule is infinitely more -stubborn and viciously inclined than the female. Sometimes there is a -horse of the Rosinante breed; he is called “_el cavallo_,” or rather, as -it is pronounced, “_el căvăl yō-ō_.” The horse is always the -best used of the team; to be a rider, “_caballero_,” is the Spaniard’s -synonym for gentleman; and it is their correct mode of addressing each -other, and is banded gravely among the lower orders, who never have -crossed any quadruped save a mule or a jackass. - -[Sidenote: SWEARING.] - -The driving a _coche de colleras_ is quite a science of itself, and is -observed in conducting _diligences_; it amuses the Spanish “_majo_” or -fancy-man as much as coach-driving does the fancy-man of England; the -great art lies not in handling the ribbons, but in the proper modulation -of the voice, since the cattle are always addressed individually by -their names; the first syllables are pronounced very rapidly; the -“_macho_,” the male mule, who is the most abused, is the only one who is -not addressed by any names beyond that of his sex: the word is repeated -with a voluble iteration; in order to make the two syllables longer, -they are strung together thus, _măchŏ--măchŏ--măchŏ--măcho-ŏ_: they begin in -semiquavers, flowing on crescendo to a semibreve or breve, so the four -words are compounded into one polysyllable. The horse, _caballo_, is -simply called so; he has no particular name of his own, which the female -mules are never without, and which they perfectly know--indeed, the -owners will say that they understand them, and all bad language, as well -as Christian women, “_como Cristianas_;” and, to do the beasts justice, -they seem more shocked and discomfited thereby than the bipeds who -profess the same creed. If the animal called to does not answer by -pricking up her ears, or by quickening her pace, the threat of “_lă -vărā_,” the stick, is added--the last argument of Spanish drivers, -men in office, and schoolmasters, with whom there is no sort of reason -equal to that of the bastinado, “_no hay tal razon, como la del -baston_.” It operates on the timorous more than “unadorned eloquence.” -The Moors thought so highly of the bastinado, that they held the stick -to be a special gift from Allah to the faithful. It holds good, _à -priori_ and _à posteriori_, to mule and boy, “_al hijo y mulo, para el -culo_;” and if the “_macho_” be in fault, and he is generally punished -to encourage the others, some abuse is added to blows, such as “_que -pĕrrō-ō_,” “what a dog!” or some unhandsome allusion to his -mother, which is followed by throwing a stone at the leaders, for no -whip could reach them from the coach-box. When any particular mule’s -name is called, if her companion be the next one to be abused, she is -seldom addressed by her name, but is spoken to as “_a la -ŏtrā-ā_,” “_aquella ŏtrā-ā_,” “Now for that other -one,” which from long association is expected and acknowledged. The team -obeys the voice and is in admirable command. Few things are more -entertaining than driving them, especially over bad roads; but it -requires much practice in Spanish speaking and swearing. - -[Sidenote: SPANISH OATHS.] - -[Sidenote: HINTS FOR HIRING.] - -Among the many commandments that are always broken in Spain, that of -“swear not at all” is not the least. “Our army swore lustily in -Flanders,” said Uncle Toby. But few nations can surpass the Spaniards in -the language of vituperation: it is limited only by the extent of their -anatomical, geographical, astronomical, and religious knowledge; it is -so plentifully bestowed on their animals--“un muletier à ce jeu vaut -trois rois”--that oaths and imprecations seem to be considered as the -only language the mute creation can comprehend; and as actions are -generally suited to the words, the combination is remarkably effective. -As much of the traveller’s time on the road must be passed among beasts -and muleteers, who are not unlike them, some knowledge of their sayings -and doings is of great use: to be able to talk to them in their own -lingo, to take an interest in them and in their animals, never fails to -please; “_Por vida del demonio, mas sabe Usia que nosotros_;” “by the -life of the devil, your honour knows more than we,” is a common form of -compliment. When once equality is established, the master mind soon -becomes the real master of the rest. The great oath of Spain, which -ought never to be written or pronounced, practically forms the -foundation of the language of the lower orders; it is a most ancient -remnant of the phallic abjuration of the evil eye, the dreaded -fascination which still perplexes the minds of Orientals, and is not -banished from Spanish and Neapolitan superstitions.[4] The word -terminates in _ajo_, on which great stress is laid: the _j_ is -pronounced with a most Arabic, guttural aspiration. The word _ajo_ means -also garlic, which is quite as often in Spanish mouths, and is exactly -what Hotspur liked, a “mouth-filling oath,” energetic and Michael -Angelesque. The pun has been extended to onions: thus, “_ajos y -cebollas_” means oaths and imprecations. The sting of the oath is in the -“_ajo_;” all women and quiet men, who do not wish to be particularly -objurgatory, but merely to enforce and give a little additional vigour, -un soupçon d’ail, or a shotting to their discourse, drop the offensive -“_ajo_,” and say “_car_,” “_carai_,” “_caramba_.” The Spanish oath is -used as a verb, as a substantive, as an adjective, just as it suits the -grammar or the wrath of the utterer. It is equivalent also to a certain -place and the person who lives there. “_Vaya Usted al C--ajo_” is the -worst form of the angry “_Vaya Usted al demonio_,” or “_á los -infiernos_,” and is a whimsical mixture of courtesy and transportation. -“Your Grace may go to the devil, or to the infernal regions!” - -Thus these imprecatory vegetables retain in Spain their old Egyptian -flavour and mystical charm; as on the Nile, according to Pliny, onions -and garlic were worshipped as adjuratory divinities. The Spaniards have -also added most of the gloomy northern Gothic oaths, which are -imprecatory, to the Oriental, which are grossly sensual. Enough of this. -The traveller who has much to do with Spanish mules and asses, biped or -quadruped, will need no hand-book to teach him the sixty-five or more -“_serments espaignols_” on which Mons. de Brantome wrote a treatise. -More becoming will it be to the English gentleman to swear not at all; a -reasonable indulgence in _Caramba_ is all that can be permitted; the -custom is more honoured in the breach than in the observance, and bad -luck seldom deserts the house of the imprecator. “_En la casa del que -jura, no falta desaventura._” - -[Sidenote: HINTS FOR HIRING.] - -Previously to hiring one of these “coaches of collars,” which is rather -an expensive amusement, every possible precaution should be taken in -clearly and minutely specifying everything to be done, and the price; -the Spanish “_caleseros_” rival their Italian colleagues in that -untruth, roguery, and dishonesty, which seem everywhere to combine -readily with jockeyship, and distinguishes those who handle the whip, -“do jobbings,” and conduct mortals by horses; the fee to be given to the -drivers should never be included in the bargain, as the keeping this -important item open and dependent on the good behaviour of the future -recipients offers a sure check over master and man, and other -road-classes. In justice, however, to this class of Spaniards, it may be -said that on the whole they are civil, good-humoured, and hard-working, -and, from not having been accustomed to either the screw bargaining or -alternate extravagance of the English travellers in Italy, are as -tolerably fair in their transactions as can be expected from human -nature brought in constant contact with four-legged and four-wheeled -temptations. They offer to the artist an endless subject of the -picturesque; everything connected with them is full of form, colour, and -originality. They can do nothing, whether sitting, driving, sleeping, -or eating, that does not make a picture; the same may be said of their -animals and their habits and harness; those who draw will never find the -midday halt long enough for the infinite variety of subject and scenery -to which their travelling equipage and attendants form the most peculiar -and appropriate foreground: while our modern poetasters will consider -them quite as worthy of being sung in immortal verse as the Cambridge -carrier Hobson, who was Milton’s choice. - -[Sidenote: THE ANDALUCIAN HORSE.] - - - - -CHAPTER VII. - - Spanish Horses--Mules--Asses--Muleteers--Maragatos. - - -We now proceed to Spanish quadrupeds, having placed the wheel-carriages -before the horses. That of Andalucia takes precedence of all; he fetches -the highest price, and the Spaniards in general value no other breed; -they consider his configuration and qualities as perfect, and in some -respects they are right, for no horse is more elegant or more easy in -his motions, none are more gentle or docile, none are more quick in -acquiring showy accomplishments, or in performing feats of Astleyan -agility; he has very little in common with the English blood-horse; his -mane is soft and silky, and is frequently plaited with gay ribbons; his -tail is of great length, and left in all the proportions of nature, not -cropped and docked, by which Voltaire was so much offended:-- - - “Fiers et bizarres Anglais, qui des mêmes ciseaux - Coupez la tête aux rois, et la queue aux chevaux.” - -[Sidenote: OTHER SPANISH HORSES.] - -It often trails to the very ground, while the animal has perfect command -over it, lashing it on every side as a gentleman switches his cane; -therefore, when on a journey, it is usual to double and tie it up, after -the fashion of the ancient pig-tails of our sailors. The Andalucian -horse is round in his quarters, though inclined to be small in the -barrel; he is broad-chested, and always carries his head high, -especially when going a good pace; his length of leg adds to his height, -which sometimes reaches to sixteen hands; he never, however, stretches -out with the long graceful sweep of the English thorough-bred; his -action is apt to be loose and shambling, and he is given to _dishing_ -with the feet. The pace is, notwithstanding, perfectly delightful. From -being very long in the pastern, the motion is broken as it were by the -springs of a carriage; their pace is the peculiar “_paso Castellano_,” -which is something more than a walk, and less than a trot, and it is -truly sedate and sedan-chair-like, and suits a grave Don, who is given, -like a Turk, to tobacco and contemplation. Those Andalucian horses which -fall when young into the hands of the officers at Gibraltar acquire a -very different action, and lay themselves better down to their work, and -gain much more in speed from the English system of training than they -would have done had they been managed by Spaniards. Taught or untaught, -this _pace_ is most gentlemanlike, and well did Beaumont and Fletcher - - “Think it noble, as Spaniards do in riding, - In managing a great horse, which is princely;” - -and as has been said, is the only attitude in which the kings of the -Spains, true Φιλιπποι, ought ever to be painted, witching the -world with noble horsemanship. - -Many other provinces possess breeds which are more useful, though far -less showy, than the Andalucian. The horse of Castile is a strong, hardy -animal, and the best which Spain produces for mounting heavy cavalry. -The ponies of Gallicia, although ugly and uncouth, are admirably suited -to the wild hilly country and laborious population; they require very -little care or grooming, and are satisfied with coarse food and Indian -corn. The horses of Navarre, once so celebrated, are still esteemed for -their hardy strength; they have, from neglect, degenerated into ponies, -which, however, are beautiful in form, hardy, docile, sure-footed, and -excellent trotters. In most of the large towns of Spain there is a sort -of market, where horses are publicly sold; but Ronda fair, in May, is -the great Howden and Horncastle of the four provinces of Seville, -Cordova, Jaen, and Granada, and the resort of all the picturesque-looking -rogues of the south. The reader of Don Quixote need not be told that the -race of Gines Passamonte is not extinct; the Spanish _Chalanes_, or -horse-dealers, have considerable talents; but the cleverest is but a -mere child when compared to the perfection of rascality to which a real -English professor has attained in the mysteries of lying, chaunting, and -making up a horse. - -[Sidenote: MULES.] - -The breeding of horses was carefully attended to by the Spanish -government previously to the invasion of the French, by whom the entire -horses and brood-mares were either killed or stolen, and the buildings -and stables burnt. - -The saddles used commonly in Spain are Moorish; they are made with high -peak and croup behind; the stirrup-irons are large triangularly-shaped -boxes. The food is equally Oriental, and consists of “barley and straw,” -as mentioned in the Bible. We well remember the horror of our Andalucian -groom, on our first reaching Gallicia, when he rushed in, exclaiming -that the beasts would perish, as nothing was to be had there but oats -and hay. After some difficulty he was persuaded to see if they would eat -it, which to his surprise they actually did; such, however, is habit, -that they soon fell out of condition, and did not recover until the damp -mountains were quitted for the arid plains of Castile. - -[Sidenote: ASSES.] - -Spaniards in general prefer mules and asses to the horse, which is more -delicate, requires greater attention, and is less sure-footed over -broken and precipitous ground. The mule performs in Spain the functions -of the camel in the East, and has something in his morale (besides his -physical suitableness to the country) which is congenial to the -character of his masters; he has the same self-willed obstinacy, the -same resignation under burdens, the same singular capability of -endurance of labour, fatigue, and privation. The mule has always been -much used in Spain, and the demand for them very great; yet, from some -mistaken crotchet of Spanish political economy (which is very Spanish), -the breeding of the mule has long been attempted to be prevented, in -order to encourage that of the horse. One of the reasons alleged was, -that the mule was a non-reproductive animal; an argument which might or -ought to apply equally to the monk; a breed for which Spain could have -shown for the first prize, both as to number and size, against any other -country in all Christendom. This attempt to force the production of an -animal far less suited to the wants and habits of the people has failed, -as might be expected. The difficulties thrown in the way have only -tended to raise the prices of mules, which are, and always were, very -dear; a good mule will fetch from 25_l._ to 50_l._, while a horse of -relative goodness may be purchased for from 20_l._ to 40_l._ Mules were -always very dear; thus Martial, like a true Andalucian Spaniard, _talks_ -of one which cost more than a house. The most esteemed are those bred -from the mare and the ass, or _"garañon"_[5] some of which are of -extraordinary size; and one which Don Carlos had in his stud-house at -Aranjuez in 1832 exceeded fifteen hands in height. This colossal ass and -a Spanish infante were worthy of each other. - -The mules in Spain, as in the East, have their coats closely shorn or -clipped; part of the hair is usually left on in stripes like the zebra, -or cut into fanciful patterns, like the tattooings of a New Zealand -chief. This process of shearing is found to keep the beast cooler and -freer from cutaneous disorders. The operation is performed in the -southern provinces by gipsies, who are the same tinkers, horse-dealers, -and vagrants in Spain as elsewhere. Their clipping recalls the “mulo -curto,” on which Horace could amble even to Brundusium. The operators -rival in talent those worthy Frenchmen who cut the hair of poodles on -the Pont Neuf, in the heart and brain of European civilization. Their -Spanish colleagues may be known by the shears, formidable and -classical-shaped as those of Lachesis and her sisters, which they carry -in their sashes. They are very particular in clipping the heels and -pasterns, which they say ought to be as free from superfluous hair as -the palm of a lady’s hand. - -Spanish asses have been immortalised by Cervantes; they are endeared to -us by Sancho’s love and talent of imitation; he brayed so well, be it -remembered, that all the long-eared chorus joined a performer who, in -his own modest phrase, only wanted a tail to be a perfect donkey. -Spanish mayors, according to Don Quixote, have a natural talent for this -braying; but, save and except in the west of England, their right -worshipfuls may be matched elsewhere. - -[Sidenote: ASSES OF LA MANCHA.] - -[Sidenote: THE MULETEER.] - -The humble ass, “_burro_,” “_borrico_,” is the rule, the as in præsenti, -and part and parcel of every Spanish scene: he forms the appropriate -foreground in streets or roads. Wherever two or three Spaniards are -collected together in market, _junta_, or “congregation,” there is quite -sure to be an ass among them; he is the hardworked companion of the -lower orders, to whom to work is the greatest misfortune; sufferance is -indeed the common virtue of both tribes. They may, perhaps, both wince a -little when a new burden or a new tax is laid on them by Señor Mon, but -they soon, when they see that there is no remedy, bear on and endure: -from this fellow-feeling, master and animal cherish each other at heart, -though, from the blows and imprecations bestowed openly, the former may -be thought by hasty observers to be ashamed of confessing these -predilections in public. Some under-current, no doubt, remains of the -ancient prejudices of chivalry; but Cervantes, who thoroughly understood -human nature in general, and Spanish nature in particular, has most -justly dwelt on the dear love which Sancho Panza felt for his “_Rucio_,” -and marked the reciprocity of the brute, affectionate as intelligent. In -fact, in the _Sagra_ district, near Toledo, he is called _El vecino_, -one of the householders; and none can look a Spanish ass in the face -without remarking a peculiar expression, which indicates that the hairy -fool considers himself, like the pig in a cabin of the “first gem of the -sea,” to be one of the family, _de la familia_, or _de nosotros_. La -Mancha is the paradise of mules and asses; many a Sancho at this moment -is there fondling and embracing his ass, his “_chato chatito_,” -“_romo_,” or other complimentary variations of _Snub_, with which, when -not abusing him, he delights to nickname his helpmate. In Spain, as -Sappho says, Love is γλυκυπικρον, an alternation of the -agro-dolce; nor is there any Prevention of Cruelty Society towards -animals; every Spaniard has the same right in law and equity to kick and -beat his own ass to his own liking, as a philanthropical Yankee has to -wallop his own niggar; no one ever thinks of interposing on these -occasions, any more than they would in a quarrel between a man and his -wife. The _words_ are, at all events, on one side. It is, however, -recorded _in piam memoriam_, of certain Roman Catholic asses of Spain, -that they tried to throw off one Tomas Trebiño and some other heretics, -when on the way to be burnt, being horror-struck at bearing such -monsters. Every Spanish peasant is heart-broken when injury is done to -his ass, as well he may be, for it is the means by which he lives; nor -has he much chance, if he loses him, of finding a crown when hunting for -him, as was once done, or even a government like Sancho. Sterne would -have done better to have laid the venue of his sentimentalities over a -dead ass in Spain, rather than in France, where the quadruped species is -much rarer. In Spain, where small carts and wheel-barrows are almost -unknown, and the drawing them is considered as beneath the dignity of -the Spanish man, the substitute, an ass, is in constant employ; -sometimes it is laden with sacks of corn, with wine-skins, with -water-jars, with dung, or with dead robbers, slung like sacks over the -back, their arms and legs tied under the animal’s belly. Asses’ milk, -“_leche de burra_,” is in much request during the spring season. The -brown sex drink it in order to fine their complexions and cool their -blood, “_refrescar la sangre_;” the clergy and men in office, “_los -empleados_,” to whom it is mother’s milk, swallow it in order that it -may give tone to their gastric juices. Riding on assback was accounted a -disgrace and a degradation to the Gothic hidalgo, and the Spaniards, in -the sixteenth century, mounted unrepining cuckolds, “_los cornudos -pacientes_,” on asses. Now-a-days, in spite of all these unpleasant -associations, the grandees and their wives, and even grave ambassadors -from foreign parts, during the royal residence at Aranjuez, much delight -in elevating themselves on this beast of ill omen, and “_borricadas_” or -donkey parties are all the fashion. - -[Sidenote: THE MULETEER.] - -[Sidenote: MARAGATOS.] - -The muleteer of Spain is justly renowned; his generic term is _arriero_, -a gee-uper, for his _arre arre_ is pure Arabic, as indeed are almost all -the terms connected with his craft, as the Moriscoes were long the great -carriers of Spain. To travel with the muleteer, when the party is small -or a person is alone, is both cheap and safe; indeed, many of the most -picturesque portions of Spain, Ronda and Granada for instance, can -scarcely be reached except by walking or riding. These men, who are -constantly on the road, and going backwards and forwards, are the best -persons to consult for details; their animals are generally to be hired, -but a muleteer’s stud is not pleasant to ride, since their beasts always -travel in single files. The leading animal is furnished with a copper -bell with a wooden clapper, to give notice of their march, which is -shaped like an ice-mould, sometimes two feet long, and hangs from the -neck, being contrived, as it were, on purpose to knock the animal’s -knees as much as possible, and to emit the greatest quantity of the most -melancholy sounds, which, according to the pious origin of all bells, -were meant to scare away the Evil One. The bearer of all this -tintinnabular clatter is chosen from its superior docility and knack in -picking out a way. The others follow their leader, and the noise he -makes when they cannot see him. They are heavily but scientifically -laden. The cargo of each is divided into three portions; one is tied on -each side, and the other placed between. If the cargo be not nicely -balanced, the muleteer either unloads or adds a few stones to the -lighter portion--the additional weight being compensated by the greater -comfort with which a well-poised burden is carried. These “sumpter” -mules are gaily decorated with trappings full of colour and tags. The -head-gear is composed of different coloured worsteds, to which a -multitude of small bells are affixed; hence the saying, “_muger de mucha -campanilla_,” a woman of many bells, of much show, much noise, or -pretension. The muleteer either walks by the side of his animal or sits -aloft on the cargo, with his feet dangling on the neck, a seat which is -by no means so uncomfortable as it would appear. A rude gun, “but ’twill -serve,” and is loaded with slugs, hangs always in readiness by his side, -and often with it a guitar; these emblems of life and death paint the -unchanged reckless condition of Iberia, where extremes have ever met, -where a man still goes out of the world like a swan, with a song. Thus -accoutred, as Byron says, with “all that gave, promise of pleasure or a -grave,” the approach of the caravan is announced from afar by his -cracked or guttural voice: “How carols now the lusty muleteer!” For when -not engaged in swearing or smoking, the livelong day is passed in one -monotonous high-pitched song, the tune of which is little in harmony -with the import of the words, or his cheerful humour, being most -unmusical and melancholy; but such is the true type of Oriental -_melody_, as it is called. The same absence of thought which is shown in -England by whistling is displayed in Spain by singing. “_Quien canta sus -males espanta:_” he who sings frightens away ills, a philosophic -consolation in travel as old and as classical as Virgil:--“Cantantes -licet usque, minus via tædet, camus,” which may be thus translated for -the benefit of country gentlemen:-- - - If we join in doleful chorus, - The dull highway will much less bore us. - -The Spanish muleteer is a fine fellow; he is intelligent, active, and -enduring; he braves hunger and thirst, heat and cold, mud and dust; he -works as hard as his cattle, never robs or is robbed; and while his -betters in this land put off everything till to-morrow except -bankruptcy, he is punctual and honest, his frame is wiry and sinewy, his -costume peculiar; many are the leagues and long, which we have ridden in -his caravan, and longer his robber yarns, to which we paid no attention; -and it must be admitted that these cavalcades are truly national and -picturesque. Mingled with droves of mules and mounted horsemen, the -zig-zag lines come threading down the mountain defiles, now tracking -through the aromatic brushwood, now concealed amid rocks and -olive-trees, now emerging bright and glittering into the sunshine, -giving life and movement to the lonely nature, and breaking the usual -stillness by the tinkle of the bell and the sad ditty of the -muleteer--sounds which, though unmusical in themselves, are in keeping -with the scene, and associated with wild Spanish rambles, just as the -harsh whetting of the scythe is mixed up with the sweet spring and -newly-mown hay-meadow. - -[Sidenote: COSTUME OF THE MARAGATOS.] - -There is one class of muleteers which are but little known to European -travellers--the _Maragatos_, whose head-quarters are at _San Roman_, -near _Astorga_; they, like the Jew and gipsy, live exclusively among -their own people, preserving their primeval costume and customs, and -never marrying out of their own tribe. They are as perfectly nomad and -wandering as the Bedouins, the mule only being substituted for the -camel; their honesty and industry are proverbial. They are a sedate, -grave, dry, matter-of-fact, business-like people. Their charges are -high, but the security counterbalances, as they may be trusted with -untold gold. They are the channels of all traffic between Gallicia and -the Castiles, being seldom seen in the south or east provinces. They are -dressed in leathern jerkins, which fit tightly like a cuirass, leaving -the arms free. Their linen is coarse but white, especially the shirt -collar; a broad leather belt, in which there is a purse, is fastened -round the waist. Their breeches, like those of the Valencians, are -called _Zaraguelles_, a pure Arabic word for kilts or wide drawers, and -no burgomaster of Rembrandt is more broad-bottomed. Their legs are -encased in long brown cloth gaiters, with red garters; their hair is -generally cut close--sometimes, however, strange tufts are left. A huge, -slouching, flapping hat completes the most inconvenient of travelling -dresses, and it is too Dutch to be even picturesque; but these fashions -are as unchangeable as the laws of the Medes and Persians were; nor will -any Maragato dream of altering his costume until those dressed models of -painted wood do which strike the hours of the clock on the square of -_Astorga_: _Pedro Mato_, also, another figure _costumée_, who holds a -weathercock at the cathedral, is the observed of all observers; and, in -truth, this particular costume is, as that of Quakers used to be, a -guarantee of their tribe and respectability; thus even Cordero, the rich -Maragato deputy, appeared in Cortes in this local costume. - -[Sidenote: THEIR ORIGIN.] - -The dress of the Maragata is equally peculiar: she wears, if married, a -sort of head-gear, _El Caramiello_, in the shape of a crescent, the -round part coming over the forehead, which is very Moorish, and -resembles those of the females in the basso-rilievos at Granada. Their -hair flows loosely on their shoulders, while their apron or petticoat -hangs down open before and behind, and is curiously tied at the back -with a sash, and their bodice is cut square over the bosom. At their -festivals they are covered with ornaments of long chains of coral and -metal, with crosses, relics, and medals in silver. Their earrings are -very heavy, and supported by silken threads, as among the Jewesses in -Barbary. A marriage is the grand feast; then large parties assemble, and -a president is chosen, who puts into a waiter whatever sum of money he -likes, and all invited must then give as much. The bride is enveloped in -a mantle, which she wears the whole day, and never again except on that -of her husband’s death. She does not dance at the wedding-ball. Early -next morning two roast chickens are brought to the bed-side of the happy -pair. The next evening ball is opened by the bride and her husband, to -the tune of the _gaita_, or Moorish bagpipe. Their dances are grave and -serious; such indeed is their whole character. The _Maragatos_, with -their honest, weather-beaten countenances, are seen with files of mules -all along the high road to La Coruña. They generally walk, and, like -other Spanish _arrieros_, although they sing and curse rather less, are -employed in one ceaseless shower of stones and blows at their mules. - -The whole tribe assembles twice a year at Astorga, at the feasts of -Corpus and the Ascension, when they dance _El Canizo_, beginning at two -o’clock in the afternoon, and ending precisely at three. If any one not -a _Maragato_ joins, they all leave off immediately. The women never -wander from their homes, which their undomestic husbands always do. They -lead the hardworked life of the Iberian females of old, and now, as -then, are to be seen everywhere in these west provinces toiling in the -fields, early before the sun has risen, and late after it has set; and -it is most painful to behold them drudging at these unfeminine -vocations. - -The origin of the _Maragatos_ has never been ascertained. Some consider -them to be a remnant of the Celtiberian, others of the Visigoths; most, -however, prefer a Bedouin, or caravan descent. It is in vain to question -these ignorant carriers as to their history or origin; for like the -gipsies, they have no traditions, and know nothing. _Arrieros_, at all -events, they are; and that word, in common with so many others relating -to the barb and carrier-caravan craft, is Arabic, and proves whence the -system and science were derived by Spaniards. - -[Sidenote: TRAVELLING IN THE INTERIOR.] - -The _Maragatos_ are celebrated for their fine beasts of burden; indeed, -the mules of Leon are renowned, and the asses splendid and numerous, -especially the nearer one approaches to the learned university of -Salamanca. The _Maragatos_ take precedence on the road; they are the -lords of the highway, being _the_ channels of commerce in a land where -mules and asses represent luggage rail trains. They know and feel their -importance, and that they are the rule, and the traveller for mere -pleasure is the exception. Few Spanish muleteers are much more polished -than their beasts, and however picturesque the scene, it is no joke -meeting a string of laden beasts in a narrow road, especially with a -precipice on one side, _cosa de España_. The _Maragatos_ seldom give -way, and their mules keep doggedly on; as the baggage projects on each -side, like the paddles of a steamer, they sweep the whole path. But all -wayfaring details in the genuine Spanish interior are calculated for the -_pack_, as in England a century back; and there is no thought bestowed -on the foreigner, who is not wanted, nay is disliked. The inns, roads, -and right sides, suit the natives and their brutes; nor will either put -themselves out of their way to please the fancies of a stranger. The -racy Peninsula is too little travelled over for its natives to adopt the -mercenary conveniences of the Swiss, that nation of innkeepers and -coach-jobbers. - -[Sidenote: RIDING TOURS.] - - - - -CHAPTER VIII. - - Riding Tour in Spain--Pleasures of it--Pedestrian Tour--Choice of - Companions--Rules for a Riding Tour--Season of Year--Day’s - Journey--Management of Horse: his Feet; Shoes; General Hints. - - -[Sidenote: ROYAL ROADS.] - -A man in a public carriage ceases to be a private individual: he is -merged into the fare, and becomes a number according to his place; he is -booked like a parcel, and is delivered by the guard. How free, how lord -and master of himself, does the same dependent gentleman mount his eager -barb, who by his neighing and pawing exhibits his joyful impatience to -be off too! How fresh and sweet the free breath of heaven, after the -frousty atmosphere of a full inside of foreigners, who, from the -narcotic effects of tobacco, forget the existence of soap, water, and -clean linen! Travelling on horseback, so unusual a gratification to -Englishmen, is the ancient, primitive, and once universal mode of -travelling in Europe, as it still is in the East; mankind, however, soon -gets accustomed to a changed state of locomotion, and forgets how recent -is its introduction. Fynes Moryson gave much the same advice two -centuries ago to travellers in England, as must be now suggested to -those who in Spain desert the coach-beaten highways for the delightful -bye-ways, and thus explore the rarely visited, but not the least -interesting portions of the Peninsula. It has been our good fortune to -perform many of these expeditions on horseback, both alone and in -company; and on one occasion to have made the pilgrimage from Seville to -Santiago, through Estremadura and Gallicia, returning by the Asturias, -Biscay, Leon, and the Castiles; thus riding nearly two thousand miles on -the same horse, and only accompanied by one Andalucian servant, who had -never before gone out of his native province. The same tour was -afterwards performed by two friends with two servants; nor did they or -ourselves ever meet with any real impediments or difficulties, scarcely -indeed sufficient of either to give the flavour of adventure, or the -dignity of danger, to the undertaking. It has also been our lot to make -an extended tour of many months, accompanied by an English lady, through -Granada, Murcia, Valencia, Catalonia, and Arragon, to say nothing of -repeated excursions through every nook and corner of Andalucia. The -result of all this experience, combined with that of many friends, who -have _ridden over_ the Peninsula, enables us to recommend this method to -the young, healthy, and adventurous, as by far the most agreeable plan -of proceeding; and, indeed, as we have said, as regards two-thirds of -the Peninsula, the only practicable course. - -The leading royal roads which connect the capital with the principal -seaports are, indeed, excellent; but they are generally drawn in a -straight line, whereby many of the most ancient cities are thus left -out, and these, together with sites of battles and historical incident, -ruins and remains of antiquity, and scenes of the greatest natural -beauty, are accessible with difficulty, and in many cases only on -horseback. Spain abounds with wide tracts which are perfectly unknown to -the Geographical Society. Here, indeed, is fresh ground open to all who -aspire in these threadbare days to book something new; here is scenery -enough to fill a dozen portfolios, and subject enough for a score of -quartos. How many flowers pine unbotanised, how many rocks harden -ungeologised; what views are dying to be sketched; what bears and deer -to be stalked; what trout to be caught and eaten; what valleys expand -their bosoms, longing to embrace their visitor; what virgin beauties -hitherto unseen await the happy member of the Travellers’ Club, who in -ten days can exchange the bore of eternal Pall Mall for these untrodden -sites; and then what an accession of dignity in thus discovering a terra -incognita, and rivalling Mr. Mungo Park! Nor is a guide wanting, since -our good friend John Murray, the grand monarque of Handbooks, has -proclaimed from Albemarle Street, _Il n’y a plus de Pyrénées_. - -[Sidenote: HINTS TO TRAVELLERS.] - -As the wide extent of country which intervenes between the radii of the -great roads is most indifferently provided with public means of -inter-communication; as there is little traffic, and no demand for -modern conveyances--even mules and horses are not always to be procured, -and we have always found it best to set out on these distant excursions -with our own beasts: the comfort and certainty of this precaution have -been corroborated beyond any doubt by frequent comparisons with the -discomforts undergone by other persons, who trusted to chance -accommodations and means of locomotion in ill-provided districts and -out-of-the-way excursions: indeed, as a general rule, the traveller will -do well to carry with him everything with which from habit he feels that -he cannot dispense. The chief object will be to combine in as small a -space as possible the greatest quantity of portable comfort, taking care -to select the really essential; for there is no worse mistake than -lumbering oneself with things that are never wanted. This mode of -travelling has not been much detailed by the generality of authors, who -have rarely gone much out of the beaten track, or undertaken a -long-continued riding tour, and they have been rather inclined to -overstate the dangers and difficulties of a plan which they have never -tried. At the same time this plan is not to be recommended to fine -ladies nor to delicate gentlemen, nor to those who have had a touch of -rheumatism, or who tremble at the shadows which coming gout casts before -it. - -[Sidenote: HEALTHFUL EXERCISE.] - -Those who have endurance and curiosity enough to face a tour in Sicily, -may readily set out for Spain; rails and post-horses certainly get -quicker over the country; but the pleasure of the remembrance and the -benefits derived by travel are commonly in an inverse ratio to the ease -and rapidity with which the journey is performed. In addition to the -accurate knowledge which is thus acquired of the country (for there is -no map like this mode of surveying), and an acquaintance with a -considerable, and by no means the worst portion of its population, a -riding expedition to a civilian is almost equivalent to serving a -campaign. It imparts a new life, which is adopted on the spot, and which -soon appears quite natural, from being in perfect harmony and fitness -with everything around, however strange to all previous habits and -notions; it takes the conceit out of a man for the rest of his life--it -makes him bear and forbear. It is a capital practical school of moral -discipline, just as the hardiest mariners are nurtured in the roughest -seas. Then and there will be learnt golden rules of patience, -perseverance, good temper, and good fellowship: the individual man must -come out, for better or worse. On these occasions, where wealth and -rank are stripped of the aids and appurtenances of conventional -superiority, a man will draw more on his own resources, moral and -physical, than on any letter of credit; his wit will be sharpened by -invention-suggesting necessity. - -Then and there, when up, about, and abroad, will be shaken off dull -sloth; action--Demosthenic action--will be the watch-word. The traveller -will blot out from his dictionary the fatal Spanish phrase of -procrastination _by-and-by_, a street which leads to the house of -_never_, for “_por la calle de despues, se va a la casa de nunca_.” -Reduced to shift for himself, he will see the evil of waste--the folly -of improvidence and want of order. He will whistle to the winds the -paltry excuse of idleness, the Spanish “_no se puede_,” “_it is -impossible_.” He will soon learn, by grappling with difficulties, how -surely they are overcome,--how soft as silk becomes the nettle when it -is sternly grasped, which would sting the tender-handed touch,--how -powerful a principle of realising the object proposed, is the moral -conviction that we can and will accomplish it. He will never be scared -by shadows thin as air, for when one door shuts another opens, and he -who pushes on arrives. And after all, a dash of hardship may be endured -by those accustomed to loll in easy britzskas, if only for the sake of -novelty; what a new relish is given to the palled appetite by a little -unknown privation!--hunger being, as Cervantes says, the best of sauces, -which, as it never is wanting to the poor, is the reason why eating is -their huge delight. - -[Sidenote: DELIGHTS OF A TOUR.] - -Again, these sorts of independent expeditions are equally conducive to -health of body: after the first few days of the new fatigue are got -over, the frame becomes of iron, “_hecho de bronze_,” and the rider, a -centaur not fabulous. The living in the pure air, the sustaining -excitement of novelty, exercise, and constant occupation, are all -sweetened by the willing heart, which renders even labour itself a -pleasure; a new and vigorous life is infused into every bone and muscle: -early to bed and early to rise, if it does not make all brains wise, at -least invigorates the gastric juices, makes a man forget that he has a -liver, that storehouse of mortal misery--bile, blue pill, and blue -devils. This health is one of the secrets of the amazing charm which -seems inherent to this mode of travelling, in spite of all the apparent -hardships with which it is surrounded in the abstract. Oh! the delight -of this gipsy, Bedouin, nomade life, seasoned with unfettered liberty! -We pitch our tent wherever we please, and there we make our home--far -from letters “requiring an immediate answer,” and distant dining-outs, -visits, ladies’ maids, band-boxes, butlers, bores, and button-holders. - -Escaping from the meshes of the west end of London, we are transported -into a new world; every day the out-of-door panorama is varied; now the -heart is cheered and the countenance made glad by gazing on plains -overflowing with milk and honey, or laughing with oil and wine, where -the orange and citron bask in the glorious sunbeams, the palm without -the desert, the sugar-cane without the slave. Anon we are lost amid the -silence of cloud-capped glaciers, where rock and granite are tost about -like the fragments of a broken world, by the wild magnificence of -Nature, who, careless of mortal admiration, lavishes with proud -indifference her fairest charms where most unseen, her grandest forms -where most inaccessible. Every day and everywhere we are unconsciously -funding a stock of treasures and pleasures of memory, to be hived in our -bosoms like the honey of the bee, to cheer and sweeten our after-life, -when we settle down like wine-dregs in our cask, which, delightful even -as in the reality, wax stronger as we grow in years, and feel that these -feats of our youth, like sweet youth itself, can never be our portion -again. Of one thing the reader may be assured,--that dear will be to -him, as is now to us, the remembrance of those wild and weary rides -through tawny Spain, where hardship was forgotten ere undergone: those -sweet-aired hills--those rocky crags and torrents--those fresh valleys -which communicated their own freshness to the heart--that keen relish -for hard fare, gained and seasoned by hunger sauce, which Ude did not -invent--those sound slumbers on harder couch, earned by fatigue, the -downiest of pillows--the braced nerves--the spirits light, elastic, and -joyous--that freedom from care--that health of body and soul which ever -rewards a close communion with Nature--and the shuffling off of the -frets and factitious wants of the thick-pent artificial city. - -[Sidenote: CHOICE OF COMPANIONS.] - -Whatever be the number of the party, and however they travel, whether on -wheels or horseback, admitting even that a pleasant friend pro vehiculo -est, that is, is better than a post-chaise, yet no one should ever dream -of making a pedestrian tour in Spain. It seldom answers anywhere, as the -walker arrives at the object of his promenade tired and hungry, just at -the moment when he ought to be the freshest and most up to intellectual -pleasures. The deipnosophist Athenæus long ago discovered that there was -no love for the sublime and beautiful in an empty stomach, æsthetics -yield then to gastronomies, and there is no prospect in the world so -fine as that of a dinner and a nap, or _siesta_ afterwards. The -pedestrian in Spain, where fleshly comforts are rare, will soon -understand why, in the real journals of our Peninsular soldiers, so -little attention is paid to those objects which most attract the -well-provided traveller. In cases of bodily hardship, the employment of -the mental faculties is narrowed into the care of supplying mere -physical wants, rather than expanded into searching for those of a -contemplative or intellectual gratification; the footsore and way-worn -require, according to - - “The unexempt condition - By which all mortal frailty must subsist, - Refreshment after toil, ease after pain.” - -Walking is the manner by which beasts travel, who have therefore four -legs; those bipeds who follow the example of the brute animals will soon -find that they will be reduced to their level in more particulars than -they imagined or bargained for. Again, as no Spaniard ever walks for -pleasure, and none ever perform a journey on foot except trampers and -beggars, it is never supposed possible that any one else should do so -except from compulsion. Pedestrians therefore are either ill received, -or become objects of universal suspicion; for a Spanish authority, -judging of others by himself, always takes the worst view of the -stranger, whom he considers as guilty until he proves himself innocent. - -Before the pleasures of a riding tour through Spain are mentioned, a few -observations on the choice of companions may be made. - -[Sidenote: OCCASIONAL DEPRESSION.] - -Those who travel in public conveyances or with muleteers are seldom -likely to be left alone. It is the horseman who strikes into -out-of-the-way, unfrequented districts, who will feel the want of that -important item--a travelling companion, on which, as in choosing a wife, -it is easy enough to give advice. The patient must, however, administer -to himself, and the selection will depend, of course, much on the taste -and idiosyncracy of each individual; those unfortunate persons who are -accustomed to have everything their own way, or those, happy ones, who -are never less alone than when alone, and who possess the alchymy of -finding resources and amusements in themselves, may perhaps find that -plan to be the best; at all events, no company is better than bad -company: “_mas vale ir solo, que mal acompañado_.” A solitary wanderer -is certainly the most unfettered as regards his notions and motions, -“_no tengo padre ni madre, ni perro que me ladre_.” He who has “neither -father, mother, nor dog to bark at him,” can read the book of Spain, as -it were, in his own room, dwelling on what he likes, and skipping what -he does not, as with a red Murray. - -[Sidenote: SPANISH MANNERS.] - -Every coin has, however, its reverse, and every rose its thorn. -Notwithstanding these and other obvious advantages, and the tendency -that occupation and even hardships have to drive away imaginary evils, -this freedom will be purchased by occasional moments of depression; a -dreary, forsaken feeling will steal over the most cheerful mind. It is -not good for man to be alone; and this social necessity never comes home -stronger to the warm heart than during a long-continued solitary ride -through the rarely visited districts of the Peninsula. The sentiment is -in perfect harmony with the abstract feeling which is inspired by the -present condition of unhappy Spain, fallen from her high estate, and -blotted almost from the map of Europe. Silent, sad, and lonely is her -face, on which the stranger will too often gaze; her hedgeless, treeless -tracts of corn-field, bounded only by the low horizon; her uninhabited, -uncultivated plains, abandoned to the wild flower and the bee, and which -are rendered still more melancholy by ruined castle, or village, which -stand out bleaching skeletons of a former vitality. The dreariness of -this abomination of desolation is increased by the singular absence of -singing birds, and the presence of the vulture, the eagle, and lonely -birds of prey. The wanderer, far from home and friends, feels doubly a -stranger in this strange land, where no smile greets his coming, no tear -is shed at his going,--where his memory passes away, like that of a -guest who tarrieth but a day,--where nothing of human life is seen, -where its existence only is inferred by the rude wooden cross or -stone-piled cairn, which marks the unconsecrated grave of some traveller -who has been waylaid there alone, murdered, and sent to his account with -all his imperfections on his head. - -However confidently we have relied on past experience that such would -not be our fate, yet these sorts of Spanish milestones marked with -memento mori, are awkward evidences that the thing is not altogether -impossible. It makes a single gentleman, whose life is not insured, not -only trust to Santiago, but keep his powder dry, and look every now and -then if his percussion cap fits. On these occasions the falling in with -any of the nomade half-Bedouin natives is a sort of godsend; their -society is quite different from that of a regular companion, for better -or worse until death us do part, as it is casual, and may be taken up or -dropped at convenience. The habits of all Spaniards when on the road are -remarkably gregarious; a common fear acts as a cement, while the more -they are in number the merrier. It is hail! well met, fellow-traveller! -and the being glad to see each other is an excellent introduction. The -sight of passengers bound our way is like speaking a strange sail on the -Atlantic, _Hola Camara!_ ship a-hoy. This predisposition tends to make -all travellers write so much and so handsomely of the lower classes of -Spaniards, not indeed more than they deserve, for they are a fine, noble -race. Something of this arises, because on such occasions all parties -meet on an equality; and this levelling effect, perhaps unperceived, -induces many a foreigner, however proud and reserved at home, to unbend, -and that unaffectedly. He treats these accidental acquaintances quite -differently from the manner in which he would venture to treat the lower -orders of his own country, who, probably, if conciliated by the same -condescension of manner, would appear in a more amiable light, although -they are inferior to the Spaniard in his Oriental goodness of manner, -his perfect tact, his putting himself and others into their proper -place, without either self-degradation or vulgar assumption of social -equality or superior physical powers. - -[Sidenote: FRIENDSHIPS.] - -A long solitary ride is hardly to be recommended; it is not fair to -friends who have been left anxious behind, nor is it prudent to expose -oneself, without help, to the common accidents to which a horse and his -rider are always liable. Those who have a friend with whom they feel -they can venture to go in double harness, had better do so. It is a -severe test, and the trial becomes greater in proportion as hardships -abound and accommodations are scanty--causes which sour the milk of -human kindness, and prove indifferent restorers of stomach or temper. It -is on these occasions, on a large journey and in a small _venta_, that a -man finds out what his friend really is made of. While in the more -serious necessities of danger, sickness, and need--a friend is one -indeed, and the one thing wanting, with whom we share our last morsel -and cup gladly. The salt of good fellowship, if it cannot work miracles -as to quantity, converts the small loaf into a respectable abstract -feed, by the zest and satisfaction with which it flavours it. - -Nothing, moreover, cements friendships for the future like having made -one of these conjoint rambles, provided it did not end in a quarrel. The -mere fact of having travelled _at all_ in Spain has a peculiarity which -is denied to the more hackneyed countries of Europe. When we are -introduced to a person who has visited these spell-casting sites, we -feel as if we knew him already. There is a sort of freemasonry in having -done something in common, which is not in common with the world at -large. Those who are about to qualify themselves for this exclusive -quality will do well not to let the party exceed five in number, three -masters and two servants; two masters with two servants are perhaps more -likely to be better accommodated; a third person, however, is often of -use in trying journeys, as an arbiter elegantiarum et rixarum, a referee -and arbitrator; for in the best regulated teams it must happen that some -one will occasionally start, gib, or bolt, when the majority being -against him brings the offender to his proper senses. Four eyes, again, -see better than two, “_mas ven cuatro ojos que dos_.” - -[Sidenote: CHOICE OF HORSES.] - -By attending to a few simple rules, a tour of some months’ duration, and -over thousands of miles, may be performed on one and the same horse, who -with his rider will at the end of the journey be neither sick nor sorry, -but in such capital condition as to be ready to start again. We presume -that the time will be chosen when the days are long and Nature has -thrown aside her wintry garb. Fine weather is the joy of the wayfarer’s -soul, and nothing can be more different than the aspect of Spanish -villages in good or in bad weather; as in the East, during wintry rains -they are the acmes of mud and misery, but let the sun shine out, and all -is gilded. It is the smile which lights up the habitually sad expression -of a Spanish woman’s face. The blessed beam cheers poverty itself, and -by its stimulating, exhilarating action on the system of man, enables -him to buffet against the moral evils to which countries the most -favoured by climate seem, as if it were from compensation, to be more -exposed than those where the skies are dull, and the winds bleak and -cold. - -As in our cavalry regiments, where real service is required, a perfect -animal is preferred, a rider should choose a mare rather than a gelding; -the use of entire horses is, however, so general in Spain, that one of -such had better be selected than a mare. The day’s journey will vary -according to circumstances from twenty-five to forty miles. The start -should be made before daybreak, and the horse well fed at least an hour -before the journey is commenced, during which Spaniards, if they can, go -to church, for they say that no time is ever lost on a journey by -feeding horses and men and hearing masses, _misa y cebada no estorban -jornada_. - -[Sidenote: TRAVELLING PACE.] - -The hours of starting, of course, depend on the distance and the -district. The sooner the better, as all who wish to cheat the devil must -get up very early. “_Quien al demonio quiere engañar, muy temprano -levantarse ha._” It is a great thing for the traveller to reach his -night quarters as soon as he can, for the first comers are the best -served: borrow therefore an hour of the morning rather than from the -night; and that hour, if you lose it at starting, you will never -overtake in the day. Again, in the summer it is both agreeable and -profitable to be under weigh and off at least an hour or two before -sunrise, as the heat soon gets insupportable, and the stranger is -exposed to the _tabardillo_, the coup de soleil, which, even in a -smaller degree, occasions more ill health in Spain than is generally -imagined, and especially by the English, who brave it either from -ignorance or foolhardiness. The head should be well protected with a -silk handkerchief, tied after a turban fashion, which all the natives -do; in addition to which we always lined the inside of our hats with -thickly doubled brown paper. In Andalucia, during summer, the muleteers -travel by night, and rest during the day-heat, which, however, is not a -satisfactory method, except for those who wish to see nothing. We have -never adopted it. The early mornings and cool afternoons and evenings -are infinitely preferable; while to the artist the glorious sunrises and -sunsets, and the marking of mountains, and definition of forms from the -long shadows, are magnificent beyond all conception. In these almost -tropical countries, when the sun is high, the effect of shadow is lost, -and everything looks flat and unpicturesque. - -The journey should be divided into two portions, and the longest should -be accomplished the first: the pace should average about five miles an -hour, it being an object not to keep the animal unnecessarily on his -legs: he may be trotted gently, and even up easy hills, but should -always be walked down them; nay, if led, so much the better, which -benefits both horse and rider. It is surprising how a steady, continued -slow pace gets over the ground: _Chi va piano, va sano, é lontano_, says -the Italian; _paso a paso va lejos_, step by step goes far, responds the -Castilian. The end of the journey each day is settled before starting, -and there the traveller is sure to arrive with the evening. Spaniards -never fidget themselves to get quickly to places where nobody is -expecting them: nor is there any good to be got in trying to hurry man -or beast in Spain; you might as well think of hurrying the Court of -Chancery. The animals should be rested, if possible, every fourth day, -and not used during halts in towns, unless they exceed three days’ -sojourn. - -[Sidenote: FEEDING YOUR HORSE.] - -On arriving at every halting-place, look first at the feet, and pick out -any pebbles or dirt, and examine the nails and shoes carefully, to see -that nothing is loose; let this inspection become a habit; do not wash -the feet too soon, as the sudden chill sometimes produces fever in them: -when they are cool, clean them and grease the hoof well; after that you -may wash as much as you please. The best thing, however, is to feed your -horse at once, before thinking of his toilet; the march will have given -an appetite, while the fatigue requires immediate restoration. If a -horse is to be worried with cleaning, &c., he often loses heart and -gets off his feed: he may be rubbed down when he has done eating, and -his bed should be made up as for night, the stable darkened, and the -animal left quite quiet, and the longer the better: feed him well again -an hour before starting for the afternoon stage, and treat him on coming -in exactly as you did in the morning. The food must be regulated by the -work: when that is severe, give corn with both hands, and stint the hay -and other lumber: what you want is to concentrate support by quality, -not quantity. The Spaniard will tell you that one mouthful of beef is -worth ten of potatoes. If your horse is an English one, it must be -remembered that eight pounds’ weight of barley is equal to ten of oats, -as containing less husk and more mucilage or starch, which our -horse-dealers know when they want to _make up_ a horse; overfeeding a -horse in the hot climate of Spain, like overfeeding his rider, renders -both liable to fevers and sudden inflammatory attacks, which are much -more prevalent in Gibraltar than elsewhere in Spain, because our -countrymen will go on exactly as if they were at home. - -At all events, feed your horse well with _something or other_, or your -Spanish squire will rain proverbs on you, like Sancho Panza; the belly -must be filled with hay or straw, for it in reality carries the feet, _O -paja o heno el vientre lleno--tripas llevan á pies_, and so forth. The -Spaniards when on a journey allow their horses to drink copiously at -every stream, saying that there is no juice like that of flints; and -indeed they set the example, for they are all down on their bellies at -every brook, swilling water, according to the proverb, like an ox, and -wine when they can get it, like a king. If therefore you are riding a -Spanish horse which has been accustomed to this continual tippling, let -him drink, otherwise he will be fevered. If the horse has been treated -in the English fashion, give him his water only after his meals, -otherwise he will break out into weakening sweats. Should the animal -ever arrive distressed, a tepid gruel, made with oatmeal or even flour, -will comfort him much. At nightfall stop the feet with wet tow, or with -horse dung, for that of cows will seldom be to be had in Spain, where -goats furnish milk, and Dutchmen butter. - -[Sidenote: THE HORSE’S FOOT.] - -Let the feet be constantly attended to; the horse having twice as many -as his rider, requires double attention, and of what use to a traveller -is a quadruped that has not a leg to go upon? This is well known to -those commercial gentlemen, who are the only persons now-a-days in -England who make riding journeys. It is the shoe that makes or mars the -horse, and no wise man, in Spain or out, who has got a four-footed -hobby, or three half-crowns, should delay sending to Longman’s for that -admirable “Miles on the Horse’s Foot.” “Every knight errant,” says Don -Quixote, “ought to be able to shoe his own _Rosinante_ himself.” _Rosin_ -is pure Arabic for a hackney--at least he should know how this -calceolation ought to be done. As a general rule, always take your -quadruped to the forge, where the shoes can be fitted to his feet, not -the feet to ready-made shoes; and if you value the comfort, the -extension of life and service of your steed--_fasten the fore shoes with -five nails at most in the outside, and with two only in the inside, and -those near the toe_; do not in mercy fix by nails all round an -unyielding rim of dead iron, to an expanding living hoof; remember also -always to take with you a spare set of shoes, with nails and a -hammer--for the want of a nail the shoe was lost; for the want of a shoe -the rider was tost. In many parts of Spain, where there are no fine -modern roads, you might almost do without any shoes at all, as the -ancients did, and is done in parts of Mexico; but no unprotected hoof -can stand the constant wear and tear, the filing of a macadamised -highway. - -[Sidenote: THE MOSQUERO.] - -The horse will probably be soon in such condition as to want no more -physic than his rider; a lump, however, of rock-salt, and a bit of chalk -put at night into his manger, answers the same purposes as Epsoms and -soda do to the master. You should wash out the long tail and mane, which -is the glory of a Spanish horse, as fine hair is to a woman, with soda -and water; the alkali combining with the animal grease forms a most -searching detergent. A grand remedy for most of the accidents to which -horses are liable on a journey, such as kicks, cuts, strains, &c., is a -constant fomentation with hot water, which should be done under the -immediate superintendence of the master, or it will be either done -insufficiently, or not done at all; hot water, according to the groom -genus, having been created principally as a recipient of something -stronger. A crupper and breastplate are almost indispensable, from the -steep ascents and descents in the mountains. The _mosquero_, the -fly-flapper, is a great comfort to the horse, as, being in perpetual -motion, and hanging between his eyes, it keeps off the flies; the -head-stall, or night halter, never should be removed from the bridle, -but be rolled up during the day, and fastened along the side of the -cheek. The long tail is also rolled up when the ways are miry, just as -those of our blue jackets and horse-guards used to be. - -[Sidenote: THE RIDER’S COSTUME.] - - - - -CHAPTER IX. - - The Rider’s Costume--Alforjas: their contents--The Bota, and How to - use it--Pig Skins and Borracha--Spanish Money--Onzas and smaller - Coins. - - -The rider’s costume and accoutrements require consideration; his great -object should be to pass in a crowd, either unnoticed, or to be taken -for “one of us,” _Uno de Nosotros_, and a member of the Iberian -family--_de la Familia_: this is best effected by adopting the dress, -that is usually worn by the natives when they travel on horseback, or -journey by any of their national conveyances, among which Anglo-Franco -mails and diligences are not yet to be reckoned; all classes of -Spaniards, on getting outside the town-gate, assume country habits, and -eschew the long-tailed coats and civilization of the city; they drop -pea-jackets and foreign fashions, which would only attract attention, -and expose the wearers to the ridicule or coarser marks of consideration -from the peasantry, muleteers, and other gentry, who rule on the road, -hate novelties, and hold fast to the ways and jackets of their -forefathers; the best hat, therefore, is the common _sombrero calanes_, -which resemble those worn at Astley’s by banditti, being of a conical -shape, is edged with black velvet, ornamented with silken tufts, and -looks equally well on a cockney from London, or on a squire from -Devonshire. The jacket should be the universal fur _Zamarra_, which is -made of black sheepskin, in its ordinary form, and of lambskin for those -who can pay; a sash round the waist should never be forgotten, being -most useful both in reality and metaphor: it sustains the loins, and -keeps off the dangerous colics of Spain, by maintaining an equable heat -over the abdomen; hence, to be Homerically well girt is half the battle -for the Peninsular traveller. - -[Sidenote: THE ALFORJAS.] - -The _capa_ the cloak, or the _manta_ a striped plaid, and saddle-bags, -the _Alforjas_, are absolute essentials, and should be strapped on the -pommel of the saddle, as being there less heating to the horse than when -placed on his flanks, and being in front, they are more handy for -sudden use, since in the mountains and valleys, the rider is constantly -exposed to sudden variations of wind and weather; when Æolus and Sol -contend for his cloak, as in Æsop’s Fables, and the buckets of heaven -are emptied on him as soon as the god of fire thinks him sufficiently -baked. - -These saddle-bags are most classical, Oriental, and convenient; they -indeed constitute the genus _bagsman_, and have given their name to our -riding travellers; they are the _Sarcinæ_ of Cato the Censor, the -_Bulgæ_ of Lucilius, who made an epigram thereon:-- - - “Cum _bulgâ_ cœnat, dormit, lavat, omnis in unâ. - Spes hominis _bulga_ hâc devincta est cætera vita:” - -which, as these indispensables are quite as necessary to the modern -Spaniard, may be thus translated:-- - - “A good roomy bag delighteth a Roman, - He is never without this appendage a minute; - In bed, at the bath, at his meals,--in short no man - Should fail to stow life, hope, and self away in it.” - -The countrymen of Sancho Panza, when on the road, make the same use of -their wallets as the Romans did; they still (the washing excepted) live -and die with these bags, in which their hearts are deposited with their -bread and cheese. - -These Spanish _alforjas_, in name and appearance, are the Moorish _al -horeh_. (The F and H, like the B and V, X and J, are almost equivalent, -and are used indiscriminately in Spanish cacography.) They are generally -composed of cotton and worsted, and are embroidered in gaudy colours and -patterns; the _correct_ thing is to have the owner’s name worked in on -the edge, which ought to be done by the delicate hand of his beloved -mistress. Those made at Granada are very excellent; the Moorish, -especially those from Morocco, are ornamented with an infinity of small -tassels. Peasants, when dismounted, mendicant monks, when foraging for -their convents, sling their _alforjas_ over their shoulders when they -come into villages. - -[Sidenote: WHAT TO STOW AWAY IN THE ALFORJAS.] - -Among the contents which most people will find it convenient to carry in -the _right-hand bag_, as the easiest to be got at, a pair of blue gauze -wire spectacles or goggles will be found useful, as ophthalmia is very -common in Spain, and particularly in the calcined central plains. The -constant glare is unrelieved by any verdure, the air is dry, and the -clouds of dust highly irritating from being impregnated with nitre. The -best remedy is to bathe the eyes frequently with hot water, and _never -to rub them when inflamed_, except with the elbows, _los ojos con los -codos_. Spaniards never jest with their eyes or faith; of the two -perhaps they are seriously fondest of the former, not merely when -sparkling beneath the arched eyebrow of the dark sex, but when set in -their own heads. “I love thee like my eyes,” is quite a hackneyed form -of affection; nor, however wrathful and imprecatory, do they under any -circumstance express the slightest uncharitable wishes in regard to the -visual organs of their bitterest foe. - -The whole art of the _alforjas_ is the putting into them what you want -the most often, and in the most handy and accessible place. Keep here, -therefore, a supply of small money for the halt and the blind, for the -piteous cases of human suffering and poverty by which the traveller’s -eye will be pained in a land where soup-dispensing monks are done away -with, and assistant new poor law commissioners not yet appointed; such -charity from God’s purse, _bolsa de Dios_, never impoverishes that of -man, and a cheerful giver, however opposed to modern political -economists, is commended in that old-fashioned book called the Bible. -The left half of the _alforjas_ may be apportioned to the writing and -dressing cases, and the smaller each are the better. - -Food for the mind must not be neglected. The travelling library, like -companions, should be select and good; _libros y amigos pocos y buenos_. -The duodecimo editions are the best, as a large heavy book kills horse, -rider, and reader. Books are a matter of taste; some men like Bacon, -others prefer Pickwick; stow away at all events a pocket edition of the -Bible, Shakspere, and Don Quixote: and if the advice of dear Dr. Johnson -be worth following, one of those books that can be taken in _the hand_, -and to the fire-side. Martial, a grand authority on Spanish hand-books, -recommended “such sized companions on a long journey.” Quartos and -folios, said he, may be left at home in the book-case-- - - “Scrinia da magnis, _me manus una_ capit.” - -[Sidenote: THE BOTA.] - -Here also keep the passport, that indescribable nuisance and curse of -continental travel, to which a free-born Briton never can get -reconciled, and is apt to neglect, whereby he puts himself in the power -of the worst and most troublesome people on earth. Passports in Spain -now in some degree supply the Inquisition, and have been embittered by -vexatious forms borrowed from bureaucratic France. - -[Sidenote: THE BOTA.] - -Having thus disposed of these matters on the front bow of his saddle, to -which we always added a _bota_--the pocket-pistol of Hudibras--one word -on this _Bota_, which is as necessary to the rider as a saddle to his -horse. This article, so Asiatic and Spanish, is at once the bottle and -the glass of the people of the Peninsula when on the road, and is -perfectly unlike the vitreous crockery and pewter utensils of Great -Britain. A Spanish woman would as soon think of going to church without -her fan, or a Spanish man to a fair without his knife, as a traveller -without his _bota_. Ours, the faithful, long-tried comforter of many a -dry road, and honoured now like a relic, is hung up a votive offering to -the Iberian Bacchus, as the mariners in Horace suspended their damp -garments to the deity who had delivered them from the dangers of water. -Its skin, now shrivelled with age and with fruitless longings for wine, -is still redolent of the ruby fluid, whether the generous _Valdepeñas_ -or the rich _vino de Toro_: and refreshing to our nostrils is even an -occasional smell at its red-stained orifice. There the racy wine-perfume -lingers, and brings water into the mouth, it may be into the eyelid. -What a dream of Spanish odours, good, bad, and indifferent, is awakened -by its well-known _borracha!_--what recollections, breathing the aroma -of the balmy south, crowd in; of aromatic wastes, of leagues of thyme, -whence Flora sends forth advertisements to her tiny bee-customer; of -churches, all incense; of the goats and monks, long-bearded and -odoriferous; of cities whose steam of garlic, ollas, oil, and tobacco -rises up to the heavens, mingled with the thousand and one other -continental sweets which assail a man’s nose, whether he lands at Calais -or Cadiz! There hangs our smelling-bottle _bota_, now a pleasure of -memory; it has had its day, and is never again to be filled in torrid, -thirsty Spain, nor emptied, which is better. - -This _Bota_, from whence the terms _Butt_ of sherry, _bouteille_, and -bottle are derived, is the most ancient Oriental leathern bottle -alluded to in Job xxxii. 19, “My belly ready to burst like new bottles;” -and in the parable, Matt. ix. 17, about the old ones, the force and -point of which is entirely lost by our word _bottle_, which being made -of glass, is not liable to become useless by age like one made of -leather. Such a “bottle of water” was the last among the few things -which Abraham gave to Hagar, when he turned out the mother of the -Arabians, whose descendants brought its usage into Spain. The shape is -like that of a large pear or shot-pouch, and it contains from two to -five quarts. The narrow neck is mounted with a turned wooden cup, from -which the contents are drunk. The way to use it is thus--grasp the neck -with the left hand and bring the rim of the cup to the mouth, then -gradually raise the bag with the other hand till the wine, in obedience -to hydrostatic laws, rises to its level, and keeps always full in the -cup without trouble to the mouth. The gravity with which this is done, -the long, slow, sustained, Sancho-like devotion of the thirsty Spaniards -when offered a drink out of another man’s _bota_, is very edifying, and -is as deep as the sigh of delight and gratitude with which, when unable -to imbibe more, the precious skin is returned. No drop of the divine -contents is wasted, except by some newly-arrived bungler, who, by -lifting up the bottom first, inundates his chin. The hole in the cup is -made tight by a wooden spigot, which again is perforated and stopped -with a small peg. Those who do not want to take a copious draught do not -pull out the spigot, but merely the little peg of it; the wine then -flows out in a thin thread. The Catalonians and Aragonese generally -drink in this way; they never touch the vessel with their lips, but hold -it up at a distance above, and pilot the stream into their mouths, or -rather under-jaws. It is much easier for those who have had no practice -to pour the wine into their necks than into their mouths, but their -drinking-bottles are made with a long narrow spout, and are called -“_Porrones_.” - -[Sidenote: THE BOTA--WINE.] - -The _Bota_ must not be confounded with the _Borracha_ or _Cuero_, the -wine-skin of Spain, which is the _entire_, and answers the purpose of -the barrel elsewhere. The _bota_ is the retail receptacle, the _cuero_ -is the wholesale one. It is the genuine pig’s skin, the adoration of -which disputes in the Peninsula with the cigar, the dollar, and even the -worship of the Virgin. The shops of the makers are to be seen in most -Spanish towns; in them long lines of the unclean animal’s blown out -hides are strung up like sheep carcases in our butchers’ shambles. The -tanned and manufactured article preserves the form of the pig, feet and -all, with the exception of one: the skin is turned inside out, so that -the hairy coat lines the interior, which, moreover, is carefully pitched -like a ship’s bottom, to prevent leaking; hence the peculiar flavour, -which partakes of resin and the hide, which is called the _borracha_, -and is peculiar to most Spanish wines, sherry excepted, which being made -by foreigners, is kept in foreign casks, as we shall presently show when -we touch on “good sherris sack.” A drunken man, who is rarer in Spain -than in England, is called a _borracho_; the term is not complimentary. -These _cueros_, when filled, are suspended in _ventas_ and elsewhere, -and thus economise cellarage, cooperage, and bottling; and such were the -bigbellied monsters which Don Quixote attacked. - -As the _bota_ is always near every Spaniard’s mouth who can get at one, -all classes being ever ready, like Sancho, to give “a thousand kisses,” -not only to his own legitimate _bota_, but to that of his neighbour, -which is coveted more than wife: therefore no prudent traveller will -ever journey an inch in Spain without getting one, and when he has, will -never keep it empty, especially when he falls in with good wine. Every -man’s Spanish attendant will always find out, by instinct, where the -best wine is to be had; good wine neither needs bush, herald, nor crier; -in these matters, our experience of them tallies with their proverb, -“mas vale vino _maldito_, que no agua _bendita_,” “cursed bad wine is -better than holy water;” at the same time, in their various scale of -comparisons, there is good wine, better wine, and best wine, but no such -thing as bad wine; of good wine, the Spaniards are almost as good judges -as of good water; they rarely mix them, because they say that it is -spoiling two good things. Vino _Moro_, or Moorish wine, is by no means -indicative of uncleanness, or other heretical imperfections implied -generally by that epithet; it simply means, that it is pure from never -having been baptized with water, for which the Asturians, who keep small -chandlers’ shops, are so infamous, that they are said, from inveterate -habit, to adulterate even water; _aguan el agua_. - -[Sidenote: MONEY.] - -It is a great mistake to suppose, because Spaniards are seldom seen -drunk, and because when on a journey they drink as much water as their -beasts, that they have any Oriental dislike to wine; the rule is “_Agua -como buey, y vino como Rey_,” “to drink water like an ox, and wine like -a king.” The extent of the _given_ quantity of wine which they will -always swallow, rather suggests that their habitual temperance may in -some degree be connected more with their poverty than with their will. -The way to many an honest breast lies through the belly in this -classical land, where the tutelar of butlers still keeps the key of -their cellars and hearts--aperit præcordia Bacchus: nor is their -Oriental blessing unconnected with some “savoury food” previously -administered. And independently of the very obvious reasons which good -wine does and ought to afford for its own consumption, the irritating -nature of Spanish cookery provides a never-failing inducement. The -constant use of the savoury class of condiments and of pepper is very -heating, “_la pimienta escalienta_.” A salt-fish, ham and sausage diet -creates thirst; a good rasher of bacon calls loudly for a corresponding -long and strong pull at the “_bota_,” “_a torresno de tocino, buen golpe -de vino_.” - -This digression on _botas_ will be pardoned by all who, having ridden in -Spain, know the absolute necessity of them. The traveller will of course -remember the advice given by the rogue of _Ventero_ to Don Quixote to -take shirts and money with him. “Put money in thy purse” said also -honest Iago, for an empty one is a beggarly companion in the Peninsula -as elsewhere. There is no getting to Rome or to Santiago if the -pilgrim’s scrip be scanty, or his mule lame: _Camino de Roma, ni mula -coja ni Bolsa floja_. - -[Sidenote: MONEY.] - -Practically it may be said, that there is no paper money in Spain. Notes -may be taken in some of the larger cities, but in the provinces the -value of a man in office’s promise to pay on paper, is not considered by -the shrewd natives to be actually equal to cash; while they will readily -give these notes to foreigners, they prefer for their own use the -old-fashioned representatives of wealth, gold and silver, towards the -smallest fraction of which they have the largest possible veneration. -Accounts are usually kept in _reales de vellon_ of royal bullion; and -these are subdivided into _maravedis_, the ancient coin of the -Peninsula: there are minor fractions even of farthings, consisting in -material of infinitesimal bits of any metals, melted church bells, old -cannon, &c., with names and values unknown in our happy land, where not -much is to be got for a mite; in Spain, where cheapness of earth-produce -is commensurate with poverty, anything, even to an old button, goes for -a _maravedí_, and we have found that in changing a dollar by way of -experiment into small coppers in the market at Seville, among the -multitudinous specimens of Spanish mints of all periods, Moorish and -even Roman coins were to be met with, and still current. - -The dollar, or _Duro_, of Spain is well known all over the world, being -the form under which silver has been generally exported from the Spanish -colonies of South America. It is the Italian “Colonato,” so called -because the arms of Spain are supported between the two pillars of -Hercules. The coinage is slovenly: it is the weight of the metal, not -the form, which is looked to by the Spaniard, who, like the Turk, is not -so clever a workman or mechanist as devout worshipper of bullion. -Ferdinand VII. continued for a long while to strike money with his -father’s head, having only had the lettering altered: thus early Trajans -exhibit the head of Nero. When the Cortes entered Madrid after the -Duke’s victory at Salamanca, they patriotically prohibited the currency -of all coins bearing the head of the intrusive Joseph; yet his dollars -being chiefly made out of stolen church plate, gilt and ungilt, were, -although those of an usurper, intrinsically worth more than the -_legitimate_ duro: this was a too severe test for the loyalty of those -whose real king and god is cash. Such a decree was worthy of senators -who were busier employed in expelling French tropes from their -dictionary than French troops from their country. The wiser Chinese take -Ferdinand’s and Joseph’s dollars alike, calling them both “devil’s head” -money. These bad prejudices against good coin have now given way to the -march of intellect; nay, the five-franc piece with Louis-Philippe’s -clever head on it bids fair to oust the pillared _Duro_. The silver of -the mines of Murcia is exported to France, where it is coined, and sent -back in the manufactured shape. France thus gains a handsome per -centage, and habituates the people to her image of power, which comes -recommended to them in the most acceptable likeness of current coin. - -[Sidenote: GOLD COINAGE.] - -In Spain cash, ambrosial cash, rules the court, the camp, the grove; -hence the extraordinary credit of three millions recently required for -the secret service expenses of the Tuileries, and official enthusiasm -and unanimity secured thereby in the Montpensier purchase. The whole -decalogue is condensed at Madrid into one commandment, Love God as -represented on earth not by his vicar the Pope, but by his -lord-lieutenant, Don Ducat. - - _"El primero es amar Don Dinero,_ - _Dios es omnipotente, Don Dinero es su lugarteniente."_ - -Thus grandees and men in Spanish offices, both governmental and printing -ones, have preferred the other day five-franc pieces to the ribbons of -the Legion of _honor_; nor, considering the swindlers on whom this badge -of Austerlitz has been prostituted, were these worthy Castilians much -out in their calculations, if there be any truth in the catechism of -Falstaff. - -[Sidenote: AVARICE OF SPANIARDS.] - -The _gold coinage_ is magnificent, and worthy of the country and period -from which Europe was supplied with the precious metals. The largest -piece, the ounce, “_onza_,” is worth sixteen dollars, or about 3_l._ -6_s._; and while it puts to shame the diminutive Napoleons of France and -sovereigns of England, tells the tale of Spain’s former wealth, and -contrasts strangely with her present poverty and scarcity of specie: -these large coins have however been so _sweated_, not by the sun, but by -Jews, foreign and domestic, so clipped worse than Spanish mules or -French poodles, that they seldom retain their proper weight and value. -They are accordingly looked upon every where with suspicion; a -shopkeeper, in a big town, brings out his scales like Shylock, while in -a village shrugs, _ajos_, and negative expressions are your change; nor, -even if the natives are satisfied that they are not light, can sixteen -dollars be often met with, nor do those who have so much ready money by -them ever wish that the fact should be generally known. Spaniards, like -the Orientals, have a dread of being supposed to have money in their -possession; it exposes them to be plundered by robbers of all kinds, -professional or legal; by the “_alcalde_,” or village authority, and the -“_escribano_,” the attorney, to say nothing of Señor Mon’s tax-gatherer; -for the quota of contributions, many of which are apportioned among the -inhabitants themselves of each district, falls heaviest on those who -have, or are supposed to have, the most ready money. - -The lower classes of Spaniards, like the Orientals, are generally -avaricious. They see that wealth is safety and power, where everything -is venal; the feeling of insecurity makes them eager to invest what they -have in a small and easily concealed bulk, “_en lo que no habla_,” “in -that which does not tell tales.” Consequently, and in self-defence, they -are much addicted to hoarding. The idea of finding hidden treasures, -which prevails in Spain as in the East, is based on some grounds; for in -every country which has been much exposed to foreign invasions, civil -wars, and domestic misrule, where there were no safe modes of -investment, in moments of danger property was converted into gold or -jewels and concealed with singular ingenuity. The mistrust which -Spaniards entertain of each other often extends, when cash is in the -case, even to the nearest relations, to wife and children. Many a -treasure is thus lost from the accidental death of the hider, who, dying -without a sign, carries his secret to the grave, adding thereby to the -sincere grief of his widow and heir. One of the old vulgar superstitions -in Spain is an idea that those who were born on a Good Friday, the day -of mourning, were gifted with a power of seeing into the earth and of -discovering hidden treasures. One place of concealment has always been -under the bodies in graves; the hiders have trusted to the dead to -defend what the quick could not: this accounts for the universal -desecration of tombs and churchyards during Bonaparte’s invasion. The -Gauls growled like gowls amid the churchyards; they despoiled the -mouldering corpses of the last pledge left by weeping affection; or, as -Burke observed of their domestic doings, they unplumbed the dead to make -missiles of destruction against the living. These hordes, in their -hurried flight before the advancing Duke, also hid much of their -ill-gotten gains, which to this day are hunted after. Who has forgotten -Borrow’s graphic picture of the treasure-seeking Mol? At this very -moment the authorities of San Sebastian are narrowly superintending the -diggings of an old Frenchwoman, to whom some dying thief at home has -revealed the secret of a buried kettle full of gold ounces. - -[Sidenote: CONCEALMENT OF CASH.] - -Having provided the “_Spanish_,” those metallic sinews of war, which -also make the mare go in peace, a prudent master, if he intends to be -really the master, will hold the purse himself, and, moreover, will keep -a sharp eye on it, for the jingle of coin dispels even a Spanish siesta, -and causes many a sleepless day to every listener, from the beggar to -the queen mother. - -[Sidenote: SPANISH SERVANTS.] - - - - -CHAPTER X. - - Spanish Servants: their Character--Travelling Groom, Cook, and - Valet. - - -[Sidenote: CHARACTER OF SPANISH SERVANTS.] - -Don Quixote’s first thought, after having determined to ride forth into -Spain, was to get a horse; his second was to secure a squire; and as the -narrative of his journey is still an excellent guide-book for modern -travellers, his example is not to be slighted. A good Sancho Panza will -on the whole be found to be a more constant comfort to a knight-errant -than even a Dulcinea. To secure a really good servant is of the utmost -consequence to all who make out-of-the-way excursions in the Peninsula; -for, as in the East, he becomes often not only cook, but interpreter and -companion to his master. It is therefore of great importance to get a -person with whom a man can ramble over these wild scenes. The so doing -ends, on the part of the attendant, in an almost canine friendship; and -the Spaniard, when the tour is done, is broken-hearted, and ready to -leave his home, horse, ass, and wife, to follow his master, like a dog, -to the world’s-end. Nine times out of ten it is the master’s fault if he -has bad servants: _tel maître tel valet_. _Al amo imprudente, el mozo -negligente._ He must begin at once, and exact the performance of their -duty; the only way to get them to do anything is, as the Duke said, to -“frighten them,” to “take a decided line.” It is very difficult to make -them see the importance of detail and of doing exactly what they are -told, which they will always endeavour to shirk when they can; their -task must be clearly pointed out to them at starting, and the earliest -and smallest infractions, either in commission or omission, at once and -seriously noticed, the moral victory is soon gained. The example of the -masters, if they be active and orderly, is the best lesson to servants; -_mucho sabe el rato, pero mas el gato_; the rats are well enough, but -the cats are better. Achilles, Patroclus, and the Homeric heroes, were -their own cooks; and many a man who, like Lord Blayney, may not be a -hero, will be none the worse for following the epical example, in a -Spanish venta: at all events a good servant, who is up to his work, and -will work, is indeed a jewel; and on these, as on other occasions, he -deserves to be well treated. Those who make themselves honey are eaten -by flies--_quien se hace miel, le comen las moscas_; while no rat ever -ventures to jest with the cat’s son; _con hijo de gato, no se burlan los -ratones_. The great thing is to make them get up early, and learn the -value of time, which the groom cannot tie with his halter, _tiempo y -hora, no se ata con soga_: while a cook who oversleeps himself not only -misses his mass, but his meat, _quien se levanta tarde, ni oye misa, ni -compra carne_. If (which is soon found out) the servants seem not likely -to answer, the sooner they are changed the better; it is loss of time -and soap, and he who is good for nothing in his own village will not be -worth more either in Seville or elsewhere, so says the proverb. - -[Sidenote: CHARACTER OF SPANISH SERVANTS.] - -The principal defects of Spanish servants and of the lower classes of -Spaniards are much the same, and faults of race. As a mass, they are apt -to indulge in habits of procrastination, waste, improvidence, and -untidiness. They are unmechanical and obstinate, easily beaten by -difficulties, which their first feeling is to raise, and their next to -succumb to; they give the thing up at once. They have no idea indeed of -grappling with anything that requires much trouble, or of doing anything -as it ought to be done, or even of doing the same thing in the same -way--accident and the impulse of the moment set them going. They are -very unmechanical, obstinate, and prejudiced; ignorant of their own -ignorance and incurious as Orientals; partly from pride, self-opinion, -and idleness, they seldom will ask questions for information from -others, which implies an inferiority of knowledge, and still more seldom -will take an answer, unless it be such a one as they desire; their own -wishes, opinions, and wants are their guides, and self the centre of -their gravity, not those of their employers. As a Spaniard’s _yes_, when -you beg a favour, generally means _no_, so they cannot or will not -understand that your _no_ is really a negative when they come -petitioning to be idle; at the same time a great change for the better -comes over them when they are taken out of the city on a rambling tour. -The nomad life excites them into active serviceable fellows; in fact the -uncertain harum-scarum nomad existence is exactly what suits these -descendants of the Arab; they cannot bear the steady sustained routine -of a well-managed household; they abhor confinement; hence the -difficulty of getting Spaniards to garrison fortresses or to man ships -of war, from whence there is no escape. - -As for what we call a well-appointed servants’ hall, the case is -hopeless in Spanish field or city, and is equally so whether the life be -above or below stairs. In the house of the middle or highest classes -this is particularly shown in everything that regards gastronomics, -which are the tests and touchstones of good service. In truth, the -Spaniard, accustomed to his own desultory, free and easy, impromptu, -scrambling style of dining, is constrained by the order and discipline, -the pomp and ceremony, and serious importance of a well-regulated -dinner, and their observance of forms extends only to persons, not to -things: even the grandee has only a thin European polish spread over his -Gotho-Bedouin dining table; he lives and eats surrounded by an humble -clique, in his huge ill-furnished barrack-house, without any elegance, -luxury, or even comfort, according to sound trans-pyrenean notions: few -indeed are the kitchens which possess a _cordon bleu_, and fewer are the -masters who really like an orthodox _entrée_, one unpolluted with the -heresies of garlic and red pepper: again, whenever their cookery -attempts to be foreign, as in their other imitations, it ends in being a -flavourless copy; but few things are ever done in Spain in _real style_, -which implies forethought and expense; everything is a make-shift; the -noble master _reposes_ his affairs on an unjust steward, and dozes away -life on this bed of roses, somnolescent over business and awake only to -intrigue; his numerous ill-conditioned, ill-appointed servants have no -idea of discipline or subordination; you never can calculate on their -laying even the table-cloth, as they prefer idling in the church or -market to doing their duty, and would rather starve, dance, and sleep -out of place and independently, than feast and earn their wages by fair -work; nor has the employer any redress, for if he dismisses them he will -only get just such another set, or even worse. - -[Sidenote: CHARACTER OF SPANISH SERVANTS.] - -In our own Spanish household, the instant dinner and siesta were over, -the cook with his kitchen-man, the valet with the footman invariably -stripped off their working apparel--liveries are almost unheard -of--donned their comical velvet embroidered hats, their sky-blue -waistcoats, and scarlet sashes, and were off with a guitar to some scene -of song and love-making, leaving their master alone in his glory to -moralize on the uncertainty of human concerns and the faithlessness of -mankind. - -[Sidenote: SPANISH AND ENGLISH MANNERS.] - -[Sidenote: TRAVELLING EXPENSES.] - -What can’t be cured must be endured. To resume, therefore, the character -of these Spanish servants; they are very loquacious, and highly -credulous, as often is the case with those given to romancing, which -they, and especially the Andalucians, are to a large degree; and, in -fact, it is the only remaining romance in Spain, as far as the natives -are concerned. As they have an especial good opinion of themselves, they -are touchy, sensitive, jealous, and thin-skinned, and easily affronted -whenever their imperfections are pointed out; their disposition is very -sanguine and inflammable; they are always hoping that what they eagerly -desire will come to pass without any great exertion on their parts; they -love to stand still with their arms folded, while other men put their -shoulders to the wheel. Their lively imagination is very apt to carry -them away into extremes for good or evil, when they act on the moment -like children, and having gratified the humour of the impulse relapse -into their ordinary tranquillity, which is that of a slumbering volcano. -On the other hand, they are full of excellent and redeeming good -qualities; they are free from caprice, are hardy, patient, cheerful, -good-humoured, sharp-witted, and intelligent: they are honest, faithful, -and trustworthy; sober, and unaddicted to mean, vulgar vices; they have -a bold, manly bearing, and will follow well wherever they are well led, -being the raw material of as good soldiers as are in the world; they are -loyal and religious at heart, and full of natural tact, mother-wit, and -innate good manners. In general, a firm, quiet, courteous, and somewhat -reserved manner is the most effective. Whenever duties are to be -performed, let them see that you are not to be trifled with. The -coolness of a determined Englishman’s manner, when in earnest, is what -few foreigners can withstand. Grimace and gesticulation, sound and fury, -bluster, petulance, and impertinence fume and fret in vain against it, -as the sprays and foam of the “French lake” do against the unmoved and -immoveable rock of Gibraltar. An Englishman, without being -over-familiar, may venture on a far greater degree of unbending in his -intercourse with his Spanish dependants than he can dare to do with -those he has in England. It is the custom of the country; they are used -to it, and their heads are not turned by it, nor do they ever forget -their relative positions. The Spaniards treat their servants very much -like the ancient Romans or the modern Moors; they are more their -_vernæ_, their domestic slaves: it is the absolute authority of the -father combined with the kindness. Servants do not often change their -masters in Spain: their relation and duties are so clearly defined, that -the latter runs no risk of compromising himself or his dignity by his -familiarity, which can be laid down or taken up at his own pleasure; -whereas the scorn, contempt, and distance with which the said courteous -Don would treat a roturier who presumed to be intimate, baffle -description. In England no man dares to be intimate with his footman; -for supposing even such absurd fancy entered his brain, his footman is -his equal in the eye of man-made law, God having created them utterly -unequal in all his gifts, whether of rank, wealth, form, or intellect. -Conventional barriers accordingly must be erected in self-defence: and -social barriers are more difficult to be passed than walls of brass, -more impossible to be repealed than the whole statutes at large. No -master in Spain, and still less a foreigner, should ever descend to -personal abuse, sneers, or violence. A blow is never to be washed out -except in blood, and Spanish revenge descends to the third and fourth -generation; and whatever these backward Spaniards have to learn from -foreigners, it is not the duty of revenge, nor how to perform it. There -should be no threatenings in vain, but whenever the opportunity occurs -for punishment, let it be done quietly and effectively, and the fault -once punished should not be needlessly ripped up again; Spaniards are -sufficiently unforgiving, and hoarders-up of unrevenged grievances -require to be reminded. A kind and uniform behaviour, a showing -consideration to them, in a manner which implies that you are accustomed -to it, and expect it to be shown to you, keeps most things in their -right places. Temper and patience are the great requisites in the -master, especially when he speaks the language imperfectly. He must not -think Spaniards stupid because they cannot guess the meaning of his -unknown tongue. Nothing again is gained by fidgeting and overdoing, and -however early you may get up, daybreak will not take place the sooner: -no por _mucho madrugar_, _amanece mas temprano_. Let well alone: be not -zealous overmuch: be occasionally both blind and deaf: shut the door, -and the devil passes by: keep honey in mouth and an eye to your cash: -_miel en boca y guarda la bolsa_. Still how much less expenditure is -necessary in Spain than in performing the commonest excursion in -England!--and yet many who submit to their own countrymen’s extortions -are furious at what they imagine is an especial cheating of them, -_quasi_ Englishmen, abroad: this outrageous economy, with which some are -afflicted, is penny wise and pound foolish: pay, pay therefore with both -hands. The traveller must remember that he gains caste, gets brevet rank -in Spain--that he is taken for a grandee incog., and ranks with their -nobility; he must pay for these luxuries: how small after all will be -the additional per centage on his general expenditure, and how well -bestowed is the excess, in keeping the temper good, and the capability -of enjoying unruffled a tour, which only is performed once in a life! No -wise man who goes into Spain for amusement will plunge into this -guerrilla, this constant petty warfare, about sixpences. Let the -traveller be true to himself; hold his tongue; avoid bad company, _quien -hace su cama con perros, se levanta con pulgas_, those who sleep with -dogs get up with fleas; and make room for bulls and fools, _al loco y -toro da le corro_, and he may see Spain agreeably, and, as Catullus said -to Veranius, who made the tour many centuries ago, may on his return -amuse his friends and “old mother:”-- - - “Visam te incolumem, audiamque Iberum - Narrantem loca, facta, nationes, - Sicut tuus est mos.” - -which may be thus Englished:-- - - May you come back safe, and tell - Of Spanish men, their things and places, - Of Spanish ladies’ eyes and faces, - In your own way, and so well. - -[Sidenote: TRAVELLING SERVANTS.] - -Two masters should take two servants, and both should be Spaniards: all -others, unless they speak the language perfectly, are nuisances. A -Gallegan or Asturian makes the best groom, an _Andaluz_ the best cook -and personal attendant. Sometimes a person may be picked up who has some -knowledge of languages, and who is accustomed to accompany strangers -through Spain as a sort of courier. These accomplishments are very rare, -and the moral qualities of the possessor often diminish in proportion as -his intellect has marched; he has learnt more foreign tricks than words, -and sea-port towns are not the best schools for honesty. Of these -nondescripts the Hispano-Anglo, who generally has deserted from -Gibraltar, is the best, because he will work, hold his tongue, and -fight; a monkey would be a less inconvenience than a chattering -Ibero-Gallo; one who has forgotten his national accomplishments--cooking -and hairdressing, and learnt very few Spanish things, such as good -temper and endurance. Whichever of the two is the sharpest should lead -the way, and leave the other to bring up the rear. They should be -mounted on good mules, and be provided with large panniers. One should -act as the cook and valet, the other as the groom of the party; and the -utensils peculiar to each department should be carried by each -professor. Where only one servant is employed, one side of the pannier -should be dedicated to the commissariat, and the other to the luggage; -in that case the master should have a flying portmanteau, which should -be sent by means of _cosarios_, and precede him from great town to great -town, as a magazine, wardrobe, or general supply to fall back on. The -servants should each have their own saddle-bag and leathern bottle, -which, since the days of Sancho Panza, are part and parcel of a faithful -squire, and when all are carried on an ass are quite patriarchal. “_Iba -Sancho Panza sobre su jumento, como un patriarca con sus alforjas y -bota._” - -[Sidenote: WHAT TO TAKE ON A JOURNEY.] - -The servants will each in their line look after their own affairs; the -groom will take with him the things of the stable, and a small provision -of corn, in order that a feed may never be wanting, on an unexpected -emergency; he will always ascertain beforehand through what sort of a -country each day’s journey is to be made, and make preparations -accordingly. The valet will view his masters in the same light as the -groom does his beasts; and he will purvey and keep in readiness all that -appertains to their comfort, always remembering a moskito net--we shall -presently say a word on the fly-plague of the Peninsula--with nails to -knock into the walls to hang it up by, not forgetting a hammer and -gimlet; common articles enough, but which are never to be got at the -moment and place where they are the most wanted. He will also carry a -small canteen, the smaller and more ordinary the better, as anything out -of the common way attracts attention, and suggests, first, the coveting -other men’s goods, and so on to assaults, batteries, robberies, and -other inconveniences, which have been exploded on our roads; although F. -Moryson took care to caution our ancestors “to be warie on this head, -since theeves have their spies commonly in all innes, to enquire into -the condition of travellers.” The manufactures of Spain are so rude and -valueless that what appears to us to be the most ordinary appears to -them to be the most excellent, as they have never seen anything so good. -The lower orders, who eat with their fingers, think everything is gold -which glitters, _todo es oro lo que reluce_; as, after all, it is what -is _on_ the plate that is the rub, let no wise man have such smart forks -and knives as to tempt cut-throats to turn them to unnatural purposes. -However, avoid all superfluous luggage, especially prejudices and -foregone conclusions, for “_en largo camino paja pesa_,” a straw is -heavy on a long journey, and the last feather breaks the horse’s back. A -store of cigars, however, must always be excepted; take plenty and give -them freely; it always opens a conversation well with a Spaniard, to -offer him one of these little delicate marks of attention. Good snuff is -acceptable to the curates and to monks (though there are none just now). -English needles, thread, and pairs of scissars take no room, and are all -keys to the good graces of the fair sex. There is a charm about a -present, _bachshish_, in most European as well as Oriental countries, -and still more if it is given with tact, and at the proper time; -Spaniards, if unable to make any equivalent return, will always try to -repay by civilities and attentions. - -[Sidenote: COOKING UTENSILS.] - -Every one must determine for himself whether he prefers the assistance -of this servant in the kitchen or at the toilet; since it is not easy -for mortal man to dress a master _and_ a dinner, and both well at the -same time, let alone two masters. A cook who runs after two hares at -once catches neither. No prudent traveller on these, or on any -occasions, should let another do for him what he can do for himself, -and a man who waits upon himself is sure to be well waited on. If, -however, a valet be absolutely necessary, the groom clearly is best left -in his own chamber, the stable; he will have enough to do to curry and -valet his four animals, which he knows to be good for their health, -though he never scrapes off the cutaneous stucco by which his own illote -carcass is Roman cemented. From long experience we have found that if -the rider will get into the habit of carrying all the things requisite -for his own dressing in a small separate bag, and employ the hour while -the cook is getting the supper under weigh, it is wonderful how -comfortably he will proceed to his puchero. - -[Sidenote: SPANISH BREAD.] - -The cook should take with him a stewing-pan, and a pot or kettle for -boiling water; he need not lumber himself with much batterie de cuisine; -it is not much needed in the imperfect gastronomy of the Peninsula, -where men eat like the beasts which perish; all sort of artillery is -rather rare in Spanish kitchen or fortress; an hidalgo would as soon -think of having a voltaic battery in his sitting-room as a copper one in -his cuisine; most classes are equally satisfied with the Oriental -earthenware _ollas_, _pucheros_, or pipkins, which are everywhere to be -found, and have some peculiar sympathy with the Spanish cuisine, since a -stew--be it even of a cat--never eats so well when made in a metal -vessel; the great thing is to bring the raw materials,--first catch your -hare. Those who have meat and money will always get a neighbour to lend -them a pot. A _venta_ is a place where the rich are sent empty away, and -where the poor hungry are not filled; the whole duty of the man-cook, -therefore, is to be always thinking of his commissariat; he need not -trouble himself about his master’s appetite, that will seldom -fail,--nay, often be a misfortune; a good appetite is not a good _per -se_,[6] for it, even when the best, becomes a bore when there is nothing -to eat; his _capucho_ or mule hamper must be his travelling larder, -cellar, and store-room; he will victual himself according to the route, -and the distances from one great town to another, and always take care -to start with a good provision: indeed to attend to the commissariat -is, it cannot be too often repeated, the whole duty of a man cook in -hungry Spain, where food has ever been _the_ difficulty; a little -foresight gives small trouble and ensures great comfort, while perils by -sea and perils by land are doubled when the stomach is empty, whereas, -as Sancho Panza wisely told his ass, all sorrows are alleviated by -eating bread: _todos los duelos, con pan son buenos_, and the shrewd -squire, who seldom is wrong, was right both in the matter of bread and -the moral: the former is admirable. The central table-lands of Spain are -perhaps the finest wheat-growing districts in the world; however rude -and imperfect the cultivation--for the peasant does but scratch the -earth, and seldom manures--the life-conferring sun comes to his -assistance; the returns are prodigious, and the quality superexcellent; -yet the growers, miserable in the midst of plenty, vegetate in cabins -composed of baked mud, or in holes burrowed among the friable hillocks, -in an utter ignorance of furniture, and absolute necessaries. The want -of roads, canals, and means of transport prevents their exportation of -produce, which from its bulk is difficult of carriage in a country where -grain is removed for the most part on four-footed beasts of burden, -after the oriental and patriarchal fashion of Jacob, when he sent to the -granaries of Egypt. Accordingly, although there are neither sliding -scales nor corn laws, and subsistence is cheap and abundant, the -population decreases in number and increases in wretchedness; what boots -it if corn be low-priced, if wages be still lower, as they then -everywhere are and must be? - -The finest bread in Spain is called _pan de candeal_, which is eaten by -men in office and others in easy circumstances, as it was by the clergy. -The worst bread is the _pan de municion_, and forms the fare of the -Spanish soldier, which, being sable as a hat, coarse and hard as a -brickbat, would just do to sop in the black broth of the Spartan -military; indeed, the expression _de municion_ is synonymous in the -Peninsula with badness of quality, and the secondary meaning is taken -from the perfection of badness which is perceptible in every thing -connected with Spanish ammunition, from the knapsack to the citadel. -Such bread and water, and both hardly earned, are the rations of the -poor patient Spanish private; nor can he when before the enemy reckon -always on even that, unless it be supplied from an ally’s commissariat. - -[Sidenote: THRESHING AND WINNOWING.] - -[Sidenote: BREAD.] - -Perhaps the best bread in Spain is made at Alcalá de Guadaira, near -Seville, of which it is the oven, and hence the town is called the -Alcalá of bakers. There bread may truly be said to be the soul of its -existence, and samples abound everywhere: _roscas_, or circular-formed -_rusks_, are hung up like garlands, and _hogazas_, loaves, placed on -tables outside the houses. It is, indeed, as Spaniards say, _Pan de -Dios_--the “angels’ bread of Esdras.” All classes here gain their bread -by making it, and the water-mills and mule-mills are never still; women -and children are busy picking out earthy particles from the grain, which -get mixed from the common mode of threshing on a floor in the open air, -which is at once Biblical and Homeric. At the outside of the villages, -in corn-growing districts, a smooth open “threshing-floor” is prepared, -with a hard surface, like a fives court: it is called the _era_, and is -the precise Roman _area_. The sheaves of corn are spread out on it, and -four horses yoked most classically to a low crate or harrow, composed of -planks armed with flints, &c., which is called a _trillo_: on this the -driver is seated, who urges the beasts round and round over the crushed -heap. Thus the grain is shaken out of the ears and the straw triturated; -the latter becomes food for horses, as the former does for men. When the -heap is sufficiently bruised, it is removed and winnowed by being thrown -up into the air; the light winds carry off the chaff, while the heavy -corn falls to the ground. The whole operation is truly picturesque and -singular. The scene is a crowded one, as many cultivators contribute to -the mass and share in the labour; their wives and children cluster -around, clad in strange dresses of varied colours. They are sometimes -sheltered from the god of fire under boughs, reeds, and awnings, run up -as if for the painter, and falling of themselves into pictures, as the -lower classes of Spaniards and Italians always do. They are either -eating and drinking, singing or dancing, for a guitar is never wanting. -Meanwhile the fierce horses dash over the prostrate sheaves, and realise -the splendid simile of Homer, who likens to them the fiery steeds of -Achilles when driven over Trojan bodies. These out-of-door threshings -take place of course when the weather is dry, and generally under a most -terrific heat. The work is often continued at nightfall by torch-light. -During the day the half-clad dusky reapers defy the sun and his rage, -rejoicing rather in the heat like salamanders; it is true that their -devotions to the porous water-jar are unremitting, nor is a swill at a -good passenger’s _bota_ ever rejected; all is life and action; busy -hands and feet, flashing eyes, and eager screams; the light yellow -chaff, which in the sun’s rays glitters like gold dust, envelopes them -in a halo, which by night, when partially revealed by the fires and -mingled with the torch glare, is almost supernatural, as the phantom -figures, now dark in shadows, now crimsoned by the fire flash, flit to -and fro in the vaporous mist. The scene never fails to rivet and enchant -the stranger, who, coming from the pale north and the commonplace -in-door flail, seizes at once all the novelty of such doings. Eye and -ear, open and awake, become inlets of new sensations of attention and -admiration, and convey to heart and mind the poetry, local colour, -movement, grouping, action, and attitude. But while the cold-blooded -native of leaden skies is full of fire and enthusiasm, his Spanish -companion, bred and born under unshorn beams, is chilly as an icicle, -indifferent as an Arab: he passes on the other side, not only not -admiring, but positively ashamed; he only sees the barbarity, antiquity, -and imperfect process; he is sighing for some patent machine made in -Birmingham, to be put up in a closed barn after the models approved of -by the Royal Agricultural Society in Cavendish Square; his bowels yearn -for the appliances of civilization by which “bread stuffs” are more -scientifically manipulated and manufactured, minus the poetry. - -To return, however, to dry bread, after this new digression, and all -those who have ever been in Spain, or have ever written on Spanish -things, must feel how difficult it is to keep regularly on the road -without turning aside at every moment, now to cull a wild flower, now to -pick up a sparkling spar. This corn, so beaten, is very carefully -ground, and in La Mancha in those charming windmills, which, perched on -eminences to catch the air, look to this day, with their outstretched -arms, like Quixotic giants; the flour is passed through several hoppers, -in order to secure its fineness. The dough is most carefully kneaded, -worked, and re-worked, as is done by our biscuit-makers; hence the -close-grained, caky, somewhat heavy consistency of the crumb, whereas, -according to Pliny, the Romans esteemed Spanish bread on account of its -lightness. - -[Sidenote: LUNCHEON.] - -The Spanish loaf has not that mysterious sympathy with butter and cheese -as it has in our verdurous Old England, probably because in these torrid -regions pasture is rare, butter bad, and cheese worse, albeit they -suited the iron digestion of Sancho, who knew of nothing better: none, -however, who have ever tasted Stilton or Parmesan will join in his -eulogies of Castilian _queso_, the poorness of which will be estimated -by the distinguished consideration in which a round cannon-ball Dutch -cheese is held throughout the Peninsula. The traveller, nevertheless, -should take one of them, for bad is here the best, in many other things -besides these: he will always carry some good loaves with it, for in the -damper mountain districts the daily bread of the natives is made of rye, -Indian corn, and the inferior cerealia. Bread is the staff of the -Spanish traveller’s life, who, having added raw garlic, not salt, to it, -then journeys on with security, _con pan y ajo crudo se anda seguro_. -Again, a loaf never weighs one down, nor is ever in the way; as Æsop, -the prototype of Sancho, well knew. _La hogaza no embaraza._ - -[Sidenote: THE OLLA.] - -Having secured his bread, the cook in preparing supper should make -enough for the next day’s lunch, _las once_, the eleven o’clock meal, as -the Spaniards translate _meridie_, twelve or mid-day, whence the correct -word for luncheon is derived, _merienda merendar_. Wherever good dishes -are cut up there are good leavings, “_donde buenas ollas quebran, buenos -cascos quedan_;” and nothing can be more Cervantic than the occasional -al fresco halt, when no better place of accommodation is to be met with. -As the sun gets high, and man and beast hungry and weary, wherever a -tempting shady spot with running water occurs, the party draws aside -from the high road, like Don Quixote and Sancho Panza; a retired and -concealed place is chosen, the luggage is removed from the animals, the -hampers which lard the lean soil are unpacked, the table-cloth is spread -on the grass, the _botas_ are laid in the water to cool their contents; -then out with the provision, cold partridge or turkey, sliced ham or -_chorizo_--simple cates, but which are eaten with an appetite and relish -for which aldermen would pay hundreds. They are followed, should grapes -be wanting, with a soothing cigar, and a sweet slumber on earth’s -freshest, softest lap. In such wild banquets Spain surpasses the -Boulevards. Alas! that such hours should be bright and winged as -sunbeams! Such is Peninsular country fare. The _olla_, on which the -rider may restore exhausted nature, is only to be studied in larger -towns; and dining, of which this is the foundation in Spain, is such a -great resource to travellers, and Spanish cookery, again, is so -Oriental, classical, and singular, let alone its vital importance, that -the subject will properly demand a chapter to itself. - -[Sidenote: A SPANISH COOK.] - - - - -CHAPTER XI. - - A Spanish Cook--Philosophy of Spanish Cuisine--Sauce--Difficulty of - Commissariat--The Provend--Spanish Hares and Rabbits--The - Olla--Garbanzo--Spanish Pigs--Bacon and Hams--Omelette--Salad and - Gazpacho. - - -It would exhaust a couple of Colonial numbers at least to discuss -properly the merits and digest Spanish cookery. All that can be now done -is to skim the subject, which is indeed fat and unctuous. Those meats -and drinks will be briefly noticed which are daily occurrence, and those -dishes described which we have often helped to make, and oftener helped -to eat, in the most larderless _ventas_ and hungriest districts of the -Peninsula, and which provident wayfarers may make and eat again, and, as -we pray, with no worse appetite. - -[Sidenote: THE NATIONAL COOKERY.] - -To be a good cook, which few Spaniards are, a man must not only -understand his master’s taste, but be able to make something out of -nothing; just as a clever French _artiste_ converts an old shoe into an -épigramme d’agneau, or a Parisian milliner dresses up two deal boards -into a fine live _Madame_, whose only fault is the appearance of too -much embonpoint. Genuine and legitimate Spanish dishes are excellent in -their way, for no man nor man-cook ever is ridiculous when he does not -attempt to be what he is not. The _au naturel_ may occasionally be -somewhat plain, but seldom makes one sick; at all events it would be as -hopeless to make a Spaniard understand real French cookery as to -endeavour to explain to a député the meaning of our constitution or -parliament. The ruin of Spanish cooks is their futile attempts to -imitate foreign ones: just as their silly grandees murder the glorious -Castilian tongue, by substituting what they fancy is pure Parisian, -which they speak _comme des vaches Espagnoles_. _Dis moi ce que tu -manges et je te dirai ce que tu es_ is “un mot profond” of the great -equity judge, Brillat Savarin, who also discovered that “_Les destinées -des nations dépendent de la manière dont elles se nourrissent_;” since -which General Foy has attributed all the _accidental_ victories of the -British to rum and beef. And this great fact much enhances our serious -respect for punch, and our true love for the _ros-bif_ of old England, -of which, by the way, very little will be got in the Peninsula, where -bulls are bred for baiting, and oxen for the plough, not the spit. - -[Sidenote: SCARCITY OF PROVISIONS.] - -The national cookery of Spain is for the most part Oriental; and the -ruling principle of its preparation is _stewing_; for, from a scarcity -of fuel, roasting is almost unknown; their notion of which is putting -meat into a pan, setting it in hot ashes, and then covering the lid with -burning embers. The pot, or _olla_, has accordingly become a synonyme -for the dinner of Spaniards, just as beefsteaks or frogs are vulgarly -supposed to constitute the whole bill of fare of two other mighty -nations. Wherever meats are bad and thin, the sauce is very important; -it is based in Spain on oil, garlic, saffron, and red peppers. In hot -countries, where beasts are lean, oil supplies the place of fat, as -garlic does the want of flavour, while a stimulating condiment excites -or curries up the coats of a languid stomach. It has been said of our -heretical countrymen that we have but one form of sauce--melted -butter--and a hundred different forms of religion, whereas in orthodox -Spain there is but one of each, and, as with religion, so to change this -sauce would be little short of heresy. As to colour, it carries that -rich burnt umber, raw sienna tint, which Murillo imitated so well; and -no wonder, since he made his particular brown from baked olla bones, -whence it was extracted, as is done to this day by those Spanish -painters who indulge in meat. This brown _negro de hueso_ colour is the -livery of tawny Spain, where all is brown from the _Sierra Morena_ to -duskier man. Of such hue is his cloak, his terra-cotta house, his wife, -his ox, his ass, and everything that is his. This sauce has not only the -same colour, but the same flavour everywhere; hence the difficulty of -making out the material of which any dish is composed. Not Mrs. Glass -herself could tell, by taste at least, whether the ingredients of the -cauldron be hare or cat, cow or calf, the aforesaid ox or ass. It -puzzles even the acumen of a Frenchman; for it is still the great boast -of the town of Olvera that they served up some donkeys as rations to a -Buonapartist detachment. All this is very Oriental. Isaac could not -distinguish tame kid from wild venison, so perplexing was the disguise -of the savoury sauce; and yet his senses of smell and touch were keen, -and his suspicions of unfair cooking were awakened. A prudent diner, -therefore, except when forced to become his own cook, will never look -too closely into the things of the kitchen if he wishes to live a quiet -life; for _quien las cosas mucho apura, no vive vida segura_. - -All who ride or run through the Peninsula, will read thirst in the arid -plains, and hunger in the soil-denuded hills, where those who ask for -bread will receive stones. The knife and fork question has troubled -every warrior in Spain, from Henri IV. down to Wellington; “subsistence -is the great difficulty always found” is the text of a third of the -Duke’s wonderful despatches. This scarcity of food is implied in the -very name of Spain, Σπανια, which means poverty and -destitution, as well as in the term _Bisoños_, wanters, which long has -been a synonyme for Spanish soldiers, who are always, as the Duke -described them, “hors de combat,” “always _wanting_ in every thing at -the critical moment.” Hunger and thirst have ever been, and are, the -best defenders of the Peninsula against the invader. On sierra and -steppe these gaunt sentinels keep watch and ward, and, on the scarecrow -principle, protect this paradise, as they do the infernal regions of -Virgil-- - - “Malesuada fames et turpis egestas - Horribiles visu.” - -A riding tour through Spain has already been likened to serving a -campaign; and it was a saying of the Grand Condé, “If you want to know -what want is, carry on a war in Spain.” Yet, notwithstanding the -thousands of miles which we have ridden, never have we yet felt that -dire necessity, which has been kept at a respectable distance by a -constant unremitting attention to the proverb, A man forewarned is -forearmed. _Hombre prevenido nunca fu vencido_, there is nothing like -precaution and _provision_. “If you mean to dine,” writes the -all-providing Duke to Lord Hill from Moraleja, “_you had better bring -your things_, as I shall have nothing with me;”--the ancient Bursal -fashion holds good on Spanish roads:-- - - “Regula Bursalis est omni tempere talis, - Prandia fer tecum, si vis comedere mecum.” - -[Sidenote: EATING ON THE ROAD.] - -A man who is prepared, is never beaten or starved; therefore, as the -valorous Dalgetty has it, a prudent man will always victual himself in -Spain with vivers for three days at least, and his cook, like Sancho -Panza, should have nothing else in his head, but thoughts how to convey -the most eatables into his ambulant larder. - -He must set forth from every tolerable-sized town with an ample supply -of tea, sugar, coffee, brandy, good oil, wine, salt, to say nothing of -solids. The having something ready gives him leisure to forage and make -ulterior preparations. Those who have a _corps de réserve_ to fall back -upon--say a cold turkey and a ham--can always convert any spot in the -desert into an oasis; at the same time the connection between body and -soul may be kept up by trusting to _venta_ luck, of which more anon; it -offers, however, but a miserable existence to persons of judgment. And -even when this precaution of provision be not required, there are never -wanting in Spain the poor and hungry, to whom the taste of meat is -almost unknown, and to whom these crumbs that fall from the rich man’s -table are indeed a feast; the relish and gratitude with which these -fragments are devoured do as much good to the heart of the donor as to -the stomach of the donees, for the best medicines of the poor are to be -found in the cellars, kitchens, and hampers of the rich. All servants -should be careful of their traps and stores, which are liable to be -pilfered and plundered in _ventas_, where the élite of society is not -always assembled: the luggage should be well corded, for the devil is -always a gleaning, _ata al saco, ya espiga el diablo_. - -Formerly all travellers of rank carried a silver olla with a key, the -_guardacena_, the _save_ supper. This ingenious contrivance has -furnished matter for many a pleasantry in picaresque tales and farces. -Madame Daunoy gives us the history of what befel the good Archbishop of -Burgos and his orthodox olla. - -[Sidenote: HARES AND RABBITS.] - -There is nothing in life like making a good start; thus the party -arrives safely at the first resting-place. The cook must never appear to -have anything when he arrives at an inn; he must get from others all he -can, and much is to be had for asking and crying, as even a Spanish -Infante knows--the child that does not cry is not suckled, _quien no -llora, no mama_; the artiste must never fall back on his own reservoirs -except in cases of absolute need; during the day he must open his eyes -and ears and must pick up everything eatable, and where he can and when -he can. By keeping a sharp look-out and going quietly to work the cook -may catch the hen and her chickens too. All is fish that comes into the -net, and, like Buonaparte and his marshals, nothing should be too great -for his ambition, nothing too small for his rapacity. Of course he will -pay for his collections, which the aforesaid gentry did not: thus fruit, -onions, salads, which, as they must be bought somewhere, had better be -secured whenever they turn up. The peasants, who are sad poachers, will -constantly hail travellers from the fields with offers of partridges, -rabbits, melons, hares, which always jump up in this pays de l’imprévu -when you least expect it: _Salta la liebre cuando menos uno piensa_. - -Notwithstanding Don Quixote thought that it augured bad luck to meet -with a hare on entering a village, let not a bold traveller be scared, -but forthwith stew the omen; a hare, as in the time of Martial, is -considered by Spaniards to be the glory of edible quadrupeds, and to -this day no old stager ever takes a rabbit when he can get a hare, _á -perro viejo echale liebre y no conejo_. In default however of catching -one, rabbits may always be bagged. Spain abounds with them to such a -degree, that ancient naturalists thought the animal indigenous, and went -so far as to derive the name Spain from _Sephan_, the rabbit, which the -Phœnicians found here for the first time. Be that as it may, the -long-eared timid creature appears on the early Iberian coins, as it will -long do on her wide wastes and tables. By the bye, a ready-stewed rabbit -or hare is to be eschewed as suspicious in a _venta_: at the same time, -if the consumer does not find out that it is a cat, there is no great -harm done--ignorance is bliss; let him not know it, he is not robbed at -all. It is a pity to dispel his gastronomic delusion, as it is the -knowledge of the cheat that kills, and not the cat. Pol! me occidistis, -amici. The cook therefore should ascertain beforehand what are the bonâ -fide ingredients of every dish that he sets before his lord. - -[Sidenote: THE OLLA PODRIDA.] - -In going into the kitchens of the Peninsula, precedence must on every -account be given to the _olla_: this word means at once a species of -prepared food, and the earthenware utensil in which it is dressed, just -as our term _dish_ is applicable to the platter and to what is served on -it. Into this _olla_ it may be affirmed that the whole culinary genius -of Spain is condensed, as the mighty Jinn was into a gallipot, according -to the Arabian Night tales. The lively and gastronomic French, who are -decidedly the leaders of European civilization in the kitchen, deride -the barbarous practices of the Gotho-Iberians, as being darker than -Erebus and more ascetic than æsthetic; to credit their authors, a -Peninsular breakfast consists of a teaspoonful of chocolate, a dinner, -of a knob of garlic soaked in water, and a supper, of a paper cigarette; -and according to their _parfait cuisinier_, the _olla_ is made of two -cigars boiled in three gallons of water--but this is a calumny, a mere -invention devised by the enemy. - -The _olla_ is only well made in Andalucia, and there alone in careful, -well-appointed houses; it is called a _puchero_ in the rest of Spain, -where it is but a poor affair, made of dry beef, or rather cow, boiled -with _garbanzos_ or chick peas, and a few sausages. These _garbanzos_ -are the vegetable, the potato of the land; and their use argues a low -state of horticultural knowledge. The taste for them was introduced by -the Carthaginians--the _puls punica_, which (like the _fides punica_, an -especial ingredient in all Spanish governments and finance) afforded -such merriment to Plautus, that he introduced the chick-pea eating -Pœnus, pultiphagonides, speaking Punic, just as Shakspere did the -toasted-cheese eating Welshman talking Welsh. These garbanzos require -much soaking, being otherwise hard as bullets; indeed, a lively -Frenchman, after what he calls an apology for a dinner, compared them, -in his empty stomach, as he was jumbled away in the dilly, to peas -rattling in a child’s drum. - -The veritable _olla_--the ancient time-honoured _olla podrida_, or pot -pourri--the epithet is now obsolete--is difficult to be made: a -tolerable one is never to be eaten out of Spain, since it requires many -Spanish things to concoct it, and much care; the cook must throw his -whole soul into the pan, or rather pot; it may be made in one, but two -are better. They must be of earthenware; for, like the French _pot au -feu_, the dish is good for nothing when made in an iron or copper -vessel; take therefore two, and put them on their separate stoves with -water. - -[Sidenote: THE OLLA PODRIDA.] - -Place into No. 1, _Garbanzos_, which have been placed to soak -over-night. Add a good piece of beef, a chicken, a large piece of bacon; -let it boil once and quickly; then let it simmer: it requires four or -five hours to be well done. Meanwhile place into No. 2, with water, -whatever vegetables are to be had: lettuces, cabbage, a slice of gourd, -of beef, carrots, beans, celery, endive, onions and garlic, long -peppers. These must be previously well washed and cut, as if they were -destined to make a salad; then add red sausages, or “_chorizos_;” half a -salted pig’s face, which should have been soaked over-night. When all is -sufficiently boiled, strain off the water, and throw it away. Remember -constantly to skim the scum of both saucepans. When all this is -sufficiently dressed, take a large dish, lay in the bottom the -vegetables, the beef in the centre, flanked by the bacon, chicken, and -pig’s face. The sausages should be arranged around, en couronne; pour -over some of the soup of No. 1, and serve hot, as Horace did: “Uncta -satis--ponuntur oluscula lardo.” No violets come up to the perfume which -a coming olla casts before it; the mouth-watering bystanders sigh, as -they see and smell the rich freight steaming away from them. - -[Sidenote: BACON.] - -This is the olla _en grande_, such as Don Quixote says was eaten only by -canons and presidents of colleges; like turtle-soup, it is so rich and -satisfactory that it is a dinner of itself. A worthy dignitary of -Seville, in the good old times, before reform and appropriation had put -out the churches’ kitchen fire, and whose daily pot-luck was -transcendental, told us, as a wrinkle, that he on feast-days used -turkeys instead of chickens, and added two sharp Ronda apples, and three -sweet potatoes of Malaga. His advice is worth attention: he was a good -Roman Catholic canon, who believed everything, absolved everything, -drank everything, ate everything, and digested everything. In fact, as a -general rule, anything that is good in itself is good for an _olla_, -provided, as old Spanish books always conclude, that it contains nothing -contrary to the holy mother church, to orthodoxy, and to good -manners--“_que no contiene cosa que se oponga á nuestra madre Iglesia, y -santa fé catolica, y buenas costumbres_.” Such an olla as this is not to -be got on the road, but may be made to restore exhausted nature when -halting in the cities. Of course, every olla, must everywhere be made -according to what can be got. In private families the contents of No. -1, the soup, is served up with bread, in a tureen, and the frugal table -decked with the separate contents of the olla in separate platters; the -remains coldly serve, or are warmed up, for supper. - -The vegetables and bacon are absolute necessaries; without the former an -olla has neither grace nor sustenance; _la olla sin verdura, ni tiene -gracia ni hartura_, while the latter is as essential in this stew as a -text from Saint Augustine is in a sermon: - - _No hay olla sin tocino,_ - _Ni sermon sin Agustino._ - -Bacon throughout the length and breadth of the Peninsula is more -honoured than this, or than any one or all the fathers of the church of -Rome; the hunger after the flesh of the pig is equalled only by the -thirst for the contents of what is put afterwards into his skin; and -with reason, for the pork of Spain has always been, and is, unequalled -in flavour; the bacon is fat and flavoured, the sausages delicious, and -the hams transcendantly superlative, to use the very expression of -Diodorus Siculus, a man of great taste, learning, and judgment. Of all -the things of Spain, no one need feeling ashamed to plead guilty to a -predilection and preference to the pig. A few particulars may be -therefore pardoned. - -[Sidenote: PIGS OF ESTREMADURA.] - -In Spain pigs are more numerous even than asses, since they pervade the -provinces. As those of Estremadura, the _Ham_pshire of the Peninsula, -are the most esteemed, they alone will be now noticed. That province, -although so little visited by Spaniards or strangers, is full of -interest to the antiquarian and naturalist; and many are the rides at -different periods which we have made through its tangled ilex groves, -and over its depopulated and aromatic wastes. A granary under Roman and -Moor, its very existence seems to be all but forgotten by the Madrid -government, who have abandoned it _feræ naturæ_, to wandering sheep, -locusts, and swine. The entomology of Estremadura is endless, and -perfectly uninvestigated--de minimis non curat Hispanus; but the heavens -and earth teem with the minute creation; there nature is most busy and -prolific, where man is most idle and unproductive; and in these lonely -wastes, where no human voice disturbs the silence, the balmy air -resounds with the buzzing hum of multitudinous insects, which career -about on their business of love or food without settlements or kitchens, -rejoicing in the fine weather which is the joy of their tiny souls, and -short-lived pleasant existence. Sheep, pigs, locusts, and doves are the -only living things which the traveller will see for hours and hours. Now -and then a man occurs, just to prove how rare his species is here. - -Vast districts of this unreclaimed province are covered with woods of -oak, beech, and chesnut; but these park-like scenes have no charms for -native eyes; blind to the picturesque, they only are thinking of the -number of pigs which can be fattened on the mast and acorns, which are -sweeter and larger than those of our oaks. The acorns are still called -_bellota_, the Arabic _bollot_--_belot_ being the Scriptural term for -the tree and the gland, which, with water, formed the original diet of -the aboriginal Iberian, as well as of his pig; when dry, the acorns were -ground, say the classical authors, into bread, and, when fresh, they -were served up as the second course. And in our time ladies of high rank -at Madrid constantly ate them at the opera and elsewhere; they were the -presents sent by Sancho Panza’s wife to the Duchess, and formed the text -on which Don Quixote preached so eloquently to the goatherds, on the -joys and innocence of the golden age and pastoral happiness, in which -they constituted the foundation of the kitchen. - -[Sidenote: KILLING A PIG.] - -The pigs during the greater part of the year are left to support nature -as they can, and in gauntness resemble those greyhound-looking animals -which pass for porkers in France. When the acorns are ripe and fall from -the trees, the greedy animals are turned out in legions from the -villages, which more correctly may be termed coalitions of pigsties. -They return from the woods at night, of their own accord, and without a -swine’s general. On entering the hamlet, all set off at a full gallop, -like a legion possessed with devils, in a handicap for home, into which -each single pig turns, never making a mistake. We have more than once -been caught in one of these pig-deluges, and nearly carried away horse -and all, as befell Don Quixote, when really swept away by the -“far-spread and grunting drove.” In his own home each truant is welcomed -like a prodigal son or a domestic father. These pigs are the pets of the -peasants; they are brought up with their children, and partake, as in -Ireland, in the domestic discomforts of their cabins; they are -universally respected, and justly, for it is this animal who pays the -“rint;” in fact, are the citizens, as at Sorrento, and Estremenian man -is quite a secondary formation, and created to tend herds of these -swine, who lead the happy life of former Toledan dignitaries, with the -additional advantage of becoming more valuable when dead. - -It is astonishing how rapidly they thrive on their sweet food; indeed it -is the whole duty of a good pig--animal propter convivia natum--to get -as fat and as soon as he can, and then die for the good of his country. -It may be observed for the information of our farmers, that those pigs -which are dedicated to St. Anthony, on whom a sow is in constant -attendance, as a dove was on Venus, get the soonest fat; therefore in -Spain young porkers are sprinkled with holy water on his day, but those -of other saints are less propitious, for the killing takes place about -the 10th and 11th of November, or, as Spaniards date it, _por el St. -Andres_, on the day of St. Andrew, or on that of St. Martin; hence the -proverb “every man and pig has his St. Martin or his fatal hour, _á cada -puerco su San Martin_.” - -The death of a fat pig is as great an event in Spanish families, who -generally fatten up one, as the birth of a baby; nor can the fact be -kept secret, so audible is his announcement. It is considered a delicate -attention on the part of the proprietor to celebrate the auspicious -event by sending a portion of the chitterlings to intimate friends. The -Spaniard’s proudest boast is that his blood is pure, that he is not -descended from pork-eschewing Jew or Moor--a fact which the pig genus, -could it reason, would deeply deplore. The Spaniard doubtless has been -so great a consumer of pig, from grounds religious, as well as -gastronomic. The eating or not eating the flesh of an animal deemed -unclean by the impure infidel, became a test of orthodoxy, and at once -of correct faith as well as of good taste; and good bacon, as has been -just observed, is wedded to sound doctrine and St. Augustine. The -Spanish name _Tocino_ is derived from the Arabic _Tachim_, which -signifies fat. - -[Sidenote: PORK OF MONTANCHES.] - -The Spaniards however, although tremendous consumers of the pig, whether -in the salted form or in the skin, have to the full the Oriental -abhorrence to the unclean animal in the _abstract_. _Muy puerco_ is -their last expression for all that is most dirty, nasty, or disgusting. -_Muy cochina_ never is forgiven, if applied to woman, as it is -equivalent to the Italian _Vacca_, and to the canine feminine compliment -bandied among our fair sex at Billingsgate; nor does the epithet imply -moral purity or chastity; indeed in Castilian euphuism the unclean -animal was never to be named except in a periphrasis, or with an -apology, which is a singular remnant of the Moorish influence on Spanish -manners. _Haluf_ or swine is still the Moslem’s most obnoxious term for -the Christians, and is applied to this day by the ungrateful Algerines -to their French bakers and benefactors, nay even to the “_illustre -Bugeaud_.” - -The capital of the Estremenian pig-districts is _Montanches_--mons -anguis--and doubtless the hilly spot where the Duke of Arcos fed and -cured “ces petits jambons vermeils,” which the Duc de St. Simon ate and -admired so much; “ces jambons ont un parfum si admirable, un goût si -relevé et si vivifiant, qu’on en est surpris: il est impossible de rien -manger si exquis.” His Grace of Arcos used to shut up the pigs in places -abounding in vipers, on which they fattened. Neither the pigs, dukes, -nor their toadeaters seem to have been poisoned by these exquisite -vipers. According to Jonas Barrington, the finest Irish pigs were those -that fed on dead rebels: one Papist porker, the Enniscorthy boar, was -sent as a show, for having eaten a Protestant parson: he was put to -death and dishonoured by not being made bacon of. - -[Sidenote: A MEAT OMELETTE.] - -Naturalists have remarked that the rattlesnakes in America retire before -their consuming enemy, the pig, who is thus the _gastador_ or pioneer of -the new world’s civilization, just as Pizarro, who was suckled by a sow, -and tended swine in his youth, was its conqueror. Be that as it may, -Montanches is illustrious in pork, in which the burgesses go the whole -hog, whether in the rich red sausage, the _chorizo_, or in the savoury -piquant _embuchados_, which are akin to the _mortadelle_ of Bologna, -only less hard, and usually boiled before eating, though good also raw; -they consist of the choice bits of the pig seasoned with condiments, -with which, as if by retribution, the paunch of the voracious animal is -filled; the ruling passion strong in death. We strongly recommend _Juan -Valiente_, who recently was the alcalde of the town, to the lover of -delicious hams; each _jamon_ averages about 12 lb.; they are sold at the -rate of 7½ _reales_, about 18_d._; for the _libra carnicera_, which -weighs 32 of our ounces. The duties in England are now very trifling; we -have for many years had an annual supply of these delicacies, through -the favour of a kind friend at the _Puerto_. The fat of these _jamones_, -whence our word ham and gammon, when they are boiled, looks like melted -topazes, and the flavour defies language, although we have dined on one -this very day, in order to secure accuracy and undeniable prose, like -Lope de Vega, who, according to his biographer, Dr. Montalvan, never -could write poetry unless inspired by a rasher; “Toda es cosa vil,” said -he, “á donde falta un _pernil_” (in which word we recognize the precise -_perna_, whereby Horace was restored):-- - - Therefore all writing is a sham, - Where there is wanting Spanish ham. - -Those of Gallicia and Catalonia are also celebrated, but are not to be -compared for a moment with those of Montanches, which are fit to set -before an emperor. Their only rivals are the sweet hams of the -_Alpujarras_, which are made at _Trevelez_, a pig-hamlet situated under -the snowy mountains on the opposite side of Granada, to which also we -have made a pilgrimage. They are called _dulces_ or sweet, because -scarcely any salt is used in the curing; the ham is placed in a weak -pickle for eight days, and is then hung up in the snow; it can only be -done at this place, where the exact temperature necessary is certain. -Those of our readers who are curious in Spanish eatables will find -excellent garbanzos, chorizos, red pepper, chocolate and Valencian -sweetmeats, &c. at Figul’s, a most worthy Catalan, whose shop is at No. -10, Woburn Buildings, St. Paneras, London; the locality is scarcely less -visited than Montanches, but the penny-post penetrates into this terra -incognita. - -[Sidenote: THE GUISADO.] - -So much space has been filled with these meritorious bacons and hams, -that we must be brief with our remaining bill of fare. For a _pisto_ or -meat omelette take eggs, which are to be got almost everywhere; see that -they are fresh by being pellucid; beat these _huevos trasparentes_ well -up; chop up onions and whatever savoury herbs you have with you; add -small slices of any meat out of your hamper, cold turkey, ham, &c.; beat -it all up together and fry it quickly. Most Spaniards have a peculiar -knack in making these _tortillas_, _revueltas de huevos_, which to -fastidious stomachs are, as in most parts of the Continent, a sure -resource to fall back upon. - -The _Guisado_, or stew, like the olla, can only be really done in a -Spanish pipkin, and of those which we import, the Andalucian ones draw -flavour out the best. This dish is always well done by every cook in -every venta, barring that they are apt to put in bad oil, and too much -garlic, pepper, and saffron. Superintend it, therefore, yourself, and -take hare, partridge, rabbit, chicken, or whatever you may have foraged -on the road; it is capital also with pheasant, as we proved only -yesterday; cut it up, save the blood, the liver, and the giblets; do not -wash the pieces, but dry them in a cloth; fry them with onions in a -teacup of oil till browned; take an olla, put in these bits with the -oil, equal portions of wine and water, but stock is better than water; -claret answers well, Valdepeñas better; add a bit of bacon, onions, -garlic, salt, pepper, _pimientos_, a bunch of thyme or herbs; let it -simmer, carefully skimming it; half an hour before serving add the -giblets; when done, which can be tested by feeling with a fork, serve -hot. The stew should be constantly stirred with a _wooden_ spoon, and -grease, the ruin of all cookery, carefully skimmed off as it rises to -the surface. When made with proper care and with a good salad, it forms -a supper for a cardinal, or for Santiago himself. - -[Sidenote: STARRED EGGS.] - -Another excellent but very difficult dish is the _pollo con arroz_, or -the chicken and rice. It is eaten in perfection in Valencia, and -therefore is often called _Pollo Valenciano_. Cut a good fowl into -pieces, wipe it clean, but do not put it into water; take a saucepan, -put in a wine-glass of fine oil, heat the oil well, put in a bit of -bread; let it fry, stirring it about with a _wooden_ spoon; when the -bread is browned take it out and throw it away: put in two cloves of -garlic, taking care that it does not burn, as, if it does, it will turn -bitter; stir the garlic till it is fried; put in the chicken, keep -stirring it about while it fries, then put in a little salt and stir -again; whenever a sound of cracking is heard, stir it again; when the -chicken is well browned or gilded, _dorado_, which will take from five -to ten minutes, _stirring constantly_, put in chopped onions, three or -four chopped red or green chilis, and stir about; if once the contents -catch the pan, the dish is spoiled; then add tomatas, divided into -quarters, and parsley; take two teacupsful of rice, mix all well up -together; add _hot_ stock enough to cover the whole over; let it boil -_once_, and then set it aside to simmer until the rice becomes tender -and done. The great art consists in having the rice turned out -granulated and separate, not in a pudding state, which is sure to be the -case if a cover be ever put over the dish, which condenses the steam. - -It may be objected, that these dishes, if so curious in the cooking, are -not likely to be well done in the rude kitchens of a _venta_; but -practice makes perfect, and the whole mind and intellect of the artist -is concentrated on one object, and not frittered away by a multiplicity -of dishes, the rock on which many cooks founder, where more dinners are -sacrificed to the eye and ostentation. One dish and one thing at a time -is the golden rule of Bacon; many are the anxious moments that we have -spent over the rim of a Spanish pipkin, watching, life set on the cast, -the wizen she-mummy, whose mind, body, and spoon were absorbed in a -single mess: Well, my mother, _que tal_? what sort of a stew is it? Let -me smell and taste the _salsa_. Good, good; it promises much. _Vamos, -Señora_--go on, my lady, thy spoon once more--how, indeed, can oil, -wine, and nutritive juices amalgamate without frequent stirring? Well, -very well it is. Now again, daughter of my soul, thy fork. _Asi, asi_; -thus, thus. _Per Bacco_, by Bacchus, tender it is--may heaven repay -thee! Indeed, from this tenderness of the meat arises ease of digestion; -here, pot and fire do half the work of the poor stomach, which too often -in inns elsewhere is overtaxed, like its owner, and condemned to hard -labour and a brickbat beefsteak. - -[Sidenote: SALAD.] - -Poached eggs are at all events within the grasp of the meanest culinary -capacity. They are called _Huevos estrellados_, starred eggs. When fat -bacon is wedded to them, the dish is called _Huevos con magras_; not -that _magras_ here means thin as to condition, but rather as to slicing; -and these slices, again, are positively thick ones when compared to -those triumphs of close shaving which are carved at Vauxhall. To make -this dish, with or without the bacon, take eggs; the contents of the -shell are to be emptied into a pan filled with hot oil or lard, _manteca -de puerco_, pig’s butter: it must be remembered, although Strabo -mentions as a singular fact that the Iberians made use of butter -instead of oil, that now it is just the reverse; a century ago butter -was only sold by the apothecaries, as a sort of ointment, and it used to -be iniquitous. Spaniards generally used either Irish or Flemish salted -butter, and from long habit thought fresh butter quite insipid; indeed, -they have no objection to its being a trifle or so rancid, just as some -aldermen like high venison. In the present age of progress the Queen -Christina has a fancy dairy at Madrid, where she makes a few pounds of -fresh butter, of which a small portion is or was sold, at five shillings -the pound, to foreign ambassadors for their breakfast. Recently more -attention has been paid to the dairy in the Swiss-like provinces of the -north-west. The Spaniards, like the heroes in the Iliad, seldom boil -their food (eggs excepted), at least not in water; for frying, after -all, is but boiling in oil. - -Travellers should be cautioned against the captivating name of _manteca -Valenciana_. This Valencian butter is composed (for the cow has nothing -to do with it) of equal portions of garlic and hogs’ lard pounded -together in a mortar; it is then spread on bread, just as we do arsenic -to destroy vermin. It, however, agrees well with the peasants, as does -the soup of their neighbours the Catalans, which is made of bread and -garlic in equal portions fried in oil and diluted with hot water. This -mess is called _sopa de gato_, probably from making cats, not Catalans, -sick. - -[Sidenote: GAZPACHO.] - -One thing, however, is truly delicious in Spain--the salad, to compound -which, says the Spanish proverb, four persons are wanted: a spendthrift -for oil, a miser for vinegar, a counsellor for salt, and a madman to -stir it all up. N.B. Get the biggest bowl you can, in order that this -latter operation may be thoroughly performed. The salad is the glory of -every French dinner, and the disgrace of most in England, even in good -houses, and from two simple causes; first, from the putting in eggs, -mustard, and other heretical ingredients, and, secondly, from making it -long before it is wanted to be eaten, whereby the green materials, which -should be crisp and fresh, become sodden and leathery. Prepare, -therefore, your salad in separate vessels, and never mix the sauce with -the herbs until the instant that you are ready to transfer the -refreshing result to your plate. Take lettuce, or whatever salad is to -be got; do not cut it with a steel knife, which turns the edges of the -wounds black, and communicates an evil flavour; let the leaf be torn -from the stem, which throw away, as it is hard and bitter; wash the mass -in many waters, and rinse it in napkins till dry; take a small bowl, put -in equal quantities of vinegar and water, a teaspoonful of pepper and -salt, and four times as much oil as vinegar and water, mix the same well -together; prepare in a plate whatever fine herbs can be got, especially -tarragon and chervil, which must be chopped small. Pour the sauce over -the salad, powder it with these herbs, and lose no time in eating. For -making a much worse salad than this, a foreign artiste in London used -some years ago to charge a guinea. - -[Sidenote: GAZPACHO.] - -Any remarks on Spanish salads would be incomplete without some account -of _gazpacho_, that vegetable soup, or floating salad, which during the -summer forms the food of the bulk of the people in the torrid portions -of Spain. This dish is of Arabic origin, as its name, “soaked bread,” -implies. This most ancient Oriental Roman and Moorish refection is -composed of onions, garlic, cucumbers, chilis, all chopped up very small -and mixed with crumbs of bread, and then put into a bowl of oil, -vinegar, and fresh water. Reapers and agricultural labourers could never -stand the sun’s fire without this cooling acetous diet. This was the -οξυκρατος of the Greeks, the _posca_, potable food, meat and -drink, _potus et esca_, which formed part of the rations of the Roman -soldiers, and which Adrian (a Spaniard) delighted to share with them, -and into which Boaz at meal-time invited Ruth to dip her morsel. Dr. -Buchanan found some Syrian Christians who still called it _ail_, _ail_, -_Hil_, _Hila_, for which our Saviour was supposed to have called on the -Cross, when those who understood that dialect gave it him from the -vessel which was full of it for the guard. In Andalucia, during the -summer, a bowl of gazpacho is commonly ready in every house of an -evening, and is partaken of by every person who comes in. It is not -easily digested by strangers, who do not require it quite so much as the -natives, whose souls are more parched and dried up, and who perspire -less. The components, oil, vinegar, and bread, are all that is given out -to the lower class of labourers by farmers who profess to feed them; two -cow’s horns, the most primitive form of bottle and cup, are constantly -seen suspended on each side of their carts, and contain this provision, -with which they compound their _migas_: this consists of crumbs of bread -fried in oil, with pepper and garlic; nor can a stronger proof be given -of the common poverty of their fare than the common expression, “_buenas -migas hay_,” there are _good crumbs_, being equivalent to capital -eating. In very cold weather the mess is warmed, and then is called -_gazpacho caliente_. Oh! dura messorum ilia--oh! the iron mess digesting -stomachs of ploughmen. - -[Sidenote: WATER.] - - - - -CHAPTER XII. - - Drinks of Spain--Water--Irrigation--Fountains--Spanish - Thirstiness--The Alcarraza--Water Carriers--Ablutions--Spanish - Chocolate--Agraz--Beer Lemonade. - - -In dipping into Spanish liquids we shall not mix wine with water, but -keep them separate, as most Spaniards do; the latter is entitled to rank -first, by those who prefer the opinion of Pindar, who held water to be -the best of things, to that of Anacreon, who was not member of any -temperance society. The profound regard for water of a Spaniard is quite -Oriental; at the same time, as his blood is partly Gothic and partly -Arab, his allegiance is equally mixed and divided; thus, if he adores -the juice of flints like a Moslem, he venerates the juice of the grape -like a German. - -Water is the blood of the earth, and the purificator of the body in -tropical regions and in creeds which, being regulated by latitudes, -enforce frequent ablution; loud are the praises of Arab writers of wells -and water-brooks, and great is their fountain and pool worship, the -dipping in which, if their miraculous cases are to be credited, effects -more and greater cures than those worked by hydropathists at Grafenberg; -a Spaniard’s idea of a paradise on earth, of a “garden,” is a -well-watered district; irrigation is fertility and wealth, and -therefore, as in the East, wells, brooks, and water-courses have been a -constant source of bickering; nay the very word _rivality_ has been -derived from these quarrel and law-suit engendering rivers, as the name -given to the well for which the men of Gerah and Isaac differed, was -called _esek_ from the contention. - -[Sidenote: FOUNTAINS.] - -The flow of waters cannot be mistaken; the most dreary sterility edges -the most luxuriant plenty, the most hopeless barrenness borders on the -richest vegetation; the line of demarcation is perceived from afar, -dividing the tawny desert from the verdurous garden. The Moors who came -from the East were fully sensible of the value of this element; they -collected the best springs with the greatest care, they dammed up -narrow gorges into reservoirs, they constructed pools and underground -cisterns, stemmed valleys with aqueducts that poured in rivers, and in a -word exercised a magic influence over this element, which they guided -and wielded at their will; their system of irrigation was far too -perfect to be improved by Spaniard, or even destroyed. In those favoured -districts where their artificial contrivances remain, Flora still smiles -and Ceres rejoices with Pomona; wherever the ravages of war or the -neglect of man have ruined them, the garden has relapsed into the -desert, and plains once overflowing with corn, gladness, and population, -have shrunk into sad and silent deserts. - -[Sidenote: THIRST.] - -The fountains of Spain, especially in the hotter and more Moorish -districts, are numerous; they cannot fail to strike and please the -stranger, whether they be situated in the public walk, garden, -market-place, or private dwelling. Their mode of supply is simple: a -river which flows down from the hills is diverted at a certain height -from its source, and is carried in an artificial canal, which retains -the original elevation, into a reservoir placed above the town which is -to be served; as the waters rise to their level, the force, body, and -altitude of some of the columns thrown up are very great. In our cold -country, where, except at Charing Cross, the stream is conveyed -underground and unseen, all this gush of waters, of dropping diamonds in -the bright sun, which cools the air and gladdens the sight and ear, is -unknown. Again there is a waste of the “article,” which would shock a -Chelsea Waterworks Director, and induce the rate-collector to refer to -the fines as per Act of Parliament. The fondest wish of those Spaniards -who wear long-tailed coats, is to imitate those gentry; they are ashamed -of the patriarchal uncivilised system of their ancestors--much prefer -the economical lead pipe to all this extravagant and gratuitous -splashing--they love a turncock better than the most Oriental Rebecca -who comes down to draw water. The fountains in Spain as in the East are -the meeting and greeting places of womankind; here they flock, old and -young, infants and grandmothers. It is a sight to drive a water-colour -painter crazy, such is the colour, costume, and groupings, such is the -clatter of tongues and crockery; such is the life and action; now trip -along a bevy of damsel Hebes with upright forms and chamois step light -yet true; more graceful than opera-dancers, they come laughing and -carolling along, poising on their heads pitchers modelled after the -antique, and after everything which a Sèvres jug is not. It would seem -that to draw water is a difficult operation, so long are they lingering -near the sweet fountain’s rim. It indeed is their al fresco rout, their -tertulia; here for awhile the hand of woman labour ceases, and the urn -stands still; here more than even after church mass, do the young -discuss their dress and lovers, the middle-aged and mothers descant on -babies and housekeeping; all talk, and generally at once; but gossip -refresheth the daughters of Eve, whether in gilded boudoir or near mossy -fountain, whose water, if a dash of scandal be added, becomes sweeter -than eau sucrée. - -The Iberians were decided water-drinkers, and this trait of their -manners, which are modified by climate that changes not, still exists as -the sun that regulates: the vinous Greek Athenæus was amazed that even -rich Spaniards should prefer water to wine; and to this day they are if -possible curious about the latter’s quality; they will just drink the -wine that grows the nearest, while they look about and enquire for the -best water; thus even our cook Francisco, who certainly had one of the -best places in Seville, and who although a good artiste was a better -rascal--qualities not incompatible--preferred to sacrifice his interests -rather than go to Granada, because this man of the fire had heard that -the water there was bad. - -[Sidenote: INTENSE HEAT.] - -The mother of the Arabs was tormented with thirst, which her -Hispano-Moro children have inherited; in fact in the dog-days, of which -here there are packs, unless the mortal clay be frequently wetted it -would crumble to bits like that of a figure modeller. Fire and water are -the elements of Spain, whether at an _auto de fé_ or in a church-stoop; -with a cigar in his mouth a Spaniard smokes like Vesuvius, and is as -dry, combustible, and inflammatory; and properly to understand the truth -of Solomon’s remark, that cold water is to a thirsty soul as refreshing -as good news, one must have experienced what thirst is in the exposed -plains of the calcined Castiles, where _coup de soleil_ is rife, and a -gentleman on horseback’s brains seem to be melting like Don Quixote’s -when Sancho put the curds into his helmet. It is just the country to -send a patient to, who is troubled with hydrophobia. “Those rayes,” to -use the words of old Howell, “that do but warm you in England, do roast -you here; those beams that irradiate onely, and gild your honey-suckled -fields, do here scorch and parch the chinky gaping soyle, and put too -many wrinkles upon the face of your common mother.” - -Then, when the heavens and earth are on fire, and the sun drinks up -rivers at one draught, when one burnt sienna tone pervades the tawny -ground, and the green herb is shrivelled up into black gunpowder, and -the rare pale ashy olive-trees are blanched into the livery of the -desert; then, when the heat and harshness make even the salamander -muleteers swear doubly as they toil along like demons in an ignited -salitrose dust--then, indeed, will an Englishman discover that he is -made of the same material, only drier, and learn to estimate water; but -a good thirst is too serious an evil, too bordering on suffering, to be -made, like an appetite, a matter of congratulation; for when all fluids -evaporate, and the blood thickens into currant jelly, and the nerves -tighten up into the catgut of an overstrung fiddle, getting attuned to -the porcupinal irritability of the tension of the mind, how the parched -soul sighs for the comfort of a Scotch mist, and fondly turns back to -the uvula-relaxing damps of Devon!--then, in the blackhole-like thirst -of the wilderness, every mummy hag rushing from a reed hut, with a -porous cup of brackish water, is changed by the mirage into a Hebe, -bearing the nectar of the immortals; then how one longs for the most -wretched _Venta_, which heat and thirst convert into the Clarendon, -since in it at least will be found water and shade, and an escape from -the god of fire! Well may Spanish historians boast, that his orb at the -creation first shone over Toledo, and never since has set on the -dominions of the great king, who, as we are assured by Señor Berni, “has -the sun for his hat,”--_tiene al sol por su sombrero_; but humbler -mortals who are not grandees of this solar system, and to whom a _coup -de soleil_ is neither a joke nor a metaphor, should stow away -non-conductors of heat in the crown of their beavers. Thus Apollo -himself preserved us. And oh! ye our fair readers, who chance to run -such risks, and value complexion, take for heaven’s sake a parasol and -an _Alcarraza_. - -[Sidenote: SPANISH WATER-SELLERS.] - -This clay utensil--as its Arabic name _al Karaset_ implies--is a porous -refrigeratory vessel, in which water when placed in a current of hot -air becomes chilled by evaporation; it is to be seen hung up on poles -dangling from branches, suspended to waggons--in short, is part and -parcel of a Spanish scene in hot weather and localities; every _posada_ -has rows of them at the entrance, and the first thing every one does on -entering, before wishing even the hostess Good morning, or asking -permission, is to take a full draught: all classes are learned on the -subject, and although on the whole they cannot be accused of -teetotalism, they are loud in their praises of the pure fluid. The -common form of praise is _agua muy rica_--very rich water. According to -their proverbs, good water should have neither taste, smell, nor colour, -“_ni sabor, olor, ni color_,” which neither makes men sick nor in debt, -nor women widows, “_que no enferma, no adeuda, no enviuda_;” and besides -being cheaper than wine, beer, or brandy, it does not brutalize the -consumer, nor deprive him of his common sense or good manners. - -[Sidenote: WANT OF CLEANLINESS.] - -As Spaniards at all times are as dry as the desert or a sponge, selling -water is a very active business; on every alameda and prado shrill -voices of the sellers of drinks and mouth combustibles--_vendedores de -combustibles de boca_--are heard crying, “Fire, fire, _candela_--Water; -who wants water?”--_agua; quien quiere agua?_ which, as these Orientals -generally exaggerate, is described as _mas fresca que la nieve_, or -colder than snow; and near them little Murillo-like urchins run about -with lighted ropes like artillerymen for the convenience of smokers, -that is, for every ninety and nine males out of a hundred; while -water-carriers, or rather retail pedestrian aqueducts, follow thirst -like fire-engines; the _Aguador_ carries on his back, like his colleague -in the East, a porous water-jar, with a little cock by which it is drawn -out; he is usually provided with a small tin box strapped to his waist, -and in which he stows away his glasses, brushes, and some light -_azucarillos_--_panales_, which are made of sugar and white of egg, -which Spaniards dip and dissolve in their drink. In the town, at -particular stations water-mongers in wholesale have a shed, with ranges -of jars, glasses, oranges, lemons, &c., and a bench or two on which the -drinkers “untire themselves.” In winter these are provided with an -_añafe_ or portable stove, which keeps a supply of hot water, to take -the chill off the cold, for Spaniards, from a sort of dropsical habit, -drink like fishes all the year round. Ferdinand the Catholic, on seeing -a peasant drowned in a river, observed, “that he had never before seen a -Spaniard who had had enough water.” - -At the same time it must be remembered that this fluid is applied with -greater prodigality in washing their inside than their outside. Indeed, -a classical author remarks that the Spaniards only learnt the use of -_hot_ water, as applicable to the toilette, from the Romans after the -second Punic war. Their baths and _thermæ_ were destroyed by the Goths, -because they tended to encourage effeminacy; and those of the Moors were -prohibited by the Gotho-Spaniards partly from similar reasons, but more -from a religious hydrophobia. Ablutions and lustral purifications formed -an article of faith with the Jew and Moslem, with whom “cleanliness is -godliness.” The mendicant Spanish monks, according to their practice of -setting up a directly antagonist principle, considered physical dirt as -the test of moral purity and true faith; and by dining and sleeping from -year’s end to year’s end in the same unchanged woollen frock, arrived at -the height of their ambition, according to their view of the odour of -sanctity, insomuch that Ximenez, who was himself a shirtless Franciscan, -induced Ferdinand and Isabella, at the conquest of Granada, to close and -abolish the Moorish baths. They forbade not only the Christians but the -Moors from using anything but holy water. Fire, not water, became the -grand element of inquisitorial purification. - -[Sidenote: CHOCOLATE.] - -The fair sex was warned by monks, who practised what they preached, that -they should remember the cases of Susanna, Bathsheba, and La -Cava,--whose fatal bathing under the royal palace at Toledo led to the -downfall of the Gothic monarchy. Their aqueous anathemas extended not -only to public, but to minutely private washings, regarding which -Sanchez instructs the Spanish confessor to question his fair penitents, -and not to absolve the over-washed. Many instances could be produced of -the practical working of this enjoined rule; for instance, Isabella, the -favourite daughter of Philip II., his eye, as he called her, made a -solemn vow never to change her shift until Ostend was taken. The siege -lasted three years, three months, and thirteen days. The royal garment -acquired a tawny colour, which was called _Isabel_ by the courtiers, in -compliment to the pious princess. Again, Southey relates that the devout -Saint Eufraxia entered into a convent of 130 nuns, not one of whom had -ever washed her feet, and the very mention of a bath was an abomination. -These obedient daughters to their Capuchin confessors were what Gil de -Avila termed a sweet garden of flowers, perfumed by the good smell and -reputation of sanctity, “_ameno jardin de flores, olorosas por el buen -odor y fama de santidad_.” Justice to the land of Castile soap requires -us to observe that latterly, since the suppression of monks, both sexes, -and the fair especially, have departed from the strict observance of the -religious duties of their excellent grandmothers. Warm baths are now -pretty generally established in the larger towns. At the same time, the -interiors of bedrooms, whether in inns or private houses, as well by the -striking absence of glass and china utensils, which to English notions -are absolute necessaries, as by the presence of French pie-dish basins, -and duodecimo jugs, indicate that this “little damned spot” on the -average Spanish hand, has not yet been quite rubbed out. - -However hot the day, dusty the road, or long the journey, it has never -been our fate to see a Spanish attendant use a single drop of water as a -detergent, or, as polite writers say, “perform his ablutions;” the -constant habit of bathing and complete washing is undoubtedly one reason -why the French and other continentals consider our soap-loving -countrymen to be cracked. Under the Spanish Goths the Hemerobaptistæ, or -people who washed their persons once a day, were set down as heretics. -The Duke of Frias, when a few years ago on a fortnight’s visit to an -English lady, never once troubled his basins and jugs; he simply rubbed -his face occasionally with the white of an egg, which, as Madame Daunoy -records, was the only ablution of the Spanish ladies in the time of -Philip IV.; but these details of the dressing-room are foreign to the -use made in Spain of liquids in kitchen and parlour. - -One word on chocolate, which is to a Spaniard what tea is to a -Briton--coffee to a Gaul. It is to be had almost everywhere, and is -always excellent; the best is made by the nuns, who are great -confectioners and compounders of sweetmeats, sugarplums and -orange-flowers, water and comfits, - - “Et tous ces mets sucrés en pâte, ou bien liquides, - Dont estomacs dévots furent toujours avides.” - -[Sidenote: ICED DRINKS.] - -It was long a disputed point whether chocolate did or did not break -fast theologically, just as happened with coffee among the rigid -Moslems. But since the learned Escobar decided that _liquidum non rumpit -jejunium_, a liquid does not break fast, it has become the universal -breakfast of Spain. It is made just liquid enough to come within the -benefit of clergy, that is, a spoon will almost stand up in it; only a -small cup is taken, _una jicara_, a Mexican word for the cocoa-nuts of -which they were first made, generally with a bit of toasted bread or -biscuit: as these _jicaras_ have seldom any handles, they were used by -the rich (as coffeecups are among the Orientals) enclosed in little -filigree cases of silver or gold; some of these are very beautiful, made -in the form of a tulip or lotus leaf, on a saucer of mother-o’-pearl. -The flower is so contrived that, by a spring underneath, on raising the -saucer, the leaves fall back and disclose the cup to the lips, while, -when put down, they re-close over it, and form a protection against the -flies. A glass of water should always be drunk after this chocolate, -since the aqueous chasse neutralizes the bilious propensities of this -breakfast of the gods, as Linnæus called chocolate. Tea and coffee have -supplanted chocolate in England and France; it is in Spain alone that we -are carried back to the breakfasts of Belinda and of the wits at -Button’s; in Spain exist, unchanged, the fans, the game of ombre, -_tresillo_, and the _coche de colleras_, the coach and six, and other -social usages of the age of Pope and the ‘Spectator.’ - -[Sidenote: ICED LEMONADE.] - -Cold liquids in the hot dry summers of Spain are necessaries, not -luxuries; snow and iced drinks are sold in the streets at prices so low -as to be within the reach of the poorest classes; the rich refrigerate -themselves with _agraz_. This, the Moorish _Hacaraz_, is the most -delicious and most refreshing drink ever devised by thirsty mortal; it -is the _new_ pleasure for which Xerxes wished in vain, and beats the -“hock and soda water,” the “_hoc erat in votis_” of Byron, and sherry -cobler itself. It is made of pounded unripe grapes, clarified sugar, and -water; it is strained till it becomes of the palest straw-coloured -amber, and well iced. It is particularly well made in Andalucia, and it -is worth going there in the dog-days, if only to drink it--it cools a -man’s body and soul. At Madrid an agreeable drink is sold in the -streets; it is called _Michi Michi_, from the Valencian _Mitj e Mitj_, -“half and half,” and is as unlike the heavy wet mixture of London, as a -coal-porter is to a pretty fair Valenciana. It is made of equal portions -of barley-water and orgeat of _Chufas_, and is highly iced. The -Spaniards, among other cooling fruits, eat their strawberries mixed with -sugar and the juice of oranges, which will be found a more agreeable -addition than the wine used by the French, or the cream of the -English,--the one heats, and the other, whenever it is to be had, makes -a man bilious in Spain. Spanish ices, _helados_, are apt to be too -sweet, nor is the sugar well refined; the ices, when frozen very hard -and in small forms, either representing fruits or shells, are called -_quesos_, cheeses. - -Another favourite drink is a weak bottled beer mixed with iced lemonade. -Spaniards, however, are no great drinkers of beer, notwithstanding that -their ancestors drank more of it than wine, which was not then either so -plentiful or universal as at the present; this substitute of grapeless -countries passed from the Egyptians and Carthaginians into Spain, where -it was excellent, and kept well. The vinous Roman soldiers derided the -beer-drinking Iberians, just as the French did the English _before_ the -battle of Agincourt. “Can sodden water--barley-broth--decoct their cold -blood to such valiant heat?” Polybius sneers at the magnificence of a -Spanish king, because his home was furnished with silver and gold vases -full of beer, of barley-wine. The genuine Goths, as happens everywhere -to this day, were great swillers of ale and beer, heady and stupifying -mixtures, according to Aristotle. Their archbishop, St. Isidore, -distinguished between _celia ceria_, the ale, and _cerbisia_, beer, -whence the present word _cerbeza_ is derived. Spanish beer, like many -other Spanish matters, has now become small. Strong English beer is rare -and dear; among one of the infinite ingenious absurdities of Spanish -customs’ law, English beer in barrels used to be prohibited, as were -English bottles if empty--but prohibited beer, in prohibited bottles, -was admissible, on the principle that two fiscal negatives made an -exchequer affirmative. - -[Sidenote: WINES OF SPAIN.] - - - - -CHAPTER XIII. - - Spanish Wines--Spanish Indifference--Wine-making--Vins du - Pays--Local Wines--Benicarló--Valdepeñas. - - -The wines of Spain deserve a chapter to themselves. Sherry indeed is not -less popular among us than Murillo, in spite of the numbers of bad -copies of the one, which are passed off for undoubted originals, and -butts of the other, which are sold neat as imported. The Spaniard -himself is neither curious in port, nor particular in Madeira; he -prefers quantity to quality, and loves flavour much less than he hates -trouble; a cellar in a private house, of rare fine or foreign wines, is -perhaps a greater curiosity than a library of ditto books; an hidalgo -with twenty names simply sends out before his frugal meal for a quart of -wine to the nearest shop, as a small burgess does in the City for a pint -of porter. Local in every thing, the Spaniard takes the goods that the -gods provide him, just as they come to hand; he drinks the wine that -grows in the nearest vineyards, and if there are none, then regales -himself with the water from the least distant spring. It is so in -everything; he adds the smallest possible exertion of his own to the -bounties of nature; his object is to obtain the largest produce for the -smallest labour; he allows a life-conferring sun and a fertile soil to -create for him the raw material, which he exports, being perfectly -contented that the foreigner should return it to him when recreated by -art and industry; thus his wool, barilla, hides, and cork-bark, are -imported by him back again in the form of cloth, glass, leather, and -bungs. - -[Sidenote: WINES OF SPAIN.] - -The most celebrated and perfect wines of the Peninsula are port and -sherry, which owe their excellence to foreign, not to native skill, the -principal growers and makers being Europeans, and their system -altogether un-Spanish; nothing can be more rude, antique, and -unscientific, than the wine-making in those localities where no -stranger has ever settled. But Spain is a land bottled up for -antiquarians, and it must be confessed that the national process is very -picturesque and classical; no Ariadne revel of Titian is more glittering -or animated, no bas-relief more classical in which sacrifices are -celebrated - - “To Bacchus, who first from out the purple grape - Crushed the sweet poison of misused wine.” - -Often have we ridden through villages redolent with vinous aroma, and -inundated with the blood of the berry, until the very mud was -encarnadined; what a busy scene! Donkeys laden with panniers of the ripe -fruit, damsels bending under heavy baskets, men with reddened legs and -arms, joyous and jovial as satyrs, hurry jostling on to the rude and -dirty vat, into which the fruit is thrown indiscriminately, the -black-coloured with the white ones, the ripe bunches with the sour, the -sound berries with those decayed; no pains are taken, no selection is -made; the filth and negligence are commensurate with this carelessness; -the husks are either trampled under naked feet or pressed out under a -rude beam; in both cases every refining operation is left to the -fermentation of nature, for there is a divinity that shapes our ends, -rough hew them how we may. - -[Sidenote: VALDEPENAS.] - -The wines of Spain, under a latitude where a fine season is a certainty, -might rival those of France, and still more those of the Rhine, where a -good vintage is the exception, not the rule. Their varieties are -infinite, since few districts, unless those that are very elevated, are -without their local produce, the names, colours, and flavours of which -are equally numerous and varied. The thirsty traveller, after a long -day’s ride under a burning sun, when seated quietly down to a smoking -peppery dish, is enchanted with the cool draught of these vins du pays, -which are brought fresh to him from the skins or amphora jars; he longs -to transport the apparently divine nectar to his own home, and wonders -that “the trade” should have overlooked such delicious wine. Those who -have tried the experiment will find a sad change for the worse come over -the spirit of their dream, when the long-expected importation greets -their papillatory organs in London. There the illusion is dispelled; -there to a cloyed fastidious taste, to a judgment bewildered and -frittered away by variety of the best vintages, how flat, stale, and -unprofitable does this much-fancied beverage appear! The truth is, that -its merit consists in the thirst and drinking vein of the traveller, -rather than in the wine itself. Those therefore of our readers whose -cellars are only stocked with choice Bordeaux, Xerez, and Champagne, may -sustain with resignation the absence of other sorts of Spanish grape -juice. If an exception is to be made, let it be only in favour of -Valdepeñas and Manzanilla. - -The local wines may therefore be tossed off rapidly. The Navarrese drink -their Peralta, the Basques their Chacolet, which is a poor vin ordinaire -and inferior to our good cider. The Arragonese are supplied from the -vineyards of Cariñena; the Catalans, from those of Sidges and Benicarló; -the former is a rich sweet wine, with a peculiar aromatic flavour; the -latter is the well-known black strap, which is exported largely to -Bordeaux to enrich clarets for our vitiated taste, and as it is rich -red, and full flavoured, much comes to England to concoct what is -denominated curious old port by those who sell it. The fiery and acrid -brandy which is made from this Benicarló is sent to the bay of Cadiz to -the tune of 1000 butts a year to doctor up worse sherry. - -The central provinces of Spain consume but little of these; Leon has a -wine of its own which grows chiefly near Zamora and Toro, and it is much -drunk at the neighbouring and learned university of Salamanca, where, as -it is strong and heady, it promotes prejudice, as port is said to do -elsewhere. Madrid is supplied with wines grown at Tarancon, Arganda, and -other places in its immediate vicinity, and those of the latter are -frequently substituted for the celebrated Valdepeñas of La Mancha, which -was mother’s milk to Sancho Panza and his two eminent progenitors; they -differed, as their worthy descendant informed the Knight of the Wood, on -the merits of a cask; one of them just dipped his tongue into the wine, -and affirmed that it had a taste of iron; the other merely applied his -nose to the bung-hole, and was positive that it smacked of leather; in -due time when the barrel was emptied, a key tied to a thong confirmed -the degustatory acumen of these connoisseurs. - -[Sidenote: THE BEST VINEYARDS.] - -The red blood of this “valley of stones” issues with such abundance, -that quantities of old wine are often thrown away, for the want of -skins, jars, and casks into which to place the new. From the scarcity -of fuel in these denuded plains, the prunings of the vine are sometimes -as valuable as the grapes. Even at Valdepeñas, with Madrid for its -customer, the wine continues to be made in an unscientific, careless -manner. Before the French invasion, a Dutchman, named Muller, had begun -to improve the system, and better prices were obtained; whereupon the -lower classes, in 1808, broke open his cellars, pillaged them, and -nearly killed him because he made wine dearer. It is made of a Burgundy -grape which has been transplanted and transported from the stinted suns -of fickle France, to the certain and glorious summers of La Mancha. The -genuine wine is rich, full-bodied, and high-coloured. It will keep -pretty well, and improves for four or five years, nay, longer. To be -really enjoyed it must be drunk on the spot; the curious in wine should -go down into one of the _cuevas_ or cave-cellars, and have a goblet of -the ruby fluid drawn from the big-bellied jar. The wine, when taken to -distant places, is almost always adulterated; and at Madrid with a -decoction of log wood, which makes it almost poisonous, acting upon the -nerves and muscular system. - -The best vineyards and _bodegas_ or cellars are those which did belong -to Don Carlos, and those which do belong to the Marques de Santa Cruz. -One anecdote will do the work of pages in setting forth the habitual -indifference of Spaniards, and the way things are managed for them. This -very nobleman, who certainly was one of the most distinguished among the -grandees in rank and talent, was dining one day with a foreign -ambassador at Madrid, who was a decided admirer of Valdepeñas, as all -judicious men must be, and who took great pains to procure it quite pure -by sending down trusty persons and sound casks. The Marques at the first -glass exclaimed, “What capital wine! where do you manage to buy it in -Madrid?” “I send for it,” was the reply, “to your _administrador_ at -Valdepeñas, Anglice unjust steward, and shall be very happy to get you -some.” - -[Sidenote: VALDEPENAS.] - -The wine is worth on the spot about 5_l._ the pipe, but the land -carriage is expensive, and it is apt, when conveyed in skins, to be -tapped and watered by the muleteers, besides imbibing the disagreeable -smack of the pitched pigskin. The only way to secure a pure, -unadulterated, legitimate article, is to send up _double_ quarter sherry -casks; the wine is then put into one, and that again is protected by an -outer cask, which acts as a preventive guard, against gimlets, straws, -and other ingenious contrivances for extracting the vinous contents, and -for introducing an aqueous substitute. It must then be conveyed either -on mules or in waggons to Cadiz and Santander. It is always as well to -send for two casks, as _accidents_ in this _pays de l’imprévu_ -constantly happen where wine and women are in the case. The importer -will receive the most satisfactory certificates signed and sealed on -paper, first duly stamped, in which the alcalde, the muleteer, the -guardia, and all who have shared in the booty, will minutely describe -and prove the _accident_, be it an upset, a breaking of casks, or what -not. Very little pure Valdepeñas ever reaches England; the numerous -vendors’ bold assertions to the contrary notwithstanding. As sherry is a -subject of more general interest, it will be treated with somewhat more -detail. - -[Sidenote: SHERRY.] - - - - -CHAPTER XIV. - - Sherry Wines--The Sherry District--Origin of the Name--Varieties of - Soil--Of Grapes--Pajarete--Rojas Clemente--Cultivation of - Vines--Best Vineyards--The Vintage--Amontillado--The Capataz--The - Bodega--Sherry Wine--Arrope and Madre Vino--A Lecture on Sherry in - the Cellar--at the Table--Price of Fine Sherry--Falsification of - Sherry--Manzanilla--The Alpistera. - - -Sherry, a wine which requires more explanation than many of its -consumers imagine, is grown in a limited nook of the Peninsula, on the -south-western corner of sunny Andalucia, which occupies a range of -country of which the town of Xerez is the capital and centre. The -wine-producing districts extend over a space which is included--consult -a map--within a boundary drawn from the towns of Puerto de Sª. Maria, -Rota, San Lucar, Tribujena, Lebrija, Arcos, and to the Puerto again. The -finest vintages lie in the immediate vicinity of Xerez, which has given -therefore its name to the general produce. The wine, however, becomes -inferior in proportion as the vineyards get more distant from this -central point. - -[Sidenote: FOUR CLASSES OF SOIL.] - -Although some authors--who, to show their learning, hunt for Greek -etymologies in every word--have derived sherry from Ξηρος, dry, -to have done so from the Persian Schiraz would scarcely have been more -far-fetched. _Sherris sack_, the term used by Falstaff, no mean -authority in this matter, is the precise _seco de Xerez_, the term by -which the wine is known to this day in its own country; the epithet -_seco_, or dry--the _seck_ of old English authors, and the _sec_ of -French ones--being used in contradistinction to the _sweet_ malvoisies -and muscadels, which are also made of the same grape. The wine, it is -said, was first introduced into England about the time of Henry VII., -whose close alliance with Ferdinand and Isabella was cemented by the -marriage of his son with their daughter. It became still more popular -among us under Elizabeth, when those who sailed under Essex sacked -Cadiz in 1596, and brought home the fashion of good “sherris sack, from -whence,” as Sir John says, “comes valour.” The visit to Spain of Charles -I. contributed to keeping up among his countrymen this taste for the -drinks of the Peninsula, which extended into the provinces, as we find -Howell writing from York, in 1645, for “a barrell or two of oysters, -which shall be well eaten,” as he assures his friend, “with a cup of the -best sherry, to which this town is altogether addicted.” During the wars -of the succession, and those fatal quarrels with England occasioned by -the French alliance and family compact of Charles III., our consumption -of sherries was much diminished, and the culture of the vine and the -wine-making was neglected and deteriorated. It was restored at the end -of last century by the family of Gordon, whose houses at Xerez and the -Puerto most deservedly rank among the first in the country. The improved -quality of the wines was their own recommendation; but as fashion -influences everything, their vogue was finally established by Lord -Holland, who, on his return from Spain, introduced superlative sherry at -his undeniable table. - -The quality of the wine depends on the grape and the soil, which has -been examined and analysed by competent chemists. Omitting minute and -uninteresting particulars, the first class and the best is termed the -_Albariza_; this whitish soil is composed of clay mixed with carbonate -of lime and silex. The second sort is called _Barras_, and consists of -sandy quartz, mixed with lime and oxide of iron. The third is the -_Arenas_, being, as the name indicates, little better than sand, and is -by far the most widely extended, especially about San Lucar, Rota, and -the back of Arcos; it is the most productive, although the wine is -generally coarse, thin, and ill-flavoured, and seldom improves after the -third year: it forms the substratum of those inferior sherries which are -largely exported to the discredit of the real article. The fourth class -of soil is limited in extent, and is the _Bugeo_, or dark-brown loamy -sand which occurs on the sides of rivulets and hillocks. The wine grown -on it is poor and weak; yet all the inferior produces of these different -districts are sold as sherry wines, to the great detriment of those -really produced near Xerez itself, which do not amount to a fifth of the -quantity exported. - -[Sidenote: VINES OF ANDALUCIA.] - -The varieties of the grape are far greater than those of the soil on -which they are grown. Of more than a hundred different kinds, those -called _Listan_ and _Palomina Blanca_ are the best. The increased demand -for sherry, where the producing surface is limited, has led to the -extirpation of many vines of an inferior kind, which have been replaced -by new ones whose produce is of a larger and better quality. The _Pedro -Ximenez_, or delicious sweet-tasted grape which is so celebrated, came -originally from Madeira, and was planted on the Rhine, from whence about -two centuries ago one Peter Simon brought it to Malaga, since when it -has extended over the south of Spain. It is of this grape that the rich -and luscious sweet wine called _Pajarete_ is made; a name which some -have erroneously derived from _Pajaros_, the birds, who are wont to pick -the ripest berries; but it was so called from the wine having been -originally only made at Paxarete, a small spot near Xerez: it is now -prepared everywhere, and thus the grapes are dried in the sun until they -almost become raisins, and the syrop quite inspissated, after that they -are pressed, and a little fine old wine and brandy is added. This wine -is extremely costly, as it is much used in the rearing and maturation of -young sherry wines. - -There is an excellent account of all the vines of Andalucia by Rojas -Clemente. This able naturalist disgraced himself by being a base toady -of the wretched minion Godoy, and by French partisanship, which is high -treason to his own country. Accordingly, to please his masters, he -“contrasts the frank generosity, the vivacity, and genial cordiality of -the Xerezanos, with the sombre stupidity and ferocious egotism of the -insolent people on the banks of the Thames,” by whom he had just before -been most hospitably welcomed. This worthy gentleman wrote, however, -within sight of Trafalgar, and while a certain untoward event was -rankling in his and his estimable patron’s bosom. - -[Sidenote: THE VINTAGE.] - -The vines are cultivated with the greatest care, and demand unceasing -attention, from the first planting to their final decay. They generally -fruit about the fifth year, and continue in full and excellent bearing -for about thirty-five years more, when the produce begins to diminish -both in quantity and in quality. The best wines are produced from the -slowest ripening grapes; the vines are delicate, have a true bacchic -hydrophobia, or antipathy to water--are easily affected and injured by -bad smells and rank weeds. The vine-dresser enjoys little rest; at one -time the soil must be trenched and kept clean, then the vines must be -pruned, and tied to the stakes, to which they are trained very low; anon -insects must be destroyed; and at last the fruit has to be gathered and -crushed. It is a life of constant care, labour, and expense. - -The highest qualities of flavour depend on the grape and soil, and as -the favoured spots are limited, and the struggle and competition for -their acquisition great, the prices paid are always high, and -occasionally extravagantly so; the proprietors of vineyards are very -numerous, and the surface is split and partitioned into infinite petty -ownerships. Even the _Pago de Macharnudo_, the finest of all, the Clos -de Vougeot, the Johannisberg of Xerez, is much subdivided; it consists -of 1200 _aranzadas_, one of which may be taken as equivalent to our -acre, being, however, that quantity of land which can be ploughed with a -pair of bullocks in a day--of these 1200, 460 belong to the great house -of Pedro Domecq, and their mean produce may be taken at 1895 butts, of -which some 350 only will run very fine. Among the next most renowned -_pagos_, or wine districts, may be cited Carrascal, Los Tercios, -Barbiana _alta y baja_, Añina, San Julian, Mochiele, Carraola, Cruz del -Husillo, which lie in the immediate _termino_ or boundary of Xerez; -their produce always ensures high prices in the market. Many of these -vineyards are fenced with canes, the _arundo donax_, or with aloes, -whose stiff-pointed leaves form palisadoes that would defy a regiment of -dragoons, and are called by the natives the devil’s toothpicks; in -addition, the _capataz del campo_, or country bailiff, is provided, like -a keeper, with large and ferocious dogs, who would tear an intruder to -pieces. The fruit when nearly mature is especially watched; for, -according to the proverb, it requires much vigilance to take care of -ripe grapes and maidens--_Niñas y vinos, son mal de guardar_. - -[Sidenote: THE VINTAGE.] - -When the period of the vintage arrives, the cares of the proprietors and -the labours of the cultivators and makers increase. The bunches are -picked and spread out for some days on mattings; the unripe grapes, -which have less substance and spirit, are separated, and are exposed -longer to the sun, by which they improve. If the berries be over-ripe, -then the saccharine prevails, and there is a deficiency of tartaric -acid. The selected grapes are sprinkled with lime, by which the watery -and acetous particles are absorbed and corrected. A nice hand is -requisite in this powdering, which, by the way, is an ancient African -custom, in order to avoid the imputation of Falstaff, “There is lime in -this sack.” The treading out the fruit is generally done by night, -because it is then cooler, and in order to avoid as much as possible the -plague of wasps, by whom the half-naked operators are liable to be -stung. On the larger vineyards there is generally a jumble of buildings, -which contain every requisite for making the wine, as well as cellars -into which the must or pressed grape juice is left to pass the stages of -fermentation, and where it remains until the following spring before it -is removed from the lees. “When the new wine is racked off, all the -produce of the same vineyard and vintage is housed together, and called -a _partido_ or lot. - -[Sidenote: MANUFACTURE OF SHERRY.] - -The vintage, which is the all-absorbing, all-engrossing moment of the -year, occupies about a fortnight, and is earlier in the Rota districts -than at Xerez, where it commences about the 20th of September; into -these brief moments the hearts, bodies, and souls of men are condensed; -even Venus, the queen of neighbouring Cadiz, and who during the other -three hundred and fifty-one days of the year, allies herself willingly -to Bacchus, is now forgotten. Nobles and commoners, merchants and -priests, talk of nothing but wine, which then and there monopolises man, -and is to Xerez what the water is at Grand Cairo, where the rising of -the Nile is at once a pleasure and a profit. When the vintage is -concluded, the custom-house officers take note in their respective -districts of the quantity produced on each vineyard, to whom it is sold, -and where it is taken to; nor can it be resold or removed afterwards, -without a permit and a charge of a four per cent. ad valorem duty. It -need not be said, that in a land where public officers are inadequately -paid, where official honesty and principle are all but unknown, a bribe -is all-sufficient; false returns are regularly made, and every trick -resorted to to facilitate trade, and transfer revenue into the pockets -of the collectors, rather than into the Queen’s treasury; thus are -defeated the vexations and extortions of commerce-hampering excise, to -hate which seems to be a second nature in man all over the world. -Commissioners excepted. In the first year a decided difference takes -place in these new wines; some become _bastos_ or coarse, others sour -and others good; those only which exhibit great delicacy, body, and -flavour are called _finos_ or fine; in a lot of one hundred butts, -rarely more than from ten to fifteen can be calculated as deserving this -epithet, and it is to the high price paid for these by the -_almacenistas_ or storers of wines, that the grower looks for -remuneration; the qualities of the wines usually produced in each -particular _termino_ or district do not vary much; they have their -regular character and prices among the trade, by whom they are perfectly -understood and exactly valued. - -These singular changes in the juice of grapes grown on the same -vineyard, invariably take place, although no satisfactory reason has -been yet assigned; the chemical processes of nature have hitherto defied -the investigations of man, and in nothing more than in the elaboration -of that lusus naturæ vel Bacchi, that variety of flavour which goes by -the name of _amontillado_; this has been given to it from its -resemblance in dryness and quality to the wines of _Montilla_, near -Cordova: the latter, be it observed, are scarcely known in England at -all, nor indeed in Spain, except in their own immediate neighbourhood, -where they supply the local consumption. This _amontillado_, when the -genuine production of nature, is very valuable, as it is used in -correcting young Sherry wines, which are running over sweet; it is very -scarce, since out of a hundred butts of _vino fino_, not more than five -will possess its properties. Much of the wine which is sold in London as -pure _amontillado_, is a fictitious preparation, and made up for the -British market. - -[Sidenote: THE CAPATAZ.] - -All sherries are a matured mixture of grape juice; champagne itself is a -manufactured wine; nor does it much matter, provided a palateable and -wholesome beverage be produced. In all the leading and respectable -houses, the wine is prepared from grapes grown in the district, nor is -there the slightest mystery made in explaining the artificial processes -which are adopted; the rearing, educating and finishing, as it were, of -these wines, is a work of many years, and is generally intrusted to the -_Capataz_, the chief butler, or head man, who very often becomes the -real master; this important personage is seldom raised in Andalucia, or -in any wine-growing districts of Spain; he generally is by birth an -Asturian, or a native of the mountains contiguous to Santander, from -whence the chandlers and grocers, hence called _Los Montañeses_, are -supplied throughout the Peninsula. These Highlanders are celebrated for -the length of their pedigrees, and the tasting properties of their -tongues; we have more than once in Estremadura and Leon fallen in with -flights of these ragged gentry, wending, Scotch-like, to the south in -search of fortune; few had shoes or shirts, yet almost every one carried -his family parchment in a tin case, wherein his descent from -Tubal--respectable, although doubtful--was proven to be as evident as -the sun is at noon day. - -These gentlemen of good birth and better taste seldom smoke, as the -narcotic stupifying weed deadens papillatory delicacy. Now as few -wine-masters in Spain would give up the cigar to gain millions, the -_Capataz_ soon becomes the sole possessor of the secrets of the cellar; -and as no merchants possess vineyards of their own sufficient to supply -their demand, the purchases of new wines must be made by this -confidential servant, who is thus enabled to cheat both the grower and -his own employer, since he will only buy of those who give him the -largest commission. Many contrive by these long and faithful services to -amass great wealth; thus Juan Sanchez, the _Capataz_ of the late Petro -Domecq, died recently worth 300,000_l._ Towards his latter end, having -been visited by his confessor and some qualms of conscience, he -bequeathed his fortune to pious and charitable uses, but the bulk was -forthwith secured by his attorneys and priests, whose charity began at -home. - -[Sidenote: BODEGAS OF XEREZ.] - -As the chancellor is the keeper of the Queen’s conscience, so the -_Capataz_ is the keeper of the _bodega_ or the wine-store, which is very -peculiar, and the grand lion of Xerez. The rich and populous town, when -seen from afar, rising in its vine-clad knoll, is characterised by these -huge erections, that look like the pent-houses under which men-of-war -are built at Chatham. These temples of Bacchus resemble cathedrals in -size and loftiness, and their divisions, like Spanish chapels, bear the -names of the saints to whom they are dedicated, and few tutelar deities -have more numerous or more devout worshippers; but Romanism mixes itself -up in everything of Spain, and fixes its mark alike on salt-pans and -mine-shafts, as on boats and _bodegas_. These huge repositories are all -above ground, and are the antithesis of our under-ground cellars. The -wines of Xerez are thus found to ripen both better and quicker, as one -year in a _bodega_ inspires them with more life than do ten years of -burial. As these wines are more capricious in the development of their -character than young ladies at a boarding-school, the greatest care is -taken in the selection of eligible and healthy situations for their -education; the neighbourhood of all offensive drains or effluvia is -carefully avoided, since these nuisances are sure to affect the -delicately organised fluids, although they fail to damage the noses of -those to whose charge they are committed; and strange to say, in this -land of contradictions, Cologne itself is scarcely more renowned for its -twenty and odd bad smells ascertained by Coleridge, than is this same -tortuous, dirty, and old-fashioned Xerez. Here, as in the Rhenish city, -all the sweets are bottled up for exportation, all the stinks kept for -home consumption. The new _bodegas_ are consequently erected in the -newer portions of the town, in dry and open places; connected with them -are offices and workshops, in which everything bearing upon the wine -trade is manufactured, even to the barrels that are made of American oak -staves. The interior of the _bodega_ is kept deliciously cool; the glare -outside is carefully excluded, while a free circulation of air is -admitted; an even temperature is very essential, and one at an average -of 60 degrees is the best of all. There are more than a thousand -_bodegas_ registered at the custom house for the Xerez district; the -largest only belong to the first-rate firms, and mostly to Europeans, -that is, to English and Frenchmen. A heavy capital is required, much -patience and forethought, qualities which do not grow on these or on any -hills of Spain. This necessity will be better understood when it is -said, that some of these stores contain from one to four thousand butts, -and that few really fine sherries are sent out of them until ten or -twelve years old. Supposing, therefore, that each butt averages in value -only 25_l._, it is evident how much time and investment of wealth is -necessary. - -[Sidenote: WINE-MIXING.] - -Sherry wine, when mature and perfect, is made up from many butts. The -“entire,” indeed, is the result of Xerez grapes, but of many different -ages, vintages, and varieties of flavour. The contents of one barrel -serve to correct another until the proposed standard aggregate is -produced; and to such a certainty has this uniform admixture been -reduced, that houses are enabled to supply for any number of years -exactly that particular colour, flavour, body, &c., which particular -customers demand. This wine improves very much with age, gets softer and -more aromatic, and gains both body and aroma, in which its young wines -are deficient. Indeed, so great is the change in all respects, that one -scarcely can believe them ever to have been the same: the baby differs -not more from the man, nor the oak from the acorn. - -That _Capataz_ has attained the object of his fondest wishes, who has -observed in his compositions the poetical principles of Horace, the -_callida junctura_, the _omne tulit punctum qui miscuit utile dulci_; -this happy and skilful junction of the sweet and solid, should unite -fulness of body, an oily, nutty flavour and _bouquet_, dryness, absence -from acidity, strength, durability, and spirituosity. Very little brandy -is necessary, as the vivifying power of the unstinted sun of Andalucia -imparts sufficient alcohol, which ranges from 20 to 23 per cent. in fine -sherries, and only reaches about 12 in clarets and champagnes. Fine pure -sherry is of a rich brown colour, but in order to flatter the -conventional tastes of some English, “pale old sherry” must be had, and -colour is chemically discharged at the expense of delicate aroma. -Another absurd deference to British prejudice, is the sending sherries -to the East Indies, because such a trip is found sometimes to benefit -the wines of Madeira. This is not only expensive but positively -injurious to the juice of Xerez, as the wine returns diminished in -quantity, turbid, sharp, and deteriorated in flavour, while from the -constant fermentation it becomes thinner in body and more spirituous. -The real secret of procuring good sherry is to pay the best price for it -at the best house, and then to keep the purchase for many years in a -good cellar before it is drunk. - -[Sidenote: WINE IN CASK.] - -To return to the _Capataz_. This head master passes this life of -probation in tasting. He goes the regular round of his butts, -ascertaining the qualities, merits, and demerits of each pupil, which he -notes by certain marks or hieroglyphics. He corrects faults as he goes -along, making a memorandum also of the date and remedy applied, and thus -at his next visit he is enabled to report good progress, or lament the -contrary. The new wines, after the fermentation is past, are commonly -enriched with an _arrope_, or sort of syrup, which is found very much to -encourage them. There are extensive manufactories of this cordial at -San Lucar, and wherever the _arenas_, or sandy soil, prevails. The must, -or new grape juice, before fermentation has commenced, is boiled slowly -down to the fifth of its bulk. It must simmer, and requires great care -in the skimming and not being burnt. Of this, when dissolved, the _vino -de color_, the _madre vino_, or mother wine, is made, by which the -younger ones are nourished as by mother’s milk. When old, this balsamic -ingredient becomes strong, perfumed as an essence, and very precious, -and is worth from three to five hundred guineas a butt; indeed it -scarcely ever will be sold at all. All the principal _bodegas_ have -certain huge and time-honoured casks which contain this divine ichor, -which inspires ordinary wines with generous and heroic virtues; hence -possibly their dedication of their tuns not to saints and saintesses, -but to Wellingtons and Nelsons. It is from these reservoirs that -distinguished visitors are allowed just a sip. Such a compliment was -paid to Ferdinand VII. by Pedro Domecq, and the cask to this day bears -the royal name of its assayer. Whatever quantity is taken out of one of -these for the benefit of younger wines, is replaced by a similar -quantity drawn from the next oldest cask in the cellar. - -[Sidenote: TASTING WINE.] - -After a year or two trial of the new wines, it is ascertained how they -will eventually turn out; if they go wrong, they are expelled from the -seminary, and shipped off to the leathern-tongued consumers of Hamburgh -or Quebec, at about 15_l._ per butt. All the various forms, stages, and -steps of education are readily explained in the great establishments, -among which the first are those of Domecq and John David Gordon, and -nothing can exceed the cordial hospitality of these princely merchants; -whoever comes provided with a letter of introduction is carried off -bodily, bags, baggage, and all, to their houses, which, considering the -iniquity of Xerezan inns, is a satisfactory move. Then and there the -guest is initiated into the secrets of trade, and is handed over to the -_Capataz_, who delivers an explanatory lecture on vinology, which is -illustrated, like those of Faraday, by experiments: tasting sherry at -Xerez has, as Señor Clemente would say, very little in common with the -commonplace customs of the London Docks. Here the swarthy professor, -dressed somewhat like Figaro in the Barber of Seville, is followed by -sundry jacketed and sandalled Ganymedes, who bear glasses on waiters; -the lecturer is armed with a long stick, to the end of which is tied a -bit of hollow cane, which he dips into each butt; the subject is begun -at the beginning, and each step in advance is explained to the listening -party with the gravity of a judicious foreman of a jury: the sample is -handed round and tasted by all, who, if they are wise, will follow the -example of their leader (on whom wine has no more effect than on a -glass), by never swallowing the sips, but only permitting the tongue to -agitate it in the mouth, until the exact flavour is mastered; every cask -is tried, from the young wine to the middle-aged, from the mature to the -golden ancient. Those who are not stupefied by the fumes, cannot fail to -come out vastly edified. The student should hold hard during the first -trials, for the best wine is reserved until the last. He ascends, if he -does not tumble off, a vinous ladder of excellence. It would be better -to reverse the order of the course, and commence with the finest sorts -while the palate is fresh and the judgment unclouded. The thirster after -knowledge must not drink too deeply now, but remember the second ordeal -to which he will afterwards be exposed at the hospitable table of the -proprietor, whose joy and pride is to produce fine wine and plenty of -it, when his friends meet around his mahogany. - -What a grateful offering is then made to the jovial god, by whom the -merchant lives, and by whom the deity is now set from his glassy prison -free! What a drawing of popping corks, half consumed by time!--what a -brushing away of venerable cobwebs from flasks binned apart while George -the Third was king! The delight of the worthy Amphitryon on producing a -fresh bottle, exceeds that of a prolific mother when she blesses her -husband with a new baby. He handles the darling decanter, as if he -dearly loved the contents, which indeed are of his own making; how the -clean glasses are held up to the light to see the bright transparent -liquid sparkle and phosphoresce within; how the intelligent nose is -passed slowly over the mantling surface, redolent with fragrancy; how -the climax of rapture is reached when the god-like nectar is raised to -the blushing lips! - -[Sidenote: PRICES OF SHERRY.] - -The wine suffices in itself for sensual gratification and for -intellectual conversation: all the guests have an opinion; what -gentleman, indeed, cannot judge on a horse or a bottle? When -differences arise, as they will in matters of taste, and where bottles -circulate freely, the master-host _decides_-- - - “Tells all the names, lays down the law, - Que ça est bon; ah, goûtez ça.” - -There is to him a combination of pleasure and profit in these genial -banquets, these noctes cœnæque Deum. Many a good connection is thus -formed, when an English gentleman, who now, perhaps for the first time, -tastes pure and genuine sherry. A good dinner naturally promotes good -humour with mankind in general, and with the donor in particular. A -given quantity of the present god opens both heart and purse-strings, -until the tongue on which the magic flavour lingers, murmurs gratefully -out, “Send me a butt of _amantillado pasado_, and another of _seco -reanejo_, and draw for the cash at sight.” - -An important point will now arise, what is the price? That ever is the -question and the rub. Pure genuine sherry, from ten to twelve years old, -is worth from 50 to 80 guineas per butt, in the _bodega_, and when -freight, insurance, duty, and charges are added, will stand the importer -from 100 to 130 guineas in his cellar. A butt will run from 108 to 112 -gallons, and the duty is 5_s._ 6_d._ per gallon. Such a butt will bottle -about 52 dozen. The reader will now appreciate the bargains of those -“pale” and “golden sherries” advertised in the English newspapers at -36_s._ the dozen, bottles included. They are _maris expers_, although -much indebted to French brandy, Sicilian Marsala, Cape wine, Devonshire -cider, and Thames water. - -[Sidenote: ADULTERATION OF WINES.] - -The growth of wine amounts to some 400,000 or 500,000 _arrobas_ -annually. The arroba is a Moorish name, and a dry measure, although used -for liquids; it contains a quarter of a hundredweight; 30 arrobas go to -a _bota_, or butt, of which from 8000 to 10,000 of really fine are -annually exported: but the quantities of so-called sherries, “neat as -imported,” in the manufacture of which San Lucar is fully occupied, is -prodigious, and is increasing every year. To give an idea of the extent -of the growing traffic, in 1842 25,096 butts were exported from these -districts, and 29,313 in 1843; while in 1845 there were exported 18,135 -butts from Xerez alone, and 14,037 from the Puerto, making the enormous -aggregate of 32,172 butts. Now as the vineyards remain precisely the -same, probably some portion of these additional barrels may not be quite -the genuine produce of the Xerez grape: in truth, the ruin of sherry -wines has commenced, from the numbers of second-rate houses that have -sprung up, which look to quantity, not quality. Many thousand butts of -bad Niebla wine are thus palmed off on the enlightened British public -after being well brandied and doctored; thus a conventional notion of -sherry is formed, to the ruin of the real thing; for even respectable -houses are forced to fabricate their wines so as to suit the depraved -taste of their consumers, as is done with pure clarets at Bordeaux, -which are charged with Hermitages and Benicarló. Thus delicate -idiosyncratic flavour is lost, while headache and dyspepsia are -imported; but there is a fashion in wines as in physicians. Formerly -Madeira was the vinous panacea, until the increased demand induced -disreputable traders to deteriorate the article, which in the reaction -became dishonoured. Then sherry was resorted to as a more honest and -wholesome beverage. Now its period of decline is hastening from the same -causes, and the average produce is becoming inferior, to end in -disrepute, and possibly in a return to the wines of Madeira, whose -makers have learnt a lesson in the stern school of adversity. - -[Sidenote: MANZANILLA.] - -Be that as it may, the people at large of Spain are scarcely acquainted -with the taste of sherry wine, beyond the immediate vicinity in which it -is made; and more of it is swallowed at Gibraltar at the messes, than in -either Madrid, Toledo, or Salamanca. Sherry is a foreign wine, and made -and drunk by foreigners; nor do the generality of Spaniards like its -strong flavour, and still less its high price, although some now affect -its use, because, from its great vogue in England, it argues -civilization to adopt it. This use obtains only in the capital and -richer seaports; thus at inland Granada, not 150 miles from Xerez, -sherry would hardly be to be had, were it not for the demand created by -our travelling countrymen, and even then it is sold per bottle, and as a -liqueur. At Seville, which is quite close to Xerez, in the best houses, -one glass only is handed round, just as only one glass of Greek wine was -in the house of the father of even Lucullus among the ancient Romans, or -as among the modern ones is still done with Malaga or Vino de Cypro; -this single glass is drunk as a _chasse_, and being considered to aid -digestion, is called the _golpe medico_, the coup de médecin; it is -equivalent, in that hot country, to the thimbleful of Curaçoa or Cognac, -by which coffee is wound up in colder England and France. - -In Andalucia it was no less easy for the Moor to encourage the use of -water as a beverage, than to prohibit that of wine, which, if endued -with strength, which sherry is, must destroy health when taken largely -and habitually, as is occasionally found out at Gibraltar. Hence the -natives of Xerez themselves infinitely prefer a light wine called -Manzanilla, which is made near San Lucar, and is at once much weaker and -cheaper than sherry. The grape from whence it is produced grows on a -poor and sandy soil. The vintage is very early, as the fruit is gathered -before it is quite ripe. The wine is of a delicate pale straw colour, -and is extremely wholesome; it strengthens the stomach, without heating -or inebriating, like sherry. All classes are passionately fond of it, -since the want of alcohol enables them to drink more of it than of -stronger beverages, while the dry quality acts as a tonic during the -relaxing heats. It may be compared to the ancient Lesbian, which Horace -quaffed so plentifully in the cool shade, and then described as never -doing harm. The men employed in the sherry wine vaults, and who have -therefore that drink at their command, seldom touch it, but invariably, -when their work is done, go to the neighbouring shop to refresh -themselves with a glass of “innocent” Manzanilla. Among their betters, -clubs are formed solely to drink it, and with iced water and a cigar it -transports the consumer into a Moslem’s dream of paradise. It tastes -better from the cask than out of the bottle, and improves as the cask -gets low. - -[Sidenote: THE ALPISTERA.] - -The origin of the name has been disputed; some who prefer sound to sense -derive it from _Manzana_, an apple, which had it been cider might have -passed; others connect it with the distant town of _Mansanilla_ on the -opposite side of the river, where it is neither made nor drunk. The real -etymology is to be found in its striking resemblance to the bitter -flavour of the flowers of camomile (_manzanilla_), which are used by our -doctors to make a medicinal tea, and by those of Spain for fomentations. -This flavour in the wine is so marked as to be at first quite -disagreeable to strangers. If its eulogistic consumers are to be -believed, the wine surpasses the tea in hygæian qualities: none, say -they, who drink it are ever troubled with gravel, stone, or gout. -Certainly, it is eminently free from acidity. The very best Manzanilla -is to be had in London of Messrs. Gorman, No. 16, Mark Lane. Since -“_Drink it, ye dyspeptics_,” was enjoined last year in the ‘Handbook,’ -the importation of this wine to England, which previously did not exceed -ten butts, has in twelve short months overpassed two hundred; a -compliment delicate as it is practical, which is acknowledged by the -author--a drinker thereof--with most profound gratitude. - -By the way, the real thing to eat with Manzanilla is the _alpistera_. -Make it thus:--To one pound of fine flour (mind that it is dry) add half -a pound of double-refined, well-sifted, pounded white sugar, the yolks -and whites of four very fresh eggs, well beaten together; work the -mixture up into a paste; roll it out very thin; divide it into squares -about half the size of this page; cut it into strips, so that the paste -should look like a hand with fingers; then dislocate the strips, and dip -them in hot melted fine lard, until of a delicate pale brown; the more -the strips are curled up and twisted the better; the _alpistera_ should -look like bunches of ribbons; powder them over with fine white sugar. -They are then as pretty as nice. It is not easy to make them well; but -the gods grant no excellence to mortals without much labour and thought. -So Venus the goddess of grace was allied to hard-working Vulcan, who -toiled and pondered at his fire, as every cook who has an aspiring soul -has ever done. - -[Sidenote: SPANISH INNS.] - - - - -CHAPTER XV. - - Spanish Inns: Why so Indifferent--The Fonda--Modern - Improvements--The Posada--Spanish Innkeepers--The Venta: Arrival in - it--Arrangement--Garlic--Dinner--Evening--Night--Bill--Identity - with the Inns of the Ancients. - - -[Sidenote: INNS--WHY SO INDIFFERENT.] - -Having thus, and we hope satisfactorily, discussed the eatables and -drinkables of Spain, attention must naturally be next directed to those -houses on the roads and in the towns, where these comforts to the hungry -and weary public are to be had, or are not to be had, as sometimes will -happen in this land of “the unexpected;” the Peninsular inns, with few -exceptions, have long been divided into the bad, the worse, and the -worst; and as the latter are still the most numerous and national, as -well as the worst, they will be gone into the last. In few countries -will the rambler agree oftener with dear Dr. Johnson’s speech to his -squire Boswell, “Sir, there is nothing which has been contrived by man, -by which so much happiness is produced, as by a good tavern.” Spain -offers many negative arguments of the truth of our great moralist and -eater’s reflection; the inns in general are fuller of entertainment for -the mind than the body, and even when the newest, and the best in the -country, are indifferent if compared to those which Englishmen are -accustomed to at home, and have created on those high roads of the -Continent, which they most frequent. Here few gentlemen will say with -Falstaff, “Shall I not take mine ease in mine inn?” Badness of roads and -discomforts of _ventas_ cannot well escape the notice of those who -travel on horseback and slowly, since they must dwell on and in them; -whereas a rail whisks the passenger past such nuisances, with comet-like -rapidity, and all things that are soon out of sight are quicker out of -mind; nevertheless, let no aspiring writer be deterred from quitting the -highways for the byeways of the Peninsula. “There is, Sir,” as Johnson -again said to Boswell, “a good deal of Spain that has not been -perambulated. I would have you go thither; a man of inferior talents to -yours, may furnish us with useful observations on that country.” - -[Sidenote: CONTINENTAL INNS.] - -Why the public accommodations should be second-rate is soon explained. -Nature and the natives have long combined to isolate still more their -Peninsula, which already is moated round by the unsocial sea, and is -barricadoed by almost impassable mountains. The Inquisition all but -reduced Spanish man to the condition of a monk in a wall-enclosed -convent, by standing sentinel, and keeping watch and ward against the -foreigner and his perilous novelties;[7] Spain thus unvisited and -unvisiting, became arranged for Spaniards only, and has scarcely -required conveniences which are more suited to the curious wants of -other Europeans and strangers who here are neither liked, wished for, -nor even thought of, by natives who seldom travel except on compulsion -and never for amusement; why indeed should they? since Spain is -paradise, and each man’s own parish in his eyes is the central spot of -its glory. When the noble and rich visited the provinces, they were -lodged in their own or in their friends’ houses, just as the clergy and -monks were received into convents. The great bulk of the Peninsular -family, not being overburdened with cash or fastidiousness, have long -been and are inured to infinite inconveniences and negations; they live -at home in an abundance of privations, and expect when abroad to be -worse off; and they well know that comfort never lodges at a Spanish -inn; as in the East, they cannot conceive that any travelling should be -unattended by hardships, which they endure with Oriental resignation, as -_cosas de España_, or things of Spain which have always been so, and for -which there is no remedy but patient resignation; the bliss of -ignorance, and the not knowing of anything better, is everywhere the -grand secret of absence of discontent; while to those whose every-day -life is a feast, every thing that does not come up to their conventional -ideas becomes a failure, but to those whose daily bread is dry and -scanty, whose drink is water, every thing beyond prison-fare appears to -be luxury. - -In Spain there has been little demand for those accommodations which -have been introduced on the continent by our nomade countrymen, who -carry their tea, towels, carpets, comforts and civilization with them; -to travel at all for mere pleasure is quite a modern invention, and -being an expensive affair, is the most indulged in by the English, -because they can best afford it, but as Spain lies out of their -hackneyed routes, the inns still retain much of the same state of -primitive dirt and discomfort, which most of those on the continent -presented, until repolished by our hints and guineas. - -[Sidenote: THE FONDA.] - -In the Peninsula, where intellect does not post in a Britannic britzcka -and four, the inns, and especially those of the country and inferior -order, continue much as they were in the time of the Romans, and -probably long before them; nay those in the very vicinity of Madrid, -“the only court on earth,” are as classically wretched, as the hostelry -at Aricia, near the Eternal City, was in the days of Horace. The Spanish -inns, indeed, on the bye-roads and remoter districts, are such as render -it almost unadvisable for any English lady to venture to face them, -unless predetermined to go through roughing-it, in a way of which none -who have only travelled in England can form the remotest idea: at the -same time they may be and have been endured by even the sick and -delicate. To youth, and to all men in enjoyment of good health, temper, -patience, and the blessing of foresight, neither a dinner nor a bed will -ever be wanting, to both of which hunger and fatigue will give a zest -beyond the reach of art; and fortunately for travellers, all the -Continent over, and particularly in Spain, bread and salt, as in the -days of Horace, will be found to appease the wayfarer’s barking stomach, -nor will he who after that sleeps soundly be bitten by fleas, “_quien -duerme bien, no le pican las pulgas_.” The pleasures of travelling in -this wild land are cheaply purchased by these trifling inconveniences, -which may always be much lessened by _provision_ in brain and basket; -the expeditions team with incident, adventure, and novelty; every day -and evening present a comedy of real life, and offer means of obtaining -insight into human nature, and form in after-life a perpetual fund of -interesting recollections: all that was charming will be then -remembered, and the disagreeable, if not forgotten, will be disarmed of -its sting, nay, even as having been in a battle, will become a pleasant -thing to recollect and to talk, may be twaddle, about. Let not the -traveller expect to find too much; if he reckons on finding nothing he -will seldom be disappointed; so let him not look for five feet in a cat, -“_no busces cinco pies al gato_.” Spain, as the East, is not to be -enjoyed by the over-fastidious in the fleshly comforts: there, those who -over analyze, who peep too much behind the culinary or domestic -curtains, must not expect to pass a tranquil existence. - -[Sidenote: THE FONDA.] - -First and foremost among these refuges for the destitute comes the -_fonda_, the hotel. This, as the name implies, is a foreign thing, and -was imported from Venice, which in its time was the Paris of Europe, the -leader of sensual civilization, and the sink of every lie and iniquity. -Its _fondacco_, in the same manner, served as a model for the Turkish -_fondack_. The _fonda_ is only to be found in the largest towns and -principal seaports, where the presence of foreigners creates a demand -and supports the establishment. To it frequently is attached a café, or -“_botilleriá_,” a bottlery and a place for the sale of liqueurs, with a -“_neveria_,” a snowery where ices and cakes are supplied. Men only, not -horses, are taken in at a _fonda_; but there is generally a keeper of a -stable or of a minor inn in the vicinity, to which the traveller’s -animals are consigned. The _fonda_ is tolerably furnished in reference -to the common articles with which the sober unindulgent natives are -contented: the traveller in his comparisons must never forget that Spain -is not England, which too few ever can get out of their heads. Spain is -Spain, a truism which cannot be too often repeated; and in its being -Spain consists its originality, its raciness, its novelty, its -idiosyncrasy, its best charm and interest, although the natives do not -know it, and are every day, by a foolish aping of European civilization, -paring away attractions, and getting commonplace, unlike themselves, and -still more unlike their Gotho-Moro and most picturesque fathers and -mothers. Monks, as we said in our preface, are gone, mantillas are -going, the shadow of cotton _versus_ corn has already darkened the sunny -city of Figaro, and the end of all Spanish things is coming. _Ay! de mi -España!_ - -Thus in Spain, and especially in the hotter provinces, it is heat and -not cold which is the enemy: what we call furniture--carpets, rugs, -curtains, and so forth--would be a positive nuisance, would keep out the -cool, and harbour plagues of vermin beyond endurance. The walls of the -apartments are frequently, though simply, whitewashed: the uneven brick -floors are covered in winter with a matting made of the “_esparto_,” -rush, and called an “_estera_,” as was done in our king’s palaces in the -days of Elizabeth: a low iron or wooden truckle bedstead, with coarse -but clean sheets and clothes, a few hard chairs, perhaps a stiff-backed, -most uncomfortable sofa, and a rickety table or so, complete the scanty -inventory. The charges are moderate; about two dollars, or 8_s._ 6_d._, -per head a-day, includes lodging, breakfast, dinner, and supper. -Servants, if Spanish, are usually charged the half; English servants, -whom no wise person would take on the Continent, are nowhere more -useless, or greater incumbrances, than in this hungry, thirsty, tealess, -beerless, beefless land: they give more trouble, require more food and -attention, and are ten times more discontented than their masters, who -have poetry in their souls; an æsthetic love of travel, for its own -sake, more than counterbalances with them the want of material gross -comforts, about which their pudding-headed four-full-meals-a-day -attendants are only thinking. Charges are higher at Madrid, and -Barcelona, a great commercial city, where the hotels are appointed more -European-like, in accommodation and prices. Those who remain any time in -a large town bargain with the innkeeper, or go into a boarding-house, -“_casa de pupilos_,” or “_de huespedes_,” where they have the best -opportunity of learning the Spanish language, and of obtaining an idea -of national manners and habits. This system is very common. The houses -may be known externally by a white paper ticket attached to the -_extremity_ of one of the windows or balconies. This position must be -noted; for if the paper be placed in the _middle_ of the balcony, the -signal means only that lodgings are here to be let. Their charges are -very reasonable. - -[Sidenote: CHANGES IN SPANISH INNS.] - -Since the death of Ferdinand VII. marvellous improvements have taken -place in some _fondas_. In the changes and chances of the multitudinous -revolutions, all parties ruled in their rotation, and then either killed -or banished their opponents. Thus royalists, liberals, patriots, -moderates, &c., each in their turn, have been expatriated; and as the -wheel of fortune and politics went round, many have returned to their -beloved Spain from bitter exile in France and England. These travellers, -in many cases, were sent abroad for the public good, since they were -thus enabled to discover that some things were better managed on the -other side of the water and Pyrenees. Then and there suspicion crossed -their minds, although they seldom will admit it to a foreigner, that -Spain was not altogether the richest, wisest, strongest, and first of -nations, but that she might take a hint or two in a few trifles, among -which perhaps the accommodations for man and beast might be included. -The ingress, again, of foreigners by the facilities offered to -travellers by the increased novelties of steamers, mails, and diligences -necessarily called for more waiters and inns. Every day, therefore, the -fermentation occasioned by the foreign leaven is going on; and if the -national _musto_, or grape-juice, be not over-drugged with French -brandy, something decent in smell and taste may yet be produced. - -[Sidenote: THE POSADA.] - -In the seaports and large towns on the Madrid roads the twilight of café -and cuisine civilization is breaking from La belle France. Monastic -darkness is dispelled, and the age of convents is giving way to that of -kitchens, while the large spaces and ample accommodations of the -suppressed monasteries suggest an easy transition into “first-rate -establishments,” in which the occupants will probably pay more and pray -less. News, indeed, have just arrived from Malaga, that certain -ultra-civilized hotels are actually rising, to be defrayed by companies -and engineered by English, who seem to be as essential in regulating -these novelties on the Continent as in the matters of railroads and -steamboats. Rooms are to be papered, brick floors to be exchanged for -boards, carpets to be laid down, fireplaces to be made, and bells are to -be hung, incredible as it may appear to all who remember Spain as it -was. They will ring the knell of nationality; and we shall be much -mistaken if the grim old Cid, when the first one is pulled at Burgos, -does not answer it himself by knocking the innovator down. Nay, more, -for wonders never cease; vague rumours are abroad that secret and -solitary closets are contemplated, in which, by some magical mechanism, -sudden waters are to gush forth; but this report, like others _viâ_ -Madrid and Paris telegraph, requires confirmation. Assuredly, the spirit -of the Holy Inquisition, which still hovers over orthodox Spain, will -long ward off these English heresies, which are rejected as too bad even -by free-thinking France. - -[Sidenote: THE POSADA.] - -The genuine Spanish town inn is called the _posada_, as being meant to -mean, a house of _repose_ after the pains of travel. Strictly speaking, -the keeper is only bound to provide lodging, salt, and the power of -cooking whatever the traveller brings with him or can procure out of -doors; and in this it diners from the _fonda_, in which meats and drinks -are furnished. The _posada_ ought only to be compared to its type, the -_khan_ of the East, and never to the inn of Europe. If foreigners, and -especially Englishmen, would bear this in mind, they would save -themselves a great deal of time, trouble, and disappointment, and not -expose themselves by their loss of temper on the spot, or in their -note-books. No Spaniard is ever put out at meeting with neither -attention nor accommodation, although he maddens in a moment on other -occasions at the slightest personal affront, for his blood boils without -fire. He takes these things coolly, which colder-blooded foreigners -seldom do. The native, like the Oriental, does not expect to find -anything, and accordingly is never surprised at only getting what he -brings with him. His surprise is reserved for those rare occasions when -he finds anything actually ready, which he considers to be a godsend. As -most travellers carry their provisions with them, the uncertainty of -demand would prevent mine host from filling his larder with perishable -commodities; and formerly, owing to absurd local privileges, he very -often was not permitted to sell objects of consumption to travellers, -because the lords or proprietors of the town or village had set up other -shops, little monopolies of their own. These inconveniences sound worse -on paper than in practice; for whenever laws are decidedly opposed to -common sense and the public benefit, they are neutralized in practice; -the means to elude them are soon discovered, and the innkeeper, if he -has not the things by him himself, knows where to get them. On starting -next day a sum is charged for lodging, service, and dressing the food: -this is, called _el ruido de casa_, an indemnification to mine host for -the _noise_, the disturbance, that the traveller is supposed to have -created, which is the old Italian _incommodo de la casa_, the routing -and inconveniencing of the house; and no word can be better chosen to -express the varied and never-ceasing din of mules, muleteers, songs, -dancing, and laughing, the dust, the _row_, which Spaniards, men as well -as beasts, kick up. The English traveller, who will have to pay the most -in purse and sleep for his _noise_, will often be the only quiet person -in the house, and might claim indemnification for the injury done to his -acoustic organs, on the principle of the Turkish soldier who forces his -entertainer to pay him teeth-money, to compensate for the damage done to -his molars and incisors from masticating indifferent rations. - -[Sidenote: SPANISH INNKEEPERS.] - -Akin to the _posada_ is the “_parador_,” a word probably derived from -Waradah, Arabicè, “a halting-place;” it is a huge caravansary for the -reception of waggons, carts, and beasts of burden; these large -establishments are often placed outside the town to avoid the heavy -duties and vexatious examinations at the gates, where dues on all -articles of consumption are levied both for municipal and government -purposes. They are the old _sisa_, a word derived from the Hebrew -_Sisah_, to take a sixth part, and are now called _el derecho de -puertas_, the gate-due; and have always been as unpopular as the similar -_octroi_ of France; and as they are generally farmed out, they are -exacted from the peasantry with great severity and incivility. There is -perhaps no single grievance among the many, in the mistaken system of -Spanish political and fiscal economy, which tends to create and keep -alive, by its daily retail worry and often wholesale injustice, so great -a feeling of discontent and ill-will towards authority as this does; it -obstructs both commerce and travellers. The officers are, however, -seldom either strict or uncivil to the higher classes, and if -courteously addressed by the stranger, and told that he is an English -gentleman, the official _Cerberi_ open the gates and let him pass -unmolested, and still more if quieted by the Virgilian sop of a bribe. -The laws in Spain are indeed strict on paper, but those who administer -them, whenever it suits their private interest, that is ninety-nine -times out of a hundred, evade and defeat them; they obey the letter, -but do not perform the spirit, “_se obedece, pero no se cumple_;” -indeed, the lower classes of officials in particular are so inadequately -paid that they are compelled to eke out a livelihood by taking bribes -and little presents, which, as _Backshish_ in the East, may always be -offered, and will always be accepted, as a matter of compliment. The -_idea_ of a bribe must be concealed; it shocks their dignity, their -sense of honour, their “_pundonor_:” if, however, the money be given to -the head person as something for his people to drink, the delicate -attention is sacked by the chief, properly appreciated, and works its -due effect. - -[Sidenote: THE VENTA.] - -[Sidenote: THE VENTA.] - -Another term, almost equivalent to the “posada,” is the “_meson_,” which -is rather applicable to the inns of the rural and smaller towns, to the -“_hosterias_,” than to those of the greater. The “_mesonero_,” like the -Spanish “_ventera_,” has a bad reputation. It is always as well to -stipulate something about prices beforehand. The proverb says, “_Por un -ladron, pierden ciento en el meson_”--“_Ventera hermosa, mal para la -bolsa_.” “For every one who is robbed on the road, a hundred are in the -inn.”--“The fairer the hostess, the fouler the reckoning.” It is among -these innkeepers that the real and worst robbers of Spain are to be met -with, since these classes of worthies are everywhere only thinking how -much they can with decency overcharge in their bills. This is but fair, -for nobody would be an innkeeper if it were not for the profit. The -trade of inn-keeping is among those which are considered derogatory in -Spain, where so many Hindoo notions of caste, self-respect, purity of -blood, etc., exist. The harbouring strangers for gain is opposed to -every ancient and Oriental law of sacred hospitality. Now no Spaniard, -if he can help it, likes to degrade himself; this accounts for the -number of _fondas_ in towns being kept by Frenchmen, Italians, Catalans, -Biscayans, who are all _foreigners_ in the eye of the Castilian, and -disliked and held cheap; accordingly the inn-keeper in Don Quixote -protests that he is a _Christian_, although a _ventero_, nay, a genuine -old one--_Cristiano viejo rancio_; an old Christian being the common -term used to distinguish the genuine stock from those renegade Jews and -Moors who, rather than leave Spain, became _pseudo-Christians_ and -publicans. - -The country _Parador_, _Meson_, _Posada_, and _Venta_, call it how you -will, is the Roman stabulum, whose original intention was the housing of -cattle, while the accommodation of travellers was secondary, and so it -is in Spain to this day. The accommodation for the _beast_ is excellent; -cool roomy stables, ample mangers, a never-failing supply of fodder and -water, every comfort and luxury which the animal is capable of enjoying, -is ready on the spot; as regards _man_, it is just the reverse; he must -forage abroad for anything he may want. Only a small part of the barn is -allotted him, and then he is lodged among the brutes below, or among the -trusses and sacks of their food in the lofts above. He finds, in spite -of all this, that if he asks the owner what he has got, he will be told -that “there is everything,” _hay de todo_, just as the rogue of a -_ventero_ informed Sancho Panza, that his empty larder contained all the -birds of the air, all the beasts of the earth, all the fishes of the -sea,--a Spanish magnificence of promise, which, when reduced to plain -English, too often means, as in that case, there is everything that you -have brought with you. This especially occurs in the _ventas_ of the -out-of-the-way and rarely-visited districts, which, however empty their -larders, are full of the spirit of Don Quixote to the brim; and the -everyday occurrences in them are so strange, and one’s life is so -dramatic, that there is much difficulty in “realising,” as the Americans -say; all is so like being in a dream or at a play, that one scarcely can -believe it to be actually taking place, and true. The man of the -note-book and the artist almost forget that there is nothing to eat; -meanwhile all this food for the mind and portfolio, all this local -colour and oddness, is lost upon your Spanish companion, if he be one of -the better classes: he is ashamed, where you are enchanted; he blushes -at the sad want of civilization, clean table-cloth, and beefsteaks, and -perhaps he is right: at all events, while you are raving about the -Goths, Moors, and this lifting up the curtain of two thousand years ago, -he is thinking of Mivart’s; and when you quote Martial, he and the -ventero set you down as talking nonsense, and stark staring mad; nay, a -Spanish gentleman is often affronted, and suspects, from the -impossibility to him, that such things can be objects of real -admiration, that you are laughing at him in your sleeve, and considering -his country as Roman, African, or in a word, as un-European, which is -what he particularly dislikes and resents. - -These _ventas_ have from time immemorial been the subject of jests and -pleasantries to Spanish and foreign wits. Quevedo and Cervantes indulge -in endless diatribes against the roguery of the masters, and the misery -of the accommodations, while Gongora compares them to Noah’s ark; and in -truth they do contain a variety of animals, from the big to the _small_, -and more than a pair, of more than one kind of the latter. The word -_venta_ is derived from the Latin _vendendo_, on the lucus a _non_ -lucendo principle of etymology, because provisions are _not_ sold in it -to travellers: old Covarrubias explains this mode of dealing as -consisting “especially in _selling_ a cat for a hare,” which indeed was -and is so usual a venta practice, that _venderlo á uno gato por liebre_ -has become in common Spanish parlance to be equivalent to _doing_ or -taking one in. The natives do not dislike the feline tribe when well -stewed: no cat was safe in the Alhambra, the galley-slaves bagged her in -a second. This _venta_ trait of Iberian gastronomy did not escape the -compiler of Gil Blas. - -[Sidenote: RECEPTION AT THE VENTA.] - -Be that as it may, a _venta_, strictly speaking, is an isolated country -inn, or house of reception on the road, and, if it be not one of -physical entertainment, it is at least one of moral, and accordingly -figures in prominent characters in all the personal narratives and -travels in Spain; it sharpens the wit of both hungry cooks and lively -authors, and ingenii largitor _venter_ is as old as Juvenal. Many of -these _ventas_ have been built on a large scale by the noblemen or -convent brethren to whom the village or adjoining territory belonged, -and some have at a distance quite the air of a gentleman’s mansion. -Their walls, towers, and often elegant elevations glitter in the sun, -gay and promising, while all within is dark, dirty, and dilapidated, and -no better than a whitened sepulchre. The ground floor is a sort of -common room for men and beasts; the portion appropriated to the stables -is often arched over, and is very imperfectly lighted to keep it cool, -so that even by day the eye has some difficulty at first in making out -the details. The ranges of mangers are fixed round the walls, and the -harness of the different animals suspended on the pillars which support -the arches; a wide door, always open to the road, leads into this great -stable; a small space in the interior is generally left unincumbered, -into which the traveller enters on foot or on horseback; no one greets -him; no obsequious landlord, bustling waiter, or simpering chambermaid -takes any notice of his arrival: the _ventero_ sits in the sun smoking, -while his wife continues her uninterrupted _chasse_ for “small deer” in -the thick covers of her daughters’ hair; nor does the guest pay much -attention to them; he proceeds to a gibbous water-jar, which is always -set up in a visible place, dips in with the ladle, or takes from the -shelf in the wall an _alcarraza_ of cold water; refreshes his baked -clay, refills it, and replaces it in its hole on the _taller_, which -resembles the decanter stands in a butler’s pantry: he then proceeds, -unaided by ostler or boots, to select a stall for his beast,--unsaddles -and unloads, and in due time applies to the _ventero_ for fodder; the -difference of whose cool reception contrasts with the eager welcome -which awaits the traveller at bedtime: his arrival is a godsend to the -creeping tribe, who, like the _ventero_, have no regular larder; it is -not upstairs that he eats, but where _he_ is eaten like Polonius; the -walls are frequently stained with the marks of nocturnal combats, of -those internecine, truly Spanish _guerrillas_, which are waged without -an Elliot treaty, against enemies who, if not exterminated, murder -sleep. Were these fleas and French ladybirds unanimous, they would eat -up a Goliath; but fortunately, like other Spaniards, they never act -together, and are consequently conquered and slaughtered in detail; -hence the proverbial expression for great mortality among men, _mueren -como chinches_. - -[Sidenote: ARRANGEMENT OF THE VENTA.] - -Having first provided for the wants and comforts of his beast, for “the -master’s eye fattens the horse,” the traveller begins to think of -himself. One, and the greater side of the building, is destined to the -cattle, the other to their owners. Immediately opposite the public -entrance is the staircase that leads to the upper part of the building, -which is dedicated to the lodgment of fodder, fowls, vermin, and the -better class of travellers. The arrangement of the larger class of -_posadas_ and _ventas_ is laid out on the plan of a convent, and is well -calculated to lodge the greatest number of inmates in the smallest -space. The ingress and egress are facilitated by a long corridor, into -which the doors of the separate rooms open; these are called -“_cuartos_,” whence our word “quarters” may be derived. There is seldom -any furniture in them; whatever is wanted, is or is not to be had of the -host from some lock-up store. A rigid puritan will be much distressed -for the lack of any artificial contrivance to hold water; the best -toilette on these occasions is a river’s bank, but rivers in unvisited -interiors of the Castiles are often rarer even than water-basins. It is, -however, no use to draw nets in streams where there are no fish, nor to -expect to find conveniences which no one else ever asks for, and those -articles which seem to the foreigner to be of the commonest and daily -necessity, are unknown to the natives. However, as there are no carpets -to be spoiled, and cold water retains its properties although brought up -in a horse-bucket or in the cook’s brass cauldron, ablutions, as the -albums express it, can be performed. What a school, after all, a _venta_ -is to the slaves of comforts, and without how many absolute essentials -do they manage to get on, and happily! What lessons are taught of -good-humoured patience, and that British sailor characteristic of making -the best of every occurrence, and deeming any port a good one in a -storm! Complaint is of no use; if you tell the landlord that his wine is -more sour than his vinegar, he will gravely reply, “_Señor_, that cannot -be, for both came out of the same cask.” - -[Sidenote: VENTA GARLIC.] - -The portion of the ground-floor which is divided by the public entrance -from the stables, is dedicated to the kitchen and accommodation of the -travellers. The kitchen consists of a huge open range, generally on the -floor, the _ollas_ pots and culinary vessels being placed against the -fire arranged in circles, as described by Martial, “multâ villica quem -coronat _ollâ_,” who, as a good Spaniard would do to this day, after -thirty-five years’ absence at Rome, writes, after his return to Spain, -to his friend Juvenal a full account of the real comforts that he once -more enjoys in his best-beloved patria, and which remind us of the -domestic details in the opening chapter of Don Quixote. These rows of -pipkins are kept up by round stones called “_sesos_,” _brains_; above is -a high, wide chimney, which is armed with iron-work for suspending pots -of a large size; sometimes there are a few stoves of masonry, but more -frequently they are only the portable ones of the East. Around the -blackened walls are arranged pots and pipkins, gridirons and -frying-pans, which hang in rows, like tadpoles of all sizes, to -accommodate large or small parties, and the more the better; it is a -good sign, “_en casa llena, pronto se guisa cena_.” Supper is then -sooner ready. - -The vicinity of the kitchen fire being the warmest spot, and the nearest -to the flesh-pot, is the _querencia_, the favourite “resort” of the -muleteers and travelling bagsmen, especially when cold, wet, and hungry. -The first come are the best served, says the proverb, in the matters of -soup and love. The earliest arrivals take the cosiest corner seats near -the fire, and secure the promptest non-attendance; for the better class -of guests there is sometimes a “private apartment,” or the boudoir of -the _ventera_, which is made over to those who bring courtesy in their -mouths, and seem to have cash in their pockets; but these out-of-the way -curiosities of comfort do not always suit either author or artist, and -the social kitchen is preferable to solitary state. When a stranger -enters into it, if he salutes the company, “My lords and knights, do not -let your graces molest yourselves,” or courteously indicates his desire -to treat them with respect, they will assuredly more than return the -compliment, and as good breeding is instinctive in the Spaniard, will -rise and insist on his taking the best and highest seat. Greater, -indeed, is their reward and satisfaction, if they discover that the -invited one can talk to them in their own lingo, and understands their -feelings by circulating _his_ cigars and wine _bota_ among them. - -At the side of the kitchen is a den of a room, into which the _ventero_ -keeps stowed away that stock of raw materials which forms the foundation -of the national cuisine, and in which garlic plays the first fiddle. The -very name, like that of monk, is enough to give offence to most English. -The evil consists, however, in the abuse, not in the use: from the -quantity eaten in all southern countries, where it is considered to be -fragrant, palatable, stomachic, and invigorating, we must assume that it -is suited by nature to local tastes and constitutions. Wherever any -particular herb grows, there lives the ass who is to eat it. “_Donde -crece la escoba, nace el asno que la roya._” Nor is garlic necessarily -either a poison or a source of baseness; for Henry IV. was no sooner -born, than his lips were rubbed with a clove of it by his grandfather, -after the revered old custom of Bearn. - -[Sidenote: DINNERS IN THE VENTA.] - -Bread, wine, and raw garlic, says the proverb, make a young man go -briskly, _Pan, vino, y ajo crudo, hacen andar al mozo agudo_. The better -classes turn up their noses at this odoriferous delicacy of the lower -classes, which was forbidden per statute by Alonzo XI. to his knights of -_La Banda_; and Don Quixote cautions Sancho Panza to be moderate in this -food, as not becoming to a governor: with even such personages however -it is a struggle, and one of the greatest sacrifices to the altar of -civilization and _les convenances_. To give Spanish garlic its due, it -must be said that, when administered by a judicious hand (for, like -prussic acid, all depends on the quantity), it is far milder than the -English. Spanish garlic and onions degenerate after three years’ -planting when transplanted into England. They gain in pungency and -smell, just as English foxhounds, when drafted into Spain, lose their -strength and scent in the third generation. A clove of garlic is called -_un diente_, a tooth. Those who dislike the piquant vegetable must place -a sentinel over the cook of the venta while she is putting into her -cauldron the ingredients of his supper, or Avicenna will not save him; -for if God sends meats, and here they are a godsend, the evil one -provides the cooks of the venta, who certainly do bedevil many things. - -[Sidenote: RECEPTION AT THE VENTA.] - -Thrice happy, then, the man blessed with a provident servant who has -foraged on the road, and comes prepared with cates on which no Castilian -Canidia has breathed; while they are stewing he may, if he be a poet, -rival those sonnets made in Don Quixote on Sancho’s ass, saddle-bags, -and sapient attention to their provend, “_su cuerda providencia_.” The -odour and good tidings of the arrival of unusual delicacies soon spread -far and wide in the village, and generally attract the _Cura_, who loves -to hear something new, and does not dislike savoury food: the quality of -a Spaniard’s temperance, like that of his mercy, is strained; his -poverty and not his will consents to more and other fastings than to -those enjoined by the church; hunger, the sauce of Saint Bernard, is one -of the few wants which is not experienced in a Spanish venta. Our -practice in one was to invite the curate, by begging him to bless the -pot-luck, to which he did ample justice, and more than repaid for its -visible diminution by good fellowship, local information, and the credit -reflected on the stranger in the eyes of the natives, by beholding him -thus patronised by their pastor and master. It is not to be denied in -the case of a stew of partridges, that deep sighs and exclamations _que -rico!_ “how rich!” escape the envious lips of his hungry flock when they -behold and whiff the odoriferous dish as it smokes past them like a -railway locomotive. - -Nor, it must be said, was all this hospitality on one side; it has more -than once befallen us in the rude _ventas_ of the Salamanca district, -that the silver-haired _cura_, whose living barely furnished the means -whereby to live, on hearing the simple fact that an Englishman was -arrived, has come down to offer his house and fare. Such, or indeed any -Spaniard’s invitation is not to be accepted by those who value liberty -of action or time; seat rather the good man at the head of the _venta_ -board, and regale him with your best cigar, he will tell you of _El gran -Lor_--the great Lord--the Cid of England; he will recount the Duke’s -victories, and dwell on the good faith, mercy, and justice of our brave -soldiers, as he will execrate the cruelty, rapacity, and perfidy of -those who fled before their gleaming bayonets. - -But, to return to first arrival at _ventas_, whether saddle-bag or -stomach be empty or full, the _ventero_ when you enter remains unmoved -and imperturbable, as if he never had had an appetite, or had lost it, -or had dined. Not that his genus ever are seen eating except when -invited to a guest’s stew; air, the economical ration of the chameleon, -seems to be his habitual sustenance, and still more as to his wife and -womankind, who never will sit and eat even with the stranger; nay, in -humbler Spanish families they seem to dine with the cat in some corner, -and on scraps; this is a remnant of the Roman and Moorish treatment of -women as inferiors. Their lord and husband, the innkeeper, cannot -conceive why foreigners on their arrival are always so impatient, and is -equally surprised at their inordinate appetite; an English landlord’s -first question “Will you not like to take some refreshment?” is the very -last which he would think of putting; sometimes by giving him a cigar, -by coaxing his wife, flattering his daughter, and caressing Maritornes, -you may get a couple of his _pollos_ or fowls, which run about the -ground-floor, picking up anything, and ready to be picked up themselves -and dressed. - -[Sidenote: VENTA EATING.] - -All the operations of cookery and eating, of killing, sousing in boiling -water, plucking, et cætera, all preparatory as well as final, go on in -this open kitchen. They are carried out by the ventera and her -daughters or maids, or by some crabbed, smoke-dried, shrivelled old -she-cat, that is, or at least is called, the “_tia_,” “my aunt,” and who -is the subject of the good-humoured remarks of the courteous and hungry -traveller before dinner, and of his full stomach jests afterwards. The -assembled parties crowd round the fire, watching and assisting each at -their own savoury messes, “_Un ojo á la sarten, y otro á la gata_”--“One -eye to the pan, the other to the real cat,” whose very existence in a -_venta_, and among the pots, is a miracle; by the way, the naturalist -will observe that their ears and tails are almost always cropped closely -to the stumps. All and each of the travellers, when their respective -stews are ready, form clusters and groups round the frying-pan, which is -moved from the fire hot and smoking, and placed on a low table or block -of wood before them, or the unctuous contents are emptied into a huge -earthen reddish dish, which in form and colour is the precise -_paropsis_, the food platter, described by Martial and by other ancient -authors. Chairs are a luxury; the lower classes sit on the ground as in -the East, or on low stools, and fall to in a most Oriental manner, with -an un-European ignorance of forks;[8] for which they substitute a short -wooden or horn spoon, or dip their bread into the dish, or fish up -morsels with their long pointed knives. They eat copiously, but with -gravity--with appetite, but without greediness; for none of any nation, -as a mass, are better bred or mannered than the lower classes of -Spaniards. - -[Sidenote: VENTA EATING.] - -They are very pressing in their invitations whenever any eating is going -on. No Spaniard or Spaniards, however humble their class or fare, ever -allow any one to come near or pass them when eating, without inviting -him to partake. “_Guste usted comer?_” “Will your grace be pleased to -dine?” No traveller should ever omit to go through this courtesy -whenever any Spaniards, high or low, approach him when at any meal, -especially if taking it out of doors, which often happens in these -journeyings; nor is it altogether an empty form; all classes consider it -a compliment if a stranger, and especially an Englishman, will -condescend to share their dinner. In the smaller towns, those invited by -English will often partake, even the better classes, and who have -already dined; they think it civil to accept, and rude to refuse the -invitation, and have no objection to eating any given _good_ thing, -which is the exception to their ordinary frugal habits: all this is -quite Arabian. The Spaniards seldom accept the invitation at once; they -expect to be urged by an obsequious host, in order to appear to do a -gentle violence to their stomachs by eating to oblige _him_. The angels -declined Lot’s offered hospitalities until they were “pressed -_greatly_.” Travellers in Spain must not forget this still existing -Oriental trait; for if they do not greatly press their offer, they are -understood as meaning it to be a mere empty compliment. We have known -Spaniards who have called with an intention of staying dinner, go away, -because this ceremony was not gone through according to their -punctilious notions, to which our off-hand manners are diametrically -opposed. Hospitality in a hungry inn-less land becomes, as in the East, -a sacred duty; if a man eats all the provender by himself, he cannot -expect to have many friends. Generally speaking, the offer is not -accepted; it is always declined with the same courtesy which prompts the -invitation. “_Muchas gracias, buen provecho le haga á usted_,” “Many -thanks--much good may it do your grace,” an answer which is analogous to -the _prosit_ of Italian peasants after eating or sneezing. These -customs, both of inviting and declining, tally exactly, and even to the -expressions used among the Arabs to this day. Every passer-by is invited -by Orientals--“_Bismillah ya seedee_,” which means both a grace and -invitation--“In the name of God, sir, (_i.e._) will you dine with us?” -or “_Tafud’-dal_,” “Do me the favour to partake of this repast.” Those -who decline reply, “_Heneê an_,” “May it benefit.” - -[Sidenote: AN EVENING AT A VENTA.] - -[Sidenote: HONESTY AND ANTIQUITY IN A VENTA.] - -Supper, which, as with the ancients, is their principal meal, is -seasoned with copious draughts of the wine of the country, drunk out of -a jug or _bota_ which we have already described, for glasses do not -abound; after it is done, cigars are lighted, the rude seats are drawn -closer to the fire, stories are told, principally on robber or love -events, the latter of which are by far the truest. Jokes are given and -taken; laughter, inextinguishable as that of Homer’s gods, forms the -chorus of conversation, especially after good eating or drinking, to -which it is the best dessert. In due time songs are sung, a guitar is -strummed, for some black-whiskered Figaro is sure to have heard of the -“arrival,” and steals down from the pure love of harmony and charms of a -cigar; then flock in peasants of both sexes, dancing is set on foot, the -fatigues of the day are forgotten, and the catching sympathy of mirth -extending to all, is prolonged until far into the night; during which, -as they take a long siesta in the day, all are as wakeful as owls, and -worse caterwaulers than cats; to describe the scene baffles the art of -pen or pencil. The roars, the dust, the want of everything in these -low-classed ventas, are emblems of the nothingness of Spanish life--a -jest. One by one the company drops off; the better classes go up stairs, -the humbler and vast majority make up their bed on the ground, near -their animals, and like them, full of food and free from care, fall -instantly asleep in spite of the noise and discomfort by which they are -surrounded. This counterfeit of death is more equalizing, as Don Quixote -says, than death itself, for an honest Spanish muleteer stretched on his -hard pallet sleeps sounder than many an uneasy trickster head that wears -another’s crown. “Sleep,” says Sancho, “covers one over like a cloak,” -and a cloak or its cognate mantle forms the best part of their wardrobe -by day, and their bed furniture by night. The earth is now, as it was to -the Iberians, the national bed; nay, the Spanish word which expresses -that commodity, _cama_, is derived from the Greek καμαι. Thus -they are lodged on the ground floor, and thereby escape the three -classes of little animals which, like the inseparable Graces, are always -to be found in fine climates in the wholesale, and in Spanish _ventas_ -in the retail. Their pillow is composed either of their pack-saddles or -saddle-bags; their sleep is short, but profound. Long before daylight -all are in motion; “they _take up_ their bed,” the animals are fed, -harnessed, and laden, and the heaviest sleepers awakened: there is -little morning toilette, no time or soap is lost by biped or quadruped -in the processes of grooming or lavation: both carry their wardrobes on -their back, and trust to the shower and the sun to cleanse and bleach; -their moderate accounts are paid, salutations or execrations (generally -the latter), according to the length of the bills, pass between them -and their landlords, and another day of toil begins. Our faithful and -trustworthy squire seldom failed for a couple of hours after leaving the -_venta_ to pour forth an eloquent stream of oaths, invectives, and -lamentations at the dearness of inns, the rascality of their keepers in -general, and of the host of the preceding night in particular, although -probably a couple of dollars had cleared the account for a couple of men -and animals, and he himself had divided the extra-extortion with the -honest _ventero_. - -These Spanish venta scenes vary every day and night, as a new set of -actors make their first and last appearance before the traveller: of one -thing there can be no mistake, he has got out of England, and the -present year of our Lord. Their undeniable smack of antiquity gives them -a relish, a _borracha_, which is unknown in Great Britain, where all is -fused and modernized down to last Saturday night; here alone can you see -and study those manners and events which must have occurred on the same -sites when Hannibal and Scipio were last there, as it would be very easy -to work out from the classical authors. We would just suggest a -comparison between the arrangement of the Spanish country _venta_ with -that of the Roman inn now uncovered at the entrance of Pompeii, and its -exact counterpart, the modern “_osteria_,” in the same district of -Naples. In the Museo Borbonico will be found types of most of the -utensils now used in Spain, while the Oriental and most ancient style of -cuisine is equally easy to be identified with the notices left us in the -cookery books of antiquity. The same may be said of the tambourines, -castanets, songs, and dances,--in a word, of everything; and, indeed, -when all are hushed in sleep, and stretched like corpses amid their -beasts, the Valencians especially, in their sandals and kilts, in their -mantas, and in and on their rush-baskets and mattings, we feel that -Strabo must have beheld the old Iberians exactly in the same costume and -position, when he told us what we see now to be true, το πλεον εν σαγοις, εν ὁις -περ και στιβαδοκοιτουσι. - -[Sidenote: THE VENTORILLO.] - -The “_ventorrillo_” is a lower class of _venta_--for there is a deeper -bathos; it is the German _kneipe_ or hedge ale-house, and is often -nothing more than a mere hut, run up with reeds or branches of trees by -the road-side, at which water, bad wine, and brandy, “_aguardiente_,” -tooth-water, are to be sold. The latter is always detestable, raw, and -disflavoured with aniseed, and turns white in water like Eau de Cologne, -not that the natives ever expose it to such a trial. These -“_ventorillos_” are at best suspicious places, and the haunts of the -spies of regular robbers, or of skulking footpads when there are any, -who lurk inside with the proprietress; she herself generally might sit -as a model for Hecate, or for one of the witches in Shakspere over their -cauldron; her attendant imps are, however, sufficiently interesting -personages to form a chapter by themselves. - -[Sidenote: SPANISH ROBBERS.] - - - - -CHAPTER XVI. - - Spanish Robbers--A Robber Adventure--Guardias Civiles--Exaggerated - Accounts--Cross of the Murdered--Idle Robber Tales--French - Bandittiphobia--Robber History--Guerrilleros--Smugglers--Jose - Maria--Robbers of the First Class--The Ratero--Miguelites--Escorts - and Escopeteros--Passes, Protections, and Talismans--Execution of a - Robber. - - -An _olla_ without bacon would scarcely be less insipid than a volume on -Spain without banditti; the stimulant is not less necessary for the -established taste of the home-market, than brandy is for pale sherries -neat as imported. In the mean time, while the timid hesitate to put -their heads into this supposed den of thieves as much as into a house -that is haunted, those who are not scared by shadows, and do not share -in the fears of cockney critics and delicate writers in satin-paper -albums, but adventure boldly into the hornet’s nest, come back in a firm -belief of the non-existence of the robber genus. In Spain, that _pays de -l’imprévu_, this unexpected absence of personages who render roads -uncomfortable, is one of the many and not disagreeable surprises, which -await those who prefer to judge of a country by going there themselves, -rather than to put implicit faith in the foregone conclusions and -stereotyped prejudices of those who have not, although they do sit in -judgment on those who have, and decide “without a view.” This very -summer, some dozen and more friends of ours have made tours in various -parts of the Peninsula, driving and riding unarmed and unescorted -through localities of former suspicion, without having the good luck of -meeting even with the ghost of a departed robber; in truth and fact, we -cannot but remember that such things as monks and banditti were, -although they must be spoken of rather in the past than in the present -tense. - -[Sidenote: A ROBBER ADVENTURE.] - -The actual security of the Spanish highways is due to the _Moderados_, -as the French party and imitators of the _juste milieu_ are called, and -at the head of whom may be placed _Señor Martinez de la Rosa_. He, -indeed, is a moderate in poetry as well as politics, and a rare specimen -of that sublime of mediocrity which, according to Horace, neither men, -gods, nor booksellers can tolerate; his reputation as an author and -statesman--alas! poor Cervantes and Cisneros--proves too truly the -present effeteness of Spain. Her pen and her sword are blunted, her -laurels are sear, and her womb is barren; but, among the blind, he who -has one eye is king. - -This dramatist, in the May of 1833, was summoned from his exile at -Granada to Madrid by the suspicious Calomarde. The mail in which he -travelled was stopped by robbers about ten o’clock of a wet night near -Almuradiel;--the _guard_, at the first notice, throwing himself on his -belly, with his face in the mud, in imitation of the postilions, who pay -great respect to the gentlemen of the road. The passengers consisted of -himself, a German artist, and an English friend of ours now in London, -and who, having given up his well-garnished purse at once with great -good-humour, was most courteously treated by the well-satisfied -recipients: not so the Deutscher, on whom they were about to do personal -violence in revenge for a scanty scrip, had not his profession been -explained by our friend, by whose interference he was let off. -Meanwhile, the _Don_ was hiding his watch in the carriage lining, which -he cut open, and was concealing his few dollars, the existence of which -when questioned he stoutly denied. They, however, re-appeared under -threats of the bastinado, which were all but inflicted. The passengers -were then permitted to depart in peace, the leader of their spoilers -having first shaken hands with our informant, and wished him a pleasant -journey: “May your grace go with God and without novelty;” adding, “You -are a _caballero_, a gentleman, as all the English are; the German is a -_pobrecito_, a poor devil; the Spaniard is an _embustero_, a regular -swindler.” This latter gentleman, thus hardly delineated by his Lavater -countryman, has since more than gotten back his cash, having risen to be -prime minister to Christina, and humble and devoted servant of -Louis-Philippe, _cosas de España_. - -[Sidenote: GUARDIAS CIVILES.] - -Possibly this little incident may have facilitated the introduction of -the mounted guards, who are now stationed in towns, and by whom the -roads are regularly patrolled; they are called _guardias civiles_, and -have replaced the ancient “brotherhood” of Ferdinand and Isabella. As -they have been dressed and modelled after the fashion of the -transpyrenean gendarmerie, the Spaniards, who never lose a chance of a -happy nickname, or of a fling at the things of their neighbour, whom -they do not love, term them, either _Polizontes_ or _Polizones_, words -with which they have enriched their phraseology, and that represent the -French _polissons_, scoundrels, or they call them _Hijos de -Luis-Philipe_, “sons of Louis-Philippe;” for they are ill-bred enough, -in spite of the Montpensier marriage, and the Nelsonic achievements of -Monsieur de Joinville, to consider the words as synonymes. - -The number of these rogues, French king’s sons, civil guards, call them -as you will, exceeds five thousand. During the recent Machiavelianisms -of their putative father, they have been quite as much employed in the -towns as on the highway, and for political purposes rather than those of -pure police, having been used to keep down the expression of indignant -public opinion, and, instead of catching thieves, in upholding those -first-rate criminals, foreign and domestic, who are now robbing poor -Spain of her gold and liberties; but so it has always been. Indeed, when -we first arrived in the Peninsula, and naturally made enquiries about -banditti, according to all sensible Spaniards, it was not on the road -that they were most likely to be found, but in the confessional boxes, -the lawyers’ offices, and still more in the _bureaux_ of government; and -even in England some think that purses are exposed to more danger in -Chancery Lane and Stone Buildings, than in the worst cross-road, or the -most rocky mountain pass in the Peninsula. - -[Sidenote: THE MURDERED MAN’S CROSS.] - -It will be long, however, before this “great fact” is believed within -the sound of Bow-bells, where many of those who provide the reading -public with correct information, dislike having to eat their own words, -and to have their settled opinions shaken or contradicted. Nor is it -pleasant at a certain time of life to go again to school, as one does -when studying Niebuhr’s Roman History, and then to find that the -alphabet must be re-begun, since all that was thought to be right is in -fact wrong. Distant Spain is ever looked at through a telescope which -either magnifies richness and goodness, from which half at least must be -deducted according to the proverb, _de los dineros y bondad, se ha de -quitar la mitad_, or darkens its dangers and difficulties through a -discoloured medium. A bad name given to a dog or country is very -adhesive; and the many will repeat each other in cuckoo-note. “Il y a -des choses,” says Montesquieu, “que tout le monde dit, parcequ’elles ont -été dites une fois;” thus one silly sheep makes many, who will follow -their leader; _ovejas y bobas, donde va una, van todas_. So in the end -error becomes stamped with current authority, and is received, until the -false, imaginary picture is alone esteemed, and the true, original -portrait scouted as a cheat. - -[Sidenote: EXAGGERATED ROBBER NOTIONS.] - -It has so long and annually been considered permissible, when writing -about romantic Spain, to take leave of common sense, to ascend on -stilts, and converse in the Cambyses vein, that those who descend to -humble prose, and confine themselves to commonplace matter-of-fact, are -considered not only to be inæsthetic, unpoetical, and unimaginative, but -deficient in truth and power of observation. The genius of the land, -when speaking of itself and its things, is prone to say the thing which -is not; and it must be admitted that the locality lends itself often and -readily to misconceptions. The leagues and leagues of lonely hills and -wastes, over which beasts of prey roam, and above which vultures sulkily -rising part the light air with heavy wing, are easily peopled, by those -who are in a prepared train of mind, with equally rapacious bipeds of -Plato’s unfeathered species. Rocky passes, contrived as it were on -purpose for ambuscades, tangled glens overrun with underwood, in spite -of the prodigality of beauty which arrests the artist, suggest the lair -of snakes and robbers. Nor is the feeling diminished by meeting the -frequent crosses set up on classically piled heaps, which mark the grave -of some murdered man, whose simple, touching epitaph tells the name of -the departed, the date of the treacherous stab, and entreats the -passenger, who is as he was, and may be in an instant as he is, to pray -for his unannealed soul. A shadow of death hovers over such spots, and -throws the stranger on his own thoughts, which, from early associations, -are somewhat in unison with the scene. Nor is the welcome of the -outstretched arms of these crosses over-hearty, albeit they are -sometimes hung with flowers, which mock the dead. Nor are all sermons -more eloquent than these silent stones, on which such brief emblems are -fixed. The Spaniards, from long habit, are less affected by them than -foreigners, being all accustomed to behold crosses and bleeding -crucifixes in churches and out; they moreover well know that by far the -greater proportion of these memorials have been raised to record -murders, which have not been perpetrated by robbers, but are the results -of sudden quarrel or of long brooded-over revenge, and that wine and -women, nine times out of ten, are at the bottom of the calamity. -Nevertheless, it makes a stout English heart uncomfortable, although it -is of little use to be afraid when one is in for it, and on the spot. -Then there is no better chance of escape, than to brave the peril and to -ride on. Turn, therefore, dear reader, a deaf ear to the tales of local -terror which will be told in every out-of-the-way village by the -credulous, timid inhabitants. You, as we have often been, will be -congratulated on having passed such and such a wood, and will be assured -that you will infallibly be robbed at such and such a spot a few leagues -onward. We have always found that this ignis fatuus, like the horizon, -has receded as we advanced; the dangerous spot is either a little behind -or a little before the actual place--it vanishes, as most difficulties -do, when boldly approached and grappled with. - -[Sidenote: BANDITTIPHOBIA OF FRENCH TOURISTS.] - -At the same time these sorts of places and events admit of much fine -writing when people get safely back again, to say nothing of the dignity -and heroic elevation which may be thus obtained by such an exhibition of -valour during the long vacation. Peaked hats, hair-breadth escapes from -long knives and mustachios, lying down for an hour on your stomach with -your mouth in the mud, are little interludes so diametrically opposed to -civilization, and the humdrum, unpicturesque routine of free Britons who -pay way and police rates, that they form almost irresistible topics to -the pen of a ready writer. And such exciting incidents are sure to take, -and to affect the public at home, who, moreover, are much pleased by the -perusal of _authentic_ accounts from Spain itself, and the best and -latest intelligence, which tally with their own preconceived ideas of -the land. Hence those authors are the most popular who put the self-love -of their reader in best humour with his own stock of knowledge. And this -accounts for the frequency, in Peninsular sketches, personal -narratives, and so forth, of robberies which are certainly oftener to be -met with in their pages than on the plains of the Peninsula. The writers -know that a bandit adventure is as much expected in the journals of such -travels as in one of Mrs. Ratcliffe’s romances; such fleeting books are -chiefly made by “_striking events_;” accordingly, the authors string -together all the floating traditional horrors which they can scrape -together on Spanish roads, and thus feed and keep up the notion -entertained in many counties of England, that the whole Peninsula is -peopled with banditti. If such were the case society could not exist, -and the very fact, of almost all of the reporters having themselves -escaped by a miracle, might lead to the inference that most other -persons escape likewise: a blot is not a blot till it is hit. - -[Sidenote: PSEUDO-BANDIT LOOKS.] - -Our ingenious neighbours, strange to say in so gallant a people, have a -still more decided bandittiphobia. According to what the badauds of -Paris are told in print, every rash individual, before he takes his -place in the dilly for Spain, ought by all means to make his will, as -was done four hundred years ago at starting on a pilgrimage to -Jerusalem; possibly this may be predicated in the spirit of French -diplomacy, which always has a concealed arrière pensée, and it may be -bruited abroad, on the principle with which illicit distillers and -coin-forgers give out that certain localities are haunted, in order to -scare away others, and thus preserve for themselves a quiet possession. -Perhaps the superabundance of l’esprit Français may give colour and -substance to forms insignificant in themselves, as a painter lost in a -brown study over a coal fire converts cinders into castles, monsters, -and other creatures of his lively imagination; or it may be, as -conscience makes cowards of all, that these gentlemen really see a -bandit in every bush of Spain, and expect from behind every rock an -avenging minister of retaliation, in whose pocket is a list of the -church plate, Murillos, &c. which were found missing after their -countrymen’s invasion. Be that as it may, even so clever a man as -Monsieur Quinet, a real Dr. Syntax, fills pages of his recent _Vacances_ -with his continual trepidations, although, from having arrived at his -journey’s end without any sort of accident, albeit not without every -kind of fear, it might have crossed him, that the bugbears existed only -in his own head, and he might have concealed, in his pleasant pages, a -frame of mind the exhibition of which, in England at least, inspires -neither interest nor respect; an over-care of self is not over-heroic. - -[Sidenote: IDLE ROBBER TALES.] - -It must be also admitted that the respectability and character of many a -Spaniard is liable to be misunderstood, when he sets forth on any of his -travels, except in a public wheel conveyance; as we said in our ninth -chapter, he assumes the national costume of the road, and leaves his -wife and long-tailed coat behind him. Now as most Spaniards are muffled -up and clad after the approved melodrame fashion of robbers, they may be -mistaken for them in reality; indeed they are generally sallow, have -fierce black eyes, uncombed hair, and on these occasions neglect the -daily use of towels and razors; a long beard gives, and not in Spain -alone, a ferocious ruffian-like look, which is not diminished when gun -and knife are added to match faces à la Brutus. Again, these worthies -thus equipped, have sometimes a trick of staring rather fixedly from -under their slouched hat at the passing stranger, whose, to them, -outlandish costume excites curiosity and suspicion; naturally therefore -some difficulty does exist in distinguishing the merino from the wolf, -when both are disguised in the same clothing--a _zamarra_ sheepskin to -wit. A private Spanish gentleman, who, in his native town, would be the -model of a peaceable and inoffensive burgess, or a respectable -haberdasher, has, when on his commercial tour, altogether the appearance -of the Bravo of Venice, and such-like heroes, by whom children are -frightened at a minor theatre. In consequence of the difficulty of -outliving what has been learnt in the nursery, many of our countrymen -have, with the best intentions, set down the bulk of the population of -the Peninsula as one gang of robbers--they have exaggerated their -numbers like Falstaff’s men of buckram; the said imagined Rinaldo -Rinaldinis being probably in a still greater state of alarm from having -on their part taken our said countrymen for robbers, and this mutual -misunderstanding continues, until both explain their slight mistake of -each other’s character and intention. Although we never fell into the -error of thus mistaking Spanish peaceable traders for privateers and -men-of-war, yet that injustice has been done by them to us; possibly -this compliment may have been paid to our careful observation of the -bearing and garb of their great Rob Roy himself and in his own country, -which, to one about to undertake, in those days, long and solitary -rides over the Peninsula, was an unspeakable advantage. - -But even in those perilous times, robberies were the exception, not the -rule, in spite of the full, whole, and exact particulars of natives as -well as strangers; the accounts were equally exaggerated by both -parties; in fact, the subject is the standing dish, the common topic of -the lower classes of travellers, when talking and smoking round the -venta fires, and forms the natural and agreeable religio loci, the -associations connected with wild and cut-throat localities. Though these -narrators’ pleasure is mingled with fear and pain, they delight in such -histories as children do in goblin tales. Their Oriental amplification -is inferior only to their credulity, its twin sister, and they end in -believing their own lies. Whenever a robbery really does take place, the -report spreads far and wide, and gains in detail and atrocity, for no -muleteer’s story or sailor’s yarn loses in the telling. The same dire -event,--names, dates, and localities only varied,--is served up, as a -monkish miracle in the mediæval ages was, at many other places, and thus -becomes infinitely multiplied. It is talked of for months all over the -country, while the thousands of daily passengers who journey on unhurt -are never mentioned. It is like the lottery, in which the great prize -alone attracts attention, not the infinite majority of blanks. These -robber-tales reach the cities, and are often believed by most -respectable people, who pass their lives without stirring a league -beyond the walls. They sympathize with all who are compelled to expose -themselves to the great pains and perils, the travail of travel, and -they endeavour with the most good-natured intentions to dissuade rash -adventurers from facing them, by stating as facts, the apprehensions of -their own credulity and imagination. - -[Sidenote: SPANISH ROBBER HISTORY.] - -The muleteers, _venteros_, and masses of common Spaniards see in the -anxious faces of timid strangers, that their audience is in the -listening and believing vein, and as they are garrulous and egotists by -nature, they seize on a theme in which they alone hold forth; they are -pleased at being considered an authority, and with the superiority which -conveying information gives, and the power of inspiring fear confers; -their mother-wit, in which few nations surpass them, soon discovers the -sort of information which “our correspondent” is in want of, and as -words here cost nothing, the gulping gobemouche is plentifully supplied -with the required article. These reports are in due time set up in type, -and are believed because in print; thus the tricks played on poor Mr. -Inglis and his note-book were the laughter of the whole Peninsula, grave -authorities caught the generous infection, until Mr. Mark’s robber-jokes -at Malaga were booked and swallowed as if he had been an apostle instead -of a consul. - -As it was our fate to have wandered up and down the Peninsula when -Ferdinand VII. was king of the Spains, and Jose Maria, at whose name old -men and women there tremble yet, was autocrat of Andalucia, the moment -was propitious for studying the philosophy of Spanish banditti, and our -speculations were much benefited by a fortunate acquaintance with the -redoubtable chief himself, from whom, as well as from many of his -intelligent followers, we received much kindness and valuable -information, which is acknowledged with thankfulness. - -Historically speaking, Spain has never enjoyed a good character in this -matter of the highway; it had but an indifferent reputation in the days -of antiquity, but then, as now, it was generally the accusation of -foreigners. The Romans, who had no business to invade it, were harassed -by the native guerrilleros, those undisciplined bands who waged the -“little war,” which Iberia always did. Worried by these unmilitary -voltigeurs, they called all Spaniards who resisted them “_latrones_;” -just as the French invaders, from the same reasons, called them -_ladrones_ or brigands, because they had no uniform; as if the wearing a -schako given by a plundering marshal, could convert a pillager into a -honest man, or the want of it could change into a thief, a noble patriot -who was defending his own property and country; but l’habit ne fait pas -le moine, say the French, and _aunque la mona se viste de seda, mona se -queda_, although a monkey dresses in silk, monkey it remains, rejoin the -Spaniards. - -[Sidenote: GUERRILLEROS.] - -Armed men are in fact the weed of the soil of Spain, in peace or war; to -have their hand against all mankind seems to be an instinct in every -descendant of Ishmael, and particularly among this Quixotic branch, -whose knight-errants, reformers on horseback, have not unfrequently been -robbers in the guise of gentlemen. During the war against Buonaparte, -the Peninsula swarmed with insurgents, many of whom were inspired, by a -sense of loyalty, with indignation at their outraged religion, and with -a deep-rooted national loathing of the _gabacho_, and good service did -these Minas and Co. do to the cause of their lawful king; but others -used patriotic professions as specious cloaks to cover their instinctive -passion for a lawless and freebooting career, and before the liberation -of the country was effected, had become formidable to all parties alike. -The Duke of Wellington, with his characteristic sagacity, foresaw, at -his victorious conclusion of the struggle, how difficult it would be to -weed out “this strange fruit borne on a tree grafted by patriotism.” The -transition from murdering a Frenchman, to plundering a stranger, -appeared a simple process to these patriotic scions, whose numbers were -swelled with all who were, or who considered themselves to be, ill -used--with all who could not dig, and were ashamed to beg. The evil was -diminished during the latter years of the reign of Ferdinand VII., when -the old hands began to die off, and an advance in social improvement was -unquestionably general, before which these lawless occupations gave way, -as surely as wild animals of prey do before improved cultivation. These -evils, that are abated by internal quiet and the continued exertions of -the authorities, increase with troubled times, which, as the tempest -calls forth the stormy petrel, rouse into dangerous action the worst -portions of society, and create a sort of civil cachexia, as we now see -in Ireland. - -[Sidenote: SMUGGLERS.] - -Another source was, not to say is, Gibraltar, that hot-bed of -contraband, that nursery of the smuggler, the _prima materia_ of a -robber and murderer. The financial ignorance of the Spanish government -calls him in, to correct the errors of Chancellors of Exchequers:--“trovata -la legge, trovato l’inganno.” The fiscal regulations are so ingeniously -absurd, complicated, and vexatious, that the honest, legitimate merchant -is as much embarrassed as the irregular trader is favoured. The -operation of excessive duties on objects which people must, and -therefore will have, is as strikingly exemplified in the case of tobacco -in Andalucia, as it is in that, and many other articles on the Kent and -Sussex coasts: in both countries the fiscal scourge leads to breaches of -the peace, injury to the fair dealer, and loss to the revenue; it -renders idle, predatory and ferocious, a peasantry which, under a wiser -system, and if not exposed to overpowering temptation, might become -virtuous and industrious. In Spain the evasion of such laws is only -considered as cheating those who cheat the people; the villagers are -heart and soul in favour of the smuggler, as they are of the poacher in -England; all their prejudices are on his side. Some of the mountain -curates, whose flocks are all in that line, deal with the crime in their -sermons as a conventional, not a moral, one; and, like other people, -decorate their mantelpieces with a painted clay figure of the sinner in -his full _majo_ dress. The smuggler himself, so far from feeling -degraded, enjoys the reputation which attends success in personal -adventure, among a people proud of individual prowess; he is the hero of -the Spanish stage, and comes on equipped in full costume, with his -blunderbuss, to sing the well-known “_Yo! que soy contrabandista! yo -ho!_” to the delight of all listeners from the Straits to the Bidasoa, -custom-house officers not excepted. - -The _prestige_ of such a theatrical exhibition, like the ‘Robbers’ of -Schiller, is enough to make all the students of Salamanca take to the -high-road. The contrabandista is the Turpin, the Macheath of reality, -and those heroes of the old ballads and theatres of England, who have -disappeared more in consequence of enclosures, rapid conveyances, and -macadamization (for there is nothing so hateful to a highwayman as gas -and a turnpike), than from fear of the prison or the halter. The -writings of Smollett, the recollections of many now alive of the dangers -of Hounslow Heath and Finchley Common, recall scenes of life and manners -from which we have not long emerged, and which have still more recently -been corrected in Spain. The contrabandista in his real character is -welcome in every village; he is the newspaper and channel of -intelligence; he brings tea and gossip for the curate, money and cigars -for the attorney, ribands and cottons for the women; he is magnificently -dressed, which has a great charm for all Moro-Iberian eyes; he is bold -and resolute--“none but the brave deserve the fair;” a good rider and -shot; he knows every inch of the intricate country, wood or water, hill -or dale; in a word, he is admirably educated for the high-road--for what -Froissart, speaking of the celebrated Amerigot Tetenoire, calls “a fayre -and godlie life.” And the transition from plundering the king’s revenue, -to taking one of his subjects’ purse on the highway, is easy. - -[Sidenote: FIRST-CLASS BANDITS.] - -Many circumstances combined to make this freebooting career popular -among the lower classes. The delight of power, the exhibition of daring -and valour, the temptation of sudden wealth, always so attractive to -half-civilized nations, who prefer the rich spoil won by the bravery of -an hour, to that of the drudgery of years; the gorgeous apparel, the -lavish expenditure, the song, the wassail, the smiles of the fair, and -all the joyous life of liberty, freemasonry, and good fellowship, -operated with irresistible force on a warlike, energetic, and -imaginative population. - -This smuggling was the origin of Jose Maria’s career, who rose to the -highest rank and honours of his profession, as did _Napoleon le Grand_ -and “Jonathan Wild the Great,” and principally, as Fielding says of his -hero, by a power of doing mischief, and a principle of considering -honesty to be a corruption of _honosty_, the qualities of an ass -(ονος). But it is a great mistake to suppose that there always -are men fitted to be captains of formidable gangs; nature is chary in -the production of such specimens of dangerous grandeur, and as ages may -elapse before the world is cursed with another Alaric, Buonaparte, or -Wild, so years may pass before Spain witnesses again another Jose Maria. - -[Sidenote: FIRST-CLASS BANDITS.] - -The _Ladron-en-grande_, the robber on a great scale, is the grandee of -the first class in his order; he is the captain of a regularly-organized -band of followers, from eight to fourteen in number, well armed and -mounted, and entirely under command and discipline. These are very -formidable; and as they seldom attack any travellers except with -overwhelming forces, and under circumstances of ambuscade and surprise, -where every thing is in their favour, resistance is generally useless, -and can only lead to fatal accidents. Never, for the sake of a sac de -nuit, risk being sent to Erebus; submit, therefore, at once and with -good grace to the summons, which will take no denial, of “_abajo_,” -down, “_boca á tierra_,” mouth to the earth. Those who have a score or -so of dollars, four or five pounds, the loss of which will ruin no man, -are very rarely ill-used; a frank, confident, and good-humoured -surrender not only prevents any bad treatment, but secures even civility -during the disagreeable operation: pistols and sabres are, after all, a -poor defence compared to civil words, as Mr. Cribb used to say. The -Spaniard, by nature high-bred and a “_caballero_,” responds to any -appeal to qualities of which he thinks his nation has reason to be -proud; he respects coolness of manner, in which bold men, although -robbers, sympathise. Why should a man, because he loses a few dollars, -lose also his presence of mind or temper, or perhaps life? Nor are these -grandees of the system without a certain magnanimity, as Cervantes knew -right well. Witness his graphic account of Roque Guinart, whose conduct -to his victims and behaviour to his comrades tallied, to our certain -knowledge, with that observed by Jose Maria, and was perfectly analogous -to the similar traits of character exhibited by the Italian bandit Ghino -de Tacco, the immortalized by Dante; as well as by our Robin Hood and -Diana’s foresters. Being strong, they could afford to be generous and -merciful. - -Notwithstanding these moral securities, if only by way of making -assurance doubly sure, an Englishman will do well when travelling in -exposed districts to be provided with a decent bag of dollars, which -makes a handsome purse, feels heavy in the hand, and is that sort of -amount which the Spanish brigand thinks a native of our proverbially -rich country ought to have with him on his travels. He has a remarkable -tact in estimating from the look of an individual, his equipage, &c., -how much ready money it is befitting his condition for him to have about -him; if the sum should not be enough, he resents severely his being -robbed of the regular perquisite to which he considers himself entitled -by the long-established usage of the high-road. The person unprovided -altogether with cash is generally made a severe example of, pour -encourager les autres, either by being well beaten or stripped to the -skin, after the fashion of the thieves of old, near Jericho. The -traveller should have a watch of some kind--one with a gaudy gilt chain -and seals is the best suited; not to have one exposes him to more -indignities than a scantily-filled purse. The money may have been spent, -but the absence of a watch can only be accounted for by a premeditated -intention of not being robbed of it, which the “_ladron_” considers as a -most unjustifiable attempt to defraud him of his right. - -[Sidenote: THE RATERO.] - -The Spanish “_ladrones_” are generally armed with a blunderbuss, that -hangs at their high-peaked saddles, which are covered with a white or -blue fleece, emblematical enough of shearing propensities; therefore, -perhaps, the order of the golden fleece has been given to certain -foreigners, in reward for having eased Spain of her independence and -Murillos. Their dress is for the most part very rich, and in the highest -style of the fancy; hence they are the envy and models of the lower -classes, being arrayed after the fashion of the smuggler, or the -bull-fighter, or in a word, the “_majo_” or dandy of Andalucia, which is -the home and head-quarters of all those who aspire to the elegant -accomplishments and professions just alluded to. The next class of -robbers--omitting some minor distinctions, such as the “_salteadores_,” -or two or three persons who lie in ambuscade and _jump out_ on the -unprepared traveller--is the “_ratero_,” “the rat.” He is not brought -regularly up to the profession and organized, but takes to it on a -sudden, and for the special occasion which, according to the proverb, -makes a thief, _La ocasion hace al ladron_; and having committed his -petty larceny, returns to his pristine occupation or avocation. - -[Sidenote: MIGUELITES.] - -The “_raterillo_,” or small rat, is a skulking footpad, who seldom -attacks any but single and unprotected passengers, who, if they get -robbed, have no one to blame but themselves; for no man is justified in -exposing Spaniards to the temptation of doing a little something in that -line. The shepherd with his sheep, the ploughman at his plough, the -vine-dresser amid his grapes, all have their gun, ostensibly for their -individual protection, which furnishes means of assault and battery -against those who have no other defence but their legs and virtue. These -self-same extemporaneous thieves are, however, remarkably civil to armed -and prepared travellers; to them they touch their hats, and exclaim, -“Good day to you, my lord knight,” and “May your grace go with God,” -with all that innocent simplicity which is observable in pastorals, -opera-ballets, and other equally correct representations of rural life. -These rats are held in as profound contempt by the higher classes of the -profession, as political ones used to be, before parties were betrayed -by turncoats, who, with tails and without, deserted to the enemies’ -camp. The _ladron en grande_ looks down on this sneaking competitor as a -regular M.D. and member of the College of Physicians does on a quack, -who presumes to take fees and kill without a licence. However -despicable, these rats are very dangerous; lacking the generous feeling -which the possession of power and united force bestows, they have the -cowardice and cruelty of weakness: hence they frequently murder their -victim, because dead men tell no tales. - -The distinction between these higher and lower classes of rogues will be -better understood by comparing the Napoleon of war, with the Napoleon of -peace. The Corsican was the _ladron en grande_; he warred against -mankind, he led his armed followers to pillage and plunder, he made his -den the receiving house of the stolen goods of the Continent: but he did -it openly and manfully by his own right hand and good sword; and valour -and audacity are qualities too high and rare not to command -admiration--qualified, indeed, when so misapplied. Louis-Philippe is a -_ratero_, who, skulking under disguise of amity and good faith, works -out in the dark, and by cunning, his ends of avarice and ambition; who, -acting on the artful dodger (no) principle, while kissing the Queen, -picks her pocket of a crown. - -[Sidenote: MIGUELITES.] - -It must be stated for the purposes of history that at the time when -Spain was, or was said to be, overrun with rats and robbers, there was, -as Spaniards have it, a remedy for everything except death; and as the -evils were notorious, it was natural that means of prevention should -likewise exist. If the state of things had been so bad as exaggerated -report would infer, it would have been impossible that any travelling or -traffic could have been managed in the Peninsula. The mails and -diligences, being protected by government, were seldom attacked, and -those who travelled by other methods, and had proper recommendations, -seldom failed in being provided by the authorities with a sufficient -escort. A regular body of men was organized for that purpose; they were -called “_Miguelites_,” from, it is said, one Miguel de Prats, an armed -satellite of the famous or infamous Cæsar Borgia. In Catalonia they are -called “_Mozos de la Escuadra_,” “Lads of the squadron, land marines;” -they are the modern “_Hermandad_,” the brotherhood which formed the old -Spanish rural armed police. Composed of picked and most active young -men, they served on foot, under the orders of the military powers; they -were dressed in a sort of half uniform and half _majo_ costume. Their -gaiters were black instead of yellow, and their jackets of blue trimmed -with red. They were well armed with a short gun and a belt round the -waist in which the ammunition was placed, a much more convenient -contrivance than our cartouche-box; they had a sword, a cord for -securing prisoners, and a single pistol, which was stuck in their -sashes, at their backs. This corps was on a perfect par with the -robbers, from whom some of them were chosen; indeed, the common -condition of the “_indulto_,” or pardon to robbers, is to enlist, and -extirpate their former associates--set a thief to catch a thief; both -the honest and renegade _Miguelites_ hunted “_la mala gente_,” as -gamekeepers do poachers. The robbers feared and respected them; an -escort of ten or twelve _Miguelites_ might brave any number of banditti, -who never or rarely attack where resistance is to be anticipated; and in -travelling through suspected spots these escorts showed singular skill -in taking every precaution, by throwing out skirmishers in front and at -the sides. They covered in their progress a large space of ground, -taking care never to keep above two together, nor more distant from each -other than gun-shot; rules which all travellers will do well to -remember, and to enforce on all occasions of suspicion. The rare -instances in which Englishmen, especially officers of the garrison of -Gibraltar, have been robbed, have arisen from a neglect of this -precaution; when the whole party ride together they may be all caught at -once, as in a casting-net. - -[Sidenote: TRAVELLING ESCORTS.] - -It may be remarked that Spanish robbers are very shy in attacking armed -English travellers, and particularly if they appear on their guard. The -robbers dislike fighting, and the more as they do so at a disadvantage, -from having a halter round their necks, and they hate danger, from -knowing what it is; they have no chivalrous courage, nor any more -abstract notions of fair play than a Turk or a tiger, who are too -uncivilized to throw away a chance; accordingly, they seldom join issue -where the defendants seem pugnacious, which is likely to be the case -with Englishmen. They also peculiarly dislike English guns and -gunpowder, which, in fact, both as arms and ammunition, are infinitely -superior to those of Spain. Though three or four Englishmen had nothing -to fear, yet where there were ladies it was better to be provided with -an escort of _Miguelites_. These men have a keen and accurate eye, and -were always on the look-out for prints of horses and other signs, which, -escaping the notice of superficial observers, indicated to their -practised observations the presence of danger. They were indefatigable, -keeping up with a carriage day and night, braving heat and cold, hunger -and thirst. As they were maintained at the expense of the government, -they were not, strictly speaking, entitled to any remuneration from -those travellers whom they were directed to escort; it was, however, -usual to give to each man a couple of _pesetas_ a-day, and a dollar to -their leader. The trifling addition of a few cigars, a “_bota_” or two -of wine, some rice and dried cod-fish for their evening meal, was well -bestowed; exercise sharpened their appetites; and they were always proud -to drink to their master’s long life and purse, and protect both. - -Those, whether natives or foreigners, who could not obtain or afford the -expense of an escort to themselves, availed themselves of the -opportunity of joining company with some party who had one. It is -wonderful how soon the fact of an escort being granted was known, and -how the number of travellers increased, who were anxious to take -advantage of the convoy. As all go armed, the united allied forces -became more formidable as the number increased, and the danger became -less. If no one happened to be travelling with an escort, then -travellers waited for the passage of troops, for the government’s -sending money, tobacco, or anything else which required protection. If -none of these opportunities offered, all who were about to travel joined -company. This habit of forming caravans is very Oriental, and has become -quite national in Spain, insomuch that it is almost impossible to travel -alone, as others will join; weaker and smaller parties will unite with -all stronger and larger companies whom they meet going the same road, -whether the latter like it or not. The muleteers are most social and -gregarious amongst each other, and will often endeavour to derange their -employer’s line of route, in order to fall in with that of their -chance-met comrades. The caravan, like a snow-ball, increases in bulk as -it rolls on; it is often pretty considerable at the very outset, for, -even before starting, the muleteers and proprietors of carriages, being -well known to each other, communicate mutually the number of travellers -which each has got. - -[Sidenote: ESCOPETEROS.] - -Travelling in out-of-the-way districts in a “_coche de colleras_,” and -especially if accompanied with a baggage-waggon, exposes the party to be -robbed. When the caravan arrives in the small villages it attracts -immediate notice, and if it gets wind that the travellers are -foreigners, they are supposed to be laden with gold and booty. Such an -arrival is a rare event; the news spreads like wildfire, and collects -all the “_mala gente_,” the bad set of idlers and loiterers, who act as -spies, and convey intelligence to their confederates; again, the bulk of -the equipage, the noise and clatter of men and mules, is seen and heard -from afar, by robbers if there be any, who lurk in hiding-places or -eminences, and are well provided with telescopes, besides with longer -and sharper noses, which, as Gil Blas says, smell coin in travellers’ -pockets, while the slow pace and impossibility of flight renders such a -party an easy prey to well-mounted horsemen. - -[Sidenote: PASSES AND PROTECTIONS.] - -This condition of affairs, these dangers real or imaginary, and these -precautions, existed principally in journeys by cross roads, or through -provinces rarely visited, and unprovided with public carriages; if, -however, such districts were reputed the worst, they often had the -advantage of being freer from regular bands, for where there are few -passengers, why should there be robbers, who like spiders place their -nets where the supply of flies is sure?--and little do the humbler -masses of Spain care either for robbers or revolutionists; they have -nothing to lose, and are beneath the notice of pickpockets or -pseudo-patriots. Their rags are their safeguard, a fine climate clothes -them, a fertile soil feeds them; they doze away in the happy want and -poverty, ever the best protections in Spain, or strum their guitars and -sing staves in praise of empty purses. The better provided have to look -out for themselves; indeed, whenever the law is insufficient men take it -into their own hands, either to protect themselves or their property, or -to administer wild justice, and obtain satisfaction for wrongs, which in -plain Spanish is called revenge. An Irish landlord arms his servants and -raises walls round his “demesne”--an English squire employs watchers and -keepers to preserve his pheasants--so in suspected localities a Spanish -hidalgo protects his person by hiring armed peasants; they are called -“_escopeteros_,” people with guns--a definition which is applicable to -most Spaniards. When out of town this custom of going armed, and early -acquaintance with the use of the gun, is the principal reason why, on -the shortest notice, bodies of men, whom the Spaniards call soldiers, -are got together; every field furnishes the raw material--a man with a -musket. Baggage, commissariat, pay, rations, uniform, and discipline, -which are European rather than Oriental, are more likely to be found in -most other armies than in those of Spain. These things account for the -facility with which the Spanish nation flies so magnanimously to arms, -and after bush-fighting and buccaneering expeditions, disappears at once -after a reverse; “every man to his own home,” as of old in the East, and -that, with or without proclamation. These “_escopeteros_,” occasionally -robbers themselves, live either by robbery or by the prevention of it; -for there is some honour among thieves; “_entre lobos no se come_,” -“wolves don’t eat each other” unless very hard up indeed. These fellows -naturally endeavour to alarm travellers with over-exaggerated accounts -of danger, ogres and antres vast, in order that their services may be -engaged; their inventions are often believed by swallowers of camels, -who note down as facts, these tricks upon travellers got up for the -occasion, by people who are making long noses at them, behind their -backs; but these longer lies are among the accidents of long journeys, -“_en luengas vias, luengas mentiras_.” - -[Sidenote: TALISMANIC DEFENCES.] - -As we are now writing history, it may be added that great men like Jose -Maria often granted passports. This true trooper of the Deloraine breed -was untrammelled with the fetters of spelling. Although he could barely -write his name, he could _rubricate_[9] as well as any other Spaniard in -command, or Ferdinand VII. himself. “His mark” was a protection to all -who would pay him black mail. It was authenticated with such a -portentous griffonage as would have done credit to Ali Pacha. An -intimate friend of ours, a merry gastronomic dignitary of Seville, who -was going to the baths of Caratraca, to recover from over-indulgence in -rich ollas and valdepeñas, and had no wish, like the gouty abbot of -Boccaccio, to be put on robber regimen, procured a pass from Jose Maria, -and took one of his gang as a travelling escort, who sat on the -coach-box, and whom he described to us as his “_santito_,” his little -guardian angel. - -[Sidenote: TALISMANIC DEFENCES.] - -While on the subject of this spiritual and supernatural protection, it -may be added that firm faith was placed in the wearing a relic, a medal -of the Virgin, her rosary or scapulary. Thus the Duchess of Abrantes -this very autumn hung the _Virgen del Pilar_ round the neck of her -favourite bull-fighter, who escaped in consequence. Few Spanish soldiers -go into battle without such a preservative in their _petos_, or stuffed -waddings, which is supposed to turn bullets, and to divert fire, like a -lightning conductor, which probably it does, as so few are ever killed. -In the more romantic days of Spain no duel or tournament could be fought -without a declaration from the combatants, that they had no relic, no -_engaño_ or cheat, about their persons. Our friend Jose Maria attributed -his constant escapes to an image of the Virgin of Grief of Cordova, -which never quitted his shaggy breast. Indeed, the native districts of -the lower classes in Spain may be generally known by their religious -ornaments. These talismanic amulets are selected from the saint or relic -most honoured, and esteemed most efficacious, in their immediate -vicinity. Thus the “Santo Rostro,” or Holy Countenance of Jaen, is worn -all over the kingdom of Granada, as the Cross of Caravaca is over -Murcia; the rosary of the Virgin is common to all Spain. The following -miraculous proof of its saving virtues was frequently painted in the -convents:--A robber was shot by a traveller and buried; his comrades, -some time afterwards passing by, heard his voice,--“this fellow in the -cellarage;”--they opened the grave and found him alive and unhurt, for -when he was killed, he had happened to have a rosary round his neck, and -Saint Dominick (its inventor) was enabled to intercede with the Virgin -in his behalf. This reliance on the Virgin is by no means confined to -Spain, since the Italian banditti always wear a small silver heart of -the Madonna, and this mixture of ferocity and superstition is one of the -most terrific features of their character. Saint Nicholas, however, the -English “Old Nick,” is in all countries the patron of schoolboys, -thieves, or, as Shakspere calls them, “Saint Nicholas’s clerks.” “Keep -thy neck for the hangman, for I know thou worshippest St. Nicholas as a -man of falsehood may;” and like him, Santu Diavolu, Santu Diavoluni, -Holy Devil, is the appropriate saint of the Sicilian bandit. - -San Dimas, the “good thief,” is a great saint in Andalucia, where his -disciples are said to be numerous. A celebrated carving by Montañes, in -Seville, is called ‘_El Cristo, del buen ladron_,’--“the Christ, _of_ -the good thief;” thus making the Saviour a subordinate person. Spanish -robbers have always been remarkably good Roman Catholics. In the -Rinconete y Cortadillo, the Lurker and Cutpurse of Cervantes, whose -Monipodio must have furnished Fagin to Boz, a box is placed before the -Virgin, to which each robber contributes, and one remarks that he “robs -for the service of God, and for all honest fellows.” Their mountain -confessors of the Friar Tuck order, animated by a pious love for dollars -when expended in expiatory masses, consider the payment to them of good -doubloons such a laudable restitution, such a sincere repentance, as to -entitle the contrite culprit to ample absolution, plenary indulgence, -and full benefit of clergy. Notwithstanding this, these ungrateful “good -thieves” have been known to rob their spiritual pastors and masters, -when they catch them on the high road. - -To return to the saving merit of these talismans. We ourselves suspended -to our sheepskin jacket one of the silver medals of Santiago, which are -sold to pilgrims at Compostella, and arrived back again to Seville from -the long excursion, safe and sound and unpillaged except by _venteros_ -and our faithful squire--an auspicious event, which was entirely -attributed by the aforesaid dignitary to the intervention vouchsafed by -the patron of the Spains to all who wore his order, which thus protects -the bearer as a badge does a Thames waterman from a press-gang. - -[Sidenote: EXECUTION OF A ROBBER.] - -An account of the judicial death of one of the gang of Jose Maria, which -we witnessed, will be an appropriate conclusion to these remarks, and an -act of justice towards our fair readers for this detail of breaches of -the peace, and the bad company into which they have been introduced. -Jose de Roxas, commonly called (for they generally have some nickname) -_El Veneno_, “Poison,” from his viper-like qualities, was surprised by -some troops: he made a desperate resistance, and when brought to the -ground by a ball in his leg, killed the soldier who rushed forward to -secure him. He proposed when in prison to deliver up his comrades if -his own life were guaranteed to him. The offer was accepted, and he was -sent out with a sufficient force; and such was the terror of his name, -that they surrendered themselves, _not however to him_, and were -_pardoned_. Veneno was then tried for his previous offences, found -guilty, and condemned: he pleaded that he had indirectly accomplished -the object for which his life was promised him, but in vain; for such -trials in Spain are a mere form, to give an air of legality to a -predetermined sentence:--the authorities adhered to the killing letter -of their agreement, and - - “Kept the word of promise to the ear, - But broke it to the hope.” - -As Veneno was without friends or money, wherewith Gines Passamonte -anointed the palm of justice and got free, the sentence was of course -ordered to be carried into effect. The courts of law and the prisons of -Seville are situated near the Plaça San Francisco, which has always been -the site of public executions. On the day previous nothing indicates the -scene which will take place on the following morning; everything -connected with this ceremony of death is viewed with horror by -Spaniards, not from that abstract abhorrence of shedding blood which -among other nations induces the lower orders to detest the completer of -judicial sentences, as the smaller feathered tribes do the larger birds -of prey, but from ancient Oriental prejudices of pollution, and because -all actually employed in the operation are accounted infamous, and lose -their caste, and purity of blood. Even the gloomy scaffolding is erected -in the night by unseen, unknown hands, and rises from the earth like a -fungus work of darkness, to make the day hideous and shock the awakening -eye of Seville. When the criminal is of noble blood the platform, which -in ordinary cases is composed of mere carpenter’s work, is covered with -black baize. The operation of hanging, among so unmechanical a people, -with no improved patent invisible drop, used to be conducted in a cruel -and clumsy manner. The wretched culprits were dragged up the steps of -the ladder by the executioner, who then mounted on their shoulders and -threw himself off with his victims, and, while both swung backwards and -forwards in the air, was busied, with spider-like fingers, in fumbling -about the neck of the sufferers, until being satisfied that life was -extinct he let himself down to the ground by the bodies. Execution by -hanging was, however, graciously abolished by Ferdinand VII., the -beloved; this father of his people determined that the future death for -civil offences should be strangulation,--a mode of removing to a better -world those of his children who deserved it, which is certainly more in -accordance with the Oriental bow-string. - -[Sidenote: EXECUTION OF A ROBBER.] - -Veneno was placed, as is usual, the day before his execution, “_en -capilla_” in a chapel or cell set apart for the condemned, where the -last comforts of religion are administered. This was a small room in the -prison, and the most melancholy in that dwelling of woe, for such -indeed, as Cervantes from sad experience knew, and described a Spanish -prison to be, it still is. An iron grating formed the partition of the -corridor, which led to the chamber. This passage was crowded with -members of a charitable brotherhood, who were collecting alms from the -visitors, to be expended in masses for the eternal repose of the soul of -the criminal. There were groups of officers, and of portly Franciscan -friars smoking their cigars and looking carefully from time to time into -the amount of the contributions, which were to benefit their bodies, -quite as much as the soul of the condemned. The levity of those -assembled without formed, meantime, a heartless contrast with the gloom -and horror of the melancholy interior. A small door opened into the -cell, over which might well be inscribed the awful words of Dante-- - - “Lasciate ogni speranza, voi ch’entrate!” - -[Sidenote: EXECUTION OF A ROBBER.] - -At the head of this room was placed a table, with a crucifix, an image -of the Virgin, and two wax tapers, near which stood a silent sentinel -with a drawn sword; another soldier was stationed at the door, with a -fixed bayonet. In a corner of this darkened apartment was the pallet of -Veneno; he was lying curled up like a snake, with a striped coverlet -(the Spanish _manta_) drawn closely over his mouth, leaving visible only -a head of matted locks, a glistening dark eye, rolling restlessly out of -the white socket. On being approached he sprung up and seated himself on -a stool: he was almost naked; a chaplet of beads hung across his exposed -breast, and contrasted with the iron chains around his limbs:--Superstition -had riveted her fetters at his birth, and the Law her manacles at his -death. The expression of his face, though low and vulgar, was one which -once seen is not easily forgotten,--a slouching look of more than -ordinary guilt: his sallow complexion appeared more cadaverous in the -uncertain light, and was heightened by a black, unshorn beard, growing -vigorously on a half-dead countenance. He appeared to be reconciled to -his fate, and repeated a few sentences, the teaching of the monks, as by -rote: his situation was probably more painful to the spectator than to -himself--an indifference to death, arising rather from an ignorance of -its dreadful import, than from high moral courage: he was the Bernardine -of Shakspere, “a man that apprehends death no more dreadfully than a -drunken sleep, careless, reckless, and fearless of what’s past, present, -and to come, insensible of mortality, and desperately mortal.” - -[Sidenote: EXECUTION OF A ROBBER.] - -Next morning the triple tiers of the old balconies, roofs, and whole -area of the Moorish and most picturesque square were crowded by the -lower orders; the men wrapped up in their cloaks--(it was a December -morning)--the women in their mantillas, many with young children in -their arms, brought in the beginning of life to witness its conclusion. -The better classes not only absent themselves from these executions, but -avoid any allusion to the subject as derogatory to European -civilization; the humbler ranks, who hold the conventions of society -very cheap, give loose to their morbid curiosity to behold scenes of -terror, which operates powerfully on the women, who seem impelled -irresistibly to witness sights the most repugnant to their nature, and -to behold sufferings which they would most dread to undergo; they, like -children, are the great lovers of the horrible, whether in a tale or in -dreadful reality; to the men it was as a tragedy, where the last scene -is death--death which rivets the attention of all, who sooner or later -must enact the same sad part.[10] They desire to see how the criminal -will conduct himself; they sympathise with him if he displays coolness -and courage, and despise him on the least symptom of unmanliness. An -open square was then formed about the scaffold by lines of soldiers -drawn up, into which the officers and clergy were admitted. As the -fatal hour drew nigh, the increasing impatience of the multitude began -to vent itself in complaints of how slowly the time passed--that time of -no value to them, but of such precious import to him, whose very moments -were numbered. - -[Sidenote: EXECUTION OF A ROBBER.] - -When at length the cathedral clock tolled out the fatal hour, a -universal stir of tiptoe expectation took place, a pushing forward to -get the best situations. Still ten minutes had to elapse, for the clock -of the tribunal is purposely set so much later than that of the -cathedral, in order to afford the utmost possible chance of a reprieve. -When that clock too had rung out its knell, all eyes were turned to the -prison-door, from whence the miserable man came forth, attended by some -Franciscans. He had chosen that order to assist at his dying moments, a -privilege always left to the criminal. He was clad in a coarse yellow -baize gown, the colour which denotes the crime of murder, and is -appropriated always to Judas Iscariot in Spanish paintings. He walked -slowly on his last journey, half supported by those around him, and -stopping often, ostensibly to kiss the crucifix held before him by a -friar, but rather to prolong existence--sweet life!--even yet a moment. -When he arrived reluctantly at the scaffold, he knelt down on the steps, -the threshold of death;--the reverend attendants covered him over with -their blue robes--his dying confession was listened to unseen. He then -mounted the platform attended by a single friar; addressed the crowd in -broken sentences, with a gasping breath--told them that he died -repentant, that he was justly punished, and that he forgave his -executioner. “Mi delito me mata, y no _ese hombre_,”--my offence puts me -to death, and not _this fellow_; as “Ese hombre” is a contemptuous -expression, and implies insult, the ruling feeling of the Spaniard was -displayed in death against the degraded functionary. The criminal then -exclaimed, “_Viva la fé! viva la religion! viva el rey! viva el nombre -de Jesus!_” All of which met no echo from those who heard him. His dying -cry was “_Viva la Virgen Santisima!_” at these words the devotion to the -goddess of Spain burst forth in one general acclamation, “_Viva la -Santisima!_” So strong is their feeling towards the Virgin, and so -lukewarm their comparative indifference towards their king, their faith, -and their Saviour! Meanwhile the executioner, a young man dressed in -black, was busied in the preparations for death. The fatal instrument -is simple: the culprit is placed on a rude seat; his back leans against -a strong upright post, to which an iron collar is attached, enclosing -his neck, and so contrived as to be drawn home to the post by turning a -powerful screw. The executioner bound so tightly the naked legs and arms -of Veneno, that they swelled and became black--a precaution not unwise, -as the father of this functionary had been killed in the act of -executing a struggling criminal. The priest who attended Veneno was a -bloated, corpulent man, more occupied in shading the sun from his own -face, than in his ghostly office; the robber sat with a writhing look of -agony, grinding his clenched teeth. When all was ready, the executioner -took the lever of the screw in both hands, gathered himself up for a -strong muscular effort, and, at the moment of a preconcerted signal, -drew the iron collar tight, while an attendant flung a black -handkerchief over the face--a convulsive pressure of the hands and a -heaving of the chest were the only visible signs of the passing of the -robber’s spirit. After a pause of a few moments, the executioner -cautiously peeped under the handkerchief, and after having given another -turn to the screw, lifted it off, folded it up, carefully put it into -his pocket, and then proceeded to light a cigar - - ------ “with that air of satisfaction - Which good men wear who’ve done a virtuous action.” - -[Sidenote: EXECUTION OF A ROBBER.] - -The face of the dead man was slightly convulsed, the mouth open, the -eye-balls turned into their sockets from the wrench. A black bier, with -two lanterns fixed on staves, and a crucifix, was now set down before -the scaffold--also a small table and a dish, into which alms were again -collected, to be paid to the priests who sang masses for his soul. The -mob having discussed his crimes, abused the authorities and judges, and -criticised the manner of the new executioner (it was his maiden effort), -began slowly to disperse, to the great content of the neighbouring -silversmiths, who ventured to open their closed shutters, having -hitherto placed more confidence in bolts and bars, than in the moral -example presented to the spectators. The body remained on the scaffold -till the afternoon; it was then thrown into a scavenger’s cart, and led -by the “_pregonero_,” the common crier, beyond the jurisdiction of the -city, to a square platform called “_La mesa del Rey_,” the king’s table, -where the bodies of the executed are quartered and cut up--“a pretty -dish to set before a king.” Here the carcase was hewed and hacked into -pieces by the bungling executioner and his attendants, with that -inimitable defiance of anatomy for which they and Spanish surgeons are -equally renowned-- - - “Le gambe di lui gettaron in una fossa; - Il Diavol ebbe l’alma, i lupi l’ossa.” - - “The legs of the robber were thrown in a hole, - The wolves got his bones, the devil his soul.” - -[Sidenote: THE SPANISH DOCTOR.] - - - - -CHAPTER XVII. - - The Spanish Doctor: his Social Position--Medical - Abuses--Hospitals--Medical Education--Lunatic Asylums--Foundling - Hospital of Seville--Medical Pretensions--Dissection--Family - Physician--Consultations--Medical - Costume--Prescriptions--Druggists--Snake Broth--Salve for - Knife-cuts. - - -The transition from the Spanish _ventero_ to the _ladron_ was easy, nor -is that from the robbers to the doctors of Spain difficult; the former -at least offer a polite alternative, they demand “your money or your -life,” while the latter in most cases take both; yet these able -practitioners, from being less picturesque in costume, and more -undramatic in operations, do not enjoy so brilliant a European -reputation as the bandits. Again, while our critical monitors cry -thieves on every road of the Peninsula, no friendly warning is given -against the _Sangrado_, whose aspect is more deadly than the _coup de -soleil_ of a Castilian sun: woe waits the wayfarer who falls into his -hands; the patient cannot be too quick in ordering the measure to be -taken of his coffin, or, as Spaniards say, of his tombstone, which last -article is shadowed out by the first feeling of the invalid’s -pulse--_tomar el pulso, es prognosticar al enfermo la loza_. It was -probably from a knowledge of this contingent remainder, that Monsieur -Orfila went, or was sent, from Paris to Madrid, about the time of the -Montpensier marriage with the _Infanta_, in the hopes of rescuing her -elder and reigning sister, the “innocent” Isabel, from the fatal native -lancets--a well-meant interference of the foreigner, by the way, which -the Spanish faculty resented and rejected to a man; nor were the guarded -suggestions of this eminent _toxicologiste_, or investigator of poisons, -with regard to the administration of medicines and dispensaries, -received so thankfully as they deserved. - -[Sidenote: THE SPANISH DOCTOR.] - -However magnificently endowed in former times were the hospitals and -almshouses of Spain, the provision now made for poor and ailing -humanity is very inadequate. The revenues were first embezzled by the -managers, and since have almost been swept away. Trustees for pious and -charitable uses are defenceless against armed avarice and appropriation -in office; and being _corporate_ bodies, they want the sacredness of -_private_ interests, which every one is anxious to defend. Hence the -greedy minion Godoy began the spoliation, by seizing the funds, and -giving in lieu government securities, which of course turned out to be -worthless. Then ensued the French invasion, and the confiscation of -military despots. Civil war has done the rest; and now that the convents -are suppressed, the deficiency is more evident, for in the remoter -country districts the monks bestowed relief to the poor, and provided -medicines for the sick. With few exceptions, the hospitals, the _Casas -de Misericordia_, or houses for the destitute, are far from being well -conducted in Spain, while those destined for lunatics, and for exposed -children, notwithstanding recent improvements, do little credit to -science and humanity. - -[Sidenote: HIS SOCIAL POSITION.] - -The base, brutal, and bloody _Sangrados_ of Spain have long been the -butts of foreign and domestic novelists, who spoke many a true word in -their jests. The common expression of the people in regard to the busy -mortality of their patients, is, that they die like bugs, _mueren como -chinches_. This recklessness of life, this inattention to human -suffering, and backwardness in curative science, is very Oriental; for, -however science may have set westward from the East, the arts of -medicine and surgery have not. There, as in Spain, they have long been -subordinate, and the professors held to be of a low caste--a fatal bar -in the Peninsula, where the point of personal honour is so nice, and men -will die rather than submit to conventional degradations. The surgeon of -the Spanish Moors was frequently a despised and detested Jew, which -would create a traditionary loathing of the calling. The physician was -of somewhat a higher caste; but he, like the botanist and chemist, was -rather to be met with among the Infidels than the Christians. Thus -Sancho the Fat was obliged to go in person to Cordova in search of good -advice. And still in Spain, as in the East, all whose profession is to -put living creatures to death, are socially almost excommunicated; the -butcher, bullfighter, and public executioner for example. Here the -soldier who sabres, takes the highest rank, and he who cures, the -lowest; here the M.D.’s, whom the infallible Pope consults and the -autocrat king obeys, are admitted only into the _sick_ rooms of good -company, which, when in rude health, shuts on them the door of their -saloons; but the excluded take their revenge on those who morally cut -them, and all Spaniards are very dangerous with the knife, and more -particularly if surgeons. Madrid is indeed the court of death, and the -necrology of the Escorial furnishes the surest evidence of this fact in -the premature decease of royalty, which may be expected to have the best -advice and aid, both medical and theologico-therapeutical, that the -capital can afford; but brief is the royal span, especially in the case -of females and _infantes_, and the _result_ is undeniable in these -statistics of death; the cause lies between the climate and the doctor, -who, as they aid the other, may fairly be left to settle the question of -relative excellence between each other. - -[Sidenote: THE SPANISH DOCTOR.] - -The Spanish medical man is shunned, not only from ancient prejudices, -and because he is dangerous like a rattle-snake, but from jealousies -that churchmen entertain against a rival profession, which, if well -received, might come in for some share of the legacies and -power-conferring secrets, which are obtained easily at deathbeds, when -mind and body are deprived of strength. Again, a Spanish surgeon and a -Spanish confessor take different views of a patient; one only wishes, or -ought to wish, to preserve him in this world, the other in the -next,--neither probably in their hearts having much opinion of the -remedies adopted by each other: the spiritual practice changes not, for -novelty itself, a heresy in religion, is not favourably beheld in -anything else. Thus the universities, governed by ecclesiastics, -persuaded the poor bigot Philip III. to pass a law prohibiting the study -of any _new_ system of medicine, and _requiring_ Galen, Hippocrates, and -Avicenna. Dons and men for whom the sun still continued to stand still, -scouted the exact sciences and experimental philosophy as dangerous -innovations, which, they said, made every medical man a Tiberius, who, -because he was fond of mathematics where strict demonstration is -necessary, was rather negligent in his religious respect for the gods -and goddesses of the Pantheon; and so, in 1830, they scared the timid -Ferdinand VII. (whose resemblance to Tiberius had nothing to do with -Euclid) by telling him that the schools of medicine created -materialists, heretics, citizen-kings, chartists, barricadoers, and -revolutionists. Thereupon the beloved monarch shut up the lecture rooms -forthwith, opening, it is true, by way of compensation, a tauromachian -university;--men indeed might be mangled, but bulls were to be -mercifully put out of their misery, secundum artem, and with the honours -of science. - -[Sidenote: MEDICAL PRACTICE.] - -This low social position is very classical: the physicians of Rome, -chiefly _liberti_, freed slaves, were only made citizens by Cæsar, who -wished to _conciliate_ these ministers of the fatal sisters when the -capital was wanting in population after extreme emigrations--an act of -favour which may cut two ways; thus Adrian VI. (tutor to the Spanish -Charles V.) approved of there being 500 medical practitioners in the -Eternal City, because otherwise “the _multitude_ of living beings would -eat each other up.” However, when his turn came to be diminished, the -grateful people serenaded his surgeon, as the “deliverer of the -country.” In our days, there was only one medical man admitted by the -Seville _sangre su_, the best or noblest set (whose blood is held to be -blue, of which more anon) when in rude and antiphlebotomical health; and -every stranger was informed apologetically by the exclusive Amphitryons -that the M.D. was _de casa conocida_, or born of a good family; thus his -social introduction was owing to personal, not professional -qualifications. And while adventurers of every kind are betitled, the -most prodigal dispenser of Spanish honours never dreams of making his -doctor even a _titulado_, a rank somewhat higher than a pair de France, -and lower than a medical baronetage in England. This aristocratical ban -has confined doctors much to each other’s society, which, as they never -take each other’s physic, is neither unpleasant nor dangerous. At -Seville the medical _tertulia_, club or meeting, was appropriately held -at the apothecary’s shop of _Campelos_, and a sable _junta_ or -consultation it was, of birds of bad omen, who croaked over the general -health with which the city was afflicted, praying, like Sangrado in ‘Gil -Blas,’ that by the blessing of Providence much sickness might speedily -ensue. The crowded or deserted state of this rookery was the surest -evidence of the hygeian condition of the fair capital of Bætica, and one -which, when we lived there, we have often anxiously inspected; for, -whatever be the pleasantries of those in insolent health, when sickness -brings in the doctor, all joking is at an end; then he is made much of -even in Spain, from a choice of evils, and for fear of the confessor and -undertaker. - -The poor in no countries have much predilection for the hospital; and in -Spain, in addition to pride, which everywhere keeps many silly sick out -of admirably-conducted asylums, here a well-grounded fear deters the -patient, who prefers to die a _natural_ death. Again, from their being -poor, the necessity of their living at all, is less evident to the -managers than to the sufferers; as, say the Malthusians, there is no -place vacant at Nature’s _table d’hôte_ to those who cannot pay, so bed -and board are not pressed on Spanish applicants, by the hospital -committee; an admitted patient’s death saves trouble and expense, -neither of which are popular in a land where cash is scarce, and a love -for hard work not prevalent, where a sound man is worth little, and a -sick one still less; nor is every doctor always popular for working -cures, as could be exemplified in sundry cases of Spanish wives and -heirs in general; therefore in the hospitals of the Peninsula, if only -half die, it is thought great luck: the dead, moreover, tell no tales, -and the living sing praises for their miraculous escape. _El medico -lleva la plata, pero Dios es que sana!_--God works the cure, the doctor -sacks the fee! Meanwhile the sextons are busy and merry, as those in -Hamlet, and as indeed all gravediggers are, when they have a job on hand -that will be paid for; deeply do they dig into the silent earth, that -bourn from whence no travellers return to blab. They sing and jest, -while dust is heaped on dust, and the _corpus delicti_ covered, and with -it the blunders of the _medico_; thus all parties, the deceased -excepted, are well satisfied; the man with the lancet is content that -disagreeable evidence should be put out of sight, the fellow-labourer -with the spade is thankful that constant means of living should be -afforded to him; and when the funeral is over, both carry out the -proverbial practice of Peninsular survivors: _Los muertos en la huesa, y -los vivos á la mesa_, the dead in their grave, the quick to their -dinner. - -[Sidenote: MEDICAL ABUSES.] - -But at no period were Spaniards careful even of their own lives, and -much less of those of others, being a people of untender bowels. -Familiarity with pain blunts much of the finer feelings of persons -employed even in our hospitals, for those who live by the dead have only -an undertaker’s sympathy for the living, and are as dull to the poetry -of innocent health, as Mr. Giblet is to a sportive house-fed lamb. -Matters are not improved in Spain, where the wounds, blood, and -slaughterings of the pastime bull-fight, the _mueran_ or death -mob-cries, and _pasele por las armas_, the shoot him on the spot, the -Draco and Durango decrees, and practices of all in power, educate all -sexes to indifference to blood; thus the fatal knife-stab or surgeon’s -cut are viewed as _cosas de España_ and things of course. The philosophy -of the general indifference to life in Spain, which almost amounts to -Oriental fatalism, in the number of executions and general resignation -to bloodshed, arises partly from life among the many being at best but a -struggle for existence; thus in setting it in the cast, the player only -stakes coppers, and when one is removed, there is somewhat less -difficulty for survivors; hence every one is for himself and for to-day; -après moi le déluge, _el ultimo mono se ahoga_, the last monkey is -drowned, or as we say, the devil takes the hindmost. - -[Sidenote: MEDICAL ABUSES.] - -The neglect of well-supported, well-regulated hospitals, has recoiled on -the Spaniards. The rising profession are deprived of the advantages of -_walking_ them, and thus beholding every nice difficulty solved by -experienced masters. Recently some efforts have been made in large -towns, especially on the coasts, to introduce reforms and foreign -ameliorations; but official jobbing and ignorant routine are still among -the diseases that are _not_ cured in Spain. In 1811, when the English -army was at Cadiz, a physician, named Villarino, urged by some of our -indignant surgeons, brought the disgraceful condition of Spanish -hospitals before the Cortes. A commission was appointed, and their sad -report, still extant, details how the funds, food, wine, &c., destined -for the patients were consumed by the managers and their subalterns. The -results were such as might be expected; the authorities held together, -and persecuted Villarino as a _revolucionario_, or reformer, and -succeeded in disgracing him. The superintendent of this establishment -was the notorious Lozano de Torres, who starved the English army after -Talavera, and was “a thief and a liar,” in the words of the Duke. The -Regency, after this very exposure of his hospital, promoted him to the -civil government of Old Castile; and Ferdinand VII., in 1817, made him -Minister of Justice. - -As buildings, the hospitals are generally very large; but the space is -as thinly tenanted as the unpeopled wastes of Spain. In England wards -are wanting for patients--in Spain, patients for wards. The names of -some of the greatest hospitals are happily chosen; that of Seville, for -instance, is called _La Sangre_, the blood, or _Las Cinco Llagas_, the -five bleeding wounds of our Saviour, which are sculptured over the -portal like bunches of grapes. Blood is an ominous name for this house -and home of _Sangrado_, where the lancet, like the Spanish knife, gives -no quarter. In instruments of life and death, this establishment -resembled a Spanish arsenal, being wanting in everything at the critical -moment; its dispensary, as in the shop of Shakspere’s apothecary, -presented a beggarly account of empty pill-boxes, while as to a visiting -Brodie, the part of that Hamlet was left out. The grand hospital at -Madrid is called _el general_, the General, and the medical assistance -is akin to the military co-operation of such Spanish generals as Lapeña -and Venegas, who in the moment of need left Graham at Barrosa, and the -Duke at Talavera, without a shadow of aid. There is nothing new in this, -if the old proverb tells truth, _socorros de España, o tarde o nunca_; -Spanish succours arrive late or never. In cases of battle, war, and -sudden death as in peace, the professional men, military or medical, are -apt to assist in the meaning of the French word _assister_, which -signifies to be present without taking any part in what is going on. And -this applies, where knocks on the head are concerned, not to the medical -men only, but to the universal Spanish nation; when any one is stabbed -in the streets, he will infallibly bleed to death, unless the -authorities arrive in time to pick him up, and to bind up his wounds: -every one else--Englishmen excepted, we describe things -witnessed--passes on the other side; not from any fear at the sight of -blood, nor abhorrence of murder, but from the dread which every Spaniard -feels at the very idea of getting entangled in the meshes of _La -Justicia_, whose ministers lay hold of all who interfere or are near the -body as principals or witnesses, and Spanish justice, if once it gets a -man into its fangs, never lets him go until drained of his last -farthing. - -[Sidenote: COLLEGE OF SAN CARLOS.] - -The schools and hospitals, especially in the inland remote cities, are -very deficient in all improved mechanical appliances and modern -discoveries, and the few which are to be met with are mostly of French -and second-rate manufacture. It is much the same with their medical -treatises and technical works; all is a copy, and a bad one; it has been -found to be much easier to translate and borrow, than to invent; -therefore, as in modern art and literature, there is little originality -in Spanish medicine. It is chiefly a veneering of other men’s ideas, or -an adaptation of ancient and Moorish science. Most of their terms of -medicinal art, as well as of drugs, _jalea_, _elixir_, _jarave_, _rob_, -_sorbete_, _julepe_, &c., are purely Arabic, and indicate the sources -from whence the knowledge was obtained, for there is no surer historical -test than language of the origin from whence the knowledge of the -science was derived with its phraseology; and whenever Spaniards depart -from the daring ways of their ancestors, it is to adopt a timid French -system. The few additions to their medical libraries are translations -from their neighbours, just as the scanty materia medica in their -apothecaries’ shops is rendered more dangerous and ineffective by quack -nostrums from Paris. It is a serious misfortune to sanative science in -the Peninsula, that all that is known of the works of thoughtful, -careful Germany, of practical, decided England, is passed through the -unfair, inaccurate alembic of French translation; thus the original -becomes doubly deteriorated, and the sacred cosmopolitan cause of truth -and fact is too often sacrificed to the Gallic mania of suppressing -both, for the honour of their own country. Can it be wondered, -therefore, that the acquaintance of the Spanish faculty with modern -works, inventions, and operations is very limited, or that their -text-books and authorities should too often be still Galen, Celsus, -Hippocrates, and Boerhaave? The names of Hunter, Harvey, and Astley -Cooper, are scarcely more known among their M.D.’s than the last -discoveries of Herschel; the light of such distant planets has not had -time to arrive. - -[Sidenote: LUNATIC ASYLUMS.] - -To this day the _Colegio de San Carlos_, or the College of Surgeons at -Madrid, relies much on teaching the obstetric art by means of wax -preparations; but learning a trade on paper is not confined in Spain to -medical students; the great naval school at Seville is dedicated to San -Telmo, who, uniting in himself the attributes of the ancient Castor and -Pollux, appears in storms at the mast-head in the form of lights to -rescue seamen. Hence, whenever it comes on to blow, the pious crews of -Spanish crafts fall on their knees, and depend on this marine Hercules, -instead of taking in sail, and putting the helm up. Our tars, who love -the sea _propter se_, for better for worse, having no San Telmo to help -them in foul weather (although the somewhat irreverent gunner of the -Victory did call him of Trafalgar Saint Nelson), go to work and perform -the miracle themselves--_aide toi, et le ciel t’aidera_. In our time, -the middies in this college were taught navigation in a room, from a -small model of a three-decker placed on a large table; and thus at least -they were not exposed to sea-sickness. The Infant Antonio, Lord High -Admiral of Spain, was walking in the Retiro gardens near the pond, when -it was proposed to cross in a boat; he declined, saying, “Since I sailed -from Naples to Spain I have never ventured on water.” But, in this and -some other matters, things are managed differently on the Thames and the -Bætis. Thus, near Greenwich Hospital, a floating frigate, large as life, -is the school of young chips of old blocks, who every day behold in the -veterans of Cape St. Vincent and Trafalgar living examples of having -“done their duty.” The evidence of former victories thus becomes a -guarantee for the realization of their young hopes, and the future is -assured by the past. - -[Sidenote: LUNATIC ASYLUMS.] - -Next to the barracks, prisons, arsenals, and fortresses of Spain, the -establishments for suffering mortality are the least worth seeing, and -are the most to be avoided by wise travellers, who can indulge in much -better specimens at home. This assertion will be better understood by a -sketch or two taken on the spot a few years ago. The so-called asylums -for lunatics are termed in Spanish hospitales de _locos_, a word derived -from the Arabic, _locao_, mad; they, like the cognate Morostans (μωρος) -of Cairo, were generally so mismanaged, that the directors appeared to -be only desirous of obtaining admission themselves. Insanity seemed to -derange both the intellects of the patients and to harden the bowels of -their attendants, while the usual misappropriation of the scanty funds -produced a truly reckless, makeshift, wretched result. There was no -attempt at _classification_, which indeed is no thing of Spain. The -inmates were crowded together,--the monomaniac, the insane, the raving -mad,--in one confusion of dirt and misery, where they howled at each -other, chained like wild beasts, and were treated even worse than -criminals, for the passions of the most outrageous were infuriated by -the savage lash. There was not even a curtain to conceal the sad -necessities of these human beings, then reduced to animals: everything -was public even unto death, whose last groan was mingled with the -frantic laugh of the surviving spectators. In some rare cases the bodies -of those whose minds are a void, were confined in solitary cells, with -no other companions save affliction. Of these, many, when first sent -there by friends and relations to be put out of the way, were _not_ mad, -soon indeed to become so, as solitude, sorrow, and the iron entered -their brain. These establishments, which the natives ought to hide in -shame, were usually among the first lions which they forced on the -stranger, and especially on the Englishman, since, holding our worthy -countrymen to be all _locos_, they naturally imagined that they would be -quite at home among the inmates. - -They, in common with many others on the Continent, entertain a notion -that all Britons bold have a bee in their bonnet; they think so on many, -and perhaps not always unreasonable, grounds. They see them preferring -English ways, sayings, and doings, to their own, which of itself appears -to a Spaniard, as to a Frenchman, to be downright insanity. Then our -countrymen tell the truth in bulletins, use towels, and remove -superfluous hairs daily. And letting alone other minor exhibitions of -eccentricity, are not the natives of England, Scotland, and Ireland -guilty of three actions, any one of which would qualify for Bedlam if -the Lord Chancellor were to issue a writ _de lunatico inquiriendo_?--have -they not bled for Spain, in purse and person, on the battlefield, on the -railroad, in the Stock Exchange?-- - - “Oh tribus Antyceris caput insanabile!” - -[Sidenote: FOUNDLING HOSPITALS.] - -To return, however, to Spanish madmen and their hospitals, the sight was -a sad one, and alike disgraceful to the sane, and degrading to the -insane native. The wild maniacs implored a “loan” from the foreigner, -for from their own countrymen they had received a stone. A sort of -madness is indeed seldom wanting to the frantic energy and intense -eagerness of all Spanish mendicants; and here, albeit the reasoning -faculties were gone, the national propensity to beg and borrow survived -the wreck of intellect, and in fact it was and is the indestructible -“common sense” of the country. - -There was generally some particular patient whose aggravated misery made -him or her the especial object of cruel curiosity. Thus, at Toledo, in -1843, the _keepers_ (fit wild beast term) always conducted strangers to -the cage or den of the wife of a celebrated Captain-General and -first-rate fusilier of Catalonia, an officer superior in power to our -Lord-Lieutenant of Ireland. She was permitted to wallow in naked filth, -and be made a public show. The Moors, at least, do not confine their -harmless female maniacs, who wander naked through the streets, while the -men are honoured as saints, whose minds are supposed to be wandering in -heaven. The old Iberian doctors, according to Pliny, professed to cure -madness with the herb _vettonica_, and hydrophobia with decoction of the -_cynorrhodon_ or dog-rose-water, as being doubly unpalateable to the -rabid canine species. The modern Spaniards seemed only to desire, by -ignorance and ill-usage, to darken any lucid interval into one raving -uniformity. - -The foundling hospitals were, when we last examined them, scarcely -better managed than the lunatic asylums; they are called _casas de -espositos_, houses of the exposed--or _la Cuna_, the cradle, as if they -were the cradle, not the coffin, of miserable infants. Most large cities -in Spain have one of these receptacles; the principal being in the -Levitical towns, and the natural fruit of a rich celibate clergy, both -regular and secular. The _Cuna_ in our time might have been defined as a -place where innocents were massacred, and natural children deserted by -their unnatural parents were provided for by being slowly starved. These -hospitals were first founded at Milan in 787, by a priest named Datheus. -That of Seville, which we will describe, was established by the clergy -of the cathedral, and was managed by twelve directors, six lay and six -clerical; few, however, attended or contributed save in subjects. The -hospital is situate in the _Calle de la Cuna_; near an aperture left for -charitable donations, is a marble tablet with this verse from the -Psalms, inscribed in Latin, “When my father and mother forsake me, then -the Lord will take me in.” - -[Sidenote: FOUNDLING HOSPITAL AT SEVILLE.] - -A wicket door is pierced in the wall, which opens on being tapped to -admit the sinless children of sin; and a nurse sits up at night to -receive those exposed by parents who hide their guilt in darkness. - - “Toi que l’amour fit par un crime, - Et que l’amour défait par un crime à son tour, - Funeste ouvrage de l’amour, - De l’amour funeste victime.” - -Some of the babies are already dying, and are put in here in order to -avoid the expense of a funeral; others are almost naked, while a few are -well supplied with linen and necessaries. These latter are the offspring -of the better classes, by whom a temporary concealment is desired. With -such the most affecting letters are left, praying the nurses to take -more than usual care of a child which will surely be one day reclaimed, -and a mark or ornament is usually fastened to the infant, in order that -it may be identified hereafter, if called for, and such were the precise -customs in antiquity. Every particular regarding every exposed babe is -registered in a book, which is a sad record of human crime and remorse. - -Those children which are afterwards reclaimed, pay about sixpence for -every day during which the hospital has maintained them; but little -attention is paid to the appeals for particular care, or to the promise -of redemption, for Spaniards seldom trust each other. Unless some name -is sent with it, the child is baptized with one given by the matron, and -it usually is that of the saint of the day of its admission. The number -was very great, and increased with increasing poverty, while the funds -destined to support the charges decreased from the same cause. There is -a certain and great influx nine months after the Holy week and -Christmas, when the whole city, male and female, pass the night in -kneeling to relics and images, &c.; accordingly nine months afterwards, -in January and November, the daily numbers often exceed the usual -average by fifteen to twenty. - -[Sidenote: FOUNDLING HOSPITAL AT SEVILLE.] - -There is always a supply of wet nurses at the _Cuna_, but they are -generally such as from bad character cannot obtain situations in private -families; the usual allotment was three children to one nurse. -Sometimes, when a respectable woman is looking out for a place as -wet-nurse, and is anxious not to lose her breast of milk, she goes, in -the meanwhile, to the _Cuna_, when the poor child who draws it off -plumps up a little, and then, when the supply is withdrawn, withers and -dies. The appointed nurses dole out their milk, not according to the -wants of the infants, but to make it do for their number. Some few are -farmed out to poor mothers who have lost their own babe; they receive -about eight shillings a month, and these are the children which have the -best chance of surviving, for no woman who has been a mother, and has -given suck, will willingly, when left alone, let an infant die. The -nurses of the _Cuna_ were familiar with starvation, and even if their -milk of human kindness were not dried up or soured, they have not the -means of satisfying their hungry number. The proportion who died was -frightful; it was indeed an organized system of infanticide. Death is a -mercy to the child, and a saving to the establishment; a grown-up man’s -life never was worth much in Spain, much less that of a deserted baby. -The exposure of children to immediate death by the Greeks and Romans, -was a trifle less cruel than the protracted dying in these Spanish -charnel-houses. This _Cuna_, when last we visited it, was managed by an -inferior priest, who, a true Spanish unjust steward, misapplied the -funds. He became rich, like Gil Blas’s overseer at Valladolid, by taking -care of the property of the poor and fatherless; his well-garnished -quarters and portly self were in strange contrast with the condition of -his wasted charges. Of these, the sick and dying were separated from the -healthy; the former were placed in a large room, once the saloon of -state, whose gilded roof and fair proportions mocked the present misery. -The infants were laid in rows on dirty mattresses along on the floor, -and were left unheeded and unattended. Their large heads, shrivelled -necks, hollow eyes, and wax wan figures, were shadowed with coming -death. Called into existence by no wish or fault of their own, their -brief span was run out ere begun, while their mother was far away -exclaiming, “When I have sufficiently wept for his birth, I will weep -for his death.” - -[Sidenote: FOUNDLING HOSPITAL AT SEVILLE.] - -Those who were more healthy lay paired in cradles arranged along a vast -room; but famine was in their cheeks, need starved in their eyes, and -their shrill cry pained the ear on passing the threshold; from their -being underfed, they were restless and ever moaning. Their existence has -indeed begun with a sob, with _El primer sollozo de la Cuna_, the first -sigh of the cradle, as Rioja says, but all cry when entering the world, -while many leave it with smiles. Some, the newly exposed, just parted -from their mother’s breast, having sucked their last farewell, looked -plump and rosy; they slept soundly, blind to the future, and happily -unconscious of their fate. - -About one in twelve survived to idle about the hospital, ill clad, ill -fed, and worse taught. The boys were destined for the army, the girls -for domestic service, nay, for worse, if public report did not wrong -their guardian priest. They grew up to be selfish and unaffectionate; -having never known what kindness was, their young hearts closed ere they -opened; “the world was not their friend, nor the world’s law.” It was on -their heads that the barber learned to shave, and on them were visited -the sins of their parents; having had none to care for them, none to -love, they revenged themselves by hating mankind. Their occupation -consisted in speculating on who their parents may be, and whether they -should some day be reclaimed and become rich. A few occasionally are -adopted by benevolent and childless persons, who, visiting the _Cuna_, -take a fancy to an interesting infant; but the child is liable ever -after to be given up to its parents, should they reclaim it. Townshend -mentions an Oriental custom at Barcelona, where the girls when -marriageable were paraded in procession through the streets, and any -desirous of taking a wife was at liberty to select his object by -“throwing his handkerchief.” This Spanish custom still prevails at -Naples. - -Such was the _Cuna_ of Seville when we last beheld it. It is now, as we -have recently heard with much pleasure, admirably conducted, having been -taken in charge by some benevolent ladies, who here as elsewhere are the -best nurses and guardians of man in his first or second infancy, not to -say of every intermediate stage. - -[Sidenote: MEDICAL PRETENSIONS.] - -Our readers will concur in deeming that wight unfortunate who falls ill -in Spain, as, whatever be his original complaint, it is too often -followed by secondary and worse symptoms, in the shape of the native -doctor; and if the judgment passed by Spaniards on that member of -society be true, Esculapius cannot save the invalid from the crows; the -faculty even at Madrid are little in advance of their provincial -colleagues, nay, often they are more destructive, since, being -practitioners in the only court, the heaven on earth, they are in -proportion superior to the medical men of the rest of the world, of whom -of course they can learn nothing. They are, however, at least a century -behind their brother professors of England. An unreasonable idea of -self-excellence arises both in nations and in individuals, from having -no knowledge of the relative merits of others, and from having few -grounds or materials whereon to raise comparison; it exists therefore -the strongest among the most uninformed and those who mix the least in -the world. Thus in spite of manifold deficiencies, some of which will be -detailed, the self-esteem of these medical men exceeds, if possible, -that of the military; both have killed their “ten thousands.” They hold -themselves to be the first _sabreurs_, physicians, and surgeons on -earth, and the best qualified to wield the shears of the Parcæ. It would -be a waste of time to try to dispel this fatal delusion; the -well-intentioned monitor would simply be set down as malevolent, -envious, and an ass; for they think their ignorance the perfection of -human skill. Few foreigners can ever hope to succeed among them, nor can -any native who may have studied abroad, easily introduce a better -system: his elder brethren would make common cause against him as an -innovator; he would be summoned to no consultations, the most lucrative -branch of practice, while the confessors would poison the ears of the -women (who govern the men) with cautions against the danger to their -souls, of having their bodies cured by a Jew, a heretic, or a foreigner, -for the terms are almost convertible. - -[Sidenote: MEDICAL EDUCATION.] - -Meanwhile, as in courts of justice and other matters in Spain, all -sounds admirably on _paper_--the forms, regulations, and system are -perfect in theory. Colleges of physicians and surgeons superintend the -science, the professors are members of infinite learned societies, -lectures are delivered, examinations are conducted, and certificates -duly signed and sealed, are given. The young _Galenista_ is furnished -with a licence to kill, but what is wanting from beginning to end, to -practitioner and patient, is _life_. The medical men know, nevertheless, -every aphorism of the ancients by rote, and _discourse_ as eloquently -and plausibly on any case as do their ministers in Cortes. Both write -capital theories and opinions extemporaneously. Their splendid language -supplies words which seem to have cost thought. What is deficient is -that clinical and best of education where the case is brought before the -student with the corollary of skilful treatment: _accidental_ deaths are -consequently more common than cures. - -Dissection again is even now repulsive to their Oriental prejudices; the -pupils learn rather by plates, diagrams, models, preparations, and -skeletons, than from anatomical experiments on a subject. As among the -ancients and in the East to this day an idea is prevalent among the -masses in Spain, that the touch of a dead body pollutes; nor is the -objection raised by the clergy, that it savours of impiety to mutilate a -form made in the image of God, yet exploded. It will be remembered by -our medical readers, if we have any, that Vezalius, the father of modern -anatomy, when at Madrid was demanded by the Inquisition from Philip II., -to be burnt for having performed an operation. The king sent him to -expiate his sin by a pilgrimage to the Holy Land; he was shipwrecked, -and died of starvation at Zante. - -Can it be wondered at, with such a theoretical education, that practice -should continue to be antiquated, classical, and Oriental, and -necessarily very limited? In difficult cases of compound fracture, -gun-shot wounds, the doctors give the patient up almost at once, -although they continue to meet and take fees, until death relieves him -of his complicated sufferings. In chronic cases and slighter fractures -they are less dangerous; for as their pottering remedies do neither good -nor harm, the struggle for life and death is left to nature, who -sometimes works the cure. In acute diseases and inflammations they -seldom succeed; for however fond of the lancet, they only nibble with -the case, and are scared at the bold decided practice of Englishmen, -whereat they shrug up shoulders, invoke saints, and descant learnedly on -the impossibility of treating complaints under the bright sun and warm -air of Catholic Spain, after the formulæ of cold, damp, and foggy, -heretical England. - -[Sidenote: FAMILY PHYSICIAN.] - -Most Spaniards who can afford it have their family or bolster doctor, -the _Medico de Cabecera_, and their confessor. This pair take care of -the bodies and souls of the whole house, bring them gossip, share their -_puchero_, purse, and tobacco. They rule the husband through the women -and the nursery, nor do they allow their exclusive privileges to be -infringed on. Etiquette is the life of a Spaniard, and often his death, -since every one has heard (the Spaniards swear it is all a French lie) -that Philip III. was killed, rather than violate a form. He was seated -too near the fire, and, although burning, of course as king of Spain the -impropriety of moving himself never entered his head, and when he -requested one of his attendants to do so, none, in the absence of the -proper officer whose duty it was to superintend the royal chair, -ventured to take that improper liberty. In case of sudden emergencies -among her Catholic Majesty’s subjects, unless the family doctor be -present, any other one, even if called in, generally declines acting -until the regular Esculapius arrives. An English medical friend of ours -saved a Spaniard’s life by chancing to arrive when the patient, in an -apoplectic fit, was foaming at the mouth and wrestling with death; all -this time a strange doctor was sitting quietly in the next room smoking -his cigar at the _brasero_, the chafing-dish, with the women of the -family. Our friend instantly took 30 ounces from the sufferer’s arm, not -one of the Spanish party even moving from their seats. Thus Apollo -preserved him! The same medical gentleman happened to accidentally call -on a person who had an inflammation in the cornea of the eye: on -questioning he found that many consultations had been previously held, -at which no determination was come to until at the last, when -sea-bathing was prescribed, with a course of asses’ milk and Chiclana -snake-broth; our heretical friend, who lacked the true faith, just -touched the diseased part with caustic. When this application was -reported at the next consultation, the native doctors all crossed -themselves with horror and amazement, which was increased when the -patient recovered in a week. - -[Sidenote: MEDICAL COSTUME.] - -As a general rule at the first visit, they look as wise as possible, -shake their heads before the women, and always magnify the complaint, -which is a safe proceeding all over the world, since all physicians can -either cure or kill the patient; in the first event they get greater -credit and reward, while in the other alternative, the disease, having -been beyond the reach of art, bears the blame. The _medicos_ exhibit -considerable ingenuity in prolonging an apparent necessity for a -continuance of their visits. A common interest induces them to pull -together--a rare exception in Spain--and play into each other’s hands. -The family doctor, whenever appearances will in anywise justify him, -becomes alarmed, and requires a consultation, a _Junta_. What any -Spanish Junta is in affairs of peace or war need not be explained; and -these are like the rest, they either do nothing, or what they do do, is -done badly. At these meetings from three to seven _Medicos de -apelacion_, consulting physicians, attend, or more, according to the -patient’s purse: each goes to the sick man, feels his pulse, asks him -some questions, and then retires to the next room to consult, generally -allowing the invalid the benefit of hearing what passes. The -_Protomedico_, or senior, takes the chair; and while all are lighting -their cigars, the family doctor opens the case, by stating the birth, -parentage, and history of the patient, his constitution, the complaint, -and the medicines hitherto prescribed. The senior next rises, and gives -his opinion, often speaking for half an hour; the others follow in their -rotation, and then the _Protomedico_, like a judge, sums up, going over -each opinion with comments: the usual termination is either to confirm -the previous treatment, or make some insignificant alteration: the only -certain thing is to appoint another consultation for the next day, for -which the fees are heavy, each taking from three to five dollars. The -consultation often lasts many hours, and becomes at last a chronic -complaint. - -[Sidenote: PRESCRIPTIONS.] - -It must be said, in justice to these able practitioners, that as a body -they are careful in their dress: external appearance, not to say finery -in apparel, raises in the eyes of the many, a profession which here is -of uncertain social standing. On the same principle how careful is the -costume, how brilliant are the shirt-studs of foreign fiddlers when in -England! The worthy Andalucian doctor of our Spanish family, and an -efficient one, as two of his patients now at rest could testify, never -paid a visit except when gaily attired. So the _Matador_, when he enters -the arena to kill the bull, is clad as a first-rate dandy _majo_. This -attention to person arises partly from the Moro-Ibero love of -ostentation, and partly from sound Galenic principles and a high sense -of professional duty. The ancient authorities enforced on the -practitioner an attention to everything which created cheerful -impressions, in order that he might arrive at the patient’s pillow like -a messenger of good tidings, and as a minister of health, not of death. -They held that a grave costume might suggest unpleasant associations to -the sick man. Raven-coloured undertaker tights, and a funereal, -cadaverous look to match, are harbingers of blue devils and black crape, -which no man, even when in blessed health, contemplates with comfort; -while the effect of such a _facies hippocratica_ staring in the face of -a poor devil whose life is despaired of, must be fatal. - -[Sidenote: DRUGGISTS.] - -The prescriptions of these well-dressed gentlemen are somewhat more -old-fashioned than their coats. Their grand recipe in the first instance -is to do nothing beyond taking the fee and leaving nature alone, or, as -the set phrase has it, _dejar á la naturaleza_. The young and those -whose constitutions are strong and whose complaints are weak, do well -under the healing influence of their kind nurse Nature, and recover -through her vis medicatrix, which, if not obstructed by art, everywhere -works wonderful cures. The _Sangrado_ will say that a Spanish man or -woman is more marvellously made than a clock, inasmuch as his or her -machinery has a power in itself to regulate its own motions, and to -repair accidents; and therefore the watchmaker who is called in, need -not be in a hurry to take it to pieces when a little oiling and cleaning -may set all to rights. The remedies, when the proper time for their -application arrives, are simple, and are sought for rather among the -vegetables of the earth’s surface than from the minerals in its bowels. -The external recipes consist chiefly of papers smeared with lard, -applied to the abdomen, sinapisms and mustard poultices to the feet, -fomentations of marsh-mallows or camomile flowers, and the aid of the -curate. The internal remedies, the tisanes, the _Leches de Almendras_, -_de Burras_, decoctions of rice, and so forth, succeed each other in -such regular order, that the patient scholar has nothing to do but -repeat the medical passages in Horace’s ‘Satires.’ In no country, -however, can all the sick be always expected to recover even then, since -“_Para todo hay remedio, sino para la muerte_”--“There is a remedy for -everything except death.” If by chance the patient dies, the doctor and -the disease bear the blame. Perhaps the old Iberian custom was the -safest; then the sick were exposed outside their doors, and the advice -of casual passengers was asked, whose prescriptions were quite as likely -to answer as images, relics, snake-soup, or milk of almonds or asses:-- - - “And, doctor, do you really think - That asses’ milk I ought to drink? - It cured yourself, I grant, is true, - But then ’twas mother’s milk to you.” - -[Sidenote: SNAKE-BROTH.] - -Nor, if the doctors knew how to prescribe them, are the nicer and most -efficacious remedies, the preparations of modern chemical science, to be -procured in any except the very largest towns; although, as in Romeo’s -apothecary, “the needy” shelves are filled with empty boxes “to make a -show.” The trade of a druggist is anything but free, and the numbers are -limited; none may open a _Botica_ without a strict examination and -licence; although, of course, this is to be had for money. None may sell -any potent medicine, except according to the prescription of some -_local_ medical man; everything is a monopoly. The commonest drugs are -often either wanting or grossly adulterated, but, as in their arsenals -and larders, no dispenser will admit such destitution; _hay de todo_, I -have every thing, swears he, and gallantly makes up the prescription -simply by substituting other ingredients; and as the correct ones nine -times out of ten are harmless, no great injury is sustained. There is -nothing new in this, for Quevedo, in his _Zahurdas de Pluton_, or -Satan’s Pigsties, introduces a yellow-faced bilious judge scourging -Spanish apothecaries for doing exactly the same, “Hence your shops,” -quoth he, for he both preached and flogged, “are arsenals of death, -whose ministers here get their pills (balls rather) which banish souls -from the earth;” but these and other things have been long done with -impunity, as Pliny said, no physician was ever hung for murder. One -advantage of general distrust in drugs and doctors is, that the great -masses of the people think very little about them or their complaints: -thus they escape all fancied and imaginary complaints, which, if -indulged in, become chronic, and more difficult to cure than those -afflicting the body--for who can minister to a mind diseased? Again, -from this want of confidence in remedies, very little physic at all is -taken; owing to this limited demand, druggists’ shops are as rare in -Spain as those of booksellers. No red, green, or blue bottles illuminate -the streets at night, and there are more of these radiant orbs in the -Fore street of the capital of the west of England, than in the whole -capital of the Spains, albeit with a population six times greater. It -is true that, at Madrid, feeding on plum-pudding, diluted with sour -cider and clotted cream, is not habitual. - -Many of the prescriptions of Spain are local, and consist of some -particular spring, some herb, some animal, or some particular air, or -place, or bath, is recommended, which, however, is said to be very -dangerous, unless some resident local _medico_ be first consulted. One -example is as good as a thousand: near Cadiz is Chiclana, to which the -faculty invariably transport those patients whom they cannot cure, that -is, about ninety-five in the hundred; so in chronic complaints -sea-bathing there, is prescribed, with a course of asses’ milk; and if -that fail, then a broth made of a long harmless snake, which abounds in -the aromatic wastes near _Barrosa_. We have forgotten the generic name -of this valuable reptile of Esculapius, one of which our naturalists -should take alive, and either breed from it in the Regent’s Park, or at -least investigate his comparative anatomy with those exquisite vipers -which make, as we have shown, such delicious pork at Montanches. - -[Sidenote: SALVE FOR KNIFE-CUTS.] - -We cannot refrain from giving one more prescription. Many of the murders -in Spain should rather be called homicides, being free from malice -prepense, and caused by the _readiness_ of the national _cuchillo_, with -which all the lower classes are armed like wasps; it is thus always at -hand, when the blood is most on fire, and before any refrigeratory -process commences. Thus, where an unarmed Englishman _closes_ his fist, -a Spaniard opens his knife. This rascally instrument becomes fatal in -jealous broils, when the lower classes light their anger at the torch of -the Furies, and prefer using, to speaking daggers. Then the thrust goes -home; and however unskilled the regular _Sangrados_ may be in anatomy -and handling the scalpel, the universal people know exactly how to -manage their knife and where to plant its blow; nor is there any -mistake, for the wound, although not so deep as a well, nor so wide as a -church door, “’t will serve.” It is usually given after the treacherous -fashion of their Oriental and Iberian ancestors, and if possible by a -stab behind, and “under the fifth rib;” and “one blow” is enough. The -blade, like the cognate Arkansas or Bowie knife of the Yankees, will -“rip up a man right away,” or drill him until a surgeon can see through -his body. The number killed on great religious and other festivals, -exceeds those of most Spanish battles in the field, although the -occurrence is scarcely noticed in the newspapers, so much is it a matter -of course; but crimes which call forth a second edition and double sheet -in our papers, are slurred over on the Continent, for foreigners conceal -what we most display. - -In minor cases of flirtation, where capital punishment is not called -for, the offending party just gashes the cheek of the peccant one, and -suiting the word to the action observes, “_ya estas senalaā_;” “Now -you are marked.” This is precisely _winkel quarte_, the gash in the -cheek, which is the only salve for the touchy honour of a German -student, when called _ein dummer junge_, a stupid youth:-- - - “Und ist die quart gesessen - So ist der touche vergessen.” - -Again, “_Mira que te pego, mira que te mato_,” “Mind I don’t strike -thee--mind I don’t kill thee;” are playful fondling expressions of a -_Maja_ to a _Majo_. When this particular gash is only threatened, the -Seville phrase was, “_Mira que te pinto un jabeque_;” “Take care that I -don’t draw you a xebeck” (the sharp Mediterranean felucca). “They jest -at wounds who never felt a scar,” but whenever this _jabeque_ has really -been inflicted the patient, ashamed of the stigma, and not having the -face to show himself or herself, is naturally anxious to recover a good -character and skin, which only one cosmetic, one sovereign panacea, can -effect. This in Philip IV.’s time was cat’s grease which then removed -such superfluous marks; while Don Quixote considered the oil of -Apariccio to be the only cure for scratches inflicted by female or -feline claws. - -[Sidenote: THE PARISH DOCTOR.] - -In process of time, as science advanced, this was superseded by _Unto -del hombre_, or man’s grease. Our estimable friend Don Nicolas Molero, a -surgeon in high practice at Seville, assured us that previously to the -French invasion he had often prepared this cataleptic specific, which -used to be sold for its weight in gold, until, having been adulterated -by unprincipled empirics, it fell into disrepute. The receipt of the -balsam of Fierabras has puzzled the modern commentators of Don Quixote, -but the kindness of Don Nicolas furnished us with the ingredients of -this _pommade divine_, or rather _mortale_. “Take a man in full health -who has been just killed, the fresher the better, pare off the fat round -the heart, melt it over a slow fire, clarify, and put it away in a cool -place for use.” The multitudinous church ceremonies and holidays in -Spain, which bring crowds together, combined with the sun, wine, and -women, have always ensured a supply of fine subjects. - -In Spain, as elsewhere, the doctor mania is an expensive amusement, -which the poor and more numerous class, especially in rural localities, -seldom indulge in. Like their mules, they are rarely ill, and they only -take to their beds to die. They have, it is true, a parish doctor, to -whom certain districts are apportioned; when he in his turn succumbs to -death, or is otherwise removed, the vacancy is usually announced in the -newspapers, and a new functionary is often advertised for. His trifling -salary is made up of payments in money and in kind, so much in corn and -so much in cash; the leading principle is cheapness, and, as in our new -poor-law, that proficient is preferred, who will contract to do for the -greatest number at the smallest charge. His constituents decline -sometimes to place full confidence in his skill or alacrity: they -oftener do consult the barber, the quack, or _curandero_; for there is -generally in orthodox Spain some charlatan wherever sword, rosary, pen, -or lancet is to be wielded. The nostrums, charms, relics, incantations, -&c., to which recourse is had, when not mediæval, are scarcely -Christian; but the spiritual pharmacopœia of this land of Figaro is -far too important to form the tail-piece of any chapter. - -[Sidenote: SPIRITUAL REMEDIES FOR THE BODY.] - - - - -CHAPTER XVIII. - - Spanish Spiritual Remedies for the Body--Miraculous - Relics--Sanative Oils--Philosophy of Relic Remedies--Midwifery and - the Cinta of Tortosa--Bull of Crusade. - - -The Reverend Dr. Fernando Castillo, an esteemed Spanish author and -teacher, remarks, in his luminous Life of St. Domenick, that Spain has -been so bountifully provided by heaven with fine climate, soil, and -extra number of saints, that his countrymen are prone to be idle and to -neglect such rare advantages. Certainly they may not dig and delve so -deeply as is done in lands less favoured, but the reproach of omitting -to call on Hercules to do their work, or of not making the most of -Santiago in any bodily dilemma, is a somewhat too severe reproach: -nowhere in case of sickness have the saving virtues of relics, and the -adjurations of holy monks, been more implicitly relied on. - -[Sidenote: MIRACULOUS SANATIVE OILS.] - -[Sidenote: COSTUME OF CONVALESCENTS.] - -As our learned readers well know, the medical practice of the ancients -was, as that of the Orientals still is, more peculiar than scientific. -When disease was thought to be a divine punishment for sin, it was held -to be wicked to resist by calling in human aid: thus Asa was blamed, and -thus Moslems and Spaniards resign themselves to their fate, distrusting, -and very properly, their medical men: “Am I a god, to kill or make -alive?” In the large towns, in these days of progress, some patients may -“suffer a recovery” according to European practice; but in the country -and remote villages,--and we speak from repeated personal -experience,--the good old reliance on relics and charms is far from -exploded; and however Dr. Sangrado and Philip III., whose decrees on -medical matters yet adorn the Spanish statutes at large, deplore the -introduction of perplexing chemistry, mineral therapeuticals still -remain a considerable dead letter, as the church has transferred the -efficacy of faith from spiritual to temporal concerns, and gun-shot -wounds. Even Ponz, the Lysons of Spain, and before the Inquisition was -abolished, ventured to express surprise at the number of images ascribed -to St. Luke, who, says he, was not a sculptor, but a physician, whence -possibly their sanative influence. The old Iberians were great herbalist -doctors; thus those who had a certain plant in their houses, were -protected, as a blessed palm branch now wards off lightning. They had -also a drink made of a hundred herbs, and hence called _centum herbæ_, a -_bebida de cien herbas_, which, like Morison’s vegetable pills, cured -every possible disease, and was so palatable that it was drunk at -banquets, which modern physic is not; moreover, according to Pliny, they -cured the gout with flour, and relieved elongated uvulas by hanging -purslain round the patient’s throat. So now the _curas y curanderos_, -country curates and quacks, furnish charms and incantations, just as -Ulysses stopped his bleeding by cantation: a medal of Santiago cures the -ague, a handkerchief of the Virgin the ophthalmia, a bone of San Magin -answers all the purposes of mercury, a scrap of San Frutos supplied at -Segovia the loss of common sense; the Virgin of Oña destroyed worms in -royal Infantes, and her sash at Tortosa delivers royal Infantas. Every -Murcian peasant believes that no disease can affect him or his cattle, -if he touches them with the cross of Caravaca, which angels brought from -heaven and placed on a red cow. When we were last at Manresa, the worthy -man who showed the cave in which Loyola the founder of the Jesuits did -penance for a year, increased an honest livelihood by the sale of its -pulverized stones, that were swallowed by the faithful in cases in which -an English doctor would prescribe Dover’s or James’s powders. Every -province, not to say parish, has its own tutelar saint and relic, which -are much honoured and resorted to in their local jurisdiction, and very -little thought of out of it, their power to cure having been apparently -granted to them by Santiago, as a commission to commit is by Queen -Victoria to a magistrate, whose authority does not extend beyond the -county bounds. Zaragoza was admirably provided: a portion of the liver -of Santa Engracia was anciently resorted to, in cases where blue pill -would be beneficial; the oil of her lamps, which never smoked the -ceilings, cured _lamparones_, or tumours in the neck, while that which -burnt before the _Virgen del Pilar_, or the image of the Virgin which -came down from heaven on a pillar, restored lost legs; Cardinal de Retz -mentions in his Memoirs having seen a man whose wooden substitutes -became needless when the originals grew again on being rubbed with it; -and this portent was long celebrated by the Dean and Chapter, as well it -deserved, by an especial holiday, for Macassar oil cannot do much more. -This graven image is at this moment the object of popular adoration, and -disputes even with the worship of tobacco and money: countless are the -mendicants, the halt, blind, and the lame, who cluster around her -shrine, as the equally afflicted ancients, with whom physicians were in -vain, did around that of Minerva; and it must be confessed that the -cures worked are almost incredible. - -It may be said that all this is a raking up of remnants of mediæval -superstition and darkness, and it is probable that the medical men in -Madrid and the larger towns, and especially those who have studied at -Paris, do not place implicit confidence in these spiritual, nor indeed -in any other purely Spanish remedies; but their tried medicinal -properties are set forth at length in scores of Spanish county and other -histories which we have the felicity to possess, all of which have -passed the scrutinizing ordeal of clerical censors, and have been -approved of as containing nothing contrary to the creed of the Church of -Rome or good customs; nor can it be permitted that a church which -professes to be always one, the same, and the only true one, should at -its own convenience “turn its back on itself,” and deny its own drugs -and doctrines. Nothing is set down here which was not perfectly -notorious under the reign of Ferdinand VII.; and whatever the doctors of -physic or theology may now disbelieve in Spain, more reliance is still -placed, in the rural districts, where foreign civilization has not -penetrated, on miracles than on medicines. - -We have often and often seen little children in the streets dressed like -Franciscan monks--Cupids in cowls--whose pious parents had vowed to -clothe them in the robes of this order, provided its sainted founder -preserved their darlings during measles or dentition. Nothing was more -common than that women, nay, ladies in good society, should appear for a -year in a particular religious dress, called _el habito_, or with some -religious badge on their sleeves in token of similar deliverance. - -[Sidenote: CURE OF SOULS.] - -One instance in our time amused all the tertulias of Seville, who -maliciously attributed the sudden relief which a fair high-born -unmarried invalid experienced from an apparent dropsical complaint to -causes not altogether supernatural; _Pues, Don Ricardo_, “and so, Master -Richard,” would her friends of the same age and rank often say, “you are -a stranger; go and ask dearest _Esperanza_ why she wears the Virgin of -Carmel; come back and let us know her story, and we will tell you the -real truth.” _Vaya! vaya! Don Ricardo, usted es muy majadero_,--“Go to, -Master Richard, your Grace is an immense bore,” replied the penitent, if -she suspected the authors and motive of the embassy. - -The pious in antiquity raised temples to Minerva medica or Esculapius, -as Spaniards do altars to _Na. Señora de los Remedios_, our Lady of the -Remedies, and to San Roque, whose intervention renders “sound as a -roach,” a proverb devised in his honour by our ancestors, who, before -the Reformation, trusted likewise to him; and both thought, if Cicero is -to be credited, that these tutelars did _at least_ as much as the -doctor. Alas! for the patient credulity of mankind, which still gulps -down such medicinal quackery as all this, and which long will continue -to do so even were one of the dead to rise from the grave, to deprecate -the absurd treatment by which he and so many have been sacrificed. - -However, by way of compensation, the saving the _soul_ has been made -just as primary a consideration in Spain as the curing the _body_ has -been in England. These relics, charms, and amulets represent our patent -medicines; and the wonder is how any one in Great Britain can be -condemned to death in this world, or how any one in the Peninsula can be -doomed to perdition in the next: possibly the panaceas are in neither -case quite specific. Be that as it may, how numerous and well-appointed -are the churches and convents there, compared to the hospitals; how -amply provided the relic-magazine with bones and spells, when compared -to the anatomical museums and chemists’ shops; again, what a flock of -holy practitioners come forth _after_ a Spaniard has been stabbed, -starved, or executed, not one of whom would have stirred a step to save -an army of his countrymen when alive; and what coppers are now collected -to pay masses to get his soul out of purgatory! - -[Sidenote: PHILOSOPHY OF RELICS.] - -Beware, nevertheless, gentle Protestant reader, of dying in Spain, -except in Cadiz or Malaga, where, if you are curious in Christian -burial, there is snug lying for heretics; and for your life avoid being -even sick at Madrid, since if once handed over to the faculty make thy -last testament forthwith, as, if the judgment passed on their own -doctors by Spaniards be true, Esculapius cannot save thee from the -crows: avoid the Spanish doctors therefore like mad dogs, and throw -their physic after them. - -The masses and many in Spain have their own tutelars and refuges for the -destitute; the kings and queens--whom God preserve!--have their own -especial patroness by prerogative, in the image of the Virgin of Atocha -at Madrid, which they and the rest of the royal family visit every -Sunday in the year when in royal health. No sooner was the sovereign -taken dangerously ill, and the court physicians at a loss what to do, as -sometimes is the case even in Madrid, than the image used to be brought -to his bedside; witness the case of Philip III., thus described by -Bassompierre in his dispatch:--“Les médecins en désespèrent depuis ce -matin que l’on a commencé à user des _remèdes spirituels_, et faire -transporter au palais _l’image_ de N. D. de Athoche.” The patient died -three days after the image was sent for. - -[Sidenote: SPANISH MIDWIFERY.] - -Although neither priest nor physician might credit the sanative -properties of rags and relics, they gladly called them in, for if the -case then went wrong, how could mortal man be expected to succeed when -the supernatural remedy had failed? All inquests in awkward cases are -hushed up by ascribing the death to the visitation of God. Again, if a -relic does not always cure it rarely kills, as calomel has been known to -do. This interruptive principle, one distinct from human remedies, is -admitted by the church in the prayers for sick persons; and where faith -is sincere, even relics must offer a powerful moral medical cordial, by -acting on the imagination, and giving confidence to the patient. This -chance is denied to the poor Protestant, nay, even to a newly-converted -tractarian, for truly, to believe in the efficacy of a monkish bone, the -lesson must have been learnt in the nursery. Their substitute in -Lutheran lands, in partibus infidelium, is found in laudanum, news, and -gossip; the latter being the grand specific by which Sir Henry kept -scores of dowagers alive, to the despair of jointure-paying sons, from -marquises down to baronets; and how much real comfort is conveyed by -the gentle whisper, “Your ladyship cannot conceive what an interest his -or her Royal Highness the ---- takes in your ladyship’s convalescence!” -The _form_ of the moral restorative will vary according to climate, -creeds, manners, &c.; it is to the _substance_ alone that the -philosophical physician will look. That chord must be touched, be it -what it may, to which the pulse of the patient will respond; nor, -provided he is recovered, do the means much signify. - -One word only on Spanish midwifery. There is a dislike to male -accoucheurs, and the midwife, or _comadre_, generally brings the -Spaniard into the world by the efforts of nature and the aid of _manteca -de puerco_, or hogs’ lard, a launching appropriate enough to a babe, -who, if it survives to years of discretion, will assuredly love bacon. -The newly-born is then wrapped up, like an Egyptian mummy, and is -carefully protected from fresh air, soap, and water; an amulet is then -hung round its neck to disarm the evil eye, or some badge of the Virgin -is to ensure good luck: thus the young idea is taught from the cradle, -what errors are to be avoided and what safeguards are to be clung to, -lessons which are seldom forgotten in after-life. Without entering -further into baby details, the scanty population of the Peninsula may in -some measure be thus accounted for. Parturition also is frequently -fatal; in ordinary cases the midwife does very well, but when a -difficulty arises she loses her head and patient. It is in these trying -moments, as in the critical operations of the kitchen, that a male -artiste is preferable. - -[Sidenote: SPIRITUAL AIDS TO ACCOUCHEMENT.] - -The Queens and Infantas of Spain have additional advantages. The -palladium of the city of Tortosa is the _cinta_[11] or girdle, which the -Virgin, accompanied by St. Peter and St. Paul, brought herself from -heaven to a priest of the cathedral in 1178; an event in honour of which -a mass is still said every second Sunday in October. The gracious gift -was declared authentic in 1617, by Paul V., and to justify his -infallibility it works every sort of miracle, especially in obstetric -cases; it is also brought out to defend the town on all occasions of -public calamity, but failed in the case of Suchet’s attack. This -girdle, more wonderful than the cestus of Venus, was conveyed in 1822, -by Ferdinand VII.’s command, in solemn procession to Aranjuez, in order -to facilitate the accouchement of the two Infantas, and as Lucina when -duly invoked favoured women in travail, so their Royal Highnesses were -happily delivered, and one of the babes then born, is the husband of -Isabel II. For humbler Castilian women, when pregnant, a spiritual -remedy was provided by the canons of Toledo, who took the liveliest -interest in many of the cases. The grand entrance to the cathedral had -thirteen steps, and all females who ascended and descended them ensured -an early and easy time of it. No wonder therefore, when these steps were -reduced to the number of seven, that the greatest possible opposition -should have been made by the fair sex, married and unmarried. All these -things of Spain are rather Oriental; and to this day the Barbary Moors -have a cannon at Tangiers by which a Christian ship was sunk, and across -this their women sit to obtain an easy delivery. In all ages and -countries where the science of midwifery has made small progress, it is -natural that some spiritual assistance should be contrived for perils of -such inevitable recurrence as childbirth. The panacea in Italy was the -girdle of St. Margaret, which became the type of this _Cinta_ of -Tortosa, and it was resorted to by the monks in all cases of difficult -parturition. It was supposed to benefit the sex, because when the devil -wished to eat up St. Margaret, the Virgin bound him with her sash, and -he became tame as a lamb. This sash brought forth sashes also, and in -the 17th century had multiplied so exceedingly, that a traveller -affirmed “if all were joined together, they would reach all down -Cheapside;” but the natural history of relics is too well known to be -enlarged upon. - -[Sidenote: BULL OF CRUSADE.] - -Any account of Spanish doctors without a death, would be dull as a blank -day with fox-hounds, although the medical man, differing from the -sportsman, dislikes being in at it. He, the moment the fatal sisters -three are running into their game, slips out, and leaves the last act to -the clergyman: hence the Spanish saying, “When the priest begins, the -physician ends.” It is related in the history of Don Quixote, that no -sooner did the barber feel the poor knight’s wrist, than he advised him -to attend to his soul and send for his confessor; and now, when a -Castilian hidalgo takes to his bed, his friends pursue much the same -course, nor does the catastrophe often differ. Lord Bacon, great in -wise saws and instances, prayed that his death might come from Spain, -because then it would be long on the journey; but he was not aware that -the gentlemen in black formed an exception to the proverbial -procrastination and dilatoriness of their fellow countrymen. As patients -are soon dispatched, the law[12] of the land subjects every physician to -a fine of ten thousand maravedis, who fails after his first visit to -prescribe confession; the chief object in sickness being, as the -preamble states, to cure the soul; and so it is in Italy, where Gregory -XVI. issued in 1845 three decrees; one to forbid railroads, another to -prohibit scientific meetings, and a third to order all medical men to -cease to attend invalids who had not sent for the priest and -communicated after the third visit. In Spain, the first question asked -in our time of the sick man was, not whether he truly repented of his -sins, but whether he had got the Bull; and if the reply was in the -negative, or his old nurse had omitted to send out and buy one, the last -sacraments were denied to the dying wretch. - -[Sidenote: NECESSITY OF THE BULL.] - -One Word on this wonderful Bull, that disarms death of its sting, and -which, although few of our readers may ever have heard of it, plays a -far more important part in the Peninsula than the quadruped does in the -arena. Fastings are nowhere more strictly enjoined than here, where Lent -represents the Ramadan of the Moslem. The denials have been mitigated to -those faithful who have good appetites, by the paternal indulgence of -their holy father at Rome, who, in consideration that it was necessary -to keep the Spanish crusaders in fighting condition in order more -effectually to crush the infidel, conceded to Saint Ferdinand the -permission that his army might eat meat rations during Lent, provided -there were any, for, to the credit of Spanish commissariats in general, -few troops fast more regularly and religiously. The auspicious day on -which the arrival is proclaimed of this welcome bull that announces -dinner, is celebrated by bells merry as at a marriage feast; in the -provincial cities mayors and corporations go to cathedral in what is -called state, to the wonder of the mob and amusement of their betters at -the resurrection of quiz coaches, the robes, maces, and obsolete -trappings, by which these shadows of a former power and dignity hope to -mark individual and collective insignificancy. A copy of this precious -Bull cannot of course be had for nothing, and as it must be paid for, -and in ready money, it forms one of the certain branches of public -income. Although the proceeds ought to be expended on crusading -purposes, Ferdinand VII., the Catholic King, and the only sovereign in -possession of such a revenue, never contributed one mite towards the -Christian Greeks in their recent struggle against the Turkish -unbelievers. - -[Sidenote: DEATH-BED IN SPAIN] - -These bulls, or rather paper-money notes, are prepared with the greatest -precautions, and constituted one of the most profitable articles of -Spanish manufacture; a maritime war with England was dreaded, not so -much from regard to the fasting transatlantic souls, as from the fear of -losing, as Dr. Robertson has shown, the sundry millions of dollars and -silver dross remitted from America in exchange for these spiritual -treasures. They were printed at Seville, at the Dominican convent, the -_Porta cœli_; but Soult, who now it appears is turning devotee, burnt -down this gate of heaven, with its passports, and the presses. The bulls -are only good for the year during which they are issued; after twelve -months they become stale and unprofitable. There is then, says Blanco -White, and truly, for we have often seen it, “a prodigious hurry to -obtain new ones by all those who wish well to their souls, and do not -overlook the ease and comfort of their stomachs.” A fresh one must be -annually taken out, like a game-certificate, before Spaniards venture to -sport with flesh or fowl, and they have reason to be thankful that it -does not cost three pounds odd: for the sum of _dos reales_, or less -than sixpence, man, woman, and child may obtain the benefit of clergy -and cookery; but evil betides the uncertificated poacher, treadmills for -life are a farce, perdition catches his soul. His certificate is -demanded by the keeper of conscience when he is caught in the trap of -sickness, and if without one, his conviction is certain; he cannot plead -ignorance of the law, for a postscript and condition is affixed to all -notices of jubilees, indulgences, and other purgatorial benefits, which -are fixed on the church doors; and the language is as courteous and -peremptory as in our popular assessed tax-paper--“Se _ha_ de tener la -bula:” you _must_ have the bull; if you expect to derive any relief from -these relaxations in purgatory, which all Spaniards most particularly -do: hence the common phrase used by any one, when committing some -little peccadillo in other matters, _tengo mi bula para todo_--I have -got my bull, my licence to do any thing. The possession of this document -acts on all fleshly comforts like soda on indigestion, indeed it -neutralizes everything except heresy. As it is cheap, a Protestant -resident, albeit he may not quite believe in its saving effects, will do -well to purchase one for the sake of the peace of mind of his weaker -brethren, for in this religion of forms and outer observances, more -horror is felt by rigid Spaniards, at seeing an Englishman eating meat -during a fast, than if he had broken all the ten commandments. The sums -levied from the nation for these bulls is very large, although they are -diminished before finally paid into the exchequer; some of the honey -gathered by so many bees will stick to their wings, and the place of -chief commissioner of the Bula is a better thing than that in the Excise -or Customs of unbelieving countries. - -To return to the dying man: if he has the bull, the host is brought to -him with great pomp; the procession is attended by crowds who bear -crosses, lighted candles, bells and incense; and as the chamber is -thrown open to the public, the ceremony is accompanied by multitudes of -idlers. The spectacle is always imposing, as it must be, considering -that the incarnate Deity is believed to be present. It is particularly -striking on Easter Sunday, when the host is taken to all the sick who -have been unable to communicate in the parish church. Then the priest -walks either under a gorgeous canopy, or is mounted in the finest -carriage in the town; and while all as he passes kneel to the wafer -which he bears, he chuckles internally at his own reality of power over -his prostrate subjects; the line of streets are gaily decorated as for -the triumphal procession of a king: the windows are hung with velvets -and tapestries, and the balconies filled with the fair sex arrayed in -their best, who shower sweet flowers down on the procession just at the -moment of its passage, and sweeter smiles during all the rest of the -morning on their lovers below, whose more than divided adoration is -engrossed by female divinities. - -[Sidenote: BURIAL DRESSES.] - -To die without confession and communication is to a Spaniard the most -poignant of calamities, as he cannot be saved while he is taught that -there is in these acts a preserving virtue of their own, independent of -any exertions on his part. The host is given when human hopes are at an -end, and the heat, noise, confusion, and excitement, seldom fail to kill -the already exhausted patient. Then when life’s idle business at a gasp -is o’er, the body is laid out in a _capilla ardiente_, or an apartment -prepared as a chapel, by taking out the furniture; where the family is -rich, a room on the ground floor is selected, in which a regular altar -is dressed up, and rows of large candles lighted placed around the body; -the public is then allowed to enter, even in the case of the sovereign: -thus we beheld Ferdinand VII. laid out dead and full dressed with his -hat on his head, and his stick in his hand. This public exhibition is a -sort of coroner’s inquest; formerly, as we have often seen, the body was -clad in a monk’s dress, with the feet naked and the hands clasped over -the breast; the sepulchral shadow then thrown over the dead and placid -features by the cowl, seldom failed to raise a solemn undefinable -feeling in the hearts of spectators, speaking, as it did, a language to -the living which could not be misunderstood. - -The woollen dresses of the mendicant orders were by far the most -popular, from the idea that, when old, they had become too saturated -with the odour of sanctity for the vile nostrils of the evil one; and as -a tattered dress often brought more than half-a-dozen new ones, the sale -of these old clothes was a benefit alike to the pious vendor and -purchaser; those of St. Francis were preferred, because at his triennial -visits to purgatory, he knows his own, and takes them back with him to -heaven; hence Milton peopled his shadowy limbo with wolves in sheep’s -clothing:-- - - ---- “who, to be sure of Paradise, - Dying put on the robes of Dominick, - Or in Franciscan think to pass unseen.” - -[Sidenote: BURIAL PLACES.] - -Women in our time were often laid out in nuns’ dresses, wearing also the -scapulary of the Virgin of Carmel, which she gave to Simon Stock, with -the assurance that none who died with it on, should ever suffer eternal -torments. The general adoption of these grave fashions induced an -accurate foreigner to remark, that no one ever died in Spain except nuns -and monks. In this hot country, burial goes hand in hand with death, and -it is absolutely necessary from the rapidity with which putrefaction -comes on. The last offices are performed in somewhat an indecent manner: -formerly the interment took place in churches, or in the yards near -them, a custom which from hygeian reasons is now prohibited. Public -cemeteries, which give at least 4 per cent. interest, have been erected -outside the towns, in which long lines of catacombs gape greedily for -those occupants who can pay for them, while a wide ditch is opened every -day for those who cannot. In this _campo santo_, or holy field, death -levels all ranks, which seems hard on those great families who have -built and endowed chapels to secure a burial among their ancestors. They -however raised no objections to the change of law, nor have ever much -troubled themselves about the dilapidated sepulchres and crumbling -effigies of their “grandsires cut in alabaster;” the real opposition -arose from the priests, who lost their fees, and thereupon assured their -flocks, that a future resurrection was anything but certain to bodies -committed into such new-fangled depositories. - -Be that as it may, the corpse in its slight coffin is carried out, -followed by the male relations, and is then put into its niche without -further form or prayer. Ladies who die soon after marriage, and before -the bridal hours have danced their measure, are sometimes buried in -their wedding dresses, and covered with flowers, the dying injunctions -of Shakspere’s Queen Catherine:-- - - “When I am dead, good wench, - Let me be used with honour; strew me o’er - With maiden flowers, that all the world may know - I was a chaste wife to my grave.” - -At such funerals the coffin is opened in the catacomb, to gratify the -indecent curiosity of the crowd; the dress is next day discussed all -over the town, and the _entierro_ or funeral is pronounced to be _muy -lucido_ or very brilliant; but life in Spain is a jest, and these things -show it. The place assigned for children who die under seven years of -age lies apart from that of the adults; their early death is held in -Spain to be rather a matter of congratulation than of grief, since those -whom the gods love die young; their epitaphs tell a mixed tale of joy -and sorrow. _El parvulo fue arrebatado á la gloria_, the little one was -snatched up into Paradise:-- - - “There is beyond the sky a heaven of joy and love, - And holy children, when they die, go to that world above.” - -[Sidenote: BURIAL OF THE POOR.] - -Yet nature will not be put aside, and many a mother have we seen, -loitering alone near the graves, adorning them with roses and plucking -up weeds which have no business to grow there; the little corpses are -carried to the tomb by little children of the same age, clad in white, -and are strewed with flowers short-lived as themselves, sweets to the -sweet. The parents return home yearning after the lost child--its cradle -is empty, its piteous moan is heard no more, its playthings remain where -it left them, and recall the cruel gap which grief cannot fill up, -although it - - “Stuffs out its vacant garments with its form.” - -The bodies of the lower orders, dressed in their ordinary attire, are -borne to their long home by four men, as is described by Martial; “no -useless coffins enclose their breasts,” they are carried forth as was -the widow’s son at Nain. And often have we seen the frightful death-tray -standing upright at the doors of the humble dead, with a human outline -marked on the wood by the death-damp of a hundred previous burdens. Such -bodies are cast into the trench like those of dogs, and often naked, as -the survivors or sextons strip them even of their rags. Those poorer -still, who cannot afford to pay the trifling fee, sometimes during the -night, suspend the bodies of their children in baskets, near the -cemetery porch. We once beheld a cloaked Spaniard pacing mournfully in -the burial-ground of Seville, who, when the public trench was opened, -drew from beneath the folds the body of his dead child, cast it in and -disappeared. Thus half the world lives without knowing how the other -half dies. - -[Sidenote: FUNERAL SERVICE.] - -In the upper ranks the etiquette of the funeral commences after the -reality is over. The first necessary step is within three days to pay a -visit of condolence to the family; this is called _para dar el pesame_. -The relations are all assembled in the best room, and seated on chairs -placed at the head, the women at one end and the men at another. When a -condoling lady and gentleman enter, she proceeds to shake hands with all -the other ladies one after another, and then seats herself in the next -vacant chair; the gentleman bows to each of the men as he passes, who -rise and return it, a grave dumb-show of profound affliction being kept -up by all. On reaching the chief mourners, they are addressed by each -condoler with this phrase, “_Acompaño á usted en su sentimiento_;” “I -share in the affliction of your grace;” the company meanwhile remain -silent as an assemblage of undertakers. After sitting among them the -proper time, each retires with much the same form. - -In a few days afterwards a printed letter is sent round in the name of -all the surviving relations to announce the death to the friends of the -family, and to beg the favour of attendance at the funeral service: -these invitations are all headed with a cross (+), which is called _El -Cristus_. Before the invasion of the enemy, who not only destroyed the -walls of convents, but sapped religious belief also, very many books -were printed, and private letters written, with this sign prefixed. In -our time sundry medical men at Seville always headed with it their -prescriptions, the Cardinal Archbishop having granted a certain number -of years’ release from purgatory to all who sanctified with this mark -their recipes even of senna and rhubarb. Under this cross, in the -invitation, are placed the letters R. I. P. A., which signify -“Requiescat in pace. Amen.” At the appointed hour the mourners meet in -the _casa mortuaria_, or the house of death, and proceed together to -church. All are dressed in full black, and before the progress of -paletots and civilization, wore no cloaks: this, as it rendered each man -of them more uncomfortable than St. Bartholomew was without his skin, -was considered an offering of genuine grief to the manes of the -deceased. Uncloaking in Spain is, be it remembered, a mark of respect, -and is equivalent to our taking off the hat. When the company arrives at -church, they are received by the ministers, and the ceremony is very -solemnly performed before a catafalque covered with a pall, which is -placed before the altar, and is brilliantly lighted up with wax candles. -As soon as the service is concluded, all advance and bow to the chief -mourners, who are seated apart, and thus the tragedy concludes. Parents -do not put on mourning for their children, which is a remnant of the -patriarchal and Roman superiority of the head of the family, for whom, -however, when dead, all the other members pay the most observant -respect. The forms and number of days of mourning are most nicely laid -down, and are most rigidly observed, even by distant relations, who -refrain from all kinds of amusements:-- - - “None bear about the mockery of woe - To public dances or to private show.” - -[Sidenote: ALL SOULS’ DAY.] - -We well remember the death of a kind and venerable Marquesa at Seville -just before the carnival, whose chief grief at dying, was the thought of -the number of young ladies who would thus be deprived of their balls and -masquerades; many, anxious and obliging, were the inquiries sent after -her health, and more even were the daily prayers offered up to the -Virgin, for the prolongation of her precious existence, could it be only -for a few weeks. - -November drear, brings in other solemnities connected with the dead, and -in harmony with the fall of the sear and yellow leaves, to which Homer -compares the races of mortal men. The night before the first of -November--our All Hallow-e’en--is kept in Spain as a vigil or wake; it -is the fated hour of love divinations and mysteries; then anxious -maidens used to sit at their balconies to see the image of their -destined husbands pass or not pass by. November the first is dedicated -to the sainted dead, and November the second to all souls: it is termed -in Spanish _el dia de los difuntos_, the day of the dead, and is most -scrupulously observed by all who have lost during the past year some -friend, some relation--how few have not! The dawn is ushered in by -mournful bells, which recall the memory of those who cannot come back at -the summons; the cemeteries are then visited; at Seville, long -processions of sable-clad females, bearing chased lamps on staves, walk -slowly round and round, chaunting melancholy dirges, returning when it -gets dusk in a long line of glittering lights. The graves during the day -are visited by those who take a sad interest in their occupants, and -lamps and flower garlands are suspended as memorials of affection, and -holy water is sprinkled, every drop of which puts out some of the fires -of purgatory. These picturesque proceedings at once resemble the _Eed es -Segheer_ of modern Cairo, the _feralia_ of the Romans, the Νεμεσια of -the Greeks: here are the flower offerings of Electra, the _funes -assensi_, the funeral torches of pagan mourners, which have vainly been -prohibited to Christian Spaniards by their early Council of Illiberis. -In Navarre, and in the north-west of Spain, bread and wheat offerings -called _robos_ are made, which are the doles or gifts offered for the -souls’ rest of the deceased by the pious of ancient Rome. - -[Sidenote: PURGATORY.] - -As on this day the cemetery becomes the public attraction, it too often -looks rather a joyous fashionable promenade, than a sad and religious -performance. The levity of mere strangers and the mob, contrasts -strangely with the sorrow of real mourners. But life in this world -presses on death, and the gay treads on the heels of pathos; the spot is -crowded with mendicants, who appeal to the order of the day, and -importune every tender recollection, by begging for the sake of the -lamented dead. Outside the dreary walls all is vitality and mirth; a -noisy sale goes on of cakes, nuts, and sweetmeats, a crash of horses and -carriages, a din and flow of bad language from those who look after -them, which must vex the repose of the _benditas animas_, or the blessed -souls in purgatory, for whom otherwise all classes of Spaniards manifest -the fondest affection and interest. - -[Sidenote: PROTESTANT BURIAL-GROUND.] - -Such is the manner in which the body of a most orthodox Catholic -Castilian is committed to the earth; his soul, if it goes to purgatory, -is considered and called blessed by anticipation, as the admittance into -Paradise is certain, at the expiration of the term of penal -transportation, that is, “when the foul crimes done in the days of -nature are burnt and purged away,” as the ghost in Hamlet says, who had -not forgotten his Virgil. If the scholar objects to a Spanish clergyman, -that the whole thing is Pagan, he will be told that he may go farther -and fare worse. In the case of a true Roman Catholic, this term of hard -labour may be much shortened, since that can be done by masses, any -number of which will be said, if first paid for. The vicar of St. Peter -holds the keys, which always unlock the gate to those who offer the -golden gift by which Charon was bribed by Æneas; thus, to a judicious -rich man, nothing, supposing that he believes the Pope _versus_ the -Bible, is so easy as to get at once into Heaven; nor are the poor quite -neglected, as any one may learn who will read the extraordinary number -of days’ redemption which may be obtained at every altar in Spain by the -performance of the most trumpery routine. The only wonder is how any one -of the faithful should ever fail to secure his delivery from this -spiritual Botany Bay without going there at all, or, at least, only for -the form’s sake. It was calculated by an accurate and laborious German, -that an active man, by spending three shillings in coach-hire, might -obtain in an hour, by visiting different privileged altars during the -Holy week, 29,639 years, nine months, thirteen days, three minutes and a -half diminution of purgatorial punishment. This merciful reprieve was -offered by Spanish priests in South America, on a grander style, on one -commensurate with that colossal continent; for a single mass at the San -Francisco in Mexico, the Pope and prelates granted 32,310 years, ten -days, and six hours indulgence. As a means of raising money, says our -Mexican authority, “I would not give this simple institution of masses -for the benefit of souls, for the power of taxation possessed by any -government; since no tax-gatherer is required; the payments are enforced -by the best feelings, for who would not pay to get a parent’s or -friend’s soul from the fire?” Purgatory has thus been a Golconda mine of -gold to his Holiness, as even the poorest have a chance, since -charitable persons can deliver blank souls by taking out a _habeas -animam_ writ, that is, by paying the priest for a mass. The especial -days are marked in the almanac, and known to every waiter at the inn; -moreover, notice is put on the church door, _Hoy se saca anima_, “this -day you can get out a soul.” They are generally left in their warm -quarters in winter, and taken out in the spring. - -Alas for poor Protestants, who, by non-payment of St. Peter’s pence, -have added an additional act of heresy, and the worst of all, the one -which Rome never pardons. These defaulters can only hope to be saved by -faith, and its fruits, good works; they must repent, must quit their -long-cherished sins, and lead a new life; for them there is no rope of -St. Francis to pull them out, if once in the pit; no rosary of St. -Domenick to remove them, quick, presto, begone, from torment to -happiness. Outside the pale of the Vatican, their souls have no chance, -and inside the frontiers of Spain their bodies have scarcely a better -prospect, should they die in that orthodox land. There the greatest -liberal barely tolerates any burial at all of their black-blooded -heretical carcasses, as no corn will grow near them. Until within a very -few years at seaport towns, their bodies used to be put in a hole in the -sands, and beyond low water mark; nay, even this concession to the -infidel offended the semi-Moro fishermen, who true believers and -persecutors feared that their soles might be poisoned: not that either -sailor or priest ever exhibited any fear of taking British current coin, -all cash that comes into their nets being most Catholic, so says the -proverb, _El dinero es muy Catolico_. - -[Sidenote: LUTHERAN BURIAL.] - -[Sidenote: CEMETERY AT MALAGA.] - -Matters connected with the grave have been placed, as regards -Protestants, on a much more pleasant footing within these last few -years; and it may be a consolation to invalids, who are sent to Spain -for change of climate, and who are particular, to know, in case of -accidents, that Protestant burial-grounds are now permitted at Cadiz, -Malaga, and in a few other places. The history of the permission is -curious, and has never, to the best of our belief, been told. In the -days of Philip II. Lutherans were counted in many degrees worse than -dogs; when caught alive, they were burnt by the holy tribunal; and when -dead, were cast out on the dunghill. Even when our poltroon James I. -sent, in 1622, his ill-judged olive-bearing mission, by which Spain was -saved from utter humiliation, Mr. Hole, the secretary of the ambassador, -Lord Digby, having died at Santander, the body was not allowed to be -buried at all; it was put into a shell, and sunk in the sea; but no -sooner was his lordship gone, than “the fishermen,” we quote from -Somers’ tracts, “fearing that they should catch no fish as long as the -coffin of a heretic lay in their waters,” fished it up, “and the corpse -of our countryman and brother was thrown above ground, to be devoured by -the fowls of the air.” In the treaty of 1630, the 31st Article provided -for the disposal of the goods of those Englishmen who might die in -Spain, but not for their bodies. “These,” says a commentator of Rymer, -“must be left stinking above ground, to the end that the dogs may be -sure to find them.” When Mr. Washington, page to Charles I., died at -Madrid, at the time his master was there, Howell, who was present, -relates that it was only as an especial favour to the suitor of the -Spanish Infanta that the body was allowed to be interred in the garden -of the embassy, under a fig-tree. A few years afterwards, 1650, Ascham, -the envoy of Cromwell, was assassinated, and his corpse put, without any -rites, into a hole; but the Protector was not a man to be trifled with, -and knew well how to deal with a Spanish government, always a craven and -bully, from whom nothing ever is to be obtained by concession and -gentleness, which is considered as weakness, while everything is to be -extorted from its _fears_. He that very year _commanded_ a treaty to be -prepared for the proper burial of his subjects, to which the blustering -Spaniard immediately assented. This provision was stipulated into the -treaty of Charles II. in 1664, and was conceded and ratified again in -1667 to Sir Richard Fanshawe. - -No step, however, appears to have been taken before 1796, when Lord Bute -purchased a spot of ground for the burial of Englishmen outside the -Alcalá-gate, at Madrid. During the war, when all Spain was a churchyard -to our countrymen, this bit of land was taken possession of by a worthy -Madrilenian, not for his place of sepulture, but for good and profitable -cultivation. In 1831 Mr. Addington caused some researches to be made, -and the original conveyance was found in the _Contaduria de Hypothecas_, -the registry of deeds and mortgages which backward Spain possesses, and -which advanced England does not. The intruder was ejected after some -struggling on his part. Before Lord Bute’s time the English had been -buried at night and without ceremonies, in the garden of the convent _de -los Recoletos_; and, as Lord Bute’s new bit of ground was extensive and -valuable, the pious monks wished to give up the English corner in their -garden, in exchange for it; but the transfer was prevented by the recent -law which forbade all burial in cities. The field purchased by Lord Bute -is now unenclosed and uncultivated; fortunately it has not been much -wanted, only fifteen Protestants having died at Madrid during the last -thirty years. In November, 1831, Ferdinand VII. finally settled this -grave question by a decree, in which he granted permission for the -erection of a Protestant burial-ground in all towns where a British -consul or agent should reside, subject to most _degrading_ conditions. -The first cemetery set apart in Spain, in virtue of this gracious decree -from a man replaced on his throne by the death of 30,000 Englishmen, was -the work of Mr. Mark, our consul at Malaga; he enclosed a spot of ground -to the east of that city, and placed a tablet over the entrance, -recording the royal permission, and above that a cross. Thus he appealed -to the dominant feelings of Spaniards, to their loyalty and religion. -The Malagenians were amazed when they beheld this emblem of Christianity -raised over the last home of Lutheran dogs, and exclaimed, “So even -these Jews make use of the cross!” The term Jew, it must be remembered, -is the acme of Spanish loathing and vituperation. The first body -interred in it was that of Mr. Boyd, who was shot by the bloody Moreno, -with the poor dupe Torrijos and the rest of his rebel companions. - -[Sidenote: THE SPANISH FIGARO.] - - - - -CHAPTER XIX. - - The Spanish - Figaro--Mustachios--Whiskers--Beards--Bleeding--Heraldic - Blood--Blue, Red, and Black Blood--Figaro’s Shop--The - Baratero--Shaving and Toothdrawing. - - -Few who love Don Quixote, will deem any notice on the Peninsular surgeon -complete in which the barber is not mentioned, even be it in a -postscript. Although the names of both these learned professors have -long been nearly synonymous in Spain, the barber is much to be -preferred, inasmuch as his cuts are less dangerous, and his conversation -is more agreeable. He with the curate formed the quiet society of the -Knight of La Mancha, as the apothecary and vicar used to make that of -most of our country squires of England. Let, therefore, every Adonis of -France, now bearded as a pard although young, nay, let each and all of -our fair readers, albeit equally exempt from the pains and penalties of -daily shaving, make instantly, on reaching sunny Seville, a pilgrimage -to the shrine of San Figaro. His shop--apocryphal it is to be feared as -other legendary localities--lies near the cathedral, and is a no less -established lion than the house of Dulcinea is at Toboso, or the prison -tower of Gil Blas is at Segovia. Such is the magic power of genius. -Cervantes and Le Sage have given form, fixture, and local habitation to -the airy nothings of their fancy’s creations, while Mozart and Rossini, -by filling the world with melody, have bidden the banks of the -Guadalquivir re-echo to their sweet inventions. - -[Sidenote: SPANISH MUSTACHIOS.] - -To those even who have no music in their souls, the movement from -doctors to barbers is harmonious in a land where beards were long -honoured as the type of valour and chivalry, and where shaving took the -precedence of surgery; and even to this day, _la tienda de barbero_, the -shop of the man of the razor, is better supplied than many a Spanish -hospital both with patients and cutting instruments. One word first on -the black whiskers of tawny Spain. These _patillas_, as they are now -termed, must be distinguished from the ancient mustachio, the -_mostacho_, a very classical but almost obsolete word, which the -scholars of Salamanca have derived from μυστἁξ, the upper lip. -Their present and usual name is _Bigote_, which is also of foreign -etymology, being the Spanish corruption of the German oath _bey gott_, -and formed under the following circumstances: for nicknames, which stick -like burrs, often survive the history of their origin. The free-riding -followers of Charles V., who wore these tremendous appendages of -manhood, swore like troopers, and gave themselves infinite airs, to the -more infinite disgust of their Spanish comrades, who have a tolerable -good opinion of themselves, and a first-rate hatred of all their foreign -allies. These strange mustachios caught their eyes, as the stranger -sounds which proceeded from beneath them did their ears. Having a quick -sense of the ridiculous, and a most Oriental and schoolboy knack at a -nickname, they thereupon gave the sound to the substance, and called the -redoubtable garnish of hair, _bigotes_. This process in the formation of -phrases is familiar to philologists, who know that an essential part -often is taken for the whole. For example, a hat, in common Spanish -parlance, is equivalent to a grandee, as with us the woolsack is to a -Lord Chancellor. It is natural that unscholastic soldiers, when dealing -with languages which they do not understand, should fix on their -enemies, as a term of reproach, those words which, from hearing used the -most often, they imagine must constitute the foundation of the hostile -grammar. Thus our troops called the Spaniards _los Carajos_, from their -terrible oaths and terrible runnings away. So the clever French -designated as _les godams_, those “stupid” fellows in red jackets who -never could be made to know when they were beaten, but continued to make -use of that significant phrase in reference to their victors, until they -politely showed them the shortest way home over the Pyrenees. - -[Sidenote: THE BEARD.] - -The real Spanish mustachio, as worn by the real Don Whiskerandoses, men -with shorter cloaks and purses than beards and rapiers, have long been -cut off, like the pig-tails of our monarchs and cabinet ministers. Yet -their merits are embalmed in metaphors more enduring than that -masterpiece in bronze with which Mr. Wyatt, full of Phidias, has adorned -King George’s back and Charing Cross. Thus _hombre de mucho bigote_, a -man of much moustache, means, in Spanish, a personage of considerable -pretension, a fine, liberal fellow, and anything, in short, but a bigot -in wine, women, or theology. The Spanish original realities, like the -pig-tails of Great Britain, have also been immortalised by fine art, and -inimitably painted by Velazquez. Under his life-conferring brush they -required no twisting with hot irons. Curling from very ire and martial -instinct, they were called _bigotes á la Fernandina_, and their rapid -growth was attributed to the eternal cannon smoke of the enemy, into -which nothing could prevent their valorous wearers from poking their -faces. This luxuriance has diminished in these degenerate times, unless -Napier’s ‘History of the Peninsular War’ be, as the Spaniards say, -written in a spirit of envy and jealousy against their heroic armies, -which alone trampled on the invincible eagles of Austerlitz. - -As among the Egyptian gods and priests, rank was indicated by the cut of -the beard, so in Spain the military civil and clerical shapes were -carefully defined. The Charley, or Imperial, as we term the little tuft -in the middle of the under lip, a word by the way which is derivable -either from our Charles or from his namesake emperor, was called in -Spain _El perrillo_, “the little dog,” the terminating tail being -omitted, which however becoming in the animal and bronzes, shocked -Castilian euphuism. - -[Sidenote: THE BIGOTE.] - -In the mediæval periods of Spain’s greatness the beard and not the -whisker was the real thing; and as among the Orientals and ancients, it -was at once the mark of wisdom and of soldiership; to cut it off was an -insult and injury scarcely less than decapitation; nay, this nicety of -honour survived the grave. The seated corpse of the Cid, so tells his -history, knocked down a Jew who ventured to take the dead lion by his -beard, which, as all natural philosophers know, has an independent -vitality, and grows whether its master be alive or dead, be willing or -unwilling. When the insolent Gauls pulled these flowing ornaments of the -aged Roman senators, they, who with unmoved dignity had seen Marshal -Brennus steal their plate and pictures, could not brook that last and -greatest outrage. In process of time and fashion the beards of Spain -fell off, and being only worn by mendicant monks and he-goats, were -considered ungentlemanlike, and were substituted among cavaliers by the -Italian mostachio; the seat of Spanish honour was then placed under the -nose, that sensitive sentinel. The renowned Duke of Alva being of course -in want of money, once offered one of his bigotes as a pledge for a -loan, and one only was considered to be a sufficient security by the -Rothschilds of the day, who remembered the hair-breadth escape of their -ancestor too well to laugh at anything connected with a hero’s beard; -_nous avons changé tout cela_. The united Hebrews of Paris and London -would not now advance a stiver for every particular hair on the bodies -of Narvaez and Espartero, not even if the moustache reglémentaire of -Montpensier, and a bushel of Bourbon beards, warranted legitimate, were -added. - -The use of the _bigote_ in Spain is legally confined to the military, -most of whose generals--their name is legion--are tenderly chary of -their Charlies, dreading razors no less than swords; when the Infante -Don Carlos escaped from England, the only real difficulty was in getting -him to cut off his moustache; he would almost sooner have lost his head, -like his royal English _tocayo_ or omonyme. Elizabeth’s gallant Drake, -when he burnt Philip’s fleet at Cadiz, simply called his Nelsonic touch -“singeing the King of Spain’s whiskers.” Zurbano the other day thought -it punishment enough for any Basque traitors to cut off their _bigotes_, -and turn them loose, like rats without tails, _pour encourager les -autres_. It is indeed a privation. Thus Majaval, the pirate murderer, -who by the glorious uncertainty of English law was not hanged at Exeter, -offered his prison beard, when he reached Barcelona, to the delivering -Virgin. Many Spanish civilians and shopkeepers, in imitation of the -transpyrenean _Calicots_, men who wear moustachios on their lips in -peace, and spectacles on their noses in war, so constantly let them -grow, that Ferdinand VII. fulminated a royal decree, which was to cut -them off from the face of the Peninsula, as the Porte is docking his -true believers. Such is the progress of young and beardless -civilization. The attempt to shorten the cloaks of Madrid nearly cost -Charles III. his crown, and this cropping mandate of his beloved -grandson was obeyed as Spanish decrees generally are, for a month all -but twenty-nine days. These decrees, like solemn treaties, charters, -stock-certificates, and so forth, being mostly used to light cigars; -now-a-days that the Moro-Spaniard is aping the true Parisian polish, the -national countenance is somewhat put out of face, to the serious sorrow -and disparagement of poor Figaro. - -[Sidenote: SPANISH BLEEDING.] - -As for his house and home none can fail finding it out; no cicerone is -wanted, for the outside is distinguished from afar by the emblems of his -time-honoured profession: first and foremost hangs a bright glittering -metal Mambrino-helmet basin, with a neat semicircular opening cut out of -the rim, into which the throat of the patient is let during the -operation of lathering, which is always done with the hand and most -copiously; near it are suspended huge grinders, which in an English -museum would pass for the teeth of elephants, and for those of Saint -Christopher in Spanish churches, where comparative anatomy is scouted as -heretical in the matter of relics; strange to say, and no Spanish -theologian could ever satisfy us why, this saint is not the “especial -advocate” against the toothache; here Santa Apollonia is the soothing -patroness. Near these molars are displayed awful phlebotomical symbols, -and rude representations of bloodlettings; for in Spain, in church and -out, painting does the work of printing to the many who can see, but -cannot read. The barber’s pole, with its painted bandage riband, the -support by which the arm was kept extended, is wanting to the threshold -of the Figaros of Spain, very much because bleeding is generally -performed in the foot, in order that the equilibrium of the whole -circulation may be maintained. The painting usually presents a female -foot, which being an object, and not unreasonably, of great devotion in -Spain, is selected by the artist; tradition also influences the choice, -for the dark sex were wont formerly to be bled regularly as calves are -still, to obtain whiteness of flesh and fairness of complexion: as it -was usual on each occasion that the lover should restore the exhausted -patient by a present, the purses of gallants kept pace with the venous -depletion of their mistresses. The _Sangrados_ of Spain, professional as -well as unprofessional, have long been addicted to the shedding of -innocent blood; indeed, no people in the world are more curious about -the pedigree purity of their own blood, nor less particular about -pouring it out like water, whether from their own veins or those of -others. One word on this vital fluid with which unhappy Spain is too -often watered during her intestine disorders. - -[Sidenote: HERALDIC BLOOD.] - -If the Iberian anatomists did not discover its circulation, the heralds -have “tricked” out its blazoning, as we do our admirals, with all the -nicety of armorial coloring. _Blue blood, Sangre azul_, is the ichor of -demigods which flows in the arteries of the grandees and highest -nobility, each of whose pride is to be - - “A true Hidalgo, free from every stain - Of Moor or Jewish blood,” - -[Sidenote: FIGARO’S SHOP.] - -a boast which like some others of theirs wants confirmation, as it is in -the power of one woman to taint the blood of Charlemagne; and nature, -which cannot be written down by Debretts, has stamped on their -countenances the marks of hybrid origin, and particularly from these -very and most abhorred stocks; it is from this tint of celestial azure -that the term _sangre su_ is given in Spain to the elect and best set of -earth, the _haute volée_, who soar above vulgar humanity. _Red_ blood -flows in the veins of poor gentlemen and younger brothers, and is just -tolerated by all, except judicious mothers, whose daughters are -marriageable. _Blood_, simple blood, is the puddle which paints the -cheek of the plebeian and roturier; it has, or ought to possess, a -perfect incompatibility with the better coloured fluid, and an oil and -vinegar property of non-amalgamation. There is more difference, as -Salario says, between such bloods, than there is between red wine and -Rhenish. These and other dreams are, it is to be feared, the fond -metaphors of heralds. The rosy stream in mockery of _rouge_ croix and -_blue_ dragons flows inversely and perversely: in the arteries of the -lusty muleteer it is the lava blood of health and vigour; in the monkey -marquis and baboon baron it stagnates in the dull lethargy of a blue -collapse. Their noble ichor is virtually more impoverished than their -nominal rent-roll, since the operation of transmission of wholesome -blood from young veins into a worn-out frame, which is so much practised -elsewhere, is too nice for the _Sangre su_ and _Sangrados_ of Spain; the -thin fluid is never enriched with the calipash heiress of an alderman, -nor is the decayed genealogical stock renewed by the golden graft of a -banker’s only daughter. The insignificant grandees of Spain quietly -permitted Christina to barter away their country’s liberties; but when -her children by the base-born Muñoz came betwixt them and their -nobility, then alone did they remonstrate. Indifferent to the -degradation of the throne, they were tremblingly alive to the punctilios -of their own order. Those Peninsular ladies who are blues, by blood not -socks, are equally fastidious in the serious matter of its admixture -even by Hymen: one of them, it is said, having chanced in a moment of -weakness to mingle her azure with something brownish, alleged in excuse -that she had done so for her character’s sake. “_Que disparate, mi -Señora._” “What nonsense, my lady!” was her fair confidante’s reply; -“ten bastards would have less discoloured your blood, than one -legitimate child the issue of such a misalliance.” - -To stick, however, to our colours; _black blood_ is the vile Stygean -pitch which is found in the carcasses of Jews, Gentiles, Moors, -Lutherans, and other combustible heretics, with whose bodies the holy -tribunal made bonfires for the good of their souls. Nay, in the case of -the Hebrew this black blood is also thought to stink, whence Jews were -called by learned Latinists _putos_, quia putant; and certainly at -Gibraltar an unsavoury odour seems to be gentilitious in the children of -Israel, not however to unorthodox and unheraldic nostrils a jot more so, -than in the believing Spanish monk. Recently the colour _black_ has been -assigned to the blood of political opponents, and a copious “_shedding -of vile black blood_” has been the regular panacea of every military -Sangrado. How extremes meet! Thus, this aristocracy of colour, in -despotical old Spain, which lies in the veins, is placed on the skin in -new republican America. Where is the free and easy Yankee would -recognise a brother, in a black? - -[Sidenote: THE BARATERO.] - -To return to Figaro. There is no mistaking his shop; for independently -of the external manifestations of the fine arts practised within, his -threshold is the lounge of all idlers, as well as of those who are -anxious to relieve their chins of the thick stubble of a three days’ -growth. The house of the barber has, since the days of Solomon and -Horace, been the mart of news and gossip,--of epigram and satire, as -Pasquino the tailor’s was at Rome. It is the club of the lower orders, -who here take up a position, and listen, cloaked as Romans, to some -reader of the official Gazette, which, with a cigar, indicates modern -civilization, and soothes him with empty vapour. Here, again, is the -mint of scandal, and all who have lived intimately with Spaniards, know -how invariably every one stabs his neighbour behind his back with words, -the lower orders occasionally using knives sharper even than their -tongues. Here, again, resort gamblers, who, seated on the ground with -cards more begrimed than the earth, pursue their fierce game as eager -as if existence was at stake; for there is generally some well-known -cock of the walk, a bully, or _guapo_, who will come up and lay his hand -on the cards, and say, “No one shall play with any cards but with -mine”--_aqui no se juega sino con mis barajas_. If the parties are -cowed, they give him a halfpenny each. If, however, one of the -challenged be a spirited fellow, he defies him--_Aquí no se cobra el -barato sino con un puñal de Albacete_--“You get no change here except -out of an Albacete knife.” If the defiance be accepted, _Vamos alla_ is -the answer--“Let’s go to it.” There’s an end then of the cards, all -flock to the more interesting _écarté_; instances have occurred, where -Greek meets Greek, of their tying the two advanced feet together, and -yet remaining fencing with knife and cloak for a quarter of an hour -before the blow be dealt. The knife is held firmly, the thumb is pressed -straight on the blade, and calculated either for the cut or thrust. - -The term _Barato_ strictly means the present which is given to waiters -who bring a new pack of cards. The origin is Arabic, _Baara_, “a -_voluntary_ gift;” in the corruption of the _Baratero_, it has become an -involuntary one. Our legal term _Barratry_ is derived from the mediæval -_Barrateria_, which signified cheating or foul play. Cervantes well knew -that _Baratar_ in old Spanish meant to exchange unfairly, to -thimble-rig, to sell anything under its real value, and therefore gave -the name of _Barrateria_ to Sancho’s sham government. The _Baratero_ is -quite a thing of Spain, where personal prowess is cherished, and there -is one in every regiment, ship, prison, and even among galley-slaves. - -[Sidenote: FIGARO’S SHOP.] - -The interior of the barber’s shop is equally a _cosa de España_. Her -neighbour may boast to lead Europe in hair-dressing and clipping -poodles, but Figaro snaps his fingers at her civilization, and no cat’s -ears and tail can be closer shaved than his one’s are. The walls of his -operating room are neatly lathered with white-wash; on a peg hangs his -brown cloak and conical hat; his shelves are decorated with clay-painted -figures of picturesque rascals, arrayed in all their Andalucian -toggery--bandits, bull-fighters, and smugglers, who, especially the -latter, are more universally popular than all or any long-tail-coated -chancellors of exchequers. The walls are enlivened with rude prints of -fandango dancings, miracles, and bull-fights, in which the Spanish -vulgar delight, as ours do in racing and ring notabilities. Nor is a -portrait of his _querida_, his black-eyed sweetheart, often wanting. -Near these, for religion mixes itself with everything of Spain, are -images of the Virgin, patron saints, with stoups for holy water, and -little cups in which lighted wicks burn floating on green oil; and -formerly no barber prepared for an operation, whether on veins, teeth, -or beards, without first making the sign of a cross. Thus hallowed, his -implements of art are duly arranged in order; his glass, soap, towels, -and leather strap, and guitar, which indeed, with the razor, constitutes -the genus barber. “These worthies,” said Don Quixote, “are all either -_guitarristas o copleros_; they are either makers of couplets, or -accompany other songsters with catgut.” Hence Quevedo, in his ‘Pigsties -of Satan,’ punishes unrighteous Figaros, by hanging up near them a -guitar, which tantalizes their touch, and moves away when they wish to -take it down. - -[Sidenote: SPANISH SHAVING.] - -Few Spaniards ever shave themselves; it is too mechanical, so they -prefer, like the Orientals, a “razor that is hired,” and as that must be -paid for, scarcely any go to the expensive luxury of an every-day shave. -Indeed, Don Quixote advised Sancho, when nominated a governor, to shave -at least every other day if he wished to look like a gentleman. The -peculiar sallowness of a Spaniard’s face is heightened by the contrast -of a sable bristle. Figaro himself is dressed much after the fashion in -which he appears on transpyrenean stages; he, on true Galenic -principles, takes care not to alarm his patients by a lugubrious -costume. There is nothing black, or appertaining to the grave about him; -he is all tags, tassels, colour, and embroidery, quips and quirks; he is -never still; always in a bustle, he is lying and lathering, cutting -chins and capers, here, there, and everywhere. _Figaro la, Figaro qua._ -If he has a moment free from taking off beards and making paper cigars, -he whips down his guitar and sings the last seguidilla; thus he drives -away dull care, who hates the sound of merry music, and no wonder; the -operator performs his professional duties much more skilfully than the -rival surgeon, nor does he bungle at any little extraneous _amateur_ -commissions; and there are more real performances enacted by the -barbers in Seville itself, than in a dozen European opera houses. - -These Figaros, says their proverb, are either mad or garrulous, -_Barberos, o locos, o parleros_. Hence, when the Andalucian autocrat, -Adrian, when asked how he liked to be shaved, replied “Silently.” -Humbler mortals must submit to let Figaro have his wicked way in talk; -for when a man is fixed in his operating chair, with his jaws lathered, -and his nose between a finger and a thumb, there is not much -conversational fair play or reciprocity. The Spanish barber is said to -learn to shave on the orphan’s head, and nothing, according to one -described by Martial, escaped except a single wary he-goat. The -experiments tried on the veins and teeth of aching humanity, are -sometimes ludicrous--at others serious, as we know to our cost, having -been silly enough to leave behind in Spain two of our wise teeth as -relics, tokens, and trophies of Figaro’s unrelenting prowess. We cannot -but remember such things were, and were dearer, than the pearls in -Cleopatra’s ears, which she melted in her gazpachos. “A mouth without -molars,” said Don Quixote to Sancho, “is worse than a mill without -grinding-stones;” and the Don was right. - -[Sidenote: WHAT TO OBSERVE IN SPAIN.] - - - - -CHAPTER XX. - - What to observe in Spain--How to observe--Spanish Incuriousness and - Suspicions--French Spies and Plunderers--Sketching in - Spain--Difficulties, How Surmounted--Efficacy of Passports and - Bribes--Uncertainty and Want of Information in the Natives. - - -[Sidenote: DIFFICULTIES OF OBSERVING.] - -Now that the most approved methods of travelling, living, and being -buried in Spain have been touched on, our kind readers will naturally -inquire, what are the peculiar attractions which should induce gentlemen -and ladies who take their ease at home, to adventure into this land of -roughing it, in which _rats_ rather than hares jump up when the least -expected. “What to observe” is a question easier asked than answered; -who indeed can cater for the multitudinous variety of fancies, the -differences by which Nature keeps all nature right? Who shall decide -when doctors disagree, as they always do, on matters of taste, since -every one has his own way of viewing things, and his own hobby and -predilection? Say not, however, with Smellfungus, that all is a -wilderness from Dan to Beersheba,--nor seek for weeds where flowers -grow. The search for the excellent is the high road to excellence, as -not to appreciate it when found is the surest test of mediocrity. The -refining effort and habit teaches the mind to think; from long pondering -on the beautiful world without, snatches are caught of the beautiful -world within, and a glimpse is granted to the chosen few, of glories -hidden from the vulgar many. They indeed have eyes, but see not; nay, -scarcely do they behold the things of external nature, until told what -to look for, where to find it, and how to observe it; then a new sense, -a second sight, is given. Happy, thrice happy those from whose eyes the -film has been removed, who instead of a previous vague general and -unintelligent stare, have really learnt to _see_! To them a fountain of -new delights, pure and undefiled, welling up and overflowing, is opened; -in proportion as they comprehend the infinite form, colour, and beauty -with which Nature clothes her every work, albeit her sweetest charms -are only revealed to the initiated, reserved as the rich reward of those -who bow to her shrine with singleness of purpose, and turn to her -worship with all their hearts, souls, and understandings. - -It was with these beneficent intentions that our good friend John Murray -first devised Handbooks; and next, by writing them himself, taught -others how to dip into inkstands for red books, which tell man, woman, -and child what to observe, to the ruin of _laquais de place_, and -discomfiture of authors of single octavos and long vacation excursions. -Few gentlemen who publish the notes of their Peninsular gallop much -improve their light diaries by discussing heavy handbook subjects; -skimming, like swallows, over the surface, and in pursuit of insects, -they neither heed nor discern the gems which lurk in the deeps below; -they see indeed all the scum and straws which float on the surface, and -write down on their tablets all that is rotten in the state of Spain. -Hence the sameness of some of their works; one book and bandit reflects -another, until writers and readers are imprisoned in a vicious circle. -Nothing gives more pain to Spaniards than seeing volume after volume -written on themselves and their country by foreigners, who have only -rapidly glanced at one-half of the subject, and that half the one of -which they are the most ashamed, and consider the least worth notice. -This constant prying into the nakedness of the land and exposing it -afterwards, has increased the dislike which they entertain towards the -_impertinente curioso_ tribe: they well know and deeply feel their -country’s decline; but like poor gentlefolks, who have nothing but the -past to be proud of, they are anxious to keep these family secrets -concealed, even from themselves, and still more from the observations of -those who happen to be their superiors, not in blood, but in worldly -prosperity. This dread of being shown up sharpens their inherent -suspicions, when strangers wish to “observe,” and examine into their -ill-provided arsenals and institutions, just as Burns was scared even by -the honest antiquarian Grose; so they lump the good and the bad, putting -them down as book-making Paul Prys:-- - -[Sidenote: DISLIKE TO OBSERVERS.] - - “If there’s a hole in a’ your coats, - I rede ye tent it; - A chiel’s amang ye, taking notes, - And faith! he’ll prent it.” - -The less observed and said about these Spanish matters, these _cosas de -España_--the present tatters in her once proud flag, on which the sun -never set--is, they think, the soonest mended. These comments heal -slower than the knife-gash--“_Sanan cuchilladas, mas_ NO _malas -palabras_.” Let no author imagine that the fairest observations that he -can take and make of Spain as she is, setting down nought in malice, can -ever please a Spaniard; his pride and self-esteem are as great as the -self-conceit and low consequence of the American: both are morbidly -sensitive and touchy; both are afflicted with the notion that all the -world, who are never troubling their heads about them, are thinking of -nothing else, and linked in one common conspiracy, based in envy, -jealousy, or ignorance; “you don’t understand us, I guess.” Truth, -except in the shape of a compliment, is the greatest of libels, and is -howled against as a lie and forgery from the Straits to the Bidasoa; -Napier’s history, for example. The Spaniard, who is hardly accustomed to -a free, or rather a licentious press, and the scavenger propensity with -which, in England and America, it rakes into the sewers of private life -and the gangrenes of public, is disgusted with details which he resents -as a breach of hospitality in strangers. He considers, and justly, that -it is no proof either of goodness of breeding, heart, or intellect, to -be searching for blemishes rather than beauties, for toadstools rather -than violets; he despises those curmudgeons who see motes rather than -beams in the brightest eyes of Andalucia. The productions of strangers, -and especially of those who ride and write the quickest, must savour of -the pace and sources from whence they originate. Foreigners who are -unacquainted with the language and good society of Spain are of -necessity brought the most into contact with the lowest scenes and the -worst class of people, thus road-scrapings and postilion information too -often constitute the raw-head-and-bloody-bones material of their -composition. All this may be very amusing to those who like these -subjects, but they afford a poor criterion for descanting on whatever -does the most honour to a country, or gives sound data for judging its -real condition. How would we ourselves like that Spaniards should form -their opinions of England and Englishmen from the Newgate calendars, the -reports of cads, and the annals of beershops? - -[Sidenote: DISLIKE TO OBSERVERS.] - -Various as are the objects worth observing in Spain, many of which are -to be seen there only, it may be as well to mention what is _not_ to be -seen, for there is no such loss of time as finding this out oneself, -after weary chace and wasted hour. Those who expect to meet with -well-garnished arsenals, libraries, restaurants, charitable or literary -institutions, canals, railroads, tunnels, suspension-bridges, -steam-engines, omnibuses, manufactories, polytechnic galleries, pale-ale -breweries, and similar appliances and appurtenances of a high state of -political, social, and commercial civilization, had better stay at home. -In Spain there are no turnpike-trust meetings, no quarter-sessions, no -courts of _justice_, according to the real meaning of that word, no -treadmills, no boards of guardians, no chairmen, directors, -masters-extraordinary of the court of chancery, no assistant poor-law -commissioners. There are no anti-tobacco-teetotal-temperance-meetings, -no auxiliary-missionary-propagating societies, nothing in the blanket -and lying-in asylum line, nothing, in short, worth a revising-barrister -of three years’ standing’s notice, unless he be partial to the study of -the laws of bankruptcy. Spain is no country for the political economist, -beyond affording an example of the decline of the wealth of nations, and -offering a wide topic on errors to be avoided, as well as for -experimental theories, plans of reform and amelioration. In Spain, -Nature reigns; she has there lavished her utmost prodigality of soil and -climate, which Spaniards have for the last four centuries been -endeavouring to counteract by a culpable neglect of agricultural -speeches and dinners, and a non-distribution of prizes for the biggest -boars, asses, and labourers with largest families. - -[Sidenote: WHAT TO OBSERVE.] - -The landed proprietor of the Peninsula is little better than a weed of -the soil; he has never observed, nor scarcely permitted others to -observe, the vast capabilities which might and ought to be called into -action. He seems to have put Spain into Chancery, such is the general -dilapidation. The country is little better than a terra incognita, to -naturalists, geologists, and all other branches of ists and ologists. -Everywhere there, the material is as superabundant as native labourers -and operatives are deficient. All these interesting branches of inquiry, -healthful and agreeable, as being out-of-door pursuits, and bringing the -amateur in close contact with nature, offer to embryo authors who are -ambitious to _book something new_, a more worthy subject than the old -story of dangers of bull-fights, bandits, and black eyes. Those who -aspire to the romantic, the poetical, the sentimental, the artistical, -the antiquarian, the classical, in short, to any of the sublime and -beautiful lines, will find both in the past and present state of Spain, -subjects enough in wandering with lead-pencil and note-book through this -singular country, which hovers between Europe and Africa, between -civilization and barbarism; this land of the green valley and barren -mountain, of the boundless plain and the broken sierra; those Elysian -gardens of the vine, the olive, the orange, and the aloe; those -trackless, vast, silent, uncultivated wastes, the heritage of the wild -bee;--in flying from the dull uniformity, the polished monotony of -Europe, to the racy freshness of that original, unchanged country, where -antiquity treads on the heels of to-day, where Paganism disputes the -very altar with Christianity, where indulgence and luxury contend with -privation and poverty, where a want of all that is generous or merciful -is blended with the most devoted heroic virtues, where the most -cold-blooded cruelty is linked with the fiery passions of Africa, where -ignorance and erudition stand in violent and striking contrast. - -[Sidenote: WHAT TO OBSERVE.] - -“There,” says the Handbook, in a style which qualifies the author for -the best bound and fairest edited album, “let the antiquarian pore over -the stirring memorials of many thousand years, the vestiges of -Phœnician enterprise, of Roman magnificence, of Moorish elegance, in -that storehouse of ancient customs, that repository of all elsewhere -long forgotten and passed by; there let him gaze upon those classical -monuments, unequalled almost in Greece or Italy, and on those fairy -Aladdin palaces, the creatures of Oriental gorgeousness and imagination, -with which Spain alone can enchant the dull European; there let the man -of feeling dwell on the poetry of her envy-disarming decay, fallen from -her high estate, the dignity of a dethroned monarch, borne with -unrepining self-respect, the last consolation of the innately noble, -which no adversity can take away; let the lover of art feed his eyes -with the mighty masterpieces of ideal Italian art, when Raphael and -Titian strove to decorate the palaces of Charles, the great emperor of -the age of Leo X. Let him gaze on the living nature of Velazquez and -Murillo, whose paintings are truly to be seen in Spain alone; let the -artist sketch frowning forms of the castle, the pomp and splendour of -the cathedral, where God is worshipped in a manner as nearly befitting -his glory as the arts and wealth of finite man can reach. Let him dwell -on the Gothic gloom of the cloister, the feudal turret, the vasty -Escorial, the rock-built alcazar of imperial Toledo, the sunny towers of -stately Seville, the eternal snows and lovely vega of Granada; let the -geologist clamber over mountains of marble, and metal-pregnant sierras; -let the botanist cull from the wild hothouse of nature plants unknown, -unnumbered, matchless in colour, and breathing the aroma of the sweet -south; let all, learned and unlearned, listen to the song, the guitar, -the castanet; or join in the light fandango and spirit-stirring -bullfight; let all mingle with the gay, good-humoured, temperate -peasantry, free, manly, and independent, yet courteous and respectful; -let all live with the noble, dignified, high-bred, self-respecting -Spaniard; let all share in their easy, courteous society; let all admire -their dark-eyed women, so frank and natural, to whom the voice of all -ages and nations has conceded the palm of attraction, to whom Venus has -bequeathed her magic girdle of grace and fascination; let all--but -enough on starting on this expedition, ‘where,’ as Don Quixote said, -‘there are opportunities, brother Sancho, of putting our hands into what -are called adventures up to our elbows.’” - -[Sidenote: SUSPICION OF OBSERVERS.] - -Nor was the La Manchan hidalgo wrong in assigning a somewhat adventurous -character to the searchers in Spain for useful and entertaining -knowledge, since the natives are fond, and with much reason, of -comparing themselves and their country to _tesoros escondidos_, to -hidden treasures, to talents buried in napkins; but they are equally -fond of turning round, and falling foul of any pains-taking foreigner -who digs them up, as Le Sage did the soul of Pedro Garcias. Nothing -throughout the length and breadth of the land creates greater suspicion -or jealousy than a stranger’s making drawings, or writing down notes in -a book: whoever is observed _sacando planes_, “taking plans,” _mapeando -el pais_, “mapping the country,”--for such are the expressions of the -simplest pencil sketch--is thought to be an engineer, a spy, and, at all -events, to be about no good. The lower classes, like the Orientals, -attach a vague mysterious notion to these, to them unintelligible, -proceedings; whoever is seen at work is immediately reported to the -civil and military authorities, and, in fact, in out-of-the-way places, -whenever an unknown person arrives, from the rarity of the occurrence, -he is the observed of all observers. Much the same occurs in the East, -where Europeans are suspected of being emissaries of their governments, -as neither they nor Spaniards can at all understand why any man should -incur trouble and expense, which no native ever does, for the mere -purpose of acquiring knowledge of foreign countries, or for his own -private improvement or amusement. Again, whatever particular -investigations or questions are made by foreigners, about things that to -the native appear unworthy of observation, are magnified and -misrepresented by the many, who, in every place, wish to curry favour -with whoever is the governor or chief person, whether civil or military. -The natives themselves attach little or no importance to views, ruins, -geology, inscriptions, and so forth, which they see every day, and which -they therefore conclude cannot be of any more, or ought not to be of -more, interest to the stranger. They judge of him by themselves; few men -ever draw in Spain, and those who do are considered to be professional, -and employed by others. - -[Sidenote: OFFICIAL SUSPICION.] - -One of the many fatal legacies left to Spain by the French, was an -increased suspicion of men with the pencil and notebook. Previously to -their invasion spies and agents were sent, who, under the guise of -travellers, reconnoitred the land; and then, casting off the clothing of -sheep, guided in the wolves to plunder and destruction. The aged prior -of the Merced, at Seville, observed to us, when pointing out the empty -frames and cases from whence the Messrs. Soult and Co. had “removed” the -Murillos and sacred plate,--“_Lo creira usted_--Will your Grace believe -it, I beheld among the _ladrones_ a person who grinned at me when I -recognised him, to whom, some time before the invaders’ arrival, I had -pointed out these very treasures. _Tonto de mi!_ Oh! simpleton that I -was, to take a _gabacho_ for an honest man.” Yet this worthy individual -was decorated with the legion of honour of Buonaparte, whose “first note -in his pocket-book” of agenda, _after_ the conquest of England, was to -“carry off the Warwick vase;” as Denon, who too had spoiled the -Egyptians, told Sir E. Tomason. We English, whose shops, “bursting with -opulence into the streets,” have not yet been visited, although the -temptation is held out by royal pamphleteers, can scarcely enter into -the feelings of those whose homes are still reeking with blood, and -blighted by poverty. The Castilian cat, who has been scalded, flies even -from cold water. - -Some excuse, therefore, may be alleged in favour of Spanish authorities, -especially in rarely visited districts, when they behold a strange -barbarian eye peeping and peering about. Their first impression, as in -the East, is that he may be a Frank: hence the shaking, quaking, and -ague which comes over them. At Seville, Granada, and places where -foreign artists are somewhat more plentiful, the processes of drawing -may be passed over with pity and contempt, but in lonely localities the -star-gazing observer is himself the object of argus-eyed, official -observation. He is, indeed, as unconscious of the portentous emotions -and ill-omened fears which he is exciting, as was the innocent crow of -the meanings attached to his movements by the Roman augurs, and few -augurs of old ever rivalled the Spanish alcaldes of to-day in quick -suspicion and perception of evil, especially where none is intended. -Witness what actually occurred to three excellent friends of ours. - -[Sidenote: DRAWING IN SPAIN.] - -The readers of Borrow’s inimitable ‘Bible in Spain’ will remember his -hair-breadth escape from being shot for Don Carlos by the miraculous -intervention of the alcalde of Corcubion, who, if still alive, must be a -phœnix, and clearly worth observation, as he was a reader of the -“grand Baintham,” or our illustrious Jeremy Bentham, to whom the Spanish -reformers sent for a paper _constitution_, not having a very clear -meaning of the word or thing, whether it was made of cotton or -parchment. Another of the very best investigators and writers on Spain, -Lord Carnarvon, was nearly put to death in the same districts for Don -Miguel; Captain Widdrington, also one of the kindest and most honourable -of men, was once arrested on suspicion of being an agent of Espartero; -and we, our humble selves, have had the felicity of being marched to a -guard-house for sketching a Roman ruin, and the honour of being taken, -either for Curius Dentatus, an alligator, or Julius Cæsar,--as there is -no absurdity, no inconceivable ignorance, too great for the local -Spanish “Dogberries,” who rarely deviate into sense; when their fears or -suspicions are roused, they are as deaf alike to the dictates of common -reason or humanity as adders or Berbers; and here, as in the East, even -the best intentioned may be taken up for spies, and have their beards, -at least, cut off, as was done to King David’s envoyés. All classes, in -regard to strangers, generally get some hostile notions into their -heads, and then, instead of fairly and reasonably endeavouring to arrive -at the truth, pervert every innocent word, and twist every action, to -suit their own preconceived nonsense, until trifles become to their -jealous minds proofs as strong as Holy Writ. In justice, however, it -must be said, that when these authorities are once satisfied that the -stranger is an Englishman, and that no harm is intended, no people can -be more civil in offering assistance of every kind, especially the lower -classes, who gaze at the magical performance of drawing with wonder: the -higher classes seldom take any notice, partly from courtesy, and much -from the _nil admirari_ principle of Orientals, which conceals both -inferiority and ignorance, and shows good breeding. - -[Sidenote: CAPTAIN-GENERAL’S PASSPORT.] - -The drawing any garrison-town or fortified place in Spain is now most -strictly forbidden. The prevailing ignorance of everything connected -with the arts of design is so great, that no distinction is made between -the most regular plan and the merest artistical sketch: a drawing is -with them a drawing, and punishable as such. A Spanish barrack, -garrison, or citadel is therefore to be observed but little, and still -less to be sketched. A gentleman, nay, a lady also, is liable, under any -circumstances, when drawing, to be interrupted, and often is exposed to -arrest and incivility. Indeed, whether an artist or not, it is as well -not to exhibit any curiosity in regard to matters connected with -military buildings; nor will the loss be great, as they are seldom worth -looking at. The troops in our time were in a most admired disorder. If -they wore shoes they had no stockings; if they had muskets, flints were -not plentiful; if powder was supplied, balls were scarce; nothing, in -short, was ever according to regulation. Nay, the buttons even on the -officers’ coats were never dressed in file: some had the numbers up, -some down, some awry; but uniformity is a thing of Europe and not of the -East. At this moment, when the church is starved, when widows’ pensions -are unpaid, when governmental bankruptcy walks the land, whose bones, -marrow, and all are wasted to support the army, whose swords uphold the -hated men in office, the bands of the Royal Guard, the Prætorian bands, -do not keep tune, nor do the rank and file march in time. However -painful these things to pipe-clay martinets, the artist loses much, by -not being able to sketch such tumble-down forts and ragged garrisons, -each _Bisoño_ of which is more precious to painter eye than the officer -in command at Windsor; while his short-petticoated _querida_ is more -Murillo-like than a score of patronesses of Almack’s. - -[Sidenote: ORIENTAL ANALOGIES.] - -The safest plan for those who want to observe, and to book what they -observe, is to obtain a Spanish passport, with the object of their -curiosity and inquiries clearly specified in it. There is seldom any -difficulty at Madrid, if application be made through the English -minister, in obtaining such a document; indeed, when the applicant is -well known, it is readily given by any of the provincial -Captains-General. As it is couched in the Spanish language, it is -understood by all, high and low; an advantage which is denied in Spain -to those issued by our ambassadors, and even by the Foreign Office, who, -to the _credit_ of themselves and nation, give passes to Englishmen in -the French language, whereby among Spaniards a suspicion arises that the -bearer may be a Frenchman, which is not always pleasant. We preserve -among rare Peninsular relics a passport granted by our kind patron the -redoubtable Conde de España, and backed by the no less formidable -Quesada and Sarsfield, in which it was enjoined, in choice, intelligible -Castilian, to all and every minor rulers and governors, whether with the -pen or sword, to aid and assist the bearer in his examination of the -fine arts and antiquities of the Peninsula. These autocrats were more -implicitly obeyed in their respective Lord Lieutenancies than Ferdinand -himself; in fact, the pashas of the East are their exact types, each in -their district being the heads of both civil and military tribunals; and -as they not only administer, but suit the law according to the length of -their own feet, they in fact make it and trample upon it, and all in any -authority below them imitate their superiors as nearly as they dare. -These things of Spain are managed with a gravity truly Oriental, both in -the rulers and in the resignation of those ruled by them; these great -men’s passport and signature were obeyed by all minor authorities as -implicitly as an Oriental firman; the very fact of a stranger having a -Captain-General’s passport, is soon known by everybody, and, to use an -Oriental phrase, “makes his face to be whitened;” it acts as a letter of -introduction, and is in truth the best one of all, since it is addressed -to people in power in each village or town, who, true sheikhs, are -looked up to by all below them with the same deference, as they -themselves look up to all above them. The worth of a person recommended, -is estimated by that of the person who recommends; _tal recomendacion -tal recomendado_. To complete this thing of Oriental Spain, these three -omnipotent despots, who defied laws human and divine, who made dice of -their enemies’ bones, and goblets of their skulls, have all since been -assassinated, and sent to their account with all their sins on their -heads. In limited monarchies ministers who go too far, lose their -places, in Spain and Turkey their heads: the former, doubtless, are the -most severely punished. - -Those who wish to observe Spanish man, which, next to Spanish woman, -forms the proper study of mankind, will find that one key to decipher -this singular people is scarcely European, for this _Berberia Cristiana_ -is a neutral ground placed between the hat and the turban; many indeed -of themselves contend that Africa begins even at the Pyrenees. Be that -as it may, Spain, first civilized by the Phœnicians, and long -possessed by the Moors, has indelibly retained the original impressions. -Test her, therefore, and her males and females, by an Oriental standard, -how analogous does much appear that is strange and repugnant, if -compared with European usages. Take care, however, not to let either the -ladies or gentlemen know the hidden processes of your mind, for nothing -gives greater offence. The fair sex is willing, to prevent such a -mistake, to lay aside even their becoming _mantillas_, as their hidalgos -doff their stately Roman cloaks. These old clothes they offer up as -sacrifices on the altar of civilization, and to the mania of looking -exactly like the rest of the world, in Hyde Park and the Elysian Fields. - -[Sidenote: INDIFFERENCE TO THE BEAUTIFUL.] - -Another remarkable Oriental trait is the general want of love for the -beautiful in art, and the abundance of that Αφιλοκαλια with -which the ancients reproached the genuine Iberians; this is exhibited in -the general neglect and indifference shown towards Moorish works, which -instead of destroying they ought rather to have protected under -glasses, since such attractions are peculiar to the Peninsula. The -_Alhambra_, the pearl and magnet of Granada, is in their estimation -little better than a _casa de ratones_, or a rat’s hole, which in truth -they have endeavoured to make it by centuries of neglect; few natives -even go there, or understand the all-absorbing interest, the -concentrated devotion, which it excites in the stranger; so the Bedouin -regards the ruins of Palmyra, insensible to present beauty, as to past -poetry and romance. Sad is this non-appreciation of the Alhambra by the -Spaniards, but such are Asiatics, with whom sufficient for the day is -_their to-day_; who care neither for the past nor for the future, who -think only for the present and themselves, and like them the masses of -Spaniards, although not wearing turbans, lack the organs of veneration -and admiration for anything beyond matters connected with the first -person and the present tense. Again, the leaven of hatred against the -Moor and his relics is not extinct; they resent as almost heretical the -preference shown by foreigners to the works of infidels rather than to -those of good Catholics; such preference again at once implies their -inferiority, and convicts them of bad taste in their non-appreciation, -and of Vandalism in labouring to mutilate, what the Moor laboured to -adorn. The charming writings of Washington Irving, and the admiration of -European pilgrims, have latterly shamed the authorities into a somewhat -more conservative feeling towards the Alhambra; but even their benefits -are questionable; they “repair and beautify” on the church-warden -principle, and there is no less danger in such “restorations” than in -those fatal scourings of Murillo and Titian in the Madrid gallery, which -are effacing the lines where beauty lingers. Even their tardy -appreciation is somewhat interested: thus Mellado, in his late Guide, -laments that there should be no account of the Alhambra, of which he -speaks coldly, and suggests, as so many “English” visit it, that a -descriptive work would be a _segura especulacion!_ a safe speculation! -Thus the poetry of the Moorish Alhambra is coined into the Spanish prose -of profitable shillings and sixpences. - -[Sidenote: FAMILIARITY BREEDS CONTEMPT.] - -Travellers however should not forget, that much which to them has the -ravishing, enticing charms of novelty, is viewed by the dull sated eye -of the native, with familiarity which breeds contempt; they are weary, -oh fatal lassitude! even of the beautiful: alas! exclaimed the hermit on -Monserrat, to the stranger who was ravished by exquisite views, then and -there beheld by him for the first and last time, “all this has no -attraction for me; twenty and nine are the years that I have seen this -unchanged scene, every sunrise, every noon, every sunset.” But _sordent -domestica_, observes Pliny, nor are all things or persons honoured in -their own homes as they ought to be, since the days that Mahomet the -true prophet failed to persuade his wife and valet that his powers were -supernatural. Can it be wondered that ruins and “old rubbish” should be -held cheap among the Moro-Spaniards? or that their so-called “guides” -should mislead and misdirect the stranger? It cannot well be avoided, -since few of the writers ever travel in their own country, and fewer -travel out of it; thus from their limited means of comparison, they -cannot appreciate differences, nor tell what are the wants and wishes of -a foreigner: accordingly, scenes, costumes, ruins, usages, ceremonies, -&c., which they have known from childhood, are passed over without -notice, although, from their passing newness to the stranger, they are -exactly what he most desires to have pointed out and explained. Nay, the -natives frequently despise or are ashamed of those very things, which -most interest and charm the foreigner, for whose observation they select -the modern rather than the old, offering especially their poor pale -copies of Europe, in preference to their own rich, racy, and natural -originals, doing this in nothing more than in the costume and dwellings -of the lower classes, who happily are not yet afflicted with the disease -of French polish: they indeed, when they dig up ancient coins, will rub -off the precious rust of twice ten hundred years, in order to render -them, as they imagine, more saleably attractive; but they fortunately -spare themselves, insomuch that Charles III., on failing in one of his -laudable attempts to improve and modernise them, compared his loving -subjects to naughty children, who quarrel with their good nurse when she -wants to wash them. - -[Sidenote: WANT OF INFORMATION.] - -Again, no country in the world can vie with Spain, where the dry climate -at least is conservative, with memorials of auld lang syne, with tower -and turret, Prout-like houses and toppling balconies, so old that they -seem only not to fall into the torrents and ravines over which they -hang. Here is every form and colour of picturesque poverty; vines -clamber up the irregularities, while below naiads dabble, washing their -red and yellow garments in the all-gilding glorious sun-beams. What a -picture it is to all but the native, who sees none of the wonders of -lights and shadows, reflections, colours, and outlines; who, blind to -all the beauties, is keenly awake only to the degradation, the rags and -decay; he half suspects that your sketch and admiration of a smuggler or -bullfighter is an insult, and that you are taking it, in order to show -in England what Mons. Guizot will never be forgiven for calling the -“brutal” things of Spain; accordingly, while you are sincerely and with -reason delighted with sashes and _Zamarras_, he begs you to observe his -ridiculous Boulevard-cut coat: or when you sit down opposite to a -half-ruined Roman wall, some crumbling Moorish arch, or mediæval Gothic -shrine, he implores you to come away and draw the last spick and span -Royal Academical abortion, coldly correct and classically dull, in order -to carry home a sample which may do credit to Spain, as approximating to -the way things are managed at Charing Cross. - -Without implicitly following the advice of these Spaniards of better -intention than taste, no man of research will undervalue any assistance -by which his objects are promoted, even should he be armed with a -captain-general’s passport, and a red Murray. Meagre is the oral -information which is to be obtained from Spaniards on the spot; these -incurious semi-Orientals look with jealousy on the foreigner, and either -fence with him in their answers, raise difficulties, or, being highly -imaginative, magnify or diminish everything as best suits their own -views and suspicions. The national expressions “_Quien sabe? no se -sabe_,”--“who knows? I do not know,” will often be the prelude to “_No -se puede_,”--“it can’t be done.” - -[Sidenote: DIFFICULTIES OF SIGHT-SEEING.] - -These impediments and impossibilities are infinitely increased when the -stranger has to do with men in office, be it ever so humble; the first -feeling of these Dogberries is to suspect mischief and give refusals. -“No” may be assumed to be their natural answer; nor even if you have a -special order of permission, is admission by any means certain. The -keeper, who here as elsewhere, considers the objects committed to his -care as his own private property and source of perquisite, must be -conciliated: often when you have toiled through the heat and dust to -some distant church, museum, library, or what not, after much ringing -and waiting, you will be drily informed that it is shut, can’t be seen, -that it is the wrong day, that you must call again to-morrow; and if it -be the right day, then you will be told that the hour is wrong, that you -are come too early, too late; very likely the keeper’s wife will inform -you that he is out, gone to mass, or market, or at his dinner, or at his -_siesta_, or if he is at home and awake, he will swear that his wife has -mislaid the key, “which she is always doing.” If all these and other -excuses won’t do, and you persevere, you will be assured that there is -nothing worth seeing, or you will be asked why you want to see it? As a -general rule, no one should be deterred from visiting anything, because -a Spaniard of the upper classes gives his opinion that the object is -beneath notice; he will try to convince you that Toledo, Cuenca, and -other places which cannot be matched in Christendom, are ugly, odious, -old cities; he is ashamed of them because the tortuous, narrow lanes do -not run in rows as straight as Pall Mall and the Rue de Rivoli. In fact -his only notion of a civilized town is a common-place assemblage of -rectangular wide streets, all built and coloured uniformly, like a line -of foot-soldiers, paved with broad flags, and lighted with gas, on which -Spaniards can walk about dressed as Englishmen, and Spanish women like -those of France; all of which said wonders a foreigner may behold far -better nearer home; nor is it much less a waste of time to go and see -what the said Spaniard considers to be a real lion, since the object -generally turns out to be some poor imitation, without form, angle, -history, nationality, colour, or expression, beyond that of utilitarian -comfort and common-place convenience--great advantages no doubt both to -contractors and political economists, but death and destruction to men -of the pencil and note-book. - -[Sidenote: HOW TO BE ADMITTED.] - -[Sidenote: OFFICIAL CORRUPTION.] - -The sound principles in Spanish sight-seeing are few and simple, but, if -observed, they will generally prove successful; first, persevere; never -be put back; never take an answer if it be in the negative; never lose -temper or courteous manners; and lastly, let the tinkle of metal be -heard at once; if the chief or great man be inexorable, find out -privately who is the wretched sub who keeps the key, or the crone who -sweeps the room; and then send a discreet messenger to say that you -will pay to be admitted, without mentioning “nothing to nobody.” Thus -you will always obtain your view, even when an official order fails. On -our first arrival at Madrid, when but young in these things of Spain, we -were desirous of having daily permission to examine a royal gallery, -which was only open to the public on certain days in the week. In our -grave dilemma we consulted a sage and experienced diplomatist, and this -was the oracular reply:--“Certainly, if you wish it, I will make a -request to Señor Salmon” (the then Home Secretary), “and beg him to give -you the proper order, as a personal favour to myself. By the way, how -much longer shall you remain here?”--“From three to four weeks.”--“Well, -then, after you have been gone a good month, I shall get a courteous and -verbose epistle from his Excellency, in which he will deeply regret -that, on searching the archives of his office, there was no instance of -such a request having ever been granted, and that he is compelled most -reluctantly to return a refusal, from the fear of a precedent being -created. My advice to you is to give the porter a dollar, to be repeated -whenever the door-hinges seem to be getting rusty and require oiling.” -The hint was taken, as was the bribe, and the prohibited portals -expanded so regularly, that at last they knew the sound of our -footsteps. Gold is the Spanish _sesame_. Thus Soult got into Badajoz, -thus Louis Philippe put Espartero out, and Montpensier in. Gold, bright -red gold, is the sovereign remedy which in Spain smooths all -difficulties, nay, some in which even force has failed, as here the -obstinate heads may be guided by a straw of bullion, but not driven by a -bar of iron. The magic influence of a bribe pervades a land, where -everything is venal, even to the scales of justice. Here men who have -objects to gain begin to work from the bottom, not from the top, as we -do in England. In order to ensure success, no step in the official -ladder must be left unanointed. A wise and prudent suitor bribes from -the porter to the premier, taking care not to forget the -under-secretary, the over-secretary, the private secretary, all in their -order, and to regulate the douceur according to each man’s rank and -influence. If you omit the porter, he will not deliver your card, or -will say Señor Mon is out, or will tell you to call again _manaña_, the -eternal to-morrow. If you forget the chief clerk, he will mislay your -petition, or poison his master’s ear. In matters of great and political -importance, the sovereign, him or herself, must have a share; and thus -it was that Calomarde continued so long to manage the beloved Ferdinand -and his counsels. He was the minister who laid the greatest bribe at the -royal feet. “Sire, by strict attention and honesty, I have just been -enabled to economise 50,000_l._, on the sums allotted to my department, -which I have now the honour and felicity to place at your Majesty’s -disposal.”--“Well done, my faithful and good minister, here is a cigar -for you.” This Calomarde, who began life as a foot-boy, smuggled through -the Christinist swindle, by which Isabel now wears the crown of Don -Carlos. The rogue was rewarded by being made _Conde de Sª. Isabel_, a -title which since has been conferred on Mons. Bresson’s baby--a delicate -compliment to his sire’s labours in the transfer of the said crown to -Louis Philippe--but Spaniards are full of dry humour. - -[Sidenote: SPANISH IGNORANCE.] - -In the East, the example and practice of the Sultan and Vizier is -followed by every pacha, down to the lowest animal who wields the most -petty authority; the disorder of the itching palm is endemic and -epidemic, all, whether high and low, want, and must have money; all wish -to get it without the disgrace of begging, and without the danger of -highway robbery. Public poverty is the curse of the land, and all -_empleados_ or persons in office excuse themselves on dire necessity, -the old plea of a certain gentleman, which has no law. Some allowance, -therefore, may be made for the rapacity which, with very few exceptions, -prevails; the regular salaries, always inadequate, are generally in -arrear, and the public servants, poor devils, swear that they are forced -to pay themselves by conniving at defrauding the government; this few -scruple to do, as all know it to be an unjust one, and that it can -afford it; indeed, as all are offenders alike, the guilt of the offence -is scarcely admitted. Where robbing and jobbing are the universal order -of the day, one rascal keeps another in countenance, as one goître does -another in Switzerland. A man who does not feather his nest when in -place, is not thought honest, but a fool; _es preciso, que cada uno coma -de su oficio_. It is necessary, nay, a _duty_, as in the East, that all -should live by their office; and as office is short and insecure, no -time or means is neglected in making up a purse; thus poverty and their -will alike and readily consent. - -Take a case in point. We remember calling on a Spaniard who held the -highest office in a chief city of Andalucia. As we came into his cabinet -a cloaked personage was going out; the great man’s table was covered -with gold ounces, which he was shovelling complacently into a drawer, -gloating on the glorious haul. “Many ounces, Excellency,” said we. “Yes, -my friend,” was his reply--“_no quiero comer mas patatas_,--I do not -intend to dine any more on potatoes.” This gentleman, during the -_Sistema_, or Riego constitution, had, with other loyalists, been turned -out of office; and, having been put to the greatest hardships, was -losing no time in taking prudent and laudable precautions to avert any -similar calamity for the future. His practices were perfectly well known -in the town, where people simply observed, “_Está atesorando_, he is -laying up treasures,”--as every one of them would most certainly have -done, had they been in his fortunate position. Rich and honest Britons, -therefore, should not judge too hardly of the sad shifts, the strange -bed-fellows, with which want makes the less provided Spaniards -acquainted. _Donde no hay abundancia, no hay observancia._ The empty -sack cannot stand upright, nor was ever a sack made in Spain into which -gain and honour could be stowed away together; _honra y provecho, no -caben en un saco o techo_; here virtue itself succumbs to poverty, -induced by more than half a century of mis-government, let alone the -ruin caused by Buonaparte’s invasion, to which domestic troubles and -civil wars have been added. - -[Sidenote: A QUESTION OF DAYS.] - -To return, however, to sight-seeing in Spain. Lucky was the traveller -prepared even to bribe and pay, who ever in our time chanced to fall in -with a librarian who knew what books he had, or with a priest who could -tell what pictures were in his chapel; ask him for _the_ painting by -Murillo--a shoulder-shrug was his reply, or a curt “_no hay_,” “there is -none;” had you inquired for the “blessed Saint Thomas,” then he might -have pointed it out; the _subject_, not the artist, being all that was -required for the service of the church. An incurious bliss of ignorance -is no less grateful to the Spanish mind, than the _dolce far niente_ or -sweet indolent doing nothing is to the body. All that gives trouble, or -“fashes,” destroys the supreme height of felicity, which consists in -avoiding exertion. A chapter might be filled with instances, which, had -they not occurred to our humble selves, would seem caricature -inventions. The not to be able to answer the commonest question, or to -give any information as to matters of the most ordinary daily -occurrence, is so prevalent, that we at first thought it must proceed -from some fear of committal, some remnant of inquisitorial engendered -reserve, rather than from bonâ fide careless and contented ignorance. -The result, however, of much intercourse and experience arrived at, was, -that few people are more communicative than the lower classes of -Spaniards, especially to an Englishman, to whom they reveal private and -family secrets: their want of knowledge applies rather to things than to -persons. - -[Sidenote: UNCERTAINTY OF SPANISH THINGS.] - -If you called on a Spanish gentleman, and, finding him out, wished -afterwards to write him a note, and inquired of his man or maid servant -the number of the house;--“I do not know, my lord,” was the invariable -answer, “I never was asked it before, I have never looked for it: let us -go out and see. Ah! it is number 36.” Wishing once to send a parcel by -the wagon from Merida to Madrid, “On what day, my lord,” said I to the -potbellied, black-whiskered _ventero_, “does your _galera_ start for the -Court?” “Every Wednesday,” answered he; “and let not your grace be -anxious”--“_Disparate_--nonsense,” exclaimed his copper-skinned, -bright-eyed wife, “why do you tell the English knight such lies? the -wagon, my lord, sets out on Fridays.” During the logomachy, or the few -words which ensued between the well-matched pair, our good luck willed, -that the _mayoral_ or driver of the vehicle should come in, who -forthwith informed us that the days of departure were Thursdays; and he -was right. This occurred in the provinces; take, therefore, a parallel -passage in the capital, the heart and brain of the Castiles. “_Señor, -tenga Usted la bondad_--My lord,” said I to a portly, pompous -bureaucrat, who booked places in the dilly to Toledo,--“have the -goodness, your grace, to secure me one for Monday, the 7th.”--“I fear,” -replied he, politely, for the _negocio_ had been prudently opened by my -offering him a real Havannah, “that your lordship has made a mistake in -the date. Monday is the 8th of the current month”--which it was not. -Thinking to settle the matter, we handed to him, with a bow, the -almanack of the year, which chanced to be in our pocket-book. “_Señor_,” -said he, gravely, when he had duly examined it, “I knew that I was -right; this one was printed at Seville,”--which it was--“and we are here -at Madrid, which is _otra cosa_, that is, altogether another affair.” In -this solar difference and pre-eminence of the Court, it must be -remembered, that the sun, at its creation, first shone over the -neighbouring city, to which the dilly ran; and that even in the last -century, it was held to be heresy at Salamanca, to say that it did not -move round Spain. In sad truth, it has there stood still longer than in -astronomical lectures or metaphors. Spain is no paradise for -calculators; here, what ought to happen, and what would happen elsewhere -according to Cocker and the doctrine probabilities, is exactly the event -which is the least likely to come to pass. One arithmetical fact only -can be reckoned upon with tolerable certainty: let given events be -represented by numbers; then two and two may at one time make three, or -possibly five at another; but the odds are four to one against two and -two ever making four; another safe rule in Spanish official numbers; _e. -g._ “five thousand men killed and wounded”--“five thousand dollars will -be given,” and so forth, is to deduct two noughts, and sometimes even -three, and read fifty or five instead. - -[Sidenote: CERTAINTY OF BULL-FIGHTS.] - -Well might even the keen-sighted, practical Duke say it is difficult to -understand the Spaniards exactly; there neither men nor women, suns nor -clocks go together; there, as in a Dutch concert, all choose their own -tune and time, each performer in the orchestra endeavouring to play the -first fiddle. All this is so much a matter of course, that the natives, -like the Irish, make a joke of petty mistakes, blunders, -unpunctualities, inconsequences, and pococurantisms, at which accurate -Germans and British men of business are driven frantic. Made up of -contradictions, and dwelling in the _pays de l’imprévu_, where exception -is the rule, where accident and the impulse of the moment are the moving -powers, the happy-go-lucky natives, especially in their collective -capacity, act like women and children. A spark, a trifle, sets the -impressionable masses in action, and none can foresee the commonest -event; nor does any Spaniard ever attempt to guess beyond _la situacion -actual_, the actual present, or to foretell what the morrow will bring; -that he leaves to the foreigner, who does not understand him. -_Paciencia y barajar_ is his motto; and he waits _patiently_ to see what -next will turn up after another _shuffle_. - -There is one thing, however, which all know exactly, one question which -all can answer; and providentially this refers to the grand object of -every foreigner’s observation--“When will the bull-fight be and begin?” -and this holds good, notwithstanding that there is a proviso inserted in -the notices, that it will come off on such a day and hour, “if the -weather permits.” Thus, although these spectacles take place in summer, -when for months and months rain and clouds are matters of history, the -cautious authorities doubt the blessed sun himself, and mistrust the -certainty of his proceedings, as much as if they were ir-regulated by a -Castilian clockmaker. - -[Sidenote: THE SPANISH BULL-FIGHT.] - - - - -CHAPTER XXI. - - Origin of the Bull-fight or Festival, and its Religious - Character--Fiestas Reales--Royal Feasts--Charles I. at - one--Discontinuance of the Old System--Sham Bull-fights--Plaza de - Toros--Slang Language--Spanish Bulls--Breeds--The Going to a - Bull-fight. - - -Our honest John Bulls have long been more partial to their Spanish -namesakes, than even to those perpetrated by the Pope, or made in the -Emerald Isle; to see a bull-fight has been the emphatic object of -enlightened curiosity, since Peninsular sketches have been taken and -published by our travellers. No sooner had Charles the First, when -prince, lost his heart at Madrid, than his royal -father-in-law-that-was-to-be, regaled him and the fair inspirer of his -tender passion, with one of these charming spectacles; an event which, -as many men and animals were butchered, was thought by the -historiographers of the day to be one that posterity would not willingly -let die; their contemporary accounts will ever form the gems of every -tauromachian library that aspires to be complete. - -[Sidenote: BULL FESTIVALS.] - -These sports, which recall the bloody games of the Roman amphitheatre, -are now only to be seen in Spain, where the present clashes with the -past, where at every moment we stumble on some bone and relic of -Biblical and Roman antiquity; the close parallels, nay the identities, -which are observable between these combats and those of classical ages, -both as regards the spectators and actors, are omitted, as being more -interesting to the scholar than to the general reader; they were pointed -out by us some years ago in the Quarterly Review, No. cxxiv. And as -human nature changes not, men when placed in given and similar -circumstances, will without any previous knowledge or intercommunication -arrive at nearly similar results; the gentle pastime of spearing and -killing bulls in public and single-handed was probably devised by the -Moors, or rather by the Spanish Moors, for nothing of the kind has ever -obtained in Africa either now or heretofore. The Moslem Arab, when -transplanted into a Christian and European land, modified himself in -many respects to the ways and usages of the people among whom he -settled, just as his Oriental element was widely introduced among his -Gotho-Hispano neighbours. Moorish Andalucia is still the head-quarters -of the tauromachian art, and those who wish carefully to master this, -the science of Spain _par excellence_, should commence their studies in -the school of Ronda, and proceed thence to take the highest honours in -the University of Seville, the Bullford of the Peninsula. - -[Sidenote: FIESTAS REALES.] - -By the way, our boxing, baiting term bull-_fight_ is a very lay and low -translation of the time-honoured Castilian title, _Fiestas de Toros_, -the feasts, festivals of bulls. The gods and goddesses of antiquity were -conciliated by the sacrifice of hecatombs; the lowing tickled their -divine ears, and the purple blood fed their eyes, no less than the -roasted sirloins fattened the priests, while the grand spectacle and -death delighted their dinnerless congregations. In Spain, the Church of -Rome, never indifferent to its interests, instantly marshalled into its -own service a ceremonial at once profitable and popular;[13] it -consecrated butchery by wedding it to the altar, availing itself of this -gentle handmaid, to obtain funds in order to raise convents; even in the -last century Papal bulls were granted to mendicant orders, authorising -them to celebrate a certain number of _Fiestas de Toros_, on condition -of devoting the profit to finishing their church; and in order to swell -the receipts at the doors, spiritual indulgences and soul releases from -purgatory, the number of years being apportioned to the relative prices -of the seats, were added as a bonus to all paid for places at a -spectacle hallowed by a pious object. So at the _taurobolia_ of -antiquity, those who were sprinkled with bull blood were absolved from -sin. Protestant ministers, who very properly fear and distrust papal -bulls, replace them by bazaars and fancy fairs, whenever a fashionable -chapel requires a new blue slate roofing. Again, when not devoted to -religious purposes, every bull-fight aids the cause of charity; the -profits form the chief income of the public hospitals, and thus furnish -both funds and patients, as the venous circulation of the mob thirsting -for gore, rises to blood heat under a sun of fire, and the subsequent -mingling of sexes, opening of bottles and knives, occasion more deaths -among the lords and ladies of the Spanish creation, than among the -horned and hoofed victims of the amphitheatre. - -It is a common but very great mistake, to suppose that bull-fights are -as numerous in Spain as bandits; it is just the contrary, for this may -there be considered the tip-top æsthetic treat, as the Italian Opera is -in England, and both are rather expensive amusements; true it is that -with us, only the salt of the earth patronises the performers of the -Haymarket, while high and low, vulgar and exquisite, alike delight in -those of the Spanish fields. Each bull-fight costs from 200_l._ to -300_l._, and even more when got up out of Andalucia or Madrid, which -alone can afford to support a standing company; in other cities the -actors and animals have to be sent for express, and from great -distances. Hence the representations occur like angels’ visits, few and -far between; they are reserved for the chief festivals of the church and -crown, for the unfeigned devotion of the faithful on the holy days of -local saints, and the Virgin; they are also given at the marriages and -coronations of the sovereign, and thence are called Fiestas _reales_, -_Royal_ festivals--the ceremonial being then deprived of its religious -character, although it is much increased in worldly and imposing -importance. The sight is indeed one of surpassing pomp, etiquette, and -magnificence, and has succeeded to the _Auto de Fé_, in offering to the -most Catholic Queen and her subjects the greatest possible means of -tasting rapture, that the limited powers of mortal enjoyment can -experience in this world of shadows and sorrows. - -[Sidenote: AN INVOLUNTARY CHAMPION.] - -They are only given at Madrid, and then are conducted entirely after the -ancient Spanish and Moorish customs, of which such splendid descriptions -remain in the ballad romances. They take place in the great square of -the capital, which is then converted into an arena. The windows of the -quaint and lofty houses are arranged as boxes, and hung with velvets and -silks. The royal family is seated under a canopy of state in the balcony -of the central mansion. There we beheld Ferdinand VII. presiding at the -solemn swearing of allegiance to his daughter. He was then seated where -Charles I. had sat two centuries before; he was guarded by the unchanged -halberdiers, and was witnessing the unchanged spectacle. On these royal -occasions the bulls are assailed by gentlemen, dressed and armed as in -good old Spanish times, before the fatal Bourbon accession obliterated -Castilian costume, customs, and nationality. The champions, clad in the -fashions of the Philips, and mounted on beauteous barbs, the minions of -their race, attack the fierce animal with only a short spear, the -immemorial weapon of the Iberian. The combatants must be hidalgos by -birth, and have each for a _padrino_, or god-father, a first-rate -grandee of Spain, who passes before royalty in a splendid equipage and -six, and is attended by bands of running footmen, who are arrayed either -as Greeks, Romans, Moors, or fancy characters. It is not easy to obtain -these _caballeros en plaza_, or poor knights, who are willing to expose -their lives to the imminent dangers, albeit during the fight they have -the benefit of experienced _toreros_ to advise their actions and cover -their retreats. - -In 1833 a gentle dame, without the privity of her lord and husband, -inscribed his name as one of the champion volunteers. In procuring him -this agreeable surprise, she, so it was said in Madrid, argued thus: -“Either _mi marido_ will be killed--in that case I shall get a new -husband; or he will survive, in which event he will get a pension.” She -failed in both of these admirable calculations--such is the uncertainty -of human events. The terror of this poor _héros malgré lui_, on whom -chivalry had been thrust, was absolutely ludicrous when exposed by his -well-intentioned better-half, to the horns of this dilemma and bull. Any -other horns, my dearest, but these! He was wounded at the first rush, -did survive, and did not get a pension; for Ferdinand died soon after, -and few pensions have been paid in the Peninsula, since the land has -been blessed with a _charte_, constitution, liberty, and a -representative government. - -[Sidenote: CHARLES I. AT A BULL-FIGHT.] - -One anecdote, where another lady is in the case, may be new to our fair -readers. We quote from an ancient authentic chronicler:--“It will not be -amiss here to mention what fell out in the presence of Charles the First -of Blessed Memory, who, while Prince of Wales, repaired to the court of -Spain, whether to be married to the Infanta, or upon what other design, -I cannot well determine: however, all comedies, playes, and festivals -(this of the bulls at Madrid being included), were appointed to be as -decently and magnificently gone about as possible, for the more -sumptuous and stately entertainment of such a splendid prince. -Therefore, after three bulls had been killed, and the fourth a coming -forth, there appeared four gentlemen in good equipage; not long after, a -brisk lady, in most gorgeous apparel, attended with persons of quality, -and some three or four grooms, walked all along the square a-foot. -Astonishment seized upon the beholders, that one of the female sex could -assume the unheard boldness of exposing herself to the violence of the -most furious beast yet seen, which had overcome, yea almost killed, two -men of great strength, courage, and dexterity. Incontinently the bull -rushed towards the corner where the lady and her attendants stood; she -(after all had fled) drew forth her dagger very unconcernedly, and -thrust it most dexterously into the bull’s neck, having catched hold of -his horn; by which stroak, without any more trouble, her design was -brought to perfection; after which, turning about towards the king’s -balcony, she made her obeysance, and withdrew herself in suitable state -and gravity.” - -At the _jura_ of 1833 ninety-nine bulls were massacred; had one more -been added the hecatomb would have been complete. These wholesale -slaughterings have this year been repeated at the marriage of the same -“_innocent_” Isabel, the critical events of whose life are -death-warrants to quadrupeds. Bulls, however, represent in Spain the -coronation banquets of England. In that hungry, ascetic land, bulls have -always been killed, but no beef eaten; a remarkable fact, which did not -escape the learned Justin in his remarks on the no-dinner-giving crowned -heads of old Iberia. - -These genuine ancient bull-fights were perilous and fatal in the -extreme, yet knights were never wanting--valour being the point of -honour--who readily exposed their lives in sight of their cruel -mistresses. To kill the monster if not killed by him, was, before the -time of Hudibras, the sure road to women’s love, who very properly -admire those qualities the best, in which they feel themselves to be the -most deficient:-- - -[Sidenote: RUIN OF OLD BULL-FIGHT.] - - “The ladies’ hearts began to melt, - Subdued by blows their lovers felt; - So Spanish heroes, with their lances, - At once wound bulls and ladies’ fancies.” - -The final conquest of the Moors, and the subsequent cessation of the -border chivalrous habits of Spaniards, occasioned these love-pastimes to -fall into comparative disuse. The gentle Isabella was so shocked at the -bull-fights which she saw at Medina del Campo, that she did her utmost -to put them down; but she strove in vain, for the game and monarchy were -destined to fall together. The accession of Philip V. deluged the -Peninsula with Frenchmen. The puppies of Paris pronounced the Spaniards -and their bulls to be barbarous and brutal, as their _artistes_ to this -day prefer the _bœuf gras_ of the Boulevards to whole flocks of -Iberian lean kine. The spectacle which had withstood her influence, and -had beat the bulls of Popes, bowed before the despotism of fashion. The -periwigged courtiers deserted the arena, on which the royal Bourbon eye -looked coldly, while the sturdy people, foes--then as now--to Frenchmen -and innovations, clung closer to the sports of their forefathers. Yet a -fatal blow was dealt to the combat: the art, once practised by knights, -degenerated into the vulgar butchery of mercenary bull-fighters, who -contended not for honour, but base lucre; thus, by becoming the game of -the mob, it was soon stripped of every gentlemanlike prestige. So the -tournament challenges of our chivalrous ancestors have sunk down to the -vulgar boxings of ruffian pugilists. - -[Sidenote: CRAVING FOR BULLS AND BREAD.] - -Baiting a bull in any shape is irresistible to the lower orders of -Spain, who disregard injuries to the bodies, and, what is worse, to -their cloaks. The hostility to the horned beast is instinctive, and -grows with their growth, until it becomes, as men are but children of a -larger growth, a second nature. The young urchins in the streets play at -“_toro_,” as ours do at leap-frog; they go through the whole mimic -spectacle amongst each other, observing every law and rule, as our -schoolboys do when they fight. Few adult Spaniards, when journeying -through the country, ever pass a herd of cows without this dormant -propensity breaking out; they provoke the animals to fight by waving -their cloaks or _capas_, a challenge hence called _el capeo_. The -villagers, who cannot afford the expense of a regular bull-fight, amuse -themselves with baiting _novillos_, or bull-youngsters--calves of one -year old; and _embolados_, or bulls whose horns are guarded with tips -and buttons. These innocent pastimes are despised by the regular -_aficion_, the “fancy;” because, as neither man nor beast are exposed to -be killed, the whole affair is based in fiction, and impotent in -conclusion. They cry out for Toros de _muerte_--bulls of _death_. -Nothing short of the reality of blood can allay their excitement. They -despise the makeshift spectacle, as much as a true gastronome does -mock-turtle, or an old campaigner a sham fight. - -[Sidenote: THE PLAZA DE TOROS.] - -In the wilder districts of Andalucia few cattle are ever brought into -towns for slaughter, unless led by long ropes, and partially baited by -those whose poverty prevents their indulgence in the luxury of real -bull-fights and beef. The governor of Tarifa was wont on certain days to -let a bull loose into the streets, when the delight of the inhabitants -was to shut their doors, and behold from their grated windows the -perplexities of the unwary or strangers, pursued by him in the narrow -lanes without means of escape. Although many lives were lost, a governor -in our time, named Dalmau, otherwise a public benefactor to the place, -lost all his popularity in the vain attempt to put the custom down. When -the Bourbon Philip V. first visited the _plaça_ at Madrid, all the -populace roared, _Bulls! give us bulls, my lord_. They cared little for -the ruin of the monarchy; so when the intrusive Joseph Buonaparte -arrived at the same place, the only and absorbing topic of public talk -was whether he would grant or suppress the bull-fight. And now, as -always, the cry of the capital is--“_Pan y toros_; bread and bulls:” -these constitute the loaves and fishes of the “only modern court,” as -_Panes et Circenses_ did of ancient Rome. The national scowl and frown -which welcomed Montpensier at his marriage, was relaxed for one moment, -when Spaniards beheld his well-put-on admiration for the tauromachian -spectacle. Nothing, since the recent vast improvements in Spain, has -more progressed than the bull-fight--convents have come down, churches -have been levelled, but new amphitheatres have arisen. The diffusion of -useful and entertaining knowledge, as the means of promoting the -greatest happiness of the greatest number, has thus obtained the best -consideration of those patriots and statesmen who preside over the -destinies of Spain; the bull is master of his ground. This last remnant -and representative of Spanish nationality defies the foreigner and his -civilization; he is a _fait accompli_, and tramples _la charte_ under -his feet, although the honest Roi citoyen swears that it is désormais -une _vérité_. - -In Spain there is no mistaking the day and time that the bull-fight -takes place, which is generally on Saint Monday, and in the afternoon, -when the mid-day heats are past. - -The arena, or _Plaza_, is most unlike a London Place, those enclosures -of stunted smoke-blacked shrubs, fenced in with iron palisadoes to -protect aristocratic nurserymaids from the mob. It is at once more -classical and amusing. The amphitheatre of Madrid is very spacious, -being about 1100 feet in circumference, and will hold 12,000 spectators. -In an architectural point of view this ring of the model court, is -shabbier than many of those in provincial towns: there is no attempt at -orders, pilasters, and Vitruvian columns; there is no adaptation of the -Coliseum of Rome: the exterior is bald and plain, as if done so on -purpose, while the interior is fitted up with wooden benches, and is -scarcely better than a shambles; but for that it was designed, and there -is a business-like, murderous intention about it, which marks the -inæsthetic Gotho-Spaniard, who looked for a sport of blood and death, -and not to a display of artistical skill. He has no need of extraneous -stimulants; the _réalité atroce_, as a tender-hearted foreigner -observes, “is all-sufficing, because it is the recreation of the savage, -and the sublime of common souls.” The locality, however, is admirably -calculated for seeing; and this combat is a spectacle entirely for the -eyes. The open space is full of the light of heaven, and here the sun is -brighter than gas or wax-candles. The interior is as unadorned as the -exterior, and looks positively “mesquin” when empty; around the sanded -centre rise rows of wooden seats for the humbler classes, and above them -a tier of boxes for the fine ladies and gentlemen; but no sooner is the -theatre filled than all this meanness is concealed, and the general -appearance becomes superb. - -[Sidenote: BULL-FIGHT SLANG.] - -On entering the ring when thus full, the stranger finds his watch put -back at once eighteen hundred years; he is transported to Rome under the -Cæsars; and in truth the sight is glorious, of the assembled thousands -in their Spanish costume, the novelty of the spectacle, associated with -our earliest classical studies, are enhanced by the blue expanse of the -heavens, spread above as a canopy. There is something in these -out-of-door entertainments, _à l’antique_, which peculiarly affects the -shivering denizens of the catch-cold north, where climate contributes so -little to the happiness of man. All first-rate connoisseurs go into the -pit and place themselves among the mob, in order to be closer to the -bulls and combatants. The _real thing_ is to sit near one of the -openings, which enables the fancy-man to exhibit his embroidered gaiters -and neat leg. It is here that the character of the bull, the nice traits -and the behaviour of the bull-fighter are scientifically criticised. The -ring has a dialect peculiar to itself, which is unintelligible to most -Spaniards themselves, while to the sporting-men of Andalucia it -expresses their drolleries with idiomatic raciness, and is exactly -analogous to the slang and technicalities of our pugilistic craft. The -newspapers next day generally give a detailed report of the fight, in -which every round is scientifically described in a style that defies -translation, but which being drawn up by some Spanish Boz, is most -delectable to all who can understand it; the nomenclature of praise and -blame is defined with the most accurate precision of language, and the -delicate shades of character are distinguished with the nicety of -phrenological subdivision. The foundation of this lingo is gipsy Romany, -metaphor, and double entendre; to master it is no easy matter; indeed, a -distinguished diplomat and tauromachian philologist, whom we are proud -to call our friend, was often unable to comprehend the full pregnancy of -the meaning of certain terms, without a reference to the late Duke of -San Lorenzo, who sustained the character of Spanish ambassador in London -and of bull-fighter in Madrid with equal dignity; his grace was a living -lexicon of slang. Yet let no student be deterred by any difficulty, -since he will eventually be repaid, when he can fully relish the -Andalucian wit, or _sal Andaluça_, the salt, with which the reports are -flavoured: that it is seldom Attic must, however, be confessed. Nor let -time or pains be grudged; there is no royal road to Euclid, and life, -say the Spanish fancy, is too short to learn bull-fighting. This -possibly may seem strange, but English squires and country gentlemen -assert as much in regard to fox-hunting. - -[Sidenote: SPANISH BULLS.] - -The day appointed for a bull-feast is announced by placards of all -colours; the important particulars decorate every wall. The first thing -is to secure a good place beforehand, by sending for a _Boletin de -Sombra_, a shade-ticket; and as the great object is to avoid glare and -heat, the best places are on the northern side, which are in the shade. -The transit of the sun over the Plaza, the zodiacal progress into -Taurus, is decidedly the best calculated astronomical observation in -Spain; the line of shadow defined on the arena is marked by a gradation -of prices. The different seats and prices are everywhere detailed in the -bills of the play, with the names of the combatants and the colours of -the different breeds of bulls. - -[Sidenote: BEST BREED OF BULLS.] - -The day before the fight, the bulls destined for the spectacle are -driven towards the town, and pastured in a meadow reserved for their -reception; then the fine amateurs never fail to ride out to see what the -cattle is like, just as the knowing in horseflesh go to Tattersall’s of -a Sunday afternoon, instead of attending evening service in their parish -churches. According to Pepe Illo, who was a very practical man, and the -first author on the modern system of the arena, of which he was the -brightest ornament, and on which he died in the arms of victory, the -“love of bulls is inherent in man, especially in the Spaniard, among -which glorious people there have been bull-fights ever since there were -bulls, because the Spanish men are as much more brave than all other -men, as the Spanish bull is more fierce and valiant than all other -bulls.” Certainly, from having been bred at large, in roomy unenclosed -plains, they are more active than the animals raised by John Bull, but -as regards form and power they would be scouted in an English -cattle-show; a real British bull, with his broad neck and short horns, -would make quick work with the men and horses of Spain; his “spears” -would be no less effective than the bayonets of our soldiers, which no -foreigner faces twice, or the picks of our _Navvies_, three and -three-eighths of whom are calculated by railway economists to eat more -beef and do more work than five and five-eighths of corresponding -foreign material. By the way, the correct Castilian word for the bull’s -_horns_ is _astas_, the Latin _hastas_, spears. _Cuernos_ must never be -used in good Spanish society, since, from its secondary meaning, it -might give offence to present company: allusions to common calamities -are never made to ears polite, however frequent among the vulgar, who -call things by their improper names--nay, roar them out, as in the time -of Horace: “Magnâ compellens voce cucullum.” - -Not every bull will do for the Plaza, and none but the fiercest are -selected, who undergo trials from the earliest youth; the most -celebrated animals come from Utrera near Seville, and from the same -pastures where that eminent breeder of old Geryon, raised those -wonderful oxen, which all but burst with fat in fifty days, and were -“lifted” by the invincible Hercules. Señor _Cabrera_, the modern Geryon, -was so pleased with Joseph Buonaparte, or so afraid, that he offered to -him a hundred bulls, as a hecatomb for the rations of his troops, who, -braver and hungrier than Hercules, would otherwise have infallibly -followed the demigod’s example. The Manchegan bull, small, very -powerful, and active, is considered to be the original stock of Spain; -of this breed was “Manchangito,” the pet of the Visconde de Miranda, a -tauromachian noble of Cordova, and who used to come into the -dining-room, but, having one day killed a guest, he was destroyed after -violent resistance on the part of the Viscount, and only in obedience to -the peremptory mandate of the Prince of the Peace. - -The capital is supplied with animals bred in the valleys of the Jarama -near Aranjuez, which have been immemorially celebrated. From hence came -that _Harpado_, the magnificent beast of the magnificent Moorish ballad -of Gazul, which was evidently written by a practical _torero_, and on -the spot: the verses sparkle with daylight and local colour like a -Velazquez, and are as minutely correct as a Paul Potter, while Byron’s -“Bull-fight” is the invention of a foreign poet, and full of slight -inaccuracies. - -The _encierro_, or the driving the bulls to the arena, is a service of -danger; they are enticed by tame oxen, into a road which is barricadoed -on each side, and then driven full speed by the mounted and -spear-bearing peasants into the _Plaza_. It is an exciting, peculiar, -and picturesque spectacle; and the poor who cannot afford to go to the -bull-fight, risk their lives and cloaks in order to get the front -places, and best chance of a stray poke _en passant_. - -[Sidenote: THE ENCIERRO.] - -The next afternoon all the world crowds to the _Plaza de toros_. You -need not ask the way; just launch into the tide, which in these Spanish -affairs will assuredly carry you away. Nothing can exceed the gaiety and -sparkle of a Spanish public going, eager and full-dressed, to the -_fight_. They could not move faster were they running away from a real -one. All the streets or open spaces near the outside of the arena -present of themselves a spectacle to the stranger, and genuine Spain is -far better to be seen and studied in the streets, than in the saloon. -Now indeed a traveller from Belgravia feels that he is out of town, in a -new world and no mistake; all around him is a perfect saturnalia, all -ranks are fused in one stream of living beings, one bloody thought beats -in every heart, one heart beats in ten thousand bosoms; every other -business is at an end, the lover leaves his mistress unless she will go -with him,--the doctor and lawyer renounce patients, briefs, and fees; -the city of sleepers is awakened, and all is life, noise, and movement, -where to-morrow will be the stillness and silence of death; now the -bending line of the _Calle de Alcalá_, which on other days is broad and -dull as Portland Place, becomes the aorta of Madrid, and is scarcely -wide enough for the increased circulation; now it is filled with a dense -mass coloured as the rainbow, which winds along like a spotted snake to -its prey. Oh the din and dust! The merry mob is everything, and, like -the Greek chorus, is always on the scene. How national and Spanish are -the dresses of the lower classes--for their betters alone appear like -Boulevard quizzes, or tigers cut out from our East end tailors’ -pattern-book of the last new fashion; what _Manolas_, what reds and -yellows, what fringes and flounces, what swarms of picturesque -vagabonds, cluster, or alas, clustered, around _calesas_, whose wild -drivers run on foot, whipping, screaming, swearing; the type of these -vehicles in form and colour was Neapolitan; they alas! are also soon -destined to be sacrificed to civilization to the ’bus and common-place -cab, or vile fly. - -[Sidenote: FILLING THE THEATRE.] - -The _plaza_ is the focus of a fire, which blood alone can extinguish; -what public meetings and dinners are to Britons, reviews and razzias to -Gauls, mass or music to Italians, is this one and absorbing bull-fight -to Spaniards of all ranks, sexes, ages, for their happiness is quite -catching; and yet a thorn peeps amid these rosebuds; when the dazzling -glare and fierce African sun calcining the heavens and earth, fires up -man and beast to madness, a raging thirst for blood is seen in flashing -eyes and the irritable ready knife, then the passion of the Arab -triumphs over the coldness of the Goth: the excitement would be terrific -were it not on pleasure bent; indeed there is no sacrifice, even of -chastity, no denial, even of dinner, which they will not undergo to save -money for the bull-fight. It is the birdlime with which the devil -catches many a female and male soul. The men go in all their best -costume and _majo_-finery: the distinguished ladies wear on these -occasions white lace mantillas, and when heated, look, as the Andaluz -wag Adrian said, like sausages wrapped up in white paper; a fan, -_abanico_, is quite as necessary to all as it was among the Romans. The -article is sold outside for a trifle, and is made of rude paper, stuck -into a handle of common cane or stick, and the gift of one to his -nutbrown _querida_ is thought a delicate attention to her complexion -from her swarthy swain; at the same time the lower Salamander classes -stand fire much better on these occasions than in action, and would -rather be roasted fanless alive _á la auto de fe_ than miss these hot -engagements. - -The place of slaughter, like the _Abattoirs_ on the Continent, is -erected outside the towns, in order to obtain space, and because horned -animals when over driven in crowded streets are apt to be ill-mannered, -as may be seen every Smithfield market-day in the City, as the Lord -Mayor well knows. - -[Sidenote: SEAT OF THE CLERGY.] - -The seats occupied by the mob are filled more rapidly than our shilling -galleries, and the “gods” are equally noisy and impatient. The anxiety -of the immortals, wishes to annihilate time and space and make -bull-fanciers happy. Now his majesty the many reigns triumphantly, and -this--church excepted--is the only public meeting allowed; but even -here, as on the Continent, the odious bayonet sparkles, and the soldier -picket announces that innocent amusements are not free; treason and -stratagem are suspected by coward despots, when one sole thought of -pleasure engrosses every one else. All ranks are now fused into one mass -of homogeneous humanity; their good humour is contagious; all leave -their cares and sorrows at home, and enter with a gaiety of heart and a -determination to be amused, which defies wrinkled care; many and not -over-delicate are the quips and quirks bandied to and fro, with an -eloquence more energetic than unadorned; things and persons are -mentioned to the horror of periphrastic euphuists; the liberty of -speech is perfect, and as it is all done quite in a parliamentary way, -none take offence. Those only who cannot get in are sad; these rejected -ones remain outside grinding their teeth, like the unhappy ghosts on the -wrong side of the Styx, and listen anxiously to the joyous shouts of the -thrice blessed within. - -At Seville a choice box in the shade and to the right of the president -is allotted as the seat of honour to the canons of the cathedral, who -attend in their clerical costume; and such days are fixed upon for the -bull-fight as will not by a long church service prevent their coming. -The clergy of Spain have always been the most uncompromising enemies of -the stage, where they never go; yet neither the cruelty nor profligacy -of the amphitheatre has ever roused the zeal of their most elect or most -fanatic: our puritans at least assailed the bear-bait, which induced the -Cavalier Hudibras to defend them; so our methodists denounced the -bull-bait, which was therefore patronised by the Right Hon. W. Windham, -in the memorable debate May 24, 1802, on Mr. _Dog_ Dent. The Spanish -clergy pay due deference to bulls, both papal and quadruped; they -dislike being touched on this subject, and generally reply “_Es -costumbre_--it is the custom--_siempre se ha praticado asi_--it has -always been done so, or _son cosas de España_, they are things of -Spain”--the usual answer given as to everything which appears -incomprehensible to strangers, and which they either can’t account for, -or do not choose. In vain did St. Isidore write a chapter against the -amphitheatre--his _chapter_ minds him not; in vain did Alphonso the Wise -forbid their attendance. The sacrifice of the bull has always been mixed -up with the religion of old Rome and old and modern Spain, where they -are classed among acts of charity, since they support the sick and -wounded; therefore all the sable countrymen of Loyola hold to the -Jesuitical doctrine that the end justifies the means. - -[Sidenote: COMMENCEMENT OF THE BULL-FIGHT.] - - - - -CHAPTER XXII. - - The Bull-fight--Opening of Spectacle--First Act, and Appearance of - the Bull--The Picador--Bull Bastinado--The Horses, and their Cruel - Treatment--Fire and Dogs--The Second Act--The Chulos and their - Darts--The Third Act--The Matador--Death of the Bull--The - Conclusion, and Philosophy of the Amusement--Its Effect on Ladies. - - -When the appointed much-wished-for hour is come, the Queen or the -_Corregidor_ takes the seat of honour in a central and splendid box, the -mob having been previously expelled from the open arena; this operation -is called the _despejo_, and is an amusing one, from the reluctance with -which the great unwashed submit to be cleaned out. The proceedings open -at a given signal with a procession of the combatants, who advance -preceded by _alguaciles_, or officers of police, who are dressed in the -ancient Spanish costume, and are always at hand to arrest any one who -infringes the severe laws against interruptions of the games. Then -follow the _picadores_, or mounted horsemen, with their spears. Their -original broad-brimmed Spanish hats are decorated with ribbons; their -upper man is clad in a gay silken jacket, whose lightness contrasts with -the heavy iron and leather protections of the legs, which give the -clumsy look of a French jackbooted postilion. These defences are -necessary when the horned animal charges home. Next follow the _chulos_, -or combatants on foot, who are arrayed like Figaro at the opera, and -have, moreover, silken cloaks of gay colours. The _matadores_, or -killers, come behind them; and, last of all, a gaily-caparisoned team of -mules, which is destined to drag the slaughtered bulls from the arena. -As for the men, those who are killed on the spot are denied the -burial-rites if they die without confession. Springing from the dregs of -the people, they are eminently superstitious, and cover their breasts -with relics, amulets, and papal charms. A clergyman, however, is in -attendance with the sacramental wafer, in case _su majestad_ may be -wanted for a mortally-wounded combatant. - -[Sidenote: ENTRANCE OF THE BULL.] - -Having made their obeisances to the chief authority, all retire, and the -fatal trumpet sounds; then the president throws the key of the gate by -which the bull is to enter, to one of the _alguaciles_, who ought to -catch it in his hat. When the door is opened, this worthy gallops away -as fast as he can, amid the hoots and hisses of the mob, not because he -rides like a constable, but from the instinctive enmity which his -majesty the many bear to the finisher of the law, just as little birds -love to mob a hawk; now more than a thousand kind wishes are offered up -that the bull may catch and toss him. The brilliant army of combatants -in the meanwhile separates like a bursting shell, and take up their -respective places as regularly as our fielders do at a cricket-match. - -The play, which consists of three acts, then begins in earnest; the -drawing up of the curtain is a spirit-stirring moment; all eyes are -riveted at the first appearance of the bull on this stage, as no one can -tell how he may behave. Let loose from his dark cell, at first he seems -amazed at the novelty of his position; torn from his pastures, -imprisoned and exposed, stunned by the noise, he gazes an instant around -at the crowd, the glare, and waving handkerchiefs, ignorant of the fate -which inevitably awaits him. He bears on his neck a ribbon, “la devisa,” -which designates his breeder. The picador endeavours to snatch this off, -to lay the trophy at his true love’s heart. The bull is condemned -without reprieve; however gallant his conduct, or desperate his -resistance, his death is the catastrophe; the whole tragedy tends and -hastens to this event, which, although it is darkly shadowed out -beforehand, as in a Greek play, does not diminish the interest, since -all the intermediate changes and chances are uncertain; hence the -sustained excitement, for the action may pass in an instant from the -sublime to the ridiculous, from tragedy to farce. - -[Sidenote: BULL BASTINADO.] - -The bull no sooner recovers his senses, than his splendid Achillean rage -fires every limb, and with closing eyes and lowered horns he rushes at -the first of the three picadores, who are drawn up to the left, close to -the _tablas_, or wooden barrier which walls round the ring. The horseman -sits on his trembling Rosinante, with his pointed lance under his right -arm, as stiff and valiant as Don Quixote. If the animal be only of -second-rate power and courage, the sharp point arrests the charge, for -he well remembers this _garrocha_, or goad, by which herdsmen enforce -discipline and inculcate instruction; during this momentary pause a -quick picador turns his horse to the left and gets free. The bulls, -although irrational brutes, are not slow on their part in discovering -when their antagonists are bold and dexterous, and particularly dislike -fighting against the pricks. If they fly and will not face the picador, -they are hooted at as despicable malefactors, who wish to defraud the -public of their day’s sport, they are execrated as “goats,” “cows,” -which is no compliment to bulls; these culprits, moreover, are soundly -beaten as they pass near the barrier by forests of sticks, with which -the mob is provided for the nonce; that of the elegant _majo_, when -going to the bull-fight, is very peculiar, and is called _la chivata_; -it is between four and five feet long, is taper, and terminates in a -lump or knob, while the top is forked, into which the thumb is inserted; -it is also peeled or painted in alternate rings, black and white, or red -and yellow. The lower classes content themselves with a common -shillelah; one with a knob at the end is preferred, as administering a -more impressive whack; their instrument is called _porro_, because heavy -and lumbering. - -Nor is this bastinado uncalled for, since courage, address, and energy, -are the qualities which ennoble tauromachia; and when they are wanting, -the butchery, with its many disgusting incidents, becomes revolting to -the stranger, but to him alone; for the gentler emotions of pity and -mercy, which rarely soften any transactions of hard Iberia, are here -banished altogether from the hearts of the natives; they now only have -eyes for exhibitions of skill and valour, and scarcely observe those -cruel incidents which engross and horrify the foreigner, who again on -his part is equally blind to those redeeming excellencies, on which -alone the attention of the rest of the spectators is fixed; the tables -are now turned against the stranger, whose æsthetic mind’s eye can see -the poetry and beauty of the picturesque rags and tumbledown hamlets of -Spaniards, and yet is blind to the poverty, misery, and want of -civilization, to which alone the vision of the higher classed native is -directed, on whose exalted soul the coming comforts of cotton are -gleaming. - -[Sidenote: A GOOD BULL.] - -When the bull is turned by the spear of the first picador, he passes on -to the two other horsemen, who receive him with similar cordiality. If -the animal be baffled by their skill and valour, stunning are the -shouts of applause which celebrate the victory of the men: should he on -the contrary charge home and overwhelm horses and riders, then--for the -balances of praise and blame are held with perfect fairness--the fierce -lord of the arena is encouraged with roars of compliments, _Bravo toro_, -_Viva toro_, Well done, bull! even a long life is wished to him by -thousands who know that he must be dead in twenty minutes. - -A bold beast is not to be deterred by a trifling inch-deep wound, but -presses on, goring the horse in the flank, and then gaining confidence -and courage by victory, and “baptized in blood,” à la Française, -advances in a career of honour, gore, and glory. The picador is seldom -well mounted, for the horses are provided, at the lowest possible price, -by a contractor, who runs the risk whether many or few are killed; they -indeed are the only things economised in this costly spectacle, and are -sorry, broken-down hacks, fit only for the dog-kennel of an English -squire, or carriage of a foreign _Pair_. This increases the danger to -his rider; in the ancient combats, the finest and most spirited horses -were used; quick as lightning, and turning to the touch, they escaped -the deadly rush. The eyes of those poor horses which see and will not -face death, are often bound over with a handkerchief, like criminals -about to be executed; thus they await blindfold the fatal horn thrust -which is to end their life of misery. - -[Sidenote: DEATH OF THE HORSE.] - -The picadors are subject to most severe falls; the bull often tosses -horse and rider in one ruin, and when his victims fall with a crash on -the ground exhausts his fury upon his prostrate foes. The picador -manages (if he can) to fall off on the opposite side, in order that his -horse may form a barrier and rampart between him and the bull. When -these deadly struggles take place, when life hangs on a thread, the -amphitheatre is peopled with heads; every feeling of anxiety, eagerness, -fear, horror, and delight is stamped on their expressive countenances; -if happiness is to be estimated by quality, intensity, and -concentration, rather than duration (and it is), these are moments of -excitement more precious to them, than ages of placid, insipid, uniform -stagnation. Their feelings are wrought to a pitch, when the horse, -maddened with wounds and terror, plunging in the death-struggle, the -crimson seams of blood streaking his foam and sweat-whitened body, -flies from the infuriated bull still pursuing, still goring; then are -displayed the nerve, presence of mind, and horsemanship of the dexterous -and undismayed picador. It is in truth a piteous sight to see the poor -mangled horses treading out their entrails, and yet gallantly carrying -off their riders unhurt. But as in the pagan sacrifices, the quivering -intestines, trembling with life, formed the most propitious omens--to -what will not early habit familiarise?--so the Spaniards are no more -affected with the reality, than the Italians are with the abstract -“tanti palpiti” of Rossini. - -[Sidenote: WOUNDED HORSES.] - -The miserable horse, when dead, is dragged out, leaving a bloody furrow -on the sand, as the river-beds of the arid plains of Barbary are marked -by the crimson fringe of the flowering oleanders. A universal sympathy -is shown for the horseman in these awful moments; the men rise, the -women scream, but all this soon subsides; the _picador_, if wounded, is -carried out and forgotten--“_los muertos y idos no tienen amigos_”--a -new combatant fills up his gap, the battle rages--wounds and death are -the order of the day--he is not missed; and as new incidents arise, no -pause is left for regret or reflection. We remember seeing at Granada a -matador cruelly gored by a bull: he was carried away as dead, and his -place immediately taken by his son, as coolly as a viscount succeeds to -an earl’s estate and title. Carnerero, the musician, died while fiddling -at a ball at Madrid, in 1838; neither the band nor the dancers stopped -one moment. The boldness of the picadors is great. Francisco Sevilla, -when thrown from his horse and lying under the dying animal, seized the -bull, as he rushed at him, by his ears, turned round to the people, and -laughed; but, in fact, the long horns of the bull make it difficult for -him to gore a man on the ground; he generally bruises them with his -nose: nor does he remain long busied with his victim, since he is lured -to fresh attacks by the glittering cloaks of the _Chulos_ who come -instantly to the rescue. At the same time we are free to confess, that -few picadors, although men of bronze, can be said to have a sound rib in -their body. When one is carried off apparently dead, but returns -immediately mounted on a fresh horse, the applauding voice of the people -outbellows a thousand bulls. If the wounded man should chance not to -come back, _n’importe_, however courted outside the _Plaza_, now he is -ranked, like the gladiator was by the Romans, no higher than a -beast,--or about the same as a slave under the perfect equality and man -rights of the model republic. - -[Sidenote: A COWARD BULL.] - -The poor horse is valued at even less, and he, of all the actors, is the -one in which Englishmen, true lovers and breeders of the noble animal, -take the liveliest interest; nor can any bull-fighting habit ever -reconcile them to his sufferings and ill-treatment. The hearts of the -picadors are as devoid of feeling as their iron-cased legs; they only -think of themselves, and have a nice tact in knowing when a wound is -fatal or not. Accordingly, if the horn-thrust has touched a vital part, -no sooner has the enemy passed on to a new victim, than an experienced -picador quietly dismounts, takes off the saddle and bridle, and hobbles -off like Richard, calling out for another horse--a horse! The poor -animal, when stripped of these accoutrements, has a most rippish look, -as it staggers to and fro, like a drunken man, until again attacked by -the bull and prostrated; then it lies dying unnoticed in the sand, or, -if observed, merely rouses the jeers of the mob; as its tail quivers in -the last agony of death, your attention is called to the _fun_; _Mira, -mira, que cola!_ The words and sight yet haunt us, for they were those -that first caught our inexperienced ears and eyes at the first rush of -the first bull of our first bullfight. While gazing on the scene in a -total abstraction from the world, we felt our coat-tails tugged at, as -by a greedily-biting pike; we had caught, or, rather, were caught by a -venerable harridan, whose quick perception had discovered a novice, whom -her kindness prompted to instruct, for e’en in the ashes live the wonted -fires; a bright, fierce eye gleamed alive in a dead and shrivelled face, -which evil passions had furrowed like the lava-seared sides of an -extinct volcano, and dried up, like a cat starved behind a wainscot, -into a thing of fur and bones, in which gender was obliterated--let her -pass. If the wound received by the horse be not instantaneously mortal, -the blood-vomiting hole is plugged up with tow, and the fountain of life -stopped for a few minutes. If the flank is only partially ruptured, the -protruding bowels are pushed back--no operation in hernia is half so -well performed by Spanish surgeons--and the rent is sown up with a -needle and pack-thread. Thus existence is prolonged for new tortures, -and a few dollars are saved to the contractor; but neither death nor -lacerations excite the least pity, nay, the bloodier and more fatal the -spectacle, the more brilliant is it pronounced. It is of no use to -remonstrate, or ask why the wounded sufferers are not mercifully killed -at once; the utilitarian Spaniard dislikes to see the order of the sport -interrupted and spoilt by what he considers foreign squeamishness and -nonsense, “_Ah que! no vale nã_,”--“Bah! the beast is worth nothing;” -that is, provided he condescends to reply to your _disparates_ with -anything beyond a shrug of civil contempt. But national tastes will -differ. “Sir,” said an alderman to Dr. Johnson, “in attempting to listen -to your long sentences, and give you a short answer, I have swallowed -two pieces of green fat, without tasting the flavour. I beg you to let -me enjoy my present happiness in peace and quiet.” - -The bull is the hero of the scene; yet, like Satan in the Paradise Lost, -he is foredoomed. Nothing can save him from a certain fate, which awaits -all, whether brave or cowardly. The poor creatures sometimes endeavour -in vain to escape, and have favourite retreats, to which they fly; or -they leap over the barrier, among the spectators, creating a vast hubbub -and fun, upsetting water-carriers and fancy men, putting sentinels and -old women to flight, and affording infinite delight to all who are safe -in the boxes; for, as Bacon remarks, “It is pleasant to see a battle -from a distant hill.” Bulls which exhibit this cowardlike activity are -insulted: cries of “fuego” and “perros,” fire and dogs, resound, and he -is condemned to be baited. As the Spanish dogs have by no means the -pluck of the English assailants of bulls, they are longer at the work, -and many are made minced-meat of:-- - - “Up to the stars the growling mastiffs fly - And add new monsters to the frighted sky.” - -[Sidenote: CHULOS AND SECOND ACT.] - -When at length the poor brute is pulled down, he is stabbed in the -spine, as if he were only fit for the shambles, being a civilian ox, not -a soldierlike bull. All these processes are considered as deadly -insults; and when more than one bull exhibits these craven propensities -to baulk nobler expectancies, then is raised the cry of “_Cabestros al -circo!_” tame oxen to the circus. This is a mortal affront to the -_empresa_, or management, as it infers that it has furnished animals -fitter for the plough than for the arena. The indignation of the mob is -terrible; for, if disappointed in the blood of bulls, it will lap that -of men. - -The bull is sometimes teased with stuffed figures, men of straw with -leaded feet, which rise up again as soon as he knocks them down. An old -author relates that in the time of Philip IV. “a despicable peasant was -occasionally set upon a lean horse, and exposed to death.” At other -times, to amuse the populace, a monkey is tied to a pole in the arena. -This art of ingeniously tormenting is considered as unjustifiable -homicide by certain lively philosimious foreigners; and, indeed, all -these episodes are despised as irregular _hors d’œuvres_, by the real -and business-like amateur. - -[Sidenote: THE MATADOR AND THIRD ACT.] - -After a due time the first act terminates: its length is uncertain. -Sometimes it is most brilliant, since one bull has been known to kill a -dozen horses, and clear the _plaza_. Then he is adored; and as he roams, -snorting about, lord of all he surveys, he becomes the sole object of -worship to ten thousand devotees; at the signal of the president, and -sound of a trumpet, the second act commences with the performances of -the _chulo_, a word which signifies, in the Arabic, a lad, a merryman, -as at our fairs. The duty of this light division, these skirmishers, is -to draw off the bull from the _picador_ when endangered, which they do -with their coloured cloaks; their address and agility are surprising, -they skim over the sand like glittering humming-birds, scarcely touching -the earth. They are dressed in short breeches, and without gaiters, just -as Figaro is in the opera of the ‘_Barbiere de Seviglia_.’ Their hair is -tied into a knot behind, and enclosed in the once universal silk net, -the _retecilla_--the identical _reticulum_--of which so many instances -are seen on ancient Etruscan vases. No bull-fighters ever arrive at the -top of their profession without first excelling in this apprenticeship; -then, they are taught how to entice the bull to them, and learn his mode -of attack, and how to parry it. The most dangerous moment is when these -_chulos_ venture out into the middle of the _plaza_, and are followed by -the bull to the barrier. There is a small ledge, on which they place -their foot, and vault over, and a narrow slit in the boarding, through -which they slip. Their escapes are marvellous, and they win by a neck; -they seem really sometimes, so close is the run, to be helped over the -fence by the bull’s horns. The _chulos_, in the second act, are the -sole performers; their part is to place small barbed darts, on each side -of the neck of the bull, which are called _banderillas_, and are -ornamented with cut paper of different colours--gay decorations under -which cruelty is concealed. The _banderilleros_ go right up to him, -holding the arrows at the shaft, and pointing the barbs at the bull; -just when the animal stoops to toss his foes, they jerk them into his -neck and slip aside. The service appears to be more dangerous than it -is, but it requires a quick eye, a light hand and foot. The barbs should -be placed to correspond with each other exactly on both sides. Such -pretty pairs are termed _buenos pares_ by the Spaniards, and the feat is -called _coiffer_ le taureau by the French, who undoubtedly are -first-rate perruquiers. Very often these arrows are provided with -crackers, which, by means of a detonating powder, explode the moment -they are affixed in the neck; thence they are called _banderillas de -fuego_. The agony of the scorched and tortured animal makes him plunge -and bound like a sportive lamb, to the intense joy of the populace, -while the fire, the smell of singed hair and roasted flesh, which our -gastronome neighbours would call a _bifstec à l’Espagnole_, faintly -recall to many a dark scowling priest the superior attractions of his -former amphitheatre, the _auto de fe_. - -The last trumpet now sounds, the arena is cleared, and the _matador_, -the executioner, the man of death, stands before his victim alone; on -entering, he addresses the president, and throws his cap to the ground. -In his right hand he holds a long straight Toledan blade; in his left he -waves the _muleta_, the red flag, or the _engaño_, the lure, which ought -not (so Romero laid down in our hearing) to be so large as the standard -of a religious brotherhood, nor so small as a lady’s pocket-handkerchief, -but about a yard square. The colour is always red, because that best -irritates the bull and conceals blood. There is always a spare slayer at -hand in case of accidents, which may happen in the best regulated -bull-fights. - -[Sidenote: PREPARATION FOR EXECUTION.] - -The _matador_, from being alone, concentrates in himself all the -interest as regards the human species, which was before frittered away -among the many other combatants, as was the case in the ancient -gladiatorial shows of Rome. He advances to the bull, in order to entice -him towards him, or, in nice technical idiom, _citarlo á la jurisdiccion -del engaño_, to cite him into the jurisdiction of the trick; in plain -English, to subpœna him, or, as our ring would say, get his head into -chancery. And this trial is nearly as awful, as the matador stands -confronted with his foe, in the presence of inexorable witnesses, the -bar and judges, who would rather see the bull kill _him_ twice over, -than that he should kill the bull contrary to the rules and practice of -the court and tauromachian precedent. In these brief but trying moments -the matador generally looks pale and anxious, as well he may, for life -hangs on the edge of a razor, but he presents a fine picture of fixed -purpose and concentration of moral energy. And Seneca said truly that -the world had seen as many examples of courage in gladiators, as in the -Catos and Scipios. - -The matador endeavours rapidly to discover the character of the animal, -and examines with eye keener than Spurzheim, his bumps of combativeness, -destructiveness, and other amiable organs; nor has he many moments to -lose, where mistake is fatal, as one must die, and both may. Here, as -Falstaff says, there is no scoring, except on the pate. Often even the -brute bull seems to feel that the last moment is come, and pauses, when -face to face in the deadly duel with his single opponent. Be that as it -may, the contrast is very striking. The slayer is arrayed in a ball -costume, with no buckler but skill, and as if it were a pastime: he is -all coolness, the beast all rage; and time it is to be collected, for -now indeed knowledge is power, and could the beast reason, the man would -have small chance. Meanwhile the spectators are wound up to a greater -pitch of madness than the poor bull, who has undergone a long torture, -besides continued excitement: he at this instant becomes a study for a -Paul Potter; his eyes flash fire--his inflated nostrils snort fury; his -body is covered with sweat and foam, or crimsoned with a glaze of gore -streaming from gaping wounds. “_Mira! que bel cuerpo de sangre!_--look! -what a beauteous body of blood!” exclaimed the worthy old lady, who, as -we before mentioned, was kind enough to point out to our inexperience -the tit bits of the treat, the pearls of greatest price. - -[Sidenote: CHARACTERS OF BULLS.] - -There are several sorts of _toros_, whose characters vary no less than -those of men: some are brave and dashing, others are slow and heavy, -others sly and cowardly. The _matador_ foils and plays with the bull -until he has discovered his disposition. The fundamental principle -consists in the animal’s mode of attack, the stooping his head and -shutting his eyes, before he butts; the secret of mastering him lies in -distinguishing whether he acts on the offensive or defensive. Those -which are fearless, and rush boldly on at once, closing their eyes, are -the most easy to kill; those which are cunning--which seldom go straight -when they charge, but stop, dodge, and run at the man, not the flag, are -the most dangerous. The interest of the spectators increases in -proportion as the peril is great. - -Although fatal accidents do not often occur (and we ourselves have never -seen a man killed, yet we have beheld some hundred bulls despatched), -such events are always possible. At Tudela, a bull having killed -seventeen horses, a picador named Blanco, and a banderillero, then leapt -over the barriers, where he gored to death a peasant, and wounded many -others. The newspapers simply headed the statement, “_Accidents_ have -happened.” Pepe Illo, who had received thirty-eight wounds in the wars, -died, like Nelson, the hero’s death. He was killed on the 11th of May, -1801. He had a presentiment of his death, but said that he must do his -duty. - -Every _matador_ must be quick and decided. He must not let the bull run -at the flag above two or three times; the moral tension of the -multitudes is too strained to endure a longer suspense; they vent their -impatience in jeers, noises, and endeavour by every possible manner to -irritate him, and make him lose his temper, and perhaps life. Under such -circumstances, Manuel Romero, who had murdered a man, was always saluted -with cries of “_A la Plaza de Cebada_--to Tyburn.” The populace -absolutely loathe those who show the smallest white feather, or do not -brave death cheerfully. - -[Sidenote: THE MEDIA LUNA.] - -There are many ways of killing the bull: the principal is when the -matador receives him on his sword when charging; then the weapon, which -is held still and never thrust forward, enters just between the left -shoulder and the blade-bone; a firm hand, eye, and nerve, are essential, -since in nothing is the real fancy so fastidious as in the exact nicety -of the placing this death-wound. The bull very often is not killed at -the first effort; if not true, the sword strikes a bone, and then it is -ejected high in air by the rising neck. When the blow is true, death is -instantaneous, and the bull, vomiting forth blood, drops at the feet of -his conqueror. It is indeed the triumph of knowledge over brute force; -all that was fire, fury, passion, and life, falls in an instant, still -for ever. The gay team of mules now enter, glittering with flags, and -tinkling with bells; the dead bull is carried off at a rapid gallop, -which always delights the populace. The _matador_ then wipes the hot -blood from his sword, and bows to the spectators with admirable sang -froid, who fling their hats into the arena, a compliment which he -returns by throwing them back again (they are generally “shocking bad” -ones); when Spain was rich, a golden, or at least a silver shower was -rained down--_ces beaux jours là sont passés_; thanks to her kind -neighbour. The poverty-stricken Spaniard, however, gives all he can, and -lets the bullfighter dream the rest. As hats in Spain represent -grandeeship, so these beavers, part and parcel of themselves, are given -as symbols of their generous hearts and souls; and none but a huckster -would go into minute details of value or condition. - -When a bull will not run at the fatal flag, or prays for pardon, he is -doomed to a dishonourable death, as no true Spaniard begs for his own -life, or spares that of his foe, when in his power; now the _media Luna_ -is yelled for, and the call implies insult; the use is equivalent to -shooting traitors in the back: this _half moon_ is the precise Oriental -ancient and cruel instrument of houghing cattle; moreover it is the -exact old Iberian bident, or a sharp steel crescent placed on a long -pole. The cowardly blow is given from behind; and when the poor beast is -crippled by dividing the sinew of his leg, and crawls along in agony, an -assistant pierces with a pointed dagger the spinal marrow, which is the -usual method of slaughtering cattle in Spain by the butcher. To perform -all these vile operations is considered beneath the dignity of the -_matador_; some, however, will kill the bull by plunging the point of -their sword in the vertebræ, as the danger gives dignity to the -difficult feat. - -[Sidenote: CONCLUSION OF BULL-FIGHT.] - -Such is a single bull-fight; each of which is repeated eight times with -succeeding bulls, the excitement of the multitude rising with each -indulgence; after a short collapse new desires are roused by fresh -objects, the fierce sport is renewed, which night alone can extinguish; -nay, often when royalty is present, a ninth bull is clamoured for, which -is always graciously granted by the nominal monarch’s welcome sign, the -pulling his royal ear; in truth here the mob is autocrat, and his -majesty the many will take no denial; the bull-fight terminates when the -day dies like a dolphin, and the curtain of heaven hung over the bloody -show, is incarnadined and crimsoned; this glorious finish is seen in -full perfection at Seville, where the _plaza_ from being unfinished is -open toward the cathedral, which furnishes a Moorish distance to the -picturesque foreground. On particular occasions this side is decorated -with flags. When the blazing sun setting on the red Giralda tower, -lights up its fair proportions like a pillar of fire, the refreshing -evening breeze springs up, and the flagging banners wave in triumph over -the concluding spectacle; then when all is come to an end, as all things -human must, the congregation depart, with rather less decorum than if -quitting a church; all hasten to sacrifice the rest of the night to -Bacchus and Venus, with a passing homage to the knife, should critics -differ too hotly on the merits of some particular thrust of the -bull-fight. - -To conclude; the minds of men, like the House of Commons in 1802, are -divided on the merits of the bull-fight; the Wilberforces assert -(especially foreigners, who, notwithstanding, seldom fail to sanction -the arena by their presence) that all the best feelings are -blunted--that idleness, extravagance, cruelty, and ferocity are promoted -at a vast expense of human and animal life by these pastimes; the -Windhams contend that loyalty, courage, presence of mind, endurance of -pain, and contempt of death, are inculcated--that, while the theatre is -all illusion, the opera all effeminacy, these manly, national games are -all truth, and in the words of a native eulogist “elevate the soul to -those grandiose actions of valour and heroism which have long proved the -Spaniards to be the best and bravest of all nations.” - -[Sidenote: PHILOSOPHY OF THE BULL-FIGHT.] - -The efficacy of such sports for sustaining a martial spirit was -disproved by the degeneracy of the Romans at the time when bloody -spectacles were most in vogue; nor are bravery and humanity the -characteristics of the bull-fighting Spaniards in the collective. We -ourselves do not attribute their “merciless skivering and skewering,” -their flogging and murdering women, to the bull-fight, the practical -result of which has been overrated and misunderstood. Cruel it -undoubtedly is, and perfectly congenial to the inherent, inveterate -ferocity of Iberian character, but it is an effect rather than a -cause--with doubtless some reciprocating action; and it may be -questioned, whether the _original_ bull-fight had not a greater tendency -to humanise, than the Olympic games; certainly the _Fiesta real_ of the -feudal ages combined the associated ideas of religion and loyalty, while -the chivalrous combat nurtured a nice sense of personal honour and a -respectful gallantry to women, which were unknown to the polished Greeks -or warlike Romans; and many of the finest features of Spanish character -have degenerated since the discontinuance of the original fight, which -was more bloody and fatal than the present one. - -The Spaniards invariably bring forward our boxing-matches in -self-justification, as if a _tu quoque_ could be so; but it must always -be remembered in our excuse that these are discountenanced by the good -and respectable, and legally stigmatised as breaches of the peace; -although disgraced by beastly drunkenness, brutal vulgarity, ruinous -gambling and betting, from which the Spanish arena is exempt, as no bull -yet has been backed to kill so many horses or not; our matches, however, -are based on a spirit of _fair play_ which forms no principle of the -Punic politics, warfare, or bull-fighting of Spain. The Plaza there is -patronised by church and state, to whom, in justice, the responsibility -of evil consequences must be referred. The show is conducted with great -ceremonial, combining many elements of poetry, the beautiful and -sublime; insomuch that a Spanish author proudly says: “When the -countless assembly is honoured by the presence of our august monarchs, -the world is _lost in admiration_ at the majestic spectacle afforded by -the happiest people in the world, enjoying with rapture an exhibition -peculiarly their own, and offering to their idolised sovereigns the due -homage of the truest and most refined loyalty;” and it is impossible to -deny the magnificent _coup d’œil_ of the assembled thousands. Under -such conflicting circumstances, we turn away our eyes during moments of -painful detail which are lost in the poetical ferocity of the whole, for -the interest of the tragedy of real death is undeniable, irresistible, -and all absorbing. - -[Sidenote: PHILOSOPHY OF THE BULL-FIGHT.] - -The Spaniards seem almost unconscious of the cruelty of those details -which are most offensive to a stranger. They are reconciled by habit, as -we are to the bleeding butchers’ shops which disfigure our gay streets, -and which if seen for the first time would be inexpressibly disgusting. -The feeling of the chase, that remnant of the savage, rules in the -arena, and mankind has never been nice or tender-hearted in regard to -the sufferings of animals, when influenced by the destructive -propensities. In England no sympathy is shown for game,--fish, flesh, or -fowl; nor for vermin--stoats, kites, or poachers. The end of the sport -is--death; the amusement is the _playing_, the _fine_ run, as the -prolongation of animal suffering is termed in the tender vocabulary of -the Nimrods; the pang of mortal sufferance is not regulated by the size -of the victim; the bull moreover is always put at once out of his -misery, and never exposed to the thousand lingering deaths of the poor -wounded hare; therefore we must not see a toro in Spanish eyes and wink -at the fox in our own, nor - - “Compound for vices we’re inclined to - By damning those we have no mind to.” - -It is not clear that animal suffering on the whole predominates over -animal happiness. The bull roams in ample pastures, through a youth and -manhood free from toil, and when killed in the plaza only anticipates by -a few months the certain fate of the imprisoned, over-laboured, -mutilated ox. - -In Spain, where capital is scanty, person and property insecure (evils -not quite corrected since the late democratic reforms), no one would -adventure on the speculation of breeding cattle on a large scale, where -the return is so distant, without the certain demand and sale created by -the amphitheatre; and as a small proportion only of the produce possess -the requisite qualifications, the surplus and females go to the plough -and market, and can be sold cheaper from the profit made on the bulls. -Spanish political economists _proved_ that many valuable animals were -wasted in the arena--but their theories vanished before the fact, that -the supply of cattle was rapidly diminished when bull-fights were -suppressed. Similar results take place as regards the breed of horses, -though in a minor degree; those, moreover, which are sold to the Plaza -would never be bought by any one else. With respect to the loss of human -life, in no land is a man worth so little as in Spain; and more English -aldermen are killed indirectly by turtles, than Andalucian picadors -directly by bulls; while, as to _time_, these exhibitions always take -place on holidays, which even industrious Britons bouse away -occasionally in pothouses, and idle Spaniards invariably smoke out in -sunshiny _dolce far niente_. The attendance, again, of idle spectators -prevents idleness in the numerous classes employed directly and -indirectly in getting up and carrying out this expensive spectacle. - -[Sidenote: PHILOSOPHY OF THE BULL-FIGHT.] - -It is poor and illogical philosophy to judge of foreign customs by our -own habits, prejudices, and conventional opinions; a cold, unprepared, -calculating stranger comes without the freemasonry of early -associations, and criticises minutiae which are lost on the natives in -their enthusiasm and feeling for the whole. He is horrified by details -to which the Spaniards have become as accustomed as hospital nurses, -whose finer sympathetic emotions of pity are deadened by repetition. - -A most difficult thing it is to change long-established usages and -customs with which we are familiar from our early days, and which have -come down to us connected with many fond remembrances. We are slow to -suspect any evil or harm in such practices; we dislike to look the -evidence of facts in the face, and shrink from a conclusion which would -require the abandonment of a recreation, which we have long regarded as -innocent, and in which we, as well as our parents before us, have not -scrupled to indulge. Children, _l’age sans pitié_, do not speculate on -cruelty, whether in bull-baiting or bird’s-nesting, and Spaniards are -brought up to the bull-fight from their infancy, when they are too -simple to speculate on abstract questions, but associate with the Plaza -all their ideas of reward for good conduct, of finery and holiday; in a -land where amusements are few--they catch the contagion of pleasure, and -in their young bias of imitation approve of what is approved of by their -parents. They return to their homes unchanged--playful, timid, or -serious, as before; their kindly, social feelings are uninjured: and -where is the filial or parental bond more affectionately cherished than -in Spain--where are the noble courtesies of life, the kind, considerate, -self-respecting demeanour so exemplified as in Spanish society? - -[Sidenote: PHILOSOPHY OF THE BULL-FIGHT.] - -The successive feelings experienced by most foreigners are admiration, -compassion, and weariness of the flesh. The first will be readily -understood, as it will that the horses’ sufferings cannot be beheld by -novices without compassion: “In troth it was more a pittie than a -delight,” wrote the herald of Lord Nottingham. This feeling, however, -regards the animals who are forced into wounds and death; the men -scarcely excite much of it, since they willingly court the danger, and -have therefore no right to complain. These heroes of low life are -applauded, well paid, and their risk is more apparent than real; our -British feelings of fair play make us side rather with the poor bull who -is overmatched; we respect the gallantry of his unequal defence. Such -must always be the effect produced on those not bred and brought up to -such scenes. So Livy relates that, when the gladiatorial shows were -first introduced by the Romans into Asia, the natives were more -frightened than pleased, but by leading them on from sham-fights to -real, they became as fond of them as the Romans. The predominant -sensation experienced by ourselves was _bore_, the same thing over and -over again, and too much of it. But that is the case with everything in -Spain, where processions and professions are interminable. The younger -Pliny, who was no amateur, complained of the eternal sameness of seeing -what to have seen once, was enough; just as Dr. Johnson, when he -witnessed a horse-race, observed that he had not met with such a proof -of the paucity of human pleasures as in the popularity of such a -spectacle. But the life of Spaniards is uniform, and their sensations, -not being blunted by satiety, are intense. Their bull-fight to them is -always new and exciting, since the more the toresque intellect is -cultivated the greater the capacity for enjoyment; they see a thousand -minute beauties in the character and conduct of the combatants, which -escape the superficial unlearned glance of the uninitiated. - -[Sidenote: PHILOSOPHY OF THE BULL-FIGHT.] - -Spanish ladies, against whom every puny scribbler shoots his petty -barbed arrow, are relieved from the infliction of ennui, by the -never-flagging, ever-sustained interest, in being admired. They have no -abstract nor Pasiphaic predilections; they were taken to the bull-fight -before they knew their alphabet, or what love was. Nor have we heard -that it has ever rendered them particularly cruel, save and except some -of the elderly and tougher lower-classed females. The younger and more -tender scream and are dreadfully affected in all real moments of danger, -in spite of their long familiarity. Their grand object, after all, is -not to see the bull, but to let themselves and their dresses be seen. -The better classes generally interpose their fans at the most painful -incidents, and certainly show no want of sensibility. The lower orders -of females, as a body, behave quite as respectably as those of other -countries do at executions, or other dreadful scenes, where they crowd -with their babies. The case with English ladies is far different. They -have heard the bull-fight not praised from _their_ childhood, but -condemned; they see it for the first time when grown up; curiosity is -perhaps their leading feature in sharing an amusement, of which they -have an indistinct idea that pleasure will be mixed with pain. The first -sight delights them; a flushed, excited cheek, betrays a feeling that -they are almost ashamed to avow; but as the bloody tragedy proceeds, -they get frightened, disgusted, and disappointed. Few are able to sit -out more than one course, and fewer ever re-enter the amphitheatre-- - - “The heart that is soonest awake to the flower - Is always the first to be touched by the thorn.” - -Probably a Spanish woman, if she could be placed in precisely the same -condition, would not act very differently, and something of a similar -test would be to bring her, for the first time, to an English -boxing-match. Be this as it may, far from us and from our friends be -that frigid philosophy, which would infer that their bright eyes, -darting the shafts of Cupid, will glance one smile the less from -witnessing these more merciful _banderillas_. - -[Sidenote: SPANISH AMUSEMENTS.] - - - - -CHAPTER XXIII. - - Spanish Theatre; Old and Modern Drama; Arrangement of - Playhouses--The Henroost--The Fandango; National Dances--A Gipsy - Ball--Italian Opera--National Songs and Guitars. - - -[Sidenote: THE THEATRE.] - -Having seen a bull-fight, _the sight_ of Spain, those who only wish to -pass time agreeably cannot be too quick in getting their passports viséd -for Naples. A pleasant _country_ life, according to our notions, in -Spain, is a thing that is not; and the substitute is but a Bedouin -Oriental makeshift existence, which, amusing enough for a spurt, will -not do in the long run. Nor is life much better in the _towns_; those in -the inland provinces have a convent-like, dead, old-fashioned look about -them, which petrifies a lively person; nay even an artist when he has -finished his sketches, is ready to commit suicide from sheer Bore, the -genius of the locality. Madrid itself is but an unsocial, second-rate, -inhospitable city; and when the traveller has seen the Museum, been to -the play, and walked on the eternal roundabout Prado, the sooner he -shakes the dust off his feet the better. The maritime seaports, as in -the East, from being frequented by the foreigner, are a trifle more -cosmopolitan, cheerful, and amusing; but generally speaking, public -amusements are rare throughout this semi-Moro land. The calm -contemplation of a cigar, and the _dolce far niente_ of _siestose_ quiet -indolence with unexciting twaddle, suffice; while to some nations it is -a pain to be out of pleasure, to the Spaniard it is a pleasure to be out -of painful exertion: existence is happiness enough of itself; and as for -occupation, all desire only to do to-day what they did yesterday and -will do to-morrow, that is nothing. Thus life slips away in a dreamy, -listless routine, the serious business of love-making excepted; leave -me, leave me, to repose and tobacco. When however awake, the _Alameda_, -or church-show, the bull-fight, and the rendezvous, are the chief -relaxations. These will be best enjoyed in the Southern provinces, the -land also of the song and dance, of bright suns and eyes, and not the -largest female feet in the world. - -The theatre, which forms elsewhere such an important item in passing the -stranger’s evening, is at a low ebb in Spain, although, as everybody is -idle, and man is not worn out by business and money-making all day, it -might be supposed to be just the thing; but it is somewhat too expensive -for the general poverty. Those again who for forty years have had real -tragedies at home, lack that superabundance of felicity, which will pay -for the luxury of fictitious grief abroad. In truth the drama in Spain -was, like most other matters, the creature of an accident and of a -period; patronised by the pleasure-loving Philip IV., it blossomed in -the sunshine of his smile, languished when that was withdrawn, and was -unable to resist the steady hostility of the clergy, who opposed this -rival to their own religious spectacles and church melodramas, from -which the opposition stage sprung. Nor are their primitive mediæval -Mysteries yet obsolete, since we have beheld them acted in Spain at -Easter time; then and there sacred subjects, grievously profaned to -Protestant eyes, were gazed on by the pleased natives with too sincere -and simple faith even to allow a suspicion of the gross absurdity; but -everywhere in Spain, the spiritual has been materialised, and the divine -degraded to the human in churches and out; the clergy attacked the -stage, by denying burial to the actors when dead, who, when alive, were -not allowed to call themselves “_Don_,” the cherished title of every -Spaniard. Naturally, as no one of this self-respecting nation ever will -pursue a despised profession if he can help it, few have chosen to make -themselves vagabonds by Act of Parliament, nor has any Garrick or -Siddons ever arisen among them to beat down prejudices by public and -private virtues. - -[Sidenote: ANCIENT DRAMA.] - -Even in this 19th century, confessors of families forbade the women and -children’s even passing through the street where “a temple of Satan” was -reared; mendicant monks placed themselves near the playhouse doors at -night, to warn the headlong against the bottomless pit, just as our -methodists on the day of the Derby distribute tracts at turnpikes -against “sweeps” and racing. The monks at Cordova succeeded in 1823 in -shutting up the theatre, because the nuns of an opposite convent -observed the devil and his partners dancing fandangos on the roof. -Although monks have in their turn been driven off the Spanish boards, -the national drama has almost made its exit with them. The genuine old -stage held up the mirror to Spanish nature, and exhibited real life and -manners. Its object was rather to amuse than to instruct, and like -literature, its sister exponent of existing nationality, it showed in -action what the picaresque novels detailed in description. In both the -haughty Hidalgo was the hero; cloaked and armed with long rapier and -mustachios, he stalked on the scene, made love and fought as became an -old Castilian whom Charles V. had rendered the terror and the model of -Europe. Spain then, like a successful beauty, took a proud pleasure in -looking at herself in the glass, but now that things are altered, she -blushes at beholding a portrait of her grey hairs and wrinkles; her flag -is tattered, her robes are torn, and she shrinks from the humiliation of -truth. If she appears on the theatre at all, it is to revive long -by-gone days--to raise the Cid, the great Captain, or Pizarro, from -their graves; thus blinking the present, she forms hopes for a bright -future by the revival and recollections of a glorious past. Accordingly -plays representing modern Spanish life and things, are scouted by pit -and boxes as vulgar and misplaced; nay, even Lope de Vega is now known -merely by name; his comedies are banished from the boards to the shelves -of book-cases, and those for the most part out of Spain. He has paid the -certain penalty of his national localism, of his portraying men, as a -Spanish variety, rather than a universal species. He has strutted his -hour on the stage, is heard no more; while his contemporary, the bard of -Avon, who drew mankind and human nature, the same in all times and -places, lives in the human heart as immortal as the principle on which -his influence is founded. - -[Sidenote: MODERN STAGE.] - -In the old Spanish plays, the imaginary scenes were no less full of -intrigue than were the real streets; then the point of honour was nice, -women were immured in jealous hareems, and access to them, which is -easier now, formed _the_ difficulty of lovers. The curiosity of the -spectators was kept on tenter-hooks, to see how the parties could get at -each other, and out of the consequent scrapes. These imbroglios and -labyrinths exactly suited a _pays de l’imprévu_, where things turn out, -just as is the least likely to be calculated on. The progress of the -drama of Spain was as full of action and energy, as that of France was -of dull description and declamation. The Bourbon succession, which -ruined the genuine bull-fight, destroyed the national drama also; a -flood of unities, rules, stilted nonsense, and conventionalities poured -over the astonished and affrighted Pyrenees: now the stage, like the -arena, was condemned by critics, whose one-idead civilization could see -but one class of excellence, and that only through a lorgnette ground in -the Palais Royal. Calderon was pronounced to be as great a barbarian as -Shakspere, and this by empty pretenders who did not understand one word -of either;--and now again, at this second Bourbon irruption, France has -become the model to that very nation from whom her Corneilles and -Molières pilfered many a plume, which aided them to soar to dramatic -fame. Spain is now reduced to the sad shift of borrowing from her pupil, -those very arts which she herself once taught, and her best comedies and -farces are but poor translations from Mons. Scribe and other scribes of -the vaudeville. Her theatre, like everything else, has sunk into a pale -copy of her dominant neighbour, and is devoid alike of originality, -interest, and nationality. - -[Sidenote: SPANISH TRAGEDY.] - -It was from Spain also that Europe copied the arrangement of the modern -theatre; the first playhouses there were merely open covered -court-yards, after the classical fashion of Thespis. The _patio_ became -the _pit_, into which women were never admitted. The rich sat at the -windows of the houses round the court; and as almost all these in Spain -are defended by iron gratings, the French took their term, _loge -grillée_, for a private box. In the centre of the house, above the pit, -was a sort of large lower gallery, which was called _la tertulia_, a -name given in those times to the quarter chosen by the erudite, among -whom at that period it was the fashion to quote _Tertulian_. The women, -excluded from the pit, had a place reserved for themselves, into which -no males were allowed to enter--a peculiarity based in the Gotho-Moro -separation of the sexes. This feminine preserve was termed _la cazuela_, -the stewing pan, or _la olla_, the pipkin, from the hodgepotch -admixture, as it was open to all ranks; it was also called “_la jaula de -las mugeres_,” the women’s cage--“_el gallinero_,” the henroost. All -went there, as to church, dressed in black, and with mantillas. This -dark assemblage of sable tresses, raven hair, and blacker eyes, looked -at the first glance like the gallery of a nunnery; that was, however, a -simile of dissimilitude, for, let there be but a moment’s pause in the -business of the play, then arose such a cooing and cawing in this -rookery of turtle-doves,--such an ogling, such a flutter of mantillas, -such a rustling of silks, such telegraphic workings of fans, such an -electrical communication with the Señores below, who looked up with -wistful glances on the dark clustering vineyard so tantalizingly placed -above their reach, as effectually dispelled all ideas of seclusion, -sorrow, or mortification. This unique and charming pipkin has been just -now done away with at Madrid, because, as there is no such thing at -Covent Garden, or Le Français, it might look antiquated and un-European. - -The theatres of Spain are small, although called Coliseums, and -ill-contrived; the wardrobe and properties are as scanty as those of the -spectators, Madrid itself not excepted; when filled, the smells are -ultra-continental, and resemble those which prevail at Paris, when the -great people is indulged with a gratis representation; in the Spanish -theatres no neutralizing incense is used, as is done by the wise clergy -in their churches. If the atmosphere were analysed by Faraday, it would -be found to contain equal portions of stale cigar smoke and fresh garlic -fume. The lighting, except on those rare occasions when the theatre is -illuminated, as it is called, is just intended to make darkness visible, -and there was no seeing into the henroosts towards which the eyes and -glasses of the foxite pittites were vainly elevated. - -[Sidenote: THE BOLERO.] - -Spanish tragedy, even when the Cid spouts, is wearisome; the language is -stilty, the declamation ranting, French, and unnatural; passion is torn -to rags. The _sainetes_, or farces, are broad, but amusing, and are -perfectly well acted; the national ones are disappearing, but when -brought out are the true vehicles of the love for sarcasm, satire, and -intrigue, the mirth and mother-wit, for which Spaniards are so -remarkable; and no people are more essentially serio-comic and dramatic -than they are, whether in _Venta_, _Plaza_, or church; the actors in -their amusing farces cease to be actors, and the whole appears to be a -scene of real life; there generally is a _gracioso_ or favourite wag of -the Liston and Keeley species, who is on the best terms with the pit, -who says and does what he likes, interlards the dialogue with his own -witticisms, and creates a laugh before he even comes on. - -[Sidenote: NATIONAL DANCES.] - -The orchestra is very indifferent; the Spaniards are fond enough of what -they call music, whether vocal or instrumental; but it is Oriental, and -most unlike the exquisite melody and performances of Italy or Germany. -In the same manner, although they have footed it to their rude songs -from time immemorial, they have no idea of the grace and elegance of the -French ballet; the moment they attempt it they become ridiculous, for -they are bad imitators of their neighbours, whether in cuisine, -language, or costume; indeed a Spaniard ceases to be a Spaniard in -proportion as he becomes an _Afrancesado_; they take, in their jumpings -and chirpings, after the grasshopper, having a natural genius for the -_bota_ and _bolero_. The great charm of the Spanish theatres is their -own national dance--matchless, unequalled, and inimitable, and only to -be performed by Andalucians. This is _la salsa de la comedia_, the -essence, the cream, the _sauce piquante_ of the night’s entertainments; -it is _attempted_ to be described in every book of travels--for who can -describe sound or motion?--it must be seen. However languid the house, -laughable the tragedy, or serious the comedy, the sound of the castanet -awakens the most listless; the sharp, spirit-stirring click is heard -behind the scenes--the effect is instantaneous--it creates life under -the ribs of death--it silences the tongues of countless women--on -n’écoute que le ballet. The curtain draws up; the bounding pair dart -forward from the opposite sides, like two separated lovers, who, after -long search, have found each other again, nor do they seem to think of -the public, but only of each other; the glitter of the gossamer costume -of the _Majo_ and _Maja_ seems invented for this dance--the sparkle of -the gold lace and silver filigree adds to the lightness of their -motions; the transparent, form designing _saya_ of the lady, heightens -the charms of a faultless symmetry which it fain would conceal; no cruel -stays fetter her serpentine flexibility. They pause--bend forward an -instant--prove their supple limbs and arms; the band strikes up, they -turn fondly towards each other, and start into life. What exercise -displays the ever-varying charms of female grace, and the contours of -manly form, like this fascinating dance? The accompaniment of the -castanet gives employment to their upraised arms. _C’est_, say the -French, _le pantomime d’amour_. The enamoured youth persecutes the coy, -coquettish maiden; who shall describe the advance--her timid retreat, -his eager pursuit, like Apollo chasing Daphne? Now they gaze on each -other, now on the ground; now all is life, love, and action; now there -is a pause--they stop motionless at a moment, and grow into the earth. -It carries all before it. There is a truth which overpowers the -fastidious judgment. Away, then, with the studied grace of the French -danseuse, beautiful but artificial, cold and selfish as is the flicker -of her love, compared to the real impassioned _abandon_ of the daughters -of the South! There is nothing indecent in this dance; no one is tired -or the worse for it; indeed its only fault is its being too short, for -as Molière says, “Un ballet ne saurait être trop long, pourvu que la -morale soit bonne, et la métaphysique bien entendue.” Notwithstanding -this most profound remark, the Toledan clergy out of mere jealousy -wished to put the bolero down, on the pretence of immorality. The -dancers were allowed in evidence to “give a view” to the court: when -they began, the bench and bar showed symptoms of restlessness, and at -last, casting aside gowns and briefs, both joined, as if -tarantula-bitten, in the irresistible capering--Verdict, for the -defendants with costs. - -This _Baile nacional_, however adored by foreigners, is, alas! beginning -to be looked down upon by those ill-advised señoras who wear French -bonnets in the boxes, instead of Spanish mantillas. The dance is -suspected of not being European or civilized; its best chance of -surviving is, the fact that it is positively fashionable on the boards -of London and Paris. These national exercises are however firmly rooted -among the peasants and lower classes. The different provinces, as they -have a different language, costume, &c., have also their own peculiar -local dances, which, like their wines, fine arts, relics, saints and -sausages, can only be really relished on the spots themselves. - -[Sidenote: PRIVATE DANCES.] - -The dances of the better classes of Spaniards in private life are much -the same as in other parts of Europe, nor is either sex particularly -distinguished by grace in this amusement, to which, however, both are -much addicted. It is not, however, yet thought to be a proof of _bon -ton_ to dance as badly as possible, and with the greatest appearance of -_bore_, that appanage of the so-called _gay_ world. These dances, as -everything national is excluded, are without a particle of interest to -any one except the performers. An extempore ball, which might be called -a _carpet_-dance, if there were any, forms the common conclusion of a -winter’s _tertulia_, or social meetings, at which no great attention is -paid either to music, costume, or Mr. Gunter. Here English country -dances, French quadrilles, and German waltzes are the order of the -night; everything Spanish being excluded, except the _plentiful want_ of -good fiddling, lighting, dressing, and eating, which never distresses -the company, for the frugal, temperate, and easily-pleased Spaniard -enters with schoolboy heart and soul into the reality of any holiday, -which being joy sufficient of itself lacks no artificial enhancement. - -Dancing at all is a novelty among Spanish ladies, which was introduced -with the Bourbons. As among the Romans and Moors, it was before thought -undignified. Performers were hired to amuse the inmates of the Christian -hareem; to mix and change hands with men was not to be thought of for an -instant; and to this day few Spanish women shake hands with men--the -shock is too electrical; they only give them with their hearts, and for -good. - -[Sidenote: MORRIS DANCES.] - -The lower classes, who are a trifle less particular, and among whom, by -the blessing of Santiago, the foreign dancing-master is not abroad, -adhere to the primitive steps and tunes of their Oriental forefathers. -Their accompaniments are the “tabret and the harp;” the guitar, the -tambourine, and the castanet. The essence of these instruments is to -give a noise on being beaten. Simple as it may seem to play on the -latter, it is only attained by a quick ear and finger, and great -practice; accordingly these delights of the people are always in their -hands; practice makes perfect, and many a performer, dusky as a Moor, -rivals Ethiopian “Bones” himself; they take to it before their alphabet, -since the very urchins in the street begin to learn by snapping their -fingers, or clicking together two shells or bits of slate, to which they -dance; in truth, next to noise, some capering seems essential, as the -safety-valve exponents of what Cervantes describes, the “bounding of the -soul, the bursting of laughter, the restlessness of the body, and the -quicksilver of the five senses.” It is the rude sport of people who -dance from the necessity of motion, the relief of the young, the -healthy, and the joyous, to whom life is of itself a blessing, and who, -like skipping kids, thus give vent to their superabundant lightness of -heart and limb. Sancho, a true Manchegan, after beholding the strange -saltatory exhibitions of his master, in somewhat an incorrect ball -costume, professes his ignorance of such elaborate dancing, but -maintained that for a _zapateo_, a knocking of shoes, none could beat -him. Unchanged as are the instruments, so are the dancing propensities -of Spaniards. All night long, three thousand years ago, say the -historians, did they dance and sing, or rather jump and _yell_, to these -“_howl_ings of Tarshish;” and so far from its being a fatigue, they kept -up the ball all night, by way of _resting_. - -The Gallicians and Asturians retain among many of their aboriginal -dances and tunes, a wild Pyrrhic jumping, which, with their shillelah in -hand, is like the Gaelic Ghillee Callum, and is the precise Iberian -armed dance which Hannibal had performed at the impressive funeral of -Gracchus. These quadrille figures are intricate and warlike, requiring, -as was said of the Iberian performances, much leg-activity, for which -the wiry sinewy active Spaniards are still remarkable. These are the -_Morris_ dances imported from Gallicia by our John of Gaunt, who -supposed they were _Moorish_. The peasants still dance them in their -best costumes, to the antique castanet, pipe, and tambourine. They are -usually directed by a master of the ceremonies, or what is equivalent, a -parti-coloured fool, Μωρος; which may be the etymology of -_Morris_. - -[Sidenote: GADITANIAN GIRLS.] - -These _comparsas_, or national quadrilles, were the hearty welcome which -the peasants were paid to give to the sons of Louis Philippe at Vitoria; -such, too, we have often beheld gratis, and performed by eight men, with -castanets in their hands, and to the tune of a fife and drum, while a -_Bastonero_, or leader of the band, clad in gaudy raiment like a -pantaloon, directed the rustic ballet; around were grouped _payesas y -aldeanas_, dressed in tight bodices, with _pañuelos_ on their heads, -their hair hanging down behind in _trensas_, and their necks covered -with blue and coral beads; the men bound up their long locks with red -handkerchiefs, and danced in their shirts, the sleeves of which were -puckered up with bows of different-coloured ribands, crossed also over -the back and breast, and mixed with scapularies and small prints of -saints; their drawers were white, and full as the _bragas_ of the -Valencians, like whom they wore _alpargatas_, or hemp sandals laced with -blue strings; the figure of the dance was very intricate, consisting of -much circling, turning, and jumping, and accompanied with loud cries of -_viva!_ at each change of evolution. These _comparsas_ are undoubtedly a -remnant of the original Iberian exhibitions, in which, as among the -Spartans and wild Indians, even in relaxations a warlike principle was -maintained. The dancers beat time with their swords on their shields, -and when one of their champions wished to show his contempt for the -Romans, he executed before them a derisive pirouette. Was this -remembered the other day at Vitoria? - -But in Spain at every moment one retraces the steps of antiquity; thus -still on the banks of the Bætis may be seen those dancing-girls of -profligate Gades, which were exported to ancient Rome, with pickled -tunnies, to the delight of wicked epicures and the horror of the good -fathers of the early church, who compared them, and perhaps justly, to -the capering performed by the daughter of Herodias. They were prohibited -by Theodosius, because, according to St. Chrysostom, at such balls the -devil never wanted a partner. The well-known statue at Naples called the -Venere Callipige is the representation of Telethusa, or some other Cadiz -dancing-girl. Seville is now in these matters, what Gades was; never -there is wanting some venerable gipsy hag, who will get up a _funcion_ -as these pretty proceedings are called, a word taken from the pontifical -ceremonies; for Italy set the fashion to Spain once, as France does now. -These festivals must be paid for, since the gitanesque race, according -to Cervantes, were only sent into this world as “fishhooks for purses.” -The _callees_ when young are very pretty--then they have such wheedling -ways, and traffic on such sure wants and wishes, since to Spanish men -they prophesy gold, to women, husbands. - -[Sidenote: GIPSY DANCE.] - -The scene of the ball is generally placed in the suburb Triana, which is -the Transtevere of the town, and the home of bull-fighters, smugglers, -picturesque rogues, and Egyptians, whose women are the premières -danseuses on these occasions, in which men never take a part. The house -selected is usually one of those semi-Moorish abodes and perfect -pictures, where rags, poverty, and ruin, are mixed up with marble -columns, figs, fountains and grapes; the party assembles in some -stately saloon, whose gilded Arab roof--safe from the spoiler--hangs -over whitewashed walls, and the few wooden benches on which the -chaperons and invited are seated, among whom quantity is rather -preferred to quality; nor would the company or costume perhaps be -admissible at the Mansion-house; but here the past triumphs over the -present; the dance which is closely analogous to the _Ghowasee_ of the -Egyptians, and the _Nautch_ of the Hindoos, is called the _Ole_ by -Spaniards, the _Romalis_ by their gipsies; the soul and essence of it -consists in the expression of certain sentiment, one not indeed of a -very sentimental or correct character. The ladies, who seem to have no -bones, resolve the problem of perpetual motion, their feet having -comparatively a sinecure, as the whole person performs a pantomime, and -trembles like an aspen leaf; the flexible form and Terpsichore figure of -a young Andalucian girl--be she gipsy or not--is said by the learned, to -have been designed by nature as the fit frame for her voluptuous -imagination. - -[Sidenote: OPERA IN SPAIN.] - -Be that as it may, the scholar and classical commentator will every -moment quote Martial, &c., when he beholds the unchanged balancing of -hands, raised as if to catch showers of roses, the tapping of the feet, -and the serpentine, quivering movements. A contagious excitement seizes -the spectators, who, like Orientals, beat time with their hands in -measured cadence, and at every pause applaud with cries and clappings. -The damsels, thus encouraged, continue in violent action until nature is -all but exhausted; then aniseed brandy, wine, and _alpisteras_ are -handed about, and the fête, carried on to early dawn, often concludes in -broken heads, which here are called “gipsy’s fare.” These dances appear -to a stranger from the chilly north, to be more marked by energy than by -grace, nor have the legs less to do than the body, hips, and arms. The -sight of this unchanged pastime of antiquity, which excites the -Spaniards to frenzy, rather disgusts an English spectator, possibly from -some national malorganization, for, as Molière says, “l’Angleterre a -produit des grands hommes dans les sciences et les beaux arts, mais pas -un grand danseur--allez lire l’histoire.” However indecent these dances -may be, yet the performers are inviolably chaste, and as far at least as -ungipsy guests are concerned, may be compared to iced punch at a rout; -young girls go through them before the applauding eyes of their parents -and brothers, who would resent to the death any attempt on their -sisters’ virtue. - -During the lucid intervals between the ballet and the brandy, _La caña_, -the true Arabic _gaunia_, song, is administered as a soother by some -hirsute artiste, without frills, studs, diamonds, or kid gloves, whose -staves, sad and melancholy, always begin and end with an _ay!_ a -high-pitched sigh, or cry. These Moorish melodies, relics of auld lang -syne, are best preserved in the hill-built villages near Ronda, where -there are no roads for the members of Queen Christina’s _Conservatorio -Napolitano_; wherever l’académie tyrannizes, and the Italian opera -prevails, adieu, alas! to the tropes and tunes of the people: and -now-a-days the opera exotic is cultivated in Spain by the higher -classes, because, being fashionable at London and Paris, it is an -exponent of the civilization of 1846. Although the audience in their -honest hearts are as much bored there as elsewhere, yet the affair is -pronounced by them to be charming, because it is so expensive, so -select, and so far above the comprehension of the vulgar. Avoid it, -however, in Spain, ye our fair readers, for the second-rate singers are -not fit to hold the score to those of thy own dear Haymarket. - -[Sidenote: MUSIC IN VENTAS.] - -The real opera of Spain is in the shop of the _Barbero_ or in the -court-yard of the _Venta_; in truth, good music, whether harmonious or -scientific, vocal or instrumental, is seldom heard in this land, -notwithstanding the eternal strumming and singing that is going on -there. The very masses, as performed in the cathedrals, from the -introduction of the pianoforte and the violin, have very little -impressive or devotional character. The fiddle disenchants. Even -Murillo, when he clapped catgut under a cherub chin in the clouds, -thereby damaged the angelic sentiment. Let none despise the genuine -songs and instruments of the Peninsula, as excellence in music is -multiform, and much of it, both in name and substance, is conventional. -Witness a whining ballad sung by a chorus out of work, to encoring -crowds in the streets of merry old England, or a bagpipe-tune played in -Ross-shire, which enchants the Highlanders, who cry that strain again, -but scares away the gleds. Let therefore the Spaniards enjoy also what -they call music, although fastidious foreigners condemn it as Iberian -and Oriental. They love to have it so, and will have their own way, in -their own time and tune, Rossini and Paganini to the contrary -notwithstanding. They--not the Italians--are listened to by a delighted -semi-Moro audience, with a most profound Oriental and melancholy -attention. Like their love, their music, which is its food, is a serious -affair; yet the sad song, the guitar, and dance, at this moment, form -the joy of careless poverty, the repose of sunburnt labour. The poor -forget their toils, _sans six sous et sans souci_; nay, even their -meals, like Pliny’s friend Claro, who lost his supper, _Bætican olives -and gazpacho_, to run after a Gaditanian dancing-girl. - -[Sidenote: THE GUITAR.] - -In venta and court-yard, in spite of a long day’s work and scanty fare, -at the sound of the guitar and click of the castanet, a new life is -breathed into their veins. So far from feeling past fatigue, the very -fatigue of the dance seems refreshing, and many a weary traveller will -rue the midnight frolics of his noisy and saltatory fellow-lodgers. -Supper is no sooner over than “après la panse la danse,”--some muscular -masculine performer, the very antithesis of Farinelli, screams forth his -couplets, “screechin’ out his prosaic verse,” either at the top of his -voice, or drawls out his ballad, melancholy as the drone of a -Lincolnshire bagpipe, and both alike to the imminent danger of his own -trachea, and of all un-Spanish acoustic organs. For verily, to repeat -Gray’s unhandsome critique of the grand Opéra Français, it consists of -“des miaulemens et des hurlemens effroyables, mêlés avec un tintamare du -diable.” As, however, in Paris, so in Spain, the audience are in -raptures; all men’s ears grow to the tunes as if they had eaten ballads; -all join in chorus at the end of each verse; this “private band,” as -among the _sangre su_, supplies the want of conversation, and converts a -stupid silence into scientific attention,--ainsi les extrêmes se -touchent. There is always in every company of Spaniards, whether -soldiers, civilians, muleteers, or ministers, some one who can play the -guitar more or less, like Louis XIV., who, according to Voltaire, was -taught nothing but that and dancing. Godoy, the Prince of the Peace, one -of the most worthless of the multitude of worthless ministers by whom -Spain has been misgoverned, first captivated the royal Messalina by his -talent of strumming on the guitar; so Gonzales Bravo, editor of the -Madrid _Satirist_, rose to be premier, and conciliated the virtuous -Christina, who, soothed by the sweet sounds of this pepper-and-salted -Amphion, forgot his libels on herself and Señor Muñoz. It may be -predicted of the Spains, that when this strumming is mute, the game will -be up, as the Hebrew expression for the ne plus ultra desolation of an -Oriental city is “the ceasing of the mirth of the guitar and -tambourine.” - -In Spain whenever and wherever the siren sounds are heard, a party is -forthwith got up of all ages and sexes, who are attracted by the -tinkling like swarming bees. The guitar is part and parcel of the -Spaniard and his ballads; he slings it across his shoulder with a -ribbon, as was depicted on the tombs of Egypt four thousand years ago. -The performers seldom are very scientific musicians; they content -themselves with striking the chords, sweeping the whole hand over the -strings, or flourishing, and tapping the board with the thumb, at which -they are very expert. Occasionally in the towns there is some one who -has attained more power over this ungrateful instrument; but the attempt -is a failure. The guitar responds coldly to Italian words and elaborate -melody, which never come home to Spanish ears or hearts; for, like the -lyre of Anacreon, however often he might change the strings, love, sweet -love, is its only theme. The multitude suit the tune to the song, both -of which are frequently extemporaneous. They lisp in numbers, not to say -verse; but their splendid idiom lends itself to a prodigality of words, -whether prose or poetry; nor are either very difficult, where common -sense is no necessary ingredient in the composition; accordingly the -language comes in aid to the fertile mother-wit of the natives; rhymes -are dispensed with at pleasure, or mixed according to caprice with -assonants which consist of the mere recurrence of the same vowels, -without reference to that of consonants, and even these, which poorly -fill a foreign ear, are not always observed; a change in intonation, or -a few thumps more or less on the board, do the work, supersede all -difficulties, and constitute a rude prosody, and lead to music just as -gestures do to dancing and to ballads,--“_que se canta ballando_;” and -which, when heard, reciprocally inspire a Saint Vitus’s desire to snap -fingers and kick heels, as all will admit in whose ears the _habas -verdes_ of Leon, or the _cachuca_ of Cadiz, yet ring. - -[Sidenote: THE LADIES SINGING.] - -The words destined to set all this capering in motion are not written -for cold British critics. Like sermons, they are delivered orally, and -are never subjected to the disenchanting ordeal of type: and even such -as may be professedly serious and not saltatory are listened to by those -who come attuned to the hearing vein--who anticipate and re-echo the -subject--who are operated on by the contagious bias. Thus a fascinated -audience of otherwise sensible Britons tolerates the positive presence -of nonsense at an opera-- - - “Where rhyme with reason does dispense, - And sound has right to govern sense.” - -In order to feel the full power of the guitar and Spanish song, the -performer should be a sprightly Andaluza, taught or untaught; she wields -the instrument as her fan or _mantilla_; it seems to become portion of -herself, and alive; indeed the whole thing requires an _abandon_, a -fire, a _gracia_, which could not be risked by ladies of more northern -climates and more tightly-laced zones. No wonder one of the old fathers -of the church said that he would sooner face a singing basilisk than one -of these performers: she is good for nothing when pinned down to a -piano, on which few Spanish women play even tolerably, and so with her -singing, when she attempts ‘Adelaide,’ or anything in the sublime, -beautiful, and serious, her failure is dead certain, while, taken in her -own line, she is triumphant; the words of her song are often struck off, -like Theodore Hook’s, at the moment, and allude to incidents and persons -present; sometimes they are full of epigram and _double entendre_; they -often sing what may not be spoken, and steal hearts through ears, like -the Sirens, or as Cervantes has it, _cuando cantan encantan_. At other -times their song is little better than meaningless jingle, with which -the listeners are just as well satisfied. For, as Figaro says--“ce qui -ne vaut pas la peine d’être dit, on le chante.” A good voice, which -Italians call _novanta-nove_, ninety-nine parts out of the hundred, is -very rare; nothing strikes a traveller more unfavourably than the harsh -voice of the women in general; never mind, these ballad songs from the -most remote antiquity have formed the delight of the people, have -tempered the despotism of their church and state, have sustained a -nation’s resistance against foreign aggression. - -[Sidenote: MOORISH GUITARS.] - -There is very little music ever printed in Spain; the songs and airs are -generally sold in MS. Sometimes, for the very illiterate, the notes are -expressed in numeral figures, which correspond with the number of the -strings. - -The best guitars in the world were made appropriately in Cadiz by the -Pajez family, father and son; of course an instrument in so much vogue -was always an object of most careful thought in fair Bætica; thus in the -seventh century the Sevillian guitar was shaped like the human breast, -because, as archbishops said, the _chords_ signified the pulsations of -the heart, _à corde_. The instruments of the Andalucian Moors were -strung after these significant heartstrings; Zaryàb remodelled the -guitar by adding a fifth string of bright red, to represent blood, the -treble or first being yellow to indicate bile; and to this hour, on the -banks of the Guadalquivir, when dusky eve calls forth the cloaked -serenader, the ruby drops of the heart female, are more surely liquefied -by a judicious manipulation of cat-gut, than ever were those of San -Januario by book or candle; nor, so it is said, when the tinkling is -continuous are all marital livers unwrung. - -However that may be, the sad tunes of these Oriental ditties are still -effective in spite of their antiquity; indeed certain sounds have a -mysterious aptitude to express certain moods of the mind, in connexion -with some unexplained sympathy between the sentient and intellectual -organs, and the simplest are by far the most ancient. Ornate melody is a -modern invention from Italy; and although, in lands of greater -intercourse and fastidiousness, the conventional has ejected the -national, fashion has not shamed or silenced the old airs of -Spain--those “howlings of Tarshish.” Indeed, national tunes, like the -songs of birds, are not taught in orchestras, but by mothers to their -infant progeny in the cradling nest. As the Spaniard is warlike without -being military, saltatory without being graceful, so he is musical -without being harmonious; he is just the raw man material made by -nature, and treats himself as he does the raw products of his soil, by -leaving art and final development to the foreigner. - -[Sidenote: ENGLISH EXAMPLE.] - -The day that he becomes a scientific fiddler, or a capital cotton -spinner, his charm will be at an end; long therefore may he turn a deaf -ear to moralists and political economists, who cannot abide the guitar, -who say that it has done more harm to Spain than hailstorms or drought, -by fostering a prodigious idleness and love-making, whereby the land is -cursed with a greater surplus of foundlings, than men of fortune; how -indeed can these calamities be avoided, when the tempter hangs up this -fatal instrument on a peg in every house? Our immelodious labourers and -unsaltatory operatives are put forth by Manchester missionaries as an -example of industry to the _Majos_ and _Manolas_ of Spain: “behold how -they toil, twelve and fourteen hours every day;” yet these -philanthropists should remember that from their having no other -recreation beyond the public or dissenting-house, they pine when -unemployed, because not knowing what to do with themselves when _idle_; -this to most Spaniards is a foretaste of the bliss of heaven, while -occupation, thought in England to be happiness, is the treadmill doom of -the lost for ever. Nor can it be denied that the facility of junketing -in the Peninsula, the grapes, guitars, songs, skippings and other -incidents to fine climate, militate against that dogged, desperate, -determined hard-working, by which our labourers beat the world hollow, -fiddling and pirouetting being excepted. - -[Sidenote: PHILOSOPHY OF THE CIGAR.] - - - - -CHAPTER XXIV. - - Manufacture of Cigars--Tobacco--Smuggling _viâ_ Gibraltar--Cigars - of Ferdinand VII.--Making a Cigarrito--Zumalacarreguy and the - Schoolmaster--Time and Money Wasted in Smoking--Postscript on - Stock. - - -But whether at bull-fight or theatre, be he lay or clerical, every -Spaniard who can afford it, consoles himself continually with a cigar, -sleep--not bed--time only excepted. This is his _nepenthe_, his pleasure -opiate, which, like Souchong, soothes but does not inebriate; it is to -him his “Te veniente die et te decedente.” - -[Sidenote: SMUGGLED CIGARS.] - -The manufacture of the cigar is the most active one carried on in the -Peninsula. The buildings are palaces; witness those at Seville, Malaga, -and Valencia. Since a cigar is a _sine quâ non_ in every Spaniard’s -mouth, for otherwise he would resemble a house without a chimney, a -steamer without a funnel, it must have its page in every Spanish book; -indeed, as one of the most learned native authors remarked, “You will -think me tiresome with my tobacconistical details, but the vast bulk of -readers will be more pleased with it, than with an account of all the -pictures in the world.” They all opine, that a good cigar--an article -scarce in this land of smoking and contradiction--keeps a Christian -hidalgo cooler in summer and warmer in winter than his wife and cloak; -while at all times and seasons it diminishes sorrow and doubles joy, as -a man’s better half does in Great Britain. “The fact is, Squire,” says -Sam Slick, “the moment a man takes to a pipe he becomes a philosopher; -it is the poor man’s friend; it calms the mind, soothes the temper, and -makes a man patient under trouble.” Can it be wondered at, that the -Oriental and Spanish population should cling to this relief from whips -and scorns, and the oppressor’s wrong, or steep in sweet oblivious -stupefaction the misery of being fretted and excited by empty larders, -vicious political institutions, and a very hot climate? They believe -that it deadens their over-excitable imagination, and appeases their too -exquisite nervous sensibility; they agree with Molière, although they -never read him, “Quoique l’on puisse dire, Aristote et toute la -philosophie, il n’y a rien d’égal au tabac.” The divine Isaac Barrow -resorted to this _panpharmacon_ whenever he wished to collect his -thoughts; Sir Walter Raleigh, the patron of Virginia, smoked a pipe just -before he lost his head, “at which some formal people were scandalized; -but,” adds Aubrey, “I think it was properly done to settle his spirits.” -The pedant James, who condemned both Raleigh and tobacco, said the bill -of fare of the dinner which he should give his Satanic majesty, would be -“a pig, a poll of ling, and mustard, with a pipe of tobacco for -digestion.” So true it is that “what’s one man’s meat is another man’s -poison;” but at all events, in hungry Spain it is both meat and drink, -and the chief smoke connected with proceedings of the mouth issues from -labial, not house chimneys. - -Tobacco, this anodyne for the irritability of human reason, is, like -spirituous liquors which make it drunk, a highly-taxed article in all -civilized societies. In Spain, the Bourbon dynasty (as elsewhere) is the -hereditary tobacconist-general, and the privilege of sale is generally -farmed out to some contractor: accordingly, such a trump as a really -good home-made cigar is hardly to be had for love or money in the -Peninsula. Diogenes would sooner expect to find an honest man in any of -the government offices. As there is no royal road to the science of -cigar-making, the article is badly concocted, of bad materials, and, to -add insult to injury, is charged at a most exorbitant price. In order to -benefit the Havañah, tobacco is not allowed to be grown in Spain, which -it would do in perfection in the neighbourhood of Malaga; for the -experiment was made, and having turned out quite successfully, the -cultivation was immediately prohibited. The iniquity and dearness of the -royal tobacco makes the fortune of the well-meaning smuggler, who being -here, as everywhere, the great corrector of blundering chancellors of -exchequers, provides a better and cheaper thing from Gibraltar. - -[Sidenote: SMUGGLED CIGARS.] - -The proof of the extent to which his dealings are carried was -exemplified in 1828, when many thousand additional hands were obliged to -be put on to the manufactories at Seville and Granada, to meet the -increased demand occasioned by the impossibility of obtaining supplies -from Gibraltar, in consequence of the yellow fever which was then raging -there. No offence is more dreadfully punished in Spain than that of -tobacco-smuggling, which robs the queen’s pocket--all other robbery is -treated as nothing, for her lieges only suffer. - -The encouragement afforded to the manufacture and smuggling of cigars at -Gibraltar is a never-failing source of ill blood and ill will between -the Spanish and English governments. This most serious evil is contrary -to all treaties, injurious to Spain and England alike, and is beneficial -only to aliens of the worst character, who form the real plague and sore -of Gibraltar. The American and every other nation import their own -tobacco, good, bad, and indifferent, into the fortress free of duty, and -without repurchasing British produce. It is made into cigars by Genoese, -is smuggled into Spain by aliens, in boats under the British flag, which -is disgraced by the traffic and exposed to insult from the revenue -cutters of Spain, which it cannot in justice expect to have redressed. -The Spaniards would have winked at the introduction of English hardware -and cottons--objects of necessity, which do not interfere with this, -their chief manufacture, and one of the most productive of royal -monopolies. There is a wide difference between encouraging real British -commerce and this smuggling of foreign cigars, nor can Spain be expected -to observe treaties towards us while we infringe them so scandalously -and unprofitably on our parts. - -[Sidenote: LIGHTING CIGARS.] - -Many tobacchose epicures, who smoke their regular dozen or two, place -the evil sufficient for the day between fresh lettuce-leaves; this damps -the outer leaf of the article, and improves the narcotic effect; _mem._, -the inside, the trail, _las tripas_, as the Spaniards call it, should be -kept quite dry. The disordered interior of the royal cigars is masked by -a good outside wrapper leaf, just as Spanish rags are cloaked by a -decent _capa_, but l’habit ne fait pas le cigarre. Few except the rich -can afford to smoke good cigars. Ferdinand VII., unlike his ancestor -Louis XIV., “qui,” says La Beaumelle, “haïssoit le tabac singulièrement, -quoiqu’un de ses meilleurs revenus,” was not only a grand compounder but -consumer thereof. He indulged in the royal extravagance of a very large -thick cigar made in the Havañah expressly for his gracious use, as he -was too good a judge to smoke his own manufacture. Even of these he -seldom smoked more than the half; the remainder was a grand perquisite, -like our palace lights. The cigar was one of his pledges of love and -hatred: he would give one to his favourites when in sweet temper; and -often, when meditating a treacherous _coup_, would dismiss the -unconscious victim with a royal _puro_: and when the happy individual -got home to smoke it, he was saluted by an Alguacil with an order to -quit Madrid in twenty-four hours. The “innocent” Isabel, who does not -smoke, substitutes sugar-plums; she regaled Olozaga with a sweet -present, when she was “doing him” at the bidding of the Christinist -camarilla. It would seem that the Spanish Bourbons, when not -“cretinised” into idiots, are creatures composed of cunning and -cowardice. But “those who cannot dissimulate are unfit to reign” was the -axiom of their illustrious ancestor Louis XI. - -[Sidenote: LIGHTING CIGARS.] - -In Spain the bulk of their happy subjects cannot afford, either the -expense of tobacco, which is dear to them, or the _gain_ of time, which -is very cheap, by smoking a whole cigar right away. They make one afford -occupation and recreation for half an hour. Though few Spaniards ruin -themselves in libraries, none are without a little blank book of a -particular paper, which is made at Alcoy, in Valencia. At any pause all -say at once--“_pues, señores! echaremos un cigarrito_--well then, my -Lords, let us make a little cigar,” and all set seriously to work; every -man, besides this book, is armed with a small case of flint, steel, and -a combustible tinder. To make a paper cigar, like putting on a cloak, is -an operation of much more difficulty than it seems, although all -Spaniards, who have done nothing so much, from their childhood upwards, -perform both with extreme facility and neatness. This is the mode:--the -_petaca_, Arabicè Buták, or little case worked by a fair hand, in the -coloured thread of the aloe, in which the store of cigars is kept, is -taken out--a leaf is torn from the book, which is held between the lips, -or downwards from the back of the hand, between the fore and middle -finger of the left hand--a portion of the cigar, about a third, is cut -off and rubbed slowly in the palms till reduced to a powder--it is then -jerked into the paper-leaf, which is rolled up into a little squib, and -the ends doubled down, one of which is bitten off and the other end is -lighted. The cigarillo is smoked slowly, the last whiff being the bonne -bouche, the _breast_, _la pechuga_. The little ends are thrown away: -they are indeed little, for a Spanish fore-finger and thumb are quite -fire-browned and fire-proof, although some polished exquisites use -silver holders; these remnants are picked up by the beggar-boys, who -make up into fresh cigars the leavings of a thousand mouths. There is no -want of fire in Spain; everywhere, what we should call link-boys run -about with a slowly-burning rope for the benefit of the public. At many -of the sheds where water and lemonade are sold, one of the ropes, -twirled like a snake round a post, and ignited, is kept ready as the -match of a besieged artilleryman; while in the houses of the affluent, a -small silver chafing-dish, with lighted charcoal, is usually on a table. -Mr. Henningsen relates that Zumalacarreguy, when about to execute some -Christinos at Villa Franca, observed one (a schoolmaster) looking about, -like Raleigh, for a light for his last dying puff in this life, upon -which the General took his own cigar from his mouth, and handed it to -him. The schoolmaster lighted his own, returned the other with a -respectful bow, and went away smoking and reconciled to be shot. This -urgent necessity levels all ranks, and it is allowable to stop any -person for fire; this proves the practical equality of all classes, and -that democracy under a despotism, which exists in smoking Spain, as in -the torrid East. The cigar forms a bond of union, an isthmus of -communication between most heterogeneous oppositions. It is the _habeas -corpus_ of Spanish liberties. The soldier takes fire from the canon’s -lip, and the dark face of the humble labourer is whitened by the -reflection of the cigar of the grandee and lounger. The lowest orders -have a coarse roll or rope of tobacco, wherewith to solace their -sorrows, and it is their calumet of peace. Some of the Spanish fair sex -are said to indulge in a quiet hidden _cigarilla_, _una pajita_, _una -reyna_, but it is not thought either a sign of a lady, or of one of -rigid virtue, to have recourse to these forbidden pleasures; for, says -their proverb, whoever makes one basket will make a hundred. - -[Sidenote: TIME LOST BY TOBACCO.] - -Nothing exposes a traveller to more difficulty than carrying much -tobacco in his luggage; yet all will remember never to be without some -cigars, and the better the better. It is a trifling outlay, for although -any cigar is acceptable, yet a real good one is a gift from a king. The -greater the enjoyment of the smoker, the greater his respect for the -donor; a cigar may be given to everybody, whether high or low: thus the -_petaca_ is offered, as a polite Frenchman of La Vieille Cour (a race, -alas! all but extinct) offered his snuff-box, by way of a prelude to -conversation and intimacy. It is an act of civility, and implies no -superiority, nor is there any humiliation in the acceptance; it is twice -blessed, “It blesseth him that gives and him that takes.” It is the -spell wherewith to charm the natives, who are its ready and obedient -slaves, and, like a small kind word spoken in time, it works miracles. -There is no country in the world where the stranger and traveller can -purchase for half-a-crown, half the love and good-will which its -investment in tobacco will ensure, therefore the man who grudges or -neglects it is neither a philanthropist nor a philosopher. - -A calculation might be made by those fond of arithmetic--which we -abhor--of the waste of time and money which is caused to the poor -Spaniards by all this prodigious cigarising. This said tobacco -importation of Raleigh is even a more doubtful good to the Peninsula -than that of potatoes to cognate Ireland, where it fosters poverty and -population. Let it be assumed that a respectable Spaniard only smokes -for fifty years, allow him the moderate allowance of six cigars a -day--the Regent, it is said, consumed forty every twenty-four -hours--calculate the cost of each cigar at two-pence, which is cheap -enough anywhere for a decent one; suppose that half of these are made -into paper cigars, which require double time--how much Spanish time and -private income is wasted in smoke? That is the question which we are -unable to answer. - -[Sidenote: SPANISH STOCK.] - -Here, alas! the pen must be laid down; an express from Albemarle-street -informs us, that this page must go to press next week, seeing that the -printer’s devils celebrate Christmas time with a most religious -abstinence from work. Many things of Spain must therefore be left in our -inkstand, filled to the brim with good intentions. We had hoped, at our -onset, to have sketched portraits of the Provincial and General -Character of Spanish Men--to have touched upon Spanish Soldiers and -Statesmen--Journalism and Place Hunting--Mendicants, Ministers and -Mosquitoes--Charters, Cheatings, and Constitutions--Fine Arts--French -and English Politics--Legends, Relics, and Religion--Monks and Manners; -and last, not least--reserved indeed as a bonne bouche--the Eyes, Loves, -Dress, and Details of the Spanish Ladies. It cannot be--nay, even as it -is, “for stories somehow lengthen when begun,” and especially if woven -with Spanish yarn, even now the indulgence of our fair readers may be -already exhausted by this sample of the _Cosas de España_. Be that as it -may, assuredly the smallest hint of a desire to the flattering contrary, -which they may condescend to express, will be obeyed as a command by -their grateful and humble servant the author, who, as every true Spanish -Hidalgo very properly concludes on similar, and on every occasion, -“kisses their feet.” - - -_Postscript._--In the first number of these Gatherings, at page 38, some -particulars were given of Spanish Stock, derived, as was believed, from -the most official and authentic sources. On the very evening that the -volume was published, and too late therefore for any corrections, the -following obliging letter was received from an anonymous correspondent, -which is now printed verbatim:-- - - -_London, 30th November, 1846._ - - SIR, - - I HAVE just perused your valuable and amusing work, ‘Gatherings - from Spain;’ but must own I felt somewhat annoyed at seeing so - gross a misrepresentation in the account you give of the national - debt of that country; the amount you give is perfectly absurd. You - say it has been increased to 279,033,089_l._--this is too bad. Now - I can give you the exact amount. The 5 per cents. consists of - 40,000,000_l._ only; the coupons upon that sum to 12,000,000_l._; - and the present 3 per cents. to 6,000,000_l._; in all, - 58,000,000_l._, and their own domestic debt, which is very - trifling. Now this is rather different to your statement; besides, - you are doing your book great injury by writing the Spanish Stock - down so; more particularly so, as there is no doubt some final - settlement will be come to before your second Number appears [?]. - The country is far from being as you misrepresent it to - be--bankrupt. She is very rich, and quite capable of meeting her - engagements which are so trifling--if you were to write down our - Railroads I should think you a sensible man, for they are the - greatest bubbles, since the great South Sea bubble. But Spanish is - a fortune to whoever is so fortunate as to possess it now. I am, - and have been for some years, a large holder, and am now looking - forward to the realization of all my plans, in the present Minister - of Finance, Señor Mon, and the rising of that stock to its proper - price--about 60 or 70. - - I should, as a friend, advise you to correct your book before you - strike any more copies, if you wish to sell it, as a true - representation of the present existing state of the country. Your - book might have done ten years ago, but people will not be gulled - now; we are too well aware that almost all our own papers are - bribed (and, perhaps, books), to write down Spanish, and Spanish - finance, by raising all manner of reports--of Carlist bands - appearing in all directions, &c. &c. &c. &c., which is most - absurd--the Carlists’ cause is dead. - - [Sidenote: THE AUTHOR’S POSTSCRIPT.] - - I hope, Sir, you will not be offended with these lines, but rather - take them as a friendly hint, as I admire your book much; and I - hope you will yourself see the falsity of what has been inserted in - a work of amusement, and correct it at once. - -I remain, Sir, -Your obedient and humble Servant, -A FRIEND OF TRUTH. - - _To ---- Ford, Esq._ - -It is a trifle “too bad” to be thus set down by our complimentary -correspondent as the inventor of these startling facts, figures, and -“fallacies,” since the full, true, and exact particulars are to be found -at pages 85 and 89 of Mr. Macgregor’s Commercial Tariffs of Spain, -presented to both Houses of Parliament in 1844 by the command of Her -Majesty. And as there was some variance in amount, the author all -through quoted from other men’s sums, and spoke doubtingly and -approximatively, being little desirous of having anything connected with -Spanish debts laid at his door, or charged to his account. He has no -interest whatever in these matters, having never been the fortunate -holder of one farthing either in Spanish funds or even English -railroads. Equally a friend of truth as his kind monitor, he simply -wished to caution fair readers, who might otherwise mis-invest, as he -erroneously it appears conceived, the savings in their pin-money. If he -has unwittingly stated that which is not, he can but give up his -authority, be very much ashamed, and insert the antidote to his errors. -He sincerely hopes that all and every one of the bright visions of his -anonymous friend may be realized. Had he himself, which Heaven forfend! -been sent on the errand of discovery whether the Madrid ministers be -made, or not, of squeezable materials, considering that Astræa has not -yet returned to Spain, with good governments, the golden age, or even a -tariff, his first step would have been to grease the wheels with -_sovereign_ ointment; and with a view of not being told by ministers and -cashiers to call again to-morrow, he would have opened the _negocio_ by -offering somebody 20 per cent. on all the hard dollars paid down; thus -possibly some breath and time might be economised, and trifling -disappointments prevented. - -London: Printed by WILLIAM CLOWES and SONS, Stamford Street - - * * * * * - - -FOOTNOTES: - -[1] The word _Gabacho_, which is the most offensive vituperative of the -Spaniard against the Frenchman, and has by some been thought to mean -“those who dwell on Gaves,” is the Arabic _Cabach_, detestable, filthy, -or “qui prava indole est, moribusque.” In fact the real meaning cannot -be further alluded to beyond referring to the clever tale of _El Frances -y Español_ by Quevedo. The antipathy to the Gaul is natural and -national, and dates far beyond history. This nickname was first given in -the eighth century, when Charlemagne, the Buonaparte of his day, invaded -Spain, on the abdication and cession of the crown by the chaste Alonso, -the prototype of the wittol Charles IV.; then the Spanish Moors and -Christians, foes and friends, forgot their hatreds of creeds in the -greater loathing for the abhorred intruder, whose “peerage fell” in the -memorable passes of Roncesvalles. The true derivation of the word -_Gabacho_, which now resounds from these Pyrenees to the Straits, is -blinked in the royal academical dictionary, such was the servile -adulation of the members to their French patron Philip V. _Mueran los -Gabachos_, “Death to the miscreants,” was the rally cry of Spain after -the inhuman butcheries of the terrorist Murat; nor have the echoes died -away; a spark may kindle the prepared mine: of what an unspeakable value -is a national war-cry which at once gives to a whole people a -shibboleth, a rallying watch-word to a common cause! _Vox populi vox -Dei._ - -[2] _Razzia_ is derived from the Arabic _Al ghazia_, a word which -expresses these raids of a ferocious, barbarous age. It has been -introduced to European dictionaries by the Pelissiers, who thus -_civilize_ Algeria. They make a solitude, and call it peace. - -[3] Faja; the Hhezum of Cairo. Atrides tightens his sash when preparing -for action--Iliad xi. 15. The Roman soldiers kept their money in it. -Ibit qui _zonam_ perdidit.--Hor. ii. Ep. 2. 40. The Jews used it for the -same purpose--Matthew x. 9; Mark vi. 8. It is loosened at night. “None -shall slumber or sleep, neither shall the girdle of their loins be -loosed.”--Isaiah v. 27. - -[4] The dread of the fascination of the evil eye, from which Solomon was -not exempt (Proverbs xxiii. 6), prevails all over the East; it has not -been extirpated from Spain or from Naples, which so long belonged to -Spain. The lower classes in the Peninsula hang round the necks of their -children and cattle a horn tipped with silver; this is sold as an amulet -in the silver-smiths’ shops; the cord by which it is attached _ought_ to -be braided from a black mare’s tail. The Spanish gipsies, of whom Borrow -has given us so complete an account, thrive by disarming the _mal de -ojo_, “_querelar nasula_,” as they term it. The dread of the “_Ain ara_” -exists among all classes of the Moors. The better classes of Spaniards -make a joke of it; and often, when you remark that a person has put on -or wears something strange about him, the answer is, “_Es para que no me -hagan mal de ojo_.” Naples is the head-quarters for charms and coral -amulets: all the learning has been collected by the Canon Jorio and the -Marques Arditi. - -[5] The _garañon_ is also called “_burro padre_” ass father, not “_padre -burro_.” “_Padre_,” the prefix of paternity, is the common title given -in Spain to the clergy and the monks. “Father jackass” might in many -instances, when applied to the latter, be too morally and physically -appropriate, to be consistent with the respect due to the celibate cowl -and cassock. - -[6] When George IV. once complained that he had _lost_ his royal -appetite, “What a scrape, sir, a _poor_ man would be in if he _found_ -it!” said his Rochester companion. - -[7] The very word _Novelty_ has become in common parlance synonymous -with danger, change, by the fear of which all Spaniards are perplexed; -as in religion it is a heresy. Bitter experience has taught all classes -that every change, every promise of a new era of blessing and prosperity -has ended in a failure, and that matters have got worse: hence they not -only bear the evils to which they are accustomed, rather than try a -speculative amelioration, but actually prefer a bad state of things, of -which they know the worst, to the possibility of an untried good. _Mas -vale el mal conocido, que el bien por conocer._ “How is my lady the wife -of your grace?” says a Spanish gentleman to his friend. “_Como está mi -Señora la Esposa de Usted?_” “She goes on without Novelty”--“_Sigue sin -Novedad_,” is the reply, if the fair one be much the same. “_Vaya Usted -con Dios, y que no haya Novedad!_” “Go with God, your grace! and may -nothing new happen,” says another, on starting his friend off on a -journey. - -[8] Forks are an Italian invention: old Coryate, who introduced this -“neatnesse” into Somersetshire, about 1600, was called _furcifer_ by his -friends. Alexander Barclay thus describes the previous English mode of -eating, which sounds very _ventaish_, although worse mannered:-- - - “If the dishe be pleasaunt, eyther flesche or fische, - Ten hands at once swarm in the dishe.” - - -[9] The kings of Spain seldom use any other royal signature, except the -ancient Gothic _rubrica_, or mark. This monogram is something like a -Runic knot. Spaniards exercise much ingenuity in these intricate -flourishes, which they tack on to their names, as a collateral security -of authenticity. It is said that a _rubrica_ without a name is of more -value than a name without a rubrica. Sancho Panza tells Don Quixote that -his rubrica alone is worth, not one, but three hundred jackasses. Those -who cannot write rubricate; “_No saber firmar_,”--not to know how to -sign one’s name,--is jokingly held in Spain to be one of the attributes -of grandeeship. - -[10] “Chacun fuit à le voir naître, chacun court à le voir -mourir!”--_Montaigne._ - -[11] Hallarse en _Cinta_ is the Spanish equivalent for our “being in the -family way." - -[12] Recopilacion. Lib. iii. Tit. xvi. Ley 3. - -[13] The love for killing oxen still prevails at Rome, where the -ambition of the lower orders to be a butcher, is, like their white -costume, a remnant of the honourable office of killing at the Pagan -sacrifices. In Spain butchers are of the lowest caste, and cannot prove -“purity of blood.” Francis I. never forgave the “Becajo de Parigi” -applied by Dante to _his_ ancestor. - - * * * * * - -Typographical error corrected by the etext transcriber: - -which recal the memory of those=> which recall the memory of those {pg -250} - - - - - - - -End of the Project Gutenberg EBook of Gatherings From Spain, by Richard Ford - -*** END OF THIS PROJECT GUTENBERG EBOOK GATHERINGS FROM SPAIN *** - -***** This file should be named 41611-0.txt or 41611-0.zip ***** -This and all associated files of various formats will be found in: - http://www.gutenberg.org/4/1/6/1/41611/ - -Produced by Chuck Greif and the Online Distributed -Proofreading Team at http://www.pgdp.net (This file was -produced from images available at The Internet Archive) - - -Updated editions will replace the previous one--the old editions -will be renamed. - -Creating the works from public domain print editions means that no -one owns a United States copyright in these works, so the Foundation -(and you!) can copy and distribute it in the United States without -permission and without paying copyright royalties. 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Thus, we do not necessarily -keep eBooks in compliance with any particular paper edition. - - -Most people start at our Web site which has the main PG search facility: - - http://www.gutenberg.org - -This Web site includes information about Project Gutenberg-tm, -including how to make donations to the Project Gutenberg Literary -Archive Foundation, how to help produce our new eBooks, and how to -subscribe to our email newsletter to hear about new eBooks. diff --git a/old/41611-0.zip b/old/41611-0.zip Binary files differdeleted file mode 100644 index 615c6f8..0000000 --- a/old/41611-0.zip +++ /dev/null diff --git a/old/41611-8.txt b/old/41611-8.txt deleted file mode 100644 index ab66656..0000000 --- a/old/41611-8.txt +++ /dev/null @@ -1,13749 +0,0 @@ -The Project Gutenberg EBook of Gatherings From Spain, by Richard Ford - -This eBook is for the use of anyone anywhere at no cost and with -almost no restrictions whatsoever. You may copy it, give it away or -re-use it under the terms of the Project Gutenberg License included -with this eBook or online at www.gutenberg.org/license - - -Title: Gatherings From Spain - -Author: Richard Ford - -Release Date: December 12, 2012 [EBook #41611] - -Language: English - -Character set encoding: ISO-8859-1 - -*** START OF THIS PROJECT GUTENBERG EBOOK GATHERINGS FROM SPAIN *** - - - - -Produced by Chuck Greif and the Online Distributed -Proofreading Team at http://www.pgdp.net (This file was -produced from images available at The Internet Archive) - - - - - -Every attempt has been made to replicate the original book as printed. -Some typographical errors have been corrected (a list follows the text). -No attempt has been made to correct or normalize the printed -accentuation or spelling of Spanish names or words. (etext transcriber's -note) - - - - -GATHERINGS FROM SPAIN. - -BY THE - -AUTHOR OF THE HANDBOOK OF SPAIN; - -CHIEFLY SELECTED FROM THAT WORK, WITH -MUCH NEW MATTER. - -_NEW EDITION._ - -LONDON: -JOHN MURRAY, ALBEMARLE STREET. - -1851. - - -TO THE - -HONOURABLE MRS. FORD, - -These pages, which she has been so good as to peruse and approve of, are -dedicated, in the hopes that other fair readers may follow her example, - -By her very affectionate -Husband and Servant, -RICHARD FORD. - - - - -PREFACE. - - -Many ladies, some of whom even contemplate a visit to Spain, having -condescended to signify to the publisher their regrets, that the -Handbook was printed in a form, which rendered its perusal irksome, and -also to express a wish that the type had been larger, the Author, to -whom this distinguished compliment was communicated, has hastened to -submit to their indulgence a few extracts and selections, which may -throw some light on the character of a country and people, always of the -highest interest, and particularly so at this moment, when their -independence is once more threatened by a crafty and aggressive -neighbour. - -In preparing these compilations for the press much new matter has been -added, to supply the place of portions omitted; for, in order to lighten -the narrative, the Author has removed much lumber of learning, and has -not scrupled occasionally to throw Strabo, and even Saint Isidore -himself, overboard. Progress is the order of the day in Spain, and its -advance is the more rapid, as she was so much in arrear of other -nations. Transition is the present condition of the country, where -yesterday is effaced by to-morrow. There the relentless march of -European intellect is crushing many a native wild flower, which, having -no value save colour and sweetness, must be rooted up before -cotton-mills are constructed and bread stuffs substituted; many a trait -of nationality in manners and costume is already effaced; monks are -gone, and mantillas are going, alas! going. - -In the changes that have recently taken place, many descriptions of ways -and things now presented to the public will soon become almost matters -of history and antiquarian interest. The passages here reprinted will be -omitted in the forthcoming new edition of the Handbook, to which these -pages may form a companion; but their chief object has been to offer a -few hours' amusement, and may be of instruction, to those who remain at -home; and should the humble attempt meet with the approbation of fair -readers, the author will bear, with more than Spanish resignation, -whatever animadversions bearded critics may be pleased to inflict on -this or on the other side of the water. - - - - -CONTENTS. - - -CHAPTER I. - -.....PAGE - -A General View of Spain--Isolation--King of the Spains--Castilian -Precedence--Localism--Want of Union--Admiration of Spain--M. Thiers in -Spain.....1 - - -CHAPTER II. - -The Geography of Spain--Zones--Mountains--The Pyrenees--The Gabacho, and -French Politics.....7 - - -CHAPTER III. - -The Rivers of Spain--Bridges--Navigation--The Ebro and Tagus.....23 - - -CHAPTER IV. - -Divisions into Provinces--Ancient Demarcations--Modern -Departments--Population--Revenue--Spanish Stocks.....30 - - -CHAPTER V. - -Travelling in Spain--Steamers--Roads, Roman, Monastic, and Royal--Modern -Railways--English Speculations.....40 - - -CHAPTER VI. - -Post Office in Spain--Travelling with Post Horses--Riding post--Mails -and Diligences, Galeras, Coches de Colleras, Drivers and Manner of -Driving, and Oaths.....53 - - -CHAPTER VII. - -Spanish Horses--Mules--Asses--Muleteers--Maragatos.....65 - - -CHAPTER VIII. - -Riding Tour in Spain--Pleasures of it--Pedestrian Tour--Choice of -Companions--Rules for a Riding Tour--Season of Year--Day's -Journey--Management of Horse; his Feet; Shoes; General Hints.....80 - - -CHAPTER IX. - -The Rider's Costume--Alforjas: Their contents--The Bota, and How to use -it--Pig Skins and Borracha--Spanish Money--Onzas and smaller -Coins.....94 - - -CHAPTER X. - -Spanish Servants: their Character--Travelling Groom, Cook, and -Valet.....105 - - -CHAPTER XI. - -A Spanish Cook--Philosophy of Spanish Cuisine--Sauce--Difficulty of -Commissariat--The Provend--Spanish Hares and Rabbits--The -Olla--Garbanzos--Spanish Pigs--Bacon and Hams--Omelette--Salad and -Gazpacho.....119 - - -CHAPTER XII. - -Drinks of Spain--Water--Irrigation--Fountains--Spanish Thirstiness--The -Alcarraza--Water Carriers--Ablutions--Spanish Chocolate--Agraz--Beer -Lemonade.....136 - - -CHAPTER XIII. - -Spanish Wines--Spanish Indifference--Wine-making--Vins du Pays--Local -Wines--Benicarl--Valdepeas.....145 - - -CHAPTER XIV. - -Sherry Wines--The Sherry District--Origin of the Name--Varieties of -Soil--Of Grapes--Pajarete--Rojas Clemente--Cultivation of Vines--Best -Vineyards--The Vintage--Amontillado--The Capataz--The Bodega--Sherry -Wine--Arrope and Madre Vino--A Lecture on Sherry in the Cellar--at the -Table--Price of Fine Sherry--Falsification of Sherry--Manzanilla--The -Alpistera.....150 - -CHAPTER XV. - -Spanish Inns: Why so Indifferent--The Fonda--Modern Improvements--The -Posada--Spanish Innkeepers--The Venta: Arrival in -it--Arrangement--Garlic--Dinner--Evening--Night--Bill--Identity with the -Inns of the Ancients.....165 - - -CHAPTER XVI. - -Spanish Robbers--A Robber Adventure--Guardias Civiles--Exaggerated -Accounts--Cross of the Murdered--Idle Robber Tales--French -Bandittiphobia--Robber History--Guerrilleros--Smugglers--Jose -Maria--Robbers of the First Class--The Ratero--Miguelites--Escorts and -Escopeteros--Passes, Protections, and Talismans--Execution of a -Robber.....186 - - -CHAPTER XVII. - -The Spanish Doctor: His Social Position--Medical -Abuses--Hospitals--Medical Education--Lunatic Asylums--Foundling -Hospital of Seville--Medical Pretensions--Dissection--Family -Physician--Consultations--Medical -Costume--Prescriptions--Druggists--Snake Broth--Salve for -Knife-cuts.....213 - - -CHAPTER XVIII. - -Spanish Spiritual Remedies for the Body--Miraculous Relics--Sanative -Oils--Philosophy of Relic Remedies--Midwifery and the Cinta of -Tortosa--Bull of Crusade.....236 - - -CHAPTER XIX. - -The Spanish Figaro--Mustachios--Whiskers--Beards--Bleeding--Heraldic -Blood--Blue, Red, and Black Blood--Figaro's Shop--The Baratero--Shaving -and Toothdrawing.....255 - - -CHAPTER XX. - -What to observe in Spain--How to observe--Spanish Incuriousness and -Suspicions--French Spies and Plunderers--Sketching in -Spain--Difficulties; How Surmounted--Efficacy of Passports and -Bribes--Uncertainty and Want of Information in the Natives.....265 - -CHAPTER XXI. - -Origin of Bull-fight or Festival, and its Religious Character--Fiestas -Reales--Royal Feasts--Charles I. at one--Discontinuance of the Old -System--Sham Bull-fights--Plaza de Toros--Slang Language--Spanish -Bulls--Breeds--The Going to a Bull-fight.....286 - - -CHAPTER XXII. - -The Bull-fight--Opening of Spectacle--First Act, and Appearance of the -Bull--The Picador--Bull Bastinado--The Horses, and their Cruel -Treatment--Fire and Dogs--The Second Act--The Chulos and their -Darts--The Third Act--The Matador--Death of the Bull--The Conclusion, -and Philosophy of the Amusement--Its Effect on Ladies.....300 - - -CHAPTER XXIII. - -Spanish Theatre; Old and Modern Drama; Arrangement of Play-houses--The -Henroost--The Fandango; National Dances--A Gipsy Ball--Italian -Opera--National Songs and Guitars.....318 - - -CHAPTER XXIV. - -Manufacture of Cigars--Tobacco--Smuggling _vi_ Gibraltar--Cigars of -Ferdinand VII.--Making a Cigarrito--Zumalacarreguy and the -Schoolmaster--Time and Money wasted in Smoking--Postscript on Spanish -Stock.....335 - - - - -GATHERINGS FROM SPAIN. - - - - -CHAPTER I. - - A general view of Spain--Isolation--King of the Spains--Castilian - precedence--Localism--Want of Union--Admiration of Spain--M. Thiers - in Spain. - - -[Sidenote: KING OF THE SPAINS.] - -[Sidenote: LOCALISM OF SPANIARDS.] - -The kingdom of Spain, which looks so compact on the map, is composed of -many distinct provinces, each of which in earlier times formed a -separate and independent kingdom; and although all are now united under -one crown by marriage, inheritance, conquest, and other circumstances, -the original distinctions, geographical as well as social, remain almost -unaltered. The language, costume, habits, and local character of the -natives, vary no less than the climate and productions of the soil. The -chains of mountains which intersect the whole peninsula, and the deep -rivers which separate portions of it, have, for many years, operated as -so many walls and moats, by cutting off intercommunication, and by -fostering that tendency to isolation which must exist in all hilly -countries, where good roads and bridges do not abound. As similar -circumstances led the people of ancient Greece to split into small -principalities, tribes and clans, so in Spain, man, following the -example of the nature by which he is surrounded, has little in common -with the inhabitant of the adjoining district; and these differences are -increased and perpetuated by the ancient jealousies and inveterate -dislikes, which petty and contiguous states keep up with such tenacious -memory. The general comprehensive term "Spain," which is convenient for -geographers and politicians, is calculated to mislead the traveller, for -it would be far from easy to predicate any single thing of Spain or -Spaniards which will be equally applicable to all its heterogeneous -component parts. The north-western provinces are more rainy than -Devonshire, while the centre plains are more calcined than those of the -deserts of Arabia, and the littoral south or eastern coasts altogether -Algerian. The rude agricultural Gallician, the industrious manufacturing -artisan of Barcelona, the gay and voluptuous Andalucian, the sly -vindictive Valencian, are as essentially different from each other as so -many distinct characters at the same masquerade. It will therefore be -more convenient to the traveller to take each province by itself and -treat it in detail, keeping on the look-out for those peculiarities, -those social and natural characteristics or idiosyncracies which -particularly belong to each division, and distinguish it from its -neighbours. The Spaniards who have written on their own geography and -statistics, and who ought to be supposed to understand their own country -and institutions the best, have found it advisable to adopt this -arrangement from feeling the utter impossibility of treating Spain -(where union is not unity) as a whole. There is no king of _Spain_: -among the infinity of kingdoms, the list of which swells out the royal -style, that of "Spain" is not found; he is King of the Spains, Rex -Hispaniarum, _Rey de las Espaas_, not "_Rey de Espaa_." Philip II., -called by his countrymen _el prudente_, the prudent, wishing to fuse -down his heterogeneous subjects, was desirous after his conquest of -Portugal, which consolidated his dominion, to call himself King of -Spain, which he then really was; but this alteration of title was beyond -the power of even his despotism; such was the opposition of the kingdoms -of Arragon and Navarre, which never gave up the hopes of shaking off the -yoke of Castile, and recovering their former independence, while the -empire provinces of New and Old Castile refused in anywise to compromise -their claims of pre-eminence. They from early times, as now, took the -lead in national nomenclature; hence "_Castellano_," Castilian, is -synonymous with Spaniard, and particularly with the proud genuine older -stock. "_Castellano las derechas_," means a Spaniard to the backbone; -"_Hablar Castellano_," to speak Castilian, is the correct expression for -speaking the Spanish language. Spain again was long without the -advantage of a fixed metropolis, like Rome, Paris, or London, which have -been capitals from their foundation, and recognized and submitted to as -such; here, the cities of Leon, Burgos, Toledo, Seville, Valladolid, -and others, have each in their turns been the capitals of the kingdom. -This constant change and short-lived pre-eminence has weakened any -prescriptive superiority of one city over another, and has been a cause -of national weakness by raising up rivalries and disputes about -precedence, which is one of the most fertile sources of dissension among -a punctilious people. In fact the king was the state, and wherever he -fixed his head-quarters was the court, _La Corte_, a word still -synonymous with Madrid, which now claims to be the only residence of the -Sovereign--the residenz, as Germans would say; otherwise, when compared -with the cities above mentioned, it is a modern place; from not having a -bishop or cathedral, of which latter some older cities possess two, it -has not even the rank of a _ciudad_, or city, but is merely denominated -_villa_, or town. In moments of national danger it exercises little -influence over the Peninsula: at the same time, from being the seat of -the court and government, and therefore the centre of patronage and -fashion, it attracts from all parts those who wish to make their -fortune; yet the capital has a hold on the ambition rather than on the -affections of the nation at large. The inhabitants of the different -provinces think, indeed, that Madrid is the greatest and richest court -in the world, but their hearts are in their native localities. "_Mi -paisano_," my fellow-countryman, or rather my fellow-county-man, -fellow-parishioner, does not mean Spaniard, but Andalucian, Catalonian, -as the case may be. When a Spaniard is asked, Where do you come from? -the reply is, "_Soy hijo de Murcia--hijo de Granada_," "I am a son of -Murcia--a son of Granada," &c. This is strictly analogous to the -"Children of Israel," the "Beni" of the Spanish Moors, and to this day -the Arabs of Cairo call themselves _children_ of that town, "_Ibn el -Musr_," &c.; and just as the Milesian Irishman is "a _boy_ from -Tipperary," &c., and ready to fight with any one who is so also, against -all who are not of that ilk; similar too is the clanship of the -Highlander; indeed, everywhere, not perhaps to the same extent as in -Spain, the being of the same province or town creates a powerful -freemasonry; the parties cling together like old school-fellows. It is a -_home_ and really binding feeling. To the spot of their birth all their -recollections, comparisons, and eulogies are turned; nothing to them -comes up to their particular province, that is, their real country. "_La -Patria_," meaning Spain at large, is a subject of declamation, fine -words, _palabras_--palaver, in which all, like Orientals, delight to -indulge, and to which their grandiloquent idiom lends itself readily; -but their patriotism is parochial, and self is the centre of Spanish -gravity. Like the German, they may sing and spout about _Fatherland_: in -both cases the theory is splendid, but in practice each Spaniard thinks -his own province or town the best in the Peninsula, and himself the -finest fellow in it. From the earliest period down to the present all -observers have been struck with this _localism_ as a salient feature in -the character of the Iberians, who never would amalgamate, never would, -as Strabo said, put their shields together--never would sacrifice their -own local private interest for the general good; on the contrary, in the -hour of need they had, as at present, a constant tendency to separate -into distinct _juntas_, "_collective_" assemblies, each of which only -thought of its own views, utterly indifferent to the injury thereby -occasioned to what ought to have been the common cause of all. Common -danger and interest scarcely can keep them together, the tendency of -each being rather to repel than to attract the other: the common enemy -once removed, they instantly fall to loggerheads among each other, -especially if there be any spoil to be divided: scarcely ever, as in the -East, can the energy of one individual bind the loose staves by the iron -power of a master mind; remove the band, and the centrifugal members -instantaneously disunite. Thus the virility and vitality of the noble -people have been neutralised: they have, indeed, strong limbs and honest -hearts; but, as in the Oriental parable, "a head" is wanting to direct -and govern: hence Spain is to-day, as it always has been, a bundle of -small bodies tied together by a rope of sand, and, being without union, -is also without strength, and has been beaten in detail. The much-used -phrase _Espaolismo_ expresses rather a "dislike of foreign dictation," -and the "self-estimation" of Spaniards, _Espaoles sobre todos_, than -any real patriotic love of country, however highly they rate its -excellences and superiority to every other one under heaven: this -opinion is condensed in one of those pithy proverbs which, nowhere more -than in Spain, are the exponents of popular sentiment: it runs -thus,--"_Quien dice Espaa, dice todo_," which means, "Whoever says -Spain, says everything." A foreigner may perhaps think this a trifle too -comprehensive and exclusive; but he will do well to express no doubts on -the subject, since he will only be set down by every native as either -jealous, envious, or ignorant, and probably all three. - -[Sidenote: DISUNION OF SPANIARDS.] - -[Sidenote: ADMIRATION OF SPAIN.] - -[Sidenote: M. THIERS IN SPAIN.] - -To boast of Spain's strength, said the Duke of Wellington, is the -national weakness. Every infinitesimal particle which constitutes -_nosotros_, or ourselves, as Spaniards term themselves, will talk of his -country as if the armies were still led to victory by the mighty Charles -V., or the councils managed by Philip II. instead of Louis-Philippe. -Fortunate, indeed, was it, according to a Castilian preacher, that the -Pyrenees concealed Spain when the Wicked One tempted the Son of Man by -an offer of all the kingdoms of the world, and the glory of them. This, -indeed, was predicated in the medival or dark ages, but few peninsular -congregations, even in these enlightened times, would dispute the -inference. It was but the other day that a foreigner was relating in a -_tertulia_, or conversazione of Madrid, the well-known anecdote of -Adam's revisit to the earth. The narrator explained how our first father -on lighting in Italy was perplexed and taken aback; how, on crossing the -Alps into Germany, he found nothing that he could understand--how -matters got darker and stranger at Paris, until on his reaching England -he was altogether lost, confounded, and abroad, being unable to make out -any thing. Spain was his next point, where, to his infinite -satisfaction, he found himself quite at home, so little had things -changed since his absence, or indeed since the sun at its creation first -shone over Toledo. The story concluded, a distinguished Spaniard, who -was present, hurt perhaps at the somewhat protestant-dissenting tone of -the speaker, gravely remarked, the rest of the party coinciding,--_Si, -Seor, y tenia razon; la Espaa es Paradiso_--"Adam, Sir, was right, for -Spain is paradise;" and in many respects this worthy, zealous gentleman -was not wrong, although it is affirmed by some of his countrymen that -some portions of it are inhabited by persons not totally exempt from -original sin; thus the Valencians will say of their ravishing _huerta_, -or garden, _Es un paradiso habitado por demonios_,--"It is an Eden -peopled by subjects of his Satanic Majesty." Again, according to the -natives, Murcia, a land overflowing with milk and honey, where Flora and -Pomona dispute the prize with Ceres and Bacchus, possesses a _cielo y -suelo bueno, el entresuelo malo_, has "a sky and soil that are good, -while all between is indifferent;" which the _entresol_ occupant must -settle to his liking. - -Another little anecdote, like a straw thrown up in the air, will point -out the direction in which the wind blows. Monsieur Thiers, the great -historical romance writer, in his recent hand-gallop tour through the -Peninsula, passed a few days only at Madrid; his mind being, as -logicians would say, of a _subjective_ rather than an _objective_ turn, -that is, disposed rather to the consideration of the _ego_, and to -things relating to self, than to those that do not, he scarcely looked -more at any thing there, than he did during his similar run through -London: "Behold," said the Spaniards, "that little _gabacho_; he dares -not remain, nor raise his eyes from the ground in this land, whose vast -superiority wounds his personal and national vanity." There is nothing -new in this. The old Castilian has an older saying:--_Si Dios no fuese -Dios, seria rey de las Espaas, y el de Francia su cocinero_--"If God -were not God, he would make himself king of the Spains, with him of -France for his cook." Lope de Vega, without derogating one jot from -these paradisiacal pretensions, used him of England better. His sonnet -on the romantic trip to Madrid ran thus:-- - - "Carlos Stuardo soy, - Que siendo amor mi guia, - Al _cielo de Espaa_ voy, - Por ver mi estrella Maria." - -"I am Charles Stuart, who, with love for my guide, hasten to the heaven -Spain to see my star Mary." The Virgin, it must be remembered, after -whom this infanta was named, is held by every Spaniard to be the -brightest luminary, and the sole empress of heaven. - -[Sidenote: GEOGRAPHY OF SPAIN.] - - - - -CHAPTER II. - - The Geography of Spain--Zones--Mountains--The Pyrenees--The - Gabacho, and French Politics. - - -From Spain being the most southern country in Europe, it is very natural -that those who have never been there, and who in England criticise those -who have, should imagine the climate to be even more delicious than that -of Italy or Greece. This is far from being the fact; some, indeed, of -the sea coasts and sheltered plains in the S. and E. provinces are warm -in winter, and exposed to an almost African sun in summer, but the N. -and W. districts are damp and rainy for the greater part of the year, -while the interior is either cold and cheerless, or sunburnt and -wind-blown: winters have occurred at Madrid of such severity that -sentinels have been frozen to death; and frequently all communication is -suspended by the depth of the snow in the elevated roads over the -mountain passes of the Castiles. All, therefore, who are about to travel -through the Peninsula, are particularly cautioned to consider well their -line of route beforehand, and to select certain portions to be visited -at certain seasons, and thus avoid every local disadvantage. - -[Sidenote: GENERAL VIEW OF SPAIN.] - -One glance at a map of Europe will convey a clearer notion of the -relative position of Spain in regard to other countries than pages of -letter-press: this is an advantage which every schoolboy possesses over -the Plinys and Strabos of antiquity; the ancients were content to -compare the shape of the Peninsula to that of a bull's hide, nor was the -comparison ill chosen in some respects. We will not weary readers with -details of latitude and longitude, but just mention that the whole -superficies of the Peninsula, including Portugal, contains upwards of -19,000 square leagues, of which somewhat more than 15,500 belong to -Spain; it is thus almost twice as large as the British Islands, and only -one-tenth smaller than France; the circumference or coast-line is -estimated at 750 leagues. This compact and isolated territory, inhabited -by a fine, hardy, warlike population, ought, therefore, to have rivalled -France in military power, while its position between those two great -seas which command the commerce of the old and new world, its indented -line of coast, abounding in bays and harbours, offered every advantage -of vying with England in maritime enterprise. - -Nature has provided commensurate outlets for the infinite productions of -a country which is rich alike in everything that is to be found either -on the face or in the bowels of the earth; for the mines and quarries -abound with precious metals and marbles, from gold to iron, from the -agate to coal, while a fertile soil and every possible variety of -climate admit of unlimited cultivation of the natural productions of the -temperate or tropical zones: thus in the province of Granada the -sugar-cane and cotton-tree luxuriate at the base of ranges which are -covered with eternal snow: a wide range is thus afforded to the -botanist, who may ascend by zones, through every variety of vegetable -strata, from the hothouse plant growing wild, to the hardiest lichen. It -has, indeed, required the utmost ingenuity and bad government of man to -neutralise the prodigality of advantages which Providence has lavished -on this highly favoured land, and which, while under the dominion of the -Romans and Moors, resembled an Eden, a garden of plenty and delight, -when in the words of an old author, there was nothing idle, nothing -barren in Spain--"nihil otiosum, nihil sterile in Hspani." A sad -change has come over this fair vision, and now the bulk of the Peninsula -offers a picture of neglect and desolation, moral and physical, which it -is painful to contemplate: the face of nature and the mind of man have -too often been dwarfed and curtailed of their fair proportions; they -have either been neglected and their inherent fertility allowed to run -into vice and luxuriant weeds, which it will show against any country in -the world, or their energies have been misdirected, and a capability of -all good converted into an element equally powerful for evil; but pride -and laziness are here as everywhere the keys to poverty, _altivez y -pereza, llaves de pobreza_. - -[Sidenote: CLIMATE AND ELEVATION OF SPAIN.] - -The geological construction of Spain is very peculiar, and unlike that -of most other countries; it is almost one mountain or agglomeration of -mountains, as those of our countrymen who are speculating in Spanish -railroads are just beginning to discover. The interior rises on every -side from the sea, and the central portions are higher than any other -table-lands in Europe, ranging on an average from two to three thousand -feet above the level of the sea, while from this elevated plain chains -of mountains rise again to a still greater height. Madrid, which stands -on this central plateau, is situated about 2000 feet above the level of -Naples, which lies in the same latitude; the mean temperature of Madrid -is 59, while that of Naples is 63 30; it is to this difference of -elevation that the extraordinary difference of climate and vegetable -productions between the two capitals is to be ascribed. Fruits which -flourish on the coasts of Provence and Genoa, which lie four degrees -more to the north than any portion of Spain, are rarely to be met with -in the elevated interior of the Peninsula: on the other hand, the low -and sunny maritime belts abound with productions of a tropical -vegetation. The mountainous character and general aspect of the coast -are nearly analogous throughout the circuit which extends from the -Basque Provinces to Cape Finisterre; and offer a remarkable contrast to -those sunny alluvial plains which extend, more or less, from Cadiz to -Barcelona, and which closely resemble each other in vegetable -productions, such as the fig, orange, pomegranate, aloe, and carob tree, -which grow everywhere in profusion, except in those parts where the -mountains come down abruptly into the sea itself. Again, the central -districts, composed of vast plains and steppes, _Parameras, Tierras de -campo, y Secanos_, closely resemble each other in their monotonous -denuded aspect, in their scarcity of fruit and timber, and their -abundance of cereal productions. - -[Sidenote: ZONES OF SPAIN.] - -Spanish geographers have divided the Peninsula into seven distinct -chains of mountains. These commence with the Pyrenees and end with the -Btican or Andalucian ranges: these _cordilleras_, or lines of lofty -ridges, arise on each side of intervening plains, which once formed the -basins of internal lakes, until the accumulated waters, by bursting -through the obstructions by which they were dammed up, found a passage -to the ocean: the dip or inclination of the country lies from the east -towards the west, and, accordingly, the chief rivers which form the -drains and principal water-sheds of the greater parts of the surface, -flow into the Atlantic: their courses, like the basins through which -they pass, lie in a transversal and almost a parallel direction; thus -the Duero, the Tagus, the Guadiana, and the Guadalquivir, all flow into -their recipient between their distinct chains of mountains. The sources -of the supply to these leading arteries arise in the longitudinal range -of elevations which descends all through the Peninsula, approaching -rather to the eastern than to the western coast, whereby a considerably -greater length is obtained by each of these four rivers, when compared -to the Ebro, which disembogues in the Mediterranean. - -The Moorish geographer Alrasi was the first to take difference of -climate as the rule of dividing the Peninsula into distinct portions; -and modern authorities, carrying out this idea, have drawn an imaginary -line, which runs north-east to south-west, thus separating the Peninsula -into the northern, or the boreal and temperate, and the southern or the -torrid, and subdividing these two into four zones: nor is this division -altogether fanciful, for there is no caprice or mistake in tests derived -from the vegetable world; manners may make man, but the sun alone -modifies the plant: man may be fused down by social appliances into one -uniform mass, but the rude elements are not to be civilized, nor can -nature be made cosmopolitan, which heaven forfend. - -[Sidenote: ZONES OF SPAIN.] - -_The first or northern zone_ is the _Cantabrian_, the European; this -portion skirts the base of the Pyrenees, and includes portions of -Catalonia, Arragon, and Navarre, the Basque provinces, the Asturias, and -Gallicia. This is the region of humidity, and as the winters are long, -and the springs and autumns rainy, it should only be visited in the -summer. It is a country of hill and dale, is intersected by numerous -streams which abound in fish, and which irrigate rich meadows for -pastures. The valleys form the now improving dairy country of Spain, -while the mountains furnish the most valuable and available timber of -the Peninsula. In some parts corn will scarcely ripen, while in others, -in addition to the cerealia, cider and an ordinary wine are produced. It -is inhabited by a hardy, independent, and rarely subdued population, -since the mountainous country offers natural means of defence to brave -highlanders. It is useless to attempt the conquest with a small army, -while a large one would find no means of support in the hungry -localities. - -_The second zone_ is the Iberian or eastern, which, in its maritime -portions, is more Asiatic than European, and where the lower classes -partake of the Greek and Carthaginian character, being false, cruel, and -treacherous, yet lively, ingenious, and fond of pleasure: this portion -commences at Burgos, and includes the southern portion of Catalonia and -Arragon, with parts of Castile, Valencia, and Murcia. The sea-coasts -should be visited in the spring and autumn, when they are delicious; but -they are intensely hot in the summer, and infested with myriads of -muskitoes. The districts about Burgos are among the coldest in Spain, -and the thermometer sinks very much below the ordinary average of our -more temperate climate; and as they have little at any time to attract -the traveller, he will do well to avoid them except during the summer -months. The population is grave, sober, and Castilian. The elevation is -very considerable; thus the upper valley of the Mio and some of the -north-western portions of Old Castile and Leon are placed more than 6000 -feet above the level of the sea, and the frosts often last for three -months at a time. - -[Sidenote: GENERAL DROUGHT OF SPAIN.] - -_The third zone_ is the Lusitanian, or western, which is by far the -largest, and includes the central parts of Spain and all Portugal. The -interior of this portion, and especially the provinces of the two -Castiles and La Mancha, both in the physical condition of the soil and -the moral qualities of the inhabitants, presents a very unfavourable -view of the Peninsula, as these inland steppes are burnt up by summer -suns, and are tempest and wind-rent during winter. The general absence -of trees, hedges, and enclosures exposes these wide unprotected plains -to the rage and violence of the elements: poverty-stricken mud houses, -scattered here and there in the desolate extent, afford a wretched home -to a poor, proud, and ignorant population; but these localities, which -offer in themselves neither pleasure nor profit to the stranger, contain -many sites and cities of the highest interest, which none who wish to -understand Spain can possibly pass by unnoticed. The best periods for -visiting this portion of Spain are May and June, or September and -October. - -The more western districts of this Lusitanian zone are not so -disagreeable. There in the uplands the ilex and chesnut abound, while -the rich plains produce vast harvests of corn, and the vineyards -powerful red wines. The central table-land, which closely resembles the -plateau of Mexico, forms nearly one-half of the entire area of the -Peninsula. The peculiarity of the climate is its dryness; it is not, -however, unhealthy, being free from the agues and fevers which are -prevalent in the lower plains, river-swamps, and rice-grounds of parts -of Valencia and Andalucia. Rain, indeed, is so comparatively scarce on -this table-land, that the annual quantity on an average does not amount -to more than ten inches. The least quantity falls in the mountain -regions near Guadalupe, and on the high plains of Cuenca and Murcia, -where sometimes eight or nine months pass without a drop falling. The -occasional thunder-storms do but just lay the dust, since here moisture -dries up quicker even than woman's tears. The face of the earth is -tanned, tawny, and baked into a veritable terra cotta: everything seems -dead and burnt on a funeral pile. It is all but a miracle how the -principle of life in the green herb is preserved, since the very grass -appears scorched and dead; yet when once the rains set in, vegetation -springs up, phoenix-like, from the ashes, and bursts forth in an -inconceivable luxuriance and life. The ripe seeds which have fallen on -the soil are called into existence, carpeting the desert with verdure, -gladdening the eye with flowers, and intoxicating the senses with -perfume. The thirsty chinky dry earth drinks in these genial showers, -and then rising like a giant refreshed with wine, puts forth all its -strength; and what vegetation is, where moisture is combined with great -heat, cannot even be guessed at in lands of stinted suns. The periods of -rains are the winter and spring, and when these are plentiful, all kinds -of grain, and in many places wines, are produced in abundance. The -olive, however, is only to be met with in a few favoured localities. - -[Sidenote: GEOGRAPHY OF SPAIN.] - -_The fourth zone_ is the Btican, which is the most southern and -African; it coasts the Mediterranean, basking at the foot of the -mountains which rise behind and form the mass of the Peninsula: this -mural barrier offers a sure protection against the cold winds which -sweep across the central region. Nothing can be more striking than the -descent from the table elevations into these maritime strips; in a few -hours the face of nature is completely changed, and the traveller passes -from the climate and vegetation of Europe into that of Africa. This -region is characterised by a dry burning atmosphere during a large part -of the year. The winters are short and temperate, and consist rather in -rain than in cold, for in the sunny valleys ice is scarcely known except -for eating; the springs and autumns delightful beyond all conception. -Much of the cultivation depends on artificial irrigation, which was -carried by the Moors to the highest perfection: indeed water, under this -forcing, vivifying sun, is the blood of the earth, and synonymous with -fertility: the productions are tropical; sugar, cotton, rice, the -orange, lemon, and date. The _algarrobo_, the carob tree, and the -_adelfa_, the oleander, may be considered as forming boundary marks -between this the _tierra caliente_, or torrid district, and the colder -regions by which it is encompassed. - -Such are the geographical divisions of nature with which the vegetable -and animal productions are closely connected; and we shall presently -enter somewhat more fully into the _climate_ of Spain, of which the -natives are as proud as if they had made it themselves. This Btican -zone, Andalucia, which contains in itself many of the most interesting -cities, sites, and natural beauties of the Peninsula, will always take -precedence in any plan of the traveller, and each of these points has -its own peculiar attractions. These embrace a wide range of varied -scenery and objects; and Andalucia, easy of access, may be gone over -almost at every portion of the year. The winters may be spent at Cadiz, -Seville, or Malaga; the summers in the cool mountains of Ronda, Aracena, -or Granada. April, May, and June, or September, October, and November, -are, however, the most preferable. Those who go in the spring should -reserve June for the mountains; those who go in the autumn should -reverse the plan, and commence with Ronda and Granada, ending with -Seville and Cadiz. - -[Sidenote: SPANISH MOUNTAINS.] - -Spain, it has thus been shown, is one mountain, or rather a jumble of -mountains,--for the principal and secondary ranges are all more or less -connected with each other, and descend in a serpentising direction -throughout the Peninsula, with a general inclination to the west. -Nature, by thus dislocating the country, seems to have suggested, nay, -almost to have forced, localism and isolation to the inhabitants, who -each in their valleys and districts are shut off from their neighbours, -whom to love, they are enjoined in vain. - -The internal communication of the Peninsula, which is thus divided by -the mountain-walls, is effected by some good roads, few and far between, -and which are carried over the most convenient points, where the natural -dips are the lowest, and the ascents and descents the most practicable. -These passes are called _Puertos_--_port_, or gates. There are, indeed, -mule-tracks and goat-paths over other and intermediate portions of the -chain, but they are difficult and dangerous, and being seldom provided -with ventas or villages, are fitter for smugglers and bandits than -honest men: the farthest and fairest way about will always be found the -best and shortest road. - -The Spanish mountains in general have a dreary and harsh character, yet -not without a certain desolate sublimity: the highest are frequently -capped with snow, which glistens in the clear sky. They are rarely clad -with forest trees; the scarped and denuded ridges cut with a serrated -outline the clean clear blue sky. The granitic masses soar above the -green valley or yellow corn-plains in solitary state, like the castles -of a feudal baron, that lord it over all below, with which they are too -proud to have aught in common. These mountains are seen to greatest -advantage at the rise and setting of the sun, for during the day the -vertical rays destroy all form by removing shadows. - -[Sidenote: THE PYRENEES.] - -These geographical peculiarities of Spain, and particularly the -existence of the great central elevation, when once attained are apt to -be forgotten. The country rises from the coast, directly in the -north-western provinces, and in some of the southern and eastern, with -an intervening alluvial strip and swell: but when once the ascent is -accomplished, no _real_ descent ever takes place--we are then on the -summit of a vast elevated mass. The roads indeed _apparently_ ascend and -descend, but the mean height is seldom diminished: the interior hills or -plains are undulations of one mountain. The traveller is often deceived -at the apparent low level of snow-clad ranges, such as the Guadarrama; -this will be accounted for by adding the great elevation of their bases -above the level of the sea. The palace of the Escorial, which is placed -at the foot of the Guadarrama, and at the head of a seeming plain, -stands in reality at 2725 feet above Valencia, while the summer -residence of the king at _La Granja_, in the same chain, is thirty feet -higher than the summit of Vesuvius. This, indeed, is a castle in the -air--a chteau en Espagne, and worthy of the most German potentate to -whom that element belongs, as the sea does to Britannia. The mean -temperature on the plateau of Spain is as 15 Raumur, while that of the -coast is as 18 and 19, in addition to the protection from cutting -winds which their mountainous backgrounds afford; nor is the traveller -less deceived as regards the heights of the interior mountains than he -is with the champaigns, or table-land plains. The eye wanders over a -vast level extent bounded only by the horizon, or a faint blue line of -other distant sierras; this space, which appears one townless level, is -intersected with deep ravines, _barrancos_, in which villages lie -concealed, and streams, _arroyos_, flow unperceived. Another important -effect of this central elevation is the searching dryness and -rarefication of the air. It is often highly prejudicial to strangers; -the least exposure, which is very tempting under a burning sun, will -often bring on ophthalmia, irritable colics, and inflammatory diseases -of the lungs and vital organs. Such are the causes of the _pulmonia_, -which carries off the invalid in a few days, and is the disease of -Madrid. The frozen blasts descending from the snow-clad Guadarrama catch -the incautious passenger at the turning of streets which are roasting -under a fierce sun. Is it to be wondered at, that this capital should be -so very insalubrious? in winter you are frozen alive, in summer baked. A -man taking a walk for the benefit of his health, crosses with his pores -open from an oven to an ice-house; catch-cold introduces the Spanish -doctor, who soon in his turn presents the undertaker. - -[Sidenote: THE PYRENEES] - -As the Pyrenees possess an European interest at this moment when the -Napoleon of Peace proposes to annihilate their existence, which defied -Louis XIV. and Buonaparte, some details may be not unacceptable. This -gigantic barrier, which divides Spain and France, is connected with the -dorsal chain which comes down from Tartary and Asia. It stretches far -beyond the transversal spine, for the mountains of the Basque -Provinces, Asturias, and Gallicia, are its continuation. The Pyrenees, -properly speaking, extend E. to W., in length about 270 miles, being -both broadest and highest in the central portions, where the width is -about 60 miles, and the elevations exceed 11,000 feet. The spurs and -offsets of this great transversal spine penetrate on both sides into the -lateral valleys like ribs from a back-bone. The central nucleus slopes -gradually E. to the gentle Mediterranean, and W. to the fierce Atlantic, -in a long uneven swell. - -This range of mountains was called by the Romans _Montes_ and _Saltus -Pyrenei_, and by the Greeks [Greek: Purn], probably from a local -Iberian word, but which they, as usual, catching at sound, not sense, -connected with their [Greek: Pur], and then bolstered up their erroneous -derivation by a legend framed to fit the name, asserting that it either -alluded to _a fire_ through which certain precious metals were -discovered, or because the lofty summits were often struck with -lightning, and dislocated by the volcanos. According to the Iberians, -Hercules, when on his way to "lift" Geryon's cattle, was hospitably -received by Bebryx, a petty ruler in these mountains; whereupon the -demigod got drunk, and ravished his host's daughter _Pyrene_, who died -of grief, when Hercules, sad and sober, made the whole range re-echo -with her name; a legend which, like some others in Spain, requires -confirmation, for the Phoenicians called these ranges _Purani_, from -the forests, _Pura_ meaning wood in Hebrew. The Basques have, of course, -their etymology, some saying that the real root is _Biri_, an elevation, -while others prefer _Bierri enac_, the "two countries," which, separated -by the range, were ruled by Tubal; but when Spaniards once begin with -Tubal, the best plan is to shut the book. - -[Sidenote: THE GABACHO.] - -The _Maledta_ is the loftiest peak, although the _Pico del Mediodia_ -and the _Canig_, because rising at once out of plains and therefore -having the greatest apparent altitudes, were long considered to be the -highest; but now these French usurpers are dethroned. Seen from a -distance, the range appears to be one mountain-ridge, with broken -pinnacles, but, in fact, it consists of two distinct lines, which are -parallel, but not continuous. The one which commences at the ocean is -the most forward, being at least 30 miles more in advance towards the -south than the corresponding line, which commences from the -Mediterranean. The centre is the point of dislocation, and here the -ramifications and reticulations are the most intricate, as it is the -key-stone of the system, which is buttressed up by _Las Tres Sorellas_, -the three sisters _Monte Perdido_, _Cylindro_, and _Marbor_. Here is -the source of the Garonne, _La Garona_; here the scenery is the -grandest, and the lateral valleys the longest and widest. The smaller -spurs enclose valleys, down each of which pours a stream: thus the Ebro, -Garona, and Bidasoa are fed from the mountain source. These tributaries -are generally called in France _Gaves_,[1] and in some parts on the -Spanish side _Gabas_; but _Gav_ signifies a "river," and may be traced -in our _Avon_; and Humboldt derives it from the Basque _Gav_, a "hollow -or ravine;" cavus. The parting of these waters, or their flowing down -either N. or S., should naturally mark the line of division between -France and Spain: such, however, is not the case, as part of _Cerdaa_ -belongs to France, while _Aran_ belongs to Spain; thus each country -possesses a key in its neighbour's territory. It is singular that this -obvious inconvenience should not have been remedied by some exchange -when the long-disputed boundary-question was settled between Charles IV. -and the French republic. - -[Sidenote: THE PYRENEES.] - -Most of the passes over this Alpine barrier are impracticable for -carriages, and remain much in the same state as in the time of the -Moors, who from them called the Pyrenean range _Albort_, from the Roman -_Port_, the ridge of "gates." Many of the wild passes are only known to -the natives and smugglers, and are often impracticable from the snow; -while even in summer they are dangerous, being exposed to mists and the -hurricanes of mighty rushing winds. The two best carriageable lines of -inter-communication are placed at each extremity: that to the west -passes through Irun; that to the east through Figueras. - -The Spanish Pyrenees offer few attractions to the lovers of the fleshly -comforts of cities; but the scenery, sporting, geology, and botany are -truly Alpine, and will well repay those who can "rough it" considerably. -The contrast which the unfrequented Spanish side offers to the crowded -opposite one is great. In Spain the mountains themselves are less -abrupt, less covered with snow, while the numerous and much frequented -baths in the French Pyrenees have created roads, diligences, hotels, -tables-d'hte, cooks, Ciceronis, donkeys, and so forth; for the Badauds -de Paris who babble about green fields and _des belles horreurs_, but -who seldom go beyond the immediate vicinity and hackneyed "lions." A -want of good taste and real perception of the sublime and beautiful is -nowhere more striking, says Mr. Erskine Murray, than on the French side, -where mankind remains profoundly ignorant of the real beauties of the -Pyrenees, which have been chiefly explored by the English, who love -nature with all their heart and soul, who worship her alike in her -shyest retreats and in her wildest forms. Nevertheless, on the north -side many comforts and appliances for the tourist are to be had; nay, -invalids and ladies in search of the picturesque can ascend to the -_Brche de Roland_. Once, however, cross the frontier, and a sudden -change comes over all facilities of locomotion. Stern is the first -welcome of the "hard land of Iberia," scarce is the food for body or -mind, and deficient the accommodation for man or beast, and simply -because there is small demand for either. No Spaniard ever comes here -for pleasure; hence the localities are given up to the smuggler and -izard. - -[Sidenote: FRENCH POLICY.] - -The Oriental insthetic incuriousness for _things_, old stones, wild -scenery, &c., is increased by political reasons and fears. The -neighbour, from the time of the Celt down to to-day, has ever been the -coveter, ravager, and terror of Spain: her "knavish tricks," fire and -rapine are too numerous to be blinked or written away, too atrocious to -be forgiven: to revenge becomes a sacred duty. However governments may -change, the policy of France is immutable. Perfidy, backed by violence, -"ruse double de force," is the state maxim from Louis XIV. and -Buonaparte down to Louis-Philippe: the principle is the same, whether -the instrument employed be the sword or wedding ring. The weaker Spain -is thus linked in the embrace of her stronger neighbour, and has been -made alternately her dupe and victim, and degraded into becoming a mere -satellite, to be dragged along by fiery Mars. France has forced her to -share all her bad fortune, but never has permitted her to participate in -her success. Spain has been tied to the car of her defeats, but never -has been allowed to mount it in the day of triumph. Her friendship has -always tended to denationalise Spain, and by entailing the forced enmity -of England, has caused to her the loss of her navies and colonies in the -new world. - -"The Pyrenean boundary," says the Duke of Wellington, "is the most -vulnerable frontier of France, probably the only vulnerable one;" -accordingly she has always endeavoured to dismantle the Spanish defences -and to foster insurrections and _pronunciamientos_ in Catalonia, for -Spain's infirmity is her opportunity, and therefore the "sound policy" -of the rest of Europe is to see Spain strong, independent, and able to -hold her own Pyrenean key. - -[Sidenote: THE PYRENEES.] - -While France therefore has improved her means of approach and invasion, -Spain, to whom the past is prophetic of the future, has raised -obstacles, and has left her protecting barrier as broken and hungry as -when planned by her tutelar divinity. Nor are her highlanders more -practicable than their granite fastnesses. Here dwell the smuggler, the -rifle sportsman, and all who defy the law: here is bred the hardy -peasant, who, accustomed to scale mountains and fight wolves, becomes a -ready raw material for the _guerrilleros_, and none were ever more -formidable to Rome or France than those marshalled in these glens by -Sertorius and Mina. When the tocsin bell rings out, a hornet swarm of -armed men, the weed of the hills, starts up from every rock and brake. -The hatred of the Frenchman, which the Duke said formed "part of a -Spaniard's nature," seems to increase in intensity in proportion to -vicinity, for as they touch, so they fret and rub each other: here it -is the antipathy of an antithesis; the incompatibility of the saturnine -and slow, with the mercurial and rapid; of the proud, enduring, and -ascetic, against the vain, the fickle, and sensual; of the enemy of -innovation and change, to the lover of variety and novelty; and however -tyrants and tricksters may assert in the gilded galleries of Versailles -that _Il n'y a plus de Pyrnes_, this party-wall of Alps, this barrier -of snow and hurricane, does and will exist for ever: placed there by -Providence, as was said by the Gothic prelate Saint Isidore, they ever -have forbidden and ever will forbid the banns of an unnatural alliance, -as in the days of Silius Italicus: - - "Pyrene cels nimbosi verticis arce - Divisos Celtis lat prospectat Hiberos - Atque terna tenet magnis _divortia_ terris." - -If the eagle of Buonaparte could never build in the Arragonese Sierra, -the lily of the Bourbon assuredly will not take root in the Castilian -plain; so sings Ariosto: - - ---- "Che non lice - Che 'l giglio in quel terreno habbia radice!" - -[Sidenote: THE PYRENEES.] - -This inveterate condition either of pronounced hostility, or at best of -armed neutrality, has long rendered these localities disagreeable to the -man of the note-book. The rugged mountain frontiers consist of a series -of secluded districts, which constitute the entire world to the natives, -who seldom go beyond the natural walls by which they are bounded, except -to smuggle. This vocation is the curse of the country; it fosters a wild -reliance on self-defence, a habit of border foray and insurrection, -which seems as necessary to them as a moral excitement and combustible -element, as carbon and hydrogen are in their physical bodies. Their -habitual suspicion against prying foreigners, which is an Oriental and -Iberian instinct, converts a curious traveller into a spy or partisan. -Spanish authorities, who seldom do these things except on compulsion, -cannot understand the gratuitous braving of hardship and danger for its -own sake--the botanizing and geologizing, &c., of the nature and -adventure-loving English. The _impertinente curioso_ may possibly escape -observation in a Spanish city and crowd, but in these lonely hills it is -out of the question: he is the observed of all observers; and they, -from long smuggling and sporting habits, are always on the look-out, -and are keen-sighted as hawks, gipseys, and beasts of prey. Latterly -some who, by being placed immediately under the French boundary, have -seen the glitter of our tourists' coin, have become more humanized, and -anxious to obtain a share in the profits of the season. - -[Sidenote: THE PYRENEES.] - -The geology and botany have yet to be properly investigated. In the -metal-pregnant Pyrenees rude forges of iron abound, but everything is -conducted on a small, unscientific scale, and probably after the -unchanged primitive Iberian system. Fuel is scarce, and transport of -ores on muleback expensive. The iron is at once inferior to the English -and much dearer: the tools and implements used on both sides of the -Pyrenees are at least a century behind ours; while absurd tariffs, which -prevent the importation of a cheaper and better article, retard -improvements in agriculture and manufactures, and perpetuate poverty and -ignorance among backward, half-civilised populations. The timber, -moreover, has suffered much from the usual neglect, waste, and -improvidence of the natives, who destroy more than they consume, and -never replant. The sporting in these lonely wild districts is excellent, -for where man seldom penetrates the fer natur multiply: the bear is, -however, getting scarce, as a premium is placed on every head destroyed. -The grand object is the _Cabra Montanez_, or _Rupicapra_, German -Steinbock, the Bouquetin of the French, the Izard (_Ibex_, becco, bouc, -bock, buck). The fascination of this pursuit, like that of the Chamois -in Switzerland, leads to constant and even fatal accidents, as this shy -animal lurks in almost inaccessible localities, and must be stalked with -the nicest skill. The sporting on the north side is far inferior, as the -cooks of the table-d'htes have waged a _guerra al cuchillo_, a war to -the knife, and fork too, against even _les petits oiseaux_; but your -French _artiste_ persecutes even minnows, as all _sport_ and fair play -is scouted, and everything gives way for the pot. The Spaniards, less -mechanical and gastronomic, leave the feathered and finny tribes in -comparative peace. Accordingly the streams abound with trout, and those -which flow into the Atlantic with salmon. The lofty Pyrenees are not -only alembics of cool crystal streams, but contain, like the heart of -Sappho, sources of warm springs under a bosom of snow. The most -celebrated issue on the north side, or at least those which are the most -known and frequented, for the Spaniard is a small bather, and no great -drinker of medicinal waters. Accommodations at the baths on his side -scarcely exist, while even those in France are paltry when compared to -the spas of Germany, and dirty and indecent when contrasted with those -of England. The scenery is alpine, a jumble of mountain, precipice, -glacier, and forest, enlivened by the cataract or hurricane. The -natives, when not smugglers or _guerrilleros_, are rude, simple, and -pastoral: they are poor and picturesque, as people are who dwell in -mountains. _Plains_ which produce "bread stuffs" may be richer, but what -can a traveller or painter do with their monotonous commonplace? - -In these wild tracts the highlanders in summer lead their flocks up to -mountain huts and dwell with their cattle, struggling against poverty -and wild beasts, and endeavouring really to keep the wolf from the door: -their watch-dogs are magnificent; the sheep are under admirable -control--being, as it were, in the presence of the enemy, they know the -voice of their shepherds, or rather the peculiar whistle and cry: their -wool is largely smuggled into France, and when manufactured in the shape -of coarse cloth is then re-smuggled back again. - -[Sidenote: THE RIVERS OF SPAIN.] - - - - -CHAPTER III. - - The Rivers of Spain--Bridges--Navigation--The Ebro and Tagus. - - -[Sidenote: SPANISH RIVERS.] - -There are six great rivers in Spain,--the arteries which run between the -seven mountain chains, the vertebr of the geological skeleton. These -water-sheds are each intersected in their extent by others on a minor -scale, by valleys and indentations, in each of which runs its own -stream. Thus the rains and melted snows are all collected in an infinity -of ramifications, and are carried by these tributary conduits into one -of the main trunks, which all, with the exception of the Ebro, empty -themselves into the Atlantic. The Duero and Tagus, unfortunately for -Spain, disembogue in Portugal, and thus become a portion of a foreign -dominion exactly where their commercial importance is the greatest. -Philip II. saw the true value of the possession of an angle which -rounded Spain, and insured to her the possession of these valuable -outlets of internal produce, and inlets for external commerce. Portugal -annexed to Spain gave more real power to his throne than the dominion of -entire continents across the Atlantic, and is the secret object of every -Spanish government's ambition. The _Mio_, which is the shortest of -these rivers, runs through a bosom of fertility. The _Tajo_, Tagus, -which the fancy of poets has sanded with gold and embanked with roses, -tracks much of its dreary way through rocks and comparative barrenness. -The _Guadiana_ creeps through lonely Estremadura, infecting the low -plains with miasma. The _Guadalquivir_ eats out its deep banks amid the -sunny olive-clad regions of Andalucia, as the Ebro divides the levels of -Arragon. Spain abounds with brackish streams, _Salados_, and with -salt-mines, or saline deposits after the evaporation of the sea-waters; -indeed, the soil of the central portions is so strongly impregnated with -"villainous saltpetre," that the small province of La Mancha alone could -furnish materials to blow up the world; the surface of these regions, -always arid, is every day becoming more so, from the singular antipathy -which the inhabitants of the interior have against trees. There is -nothing to check the power of rapid evaporation, no shelter to protect -or preserve moisture. The soil becomes more and more parched and dried -up, insomuch that in some parts it has almost ceased to be available for -cultivation: another serious evil, which arises from want of -plantations, is, that the slopes of hills are everywhere liable to -constant denudation of soil after heavy rain. There is nothing to break -the descent of the water; hence the naked, barren stone summits of many -of the sierras, which have been pared and peeled of every particle -capable of nourishing vegetation: they are skeletons where life is -extinct; not only is the soil thus lost, but the detritus washed down -either forms bars at the mouths of rivers, or chokes up and raises their -beds; they are thus rendered liable to overflow their banks, and convert -the adjoining plains into pestilential swamps. The supply of water, -which is afforded by periodical rains, and which ought to support the -reservoirs of rivers, is carried off at once in violent floods, rather -than in a gentle gradual disembocation. From its mountainous character -Spain has very few lakes, as the fall is too considerable to allow water -to accumulate; the exceptions which do exist might with greater -propriety be termed lochs--not that they are to be compared in size or -beauty to some of those in Scotland. The volume in the principal rivers -of Spain has diminished, and is diminishing; thus some which once were -navigable, are so no longer, while the artificial canals which were to -have been substituted remain unfinished: the progress of deterioration -advances, while little is done to counteract or amend what every year -must render more difficult and expensive, while the means of repair and -correction will diminish in equal proportion, from the poverty -occasioned by the evil, and by the fearful extent which it will be -allowed to attain. However, several grand water-companies have been -lately formed, who are to dig Artesian wells, finish canals, navigate -rivers with steamers, and _issue shares at a premium_, which will be -effected if nothing else is. - -[Sidenote: SPANISH BRIDGES.] - -The rivers which are really adapted to navigation are, however, only -those which are perpetually fed by those tributary streams that flow -down from mountains which are covered with snow all the year, and these -are not many. The majority of Spanish rivers are very scanty of water -during the summer time, and very rapid in their flow when filled by -rains or melting snow: during these periods they are impracticable for -boats. They are, moreover, much exhausted by being drained off, -_sangrado_--that is, bled, for the purposes of artificial irrigation; -thus, at Madrid and Valencia, the wide beds of the Manzanares and the -Turia are frequently dry as the sands of the seashore when the tide is -out. They seem only to be entitled to be called rivers by courtesy, -because they have so many and such splendid bridges; as numerous are the -jokes cut by the newly-arrived stranger, who advises the townsfolk to -sell one of them to purchase water, or compares their thirsting arches -to the rich man in torments, who prays for one drop; but a heavy rain in -the mountains soon shows the necessity for their strength and length, -for their wide and lofty arches, their buttress-like piers, which before -had appeared to be rather the freaks of architectural magnificence than -the works of public utility. Those who live in a comparatively level -country can scarcely form an idea of the rapidity and fearful -destruction of the river inundations in this land of mountains. The -deluge rolls forth in an avalanche, the rising water coming down tier -above tier like a flight of steps let loose. These tides carry -everything before them--scarring and gullying up the earth, tearing down -rocks, trees, and houses, and strewing far and wide the relics of ruin; -but the fierce fury is short-lived, and is spent in its own violence; -thus the traveller at Madrid, if he wishes to see its Thames, should run -down or take the 'bus as he can, when it rains, or the river will be -gone before he gets there. When the Spaniards, under those blockheads -Blake and Cuesta, lost the battle of _Rio Seco_, which gave Madrid to -Buonaparte, the French soldiers, in crossing the _dry river_ bed in -pursuit of the fugitives, exclaimed,--"Why Spanish rivers run away too!" - -[Sidenote: THE EBRO.] - -Many of these beds serve in remote districts, where highways and bridges -are thought to be superfluous luxuries, for the double purposes of a -river when there is water in them, and as a road when there is not. -Again, in this land of anomalies, some streams have no bridges, while -other bridges have no streams; the most remarkable of these _pontes -asinorum_ is at Coria, where the Alagon is crossed at an inconvenient, -and often dangerous ferry, while a noble bridge of five arches stands -high and dry in the meadows close by. This has arisen from the river -having quitted its old channel in some inundation; or, as Spaniards say, -_salido de su madre_, gone out from its mother, who does not seem to -know that it is out, or certainly does not care, since no steps have -ever been taken by the Corians to coax it back again under its old -arches; they call on Hercules to turn this Alpheus, and rely in the -meantime on their proverb, that all fickle, unfaithful rivers repent and -return to their legitimate beds after a thousand years, for nothing is -hurried in Spain, _Despues de anos mil, vuelve el rio a su cubil_. On -the fishing in these wandering streams we shall presently say something. - -The navigation of Spanish rivers is Oriental, classical, and imperfect; -the boats, barges, and bargemen carry one back beyond the medival ages, -and are better calculated for artistical than commercial purposes. The -"great river," the Guadalquivir, which was navigable in the time of the -Romans as far as Cordova, is now scarcely practicable for -sailing-vessels of a moderate size even up to Seville. Passengers, -however, have facilities afforded them by the steamers which run -backwards and forwards between this capital and Cadiz; these -conveniences, it need not be said, were introduced from England, -although the first steamer that ever paddled in waters was of Spanish -invention, and was launched at Barcelona in 1543; but the Spanish -Chancellor of the Exchequer of the time was a poor red tapist, and -opposed the whole thing, which, as usual, fell to the ground. The -steamers on the Guadalquivir are safe; indeed, in our times, the -advertisements always stated that a mass was said before starting in the -heretical contrivance, just as to this day Birmingham locomotives, when -a railway is first opened in France, are sprinkled with holy water, and -blessed by a bishop, which may be a new "wrinkle" to Mr. Hudson and the -primate of York. - -[Sidenote: THE TAGUS.] - -There is considerable talk in Arragon about rendering the Ebro -navigable, and it has been surveyed this year by two engineers--English -of course. The local newspapers compared the astonishment of the herns -and peasantry, created on the banks by this arrival, as second only to -that occasioned when Don Quixote and Sancho ventured near the same spot -into the enchanted bark. - -There has been still older and greater talk about establishing a water -communication between Lisbon and Toledo, by means of the Tagus. This -mighty river, which is in every body's mouth, because the capital of the -kingdom of Port wine is placed at its embouchure, is in fact almost as -little known in Spain and out of it, as the Niger. It has been our fate -to behold it in many places and various phases of its most poetical and -picturesque course--first green and arrowy amid the yellow corn fields -of New Castile; then freshening the sweet Tempe of Aranjuez, clothing -the gardens with verdure, and filling the nightingale-tenanted glens -with groves; then boiling and rushing around the granite ravines of -rock-built Toledo, hurrying to escape from the cold shadows of its deep -prison, and dashing joyously into light and liberty, to wander far away -into silent plains, and on to Talavera, where its waters were dyed with -brave blood, and gladly reflected the flash of the victorious bayonets -of England,--triumphantly it rolls thence, under the shattered arches of -Almaraz, down to desolate Estremadura, in a stream as tranquil as the -azure sky by which it is curtained, yet powerful enough to force the -mountains at Alcantara. There the bridge of Trajan is worth going a -hundred miles to see; it stems the now fierce condensed stream, and ties -the rocky gorges together; grand, simple, and solid, tinted by the -tender colours of seventeen centuries, it looms like the grey skeleton -of Roman power, with all the sentiment of loneliness, magnitude, and the -interest of the past and present. Such are the glorious scenes we have -beheld and sketched; such are the sweet waters in which we have -refreshed our dusty and weary limbs. - -[Sidenote: THE TAGUS.] - -How stern, solemn, and striking is this Tagus of Spain! No commerce has -ever made it its highway--no English steamer has ever civilized its -waters like those of France and Germany. Its rocks have witnessed -battles, not peace; have reflected castles and dungeons, not quays or -warehouses: few cities have risen on its banks, as on those of the -Thames and Rhine; it is truly a river of Spain--that isolated and -solitary land. Its waters are without boats, its banks without life; man -has never laid his hand upon its billows, nor enslaved their free and -independent gambols. - -It is impossible to read Tom Campbell's admirable description of the -Danube before its poetry was discharged by the smoke of our ubiquitous -countrymen's Dampf Schiff, without applying his lines to this -uncivilised Tagus:-- - - "Yet have I loved thy wild abode, - Unknown, unploughed, untrodden shore, - Where scarce the woodman finds a road, - And scarce the fisher plies an oar; - For man's neglect I love thee more, - That art nor avarice intrude - To tame thy torrent's thunder shock, - Or prune the vintage of thy rock, - Magnificently rude!" - -As rivers in a state of nature are somewhat scarce in Great Britain, one -more extract may be perhaps pardoned, and the more as it tends to -illustrate Spanish character, and explain _las cosas de Espaa_, or the -things of Spain, which it is the object of these humble pages to -accomplish. - -The Tagus rises in that extraordinary jumble of mountains, full of -fossil bones, botany, and trout, that rise between Cuenca and Teruel, -and which being all but unknown, clamour loudly for the disciples of -Isaac Walton and Dr. Buckland. It disembogues into the sea at Lisbon, -having flowed 375 miles in Spain, of which nature destined it to be the -aorta. The Toledan chroniclers derive the name from Tagus, fifth king of -Iberia, but Bochart traces it to _Dag_, Dagon, a fish, as besides being -considered auriferous, the ancients pronounced it to be piscatory. Not -that the present Spaniards trouble their head more about the fishes here -than if they were crocodiles. Grains of gold are indeed found, but -barely enough to support a poet, by amphibious paupers, called -_artesilleros_ from their baskets, in which they collect the sand, which -is passed through a sieve. - -[Sidenote: NAVIGATION OF THE TAGUS.] - -The Tagus might easily be made navigable to the sea, and then with the -Xarama connect Madrid and Lisbon, and facilitate importation of colonial -produce, and exportation of wine and grain. Such an act would confer -more benefits upon Spain than ten thousand _charters_ or paper -constitutions, guaranteed by the sword of Narvaez, or the word and -honour of Louis-Philippe. The performance has been contemplated by many -_foreigners_, the Toledans looking lazily on; thus in 1581, Antonelli, a -Neapolitan, and Juanelo Turriano, a Milanese, suggested the scheme to -Philip II., then master of Portugal; but money was wanting--the old -story--for his revenues were wasted in relic-removing and in building -the useless Escorial, and nothing was made except water parties, and -odes to the "wise and great king" who _was_ to perform the deed, to the -tune of Macbeth's witches, "_I'll do, I'll do, I'll do_," for here the -future is preferred to the present tense. The project dozed until 1641, -when two other _foreigners_, Julio Martelli and Luigi Carduchi, in vain -roused Philip IV. from his siesta, who soon after losing Portugal -itself, forthwith forgot the Tagus. Another century glided away, when in -1755 Richard Wall, an Irishman, took the thing up; but Charles III., -busy in waging French wars against England, wanted cash. The Tagus has -ever since, as it roared over its rocky bed, like an unbroken barb, -laughed at the Toledan who dreamily angles for impossibilities on the -bank, invoking Brunel, Hercules, and Rothschild, instead of putting his -own shoulder to the water-wheel. In 1808 the scheme was revived: Fro -Xavier de Cabanas, who had studied in England our system of canals, -published a survey of the whole river; this folio '_Memoria sobre la -Navigation del Tajo_,' or, 'Memoir on the Navigation of the Tagus,' -Madrid, 1829, reads like the blue book of one discovering the source of -the Nile, so desert-like are the unpeopled, uncultivated districts -between Toledo and Abrantes. Ferd. VII. thereupon issued an approving -_paper_ decree, and so there the thing ended, although Cabanas had -engaged with Messrs. Wallis and Mason for the machinery, &c. Recently -the project has been renewed by Seor Bermudez de Castro, an intelligent -gentleman, who, from long residence in England, has imbibed the schemes -and energy of the foreigner. _Vermos!_ "we shall see;" for hope is a -good breakfast but a bad supper, says Bacon; and in Spain things are -begun late in the day, and never finished; so at least says the -proverb:--_En Espaa se empieza tarde, y se acaba nunca_. - -[Sidenote: DIVISION INTO PROVINCES.] - - - - -CHAPTER IV. - - Divisions into Provinces--Ancient Demarcations--Modern - Departments--Population--Revenue--Spanish Stocks. - - -In the divisions of the Peninsula which are effected by mountains, -rivers, and climate, a leading principle is to be traced throughout, for -it is laid down by the unerring hand of nature. The artificial, -political, and conventional arrangement into kingdoms and provinces is -entirely the work of accident and absence of design. - -These provincial divisions were formed by the gradual union of many -smaller and previously independent portions, which have been taken into -Spain as a whole, just as our inconvenient counties constitute the -kingdom of England; for the inconveniences of these results of the ebb -and flow of the different tides in the affairs of man's dominion--these -boundaries not fixed by the lines and rules of theodolite-armed land -surveyors, use had provided remedies, and long habit had reconciled the -inhabitants to divisions which suited them better than any new -arrangement, however scientifically calculated, according to statistical -and geographical principles. - -The French, during their intrusive rule, were horrified at this "chaos -administratif," this apparent irregularity, and introduced their own -system of _dpartements_, by which districts were neatly squared out and -people re-arranged, as if Spain were a chess-board and Spaniards mere -pawns--_peones_, or footmen, which this people, calling itself one of -_caballeros_, that is, riders on horses _par excellence_, assuredly is -not: nor, indeed, in this paradise of the church militant, can the moves -of any Spanish bishop or knight be calculated on with mathematical -certainty, since they seldom will take the steps to-morrow which they -did yesterday. - -[Sidenote: PROVINCES.] - -Accordingly, however specious the theory, it was found to be no easy -matter to carry departementalization out in practice: individuality -laughs at the solemn nonsense of in-door pedants, who would class men -like ferns or shells. The failure in this attempt to remodel ancient -demarcations and recombine antipathetic populations was utter and -complete. No sooner, therefore, had the Duke cleared the Peninsula of -_doctrinaires_ and invaders than the Lion of Castile shook off their -papers from his mane, and reverted like the Italian, on whom the same -experiment was tried, to his own pre-existing divisions, which, however -defective in theory, and unsightly and inconvenient on the map, had from -long habit been found practically to suit better. Recently, in spite of -this experience among other newfangled transpyrenean reforms, -innovations, and botherations, the Peninsula has again been parcelled -out into forty-nine provinces, instead of the former national divisions -of thirteen kingdoms, principalities, and lordships; but long will it be -before these deeply impressed divisions, which have grown with the -growth of the monarchy, and are engraved in the retentive memories of -the people, can be effaced. - -Those who are curious in statistical details are referred to the works -of Paez, Antillon, and others, who are considered by Spaniards to be -authorities on vast subjects, which are fitter for a gazetteer or a -handbook than for volumes destined like these for lighter reading; and -assuredly the pages of the respectable Spaniards just named are duller -than the high-roads of Castile, which no tiny rivulet the cheerful -companion of the dusty road ever freshens, no stray flower adorns, no -song of birds gladdens--"dry as the remainder of the biscuit after the -voyage." - -The thirteen divisions have grand and historical names: they belong to -an old and monarchical country, not to a spick and span vulgar -democracy, without title-deeds. They fill the mouth when named, and -conjure up a thousand recollections of the better and more glorious -times of Spain's palmy power, when there were giants in the land, not -pigmies in Parisian _paletots_, whose only ambition is to ape the -foreigner, and disgrace and denationalize themselves. - -[Sidenote: PROVINCES.] - -First and foremost _Andalucia_ presents herself, crowned with a -quadruple, not a triple tiara, for the name _los cuatro reinos_, "the -four kingdoms," is her synonym. They consist of those of Seville, -Cordova, Jaen, and Granada. There is magic and birdlime in the very -letters. Secondly advances the kingdom of _Murcia_, with its -silver-mines, barilla, and palms. Then the gentle kingdom of _Valencia_ -appears, all smiles, with fruits and silk. The principality of grim and -truculent _Catalonia_ scowls next on its fair neighbour. Here rises the -smoky factory chimney; here cotton is spun, vice and discontent bred, -and revolutions concocted. The proud and stiff-necked kingdom of -_Arragon_ marches to the west with this Lancashire of Spain, and to the -east with the kingdom of Navarre, which crouches with its green valleys -under the Pyrenees. The three _Basque Provinces_ which abut thereto, are -only called _El Senorio_, "The Lordship," for the king of all the Spains -is but simple lord of this free highland home of the unconquered -descendants of the aboriginal man of the Peninsula. Here there is much -talk of bullocks and _fueros_, or "privileges;" for when not digging and -delving, these gentlemen by the mere fact of being born here, are -fighting and upholding their good rights by the sword. The empire -province of the _Castiles_ furnishes two coronets to the royal brow; to -wit, that of the older portion, where the young monarchy was nursed, and -that of the newer portion, which was wrested afterwards from the infidel -Moor. The ninth division is desolate _Estremadura_, which has no higher -title than a province, and is peopled by locusts, wandering sheep, pigs, -and here and there by human bipeds. _Leon_, a most time-honoured -kingdom, stretches higher up, with its corn-plains and venerable cities, -now silent as tombs, but in auld lang syne the scenes of medival -chivalry and romance. The kingdom of _Gallicia_ and the principality of -the _Asturias_ form the seaboard to the west, and constitute Spain's -breakwater against the Atlantic. - -[Sidenote: POPULATION] - -It is not very easy to ascertain the exact population of any country, -much less that of one which does not yet possess the advantages of -public registrars; the people at large, for whom, strange to say, the -pleasant studies of statistics and political economy have small charms, -consider any attempt to number them as boding no good; they have a -well-grounded apprehension of ulterior objects. To "number the people" -was a crime in the East, and many moral and practical difficulties exist -in arriving at a true census of Spain. Thus, while some writers on -statistics hope to flatter the powers that be, by a glowing exaggeration -of national strength, "to boast of which," says the Duke, "is the -national weakness," the suspicious _many_, on the other hand, are -disposed to conceal and diminish the truth. We should be always on our -guard when we hear accounts of the past or present population, commerce, -or revenue of Spain. The better classes will magnify them both, for the -credit of their country; the poorer, on the other hand, will appeal _ad -misericordiam_, by representing matters as even worse than they really -are. They never afford any opening, however indirect, to information -which may lead to poll-taxes and conscriptions. - -[Sidenote: DIFFERENT RACES.] - -The population and the revenue have generally been exaggerated, and all -statements may be much discounted; the present population, at an -approximate calculation, may be taken at about eleven or twelve -millions, with a slow tendency to increase. This is a low figure for so -large a country, and for one which, under the Romans, is said to have -swarmed with inhabitants as busy and industrious as ants; indeed, the -longest period of rest and settled government which this ill-fated land -has ever enjoyed was during the three centuries that the Roman power was -undisputed. The Peninsula is then seldom mentioned by authors; and how -much happiness is inferred by that silence, when the blood-spattered -page of history was chiefly employed to register great calamities, -plagues, pestilences, wars, battles, or the freaks of men, at which -angels weep! Certainly one of the causes which have changed this happy -state of things, has been the numerous and fierce invasions to which -Spain has been exposed; fatal to her has been her gift of beauty and -wealth, which has ever attracted the foreign ravisher and spoiler. The -Goths, to whom a worse name has been given than they deserved in Spain, -were ousted by the Moors, the real and wholesale destroyers; bringing to -the darkling West the luxuries, arts and sciences of the bright East, -they had nothing to learn from the conquered; to them the Goth was no -instructor, as the Roman had been to him; they despised both of their -predecessors, with whose wants and works they had no sympathy, while -they abhorred their creed as idolatrous and polytheistic--down went -altar and image. There was no fair town which they did not destroy; -they exterminated, say their annals, the fowls of the air. - -The Gotho-Spaniard in process of time retaliated, and combated the -invader with his own weapons, bettering indeed the destructive lesson -which was taught. The effects of these wars, carried on without treaty, -without quarter, and waged for country and creed, are evident in those -parts of Spain which were their theatre. Thus, vast portions of -Estremadura, the south of Toledo and Andalucia, by nature some of the -richest and most fertile in the world, are now _dehesas y despoblados_, -depopulated wastes, abandoned to the wild bee for his heritage; the -country remains as it was left after the discomfiture of the Moor. The -early chronicles of both Spaniard and Moslem teem with accounts of the -annual forays inflicted on each other, and to which a frontier-district -was always exposed. The object of these border _guerrilla_-warfares was -extinction, _talar, quemar y robar_, to desolate, burn, and rob, to cut -down fruit-trees, to "harry," to "razzia."[2] The internecine struggle -was that of rival nations and creeds. It was truly Oriental, and such as -Ezekiel, who well knew the Phoenicians, has described: "Go ye after -him through the city and smite; let not your eye have pity, neither have -ye pity; slay utterly old and young, both maids and little children and -women." The religious duty of smiting the infidel precluded mercy on -both sides alike, for the Christian foray and crusade was the exact -counterpart of the Moslem _algara_ and _algihad_; while, from military -reasons, everything was turned into a desert, in order to create a -frontier Edom of starvation, a defensive glacis, through which no -invading army could pass and live; the "beasts of the field alone -increased." Nature, thus abandoned, resumed her rights, and has cast off -every trace of former cultivation; and districts the granaries of the -Roman and the Moor, now offer the saddest contrasts to that former -prosperity and industry. - -[Sidenote: BUONAPARTE'S INVASION.] - -To these horrors succeeded the thinning occasioned by causes of a -bigoted and political nature: the expulsion of the Jews deprived poor -Spain of her bankers, while the final banishment of the Moriscoes, the -remnant of the Moors, robbed the soil of its best and most industrious -agriculturists. - -Again, in our time, have the fatal scenes of contending Christian and -Moor been renewed in the struggle for national independence, waged by -Spaniards against the Buonapartist invaders, by whom neither age nor sex -was spared--neither things sacred nor profane; the land is everywhere -scarred with ruins; a few hours' Vandalism sufficed to undo the works of -ages of piety, wealth, learning and good taste. The French retreat was -worse than their advance: then, infuriated by disgrace and disaster, the -Soults and Massnas vented their spite on the unarmed villagers and -their cottages. But let General Foy describe their progress:--"Ainsi que -la neige prcipite des sommets des Alpes dans les vallons, nos armes -innombrables dtruisaient en quelques heures, par leur seul passage, les -ressources de toute une contre; elles bivouaquaient habituellement, et - chaque gte nos soldats dmolissaient les maisons bties depuis un -demi-sicle, pour construire avec les dcombres ces longs villages -aligns qui souvent ne devaient durer qu'un jour: au dfaut du bois des -forts les arbres fruitiers, les vgtaux prcieux, comme le mrier, -l'olivier, l'oranger, servaient a les rchauffer; les conscrits irrits - la fois par le besoin et par le danger contractaient _une ivresse -morale_ dont nous ne cherchions pas les gurir." - - "So France gets drunk with blood to vomit crime, - And fatal ever have her saturnalia been." - -Who can fail to compare this habitual practice of Buonaparte's legions -with the terrible description in Hosea of the "great people and strong" -who execute the dread judgments of heaven?--"A fire devoureth before -them, and behind them a flame burneth; the land is the garden of Eden -before them, and behind them a desolate wilderness, yea, and nothing -shall escape them." - -[Sidenote: REVENUE.] - -No sooner were they beaten out by the Duke, than population began to -spring up again, as the bruised flowerets do when the iron heel of -marching hordes has passed on. Then ensued the civil fratricide wars, -draining the land of its males, from which bleeding Spain has not yet -recovered. Insecurity of property and person will ever prove bars to -marriage and increased population. - -Again, a deeper and more permanent curse has steadily operated for the -last two centuries, at which Spanish authors long have not dared to -hint. They have ascribed the depopulation of Estremadura to the swarm of -colonist adventurers and emigrants who departed from this province of -Cortes and Pizarro to seek for fortune in the new world of gold and -silver; and have attributed the similar want of inhabitants in Andalucia -to the similar outpouring from Cadiz, which, with Seville, engrossed the -traffic of the Americas. But colonisation never thins a vigorous, -well-conditioned mother state--witness the rapid and daily increase of -population in our own island, which, like Tyre of old, is ever sending -forth her outpouring myriads, and wafts to the uttermost parts of the -sea, on the white wings of her merchant fleets, the blessings of peace, -religion, liberty, order, and civilisation, to disseminate which is the -mission of Great Britain. - -The real permanent and standing cause of Spain's thinly peopled state, -want of cultivation, and abomination of desolation, is BAD GOVERNMENT, -civil and religious; this all who run may read in her lonely land and -silent towns. But Spain, if the anecdote which her children love to tell -be true, will never be able to remove the incubus of this fertile origin -of every evil. When Ferdinand III. captured Seville and died, being a -saint he escaped purgatory, and Santiago presented him to the Virgin, -who forthwith desired him to ask any favours for beloved Spain. The -monarch petitioned for oil, wine, and corn--conceded; for sunny skies, -brave men, and pretty women--allowed; for cigars, relics, garlic, and -bulls--by all means; for a _good government_--"Nay, nay," said the -Virgin, "that never can be granted; for were it bestowed, not an angel -would remain a day longer in heaven." - -[Sidenote: THE BOLSA.] - -The present revenue may be taken at about 12,000,000_l._ or -13,000,000_l._ sterling; but money is compared by Spaniards to oil; a -little will stick to the fingers of those who measure it out; and such -is the robbing and jobbing, the official mystification and peculation, -that it is difficult to get at _facts_ whenever cash is in question. The -revenue, moreover, is badly collected, and at a ruinous per centage, and -at no time during this last century has been sufficient for the national -expenses. Recourse has been had to the desperate experiments of usurious -loans and wholesale confiscations. At one time church pillage and -appropriation was almost the only item in the governmental budget. The -recipients were ready to "prove from Vatel exceedingly well" that the -first duty of a rich clergy was to relieve the necessitous, and the more -when the State was a pauper: croziers are no match for bayonets. This -system necessarily cannot last. Since the reign of Philip II. every act -of dishonesty has been perpetrated. Public securities have been -"repudiated," interest unpaid, and principal spunged out. No country in -the Old World, or even New drab-coated World, stands lower in financial -discredit. Let all be aware how they embark in Spanish speculations: -however promising in the prospectus, they will, sooner or later, turn -out to be deceptions; and whether they assume the form of loans, lands, -or rails, none are _real_ securities: they are mere castles in the air, -_chteaux en Espagne_: "The earth has bubbles as the water has, and -these are of them." - -For the benefit and information of those who have purchased Iberian -stock, it may be stated that an Exchange, or _Bolsa de Comercio_, was -established at Madrid in 1831. It may be called the _coldest_ spot in -the hot capital, and the _idlest_, since the usual "city article" is -short and sweet, "_sin operaciones_," or nothing has been bought or -sold. It might be likened to a tomb, with "Here _lies_ Spanish credit" -for its epitaph. If there be a thing which "_La perfide Albion_," "a -nation of shopkeepers," dislikes, worse even than a French assignat, it -is a bankrupt. One circumstance is clear, that Castilian _pundonor_, or -point of honour, will rather settle its debts with cold iron and warm -abuse than with gold and thanks. - -The Exchange at Madrid was first held at _St. Martin's_, a saint who -divided his cloak with a supplicant. As comparisons are odious, and bad -examples catching, it has been recently removed to the _Calle del -Desengao_, the street of "finding out fallacious hopes," a locality -which the bitten will not deem ill-chosen. - -[Sidenote: SPANISH "STOCK."] - -As all men in power use their official knowledge in taking advantage of -the turn of the market, the _Bolsa_ divides with the court and army the -moving influence of every _situacion_ or crisis of the moment: clever as -are the ministers of Paris, they are mere tyros when compared to their -colleagues of Madrid in the arts of working the telegraph, gazette, &c., -and thereby feathering their own nests. - -The Stock Exchange is open from ten to three o'clock, where those who -like Spanish funds may buy them as cheap as stinking mackerel; for when -the 3 per cents, of perfidious Albion are at 98, surely Spanish fives at -22 are a tempting investment. The stocks are numerous, and suited to all -tastes and pockets, whether those funded by Aguado, Ardouin, Toreno, -Mendizabal, or Mon, "all honourable men," and whose punctuality is -_un-remitting_, for in some the principal is consolidated, in others the -interest is deferred; the grand financial object in all having been to -receive as much as possible, and pay back in an inverse ratio--their -leading principle being to bag both principal and interest. As we have -just said, in measuring out money and oil a little will stick to the -cleanest fingers--the Madrid ministers and contractors made fortunes, -and actually "did" the Hebrews of London, as their forefathers spoiled -the Egyptians. But from Philip II. downwards, theologians have never -been wanting in Spain to prove the religious, however painful, duty of -bankruptcy, and particularly in contracts with usurious heretics. The -stranger, when shown over the Madrid bank, had better evince no -impertinent curiosity to see the "Dividend _pay_ office," as it might -give offence. Whatever be our dear reader's pursuit in the Peninsula, -let him-- - - "Neither a borrower nor lender be, - For loan oft loseth both itself and friend." - -Beware of Spanish stock, for in spite of official reports, _documentos_, -and arithmetical mazes, which, intricate as an arabesque pattern, look -well on paper without being intelligible; in spite of ingenious -conversions, fundings of interest, coupons--some active, some passive, -and other repudiatory terms and tenses, the present excepted--the -thimblerig is always the same; and this is the question, since national -credit depends on national good faith and surplus income, how can a -country pay interest on debts, whose revenues have long been, and now -are, miserably insufficient for the ordinary expenses of government? You -cannot get blood from a stone; _ex nihilo nihil fit_. - -[Sidenote: PUBLIC DEBT.] - -Mr. Macgregor's report on Spain, a truthful exposition of commercial -ignorance, habitual disregard of treaties and violation of contracts, -describes her public _securities_, past and present. Certainly they had -very imposing names and titles--_Juros Bonos_, _Vales reales_, -_Titulos_, &c.,--much more royal, grand, and poetical than our prosaic -_Consols_; but no oaths can attach real value to dishonoured and -good-for-nothing paper. According to some financiers, the public debts -of Spain, previously to 1808, amounted to 83,763,966_l._, which have -since been increased to 279,083,089_l._, farthings omitted, for we like -to be accurate. This possibly may be exaggerated, for the government -will give no information as to its own peculation and mismanagement: -according to Mr. Henderson, 78,649,675_l._ of this debt is due to -English creditors alone, and we wish they may get it, when he gets to -Madrid. In the time of James I., Mr. Howell was sent there on much such -an errand; and when he left it, his "pile of unredressed claims was -higher than himself." At all events, Spain is over head and ears in -debt, and irremediably insolvent. And yet few countries, if we regard -the fertility of her soil, her golden possessions at home and abroad, -her frugal temperate population, ought to have been less embarrassed; -but Heaven has granted her every blessing, except a good and honest -government. It is either a bully or a craven: satisfaction in -twenty-four hours _ la Bresson_, or a line-of-battle ship off -Malaga--Cromwell's receipt--is the only argument which these semi-Moors -understand: conciliatory language is held to be weakness: you may obtain -at once from their fears what never will be granted by their sense of -justice. - -[Sidenote: TRAVELLING IN SPAIN.] - - - - -CHAPTER V. - - Travelling in Spain--Steamers--Roads, Roman, Monastic, and - Royal--Modern Railways--English Speculations. - - -Of the many misrepresentations regarding Spain, few are more inveterate -than those which refer to the dangers and difficulties that are there -supposed to beset the traveller. This, the most romantic, racy, and -peculiar country of Europe, may in reality be visited by sea and land, -and throughout its length and breadth, with ease and safety, as all who -have ever been there well know, the nonsense with which Cockney critics -who never have been there scare delicate writers in albums and lady-bird -tourists, to the contrary notwithstanding: the steamers are regular, the -mails and diligences excellent, the roads decent, and the mules -sure-footed; nay, latterly, the _posadas_, or inns, have been so -increased, and the robbers so decreased, that some ingenuity must be -evinced in getting either starved or robbed. Those, however, who are -dying for new excitements, or who wish to make a picture or chapter, in -short, to get up an adventure for the home-market, may manage by a great -exhibition of imprudence, chattering, and a holding out luring baits, to -gratify their hankering, although it would save some time, trouble, and -expense to try the experiment much nearer home. - -As our readers live in an island, we will commence with the sea and -steamers. - -[Sidenote: STEAMERS.] - -The Peninsular and Oriental Navigation Company depart regularly three -times a month from Southampton for Gibraltar. They often arrive at -Corunna in seventy hours, from whence a mail starts directly to Madrid, -which it reaches in three days and a half. The vessels are excellent -sea-boats, are manned by English sailors, and propelled by English -machinery. The passage to Vigo has been made in less than three days, -and the voyage to Cadiz--touching at Lisbon included--seldom exceeds -six. The change of climate, scenery, men, and manners effected by this -week's trip, is indeed remarkable. Quitting the British Channel we soon -enter the "sleepless Bay of Biscay," where the stormy petrel is at home, -and where the gigantic swell of the Atlantic is first checked by Spain's -iron-bound coast, the mountain break-water of Europe. Here _The Ocean_ -will be seen in all its vast majesty and solitude: grand in the -tempest-lashed storm, grand in the calm, when spread out as a mirror; -and never more impressive than at night, when the stars of heaven, free -from earth-born mists, sparkle like diamonds over those "who go down to -the sea in ships, and behold the works of the Lord, and his wonders in -the deep." The land has disappeared, and man feels alike his weakness -and his strength; a thin plank separates him from another world; yet he -has laid his hand upon the billow, and mastered the ocean; he has made -it the highway of commerce, and the binding link of nations. - -The steamers which navigate the Eastern coast from Marseilles to Cadiz -and back again, are cheaper indeed in their fares, but by no means such -good sea-boats; nor do they keep their time--the essence of -business--with English regularity. They are foreign built, and worked by -Spaniards and Frenchmen. They generally stop a day at Barcelona, -Valencia, and other large towns, which gives them an opportunity to -replenish coal, and to smuggle. A rapid traveller is also thus enabled -to pay a flying visit to the cities on the seaboard; and thus those -lively authors who comprehend foreign nations with an intuitive -eagle-eyed glance, obtain materials for sundry octavos on the history, -arts, sciences, literature, and genius of Spaniards. But as Mons. Feval -remarks of some of his gifted countrymen, they have merely to scratch -their head, according to the Horatian expression, and out come a number -of volumes, ready bound in calf, as Minerva issued forth armed from the -temple of Jupiter. - -[Sidenote: SPANISH ROADS.] - -The Mediterranean is a dangerous, deceitful sea, fair and false as -Italia; the squalls are sudden and terrific; then the crews either curse -the sacred name of God, or invoke St. Telmo, according as their notion -may be. We have often been so caught when sailing on these perfidious -waters in these foreign craft, and think, with the Spaniards, that -escape is a miracle. The hilarity excited by witnessing the jabber, -confusion, and lubber proceedings, went far to dispel all present -apprehension, and future also. Some of our poor blue-jackets in case of -a war may possibly escape the fate with which they are threatened in -this French lake. But no wise man will ever go by sea when he can travel -by land, nor is viewing Spain's coasts with a telescope from the deck, -and passing a few hours in a sea-port, a very satisfactory mode of -becoming acquainted with the country. - -The roads of Spain, a matter of much importance to a judicious -traveller, are somewhat a modern luxury, having been only regularly -introduced by the Bourbons. The Moors and Spaniards, who rode on horses -and not in carriages, suffered those magnificent lines with which the -Romans had covered the Peninsula to go to decay; of these there were no -less than twenty-nine of the first order, which were absolutely -necessary to a nation of conquerors and colonists to keep up their -military and commercial communications. The grandest of all, which like -the Appian might be termed the Queen of Roads, ran from Merida, the -capital of Lusitania, to Salamanca. It was laid down like a Cyclopean -wall, and much of it remains to this day, with the grey granite line -stretching across the aromatic wastes, like the vertebr of an extinct -mammoth. We have followed for miles its course, which is indicated by -the still standing miliary columns that rise above the cistus underwood; -here and there tall forest trees grow out of the stone pavement, and -show how long it has been abandoned by man to Nature ever young and gay, -who thus by uprooting and displacing the huge blocks slowly recovers her -rights. She festoons the ruins with necklaces of flowers and creepers, -and hides the rents and wrinkles of odious, all-dilapidating Time, or -man's worse neglect, as a pretty maid decorates a shrivelled dowager's -with diamonds. The Spanish muleteer creeps along by its side in a track -which he has made through the sand or pebbles; he seems ashamed to -trample on this lordly way, for which, in his petty wants, he has no -occasion. Most of the similar roads have been taken up by monks to raise -convents, by burgesses to build houses, by military men to construct -fortifications--thus even their ruins have perished. - -[Sidenote: LEGEND OF SANTO DOMINGO.] - -The medival Spanish roads were the works of the clergy; and the -long-bearded monks, here as elsewhere, were the pioneers of -civilization; they made straight, wide, and easy the way which led to -their convent, their high place, their miracle shrine, or to whatever -point of pilgrimage that was held out to the devout; traffic was soon -combined with devotion, and the service of mammon with that of God. This -imitation of the Oriental practice which obtained at Mecca, is evidenced -by language in which the Spanish term _Feria_ signifies at once a -religious function, a holiday, and a fair. Even saints condescended to -become waywardens, and to take title from the highway. Thus _Santo -Domingo de la Calzada_, "St. Domenick of the _Paved Road_," was so -called from his having been the first to make one through a part of Old -Castile for the benefit of pilgrims on their way to Compostella, and -this town yet bears the honoured appellation. - -This feat and his legend have furnished Southey with a subject of a -droll ballad. The saint having finished his road, next set up an inn or -_Venta_, the Maritornes of which fell in love with a handsome pilgrim, -who resisted; whereupon she hid some spoons in this Joseph's saddlebags, -who was taken up by the Alcalde, and forthwith hanged. But his parents -some time afterwards passed under the body, which told them that he was -innocent, alive, and well, and all by the intercession of the sainted -road-maker; thereupon they proceeded forthwith to the truculent Alcalde, -who was going to dine off two roasted fowls, and, on hearing their -report, remarked, You might as well tell me that this cock (pointing to -his rti) would crow; whereupon it did crow, and was taken with its hen -to the cathedral, and two chicks have ever since been regularly hatched -every year from these respectable parents, of which a travelling -ornithologist should secure one for the Zoological Garden. The cock and -hen were duly kept near the high altar, and their white feathers were -worn by pilgrims in their caps. Prudent bagsmen will, however, put a -couple of ordinary roast fowls into their "provend," for hungry is this -said road to _Logroo_. - -[Sidenote: ROAD TO TOLEDO.] - -In this land of miracles, anomalies, and contradictions, the roads to -and from this very _Compostella_ are now detestable. In other provinces -of Spain, the star-paved milky way in heaven is called _El Camino de -Santiago_, the road of St. James; but the Gallicians, who know what -their roads really are, namely, the worst on earth, call the milky-way -_El Camino de Jerusalem_, "the road to Jerusalem," which it assuredly is -not. The ancients poetically attributed this phenomenon to some spilt -milk of Juno. - -Meanwhile the roads in Gallicia, although under the patronage of -Santiago, who has replaced the Roman Hermes, are, like his milky-way in -heaven, but little indebted to mortal repairs. The Dean of Santiago is -waywarden by virtue of his office or dignity, and especially -"protector." The chapter, however, now chiefly profess to make smooth -the road to a better world. They have altogether degenerated from their -forefathers, whose grand object was to construct roads for the pilgrim; -but since the cessation of offering-making Hadjis, little or nothing has -been done in the turnpike-trust line. - -Some of the finest roads in Spain lead either to the _sitios_ or royal -pleasure-seats of the king, or wind gently up some elevated and -monastery-crowned mountain like Monserrat. The ease of the despot was -consulted, while that of his subjects was neglected; and the Sultan was -the State, Spain was his property, and Spaniards his serfs, and willing -ones, for as in the East, their perfect equality amongst each other was -one result of the immeasurable superiority of the master of all. Thus, -while he rolled over a road hard and level as a bowling-green, and -rapidly as a galloping team could proceed, to a mere summer residence, -the communication between Madrid and Toledo, that city on which the sun -shone on the day light was made, has remained a mere track ankle-deep in -mud during winter and dust-clouded during summer, and changing its -direction with the caprice of wandering sheep and muleteers; but Bourbon -Royalty never visited this widowed capital of the Goths. The road -therefore was left as it existed if not before the time of Adam, at -least before Mac Adam. There is some talk just now of beginning a -regular road; when it will be finished is another affair. - -[Sidenote: ROAD TO LA CORUNA.] - -[Sidenote: CROSS ROADS.] - -The church, which shared with the state in dominion, followed the royal -example in consulting its own comforts as to roads. Nor could it be -expected in a torrid land, that holy men, whose abdomens occasionally -were prominent and pendulous, should lard the stony or sandy earth like -goats, or ascend heaven-kissing hills so expeditiously as their prayers. -In Spain the primary consideration has ever been the souls, not the -bodies, of men, or legs of beasts. It would seem indeed, from the -indifference shown to the sufferings of these quadrupedal -blood-engines, _Maquinas de sangre_, as they are called, and still more -from the reckless waste of biped life, that a man was of no value until -he was dead; then what admirable contrivances for the rapid travelling -of his winged spirit, first to purgatory, next out again, and thence -from stage to stage to his journey's end and blessed rest! More money -has been thus expended in masses than would have covered Spain with -railroads, even on a British scale of magnificence and extravagance. - -To descend to the roads of the peninsular earth, the principal lines are -nobly planned. These geographical arteries, which form the circulation -of the country, branch in every direction from Madrid, which is the -centre of the system. The road-making spirit of Louis XIV. passed into -his Spanish descendants, and during the reigns of Charles III. and -Charles IV. communications were completed between the capital and the -principal cities of the provinces. These causeways, "_Arrecifes_"--these -royal roads, "_Caminos reales_"--were planned on an almost unnecessary -scale of grandeur, in regard both to width, parapets, and general -execution. The high road to La Corua, especially after entering Leon, -will stand comparison with any in Europe; but when Spaniards finish -anything it is done in a grand style, and in this instance the expense -was so enormous that the king inquired if it was paved with silver, -alluding to the common Spanish corruption of the old Roman via lata into -"camino de _plata_," of plate. This and many of the others were -constructed from fifty to seventy years ago, and very much on the M'Adam -system, which, having been since introduced into England, has rendered -our roads so very different from what they were not very long since. The -war in the Peninsula tended to deteriorate the Spanish roads--when -bridges and other conveniences were frequently destroyed for military -reasons, and the exhausted state of the finances of Spain, and troubled -times, have delayed many of the more costly reparations; yet those of -the first class were so admirably constructed at the beginning, that, in -spite of the injuries of war, ruts, and neglect, they may, as a whole, -be pronounced equal to many of the Continent, and are infinitely more -pleasant to the traveller from the absence of pavement. The roads in -England have, indeed, latterly been rendered so excellent, and we are -so apt to compare those of other nations with them, that we forget that -fifty years ago Spain was in advance in that and many other respects. -Spain remains very much what other countries were: she has stood on her -old ways, moored to the anchor of prejudice, while we have progressed, -and consequently now appears behind-hand in many things in which she set -the fashion to England. - -The grand royal roads start from Madrid, and run to the principal -frontier and sea-port towns. Thus the capital may be compared to a -spider, as it is the centre of the Peninsular web. These diverging -fan-like lines are sufficiently convenient to all who are about to -journey to any single terminus, but inter-communications are almost -entirely wanting between any one terminus with another. This scanty -condition of the Peninsular roads accounts for the very limited portions -of the country which are usually visited by foreigners, who--the French -especially--keep to one beaten track, the high road, and follow each -other like wild geese; a visit to Burgos, Madrid, and Seville, and then -a steam trip from Cadiz to Valencia and Barcelona, is considered to be -making the grand tour of Spain; thus the world is favoured with volumes -that reflect and repeat each other, which tell us what we know already, -while the rich and rare, the untrodden, unchanged, and truly -Moro-Hispanic portions are altogether neglected, except by the -exceptional few, who venture forth like Don Quixote on their horses, in -search of adventures and the picturesque. - -[Sidenote: TRAVELLING.] - -[Sidenote: CONTEMPLATED RAILROADS.] - -The other roads of Spain are bad, but not much more so than in other -parts of the Continent, and serve tolerably well in dry weather. They -are divided into those which are practicable for wheel-carriages, and -those which are only bridle-roads, or as they call them, "of horseshoe," -on which all thought of going with a carriage is out of the question; -when these horse or mule tracks are very bad, especially among the -mountains, they compare them to roads for partridges. The cross roads -are seldom tolerable; it is safest to keep the high-road--or, as we have -it in English, the furthest way round is the nearest way home--for there -is no short cut without hard work, says the Spanish proverb, "_ho hay -atajo, sin trabajo_." - -All this sounds very unpromising, but those who adopt the customs of the -country will never find much practical difficulty in getting to their -journey's end; slowly, it is true, for where leagues and hours are -convertible terms--the Spanish _hora_ being the heavy German -_stunde_--the distance is regulated by the day-light. Bridle-roads and -travelling on horseback, the former systems of Europe, are very Spanish -and Oriental; and where people journey on horse and mule back, the road -is of minor importance. In the remoter provinces of Spain the population -is agricultural and poverty-stricken, unvisiting and unvisited, not -going much beyond their chimney's smoke. Each family provides for its -simple habits and few wants; having but little money to buy foreign -commodities, they are clad and fed, like the Bedouins, with the -productions of their own fields and flocks. There is little circulation -of persons; a neighbouring fair is the mart where they obtain the annual -supply of whatever luxury they can indulge in, or it is brought to their -cottages by wandering muleteers, or by the smuggler, who is the type and -channel of the really active principle of trade in three-fourths of the -Peninsula. It is wonderful how soon a well-mounted traveller becomes -attached to travelling on horseback, and how quickly he becomes -reconciled to a state of roads which, startling at first to those -accustomed to carriage highways, are found to answer perfectly for all -the purposes of the place and people where they are found. - -Let us say a few things on Spanish railroads, for the mania of England -has surmounted the Pyrenees, although confined rather more to words than -deeds; in fact, it has been said that no rail exists, in any country of -either the new world or the old one, in which the Spanish language is -spoken, probably from other objections than those merely philological. -Again, in other countries roads, canals, and traffic usher in the rail, -which in Spain is to precede and introduce them. Thus, by the prudent -delays of national caution and procrastination, much of the trouble and -expense of these intermediate stages will be economized, and Spain will -jump at once from a medival condition into the comforts and glories of -Great Britain, the land of restless travellers. Be that as it may, just -now there is much talk of _railroads_, and splendid official and other -_documentos_ are issued, by which the "whole country is to be -intersected (on paper) with a net-work of rapid and bowling-green -communications," which are to create a "perfect homogeneity among -Spaniards;" for great as have been the labours of Herculean steam, this -amalgamation of the Iberian rope of sand has properly been reserved for -the crowning performance. - -It would occupy too much space to specify the infinite lines which are -in contemplation, which may be described when completed. Suffice it to -say, that they almost all are to be effected by the iron and gold of -England. However this _estrangerismo_, this influence of the foreigner, -may offend the sensitive pride, the _Espaolismo_ of Spain, the power of -resistance offered by the national indolence and dislike to change, must -be propelled by British steam, with a dash of French revolution. Yet our -speculators might, perhaps, reflect that Spain is a land which never yet -has been able to construct or support even a sufficient number of common -roads or canals for her poor and passive commerce and circulation. The -distances are far too great, and the traffic far too small, to call yet -for the rail; while the geological formation of the country offers -difficulties which, if met with even in England, would baffle the -colossal science and extravagance of our first-rate engineers. Spain is -a land of mountains, which rise everywhere in Alpine barriers, walling -off province from province, and district from district. These mighty -cloud-capped _sierras_ are solid masses of hard stone, and any tunnels -which ever perforate their ranges will reduce that at Box to the delving -of the poor mole. You might as well cover Switzerland and the Tyrol with -a net-work of _level_ lines, as those caught in the aforesaid net will -soon discover to their cost. The outlay of this up-hill work may be in -an inverse ratio to the remuneration, for the one will be enormous, and -the other paltry. The parturient mountains may produce a most musipular -interest, and even that may be "deferred." - -[Sidenote: DIFFICULTIES OF RAILROADS.] - -Spain, again, is a land of _dehesas y despoblados_: in these wild -unpeopled wastes, next to travellers, commerce and cash are what is -scarce, while even Madrid, the capital, is without industry or -resources, and poorer than many of our provincial cities. The Spaniard, -a creature of routine and foe to innovations, is not a moveable or -locomotive; local, and a parochial fixture by nature, he hates moving -like a Turk, and has a particular horror of being hurried; long, -therefore, here has an ambling mule answered all the purposes of -transporting man and his goods. Who again is to do the work even if -England will pay the wages? The native, next to disliking regular -sustained labour himself, abhors seeing the foreigner toiling even in -his service, and wasting his gold and sinews in the thankless task. The -villagers, as they always have done, will rise against the stranger and -heretic who comes to "suck the wealth of Spain." Supposing, however, by -the aid of Santiago and Brunel, that the work were possible and were -completed, how is it to be secured against the fierce action of the sun, -and the fiercer violence of popular ignorance? The first cholera that -visits Spain will be set down as a passenger per rail by the -dispossessed muleteer, who now performs the functions of steam and rail. -He constitutes one of the most numerous and finest classes in Spain, and -is the legitimate channel of the semi-Oriental caravan system. He will -never permit the bread to be taken out of his mouth by this Lutheran -locomotive: deprived of means of earning his livelihood, he, like the -smuggler, will take to the road in another line, and both will become -either robbers or patriots. Many, long, and lonely are the leagues which -separate town from town in the wide deserts of thinly-peopled Spain, nor -will any preventive service be sufficient to guard the rail against the -_guerrilla_ warfare that may then be waged. A handful of opponents in -any cistus-overgrown waste, may at any time, in five minutes, break up -the road, stop the train, stick the stoker, and burn the engines in -their own fire, particularly smashing the luggage-train. What, again, -has ever been the recompense which the foreigner has met with from Spain -but breach of promise and ingratitude? He will be used, as in the East, -until the native thinks that he has mastered his arts, and then he will -be abused, cast out, and trodden under foot; and who then will keep up -and repair the costly artificial undertaking?--certainly not the -Spaniard, on whose pericranium the bumps of operative skill and -mechanical construction have yet to be developed. - -[Sidenote: BENEFITS OF RAILROADS.] - -The lines which are the least sure of failure will be those which are -the shortest, and pass through a level country of some natural -productions, such as oil, wine, and coal. Certainly, if the rail can be -laid down in Spain by the gold and science of England, the gift, like -that of steam, will be worthy of the Ocean's Queen, and of the world's -real leader of civilization; and what a change will then come over the -spirit of the Peninsula! how the siestas of torpid man-vegetation, will -be disturbed by the shrill whistle and panting snort of the monster -engine! how the seals of this long hermetically shut-up land will be -broken! how the cloistered obscure, and dreams of treasures in heaven, -will be enlightened by the flashing fire-demon of the wide-awake -money-worshipper! what owls will be vexed, what bats dispossessed, what -drones, mules, and asses will be scared, run over, and annihilated! -Those who love Spain, and pray, like the author, daily for her -prosperity, must indeed hope to see this "net-work of rails" concluded, -but will take especial care at the same time not to invest one farthing -in the imposing speculation. - -Recent results have fully justified during this year what was prophesied -last year in the Hand-Book: our English agents and engineers were -received with almost divine honours by the Spaniards, so incensed were -they with flattery and cigars. Their shares were instantaneously -subscribed for, and directors nominated, with names and titles longer -even than the lines, and the smallest contributions in cash were -thankfully accepted:-- - - "L'argent dans une bourse entre agrablement; - Mais le terme venu, quand il faut le rendre, - C'est alors que les douleurs commencent nous prendre." - -[Sidenote: ANGLO-HISPANO RAILROADS.] - -When the period for booking up, for making the first instalments, -arrived, the Spanish shareholders were found somewhat wanting: they -repudiated; for in the Peninsula it has long been easier to promise than -to pay. Again, on the only line which seems likely to be carried out at -present, that of Madrid to Aranjuez, the first step taken by them was to -dismiss all English engineers and _navvies_, on the plea of encouraging -native talent and industry rather than the foreigner. Many of the -English home proceedings would border on the ridiculous, were not the -laugh of some speculators rather on the wrong side. The City capitalists -certainly have our pity, and if their plethora of wealth required the -relief of bleeding, it could not be better performed than by a Spanish -_Sangrado_. How different some of the windings-up, the final reports, to -the magnificent beginnings and grandiloquent prospectuses put forth as -baits for John Bull, who hoped to be tossed at once, or elevated, from -haberdashery to a throne, by being offered a "potentiality of getting -rich beyond the dreams of avarice!" Thus, to clench assertion by -example, the London directors of the Royal Valencia Company made known -by an advertisement only last July, that they merely required -240,000,000 reals to connect the seaport of Valencia--where there is -none--to the capital Madrid, with 800,000 inhabitants,--there not being -200,000. One brief passage alone seemed ominous in the lucid array of -prospective profit--"The line has not yet been minutely surveyed;" this -might have suggested to the noble Marquis whose attractive name heads -the provisional committee list, the difficulty of Sterne's traveller, of -whom, when observing how much better things were managed on the -Continent than in England, the question was asked, "Have you, sir, ever -been there?" - -[Sidenote: LONDON RAILROAD MEETINGS.] - -A still wilder scheme was broached, to connect Aviles on the Atlantic -with Madrid, the Asturian Alps and the Guadarrama mountains to the -contrary notwithstanding. The originator of this ingenious idea was to -receive 40,000_l._ for the cession of his plan to the company, and -actually did receive 25,000_l._, which, considering the difficulties, -natural and otherwise, must be considered an inadequate remuneration. -Although the original and captivating prospectus stated "_that the line -had been surveyed, and presented no engineering difficulties_," it was -subsequently thought prudent to obtain some notion of the actual -localities, and Sir _Joshua_ Walmsley was sent forth with competent -assistance to spy out the land, which the Jewish practice of old was -rather to do before than after serious undertakings. A sad change soon -came over the spirit of the London dream by the discovery that a country -which looked level as Arrowsmith's map in the prospectus, presented such -trifling obstacles to the rail as sundry leagues of mountain ridges, -which range from 6000 to 9000 feet high, and are covered with snow for -many months of the year. This was a damper. The report of the special -meeting (see 'Morning Chronicle,' Dec. 18, 1845) should be printed in -letters of gold, from the quantity of that article which it will -preserve to our credulous countrymen. Then and there the chairman -observed, with equal _navet_ and pathos, "that had he known as much -before as he did now, he would have been the last man to carry out a -railway in Spain." This experience cost him, he observed, 5000_l._, -which is paying dear for a Spanish rail whistle. He might for five -pounds have bought the works of Townshend and Captain Cook: our modesty -prevents the naming another red book, in which these precise localities, -these mighty Alps, are described by persons who had ridden, or rather -soared, over them. At another meeting of another Spanish rail company, -held at the London Tavern, October 20, 1846, another chairman announced -"a fact of which he was not before aware, that it was impossible to -surmount the Pyrenees." Meanwhile, the Madrid government had secured -30,000_l._ from them by way of _caution_ money; but caution disappears -from our capitalists, whenever excess of cash mounts from their pockets -into their heads; loss of common sense and dollars is the natural -result. But it is the fate of Spain and her things, to be judged of by -those who have never been there, and who feel no shame at the indecency -of the nakedness of their geographical ignorance. When the blind lead -the blind, beware of hillocks and ditches. - -[Sidenote: POST-OFFICE.] - - - - -CHAPTER VI. - - Post-Office in Spain--Travelling with post-horses--Riding - post--Mails and Diligences, Galeras, Coches de Colleras, Drivers, - and Manner of Driving, and Oaths. - - -A system of post, both for the despatch of letters and the conveyance of -couriers, was introduced into Spain under Philip and Juana, that is, -towards the end of the reign of our Henry VII.; whereas it was scarcely -organised in England before the government of Cromwell. Spain, which in -these matters, as well as in many others, was once so much in advance, -is now compelled to borrow her improvements from those nations of which -she formerly was the instructress: among these may be reckoned all -travelling in carriages, whether public or private. - -The post-office for letters is arranged on the plan common to most -countries on the Continent: the delivery is pretty regular, but seldom -daily--twice or three times a-week. Small scruple is made by the -authorities in opening private letters, whenever they suspect the -character of the correspondence. It is as well, therefore, for the -traveller to avoid expressing the whole of his opinions of the powers -that be. The minds of men have been long troubled in Spain; civil war -has rendered them very distrustful and guarded in their _written_ -correspondence--"_carta canta_," "a letter speaks." - -There is the usual continental bother in obtaining post-horses, which -results from their being a monopoly of government. There must be a -passport, an official order, notice of departure, &c.; next ensue -vexatious regulations in regard to the number of passengers, horses, -luggage, style of carriage, and so forth. These, and other spokes put -into the wheel, appear to have been invented by clerks who sit at home -devising how to impede rather than facilitate posting at all. - -[Sidenote: PUBLIC CONVEYANCES.] - -Post-horses and mules are paid at the rate of seven reals each for each -post. The Spanish postilions generally, and especially if well paid, -drive at a tremendous pace, often amounting to a gallop; nor are they -easily stopped, even if the traveller desires it--they seem only to be -intent on arriving at their stages' end, in order to indulge in the -great national joy of then doing nothing: to get there, they heed -neither ruts nor ravines; and when once their cattle are started the -inside passenger feels like a kettle tied to the tail of a mad dog, or a -comet; the wild beasts think no more of him than if he were Mazeppa: -thus money makes the mare and its driver to go, as surely in Spain as in -all other countries. - -Another mode of travelling is by riding post, accompanied by a mounted -postilion, who is changed with the cattle at each relay. It is an -expeditious but fatiguing plan; yet one which, like the Tartar courier -of the East, has long prevailed in Spain. Thus our Charles I. rode to -Madrid under the name of John Smith, by which he was not likely to be -identified. The delight of Philip II., who boasted that he governed the -world from the Escorial, was to receive frequent and early intelligence; -and this desire to hear something new is still characteristic of the -Spanish government. The cabinet-couriers have the preference of horses -at every relay. The particular distances they have to perform are all -timed, and so many leagues are required to be done in a fixed time; and, -in order to encourage despatch, for every hour gained on the allowed -time, an additional sum was paid to them: hence the common expression -"_ganando horas_" gaining hours--equivalent to our old "post -haste--haste for your life." - -[Sidenote: DILIGENCES.] - -[Sidenote: EXPENSES ON THE ROAD.] - -The usual mode of travelling for the affluent is in the public -conveyances, which are the fashion from being novelties and only -introduced under Ferdinand VII.; previously to their being allowed at -all, serious objections were started, similar to those raised by his -late Holiness to the introduction of railways into the papal states; it -was said that these tramontane facilities would bring in foreigners, and -with them philosophy, heresy, and innovations, by which the wisdom of -Spain's ancestors might be upset. These scruples were ingeniously got -over by bribing the monarch with a large share of the profits. Now that -the royal monopoly is broken down, many new and competing companies have -sprung up; this mode of travelling is the cheapest and safest, nor is -it thought at all beneath the dignity of "the best set," nay royalty -itself goes by the coach. Thus the Infante Don Francisco de Paula -constantly hires the whole of the diligence to convey himself and his -family from Madrid to the sea-coast; and one reason gravely given for -Don Enrique's not coming to marry the Queen, was that his Royal Highness -could not get a place, as the dilly was booked full. The public -carriages of Spain are quite as good as those of France, and the company -who travel in them generally more respectable and better bred. This is -partly accounted for by the expense: the fares are not very high, yet -still form a serious item to the bulk of Spaniards; consequently those -who travel in the public carriages in Spain are the class who would in -other countries travel per post. It must, however, be admitted that all -travelling in the public conveyances of the Continent necessarily -implies great discomfort to those accustomed to their own carriages; and -with every possible precaution the long journeys in Spain, of three to -five hundred miles at a stretch, are such as few English ladies can -undergo, and are, even with men, undertakings rather of necessity than -of pleasure. The mail is organized on the plan of the French -malle-poste, and offers, to those who can stand the bumping, shaking, -and churning of continued and rapid travelling without halting, a means -of locomotion which leaves nothing to be desired. The diligences also -are imitations of the lumbering French model. It will be in vain to -expect in them the neatness, the well-appointed turn-out, the quiet, -time-keeping, and infinite facilities of the English original. These -matters when passed across the water are modified to the heroic -Continental contempt for doing things in style; cheapness, which is -their great principle, prefers rope-traces to those of leather, and a -carter to a regular coachman; the usual foreign drags also exist, which -render their slow coaches and bureaucratic absurdities so hateful to -free Britons; but when one is once booked and handed over to the -conductor, you arrive in due time at the journey's end. The "guards" are -realities; they consist of stout, armed, most picturesque, robber-like -men and no mistake, since many, before they were pardoned and pensioned, -have frequently taken a purse on the Queen's highway; for the foreground -of your first sketch, they are splendid fellows, and worth a score of -marshals. They are provided with a complete arsenal of swords and -blunderbusses, so that the cumbrous machine rolling over the sea of -plains looks like a man-of-war, and has been compared to a marching -citadel. Again in suspicious localities a mounted escort of equally -suspicious look gallops alongside, nor is the primitive practice of -black mail altogether neglected: the consequence of these admirable -precautions is, that the diligences are seldom or never robbed; the -thing, however, is possible. - -The whole of this garrisoned Noah's ark is placed under the command of -the _Mayoral_ or conductor, who like all Spanish men in authority is a -despot, and yet, like them, is open to the conciliatory influences of a -bribe. He regulates the hours of toil and sleep, which latter--blessings, -says Sancho, on the man who invented it!--is uncertain, and depends on -the early or late arrival of the diligence and the state of the roads, -for all that is lost of the fixed time on the road is made up for by -curtailing the time allowed for repose. One of the many good effects of -setting up diligences is the bettering the inns on the road; and it is a -safe and general rule to travellers in Spain, whatever be their vehicle, -always to inquire in every town which is the _posada_ that the diligence -stops at. Persons were dispatched from Madrid to the different stations -on the great lines, to fit up houses, bed-rooms, and kitchens, and -provide everything for table, service; cooks were sent round to teach -the innkeepers to set out and prepare a proper dinner and supper. Thus, -in villages in which a few years before the use of a fork was scarcely -known, a table was laid out, clean, well served, and abundant. The -example set by the diligence inns has produced a beneficial effect, -since they offer a model, create competition, and suggest the existence -of many comforts, which were hitherto unknown among Spaniards, whose -abnegation of material enjoyments at home, and praiseworthy endurance of -privations of all kinds on journeys, are quite Oriental. - -[Sidenote: BEDS FOR TRAVELLERS.] - -In some of the new companies every expense is calculated in the fare, to -wit, journey, postilions, inns, &c., which is very convenient to the -stranger, and prevents the loss of much money and temper. A chapter on -the dilly is as much a standing dish in every Peninsular tour as a -bullfight or a bandit adventure, for which there is a continual demand -in the home-market; and no doubt in the long distances of Spain, where -men and women are boxed up for three or four mortal days together (the -nights not being omitted), the plot thickens, and opportunity is -afforded to appreciate costume and character; the farce or tragedy may -be spun out into as many acts as the journey takes days. In general the -order of the course is as follows: the breakfast consists at early dawn -of a cup of good stiff chocolate, which being the favourite drink of the -church and allowable even on fast days, is as nutritious as delicious. -It is accompanied by a bit of roasted or fried bread, and is followed by -a glass of cold water, to drink which is an axiom with all wise men who -respect the efficient condition of their livers. After rumbling on, over -a given number of leagues, when the passengers get well shaken together -and hungry, a regular knife and fork breakfast is provided that closely -resembles the dinner or supper which is served up later in the evening; -the table is plentiful, and the cookery to those who like oil and garlic -excellent. Those who do not, can always fall back on the bread and eggs, -which are capital; the wine is occasionally like purple blacking, and -sometimes serves also as vinegar for the salad, as the oil is said to be -used indifferently for lamps or stews; a bad dinner, especially if the -bill be long, and the wine sour, does not sweeten the passengers' -tempers; they become quarrelsome, and if they have the good luck, a -little robber skirmish gives vent to ill-humour. - -[Sidenote: THE GALERA.] - -At nightfall after supper, a few hours are allowed on your part to steal -whatever rest the _mayoral_ and certain _voltigeurs_, creeping and -winged, will permit; the beds are plain and clean; sometimes the -mattresses may be compared to sacks of walnuts, but there is no pillow -so soft as fatigue; the beds are generally arranged in twos, threes, and -fours, according to the size of the room. The traveller should -immediately on arriving secure his, and see that it is comfortable, for -those who neglect to get a good one must sleep in a bad. Generally -speaking, by a little management, he may get a room to himself, or at -least select his companions. There is, moreover, a real civility and -politeness shown by all classes of Spaniards, on all occasions, towards -strangers and ladies; and that even failing, a small tip, "_una -gratificacioncita_," given beforehand to the maid, or the waiter, seldom -fails to smooth all difficulties. On these, as on all occasions in -Spain, most things may be obtained by good humour, a smile, a joke, a -proverb, a cigar, or a bribe, which, though last, is by no means the -least resource, since it will be found to mollify the hardest heart and -smooth the greatest difficulties, after civil speeches had been tried in -vain, for _Dadivas quebrantan peas, y entra sin barrenas_, gifts break -rocks, and penetrate without gimlets; again, _Mas ablanda dinero que -palabras de Caballero_, cash softens more than a gentleman's palaver. -The mode of driving in Spain, which is so unlike our way of handling the -ribbons, will be described presently. - -Means of conveyance for those who cannot afford the diligence are -provided by vehicles of more genuine Spanish nature and discomfort; they -may be compared to the neat accommodation for man and beast which is -doled out to third-class passengers by our monopolist railway kings, who -have usurped her Majesty's highway, and fleece her lieges by virtue of -act of Parliament. - -First and foremost comes the _galera_, which fully justifies its name; -and even those who have no value for their time or bones will, after a -short trial of the rack and dislocation, exclaim,--"_que diable -allais-je faire dans cette galre?_" These machines travel periodically -from town to town, and form the chief public and carrier communication -between most provincial cities; they are not much changed from that -classical cart, the _rheda_, into which, as we read in Juvenal, the -whole family of Fabricius was conveyed. In Spain these primitive -locomotives have stood still in the general advance of this age of -progress, and carry us back to our James I., and Fynes Moryson's -accounts of "carryers who have long covered waggons, in which they carry -passengers from city to city; but this kind of journeying is so tedious, -by reason they must take waggons very early and come very late to their -innes, none but women and people of inferior condition used to travel in -this sort." So it is now in Spain. - -[Sidenote: CARRIAGES AND CARTS.] - -This _galera_ is a long cart without springs; the sides are lined with -matting, while beneath hangs a loose open net, as under the calesinas of -Naples, in which lies and barks a horrid dog, who keeps a Cerberus watch -over iron pots and sieves, and such like gipsey utensils, and who is -never to be conciliated. These _galeras_ are of all sizes; but if a -_galera_ should be a larger sort of vehicle than is wanted, then a -"_tartana_" a sort of covered tilted cart, which is very common in -Valencia, and which is so called from a small Mediterranean craft of the -same name, will be found convenient. - -The packing and departure of the _galera_, when hired by a family who -remove their goods, is a thing of Spain; the heavy luggage is stowed in -first, and beds and mattresses spread on the top, on which the family -repose in admired disorder. The _galera_ is much used by the "poor -students" of Spain, a class unique of its kind, and full of rags and -impudence; their adventures have the credit of being rich and -picturesque, and recall some of the accounts of "waggon incidents" in -'Roderick Random,' and Smollett's novels. - -Civilization, as connected with the wheel, is still at a low ebb in -Spain, notwithstanding the numerous political revolutions. Except in a -few great towns, the quiz vehicles remind us of those caricatures at -which one laughed so heartily in Paris in 1814; and in Madrid, even down -to Ferdinand VII.'s decease, the _Prado_--its rotten row--was filled -with antediluvian carriages--grotesque coachmen and footmen to match, -which with us would be put into the British Museum; they are now, alas -for painters and authors! worn out, and replaced by poor French -imitations of good English originals. - -[Sidenote: THE COCHE DE COLLERAS.] - -As the genuine older Spanish ones were built in remote ages, and before -the invention of folding steps, the ascent and descent were facilitated -by a three-legged footstool, which dangled, strapped up near the door, -as appears in the hieroglyphics of Egypt 4000 years ago; a pair of -long-eared fat mules, with hides and tails fantastically cut, was driven -by a superannuated postilion in formidable jackboots, and not less -formidable cocked hat of oil-cloth. In these, how often have we seen -Spanish grandees with pedigrees as old-fashioned, gravely taking the air -and dust! These slow coaches of old Spain have been rapidly sketched by -the clever young American; such are the ups and downs of nations and -vehicles. Spain for having discovered America has in return become her -butt; she cannot go a-head; so the great dust of Alexander may stop a -bung-hole, and we too join in the laugh and forget that our -ancestors--see Beaumont and Fletcher's 'Maid of the Inn'--talked of -"_hurrying_ on featherbeds that move upon four-wheel Spanish -_caroches_." - -While on these wheel subjects it may be observed that the carts and -other machines of Spanish rural locomotion and husbandry have not -escaped better; when not Oriental they are Roman; rude in form and -material, they are always odd, picturesque, and inconvenient. The -peasant, for the most part, scratches the earth with a plough modelled -after that invented by Triptolemus, beats out his corn as described by -Homer, and carries his harvest home in strict obedience to the rules in -the Georgics. The iron work is iniquitous, but both sides of the -Pyrenees are centuries behind England; there, absurd tariffs prohibit -the importation of our cheap and good work in order to encourage their -own bad and dear wares--thus poverty and ignorance are perpetuated. - -The carts in the north-west provinces are the unchanged _plaustra_, with -solid wheels, the Roman _tympana_ which consist of mere circles of wood, -without spokes or axles, much like mill-stones or Parmesan cheeses, and -precisely such as the old Egyptians used, as is seen in hieroglyphics, -and no doubt much resembling those sent by Joseph for his father, which -are still used by the Affghans and other unadvanced coachmakers. The -whole wheel turns round together with a piteous creaking; the drivers, -whose leathern ears are as blunt as their edgeless teeth, delight in -this excruciating _Chirrio_, Arabic _charrar_, to make a _noise_, which -they call music, and delight in, because it is cheap and plays to them -of itself; they, moreover, think it frightens wolves, bears, and the -devil himself, as Don Quixote says, which it well may, for the wheel of -Ixion, although damned in hell, never whined more piteously. The doleful -sounds, however, serve like our waggoners' lively bells, as warnings to -other drivers, who, in narrow paths and gorges of rocks, where two -carriages cannot pass, have this notice given them, and draw aside until -the coast is clear. - -We have reserved some details and the mode of driving for the _coche de -colleras_, the _caroche_ of horse-collars, which is the real coach of -Spain, and in which we have made many a pleasant trip; it too is doomed -to be scheduled away, for Spaniards are descending from these coaches -and six to a chariot and pair, and by degrees beautifully less, to a -fly. - -[Sidenote: THE COCHE DE COLLERAS.] - -Mails and diligences, we have said, are only established on the -principal high roads connected with Madrid: there are but few local -coaches which run from one provincial town to another, where the -necessity of frequent and certain intercommunication is little called -for. In the other provinces, where these modern conveniences have not -been introduced, the earlier mode of travelling is the only resource -left to families of children, women, and invalids, who are unable to -perform the journey on horseback. This is the _festina lent_, or -voiturier system; and from its long continuance in Italy and Spain, in -spite of all the improvements adopted in other countries, it would -appear to have something congenial and peculiarly fitted to the habits -and wants of those cognate nations of the south, who have a -Gotho-Oriental dislike to be hurried--_no corre priesa_, there is plenty -of time. _Sie haben zeit genug._ - -[Sidenote: THE MAYORAL.] - -The Spanish vetturino, or "_Calesero_," is to be found, as in Italy, -standing for hire in particular and well-known places in every principal -town. There is not much necessity for hunting for _him_; he has the -Italian instinctive perception of a stranger and traveller, and the same -importunity in volunteering himself, his cattle, and carriage, for any -part of Spain. The man, however, and his equipage are peculiarly -Spanish; his carriage and his team have undergone little change during -the last two centuries, and are the representatives of the former ones -of Europe; they resemble those vehicles once used in England, which may -still be seen in the old prints of country-houses by Kip; or, as regards -France, in the pictures of Louis XIV.'s journeys and campaigns by -Vandermeulen. They are the remnant of the once universal "coach and -six," in which according to Pope, who was not infallible, British fair -were to delight for ever. The "_coche de colleras_" is a huge cumbrous -machine, built after the fashion of a reduced lord mayor's coach, or -some of the equipages of the old cardinals at Rome. It is ornamented -with rude sculpture, gilding, and painting of glaring colour, but the -modern pea-jacket and round hat spoil the picture which requires -passengers dressed in brocade and full-bottomed wigs; the fore-wheels -are very low, the hind ones very high, and both remarkably narrow in the -tire; remember when they stick in the mud, and the drivers call upon -Santiago, to push the vehicle out _backwards_, as the more you draw it -forwards the deeper you get into the mire. The pole sticks out like the -bowsprit of a ship, and contains as much wood and iron work as would go -to a small waggon. The interior is lined with gay silk and gaudy plush, -adorned with lace and embroidery, with doors that open indifferently and -windows that do not shut well; latterly the general poverty and _prose_ -of transpyrenean civilization has effaced much of these ornate -nationalities, both in coach and drivers; better roads and lighter -vehicles require fewer horses, which were absolutely necessary formerly -to drag the heavy concern through heavier ways. - -[Sidenote: THE ZAGAL.] - -[Sidenote: DRIVING IN SPAIN.] - -The luggage is piled up behind, or stowed away in a front boot. The -management of driving this vehicle is conducted by two persons. The -master is called the "_mayoral_;" his helper or cad the "_mozo_," or, -more properly, "_el zagal_," from the Arabic, "a strong active youth." -The costume is peculiar, and is based on that of Andalucia, which sets -the fashion all over the Peninsula, in all matters regarding -bull-fighting, horse-dealing, robbing, smuggling, and so forth. He wears -on his head a gay-coloured silk handkerchief, tied in such a manner that -the tails hang down behind; over this remnant of the Moorish turban he -places a high-peaked sugarloaf-shaped hat with broad brims; his jaunty -jacket is made either of black sheepskin, studded with silver tags and -filigree buttons, or of brown cloth, with the back, arms, and -particularly the elbows, welted and tricked out with flowers and vases, -cut in patches of different-coloured cloth and much embroidered. When -the jacket is not worn, it is usually hung over the left shoulder, after -the hussar fashion. The waistcoat is made of rich fancy silk; the -breeches of blue or green velvet plush, ornamented with stripes and -filigree buttons, and tied at the knee with silken cords and tassels; -the neck is left open, and the shirt collar turned down, and a gaudy -neck-handkerchief is worn, oftener passed through a ring than tied in a -knot; his waist is girt with a red sash, or with one of a bright yellow. -This "_faja_,"[3] a _sine qu non_, is the old Roman zona; it serves -also for a purse, "girds the loins," and keeps up a warmth over the -abdomen, which is highly beneficial in hot climates, and wards off any -tendency to irritable colic; in the sash is stuck the "_navaja_," the -knife, which is part and parcel of a Spaniard, and behind the "_zagal_" -usually places his stick. The richly embroidered gaiters are left open -at the outside to show a handsome stocking; the shoes are yellow, like -those of our cricketers, and are generally made of untanned calfskin, -which being the colour of dust require no cleaning. The _caleseros_ on -the eastern coast wear the Valencian stocking, which has no feet to -it--being open at bottom, it is likened by wags to a Spaniard's purse; -instead of top boots they wear the ancient Roman sandals, made of the -_esparto_ rush, with hempen soles, which are called "_alpargatas_," -Arabic _Alpalgah_. The "_zagal_" follows the fashion in dress of the -"_mayoral_," as nearly as his means will permit him. He is the servant -of all-work, and must be ready on every occasion; nor can any one who -has ever seen the hard and incessant toil which these men undergo, -justly accuse them of being indolent--a reproach which has been cast -somewhat indiscriminately on all the lower classes of Spain; he runs by -the side of the carriage, picks up stones to pelt the mules, ties and -unties knots, and pours forth a volley of blows and oaths from the -moment of starting to that of arrival. He sometimes is indulged with a -ride by the side of the mayoral on the box, when he always uses the tail -of the hind mule to pull himself up into his seat. The harnessing the -six animals is a difficult operation; first the tackle of ropes is laid -out on the ground, then each beast is brought into his portion of the -rigging. The start is always an important ceremony, and, as our royal -mail used to do in the country, brings out all the idlers in the -vicinity. When the team is harnessed, the mayoral gets all his skeins of -ropes into his hand, the "_zagal_" his sash full of stones, the helpers -at the venta their sticks; at a given signal all fire a volley of oaths -and blows at the team, which, once in motion, away it goes, pitching -over ruts deep as routine prejudices, with its pole dipping and rising -like a ship in a rolling sea, and continues at a brisk pace, performing -from twenty-five to thirty miles a-day. The hours of starting are early, -in order to avoid the mid-day heat; in these matters the Spanish customs -are pretty much the same with the Italian; the _calesero_ is always the -best judge of the hours of departure and these minor details, which vary -according to circumstances. - -Whenever a particularly bad bit of road occurs, notice is given to the -team by calling over their names, and by crying out "_arr, arr_," -gee-up, which is varied with "_firm, firm_," steady, boy, steady! The -names of the animals are always fine-sounding and polysyllabic; the -accent is laid on the last syllable, which is always dwelt on and -lengthened out with a particular emphasis--_C[)a]p[)i]t[)a]n[=a]-[=a]_- --_B[)a]nd[)o]l[)e]r[=a]-[=a]_- -_G[)e]n[)e]r[)a]l[=a]-[=a]_- --_V[)a]l[)e]r[)o]s[=a]-[=a]_. All this vocal driving is performed at the -top of the voice, and, indeed, next to scaring away crows in a field, -must be considered the best possible practice for the lungs. The team -often exceeds six in number, and never is less; the proportion of -females predominates: there is generally one male mule making the -seventh, who is called "_el macho_," the male par excellence, like the -Grand Turk, or a substantive in a speech in Cortes, which seldom has -less than half a dozen epithets: he invariably comes in for the largest -share of abuse and ill usage, which, indeed, he deserves the most, as -the male mule is infinitely more stubborn and viciously inclined than -the female. Sometimes there is a horse of the Rosinante breed; he is -called "_el cavallo_," or rather, as it is pronounced, "_el c[)a]v[)a]l -y[=o]-[=o]_." The horse is always the best used of the team; to be a -rider, "_caballero_," is the Spaniard's synonym for gentleman; and it is -their correct mode of addressing each other, and is banded gravely among -the lower orders, who never have crossed any quadruped save a mule or a -jackass. - -[Sidenote: SWEARING.] - -The driving a _coche de colleras_ is quite a science of itself, and is -observed in conducting _diligences_; it amuses the Spanish "_majo_" or -fancy-man as much as coach-driving does the fancy-man of England; the -great art lies not in handling the ribbons, but in the proper modulation -of the voice, since the cattle are always addressed individually by -their names; the first syllables are pronounced very rapidly; the -"_macho_," the male mule, who is the most abused, is the only one who is -not addressed by any names beyond that of his sex: the word is repeated -with a voluble iteration; in order to make the two syllables longer, -they are strung together thus, -_m[)a]ch[)o]--m[)a]ch[)o]--m[)a]ch[)o]--m[)a]cho-[)o]_: they begin in -semiquavers, flowing on crescendo to a semibreve or breve, so the four -words are compounded into one polysyllable. The horse, _caballo_, is -simply called so; he has no particular name of his own, which the female -mules are never without, and which they perfectly know--indeed, the -owners will say that they understand them, and all bad language, as well -as Christian women, "_como Cristianas_;" and, to do the beasts justice, -they seem more shocked and discomfited thereby than the bipeds who -profess the same creed. If the animal called to does not answer by -pricking up her ears, or by quickening her pace, the threat of "_l[)a] -v[)a]r[=a]_," the stick, is added--the last argument of Spanish drivers, -men in office, and schoolmasters, with whom there is no sort of reason -equal to that of the bastinado, "_no hay tal razon, como la del -baston_." It operates on the timorous more than "unadorned eloquence." -The Moors thought so highly of the bastinado, that they held the stick -to be a special gift from Allah to the faithful. It holds good, _ -priori_ and _ posteriori_, to mule and boy, "_al hijo y mulo, para el -culo_;" and if the "_macho_" be in fault, and he is generally punished -to encourage the others, some abuse is added to blows, such as "_que -p[)e]rr[=o]-[=o]_," "what a dog!" or some unhandsome allusion to his -mother, which is followed by throwing a stone at the leaders, for no -whip could reach them from the coach-box. When any particular mule's -name is called, if her companion be the next one to be abused, she is -seldom addressed by her name, but is spoken to as "_a la -[)o]tr[=a]-[=a]_," "_aquella [)o]tr[=a]-[=a]_," "Now for that other -one," which from long association is expected and acknowledged. The team -obeys the voice and is in admirable command. Few things are more -entertaining than driving them, especially over bad roads; but it -requires much practice in Spanish speaking and swearing. - -[Sidenote: SPANISH OATHS.] - -[Sidenote: HINTS FOR HIRING.] - -Among the many commandments that are always broken in Spain, that of -"swear not at all" is not the least. "Our army swore lustily in -Flanders," said Uncle Toby. But few nations can surpass the Spaniards in -the language of vituperation: it is limited only by the extent of their -anatomical, geographical, astronomical, and religious knowledge; it is -so plentifully bestowed on their animals--"un muletier ce jeu vaut -trois rois"--that oaths and imprecations seem to be considered as the -only language the mute creation can comprehend; and as actions are -generally suited to the words, the combination is remarkably effective. -As much of the traveller's time on the road must be passed among beasts -and muleteers, who are not unlike them, some knowledge of their sayings -and doings is of great use: to be able to talk to them in their own -lingo, to take an interest in them and in their animals, never fails to -please; "_Por vida del demonio, mas sabe Usia que nosotros_;" "by the -life of the devil, your honour knows more than we," is a common form of -compliment. When once equality is established, the master mind soon -becomes the real master of the rest. The great oath of Spain, which -ought never to be written or pronounced, practically forms the -foundation of the language of the lower orders; it is a most ancient -remnant of the phallic abjuration of the evil eye, the dreaded -fascination which still perplexes the minds of Orientals, and is not -banished from Spanish and Neapolitan superstitions.[4] The word -terminates in _ajo_, on which great stress is laid: the _j_ is -pronounced with a most Arabic, guttural aspiration. The word _ajo_ means -also garlic, which is quite as often in Spanish mouths, and is exactly -what Hotspur liked, a "mouth-filling oath," energetic and Michael -Angelesque. The pun has been extended to onions: thus, "_ajos y -cebollas_" means oaths and imprecations. The sting of the oath is in the -"_ajo_;" all women and quiet men, who do not wish to be particularly -objurgatory, but merely to enforce and give a little additional vigour, -un soupon d'ail, or a shotting to their discourse, drop the offensive -"_ajo_," and say "_car_," "_carai_," "_caramba_." The Spanish oath is -used as a verb, as a substantive, as an adjective, just as it suits the -grammar or the wrath of the utterer. It is equivalent also to a certain -place and the person who lives there. "_Vaya Usted al C--ajo_" is the -worst form of the angry "_Vaya Usted al demonio_," or "_ los -infiernos_," and is a whimsical mixture of courtesy and transportation. -"Your Grace may go to the devil, or to the infernal regions!" - -Thus these imprecatory vegetables retain in Spain their old Egyptian -flavour and mystical charm; as on the Nile, according to Pliny, onions -and garlic were worshipped as adjuratory divinities. The Spaniards have -also added most of the gloomy northern Gothic oaths, which are -imprecatory, to the Oriental, which are grossly sensual. Enough of this. -The traveller who has much to do with Spanish mules and asses, biped or -quadruped, will need no hand-book to teach him the sixty-five or more -"_serments espaignols_" on which Mons. de Brantome wrote a treatise. -More becoming will it be to the English gentleman to swear not at all; a -reasonable indulgence in _Caramba_ is all that can be permitted; the -custom is more honoured in the breach than in the observance, and bad -luck seldom deserts the house of the imprecator. "_En la casa del que -jura, no falta desaventura._" - -[Sidenote: HINTS FOR HIRING.] - -Previously to hiring one of these "coaches of collars," which is rather -an expensive amusement, every possible precaution should be taken in -clearly and minutely specifying everything to be done, and the price; -the Spanish "_caleseros_" rival their Italian colleagues in that -untruth, roguery, and dishonesty, which seem everywhere to combine -readily with jockeyship, and distinguishes those who handle the whip, -"do jobbings," and conduct mortals by horses; the fee to be given to the -drivers should never be included in the bargain, as the keeping this -important item open and dependent on the good behaviour of the future -recipients offers a sure check over master and man, and other -road-classes. In justice, however, to this class of Spaniards, it may be -said that on the whole they are civil, good-humoured, and hard-working, -and, from not having been accustomed to either the screw bargaining or -alternate extravagance of the English travellers in Italy, are as -tolerably fair in their transactions as can be expected from human -nature brought in constant contact with four-legged and four-wheeled -temptations. They offer to the artist an endless subject of the -picturesque; everything connected with them is full of form, colour, and -originality. They can do nothing, whether sitting, driving, sleeping, -or eating, that does not make a picture; the same may be said of their -animals and their habits and harness; those who draw will never find the -midday halt long enough for the infinite variety of subject and scenery -to which their travelling equipage and attendants form the most peculiar -and appropriate foreground: while our modern poetasters will consider -them quite as worthy of being sung in immortal verse as the Cambridge -carrier Hobson, who was Milton's choice. - -[Sidenote: THE ANDALUCIAN HORSE.] - - - - -CHAPTER VII. - - Spanish Horses--Mules--Asses--Muleteers--Maragatos. - - -We now proceed to Spanish quadrupeds, having placed the wheel-carriages -before the horses. That of Andalucia takes precedence of all; he fetches -the highest price, and the Spaniards in general value no other breed; -they consider his configuration and qualities as perfect, and in some -respects they are right, for no horse is more elegant or more easy in -his motions, none are more gentle or docile, none are more quick in -acquiring showy accomplishments, or in performing feats of Astleyan -agility; he has very little in common with the English blood-horse; his -mane is soft and silky, and is frequently plaited with gay ribbons; his -tail is of great length, and left in all the proportions of nature, not -cropped and docked, by which Voltaire was so much offended:-- - - "Fiers et bizarres Anglais, qui des mmes ciseaux - Coupez la tte aux rois, et la queue aux chevaux." - -[Sidenote: OTHER SPANISH HORSES.] - -It often trails to the very ground, while the animal has perfect command -over it, lashing it on every side as a gentleman switches his cane; -therefore, when on a journey, it is usual to double and tie it up, after -the fashion of the ancient pig-tails of our sailors. The Andalucian -horse is round in his quarters, though inclined to be small in the -barrel; he is broad-chested, and always carries his head high, -especially when going a good pace; his length of leg adds to his height, -which sometimes reaches to sixteen hands; he never, however, stretches -out with the long graceful sweep of the English thorough-bred; his -action is apt to be loose and shambling, and he is given to _dishing_ -with the feet. The pace is, notwithstanding, perfectly delightful. From -being very long in the pastern, the motion is broken as it were by the -springs of a carriage; their pace is the peculiar "_paso Castellano_," -which is something more than a walk, and less than a trot, and it is -truly sedate and sedan-chair-like, and suits a grave Don, who is given, -like a Turk, to tobacco and contemplation. Those Andalucian horses which -fall when young into the hands of the officers at Gibraltar acquire a -very different action, and lay themselves better down to their work, and -gain much more in speed from the English system of training than they -would have done had they been managed by Spaniards. Taught or untaught, -this _pace_ is most gentlemanlike, and well did Beaumont and Fletcher - - "Think it noble, as Spaniards do in riding, - In managing a great horse, which is princely;" - -and as has been said, is the only attitude in which the kings of the -Spains, true [Greek: philippoi], ought ever to be painted, witching the -world with noble horsemanship. - -Many other provinces possess breeds which are more useful, though far -less showy, than the Andalucian. The horse of Castile is a strong, hardy -animal, and the best which Spain produces for mounting heavy cavalry. -The ponies of Gallicia, although ugly and uncouth, are admirably suited -to the wild hilly country and laborious population; they require very -little care or grooming, and are satisfied with coarse food and Indian -corn. The horses of Navarre, once so celebrated, are still esteemed for -their hardy strength; they have, from neglect, degenerated into ponies, -which, however, are beautiful in form, hardy, docile, sure-footed, and -excellent trotters. In most of the large towns of Spain there is a sort -of market, where horses are publicly sold; but Ronda fair, in May, is -the great Howden and Horncastle of the four provinces of Seville, -Cordova, Jaen, and Granada, and the resort of all the picturesque-looking -rogues of the south. The reader of Don Quixote need not be told that the -race of Gines Passamonte is not extinct; the Spanish _Chalanes_, or -horse-dealers, have considerable talents; but the cleverest is but a -mere child when compared to the perfection of rascality to which a real -English professor has attained in the mysteries of lying, chaunting, and -making up a horse. - -[Sidenote: MULES.] - -The breeding of horses was carefully attended to by the Spanish -government previously to the invasion of the French, by whom the entire -horses and brood-mares were either killed or stolen, and the buildings -and stables burnt. - -The saddles used commonly in Spain are Moorish; they are made with high -peak and croup behind; the stirrup-irons are large triangularly-shaped -boxes. The food is equally Oriental, and consists of "barley and straw," -as mentioned in the Bible. We well remember the horror of our Andalucian -groom, on our first reaching Gallicia, when he rushed in, exclaiming -that the beasts would perish, as nothing was to be had there but oats -and hay. After some difficulty he was persuaded to see if they would eat -it, which to his surprise they actually did; such, however, is habit, -that they soon fell out of condition, and did not recover until the damp -mountains were quitted for the arid plains of Castile. - -[Sidenote: ASSES.] - -Spaniards in general prefer mules and asses to the horse, which is more -delicate, requires greater attention, and is less sure-footed over -broken and precipitous ground. The mule performs in Spain the functions -of the camel in the East, and has something in his morale (besides his -physical suitableness to the country) which is congenial to the -character of his masters; he has the same self-willed obstinacy, the -same resignation under burdens, the same singular capability of -endurance of labour, fatigue, and privation. The mule has always been -much used in Spain, and the demand for them very great; yet, from some -mistaken crotchet of Spanish political economy (which is very Spanish), -the breeding of the mule has long been attempted to be prevented, in -order to encourage that of the horse. One of the reasons alleged was, -that the mule was a non-reproductive animal; an argument which might or -ought to apply equally to the monk; a breed for which Spain could have -shown for the first prize, both as to number and size, against any other -country in all Christendom. This attempt to force the production of an -animal far less suited to the wants and habits of the people has failed, -as might be expected. The difficulties thrown in the way have only -tended to raise the prices of mules, which are, and always were, very -dear; a good mule will fetch from 25_l._ to 50_l._, while a horse of -relative goodness may be purchased for from 20_l._ to 40_l._ Mules were -always very dear; thus Martial, like a true Andalucian Spaniard, _talks_ -of one which cost more than a house. The most esteemed are those bred -from the mare and the ass, or _"garaon"_[5] some of which are of -extraordinary size; and one which Don Carlos had in his stud-house at -Aranjuez in 1832 exceeded fifteen hands in height. This colossal ass and -a Spanish infante were worthy of each other. - -The mules in Spain, as in the East, have their coats closely shorn or -clipped; part of the hair is usually left on in stripes like the zebra, -or cut into fanciful patterns, like the tattooings of a New Zealand -chief. This process of shearing is found to keep the beast cooler and -freer from cutaneous disorders. The operation is performed in the -southern provinces by gipsies, who are the same tinkers, horse-dealers, -and vagrants in Spain as elsewhere. Their clipping recalls the "mulo -curto," on which Horace could amble even to Brundusium. The operators -rival in talent those worthy Frenchmen who cut the hair of poodles on -the Pont Neuf, in the heart and brain of European civilization. Their -Spanish colleagues may be known by the shears, formidable and -classical-shaped as those of Lachesis and her sisters, which they carry -in their sashes. They are very particular in clipping the heels and -pasterns, which they say ought to be as free from superfluous hair as -the palm of a lady's hand. - -Spanish asses have been immortalised by Cervantes; they are endeared to -us by Sancho's love and talent of imitation; he brayed so well, be it -remembered, that all the long-eared chorus joined a performer who, in -his own modest phrase, only wanted a tail to be a perfect donkey. -Spanish mayors, according to Don Quixote, have a natural talent for this -braying; but, save and except in the west of England, their right -worshipfuls may be matched elsewhere. - -[Sidenote: ASSES OF LA MANCHA.] - -[Sidenote: THE MULETEER.] - -The humble ass, "_burro_," "_borrico_," is the rule, the as in prsenti, -and part and parcel of every Spanish scene: he forms the appropriate -foreground in streets or roads. Wherever two or three Spaniards are -collected together in market, _junta_, or "congregation," there is quite -sure to be an ass among them; he is the hardworked companion of the -lower orders, to whom to work is the greatest misfortune; sufferance is -indeed the common virtue of both tribes. They may, perhaps, both wince a -little when a new burden or a new tax is laid on them by Seor Mon, but -they soon, when they see that there is no remedy, bear on and endure: -from this fellow-feeling, master and animal cherish each other at heart, -though, from the blows and imprecations bestowed openly, the former may -be thought by hasty observers to be ashamed of confessing these -predilections in public. Some under-current, no doubt, remains of the -ancient prejudices of chivalry; but Cervantes, who thoroughly understood -human nature in general, and Spanish nature in particular, has most -justly dwelt on the dear love which Sancho Panza felt for his "_Rucio_," -and marked the reciprocity of the brute, affectionate as intelligent. In -fact, in the _Sagra_ district, near Toledo, he is called _El vecino_, -one of the householders; and none can look a Spanish ass in the face -without remarking a peculiar expression, which indicates that the hairy -fool considers himself, like the pig in a cabin of the "first gem of the -sea," to be one of the family, _de la familia_, or _de nosotros_. La -Mancha is the paradise of mules and asses; many a Sancho at this moment -is there fondling and embracing his ass, his "_chato chatito_," -"_romo_," or other complimentary variations of _Snub_, with which, when -not abusing him, he delights to nickname his helpmate. In Spain, as -Sappho says, Love is [Greek: glukurikron], an alternation of the -agro-dolce; nor is there any Prevention of Cruelty Society towards -animals; every Spaniard has the same right in law and equity to kick and -beat his own ass to his own liking, as a philanthropical Yankee has to -wallop his own niggar; no one ever thinks of interposing on these -occasions, any more than they would in a quarrel between a man and his -wife. The _words_ are, at all events, on one side. It is, however, -recorded _in piam memoriam_, of certain Roman Catholic asses of Spain, -that they tried to throw off one Tomas Trebio and some other heretics, -when on the way to be burnt, being horror-struck at bearing such -monsters. Every Spanish peasant is heart-broken when injury is done to -his ass, as well he may be, for it is the means by which he lives; nor -has he much chance, if he loses him, of finding a crown when hunting for -him, as was once done, or even a government like Sancho. Sterne would -have done better to have laid the venue of his sentimentalities over a -dead ass in Spain, rather than in France, where the quadruped species is -much rarer. In Spain, where small carts and wheel-barrows are almost -unknown, and the drawing them is considered as beneath the dignity of -the Spanish man, the substitute, an ass, is in constant employ; -sometimes it is laden with sacks of corn, with wine-skins, with -water-jars, with dung, or with dead robbers, slung like sacks over the -back, their arms and legs tied under the animal's belly. Asses' milk, -"_leche de burra_," is in much request during the spring season. The -brown sex drink it in order to fine their complexions and cool their -blood, "_refrescar la sangre_;" the clergy and men in office, "_los -empleados_," to whom it is mother's milk, swallow it in order that it -may give tone to their gastric juices. Riding on assback was accounted a -disgrace and a degradation to the Gothic hidalgo, and the Spaniards, in -the sixteenth century, mounted unrepining cuckolds, "_los cornudos -pacientes_," on asses. Now-a-days, in spite of all these unpleasant -associations, the grandees and their wives, and even grave ambassadors -from foreign parts, during the royal residence at Aranjuez, much delight -in elevating themselves on this beast of ill omen, and "_borricadas_" or -donkey parties are all the fashion. - -[Sidenote: THE MULETEER.] - -[Sidenote: MARAGATOS.] - -The muleteer of Spain is justly renowned; his generic term is _arriero_, -a gee-uper, for his _arre arre_ is pure Arabic, as indeed are almost all -the terms connected with his craft, as the Moriscoes were long the great -carriers of Spain. To travel with the muleteer, when the party is small -or a person is alone, is both cheap and safe; indeed, many of the most -picturesque portions of Spain, Ronda and Granada for instance, can -scarcely be reached except by walking or riding. These men, who are -constantly on the road, and going backwards and forwards, are the best -persons to consult for details; their animals are generally to be hired, -but a muleteer's stud is not pleasant to ride, since their beasts always -travel in single files. The leading animal is furnished with a copper -bell with a wooden clapper, to give notice of their march, which is -shaped like an ice-mould, sometimes two feet long, and hangs from the -neck, being contrived, as it were, on purpose to knock the animal's -knees as much as possible, and to emit the greatest quantity of the most -melancholy sounds, which, according to the pious origin of all bells, -were meant to scare away the Evil One. The bearer of all this -tintinnabular clatter is chosen from its superior docility and knack in -picking out a way. The others follow their leader, and the noise he -makes when they cannot see him. They are heavily but scientifically -laden. The cargo of each is divided into three portions; one is tied on -each side, and the other placed between. If the cargo be not nicely -balanced, the muleteer either unloads or adds a few stones to the -lighter portion--the additional weight being compensated by the greater -comfort with which a well-poised burden is carried. These "sumpter" -mules are gaily decorated with trappings full of colour and tags. The -head-gear is composed of different coloured worsteds, to which a -multitude of small bells are affixed; hence the saying, "_muger de mucha -campanilla_," a woman of many bells, of much show, much noise, or -pretension. The muleteer either walks by the side of his animal or sits -aloft on the cargo, with his feet dangling on the neck, a seat which is -by no means so uncomfortable as it would appear. A rude gun, "but 'twill -serve," and is loaded with slugs, hangs always in readiness by his side, -and often with it a guitar; these emblems of life and death paint the -unchanged reckless condition of Iberia, where extremes have ever met, -where a man still goes out of the world like a swan, with a song. Thus -accoutred, as Byron says, with "all that gave, promise of pleasure or a -grave," the approach of the caravan is announced from afar by his -cracked or guttural voice: "How carols now the lusty muleteer!" For when -not engaged in swearing or smoking, the livelong day is passed in one -monotonous high-pitched song, the tune of which is little in harmony -with the import of the words, or his cheerful humour, being most -unmusical and melancholy; but such is the true type of Oriental -_melody_, as it is called. The same absence of thought which is shown in -England by whistling is displayed in Spain by singing. "_Quien canta sus -males espanta:_" he who sings frightens away ills, a philosophic -consolation in travel as old and as classical as Virgil:--"Cantantes -licet usque, minus via tdet, camus," which may be thus translated for -the benefit of country gentlemen:-- - - If we join in doleful chorus, - The dull highway will much less bore us. - -The Spanish muleteer is a fine fellow; he is intelligent, active, and -enduring; he braves hunger and thirst, heat and cold, mud and dust; he -works as hard as his cattle, never robs or is robbed; and while his -betters in this land put off everything till to-morrow except -bankruptcy, he is punctual and honest, his frame is wiry and sinewy, his -costume peculiar; many are the leagues and long, which we have ridden in -his caravan, and longer his robber yarns, to which we paid no attention; -and it must be admitted that these cavalcades are truly national and -picturesque. Mingled with droves of mules and mounted horsemen, the -zig-zag lines come threading down the mountain defiles, now tracking -through the aromatic brushwood, now concealed amid rocks and -olive-trees, now emerging bright and glittering into the sunshine, -giving life and movement to the lonely nature, and breaking the usual -stillness by the tinkle of the bell and the sad ditty of the -muleteer--sounds which, though unmusical in themselves, are in keeping -with the scene, and associated with wild Spanish rambles, just as the -harsh whetting of the scythe is mixed up with the sweet spring and -newly-mown hay-meadow. - -[Sidenote: COSTUME OF THE MARAGATOS.] - -There is one class of muleteers which are but little known to European -travellers--the _Maragatos_, whose head-quarters are at _San Roman_, -near _Astorga_; they, like the Jew and gipsy, live exclusively among -their own people, preserving their primeval costume and customs, and -never marrying out of their own tribe. They are as perfectly nomad and -wandering as the Bedouins, the mule only being substituted for the -camel; their honesty and industry are proverbial. They are a sedate, -grave, dry, matter-of-fact, business-like people. Their charges are -high, but the security counterbalances, as they may be trusted with -untold gold. They are the channels of all traffic between Gallicia and -the Castiles, being seldom seen in the south or east provinces. They are -dressed in leathern jerkins, which fit tightly like a cuirass, leaving -the arms free. Their linen is coarse but white, especially the shirt -collar; a broad leather belt, in which there is a purse, is fastened -round the waist. Their breeches, like those of the Valencians, are -called _Zaraguelles_, a pure Arabic word for kilts or wide drawers, and -no burgomaster of Rembrandt is more broad-bottomed. Their legs are -encased in long brown cloth gaiters, with red garters; their hair is -generally cut close--sometimes, however, strange tufts are left. A huge, -slouching, flapping hat completes the most inconvenient of travelling -dresses, and it is too Dutch to be even picturesque; but these fashions -are as unchangeable as the laws of the Medes and Persians were; nor will -any Maragato dream of altering his costume until those dressed models of -painted wood do which strike the hours of the clock on the square of -_Astorga_: _Pedro Mato_, also, another figure _costume_, who holds a -weathercock at the cathedral, is the observed of all observers; and, in -truth, this particular costume is, as that of Quakers used to be, a -guarantee of their tribe and respectability; thus even Cordero, the rich -Maragato deputy, appeared in Cortes in this local costume. - -[Sidenote: THEIR ORIGIN.] - -The dress of the Maragata is equally peculiar: she wears, if married, a -sort of head-gear, _El Caramiello_, in the shape of a crescent, the -round part coming over the forehead, which is very Moorish, and -resembles those of the females in the basso-rilievos at Granada. Their -hair flows loosely on their shoulders, while their apron or petticoat -hangs down open before and behind, and is curiously tied at the back -with a sash, and their bodice is cut square over the bosom. At their -festivals they are covered with ornaments of long chains of coral and -metal, with crosses, relics, and medals in silver. Their earrings are -very heavy, and supported by silken threads, as among the Jewesses in -Barbary. A marriage is the grand feast; then large parties assemble, and -a president is chosen, who puts into a waiter whatever sum of money he -likes, and all invited must then give as much. The bride is enveloped in -a mantle, which she wears the whole day, and never again except on that -of her husband's death. She does not dance at the wedding-ball. Early -next morning two roast chickens are brought to the bed-side of the happy -pair. The next evening ball is opened by the bride and her husband, to -the tune of the _gaita_, or Moorish bagpipe. Their dances are grave and -serious; such indeed is their whole character. The _Maragatos_, with -their honest, weather-beaten countenances, are seen with files of mules -all along the high road to La Corua. They generally walk, and, like -other Spanish _arrieros_, although they sing and curse rather less, are -employed in one ceaseless shower of stones and blows at their mules. - -The whole tribe assembles twice a year at Astorga, at the feasts of -Corpus and the Ascension, when they dance _El Canizo_, beginning at two -o'clock in the afternoon, and ending precisely at three. If any one not -a _Maragato_ joins, they all leave off immediately. The women never -wander from their homes, which their undomestic husbands always do. They -lead the hardworked life of the Iberian females of old, and now, as -then, are to be seen everywhere in these west provinces toiling in the -fields, early before the sun has risen, and late after it has set; and -it is most painful to behold them drudging at these unfeminine -vocations. - -The origin of the _Maragatos_ has never been ascertained. Some consider -them to be a remnant of the Celtiberian, others of the Visigoths; most, -however, prefer a Bedouin, or caravan descent. It is in vain to question -these ignorant carriers as to their history or origin; for like the -gipsies, they have no traditions, and know nothing. _Arrieros_, at all -events, they are; and that word, in common with so many others relating -to the barb and carrier-caravan craft, is Arabic, and proves whence the -system and science were derived by Spaniards. - -[Sidenote: TRAVELLING IN THE INTERIOR.] - -The _Maragatos_ are celebrated for their fine beasts of burden; indeed, -the mules of Leon are renowned, and the asses splendid and numerous, -especially the nearer one approaches to the learned university of -Salamanca. The _Maragatos_ take precedence on the road; they are the -lords of the highway, being _the_ channels of commerce in a land where -mules and asses represent luggage rail trains. They know and feel their -importance, and that they are the rule, and the traveller for mere -pleasure is the exception. Few Spanish muleteers are much more polished -than their beasts, and however picturesque the scene, it is no joke -meeting a string of laden beasts in a narrow road, especially with a -precipice on one side, _cosa de Espaa_. The _Maragatos_ seldom give -way, and their mules keep doggedly on; as the baggage projects on each -side, like the paddles of a steamer, they sweep the whole path. But all -wayfaring details in the genuine Spanish interior are calculated for the -_pack_, as in England a century back; and there is no thought bestowed -on the foreigner, who is not wanted, nay is disliked. The inns, roads, -and right sides, suit the natives and their brutes; nor will either put -themselves out of their way to please the fancies of a stranger. The -racy Peninsula is too little travelled over for its natives to adopt the -mercenary conveniences of the Swiss, that nation of innkeepers and -coach-jobbers. - -[Sidenote: RIDING TOURS.] - - - - -CHAPTER VIII. - - Riding Tour in Spain--Pleasures of it--Pedestrian Tour--Choice of - Companions--Rules for a Riding Tour--Season of Year--Day's - Journey--Management of Horse: his Feet; Shoes; General Hints. - - -[Sidenote: ROYAL ROADS.] - -A man in a public carriage ceases to be a private individual: he is -merged into the fare, and becomes a number according to his place; he is -booked like a parcel, and is delivered by the guard. How free, how lord -and master of himself, does the same dependent gentleman mount his eager -barb, who by his neighing and pawing exhibits his joyful impatience to -be off too! How fresh and sweet the free breath of heaven, after the -frousty atmosphere of a full inside of foreigners, who, from the -narcotic effects of tobacco, forget the existence of soap, water, and -clean linen! Travelling on horseback, so unusual a gratification to -Englishmen, is the ancient, primitive, and once universal mode of -travelling in Europe, as it still is in the East; mankind, however, soon -gets accustomed to a changed state of locomotion, and forgets how recent -is its introduction. Fynes Moryson gave much the same advice two -centuries ago to travellers in England, as must be now suggested to -those who in Spain desert the coach-beaten highways for the delightful -bye-ways, and thus explore the rarely visited, but not the least -interesting portions of the Peninsula. It has been our good fortune to -perform many of these expeditions on horseback, both alone and in -company; and on one occasion to have made the pilgrimage from Seville to -Santiago, through Estremadura and Gallicia, returning by the Asturias, -Biscay, Leon, and the Castiles; thus riding nearly two thousand miles on -the same horse, and only accompanied by one Andalucian servant, who had -never before gone out of his native province. The same tour was -afterwards performed by two friends with two servants; nor did they or -ourselves ever meet with any real impediments or difficulties, scarcely -indeed sufficient of either to give the flavour of adventure, or the -dignity of danger, to the undertaking. It has also been our lot to make -an extended tour of many months, accompanied by an English lady, through -Granada, Murcia, Valencia, Catalonia, and Arragon, to say nothing of -repeated excursions through every nook and corner of Andalucia. The -result of all this experience, combined with that of many friends, who -have _ridden over_ the Peninsula, enables us to recommend this method to -the young, healthy, and adventurous, as by far the most agreeable plan -of proceeding; and, indeed, as we have said, as regards two-thirds of -the Peninsula, the only practicable course. - -The leading royal roads which connect the capital with the principal -seaports are, indeed, excellent; but they are generally drawn in a -straight line, whereby many of the most ancient cities are thus left -out, and these, together with sites of battles and historical incident, -ruins and remains of antiquity, and scenes of the greatest natural -beauty, are accessible with difficulty, and in many cases only on -horseback. Spain abounds with wide tracts which are perfectly unknown to -the Geographical Society. Here, indeed, is fresh ground open to all who -aspire in these threadbare days to book something new; here is scenery -enough to fill a dozen portfolios, and subject enough for a score of -quartos. How many flowers pine unbotanised, how many rocks harden -ungeologised; what views are dying to be sketched; what bears and deer -to be stalked; what trout to be caught and eaten; what valleys expand -their bosoms, longing to embrace their visitor; what virgin beauties -hitherto unseen await the happy member of the Travellers' Club, who in -ten days can exchange the bore of eternal Pall Mall for these untrodden -sites; and then what an accession of dignity in thus discovering a terra -incognita, and rivalling Mr. Mungo Park! Nor is a guide wanting, since -our good friend John Murray, the grand monarque of Handbooks, has -proclaimed from Albemarle Street, _Il n'y a plus de Pyrnes_. - -[Sidenote: HINTS TO TRAVELLERS.] - -As the wide extent of country which intervenes between the radii of the -great roads is most indifferently provided with public means of -inter-communication; as there is little traffic, and no demand for -modern conveyances--even mules and horses are not always to be procured, -and we have always found it best to set out on these distant excursions -with our own beasts: the comfort and certainty of this precaution have -been corroborated beyond any doubt by frequent comparisons with the -discomforts undergone by other persons, who trusted to chance -accommodations and means of locomotion in ill-provided districts and -out-of-the-way excursions: indeed, as a general rule, the traveller will -do well to carry with him everything with which from habit he feels that -he cannot dispense. The chief object will be to combine in as small a -space as possible the greatest quantity of portable comfort, taking care -to select the really essential; for there is no worse mistake than -lumbering oneself with things that are never wanted. This mode of -travelling has not been much detailed by the generality of authors, who -have rarely gone much out of the beaten track, or undertaken a -long-continued riding tour, and they have been rather inclined to -overstate the dangers and difficulties of a plan which they have never -tried. At the same time this plan is not to be recommended to fine -ladies nor to delicate gentlemen, nor to those who have had a touch of -rheumatism, or who tremble at the shadows which coming gout casts before -it. - -[Sidenote: HEALTHFUL EXERCISE.] - -Those who have endurance and curiosity enough to face a tour in Sicily, -may readily set out for Spain; rails and post-horses certainly get -quicker over the country; but the pleasure of the remembrance and the -benefits derived by travel are commonly in an inverse ratio to the ease -and rapidity with which the journey is performed. In addition to the -accurate knowledge which is thus acquired of the country (for there is -no map like this mode of surveying), and an acquaintance with a -considerable, and by no means the worst portion of its population, a -riding expedition to a civilian is almost equivalent to serving a -campaign. It imparts a new life, which is adopted on the spot, and which -soon appears quite natural, from being in perfect harmony and fitness -with everything around, however strange to all previous habits and -notions; it takes the conceit out of a man for the rest of his life--it -makes him bear and forbear. It is a capital practical school of moral -discipline, just as the hardiest mariners are nurtured in the roughest -seas. Then and there will be learnt golden rules of patience, -perseverance, good temper, and good fellowship: the individual man must -come out, for better or worse. On these occasions, where wealth and -rank are stripped of the aids and appurtenances of conventional -superiority, a man will draw more on his own resources, moral and -physical, than on any letter of credit; his wit will be sharpened by -invention-suggesting necessity. - -Then and there, when up, about, and abroad, will be shaken off dull -sloth; action--Demosthenic action--will be the watch-word. The traveller -will blot out from his dictionary the fatal Spanish phrase of -procrastination _by-and-by_, a street which leads to the house of -_never_, for "_por la calle de despues, se va a la casa de nunca_." -Reduced to shift for himself, he will see the evil of waste--the folly -of improvidence and want of order. He will whistle to the winds the -paltry excuse of idleness, the Spanish "_no se puede_," "_it is -impossible_." He will soon learn, by grappling with difficulties, how -surely they are overcome,--how soft as silk becomes the nettle when it -is sternly grasped, which would sting the tender-handed touch,--how -powerful a principle of realising the object proposed, is the moral -conviction that we can and will accomplish it. He will never be scared -by shadows thin as air, for when one door shuts another opens, and he -who pushes on arrives. And after all, a dash of hardship may be endured -by those accustomed to loll in easy britzskas, if only for the sake of -novelty; what a new relish is given to the palled appetite by a little -unknown privation!--hunger being, as Cervantes says, the best of sauces, -which, as it never is wanting to the poor, is the reason why eating is -their huge delight. - -[Sidenote: DELIGHTS OF A TOUR.] - -Again, these sorts of independent expeditions are equally conducive to -health of body: after the first few days of the new fatigue are got -over, the frame becomes of iron, "_hecho de bronze_," and the rider, a -centaur not fabulous. The living in the pure air, the sustaining -excitement of novelty, exercise, and constant occupation, are all -sweetened by the willing heart, which renders even labour itself a -pleasure; a new and vigorous life is infused into every bone and muscle: -early to bed and early to rise, if it does not make all brains wise, at -least invigorates the gastric juices, makes a man forget that he has a -liver, that storehouse of mortal misery--bile, blue pill, and blue -devils. This health is one of the secrets of the amazing charm which -seems inherent to this mode of travelling, in spite of all the apparent -hardships with which it is surrounded in the abstract. Oh! the delight -of this gipsy, Bedouin, nomade life, seasoned with unfettered liberty! -We pitch our tent wherever we please, and there we make our home--far -from letters "requiring an immediate answer," and distant dining-outs, -visits, ladies' maids, band-boxes, butlers, bores, and button-holders. - -Escaping from the meshes of the west end of London, we are transported -into a new world; every day the out-of-door panorama is varied; now the -heart is cheered and the countenance made glad by gazing on plains -overflowing with milk and honey, or laughing with oil and wine, where -the orange and citron bask in the glorious sunbeams, the palm without -the desert, the sugar-cane without the slave. Anon we are lost amid the -silence of cloud-capped glaciers, where rock and granite are tost about -like the fragments of a broken world, by the wild magnificence of -Nature, who, careless of mortal admiration, lavishes with proud -indifference her fairest charms where most unseen, her grandest forms -where most inaccessible. Every day and everywhere we are unconsciously -funding a stock of treasures and pleasures of memory, to be hived in our -bosoms like the honey of the bee, to cheer and sweeten our after-life, -when we settle down like wine-dregs in our cask, which, delightful even -as in the reality, wax stronger as we grow in years, and feel that these -feats of our youth, like sweet youth itself, can never be our portion -again. Of one thing the reader may be assured,--that dear will be to -him, as is now to us, the remembrance of those wild and weary rides -through tawny Spain, where hardship was forgotten ere undergone: those -sweet-aired hills--those rocky crags and torrents--those fresh valleys -which communicated their own freshness to the heart--that keen relish -for hard fare, gained and seasoned by hunger sauce, which Ude did not -invent--those sound slumbers on harder couch, earned by fatigue, the -downiest of pillows--the braced nerves--the spirits light, elastic, and -joyous--that freedom from care--that health of body and soul which ever -rewards a close communion with Nature--and the shuffling off of the -frets and factitious wants of the thick-pent artificial city. - -[Sidenote: CHOICE OF COMPANIONS.] - -Whatever be the number of the party, and however they travel, whether on -wheels or horseback, admitting even that a pleasant friend pro vehiculo -est, that is, is better than a post-chaise, yet no one should ever dream -of making a pedestrian tour in Spain. It seldom answers anywhere, as the -walker arrives at the object of his promenade tired and hungry, just at -the moment when he ought to be the freshest and most up to intellectual -pleasures. The deipnosophist Athenus long ago discovered that there was -no love for the sublime and beautiful in an empty stomach, sthetics -yield then to gastronomies, and there is no prospect in the world so -fine as that of a dinner and a nap, or _siesta_ afterwards. The -pedestrian in Spain, where fleshly comforts are rare, will soon -understand why, in the real journals of our Peninsular soldiers, so -little attention is paid to those objects which most attract the -well-provided traveller. In cases of bodily hardship, the employment of -the mental faculties is narrowed into the care of supplying mere -physical wants, rather than expanded into searching for those of a -contemplative or intellectual gratification; the footsore and way-worn -require, according to - - "The unexempt condition - By which all mortal frailty must subsist, - Refreshment after toil, ease after pain." - -Walking is the manner by which beasts travel, who have therefore four -legs; those bipeds who follow the example of the brute animals will soon -find that they will be reduced to their level in more particulars than -they imagined or bargained for. Again, as no Spaniard ever walks for -pleasure, and none ever perform a journey on foot except trampers and -beggars, it is never supposed possible that any one else should do so -except from compulsion. Pedestrians therefore are either ill received, -or become objects of universal suspicion; for a Spanish authority, -judging of others by himself, always takes the worst view of the -stranger, whom he considers as guilty until he proves himself innocent. - -Before the pleasures of a riding tour through Spain are mentioned, a few -observations on the choice of companions may be made. - -[Sidenote: OCCASIONAL DEPRESSION.] - -Those who travel in public conveyances or with muleteers are seldom -likely to be left alone. It is the horseman who strikes into -out-of-the-way, unfrequented districts, who will feel the want of that -important item--a travelling companion, on which, as in choosing a wife, -it is easy enough to give advice. The patient must, however, administer -to himself, and the selection will depend, of course, much on the taste -and idiosyncracy of each individual; those unfortunate persons who are -accustomed to have everything their own way, or those, happy ones, who -are never less alone than when alone, and who possess the alchymy of -finding resources and amusements in themselves, may perhaps find that -plan to be the best; at all events, no company is better than bad -company: "_mas vale ir solo, que mal acompaado_." A solitary wanderer -is certainly the most unfettered as regards his notions and motions, -"_no tengo padre ni madre, ni perro que me ladre_." He who has "neither -father, mother, nor dog to bark at him," can read the book of Spain, as -it were, in his own room, dwelling on what he likes, and skipping what -he does not, as with a red Murray. - -[Sidenote: SPANISH MANNERS.] - -Every coin has, however, its reverse, and every rose its thorn. -Notwithstanding these and other obvious advantages, and the tendency -that occupation and even hardships have to drive away imaginary evils, -this freedom will be purchased by occasional moments of depression; a -dreary, forsaken feeling will steal over the most cheerful mind. It is -not good for man to be alone; and this social necessity never comes home -stronger to the warm heart than during a long-continued solitary ride -through the rarely visited districts of the Peninsula. The sentiment is -in perfect harmony with the abstract feeling which is inspired by the -present condition of unhappy Spain, fallen from her high estate, and -blotted almost from the map of Europe. Silent, sad, and lonely is her -face, on which the stranger will too often gaze; her hedgeless, treeless -tracts of corn-field, bounded only by the low horizon; her uninhabited, -uncultivated plains, abandoned to the wild flower and the bee, and which -are rendered still more melancholy by ruined castle, or village, which -stand out bleaching skeletons of a former vitality. The dreariness of -this abomination of desolation is increased by the singular absence of -singing birds, and the presence of the vulture, the eagle, and lonely -birds of prey. The wanderer, far from home and friends, feels doubly a -stranger in this strange land, where no smile greets his coming, no tear -is shed at his going,--where his memory passes away, like that of a -guest who tarrieth but a day,--where nothing of human life is seen, -where its existence only is inferred by the rude wooden cross or -stone-piled cairn, which marks the unconsecrated grave of some traveller -who has been waylaid there alone, murdered, and sent to his account with -all his imperfections on his head. - -However confidently we have relied on past experience that such would -not be our fate, yet these sorts of Spanish milestones marked with -memento mori, are awkward evidences that the thing is not altogether -impossible. It makes a single gentleman, whose life is not insured, not -only trust to Santiago, but keep his powder dry, and look every now and -then if his percussion cap fits. On these occasions the falling in with -any of the nomade half-Bedouin natives is a sort of godsend; their -society is quite different from that of a regular companion, for better -or worse until death us do part, as it is casual, and may be taken up or -dropped at convenience. The habits of all Spaniards when on the road are -remarkably gregarious; a common fear acts as a cement, while the more -they are in number the merrier. It is hail! well met, fellow-traveller! -and the being glad to see each other is an excellent introduction. The -sight of passengers bound our way is like speaking a strange sail on the -Atlantic, _Hola Camara!_ ship a-hoy. This predisposition tends to make -all travellers write so much and so handsomely of the lower classes of -Spaniards, not indeed more than they deserve, for they are a fine, noble -race. Something of this arises, because on such occasions all parties -meet on an equality; and this levelling effect, perhaps unperceived, -induces many a foreigner, however proud and reserved at home, to unbend, -and that unaffectedly. He treats these accidental acquaintances quite -differently from the manner in which he would venture to treat the lower -orders of his own country, who, probably, if conciliated by the same -condescension of manner, would appear in a more amiable light, although -they are inferior to the Spaniard in his Oriental goodness of manner, -his perfect tact, his putting himself and others into their proper -place, without either self-degradation or vulgar assumption of social -equality or superior physical powers. - -[Sidenote: FRIENDSHIPS.] - -A long solitary ride is hardly to be recommended; it is not fair to -friends who have been left anxious behind, nor is it prudent to expose -oneself, without help, to the common accidents to which a horse and his -rider are always liable. Those who have a friend with whom they feel -they can venture to go in double harness, had better do so. It is a -severe test, and the trial becomes greater in proportion as hardships -abound and accommodations are scanty--causes which sour the milk of -human kindness, and prove indifferent restorers of stomach or temper. It -is on these occasions, on a large journey and in a small _venta_, that a -man finds out what his friend really is made of. While in the more -serious necessities of danger, sickness, and need--a friend is one -indeed, and the one thing wanting, with whom we share our last morsel -and cup gladly. The salt of good fellowship, if it cannot work miracles -as to quantity, converts the small loaf into a respectable abstract -feed, by the zest and satisfaction with which it flavours it. - -Nothing, moreover, cements friendships for the future like having made -one of these conjoint rambles, provided it did not end in a quarrel. The -mere fact of having travelled _at all_ in Spain has a peculiarity which -is denied to the more hackneyed countries of Europe. When we are -introduced to a person who has visited these spell-casting sites, we -feel as if we knew him already. There is a sort of freemasonry in having -done something in common, which is not in common with the world at -large. Those who are about to qualify themselves for this exclusive -quality will do well not to let the party exceed five in number, three -masters and two servants; two masters with two servants are perhaps more -likely to be better accommodated; a third person, however, is often of -use in trying journeys, as an arbiter elegantiarum et rixarum, a referee -and arbitrator; for in the best regulated teams it must happen that some -one will occasionally start, gib, or bolt, when the majority being -against him brings the offender to his proper senses. Four eyes, again, -see better than two, "_mas ven cuatro ojos que dos_." - -[Sidenote: CHOICE OF HORSES.] - -By attending to a few simple rules, a tour of some months' duration, and -over thousands of miles, may be performed on one and the same horse, who -with his rider will at the end of the journey be neither sick nor sorry, -but in such capital condition as to be ready to start again. We presume -that the time will be chosen when the days are long and Nature has -thrown aside her wintry garb. Fine weather is the joy of the wayfarer's -soul, and nothing can be more different than the aspect of Spanish -villages in good or in bad weather; as in the East, during wintry rains -they are the acmes of mud and misery, but let the sun shine out, and all -is gilded. It is the smile which lights up the habitually sad expression -of a Spanish woman's face. The blessed beam cheers poverty itself, and -by its stimulating, exhilarating action on the system of man, enables -him to buffet against the moral evils to which countries the most -favoured by climate seem, as if it were from compensation, to be more -exposed than those where the skies are dull, and the winds bleak and -cold. - -As in our cavalry regiments, where real service is required, a perfect -animal is preferred, a rider should choose a mare rather than a gelding; -the use of entire horses is, however, so general in Spain, that one of -such had better be selected than a mare. The day's journey will vary -according to circumstances from twenty-five to forty miles. The start -should be made before daybreak, and the horse well fed at least an hour -before the journey is commenced, during which Spaniards, if they can, go -to church, for they say that no time is ever lost on a journey by -feeding horses and men and hearing masses, _misa y cebada no estorban -jornada_. - -[Sidenote: TRAVELLING PACE.] - -The hours of starting, of course, depend on the distance and the -district. The sooner the better, as all who wish to cheat the devil must -get up very early. "_Quien al demonio quiere engaar, muy temprano -levantarse ha._" It is a great thing for the traveller to reach his -night quarters as soon as he can, for the first comers are the best -served: borrow therefore an hour of the morning rather than from the -night; and that hour, if you lose it at starting, you will never -overtake in the day. Again, in the summer it is both agreeable and -profitable to be under weigh and off at least an hour or two before -sunrise, as the heat soon gets insupportable, and the stranger is -exposed to the _tabardillo_, the coup de soleil, which, even in a -smaller degree, occasions more ill health in Spain than is generally -imagined, and especially by the English, who brave it either from -ignorance or foolhardiness. The head should be well protected with a -silk handkerchief, tied after a turban fashion, which all the natives -do; in addition to which we always lined the inside of our hats with -thickly doubled brown paper. In Andalucia, during summer, the muleteers -travel by night, and rest during the day-heat, which, however, is not a -satisfactory method, except for those who wish to see nothing. We have -never adopted it. The early mornings and cool afternoons and evenings -are infinitely preferable; while to the artist the glorious sunrises and -sunsets, and the marking of mountains, and definition of forms from the -long shadows, are magnificent beyond all conception. In these almost -tropical countries, when the sun is high, the effect of shadow is lost, -and everything looks flat and unpicturesque. - -The journey should be divided into two portions, and the longest should -be accomplished the first: the pace should average about five miles an -hour, it being an object not to keep the animal unnecessarily on his -legs: he may be trotted gently, and even up easy hills, but should -always be walked down them; nay, if led, so much the better, which -benefits both horse and rider. It is surprising how a steady, continued -slow pace gets over the ground: _Chi va piano, va sano, lontano_, says -the Italian; _paso a paso va lejos_, step by step goes far, responds the -Castilian. The end of the journey each day is settled before starting, -and there the traveller is sure to arrive with the evening. Spaniards -never fidget themselves to get quickly to places where nobody is -expecting them: nor is there any good to be got in trying to hurry man -or beast in Spain; you might as well think of hurrying the Court of -Chancery. The animals should be rested, if possible, every fourth day, -and not used during halts in towns, unless they exceed three days' -sojourn. - -[Sidenote: FEEDING YOUR HORSE.] - -On arriving at every halting-place, look first at the feet, and pick out -any pebbles or dirt, and examine the nails and shoes carefully, to see -that nothing is loose; let this inspection become a habit; do not wash -the feet too soon, as the sudden chill sometimes produces fever in them: -when they are cool, clean them and grease the hoof well; after that you -may wash as much as you please. The best thing, however, is to feed your -horse at once, before thinking of his toilet; the march will have given -an appetite, while the fatigue requires immediate restoration. If a -horse is to be worried with cleaning, &c., he often loses heart and -gets off his feed: he may be rubbed down when he has done eating, and -his bed should be made up as for night, the stable darkened, and the -animal left quite quiet, and the longer the better: feed him well again -an hour before starting for the afternoon stage, and treat him on coming -in exactly as you did in the morning. The food must be regulated by the -work: when that is severe, give corn with both hands, and stint the hay -and other lumber: what you want is to concentrate support by quality, -not quantity. The Spaniard will tell you that one mouthful of beef is -worth ten of potatoes. If your horse is an English one, it must be -remembered that eight pounds' weight of barley is equal to ten of oats, -as containing less husk and more mucilage or starch, which our -horse-dealers know when they want to _make up_ a horse; overfeeding a -horse in the hot climate of Spain, like overfeeding his rider, renders -both liable to fevers and sudden inflammatory attacks, which are much -more prevalent in Gibraltar than elsewhere in Spain, because our -countrymen will go on exactly as if they were at home. - -At all events, feed your horse well with _something or other_, or your -Spanish squire will rain proverbs on you, like Sancho Panza; the belly -must be filled with hay or straw, for it in reality carries the feet, _O -paja o heno el vientre lleno--tripas llevan pies_, and so forth. The -Spaniards when on a journey allow their horses to drink copiously at -every stream, saying that there is no juice like that of flints; and -indeed they set the example, for they are all down on their bellies at -every brook, swilling water, according to the proverb, like an ox, and -wine when they can get it, like a king. If therefore you are riding a -Spanish horse which has been accustomed to this continual tippling, let -him drink, otherwise he will be fevered. If the horse has been treated -in the English fashion, give him his water only after his meals, -otherwise he will break out into weakening sweats. Should the animal -ever arrive distressed, a tepid gruel, made with oatmeal or even flour, -will comfort him much. At nightfall stop the feet with wet tow, or with -horse dung, for that of cows will seldom be to be had in Spain, where -goats furnish milk, and Dutchmen butter. - -[Sidenote: THE HORSE'S FOOT.] - -Let the feet be constantly attended to; the horse having twice as many -as his rider, requires double attention, and of what use to a traveller -is a quadruped that has not a leg to go upon? This is well known to -those commercial gentlemen, who are the only persons now-a-days in -England who make riding journeys. It is the shoe that makes or mars the -horse, and no wise man, in Spain or out, who has got a four-footed -hobby, or three half-crowns, should delay sending to Longman's for that -admirable "Miles on the Horse's Foot." "Every knight errant," says Don -Quixote, "ought to be able to shoe his own _Rosinante_ himself." _Rosin_ -is pure Arabic for a hackney--at least he should know how this -calceolation ought to be done. As a general rule, always take your -quadruped to the forge, where the shoes can be fitted to his feet, not -the feet to ready-made shoes; and if you value the comfort, the -extension of life and service of your steed--_fasten the fore shoes with -five nails at most in the outside, and with two only in the inside, and -those near the toe_; do not in mercy fix by nails all round an -unyielding rim of dead iron, to an expanding living hoof; remember also -always to take with you a spare set of shoes, with nails and a -hammer--for the want of a nail the shoe was lost; for the want of a shoe -the rider was tost. In many parts of Spain, where there are no fine -modern roads, you might almost do without any shoes at all, as the -ancients did, and is done in parts of Mexico; but no unprotected hoof -can stand the constant wear and tear, the filing of a macadamised -highway. - -[Sidenote: THE MOSQUERO.] - -The horse will probably be soon in such condition as to want no more -physic than his rider; a lump, however, of rock-salt, and a bit of chalk -put at night into his manger, answers the same purposes as Epsoms and -soda do to the master. You should wash out the long tail and mane, which -is the glory of a Spanish horse, as fine hair is to a woman, with soda -and water; the alkali combining with the animal grease forms a most -searching detergent. A grand remedy for most of the accidents to which -horses are liable on a journey, such as kicks, cuts, strains, &c., is a -constant fomentation with hot water, which should be done under the -immediate superintendence of the master, or it will be either done -insufficiently, or not done at all; hot water, according to the groom -genus, having been created principally as a recipient of something -stronger. A crupper and breastplate are almost indispensable, from the -steep ascents and descents in the mountains. The _mosquero_, the -fly-flapper, is a great comfort to the horse, as, being in perpetual -motion, and hanging between his eyes, it keeps off the flies; the -head-stall, or night halter, never should be removed from the bridle, -but be rolled up during the day, and fastened along the side of the -cheek. The long tail is also rolled up when the ways are miry, just as -those of our blue jackets and horse-guards used to be. - -[Sidenote: THE RIDER'S COSTUME.] - - - - -CHAPTER IX. - - The Rider's Costume--Alforjas: their contents--The Bota, and How to - use it--Pig Skins and Borracha--Spanish Money--Onzas and smaller - Coins. - - -The rider's costume and accoutrements require consideration; his great -object should be to pass in a crowd, either unnoticed, or to be taken -for "one of us," _Uno de Nosotros_, and a member of the Iberian -family--_de la Familia_: this is best effected by adopting the dress, -that is usually worn by the natives when they travel on horseback, or -journey by any of their national conveyances, among which Anglo-Franco -mails and diligences are not yet to be reckoned; all classes of -Spaniards, on getting outside the town-gate, assume country habits, and -eschew the long-tailed coats and civilization of the city; they drop -pea-jackets and foreign fashions, which would only attract attention, -and expose the wearers to the ridicule or coarser marks of consideration -from the peasantry, muleteers, and other gentry, who rule on the road, -hate novelties, and hold fast to the ways and jackets of their -forefathers; the best hat, therefore, is the common _sombrero calanes_, -which resemble those worn at Astley's by banditti, being of a conical -shape, is edged with black velvet, ornamented with silken tufts, and -looks equally well on a cockney from London, or on a squire from -Devonshire. The jacket should be the universal fur _Zamarra_, which is -made of black sheepskin, in its ordinary form, and of lambskin for those -who can pay; a sash round the waist should never be forgotten, being -most useful both in reality and metaphor: it sustains the loins, and -keeps off the dangerous colics of Spain, by maintaining an equable heat -over the abdomen; hence, to be Homerically well girt is half the battle -for the Peninsular traveller. - -[Sidenote: THE ALFORJAS.] - -The _capa_ the cloak, or the _manta_ a striped plaid, and saddle-bags, -the _Alforjas_, are absolute essentials, and should be strapped on the -pommel of the saddle, as being there less heating to the horse than when -placed on his flanks, and being in front, they are more handy for -sudden use, since in the mountains and valleys, the rider is constantly -exposed to sudden variations of wind and weather; when olus and Sol -contend for his cloak, as in sop's Fables, and the buckets of heaven -are emptied on him as soon as the god of fire thinks him sufficiently -baked. - -These saddle-bags are most classical, Oriental, and convenient; they -indeed constitute the genus _bagsman_, and have given their name to our -riding travellers; they are the _Sarcin_ of Cato the Censor, the -_Bulg_ of Lucilius, who made an epigram thereon:-- - - "Cum _bulg_ coenat, dormit, lavat, omnis in un. - Spes hominis _bulga_ hc devincta est ctera vita:" - -which, as these indispensables are quite as necessary to the modern -Spaniard, may be thus translated:-- - - "A good roomy bag delighteth a Roman, - He is never without this appendage a minute; - In bed, at the bath, at his meals,--in short no man - Should fail to stow life, hope, and self away in it." - -The countrymen of Sancho Panza, when on the road, make the same use of -their wallets as the Romans did; they still (the washing excepted) live -and die with these bags, in which their hearts are deposited with their -bread and cheese. - -These Spanish _alforjas_, in name and appearance, are the Moorish _al -horeh_. (The F and H, like the B and V, X and J, are almost equivalent, -and are used indiscriminately in Spanish cacography.) They are generally -composed of cotton and worsted, and are embroidered in gaudy colours and -patterns; the _correct_ thing is to have the owner's name worked in on -the edge, which ought to be done by the delicate hand of his beloved -mistress. Those made at Granada are very excellent; the Moorish, -especially those from Morocco, are ornamented with an infinity of small -tassels. Peasants, when dismounted, mendicant monks, when foraging for -their convents, sling their _alforjas_ over their shoulders when they -come into villages. - -[Sidenote: WHAT TO STOW AWAY IN THE ALFORJAS.] - -Among the contents which most people will find it convenient to carry in -the _right-hand bag_, as the easiest to be got at, a pair of blue gauze -wire spectacles or goggles will be found useful, as ophthalmia is very -common in Spain, and particularly in the calcined central plains. The -constant glare is unrelieved by any verdure, the air is dry, and the -clouds of dust highly irritating from being impregnated with nitre. The -best remedy is to bathe the eyes frequently with hot water, and _never -to rub them when inflamed_, except with the elbows, _los ojos con los -codos_. Spaniards never jest with their eyes or faith; of the two -perhaps they are seriously fondest of the former, not merely when -sparkling beneath the arched eyebrow of the dark sex, but when set in -their own heads. "I love thee like my eyes," is quite a hackneyed form -of affection; nor, however wrathful and imprecatory, do they under any -circumstance express the slightest uncharitable wishes in regard to the -visual organs of their bitterest foe. - -The whole art of the _alforjas_ is the putting into them what you want -the most often, and in the most handy and accessible place. Keep here, -therefore, a supply of small money for the halt and the blind, for the -piteous cases of human suffering and poverty by which the traveller's -eye will be pained in a land where soup-dispensing monks are done away -with, and assistant new poor law commissioners not yet appointed; such -charity from God's purse, _bolsa de Dios_, never impoverishes that of -man, and a cheerful giver, however opposed to modern political -economists, is commended in that old-fashioned book called the Bible. -The left half of the _alforjas_ may be apportioned to the writing and -dressing cases, and the smaller each are the better. - -Food for the mind must not be neglected. The travelling library, like -companions, should be select and good; _libros y amigos pocos y buenos_. -The duodecimo editions are the best, as a large heavy book kills horse, -rider, and reader. Books are a matter of taste; some men like Bacon, -others prefer Pickwick; stow away at all events a pocket edition of the -Bible, Shakspere, and Don Quixote: and if the advice of dear Dr. Johnson -be worth following, one of those books that can be taken in _the hand_, -and to the fire-side. Martial, a grand authority on Spanish hand-books, -recommended "such sized companions on a long journey." Quartos and -folios, said he, may be left at home in the book-case-- - - "Scrinia da magnis, _me manus una_ capit." - -[Sidenote: THE BOTA.] - -Here also keep the passport, that indescribable nuisance and curse of -continental travel, to which a free-born Briton never can get -reconciled, and is apt to neglect, whereby he puts himself in the power -of the worst and most troublesome people on earth. Passports in Spain -now in some degree supply the Inquisition, and have been embittered by -vexatious forms borrowed from bureaucratic France. - -[Sidenote: THE BOTA.] - -Having thus disposed of these matters on the front bow of his saddle, to -which we always added a _bota_--the pocket-pistol of Hudibras--one word -on this _Bota_, which is as necessary to the rider as a saddle to his -horse. This article, so Asiatic and Spanish, is at once the bottle and -the glass of the people of the Peninsula when on the road, and is -perfectly unlike the vitreous crockery and pewter utensils of Great -Britain. A Spanish woman would as soon think of going to church without -her fan, or a Spanish man to a fair without his knife, as a traveller -without his _bota_. Ours, the faithful, long-tried comforter of many a -dry road, and honoured now like a relic, is hung up a votive offering to -the Iberian Bacchus, as the mariners in Horace suspended their damp -garments to the deity who had delivered them from the dangers of water. -Its skin, now shrivelled with age and with fruitless longings for wine, -is still redolent of the ruby fluid, whether the generous _Valdepeas_ -or the rich _vino de Toro_: and refreshing to our nostrils is even an -occasional smell at its red-stained orifice. There the racy wine-perfume -lingers, and brings water into the mouth, it may be into the eyelid. -What a dream of Spanish odours, good, bad, and indifferent, is awakened -by its well-known _borracha!_--what recollections, breathing the aroma -of the balmy south, crowd in; of aromatic wastes, of leagues of thyme, -whence Flora sends forth advertisements to her tiny bee-customer; of -churches, all incense; of the goats and monks, long-bearded and -odoriferous; of cities whose steam of garlic, ollas, oil, and tobacco -rises up to the heavens, mingled with the thousand and one other -continental sweets which assail a man's nose, whether he lands at Calais -or Cadiz! There hangs our smelling-bottle _bota_, now a pleasure of -memory; it has had its day, and is never again to be filled in torrid, -thirsty Spain, nor emptied, which is better. - -This _Bota_, from whence the terms _Butt_ of sherry, _bouteille_, and -bottle are derived, is the most ancient Oriental leathern bottle -alluded to in Job xxxii. 19, "My belly ready to burst like new bottles;" -and in the parable, Matt. ix. 17, about the old ones, the force and -point of which is entirely lost by our word _bottle_, which being made -of glass, is not liable to become useless by age like one made of -leather. Such a "bottle of water" was the last among the few things -which Abraham gave to Hagar, when he turned out the mother of the -Arabians, whose descendants brought its usage into Spain. The shape is -like that of a large pear or shot-pouch, and it contains from two to -five quarts. The narrow neck is mounted with a turned wooden cup, from -which the contents are drunk. The way to use it is thus--grasp the neck -with the left hand and bring the rim of the cup to the mouth, then -gradually raise the bag with the other hand till the wine, in obedience -to hydrostatic laws, rises to its level, and keeps always full in the -cup without trouble to the mouth. The gravity with which this is done, -the long, slow, sustained, Sancho-like devotion of the thirsty Spaniards -when offered a drink out of another man's _bota_, is very edifying, and -is as deep as the sigh of delight and gratitude with which, when unable -to imbibe more, the precious skin is returned. No drop of the divine -contents is wasted, except by some newly-arrived bungler, who, by -lifting up the bottom first, inundates his chin. The hole in the cup is -made tight by a wooden spigot, which again is perforated and stopped -with a small peg. Those who do not want to take a copious draught do not -pull out the spigot, but merely the little peg of it; the wine then -flows out in a thin thread. The Catalonians and Aragonese generally -drink in this way; they never touch the vessel with their lips, but hold -it up at a distance above, and pilot the stream into their mouths, or -rather under-jaws. It is much easier for those who have had no practice -to pour the wine into their necks than into their mouths, but their -drinking-bottles are made with a long narrow spout, and are called -"_Porrones_." - -[Sidenote: THE BOTA--WINE.] - -The _Bota_ must not be confounded with the _Borracha_ or _Cuero_, the -wine-skin of Spain, which is the _entire_, and answers the purpose of -the barrel elsewhere. The _bota_ is the retail receptacle, the _cuero_ -is the wholesale one. It is the genuine pig's skin, the adoration of -which disputes in the Peninsula with the cigar, the dollar, and even the -worship of the Virgin. The shops of the makers are to be seen in most -Spanish towns; in them long lines of the unclean animal's blown out -hides are strung up like sheep carcases in our butchers' shambles. The -tanned and manufactured article preserves the form of the pig, feet and -all, with the exception of one: the skin is turned inside out, so that -the hairy coat lines the interior, which, moreover, is carefully pitched -like a ship's bottom, to prevent leaking; hence the peculiar flavour, -which partakes of resin and the hide, which is called the _borracha_, -and is peculiar to most Spanish wines, sherry excepted, which being made -by foreigners, is kept in foreign casks, as we shall presently show when -we touch on "good sherris sack." A drunken man, who is rarer in Spain -than in England, is called a _borracho_; the term is not complimentary. -These _cueros_, when filled, are suspended in _ventas_ and elsewhere, -and thus economise cellarage, cooperage, and bottling; and such were the -bigbellied monsters which Don Quixote attacked. - -As the _bota_ is always near every Spaniard's mouth who can get at one, -all classes being ever ready, like Sancho, to give "a thousand kisses," -not only to his own legitimate _bota_, but to that of his neighbour, -which is coveted more than wife: therefore no prudent traveller will -ever journey an inch in Spain without getting one, and when he has, will -never keep it empty, especially when he falls in with good wine. Every -man's Spanish attendant will always find out, by instinct, where the -best wine is to be had; good wine neither needs bush, herald, nor crier; -in these matters, our experience of them tallies with their proverb, -"mas vale vino _maldito_, que no agua _bendita_," "cursed bad wine is -better than holy water;" at the same time, in their various scale of -comparisons, there is good wine, better wine, and best wine, but no such -thing as bad wine; of good wine, the Spaniards are almost as good judges -as of good water; they rarely mix them, because they say that it is -spoiling two good things. Vino _Moro_, or Moorish wine, is by no means -indicative of uncleanness, or other heretical imperfections implied -generally by that epithet; it simply means, that it is pure from never -having been baptized with water, for which the Asturians, who keep small -chandlers' shops, are so infamous, that they are said, from inveterate -habit, to adulterate even water; _aguan el agua_. - -[Sidenote: MONEY.] - -It is a great mistake to suppose, because Spaniards are seldom seen -drunk, and because when on a journey they drink as much water as their -beasts, that they have any Oriental dislike to wine; the rule is "_Agua -como buey, y vino como Rey_," "to drink water like an ox, and wine like -a king." The extent of the _given_ quantity of wine which they will -always swallow, rather suggests that their habitual temperance may in -some degree be connected more with their poverty than with their will. -The way to many an honest breast lies through the belly in this -classical land, where the tutelar of butlers still keeps the key of -their cellars and hearts--aperit prcordia Bacchus: nor is their -Oriental blessing unconnected with some "savoury food" previously -administered. And independently of the very obvious reasons which good -wine does and ought to afford for its own consumption, the irritating -nature of Spanish cookery provides a never-failing inducement. The -constant use of the savoury class of condiments and of pepper is very -heating, "_la pimienta escalienta_." A salt-fish, ham and sausage diet -creates thirst; a good rasher of bacon calls loudly for a corresponding -long and strong pull at the "_bota_," "_a torresno de tocino, buen golpe -de vino_." - -This digression on _botas_ will be pardoned by all who, having ridden in -Spain, know the absolute necessity of them. The traveller will of course -remember the advice given by the rogue of _Ventero_ to Don Quixote to -take shirts and money with him. "Put money in thy purse" said also -honest Iago, for an empty one is a beggarly companion in the Peninsula -as elsewhere. There is no getting to Rome or to Santiago if the -pilgrim's scrip be scanty, or his mule lame: _Camino de Roma, ni mula -coja ni Bolsa floja_. - -[Sidenote: MONEY.] - -Practically it may be said, that there is no paper money in Spain. Notes -may be taken in some of the larger cities, but in the provinces the -value of a man in office's promise to pay on paper, is not considered by -the shrewd natives to be actually equal to cash; while they will readily -give these notes to foreigners, they prefer for their own use the -old-fashioned representatives of wealth, gold and silver, towards the -smallest fraction of which they have the largest possible veneration. -Accounts are usually kept in _reales de vellon_ of royal bullion; and -these are subdivided into _maravedis_, the ancient coin of the -Peninsula: there are minor fractions even of farthings, consisting in -material of infinitesimal bits of any metals, melted church bells, old -cannon, &c., with names and values unknown in our happy land, where not -much is to be got for a mite; in Spain, where cheapness of earth-produce -is commensurate with poverty, anything, even to an old button, goes for -a _maraved_, and we have found that in changing a dollar by way of -experiment into small coppers in the market at Seville, among the -multitudinous specimens of Spanish mints of all periods, Moorish and -even Roman coins were to be met with, and still current. - -The dollar, or _Duro_, of Spain is well known all over the world, being -the form under which silver has been generally exported from the Spanish -colonies of South America. It is the Italian "Colonato," so called -because the arms of Spain are supported between the two pillars of -Hercules. The coinage is slovenly: it is the weight of the metal, not -the form, which is looked to by the Spaniard, who, like the Turk, is not -so clever a workman or mechanist as devout worshipper of bullion. -Ferdinand VII. continued for a long while to strike money with his -father's head, having only had the lettering altered: thus early Trajans -exhibit the head of Nero. When the Cortes entered Madrid after the -Duke's victory at Salamanca, they patriotically prohibited the currency -of all coins bearing the head of the intrusive Joseph; yet his dollars -being chiefly made out of stolen church plate, gilt and ungilt, were, -although those of an usurper, intrinsically worth more than the -_legitimate_ duro: this was a too severe test for the loyalty of those -whose real king and god is cash. Such a decree was worthy of senators -who were busier employed in expelling French tropes from their -dictionary than French troops from their country. The wiser Chinese take -Ferdinand's and Joseph's dollars alike, calling them both "devil's head" -money. These bad prejudices against good coin have now given way to the -march of intellect; nay, the five-franc piece with Louis-Philippe's -clever head on it bids fair to oust the pillared _Duro_. The silver of -the mines of Murcia is exported to France, where it is coined, and sent -back in the manufactured shape. France thus gains a handsome per -centage, and habituates the people to her image of power, which comes -recommended to them in the most acceptable likeness of current coin. - -[Sidenote: GOLD COINAGE.] - -In Spain cash, ambrosial cash, rules the court, the camp, the grove; -hence the extraordinary credit of three millions recently required for -the secret service expenses of the Tuileries, and official enthusiasm -and unanimity secured thereby in the Montpensier purchase. The whole -decalogue is condensed at Madrid into one commandment, Love God as -represented on earth not by his vicar the Pope, but by his -lord-lieutenant, Don Ducat. - - _"El primero es amar Don Dinero,_ - _Dios es omnipotente, Don Dinero es su lugarteniente."_ - -Thus grandees and men in Spanish offices, both governmental and printing -ones, have preferred the other day five-franc pieces to the ribbons of -the Legion of _honor_; nor, considering the swindlers on whom this badge -of Austerlitz has been prostituted, were these worthy Castilians much -out in their calculations, if there be any truth in the catechism of -Falstaff. - -[Sidenote: AVARICE OF SPANIARDS.] - -The _gold coinage_ is magnificent, and worthy of the country and period -from which Europe was supplied with the precious metals. The largest -piece, the ounce, "_onza_," is worth sixteen dollars, or about 3_l._ -6_s._; and while it puts to shame the diminutive Napoleons of France and -sovereigns of England, tells the tale of Spain's former wealth, and -contrasts strangely with her present poverty and scarcity of specie: -these large coins have however been so _sweated_, not by the sun, but by -Jews, foreign and domestic, so clipped worse than Spanish mules or -French poodles, that they seldom retain their proper weight and value. -They are accordingly looked upon every where with suspicion; a -shopkeeper, in a big town, brings out his scales like Shylock, while in -a village shrugs, _ajos_, and negative expressions are your change; nor, -even if the natives are satisfied that they are not light, can sixteen -dollars be often met with, nor do those who have so much ready money by -them ever wish that the fact should be generally known. Spaniards, like -the Orientals, have a dread of being supposed to have money in their -possession; it exposes them to be plundered by robbers of all kinds, -professional or legal; by the "_alcalde_," or village authority, and the -"_escribano_," the attorney, to say nothing of Seor Mon's tax-gatherer; -for the quota of contributions, many of which are apportioned among the -inhabitants themselves of each district, falls heaviest on those who -have, or are supposed to have, the most ready money. - -The lower classes of Spaniards, like the Orientals, are generally -avaricious. They see that wealth is safety and power, where everything -is venal; the feeling of insecurity makes them eager to invest what they -have in a small and easily concealed bulk, "_en lo que no habla_," "in -that which does not tell tales." Consequently, and in self-defence, they -are much addicted to hoarding. The idea of finding hidden treasures, -which prevails in Spain as in the East, is based on some grounds; for in -every country which has been much exposed to foreign invasions, civil -wars, and domestic misrule, where there were no safe modes of -investment, in moments of danger property was converted into gold or -jewels and concealed with singular ingenuity. The mistrust which -Spaniards entertain of each other often extends, when cash is in the -case, even to the nearest relations, to wife and children. Many a -treasure is thus lost from the accidental death of the hider, who, dying -without a sign, carries his secret to the grave, adding thereby to the -sincere grief of his widow and heir. One of the old vulgar superstitions -in Spain is an idea that those who were born on a Good Friday, the day -of mourning, were gifted with a power of seeing into the earth and of -discovering hidden treasures. One place of concealment has always been -under the bodies in graves; the hiders have trusted to the dead to -defend what the quick could not: this accounts for the universal -desecration of tombs and churchyards during Bonaparte's invasion. The -Gauls growled like gowls amid the churchyards; they despoiled the -mouldering corpses of the last pledge left by weeping affection; or, as -Burke observed of their domestic doings, they unplumbed the dead to make -missiles of destruction against the living. These hordes, in their -hurried flight before the advancing Duke, also hid much of their -ill-gotten gains, which to this day are hunted after. Who has forgotten -Borrow's graphic picture of the treasure-seeking Mol? At this very -moment the authorities of San Sebastian are narrowly superintending the -diggings of an old Frenchwoman, to whom some dying thief at home has -revealed the secret of a buried kettle full of gold ounces. - -[Sidenote: CONCEALMENT OF CASH.] - -Having provided the "_Spanish_," those metallic sinews of war, which -also make the mare go in peace, a prudent master, if he intends to be -really the master, will hold the purse himself, and, moreover, will keep -a sharp eye on it, for the jingle of coin dispels even a Spanish siesta, -and causes many a sleepless day to every listener, from the beggar to -the queen mother. - -[Sidenote: SPANISH SERVANTS.] - - - - -CHAPTER X. - - Spanish Servants: their Character--Travelling Groom, Cook, and - Valet. - - -[Sidenote: CHARACTER OF SPANISH SERVANTS.] - -Don Quixote's first thought, after having determined to ride forth into -Spain, was to get a horse; his second was to secure a squire; and as the -narrative of his journey is still an excellent guide-book for modern -travellers, his example is not to be slighted. A good Sancho Panza will -on the whole be found to be a more constant comfort to a knight-errant -than even a Dulcinea. To secure a really good servant is of the utmost -consequence to all who make out-of-the-way excursions in the Peninsula; -for, as in the East, he becomes often not only cook, but interpreter and -companion to his master. It is therefore of great importance to get a -person with whom a man can ramble over these wild scenes. The so doing -ends, on the part of the attendant, in an almost canine friendship; and -the Spaniard, when the tour is done, is broken-hearted, and ready to -leave his home, horse, ass, and wife, to follow his master, like a dog, -to the world's-end. Nine times out of ten it is the master's fault if he -has bad servants: _tel matre tel valet_. _Al amo imprudente, el mozo -negligente._ He must begin at once, and exact the performance of their -duty; the only way to get them to do anything is, as the Duke said, to -"frighten them," to "take a decided line." It is very difficult to make -them see the importance of detail and of doing exactly what they are -told, which they will always endeavour to shirk when they can; their -task must be clearly pointed out to them at starting, and the earliest -and smallest infractions, either in commission or omission, at once and -seriously noticed, the moral victory is soon gained. The example of the -masters, if they be active and orderly, is the best lesson to servants; -_mucho sabe el rato, pero mas el gato_; the rats are well enough, but -the cats are better. Achilles, Patroclus, and the Homeric heroes, were -their own cooks; and many a man who, like Lord Blayney, may not be a -hero, will be none the worse for following the epical example, in a -Spanish venta: at all events a good servant, who is up to his work, and -will work, is indeed a jewel; and on these, as on other occasions, he -deserves to be well treated. Those who make themselves honey are eaten -by flies--_quien se hace miel, le comen las moscas_; while no rat ever -ventures to jest with the cat's son; _con hijo de gato, no se burlan los -ratones_. The great thing is to make them get up early, and learn the -value of time, which the groom cannot tie with his halter, _tiempo y -hora, no se ata con soga_: while a cook who oversleeps himself not only -misses his mass, but his meat, _quien se levanta tarde, ni oye misa, ni -compra carne_. If (which is soon found out) the servants seem not likely -to answer, the sooner they are changed the better; it is loss of time -and soap, and he who is good for nothing in his own village will not be -worth more either in Seville or elsewhere, so says the proverb. - -[Sidenote: CHARACTER OF SPANISH SERVANTS.] - -The principal defects of Spanish servants and of the lower classes of -Spaniards are much the same, and faults of race. As a mass, they are apt -to indulge in habits of procrastination, waste, improvidence, and -untidiness. They are unmechanical and obstinate, easily beaten by -difficulties, which their first feeling is to raise, and their next to -succumb to; they give the thing up at once. They have no idea indeed of -grappling with anything that requires much trouble, or of doing anything -as it ought to be done, or even of doing the same thing in the same -way--accident and the impulse of the moment set them going. They are -very unmechanical, obstinate, and prejudiced; ignorant of their own -ignorance and incurious as Orientals; partly from pride, self-opinion, -and idleness, they seldom will ask questions for information from -others, which implies an inferiority of knowledge, and still more seldom -will take an answer, unless it be such a one as they desire; their own -wishes, opinions, and wants are their guides, and self the centre of -their gravity, not those of their employers. As a Spaniard's _yes_, when -you beg a favour, generally means _no_, so they cannot or will not -understand that your _no_ is really a negative when they come -petitioning to be idle; at the same time a great change for the better -comes over them when they are taken out of the city on a rambling tour. -The nomad life excites them into active serviceable fellows; in fact the -uncertain harum-scarum nomad existence is exactly what suits these -descendants of the Arab; they cannot bear the steady sustained routine -of a well-managed household; they abhor confinement; hence the -difficulty of getting Spaniards to garrison fortresses or to man ships -of war, from whence there is no escape. - -As for what we call a well-appointed servants' hall, the case is -hopeless in Spanish field or city, and is equally so whether the life be -above or below stairs. In the house of the middle or highest classes -this is particularly shown in everything that regards gastronomics, -which are the tests and touchstones of good service. In truth, the -Spaniard, accustomed to his own desultory, free and easy, impromptu, -scrambling style of dining, is constrained by the order and discipline, -the pomp and ceremony, and serious importance of a well-regulated -dinner, and their observance of forms extends only to persons, not to -things: even the grandee has only a thin European polish spread over his -Gotho-Bedouin dining table; he lives and eats surrounded by an humble -clique, in his huge ill-furnished barrack-house, without any elegance, -luxury, or even comfort, according to sound trans-pyrenean notions: few -indeed are the kitchens which possess a _cordon bleu_, and fewer are the -masters who really like an orthodox _entre_, one unpolluted with the -heresies of garlic and red pepper: again, whenever their cookery -attempts to be foreign, as in their other imitations, it ends in being a -flavourless copy; but few things are ever done in Spain in _real style_, -which implies forethought and expense; everything is a make-shift; the -noble master _reposes_ his affairs on an unjust steward, and dozes away -life on this bed of roses, somnolescent over business and awake only to -intrigue; his numerous ill-conditioned, ill-appointed servants have no -idea of discipline or subordination; you never can calculate on their -laying even the table-cloth, as they prefer idling in the church or -market to doing their duty, and would rather starve, dance, and sleep -out of place and independently, than feast and earn their wages by fair -work; nor has the employer any redress, for if he dismisses them he will -only get just such another set, or even worse. - -[Sidenote: CHARACTER OF SPANISH SERVANTS.] - -In our own Spanish household, the instant dinner and siesta were over, -the cook with his kitchen-man, the valet with the footman invariably -stripped off their working apparel--liveries are almost unheard -of--donned their comical velvet embroidered hats, their sky-blue -waistcoats, and scarlet sashes, and were off with a guitar to some scene -of song and love-making, leaving their master alone in his glory to -moralize on the uncertainty of human concerns and the faithlessness of -mankind. - -[Sidenote: SPANISH AND ENGLISH MANNERS.] - -[Sidenote: TRAVELLING EXPENSES.] - -What can't be cured must be endured. To resume, therefore, the character -of these Spanish servants; they are very loquacious, and highly -credulous, as often is the case with those given to romancing, which -they, and especially the Andalucians, are to a large degree; and, in -fact, it is the only remaining romance in Spain, as far as the natives -are concerned. As they have an especial good opinion of themselves, they -are touchy, sensitive, jealous, and thin-skinned, and easily affronted -whenever their imperfections are pointed out; their disposition is very -sanguine and inflammable; they are always hoping that what they eagerly -desire will come to pass without any great exertion on their parts; they -love to stand still with their arms folded, while other men put their -shoulders to the wheel. Their lively imagination is very apt to carry -them away into extremes for good or evil, when they act on the moment -like children, and having gratified the humour of the impulse relapse -into their ordinary tranquillity, which is that of a slumbering volcano. -On the other hand, they are full of excellent and redeeming good -qualities; they are free from caprice, are hardy, patient, cheerful, -good-humoured, sharp-witted, and intelligent: they are honest, faithful, -and trustworthy; sober, and unaddicted to mean, vulgar vices; they have -a bold, manly bearing, and will follow well wherever they are well led, -being the raw material of as good soldiers as are in the world; they are -loyal and religious at heart, and full of natural tact, mother-wit, and -innate good manners. In general, a firm, quiet, courteous, and somewhat -reserved manner is the most effective. Whenever duties are to be -performed, let them see that you are not to be trifled with. The -coolness of a determined Englishman's manner, when in earnest, is what -few foreigners can withstand. Grimace and gesticulation, sound and fury, -bluster, petulance, and impertinence fume and fret in vain against it, -as the sprays and foam of the "French lake" do against the unmoved and -immoveable rock of Gibraltar. An Englishman, without being -over-familiar, may venture on a far greater degree of unbending in his -intercourse with his Spanish dependants than he can dare to do with -those he has in England. It is the custom of the country; they are used -to it, and their heads are not turned by it, nor do they ever forget -their relative positions. The Spaniards treat their servants very much -like the ancient Romans or the modern Moors; they are more their -_vern_, their domestic slaves: it is the absolute authority of the -father combined with the kindness. Servants do not often change their -masters in Spain: their relation and duties are so clearly defined, that -the latter runs no risk of compromising himself or his dignity by his -familiarity, which can be laid down or taken up at his own pleasure; -whereas the scorn, contempt, and distance with which the said courteous -Don would treat a roturier who presumed to be intimate, baffle -description. In England no man dares to be intimate with his footman; -for supposing even such absurd fancy entered his brain, his footman is -his equal in the eye of man-made law, God having created them utterly -unequal in all his gifts, whether of rank, wealth, form, or intellect. -Conventional barriers accordingly must be erected in self-defence: and -social barriers are more difficult to be passed than walls of brass, -more impossible to be repealed than the whole statutes at large. No -master in Spain, and still less a foreigner, should ever descend to -personal abuse, sneers, or violence. A blow is never to be washed out -except in blood, and Spanish revenge descends to the third and fourth -generation; and whatever these backward Spaniards have to learn from -foreigners, it is not the duty of revenge, nor how to perform it. There -should be no threatenings in vain, but whenever the opportunity occurs -for punishment, let it be done quietly and effectively, and the fault -once punished should not be needlessly ripped up again; Spaniards are -sufficiently unforgiving, and hoarders-up of unrevenged grievances -require to be reminded. A kind and uniform behaviour, a showing -consideration to them, in a manner which implies that you are accustomed -to it, and expect it to be shown to you, keeps most things in their -right places. Temper and patience are the great requisites in the -master, especially when he speaks the language imperfectly. He must not -think Spaniards stupid because they cannot guess the meaning of his -unknown tongue. Nothing again is gained by fidgeting and overdoing, and -however early you may get up, daybreak will not take place the sooner: -no por _mucho madrugar_, _amanece mas temprano_. Let well alone: be not -zealous overmuch: be occasionally both blind and deaf: shut the door, -and the devil passes by: keep honey in mouth and an eye to your cash: -_miel en boca y guarda la bolsa_. Still how much less expenditure is -necessary in Spain than in performing the commonest excursion in -England!--and yet many who submit to their own countrymen's extortions -are furious at what they imagine is an especial cheating of them, -_quasi_ Englishmen, abroad: this outrageous economy, with which some are -afflicted, is penny wise and pound foolish: pay, pay therefore with both -hands. The traveller must remember that he gains caste, gets brevet rank -in Spain--that he is taken for a grandee incog., and ranks with their -nobility; he must pay for these luxuries: how small after all will be -the additional per centage on his general expenditure, and how well -bestowed is the excess, in keeping the temper good, and the capability -of enjoying unruffled a tour, which only is performed once in a life! No -wise man who goes into Spain for amusement will plunge into this -guerrilla, this constant petty warfare, about sixpences. Let the -traveller be true to himself; hold his tongue; avoid bad company, _quien -hace su cama con perros, se levanta con pulgas_, those who sleep with -dogs get up with fleas; and make room for bulls and fools, _al loco y -toro da le corro_, and he may see Spain agreeably, and, as Catullus said -to Veranius, who made the tour many centuries ago, may on his return -amuse his friends and "old mother:"-- - - "Visam te incolumem, audiamque Iberum - Narrantem loca, facta, nationes, - Sicut tuus est mos." - -which may be thus Englished:-- - - May you come back safe, and tell - Of Spanish men, their things and places, - Of Spanish ladies' eyes and faces, - In your own way, and so well. - -[Sidenote: TRAVELLING SERVANTS.] - -Two masters should take two servants, and both should be Spaniards: all -others, unless they speak the language perfectly, are nuisances. A -Gallegan or Asturian makes the best groom, an _Andaluz_ the best cook -and personal attendant. Sometimes a person may be picked up who has some -knowledge of languages, and who is accustomed to accompany strangers -through Spain as a sort of courier. These accomplishments are very rare, -and the moral qualities of the possessor often diminish in proportion as -his intellect has marched; he has learnt more foreign tricks than words, -and sea-port towns are not the best schools for honesty. Of these -nondescripts the Hispano-Anglo, who generally has deserted from -Gibraltar, is the best, because he will work, hold his tongue, and -fight; a monkey would be a less inconvenience than a chattering -Ibero-Gallo; one who has forgotten his national accomplishments--cooking -and hairdressing, and learnt very few Spanish things, such as good -temper and endurance. Whichever of the two is the sharpest should lead -the way, and leave the other to bring up the rear. They should be -mounted on good mules, and be provided with large panniers. One should -act as the cook and valet, the other as the groom of the party; and the -utensils peculiar to each department should be carried by each -professor. Where only one servant is employed, one side of the pannier -should be dedicated to the commissariat, and the other to the luggage; -in that case the master should have a flying portmanteau, which should -be sent by means of _cosarios_, and precede him from great town to great -town, as a magazine, wardrobe, or general supply to fall back on. The -servants should each have their own saddle-bag and leathern bottle, -which, since the days of Sancho Panza, are part and parcel of a faithful -squire, and when all are carried on an ass are quite patriarchal. "_Iba -Sancho Panza sobre su jumento, como un patriarca con sus alforjas y -bota._" - -[Sidenote: WHAT TO TAKE ON A JOURNEY.] - -The servants will each in their line look after their own affairs; the -groom will take with him the things of the stable, and a small provision -of corn, in order that a feed may never be wanting, on an unexpected -emergency; he will always ascertain beforehand through what sort of a -country each day's journey is to be made, and make preparations -accordingly. The valet will view his masters in the same light as the -groom does his beasts; and he will purvey and keep in readiness all that -appertains to their comfort, always remembering a moskito net--we shall -presently say a word on the fly-plague of the Peninsula--with nails to -knock into the walls to hang it up by, not forgetting a hammer and -gimlet; common articles enough, but which are never to be got at the -moment and place where they are the most wanted. He will also carry a -small canteen, the smaller and more ordinary the better, as anything out -of the common way attracts attention, and suggests, first, the coveting -other men's goods, and so on to assaults, batteries, robberies, and -other inconveniences, which have been exploded on our roads; although F. -Moryson took care to caution our ancestors "to be warie on this head, -since theeves have their spies commonly in all innes, to enquire into -the condition of travellers." The manufactures of Spain are so rude and -valueless that what appears to us to be the most ordinary appears to -them to be the most excellent, as they have never seen anything so good. -The lower orders, who eat with their fingers, think everything is gold -which glitters, _todo es oro lo que reluce_; as, after all, it is what -is _on_ the plate that is the rub, let no wise man have such smart forks -and knives as to tempt cut-throats to turn them to unnatural purposes. -However, avoid all superfluous luggage, especially prejudices and -foregone conclusions, for "_en largo camino paja pesa_," a straw is -heavy on a long journey, and the last feather breaks the horse's back. A -store of cigars, however, must always be excepted; take plenty and give -them freely; it always opens a conversation well with a Spaniard, to -offer him one of these little delicate marks of attention. Good snuff is -acceptable to the curates and to monks (though there are none just now). -English needles, thread, and pairs of scissars take no room, and are all -keys to the good graces of the fair sex. There is a charm about a -present, _bachshish_, in most European as well as Oriental countries, -and still more if it is given with tact, and at the proper time; -Spaniards, if unable to make any equivalent return, will always try to -repay by civilities and attentions. - -[Sidenote: COOKING UTENSILS.] - -Every one must determine for himself whether he prefers the assistance -of this servant in the kitchen or at the toilet; since it is not easy -for mortal man to dress a master _and_ a dinner, and both well at the -same time, let alone two masters. A cook who runs after two hares at -once catches neither. No prudent traveller on these, or on any -occasions, should let another do for him what he can do for himself, -and a man who waits upon himself is sure to be well waited on. If, -however, a valet be absolutely necessary, the groom clearly is best left -in his own chamber, the stable; he will have enough to do to curry and -valet his four animals, which he knows to be good for their health, -though he never scrapes off the cutaneous stucco by which his own illote -carcass is Roman cemented. From long experience we have found that if -the rider will get into the habit of carrying all the things requisite -for his own dressing in a small separate bag, and employ the hour while -the cook is getting the supper under weigh, it is wonderful how -comfortably he will proceed to his puchero. - -[Sidenote: SPANISH BREAD.] - -The cook should take with him a stewing-pan, and a pot or kettle for -boiling water; he need not lumber himself with much batterie de cuisine; -it is not much needed in the imperfect gastronomy of the Peninsula, -where men eat like the beasts which perish; all sort of artillery is -rather rare in Spanish kitchen or fortress; an hidalgo would as soon -think of having a voltaic battery in his sitting-room as a copper one in -his cuisine; most classes are equally satisfied with the Oriental -earthenware _ollas_, _pucheros_, or pipkins, which are everywhere to be -found, and have some peculiar sympathy with the Spanish cuisine, since a -stew--be it even of a cat--never eats so well when made in a metal -vessel; the great thing is to bring the raw materials,--first catch your -hare. Those who have meat and money will always get a neighbour to lend -them a pot. A _venta_ is a place where the rich are sent empty away, and -where the poor hungry are not filled; the whole duty of the man-cook, -therefore, is to be always thinking of his commissariat; he need not -trouble himself about his master's appetite, that will seldom -fail,--nay, often be a misfortune; a good appetite is not a good _per -se_,[6] for it, even when the best, becomes a bore when there is nothing -to eat; his _capucho_ or mule hamper must be his travelling larder, -cellar, and store-room; he will victual himself according to the route, -and the distances from one great town to another, and always take care -to start with a good provision: indeed to attend to the commissariat -is, it cannot be too often repeated, the whole duty of a man cook in -hungry Spain, where food has ever been _the_ difficulty; a little -foresight gives small trouble and ensures great comfort, while perils by -sea and perils by land are doubled when the stomach is empty, whereas, -as Sancho Panza wisely told his ass, all sorrows are alleviated by -eating bread: _todos los duelos, con pan son buenos_, and the shrewd -squire, who seldom is wrong, was right both in the matter of bread and -the moral: the former is admirable. The central table-lands of Spain are -perhaps the finest wheat-growing districts in the world; however rude -and imperfect the cultivation--for the peasant does but scratch the -earth, and seldom manures--the life-conferring sun comes to his -assistance; the returns are prodigious, and the quality superexcellent; -yet the growers, miserable in the midst of plenty, vegetate in cabins -composed of baked mud, or in holes burrowed among the friable hillocks, -in an utter ignorance of furniture, and absolute necessaries. The want -of roads, canals, and means of transport prevents their exportation of -produce, which from its bulk is difficult of carriage in a country where -grain is removed for the most part on four-footed beasts of burden, -after the oriental and patriarchal fashion of Jacob, when he sent to the -granaries of Egypt. Accordingly, although there are neither sliding -scales nor corn laws, and subsistence is cheap and abundant, the -population decreases in number and increases in wretchedness; what boots -it if corn be low-priced, if wages be still lower, as they then -everywhere are and must be? - -The finest bread in Spain is called _pan de candeal_, which is eaten by -men in office and others in easy circumstances, as it was by the clergy. -The worst bread is the _pan de municion_, and forms the fare of the -Spanish soldier, which, being sable as a hat, coarse and hard as a -brickbat, would just do to sop in the black broth of the Spartan -military; indeed, the expression _de municion_ is synonymous in the -Peninsula with badness of quality, and the secondary meaning is taken -from the perfection of badness which is perceptible in every thing -connected with Spanish ammunition, from the knapsack to the citadel. -Such bread and water, and both hardly earned, are the rations of the -poor patient Spanish private; nor can he when before the enemy reckon -always on even that, unless it be supplied from an ally's commissariat. - -[Sidenote: THRESHING AND WINNOWING.] - -[Sidenote: BREAD.] - -Perhaps the best bread in Spain is made at Alcal de Guadaira, near -Seville, of which it is the oven, and hence the town is called the -Alcal of bakers. There bread may truly be said to be the soul of its -existence, and samples abound everywhere: _roscas_, or circular-formed -_rusks_, are hung up like garlands, and _hogazas_, loaves, placed on -tables outside the houses. It is, indeed, as Spaniards say, _Pan de -Dios_--the "angels' bread of Esdras." All classes here gain their bread -by making it, and the water-mills and mule-mills are never still; women -and children are busy picking out earthy particles from the grain, which -get mixed from the common mode of threshing on a floor in the open air, -which is at once Biblical and Homeric. At the outside of the villages, -in corn-growing districts, a smooth open "threshing-floor" is prepared, -with a hard surface, like a fives court: it is called the _era_, and is -the precise Roman _area_. The sheaves of corn are spread out on it, and -four horses yoked most classically to a low crate or harrow, composed of -planks armed with flints, &c., which is called a _trillo_: on this the -driver is seated, who urges the beasts round and round over the crushed -heap. Thus the grain is shaken out of the ears and the straw triturated; -the latter becomes food for horses, as the former does for men. When the -heap is sufficiently bruised, it is removed and winnowed by being thrown -up into the air; the light winds carry off the chaff, while the heavy -corn falls to the ground. The whole operation is truly picturesque and -singular. The scene is a crowded one, as many cultivators contribute to -the mass and share in the labour; their wives and children cluster -around, clad in strange dresses of varied colours. They are sometimes -sheltered from the god of fire under boughs, reeds, and awnings, run up -as if for the painter, and falling of themselves into pictures, as the -lower classes of Spaniards and Italians always do. They are either -eating and drinking, singing or dancing, for a guitar is never wanting. -Meanwhile the fierce horses dash over the prostrate sheaves, and realise -the splendid simile of Homer, who likens to them the fiery steeds of -Achilles when driven over Trojan bodies. These out-of-door threshings -take place of course when the weather is dry, and generally under a most -terrific heat. The work is often continued at nightfall by torch-light. -During the day the half-clad dusky reapers defy the sun and his rage, -rejoicing rather in the heat like salamanders; it is true that their -devotions to the porous water-jar are unremitting, nor is a swill at a -good passenger's _bota_ ever rejected; all is life and action; busy -hands and feet, flashing eyes, and eager screams; the light yellow -chaff, which in the sun's rays glitters like gold dust, envelopes them -in a halo, which by night, when partially revealed by the fires and -mingled with the torch glare, is almost supernatural, as the phantom -figures, now dark in shadows, now crimsoned by the fire flash, flit to -and fro in the vaporous mist. The scene never fails to rivet and enchant -the stranger, who, coming from the pale north and the commonplace -in-door flail, seizes at once all the novelty of such doings. Eye and -ear, open and awake, become inlets of new sensations of attention and -admiration, and convey to heart and mind the poetry, local colour, -movement, grouping, action, and attitude. But while the cold-blooded -native of leaden skies is full of fire and enthusiasm, his Spanish -companion, bred and born under unshorn beams, is chilly as an icicle, -indifferent as an Arab: he passes on the other side, not only not -admiring, but positively ashamed; he only sees the barbarity, antiquity, -and imperfect process; he is sighing for some patent machine made in -Birmingham, to be put up in a closed barn after the models approved of -by the Royal Agricultural Society in Cavendish Square; his bowels yearn -for the appliances of civilization by which "bread stuffs" are more -scientifically manipulated and manufactured, minus the poetry. - -To return, however, to dry bread, after this new digression, and all -those who have ever been in Spain, or have ever written on Spanish -things, must feel how difficult it is to keep regularly on the road -without turning aside at every moment, now to cull a wild flower, now to -pick up a sparkling spar. This corn, so beaten, is very carefully -ground, and in La Mancha in those charming windmills, which, perched on -eminences to catch the air, look to this day, with their outstretched -arms, like Quixotic giants; the flour is passed through several hoppers, -in order to secure its fineness. The dough is most carefully kneaded, -worked, and re-worked, as is done by our biscuit-makers; hence the -close-grained, caky, somewhat heavy consistency of the crumb, whereas, -according to Pliny, the Romans esteemed Spanish bread on account of its -lightness. - -[Sidenote: LUNCHEON.] - -The Spanish loaf has not that mysterious sympathy with butter and cheese -as it has in our verdurous Old England, probably because in these torrid -regions pasture is rare, butter bad, and cheese worse, albeit they -suited the iron digestion of Sancho, who knew of nothing better: none, -however, who have ever tasted Stilton or Parmesan will join in his -eulogies of Castilian _queso_, the poorness of which will be estimated -by the distinguished consideration in which a round cannon-ball Dutch -cheese is held throughout the Peninsula. The traveller, nevertheless, -should take one of them, for bad is here the best, in many other things -besides these: he will always carry some good loaves with it, for in the -damper mountain districts the daily bread of the natives is made of rye, -Indian corn, and the inferior cerealia. Bread is the staff of the -Spanish traveller's life, who, having added raw garlic, not salt, to it, -then journeys on with security, _con pan y ajo crudo se anda seguro_. -Again, a loaf never weighs one down, nor is ever in the way; as sop, -the prototype of Sancho, well knew. _La hogaza no embaraza._ - -[Sidenote: THE OLLA.] - -Having secured his bread, the cook in preparing supper should make -enough for the next day's lunch, _las once_, the eleven o'clock meal, as -the Spaniards translate _meridie_, twelve or mid-day, whence the correct -word for luncheon is derived, _merienda merendar_. Wherever good dishes -are cut up there are good leavings, "_donde buenas ollas quebran, buenos -cascos quedan_;" and nothing can be more Cervantic than the occasional -al fresco halt, when no better place of accommodation is to be met with. -As the sun gets high, and man and beast hungry and weary, wherever a -tempting shady spot with running water occurs, the party draws aside -from the high road, like Don Quixote and Sancho Panza; a retired and -concealed place is chosen, the luggage is removed from the animals, the -hampers which lard the lean soil are unpacked, the table-cloth is spread -on the grass, the _botas_ are laid in the water to cool their contents; -then out with the provision, cold partridge or turkey, sliced ham or -_chorizo_--simple cates, but which are eaten with an appetite and relish -for which aldermen would pay hundreds. They are followed, should grapes -be wanting, with a soothing cigar, and a sweet slumber on earth's -freshest, softest lap. In such wild banquets Spain surpasses the -Boulevards. Alas! that such hours should be bright and winged as -sunbeams! Such is Peninsular country fare. The _olla_, on which the -rider may restore exhausted nature, is only to be studied in larger -towns; and dining, of which this is the foundation in Spain, is such a -great resource to travellers, and Spanish cookery, again, is so -Oriental, classical, and singular, let alone its vital importance, that -the subject will properly demand a chapter to itself. - -[Sidenote: A SPANISH COOK.] - - - - -CHAPTER XI. - - A Spanish Cook--Philosophy of Spanish Cuisine--Sauce--Difficulty of - Commissariat--The Provend--Spanish Hares and Rabbits--The - Olla--Garbanzo--Spanish Pigs--Bacon and Hams--Omelette--Salad and - Gazpacho. - - -It would exhaust a couple of Colonial numbers at least to discuss -properly the merits and digest Spanish cookery. All that can be now done -is to skim the subject, which is indeed fat and unctuous. Those meats -and drinks will be briefly noticed which are daily occurrence, and those -dishes described which we have often helped to make, and oftener helped -to eat, in the most larderless _ventas_ and hungriest districts of the -Peninsula, and which provident wayfarers may make and eat again, and, as -we pray, with no worse appetite. - -[Sidenote: THE NATIONAL COOKERY.] - -To be a good cook, which few Spaniards are, a man must not only -understand his master's taste, but be able to make something out of -nothing; just as a clever French _artiste_ converts an old shoe into an -pigramme d'agneau, or a Parisian milliner dresses up two deal boards -into a fine live _Madame_, whose only fault is the appearance of too -much embonpoint. Genuine and legitimate Spanish dishes are excellent in -their way, for no man nor man-cook ever is ridiculous when he does not -attempt to be what he is not. The _au naturel_ may occasionally be -somewhat plain, but seldom makes one sick; at all events it would be as -hopeless to make a Spaniard understand real French cookery as to -endeavour to explain to a dput the meaning of our constitution or -parliament. The ruin of Spanish cooks is their futile attempts to -imitate foreign ones: just as their silly grandees murder the glorious -Castilian tongue, by substituting what they fancy is pure Parisian, -which they speak _comme des vaches Espagnoles_. _Dis moi ce que tu -manges et je te dirai ce que tu es_ is "un mot profond" of the great -equity judge, Brillat Savarin, who also discovered that "_Les destines -des nations dpendent de la manire dont elles se nourrissent_;" since -which General Foy has attributed all the _accidental_ victories of the -British to rum and beef. And this great fact much enhances our serious -respect for punch, and our true love for the _ros-bif_ of old England, -of which, by the way, very little will be got in the Peninsula, where -bulls are bred for baiting, and oxen for the plough, not the spit. - -[Sidenote: SCARCITY OF PROVISIONS.] - -The national cookery of Spain is for the most part Oriental; and the -ruling principle of its preparation is _stewing_; for, from a scarcity -of fuel, roasting is almost unknown; their notion of which is putting -meat into a pan, setting it in hot ashes, and then covering the lid with -burning embers. The pot, or _olla_, has accordingly become a synonyme -for the dinner of Spaniards, just as beefsteaks or frogs are vulgarly -supposed to constitute the whole bill of fare of two other mighty -nations. Wherever meats are bad and thin, the sauce is very important; -it is based in Spain on oil, garlic, saffron, and red peppers. In hot -countries, where beasts are lean, oil supplies the place of fat, as -garlic does the want of flavour, while a stimulating condiment excites -or curries up the coats of a languid stomach. It has been said of our -heretical countrymen that we have but one form of sauce--melted -butter--and a hundred different forms of religion, whereas in orthodox -Spain there is but one of each, and, as with religion, so to change this -sauce would be little short of heresy. As to colour, it carries that -rich burnt umber, raw sienna tint, which Murillo imitated so well; and -no wonder, since he made his particular brown from baked olla bones, -whence it was extracted, as is done to this day by those Spanish -painters who indulge in meat. This brown _negro de hueso_ colour is the -livery of tawny Spain, where all is brown from the _Sierra Morena_ to -duskier man. Of such hue is his cloak, his terra-cotta house, his wife, -his ox, his ass, and everything that is his. This sauce has not only the -same colour, but the same flavour everywhere; hence the difficulty of -making out the material of which any dish is composed. Not Mrs. Glass -herself could tell, by taste at least, whether the ingredients of the -cauldron be hare or cat, cow or calf, the aforesaid ox or ass. It -puzzles even the acumen of a Frenchman; for it is still the great boast -of the town of Olvera that they served up some donkeys as rations to a -Buonapartist detachment. All this is very Oriental. Isaac could not -distinguish tame kid from wild venison, so perplexing was the disguise -of the savoury sauce; and yet his senses of smell and touch were keen, -and his suspicions of unfair cooking were awakened. A prudent diner, -therefore, except when forced to become his own cook, will never look -too closely into the things of the kitchen if he wishes to live a quiet -life; for _quien las cosas mucho apura, no vive vida segura_. - -All who ride or run through the Peninsula, will read thirst in the arid -plains, and hunger in the soil-denuded hills, where those who ask for -bread will receive stones. The knife and fork question has troubled -every warrior in Spain, from Henri IV. down to Wellington; "subsistence -is the great difficulty always found" is the text of a third of the -Duke's wonderful despatches. This scarcity of food is implied in the -very name of Spain, [Greek: Spania], which means poverty and -destitution, as well as in the term _Bisoos_, wanters, which long has -been a synonyme for Spanish soldiers, who are always, as the Duke -described them, "hors de combat," "always _wanting_ in every thing at -the critical moment." Hunger and thirst have ever been, and are, the -best defenders of the Peninsula against the invader. On sierra and -steppe these gaunt sentinels keep watch and ward, and, on the scarecrow -principle, protect this paradise, as they do the infernal regions of -Virgil-- - - "Malesuada fames et turpis egestas - Horribiles visu." - -A riding tour through Spain has already been likened to serving a -campaign; and it was a saying of the Grand Cond, "If you want to know -what want is, carry on a war in Spain." Yet, notwithstanding the -thousands of miles which we have ridden, never have we yet felt that -dire necessity, which has been kept at a respectable distance by a -constant unremitting attention to the proverb, A man forewarned is -forearmed. _Hombre prevenido nunca fu vencido_, there is nothing like -precaution and _provision_. "If you mean to dine," writes the -all-providing Duke to Lord Hill from Moraleja, "_you had better bring -your things_, as I shall have nothing with me;"--the ancient Bursal -fashion holds good on Spanish roads:-- - - "Regula Bursalis est omni tempere talis, - Prandia fer tecum, si vis comedere mecum." - -[Sidenote: EATING ON THE ROAD.] - -A man who is prepared, is never beaten or starved; therefore, as the -valorous Dalgetty has it, a prudent man will always victual himself in -Spain with vivers for three days at least, and his cook, like Sancho -Panza, should have nothing else in his head, but thoughts how to convey -the most eatables into his ambulant larder. - -He must set forth from every tolerable-sized town with an ample supply -of tea, sugar, coffee, brandy, good oil, wine, salt, to say nothing of -solids. The having something ready gives him leisure to forage and make -ulterior preparations. Those who have a _corps de rserve_ to fall back -upon--say a cold turkey and a ham--can always convert any spot in the -desert into an oasis; at the same time the connection between body and -soul may be kept up by trusting to _venta_ luck, of which more anon; it -offers, however, but a miserable existence to persons of judgment. And -even when this precaution of provision be not required, there are never -wanting in Spain the poor and hungry, to whom the taste of meat is -almost unknown, and to whom these crumbs that fall from the rich man's -table are indeed a feast; the relish and gratitude with which these -fragments are devoured do as much good to the heart of the donor as to -the stomach of the donees, for the best medicines of the poor are to be -found in the cellars, kitchens, and hampers of the rich. All servants -should be careful of their traps and stores, which are liable to be -pilfered and plundered in _ventas_, where the lite of society is not -always assembled: the luggage should be well corded, for the devil is -always a gleaning, _ata al saco, ya espiga el diablo_. - -Formerly all travellers of rank carried a silver olla with a key, the -_guardacena_, the _save_ supper. This ingenious contrivance has -furnished matter for many a pleasantry in picaresque tales and farces. -Madame Daunoy gives us the history of what befel the good Archbishop of -Burgos and his orthodox olla. - -[Sidenote: HARES AND RABBITS.] - -There is nothing in life like making a good start; thus the party -arrives safely at the first resting-place. The cook must never appear to -have anything when he arrives at an inn; he must get from others all he -can, and much is to be had for asking and crying, as even a Spanish -Infante knows--the child that does not cry is not suckled, _quien no -llora, no mama_; the artiste must never fall back on his own reservoirs -except in cases of absolute need; during the day he must open his eyes -and ears and must pick up everything eatable, and where he can and when -he can. By keeping a sharp look-out and going quietly to work the cook -may catch the hen and her chickens too. All is fish that comes into the -net, and, like Buonaparte and his marshals, nothing should be too great -for his ambition, nothing too small for his rapacity. Of course he will -pay for his collections, which the aforesaid gentry did not: thus fruit, -onions, salads, which, as they must be bought somewhere, had better be -secured whenever they turn up. The peasants, who are sad poachers, will -constantly hail travellers from the fields with offers of partridges, -rabbits, melons, hares, which always jump up in this pays de l'imprvu -when you least expect it: _Salta la liebre cuando menos uno piensa_. - -Notwithstanding Don Quixote thought that it augured bad luck to meet -with a hare on entering a village, let not a bold traveller be scared, -but forthwith stew the omen; a hare, as in the time of Martial, is -considered by Spaniards to be the glory of edible quadrupeds, and to -this day no old stager ever takes a rabbit when he can get a hare, _ -perro viejo echale liebre y no conejo_. In default however of catching -one, rabbits may always be bagged. Spain abounds with them to such a -degree, that ancient naturalists thought the animal indigenous, and went -so far as to derive the name Spain from _Sephan_, the rabbit, which the -Phoenicians found here for the first time. Be that as it may, the -long-eared timid creature appears on the early Iberian coins, as it will -long do on her wide wastes and tables. By the bye, a ready-stewed rabbit -or hare is to be eschewed as suspicious in a _venta_: at the same time, -if the consumer does not find out that it is a cat, there is no great -harm done--ignorance is bliss; let him not know it, he is not robbed at -all. It is a pity to dispel his gastronomic delusion, as it is the -knowledge of the cheat that kills, and not the cat. Pol! me occidistis, -amici. The cook therefore should ascertain beforehand what are the bon -fide ingredients of every dish that he sets before his lord. - -[Sidenote: THE OLLA PODRIDA.] - -In going into the kitchens of the Peninsula, precedence must on every -account be given to the _olla_: this word means at once a species of -prepared food, and the earthenware utensil in which it is dressed, just -as our term _dish_ is applicable to the platter and to what is served on -it. Into this _olla_ it may be affirmed that the whole culinary genius -of Spain is condensed, as the mighty Jinn was into a gallipot, according -to the Arabian Night tales. The lively and gastronomic French, who are -decidedly the leaders of European civilization in the kitchen, deride -the barbarous practices of the Gotho-Iberians, as being darker than -Erebus and more ascetic than sthetic; to credit their authors, a -Peninsular breakfast consists of a teaspoonful of chocolate, a dinner, -of a knob of garlic soaked in water, and a supper, of a paper cigarette; -and according to their _parfait cuisinier_, the _olla_ is made of two -cigars boiled in three gallons of water--but this is a calumny, a mere -invention devised by the enemy. - -The _olla_ is only well made in Andalucia, and there alone in careful, -well-appointed houses; it is called a _puchero_ in the rest of Spain, -where it is but a poor affair, made of dry beef, or rather cow, boiled -with _garbanzos_ or chick peas, and a few sausages. These _garbanzos_ -are the vegetable, the potato of the land; and their use argues a low -state of horticultural knowledge. The taste for them was introduced by -the Carthaginians--the _puls punica_, which (like the _fides punica_, an -especial ingredient in all Spanish governments and finance) afforded -such merriment to Plautus, that he introduced the chick-pea eating -Poenus, pultiphagonides, speaking Punic, just as Shakspere did the -toasted-cheese eating Welshman talking Welsh. These garbanzos require -much soaking, being otherwise hard as bullets; indeed, a lively -Frenchman, after what he calls an apology for a dinner, compared them, -in his empty stomach, as he was jumbled away in the dilly, to peas -rattling in a child's drum. - -The veritable _olla_--the ancient time-honoured _olla podrida_, or pot -pourri--the epithet is now obsolete--is difficult to be made: a -tolerable one is never to be eaten out of Spain, since it requires many -Spanish things to concoct it, and much care; the cook must throw his -whole soul into the pan, or rather pot; it may be made in one, but two -are better. They must be of earthenware; for, like the French _pot au -feu_, the dish is good for nothing when made in an iron or copper -vessel; take therefore two, and put them on their separate stoves with -water. - -[Sidenote: THE OLLA PODRIDA.] - -Place into No. 1, _Garbanzos_, which have been placed to soak -over-night. Add a good piece of beef, a chicken, a large piece of bacon; -let it boil once and quickly; then let it simmer: it requires four or -five hours to be well done. Meanwhile place into No. 2, with water, -whatever vegetables are to be had: lettuces, cabbage, a slice of gourd, -of beef, carrots, beans, celery, endive, onions and garlic, long -peppers. These must be previously well washed and cut, as if they were -destined to make a salad; then add red sausages, or "_chorizos_;" half a -salted pig's face, which should have been soaked over-night. When all is -sufficiently boiled, strain off the water, and throw it away. Remember -constantly to skim the scum of both saucepans. When all this is -sufficiently dressed, take a large dish, lay in the bottom the -vegetables, the beef in the centre, flanked by the bacon, chicken, and -pig's face. The sausages should be arranged around, en couronne; pour -over some of the soup of No. 1, and serve hot, as Horace did: "Uncta -satis--ponuntur oluscula lardo." No violets come up to the perfume which -a coming olla casts before it; the mouth-watering bystanders sigh, as -they see and smell the rich freight steaming away from them. - -[Sidenote: BACON.] - -This is the olla _en grande_, such as Don Quixote says was eaten only by -canons and presidents of colleges; like turtle-soup, it is so rich and -satisfactory that it is a dinner of itself. A worthy dignitary of -Seville, in the good old times, before reform and appropriation had put -out the churches' kitchen fire, and whose daily pot-luck was -transcendental, told us, as a wrinkle, that he on feast-days used -turkeys instead of chickens, and added two sharp Ronda apples, and three -sweet potatoes of Malaga. His advice is worth attention: he was a good -Roman Catholic canon, who believed everything, absolved everything, -drank everything, ate everything, and digested everything. In fact, as a -general rule, anything that is good in itself is good for an _olla_, -provided, as old Spanish books always conclude, that it contains nothing -contrary to the holy mother church, to orthodoxy, and to good -manners--"_que no contiene cosa que se oponga nuestra madre Iglesia, y -santa f catolica, y buenas costumbres_." Such an olla as this is not to -be got on the road, but may be made to restore exhausted nature when -halting in the cities. Of course, every olla, must everywhere be made -according to what can be got. In private families the contents of No. -1, the soup, is served up with bread, in a tureen, and the frugal table -decked with the separate contents of the olla in separate platters; the -remains coldly serve, or are warmed up, for supper. - -The vegetables and bacon are absolute necessaries; without the former an -olla has neither grace nor sustenance; _la olla sin verdura, ni tiene -gracia ni hartura_, while the latter is as essential in this stew as a -text from Saint Augustine is in a sermon: - - _No hay olla sin tocino,_ - _Ni sermon sin Agustino._ - -Bacon throughout the length and breadth of the Peninsula is more -honoured than this, or than any one or all the fathers of the church of -Rome; the hunger after the flesh of the pig is equalled only by the -thirst for the contents of what is put afterwards into his skin; and -with reason, for the pork of Spain has always been, and is, unequalled -in flavour; the bacon is fat and flavoured, the sausages delicious, and -the hams transcendantly superlative, to use the very expression of -Diodorus Siculus, a man of great taste, learning, and judgment. Of all -the things of Spain, no one need feeling ashamed to plead guilty to a -predilection and preference to the pig. A few particulars may be -therefore pardoned. - -[Sidenote: PIGS OF ESTREMADURA.] - -In Spain pigs are more numerous even than asses, since they pervade the -provinces. As those of Estremadura, the _Ham_pshire of the Peninsula, -are the most esteemed, they alone will be now noticed. That province, -although so little visited by Spaniards or strangers, is full of -interest to the antiquarian and naturalist; and many are the rides at -different periods which we have made through its tangled ilex groves, -and over its depopulated and aromatic wastes. A granary under Roman and -Moor, its very existence seems to be all but forgotten by the Madrid -government, who have abandoned it _fer natur_, to wandering sheep, -locusts, and swine. The entomology of Estremadura is endless, and -perfectly uninvestigated--de minimis non curat Hispanus; but the heavens -and earth teem with the minute creation; there nature is most busy and -prolific, where man is most idle and unproductive; and in these lonely -wastes, where no human voice disturbs the silence, the balmy air -resounds with the buzzing hum of multitudinous insects, which career -about on their business of love or food without settlements or kitchens, -rejoicing in the fine weather which is the joy of their tiny souls, and -short-lived pleasant existence. Sheep, pigs, locusts, and doves are the -only living things which the traveller will see for hours and hours. Now -and then a man occurs, just to prove how rare his species is here. - -Vast districts of this unreclaimed province are covered with woods of -oak, beech, and chesnut; but these park-like scenes have no charms for -native eyes; blind to the picturesque, they only are thinking of the -number of pigs which can be fattened on the mast and acorns, which are -sweeter and larger than those of our oaks. The acorns are still called -_bellota_, the Arabic _bollot_--_belot_ being the Scriptural term for -the tree and the gland, which, with water, formed the original diet of -the aboriginal Iberian, as well as of his pig; when dry, the acorns were -ground, say the classical authors, into bread, and, when fresh, they -were served up as the second course. And in our time ladies of high rank -at Madrid constantly ate them at the opera and elsewhere; they were the -presents sent by Sancho Panza's wife to the Duchess, and formed the text -on which Don Quixote preached so eloquently to the goatherds, on the -joys and innocence of the golden age and pastoral happiness, in which -they constituted the foundation of the kitchen. - -[Sidenote: KILLING A PIG.] - -The pigs during the greater part of the year are left to support nature -as they can, and in gauntness resemble those greyhound-looking animals -which pass for porkers in France. When the acorns are ripe and fall from -the trees, the greedy animals are turned out in legions from the -villages, which more correctly may be termed coalitions of pigsties. -They return from the woods at night, of their own accord, and without a -swine's general. On entering the hamlet, all set off at a full gallop, -like a legion possessed with devils, in a handicap for home, into which -each single pig turns, never making a mistake. We have more than once -been caught in one of these pig-deluges, and nearly carried away horse -and all, as befell Don Quixote, when really swept away by the -"far-spread and grunting drove." In his own home each truant is welcomed -like a prodigal son or a domestic father. These pigs are the pets of the -peasants; they are brought up with their children, and partake, as in -Ireland, in the domestic discomforts of their cabins; they are -universally respected, and justly, for it is this animal who pays the -"rint;" in fact, are the citizens, as at Sorrento, and Estremenian man -is quite a secondary formation, and created to tend herds of these -swine, who lead the happy life of former Toledan dignitaries, with the -additional advantage of becoming more valuable when dead. - -It is astonishing how rapidly they thrive on their sweet food; indeed it -is the whole duty of a good pig--animal propter convivia natum--to get -as fat and as soon as he can, and then die for the good of his country. -It may be observed for the information of our farmers, that those pigs -which are dedicated to St. Anthony, on whom a sow is in constant -attendance, as a dove was on Venus, get the soonest fat; therefore in -Spain young porkers are sprinkled with holy water on his day, but those -of other saints are less propitious, for the killing takes place about -the 10th and 11th of November, or, as Spaniards date it, _por el St. -Andres_, on the day of St. Andrew, or on that of St. Martin; hence the -proverb "every man and pig has his St. Martin or his fatal hour, _ cada -puerco su San Martin_." - -The death of a fat pig is as great an event in Spanish families, who -generally fatten up one, as the birth of a baby; nor can the fact be -kept secret, so audible is his announcement. It is considered a delicate -attention on the part of the proprietor to celebrate the auspicious -event by sending a portion of the chitterlings to intimate friends. The -Spaniard's proudest boast is that his blood is pure, that he is not -descended from pork-eschewing Jew or Moor--a fact which the pig genus, -could it reason, would deeply deplore. The Spaniard doubtless has been -so great a consumer of pig, from grounds religious, as well as -gastronomic. The eating or not eating the flesh of an animal deemed -unclean by the impure infidel, became a test of orthodoxy, and at once -of correct faith as well as of good taste; and good bacon, as has been -just observed, is wedded to sound doctrine and St. Augustine. The -Spanish name _Tocino_ is derived from the Arabic _Tachim_, which -signifies fat. - -[Sidenote: PORK OF MONTANCHES.] - -The Spaniards however, although tremendous consumers of the pig, whether -in the salted form or in the skin, have to the full the Oriental -abhorrence to the unclean animal in the _abstract_. _Muy puerco_ is -their last expression for all that is most dirty, nasty, or disgusting. -_Muy cochina_ never is forgiven, if applied to woman, as it is -equivalent to the Italian _Vacca_, and to the canine feminine compliment -bandied among our fair sex at Billingsgate; nor does the epithet imply -moral purity or chastity; indeed in Castilian euphuism the unclean -animal was never to be named except in a periphrasis, or with an -apology, which is a singular remnant of the Moorish influence on Spanish -manners. _Haluf_ or swine is still the Moslem's most obnoxious term for -the Christians, and is applied to this day by the ungrateful Algerines -to their French bakers and benefactors, nay even to the "_illustre -Bugeaud_." - -The capital of the Estremenian pig-districts is _Montanches_--mons -anguis--and doubtless the hilly spot where the Duke of Arcos fed and -cured "ces petits jambons vermeils," which the Duc de St. Simon ate and -admired so much; "ces jambons ont un parfum si admirable, un got si -relev et si vivifiant, qu'on en est surpris: il est impossible de rien -manger si exquis." His Grace of Arcos used to shut up the pigs in places -abounding in vipers, on which they fattened. Neither the pigs, dukes, -nor their toadeaters seem to have been poisoned by these exquisite -vipers. According to Jonas Barrington, the finest Irish pigs were those -that fed on dead rebels: one Papist porker, the Enniscorthy boar, was -sent as a show, for having eaten a Protestant parson: he was put to -death and dishonoured by not being made bacon of. - -[Sidenote: A MEAT OMELETTE.] - -Naturalists have remarked that the rattlesnakes in America retire before -their consuming enemy, the pig, who is thus the _gastador_ or pioneer of -the new world's civilization, just as Pizarro, who was suckled by a sow, -and tended swine in his youth, was its conqueror. Be that as it may, -Montanches is illustrious in pork, in which the burgesses go the whole -hog, whether in the rich red sausage, the _chorizo_, or in the savoury -piquant _embuchados_, which are akin to the _mortadelle_ of Bologna, -only less hard, and usually boiled before eating, though good also raw; -they consist of the choice bits of the pig seasoned with condiments, -with which, as if by retribution, the paunch of the voracious animal is -filled; the ruling passion strong in death. We strongly recommend _Juan -Valiente_, who recently was the alcalde of the town, to the lover of -delicious hams; each _jamon_ averages about 12 lb.; they are sold at the -rate of 7 _reales_, about 18_d._; for the _libra carnicera_, which -weighs 32 of our ounces. The duties in England are now very trifling; we -have for many years had an annual supply of these delicacies, through -the favour of a kind friend at the _Puerto_. The fat of these _jamones_, -whence our word ham and gammon, when they are boiled, looks like melted -topazes, and the flavour defies language, although we have dined on one -this very day, in order to secure accuracy and undeniable prose, like -Lope de Vega, who, according to his biographer, Dr. Montalvan, never -could write poetry unless inspired by a rasher; "Toda es cosa vil," said -he, " donde falta un _pernil_" (in which word we recognize the precise -_perna_, whereby Horace was restored):-- - - Therefore all writing is a sham, - Where there is wanting Spanish ham. - -Those of Gallicia and Catalonia are also celebrated, but are not to be -compared for a moment with those of Montanches, which are fit to set -before an emperor. Their only rivals are the sweet hams of the -_Alpujarras_, which are made at _Trevelez_, a pig-hamlet situated under -the snowy mountains on the opposite side of Granada, to which also we -have made a pilgrimage. They are called _dulces_ or sweet, because -scarcely any salt is used in the curing; the ham is placed in a weak -pickle for eight days, and is then hung up in the snow; it can only be -done at this place, where the exact temperature necessary is certain. -Those of our readers who are curious in Spanish eatables will find -excellent garbanzos, chorizos, red pepper, chocolate and Valencian -sweetmeats, &c. at Figul's, a most worthy Catalan, whose shop is at No. -10, Woburn Buildings, St. Paneras, London; the locality is scarcely less -visited than Montanches, but the penny-post penetrates into this terra -incognita. - -[Sidenote: THE GUISADO.] - -So much space has been filled with these meritorious bacons and hams, -that we must be brief with our remaining bill of fare. For a _pisto_ or -meat omelette take eggs, which are to be got almost everywhere; see that -they are fresh by being pellucid; beat these _huevos trasparentes_ well -up; chop up onions and whatever savoury herbs you have with you; add -small slices of any meat out of your hamper, cold turkey, ham, &c.; beat -it all up together and fry it quickly. Most Spaniards have a peculiar -knack in making these _tortillas_, _revueltas de huevos_, which to -fastidious stomachs are, as in most parts of the Continent, a sure -resource to fall back upon. - -The _Guisado_, or stew, like the olla, can only be really done in a -Spanish pipkin, and of those which we import, the Andalucian ones draw -flavour out the best. This dish is always well done by every cook in -every venta, barring that they are apt to put in bad oil, and too much -garlic, pepper, and saffron. Superintend it, therefore, yourself, and -take hare, partridge, rabbit, chicken, or whatever you may have foraged -on the road; it is capital also with pheasant, as we proved only -yesterday; cut it up, save the blood, the liver, and the giblets; do not -wash the pieces, but dry them in a cloth; fry them with onions in a -teacup of oil till browned; take an olla, put in these bits with the -oil, equal portions of wine and water, but stock is better than water; -claret answers well, Valdepeas better; add a bit of bacon, onions, -garlic, salt, pepper, _pimientos_, a bunch of thyme or herbs; let it -simmer, carefully skimming it; half an hour before serving add the -giblets; when done, which can be tested by feeling with a fork, serve -hot. The stew should be constantly stirred with a _wooden_ spoon, and -grease, the ruin of all cookery, carefully skimmed off as it rises to -the surface. When made with proper care and with a good salad, it forms -a supper for a cardinal, or for Santiago himself. - -[Sidenote: STARRED EGGS.] - -Another excellent but very difficult dish is the _pollo con arroz_, or -the chicken and rice. It is eaten in perfection in Valencia, and -therefore is often called _Pollo Valenciano_. Cut a good fowl into -pieces, wipe it clean, but do not put it into water; take a saucepan, -put in a wine-glass of fine oil, heat the oil well, put in a bit of -bread; let it fry, stirring it about with a _wooden_ spoon; when the -bread is browned take it out and throw it away: put in two cloves of -garlic, taking care that it does not burn, as, if it does, it will turn -bitter; stir the garlic till it is fried; put in the chicken, keep -stirring it about while it fries, then put in a little salt and stir -again; whenever a sound of cracking is heard, stir it again; when the -chicken is well browned or gilded, _dorado_, which will take from five -to ten minutes, _stirring constantly_, put in chopped onions, three or -four chopped red or green chilis, and stir about; if once the contents -catch the pan, the dish is spoiled; then add tomatas, divided into -quarters, and parsley; take two teacupsful of rice, mix all well up -together; add _hot_ stock enough to cover the whole over; let it boil -_once_, and then set it aside to simmer until the rice becomes tender -and done. The great art consists in having the rice turned out -granulated and separate, not in a pudding state, which is sure to be the -case if a cover be ever put over the dish, which condenses the steam. - -It may be objected, that these dishes, if so curious in the cooking, are -not likely to be well done in the rude kitchens of a _venta_; but -practice makes perfect, and the whole mind and intellect of the artist -is concentrated on one object, and not frittered away by a multiplicity -of dishes, the rock on which many cooks founder, where more dinners are -sacrificed to the eye and ostentation. One dish and one thing at a time -is the golden rule of Bacon; many are the anxious moments that we have -spent over the rim of a Spanish pipkin, watching, life set on the cast, -the wizen she-mummy, whose mind, body, and spoon were absorbed in a -single mess: Well, my mother, _que tal_? what sort of a stew is it? Let -me smell and taste the _salsa_. Good, good; it promises much. _Vamos, -Seora_--go on, my lady, thy spoon once more--how, indeed, can oil, -wine, and nutritive juices amalgamate without frequent stirring? Well, -very well it is. Now again, daughter of my soul, thy fork. _Asi, asi_; -thus, thus. _Per Bacco_, by Bacchus, tender it is--may heaven repay -thee! Indeed, from this tenderness of the meat arises ease of digestion; -here, pot and fire do half the work of the poor stomach, which too often -in inns elsewhere is overtaxed, like its owner, and condemned to hard -labour and a brickbat beefsteak. - -[Sidenote: SALAD.] - -Poached eggs are at all events within the grasp of the meanest culinary -capacity. They are called _Huevos estrellados_, starred eggs. When fat -bacon is wedded to them, the dish is called _Huevos con magras_; not -that _magras_ here means thin as to condition, but rather as to slicing; -and these slices, again, are positively thick ones when compared to -those triumphs of close shaving which are carved at Vauxhall. To make -this dish, with or without the bacon, take eggs; the contents of the -shell are to be emptied into a pan filled with hot oil or lard, _manteca -de puerco_, pig's butter: it must be remembered, although Strabo -mentions as a singular fact that the Iberians made use of butter -instead of oil, that now it is just the reverse; a century ago butter -was only sold by the apothecaries, as a sort of ointment, and it used to -be iniquitous. Spaniards generally used either Irish or Flemish salted -butter, and from long habit thought fresh butter quite insipid; indeed, -they have no objection to its being a trifle or so rancid, just as some -aldermen like high venison. In the present age of progress the Queen -Christina has a fancy dairy at Madrid, where she makes a few pounds of -fresh butter, of which a small portion is or was sold, at five shillings -the pound, to foreign ambassadors for their breakfast. Recently more -attention has been paid to the dairy in the Swiss-like provinces of the -north-west. The Spaniards, like the heroes in the Iliad, seldom boil -their food (eggs excepted), at least not in water; for frying, after -all, is but boiling in oil. - -Travellers should be cautioned against the captivating name of _manteca -Valenciana_. This Valencian butter is composed (for the cow has nothing -to do with it) of equal portions of garlic and hogs' lard pounded -together in a mortar; it is then spread on bread, just as we do arsenic -to destroy vermin. It, however, agrees well with the peasants, as does -the soup of their neighbours the Catalans, which is made of bread and -garlic in equal portions fried in oil and diluted with hot water. This -mess is called _sopa de gato_, probably from making cats, not Catalans, -sick. - -[Sidenote: GAZPACHO.] - -One thing, however, is truly delicious in Spain--the salad, to compound -which, says the Spanish proverb, four persons are wanted: a spendthrift -for oil, a miser for vinegar, a counsellor for salt, and a madman to -stir it all up. N.B. Get the biggest bowl you can, in order that this -latter operation may be thoroughly performed. The salad is the glory of -every French dinner, and the disgrace of most in England, even in good -houses, and from two simple causes; first, from the putting in eggs, -mustard, and other heretical ingredients, and, secondly, from making it -long before it is wanted to be eaten, whereby the green materials, which -should be crisp and fresh, become sodden and leathery. Prepare, -therefore, your salad in separate vessels, and never mix the sauce with -the herbs until the instant that you are ready to transfer the -refreshing result to your plate. Take lettuce, or whatever salad is to -be got; do not cut it with a steel knife, which turns the edges of the -wounds black, and communicates an evil flavour; let the leaf be torn -from the stem, which throw away, as it is hard and bitter; wash the mass -in many waters, and rinse it in napkins till dry; take a small bowl, put -in equal quantities of vinegar and water, a teaspoonful of pepper and -salt, and four times as much oil as vinegar and water, mix the same well -together; prepare in a plate whatever fine herbs can be got, especially -tarragon and chervil, which must be chopped small. Pour the sauce over -the salad, powder it with these herbs, and lose no time in eating. For -making a much worse salad than this, a foreign artiste in London used -some years ago to charge a guinea. - -[Sidenote: GAZPACHO.] - -Any remarks on Spanish salads would be incomplete without some account -of _gazpacho_, that vegetable soup, or floating salad, which during the -summer forms the food of the bulk of the people in the torrid portions -of Spain. This dish is of Arabic origin, as its name, "soaked bread," -implies. This most ancient Oriental Roman and Moorish refection is -composed of onions, garlic, cucumbers, chilis, all chopped up very small -and mixed with crumbs of bread, and then put into a bowl of oil, -vinegar, and fresh water. Reapers and agricultural labourers could never -stand the sun's fire without this cooling acetous diet. This was the -[Greek: oxykratos] of the Greeks, the _posca_, potable food, meat and -drink, _potus et esca_, which formed part of the rations of the Roman -soldiers, and which Adrian (a Spaniard) delighted to share with them, -and into which Boaz at meal-time invited Ruth to dip her morsel. Dr. -Buchanan found some Syrian Christians who still called it _ail_, _ail_, -_Hil_, _Hila_, for which our Saviour was supposed to have called on the -Cross, when those who understood that dialect gave it him from the -vessel which was full of it for the guard. In Andalucia, during the -summer, a bowl of gazpacho is commonly ready in every house of an -evening, and is partaken of by every person who comes in. It is not -easily digested by strangers, who do not require it quite so much as the -natives, whose souls are more parched and dried up, and who perspire -less. The components, oil, vinegar, and bread, are all that is given out -to the lower class of labourers by farmers who profess to feed them; two -cow's horns, the most primitive form of bottle and cup, are constantly -seen suspended on each side of their carts, and contain this provision, -with which they compound their _migas_: this consists of crumbs of bread -fried in oil, with pepper and garlic; nor can a stronger proof be given -of the common poverty of their fare than the common expression, "_buenas -migas hay_," there are _good crumbs_, being equivalent to capital -eating. In very cold weather the mess is warmed, and then is called -_gazpacho caliente_. Oh! dura messorum ilia--oh! the iron mess digesting -stomachs of ploughmen. - -[Sidenote: WATER.] - - - - -CHAPTER XII. - - Drinks of Spain--Water--Irrigation--Fountains--Spanish - Thirstiness--The Alcarraza--Water Carriers--Ablutions--Spanish - Chocolate--Agraz--Beer Lemonade. - - -In dipping into Spanish liquids we shall not mix wine with water, but -keep them separate, as most Spaniards do; the latter is entitled to rank -first, by those who prefer the opinion of Pindar, who held water to be -the best of things, to that of Anacreon, who was not member of any -temperance society. The profound regard for water of a Spaniard is quite -Oriental; at the same time, as his blood is partly Gothic and partly -Arab, his allegiance is equally mixed and divided; thus, if he adores -the juice of flints like a Moslem, he venerates the juice of the grape -like a German. - -Water is the blood of the earth, and the purificator of the body in -tropical regions and in creeds which, being regulated by latitudes, -enforce frequent ablution; loud are the praises of Arab writers of wells -and water-brooks, and great is their fountain and pool worship, the -dipping in which, if their miraculous cases are to be credited, effects -more and greater cures than those worked by hydropathists at Grafenberg; -a Spaniard's idea of a paradise on earth, of a "garden," is a -well-watered district; irrigation is fertility and wealth, and -therefore, as in the East, wells, brooks, and water-courses have been a -constant source of bickering; nay the very word _rivality_ has been -derived from these quarrel and law-suit engendering rivers, as the name -given to the well for which the men of Gerah and Isaac differed, was -called _esek_ from the contention. - -[Sidenote: FOUNTAINS.] - -The flow of waters cannot be mistaken; the most dreary sterility edges -the most luxuriant plenty, the most hopeless barrenness borders on the -richest vegetation; the line of demarcation is perceived from afar, -dividing the tawny desert from the verdurous garden. The Moors who came -from the East were fully sensible of the value of this element; they -collected the best springs with the greatest care, they dammed up -narrow gorges into reservoirs, they constructed pools and underground -cisterns, stemmed valleys with aqueducts that poured in rivers, and in a -word exercised a magic influence over this element, which they guided -and wielded at their will; their system of irrigation was far too -perfect to be improved by Spaniard, or even destroyed. In those favoured -districts where their artificial contrivances remain, Flora still smiles -and Ceres rejoices with Pomona; wherever the ravages of war or the -neglect of man have ruined them, the garden has relapsed into the -desert, and plains once overflowing with corn, gladness, and population, -have shrunk into sad and silent deserts. - -[Sidenote: THIRST.] - -The fountains of Spain, especially in the hotter and more Moorish -districts, are numerous; they cannot fail to strike and please the -stranger, whether they be situated in the public walk, garden, -market-place, or private dwelling. Their mode of supply is simple: a -river which flows down from the hills is diverted at a certain height -from its source, and is carried in an artificial canal, which retains -the original elevation, into a reservoir placed above the town which is -to be served; as the waters rise to their level, the force, body, and -altitude of some of the columns thrown up are very great. In our cold -country, where, except at Charing Cross, the stream is conveyed -underground and unseen, all this gush of waters, of dropping diamonds in -the bright sun, which cools the air and gladdens the sight and ear, is -unknown. Again there is a waste of the "article," which would shock a -Chelsea Waterworks Director, and induce the rate-collector to refer to -the fines as per Act of Parliament. The fondest wish of those Spaniards -who wear long-tailed coats, is to imitate those gentry; they are ashamed -of the patriarchal uncivilised system of their ancestors--much prefer -the economical lead pipe to all this extravagant and gratuitous -splashing--they love a turncock better than the most Oriental Rebecca -who comes down to draw water. The fountains in Spain as in the East are -the meeting and greeting places of womankind; here they flock, old and -young, infants and grandmothers. It is a sight to drive a water-colour -painter crazy, such is the colour, costume, and groupings, such is the -clatter of tongues and crockery; such is the life and action; now trip -along a bevy of damsel Hebes with upright forms and chamois step light -yet true; more graceful than opera-dancers, they come laughing and -carolling along, poising on their heads pitchers modelled after the -antique, and after everything which a Svres jug is not. It would seem -that to draw water is a difficult operation, so long are they lingering -near the sweet fountain's rim. It indeed is their al fresco rout, their -tertulia; here for awhile the hand of woman labour ceases, and the urn -stands still; here more than even after church mass, do the young -discuss their dress and lovers, the middle-aged and mothers descant on -babies and housekeeping; all talk, and generally at once; but gossip -refresheth the daughters of Eve, whether in gilded boudoir or near mossy -fountain, whose water, if a dash of scandal be added, becomes sweeter -than eau sucre. - -The Iberians were decided water-drinkers, and this trait of their -manners, which are modified by climate that changes not, still exists as -the sun that regulates: the vinous Greek Athenus was amazed that even -rich Spaniards should prefer water to wine; and to this day they are if -possible curious about the latter's quality; they will just drink the -wine that grows the nearest, while they look about and enquire for the -best water; thus even our cook Francisco, who certainly had one of the -best places in Seville, and who although a good artiste was a better -rascal--qualities not incompatible--preferred to sacrifice his interests -rather than go to Granada, because this man of the fire had heard that -the water there was bad. - -[Sidenote: INTENSE HEAT.] - -The mother of the Arabs was tormented with thirst, which her -Hispano-Moro children have inherited; in fact in the dog-days, of which -here there are packs, unless the mortal clay be frequently wetted it -would crumble to bits like that of a figure modeller. Fire and water are -the elements of Spain, whether at an _auto de f_ or in a church-stoop; -with a cigar in his mouth a Spaniard smokes like Vesuvius, and is as -dry, combustible, and inflammatory; and properly to understand the truth -of Solomon's remark, that cold water is to a thirsty soul as refreshing -as good news, one must have experienced what thirst is in the exposed -plains of the calcined Castiles, where _coup de soleil_ is rife, and a -gentleman on horseback's brains seem to be melting like Don Quixote's -when Sancho put the curds into his helmet. It is just the country to -send a patient to, who is troubled with hydrophobia. "Those rayes," to -use the words of old Howell, "that do but warm you in England, do roast -you here; those beams that irradiate onely, and gild your honey-suckled -fields, do here scorch and parch the chinky gaping soyle, and put too -many wrinkles upon the face of your common mother." - -Then, when the heavens and earth are on fire, and the sun drinks up -rivers at one draught, when one burnt sienna tone pervades the tawny -ground, and the green herb is shrivelled up into black gunpowder, and -the rare pale ashy olive-trees are blanched into the livery of the -desert; then, when the heat and harshness make even the salamander -muleteers swear doubly as they toil along like demons in an ignited -salitrose dust--then, indeed, will an Englishman discover that he is -made of the same material, only drier, and learn to estimate water; but -a good thirst is too serious an evil, too bordering on suffering, to be -made, like an appetite, a matter of congratulation; for when all fluids -evaporate, and the blood thickens into currant jelly, and the nerves -tighten up into the catgut of an overstrung fiddle, getting attuned to -the porcupinal irritability of the tension of the mind, how the parched -soul sighs for the comfort of a Scotch mist, and fondly turns back to -the uvula-relaxing damps of Devon!--then, in the blackhole-like thirst -of the wilderness, every mummy hag rushing from a reed hut, with a -porous cup of brackish water, is changed by the mirage into a Hebe, -bearing the nectar of the immortals; then how one longs for the most -wretched _Venta_, which heat and thirst convert into the Clarendon, -since in it at least will be found water and shade, and an escape from -the god of fire! Well may Spanish historians boast, that his orb at the -creation first shone over Toledo, and never since has set on the -dominions of the great king, who, as we are assured by Seor Berni, "has -the sun for his hat,"--_tiene al sol por su sombrero_; but humbler -mortals who are not grandees of this solar system, and to whom a _coup -de soleil_ is neither a joke nor a metaphor, should stow away -non-conductors of heat in the crown of their beavers. Thus Apollo -himself preserved us. And oh! ye our fair readers, who chance to run -such risks, and value complexion, take for heaven's sake a parasol and -an _Alcarraza_. - -[Sidenote: SPANISH WATER-SELLERS.] - -This clay utensil--as its Arabic name _al Karaset_ implies--is a porous -refrigeratory vessel, in which water when placed in a current of hot -air becomes chilled by evaporation; it is to be seen hung up on poles -dangling from branches, suspended to waggons--in short, is part and -parcel of a Spanish scene in hot weather and localities; every _posada_ -has rows of them at the entrance, and the first thing every one does on -entering, before wishing even the hostess Good morning, or asking -permission, is to take a full draught: all classes are learned on the -subject, and although on the whole they cannot be accused of -teetotalism, they are loud in their praises of the pure fluid. The -common form of praise is _agua muy rica_--very rich water. According to -their proverbs, good water should have neither taste, smell, nor colour, -"_ni sabor, olor, ni color_," which neither makes men sick nor in debt, -nor women widows, "_que no enferma, no adeuda, no enviuda_;" and besides -being cheaper than wine, beer, or brandy, it does not brutalize the -consumer, nor deprive him of his common sense or good manners. - -[Sidenote: WANT OF CLEANLINESS.] - -As Spaniards at all times are as dry as the desert or a sponge, selling -water is a very active business; on every alameda and prado shrill -voices of the sellers of drinks and mouth combustibles--_vendedores de -combustibles de boca_--are heard crying, "Fire, fire, _candela_--Water; -who wants water?"--_agua; quien quiere agua?_ which, as these Orientals -generally exaggerate, is described as _mas fresca que la nieve_, or -colder than snow; and near them little Murillo-like urchins run about -with lighted ropes like artillerymen for the convenience of smokers, -that is, for every ninety and nine males out of a hundred; while -water-carriers, or rather retail pedestrian aqueducts, follow thirst -like fire-engines; the _Aguador_ carries on his back, like his colleague -in the East, a porous water-jar, with a little cock by which it is drawn -out; he is usually provided with a small tin box strapped to his waist, -and in which he stows away his glasses, brushes, and some light -_azucarillos_--_panales_, which are made of sugar and white of egg, -which Spaniards dip and dissolve in their drink. In the town, at -particular stations water-mongers in wholesale have a shed, with ranges -of jars, glasses, oranges, lemons, &c., and a bench or two on which the -drinkers "untire themselves." In winter these are provided with an -_aafe_ or portable stove, which keeps a supply of hot water, to take -the chill off the cold, for Spaniards, from a sort of dropsical habit, -drink like fishes all the year round. Ferdinand the Catholic, on seeing -a peasant drowned in a river, observed, "that he had never before seen a -Spaniard who had had enough water." - -At the same time it must be remembered that this fluid is applied with -greater prodigality in washing their inside than their outside. Indeed, -a classical author remarks that the Spaniards only learnt the use of -_hot_ water, as applicable to the toilette, from the Romans after the -second Punic war. Their baths and _therm_ were destroyed by the Goths, -because they tended to encourage effeminacy; and those of the Moors were -prohibited by the Gotho-Spaniards partly from similar reasons, but more -from a religious hydrophobia. Ablutions and lustral purifications formed -an article of faith with the Jew and Moslem, with whom "cleanliness is -godliness." The mendicant Spanish monks, according to their practice of -setting up a directly antagonist principle, considered physical dirt as -the test of moral purity and true faith; and by dining and sleeping from -year's end to year's end in the same unchanged woollen frock, arrived at -the height of their ambition, according to their view of the odour of -sanctity, insomuch that Ximenez, who was himself a shirtless Franciscan, -induced Ferdinand and Isabella, at the conquest of Granada, to close and -abolish the Moorish baths. They forbade not only the Christians but the -Moors from using anything but holy water. Fire, not water, became the -grand element of inquisitorial purification. - -[Sidenote: CHOCOLATE.] - -The fair sex was warned by monks, who practised what they preached, that -they should remember the cases of Susanna, Bathsheba, and La -Cava,--whose fatal bathing under the royal palace at Toledo led to the -downfall of the Gothic monarchy. Their aqueous anathemas extended not -only to public, but to minutely private washings, regarding which -Sanchez instructs the Spanish confessor to question his fair penitents, -and not to absolve the over-washed. Many instances could be produced of -the practical working of this enjoined rule; for instance, Isabella, the -favourite daughter of Philip II., his eye, as he called her, made a -solemn vow never to change her shift until Ostend was taken. The siege -lasted three years, three months, and thirteen days. The royal garment -acquired a tawny colour, which was called _Isabel_ by the courtiers, in -compliment to the pious princess. Again, Southey relates that the devout -Saint Eufraxia entered into a convent of 130 nuns, not one of whom had -ever washed her feet, and the very mention of a bath was an abomination. -These obedient daughters to their Capuchin confessors were what Gil de -Avila termed a sweet garden of flowers, perfumed by the good smell and -reputation of sanctity, "_ameno jardin de flores, olorosas por el buen -odor y fama de santidad_." Justice to the land of Castile soap requires -us to observe that latterly, since the suppression of monks, both sexes, -and the fair especially, have departed from the strict observance of the -religious duties of their excellent grandmothers. Warm baths are now -pretty generally established in the larger towns. At the same time, the -interiors of bedrooms, whether in inns or private houses, as well by the -striking absence of glass and china utensils, which to English notions -are absolute necessaries, as by the presence of French pie-dish basins, -and duodecimo jugs, indicate that this "little damned spot" on the -average Spanish hand, has not yet been quite rubbed out. - -However hot the day, dusty the road, or long the journey, it has never -been our fate to see a Spanish attendant use a single drop of water as a -detergent, or, as polite writers say, "perform his ablutions;" the -constant habit of bathing and complete washing is undoubtedly one reason -why the French and other continentals consider our soap-loving -countrymen to be cracked. Under the Spanish Goths the Hemerobaptist, or -people who washed their persons once a day, were set down as heretics. -The Duke of Frias, when a few years ago on a fortnight's visit to an -English lady, never once troubled his basins and jugs; he simply rubbed -his face occasionally with the white of an egg, which, as Madame Daunoy -records, was the only ablution of the Spanish ladies in the time of -Philip IV.; but these details of the dressing-room are foreign to the -use made in Spain of liquids in kitchen and parlour. - -One word on chocolate, which is to a Spaniard what tea is to a -Briton--coffee to a Gaul. It is to be had almost everywhere, and is -always excellent; the best is made by the nuns, who are great -confectioners and compounders of sweetmeats, sugarplums and -orange-flowers, water and comfits, - - "Et tous ces mets sucrs en pte, ou bien liquides, - Dont estomacs dvots furent toujours avides." - -[Sidenote: ICED DRINKS.] - -It was long a disputed point whether chocolate did or did not break -fast theologically, just as happened with coffee among the rigid -Moslems. But since the learned Escobar decided that _liquidum non rumpit -jejunium_, a liquid does not break fast, it has become the universal -breakfast of Spain. It is made just liquid enough to come within the -benefit of clergy, that is, a spoon will almost stand up in it; only a -small cup is taken, _una jicara_, a Mexican word for the cocoa-nuts of -which they were first made, generally with a bit of toasted bread or -biscuit: as these _jicaras_ have seldom any handles, they were used by -the rich (as coffeecups are among the Orientals) enclosed in little -filigree cases of silver or gold; some of these are very beautiful, made -in the form of a tulip or lotus leaf, on a saucer of mother-o'-pearl. -The flower is so contrived that, by a spring underneath, on raising the -saucer, the leaves fall back and disclose the cup to the lips, while, -when put down, they re-close over it, and form a protection against the -flies. A glass of water should always be drunk after this chocolate, -since the aqueous chasse neutralizes the bilious propensities of this -breakfast of the gods, as Linnus called chocolate. Tea and coffee have -supplanted chocolate in England and France; it is in Spain alone that we -are carried back to the breakfasts of Belinda and of the wits at -Button's; in Spain exist, unchanged, the fans, the game of ombre, -_tresillo_, and the _coche de colleras_, the coach and six, and other -social usages of the age of Pope and the 'Spectator.' - -[Sidenote: ICED LEMONADE.] - -Cold liquids in the hot dry summers of Spain are necessaries, not -luxuries; snow and iced drinks are sold in the streets at prices so low -as to be within the reach of the poorest classes; the rich refrigerate -themselves with _agraz_. This, the Moorish _Hacaraz_, is the most -delicious and most refreshing drink ever devised by thirsty mortal; it -is the _new_ pleasure for which Xerxes wished in vain, and beats the -"hock and soda water," the "_hoc erat in votis_" of Byron, and sherry -cobler itself. It is made of pounded unripe grapes, clarified sugar, and -water; it is strained till it becomes of the palest straw-coloured -amber, and well iced. It is particularly well made in Andalucia, and it -is worth going there in the dog-days, if only to drink it--it cools a -man's body and soul. At Madrid an agreeable drink is sold in the -streets; it is called _Michi Michi_, from the Valencian _Mitj e Mitj_, -"half and half," and is as unlike the heavy wet mixture of London, as a -coal-porter is to a pretty fair Valenciana. It is made of equal portions -of barley-water and orgeat of _Chufas_, and is highly iced. The -Spaniards, among other cooling fruits, eat their strawberries mixed with -sugar and the juice of oranges, which will be found a more agreeable -addition than the wine used by the French, or the cream of the -English,--the one heats, and the other, whenever it is to be had, makes -a man bilious in Spain. Spanish ices, _helados_, are apt to be too -sweet, nor is the sugar well refined; the ices, when frozen very hard -and in small forms, either representing fruits or shells, are called -_quesos_, cheeses. - -Another favourite drink is a weak bottled beer mixed with iced lemonade. -Spaniards, however, are no great drinkers of beer, notwithstanding that -their ancestors drank more of it than wine, which was not then either so -plentiful or universal as at the present; this substitute of grapeless -countries passed from the Egyptians and Carthaginians into Spain, where -it was excellent, and kept well. The vinous Roman soldiers derided the -beer-drinking Iberians, just as the French did the English _before_ the -battle of Agincourt. "Can sodden water--barley-broth--decoct their cold -blood to such valiant heat?" Polybius sneers at the magnificence of a -Spanish king, because his home was furnished with silver and gold vases -full of beer, of barley-wine. The genuine Goths, as happens everywhere -to this day, were great swillers of ale and beer, heady and stupifying -mixtures, according to Aristotle. Their archbishop, St. Isidore, -distinguished between _celia ceria_, the ale, and _cerbisia_, beer, -whence the present word _cerbeza_ is derived. Spanish beer, like many -other Spanish matters, has now become small. Strong English beer is rare -and dear; among one of the infinite ingenious absurdities of Spanish -customs' law, English beer in barrels used to be prohibited, as were -English bottles if empty--but prohibited beer, in prohibited bottles, -was admissible, on the principle that two fiscal negatives made an -exchequer affirmative. - -[Sidenote: WINES OF SPAIN.] - - - - -CHAPTER XIII. - - Spanish Wines--Spanish Indifference--Wine-making--Vins du - Pays--Local Wines--Benicarl--Valdepeas. - - -The wines of Spain deserve a chapter to themselves. Sherry indeed is not -less popular among us than Murillo, in spite of the numbers of bad -copies of the one, which are passed off for undoubted originals, and -butts of the other, which are sold neat as imported. The Spaniard -himself is neither curious in port, nor particular in Madeira; he -prefers quantity to quality, and loves flavour much less than he hates -trouble; a cellar in a private house, of rare fine or foreign wines, is -perhaps a greater curiosity than a library of ditto books; an hidalgo -with twenty names simply sends out before his frugal meal for a quart of -wine to the nearest shop, as a small burgess does in the City for a pint -of porter. Local in every thing, the Spaniard takes the goods that the -gods provide him, just as they come to hand; he drinks the wine that -grows in the nearest vineyards, and if there are none, then regales -himself with the water from the least distant spring. It is so in -everything; he adds the smallest possible exertion of his own to the -bounties of nature; his object is to obtain the largest produce for the -smallest labour; he allows a life-conferring sun and a fertile soil to -create for him the raw material, which he exports, being perfectly -contented that the foreigner should return it to him when recreated by -art and industry; thus his wool, barilla, hides, and cork-bark, are -imported by him back again in the form of cloth, glass, leather, and -bungs. - -[Sidenote: WINES OF SPAIN.] - -The most celebrated and perfect wines of the Peninsula are port and -sherry, which owe their excellence to foreign, not to native skill, the -principal growers and makers being Europeans, and their system -altogether un-Spanish; nothing can be more rude, antique, and -unscientific, than the wine-making in those localities where no -stranger has ever settled. But Spain is a land bottled up for -antiquarians, and it must be confessed that the national process is very -picturesque and classical; no Ariadne revel of Titian is more glittering -or animated, no bas-relief more classical in which sacrifices are -celebrated - - "To Bacchus, who first from out the purple grape - Crushed the sweet poison of misused wine." - -Often have we ridden through villages redolent with vinous aroma, and -inundated with the blood of the berry, until the very mud was -encarnadined; what a busy scene! Donkeys laden with panniers of the ripe -fruit, damsels bending under heavy baskets, men with reddened legs and -arms, joyous and jovial as satyrs, hurry jostling on to the rude and -dirty vat, into which the fruit is thrown indiscriminately, the -black-coloured with the white ones, the ripe bunches with the sour, the -sound berries with those decayed; no pains are taken, no selection is -made; the filth and negligence are commensurate with this carelessness; -the husks are either trampled under naked feet or pressed out under a -rude beam; in both cases every refining operation is left to the -fermentation of nature, for there is a divinity that shapes our ends, -rough hew them how we may. - -[Sidenote: VALDEPENAS.] - -The wines of Spain, under a latitude where a fine season is a certainty, -might rival those of France, and still more those of the Rhine, where a -good vintage is the exception, not the rule. Their varieties are -infinite, since few districts, unless those that are very elevated, are -without their local produce, the names, colours, and flavours of which -are equally numerous and varied. The thirsty traveller, after a long -day's ride under a burning sun, when seated quietly down to a smoking -peppery dish, is enchanted with the cool draught of these vins du pays, -which are brought fresh to him from the skins or amphora jars; he longs -to transport the apparently divine nectar to his own home, and wonders -that "the trade" should have overlooked such delicious wine. Those who -have tried the experiment will find a sad change for the worse come over -the spirit of their dream, when the long-expected importation greets -their papillatory organs in London. There the illusion is dispelled; -there to a cloyed fastidious taste, to a judgment bewildered and -frittered away by variety of the best vintages, how flat, stale, and -unprofitable does this much-fancied beverage appear! The truth is, that -its merit consists in the thirst and drinking vein of the traveller, -rather than in the wine itself. Those therefore of our readers whose -cellars are only stocked with choice Bordeaux, Xerez, and Champagne, may -sustain with resignation the absence of other sorts of Spanish grape -juice. If an exception is to be made, let it be only in favour of -Valdepeas and Manzanilla. - -The local wines may therefore be tossed off rapidly. The Navarrese drink -their Peralta, the Basques their Chacolet, which is a poor vin ordinaire -and inferior to our good cider. The Arragonese are supplied from the -vineyards of Cariena; the Catalans, from those of Sidges and Benicarl; -the former is a rich sweet wine, with a peculiar aromatic flavour; the -latter is the well-known black strap, which is exported largely to -Bordeaux to enrich clarets for our vitiated taste, and as it is rich -red, and full flavoured, much comes to England to concoct what is -denominated curious old port by those who sell it. The fiery and acrid -brandy which is made from this Benicarl is sent to the bay of Cadiz to -the tune of 1000 butts a year to doctor up worse sherry. - -The central provinces of Spain consume but little of these; Leon has a -wine of its own which grows chiefly near Zamora and Toro, and it is much -drunk at the neighbouring and learned university of Salamanca, where, as -it is strong and heady, it promotes prejudice, as port is said to do -elsewhere. Madrid is supplied with wines grown at Tarancon, Arganda, and -other places in its immediate vicinity, and those of the latter are -frequently substituted for the celebrated Valdepeas of La Mancha, which -was mother's milk to Sancho Panza and his two eminent progenitors; they -differed, as their worthy descendant informed the Knight of the Wood, on -the merits of a cask; one of them just dipped his tongue into the wine, -and affirmed that it had a taste of iron; the other merely applied his -nose to the bung-hole, and was positive that it smacked of leather; in -due time when the barrel was emptied, a key tied to a thong confirmed -the degustatory acumen of these connoisseurs. - -[Sidenote: THE BEST VINEYARDS.] - -The red blood of this "valley of stones" issues with such abundance, -that quantities of old wine are often thrown away, for the want of -skins, jars, and casks into which to place the new. From the scarcity -of fuel in these denuded plains, the prunings of the vine are sometimes -as valuable as the grapes. Even at Valdepeas, with Madrid for its -customer, the wine continues to be made in an unscientific, careless -manner. Before the French invasion, a Dutchman, named Muller, had begun -to improve the system, and better prices were obtained; whereupon the -lower classes, in 1808, broke open his cellars, pillaged them, and -nearly killed him because he made wine dearer. It is made of a Burgundy -grape which has been transplanted and transported from the stinted suns -of fickle France, to the certain and glorious summers of La Mancha. The -genuine wine is rich, full-bodied, and high-coloured. It will keep -pretty well, and improves for four or five years, nay, longer. To be -really enjoyed it must be drunk on the spot; the curious in wine should -go down into one of the _cuevas_ or cave-cellars, and have a goblet of -the ruby fluid drawn from the big-bellied jar. The wine, when taken to -distant places, is almost always adulterated; and at Madrid with a -decoction of log wood, which makes it almost poisonous, acting upon the -nerves and muscular system. - -The best vineyards and _bodegas_ or cellars are those which did belong -to Don Carlos, and those which do belong to the Marques de Santa Cruz. -One anecdote will do the work of pages in setting forth the habitual -indifference of Spaniards, and the way things are managed for them. This -very nobleman, who certainly was one of the most distinguished among the -grandees in rank and talent, was dining one day with a foreign -ambassador at Madrid, who was a decided admirer of Valdepeas, as all -judicious men must be, and who took great pains to procure it quite pure -by sending down trusty persons and sound casks. The Marques at the first -glass exclaimed, "What capital wine! where do you manage to buy it in -Madrid?" "I send for it," was the reply, "to your _administrador_ at -Valdepeas, Anglice unjust steward, and shall be very happy to get you -some." - -[Sidenote: VALDEPENAS.] - -The wine is worth on the spot about 5_l._ the pipe, but the land -carriage is expensive, and it is apt, when conveyed in skins, to be -tapped and watered by the muleteers, besides imbibing the disagreeable -smack of the pitched pigskin. The only way to secure a pure, -unadulterated, legitimate article, is to send up _double_ quarter sherry -casks; the wine is then put into one, and that again is protected by an -outer cask, which acts as a preventive guard, against gimlets, straws, -and other ingenious contrivances for extracting the vinous contents, and -for introducing an aqueous substitute. It must then be conveyed either -on mules or in waggons to Cadiz and Santander. It is always as well to -send for two casks, as _accidents_ in this _pays de l'imprvu_ -constantly happen where wine and women are in the case. The importer -will receive the most satisfactory certificates signed and sealed on -paper, first duly stamped, in which the alcalde, the muleteer, the -guardia, and all who have shared in the booty, will minutely describe -and prove the _accident_, be it an upset, a breaking of casks, or what -not. Very little pure Valdepeas ever reaches England; the numerous -vendors' bold assertions to the contrary notwithstanding. As sherry is a -subject of more general interest, it will be treated with somewhat more -detail. - -[Sidenote: SHERRY.] - - - - -CHAPTER XIV. - - Sherry Wines--The Sherry District--Origin of the Name--Varieties of - Soil--Of Grapes--Pajarete--Rojas Clemente--Cultivation of - Vines--Best Vineyards--The Vintage--Amontillado--The Capataz--The - Bodega--Sherry Wine--Arrope and Madre Vino--A Lecture on Sherry in - the Cellar--at the Table--Price of Fine Sherry--Falsification of - Sherry--Manzanilla--The Alpistera. - - -Sherry, a wine which requires more explanation than many of its -consumers imagine, is grown in a limited nook of the Peninsula, on the -south-western corner of sunny Andalucia, which occupies a range of -country of which the town of Xerez is the capital and centre. The -wine-producing districts extend over a space which is included--consult -a map--within a boundary drawn from the towns of Puerto de S. Maria, -Rota, San Lucar, Tribujena, Lebrija, Arcos, and to the Puerto again. The -finest vintages lie in the immediate vicinity of Xerez, which has given -therefore its name to the general produce. The wine, however, becomes -inferior in proportion as the vineyards get more distant from this -central point. - -[Sidenote: FOUR CLASSES OF SOIL.] - -Although some authors--who, to show their learning, hunt for Greek -etymologies in every word--have derived sherry from [Greek: Xros], dry, -to have done so from the Persian Schiraz would scarcely have been more -far-fetched. _Sherris sack_, the term used by Falstaff, no mean -authority in this matter, is the precise _seco de Xerez_, the term by -which the wine is known to this day in its own country; the epithet -_seco_, or dry--the _seck_ of old English authors, and the _sec_ of -French ones--being used in contradistinction to the _sweet_ malvoisies -and muscadels, which are also made of the same grape. The wine, it is -said, was first introduced into England about the time of Henry VII., -whose close alliance with Ferdinand and Isabella was cemented by the -marriage of his son with their daughter. It became still more popular -among us under Elizabeth, when those who sailed under Essex sacked -Cadiz in 1596, and brought home the fashion of good "sherris sack, from -whence," as Sir John says, "comes valour." The visit to Spain of Charles -I. contributed to keeping up among his countrymen this taste for the -drinks of the Peninsula, which extended into the provinces, as we find -Howell writing from York, in 1645, for "a barrell or two of oysters, -which shall be well eaten," as he assures his friend, "with a cup of the -best sherry, to which this town is altogether addicted." During the wars -of the succession, and those fatal quarrels with England occasioned by -the French alliance and family compact of Charles III., our consumption -of sherries was much diminished, and the culture of the vine and the -wine-making was neglected and deteriorated. It was restored at the end -of last century by the family of Gordon, whose houses at Xerez and the -Puerto most deservedly rank among the first in the country. The improved -quality of the wines was their own recommendation; but as fashion -influences everything, their vogue was finally established by Lord -Holland, who, on his return from Spain, introduced superlative sherry at -his undeniable table. - -The quality of the wine depends on the grape and the soil, which has -been examined and analysed by competent chemists. Omitting minute and -uninteresting particulars, the first class and the best is termed the -_Albariza_; this whitish soil is composed of clay mixed with carbonate -of lime and silex. The second sort is called _Barras_, and consists of -sandy quartz, mixed with lime and oxide of iron. The third is the -_Arenas_, being, as the name indicates, little better than sand, and is -by far the most widely extended, especially about San Lucar, Rota, and -the back of Arcos; it is the most productive, although the wine is -generally coarse, thin, and ill-flavoured, and seldom improves after the -third year: it forms the substratum of those inferior sherries which are -largely exported to the discredit of the real article. The fourth class -of soil is limited in extent, and is the _Bugeo_, or dark-brown loamy -sand which occurs on the sides of rivulets and hillocks. The wine grown -on it is poor and weak; yet all the inferior produces of these different -districts are sold as sherry wines, to the great detriment of those -really produced near Xerez itself, which do not amount to a fifth of the -quantity exported. - -[Sidenote: VINES OF ANDALUCIA.] - -The varieties of the grape are far greater than those of the soil on -which they are grown. Of more than a hundred different kinds, those -called _Listan_ and _Palomina Blanca_ are the best. The increased demand -for sherry, where the producing surface is limited, has led to the -extirpation of many vines of an inferior kind, which have been replaced -by new ones whose produce is of a larger and better quality. The _Pedro -Ximenez_, or delicious sweet-tasted grape which is so celebrated, came -originally from Madeira, and was planted on the Rhine, from whence about -two centuries ago one Peter Simon brought it to Malaga, since when it -has extended over the south of Spain. It is of this grape that the rich -and luscious sweet wine called _Pajarete_ is made; a name which some -have erroneously derived from _Pajaros_, the birds, who are wont to pick -the ripest berries; but it was so called from the wine having been -originally only made at Paxarete, a small spot near Xerez: it is now -prepared everywhere, and thus the grapes are dried in the sun until they -almost become raisins, and the syrop quite inspissated, after that they -are pressed, and a little fine old wine and brandy is added. This wine -is extremely costly, as it is much used in the rearing and maturation of -young sherry wines. - -There is an excellent account of all the vines of Andalucia by Rojas -Clemente. This able naturalist disgraced himself by being a base toady -of the wretched minion Godoy, and by French partisanship, which is high -treason to his own country. Accordingly, to please his masters, he -"contrasts the frank generosity, the vivacity, and genial cordiality of -the Xerezanos, with the sombre stupidity and ferocious egotism of the -insolent people on the banks of the Thames," by whom he had just before -been most hospitably welcomed. This worthy gentleman wrote, however, -within sight of Trafalgar, and while a certain untoward event was -rankling in his and his estimable patron's bosom. - -[Sidenote: THE VINTAGE.] - -The vines are cultivated with the greatest care, and demand unceasing -attention, from the first planting to their final decay. They generally -fruit about the fifth year, and continue in full and excellent bearing -for about thirty-five years more, when the produce begins to diminish -both in quantity and in quality. The best wines are produced from the -slowest ripening grapes; the vines are delicate, have a true bacchic -hydrophobia, or antipathy to water--are easily affected and injured by -bad smells and rank weeds. The vine-dresser enjoys little rest; at one -time the soil must be trenched and kept clean, then the vines must be -pruned, and tied to the stakes, to which they are trained very low; anon -insects must be destroyed; and at last the fruit has to be gathered and -crushed. It is a life of constant care, labour, and expense. - -The highest qualities of flavour depend on the grape and soil, and as -the favoured spots are limited, and the struggle and competition for -their acquisition great, the prices paid are always high, and -occasionally extravagantly so; the proprietors of vineyards are very -numerous, and the surface is split and partitioned into infinite petty -ownerships. Even the _Pago de Macharnudo_, the finest of all, the Clos -de Vougeot, the Johannisberg of Xerez, is much subdivided; it consists -of 1200 _aranzadas_, one of which may be taken as equivalent to our -acre, being, however, that quantity of land which can be ploughed with a -pair of bullocks in a day--of these 1200, 460 belong to the great house -of Pedro Domecq, and their mean produce may be taken at 1895 butts, of -which some 350 only will run very fine. Among the next most renowned -_pagos_, or wine districts, may be cited Carrascal, Los Tercios, -Barbiana _alta y baja_, Aina, San Julian, Mochiele, Carraola, Cruz del -Husillo, which lie in the immediate _termino_ or boundary of Xerez; -their produce always ensures high prices in the market. Many of these -vineyards are fenced with canes, the _arundo donax_, or with aloes, -whose stiff-pointed leaves form palisadoes that would defy a regiment of -dragoons, and are called by the natives the devil's toothpicks; in -addition, the _capataz del campo_, or country bailiff, is provided, like -a keeper, with large and ferocious dogs, who would tear an intruder to -pieces. The fruit when nearly mature is especially watched; for, -according to the proverb, it requires much vigilance to take care of -ripe grapes and maidens--_Nias y vinos, son mal de guardar_. - -[Sidenote: THE VINTAGE.] - -When the period of the vintage arrives, the cares of the proprietors and -the labours of the cultivators and makers increase. The bunches are -picked and spread out for some days on mattings; the unripe grapes, -which have less substance and spirit, are separated, and are exposed -longer to the sun, by which they improve. If the berries be over-ripe, -then the saccharine prevails, and there is a deficiency of tartaric -acid. The selected grapes are sprinkled with lime, by which the watery -and acetous particles are absorbed and corrected. A nice hand is -requisite in this powdering, which, by the way, is an ancient African -custom, in order to avoid the imputation of Falstaff, "There is lime in -this sack." The treading out the fruit is generally done by night, -because it is then cooler, and in order to avoid as much as possible the -plague of wasps, by whom the half-naked operators are liable to be -stung. On the larger vineyards there is generally a jumble of buildings, -which contain every requisite for making the wine, as well as cellars -into which the must or pressed grape juice is left to pass the stages of -fermentation, and where it remains until the following spring before it -is removed from the lees. "When the new wine is racked off, all the -produce of the same vineyard and vintage is housed together, and called -a _partido_ or lot. - -[Sidenote: MANUFACTURE OF SHERRY.] - -The vintage, which is the all-absorbing, all-engrossing moment of the -year, occupies about a fortnight, and is earlier in the Rota districts -than at Xerez, where it commences about the 20th of September; into -these brief moments the hearts, bodies, and souls of men are condensed; -even Venus, the queen of neighbouring Cadiz, and who during the other -three hundred and fifty-one days of the year, allies herself willingly -to Bacchus, is now forgotten. Nobles and commoners, merchants and -priests, talk of nothing but wine, which then and there monopolises man, -and is to Xerez what the water is at Grand Cairo, where the rising of -the Nile is at once a pleasure and a profit. When the vintage is -concluded, the custom-house officers take note in their respective -districts of the quantity produced on each vineyard, to whom it is sold, -and where it is taken to; nor can it be resold or removed afterwards, -without a permit and a charge of a four per cent. ad valorem duty. It -need not be said, that in a land where public officers are inadequately -paid, where official honesty and principle are all but unknown, a bribe -is all-sufficient; false returns are regularly made, and every trick -resorted to to facilitate trade, and transfer revenue into the pockets -of the collectors, rather than into the Queen's treasury; thus are -defeated the vexations and extortions of commerce-hampering excise, to -hate which seems to be a second nature in man all over the world. -Commissioners excepted. In the first year a decided difference takes -place in these new wines; some become _bastos_ or coarse, others sour -and others good; those only which exhibit great delicacy, body, and -flavour are called _finos_ or fine; in a lot of one hundred butts, -rarely more than from ten to fifteen can be calculated as deserving this -epithet, and it is to the high price paid for these by the -_almacenistas_ or storers of wines, that the grower looks for -remuneration; the qualities of the wines usually produced in each -particular _termino_ or district do not vary much; they have their -regular character and prices among the trade, by whom they are perfectly -understood and exactly valued. - -These singular changes in the juice of grapes grown on the same -vineyard, invariably take place, although no satisfactory reason has -been yet assigned; the chemical processes of nature have hitherto defied -the investigations of man, and in nothing more than in the elaboration -of that lusus natur vel Bacchi, that variety of flavour which goes by -the name of _amontillado_; this has been given to it from its -resemblance in dryness and quality to the wines of _Montilla_, near -Cordova: the latter, be it observed, are scarcely known in England at -all, nor indeed in Spain, except in their own immediate neighbourhood, -where they supply the local consumption. This _amontillado_, when the -genuine production of nature, is very valuable, as it is used in -correcting young Sherry wines, which are running over sweet; it is very -scarce, since out of a hundred butts of _vino fino_, not more than five -will possess its properties. Much of the wine which is sold in London as -pure _amontillado_, is a fictitious preparation, and made up for the -British market. - -[Sidenote: THE CAPATAZ.] - -All sherries are a matured mixture of grape juice; champagne itself is a -manufactured wine; nor does it much matter, provided a palateable and -wholesome beverage be produced. In all the leading and respectable -houses, the wine is prepared from grapes grown in the district, nor is -there the slightest mystery made in explaining the artificial processes -which are adopted; the rearing, educating and finishing, as it were, of -these wines, is a work of many years, and is generally intrusted to the -_Capataz_, the chief butler, or head man, who very often becomes the -real master; this important personage is seldom raised in Andalucia, or -in any wine-growing districts of Spain; he generally is by birth an -Asturian, or a native of the mountains contiguous to Santander, from -whence the chandlers and grocers, hence called _Los Montaeses_, are -supplied throughout the Peninsula. These Highlanders are celebrated for -the length of their pedigrees, and the tasting properties of their -tongues; we have more than once in Estremadura and Leon fallen in with -flights of these ragged gentry, wending, Scotch-like, to the south in -search of fortune; few had shoes or shirts, yet almost every one carried -his family parchment in a tin case, wherein his descent from -Tubal--respectable, although doubtful--was proven to be as evident as -the sun is at noon day. - -These gentlemen of good birth and better taste seldom smoke, as the -narcotic stupifying weed deadens papillatory delicacy. Now as few -wine-masters in Spain would give up the cigar to gain millions, the -_Capataz_ soon becomes the sole possessor of the secrets of the cellar; -and as no merchants possess vineyards of their own sufficient to supply -their demand, the purchases of new wines must be made by this -confidential servant, who is thus enabled to cheat both the grower and -his own employer, since he will only buy of those who give him the -largest commission. Many contrive by these long and faithful services to -amass great wealth; thus Juan Sanchez, the _Capataz_ of the late Petro -Domecq, died recently worth 300,000_l._ Towards his latter end, having -been visited by his confessor and some qualms of conscience, he -bequeathed his fortune to pious and charitable uses, but the bulk was -forthwith secured by his attorneys and priests, whose charity began at -home. - -[Sidenote: BODEGAS OF XEREZ.] - -As the chancellor is the keeper of the Queen's conscience, so the -_Capataz_ is the keeper of the _bodega_ or the wine-store, which is very -peculiar, and the grand lion of Xerez. The rich and populous town, when -seen from afar, rising in its vine-clad knoll, is characterised by these -huge erections, that look like the pent-houses under which men-of-war -are built at Chatham. These temples of Bacchus resemble cathedrals in -size and loftiness, and their divisions, like Spanish chapels, bear the -names of the saints to whom they are dedicated, and few tutelar deities -have more numerous or more devout worshippers; but Romanism mixes itself -up in everything of Spain, and fixes its mark alike on salt-pans and -mine-shafts, as on boats and _bodegas_. These huge repositories are all -above ground, and are the antithesis of our under-ground cellars. The -wines of Xerez are thus found to ripen both better and quicker, as one -year in a _bodega_ inspires them with more life than do ten years of -burial. As these wines are more capricious in the development of their -character than young ladies at a boarding-school, the greatest care is -taken in the selection of eligible and healthy situations for their -education; the neighbourhood of all offensive drains or effluvia is -carefully avoided, since these nuisances are sure to affect the -delicately organised fluids, although they fail to damage the noses of -those to whose charge they are committed; and strange to say, in this -land of contradictions, Cologne itself is scarcely more renowned for its -twenty and odd bad smells ascertained by Coleridge, than is this same -tortuous, dirty, and old-fashioned Xerez. Here, as in the Rhenish city, -all the sweets are bottled up for exportation, all the stinks kept for -home consumption. The new _bodegas_ are consequently erected in the -newer portions of the town, in dry and open places; connected with them -are offices and workshops, in which everything bearing upon the wine -trade is manufactured, even to the barrels that are made of American oak -staves. The interior of the _bodega_ is kept deliciously cool; the glare -outside is carefully excluded, while a free circulation of air is -admitted; an even temperature is very essential, and one at an average -of 60 degrees is the best of all. There are more than a thousand -_bodegas_ registered at the custom house for the Xerez district; the -largest only belong to the first-rate firms, and mostly to Europeans, -that is, to English and Frenchmen. A heavy capital is required, much -patience and forethought, qualities which do not grow on these or on any -hills of Spain. This necessity will be better understood when it is -said, that some of these stores contain from one to four thousand butts, -and that few really fine sherries are sent out of them until ten or -twelve years old. Supposing, therefore, that each butt averages in value -only 25_l._, it is evident how much time and investment of wealth is -necessary. - -[Sidenote: WINE-MIXING.] - -Sherry wine, when mature and perfect, is made up from many butts. The -"entire," indeed, is the result of Xerez grapes, but of many different -ages, vintages, and varieties of flavour. The contents of one barrel -serve to correct another until the proposed standard aggregate is -produced; and to such a certainty has this uniform admixture been -reduced, that houses are enabled to supply for any number of years -exactly that particular colour, flavour, body, &c., which particular -customers demand. This wine improves very much with age, gets softer and -more aromatic, and gains both body and aroma, in which its young wines -are deficient. Indeed, so great is the change in all respects, that one -scarcely can believe them ever to have been the same: the baby differs -not more from the man, nor the oak from the acorn. - -That _Capataz_ has attained the object of his fondest wishes, who has -observed in his compositions the poetical principles of Horace, the -_callida junctura_, the _omne tulit punctum qui miscuit utile dulci_; -this happy and skilful junction of the sweet and solid, should unite -fulness of body, an oily, nutty flavour and _bouquet_, dryness, absence -from acidity, strength, durability, and spirituosity. Very little brandy -is necessary, as the vivifying power of the unstinted sun of Andalucia -imparts sufficient alcohol, which ranges from 20 to 23 per cent. in fine -sherries, and only reaches about 12 in clarets and champagnes. Fine pure -sherry is of a rich brown colour, but in order to flatter the -conventional tastes of some English, "pale old sherry" must be had, and -colour is chemically discharged at the expense of delicate aroma. -Another absurd deference to British prejudice, is the sending sherries -to the East Indies, because such a trip is found sometimes to benefit -the wines of Madeira. This is not only expensive but positively -injurious to the juice of Xerez, as the wine returns diminished in -quantity, turbid, sharp, and deteriorated in flavour, while from the -constant fermentation it becomes thinner in body and more spirituous. -The real secret of procuring good sherry is to pay the best price for it -at the best house, and then to keep the purchase for many years in a -good cellar before it is drunk. - -[Sidenote: WINE IN CASK.] - -To return to the _Capataz_. This head master passes this life of -probation in tasting. He goes the regular round of his butts, -ascertaining the qualities, merits, and demerits of each pupil, which he -notes by certain marks or hieroglyphics. He corrects faults as he goes -along, making a memorandum also of the date and remedy applied, and thus -at his next visit he is enabled to report good progress, or lament the -contrary. The new wines, after the fermentation is past, are commonly -enriched with an _arrope_, or sort of syrup, which is found very much to -encourage them. There are extensive manufactories of this cordial at -San Lucar, and wherever the _arenas_, or sandy soil, prevails. The must, -or new grape juice, before fermentation has commenced, is boiled slowly -down to the fifth of its bulk. It must simmer, and requires great care -in the skimming and not being burnt. Of this, when dissolved, the _vino -de color_, the _madre vino_, or mother wine, is made, by which the -younger ones are nourished as by mother's milk. When old, this balsamic -ingredient becomes strong, perfumed as an essence, and very precious, -and is worth from three to five hundred guineas a butt; indeed it -scarcely ever will be sold at all. All the principal _bodegas_ have -certain huge and time-honoured casks which contain this divine ichor, -which inspires ordinary wines with generous and heroic virtues; hence -possibly their dedication of their tuns not to saints and saintesses, -but to Wellingtons and Nelsons. It is from these reservoirs that -distinguished visitors are allowed just a sip. Such a compliment was -paid to Ferdinand VII. by Pedro Domecq, and the cask to this day bears -the royal name of its assayer. Whatever quantity is taken out of one of -these for the benefit of younger wines, is replaced by a similar -quantity drawn from the next oldest cask in the cellar. - -[Sidenote: TASTING WINE.] - -After a year or two trial of the new wines, it is ascertained how they -will eventually turn out; if they go wrong, they are expelled from the -seminary, and shipped off to the leathern-tongued consumers of Hamburgh -or Quebec, at about 15_l._ per butt. All the various forms, stages, and -steps of education are readily explained in the great establishments, -among which the first are those of Domecq and John David Gordon, and -nothing can exceed the cordial hospitality of these princely merchants; -whoever comes provided with a letter of introduction is carried off -bodily, bags, baggage, and all, to their houses, which, considering the -iniquity of Xerezan inns, is a satisfactory move. Then and there the -guest is initiated into the secrets of trade, and is handed over to the -_Capataz_, who delivers an explanatory lecture on vinology, which is -illustrated, like those of Faraday, by experiments: tasting sherry at -Xerez has, as Seor Clemente would say, very little in common with the -commonplace customs of the London Docks. Here the swarthy professor, -dressed somewhat like Figaro in the Barber of Seville, is followed by -sundry jacketed and sandalled Ganymedes, who bear glasses on waiters; -the lecturer is armed with a long stick, to the end of which is tied a -bit of hollow cane, which he dips into each butt; the subject is begun -at the beginning, and each step in advance is explained to the listening -party with the gravity of a judicious foreman of a jury: the sample is -handed round and tasted by all, who, if they are wise, will follow the -example of their leader (on whom wine has no more effect than on a -glass), by never swallowing the sips, but only permitting the tongue to -agitate it in the mouth, until the exact flavour is mastered; every cask -is tried, from the young wine to the middle-aged, from the mature to the -golden ancient. Those who are not stupefied by the fumes, cannot fail to -come out vastly edified. The student should hold hard during the first -trials, for the best wine is reserved until the last. He ascends, if he -does not tumble off, a vinous ladder of excellence. It would be better -to reverse the order of the course, and commence with the finest sorts -while the palate is fresh and the judgment unclouded. The thirster after -knowledge must not drink too deeply now, but remember the second ordeal -to which he will afterwards be exposed at the hospitable table of the -proprietor, whose joy and pride is to produce fine wine and plenty of -it, when his friends meet around his mahogany. - -What a grateful offering is then made to the jovial god, by whom the -merchant lives, and by whom the deity is now set from his glassy prison -free! What a drawing of popping corks, half consumed by time!--what a -brushing away of venerable cobwebs from flasks binned apart while George -the Third was king! The delight of the worthy Amphitryon on producing a -fresh bottle, exceeds that of a prolific mother when she blesses her -husband with a new baby. He handles the darling decanter, as if he -dearly loved the contents, which indeed are of his own making; how the -clean glasses are held up to the light to see the bright transparent -liquid sparkle and phosphoresce within; how the intelligent nose is -passed slowly over the mantling surface, redolent with fragrancy; how -the climax of rapture is reached when the god-like nectar is raised to -the blushing lips! - -[Sidenote: PRICES OF SHERRY.] - -The wine suffices in itself for sensual gratification and for -intellectual conversation: all the guests have an opinion; what -gentleman, indeed, cannot judge on a horse or a bottle? When -differences arise, as they will in matters of taste, and where bottles -circulate freely, the master-host _decides_-- - - "Tells all the names, lays down the law, - Que a est bon; ah, gotez a." - -There is to him a combination of pleasure and profit in these genial -banquets, these noctes coenque Deum. Many a good connection is thus -formed, when an English gentleman, who now, perhaps for the first time, -tastes pure and genuine sherry. A good dinner naturally promotes good -humour with mankind in general, and with the donor in particular. A -given quantity of the present god opens both heart and purse-strings, -until the tongue on which the magic flavour lingers, murmurs gratefully -out, "Send me a butt of _amantillado pasado_, and another of _seco -reanejo_, and draw for the cash at sight." - -An important point will now arise, what is the price? That ever is the -question and the rub. Pure genuine sherry, from ten to twelve years old, -is worth from 50 to 80 guineas per butt, in the _bodega_, and when -freight, insurance, duty, and charges are added, will stand the importer -from 100 to 130 guineas in his cellar. A butt will run from 108 to 112 -gallons, and the duty is 5_s._ 6_d._ per gallon. Such a butt will bottle -about 52 dozen. The reader will now appreciate the bargains of those -"pale" and "golden sherries" advertised in the English newspapers at -36_s._ the dozen, bottles included. They are _maris expers_, although -much indebted to French brandy, Sicilian Marsala, Cape wine, Devonshire -cider, and Thames water. - -[Sidenote: ADULTERATION OF WINES.] - -The growth of wine amounts to some 400,000 or 500,000 _arrobas_ -annually. The arroba is a Moorish name, and a dry measure, although used -for liquids; it contains a quarter of a hundredweight; 30 arrobas go to -a _bota_, or butt, of which from 8000 to 10,000 of really fine are -annually exported: but the quantities of so-called sherries, "neat as -imported," in the manufacture of which San Lucar is fully occupied, is -prodigious, and is increasing every year. To give an idea of the extent -of the growing traffic, in 1842 25,096 butts were exported from these -districts, and 29,313 in 1843; while in 1845 there were exported 18,135 -butts from Xerez alone, and 14,037 from the Puerto, making the enormous -aggregate of 32,172 butts. Now as the vineyards remain precisely the -same, probably some portion of these additional barrels may not be quite -the genuine produce of the Xerez grape: in truth, the ruin of sherry -wines has commenced, from the numbers of second-rate houses that have -sprung up, which look to quantity, not quality. Many thousand butts of -bad Niebla wine are thus palmed off on the enlightened British public -after being well brandied and doctored; thus a conventional notion of -sherry is formed, to the ruin of the real thing; for even respectable -houses are forced to fabricate their wines so as to suit the depraved -taste of their consumers, as is done with pure clarets at Bordeaux, -which are charged with Hermitages and Benicarl. Thus delicate -idiosyncratic flavour is lost, while headache and dyspepsia are -imported; but there is a fashion in wines as in physicians. Formerly -Madeira was the vinous panacea, until the increased demand induced -disreputable traders to deteriorate the article, which in the reaction -became dishonoured. Then sherry was resorted to as a more honest and -wholesome beverage. Now its period of decline is hastening from the same -causes, and the average produce is becoming inferior, to end in -disrepute, and possibly in a return to the wines of Madeira, whose -makers have learnt a lesson in the stern school of adversity. - -[Sidenote: MANZANILLA.] - -Be that as it may, the people at large of Spain are scarcely acquainted -with the taste of sherry wine, beyond the immediate vicinity in which it -is made; and more of it is swallowed at Gibraltar at the messes, than in -either Madrid, Toledo, or Salamanca. Sherry is a foreign wine, and made -and drunk by foreigners; nor do the generality of Spaniards like its -strong flavour, and still less its high price, although some now affect -its use, because, from its great vogue in England, it argues -civilization to adopt it. This use obtains only in the capital and -richer seaports; thus at inland Granada, not 150 miles from Xerez, -sherry would hardly be to be had, were it not for the demand created by -our travelling countrymen, and even then it is sold per bottle, and as a -liqueur. At Seville, which is quite close to Xerez, in the best houses, -one glass only is handed round, just as only one glass of Greek wine was -in the house of the father of even Lucullus among the ancient Romans, or -as among the modern ones is still done with Malaga or Vino de Cypro; -this single glass is drunk as a _chasse_, and being considered to aid -digestion, is called the _golpe medico_, the coup de mdecin; it is -equivalent, in that hot country, to the thimbleful of Curaoa or Cognac, -by which coffee is wound up in colder England and France. - -In Andalucia it was no less easy for the Moor to encourage the use of -water as a beverage, than to prohibit that of wine, which, if endued -with strength, which sherry is, must destroy health when taken largely -and habitually, as is occasionally found out at Gibraltar. Hence the -natives of Xerez themselves infinitely prefer a light wine called -Manzanilla, which is made near San Lucar, and is at once much weaker and -cheaper than sherry. The grape from whence it is produced grows on a -poor and sandy soil. The vintage is very early, as the fruit is gathered -before it is quite ripe. The wine is of a delicate pale straw colour, -and is extremely wholesome; it strengthens the stomach, without heating -or inebriating, like sherry. All classes are passionately fond of it, -since the want of alcohol enables them to drink more of it than of -stronger beverages, while the dry quality acts as a tonic during the -relaxing heats. It may be compared to the ancient Lesbian, which Horace -quaffed so plentifully in the cool shade, and then described as never -doing harm. The men employed in the sherry wine vaults, and who have -therefore that drink at their command, seldom touch it, but invariably, -when their work is done, go to the neighbouring shop to refresh -themselves with a glass of "innocent" Manzanilla. Among their betters, -clubs are formed solely to drink it, and with iced water and a cigar it -transports the consumer into a Moslem's dream of paradise. It tastes -better from the cask than out of the bottle, and improves as the cask -gets low. - -[Sidenote: THE ALPISTERA.] - -The origin of the name has been disputed; some who prefer sound to sense -derive it from _Manzana_, an apple, which had it been cider might have -passed; others connect it with the distant town of _Mansanilla_ on the -opposite side of the river, where it is neither made nor drunk. The real -etymology is to be found in its striking resemblance to the bitter -flavour of the flowers of camomile (_manzanilla_), which are used by our -doctors to make a medicinal tea, and by those of Spain for fomentations. -This flavour in the wine is so marked as to be at first quite -disagreeable to strangers. If its eulogistic consumers are to be -believed, the wine surpasses the tea in hygian qualities: none, say -they, who drink it are ever troubled with gravel, stone, or gout. -Certainly, it is eminently free from acidity. The very best Manzanilla -is to be had in London of Messrs. Gorman, No. 16, Mark Lane. Since -"_Drink it, ye dyspeptics_," was enjoined last year in the 'Handbook,' -the importation of this wine to England, which previously did not exceed -ten butts, has in twelve short months overpassed two hundred; a -compliment delicate as it is practical, which is acknowledged by the -author--a drinker thereof--with most profound gratitude. - -By the way, the real thing to eat with Manzanilla is the _alpistera_. -Make it thus:--To one pound of fine flour (mind that it is dry) add half -a pound of double-refined, well-sifted, pounded white sugar, the yolks -and whites of four very fresh eggs, well beaten together; work the -mixture up into a paste; roll it out very thin; divide it into squares -about half the size of this page; cut it into strips, so that the paste -should look like a hand with fingers; then dislocate the strips, and dip -them in hot melted fine lard, until of a delicate pale brown; the more -the strips are curled up and twisted the better; the _alpistera_ should -look like bunches of ribbons; powder them over with fine white sugar. -They are then as pretty as nice. It is not easy to make them well; but -the gods grant no excellence to mortals without much labour and thought. -So Venus the goddess of grace was allied to hard-working Vulcan, who -toiled and pondered at his fire, as every cook who has an aspiring soul -has ever done. - -[Sidenote: SPANISH INNS.] - - - - -CHAPTER XV. - - Spanish Inns: Why so Indifferent--The Fonda--Modern - Improvements--The Posada--Spanish Innkeepers--The Venta: Arrival in - it--Arrangement--Garlic--Dinner--Evening--Night--Bill--Identity - with the Inns of the Ancients. - - -[Sidenote: INNS--WHY SO INDIFFERENT.] - -Having thus, and we hope satisfactorily, discussed the eatables and -drinkables of Spain, attention must naturally be next directed to those -houses on the roads and in the towns, where these comforts to the hungry -and weary public are to be had, or are not to be had, as sometimes will -happen in this land of "the unexpected;" the Peninsular inns, with few -exceptions, have long been divided into the bad, the worse, and the -worst; and as the latter are still the most numerous and national, as -well as the worst, they will be gone into the last. In few countries -will the rambler agree oftener with dear Dr. Johnson's speech to his -squire Boswell, "Sir, there is nothing which has been contrived by man, -by which so much happiness is produced, as by a good tavern." Spain -offers many negative arguments of the truth of our great moralist and -eater's reflection; the inns in general are fuller of entertainment for -the mind than the body, and even when the newest, and the best in the -country, are indifferent if compared to those which Englishmen are -accustomed to at home, and have created on those high roads of the -Continent, which they most frequent. Here few gentlemen will say with -Falstaff, "Shall I not take mine ease in mine inn?" Badness of roads and -discomforts of _ventas_ cannot well escape the notice of those who -travel on horseback and slowly, since they must dwell on and in them; -whereas a rail whisks the passenger past such nuisances, with comet-like -rapidity, and all things that are soon out of sight are quicker out of -mind; nevertheless, let no aspiring writer be deterred from quitting the -highways for the byeways of the Peninsula. "There is, Sir," as Johnson -again said to Boswell, "a good deal of Spain that has not been -perambulated. I would have you go thither; a man of inferior talents to -yours, may furnish us with useful observations on that country." - -[Sidenote: CONTINENTAL INNS.] - -Why the public accommodations should be second-rate is soon explained. -Nature and the natives have long combined to isolate still more their -Peninsula, which already is moated round by the unsocial sea, and is -barricadoed by almost impassable mountains. The Inquisition all but -reduced Spanish man to the condition of a monk in a wall-enclosed -convent, by standing sentinel, and keeping watch and ward against the -foreigner and his perilous novelties;[7] Spain thus unvisited and -unvisiting, became arranged for Spaniards only, and has scarcely -required conveniences which are more suited to the curious wants of -other Europeans and strangers who here are neither liked, wished for, -nor even thought of, by natives who seldom travel except on compulsion -and never for amusement; why indeed should they? since Spain is -paradise, and each man's own parish in his eyes is the central spot of -its glory. When the noble and rich visited the provinces, they were -lodged in their own or in their friends' houses, just as the clergy and -monks were received into convents. The great bulk of the Peninsular -family, not being overburdened with cash or fastidiousness, have long -been and are inured to infinite inconveniences and negations; they live -at home in an abundance of privations, and expect when abroad to be -worse off; and they well know that comfort never lodges at a Spanish -inn; as in the East, they cannot conceive that any travelling should be -unattended by hardships, which they endure with Oriental resignation, as -_cosas de Espaa_, or things of Spain which have always been so, and for -which there is no remedy but patient resignation; the bliss of -ignorance, and the not knowing of anything better, is everywhere the -grand secret of absence of discontent; while to those whose every-day -life is a feast, every thing that does not come up to their conventional -ideas becomes a failure, but to those whose daily bread is dry and -scanty, whose drink is water, every thing beyond prison-fare appears to -be luxury. - -In Spain there has been little demand for those accommodations which -have been introduced on the continent by our nomade countrymen, who -carry their tea, towels, carpets, comforts and civilization with them; -to travel at all for mere pleasure is quite a modern invention, and -being an expensive affair, is the most indulged in by the English, -because they can best afford it, but as Spain lies out of their -hackneyed routes, the inns still retain much of the same state of -primitive dirt and discomfort, which most of those on the continent -presented, until repolished by our hints and guineas. - -[Sidenote: THE FONDA.] - -In the Peninsula, where intellect does not post in a Britannic britzcka -and four, the inns, and especially those of the country and inferior -order, continue much as they were in the time of the Romans, and -probably long before them; nay those in the very vicinity of Madrid, -"the only court on earth," are as classically wretched, as the hostelry -at Aricia, near the Eternal City, was in the days of Horace. The Spanish -inns, indeed, on the bye-roads and remoter districts, are such as render -it almost unadvisable for any English lady to venture to face them, -unless predetermined to go through roughing-it, in a way of which none -who have only travelled in England can form the remotest idea: at the -same time they may be and have been endured by even the sick and -delicate. To youth, and to all men in enjoyment of good health, temper, -patience, and the blessing of foresight, neither a dinner nor a bed will -ever be wanting, to both of which hunger and fatigue will give a zest -beyond the reach of art; and fortunately for travellers, all the -Continent over, and particularly in Spain, bread and salt, as in the -days of Horace, will be found to appease the wayfarer's barking stomach, -nor will he who after that sleeps soundly be bitten by fleas, "_quien -duerme bien, no le pican las pulgas_." The pleasures of travelling in -this wild land are cheaply purchased by these trifling inconveniences, -which may always be much lessened by _provision_ in brain and basket; -the expeditions team with incident, adventure, and novelty; every day -and evening present a comedy of real life, and offer means of obtaining -insight into human nature, and form in after-life a perpetual fund of -interesting recollections: all that was charming will be then -remembered, and the disagreeable, if not forgotten, will be disarmed of -its sting, nay, even as having been in a battle, will become a pleasant -thing to recollect and to talk, may be twaddle, about. Let not the -traveller expect to find too much; if he reckons on finding nothing he -will seldom be disappointed; so let him not look for five feet in a cat, -"_no busces cinco pies al gato_." Spain, as the East, is not to be -enjoyed by the over-fastidious in the fleshly comforts: there, those who -over analyze, who peep too much behind the culinary or domestic -curtains, must not expect to pass a tranquil existence. - -[Sidenote: THE FONDA.] - -First and foremost among these refuges for the destitute comes the -_fonda_, the hotel. This, as the name implies, is a foreign thing, and -was imported from Venice, which in its time was the Paris of Europe, the -leader of sensual civilization, and the sink of every lie and iniquity. -Its _fondacco_, in the same manner, served as a model for the Turkish -_fondack_. The _fonda_ is only to be found in the largest towns and -principal seaports, where the presence of foreigners creates a demand -and supports the establishment. To it frequently is attached a caf, or -"_botilleri_," a bottlery and a place for the sale of liqueurs, with a -"_neveria_," a snowery where ices and cakes are supplied. Men only, not -horses, are taken in at a _fonda_; but there is generally a keeper of a -stable or of a minor inn in the vicinity, to which the traveller's -animals are consigned. The _fonda_ is tolerably furnished in reference -to the common articles with which the sober unindulgent natives are -contented: the traveller in his comparisons must never forget that Spain -is not England, which too few ever can get out of their heads. Spain is -Spain, a truism which cannot be too often repeated; and in its being -Spain consists its originality, its raciness, its novelty, its -idiosyncrasy, its best charm and interest, although the natives do not -know it, and are every day, by a foolish aping of European civilization, -paring away attractions, and getting commonplace, unlike themselves, and -still more unlike their Gotho-Moro and most picturesque fathers and -mothers. Monks, as we said in our preface, are gone, mantillas are -going, the shadow of cotton _versus_ corn has already darkened the sunny -city of Figaro, and the end of all Spanish things is coming. _Ay! de mi -Espaa!_ - -Thus in Spain, and especially in the hotter provinces, it is heat and -not cold which is the enemy: what we call furniture--carpets, rugs, -curtains, and so forth--would be a positive nuisance, would keep out the -cool, and harbour plagues of vermin beyond endurance. The walls of the -apartments are frequently, though simply, whitewashed: the uneven brick -floors are covered in winter with a matting made of the "_esparto_," -rush, and called an "_estera_," as was done in our king's palaces in the -days of Elizabeth: a low iron or wooden truckle bedstead, with coarse -but clean sheets and clothes, a few hard chairs, perhaps a stiff-backed, -most uncomfortable sofa, and a rickety table or so, complete the scanty -inventory. The charges are moderate; about two dollars, or 8_s._ 6_d._, -per head a-day, includes lodging, breakfast, dinner, and supper. -Servants, if Spanish, are usually charged the half; English servants, -whom no wise person would take on the Continent, are nowhere more -useless, or greater incumbrances, than in this hungry, thirsty, tealess, -beerless, beefless land: they give more trouble, require more food and -attention, and are ten times more discontented than their masters, who -have poetry in their souls; an sthetic love of travel, for its own -sake, more than counterbalances with them the want of material gross -comforts, about which their pudding-headed four-full-meals-a-day -attendants are only thinking. Charges are higher at Madrid, and -Barcelona, a great commercial city, where the hotels are appointed more -European-like, in accommodation and prices. Those who remain any time in -a large town bargain with the innkeeper, or go into a boarding-house, -"_casa de pupilos_," or "_de huespedes_," where they have the best -opportunity of learning the Spanish language, and of obtaining an idea -of national manners and habits. This system is very common. The houses -may be known externally by a white paper ticket attached to the -_extremity_ of one of the windows or balconies. This position must be -noted; for if the paper be placed in the _middle_ of the balcony, the -signal means only that lodgings are here to be let. Their charges are -very reasonable. - -[Sidenote: CHANGES IN SPANISH INNS.] - -Since the death of Ferdinand VII. marvellous improvements have taken -place in some _fondas_. In the changes and chances of the multitudinous -revolutions, all parties ruled in their rotation, and then either killed -or banished their opponents. Thus royalists, liberals, patriots, -moderates, &c., each in their turn, have been expatriated; and as the -wheel of fortune and politics went round, many have returned to their -beloved Spain from bitter exile in France and England. These travellers, -in many cases, were sent abroad for the public good, since they were -thus enabled to discover that some things were better managed on the -other side of the water and Pyrenees. Then and there suspicion crossed -their minds, although they seldom will admit it to a foreigner, that -Spain was not altogether the richest, wisest, strongest, and first of -nations, but that she might take a hint or two in a few trifles, among -which perhaps the accommodations for man and beast might be included. -The ingress, again, of foreigners by the facilities offered to -travellers by the increased novelties of steamers, mails, and diligences -necessarily called for more waiters and inns. Every day, therefore, the -fermentation occasioned by the foreign leaven is going on; and if the -national _musto_, or grape-juice, be not over-drugged with French -brandy, something decent in smell and taste may yet be produced. - -[Sidenote: THE POSADA.] - -In the seaports and large towns on the Madrid roads the twilight of caf -and cuisine civilization is breaking from La belle France. Monastic -darkness is dispelled, and the age of convents is giving way to that of -kitchens, while the large spaces and ample accommodations of the -suppressed monasteries suggest an easy transition into "first-rate -establishments," in which the occupants will probably pay more and pray -less. News, indeed, have just arrived from Malaga, that certain -ultra-civilized hotels are actually rising, to be defrayed by companies -and engineered by English, who seem to be as essential in regulating -these novelties on the Continent as in the matters of railroads and -steamboats. Rooms are to be papered, brick floors to be exchanged for -boards, carpets to be laid down, fireplaces to be made, and bells are to -be hung, incredible as it may appear to all who remember Spain as it -was. They will ring the knell of nationality; and we shall be much -mistaken if the grim old Cid, when the first one is pulled at Burgos, -does not answer it himself by knocking the innovator down. Nay, more, -for wonders never cease; vague rumours are abroad that secret and -solitary closets are contemplated, in which, by some magical mechanism, -sudden waters are to gush forth; but this report, like others _vi_ -Madrid and Paris telegraph, requires confirmation. Assuredly, the spirit -of the Holy Inquisition, which still hovers over orthodox Spain, will -long ward off these English heresies, which are rejected as too bad even -by free-thinking France. - -[Sidenote: THE POSADA.] - -The genuine Spanish town inn is called the _posada_, as being meant to -mean, a house of _repose_ after the pains of travel. Strictly speaking, -the keeper is only bound to provide lodging, salt, and the power of -cooking whatever the traveller brings with him or can procure out of -doors; and in this it diners from the _fonda_, in which meats and drinks -are furnished. The _posada_ ought only to be compared to its type, the -_khan_ of the East, and never to the inn of Europe. If foreigners, and -especially Englishmen, would bear this in mind, they would save -themselves a great deal of time, trouble, and disappointment, and not -expose themselves by their loss of temper on the spot, or in their -note-books. No Spaniard is ever put out at meeting with neither -attention nor accommodation, although he maddens in a moment on other -occasions at the slightest personal affront, for his blood boils without -fire. He takes these things coolly, which colder-blooded foreigners -seldom do. The native, like the Oriental, does not expect to find -anything, and accordingly is never surprised at only getting what he -brings with him. His surprise is reserved for those rare occasions when -he finds anything actually ready, which he considers to be a godsend. As -most travellers carry their provisions with them, the uncertainty of -demand would prevent mine host from filling his larder with perishable -commodities; and formerly, owing to absurd local privileges, he very -often was not permitted to sell objects of consumption to travellers, -because the lords or proprietors of the town or village had set up other -shops, little monopolies of their own. These inconveniences sound worse -on paper than in practice; for whenever laws are decidedly opposed to -common sense and the public benefit, they are neutralized in practice; -the means to elude them are soon discovered, and the innkeeper, if he -has not the things by him himself, knows where to get them. On starting -next day a sum is charged for lodging, service, and dressing the food: -this is, called _el ruido de casa_, an indemnification to mine host for -the _noise_, the disturbance, that the traveller is supposed to have -created, which is the old Italian _incommodo de la casa_, the routing -and inconveniencing of the house; and no word can be better chosen to -express the varied and never-ceasing din of mules, muleteers, songs, -dancing, and laughing, the dust, the _row_, which Spaniards, men as well -as beasts, kick up. The English traveller, who will have to pay the most -in purse and sleep for his _noise_, will often be the only quiet person -in the house, and might claim indemnification for the injury done to his -acoustic organs, on the principle of the Turkish soldier who forces his -entertainer to pay him teeth-money, to compensate for the damage done to -his molars and incisors from masticating indifferent rations. - -[Sidenote: SPANISH INNKEEPERS.] - -Akin to the _posada_ is the "_parador_," a word probably derived from -Waradah, Arabic, "a halting-place;" it is a huge caravansary for the -reception of waggons, carts, and beasts of burden; these large -establishments are often placed outside the town to avoid the heavy -duties and vexatious examinations at the gates, where dues on all -articles of consumption are levied both for municipal and government -purposes. They are the old _sisa_, a word derived from the Hebrew -_Sisah_, to take a sixth part, and are now called _el derecho de -puertas_, the gate-due; and have always been as unpopular as the similar -_octroi_ of France; and as they are generally farmed out, they are -exacted from the peasantry with great severity and incivility. There is -perhaps no single grievance among the many, in the mistaken system of -Spanish political and fiscal economy, which tends to create and keep -alive, by its daily retail worry and often wholesale injustice, so great -a feeling of discontent and ill-will towards authority as this does; it -obstructs both commerce and travellers. The officers are, however, -seldom either strict or uncivil to the higher classes, and if -courteously addressed by the stranger, and told that he is an English -gentleman, the official _Cerberi_ open the gates and let him pass -unmolested, and still more if quieted by the Virgilian sop of a bribe. -The laws in Spain are indeed strict on paper, but those who administer -them, whenever it suits their private interest, that is ninety-nine -times out of a hundred, evade and defeat them; they obey the letter, -but do not perform the spirit, "_se obedece, pero no se cumple_;" -indeed, the lower classes of officials in particular are so inadequately -paid that they are compelled to eke out a livelihood by taking bribes -and little presents, which, as _Backshish_ in the East, may always be -offered, and will always be accepted, as a matter of compliment. The -_idea_ of a bribe must be concealed; it shocks their dignity, their -sense of honour, their "_pundonor_:" if, however, the money be given to -the head person as something for his people to drink, the delicate -attention is sacked by the chief, properly appreciated, and works its -due effect. - -[Sidenote: THE VENTA.] - -[Sidenote: THE VENTA.] - -Another term, almost equivalent to the "posada," is the "_meson_," which -is rather applicable to the inns of the rural and smaller towns, to the -"_hosterias_," than to those of the greater. The "_mesonero_," like the -Spanish "_ventera_," has a bad reputation. It is always as well to -stipulate something about prices beforehand. The proverb says, "_Por un -ladron, pierden ciento en el meson_"--"_Ventera hermosa, mal para la -bolsa_." "For every one who is robbed on the road, a hundred are in the -inn."--"The fairer the hostess, the fouler the reckoning." It is among -these innkeepers that the real and worst robbers of Spain are to be met -with, since these classes of worthies are everywhere only thinking how -much they can with decency overcharge in their bills. This is but fair, -for nobody would be an innkeeper if it were not for the profit. The -trade of inn-keeping is among those which are considered derogatory in -Spain, where so many Hindoo notions of caste, self-respect, purity of -blood, etc., exist. The harbouring strangers for gain is opposed to -every ancient and Oriental law of sacred hospitality. Now no Spaniard, -if he can help it, likes to degrade himself; this accounts for the -number of _fondas_ in towns being kept by Frenchmen, Italians, Catalans, -Biscayans, who are all _foreigners_ in the eye of the Castilian, and -disliked and held cheap; accordingly the inn-keeper in Don Quixote -protests that he is a _Christian_, although a _ventero_, nay, a genuine -old one--_Cristiano viejo rancio_; an old Christian being the common -term used to distinguish the genuine stock from those renegade Jews and -Moors who, rather than leave Spain, became _pseudo-Christians_ and -publicans. - -The country _Parador_, _Meson_, _Posada_, and _Venta_, call it how you -will, is the Roman stabulum, whose original intention was the housing of -cattle, while the accommodation of travellers was secondary, and so it -is in Spain to this day. The accommodation for the _beast_ is excellent; -cool roomy stables, ample mangers, a never-failing supply of fodder and -water, every comfort and luxury which the animal is capable of enjoying, -is ready on the spot; as regards _man_, it is just the reverse; he must -forage abroad for anything he may want. Only a small part of the barn is -allotted him, and then he is lodged among the brutes below, or among the -trusses and sacks of their food in the lofts above. He finds, in spite -of all this, that if he asks the owner what he has got, he will be told -that "there is everything," _hay de todo_, just as the rogue of a -_ventero_ informed Sancho Panza, that his empty larder contained all the -birds of the air, all the beasts of the earth, all the fishes of the -sea,--a Spanish magnificence of promise, which, when reduced to plain -English, too often means, as in that case, there is everything that you -have brought with you. This especially occurs in the _ventas_ of the -out-of-the-way and rarely-visited districts, which, however empty their -larders, are full of the spirit of Don Quixote to the brim; and the -everyday occurrences in them are so strange, and one's life is so -dramatic, that there is much difficulty in "realising," as the Americans -say; all is so like being in a dream or at a play, that one scarcely can -believe it to be actually taking place, and true. The man of the -note-book and the artist almost forget that there is nothing to eat; -meanwhile all this food for the mind and portfolio, all this local -colour and oddness, is lost upon your Spanish companion, if he be one of -the better classes: he is ashamed, where you are enchanted; he blushes -at the sad want of civilization, clean table-cloth, and beefsteaks, and -perhaps he is right: at all events, while you are raving about the -Goths, Moors, and this lifting up the curtain of two thousand years ago, -he is thinking of Mivart's; and when you quote Martial, he and the -ventero set you down as talking nonsense, and stark staring mad; nay, a -Spanish gentleman is often affronted, and suspects, from the -impossibility to him, that such things can be objects of real -admiration, that you are laughing at him in your sleeve, and considering -his country as Roman, African, or in a word, as un-European, which is -what he particularly dislikes and resents. - -These _ventas_ have from time immemorial been the subject of jests and -pleasantries to Spanish and foreign wits. Quevedo and Cervantes indulge -in endless diatribes against the roguery of the masters, and the misery -of the accommodations, while Gongora compares them to Noah's ark; and in -truth they do contain a variety of animals, from the big to the _small_, -and more than a pair, of more than one kind of the latter. The word -_venta_ is derived from the Latin _vendendo_, on the lucus a _non_ -lucendo principle of etymology, because provisions are _not_ sold in it -to travellers: old Covarrubias explains this mode of dealing as -consisting "especially in _selling_ a cat for a hare," which indeed was -and is so usual a venta practice, that _venderlo uno gato por liebre_ -has become in common Spanish parlance to be equivalent to _doing_ or -taking one in. The natives do not dislike the feline tribe when well -stewed: no cat was safe in the Alhambra, the galley-slaves bagged her in -a second. This _venta_ trait of Iberian gastronomy did not escape the -compiler of Gil Blas. - -[Sidenote: RECEPTION AT THE VENTA.] - -Be that as it may, a _venta_, strictly speaking, is an isolated country -inn, or house of reception on the road, and, if it be not one of -physical entertainment, it is at least one of moral, and accordingly -figures in prominent characters in all the personal narratives and -travels in Spain; it sharpens the wit of both hungry cooks and lively -authors, and ingenii largitor _venter_ is as old as Juvenal. Many of -these _ventas_ have been built on a large scale by the noblemen or -convent brethren to whom the village or adjoining territory belonged, -and some have at a distance quite the air of a gentleman's mansion. -Their walls, towers, and often elegant elevations glitter in the sun, -gay and promising, while all within is dark, dirty, and dilapidated, and -no better than a whitened sepulchre. The ground floor is a sort of -common room for men and beasts; the portion appropriated to the stables -is often arched over, and is very imperfectly lighted to keep it cool, -so that even by day the eye has some difficulty at first in making out -the details. The ranges of mangers are fixed round the walls, and the -harness of the different animals suspended on the pillars which support -the arches; a wide door, always open to the road, leads into this great -stable; a small space in the interior is generally left unincumbered, -into which the traveller enters on foot or on horseback; no one greets -him; no obsequious landlord, bustling waiter, or simpering chambermaid -takes any notice of his arrival: the _ventero_ sits in the sun smoking, -while his wife continues her uninterrupted _chasse_ for "small deer" in -the thick covers of her daughters' hair; nor does the guest pay much -attention to them; he proceeds to a gibbous water-jar, which is always -set up in a visible place, dips in with the ladle, or takes from the -shelf in the wall an _alcarraza_ of cold water; refreshes his baked -clay, refills it, and replaces it in its hole on the _taller_, which -resembles the decanter stands in a butler's pantry: he then proceeds, -unaided by ostler or boots, to select a stall for his beast,--unsaddles -and unloads, and in due time applies to the _ventero_ for fodder; the -difference of whose cool reception contrasts with the eager welcome -which awaits the traveller at bedtime: his arrival is a godsend to the -creeping tribe, who, like the _ventero_, have no regular larder; it is -not upstairs that he eats, but where _he_ is eaten like Polonius; the -walls are frequently stained with the marks of nocturnal combats, of -those internecine, truly Spanish _guerrillas_, which are waged without -an Elliot treaty, against enemies who, if not exterminated, murder -sleep. Were these fleas and French ladybirds unanimous, they would eat -up a Goliath; but fortunately, like other Spaniards, they never act -together, and are consequently conquered and slaughtered in detail; -hence the proverbial expression for great mortality among men, _mueren -como chinches_. - -[Sidenote: ARRANGEMENT OF THE VENTA.] - -Having first provided for the wants and comforts of his beast, for "the -master's eye fattens the horse," the traveller begins to think of -himself. One, and the greater side of the building, is destined to the -cattle, the other to their owners. Immediately opposite the public -entrance is the staircase that leads to the upper part of the building, -which is dedicated to the lodgment of fodder, fowls, vermin, and the -better class of travellers. The arrangement of the larger class of -_posadas_ and _ventas_ is laid out on the plan of a convent, and is well -calculated to lodge the greatest number of inmates in the smallest -space. The ingress and egress are facilitated by a long corridor, into -which the doors of the separate rooms open; these are called -"_cuartos_," whence our word "quarters" may be derived. There is seldom -any furniture in them; whatever is wanted, is or is not to be had of the -host from some lock-up store. A rigid puritan will be much distressed -for the lack of any artificial contrivance to hold water; the best -toilette on these occasions is a river's bank, but rivers in unvisited -interiors of the Castiles are often rarer even than water-basins. It is, -however, no use to draw nets in streams where there are no fish, nor to -expect to find conveniences which no one else ever asks for, and those -articles which seem to the foreigner to be of the commonest and daily -necessity, are unknown to the natives. However, as there are no carpets -to be spoiled, and cold water retains its properties although brought up -in a horse-bucket or in the cook's brass cauldron, ablutions, as the -albums express it, can be performed. What a school, after all, a _venta_ -is to the slaves of comforts, and without how many absolute essentials -do they manage to get on, and happily! What lessons are taught of -good-humoured patience, and that British sailor characteristic of making -the best of every occurrence, and deeming any port a good one in a -storm! Complaint is of no use; if you tell the landlord that his wine is -more sour than his vinegar, he will gravely reply, "_Seor_, that cannot -be, for both came out of the same cask." - -[Sidenote: VENTA GARLIC.] - -The portion of the ground-floor which is divided by the public entrance -from the stables, is dedicated to the kitchen and accommodation of the -travellers. The kitchen consists of a huge open range, generally on the -floor, the _ollas_ pots and culinary vessels being placed against the -fire arranged in circles, as described by Martial, "mult villica quem -coronat _oll_," who, as a good Spaniard would do to this day, after -thirty-five years' absence at Rome, writes, after his return to Spain, -to his friend Juvenal a full account of the real comforts that he once -more enjoys in his best-beloved patria, and which remind us of the -domestic details in the opening chapter of Don Quixote. These rows of -pipkins are kept up by round stones called "_sesos_," _brains_; above is -a high, wide chimney, which is armed with iron-work for suspending pots -of a large size; sometimes there are a few stoves of masonry, but more -frequently they are only the portable ones of the East. Around the -blackened walls are arranged pots and pipkins, gridirons and -frying-pans, which hang in rows, like tadpoles of all sizes, to -accommodate large or small parties, and the more the better; it is a -good sign, "_en casa llena, pronto se guisa cena_." Supper is then -sooner ready. - -The vicinity of the kitchen fire being the warmest spot, and the nearest -to the flesh-pot, is the _querencia_, the favourite "resort" of the -muleteers and travelling bagsmen, especially when cold, wet, and hungry. -The first come are the best served, says the proverb, in the matters of -soup and love. The earliest arrivals take the cosiest corner seats near -the fire, and secure the promptest non-attendance; for the better class -of guests there is sometimes a "private apartment," or the boudoir of -the _ventera_, which is made over to those who bring courtesy in their -mouths, and seem to have cash in their pockets; but these out-of-the way -curiosities of comfort do not always suit either author or artist, and -the social kitchen is preferable to solitary state. When a stranger -enters into it, if he salutes the company, "My lords and knights, do not -let your graces molest yourselves," or courteously indicates his desire -to treat them with respect, they will assuredly more than return the -compliment, and as good breeding is instinctive in the Spaniard, will -rise and insist on his taking the best and highest seat. Greater, -indeed, is their reward and satisfaction, if they discover that the -invited one can talk to them in their own lingo, and understands their -feelings by circulating _his_ cigars and wine _bota_ among them. - -At the side of the kitchen is a den of a room, into which the _ventero_ -keeps stowed away that stock of raw materials which forms the foundation -of the national cuisine, and in which garlic plays the first fiddle. The -very name, like that of monk, is enough to give offence to most English. -The evil consists, however, in the abuse, not in the use: from the -quantity eaten in all southern countries, where it is considered to be -fragrant, palatable, stomachic, and invigorating, we must assume that it -is suited by nature to local tastes and constitutions. Wherever any -particular herb grows, there lives the ass who is to eat it. "_Donde -crece la escoba, nace el asno que la roya._" Nor is garlic necessarily -either a poison or a source of baseness; for Henry IV. was no sooner -born, than his lips were rubbed with a clove of it by his grandfather, -after the revered old custom of Bearn. - -[Sidenote: DINNERS IN THE VENTA.] - -Bread, wine, and raw garlic, says the proverb, make a young man go -briskly, _Pan, vino, y ajo crudo, hacen andar al mozo agudo_. The better -classes turn up their noses at this odoriferous delicacy of the lower -classes, which was forbidden per statute by Alonzo XI. to his knights of -_La Banda_; and Don Quixote cautions Sancho Panza to be moderate in this -food, as not becoming to a governor: with even such personages however -it is a struggle, and one of the greatest sacrifices to the altar of -civilization and _les convenances_. To give Spanish garlic its due, it -must be said that, when administered by a judicious hand (for, like -prussic acid, all depends on the quantity), it is far milder than the -English. Spanish garlic and onions degenerate after three years' -planting when transplanted into England. They gain in pungency and -smell, just as English foxhounds, when drafted into Spain, lose their -strength and scent in the third generation. A clove of garlic is called -_un diente_, a tooth. Those who dislike the piquant vegetable must place -a sentinel over the cook of the venta while she is putting into her -cauldron the ingredients of his supper, or Avicenna will not save him; -for if God sends meats, and here they are a godsend, the evil one -provides the cooks of the venta, who certainly do bedevil many things. - -[Sidenote: RECEPTION AT THE VENTA.] - -Thrice happy, then, the man blessed with a provident servant who has -foraged on the road, and comes prepared with cates on which no Castilian -Canidia has breathed; while they are stewing he may, if he be a poet, -rival those sonnets made in Don Quixote on Sancho's ass, saddle-bags, -and sapient attention to their provend, "_su cuerda providencia_." The -odour and good tidings of the arrival of unusual delicacies soon spread -far and wide in the village, and generally attract the _Cura_, who loves -to hear something new, and does not dislike savoury food: the quality of -a Spaniard's temperance, like that of his mercy, is strained; his -poverty and not his will consents to more and other fastings than to -those enjoined by the church; hunger, the sauce of Saint Bernard, is one -of the few wants which is not experienced in a Spanish venta. Our -practice in one was to invite the curate, by begging him to bless the -pot-luck, to which he did ample justice, and more than repaid for its -visible diminution by good fellowship, local information, and the credit -reflected on the stranger in the eyes of the natives, by beholding him -thus patronised by their pastor and master. It is not to be denied in -the case of a stew of partridges, that deep sighs and exclamations _que -rico!_ "how rich!" escape the envious lips of his hungry flock when they -behold and whiff the odoriferous dish as it smokes past them like a -railway locomotive. - -Nor, it must be said, was all this hospitality on one side; it has more -than once befallen us in the rude _ventas_ of the Salamanca district, -that the silver-haired _cura_, whose living barely furnished the means -whereby to live, on hearing the simple fact that an Englishman was -arrived, has come down to offer his house and fare. Such, or indeed any -Spaniard's invitation is not to be accepted by those who value liberty -of action or time; seat rather the good man at the head of the _venta_ -board, and regale him with your best cigar, he will tell you of _El gran -Lor_--the great Lord--the Cid of England; he will recount the Duke's -victories, and dwell on the good faith, mercy, and justice of our brave -soldiers, as he will execrate the cruelty, rapacity, and perfidy of -those who fled before their gleaming bayonets. - -But, to return to first arrival at _ventas_, whether saddle-bag or -stomach be empty or full, the _ventero_ when you enter remains unmoved -and imperturbable, as if he never had had an appetite, or had lost it, -or had dined. Not that his genus ever are seen eating except when -invited to a guest's stew; air, the economical ration of the chameleon, -seems to be his habitual sustenance, and still more as to his wife and -womankind, who never will sit and eat even with the stranger; nay, in -humbler Spanish families they seem to dine with the cat in some corner, -and on scraps; this is a remnant of the Roman and Moorish treatment of -women as inferiors. Their lord and husband, the innkeeper, cannot -conceive why foreigners on their arrival are always so impatient, and is -equally surprised at their inordinate appetite; an English landlord's -first question "Will you not like to take some refreshment?" is the very -last which he would think of putting; sometimes by giving him a cigar, -by coaxing his wife, flattering his daughter, and caressing Maritornes, -you may get a couple of his _pollos_ or fowls, which run about the -ground-floor, picking up anything, and ready to be picked up themselves -and dressed. - -[Sidenote: VENTA EATING.] - -All the operations of cookery and eating, of killing, sousing in boiling -water, plucking, et ctera, all preparatory as well as final, go on in -this open kitchen. They are carried out by the ventera and her -daughters or maids, or by some crabbed, smoke-dried, shrivelled old -she-cat, that is, or at least is called, the "_tia_," "my aunt," and who -is the subject of the good-humoured remarks of the courteous and hungry -traveller before dinner, and of his full stomach jests afterwards. The -assembled parties crowd round the fire, watching and assisting each at -their own savoury messes, "_Un ojo la sarten, y otro la gata_"--"One -eye to the pan, the other to the real cat," whose very existence in a -_venta_, and among the pots, is a miracle; by the way, the naturalist -will observe that their ears and tails are almost always cropped closely -to the stumps. All and each of the travellers, when their respective -stews are ready, form clusters and groups round the frying-pan, which is -moved from the fire hot and smoking, and placed on a low table or block -of wood before them, or the unctuous contents are emptied into a huge -earthen reddish dish, which in form and colour is the precise -_paropsis_, the food platter, described by Martial and by other ancient -authors. Chairs are a luxury; the lower classes sit on the ground as in -the East, or on low stools, and fall to in a most Oriental manner, with -an un-European ignorance of forks;[8] for which they substitute a short -wooden or horn spoon, or dip their bread into the dish, or fish up -morsels with their long pointed knives. They eat copiously, but with -gravity--with appetite, but without greediness; for none of any nation, -as a mass, are better bred or mannered than the lower classes of -Spaniards. - -[Sidenote: VENTA EATING.] - -They are very pressing in their invitations whenever any eating is going -on. No Spaniard or Spaniards, however humble their class or fare, ever -allow any one to come near or pass them when eating, without inviting -him to partake. "_Guste usted comer?_" "Will your grace be pleased to -dine?" No traveller should ever omit to go through this courtesy -whenever any Spaniards, high or low, approach him when at any meal, -especially if taking it out of doors, which often happens in these -journeyings; nor is it altogether an empty form; all classes consider it -a compliment if a stranger, and especially an Englishman, will -condescend to share their dinner. In the smaller towns, those invited by -English will often partake, even the better classes, and who have -already dined; they think it civil to accept, and rude to refuse the -invitation, and have no objection to eating any given _good_ thing, -which is the exception to their ordinary frugal habits: all this is -quite Arabian. The Spaniards seldom accept the invitation at once; they -expect to be urged by an obsequious host, in order to appear to do a -gentle violence to their stomachs by eating to oblige _him_. The angels -declined Lot's offered hospitalities until they were "pressed -_greatly_." Travellers in Spain must not forget this still existing -Oriental trait; for if they do not greatly press their offer, they are -understood as meaning it to be a mere empty compliment. We have known -Spaniards who have called with an intention of staying dinner, go away, -because this ceremony was not gone through according to their -punctilious notions, to which our off-hand manners are diametrically -opposed. Hospitality in a hungry inn-less land becomes, as in the East, -a sacred duty; if a man eats all the provender by himself, he cannot -expect to have many friends. Generally speaking, the offer is not -accepted; it is always declined with the same courtesy which prompts the -invitation. "_Muchas gracias, buen provecho le haga usted_," "Many -thanks--much good may it do your grace," an answer which is analogous to -the _prosit_ of Italian peasants after eating or sneezing. These -customs, both of inviting and declining, tally exactly, and even to the -expressions used among the Arabs to this day. Every passer-by is invited -by Orientals--"_Bismillah ya seedee_," which means both a grace and -invitation--"In the name of God, sir, (_i.e._) will you dine with us?" -or "_Tafud'-dal_," "Do me the favour to partake of this repast." Those -who decline reply, "_Hene an_," "May it benefit." - -[Sidenote: AN EVENING AT A VENTA.] - -[Sidenote: HONESTY AND ANTIQUITY IN A VENTA.] - -Supper, which, as with the ancients, is their principal meal, is -seasoned with copious draughts of the wine of the country, drunk out of -a jug or _bota_ which we have already described, for glasses do not -abound; after it is done, cigars are lighted, the rude seats are drawn -closer to the fire, stories are told, principally on robber or love -events, the latter of which are by far the truest. Jokes are given and -taken; laughter, inextinguishable as that of Homer's gods, forms the -chorus of conversation, especially after good eating or drinking, to -which it is the best dessert. In due time songs are sung, a guitar is -strummed, for some black-whiskered Figaro is sure to have heard of the -"arrival," and steals down from the pure love of harmony and charms of a -cigar; then flock in peasants of both sexes, dancing is set on foot, the -fatigues of the day are forgotten, and the catching sympathy of mirth -extending to all, is prolonged until far into the night; during which, -as they take a long siesta in the day, all are as wakeful as owls, and -worse caterwaulers than cats; to describe the scene baffles the art of -pen or pencil. The roars, the dust, the want of everything in these -low-classed ventas, are emblems of the nothingness of Spanish life--a -jest. One by one the company drops off; the better classes go up stairs, -the humbler and vast majority make up their bed on the ground, near -their animals, and like them, full of food and free from care, fall -instantly asleep in spite of the noise and discomfort by which they are -surrounded. This counterfeit of death is more equalizing, as Don Quixote -says, than death itself, for an honest Spanish muleteer stretched on his -hard pallet sleeps sounder than many an uneasy trickster head that wears -another's crown. "Sleep," says Sancho, "covers one over like a cloak," -and a cloak or its cognate mantle forms the best part of their wardrobe -by day, and their bed furniture by night. The earth is now, as it was to -the Iberians, the national bed; nay, the Spanish word which expresses -that commodity, _cama_, is derived from the Greek [Greek: kamai]. Thus -they are lodged on the ground floor, and thereby escape the three -classes of little animals which, like the inseparable Graces, are always -to be found in fine climates in the wholesale, and in Spanish _ventas_ -in the retail. Their pillow is composed either of their pack-saddles or -saddle-bags; their sleep is short, but profound. Long before daylight -all are in motion; "they _take up_ their bed," the animals are fed, -harnessed, and laden, and the heaviest sleepers awakened: there is -little morning toilette, no time or soap is lost by biped or quadruped -in the processes of grooming or lavation: both carry their wardrobes on -their back, and trust to the shower and the sun to cleanse and bleach; -their moderate accounts are paid, salutations or execrations (generally -the latter), according to the length of the bills, pass between them -and their landlords, and another day of toil begins. Our faithful and -trustworthy squire seldom failed for a couple of hours after leaving the -_venta_ to pour forth an eloquent stream of oaths, invectives, and -lamentations at the dearness of inns, the rascality of their keepers in -general, and of the host of the preceding night in particular, although -probably a couple of dollars had cleared the account for a couple of men -and animals, and he himself had divided the extra-extortion with the -honest _ventero_. - -These Spanish venta scenes vary every day and night, as a new set of -actors make their first and last appearance before the traveller: of one -thing there can be no mistake, he has got out of England, and the -present year of our Lord. Their undeniable smack of antiquity gives them -a relish, a _borracha_, which is unknown in Great Britain, where all is -fused and modernized down to last Saturday night; here alone can you see -and study those manners and events which must have occurred on the same -sites when Hannibal and Scipio were last there, as it would be very easy -to work out from the classical authors. We would just suggest a -comparison between the arrangement of the Spanish country _venta_ with -that of the Roman inn now uncovered at the entrance of Pompeii, and its -exact counterpart, the modern "_osteria_," in the same district of -Naples. In the Museo Borbonico will be found types of most of the -utensils now used in Spain, while the Oriental and most ancient style of -cuisine is equally easy to be identified with the notices left us in the -cookery books of antiquity. The same may be said of the tambourines, -castanets, songs, and dances,--in a word, of everything; and, indeed, -when all are hushed in sleep, and stretched like corpses amid their -beasts, the Valencians especially, in their sandals and kilts, in their -mantas, and in and on their rush-baskets and mattings, we feel that -Strabo must have beheld the old Iberians exactly in the same costume and -position, when he told us what we see now to be true, [Greek: to pleon -en sagois, en hois per kai stibadokoitousi]. - -[Sidenote: THE VENTORILLO.] - -The "_ventorrillo_" is a lower class of _venta_--for there is a deeper -bathos; it is the German _kneipe_ or hedge ale-house, and is often -nothing more than a mere hut, run up with reeds or branches of trees by -the road-side, at which water, bad wine, and brandy, "_aguardiente_," -tooth-water, are to be sold. The latter is always detestable, raw, and -disflavoured with aniseed, and turns white in water like Eau de Cologne, -not that the natives ever expose it to such a trial. These -"_ventorillos_" are at best suspicious places, and the haunts of the -spies of regular robbers, or of skulking footpads when there are any, -who lurk inside with the proprietress; she herself generally might sit -as a model for Hecate, or for one of the witches in Shakspere over their -cauldron; her attendant imps are, however, sufficiently interesting -personages to form a chapter by themselves. - -[Sidenote: SPANISH ROBBERS.] - - - - -CHAPTER XVI. - - Spanish Robbers--A Robber Adventure--Guardias Civiles--Exaggerated - Accounts--Cross of the Murdered--Idle Robber Tales--French - Bandittiphobia--Robber History--Guerrilleros--Smugglers--Jose - Maria--Robbers of the First Class--The Ratero--Miguelites--Escorts - and Escopeteros--Passes, Protections, and Talismans--Execution of a - Robber. - - -An _olla_ without bacon would scarcely be less insipid than a volume on -Spain without banditti; the stimulant is not less necessary for the -established taste of the home-market, than brandy is for pale sherries -neat as imported. In the mean time, while the timid hesitate to put -their heads into this supposed den of thieves as much as into a house -that is haunted, those who are not scared by shadows, and do not share -in the fears of cockney critics and delicate writers in satin-paper -albums, but adventure boldly into the hornet's nest, come back in a firm -belief of the non-existence of the robber genus. In Spain, that _pays de -l'imprvu_, this unexpected absence of personages who render roads -uncomfortable, is one of the many and not disagreeable surprises, which -await those who prefer to judge of a country by going there themselves, -rather than to put implicit faith in the foregone conclusions and -stereotyped prejudices of those who have not, although they do sit in -judgment on those who have, and decide "without a view." This very -summer, some dozen and more friends of ours have made tours in various -parts of the Peninsula, driving and riding unarmed and unescorted -through localities of former suspicion, without having the good luck of -meeting even with the ghost of a departed robber; in truth and fact, we -cannot but remember that such things as monks and banditti were, -although they must be spoken of rather in the past than in the present -tense. - -[Sidenote: A ROBBER ADVENTURE.] - -The actual security of the Spanish highways is due to the _Moderados_, -as the French party and imitators of the _juste milieu_ are called, and -at the head of whom may be placed _Seor Martinez de la Rosa_. He, -indeed, is a moderate in poetry as well as politics, and a rare specimen -of that sublime of mediocrity which, according to Horace, neither men, -gods, nor booksellers can tolerate; his reputation as an author and -statesman--alas! poor Cervantes and Cisneros--proves too truly the -present effeteness of Spain. Her pen and her sword are blunted, her -laurels are sear, and her womb is barren; but, among the blind, he who -has one eye is king. - -This dramatist, in the May of 1833, was summoned from his exile at -Granada to Madrid by the suspicious Calomarde. The mail in which he -travelled was stopped by robbers about ten o'clock of a wet night near -Almuradiel;--the _guard_, at the first notice, throwing himself on his -belly, with his face in the mud, in imitation of the postilions, who pay -great respect to the gentlemen of the road. The passengers consisted of -himself, a German artist, and an English friend of ours now in London, -and who, having given up his well-garnished purse at once with great -good-humour, was most courteously treated by the well-satisfied -recipients: not so the Deutscher, on whom they were about to do personal -violence in revenge for a scanty scrip, had not his profession been -explained by our friend, by whose interference he was let off. -Meanwhile, the _Don_ was hiding his watch in the carriage lining, which -he cut open, and was concealing his few dollars, the existence of which -when questioned he stoutly denied. They, however, re-appeared under -threats of the bastinado, which were all but inflicted. The passengers -were then permitted to depart in peace, the leader of their spoilers -having first shaken hands with our informant, and wished him a pleasant -journey: "May your grace go with God and without novelty;" adding, "You -are a _caballero_, a gentleman, as all the English are; the German is a -_pobrecito_, a poor devil; the Spaniard is an _embustero_, a regular -swindler." This latter gentleman, thus hardly delineated by his Lavater -countryman, has since more than gotten back his cash, having risen to be -prime minister to Christina, and humble and devoted servant of -Louis-Philippe, _cosas de Espaa_. - -[Sidenote: GUARDIAS CIVILES.] - -Possibly this little incident may have facilitated the introduction of -the mounted guards, who are now stationed in towns, and by whom the -roads are regularly patrolled; they are called _guardias civiles_, and -have replaced the ancient "brotherhood" of Ferdinand and Isabella. As -they have been dressed and modelled after the fashion of the -transpyrenean gendarmerie, the Spaniards, who never lose a chance of a -happy nickname, or of a fling at the things of their neighbour, whom -they do not love, term them, either _Polizontes_ or _Polizones_, words -with which they have enriched their phraseology, and that represent the -French _polissons_, scoundrels, or they call them _Hijos de -Luis-Philipe_, "sons of Louis-Philippe;" for they are ill-bred enough, -in spite of the Montpensier marriage, and the Nelsonic achievements of -Monsieur de Joinville, to consider the words as synonymes. - -The number of these rogues, French king's sons, civil guards, call them -as you will, exceeds five thousand. During the recent Machiavelianisms -of their putative father, they have been quite as much employed in the -towns as on the highway, and for political purposes rather than those of -pure police, having been used to keep down the expression of indignant -public opinion, and, instead of catching thieves, in upholding those -first-rate criminals, foreign and domestic, who are now robbing poor -Spain of her gold and liberties; but so it has always been. Indeed, when -we first arrived in the Peninsula, and naturally made enquiries about -banditti, according to all sensible Spaniards, it was not on the road -that they were most likely to be found, but in the confessional boxes, -the lawyers' offices, and still more in the _bureaux_ of government; and -even in England some think that purses are exposed to more danger in -Chancery Lane and Stone Buildings, than in the worst cross-road, or the -most rocky mountain pass in the Peninsula. - -[Sidenote: THE MURDERED MAN'S CROSS.] - -It will be long, however, before this "great fact" is believed within -the sound of Bow-bells, where many of those who provide the reading -public with correct information, dislike having to eat their own words, -and to have their settled opinions shaken or contradicted. Nor is it -pleasant at a certain time of life to go again to school, as one does -when studying Niebuhr's Roman History, and then to find that the -alphabet must be re-begun, since all that was thought to be right is in -fact wrong. Distant Spain is ever looked at through a telescope which -either magnifies richness and goodness, from which half at least must be -deducted according to the proverb, _de los dineros y bondad, se ha de -quitar la mitad_, or darkens its dangers and difficulties through a -discoloured medium. A bad name given to a dog or country is very -adhesive; and the many will repeat each other in cuckoo-note. "Il y a -des choses," says Montesquieu, "que tout le monde dit, parcequ'elles ont -t dites une fois;" thus one silly sheep makes many, who will follow -their leader; _ovejas y bobas, donde va una, van todas_. So in the end -error becomes stamped with current authority, and is received, until the -false, imaginary picture is alone esteemed, and the true, original -portrait scouted as a cheat. - -[Sidenote: EXAGGERATED ROBBER NOTIONS.] - -It has so long and annually been considered permissible, when writing -about romantic Spain, to take leave of common sense, to ascend on -stilts, and converse in the Cambyses vein, that those who descend to -humble prose, and confine themselves to commonplace matter-of-fact, are -considered not only to be insthetic, unpoetical, and unimaginative, but -deficient in truth and power of observation. The genius of the land, -when speaking of itself and its things, is prone to say the thing which -is not; and it must be admitted that the locality lends itself often and -readily to misconceptions. The leagues and leagues of lonely hills and -wastes, over which beasts of prey roam, and above which vultures sulkily -rising part the light air with heavy wing, are easily peopled, by those -who are in a prepared train of mind, with equally rapacious bipeds of -Plato's unfeathered species. Rocky passes, contrived as it were on -purpose for ambuscades, tangled glens overrun with underwood, in spite -of the prodigality of beauty which arrests the artist, suggest the lair -of snakes and robbers. Nor is the feeling diminished by meeting the -frequent crosses set up on classically piled heaps, which mark the grave -of some murdered man, whose simple, touching epitaph tells the name of -the departed, the date of the treacherous stab, and entreats the -passenger, who is as he was, and may be in an instant as he is, to pray -for his unannealed soul. A shadow of death hovers over such spots, and -throws the stranger on his own thoughts, which, from early associations, -are somewhat in unison with the scene. Nor is the welcome of the -outstretched arms of these crosses over-hearty, albeit they are -sometimes hung with flowers, which mock the dead. Nor are all sermons -more eloquent than these silent stones, on which such brief emblems are -fixed. The Spaniards, from long habit, are less affected by them than -foreigners, being all accustomed to behold crosses and bleeding -crucifixes in churches and out; they moreover well know that by far the -greater proportion of these memorials have been raised to record -murders, which have not been perpetrated by robbers, but are the results -of sudden quarrel or of long brooded-over revenge, and that wine and -women, nine times out of ten, are at the bottom of the calamity. -Nevertheless, it makes a stout English heart uncomfortable, although it -is of little use to be afraid when one is in for it, and on the spot. -Then there is no better chance of escape, than to brave the peril and to -ride on. Turn, therefore, dear reader, a deaf ear to the tales of local -terror which will be told in every out-of-the-way village by the -credulous, timid inhabitants. You, as we have often been, will be -congratulated on having passed such and such a wood, and will be assured -that you will infallibly be robbed at such and such a spot a few leagues -onward. We have always found that this ignis fatuus, like the horizon, -has receded as we advanced; the dangerous spot is either a little behind -or a little before the actual place--it vanishes, as most difficulties -do, when boldly approached and grappled with. - -[Sidenote: BANDITTIPHOBIA OF FRENCH TOURISTS.] - -At the same time these sorts of places and events admit of much fine -writing when people get safely back again, to say nothing of the dignity -and heroic elevation which may be thus obtained by such an exhibition of -valour during the long vacation. Peaked hats, hair-breadth escapes from -long knives and mustachios, lying down for an hour on your stomach with -your mouth in the mud, are little interludes so diametrically opposed to -civilization, and the humdrum, unpicturesque routine of free Britons who -pay way and police rates, that they form almost irresistible topics to -the pen of a ready writer. And such exciting incidents are sure to take, -and to affect the public at home, who, moreover, are much pleased by the -perusal of _authentic_ accounts from Spain itself, and the best and -latest intelligence, which tally with their own preconceived ideas of -the land. Hence those authors are the most popular who put the self-love -of their reader in best humour with his own stock of knowledge. And this -accounts for the frequency, in Peninsular sketches, personal -narratives, and so forth, of robberies which are certainly oftener to be -met with in their pages than on the plains of the Peninsula. The writers -know that a bandit adventure is as much expected in the journals of such -travels as in one of Mrs. Ratcliffe's romances; such fleeting books are -chiefly made by "_striking events_;" accordingly, the authors string -together all the floating traditional horrors which they can scrape -together on Spanish roads, and thus feed and keep up the notion -entertained in many counties of England, that the whole Peninsula is -peopled with banditti. If such were the case society could not exist, -and the very fact, of almost all of the reporters having themselves -escaped by a miracle, might lead to the inference that most other -persons escape likewise: a blot is not a blot till it is hit. - -[Sidenote: PSEUDO-BANDIT LOOKS.] - -Our ingenious neighbours, strange to say in so gallant a people, have a -still more decided bandittiphobia. According to what the badauds of -Paris are told in print, every rash individual, before he takes his -place in the dilly for Spain, ought by all means to make his will, as -was done four hundred years ago at starting on a pilgrimage to -Jerusalem; possibly this may be predicated in the spirit of French -diplomacy, which always has a concealed arrire pense, and it may be -bruited abroad, on the principle with which illicit distillers and -coin-forgers give out that certain localities are haunted, in order to -scare away others, and thus preserve for themselves a quiet possession. -Perhaps the superabundance of l'esprit Franais may give colour and -substance to forms insignificant in themselves, as a painter lost in a -brown study over a coal fire converts cinders into castles, monsters, -and other creatures of his lively imagination; or it may be, as -conscience makes cowards of all, that these gentlemen really see a -bandit in every bush of Spain, and expect from behind every rock an -avenging minister of retaliation, in whose pocket is a list of the -church plate, Murillos, &c. which were found missing after their -countrymen's invasion. Be that as it may, even so clever a man as -Monsieur Quinet, a real Dr. Syntax, fills pages of his recent _Vacances_ -with his continual trepidations, although, from having arrived at his -journey's end without any sort of accident, albeit not without every -kind of fear, it might have crossed him, that the bugbears existed only -in his own head, and he might have concealed, in his pleasant pages, a -frame of mind the exhibition of which, in England at least, inspires -neither interest nor respect; an over-care of self is not over-heroic. - -[Sidenote: IDLE ROBBER TALES.] - -It must be also admitted that the respectability and character of many a -Spaniard is liable to be misunderstood, when he sets forth on any of his -travels, except in a public wheel conveyance; as we said in our ninth -chapter, he assumes the national costume of the road, and leaves his -wife and long-tailed coat behind him. Now as most Spaniards are muffled -up and clad after the approved melodrame fashion of robbers, they may be -mistaken for them in reality; indeed they are generally sallow, have -fierce black eyes, uncombed hair, and on these occasions neglect the -daily use of towels and razors; a long beard gives, and not in Spain -alone, a ferocious ruffian-like look, which is not diminished when gun -and knife are added to match faces la Brutus. Again, these worthies -thus equipped, have sometimes a trick of staring rather fixedly from -under their slouched hat at the passing stranger, whose, to them, -outlandish costume excites curiosity and suspicion; naturally therefore -some difficulty does exist in distinguishing the merino from the wolf, -when both are disguised in the same clothing--a _zamarra_ sheepskin to -wit. A private Spanish gentleman, who, in his native town, would be the -model of a peaceable and inoffensive burgess, or a respectable -haberdasher, has, when on his commercial tour, altogether the appearance -of the Bravo of Venice, and such-like heroes, by whom children are -frightened at a minor theatre. In consequence of the difficulty of -outliving what has been learnt in the nursery, many of our countrymen -have, with the best intentions, set down the bulk of the population of -the Peninsula as one gang of robbers--they have exaggerated their -numbers like Falstaff's men of buckram; the said imagined Rinaldo -Rinaldinis being probably in a still greater state of alarm from having -on their part taken our said countrymen for robbers, and this mutual -misunderstanding continues, until both explain their slight mistake of -each other's character and intention. Although we never fell into the -error of thus mistaking Spanish peaceable traders for privateers and -men-of-war, yet that injustice has been done by them to us; possibly -this compliment may have been paid to our careful observation of the -bearing and garb of their great Rob Roy himself and in his own country, -which, to one about to undertake, in those days, long and solitary -rides over the Peninsula, was an unspeakable advantage. - -But even in those perilous times, robberies were the exception, not the -rule, in spite of the full, whole, and exact particulars of natives as -well as strangers; the accounts were equally exaggerated by both -parties; in fact, the subject is the standing dish, the common topic of -the lower classes of travellers, when talking and smoking round the -venta fires, and forms the natural and agreeable religio loci, the -associations connected with wild and cut-throat localities. Though these -narrators' pleasure is mingled with fear and pain, they delight in such -histories as children do in goblin tales. Their Oriental amplification -is inferior only to their credulity, its twin sister, and they end in -believing their own lies. Whenever a robbery really does take place, the -report spreads far and wide, and gains in detail and atrocity, for no -muleteer's story or sailor's yarn loses in the telling. The same dire -event,--names, dates, and localities only varied,--is served up, as a -monkish miracle in the medival ages was, at many other places, and thus -becomes infinitely multiplied. It is talked of for months all over the -country, while the thousands of daily passengers who journey on unhurt -are never mentioned. It is like the lottery, in which the great prize -alone attracts attention, not the infinite majority of blanks. These -robber-tales reach the cities, and are often believed by most -respectable people, who pass their lives without stirring a league -beyond the walls. They sympathize with all who are compelled to expose -themselves to the great pains and perils, the travail of travel, and -they endeavour with the most good-natured intentions to dissuade rash -adventurers from facing them, by stating as facts, the apprehensions of -their own credulity and imagination. - -[Sidenote: SPANISH ROBBER HISTORY.] - -The muleteers, _venteros_, and masses of common Spaniards see in the -anxious faces of timid strangers, that their audience is in the -listening and believing vein, and as they are garrulous and egotists by -nature, they seize on a theme in which they alone hold forth; they are -pleased at being considered an authority, and with the superiority which -conveying information gives, and the power of inspiring fear confers; -their mother-wit, in which few nations surpass them, soon discovers the -sort of information which "our correspondent" is in want of, and as -words here cost nothing, the gulping gobemouche is plentifully supplied -with the required article. These reports are in due time set up in type, -and are believed because in print; thus the tricks played on poor Mr. -Inglis and his note-book were the laughter of the whole Peninsula, grave -authorities caught the generous infection, until Mr. Mark's robber-jokes -at Malaga were booked and swallowed as if he had been an apostle instead -of a consul. - -As it was our fate to have wandered up and down the Peninsula when -Ferdinand VII. was king of the Spains, and Jose Maria, at whose name old -men and women there tremble yet, was autocrat of Andalucia, the moment -was propitious for studying the philosophy of Spanish banditti, and our -speculations were much benefited by a fortunate acquaintance with the -redoubtable chief himself, from whom, as well as from many of his -intelligent followers, we received much kindness and valuable -information, which is acknowledged with thankfulness. - -Historically speaking, Spain has never enjoyed a good character in this -matter of the highway; it had but an indifferent reputation in the days -of antiquity, but then, as now, it was generally the accusation of -foreigners. The Romans, who had no business to invade it, were harassed -by the native guerrilleros, those undisciplined bands who waged the -"little war," which Iberia always did. Worried by these unmilitary -voltigeurs, they called all Spaniards who resisted them "_latrones_;" -just as the French invaders, from the same reasons, called them -_ladrones_ or brigands, because they had no uniform; as if the wearing a -schako given by a plundering marshal, could convert a pillager into a -honest man, or the want of it could change into a thief, a noble patriot -who was defending his own property and country; but l'habit ne fait pas -le moine, say the French, and _aunque la mona se viste de seda, mona se -queda_, although a monkey dresses in silk, monkey it remains, rejoin the -Spaniards. - -[Sidenote: GUERRILLEROS.] - -Armed men are in fact the weed of the soil of Spain, in peace or war; to -have their hand against all mankind seems to be an instinct in every -descendant of Ishmael, and particularly among this Quixotic branch, -whose knight-errants, reformers on horseback, have not unfrequently been -robbers in the guise of gentlemen. During the war against Buonaparte, -the Peninsula swarmed with insurgents, many of whom were inspired, by a -sense of loyalty, with indignation at their outraged religion, and with -a deep-rooted national loathing of the _gabacho_, and good service did -these Minas and Co. do to the cause of their lawful king; but others -used patriotic professions as specious cloaks to cover their instinctive -passion for a lawless and freebooting career, and before the liberation -of the country was effected, had become formidable to all parties alike. -The Duke of Wellington, with his characteristic sagacity, foresaw, at -his victorious conclusion of the struggle, how difficult it would be to -weed out "this strange fruit borne on a tree grafted by patriotism." The -transition from murdering a Frenchman, to plundering a stranger, -appeared a simple process to these patriotic scions, whose numbers were -swelled with all who were, or who considered themselves to be, ill -used--with all who could not dig, and were ashamed to beg. The evil was -diminished during the latter years of the reign of Ferdinand VII., when -the old hands began to die off, and an advance in social improvement was -unquestionably general, before which these lawless occupations gave way, -as surely as wild animals of prey do before improved cultivation. These -evils, that are abated by internal quiet and the continued exertions of -the authorities, increase with troubled times, which, as the tempest -calls forth the stormy petrel, rouse into dangerous action the worst -portions of society, and create a sort of civil cachexia, as we now see -in Ireland. - -[Sidenote: SMUGGLERS.] - -Another source was, not to say is, Gibraltar, that hot-bed of -contraband, that nursery of the smuggler, the _prima materia_ of a -robber and murderer. The financial ignorance of the Spanish government -calls him in, to correct the errors of Chancellors of Exchequers:--"trovata -la legge, trovato l'inganno." The fiscal regulations are so ingeniously -absurd, complicated, and vexatious, that the honest, legitimate merchant -is as much embarrassed as the irregular trader is favoured. The -operation of excessive duties on objects which people must, and -therefore will have, is as strikingly exemplified in the case of tobacco -in Andalucia, as it is in that, and many other articles on the Kent and -Sussex coasts: in both countries the fiscal scourge leads to breaches of -the peace, injury to the fair dealer, and loss to the revenue; it -renders idle, predatory and ferocious, a peasantry which, under a wiser -system, and if not exposed to overpowering temptation, might become -virtuous and industrious. In Spain the evasion of such laws is only -considered as cheating those who cheat the people; the villagers are -heart and soul in favour of the smuggler, as they are of the poacher in -England; all their prejudices are on his side. Some of the mountain -curates, whose flocks are all in that line, deal with the crime in their -sermons as a conventional, not a moral, one; and, like other people, -decorate their mantelpieces with a painted clay figure of the sinner in -his full _majo_ dress. The smuggler himself, so far from feeling -degraded, enjoys the reputation which attends success in personal -adventure, among a people proud of individual prowess; he is the hero of -the Spanish stage, and comes on equipped in full costume, with his -blunderbuss, to sing the well-known "_Yo! que soy contrabandista! yo -ho!_" to the delight of all listeners from the Straits to the Bidasoa, -custom-house officers not excepted. - -The _prestige_ of such a theatrical exhibition, like the 'Robbers' of -Schiller, is enough to make all the students of Salamanca take to the -high-road. The contrabandista is the Turpin, the Macheath of reality, -and those heroes of the old ballads and theatres of England, who have -disappeared more in consequence of enclosures, rapid conveyances, and -macadamization (for there is nothing so hateful to a highwayman as gas -and a turnpike), than from fear of the prison or the halter. The -writings of Smollett, the recollections of many now alive of the dangers -of Hounslow Heath and Finchley Common, recall scenes of life and manners -from which we have not long emerged, and which have still more recently -been corrected in Spain. The contrabandista in his real character is -welcome in every village; he is the newspaper and channel of -intelligence; he brings tea and gossip for the curate, money and cigars -for the attorney, ribands and cottons for the women; he is magnificently -dressed, which has a great charm for all Moro-Iberian eyes; he is bold -and resolute--"none but the brave deserve the fair;" a good rider and -shot; he knows every inch of the intricate country, wood or water, hill -or dale; in a word, he is admirably educated for the high-road--for what -Froissart, speaking of the celebrated Amerigot Tetenoire, calls "a fayre -and godlie life." And the transition from plundering the king's revenue, -to taking one of his subjects' purse on the highway, is easy. - -[Sidenote: FIRST-CLASS BANDITS.] - -Many circumstances combined to make this freebooting career popular -among the lower classes. The delight of power, the exhibition of daring -and valour, the temptation of sudden wealth, always so attractive to -half-civilized nations, who prefer the rich spoil won by the bravery of -an hour, to that of the drudgery of years; the gorgeous apparel, the -lavish expenditure, the song, the wassail, the smiles of the fair, and -all the joyous life of liberty, freemasonry, and good fellowship, -operated with irresistible force on a warlike, energetic, and -imaginative population. - -This smuggling was the origin of Jose Maria's career, who rose to the -highest rank and honours of his profession, as did _Napoleon le Grand_ -and "Jonathan Wild the Great," and principally, as Fielding says of his -hero, by a power of doing mischief, and a principle of considering -honesty to be a corruption of _honosty_, the qualities of an ass -([Greek: onos]). But it is a great mistake to suppose that there always -are men fitted to be captains of formidable gangs; nature is chary in -the production of such specimens of dangerous grandeur, and as ages may -elapse before the world is cursed with another Alaric, Buonaparte, or -Wild, so years may pass before Spain witnesses again another Jose Maria. - -[Sidenote: FIRST-CLASS BANDITS.] - -The _Ladron-en-grande_, the robber on a great scale, is the grandee of -the first class in his order; he is the captain of a regularly-organized -band of followers, from eight to fourteen in number, well armed and -mounted, and entirely under command and discipline. These are very -formidable; and as they seldom attack any travellers except with -overwhelming forces, and under circumstances of ambuscade and surprise, -where every thing is in their favour, resistance is generally useless, -and can only lead to fatal accidents. Never, for the sake of a sac de -nuit, risk being sent to Erebus; submit, therefore, at once and with -good grace to the summons, which will take no denial, of "_abajo_," -down, "_boca tierra_," mouth to the earth. Those who have a score or -so of dollars, four or five pounds, the loss of which will ruin no man, -are very rarely ill-used; a frank, confident, and good-humoured -surrender not only prevents any bad treatment, but secures even civility -during the disagreeable operation: pistols and sabres are, after all, a -poor defence compared to civil words, as Mr. Cribb used to say. The -Spaniard, by nature high-bred and a "_caballero_," responds to any -appeal to qualities of which he thinks his nation has reason to be -proud; he respects coolness of manner, in which bold men, although -robbers, sympathise. Why should a man, because he loses a few dollars, -lose also his presence of mind or temper, or perhaps life? Nor are these -grandees of the system without a certain magnanimity, as Cervantes knew -right well. Witness his graphic account of Roque Guinart, whose conduct -to his victims and behaviour to his comrades tallied, to our certain -knowledge, with that observed by Jose Maria, and was perfectly analogous -to the similar traits of character exhibited by the Italian bandit Ghino -de Tacco, the immortalized by Dante; as well as by our Robin Hood and -Diana's foresters. Being strong, they could afford to be generous and -merciful. - -Notwithstanding these moral securities, if only by way of making -assurance doubly sure, an Englishman will do well when travelling in -exposed districts to be provided with a decent bag of dollars, which -makes a handsome purse, feels heavy in the hand, and is that sort of -amount which the Spanish brigand thinks a native of our proverbially -rich country ought to have with him on his travels. He has a remarkable -tact in estimating from the look of an individual, his equipage, &c., -how much ready money it is befitting his condition for him to have about -him; if the sum should not be enough, he resents severely his being -robbed of the regular perquisite to which he considers himself entitled -by the long-established usage of the high-road. The person unprovided -altogether with cash is generally made a severe example of, pour -encourager les autres, either by being well beaten or stripped to the -skin, after the fashion of the thieves of old, near Jericho. The -traveller should have a watch of some kind--one with a gaudy gilt chain -and seals is the best suited; not to have one exposes him to more -indignities than a scantily-filled purse. The money may have been spent, -but the absence of a watch can only be accounted for by a premeditated -intention of not being robbed of it, which the "_ladron_" considers as a -most unjustifiable attempt to defraud him of his right. - -[Sidenote: THE RATERO.] - -The Spanish "_ladrones_" are generally armed with a blunderbuss, that -hangs at their high-peaked saddles, which are covered with a white or -blue fleece, emblematical enough of shearing propensities; therefore, -perhaps, the order of the golden fleece has been given to certain -foreigners, in reward for having eased Spain of her independence and -Murillos. Their dress is for the most part very rich, and in the highest -style of the fancy; hence they are the envy and models of the lower -classes, being arrayed after the fashion of the smuggler, or the -bull-fighter, or in a word, the "_majo_" or dandy of Andalucia, which is -the home and head-quarters of all those who aspire to the elegant -accomplishments and professions just alluded to. The next class of -robbers--omitting some minor distinctions, such as the "_salteadores_," -or two or three persons who lie in ambuscade and _jump out_ on the -unprepared traveller--is the "_ratero_," "the rat." He is not brought -regularly up to the profession and organized, but takes to it on a -sudden, and for the special occasion which, according to the proverb, -makes a thief, _La ocasion hace al ladron_; and having committed his -petty larceny, returns to his pristine occupation or avocation. - -[Sidenote: MIGUELITES.] - -The "_raterillo_," or small rat, is a skulking footpad, who seldom -attacks any but single and unprotected passengers, who, if they get -robbed, have no one to blame but themselves; for no man is justified in -exposing Spaniards to the temptation of doing a little something in that -line. The shepherd with his sheep, the ploughman at his plough, the -vine-dresser amid his grapes, all have their gun, ostensibly for their -individual protection, which furnishes means of assault and battery -against those who have no other defence but their legs and virtue. These -self-same extemporaneous thieves are, however, remarkably civil to armed -and prepared travellers; to them they touch their hats, and exclaim, -"Good day to you, my lord knight," and "May your grace go with God," -with all that innocent simplicity which is observable in pastorals, -opera-ballets, and other equally correct representations of rural life. -These rats are held in as profound contempt by the higher classes of the -profession, as political ones used to be, before parties were betrayed -by turncoats, who, with tails and without, deserted to the enemies' -camp. The _ladron en grande_ looks down on this sneaking competitor as a -regular M.D. and member of the College of Physicians does on a quack, -who presumes to take fees and kill without a licence. However -despicable, these rats are very dangerous; lacking the generous feeling -which the possession of power and united force bestows, they have the -cowardice and cruelty of weakness: hence they frequently murder their -victim, because dead men tell no tales. - -The distinction between these higher and lower classes of rogues will be -better understood by comparing the Napoleon of war, with the Napoleon of -peace. The Corsican was the _ladron en grande_; he warred against -mankind, he led his armed followers to pillage and plunder, he made his -den the receiving house of the stolen goods of the Continent: but he did -it openly and manfully by his own right hand and good sword; and valour -and audacity are qualities too high and rare not to command -admiration--qualified, indeed, when so misapplied. Louis-Philippe is a -_ratero_, who, skulking under disguise of amity and good faith, works -out in the dark, and by cunning, his ends of avarice and ambition; who, -acting on the artful dodger (no) principle, while kissing the Queen, -picks her pocket of a crown. - -[Sidenote: MIGUELITES.] - -It must be stated for the purposes of history that at the time when -Spain was, or was said to be, overrun with rats and robbers, there was, -as Spaniards have it, a remedy for everything except death; and as the -evils were notorious, it was natural that means of prevention should -likewise exist. If the state of things had been so bad as exaggerated -report would infer, it would have been impossible that any travelling or -traffic could have been managed in the Peninsula. The mails and -diligences, being protected by government, were seldom attacked, and -those who travelled by other methods, and had proper recommendations, -seldom failed in being provided by the authorities with a sufficient -escort. A regular body of men was organized for that purpose; they were -called "_Miguelites_," from, it is said, one Miguel de Prats, an armed -satellite of the famous or infamous Csar Borgia. In Catalonia they are -called "_Mozos de la Escuadra_," "Lads of the squadron, land marines;" -they are the modern "_Hermandad_," the brotherhood which formed the old -Spanish rural armed police. Composed of picked and most active young -men, they served on foot, under the orders of the military powers; they -were dressed in a sort of half uniform and half _majo_ costume. Their -gaiters were black instead of yellow, and their jackets of blue trimmed -with red. They were well armed with a short gun and a belt round the -waist in which the ammunition was placed, a much more convenient -contrivance than our cartouche-box; they had a sword, a cord for -securing prisoners, and a single pistol, which was stuck in their -sashes, at their backs. This corps was on a perfect par with the -robbers, from whom some of them were chosen; indeed, the common -condition of the "_indulto_," or pardon to robbers, is to enlist, and -extirpate their former associates--set a thief to catch a thief; both -the honest and renegade _Miguelites_ hunted "_la mala gente_," as -gamekeepers do poachers. The robbers feared and respected them; an -escort of ten or twelve _Miguelites_ might brave any number of banditti, -who never or rarely attack where resistance is to be anticipated; and in -travelling through suspected spots these escorts showed singular skill -in taking every precaution, by throwing out skirmishers in front and at -the sides. They covered in their progress a large space of ground, -taking care never to keep above two together, nor more distant from each -other than gun-shot; rules which all travellers will do well to -remember, and to enforce on all occasions of suspicion. The rare -instances in which Englishmen, especially officers of the garrison of -Gibraltar, have been robbed, have arisen from a neglect of this -precaution; when the whole party ride together they may be all caught at -once, as in a casting-net. - -[Sidenote: TRAVELLING ESCORTS.] - -It may be remarked that Spanish robbers are very shy in attacking armed -English travellers, and particularly if they appear on their guard. The -robbers dislike fighting, and the more as they do so at a disadvantage, -from having a halter round their necks, and they hate danger, from -knowing what it is; they have no chivalrous courage, nor any more -abstract notions of fair play than a Turk or a tiger, who are too -uncivilized to throw away a chance; accordingly, they seldom join issue -where the defendants seem pugnacious, which is likely to be the case -with Englishmen. They also peculiarly dislike English guns and -gunpowder, which, in fact, both as arms and ammunition, are infinitely -superior to those of Spain. Though three or four Englishmen had nothing -to fear, yet where there were ladies it was better to be provided with -an escort of _Miguelites_. These men have a keen and accurate eye, and -were always on the look-out for prints of horses and other signs, which, -escaping the notice of superficial observers, indicated to their -practised observations the presence of danger. They were indefatigable, -keeping up with a carriage day and night, braving heat and cold, hunger -and thirst. As they were maintained at the expense of the government, -they were not, strictly speaking, entitled to any remuneration from -those travellers whom they were directed to escort; it was, however, -usual to give to each man a couple of _pesetas_ a-day, and a dollar to -their leader. The trifling addition of a few cigars, a "_bota_" or two -of wine, some rice and dried cod-fish for their evening meal, was well -bestowed; exercise sharpened their appetites; and they were always proud -to drink to their master's long life and purse, and protect both. - -Those, whether natives or foreigners, who could not obtain or afford the -expense of an escort to themselves, availed themselves of the -opportunity of joining company with some party who had one. It is -wonderful how soon the fact of an escort being granted was known, and -how the number of travellers increased, who were anxious to take -advantage of the convoy. As all go armed, the united allied forces -became more formidable as the number increased, and the danger became -less. If no one happened to be travelling with an escort, then -travellers waited for the passage of troops, for the government's -sending money, tobacco, or anything else which required protection. If -none of these opportunities offered, all who were about to travel joined -company. This habit of forming caravans is very Oriental, and has become -quite national in Spain, insomuch that it is almost impossible to travel -alone, as others will join; weaker and smaller parties will unite with -all stronger and larger companies whom they meet going the same road, -whether the latter like it or not. The muleteers are most social and -gregarious amongst each other, and will often endeavour to derange their -employer's line of route, in order to fall in with that of their -chance-met comrades. The caravan, like a snow-ball, increases in bulk as -it rolls on; it is often pretty considerable at the very outset, for, -even before starting, the muleteers and proprietors of carriages, being -well known to each other, communicate mutually the number of travellers -which each has got. - -[Sidenote: ESCOPETEROS.] - -Travelling in out-of-the-way districts in a "_coche de colleras_," and -especially if accompanied with a baggage-waggon, exposes the party to be -robbed. When the caravan arrives in the small villages it attracts -immediate notice, and if it gets wind that the travellers are -foreigners, they are supposed to be laden with gold and booty. Such an -arrival is a rare event; the news spreads like wildfire, and collects -all the "_mala gente_," the bad set of idlers and loiterers, who act as -spies, and convey intelligence to their confederates; again, the bulk of -the equipage, the noise and clatter of men and mules, is seen and heard -from afar, by robbers if there be any, who lurk in hiding-places or -eminences, and are well provided with telescopes, besides with longer -and sharper noses, which, as Gil Blas says, smell coin in travellers' -pockets, while the slow pace and impossibility of flight renders such a -party an easy prey to well-mounted horsemen. - -[Sidenote: PASSES AND PROTECTIONS.] - -This condition of affairs, these dangers real or imaginary, and these -precautions, existed principally in journeys by cross roads, or through -provinces rarely visited, and unprovided with public carriages; if, -however, such districts were reputed the worst, they often had the -advantage of being freer from regular bands, for where there are few -passengers, why should there be robbers, who like spiders place their -nets where the supply of flies is sure?--and little do the humbler -masses of Spain care either for robbers or revolutionists; they have -nothing to lose, and are beneath the notice of pickpockets or -pseudo-patriots. Their rags are their safeguard, a fine climate clothes -them, a fertile soil feeds them; they doze away in the happy want and -poverty, ever the best protections in Spain, or strum their guitars and -sing staves in praise of empty purses. The better provided have to look -out for themselves; indeed, whenever the law is insufficient men take it -into their own hands, either to protect themselves or their property, or -to administer wild justice, and obtain satisfaction for wrongs, which in -plain Spanish is called revenge. An Irish landlord arms his servants and -raises walls round his "demesne"--an English squire employs watchers and -keepers to preserve his pheasants--so in suspected localities a Spanish -hidalgo protects his person by hiring armed peasants; they are called -"_escopeteros_," people with guns--a definition which is applicable to -most Spaniards. When out of town this custom of going armed, and early -acquaintance with the use of the gun, is the principal reason why, on -the shortest notice, bodies of men, whom the Spaniards call soldiers, -are got together; every field furnishes the raw material--a man with a -musket. Baggage, commissariat, pay, rations, uniform, and discipline, -which are European rather than Oriental, are more likely to be found in -most other armies than in those of Spain. These things account for the -facility with which the Spanish nation flies so magnanimously to arms, -and after bush-fighting and buccaneering expeditions, disappears at once -after a reverse; "every man to his own home," as of old in the East, and -that, with or without proclamation. These "_escopeteros_," occasionally -robbers themselves, live either by robbery or by the prevention of it; -for there is some honour among thieves; "_entre lobos no se come_," -"wolves don't eat each other" unless very hard up indeed. These fellows -naturally endeavour to alarm travellers with over-exaggerated accounts -of danger, ogres and antres vast, in order that their services may be -engaged; their inventions are often believed by swallowers of camels, -who note down as facts, these tricks upon travellers got up for the -occasion, by people who are making long noses at them, behind their -backs; but these longer lies are among the accidents of long journeys, -"_en luengas vias, luengas mentiras_." - -[Sidenote: TALISMANIC DEFENCES.] - -As we are now writing history, it may be added that great men like Jose -Maria often granted passports. This true trooper of the Deloraine breed -was untrammelled with the fetters of spelling. Although he could barely -write his name, he could _rubricate_[9] as well as any other Spaniard in -command, or Ferdinand VII. himself. "His mark" was a protection to all -who would pay him black mail. It was authenticated with such a -portentous griffonage as would have done credit to Ali Pacha. An -intimate friend of ours, a merry gastronomic dignitary of Seville, who -was going to the baths of Caratraca, to recover from over-indulgence in -rich ollas and valdepeas, and had no wish, like the gouty abbot of -Boccaccio, to be put on robber regimen, procured a pass from Jose Maria, -and took one of his gang as a travelling escort, who sat on the -coach-box, and whom he described to us as his "_santito_," his little -guardian angel. - -[Sidenote: TALISMANIC DEFENCES.] - -While on the subject of this spiritual and supernatural protection, it -may be added that firm faith was placed in the wearing a relic, a medal -of the Virgin, her rosary or scapulary. Thus the Duchess of Abrantes -this very autumn hung the _Virgen del Pilar_ round the neck of her -favourite bull-fighter, who escaped in consequence. Few Spanish soldiers -go into battle without such a preservative in their _petos_, or stuffed -waddings, which is supposed to turn bullets, and to divert fire, like a -lightning conductor, which probably it does, as so few are ever killed. -In the more romantic days of Spain no duel or tournament could be fought -without a declaration from the combatants, that they had no relic, no -_engao_ or cheat, about their persons. Our friend Jose Maria attributed -his constant escapes to an image of the Virgin of Grief of Cordova, -which never quitted his shaggy breast. Indeed, the native districts of -the lower classes in Spain may be generally known by their religious -ornaments. These talismanic amulets are selected from the saint or relic -most honoured, and esteemed most efficacious, in their immediate -vicinity. Thus the "Santo Rostro," or Holy Countenance of Jaen, is worn -all over the kingdom of Granada, as the Cross of Caravaca is over -Murcia; the rosary of the Virgin is common to all Spain. The following -miraculous proof of its saving virtues was frequently painted in the -convents:--A robber was shot by a traveller and buried; his comrades, -some time afterwards passing by, heard his voice,--"this fellow in the -cellarage;"--they opened the grave and found him alive and unhurt, for -when he was killed, he had happened to have a rosary round his neck, and -Saint Dominick (its inventor) was enabled to intercede with the Virgin -in his behalf. This reliance on the Virgin is by no means confined to -Spain, since the Italian banditti always wear a small silver heart of -the Madonna, and this mixture of ferocity and superstition is one of the -most terrific features of their character. Saint Nicholas, however, the -English "Old Nick," is in all countries the patron of schoolboys, -thieves, or, as Shakspere calls them, "Saint Nicholas's clerks." "Keep -thy neck for the hangman, for I know thou worshippest St. Nicholas as a -man of falsehood may;" and like him, Santu Diavolu, Santu Diavoluni, -Holy Devil, is the appropriate saint of the Sicilian bandit. - -San Dimas, the "good thief," is a great saint in Andalucia, where his -disciples are said to be numerous. A celebrated carving by Montaes, in -Seville, is called '_El Cristo, del buen ladron_,'--"the Christ, _of_ -the good thief;" thus making the Saviour a subordinate person. Spanish -robbers have always been remarkably good Roman Catholics. In the -Rinconete y Cortadillo, the Lurker and Cutpurse of Cervantes, whose -Monipodio must have furnished Fagin to Boz, a box is placed before the -Virgin, to which each robber contributes, and one remarks that he "robs -for the service of God, and for all honest fellows." Their mountain -confessors of the Friar Tuck order, animated by a pious love for dollars -when expended in expiatory masses, consider the payment to them of good -doubloons such a laudable restitution, such a sincere repentance, as to -entitle the contrite culprit to ample absolution, plenary indulgence, -and full benefit of clergy. Notwithstanding this, these ungrateful "good -thieves" have been known to rob their spiritual pastors and masters, -when they catch them on the high road. - -To return to the saving merit of these talismans. We ourselves suspended -to our sheepskin jacket one of the silver medals of Santiago, which are -sold to pilgrims at Compostella, and arrived back again to Seville from -the long excursion, safe and sound and unpillaged except by _venteros_ -and our faithful squire--an auspicious event, which was entirely -attributed by the aforesaid dignitary to the intervention vouchsafed by -the patron of the Spains to all who wore his order, which thus protects -the bearer as a badge does a Thames waterman from a press-gang. - -[Sidenote: EXECUTION OF A ROBBER.] - -An account of the judicial death of one of the gang of Jose Maria, which -we witnessed, will be an appropriate conclusion to these remarks, and an -act of justice towards our fair readers for this detail of breaches of -the peace, and the bad company into which they have been introduced. -Jose de Roxas, commonly called (for they generally have some nickname) -_El Veneno_, "Poison," from his viper-like qualities, was surprised by -some troops: he made a desperate resistance, and when brought to the -ground by a ball in his leg, killed the soldier who rushed forward to -secure him. He proposed when in prison to deliver up his comrades if -his own life were guaranteed to him. The offer was accepted, and he was -sent out with a sufficient force; and such was the terror of his name, -that they surrendered themselves, _not however to him_, and were -_pardoned_. Veneno was then tried for his previous offences, found -guilty, and condemned: he pleaded that he had indirectly accomplished -the object for which his life was promised him, but in vain; for such -trials in Spain are a mere form, to give an air of legality to a -predetermined sentence:--the authorities adhered to the killing letter -of their agreement, and - - "Kept the word of promise to the ear, - But broke it to the hope." - -As Veneno was without friends or money, wherewith Gines Passamonte -anointed the palm of justice and got free, the sentence was of course -ordered to be carried into effect. The courts of law and the prisons of -Seville are situated near the Plaa San Francisco, which has always been -the site of public executions. On the day previous nothing indicates the -scene which will take place on the following morning; everything -connected with this ceremony of death is viewed with horror by -Spaniards, not from that abstract abhorrence of shedding blood which -among other nations induces the lower orders to detest the completer of -judicial sentences, as the smaller feathered tribes do the larger birds -of prey, but from ancient Oriental prejudices of pollution, and because -all actually employed in the operation are accounted infamous, and lose -their caste, and purity of blood. Even the gloomy scaffolding is erected -in the night by unseen, unknown hands, and rises from the earth like a -fungus work of darkness, to make the day hideous and shock the awakening -eye of Seville. When the criminal is of noble blood the platform, which -in ordinary cases is composed of mere carpenter's work, is covered with -black baize. The operation of hanging, among so unmechanical a people, -with no improved patent invisible drop, used to be conducted in a cruel -and clumsy manner. The wretched culprits were dragged up the steps of -the ladder by the executioner, who then mounted on their shoulders and -threw himself off with his victims, and, while both swung backwards and -forwards in the air, was busied, with spider-like fingers, in fumbling -about the neck of the sufferers, until being satisfied that life was -extinct he let himself down to the ground by the bodies. Execution by -hanging was, however, graciously abolished by Ferdinand VII., the -beloved; this father of his people determined that the future death for -civil offences should be strangulation,--a mode of removing to a better -world those of his children who deserved it, which is certainly more in -accordance with the Oriental bow-string. - -[Sidenote: EXECUTION OF A ROBBER.] - -Veneno was placed, as is usual, the day before his execution, "_en -capilla_" in a chapel or cell set apart for the condemned, where the -last comforts of religion are administered. This was a small room in the -prison, and the most melancholy in that dwelling of woe, for such -indeed, as Cervantes from sad experience knew, and described a Spanish -prison to be, it still is. An iron grating formed the partition of the -corridor, which led to the chamber. This passage was crowded with -members of a charitable brotherhood, who were collecting alms from the -visitors, to be expended in masses for the eternal repose of the soul of -the criminal. There were groups of officers, and of portly Franciscan -friars smoking their cigars and looking carefully from time to time into -the amount of the contributions, which were to benefit their bodies, -quite as much as the soul of the condemned. The levity of those -assembled without formed, meantime, a heartless contrast with the gloom -and horror of the melancholy interior. A small door opened into the -cell, over which might well be inscribed the awful words of Dante-- - - "Lasciate ogni speranza, voi ch'entrate!" - -[Sidenote: EXECUTION OF A ROBBER.] - -At the head of this room was placed a table, with a crucifix, an image -of the Virgin, and two wax tapers, near which stood a silent sentinel -with a drawn sword; another soldier was stationed at the door, with a -fixed bayonet. In a corner of this darkened apartment was the pallet of -Veneno; he was lying curled up like a snake, with a striped coverlet -(the Spanish _manta_) drawn closely over his mouth, leaving visible only -a head of matted locks, a glistening dark eye, rolling restlessly out of -the white socket. On being approached he sprung up and seated himself on -a stool: he was almost naked; a chaplet of beads hung across his exposed -breast, and contrasted with the iron chains around his limbs:--Superstition -had riveted her fetters at his birth, and the Law her manacles at his -death. The expression of his face, though low and vulgar, was one which -once seen is not easily forgotten,--a slouching look of more than -ordinary guilt: his sallow complexion appeared more cadaverous in the -uncertain light, and was heightened by a black, unshorn beard, growing -vigorously on a half-dead countenance. He appeared to be reconciled to -his fate, and repeated a few sentences, the teaching of the monks, as by -rote: his situation was probably more painful to the spectator than to -himself--an indifference to death, arising rather from an ignorance of -its dreadful import, than from high moral courage: he was the Bernardine -of Shakspere, "a man that apprehends death no more dreadfully than a -drunken sleep, careless, reckless, and fearless of what's past, present, -and to come, insensible of mortality, and desperately mortal." - -[Sidenote: EXECUTION OF A ROBBER.] - -Next morning the triple tiers of the old balconies, roofs, and whole -area of the Moorish and most picturesque square were crowded by the -lower orders; the men wrapped up in their cloaks--(it was a December -morning)--the women in their mantillas, many with young children in -their arms, brought in the beginning of life to witness its conclusion. -The better classes not only absent themselves from these executions, but -avoid any allusion to the subject as derogatory to European -civilization; the humbler ranks, who hold the conventions of society -very cheap, give loose to their morbid curiosity to behold scenes of -terror, which operates powerfully on the women, who seem impelled -irresistibly to witness sights the most repugnant to their nature, and -to behold sufferings which they would most dread to undergo; they, like -children, are the great lovers of the horrible, whether in a tale or in -dreadful reality; to the men it was as a tragedy, where the last scene -is death--death which rivets the attention of all, who sooner or later -must enact the same sad part.[10] They desire to see how the criminal -will conduct himself; they sympathise with him if he displays coolness -and courage, and despise him on the least symptom of unmanliness. An -open square was then formed about the scaffold by lines of soldiers -drawn up, into which the officers and clergy were admitted. As the -fatal hour drew nigh, the increasing impatience of the multitude began -to vent itself in complaints of how slowly the time passed--that time of -no value to them, but of such precious import to him, whose very moments -were numbered. - -[Sidenote: EXECUTION OF A ROBBER.] - -When at length the cathedral clock tolled out the fatal hour, a -universal stir of tiptoe expectation took place, a pushing forward to -get the best situations. Still ten minutes had to elapse, for the clock -of the tribunal is purposely set so much later than that of the -cathedral, in order to afford the utmost possible chance of a reprieve. -When that clock too had rung out its knell, all eyes were turned to the -prison-door, from whence the miserable man came forth, attended by some -Franciscans. He had chosen that order to assist at his dying moments, a -privilege always left to the criminal. He was clad in a coarse yellow -baize gown, the colour which denotes the crime of murder, and is -appropriated always to Judas Iscariot in Spanish paintings. He walked -slowly on his last journey, half supported by those around him, and -stopping often, ostensibly to kiss the crucifix held before him by a -friar, but rather to prolong existence--sweet life!--even yet a moment. -When he arrived reluctantly at the scaffold, he knelt down on the steps, -the threshold of death;--the reverend attendants covered him over with -their blue robes--his dying confession was listened to unseen. He then -mounted the platform attended by a single friar; addressed the crowd in -broken sentences, with a gasping breath--told them that he died -repentant, that he was justly punished, and that he forgave his -executioner. "Mi delito me mata, y no _ese hombre_,"--my offence puts me -to death, and not _this fellow_; as "Ese hombre" is a contemptuous -expression, and implies insult, the ruling feeling of the Spaniard was -displayed in death against the degraded functionary. The criminal then -exclaimed, "_Viva la f! viva la religion! viva el rey! viva el nombre -de Jesus!_" All of which met no echo from those who heard him. His dying -cry was "_Viva la Virgen Santisima!_" at these words the devotion to the -goddess of Spain burst forth in one general acclamation, "_Viva la -Santisima!_" So strong is their feeling towards the Virgin, and so -lukewarm their comparative indifference towards their king, their faith, -and their Saviour! Meanwhile the executioner, a young man dressed in -black, was busied in the preparations for death. The fatal instrument -is simple: the culprit is placed on a rude seat; his back leans against -a strong upright post, to which an iron collar is attached, enclosing -his neck, and so contrived as to be drawn home to the post by turning a -powerful screw. The executioner bound so tightly the naked legs and arms -of Veneno, that they swelled and became black--a precaution not unwise, -as the father of this functionary had been killed in the act of -executing a struggling criminal. The priest who attended Veneno was a -bloated, corpulent man, more occupied in shading the sun from his own -face, than in his ghostly office; the robber sat with a writhing look of -agony, grinding his clenched teeth. When all was ready, the executioner -took the lever of the screw in both hands, gathered himself up for a -strong muscular effort, and, at the moment of a preconcerted signal, -drew the iron collar tight, while an attendant flung a black -handkerchief over the face--a convulsive pressure of the hands and a -heaving of the chest were the only visible signs of the passing of the -robber's spirit. After a pause of a few moments, the executioner -cautiously peeped under the handkerchief, and after having given another -turn to the screw, lifted it off, folded it up, carefully put it into -his pocket, and then proceeded to light a cigar - - ------ "with that air of satisfaction - Which good men wear who've done a virtuous action." - -[Sidenote: EXECUTION OF A ROBBER.] - -The face of the dead man was slightly convulsed, the mouth open, the -eye-balls turned into their sockets from the wrench. A black bier, with -two lanterns fixed on staves, and a crucifix, was now set down before -the scaffold--also a small table and a dish, into which alms were again -collected, to be paid to the priests who sang masses for his soul. The -mob having discussed his crimes, abused the authorities and judges, and -criticised the manner of the new executioner (it was his maiden effort), -began slowly to disperse, to the great content of the neighbouring -silversmiths, who ventured to open their closed shutters, having -hitherto placed more confidence in bolts and bars, than in the moral -example presented to the spectators. The body remained on the scaffold -till the afternoon; it was then thrown into a scavenger's cart, and led -by the "_pregonero_," the common crier, beyond the jurisdiction of the -city, to a square platform called "_La mesa del Rey_," the king's table, -where the bodies of the executed are quartered and cut up--"a pretty -dish to set before a king." Here the carcase was hewed and hacked into -pieces by the bungling executioner and his attendants, with that -inimitable defiance of anatomy for which they and Spanish surgeons are -equally renowned-- - - "Le gambe di lui gettaron in una fossa; - Il Diavol ebbe l'alma, i lupi l'ossa." - - "The legs of the robber were thrown in a hole, - The wolves got his bones, the devil his soul." - -[Sidenote: THE SPANISH DOCTOR.] - - - - -CHAPTER XVII. - - The Spanish Doctor: his Social Position--Medical - Abuses--Hospitals--Medical Education--Lunatic Asylums--Foundling - Hospital of Seville--Medical Pretensions--Dissection--Family - Physician--Consultations--Medical - Costume--Prescriptions--Druggists--Snake Broth--Salve for - Knife-cuts. - - -The transition from the Spanish _ventero_ to the _ladron_ was easy, nor -is that from the robbers to the doctors of Spain difficult; the former -at least offer a polite alternative, they demand "your money or your -life," while the latter in most cases take both; yet these able -practitioners, from being less picturesque in costume, and more -undramatic in operations, do not enjoy so brilliant a European -reputation as the bandits. Again, while our critical monitors cry -thieves on every road of the Peninsula, no friendly warning is given -against the _Sangrado_, whose aspect is more deadly than the _coup de -soleil_ of a Castilian sun: woe waits the wayfarer who falls into his -hands; the patient cannot be too quick in ordering the measure to be -taken of his coffin, or, as Spaniards say, of his tombstone, which last -article is shadowed out by the first feeling of the invalid's -pulse--_tomar el pulso, es prognosticar al enfermo la loza_. It was -probably from a knowledge of this contingent remainder, that Monsieur -Orfila went, or was sent, from Paris to Madrid, about the time of the -Montpensier marriage with the _Infanta_, in the hopes of rescuing her -elder and reigning sister, the "innocent" Isabel, from the fatal native -lancets--a well-meant interference of the foreigner, by the way, which -the Spanish faculty resented and rejected to a man; nor were the guarded -suggestions of this eminent _toxicologiste_, or investigator of poisons, -with regard to the administration of medicines and dispensaries, -received so thankfully as they deserved. - -[Sidenote: THE SPANISH DOCTOR.] - -However magnificently endowed in former times were the hospitals and -almshouses of Spain, the provision now made for poor and ailing -humanity is very inadequate. The revenues were first embezzled by the -managers, and since have almost been swept away. Trustees for pious and -charitable uses are defenceless against armed avarice and appropriation -in office; and being _corporate_ bodies, they want the sacredness of -_private_ interests, which every one is anxious to defend. Hence the -greedy minion Godoy began the spoliation, by seizing the funds, and -giving in lieu government securities, which of course turned out to be -worthless. Then ensued the French invasion, and the confiscation of -military despots. Civil war has done the rest; and now that the convents -are suppressed, the deficiency is more evident, for in the remoter -country districts the monks bestowed relief to the poor, and provided -medicines for the sick. With few exceptions, the hospitals, the _Casas -de Misericordia_, or houses for the destitute, are far from being well -conducted in Spain, while those destined for lunatics, and for exposed -children, notwithstanding recent improvements, do little credit to -science and humanity. - -[Sidenote: HIS SOCIAL POSITION.] - -The base, brutal, and bloody _Sangrados_ of Spain have long been the -butts of foreign and domestic novelists, who spoke many a true word in -their jests. The common expression of the people in regard to the busy -mortality of their patients, is, that they die like bugs, _mueren como -chinches_. This recklessness of life, this inattention to human -suffering, and backwardness in curative science, is very Oriental; for, -however science may have set westward from the East, the arts of -medicine and surgery have not. There, as in Spain, they have long been -subordinate, and the professors held to be of a low caste--a fatal bar -in the Peninsula, where the point of personal honour is so nice, and men -will die rather than submit to conventional degradations. The surgeon of -the Spanish Moors was frequently a despised and detested Jew, which -would create a traditionary loathing of the calling. The physician was -of somewhat a higher caste; but he, like the botanist and chemist, was -rather to be met with among the Infidels than the Christians. Thus -Sancho the Fat was obliged to go in person to Cordova in search of good -advice. And still in Spain, as in the East, all whose profession is to -put living creatures to death, are socially almost excommunicated; the -butcher, bullfighter, and public executioner for example. Here the -soldier who sabres, takes the highest rank, and he who cures, the -lowest; here the M.D.'s, whom the infallible Pope consults and the -autocrat king obeys, are admitted only into the _sick_ rooms of good -company, which, when in rude health, shuts on them the door of their -saloons; but the excluded take their revenge on those who morally cut -them, and all Spaniards are very dangerous with the knife, and more -particularly if surgeons. Madrid is indeed the court of death, and the -necrology of the Escorial furnishes the surest evidence of this fact in -the premature decease of royalty, which may be expected to have the best -advice and aid, both medical and theologico-therapeutical, that the -capital can afford; but brief is the royal span, especially in the case -of females and _infantes_, and the _result_ is undeniable in these -statistics of death; the cause lies between the climate and the doctor, -who, as they aid the other, may fairly be left to settle the question of -relative excellence between each other. - -[Sidenote: THE SPANISH DOCTOR.] - -The Spanish medical man is shunned, not only from ancient prejudices, -and because he is dangerous like a rattle-snake, but from jealousies -that churchmen entertain against a rival profession, which, if well -received, might come in for some share of the legacies and -power-conferring secrets, which are obtained easily at deathbeds, when -mind and body are deprived of strength. Again, a Spanish surgeon and a -Spanish confessor take different views of a patient; one only wishes, or -ought to wish, to preserve him in this world, the other in the -next,--neither probably in their hearts having much opinion of the -remedies adopted by each other: the spiritual practice changes not, for -novelty itself, a heresy in religion, is not favourably beheld in -anything else. Thus the universities, governed by ecclesiastics, -persuaded the poor bigot Philip III. to pass a law prohibiting the study -of any _new_ system of medicine, and _requiring_ Galen, Hippocrates, and -Avicenna. Dons and men for whom the sun still continued to stand still, -scouted the exact sciences and experimental philosophy as dangerous -innovations, which, they said, made every medical man a Tiberius, who, -because he was fond of mathematics where strict demonstration is -necessary, was rather negligent in his religious respect for the gods -and goddesses of the Pantheon; and so, in 1830, they scared the timid -Ferdinand VII. (whose resemblance to Tiberius had nothing to do with -Euclid) by telling him that the schools of medicine created -materialists, heretics, citizen-kings, chartists, barricadoers, and -revolutionists. Thereupon the beloved monarch shut up the lecture rooms -forthwith, opening, it is true, by way of compensation, a tauromachian -university;--men indeed might be mangled, but bulls were to be -mercifully put out of their misery, secundum artem, and with the honours -of science. - -[Sidenote: MEDICAL PRACTICE.] - -This low social position is very classical: the physicians of Rome, -chiefly _liberti_, freed slaves, were only made citizens by Csar, who -wished to _conciliate_ these ministers of the fatal sisters when the -capital was wanting in population after extreme emigrations--an act of -favour which may cut two ways; thus Adrian VI. (tutor to the Spanish -Charles V.) approved of there being 500 medical practitioners in the -Eternal City, because otherwise "the _multitude_ of living beings would -eat each other up." However, when his turn came to be diminished, the -grateful people serenaded his surgeon, as the "deliverer of the -country." In our days, there was only one medical man admitted by the -Seville _sangre su_, the best or noblest set (whose blood is held to be -blue, of which more anon) when in rude and antiphlebotomical health; and -every stranger was informed apologetically by the exclusive Amphitryons -that the M.D. was _de casa conocida_, or born of a good family; thus his -social introduction was owing to personal, not professional -qualifications. And while adventurers of every kind are betitled, the -most prodigal dispenser of Spanish honours never dreams of making his -doctor even a _titulado_, a rank somewhat higher than a pair de France, -and lower than a medical baronetage in England. This aristocratical ban -has confined doctors much to each other's society, which, as they never -take each other's physic, is neither unpleasant nor dangerous. At -Seville the medical _tertulia_, club or meeting, was appropriately held -at the apothecary's shop of _Campelos_, and a sable _junta_ or -consultation it was, of birds of bad omen, who croaked over the general -health with which the city was afflicted, praying, like Sangrado in 'Gil -Blas,' that by the blessing of Providence much sickness might speedily -ensue. The crowded or deserted state of this rookery was the surest -evidence of the hygeian condition of the fair capital of Btica, and one -which, when we lived there, we have often anxiously inspected; for, -whatever be the pleasantries of those in insolent health, when sickness -brings in the doctor, all joking is at an end; then he is made much of -even in Spain, from a choice of evils, and for fear of the confessor and -undertaker. - -The poor in no countries have much predilection for the hospital; and in -Spain, in addition to pride, which everywhere keeps many silly sick out -of admirably-conducted asylums, here a well-grounded fear deters the -patient, who prefers to die a _natural_ death. Again, from their being -poor, the necessity of their living at all, is less evident to the -managers than to the sufferers; as, say the Malthusians, there is no -place vacant at Nature's _table d'hte_ to those who cannot pay, so bed -and board are not pressed on Spanish applicants, by the hospital -committee; an admitted patient's death saves trouble and expense, -neither of which are popular in a land where cash is scarce, and a love -for hard work not prevalent, where a sound man is worth little, and a -sick one still less; nor is every doctor always popular for working -cures, as could be exemplified in sundry cases of Spanish wives and -heirs in general; therefore in the hospitals of the Peninsula, if only -half die, it is thought great luck: the dead, moreover, tell no tales, -and the living sing praises for their miraculous escape. _El medico -lleva la plata, pero Dios es que sana!_--God works the cure, the doctor -sacks the fee! Meanwhile the sextons are busy and merry, as those in -Hamlet, and as indeed all gravediggers are, when they have a job on hand -that will be paid for; deeply do they dig into the silent earth, that -bourn from whence no travellers return to blab. They sing and jest, -while dust is heaped on dust, and the _corpus delicti_ covered, and with -it the blunders of the _medico_; thus all parties, the deceased -excepted, are well satisfied; the man with the lancet is content that -disagreeable evidence should be put out of sight, the fellow-labourer -with the spade is thankful that constant means of living should be -afforded to him; and when the funeral is over, both carry out the -proverbial practice of Peninsular survivors: _Los muertos en la huesa, y -los vivos la mesa_, the dead in their grave, the quick to their -dinner. - -[Sidenote: MEDICAL ABUSES.] - -But at no period were Spaniards careful even of their own lives, and -much less of those of others, being a people of untender bowels. -Familiarity with pain blunts much of the finer feelings of persons -employed even in our hospitals, for those who live by the dead have only -an undertaker's sympathy for the living, and are as dull to the poetry -of innocent health, as Mr. Giblet is to a sportive house-fed lamb. -Matters are not improved in Spain, where the wounds, blood, and -slaughterings of the pastime bull-fight, the _mueran_ or death -mob-cries, and _pasele por las armas_, the shoot him on the spot, the -Draco and Durango decrees, and practices of all in power, educate all -sexes to indifference to blood; thus the fatal knife-stab or surgeon's -cut are viewed as _cosas de Espaa_ and things of course. The philosophy -of the general indifference to life in Spain, which almost amounts to -Oriental fatalism, in the number of executions and general resignation -to bloodshed, arises partly from life among the many being at best but a -struggle for existence; thus in setting it in the cast, the player only -stakes coppers, and when one is removed, there is somewhat less -difficulty for survivors; hence every one is for himself and for to-day; -aprs moi le dluge, _el ultimo mono se ahoga_, the last monkey is -drowned, or as we say, the devil takes the hindmost. - -[Sidenote: MEDICAL ABUSES.] - -The neglect of well-supported, well-regulated hospitals, has recoiled on -the Spaniards. The rising profession are deprived of the advantages of -_walking_ them, and thus beholding every nice difficulty solved by -experienced masters. Recently some efforts have been made in large -towns, especially on the coasts, to introduce reforms and foreign -ameliorations; but official jobbing and ignorant routine are still among -the diseases that are _not_ cured in Spain. In 1811, when the English -army was at Cadiz, a physician, named Villarino, urged by some of our -indignant surgeons, brought the disgraceful condition of Spanish -hospitals before the Cortes. A commission was appointed, and their sad -report, still extant, details how the funds, food, wine, &c., destined -for the patients were consumed by the managers and their subalterns. The -results were such as might be expected; the authorities held together, -and persecuted Villarino as a _revolucionario_, or reformer, and -succeeded in disgracing him. The superintendent of this establishment -was the notorious Lozano de Torres, who starved the English army after -Talavera, and was "a thief and a liar," in the words of the Duke. The -Regency, after this very exposure of his hospital, promoted him to the -civil government of Old Castile; and Ferdinand VII., in 1817, made him -Minister of Justice. - -As buildings, the hospitals are generally very large; but the space is -as thinly tenanted as the unpeopled wastes of Spain. In England wards -are wanting for patients--in Spain, patients for wards. The names of -some of the greatest hospitals are happily chosen; that of Seville, for -instance, is called _La Sangre_, the blood, or _Las Cinco Llagas_, the -five bleeding wounds of our Saviour, which are sculptured over the -portal like bunches of grapes. Blood is an ominous name for this house -and home of _Sangrado_, where the lancet, like the Spanish knife, gives -no quarter. In instruments of life and death, this establishment -resembled a Spanish arsenal, being wanting in everything at the critical -moment; its dispensary, as in the shop of Shakspere's apothecary, -presented a beggarly account of empty pill-boxes, while as to a visiting -Brodie, the part of that Hamlet was left out. The grand hospital at -Madrid is called _el general_, the General, and the medical assistance -is akin to the military co-operation of such Spanish generals as Lapea -and Venegas, who in the moment of need left Graham at Barrosa, and the -Duke at Talavera, without a shadow of aid. There is nothing new in this, -if the old proverb tells truth, _socorros de Espaa, o tarde o nunca_; -Spanish succours arrive late or never. In cases of battle, war, and -sudden death as in peace, the professional men, military or medical, are -apt to assist in the meaning of the French word _assister_, which -signifies to be present without taking any part in what is going on. And -this applies, where knocks on the head are concerned, not to the medical -men only, but to the universal Spanish nation; when any one is stabbed -in the streets, he will infallibly bleed to death, unless the -authorities arrive in time to pick him up, and to bind up his wounds: -every one else--Englishmen excepted, we describe things -witnessed--passes on the other side; not from any fear at the sight of -blood, nor abhorrence of murder, but from the dread which every Spaniard -feels at the very idea of getting entangled in the meshes of _La -Justicia_, whose ministers lay hold of all who interfere or are near the -body as principals or witnesses, and Spanish justice, if once it gets a -man into its fangs, never lets him go until drained of his last -farthing. - -[Sidenote: COLLEGE OF SAN CARLOS.] - -The schools and hospitals, especially in the inland remote cities, are -very deficient in all improved mechanical appliances and modern -discoveries, and the few which are to be met with are mostly of French -and second-rate manufacture. It is much the same with their medical -treatises and technical works; all is a copy, and a bad one; it has been -found to be much easier to translate and borrow, than to invent; -therefore, as in modern art and literature, there is little originality -in Spanish medicine. It is chiefly a veneering of other men's ideas, or -an adaptation of ancient and Moorish science. Most of their terms of -medicinal art, as well as of drugs, _jalea_, _elixir_, _jarave_, _rob_, -_sorbete_, _julepe_, &c., are purely Arabic, and indicate the sources -from whence the knowledge was obtained, for there is no surer historical -test than language of the origin from whence the knowledge of the -science was derived with its phraseology; and whenever Spaniards depart -from the daring ways of their ancestors, it is to adopt a timid French -system. The few additions to their medical libraries are translations -from their neighbours, just as the scanty materia medica in their -apothecaries' shops is rendered more dangerous and ineffective by quack -nostrums from Paris. It is a serious misfortune to sanative science in -the Peninsula, that all that is known of the works of thoughtful, -careful Germany, of practical, decided England, is passed through the -unfair, inaccurate alembic of French translation; thus the original -becomes doubly deteriorated, and the sacred cosmopolitan cause of truth -and fact is too often sacrificed to the Gallic mania of suppressing -both, for the honour of their own country. Can it be wondered, -therefore, that the acquaintance of the Spanish faculty with modern -works, inventions, and operations is very limited, or that their -text-books and authorities should too often be still Galen, Celsus, -Hippocrates, and Boerhaave? The names of Hunter, Harvey, and Astley -Cooper, are scarcely more known among their M.D.'s than the last -discoveries of Herschel; the light of such distant planets has not had -time to arrive. - -[Sidenote: LUNATIC ASYLUMS.] - -To this day the _Colegio de San Carlos_, or the College of Surgeons at -Madrid, relies much on teaching the obstetric art by means of wax -preparations; but learning a trade on paper is not confined in Spain to -medical students; the great naval school at Seville is dedicated to San -Telmo, who, uniting in himself the attributes of the ancient Castor and -Pollux, appears in storms at the mast-head in the form of lights to -rescue seamen. Hence, whenever it comes on to blow, the pious crews of -Spanish crafts fall on their knees, and depend on this marine Hercules, -instead of taking in sail, and putting the helm up. Our tars, who love -the sea _propter se_, for better for worse, having no San Telmo to help -them in foul weather (although the somewhat irreverent gunner of the -Victory did call him of Trafalgar Saint Nelson), go to work and perform -the miracle themselves--_aide toi, et le ciel t'aidera_. In our time, -the middies in this college were taught navigation in a room, from a -small model of a three-decker placed on a large table; and thus at least -they were not exposed to sea-sickness. The Infant Antonio, Lord High -Admiral of Spain, was walking in the Retiro gardens near the pond, when -it was proposed to cross in a boat; he declined, saying, "Since I sailed -from Naples to Spain I have never ventured on water." But, in this and -some other matters, things are managed differently on the Thames and the -Btis. Thus, near Greenwich Hospital, a floating frigate, large as life, -is the school of young chips of old blocks, who every day behold in the -veterans of Cape St. Vincent and Trafalgar living examples of having -"done their duty." The evidence of former victories thus becomes a -guarantee for the realization of their young hopes, and the future is -assured by the past. - -[Sidenote: LUNATIC ASYLUMS.] - -Next to the barracks, prisons, arsenals, and fortresses of Spain, the -establishments for suffering mortality are the least worth seeing, and -are the most to be avoided by wise travellers, who can indulge in much -better specimens at home. This assertion will be better understood by a -sketch or two taken on the spot a few years ago. The so-called asylums -for lunatics are termed in Spanish hospitales de _locos_, a word derived -from the Arabic, _locao_, mad; they, like the cognate Morostans ([Greek: -mroc]) of Cairo, were generally so mismanaged, that the directors -appeared to be only desirous of obtaining admission themselves. Insanity -seemed to derange both the intellects of the patients and to harden the -bowels of their attendants, while the usual misappropriation of the -scanty funds produced a truly reckless, makeshift, wretched result. -There was no attempt at _classification_, which indeed is no thing of -Spain. The inmates were crowded together,--the monomaniac, the insane, -the raving mad,--in one confusion of dirt and misery, where they howled -at each other, chained like wild beasts, and were treated even worse -than criminals, for the passions of the most outrageous were infuriated -by the savage lash. There was not even a curtain to conceal the sad -necessities of these human beings, then reduced to animals: everything -was public even unto death, whose last groan was mingled with the -frantic laugh of the surviving spectators. In some rare cases the bodies -of those whose minds are a void, were confined in solitary cells, with -no other companions save affliction. Of these, many, when first sent -there by friends and relations to be put out of the way, were _not_ mad, -soon indeed to become so, as solitude, sorrow, and the iron entered -their brain. These establishments, which the natives ought to hide in -shame, were usually among the first lions which they forced on the -stranger, and especially on the Englishman, since, holding our worthy -countrymen to be all _locos_, they naturally imagined that they would be -quite at home among the inmates. - -They, in common with many others on the Continent, entertain a notion -that all Britons bold have a bee in their bonnet; they think so on many, -and perhaps not always unreasonable, grounds. They see them preferring -English ways, sayings, and doings, to their own, which of itself appears -to a Spaniard, as to a Frenchman, to be downright insanity. Then our -countrymen tell the truth in bulletins, use towels, and remove -superfluous hairs daily. And letting alone other minor exhibitions of -eccentricity, are not the natives of England, Scotland, and Ireland -guilty of three actions, any one of which would qualify for Bedlam if -the Lord Chancellor were to issue a writ _de lunatico inquiriendo_?--have -they not bled for Spain, in purse and person, on the battlefield, on the -railroad, in the Stock Exchange?-- - - "Oh tribus Antyceris caput insanabile!" - -[Sidenote: FOUNDLING HOSPITALS.] - -To return, however, to Spanish madmen and their hospitals, the sight was -a sad one, and alike disgraceful to the sane, and degrading to the -insane native. The wild maniacs implored a "loan" from the foreigner, -for from their own countrymen they had received a stone. A sort of -madness is indeed seldom wanting to the frantic energy and intense -eagerness of all Spanish mendicants; and here, albeit the reasoning -faculties were gone, the national propensity to beg and borrow survived -the wreck of intellect, and in fact it was and is the indestructible -"common sense" of the country. - -There was generally some particular patient whose aggravated misery made -him or her the especial object of cruel curiosity. Thus, at Toledo, in -1843, the _keepers_ (fit wild beast term) always conducted strangers to -the cage or den of the wife of a celebrated Captain-General and -first-rate fusilier of Catalonia, an officer superior in power to our -Lord-Lieutenant of Ireland. She was permitted to wallow in naked filth, -and be made a public show. The Moors, at least, do not confine their -harmless female maniacs, who wander naked through the streets, while the -men are honoured as saints, whose minds are supposed to be wandering in -heaven. The old Iberian doctors, according to Pliny, professed to cure -madness with the herb _vettonica_, and hydrophobia with decoction of the -_cynorrhodon_ or dog-rose-water, as being doubly unpalateable to the -rabid canine species. The modern Spaniards seemed only to desire, by -ignorance and ill-usage, to darken any lucid interval into one raving -uniformity. - -The foundling hospitals were, when we last examined them, scarcely -better managed than the lunatic asylums; they are called _casas de -espositos_, houses of the exposed--or _la Cuna_, the cradle, as if they -were the cradle, not the coffin, of miserable infants. Most large cities -in Spain have one of these receptacles; the principal being in the -Levitical towns, and the natural fruit of a rich celibate clergy, both -regular and secular. The _Cuna_ in our time might have been defined as a -place where innocents were massacred, and natural children deserted by -their unnatural parents were provided for by being slowly starved. These -hospitals were first founded at Milan in 787, by a priest named Datheus. -That of Seville, which we will describe, was established by the clergy -of the cathedral, and was managed by twelve directors, six lay and six -clerical; few, however, attended or contributed save in subjects. The -hospital is situate in the _Calle de la Cuna_; near an aperture left for -charitable donations, is a marble tablet with this verse from the -Psalms, inscribed in Latin, "When my father and mother forsake me, then -the Lord will take me in." - -[Sidenote: FOUNDLING HOSPITAL AT SEVILLE.] - -A wicket door is pierced in the wall, which opens on being tapped to -admit the sinless children of sin; and a nurse sits up at night to -receive those exposed by parents who hide their guilt in darkness. - - "Toi que l'amour fit par un crime, - Et que l'amour dfait par un crime son tour, - Funeste ouvrage de l'amour, - De l'amour funeste victime." - -Some of the babies are already dying, and are put in here in order to -avoid the expense of a funeral; others are almost naked, while a few are -well supplied with linen and necessaries. These latter are the offspring -of the better classes, by whom a temporary concealment is desired. With -such the most affecting letters are left, praying the nurses to take -more than usual care of a child which will surely be one day reclaimed, -and a mark or ornament is usually fastened to the infant, in order that -it may be identified hereafter, if called for, and such were the precise -customs in antiquity. Every particular regarding every exposed babe is -registered in a book, which is a sad record of human crime and remorse. - -Those children which are afterwards reclaimed, pay about sixpence for -every day during which the hospital has maintained them; but little -attention is paid to the appeals for particular care, or to the promise -of redemption, for Spaniards seldom trust each other. Unless some name -is sent with it, the child is baptized with one given by the matron, and -it usually is that of the saint of the day of its admission. The number -was very great, and increased with increasing poverty, while the funds -destined to support the charges decreased from the same cause. There is -a certain and great influx nine months after the Holy week and -Christmas, when the whole city, male and female, pass the night in -kneeling to relics and images, &c.; accordingly nine months afterwards, -in January and November, the daily numbers often exceed the usual -average by fifteen to twenty. - -[Sidenote: FOUNDLING HOSPITAL AT SEVILLE.] - -There is always a supply of wet nurses at the _Cuna_, but they are -generally such as from bad character cannot obtain situations in private -families; the usual allotment was three children to one nurse. -Sometimes, when a respectable woman is looking out for a place as -wet-nurse, and is anxious not to lose her breast of milk, she goes, in -the meanwhile, to the _Cuna_, when the poor child who draws it off -plumps up a little, and then, when the supply is withdrawn, withers and -dies. The appointed nurses dole out their milk, not according to the -wants of the infants, but to make it do for their number. Some few are -farmed out to poor mothers who have lost their own babe; they receive -about eight shillings a month, and these are the children which have the -best chance of surviving, for no woman who has been a mother, and has -given suck, will willingly, when left alone, let an infant die. The -nurses of the _Cuna_ were familiar with starvation, and even if their -milk of human kindness were not dried up or soured, they have not the -means of satisfying their hungry number. The proportion who died was -frightful; it was indeed an organized system of infanticide. Death is a -mercy to the child, and a saving to the establishment; a grown-up man's -life never was worth much in Spain, much less that of a deserted baby. -The exposure of children to immediate death by the Greeks and Romans, -was a trifle less cruel than the protracted dying in these Spanish -charnel-houses. This _Cuna_, when last we visited it, was managed by an -inferior priest, who, a true Spanish unjust steward, misapplied the -funds. He became rich, like Gil Blas's overseer at Valladolid, by taking -care of the property of the poor and fatherless; his well-garnished -quarters and portly self were in strange contrast with the condition of -his wasted charges. Of these, the sick and dying were separated from the -healthy; the former were placed in a large room, once the saloon of -state, whose gilded roof and fair proportions mocked the present misery. -The infants were laid in rows on dirty mattresses along on the floor, -and were left unheeded and unattended. Their large heads, shrivelled -necks, hollow eyes, and wax wan figures, were shadowed with coming -death. Called into existence by no wish or fault of their own, their -brief span was run out ere begun, while their mother was far away -exclaiming, "When I have sufficiently wept for his birth, I will weep -for his death." - -[Sidenote: FOUNDLING HOSPITAL AT SEVILLE.] - -Those who were more healthy lay paired in cradles arranged along a vast -room; but famine was in their cheeks, need starved in their eyes, and -their shrill cry pained the ear on passing the threshold; from their -being underfed, they were restless and ever moaning. Their existence has -indeed begun with a sob, with _El primer sollozo de la Cuna_, the first -sigh of the cradle, as Rioja says, but all cry when entering the world, -while many leave it with smiles. Some, the newly exposed, just parted -from their mother's breast, having sucked their last farewell, looked -plump and rosy; they slept soundly, blind to the future, and happily -unconscious of their fate. - -About one in twelve survived to idle about the hospital, ill clad, ill -fed, and worse taught. The boys were destined for the army, the girls -for domestic service, nay, for worse, if public report did not wrong -their guardian priest. They grew up to be selfish and unaffectionate; -having never known what kindness was, their young hearts closed ere they -opened; "the world was not their friend, nor the world's law." It was on -their heads that the barber learned to shave, and on them were visited -the sins of their parents; having had none to care for them, none to -love, they revenged themselves by hating mankind. Their occupation -consisted in speculating on who their parents may be, and whether they -should some day be reclaimed and become rich. A few occasionally are -adopted by benevolent and childless persons, who, visiting the _Cuna_, -take a fancy to an interesting infant; but the child is liable ever -after to be given up to its parents, should they reclaim it. Townshend -mentions an Oriental custom at Barcelona, where the girls when -marriageable were paraded in procession through the streets, and any -desirous of taking a wife was at liberty to select his object by -"throwing his handkerchief." This Spanish custom still prevails at -Naples. - -Such was the _Cuna_ of Seville when we last beheld it. It is now, as we -have recently heard with much pleasure, admirably conducted, having been -taken in charge by some benevolent ladies, who here as elsewhere are the -best nurses and guardians of man in his first or second infancy, not to -say of every intermediate stage. - -[Sidenote: MEDICAL PRETENSIONS.] - -Our readers will concur in deeming that wight unfortunate who falls ill -in Spain, as, whatever be his original complaint, it is too often -followed by secondary and worse symptoms, in the shape of the native -doctor; and if the judgment passed by Spaniards on that member of -society be true, Esculapius cannot save the invalid from the crows; the -faculty even at Madrid are little in advance of their provincial -colleagues, nay, often they are more destructive, since, being -practitioners in the only court, the heaven on earth, they are in -proportion superior to the medical men of the rest of the world, of whom -of course they can learn nothing. They are, however, at least a century -behind their brother professors of England. An unreasonable idea of -self-excellence arises both in nations and in individuals, from having -no knowledge of the relative merits of others, and from having few -grounds or materials whereon to raise comparison; it exists therefore -the strongest among the most uninformed and those who mix the least in -the world. Thus in spite of manifold deficiencies, some of which will be -detailed, the self-esteem of these medical men exceeds, if possible, -that of the military; both have killed their "ten thousands." They hold -themselves to be the first _sabreurs_, physicians, and surgeons on -earth, and the best qualified to wield the shears of the Parc. It would -be a waste of time to try to dispel this fatal delusion; the -well-intentioned monitor would simply be set down as malevolent, -envious, and an ass; for they think their ignorance the perfection of -human skill. Few foreigners can ever hope to succeed among them, nor can -any native who may have studied abroad, easily introduce a better -system: his elder brethren would make common cause against him as an -innovator; he would be summoned to no consultations, the most lucrative -branch of practice, while the confessors would poison the ears of the -women (who govern the men) with cautions against the danger to their -souls, of having their bodies cured by a Jew, a heretic, or a foreigner, -for the terms are almost convertible. - -[Sidenote: MEDICAL EDUCATION.] - -Meanwhile, as in courts of justice and other matters in Spain, all -sounds admirably on _paper_--the forms, regulations, and system are -perfect in theory. Colleges of physicians and surgeons superintend the -science, the professors are members of infinite learned societies, -lectures are delivered, examinations are conducted, and certificates -duly signed and sealed, are given. The young _Galenista_ is furnished -with a licence to kill, but what is wanting from beginning to end, to -practitioner and patient, is _life_. The medical men know, nevertheless, -every aphorism of the ancients by rote, and _discourse_ as eloquently -and plausibly on any case as do their ministers in Cortes. Both write -capital theories and opinions extemporaneously. Their splendid language -supplies words which seem to have cost thought. What is deficient is -that clinical and best of education where the case is brought before the -student with the corollary of skilful treatment: _accidental_ deaths are -consequently more common than cures. - -Dissection again is even now repulsive to their Oriental prejudices; the -pupils learn rather by plates, diagrams, models, preparations, and -skeletons, than from anatomical experiments on a subject. As among the -ancients and in the East to this day an idea is prevalent among the -masses in Spain, that the touch of a dead body pollutes; nor is the -objection raised by the clergy, that it savours of impiety to mutilate a -form made in the image of God, yet exploded. It will be remembered by -our medical readers, if we have any, that Vezalius, the father of modern -anatomy, when at Madrid was demanded by the Inquisition from Philip II., -to be burnt for having performed an operation. The king sent him to -expiate his sin by a pilgrimage to the Holy Land; he was shipwrecked, -and died of starvation at Zante. - -Can it be wondered at, with such a theoretical education, that practice -should continue to be antiquated, classical, and Oriental, and -necessarily very limited? In difficult cases of compound fracture, -gun-shot wounds, the doctors give the patient up almost at once, -although they continue to meet and take fees, until death relieves him -of his complicated sufferings. In chronic cases and slighter fractures -they are less dangerous; for as their pottering remedies do neither good -nor harm, the struggle for life and death is left to nature, who -sometimes works the cure. In acute diseases and inflammations they -seldom succeed; for however fond of the lancet, they only nibble with -the case, and are scared at the bold decided practice of Englishmen, -whereat they shrug up shoulders, invoke saints, and descant learnedly on -the impossibility of treating complaints under the bright sun and warm -air of Catholic Spain, after the formul of cold, damp, and foggy, -heretical England. - -[Sidenote: FAMILY PHYSICIAN.] - -Most Spaniards who can afford it have their family or bolster doctor, -the _Medico de Cabecera_, and their confessor. This pair take care of -the bodies and souls of the whole house, bring them gossip, share their -_puchero_, purse, and tobacco. They rule the husband through the women -and the nursery, nor do they allow their exclusive privileges to be -infringed on. Etiquette is the life of a Spaniard, and often his death, -since every one has heard (the Spaniards swear it is all a French lie) -that Philip III. was killed, rather than violate a form. He was seated -too near the fire, and, although burning, of course as king of Spain the -impropriety of moving himself never entered his head, and when he -requested one of his attendants to do so, none, in the absence of the -proper officer whose duty it was to superintend the royal chair, -ventured to take that improper liberty. In case of sudden emergencies -among her Catholic Majesty's subjects, unless the family doctor be -present, any other one, even if called in, generally declines acting -until the regular Esculapius arrives. An English medical friend of ours -saved a Spaniard's life by chancing to arrive when the patient, in an -apoplectic fit, was foaming at the mouth and wrestling with death; all -this time a strange doctor was sitting quietly in the next room smoking -his cigar at the _brasero_, the chafing-dish, with the women of the -family. Our friend instantly took 30 ounces from the sufferer's arm, not -one of the Spanish party even moving from their seats. Thus Apollo -preserved him! The same medical gentleman happened to accidentally call -on a person who had an inflammation in the cornea of the eye: on -questioning he found that many consultations had been previously held, -at which no determination was come to until at the last, when -sea-bathing was prescribed, with a course of asses' milk and Chiclana -snake-broth; our heretical friend, who lacked the true faith, just -touched the diseased part with caustic. When this application was -reported at the next consultation, the native doctors all crossed -themselves with horror and amazement, which was increased when the -patient recovered in a week. - -[Sidenote: MEDICAL COSTUME.] - -As a general rule at the first visit, they look as wise as possible, -shake their heads before the women, and always magnify the complaint, -which is a safe proceeding all over the world, since all physicians can -either cure or kill the patient; in the first event they get greater -credit and reward, while in the other alternative, the disease, having -been beyond the reach of art, bears the blame. The _medicos_ exhibit -considerable ingenuity in prolonging an apparent necessity for a -continuance of their visits. A common interest induces them to pull -together--a rare exception in Spain--and play into each other's hands. -The family doctor, whenever appearances will in anywise justify him, -becomes alarmed, and requires a consultation, a _Junta_. What any -Spanish Junta is in affairs of peace or war need not be explained; and -these are like the rest, they either do nothing, or what they do do, is -done badly. At these meetings from three to seven _Medicos de -apelacion_, consulting physicians, attend, or more, according to the -patient's purse: each goes to the sick man, feels his pulse, asks him -some questions, and then retires to the next room to consult, generally -allowing the invalid the benefit of hearing what passes. The -_Protomedico_, or senior, takes the chair; and while all are lighting -their cigars, the family doctor opens the case, by stating the birth, -parentage, and history of the patient, his constitution, the complaint, -and the medicines hitherto prescribed. The senior next rises, and gives -his opinion, often speaking for half an hour; the others follow in their -rotation, and then the _Protomedico_, like a judge, sums up, going over -each opinion with comments: the usual termination is either to confirm -the previous treatment, or make some insignificant alteration: the only -certain thing is to appoint another consultation for the next day, for -which the fees are heavy, each taking from three to five dollars. The -consultation often lasts many hours, and becomes at last a chronic -complaint. - -[Sidenote: PRESCRIPTIONS.] - -It must be said, in justice to these able practitioners, that as a body -they are careful in their dress: external appearance, not to say finery -in apparel, raises in the eyes of the many, a profession which here is -of uncertain social standing. On the same principle how careful is the -costume, how brilliant are the shirt-studs of foreign fiddlers when in -England! The worthy Andalucian doctor of our Spanish family, and an -efficient one, as two of his patients now at rest could testify, never -paid a visit except when gaily attired. So the _Matador_, when he enters -the arena to kill the bull, is clad as a first-rate dandy _majo_. This -attention to person arises partly from the Moro-Ibero love of -ostentation, and partly from sound Galenic principles and a high sense -of professional duty. The ancient authorities enforced on the -practitioner an attention to everything which created cheerful -impressions, in order that he might arrive at the patient's pillow like -a messenger of good tidings, and as a minister of health, not of death. -They held that a grave costume might suggest unpleasant associations to -the sick man. Raven-coloured undertaker tights, and a funereal, -cadaverous look to match, are harbingers of blue devils and black crape, -which no man, even when in blessed health, contemplates with comfort; -while the effect of such a _facies hippocratica_ staring in the face of -a poor devil whose life is despaired of, must be fatal. - -[Sidenote: DRUGGISTS.] - -The prescriptions of these well-dressed gentlemen are somewhat more -old-fashioned than their coats. Their grand recipe in the first instance -is to do nothing beyond taking the fee and leaving nature alone, or, as -the set phrase has it, _dejar la naturaleza_. The young and those -whose constitutions are strong and whose complaints are weak, do well -under the healing influence of their kind nurse Nature, and recover -through her vis medicatrix, which, if not obstructed by art, everywhere -works wonderful cures. The _Sangrado_ will say that a Spanish man or -woman is more marvellously made than a clock, inasmuch as his or her -machinery has a power in itself to regulate its own motions, and to -repair accidents; and therefore the watchmaker who is called in, need -not be in a hurry to take it to pieces when a little oiling and cleaning -may set all to rights. The remedies, when the proper time for their -application arrives, are simple, and are sought for rather among the -vegetables of the earth's surface than from the minerals in its bowels. -The external recipes consist chiefly of papers smeared with lard, -applied to the abdomen, sinapisms and mustard poultices to the feet, -fomentations of marsh-mallows or camomile flowers, and the aid of the -curate. The internal remedies, the tisanes, the _Leches de Almendras_, -_de Burras_, decoctions of rice, and so forth, succeed each other in -such regular order, that the patient scholar has nothing to do but -repeat the medical passages in Horace's 'Satires.' In no country, -however, can all the sick be always expected to recover even then, since -"_Para todo hay remedio, sino para la muerte_"--"There is a remedy for -everything except death." If by chance the patient dies, the doctor and -the disease bear the blame. Perhaps the old Iberian custom was the -safest; then the sick were exposed outside their doors, and the advice -of casual passengers was asked, whose prescriptions were quite as likely -to answer as images, relics, snake-soup, or milk of almonds or asses:-- - - "And, doctor, do you really think - That asses' milk I ought to drink? - It cured yourself, I grant, is true, - But then 'twas mother's milk to you." - -[Sidenote: SNAKE-BROTH.] - -Nor, if the doctors knew how to prescribe them, are the nicer and most -efficacious remedies, the preparations of modern chemical science, to be -procured in any except the very largest towns; although, as in Romeo's -apothecary, "the needy" shelves are filled with empty boxes "to make a -show." The trade of a druggist is anything but free, and the numbers are -limited; none may open a _Botica_ without a strict examination and -licence; although, of course, this is to be had for money. None may sell -any potent medicine, except according to the prescription of some -_local_ medical man; everything is a monopoly. The commonest drugs are -often either wanting or grossly adulterated, but, as in their arsenals -and larders, no dispenser will admit such destitution; _hay de todo_, I -have every thing, swears he, and gallantly makes up the prescription -simply by substituting other ingredients; and as the correct ones nine -times out of ten are harmless, no great injury is sustained. There is -nothing new in this, for Quevedo, in his _Zahurdas de Pluton_, or -Satan's Pigsties, introduces a yellow-faced bilious judge scourging -Spanish apothecaries for doing exactly the same, "Hence your shops," -quoth he, for he both preached and flogged, "are arsenals of death, -whose ministers here get their pills (balls rather) which banish souls -from the earth;" but these and other things have been long done with -impunity, as Pliny said, no physician was ever hung for murder. One -advantage of general distrust in drugs and doctors is, that the great -masses of the people think very little about them or their complaints: -thus they escape all fancied and imaginary complaints, which, if -indulged in, become chronic, and more difficult to cure than those -afflicting the body--for who can minister to a mind diseased? Again, -from this want of confidence in remedies, very little physic at all is -taken; owing to this limited demand, druggists' shops are as rare in -Spain as those of booksellers. No red, green, or blue bottles illuminate -the streets at night, and there are more of these radiant orbs in the -Fore street of the capital of the west of England, than in the whole -capital of the Spains, albeit with a population six times greater. It -is true that, at Madrid, feeding on plum-pudding, diluted with sour -cider and clotted cream, is not habitual. - -Many of the prescriptions of Spain are local, and consist of some -particular spring, some herb, some animal, or some particular air, or -place, or bath, is recommended, which, however, is said to be very -dangerous, unless some resident local _medico_ be first consulted. One -example is as good as a thousand: near Cadiz is Chiclana, to which the -faculty invariably transport those patients whom they cannot cure, that -is, about ninety-five in the hundred; so in chronic complaints -sea-bathing there, is prescribed, with a course of asses' milk; and if -that fail, then a broth made of a long harmless snake, which abounds in -the aromatic wastes near _Barrosa_. We have forgotten the generic name -of this valuable reptile of Esculapius, one of which our naturalists -should take alive, and either breed from it in the Regent's Park, or at -least investigate his comparative anatomy with those exquisite vipers -which make, as we have shown, such delicious pork at Montanches. - -[Sidenote: SALVE FOR KNIFE-CUTS.] - -We cannot refrain from giving one more prescription. Many of the murders -in Spain should rather be called homicides, being free from malice -prepense, and caused by the _readiness_ of the national _cuchillo_, with -which all the lower classes are armed like wasps; it is thus always at -hand, when the blood is most on fire, and before any refrigeratory -process commences. Thus, where an unarmed Englishman _closes_ his fist, -a Spaniard opens his knife. This rascally instrument becomes fatal in -jealous broils, when the lower classes light their anger at the torch of -the Furies, and prefer using, to speaking daggers. Then the thrust goes -home; and however unskilled the regular _Sangrados_ may be in anatomy -and handling the scalpel, the universal people know exactly how to -manage their knife and where to plant its blow; nor is there any -mistake, for the wound, although not so deep as a well, nor so wide as a -church door, "'t will serve." It is usually given after the treacherous -fashion of their Oriental and Iberian ancestors, and if possible by a -stab behind, and "under the fifth rib;" and "one blow" is enough. The -blade, like the cognate Arkansas or Bowie knife of the Yankees, will -"rip up a man right away," or drill him until a surgeon can see through -his body. The number killed on great religious and other festivals, -exceeds those of most Spanish battles in the field, although the -occurrence is scarcely noticed in the newspapers, so much is it a matter -of course; but crimes which call forth a second edition and double sheet -in our papers, are slurred over on the Continent, for foreigners conceal -what we most display. - -In minor cases of flirtation, where capital punishment is not called -for, the offending party just gashes the cheek of the peccant one, and -suiting the word to the action observes, "_ya estas senala[=a]_;" "Now -you are marked." This is precisely _winkel quarte_, the gash in the -cheek, which is the only salve for the touchy honour of a German -student, when called _ein dummer junge_, a stupid youth:-- - - "Und ist die quart gesessen - So ist der touche vergessen." - -Again, "_Mira que te pego, mira que te mato_," "Mind I don't strike -thee--mind I don't kill thee;" are playful fondling expressions of a -_Maja_ to a _Majo_. When this particular gash is only threatened, the -Seville phrase was, "_Mira que te pinto un jabeque_;" "Take care that I -don't draw you a xebeck" (the sharp Mediterranean felucca). "They jest -at wounds who never felt a scar," but whenever this _jabeque_ has really -been inflicted the patient, ashamed of the stigma, and not having the -face to show himself or herself, is naturally anxious to recover a good -character and skin, which only one cosmetic, one sovereign panacea, can -effect. This in Philip IV.'s time was cat's grease which then removed -such superfluous marks; while Don Quixote considered the oil of -Apariccio to be the only cure for scratches inflicted by female or -feline claws. - -[Sidenote: THE PARISH DOCTOR.] - -In process of time, as science advanced, this was superseded by _Unto -del hombre_, or man's grease. Our estimable friend Don Nicolas Molero, a -surgeon in high practice at Seville, assured us that previously to the -French invasion he had often prepared this cataleptic specific, which -used to be sold for its weight in gold, until, having been adulterated -by unprincipled empirics, it fell into disrepute. The receipt of the -balsam of Fierabras has puzzled the modern commentators of Don Quixote, -but the kindness of Don Nicolas furnished us with the ingredients of -this _pommade divine_, or rather _mortale_. "Take a man in full health -who has been just killed, the fresher the better, pare off the fat round -the heart, melt it over a slow fire, clarify, and put it away in a cool -place for use." The multitudinous church ceremonies and holidays in -Spain, which bring crowds together, combined with the sun, wine, and -women, have always ensured a supply of fine subjects. - -In Spain, as elsewhere, the doctor mania is an expensive amusement, -which the poor and more numerous class, especially in rural localities, -seldom indulge in. Like their mules, they are rarely ill, and they only -take to their beds to die. They have, it is true, a parish doctor, to -whom certain districts are apportioned; when he in his turn succumbs to -death, or is otherwise removed, the vacancy is usually announced in the -newspapers, and a new functionary is often advertised for. His trifling -salary is made up of payments in money and in kind, so much in corn and -so much in cash; the leading principle is cheapness, and, as in our new -poor-law, that proficient is preferred, who will contract to do for the -greatest number at the smallest charge. His constituents decline -sometimes to place full confidence in his skill or alacrity: they -oftener do consult the barber, the quack, or _curandero_; for there is -generally in orthodox Spain some charlatan wherever sword, rosary, pen, -or lancet is to be wielded. The nostrums, charms, relics, incantations, -&c., to which recourse is had, when not medival, are scarcely -Christian; but the spiritual pharmacopoeia of this land of Figaro is -far too important to form the tail-piece of any chapter. - -[Sidenote: SPIRITUAL REMEDIES FOR THE BODY.] - - - - -CHAPTER XVIII. - - Spanish Spiritual Remedies for the Body--Miraculous - Relics--Sanative Oils--Philosophy of Relic Remedies--Midwifery and - the Cinta of Tortosa--Bull of Crusade. - - -The Reverend Dr. Fernando Castillo, an esteemed Spanish author and -teacher, remarks, in his luminous Life of St. Domenick, that Spain has -been so bountifully provided by heaven with fine climate, soil, and -extra number of saints, that his countrymen are prone to be idle and to -neglect such rare advantages. Certainly they may not dig and delve so -deeply as is done in lands less favoured, but the reproach of omitting -to call on Hercules to do their work, or of not making the most of -Santiago in any bodily dilemma, is a somewhat too severe reproach: -nowhere in case of sickness have the saving virtues of relics, and the -adjurations of holy monks, been more implicitly relied on. - -[Sidenote: MIRACULOUS SANATIVE OILS.] - -[Sidenote: COSTUME OF CONVALESCENTS.] - -As our learned readers well know, the medical practice of the ancients -was, as that of the Orientals still is, more peculiar than scientific. -When disease was thought to be a divine punishment for sin, it was held -to be wicked to resist by calling in human aid: thus Asa was blamed, and -thus Moslems and Spaniards resign themselves to their fate, distrusting, -and very properly, their medical men: "Am I a god, to kill or make -alive?" In the large towns, in these days of progress, some patients may -"suffer a recovery" according to European practice; but in the country -and remote villages,--and we speak from repeated personal -experience,--the good old reliance on relics and charms is far from -exploded; and however Dr. Sangrado and Philip III., whose decrees on -medical matters yet adorn the Spanish statutes at large, deplore the -introduction of perplexing chemistry, mineral therapeuticals still -remain a considerable dead letter, as the church has transferred the -efficacy of faith from spiritual to temporal concerns, and gun-shot -wounds. Even Ponz, the Lysons of Spain, and before the Inquisition was -abolished, ventured to express surprise at the number of images ascribed -to St. Luke, who, says he, was not a sculptor, but a physician, whence -possibly their sanative influence. The old Iberians were great herbalist -doctors; thus those who had a certain plant in their houses, were -protected, as a blessed palm branch now wards off lightning. They had -also a drink made of a hundred herbs, and hence called _centum herb_, a -_bebida de cien herbas_, which, like Morison's vegetable pills, cured -every possible disease, and was so palatable that it was drunk at -banquets, which modern physic is not; moreover, according to Pliny, they -cured the gout with flour, and relieved elongated uvulas by hanging -purslain round the patient's throat. So now the _curas y curanderos_, -country curates and quacks, furnish charms and incantations, just as -Ulysses stopped his bleeding by cantation: a medal of Santiago cures the -ague, a handkerchief of the Virgin the ophthalmia, a bone of San Magin -answers all the purposes of mercury, a scrap of San Frutos supplied at -Segovia the loss of common sense; the Virgin of Oa destroyed worms in -royal Infantes, and her sash at Tortosa delivers royal Infantas. Every -Murcian peasant believes that no disease can affect him or his cattle, -if he touches them with the cross of Caravaca, which angels brought from -heaven and placed on a red cow. When we were last at Manresa, the worthy -man who showed the cave in which Loyola the founder of the Jesuits did -penance for a year, increased an honest livelihood by the sale of its -pulverized stones, that were swallowed by the faithful in cases in which -an English doctor would prescribe Dover's or James's powders. Every -province, not to say parish, has its own tutelar saint and relic, which -are much honoured and resorted to in their local jurisdiction, and very -little thought of out of it, their power to cure having been apparently -granted to them by Santiago, as a commission to commit is by Queen -Victoria to a magistrate, whose authority does not extend beyond the -county bounds. Zaragoza was admirably provided: a portion of the liver -of Santa Engracia was anciently resorted to, in cases where blue pill -would be beneficial; the oil of her lamps, which never smoked the -ceilings, cured _lamparones_, or tumours in the neck, while that which -burnt before the _Virgen del Pilar_, or the image of the Virgin which -came down from heaven on a pillar, restored lost legs; Cardinal de Retz -mentions in his Memoirs having seen a man whose wooden substitutes -became needless when the originals grew again on being rubbed with it; -and this portent was long celebrated by the Dean and Chapter, as well it -deserved, by an especial holiday, for Macassar oil cannot do much more. -This graven image is at this moment the object of popular adoration, and -disputes even with the worship of tobacco and money: countless are the -mendicants, the halt, blind, and the lame, who cluster around her -shrine, as the equally afflicted ancients, with whom physicians were in -vain, did around that of Minerva; and it must be confessed that the -cures worked are almost incredible. - -It may be said that all this is a raking up of remnants of medival -superstition and darkness, and it is probable that the medical men in -Madrid and the larger towns, and especially those who have studied at -Paris, do not place implicit confidence in these spiritual, nor indeed -in any other purely Spanish remedies; but their tried medicinal -properties are set forth at length in scores of Spanish county and other -histories which we have the felicity to possess, all of which have -passed the scrutinizing ordeal of clerical censors, and have been -approved of as containing nothing contrary to the creed of the Church of -Rome or good customs; nor can it be permitted that a church which -professes to be always one, the same, and the only true one, should at -its own convenience "turn its back on itself," and deny its own drugs -and doctrines. Nothing is set down here which was not perfectly -notorious under the reign of Ferdinand VII.; and whatever the doctors of -physic or theology may now disbelieve in Spain, more reliance is still -placed, in the rural districts, where foreign civilization has not -penetrated, on miracles than on medicines. - -We have often and often seen little children in the streets dressed like -Franciscan monks--Cupids in cowls--whose pious parents had vowed to -clothe them in the robes of this order, provided its sainted founder -preserved their darlings during measles or dentition. Nothing was more -common than that women, nay, ladies in good society, should appear for a -year in a particular religious dress, called _el habito_, or with some -religious badge on their sleeves in token of similar deliverance. - -[Sidenote: CURE OF SOULS.] - -One instance in our time amused all the tertulias of Seville, who -maliciously attributed the sudden relief which a fair high-born -unmarried invalid experienced from an apparent dropsical complaint to -causes not altogether supernatural; _Pues, Don Ricardo_, "and so, Master -Richard," would her friends of the same age and rank often say, "you are -a stranger; go and ask dearest _Esperanza_ why she wears the Virgin of -Carmel; come back and let us know her story, and we will tell you the -real truth." _Vaya! vaya! Don Ricardo, usted es muy majadero_,--"Go to, -Master Richard, your Grace is an immense bore," replied the penitent, if -she suspected the authors and motive of the embassy. - -The pious in antiquity raised temples to Minerva medica or Esculapius, -as Spaniards do altars to _Na. Seora de los Remedios_, our Lady of the -Remedies, and to San Roque, whose intervention renders "sound as a -roach," a proverb devised in his honour by our ancestors, who, before -the Reformation, trusted likewise to him; and both thought, if Cicero is -to be credited, that these tutelars did _at least_ as much as the -doctor. Alas! for the patient credulity of mankind, which still gulps -down such medicinal quackery as all this, and which long will continue -to do so even were one of the dead to rise from the grave, to deprecate -the absurd treatment by which he and so many have been sacrificed. - -However, by way of compensation, the saving the _soul_ has been made -just as primary a consideration in Spain as the curing the _body_ has -been in England. These relics, charms, and amulets represent our patent -medicines; and the wonder is how any one in Great Britain can be -condemned to death in this world, or how any one in the Peninsula can be -doomed to perdition in the next: possibly the panaceas are in neither -case quite specific. Be that as it may, how numerous and well-appointed -are the churches and convents there, compared to the hospitals; how -amply provided the relic-magazine with bones and spells, when compared -to the anatomical museums and chemists' shops; again, what a flock of -holy practitioners come forth _after_ a Spaniard has been stabbed, -starved, or executed, not one of whom would have stirred a step to save -an army of his countrymen when alive; and what coppers are now collected -to pay masses to get his soul out of purgatory! - -[Sidenote: PHILOSOPHY OF RELICS.] - -Beware, nevertheless, gentle Protestant reader, of dying in Spain, -except in Cadiz or Malaga, where, if you are curious in Christian -burial, there is snug lying for heretics; and for your life avoid being -even sick at Madrid, since if once handed over to the faculty make thy -last testament forthwith, as, if the judgment passed on their own -doctors by Spaniards be true, Esculapius cannot save thee from the -crows: avoid the Spanish doctors therefore like mad dogs, and throw -their physic after them. - -The masses and many in Spain have their own tutelars and refuges for the -destitute; the kings and queens--whom God preserve!--have their own -especial patroness by prerogative, in the image of the Virgin of Atocha -at Madrid, which they and the rest of the royal family visit every -Sunday in the year when in royal health. No sooner was the sovereign -taken dangerously ill, and the court physicians at a loss what to do, as -sometimes is the case even in Madrid, than the image used to be brought -to his bedside; witness the case of Philip III., thus described by -Bassompierre in his dispatch:--"Les mdecins en dsesprent depuis ce -matin que l'on a commenc user des _remdes spirituels_, et faire -transporter au palais _l'image_ de N. D. de Athoche." The patient died -three days after the image was sent for. - -[Sidenote: SPANISH MIDWIFERY.] - -Although neither priest nor physician might credit the sanative -properties of rags and relics, they gladly called them in, for if the -case then went wrong, how could mortal man be expected to succeed when -the supernatural remedy had failed? All inquests in awkward cases are -hushed up by ascribing the death to the visitation of God. Again, if a -relic does not always cure it rarely kills, as calomel has been known to -do. This interruptive principle, one distinct from human remedies, is -admitted by the church in the prayers for sick persons; and where faith -is sincere, even relics must offer a powerful moral medical cordial, by -acting on the imagination, and giving confidence to the patient. This -chance is denied to the poor Protestant, nay, even to a newly-converted -tractarian, for truly, to believe in the efficacy of a monkish bone, the -lesson must have been learnt in the nursery. Their substitute in -Lutheran lands, in partibus infidelium, is found in laudanum, news, and -gossip; the latter being the grand specific by which Sir Henry kept -scores of dowagers alive, to the despair of jointure-paying sons, from -marquises down to baronets; and how much real comfort is conveyed by -the gentle whisper, "Your ladyship cannot conceive what an interest his -or her Royal Highness the ---- takes in your ladyship's convalescence!" -The _form_ of the moral restorative will vary according to climate, -creeds, manners, &c.; it is to the _substance_ alone that the -philosophical physician will look. That chord must be touched, be it -what it may, to which the pulse of the patient will respond; nor, -provided he is recovered, do the means much signify. - -One word only on Spanish midwifery. There is a dislike to male -accoucheurs, and the midwife, or _comadre_, generally brings the -Spaniard into the world by the efforts of nature and the aid of _manteca -de puerco_, or hogs' lard, a launching appropriate enough to a babe, -who, if it survives to years of discretion, will assuredly love bacon. -The newly-born is then wrapped up, like an Egyptian mummy, and is -carefully protected from fresh air, soap, and water; an amulet is then -hung round its neck to disarm the evil eye, or some badge of the Virgin -is to ensure good luck: thus the young idea is taught from the cradle, -what errors are to be avoided and what safeguards are to be clung to, -lessons which are seldom forgotten in after-life. Without entering -further into baby details, the scanty population of the Peninsula may in -some measure be thus accounted for. Parturition also is frequently -fatal; in ordinary cases the midwife does very well, but when a -difficulty arises she loses her head and patient. It is in these trying -moments, as in the critical operations of the kitchen, that a male -artiste is preferable. - -[Sidenote: SPIRITUAL AIDS TO ACCOUCHEMENT.] - -The Queens and Infantas of Spain have additional advantages. The -palladium of the city of Tortosa is the _cinta_[11] or girdle, which the -Virgin, accompanied by St. Peter and St. Paul, brought herself from -heaven to a priest of the cathedral in 1178; an event in honour of which -a mass is still said every second Sunday in October. The gracious gift -was declared authentic in 1617, by Paul V., and to justify his -infallibility it works every sort of miracle, especially in obstetric -cases; it is also brought out to defend the town on all occasions of -public calamity, but failed in the case of Suchet's attack. This -girdle, more wonderful than the cestus of Venus, was conveyed in 1822, -by Ferdinand VII.'s command, in solemn procession to Aranjuez, in order -to facilitate the accouchement of the two Infantas, and as Lucina when -duly invoked favoured women in travail, so their Royal Highnesses were -happily delivered, and one of the babes then born, is the husband of -Isabel II. For humbler Castilian women, when pregnant, a spiritual -remedy was provided by the canons of Toledo, who took the liveliest -interest in many of the cases. The grand entrance to the cathedral had -thirteen steps, and all females who ascended and descended them ensured -an early and easy time of it. No wonder therefore, when these steps were -reduced to the number of seven, that the greatest possible opposition -should have been made by the fair sex, married and unmarried. All these -things of Spain are rather Oriental; and to this day the Barbary Moors -have a cannon at Tangiers by which a Christian ship was sunk, and across -this their women sit to obtain an easy delivery. In all ages and -countries where the science of midwifery has made small progress, it is -natural that some spiritual assistance should be contrived for perils of -such inevitable recurrence as childbirth. The panacea in Italy was the -girdle of St. Margaret, which became the type of this _Cinta_ of -Tortosa, and it was resorted to by the monks in all cases of difficult -parturition. It was supposed to benefit the sex, because when the devil -wished to eat up St. Margaret, the Virgin bound him with her sash, and -he became tame as a lamb. This sash brought forth sashes also, and in -the 17th century had multiplied so exceedingly, that a traveller -affirmed "if all were joined together, they would reach all down -Cheapside;" but the natural history of relics is too well known to be -enlarged upon. - -[Sidenote: BULL OF CRUSADE.] - -Any account of Spanish doctors without a death, would be dull as a blank -day with fox-hounds, although the medical man, differing from the -sportsman, dislikes being in at it. He, the moment the fatal sisters -three are running into their game, slips out, and leaves the last act to -the clergyman: hence the Spanish saying, "When the priest begins, the -physician ends." It is related in the history of Don Quixote, that no -sooner did the barber feel the poor knight's wrist, than he advised him -to attend to his soul and send for his confessor; and now, when a -Castilian hidalgo takes to his bed, his friends pursue much the same -course, nor does the catastrophe often differ. Lord Bacon, great in -wise saws and instances, prayed that his death might come from Spain, -because then it would be long on the journey; but he was not aware that -the gentlemen in black formed an exception to the proverbial -procrastination and dilatoriness of their fellow countrymen. As patients -are soon dispatched, the law[12] of the land subjects every physician to -a fine of ten thousand maravedis, who fails after his first visit to -prescribe confession; the chief object in sickness being, as the -preamble states, to cure the soul; and so it is in Italy, where Gregory -XVI. issued in 1845 three decrees; one to forbid railroads, another to -prohibit scientific meetings, and a third to order all medical men to -cease to attend invalids who had not sent for the priest and -communicated after the third visit. In Spain, the first question asked -in our time of the sick man was, not whether he truly repented of his -sins, but whether he had got the Bull; and if the reply was in the -negative, or his old nurse had omitted to send out and buy one, the last -sacraments were denied to the dying wretch. - -[Sidenote: NECESSITY OF THE BULL.] - -One Word on this wonderful Bull, that disarms death of its sting, and -which, although few of our readers may ever have heard of it, plays a -far more important part in the Peninsula than the quadruped does in the -arena. Fastings are nowhere more strictly enjoined than here, where Lent -represents the Ramadan of the Moslem. The denials have been mitigated to -those faithful who have good appetites, by the paternal indulgence of -their holy father at Rome, who, in consideration that it was necessary -to keep the Spanish crusaders in fighting condition in order more -effectually to crush the infidel, conceded to Saint Ferdinand the -permission that his army might eat meat rations during Lent, provided -there were any, for, to the credit of Spanish commissariats in general, -few troops fast more regularly and religiously. The auspicious day on -which the arrival is proclaimed of this welcome bull that announces -dinner, is celebrated by bells merry as at a marriage feast; in the -provincial cities mayors and corporations go to cathedral in what is -called state, to the wonder of the mob and amusement of their betters at -the resurrection of quiz coaches, the robes, maces, and obsolete -trappings, by which these shadows of a former power and dignity hope to -mark individual and collective insignificancy. A copy of this precious -Bull cannot of course be had for nothing, and as it must be paid for, -and in ready money, it forms one of the certain branches of public -income. Although the proceeds ought to be expended on crusading -purposes, Ferdinand VII., the Catholic King, and the only sovereign in -possession of such a revenue, never contributed one mite towards the -Christian Greeks in their recent struggle against the Turkish -unbelievers. - -[Sidenote: DEATH-BED IN SPAIN] - -These bulls, or rather paper-money notes, are prepared with the greatest -precautions, and constituted one of the most profitable articles of -Spanish manufacture; a maritime war with England was dreaded, not so -much from regard to the fasting transatlantic souls, as from the fear of -losing, as Dr. Robertson has shown, the sundry millions of dollars and -silver dross remitted from America in exchange for these spiritual -treasures. They were printed at Seville, at the Dominican convent, the -_Porta coeli_; but Soult, who now it appears is turning devotee, burnt -down this gate of heaven, with its passports, and the presses. The bulls -are only good for the year during which they are issued; after twelve -months they become stale and unprofitable. There is then, says Blanco -White, and truly, for we have often seen it, "a prodigious hurry to -obtain new ones by all those who wish well to their souls, and do not -overlook the ease and comfort of their stomachs." A fresh one must be -annually taken out, like a game-certificate, before Spaniards venture to -sport with flesh or fowl, and they have reason to be thankful that it -does not cost three pounds odd: for the sum of _dos reales_, or less -than sixpence, man, woman, and child may obtain the benefit of clergy -and cookery; but evil betides the uncertificated poacher, treadmills for -life are a farce, perdition catches his soul. His certificate is -demanded by the keeper of conscience when he is caught in the trap of -sickness, and if without one, his conviction is certain; he cannot plead -ignorance of the law, for a postscript and condition is affixed to all -notices of jubilees, indulgences, and other purgatorial benefits, which -are fixed on the church doors; and the language is as courteous and -peremptory as in our popular assessed tax-paper--"Se _ha_ de tener la -bula:" you _must_ have the bull; if you expect to derive any relief from -these relaxations in purgatory, which all Spaniards most particularly -do: hence the common phrase used by any one, when committing some -little peccadillo in other matters, _tengo mi bula para todo_--I have -got my bull, my licence to do any thing. The possession of this document -acts on all fleshly comforts like soda on indigestion, indeed it -neutralizes everything except heresy. As it is cheap, a Protestant -resident, albeit he may not quite believe in its saving effects, will do -well to purchase one for the sake of the peace of mind of his weaker -brethren, for in this religion of forms and outer observances, more -horror is felt by rigid Spaniards, at seeing an Englishman eating meat -during a fast, than if he had broken all the ten commandments. The sums -levied from the nation for these bulls is very large, although they are -diminished before finally paid into the exchequer; some of the honey -gathered by so many bees will stick to their wings, and the place of -chief commissioner of the Bula is a better thing than that in the Excise -or Customs of unbelieving countries. - -To return to the dying man: if he has the bull, the host is brought to -him with great pomp; the procession is attended by crowds who bear -crosses, lighted candles, bells and incense; and as the chamber is -thrown open to the public, the ceremony is accompanied by multitudes of -idlers. The spectacle is always imposing, as it must be, considering -that the incarnate Deity is believed to be present. It is particularly -striking on Easter Sunday, when the host is taken to all the sick who -have been unable to communicate in the parish church. Then the priest -walks either under a gorgeous canopy, or is mounted in the finest -carriage in the town; and while all as he passes kneel to the wafer -which he bears, he chuckles internally at his own reality of power over -his prostrate subjects; the line of streets are gaily decorated as for -the triumphal procession of a king: the windows are hung with velvets -and tapestries, and the balconies filled with the fair sex arrayed in -their best, who shower sweet flowers down on the procession just at the -moment of its passage, and sweeter smiles during all the rest of the -morning on their lovers below, whose more than divided adoration is -engrossed by female divinities. - -[Sidenote: BURIAL DRESSES.] - -To die without confession and communication is to a Spaniard the most -poignant of calamities, as he cannot be saved while he is taught that -there is in these acts a preserving virtue of their own, independent of -any exertions on his part. The host is given when human hopes are at an -end, and the heat, noise, confusion, and excitement, seldom fail to kill -the already exhausted patient. Then when life's idle business at a gasp -is o'er, the body is laid out in a _capilla ardiente_, or an apartment -prepared as a chapel, by taking out the furniture; where the family is -rich, a room on the ground floor is selected, in which a regular altar -is dressed up, and rows of large candles lighted placed around the body; -the public is then allowed to enter, even in the case of the sovereign: -thus we beheld Ferdinand VII. laid out dead and full dressed with his -hat on his head, and his stick in his hand. This public exhibition is a -sort of coroner's inquest; formerly, as we have often seen, the body was -clad in a monk's dress, with the feet naked and the hands clasped over -the breast; the sepulchral shadow then thrown over the dead and placid -features by the cowl, seldom failed to raise a solemn undefinable -feeling in the hearts of spectators, speaking, as it did, a language to -the living which could not be misunderstood. - -The woollen dresses of the mendicant orders were by far the most -popular, from the idea that, when old, they had become too saturated -with the odour of sanctity for the vile nostrils of the evil one; and as -a tattered dress often brought more than half-a-dozen new ones, the sale -of these old clothes was a benefit alike to the pious vendor and -purchaser; those of St. Francis were preferred, because at his triennial -visits to purgatory, he knows his own, and takes them back with him to -heaven; hence Milton peopled his shadowy limbo with wolves in sheep's -clothing:-- - - ---- "who, to be sure of Paradise, - Dying put on the robes of Dominick, - Or in Franciscan think to pass unseen." - -[Sidenote: BURIAL PLACES.] - -Women in our time were often laid out in nuns' dresses, wearing also the -scapulary of the Virgin of Carmel, which she gave to Simon Stock, with -the assurance that none who died with it on, should ever suffer eternal -torments. The general adoption of these grave fashions induced an -accurate foreigner to remark, that no one ever died in Spain except nuns -and monks. In this hot country, burial goes hand in hand with death, and -it is absolutely necessary from the rapidity with which putrefaction -comes on. The last offices are performed in somewhat an indecent manner: -formerly the interment took place in churches, or in the yards near -them, a custom which from hygeian reasons is now prohibited. Public -cemeteries, which give at least 4 per cent. interest, have been erected -outside the towns, in which long lines of catacombs gape greedily for -those occupants who can pay for them, while a wide ditch is opened every -day for those who cannot. In this _campo santo_, or holy field, death -levels all ranks, which seems hard on those great families who have -built and endowed chapels to secure a burial among their ancestors. They -however raised no objections to the change of law, nor have ever much -troubled themselves about the dilapidated sepulchres and crumbling -effigies of their "grandsires cut in alabaster;" the real opposition -arose from the priests, who lost their fees, and thereupon assured their -flocks, that a future resurrection was anything but certain to bodies -committed into such new-fangled depositories. - -Be that as it may, the corpse in its slight coffin is carried out, -followed by the male relations, and is then put into its niche without -further form or prayer. Ladies who die soon after marriage, and before -the bridal hours have danced their measure, are sometimes buried in -their wedding dresses, and covered with flowers, the dying injunctions -of Shakspere's Queen Catherine:-- - - "When I am dead, good wench, - Let me be used with honour; strew me o'er - With maiden flowers, that all the world may know - I was a chaste wife to my grave." - -At such funerals the coffin is opened in the catacomb, to gratify the -indecent curiosity of the crowd; the dress is next day discussed all -over the town, and the _entierro_ or funeral is pronounced to be _muy -lucido_ or very brilliant; but life in Spain is a jest, and these things -show it. The place assigned for children who die under seven years of -age lies apart from that of the adults; their early death is held in -Spain to be rather a matter of congratulation than of grief, since those -whom the gods love die young; their epitaphs tell a mixed tale of joy -and sorrow. _El parvulo fue arrebatado la gloria_, the little one was -snatched up into Paradise:-- - - "There is beyond the sky a heaven of joy and love, - And holy children, when they die, go to that world above." - -[Sidenote: BURIAL OF THE POOR.] - -Yet nature will not be put aside, and many a mother have we seen, -loitering alone near the graves, adorning them with roses and plucking -up weeds which have no business to grow there; the little corpses are -carried to the tomb by little children of the same age, clad in white, -and are strewed with flowers short-lived as themselves, sweets to the -sweet. The parents return home yearning after the lost child--its cradle -is empty, its piteous moan is heard no more, its playthings remain where -it left them, and recall the cruel gap which grief cannot fill up, -although it - - "Stuffs out its vacant garments with its form." - -The bodies of the lower orders, dressed in their ordinary attire, are -borne to their long home by four men, as is described by Martial; "no -useless coffins enclose their breasts," they are carried forth as was -the widow's son at Nain. And often have we seen the frightful death-tray -standing upright at the doors of the humble dead, with a human outline -marked on the wood by the death-damp of a hundred previous burdens. Such -bodies are cast into the trench like those of dogs, and often naked, as -the survivors or sextons strip them even of their rags. Those poorer -still, who cannot afford to pay the trifling fee, sometimes during the -night, suspend the bodies of their children in baskets, near the -cemetery porch. We once beheld a cloaked Spaniard pacing mournfully in -the burial-ground of Seville, who, when the public trench was opened, -drew from beneath the folds the body of his dead child, cast it in and -disappeared. Thus half the world lives without knowing how the other -half dies. - -[Sidenote: FUNERAL SERVICE.] - -In the upper ranks the etiquette of the funeral commences after the -reality is over. The first necessary step is within three days to pay a -visit of condolence to the family; this is called _para dar el pesame_. -The relations are all assembled in the best room, and seated on chairs -placed at the head, the women at one end and the men at another. When a -condoling lady and gentleman enter, she proceeds to shake hands with all -the other ladies one after another, and then seats herself in the next -vacant chair; the gentleman bows to each of the men as he passes, who -rise and return it, a grave dumb-show of profound affliction being kept -up by all. On reaching the chief mourners, they are addressed by each -condoler with this phrase, "_Acompao usted en su sentimiento_;" "I -share in the affliction of your grace;" the company meanwhile remain -silent as an assemblage of undertakers. After sitting among them the -proper time, each retires with much the same form. - -In a few days afterwards a printed letter is sent round in the name of -all the surviving relations to announce the death to the friends of the -family, and to beg the favour of attendance at the funeral service: -these invitations are all headed with a cross (+), which is called _El -Cristus_. Before the invasion of the enemy, who not only destroyed the -walls of convents, but sapped religious belief also, very many books -were printed, and private letters written, with this sign prefixed. In -our time sundry medical men at Seville always headed with it their -prescriptions, the Cardinal Archbishop having granted a certain number -of years' release from purgatory to all who sanctified with this mark -their recipes even of senna and rhubarb. Under this cross, in the -invitation, are placed the letters R. I. P. A., which signify -"Requiescat in pace. Amen." At the appointed hour the mourners meet in -the _casa mortuaria_, or the house of death, and proceed together to -church. All are dressed in full black, and before the progress of -paletots and civilization, wore no cloaks: this, as it rendered each man -of them more uncomfortable than St. Bartholomew was without his skin, -was considered an offering of genuine grief to the manes of the -deceased. Uncloaking in Spain is, be it remembered, a mark of respect, -and is equivalent to our taking off the hat. When the company arrives at -church, they are received by the ministers, and the ceremony is very -solemnly performed before a catafalque covered with a pall, which is -placed before the altar, and is brilliantly lighted up with wax candles. -As soon as the service is concluded, all advance and bow to the chief -mourners, who are seated apart, and thus the tragedy concludes. Parents -do not put on mourning for their children, which is a remnant of the -patriarchal and Roman superiority of the head of the family, for whom, -however, when dead, all the other members pay the most observant -respect. The forms and number of days of mourning are most nicely laid -down, and are most rigidly observed, even by distant relations, who -refrain from all kinds of amusements:-- - - "None bear about the mockery of woe - To public dances or to private show." - -[Sidenote: ALL SOULS' DAY.] - -We well remember the death of a kind and venerable Marquesa at Seville -just before the carnival, whose chief grief at dying, was the thought of -the number of young ladies who would thus be deprived of their balls and -masquerades; many, anxious and obliging, were the inquiries sent after -her health, and more even were the daily prayers offered up to the -Virgin, for the prolongation of her precious existence, could it be only -for a few weeks. - -November drear, brings in other solemnities connected with the dead, and -in harmony with the fall of the sear and yellow leaves, to which Homer -compares the races of mortal men. The night before the first of -November--our All Hallow-e'en--is kept in Spain as a vigil or wake; it -is the fated hour of love divinations and mysteries; then anxious -maidens used to sit at their balconies to see the image of their -destined husbands pass or not pass by. November the first is dedicated -to the sainted dead, and November the second to all souls: it is termed -in Spanish _el dia de los difuntos_, the day of the dead, and is most -scrupulously observed by all who have lost during the past year some -friend, some relation--how few have not! The dawn is ushered in by -mournful bells, which recall the memory of those who cannot come back at -the summons; the cemeteries are then visited; at Seville, long -processions of sable-clad females, bearing chased lamps on staves, walk -slowly round and round, chaunting melancholy dirges, returning when it -gets dusk in a long line of glittering lights. The graves during the day -are visited by those who take a sad interest in their occupants, and -lamps and flower garlands are suspended as memorials of affection, and -holy water is sprinkled, every drop of which puts out some of the fires -of purgatory. These picturesque proceedings at once resemble the _Eed es -Segheer_ of modern Cairo, the _feralia_ of the Romans, the [Greek: -Nemesia] of the Greeks: here are the flower offerings of Electra, the -_funes assensi_, the funeral torches of pagan mourners, which have -vainly been prohibited to Christian Spaniards by their early Council of -Illiberis. In Navarre, and in the north-west of Spain, bread and wheat -offerings called _robos_ are made, which are the doles or gifts offered -for the souls' rest of the deceased by the pious of ancient Rome. - -[Sidenote: PURGATORY.] - -As on this day the cemetery becomes the public attraction, it too often -looks rather a joyous fashionable promenade, than a sad and religious -performance. The levity of mere strangers and the mob, contrasts -strangely with the sorrow of real mourners. But life in this world -presses on death, and the gay treads on the heels of pathos; the spot is -crowded with mendicants, who appeal to the order of the day, and -importune every tender recollection, by begging for the sake of the -lamented dead. Outside the dreary walls all is vitality and mirth; a -noisy sale goes on of cakes, nuts, and sweetmeats, a crash of horses and -carriages, a din and flow of bad language from those who look after -them, which must vex the repose of the _benditas animas_, or the blessed -souls in purgatory, for whom otherwise all classes of Spaniards manifest -the fondest affection and interest. - -[Sidenote: PROTESTANT BURIAL-GROUND.] - -Such is the manner in which the body of a most orthodox Catholic -Castilian is committed to the earth; his soul, if it goes to purgatory, -is considered and called blessed by anticipation, as the admittance into -Paradise is certain, at the expiration of the term of penal -transportation, that is, "when the foul crimes done in the days of -nature are burnt and purged away," as the ghost in Hamlet says, who had -not forgotten his Virgil. If the scholar objects to a Spanish clergyman, -that the whole thing is Pagan, he will be told that he may go farther -and fare worse. In the case of a true Roman Catholic, this term of hard -labour may be much shortened, since that can be done by masses, any -number of which will be said, if first paid for. The vicar of St. Peter -holds the keys, which always unlock the gate to those who offer the -golden gift by which Charon was bribed by neas; thus, to a judicious -rich man, nothing, supposing that he believes the Pope _versus_ the -Bible, is so easy as to get at once into Heaven; nor are the poor quite -neglected, as any one may learn who will read the extraordinary number -of days' redemption which may be obtained at every altar in Spain by the -performance of the most trumpery routine. The only wonder is how any one -of the faithful should ever fail to secure his delivery from this -spiritual Botany Bay without going there at all, or, at least, only for -the form's sake. It was calculated by an accurate and laborious German, -that an active man, by spending three shillings in coach-hire, might -obtain in an hour, by visiting different privileged altars during the -Holy week, 29,639 years, nine months, thirteen days, three minutes and a -half diminution of purgatorial punishment. This merciful reprieve was -offered by Spanish priests in South America, on a grander style, on one -commensurate with that colossal continent; for a single mass at the San -Francisco in Mexico, the Pope and prelates granted 32,310 years, ten -days, and six hours indulgence. As a means of raising money, says our -Mexican authority, "I would not give this simple institution of masses -for the benefit of souls, for the power of taxation possessed by any -government; since no tax-gatherer is required; the payments are enforced -by the best feelings, for who would not pay to get a parent's or -friend's soul from the fire?" Purgatory has thus been a Golconda mine of -gold to his Holiness, as even the poorest have a chance, since -charitable persons can deliver blank souls by taking out a _habeas -animam_ writ, that is, by paying the priest for a mass. The especial -days are marked in the almanac, and known to every waiter at the inn; -moreover, notice is put on the church door, _Hoy se saca anima_, "this -day you can get out a soul." They are generally left in their warm -quarters in winter, and taken out in the spring. - -Alas for poor Protestants, who, by non-payment of St. Peter's pence, -have added an additional act of heresy, and the worst of all, the one -which Rome never pardons. These defaulters can only hope to be saved by -faith, and its fruits, good works; they must repent, must quit their -long-cherished sins, and lead a new life; for them there is no rope of -St. Francis to pull them out, if once in the pit; no rosary of St. -Domenick to remove them, quick, presto, begone, from torment to -happiness. Outside the pale of the Vatican, their souls have no chance, -and inside the frontiers of Spain their bodies have scarcely a better -prospect, should they die in that orthodox land. There the greatest -liberal barely tolerates any burial at all of their black-blooded -heretical carcasses, as no corn will grow near them. Until within a very -few years at seaport towns, their bodies used to be put in a hole in the -sands, and beyond low water mark; nay, even this concession to the -infidel offended the semi-Moro fishermen, who true believers and -persecutors feared that their soles might be poisoned: not that either -sailor or priest ever exhibited any fear of taking British current coin, -all cash that comes into their nets being most Catholic, so says the -proverb, _El dinero es muy Catolico_. - -[Sidenote: LUTHERAN BURIAL.] - -[Sidenote: CEMETERY AT MALAGA.] - -Matters connected with the grave have been placed, as regards -Protestants, on a much more pleasant footing within these last few -years; and it may be a consolation to invalids, who are sent to Spain -for change of climate, and who are particular, to know, in case of -accidents, that Protestant burial-grounds are now permitted at Cadiz, -Malaga, and in a few other places. The history of the permission is -curious, and has never, to the best of our belief, been told. In the -days of Philip II. Lutherans were counted in many degrees worse than -dogs; when caught alive, they were burnt by the holy tribunal; and when -dead, were cast out on the dunghill. Even when our poltroon James I. -sent, in 1622, his ill-judged olive-bearing mission, by which Spain was -saved from utter humiliation, Mr. Hole, the secretary of the ambassador, -Lord Digby, having died at Santander, the body was not allowed to be -buried at all; it was put into a shell, and sunk in the sea; but no -sooner was his lordship gone, than "the fishermen," we quote from -Somers' tracts, "fearing that they should catch no fish as long as the -coffin of a heretic lay in their waters," fished it up, "and the corpse -of our countryman and brother was thrown above ground, to be devoured by -the fowls of the air." In the treaty of 1630, the 31st Article provided -for the disposal of the goods of those Englishmen who might die in -Spain, but not for their bodies. "These," says a commentator of Rymer, -"must be left stinking above ground, to the end that the dogs may be -sure to find them." When Mr. Washington, page to Charles I., died at -Madrid, at the time his master was there, Howell, who was present, -relates that it was only as an especial favour to the suitor of the -Spanish Infanta that the body was allowed to be interred in the garden -of the embassy, under a fig-tree. A few years afterwards, 1650, Ascham, -the envoy of Cromwell, was assassinated, and his corpse put, without any -rites, into a hole; but the Protector was not a man to be trifled with, -and knew well how to deal with a Spanish government, always a craven and -bully, from whom nothing ever is to be obtained by concession and -gentleness, which is considered as weakness, while everything is to be -extorted from its _fears_. He that very year _commanded_ a treaty to be -prepared for the proper burial of his subjects, to which the blustering -Spaniard immediately assented. This provision was stipulated into the -treaty of Charles II. in 1664, and was conceded and ratified again in -1667 to Sir Richard Fanshawe. - -No step, however, appears to have been taken before 1796, when Lord Bute -purchased a spot of ground for the burial of Englishmen outside the -Alcal-gate, at Madrid. During the war, when all Spain was a churchyard -to our countrymen, this bit of land was taken possession of by a worthy -Madrilenian, not for his place of sepulture, but for good and profitable -cultivation. In 1831 Mr. Addington caused some researches to be made, -and the original conveyance was found in the _Contaduria de Hypothecas_, -the registry of deeds and mortgages which backward Spain possesses, and -which advanced England does not. The intruder was ejected after some -struggling on his part. Before Lord Bute's time the English had been -buried at night and without ceremonies, in the garden of the convent _de -los Recoletos_; and, as Lord Bute's new bit of ground was extensive and -valuable, the pious monks wished to give up the English corner in their -garden, in exchange for it; but the transfer was prevented by the recent -law which forbade all burial in cities. The field purchased by Lord Bute -is now unenclosed and uncultivated; fortunately it has not been much -wanted, only fifteen Protestants having died at Madrid during the last -thirty years. In November, 1831, Ferdinand VII. finally settled this -grave question by a decree, in which he granted permission for the -erection of a Protestant burial-ground in all towns where a British -consul or agent should reside, subject to most _degrading_ conditions. -The first cemetery set apart in Spain, in virtue of this gracious decree -from a man replaced on his throne by the death of 30,000 Englishmen, was -the work of Mr. Mark, our consul at Malaga; he enclosed a spot of ground -to the east of that city, and placed a tablet over the entrance, -recording the royal permission, and above that a cross. Thus he appealed -to the dominant feelings of Spaniards, to their loyalty and religion. -The Malagenians were amazed when they beheld this emblem of Christianity -raised over the last home of Lutheran dogs, and exclaimed, "So even -these Jews make use of the cross!" The term Jew, it must be remembered, -is the acme of Spanish loathing and vituperation. The first body -interred in it was that of Mr. Boyd, who was shot by the bloody Moreno, -with the poor dupe Torrijos and the rest of his rebel companions. - -[Sidenote: THE SPANISH FIGARO.] - - - - -CHAPTER XIX. - - The Spanish - Figaro--Mustachios--Whiskers--Beards--Bleeding--Heraldic - Blood--Blue, Red, and Black Blood--Figaro's Shop--The - Baratero--Shaving and Toothdrawing. - - -Few who love Don Quixote, will deem any notice on the Peninsular surgeon -complete in which the barber is not mentioned, even be it in a -postscript. Although the names of both these learned professors have -long been nearly synonymous in Spain, the barber is much to be -preferred, inasmuch as his cuts are less dangerous, and his conversation -is more agreeable. He with the curate formed the quiet society of the -Knight of La Mancha, as the apothecary and vicar used to make that of -most of our country squires of England. Let, therefore, every Adonis of -France, now bearded as a pard although young, nay, let each and all of -our fair readers, albeit equally exempt from the pains and penalties of -daily shaving, make instantly, on reaching sunny Seville, a pilgrimage -to the shrine of San Figaro. His shop--apocryphal it is to be feared as -other legendary localities--lies near the cathedral, and is a no less -established lion than the house of Dulcinea is at Toboso, or the prison -tower of Gil Blas is at Segovia. Such is the magic power of genius. -Cervantes and Le Sage have given form, fixture, and local habitation to -the airy nothings of their fancy's creations, while Mozart and Rossini, -by filling the world with melody, have bidden the banks of the -Guadalquivir re-echo to their sweet inventions. - -[Sidenote: SPANISH MUSTACHIOS.] - -To those even who have no music in their souls, the movement from -doctors to barbers is harmonious in a land where beards were long -honoured as the type of valour and chivalry, and where shaving took the -precedence of surgery; and even to this day, _la tienda de barbero_, the -shop of the man of the razor, is better supplied than many a Spanish -hospital both with patients and cutting instruments. One word first on -the black whiskers of tawny Spain. These _patillas_, as they are now -termed, must be distinguished from the ancient mustachio, the -_mostacho_, a very classical but almost obsolete word, which the -scholars of Salamanca have derived from [Greek: mustax], the upper lip. -Their present and usual name is _Bigote_, which is also of foreign -etymology, being the Spanish corruption of the German oath _bey gott_, -and formed under the following circumstances: for nicknames, which stick -like burrs, often survive the history of their origin. The free-riding -followers of Charles V., who wore these tremendous appendages of -manhood, swore like troopers, and gave themselves infinite airs, to the -more infinite disgust of their Spanish comrades, who have a tolerable -good opinion of themselves, and a first-rate hatred of all their foreign -allies. These strange mustachios caught their eyes, as the stranger -sounds which proceeded from beneath them did their ears. Having a quick -sense of the ridiculous, and a most Oriental and schoolboy knack at a -nickname, they thereupon gave the sound to the substance, and called the -redoubtable garnish of hair, _bigotes_. This process in the formation of -phrases is familiar to philologists, who know that an essential part -often is taken for the whole. For example, a hat, in common Spanish -parlance, is equivalent to a grandee, as with us the woolsack is to a -Lord Chancellor. It is natural that unscholastic soldiers, when dealing -with languages which they do not understand, should fix on their -enemies, as a term of reproach, those words which, from hearing used the -most often, they imagine must constitute the foundation of the hostile -grammar. Thus our troops called the Spaniards _los Carajos_, from their -terrible oaths and terrible runnings away. So the clever French -designated as _les godams_, those "stupid" fellows in red jackets who -never could be made to know when they were beaten, but continued to make -use of that significant phrase in reference to their victors, until they -politely showed them the shortest way home over the Pyrenees. - -[Sidenote: THE BEARD.] - -The real Spanish mustachio, as worn by the real Don Whiskerandoses, men -with shorter cloaks and purses than beards and rapiers, have long been -cut off, like the pig-tails of our monarchs and cabinet ministers. Yet -their merits are embalmed in metaphors more enduring than that -masterpiece in bronze with which Mr. Wyatt, full of Phidias, has adorned -King George's back and Charing Cross. Thus _hombre de mucho bigote_, a -man of much moustache, means, in Spanish, a personage of considerable -pretension, a fine, liberal fellow, and anything, in short, but a bigot -in wine, women, or theology. The Spanish original realities, like the -pig-tails of Great Britain, have also been immortalised by fine art, and -inimitably painted by Velazquez. Under his life-conferring brush they -required no twisting with hot irons. Curling from very ire and martial -instinct, they were called _bigotes la Fernandina_, and their rapid -growth was attributed to the eternal cannon smoke of the enemy, into -which nothing could prevent their valorous wearers from poking their -faces. This luxuriance has diminished in these degenerate times, unless -Napier's 'History of the Peninsular War' be, as the Spaniards say, -written in a spirit of envy and jealousy against their heroic armies, -which alone trampled on the invincible eagles of Austerlitz. - -As among the Egyptian gods and priests, rank was indicated by the cut of -the beard, so in Spain the military civil and clerical shapes were -carefully defined. The Charley, or Imperial, as we term the little tuft -in the middle of the under lip, a word by the way which is derivable -either from our Charles or from his namesake emperor, was called in -Spain _El perrillo_, "the little dog," the terminating tail being -omitted, which however becoming in the animal and bronzes, shocked -Castilian euphuism. - -[Sidenote: THE BIGOTE.] - -In the medival periods of Spain's greatness the beard and not the -whisker was the real thing; and as among the Orientals and ancients, it -was at once the mark of wisdom and of soldiership; to cut it off was an -insult and injury scarcely less than decapitation; nay, this nicety of -honour survived the grave. The seated corpse of the Cid, so tells his -history, knocked down a Jew who ventured to take the dead lion by his -beard, which, as all natural philosophers know, has an independent -vitality, and grows whether its master be alive or dead, be willing or -unwilling. When the insolent Gauls pulled these flowing ornaments of the -aged Roman senators, they, who with unmoved dignity had seen Marshal -Brennus steal their plate and pictures, could not brook that last and -greatest outrage. In process of time and fashion the beards of Spain -fell off, and being only worn by mendicant monks and he-goats, were -considered ungentlemanlike, and were substituted among cavaliers by the -Italian mostachio; the seat of Spanish honour was then placed under the -nose, that sensitive sentinel. The renowned Duke of Alva being of course -in want of money, once offered one of his bigotes as a pledge for a -loan, and one only was considered to be a sufficient security by the -Rothschilds of the day, who remembered the hair-breadth escape of their -ancestor too well to laugh at anything connected with a hero's beard; -_nous avons chang tout cela_. The united Hebrews of Paris and London -would not now advance a stiver for every particular hair on the bodies -of Narvaez and Espartero, not even if the moustache reglmentaire of -Montpensier, and a bushel of Bourbon beards, warranted legitimate, were -added. - -The use of the _bigote_ in Spain is legally confined to the military, -most of whose generals--their name is legion--are tenderly chary of -their Charlies, dreading razors no less than swords; when the Infante -Don Carlos escaped from England, the only real difficulty was in getting -him to cut off his moustache; he would almost sooner have lost his head, -like his royal English _tocayo_ or omonyme. Elizabeth's gallant Drake, -when he burnt Philip's fleet at Cadiz, simply called his Nelsonic touch -"singeing the King of Spain's whiskers." Zurbano the other day thought -it punishment enough for any Basque traitors to cut off their _bigotes_, -and turn them loose, like rats without tails, _pour encourager les -autres_. It is indeed a privation. Thus Majaval, the pirate murderer, -who by the glorious uncertainty of English law was not hanged at Exeter, -offered his prison beard, when he reached Barcelona, to the delivering -Virgin. Many Spanish civilians and shopkeepers, in imitation of the -transpyrenean _Calicots_, men who wear moustachios on their lips in -peace, and spectacles on their noses in war, so constantly let them -grow, that Ferdinand VII. fulminated a royal decree, which was to cut -them off from the face of the Peninsula, as the Porte is docking his -true believers. Such is the progress of young and beardless -civilization. The attempt to shorten the cloaks of Madrid nearly cost -Charles III. his crown, and this cropping mandate of his beloved -grandson was obeyed as Spanish decrees generally are, for a month all -but twenty-nine days. These decrees, like solemn treaties, charters, -stock-certificates, and so forth, being mostly used to light cigars; -now-a-days that the Moro-Spaniard is aping the true Parisian polish, the -national countenance is somewhat put out of face, to the serious sorrow -and disparagement of poor Figaro. - -[Sidenote: SPANISH BLEEDING.] - -As for his house and home none can fail finding it out; no cicerone is -wanted, for the outside is distinguished from afar by the emblems of his -time-honoured profession: first and foremost hangs a bright glittering -metal Mambrino-helmet basin, with a neat semicircular opening cut out of -the rim, into which the throat of the patient is let during the -operation of lathering, which is always done with the hand and most -copiously; near it are suspended huge grinders, which in an English -museum would pass for the teeth of elephants, and for those of Saint -Christopher in Spanish churches, where comparative anatomy is scouted as -heretical in the matter of relics; strange to say, and no Spanish -theologian could ever satisfy us why, this saint is not the "especial -advocate" against the toothache; here Santa Apollonia is the soothing -patroness. Near these molars are displayed awful phlebotomical symbols, -and rude representations of bloodlettings; for in Spain, in church and -out, painting does the work of printing to the many who can see, but -cannot read. The barber's pole, with its painted bandage riband, the -support by which the arm was kept extended, is wanting to the threshold -of the Figaros of Spain, very much because bleeding is generally -performed in the foot, in order that the equilibrium of the whole -circulation may be maintained. The painting usually presents a female -foot, which being an object, and not unreasonably, of great devotion in -Spain, is selected by the artist; tradition also influences the choice, -for the dark sex were wont formerly to be bled regularly as calves are -still, to obtain whiteness of flesh and fairness of complexion: as it -was usual on each occasion that the lover should restore the exhausted -patient by a present, the purses of gallants kept pace with the venous -depletion of their mistresses. The _Sangrados_ of Spain, professional as -well as unprofessional, have long been addicted to the shedding of -innocent blood; indeed, no people in the world are more curious about -the pedigree purity of their own blood, nor less particular about -pouring it out like water, whether from their own veins or those of -others. One word on this vital fluid with which unhappy Spain is too -often watered during her intestine disorders. - -[Sidenote: HERALDIC BLOOD.] - -If the Iberian anatomists did not discover its circulation, the heralds -have "tricked" out its blazoning, as we do our admirals, with all the -nicety of armorial coloring. _Blue blood, Sangre azul_, is the ichor of -demigods which flows in the arteries of the grandees and highest -nobility, each of whose pride is to be - - "A true Hidalgo, free from every stain - Of Moor or Jewish blood," - -[Sidenote: FIGARO'S SHOP.] - -a boast which like some others of theirs wants confirmation, as it is in -the power of one woman to taint the blood of Charlemagne; and nature, -which cannot be written down by Debretts, has stamped on their -countenances the marks of hybrid origin, and particularly from these -very and most abhorred stocks; it is from this tint of celestial azure -that the term _sangre su_ is given in Spain to the elect and best set of -earth, the _haute vole_, who soar above vulgar humanity. _Red_ blood -flows in the veins of poor gentlemen and younger brothers, and is just -tolerated by all, except judicious mothers, whose daughters are -marriageable. _Blood_, simple blood, is the puddle which paints the -cheek of the plebeian and roturier; it has, or ought to possess, a -perfect incompatibility with the better coloured fluid, and an oil and -vinegar property of non-amalgamation. There is more difference, as -Salario says, between such bloods, than there is between red wine and -Rhenish. These and other dreams are, it is to be feared, the fond -metaphors of heralds. The rosy stream in mockery of _rouge_ croix and -_blue_ dragons flows inversely and perversely: in the arteries of the -lusty muleteer it is the lava blood of health and vigour; in the monkey -marquis and baboon baron it stagnates in the dull lethargy of a blue -collapse. Their noble ichor is virtually more impoverished than their -nominal rent-roll, since the operation of transmission of wholesome -blood from young veins into a worn-out frame, which is so much practised -elsewhere, is too nice for the _Sangre su_ and _Sangrados_ of Spain; the -thin fluid is never enriched with the calipash heiress of an alderman, -nor is the decayed genealogical stock renewed by the golden graft of a -banker's only daughter. The insignificant grandees of Spain quietly -permitted Christina to barter away their country's liberties; but when -her children by the base-born Muoz came betwixt them and their -nobility, then alone did they remonstrate. Indifferent to the -degradation of the throne, they were tremblingly alive to the punctilios -of their own order. Those Peninsular ladies who are blues, by blood not -socks, are equally fastidious in the serious matter of its admixture -even by Hymen: one of them, it is said, having chanced in a moment of -weakness to mingle her azure with something brownish, alleged in excuse -that she had done so for her character's sake. "_Que disparate, mi -Seora._" "What nonsense, my lady!" was her fair confidante's reply; -"ten bastards would have less discoloured your blood, than one -legitimate child the issue of such a misalliance." - -To stick, however, to our colours; _black blood_ is the vile Stygean -pitch which is found in the carcasses of Jews, Gentiles, Moors, -Lutherans, and other combustible heretics, with whose bodies the holy -tribunal made bonfires for the good of their souls. Nay, in the case of -the Hebrew this black blood is also thought to stink, whence Jews were -called by learned Latinists _putos_, quia putant; and certainly at -Gibraltar an unsavoury odour seems to be gentilitious in the children of -Israel, not however to unorthodox and unheraldic nostrils a jot more so, -than in the believing Spanish monk. Recently the colour _black_ has been -assigned to the blood of political opponents, and a copious "_shedding -of vile black blood_" has been the regular panacea of every military -Sangrado. How extremes meet! Thus, this aristocracy of colour, in -despotical old Spain, which lies in the veins, is placed on the skin in -new republican America. Where is the free and easy Yankee would -recognise a brother, in a black? - -[Sidenote: THE BARATERO.] - -To return to Figaro. There is no mistaking his shop; for independently -of the external manifestations of the fine arts practised within, his -threshold is the lounge of all idlers, as well as of those who are -anxious to relieve their chins of the thick stubble of a three days' -growth. The house of the barber has, since the days of Solomon and -Horace, been the mart of news and gossip,--of epigram and satire, as -Pasquino the tailor's was at Rome. It is the club of the lower orders, -who here take up a position, and listen, cloaked as Romans, to some -reader of the official Gazette, which, with a cigar, indicates modern -civilization, and soothes him with empty vapour. Here, again, is the -mint of scandal, and all who have lived intimately with Spaniards, know -how invariably every one stabs his neighbour behind his back with words, -the lower orders occasionally using knives sharper even than their -tongues. Here, again, resort gamblers, who, seated on the ground with -cards more begrimed than the earth, pursue their fierce game as eager -as if existence was at stake; for there is generally some well-known -cock of the walk, a bully, or _guapo_, who will come up and lay his hand -on the cards, and say, "No one shall play with any cards but with -mine"--_aqui no se juega sino con mis barajas_. If the parties are -cowed, they give him a halfpenny each. If, however, one of the -challenged be a spirited fellow, he defies him--_Aqu no se cobra el -barato sino con un pual de Albacete_--"You get no change here except -out of an Albacete knife." If the defiance be accepted, _Vamos alla_ is -the answer--"Let's go to it." There's an end then of the cards, all -flock to the more interesting _cart_; instances have occurred, where -Greek meets Greek, of their tying the two advanced feet together, and -yet remaining fencing with knife and cloak for a quarter of an hour -before the blow be dealt. The knife is held firmly, the thumb is pressed -straight on the blade, and calculated either for the cut or thrust. - -The term _Barato_ strictly means the present which is given to waiters -who bring a new pack of cards. The origin is Arabic, _Baara_, "a -_voluntary_ gift;" in the corruption of the _Baratero_, it has become an -involuntary one. Our legal term _Barratry_ is derived from the medival -_Barrateria_, which signified cheating or foul play. Cervantes well knew -that _Baratar_ in old Spanish meant to exchange unfairly, to -thimble-rig, to sell anything under its real value, and therefore gave -the name of _Barrateria_ to Sancho's sham government. The _Baratero_ is -quite a thing of Spain, where personal prowess is cherished, and there -is one in every regiment, ship, prison, and even among galley-slaves. - -[Sidenote: FIGARO'S SHOP.] - -The interior of the barber's shop is equally a _cosa de Espaa_. Her -neighbour may boast to lead Europe in hair-dressing and clipping -poodles, but Figaro snaps his fingers at her civilization, and no cat's -ears and tail can be closer shaved than his one's are. The walls of his -operating room are neatly lathered with white-wash; on a peg hangs his -brown cloak and conical hat; his shelves are decorated with clay-painted -figures of picturesque rascals, arrayed in all their Andalucian -toggery--bandits, bull-fighters, and smugglers, who, especially the -latter, are more universally popular than all or any long-tail-coated -chancellors of exchequers. The walls are enlivened with rude prints of -fandango dancings, miracles, and bull-fights, in which the Spanish -vulgar delight, as ours do in racing and ring notabilities. Nor is a -portrait of his _querida_, his black-eyed sweetheart, often wanting. -Near these, for religion mixes itself with everything of Spain, are -images of the Virgin, patron saints, with stoups for holy water, and -little cups in which lighted wicks burn floating on green oil; and -formerly no barber prepared for an operation, whether on veins, teeth, -or beards, without first making the sign of a cross. Thus hallowed, his -implements of art are duly arranged in order; his glass, soap, towels, -and leather strap, and guitar, which indeed, with the razor, constitutes -the genus barber. "These worthies," said Don Quixote, "are all either -_guitarristas o copleros_; they are either makers of couplets, or -accompany other songsters with catgut." Hence Quevedo, in his 'Pigsties -of Satan,' punishes unrighteous Figaros, by hanging up near them a -guitar, which tantalizes their touch, and moves away when they wish to -take it down. - -[Sidenote: SPANISH SHAVING.] - -Few Spaniards ever shave themselves; it is too mechanical, so they -prefer, like the Orientals, a "razor that is hired," and as that must be -paid for, scarcely any go to the expensive luxury of an every-day shave. -Indeed, Don Quixote advised Sancho, when nominated a governor, to shave -at least every other day if he wished to look like a gentleman. The -peculiar sallowness of a Spaniard's face is heightened by the contrast -of a sable bristle. Figaro himself is dressed much after the fashion in -which he appears on transpyrenean stages; he, on true Galenic -principles, takes care not to alarm his patients by a lugubrious -costume. There is nothing black, or appertaining to the grave about him; -he is all tags, tassels, colour, and embroidery, quips and quirks; he is -never still; always in a bustle, he is lying and lathering, cutting -chins and capers, here, there, and everywhere. _Figaro la, Figaro qua._ -If he has a moment free from taking off beards and making paper cigars, -he whips down his guitar and sings the last seguidilla; thus he drives -away dull care, who hates the sound of merry music, and no wonder; the -operator performs his professional duties much more skilfully than the -rival surgeon, nor does he bungle at any little extraneous _amateur_ -commissions; and there are more real performances enacted by the -barbers in Seville itself, than in a dozen European opera houses. - -These Figaros, says their proverb, are either mad or garrulous, -_Barberos, o locos, o parleros_. Hence, when the Andalucian autocrat, -Adrian, when asked how he liked to be shaved, replied "Silently." -Humbler mortals must submit to let Figaro have his wicked way in talk; -for when a man is fixed in his operating chair, with his jaws lathered, -and his nose between a finger and a thumb, there is not much -conversational fair play or reciprocity. The Spanish barber is said to -learn to shave on the orphan's head, and nothing, according to one -described by Martial, escaped except a single wary he-goat. The -experiments tried on the veins and teeth of aching humanity, are -sometimes ludicrous--at others serious, as we know to our cost, having -been silly enough to leave behind in Spain two of our wise teeth as -relics, tokens, and trophies of Figaro's unrelenting prowess. We cannot -but remember such things were, and were dearer, than the pearls in -Cleopatra's ears, which she melted in her gazpachos. "A mouth without -molars," said Don Quixote to Sancho, "is worse than a mill without -grinding-stones;" and the Don was right. - -[Sidenote: WHAT TO OBSERVE IN SPAIN.] - - - - -CHAPTER XX. - - What to observe in Spain--How to observe--Spanish Incuriousness and - Suspicions--French Spies and Plunderers--Sketching in - Spain--Difficulties, How Surmounted--Efficacy of Passports and - Bribes--Uncertainty and Want of Information in the Natives. - - -[Sidenote: DIFFICULTIES OF OBSERVING.] - -Now that the most approved methods of travelling, living, and being -buried in Spain have been touched on, our kind readers will naturally -inquire, what are the peculiar attractions which should induce gentlemen -and ladies who take their ease at home, to adventure into this land of -roughing it, in which _rats_ rather than hares jump up when the least -expected. "What to observe" is a question easier asked than answered; -who indeed can cater for the multitudinous variety of fancies, the -differences by which Nature keeps all nature right? Who shall decide -when doctors disagree, as they always do, on matters of taste, since -every one has his own way of viewing things, and his own hobby and -predilection? Say not, however, with Smellfungus, that all is a -wilderness from Dan to Beersheba,--nor seek for weeds where flowers -grow. The search for the excellent is the high road to excellence, as -not to appreciate it when found is the surest test of mediocrity. The -refining effort and habit teaches the mind to think; from long pondering -on the beautiful world without, snatches are caught of the beautiful -world within, and a glimpse is granted to the chosen few, of glories -hidden from the vulgar many. They indeed have eyes, but see not; nay, -scarcely do they behold the things of external nature, until told what -to look for, where to find it, and how to observe it; then a new sense, -a second sight, is given. Happy, thrice happy those from whose eyes the -film has been removed, who instead of a previous vague general and -unintelligent stare, have really learnt to _see_! To them a fountain of -new delights, pure and undefiled, welling up and overflowing, is opened; -in proportion as they comprehend the infinite form, colour, and beauty -with which Nature clothes her every work, albeit her sweetest charms -are only revealed to the initiated, reserved as the rich reward of those -who bow to her shrine with singleness of purpose, and turn to her -worship with all their hearts, souls, and understandings. - -It was with these beneficent intentions that our good friend John Murray -first devised Handbooks; and next, by writing them himself, taught -others how to dip into inkstands for red books, which tell man, woman, -and child what to observe, to the ruin of _laquais de place_, and -discomfiture of authors of single octavos and long vacation excursions. -Few gentlemen who publish the notes of their Peninsular gallop much -improve their light diaries by discussing heavy handbook subjects; -skimming, like swallows, over the surface, and in pursuit of insects, -they neither heed nor discern the gems which lurk in the deeps below; -they see indeed all the scum and straws which float on the surface, and -write down on their tablets all that is rotten in the state of Spain. -Hence the sameness of some of their works; one book and bandit reflects -another, until writers and readers are imprisoned in a vicious circle. -Nothing gives more pain to Spaniards than seeing volume after volume -written on themselves and their country by foreigners, who have only -rapidly glanced at one-half of the subject, and that half the one of -which they are the most ashamed, and consider the least worth notice. -This constant prying into the nakedness of the land and exposing it -afterwards, has increased the dislike which they entertain towards the -_impertinente curioso_ tribe: they well know and deeply feel their -country's decline; but like poor gentlefolks, who have nothing but the -past to be proud of, they are anxious to keep these family secrets -concealed, even from themselves, and still more from the observations of -those who happen to be their superiors, not in blood, but in worldly -prosperity. This dread of being shown up sharpens their inherent -suspicions, when strangers wish to "observe," and examine into their -ill-provided arsenals and institutions, just as Burns was scared even by -the honest antiquarian Grose; so they lump the good and the bad, putting -them down as book-making Paul Prys:-- - -[Sidenote: DISLIKE TO OBSERVERS.] - - "If there's a hole in a' your coats, - I rede ye tent it; - A chiel's amang ye, taking notes, - And faith! he'll prent it." - -The less observed and said about these Spanish matters, these _cosas de -Espaa_--the present tatters in her once proud flag, on which the sun -never set--is, they think, the soonest mended. These comments heal -slower than the knife-gash--"_Sanan cuchilladas, mas_ NO _malas -palabras_." Let no author imagine that the fairest observations that he -can take and make of Spain as she is, setting down nought in malice, can -ever please a Spaniard; his pride and self-esteem are as great as the -self-conceit and low consequence of the American: both are morbidly -sensitive and touchy; both are afflicted with the notion that all the -world, who are never troubling their heads about them, are thinking of -nothing else, and linked in one common conspiracy, based in envy, -jealousy, or ignorance; "you don't understand us, I guess." Truth, -except in the shape of a compliment, is the greatest of libels, and is -howled against as a lie and forgery from the Straits to the Bidasoa; -Napier's history, for example. The Spaniard, who is hardly accustomed to -a free, or rather a licentious press, and the scavenger propensity with -which, in England and America, it rakes into the sewers of private life -and the gangrenes of public, is disgusted with details which he resents -as a breach of hospitality in strangers. He considers, and justly, that -it is no proof either of goodness of breeding, heart, or intellect, to -be searching for blemishes rather than beauties, for toadstools rather -than violets; he despises those curmudgeons who see motes rather than -beams in the brightest eyes of Andalucia. The productions of strangers, -and especially of those who ride and write the quickest, must savour of -the pace and sources from whence they originate. Foreigners who are -unacquainted with the language and good society of Spain are of -necessity brought the most into contact with the lowest scenes and the -worst class of people, thus road-scrapings and postilion information too -often constitute the raw-head-and-bloody-bones material of their -composition. All this may be very amusing to those who like these -subjects, but they afford a poor criterion for descanting on whatever -does the most honour to a country, or gives sound data for judging its -real condition. How would we ourselves like that Spaniards should form -their opinions of England and Englishmen from the Newgate calendars, the -reports of cads, and the annals of beershops? - -[Sidenote: DISLIKE TO OBSERVERS.] - -Various as are the objects worth observing in Spain, many of which are -to be seen there only, it may be as well to mention what is _not_ to be -seen, for there is no such loss of time as finding this out oneself, -after weary chace and wasted hour. Those who expect to meet with -well-garnished arsenals, libraries, restaurants, charitable or literary -institutions, canals, railroads, tunnels, suspension-bridges, -steam-engines, omnibuses, manufactories, polytechnic galleries, pale-ale -breweries, and similar appliances and appurtenances of a high state of -political, social, and commercial civilization, had better stay at home. -In Spain there are no turnpike-trust meetings, no quarter-sessions, no -courts of _justice_, according to the real meaning of that word, no -treadmills, no boards of guardians, no chairmen, directors, -masters-extraordinary of the court of chancery, no assistant poor-law -commissioners. There are no anti-tobacco-teetotal-temperance-meetings, -no auxiliary-missionary-propagating societies, nothing in the blanket -and lying-in asylum line, nothing, in short, worth a revising-barrister -of three years' standing's notice, unless he be partial to the study of -the laws of bankruptcy. Spain is no country for the political economist, -beyond affording an example of the decline of the wealth of nations, and -offering a wide topic on errors to be avoided, as well as for -experimental theories, plans of reform and amelioration. In Spain, -Nature reigns; she has there lavished her utmost prodigality of soil and -climate, which Spaniards have for the last four centuries been -endeavouring to counteract by a culpable neglect of agricultural -speeches and dinners, and a non-distribution of prizes for the biggest -boars, asses, and labourers with largest families. - -[Sidenote: WHAT TO OBSERVE.] - -The landed proprietor of the Peninsula is little better than a weed of -the soil; he has never observed, nor scarcely permitted others to -observe, the vast capabilities which might and ought to be called into -action. He seems to have put Spain into Chancery, such is the general -dilapidation. The country is little better than a terra incognita, to -naturalists, geologists, and all other branches of ists and ologists. -Everywhere there, the material is as superabundant as native labourers -and operatives are deficient. All these interesting branches of inquiry, -healthful and agreeable, as being out-of-door pursuits, and bringing the -amateur in close contact with nature, offer to embryo authors who are -ambitious to _book something new_, a more worthy subject than the old -story of dangers of bull-fights, bandits, and black eyes. Those who -aspire to the romantic, the poetical, the sentimental, the artistical, -the antiquarian, the classical, in short, to any of the sublime and -beautiful lines, will find both in the past and present state of Spain, -subjects enough in wandering with lead-pencil and note-book through this -singular country, which hovers between Europe and Africa, between -civilization and barbarism; this land of the green valley and barren -mountain, of the boundless plain and the broken sierra; those Elysian -gardens of the vine, the olive, the orange, and the aloe; those -trackless, vast, silent, uncultivated wastes, the heritage of the wild -bee;--in flying from the dull uniformity, the polished monotony of -Europe, to the racy freshness of that original, unchanged country, where -antiquity treads on the heels of to-day, where Paganism disputes the -very altar with Christianity, where indulgence and luxury contend with -privation and poverty, where a want of all that is generous or merciful -is blended with the most devoted heroic virtues, where the most -cold-blooded cruelty is linked with the fiery passions of Africa, where -ignorance and erudition stand in violent and striking contrast. - -[Sidenote: WHAT TO OBSERVE.] - -"There," says the Handbook, in a style which qualifies the author for -the best bound and fairest edited album, "let the antiquarian pore over -the stirring memorials of many thousand years, the vestiges of -Phoenician enterprise, of Roman magnificence, of Moorish elegance, in -that storehouse of ancient customs, that repository of all elsewhere -long forgotten and passed by; there let him gaze upon those classical -monuments, unequalled almost in Greece or Italy, and on those fairy -Aladdin palaces, the creatures of Oriental gorgeousness and imagination, -with which Spain alone can enchant the dull European; there let the man -of feeling dwell on the poetry of her envy-disarming decay, fallen from -her high estate, the dignity of a dethroned monarch, borne with -unrepining self-respect, the last consolation of the innately noble, -which no adversity can take away; let the lover of art feed his eyes -with the mighty masterpieces of ideal Italian art, when Raphael and -Titian strove to decorate the palaces of Charles, the great emperor of -the age of Leo X. Let him gaze on the living nature of Velazquez and -Murillo, whose paintings are truly to be seen in Spain alone; let the -artist sketch frowning forms of the castle, the pomp and splendour of -the cathedral, where God is worshipped in a manner as nearly befitting -his glory as the arts and wealth of finite man can reach. Let him dwell -on the Gothic gloom of the cloister, the feudal turret, the vasty -Escorial, the rock-built alcazar of imperial Toledo, the sunny towers of -stately Seville, the eternal snows and lovely vega of Granada; let the -geologist clamber over mountains of marble, and metal-pregnant sierras; -let the botanist cull from the wild hothouse of nature plants unknown, -unnumbered, matchless in colour, and breathing the aroma of the sweet -south; let all, learned and unlearned, listen to the song, the guitar, -the castanet; or join in the light fandango and spirit-stirring -bullfight; let all mingle with the gay, good-humoured, temperate -peasantry, free, manly, and independent, yet courteous and respectful; -let all live with the noble, dignified, high-bred, self-respecting -Spaniard; let all share in their easy, courteous society; let all admire -their dark-eyed women, so frank and natural, to whom the voice of all -ages and nations has conceded the palm of attraction, to whom Venus has -bequeathed her magic girdle of grace and fascination; let all--but -enough on starting on this expedition, 'where,' as Don Quixote said, -'there are opportunities, brother Sancho, of putting our hands into what -are called adventures up to our elbows.'" - -[Sidenote: SUSPICION OF OBSERVERS.] - -Nor was the La Manchan hidalgo wrong in assigning a somewhat adventurous -character to the searchers in Spain for useful and entertaining -knowledge, since the natives are fond, and with much reason, of -comparing themselves and their country to _tesoros escondidos_, to -hidden treasures, to talents buried in napkins; but they are equally -fond of turning round, and falling foul of any pains-taking foreigner -who digs them up, as Le Sage did the soul of Pedro Garcias. Nothing -throughout the length and breadth of the land creates greater suspicion -or jealousy than a stranger's making drawings, or writing down notes in -a book: whoever is observed _sacando planes_, "taking plans," _mapeando -el pais_, "mapping the country,"--for such are the expressions of the -simplest pencil sketch--is thought to be an engineer, a spy, and, at all -events, to be about no good. The lower classes, like the Orientals, -attach a vague mysterious notion to these, to them unintelligible, -proceedings; whoever is seen at work is immediately reported to the -civil and military authorities, and, in fact, in out-of-the-way places, -whenever an unknown person arrives, from the rarity of the occurrence, -he is the observed of all observers. Much the same occurs in the East, -where Europeans are suspected of being emissaries of their governments, -as neither they nor Spaniards can at all understand why any man should -incur trouble and expense, which no native ever does, for the mere -purpose of acquiring knowledge of foreign countries, or for his own -private improvement or amusement. Again, whatever particular -investigations or questions are made by foreigners, about things that to -the native appear unworthy of observation, are magnified and -misrepresented by the many, who, in every place, wish to curry favour -with whoever is the governor or chief person, whether civil or military. -The natives themselves attach little or no importance to views, ruins, -geology, inscriptions, and so forth, which they see every day, and which -they therefore conclude cannot be of any more, or ought not to be of -more, interest to the stranger. They judge of him by themselves; few men -ever draw in Spain, and those who do are considered to be professional, -and employed by others. - -[Sidenote: OFFICIAL SUSPICION.] - -One of the many fatal legacies left to Spain by the French, was an -increased suspicion of men with the pencil and notebook. Previously to -their invasion spies and agents were sent, who, under the guise of -travellers, reconnoitred the land; and then, casting off the clothing of -sheep, guided in the wolves to plunder and destruction. The aged prior -of the Merced, at Seville, observed to us, when pointing out the empty -frames and cases from whence the Messrs. Soult and Co. had "removed" the -Murillos and sacred plate,--"_Lo creira usted_--Will your Grace believe -it, I beheld among the _ladrones_ a person who grinned at me when I -recognised him, to whom, some time before the invaders' arrival, I had -pointed out these very treasures. _Tonto de mi!_ Oh! simpleton that I -was, to take a _gabacho_ for an honest man." Yet this worthy individual -was decorated with the legion of honour of Buonaparte, whose "first note -in his pocket-book" of agenda, _after_ the conquest of England, was to -"carry off the Warwick vase;" as Denon, who too had spoiled the -Egyptians, told Sir E. Tomason. We English, whose shops, "bursting with -opulence into the streets," have not yet been visited, although the -temptation is held out by royal pamphleteers, can scarcely enter into -the feelings of those whose homes are still reeking with blood, and -blighted by poverty. The Castilian cat, who has been scalded, flies even -from cold water. - -Some excuse, therefore, may be alleged in favour of Spanish authorities, -especially in rarely visited districts, when they behold a strange -barbarian eye peeping and peering about. Their first impression, as in -the East, is that he may be a Frank: hence the shaking, quaking, and -ague which comes over them. At Seville, Granada, and places where -foreign artists are somewhat more plentiful, the processes of drawing -may be passed over with pity and contempt, but in lonely localities the -star-gazing observer is himself the object of argus-eyed, official -observation. He is, indeed, as unconscious of the portentous emotions -and ill-omened fears which he is exciting, as was the innocent crow of -the meanings attached to his movements by the Roman augurs, and few -augurs of old ever rivalled the Spanish alcaldes of to-day in quick -suspicion and perception of evil, especially where none is intended. -Witness what actually occurred to three excellent friends of ours. - -[Sidenote: DRAWING IN SPAIN.] - -The readers of Borrow's inimitable 'Bible in Spain' will remember his -hair-breadth escape from being shot for Don Carlos by the miraculous -intervention of the alcalde of Corcubion, who, if still alive, must be a -phoenix, and clearly worth observation, as he was a reader of the -"grand Baintham," or our illustrious Jeremy Bentham, to whom the Spanish -reformers sent for a paper _constitution_, not having a very clear -meaning of the word or thing, whether it was made of cotton or -parchment. Another of the very best investigators and writers on Spain, -Lord Carnarvon, was nearly put to death in the same districts for Don -Miguel; Captain Widdrington, also one of the kindest and most honourable -of men, was once arrested on suspicion of being an agent of Espartero; -and we, our humble selves, have had the felicity of being marched to a -guard-house for sketching a Roman ruin, and the honour of being taken, -either for Curius Dentatus, an alligator, or Julius Csar,--as there is -no absurdity, no inconceivable ignorance, too great for the local -Spanish "Dogberries," who rarely deviate into sense; when their fears or -suspicions are roused, they are as deaf alike to the dictates of common -reason or humanity as adders or Berbers; and here, as in the East, even -the best intentioned may be taken up for spies, and have their beards, -at least, cut off, as was done to King David's envoys. All classes, in -regard to strangers, generally get some hostile notions into their -heads, and then, instead of fairly and reasonably endeavouring to arrive -at the truth, pervert every innocent word, and twist every action, to -suit their own preconceived nonsense, until trifles become to their -jealous minds proofs as strong as Holy Writ. In justice, however, it -must be said, that when these authorities are once satisfied that the -stranger is an Englishman, and that no harm is intended, no people can -be more civil in offering assistance of every kind, especially the lower -classes, who gaze at the magical performance of drawing with wonder: the -higher classes seldom take any notice, partly from courtesy, and much -from the _nil admirari_ principle of Orientals, which conceals both -inferiority and ignorance, and shows good breeding. - -[Sidenote: CAPTAIN-GENERAL'S PASSPORT.] - -The drawing any garrison-town or fortified place in Spain is now most -strictly forbidden. The prevailing ignorance of everything connected -with the arts of design is so great, that no distinction is made between -the most regular plan and the merest artistical sketch: a drawing is -with them a drawing, and punishable as such. A Spanish barrack, -garrison, or citadel is therefore to be observed but little, and still -less to be sketched. A gentleman, nay, a lady also, is liable, under any -circumstances, when drawing, to be interrupted, and often is exposed to -arrest and incivility. Indeed, whether an artist or not, it is as well -not to exhibit any curiosity in regard to matters connected with -military buildings; nor will the loss be great, as they are seldom worth -looking at. The troops in our time were in a most admired disorder. If -they wore shoes they had no stockings; if they had muskets, flints were -not plentiful; if powder was supplied, balls were scarce; nothing, in -short, was ever according to regulation. Nay, the buttons even on the -officers' coats were never dressed in file: some had the numbers up, -some down, some awry; but uniformity is a thing of Europe and not of the -East. At this moment, when the church is starved, when widows' pensions -are unpaid, when governmental bankruptcy walks the land, whose bones, -marrow, and all are wasted to support the army, whose swords uphold the -hated men in office, the bands of the Royal Guard, the Prtorian bands, -do not keep tune, nor do the rank and file march in time. However -painful these things to pipe-clay martinets, the artist loses much, by -not being able to sketch such tumble-down forts and ragged garrisons, -each _Bisoo_ of which is more precious to painter eye than the officer -in command at Windsor; while his short-petticoated _querida_ is more -Murillo-like than a score of patronesses of Almack's. - -[Sidenote: ORIENTAL ANALOGIES.] - -The safest plan for those who want to observe, and to book what they -observe, is to obtain a Spanish passport, with the object of their -curiosity and inquiries clearly specified in it. There is seldom any -difficulty at Madrid, if application be made through the English -minister, in obtaining such a document; indeed, when the applicant is -well known, it is readily given by any of the provincial -Captains-General. As it is couched in the Spanish language, it is -understood by all, high and low; an advantage which is denied in Spain -to those issued by our ambassadors, and even by the Foreign Office, who, -to the _credit_ of themselves and nation, give passes to Englishmen in -the French language, whereby among Spaniards a suspicion arises that the -bearer may be a Frenchman, which is not always pleasant. We preserve -among rare Peninsular relics a passport granted by our kind patron the -redoubtable Conde de Espaa, and backed by the no less formidable -Quesada and Sarsfield, in which it was enjoined, in choice, intelligible -Castilian, to all and every minor rulers and governors, whether with the -pen or sword, to aid and assist the bearer in his examination of the -fine arts and antiquities of the Peninsula. These autocrats were more -implicitly obeyed in their respective Lord Lieutenancies than Ferdinand -himself; in fact, the pashas of the East are their exact types, each in -their district being the heads of both civil and military tribunals; and -as they not only administer, but suit the law according to the length of -their own feet, they in fact make it and trample upon it, and all in any -authority below them imitate their superiors as nearly as they dare. -These things of Spain are managed with a gravity truly Oriental, both in -the rulers and in the resignation of those ruled by them; these great -men's passport and signature were obeyed by all minor authorities as -implicitly as an Oriental firman; the very fact of a stranger having a -Captain-General's passport, is soon known by everybody, and, to use an -Oriental phrase, "makes his face to be whitened;" it acts as a letter of -introduction, and is in truth the best one of all, since it is addressed -to people in power in each village or town, who, true sheikhs, are -looked up to by all below them with the same deference, as they -themselves look up to all above them. The worth of a person recommended, -is estimated by that of the person who recommends; _tal recomendacion -tal recomendado_. To complete this thing of Oriental Spain, these three -omnipotent despots, who defied laws human and divine, who made dice of -their enemies' bones, and goblets of their skulls, have all since been -assassinated, and sent to their account with all their sins on their -heads. In limited monarchies ministers who go too far, lose their -places, in Spain and Turkey their heads: the former, doubtless, are the -most severely punished. - -Those who wish to observe Spanish man, which, next to Spanish woman, -forms the proper study of mankind, will find that one key to decipher -this singular people is scarcely European, for this _Berberia Cristiana_ -is a neutral ground placed between the hat and the turban; many indeed -of themselves contend that Africa begins even at the Pyrenees. Be that -as it may, Spain, first civilized by the Phoenicians, and long -possessed by the Moors, has indelibly retained the original impressions. -Test her, therefore, and her males and females, by an Oriental standard, -how analogous does much appear that is strange and repugnant, if -compared with European usages. Take care, however, not to let either the -ladies or gentlemen know the hidden processes of your mind, for nothing -gives greater offence. The fair sex is willing, to prevent such a -mistake, to lay aside even their becoming _mantillas_, as their hidalgos -doff their stately Roman cloaks. These old clothes they offer up as -sacrifices on the altar of civilization, and to the mania of looking -exactly like the rest of the world, in Hyde Park and the Elysian Fields. - -[Sidenote: INDIFFERENCE TO THE BEAUTIFUL.] - -Another remarkable Oriental trait is the general want of love for the -beautiful in art, and the abundance of that [Greek: Aphilokalia] with -which the ancients reproached the genuine Iberians; this is exhibited in -the general neglect and indifference shown towards Moorish works, which -instead of destroying they ought rather to have protected under -glasses, since such attractions are peculiar to the Peninsula. The -_Alhambra_, the pearl and magnet of Granada, is in their estimation -little better than a _casa de ratones_, or a rat's hole, which in truth -they have endeavoured to make it by centuries of neglect; few natives -even go there, or understand the all-absorbing interest, the -concentrated devotion, which it excites in the stranger; so the Bedouin -regards the ruins of Palmyra, insensible to present beauty, as to past -poetry and romance. Sad is this non-appreciation of the Alhambra by the -Spaniards, but such are Asiatics, with whom sufficient for the day is -_their to-day_; who care neither for the past nor for the future, who -think only for the present and themselves, and like them the masses of -Spaniards, although not wearing turbans, lack the organs of veneration -and admiration for anything beyond matters connected with the first -person and the present tense. Again, the leaven of hatred against the -Moor and his relics is not extinct; they resent as almost heretical the -preference shown by foreigners to the works of infidels rather than to -those of good Catholics; such preference again at once implies their -inferiority, and convicts them of bad taste in their non-appreciation, -and of Vandalism in labouring to mutilate, what the Moor laboured to -adorn. The charming writings of Washington Irving, and the admiration of -European pilgrims, have latterly shamed the authorities into a somewhat -more conservative feeling towards the Alhambra; but even their benefits -are questionable; they "repair and beautify" on the church-warden -principle, and there is no less danger in such "restorations" than in -those fatal scourings of Murillo and Titian in the Madrid gallery, which -are effacing the lines where beauty lingers. Even their tardy -appreciation is somewhat interested: thus Mellado, in his late Guide, -laments that there should be no account of the Alhambra, of which he -speaks coldly, and suggests, as so many "English" visit it, that a -descriptive work would be a _segura especulacion!_ a safe speculation! -Thus the poetry of the Moorish Alhambra is coined into the Spanish prose -of profitable shillings and sixpences. - -[Sidenote: FAMILIARITY BREEDS CONTEMPT.] - -Travellers however should not forget, that much which to them has the -ravishing, enticing charms of novelty, is viewed by the dull sated eye -of the native, with familiarity which breeds contempt; they are weary, -oh fatal lassitude! even of the beautiful: alas! exclaimed the hermit on -Monserrat, to the stranger who was ravished by exquisite views, then and -there beheld by him for the first and last time, "all this has no -attraction for me; twenty and nine are the years that I have seen this -unchanged scene, every sunrise, every noon, every sunset." But _sordent -domestica_, observes Pliny, nor are all things or persons honoured in -their own homes as they ought to be, since the days that Mahomet the -true prophet failed to persuade his wife and valet that his powers were -supernatural. Can it be wondered that ruins and "old rubbish" should be -held cheap among the Moro-Spaniards? or that their so-called "guides" -should mislead and misdirect the stranger? It cannot well be avoided, -since few of the writers ever travel in their own country, and fewer -travel out of it; thus from their limited means of comparison, they -cannot appreciate differences, nor tell what are the wants and wishes of -a foreigner: accordingly, scenes, costumes, ruins, usages, ceremonies, -&c., which they have known from childhood, are passed over without -notice, although, from their passing newness to the stranger, they are -exactly what he most desires to have pointed out and explained. Nay, the -natives frequently despise or are ashamed of those very things, which -most interest and charm the foreigner, for whose observation they select -the modern rather than the old, offering especially their poor pale -copies of Europe, in preference to their own rich, racy, and natural -originals, doing this in nothing more than in the costume and dwellings -of the lower classes, who happily are not yet afflicted with the disease -of French polish: they indeed, when they dig up ancient coins, will rub -off the precious rust of twice ten hundred years, in order to render -them, as they imagine, more saleably attractive; but they fortunately -spare themselves, insomuch that Charles III., on failing in one of his -laudable attempts to improve and modernise them, compared his loving -subjects to naughty children, who quarrel with their good nurse when she -wants to wash them. - -[Sidenote: WANT OF INFORMATION.] - -Again, no country in the world can vie with Spain, where the dry climate -at least is conservative, with memorials of auld lang syne, with tower -and turret, Prout-like houses and toppling balconies, so old that they -seem only not to fall into the torrents and ravines over which they -hang. Here is every form and colour of picturesque poverty; vines -clamber up the irregularities, while below naiads dabble, washing their -red and yellow garments in the all-gilding glorious sun-beams. What a -picture it is to all but the native, who sees none of the wonders of -lights and shadows, reflections, colours, and outlines; who, blind to -all the beauties, is keenly awake only to the degradation, the rags and -decay; he half suspects that your sketch and admiration of a smuggler or -bullfighter is an insult, and that you are taking it, in order to show -in England what Mons. Guizot will never be forgiven for calling the -"brutal" things of Spain; accordingly, while you are sincerely and with -reason delighted with sashes and _Zamarras_, he begs you to observe his -ridiculous Boulevard-cut coat: or when you sit down opposite to a -half-ruined Roman wall, some crumbling Moorish arch, or medival Gothic -shrine, he implores you to come away and draw the last spick and span -Royal Academical abortion, coldly correct and classically dull, in order -to carry home a sample which may do credit to Spain, as approximating to -the way things are managed at Charing Cross. - -Without implicitly following the advice of these Spaniards of better -intention than taste, no man of research will undervalue any assistance -by which his objects are promoted, even should he be armed with a -captain-general's passport, and a red Murray. Meagre is the oral -information which is to be obtained from Spaniards on the spot; these -incurious semi-Orientals look with jealousy on the foreigner, and either -fence with him in their answers, raise difficulties, or, being highly -imaginative, magnify or diminish everything as best suits their own -views and suspicions. The national expressions "_Quien sabe? no se -sabe_,"--"who knows? I do not know," will often be the prelude to "_No -se puede_,"--"it can't be done." - -[Sidenote: DIFFICULTIES OF SIGHT-SEEING.] - -These impediments and impossibilities are infinitely increased when the -stranger has to do with men in office, be it ever so humble; the first -feeling of these Dogberries is to suspect mischief and give refusals. -"No" may be assumed to be their natural answer; nor even if you have a -special order of permission, is admission by any means certain. The -keeper, who here as elsewhere, considers the objects committed to his -care as his own private property and source of perquisite, must be -conciliated: often when you have toiled through the heat and dust to -some distant church, museum, library, or what not, after much ringing -and waiting, you will be drily informed that it is shut, can't be seen, -that it is the wrong day, that you must call again to-morrow; and if it -be the right day, then you will be told that the hour is wrong, that you -are come too early, too late; very likely the keeper's wife will inform -you that he is out, gone to mass, or market, or at his dinner, or at his -_siesta_, or if he is at home and awake, he will swear that his wife has -mislaid the key, "which she is always doing." If all these and other -excuses won't do, and you persevere, you will be assured that there is -nothing worth seeing, or you will be asked why you want to see it? As a -general rule, no one should be deterred from visiting anything, because -a Spaniard of the upper classes gives his opinion that the object is -beneath notice; he will try to convince you that Toledo, Cuenca, and -other places which cannot be matched in Christendom, are ugly, odious, -old cities; he is ashamed of them because the tortuous, narrow lanes do -not run in rows as straight as Pall Mall and the Rue de Rivoli. In fact -his only notion of a civilized town is a common-place assemblage of -rectangular wide streets, all built and coloured uniformly, like a line -of foot-soldiers, paved with broad flags, and lighted with gas, on which -Spaniards can walk about dressed as Englishmen, and Spanish women like -those of France; all of which said wonders a foreigner may behold far -better nearer home; nor is it much less a waste of time to go and see -what the said Spaniard considers to be a real lion, since the object -generally turns out to be some poor imitation, without form, angle, -history, nationality, colour, or expression, beyond that of utilitarian -comfort and common-place convenience--great advantages no doubt both to -contractors and political economists, but death and destruction to men -of the pencil and note-book. - -[Sidenote: HOW TO BE ADMITTED.] - -[Sidenote: OFFICIAL CORRUPTION.] - -The sound principles in Spanish sight-seeing are few and simple, but, if -observed, they will generally prove successful; first, persevere; never -be put back; never take an answer if it be in the negative; never lose -temper or courteous manners; and lastly, let the tinkle of metal be -heard at once; if the chief or great man be inexorable, find out -privately who is the wretched sub who keeps the key, or the crone who -sweeps the room; and then send a discreet messenger to say that you -will pay to be admitted, without mentioning "nothing to nobody." Thus -you will always obtain your view, even when an official order fails. On -our first arrival at Madrid, when but young in these things of Spain, we -were desirous of having daily permission to examine a royal gallery, -which was only open to the public on certain days in the week. In our -grave dilemma we consulted a sage and experienced diplomatist, and this -was the oracular reply:--"Certainly, if you wish it, I will make a -request to Seor Salmon" (the then Home Secretary), "and beg him to give -you the proper order, as a personal favour to myself. By the way, how -much longer shall you remain here?"--"From three to four weeks."--"Well, -then, after you have been gone a good month, I shall get a courteous and -verbose epistle from his Excellency, in which he will deeply regret -that, on searching the archives of his office, there was no instance of -such a request having ever been granted, and that he is compelled most -reluctantly to return a refusal, from the fear of a precedent being -created. My advice to you is to give the porter a dollar, to be repeated -whenever the door-hinges seem to be getting rusty and require oiling." -The hint was taken, as was the bribe, and the prohibited portals -expanded so regularly, that at last they knew the sound of our -footsteps. Gold is the Spanish _sesame_. Thus Soult got into Badajoz, -thus Louis Philippe put Espartero out, and Montpensier in. Gold, bright -red gold, is the sovereign remedy which in Spain smooths all -difficulties, nay, some in which even force has failed, as here the -obstinate heads may be guided by a straw of bullion, but not driven by a -bar of iron. The magic influence of a bribe pervades a land, where -everything is venal, even to the scales of justice. Here men who have -objects to gain begin to work from the bottom, not from the top, as we -do in England. In order to ensure success, no step in the official -ladder must be left unanointed. A wise and prudent suitor bribes from -the porter to the premier, taking care not to forget the -under-secretary, the over-secretary, the private secretary, all in their -order, and to regulate the douceur according to each man's rank and -influence. If you omit the porter, he will not deliver your card, or -will say Seor Mon is out, or will tell you to call again _manaa_, the -eternal to-morrow. If you forget the chief clerk, he will mislay your -petition, or poison his master's ear. In matters of great and political -importance, the sovereign, him or herself, must have a share; and thus -it was that Calomarde continued so long to manage the beloved Ferdinand -and his counsels. He was the minister who laid the greatest bribe at the -royal feet. "Sire, by strict attention and honesty, I have just been -enabled to economise 50,000_l._, on the sums allotted to my department, -which I have now the honour and felicity to place at your Majesty's -disposal."--"Well done, my faithful and good minister, here is a cigar -for you." This Calomarde, who began life as a foot-boy, smuggled through -the Christinist swindle, by which Isabel now wears the crown of Don -Carlos. The rogue was rewarded by being made _Conde de S. Isabel_, a -title which since has been conferred on Mons. Bresson's baby--a delicate -compliment to his sire's labours in the transfer of the said crown to -Louis Philippe--but Spaniards are full of dry humour. - -[Sidenote: SPANISH IGNORANCE.] - -In the East, the example and practice of the Sultan and Vizier is -followed by every pacha, down to the lowest animal who wields the most -petty authority; the disorder of the itching palm is endemic and -epidemic, all, whether high and low, want, and must have money; all wish -to get it without the disgrace of begging, and without the danger of -highway robbery. Public poverty is the curse of the land, and all -_empleados_ or persons in office excuse themselves on dire necessity, -the old plea of a certain gentleman, which has no law. Some allowance, -therefore, may be made for the rapacity which, with very few exceptions, -prevails; the regular salaries, always inadequate, are generally in -arrear, and the public servants, poor devils, swear that they are forced -to pay themselves by conniving at defrauding the government; this few -scruple to do, as all know it to be an unjust one, and that it can -afford it; indeed, as all are offenders alike, the guilt of the offence -is scarcely admitted. Where robbing and jobbing are the universal order -of the day, one rascal keeps another in countenance, as one gotre does -another in Switzerland. A man who does not feather his nest when in -place, is not thought honest, but a fool; _es preciso, que cada uno coma -de su oficio_. It is necessary, nay, a _duty_, as in the East, that all -should live by their office; and as office is short and insecure, no -time or means is neglected in making up a purse; thus poverty and their -will alike and readily consent. - -Take a case in point. We remember calling on a Spaniard who held the -highest office in a chief city of Andalucia. As we came into his cabinet -a cloaked personage was going out; the great man's table was covered -with gold ounces, which he was shovelling complacently into a drawer, -gloating on the glorious haul. "Many ounces, Excellency," said we. "Yes, -my friend," was his reply--"_no quiero comer mas patatas_,--I do not -intend to dine any more on potatoes." This gentleman, during the -_Sistema_, or Riego constitution, had, with other loyalists, been turned -out of office; and, having been put to the greatest hardships, was -losing no time in taking prudent and laudable precautions to avert any -similar calamity for the future. His practices were perfectly well known -in the town, where people simply observed, "_Est atesorando_, he is -laying up treasures,"--as every one of them would most certainly have -done, had they been in his fortunate position. Rich and honest Britons, -therefore, should not judge too hardly of the sad shifts, the strange -bed-fellows, with which want makes the less provided Spaniards -acquainted. _Donde no hay abundancia, no hay observancia._ The empty -sack cannot stand upright, nor was ever a sack made in Spain into which -gain and honour could be stowed away together; _honra y provecho, no -caben en un saco o techo_; here virtue itself succumbs to poverty, -induced by more than half a century of mis-government, let alone the -ruin caused by Buonaparte's invasion, to which domestic troubles and -civil wars have been added. - -[Sidenote: A QUESTION OF DAYS.] - -To return, however, to sight-seeing in Spain. Lucky was the traveller -prepared even to bribe and pay, who ever in our time chanced to fall in -with a librarian who knew what books he had, or with a priest who could -tell what pictures were in his chapel; ask him for _the_ painting by -Murillo--a shoulder-shrug was his reply, or a curt "_no hay_," "there is -none;" had you inquired for the "blessed Saint Thomas," then he might -have pointed it out; the _subject_, not the artist, being all that was -required for the service of the church. An incurious bliss of ignorance -is no less grateful to the Spanish mind, than the _dolce far niente_ or -sweet indolent doing nothing is to the body. All that gives trouble, or -"fashes," destroys the supreme height of felicity, which consists in -avoiding exertion. A chapter might be filled with instances, which, had -they not occurred to our humble selves, would seem caricature -inventions. The not to be able to answer the commonest question, or to -give any information as to matters of the most ordinary daily -occurrence, is so prevalent, that we at first thought it must proceed -from some fear of committal, some remnant of inquisitorial engendered -reserve, rather than from bon fide careless and contented ignorance. -The result, however, of much intercourse and experience arrived at, was, -that few people are more communicative than the lower classes of -Spaniards, especially to an Englishman, to whom they reveal private and -family secrets: their want of knowledge applies rather to things than to -persons. - -[Sidenote: UNCERTAINTY OF SPANISH THINGS.] - -If you called on a Spanish gentleman, and, finding him out, wished -afterwards to write him a note, and inquired of his man or maid servant -the number of the house;--"I do not know, my lord," was the invariable -answer, "I never was asked it before, I have never looked for it: let us -go out and see. Ah! it is number 36." Wishing once to send a parcel by -the wagon from Merida to Madrid, "On what day, my lord," said I to the -potbellied, black-whiskered _ventero_, "does your _galera_ start for the -Court?" "Every Wednesday," answered he; "and let not your grace be -anxious"--"_Disparate_--nonsense," exclaimed his copper-skinned, -bright-eyed wife, "why do you tell the English knight such lies? the -wagon, my lord, sets out on Fridays." During the logomachy, or the few -words which ensued between the well-matched pair, our good luck willed, -that the _mayoral_ or driver of the vehicle should come in, who -forthwith informed us that the days of departure were Thursdays; and he -was right. This occurred in the provinces; take, therefore, a parallel -passage in the capital, the heart and brain of the Castiles. "_Seor, -tenga Usted la bondad_--My lord," said I to a portly, pompous -bureaucrat, who booked places in the dilly to Toledo,--"have the -goodness, your grace, to secure me one for Monday, the 7th."--"I fear," -replied he, politely, for the _negocio_ had been prudently opened by my -offering him a real Havannah, "that your lordship has made a mistake in -the date. Monday is the 8th of the current month"--which it was not. -Thinking to settle the matter, we handed to him, with a bow, the -almanack of the year, which chanced to be in our pocket-book. "_Seor_," -said he, gravely, when he had duly examined it, "I knew that I was -right; this one was printed at Seville,"--which it was--"and we are here -at Madrid, which is _otra cosa_, that is, altogether another affair." In -this solar difference and pre-eminence of the Court, it must be -remembered, that the sun, at its creation, first shone over the -neighbouring city, to which the dilly ran; and that even in the last -century, it was held to be heresy at Salamanca, to say that it did not -move round Spain. In sad truth, it has there stood still longer than in -astronomical lectures or metaphors. Spain is no paradise for -calculators; here, what ought to happen, and what would happen elsewhere -according to Cocker and the doctrine probabilities, is exactly the event -which is the least likely to come to pass. One arithmetical fact only -can be reckoned upon with tolerable certainty: let given events be -represented by numbers; then two and two may at one time make three, or -possibly five at another; but the odds are four to one against two and -two ever making four; another safe rule in Spanish official numbers; _e. -g._ "five thousand men killed and wounded"--"five thousand dollars will -be given," and so forth, is to deduct two noughts, and sometimes even -three, and read fifty or five instead. - -[Sidenote: CERTAINTY OF BULL-FIGHTS.] - -Well might even the keen-sighted, practical Duke say it is difficult to -understand the Spaniards exactly; there neither men nor women, suns nor -clocks go together; there, as in a Dutch concert, all choose their own -tune and time, each performer in the orchestra endeavouring to play the -first fiddle. All this is so much a matter of course, that the natives, -like the Irish, make a joke of petty mistakes, blunders, -unpunctualities, inconsequences, and pococurantisms, at which accurate -Germans and British men of business are driven frantic. Made up of -contradictions, and dwelling in the _pays de l'imprvu_, where exception -is the rule, where accident and the impulse of the moment are the moving -powers, the happy-go-lucky natives, especially in their collective -capacity, act like women and children. A spark, a trifle, sets the -impressionable masses in action, and none can foresee the commonest -event; nor does any Spaniard ever attempt to guess beyond _la situacion -actual_, the actual present, or to foretell what the morrow will bring; -that he leaves to the foreigner, who does not understand him. -_Paciencia y barajar_ is his motto; and he waits _patiently_ to see what -next will turn up after another _shuffle_. - -There is one thing, however, which all know exactly, one question which -all can answer; and providentially this refers to the grand object of -every foreigner's observation--"When will the bull-fight be and begin?" -and this holds good, notwithstanding that there is a proviso inserted in -the notices, that it will come off on such a day and hour, "if the -weather permits." Thus, although these spectacles take place in summer, -when for months and months rain and clouds are matters of history, the -cautious authorities doubt the blessed sun himself, and mistrust the -certainty of his proceedings, as much as if they were ir-regulated by a -Castilian clockmaker. - -[Sidenote: THE SPANISH BULL-FIGHT.] - - - - -CHAPTER XXI. - - Origin of the Bull-fight or Festival, and its Religious - Character--Fiestas Reales--Royal Feasts--Charles I. at - one--Discontinuance of the Old System--Sham Bull-fights--Plaza de - Toros--Slang Language--Spanish Bulls--Breeds--The Going to a - Bull-fight. - - -Our honest John Bulls have long been more partial to their Spanish -namesakes, than even to those perpetrated by the Pope, or made in the -Emerald Isle; to see a bull-fight has been the emphatic object of -enlightened curiosity, since Peninsular sketches have been taken and -published by our travellers. No sooner had Charles the First, when -prince, lost his heart at Madrid, than his royal -father-in-law-that-was-to-be, regaled him and the fair inspirer of his -tender passion, with one of these charming spectacles; an event which, -as many men and animals were butchered, was thought by the -historiographers of the day to be one that posterity would not willingly -let die; their contemporary accounts will ever form the gems of every -tauromachian library that aspires to be complete. - -[Sidenote: BULL FESTIVALS.] - -These sports, which recall the bloody games of the Roman amphitheatre, -are now only to be seen in Spain, where the present clashes with the -past, where at every moment we stumble on some bone and relic of -Biblical and Roman antiquity; the close parallels, nay the identities, -which are observable between these combats and those of classical ages, -both as regards the spectators and actors, are omitted, as being more -interesting to the scholar than to the general reader; they were pointed -out by us some years ago in the Quarterly Review, No. cxxiv. And as -human nature changes not, men when placed in given and similar -circumstances, will without any previous knowledge or intercommunication -arrive at nearly similar results; the gentle pastime of spearing and -killing bulls in public and single-handed was probably devised by the -Moors, or rather by the Spanish Moors, for nothing of the kind has ever -obtained in Africa either now or heretofore. The Moslem Arab, when -transplanted into a Christian and European land, modified himself in -many respects to the ways and usages of the people among whom he -settled, just as his Oriental element was widely introduced among his -Gotho-Hispano neighbours. Moorish Andalucia is still the head-quarters -of the tauromachian art, and those who wish carefully to master this, -the science of Spain _par excellence_, should commence their studies in -the school of Ronda, and proceed thence to take the highest honours in -the University of Seville, the Bullford of the Peninsula. - -[Sidenote: FIESTAS REALES.] - -By the way, our boxing, baiting term bull-_fight_ is a very lay and low -translation of the time-honoured Castilian title, _Fiestas de Toros_, -the feasts, festivals of bulls. The gods and goddesses of antiquity were -conciliated by the sacrifice of hecatombs; the lowing tickled their -divine ears, and the purple blood fed their eyes, no less than the -roasted sirloins fattened the priests, while the grand spectacle and -death delighted their dinnerless congregations. In Spain, the Church of -Rome, never indifferent to its interests, instantly marshalled into its -own service a ceremonial at once profitable and popular;[13] it -consecrated butchery by wedding it to the altar, availing itself of this -gentle handmaid, to obtain funds in order to raise convents; even in the -last century Papal bulls were granted to mendicant orders, authorising -them to celebrate a certain number of _Fiestas de Toros_, on condition -of devoting the profit to finishing their church; and in order to swell -the receipts at the doors, spiritual indulgences and soul releases from -purgatory, the number of years being apportioned to the relative prices -of the seats, were added as a bonus to all paid for places at a -spectacle hallowed by a pious object. So at the _taurobolia_ of -antiquity, those who were sprinkled with bull blood were absolved from -sin. Protestant ministers, who very properly fear and distrust papal -bulls, replace them by bazaars and fancy fairs, whenever a fashionable -chapel requires a new blue slate roofing. Again, when not devoted to -religious purposes, every bull-fight aids the cause of charity; the -profits form the chief income of the public hospitals, and thus furnish -both funds and patients, as the venous circulation of the mob thirsting -for gore, rises to blood heat under a sun of fire, and the subsequent -mingling of sexes, opening of bottles and knives, occasion more deaths -among the lords and ladies of the Spanish creation, than among the -horned and hoofed victims of the amphitheatre. - -It is a common but very great mistake, to suppose that bull-fights are -as numerous in Spain as bandits; it is just the contrary, for this may -there be considered the tip-top sthetic treat, as the Italian Opera is -in England, and both are rather expensive amusements; true it is that -with us, only the salt of the earth patronises the performers of the -Haymarket, while high and low, vulgar and exquisite, alike delight in -those of the Spanish fields. Each bull-fight costs from 200_l._ to -300_l._, and even more when got up out of Andalucia or Madrid, which -alone can afford to support a standing company; in other cities the -actors and animals have to be sent for express, and from great -distances. Hence the representations occur like angels' visits, few and -far between; they are reserved for the chief festivals of the church and -crown, for the unfeigned devotion of the faithful on the holy days of -local saints, and the Virgin; they are also given at the marriages and -coronations of the sovereign, and thence are called Fiestas _reales_, -_Royal_ festivals--the ceremonial being then deprived of its religious -character, although it is much increased in worldly and imposing -importance. The sight is indeed one of surpassing pomp, etiquette, and -magnificence, and has succeeded to the _Auto de F_, in offering to the -most Catholic Queen and her subjects the greatest possible means of -tasting rapture, that the limited powers of mortal enjoyment can -experience in this world of shadows and sorrows. - -[Sidenote: AN INVOLUNTARY CHAMPION.] - -They are only given at Madrid, and then are conducted entirely after the -ancient Spanish and Moorish customs, of which such splendid descriptions -remain in the ballad romances. They take place in the great square of -the capital, which is then converted into an arena. The windows of the -quaint and lofty houses are arranged as boxes, and hung with velvets and -silks. The royal family is seated under a canopy of state in the balcony -of the central mansion. There we beheld Ferdinand VII. presiding at the -solemn swearing of allegiance to his daughter. He was then seated where -Charles I. had sat two centuries before; he was guarded by the unchanged -halberdiers, and was witnessing the unchanged spectacle. On these royal -occasions the bulls are assailed by gentlemen, dressed and armed as in -good old Spanish times, before the fatal Bourbon accession obliterated -Castilian costume, customs, and nationality. The champions, clad in the -fashions of the Philips, and mounted on beauteous barbs, the minions of -their race, attack the fierce animal with only a short spear, the -immemorial weapon of the Iberian. The combatants must be hidalgos by -birth, and have each for a _padrino_, or god-father, a first-rate -grandee of Spain, who passes before royalty in a splendid equipage and -six, and is attended by bands of running footmen, who are arrayed either -as Greeks, Romans, Moors, or fancy characters. It is not easy to obtain -these _caballeros en plaza_, or poor knights, who are willing to expose -their lives to the imminent dangers, albeit during the fight they have -the benefit of experienced _toreros_ to advise their actions and cover -their retreats. - -In 1833 a gentle dame, without the privity of her lord and husband, -inscribed his name as one of the champion volunteers. In procuring him -this agreeable surprise, she, so it was said in Madrid, argued thus: -"Either _mi marido_ will be killed--in that case I shall get a new -husband; or he will survive, in which event he will get a pension." She -failed in both of these admirable calculations--such is the uncertainty -of human events. The terror of this poor _hros malgr lui_, on whom -chivalry had been thrust, was absolutely ludicrous when exposed by his -well-intentioned better-half, to the horns of this dilemma and bull. Any -other horns, my dearest, but these! He was wounded at the first rush, -did survive, and did not get a pension; for Ferdinand died soon after, -and few pensions have been paid in the Peninsula, since the land has -been blessed with a _charte_, constitution, liberty, and a -representative government. - -[Sidenote: CHARLES I. AT A BULL-FIGHT.] - -One anecdote, where another lady is in the case, may be new to our fair -readers. We quote from an ancient authentic chronicler:--"It will not be -amiss here to mention what fell out in the presence of Charles the First -of Blessed Memory, who, while Prince of Wales, repaired to the court of -Spain, whether to be married to the Infanta, or upon what other design, -I cannot well determine: however, all comedies, playes, and festivals -(this of the bulls at Madrid being included), were appointed to be as -decently and magnificently gone about as possible, for the more -sumptuous and stately entertainment of such a splendid prince. -Therefore, after three bulls had been killed, and the fourth a coming -forth, there appeared four gentlemen in good equipage; not long after, a -brisk lady, in most gorgeous apparel, attended with persons of quality, -and some three or four grooms, walked all along the square a-foot. -Astonishment seized upon the beholders, that one of the female sex could -assume the unheard boldness of exposing herself to the violence of the -most furious beast yet seen, which had overcome, yea almost killed, two -men of great strength, courage, and dexterity. Incontinently the bull -rushed towards the corner where the lady and her attendants stood; she -(after all had fled) drew forth her dagger very unconcernedly, and -thrust it most dexterously into the bull's neck, having catched hold of -his horn; by which stroak, without any more trouble, her design was -brought to perfection; after which, turning about towards the king's -balcony, she made her obeysance, and withdrew herself in suitable state -and gravity." - -At the _jura_ of 1833 ninety-nine bulls were massacred; had one more -been added the hecatomb would have been complete. These wholesale -slaughterings have this year been repeated at the marriage of the same -"_innocent_" Isabel, the critical events of whose life are -death-warrants to quadrupeds. Bulls, however, represent in Spain the -coronation banquets of England. In that hungry, ascetic land, bulls have -always been killed, but no beef eaten; a remarkable fact, which did not -escape the learned Justin in his remarks on the no-dinner-giving crowned -heads of old Iberia. - -These genuine ancient bull-fights were perilous and fatal in the -extreme, yet knights were never wanting--valour being the point of -honour--who readily exposed their lives in sight of their cruel -mistresses. To kill the monster if not killed by him, was, before the -time of Hudibras, the sure road to women's love, who very properly -admire those qualities the best, in which they feel themselves to be the -most deficient:-- - -[Sidenote: RUIN OF OLD BULL-FIGHT.] - - "The ladies' hearts began to melt, - Subdued by blows their lovers felt; - So Spanish heroes, with their lances, - At once wound bulls and ladies' fancies." - -The final conquest of the Moors, and the subsequent cessation of the -border chivalrous habits of Spaniards, occasioned these love-pastimes to -fall into comparative disuse. The gentle Isabella was so shocked at the -bull-fights which she saw at Medina del Campo, that she did her utmost -to put them down; but she strove in vain, for the game and monarchy were -destined to fall together. The accession of Philip V. deluged the -Peninsula with Frenchmen. The puppies of Paris pronounced the Spaniards -and their bulls to be barbarous and brutal, as their _artistes_ to this -day prefer the _boeuf gras_ of the Boulevards to whole flocks of -Iberian lean kine. The spectacle which had withstood her influence, and -had beat the bulls of Popes, bowed before the despotism of fashion. The -periwigged courtiers deserted the arena, on which the royal Bourbon eye -looked coldly, while the sturdy people, foes--then as now--to Frenchmen -and innovations, clung closer to the sports of their forefathers. Yet a -fatal blow was dealt to the combat: the art, once practised by knights, -degenerated into the vulgar butchery of mercenary bull-fighters, who -contended not for honour, but base lucre; thus, by becoming the game of -the mob, it was soon stripped of every gentlemanlike prestige. So the -tournament challenges of our chivalrous ancestors have sunk down to the -vulgar boxings of ruffian pugilists. - -[Sidenote: CRAVING FOR BULLS AND BREAD.] - -Baiting a bull in any shape is irresistible to the lower orders of -Spain, who disregard injuries to the bodies, and, what is worse, to -their cloaks. The hostility to the horned beast is instinctive, and -grows with their growth, until it becomes, as men are but children of a -larger growth, a second nature. The young urchins in the streets play at -"_toro_," as ours do at leap-frog; they go through the whole mimic -spectacle amongst each other, observing every law and rule, as our -schoolboys do when they fight. Few adult Spaniards, when journeying -through the country, ever pass a herd of cows without this dormant -propensity breaking out; they provoke the animals to fight by waving -their cloaks or _capas_, a challenge hence called _el capeo_. The -villagers, who cannot afford the expense of a regular bull-fight, amuse -themselves with baiting _novillos_, or bull-youngsters--calves of one -year old; and _embolados_, or bulls whose horns are guarded with tips -and buttons. These innocent pastimes are despised by the regular -_aficion_, the "fancy;" because, as neither man nor beast are exposed to -be killed, the whole affair is based in fiction, and impotent in -conclusion. They cry out for Toros de _muerte_--bulls of _death_. -Nothing short of the reality of blood can allay their excitement. They -despise the makeshift spectacle, as much as a true gastronome does -mock-turtle, or an old campaigner a sham fight. - -[Sidenote: THE PLAZA DE TOROS.] - -In the wilder districts of Andalucia few cattle are ever brought into -towns for slaughter, unless led by long ropes, and partially baited by -those whose poverty prevents their indulgence in the luxury of real -bull-fights and beef. The governor of Tarifa was wont on certain days to -let a bull loose into the streets, when the delight of the inhabitants -was to shut their doors, and behold from their grated windows the -perplexities of the unwary or strangers, pursued by him in the narrow -lanes without means of escape. Although many lives were lost, a governor -in our time, named Dalmau, otherwise a public benefactor to the place, -lost all his popularity in the vain attempt to put the custom down. When -the Bourbon Philip V. first visited the _plaa_ at Madrid, all the -populace roared, _Bulls! give us bulls, my lord_. They cared little for -the ruin of the monarchy; so when the intrusive Joseph Buonaparte -arrived at the same place, the only and absorbing topic of public talk -was whether he would grant or suppress the bull-fight. And now, as -always, the cry of the capital is--"_Pan y toros_; bread and bulls:" -these constitute the loaves and fishes of the "only modern court," as -_Panes et Circenses_ did of ancient Rome. The national scowl and frown -which welcomed Montpensier at his marriage, was relaxed for one moment, -when Spaniards beheld his well-put-on admiration for the tauromachian -spectacle. Nothing, since the recent vast improvements in Spain, has -more progressed than the bull-fight--convents have come down, churches -have been levelled, but new amphitheatres have arisen. The diffusion of -useful and entertaining knowledge, as the means of promoting the -greatest happiness of the greatest number, has thus obtained the best -consideration of those patriots and statesmen who preside over the -destinies of Spain; the bull is master of his ground. This last remnant -and representative of Spanish nationality defies the foreigner and his -civilization; he is a _fait accompli_, and tramples _la charte_ under -his feet, although the honest Roi citoyen swears that it is dsormais -une _vrit_. - -In Spain there is no mistaking the day and time that the bull-fight -takes place, which is generally on Saint Monday, and in the afternoon, -when the mid-day heats are past. - -The arena, or _Plaza_, is most unlike a London Place, those enclosures -of stunted smoke-blacked shrubs, fenced in with iron palisadoes to -protect aristocratic nurserymaids from the mob. It is at once more -classical and amusing. The amphitheatre of Madrid is very spacious, -being about 1100 feet in circumference, and will hold 12,000 spectators. -In an architectural point of view this ring of the model court, is -shabbier than many of those in provincial towns: there is no attempt at -orders, pilasters, and Vitruvian columns; there is no adaptation of the -Coliseum of Rome: the exterior is bald and plain, as if done so on -purpose, while the interior is fitted up with wooden benches, and is -scarcely better than a shambles; but for that it was designed, and there -is a business-like, murderous intention about it, which marks the -insthetic Gotho-Spaniard, who looked for a sport of blood and death, -and not to a display of artistical skill. He has no need of extraneous -stimulants; the _ralit atroce_, as a tender-hearted foreigner -observes, "is all-sufficing, because it is the recreation of the savage, -and the sublime of common souls." The locality, however, is admirably -calculated for seeing; and this combat is a spectacle entirely for the -eyes. The open space is full of the light of heaven, and here the sun is -brighter than gas or wax-candles. The interior is as unadorned as the -exterior, and looks positively "mesquin" when empty; around the sanded -centre rise rows of wooden seats for the humbler classes, and above them -a tier of boxes for the fine ladies and gentlemen; but no sooner is the -theatre filled than all this meanness is concealed, and the general -appearance becomes superb. - -[Sidenote: BULL-FIGHT SLANG.] - -On entering the ring when thus full, the stranger finds his watch put -back at once eighteen hundred years; he is transported to Rome under the -Csars; and in truth the sight is glorious, of the assembled thousands -in their Spanish costume, the novelty of the spectacle, associated with -our earliest classical studies, are enhanced by the blue expanse of the -heavens, spread above as a canopy. There is something in these -out-of-door entertainments, _ l'antique_, which peculiarly affects the -shivering denizens of the catch-cold north, where climate contributes so -little to the happiness of man. All first-rate connoisseurs go into the -pit and place themselves among the mob, in order to be closer to the -bulls and combatants. The _real thing_ is to sit near one of the -openings, which enables the fancy-man to exhibit his embroidered gaiters -and neat leg. It is here that the character of the bull, the nice traits -and the behaviour of the bull-fighter are scientifically criticised. The -ring has a dialect peculiar to itself, which is unintelligible to most -Spaniards themselves, while to the sporting-men of Andalucia it -expresses their drolleries with idiomatic raciness, and is exactly -analogous to the slang and technicalities of our pugilistic craft. The -newspapers next day generally give a detailed report of the fight, in -which every round is scientifically described in a style that defies -translation, but which being drawn up by some Spanish Boz, is most -delectable to all who can understand it; the nomenclature of praise and -blame is defined with the most accurate precision of language, and the -delicate shades of character are distinguished with the nicety of -phrenological subdivision. The foundation of this lingo is gipsy Romany, -metaphor, and double entendre; to master it is no easy matter; indeed, a -distinguished diplomat and tauromachian philologist, whom we are proud -to call our friend, was often unable to comprehend the full pregnancy of -the meaning of certain terms, without a reference to the late Duke of -San Lorenzo, who sustained the character of Spanish ambassador in London -and of bull-fighter in Madrid with equal dignity; his grace was a living -lexicon of slang. Yet let no student be deterred by any difficulty, -since he will eventually be repaid, when he can fully relish the -Andalucian wit, or _sal Andalua_, the salt, with which the reports are -flavoured: that it is seldom Attic must, however, be confessed. Nor let -time or pains be grudged; there is no royal road to Euclid, and life, -say the Spanish fancy, is too short to learn bull-fighting. This -possibly may seem strange, but English squires and country gentlemen -assert as much in regard to fox-hunting. - -[Sidenote: SPANISH BULLS.] - -The day appointed for a bull-feast is announced by placards of all -colours; the important particulars decorate every wall. The first thing -is to secure a good place beforehand, by sending for a _Boletin de -Sombra_, a shade-ticket; and as the great object is to avoid glare and -heat, the best places are on the northern side, which are in the shade. -The transit of the sun over the Plaza, the zodiacal progress into -Taurus, is decidedly the best calculated astronomical observation in -Spain; the line of shadow defined on the arena is marked by a gradation -of prices. The different seats and prices are everywhere detailed in the -bills of the play, with the names of the combatants and the colours of -the different breeds of bulls. - -[Sidenote: BEST BREED OF BULLS.] - -The day before the fight, the bulls destined for the spectacle are -driven towards the town, and pastured in a meadow reserved for their -reception; then the fine amateurs never fail to ride out to see what the -cattle is like, just as the knowing in horseflesh go to Tattersall's of -a Sunday afternoon, instead of attending evening service in their parish -churches. According to Pepe Illo, who was a very practical man, and the -first author on the modern system of the arena, of which he was the -brightest ornament, and on which he died in the arms of victory, the -"love of bulls is inherent in man, especially in the Spaniard, among -which glorious people there have been bull-fights ever since there were -bulls, because the Spanish men are as much more brave than all other -men, as the Spanish bull is more fierce and valiant than all other -bulls." Certainly, from having been bred at large, in roomy unenclosed -plains, they are more active than the animals raised by John Bull, but -as regards form and power they would be scouted in an English -cattle-show; a real British bull, with his broad neck and short horns, -would make quick work with the men and horses of Spain; his "spears" -would be no less effective than the bayonets of our soldiers, which no -foreigner faces twice, or the picks of our _Navvies_, three and -three-eighths of whom are calculated by railway economists to eat more -beef and do more work than five and five-eighths of corresponding -foreign material. By the way, the correct Castilian word for the bull's -_horns_ is _astas_, the Latin _hastas_, spears. _Cuernos_ must never be -used in good Spanish society, since, from its secondary meaning, it -might give offence to present company: allusions to common calamities -are never made to ears polite, however frequent among the vulgar, who -call things by their improper names--nay, roar them out, as in the time -of Horace: "Magn compellens voce cucullum." - -Not every bull will do for the Plaza, and none but the fiercest are -selected, who undergo trials from the earliest youth; the most -celebrated animals come from Utrera near Seville, and from the same -pastures where that eminent breeder of old Geryon, raised those -wonderful oxen, which all but burst with fat in fifty days, and were -"lifted" by the invincible Hercules. Seor _Cabrera_, the modern Geryon, -was so pleased with Joseph Buonaparte, or so afraid, that he offered to -him a hundred bulls, as a hecatomb for the rations of his troops, who, -braver and hungrier than Hercules, would otherwise have infallibly -followed the demigod's example. The Manchegan bull, small, very -powerful, and active, is considered to be the original stock of Spain; -of this breed was "Manchangito," the pet of the Visconde de Miranda, a -tauromachian noble of Cordova, and who used to come into the -dining-room, but, having one day killed a guest, he was destroyed after -violent resistance on the part of the Viscount, and only in obedience to -the peremptory mandate of the Prince of the Peace. - -The capital is supplied with animals bred in the valleys of the Jarama -near Aranjuez, which have been immemorially celebrated. From hence came -that _Harpado_, the magnificent beast of the magnificent Moorish ballad -of Gazul, which was evidently written by a practical _torero_, and on -the spot: the verses sparkle with daylight and local colour like a -Velazquez, and are as minutely correct as a Paul Potter, while Byron's -"Bull-fight" is the invention of a foreign poet, and full of slight -inaccuracies. - -The _encierro_, or the driving the bulls to the arena, is a service of -danger; they are enticed by tame oxen, into a road which is barricadoed -on each side, and then driven full speed by the mounted and -spear-bearing peasants into the _Plaza_. It is an exciting, peculiar, -and picturesque spectacle; and the poor who cannot afford to go to the -bull-fight, risk their lives and cloaks in order to get the front -places, and best chance of a stray poke _en passant_. - -[Sidenote: THE ENCIERRO.] - -The next afternoon all the world crowds to the _Plaza de toros_. You -need not ask the way; just launch into the tide, which in these Spanish -affairs will assuredly carry you away. Nothing can exceed the gaiety and -sparkle of a Spanish public going, eager and full-dressed, to the -_fight_. They could not move faster were they running away from a real -one. All the streets or open spaces near the outside of the arena -present of themselves a spectacle to the stranger, and genuine Spain is -far better to be seen and studied in the streets, than in the saloon. -Now indeed a traveller from Belgravia feels that he is out of town, in a -new world and no mistake; all around him is a perfect saturnalia, all -ranks are fused in one stream of living beings, one bloody thought beats -in every heart, one heart beats in ten thousand bosoms; every other -business is at an end, the lover leaves his mistress unless she will go -with him,--the doctor and lawyer renounce patients, briefs, and fees; -the city of sleepers is awakened, and all is life, noise, and movement, -where to-morrow will be the stillness and silence of death; now the -bending line of the _Calle de Alcal_, which on other days is broad and -dull as Portland Place, becomes the aorta of Madrid, and is scarcely -wide enough for the increased circulation; now it is filled with a dense -mass coloured as the rainbow, which winds along like a spotted snake to -its prey. Oh the din and dust! The merry mob is everything, and, like -the Greek chorus, is always on the scene. How national and Spanish are -the dresses of the lower classes--for their betters alone appear like -Boulevard quizzes, or tigers cut out from our East end tailors' -pattern-book of the last new fashion; what _Manolas_, what reds and -yellows, what fringes and flounces, what swarms of picturesque -vagabonds, cluster, or alas, clustered, around _calesas_, whose wild -drivers run on foot, whipping, screaming, swearing; the type of these -vehicles in form and colour was Neapolitan; they alas! are also soon -destined to be sacrificed to civilization to the 'bus and common-place -cab, or vile fly. - -[Sidenote: FILLING THE THEATRE.] - -The _plaza_ is the focus of a fire, which blood alone can extinguish; -what public meetings and dinners are to Britons, reviews and razzias to -Gauls, mass or music to Italians, is this one and absorbing bull-fight -to Spaniards of all ranks, sexes, ages, for their happiness is quite -catching; and yet a thorn peeps amid these rosebuds; when the dazzling -glare and fierce African sun calcining the heavens and earth, fires up -man and beast to madness, a raging thirst for blood is seen in flashing -eyes and the irritable ready knife, then the passion of the Arab -triumphs over the coldness of the Goth: the excitement would be terrific -were it not on pleasure bent; indeed there is no sacrifice, even of -chastity, no denial, even of dinner, which they will not undergo to save -money for the bull-fight. It is the birdlime with which the devil -catches many a female and male soul. The men go in all their best -costume and _majo_-finery: the distinguished ladies wear on these -occasions white lace mantillas, and when heated, look, as the Andaluz -wag Adrian said, like sausages wrapped up in white paper; a fan, -_abanico_, is quite as necessary to all as it was among the Romans. The -article is sold outside for a trifle, and is made of rude paper, stuck -into a handle of common cane or stick, and the gift of one to his -nutbrown _querida_ is thought a delicate attention to her complexion -from her swarthy swain; at the same time the lower Salamander classes -stand fire much better on these occasions than in action, and would -rather be roasted fanless alive _ la auto de fe_ than miss these hot -engagements. - -The place of slaughter, like the _Abattoirs_ on the Continent, is -erected outside the towns, in order to obtain space, and because horned -animals when over driven in crowded streets are apt to be ill-mannered, -as may be seen every Smithfield market-day in the City, as the Lord -Mayor well knows. - -[Sidenote: SEAT OF THE CLERGY.] - -The seats occupied by the mob are filled more rapidly than our shilling -galleries, and the "gods" are equally noisy and impatient. The anxiety -of the immortals, wishes to annihilate time and space and make -bull-fanciers happy. Now his majesty the many reigns triumphantly, and -this--church excepted--is the only public meeting allowed; but even -here, as on the Continent, the odious bayonet sparkles, and the soldier -picket announces that innocent amusements are not free; treason and -stratagem are suspected by coward despots, when one sole thought of -pleasure engrosses every one else. All ranks are now fused into one mass -of homogeneous humanity; their good humour is contagious; all leave -their cares and sorrows at home, and enter with a gaiety of heart and a -determination to be amused, which defies wrinkled care; many and not -over-delicate are the quips and quirks bandied to and fro, with an -eloquence more energetic than unadorned; things and persons are -mentioned to the horror of periphrastic euphuists; the liberty of -speech is perfect, and as it is all done quite in a parliamentary way, -none take offence. Those only who cannot get in are sad; these rejected -ones remain outside grinding their teeth, like the unhappy ghosts on the -wrong side of the Styx, and listen anxiously to the joyous shouts of the -thrice blessed within. - -At Seville a choice box in the shade and to the right of the president -is allotted as the seat of honour to the canons of the cathedral, who -attend in their clerical costume; and such days are fixed upon for the -bull-fight as will not by a long church service prevent their coming. -The clergy of Spain have always been the most uncompromising enemies of -the stage, where they never go; yet neither the cruelty nor profligacy -of the amphitheatre has ever roused the zeal of their most elect or most -fanatic: our puritans at least assailed the bear-bait, which induced the -Cavalier Hudibras to defend them; so our methodists denounced the -bull-bait, which was therefore patronised by the Right Hon. W. Windham, -in the memorable debate May 24, 1802, on Mr. _Dog_ Dent. The Spanish -clergy pay due deference to bulls, both papal and quadruped; they -dislike being touched on this subject, and generally reply "_Es -costumbre_--it is the custom--_siempre se ha praticado asi_--it has -always been done so, or _son cosas de Espaa_, they are things of -Spain"--the usual answer given as to everything which appears -incomprehensible to strangers, and which they either can't account for, -or do not choose. In vain did St. Isidore write a chapter against the -amphitheatre--his _chapter_ minds him not; in vain did Alphonso the Wise -forbid their attendance. The sacrifice of the bull has always been mixed -up with the religion of old Rome and old and modern Spain, where they -are classed among acts of charity, since they support the sick and -wounded; therefore all the sable countrymen of Loyola hold to the -Jesuitical doctrine that the end justifies the means. - -[Sidenote: COMMENCEMENT OF THE BULL-FIGHT.] - - - - -CHAPTER XXII. - - The Bull-fight--Opening of Spectacle--First Act, and Appearance of - the Bull--The Picador--Bull Bastinado--The Horses, and their Cruel - Treatment--Fire and Dogs--The Second Act--The Chulos and their - Darts--The Third Act--The Matador--Death of the Bull--The - Conclusion, and Philosophy of the Amusement--Its Effect on Ladies. - - -When the appointed much-wished-for hour is come, the Queen or the -_Corregidor_ takes the seat of honour in a central and splendid box, the -mob having been previously expelled from the open arena; this operation -is called the _despejo_, and is an amusing one, from the reluctance with -which the great unwashed submit to be cleaned out. The proceedings open -at a given signal with a procession of the combatants, who advance -preceded by _alguaciles_, or officers of police, who are dressed in the -ancient Spanish costume, and are always at hand to arrest any one who -infringes the severe laws against interruptions of the games. Then -follow the _picadores_, or mounted horsemen, with their spears. Their -original broad-brimmed Spanish hats are decorated with ribbons; their -upper man is clad in a gay silken jacket, whose lightness contrasts with -the heavy iron and leather protections of the legs, which give the -clumsy look of a French jackbooted postilion. These defences are -necessary when the horned animal charges home. Next follow the _chulos_, -or combatants on foot, who are arrayed like Figaro at the opera, and -have, moreover, silken cloaks of gay colours. The _matadores_, or -killers, come behind them; and, last of all, a gaily-caparisoned team of -mules, which is destined to drag the slaughtered bulls from the arena. -As for the men, those who are killed on the spot are denied the -burial-rites if they die without confession. Springing from the dregs of -the people, they are eminently superstitious, and cover their breasts -with relics, amulets, and papal charms. A clergyman, however, is in -attendance with the sacramental wafer, in case _su majestad_ may be -wanted for a mortally-wounded combatant. - -[Sidenote: ENTRANCE OF THE BULL.] - -Having made their obeisances to the chief authority, all retire, and the -fatal trumpet sounds; then the president throws the key of the gate by -which the bull is to enter, to one of the _alguaciles_, who ought to -catch it in his hat. When the door is opened, this worthy gallops away -as fast as he can, amid the hoots and hisses of the mob, not because he -rides like a constable, but from the instinctive enmity which his -majesty the many bear to the finisher of the law, just as little birds -love to mob a hawk; now more than a thousand kind wishes are offered up -that the bull may catch and toss him. The brilliant army of combatants -in the meanwhile separates like a bursting shell, and take up their -respective places as regularly as our fielders do at a cricket-match. - -The play, which consists of three acts, then begins in earnest; the -drawing up of the curtain is a spirit-stirring moment; all eyes are -riveted at the first appearance of the bull on this stage, as no one can -tell how he may behave. Let loose from his dark cell, at first he seems -amazed at the novelty of his position; torn from his pastures, -imprisoned and exposed, stunned by the noise, he gazes an instant around -at the crowd, the glare, and waving handkerchiefs, ignorant of the fate -which inevitably awaits him. He bears on his neck a ribbon, "la devisa," -which designates his breeder. The picador endeavours to snatch this off, -to lay the trophy at his true love's heart. The bull is condemned -without reprieve; however gallant his conduct, or desperate his -resistance, his death is the catastrophe; the whole tragedy tends and -hastens to this event, which, although it is darkly shadowed out -beforehand, as in a Greek play, does not diminish the interest, since -all the intermediate changes and chances are uncertain; hence the -sustained excitement, for the action may pass in an instant from the -sublime to the ridiculous, from tragedy to farce. - -[Sidenote: BULL BASTINADO.] - -The bull no sooner recovers his senses, than his splendid Achillean rage -fires every limb, and with closing eyes and lowered horns he rushes at -the first of the three picadores, who are drawn up to the left, close to -the _tablas_, or wooden barrier which walls round the ring. The horseman -sits on his trembling Rosinante, with his pointed lance under his right -arm, as stiff and valiant as Don Quixote. If the animal be only of -second-rate power and courage, the sharp point arrests the charge, for -he well remembers this _garrocha_, or goad, by which herdsmen enforce -discipline and inculcate instruction; during this momentary pause a -quick picador turns his horse to the left and gets free. The bulls, -although irrational brutes, are not slow on their part in discovering -when their antagonists are bold and dexterous, and particularly dislike -fighting against the pricks. If they fly and will not face the picador, -they are hooted at as despicable malefactors, who wish to defraud the -public of their day's sport, they are execrated as "goats," "cows," -which is no compliment to bulls; these culprits, moreover, are soundly -beaten as they pass near the barrier by forests of sticks, with which -the mob is provided for the nonce; that of the elegant _majo_, when -going to the bull-fight, is very peculiar, and is called _la chivata_; -it is between four and five feet long, is taper, and terminates in a -lump or knob, while the top is forked, into which the thumb is inserted; -it is also peeled or painted in alternate rings, black and white, or red -and yellow. The lower classes content themselves with a common -shillelah; one with a knob at the end is preferred, as administering a -more impressive whack; their instrument is called _porro_, because heavy -and lumbering. - -Nor is this bastinado uncalled for, since courage, address, and energy, -are the qualities which ennoble tauromachia; and when they are wanting, -the butchery, with its many disgusting incidents, becomes revolting to -the stranger, but to him alone; for the gentler emotions of pity and -mercy, which rarely soften any transactions of hard Iberia, are here -banished altogether from the hearts of the natives; they now only have -eyes for exhibitions of skill and valour, and scarcely observe those -cruel incidents which engross and horrify the foreigner, who again on -his part is equally blind to those redeeming excellencies, on which -alone the attention of the rest of the spectators is fixed; the tables -are now turned against the stranger, whose sthetic mind's eye can see -the poetry and beauty of the picturesque rags and tumbledown hamlets of -Spaniards, and yet is blind to the poverty, misery, and want of -civilization, to which alone the vision of the higher classed native is -directed, on whose exalted soul the coming comforts of cotton are -gleaming. - -[Sidenote: A GOOD BULL.] - -When the bull is turned by the spear of the first picador, he passes on -to the two other horsemen, who receive him with similar cordiality. If -the animal be baffled by their skill and valour, stunning are the -shouts of applause which celebrate the victory of the men: should he on -the contrary charge home and overwhelm horses and riders, then--for the -balances of praise and blame are held with perfect fairness--the fierce -lord of the arena is encouraged with roars of compliments, _Bravo toro_, -_Viva toro_, Well done, bull! even a long life is wished to him by -thousands who know that he must be dead in twenty minutes. - -A bold beast is not to be deterred by a trifling inch-deep wound, but -presses on, goring the horse in the flank, and then gaining confidence -and courage by victory, and "baptized in blood," la Franaise, -advances in a career of honour, gore, and glory. The picador is seldom -well mounted, for the horses are provided, at the lowest possible price, -by a contractor, who runs the risk whether many or few are killed; they -indeed are the only things economised in this costly spectacle, and are -sorry, broken-down hacks, fit only for the dog-kennel of an English -squire, or carriage of a foreign _Pair_. This increases the danger to -his rider; in the ancient combats, the finest and most spirited horses -were used; quick as lightning, and turning to the touch, they escaped -the deadly rush. The eyes of those poor horses which see and will not -face death, are often bound over with a handkerchief, like criminals -about to be executed; thus they await blindfold the fatal horn thrust -which is to end their life of misery. - -[Sidenote: DEATH OF THE HORSE.] - -The picadors are subject to most severe falls; the bull often tosses -horse and rider in one ruin, and when his victims fall with a crash on -the ground exhausts his fury upon his prostrate foes. The picador -manages (if he can) to fall off on the opposite side, in order that his -horse may form a barrier and rampart between him and the bull. When -these deadly struggles take place, when life hangs on a thread, the -amphitheatre is peopled with heads; every feeling of anxiety, eagerness, -fear, horror, and delight is stamped on their expressive countenances; -if happiness is to be estimated by quality, intensity, and -concentration, rather than duration (and it is), these are moments of -excitement more precious to them, than ages of placid, insipid, uniform -stagnation. Their feelings are wrought to a pitch, when the horse, -maddened with wounds and terror, plunging in the death-struggle, the -crimson seams of blood streaking his foam and sweat-whitened body, -flies from the infuriated bull still pursuing, still goring; then are -displayed the nerve, presence of mind, and horsemanship of the dexterous -and undismayed picador. It is in truth a piteous sight to see the poor -mangled horses treading out their entrails, and yet gallantly carrying -off their riders unhurt. But as in the pagan sacrifices, the quivering -intestines, trembling with life, formed the most propitious omens--to -what will not early habit familiarise?--so the Spaniards are no more -affected with the reality, than the Italians are with the abstract -"tanti palpiti" of Rossini. - -[Sidenote: WOUNDED HORSES.] - -The miserable horse, when dead, is dragged out, leaving a bloody furrow -on the sand, as the river-beds of the arid plains of Barbary are marked -by the crimson fringe of the flowering oleanders. A universal sympathy -is shown for the horseman in these awful moments; the men rise, the -women scream, but all this soon subsides; the _picador_, if wounded, is -carried out and forgotten--"_los muertos y idos no tienen amigos_"--a -new combatant fills up his gap, the battle rages--wounds and death are -the order of the day--he is not missed; and as new incidents arise, no -pause is left for regret or reflection. We remember seeing at Granada a -matador cruelly gored by a bull: he was carried away as dead, and his -place immediately taken by his son, as coolly as a viscount succeeds to -an earl's estate and title. Carnerero, the musician, died while fiddling -at a ball at Madrid, in 1838; neither the band nor the dancers stopped -one moment. The boldness of the picadors is great. Francisco Sevilla, -when thrown from his horse and lying under the dying animal, seized the -bull, as he rushed at him, by his ears, turned round to the people, and -laughed; but, in fact, the long horns of the bull make it difficult for -him to gore a man on the ground; he generally bruises them with his -nose: nor does he remain long busied with his victim, since he is lured -to fresh attacks by the glittering cloaks of the _Chulos_ who come -instantly to the rescue. At the same time we are free to confess, that -few picadors, although men of bronze, can be said to have a sound rib in -their body. When one is carried off apparently dead, but returns -immediately mounted on a fresh horse, the applauding voice of the people -outbellows a thousand bulls. If the wounded man should chance not to -come back, _n'importe_, however courted outside the _Plaza_, now he is -ranked, like the gladiator was by the Romans, no higher than a -beast,--or about the same as a slave under the perfect equality and man -rights of the model republic. - -[Sidenote: A COWARD BULL.] - -The poor horse is valued at even less, and he, of all the actors, is the -one in which Englishmen, true lovers and breeders of the noble animal, -take the liveliest interest; nor can any bull-fighting habit ever -reconcile them to his sufferings and ill-treatment. The hearts of the -picadors are as devoid of feeling as their iron-cased legs; they only -think of themselves, and have a nice tact in knowing when a wound is -fatal or not. Accordingly, if the horn-thrust has touched a vital part, -no sooner has the enemy passed on to a new victim, than an experienced -picador quietly dismounts, takes off the saddle and bridle, and hobbles -off like Richard, calling out for another horse--a horse! The poor -animal, when stripped of these accoutrements, has a most rippish look, -as it staggers to and fro, like a drunken man, until again attacked by -the bull and prostrated; then it lies dying unnoticed in the sand, or, -if observed, merely rouses the jeers of the mob; as its tail quivers in -the last agony of death, your attention is called to the _fun_; _Mira, -mira, que cola!_ The words and sight yet haunt us, for they were those -that first caught our inexperienced ears and eyes at the first rush of -the first bull of our first bullfight. While gazing on the scene in a -total abstraction from the world, we felt our coat-tails tugged at, as -by a greedily-biting pike; we had caught, or, rather, were caught by a -venerable harridan, whose quick perception had discovered a novice, whom -her kindness prompted to instruct, for e'en in the ashes live the wonted -fires; a bright, fierce eye gleamed alive in a dead and shrivelled face, -which evil passions had furrowed like the lava-seared sides of an -extinct volcano, and dried up, like a cat starved behind a wainscot, -into a thing of fur and bones, in which gender was obliterated--let her -pass. If the wound received by the horse be not instantaneously mortal, -the blood-vomiting hole is plugged up with tow, and the fountain of life -stopped for a few minutes. If the flank is only partially ruptured, the -protruding bowels are pushed back--no operation in hernia is half so -well performed by Spanish surgeons--and the rent is sown up with a -needle and pack-thread. Thus existence is prolonged for new tortures, -and a few dollars are saved to the contractor; but neither death nor -lacerations excite the least pity, nay, the bloodier and more fatal the -spectacle, the more brilliant is it pronounced. It is of no use to -remonstrate, or ask why the wounded sufferers are not mercifully killed -at once; the utilitarian Spaniard dislikes to see the order of the sport -interrupted and spoilt by what he considers foreign squeamishness and -nonsense, "_Ah que! no vale n_,"--"Bah! the beast is worth nothing;" -that is, provided he condescends to reply to your _disparates_ with -anything beyond a shrug of civil contempt. But national tastes will -differ. "Sir," said an alderman to Dr. Johnson, "in attempting to listen -to your long sentences, and give you a short answer, I have swallowed -two pieces of green fat, without tasting the flavour. I beg you to let -me enjoy my present happiness in peace and quiet." - -The bull is the hero of the scene; yet, like Satan in the Paradise Lost, -he is foredoomed. Nothing can save him from a certain fate, which awaits -all, whether brave or cowardly. The poor creatures sometimes endeavour -in vain to escape, and have favourite retreats, to which they fly; or -they leap over the barrier, among the spectators, creating a vast hubbub -and fun, upsetting water-carriers and fancy men, putting sentinels and -old women to flight, and affording infinite delight to all who are safe -in the boxes; for, as Bacon remarks, "It is pleasant to see a battle -from a distant hill." Bulls which exhibit this cowardlike activity are -insulted: cries of "fuego" and "perros," fire and dogs, resound, and he -is condemned to be baited. As the Spanish dogs have by no means the -pluck of the English assailants of bulls, they are longer at the work, -and many are made minced-meat of:-- - - "Up to the stars the growling mastiffs fly - And add new monsters to the frighted sky." - -[Sidenote: CHULOS AND SECOND ACT.] - -When at length the poor brute is pulled down, he is stabbed in the -spine, as if he were only fit for the shambles, being a civilian ox, not -a soldierlike bull. All these processes are considered as deadly -insults; and when more than one bull exhibits these craven propensities -to baulk nobler expectancies, then is raised the cry of "_Cabestros al -circo!_" tame oxen to the circus. This is a mortal affront to the -_empresa_, or management, as it infers that it has furnished animals -fitter for the plough than for the arena. The indignation of the mob is -terrible; for, if disappointed in the blood of bulls, it will lap that -of men. - -The bull is sometimes teased with stuffed figures, men of straw with -leaded feet, which rise up again as soon as he knocks them down. An old -author relates that in the time of Philip IV. "a despicable peasant was -occasionally set upon a lean horse, and exposed to death." At other -times, to amuse the populace, a monkey is tied to a pole in the arena. -This art of ingeniously tormenting is considered as unjustifiable -homicide by certain lively philosimious foreigners; and, indeed, all -these episodes are despised as irregular _hors d'oeuvres_, by the real -and business-like amateur. - -[Sidenote: THE MATADOR AND THIRD ACT.] - -After a due time the first act terminates: its length is uncertain. -Sometimes it is most brilliant, since one bull has been known to kill a -dozen horses, and clear the _plaza_. Then he is adored; and as he roams, -snorting about, lord of all he surveys, he becomes the sole object of -worship to ten thousand devotees; at the signal of the president, and -sound of a trumpet, the second act commences with the performances of -the _chulo_, a word which signifies, in the Arabic, a lad, a merryman, -as at our fairs. The duty of this light division, these skirmishers, is -to draw off the bull from the _picador_ when endangered, which they do -with their coloured cloaks; their address and agility are surprising, -they skim over the sand like glittering humming-birds, scarcely touching -the earth. They are dressed in short breeches, and without gaiters, just -as Figaro is in the opera of the '_Barbiere de Seviglia_.' Their hair is -tied into a knot behind, and enclosed in the once universal silk net, -the _retecilla_--the identical _reticulum_--of which so many instances -are seen on ancient Etruscan vases. No bull-fighters ever arrive at the -top of their profession without first excelling in this apprenticeship; -then, they are taught how to entice the bull to them, and learn his mode -of attack, and how to parry it. The most dangerous moment is when these -_chulos_ venture out into the middle of the _plaza_, and are followed by -the bull to the barrier. There is a small ledge, on which they place -their foot, and vault over, and a narrow slit in the boarding, through -which they slip. Their escapes are marvellous, and they win by a neck; -they seem really sometimes, so close is the run, to be helped over the -fence by the bull's horns. The _chulos_, in the second act, are the -sole performers; their part is to place small barbed darts, on each side -of the neck of the bull, which are called _banderillas_, and are -ornamented with cut paper of different colours--gay decorations under -which cruelty is concealed. The _banderilleros_ go right up to him, -holding the arrows at the shaft, and pointing the barbs at the bull; -just when the animal stoops to toss his foes, they jerk them into his -neck and slip aside. The service appears to be more dangerous than it -is, but it requires a quick eye, a light hand and foot. The barbs should -be placed to correspond with each other exactly on both sides. Such -pretty pairs are termed _buenos pares_ by the Spaniards, and the feat is -called _coiffer_ le taureau by the French, who undoubtedly are -first-rate perruquiers. Very often these arrows are provided with -crackers, which, by means of a detonating powder, explode the moment -they are affixed in the neck; thence they are called _banderillas de -fuego_. The agony of the scorched and tortured animal makes him plunge -and bound like a sportive lamb, to the intense joy of the populace, -while the fire, the smell of singed hair and roasted flesh, which our -gastronome neighbours would call a _bifstec l'Espagnole_, faintly -recall to many a dark scowling priest the superior attractions of his -former amphitheatre, the _auto de fe_. - -The last trumpet now sounds, the arena is cleared, and the _matador_, -the executioner, the man of death, stands before his victim alone; on -entering, he addresses the president, and throws his cap to the ground. -In his right hand he holds a long straight Toledan blade; in his left he -waves the _muleta_, the red flag, or the _engao_, the lure, which ought -not (so Romero laid down in our hearing) to be so large as the standard -of a religious brotherhood, nor so small as a lady's pocket-handkerchief, -but about a yard square. The colour is always red, because that best -irritates the bull and conceals blood. There is always a spare slayer at -hand in case of accidents, which may happen in the best regulated -bull-fights. - -[Sidenote: PREPARATION FOR EXECUTION.] - -The _matador_, from being alone, concentrates in himself all the -interest as regards the human species, which was before frittered away -among the many other combatants, as was the case in the ancient -gladiatorial shows of Rome. He advances to the bull, in order to entice -him towards him, or, in nice technical idiom, _citarlo la jurisdiccion -del engao_, to cite him into the jurisdiction of the trick; in plain -English, to subpoena him, or, as our ring would say, get his head into -chancery. And this trial is nearly as awful, as the matador stands -confronted with his foe, in the presence of inexorable witnesses, the -bar and judges, who would rather see the bull kill _him_ twice over, -than that he should kill the bull contrary to the rules and practice of -the court and tauromachian precedent. In these brief but trying moments -the matador generally looks pale and anxious, as well he may, for life -hangs on the edge of a razor, but he presents a fine picture of fixed -purpose and concentration of moral energy. And Seneca said truly that -the world had seen as many examples of courage in gladiators, as in the -Catos and Scipios. - -The matador endeavours rapidly to discover the character of the animal, -and examines with eye keener than Spurzheim, his bumps of combativeness, -destructiveness, and other amiable organs; nor has he many moments to -lose, where mistake is fatal, as one must die, and both may. Here, as -Falstaff says, there is no scoring, except on the pate. Often even the -brute bull seems to feel that the last moment is come, and pauses, when -face to face in the deadly duel with his single opponent. Be that as it -may, the contrast is very striking. The slayer is arrayed in a ball -costume, with no buckler but skill, and as if it were a pastime: he is -all coolness, the beast all rage; and time it is to be collected, for -now indeed knowledge is power, and could the beast reason, the man would -have small chance. Meanwhile the spectators are wound up to a greater -pitch of madness than the poor bull, who has undergone a long torture, -besides continued excitement: he at this instant becomes a study for a -Paul Potter; his eyes flash fire--his inflated nostrils snort fury; his -body is covered with sweat and foam, or crimsoned with a glaze of gore -streaming from gaping wounds. "_Mira! que bel cuerpo de sangre!_--look! -what a beauteous body of blood!" exclaimed the worthy old lady, who, as -we before mentioned, was kind enough to point out to our inexperience -the tit bits of the treat, the pearls of greatest price. - -[Sidenote: CHARACTERS OF BULLS.] - -There are several sorts of _toros_, whose characters vary no less than -those of men: some are brave and dashing, others are slow and heavy, -others sly and cowardly. The _matador_ foils and plays with the bull -until he has discovered his disposition. The fundamental principle -consists in the animal's mode of attack, the stooping his head and -shutting his eyes, before he butts; the secret of mastering him lies in -distinguishing whether he acts on the offensive or defensive. Those -which are fearless, and rush boldly on at once, closing their eyes, are -the most easy to kill; those which are cunning--which seldom go straight -when they charge, but stop, dodge, and run at the man, not the flag, are -the most dangerous. The interest of the spectators increases in -proportion as the peril is great. - -Although fatal accidents do not often occur (and we ourselves have never -seen a man killed, yet we have beheld some hundred bulls despatched), -such events are always possible. At Tudela, a bull having killed -seventeen horses, a picador named Blanco, and a banderillero, then leapt -over the barriers, where he gored to death a peasant, and wounded many -others. The newspapers simply headed the statement, "_Accidents_ have -happened." Pepe Illo, who had received thirty-eight wounds in the wars, -died, like Nelson, the hero's death. He was killed on the 11th of May, -1801. He had a presentiment of his death, but said that he must do his -duty. - -Every _matador_ must be quick and decided. He must not let the bull run -at the flag above two or three times; the moral tension of the -multitudes is too strained to endure a longer suspense; they vent their -impatience in jeers, noises, and endeavour by every possible manner to -irritate him, and make him lose his temper, and perhaps life. Under such -circumstances, Manuel Romero, who had murdered a man, was always saluted -with cries of "_A la Plaza de Cebada_--to Tyburn." The populace -absolutely loathe those who show the smallest white feather, or do not -brave death cheerfully. - -[Sidenote: THE MEDIA LUNA.] - -There are many ways of killing the bull: the principal is when the -matador receives him on his sword when charging; then the weapon, which -is held still and never thrust forward, enters just between the left -shoulder and the blade-bone; a firm hand, eye, and nerve, are essential, -since in nothing is the real fancy so fastidious as in the exact nicety -of the placing this death-wound. The bull very often is not killed at -the first effort; if not true, the sword strikes a bone, and then it is -ejected high in air by the rising neck. When the blow is true, death is -instantaneous, and the bull, vomiting forth blood, drops at the feet of -his conqueror. It is indeed the triumph of knowledge over brute force; -all that was fire, fury, passion, and life, falls in an instant, still -for ever. The gay team of mules now enter, glittering with flags, and -tinkling with bells; the dead bull is carried off at a rapid gallop, -which always delights the populace. The _matador_ then wipes the hot -blood from his sword, and bows to the spectators with admirable sang -froid, who fling their hats into the arena, a compliment which he -returns by throwing them back again (they are generally "shocking bad" -ones); when Spain was rich, a golden, or at least a silver shower was -rained down--_ces beaux jours l sont passs_; thanks to her kind -neighbour. The poverty-stricken Spaniard, however, gives all he can, and -lets the bullfighter dream the rest. As hats in Spain represent -grandeeship, so these beavers, part and parcel of themselves, are given -as symbols of their generous hearts and souls; and none but a huckster -would go into minute details of value or condition. - -When a bull will not run at the fatal flag, or prays for pardon, he is -doomed to a dishonourable death, as no true Spaniard begs for his own -life, or spares that of his foe, when in his power; now the _media Luna_ -is yelled for, and the call implies insult; the use is equivalent to -shooting traitors in the back: this _half moon_ is the precise Oriental -ancient and cruel instrument of houghing cattle; moreover it is the -exact old Iberian bident, or a sharp steel crescent placed on a long -pole. The cowardly blow is given from behind; and when the poor beast is -crippled by dividing the sinew of his leg, and crawls along in agony, an -assistant pierces with a pointed dagger the spinal marrow, which is the -usual method of slaughtering cattle in Spain by the butcher. To perform -all these vile operations is considered beneath the dignity of the -_matador_; some, however, will kill the bull by plunging the point of -their sword in the vertebr, as the danger gives dignity to the -difficult feat. - -[Sidenote: CONCLUSION OF BULL-FIGHT.] - -Such is a single bull-fight; each of which is repeated eight times with -succeeding bulls, the excitement of the multitude rising with each -indulgence; after a short collapse new desires are roused by fresh -objects, the fierce sport is renewed, which night alone can extinguish; -nay, often when royalty is present, a ninth bull is clamoured for, which -is always graciously granted by the nominal monarch's welcome sign, the -pulling his royal ear; in truth here the mob is autocrat, and his -majesty the many will take no denial; the bull-fight terminates when the -day dies like a dolphin, and the curtain of heaven hung over the bloody -show, is incarnadined and crimsoned; this glorious finish is seen in -full perfection at Seville, where the _plaza_ from being unfinished is -open toward the cathedral, which furnishes a Moorish distance to the -picturesque foreground. On particular occasions this side is decorated -with flags. When the blazing sun setting on the red Giralda tower, -lights up its fair proportions like a pillar of fire, the refreshing -evening breeze springs up, and the flagging banners wave in triumph over -the concluding spectacle; then when all is come to an end, as all things -human must, the congregation depart, with rather less decorum than if -quitting a church; all hasten to sacrifice the rest of the night to -Bacchus and Venus, with a passing homage to the knife, should critics -differ too hotly on the merits of some particular thrust of the -bull-fight. - -To conclude; the minds of men, like the House of Commons in 1802, are -divided on the merits of the bull-fight; the Wilberforces assert -(especially foreigners, who, notwithstanding, seldom fail to sanction -the arena by their presence) that all the best feelings are -blunted--that idleness, extravagance, cruelty, and ferocity are promoted -at a vast expense of human and animal life by these pastimes; the -Windhams contend that loyalty, courage, presence of mind, endurance of -pain, and contempt of death, are inculcated--that, while the theatre is -all illusion, the opera all effeminacy, these manly, national games are -all truth, and in the words of a native eulogist "elevate the soul to -those grandiose actions of valour and heroism which have long proved the -Spaniards to be the best and bravest of all nations." - -[Sidenote: PHILOSOPHY OF THE BULL-FIGHT.] - -The efficacy of such sports for sustaining a martial spirit was -disproved by the degeneracy of the Romans at the time when bloody -spectacles were most in vogue; nor are bravery and humanity the -characteristics of the bull-fighting Spaniards in the collective. We -ourselves do not attribute their "merciless skivering and skewering," -their flogging and murdering women, to the bull-fight, the practical -result of which has been overrated and misunderstood. Cruel it -undoubtedly is, and perfectly congenial to the inherent, inveterate -ferocity of Iberian character, but it is an effect rather than a -cause--with doubtless some reciprocating action; and it may be -questioned, whether the _original_ bull-fight had not a greater tendency -to humanise, than the Olympic games; certainly the _Fiesta real_ of the -feudal ages combined the associated ideas of religion and loyalty, while -the chivalrous combat nurtured a nice sense of personal honour and a -respectful gallantry to women, which were unknown to the polished Greeks -or warlike Romans; and many of the finest features of Spanish character -have degenerated since the discontinuance of the original fight, which -was more bloody and fatal than the present one. - -The Spaniards invariably bring forward our boxing-matches in -self-justification, as if a _tu quoque_ could be so; but it must always -be remembered in our excuse that these are discountenanced by the good -and respectable, and legally stigmatised as breaches of the peace; -although disgraced by beastly drunkenness, brutal vulgarity, ruinous -gambling and betting, from which the Spanish arena is exempt, as no bull -yet has been backed to kill so many horses or not; our matches, however, -are based on a spirit of _fair play_ which forms no principle of the -Punic politics, warfare, or bull-fighting of Spain. The Plaza there is -patronised by church and state, to whom, in justice, the responsibility -of evil consequences must be referred. The show is conducted with great -ceremonial, combining many elements of poetry, the beautiful and -sublime; insomuch that a Spanish author proudly says: "When the -countless assembly is honoured by the presence of our august monarchs, -the world is _lost in admiration_ at the majestic spectacle afforded by -the happiest people in the world, enjoying with rapture an exhibition -peculiarly their own, and offering to their idolised sovereigns the due -homage of the truest and most refined loyalty;" and it is impossible to -deny the magnificent _coup d'oeil_ of the assembled thousands. Under -such conflicting circumstances, we turn away our eyes during moments of -painful detail which are lost in the poetical ferocity of the whole, for -the interest of the tragedy of real death is undeniable, irresistible, -and all absorbing. - -[Sidenote: PHILOSOPHY OF THE BULL-FIGHT.] - -The Spaniards seem almost unconscious of the cruelty of those details -which are most offensive to a stranger. They are reconciled by habit, as -we are to the bleeding butchers' shops which disfigure our gay streets, -and which if seen for the first time would be inexpressibly disgusting. -The feeling of the chase, that remnant of the savage, rules in the -arena, and mankind has never been nice or tender-hearted in regard to -the sufferings of animals, when influenced by the destructive -propensities. In England no sympathy is shown for game,--fish, flesh, or -fowl; nor for vermin--stoats, kites, or poachers. The end of the sport -is--death; the amusement is the _playing_, the _fine_ run, as the -prolongation of animal suffering is termed in the tender vocabulary of -the Nimrods; the pang of mortal sufferance is not regulated by the size -of the victim; the bull moreover is always put at once out of his -misery, and never exposed to the thousand lingering deaths of the poor -wounded hare; therefore we must not see a toro in Spanish eyes and wink -at the fox in our own, nor - - "Compound for vices we're inclined to - By damning those we have no mind to." - -It is not clear that animal suffering on the whole predominates over -animal happiness. The bull roams in ample pastures, through a youth and -manhood free from toil, and when killed in the plaza only anticipates by -a few months the certain fate of the imprisoned, over-laboured, -mutilated ox. - -In Spain, where capital is scanty, person and property insecure (evils -not quite corrected since the late democratic reforms), no one would -adventure on the speculation of breeding cattle on a large scale, where -the return is so distant, without the certain demand and sale created by -the amphitheatre; and as a small proportion only of the produce possess -the requisite qualifications, the surplus and females go to the plough -and market, and can be sold cheaper from the profit made on the bulls. -Spanish political economists _proved_ that many valuable animals were -wasted in the arena--but their theories vanished before the fact, that -the supply of cattle was rapidly diminished when bull-fights were -suppressed. Similar results take place as regards the breed of horses, -though in a minor degree; those, moreover, which are sold to the Plaza -would never be bought by any one else. With respect to the loss of human -life, in no land is a man worth so little as in Spain; and more English -aldermen are killed indirectly by turtles, than Andalucian picadors -directly by bulls; while, as to _time_, these exhibitions always take -place on holidays, which even industrious Britons bouse away -occasionally in pothouses, and idle Spaniards invariably smoke out in -sunshiny _dolce far niente_. The attendance, again, of idle spectators -prevents idleness in the numerous classes employed directly and -indirectly in getting up and carrying out this expensive spectacle. - -[Sidenote: PHILOSOPHY OF THE BULL-FIGHT.] - -It is poor and illogical philosophy to judge of foreign customs by our -own habits, prejudices, and conventional opinions; a cold, unprepared, -calculating stranger comes without the freemasonry of early -associations, and criticises minutiae which are lost on the natives in -their enthusiasm and feeling for the whole. He is horrified by details -to which the Spaniards have become as accustomed as hospital nurses, -whose finer sympathetic emotions of pity are deadened by repetition. - -A most difficult thing it is to change long-established usages and -customs with which we are familiar from our early days, and which have -come down to us connected with many fond remembrances. We are slow to -suspect any evil or harm in such practices; we dislike to look the -evidence of facts in the face, and shrink from a conclusion which would -require the abandonment of a recreation, which we have long regarded as -innocent, and in which we, as well as our parents before us, have not -scrupled to indulge. Children, _l'age sans piti_, do not speculate on -cruelty, whether in bull-baiting or bird's-nesting, and Spaniards are -brought up to the bull-fight from their infancy, when they are too -simple to speculate on abstract questions, but associate with the Plaza -all their ideas of reward for good conduct, of finery and holiday; in a -land where amusements are few--they catch the contagion of pleasure, and -in their young bias of imitation approve of what is approved of by their -parents. They return to their homes unchanged--playful, timid, or -serious, as before; their kindly, social feelings are uninjured: and -where is the filial or parental bond more affectionately cherished than -in Spain--where are the noble courtesies of life, the kind, considerate, -self-respecting demeanour so exemplified as in Spanish society? - -[Sidenote: PHILOSOPHY OF THE BULL-FIGHT.] - -The successive feelings experienced by most foreigners are admiration, -compassion, and weariness of the flesh. The first will be readily -understood, as it will that the horses' sufferings cannot be beheld by -novices without compassion: "In troth it was more a pittie than a -delight," wrote the herald of Lord Nottingham. This feeling, however, -regards the animals who are forced into wounds and death; the men -scarcely excite much of it, since they willingly court the danger, and -have therefore no right to complain. These heroes of low life are -applauded, well paid, and their risk is more apparent than real; our -British feelings of fair play make us side rather with the poor bull who -is overmatched; we respect the gallantry of his unequal defence. Such -must always be the effect produced on those not bred and brought up to -such scenes. So Livy relates that, when the gladiatorial shows were -first introduced by the Romans into Asia, the natives were more -frightened than pleased, but by leading them on from sham-fights to -real, they became as fond of them as the Romans. The predominant -sensation experienced by ourselves was _bore_, the same thing over and -over again, and too much of it. But that is the case with everything in -Spain, where processions and professions are interminable. The younger -Pliny, who was no amateur, complained of the eternal sameness of seeing -what to have seen once, was enough; just as Dr. Johnson, when he -witnessed a horse-race, observed that he had not met with such a proof -of the paucity of human pleasures as in the popularity of such a -spectacle. But the life of Spaniards is uniform, and their sensations, -not being blunted by satiety, are intense. Their bull-fight to them is -always new and exciting, since the more the toresque intellect is -cultivated the greater the capacity for enjoyment; they see a thousand -minute beauties in the character and conduct of the combatants, which -escape the superficial unlearned glance of the uninitiated. - -[Sidenote: PHILOSOPHY OF THE BULL-FIGHT.] - -Spanish ladies, against whom every puny scribbler shoots his petty -barbed arrow, are relieved from the infliction of ennui, by the -never-flagging, ever-sustained interest, in being admired. They have no -abstract nor Pasiphaic predilections; they were taken to the bull-fight -before they knew their alphabet, or what love was. Nor have we heard -that it has ever rendered them particularly cruel, save and except some -of the elderly and tougher lower-classed females. The younger and more -tender scream and are dreadfully affected in all real moments of danger, -in spite of their long familiarity. Their grand object, after all, is -not to see the bull, but to let themselves and their dresses be seen. -The better classes generally interpose their fans at the most painful -incidents, and certainly show no want of sensibility. The lower orders -of females, as a body, behave quite as respectably as those of other -countries do at executions, or other dreadful scenes, where they crowd -with their babies. The case with English ladies is far different. They -have heard the bull-fight not praised from _their_ childhood, but -condemned; they see it for the first time when grown up; curiosity is -perhaps their leading feature in sharing an amusement, of which they -have an indistinct idea that pleasure will be mixed with pain. The first -sight delights them; a flushed, excited cheek, betrays a feeling that -they are almost ashamed to avow; but as the bloody tragedy proceeds, -they get frightened, disgusted, and disappointed. Few are able to sit -out more than one course, and fewer ever re-enter the amphitheatre-- - - "The heart that is soonest awake to the flower - Is always the first to be touched by the thorn." - -Probably a Spanish woman, if she could be placed in precisely the same -condition, would not act very differently, and something of a similar -test would be to bring her, for the first time, to an English -boxing-match. Be this as it may, far from us and from our friends be -that frigid philosophy, which would infer that their bright eyes, -darting the shafts of Cupid, will glance one smile the less from -witnessing these more merciful _banderillas_. - -[Sidenote: SPANISH AMUSEMENTS.] - - - - -CHAPTER XXIII. - - Spanish Theatre; Old and Modern Drama; Arrangement of - Playhouses--The Henroost--The Fandango; National Dances--A Gipsy - Ball--Italian Opera--National Songs and Guitars. - - -[Sidenote: THE THEATRE.] - -Having seen a bull-fight, _the sight_ of Spain, those who only wish to -pass time agreeably cannot be too quick in getting their passports visd -for Naples. A pleasant _country_ life, according to our notions, in -Spain, is a thing that is not; and the substitute is but a Bedouin -Oriental makeshift existence, which, amusing enough for a spurt, will -not do in the long run. Nor is life much better in the _towns_; those in -the inland provinces have a convent-like, dead, old-fashioned look about -them, which petrifies a lively person; nay even an artist when he has -finished his sketches, is ready to commit suicide from sheer Bore, the -genius of the locality. Madrid itself is but an unsocial, second-rate, -inhospitable city; and when the traveller has seen the Museum, been to -the play, and walked on the eternal roundabout Prado, the sooner he -shakes the dust off his feet the better. The maritime seaports, as in -the East, from being frequented by the foreigner, are a trifle more -cosmopolitan, cheerful, and amusing; but generally speaking, public -amusements are rare throughout this semi-Moro land. The calm -contemplation of a cigar, and the _dolce far niente_ of _siestose_ quiet -indolence with unexciting twaddle, suffice; while to some nations it is -a pain to be out of pleasure, to the Spaniard it is a pleasure to be out -of painful exertion: existence is happiness enough of itself; and as for -occupation, all desire only to do to-day what they did yesterday and -will do to-morrow, that is nothing. Thus life slips away in a dreamy, -listless routine, the serious business of love-making excepted; leave -me, leave me, to repose and tobacco. When however awake, the _Alameda_, -or church-show, the bull-fight, and the rendezvous, are the chief -relaxations. These will be best enjoyed in the Southern provinces, the -land also of the song and dance, of bright suns and eyes, and not the -largest female feet in the world. - -The theatre, which forms elsewhere such an important item in passing the -stranger's evening, is at a low ebb in Spain, although, as everybody is -idle, and man is not worn out by business and money-making all day, it -might be supposed to be just the thing; but it is somewhat too expensive -for the general poverty. Those again who for forty years have had real -tragedies at home, lack that superabundance of felicity, which will pay -for the luxury of fictitious grief abroad. In truth the drama in Spain -was, like most other matters, the creature of an accident and of a -period; patronised by the pleasure-loving Philip IV., it blossomed in -the sunshine of his smile, languished when that was withdrawn, and was -unable to resist the steady hostility of the clergy, who opposed this -rival to their own religious spectacles and church melodramas, from -which the opposition stage sprung. Nor are their primitive medival -Mysteries yet obsolete, since we have beheld them acted in Spain at -Easter time; then and there sacred subjects, grievously profaned to -Protestant eyes, were gazed on by the pleased natives with too sincere -and simple faith even to allow a suspicion of the gross absurdity; but -everywhere in Spain, the spiritual has been materialised, and the divine -degraded to the human in churches and out; the clergy attacked the -stage, by denying burial to the actors when dead, who, when alive, were -not allowed to call themselves "_Don_," the cherished title of every -Spaniard. Naturally, as no one of this self-respecting nation ever will -pursue a despised profession if he can help it, few have chosen to make -themselves vagabonds by Act of Parliament, nor has any Garrick or -Siddons ever arisen among them to beat down prejudices by public and -private virtues. - -[Sidenote: ANCIENT DRAMA.] - -Even in this 19th century, confessors of families forbade the women and -children's even passing through the street where "a temple of Satan" was -reared; mendicant monks placed themselves near the playhouse doors at -night, to warn the headlong against the bottomless pit, just as our -methodists on the day of the Derby distribute tracts at turnpikes -against "sweeps" and racing. The monks at Cordova succeeded in 1823 in -shutting up the theatre, because the nuns of an opposite convent -observed the devil and his partners dancing fandangos on the roof. -Although monks have in their turn been driven off the Spanish boards, -the national drama has almost made its exit with them. The genuine old -stage held up the mirror to Spanish nature, and exhibited real life and -manners. Its object was rather to amuse than to instruct, and like -literature, its sister exponent of existing nationality, it showed in -action what the picaresque novels detailed in description. In both the -haughty Hidalgo was the hero; cloaked and armed with long rapier and -mustachios, he stalked on the scene, made love and fought as became an -old Castilian whom Charles V. had rendered the terror and the model of -Europe. Spain then, like a successful beauty, took a proud pleasure in -looking at herself in the glass, but now that things are altered, she -blushes at beholding a portrait of her grey hairs and wrinkles; her flag -is tattered, her robes are torn, and she shrinks from the humiliation of -truth. If she appears on the theatre at all, it is to revive long -by-gone days--to raise the Cid, the great Captain, or Pizarro, from -their graves; thus blinking the present, she forms hopes for a bright -future by the revival and recollections of a glorious past. Accordingly -plays representing modern Spanish life and things, are scouted by pit -and boxes as vulgar and misplaced; nay, even Lope de Vega is now known -merely by name; his comedies are banished from the boards to the shelves -of book-cases, and those for the most part out of Spain. He has paid the -certain penalty of his national localism, of his portraying men, as a -Spanish variety, rather than a universal species. He has strutted his -hour on the stage, is heard no more; while his contemporary, the bard of -Avon, who drew mankind and human nature, the same in all times and -places, lives in the human heart as immortal as the principle on which -his influence is founded. - -[Sidenote: MODERN STAGE.] - -In the old Spanish plays, the imaginary scenes were no less full of -intrigue than were the real streets; then the point of honour was nice, -women were immured in jealous hareems, and access to them, which is -easier now, formed _the_ difficulty of lovers. The curiosity of the -spectators was kept on tenter-hooks, to see how the parties could get at -each other, and out of the consequent scrapes. These imbroglios and -labyrinths exactly suited a _pays de l'imprvu_, where things turn out, -just as is the least likely to be calculated on. The progress of the -drama of Spain was as full of action and energy, as that of France was -of dull description and declamation. The Bourbon succession, which -ruined the genuine bull-fight, destroyed the national drama also; a -flood of unities, rules, stilted nonsense, and conventionalities poured -over the astonished and affrighted Pyrenees: now the stage, like the -arena, was condemned by critics, whose one-idead civilization could see -but one class of excellence, and that only through a lorgnette ground in -the Palais Royal. Calderon was pronounced to be as great a barbarian as -Shakspere, and this by empty pretenders who did not understand one word -of either;--and now again, at this second Bourbon irruption, France has -become the model to that very nation from whom her Corneilles and -Molires pilfered many a plume, which aided them to soar to dramatic -fame. Spain is now reduced to the sad shift of borrowing from her pupil, -those very arts which she herself once taught, and her best comedies and -farces are but poor translations from Mons. Scribe and other scribes of -the vaudeville. Her theatre, like everything else, has sunk into a pale -copy of her dominant neighbour, and is devoid alike of originality, -interest, and nationality. - -[Sidenote: SPANISH TRAGEDY.] - -It was from Spain also that Europe copied the arrangement of the modern -theatre; the first playhouses there were merely open covered -court-yards, after the classical fashion of Thespis. The _patio_ became -the _pit_, into which women were never admitted. The rich sat at the -windows of the houses round the court; and as almost all these in Spain -are defended by iron gratings, the French took their term, _loge -grille_, for a private box. In the centre of the house, above the pit, -was a sort of large lower gallery, which was called _la tertulia_, a -name given in those times to the quarter chosen by the erudite, among -whom at that period it was the fashion to quote _Tertulian_. The women, -excluded from the pit, had a place reserved for themselves, into which -no males were allowed to enter--a peculiarity based in the Gotho-Moro -separation of the sexes. This feminine preserve was termed _la cazuela_, -the stewing pan, or _la olla_, the pipkin, from the hodgepotch -admixture, as it was open to all ranks; it was also called "_la jaula de -las mugeres_," the women's cage--"_el gallinero_," the henroost. All -went there, as to church, dressed in black, and with mantillas. This -dark assemblage of sable tresses, raven hair, and blacker eyes, looked -at the first glance like the gallery of a nunnery; that was, however, a -simile of dissimilitude, for, let there be but a moment's pause in the -business of the play, then arose such a cooing and cawing in this -rookery of turtle-doves,--such an ogling, such a flutter of mantillas, -such a rustling of silks, such telegraphic workings of fans, such an -electrical communication with the Seores below, who looked up with -wistful glances on the dark clustering vineyard so tantalizingly placed -above their reach, as effectually dispelled all ideas of seclusion, -sorrow, or mortification. This unique and charming pipkin has been just -now done away with at Madrid, because, as there is no such thing at -Covent Garden, or Le Franais, it might look antiquated and un-European. - -The theatres of Spain are small, although called Coliseums, and -ill-contrived; the wardrobe and properties are as scanty as those of the -spectators, Madrid itself not excepted; when filled, the smells are -ultra-continental, and resemble those which prevail at Paris, when the -great people is indulged with a gratis representation; in the Spanish -theatres no neutralizing incense is used, as is done by the wise clergy -in their churches. If the atmosphere were analysed by Faraday, it would -be found to contain equal portions of stale cigar smoke and fresh garlic -fume. The lighting, except on those rare occasions when the theatre is -illuminated, as it is called, is just intended to make darkness visible, -and there was no seeing into the henroosts towards which the eyes and -glasses of the foxite pittites were vainly elevated. - -[Sidenote: THE BOLERO.] - -Spanish tragedy, even when the Cid spouts, is wearisome; the language is -stilty, the declamation ranting, French, and unnatural; passion is torn -to rags. The _sainetes_, or farces, are broad, but amusing, and are -perfectly well acted; the national ones are disappearing, but when -brought out are the true vehicles of the love for sarcasm, satire, and -intrigue, the mirth and mother-wit, for which Spaniards are so -remarkable; and no people are more essentially serio-comic and dramatic -than they are, whether in _Venta_, _Plaza_, or church; the actors in -their amusing farces cease to be actors, and the whole appears to be a -scene of real life; there generally is a _gracioso_ or favourite wag of -the Liston and Keeley species, who is on the best terms with the pit, -who says and does what he likes, interlards the dialogue with his own -witticisms, and creates a laugh before he even comes on. - -[Sidenote: NATIONAL DANCES.] - -The orchestra is very indifferent; the Spaniards are fond enough of what -they call music, whether vocal or instrumental; but it is Oriental, and -most unlike the exquisite melody and performances of Italy or Germany. -In the same manner, although they have footed it to their rude songs -from time immemorial, they have no idea of the grace and elegance of the -French ballet; the moment they attempt it they become ridiculous, for -they are bad imitators of their neighbours, whether in cuisine, -language, or costume; indeed a Spaniard ceases to be a Spaniard in -proportion as he becomes an _Afrancesado_; they take, in their jumpings -and chirpings, after the grasshopper, having a natural genius for the -_bota_ and _bolero_. The great charm of the Spanish theatres is their -own national dance--matchless, unequalled, and inimitable, and only to -be performed by Andalucians. This is _la salsa de la comedia_, the -essence, the cream, the _sauce piquante_ of the night's entertainments; -it is _attempted_ to be described in every book of travels--for who can -describe sound or motion?--it must be seen. However languid the house, -laughable the tragedy, or serious the comedy, the sound of the castanet -awakens the most listless; the sharp, spirit-stirring click is heard -behind the scenes--the effect is instantaneous--it creates life under -the ribs of death--it silences the tongues of countless women--on -n'coute que le ballet. The curtain draws up; the bounding pair dart -forward from the opposite sides, like two separated lovers, who, after -long search, have found each other again, nor do they seem to think of -the public, but only of each other; the glitter of the gossamer costume -of the _Majo_ and _Maja_ seems invented for this dance--the sparkle of -the gold lace and silver filigree adds to the lightness of their -motions; the transparent, form designing _saya_ of the lady, heightens -the charms of a faultless symmetry which it fain would conceal; no cruel -stays fetter her serpentine flexibility. They pause--bend forward an -instant--prove their supple limbs and arms; the band strikes up, they -turn fondly towards each other, and start into life. What exercise -displays the ever-varying charms of female grace, and the contours of -manly form, like this fascinating dance? The accompaniment of the -castanet gives employment to their upraised arms. _C'est_, say the -French, _le pantomime d'amour_. The enamoured youth persecutes the coy, -coquettish maiden; who shall describe the advance--her timid retreat, -his eager pursuit, like Apollo chasing Daphne? Now they gaze on each -other, now on the ground; now all is life, love, and action; now there -is a pause--they stop motionless at a moment, and grow into the earth. -It carries all before it. There is a truth which overpowers the -fastidious judgment. Away, then, with the studied grace of the French -danseuse, beautiful but artificial, cold and selfish as is the flicker -of her love, compared to the real impassioned _abandon_ of the daughters -of the South! There is nothing indecent in this dance; no one is tired -or the worse for it; indeed its only fault is its being too short, for -as Molire says, "Un ballet ne saurait tre trop long, pourvu que la -morale soit bonne, et la mtaphysique bien entendue." Notwithstanding -this most profound remark, the Toledan clergy out of mere jealousy -wished to put the bolero down, on the pretence of immorality. The -dancers were allowed in evidence to "give a view" to the court: when -they began, the bench and bar showed symptoms of restlessness, and at -last, casting aside gowns and briefs, both joined, as if -tarantula-bitten, in the irresistible capering--Verdict, for the -defendants with costs. - -This _Baile nacional_, however adored by foreigners, is, alas! beginning -to be looked down upon by those ill-advised seoras who wear French -bonnets in the boxes, instead of Spanish mantillas. The dance is -suspected of not being European or civilized; its best chance of -surviving is, the fact that it is positively fashionable on the boards -of London and Paris. These national exercises are however firmly rooted -among the peasants and lower classes. The different provinces, as they -have a different language, costume, &c., have also their own peculiar -local dances, which, like their wines, fine arts, relics, saints and -sausages, can only be really relished on the spots themselves. - -[Sidenote: PRIVATE DANCES.] - -The dances of the better classes of Spaniards in private life are much -the same as in other parts of Europe, nor is either sex particularly -distinguished by grace in this amusement, to which, however, both are -much addicted. It is not, however, yet thought to be a proof of _bon -ton_ to dance as badly as possible, and with the greatest appearance of -_bore_, that appanage of the so-called _gay_ world. These dances, as -everything national is excluded, are without a particle of interest to -any one except the performers. An extempore ball, which might be called -a _carpet_-dance, if there were any, forms the common conclusion of a -winter's _tertulia_, or social meetings, at which no great attention is -paid either to music, costume, or Mr. Gunter. Here English country -dances, French quadrilles, and German waltzes are the order of the -night; everything Spanish being excluded, except the _plentiful want_ of -good fiddling, lighting, dressing, and eating, which never distresses -the company, for the frugal, temperate, and easily-pleased Spaniard -enters with schoolboy heart and soul into the reality of any holiday, -which being joy sufficient of itself lacks no artificial enhancement. - -Dancing at all is a novelty among Spanish ladies, which was introduced -with the Bourbons. As among the Romans and Moors, it was before thought -undignified. Performers were hired to amuse the inmates of the Christian -hareem; to mix and change hands with men was not to be thought of for an -instant; and to this day few Spanish women shake hands with men--the -shock is too electrical; they only give them with their hearts, and for -good. - -[Sidenote: MORRIS DANCES.] - -The lower classes, who are a trifle less particular, and among whom, by -the blessing of Santiago, the foreign dancing-master is not abroad, -adhere to the primitive steps and tunes of their Oriental forefathers. -Their accompaniments are the "tabret and the harp;" the guitar, the -tambourine, and the castanet. The essence of these instruments is to -give a noise on being beaten. Simple as it may seem to play on the -latter, it is only attained by a quick ear and finger, and great -practice; accordingly these delights of the people are always in their -hands; practice makes perfect, and many a performer, dusky as a Moor, -rivals Ethiopian "Bones" himself; they take to it before their alphabet, -since the very urchins in the street begin to learn by snapping their -fingers, or clicking together two shells or bits of slate, to which they -dance; in truth, next to noise, some capering seems essential, as the -safety-valve exponents of what Cervantes describes, the "bounding of the -soul, the bursting of laughter, the restlessness of the body, and the -quicksilver of the five senses." It is the rude sport of people who -dance from the necessity of motion, the relief of the young, the -healthy, and the joyous, to whom life is of itself a blessing, and who, -like skipping kids, thus give vent to their superabundant lightness of -heart and limb. Sancho, a true Manchegan, after beholding the strange -saltatory exhibitions of his master, in somewhat an incorrect ball -costume, professes his ignorance of such elaborate dancing, but -maintained that for a _zapateo_, a knocking of shoes, none could beat -him. Unchanged as are the instruments, so are the dancing propensities -of Spaniards. All night long, three thousand years ago, say the -historians, did they dance and sing, or rather jump and _yell_, to these -"_howl_ings of Tarshish;" and so far from its being a fatigue, they kept -up the ball all night, by way of _resting_. - -The Gallicians and Asturians retain among many of their aboriginal -dances and tunes, a wild Pyrrhic jumping, which, with their shillelah in -hand, is like the Gaelic Ghillee Callum, and is the precise Iberian -armed dance which Hannibal had performed at the impressive funeral of -Gracchus. These quadrille figures are intricate and warlike, requiring, -as was said of the Iberian performances, much leg-activity, for which -the wiry sinewy active Spaniards are still remarkable. These are the -_Morris_ dances imported from Gallicia by our John of Gaunt, who -supposed they were _Moorish_. The peasants still dance them in their -best costumes, to the antique castanet, pipe, and tambourine. They are -usually directed by a master of the ceremonies, or what is equivalent, a -parti-coloured fool, [Greek: Mros]; which may be the etymology of -_Morris_. - -[Sidenote: GADITANIAN GIRLS.] - -These _comparsas_, or national quadrilles, were the hearty welcome which -the peasants were paid to give to the sons of Louis Philippe at Vitoria; -such, too, we have often beheld gratis, and performed by eight men, with -castanets in their hands, and to the tune of a fife and drum, while a -_Bastonero_, or leader of the band, clad in gaudy raiment like a -pantaloon, directed the rustic ballet; around were grouped _payesas y -aldeanas_, dressed in tight bodices, with _pauelos_ on their heads, -their hair hanging down behind in _trensas_, and their necks covered -with blue and coral beads; the men bound up their long locks with red -handkerchiefs, and danced in their shirts, the sleeves of which were -puckered up with bows of different-coloured ribands, crossed also over -the back and breast, and mixed with scapularies and small prints of -saints; their drawers were white, and full as the _bragas_ of the -Valencians, like whom they wore _alpargatas_, or hemp sandals laced with -blue strings; the figure of the dance was very intricate, consisting of -much circling, turning, and jumping, and accompanied with loud cries of -_viva!_ at each change of evolution. These _comparsas_ are undoubtedly a -remnant of the original Iberian exhibitions, in which, as among the -Spartans and wild Indians, even in relaxations a warlike principle was -maintained. The dancers beat time with their swords on their shields, -and when one of their champions wished to show his contempt for the -Romans, he executed before them a derisive pirouette. Was this -remembered the other day at Vitoria? - -But in Spain at every moment one retraces the steps of antiquity; thus -still on the banks of the Btis may be seen those dancing-girls of -profligate Gades, which were exported to ancient Rome, with pickled -tunnies, to the delight of wicked epicures and the horror of the good -fathers of the early church, who compared them, and perhaps justly, to -the capering performed by the daughter of Herodias. They were prohibited -by Theodosius, because, according to St. Chrysostom, at such balls the -devil never wanted a partner. The well-known statue at Naples called the -Venere Callipige is the representation of Telethusa, or some other Cadiz -dancing-girl. Seville is now in these matters, what Gades was; never -there is wanting some venerable gipsy hag, who will get up a _funcion_ -as these pretty proceedings are called, a word taken from the pontifical -ceremonies; for Italy set the fashion to Spain once, as France does now. -These festivals must be paid for, since the gitanesque race, according -to Cervantes, were only sent into this world as "fishhooks for purses." -The _callees_ when young are very pretty--then they have such wheedling -ways, and traffic on such sure wants and wishes, since to Spanish men -they prophesy gold, to women, husbands. - -[Sidenote: GIPSY DANCE.] - -The scene of the ball is generally placed in the suburb Triana, which is -the Transtevere of the town, and the home of bull-fighters, smugglers, -picturesque rogues, and Egyptians, whose women are the premires -danseuses on these occasions, in which men never take a part. The house -selected is usually one of those semi-Moorish abodes and perfect -pictures, where rags, poverty, and ruin, are mixed up with marble -columns, figs, fountains and grapes; the party assembles in some -stately saloon, whose gilded Arab roof--safe from the spoiler--hangs -over whitewashed walls, and the few wooden benches on which the -chaperons and invited are seated, among whom quantity is rather -preferred to quality; nor would the company or costume perhaps be -admissible at the Mansion-house; but here the past triumphs over the -present; the dance which is closely analogous to the _Ghowasee_ of the -Egyptians, and the _Nautch_ of the Hindoos, is called the _Ole_ by -Spaniards, the _Romalis_ by their gipsies; the soul and essence of it -consists in the expression of certain sentiment, one not indeed of a -very sentimental or correct character. The ladies, who seem to have no -bones, resolve the problem of perpetual motion, their feet having -comparatively a sinecure, as the whole person performs a pantomime, and -trembles like an aspen leaf; the flexible form and Terpsichore figure of -a young Andalucian girl--be she gipsy or not--is said by the learned, to -have been designed by nature as the fit frame for her voluptuous -imagination. - -[Sidenote: OPERA IN SPAIN.] - -Be that as it may, the scholar and classical commentator will every -moment quote Martial, &c., when he beholds the unchanged balancing of -hands, raised as if to catch showers of roses, the tapping of the feet, -and the serpentine, quivering movements. A contagious excitement seizes -the spectators, who, like Orientals, beat time with their hands in -measured cadence, and at every pause applaud with cries and clappings. -The damsels, thus encouraged, continue in violent action until nature is -all but exhausted; then aniseed brandy, wine, and _alpisteras_ are -handed about, and the fte, carried on to early dawn, often concludes in -broken heads, which here are called "gipsy's fare." These dances appear -to a stranger from the chilly north, to be more marked by energy than by -grace, nor have the legs less to do than the body, hips, and arms. The -sight of this unchanged pastime of antiquity, which excites the -Spaniards to frenzy, rather disgusts an English spectator, possibly from -some national malorganization, for, as Molire says, "l'Angleterre a -produit des grands hommes dans les sciences et les beaux arts, mais pas -un grand danseur--allez lire l'histoire." However indecent these dances -may be, yet the performers are inviolably chaste, and as far at least as -ungipsy guests are concerned, may be compared to iced punch at a rout; -young girls go through them before the applauding eyes of their parents -and brothers, who would resent to the death any attempt on their -sisters' virtue. - -During the lucid intervals between the ballet and the brandy, _La caa_, -the true Arabic _gaunia_, song, is administered as a soother by some -hirsute artiste, without frills, studs, diamonds, or kid gloves, whose -staves, sad and melancholy, always begin and end with an _ay!_ a -high-pitched sigh, or cry. These Moorish melodies, relics of auld lang -syne, are best preserved in the hill-built villages near Ronda, where -there are no roads for the members of Queen Christina's _Conservatorio -Napolitano_; wherever l'acadmie tyrannizes, and the Italian opera -prevails, adieu, alas! to the tropes and tunes of the people: and -now-a-days the opera exotic is cultivated in Spain by the higher -classes, because, being fashionable at London and Paris, it is an -exponent of the civilization of 1846. Although the audience in their -honest hearts are as much bored there as elsewhere, yet the affair is -pronounced by them to be charming, because it is so expensive, so -select, and so far above the comprehension of the vulgar. Avoid it, -however, in Spain, ye our fair readers, for the second-rate singers are -not fit to hold the score to those of thy own dear Haymarket. - -[Sidenote: MUSIC IN VENTAS.] - -The real opera of Spain is in the shop of the _Barbero_ or in the -court-yard of the _Venta_; in truth, good music, whether harmonious or -scientific, vocal or instrumental, is seldom heard in this land, -notwithstanding the eternal strumming and singing that is going on -there. The very masses, as performed in the cathedrals, from the -introduction of the pianoforte and the violin, have very little -impressive or devotional character. The fiddle disenchants. Even -Murillo, when he clapped catgut under a cherub chin in the clouds, -thereby damaged the angelic sentiment. Let none despise the genuine -songs and instruments of the Peninsula, as excellence in music is -multiform, and much of it, both in name and substance, is conventional. -Witness a whining ballad sung by a chorus out of work, to encoring -crowds in the streets of merry old England, or a bagpipe-tune played in -Ross-shire, which enchants the Highlanders, who cry that strain again, -but scares away the gleds. Let therefore the Spaniards enjoy also what -they call music, although fastidious foreigners condemn it as Iberian -and Oriental. They love to have it so, and will have their own way, in -their own time and tune, Rossini and Paganini to the contrary -notwithstanding. They--not the Italians--are listened to by a delighted -semi-Moro audience, with a most profound Oriental and melancholy -attention. Like their love, their music, which is its food, is a serious -affair; yet the sad song, the guitar, and dance, at this moment, form -the joy of careless poverty, the repose of sunburnt labour. The poor -forget their toils, _sans six sous et sans souci_; nay, even their -meals, like Pliny's friend Claro, who lost his supper, _Btican olives -and gazpacho_, to run after a Gaditanian dancing-girl. - -[Sidenote: THE GUITAR.] - -In venta and court-yard, in spite of a long day's work and scanty fare, -at the sound of the guitar and click of the castanet, a new life is -breathed into their veins. So far from feeling past fatigue, the very -fatigue of the dance seems refreshing, and many a weary traveller will -rue the midnight frolics of his noisy and saltatory fellow-lodgers. -Supper is no sooner over than "aprs la panse la danse,"--some muscular -masculine performer, the very antithesis of Farinelli, screams forth his -couplets, "screechin' out his prosaic verse," either at the top of his -voice, or drawls out his ballad, melancholy as the drone of a -Lincolnshire bagpipe, and both alike to the imminent danger of his own -trachea, and of all un-Spanish acoustic organs. For verily, to repeat -Gray's unhandsome critique of the grand Opra Franais, it consists of -"des miaulemens et des hurlemens effroyables, mls avec un tintamare du -diable." As, however, in Paris, so in Spain, the audience are in -raptures; all men's ears grow to the tunes as if they had eaten ballads; -all join in chorus at the end of each verse; this "private band," as -among the _sangre su_, supplies the want of conversation, and converts a -stupid silence into scientific attention,--ainsi les extrmes se -touchent. There is always in every company of Spaniards, whether -soldiers, civilians, muleteers, or ministers, some one who can play the -guitar more or less, like Louis XIV., who, according to Voltaire, was -taught nothing but that and dancing. Godoy, the Prince of the Peace, one -of the most worthless of the multitude of worthless ministers by whom -Spain has been misgoverned, first captivated the royal Messalina by his -talent of strumming on the guitar; so Gonzales Bravo, editor of the -Madrid _Satirist_, rose to be premier, and conciliated the virtuous -Christina, who, soothed by the sweet sounds of this pepper-and-salted -Amphion, forgot his libels on herself and Seor Muoz. It may be -predicted of the Spains, that when this strumming is mute, the game will -be up, as the Hebrew expression for the ne plus ultra desolation of an -Oriental city is "the ceasing of the mirth of the guitar and -tambourine." - -In Spain whenever and wherever the siren sounds are heard, a party is -forthwith got up of all ages and sexes, who are attracted by the -tinkling like swarming bees. The guitar is part and parcel of the -Spaniard and his ballads; he slings it across his shoulder with a -ribbon, as was depicted on the tombs of Egypt four thousand years ago. -The performers seldom are very scientific musicians; they content -themselves with striking the chords, sweeping the whole hand over the -strings, or flourishing, and tapping the board with the thumb, at which -they are very expert. Occasionally in the towns there is some one who -has attained more power over this ungrateful instrument; but the attempt -is a failure. The guitar responds coldly to Italian words and elaborate -melody, which never come home to Spanish ears or hearts; for, like the -lyre of Anacreon, however often he might change the strings, love, sweet -love, is its only theme. The multitude suit the tune to the song, both -of which are frequently extemporaneous. They lisp in numbers, not to say -verse; but their splendid idiom lends itself to a prodigality of words, -whether prose or poetry; nor are either very difficult, where common -sense is no necessary ingredient in the composition; accordingly the -language comes in aid to the fertile mother-wit of the natives; rhymes -are dispensed with at pleasure, or mixed according to caprice with -assonants which consist of the mere recurrence of the same vowels, -without reference to that of consonants, and even these, which poorly -fill a foreign ear, are not always observed; a change in intonation, or -a few thumps more or less on the board, do the work, supersede all -difficulties, and constitute a rude prosody, and lead to music just as -gestures do to dancing and to ballads,--"_que se canta ballando_;" and -which, when heard, reciprocally inspire a Saint Vitus's desire to snap -fingers and kick heels, as all will admit in whose ears the _habas -verdes_ of Leon, or the _cachuca_ of Cadiz, yet ring. - -[Sidenote: THE LADIES SINGING.] - -The words destined to set all this capering in motion are not written -for cold British critics. Like sermons, they are delivered orally, and -are never subjected to the disenchanting ordeal of type: and even such -as may be professedly serious and not saltatory are listened to by those -who come attuned to the hearing vein--who anticipate and re-echo the -subject--who are operated on by the contagious bias. Thus a fascinated -audience of otherwise sensible Britons tolerates the positive presence -of nonsense at an opera-- - - "Where rhyme with reason does dispense, - And sound has right to govern sense." - -In order to feel the full power of the guitar and Spanish song, the -performer should be a sprightly Andaluza, taught or untaught; she wields -the instrument as her fan or _mantilla_; it seems to become portion of -herself, and alive; indeed the whole thing requires an _abandon_, a -fire, a _gracia_, which could not be risked by ladies of more northern -climates and more tightly-laced zones. No wonder one of the old fathers -of the church said that he would sooner face a singing basilisk than one -of these performers: she is good for nothing when pinned down to a -piano, on which few Spanish women play even tolerably, and so with her -singing, when she attempts 'Adelaide,' or anything in the sublime, -beautiful, and serious, her failure is dead certain, while, taken in her -own line, she is triumphant; the words of her song are often struck off, -like Theodore Hook's, at the moment, and allude to incidents and persons -present; sometimes they are full of epigram and _double entendre_; they -often sing what may not be spoken, and steal hearts through ears, like -the Sirens, or as Cervantes has it, _cuando cantan encantan_. At other -times their song is little better than meaningless jingle, with which -the listeners are just as well satisfied. For, as Figaro says--"ce qui -ne vaut pas la peine d'tre dit, on le chante." A good voice, which -Italians call _novanta-nove_, ninety-nine parts out of the hundred, is -very rare; nothing strikes a traveller more unfavourably than the harsh -voice of the women in general; never mind, these ballad songs from the -most remote antiquity have formed the delight of the people, have -tempered the despotism of their church and state, have sustained a -nation's resistance against foreign aggression. - -[Sidenote: MOORISH GUITARS.] - -There is very little music ever printed in Spain; the songs and airs are -generally sold in MS. Sometimes, for the very illiterate, the notes are -expressed in numeral figures, which correspond with the number of the -strings. - -The best guitars in the world were made appropriately in Cadiz by the -Pajez family, father and son; of course an instrument in so much vogue -was always an object of most careful thought in fair Btica; thus in the -seventh century the Sevillian guitar was shaped like the human breast, -because, as archbishops said, the _chords_ signified the pulsations of -the heart, _ corde_. The instruments of the Andalucian Moors were -strung after these significant heartstrings; Zaryb remodelled the -guitar by adding a fifth string of bright red, to represent blood, the -treble or first being yellow to indicate bile; and to this hour, on the -banks of the Guadalquivir, when dusky eve calls forth the cloaked -serenader, the ruby drops of the heart female, are more surely liquefied -by a judicious manipulation of cat-gut, than ever were those of San -Januario by book or candle; nor, so it is said, when the tinkling is -continuous are all marital livers unwrung. - -However that may be, the sad tunes of these Oriental ditties are still -effective in spite of their antiquity; indeed certain sounds have a -mysterious aptitude to express certain moods of the mind, in connexion -with some unexplained sympathy between the sentient and intellectual -organs, and the simplest are by far the most ancient. Ornate melody is a -modern invention from Italy; and although, in lands of greater -intercourse and fastidiousness, the conventional has ejected the -national, fashion has not shamed or silenced the old airs of -Spain--those "howlings of Tarshish." Indeed, national tunes, like the -songs of birds, are not taught in orchestras, but by mothers to their -infant progeny in the cradling nest. As the Spaniard is warlike without -being military, saltatory without being graceful, so he is musical -without being harmonious; he is just the raw man material made by -nature, and treats himself as he does the raw products of his soil, by -leaving art and final development to the foreigner. - -[Sidenote: ENGLISH EXAMPLE.] - -The day that he becomes a scientific fiddler, or a capital cotton -spinner, his charm will be at an end; long therefore may he turn a deaf -ear to moralists and political economists, who cannot abide the guitar, -who say that it has done more harm to Spain than hailstorms or drought, -by fostering a prodigious idleness and love-making, whereby the land is -cursed with a greater surplus of foundlings, than men of fortune; how -indeed can these calamities be avoided, when the tempter hangs up this -fatal instrument on a peg in every house? Our immelodious labourers and -unsaltatory operatives are put forth by Manchester missionaries as an -example of industry to the _Majos_ and _Manolas_ of Spain: "behold how -they toil, twelve and fourteen hours every day;" yet these -philanthropists should remember that from their having no other -recreation beyond the public or dissenting-house, they pine when -unemployed, because not knowing what to do with themselves when _idle_; -this to most Spaniards is a foretaste of the bliss of heaven, while -occupation, thought in England to be happiness, is the treadmill doom of -the lost for ever. Nor can it be denied that the facility of junketing -in the Peninsula, the grapes, guitars, songs, skippings and other -incidents to fine climate, militate against that dogged, desperate, -determined hard-working, by which our labourers beat the world hollow, -fiddling and pirouetting being excepted. - -[Sidenote: PHILOSOPHY OF THE CIGAR.] - - - - -CHAPTER XXIV. - - Manufacture of Cigars--Tobacco--Smuggling _vi_ Gibraltar--Cigars - of Ferdinand VII.--Making a Cigarrito--Zumalacarreguy and the - Schoolmaster--Time and Money Wasted in Smoking--Postscript on - Stock. - - -But whether at bull-fight or theatre, be he lay or clerical, every -Spaniard who can afford it, consoles himself continually with a cigar, -sleep--not bed--time only excepted. This is his _nepenthe_, his pleasure -opiate, which, like Souchong, soothes but does not inebriate; it is to -him his "Te veniente die et te decedente." - -[Sidenote: SMUGGLED CIGARS.] - -The manufacture of the cigar is the most active one carried on in the -Peninsula. The buildings are palaces; witness those at Seville, Malaga, -and Valencia. Since a cigar is a _sine qu non_ in every Spaniard's -mouth, for otherwise he would resemble a house without a chimney, a -steamer without a funnel, it must have its page in every Spanish book; -indeed, as one of the most learned native authors remarked, "You will -think me tiresome with my tobacconistical details, but the vast bulk of -readers will be more pleased with it, than with an account of all the -pictures in the world." They all opine, that a good cigar--an article -scarce in this land of smoking and contradiction--keeps a Christian -hidalgo cooler in summer and warmer in winter than his wife and cloak; -while at all times and seasons it diminishes sorrow and doubles joy, as -a man's better half does in Great Britain. "The fact is, Squire," says -Sam Slick, "the moment a man takes to a pipe he becomes a philosopher; -it is the poor man's friend; it calms the mind, soothes the temper, and -makes a man patient under trouble." Can it be wondered at, that the -Oriental and Spanish population should cling to this relief from whips -and scorns, and the oppressor's wrong, or steep in sweet oblivious -stupefaction the misery of being fretted and excited by empty larders, -vicious political institutions, and a very hot climate? They believe -that it deadens their over-excitable imagination, and appeases their too -exquisite nervous sensibility; they agree with Molire, although they -never read him, "Quoique l'on puisse dire, Aristote et toute la -philosophie, il n'y a rien d'gal au tabac." The divine Isaac Barrow -resorted to this _panpharmacon_ whenever he wished to collect his -thoughts; Sir Walter Raleigh, the patron of Virginia, smoked a pipe just -before he lost his head, "at which some formal people were scandalized; -but," adds Aubrey, "I think it was properly done to settle his spirits." -The pedant James, who condemned both Raleigh and tobacco, said the bill -of fare of the dinner which he should give his Satanic majesty, would be -"a pig, a poll of ling, and mustard, with a pipe of tobacco for -digestion." So true it is that "what's one man's meat is another man's -poison;" but at all events, in hungry Spain it is both meat and drink, -and the chief smoke connected with proceedings of the mouth issues from -labial, not house chimneys. - -Tobacco, this anodyne for the irritability of human reason, is, like -spirituous liquors which make it drunk, a highly-taxed article in all -civilized societies. In Spain, the Bourbon dynasty (as elsewhere) is the -hereditary tobacconist-general, and the privilege of sale is generally -farmed out to some contractor: accordingly, such a trump as a really -good home-made cigar is hardly to be had for love or money in the -Peninsula. Diogenes would sooner expect to find an honest man in any of -the government offices. As there is no royal road to the science of -cigar-making, the article is badly concocted, of bad materials, and, to -add insult to injury, is charged at a most exorbitant price. In order to -benefit the Havaah, tobacco is not allowed to be grown in Spain, which -it would do in perfection in the neighbourhood of Malaga; for the -experiment was made, and having turned out quite successfully, the -cultivation was immediately prohibited. The iniquity and dearness of the -royal tobacco makes the fortune of the well-meaning smuggler, who being -here, as everywhere, the great corrector of blundering chancellors of -exchequers, provides a better and cheaper thing from Gibraltar. - -[Sidenote: SMUGGLED CIGARS.] - -The proof of the extent to which his dealings are carried was -exemplified in 1828, when many thousand additional hands were obliged to -be put on to the manufactories at Seville and Granada, to meet the -increased demand occasioned by the impossibility of obtaining supplies -from Gibraltar, in consequence of the yellow fever which was then raging -there. No offence is more dreadfully punished in Spain than that of -tobacco-smuggling, which robs the queen's pocket--all other robbery is -treated as nothing, for her lieges only suffer. - -The encouragement afforded to the manufacture and smuggling of cigars at -Gibraltar is a never-failing source of ill blood and ill will between -the Spanish and English governments. This most serious evil is contrary -to all treaties, injurious to Spain and England alike, and is beneficial -only to aliens of the worst character, who form the real plague and sore -of Gibraltar. The American and every other nation import their own -tobacco, good, bad, and indifferent, into the fortress free of duty, and -without repurchasing British produce. It is made into cigars by Genoese, -is smuggled into Spain by aliens, in boats under the British flag, which -is disgraced by the traffic and exposed to insult from the revenue -cutters of Spain, which it cannot in justice expect to have redressed. -The Spaniards would have winked at the introduction of English hardware -and cottons--objects of necessity, which do not interfere with this, -their chief manufacture, and one of the most productive of royal -monopolies. There is a wide difference between encouraging real British -commerce and this smuggling of foreign cigars, nor can Spain be expected -to observe treaties towards us while we infringe them so scandalously -and unprofitably on our parts. - -[Sidenote: LIGHTING CIGARS.] - -Many tobacchose epicures, who smoke their regular dozen or two, place -the evil sufficient for the day between fresh lettuce-leaves; this damps -the outer leaf of the article, and improves the narcotic effect; _mem._, -the inside, the trail, _las tripas_, as the Spaniards call it, should be -kept quite dry. The disordered interior of the royal cigars is masked by -a good outside wrapper leaf, just as Spanish rags are cloaked by a -decent _capa_, but l'habit ne fait pas le cigarre. Few except the rich -can afford to smoke good cigars. Ferdinand VII., unlike his ancestor -Louis XIV., "qui," says La Beaumelle, "hassoit le tabac singulirement, -quoiqu'un de ses meilleurs revenus," was not only a grand compounder but -consumer thereof. He indulged in the royal extravagance of a very large -thick cigar made in the Havaah expressly for his gracious use, as he -was too good a judge to smoke his own manufacture. Even of these he -seldom smoked more than the half; the remainder was a grand perquisite, -like our palace lights. The cigar was one of his pledges of love and -hatred: he would give one to his favourites when in sweet temper; and -often, when meditating a treacherous _coup_, would dismiss the -unconscious victim with a royal _puro_: and when the happy individual -got home to smoke it, he was saluted by an Alguacil with an order to -quit Madrid in twenty-four hours. The "innocent" Isabel, who does not -smoke, substitutes sugar-plums; she regaled Olozaga with a sweet -present, when she was "doing him" at the bidding of the Christinist -camarilla. It would seem that the Spanish Bourbons, when not -"cretinised" into idiots, are creatures composed of cunning and -cowardice. But "those who cannot dissimulate are unfit to reign" was the -axiom of their illustrious ancestor Louis XI. - -[Sidenote: LIGHTING CIGARS.] - -In Spain the bulk of their happy subjects cannot afford, either the -expense of tobacco, which is dear to them, or the _gain_ of time, which -is very cheap, by smoking a whole cigar right away. They make one afford -occupation and recreation for half an hour. Though few Spaniards ruin -themselves in libraries, none are without a little blank book of a -particular paper, which is made at Alcoy, in Valencia. At any pause all -say at once--"_pues, seores! echaremos un cigarrito_--well then, my -Lords, let us make a little cigar," and all set seriously to work; every -man, besides this book, is armed with a small case of flint, steel, and -a combustible tinder. To make a paper cigar, like putting on a cloak, is -an operation of much more difficulty than it seems, although all -Spaniards, who have done nothing so much, from their childhood upwards, -perform both with extreme facility and neatness. This is the mode:--the -_petaca_, Arabic Butk, or little case worked by a fair hand, in the -coloured thread of the aloe, in which the store of cigars is kept, is -taken out--a leaf is torn from the book, which is held between the lips, -or downwards from the back of the hand, between the fore and middle -finger of the left hand--a portion of the cigar, about a third, is cut -off and rubbed slowly in the palms till reduced to a powder--it is then -jerked into the paper-leaf, which is rolled up into a little squib, and -the ends doubled down, one of which is bitten off and the other end is -lighted. The cigarillo is smoked slowly, the last whiff being the bonne -bouche, the _breast_, _la pechuga_. The little ends are thrown away: -they are indeed little, for a Spanish fore-finger and thumb are quite -fire-browned and fire-proof, although some polished exquisites use -silver holders; these remnants are picked up by the beggar-boys, who -make up into fresh cigars the leavings of a thousand mouths. There is no -want of fire in Spain; everywhere, what we should call link-boys run -about with a slowly-burning rope for the benefit of the public. At many -of the sheds where water and lemonade are sold, one of the ropes, -twirled like a snake round a post, and ignited, is kept ready as the -match of a besieged artilleryman; while in the houses of the affluent, a -small silver chafing-dish, with lighted charcoal, is usually on a table. -Mr. Henningsen relates that Zumalacarreguy, when about to execute some -Christinos at Villa Franca, observed one (a schoolmaster) looking about, -like Raleigh, for a light for his last dying puff in this life, upon -which the General took his own cigar from his mouth, and handed it to -him. The schoolmaster lighted his own, returned the other with a -respectful bow, and went away smoking and reconciled to be shot. This -urgent necessity levels all ranks, and it is allowable to stop any -person for fire; this proves the practical equality of all classes, and -that democracy under a despotism, which exists in smoking Spain, as in -the torrid East. The cigar forms a bond of union, an isthmus of -communication between most heterogeneous oppositions. It is the _habeas -corpus_ of Spanish liberties. The soldier takes fire from the canon's -lip, and the dark face of the humble labourer is whitened by the -reflection of the cigar of the grandee and lounger. The lowest orders -have a coarse roll or rope of tobacco, wherewith to solace their -sorrows, and it is their calumet of peace. Some of the Spanish fair sex -are said to indulge in a quiet hidden _cigarilla_, _una pajita_, _una -reyna_, but it is not thought either a sign of a lady, or of one of -rigid virtue, to have recourse to these forbidden pleasures; for, says -their proverb, whoever makes one basket will make a hundred. - -[Sidenote: TIME LOST BY TOBACCO.] - -Nothing exposes a traveller to more difficulty than carrying much -tobacco in his luggage; yet all will remember never to be without some -cigars, and the better the better. It is a trifling outlay, for although -any cigar is acceptable, yet a real good one is a gift from a king. The -greater the enjoyment of the smoker, the greater his respect for the -donor; a cigar may be given to everybody, whether high or low: thus the -_petaca_ is offered, as a polite Frenchman of La Vieille Cour (a race, -alas! all but extinct) offered his snuff-box, by way of a prelude to -conversation and intimacy. It is an act of civility, and implies no -superiority, nor is there any humiliation in the acceptance; it is twice -blessed, "It blesseth him that gives and him that takes." It is the -spell wherewith to charm the natives, who are its ready and obedient -slaves, and, like a small kind word spoken in time, it works miracles. -There is no country in the world where the stranger and traveller can -purchase for half-a-crown, half the love and good-will which its -investment in tobacco will ensure, therefore the man who grudges or -neglects it is neither a philanthropist nor a philosopher. - -A calculation might be made by those fond of arithmetic--which we -abhor--of the waste of time and money which is caused to the poor -Spaniards by all this prodigious cigarising. This said tobacco -importation of Raleigh is even a more doubtful good to the Peninsula -than that of potatoes to cognate Ireland, where it fosters poverty and -population. Let it be assumed that a respectable Spaniard only smokes -for fifty years, allow him the moderate allowance of six cigars a -day--the Regent, it is said, consumed forty every twenty-four -hours--calculate the cost of each cigar at two-pence, which is cheap -enough anywhere for a decent one; suppose that half of these are made -into paper cigars, which require double time--how much Spanish time and -private income is wasted in smoke? That is the question which we are -unable to answer. - -[Sidenote: SPANISH STOCK.] - -Here, alas! the pen must be laid down; an express from Albemarle-street -informs us, that this page must go to press next week, seeing that the -printer's devils celebrate Christmas time with a most religious -abstinence from work. Many things of Spain must therefore be left in our -inkstand, filled to the brim with good intentions. We had hoped, at our -onset, to have sketched portraits of the Provincial and General -Character of Spanish Men--to have touched upon Spanish Soldiers and -Statesmen--Journalism and Place Hunting--Mendicants, Ministers and -Mosquitoes--Charters, Cheatings, and Constitutions--Fine Arts--French -and English Politics--Legends, Relics, and Religion--Monks and Manners; -and last, not least--reserved indeed as a bonne bouche--the Eyes, Loves, -Dress, and Details of the Spanish Ladies. It cannot be--nay, even as it -is, "for stories somehow lengthen when begun," and especially if woven -with Spanish yarn, even now the indulgence of our fair readers may be -already exhausted by this sample of the _Cosas de Espaa_. Be that as it -may, assuredly the smallest hint of a desire to the flattering contrary, -which they may condescend to express, will be obeyed as a command by -their grateful and humble servant the author, who, as every true Spanish -Hidalgo very properly concludes on similar, and on every occasion, -"kisses their feet." - - -_Postscript._--In the first number of these Gatherings, at page 38, some -particulars were given of Spanish Stock, derived, as was believed, from -the most official and authentic sources. On the very evening that the -volume was published, and too late therefore for any corrections, the -following obliging letter was received from an anonymous correspondent, -which is now printed verbatim:-- - - -_London, 30th November, 1846._ - - SIR, - - I HAVE just perused your valuable and amusing work, 'Gatherings - from Spain;' but must own I felt somewhat annoyed at seeing so - gross a misrepresentation in the account you give of the national - debt of that country; the amount you give is perfectly absurd. You - say it has been increased to 279,033,089_l._--this is too bad. Now - I can give you the exact amount. The 5 per cents. consists of - 40,000,000_l._ only; the coupons upon that sum to 12,000,000_l._; - and the present 3 per cents. to 6,000,000_l._; in all, - 58,000,000_l._, and their own domestic debt, which is very - trifling. Now this is rather different to your statement; besides, - you are doing your book great injury by writing the Spanish Stock - down so; more particularly so, as there is no doubt some final - settlement will be come to before your second Number appears [?]. - The country is far from being as you misrepresent it to - be--bankrupt. She is very rich, and quite capable of meeting her - engagements which are so trifling--if you were to write down our - Railroads I should think you a sensible man, for they are the - greatest bubbles, since the great South Sea bubble. But Spanish is - a fortune to whoever is so fortunate as to possess it now. I am, - and have been for some years, a large holder, and am now looking - forward to the realization of all my plans, in the present Minister - of Finance, Seor Mon, and the rising of that stock to its proper - price--about 60 or 70. - - I should, as a friend, advise you to correct your book before you - strike any more copies, if you wish to sell it, as a true - representation of the present existing state of the country. Your - book might have done ten years ago, but people will not be gulled - now; we are too well aware that almost all our own papers are - bribed (and, perhaps, books), to write down Spanish, and Spanish - finance, by raising all manner of reports--of Carlist bands - appearing in all directions, &c. &c. &c. &c., which is most - absurd--the Carlists' cause is dead. - - [Sidenote: THE AUTHOR'S POSTSCRIPT.] - - I hope, Sir, you will not be offended with these lines, but rather - take them as a friendly hint, as I admire your book much; and I - hope you will yourself see the falsity of what has been inserted in - a work of amusement, and correct it at once. - -I remain, Sir, -Your obedient and humble Servant, -A FRIEND OF TRUTH. - - _To ---- Ford, Esq._ - -It is a trifle "too bad" to be thus set down by our complimentary -correspondent as the inventor of these startling facts, figures, and -"fallacies," since the full, true, and exact particulars are to be found -at pages 85 and 89 of Mr. Macgregor's Commercial Tariffs of Spain, -presented to both Houses of Parliament in 1844 by the command of Her -Majesty. And as there was some variance in amount, the author all -through quoted from other men's sums, and spoke doubtingly and -approximatively, being little desirous of having anything connected with -Spanish debts laid at his door, or charged to his account. He has no -interest whatever in these matters, having never been the fortunate -holder of one farthing either in Spanish funds or even English -railroads. Equally a friend of truth as his kind monitor, he simply -wished to caution fair readers, who might otherwise mis-invest, as he -erroneously it appears conceived, the savings in their pin-money. If he -has unwittingly stated that which is not, he can but give up his -authority, be very much ashamed, and insert the antidote to his errors. -He sincerely hopes that all and every one of the bright visions of his -anonymous friend may be realized. Had he himself, which Heaven forfend! -been sent on the errand of discovery whether the Madrid ministers be -made, or not, of squeezable materials, considering that Astra has not -yet returned to Spain, with good governments, the golden age, or even a -tariff, his first step would have been to grease the wheels with -_sovereign_ ointment; and with a view of not being told by ministers and -cashiers to call again to-morrow, he would have opened the _negocio_ by -offering somebody 20 per cent. on all the hard dollars paid down; thus -possibly some breath and time might be economised, and trifling -disappointments prevented. - -London: Printed by WILLIAM CLOWES and SONS, Stamford Street - - * * * * * - - -FOOTNOTES: - -[1] The word _Gabacho_, which is the most offensive vituperative of the -Spaniard against the Frenchman, and has by some been thought to mean -"those who dwell on Gaves," is the Arabic _Cabach_, detestable, filthy, -or "qui prava indole est, moribusque." In fact the real meaning cannot -be further alluded to beyond referring to the clever tale of _El Frances -y Espaol_ by Quevedo. The antipathy to the Gaul is natural and -national, and dates far beyond history. This nickname was first given in -the eighth century, when Charlemagne, the Buonaparte of his day, invaded -Spain, on the abdication and cession of the crown by the chaste Alonso, -the prototype of the wittol Charles IV.; then the Spanish Moors and -Christians, foes and friends, forgot their hatreds of creeds in the -greater loathing for the abhorred intruder, whose "peerage fell" in the -memorable passes of Roncesvalles. The true derivation of the word -_Gabacho_, which now resounds from these Pyrenees to the Straits, is -blinked in the royal academical dictionary, such was the servile -adulation of the members to their French patron Philip V. _Mueran los -Gabachos_, "Death to the miscreants," was the rally cry of Spain after -the inhuman butcheries of the terrorist Murat; nor have the echoes died -away; a spark may kindle the prepared mine: of what an unspeakable value -is a national war-cry which at once gives to a whole people a -shibboleth, a rallying watch-word to a common cause! _Vox populi vox -Dei._ - -[2] _Razzia_ is derived from the Arabic _Al ghazia_, a word which -expresses these raids of a ferocious, barbarous age. It has been -introduced to European dictionaries by the Pelissiers, who thus -_civilize_ Algeria. They make a solitude, and call it peace. - -[3] Faja; the Hhezum of Cairo. Atrides tightens his sash when preparing -for action--Iliad xi. 15. The Roman soldiers kept their money in it. -Ibit qui _zonam_ perdidit.--Hor. ii. Ep. 2. 40. The Jews used it for the -same purpose--Matthew x. 9; Mark vi. 8. It is loosened at night. "None -shall slumber or sleep, neither shall the girdle of their loins be -loosed."--Isaiah v. 27. - -[4] The dread of the fascination of the evil eye, from which Solomon was -not exempt (Proverbs xxiii. 6), prevails all over the East; it has not -been extirpated from Spain or from Naples, which so long belonged to -Spain. The lower classes in the Peninsula hang round the necks of their -children and cattle a horn tipped with silver; this is sold as an amulet -in the silver-smiths' shops; the cord by which it is attached _ought_ to -be braided from a black mare's tail. The Spanish gipsies, of whom Borrow -has given us so complete an account, thrive by disarming the _mal de -ojo_, "_querelar nasula_," as they term it. The dread of the "_Ain ara_" -exists among all classes of the Moors. The better classes of Spaniards -make a joke of it; and often, when you remark that a person has put on -or wears something strange about him, the answer is, "_Es para que no me -hagan mal de ojo_." Naples is the head-quarters for charms and coral -amulets: all the learning has been collected by the Canon Jorio and the -Marques Arditi. - -[5] The _garaon_ is also called "_burro padre_" ass father, not "_padre -burro_." "_Padre_," the prefix of paternity, is the common title given -in Spain to the clergy and the monks. "Father jackass" might in many -instances, when applied to the latter, be too morally and physically -appropriate, to be consistent with the respect due to the celibate cowl -and cassock. - -[6] When George IV. once complained that he had _lost_ his royal -appetite, "What a scrape, sir, a _poor_ man would be in if he _found_ -it!" said his Rochester companion. - -[7] The very word _Novelty_ has become in common parlance synonymous -with danger, change, by the fear of which all Spaniards are perplexed; -as in religion it is a heresy. Bitter experience has taught all classes -that every change, every promise of a new era of blessing and prosperity -has ended in a failure, and that matters have got worse: hence they not -only bear the evils to which they are accustomed, rather than try a -speculative amelioration, but actually prefer a bad state of things, of -which they know the worst, to the possibility of an untried good. _Mas -vale el mal conocido, que el bien por conocer._ "How is my lady the wife -of your grace?" says a Spanish gentleman to his friend. "_Como est mi -Seora la Esposa de Usted?_" "She goes on without Novelty"--"_Sigue sin -Novedad_," is the reply, if the fair one be much the same. "_Vaya Usted -con Dios, y que no haya Novedad!_" "Go with God, your grace! and may -nothing new happen," says another, on starting his friend off on a -journey. - -[8] Forks are an Italian invention: old Coryate, who introduced this -"neatnesse" into Somersetshire, about 1600, was called _furcifer_ by his -friends. Alexander Barclay thus describes the previous English mode of -eating, which sounds very _ventaish_, although worse mannered:-- - - "If the dishe be pleasaunt, eyther flesche or fische, - Ten hands at once swarm in the dishe." - - -[9] The kings of Spain seldom use any other royal signature, except the -ancient Gothic _rubrica_, or mark. This monogram is something like a -Runic knot. Spaniards exercise much ingenuity in these intricate -flourishes, which they tack on to their names, as a collateral security -of authenticity. It is said that a _rubrica_ without a name is of more -value than a name without a rubrica. Sancho Panza tells Don Quixote that -his rubrica alone is worth, not one, but three hundred jackasses. Those -who cannot write rubricate; "_No saber firmar_,"--not to know how to -sign one's name,--is jokingly held in Spain to be one of the attributes -of grandeeship. - -[10] "Chacun fuit le voir natre, chacun court le voir -mourir!"--_Montaigne._ - -[11] Hallarse en _Cinta_ is the Spanish equivalent for our "being in the -family way." - -[12] Recopilacion. Lib. iii. Tit. xvi. Ley 3. - -[13] The love for killing oxen still prevails at Rome, where the -ambition of the lower orders to be a butcher, is, like their white -costume, a remnant of the honourable office of killing at the Pagan -sacrifices. In Spain butchers are of the lowest caste, and cannot prove -"purity of blood." Francis I. never forgave the "Becajo de Parigi" -applied by Dante to _his_ ancestor. - - * * * * * - -Typographical error corrected by the etext transcriber: - -which recal the memory of those=> which recall the memory of those {pg -250} - - - - - - - -End of the Project Gutenberg EBook of Gatherings From Spain, by Richard Ford - -*** END OF THIS PROJECT GUTENBERG EBOOK GATHERINGS FROM SPAIN *** - -***** This file should be named 41611-8.txt or 41611-8.zip ***** -This and all associated files of various formats will be found in: - http://www.gutenberg.org/4/1/6/1/41611/ - -Produced by Chuck Greif and the Online Distributed -Proofreading Team at http://www.pgdp.net (This file was -produced from images available at The Internet Archive) - - -Updated editions will replace the previous one--the old editions -will be renamed. - -Creating the works from public domain print editions means that no -one owns a United States copyright in these works, so the Foundation -(and you!) can copy and distribute it in the United States without -permission and without paying copyright royalties. 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You may copy it, give it away or -re-use it under the terms of the Project Gutenberg License included -with this eBook or online at www.gutenberg.org/license - - -Title: Gatherings From Spain - -Author: Richard Ford - -Release Date: December 12, 2012 [EBook #41611] - -Language: English - -Character set encoding: UTF-8 - -*** START OF THIS PROJECT GUTENBERG EBOOK GATHERINGS FROM SPAIN *** - - - - -Produced by Chuck Greif and the Online Distributed -Proofreading Team at http://www.pgdp.net (This file was -produced from images available at The Internet Archive) - - - - - - -</pre> - -<hr class="full" /> - -<table summary="note" border="4" cellpadding="10" style="background-color: #ffffff; -margin-right:auto;margin-left:auto;max-width:50%;"> - <tr> - <td valign="top">Every attempt has been made to replicate the original book as printed. -A typographical error has been corrected (<a href="#TRNS">see here</a>). No attempt has been -made to correct or normalize the printed accentuation or spelling of Spanish names or words. -(etext transcriber's note)</td> - </tr> -</table> - -<p class="figcenter"> -<img src="images/cover.jpg" width="366" height="550" alt="bookcover" title="" /> -</p> - -<h1>GATHERINGS FROM SPAIN.</h1> - -<p class="cb">BY THE<br /> -<br /> -<big>AUTHOR OF THE HANDBOOK OF SPAIN;</big><br /> -<br /> -CHIEFLY SELECTED FROM THAT WORK, WITH<br /> -MUCH NEW MATTER.<br /> -<br /><br /> -<i>NEW EDITION.</i><br /> -<br /><br /> -LONDON:<br /> -JOHN MURRAY, ALBEMARLE STREET.<br /> -——<br /> -1851.</p> - -<p> </p> -<p> </p> -<p> </p> - -<p class="cb">TO THE<br /><br /> -HONOURABLE MRS. FORD,</p> - -<p class="hang">T<small>HESE</small> pages, which she has been so good as to peruse and approve of, are -dedicated, in the hopes that other fair readers may follow her example,</p> - -<p class="r"> -By her very affectionate <br /> -Husband and Servant, <br /> -R<small>ICHARD</small> F<small>ORD</small>.<br /> -</p> - -<p> </p> -<p> </p> -<p> </p> - -<h2><a name="PREFACE" id="PREFACE"></a>PREFACE.</h2> - -<p class="nind">M<small>ANY</small> ladies, some of whom even contemplate a visit to Spain, having -condescended to signify to the publisher their regrets, that the -Handbook was printed in a form, which rendered its perusal irksome, and -also to express a wish that the type had been larger, the Author, to -whom this distinguished compliment was communicated, has hastened to -submit to their indulgence a few extracts and selections, which may -throw some light on the character of a country and people, always of the -highest interest, and particularly so at this moment, when their -independence is once more threatened by a crafty and aggressive -neighbour.</p> - -<p>In preparing these compilations for the press much new matter has been -added, to supply the place of portions omitted; for, in order to lighten -the narrative, the Author has removed much lumber of learning, and has -not scrupled occasionally to throw Strabo, and even Saint Isidore -himself, overboard. Progress is the order of the day in Spain, and its -advance is the more rapid, as she was so much in arrear of other -nations. Transition is the present condition of the country, where -yesterday is effaced by to-morrow. There the relentless march of -European intellect is crushing many a native wild flower, which, having -no value save colour and sweetness, must be rooted up before -cotton-mills are constructed and bread stuffs substituted; many a trait -of nationality in manners and costume is already effaced; monks are -gone, and mantillas are going, alas! going.</p> - -<p>In the changes that have recently taken place, many descriptions of ways -and things now presented to the public will soon become almost matters -of history and antiquarian interest. The passages here reprinted will be -omitted in the forthcoming new edition of the Handbook, to which these -pages may form a companion; but their chief object has been to offer a -few hours’ amusement, and may be of instruction, to those who remain at -home; and should the humble attempt meet with the approbation of fair -readers, the author will bear, with more than Spanish resignation, -whatever animadversions bearded critics may be pleased to inflict on -this or on the other side of the water.</p> - -<h2><a name="CONTENTS" id="CONTENTS"></a>CONTENTS.</h2> - -<table border="0" cellpadding="4" cellspacing="0" summary="" -style="margin-top:5%;margin-bottom:5%;margin-left:auto;margin-right:auto;border:none;text-align:left; -max-width:85%;"> - -<tr><td align="center" colspan="2"><a href="#CHAPTER_I">CHAPTER I.</a></td></tr> - -<tr><td align="right" colspan="2"><small>PAGE</small></td></tr> - -<tr><td><p class="hang">A General View of Spain—Isolation—King of the Spains—Castilian -Precedence—Localism—Want of Union—Admiration of Spain—M. -Thiers in Spain </p></td><td align="right" valign="bottom"><a href="#page_001">1</a></td></tr> - -<tr><td align="center" colspan="2"><a href="#CHAPTER_II">CHAPTER II.</a></td></tr> - -<tr><td><p class="hang">The Geography of Spain—Zones—Mountains—The Pyrenees—The -Gabacho, and French Politics</p></td><td align="right" valign="bottom"><a href="#page_007">7</a></td></tr> - -<tr><td align="center" colspan="2"><a href="#CHAPTER_III">CHAPTER III.</a></td></tr> - -<tr><td><p class="hang">The Rivers of Spain—Bridges—Navigation—The Ebro and Tagus</p></td><td align="right" valign="bottom"><a href="#page_023">23</a></td></tr> - -<tr><td align="center" colspan="2"><a href="#CHAPTER_IV">CHAPTER IV.</a></td></tr> - -<tr><td><p class="hang">Divisions into Provinces—Ancient Demarcations—Modern Departments—Population—Revenue—Spanish -Stocks</p></td><td align="right" valign="bottom"><a href="#page_030">30</a></td></tr> - -<tr><td align="center" colspan="2"><a href="#CHAPTER_V">CHAPTER V.</a></td></tr> - -<tr><td><p class="hang">Travelling in Spain—Steamers—Roads, Roman, Monastic, and Royal—Modern -Railways—English Speculations</p></td><td align="right" valign="bottom"><a href="#page_040">40</a></td></tr> - -<tr><td align="center" colspan="2"><a href="#CHAPTER_VI">CHAPTER VI.</a></td></tr> - -<tr><td><p class="hang">Post Office in Spain—Travelling with Post Horses—Riding post—Mails -and Diligences, Galeras, Coches de Colleras, Drivers and Manner of -Driving, and Oaths</p></td><td align="right" valign="bottom"><a href="#page_053">53</a></td></tr> - -<tr><td align="center" colspan="2"><a href="#CHAPTER_VII">CHAPTER VII.</a></td></tr> - -<tr><td><p class="hang">Spanish Horses—Mules—Asses—Muleteers—Maragatos</p></td><td align="right" valign="bottom"><a href="#page_065">65</a></td></tr> - -<tr><td align="center" colspan="2"><a href="#CHAPTER_VIII">CHAPTER VIII.</a></td></tr> - -<tr><td><p class="hang">Riding Tour in Spain—Pleasures of it—Pedestrian Tour—Choice of -Companions—Rules for a Riding Tour—Season of Year—Day’s -Journey—Management of Horse; his Feet; Shoes; General Hints</p></td><td align="right" valign="bottom"><a href="#page_080">80</a></td></tr> - -<tr><td align="center" colspan="2"><a href="#CHAPTER_IX">CHAPTER IX.</a></td></tr> - -<tr><td><p class="hang">The Rider’s Costume—Alforjas: Their contents—The Bota, and How -to use it—Pig Skins and Borracha—Spanish Money—Onzas and -smaller Coins</p></td><td align="right" valign="bottom"><a href="#page_094">94</a></td></tr> - -<tr><td align="center" colspan="2"><a href="#CHAPTER_X">CHAPTER X.</a></td></tr> - -<tr><td><p class="hang">Spanish Servants: their Character—Travelling Groom, Cook, and -Valet</p></td><td align="right" valign="bottom"><a href="#page_105">105</a></td></tr> - -<tr><td align="center" colspan="2"><a href="#CHAPTER_XI">CHAPTER XI.</a></td></tr> - -<tr><td><p class="hang">A Spanish Cook—Philosophy of Spanish Cuisine—Sauce—Difficulty of -Commissariat—The Provend—Spanish Hares and Rabbits—The Olla—Garbanzos—Spanish -Pigs—Bacon and Hams—Omelette—Salad and -Gazpacho</p></td><td align="right" valign="bottom"><a href="#page_119">119</a></td></tr> - -<tr><td align="center" colspan="2"><a href="#CHAPTER_XII">CHAPTER XII.</a></td></tr> - -<tr><td><p class="hang">Drinks of Spain—Water—Irrigation—Fountains—Spanish Thirstiness—The -Alcarraza—Water Carriers—Ablutions—Spanish Chocolate—Agraz—Beer -Lemonade</p></td><td align="right" valign="bottom"><a href="#page_136">136</a></td></tr> - -<tr><td align="center" colspan="2"><a href="#CHAPTER_XIII">CHAPTER XIII.</a></td></tr> - -<tr><td><p class="hang">Spanish Wines—Spanish Indifference—Wine-making—Vins du Pays—Local -Wines—Benicarló—Valdepeñas</p></td><td align="right" valign="bottom"><a href="#page_145">145</a></td></tr> - -<tr><td align="center" colspan="2"><a href="#CHAPTER_XIV">CHAPTER XIV.</a></td></tr> - -<tr><td><p class="hang">Sherry Wines—The Sherry District—Origin of the Name—Varieties -of Soil—Of Grapes—Pajarete—Rojas Clemente—Cultivation of -Vines—Best Vineyards—The Vintage—Amontillado—The Capataz—The -Bodega—Sherry Wine—Arrope and Madre Vino—A Lecture -on Sherry in the Cellar—at the Table—Price of Fine Sherry—Falsification -of Sherry—Manzanilla—The Alpistera</p></td><td align="right" valign="bottom"><a href="#page_150">150</a></td></tr> - -<tr><td align="center" colspan="2"><a href="#CHAPTER_XV">CHAPTER XV.</a></td></tr> - -<tr><td><p class="hang">Spanish Inns: Why so Indifferent—The Fonda—Modern Improvements—The -Posada—Spanish Innkeepers—The Venta: Arrival in it—Arrangement—Garlic—Dinner—Evening—Night—Bill—Identity -with the Inns of the Ancients</p></td><td align="right" valign="bottom"><a href="#page_165">165</a></td></tr> - -<tr><td align="center" colspan="2"><a href="#CHAPTER_XVI">CHAPTER XVI.</a></td></tr> - -<tr><td><p class="hang">Spanish Robbers—A Robber Adventure—Guardias Civiles—Exaggerated -Accounts—Cross of the Murdered—Idle Robber Tales—French -Bandittiphobia—Robber History—Guerrilleros—Smugglers—Jose -Maria—Robbers of the First Class—The Ratero—Miguelites—Escorts -and Escopeteros—Passes, Protections, and Talismans—Execution -of a Robber</p></td><td align="right" valign="bottom"><a href="#page_186">186</a></td></tr> - -<tr><td align="center" colspan="2"><a href="#CHAPTER_XVII">CHAPTER XVII.</a></td></tr> - -<tr><td><p class="hang">The Spanish Doctor: His Social Position—Medical Abuses—Hospitals—Medical -Education—Lunatic Asylums—Foundling Hospital of -Seville—Medical Pretensions—Dissection—Family Physician—Consultations—Medical -Costume—Prescriptions—Druggists—Snake -Broth—Salve for Knife-cuts</p></td><td align="right" valign="bottom"><a href="#page_213">213</a></td></tr> - -<tr><td align="center" colspan="2"><a href="#CHAPTER_XVIII">CHAPTER XVIII.</a></td></tr> - -<tr><td><p class="hang">Spanish Spiritual Remedies for the Body—Miraculous Relics—Sanative -Oils—Philosophy of Relic Remedies—Midwifery and the Cinta of -Tortosa—Bull of Crusade</p></td><td align="right" valign="bottom"><a href="#page_236">236</a></td></tr> - -<tr><td align="center" colspan="2"><a href="#CHAPTER_XIX">CHAPTER XIX.</a></td></tr> - -<tr><td><p class="hang">The Spanish Figaro—Mustachios—Whiskers—Beards—Bleeding—Heraldic -Blood—Blue, Red, and Black Blood—Figaro’s Shop—The -Baratero—Shaving and Toothdrawing</p></td><td align="right" valign="bottom"><a href="#page_255">255</a></td></tr> - -<tr><td align="center" colspan="2"><a href="#CHAPTER_XX">CHAPTER XX.</a></td></tr> - -<tr><td><p class="hang">What to observe in Spain—How to observe—Spanish Incuriousness and -Suspicions—French Spies and Plunderers—Sketching in Spain—Difficulties; -How Surmounted—Efficacy of Passports and Bribes—Uncertainty -and Want of Information in the Natives</p></td><td align="right" valign="bottom"><a href="#page_265">265</a></td></tr> - -<tr><td align="center" colspan="2"><a href="#CHAPTER_XXI">CHAPTER XXI.</a></td></tr> - -<tr><td><p class="hang">Origin of Bull-fight or Festival, and its Religious Character—Fiestas -Reales—Royal Feasts—Charles I. at one—Discontinuance of -the Old System—Sham Bull-fights—Plaza de Toros—Slang Language—Spanish -Bulls—Breeds—The Going to a Bull-fight</p></td><td align="right" valign="bottom"><a href="#page_286">286</a></td></tr> - -<tr><td align="center" colspan="2"><a href="#CHAPTER_XXII">CHAPTER XXII.</a></td></tr> - -<tr><td><p class="hang">The Bull-fight—Opening of Spectacle—First Act, and Appearance -of the Bull—The Picador—Bull Bastinado—The Horses, and their -Cruel Treatment—Fire and Dogs—The Second Act—The Chulos -and their Darts—The Third Act—The Matador—Death of the Bull—The -Conclusion, and Philosophy of the Amusement—Its Effect on -Ladies</p></td><td align="right" valign="bottom"><a href="#page_300">300</a></td></tr> - -<tr><td align="center" colspan="2"><a href="#CHAPTER_XXIII">CHAPTER XXIII.</a></td></tr> - -<tr><td><p class="hang">Spanish Theatre; Old and Modern Drama; Arrangement of Play-houses—The -Henroost—The Fandango; National Dances—A Gipsy -Ball—Italian Opera—National Songs and Guitars</p></td><td align="right" valign="bottom"><a href="#page_318">318</a></td></tr> - -<tr><td align="center" colspan="2"><a href="#CHAPTER_XXIV">CHAPTER XXIV.</a></td></tr> - -<tr><td><p class="hang">Manufacture of Cigars—Tobacco—Smuggling <i>viâ</i> Gibraltar—Cigars of -Ferdinand VII.—Making a Cigarrito—Zumalacarreguy and the -Schoolmaster—Time and Money wasted in Smoking—Postscript on -Spanish Stock</p></td><td align="right" valign="bottom"><a href="#page_335">335</a></td></tr> -</table> - -<p><a name="page_001" id="page_001"></a></p> - -<h1>GATHERINGS FROM SPAIN.</h1> - -<hr /> - -<h2><a name="CHAPTER_I" id="CHAPTER_I"></a>CHAPTER I.</h2> - -<div class="blockquot"><p class="c">A general view of Spain—Isolation—King of the Spains—Castilian -precedence—Localism—Want of Union—Admiration of Spain—M. Thiers -in Spain.</p></div> - -<div class="sidenote">KING OF THE SPAINS.</div> - -<div class="sidenote">LOCALISM OF SPANIARDS.</div> - -<p class="nind">T<small>HE</small> kingdom of Spain, which looks so compact on the map, is composed of -many distinct provinces, each of which in earlier times formed a -separate and independent kingdom; and although all are now united under -one crown by marriage, inheritance, conquest, and other circumstances, -the original distinctions, geographical as well as social, remain almost -unaltered. The language, costume, habits, and local character of the -natives, vary no less than the climate and productions of the soil. The -chains of mountains which intersect the whole peninsula, and the deep -rivers which separate portions of it, have, for many years, operated as -so many walls and moats, by cutting off intercommunication, and by -fostering that tendency to isolation which must exist in all hilly -countries, where good roads and bridges do not abound. As similar -circumstances led the people of ancient Greece to split into small -principalities, tribes and clans, so in Spain, man, following the -example of the nature by which he is surrounded, has little in common -with the inhabitant of the adjoining district; and these differences are -increased and perpetuated by the ancient jealousies and inveterate -dislikes, which petty and contiguous states keep up with such tenacious -memory. The general comprehensive term “Spain,” which is convenient for -geographers and politicians, is calculated to mislead the traveller, for -it would be far from easy to predicate any single thing of Spain or -Spaniards which will be equally applicable to all its<a name="page_002" id="page_002"></a> heterogeneous -component parts. The north-western provinces are more rainy than -Devonshire, while the centre plains are more calcined than those of the -deserts of Arabia, and the littoral south or eastern coasts altogether -Algerian. The rude agricultural Gallician, the industrious manufacturing -artisan of Barcelona, the gay and voluptuous Andalucian, the sly -vindictive Valencian, are as essentially different from each other as so -many distinct characters at the same masquerade. It will therefore be -more convenient to the traveller to take each province by itself and -treat it in detail, keeping on the look-out for those peculiarities, -those social and natural characteristics or idiosyncracies which -particularly belong to each division, and distinguish it from its -neighbours. The Spaniards who have written on their own geography and -statistics, and who ought to be supposed to understand their own country -and institutions the best, have found it advisable to adopt this -arrangement from feeling the utter impossibility of treating Spain -(where union is not unity) as a whole. There is no king of <i>Spain</i>: -among the infinity of kingdoms, the list of which swells out the royal -style, that of “Spain” is not found; he is King of the Spains, Rex -Hispaniarum, <i>Rey de las Españas</i>, not “<i>Rey de España</i>.” Philip II., -called by his countrymen <i>el prudente</i>, the prudent, wishing to fuse -down his heterogeneous subjects, was desirous after his conquest of -Portugal, which consolidated his dominion, to call himself King of -Spain, which he then really was; but this alteration of title was beyond -the power of even his despotism; such was the opposition of the kingdoms -of Arragon and Navarre, which never gave up the hopes of shaking off the -yoke of Castile, and recovering their former independence, while the -empire provinces of New and Old Castile refused in anywise to compromise -their claims of pre-eminence. They from early times, as now, took the -lead in national nomenclature; hence “<i>Castellano</i>,” Castilian, is -synonymous with Spaniard, and particularly with the proud genuine older -stock. “<i>Castellano á las derechas</i>,” means a Spaniard to the backbone; -“<i>Hablar Castellano</i>,” to speak Castilian, is the correct expression for -speaking the Spanish language. Spain again was long without the -advantage of a fixed metropolis, like Rome, Paris, or London, which have -been capitals from their foundation, and recognized and submitted to as -such; here, the<a name="page_003" id="page_003"></a> cities of Leon, Burgos, Toledo, Seville, Valladolid, -and others, have each in their turns been the capitals of the kingdom. -This constant change and short-lived pre-eminence has weakened any -prescriptive superiority of one city over another, and has been a cause -of national weakness by raising up rivalries and disputes about -precedence, which is one of the most fertile sources of dissension among -a punctilious people. In fact the king was the state, and wherever he -fixed his head-quarters was the court, <i>La Corte</i>, a word still -synonymous with Madrid, which now claims to be the only residence of the -Sovereign—the residenz, as Germans would say; otherwise, when compared -with the cities above mentioned, it is a modern place; from not having a -bishop or cathedral, of which latter some older cities possess two, it -has not even the rank of a <i>ciudad</i>, or city, but is merely denominated -<i>villa</i>, or town. In moments of national danger it exercises little -influence over the Peninsula: at the same time, from being the seat of -the court and government, and therefore the centre of patronage and -fashion, it attracts from all parts those who wish to make their -fortune; yet the capital has a hold on the ambition rather than on the -affections of the nation at large. The inhabitants of the different -provinces think, indeed, that Madrid is the greatest and richest court -in the world, but their hearts are in their native localities. “<i>Mi -paisano</i>,” my fellow-countryman, or rather my fellow-county-man, -fellow-parishioner, does not mean Spaniard, but Andalucian, Catalonian, -as the case may be. When a Spaniard is asked, Where do you come from? -the reply is, “<i>Soy hijo de Murcia—hijo de Granada</i>,” “I am a son of -Murcia—a son of Granada,” &c. This is strictly analogous to the -“Children of Israel,” the “Beni” of the Spanish Moors, and to this day -the Arabs of Cairo call themselves <i>children</i> of that town, “<i>Ibn el -Musr</i>,” &c.; and just as the Milesian Irishman is “a <i>boy</i> from -Tipperary,” &c., and ready to fight with any one who is so also, against -all who are not of that ilk; similar too is the clanship of the -Highlander; indeed, everywhere, not perhaps to the same extent as in -Spain, the being of the same province or town creates a powerful -freemasonry; the parties cling together like old school-fellows. It is a -<i>home</i> and really binding feeling. To the spot of their birth all their -recollections, comparisons, and eulogies<a name="page_004" id="page_004"></a> are turned; nothing to them -comes up to their particular province, that is, their real country. “<i>La -Patria</i>,” meaning Spain at large, is a subject of declamation, fine -words, <i>palabras</i>—palaver, in which all, like Orientals, delight to -indulge, and to which their grandiloquent idiom lends itself readily; -but their patriotism is parochial, and self is the centre of Spanish -gravity. Like the German, they may sing and spout about <i>Fatherland</i>: in -both cases the theory is splendid, but in practice each Spaniard thinks -his own province or town the best in the Peninsula, and himself the -finest fellow in it. From the earliest period down to the present all -observers have been struck with this <i>localism</i> as a salient feature in -the character of the Iberians, who never would amalgamate, never would, -as Strabo said, put their shields together—never would sacrifice their -own local private interest for the general good; on the contrary, in the -hour of need they had, as at present, a constant tendency to separate -into distinct <i>juntas</i>, “<i>collective</i>” assemblies, each of which only -thought of its own views, utterly indifferent to the injury thereby -occasioned to what ought to have been the common cause of all. Common -danger and interest scarcely can keep them together, the tendency of -each being rather to repel than to attract the other: the common enemy -once removed, they instantly fall to loggerheads among each other, -especially if there be any spoil to be divided: scarcely ever, as in the -East, can the energy of one individual bind the loose staves by the iron -power of a master mind; remove the band, and the centrifugal members -instantaneously disunite. Thus the virility and vitality of the noble -people have been neutralised: they have, indeed, strong limbs and honest -hearts; but, as in the Oriental parable, “a head” is wanting to direct -and govern: hence Spain is to-day, as it always has been, a bundle of -small bodies tied together by a rope of sand, and, being without union, -is also without strength, and has been beaten in detail. The much-used -phrase <i>Españolismo</i> expresses rather a “dislike of foreign dictation,” -and the “self-estimation” of Spaniards, <i>Españoles sobre todos</i>, than -any real patriotic love of country, however highly they rate its -excellences and superiority to every other one under heaven: this -opinion is condensed in one of those pithy proverbs which, nowhere more -than in Spain, are the exponents of popular sentiment:<a name="page_005" id="page_005"></a> it runs -thus,—“<i>Quien dice España, dice todo</i>,” which means, “Whoever says -Spain, says everything.” A foreigner may perhaps think this a trifle too -comprehensive and exclusive; but he will do well to express no doubts on -the subject, since he will only be set down by every native as either -jealous, envious, or ignorant, and probably all three.</p> - -<div class="sidenote">DISUNION OF SPANIARDS.</div> - -<div class="sidenote">ADMIRATION OF SPAIN.</div> - -<div class="sidenote">M. THIERS IN SPAIN.</div> - -<p>To boast of Spain’s strength, said the Duke of Wellington, is the -national weakness. Every infinitesimal particle which constitutes -<i>nosotros</i>, or ourselves, as Spaniards term themselves, will talk of his -country as if the armies were still led to victory by the mighty Charles -V., or the councils managed by Philip II. instead of Louis-Philippe. -Fortunate, indeed, was it, according to a Castilian preacher, that the -Pyrenees concealed Spain when the Wicked One tempted the Son of Man by -an offer of all the kingdoms of the world, and the glory of them. This, -indeed, was predicated in the mediæval or dark ages, but few peninsular -congregations, even in these enlightened times, would dispute the -inference. It was but the other day that a foreigner was relating in a -<i>tertulia</i>, or conversazione of Madrid, the well-known anecdote of -Adam’s revisit to the earth. The narrator explained how our first father -on lighting in Italy was perplexed and taken aback; how, on crossing the -Alps into Germany, he found nothing that he could understand—how -matters got darker and stranger at Paris, until on his reaching England -he was altogether lost, confounded, and abroad, being unable to make out -any thing. Spain was his next point, where, to his infinite -satisfaction, he found himself quite at home, so little had things -changed since his absence, or indeed since the sun at its creation first -shone over Toledo. The story concluded, a distinguished Spaniard, who -was present, hurt perhaps at the somewhat protestant-dissenting tone of -the speaker, gravely remarked, the rest of the party coinciding,—<i>Si, -Señor, y tenia razon; la España es Paradiso</i>—“Adam, Sir, was right, for -Spain is paradise;” and in many respects this worthy, zealous gentleman -was not wrong, although it is affirmed by some of his countrymen that -some portions of it are inhabited by persons not totally exempt from -original sin; thus the Valencians will say of their ravishing <i>huerta</i>, -or garden, <i>Es un paradiso habitado por demonios</i>,—“It is an Eden -peopled by subjects of his Satanic Majesty.<a name="page_006" id="page_006"></a>” Again, according to the -natives, Murcia, a land overflowing with milk and honey, where Flora and -Pomona dispute the prize with Ceres and Bacchus, possesses a <i>cielo y -suelo bueno, el entresuelo malo</i>, has “a sky and soil that are good, -while all between is indifferent;” which the <i>entresol</i> occupant must -settle to his liking.</p> - -<p>Another little anecdote, like a straw thrown up in the air, will point -out the direction in which the wind blows. Monsieur Thiers, the great -historical romance writer, in his recent hand-gallop tour through the -Peninsula, passed a few days only at Madrid; his mind being, as -logicians would say, of a <i>subjective</i> rather than an <i>objective</i> turn, -that is, disposed rather to the consideration of the <i>ego</i>, and to -things relating to self, than to those that do not, he scarcely looked -more at any thing there, than he did during his similar run through -London: “Behold,” said the Spaniards, “that little <i>gabacho</i>; he dares -not remain, nor raise his eyes from the ground in this land, whose vast -superiority wounds his personal and national vanity.” There is nothing -new in this. The old Castilian has an older saying:—<i>Si Dios no fuese -Dios, seria rey de las Españas, y el de Francia su cocinero</i>—“If God -were not God, he would make himself king of the Spains, with him of -France for his cook.” Lope de Vega, without derogating one jot from -these paradisiacal pretensions, used him of England better. His sonnet -on the romantic trip to Madrid ran thus:—</p> - -<div class="poem"><div class="stanza"> -<span class="i0">“Carlos Stuardo soy,<br /></span> -<span class="i2">Que siendo amor mi guia,<br /></span> -<span class="i1">Al <i>cielo de España</i> voy,<br /></span> -<span class="i2">Por ver mi estrella Maria.”<br /></span> -</div></div> - -<p class="nind">“I am Charles Stuart, who, with love for my guide, hasten to the heaven -Spain to see my star Mary.” The Virgin, it must be remembered, after -whom this infanta was named, is held by every Spaniard to be the -brightest luminary, and the sole empress of heaven.<a name="page_007" id="page_007"></a></p> - -<div class="sidenote">GEOGRAPHY OF SPAIN.</div> - -<h2><a name="CHAPTER_II" id="CHAPTER_II"></a>CHAPTER II.</h2> - -<div class="blockquot"><p class="c">The Geography of Spain—Zones—Mountains—The Pyrenees—The -Gabacho, and French Politics.</p></div> - -<p class="nind">F<small>ROM</small> Spain being the most southern country in Europe, it is very natural -that those who have never been there, and who in England criticise those -who have, should imagine the climate to be even more delicious than that -of Italy or Greece. This is far from being the fact; some, indeed, of -the sea coasts and sheltered plains in the S. and E. provinces are warm -in winter, and exposed to an almost African sun in summer, but the N. -and W. districts are damp and rainy for the greater part of the year, -while the interior is either cold and cheerless, or sunburnt and -wind-blown: winters have occurred at Madrid of such severity that -sentinels have been frozen to death; and frequently all communication is -suspended by the depth of the snow in the elevated roads over the -mountain passes of the Castiles. All, therefore, who are about to travel -through the Peninsula, are particularly cautioned to consider well their -line of route beforehand, and to select certain portions to be visited -at certain seasons, and thus avoid every local disadvantage.</p> - -<div class="sidenote">GENERAL VIEW OF SPAIN.</div> - -<p>One glance at a map of Europe will convey a clearer notion of the -relative position of Spain in regard to other countries than pages of -letter-press: this is an advantage which every schoolboy possesses over -the Plinys and Strabos of antiquity; the ancients were content to -compare the shape of the Peninsula to that of a bull’s hide, nor was the -comparison ill chosen in some respects. We will not weary readers with -details of latitude and longitude, but just mention that the whole -superficies of the Peninsula, including Portugal, contains upwards of -19,000 square leagues, of which somewhat more than 15,500 belong to -Spain; it is thus almost twice as large as the British Islands, and only -one-tenth smaller than France; the circumference or coast-line<a name="page_008" id="page_008"></a> is -estimated at 750 leagues. This compact and isolated territory, inhabited -by a fine, hardy, warlike population, ought, therefore, to have rivalled -France in military power, while its position between those two great -seas which command the commerce of the old and new world, its indented -line of coast, abounding in bays and harbours, offered every advantage -of vying with England in maritime enterprise.</p> - -<p>Nature has provided commensurate outlets for the infinite productions of -a country which is rich alike in everything that is to be found either -on the face or in the bowels of the earth; for the mines and quarries -abound with precious metals and marbles, from gold to iron, from the -agate to coal, while a fertile soil and every possible variety of -climate admit of unlimited cultivation of the natural productions of the -temperate or tropical zones: thus in the province of Granada the -sugar-cane and cotton-tree luxuriate at the base of ranges which are -covered with eternal snow: a wide range is thus afforded to the -botanist, who may ascend by zones, through every variety of vegetable -strata, from the hothouse plant growing wild, to the hardiest lichen. It -has, indeed, required the utmost ingenuity and bad government of man to -neutralise the prodigality of advantages which Providence has lavished -on this highly favoured land, and which, while under the dominion of the -Romans and Moors, resembled an Eden, a garden of plenty and delight, -when in the words of an old author, there was nothing idle, nothing -barren in Spain—“nihil otiosum, nihil sterile in Híspaniâ.” A sad -change has come over this fair vision, and now the bulk of the Peninsula -offers a picture of neglect and desolation, moral and physical, which it -is painful to contemplate: the face of nature and the mind of man have -too often been dwarfed and curtailed of their fair proportions; they -have either been neglected and their inherent fertility allowed to run -into vice and luxuriant weeds, which it will show against any country in -the world, or their energies have been misdirected, and a capability of -all good converted into an element equally powerful for evil; but pride -and laziness are here as everywhere the keys to poverty, <i>altivez y -pereza, llaves de pobreza</i>.</p> - -<div class="sidenote">CLIMATE AND ELEVATION OF SPAIN.</div> - -<p>The geological construction of Spain is very peculiar, and unlike that -of most other countries; it is almost one mountain or<a name="page_009" id="page_009"></a> agglomeration of -mountains, as those of our countrymen who are speculating in Spanish -railroads are just beginning to discover. The interior rises on every -side from the sea, and the central portions are higher than any other -table-lands in Europe, ranging on an average from two to three thousand -feet above the level of the sea, while from this elevated plain chains -of mountains rise again to a still greater height. Madrid, which stands -on this central plateau, is situated about 2000 feet above the level of -Naples, which lies in the same latitude; the mean temperature of Madrid -is 59°, while that of Naples is 63° 30´; it is to this difference of -elevation that the extraordinary difference of climate and vegetable -productions between the two capitals is to be ascribed. Fruits which -flourish on the coasts of Provence and Genoa, which lie four degrees -more to the north than any portion of Spain, are rarely to be met with -in the elevated interior of the Peninsula: on the other hand, the low -and sunny maritime belts abound with productions of a tropical -vegetation. The mountainous character and general aspect of the coast -are nearly analogous throughout the circuit which extends from the -Basque Provinces to Cape Finisterre; and offer a remarkable contrast to -those sunny alluvial plains which extend, more or less, from Cadiz to -Barcelona, and which closely resemble each other in vegetable -productions, such as the fig, orange, pomegranate, aloe, and carob tree, -which grow everywhere in profusion, except in those parts where the -mountains come down abruptly into the sea itself. Again, the central -districts, composed of vast plains and steppes, <i>Parameras, Tierras de -campo, y Secanos</i>, closely resemble each other in their monotonous -denuded aspect, in their scarcity of fruit and timber, and their -abundance of cereal productions.</p> - -<div class="sidenote">ZONES OF SPAIN.</div> - -<p>Spanish geographers have divided the Peninsula into seven distinct -chains of mountains. These commence with the Pyrenees and end with the -Bætican or Andalucian ranges: these <i>cordilleras</i>, or lines of lofty -ridges, arise on each side of intervening plains, which once formed the -basins of internal lakes, until the accumulated waters, by bursting -through the obstructions by which they were dammed up, found a passage -to the ocean: the dip or inclination of the country lies from the east -towards the west, and, accordingly, the chief rivers which form<a name="page_010" id="page_010"></a> the -drains and principal water-sheds of the greater parts of the surface, -flow into the Atlantic: their courses, like the basins through which -they pass, lie in a transversal and almost a parallel direction; thus -the Duero, the Tagus, the Guadiana, and the Guadalquivir, all flow into -their recipient between their distinct chains of mountains. The sources -of the supply to these leading arteries arise in the longitudinal range -of elevations which descends all through the Peninsula, approaching -rather to the eastern than to the western coast, whereby a considerably -greater length is obtained by each of these four rivers, when compared -to the Ebro, which disembogues in the Mediterranean.</p> - -<p>The Moorish geographer Alrasi was the first to take difference of -climate as the rule of dividing the Peninsula into distinct portions; -and modern authorities, carrying out this idea, have drawn an imaginary -line, which runs north-east to south-west, thus separating the Peninsula -into the northern, or the boreal and temperate, and the southern or the -torrid, and subdividing these two into four zones: nor is this division -altogether fanciful, for there is no caprice or mistake in tests derived -from the vegetable world; manners may make man, but the sun alone -modifies the plant: man may be fused down by social appliances into one -uniform mass, but the rude elements are not to be civilized, nor can -nature be made cosmopolitan, which heaven forfend.</p> - -<div class="sidenote">ZONES OF SPAIN.</div> - -<p><i>The first or northern zone</i> is the <i>Cantabrian</i>, the European; this -portion skirts the base of the Pyrenees, and includes portions of -Catalonia, Arragon, and Navarre, the Basque provinces, the Asturias, and -Gallicia. This is the region of humidity, and as the winters are long, -and the springs and autumns rainy, it should only be visited in the -summer. It is a country of hill and dale, is intersected by numerous -streams which abound in fish, and which irrigate rich meadows for -pastures. The valleys form the now improving dairy country of Spain, -while the mountains furnish the most valuable and available timber of -the Peninsula. In some parts corn will scarcely ripen, while in others, -in addition to the cerealia, cider and an ordinary wine are produced. It -is inhabited by a hardy, independent, and rarely subdued population, -since the mountainous country offers<a name="page_011" id="page_011"></a> natural means of defence to brave -highlanders. It is useless to attempt the conquest with a small army, -while a large one would find no means of support in the hungry -localities.</p> - -<p><i>The second zone</i> is the Iberian or eastern, which, in its maritime -portions, is more Asiatic than European, and where the lower classes -partake of the Greek and Carthaginian character, being false, cruel, and -treacherous, yet lively, ingenious, and fond of pleasure: this portion -commences at Burgos, and includes the southern portion of Catalonia and -Arragon, with parts of Castile, Valencia, and Murcia. The sea-coasts -should be visited in the spring and autumn, when they are delicious; but -they are intensely hot in the summer, and infested with myriads of -muskitoes. The districts about Burgos are among the coldest in Spain, -and the thermometer sinks very much below the ordinary average of our -more temperate climate; and as they have little at any time to attract -the traveller, he will do well to avoid them except during the summer -months. The population is grave, sober, and Castilian. The elevation is -very considerable; thus the upper valley of the Miño and some of the -north-western portions of Old Castile and Leon are placed more than 6000 -feet above the level of the sea, and the frosts often last for three -months at a time.</p> - -<div class="sidenote">GENERAL DROUGHT OF SPAIN.</div> - -<p><i>The third zone</i> is the Lusitanian, or western, which is by far the -largest, and includes the central parts of Spain and all Portugal. The -interior of this portion, and especially the provinces of the two -Castiles and La Mancha, both in the physical condition of the soil and -the moral qualities of the inhabitants, presents a very unfavourable -view of the Peninsula, as these inland steppes are burnt up by summer -suns, and are tempest and wind-rent during winter. The general absence -of trees, hedges, and enclosures exposes these wide unprotected plains -to the rage and violence of the elements: poverty-stricken mud houses, -scattered here and there in the desolate extent, afford a wretched home -to a poor, proud, and ignorant population; but these localities, which -offer in themselves neither pleasure nor profit to the stranger, contain -many sites and cities of the highest interest, which none who wish to -understand Spain can possibly pass by unnoticed. The best periods for -visiting this portion of Spain are May and June, or September and -October.<a name="page_012" id="page_012"></a></p> - -<p>The more western districts of this Lusitanian zone are not so -disagreeable. There in the uplands the ilex and chesnut abound, while -the rich plains produce vast harvests of corn, and the vineyards -powerful red wines. The central table-land, which closely resembles the -plateau of Mexico, forms nearly one-half of the entire area of the -Peninsula. The peculiarity of the climate is its dryness; it is not, -however, unhealthy, being free from the agues and fevers which are -prevalent in the lower plains, river-swamps, and rice-grounds of parts -of Valencia and Andalucia. Rain, indeed, is so comparatively scarce on -this table-land, that the annual quantity on an average does not amount -to more than ten inches. The least quantity falls in the mountain -regions near Guadalupe, and on the high plains of Cuenca and Murcia, -where sometimes eight or nine months pass without a drop falling. The -occasional thunder-storms do but just lay the dust, since here moisture -dries up quicker even than woman’s tears. The face of the earth is -tanned, tawny, and baked into a veritable terra cotta: everything seems -dead and burnt on a funeral pile. It is all but a miracle how the -principle of life in the green herb is preserved, since the very grass -appears scorched and dead; yet when once the rains set in, vegetation -springs up, phœnix-like, from the ashes, and bursts forth in an -inconceivable luxuriance and life. The ripe seeds which have fallen on -the soil are called into existence, carpeting the desert with verdure, -gladdening the eye with flowers, and intoxicating the senses with -perfume. The thirsty chinky dry earth drinks in these genial showers, -and then rising like a giant refreshed with wine, puts forth all its -strength; and what vegetation is, where moisture is combined with great -heat, cannot even be guessed at in lands of stinted suns. The periods of -rains are the winter and spring, and when these are plentiful, all kinds -of grain, and in many places wines, are produced in abundance. The -olive, however, is only to be met with in a few favoured localities.</p> - -<div class="sidenote">GEOGRAPHY OF SPAIN.</div> - -<p><i>The fourth zone</i> is the Bætican, which is the most southern and -African; it coasts the Mediterranean, basking at the foot of the -mountains which rise behind and form the mass of the Peninsula: this -mural barrier offers a sure protection against the cold winds which -sweep across the central region. Nothing can<a name="page_013" id="page_013"></a> be more striking than the -descent from the table elevations into these maritime strips; in a few -hours the face of nature is completely changed, and the traveller passes -from the climate and vegetation of Europe into that of Africa. This -region is characterised by a dry burning atmosphere during a large part -of the year. The winters are short and temperate, and consist rather in -rain than in cold, for in the sunny valleys ice is scarcely known except -for eating; the springs and autumns delightful beyond all conception. -Much of the cultivation depends on artificial irrigation, which was -carried by the Moors to the highest perfection: indeed water, under this -forcing, vivifying sun, is the blood of the earth, and synonymous with -fertility: the productions are tropical; sugar, cotton, rice, the -orange, lemon, and date. The <i>algarrobo</i>, the carob tree, and the -<i>adelfa</i>, the oleander, may be considered as forming boundary marks -between this the <i>tierra caliente</i>, or torrid district, and the colder -regions by which it is encompassed.</p> - -<p>Such are the geographical divisions of nature with which the vegetable -and animal productions are closely connected; and we shall presently -enter somewhat more fully into the <i>climate</i> of Spain, of which the -natives are as proud as if they had made it themselves. This Bætican -zone, Andalucia, which contains in itself many of the most interesting -cities, sites, and natural beauties of the Peninsula, will always take -precedence in any plan of the traveller, and each of these points has -its own peculiar attractions. These embrace a wide range of varied -scenery and objects; and Andalucia, easy of access, may be gone over -almost at every portion of the year. The winters may be spent at Cadiz, -Seville, or Malaga; the summers in the cool mountains of Ronda, Aracena, -or Granada. April, May, and June, or September, October, and November, -are, however, the most preferable. Those who go in the spring should -reserve June for the mountains; those who go in the autumn should -reverse the plan, and commence with Ronda and Granada, ending with -Seville and Cadiz.</p> - -<div class="sidenote">SPANISH MOUNTAINS.</div> - -<p>Spain, it has thus been shown, is one mountain, or rather a jumble of -mountains,—for the principal and secondary ranges are all more or less -connected with each other, and descend in a serpentising direction -throughout the Peninsula, with a general<a name="page_014" id="page_014"></a> inclination to the west. -Nature, by thus dislocating the country, seems to have suggested, nay, -almost to have forced, localism and isolation to the inhabitants, who -each in their valleys and districts are shut off from their neighbours, -whom to love, they are enjoined in vain.</p> - -<p>The internal communication of the Peninsula, which is thus divided by -the mountain-walls, is effected by some good roads, few and far between, -and which are carried over the most convenient points, where the natural -dips are the lowest, and the ascents and descents the most practicable. -These passes are called <i>Puertos</i>—<i>portæ</i>, or gates. There are, indeed, -mule-tracks and goat-paths over other and intermediate portions of the -chain, but they are difficult and dangerous, and being seldom provided -with ventas or villages, are fitter for smugglers and bandits than -honest men: the farthest and fairest way about will always be found the -best and shortest road.</p> - -<p>The Spanish mountains in general have a dreary and harsh character, yet -not without a certain desolate sublimity: the highest are frequently -capped with snow, which glistens in the clear sky. They are rarely clad -with forest trees; the scarped and denuded ridges cut with a serrated -outline the clean clear blue sky. The granitic masses soar above the -green valley or yellow corn-plains in solitary state, like the castles -of a feudal baron, that lord it over all below, with which they are too -proud to have aught in common. These mountains are seen to greatest -advantage at the rise and setting of the sun, for during the day the -vertical rays destroy all form by removing shadows.</p> - -<div class="sidenote">THE PYRENEES.</div> - -<p>These geographical peculiarities of Spain, and particularly the -existence of the great central elevation, when once attained are apt to -be forgotten. The country rises from the coast, directly in the -north-western provinces, and in some of the southern and eastern, with -an intervening alluvial strip and swell: but when once the ascent is -accomplished, no <i>real</i> descent ever takes place—we are then on the -summit of a vast elevated mass. The roads indeed <i>apparently</i> ascend and -descend, but the mean height is seldom diminished: the interior hills or -plains are undulations of one mountain. The traveller is often deceived -at the apparent low level of snow-clad ranges, such as the Guadarrama; -this will be accounted for by adding the great elevation of their bases<a name="page_015" id="page_015"></a> -above the level of the sea. The palace of the Escorial, which is placed -at the foot of the Guadarrama, and at the head of a seeming plain, -stands in reality at 2725 feet above Valencia, while the summer -residence of the king at <i>La Granja</i>, in the same chain, is thirty feet -higher than the summit of Vesuvius. This, indeed, is a castle in the -air—a château en Espagne, and worthy of the most German potentate to -whom that element belongs, as the sea does to Britannia. The mean -temperature on the plateau of Spain is as 15° Réaumur, while that of the -coast is as 18° and 19°, in addition to the protection from cutting -winds which their mountainous backgrounds afford; nor is the traveller -less deceived as regards the heights of the interior mountains than he -is with the champaigns, or table-land plains. The eye wanders over a -vast level extent bounded only by the horizon, or a faint blue line of -other distant sierras; this space, which appears one townless level, is -intersected with deep ravines, <i>barrancos</i>, in which villages lie -concealed, and streams, <i>arroyos</i>, flow unperceived. Another important -effect of this central elevation is the searching dryness and -rarefication of the air. It is often highly prejudicial to strangers; -the least exposure, which is very tempting under a burning sun, will -often bring on ophthalmia, irritable colics, and inflammatory diseases -of the lungs and vital organs. Such are the causes of the <i>pulmonia</i>, -which carries off the invalid in a few days, and is the disease of -Madrid. The frozen blasts descending from the snow-clad Guadarrama catch -the incautious passenger at the turning of streets which are roasting -under a fierce sun. Is it to be wondered at, that this capital should be -so very insalubrious? in winter you are frozen alive, in summer baked. A -man taking a walk for the benefit of his health, crosses with his pores -open from an oven to an ice-house; catch-cold introduces the Spanish -doctor, who soon in his turn presents the undertaker.</p> - -<div class="sidenote">THE PYRENEES</div> - -<p>As the Pyrenees possess an European interest at this moment when the -Napoleon of Peace proposes to annihilate their existence, which defied -Louis XIV. and Buonaparte, some details may be not unacceptable. This -gigantic barrier, which divides Spain and France, is connected with the -dorsal chain which comes down from Tartary and Asia. It stretches far -beyond the transversal spine, for the mountains of the Basque -Provinces,<a name="page_016" id="page_016"></a> Asturias, and Gallicia, are its continuation. The Pyrenees, -properly speaking, extend E. to W., in length about 270 miles, being -both broadest and highest in the central portions, where the width is -about 60 miles, and the elevations exceed 11,000 feet. The spurs and -offsets of this great transversal spine penetrate on both sides into the -lateral valleys like ribs from a back-bone. The central nucleus slopes -gradually E. to the gentle Mediterranean, and W. to the fierce Atlantic, -in a long uneven swell.</p> - -<p>This range of mountains was called by the Romans <i>Montes</i> and <i>Saltus -Pyrenei</i>, and by the Greeks <span title="Greek: Purênê">Πυρηνη</span>, probably from a local -Iberian word, but which they, as usual, catching at sound, not sense, -connected with their <span title="Greek: Pur">Πυρ</span>, and then bolstered up their erroneous -derivation by a legend framed to fit the name, asserting that it either -alluded to <i>a fire</i> through which certain precious metals were -discovered, or because the lofty summits were often struck with -lightning, and dislocated by the volcanos. According to the Iberians, -Hercules, when on his way to “lift” Geryon’s cattle, was hospitably -received by Bebryx, a petty ruler in these mountains; whereupon the -demigod got drunk, and ravished his host’s daughter <i>Pyrene</i>, who died -of grief, when Hercules, sad and sober, made the whole range re-echo -with her name; a legend which, like some others in Spain, requires -confirmation, for the Phœnicians called these ranges <i>Purani</i>, from -the forests, <i>Pura</i> meaning wood in Hebrew. The Basques have, of course, -their etymology, some saying that the real root is <i>Biri</i>, an elevation, -while others prefer <i>Bierri enac</i>, the “two countries,” which, separated -by the range, were ruled by Tubal; but when Spaniards once begin with -Tubal, the best plan is to shut the book.</p> - -<div class="sidenote">THE GABACHO.</div> - -<p>The <i>Maledêta</i> is the loftiest peak, although the <i>Pico del Mediodia</i> -and the <i>Canigú</i>, because rising at once out of plains and therefore -having the greatest apparent altitudes, were long considered to be the -highest; but now these French usurpers are dethroned. Seen from a -distance, the range appears to be one mountain-ridge, with broken -pinnacles, but, in fact, it consists of two distinct lines, which are -parallel, but not continuous. The one which commences at the ocean is -the most forward, being at least 30 miles more in advance towards the -south than<a name="page_017" id="page_017"></a> the corresponding line, which commences from the -Mediterranean. The centre is the point of dislocation, and here the -ramifications and reticulations are the most intricate, as it is the -key-stone of the system, which is buttressed up by <i>Las Tres Sorellas</i>, -the three sisters <i>Monte Perdido</i>, <i>Cylindro</i>, and <i>Marboré</i>. Here is -the source of the Garonne, <i>La Garona</i>; here the scenery is the -grandest, and the lateral valleys the longest and widest. The smaller -spurs enclose valleys, down each of which pours a stream: thus the Ebro, -Garona, and Bidasoa are fed from the mountain source. These tributaries -are generally called in France <i>Gaves</i>,<a name="FNanchor_1_1" id="FNanchor_1_1"></a><a href="#Footnote_1_1" class="fnanchor">[1]</a> and in some parts on the -Spanish side <i>Gabas</i>; but <i>Gav</i> signifies a “river,” and may be traced -in our <i>Avon</i>; and Humboldt derives it from the Basque <i>Gav</i>, a “hollow -or ravine;” cavus. The parting of these waters, or their flowing down -either N. or S., should naturally mark the line of division between -France and Spain: such, however, is not the case, as part of <i>Cerdaña</i> -belongs to France, while <i>Aran</i> belongs to Spain; thus each country -possesses a key in its neighbour’s territory. It is singular that this -obvious inconvenience should not have been remedied by some exchange -when the long-disputed boundary-question was settled between Charles IV. -and the French republic.</p> - -<div class="sidenote">THE PYRENEES.</div> - -<p>Most of the passes over this Alpine barrier are impracticable for -carriages, and remain much in the same state as in the time<a name="page_018" id="page_018"></a> of the -Moors, who from them called the Pyrenean range <i>Albort</i>, from the Roman -<i>Portæ</i>, the ridge of “gates.” Many of the wild passes are only known to -the natives and smugglers, and are often impracticable from the snow; -while even in summer they are dangerous, being exposed to mists and the -hurricanes of mighty rushing winds. The two best carriageable lines of -inter-communication are placed at each extremity: that to the west -passes through Irun; that to the east through Figueras.</p> - -<p>The Spanish Pyrenees offer few attractions to the lovers of the fleshly -comforts of cities; but the scenery, sporting, geology, and botany are -truly Alpine, and will well repay those who can “rough it” considerably. -The contrast which the unfrequented Spanish side offers to the crowded -opposite one is great. In Spain the mountains themselves are less -abrupt, less covered with snow, while the numerous and much frequented -baths in the French Pyrenees have created roads, diligences, hotels, -tables-d’hôte, cooks, Ciceronis, donkeys, and so forth; for the Badauds -de Paris who babble about green fields and <i>des belles horreurs</i>, but -who seldom go beyond the immediate vicinity and hackneyed “lions.” A -want of good taste and real perception of the sublime and beautiful is -nowhere more striking, says Mr. Erskine Murray, than on the French side, -where mankind remains profoundly ignorant of the real beauties of the -Pyrenees, which have been chiefly explored by the English, who love -nature with all their heart and soul, who worship her alike in her -shyest retreats and in her wildest forms. Nevertheless, on the north -side many comforts and appliances for the tourist are to be had; nay, -invalids and ladies in search of the picturesque can ascend to the -<i>Brèche de Roland</i>. Once, however, cross the frontier, and a sudden -change comes over all facilities of locomotion. Stern is the first -welcome of the “hard land of Iberia,” scarce is the food for body or -mind, and deficient the accommodation for man or beast, and simply -because there is small demand for either. No Spaniard ever comes here -for pleasure; hence the localities are given up to the smuggler and -izard.</p> - -<div class="sidenote">FRENCH POLICY.</div> - -<p>The Oriental inæsthetic incuriousness for <i>things</i>, old stones, wild -scenery, &c., is increased by political reasons and fears. The -neighbour, from the time of the Celt down to to-day, has ever been the -coveter, ravager, and terror of Spain: her “knavish tricks,<a name="page_019" id="page_019"></a>” fire and -rapine are too numerous to be blinked or written away, too atrocious to -be forgiven: to revenge becomes a sacred duty. However governments may -change, the policy of France is immutable. Perfidy, backed by violence, -“ruse doublée de force,” is the state maxim from Louis XIV. and -Buonaparte down to Louis-Philippe: the principle is the same, whether -the instrument employed be the sword or wedding ring. The weaker Spain -is thus linked in the embrace of her stronger neighbour, and has been -made alternately her dupe and victim, and degraded into becoming a mere -satellite, to be dragged along by fiery Mars. France has forced her to -share all her bad fortune, but never has permitted her to participate in -her success. Spain has been tied to the car of her defeats, but never -has been allowed to mount it in the day of triumph. Her friendship has -always tended to denationalise Spain, and by entailing the forced enmity -of England, has caused to her the loss of her navies and colonies in the -new world.</p> - -<p>“The Pyrenean boundary,” says the Duke of Wellington, “is the most -vulnerable frontier of France, probably the only vulnerable one;” -accordingly she has always endeavoured to dismantle the Spanish defences -and to foster insurrections and <i>pronunciamientos</i> in Catalonia, for -Spain’s infirmity is her opportunity, and therefore the “sound policy” -of the rest of Europe is to see Spain strong, independent, and able to -hold her own Pyrenean key.</p> - -<div class="sidenote">THE PYRENEES.</div> - -<p>While France therefore has improved her means of approach and invasion, -Spain, to whom the past is prophetic of the future, has raised -obstacles, and has left her protecting barrier as broken and hungry as -when planned by her tutelar divinity. Nor are her highlanders more -practicable than their granite fastnesses. Here dwell the smuggler, the -rifle sportsman, and all who defy the law: here is bred the hardy -peasant, who, accustomed to scale mountains and fight wolves, becomes a -ready raw material for the <i>guerrilleros</i>, and none were ever more -formidable to Rome or France than those marshalled in these glens by -Sertorius and Mina. When the tocsin bell rings out, a hornet swarm of -armed men, the weed of the hills, starts up from every rock and brake. -The hatred of the Frenchman, which the Duke said formed “part of a -Spaniard’s nature,” seems to increase in intensity in proportion to -vicinity, for as they touch, so they fret<a name="page_020" id="page_020"></a> and rub each other: here it -is the antipathy of an antithesis; the incompatibility of the saturnine -and slow, with the mercurial and rapid; of the proud, enduring, and -ascetic, against the vain, the fickle, and sensual; of the enemy of -innovation and change, to the lover of variety and novelty; and however -tyrants and tricksters may assert in the gilded galleries of Versailles -that <i>Il n’y a plus de Pyrénées</i>, this party-wall of Alps, this barrier -of snow and hurricane, does and will exist for ever: placed there by -Providence, as was said by the Gothic prelate Saint Isidore, they ever -have forbidden and ever will forbid the banns of an unnatural alliance, -as in the days of Silius Italicus:</p> - -<div class="poem"><div class="stanza"> -<span class="i0">“Pyrene celsâ nimbosi verticis arce<br /></span> -<span class="i1">Divisos Celtis laté prospectat Hiberos<br /></span> -<span class="i1">Atque æterna tenet magnis <i>divortia</i> terris.”<br /></span> -</div></div> - -<p>If the eagle of Buonaparte could never build in the Arragonese Sierra, -the lily of the Bourbon assuredly will not take root in the Castilian -plain; so sings Ariosto:</p> - -<div class="poem"><div class="stanza"> -<span class="i0">—— “Che non lice<br /></span> -<span class="i0">Che ’l giglio in quel terreno habbia radice!”<br /></span> -</div></div> - -<div class="sidenote">THE PYRENEES.</div> - -<p>This inveterate condition either of pronounced hostility, or at best of -armed neutrality, has long rendered these localities disagreeable to the -man of the note-book. The rugged mountain frontiers consist of a series -of secluded districts, which constitute the entire world to the natives, -who seldom go beyond the natural walls by which they are bounded, except -to smuggle. This vocation is the curse of the country; it fosters a wild -reliance on self-defence, a habit of border foray and insurrection, -which seems as necessary to them as a moral excitement and combustible -element, as carbon and hydrogen are in their physical bodies. Their -habitual suspicion against prying foreigners, which is an Oriental and -Iberian instinct, converts a curious traveller into a spy or partisan. -Spanish authorities, who seldom do these things except on compulsion, -cannot understand the gratuitous braving of hardship and danger for its -own sake—the botanizing and geologizing, &c., of the nature and -adventure-loving English. The <i>impertinente curioso</i> may possibly escape -observation in a Spanish city and crowd, but in these lonely hills it is -out of the question: he is the observed of all observers; and they, -from<a name="page_021" id="page_021"></a> long smuggling and sporting habits, are always on the look-out, -and are keen-sighted as hawks, gipseys, and beasts of prey. Latterly -some who, by being placed immediately under the French boundary, have -seen the glitter of our tourists’ coin, have become more humanized, and -anxious to obtain a share in the profits of the season.</p> - -<div class="sidenote">THE PYRENEES.</div> - -<p>The geology and botany have yet to be properly investigated. In the -metal-pregnant Pyrenees rude forges of iron abound, but everything is -conducted on a small, unscientific scale, and probably after the -unchanged primitive Iberian system. Fuel is scarce, and transport of -ores on muleback expensive. The iron is at once inferior to the English -and much dearer: the tools and implements used on both sides of the -Pyrenees are at least a century behind ours; while absurd tariffs, which -prevent the importation of a cheaper and better article, retard -improvements in agriculture and manufactures, and perpetuate poverty and -ignorance among backward, half-civilised populations. The timber, -moreover, has suffered much from the usual neglect, waste, and -improvidence of the natives, who destroy more than they consume, and -never replant. The sporting in these lonely wild districts is excellent, -for where man seldom penetrates the feræ naturæ multiply: the bear is, -however, getting scarce, as a premium is placed on every head destroyed. -The grand object is the <i>Cabra Montanez</i>, or <i>Rupicapra</i>, German -Steinbock, the Bouquetin of the French, the Izard (<i>Ibex</i>, becco, bouc, -bock, buck). The fascination of this pursuit, like that of the Chamois -in Switzerland, leads to constant and even fatal accidents, as this shy -animal lurks in almost inaccessible localities, and must be stalked with -the nicest skill. The sporting on the north side is far inferior, as the -cooks of the table-d’hôtes have waged a <i>guerra al cuchillo</i>, a war to -the knife, and fork too, against even <i>les petits oiseaux</i>; but your -French <i>artiste</i> persecutes even minnows, as all <i>sport</i> and fair play -is scouted, and everything gives way for the pot. The Spaniards, less -mechanical and gastronomic, leave the feathered and finny tribes in -comparative peace. Accordingly the streams abound with trout, and those -which flow into the Atlantic with salmon. The lofty Pyrenees are not -only alembics of cool crystal streams, but contain, like the heart of -Sappho, sources of warm springs under a bosom of snow. The most<a name="page_022" id="page_022"></a> -celebrated issue on the north side, or at least those which are the most -known and frequented, for the Spaniard is a small bather, and no great -drinker of medicinal waters. Accommodations at the baths on his side -scarcely exist, while even those in France are paltry when compared to -the spas of Germany, and dirty and indecent when contrasted with those -of England. The scenery is alpine, a jumble of mountain, precipice, -glacier, and forest, enlivened by the cataract or hurricane. The -natives, when not smugglers or <i>guerrilleros</i>, are rude, simple, and -pastoral: they are poor and picturesque, as people are who dwell in -mountains. <i>Plains</i> which produce “bread stuffs” may be richer, but what -can a traveller or painter do with their monotonous commonplace?</p> - -<p>In these wild tracts the highlanders in summer lead their flocks up to -mountain huts and dwell with their cattle, struggling against poverty -and wild beasts, and endeavouring really to keep the wolf from the door: -their watch-dogs are magnificent; the sheep are under admirable -control—being, as it were, in the presence of the enemy, they know the -voice of their shepherds, or rather the peculiar whistle and cry: their -wool is largely smuggled into France, and when manufactured in the shape -of coarse cloth is then re-smuggled back again.<a name="page_023" id="page_023"></a></p> - -<div class="sidenote">THE RIVERS OF SPAIN.</div> - -<h2><a name="CHAPTER_III" id="CHAPTER_III"></a>CHAPTER III.</h2> - -<div class="blockquot"><p class="c">The Rivers of Spain—Bridges—Navigation—The Ebro and Tagus.</p></div> - -<div class="sidenote">SPANISH RIVERS.</div> - -<p class="nind">T<small>HERE</small> are six great rivers in Spain,—the arteries which run between the -seven mountain chains, the vertebræ of the geological skeleton. These -water-sheds are each intersected in their extent by others on a minor -scale, by valleys and indentations, in each of which runs its own -stream. Thus the rains and melted snows are all collected in an infinity -of ramifications, and are carried by these tributary conduits into one -of the main trunks, which all, with the exception of the Ebro, empty -themselves into the Atlantic. The Duero and Tagus, unfortunately for -Spain, disembogue in Portugal, and thus become a portion of a foreign -dominion exactly where their commercial importance is the greatest. -Philip II. saw the true value of the possession of an angle which -rounded Spain, and insured to her the possession of these valuable -outlets of internal produce, and inlets for external commerce. Portugal -annexed to Spain gave more real power to his throne than the dominion of -entire continents across the Atlantic, and is the secret object of every -Spanish government’s ambition. The <i>Miño</i>, which is the shortest of -these rivers, runs through a bosom of fertility. The <i>Tajo</i>, Tagus, -which the fancy of poets has sanded with gold and embanked with roses, -tracks much of its dreary way through rocks and comparative barrenness. -The <i>Guadiana</i> creeps through lonely Estremadura, infecting the low -plains with miasma. The <i>Guadalquivir</i> eats out its deep banks amid the -sunny olive-clad regions of Andalucia, as the Ebro divides the levels of -Arragon. Spain abounds with brackish streams, <i>Salados</i>, and with -salt-mines, or saline deposits after the evaporation of the sea-waters; -indeed, the soil of the central portions is so strongly impregnated with -“villainous saltpetre,” that the small province of La Mancha alone could -furnish materials to blow up the world; the surface of these<a name="page_024" id="page_024"></a> regions, -always arid, is every day becoming more so, from the singular antipathy -which the inhabitants of the interior have against trees. There is -nothing to check the power of rapid evaporation, no shelter to protect -or preserve moisture. The soil becomes more and more parched and dried -up, insomuch that in some parts it has almost ceased to be available for -cultivation: another serious evil, which arises from want of -plantations, is, that the slopes of hills are everywhere liable to -constant denudation of soil after heavy rain. There is nothing to break -the descent of the water; hence the naked, barren stone summits of many -of the sierras, which have been pared and peeled of every particle -capable of nourishing vegetation: they are skeletons where life is -extinct; not only is the soil thus lost, but the detritus washed down -either forms bars at the mouths of rivers, or chokes up and raises their -beds; they are thus rendered liable to overflow their banks, and convert -the adjoining plains into pestilential swamps. The supply of water, -which is afforded by periodical rains, and which ought to support the -reservoirs of rivers, is carried off at once in violent floods, rather -than in a gentle gradual disembocation. From its mountainous character -Spain has very few lakes, as the fall is too considerable to allow water -to accumulate; the exceptions which do exist might with greater -propriety be termed lochs—not that they are to be compared in size or -beauty to some of those in Scotland. The volume in the principal rivers -of Spain has diminished, and is diminishing; thus some which once were -navigable, are so no longer, while the artificial canals which were to -have been substituted remain unfinished: the progress of deterioration -advances, while little is done to counteract or amend what every year -must render more difficult and expensive, while the means of repair and -correction will diminish in equal proportion, from the poverty -occasioned by the evil, and by the fearful extent which it will be -allowed to attain. However, several grand water-companies have been -lately formed, who are to dig Artesian wells, finish canals, navigate -rivers with steamers, and <i>issue shares at a premium</i>, which will be -effected if nothing else is.</p> - -<div class="sidenote">SPANISH BRIDGES.</div> - -<p>The rivers which are really adapted to navigation are, however, only -those which are perpetually fed by those tributary streams that flow -down from mountains which are covered with<a name="page_025" id="page_025"></a> snow all the year, and these -are not many. The majority of Spanish rivers are very scanty of water -during the summer time, and very rapid in their flow when filled by -rains or melting snow: during these periods they are impracticable for -boats. They are, moreover, much exhausted by being drained off, -<i>sangrado</i>—that is, bled, for the purposes of artificial irrigation; -thus, at Madrid and Valencia, the wide beds of the Manzanares and the -Turia are frequently dry as the sands of the seashore when the tide is -out. They seem only to be entitled to be called rivers by courtesy, -because they have so many and such splendid bridges; as numerous are the -jokes cut by the newly-arrived stranger, who advises the townsfolk to -sell one of them to purchase water, or compares their thirsting arches -to the rich man in torments, who prays for one drop; but a heavy rain in -the mountains soon shows the necessity for their strength and length, -for their wide and lofty arches, their buttress-like piers, which before -had appeared to be rather the freaks of architectural magnificence than -the works of public utility. Those who live in a comparatively level -country can scarcely form an idea of the rapidity and fearful -destruction of the river inundations in this land of mountains. The -deluge rolls forth in an avalanche, the rising water coming down tier -above tier like a flight of steps let loose. These tides carry -everything before them—scarring and gullying up the earth, tearing down -rocks, trees, and houses, and strewing far and wide the relics of ruin; -but the fierce fury is short-lived, and is spent in its own violence; -thus the traveller at Madrid, if he wishes to see its Thames, should run -down or take the ’bus as he can, when it rains, or the river will be -gone before he gets there. When the Spaniards, under those blockheads -Blake and Cuesta, lost the battle of <i>Rio Seco</i>, which gave Madrid to -Buonaparte, the French soldiers, in crossing the <i>dry river</i> bed in -pursuit of the fugitives, exclaimed,—“Why Spanish rivers run away too!”</p> - -<div class="sidenote">THE EBRO.</div> - -<p>Many of these beds serve in remote districts, where highways and bridges -are thought to be superfluous luxuries, for the double purposes of a -river when there is water in them, and as a road when there is not. -Again, in this land of anomalies, some streams have no bridges, while -other bridges have no streams; the most remarkable of these <i>pontes -asinorum</i> is at Coria, where<a name="page_026" id="page_026"></a> the Alagon is crossed at an inconvenient, -and often dangerous ferry, while a noble bridge of five arches stands -high and dry in the meadows close by. This has arisen from the river -having quitted its old channel in some inundation; or, as Spaniards say, -<i>salido de su madre</i>, gone out from its mother, who does not seem to -know that it is out, or certainly does not care, since no steps have -ever been taken by the Corians to coax it back again under its old -arches; they call on Hercules to turn this Alpheus, and rely in the -meantime on their proverb, that all fickle, unfaithful rivers repent and -return to their legitimate beds after a thousand years, for nothing is -hurried in Spain, <i>Despues de anos mil, vuelve el rio a su cubil</i>. On -the fishing in these wandering streams we shall presently say something.</p> - -<p>The navigation of Spanish rivers is Oriental, classical, and imperfect; -the boats, barges, and bargemen carry one back beyond the mediæval ages, -and are better calculated for artistical than commercial purposes. The -“great river,” the Guadalquivir, which was navigable in the time of the -Romans as far as Cordova, is now scarcely practicable for -sailing-vessels of a moderate size even up to Seville. Passengers, -however, have facilities afforded them by the steamers which run -backwards and forwards between this capital and Cadiz; these -conveniences, it need not be said, were introduced from England, -although the first steamer that ever paddled in waters was of Spanish -invention, and was launched at Barcelona in 1543; but the Spanish -Chancellor of the Exchequer of the time was a poor red tapist, and -opposed the whole thing, which, as usual, fell to the ground. The -steamers on the Guadalquivir are safe; indeed, in our times, the -advertisements always stated that a mass was said before starting in the -heretical contrivance, just as to this day Birmingham locomotives, when -a railway is first opened in France, are sprinkled with holy water, and -blessed by a bishop, which may be a new “wrinkle” to Mr. Hudson and the -primate of York.</p> - -<div class="sidenote">THE TAGUS.</div> - -<p>There is considerable talk in Arragon about rendering the Ebro -navigable, and it has been surveyed this year by two engineers—English -of course. The local newspapers compared the astonishment of the herns -and peasantry, created on the banks by this arrival, as second only to -that occasioned when Don Quixote<a name="page_027" id="page_027"></a> and Sancho ventured near the same spot -into the enchanted bark.</p> - -<p>There has been still older and greater talk about establishing a water -communication between Lisbon and Toledo, by means of the Tagus. This -mighty river, which is in every body’s mouth, because the capital of the -kingdom of Port wine is placed at its embouchure, is in fact almost as -little known in Spain and out of it, as the Niger. It has been our fate -to behold it in many places and various phases of its most poetical and -picturesque course—first green and arrowy amid the yellow corn fields -of New Castile; then freshening the sweet Tempe of Aranjuez, clothing -the gardens with verdure, and filling the nightingale-tenanted glens -with groves; then boiling and rushing around the granite ravines of -rock-built Toledo, hurrying to escape from the cold shadows of its deep -prison, and dashing joyously into light and liberty, to wander far away -into silent plains, and on to Talavera, where its waters were dyed with -brave blood, and gladly reflected the flash of the victorious bayonets -of England,—triumphantly it rolls thence, under the shattered arches of -Almaraz, down to desolate Estremadura, in a stream as tranquil as the -azure sky by which it is curtained, yet powerful enough to force the -mountains at Alcantara. There the bridge of Trajan is worth going a -hundred miles to see; it stems the now fierce condensed stream, and ties -the rocky gorges together; grand, simple, and solid, tinted by the -tender colours of seventeen centuries, it looms like the grey skeleton -of Roman power, with all the sentiment of loneliness, magnitude, and the -interest of the past and present. Such are the glorious scenes we have -beheld and sketched; such are the sweet waters in which we have -refreshed our dusty and weary limbs.</p> - -<div class="sidenote">THE TAGUS.</div> - -<p>How stern, solemn, and striking is this Tagus of Spain! No commerce has -ever made it its highway—no English steamer has ever civilized its -waters like those of France and Germany. Its rocks have witnessed -battles, not peace; have reflected castles and dungeons, not quays or -warehouses: few cities have risen on its banks, as on those of the -Thames and Rhine; it is truly a river of Spain—that isolated and -solitary land. Its waters are without boats, its banks without life; man -has never laid his<a name="page_028" id="page_028"></a> hand upon its billows, nor enslaved their free and -independent gambols.</p> - -<p>It is impossible to read Tom Campbell’s admirable description of the -Danube before its poetry was discharged by the smoke of our ubiquitous -countrymen’s Dampf Schiff, without applying his lines to this -uncivilised Tagus:—</p> - -<div class="poem"><div class="stanza"> -<span class="i0">“Yet have I loved thy wild abode,<br /></span> -<span class="i2">Unknown, unploughed, untrodden shore,<br /></span> -<span class="i1">Where scarce the woodman finds a road,<br /></span> -<span class="i2">And scarce the fisher plies an oar;<br /></span> -<span class="i1">For man’s neglect I love thee more,<br /></span> -<span class="i2">That art nor avarice intrude<br /></span> -<span class="i1">To tame thy torrent’s thunder shock,<br /></span> -<span class="i1">Or prune the vintage of thy rock,<br /></span> -<span class="i6">Magnificently rude!”<br /></span> -</div></div> - -<p>As rivers in a state of nature are somewhat scarce in Great Britain, one -more extract may be perhaps pardoned, and the more as it tends to -illustrate Spanish character, and explain <i>las cosas de España</i>, or the -things of Spain, which it is the object of these humble pages to -accomplish.</p> - -<p>The Tagus rises in that extraordinary jumble of mountains, full of -fossil bones, botany, and trout, that rise between Cuenca and Teruel, -and which being all but unknown, clamour loudly for the disciples of -Isaac Walton and Dr. Buckland. It disembogues into the sea at Lisbon, -having flowed 375 miles in Spain, of which nature destined it to be the -aorta. The Toledan chroniclers derive the name from Tagus, fifth king of -Iberia, but Bochart traces it to <i>Dag</i>, Dagon, a fish, as besides being -considered auriferous, the ancients pronounced it to be piscatory. Not -that the present Spaniards trouble their head more about the fishes here -than if they were crocodiles. Grains of gold are indeed found, but -barely enough to support a poet, by amphibious paupers, called -<i>artesilleros</i> from their baskets, in which they collect the sand, which -is passed through a sieve.</p> - -<div class="sidenote">NAVIGATION OF THE TAGUS.</div> - -<p>The Tagus might easily be made navigable to the sea, and then with the -Xarama connect Madrid and Lisbon, and facilitate importation of colonial -produce, and exportation of wine and grain. Such an act would confer -more benefits upon Spain than ten thousand <i>charters</i> or paper -constitutions, guaranteed by the<a name="page_029" id="page_029"></a> sword of Narvaez, or the word and -honour of Louis-Philippe. The performance has been contemplated by many -<i>foreigners</i>, the Toledans looking lazily on; thus in 1581, Antonelli, a -Neapolitan, and Juanelo Turriano, a Milanese, suggested the scheme to -Philip II., then master of Portugal; but money was wanting—the old -story—for his revenues were wasted in relic-removing and in building -the useless Escorial, and nothing was made except water parties, and -odes to the “wise and great king” who <i>was</i> to perform the deed, to the -tune of Macbeth’s witches, “<i>I’ll do, I’ll do, I’ll do</i>,” for here the -future is preferred to the present tense. The project dozed until 1641, -when two other <i>foreigners</i>, Julio Martelli and Luigi Carduchi, in vain -roused Philip IV. from his siesta, who soon after losing Portugal -itself, forthwith forgot the Tagus. Another century glided away, when in -1755 Richard Wall, an Irishman, took the thing up; but Charles III., -busy in waging French wars against England, wanted cash. The Tagus has -ever since, as it roared over its rocky bed, like an unbroken barb, -laughed at the Toledan who dreamily angles for impossibilities on the -bank, invoking Brunel, Hercules, and Rothschild, instead of putting his -own shoulder to the water-wheel. In 1808 the scheme was revived: F<sup>ro</sup> -Xavier de Cabanas, who had studied in England our system of canals, -published a survey of the whole river; this folio ‘<i>Memoria sobre la -Navigation del Tajo</i>,’ or, ‘Memoir on the Navigation of the Tagus,’ -Madrid, 1829, reads like the blue book of one discovering the source of -the Nile, so desert-like are the unpeopled, uncultivated districts -between Toledo and Abrantes. Ferd. VII. thereupon issued an approving -<i>paper</i> decree, and so there the thing ended, although Cabanas had -engaged with Messrs. Wallis and Mason for the machinery, &c. Recently -the project has been renewed by Señor Bermudez de Castro, an intelligent -gentleman, who, from long residence in England, has imbibed the schemes -and energy of the foreigner. <i>Verémos!</i> “we shall see;” for hope is a -good breakfast but a bad supper, says Bacon; and in Spain things are -begun late in the day, and never finished; so at least says the -proverb:—<i>En España se empieza tarde, y se acaba nunca</i>.<a name="page_030" id="page_030"></a></p> - -<div class="sidenote">DIVISION INTO PROVINCES.</div> - -<h2><a name="CHAPTER_IV" id="CHAPTER_IV"></a>CHAPTER IV.</h2> - -<div class="blockquot"><p class="c">Divisions into Provinces—Ancient Demarcations—Modern -Departments—Population—Revenue—Spanish Stocks.</p></div> - -<p class="nind">I<small>N</small> the divisions of the Peninsula which are effected by mountains, -rivers, and climate, a leading principle is to be traced throughout, for -it is laid down by the unerring hand of nature. The artificial, -political, and conventional arrangement into kingdoms and provinces is -entirely the work of accident and absence of design.</p> - -<p>These provincial divisions were formed by the gradual union of many -smaller and previously independent portions, which have been taken into -Spain as a whole, just as our inconvenient counties constitute the -kingdom of England; for the inconveniences of these results of the ebb -and flow of the different tides in the affairs of man’s dominion—these -boundaries not fixed by the lines and rules of theodolite-armed land -surveyors, use had provided remedies, and long habit had reconciled the -inhabitants to divisions which suited them better than any new -arrangement, however scientifically calculated, according to statistical -and geographical principles.</p> - -<p>The French, during their intrusive rule, were horrified at this “chaos -administratif,” this apparent irregularity, and introduced their own -system of <i>départements</i>, by which districts were neatly squared out and -people re-arranged, as if Spain were a chess-board and Spaniards mere -pawns—<i>peones</i>, or footmen, which this people, calling itself one of -<i>caballeros</i>, that is, riders on horses <i>par excellence</i>, assuredly is -not: nor, indeed, in this paradise of the church militant, can the moves -of any Spanish bishop or knight be calculated on with mathematical -certainty, since they seldom will take the steps to-morrow which they -did yesterday.</p> - -<div class="sidenote">PROVINCES.</div> - -<p>Accordingly, however specious the theory, it was found to be<a name="page_031" id="page_031"></a> no easy -matter to carry departementalization out in practice: individuality -laughs at the solemn nonsense of in-door pedants, who would class men -like ferns or shells. The failure in this attempt to remodel ancient -demarcations and recombine antipathetic populations was utter and -complete. No sooner, therefore, had the Duke cleared the Peninsula of -<i>doctrinaires</i> and invaders than the Lion of Castile shook off their -papers from his mane, and reverted like the Italian, on whom the same -experiment was tried, to his own pre-existing divisions, which, however -defective in theory, and unsightly and inconvenient on the map, had from -long habit been found practically to suit better. Recently, in spite of -this experience among other newfangled transpyrenean reforms, -innovations, and botherations, the Peninsula has again been parcelled -out into forty-nine provinces, instead of the former national divisions -of thirteen kingdoms, principalities, and lordships; but long will it be -before these deeply impressed divisions, which have grown with the -growth of the monarchy, and are engraved in the retentive memories of -the people, can be effaced.</p> - -<p>Those who are curious in statistical details are referred to the works -of Paez, Antillon, and others, who are considered by Spaniards to be -authorities on vast subjects, which are fitter for a gazetteer or a -handbook than for volumes destined like these for lighter reading; and -assuredly the pages of the respectable Spaniards just named are duller -than the high-roads of Castile, which no tiny rivulet the cheerful -companion of the dusty road ever freshens, no stray flower adorns, no -song of birds gladdens—“dry as the remainder of the biscuit after the -voyage.”</p> - -<p>The thirteen divisions have grand and historical names: they belong to -an old and monarchical country, not to a spick and span vulgar -democracy, without title-deeds. They fill the mouth when named, and -conjure up a thousand recollections of the better and more glorious -times of Spain’s palmy power, when there were giants in the land, not -pigmies in Parisian <i>paletots</i>, whose only ambition is to ape the -foreigner, and disgrace and denationalize themselves.</p> - -<div class="sidenote">PROVINCES.</div> - -<p>First and foremost <i>Andalucia</i> presents herself, crowned with a -quadruple, not a triple tiara, for the name <i>los cuatro reinos</i>, “the -four kingdoms,” is her synonym. They consist of those of Seville, -Cordova, Jaen, and Granada. There is magic and<a name="page_032" id="page_032"></a> birdlime in the very -letters. Secondly advances the kingdom of <i>Murcia</i>, with its -silver-mines, barilla, and palms. Then the gentle kingdom of <i>Valencia</i> -appears, all smiles, with fruits and silk. The principality of grim and -truculent <i>Catalonia</i> scowls next on its fair neighbour. Here rises the -smoky factory chimney; here cotton is spun, vice and discontent bred, -and revolutions concocted. The proud and stiff-necked kingdom of -<i>Arragon</i> marches to the west with this Lancashire of Spain, and to the -east with the kingdom of Navarre, which crouches with its green valleys -under the Pyrenees. The three <i>Basque Provinces</i> which abut thereto, are -only called <i>El Senorio</i>, “The Lordship,” for the king of all the Spains -is but simple lord of this free highland home of the unconquered -descendants of the aboriginal man of the Peninsula. Here there is much -talk of bullocks and <i>fueros</i>, or “privileges;” for when not digging and -delving, these gentlemen by the mere fact of being born here, are -fighting and upholding their good rights by the sword. The empire -province of the <i>Castiles</i> furnishes two coronets to the royal brow; to -wit, that of the older portion, where the young monarchy was nursed, and -that of the newer portion, which was wrested afterwards from the infidel -Moor. The ninth division is desolate <i>Estremadura</i>, which has no higher -title than a province, and is peopled by locusts, wandering sheep, pigs, -and here and there by human bipeds. <i>Leon</i>, a most time-honoured -kingdom, stretches higher up, with its corn-plains and venerable cities, -now silent as tombs, but in auld lang syne the scenes of mediæval -chivalry and romance. The kingdom of <i>Gallicia</i> and the principality of -the <i>Asturias</i> form the seaboard to the west, and constitute Spain’s -breakwater against the Atlantic.</p> - -<div class="sidenote">POPULATION</div> - -<p>It is not very easy to ascertain the exact population of any country, -much less that of one which does not yet possess the advantages of -public registrars; the people at large, for whom, strange to say, the -pleasant studies of statistics and political economy have small charms, -consider any attempt to number them as boding no good; they have a -well-grounded apprehension of ulterior objects. To “number the people” -was a crime in the East, and many moral and practical difficulties exist -in arriving at a true census of Spain. Thus, while some writers on<a name="page_033" id="page_033"></a> -statistics hope to flatter the powers that be, by a glowing exaggeration -of national strength, “to boast of which,” says the Duke, “is the -national weakness,” the suspicious <i>many</i>, on the other hand, are -disposed to conceal and diminish the truth. We should be always on our -guard when we hear accounts of the past or present population, commerce, -or revenue of Spain. The better classes will magnify them both, for the -credit of their country; the poorer, on the other hand, will appeal <i>ad -misericordiam</i>, by representing matters as even worse than they really -are. They never afford any opening, however indirect, to information -which may lead to poll-taxes and conscriptions.</p> - -<div class="sidenote">DIFFERENT RACES.</div> - -<p>The population and the revenue have generally been exaggerated, and all -statements may be much discounted; the present population, at an -approximate calculation, may be taken at about eleven or twelve -millions, with a slow tendency to increase. This is a low figure for so -large a country, and for one which, under the Romans, is said to have -swarmed with inhabitants as busy and industrious as ants; indeed, the -longest period of rest and settled government which this ill-fated land -has ever enjoyed was during the three centuries that the Roman power was -undisputed. The Peninsula is then seldom mentioned by authors; and how -much happiness is inferred by that silence, when the blood-spattered -page of history was chiefly employed to register great calamities, -plagues, pestilences, wars, battles, or the freaks of men, at which -angels weep! Certainly one of the causes which have changed this happy -state of things, has been the numerous and fierce invasions to which -Spain has been exposed; fatal to her has been her gift of beauty and -wealth, which has ever attracted the foreign ravisher and spoiler. The -Goths, to whom a worse name has been given than they deserved in Spain, -were ousted by the Moors, the real and wholesale destroyers; bringing to -the darkling West the luxuries, arts and sciences of the bright East, -they had nothing to learn from the conquered; to them the Goth was no -instructor, as the Roman had been to him; they despised both of their -predecessors, with whose wants and works they had no sympathy, while -they abhorred their creed as idolatrous and polytheistic—down went -altar and image. There was no fair town which<a name="page_034" id="page_034"></a> they did not destroy; -they exterminated, say their annals, the fowls of the air.</p> - -<p>The Gotho-Spaniard in process of time retaliated, and combated the -invader with his own weapons, bettering indeed the destructive lesson -which was taught. The effects of these wars, carried on without treaty, -without quarter, and waged for country and creed, are evident in those -parts of Spain which were their theatre. Thus, vast portions of -Estremadura, the south of Toledo and Andalucia, by nature some of the -richest and most fertile in the world, are now <i>dehesas y despoblados</i>, -depopulated wastes, abandoned to the wild bee for his heritage; the -country remains as it was left after the discomfiture of the Moor. The -early chronicles of both Spaniard and Moslem teem with accounts of the -annual forays inflicted on each other, and to which a frontier-district -was always exposed. The object of these border <i>guerrilla</i>-warfares was -extinction, <i>talar, quemar y robar</i>, to desolate, burn, and rob, to cut -down fruit-trees, to “harry,” to “razzia."<a name="FNanchor_2_2" id="FNanchor_2_2"></a><a href="#Footnote_2_2" class="fnanchor">[2]</a> The internecine struggle -was that of rival nations and creeds. It was truly Oriental, and such as -Ezekiel, who well knew the Phœnicians, has described: “Go ye after -him through the city and smite; let not your eye have pity, neither have -ye pity; slay utterly old and young, both maids and little children and -women.” The religious duty of smiting the infidel precluded mercy on -both sides alike, for the Christian foray and crusade was the exact -counterpart of the Moslem <i>algara</i> and <i>algihad</i>; while, from military -reasons, everything was turned into a desert, in order to create a -frontier Edom of starvation, a defensive glacis, through which no -invading army could pass and live; the “beasts of the field alone -increased.” Nature, thus abandoned, resumed her rights, and has cast off -every trace of former cultivation; and districts the granaries of the -Roman and the Moor, now offer the saddest contrasts to that former -prosperity and industry.</p> - -<div class="sidenote">BUONAPARTE’S INVASION.</div> - -<p>To these horrors succeeded the thinning occasioned by causes of a -bigoted and political nature: the expulsion of the Jews<a name="page_035" id="page_035"></a> deprived poor -Spain of her bankers, while the final banishment of the Moriscoes, the -remnant of the Moors, robbed the soil of its best and most industrious -agriculturists.</p> - -<p>Again, in our time, have the fatal scenes of contending Christian and -Moor been renewed in the struggle for national independence, waged by -Spaniards against the Buonapartist invaders, by whom neither age nor sex -was spared—neither things sacred nor profane; the land is everywhere -scarred with ruins; a few hours’ Vandalism sufficed to undo the works of -ages of piety, wealth, learning and good taste. The French retreat was -worse than their advance: then, infuriated by disgrace and disaster, the -Soults and Massénas vented their spite on the unarmed villagers and -their cottages. But let General Foy describe their progress:—“Ainsi que -la neige précipitée des sommets des Alpes dans les vallons, nos armées -innombrables détruisaient en quelques heures, par leur seul passage, les -ressources de toute une contrée; elles bivouaquaient habituellement, et -à chaque gîte nos soldats démolissaient les maisons bâties depuis un -demi-siècle, pour construire avec les décombres ces longs villages -alignés qui souvent ne devaient durer qu’un jour: au défaut du bois des -forêts les arbres fruitiers, les végétaux précieux, comme le mûrier, -l’olivier, l’oranger, servaient a les réchauffer; les conscrits irrités -à la fois par le besoin et par le danger contractaient <i>une ivresse -morale</i> dont nous ne cherchions pas à les guérir.”</p> - -<div class="poem"><div class="stanza"> -<span class="i0">“So France gets drunk with blood to vomit crime,<br /></span> -<span class="i1">And fatal ever have her saturnalia been.”<br /></span> -</div></div> - -<p>Who can fail to compare this habitual practice of Buonaparte’s legions -with the terrible description in Hosea of the “great people and strong” -who execute the dread judgments of heaven?—“A fire devoureth before -them, and behind them a flame burneth; the land is the garden of Eden -before them, and behind them a desolate wilderness, yea, and nothing -shall escape them.”</p> - -<div class="sidenote">REVENUE.</div> - -<p>No sooner were they beaten out by the Duke, than population began to -spring up again, as the bruised flowerets do when the iron heel of -marching hordes has passed on. Then ensued the civil fratricide wars, -draining the land of its males, from which bleeding Spain has not yet -recovered. Insecurity of property and person will ever prove bars to -marriage and increased population.<a name="page_036" id="page_036"></a></p> - -<p>Again, a deeper and more permanent curse has steadily operated for the -last two centuries, at which Spanish authors long have not dared to -hint. They have ascribed the depopulation of Estremadura to the swarm of -colonist adventurers and emigrants who departed from this province of -Cortes and Pizarro to seek for fortune in the new world of gold and -silver; and have attributed the similar want of inhabitants in Andalucia -to the similar outpouring from Cadiz, which, with Seville, engrossed the -traffic of the Americas. But colonisation never thins a vigorous, -well-conditioned mother state—witness the rapid and daily increase of -population in our own island, which, like Tyre of old, is ever sending -forth her outpouring myriads, and wafts to the uttermost parts of the -sea, on the white wings of her merchant fleets, the blessings of peace, -religion, liberty, order, and civilisation, to disseminate which is the -mission of Great Britain.</p> - -<p>The real permanent and standing cause of Spain’s thinly peopled state, -want of cultivation, and abomination of desolation, is B<small>AD</small> G<small>OVERNMENT</small>, -civil and religious; this all who run may read in her lonely land and -silent towns. But Spain, if the anecdote which her children love to tell -be true, will never be able to remove the incubus of this fertile origin -of every evil. When Ferdinand III. captured Seville and died, being a -saint he escaped purgatory, and Santiago presented him to the Virgin, -who forthwith desired him to ask any favours for beloved Spain. The -monarch petitioned for oil, wine, and corn—conceded; for sunny skies, -brave men, and pretty women—allowed; for cigars, relics, garlic, and -bulls—by all means; for a <i>good government</i>—“Nay, nay,” said the -Virgin, “that never can be granted; for were it bestowed, not an angel -would remain a day longer in heaven.”</p> - -<div class="sidenote">THE BOLSA.</div> - -<p>The present revenue may be taken at about 12,000,000<i>l.</i> or -13,000,000<i>l.</i> sterling; but money is compared by Spaniards to oil; a -little will stick to the fingers of those who measure it out; and such -is the robbing and jobbing, the official mystification and peculation, -that it is difficult to get at <i>facts</i> whenever cash is in question. The -revenue, moreover, is badly collected, and at a ruinous per centage, and -at no time during this last century has been sufficient for the national -expenses. Recourse has been had to the desperate experiments of usurious -loans and wholesale confiscations. At one time church pillage and -appropriation<a name="page_037" id="page_037"></a> was almost the only item in the governmental budget. The -recipients were ready to “prove from Vatel exceedingly well” that the -first duty of a rich clergy was to relieve the necessitous, and the more -when the State was a pauper: croziers are no match for bayonets. This -system necessarily cannot last. Since the reign of Philip II. every act -of dishonesty has been perpetrated. Public securities have been -“repudiated,” interest unpaid, and principal spunged out. No country in -the Old World, or even New drab-coated World, stands lower in financial -discredit. Let all be aware how they embark in Spanish speculations: -however promising in the prospectus, they will, sooner or later, turn -out to be deceptions; and whether they assume the form of loans, lands, -or rails, none are <i>real</i> securities: they are mere castles in the air, -<i>châteaux en Espagne</i>: “The earth has bubbles as the water has, and -these are of them.”</p> - -<p>For the benefit and information of those who have purchased Iberian -stock, it may be stated that an Exchange, or <i>Bolsa de Comercio</i>, was -established at Madrid in 1831. It may be called the <i>coldest</i> spot in -the hot capital, and the <i>idlest</i>, since the usual “city article” is -short and sweet, “<i>sin operaciones</i>,” or nothing has been bought or -sold. It might be likened to a tomb, with “Here <i>lies</i> Spanish credit” -for its epitaph. If there be a thing which “<i>La perfide Albion</i>,” “a -nation of shopkeepers,” dislikes, worse even than a French assignat, it -is a bankrupt. One circumstance is clear, that Castilian <i>pundonor</i>, or -point of honour, will rather settle its debts with cold iron and warm -abuse than with gold and thanks.</p> - -<p>The Exchange at Madrid was first held at <i>St. Martin’s</i>, a saint who -divided his cloak with a supplicant. As comparisons are odious, and bad -examples catching, it has been recently removed to the <i>Calle del -Desengaño</i>, the street of “finding out fallacious hopes,” a locality -which the bitten will not deem ill-chosen.</p> - -<div class="sidenote">SPANISH “STOCK."</div> - -<p>As all men in power use their official knowledge in taking advantage of -the turn of the market, the <i>Bolsa</i> divides with the court and army the -moving influence of every <i>situacion</i> or crisis of the moment: clever as -are the ministers of Paris, they are mere tyros when compared to their -colleagues of Madrid in the arts of working the telegraph, gazette, &c., -and thereby feathering their own nests.<a name="page_038" id="page_038"></a></p> - -<p>The Stock Exchange is open from ten to three o’clock, where those who -like Spanish funds may buy them as cheap as stinking mackerel; for when -the 3 per cents, of perfidious Albion are at 98, surely Spanish fives at -22 are a tempting investment. The stocks are numerous, and suited to all -tastes and pockets, whether those funded by Aguado, Ardouin, Toreno, -Mendizabal, or Mon, “all honourable men,” and whose punctuality is -<i>un-remitting</i>, for in some the principal is consolidated, in others the -interest is deferred; the grand financial object in all having been to -receive as much as possible, and pay back in an inverse ratio—their -leading principle being to bag both principal and interest. As we have -just said, in measuring out money and oil a little will stick to the -cleanest fingers—the Madrid ministers and contractors made fortunes, -and actually “did” the Hebrews of London, as their forefathers spoiled -the Egyptians. But from Philip II. downwards, theologians have never -been wanting in Spain to prove the religious, however painful, duty of -bankruptcy, and particularly in contracts with usurious heretics. The -stranger, when shown over the Madrid bank, had better evince no -impertinent curiosity to see the “Dividend <i>pay</i> office,” as it might -give offence. Whatever be our dear reader’s pursuit in the Peninsula, -let him—</p> - -<div class="poem"><div class="stanza"> -<span class="i0">“Neither a borrower nor lender be,<br /></span> -<span class="i1">For loan oft loseth both itself and friend.”<br /></span> -</div></div> - -<p class="nind">Beware of Spanish stock, for in spite of official reports, <i>documentos</i>, -and arithmetical mazes, which, intricate as an arabesque pattern, look -well on paper without being intelligible; in spite of ingenious -conversions, fundings of interest, coupons—some active, some passive, -and other repudiatory terms and tenses, the present excepted—the -thimblerig is always the same; and this is the question, since national -credit depends on national good faith and surplus income, how can a -country pay interest on debts, whose revenues have long been, and now -are, miserably insufficient for the ordinary expenses of government? You -cannot get blood from a stone; <i>ex nihilo nihil fit</i>.</p> - -<div class="sidenote">PUBLIC DEBT.</div> - -<p>Mr. Macgregor’s report on Spain, a truthful exposition of commercial -ignorance, habitual disregard of treaties and violation of contracts, -describes her public <i>securities</i>, past and present.<a name="page_039" id="page_039"></a> Certainly they had -very imposing names and titles—<i>Juros Bonos</i>, <i>Vales reales</i>, -<i>Titulos</i>, &c.,—much more royal, grand, and poetical than our prosaic -<i>Consols</i>; but no oaths can attach real value to dishonoured and -good-for-nothing paper. According to some financiers, the public debts -of Spain, previously to 1808, amounted to 83,763,966<i>l.</i>, which have -since been increased to 279,083,089<i>l.</i>, farthings omitted, for we like -to be accurate. This possibly may be exaggerated, for the government -will give no information as to its own peculation and mismanagement: -according to Mr. Henderson, 78,649,675<i>l.</i> of this debt is due to -English creditors alone, and we wish they may get it, when he gets to -Madrid. In the time of James I., Mr. Howell was sent there on much such -an errand; and when he left it, his “pile of unredressed claims was -higher than himself.” At all events, Spain is over head and ears in -debt, and irremediably insolvent. And yet few countries, if we regard -the fertility of her soil, her golden possessions at home and abroad, -her frugal temperate population, ought to have been less embarrassed; -but Heaven has granted her every blessing, except a good and honest -government. It is either a bully or a craven: satisfaction in -twenty-four hours <i>à la Bresson</i>, or a line-of-battle ship off -Malaga—Cromwell’s receipt—is the only argument which these semi-Moors -understand: conciliatory language is held to be weakness: you may obtain -at once from their fears what never will be granted by their sense of -justice.<a name="page_040" id="page_040"></a></p> - -<div class="sidenote">TRAVELLING IN SPAIN.</div> - -<h2><a name="CHAPTER_V" id="CHAPTER_V"></a>CHAPTER V.</h2> - -<div class="blockquot"><p class="c">Travelling in Spain—Steamers—Roads, Roman, Monastic, and -Royal—Modern Railways—English Speculations.</p></div> - -<p class="nind">O<small>F</small> the many misrepresentations regarding Spain, few are more inveterate -than those which refer to the dangers and difficulties that are there -supposed to beset the traveller. This, the most romantic, racy, and -peculiar country of Europe, may in reality be visited by sea and land, -and throughout its length and breadth, with ease and safety, as all who -have ever been there well know, the nonsense with which Cockney critics -who never have been there scare delicate writers in albums and lady-bird -tourists, to the contrary notwithstanding: the steamers are regular, the -mails and diligences excellent, the roads decent, and the mules -sure-footed; nay, latterly, the <i>posadas</i>, or inns, have been so -increased, and the robbers so decreased, that some ingenuity must be -evinced in getting either starved or robbed. Those, however, who are -dying for new excitements, or who wish to make a picture or chapter, in -short, to get up an adventure for the home-market, may manage by a great -exhibition of imprudence, chattering, and a holding out luring baits, to -gratify their hankering, although it would save some time, trouble, and -expense to try the experiment much nearer home.</p> - -<p>As our readers live in an island, we will commence with the sea and -steamers.</p> - -<div class="sidenote">STEAMERS.</div> - -<p>The Peninsular and Oriental Navigation Company depart regularly three -times a month from Southampton for Gibraltar. They often arrive at -Corunna in seventy hours, from whence a mail starts directly to Madrid, -which it reaches in three days and a half. The vessels are excellent -sea-boats, are manned by English sailors, and propelled by English -machinery. The passage to Vigo has been made in less than three days, -and the voyage to Cadiz—touching at Lisbon included—seldom exceeds<a name="page_041" id="page_041"></a> -six. The change of climate, scenery, men, and manners effected by this -week’s trip, is indeed remarkable. Quitting the British Channel we soon -enter the “sleepless Bay of Biscay,” where the stormy petrel is at home, -and where the gigantic swell of the Atlantic is first checked by Spain’s -iron-bound coast, the mountain break-water of Europe. Here <i>The Ocean</i> -will be seen in all its vast majesty and solitude: grand in the -tempest-lashed storm, grand in the calm, when spread out as a mirror; -and never more impressive than at night, when the stars of heaven, free -from earth-born mists, sparkle like diamonds over those “who go down to -the sea in ships, and behold the works of the Lord, and his wonders in -the deep.” The land has disappeared, and man feels alike his weakness -and his strength; a thin plank separates him from another world; yet he -has laid his hand upon the billow, and mastered the ocean; he has made -it the highway of commerce, and the binding link of nations.</p> - -<p>The steamers which navigate the Eastern coast from Marseilles to Cadiz -and back again, are cheaper indeed in their fares, but by no means such -good sea-boats; nor do they keep their time—the essence of -business—with English regularity. They are foreign built, and worked by -Spaniards and Frenchmen. They generally stop a day at Barcelona, -Valencia, and other large towns, which gives them an opportunity to -replenish coal, and to smuggle. A rapid traveller is also thus enabled -to pay a flying visit to the cities on the seaboard; and thus those -lively authors who comprehend foreign nations with an intuitive -eagle-eyed glance, obtain materials for sundry octavos on the history, -arts, sciences, literature, and genius of Spaniards. But as Mons. Feval -remarks of some of his gifted countrymen, they have merely to scratch -their head, according to the Horatian expression, and out come a number -of volumes, ready bound in calf, as Minerva issued forth armed from the -temple of Jupiter.</p> - -<div class="sidenote">SPANISH ROADS.</div> - -<p>The Mediterranean is a dangerous, deceitful sea, fair and false as -Italia; the squalls are sudden and terrific; then the crews either curse -the sacred name of God, or invoke St. Telmo, according as their notion -may be. We have often been so caught when sailing on these perfidious -waters in these foreign craft, and think, with the Spaniards, that -escape is a miracle. The hilarity excited by witnessing the jabber, -confusion, and lubber<a name="page_042" id="page_042"></a> proceedings, went far to dispel all present -apprehension, and future also. Some of our poor blue-jackets in case of -a war may possibly escape the fate with which they are threatened in -this French lake. But no wise man will ever go by sea when he can travel -by land, nor is viewing Spain’s coasts with a telescope from the deck, -and passing a few hours in a sea-port, a very satisfactory mode of -becoming acquainted with the country.</p> - -<p>The roads of Spain, a matter of much importance to a judicious -traveller, are somewhat a modern luxury, having been only regularly -introduced by the Bourbons. The Moors and Spaniards, who rode on horses -and not in carriages, suffered those magnificent lines with which the -Romans had covered the Peninsula to go to decay; of these there were no -less than twenty-nine of the first order, which were absolutely -necessary to a nation of conquerors and colonists to keep up their -military and commercial communications. The grandest of all, which like -the Appian might be termed the Queen of Roads, ran from Merida, the -capital of Lusitania, to Salamanca. It was laid down like a Cyclopean -wall, and much of it remains to this day, with the grey granite line -stretching across the aromatic wastes, like the vertebræ of an extinct -mammoth. We have followed for miles its course, which is indicated by -the still standing miliary columns that rise above the cistus underwood; -here and there tall forest trees grow out of the stone pavement, and -show how long it has been abandoned by man to Nature ever young and gay, -who thus by uprooting and displacing the huge blocks slowly recovers her -rights. She festoons the ruins with necklaces of flowers and creepers, -and hides the rents and wrinkles of odious, all-dilapidating Time, or -man’s worse neglect, as a pretty maid decorates a shrivelled dowager’s -with diamonds. The Spanish muleteer creeps along by its side in a track -which he has made through the sand or pebbles; he seems ashamed to -trample on this lordly way, for which, in his petty wants, he has no -occasion. Most of the similar roads have been taken up by monks to raise -convents, by burgesses to build houses, by military men to construct -fortifications—thus even their ruins have perished.</p> - -<div class="sidenote">LEGEND OF SANTO DOMINGO.</div> - -<p>The mediæval Spanish roads were the works of the clergy; and the -long-bearded monks, here as elsewhere, were the pioneers of -civilization; they made straight, wide, and easy the way which<a name="page_043" id="page_043"></a> led to -their convent, their high place, their miracle shrine, or to whatever -point of pilgrimage that was held out to the devout; traffic was soon -combined with devotion, and the service of mammon with that of God. This -imitation of the Oriental practice which obtained at Mecca, is evidenced -by language in which the Spanish term <i>Feria</i> signifies at once a -religious function, a holiday, and a fair. Even saints condescended to -become waywardens, and to take title from the highway. Thus <i>Santo -Domingo de la Calzada</i>, “St. Domenick of the <i>Paved Road</i>,” was so -called from his having been the first to make one through a part of Old -Castile for the benefit of pilgrims on their way to Compostella, and -this town yet bears the honoured appellation.</p> - -<p>This feat and his legend have furnished Southey with a subject of a -droll ballad. The saint having finished his road, next set up an inn or -<i>Venta</i>, the Maritornes of which fell in love with a handsome pilgrim, -who resisted; whereupon she hid some spoons in this Joseph’s saddlebags, -who was taken up by the Alcalde, and forthwith hanged. But his parents -some time afterwards passed under the body, which told them that he was -innocent, alive, and well, and all by the intercession of the sainted -road-maker; thereupon they proceeded forthwith to the truculent Alcalde, -who was going to dine off two roasted fowls, and, on hearing their -report, remarked, You might as well tell me that this cock (pointing to -his rôti) would crow; whereupon it did crow, and was taken with its hen -to the cathedral, and two chicks have ever since been regularly hatched -every year from these respectable parents, of which a travelling -ornithologist should secure one for the Zoological Garden. The cock and -hen were duly kept near the high altar, and their white feathers were -worn by pilgrims in their caps. Prudent bagsmen will, however, put a -couple of ordinary roast fowls into their “provend,” for hungry is this -said road to <i>Logroño</i>.</p> - -<div class="sidenote">ROAD TO TOLEDO.</div> - -<p>In this land of miracles, anomalies, and contradictions, the roads to -and from this very <i>Compostella</i> are now detestable. In other provinces -of Spain, the star-paved milky way in heaven is called <i>El Camino de -Santiago</i>, the road of St. James; but the Gallicians, who know what -their roads really are, namely, the worst on earth, call the milky-way -<i>El Camino de Jerusalem</i>, “the road to Jerusalem,” which it assuredly is -not. The an<a name="page_044" id="page_044"></a>cients poetically attributed this phenomenon to some spilt -milk of Juno.</p> - -<p>Meanwhile the roads in Gallicia, although under the patronage of -Santiago, who has replaced the Roman Hermes, are, like his milky-way in -heaven, but little indebted to mortal repairs. The Dean of Santiago is -waywarden by virtue of his office or dignity, and especially -“protector.” The chapter, however, now chiefly profess to make smooth -the road to a better world. They have altogether degenerated from their -forefathers, whose grand object was to construct roads for the pilgrim; -but since the cessation of offering-making Hadjis, little or nothing has -been done in the turnpike-trust line.</p> - -<p>Some of the finest roads in Spain lead either to the <i>sitios</i> or royal -pleasure-seats of the king, or wind gently up some elevated and -monastery-crowned mountain like Monserrat. The ease of the despot was -consulted, while that of his subjects was neglected; and the Sultan was -the State, Spain was his property, and Spaniards his serfs, and willing -ones, for as in the East, their perfect equality amongst each other was -one result of the immeasurable superiority of the master of all. Thus, -while he rolled over a road hard and level as a bowling-green, and -rapidly as a galloping team could proceed, to a mere summer residence, -the communication between Madrid and Toledo, that city on which the sun -shone on the day light was made, has remained a mere track ankle-deep in -mud during winter and dust-clouded during summer, and changing its -direction with the caprice of wandering sheep and muleteers; but Bourbon -Royalty never visited this widowed capital of the Goths. The road -therefore was left as it existed if not before the time of Adam, at -least before Mac Adam. There is some talk just now of beginning a -regular road; when it will be finished is another affair.</p> - -<div class="sidenote">ROAD TO LA CORUNA.</div> - -<div class="sidenote">CROSS ROADS.</div> - -<p>The church, which shared with the state in dominion, followed the royal -example in consulting its own comforts as to roads. Nor could it be -expected in a torrid land, that holy men, whose abdomens occasionally -were prominent and pendulous, should lard the stony or sandy earth like -goats, or ascend heaven-kissing hills so expeditiously as their prayers. -In Spain the primary consideration has ever been the souls, not the -bodies, of men, or legs of beasts. It would seem indeed, from the -indifference<a name="page_045" id="page_045"></a> shown to the sufferings of these quadrupedal -blood-engines, <i>Maquinas de sangre</i>, as they are called, and still more -from the reckless waste of biped life, that a man was of no value until -he was dead; then what admirable contrivances for the rapid travelling -of his winged spirit, first to purgatory, next out again, and thence -from stage to stage to his journey’s end and blessed rest! More money -has been thus expended in masses than would have covered Spain with -railroads, even on a British scale of magnificence and extravagance.</p> - -<p>To descend to the roads of the peninsular earth, the principal lines are -nobly planned. These geographical arteries, which form the circulation -of the country, branch in every direction from Madrid, which is the -centre of the system. The road-making spirit of Louis XIV. passed into -his Spanish descendants, and during the reigns of Charles III. and -Charles IV. communications were completed between the capital and the -principal cities of the provinces. These causeways, “<i>Arrecifes</i>”—these -royal roads, “<i>Caminos reales</i>”—were planned on an almost unnecessary -scale of grandeur, in regard both to width, parapets, and general -execution. The high road to La Coruña, especially after entering Leon, -will stand comparison with any in Europe; but when Spaniards finish -anything it is done in a grand style, and in this instance the expense -was so enormous that the king inquired if it was paved with silver, -alluding to the common Spanish corruption of the old Roman via lata into -“camino de <i>plata</i>,” of plate. This and many of the others were -constructed from fifty to seventy years ago, and very much on the M’Adam -system, which, having been since introduced into England, has rendered -our roads so very different from what they were not very long since. The -war in the Peninsula tended to deteriorate the Spanish roads—when -bridges and other conveniences were frequently destroyed for military -reasons, and the exhausted state of the finances of Spain, and troubled -times, have delayed many of the more costly reparations; yet those of -the first class were so admirably constructed at the beginning, that, in -spite of the injuries of war, ruts, and neglect, they may, as a whole, -be pronounced equal to many of the Continent, and are infinitely more -pleasant to the traveller from the absence of pavement. The roads in -England have, indeed, latterly been rendered so excellent, and we are -so<a name="page_046" id="page_046"></a> apt to compare those of other nations with them, that we forget that -fifty years ago Spain was in advance in that and many other respects. -Spain remains very much what other countries were: she has stood on her -old ways, moored to the anchor of prejudice, while we have progressed, -and consequently now appears behind-hand in many things in which she set -the fashion to England.</p> - -<p>The grand royal roads start from Madrid, and run to the principal -frontier and sea-port towns. Thus the capital may be compared to a -spider, as it is the centre of the Peninsular web. These diverging -fan-like lines are sufficiently convenient to all who are about to -journey to any single terminus, but inter-communications are almost -entirely wanting between any one terminus with another. This scanty -condition of the Peninsular roads accounts for the very limited portions -of the country which are usually visited by foreigners, who—the French -especially—keep to one beaten track, the high road, and follow each -other like wild geese; a visit to Burgos, Madrid, and Seville, and then -a steam trip from Cadiz to Valencia and Barcelona, is considered to be -making the grand tour of Spain; thus the world is favoured with volumes -that reflect and repeat each other, which tell us what we know already, -while the rich and rare, the untrodden, unchanged, and truly -Moro-Hispanic portions are altogether neglected, except by the -exceptional few, who venture forth like Don Quixote on their horses, in -search of adventures and the picturesque.</p> - -<div class="sidenote">TRAVELLING.</div> - -<div class="sidenote">CONTEMPLATED RAILROADS.</div> - -<p>The other roads of Spain are bad, but not much more so than in other -parts of the Continent, and serve tolerably well in dry weather. They -are divided into those which are practicable for wheel-carriages, and -those which are only bridle-roads, or as they call them, “of horseshoe,” -on which all thought of going with a carriage is out of the question; -when these horse or mule tracks are very bad, especially among the -mountains, they compare them to roads for partridges. The cross roads -are seldom tolerable; it is safest to keep the high-road—or, as we have -it in English, the furthest way round is the nearest way home—for there -is no short cut without hard work, says the Spanish proverb, “<i>ho hay -atajo, sin trabajo</i>.”</p> - -<p>All this sounds very unpromising, but those who adopt the customs of the -country will never find much practical difficulty in<a name="page_047" id="page_047"></a> getting to their -journey’s end; slowly, it is true, for where leagues and hours are -convertible terms—the Spanish <i>hora</i> being the heavy German -<i>stunde</i>—the distance is regulated by the day-light. Bridle-roads and -travelling on horseback, the former systems of Europe, are very Spanish -and Oriental; and where people journey on horse and mule back, the road -is of minor importance. In the remoter provinces of Spain the population -is agricultural and poverty-stricken, unvisiting and unvisited, not -going much beyond their chimney’s smoke. Each family provides for its -simple habits and few wants; having but little money to buy foreign -commodities, they are clad and fed, like the Bedouins, with the -productions of their own fields and flocks. There is little circulation -of persons; a neighbouring fair is the mart where they obtain the annual -supply of whatever luxury they can indulge in, or it is brought to their -cottages by wandering muleteers, or by the smuggler, who is the type and -channel of the really active principle of trade in three-fourths of the -Peninsula. It is wonderful how soon a well-mounted traveller becomes -attached to travelling on horseback, and how quickly he becomes -reconciled to a state of roads which, startling at first to those -accustomed to carriage highways, are found to answer perfectly for all -the purposes of the place and people where they are found.</p> - -<p>Let us say a few things on Spanish railroads, for the mania of England -has surmounted the Pyrenees, although confined rather more to words than -deeds; in fact, it has been said that no rail exists, in any country of -either the new world or the old one, in which the Spanish language is -spoken, probably from other objections than those merely philological. -Again, in other countries roads, canals, and traffic usher in the rail, -which in Spain is to precede and introduce them. Thus, by the prudent -delays of national caution and procrastination, much of the trouble and -expense of these intermediate stages will be economized, and Spain will -jump at once from a mediæval condition into the comforts and glories of -Great Britain, the land of restless travellers. Be that as it may, just -now there is much talk of <i>railroads</i>, and splendid official and other -<i>documentos</i> are issued, by which the “whole country is to be -intersected (on paper) with a net-work of rapid and bowling-green -communications,” which are to<a name="page_048" id="page_048"></a> create a “perfect homogeneity among -Spaniards;” for great as have been the labours of Herculean steam, this -amalgamation of the Iberian rope of sand has properly been reserved for -the crowning performance.</p> - -<p>It would occupy too much space to specify the infinite lines which are -in contemplation, which may be described when completed. Suffice it to -say, that they almost all are to be effected by the iron and gold of -England. However this <i>estrangerismo</i>, this influence of the foreigner, -may offend the sensitive pride, the <i>Españolismo</i> of Spain, the power of -resistance offered by the national indolence and dislike to change, must -be propelled by British steam, with a dash of French revolution. Yet our -speculators might, perhaps, reflect that Spain is a land which never yet -has been able to construct or support even a sufficient number of common -roads or canals for her poor and passive commerce and circulation. The -distances are far too great, and the traffic far too small, to call yet -for the rail; while the geological formation of the country offers -difficulties which, if met with even in England, would baffle the -colossal science and extravagance of our first-rate engineers. Spain is -a land of mountains, which rise everywhere in Alpine barriers, walling -off province from province, and district from district. These mighty -cloud-capped <i>sierras</i> are solid masses of hard stone, and any tunnels -which ever perforate their ranges will reduce that at Box to the delving -of the poor mole. You might as well cover Switzerland and the Tyrol with -a net-work of <i>level</i> lines, as those caught in the aforesaid net will -soon discover to their cost. The outlay of this up-hill work may be in -an inverse ratio to the remuneration, for the one will be enormous, and -the other paltry. The parturient mountains may produce a most musipular -interest, and even that may be “deferred.”</p> - -<div class="sidenote">DIFFICULTIES OF RAILROADS.</div> - -<p>Spain, again, is a land of <i>dehesas y despoblados</i>: in these wild -unpeopled wastes, next to travellers, commerce and cash are what is -scarce, while even Madrid, the capital, is without industry or -resources, and poorer than many of our provincial cities. The Spaniard, -a creature of routine and foe to innovations, is not a moveable or -locomotive; local, and a parochial fixture by nature, he hates moving -like a Turk, and has a particular horror of being hurried; long, -therefore, here has an<a name="page_049" id="page_049"></a> ambling mule answered all the purposes of -transporting man and his goods. Who again is to do the work even if -England will pay the wages? The native, next to disliking regular -sustained labour himself, abhors seeing the foreigner toiling even in -his service, and wasting his gold and sinews in the thankless task. The -villagers, as they always have done, will rise against the stranger and -heretic who comes to “suck the wealth of Spain.” Supposing, however, by -the aid of Santiago and Brunel, that the work were possible and were -completed, how is it to be secured against the fierce action of the sun, -and the fiercer violence of popular ignorance? The first cholera that -visits Spain will be set down as a passenger per rail by the -dispossessed muleteer, who now performs the functions of steam and rail. -He constitutes one of the most numerous and finest classes in Spain, and -is the legitimate channel of the semi-Oriental caravan system. He will -never permit the bread to be taken out of his mouth by this Lutheran -locomotive: deprived of means of earning his livelihood, he, like the -smuggler, will take to the road in another line, and both will become -either robbers or patriots. Many, long, and lonely are the leagues which -separate town from town in the wide deserts of thinly-peopled Spain, nor -will any preventive service be sufficient to guard the rail against the -<i>guerrilla</i> warfare that may then be waged. A handful of opponents in -any cistus-overgrown waste, may at any time, in five minutes, break up -the road, stop the train, stick the stoker, and burn the engines in -their own fire, particularly smashing the luggage-train. What, again, -has ever been the recompense which the foreigner has met with from Spain -but breach of promise and ingratitude? He will be used, as in the East, -until the native thinks that he has mastered his arts, and then he will -be abused, cast out, and trodden under foot; and who then will keep up -and repair the costly artificial undertaking?—certainly not the -Spaniard, on whose pericranium the bumps of operative skill and -mechanical construction have yet to be developed.</p> - -<div class="sidenote">BENEFITS OF RAILROADS.</div> - -<p>The lines which are the least sure of failure will be those which are -the shortest, and pass through a level country of some natural -productions, such as oil, wine, and coal. Certainly, if the rail can be -laid down in Spain by the gold and science of England, the gift, like -that of steam, will be worthy of the<a name="page_050" id="page_050"></a> Ocean’s Queen, and of the world’s -real leader of civilization; and what a change will then come over the -spirit of the Peninsula! how the siestas of torpid man-vegetation, will -be disturbed by the shrill whistle and panting snort of the monster -engine! how the seals of this long hermetically shut-up land will be -broken! how the cloistered obscure, and dreams of treasures in heaven, -will be enlightened by the flashing fire-demon of the wide-awake -money-worshipper! what owls will be vexed, what bats dispossessed, what -drones, mules, and asses will be scared, run over, and annihilated! -Those who love Spain, and pray, like the author, daily for her -prosperity, must indeed hope to see this “net-work of rails” concluded, -but will take especial care at the same time not to invest one farthing -in the imposing speculation.</p> - -<p>Recent results have fully justified during this year what was prophesied -last year in the Hand-Book: our English agents and engineers were -received with almost divine honours by the Spaniards, so incensed were -they with flattery and cigars. Their shares were instantaneously -subscribed for, and directors nominated, with names and titles longer -even than the lines, and the smallest contributions in cash were -thankfully accepted:—</p> - -<div class="poem"><div class="stanza"> -<span class="i0">“L’argent dans une bourse entre agréablement;<br /></span> -<span class="i1">Mais le terme venu, quand il faut le rendre,<br /></span> -<span class="i1">C’est alors que les douleurs commencent à nous prendre.”<br /></span> -</div></div> - -<div class="sidenote">ANGLO-HISPANO RAILROADS.</div> - -<p class="nind">When the period for booking up, for making the first instalments, -arrived, the Spanish shareholders were found somewhat wanting: they -repudiated; for in the Peninsula it has long been easier to promise than -to pay. Again, on the only line which seems likely to be carried out at -present, that of Madrid to Aranjuez, the first step taken by them was to -dismiss all English engineers and <i>navvies</i>, on the plea of encouraging -native talent and industry rather than the foreigner. Many of the -English home proceedings would border on the ridiculous, were not the -laugh of some speculators rather on the wrong side. The City capitalists -certainly have our pity, and if their plethora of wealth required the -relief of bleeding, it could not be better performed than by a Spanish -<i>Sangrado</i>. How different some of the windings-up, the final reports, to -the magnificent beginnings and grandiloquent prospectuses put forth as -baits for John Bull,<a name="page_051" id="page_051"></a> who hoped to be tossed at once, or elevated, from -haberdashery to a throne, by being offered a “potentiality of getting -rich beyond the dreams of avarice!” Thus, to clench assertion by -example, the London directors of the Royal Valencia Company made known -by an advertisement only last July, that they merely required -240,000,000 reals to connect the seaport of Valencia—where there is -none—to the capital Madrid, with 800,000 inhabitants,—there not being -200,000. One brief passage alone seemed ominous in the lucid array of -prospective profit—“The line has not yet been minutely surveyed;” this -might have suggested to the noble Marquis whose attractive name heads -the provisional committee list, the difficulty of Sterne’s traveller, of -whom, when observing how much better things were managed on the -Continent than in England, the question was asked, “Have you, sir, ever -been there?”</p> - -<div class="sidenote">LONDON RAILROAD MEETINGS.</div> - -<p>A still wilder scheme was broached, to connect Aviles on the Atlantic -with Madrid, the Asturian Alps and the Guadarrama mountains to the -contrary notwithstanding. The originator of this ingenious idea was to -receive 40,000<i>l.</i> for the cession of his plan to the company, and -actually did receive 25,000<i>l.</i>, which, considering the difficulties, -natural and otherwise, must be considered an inadequate remuneration. -Although the original and captivating prospectus stated “<i>that the line -had been surveyed, and presented no engineering difficulties</i>,” it was -subsequently thought prudent to obtain some notion of the actual -localities, and Sir <i>Joshua</i> Walmsley was sent forth with competent -assistance to spy out the land, which the Jewish practice of old was -rather to do before than after serious undertakings. A sad change soon -came over the spirit of the London dream by the discovery that a country -which looked level as Arrowsmith’s map in the prospectus, presented such -trifling obstacles to the rail as sundry leagues of mountain ridges, -which range from 6000 to 9000 feet high, and are covered with snow for -many months of the year. This was a damper. The report of the special -meeting (see ‘Morning Chronicle,’ Dec. 18, 1845) should be printed in -letters of gold, from the quantity of that article which it will -preserve to our credulous countrymen. Then and there the chairman -observed, with equal <i>naïveté</i> and pathos, “that had he known as much -before as he did<a name="page_052" id="page_052"></a> now, he would have been the last man to carry out a -railway in Spain.” This experience cost him, he observed, 5000<i>l.</i>, -which is paying dear for a Spanish rail whistle. He might for five -pounds have bought the works of Townshend and Captain Cook: our modesty -prevents the naming another red book, in which these precise localities, -these mighty Alps, are described by persons who had ridden, or rather -soared, over them. At another meeting of another Spanish rail company, -held at the London Tavern, October 20, 1846, another chairman announced -“a fact of which he was not before aware, that it was impossible to -surmount the Pyrenees.” Meanwhile, the Madrid government had secured -30,000<i>l.</i> from them by way of <i>caution</i> money; but caution disappears -from our capitalists, whenever excess of cash mounts from their pockets -into their heads; loss of common sense and dollars is the natural -result. But it is the fate of Spain and her things, to be judged of by -those who have never been there, and who feel no shame at the indecency -of the nakedness of their geographical ignorance. When the blind lead -the blind, beware of hillocks and ditches.<a name="page_053" id="page_053"></a></p> - -<div class="sidenote">POST-OFFICE.</div> - -<h2><a name="CHAPTER_VI" id="CHAPTER_VI"></a>CHAPTER VI.</h2> - -<div class="blockquot"><p class="hang">Post-Office in Spain—Travelling with post-horses—Riding -post—Mails and Diligences, Galeras, Coches de Colleras, Drivers, -and Manner of Driving, and Oaths.</p></div> - -<p class="nind">A <small>SYSTEM</small> of post, both for the despatch of letters and the conveyance of -couriers, was introduced into Spain under Philip and Juana, that is, -towards the end of the reign of our Henry VII.; whereas it was scarcely -organised in England before the government of Cromwell. Spain, which in -these matters, as well as in many others, was once so much in advance, -is now compelled to borrow her improvements from those nations of which -she formerly was the instructress: among these may be reckoned all -travelling in carriages, whether public or private.</p> - -<p>The post-office for letters is arranged on the plan common to most -countries on the Continent: the delivery is pretty regular, but seldom -daily—twice or three times a-week. Small scruple is made by the -authorities in opening private letters, whenever they suspect the -character of the correspondence. It is as well, therefore, for the -traveller to avoid expressing the whole of his opinions of the powers -that be. The minds of men have been long troubled in Spain; civil war -has rendered them very distrustful and guarded in their <i>written</i> -correspondence—“<i>carta canta</i>,” “a letter speaks.”</p> - -<p>There is the usual continental bother in obtaining post-horses, which -results from their being a monopoly of government. There must be a -passport, an official order, notice of departure, &c.; next ensue -vexatious regulations in regard to the number of passengers, horses, -luggage, style of carriage, and so forth. These, and other spokes put -into the wheel, appear to have been invented by clerks who sit at home -devising how to impede rather than facilitate posting at all.</p> - -<div class="sidenote">PUBLIC CONVEYANCES.</div> - -<p>Post-horses and mules are paid at the rate of seven reals each<a name="page_054" id="page_054"></a> for each -post. The Spanish postilions generally, and especially if well paid, -drive at a tremendous pace, often amounting to a gallop; nor are they -easily stopped, even if the traveller desires it—they seem only to be -intent on arriving at their stages’ end, in order to indulge in the -great national joy of then doing nothing: to get there, they heed -neither ruts nor ravines; and when once their cattle are started the -inside passenger feels like a kettle tied to the tail of a mad dog, or a -comet; the wild beasts think no more of him than if he were Mazeppa: -thus money makes the mare and its driver to go, as surely in Spain as in -all other countries.</p> - -<p>Another mode of travelling is by riding post, accompanied by a mounted -postilion, who is changed with the cattle at each relay. It is an -expeditious but fatiguing plan; yet one which, like the Tartar courier -of the East, has long prevailed in Spain. Thus our Charles I. rode to -Madrid under the name of John Smith, by which he was not likely to be -identified. The delight of Philip II., who boasted that he governed the -world from the Escorial, was to receive frequent and early intelligence; -and this desire to hear something new is still characteristic of the -Spanish government. The cabinet-couriers have the preference of horses -at every relay. The particular distances they have to perform are all -timed, and so many leagues are required to be done in a fixed time; and, -in order to encourage despatch, for every hour gained on the allowed -time, an additional sum was paid to them: hence the common expression -“<i>ganando horas</i>” gaining hours—equivalent to our old “post -haste—haste for your life.”</p> - -<div class="sidenote">DILIGENCES.</div> - -<div class="sidenote">EXPENSES ON THE ROAD.</div> - -<p>The usual mode of travelling for the affluent is in the public -conveyances, which are the fashion from being novelties and only -introduced under Ferdinand VII.; previously to their being allowed at -all, serious objections were started, similar to those raised by his -late Holiness to the introduction of railways into the papal states; it -was said that these tramontane facilities would bring in foreigners, and -with them philosophy, heresy, and innovations, by which the wisdom of -Spain’s ancestors might be upset. These scruples were ingeniously got -over by bribing the monarch with a large share of the profits. Now that -the royal monopoly is broken down, many new and competing companies have -sprung up; this mode of travelling is the cheapest<a name="page_055" id="page_055"></a> and safest, nor is -it thought at all beneath the dignity of “the best set,” nay royalty -itself goes by the coach. Thus the Infante Don Francisco de Paula -constantly hires the whole of the diligence to convey himself and his -family from Madrid to the sea-coast; and one reason gravely given for -Don Enrique’s not coming to marry the Queen, was that his Royal Highness -could not get a place, as the dilly was booked full. The public -carriages of Spain are quite as good as those of France, and the company -who travel in them generally more respectable and better bred. This is -partly accounted for by the expense: the fares are not very high, yet -still form a serious item to the bulk of Spaniards; consequently those -who travel in the public carriages in Spain are the class who would in -other countries travel per post. It must, however, be admitted that all -travelling in the public conveyances of the Continent necessarily -implies great discomfort to those accustomed to their own carriages; and -with every possible precaution the long journeys in Spain, of three to -five hundred miles at a stretch, are such as few English ladies can -undergo, and are, even with men, undertakings rather of necessity than -of pleasure. The mail is organized on the plan of the French -malle-poste, and offers, to those who can stand the bumping, shaking, -and churning of continued and rapid travelling without halting, a means -of locomotion which leaves nothing to be desired. The diligences also -are imitations of the lumbering French model. It will be in vain to -expect in them the neatness, the well-appointed turn-out, the quiet, -time-keeping, and infinite facilities of the English original. These -matters when passed across the water are modified to the heroic -Continental contempt for doing things in style; cheapness, which is -their great principle, prefers rope-traces to those of leather, and a -carter to a regular coachman; the usual foreign drags also exist, which -render their slow coaches and bureaucratic absurdities so hateful to -free Britons; but when one is once booked and handed over to the -conductor, you arrive in due time at the journey’s end. The “guards” are -realities; they consist of stout, armed, most picturesque, robber-like -men and no mistake, since many, before they were pardoned and pensioned, -have frequently taken a purse on the Queen’s highway; for the foreground -of your first sketch, they are splendid fellows, and worth a score of -marshals. They<a name="page_056" id="page_056"></a> are provided with a complete arsenal of swords and -blunderbusses, so that the cumbrous machine rolling over the sea of -plains looks like a man-of-war, and has been compared to a marching -citadel. Again in suspicious localities a mounted escort of equally -suspicious look gallops alongside, nor is the primitive practice of -black mail altogether neglected: the consequence of these admirable -precautions is, that the diligences are seldom or never robbed; the -thing, however, is possible.</p> - -<p>The whole of this garrisoned Noah’s ark is placed under the command of -the <i>Mayoral</i> or conductor, who like all Spanish men in authority is a -despot, and yet, like them, is open to the conciliatory influences of a -bribe. He regulates the hours of toil and sleep, which -latter—blessings, says Sancho, on the man who invented it!—is -uncertain, and depends on the early or late arrival of the diligence and -the state of the roads, for all that is lost of the fixed time on the -road is made up for by curtailing the time allowed for repose. One of -the many good effects of setting up diligences is the bettering the inns -on the road; and it is a safe and general rule to travellers in Spain, -whatever be their vehicle, always to inquire in every town which is the -<i>posada</i> that the diligence stops at. Persons were dispatched from -Madrid to the different stations on the great lines, to fit up houses, -bed-rooms, and kitchens, and provide everything for table, service; -cooks were sent round to teach the innkeepers to set out and prepare a -proper dinner and supper. Thus, in villages in which a few years before -the use of a fork was scarcely known, a table was laid out, clean, well -served, and abundant. The example set by the diligence inns has produced -a beneficial effect, since they offer a model, create competition, and -suggest the existence of many comforts, which were hitherto unknown -among Spaniards, whose abnegation of material enjoyments at home, and -praiseworthy endurance of privations of all kinds on journeys, are quite -Oriental.</p> - -<div class="sidenote">BEDS FOR TRAVELLERS.</div> - -<p>In some of the new companies every expense is calculated in the fare, to -wit, journey, postilions, inns, &c., which is very convenient to the -stranger, and prevents the loss of much money and temper. A chapter on -the dilly is as much a standing dish in every Peninsular tour as a -bullfight or a bandit adventure, for which there is a continual demand -in the home-market; and<a name="page_057" id="page_057"></a> no doubt in the long distances of Spain, where -men and women are boxed up for three or four mortal days together (the -nights not being omitted), the plot thickens, and opportunity is -afforded to appreciate costume and character; the farce or tragedy may -be spun out into as many acts as the journey takes days. In general the -order of the course is as follows: the breakfast consists at early dawn -of a cup of good stiff chocolate, which being the favourite drink of the -church and allowable even on fast days, is as nutritious as delicious. -It is accompanied by a bit of roasted or fried bread, and is followed by -a glass of cold water, to drink which is an axiom with all wise men who -respect the efficient condition of their livers. After rumbling on, over -a given number of leagues, when the passengers get well shaken together -and hungry, a regular knife and fork breakfast is provided that closely -resembles the dinner or supper which is served up later in the evening; -the table is plentiful, and the cookery to those who like oil and garlic -excellent. Those who do not, can always fall back on the bread and eggs, -which are capital; the wine is occasionally like purple blacking, and -sometimes serves also as vinegar for the salad, as the oil is said to be -used indifferently for lamps or stews; a bad dinner, especially if the -bill be long, and the wine sour, does not sweeten the passengers’ -tempers; they become quarrelsome, and if they have the good luck, a -little robber skirmish gives vent to ill-humour.</p> - -<div class="sidenote">THE GALERA.</div> - -<p>At nightfall after supper, a few hours are allowed on your part to steal -whatever rest the <i>mayoral</i> and certain <i>voltigeurs</i>, creeping and -winged, will permit; the beds are plain and clean; sometimes the -mattresses may be compared to sacks of walnuts, but there is no pillow -so soft as fatigue; the beds are generally arranged in twos, threes, and -fours, according to the size of the room. The traveller should -immediately on arriving secure his, and see that it is comfortable, for -those who neglect to get a good one must sleep in a bad. Generally -speaking, by a little management, he may get a room to himself, or at -least select his companions. There is, moreover, a real civility and -politeness shown by all classes of Spaniards, on all occasions, towards -strangers and ladies; and that even failing, a small tip, “<i>una -gratificacioncita</i>,” given beforehand to the maid, or the waiter, seldom -fails to smooth all difficulties. On these, as on all occa<a name="page_058" id="page_058"></a>sions in -Spain, most things may be obtained by good humour, a smile, a joke, a -proverb, a cigar, or a bribe, which, though last, is by no means the -least resource, since it will be found to mollify the hardest heart and -smooth the greatest difficulties, after civil speeches had been tried in -vain, for <i>Dadivas quebrantan peñas, y entra sin barrenas</i>, gifts break -rocks, and penetrate without gimlets; again, <i>Mas ablanda dinero que -palabras de Caballero</i>, cash softens more than a gentleman’s palaver. -The mode of driving in Spain, which is so unlike our way of handling the -ribbons, will be described presently.</p> - -<p>Means of conveyance for those who cannot afford the diligence are -provided by vehicles of more genuine Spanish nature and discomfort; they -may be compared to the neat accommodation for man and beast which is -doled out to third-class passengers by our monopolist railway kings, who -have usurped her Majesty’s highway, and fleece her lieges by virtue of -act of Parliament.</p> - -<p>First and foremost comes the <i>galera</i>, which fully justifies its name; -and even those who have no value for their time or bones will, after a -short trial of the rack and dislocation, exclaim,—“<i>que diable -allais-je faire dans cette galère?</i>” These machines travel periodically -from town to town, and form the chief public and carrier communication -between most provincial cities; they are not much changed from that -classical cart, the <i>rheda</i>, into which, as we read in Juvenal, the -whole family of Fabricius was conveyed. In Spain these primitive -locomotives have stood still in the general advance of this age of -progress, and carry us back to our James I., and Fynes Moryson’s -accounts of “carryers who have long covered waggons, in which they carry -passengers from city to city; but this kind of journeying is so tedious, -by reason they must take waggons very early and come very late to their -innes, none but women and people of inferior condition used to travel in -this sort.” So it is now in Spain.</p> - -<div class="sidenote">CARRIAGES AND CARTS.</div> - -<p>This <i>galera</i> is a long cart without springs; the sides are lined with -matting, while beneath hangs a loose open net, as under the calesinas of -Naples, in which lies and barks a horrid dog, who keeps a Cerberus watch -over iron pots and sieves, and such like gipsey utensils, and who is -never to be conciliated. These<a name="page_059" id="page_059"></a> <i>galeras</i> are of all sizes; but if a -<i>galera</i> should be a larger sort of vehicle than is wanted, then a -“<i>tartana</i>” a sort of covered tilted cart, which is very common in -Valencia, and which is so called from a small Mediterranean craft of the -same name, will be found convenient.</p> - -<p>The packing and departure of the <i>galera</i>, when hired by a family who -remove their goods, is a thing of Spain; the heavy luggage is stowed in -first, and beds and mattresses spread on the top, on which the family -repose in admired disorder. The <i>galera</i> is much used by the “poor -students” of Spain, a class unique of its kind, and full of rags and -impudence; their adventures have the credit of being rich and -picturesque, and recall some of the accounts of “waggon incidents” in -‘Roderick Random,’ and Smollett’s novels.</p> - -<p>Civilization, as connected with the wheel, is still at a low ebb in -Spain, notwithstanding the numerous political revolutions. Except in a -few great towns, the quiz vehicles remind us of those caricatures at -which one laughed so heartily in Paris in 1814; and in Madrid, even down -to Ferdinand VII.’s decease, the <i>Prado</i>—its rotten row—was filled -with antediluvian carriages—grotesque coachmen and footmen to match, -which with us would be put into the British Museum; they are now, alas -for painters and authors! worn out, and replaced by poor French -imitations of good English originals.</p> - -<div class="sidenote">THE COCHE DE COLLERAS.</div> - -<p>As the genuine older Spanish ones were built in remote ages, and before -the invention of folding steps, the ascent and descent were facilitated -by a three-legged footstool, which dangled, strapped up near the door, -as appears in the hieroglyphics of Egypt 4000 years ago; a pair of -long-eared fat mules, with hides and tails fantastically cut, was driven -by a superannuated postilion in formidable jackboots, and not less -formidable cocked hat of oil-cloth. In these, how often have we seen -Spanish grandees with pedigrees as old-fashioned, gravely taking the air -and dust! These slow coaches of old Spain have been rapidly sketched by -the clever young American; such are the ups and downs of nations and -vehicles. Spain for having discovered America has in return become her -butt; she cannot go a-head; so the great dust of Alexander may stop a -bung-hole, and we too join in the laugh and forget that our -ancestors—see Beaumont and Fletche<a name="page_060" id="page_060"></a>r’s ‘Maid of the Inn’—talked of -“<i>hurrying</i> on featherbeds that move upon four-wheel Spanish -<i>caroches</i>.”</p> - -<p>While on these wheel subjects it may be observed that the carts and -other machines of Spanish rural locomotion and husbandry have not -escaped better; when not Oriental they are Roman; rude in form and -material, they are always odd, picturesque, and inconvenient. The -peasant, for the most part, scratches the earth with a plough modelled -after that invented by Triptolemus, beats out his corn as described by -Homer, and carries his harvest home in strict obedience to the rules in -the Georgics. The iron work is iniquitous, but both sides of the -Pyrenees are centuries behind England; there, absurd tariffs prohibit -the importation of our cheap and good work in order to encourage their -own bad and dear wares—thus poverty and ignorance are perpetuated.</p> - -<p>The carts in the north-west provinces are the unchanged <i>plaustra</i>, with -solid wheels, the Roman <i>tympana</i> which consist of mere circles of wood, -without spokes or axles, much like mill-stones or Parmesan cheeses, and -precisely such as the old Egyptians used, as is seen in hieroglyphics, -and no doubt much resembling those sent by Joseph for his father, which -are still used by the Affghans and other unadvanced coachmakers. The -whole wheel turns round together with a piteous creaking; the drivers, -whose leathern ears are as blunt as their edgeless teeth, delight in -this excruciating <i>Chirrio</i>, Arabicè <i>charrar</i>, to make a <i>noise</i>, which -they call music, and delight in, because it is cheap and plays to them -of itself; they, moreover, think it frightens wolves, bears, and the -devil himself, as Don Quixote says, which it well may, for the wheel of -Ixion, although damned in hell, never whined more piteously. The doleful -sounds, however, serve like our waggoners’ lively bells, as warnings to -other drivers, who, in narrow paths and gorges of rocks, where two -carriages cannot pass, have this notice given them, and draw aside until -the coast is clear.</p> - -<p>We have reserved some details and the mode of driving for the <i>coche de -colleras</i>, the <i>caroche</i> of horse-collars, which is the real coach of -Spain, and in which we have made many a pleasant trip; it too is doomed -to be scheduled away, for Spaniards are descending from these coaches -and six to a chariot and pair, and by degrees beautifully less, to a -fly.</p> - -<div class="sidenote">THE COCHE DE COLLERAS.</div> - -<p>Mails and diligences, we have said, are only established on the<a name="page_061" id="page_061"></a> -principal high roads connected with Madrid: there are but few local -coaches which run from one provincial town to another, where the -necessity of frequent and certain intercommunication is little called -for. In the other provinces, where these modern conveniences have not -been introduced, the earlier mode of travelling is the only resource -left to families of children, women, and invalids, who are unable to -perform the journey on horseback. This is the <i>festina lentè</i>, or -voiturier system; and from its long continuance in Italy and Spain, in -spite of all the improvements adopted in other countries, it would -appear to have something congenial and peculiarly fitted to the habits -and wants of those cognate nations of the south, who have a -Gotho-Oriental dislike to be hurried—<i>no corre priesa</i>, there is plenty -of time. <i>Sie haben zeit genug.</i></p> - -<div class="sidenote">THE MAYORAL.</div> - -<p>The Spanish vetturino, or “<i>Calesero</i>,” is to be found, as in Italy, -standing for hire in particular and well-known places in every principal -town. There is not much necessity for hunting for <i>him</i>; he has the -Italian instinctive perception of a stranger and traveller, and the same -importunity in volunteering himself, his cattle, and carriage, for any -part of Spain. The man, however, and his equipage are peculiarly -Spanish; his carriage and his team have undergone little change during -the last two centuries, and are the representatives of the former ones -of Europe; they resemble those vehicles once used in England, which may -still be seen in the old prints of country-houses by Kip; or, as regards -France, in the pictures of Louis XIV.’s journeys and campaigns by -Vandermeulen. They are the remnant of the once universal “coach and -six,” in which according to Pope, who was not infallible, British fair -were to delight for ever. The “<i>coche de colleras</i>” is a huge cumbrous -machine, built after the fashion of a reduced lord mayor’s coach, or -some of the equipages of the old cardinals at Rome. It is ornamented -with rude sculpture, gilding, and painting of glaring colour, but the -modern pea-jacket and round hat spoil the picture which requires -passengers dressed in brocade and full-bottomed wigs; the fore-wheels -are very low, the hind ones very high, and both remarkably narrow in the -tire; remember when they stick in the mud, and the drivers call upon -Santiago, to push the vehicle out <i>backwards</i>, as the more you draw it -forwards the deeper you get into<a name="page_062" id="page_062"></a> the mire. The pole sticks out like the -bowsprit of a ship, and contains as much wood and iron work as would go -to a small waggon. The interior is lined with gay silk and gaudy plush, -adorned with lace and embroidery, with doors that open indifferently and -windows that do not shut well; latterly the general poverty and <i>prose</i> -of transpyrenean civilization has effaced much of these ornate -nationalities, both in coach and drivers; better roads and lighter -vehicles require fewer horses, which were absolutely necessary formerly -to drag the heavy concern through heavier ways.</p> - -<div class="sidenote">THE ZAGAL.</div> - -<div class="sidenote">DRIVING IN SPAIN.</div> - -<p>The luggage is piled up behind, or stowed away in a front boot. The -management of driving this vehicle is conducted by two persons. The -master is called the “<i>mayoral</i>;” his helper or cad the “<i>mozo</i>,” or, -more properly, “<i>el zagal</i>,” from the Arabic, “a strong active youth.” -The costume is peculiar, and is based on that of Andalucia, which sets -the fashion all over the Peninsula, in all matters regarding -bull-fighting, horse-dealing, robbing, smuggling, and so forth. He wears -on his head a gay-coloured silk handkerchief, tied in such a manner that -the tails hang down behind; over this remnant of the Moorish turban he -places a high-peaked sugarloaf-shaped hat with broad brims; his jaunty -jacket is made either of black sheepskin, studded with silver tags and -filigree buttons, or of brown cloth, with the back, arms, and -particularly the elbows, welted and tricked out with flowers and vases, -cut in patches of different-coloured cloth and much embroidered. When -the jacket is not worn, it is usually hung over the left shoulder, after -the hussar fashion. The waistcoat is made of rich fancy silk; the -breeches of blue or green velvet plush, ornamented with stripes and -filigree buttons, and tied at the knee with silken cords and tassels; -the neck is left open, and the shirt collar turned down, and a gaudy -neck-handkerchief is worn, oftener passed through a ring than tied in a -knot; his waist is girt with a red sash, or with one of a bright yellow. -This “<i>faja</i>,"<a name="FNanchor_3_3" id="FNanchor_3_3"></a><a href="#Footnote_3_3" class="fnanchor">[3]</a> a <i>sine quâ non</i>, is the old Roman<a name="page_063" id="page_063"></a> zona; it serves -also for a purse, “girds the loins,” and keeps up a warmth over the -abdomen, which is highly beneficial in hot climates, and wards off any -tendency to irritable colic; in the sash is stuck the “<i>navaja</i>,” the -knife, which is part and parcel of a Spaniard, and behind the “<i>zagal</i>” -usually places his stick. The richly embroidered gaiters are left open -at the outside to show a handsome stocking; the shoes are yellow, like -those of our cricketers, and are generally made of untanned calfskin, -which being the colour of dust require no cleaning. The <i>caleseros</i> on -the eastern coast wear the Valencian stocking, which has no feet to -it—being open at bottom, it is likened by wags to a Spaniard’s purse; -instead of top boots they wear the ancient Roman sandals, made of the -<i>esparto</i> rush, with hempen soles, which are called “<i>alpargatas</i>,” -Arabicè <i>Alpalgah</i>. The “<i>zagal</i>” follows the fashion in dress of the -“<i>mayoral</i>,” as nearly as his means will permit him. He is the servant -of all-work, and must be ready on every occasion; nor can any one who -has ever seen the hard and incessant toil which these men undergo, -justly accuse them of being indolent—a reproach which has been cast -somewhat indiscriminately on all the lower classes of Spain; he runs by -the side of the carriage, picks up stones to pelt the mules, ties and -unties knots, and pours forth a volley of blows and oaths from the -moment of starting to that of arrival. He sometimes is indulged with a -ride by the side of the mayoral on the box, when he always uses the tail -of the hind mule to pull himself up into his seat. The harnessing the -six animals is a difficult operation; first the tackle of ropes is laid -out on the ground, then each beast is brought into his portion of the -rigging. The start is always an important ceremony, and, as our royal -mail used to do in the country, brings out all the idlers in the -vicinity. When the team is harnessed, the mayoral gets all his skeins of -ropes into his hand, the “<i>zagal</i>” his sash full of stones, the helpers -at the venta their sticks; at a given signal all fire a volley of oaths -and blows at the team, which, once in motion, away it goes, pitching -over ruts deep as routine prejudices, with its pole dipping and rising -like a ship in a rolling sea, and continues at a brisk pace, performing -from twenty-five to thirty miles a-day. The hours of starting are early, -in order to avoid the mid-day heat; in these matters the Spanish customs -are pretty much the<a name="page_064" id="page_064"></a> same with the Italian; the <i>calesero</i> is always the -best judge of the hours of departure and these minor details, which vary -according to circumstances.</p> - -<p>Whenever a particularly bad bit of road occurs, notice is given to the -team by calling over their names, and by crying out “<i>arré, arré</i>,” -gee-up, which is varied with “<i>firmé, firmé</i>,” steady, boy, steady! The -names of the animals are always fine-sounding and polysyllabic; the -accent is laid on the last syllable, which is always dwelt on and -lengthened out with a particular -emphasis—<i>Căpĭtănā-ā</i>—<i>Băndŏlĕrā-ā</i>—<i>Gĕnĕrălā-ā</i>—<i>Vălĕrŏsā-ā</i>. -All this vocal driving is performed at the top of the voice, and, -indeed, next to scaring away crows in a field, must be considered the -best possible practice for the lungs. The team often exceeds six in -number, and never is less; the proportion of females predominates: there -is generally one male mule making the seventh, who is called “<i>el -macho</i>,” the male par excellence, like the Grand Turk, or a substantive -in a speech in Cortes, which seldom has less than half a dozen epithets: -he invariably comes in for the largest share of abuse and ill usage, -which, indeed, he deserves the most, as the male mule is infinitely more -stubborn and viciously inclined than the female. Sometimes there is a -horse of the Rosinante breed; he is called “<i>el cavallo</i>,” or rather, as -it is pronounced, “<i>el căvăl yō-ō</i>.” The horse is always the -best used of the team; to be a rider, “<i>caballero</i>,” is the Spaniard’s -synonym for gentleman; and it is their correct mode of addressing each -other, and is banded gravely among the lower orders, who never have -crossed any quadruped save a mule or a jackass.</p> - -<div class="sidenote">SWEARING.</div> - -<p>The driving a <i>coche de colleras</i> is quite a science of itself, and is -observed in conducting <i>diligences</i>; it amuses the Spanish “<i>majo</i>” or -fancy-man as much as coach-driving does the fancy-man of England; the -great art lies not in handling the ribbons, but in the proper modulation -of the voice, since the cattle are always addressed individually by -their names; the first syllables are pronounced very rapidly; the -“<i>macho</i>,” the male mule, who is the most abused, is the only one who is -not addressed by any names beyond that of his sex: the word is repeated -with a voluble iteration; in order to make the two syllables longer, -they are strung together thus, -<i>măchŏ—măchŏ—măchŏ—măcho-ŏ</i>:<a name="page_065" id="page_065"></a> they begin in -semiquavers, flowing on crescendo to a semibreve or breve, so the four -words are compounded into one polysyllable. The horse, <i>caballo</i>, is -simply called so; he has no particular name of his own, which the female -mules are never without, and which they perfectly know—indeed, the -owners will say that they understand them, and all bad language, as well -as Christian women, “<i>como Cristianas</i>;” and, to do the beasts justice, -they seem more shocked and discomfited thereby than the bipeds who -profess the same creed. If the animal called to does not answer by -pricking up her ears, or by quickening her pace, the threat of “<i>lă -vărā</i>,” the stick, is added—the last argument of Spanish drivers, -men in office, and schoolmasters, with whom there is no sort of reason -equal to that of the bastinado, “<i>no hay tal razon, como la del -baston</i>.” It operates on the timorous more than “unadorned eloquence.” -The Moors thought so highly of the bastinado, that they held the stick -to be a special gift from Allah to the faithful. It holds good, <i>à -priori</i> and <i>à posteriori</i>, to mule and boy, “<i>al hijo y mulo, para el -culo</i>;” and if the “<i>macho</i>” be in fault, and he is generally punished -to encourage the others, some abuse is added to blows, such as “<i>que -pĕrrō-ō</i>,” “what a dog!” or some unhandsome allusion to his -mother, which is followed by throwing a stone at the leaders, for no -whip could reach them from the coach-box. When any particular mule’s -name is called, if her companion be the next one to be abused, she is -seldom addressed by her name, but is spoken to as “<i>a la -ŏtrā-ā</i>,” “<i>aquella ŏtrā-ā</i>,” “Now for that other -one,” which from long association is expected and acknowledged. The team -obeys the voice and is in admirable command. Few things are more -entertaining than driving them, especially over bad roads; but it -requires much practice in Spanish speaking and swearing.</p> - -<div class="sidenote">SPANISH OATHS.</div> - -<div class="sidenote">HINTS FOR HIRING.</div> - -<p>Among the many commandments that are always broken in Spain, that of -“swear not at all” is not the least. “Our army swore lustily in -Flanders,” said Uncle Toby. But few nations can surpass the Spaniards in -the language of vituperation: it is limited only by the extent of their -anatomical, geographical, astronomical, and religious knowledge; it is -so plentifully bestowed on their animals—“un muletier à ce jeu vaut -trois rois”—that oaths and imprecations seem to be considered as the -only language the mute creation can comprehend; and as actions are<a name="page_066" id="page_066"></a> -generally suited to the words, the combination is remarkably effective. -As much of the traveller’s time on the road must be passed among beasts -and muleteers, who are not unlike them, some knowledge of their sayings -and doings is of great use: to be able to talk to them in their own -lingo, to take an interest in them and in their animals, never fails to -please; “<i>Por vida del demonio, mas sabe Usia que nosotros</i>;” “by the -life of the devil, your honour knows more than we,” is a common form of -compliment. When once equality is established, the master mind soon -becomes the real master of the rest. The great oath of Spain, which -ought never to be written or pronounced, practically forms the -foundation of the language of the lower orders; it is a most ancient -remnant of the phallic abjuration of the evil eye, the dreaded -fascination which still perplexes the minds of Orientals, and is not -banished from Spanish and Neapolitan superstitions.<a name="FNanchor_4_4" id="FNanchor_4_4"></a><a href="#Footnote_4_4" class="fnanchor">[4]</a> The word -terminates in <i>ajo</i>, on which great stress is laid: the <i>j</i> is -pronounced with a most Arabic, guttural aspiration. The word <i>ajo</i> means -also garlic, which is quite as often in Spanish mouths, and is exactly -what Hotspur liked, a “mouth-filling oath,” energetic and Michael -Angelesque. The pun has been extended to onions: thus, “<i>ajos y -cebollas</i>” means oaths and imprecations. The sting of the oath is in the -“<i>ajo</i>;” all women and quiet men, who do not wish to be particularly -objurgatory, but merely to enforce and give a little additional vigour, -un soupçon d’ail, or a shotting to their discourse, drop the offensive -“<i>ajo</i>,” and say “<i>car</i>,” “<i>carai</i>,” “<i>caramba</i>.” The Spanish oath is -used as a verb, as a substantive, as an adjective, just as it suits the -grammar or the wrath of the utterer. It is<a name="page_067" id="page_067"></a> equivalent also to a certain -place and the person who lives there. “<i>Vaya Usted al C—ajo</i>” is the -worst form of the angry “<i>Vaya Usted al demonio</i>,” or “<i>á los -infiernos</i>,” and is a whimsical mixture of courtesy and transportation. -“Your Grace may go to the devil, or to the infernal regions!”</p> - -<p>Thus these imprecatory vegetables retain in Spain their old Egyptian -flavour and mystical charm; as on the Nile, according to Pliny, onions -and garlic were worshipped as adjuratory divinities. The Spaniards have -also added most of the gloomy northern Gothic oaths, which are -imprecatory, to the Oriental, which are grossly sensual. Enough of this. -The traveller who has much to do with Spanish mules and asses, biped or -quadruped, will need no hand-book to teach him the sixty-five or more -“<i>serments espaignols</i>” on which Mons. de Brantome wrote a treatise. -More becoming will it be to the English gentleman to swear not at all; a -reasonable indulgence in <i>Caramba</i> is all that can be permitted; the -custom is more honoured in the breach than in the observance, and bad -luck seldom deserts the house of the imprecator. “<i>En la casa del que -jura, no falta desaventura.</i>”</p> - -<div class="sidenote">HINTS FOR HIRING.</div> - -<p>Previously to hiring one of these “coaches of collars,” which is rather -an expensive amusement, every possible precaution should be taken in -clearly and minutely specifying everything to be done, and the price; -the Spanish “<i>caleseros</i>” rival their Italian colleagues in that -untruth, roguery, and dishonesty, which seem everywhere to combine -readily with jockeyship, and distinguishes those who handle the whip, -“do jobbings,” and conduct mortals by horses; the fee to be given to the -drivers should never be included in the bargain, as the keeping this -important item open and dependent on the good behaviour of the future -recipients offers a sure check over master and man, and other -road-classes. In justice, however, to this class of Spaniards, it may be -said that on the whole they are civil, good-humoured, and hard-working, -and, from not having been accustomed to either the screw bargaining or -alternate extravagance of the English travellers in Italy, are as -tolerably fair in their transactions as can be expected from human -nature brought in constant contact with four-legged and four-wheeled -temptations. They offer to the artist an endless subject of the -picturesque; everything connected with them is full of form, colour, and -originality. They<a name="page_068" id="page_068"></a> can do nothing, whether sitting, driving, sleeping, -or eating, that does not make a picture; the same may be said of their -animals and their habits and harness; those who draw will never find the -midday halt long enough for the infinite variety of subject and scenery -to which their travelling equipage and attendants form the most peculiar -and appropriate foreground: while our modern poetasters will consider -them quite as worthy of being sung in immortal verse as the Cambridge -carrier Hobson, who was Milton’s choice.<a name="page_069" id="page_069"></a></p> - -<div class="sidenote">THE ANDALUCIAN HORSE.</div> - -<h2><a name="CHAPTER_VII" id="CHAPTER_VII"></a>CHAPTER VII.</h2> - -<div class="blockquot"><p class="c">Spanish Horses—Mules—Asses—Muleteers—Maragatos.</p></div> - -<p class="nind">W<small>E</small> now proceed to Spanish quadrupeds, having placed the wheel-carriages -before the horses. That of Andalucia takes precedence of all; he fetches -the highest price, and the Spaniards in general value no other breed; -they consider his configuration and qualities as perfect, and in some -respects they are right, for no horse is more elegant or more easy in -his motions, none are more gentle or docile, none are more quick in -acquiring showy accomplishments, or in performing feats of Astleyan -agility; he has very little in common with the English blood-horse; his -mane is soft and silky, and is frequently plaited with gay ribbons; his -tail is of great length, and left in all the proportions of nature, not -cropped and docked, by which Voltaire was so much offended:—</p> - -<div class="poem"><div class="stanza"> -<span class="i0">“Fiers et bizarres Anglais, qui des mêmes ciseaux<br /></span> -<span class="i1">Coupez la tête aux rois, et la queue aux chevaux.”<br /></span> -</div></div> - -<div class="sidenote">OTHER SPANISH HORSES.</div> - -<p class="nind">It often trails to the very ground, while the animal has perfect command -over it, lashing it on every side as a gentleman switches his cane; -therefore, when on a journey, it is usual to double and tie it up, after -the fashion of the ancient pig-tails of our sailors. The Andalucian -horse is round in his quarters, though inclined to be small in the -barrel; he is broad-chested, and always carries his head high, -especially when going a good pace; his length of leg adds to his height, -which sometimes reaches to sixteen hands; he never, however, stretches -out with the long graceful sweep of the English thorough-bred; his -action is apt to be loose and shambling, and he is given to <i>dishing</i> -with the feet. The pace is, notwithstanding, perfectly delightful. From -being very long in the pastern, the motion is broken as it were by the -springs of a carriage; their pace is the peculiar “<i>paso Cas<a name="page_070" id="page_070"></a>tellano</i>,” -which is something more than a walk, and less than a trot, and it is -truly sedate and sedan-chair-like, and suits a grave Don, who is given, -like a Turk, to tobacco and contemplation. Those Andalucian horses which -fall when young into the hands of the officers at Gibraltar acquire a -very different action, and lay themselves better down to their work, and -gain much more in speed from the English system of training than they -would have done had they been managed by Spaniards. Taught or untaught, -this <i>pace</i> is most gentlemanlike, and well did Beaumont and Fletcher</p> - -<div class="poem"><div class="stanza"> -<span class="i0">“Think it noble, as Spaniards do in riding,<br /></span> -<span class="i1">In managing a great horse, which is princely;”<br /></span> -</div></div> - -<p class="nind">and as has been said, is the only attitude in which the kings of the -Spains, true <span title="Greek: philippoi">Φιλιπποι</span>, ought ever to be painted, witching the -world with noble horsemanship.</p> - -<p>Many other provinces possess breeds which are more useful, though far -less showy, than the Andalucian. The horse of Castile is a strong, hardy -animal, and the best which Spain produces for mounting heavy cavalry. -The ponies of Gallicia, although ugly and uncouth, are admirably suited -to the wild hilly country and laborious population; they require very -little care or grooming, and are satisfied with coarse food and Indian -corn. The horses of Navarre, once so celebrated, are still esteemed for -their hardy strength; they have, from neglect, degenerated into ponies, -which, however, are beautiful in form, hardy, docile, sure-footed, and -excellent trotters. In most of the large towns of Spain there is a sort -of market, where horses are publicly sold; but Ronda fair, in May, is -the great Howden and Horncastle of the four provinces of Seville, -Cordova, Jaen, and Granada, and the resort of all the -picturesque-looking rogues of the south. The reader of Don Quixote need -not be told that the race of Gines Passamonte is not extinct; the -Spanish <i>Chalanes</i>, or horse-dealers, have considerable talents; but the -cleverest is but a mere child when compared to the perfection of -rascality to which a real English professor has attained in the -mysteries of lying, chaunting, and making up a horse.</p> - -<div class="sidenote">MULES.</div> - -<p>The breeding of horses was carefully attended to by the Spanish -government previously to the invasion of the French, by whom<a name="page_071" id="page_071"></a> the entire -horses and brood-mares were either killed or stolen, and the buildings -and stables burnt.</p> - -<p>The saddles used commonly in Spain are Moorish; they are made with high -peak and croup behind; the stirrup-irons are large triangularly-shaped -boxes. The food is equally Oriental, and consists of “barley and straw,” -as mentioned in the Bible. We well remember the horror of our Andalucian -groom, on our first reaching Gallicia, when he rushed in, exclaiming -that the beasts would perish, as nothing was to be had there but oats -and hay. After some difficulty he was persuaded to see if they would eat -it, which to his surprise they actually did; such, however, is habit, -that they soon fell out of condition, and did not recover until the damp -mountains were quitted for the arid plains of Castile.</p> - -<div class="sidenote">ASSES.</div> - -<p>Spaniards in general prefer mules and asses to the horse, which is more -delicate, requires greater attention, and is less sure-footed over -broken and precipitous ground. The mule performs in Spain the functions -of the camel in the East, and has something in his morale (besides his -physical suitableness to the country) which is congenial to the -character of his masters; he has the same self-willed obstinacy, the -same resignation under burdens, the same singular capability of -endurance of labour, fatigue, and privation. The mule has always been -much used in Spain, and the demand for them very great; yet, from some -mistaken crotchet of Spanish political economy (which is very Spanish), -the breeding of the mule has long been attempted to be prevented, in -order to encourage that of the horse. One of the reasons alleged was, -that the mule was a non-reproductive animal; an argument which might or -ought to apply equally to the monk; a breed for which Spain could have -shown for the first prize, both as to number and size, against any other -country in all Christendom. This attempt to force the production of an -animal far less suited to the wants and habits of the people has failed, -as might be expected. The difficulties thrown in the way have only -tended to raise the prices of mules, which are, and always were, very -dear; a good mule will fetch from 25<i>l.</i> to 50<i>l.</i>, while a horse of -relative goodness may be purchased for from 20<i>l.</i> to 40<i>l.</i> Mules were -always very dear; thus Martial, like a true Andalucian Spaniard, <i>talks</i> -of one which cost more<a name="page_072" id="page_072"></a> than a house. The most esteemed are those bred -from the mare and the ass, or <i>"garañon"</i><a name="FNanchor_5_5" id="FNanchor_5_5"></a><a href="#Footnote_5_5" class="fnanchor">[5]</a> some of which are of -extraordinary size; and one which Don Carlos had in his stud-house at -Aranjuez in 1832 exceeded fifteen hands in height. This colossal ass and -a Spanish infante were worthy of each other.</p> - -<p>The mules in Spain, as in the East, have their coats closely shorn or -clipped; part of the hair is usually left on in stripes like the zebra, -or cut into fanciful patterns, like the tattooings of a New Zealand -chief. This process of shearing is found to keep the beast cooler and -freer from cutaneous disorders. The operation is performed in the -southern provinces by gipsies, who are the same tinkers, horse-dealers, -and vagrants in Spain as elsewhere. Their clipping recalls the “mulo -curto,” on which Horace could amble even to Brundusium. The operators -rival in talent those worthy Frenchmen who cut the hair of poodles on -the Pont Neuf, in the heart and brain of European civilization. Their -Spanish colleagues may be known by the shears, formidable and -classical-shaped as those of Lachesis and her sisters, which they carry -in their sashes. They are very particular in clipping the heels and -pasterns, which they say ought to be as free from superfluous hair as -the palm of a lady’s hand.</p> - -<p>Spanish asses have been immortalised by Cervantes; they are endeared to -us by Sancho’s love and talent of imitation; he brayed so well, be it -remembered, that all the long-eared chorus joined a performer who, in -his own modest phrase, only wanted a tail to be a perfect donkey. -Spanish mayors, according to Don Quixote, have a natural talent for this -braying; but, save and except in the west of England, their right -worshipfuls may be matched elsewhere.</p> - -<div class="sidenote">ASSES OF LA MANCHA.</div> - -<div class="sidenote">THE MULETEER.</div> - -<p>The humble ass, “<i>burro</i>,” “<i>borrico</i>,” is the rule, the as in præsenti, -and part and parcel of every Spanish scene: he forms the appropriate -foreground in streets or roads. Wherever two or three Spaniards are -collected together in market, <i>junta</i>, or “congregation,” there is quite -sure to be an ass among them; he is<a name="page_073" id="page_073"></a> the hardworked companion of the -lower orders, to whom to work is the greatest misfortune; sufferance is -indeed the common virtue of both tribes. They may, perhaps, both wince a -little when a new burden or a new tax is laid on them by Señor Mon, but -they soon, when they see that there is no remedy, bear on and endure: -from this fellow-feeling, master and animal cherish each other at heart, -though, from the blows and imprecations bestowed openly, the former may -be thought by hasty observers to be ashamed of confessing these -predilections in public. Some under-current, no doubt, remains of the -ancient prejudices of chivalry; but Cervantes, who thoroughly understood -human nature in general, and Spanish nature in particular, has most -justly dwelt on the dear love which Sancho Panza felt for his “<i>Rucio</i>,” -and marked the reciprocity of the brute, affectionate as intelligent. In -fact, in the <i>Sagra</i> district, near Toledo, he is called <i>El vecino</i>, -one of the householders; and none can look a Spanish ass in the face -without remarking a peculiar expression, which indicates that the hairy -fool considers himself, like the pig in a cabin of the “first gem of the -sea,” to be one of the family, <i>de la familia</i>, or <i>de nosotros</i>. La -Mancha is the paradise of mules and asses; many a Sancho at this moment -is there fondling and embracing his ass, his “<i>chato chatito</i>,” -“<i>romo</i>,” or other complimentary variations of <i>Snub</i>, with which, when -not abusing him, he delights to nickname his helpmate. In Spain, as -Sappho says, Love is <span title="Greek: glukurikron">γλυκυπικρον</span>, an alternation of the -agro-dolce; nor is there any Prevention of Cruelty Society towards -animals; every Spaniard has the same right in law and equity to kick and -beat his own ass to his own liking, as a philanthropical Yankee has to -wallop his own niggar; no one ever thinks of interposing on these -occasions, any more than they would in a quarrel between a man and his -wife. The <i>words</i> are, at all events, on one side. It is, however, -recorded <i>in piam memoriam</i>, of certain Roman Catholic asses of Spain, -that they tried to throw off one Tomas Trebiño and some other heretics, -when on the way to be burnt, being horror-struck at bearing such -monsters. Every Spanish peasant is heart-broken when injury is done to -his ass, as well he may be, for it is the means by which he lives; nor -has he much chance, if he loses him, of finding a crown when hunting for -him, as was once<a name="page_074" id="page_074"></a> done, or even a government like Sancho. Sterne would -have done better to have laid the venue of his sentimentalities over a -dead ass in Spain, rather than in France, where the quadruped species is -much rarer. In Spain, where small carts and wheel-barrows are almost -unknown, and the drawing them is considered as beneath the dignity of -the Spanish man, the substitute, an ass, is in constant employ; -sometimes it is laden with sacks of corn, with wine-skins, with -water-jars, with dung, or with dead robbers, slung like sacks over the -back, their arms and legs tied under the animal’s belly. Asses’ milk, -“<i>leche de burra</i>,” is in much request during the spring season. The -brown sex drink it in order to fine their complexions and cool their -blood, “<i>refrescar la sangre</i>;” the clergy and men in office, “<i>los -empleados</i>,” to whom it is mother’s milk, swallow it in order that it -may give tone to their gastric juices. Riding on assback was accounted a -disgrace and a degradation to the Gothic hidalgo, and the Spaniards, in -the sixteenth century, mounted unrepining cuckolds, “<i>los cornudos -pacientes</i>,” on asses. Now-a-days, in spite of all these unpleasant -associations, the grandees and their wives, and even grave ambassadors -from foreign parts, during the royal residence at Aranjuez, much delight -in elevating themselves on this beast of ill omen, and “<i>borricadas</i>” or -donkey parties are all the fashion.</p> - -<div class="sidenote">THE MULETEER.</div> - -<div class="sidenote">MARAGATOS.</div> - -<p>The muleteer of Spain is justly renowned; his generic term is <i>arriero</i>, -a gee-uper, for his <i>arre arre</i> is pure Arabic, as indeed are almost all -the terms connected with his craft, as the Moriscoes were long the great -carriers of Spain. To travel with the muleteer, when the party is small -or a person is alone, is both cheap and safe; indeed, many of the most -picturesque portions of Spain, Ronda and Granada for instance, can -scarcely be reached except by walking or riding. These men, who are -constantly on the road, and going backwards and forwards, are the best -persons to consult for details; their animals are generally to be hired, -but a muleteer’s stud is not pleasant to ride, since their beasts always -travel in single files. The leading animal is furnished with a copper -bell with a wooden clapper, to give notice of their march, which is -shaped like an ice-mould, sometimes two feet long, and hangs from the -neck, being contrived, as it were, on<a name="page_075" id="page_075"></a> purpose to knock the animal’s -knees as much as possible, and to emit the greatest quantity of the most -melancholy sounds, which, according to the pious origin of all bells, -were meant to scare away the Evil One. The bearer of all this -tintinnabular clatter is chosen from its superior docility and knack in -picking out a way. The others follow their leader, and the noise he -makes when they cannot see him. They are heavily but scientifically -laden. The cargo of each is divided into three portions; one is tied on -each side, and the other placed between. If the cargo be not nicely -balanced, the muleteer either unloads or adds a few stones to the -lighter portion—the additional weight being compensated by the greater -comfort with which a well-poised burden is carried. These “sumpter” -mules are gaily decorated with trappings full of colour and tags. The -head-gear is composed of different coloured worsteds, to which a -multitude of small bells are affixed; hence the saying, “<i>muger de mucha -campanilla</i>,” a woman of many bells, of much show, much noise, or -pretension. The muleteer either walks by the side of his animal or sits -aloft on the cargo, with his feet dangling on the neck, a seat which is -by no means so uncomfortable as it would appear. A rude gun, “but ’twill -serve,” and is loaded with slugs, hangs always in readiness by his side, -and often with it a guitar; these emblems of life and death paint the -unchanged reckless condition of Iberia, where extremes have ever met, -where a man still goes out of the world like a swan, with a song. Thus -accoutred, as Byron says, with “all that gave, promise of pleasure or a -grave,” the approach of the caravan is announced from afar by his -cracked or guttural voice: “How carols now the lusty muleteer!” For when -not engaged in swearing or smoking, the livelong day is passed in one -monotonous high-pitched song, the tune of which is little in harmony -with the import of the words, or his cheerful humour, being most -unmusical and melancholy; but such is the true type of Oriental -<i>melody</i>, as it is called. The same absence of thought which is shown in -England by whistling is displayed in Spain by singing. “<i>Quien canta sus -males espanta:</i>” he who sings frightens away ills, a philosophic -consolation in travel as old and as classical as Virgil:—“Cantantes -licet usque, minus via tædet, camus,<a name="page_076" id="page_076"></a>” which may be thus translated for -the benefit of country gentlemen:—</p> - -<div class="poem"><div class="stanza"> -<span class="i0">If we join in doleful chorus,<br /></span> -<span class="i0">The dull highway will much less bore us.<br /></span> -</div></div> - -<p>The Spanish muleteer is a fine fellow; he is intelligent, active, and -enduring; he braves hunger and thirst, heat and cold, mud and dust; he -works as hard as his cattle, never robs or is robbed; and while his -betters in this land put off everything till to-morrow except -bankruptcy, he is punctual and honest, his frame is wiry and sinewy, his -costume peculiar; many are the leagues and long, which we have ridden in -his caravan, and longer his robber yarns, to which we paid no attention; -and it must be admitted that these cavalcades are truly national and -picturesque. Mingled with droves of mules and mounted horsemen, the -zig-zag lines come threading down the mountain defiles, now tracking -through the aromatic brushwood, now concealed amid rocks and -olive-trees, now emerging bright and glittering into the sunshine, -giving life and movement to the lonely nature, and breaking the usual -stillness by the tinkle of the bell and the sad ditty of the -muleteer—sounds which, though unmusical in themselves, are in keeping -with the scene, and associated with wild Spanish rambles, just as the -harsh whetting of the scythe is mixed up with the sweet spring and -newly-mown hay-meadow.</p> - -<div class="sidenote">COSTUME OF THE MARAGATOS.</div> - -<p>There is one class of muleteers which are but little known to European -travellers—the <i>Maragatos</i>, whose head-quarters are at <i>San Roman</i>, -near <i>Astorga</i>; they, like the Jew and gipsy, live exclusively among -their own people, preserving their primeval costume and customs, and -never marrying out of their own tribe. They are as perfectly nomad and -wandering as the Bedouins, the mule only being substituted for the -camel; their honesty and industry are proverbial. They are a sedate, -grave, dry, matter-of-fact, business-like people. Their charges are -high, but the security counterbalances, as they may be trusted with -untold gold. They are the channels of all traffic between Gallicia and -the Castiles, being seldom seen in the south or east provinces. They are -dressed in leathern jerkins, which fit tightly like a cuirass, leaving -the arms free. Their linen is coarse but white, especially the shirt -collar; a broad leather belt, in which there is a purse, is<a name="page_077" id="page_077"></a> fastened -round the waist. Their breeches, like those of the Valencians, are -called <i>Zaraguelles</i>, a pure Arabic word for kilts or wide drawers, and -no burgomaster of Rembrandt is more broad-bottomed. Their legs are -encased in long brown cloth gaiters, with red garters; their hair is -generally cut close—sometimes, however, strange tufts are left. A huge, -slouching, flapping hat completes the most inconvenient of travelling -dresses, and it is too Dutch to be even picturesque; but these fashions -are as unchangeable as the laws of the Medes and Persians were; nor will -any Maragato dream of altering his costume until those dressed models of -painted wood do which strike the hours of the clock on the square of -<i>Astorga</i>: <i>Pedro Mato</i>, also, another figure <i>costumée</i>, who holds a -weathercock at the cathedral, is the observed of all observers; and, in -truth, this particular costume is, as that of Quakers used to be, a -guarantee of their tribe and respectability; thus even Cordero, the rich -Maragato deputy, appeared in Cortes in this local costume.</p> - -<div class="sidenote">THEIR ORIGIN.</div> - -<p>The dress of the Maragata is equally peculiar: she wears, if married, a -sort of head-gear, <i>El Caramiello</i>, in the shape of a crescent, the -round part coming over the forehead, which is very Moorish, and -resembles those of the females in the basso-rilievos at Granada. Their -hair flows loosely on their shoulders, while their apron or petticoat -hangs down open before and behind, and is curiously tied at the back -with a sash, and their bodice is cut square over the bosom. At their -festivals they are covered with ornaments of long chains of coral and -metal, with crosses, relics, and medals in silver. Their earrings are -very heavy, and supported by silken threads, as among the Jewesses in -Barbary. A marriage is the grand feast; then large parties assemble, and -a president is chosen, who puts into a waiter whatever sum of money he -likes, and all invited must then give as much. The bride is enveloped in -a mantle, which she wears the whole day, and never again except on that -of her husband’s death. She does not dance at the wedding-ball. Early -next morning two roast chickens are brought to the bed-side of the happy -pair. The next evening ball is opened by the bride and her husband, to -the tune of the <i>gaita</i>, or Moorish bagpipe. Their dances are grave and -serious; such indeed is their whole character. The<a name="page_078" id="page_078"></a> <i>Maragatos</i>, with -their honest, weather-beaten countenances, are seen with files of mules -all along the high road to La Coruña. They generally walk, and, like -other Spanish <i>arrieros</i>, although they sing and curse rather less, are -employed in one ceaseless shower of stones and blows at their mules.</p> - -<p>The whole tribe assembles twice a year at Astorga, at the feasts of -Corpus and the Ascension, when they dance <i>El Canizo</i>, beginning at two -o’clock in the afternoon, and ending precisely at three. If any one not -a <i>Maragato</i> joins, they all leave off immediately. The women never -wander from their homes, which their undomestic husbands always do. They -lead the hardworked life of the Iberian females of old, and now, as -then, are to be seen everywhere in these west provinces toiling in the -fields, early before the sun has risen, and late after it has set; and -it is most painful to behold them drudging at these unfeminine -vocations.</p> - -<p>The origin of the <i>Maragatos</i> has never been ascertained. Some consider -them to be a remnant of the Celtiberian, others of the Visigoths; most, -however, prefer a Bedouin, or caravan descent. It is in vain to question -these ignorant carriers as to their history or origin; for like the -gipsies, they have no traditions, and know nothing. <i>Arrieros</i>, at all -events, they are; and that word, in common with so many others relating -to the barb and carrier-caravan craft, is Arabic, and proves whence the -system and science were derived by Spaniards.</p> - -<div class="sidenote">TRAVELLING IN THE INTERIOR.</div> - -<p>The <i>Maragatos</i> are celebrated for their fine beasts of burden; indeed, -the mules of Leon are renowned, and the asses splendid and numerous, -especially the nearer one approaches to the learned university of -Salamanca. The <i>Maragatos</i> take precedence on the road; they are the -lords of the highway, being <i>the</i> channels of commerce in a land where -mules and asses represent luggage rail trains. They know and feel their -importance, and that they are the rule, and the traveller for mere -pleasure is the exception. Few Spanish muleteers are much more polished -than their beasts, and however picturesque the scene, it is no joke -meeting a string of laden beasts in a narrow road, especially with a -precipice on one side, <i>cosa de España</i>. The <i>Maragatos</i> seldom give -way, and their mules keep doggedly<a name="page_079" id="page_079"></a> on; as the baggage projects on each -side, like the paddles of a steamer, they sweep the whole path. But all -wayfaring details in the genuine Spanish interior are calculated for the -<i>pack</i>, as in England a century back; and there is no thought bestowed -on the foreigner, who is not wanted, nay is disliked. The inns, roads, -and right sides, suit the natives and their brutes; nor will either put -themselves out of their way to please the fancies of a stranger. The -racy Peninsula is too little travelled over for its natives to adopt the -mercenary conveniences of the Swiss, that nation of innkeepers and -coach-jobbers.<a name="page_080" id="page_080"></a></p> - -<div class="sidenote">RIDING TOURS.</div> - -<h2><a name="CHAPTER_VIII" id="CHAPTER_VIII"></a>CHAPTER VIII.</h2> - -<div class="blockquot"><p class="hang">Riding Tour in Spain—Pleasures of it—Pedestrian Tour—Choice of -Companions—Rules for a Riding Tour—Season of Year—Day’s -Journey—Management of Horse: his Feet; Shoes; General Hints.</p></div> - -<div class="sidenote">ROYAL ROADS.</div> - -<p class="nind">A <small>MAN</small> in a public carriage ceases to be a private individual: he is -merged into the fare, and becomes a number according to his place; he is -booked like a parcel, and is delivered by the guard. How free, how lord -and master of himself, does the same dependent gentleman mount his eager -barb, who by his neighing and pawing exhibits his joyful impatience to -be off too! How fresh and sweet the free breath of heaven, after the -frousty atmosphere of a full inside of foreigners, who, from the -narcotic effects of tobacco, forget the existence of soap, water, and -clean linen! Travelling on horseback, so unusual a gratification to -Englishmen, is the ancient, primitive, and once universal mode of -travelling in Europe, as it still is in the East; mankind, however, soon -gets accustomed to a changed state of locomotion, and forgets how recent -is its introduction. Fynes Moryson gave much the same advice two -centuries ago to travellers in England, as must be now suggested to -those who in Spain desert the coach-beaten highways for the delightful -bye-ways, and thus explore the rarely visited, but not the least -interesting portions of the Peninsula. It has been our good fortune to -perform many of these expeditions on horseback, both alone and in -company; and on one occasion to have made the pilgrimage from Seville to -Santiago, through Estremadura and Gallicia, returning by the Asturias, -Biscay, Leon, and the Castiles; thus riding nearly two thousand miles on -the same horse, and only accompanied by one Andalucian servant, who had -never before gone out of his native province. The same tour was -afterwards performed by two friends with two servants; nor did they or -ourselves ever meet with any real impediments or difficulties, scarcely -indeed sufficient of either to give the flavour of adventure, or the -dignity<a name="page_081" id="page_081"></a> of danger, to the undertaking. It has also been our lot to make -an extended tour of many months, accompanied by an English lady, through -Granada, Murcia, Valencia, Catalonia, and Arragon, to say nothing of -repeated excursions through every nook and corner of Andalucia. The -result of all this experience, combined with that of many friends, who -have <i>ridden over</i> the Peninsula, enables us to recommend this method to -the young, healthy, and adventurous, as by far the most agreeable plan -of proceeding; and, indeed, as we have said, as regards two-thirds of -the Peninsula, the only practicable course.</p> - -<p>The leading royal roads which connect the capital with the principal -seaports are, indeed, excellent; but they are generally drawn in a -straight line, whereby many of the most ancient cities are thus left -out, and these, together with sites of battles and historical incident, -ruins and remains of antiquity, and scenes of the greatest natural -beauty, are accessible with difficulty, and in many cases only on -horseback. Spain abounds with wide tracts which are perfectly unknown to -the Geographical Society. Here, indeed, is fresh ground open to all who -aspire in these threadbare days to book something new; here is scenery -enough to fill a dozen portfolios, and subject enough for a score of -quartos. How many flowers pine unbotanised, how many rocks harden -ungeologised; what views are dying to be sketched; what bears and deer -to be stalked; what trout to be caught and eaten; what valleys expand -their bosoms, longing to embrace their visitor; what virgin beauties -hitherto unseen await the happy member of the Travellers’ Club, who in -ten days can exchange the bore of eternal Pall Mall for these untrodden -sites; and then what an accession of dignity in thus discovering a terra -incognita, and rivalling Mr. Mungo Park! Nor is a guide wanting, since -our good friend John Murray, the grand monarque of Handbooks, has -proclaimed from Albemarle Street, <i>Il n’y a plus de Pyrénées</i>.</p> - -<div class="sidenote">HINTS TO TRAVELLERS.</div> - -<p>As the wide extent of country which intervenes between the radii of the -great roads is most indifferently provided with public means of -inter-communication; as there is little traffic, and no demand for -modern conveyances—even mules and horses are not always to be procured, -and we have always found it best to set out on these distant excursions -with our own beasts: the com<a name="page_082" id="page_082"></a>fort and certainty of this precaution have -been corroborated beyond any doubt by frequent comparisons with the -discomforts undergone by other persons, who trusted to chance -accommodations and means of locomotion in ill-provided districts and -out-of-the-way excursions: indeed, as a general rule, the traveller will -do well to carry with him everything with which from habit he feels that -he cannot dispense. The chief object will be to combine in as small a -space as possible the greatest quantity of portable comfort, taking care -to select the really essential; for there is no worse mistake than -lumbering oneself with things that are never wanted. This mode of -travelling has not been much detailed by the generality of authors, who -have rarely gone much out of the beaten track, or undertaken a -long-continued riding tour, and they have been rather inclined to -overstate the dangers and difficulties of a plan which they have never -tried. At the same time this plan is not to be recommended to fine -ladies nor to delicate gentlemen, nor to those who have had a touch of -rheumatism, or who tremble at the shadows which coming gout casts before -it.</p> - -<div class="sidenote">HEALTHFUL EXERCISE.</div> - -<p>Those who have endurance and curiosity enough to face a tour in Sicily, -may readily set out for Spain; rails and post-horses certainly get -quicker over the country; but the pleasure of the remembrance and the -benefits derived by travel are commonly in an inverse ratio to the ease -and rapidity with which the journey is performed. In addition to the -accurate knowledge which is thus acquired of the country (for there is -no map like this mode of surveying), and an acquaintance with a -considerable, and by no means the worst portion of its population, a -riding expedition to a civilian is almost equivalent to serving a -campaign. It imparts a new life, which is adopted on the spot, and which -soon appears quite natural, from being in perfect harmony and fitness -with everything around, however strange to all previous habits and -notions; it takes the conceit out of a man for the rest of his life—it -makes him bear and forbear. It is a capital practical school of moral -discipline, just as the hardiest mariners are nurtured in the roughest -seas. Then and there will be learnt golden rules of patience, -perseverance, good temper, and good fellowship: the individual man must -come out, for better or worse. On these occasions, where wealth and -rank<a name="page_083" id="page_083"></a> are stripped of the aids and appurtenances of conventional -superiority, a man will draw more on his own resources, moral and -physical, than on any letter of credit; his wit will be sharpened by -invention-suggesting necessity.</p> - -<p>Then and there, when up, about, and abroad, will be shaken off dull -sloth; action—Demosthenic action—will be the watch-word. The traveller -will blot out from his dictionary the fatal Spanish phrase of -procrastination <i>by-and-by</i>, a street which leads to the house of -<i>never</i>, for “<i>por la calle de despues, se va a la casa de nunca</i>.” -Reduced to shift for himself, he will see the evil of waste—the folly -of improvidence and want of order. He will whistle to the winds the -paltry excuse of idleness, the Spanish “<i>no se puede</i>,” “<i>it is -impossible</i>.” He will soon learn, by grappling with difficulties, how -surely they are overcome,—how soft as silk becomes the nettle when it -is sternly grasped, which would sting the tender-handed touch,—how -powerful a principle of realising the object proposed, is the moral -conviction that we can and will accomplish it. He will never be scared -by shadows thin as air, for when one door shuts another opens, and he -who pushes on arrives. And after all, a dash of hardship may be endured -by those accustomed to loll in easy britzskas, if only for the sake of -novelty; what a new relish is given to the palled appetite by a little -unknown privation!—hunger being, as Cervantes says, the best of sauces, -which, as it never is wanting to the poor, is the reason why eating is -their huge delight.</p> - -<div class="sidenote">DELIGHTS OF A TOUR.</div> - -<p>Again, these sorts of independent expeditions are equally conducive to -health of body: after the first few days of the new fatigue are got -over, the frame becomes of iron, “<i>hecho de bronze</i>,” and the rider, a -centaur not fabulous. The living in the pure air, the sustaining -excitement of novelty, exercise, and constant occupation, are all -sweetened by the willing heart, which renders even labour itself a -pleasure; a new and vigorous life is infused into every bone and muscle: -early to bed and early to rise, if it does not make all brains wise, at -least invigorates the gastric juices, makes a man forget that he has a -liver, that storehouse of mortal misery—bile, blue pill, and blue -devils. This health is one of the secrets of the amazing charm which -seems inherent to this mode of travelling, in spite of all the apparent -hardships<a name="page_084" id="page_084"></a> with which it is surrounded in the abstract. Oh! the delight -of this gipsy, Bedouin, nomade life, seasoned with unfettered liberty! -We pitch our tent wherever we please, and there we make our home—far -from letters “requiring an immediate answer,” and distant dining-outs, -visits, ladies’ maids, band-boxes, butlers, bores, and button-holders.</p> - -<p>Escaping from the meshes of the west end of London, we are transported -into a new world; every day the out-of-door panorama is varied; now the -heart is cheered and the countenance made glad by gazing on plains -overflowing with milk and honey, or laughing with oil and wine, where -the orange and citron bask in the glorious sunbeams, the palm without -the desert, the sugar-cane without the slave. Anon we are lost amid the -silence of cloud-capped glaciers, where rock and granite are tost about -like the fragments of a broken world, by the wild magnificence of -Nature, who, careless of mortal admiration, lavishes with proud -indifference her fairest charms where most unseen, her grandest forms -where most inaccessible. Every day and everywhere we are unconsciously -funding a stock of treasures and pleasures of memory, to be hived in our -bosoms like the honey of the bee, to cheer and sweeten our after-life, -when we settle down like wine-dregs in our cask, which, delightful even -as in the reality, wax stronger as we grow in years, and feel that these -feats of our youth, like sweet youth itself, can never be our portion -again. Of one thing the reader may be assured,—that dear will be to -him, as is now to us, the remembrance of those wild and weary rides -through tawny Spain, where hardship was forgotten ere undergone: those -sweet-aired hills—those rocky crags and torrents—those fresh valleys -which communicated their own freshness to the heart—that keen relish -for hard fare, gained and seasoned by hunger sauce, which Ude did not -invent—those sound slumbers on harder couch, earned by fatigue, the -downiest of pillows—the braced nerves—the spirits light, elastic, and -joyous—that freedom from care—that health of body and soul which ever -rewards a close communion with Nature—and the shuffling off of the -frets and factitious wants of the thick-pent artificial city.</p> - -<div class="sidenote">CHOICE OF COMPANIONS.</div> - -<p>Whatever be the number of the party, and however they travel, whether on -wheels or horseback, admitting even that a<a name="page_085" id="page_085"></a> pleasant friend pro vehiculo -est, that is, is better than a post-chaise, yet no one should ever dream -of making a pedestrian tour in Spain. It seldom answers anywhere, as the -walker arrives at the object of his promenade tired and hungry, just at -the moment when he ought to be the freshest and most up to intellectual -pleasures. The deipnosophist Athenæus long ago discovered that there was -no love for the sublime and beautiful in an empty stomach, æsthetics -yield then to gastronomies, and there is no prospect in the world so -fine as that of a dinner and a nap, or <i>siesta</i> afterwards. The -pedestrian in Spain, where fleshly comforts are rare, will soon -understand why, in the real journals of our Peninsular soldiers, so -little attention is paid to those objects which most attract the -well-provided traveller. In cases of bodily hardship, the employment of -the mental faculties is narrowed into the care of supplying mere -physical wants, rather than expanded into searching for those of a -contemplative or intellectual gratification; the footsore and way-worn -require, according to</p> - -<div class="poem"><div class="stanza"> -<span class="i6">“The unexempt condition<br /></span> -<span class="i0">By which all mortal frailty must subsist,<br /></span> -<span class="i0">Refreshment after toil, ease after pain.”<br /></span> -</div></div> - -<p>Walking is the manner by which beasts travel, who have therefore four -legs; those bipeds who follow the example of the brute animals will soon -find that they will be reduced to their level in more particulars than -they imagined or bargained for. Again, as no Spaniard ever walks for -pleasure, and none ever perform a journey on foot except trampers and -beggars, it is never supposed possible that any one else should do so -except from compulsion. Pedestrians therefore are either ill received, -or become objects of universal suspicion; for a Spanish authority, -judging of others by himself, always takes the worst view of the -stranger, whom he considers as guilty until he proves himself innocent.</p> - -<p>Before the pleasures of a riding tour through Spain are mentioned, a few -observations on the choice of companions may be made.</p> - -<div class="sidenote">OCCASIONAL DEPRESSION.</div> - -<p>Those who travel in public conveyances or with muleteers are seldom -likely to be left alone. It is the horseman who strikes into -out-of-the-way, unfrequented districts, who will feel the<a name="page_086" id="page_086"></a> want of that -important item—a travelling companion, on which, as in choosing a wife, -it is easy enough to give advice. The patient must, however, administer -to himself, and the selection will depend, of course, much on the taste -and idiosyncracy of each individual; those unfortunate persons who are -accustomed to have everything their own way, or those, happy ones, who -are never less alone than when alone, and who possess the alchymy of -finding resources and amusements in themselves, may perhaps find that -plan to be the best; at all events, no company is better than bad -company: “<i>mas vale ir solo, que mal acompañado</i>.” A solitary wanderer -is certainly the most unfettered as regards his notions and motions, -“<i>no tengo padre ni madre, ni perro que me ladre</i>.” He who has “neither -father, mother, nor dog to bark at him,” can read the book of Spain, as -it were, in his own room, dwelling on what he likes, and skipping what -he does not, as with a red Murray.</p> - -<div class="sidenote">SPANISH MANNERS.</div> - -<p>Every coin has, however, its reverse, and every rose its thorn. -Notwithstanding these and other obvious advantages, and the tendency -that occupation and even hardships have to drive away imaginary evils, -this freedom will be purchased by occasional moments of depression; a -dreary, forsaken feeling will steal over the most cheerful mind. It is -not good for man to be alone; and this social necessity never comes home -stronger to the warm heart than during a long-continued solitary ride -through the rarely visited districts of the Peninsula. The sentiment is -in perfect harmony with the abstract feeling which is inspired by the -present condition of unhappy Spain, fallen from her high estate, and -blotted almost from the map of Europe. Silent, sad, and lonely is her -face, on which the stranger will too often gaze; her hedgeless, treeless -tracts of corn-field, bounded only by the low horizon; her uninhabited, -uncultivated plains, abandoned to the wild flower and the bee, and which -are rendered still more melancholy by ruined castle, or village, which -stand out bleaching skeletons of a former vitality. The dreariness of -this abomination of desolation is increased by the singular absence of -singing birds, and the presence of the vulture, the eagle, and lonely -birds of prey. The wanderer, far from home and friends, feels doubly a -stranger in this strange land, where no smile greets his coming, no tear -is shed at his going,—where his memory<a name="page_087" id="page_087"></a> passes away, like that of a -guest who tarrieth but a day,—where nothing of human life is seen, -where its existence only is inferred by the rude wooden cross or -stone-piled cairn, which marks the unconsecrated grave of some traveller -who has been waylaid there alone, murdered, and sent to his account with -all his imperfections on his head.</p> - -<p>However confidently we have relied on past experience that such would -not be our fate, yet these sorts of Spanish milestones marked with -memento mori, are awkward evidences that the thing is not altogether -impossible. It makes a single gentleman, whose life is not insured, not -only trust to Santiago, but keep his powder dry, and look every now and -then if his percussion cap fits. On these occasions the falling in with -any of the nomade half-Bedouin natives is a sort of godsend; their -society is quite different from that of a regular companion, for better -or worse until death us do part, as it is casual, and may be taken up or -dropped at convenience. The habits of all Spaniards when on the road are -remarkably gregarious; a common fear acts as a cement, while the more -they are in number the merrier. It is hail! well met, fellow-traveller! -and the being glad to see each other is an excellent introduction. The -sight of passengers bound our way is like speaking a strange sail on the -Atlantic, <i>Hola Camara!</i> ship a-hoy. This predisposition tends to make -all travellers write so much and so handsomely of the lower classes of -Spaniards, not indeed more than they deserve, for they are a fine, noble -race. Something of this arises, because on such occasions all parties -meet on an equality; and this levelling effect, perhaps unperceived, -induces many a foreigner, however proud and reserved at home, to unbend, -and that unaffectedly. He treats these accidental acquaintances quite -differently from the manner in which he would venture to treat the lower -orders of his own country, who, probably, if conciliated by the same -condescension of manner, would appear in a more amiable light, although -they are inferior to the Spaniard in his Oriental goodness of manner, -his perfect tact, his putting himself and others into their proper -place, without either self-degradation or vulgar assumption of social -equality or superior physical powers.</p> - -<div class="sidenote">FRIENDSHIPS.</div> - -<p>A long solitary ride is hardly to be recommended; it is not<a name="page_088" id="page_088"></a> fair to -friends who have been left anxious behind, nor is it prudent to expose -oneself, without help, to the common accidents to which a horse and his -rider are always liable. Those who have a friend with whom they feel -they can venture to go in double harness, had better do so. It is a -severe test, and the trial becomes greater in proportion as hardships -abound and accommodations are scanty—causes which sour the milk of -human kindness, and prove indifferent restorers of stomach or temper. It -is on these occasions, on a large journey and in a small <i>venta</i>, that a -man finds out what his friend really is made of. While in the more -serious necessities of danger, sickness, and need—a friend is one -indeed, and the one thing wanting, with whom we share our last morsel -and cup gladly. The salt of good fellowship, if it cannot work miracles -as to quantity, converts the small loaf into a respectable abstract -feed, by the zest and satisfaction with which it flavours it.</p> - -<p>Nothing, moreover, cements friendships for the future like having made -one of these conjoint rambles, provided it did not end in a quarrel. The -mere fact of having travelled <i>at all</i> in Spain has a peculiarity which -is denied to the more hackneyed countries of Europe. When we are -introduced to a person who has visited these spell-casting sites, we -feel as if we knew him already. There is a sort of freemasonry in having -done something in common, which is not in common with the world at -large. Those who are about to qualify themselves for this exclusive -quality will do well not to let the party exceed five in number, three -masters and two servants; two masters with two servants are perhaps more -likely to be better accommodated; a third person, however, is often of -use in trying journeys, as an arbiter elegantiarum et rixarum, a referee -and arbitrator; for in the best regulated teams it must happen that some -one will occasionally start, gib, or bolt, when the majority being -against him brings the offender to his proper senses. Four eyes, again, -see better than two, “<i>mas ven cuatro ojos que dos</i>.”</p> - -<div class="sidenote">CHOICE OF HORSES.</div> - -<p>By attending to a few simple rules, a tour of some months’ duration, and -over thousands of miles, may be performed on one and the same horse, who -with his rider will at the end of the journey be neither sick nor sorry, -but in such capital condition as to be ready to start again. We presume -that the time will<a name="page_089" id="page_089"></a> be chosen when the days are long and Nature has -thrown aside her wintry garb. Fine weather is the joy of the wayfarer’s -soul, and nothing can be more different than the aspect of Spanish -villages in good or in bad weather; as in the East, during wintry rains -they are the acmes of mud and misery, but let the sun shine out, and all -is gilded. It is the smile which lights up the habitually sad expression -of a Spanish woman’s face. The blessed beam cheers poverty itself, and -by its stimulating, exhilarating action on the system of man, enables -him to buffet against the moral evils to which countries the most -favoured by climate seem, as if it were from compensation, to be more -exposed than those where the skies are dull, and the winds bleak and -cold.</p> - -<p>As in our cavalry regiments, where real service is required, a perfect -animal is preferred, a rider should choose a mare rather than a gelding; -the use of entire horses is, however, so general in Spain, that one of -such had better be selected than a mare. The day’s journey will vary -according to circumstances from twenty-five to forty miles. The start -should be made before daybreak, and the horse well fed at least an hour -before the journey is commenced, during which Spaniards, if they can, go -to church, for they say that no time is ever lost on a journey by -feeding horses and men and hearing masses, <i>misa y cebada no estorban -jornada</i>.</p> - -<div class="sidenote">TRAVELLING PACE.</div> - -<p>The hours of starting, of course, depend on the distance and the -district. The sooner the better, as all who wish to cheat the devil must -get up very early. “<i>Quien al demonio quiere engañar, muy temprano -levantarse ha.</i>” It is a great thing for the traveller to reach his -night quarters as soon as he can, for the first comers are the best -served: borrow therefore an hour of the morning rather than from the -night; and that hour, if you lose it at starting, you will never -overtake in the day. Again, in the summer it is both agreeable and -profitable to be under weigh and off at least an hour or two before -sunrise, as the heat soon gets insupportable, and the stranger is -exposed to the <i>tabardillo</i>, the coup de soleil, which, even in a -smaller degree, occasions more ill health in Spain than is generally -imagined, and especially by the English, who brave it either from -ignorance or foolhardiness. The head should be well protected with a -silk handkerchief, tied after a turban fashion, which all the natives<a name="page_090" id="page_090"></a> -do; in addition to which we always lined the inside of our hats with -thickly doubled brown paper. In Andalucia, during summer, the muleteers -travel by night, and rest during the day-heat, which, however, is not a -satisfactory method, except for those who wish to see nothing. We have -never adopted it. The early mornings and cool afternoons and evenings -are infinitely preferable; while to the artist the glorious sunrises and -sunsets, and the marking of mountains, and definition of forms from the -long shadows, are magnificent beyond all conception. In these almost -tropical countries, when the sun is high, the effect of shadow is lost, -and everything looks flat and unpicturesque.</p> - -<p>The journey should be divided into two portions, and the longest should -be accomplished the first: the pace should average about five miles an -hour, it being an object not to keep the animal unnecessarily on his -legs: he may be trotted gently, and even up easy hills, but should -always be walked down them; nay, if led, so much the better, which -benefits both horse and rider. It is surprising how a steady, continued -slow pace gets over the ground: <i>Chi va piano, va sano, é lontano</i>, says -the Italian; <i>paso a paso va lejos</i>, step by step goes far, responds the -Castilian. The end of the journey each day is settled before starting, -and there the traveller is sure to arrive with the evening. Spaniards -never fidget themselves to get quickly to places where nobody is -expecting them: nor is there any good to be got in trying to hurry man -or beast in Spain; you might as well think of hurrying the Court of -Chancery. The animals should be rested, if possible, every fourth day, -and not used during halts in towns, unless they exceed three days’ -sojourn.</p> - -<div class="sidenote">FEEDING YOUR HORSE.</div> - -<p>On arriving at every halting-place, look first at the feet, and pick out -any pebbles or dirt, and examine the nails and shoes carefully, to see -that nothing is loose; let this inspection become a habit; do not wash -the feet too soon, as the sudden chill sometimes produces fever in them: -when they are cool, clean them and grease the hoof well; after that you -may wash as much as you please. The best thing, however, is to feed your -horse at once, before thinking of his toilet; the march will have given -an appetite, while the fatigue requires immediate restoration. If a -horse is to be worried with cleaning, &c., he often loses heart and -gets<a name="page_091" id="page_091"></a> off his feed: he may be rubbed down when he has done eating, and -his bed should be made up as for night, the stable darkened, and the -animal left quite quiet, and the longer the better: feed him well again -an hour before starting for the afternoon stage, and treat him on coming -in exactly as you did in the morning. The food must be regulated by the -work: when that is severe, give corn with both hands, and stint the hay -and other lumber: what you want is to concentrate support by quality, -not quantity. The Spaniard will tell you that one mouthful of beef is -worth ten of potatoes. If your horse is an English one, it must be -remembered that eight pounds’ weight of barley is equal to ten of oats, -as containing less husk and more mucilage or starch, which our -horse-dealers know when they want to <i>make up</i> a horse; overfeeding a -horse in the hot climate of Spain, like overfeeding his rider, renders -both liable to fevers and sudden inflammatory attacks, which are much -more prevalent in Gibraltar than elsewhere in Spain, because our -countrymen will go on exactly as if they were at home.</p> - -<p>At all events, feed your horse well with <i>something or other</i>, or your -Spanish squire will rain proverbs on you, like Sancho Panza; the belly -must be filled with hay or straw, for it in reality carries the feet, <i>O -paja o heno el vientre lleno—tripas llevan á pies</i>, and so forth. The -Spaniards when on a journey allow their horses to drink copiously at -every stream, saying that there is no juice like that of flints; and -indeed they set the example, for they are all down on their bellies at -every brook, swilling water, according to the proverb, like an ox, and -wine when they can get it, like a king. If therefore you are riding a -Spanish horse which has been accustomed to this continual tippling, let -him drink, otherwise he will be fevered. If the horse has been treated -in the English fashion, give him his water only after his meals, -otherwise he will break out into weakening sweats. Should the animal -ever arrive distressed, a tepid gruel, made with oatmeal or even flour, -will comfort him much. At nightfall stop the feet with wet tow, or with -horse dung, for that of cows will seldom be to be had in Spain, where -goats furnish milk, and Dutchmen butter.</p> - -<div class="sidenote">THE HORSE’S FOOT.</div> - -<p>Let the feet be constantly attended to; the horse having twice as many -as his rider, requires double attention, and of what use<a name="page_092" id="page_092"></a> to a traveller -is a quadruped that has not a leg to go upon? This is well known to -those commercial gentlemen, who are the only persons now-a-days in -England who make riding journeys. It is the shoe that makes or mars the -horse, and no wise man, in Spain or out, who has got a four-footed -hobby, or three half-crowns, should delay sending to Longman’s for that -admirable “Miles on the Horse’s Foot.” “Every knight errant,” says Don -Quixote, “ought to be able to shoe his own <i>Rosinante</i> himself.” <i>Rosin</i> -is pure Arabic for a hackney—at least he should know how this -calceolation ought to be done. As a general rule, always take your -quadruped to the forge, where the shoes can be fitted to his feet, not -the feet to ready-made shoes; and if you value the comfort, the -extension of life and service of your steed—<i>fasten the fore shoes with -five nails at most in the outside, and with two only in the inside, and -those near the toe</i>; do not in mercy fix by nails all round an -unyielding rim of dead iron, to an expanding living hoof; remember also -always to take with you a spare set of shoes, with nails and a -hammer—for the want of a nail the shoe was lost; for the want of a shoe -the rider was tost. In many parts of Spain, where there are no fine -modern roads, you might almost do without any shoes at all, as the -ancients did, and is done in parts of Mexico; but no unprotected hoof -can stand the constant wear and tear, the filing of a macadamised -highway.</p> - -<div class="sidenote">THE MOSQUERO.</div> - -<p>The horse will probably be soon in such condition as to want no more -physic than his rider; a lump, however, of rock-salt, and a bit of chalk -put at night into his manger, answers the same purposes as Epsoms and -soda do to the master. You should wash out the long tail and mane, which -is the glory of a Spanish horse, as fine hair is to a woman, with soda -and water; the alkali combining with the animal grease forms a most -searching detergent. A grand remedy for most of the accidents to which -horses are liable on a journey, such as kicks, cuts, strains, &c., is a -constant fomentation with hot water, which should be done under the -immediate superintendence of the master, or it will be either done -insufficiently, or not done at all; hot water, according to the groom -genus, having been created principally as a recipient of something -stronger. A crupper and breastplate are almost indispensable, from the -steep ascents and descents in the mountains. The <i>mosquero</i>, the -fly-flapper,<a name="page_093" id="page_093"></a> is a great comfort to the horse, as, being in perpetual -motion, and hanging between his eyes, it keeps off the flies; the -head-stall, or night halter, never should be removed from the bridle, -but be rolled up during the day, and fastened along the side of the -cheek. The long tail is also rolled up when the ways are miry, just as -those of our blue jackets and horse-guards used to be.<a name="page_094" id="page_094"></a></p> - -<div class="sidenote">THE RIDER’S COSTUME.</div> - -<h2><a name="CHAPTER_IX" id="CHAPTER_IX"></a>CHAPTER IX.</h2> - -<div class="blockquot"><p class="hang">The Rider’s Costume—Alforjas: their contents—The Bota, and How to -use it—Pig Skins and Borracha—Spanish Money—Onzas and smaller -Coins.</p></div> - -<p class="nind">T<small>HE</small> rider’s costume and accoutrements require consideration; his great -object should be to pass in a crowd, either unnoticed, or to be taken -for “one of us,” <i>Uno de Nosotros</i>, and a member of the Iberian -family—<i>de la Familia</i>: this is best effected by adopting the dress, -that is usually worn by the natives when they travel on horseback, or -journey by any of their national conveyances, among which Anglo-Franco -mails and diligences are not yet to be reckoned; all classes of -Spaniards, on getting outside the town-gate, assume country habits, and -eschew the long-tailed coats and civilization of the city; they drop -pea-jackets and foreign fashions, which would only attract attention, -and expose the wearers to the ridicule or coarser marks of consideration -from the peasantry, muleteers, and other gentry, who rule on the road, -hate novelties, and hold fast to the ways and jackets of their -forefathers; the best hat, therefore, is the common <i>sombrero calanes</i>, -which resemble those worn at Astley’s by banditti, being of a conical -shape, is edged with black velvet, ornamented with silken tufts, and -looks equally well on a cockney from London, or on a squire from -Devonshire. The jacket should be the universal fur <i>Zamarra</i>, which is -made of black sheepskin, in its ordinary form, and of lambskin for those -who can pay; a sash round the waist should never be forgotten, being -most useful both in reality and metaphor: it sustains the loins, and -keeps off the dangerous colics of Spain, by maintaining an equable heat -over the abdomen; hence, to be Homerically well girt is half the battle -for the Peninsular traveller.</p> - -<div class="sidenote">THE ALFORJAS.</div> - -<p>The <i>capa</i> the cloak, or the <i>manta</i> a striped plaid, and saddle-bags, -the <i>Alforjas</i>, are absolute essentials, and should be strapped on the -pommel of the saddle, as being there less heating to the horse than when -placed on his flanks, and being in front, they<a name="page_095" id="page_095"></a> are more handy for -sudden use, since in the mountains and valleys, the rider is constantly -exposed to sudden variations of wind and weather; when Æolus and Sol -contend for his cloak, as in Æsop’s Fables, and the buckets of heaven -are emptied on him as soon as the god of fire thinks him sufficiently -baked.</p> - -<p>These saddle-bags are most classical, Oriental, and convenient; they -indeed constitute the genus <i>bagsman</i>, and have given their name to our -riding travellers; they are the <i>Sarcinæ</i> of Cato the Censor, the -<i>Bulgæ</i> of Lucilius, who made an epigram thereon:—</p> - -<div class="poem"><div class="stanza"> -<span class="i0">“Cum <i>bulgâ</i> cœnat, dormit, lavat, omnis in unâ.<br /></span> -<span class="i1">Spes hominis <i>bulga</i> hâc devincta est cætera vita:”<br /></span> -</div></div> - -<p class="nind">which, as these indispensables are quite as necessary to the modern -Spaniard, may be thus translated:—</p> - -<div class="poem"><div class="stanza"> -<span class="i0">“A good roomy bag delighteth a Roman,<br /></span> -<span class="i2">He is never without this appendage a minute;<br /></span> -<span class="i1">In bed, at the bath, at his meals,—in short no man<br /></span> -<span class="i2">Should fail to stow life, hope, and self away in it.”<br /></span> -</div></div> - -<p>The countrymen of Sancho Panza, when on the road, make the same use of -their wallets as the Romans did; they still (the washing excepted) live -and die with these bags, in which their hearts are deposited with their -bread and cheese.</p> - -<p>These Spanish <i>alforjas</i>, in name and appearance, are the Moorish <i>al -horeh</i>. (The F and H, like the B and V, X and J, are almost equivalent, -and are used indiscriminately in Spanish cacography.) They are generally -composed of cotton and worsted, and are embroidered in gaudy colours and -patterns; the <i>correct</i> thing is to have the owner’s name worked in on -the edge, which ought to be done by the delicate hand of his beloved -mistress. Those made at Granada are very excellent; the Moorish, -especially those from Morocco, are ornamented with an infinity of small -tassels. Peasants, when dismounted, mendicant monks, when foraging for -their convents, sling their <i>alforjas</i> over their shoulders when they -come into villages.</p> - -<div class="sidenote">WHAT TO STOW AWAY IN THE ALFORJAS.</div> - -<p>Among the contents which most people will find it convenient to carry in -the <i>right-hand bag</i>, as the easiest to be got at, a pair of blue gauze -wire spectacles or goggles will be found useful, as ophthalmia is very -common in Spain, and particularly in the calcined central plains. The -constant glare is unrelieved by any verdure, the air is dry, and the -clouds of dust highly irritating<a name="page_096" id="page_096"></a> from being impregnated with nitre. The -best remedy is to bathe the eyes frequently with hot water, and <i>never -to rub them when inflamed</i>, except with the elbows, <i>los ojos con los -codos</i>. Spaniards never jest with their eyes or faith; of the two -perhaps they are seriously fondest of the former, not merely when -sparkling beneath the arched eyebrow of the dark sex, but when set in -their own heads. “I love thee like my eyes,” is quite a hackneyed form -of affection; nor, however wrathful and imprecatory, do they under any -circumstance express the slightest uncharitable wishes in regard to the -visual organs of their bitterest foe.</p> - -<p>The whole art of the <i>alforjas</i> is the putting into them what you want -the most often, and in the most handy and accessible place. Keep here, -therefore, a supply of small money for the halt and the blind, for the -piteous cases of human suffering and poverty by which the traveller’s -eye will be pained in a land where soup-dispensing monks are done away -with, and assistant new poor law commissioners not yet appointed; such -charity from God’s purse, <i>bolsa de Dios</i>, never impoverishes that of -man, and a cheerful giver, however opposed to modern political -economists, is commended in that old-fashioned book called the Bible. -The left half of the <i>alforjas</i> may be apportioned to the writing and -dressing cases, and the smaller each are the better.</p> - -<p>Food for the mind must not be neglected. The travelling library, like -companions, should be select and good; <i>libros y amigos pocos y buenos</i>. -The duodecimo editions are the best, as a large heavy book kills horse, -rider, and reader. Books are a matter of taste; some men like Bacon, -others prefer Pickwick; stow away at all events a pocket edition of the -Bible, Shakspere, and Don Quixote: and if the advice of dear Dr. Johnson -be worth following, one of those books that can be taken in <i>the hand</i>, -and to the fire-side. Martial, a grand authority on Spanish hand-books, -recommended “such sized companions on a long journey.” Quartos and -folios, said he, may be left at home in the book-case—</p> - -<div class="poem"><div class="stanza"> -<span class="i0">“Scrinia da magnis, <i>me manus una</i> capit.”<br /></span> -</div></div> - -<div class="sidenote">THE BOTA.</div> - -<p class="nind">Here also keep the passport, that indescribable nuisance and<a name="page_097" id="page_097"></a> curse of -continental travel, to which a free-born Briton never can get -reconciled, and is apt to neglect, whereby he puts himself in the power -of the worst and most troublesome people on earth. Passports in Spain -now in some degree supply the Inquisition, and have been embittered by -vexatious forms borrowed from bureaucratic France.</p> - -<div class="sidenote">THE BOTA.</div> - -<p>Having thus disposed of these matters on the front bow of his saddle, to -which we always added a <i>bota</i>—the pocket-pistol of Hudibras—one word -on this <i>Bota</i>, which is as necessary to the rider as a saddle to his -horse. This article, so Asiatic and Spanish, is at once the bottle and -the glass of the people of the Peninsula when on the road, and is -perfectly unlike the vitreous crockery and pewter utensils of Great -Britain. A Spanish woman would as soon think of going to church without -her fan, or a Spanish man to a fair without his knife, as a traveller -without his <i>bota</i>. Ours, the faithful, long-tried comforter of many a -dry road, and honoured now like a relic, is hung up a votive offering to -the Iberian Bacchus, as the mariners in Horace suspended their damp -garments to the deity who had delivered them from the dangers of water. -Its skin, now shrivelled with age and with fruitless longings for wine, -is still redolent of the ruby fluid, whether the generous <i>Valdepeñas</i> -or the rich <i>vino de Toro</i>: and refreshing to our nostrils is even an -occasional smell at its red-stained orifice. There the racy wine-perfume -lingers, and brings water into the mouth, it may be into the eyelid. -What a dream of Spanish odours, good, bad, and indifferent, is awakened -by its well-known <i>borracha!</i>—what recollections, breathing the aroma -of the balmy south, crowd in; of aromatic wastes, of leagues of thyme, -whence Flora sends forth advertisements to her tiny bee-customer; of -churches, all incense; of the goats and monks, long-bearded and -odoriferous; of cities whose steam of garlic, ollas, oil, and tobacco -rises up to the heavens, mingled with the thousand and one other -continental sweets which assail a man’s nose, whether he lands at Calais -or Cadiz! There hangs our smelling-bottle <i>bota</i>, now a pleasure of -memory; it has had its day, and is never again to be filled in torrid, -thirsty Spain, nor emptied, which is better.</p> - -<p>This <i>Bota</i>, from whence the terms <i>Butt</i> of sherry, <i>bouteille</i>, and -bottle are derived, is the most ancient Oriental leathern bottle<a name="page_098" id="page_098"></a> -alluded to in Job xxxii. 19, “My belly ready to burst like new bottles;” -and in the parable, Matt. ix. 17, about the old ones, the force and -point of which is entirely lost by our word <i>bottle</i>, which being made -of glass, is not liable to become useless by age like one made of -leather. Such a “bottle of water” was the last among the few things -which Abraham gave to Hagar, when he turned out the mother of the -Arabians, whose descendants brought its usage into Spain. The shape is -like that of a large pear or shot-pouch, and it contains from two to -five quarts. The narrow neck is mounted with a turned wooden cup, from -which the contents are drunk. The way to use it is thus—grasp the neck -with the left hand and bring the rim of the cup to the mouth, then -gradually raise the bag with the other hand till the wine, in obedience -to hydrostatic laws, rises to its level, and keeps always full in the -cup without trouble to the mouth. The gravity with which this is done, -the long, slow, sustained, Sancho-like devotion of the thirsty Spaniards -when offered a drink out of another man’s <i>bota</i>, is very edifying, and -is as deep as the sigh of delight and gratitude with which, when unable -to imbibe more, the precious skin is returned. No drop of the divine -contents is wasted, except by some newly-arrived bungler, who, by -lifting up the bottom first, inundates his chin. The hole in the cup is -made tight by a wooden spigot, which again is perforated and stopped -with a small peg. Those who do not want to take a copious draught do not -pull out the spigot, but merely the little peg of it; the wine then -flows out in a thin thread. The Catalonians and Aragonese generally -drink in this way; they never touch the vessel with their lips, but hold -it up at a distance above, and pilot the stream into their mouths, or -rather under-jaws. It is much easier for those who have had no practice -to pour the wine into their necks than into their mouths, but their -drinking-bottles are made with a long narrow spout, and are called -“<i>Porrones</i>.”</p> - -<div class="sidenote">THE BOTA—WINE.</div> - -<p>The <i>Bota</i> must not be confounded with the <i>Borracha</i> or <i>Cuero</i>, the -wine-skin of Spain, which is the <i>entire</i>, and answers the purpose of -the barrel elsewhere. The <i>bota</i> is the retail receptacle, the <i>cuero</i> -is the wholesale one. It is the genuine pig’s skin, the adoration of -which disputes in the Peninsula with the cigar, the dollar, and even the -worship of the Virgin. The shops<a name="page_099" id="page_099"></a> of the makers are to be seen in most -Spanish towns; in them long lines of the unclean animal’s blown out -hides are strung up like sheep carcases in our butchers’ shambles. The -tanned and manufactured article preserves the form of the pig, feet and -all, with the exception of one: the skin is turned inside out, so that -the hairy coat lines the interior, which, moreover, is carefully pitched -like a ship’s bottom, to prevent leaking; hence the peculiar flavour, -which partakes of resin and the hide, which is called the <i>borracha</i>, -and is peculiar to most Spanish wines, sherry excepted, which being made -by foreigners, is kept in foreign casks, as we shall presently show when -we touch on “good sherris sack.” A drunken man, who is rarer in Spain -than in England, is called a <i>borracho</i>; the term is not complimentary. -These <i>cueros</i>, when filled, are suspended in <i>ventas</i> and elsewhere, -and thus economise cellarage, cooperage, and bottling; and such were the -bigbellied monsters which Don Quixote attacked.</p> - -<p>As the <i>bota</i> is always near every Spaniard’s mouth who can get at one, -all classes being ever ready, like Sancho, to give “a thousand kisses,” -not only to his own legitimate <i>bota</i>, but to that of his neighbour, -which is coveted more than wife: therefore no prudent traveller will -ever journey an inch in Spain without getting one, and when he has, will -never keep it empty, especially when he falls in with good wine. Every -man’s Spanish attendant will always find out, by instinct, where the -best wine is to be had; good wine neither needs bush, herald, nor crier; -in these matters, our experience of them tallies with their proverb, -“mas vale vino <i>maldito</i>, que no agua <i>bendita</i>,” “cursed bad wine is -better than holy water;” at the same time, in their various scale of -comparisons, there is good wine, better wine, and best wine, but no such -thing as bad wine; of good wine, the Spaniards are almost as good judges -as of good water; they rarely mix them, because they say that it is -spoiling two good things. Vino <i>Moro</i>, or Moorish wine, is by no means -indicative of uncleanness, or other heretical imperfections implied -generally by that epithet; it simply means, that it is pure from never -having been baptized with water, for which the Asturians, who keep small -chandlers’ shops, are so infamous, that they are said, from inveterate -habit, to adulterate even water; <i>aguan el agua</i>.</p> - -<div class="sidenote">MONEY.</div> - -<p>It is a great mistake to suppose, because Spaniards are seldom<a name="page_100" id="page_100"></a> seen -drunk, and because when on a journey they drink as much water as their -beasts, that they have any Oriental dislike to wine; the rule is “<i>Agua -como buey, y vino como Rey</i>,” “to drink water like an ox, and wine like -a king.” The extent of the <i>given</i> quantity of wine which they will -always swallow, rather suggests that their habitual temperance may in -some degree be connected more with their poverty than with their will. -The way to many an honest breast lies through the belly in this -classical land, where the tutelar of butlers still keeps the key of -their cellars and hearts—aperit præcordia Bacchus: nor is their -Oriental blessing unconnected with some “savoury food” previously -administered. And independently of the very obvious reasons which good -wine does and ought to afford for its own consumption, the irritating -nature of Spanish cookery provides a never-failing inducement. The -constant use of the savoury class of condiments and of pepper is very -heating, “<i>la pimienta escalienta</i>.” A salt-fish, ham and sausage diet -creates thirst; a good rasher of bacon calls loudly for a corresponding -long and strong pull at the “<i>bota</i>,” “<i>a torresno de tocino, buen golpe -de vino</i>.”</p> - -<p>This digression on <i>botas</i> will be pardoned by all who, having ridden in -Spain, know the absolute necessity of them. The traveller will of course -remember the advice given by the rogue of <i>Ventero</i> to Don Quixote to -take shirts and money with him. “Put money in thy purse” said also -honest Iago, for an empty one is a beggarly companion in the Peninsula -as elsewhere. There is no getting to Rome or to Santiago if the -pilgrim’s scrip be scanty, or his mule lame: <i>Camino de Roma, ni mula -coja ni Bolsa floja</i>.</p> - -<div class="sidenote">MONEY.</div> - -<p>Practically it may be said, that there is no paper money in Spain. Notes -may be taken in some of the larger cities, but in the provinces the -value of a man in office’s promise to pay on paper, is not considered by -the shrewd natives to be actually equal to cash; while they will readily -give these notes to foreigners, they prefer for their own use the -old-fashioned representatives of wealth, gold and silver, towards the -smallest fraction of which they have the largest possible veneration. -Accounts are usually kept in <i>reales de vellon</i> of royal bullion; and -these are subdivided into <i>maravedis</i>, the ancient coin of the -Peninsula: there are minor fractions even of farthings, consisting in -material<a name="page_101" id="page_101"></a> of infinitesimal bits of any metals, melted church bells, old -cannon, &c., with names and values unknown in our happy land, where not -much is to be got for a mite; in Spain, where cheapness of earth-produce -is commensurate with poverty, anything, even to an old button, goes for -a <i>maravedí</i>, and we have found that in changing a dollar by way of -experiment into small coppers in the market at Seville, among the -multitudinous specimens of Spanish mints of all periods, Moorish and -even Roman coins were to be met with, and still current.</p> - -<p>The dollar, or <i>Duro</i>, of Spain is well known all over the world, being -the form under which silver has been generally exported from the Spanish -colonies of South America. It is the Italian “Colonato,” so called -because the arms of Spain are supported between the two pillars of -Hercules. The coinage is slovenly: it is the weight of the metal, not -the form, which is looked to by the Spaniard, who, like the Turk, is not -so clever a workman or mechanist as devout worshipper of bullion. -Ferdinand VII. continued for a long while to strike money with his -father’s head, having only had the lettering altered: thus early Trajans -exhibit the head of Nero. When the Cortes entered Madrid after the -Duke’s victory at Salamanca, they patriotically prohibited the currency -of all coins bearing the head of the intrusive Joseph; yet his dollars -being chiefly made out of stolen church plate, gilt and ungilt, were, -although those of an usurper, intrinsically worth more than the -<i>legitimate</i> duro: this was a too severe test for the loyalty of those -whose real king and god is cash. Such a decree was worthy of senators -who were busier employed in expelling French tropes from their -dictionary than French troops from their country. The wiser Chinese take -Ferdinand’s and Joseph’s dollars alike, calling them both “devil’s head” -money. These bad prejudices against good coin have now given way to the -march of intellect; nay, the five-franc piece with Louis-Philippe’s -clever head on it bids fair to oust the pillared <i>Duro</i>. The silver of -the mines of Murcia is exported to France, where it is coined, and sent -back in the manufactured shape. France thus gains a handsome per -centage, and habituates the people to her image of power, which comes -recommended to them in the most acceptable likeness of current coin.<a name="page_102" id="page_102"></a></p> - -<div class="sidenote">GOLD COINAGE.</div> - -<p>In Spain cash, ambrosial cash, rules the court, the camp, the grove; -hence the extraordinary credit of three millions recently required for -the secret service expenses of the Tuileries, and official enthusiasm -and unanimity secured thereby in the Montpensier purchase. The whole -decalogue is condensed at Madrid into one commandment, Love God as -represented on earth not by his vicar the Pope, but by his -lord-lieutenant, Don Ducat.</p> - -<div class="poem"><div class="stanza"> -<span class="i0"><i>"El primero es amar Don Dinero,</i><br /></span> -<span class="i1"><i>Dios es omnipotente, Don Dinero es su lugarteniente."</i><br /></span> -</div></div> - -<p class="nind">Thus grandees and men in Spanish offices, both governmental and printing -ones, have preferred the other day five-franc pieces to the ribbons of -the Legion of <i>honor</i>; nor, considering the swindlers on whom this badge -of Austerlitz has been prostituted, were these worthy Castilians much -out in their calculations, if there be any truth in the catechism of -Falstaff.</p> - -<div class="sidenote">AVARICE OF SPANIARDS.</div> - -<p>The <i>gold coinage</i> is magnificent, and worthy of the country and period -from which Europe was supplied with the precious metals. The largest -piece, the ounce, “<i>onza</i>,” is worth sixteen dollars, or about 3<i>l.</i> -6<i>s.</i>; and while it puts to shame the diminutive Napoleons of France and -sovereigns of England, tells the tale of Spain’s former wealth, and -contrasts strangely with her present poverty and scarcity of specie: -these large coins have however been so <i>sweated</i>, not by the sun, but by -Jews, foreign and domestic, so clipped worse than Spanish mules or -French poodles, that they seldom retain their proper weight and value. -They are accordingly looked upon every where with suspicion; a -shopkeeper, in a big town, brings out his scales like Shylock, while in -a village shrugs, <i>ajos</i>, and negative expressions are your change; nor, -even if the natives are satisfied that they are not light, can sixteen -dollars be often met with, nor do those who have so much ready money by -them ever wish that the fact should be generally known. Spaniards, like -the Orientals, have a dread of being supposed to have money in their -possession; it exposes them to be plundered by robbers of all kinds, -professional or legal; by the “<i>alcalde</i>,” or village authority, and the -“<i>escribano</i>,” the attorney, to say nothing of Señor Mon’s tax-gatherer; -for the quota of contributions, many of which are apportioned among the -inhabitants themselves of each district,<a name="page_103" id="page_103"></a> falls heaviest on those who -have, or are supposed to have, the most ready money.</p> - -<p>The lower classes of Spaniards, like the Orientals, are generally -avaricious. They see that wealth is safety and power, where everything -is venal; the feeling of insecurity makes them eager to invest what they -have in a small and easily concealed bulk, “<i>en lo que no habla</i>,” “in -that which does not tell tales.” Consequently, and in self-defence, they -are much addicted to hoarding. The idea of finding hidden treasures, -which prevails in Spain as in the East, is based on some grounds; for in -every country which has been much exposed to foreign invasions, civil -wars, and domestic misrule, where there were no safe modes of -investment, in moments of danger property was converted into gold or -jewels and concealed with singular ingenuity. The mistrust which -Spaniards entertain of each other often extends, when cash is in the -case, even to the nearest relations, to wife and children. Many a -treasure is thus lost from the accidental death of the hider, who, dying -without a sign, carries his secret to the grave, adding thereby to the -sincere grief of his widow and heir. One of the old vulgar superstitions -in Spain is an idea that those who were born on a Good Friday, the day -of mourning, were gifted with a power of seeing into the earth and of -discovering hidden treasures. One place of concealment has always been -under the bodies in graves; the hiders have trusted to the dead to -defend what the quick could not: this accounts for the universal -desecration of tombs and churchyards during Bonaparte’s invasion. The -Gauls growled like gowls amid the churchyards; they despoiled the -mouldering corpses of the last pledge left by weeping affection; or, as -Burke observed of their domestic doings, they unplumbed the dead to make -missiles of destruction against the living. These hordes, in their -hurried flight before the advancing Duke, also hid much of their -ill-gotten gains, which to this day are hunted after. Who has forgotten -Borrow’s graphic picture of the treasure-seeking Mol? At this very -moment the authorities of San Sebastian are narrowly superintending the -diggings of an old Frenchwoman, to whom some dying thief at home has -revealed the secret of a buried kettle full of gold ounces.<a name="page_104" id="page_104"></a></p> - -<div class="sidenote">CONCEALMENT OF CASH.</div> - -<p>Having provided the “<i>Spanish</i>,” those metallic sinews of war, which -also make the mare go in peace, a prudent master, if he intends to be -really the master, will hold the purse himself, and, moreover, will keep -a sharp eye on it, for the jingle of coin dispels even a Spanish siesta, -and causes many a sleepless day to every listener, from the beggar to -the queen mother.<a name="page_105" id="page_105"></a></p> - -<div class="sidenote">SPANISH SERVANTS.</div> - -<h2><a name="CHAPTER_X" id="CHAPTER_X"></a>CHAPTER X.</h2> - -<div class="blockquot"><p class="c">Spanish Servants: their Character—Travelling Groom, Cook, and -Valet.</p></div> - -<div class="sidenote">CHARACTER OF SPANISH SERVANTS.</div> - -<p class="nind">D<small>ON</small> Q<small>UIXOTE’S</small> first thought, after having determined to ride forth into -Spain, was to get a horse; his second was to secure a squire; and as the -narrative of his journey is still an excellent guide-book for modern -travellers, his example is not to be slighted. A good Sancho Panza will -on the whole be found to be a more constant comfort to a knight-errant -than even a Dulcinea. To secure a really good servant is of the utmost -consequence to all who make out-of-the-way excursions in the Peninsula; -for, as in the East, he becomes often not only cook, but interpreter and -companion to his master. It is therefore of great importance to get a -person with whom a man can ramble over these wild scenes. The so doing -ends, on the part of the attendant, in an almost canine friendship; and -the Spaniard, when the tour is done, is broken-hearted, and ready to -leave his home, horse, ass, and wife, to follow his master, like a dog, -to the world’s-end. Nine times out of ten it is the master’s fault if he -has bad servants: <i>tel maître tel valet</i>. <i>Al amo imprudente, el mozo -negligente.</i> He must begin at once, and exact the performance of their -duty; the only way to get them to do anything is, as the Duke said, to -“frighten them,” to “take a decided line.” It is very difficult to make -them see the importance of detail and of doing exactly what they are -told, which they will always endeavour to shirk when they can; their -task must be clearly pointed out to them at starting, and the earliest -and smallest infractions, either in commission or omission, at once and -seriously noticed, the moral victory is soon gained. The example of the -masters, if they be active and orderly, is the best lesson to servants; -<i>mucho sabe el rato, pero mas el gato</i>; the rats are well enough, but -the cats are better. Achilles, Patroclus, and the Homeric heroes, were -their own cooks; and<a name="page_106" id="page_106"></a> many a man who, like Lord Blayney, may not be a -hero, will be none the worse for following the epical example, in a -Spanish venta: at all events a good servant, who is up to his work, and -will work, is indeed a jewel; and on these, as on other occasions, he -deserves to be well treated. Those who make themselves honey are eaten -by flies—<i>quien se hace miel, le comen las moscas</i>; while no rat ever -ventures to jest with the cat’s son; <i>con hijo de gato, no se burlan los -ratones</i>. The great thing is to make them get up early, and learn the -value of time, which the groom cannot tie with his halter, <i>tiempo y -hora, no se ata con soga</i>: while a cook who oversleeps himself not only -misses his mass, but his meat, <i>quien se levanta tarde, ni oye misa, ni -compra carne</i>. If (which is soon found out) the servants seem not likely -to answer, the sooner they are changed the better; it is loss of time -and soap, and he who is good for nothing in his own village will not be -worth more either in Seville or elsewhere, so says the proverb.</p> - -<div class="sidenote">CHARACTER OF SPANISH SERVANTS.</div> - -<p>The principal defects of Spanish servants and of the lower classes of -Spaniards are much the same, and faults of race. As a mass, they are apt -to indulge in habits of procrastination, waste, improvidence, and -untidiness. They are unmechanical and obstinate, easily beaten by -difficulties, which their first feeling is to raise, and their next to -succumb to; they give the thing up at once. They have no idea indeed of -grappling with anything that requires much trouble, or of doing anything -as it ought to be done, or even of doing the same thing in the same -way—accident and the impulse of the moment set them going. They are -very unmechanical, obstinate, and prejudiced; ignorant of their own -ignorance and incurious as Orientals; partly from pride, self-opinion, -and idleness, they seldom will ask questions for information from -others, which implies an inferiority of knowledge, and still more seldom -will take an answer, unless it be such a one as they desire; their own -wishes, opinions, and wants are their guides, and self the centre of -their gravity, not those of their employers. As a Spaniard’s <i>yes</i>, when -you beg a favour, generally means <i>no</i>, so they cannot or will not -understand that your <i>no</i> is really a negative when they come -petitioning to be idle; at the same time a great change for the better -comes over them when they are taken out of the city on a<a name="page_107" id="page_107"></a> rambling tour. -The nomad life excites them into active serviceable fellows; in fact the -uncertain harum-scarum nomad existence is exactly what suits these -descendants of the Arab; they cannot bear the steady sustained routine -of a well-managed household; they abhor confinement; hence the -difficulty of getting Spaniards to garrison fortresses or to man ships -of war, from whence there is no escape.</p> - -<p>As for what we call a well-appointed servants’ hall, the case is -hopeless in Spanish field or city, and is equally so whether the life be -above or below stairs. In the house of the middle or highest classes -this is particularly shown in everything that regards gastronomics, -which are the tests and touchstones of good service. In truth, the -Spaniard, accustomed to his own desultory, free and easy, impromptu, -scrambling style of dining, is constrained by the order and discipline, -the pomp and ceremony, and serious importance of a well-regulated -dinner, and their observance of forms extends only to persons, not to -things: even the grandee has only a thin European polish spread over his -Gotho-Bedouin dining table; he lives and eats surrounded by an humble -clique, in his huge ill-furnished barrack-house, without any elegance, -luxury, or even comfort, according to sound trans-pyrenean notions: few -indeed are the kitchens which possess a <i>cordon bleu</i>, and fewer are the -masters who really like an orthodox <i>entrée</i>, one unpolluted with the -heresies of garlic and red pepper: again, whenever their cookery -attempts to be foreign, as in their other imitations, it ends in being a -flavourless copy; but few things are ever done in Spain in <i>real style</i>, -which implies forethought and expense; everything is a make-shift; the -noble master <i>reposes</i> his affairs on an unjust steward, and dozes away -life on this bed of roses, somnolescent over business and awake only to -intrigue; his numerous ill-conditioned, ill-appointed servants have no -idea of discipline or subordination; you never can calculate on their -laying even the table-cloth, as they prefer idling in the church or -market to doing their duty, and would rather starve, dance, and sleep -out of place and independently, than feast and earn their wages by fair -work; nor has the employer any redress, for if he dismisses them he will -only get just such another set, or even worse.</p> - -<div class="sidenote">CHARACTER OF SPANISH SERVANTS.</div> - -<p>In our own Spanish household, the instant dinner and siesta<a name="page_108" id="page_108"></a> were over, -the cook with his kitchen-man, the valet with the footman invariably -stripped off their working apparel—liveries are almost unheard -of—donned their comical velvet embroidered hats, their sky-blue -waistcoats, and scarlet sashes, and were off with a guitar to some scene -of song and love-making, leaving their master alone in his glory to -moralize on the uncertainty of human concerns and the faithlessness of -mankind.</p> - -<div class="sidenote">SPANISH AND ENGLISH MANNERS.</div> - -<div class="sidenote">TRAVELLING EXPENSES.</div> - -<p>What can’t be cured must be endured. To resume, therefore, the character -of these Spanish servants; they are very loquacious, and highly -credulous, as often is the case with those given to romancing, which -they, and especially the Andalucians, are to a large degree; and, in -fact, it is the only remaining romance in Spain, as far as the natives -are concerned. As they have an especial good opinion of themselves, they -are touchy, sensitive, jealous, and thin-skinned, and easily affronted -whenever their imperfections are pointed out; their disposition is very -sanguine and inflammable; they are always hoping that what they eagerly -desire will come to pass without any great exertion on their parts; they -love to stand still with their arms folded, while other men put their -shoulders to the wheel. Their lively imagination is very apt to carry -them away into extremes for good or evil, when they act on the moment -like children, and having gratified the humour of the impulse relapse -into their ordinary tranquillity, which is that of a slumbering volcano. -On the other hand, they are full of excellent and redeeming good -qualities; they are free from caprice, are hardy, patient, cheerful, -good-humoured, sharp-witted, and intelligent: they are honest, faithful, -and trustworthy; sober, and unaddicted to mean, vulgar vices; they have -a bold, manly bearing, and will follow well wherever they are well led, -being the raw material of as good soldiers as are in the world; they are -loyal and religious at heart, and full of natural tact, mother-wit, and -innate good manners. In general, a firm, quiet, courteous, and somewhat -reserved manner is the most effective. Whenever duties are to be -performed, let them see that you are not to be trifled with. The -coolness of a determined Englishman’s manner, when in earnest, is what -few foreigners can withstand. Grimace and gesticulation, sound and fury, -bluster, petulance, and impertinence fume and fret in vain against it, -as the sprays and foam of<a name="page_109" id="page_109"></a> the “French lake” do against the unmoved and -immoveable rock of Gibraltar. An Englishman, without being -over-familiar, may venture on a far greater degree of unbending in his -intercourse with his Spanish dependants than he can dare to do with -those he has in England. It is the custom of the country; they are used -to it, and their heads are not turned by it, nor do they ever forget -their relative positions. The Spaniards treat their servants very much -like the ancient Romans or the modern Moors; they are more their -<i>vernæ</i>, their domestic slaves: it is the absolute authority of the -father combined with the kindness. Servants do not often change their -masters in Spain: their relation and duties are so clearly defined, that -the latter runs no risk of compromising himself or his dignity by his -familiarity, which can be laid down or taken up at his own pleasure; -whereas the scorn, contempt, and distance with which the said courteous -Don would treat a roturier who presumed to be intimate, baffle -description. In England no man dares to be intimate with his footman; -for supposing even such absurd fancy entered his brain, his footman is -his equal in the eye of man-made law, God having created them utterly -unequal in all his gifts, whether of rank, wealth, form, or intellect. -Conventional barriers accordingly must be erected in self-defence: and -social barriers are more difficult to be passed than walls of brass, -more impossible to be repealed than the whole statutes at large. No -master in Spain, and still less a foreigner, should ever descend to -personal abuse, sneers, or violence. A blow is never to be washed out -except in blood, and Spanish revenge descends to the third and fourth -generation; and whatever these backward Spaniards have to learn from -foreigners, it is not the duty of revenge, nor how to perform it. There -should be no threatenings in vain, but whenever the opportunity occurs -for punishment, let it be done quietly and effectively, and the fault -once punished should not be needlessly ripped up again; Spaniards are -sufficiently unforgiving, and hoarders-up of unrevenged grievances -require to be reminded. A kind and uniform behaviour, a showing -consideration to them, in a manner which implies that you are accustomed -to it, and expect it to be shown to you, keeps most things in their -right places. Temper and patience are the great requisites in the -master, especially when he speaks the language<a name="page_110" id="page_110"></a> imperfectly. He must not -think Spaniards stupid because they cannot guess the meaning of his -unknown tongue. Nothing again is gained by fidgeting and overdoing, and -however early you may get up, daybreak will not take place the sooner: -no por <i>mucho madrugar</i>, <i>amanece mas temprano</i>. Let well alone: be not -zealous overmuch: be occasionally both blind and deaf: shut the door, -and the devil passes by: keep honey in mouth and an eye to your cash: -<i>miel en boca y guarda la bolsa</i>. Still how much less expenditure is -necessary in Spain than in performing the commonest excursion in -England!—and yet many who submit to their own countrymen’s extortions -are furious at what they imagine is an especial cheating of them, -<i>quasi</i> Englishmen, abroad: this outrageous economy, with which some are -afflicted, is penny wise and pound foolish: pay, pay therefore with both -hands. The traveller must remember that he gains caste, gets brevet rank -in Spain—that he is taken for a grandee incog., and ranks with their -nobility; he must pay for these luxuries: how small after all will be -the additional per centage on his general expenditure, and how well -bestowed is the excess, in keeping the temper good, and the capability -of enjoying unruffled a tour, which only is performed once in a life! No -wise man who goes into Spain for amusement will plunge into this -guerrilla, this constant petty warfare, about sixpences. Let the -traveller be true to himself; hold his tongue; avoid bad company, <i>quien -hace su cama con perros, se levanta con pulgas</i>, those who sleep with -dogs get up with fleas; and make room for bulls and fools, <i>al loco y -toro da le corro</i>, and he may see Spain agreeably, and, as Catullus said -to Veranius, who made the tour many centuries ago, may on his return -amuse his friends and “old mother:”—</p> - -<div class="poem"><div class="stanza"> -<span class="i0">“Visam te incolumem, audiamque Iberum<br /></span> -<span class="i1">Narrantem loca, facta, nationes,<br /></span> -<span class="i1">Sicut tuus est mos.”<br /></span> -</div></div> - -<p class="nind">which may be thus Englished:—</p> - -<div class="poem"><div class="stanza"> -<span class="i0">May you come back safe, and tell<br /></span> -<span class="i0">Of Spanish men, their things and places,<br /></span> -<span class="i0">Of Spanish ladies’ eyes and faces,<br /></span> -<span class="i0">In your own way, and so well.<br /></span> -</div></div> - -<div class="sidenote">TRAVELLING SERVANTS.</div> - -<p>Two masters should take two servants, and both should be Spaniards: all -others, unless they speak the language perfectly,<a name="page_111" id="page_111"></a> are nuisances. A -Gallegan or Asturian makes the best groom, an <i>Andaluz</i> the best cook -and personal attendant. Sometimes a person may be picked up who has some -knowledge of languages, and who is accustomed to accompany strangers -through Spain as a sort of courier. These accomplishments are very rare, -and the moral qualities of the possessor often diminish in proportion as -his intellect has marched; he has learnt more foreign tricks than words, -and sea-port towns are not the best schools for honesty. Of these -nondescripts the Hispano-Anglo, who generally has deserted from -Gibraltar, is the best, because he will work, hold his tongue, and -fight; a monkey would be a less inconvenience than a chattering -Ibero-Gallo; one who has forgotten his national accomplishments—cooking -and hairdressing, and learnt very few Spanish things, such as good -temper and endurance. Whichever of the two is the sharpest should lead -the way, and leave the other to bring up the rear. They should be -mounted on good mules, and be provided with large panniers. One should -act as the cook and valet, the other as the groom of the party; and the -utensils peculiar to each department should be carried by each -professor. Where only one servant is employed, one side of the pannier -should be dedicated to the commissariat, and the other to the luggage; -in that case the master should have a flying portmanteau, which should -be sent by means of <i>cosarios</i>, and precede him from great town to great -town, as a magazine, wardrobe, or general supply to fall back on. The -servants should each have their own saddle-bag and leathern bottle, -which, since the days of Sancho Panza, are part and parcel of a faithful -squire, and when all are carried on an ass are quite patriarchal. “<i>Iba -Sancho Panza sobre su jumento, como un patriarca con sus alforjas y -bota.</i>”</p> - -<div class="sidenote">WHAT TO TAKE ON A JOURNEY.</div> - -<p>The servants will each in their line look after their own affairs; the -groom will take with him the things of the stable, and a small provision -of corn, in order that a feed may never be wanting, on an unexpected -emergency; he will always ascertain beforehand through what sort of a -country each day’s journey is to be made, and make preparations -accordingly. The valet will view his masters in the same light as the -groom does his beasts; and he will purvey and keep in readiness all that -appertains to their comfort, always remembering a moskito net—we shall -presently<a name="page_112" id="page_112"></a> say a word on the fly-plague of the Peninsula—with nails to -knock into the walls to hang it up by, not forgetting a hammer and -gimlet; common articles enough, but which are never to be got at the -moment and place where they are the most wanted. He will also carry a -small canteen, the smaller and more ordinary the better, as anything out -of the common way attracts attention, and suggests, first, the coveting -other men’s goods, and so on to assaults, batteries, robberies, and -other inconveniences, which have been exploded on our roads; although F. -Moryson took care to caution our ancestors “to be warie on this head, -since theeves have their spies commonly in all innes, to enquire into -the condition of travellers.” The manufactures of Spain are so rude and -valueless that what appears to us to be the most ordinary appears to -them to be the most excellent, as they have never seen anything so good. -The lower orders, who eat with their fingers, think everything is gold -which glitters, <i>todo es oro lo que reluce</i>; as, after all, it is what -is <i>on</i> the plate that is the rub, let no wise man have such smart forks -and knives as to tempt cut-throats to turn them to unnatural purposes. -However, avoid all superfluous luggage, especially prejudices and -foregone conclusions, for “<i>en largo camino paja pesa</i>,” a straw is -heavy on a long journey, and the last feather breaks the horse’s back. A -store of cigars, however, must always be excepted; take plenty and give -them freely; it always opens a conversation well with a Spaniard, to -offer him one of these little delicate marks of attention. Good snuff is -acceptable to the curates and to monks (though there are none just now). -English needles, thread, and pairs of scissars take no room, and are all -keys to the good graces of the fair sex. There is a charm about a -present, <i>bachshish</i>, in most European as well as Oriental countries, -and still more if it is given with tact, and at the proper time; -Spaniards, if unable to make any equivalent return, will always try to -repay by civilities and attentions.</p> - -<div class="sidenote">COOKING UTENSILS.</div> - -<p>Every one must determine for himself whether he prefers the assistance -of this servant in the kitchen or at the toilet; since it is not easy -for mortal man to dress a master <i>and</i> a dinner, and both well at the -same time, let alone two masters. A cook who runs after two hares at -once catches neither. No prudent traveller on these, or on any -occasions, should let another do for him<a name="page_113" id="page_113"></a> what he can do for himself, -and a man who waits upon himself is sure to be well waited on. If, -however, a valet be absolutely necessary, the groom clearly is best left -in his own chamber, the stable; he will have enough to do to curry and -valet his four animals, which he knows to be good for their health, -though he never scrapes off the cutaneous stucco by which his own illote -carcass is Roman cemented. From long experience we have found that if -the rider will get into the habit of carrying all the things requisite -for his own dressing in a small separate bag, and employ the hour while -the cook is getting the supper under weigh, it is wonderful how -comfortably he will proceed to his puchero.</p> - -<div class="sidenote">SPANISH BREAD.</div> - -<p>The cook should take with him a stewing-pan, and a pot or kettle for -boiling water; he need not lumber himself with much batterie de cuisine; -it is not much needed in the imperfect gastronomy of the Peninsula, -where men eat like the beasts which perish; all sort of artillery is -rather rare in Spanish kitchen or fortress; an hidalgo would as soon -think of having a voltaic battery in his sitting-room as a copper one in -his cuisine; most classes are equally satisfied with the Oriental -earthenware <i>ollas</i>, <i>pucheros</i>, or pipkins, which are everywhere to be -found, and have some peculiar sympathy with the Spanish cuisine, since a -stew—be it even of a cat—never eats so well when made in a metal -vessel; the great thing is to bring the raw materials,—first catch your -hare. Those who have meat and money will always get a neighbour to lend -them a pot. A <i>venta</i> is a place where the rich are sent empty away, and -where the poor hungry are not filled; the whole duty of the man-cook, -therefore, is to be always thinking of his commissariat; he need not -trouble himself about his master’s appetite, that will seldom -fail,—nay, often be a misfortune; a good appetite is not a good <i>per -se</i>,<a name="FNanchor_6_6" id="FNanchor_6_6"></a><a href="#Footnote_6_6" class="fnanchor">[6]</a> for it, even when the best, becomes a bore when there is nothing -to eat; his <i>capucho</i> or mule hamper must be his travelling larder, -cellar, and store-room; he will victual himself according to the route, -and the distances from one great town to another, and always take care -to start with a good provision: indeed to attend to the commissariat<a name="page_114" id="page_114"></a> -is, it cannot be too often repeated, the whole duty of a man cook in -hungry Spain, where food has ever been <i>the</i> difficulty; a little -foresight gives small trouble and ensures great comfort, while perils by -sea and perils by land are doubled when the stomach is empty, whereas, -as Sancho Panza wisely told his ass, all sorrows are alleviated by -eating bread: <i>todos los duelos, con pan son buenos</i>, and the shrewd -squire, who seldom is wrong, was right both in the matter of bread and -the moral: the former is admirable. The central table-lands of Spain are -perhaps the finest wheat-growing districts in the world; however rude -and imperfect the cultivation—for the peasant does but scratch the -earth, and seldom manures—the life-conferring sun comes to his -assistance; the returns are prodigious, and the quality superexcellent; -yet the growers, miserable in the midst of plenty, vegetate in cabins -composed of baked mud, or in holes burrowed among the friable hillocks, -in an utter ignorance of furniture, and absolute necessaries. The want -of roads, canals, and means of transport prevents their exportation of -produce, which from its bulk is difficult of carriage in a country where -grain is removed for the most part on four-footed beasts of burden, -after the oriental and patriarchal fashion of Jacob, when he sent to the -granaries of Egypt. Accordingly, although there are neither sliding -scales nor corn laws, and subsistence is cheap and abundant, the -population decreases in number and increases in wretchedness; what boots -it if corn be low-priced, if wages be still lower, as they then -everywhere are and must be?</p> - -<p>The finest bread in Spain is called <i>pan de candeal</i>, which is eaten by -men in office and others in easy circumstances, as it was by the clergy. -The worst bread is the <i>pan de municion</i>, and forms the fare of the -Spanish soldier, which, being sable as a hat, coarse and hard as a -brickbat, would just do to sop in the black broth of the Spartan -military; indeed, the expression <i>de municion</i> is synonymous in the -Peninsula with badness of quality, and the secondary meaning is taken -from the perfection of badness which is perceptible in every thing -connected with Spanish ammunition, from the knapsack to the citadel. -Such bread and water, and both hardly earned, are the rations of the -poor patient Spanish private; nor can he when before the enemy reckon -always on even that, unless it be supplied from an ally’s commissariat.<a name="page_115" id="page_115"></a></p> - -<div class="sidenote">THRESHING AND WINNOWING.</div> - -<div class="sidenote">BREAD.</div> - -<p>Perhaps the best bread in Spain is made at Alcalá de Guadaira, near -Seville, of which it is the oven, and hence the town is called the -Alcalá of bakers. There bread may truly be said to be the soul of its -existence, and samples abound everywhere: <i>roscas</i>, or circular-formed -<i>rusks</i>, are hung up like garlands, and <i>hogazas</i>, loaves, placed on -tables outside the houses. It is, indeed, as Spaniards say, <i>Pan de -Dios</i>—the “angels’ bread of Esdras.” All classes here gain their bread -by making it, and the water-mills and mule-mills are never still; women -and children are busy picking out earthy particles from the grain, which -get mixed from the common mode of threshing on a floor in the open air, -which is at once Biblical and Homeric. At the outside of the villages, -in corn-growing districts, a smooth open “threshing-floor” is prepared, -with a hard surface, like a fives court: it is called the <i>era</i>, and is -the precise Roman <i>area</i>. The sheaves of corn are spread out on it, and -four horses yoked most classically to a low crate or harrow, composed of -planks armed with flints, &c., which is called a <i>trillo</i>: on this the -driver is seated, who urges the beasts round and round over the crushed -heap. Thus the grain is shaken out of the ears and the straw triturated; -the latter becomes food for horses, as the former does for men. When the -heap is sufficiently bruised, it is removed and winnowed by being thrown -up into the air; the light winds carry off the chaff, while the heavy -corn falls to the ground. The whole operation is truly picturesque and -singular. The scene is a crowded one, as many cultivators contribute to -the mass and share in the labour; their wives and children cluster -around, clad in strange dresses of varied colours. They are sometimes -sheltered from the god of fire under boughs, reeds, and awnings, run up -as if for the painter, and falling of themselves into pictures, as the -lower classes of Spaniards and Italians always do. They are either -eating and drinking, singing or dancing, for a guitar is never wanting. -Meanwhile the fierce horses dash over the prostrate sheaves, and realise -the splendid simile of Homer, who likens to them the fiery steeds of -Achilles when driven over Trojan bodies. These out-of-door threshings -take place of course when the weather is dry, and generally under a most -terrific heat. The work is often continued at nightfall by torch-light. -During the day the half-clad dusky reapers defy the sun and his rage, -rejoicing rather in the<a name="page_116" id="page_116"></a> heat like salamanders; it is true that their -devotions to the porous water-jar are unremitting, nor is a swill at a -good passenger’s <i>bota</i> ever rejected; all is life and action; busy -hands and feet, flashing eyes, and eager screams; the light yellow -chaff, which in the sun’s rays glitters like gold dust, envelopes them -in a halo, which by night, when partially revealed by the fires and -mingled with the torch glare, is almost supernatural, as the phantom -figures, now dark in shadows, now crimsoned by the fire flash, flit to -and fro in the vaporous mist. The scene never fails to rivet and enchant -the stranger, who, coming from the pale north and the commonplace -in-door flail, seizes at once all the novelty of such doings. Eye and -ear, open and awake, become inlets of new sensations of attention and -admiration, and convey to heart and mind the poetry, local colour, -movement, grouping, action, and attitude. But while the cold-blooded -native of leaden skies is full of fire and enthusiasm, his Spanish -companion, bred and born under unshorn beams, is chilly as an icicle, -indifferent as an Arab: he passes on the other side, not only not -admiring, but positively ashamed; he only sees the barbarity, antiquity, -and imperfect process; he is sighing for some patent machine made in -Birmingham, to be put up in a closed barn after the models approved of -by the Royal Agricultural Society in Cavendish Square; his bowels yearn -for the appliances of civilization by which “bread stuffs” are more -scientifically manipulated and manufactured, minus the poetry.</p> - -<p>To return, however, to dry bread, after this new digression, and all -those who have ever been in Spain, or have ever written on Spanish -things, must feel how difficult it is to keep regularly on the road -without turning aside at every moment, now to cull a wild flower, now to -pick up a sparkling spar. This corn, so beaten, is very carefully -ground, and in La Mancha in those charming windmills, which, perched on -eminences to catch the air, look to this day, with their outstretched -arms, like Quixotic giants; the flour is passed through several hoppers, -in order to secure its fineness. The dough is most carefully kneaded, -worked, and re-worked, as is done by our biscuit-makers; hence the -close-grained, caky, somewhat heavy consistency of the crumb, whereas, -according to Pliny, the Romans esteemed Spanish bread on account of its -lightness.<a name="page_117" id="page_117"></a></p> - -<div class="sidenote">LUNCHEON.</div> - -<p>The Spanish loaf has not that mysterious sympathy with butter and cheese -as it has in our verdurous Old England, probably because in these torrid -regions pasture is rare, butter bad, and cheese worse, albeit they -suited the iron digestion of Sancho, who knew of nothing better: none, -however, who have ever tasted Stilton or Parmesan will join in his -eulogies of Castilian <i>queso</i>, the poorness of which will be estimated -by the distinguished consideration in which a round cannon-ball Dutch -cheese is held throughout the Peninsula. The traveller, nevertheless, -should take one of them, for bad is here the best, in many other things -besides these: he will always carry some good loaves with it, for in the -damper mountain districts the daily bread of the natives is made of rye, -Indian corn, and the inferior cerealia. Bread is the staff of the -Spanish traveller’s life, who, having added raw garlic, not salt, to it, -then journeys on with security, <i>con pan y ajo crudo se anda seguro</i>. -Again, a loaf never weighs one down, nor is ever in the way; as Æsop, -the prototype of Sancho, well knew. <i>La hogaza no embaraza.</i></p> - -<div class="sidenote">THE OLLA.</div> - -<p>Having secured his bread, the cook in preparing supper should make -enough for the next day’s lunch, <i>las once</i>, the eleven o’clock meal, as -the Spaniards translate <i>meridie</i>, twelve or mid-day, whence the correct -word for luncheon is derived, <i>merienda merendar</i>. Wherever good dishes -are cut up there are good leavings, “<i>donde buenas ollas quebran, buenos -cascos quedan</i>;” and nothing can be more Cervantic than the occasional -al fresco halt, when no better place of accommodation is to be met with. -As the sun gets high, and man and beast hungry and weary, wherever a -tempting shady spot with running water occurs, the party draws aside -from the high road, like Don Quixote and Sancho Panza; a retired and -concealed place is chosen, the luggage is removed from the animals, the -hampers which lard the lean soil are unpacked, the table-cloth is spread -on the grass, the <i>botas</i> are laid in the water to cool their contents; -then out with the provision, cold partridge or turkey, sliced ham or -<i>chorizo</i>—simple cates, but which are eaten with an appetite and relish -for which aldermen would pay hundreds. They are followed, should grapes -be wanting, with a soothing cigar, and a sweet slumber on earth’s -freshest, softest lap. In such wild banquets Spain surpasses the -Boulevards. Alas! that such hours<a name="page_118" id="page_118"></a> should be bright and winged as -sunbeams! Such is Peninsular country fare. The <i>olla</i>, on which the -rider may restore exhausted nature, is only to be studied in larger -towns; and dining, of which this is the foundation in Spain, is such a -great resource to travellers, and Spanish cookery, again, is so -Oriental, classical, and singular, let alone its vital importance, that -the subject will properly demand a chapter to itself.<a name="page_119" id="page_119"></a></p> - -<div class="sidenote">A SPANISH COOK.</div> - -<h2><a name="CHAPTER_XI" id="CHAPTER_XI"></a>CHAPTER XI.</h2> - -<div class="blockquot"><p class="hang">A Spanish Cook—Philosophy of Spanish Cuisine—Sauce—Difficulty of -Commissariat—The Provend—Spanish Hares and Rabbits—The -Olla—Garbanzo—Spanish Pigs—Bacon and Hams—Omelette—Salad and -Gazpacho.</p></div> - -<p class="nind">I<small>T</small> would exhaust a couple of Colonial numbers at least to discuss -properly the merits and digest Spanish cookery. All that can be now done -is to skim the subject, which is indeed fat and unctuous. Those meats -and drinks will be briefly noticed which are daily occurrence, and those -dishes described which we have often helped to make, and oftener helped -to eat, in the most larderless <i>ventas</i> and hungriest districts of the -Peninsula, and which provident wayfarers may make and eat again, and, as -we pray, with no worse appetite.</p> - -<div class="sidenote">THE NATIONAL COOKERY.</div> - -<p>To be a good cook, which few Spaniards are, a man must not only -understand his master’s taste, but be able to make something out of -nothing; just as a clever French <i>artiste</i> converts an old shoe into an -épigramme d’agneau, or a Parisian milliner dresses up two deal boards -into a fine live <i>Madame</i>, whose only fault is the appearance of too -much embonpoint. Genuine and legitimate Spanish dishes are excellent in -their way, for no man nor man-cook ever is ridiculous when he does not -attempt to be what he is not. The <i>au naturel</i> may occasionally be -somewhat plain, but seldom makes one sick; at all events it would be as -hopeless to make a Spaniard understand real French cookery as to -endeavour to explain to a député the meaning of our constitution or -parliament. The ruin of Spanish cooks is their futile attempts to -imitate foreign ones: just as their silly grandees murder the glorious -Castilian tongue, by substituting what they fancy is pure Parisian, -which they speak <i>comme des vaches Espagnoles</i>. <i>Dis moi ce que tu -manges et je te dirai ce que tu es</i> is “un mot profond” of the great -equity judge, Brillat Savarin, who also discovered that “<i>Les destinées -des nations dépendent de la manière<a name="page_120" id="page_120"></a> dont elles se nourrissent</i>;” since -which General Foy has attributed all the <i>accidental</i> victories of the -British to rum and beef. And this great fact much enhances our serious -respect for punch, and our true love for the <i>ros-bif</i> of old England, -of which, by the way, very little will be got in the Peninsula, where -bulls are bred for baiting, and oxen for the plough, not the spit.</p> - -<div class="sidenote">SCARCITY OF PROVISIONS.</div> - -<p>The national cookery of Spain is for the most part Oriental; and the -ruling principle of its preparation is <i>stewing</i>; for, from a scarcity -of fuel, roasting is almost unknown; their notion of which is putting -meat into a pan, setting it in hot ashes, and then covering the lid with -burning embers. The pot, or <i>olla</i>, has accordingly become a synonyme -for the dinner of Spaniards, just as beefsteaks or frogs are vulgarly -supposed to constitute the whole bill of fare of two other mighty -nations. Wherever meats are bad and thin, the sauce is very important; -it is based in Spain on oil, garlic, saffron, and red peppers. In hot -countries, where beasts are lean, oil supplies the place of fat, as -garlic does the want of flavour, while a stimulating condiment excites -or curries up the coats of a languid stomach. It has been said of our -heretical countrymen that we have but one form of sauce—melted -butter—and a hundred different forms of religion, whereas in orthodox -Spain there is but one of each, and, as with religion, so to change this -sauce would be little short of heresy. As to colour, it carries that -rich burnt umber, raw sienna tint, which Murillo imitated so well; and -no wonder, since he made his particular brown from baked olla bones, -whence it was extracted, as is done to this day by those Spanish -painters who indulge in meat. This brown <i>negro de hueso</i> colour is the -livery of tawny Spain, where all is brown from the <i>Sierra Morena</i> to -duskier man. Of such hue is his cloak, his terra-cotta house, his wife, -his ox, his ass, and everything that is his. This sauce has not only the -same colour, but the same flavour everywhere; hence the difficulty of -making out the material of which any dish is composed. Not Mrs. Glass -herself could tell, by taste at least, whether the ingredients of the -cauldron be hare or cat, cow or calf, the aforesaid ox or ass. It -puzzles even the acumen of a Frenchman; for it is still the great boast -of the town of Olvera that they served up some donkeys as rations to a -Buonapartist detachment. All this is very Oriental. Isaac could not -distinguish tame kid from<a name="page_121" id="page_121"></a> wild venison, so perplexing was the disguise -of the savoury sauce; and yet his senses of smell and touch were keen, -and his suspicions of unfair cooking were awakened. A prudent diner, -therefore, except when forced to become his own cook, will never look -too closely into the things of the kitchen if he wishes to live a quiet -life; for <i>quien las cosas mucho apura, no vive vida segura</i>.</p> - -<p>All who ride or run through the Peninsula, will read thirst in the arid -plains, and hunger in the soil-denuded hills, where those who ask for -bread will receive stones. The knife and fork question has troubled -every warrior in Spain, from Henri IV. down to Wellington; “subsistence -is the great difficulty always found” is the text of a third of the -Duke’s wonderful despatches. This scarcity of food is implied in the -very name of Spain, <span title="Greek: Spania">Σπανια</span>, which means poverty and -destitution, as well as in the term <i>Bisoños</i>, wanters, which long has -been a synonyme for Spanish soldiers, who are always, as the Duke -described them, “hors de combat,” “always <i>wanting</i> in every thing at -the critical moment.” Hunger and thirst have ever been, and are, the -best defenders of the Peninsula against the invader. On sierra and -steppe these gaunt sentinels keep watch and ward, and, on the scarecrow -principle, protect this paradise, as they do the infernal regions of -Virgil—</p> - -<div class="poem"><div class="stanza"> -<span class="i0">“Malesuada fames et turpis egestas<br /></span> -<span class="i1">Horribiles visu.”<br /></span> -</div></div> - -<p class="nind">A riding tour through Spain has already been likened to serving a -campaign; and it was a saying of the Grand Condé, “If you want to know -what want is, carry on a war in Spain.” Yet, notwithstanding the -thousands of miles which we have ridden, never have we yet felt that -dire necessity, which has been kept at a respectable distance by a -constant unremitting attention to the proverb, A man forewarned is -forearmed. <i>Hombre prevenido nunca fu vencido</i>, there is nothing like -precaution and <i>provision</i>. “If you mean to dine,” writes the -all-providing Duke to Lord Hill from Moraleja, “<i>you had better bring -your things</i>, as I shall have nothing with me;”—the ancient Bursal -fashion holds good on Spanish roads:—</p> - -<div class="poem"><div class="stanza"> -<span class="i0">“Regula Bursalis est omni tempere talis,<br /></span> -<span class="i0">Prandia fer tecum, si vis comedere mecum.”<br /></span> -</div></div> - -<p><a name="page_122" id="page_122"></a></p> - -<div class="sidenote">EATING ON THE ROAD.</div> - -<p>A man who is prepared, is never beaten or starved; therefore, -as the valorous Dalgetty has it, a prudent man will always -victual himself in Spain with vivers for three days at least, and -his cook, like Sancho Panza, should have nothing else in his -head, but thoughts how to convey the most eatables into his ambulant -larder. -</p> - -<p>He must set forth from every tolerable-sized town with an -ample supply of tea, sugar, coffee, brandy, good oil, wine, salt, -to say nothing of solids. The having something ready gives -him leisure to forage and make ulterior preparations. Those -who have a <i>corps de réserve</i> to fall back upon—say a cold turkey -and a ham—can always convert any spot in the desert into an -oasis; at the same time the connection between body and soul -may be kept up by trusting to <i>venta</i> luck, of which more anon; -it offers, however, but a miserable existence to persons of judgment. -And even when this precaution of provision be not required, -there are never wanting in Spain the poor and hungry, -to whom the taste of meat is almost unknown, and to whom -these crumbs that fall from the rich man’s table are indeed a -feast; the relish and gratitude with which these fragments are -devoured do as much good to the heart of the donor as to the -stomach of the donees, for the best medicines of the poor are to -be found in the cellars, kitchens, and hampers of the rich. All -servants should be careful of their traps and stores, which are -liable to be pilfered and plundered in <i>ventas</i>, where the élite of -society is not always assembled: the luggage should be well -corded, for the devil is always a gleaning, <i>ata al saco, ya espiga</i> -<i>el diablo</i>.</p> - -<p>Formerly all travellers of rank carried a silver olla with a -key, the <i>guardacena</i>, the <i>save</i> supper. This ingenious contrivance -has furnished matter for many a pleasantry in picaresque -tales and farces. Madame Daunoy gives us the history of what -befel the good Archbishop of Burgos and his orthodox olla.</p> - -<div class="sidenote">HARES AND RABBITS.</div> - -<p>There is nothing in life like making a good start; thus the -party arrives safely at the first resting-place. The cook must -never appear to have anything when he arrives at an inn; he -must get from others all he can, and much is to be had for asking -and crying, as even a Spanish Infante knows—the child that -does not cry is not suckled, <i>quien no llora, no mama</i>; the -artiste must never fall back on his own reservoirs except in cases -of absolute need; during the day he must open his eyes and ears -and must pick up everything eatable, and where he can and when -he can. By keeping a sharp look-out and going quietly to work -the cook may catch the hen and her chickens too. All is fish that -comes into the net, and, like Buonaparte and his marshals, nothing -should be too great for his ambition, nothing too small for his -rapacity. Of course he will pay for his collections, which the -aforesaid gentry did not: thus fruit, onions, salads, which, as they -must be bought somewhere, had better be secured whenever they -turn up. The peasants, who are sad poachers, will constantly -hail travellers from the fields with offers of partridges, rabbits, -melons, hares, which always jump up in this pays de l’imprévu -when you least expect it: <i>Salta la liebre cuando menos uno</i> -<i>piensa</i>.</p> - -<p>Notwithstanding Don Quixote thought that it augured bad -luck to meet with a hare on entering a village, let not a bold -traveller be scared, but forthwith stew the omen; a hare, as in -the time of Martial, is considered by Spaniards to be the glory -of edible quadrupeds, and to this day no old stager ever takes a -rabbit when he can get a hare, <i>á perro viejo echale liebre y no</i> -<i>conejo</i>. In default however of catching one, rabbits may always -be bagged. Spain abounds with them to such a degree, that -ancient naturalists thought the animal indigenous, and went so -far as to derive the name Spain from <i>Sephan</i>, the rabbit, which -the Phœnicians found here for the first time. Be that as it may, -the long-eared timid creature appears on the early Iberian coins, -as it will long do on her wide wastes and tables. By the bye, a -ready-stewed rabbit or hare is to be eschewed as suspicious in a -<i>venta</i>: at the same time, if the consumer does not find out that it -is a cat, there is no great harm done—ignorance is bliss; let him -not know it, he is not robbed at all. It is a pity to dispel his -gastronomic delusion, as it is the knowledge of the cheat that -kills, and not the cat. Pol! me occidistis, amici. The cook -therefore should ascertain beforehand what are the bonâ fide ingredients -of every dish that he sets before his lord.</p> - -<div class="sidenote">THE OLLA PODRIDA.</div> - -<p>In going into the kitchens of the Peninsula, precedence must -on every account be given to the <i>olla</i>: this word means at once -a species of prepared food, and the earthenware utensil in which -it is dressed, just as our term <i>dish</i> is applicable to the platter -and to what is served on it. Into this <i>olla</i> it may be affirmed -that the whole culinary genius of Spain is condensed, as the -mighty Jinn was into a gallipot, according to the Arabian Night -tales. The lively and gastronomic French, who are decidedly -the leaders of European civilization in the kitchen, deride the -barbarous practices of the Gotho-Iberians, as being darker than -Erebus and more ascetic than æsthetic; to credit their authors, -a Peninsular breakfast consists of a teaspoonful of chocolate, a -dinner, of a knob of garlic soaked in water, and a supper, of a -paper cigarette; and according to their <i>parfait cuisinier</i>, the -<i>olla</i> is made of two cigars boiled in three gallons of water—but -this is a calumny, a mere invention devised by the enemy.</p> - -<p>The <i>olla</i> is only well made in Andalucia, and there alone in -careful, well-appointed houses; it is called a <i>puchero</i> in the rest -of Spain, where it is but a poor affair, made of dry beef, or rather -cow, boiled with <i>garbanzos</i> or chick peas, and a few sausages. -These <i>garbanzos</i> are the vegetable, the potato of the land; and -their use argues a low state of horticultural knowledge. The -taste for them was introduced by the Carthaginians—the <i>puls</i> -<i>punica</i>, which (like the <i>fides punica</i>, an especial ingredient in -all Spanish governments and finance) afforded such merriment -to Plautus, that he introduced the chick-pea eating Pœnus, pultiphagonides, -speaking Punic, just as Shakspere did the toasted-cheese -eating Welshman talking Welsh. These garbanzos require -much soaking, being otherwise hard as bullets; indeed, a -lively Frenchman, after what he calls an apology for a dinner, -compared them, in his empty stomach, as he was jumbled away -in the dilly, to peas rattling in a child’s drum.</p> - -<p>The veritable <i>olla</i>—the ancient time-honoured <i>olla podrida</i>, -or pot pourri—the epithet is now obsolete—is difficult to be -made: a tolerable one is never to be eaten out of Spain, since it -requires many Spanish things to concoct it, and much care; the -cook must throw his whole soul into the pan, or rather pot; it -may be made in one, but two are better. They must be of -earthenware; for, like the French <i>pot au feu</i>, the dish is good -for nothing when made in an iron or copper vessel; take therefore -two, and put them on their separate stoves with water.</p> - -<div class="sidenote">THE OLLA PODRIDA.</div> - -<p>Place into No. 1, <i>Garbanzos</i>, which have been placed to soak -over-night. Add a good piece of beef, a chicken, a large piece -of bacon; let it boil once and quickly; then let it simmer: it -requires four or five hours to be well done. Meanwhile place -into No. 2, with water, whatever vegetables are to be had: -lettuces, cabbage, a slice of gourd, of beef, carrots, beans, celery, -endive, onions and garlic, long peppers. These must be previously -well washed and cut, as if they were destined to make a -salad; then add red sausages, or “<i>chorizos</i>;” half a salted pig’s -face, which should have been soaked over-night. When all is -sufficiently boiled, strain off the water, and throw it away. -Remember constantly to skim the scum of both saucepans. When -all this is sufficiently dressed, take a large dish, lay in the bottom -the vegetables, the beef in the centre, flanked by the bacon, -chicken, and pig’s face. The sausages should be arranged -around, en couronne; pour over some of the soup of No. 1, and -serve hot, as Horace did: “Uncta satis—ponuntur oluscula -lardo.” No violets come up to the perfume which a coming -olla casts before it; the mouth-watering bystanders sigh, as they -see and smell the rich freight steaming away from them.</p> - -<div class="sidenote">BACON.</div> - -<p>This is the olla <i>en grande</i>, such as Don Quixote says was -eaten only by canons and presidents of colleges; like turtle-soup, -it is so rich and satisfactory that it is a dinner of itself. A -worthy dignitary of Seville, in the good old times, before reform -and appropriation had put out the churches’ kitchen fire, and -whose daily pot-luck was transcendental, told us, as a wrinkle, that -he on feast-days used turkeys instead of chickens, and added two -sharp Ronda apples, and three sweet potatoes of Malaga. His -advice is worth attention: he was a good Roman Catholic canon, -who believed everything, absolved everything, drank everything, -ate everything, and digested everything. In fact, as a general rule, -anything that is good in itself is good for an <i>olla</i>, provided, as old -Spanish books always conclude, that it contains nothing contrary -to the holy mother church, to orthodoxy, and to good manners—“<i>que</i> -<i>no contiene cosa que se oponga á nuestra madre Iglesia, y</i> -<i>santa fé catolica, y buenas costumbres</i>.” Such an olla as this is -not to be got on the road, but may be made to restore exhausted -nature when halting in the cities. Of course, every olla, must -everywhere be made according to what can be got. In private -families the contents of No. 1, the soup, is served up with bread, -in a tureen, and the frugal table decked with the separate contents -of the olla in separate platters; the remains coldly serve, or -are warmed up, for supper.</p> - -<p>The vegetables and bacon are absolute necessaries; without -the former an olla has neither grace nor sustenance; <i>la olla sin</i> -<i>verdura, ni tiene gracia ni hartura</i>, while the latter is as essential -in this stew as a text from Saint Augustine is in a sermon:</p> - -<div class="poem"><div class="stanza"> -<span class="i0"><i>No hay olla sin tocino,</i><br /></span> -<span class="i0"><i>Ni sermon sin Agustino.</i><br /></span> -</div></div> - -<p class="nind">Bacon throughout the length and breadth of the Peninsula is more -honoured than this, or than any one or all the fathers of the church of -Rome; the hunger after the flesh of the pig is equalled only by the -thirst for the contents of what is put afterwards into his skin; and -with reason, for the pork of Spain has always been, and is, unequalled -in flavour; the bacon is fat and flavoured, the sausages delicious, and -the hams transcendantly superlative, to use the very expression of -Diodorus Siculus, a man of great taste, learning, and judgment. Of all -the things of Spain, no one need feeling ashamed to plead guilty to a -predilection and preference to the pig. A few particulars may be -therefore pardoned.</p> - -<div class="sidenote">PIGS OF ESTREMADURA.</div> - -<p>In Spain pigs are more numerous even than asses, since they pervade the -provinces. As those of Estremadura, the <i>Ham</i>pshire of the Peninsula, -are the most esteemed, they alone will be now noticed. That province, -although so little visited by Spaniards or strangers, is full of -interest to the antiquarian and naturalist; and many are the rides at -different periods which we have made through its tangled ilex groves, -and over its depopulated and aromatic wastes. A granary under Roman and -Moor, its very existence seems to be all but forgotten by the Madrid -government, who have abandoned it <i>feræ naturæ</i>, to wandering sheep, -locusts, and swine. The entomology of Estremadura is endless, and -perfectly uninvestigated—de minimis non curat Hispanus; but the heavens -and earth teem with the minute creation; there nature is most busy and -prolific, where man is most idle and unproductive; and in these lonely -wastes, where no human voice disturbs the silence, the balmy air -resounds with the buzzing hum<a name="page_127" id="page_127"></a> of multitudinous insects, which career -about on their business of love or food without settlements or kitchens, -rejoicing in the fine weather which is the joy of their tiny souls, and -short-lived pleasant existence. Sheep, pigs, locusts, and doves are the -only living things which the traveller will see for hours and hours. Now -and then a man occurs, just to prove how rare his species is here.</p> - -<p>Vast districts of this unreclaimed province are covered with woods of -oak, beech, and chesnut; but these park-like scenes have no charms for -native eyes; blind to the picturesque, they only are thinking of the -number of pigs which can be fattened on the mast and acorns, which are -sweeter and larger than those of our oaks. The acorns are still called -<i>bellota</i>, the Arabic <i>bollot</i>—<i>belot</i> being the Scriptural term for -the tree and the gland, which, with water, formed the original diet of -the aboriginal Iberian, as well as of his pig; when dry, the acorns were -ground, say the classical authors, into bread, and, when fresh, they -were served up as the second course. And in our time ladies of high rank -at Madrid constantly ate them at the opera and elsewhere; they were the -presents sent by Sancho Panza’s wife to the Duchess, and formed the text -on which Don Quixote preached so eloquently to the goatherds, on the -joys and innocence of the golden age and pastoral happiness, in which -they constituted the foundation of the kitchen.</p> - -<div class="sidenote">KILLING A PIG.</div> - -<p>The pigs during the greater part of the year are left to support nature -as they can, and in gauntness resemble those greyhound-looking animals -which pass for porkers in France. When the acorns are ripe and fall from -the trees, the greedy animals are turned out in legions from the -villages, which more correctly may be termed coalitions of pigsties. -They return from the woods at night, of their own accord, and without a -swine’s general. On entering the hamlet, all set off at a full gallop, -like a legion possessed with devils, in a handicap for home, into which -each single pig turns, never making a mistake. We have more than once -been caught in one of these pig-deluges, and nearly carried away horse -and all, as befell Don Quixote, when really swept away by the -“far-spread and grunting drove.” In his own home each truant is welcomed -like a prodigal son or a domestic father. These pigs are the pets of the -peasants; they are<a name="page_128" id="page_128"></a> brought up with their children, and partake, as in -Ireland, in the domestic discomforts of their cabins; they are -universally respected, and justly, for it is this animal who pays the -“rint;” in fact, are the citizens, as at Sorrento, and Estremenian man -is quite a secondary formation, and created to tend herds of these -swine, who lead the happy life of former Toledan dignitaries, with the -additional advantage of becoming more valuable when dead.</p> - -<p>It is astonishing how rapidly they thrive on their sweet food; indeed it -is the whole duty of a good pig—animal propter convivia natum—to get -as fat and as soon as he can, and then die for the good of his country. -It may be observed for the information of our farmers, that those pigs -which are dedicated to St. Anthony, on whom a sow is in constant -attendance, as a dove was on Venus, get the soonest fat; therefore in -Spain young porkers are sprinkled with holy water on his day, but those -of other saints are less propitious, for the killing takes place about -the 10th and 11th of November, or, as Spaniards date it, <i>por el St. -Andres</i>, on the day of St. Andrew, or on that of St. Martin; hence the -proverb “every man and pig has his St. Martin or his fatal hour, <i>á cada -puerco su San Martin</i>.”</p> - -<p>The death of a fat pig is as great an event in Spanish families, who -generally fatten up one, as the birth of a baby; nor can the fact be -kept secret, so audible is his announcement. It is considered a delicate -attention on the part of the proprietor to celebrate the auspicious -event by sending a portion of the chitterlings to intimate friends. The -Spaniard’s proudest boast is that his blood is pure, that he is not -descended from pork-eschewing Jew or Moor—a fact which the pig genus, -could it reason, would deeply deplore. The Spaniard doubtless has been -so great a consumer of pig, from grounds religious, as well as -gastronomic. The eating or not eating the flesh of an animal deemed -unclean by the impure infidel, became a test of orthodoxy, and at once -of correct faith as well as of good taste; and good bacon, as has been -just observed, is wedded to sound doctrine and St. Augustine. The -Spanish name <i>Tocino</i> is derived from the Arabic <i>Tachim</i>, which -signifies fat.</p> - -<div class="sidenote">PORK OF MONTANCHES.</div> - -<p>The Spaniards however, although tremendous consumers of the pig, whether -in the salted form or in the skin, have to the<a name="page_129" id="page_129"></a> full the Oriental -abhorrence to the unclean animal in the <i>abstract</i>. <i>Muy puerco</i> is -their last expression for all that is most dirty, nasty, or disgusting. -<i>Muy cochina</i> never is forgiven, if applied to woman, as it is -equivalent to the Italian <i>Vacca</i>, and to the canine feminine compliment -bandied among our fair sex at Billingsgate; nor does the epithet imply -moral purity or chastity; indeed in Castilian euphuism the unclean -animal was never to be named except in a periphrasis, or with an -apology, which is a singular remnant of the Moorish influence on Spanish -manners. <i>Haluf</i> or swine is still the Moslem’s most obnoxious term for -the Christians, and is applied to this day by the ungrateful Algerines -to their French bakers and benefactors, nay even to the “<i>illustre -Bugeaud</i>.”</p> - -<p>The capital of the Estremenian pig-districts is <i>Montanches</i>—mons -anguis—and doubtless the hilly spot where the Duke of Arcos fed and -cured “ces petits jambons vermeils,” which the Duc de St. Simon ate and -admired so much; “ces jambons ont un parfum si admirable, un goût si -relevé et si vivifiant, qu’on en est surpris: il est impossible de rien -manger si exquis.” His Grace of Arcos used to shut up the pigs in places -abounding in vipers, on which they fattened. Neither the pigs, dukes, -nor their toadeaters seem to have been poisoned by these exquisite -vipers. According to Jonas Barrington, the finest Irish pigs were those -that fed on dead rebels: one Papist porker, the Enniscorthy boar, was -sent as a show, for having eaten a Protestant parson: he was put to -death and dishonoured by not being made bacon of.</p> - -<div class="sidenote">A MEAT OMELETTE.</div> - -<p>Naturalists have remarked that the rattlesnakes in America retire before -their consuming enemy, the pig, who is thus the <i>gastador</i> or pioneer of -the new world’s civilization, just as Pizarro, who was suckled by a sow, -and tended swine in his youth, was its conqueror. Be that as it may, -Montanches is illustrious in pork, in which the burgesses go the whole -hog, whether in the rich red sausage, the <i>chorizo</i>, or in the savoury -piquant <i>embuchados</i>, which are akin to the <i>mortadelle</i> of Bologna, -only less hard, and usually boiled before eating, though good also raw; -they consist of the choice bits of the pig seasoned with condiments, -with which, as if by retribution, the paunch of the voracious animal is -filled; the ruling passion strong in death. We strongly recommend <i>Juan -Valiente</i>, who recently was the<a name="page_130" id="page_130"></a> alcalde of the town, to the lover of -delicious hams; each <i>jamon</i> averages about 12 lb.; they are sold at the -rate of 7½ <i>reales</i>, about 18<i>d.</i>; for the <i>libra carnicera</i>, which -weighs 32 of our ounces. The duties in England are now very trifling; we -have for many years had an annual supply of these delicacies, through -the favour of a kind friend at the <i>Puerto</i>. The fat of these <i>jamones</i>, -whence our word ham and gammon, when they are boiled, looks like melted -topazes, and the flavour defies language, although we have dined on one -this very day, in order to secure accuracy and undeniable prose, like -Lope de Vega, who, according to his biographer, Dr. Montalvan, never -could write poetry unless inspired by a rasher; “Toda es cosa vil,” said -he, “á donde falta un <i>pernil</i>” (in which word we recognize the precise -<i>perna</i>, whereby Horace was restored):—</p> - -<div class="poem"><div class="stanza"> -<span class="i0">Therefore all writing is a sham,<br /></span> -<span class="i0">Where there is wanting Spanish ham.<br /></span> -</div></div> - -<p>Those of Gallicia and Catalonia are also celebrated, but are not to be -compared for a moment with those of Montanches, which are fit to set -before an emperor. Their only rivals are the sweet hams of the -<i>Alpujarras</i>, which are made at <i>Trevelez</i>, a pig-hamlet situated under -the snowy mountains on the opposite side of Granada, to which also we -have made a pilgrimage. They are called <i>dulces</i> or sweet, because -scarcely any salt is used in the curing; the ham is placed in a weak -pickle for eight days, and is then hung up in the snow; it can only be -done at this place, where the exact temperature necessary is certain. -Those of our readers who are curious in Spanish eatables will find -excellent garbanzos, chorizos, red pepper, chocolate and Valencian -sweetmeats, &c. at Figul’s, a most worthy Catalan, whose shop is at No. -10, Woburn Buildings, St. Paneras, London; the locality is scarcely less -visited than Montanches, but the penny-post penetrates into this terra -incognita.</p> - -<div class="sidenote">THE GUISADO.</div> - -<p>So much space has been filled with these meritorious bacons and hams, -that we must be brief with our remaining bill of fare. For a <i>pisto</i> or -meat omelette take eggs, which are to be got almost everywhere; see that -they are fresh by being pellucid; beat these <i>huevos trasparentes</i> well -up; chop up onions and whatever savoury herbs you have with you; add -small slices of any meat out of your hamper, cold turkey, ham, &c.; beat -it<a name="page_131" id="page_131"></a> all up together and fry it quickly. Most Spaniards have a peculiar -knack in making these <i>tortillas</i>, <i>revueltas de huevos</i>, which to -fastidious stomachs are, as in most parts of the Continent, a sure -resource to fall back upon.</p> - -<p>The <i>Guisado</i>, or stew, like the olla, can only be really done in a -Spanish pipkin, and of those which we import, the Andalucian ones draw -flavour out the best. This dish is always well done by every cook in -every venta, barring that they are apt to put in bad oil, and too much -garlic, pepper, and saffron. Superintend it, therefore, yourself, and -take hare, partridge, rabbit, chicken, or whatever you may have foraged -on the road; it is capital also with pheasant, as we proved only -yesterday; cut it up, save the blood, the liver, and the giblets; do not -wash the pieces, but dry them in a cloth; fry them with onions in a -teacup of oil till browned; take an olla, put in these bits with the -oil, equal portions of wine and water, but stock is better than water; -claret answers well, Valdepeñas better; add a bit of bacon, onions, -garlic, salt, pepper, <i>pimientos</i>, a bunch of thyme or herbs; let it -simmer, carefully skimming it; half an hour before serving add the -giblets; when done, which can be tested by feeling with a fork, serve -hot. The stew should be constantly stirred with a <i>wooden</i> spoon, and -grease, the ruin of all cookery, carefully skimmed off as it rises to -the surface. When made with proper care and with a good salad, it forms -a supper for a cardinal, or for Santiago himself.</p> - -<div class="sidenote">STARRED EGGS.</div> - -<p>Another excellent but very difficult dish is the <i>pollo con arroz</i>, or -the chicken and rice. It is eaten in perfection in Valencia, and -therefore is often called <i>Pollo Valenciano</i>. Cut a good fowl into -pieces, wipe it clean, but do not put it into water; take a saucepan, -put in a wine-glass of fine oil, heat the oil well, put in a bit of -bread; let it fry, stirring it about with a <i>wooden</i> spoon; when the -bread is browned take it out and throw it away: put in two cloves of -garlic, taking care that it does not burn, as, if it does, it will turn -bitter; stir the garlic till it is fried; put in the chicken, keep -stirring it about while it fries, then put in a little salt and stir -again; whenever a sound of cracking is heard, stir it again; when the -chicken is well browned or gilded, <i>dorado</i>, which will take from five -to ten minutes, <i>stirring constantly</i>, put in chopped onions, three or -four chopped red or green chilis, and<a name="page_132" id="page_132"></a> stir about; if once the contents -catch the pan, the dish is spoiled; then add tomatas, divided into -quarters, and parsley; take two teacupsful of rice, mix all well up -together; add <i>hot</i> stock enough to cover the whole over; let it boil -<i>once</i>, and then set it aside to simmer until the rice becomes tender -and done. The great art consists in having the rice turned out -granulated and separate, not in a pudding state, which is sure to be the -case if a cover be ever put over the dish, which condenses the steam.</p> - -<p>It may be objected, that these dishes, if so curious in the cooking, are -not likely to be well done in the rude kitchens of a <i>venta</i>; but -practice makes perfect, and the whole mind and intellect of the artist -is concentrated on one object, and not frittered away by a multiplicity -of dishes, the rock on which many cooks founder, where more dinners are -sacrificed to the eye and ostentation. One dish and one thing at a time -is the golden rule of Bacon; many are the anxious moments that we have -spent over the rim of a Spanish pipkin, watching, life set on the cast, -the wizen she-mummy, whose mind, body, and spoon were absorbed in a -single mess: Well, my mother, <i>que tal</i>? what sort of a stew is it? Let -me smell and taste the <i>salsa</i>. Good, good; it promises much. <i>Vamos, -Señora</i>—go on, my lady, thy spoon once more—how, indeed, can oil, -wine, and nutritive juices amalgamate without frequent stirring? Well, -very well it is. Now again, daughter of my soul, thy fork. <i>Asi, asi</i>; -thus, thus. <i>Per Bacco</i>, by Bacchus, tender it is—may heaven repay -thee! Indeed, from this tenderness of the meat arises ease of digestion; -here, pot and fire do half the work of the poor stomach, which too often -in inns elsewhere is overtaxed, like its owner, and condemned to hard -labour and a brickbat beefsteak.</p> - -<div class="sidenote">SALAD.</div> - -<p>Poached eggs are at all events within the grasp of the meanest culinary -capacity. They are called <i>Huevos estrellados</i>, starred eggs. When fat -bacon is wedded to them, the dish is called <i>Huevos con magras</i>; not -that <i>magras</i> here means thin as to condition, but rather as to slicing; -and these slices, again, are positively thick ones when compared to -those triumphs of close shaving which are carved at Vauxhall. To make -this dish, with or without the bacon, take eggs; the contents of the -shell are to be emptied into a pan filled with hot oil or lard, <i>manteca -de puerco</i>, pig’s butter: it must be remembered, although Strabo -mentions as a singular<a name="page_133" id="page_133"></a> fact that the Iberians made use of butter -instead of oil, that now it is just the reverse; a century ago butter -was only sold by the apothecaries, as a sort of ointment, and it used to -be iniquitous. Spaniards generally used either Irish or Flemish salted -butter, and from long habit thought fresh butter quite insipid; indeed, -they have no objection to its being a trifle or so rancid, just as some -aldermen like high venison. In the present age of progress the Queen -Christina has a fancy dairy at Madrid, where she makes a few pounds of -fresh butter, of which a small portion is or was sold, at five shillings -the pound, to foreign ambassadors for their breakfast. Recently more -attention has been paid to the dairy in the Swiss-like provinces of the -north-west. The Spaniards, like the heroes in the Iliad, seldom boil -their food (eggs excepted), at least not in water; for frying, after -all, is but boiling in oil.</p> - -<p>Travellers should be cautioned against the captivating name of <i>manteca -Valenciana</i>. This Valencian butter is composed (for the cow has nothing -to do with it) of equal portions of garlic and hogs’ lard pounded -together in a mortar; it is then spread on bread, just as we do arsenic -to destroy vermin. It, however, agrees well with the peasants, as does -the soup of their neighbours the Catalans, which is made of bread and -garlic in equal portions fried in oil and diluted with hot water. This -mess is called <i>sopa de gato</i>, probably from making cats, not Catalans, -sick.</p> - -<div class="sidenote">GAZPACHO.</div> - -<p>One thing, however, is truly delicious in Spain—the salad, to compound -which, says the Spanish proverb, four persons are wanted: a spendthrift -for oil, a miser for vinegar, a counsellor for salt, and a madman to -stir it all up. <span class="smcap">N.B.</span> Get the biggest bowl you can, in order that this -latter operation may be thoroughly performed. The salad is the glory of -every French dinner, and the disgrace of most in England, even in good -houses, and from two simple causes; first, from the putting in eggs, -mustard, and other heretical ingredients, and, secondly, from making it -long before it is wanted to be eaten, whereby the green materials, which -should be crisp and fresh, become sodden and leathery. Prepare, -therefore, your salad in separate vessels, and never mix the sauce with -the herbs until the instant that you are ready to transfer the -refreshing result to your plate. Take lettuce, or whatever salad is to -be got; do not cut it with a steel knife, which turns the<a name="page_134" id="page_134"></a> edges of the -wounds black, and communicates an evil flavour; let the leaf be torn -from the stem, which throw away, as it is hard and bitter; wash the mass -in many waters, and rinse it in napkins till dry; take a small bowl, put -in equal quantities of vinegar and water, a teaspoonful of pepper and -salt, and four times as much oil as vinegar and water, mix the same well -together; prepare in a plate whatever fine herbs can be got, especially -tarragon and chervil, which must be chopped small. Pour the sauce over -the salad, powder it with these herbs, and lose no time in eating. For -making a much worse salad than this, a foreign artiste in London used -some years ago to charge a guinea.</p> - -<div class="sidenote">GAZPACHO.</div> - -<p>Any remarks on Spanish salads would be incomplete without some account -of <i>gazpacho</i>, that vegetable soup, or floating salad, which during the -summer forms the food of the bulk of the people in the torrid portions -of Spain. This dish is of Arabic origin, as its name, “soaked bread,” -implies. This most ancient Oriental Roman and Moorish refection is -composed of onions, garlic, cucumbers, chilis, all chopped up very small -and mixed with crumbs of bread, and then put into a bowl of oil, -vinegar, and fresh water. Reapers and agricultural labourers could never -stand the sun’s fire without this cooling acetous diet. This was the -<span title="Greek: oxykratos">οξυκρατος</span> of the Greeks, the <i>posca</i>, potable food, meat and -drink, <i>potus et esca</i>, which formed part of the rations of the Roman -soldiers, and which Adrian (a Spaniard) delighted to share with them, -and into which Boaz at meal-time invited Ruth to dip her morsel. Dr. -Buchanan found some Syrian Christians who still called it <i>ail</i>, <i>ail</i>, -<i>Hil</i>, <i>Hila</i>, for which our Saviour was supposed to have called on the -Cross, when those who understood that dialect gave it him from the -vessel which was full of it for the guard. In Andalucia, during the -summer, a bowl of gazpacho is commonly ready in every house of an -evening, and is partaken of by every person who comes in. It is not -easily digested by strangers, who do not require it quite so much as the -natives, whose souls are more parched and dried up, and who perspire -less. The components, oil, vinegar, and bread, are all that is given out -to the lower class of labourers by farmers who profess to feed them; two -cow’s horns, the most primitive form of bottle and cup, are constantly -seen suspended on each<a name="page_135" id="page_135"></a> side of their carts, and contain this provision, -with which they compound their <i>migas</i>: this consists of crumbs of bread -fried in oil, with pepper and garlic; nor can a stronger proof be given -of the common poverty of their fare than the common expression, “<i>buenas -migas hay</i>,” there are <i>good crumbs</i>, being equivalent to capital -eating. In very cold weather the mess is warmed, and then is called -<i>gazpacho caliente</i>. Oh! dura messorum ilia—oh! the iron mess digesting -stomachs of ploughmen.<a name="page_136" id="page_136"></a></p> - -<div class="sidenote">WATER.</div> - -<h2><a name="CHAPTER_XII" id="CHAPTER_XII"></a>CHAPTER XII.</h2> - -<div class="blockquot"><p class="hang">Drinks of Spain—Water—Irrigation—Fountains—Spanish -Thirstiness—The Alcarraza—Water Carriers—Ablutions—Spanish -Chocolate—Agraz—Beer Lemonade.</p></div> - -<p class="nind">I<small>N</small> dipping into Spanish liquids we shall not mix wine with water, but -keep them separate, as most Spaniards do; the latter is entitled to rank -first, by those who prefer the opinion of Pindar, who held water to be -the best of things, to that of Anacreon, who was not member of any -temperance society. The profound regard for water of a Spaniard is quite -Oriental; at the same time, as his blood is partly Gothic and partly -Arab, his allegiance is equally mixed and divided; thus, if he adores -the juice of flints like a Moslem, he venerates the juice of the grape -like a German.</p> - -<p>Water is the blood of the earth, and the purificator of the body in -tropical regions and in creeds which, being regulated by latitudes, -enforce frequent ablution; loud are the praises of Arab writers of wells -and water-brooks, and great is their fountain and pool worship, the -dipping in which, if their miraculous cases are to be credited, effects -more and greater cures than those worked by hydropathists at Grafenberg; -a Spaniard’s idea of a paradise on earth, of a “garden,” is a -well-watered district; irrigation is fertility and wealth, and -therefore, as in the East, wells, brooks, and water-courses have been a -constant source of bickering; nay the very word <i>rivality</i> has been -derived from these quarrel and law-suit engendering rivers, as the name -given to the well for which the men of Gerah and Isaac differed, was -called <i>esek</i> from the contention.</p> - -<div class="sidenote">FOUNTAINS.</div> - -<p>The flow of waters cannot be mistaken; the most dreary sterility edges -the most luxuriant plenty, the most hopeless barrenness borders on the -richest vegetation; the line of demarcation is perceived from afar, -dividing the tawny desert from the verdurous garden. The Moors who came -from the East were fully sensible of the value of this element; they -collected the best<a name="page_137" id="page_137"></a> springs with the greatest care, they dammed up -narrow gorges into reservoirs, they constructed pools and underground -cisterns, stemmed valleys with aqueducts that poured in rivers, and in a -word exercised a magic influence over this element, which they guided -and wielded at their will; their system of irrigation was far too -perfect to be improved by Spaniard, or even destroyed. In those favoured -districts where their artificial contrivances remain, Flora still smiles -and Ceres rejoices with Pomona; wherever the ravages of war or the -neglect of man have ruined them, the garden has relapsed into the -desert, and plains once overflowing with corn, gladness, and population, -have shrunk into sad and silent deserts.</p> - -<div class="sidenote">THIRST.</div> - -<p>The fountains of Spain, especially in the hotter and more Moorish -districts, are numerous; they cannot fail to strike and please the -stranger, whether they be situated in the public walk, garden, -market-place, or private dwelling. Their mode of supply is simple: a -river which flows down from the hills is diverted at a certain height -from its source, and is carried in an artificial canal, which retains -the original elevation, into a reservoir placed above the town which is -to be served; as the waters rise to their level, the force, body, and -altitude of some of the columns thrown up are very great. In our cold -country, where, except at Charing Cross, the stream is conveyed -underground and unseen, all this gush of waters, of dropping diamonds in -the bright sun, which cools the air and gladdens the sight and ear, is -unknown. Again there is a waste of the “article,” which would shock a -Chelsea Waterworks Director, and induce the rate-collector to refer to -the fines as per Act of Parliament. The fondest wish of those Spaniards -who wear long-tailed coats, is to imitate those gentry; they are ashamed -of the patriarchal uncivilised system of their ancestors—much prefer -the economical lead pipe to all this extravagant and gratuitous -splashing—they love a turncock better than the most Oriental Rebecca -who comes down to draw water. The fountains in Spain as in the East are -the meeting and greeting places of womankind; here they flock, old and -young, infants and grandmothers. It is a sight to drive a water-colour -painter crazy, such is the colour, costume, and groupings, such is the -clatter of tongues and crockery; such is the life and action; now trip -along a bevy of damsel Hebes with upright forms and chamois step<a name="page_138" id="page_138"></a> light -yet true; more graceful than opera-dancers, they come laughing and -carolling along, poising on their heads pitchers modelled after the -antique, and after everything which a Sèvres jug is not. It would seem -that to draw water is a difficult operation, so long are they lingering -near the sweet fountain’s rim. It indeed is their al fresco rout, their -tertulia; here for awhile the hand of woman labour ceases, and the urn -stands still; here more than even after church mass, do the young -discuss their dress and lovers, the middle-aged and mothers descant on -babies and housekeeping; all talk, and generally at once; but gossip -refresheth the daughters of Eve, whether in gilded boudoir or near mossy -fountain, whose water, if a dash of scandal be added, becomes sweeter -than eau sucrée.</p> - -<p>The Iberians were decided water-drinkers, and this trait of their -manners, which are modified by climate that changes not, still exists as -the sun that regulates: the vinous Greek Athenæus was amazed that even -rich Spaniards should prefer water to wine; and to this day they are if -possible curious about the latter’s quality; they will just drink the -wine that grows the nearest, while they look about and enquire for the -best water; thus even our cook Francisco, who certainly had one of the -best places in Seville, and who although a good artiste was a better -rascal—qualities not incompatible—preferred to sacrifice his interests -rather than go to Granada, because this man of the fire had heard that -the water there was bad.</p> - -<div class="sidenote">INTENSE HEAT.</div> - -<p>The mother of the Arabs was tormented with thirst, which her -Hispano-Moro children have inherited; in fact in the dog-days, of which -here there are packs, unless the mortal clay be frequently wetted it -would crumble to bits like that of a figure modeller. Fire and water are -the elements of Spain, whether at an <i>auto de fé</i> or in a church-stoop; -with a cigar in his mouth a Spaniard smokes like Vesuvius, and is as -dry, combustible, and inflammatory; and properly to understand the truth -of Solomon’s remark, that cold water is to a thirsty soul as refreshing -as good news, one must have experienced what thirst is in the exposed -plains of the calcined Castiles, where <i>coup de soleil</i> is rife, and a -gentleman on horseback’s brains seem to be melting like Don Quixote’s -when Sancho put the curds into his helmet. It is just the country to -send a patient to, who is troubled with hydrophobia.<a name="page_139" id="page_139"></a> “Those rayes,” to -use the words of old Howell, “that do but warm you in England, do roast -you here; those beams that irradiate onely, and gild your honey-suckled -fields, do here scorch and parch the chinky gaping soyle, and put too -many wrinkles upon the face of your common mother.”</p> - -<p>Then, when the heavens and earth are on fire, and the sun drinks up -rivers at one draught, when one burnt sienna tone pervades the tawny -ground, and the green herb is shrivelled up into black gunpowder, and -the rare pale ashy olive-trees are blanched into the livery of the -desert; then, when the heat and harshness make even the salamander -muleteers swear doubly as they toil along like demons in an ignited -salitrose dust—then, indeed, will an Englishman discover that he is -made of the same material, only drier, and learn to estimate water; but -a good thirst is too serious an evil, too bordering on suffering, to be -made, like an appetite, a matter of congratulation; for when all fluids -evaporate, and the blood thickens into currant jelly, and the nerves -tighten up into the catgut of an overstrung fiddle, getting attuned to -the porcupinal irritability of the tension of the mind, how the parched -soul sighs for the comfort of a Scotch mist, and fondly turns back to -the uvula-relaxing damps of Devon!—then, in the blackhole-like thirst -of the wilderness, every mummy hag rushing from a reed hut, with a -porous cup of brackish water, is changed by the mirage into a Hebe, -bearing the nectar of the immortals; then how one longs for the most -wretched <i>Venta</i>, which heat and thirst convert into the Clarendon, -since in it at least will be found water and shade, and an escape from -the god of fire! Well may Spanish historians boast, that his orb at the -creation first shone over Toledo, and never since has set on the -dominions of the great king, who, as we are assured by Señor Berni, “has -the sun for his hat,”—<i>tiene al sol por su sombrero</i>; but humbler -mortals who are not grandees of this solar system, and to whom a <i>coup -de soleil</i> is neither a joke nor a metaphor, should stow away -non-conductors of heat in the crown of their beavers. Thus Apollo -himself preserved us. And oh! ye our fair readers, who chance to run -such risks, and value complexion, take for heaven’s sake a parasol and -an <i>Alcarraza</i>.</p> - -<div class="sidenote">SPANISH WATER-SELLERS.</div> - -<p>This clay utensil—as its Arabic name <i>al Karaset</i> implies—is a porous -refrigeratory vessel, in which water when placed in a current<a name="page_140" id="page_140"></a> of hot -air becomes chilled by evaporation; it is to be seen hung up on poles -dangling from branches, suspended to waggons—in short, is part and -parcel of a Spanish scene in hot weather and localities; every <i>posada</i> -has rows of them at the entrance, and the first thing every one does on -entering, before wishing even the hostess Good morning, or asking -permission, is to take a full draught: all classes are learned on the -subject, and although on the whole they cannot be accused of -teetotalism, they are loud in their praises of the pure fluid. The -common form of praise is <i>agua muy rica</i>—very rich water. According to -their proverbs, good water should have neither taste, smell, nor colour, -“<i>ni sabor, olor, ni color</i>,” which neither makes men sick nor in debt, -nor women widows, “<i>que no enferma, no adeuda, no enviuda</i>;” and besides -being cheaper than wine, beer, or brandy, it does not brutalize the -consumer, nor deprive him of his common sense or good manners.</p> - -<div class="sidenote">WANT OF CLEANLINESS.</div> - -<p>As Spaniards at all times are as dry as the desert or a sponge, selling -water is a very active business; on every alameda and prado shrill -voices of the sellers of drinks and mouth combustibles—<i>vendedores de -combustibles de boca</i>—are heard crying, “Fire, fire, <i>candela</i>—Water; -who wants water?”—<i>agua; quien quiere agua?</i> which, as these Orientals -generally exaggerate, is described as <i>mas fresca que la nieve</i>, or -colder than snow; and near them little Murillo-like urchins run about -with lighted ropes like artillerymen for the convenience of smokers, -that is, for every ninety and nine males out of a hundred; while -water-carriers, or rather retail pedestrian aqueducts, follow thirst -like fire-engines; the <i>Aguador</i> carries on his back, like his colleague -in the East, a porous water-jar, with a little cock by which it is drawn -out; he is usually provided with a small tin box strapped to his waist, -and in which he stows away his glasses, brushes, and some light -<i>azucarillos</i>—<i>panales</i>, which are made of sugar and white of egg, -which Spaniards dip and dissolve in their drink. In the town, at -particular stations water-mongers in wholesale have a shed, with ranges -of jars, glasses, oranges, lemons, &c., and a bench or two on which the -drinkers “untire themselves.” In winter these are provided with an -<i>añafe</i> or portable stove, which keeps a supply of hot water, to take -the chill off the cold, for Spaniards, from a sort of dropsical habit, -drink like fishes all the year round.<a name="page_141" id="page_141"></a> Ferdinand the Catholic, on seeing -a peasant drowned in a river, observed, “that he had never before seen a -Spaniard who had had enough water.”</p> - -<p>At the same time it must be remembered that this fluid is applied with -greater prodigality in washing their inside than their outside. Indeed, -a classical author remarks that the Spaniards only learnt the use of -<i>hot</i> water, as applicable to the toilette, from the Romans after the -second Punic war. Their baths and <i>thermæ</i> were destroyed by the Goths, -because they tended to encourage effeminacy; and those of the Moors were -prohibited by the Gotho-Spaniards partly from similar reasons, but more -from a religious hydrophobia. Ablutions and lustral purifications formed -an article of faith with the Jew and Moslem, with whom “cleanliness is -godliness.” The mendicant Spanish monks, according to their practice of -setting up a directly antagonist principle, considered physical dirt as -the test of moral purity and true faith; and by dining and sleeping from -year’s end to year’s end in the same unchanged woollen frock, arrived at -the height of their ambition, according to their view of the odour of -sanctity, insomuch that Ximenez, who was himself a shirtless Franciscan, -induced Ferdinand and Isabella, at the conquest of Granada, to close and -abolish the Moorish baths. They forbade not only the Christians but the -Moors from using anything but holy water. Fire, not water, became the -grand element of inquisitorial purification.</p> - -<div class="sidenote">CHOCOLATE.</div> - -<p>The fair sex was warned by monks, who practised what they preached, that -they should remember the cases of Susanna, Bathsheba, and La -Cava,—whose fatal bathing under the royal palace at Toledo led to the -downfall of the Gothic monarchy. Their aqueous anathemas extended not -only to public, but to minutely private washings, regarding which -Sanchez instructs the Spanish confessor to question his fair penitents, -and not to absolve the over-washed. Many instances could be produced of -the practical working of this enjoined rule; for instance, Isabella, the -favourite daughter of Philip II., his eye, as he called her, made a -solemn vow never to change her shift until Ostend was taken. The siege -lasted three years, three months, and thirteen days. The royal garment -acquired a tawny colour, which was called <i>Isabel</i> by the courtiers, in -compliment to the pious princess. Again, Southey relates that the devout -Saint Eufraxia entered into a<a name="page_142" id="page_142"></a> convent of 130 nuns, not one of whom had -ever washed her feet, and the very mention of a bath was an abomination. -These obedient daughters to their Capuchin confessors were what Gil de -Avila termed a sweet garden of flowers, perfumed by the good smell and -reputation of sanctity, “<i>ameno jardin de flores, olorosas por el buen -odor y fama de santidad</i>.” Justice to the land of Castile soap requires -us to observe that latterly, since the suppression of monks, both sexes, -and the fair especially, have departed from the strict observance of the -religious duties of their excellent grandmothers. Warm baths are now -pretty generally established in the larger towns. At the same time, the -interiors of bedrooms, whether in inns or private houses, as well by the -striking absence of glass and china utensils, which to English notions -are absolute necessaries, as by the presence of French pie-dish basins, -and duodecimo jugs, indicate that this “little damned spot” on the -average Spanish hand, has not yet been quite rubbed out.</p> - -<p>However hot the day, dusty the road, or long the journey, it has never -been our fate to see a Spanish attendant use a single drop of water as a -detergent, or, as polite writers say, “perform his ablutions;” the -constant habit of bathing and complete washing is undoubtedly one reason -why the French and other continentals consider our soap-loving -countrymen to be cracked. Under the Spanish Goths the Hemerobaptistæ, or -people who washed their persons once a day, were set down as heretics. -The Duke of Frias, when a few years ago on a fortnight’s visit to an -English lady, never once troubled his basins and jugs; he simply rubbed -his face occasionally with the white of an egg, which, as Madame Daunoy -records, was the only ablution of the Spanish ladies in the time of -Philip IV.; but these details of the dressing-room are foreign to the -use made in Spain of liquids in kitchen and parlour.</p> - -<p>One word on chocolate, which is to a Spaniard what tea is to a -Briton—coffee to a Gaul. It is to be had almost everywhere, and is -always excellent; the best is made by the nuns, who are great -confectioners and compounders of sweetmeats, sugarplums and -orange-flowers, water and comfits,</p> - -<div class="poem"><div class="stanza"> -<span class="i0">“Et tous ces mets sucrés en pâte, ou bien liquides,<br /></span> -<span class="i1">Dont estomacs dévots furent toujours avides.”<br /></span> -</div></div> - -<div class="sidenote">ICED DRINKS.</div> - -<p class="nind">It was long a disputed point whether chocolate did or did not<a name="page_143" id="page_143"></a> break -fast theologically, just as happened with coffee among the rigid -Moslems. But since the learned Escobar decided that <i>liquidum non rumpit -jejunium</i>, a liquid does not break fast, it has become the universal -breakfast of Spain. It is made just liquid enough to come within the -benefit of clergy, that is, a spoon will almost stand up in it; only a -small cup is taken, <i>una jicara</i>, a Mexican word for the cocoa-nuts of -which they were first made, generally with a bit of toasted bread or -biscuit: as these <i>jicaras</i> have seldom any handles, they were used by -the rich (as coffeecups are among the Orientals) enclosed in little -filigree cases of silver or gold; some of these are very beautiful, made -in the form of a tulip or lotus leaf, on a saucer of mother-o’-pearl. -The flower is so contrived that, by a spring underneath, on raising the -saucer, the leaves fall back and disclose the cup to the lips, while, -when put down, they re-close over it, and form a protection against the -flies. A glass of water should always be drunk after this chocolate, -since the aqueous chasse neutralizes the bilious propensities of this -breakfast of the gods, as Linnæus called chocolate. Tea and coffee have -supplanted chocolate in England and France; it is in Spain alone that we -are carried back to the breakfasts of Belinda and of the wits at -Button’s; in Spain exist, unchanged, the fans, the game of ombre, -<i>tresillo</i>, and the <i>coche de colleras</i>, the coach and six, and other -social usages of the age of Pope and the ‘Spectator.’</p> - -<div class="sidenote">ICED LEMONADE.</div> - -<p>Cold liquids in the hot dry summers of Spain are necessaries, not -luxuries; snow and iced drinks are sold in the streets at prices so low -as to be within the reach of the poorest classes; the rich refrigerate -themselves with <i>agraz</i>. This, the Moorish <i>Hacaraz</i>, is the most -delicious and most refreshing drink ever devised by thirsty mortal; it -is the <i>new</i> pleasure for which Xerxes wished in vain, and beats the -“hock and soda water,” the “<i>hoc erat in votis</i>” of Byron, and sherry -cobler itself. It is made of pounded unripe grapes, clarified sugar, and -water; it is strained till it becomes of the palest straw-coloured -amber, and well iced. It is particularly well made in Andalucia, and it -is worth going there in the dog-days, if only to drink it—it cools a -man’s body and soul. At Madrid an agreeable drink is sold in the -streets; it is called <i>Michi Michi</i>, from the Valencian <i>Mitj e Mitj</i>, -“half and half,” and is as unlike the heavy wet mixture of<a name="page_144" id="page_144"></a> London, as a -coal-porter is to a pretty fair Valenciana. It is made of equal portions -of barley-water and orgeat of <i>Chufas</i>, and is highly iced. The -Spaniards, among other cooling fruits, eat their strawberries mixed with -sugar and the juice of oranges, which will be found a more agreeable -addition than the wine used by the French, or the cream of the -English,—the one heats, and the other, whenever it is to be had, makes -a man bilious in Spain. Spanish ices, <i>helados</i>, are apt to be too -sweet, nor is the sugar well refined; the ices, when frozen very hard -and in small forms, either representing fruits or shells, are called -<i>quesos</i>, cheeses.</p> - -<p>Another favourite drink is a weak bottled beer mixed with iced lemonade. -Spaniards, however, are no great drinkers of beer, notwithstanding that -their ancestors drank more of it than wine, which was not then either so -plentiful or universal as at the present; this substitute of grapeless -countries passed from the Egyptians and Carthaginians into Spain, where -it was excellent, and kept well. The vinous Roman soldiers derided the -beer-drinking Iberians, just as the French did the English <i>before</i> the -battle of Agincourt. “Can sodden water—barley-broth—decoct their cold -blood to such valiant heat?” Polybius sneers at the magnificence of a -Spanish king, because his home was furnished with silver and gold vases -full of beer, of barley-wine. The genuine Goths, as happens everywhere -to this day, were great swillers of ale and beer, heady and stupifying -mixtures, according to Aristotle. Their archbishop, St. Isidore, -distinguished between <i>celia ceria</i>, the ale, and <i>cerbisia</i>, beer, -whence the present word <i>cerbeza</i> is derived. Spanish beer, like many -other Spanish matters, has now become small. Strong English beer is rare -and dear; among one of the infinite ingenious absurdities of Spanish -customs’ law, English beer in barrels used to be prohibited, as were -English bottles if empty—but prohibited beer, in prohibited bottles, -was admissible, on the principle that two fiscal negatives made an -exchequer affirmative.<a name="page_145" id="page_145"></a></p> - -<div class="sidenote">WINES OF SPAIN.</div> - -<h2><a name="CHAPTER_XIII" id="CHAPTER_XIII"></a>CHAPTER XIII.</h2> - -<div class="blockquot"><p class="c">Spanish Wines—Spanish Indifference—Wine-making—Vins du -Pays—Local Wines—Benicarló—Valdepeñas.</p></div> - -<p class="nind">T<small>HE</small> wines of Spain deserve a chapter to themselves. Sherry indeed is not -less popular among us than Murillo, in spite of the numbers of bad -copies of the one, which are passed off for undoubted originals, and -butts of the other, which are sold neat as imported. The Spaniard -himself is neither curious in port, nor particular in Madeira; he -prefers quantity to quality, and loves flavour much less than he hates -trouble; a cellar in a private house, of rare fine or foreign wines, is -perhaps a greater curiosity than a library of ditto books; an hidalgo -with twenty names simply sends out before his frugal meal for a quart of -wine to the nearest shop, as a small burgess does in the City for a pint -of porter. Local in every thing, the Spaniard takes the goods that the -gods provide him, just as they come to hand; he drinks the wine that -grows in the nearest vineyards, and if there are none, then regales -himself with the water from the least distant spring. It is so in -everything; he adds the smallest possible exertion of his own to the -bounties of nature; his object is to obtain the largest produce for the -smallest labour; he allows a life-conferring sun and a fertile soil to -create for him the raw material, which he exports, being perfectly -contented that the foreigner should return it to him when recreated by -art and industry; thus his wool, barilla, hides, and cork-bark, are -imported by him back again in the form of cloth, glass, leather, and -bungs.</p> - -<div class="sidenote">WINES OF SPAIN.</div> - -<p>The most celebrated and perfect wines of the Peninsula are port and -sherry, which owe their excellence to foreign, not to native skill, the -principal growers and makers being Europeans, and their system -altogether un-Spanish; nothing can be more rude, antique, and -unscientific, than the wine-making in those<a name="page_146" id="page_146"></a> localities where no -stranger has ever settled. But Spain is a land bottled up for -antiquarians, and it must be confessed that the national process is very -picturesque and classical; no Ariadne revel of Titian is more glittering -or animated, no bas-relief more classical in which sacrifices are -celebrated</p> - -<div class="poem"><div class="stanza"> -<span class="i0">“To Bacchus, who first from out the purple grape<br /></span> -<span class="i1">Crushed the sweet poison of misused wine.”<br /></span> -</div></div> - -<p class="nind">Often have we ridden through villages redolent with vinous aroma, and -inundated with the blood of the berry, until the very mud was -encarnadined; what a busy scene! Donkeys laden with panniers of the ripe -fruit, damsels bending under heavy baskets, men with reddened legs and -arms, joyous and jovial as satyrs, hurry jostling on to the rude and -dirty vat, into which the fruit is thrown indiscriminately, the -black-coloured with the white ones, the ripe bunches with the sour, the -sound berries with those decayed; no pains are taken, no selection is -made; the filth and negligence are commensurate with this carelessness; -the husks are either trampled under naked feet or pressed out under a -rude beam; in both cases every refining operation is left to the -fermentation of nature, for there is a divinity that shapes our ends, -rough hew them how we may.</p> - -<div class="sidenote">VALDEPENAS.</div> - -<p>The wines of Spain, under a latitude where a fine season is a certainty, -might rival those of France, and still more those of the Rhine, where a -good vintage is the exception, not the rule. Their varieties are -infinite, since few districts, unless those that are very elevated, are -without their local produce, the names, colours, and flavours of which -are equally numerous and varied. The thirsty traveller, after a long -day’s ride under a burning sun, when seated quietly down to a smoking -peppery dish, is enchanted with the cool draught of these vins du pays, -which are brought fresh to him from the skins or amphora jars; he longs -to transport the apparently divine nectar to his own home, and wonders -that “the trade” should have overlooked such delicious wine. Those who -have tried the experiment will find a sad change for the worse come over -the spirit of their dream, when the long-expected importation greets -their papillatory organs in London. There the illusion is dispelled; -there to a cloyed fastidious taste, to a judgment bewildered and -frittered away by variety of the best vintages, how flat, stale, and -unprofitable<a name="page_147" id="page_147"></a> does this much-fancied beverage appear! The truth is, that -its merit consists in the thirst and drinking vein of the traveller, -rather than in the wine itself. Those therefore of our readers whose -cellars are only stocked with choice Bordeaux, Xerez, and Champagne, may -sustain with resignation the absence of other sorts of Spanish grape -juice. If an exception is to be made, let it be only in favour of -Valdepeñas and Manzanilla.</p> - -<p>The local wines may therefore be tossed off rapidly. The Navarrese drink -their Peralta, the Basques their Chacolet, which is a poor vin ordinaire -and inferior to our good cider. The Arragonese are supplied from the -vineyards of Cariñena; the Catalans, from those of Sidges and Benicarló; -the former is a rich sweet wine, with a peculiar aromatic flavour; the -latter is the well-known black strap, which is exported largely to -Bordeaux to enrich clarets for our vitiated taste, and as it is rich -red, and full flavoured, much comes to England to concoct what is -denominated curious old port by those who sell it. The fiery and acrid -brandy which is made from this Benicarló is sent to the bay of Cadiz to -the tune of 1000 butts a year to doctor up worse sherry.</p> - -<p>The central provinces of Spain consume but little of these; Leon has a -wine of its own which grows chiefly near Zamora and Toro, and it is much -drunk at the neighbouring and learned university of Salamanca, where, as -it is strong and heady, it promotes prejudice, as port is said to do -elsewhere. Madrid is supplied with wines grown at Tarancon, Arganda, and -other places in its immediate vicinity, and those of the latter are -frequently substituted for the celebrated Valdepeñas of La Mancha, which -was mother’s milk to Sancho Panza and his two eminent progenitors; they -differed, as their worthy descendant informed the Knight of the Wood, on -the merits of a cask; one of them just dipped his tongue into the wine, -and affirmed that it had a taste of iron; the other merely applied his -nose to the bung-hole, and was positive that it smacked of leather; in -due time when the barrel was emptied, a key tied to a thong confirmed -the degustatory acumen of these connoisseurs.</p> - -<div class="sidenote">THE BEST VINEYARDS.</div> - -<p>The red blood of this “valley of stones” issues with such abundance, -that quantities of old wine are often thrown away, for the want of -skins, jars, and casks into which to place the new.<a name="page_148" id="page_148"></a> From the scarcity -of fuel in these denuded plains, the prunings of the vine are sometimes -as valuable as the grapes. Even at Valdepeñas, with Madrid for its -customer, the wine continues to be made in an unscientific, careless -manner. Before the French invasion, a Dutchman, named Muller, had begun -to improve the system, and better prices were obtained; whereupon the -lower classes, in 1808, broke open his cellars, pillaged them, and -nearly killed him because he made wine dearer. It is made of a Burgundy -grape which has been transplanted and transported from the stinted suns -of fickle France, to the certain and glorious summers of La Mancha. The -genuine wine is rich, full-bodied, and high-coloured. It will keep -pretty well, and improves for four or five years, nay, longer. To be -really enjoyed it must be drunk on the spot; the curious in wine should -go down into one of the <i>cuevas</i> or cave-cellars, and have a goblet of -the ruby fluid drawn from the big-bellied jar. The wine, when taken to -distant places, is almost always adulterated; and at Madrid with a -decoction of log wood, which makes it almost poisonous, acting upon the -nerves and muscular system.</p> - -<p>The best vineyards and <i>bodegas</i> or cellars are those which did belong -to Don Carlos, and those which do belong to the Marques de Santa Cruz. -One anecdote will do the work of pages in setting forth the habitual -indifference of Spaniards, and the way things are managed for them. This -very nobleman, who certainly was one of the most distinguished among the -grandees in rank and talent, was dining one day with a foreign -ambassador at Madrid, who was a decided admirer of Valdepeñas, as all -judicious men must be, and who took great pains to procure it quite pure -by sending down trusty persons and sound casks. The Marques at the first -glass exclaimed, “What capital wine! where do you manage to buy it in -Madrid?” “I send for it,” was the reply, “to your <i>administrador</i> at -Valdepeñas, Anglice unjust steward, and shall be very happy to get you -some.”</p> - -<div class="sidenote">VALDEPENAS.</div> - -<p>The wine is worth on the spot about 5<i>l.</i> the pipe, but the land -carriage is expensive, and it is apt, when conveyed in skins, to be -tapped and watered by the muleteers, besides imbibing the disagreeable -smack of the pitched pigskin. The only way to secure a pure, -unadulterated, legitimate article, is to send up <i>double</i> quarter sherry -casks; the wine is then put into one, and<a name="page_149" id="page_149"></a> that again is protected by an -outer cask, which acts as a preventive guard, against gimlets, straws, -and other ingenious contrivances for extracting the vinous contents, and -for introducing an aqueous substitute. It must then be conveyed either -on mules or in waggons to Cadiz and Santander. It is always as well to -send for two casks, as <i>accidents</i> in this <i>pays de l’imprévu</i> -constantly happen where wine and women are in the case. The importer -will receive the most satisfactory certificates signed and sealed on -paper, first duly stamped, in which the alcalde, the muleteer, the -guardia, and all who have shared in the booty, will minutely describe -and prove the <i>accident</i>, be it an upset, a breaking of casks, or what -not. Very little pure Valdepeñas ever reaches England; the numerous -vendors’ bold assertions to the contrary notwithstanding. As sherry is a -subject of more general interest, it will be treated with somewhat more -detail.<a name="page_150" id="page_150"></a></p> - -<div class="sidenote">SHERRY.</div> - -<h2><a name="CHAPTER_XIV" id="CHAPTER_XIV"></a>CHAPTER XIV.</h2> - -<div class="blockquot"><p class="hang">Sherry Wines—The Sherry District—Origin of the Name—Varieties of -Soil—Of Grapes—Pajarete—Rojas Clemente—Cultivation of -Vines—Best Vineyards—The Vintage—Amontillado—The Capataz—The -Bodega—Sherry Wine—Arrope and Madre Vino—A Lecture on Sherry in -the Cellar—at the Table—Price of Fine Sherry—Falsification of -Sherry—Manzanilla—The Alpistera.</p></div> - -<p class="nind">S<small>HERRY</small>, a wine which requires more explanation than many of its -consumers imagine, is grown in a limited nook of the Peninsula, on the -south-western corner of sunny Andalucia, which occupies a range of -country of which the town of Xerez is the capital and centre. The -wine-producing districts extend over a space which is included—consult -a map—within a boundary drawn from the towns of Puerto de Sª. Maria, -Rota, San Lucar, Tribujena, Lebrija, Arcos, and to the Puerto again. The -finest vintages lie in the immediate vicinity of Xerez, which has given -therefore its name to the general produce. The wine, however, becomes -inferior in proportion as the vineyards get more distant from this -central point.</p> - -<div class="sidenote">FOUR CLASSES OF SOIL.</div> - -<p>Although some authors—who, to show their learning, hunt for Greek -etymologies in every word—have derived sherry from <span title="Greek: Xêros">Ξηρος</span>, dry, -to have done so from the Persian Schiraz would scarcely have been more -far-fetched. <i>Sherris sack</i>, the term used by Falstaff, no mean -authority in this matter, is the precise <i>seco de Xerez</i>, the term by -which the wine is known to this day in its own country; the epithet -<i>seco</i>, or dry—the <i>seck</i> of old English authors, and the <i>sec</i> of -French ones—being used in contradistinction to the <i>sweet</i> malvoisies -and muscadels, which are also made of the same grape. The wine, it is -said, was first introduced into England about the time of Henry VII., -whose close alliance with Ferdinand and Isabella was cemented by the -marriage of his son with their daughter. It became still more popular -among us under Elizabeth, when those who sailed under<a name="page_151" id="page_151"></a> Essex sacked -Cadiz in 1596, and brought home the fashion of good “sherris sack, from -whence,” as Sir John says, “comes valour.” The visit to Spain of Charles -I. contributed to keeping up among his countrymen this taste for the -drinks of the Peninsula, which extended into the provinces, as we find -Howell writing from York, in 1645, for “a barrell or two of oysters, -which shall be well eaten,” as he assures his friend, “with a cup of the -best sherry, to which this town is altogether addicted.” During the wars -of the succession, and those fatal quarrels with England occasioned by -the French alliance and family compact of Charles III., our consumption -of sherries was much diminished, and the culture of the vine and the -wine-making was neglected and deteriorated. It was restored at the end -of last century by the family of Gordon, whose houses at Xerez and the -Puerto most deservedly rank among the first in the country. The improved -quality of the wines was their own recommendation; but as fashion -influences everything, their vogue was finally established by Lord -Holland, who, on his return from Spain, introduced superlative sherry at -his undeniable table.</p> - -<p>The quality of the wine depends on the grape and the soil, which has -been examined and analysed by competent chemists. Omitting minute and -uninteresting particulars, the first class and the best is termed the -<i>Albariza</i>; this whitish soil is composed of clay mixed with carbonate -of lime and silex. The second sort is called <i>Barras</i>, and consists of -sandy quartz, mixed with lime and oxide of iron. The third is the -<i>Arenas</i>, being, as the name indicates, little better than sand, and is -by far the most widely extended, especially about San Lucar, Rota, and -the back of Arcos; it is the most productive, although the wine is -generally coarse, thin, and ill-flavoured, and seldom improves after the -third year: it forms the substratum of those inferior sherries which are -largely exported to the discredit of the real article. The fourth class -of soil is limited in extent, and is the <i>Bugeo</i>, or dark-brown loamy -sand which occurs on the sides of rivulets and hillocks. The wine grown -on it is poor and weak; yet all the inferior produces of these different -districts are sold as sherry wines, to the great detriment of those -really produced near Xerez itself, which do not amount to a fifth of the -quantity exported.</p> - -<div class="sidenote">VINES OF ANDALUCIA.</div> - -<p>The varieties of the grape are far greater than those of the soil<a name="page_152" id="page_152"></a> on -which they are grown. Of more than a hundred different kinds, those -called <i>Listan</i> and <i>Palomina Blanca</i> are the best. The increased demand -for sherry, where the producing surface is limited, has led to the -extirpation of many vines of an inferior kind, which have been replaced -by new ones whose produce is of a larger and better quality. The <i>Pedro -Ximenez</i>, or delicious sweet-tasted grape which is so celebrated, came -originally from Madeira, and was planted on the Rhine, from whence about -two centuries ago one Peter Simon brought it to Malaga, since when it -has extended over the south of Spain. It is of this grape that the rich -and luscious sweet wine called <i>Pajarete</i> is made; a name which some -have erroneously derived from <i>Pajaros</i>, the birds, who are wont to pick -the ripest berries; but it was so called from the wine having been -originally only made at Paxarete, a small spot near Xerez: it is now -prepared everywhere, and thus the grapes are dried in the sun until they -almost become raisins, and the syrop quite inspissated, after that they -are pressed, and a little fine old wine and brandy is added. This wine -is extremely costly, as it is much used in the rearing and maturation of -young sherry wines.</p> - -<p>There is an excellent account of all the vines of Andalucia by Rojas -Clemente. This able naturalist disgraced himself by being a base toady -of the wretched minion Godoy, and by French partisanship, which is high -treason to his own country. Accordingly, to please his masters, he -“contrasts the frank generosity, the vivacity, and genial cordiality of -the Xerezanos, with the sombre stupidity and ferocious egotism of the -insolent people on the banks of the Thames,” by whom he had just before -been most hospitably welcomed. This worthy gentleman wrote, however, -within sight of Trafalgar, and while a certain untoward event was -rankling in his and his estimable patron’s bosom.</p> - -<div class="sidenote">THE VINTAGE.</div> - -<p>The vines are cultivated with the greatest care, and demand unceasing -attention, from the first planting to their final decay. They generally -fruit about the fifth year, and continue in full and excellent bearing -for about thirty-five years more, when the produce begins to diminish -both in quantity and in quality. The best wines are produced from the -slowest ripening grapes; the vines are delicate, have a true bacchic -hydrophobia, or antipathy to water—are easily affected and injured by -bad smells and rank<a name="page_153" id="page_153"></a> weeds. The vine-dresser enjoys little rest; at one -time the soil must be trenched and kept clean, then the vines must be -pruned, and tied to the stakes, to which they are trained very low; anon -insects must be destroyed; and at last the fruit has to be gathered and -crushed. It is a life of constant care, labour, and expense.</p> - -<p>The highest qualities of flavour depend on the grape and soil, and as -the favoured spots are limited, and the struggle and competition for -their acquisition great, the prices paid are always high, and -occasionally extravagantly so; the proprietors of vineyards are very -numerous, and the surface is split and partitioned into infinite petty -ownerships. Even the <i>Pago de Macharnudo</i>, the finest of all, the Clos -de Vougeot, the Johannisberg of Xerez, is much subdivided; it consists -of 1200 <i>aranzadas</i>, one of which may be taken as equivalent to our -acre, being, however, that quantity of land which can be ploughed with a -pair of bullocks in a day—of these 1200, 460 belong to the great house -of Pedro Domecq, and their mean produce may be taken at 1895 butts, of -which some 350 only will run very fine. Among the next most renowned -<i>pagos</i>, or wine districts, may be cited Carrascal, Los Tercios, -Barbiana <i>alta y baja</i>, Añina, San Julian, Mochiele, Carraola, Cruz del -Husillo, which lie in the immediate <i>termino</i> or boundary of Xerez; -their produce always ensures high prices in the market. Many of these -vineyards are fenced with canes, the <i>arundo donax</i>, or with aloes, -whose stiff-pointed leaves form palisadoes that would defy a regiment of -dragoons, and are called by the natives the devil’s toothpicks; in -addition, the <i>capataz del campo</i>, or country bailiff, is provided, like -a keeper, with large and ferocious dogs, who would tear an intruder to -pieces. The fruit when nearly mature is especially watched; for, -according to the proverb, it requires much vigilance to take care of -ripe grapes and maidens—<i>Niñas y vinos, son mal de guardar</i>.</p> - -<div class="sidenote">THE VINTAGE.</div> - -<p>When the period of the vintage arrives, the cares of the proprietors and -the labours of the cultivators and makers increase. The bunches are -picked and spread out for some days on mattings; the unripe grapes, -which have less substance and spirit, are separated, and are exposed -longer to the sun, by which they improve. If the berries be over-ripe, -then the saccharine prevails, and there is a deficiency of tartaric -acid. The selected<a name="page_154" id="page_154"></a> grapes are sprinkled with lime, by which the watery -and acetous particles are absorbed and corrected. A nice hand is -requisite in this powdering, which, by the way, is an ancient African -custom, in order to avoid the imputation of Falstaff, “There is lime in -this sack.” The treading out the fruit is generally done by night, -because it is then cooler, and in order to avoid as much as possible the -plague of wasps, by whom the half-naked operators are liable to be -stung. On the larger vineyards there is generally a jumble of buildings, -which contain every requisite for making the wine, as well as cellars -into which the must or pressed grape juice is left to pass the stages of -fermentation, and where it remains until the following spring before it -is removed from the lees. “When the new wine is racked off, all the -produce of the same vineyard and vintage is housed together, and called -a <i>partido</i> or lot.</p> - -<div class="sidenote">MANUFACTURE OF SHERRY.</div> - -<p>The vintage, which is the all-absorbing, all-engrossing moment of the -year, occupies about a fortnight, and is earlier in the Rota districts -than at Xerez, where it commences about the 20th of September; into -these brief moments the hearts, bodies, and souls of men are condensed; -even Venus, the queen of neighbouring Cadiz, and who during the other -three hundred and fifty-one days of the year, allies herself willingly -to Bacchus, is now forgotten. Nobles and commoners, merchants and -priests, talk of nothing but wine, which then and there monopolises man, -and is to Xerez what the water is at Grand Cairo, where the rising of -the Nile is at once a pleasure and a profit. When the vintage is -concluded, the custom-house officers take note in their respective -districts of the quantity produced on each vineyard, to whom it is sold, -and where it is taken to; nor can it be resold or removed afterwards, -without a permit and a charge of a four per cent. ad valorem duty. It -need not be said, that in a land where public officers are inadequately -paid, where official honesty and principle are all but unknown, a bribe -is all-sufficient; false returns are regularly made, and every trick -resorted to to facilitate trade, and transfer revenue into the pockets -of the collectors, rather than into the Queen’s treasury; thus are -defeated the vexations and extortions of commerce-hampering excise, to -hate which seems to be a second nature in man all over the world. -Commissioners excepted. In the first year a decided difference<a name="page_155" id="page_155"></a> takes -place in these new wines; some become <i>bastos</i> or coarse, others sour -and others good; those only which exhibit great delicacy, body, and -flavour are called <i>finos</i> or fine; in a lot of one hundred butts, -rarely more than from ten to fifteen can be calculated as deserving this -epithet, and it is to the high price paid for these by the -<i>almacenistas</i> or storers of wines, that the grower looks for -remuneration; the qualities of the wines usually produced in each -particular <i>termino</i> or district do not vary much; they have their -regular character and prices among the trade, by whom they are perfectly -understood and exactly valued.</p> - -<p>These singular changes in the juice of grapes grown on the same -vineyard, invariably take place, although no satisfactory reason has -been yet assigned; the chemical processes of nature have hitherto defied -the investigations of man, and in nothing more than in the elaboration -of that lusus naturæ vel Bacchi, that variety of flavour which goes by -the name of <i>amontillado</i>; this has been given to it from its -resemblance in dryness and quality to the wines of <i>Montilla</i>, near -Cordova: the latter, be it observed, are scarcely known in England at -all, nor indeed in Spain, except in their own immediate neighbourhood, -where they supply the local consumption. This <i>amontillado</i>, when the -genuine production of nature, is very valuable, as it is used in -correcting young Sherry wines, which are running over sweet; it is very -scarce, since out of a hundred butts of <i>vino fino</i>, not more than five -will possess its properties. Much of the wine which is sold in London as -pure <i>amontillado</i>, is a fictitious preparation, and made up for the -British market.</p> - -<div class="sidenote">THE CAPATAZ.</div> - -<p>All sherries are a matured mixture of grape juice; champagne itself is a -manufactured wine; nor does it much matter, provided a palateable and -wholesome beverage be produced. In all the leading and respectable -houses, the wine is prepared from grapes grown in the district, nor is -there the slightest mystery made in explaining the artificial processes -which are adopted; the rearing, educating and finishing, as it were, of -these wines, is a work of many years, and is generally intrusted to the -<i>Capataz</i>, the chief butler, or head man, who very often becomes the -real master; this important personage is seldom raised in Andalucia, or -in any wine-growing districts of Spain; he generally is by birth an -Asturian, or a native of the mountains contiguous to Santander, from<a name="page_156" id="page_156"></a> -whence the chandlers and grocers, hence called <i>Los Montañeses</i>, are -supplied throughout the Peninsula. These Highlanders are celebrated for -the length of their pedigrees, and the tasting properties of their -tongues; we have more than once in Estremadura and Leon fallen in with -flights of these ragged gentry, wending, Scotch-like, to the south in -search of fortune; few had shoes or shirts, yet almost every one carried -his family parchment in a tin case, wherein his descent from -Tubal—respectable, although doubtful—was proven to be as evident as -the sun is at noon day.</p> - -<p>These gentlemen of good birth and better taste seldom smoke, as the -narcotic stupifying weed deadens papillatory delicacy. Now as few -wine-masters in Spain would give up the cigar to gain millions, the -<i>Capataz</i> soon becomes the sole possessor of the secrets of the cellar; -and as no merchants possess vineyards of their own sufficient to supply -their demand, the purchases of new wines must be made by this -confidential servant, who is thus enabled to cheat both the grower and -his own employer, since he will only buy of those who give him the -largest commission. Many contrive by these long and faithful services to -amass great wealth; thus Juan Sanchez, the <i>Capataz</i> of the late Petro -Domecq, died recently worth 300,000<i>l.</i> Towards his latter end, having -been visited by his confessor and some qualms of conscience, he -bequeathed his fortune to pious and charitable uses, but the bulk was -forthwith secured by his attorneys and priests, whose charity began at -home.</p> - -<div class="sidenote">BODEGAS OF XEREZ.</div> - -<p>As the chancellor is the keeper of the Queen’s conscience, so the -<i>Capataz</i> is the keeper of the <i>bodega</i> or the wine-store, which is very -peculiar, and the grand lion of Xerez. The rich and populous town, when -seen from afar, rising in its vine-clad knoll, is characterised by these -huge erections, that look like the pent-houses under which men-of-war -are built at Chatham. These temples of Bacchus resemble cathedrals in -size and loftiness, and their divisions, like Spanish chapels, bear the -names of the saints to whom they are dedicated, and few tutelar deities -have more numerous or more devout worshippers; but Romanism mixes itself -up in everything of Spain, and fixes its mark alike on salt-pans and -mine-shafts, as on boats and <i>bodegas</i>. These huge repositories are all -above ground, and are the antithesis of<a name="page_157" id="page_157"></a> our under-ground cellars. The -wines of Xerez are thus found to ripen both better and quicker, as one -year in a <i>bodega</i> inspires them with more life than do ten years of -burial. As these wines are more capricious in the development of their -character than young ladies at a boarding-school, the greatest care is -taken in the selection of eligible and healthy situations for their -education; the neighbourhood of all offensive drains or effluvia is -carefully avoided, since these nuisances are sure to affect the -delicately organised fluids, although they fail to damage the noses of -those to whose charge they are committed; and strange to say, in this -land of contradictions, Cologne itself is scarcely more renowned for its -twenty and odd bad smells ascertained by Coleridge, than is this same -tortuous, dirty, and old-fashioned Xerez. Here, as in the Rhenish city, -all the sweets are bottled up for exportation, all the stinks kept for -home consumption. The new <i>bodegas</i> are consequently erected in the -newer portions of the town, in dry and open places; connected with them -are offices and workshops, in which everything bearing upon the wine -trade is manufactured, even to the barrels that are made of American oak -staves. The interior of the <i>bodega</i> is kept deliciously cool; the glare -outside is carefully excluded, while a free circulation of air is -admitted; an even temperature is very essential, and one at an average -of 60 degrees is the best of all. There are more than a thousand -<i>bodegas</i> registered at the custom house for the Xerez district; the -largest only belong to the first-rate firms, and mostly to Europeans, -that is, to English and Frenchmen. A heavy capital is required, much -patience and forethought, qualities which do not grow on these or on any -hills of Spain. This necessity will be better understood when it is -said, that some of these stores contain from one to four thousand butts, -and that few really fine sherries are sent out of them until ten or -twelve years old. Supposing, therefore, that each butt averages in value -only 25<i>l.</i>, it is evident how much time and investment of wealth is -necessary.</p> - -<div class="sidenote">WINE-MIXING.</div> - -<p>Sherry wine, when mature and perfect, is made up from many butts. The -“entire,” indeed, is the result of Xerez grapes, but of many different -ages, vintages, and varieties of flavour. The contents of one barrel -serve to correct another until the proposed standard aggregate is -produced; and to such a certainty<a name="page_158" id="page_158"></a> has this uniform admixture been -reduced, that houses are enabled to supply for any number of years -exactly that particular colour, flavour, body, &c., which particular -customers demand. This wine improves very much with age, gets softer and -more aromatic, and gains both body and aroma, in which its young wines -are deficient. Indeed, so great is the change in all respects, that one -scarcely can believe them ever to have been the same: the baby differs -not more from the man, nor the oak from the acorn.</p> - -<p>That <i>Capataz</i> has attained the object of his fondest wishes, who has -observed in his compositions the poetical principles of Horace, the -<i>callida junctura</i>, the <i>omne tulit punctum qui miscuit utile dulci</i>; -this happy and skilful junction of the sweet and solid, should unite -fulness of body, an oily, nutty flavour and <i>bouquet</i>, dryness, absence -from acidity, strength, durability, and spirituosity. Very little brandy -is necessary, as the vivifying power of the unstinted sun of Andalucia -imparts sufficient alcohol, which ranges from 20 to 23 per cent. in fine -sherries, and only reaches about 12 in clarets and champagnes. Fine pure -sherry is of a rich brown colour, but in order to flatter the -conventional tastes of some English, “pale old sherry” must be had, and -colour is chemically discharged at the expense of delicate aroma. -Another absurd deference to British prejudice, is the sending sherries -to the East Indies, because such a trip is found sometimes to benefit -the wines of Madeira. This is not only expensive but positively -injurious to the juice of Xerez, as the wine returns diminished in -quantity, turbid, sharp, and deteriorated in flavour, while from the -constant fermentation it becomes thinner in body and more spirituous. -The real secret of procuring good sherry is to pay the best price for it -at the best house, and then to keep the purchase for many years in a -good cellar before it is drunk.</p> - -<div class="sidenote">WINE IN CASK.</div> - -<p>To return to the <i>Capataz</i>. This head master passes this life of -probation in tasting. He goes the regular round of his butts, -ascertaining the qualities, merits, and demerits of each pupil, which he -notes by certain marks or hieroglyphics. He corrects faults as he goes -along, making a memorandum also of the date and remedy applied, and thus -at his next visit he is enabled to report good progress, or lament the -contrary. The new wines, after the fermentation is past, are commonly -enriched with an <i>arrope</i>, or sort of syrup, which is found very much to -encourage<a name="page_159" id="page_159"></a> them. There are extensive manufactories of this cordial at -San Lucar, and wherever the <i>arenas</i>, or sandy soil, prevails. The must, -or new grape juice, before fermentation has commenced, is boiled slowly -down to the fifth of its bulk. It must simmer, and requires great care -in the skimming and not being burnt. Of this, when dissolved, the <i>vino -de color</i>, the <i>madre vino</i>, or mother wine, is made, by which the -younger ones are nourished as by mother’s milk. When old, this balsamic -ingredient becomes strong, perfumed as an essence, and very precious, -and is worth from three to five hundred guineas a butt; indeed it -scarcely ever will be sold at all. All the principal <i>bodegas</i> have -certain huge and time-honoured casks which contain this divine ichor, -which inspires ordinary wines with generous and heroic virtues; hence -possibly their dedication of their tuns not to saints and saintesses, -but to Wellingtons and Nelsons. It is from these reservoirs that -distinguished visitors are allowed just a sip. Such a compliment was -paid to Ferdinand VII. by Pedro Domecq, and the cask to this day bears -the royal name of its assayer. Whatever quantity is taken out of one of -these for the benefit of younger wines, is replaced by a similar -quantity drawn from the next oldest cask in the cellar.</p> - -<div class="sidenote">TASTING WINE.</div> - -<p>After a year or two trial of the new wines, it is ascertained how they -will eventually turn out; if they go wrong, they are expelled from the -seminary, and shipped off to the leathern-tongued consumers of Hamburgh -or Quebec, at about 15<i>l.</i> per butt. All the various forms, stages, and -steps of education are readily explained in the great establishments, -among which the first are those of Domecq and John David Gordon, and -nothing can exceed the cordial hospitality of these princely merchants; -whoever comes provided with a letter of introduction is carried off -bodily, bags, baggage, and all, to their houses, which, considering the -iniquity of Xerezan inns, is a satisfactory move. Then and there the -guest is initiated into the secrets of trade, and is handed over to the -<i>Capataz</i>, who delivers an explanatory lecture on vinology, which is -illustrated, like those of Faraday, by experiments: tasting sherry at -Xerez has, as Señor Clemente would say, very little in common with the -commonplace customs of the London Docks. Here the swarthy professor, -dressed somewhat like Figaro in the Barber of Seville, is followed by -sundry jacketed<a name="page_160" id="page_160"></a> and sandalled Ganymedes, who bear glasses on waiters; -the lecturer is armed with a long stick, to the end of which is tied a -bit of hollow cane, which he dips into each butt; the subject is begun -at the beginning, and each step in advance is explained to the listening -party with the gravity of a judicious foreman of a jury: the sample is -handed round and tasted by all, who, if they are wise, will follow the -example of their leader (on whom wine has no more effect than on a -glass), by never swallowing the sips, but only permitting the tongue to -agitate it in the mouth, until the exact flavour is mastered; every cask -is tried, from the young wine to the middle-aged, from the mature to the -golden ancient. Those who are not stupefied by the fumes, cannot fail to -come out vastly edified. The student should hold hard during the first -trials, for the best wine is reserved until the last. He ascends, if he -does not tumble off, a vinous ladder of excellence. It would be better -to reverse the order of the course, and commence with the finest sorts -while the palate is fresh and the judgment unclouded. The thirster after -knowledge must not drink too deeply now, but remember the second ordeal -to which he will afterwards be exposed at the hospitable table of the -proprietor, whose joy and pride is to produce fine wine and plenty of -it, when his friends meet around his mahogany.</p> - -<p>What a grateful offering is then made to the jovial god, by whom the -merchant lives, and by whom the deity is now set from his glassy prison -free! What a drawing of popping corks, half consumed by time!—what a -brushing away of venerable cobwebs from flasks binned apart while George -the Third was king! The delight of the worthy Amphitryon on producing a -fresh bottle, exceeds that of a prolific mother when she blesses her -husband with a new baby. He handles the darling decanter, as if he -dearly loved the contents, which indeed are of his own making; how the -clean glasses are held up to the light to see the bright transparent -liquid sparkle and phosphoresce within; how the intelligent nose is -passed slowly over the mantling surface, redolent with fragrancy; how -the climax of rapture is reached when the god-like nectar is raised to -the blushing lips!</p> - -<div class="sidenote">PRICES OF SHERRY.</div> - -<p>The wine suffices in itself for sensual gratification and for -intellectual conversation: all the guests have an opinion; what -gentleman, indeed, cannot judge on a horse or a bottle? When<a name="page_161" id="page_161"></a> -differences arise, as they will in matters of taste, and where bottles -circulate freely, the master-host <i>decides</i>—</p> - -<div class="poem"><div class="stanza"> -<span class="i0">“Tells all the names, lays down the law,<br /></span> -<span class="i1">Que ça est bon; ah, goûtez ça.”<br /></span> -</div></div> - -<p class="nind">There is to him a combination of pleasure and profit in these genial -banquets, these noctes cœnæque Deum. Many a good connection is thus -formed, when an English gentleman, who now, perhaps for the first time, -tastes pure and genuine sherry. A good dinner naturally promotes good -humour with mankind in general, and with the donor in particular. A -given quantity of the present god opens both heart and purse-strings, -until the tongue on which the magic flavour lingers, murmurs gratefully -out, “Send me a butt of <i>amantillado pasado</i>, and another of <i>seco -reanejo</i>, and draw for the cash at sight.”</p> - -<p>An important point will now arise, what is the price? That ever is the -question and the rub. Pure genuine sherry, from ten to twelve years old, -is worth from 50 to 80 guineas per butt, in the <i>bodega</i>, and when -freight, insurance, duty, and charges are added, will stand the importer -from 100 to 130 guineas in his cellar. A butt will run from 108 to 112 -gallons, and the duty is 5<i>s.</i> 6<i>d.</i> per gallon. Such a butt will bottle -about 52 dozen. The reader will now appreciate the bargains of those -“pale” and “golden sherries” advertised in the English newspapers at -36<i>s.</i> the dozen, bottles included. They are <i>maris expers</i>, although -much indebted to French brandy, Sicilian Marsala, Cape wine, Devonshire -cider, and Thames water.</p> - -<div class="sidenote">ADULTERATION OF WINES.</div> - -<p>The growth of wine amounts to some 400,000 or 500,000 <i>arrobas</i> -annually. The arroba is a Moorish name, and a dry measure, although used -for liquids; it contains a quarter of a hundredweight; 30 arrobas go to -a <i>bota</i>, or butt, of which from 8000 to 10,000 of really fine are -annually exported: but the quantities of so-called sherries, “neat as -imported,” in the manufacture of which San Lucar is fully occupied, is -prodigious, and is increasing every year. To give an idea of the extent -of the growing traffic, in 1842 25,096 butts were exported from these -districts, and 29,313 in 1843; while in 1845 there were exported 18,135 -butts from Xerez alone, and 14,037 from the Puerto, making the enormous -aggregate of 32,172 butts. Now as the<a name="page_162" id="page_162"></a> vineyards remain precisely the -same, probably some portion of these additional barrels may not be quite -the genuine produce of the Xerez grape: in truth, the ruin of sherry -wines has commenced, from the numbers of second-rate houses that have -sprung up, which look to quantity, not quality. Many thousand butts of -bad Niebla wine are thus palmed off on the enlightened British public -after being well brandied and doctored; thus a conventional notion of -sherry is formed, to the ruin of the real thing; for even respectable -houses are forced to fabricate their wines so as to suit the depraved -taste of their consumers, as is done with pure clarets at Bordeaux, -which are charged with Hermitages and Benicarló. Thus delicate -idiosyncratic flavour is lost, while headache and dyspepsia are -imported; but there is a fashion in wines as in physicians. Formerly -Madeira was the vinous panacea, until the increased demand induced -disreputable traders to deteriorate the article, which in the reaction -became dishonoured. Then sherry was resorted to as a more honest and -wholesome beverage. Now its period of decline is hastening from the same -causes, and the average produce is becoming inferior, to end in -disrepute, and possibly in a return to the wines of Madeira, whose -makers have learnt a lesson in the stern school of adversity.</p> - -<div class="sidenote">MANZANILLA.</div> - -<p>Be that as it may, the people at large of Spain are scarcely acquainted -with the taste of sherry wine, beyond the immediate vicinity in which it -is made; and more of it is swallowed at Gibraltar at the messes, than in -either Madrid, Toledo, or Salamanca. Sherry is a foreign wine, and made -and drunk by foreigners; nor do the generality of Spaniards like its -strong flavour, and still less its high price, although some now affect -its use, because, from its great vogue in England, it argues -civilization to adopt it. This use obtains only in the capital and -richer seaports; thus at inland Granada, not 150 miles from Xerez, -sherry would hardly be to be had, were it not for the demand created by -our travelling countrymen, and even then it is sold per bottle, and as a -liqueur. At Seville, which is quite close to Xerez, in the best houses, -one glass only is handed round, just as only one glass of Greek wine was -in the house of the father of even Lucullus among the ancient Romans, or -as among the modern ones is still done with Malaga or Vino de Cypro; -this single glass is drunk as a <i>chasse</i>, and being considered to aid -digestion, is called the<a name="page_163" id="page_163"></a> <i>golpe medico</i>, the coup de médecin; it is -equivalent, in that hot country, to the thimbleful of Curaçoa or Cognac, -by which coffee is wound up in colder England and France.</p> - -<p>In Andalucia it was no less easy for the Moor to encourage the use of -water as a beverage, than to prohibit that of wine, which, if endued -with strength, which sherry is, must destroy health when taken largely -and habitually, as is occasionally found out at Gibraltar. Hence the -natives of Xerez themselves infinitely prefer a light wine called -Manzanilla, which is made near San Lucar, and is at once much weaker and -cheaper than sherry. The grape from whence it is produced grows on a -poor and sandy soil. The vintage is very early, as the fruit is gathered -before it is quite ripe. The wine is of a delicate pale straw colour, -and is extremely wholesome; it strengthens the stomach, without heating -or inebriating, like sherry. All classes are passionately fond of it, -since the want of alcohol enables them to drink more of it than of -stronger beverages, while the dry quality acts as a tonic during the -relaxing heats. It may be compared to the ancient Lesbian, which Horace -quaffed so plentifully in the cool shade, and then described as never -doing harm. The men employed in the sherry wine vaults, and who have -therefore that drink at their command, seldom touch it, but invariably, -when their work is done, go to the neighbouring shop to refresh -themselves with a glass of “innocent” Manzanilla. Among their betters, -clubs are formed solely to drink it, and with iced water and a cigar it -transports the consumer into a Moslem’s dream of paradise. It tastes -better from the cask than out of the bottle, and improves as the cask -gets low.</p> - -<div class="sidenote">THE ALPISTERA.</div> - -<p>The origin of the name has been disputed; some who prefer sound to sense -derive it from <i>Manzana</i>, an apple, which had it been cider might have -passed; others connect it with the distant town of <i>Mansanilla</i> on the -opposite side of the river, where it is neither made nor drunk. The real -etymology is to be found in its striking resemblance to the bitter -flavour of the flowers of camomile (<i>manzanilla</i>), which are used by our -doctors to make a medicinal tea, and by those of Spain for fomentations. -This flavour in the wine is so marked as to be at first quite -disagreeable to strangers. If its eulogistic consumers are to be -believed, the wine surpasses the tea in hygæian qualities: none, say -they,<a name="page_164" id="page_164"></a> who drink it are ever troubled with gravel, stone, or gout. -Certainly, it is eminently free from acidity. The very best Manzanilla -is to be had in London of Messrs. Gorman, No. 16, Mark Lane. Since -“<i>Drink it, ye dyspeptics</i>,” was enjoined last year in the ‘Handbook,’ -the importation of this wine to England, which previously did not exceed -ten butts, has in twelve short months overpassed two hundred; a -compliment delicate as it is practical, which is acknowledged by the -author—a drinker thereof—with most profound gratitude.</p> - -<p>By the way, the real thing to eat with Manzanilla is the <i>alpistera</i>. -Make it thus:—To one pound of fine flour (mind that it is dry) add half -a pound of double-refined, well-sifted, pounded white sugar, the yolks -and whites of four very fresh eggs, well beaten together; work the -mixture up into a paste; roll it out very thin; divide it into squares -about half the size of this page; cut it into strips, so that the paste -should look like a hand with fingers; then dislocate the strips, and dip -them in hot melted fine lard, until of a delicate pale brown; the more -the strips are curled up and twisted the better; the <i>alpistera</i> should -look like bunches of ribbons; powder them over with fine white sugar. -They are then as pretty as nice. It is not easy to make them well; but -the gods grant no excellence to mortals without much labour and thought. -So Venus the goddess of grace was allied to hard-working Vulcan, who -toiled and pondered at his fire, as every cook who has an aspiring soul -has ever done.<a name="page_165" id="page_165"></a></p> - -<div class="sidenote">SPANISH INNS.</div> - -<h2><a name="CHAPTER_XV" id="CHAPTER_XV"></a>CHAPTER XV.</h2> - -<div class="blockquot"><p class="hang">Spanish Inns: Why so Indifferent—The Fonda—Modern -Improvements—The Posada—Spanish Innkeepers—The Venta: Arrival in -it—Arrangement—Garlic—Dinner—Evening—Night—Bill—Identity -with the Inns of the Ancients.</p></div> - -<div class="sidenote">INNS—WHY SO INDIFFERENT.</div> - -<p class="nind">H<small>AVING</small> thus, and we hope satisfactorily, discussed the eatables and -drinkables of Spain, attention must naturally be next directed to those -houses on the roads and in the towns, where these comforts to the hungry -and weary public are to be had, or are not to be had, as sometimes will -happen in this land of “the unexpected;” the Peninsular inns, with few -exceptions, have long been divided into the bad, the worse, and the -worst; and as the latter are still the most numerous and national, as -well as the worst, they will be gone into the last. In few countries -will the rambler agree oftener with dear Dr. Johnson’s speech to his -squire Boswell, “Sir, there is nothing which has been contrived by man, -by which so much happiness is produced, as by a good tavern.” Spain -offers many negative arguments of the truth of our great moralist and -eater’s reflection; the inns in general are fuller of entertainment for -the mind than the body, and even when the newest, and the best in the -country, are indifferent if compared to those which Englishmen are -accustomed to at home, and have created on those high roads of the -Continent, which they most frequent. Here few gentlemen will say with -Falstaff, “Shall I not take mine ease in mine inn?” Badness of roads and -discomforts of <i>ventas</i> cannot well escape the notice of those who -travel on horseback and slowly, since they must dwell on and in them; -whereas a rail whisks the passenger past such nuisances, with comet-like -rapidity, and all things that are soon out of sight are quicker out of -mind; nevertheless, let no aspiring writer be deterred from quitting the -highways for the byeways of the Peninsula. “There is, Sir,” as Johnson -again<a name="page_166" id="page_166"></a> said to Boswell, “a good deal of Spain that has not been -perambulated. I would have you go thither; a man of inferior talents to -yours, may furnish us with useful observations on that country.”</p> - -<div class="sidenote">CONTINENTAL INNS.</div> - -<p>Why the public accommodations should be second-rate is soon explained. -Nature and the natives have long combined to isolate still more their -Peninsula, which already is moated round by the unsocial sea, and is -barricadoed by almost impassable mountains. The Inquisition all but -reduced Spanish man to the condition of a monk in a wall-enclosed -convent, by standing sentinel, and keeping watch and ward against the -foreigner and his perilous novelties;<a name="FNanchor_7_7" id="FNanchor_7_7"></a><a href="#Footnote_7_7" class="fnanchor">[7]</a> Spain thus unvisited and -unvisiting, became arranged for Spaniards only, and has scarcely -required conveniences which are more suited to the curious wants of -other Europeans and strangers who here are neither liked, wished for, -nor even thought of, by natives who seldom travel except on compulsion -and never for amusement; why indeed should they? since Spain is -paradise, and each man’s own parish in his eyes is the central spot of -its glory. When the noble and rich visited the provinces, they were -lodged in their own or in their friends’ houses, just as the clergy and -monks were received into convents. The great bulk of the Peninsular -family, not being overburdened with cash or fastidiousness, have long -been and are inured to infinite inconveniences and negations; they live -at home in an abundance of privations, and expect when abroad to be -worse off; and they well know that comfort never lodges at a Spanish -inn; as in the East, they cannot conceive that any travelling should be -unattended by hardships, which they endure with Oriental resignation, as -<i>cosas de España</i>, or things of Spain which have always been so, and for -which there is no remedy but patient resignation;<a name="page_167" id="page_167"></a> the bliss of -ignorance, and the not knowing of anything better, is everywhere the -grand secret of absence of discontent; while to those whose every-day -life is a feast, every thing that does not come up to their conventional -ideas becomes a failure, but to those whose daily bread is dry and -scanty, whose drink is water, every thing beyond prison-fare appears to -be luxury.</p> - -<p>In Spain there has been little demand for those accommodations which -have been introduced on the continent by our nomade countrymen, who -carry their tea, towels, carpets, comforts and civilization with them; -to travel at all for mere pleasure is quite a modern invention, and -being an expensive affair, is the most indulged in by the English, -because they can best afford it, but as Spain lies out of their -hackneyed routes, the inns still retain much of the same state of -primitive dirt and discomfort, which most of those on the continent -presented, until repolished by our hints and guineas.</p> - -<div class="sidenote">THE FONDA.</div> - -<p>In the Peninsula, where intellect does not post in a Britannic britzcka -and four, the inns, and especially those of the country and inferior -order, continue much as they were in the time of the Romans, and -probably long before them; nay those in the very vicinity of Madrid, -“the only court on earth,” are as classically wretched, as the hostelry -at Aricia, near the Eternal City, was in the days of Horace. The Spanish -inns, indeed, on the bye-roads and remoter districts, are such as render -it almost unadvisable for any English lady to venture to face them, -unless predetermined to go through roughing-it, in a way of which none -who have only travelled in England can form the remotest idea: at the -same time they may be and have been endured by even the sick and -delicate. To youth, and to all men in enjoyment of good health, temper, -patience, and the blessing of foresight, neither a dinner nor a bed will -ever be wanting, to both of which hunger and fatigue will give a zest -beyond the reach of art; and fortunately for travellers, all the -Continent over, and particularly in Spain, bread and salt, as in the -days of Horace, will be found to appease the wayfarer’s barking stomach, -nor will he who after that sleeps soundly be bitten by fleas, “<i>quien -duerme bien, no le pican las pulgas</i>.” The pleasures of travelling in -this wild land are cheaply purchased by these trifling inconveniences, -which may always be much lessened by<a name="page_168" id="page_168"></a> <i>provision</i> in brain and basket; -the expeditions team with incident, adventure, and novelty; every day -and evening present a comedy of real life, and offer means of obtaining -insight into human nature, and form in after-life a perpetual fund of -interesting recollections: all that was charming will be then -remembered, and the disagreeable, if not forgotten, will be disarmed of -its sting, nay, even as having been in a battle, will become a pleasant -thing to recollect and to talk, may be twaddle, about. Let not the -traveller expect to find too much; if he reckons on finding nothing he -will seldom be disappointed; so let him not look for five feet in a cat, -“<i>no busces cinco pies al gato</i>.” Spain, as the East, is not to be -enjoyed by the over-fastidious in the fleshly comforts: there, those who -over analyze, who peep too much behind the culinary or domestic -curtains, must not expect to pass a tranquil existence.</p> - -<div class="sidenote">THE FONDA.</div> - -<p>First and foremost among these refuges for the destitute comes the -<i>fonda</i>, the hotel. This, as the name implies, is a foreign thing, and -was imported from Venice, which in its time was the Paris of Europe, the -leader of sensual civilization, and the sink of every lie and iniquity. -Its <i>fondacco</i>, in the same manner, served as a model for the Turkish -<i>fondack</i>. The <i>fonda</i> is only to be found in the largest towns and -principal seaports, where the presence of foreigners creates a demand -and supports the establishment. To it frequently is attached a café, or -“<i>botilleriá</i>,” a bottlery and a place for the sale of liqueurs, with a -“<i>neveria</i>,” a snowery where ices and cakes are supplied. Men only, not -horses, are taken in at a <i>fonda</i>; but there is generally a keeper of a -stable or of a minor inn in the vicinity, to which the traveller’s -animals are consigned. The <i>fonda</i> is tolerably furnished in reference -to the common articles with which the sober unindulgent natives are -contented: the traveller in his comparisons must never forget that Spain -is not England, which too few ever can get out of their heads. Spain is -Spain, a truism which cannot be too often repeated; and in its being -Spain consists its originality, its raciness, its novelty, its -idiosyncrasy, its best charm and interest, although the natives do not -know it, and are every day, by a foolish aping of European civilization, -paring away attractions, and getting commonplace, unlike themselves, and -still more unlike their Gotho-Moro and most pic<a name="page_169" id="page_169"></a>turesque fathers and -mothers. Monks, as we said in our preface, are gone, mantillas are -going, the shadow of cotton <i>versus</i> corn has already darkened the sunny -city of Figaro, and the end of all Spanish things is coming. <i>Ay! de mi -España!</i></p> - -<p>Thus in Spain, and especially in the hotter provinces, it is heat and -not cold which is the enemy: what we call furniture—carpets, rugs, -curtains, and so forth—would be a positive nuisance, would keep out the -cool, and harbour plagues of vermin beyond endurance. The walls of the -apartments are frequently, though simply, whitewashed: the uneven brick -floors are covered in winter with a matting made of the “<i>esparto</i>,” -rush, and called an “<i>estera</i>,” as was done in our king’s palaces in the -days of Elizabeth: a low iron or wooden truckle bedstead, with coarse -but clean sheets and clothes, a few hard chairs, perhaps a stiff-backed, -most uncomfortable sofa, and a rickety table or so, complete the scanty -inventory. The charges are moderate; about two dollars, or 8<i>s.</i> 6<i>d.</i>, -per head a-day, includes lodging, breakfast, dinner, and supper. -Servants, if Spanish, are usually charged the half; English servants, -whom no wise person would take on the Continent, are nowhere more -useless, or greater incumbrances, than in this hungry, thirsty, tealess, -beerless, beefless land: they give more trouble, require more food and -attention, and are ten times more discontented than their masters, who -have poetry in their souls; an æsthetic love of travel, for its own -sake, more than counterbalances with them the want of material gross -comforts, about which their pudding-headed four-full-meals-a-day -attendants are only thinking. Charges are higher at Madrid, and -Barcelona, a great commercial city, where the hotels are appointed more -European-like, in accommodation and prices. Those who remain any time in -a large town bargain with the innkeeper, or go into a boarding-house, -“<i>casa de pupilos</i>,” or “<i>de huespedes</i>,” where they have the best -opportunity of learning the Spanish language, and of obtaining an idea -of national manners and habits. This system is very common. The houses -may be known externally by a white paper ticket attached to the -<i>extremity</i> of one of the windows or balconies. This position must be -noted; for if the paper be placed in the <i>middle</i> of the balcony, the -signal means only that lodgings are here to be let. Their charges are -very reasonable.<a name="page_170" id="page_170"></a></p> - -<div class="sidenote">CHANGES IN SPANISH INNS.</div> - -<p>Since the death of Ferdinand VII. marvellous improvements have taken -place in some <i>fondas</i>. In the changes and chances of the multitudinous -revolutions, all parties ruled in their rotation, and then either killed -or banished their opponents. Thus royalists, liberals, patriots, -moderates, &c., each in their turn, have been expatriated; and as the -wheel of fortune and politics went round, many have returned to their -beloved Spain from bitter exile in France and England. These travellers, -in many cases, were sent abroad for the public good, since they were -thus enabled to discover that some things were better managed on the -other side of the water and Pyrenees. Then and there suspicion crossed -their minds, although they seldom will admit it to a foreigner, that -Spain was not altogether the richest, wisest, strongest, and first of -nations, but that she might take a hint or two in a few trifles, among -which perhaps the accommodations for man and beast might be included. -The ingress, again, of foreigners by the facilities offered to -travellers by the increased novelties of steamers, mails, and diligences -necessarily called for more waiters and inns. Every day, therefore, the -fermentation occasioned by the foreign leaven is going on; and if the -national <i>musto</i>, or grape-juice, be not over-drugged with French -brandy, something decent in smell and taste may yet be produced.</p> - -<div class="sidenote">THE POSADA.</div> - -<p>In the seaports and large towns on the Madrid roads the twilight of café -and cuisine civilization is breaking from La belle France. Monastic -darkness is dispelled, and the age of convents is giving way to that of -kitchens, while the large spaces and ample accommodations of the -suppressed monasteries suggest an easy transition into “first-rate -establishments,” in which the occupants will probably pay more and pray -less. News, indeed, have just arrived from Malaga, that certain -ultra-civilized hotels are actually rising, to be defrayed by companies -and engineered by English, who seem to be as essential in regulating -these novelties on the Continent as in the matters of railroads and -steamboats. Rooms are to be papered, brick floors to be exchanged for -boards, carpets to be laid down, fireplaces to be made, and bells are to -be hung, incredible as it may appear to all who remember Spain as it -was. They will ring the knell of nationality; and we shall be much -mistaken if the grim old Cid, when the first one is pulled at Burgos, -does not answer it himself<a name="page_171" id="page_171"></a> by knocking the innovator down. Nay, more, -for wonders never cease; vague rumours are abroad that secret and -solitary closets are contemplated, in which, by some magical mechanism, -sudden waters are to gush forth; but this report, like others <i>viâ</i> -Madrid and Paris telegraph, requires confirmation. Assuredly, the spirit -of the Holy Inquisition, which still hovers over orthodox Spain, will -long ward off these English heresies, which are rejected as too bad even -by free-thinking France.</p> - -<div class="sidenote">THE POSADA.</div> - -<p>The genuine Spanish town inn is called the <i>posada</i>, as being meant to -mean, a house of <i>repose</i> after the pains of travel. Strictly speaking, -the keeper is only bound to provide lodging, salt, and the power of -cooking whatever the traveller brings with him or can procure out of -doors; and in this it diners from the <i>fonda</i>, in which meats and drinks -are furnished. The <i>posada</i> ought only to be compared to its type, the -<i>khan</i> of the East, and never to the inn of Europe. If foreigners, and -especially Englishmen, would bear this in mind, they would save -themselves a great deal of time, trouble, and disappointment, and not -expose themselves by their loss of temper on the spot, or in their -note-books. No Spaniard is ever put out at meeting with neither -attention nor accommodation, although he maddens in a moment on other -occasions at the slightest personal affront, for his blood boils without -fire. He takes these things coolly, which colder-blooded foreigners -seldom do. The native, like the Oriental, does not expect to find -anything, and accordingly is never surprised at only getting what he -brings with him. His surprise is reserved for those rare occasions when -he finds anything actually ready, which he considers to be a godsend. As -most travellers carry their provisions with them, the uncertainty of -demand would prevent mine host from filling his larder with perishable -commodities; and formerly, owing to absurd local privileges, he very -often was not permitted to sell objects of consumption to travellers, -because the lords or proprietors of the town or village had set up other -shops, little monopolies of their own. These inconveniences sound worse -on paper than in practice; for whenever laws are decidedly opposed to -common sense and the public benefit, they are neutralized in practice; -the means to elude them are soon discovered, and the innkeeper, if he -has not the things by him himself, knows where to get them.<a name="page_172" id="page_172"></a> On starting -next day a sum is charged for lodging, service, and dressing the food: -this is, called <i>el ruido de casa</i>, an indemnification to mine host for -the <i>noise</i>, the disturbance, that the traveller is supposed to have -created, which is the old Italian <i>incommodo de la casa</i>, the routing -and inconveniencing of the house; and no word can be better chosen to -express the varied and never-ceasing din of mules, muleteers, songs, -dancing, and laughing, the dust, the <i>row</i>, which Spaniards, men as well -as beasts, kick up. The English traveller, who will have to pay the most -in purse and sleep for his <i>noise</i>, will often be the only quiet person -in the house, and might claim indemnification for the injury done to his -acoustic organs, on the principle of the Turkish soldier who forces his -entertainer to pay him teeth-money, to compensate for the damage done to -his molars and incisors from masticating indifferent rations.</p> - -<div class="sidenote">SPANISH INNKEEPERS.</div> - -<p>Akin to the <i>posada</i> is the “<i>parador</i>,” a word probably derived from -Waradah, Arabicè, “a halting-place;” it is a huge caravansary for the -reception of waggons, carts, and beasts of burden; these large -establishments are often placed outside the town to avoid the heavy -duties and vexatious examinations at the gates, where dues on all -articles of consumption are levied both for municipal and government -purposes. They are the old <i>sisa</i>, a word derived from the Hebrew -<i>Sisah</i>, to take a sixth part, and are now called <i>el derecho de -puertas</i>, the gate-due; and have always been as unpopular as the similar -<i>octroi</i> of France; and as they are generally farmed out, they are -exacted from the peasantry with great severity and incivility. There is -perhaps no single grievance among the many, in the mistaken system of -Spanish political and fiscal economy, which tends to create and keep -alive, by its daily retail worry and often wholesale injustice, so great -a feeling of discontent and ill-will towards authority as this does; it -obstructs both commerce and travellers. The officers are, however, -seldom either strict or uncivil to the higher classes, and if -courteously addressed by the stranger, and told that he is an English -gentleman, the official <i>Cerberi</i> open the gates and let him pass -unmolested, and still more if quieted by the Virgilian sop of a bribe. -The laws in Spain are indeed strict on paper, but those who administer -them, whenever it suits their private interest, that is ninety-nine -times out of a hundred, evade<a name="page_173" id="page_173"></a> and defeat them; they obey the letter, -but do not perform the spirit, “<i>se obedece, pero no se cumple</i>;” -indeed, the lower classes of officials in particular are so inadequately -paid that they are compelled to eke out a livelihood by taking bribes -and little presents, which, as <i>Backshish</i> in the East, may always be -offered, and will always be accepted, as a matter of compliment. The -<i>idea</i> of a bribe must be concealed; it shocks their dignity, their -sense of honour, their “<i>pundonor</i>:” if, however, the money be given to -the head person as something for his people to drink, the delicate -attention is sacked by the chief, properly appreciated, and works its -due effect.</p> - -<div class="sidenote">THE VENTA.</div> - -<div class="sidenote">THE VENTA.</div> - -<p>Another term, almost equivalent to the “posada,” is the “<i>meson</i>,” which -is rather applicable to the inns of the rural and smaller towns, to the -“<i>hosterias</i>,” than to those of the greater. The “<i>mesonero</i>,” like the -Spanish “<i>ventera</i>,” has a bad reputation. It is always as well to -stipulate something about prices beforehand. The proverb says, “<i>Por un -ladron, pierden ciento en el meson</i>”—“<i>Ventera hermosa, mal para la -bolsa</i>.” “For every one who is robbed on the road, a hundred are in the -inn.”—“The fairer the hostess, the fouler the reckoning.” It is among -these innkeepers that the real and worst robbers of Spain are to be met -with, since these classes of worthies are everywhere only thinking how -much they can with decency overcharge in their bills. This is but fair, -for nobody would be an innkeeper if it were not for the profit. The -trade of inn-keeping is among those which are considered derogatory in -Spain, where so many Hindoo notions of caste, self-respect, purity of -blood, etc., exist. The harbouring strangers for gain is opposed to -every ancient and Oriental law of sacred hospitality. Now no Spaniard, -if he can help it, likes to degrade himself; this accounts for the -number of <i>fondas</i> in towns being kept by Frenchmen, Italians, Catalans, -Biscayans, who are all <i>foreigners</i> in the eye of the Castilian, and -disliked and held cheap; accordingly the inn-keeper in Don Quixote -protests that he is a <i>Christian</i>, although a <i>ventero</i>, nay, a genuine -old one—<i>Cristiano viejo rancio</i>; an old Christian being the common -term used to distinguish the genuine stock from those renegade Jews and -Moors who, rather than leave Spain, became <i>pseudo-Christians</i> and -publicans.<a name="page_174" id="page_174"></a></p> - -<p>The country <i>Parador</i>, <i>Meson</i>, <i>Posada</i>, and <i>Venta</i>, call it how you -will, is the Roman stabulum, whose original intention was the housing of -cattle, while the accommodation of travellers was secondary, and so it -is in Spain to this day. The accommodation for the <i>beast</i> is excellent; -cool roomy stables, ample mangers, a never-failing supply of fodder and -water, every comfort and luxury which the animal is capable of enjoying, -is ready on the spot; as regards <i>man</i>, it is just the reverse; he must -forage abroad for anything he may want. Only a small part of the barn is -allotted him, and then he is lodged among the brutes below, or among the -trusses and sacks of their food in the lofts above. He finds, in spite -of all this, that if he asks the owner what he has got, he will be told -that “there is everything,” <i>hay de todo</i>, just as the rogue of a -<i>ventero</i> informed Sancho Panza, that his empty larder contained all the -birds of the air, all the beasts of the earth, all the fishes of the -sea,—a Spanish magnificence of promise, which, when reduced to plain -English, too often means, as in that case, there is everything that you -have brought with you. This especially occurs in the <i>ventas</i> of the -out-of-the-way and rarely-visited districts, which, however empty their -larders, are full of the spirit of Don Quixote to the brim; and the -everyday occurrences in them are so strange, and one’s life is so -dramatic, that there is much difficulty in “realising,” as the Americans -say; all is so like being in a dream or at a play, that one scarcely can -believe it to be actually taking place, and true. The man of the -note-book and the artist almost forget that there is nothing to eat; -meanwhile all this food for the mind and portfolio, all this local -colour and oddness, is lost upon your Spanish companion, if he be one of -the better classes: he is ashamed, where you are enchanted; he blushes -at the sad want of civilization, clean table-cloth, and beefsteaks, and -perhaps he is right: at all events, while you are raving about the -Goths, Moors, and this lifting up the curtain of two thousand years ago, -he is thinking of Mivart’s; and when you quote Martial, he and the -ventero set you down as talking nonsense, and stark staring mad; nay, a -Spanish gentleman is often affronted, and suspects, from the -impossibility to him, that such things can be objects of real -admiration, that you are laughing at him in your sleeve, and considering -his country as<a name="page_175" id="page_175"></a> Roman, African, or in a word, as un-European, which is -what he particularly dislikes and resents.</p> - -<p>These <i>ventas</i> have from time immemorial been the subject of jests and -pleasantries to Spanish and foreign wits. Quevedo and Cervantes indulge -in endless diatribes against the roguery of the masters, and the misery -of the accommodations, while Gongora compares them to Noah’s ark; and in -truth they do contain a variety of animals, from the big to the <i>small</i>, -and more than a pair, of more than one kind of the latter. The word -<i>venta</i> is derived from the Latin <i>vendendo</i>, on the lucus a <i>non</i> -lucendo principle of etymology, because provisions are <i>not</i> sold in it -to travellers: old Covarrubias explains this mode of dealing as -consisting “especially in <i>selling</i> a cat for a hare,” which indeed was -and is so usual a venta practice, that <i>venderlo á uno gato por liebre</i> -has become in common Spanish parlance to be equivalent to <i>doing</i> or -taking one in. The natives do not dislike the feline tribe when well -stewed: no cat was safe in the Alhambra, the galley-slaves bagged her in -a second. This <i>venta</i> trait of Iberian gastronomy did not escape the -compiler of Gil Blas.</p> - -<div class="sidenote">RECEPTION AT THE VENTA.</div> - -<p>Be that as it may, a <i>venta</i>, strictly speaking, is an isolated country -inn, or house of reception on the road, and, if it be not one of -physical entertainment, it is at least one of moral, and accordingly -figures in prominent characters in all the personal narratives and -travels in Spain; it sharpens the wit of both hungry cooks and lively -authors, and ingenii largitor <i>venter</i> is as old as Juvenal. Many of -these <i>ventas</i> have been built on a large scale by the noblemen or -convent brethren to whom the village or adjoining territory belonged, -and some have at a distance quite the air of a gentleman’s mansion. -Their walls, towers, and often elegant elevations glitter in the sun, -gay and promising, while all within is dark, dirty, and dilapidated, and -no better than a whitened sepulchre. The ground floor is a sort of -common room for men and beasts; the portion appropriated to the stables -is often arched over, and is very imperfectly lighted to keep it cool, -so that even by day the eye has some difficulty at first in making out -the details. The ranges of mangers are fixed round the walls, and the -harness of the different animals suspended on the pillars which support -the arches; a wide door, always open to the road, leads into this great -stable; a small<a name="page_176" id="page_176"></a> space in the interior is generally left unincumbered, -into which the traveller enters on foot or on horseback; no one greets -him; no obsequious landlord, bustling waiter, or simpering chambermaid -takes any notice of his arrival: the <i>ventero</i> sits in the sun smoking, -while his wife continues her uninterrupted <i>chasse</i> for “small deer” in -the thick covers of her daughters’ hair; nor does the guest pay much -attention to them; he proceeds to a gibbous water-jar, which is always -set up in a visible place, dips in with the ladle, or takes from the -shelf in the wall an <i>alcarraza</i> of cold water; refreshes his baked -clay, refills it, and replaces it in its hole on the <i>taller</i>, which -resembles the decanter stands in a butler’s pantry: he then proceeds, -unaided by ostler or boots, to select a stall for his beast,—unsaddles -and unloads, and in due time applies to the <i>ventero</i> for fodder; the -difference of whose cool reception contrasts with the eager welcome -which awaits the traveller at bedtime: his arrival is a godsend to the -creeping tribe, who, like the <i>ventero</i>, have no regular larder; it is -not upstairs that he eats, but where <i>he</i> is eaten like Polonius; the -walls are frequently stained with the marks of nocturnal combats, of -those internecine, truly Spanish <i>guerrillas</i>, which are waged without -an Elliot treaty, against enemies who, if not exterminated, murder -sleep. Were these fleas and French ladybirds unanimous, they would eat -up a Goliath; but fortunately, like other Spaniards, they never act -together, and are consequently conquered and slaughtered in detail; -hence the proverbial expression for great mortality among men, <i>mueren -como chinches</i>.</p> - -<div class="sidenote">ARRANGEMENT OF THE VENTA.</div> - -<p>Having first provided for the wants and comforts of his beast, for “the -master’s eye fattens the horse,” the traveller begins to think of -himself. One, and the greater side of the building, is destined to the -cattle, the other to their owners. Immediately opposite the public -entrance is the staircase that leads to the upper part of the building, -which is dedicated to the lodgment of fodder, fowls, vermin, and the -better class of travellers. The arrangement of the larger class of -<i>posadas</i> and <i>ventas</i> is laid out on the plan of a convent, and is well -calculated to lodge the greatest number of inmates in the smallest -space. The ingress and egress are facilitated by a long corridor, into -which the doors of the separate rooms open; these are called -“<i>cuartos</i>,” whence our word “quarters” may be derived. There is seldom<a name="page_177" id="page_177"></a> -any furniture in them; whatever is wanted, is or is not to be had of the -host from some lock-up store. A rigid puritan will be much distressed -for the lack of any artificial contrivance to hold water; the best -toilette on these occasions is a river’s bank, but rivers in unvisited -interiors of the Castiles are often rarer even than water-basins. It is, -however, no use to draw nets in streams where there are no fish, nor to -expect to find conveniences which no one else ever asks for, and those -articles which seem to the foreigner to be of the commonest and daily -necessity, are unknown to the natives. However, as there are no carpets -to be spoiled, and cold water retains its properties although brought up -in a horse-bucket or in the cook’s brass cauldron, ablutions, as the -albums express it, can be performed. What a school, after all, a <i>venta</i> -is to the slaves of comforts, and without how many absolute essentials -do they manage to get on, and happily! What lessons are taught of -good-humoured patience, and that British sailor characteristic of making -the best of every occurrence, and deeming any port a good one in a -storm! Complaint is of no use; if you tell the landlord that his wine is -more sour than his vinegar, he will gravely reply, “<i>Señor</i>, that cannot -be, for both came out of the same cask.”</p> - -<div class="sidenote">VENTA GARLIC.</div> - -<p>The portion of the ground-floor which is divided by the public entrance -from the stables, is dedicated to the kitchen and accommodation of the -travellers. The kitchen consists of a huge open range, generally on the -floor, the <i>ollas</i> pots and culinary vessels being placed against the -fire arranged in circles, as described by Martial, “multâ villica quem -coronat <i>ollâ</i>,” who, as a good Spaniard would do to this day, after -thirty-five years’ absence at Rome, writes, after his return to Spain, -to his friend Juvenal a full account of the real comforts that he once -more enjoys in his best-beloved patria, and which remind us of the -domestic details in the opening chapter of Don Quixote. These rows of -pipkins are kept up by round stones called “<i>sesos</i>,” <i>brains</i>; above is -a high, wide chimney, which is armed with iron-work for suspending pots -of a large size; sometimes there are a few stoves of masonry, but more -frequently they are only the portable ones of the East. Around the -blackened walls are arranged pots and pipkins, gridirons and -frying-pans, which hang in rows, like tadpoles of all sizes, to -accommodate large or small<a name="page_178" id="page_178"></a> parties, and the more the better; it is a -good sign, “<i>en casa llena, pronto se guisa cena</i>.” Supper is then -sooner ready.</p> - -<p>The vicinity of the kitchen fire being the warmest spot, and the nearest -to the flesh-pot, is the <i>querencia</i>, the favourite “resort” of the -muleteers and travelling bagsmen, especially when cold, wet, and hungry. -The first come are the best served, says the proverb, in the matters of -soup and love. The earliest arrivals take the cosiest corner seats near -the fire, and secure the promptest non-attendance; for the better class -of guests there is sometimes a “private apartment,” or the boudoir of -the <i>ventera</i>, which is made over to those who bring courtesy in their -mouths, and seem to have cash in their pockets; but these out-of-the way -curiosities of comfort do not always suit either author or artist, and -the social kitchen is preferable to solitary state. When a stranger -enters into it, if he salutes the company, “My lords and knights, do not -let your graces molest yourselves,” or courteously indicates his desire -to treat them with respect, they will assuredly more than return the -compliment, and as good breeding is instinctive in the Spaniard, will -rise and insist on his taking the best and highest seat. Greater, -indeed, is their reward and satisfaction, if they discover that the -invited one can talk to them in their own lingo, and understands their -feelings by circulating <i>his</i> cigars and wine <i>bota</i> among them.</p> - -<p>At the side of the kitchen is a den of a room, into which the <i>ventero</i> -keeps stowed away that stock of raw materials which forms the foundation -of the national cuisine, and in which garlic plays the first fiddle. The -very name, like that of monk, is enough to give offence to most English. -The evil consists, however, in the abuse, not in the use: from the -quantity eaten in all southern countries, where it is considered to be -fragrant, palatable, stomachic, and invigorating, we must assume that it -is suited by nature to local tastes and constitutions. Wherever any -particular herb grows, there lives the ass who is to eat it. “<i>Donde -crece la escoba, nace el asno que la roya.</i>” Nor is garlic necessarily -either a poison or a source of baseness; for Henry IV. was no sooner -born, than his lips were rubbed with a clove of it by his grandfather, -after the revered old custom of Bearn.</p> - -<div class="sidenote">DINNERS IN THE VENTA.</div> - -<p>Bread, wine, and raw garlic, says the proverb, make a young<a name="page_179" id="page_179"></a> man go -briskly, <i>Pan, vino, y ajo crudo, hacen andar al mozo agudo</i>. The better -classes turn up their noses at this odoriferous delicacy of the lower -classes, which was forbidden per statute by Alonzo XI. to his knights of -<i>La Banda</i>; and Don Quixote cautions Sancho Panza to be moderate in this -food, as not becoming to a governor: with even such personages however -it is a struggle, and one of the greatest sacrifices to the altar of -civilization and <i>les convenances</i>. To give Spanish garlic its due, it -must be said that, when administered by a judicious hand (for, like -prussic acid, all depends on the quantity), it is far milder than the -English. Spanish garlic and onions degenerate after three years’ -planting when transplanted into England. They gain in pungency and -smell, just as English foxhounds, when drafted into Spain, lose their -strength and scent in the third generation. A clove of garlic is called -<i>un diente</i>, a tooth. Those who dislike the piquant vegetable must place -a sentinel over the cook of the venta while she is putting into her -cauldron the ingredients of his supper, or Avicenna will not save him; -for if God sends meats, and here they are a godsend, the evil one -provides the cooks of the venta, who certainly do bedevil many things.</p> - -<div class="sidenote">RECEPTION AT THE VENTA.</div> - -<p>Thrice happy, then, the man blessed with a provident servant who has -foraged on the road, and comes prepared with cates on which no Castilian -Canidia has breathed; while they are stewing he may, if he be a poet, -rival those sonnets made in Don Quixote on Sancho’s ass, saddle-bags, -and sapient attention to their provend, “<i>su cuerda providencia</i>.” The -odour and good tidings of the arrival of unusual delicacies soon spread -far and wide in the village, and generally attract the <i>Cura</i>, who loves -to hear something new, and does not dislike savoury food: the quality of -a Spaniard’s temperance, like that of his mercy, is strained; his -poverty and not his will consents to more and other fastings than to -those enjoined by the church; hunger, the sauce of Saint Bernard, is one -of the few wants which is not experienced in a Spanish venta. Our -practice in one was to invite the curate, by begging him to bless the -pot-luck, to which he did ample justice, and more than repaid for its -visible diminution by good fellowship, local information, and the credit -reflected on the stranger in the eyes of the natives, by beholding him -thus patronised by their pastor and master. It is not to be denied in -the case of a<a name="page_180" id="page_180"></a> stew of partridges, that deep sighs and exclamations <i>que -rico!</i> “how rich!” escape the envious lips of his hungry flock when they -behold and whiff the odoriferous dish as it smokes past them like a -railway locomotive.</p> - -<p>Nor, it must be said, was all this hospitality on one side; it has more -than once befallen us in the rude <i>ventas</i> of the Salamanca district, -that the silver-haired <i>cura</i>, whose living barely furnished the means -whereby to live, on hearing the simple fact that an Englishman was -arrived, has come down to offer his house and fare. Such, or indeed any -Spaniard’s invitation is not to be accepted by those who value liberty -of action or time; seat rather the good man at the head of the <i>venta</i> -board, and regale him with your best cigar, he will tell you of <i>El gran -Lor</i>—the great Lord—the Cid of England; he will recount the Duke’s -victories, and dwell on the good faith, mercy, and justice of our brave -soldiers, as he will execrate the cruelty, rapacity, and perfidy of -those who fled before their gleaming bayonets.</p> - -<p>But, to return to first arrival at <i>ventas</i>, whether saddle-bag or -stomach be empty or full, the <i>ventero</i> when you enter remains unmoved -and imperturbable, as if he never had had an appetite, or had lost it, -or had dined. Not that his genus ever are seen eating except when -invited to a guest’s stew; air, the economical ration of the chameleon, -seems to be his habitual sustenance, and still more as to his wife and -womankind, who never will sit and eat even with the stranger; nay, in -humbler Spanish families they seem to dine with the cat in some corner, -and on scraps; this is a remnant of the Roman and Moorish treatment of -women as inferiors. Their lord and husband, the innkeeper, cannot -conceive why foreigners on their arrival are always so impatient, and is -equally surprised at their inordinate appetite; an English landlord’s -first question “Will you not like to take some refreshment?” is the very -last which he would think of putting; sometimes by giving him a cigar, -by coaxing his wife, flattering his daughter, and caressing Maritornes, -you may get a couple of his <i>pollos</i> or fowls, which run about the -ground-floor, picking up anything, and ready to be picked up themselves -and dressed.</p> - -<div class="sidenote">VENTA EATING.</div> - -<p>All the operations of cookery and eating, of killing, sousing in boiling -water, plucking, et cætera, all preparatory as well as final, go on in -this open kitchen. They are carried out by the<a name="page_181" id="page_181"></a> ventera and her -daughters or maids, or by some crabbed, smoke-dried, shrivelled old -she-cat, that is, or at least is called, the “<i>tia</i>,” “my aunt,” and who -is the subject of the good-humoured remarks of the courteous and hungry -traveller before dinner, and of his full stomach jests afterwards. The -assembled parties crowd round the fire, watching and assisting each at -their own savoury messes, “<i>Un ojo á la sarten, y otro á la gata</i>”—“One -eye to the pan, the other to the real cat,” whose very existence in a -<i>venta</i>, and among the pots, is a miracle; by the way, the naturalist -will observe that their ears and tails are almost always cropped closely -to the stumps. All and each of the travellers, when their respective -stews are ready, form clusters and groups round the frying-pan, which is -moved from the fire hot and smoking, and placed on a low table or block -of wood before them, or the unctuous contents are emptied into a huge -earthen reddish dish, which in form and colour is the precise -<i>paropsis</i>, the food platter, described by Martial and by other ancient -authors. Chairs are a luxury; the lower classes sit on the ground as in -the East, or on low stools, and fall to in a most Oriental manner, with -an un-European ignorance of forks;<a name="FNanchor_8_8" id="FNanchor_8_8"></a><a href="#Footnote_8_8" class="fnanchor">[8]</a> for which they substitute a short -wooden or horn spoon, or dip their bread into the dish, or fish up -morsels with their long pointed knives. They eat copiously, but with -gravity—with appetite, but without greediness; for none of any nation, -as a mass, are better bred or mannered than the lower classes of -Spaniards.</p> - -<div class="sidenote">VENTA EATING.</div> - -<p>They are very pressing in their invitations whenever any eating is going -on. No Spaniard or Spaniards, however humble their class or fare, ever -allow any one to come near or pass them when eating, without inviting -him to partake. “<i>Guste usted comer?</i>” “Will your grace be pleased to -dine?” No traveller should ever omit to go through this courtesy -whenever any Spaniards, high or low, approach him when at any meal, -especially if taking it out of doors, which often happens in these<a name="page_182" id="page_182"></a> -journeyings; nor is it altogether an empty form; all classes consider it -a compliment if a stranger, and especially an Englishman, will -condescend to share their dinner. In the smaller towns, those invited by -English will often partake, even the better classes, and who have -already dined; they think it civil to accept, and rude to refuse the -invitation, and have no objection to eating any given <i>good</i> thing, -which is the exception to their ordinary frugal habits: all this is -quite Arabian. The Spaniards seldom accept the invitation at once; they -expect to be urged by an obsequious host, in order to appear to do a -gentle violence to their stomachs by eating to oblige <i>him</i>. The angels -declined Lot’s offered hospitalities until they were “pressed -<i>greatly</i>.” Travellers in Spain must not forget this still existing -Oriental trait; for if they do not greatly press their offer, they are -understood as meaning it to be a mere empty compliment. We have known -Spaniards who have called with an intention of staying dinner, go away, -because this ceremony was not gone through according to their -punctilious notions, to which our off-hand manners are diametrically -opposed. Hospitality in a hungry inn-less land becomes, as in the East, -a sacred duty; if a man eats all the provender by himself, he cannot -expect to have many friends. Generally speaking, the offer is not -accepted; it is always declined with the same courtesy which prompts the -invitation. “<i>Muchas gracias, buen provecho le haga á usted</i>,” “Many -thanks—much good may it do your grace,” an answer which is analogous to -the <i>prosit</i> of Italian peasants after eating or sneezing. These -customs, both of inviting and declining, tally exactly, and even to the -expressions used among the Arabs to this day. Every passer-by is invited -by Orientals—“<i>Bismillah ya seedee</i>,” which means both a grace and -invitation—“In the name of God, sir, (<i>i.e.</i>) will you dine with us?” -or “<i>Tafud’-dal</i>,” “Do me the favour to partake of this repast.” Those -who decline reply, “<i>Heneê an</i>,” “May it benefit.”</p> - -<div class="sidenote">AN EVENING AT A VENTA.</div> - -<div class="sidenote">HONESTY AND ANTIQUITY IN A VENTA.</div> - -<p>Supper, which, as with the ancients, is their principal meal, is -seasoned with copious draughts of the wine of the country, drunk out of -a jug or <i>bota</i> which we have already described, for glasses do not -abound; after it is done, cigars are lighted, the rude seats are drawn -closer to the fire, stories are told, principally on robber or love -events, the latter of which are by far the truest. Jokes<a name="page_183" id="page_183"></a> are given and -taken; laughter, inextinguishable as that of Homer’s gods, forms the -chorus of conversation, especially after good eating or drinking, to -which it is the best dessert. In due time songs are sung, a guitar is -strummed, for some black-whiskered Figaro is sure to have heard of the -“arrival,” and steals down from the pure love of harmony and charms of a -cigar; then flock in peasants of both sexes, dancing is set on foot, the -fatigues of the day are forgotten, and the catching sympathy of mirth -extending to all, is prolonged until far into the night; during which, -as they take a long siesta in the day, all are as wakeful as owls, and -worse caterwaulers than cats; to describe the scene baffles the art of -pen or pencil. The roars, the dust, the want of everything in these -low-classed ventas, are emblems of the nothingness of Spanish life—a -jest. One by one the company drops off; the better classes go up stairs, -the humbler and vast majority make up their bed on the ground, near -their animals, and like them, full of food and free from care, fall -instantly asleep in spite of the noise and discomfort by which they are -surrounded. This counterfeit of death is more equalizing, as Don Quixote -says, than death itself, for an honest Spanish muleteer stretched on his -hard pallet sleeps sounder than many an uneasy trickster head that wears -another’s crown. “Sleep,” says Sancho, “covers one over like a cloak,” -and a cloak or its cognate mantle forms the best part of their wardrobe -by day, and their bed furniture by night. The earth is now, as it was to -the Iberians, the national bed; nay, the Spanish word which expresses -that commodity, <i>cama</i>, is derived from the Greek <span title="Greek: kamai">καμαι</span>. Thus -they are lodged on the ground floor, and thereby escape the three -classes of little animals which, like the inseparable Graces, are always -to be found in fine climates in the wholesale, and in Spanish <i>ventas</i> -in the retail. Their pillow is composed either of their pack-saddles or -saddle-bags; their sleep is short, but profound. Long before daylight -all are in motion; “they <i>take up</i> their bed,” the animals are fed, -harnessed, and laden, and the heaviest sleepers awakened: there is -little morning toilette, no time or soap is lost by biped or quadruped -in the processes of grooming or lavation: both carry their wardrobes on -their back, and trust to the shower and the sun to cleanse and bleach; -their moderate accounts are paid, salutations or execrations (generally -the<a name="page_184" id="page_184"></a> latter), according to the length of the bills, pass between them -and their landlords, and another day of toil begins. Our faithful and -trustworthy squire seldom failed for a couple of hours after leaving the -<i>venta</i> to pour forth an eloquent stream of oaths, invectives, and -lamentations at the dearness of inns, the rascality of their keepers in -general, and of the host of the preceding night in particular, although -probably a couple of dollars had cleared the account for a couple of men -and animals, and he himself had divided the extra-extortion with the -honest <i>ventero</i>.</p> - -<p>These Spanish venta scenes vary every day and night, as a new set of -actors make their first and last appearance before the traveller: of one -thing there can be no mistake, he has got out of England, and the -present year of our Lord. Their undeniable smack of antiquity gives them -a relish, a <i>borracha</i>, which is unknown in Great Britain, where all is -fused and modernized down to last Saturday night; here alone can you see -and study those manners and events which must have occurred on the same -sites when Hannibal and Scipio were last there, as it would be very easy -to work out from the classical authors. We would just suggest a -comparison between the arrangement of the Spanish country <i>venta</i> with -that of the Roman inn now uncovered at the entrance of Pompeii, and its -exact counterpart, the modern “<i>osteria</i>,” in the same district of -Naples. In the Museo Borbonico will be found types of most of the -utensils now used in Spain, while the Oriental and most ancient style of -cuisine is equally easy to be identified with the notices left us in the -cookery books of antiquity. The same may be said of the tambourines, -castanets, songs, and dances,—in a word, of everything; and, indeed, -when all are hushed in sleep, and stretched like corpses amid their -beasts, the Valencians especially, in their sandals and kilts, in their -mantas, and in and on their rush-baskets and mattings, we feel that -Strabo must have beheld the old Iberians exactly in the same costume and -position, when he told us what we see now to be true, -<span title="Greek: to pleon en sagois, en hois per kai stibadokoitousi">το πλεον εν σαγοις, εν ὁις -περ και στιβαδοκοιτουσι</span>.</p> - -<div class="sidenote">THE VENTORILLO.</div> - -<p>The “<i>ventorrillo</i>” is a lower class of <i>venta</i>—for there is a deeper -bathos; it is the German <i>kneipe</i> or hedge ale-house, and is often -nothing more than a mere hut, run up with reeds or branches of trees by -the road-side, at which water, bad wine, and brandy, “<i>aguardiente</i>,” -tooth-water, are to be sold. The latter is always<a name="page_185" id="page_185"></a> detestable, raw, and -disflavoured with aniseed, and turns white in water like Eau de Cologne, -not that the natives ever expose it to such a trial. These -“<i>ventorillos</i>” are at best suspicious places, and the haunts of the -spies of regular robbers, or of skulking footpads when there are any, -who lurk inside with the proprietress; she herself generally might sit -as a model for Hecate, or for one of the witches in Shakspere over their -cauldron; her attendant imps are, however, sufficiently interesting -personages to form a chapter by themselves.<a name="page_186" id="page_186"></a></p> - -<div class="sidenote">SPANISH ROBBERS.</div> - -<h2><a name="CHAPTER_XVI" id="CHAPTER_XVI"></a>CHAPTER XVI.</h2> - -<div class="blockquot"><p class="hang">Spanish Robbers—A Robber Adventure—Guardias Civiles—Exaggerated -Accounts—Cross of the Murdered—Idle Robber Tales—French -Bandittiphobia—Robber History—Guerrilleros—Smugglers—Jose -Maria—Robbers of the First Class—The Ratero—Miguelites—Escorts -and Escopeteros—Passes, Protections, and Talismans—Execution of a -Robber.</p></div> - -<p class="c">A<small>N</small> <i>olla</i> without bacon would scarcely be less insipid than a volume on -Spain without banditti; the stimulant is not less necessary for the -established taste of the home-market, than brandy is for pale sherries -neat as imported. In the mean time, while the timid hesitate to put -their heads into this supposed den of thieves as much as into a house -that is haunted, those who are not scared by shadows, and do not share -in the fears of cockney critics and delicate writers in satin-paper -albums, but adventure boldly into the hornet’s nest, come back in a firm -belief of the non-existence of the robber genus. In Spain, that <i>pays de -l’imprévu</i>, this unexpected absence of personages who render roads -uncomfortable, is one of the many and not disagreeable surprises, which -await those who prefer to judge of a country by going there themselves, -rather than to put implicit faith in the foregone conclusions and -stereotyped prejudices of those who have not, although they do sit in -judgment on those who have, and decide “without a view.” This very -summer, some dozen and more friends of ours have made tours in various -parts of the Peninsula, driving and riding unarmed and unescorted -through localities of former suspicion, without having the good luck of -meeting even with the ghost of a departed robber; in truth and fact, we -cannot but remember that such things as monks and banditti were, -although they must be spoken of rather in the past than in the present -tense.</p> - -<div class="sidenote">A ROBBER ADVENTURE.</div> - -<p>The actual security of the Spanish highways is due to the <i>Moderados</i>, -as the French party and imitators of the <i>juste milieu</i> are called, and -at the head of whom may be placed<a name="page_187" id="page_187"></a> <i>Señor Martinez de la Rosa</i>. He, -indeed, is a moderate in poetry as well as politics, and a rare specimen -of that sublime of mediocrity which, according to Horace, neither men, -gods, nor booksellers can tolerate; his reputation as an author and -statesman—alas! poor Cervantes and Cisneros—proves too truly the -present effeteness of Spain. Her pen and her sword are blunted, her -laurels are sear, and her womb is barren; but, among the blind, he who -has one eye is king.</p> - -<p>This dramatist, in the May of 1833, was summoned from his exile at -Granada to Madrid by the suspicious Calomarde. The mail in which he -travelled was stopped by robbers about ten o’clock of a wet night near -Almuradiel;—the <i>guard</i>, at the first notice, throwing himself on his -belly, with his face in the mud, in imitation of the postilions, who pay -great respect to the gentlemen of the road. The passengers consisted of -himself, a German artist, and an English friend of ours now in London, -and who, having given up his well-garnished purse at once with great -good-humour, was most courteously treated by the well-satisfied -recipients: not so the Deutscher, on whom they were about to do personal -violence in revenge for a scanty scrip, had not his profession been -explained by our friend, by whose interference he was let off. -Meanwhile, the <i>Don</i> was hiding his watch in the carriage lining, which -he cut open, and was concealing his few dollars, the existence of which -when questioned he stoutly denied. They, however, re-appeared under -threats of the bastinado, which were all but inflicted. The passengers -were then permitted to depart in peace, the leader of their spoilers -having first shaken hands with our informant, and wished him a pleasant -journey: “May your grace go with God and without novelty;” adding, “You -are a <i>caballero</i>, a gentleman, as all the English are; the German is a -<i>pobrecito</i>, a poor devil; the Spaniard is an <i>embustero</i>, a regular -swindler.” This latter gentleman, thus hardly delineated by his Lavater -countryman, has since more than gotten back his cash, having risen to be -prime minister to Christina, and humble and devoted servant of -Louis-Philippe, <i>cosas de España</i>.</p> - -<div class="sidenote">GUARDIAS CIVILES.</div> - -<p>Possibly this little incident may have facilitated the introduction of -the mounted guards, who are now stationed in towns, and by whom the -roads are regularly patrolled; they are called<a name="page_188" id="page_188"></a> <i>guardias civiles</i>, and -have replaced the ancient “brotherhood” of Ferdinand and Isabella. As -they have been dressed and modelled after the fashion of the -transpyrenean gendarmerie, the Spaniards, who never lose a chance of a -happy nickname, or of a fling at the things of their neighbour, whom -they do not love, term them, either <i>Polizontes</i> or <i>Polizones</i>, words -with which they have enriched their phraseology, and that represent the -French <i>polissons</i>, scoundrels, or they call them <i>Hijos de -Luis-Philipe</i>, “sons of Louis-Philippe;” for they are ill-bred enough, -in spite of the Montpensier marriage, and the Nelsonic achievements of -Monsieur de Joinville, to consider the words as synonymes.</p> - -<p>The number of these rogues, French king’s sons, civil guards, call them -as you will, exceeds five thousand. During the recent Machiavelianisms -of their putative father, they have been quite as much employed in the -towns as on the highway, and for political purposes rather than those of -pure police, having been used to keep down the expression of indignant -public opinion, and, instead of catching thieves, in upholding those -first-rate criminals, foreign and domestic, who are now robbing poor -Spain of her gold and liberties; but so it has always been. Indeed, when -we first arrived in the Peninsula, and naturally made enquiries about -banditti, according to all sensible Spaniards, it was not on the road -that they were most likely to be found, but in the confessional boxes, -the lawyers’ offices, and still more in the <i>bureaux</i> of government; and -even in England some think that purses are exposed to more danger in -Chancery Lane and Stone Buildings, than in the worst cross-road, or the -most rocky mountain pass in the Peninsula.</p> - -<div class="sidenote">THE MURDERED MAN’S CROSS.</div> - -<p>It will be long, however, before this “great fact” is believed within -the sound of Bow-bells, where many of those who provide the reading -public with correct information, dislike having to eat their own words, -and to have their settled opinions shaken or contradicted. Nor is it -pleasant at a certain time of life to go again to school, as one does -when studying Niebuhr’s Roman History, and then to find that the -alphabet must be re-begun, since all that was thought to be right is in -fact wrong. Distant Spain is ever looked at through a telescope which -either magnifies richness and goodness, from which half at least must be -deducted<a name="page_189" id="page_189"></a> according to the proverb, <i>de los dineros y bondad, se ha de -quitar la mitad</i>, or darkens its dangers and difficulties through a -discoloured medium. A bad name given to a dog or country is very -adhesive; and the many will repeat each other in cuckoo-note. “Il y a -des choses,” says Montesquieu, “que tout le monde dit, parcequ’elles ont -été dites une fois;” thus one silly sheep makes many, who will follow -their leader; <i>ovejas y bobas, donde va una, van todas</i>. So in the end -error becomes stamped with current authority, and is received, until the -false, imaginary picture is alone esteemed, and the true, original -portrait scouted as a cheat.</p> - -<div class="sidenote">EXAGGERATED ROBBER NOTIONS.</div> - -<p>It has so long and annually been considered permissible, when writing -about romantic Spain, to take leave of common sense, to ascend on -stilts, and converse in the Cambyses vein, that those who descend to -humble prose, and confine themselves to commonplace matter-of-fact, are -considered not only to be inæsthetic, unpoetical, and unimaginative, but -deficient in truth and power of observation. The genius of the land, -when speaking of itself and its things, is prone to say the thing which -is not; and it must be admitted that the locality lends itself often and -readily to misconceptions. The leagues and leagues of lonely hills and -wastes, over which beasts of prey roam, and above which vultures sulkily -rising part the light air with heavy wing, are easily peopled, by those -who are in a prepared train of mind, with equally rapacious bipeds of -Plato’s unfeathered species. Rocky passes, contrived as it were on -purpose for ambuscades, tangled glens overrun with underwood, in spite -of the prodigality of beauty which arrests the artist, suggest the lair -of snakes and robbers. Nor is the feeling diminished by meeting the -frequent crosses set up on classically piled heaps, which mark the grave -of some murdered man, whose simple, touching epitaph tells the name of -the departed, the date of the treacherous stab, and entreats the -passenger, who is as he was, and may be in an instant as he is, to pray -for his unannealed soul. A shadow of death hovers over such spots, and -throws the stranger on his own thoughts, which, from early associations, -are somewhat in unison with the scene. Nor is the welcome of the -outstretched arms of these crosses over-hearty, albeit they are -sometimes hung with flowers, which mock the dead. Nor are all sermons -more<a name="page_190" id="page_190"></a> eloquent than these silent stones, on which such brief emblems are -fixed. The Spaniards, from long habit, are less affected by them than -foreigners, being all accustomed to behold crosses and bleeding -crucifixes in churches and out; they moreover well know that by far the -greater proportion of these memorials have been raised to record -murders, which have not been perpetrated by robbers, but are the results -of sudden quarrel or of long brooded-over revenge, and that wine and -women, nine times out of ten, are at the bottom of the calamity. -Nevertheless, it makes a stout English heart uncomfortable, although it -is of little use to be afraid when one is in for it, and on the spot. -Then there is no better chance of escape, than to brave the peril and to -ride on. Turn, therefore, dear reader, a deaf ear to the tales of local -terror which will be told in every out-of-the-way village by the -credulous, timid inhabitants. You, as we have often been, will be -congratulated on having passed such and such a wood, and will be assured -that you will infallibly be robbed at such and such a spot a few leagues -onward. We have always found that this ignis fatuus, like the horizon, -has receded as we advanced; the dangerous spot is either a little behind -or a little before the actual place—it vanishes, as most difficulties -do, when boldly approached and grappled with.</p> - -<div class="sidenote">BANDITTIPHOBIA OF FRENCH TOURISTS.</div> - -<p>At the same time these sorts of places and events admit of much fine -writing when people get safely back again, to say nothing of the dignity -and heroic elevation which may be thus obtained by such an exhibition of -valour during the long vacation. Peaked hats, hair-breadth escapes from -long knives and mustachios, lying down for an hour on your stomach with -your mouth in the mud, are little interludes so diametrically opposed to -civilization, and the humdrum, unpicturesque routine of free Britons who -pay way and police rates, that they form almost irresistible topics to -the pen of a ready writer. And such exciting incidents are sure to take, -and to affect the public at home, who, moreover, are much pleased by the -perusal of <i>authentic</i> accounts from Spain itself, and the best and -latest intelligence, which tally with their own preconceived ideas of -the land. Hence those authors are the most popular who put the self-love -of their reader in best humour with his own stock of knowledge. And this -accounts for the frequency, in Peninsular sketches, personal<a name="page_191" id="page_191"></a> -narratives, and so forth, of robberies which are certainly oftener to be -met with in their pages than on the plains of the Peninsula. The writers -know that a bandit adventure is as much expected in the journals of such -travels as in one of Mrs. Ratcliffe’s romances; such fleeting books are -chiefly made by “<i>striking events</i>;” accordingly, the authors string -together all the floating traditional horrors which they can scrape -together on Spanish roads, and thus feed and keep up the notion -entertained in many counties of England, that the whole Peninsula is -peopled with banditti. If such were the case society could not exist, -and the very fact, of almost all of the reporters having themselves -escaped by a miracle, might lead to the inference that most other -persons escape likewise: a blot is not a blot till it is hit.</p> - -<div class="sidenote">PSEUDO-BANDIT LOOKS.</div> - -<p>Our ingenious neighbours, strange to say in so gallant a people, have a -still more decided bandittiphobia. According to what the badauds of -Paris are told in print, every rash individual, before he takes his -place in the dilly for Spain, ought by all means to make his will, as -was done four hundred years ago at starting on a pilgrimage to -Jerusalem; possibly this may be predicated in the spirit of French -diplomacy, which always has a concealed arrière pensée, and it may be -bruited abroad, on the principle with which illicit distillers and -coin-forgers give out that certain localities are haunted, in order to -scare away others, and thus preserve for themselves a quiet possession. -Perhaps the superabundance of l’esprit Français may give colour and -substance to forms insignificant in themselves, as a painter lost in a -brown study over a coal fire converts cinders into castles, monsters, -and other creatures of his lively imagination; or it may be, as -conscience makes cowards of all, that these gentlemen really see a -bandit in every bush of Spain, and expect from behind every rock an -avenging minister of retaliation, in whose pocket is a list of the -church plate, Murillos, &c. which were found missing after their -countrymen’s invasion. Be that as it may, even so clever a man as -Monsieur Quinet, a real Dr. Syntax, fills pages of his recent <i>Vacances</i> -with his continual trepidations, although, from having arrived at his -journey’s end without any sort of accident, albeit not without every -kind of fear, it might have crossed him, that the bugbears existed only -in his own head, and he might have concealed, in his pleasant pages, a -frame of<a name="page_192" id="page_192"></a> mind the exhibition of which, in England at least, inspires -neither interest nor respect; an over-care of self is not over-heroic.</p> - -<div class="sidenote">IDLE ROBBER TALES.</div> - -<p>It must be also admitted that the respectability and character of many a -Spaniard is liable to be misunderstood, when he sets forth on any of his -travels, except in a public wheel conveyance; as we said in our ninth -chapter, he assumes the national costume of the road, and leaves his -wife and long-tailed coat behind him. Now as most Spaniards are muffled -up and clad after the approved melodrame fashion of robbers, they may be -mistaken for them in reality; indeed they are generally sallow, have -fierce black eyes, uncombed hair, and on these occasions neglect the -daily use of towels and razors; a long beard gives, and not in Spain -alone, a ferocious ruffian-like look, which is not diminished when gun -and knife are added to match faces à la Brutus. Again, these worthies -thus equipped, have sometimes a trick of staring rather fixedly from -under their slouched hat at the passing stranger, whose, to them, -outlandish costume excites curiosity and suspicion; naturally therefore -some difficulty does exist in distinguishing the merino from the wolf, -when both are disguised in the same clothing—a <i>zamarra</i> sheepskin to -wit. A private Spanish gentleman, who, in his native town, would be the -model of a peaceable and inoffensive burgess, or a respectable -haberdasher, has, when on his commercial tour, altogether the appearance -of the Bravo of Venice, and such-like heroes, by whom children are -frightened at a minor theatre. In consequence of the difficulty of -outliving what has been learnt in the nursery, many of our countrymen -have, with the best intentions, set down the bulk of the population of -the Peninsula as one gang of robbers—they have exaggerated their -numbers like Falstaff’s men of buckram; the said imagined Rinaldo -Rinaldinis being probably in a still greater state of alarm from having -on their part taken our said countrymen for robbers, and this mutual -misunderstanding continues, until both explain their slight mistake of -each other’s character and intention. Although we never fell into the -error of thus mistaking Spanish peaceable traders for privateers and -men-of-war, yet that injustice has been done by them to us; possibly -this compliment may have been paid to our careful observation of the -bearing and garb of their great Rob Roy himself and in his own country, -which, to one about to<a name="page_193" id="page_193"></a> undertake, in those days, long and solitary -rides over the Peninsula, was an unspeakable advantage.</p> - -<p>But even in those perilous times, robberies were the exception, not the -rule, in spite of the full, whole, and exact particulars of natives as -well as strangers; the accounts were equally exaggerated by both -parties; in fact, the subject is the standing dish, the common topic of -the lower classes of travellers, when talking and smoking round the -venta fires, and forms the natural and agreeable religio loci, the -associations connected with wild and cut-throat localities. Though these -narrators’ pleasure is mingled with fear and pain, they delight in such -histories as children do in goblin tales. Their Oriental amplification -is inferior only to their credulity, its twin sister, and they end in -believing their own lies. Whenever a robbery really does take place, the -report spreads far and wide, and gains in detail and atrocity, for no -muleteer’s story or sailor’s yarn loses in the telling. The same dire -event,—names, dates, and localities only varied,—is served up, as a -monkish miracle in the mediæval ages was, at many other places, and thus -becomes infinitely multiplied. It is talked of for months all over the -country, while the thousands of daily passengers who journey on unhurt -are never mentioned. It is like the lottery, in which the great prize -alone attracts attention, not the infinite majority of blanks. These -robber-tales reach the cities, and are often believed by most -respectable people, who pass their lives without stirring a league -beyond the walls. They sympathize with all who are compelled to expose -themselves to the great pains and perils, the travail of travel, and -they endeavour with the most good-natured intentions to dissuade rash -adventurers from facing them, by stating as facts, the apprehensions of -their own credulity and imagination.</p> - -<div class="sidenote">SPANISH ROBBER HISTORY.</div> - -<p>The muleteers, <i>venteros</i>, and masses of common Spaniards see in the -anxious faces of timid strangers, that their audience is in the -listening and believing vein, and as they are garrulous and egotists by -nature, they seize on a theme in which they alone hold forth; they are -pleased at being considered an authority, and with the superiority which -conveying information gives, and the power of inspiring fear confers; -their mother-wit, in which few nations surpass them, soon discovers the -sort of information which “our correspondent” is in want of, and as -words here cost<a name="page_194" id="page_194"></a> nothing, the gulping gobemouche is plentifully supplied -with the required article. These reports are in due time set up in type, -and are believed because in print; thus the tricks played on poor Mr. -Inglis and his note-book were the laughter of the whole Peninsula, grave -authorities caught the generous infection, until Mr. Mark’s robber-jokes -at Malaga were booked and swallowed as if he had been an apostle instead -of a consul.</p> - -<p>As it was our fate to have wandered up and down the Peninsula when -Ferdinand VII. was king of the Spains, and Jose Maria, at whose name old -men and women there tremble yet, was autocrat of Andalucia, the moment -was propitious for studying the philosophy of Spanish banditti, and our -speculations were much benefited by a fortunate acquaintance with the -redoubtable chief himself, from whom, as well as from many of his -intelligent followers, we received much kindness and valuable -information, which is acknowledged with thankfulness.</p> - -<p>Historically speaking, Spain has never enjoyed a good character in this -matter of the highway; it had but an indifferent reputation in the days -of antiquity, but then, as now, it was generally the accusation of -foreigners. The Romans, who had no business to invade it, were harassed -by the native guerrilleros, those undisciplined bands who waged the -“little war,” which Iberia always did. Worried by these unmilitary -voltigeurs, they called all Spaniards who resisted them “<i>latrones</i>;” -just as the French invaders, from the same reasons, called them -<i>ladrones</i> or brigands, because they had no uniform; as if the wearing a -schako given by a plundering marshal, could convert a pillager into a -honest man, or the want of it could change into a thief, a noble patriot -who was defending his own property and country; but l’habit ne fait pas -le moine, say the French, and <i>aunque la mona se viste de seda, mona se -queda</i>, although a monkey dresses in silk, monkey it remains, rejoin the -Spaniards.</p> - -<div class="sidenote">GUERRILLEROS.</div> - -<p>Armed men are in fact the weed of the soil of Spain, in peace or war; to -have their hand against all mankind seems to be an instinct in every -descendant of Ishmael, and particularly among this Quixotic branch, -whose knight-errants, reformers on horseback, have not unfrequently been -robbers in the guise of gentlemen. During the war against Buonaparte, -the Peninsula swarmed with insurgents, many of whom were inspired, by a<a name="page_195" id="page_195"></a> -sense of loyalty, with indignation at their outraged religion, and with -a deep-rooted national loathing of the <i>gabacho</i>, and good service did -these Minas and Co. do to the cause of their lawful king; but others -used patriotic professions as specious cloaks to cover their instinctive -passion for a lawless and freebooting career, and before the liberation -of the country was effected, had become formidable to all parties alike. -The Duke of Wellington, with his characteristic sagacity, foresaw, at -his victorious conclusion of the struggle, how difficult it would be to -weed out “this strange fruit borne on a tree grafted by patriotism.” The -transition from murdering a Frenchman, to plundering a stranger, -appeared a simple process to these patriotic scions, whose numbers were -swelled with all who were, or who considered themselves to be, ill -used—with all who could not dig, and were ashamed to beg. The evil was -diminished during the latter years of the reign of Ferdinand VII., when -the old hands began to die off, and an advance in social improvement was -unquestionably general, before which these lawless occupations gave way, -as surely as wild animals of prey do before improved cultivation. These -evils, that are abated by internal quiet and the continued exertions of -the authorities, increase with troubled times, which, as the tempest -calls forth the stormy petrel, rouse into dangerous action the worst -portions of society, and create a sort of civil cachexia, as we now see -in Ireland.</p> - -<div class="sidenote">SMUGGLERS.</div> - -<p>Another source was, not to say is, Gibraltar, that hot-bed of -contraband, that nursery of the smuggler, the <i>prima materia</i> of a -robber and murderer. The financial ignorance of the Spanish government -calls him in, to correct the errors of Chancellors of -Exchequers:—“trovata la legge, trovato l’inganno.” The fiscal -regulations are so ingeniously absurd, complicated, and vexatious, that -the honest, legitimate merchant is as much embarrassed as the irregular -trader is favoured. The operation of excessive duties on objects which -people must, and therefore will have, is as strikingly exemplified in -the case of tobacco in Andalucia, as it is in that, and many other -articles on the Kent and Sussex coasts: in both countries the fiscal -scourge leads to breaches of the peace, injury to the fair dealer, and -loss to the revenue; it renders idle, predatory and ferocious, a -peasantry which, under a wiser system, and if not exposed to -overpowering temptation,<a name="page_196" id="page_196"></a> might become virtuous and industrious. In -Spain the evasion of such laws is only considered as cheating those who -cheat the people; the villagers are heart and soul in favour of the -smuggler, as they are of the poacher in England; all their prejudices -are on his side. Some of the mountain curates, whose flocks are all in -that line, deal with the crime in their sermons as a conventional, not a -moral, one; and, like other people, decorate their mantelpieces with a -painted clay figure of the sinner in his full <i>majo</i> dress. The smuggler -himself, so far from feeling degraded, enjoys the reputation which -attends success in personal adventure, among a people proud of -individual prowess; he is the hero of the Spanish stage, and comes on -equipped in full costume, with his blunderbuss, to sing the well-known -“<i>Yo! que soy contrabandista! yo ho!</i>” to the delight of all listeners -from the Straits to the Bidasoa, custom-house officers not excepted.</p> - -<p>The <i>prestige</i> of such a theatrical exhibition, like the ‘Robbers’ of -Schiller, is enough to make all the students of Salamanca take to the -high-road. The contrabandista is the Turpin, the Macheath of reality, -and those heroes of the old ballads and theatres of England, who have -disappeared more in consequence of enclosures, rapid conveyances, and -macadamization (for there is nothing so hateful to a highwayman as gas -and a turnpike), than from fear of the prison or the halter. The -writings of Smollett, the recollections of many now alive of the dangers -of Hounslow Heath and Finchley Common, recall scenes of life and manners -from which we have not long emerged, and which have still more recently -been corrected in Spain. The contrabandista in his real character is -welcome in every village; he is the newspaper and channel of -intelligence; he brings tea and gossip for the curate, money and cigars -for the attorney, ribands and cottons for the women; he is magnificently -dressed, which has a great charm for all Moro-Iberian eyes; he is bold -and resolute—“none but the brave deserve the fair;” a good rider and -shot; he knows every inch of the intricate country, wood or water, hill -or dale; in a word, he is admirably educated for the high-road—for what -Froissart, speaking of the celebrated Amerigot Tetenoire, calls “a fayre -and godlie life.” And the transition from plundering the king’s revenue, -to taking one of his subjects’ purse on the highway, is easy.<a name="page_197" id="page_197"></a></p> - -<div class="sidenote">FIRST-CLASS BANDITS.</div> - -<p>Many circumstances combined to make this freebooting career popular -among the lower classes. The delight of power, the exhibition of daring -and valour, the temptation of sudden wealth, always so attractive to -half-civilized nations, who prefer the rich spoil won by the bravery of -an hour, to that of the drudgery of years; the gorgeous apparel, the -lavish expenditure, the song, the wassail, the smiles of the fair, and -all the joyous life of liberty, freemasonry, and good fellowship, -operated with irresistible force on a warlike, energetic, and -imaginative population.</p> - -<p>This smuggling was the origin of Jose Maria’s career, who rose to the -highest rank and honours of his profession, as did <i>Napoleon le Grand</i> -and “Jonathan Wild the Great,” and principally, as Fielding says of his -hero, by a power of doing mischief, and a principle of considering -honesty to be a corruption of <i>honosty</i>, the qualities of an ass -(<span title="Greek: onos">ονος</span>). But it is a great mistake to suppose that there always -are men fitted to be captains of formidable gangs; nature is chary in -the production of such specimens of dangerous grandeur, and as ages may -elapse before the world is cursed with another Alaric, Buonaparte, or -Wild, so years may pass before Spain witnesses again another Jose Maria.</p> - -<div class="sidenote">FIRST-CLASS BANDITS.</div> - -<p>The <i>Ladron-en-grande</i>, the robber on a great scale, is the grandee of -the first class in his order; he is the captain of a regularly-organized -band of followers, from eight to fourteen in number, well armed and -mounted, and entirely under command and discipline. These are very -formidable; and as they seldom attack any travellers except with -overwhelming forces, and under circumstances of ambuscade and surprise, -where every thing is in their favour, resistance is generally useless, -and can only lead to fatal accidents. Never, for the sake of a sac de -nuit, risk being sent to Erebus; submit, therefore, at once and with -good grace to the summons, which will take no denial, of “<i>abajo</i>,” -down, “<i>boca á tierra</i>,” mouth to the earth. Those who have a score or -so of dollars, four or five pounds, the loss of which will ruin no man, -are very rarely ill-used; a frank, confident, and good-humoured -surrender not only prevents any bad treatment, but secures even civility -during the disagreeable operation: pistols and sabres are, after all, a -poor defence compared to civil words, as Mr. Cribb used to say. The -Spaniard, by nature high-bred<a name="page_198" id="page_198"></a> and a “<i>caballero</i>,” responds to any -appeal to qualities of which he thinks his nation has reason to be -proud; he respects coolness of manner, in which bold men, although -robbers, sympathise. Why should a man, because he loses a few dollars, -lose also his presence of mind or temper, or perhaps life? Nor are these -grandees of the system without a certain magnanimity, as Cervantes knew -right well. Witness his graphic account of Roque Guinart, whose conduct -to his victims and behaviour to his comrades tallied, to our certain -knowledge, with that observed by Jose Maria, and was perfectly analogous -to the similar traits of character exhibited by the Italian bandit Ghino -de Tacco, the immortalized by Dante; as well as by our Robin Hood and -Diana’s foresters. Being strong, they could afford to be generous and -merciful.</p> - -<p>Notwithstanding these moral securities, if only by way of making -assurance doubly sure, an Englishman will do well when travelling in -exposed districts to be provided with a decent bag of dollars, which -makes a handsome purse, feels heavy in the hand, and is that sort of -amount which the Spanish brigand thinks a native of our proverbially -rich country ought to have with him on his travels. He has a remarkable -tact in estimating from the look of an individual, his equipage, &c., -how much ready money it is befitting his condition for him to have about -him; if the sum should not be enough, he resents severely his being -robbed of the regular perquisite to which he considers himself entitled -by the long-established usage of the high-road. The person unprovided -altogether with cash is generally made a severe example of, pour -encourager les autres, either by being well beaten or stripped to the -skin, after the fashion of the thieves of old, near Jericho. The -traveller should have a watch of some kind—one with a gaudy gilt chain -and seals is the best suited; not to have one exposes him to more -indignities than a scantily-filled purse. The money may have been spent, -but the absence of a watch can only be accounted for by a premeditated -intention of not being robbed of it, which the “<i>ladron</i>” considers as a -most unjustifiable attempt to defraud him of his right.</p> - -<div class="sidenote">THE RATERO.</div> - -<p>The Spanish “<i>ladrones</i>” are generally armed with a blunderbuss, that -hangs at their high-peaked saddles, which are covered with a white or -blue fleece, emblematical enough of shearing propensities; therefore, -perhaps, the order of the golden<a name="page_199" id="page_199"></a> fleece has been given to certain -foreigners, in reward for having eased Spain of her independence and -Murillos. Their dress is for the most part very rich, and in the highest -style of the fancy; hence they are the envy and models of the lower -classes, being arrayed after the fashion of the smuggler, or the -bull-fighter, or in a word, the “<i>majo</i>” or dandy of Andalucia, which is -the home and head-quarters of all those who aspire to the elegant -accomplishments and professions just alluded to. The next class of -robbers—omitting some minor distinctions, such as the “<i>salteadores</i>,” -or two or three persons who lie in ambuscade and <i>jump out</i> on the -unprepared traveller—is the “<i>ratero</i>,” “the rat.” He is not brought -regularly up to the profession and organized, but takes to it on a -sudden, and for the special occasion which, according to the proverb, -makes a thief, <i>La ocasion hace al ladron</i>; and having committed his -petty larceny, returns to his pristine occupation or avocation.</p> - -<div class="sidenote">MIGUELITES.</div> - -<p>The “<i>raterillo</i>,” or small rat, is a skulking footpad, who seldom -attacks any but single and unprotected passengers, who, if they get -robbed, have no one to blame but themselves; for no man is justified in -exposing Spaniards to the temptation of doing a little something in that -line. The shepherd with his sheep, the ploughman at his plough, the -vine-dresser amid his grapes, all have their gun, ostensibly for their -individual protection, which furnishes means of assault and battery -against those who have no other defence but their legs and virtue. These -self-same extemporaneous thieves are, however, remarkably civil to armed -and prepared travellers; to them they touch their hats, and exclaim, -“Good day to you, my lord knight,” and “May your grace go with God,” -with all that innocent simplicity which is observable in pastorals, -opera-ballets, and other equally correct representations of rural life. -These rats are held in as profound contempt by the higher classes of the -profession, as political ones used to be, before parties were betrayed -by turncoats, who, with tails and without, deserted to the enemies’ -camp. The <i>ladron en grande</i> looks down on this sneaking competitor as a -regular M.D. and member of the College of Physicians does on a quack, -who presumes to take fees and kill without a licence. However -despicable, these rats are very dangerous; lacking the generous feeling -which the possession of power and<a name="page_200" id="page_200"></a> united force bestows, they have the -cowardice and cruelty of weakness: hence they frequently murder their -victim, because dead men tell no tales.</p> - -<p>The distinction between these higher and lower classes of rogues will be -better understood by comparing the Napoleon of war, with the Napoleon of -peace. The Corsican was the <i>ladron en grande</i>; he warred against -mankind, he led his armed followers to pillage and plunder, he made his -den the receiving house of the stolen goods of the Continent: but he did -it openly and manfully by his own right hand and good sword; and valour -and audacity are qualities too high and rare not to command -admiration—qualified, indeed, when so misapplied. Louis-Philippe is a -<i>ratero</i>, who, skulking under disguise of amity and good faith, works -out in the dark, and by cunning, his ends of avarice and ambition; who, -acting on the artful dodger (no) principle, while kissing the Queen, -picks her pocket of a crown.</p> - -<div class="sidenote">MIGUELITES.</div> - -<p>It must be stated for the purposes of history that at the time when -Spain was, or was said to be, overrun with rats and robbers, there was, -as Spaniards have it, a remedy for everything except death; and as the -evils were notorious, it was natural that means of prevention should -likewise exist. If the state of things had been so bad as exaggerated -report would infer, it would have been impossible that any travelling or -traffic could have been managed in the Peninsula. The mails and -diligences, being protected by government, were seldom attacked, and -those who travelled by other methods, and had proper recommendations, -seldom failed in being provided by the authorities with a sufficient -escort. A regular body of men was organized for that purpose; they were -called “<i>Miguelites</i>,” from, it is said, one Miguel de Prats, an armed -satellite of the famous or infamous Cæsar Borgia. In Catalonia they are -called “<i>Mozos de la Escuadra</i>,” “Lads of the squadron, land marines;” -they are the modern “<i>Hermandad</i>,” the brotherhood which formed the old -Spanish rural armed police. Composed of picked and most active young -men, they served on foot, under the orders of the military powers; they -were dressed in a sort of half uniform and half <i>majo</i> costume. Their -gaiters were black instead of yellow, and their jackets of blue trimmed -with red. They were well armed with a short gun and a belt round the -waist in which<a name="page_201" id="page_201"></a> the ammunition was placed, a much more convenient -contrivance than our cartouche-box; they had a sword, a cord for -securing prisoners, and a single pistol, which was stuck in their -sashes, at their backs. This corps was on a perfect par with the -robbers, from whom some of them were chosen; indeed, the common -condition of the “<i>indulto</i>,” or pardon to robbers, is to enlist, and -extirpate their former associates—set a thief to catch a thief; both -the honest and renegade <i>Miguelites</i> hunted “<i>la mala gente</i>,” as -gamekeepers do poachers. The robbers feared and respected them; an -escort of ten or twelve <i>Miguelites</i> might brave any number of banditti, -who never or rarely attack where resistance is to be anticipated; and in -travelling through suspected spots these escorts showed singular skill -in taking every precaution, by throwing out skirmishers in front and at -the sides. They covered in their progress a large space of ground, -taking care never to keep above two together, nor more distant from each -other than gun-shot; rules which all travellers will do well to -remember, and to enforce on all occasions of suspicion. The rare -instances in which Englishmen, especially officers of the garrison of -Gibraltar, have been robbed, have arisen from a neglect of this -precaution; when the whole party ride together they may be all caught at -once, as in a casting-net.</p> - -<div class="sidenote">TRAVELLING ESCORTS.</div> - -<p>It may be remarked that Spanish robbers are very shy in attacking armed -English travellers, and particularly if they appear on their guard. The -robbers dislike fighting, and the more as they do so at a disadvantage, -from having a halter round their necks, and they hate danger, from -knowing what it is; they have no chivalrous courage, nor any more -abstract notions of fair play than a Turk or a tiger, who are too -uncivilized to throw away a chance; accordingly, they seldom join issue -where the defendants seem pugnacious, which is likely to be the case -with Englishmen. They also peculiarly dislike English guns and -gunpowder, which, in fact, both as arms and ammunition, are infinitely -superior to those of Spain. Though three or four Englishmen had nothing -to fear, yet where there were ladies it was better to be provided with -an escort of <i>Miguelites</i>. These men have a keen and accurate eye, and -were always on the look-out for prints of horses and other signs, which, -escaping the notice of superficial observers, indicated to their -practised observations<a name="page_202" id="page_202"></a> the presence of danger. They were indefatigable, -keeping up with a carriage day and night, braving heat and cold, hunger -and thirst. As they were maintained at the expense of the government, -they were not, strictly speaking, entitled to any remuneration from -those travellers whom they were directed to escort; it was, however, -usual to give to each man a couple of <i>pesetas</i> a-day, and a dollar to -their leader. The trifling addition of a few cigars, a “<i>bota</i>” or two -of wine, some rice and dried cod-fish for their evening meal, was well -bestowed; exercise sharpened their appetites; and they were always proud -to drink to their master’s long life and purse, and protect both.</p> - -<p>Those, whether natives or foreigners, who could not obtain or afford the -expense of an escort to themselves, availed themselves of the -opportunity of joining company with some party who had one. It is -wonderful how soon the fact of an escort being granted was known, and -how the number of travellers increased, who were anxious to take -advantage of the convoy. As all go armed, the united allied forces -became more formidable as the number increased, and the danger became -less. If no one happened to be travelling with an escort, then -travellers waited for the passage of troops, for the government’s -sending money, tobacco, or anything else which required protection. If -none of these opportunities offered, all who were about to travel joined -company. This habit of forming caravans is very Oriental, and has become -quite national in Spain, insomuch that it is almost impossible to travel -alone, as others will join; weaker and smaller parties will unite with -all stronger and larger companies whom they meet going the same road, -whether the latter like it or not. The muleteers are most social and -gregarious amongst each other, and will often endeavour to derange their -employer’s line of route, in order to fall in with that of their -chance-met comrades. The caravan, like a snow-ball, increases in bulk as -it rolls on; it is often pretty considerable at the very outset, for, -even before starting, the muleteers and proprietors of carriages, being -well known to each other, communicate mutually the number of travellers -which each has got.</p> - -<div class="sidenote">ESCOPETEROS.</div> - -<p>Travelling in out-of-the-way districts in a “<i>coche de colleras</i>,” and -especially if accompanied with a baggage-waggon, exposes the party to be -robbed. When the caravan arrives in the small<a name="page_203" id="page_203"></a> villages it attracts -immediate notice, and if it gets wind that the travellers are -foreigners, they are supposed to be laden with gold and booty. Such an -arrival is a rare event; the news spreads like wildfire, and collects -all the “<i>mala gente</i>,” the bad set of idlers and loiterers, who act as -spies, and convey intelligence to their confederates; again, the bulk of -the equipage, the noise and clatter of men and mules, is seen and heard -from afar, by robbers if there be any, who lurk in hiding-places or -eminences, and are well provided with telescopes, besides with longer -and sharper noses, which, as Gil Blas says, smell coin in travellers’ -pockets, while the slow pace and impossibility of flight renders such a -party an easy prey to well-mounted horsemen.</p> - -<div class="sidenote">PASSES AND PROTECTIONS.</div> - -<p>This condition of affairs, these dangers real or imaginary, and these -precautions, existed principally in journeys by cross roads, or through -provinces rarely visited, and unprovided with public carriages; if, -however, such districts were reputed the worst, they often had the -advantage of being freer from regular bands, for where there are few -passengers, why should there be robbers, who like spiders place their -nets where the supply of flies is sure?—and little do the humbler -masses of Spain care either for robbers or revolutionists; they have -nothing to lose, and are beneath the notice of pickpockets or -pseudo-patriots. Their rags are their safeguard, a fine climate clothes -them, a fertile soil feeds them; they doze away in the happy want and -poverty, ever the best protections in Spain, or strum their guitars and -sing staves in praise of empty purses. The better provided have to look -out for themselves; indeed, whenever the law is insufficient men take it -into their own hands, either to protect themselves or their property, or -to administer wild justice, and obtain satisfaction for wrongs, which in -plain Spanish is called revenge. An Irish landlord arms his servants and -raises walls round his “demesne”—an English squire employs watchers and -keepers to preserve his pheasants—so in suspected localities a Spanish -hidalgo protects his person by hiring armed peasants; they are called -“<i>escopeteros</i>,” people with guns—a definition which is applicable to -most Spaniards. When out of town this custom of going armed, and early -acquaintance with the use of the gun, is the principal reason why, on -the shortest notice, bodies of men, whom the Spaniards call soldiers, -are got together; every field<a name="page_204" id="page_204"></a> furnishes the raw material—a man with a -musket. Baggage, commissariat, pay, rations, uniform, and discipline, -which are European rather than Oriental, are more likely to be found in -most other armies than in those of Spain. These things account for the -facility with which the Spanish nation flies so magnanimously to arms, -and after bush-fighting and buccaneering expeditions, disappears at once -after a reverse; “every man to his own home,” as of old in the East, and -that, with or without proclamation. These “<i>escopeteros</i>,” occasionally -robbers themselves, live either by robbery or by the prevention of it; -for there is some honour among thieves; “<i>entre lobos no se come</i>,” -“wolves don’t eat each other” unless very hard up indeed. These fellows -naturally endeavour to alarm travellers with over-exaggerated accounts -of danger, ogres and antres vast, in order that their services may be -engaged; their inventions are often believed by swallowers of camels, -who note down as facts, these tricks upon travellers got up for the -occasion, by people who are making long noses at them, behind their -backs; but these longer lies are among the accidents of long journeys, -“<i>en luengas vias, luengas mentiras</i>.”</p> - -<div class="sidenote">TALISMANIC DEFENCES.</div> - -<p>As we are now writing history, it may be added that great men like Jose -Maria often granted passports. This true trooper of the Deloraine breed -was untrammelled with the fetters of spelling. Although he could barely -write his name, he could <i>rubricate</i><a name="FNanchor_9_9" id="FNanchor_9_9"></a><a href="#Footnote_9_9" class="fnanchor">[9]</a> as well as any other Spaniard in -command, or Ferdinand VII. himself. “His mark” was a protection to all -who would pay him black mail. It was authenticated with such a -portentous griffonage as would have done credit to Ali Pacha. An -intimate friend of ours, a merry gastronomic dignitary of Seville, who -was going to the baths of Caratraca, to recover from over-indulgence in -rich ollas and valdepeñas, and had no wish, like the gouty abbot of -Boccaccio, to be put on robber regimen, procured a pass from Jose Maria, -and took one of his<a name="page_205" id="page_205"></a> gang as a travelling escort, who sat on the -coach-box, and whom he described to us as his “<i>santito</i>,” his little -guardian angel.</p> - -<div class="sidenote">TALISMANIC DEFENCES.</div> - -<p>While on the subject of this spiritual and supernatural protection, it -may be added that firm faith was placed in the wearing a relic, a medal -of the Virgin, her rosary or scapulary. Thus the Duchess of Abrantes -this very autumn hung the <i>Virgen del Pilar</i> round the neck of her -favourite bull-fighter, who escaped in consequence. Few Spanish soldiers -go into battle without such a preservative in their <i>petos</i>, or stuffed -waddings, which is supposed to turn bullets, and to divert fire, like a -lightning conductor, which probably it does, as so few are ever killed. -In the more romantic days of Spain no duel or tournament could be fought -without a declaration from the combatants, that they had no relic, no -<i>engaño</i> or cheat, about their persons. Our friend Jose Maria attributed -his constant escapes to an image of the Virgin of Grief of Cordova, -which never quitted his shaggy breast. Indeed, the native districts of -the lower classes in Spain may be generally known by their religious -ornaments. These talismanic amulets are selected from the saint or relic -most honoured, and esteemed most efficacious, in their immediate -vicinity. Thus the “Santo Rostro,” or Holy Countenance of Jaen, is worn -all over the kingdom of Granada, as the Cross of Caravaca is over -Murcia; the rosary of the Virgin is common to all Spain. The following -miraculous proof of its saving virtues was frequently painted in the -convents:—A robber was shot by a traveller and buried; his comrades, -some time afterwards passing by, heard his voice,—“this fellow in the -cellarage;”—they opened the grave and found him alive and unhurt, for -when he was killed, he had happened to have a rosary round his neck, and -Saint Dominick (its inventor) was enabled to intercede with the Virgin -in his behalf. This reliance on the Virgin is by no means confined to -Spain, since the Italian banditti always wear a small silver heart of -the Madonna, and this mixture of ferocity and superstition is one of the -most terrific features of their character. Saint Nicholas, however, the -English “Old Nick,” is in all countries the patron of schoolboys, -thieves, or, as Shakspere calls them, “Saint Nicholas’s clerks.” “Keep -thy neck for the hangman, for I know thou worshippest St. Nicholas as a -man of falsehood may;” and like him, Santu Diavolu, Santu<a name="page_206" id="page_206"></a> Diavoluni, -Holy Devil, is the appropriate saint of the Sicilian bandit.</p> - -<p>San Dimas, the “good thief,” is a great saint in Andalucia, where his -disciples are said to be numerous. A celebrated carving by Montañes, in -Seville, is called ‘<i>El Cristo, del buen ladron</i>,’—“the Christ, <i>of</i> -the good thief;” thus making the Saviour a subordinate person. Spanish -robbers have always been remarkably good Roman Catholics. In the -Rinconete y Cortadillo, the Lurker and Cutpurse of Cervantes, whose -Monipodio must have furnished Fagin to Boz, a box is placed before the -Virgin, to which each robber contributes, and one remarks that he “robs -for the service of God, and for all honest fellows.” Their mountain -confessors of the Friar Tuck order, animated by a pious love for dollars -when expended in expiatory masses, consider the payment to them of good -doubloons such a laudable restitution, such a sincere repentance, as to -entitle the contrite culprit to ample absolution, plenary indulgence, -and full benefit of clergy. Notwithstanding this, these ungrateful “good -thieves” have been known to rob their spiritual pastors and masters, -when they catch them on the high road.</p> - -<p>To return to the saving merit of these talismans. We ourselves suspended -to our sheepskin jacket one of the silver medals of Santiago, which are -sold to pilgrims at Compostella, and arrived back again to Seville from -the long excursion, safe and sound and unpillaged except by <i>venteros</i> -and our faithful squire—an auspicious event, which was entirely -attributed by the aforesaid dignitary to the intervention vouchsafed by -the patron of the Spains to all who wore his order, which thus protects -the bearer as a badge does a Thames waterman from a press-gang.</p> - -<div class="sidenote">EXECUTION OF A ROBBER.</div> - -<p>An account of the judicial death of one of the gang of Jose Maria, which -we witnessed, will be an appropriate conclusion to these remarks, and an -act of justice towards our fair readers for this detail of breaches of -the peace, and the bad company into which they have been introduced. -Jose de Roxas, commonly called (for they generally have some nickname) -<i>El Veneno</i>, “Poison,” from his viper-like qualities, was surprised by -some troops: he made a desperate resistance, and when brought to the -ground by a ball in his leg, killed the soldier who rushed forward to -secure him. He proposed when in prison to deliver up<a name="page_207" id="page_207"></a> his comrades if -his own life were guaranteed to him. The offer was accepted, and he was -sent out with a sufficient force; and such was the terror of his name, -that they surrendered themselves, <i>not however to him</i>, and were -<i>pardoned</i>. Veneno was then tried for his previous offences, found -guilty, and condemned: he pleaded that he had indirectly accomplished -the object for which his life was promised him, but in vain; for such -trials in Spain are a mere form, to give an air of legality to a -predetermined sentence:—the authorities adhered to the killing letter -of their agreement, and</p> - -<div class="poem"><div class="stanza"> -<span class="i0">“Kept the word of promise to the ear,<br /></span> -<span class="i1">But broke it to the hope.”<br /></span> -</div></div> - -<p class="nind">As Veneno was without friends or money, wherewith Gines Passamonte -anointed the palm of justice and got free, the sentence was of course -ordered to be carried into effect. The courts of law and the prisons of -Seville are situated near the Plaça San Francisco, which has always been -the site of public executions. On the day previous nothing indicates the -scene which will take place on the following morning; everything -connected with this ceremony of death is viewed with horror by -Spaniards, not from that abstract abhorrence of shedding blood which -among other nations induces the lower orders to detest the completer of -judicial sentences, as the smaller feathered tribes do the larger birds -of prey, but from ancient Oriental prejudices of pollution, and because -all actually employed in the operation are accounted infamous, and lose -their caste, and purity of blood. Even the gloomy scaffolding is erected -in the night by unseen, unknown hands, and rises from the earth like a -fungus work of darkness, to make the day hideous and shock the awakening -eye of Seville. When the criminal is of noble blood the platform, which -in ordinary cases is composed of mere carpenter’s work, is covered with -black baize. The operation of hanging, among so unmechanical a people, -with no improved patent invisible drop, used to be conducted in a cruel -and clumsy manner. The wretched culprits were dragged up the steps of -the ladder by the executioner, who then mounted on their shoulders and -threw himself off with his victims, and, while both swung backwards and -forwards in the air, was busied, with spider-like fingers, in fumbling -about the<a name="page_208" id="page_208"></a> neck of the sufferers, until being satisfied that life was -extinct he let himself down to the ground by the bodies. Execution by -hanging was, however, graciously abolished by Ferdinand VII., the -beloved; this father of his people determined that the future death for -civil offences should be strangulation,—a mode of removing to a better -world those of his children who deserved it, which is certainly more in -accordance with the Oriental bow-string.</p> - -<div class="sidenote">EXECUTION OF A ROBBER.</div> - -<p>Veneno was placed, as is usual, the day before his execution, “<i>en -capilla</i>” in a chapel or cell set apart for the condemned, where the -last comforts of religion are administered. This was a small room in the -prison, and the most melancholy in that dwelling of woe, for such -indeed, as Cervantes from sad experience knew, and described a Spanish -prison to be, it still is. An iron grating formed the partition of the -corridor, which led to the chamber. This passage was crowded with -members of a charitable brotherhood, who were collecting alms from the -visitors, to be expended in masses for the eternal repose of the soul of -the criminal. There were groups of officers, and of portly Franciscan -friars smoking their cigars and looking carefully from time to time into -the amount of the contributions, which were to benefit their bodies, -quite as much as the soul of the condemned. The levity of those -assembled without formed, meantime, a heartless contrast with the gloom -and horror of the melancholy interior. A small door opened into the -cell, over which might well be inscribed the awful words of Dante—</p> - -<div class="poem"><div class="stanza"> -<span class="i0">“Lasciate ogni speranza, voi ch’entrate!”<br /></span> -</div></div> - -<div class="sidenote">EXECUTION OF A ROBBER.</div> - -<p class="nind">At the head of this room was placed a table, with a crucifix, an image -of the Virgin, and two wax tapers, near which stood a silent sentinel -with a drawn sword; another soldier was stationed at the door, with a -fixed bayonet. In a corner of this darkened apartment was the pallet of -Veneno; he was lying curled up like a snake, with a striped coverlet -(the Spanish <i>manta</i>) drawn closely over his mouth, leaving visible only -a head of matted locks, a glistening dark eye, rolling restlessly out of -the white socket. On being approached he sprung up and seated himself on -a stool: he was almost naked; a chaplet of beads hung across his exposed -breast, and contrasted with the iron chains around his<a name="page_209" id="page_209"></a> -limbs:—Superstition had riveted her fetters at his birth, and the Law -her manacles at his death. The expression of his face, though low and -vulgar, was one which once seen is not easily forgotten,—a slouching -look of more than ordinary guilt: his sallow complexion appeared more -cadaverous in the uncertain light, and was heightened by a black, -unshorn beard, growing vigorously on a half-dead countenance. He -appeared to be reconciled to his fate, and repeated a few sentences, the -teaching of the monks, as by rote: his situation was probably more -painful to the spectator than to himself—an indifference to death, -arising rather from an ignorance of its dreadful import, than from high -moral courage: he was the Bernardine of Shakspere, “a man that -apprehends death no more dreadfully than a drunken sleep, careless, -reckless, and fearless of what’s past, present, and to come, insensible -of mortality, and desperately mortal.”</p> - -<div class="sidenote">EXECUTION OF A ROBBER.</div> - -<p>Next morning the triple tiers of the old balconies, roofs, and whole -area of the Moorish and most picturesque square were crowded by the -lower orders; the men wrapped up in their cloaks—(it was a December -morning)—the women in their mantillas, many with young children in -their arms, brought in the beginning of life to witness its conclusion. -The better classes not only absent themselves from these executions, but -avoid any allusion to the subject as derogatory to European -civilization; the humbler ranks, who hold the conventions of society -very cheap, give loose to their morbid curiosity to behold scenes of -terror, which operates powerfully on the women, who seem impelled -irresistibly to witness sights the most repugnant to their nature, and -to behold sufferings which they would most dread to undergo; they, like -children, are the great lovers of the horrible, whether in a tale or in -dreadful reality; to the men it was as a tragedy, where the last scene -is death—death which rivets the attention of all, who sooner or later -must enact the same sad part.<a name="FNanchor_10_10" id="FNanchor_10_10"></a><a href="#Footnote_10_10" class="fnanchor">[10]</a> They desire to see how the criminal -will conduct himself; they sympathise with him if he displays coolness -and courage, and despise him on the least symptom of unmanliness. An -open square was then formed about the scaffold by lines of soldiers -drawn up, into which the officers and clergy were admitted.<a name="page_210" id="page_210"></a> As the -fatal hour drew nigh, the increasing impatience of the multitude began -to vent itself in complaints of how slowly the time passed—that time of -no value to them, but of such precious import to him, whose very moments -were numbered.</p> - -<div class="sidenote">EXECUTION OF A ROBBER.</div> - -<p>When at length the cathedral clock tolled out the fatal hour, a -universal stir of tiptoe expectation took place, a pushing forward to -get the best situations. Still ten minutes had to elapse, for the clock -of the tribunal is purposely set so much later than that of the -cathedral, in order to afford the utmost possible chance of a reprieve. -When that clock too had rung out its knell, all eyes were turned to the -prison-door, from whence the miserable man came forth, attended by some -Franciscans. He had chosen that order to assist at his dying moments, a -privilege always left to the criminal. He was clad in a coarse yellow -baize gown, the colour which denotes the crime of murder, and is -appropriated always to Judas Iscariot in Spanish paintings. He walked -slowly on his last journey, half supported by those around him, and -stopping often, ostensibly to kiss the crucifix held before him by a -friar, but rather to prolong existence—sweet life!—even yet a moment. -When he arrived reluctantly at the scaffold, he knelt down on the steps, -the threshold of death;—the reverend attendants covered him over with -their blue robes—his dying confession was listened to unseen. He then -mounted the platform attended by a single friar; addressed the crowd in -broken sentences, with a gasping breath—told them that he died -repentant, that he was justly punished, and that he forgave his -executioner. “Mi delito me mata, y no <i>ese hombre</i>,”—my offence puts me -to death, and not <i>this fellow</i>; as “Ese hombre” is a contemptuous -expression, and implies insult, the ruling feeling of the Spaniard was -displayed in death against the degraded functionary. The criminal then -exclaimed, “<i>Viva la fé! viva la religion! viva el rey! viva el nombre -de Jesus!</i>” All of which met no echo from those who heard him. His dying -cry was “<i>Viva la Virgen Santisima!</i>” at these words the devotion to the -goddess of Spain burst forth in one general acclamation, “<i>Viva la -Santisima!</i>” So strong is their feeling towards the Virgin, and so -lukewarm their comparative indifference towards their king, their faith, -and their Saviour! Meanwhile the executioner, a young man dressed in -black, was busied in the pre<a name="page_211" id="page_211"></a>parations for death. The fatal instrument -is simple: the culprit is placed on a rude seat; his back leans against -a strong upright post, to which an iron collar is attached, enclosing -his neck, and so contrived as to be drawn home to the post by turning a -powerful screw. The executioner bound so tightly the naked legs and arms -of Veneno, that they swelled and became black—a precaution not unwise, -as the father of this functionary had been killed in the act of -executing a struggling criminal. The priest who attended Veneno was a -bloated, corpulent man, more occupied in shading the sun from his own -face, than in his ghostly office; the robber sat with a writhing look of -agony, grinding his clenched teeth. When all was ready, the executioner -took the lever of the screw in both hands, gathered himself up for a -strong muscular effort, and, at the moment of a preconcerted signal, -drew the iron collar tight, while an attendant flung a black -handkerchief over the face—a convulsive pressure of the hands and a -heaving of the chest were the only visible signs of the passing of the -robber’s spirit. After a pause of a few moments, the executioner -cautiously peeped under the handkerchief, and after having given another -turn to the screw, lifted it off, folded it up, carefully put it into -his pocket, and then proceeded to light a cigar</p> - -<div class="poem"><div class="stanza"> -<span class="i0">——— “with that air of satisfaction<br /></span> -<span class="i0">Which good men wear who’ve done a virtuous action.”<br /></span> -</div></div> - -<div class="sidenote">EXECUTION OF A ROBBER.</div> - -<p class="nind">The face of the dead man was slightly convulsed, the mouth open, the -eye-balls turned into their sockets from the wrench. A black bier, with -two lanterns fixed on staves, and a crucifix, was now set down before -the scaffold—also a small table and a dish, into which alms were again -collected, to be paid to the priests who sang masses for his soul. The -mob having discussed his crimes, abused the authorities and judges, and -criticised the manner of the new executioner (it was his maiden effort), -began slowly to disperse, to the great content of the neighbouring -silversmiths, who ventured to open their closed shutters, having -hitherto placed more confidence in bolts and bars, than in the moral -example presented to the spectators. The body remained on the scaffold -till the afternoon; it was then thrown into a scavenger’s cart, and led -by the “<i>pregonero</i>,” the common crier,<a name="page_212" id="page_212"></a> beyond the jurisdiction of the -city, to a square platform called “<i>La mesa del Rey</i>,” the king’s table, -where the bodies of the executed are quartered and cut up—“a pretty -dish to set before a king.” Here the carcase was hewed and hacked into -pieces by the bungling executioner and his attendants, with that -inimitable defiance of anatomy for which they and Spanish surgeons are -equally renowned—</p> - -<div class="poem"><div class="stanza"> -<span class="i0">“Le gambe di lui gettaron in una fossa;<br /></span> -<span class="i1">Il Diavol ebbe l’alma, i lupi l’ossa.”<br /></span> -</div><div class="stanza"> -<span class="i0">“The legs of the robber were thrown in a hole,<br /></span> -<span class="i1">The wolves got his bones, the devil his soul.”<br /></span> -</div></div> - -<p><a name="page_213" id="page_213"></a></p> - -<div class="sidenote">THE SPANISH DOCTOR.</div> - -<h2><a name="CHAPTER_XVII" id="CHAPTER_XVII"></a>CHAPTER XVII.</h2> - -<div class="blockquot"><p class="hang">The Spanish Doctor: his Social Position—Medical -Abuses—Hospitals—Medical Education—Lunatic Asylums—Foundling -Hospital of Seville—Medical Pretensions—Dissection—Family -Physician—Consultations—Medical -Costume—Prescriptions—Druggists—Snake Broth—Salve for -Knife-cuts.</p></div> - -<p class="nind">T<small>HE</small> transition from the Spanish <i>ventero</i> to the <i>ladron</i> was easy, nor -is that from the robbers to the doctors of Spain difficult; the former -at least offer a polite alternative, they demand “your money or your -life,” while the latter in most cases take both; yet these able -practitioners, from being less picturesque in costume, and more -undramatic in operations, do not enjoy so brilliant a European -reputation as the bandits. Again, while our critical monitors cry -thieves on every road of the Peninsula, no friendly warning is given -against the <i>Sangrado</i>, whose aspect is more deadly than the <i>coup de -soleil</i> of a Castilian sun: woe waits the wayfarer who falls into his -hands; the patient cannot be too quick in ordering the measure to be -taken of his coffin, or, as Spaniards say, of his tombstone, which last -article is shadowed out by the first feeling of the invalid’s -pulse—<i>tomar el pulso, es prognosticar al enfermo la loza</i>. It was -probably from a knowledge of this contingent remainder, that Monsieur -Orfila went, or was sent, from Paris to Madrid, about the time of the -Montpensier marriage with the <i>Infanta</i>, in the hopes of rescuing her -elder and reigning sister, the “innocent” Isabel, from the fatal native -lancets—a well-meant interference of the foreigner, by the way, which -the Spanish faculty resented and rejected to a man; nor were the guarded -suggestions of this eminent <i>toxicologiste</i>, or investigator of poisons, -with regard to the administration of medicines and dispensaries, -received so thankfully as they deserved.</p> - -<div class="sidenote">THE SPANISH DOCTOR.</div> - -<p>However magnificently endowed in former times were the hospitals and -almshouses of Spain, the provision now made for<a name="page_214" id="page_214"></a> poor and ailing -humanity is very inadequate. The revenues were first embezzled by the -managers, and since have almost been swept away. Trustees for pious and -charitable uses are defenceless against armed avarice and appropriation -in office; and being <i>corporate</i> bodies, they want the sacredness of -<i>private</i> interests, which every one is anxious to defend. Hence the -greedy minion Godoy began the spoliation, by seizing the funds, and -giving in lieu government securities, which of course turned out to be -worthless. Then ensued the French invasion, and the confiscation of -military despots. Civil war has done the rest; and now that the convents -are suppressed, the deficiency is more evident, for in the remoter -country districts the monks bestowed relief to the poor, and provided -medicines for the sick. With few exceptions, the hospitals, the <i>Casas -de Misericordia</i>, or houses for the destitute, are far from being well -conducted in Spain, while those destined for lunatics, and for exposed -children, notwithstanding recent improvements, do little credit to -science and humanity.</p> - -<div class="sidenote">HIS SOCIAL POSITION.</div> - -<p>The base, brutal, and bloody <i>Sangrados</i> of Spain have long been the -butts of foreign and domestic novelists, who spoke many a true word in -their jests. The common expression of the people in regard to the busy -mortality of their patients, is, that they die like bugs, <i>mueren como -chinches</i>. This recklessness of life, this inattention to human -suffering, and backwardness in curative science, is very Oriental; for, -however science may have set westward from the East, the arts of -medicine and surgery have not. There, as in Spain, they have long been -subordinate, and the professors held to be of a low caste—a fatal bar -in the Peninsula, where the point of personal honour is so nice, and men -will die rather than submit to conventional degradations. The surgeon of -the Spanish Moors was frequently a despised and detested Jew, which -would create a traditionary loathing of the calling. The physician was -of somewhat a higher caste; but he, like the botanist and chemist, was -rather to be met with among the Infidels than the Christians. Thus -Sancho the Fat was obliged to go in person to Cordova in search of good -advice. And still in Spain, as in the East, all whose profession is to -put living creatures to death, are socially almost excommunicated; the -butcher, bullfighter, and public executioner<a name="page_215" id="page_215"></a> for example. Here the -soldier who sabres, takes the highest rank, and he who cures, the -lowest; here the M.D.’s, whom the infallible Pope consults and the -autocrat king obeys, are admitted only into the <i>sick</i> rooms of good -company, which, when in rude health, shuts on them the door of their -saloons; but the excluded take their revenge on those who morally cut -them, and all Spaniards are very dangerous with the knife, and more -particularly if surgeons. Madrid is indeed the court of death, and the -necrology of the Escorial furnishes the surest evidence of this fact in -the premature decease of royalty, which may be expected to have the best -advice and aid, both medical and theologico-therapeutical, that the -capital can afford; but brief is the royal span, especially in the case -of females and <i>infantes</i>, and the <i>result</i> is undeniable in these -statistics of death; the cause lies between the climate and the doctor, -who, as they aid the other, may fairly be left to settle the question of -relative excellence between each other.</p> - -<div class="sidenote">THE SPANISH DOCTOR.</div> - -<p>The Spanish medical man is shunned, not only from ancient prejudices, -and because he is dangerous like a rattle-snake, but from jealousies -that churchmen entertain against a rival profession, which, if well -received, might come in for some share of the legacies and -power-conferring secrets, which are obtained easily at deathbeds, when -mind and body are deprived of strength. Again, a Spanish surgeon and a -Spanish confessor take different views of a patient; one only wishes, or -ought to wish, to preserve him in this world, the other in the -next,—neither probably in their hearts having much opinion of the -remedies adopted by each other: the spiritual practice changes not, for -novelty itself, a heresy in religion, is not favourably beheld in -anything else. Thus the universities, governed by ecclesiastics, -persuaded the poor bigot Philip III. to pass a law prohibiting the study -of any <i>new</i> system of medicine, and <i>requiring</i> Galen, Hippocrates, and -Avicenna. Dons and men for whom the sun still continued to stand still, -scouted the exact sciences and experimental philosophy as dangerous -innovations, which, they said, made every medical man a Tiberius, who, -because he was fond of mathematics where strict demonstration is -necessary, was rather negligent in his religious respect for the gods -and goddesses of the Pantheon; and so, in 1830, they scared the timid -Ferdinand VII. (whose resemblance to Tiberius had nothing to do with<a name="page_216" id="page_216"></a> -Euclid) by telling him that the schools of medicine created -materialists, heretics, citizen-kings, chartists, barricadoers, and -revolutionists. Thereupon the beloved monarch shut up the lecture rooms -forthwith, opening, it is true, by way of compensation, a tauromachian -university;—men indeed might be mangled, but bulls were to be -mercifully put out of their misery, secundum artem, and with the honours -of science.</p> - -<div class="sidenote">MEDICAL PRACTICE.</div> - -<p>This low social position is very classical: the physicians of Rome, -chiefly <i>liberti</i>, freed slaves, were only made citizens by Cæsar, who -wished to <i>conciliate</i> these ministers of the fatal sisters when the -capital was wanting in population after extreme emigrations—an act of -favour which may cut two ways; thus Adrian VI. (tutor to the Spanish -Charles V.) approved of there being 500 medical practitioners in the -Eternal City, because otherwise “the <i>multitude</i> of living beings would -eat each other up.” However, when his turn came to be diminished, the -grateful people serenaded his surgeon, as the “deliverer of the -country.” In our days, there was only one medical man admitted by the -Seville <i>sangre su</i>, the best or noblest set (whose blood is held to be -blue, of which more anon) when in rude and antiphlebotomical health; and -every stranger was informed apologetically by the exclusive Amphitryons -that the M.D. was <i>de casa conocida</i>, or born of a good family; thus his -social introduction was owing to personal, not professional -qualifications. And while adventurers of every kind are betitled, the -most prodigal dispenser of Spanish honours never dreams of making his -doctor even a <i>titulado</i>, a rank somewhat higher than a pair de France, -and lower than a medical baronetage in England. This aristocratical ban -has confined doctors much to each other’s society, which, as they never -take each other’s physic, is neither unpleasant nor dangerous. At -Seville the medical <i>tertulia</i>, club or meeting, was appropriately held -at the apothecary’s shop of <i>Campelos</i>, and a sable <i>junta</i> or -consultation it was, of birds of bad omen, who croaked over the general -health with which the city was afflicted, praying, like Sangrado in ‘Gil -Blas,’ that by the blessing of Providence much sickness might speedily -ensue. The crowded or deserted state of this rookery was the surest -evidence of the hygeian condition of the fair capital of Bætica, and one -which, when we lived there, we have often anxiously inspected; for, -whatever be<a name="page_217" id="page_217"></a> the pleasantries of those in insolent health, when sickness -brings in the doctor, all joking is at an end; then he is made much of -even in Spain, from a choice of evils, and for fear of the confessor and -undertaker.</p> - -<p>The poor in no countries have much predilection for the hospital; and in -Spain, in addition to pride, which everywhere keeps many silly sick out -of admirably-conducted asylums, here a well-grounded fear deters the -patient, who prefers to die a <i>natural</i> death. Again, from their being -poor, the necessity of their living at all, is less evident to the -managers than to the sufferers; as, say the Malthusians, there is no -place vacant at Nature’s <i>table d’hôte</i> to those who cannot pay, so bed -and board are not pressed on Spanish applicants, by the hospital -committee; an admitted patient’s death saves trouble and expense, -neither of which are popular in a land where cash is scarce, and a love -for hard work not prevalent, where a sound man is worth little, and a -sick one still less; nor is every doctor always popular for working -cures, as could be exemplified in sundry cases of Spanish wives and -heirs in general; therefore in the hospitals of the Peninsula, if only -half die, it is thought great luck: the dead, moreover, tell no tales, -and the living sing praises for their miraculous escape. <i>El medico -lleva la plata, pero Dios es que sana!</i>—God works the cure, the doctor -sacks the fee! Meanwhile the sextons are busy and merry, as those in -Hamlet, and as indeed all gravediggers are, when they have a job on hand -that will be paid for; deeply do they dig into the silent earth, that -bourn from whence no travellers return to blab. They sing and jest, -while dust is heaped on dust, and the <i>corpus delicti</i> covered, and with -it the blunders of the <i>medico</i>; thus all parties, the deceased -excepted, are well satisfied; the man with the lancet is content that -disagreeable evidence should be put out of sight, the fellow-labourer -with the spade is thankful that constant means of living should be -afforded to him; and when the funeral is over, both carry out the -proverbial practice of Peninsular survivors: <i>Los muertos en la huesa, y -los vivos á la mesa</i>, the dead in their grave, the quick to their -dinner.</p> - -<div class="sidenote">MEDICAL ABUSES.</div> - -<p>But at no period were Spaniards careful even of their own lives, and -much less of those of others, being a people of untender bowels. -Familiarity with pain blunts much of the finer feelings of<a name="page_218" id="page_218"></a> persons -employed even in our hospitals, for those who live by the dead have only -an undertaker’s sympathy for the living, and are as dull to the poetry -of innocent health, as Mr. Giblet is to a sportive house-fed lamb. -Matters are not improved in Spain, where the wounds, blood, and -slaughterings of the pastime bull-fight, the <i>mueran</i> or death -mob-cries, and <i>pasele por las armas</i>, the shoot him on the spot, the -Draco and Durango decrees, and practices of all in power, educate all -sexes to indifference to blood; thus the fatal knife-stab or surgeon’s -cut are viewed as <i>cosas de España</i> and things of course. The philosophy -of the general indifference to life in Spain, which almost amounts to -Oriental fatalism, in the number of executions and general resignation -to bloodshed, arises partly from life among the many being at best but a -struggle for existence; thus in setting it in the cast, the player only -stakes coppers, and when one is removed, there is somewhat less -difficulty for survivors; hence every one is for himself and for to-day; -après moi le déluge, <i>el ultimo mono se ahoga</i>, the last monkey is -drowned, or as we say, the devil takes the hindmost.</p> - -<div class="sidenote">MEDICAL ABUSES.</div> - -<p>The neglect of well-supported, well-regulated hospitals, has recoiled on -the Spaniards. The rising profession are deprived of the advantages of -<i>walking</i> them, and thus beholding every nice difficulty solved by -experienced masters. Recently some efforts have been made in large -towns, especially on the coasts, to introduce reforms and foreign -ameliorations; but official jobbing and ignorant routine are still among -the diseases that are <i>not</i> cured in Spain. In 1811, when the English -army was at Cadiz, a physician, named Villarino, urged by some of our -indignant surgeons, brought the disgraceful condition of Spanish -hospitals before the Cortes. A commission was appointed, and their sad -report, still extant, details how the funds, food, wine, &c., destined -for the patients were consumed by the managers and their subalterns. The -results were such as might be expected; the authorities held together, -and persecuted Villarino as a <i>revolucionario</i>, or reformer, and -succeeded in disgracing him. The superintendent of this establishment -was the notorious Lozano de Torres, who starved the English army after -Talavera, and was “a thief and a liar,” in the words of the Duke. The -Regency, after this very exposure of his hospital, promoted him<a name="page_219" id="page_219"></a> to the -civil government of Old Castile; and Ferdinand VII., in 1817, made him -Minister of Justice.</p> - -<p>As buildings, the hospitals are generally very large; but the space is -as thinly tenanted as the unpeopled wastes of Spain. In England wards -are wanting for patients—in Spain, patients for wards. The names of -some of the greatest hospitals are happily chosen; that of Seville, for -instance, is called <i>La Sangre</i>, the blood, or <i>Las Cinco Llagas</i>, the -five bleeding wounds of our Saviour, which are sculptured over the -portal like bunches of grapes. Blood is an ominous name for this house -and home of <i>Sangrado</i>, where the lancet, like the Spanish knife, gives -no quarter. In instruments of life and death, this establishment -resembled a Spanish arsenal, being wanting in everything at the critical -moment; its dispensary, as in the shop of Shakspere’s apothecary, -presented a beggarly account of empty pill-boxes, while as to a visiting -Brodie, the part of that Hamlet was left out. The grand hospital at -Madrid is called <i>el general</i>, the General, and the medical assistance -is akin to the military co-operation of such Spanish generals as Lapeña -and Venegas, who in the moment of need left Graham at Barrosa, and the -Duke at Talavera, without a shadow of aid. There is nothing new in this, -if the old proverb tells truth, <i>socorros de España, o tarde o nunca</i>; -Spanish succours arrive late or never. In cases of battle, war, and -sudden death as in peace, the professional men, military or medical, are -apt to assist in the meaning of the French word <i>assister</i>, which -signifies to be present without taking any part in what is going on. And -this applies, where knocks on the head are concerned, not to the medical -men only, but to the universal Spanish nation; when any one is stabbed -in the streets, he will infallibly bleed to death, unless the -authorities arrive in time to pick him up, and to bind up his wounds: -every one else—Englishmen excepted, we describe things -witnessed—passes on the other side; not from any fear at the sight of -blood, nor abhorrence of murder, but from the dread which every Spaniard -feels at the very idea of getting entangled in the meshes of <i>La -Justicia</i>, whose ministers lay hold of all who interfere or are near the -body as principals or witnesses, and Spanish justice, if once it gets a -man into its fangs, never lets him go until drained of his last -farthing.</p> - -<div class="sidenote">COLLEGE OF SAN CARLOS.</div> - -<p>The schools and hospitals, especially in the inland remote cities,<a name="page_220" id="page_220"></a> are -very deficient in all improved mechanical appliances and modern -discoveries, and the few which are to be met with are mostly of French -and second-rate manufacture. It is much the same with their medical -treatises and technical works; all is a copy, and a bad one; it has been -found to be much easier to translate and borrow, than to invent; -therefore, as in modern art and literature, there is little originality -in Spanish medicine. It is chiefly a veneering of other men’s ideas, or -an adaptation of ancient and Moorish science. Most of their terms of -medicinal art, as well as of drugs, <i>jalea</i>, <i>elixir</i>, <i>jarave</i>, <i>rob</i>, -<i>sorbete</i>, <i>julepe</i>, &c., are purely Arabic, and indicate the sources -from whence the knowledge was obtained, for there is no surer historical -test than language of the origin from whence the knowledge of the -science was derived with its phraseology; and whenever Spaniards depart -from the daring ways of their ancestors, it is to adopt a timid French -system. The few additions to their medical libraries are translations -from their neighbours, just as the scanty materia medica in their -apothecaries’ shops is rendered more dangerous and ineffective by quack -nostrums from Paris. It is a serious misfortune to sanative science in -the Peninsula, that all that is known of the works of thoughtful, -careful Germany, of practical, decided England, is passed through the -unfair, inaccurate alembic of French translation; thus the original -becomes doubly deteriorated, and the sacred cosmopolitan cause of truth -and fact is too often sacrificed to the Gallic mania of suppressing -both, for the honour of their own country. Can it be wondered, -therefore, that the acquaintance of the Spanish faculty with modern -works, inventions, and operations is very limited, or that their -text-books and authorities should too often be still Galen, Celsus, -Hippocrates, and Boerhaave? The names of Hunter, Harvey, and Astley -Cooper, are scarcely more known among their M.D.’s than the last -discoveries of Herschel; the light of such distant planets has not had -time to arrive.</p> - -<div class="sidenote">LUNATIC ASYLUMS.</div> - -<p>To this day the <i>Colegio de San Carlos</i>, or the College of Surgeons at -Madrid, relies much on teaching the obstetric art by means of wax -preparations; but learning a trade on paper is not confined in Spain to -medical students; the great naval school at Seville is dedicated to San -Telmo, who, uniting in himself the attributes of the ancient Castor and -Pollux, appears<a name="page_221" id="page_221"></a> in storms at the mast-head in the form of lights to -rescue seamen. Hence, whenever it comes on to blow, the pious crews of -Spanish crafts fall on their knees, and depend on this marine Hercules, -instead of taking in sail, and putting the helm up. Our tars, who love -the sea <i>propter se</i>, for better for worse, having no San Telmo to help -them in foul weather (although the somewhat irreverent gunner of the -Victory did call him of Trafalgar Saint Nelson), go to work and perform -the miracle themselves—<i>aide toi, et le ciel t’aidera</i>. In our time, -the middies in this college were taught navigation in a room, from a -small model of a three-decker placed on a large table; and thus at least -they were not exposed to sea-sickness. The Infant Antonio, Lord High -Admiral of Spain, was walking in the Retiro gardens near the pond, when -it was proposed to cross in a boat; he declined, saying, “Since I sailed -from Naples to Spain I have never ventured on water.” But, in this and -some other matters, things are managed differently on the Thames and the -Bætis. Thus, near Greenwich Hospital, a floating frigate, large as life, -is the school of young chips of old blocks, who every day behold in the -veterans of Cape St. Vincent and Trafalgar living examples of having -“done their duty.” The evidence of former victories thus becomes a -guarantee for the realization of their young hopes, and the future is -assured by the past.</p> - -<div class="sidenote">LUNATIC ASYLUMS.</div> - -<p>Next to the barracks, prisons, arsenals, and fortresses of Spain, the -establishments for suffering mortality are the least worth seeing, and -are the most to be avoided by wise travellers, who can indulge in much -better specimens at home. This assertion will be better understood by a -sketch or two taken on the spot a few years ago. The so-called asylums -for lunatics are termed in Spanish hospitales de <i>locos</i>, a word derived -from the Arabic, <i>locao</i>, mad; they, like the cognate Morostans -(<span title="Greek: môroc">μωρος</span>) of Cairo, were generally so mismanaged, that the directors -appeared to be only desirous of obtaining admission themselves. Insanity -seemed to derange both the intellects of the patients and to harden the -bowels of their attendants, while the usual misappropriation of the -scanty funds produced a truly reckless, makeshift, wretched result. -There was no attempt at <i>classification</i>, which indeed is no thing of -Spain. The inmates were crowded together,—the monomaniac, the insane, -the raving mad,—in one con<a name="page_222" id="page_222"></a>fusion of dirt and misery, where they howled -at each other, chained like wild beasts, and were treated even worse -than criminals, for the passions of the most outrageous were infuriated -by the savage lash. There was not even a curtain to conceal the sad -necessities of these human beings, then reduced to animals: everything -was public even unto death, whose last groan was mingled with the -frantic laugh of the surviving spectators. In some rare cases the bodies -of those whose minds are a void, were confined in solitary cells, with -no other companions save affliction. Of these, many, when first sent -there by friends and relations to be put out of the way, were <i>not</i> mad, -soon indeed to become so, as solitude, sorrow, and the iron entered -their brain. These establishments, which the natives ought to hide in -shame, were usually among the first lions which they forced on the -stranger, and especially on the Englishman, since, holding our worthy -countrymen to be all <i>locos</i>, they naturally imagined that they would be -quite at home among the inmates.</p> - -<p>They, in common with many others on the Continent, entertain a notion -that all Britons bold have a bee in their bonnet; they think so on many, -and perhaps not always unreasonable, grounds. They see them preferring -English ways, sayings, and doings, to their own, which of itself appears -to a Spaniard, as to a Frenchman, to be downright insanity. Then our -countrymen tell the truth in bulletins, use towels, and remove -superfluous hairs daily. And letting alone other minor exhibitions of -eccentricity, are not the natives of England, Scotland, and Ireland -guilty of three actions, any one of which would qualify for Bedlam if -the Lord Chancellor were to issue a writ <i>de lunatico -inquiriendo</i>?—have they not bled for Spain, in purse and person, on the -battlefield, on the railroad, in the Stock Exchange?—</p> - -<div class="poem"><div class="stanza"> -<span class="i0">“Oh tribus Antyceris caput insanabile!”<br /></span> -</div></div> - -<div class="sidenote">FOUNDLING HOSPITALS.</div> - -<p>To return, however, to Spanish madmen and their hospitals, the sight was -a sad one, and alike disgraceful to the sane, and degrading to the -insane native. The wild maniacs implored a “loan” from the foreigner, -for from their own countrymen they had received a stone. A sort of -madness is indeed seldom wanting to the frantic energy and intense -eagerness of all Spanish mendicants; and here, albeit the reasoning -faculties were gone,<a name="page_223" id="page_223"></a> the national propensity to beg and borrow survived -the wreck of intellect, and in fact it was and is the indestructible -“common sense” of the country.</p> - -<p>There was generally some particular patient whose aggravated misery made -him or her the especial object of cruel curiosity. Thus, at Toledo, in -1843, the <i>keepers</i> (fit wild beast term) always conducted strangers to -the cage or den of the wife of a celebrated Captain-General and -first-rate fusilier of Catalonia, an officer superior in power to our -Lord-Lieutenant of Ireland. She was permitted to wallow in naked filth, -and be made a public show. The Moors, at least, do not confine their -harmless female maniacs, who wander naked through the streets, while the -men are honoured as saints, whose minds are supposed to be wandering in -heaven. The old Iberian doctors, according to Pliny, professed to cure -madness with the herb <i>vettonica</i>, and hydrophobia with decoction of the -<i>cynorrhodon</i> or dog-rose-water, as being doubly unpalateable to the -rabid canine species. The modern Spaniards seemed only to desire, by -ignorance and ill-usage, to darken any lucid interval into one raving -uniformity.</p> - -<p>The foundling hospitals were, when we last examined them, scarcely -better managed than the lunatic asylums; they are called <i>casas de -espositos</i>, houses of the exposed—or <i>la Cuna</i>, the cradle, as if they -were the cradle, not the coffin, of miserable infants. Most large cities -in Spain have one of these receptacles; the principal being in the -Levitical towns, and the natural fruit of a rich celibate clergy, both -regular and secular. The <i>Cuna</i> in our time might have been defined as a -place where innocents were massacred, and natural children deserted by -their unnatural parents were provided for by being slowly starved. These -hospitals were first founded at Milan in 787, by a priest named Datheus. -That of Seville, which we will describe, was established by the clergy -of the cathedral, and was managed by twelve directors, six lay and six -clerical; few, however, attended or contributed save in subjects. The -hospital is situate in the <i>Calle de la Cuna</i>; near an aperture left for -charitable donations, is a marble tablet with this verse from the -Psalms, inscribed in Latin, “When my father and mother forsake me, then -the Lord will take me in.”</p> - -<div class="sidenote">FOUNDLING HOSPITAL AT SEVILLE.</div> - -<p>A wicket door is pierced in the wall, which opens on being<a name="page_224" id="page_224"></a> tapped to -admit the sinless children of sin; and a nurse sits up at night to -receive those exposed by parents who hide their guilt in darkness.</p> - -<div class="poem"><div class="stanza"> -<span class="i0">“Toi que l’amour fit par un crime,<br /></span> -<span class="i2">Et que l’amour défait par un crime à son tour,<br /></span> -<span class="i2">Funeste ouvrage de l’amour,<br /></span> -<span class="i1">De l’amour funeste victime.”<br /></span> -</div></div> - -<p class="nind">Some of the babies are already dying, and are put in here in order to -avoid the expense of a funeral; others are almost naked, while a few are -well supplied with linen and necessaries. These latter are the offspring -of the better classes, by whom a temporary concealment is desired. With -such the most affecting letters are left, praying the nurses to take -more than usual care of a child which will surely be one day reclaimed, -and a mark or ornament is usually fastened to the infant, in order that -it may be identified hereafter, if called for, and such were the precise -customs in antiquity. Every particular regarding every exposed babe is -registered in a book, which is a sad record of human crime and remorse.</p> - -<p>Those children which are afterwards reclaimed, pay about sixpence for -every day during which the hospital has maintained them; but little -attention is paid to the appeals for particular care, or to the promise -of redemption, for Spaniards seldom trust each other. Unless some name -is sent with it, the child is baptized with one given by the matron, and -it usually is that of the saint of the day of its admission. The number -was very great, and increased with increasing poverty, while the funds -destined to support the charges decreased from the same cause. There is -a certain and great influx nine months after the Holy week and -Christmas, when the whole city, male and female, pass the night in -kneeling to relics and images, &c.; accordingly nine months afterwards, -in January and November, the daily numbers often exceed the usual -average by fifteen to twenty.</p> - -<div class="sidenote">FOUNDLING HOSPITAL AT SEVILLE.</div> - -<p>There is always a supply of wet nurses at the <i>Cuna</i>, but they are -generally such as from bad character cannot obtain situations in private -families; the usual allotment was three children to one nurse. -Sometimes, when a respectable woman is looking out for a place as -wet-nurse, and is anxious not to lose her breast of milk, she goes, in -the meanwhile, to the <i>Cuna</i>, when<a name="page_225" id="page_225"></a> the poor child who draws it off -plumps up a little, and then, when the supply is withdrawn, withers and -dies. The appointed nurses dole out their milk, not according to the -wants of the infants, but to make it do for their number. Some few are -farmed out to poor mothers who have lost their own babe; they receive -about eight shillings a month, and these are the children which have the -best chance of surviving, for no woman who has been a mother, and has -given suck, will willingly, when left alone, let an infant die. The -nurses of the <i>Cuna</i> were familiar with starvation, and even if their -milk of human kindness were not dried up or soured, they have not the -means of satisfying their hungry number. The proportion who died was -frightful; it was indeed an organized system of infanticide. Death is a -mercy to the child, and a saving to the establishment; a grown-up man’s -life never was worth much in Spain, much less that of a deserted baby. -The exposure of children to immediate death by the Greeks and Romans, -was a trifle less cruel than the protracted dying in these Spanish -charnel-houses. This <i>Cuna</i>, when last we visited it, was managed by an -inferior priest, who, a true Spanish unjust steward, misapplied the -funds. He became rich, like Gil Blas’s overseer at Valladolid, by taking -care of the property of the poor and fatherless; his well-garnished -quarters and portly self were in strange contrast with the condition of -his wasted charges. Of these, the sick and dying were separated from the -healthy; the former were placed in a large room, once the saloon of -state, whose gilded roof and fair proportions mocked the present misery. -The infants were laid in rows on dirty mattresses along on the floor, -and were left unheeded and unattended. Their large heads, shrivelled -necks, hollow eyes, and wax wan figures, were shadowed with coming -death. Called into existence by no wish or fault of their own, their -brief span was run out ere begun, while their mother was far away -exclaiming, “When I have sufficiently wept for his birth, I will weep -for his death.”</p> - -<div class="sidenote">FOUNDLING HOSPITAL AT SEVILLE.</div> - -<p>Those who were more healthy lay paired in cradles arranged along a vast -room; but famine was in their cheeks, need starved in their eyes, and -their shrill cry pained the ear on passing the threshold; from their -being underfed, they were restless and ever moaning. Their existence has -indeed begun with a sob, with <i>El primer sollozo de la Cuna</i>, the first -sigh of the cradle, as Rioja<a name="page_226" id="page_226"></a> says, but all cry when entering the world, -while many leave it with smiles. Some, the newly exposed, just parted -from their mother’s breast, having sucked their last farewell, looked -plump and rosy; they slept soundly, blind to the future, and happily -unconscious of their fate.</p> - -<p>About one in twelve survived to idle about the hospital, ill clad, ill -fed, and worse taught. The boys were destined for the army, the girls -for domestic service, nay, for worse, if public report did not wrong -their guardian priest. They grew up to be selfish and unaffectionate; -having never known what kindness was, their young hearts closed ere they -opened; “the world was not their friend, nor the world’s law.” It was on -their heads that the barber learned to shave, and on them were visited -the sins of their parents; having had none to care for them, none to -love, they revenged themselves by hating mankind. Their occupation -consisted in speculating on who their parents may be, and whether they -should some day be reclaimed and become rich. A few occasionally are -adopted by benevolent and childless persons, who, visiting the <i>Cuna</i>, -take a fancy to an interesting infant; but the child is liable ever -after to be given up to its parents, should they reclaim it. Townshend -mentions an Oriental custom at Barcelona, where the girls when -marriageable were paraded in procession through the streets, and any -desirous of taking a wife was at liberty to select his object by -“throwing his handkerchief.” This Spanish custom still prevails at -Naples.</p> - -<p>Such was the <i>Cuna</i> of Seville when we last beheld it. It is now, as we -have recently heard with much pleasure, admirably conducted, having been -taken in charge by some benevolent ladies, who here as elsewhere are the -best nurses and guardians of man in his first or second infancy, not to -say of every intermediate stage.</p> - -<div class="sidenote">MEDICAL PRETENSIONS.</div> - -<p>Our readers will concur in deeming that wight unfortunate who falls ill -in Spain, as, whatever be his original complaint, it is too often -followed by secondary and worse symptoms, in the shape of the native -doctor; and if the judgment passed by Spaniards on that member of -society be true, Esculapius cannot save the invalid from the crows; the -faculty even at Madrid are little in advance of their provincial -colleagues, nay, often they are<a name="page_227" id="page_227"></a> more destructive, since, being -practitioners in the only court, the heaven on earth, they are in -proportion superior to the medical men of the rest of the world, of whom -of course they can learn nothing. They are, however, at least a century -behind their brother professors of England. An unreasonable idea of -self-excellence arises both in nations and in individuals, from having -no knowledge of the relative merits of others, and from having few -grounds or materials whereon to raise comparison; it exists therefore -the strongest among the most uninformed and those who mix the least in -the world. Thus in spite of manifold deficiencies, some of which will be -detailed, the self-esteem of these medical men exceeds, if possible, -that of the military; both have killed their “ten thousands.” They hold -themselves to be the first <i>sabreurs</i>, physicians, and surgeons on -earth, and the best qualified to wield the shears of the Parcæ. It would -be a waste of time to try to dispel this fatal delusion; the -well-intentioned monitor would simply be set down as malevolent, -envious, and an ass; for they think their ignorance the perfection of -human skill. Few foreigners can ever hope to succeed among them, nor can -any native who may have studied abroad, easily introduce a better -system: his elder brethren would make common cause against him as an -innovator; he would be summoned to no consultations, the most lucrative -branch of practice, while the confessors would poison the ears of the -women (who govern the men) with cautions against the danger to their -souls, of having their bodies cured by a Jew, a heretic, or a foreigner, -for the terms are almost convertible.</p> - -<div class="sidenote">MEDICAL EDUCATION.</div> - -<p>Meanwhile, as in courts of justice and other matters in Spain, all -sounds admirably on <i>paper</i>—the forms, regulations, and system are -perfect in theory. Colleges of physicians and surgeons superintend the -science, the professors are members of infinite learned societies, -lectures are delivered, examinations are conducted, and certificates -duly signed and sealed, are given. The young <i>Galenista</i> is furnished -with a licence to kill, but what is wanting from beginning to end, to -practitioner and patient, is <i>life</i>. The medical men know, nevertheless, -every aphorism of the ancients by rote, and <i>discourse</i> as eloquently -and plausibly on any case as do their ministers in Cortes. Both write -capital theories and opinions extemporaneously. Their splendid language -supplies words which seem to have cost thought. What<a name="page_228" id="page_228"></a> is deficient is -that clinical and best of education where the case is brought before the -student with the corollary of skilful treatment: <i>accidental</i> deaths are -consequently more common than cures.</p> - -<p>Dissection again is even now repulsive to their Oriental prejudices; the -pupils learn rather by plates, diagrams, models, preparations, and -skeletons, than from anatomical experiments on a subject. As among the -ancients and in the East to this day an idea is prevalent among the -masses in Spain, that the touch of a dead body pollutes; nor is the -objection raised by the clergy, that it savours of impiety to mutilate a -form made in the image of God, yet exploded. It will be remembered by -our medical readers, if we have any, that Vezalius, the father of modern -anatomy, when at Madrid was demanded by the Inquisition from Philip II., -to be burnt for having performed an operation. The king sent him to -expiate his sin by a pilgrimage to the Holy Land; he was shipwrecked, -and died of starvation at Zante.</p> - -<p>Can it be wondered at, with such a theoretical education, that practice -should continue to be antiquated, classical, and Oriental, and -necessarily very limited? In difficult cases of compound fracture, -gun-shot wounds, the doctors give the patient up almost at once, -although they continue to meet and take fees, until death relieves him -of his complicated sufferings. In chronic cases and slighter fractures -they are less dangerous; for as their pottering remedies do neither good -nor harm, the struggle for life and death is left to nature, who -sometimes works the cure. In acute diseases and inflammations they -seldom succeed; for however fond of the lancet, they only nibble with -the case, and are scared at the bold decided practice of Englishmen, -whereat they shrug up shoulders, invoke saints, and descant learnedly on -the impossibility of treating complaints under the bright sun and warm -air of Catholic Spain, after the formulæ of cold, damp, and foggy, -heretical England.</p> - -<div class="sidenote">FAMILY PHYSICIAN.</div> - -<p>Most Spaniards who can afford it have their family or bolster doctor, -the <i>Medico de Cabecera</i>, and their confessor. This pair take care of -the bodies and souls of the whole house, bring them gossip, share their -<i>puchero</i>, purse, and tobacco. They rule the husband through the women -and the nursery, nor do they allow their exclusive privileges to be -infringed on. Etiquette is the life of a Spaniard, and often his death, -since every one has heard<a name="page_229" id="page_229"></a> (the Spaniards swear it is all a French lie) -that Philip III. was killed, rather than violate a form. He was seated -too near the fire, and, although burning, of course as king of Spain the -impropriety of moving himself never entered his head, and when he -requested one of his attendants to do so, none, in the absence of the -proper officer whose duty it was to superintend the royal chair, -ventured to take that improper liberty. In case of sudden emergencies -among her Catholic Majesty’s subjects, unless the family doctor be -present, any other one, even if called in, generally declines acting -until the regular Esculapius arrives. An English medical friend of ours -saved a Spaniard’s life by chancing to arrive when the patient, in an -apoplectic fit, was foaming at the mouth and wrestling with death; all -this time a strange doctor was sitting quietly in the next room smoking -his cigar at the <i>brasero</i>, the chafing-dish, with the women of the -family. Our friend instantly took 30 ounces from the sufferer’s arm, not -one of the Spanish party even moving from their seats. Thus Apollo -preserved him! The same medical gentleman happened to accidentally call -on a person who had an inflammation in the cornea of the eye: on -questioning he found that many consultations had been previously held, -at which no determination was come to until at the last, when -sea-bathing was prescribed, with a course of asses’ milk and Chiclana -snake-broth; our heretical friend, who lacked the true faith, just -touched the diseased part with caustic. When this application was -reported at the next consultation, the native doctors all crossed -themselves with horror and amazement, which was increased when the -patient recovered in a week.</p> - -<div class="sidenote">MEDICAL COSTUME.</div> - -<p>As a general rule at the first visit, they look as wise as possible, -shake their heads before the women, and always magnify the complaint, -which is a safe proceeding all over the world, since all physicians can -either cure or kill the patient; in the first event they get greater -credit and reward, while in the other alternative, the disease, having -been beyond the reach of art, bears the blame. The <i>medicos</i> exhibit -considerable ingenuity in prolonging an apparent necessity for a -continuance of their visits. A common interest induces them to pull -together—a rare exception in Spain—and play into each other’s hands. -The family doctor, whenever appearances will in anywise justify him,<a name="page_230" id="page_230"></a> -becomes alarmed, and requires a consultation, a <i>Junta</i>. What any -Spanish Junta is in affairs of peace or war need not be explained; and -these are like the rest, they either do nothing, or what they do do, is -done badly. At these meetings from three to seven <i>Medicos de -apelacion</i>, consulting physicians, attend, or more, according to the -patient’s purse: each goes to the sick man, feels his pulse, asks him -some questions, and then retires to the next room to consult, generally -allowing the invalid the benefit of hearing what passes. The -<i>Protomedico</i>, or senior, takes the chair; and while all are lighting -their cigars, the family doctor opens the case, by stating the birth, -parentage, and history of the patient, his constitution, the complaint, -and the medicines hitherto prescribed. The senior next rises, and gives -his opinion, often speaking for half an hour; the others follow in their -rotation, and then the <i>Protomedico</i>, like a judge, sums up, going over -each opinion with comments: the usual termination is either to confirm -the previous treatment, or make some insignificant alteration: the only -certain thing is to appoint another consultation for the next day, for -which the fees are heavy, each taking from three to five dollars. The -consultation often lasts many hours, and becomes at last a chronic -complaint.</p> - -<div class="sidenote">PRESCRIPTIONS.</div> - -<p>It must be said, in justice to these able practitioners, that as a body -they are careful in their dress: external appearance, not to say finery -in apparel, raises in the eyes of the many, a profession which here is -of uncertain social standing. On the same principle how careful is the -costume, how brilliant are the shirt-studs of foreign fiddlers when in -England! The worthy Andalucian doctor of our Spanish family, and an -efficient one, as two of his patients now at rest could testify, never -paid a visit except when gaily attired. So the <i>Matador</i>, when he enters -the arena to kill the bull, is clad as a first-rate dandy <i>majo</i>. This -attention to person arises partly from the Moro-Ibero love of -ostentation, and partly from sound Galenic principles and a high sense -of professional duty. The ancient authorities enforced on the -practitioner an attention to everything which created cheerful -impressions, in order that he might arrive at the patient’s pillow like -a messenger of good tidings, and as a minister of health, not of death. -They held that a grave costume might suggest un<a name="page_231" id="page_231"></a>pleasant associations to -the sick man. Raven-coloured undertaker tights, and a funereal, -cadaverous look to match, are harbingers of blue devils and black crape, -which no man, even when in blessed health, contemplates with comfort; -while the effect of such a <i>facies hippocratica</i> staring in the face of -a poor devil whose life is despaired of, must be fatal.</p> - -<div class="sidenote">DRUGGISTS.</div> - -<p>The prescriptions of these well-dressed gentlemen are somewhat more -old-fashioned than their coats. Their grand recipe in the first instance -is to do nothing beyond taking the fee and leaving nature alone, or, as -the set phrase has it, <i>dejar á la naturaleza</i>. The young and those -whose constitutions are strong and whose complaints are weak, do well -under the healing influence of their kind nurse Nature, and recover -through her vis medicatrix, which, if not obstructed by art, everywhere -works wonderful cures. The <i>Sangrado</i> will say that a Spanish man or -woman is more marvellously made than a clock, inasmuch as his or her -machinery has a power in itself to regulate its own motions, and to -repair accidents; and therefore the watchmaker who is called in, need -not be in a hurry to take it to pieces when a little oiling and cleaning -may set all to rights. The remedies, when the proper time for their -application arrives, are simple, and are sought for rather among the -vegetables of the earth’s surface than from the minerals in its bowels. -The external recipes consist chiefly of papers smeared with lard, -applied to the abdomen, sinapisms and mustard poultices to the feet, -fomentations of marsh-mallows or camomile flowers, and the aid of the -curate. The internal remedies, the tisanes, the <i>Leches de Almendras</i>, -<i>de Burras</i>, decoctions of rice, and so forth, succeed each other in -such regular order, that the patient scholar has nothing to do but -repeat the medical passages in Horace’s ‘Satires.’ In no country, -however, can all the sick be always expected to recover even then, since -“<i>Para todo hay remedio, sino para la muerte</i>”—“There is a remedy for -everything except death.” If by chance the patient dies, the doctor and -the disease bear the blame. Perhaps the old Iberian custom was the -safest; then the sick were exposed outside their doors, and the advice -of casual passengers was asked, whose prescriptions were quite as likely -to answer as images, relics, snake-soup, or milk of almonds or asses:—<a name="page_232" id="page_232"></a></p> - -<div class="poem"><div class="stanza"> -<span class="i0">“And, doctor, do you really think<br /></span> -<span class="i1">That asses’ milk I ought to drink?<br /></span> -<span class="i1">It cured yourself, I grant, is true,<br /></span> -<span class="i1">But then ’twas mother’s milk to you.”<br /></span> -</div></div> - -<div class="sidenote">SNAKE-BROTH.</div> - -<p class="nind">Nor, if the doctors knew how to prescribe them, are the nicer and most -efficacious remedies, the preparations of modern chemical science, to be -procured in any except the very largest towns; although, as in Romeo’s -apothecary, “the needy” shelves are filled with empty boxes “to make a -show.” The trade of a druggist is anything but free, and the numbers are -limited; none may open a <i>Botica</i> without a strict examination and -licence; although, of course, this is to be had for money. None may sell -any potent medicine, except according to the prescription of some -<i>local</i> medical man; everything is a monopoly. The commonest drugs are -often either wanting or grossly adulterated, but, as in their arsenals -and larders, no dispenser will admit such destitution; <i>hay de todo</i>, I -have every thing, swears he, and gallantly makes up the prescription -simply by substituting other ingredients; and as the correct ones nine -times out of ten are harmless, no great injury is sustained. There is -nothing new in this, for Quevedo, in his <i>Zahurdas de Pluton</i>, or -Satan’s Pigsties, introduces a yellow-faced bilious judge scourging -Spanish apothecaries for doing exactly the same, “Hence your shops,” -quoth he, for he both preached and flogged, “are arsenals of death, -whose ministers here get their pills (balls rather) which banish souls -from the earth;” but these and other things have been long done with -impunity, as Pliny said, no physician was ever hung for murder. One -advantage of general distrust in drugs and doctors is, that the great -masses of the people think very little about them or their complaints: -thus they escape all fancied and imaginary complaints, which, if -indulged in, become chronic, and more difficult to cure than those -afflicting the body—for who can minister to a mind diseased? Again, -from this want of confidence in remedies, very little physic at all is -taken; owing to this limited demand, druggists’ shops are as rare in -Spain as those of booksellers. No red, green, or blue bottles illuminate -the streets at night, and there are more of these radiant orbs in the -Fore street of the capital of the west of England, than in the whole -capital of<a name="page_233" id="page_233"></a> the Spains, albeit with a population six times greater. It -is true that, at Madrid, feeding on plum-pudding, diluted with sour -cider and clotted cream, is not habitual.</p> - -<p>Many of the prescriptions of Spain are local, and consist of some -particular spring, some herb, some animal, or some particular air, or -place, or bath, is recommended, which, however, is said to be very -dangerous, unless some resident local <i>medico</i> be first consulted. One -example is as good as a thousand: near Cadiz is Chiclana, to which the -faculty invariably transport those patients whom they cannot cure, that -is, about ninety-five in the hundred; so in chronic complaints -sea-bathing there, is prescribed, with a course of asses’ milk; and if -that fail, then a broth made of a long harmless snake, which abounds in -the aromatic wastes near <i>Barrosa</i>. We have forgotten the generic name -of this valuable reptile of Esculapius, one of which our naturalists -should take alive, and either breed from it in the Regent’s Park, or at -least investigate his comparative anatomy with those exquisite vipers -which make, as we have shown, such delicious pork at Montanches.</p> - -<div class="sidenote">SALVE FOR KNIFE-CUTS.</div> - -<p>We cannot refrain from giving one more prescription. Many of the murders -in Spain should rather be called homicides, being free from malice -prepense, and caused by the <i>readiness</i> of the national <i>cuchillo</i>, with -which all the lower classes are armed like wasps; it is thus always at -hand, when the blood is most on fire, and before any refrigeratory -process commences. Thus, where an unarmed Englishman <i>closes</i> his fist, -a Spaniard opens his knife. This rascally instrument becomes fatal in -jealous broils, when the lower classes light their anger at the torch of -the Furies, and prefer using, to speaking daggers. Then the thrust goes -home; and however unskilled the regular <i>Sangrados</i> may be in anatomy -and handling the scalpel, the universal people know exactly how to -manage their knife and where to plant its blow; nor is there any -mistake, for the wound, although not so deep as a well, nor so wide as a -church door, “’t will serve.” It is usually given after the treacherous -fashion of their Oriental and Iberian ancestors, and if possible by a -stab behind, and “under the fifth rib;” and “one blow” is enough. The -blade, like the cognate Arkansas or Bowie knife of the Yankees, will -“rip up a man right away,” or drill him until a surgeon can see through -his body. The<a name="page_234" id="page_234"></a> number killed on great religious and other festivals, -exceeds those of most Spanish battles in the field, although the -occurrence is scarcely noticed in the newspapers, so much is it a matter -of course; but crimes which call forth a second edition and double sheet -in our papers, are slurred over on the Continent, for foreigners conceal -what we most display.</p> - -<p>In minor cases of flirtation, where capital punishment is not called -for, the offending party just gashes the cheek of the peccant one, and -suiting the word to the action observes, “<i>ya estas senalaā</i>;” “Now -you are marked.” This is precisely <i>winkel quarte</i>, the gash in the -cheek, which is the only salve for the touchy honour of a German -student, when called <i>ein dummer junge</i>, a stupid youth:—</p> - -<div class="poem"><div class="stanza"> -<span class="i0">“Und ist die quart gesessen<br /></span> -<span class="i1">So ist der touche vergessen.”<br /></span> -</div></div> - -<p class="nind">Again, “<i>Mira que te pego, mira que te mato</i>,” “Mind I don’t strike -thee—mind I don’t kill thee;” are playful fondling expressions of a -<i>Maja</i> to a <i>Majo</i>. When this particular gash is only threatened, the -Seville phrase was, “<i>Mira que te pinto un jabeque</i>;” “Take care that I -don’t draw you a xebeck” (the sharp Mediterranean felucca). “They jest -at wounds who never felt a scar,” but whenever this <i>jabeque</i> has really -been inflicted the patient, ashamed of the stigma, and not having the -face to show himself or herself, is naturally anxious to recover a good -character and skin, which only one cosmetic, one sovereign panacea, can -effect. This in Philip IV.’s time was cat’s grease which then removed -such superfluous marks; while Don Quixote considered the oil of -Apariccio to be the only cure for scratches inflicted by female or -feline claws.</p> - -<div class="sidenote">THE PARISH DOCTOR.</div> - -<p>In process of time, as science advanced, this was superseded by <i>Unto -del hombre</i>, or man’s grease. Our estimable friend Don Nicolas Molero, a -surgeon in high practice at Seville, assured us that previously to the -French invasion he had often prepared this cataleptic specific, which -used to be sold for its weight in gold, until, having been adulterated -by unprincipled empirics, it fell into disrepute. The receipt of the -balsam of Fierabras has puzzled the modern commentators of Don Quixote, -but the kindness of Don Nicolas furnished us with the ingredients<a name="page_235" id="page_235"></a> of -this <i>pommade divine</i>, or rather <i>mortale</i>. “Take a man in full health -who has been just killed, the fresher the better, pare off the fat round -the heart, melt it over a slow fire, clarify, and put it away in a cool -place for use.” The multitudinous church ceremonies and holidays in -Spain, which bring crowds together, combined with the sun, wine, and -women, have always ensured a supply of fine subjects.</p> - -<p>In Spain, as elsewhere, the doctor mania is an expensive amusement, -which the poor and more numerous class, especially in rural localities, -seldom indulge in. Like their mules, they are rarely ill, and they only -take to their beds to die. They have, it is true, a parish doctor, to -whom certain districts are apportioned; when he in his turn succumbs to -death, or is otherwise removed, the vacancy is usually announced in the -newspapers, and a new functionary is often advertised for. His trifling -salary is made up of payments in money and in kind, so much in corn and -so much in cash; the leading principle is cheapness, and, as in our new -poor-law, that proficient is preferred, who will contract to do for the -greatest number at the smallest charge. His constituents decline -sometimes to place full confidence in his skill or alacrity: they -oftener do consult the barber, the quack, or <i>curandero</i>; for there is -generally in orthodox Spain some charlatan wherever sword, rosary, pen, -or lancet is to be wielded. The nostrums, charms, relics, incantations, -&c., to which recourse is had, when not mediæval, are scarcely -Christian; but the spiritual pharmacopœia of this land of Figaro is -far too important to form the tail-piece of any chapter.<a name="page_236" id="page_236"></a></p> - -<div class="sidenote">SPIRITUAL REMEDIES FOR THE BODY.</div> - -<h2><a name="CHAPTER_XVIII" id="CHAPTER_XVIII"></a>CHAPTER XVIII.</h2> - -<div class="blockquot"><p class="hang">Spanish Spiritual Remedies for the Body—Miraculous -Relics—Sanative Oils—Philosophy of Relic Remedies—Midwifery and -the Cinta of Tortosa—Bull of Crusade.</p></div> - -<p class="nind">T<small>HE</small> Reverend Dr. Fernando Castillo, an esteemed Spanish author and -teacher, remarks, in his luminous Life of St. Domenick, that Spain has -been so bountifully provided by heaven with fine climate, soil, and -extra number of saints, that his countrymen are prone to be idle and to -neglect such rare advantages. Certainly they may not dig and delve so -deeply as is done in lands less favoured, but the reproach of omitting -to call on Hercules to do their work, or of not making the most of -Santiago in any bodily dilemma, is a somewhat too severe reproach: -nowhere in case of sickness have the saving virtues of relics, and the -adjurations of holy monks, been more implicitly relied on.</p> - -<div class="sidenote">MIRACULOUS SANATIVE OILS.</div> - -<div class="sidenote">COSTUME OF CONVALESCENTS.</div> - -<p>As our learned readers well know, the medical practice of the ancients -was, as that of the Orientals still is, more peculiar than scientific. -When disease was thought to be a divine punishment for sin, it was held -to be wicked to resist by calling in human aid: thus Asa was blamed, and -thus Moslems and Spaniards resign themselves to their fate, distrusting, -and very properly, their medical men: “Am I a god, to kill or make -alive?” In the large towns, in these days of progress, some patients may -“suffer a recovery” according to European practice; but in the country -and remote villages,—and we speak from repeated personal -experience,—the good old reliance on relics and charms is far from -exploded; and however Dr. Sangrado and Philip III., whose decrees on -medical matters yet adorn the Spanish statutes at large, deplore the -introduction of perplexing chemistry, mineral therapeuticals still -remain a considerable dead letter, as the church has transferred the -efficacy of faith from spiritual to temporal concerns, and gun-shot -wounds. Even Ponz, the Lysons<a name="page_237" id="page_237"></a> of Spain, and before the Inquisition was -abolished, ventured to express surprise at the number of images ascribed -to St. Luke, who, says he, was not a sculptor, but a physician, whence -possibly their sanative influence. The old Iberians were great herbalist -doctors; thus those who had a certain plant in their houses, were -protected, as a blessed palm branch now wards off lightning. They had -also a drink made of a hundred herbs, and hence called <i>centum herbæ</i>, a -<i>bebida de cien herbas</i>, which, like Morison’s vegetable pills, cured -every possible disease, and was so palatable that it was drunk at -banquets, which modern physic is not; moreover, according to Pliny, they -cured the gout with flour, and relieved elongated uvulas by hanging -purslain round the patient’s throat. So now the <i>curas y curanderos</i>, -country curates and quacks, furnish charms and incantations, just as -Ulysses stopped his bleeding by cantation: a medal of Santiago cures the -ague, a handkerchief of the Virgin the ophthalmia, a bone of San Magin -answers all the purposes of mercury, a scrap of San Frutos supplied at -Segovia the loss of common sense; the Virgin of Oña destroyed worms in -royal Infantes, and her sash at Tortosa delivers royal Infantas. Every -Murcian peasant believes that no disease can affect him or his cattle, -if he touches them with the cross of Caravaca, which angels brought from -heaven and placed on a red cow. When we were last at Manresa, the worthy -man who showed the cave in which Loyola the founder of the Jesuits did -penance for a year, increased an honest livelihood by the sale of its -pulverized stones, that were swallowed by the faithful in cases in which -an English doctor would prescribe Dover’s or James’s powders. Every -province, not to say parish, has its own tutelar saint and relic, which -are much honoured and resorted to in their local jurisdiction, and very -little thought of out of it, their power to cure having been apparently -granted to them by Santiago, as a commission to commit is by Queen -Victoria to a magistrate, whose authority does not extend beyond the -county bounds. Zaragoza was admirably provided: a portion of the liver -of Santa Engracia was anciently resorted to, in cases where blue pill -would be beneficial; the oil of her lamps, which never smoked the -ceilings, cured <i>lamparones</i>, or tumours in the neck, while that which -burnt before the <i>Virgen del Pilar</i>, or the image of the Virgin which -came down from heaven on a pillar,<a name="page_238" id="page_238"></a> restored lost legs; Cardinal de Retz -mentions in his Memoirs having seen a man whose wooden substitutes -became needless when the originals grew again on being rubbed with it; -and this portent was long celebrated by the Dean and Chapter, as well it -deserved, by an especial holiday, for Macassar oil cannot do much more. -This graven image is at this moment the object of popular adoration, and -disputes even with the worship of tobacco and money: countless are the -mendicants, the halt, blind, and the lame, who cluster around her -shrine, as the equally afflicted ancients, with whom physicians were in -vain, did around that of Minerva; and it must be confessed that the -cures worked are almost incredible.</p> - -<p>It may be said that all this is a raking up of remnants of mediæval -superstition and darkness, and it is probable that the medical men in -Madrid and the larger towns, and especially those who have studied at -Paris, do not place implicit confidence in these spiritual, nor indeed -in any other purely Spanish remedies; but their tried medicinal -properties are set forth at length in scores of Spanish county and other -histories which we have the felicity to possess, all of which have -passed the scrutinizing ordeal of clerical censors, and have been -approved of as containing nothing contrary to the creed of the Church of -Rome or good customs; nor can it be permitted that a church which -professes to be always one, the same, and the only true one, should at -its own convenience “turn its back on itself,” and deny its own drugs -and doctrines. Nothing is set down here which was not perfectly -notorious under the reign of Ferdinand VII.; and whatever the doctors of -physic or theology may now disbelieve in Spain, more reliance is still -placed, in the rural districts, where foreign civilization has not -penetrated, on miracles than on medicines.</p> - -<p>We have often and often seen little children in the streets dressed like -Franciscan monks—Cupids in cowls—whose pious parents had vowed to -clothe them in the robes of this order, provided its sainted founder -preserved their darlings during measles or dentition. Nothing was more -common than that women, nay, ladies in good society, should appear for a -year in a particular religious dress, called <i>el habito</i>, or with some -religious badge on their sleeves in token of similar deliverance.<a name="page_239" id="page_239"></a></p> - -<div class="sidenote">CURE OF SOULS.</div> - -<p>One instance in our time amused all the tertulias of Seville, who -maliciously attributed the sudden relief which a fair high-born -unmarried invalid experienced from an apparent dropsical complaint to -causes not altogether supernatural; <i>Pues, Don Ricardo</i>, “and so, Master -Richard,” would her friends of the same age and rank often say, “you are -a stranger; go and ask dearest <i>Esperanza</i> why she wears the Virgin of -Carmel; come back and let us know her story, and we will tell you the -real truth.” <i>Vaya! vaya! Don Ricardo, usted es muy majadero</i>,—“Go to, -Master Richard, your Grace is an immense bore,” replied the penitent, if -she suspected the authors and motive of the embassy.</p> - -<p>The pious in antiquity raised temples to Minerva medica or Esculapius, -as Spaniards do altars to <i>Na. Señora de los Remedios</i>, our Lady of the -Remedies, and to San Roque, whose intervention renders “sound as a -roach,” a proverb devised in his honour by our ancestors, who, before -the Reformation, trusted likewise to him; and both thought, if Cicero is -to be credited, that these tutelars did <i>at least</i> as much as the -doctor. Alas! for the patient credulity of mankind, which still gulps -down such medicinal quackery as all this, and which long will continue -to do so even were one of the dead to rise from the grave, to deprecate -the absurd treatment by which he and so many have been sacrificed.</p> - -<p>However, by way of compensation, the saving the <i>soul</i> has been made -just as primary a consideration in Spain as the curing the <i>body</i> has -been in England. These relics, charms, and amulets represent our patent -medicines; and the wonder is how any one in Great Britain can be -condemned to death in this world, or how any one in the Peninsula can be -doomed to perdition in the next: possibly the panaceas are in neither -case quite specific. Be that as it may, how numerous and well-appointed -are the churches and convents there, compared to the hospitals; how -amply provided the relic-magazine with bones and spells, when compared -to the anatomical museums and chemists’ shops; again, what a flock of -holy practitioners come forth <i>after</i> a Spaniard has been stabbed, -starved, or executed, not one of whom would have stirred a step to save -an army of his countrymen when alive; and what coppers are now collected -to pay masses to get his soul out of purgatory!<a name="page_240" id="page_240"></a></p> - -<div class="sidenote">PHILOSOPHY OF RELICS.</div> - -<p>Beware, nevertheless, gentle Protestant reader, of dying in Spain, -except in Cadiz or Malaga, where, if you are curious in Christian -burial, there is snug lying for heretics; and for your life avoid being -even sick at Madrid, since if once handed over to the faculty make thy -last testament forthwith, as, if the judgment passed on their own -doctors by Spaniards be true, Esculapius cannot save thee from the -crows: avoid the Spanish doctors therefore like mad dogs, and throw -their physic after them.</p> - -<p>The masses and many in Spain have their own tutelars and refuges for the -destitute; the kings and queens—whom God preserve!—have their own -especial patroness by prerogative, in the image of the Virgin of Atocha -at Madrid, which they and the rest of the royal family visit every -Sunday in the year when in royal health. No sooner was the sovereign -taken dangerously ill, and the court physicians at a loss what to do, as -sometimes is the case even in Madrid, than the image used to be brought -to his bedside; witness the case of Philip III., thus described by -Bassompierre in his dispatch:—“Les médecins en désespèrent depuis ce -matin que l’on a commencé à user des <i>remèdes spirituels</i>, et faire -transporter au palais <i>l’image</i> de N. D. de Athoche.” The patient died -three days after the image was sent for.</p> - -<div class="sidenote">SPANISH MIDWIFERY.</div> - -<p>Although neither priest nor physician might credit the sanative -properties of rags and relics, they gladly called them in, for if the -case then went wrong, how could mortal man be expected to succeed when -the supernatural remedy had failed? All inquests in awkward cases are -hushed up by ascribing the death to the visitation of God. Again, if a -relic does not always cure it rarely kills, as calomel has been known to -do. This interruptive principle, one distinct from human remedies, is -admitted by the church in the prayers for sick persons; and where faith -is sincere, even relics must offer a powerful moral medical cordial, by -acting on the imagination, and giving confidence to the patient. This -chance is denied to the poor Protestant, nay, even to a newly-converted -tractarian, for truly, to believe in the efficacy of a monkish bone, the -lesson must have been learnt in the nursery. Their substitute in -Lutheran lands, in partibus infidelium, is found in laudanum, news, and -gossip; the latter being the grand specific by which Sir Henry kept -scores of dowagers alive, to the despair of jointure-paying sons, from -marquises down to<a name="page_241" id="page_241"></a> baronets; and how much real comfort is conveyed by -the gentle whisper, “Your ladyship cannot conceive what an interest his -or her Royal Highness the —— takes in your ladyship’s convalescence!” -The <i>form</i> of the moral restorative will vary according to climate, -creeds, manners, &c.; it is to the <i>substance</i> alone that the -philosophical physician will look. That chord must be touched, be it -what it may, to which the pulse of the patient will respond; nor, -provided he is recovered, do the means much signify.</p> - -<p>One word only on Spanish midwifery. There is a dislike to male -accoucheurs, and the midwife, or <i>comadre</i>, generally brings the -Spaniard into the world by the efforts of nature and the aid of <i>manteca -de puerco</i>, or hogs’ lard, a launching appropriate enough to a babe, -who, if it survives to years of discretion, will assuredly love bacon. -The newly-born is then wrapped up, like an Egyptian mummy, and is -carefully protected from fresh air, soap, and water; an amulet is then -hung round its neck to disarm the evil eye, or some badge of the Virgin -is to ensure good luck: thus the young idea is taught from the cradle, -what errors are to be avoided and what safeguards are to be clung to, -lessons which are seldom forgotten in after-life. Without entering -further into baby details, the scanty population of the Peninsula may in -some measure be thus accounted for. Parturition also is frequently -fatal; in ordinary cases the midwife does very well, but when a -difficulty arises she loses her head and patient. It is in these trying -moments, as in the critical operations of the kitchen, that a male -artiste is preferable.</p> - -<div class="sidenote">SPIRITUAL AIDS TO ACCOUCHEMENT.</div> - -<p>The Queens and Infantas of Spain have additional advantages. The -palladium of the city of Tortosa is the <i>cinta</i><a name="FNanchor_11_11" id="FNanchor_11_11"></a><a href="#Footnote_11_11" class="fnanchor">[11]</a> or girdle, which the -Virgin, accompanied by St. Peter and St. Paul, brought herself from -heaven to a priest of the cathedral in 1178; an event in honour of which -a mass is still said every second Sunday in October. The gracious gift -was declared authentic in 1617, by Paul V., and to justify his -infallibility it works every sort of miracle, especially in obstetric -cases; it is also brought out to defend the town on all occasions of -public calamity, but failed in the case of Suchet’s attack. This<a name="page_242" id="page_242"></a> -girdle, more wonderful than the cestus of Venus, was conveyed in 1822, -by Ferdinand VII.’s command, in solemn procession to Aranjuez, in order -to facilitate the accouchement of the two Infantas, and as Lucina when -duly invoked favoured women in travail, so their Royal Highnesses were -happily delivered, and one of the babes then born, is the husband of -Isabel II. For humbler Castilian women, when pregnant, a spiritual -remedy was provided by the canons of Toledo, who took the liveliest -interest in many of the cases. The grand entrance to the cathedral had -thirteen steps, and all females who ascended and descended them ensured -an early and easy time of it. No wonder therefore, when these steps were -reduced to the number of seven, that the greatest possible opposition -should have been made by the fair sex, married and unmarried. All these -things of Spain are rather Oriental; and to this day the Barbary Moors -have a cannon at Tangiers by which a Christian ship was sunk, and across -this their women sit to obtain an easy delivery. In all ages and -countries where the science of midwifery has made small progress, it is -natural that some spiritual assistance should be contrived for perils of -such inevitable recurrence as childbirth. The panacea in Italy was the -girdle of St. Margaret, which became the type of this <i>Cinta</i> of -Tortosa, and it was resorted to by the monks in all cases of difficult -parturition. It was supposed to benefit the sex, because when the devil -wished to eat up St. Margaret, the Virgin bound him with her sash, and -he became tame as a lamb. This sash brought forth sashes also, and in -the 17th century had multiplied so exceedingly, that a traveller -affirmed “if all were joined together, they would reach all down -Cheapside;” but the natural history of relics is too well known to be -enlarged upon.</p> - -<div class="sidenote">BULL OF CRUSADE.</div> - -<p>Any account of Spanish doctors without a death, would be dull as a blank -day with fox-hounds, although the medical man, differing from the -sportsman, dislikes being in at it. He, the moment the fatal sisters -three are running into their game, slips out, and leaves the last act to -the clergyman: hence the Spanish saying, “When the priest begins, the -physician ends.” It is related in the history of Don Quixote, that no -sooner did the barber feel the poor knight’s wrist, than he advised him -to attend to his soul and send for his confessor; and now, when a -Castilian hidalgo takes to his bed, his friends pursue much the same -course,<a name="page_243" id="page_243"></a> nor does the catastrophe often differ. Lord Bacon, great in -wise saws and instances, prayed that his death might come from Spain, -because then it would be long on the journey; but he was not aware that -the gentlemen in black formed an exception to the proverbial -procrastination and dilatoriness of their fellow countrymen. As patients -are soon dispatched, the law<a name="FNanchor_12_12" id="FNanchor_12_12"></a><a href="#Footnote_12_12" class="fnanchor">[12]</a> of the land subjects every physician to -a fine of ten thousand maravedis, who fails after his first visit to -prescribe confession; the chief object in sickness being, as the -preamble states, to cure the soul; and so it is in Italy, where Gregory -XVI. issued in 1845 three decrees; one to forbid railroads, another to -prohibit scientific meetings, and a third to order all medical men to -cease to attend invalids who had not sent for the priest and -communicated after the third visit. In Spain, the first question asked -in our time of the sick man was, not whether he truly repented of his -sins, but whether he had got the Bull; and if the reply was in the -negative, or his old nurse had omitted to send out and buy one, the last -sacraments were denied to the dying wretch.</p> - -<div class="sidenote">NECESSITY OF THE BULL.</div> - -<p>One Word on this wonderful Bull, that disarms death of its sting, and -which, although few of our readers may ever have heard of it, plays a -far more important part in the Peninsula than the quadruped does in the -arena. Fastings are nowhere more strictly enjoined than here, where Lent -represents the Ramadan of the Moslem. The denials have been mitigated to -those faithful who have good appetites, by the paternal indulgence of -their holy father at Rome, who, in consideration that it was necessary -to keep the Spanish crusaders in fighting condition in order more -effectually to crush the infidel, conceded to Saint Ferdinand the -permission that his army might eat meat rations during Lent, provided -there were any, for, to the credit of Spanish commissariats in general, -few troops fast more regularly and religiously. The auspicious day on -which the arrival is proclaimed of this welcome bull that announces -dinner, is celebrated by bells merry as at a marriage feast; in the -provincial cities mayors and corporations go to cathedral in what is -called state, to the wonder of the mob and amusement of their betters at -the resurrection of quiz coaches, the robes, maces, and obsolete -trappings, by which these shadows of a former power and dignity hope to -mark individual and col<a name="page_244" id="page_244"></a>lective insignificancy. A copy of this precious -Bull cannot of course be had for nothing, and as it must be paid for, -and in ready money, it forms one of the certain branches of public -income. Although the proceeds ought to be expended on crusading -purposes, Ferdinand VII., the Catholic King, and the only sovereign in -possession of such a revenue, never contributed one mite towards the -Christian Greeks in their recent struggle against the Turkish -unbelievers.</p> - -<div class="sidenote">DEATH-BED IN SPAIN</div> - -<p>These bulls, or rather paper-money notes, are prepared with the greatest -precautions, and constituted one of the most profitable articles of -Spanish manufacture; a maritime war with England was dreaded, not so -much from regard to the fasting transatlantic souls, as from the fear of -losing, as Dr. Robertson has shown, the sundry millions of dollars and -silver dross remitted from America in exchange for these spiritual -treasures. They were printed at Seville, at the Dominican convent, the -<i>Porta cœli</i>; but Soult, who now it appears is turning devotee, burnt -down this gate of heaven, with its passports, and the presses. The bulls -are only good for the year during which they are issued; after twelve -months they become stale and unprofitable. There is then, says Blanco -White, and truly, for we have often seen it, “a prodigious hurry to -obtain new ones by all those who wish well to their souls, and do not -overlook the ease and comfort of their stomachs.” A fresh one must be -annually taken out, like a game-certificate, before Spaniards venture to -sport with flesh or fowl, and they have reason to be thankful that it -does not cost three pounds odd: for the sum of <i>dos reales</i>, or less -than sixpence, man, woman, and child may obtain the benefit of clergy -and cookery; but evil betides the uncertificated poacher, treadmills for -life are a farce, perdition catches his soul. His certificate is -demanded by the keeper of conscience when he is caught in the trap of -sickness, and if without one, his conviction is certain; he cannot plead -ignorance of the law, for a postscript and condition is affixed to all -notices of jubilees, indulgences, and other purgatorial benefits, which -are fixed on the church doors; and the language is as courteous and -peremptory as in our popular assessed tax-paper—“Se <i>ha</i> de tener la -bula:” you <i>must</i> have the bull; if you expect to derive any relief from -these relaxations in purgatory, which all Spaniards most particularly -do: hence the common<a name="page_245" id="page_245"></a> phrase used by any one, when committing some -little peccadillo in other matters, <i>tengo mi bula para todo</i>—I have -got my bull, my licence to do any thing. The possession of this document -acts on all fleshly comforts like soda on indigestion, indeed it -neutralizes everything except heresy. As it is cheap, a Protestant -resident, albeit he may not quite believe in its saving effects, will do -well to purchase one for the sake of the peace of mind of his weaker -brethren, for in this religion of forms and outer observances, more -horror is felt by rigid Spaniards, at seeing an Englishman eating meat -during a fast, than if he had broken all the ten commandments. The sums -levied from the nation for these bulls is very large, although they are -diminished before finally paid into the exchequer; some of the honey -gathered by so many bees will stick to their wings, and the place of -chief commissioner of the Bula is a better thing than that in the Excise -or Customs of unbelieving countries.</p> - -<p>To return to the dying man: if he has the bull, the host is brought to -him with great pomp; the procession is attended by crowds who bear -crosses, lighted candles, bells and incense; and as the chamber is -thrown open to the public, the ceremony is accompanied by multitudes of -idlers. The spectacle is always imposing, as it must be, considering -that the incarnate Deity is believed to be present. It is particularly -striking on Easter Sunday, when the host is taken to all the sick who -have been unable to communicate in the parish church. Then the priest -walks either under a gorgeous canopy, or is mounted in the finest -carriage in the town; and while all as he passes kneel to the wafer -which he bears, he chuckles internally at his own reality of power over -his prostrate subjects; the line of streets are gaily decorated as for -the triumphal procession of a king: the windows are hung with velvets -and tapestries, and the balconies filled with the fair sex arrayed in -their best, who shower sweet flowers down on the procession just at the -moment of its passage, and sweeter smiles during all the rest of the -morning on their lovers below, whose more than divided adoration is -engrossed by female divinities.</p> - -<div class="sidenote">BURIAL DRESSES.</div> - -<p>To die without confession and communication is to a Spaniard the most -poignant of calamities, as he cannot be saved while he is taught that -there is in these acts a preserving virtue of their own, independent of -any exertions on his part. The host is given when<a name="page_246" id="page_246"></a> human hopes are at an -end, and the heat, noise, confusion, and excitement, seldom fail to kill -the already exhausted patient. Then when life’s idle business at a gasp -is o’er, the body is laid out in a <i>capilla ardiente</i>, or an apartment -prepared as a chapel, by taking out the furniture; where the family is -rich, a room on the ground floor is selected, in which a regular altar -is dressed up, and rows of large candles lighted placed around the body; -the public is then allowed to enter, even in the case of the sovereign: -thus we beheld Ferdinand VII. laid out dead and full dressed with his -hat on his head, and his stick in his hand. This public exhibition is a -sort of coroner’s inquest; formerly, as we have often seen, the body was -clad in a monk’s dress, with the feet naked and the hands clasped over -the breast; the sepulchral shadow then thrown over the dead and placid -features by the cowl, seldom failed to raise a solemn undefinable -feeling in the hearts of spectators, speaking, as it did, a language to -the living which could not be misunderstood.</p> - -<p>The woollen dresses of the mendicant orders were by far the most -popular, from the idea that, when old, they had become too saturated -with the odour of sanctity for the vile nostrils of the evil one; and as -a tattered dress often brought more than half-a-dozen new ones, the sale -of these old clothes was a benefit alike to the pious vendor and -purchaser; those of St. Francis were preferred, because at his triennial -visits to purgatory, he knows his own, and takes them back with him to -heaven; hence Milton peopled his shadowy limbo with wolves in sheep’s -clothing:—</p> - -<div class="poem"><div class="stanza"> -<span class="i0">—— “who, to be sure of Paradise,<br /></span> -<span class="i0">Dying put on the robes of Dominick,<br /></span> -<span class="i0">Or in Franciscan think to pass unseen.”<br /></span> -</div></div> - -<div class="sidenote">BURIAL PLACES.</div> - -<p>Women in our time were often laid out in nuns’ dresses, wearing also the -scapulary of the Virgin of Carmel, which she gave to Simon Stock, with -the assurance that none who died with it on, should ever suffer eternal -torments. The general adoption of these grave fashions induced an -accurate foreigner to remark, that no one ever died in Spain except nuns -and monks. In this hot country, burial goes hand in hand with death, and -it is absolutely necessary from the rapidity with which putrefaction -comes on. The last offices are performed in somewhat an indecent manner: -formerly the interment took place in churches, or in the yards near<a name="page_247" id="page_247"></a> -them, a custom which from hygeian reasons is now prohibited. Public -cemeteries, which give at least 4 per cent. interest, have been erected -outside the towns, in which long lines of catacombs gape greedily for -those occupants who can pay for them, while a wide ditch is opened every -day for those who cannot. In this <i>campo santo</i>, or holy field, death -levels all ranks, which seems hard on those great families who have -built and endowed chapels to secure a burial among their ancestors. They -however raised no objections to the change of law, nor have ever much -troubled themselves about the dilapidated sepulchres and crumbling -effigies of their “grandsires cut in alabaster;” the real opposition -arose from the priests, who lost their fees, and thereupon assured their -flocks, that a future resurrection was anything but certain to bodies -committed into such new-fangled depositories.</p> - -<p>Be that as it may, the corpse in its slight coffin is carried out, -followed by the male relations, and is then put into its niche without -further form or prayer. Ladies who die soon after marriage, and before -the bridal hours have danced their measure, are sometimes buried in -their wedding dresses, and covered with flowers, the dying injunctions -of Shakspere’s Queen Catherine:—</p> - -<div class="poem"><div class="stanza"> -<span class="i6">“When I am dead, good wench,<br /></span> -<span class="i0">Let me be used with honour; strew me o’er<br /></span> -<span class="i0">With maiden flowers, that all the world may know<br /></span> -<span class="i0">I was a chaste wife to my grave.”<br /></span> -</div></div> - -<p class="nind">At such funerals the coffin is opened in the catacomb, to gratify the -indecent curiosity of the crowd; the dress is next day discussed all -over the town, and the <i>entierro</i> or funeral is pronounced to be <i>muy -lucido</i> or very brilliant; but life in Spain is a jest, and these things -show it. The place assigned for children who die under seven years of -age lies apart from that of the adults; their early death is held in -Spain to be rather a matter of congratulation than of grief, since those -whom the gods love die young; their epitaphs tell a mixed tale of joy -and sorrow. <i>El parvulo fue arrebatado á la gloria</i>, the little one was -snatched up into Paradise:—</p> - -<div class="poem"><div class="stanza"> -<span class="i0">“There is beyond the sky a heaven of joy and love,<br /></span> -<span class="i1">And holy children, when they die, go to that world above.”<br /></span> -</div></div> - -<div class="sidenote">BURIAL OF THE POOR.</div> - -<p>Yet nature will not be put aside, and many a mother have we seen, -loitering alone near the graves, adorning them with roses<a name="page_248" id="page_248"></a> and plucking -up weeds which have no business to grow there; the little corpses are -carried to the tomb by little children of the same age, clad in white, -and are strewed with flowers short-lived as themselves, sweets to the -sweet. The parents return home yearning after the lost child—its cradle -is empty, its piteous moan is heard no more, its playthings remain where -it left them, and recall the cruel gap which grief cannot fill up, -although it</p> - -<div class="poem"><div class="stanza"> -<span class="i0">“Stuffs out its vacant garments with its form.”<br /></span> -</div></div> - -<p>The bodies of the lower orders, dressed in their ordinary attire, are -borne to their long home by four men, as is described by Martial; “no -useless coffins enclose their breasts,” they are carried forth as was -the widow’s son at Nain. And often have we seen the frightful death-tray -standing upright at the doors of the humble dead, with a human outline -marked on the wood by the death-damp of a hundred previous burdens. Such -bodies are cast into the trench like those of dogs, and often naked, as -the survivors or sextons strip them even of their rags. Those poorer -still, who cannot afford to pay the trifling fee, sometimes during the -night, suspend the bodies of their children in baskets, near the -cemetery porch. We once beheld a cloaked Spaniard pacing mournfully in -the burial-ground of Seville, who, when the public trench was opened, -drew from beneath the folds the body of his dead child, cast it in and -disappeared. Thus half the world lives without knowing how the other -half dies.</p> - -<div class="sidenote">FUNERAL SERVICE.</div> - -<p>In the upper ranks the etiquette of the funeral commences after the -reality is over. The first necessary step is within three days to pay a -visit of condolence to the family; this is called <i>para dar el pesame</i>. -The relations are all assembled in the best room, and seated on chairs -placed at the head, the women at one end and the men at another. When a -condoling lady and gentleman enter, she proceeds to shake hands with all -the other ladies one after another, and then seats herself in the next -vacant chair; the gentleman bows to each of the men as he passes, who -rise and return it, a grave dumb-show of profound affliction being kept -up by all. On reaching the chief mourners, they are addressed by each -condoler with this phrase, “<i>Acompaño á usted en su sentimiento</i>;” “I -share in the affliction of your grace;” the company meanwhile remain -silent as an assemblage<a name="page_249" id="page_249"></a> of undertakers. After sitting among them the -proper time, each retires with much the same form.</p> - -<p>In a few days afterwards a printed letter is sent round in the name of -all the surviving relations to announce the death to the friends of the -family, and to beg the favour of attendance at the funeral service: -these invitations are all headed with a cross (+), which is called <i>El -Cristus</i>. Before the invasion of the enemy, who not only destroyed the -walls of convents, but sapped religious belief also, very many books -were printed, and private letters written, with this sign prefixed. In -our time sundry medical men at Seville always headed with it their -prescriptions, the Cardinal Archbishop having granted a certain number -of years’ release from purgatory to all who sanctified with this mark -their recipes even of senna and rhubarb. Under this cross, in the -invitation, are placed the letters R. I. P. A., which signify -“Requiescat in pace. Amen.” At the appointed hour the mourners meet in -the <i>casa mortuaria</i>, or the house of death, and proceed together to -church. All are dressed in full black, and before the progress of -paletots and civilization, wore no cloaks: this, as it rendered each man -of them more uncomfortable than St. Bartholomew was without his skin, -was considered an offering of genuine grief to the manes of the -deceased. Uncloaking in Spain is, be it remembered, a mark of respect, -and is equivalent to our taking off the hat. When the company arrives at -church, they are received by the ministers, and the ceremony is very -solemnly performed before a catafalque covered with a pall, which is -placed before the altar, and is brilliantly lighted up with wax candles. -As soon as the service is concluded, all advance and bow to the chief -mourners, who are seated apart, and thus the tragedy concludes. Parents -do not put on mourning for their children, which is a remnant of the -patriarchal and Roman superiority of the head of the family, for whom, -however, when dead, all the other members pay the most observant -respect. The forms and number of days of mourning are most nicely laid -down, and are most rigidly observed, even by distant relations, who -refrain from all kinds of amusements:—</p> - -<div class="poem"><div class="stanza"> -<span class="i0">“None bear about the mockery of woe<br /></span> -<span class="i1">To public dances or to private show.”<br /></span> -</div></div> - -<div class="sidenote">ALL SOULS’ DAY.</div> - -<p class="nind">We well remember the death of a kind and venerable Marquesa<a name="page_250" id="page_250"></a> at Seville -just before the carnival, whose chief grief at dying, was the thought of -the number of young ladies who would thus be deprived of their balls and -masquerades; many, anxious and obliging, were the inquiries sent after -her health, and more even were the daily prayers offered up to the -Virgin, for the prolongation of her precious existence, could it be only -for a few weeks.</p> - -<p>November drear, brings in other solemnities connected with the dead, and -in harmony with the fall of the sear and yellow leaves, to which Homer -compares the races of mortal men. The night before the first of -November—our All Hallow-e’en—is kept in Spain as a vigil or wake; it -is the fated hour of love divinations and mysteries; then anxious -maidens used to sit at their balconies to see the image of their -destined husbands pass or not pass by. November the first is dedicated -to the sainted dead, and November the second to all souls: it is termed -in Spanish <i>el dia de los difuntos</i>, the day of the dead, and is most -scrupulously observed by all who have lost during the past year some -friend, some relation—how few have not! The dawn is ushered in by -mournful bells, which recall the memory of those who cannot come back at -the summons; the cemeteries are then visited; at Seville, long -processions of sable-clad females, bearing chased lamps on staves, walk -slowly round and round, chaunting melancholy dirges, returning when it -gets dusk in a long line of glittering lights. The graves during the day -are visited by those who take a sad interest in their occupants, and -lamps and flower garlands are suspended as memorials of affection, and -holy water is sprinkled, every drop of which puts out some of the fires -of purgatory. These picturesque proceedings at once resemble the <i>Eed es -Segheer</i> of modern Cairo, the <i>feralia</i> of the Romans, the -<span title="Greek: Nemesia">Νεμεσια</span> of the Greeks: here are the flower offerings of Electra, the -<i>funes assensi</i>, the funeral torches of pagan mourners, which have -vainly been prohibited to Christian Spaniards by their early Council of -Illiberis. In Navarre, and in the north-west of Spain, bread and wheat -offerings called <i>robos</i> are made, which are the doles or gifts offered -for the souls’ rest of the deceased by the pious of ancient Rome.</p> - -<div class="sidenote">PURGATORY.</div> - -<p>As on this day the cemetery becomes the public attraction, it too often -looks rather a joyous fashionable promenade, than a sad and religious -performance. The levity of mere strangers<a name="page_251" id="page_251"></a> and the mob, contrasts -strangely with the sorrow of real mourners. But life in this world -presses on death, and the gay treads on the heels of pathos; the spot is -crowded with mendicants, who appeal to the order of the day, and -importune every tender recollection, by begging for the sake of the -lamented dead. Outside the dreary walls all is vitality and mirth; a -noisy sale goes on of cakes, nuts, and sweetmeats, a crash of horses and -carriages, a din and flow of bad language from those who look after -them, which must vex the repose of the <i>benditas animas</i>, or the blessed -souls in purgatory, for whom otherwise all classes of Spaniards manifest -the fondest affection and interest.</p> - -<div class="sidenote">PROTESTANT BURIAL-GROUND.</div> - -<p>Such is the manner in which the body of a most orthodox Catholic -Castilian is committed to the earth; his soul, if it goes to purgatory, -is considered and called blessed by anticipation, as the admittance into -Paradise is certain, at the expiration of the term of penal -transportation, that is, “when the foul crimes done in the days of -nature are burnt and purged away,” as the ghost in Hamlet says, who had -not forgotten his Virgil. If the scholar objects to a Spanish clergyman, -that the whole thing is Pagan, he will be told that he may go farther -and fare worse. In the case of a true Roman Catholic, this term of hard -labour may be much shortened, since that can be done by masses, any -number of which will be said, if first paid for. The vicar of St. Peter -holds the keys, which always unlock the gate to those who offer the -golden gift by which Charon was bribed by Æneas; thus, to a judicious -rich man, nothing, supposing that he believes the Pope <i>versus</i> the -Bible, is so easy as to get at once into Heaven; nor are the poor quite -neglected, as any one may learn who will read the extraordinary number -of days’ redemption which may be obtained at every altar in Spain by the -performance of the most trumpery routine. The only wonder is how any one -of the faithful should ever fail to secure his delivery from this -spiritual Botany Bay without going there at all, or, at least, only for -the form’s sake. It was calculated by an accurate and laborious German, -that an active man, by spending three shillings in coach-hire, might -obtain in an hour, by visiting different privileged altars during the -Holy week, 29,639 years, nine months, thirteen days, three minutes and a -half diminution of purgatorial punishment. This merciful reprieve was -offered by Spanish priests in<a name="page_252" id="page_252"></a> South America, on a grander style, on one -commensurate with that colossal continent; for a single mass at the San -Francisco in Mexico, the Pope and prelates granted 32,310 years, ten -days, and six hours indulgence. As a means of raising money, says our -Mexican authority, “I would not give this simple institution of masses -for the benefit of souls, for the power of taxation possessed by any -government; since no tax-gatherer is required; the payments are enforced -by the best feelings, for who would not pay to get a parent’s or -friend’s soul from the fire?” Purgatory has thus been a Golconda mine of -gold to his Holiness, as even the poorest have a chance, since -charitable persons can deliver blank souls by taking out a <i>habeas -animam</i> writ, that is, by paying the priest for a mass. The especial -days are marked in the almanac, and known to every waiter at the inn; -moreover, notice is put on the church door, <i>Hoy se saca anima</i>, “this -day you can get out a soul.” They are generally left in their warm -quarters in winter, and taken out in the spring.</p> - -<p>Alas for poor Protestants, who, by non-payment of St. Peter’s pence, -have added an additional act of heresy, and the worst of all, the one -which Rome never pardons. These defaulters can only hope to be saved by -faith, and its fruits, good works; they must repent, must quit their -long-cherished sins, and lead a new life; for them there is no rope of -St. Francis to pull them out, if once in the pit; no rosary of St. -Domenick to remove them, quick, presto, begone, from torment to -happiness. Outside the pale of the Vatican, their souls have no chance, -and inside the frontiers of Spain their bodies have scarcely a better -prospect, should they die in that orthodox land. There the greatest -liberal barely tolerates any burial at all of their black-blooded -heretical carcasses, as no corn will grow near them. Until within a very -few years at seaport towns, their bodies used to be put in a hole in the -sands, and beyond low water mark; nay, even this concession to the -infidel offended the semi-Moro fishermen, who true believers and -persecutors feared that their soles might be poisoned: not that either -sailor or priest ever exhibited any fear of taking British current coin, -all cash that comes into their nets being most Catholic, so says the -proverb, <i>El dinero es muy Catolico</i>.</p> - -<div class="sidenote">LUTHERAN BURIAL.</div> - -<div class="sidenote">CEMETERY AT MALAGA.</div> - -<p>Matters connected with the grave have been placed, as regards -Protestants, on a much more pleasant footing within these last<a name="page_253" id="page_253"></a> few -years; and it may be a consolation to invalids, who are sent to Spain -for change of climate, and who are particular, to know, in case of -accidents, that Protestant burial-grounds are now permitted at Cadiz, -Malaga, and in a few other places. The history of the permission is -curious, and has never, to the best of our belief, been told. In the -days of Philip II. Lutherans were counted in many degrees worse than -dogs; when caught alive, they were burnt by the holy tribunal; and when -dead, were cast out on the dunghill. Even when our poltroon James I. -sent, in 1622, his ill-judged olive-bearing mission, by which Spain was -saved from utter humiliation, Mr. Hole, the secretary of the ambassador, -Lord Digby, having died at Santander, the body was not allowed to be -buried at all; it was put into a shell, and sunk in the sea; but no -sooner was his lordship gone, than “the fishermen,” we quote from -Somers’ tracts, “fearing that they should catch no fish as long as the -coffin of a heretic lay in their waters,” fished it up, “and the corpse -of our countryman and brother was thrown above ground, to be devoured by -the fowls of the air.” In the treaty of 1630, the 31st Article provided -for the disposal of the goods of those Englishmen who might die in -Spain, but not for their bodies. “These,” says a commentator of Rymer, -“must be left stinking above ground, to the end that the dogs may be -sure to find them.” When Mr. Washington, page to Charles I., died at -Madrid, at the time his master was there, Howell, who was present, -relates that it was only as an especial favour to the suitor of the -Spanish Infanta that the body was allowed to be interred in the garden -of the embassy, under a fig-tree. A few years afterwards, 1650, Ascham, -the envoy of Cromwell, was assassinated, and his corpse put, without any -rites, into a hole; but the Protector was not a man to be trifled with, -and knew well how to deal with a Spanish government, always a craven and -bully, from whom nothing ever is to be obtained by concession and -gentleness, which is considered as weakness, while everything is to be -extorted from its <i>fears</i>. He that very year <i>commanded</i> a treaty to be -prepared for the proper burial of his subjects, to which the blustering -Spaniard immediately assented. This provision was stipulated into the -treaty of Charles II. in 1664, and was conceded and ratified again in -1667 to Sir Richard Fanshawe.<a name="page_254" id="page_254"></a></p> - -<p>No step, however, appears to have been taken before 1796, when Lord Bute -purchased a spot of ground for the burial of Englishmen outside the -Alcalá-gate, at Madrid. During the war, when all Spain was a churchyard -to our countrymen, this bit of land was taken possession of by a worthy -Madrilenian, not for his place of sepulture, but for good and profitable -cultivation. In 1831 Mr. Addington caused some researches to be made, -and the original conveyance was found in the <i>Contaduria de Hypothecas</i>, -the registry of deeds and mortgages which backward Spain possesses, and -which advanced England does not. The intruder was ejected after some -struggling on his part. Before Lord Bute’s time the English had been -buried at night and without ceremonies, in the garden of the convent <i>de -los Recoletos</i>; and, as Lord Bute’s new bit of ground was extensive and -valuable, the pious monks wished to give up the English corner in their -garden, in exchange for it; but the transfer was prevented by the recent -law which forbade all burial in cities. The field purchased by Lord Bute -is now unenclosed and uncultivated; fortunately it has not been much -wanted, only fifteen Protestants having died at Madrid during the last -thirty years. In November, 1831, Ferdinand VII. finally settled this -grave question by a decree, in which he granted permission for the -erection of a Protestant burial-ground in all towns where a British -consul or agent should reside, subject to most <i>degrading</i> conditions. -The first cemetery set apart in Spain, in virtue of this gracious decree -from a man replaced on his throne by the death of 30,000 Englishmen, was -the work of Mr. Mark, our consul at Malaga; he enclosed a spot of ground -to the east of that city, and placed a tablet over the entrance, -recording the royal permission, and above that a cross. Thus he appealed -to the dominant feelings of Spaniards, to their loyalty and religion. -The Malagenians were amazed when they beheld this emblem of Christianity -raised over the last home of Lutheran dogs, and exclaimed, “So even -these Jews make use of the cross!” The term Jew, it must be remembered, -is the acme of Spanish loathing and vituperation. The first body -interred in it was that of Mr. Boyd, who was shot by the bloody Moreno, -with the poor dupe Torrijos and the rest of his rebel companions.<a name="page_255" id="page_255"></a></p> - -<div class="sidenote">THE SPANISH FIGARO.</div> - -<h2><a name="CHAPTER_XIX" id="CHAPTER_XIX"></a>CHAPTER XIX.</h2> - -<div class="blockquot"><p class="hang">The Spanish -Figaro—Mustachios—Whiskers—Beards—Bleeding—Heraldic -Blood—Blue, Red, and Black Blood—Figaro’s Shop—The -Baratero—Shaving and Toothdrawing.</p></div> - -<p class="nind">F<small>EW</small> who love Don Quixote, will deem any notice on the Peninsular surgeon -complete in which the barber is not mentioned, even be it in a -postscript. Although the names of both these learned professors have -long been nearly synonymous in Spain, the barber is much to be -preferred, inasmuch as his cuts are less dangerous, and his conversation -is more agreeable. He with the curate formed the quiet society of the -Knight of La Mancha, as the apothecary and vicar used to make that of -most of our country squires of England. Let, therefore, every Adonis of -France, now bearded as a pard although young, nay, let each and all of -our fair readers, albeit equally exempt from the pains and penalties of -daily shaving, make instantly, on reaching sunny Seville, a pilgrimage -to the shrine of San Figaro. His shop—apocryphal it is to be feared as -other legendary localities—lies near the cathedral, and is a no less -established lion than the house of Dulcinea is at Toboso, or the prison -tower of Gil Blas is at Segovia. Such is the magic power of genius. -Cervantes and Le Sage have given form, fixture, and local habitation to -the airy nothings of their fancy’s creations, while Mozart and Rossini, -by filling the world with melody, have bidden the banks of the -Guadalquivir re-echo to their sweet inventions.</p> - -<div class="sidenote">SPANISH MUSTACHIOS.</div> - -<p>To those even who have no music in their souls, the movement from -doctors to barbers is harmonious in a land where beards were long -honoured as the type of valour and chivalry, and where shaving took the -precedence of surgery; and even to this day, <i>la tienda de barbero</i>, the -shop of the man of the razor, is better supplied than many a Spanish -hospital both with patients and cutting instruments. One word first on -the black whiskers of tawny Spain. These <i>patillas</i>, as they are now -termed, must<a name="page_256" id="page_256"></a> be distinguished from the ancient mustachio, the -<i>mostacho</i>, a very classical but almost obsolete word, which the -scholars of Salamanca have derived from <span title="Greek: mustax">μυστἁξ</span>, the upper lip. -Their present and usual name is <i>Bigote</i>, which is also of foreign -etymology, being the Spanish corruption of the German oath <i>bey gott</i>, -and formed under the following circumstances: for nicknames, which stick -like burrs, often survive the history of their origin. The free-riding -followers of Charles V., who wore these tremendous appendages of -manhood, swore like troopers, and gave themselves infinite airs, to the -more infinite disgust of their Spanish comrades, who have a tolerable -good opinion of themselves, and a first-rate hatred of all their foreign -allies. These strange mustachios caught their eyes, as the stranger -sounds which proceeded from beneath them did their ears. Having a quick -sense of the ridiculous, and a most Oriental and schoolboy knack at a -nickname, they thereupon gave the sound to the substance, and called the -redoubtable garnish of hair, <i>bigotes</i>. This process in the formation of -phrases is familiar to philologists, who know that an essential part -often is taken for the whole. For example, a hat, in common Spanish -parlance, is equivalent to a grandee, as with us the woolsack is to a -Lord Chancellor. It is natural that unscholastic soldiers, when dealing -with languages which they do not understand, should fix on their -enemies, as a term of reproach, those words which, from hearing used the -most often, they imagine must constitute the foundation of the hostile -grammar. Thus our troops called the Spaniards <i>los Carajos</i>, from their -terrible oaths and terrible runnings away. So the clever French -designated as <i>les godams</i>, those “stupid” fellows in red jackets who -never could be made to know when they were beaten, but continued to make -use of that significant phrase in reference to their victors, until they -politely showed them the shortest way home over the Pyrenees.</p> - -<div class="sidenote">THE BEARD.</div> - -<p>The real Spanish mustachio, as worn by the real Don Whiskerandoses, men -with shorter cloaks and purses than beards and rapiers, have long been -cut off, like the pig-tails of our monarchs and cabinet ministers. Yet -their merits are embalmed in metaphors more enduring than that -masterpiece in bronze with which Mr. Wyatt, full of Phidias, has adorned -King George’s back and Charing Cross. Thus <i>hombre de mucho bigote</i>, a -man of much moustache, means, in Spanish, a personage of considerable -pretension,<a name="page_257" id="page_257"></a> a fine, liberal fellow, and anything, in short, but a bigot -in wine, women, or theology. The Spanish original realities, like the -pig-tails of Great Britain, have also been immortalised by fine art, and -inimitably painted by Velazquez. Under his life-conferring brush they -required no twisting with hot irons. Curling from very ire and martial -instinct, they were called <i>bigotes á la Fernandina</i>, and their rapid -growth was attributed to the eternal cannon smoke of the enemy, into -which nothing could prevent their valorous wearers from poking their -faces. This luxuriance has diminished in these degenerate times, unless -Napier’s ‘History of the Peninsular War’ be, as the Spaniards say, -written in a spirit of envy and jealousy against their heroic armies, -which alone trampled on the invincible eagles of Austerlitz.</p> - -<p>As among the Egyptian gods and priests, rank was indicated by the cut of -the beard, so in Spain the military civil and clerical shapes were -carefully defined. The Charley, or Imperial, as we term the little tuft -in the middle of the under lip, a word by the way which is derivable -either from our Charles or from his namesake emperor, was called in -Spain <i>El perrillo</i>, “the little dog,” the terminating tail being -omitted, which however becoming in the animal and bronzes, shocked -Castilian euphuism.</p> - -<div class="sidenote">THE BIGOTE.</div> - -<p>In the mediæval periods of Spain’s greatness the beard and not the -whisker was the real thing; and as among the Orientals and ancients, it -was at once the mark of wisdom and of soldiership; to cut it off was an -insult and injury scarcely less than decapitation; nay, this nicety of -honour survived the grave. The seated corpse of the Cid, so tells his -history, knocked down a Jew who ventured to take the dead lion by his -beard, which, as all natural philosophers know, has an independent -vitality, and grows whether its master be alive or dead, be willing or -unwilling. When the insolent Gauls pulled these flowing ornaments of the -aged Roman senators, they, who with unmoved dignity had seen Marshal -Brennus steal their plate and pictures, could not brook that last and -greatest outrage. In process of time and fashion the beards of Spain -fell off, and being only worn by mendicant monks and he-goats, were -considered ungentlemanlike, and were substituted among cavaliers by the -Italian mostachio; the seat of Spanish honour was then placed under the -nose, that sensitive sentinel. The renowned Duke of Alva being of course -in want<a name="page_258" id="page_258"></a> of money, once offered one of his bigotes as a pledge for a -loan, and one only was considered to be a sufficient security by the -Rothschilds of the day, who remembered the hair-breadth escape of their -ancestor too well to laugh at anything connected with a hero’s beard; -<i>nous avons changé tout cela</i>. The united Hebrews of Paris and London -would not now advance a stiver for every particular hair on the bodies -of Narvaez and Espartero, not even if the moustache reglémentaire of -Montpensier, and a bushel of Bourbon beards, warranted legitimate, were -added.</p> - -<p>The use of the <i>bigote</i> in Spain is legally confined to the military, -most of whose generals—their name is legion—are tenderly chary of -their Charlies, dreading razors no less than swords; when the Infante -Don Carlos escaped from England, the only real difficulty was in getting -him to cut off his moustache; he would almost sooner have lost his head, -like his royal English <i>tocayo</i> or omonyme. Elizabeth’s gallant Drake, -when he burnt Philip’s fleet at Cadiz, simply called his Nelsonic touch -“singeing the King of Spain’s whiskers.” Zurbano the other day thought -it punishment enough for any Basque traitors to cut off their <i>bigotes</i>, -and turn them loose, like rats without tails, <i>pour encourager les -autres</i>. It is indeed a privation. Thus Majaval, the pirate murderer, -who by the glorious uncertainty of English law was not hanged at Exeter, -offered his prison beard, when he reached Barcelona, to the delivering -Virgin. Many Spanish civilians and shopkeepers, in imitation of the -transpyrenean <i>Calicots</i>, men who wear moustachios on their lips in -peace, and spectacles on their noses in war, so constantly let them -grow, that Ferdinand VII. fulminated a royal decree, which was to cut -them off from the face of the Peninsula, as the Porte is docking his -true believers. Such is the progress of young and beardless -civilization. The attempt to shorten the cloaks of Madrid nearly cost -Charles III. his crown, and this cropping mandate of his beloved -grandson was obeyed as Spanish decrees generally are, for a month all -but twenty-nine days. These decrees, like solemn treaties, charters, -stock-certificates, and so forth, being mostly used to light cigars; -now-a-days that the Moro-Spaniard is aping the true Parisian polish, the -national countenance is somewhat put out of face, to the serious sorrow -and disparagement of poor Figaro.<a name="page_259" id="page_259"></a></p> - -<div class="sidenote">SPANISH BLEEDING.</div> - -<p>As for his house and home none can fail finding it out; no cicerone is -wanted, for the outside is distinguished from afar by the emblems of his -time-honoured profession: first and foremost hangs a bright glittering -metal Mambrino-helmet basin, with a neat semicircular opening cut out of -the rim, into which the throat of the patient is let during the -operation of lathering, which is always done with the hand and most -copiously; near it are suspended huge grinders, which in an English -museum would pass for the teeth of elephants, and for those of Saint -Christopher in Spanish churches, where comparative anatomy is scouted as -heretical in the matter of relics; strange to say, and no Spanish -theologian could ever satisfy us why, this saint is not the “especial -advocate” against the toothache; here Santa Apollonia is the soothing -patroness. Near these molars are displayed awful phlebotomical symbols, -and rude representations of bloodlettings; for in Spain, in church and -out, painting does the work of printing to the many who can see, but -cannot read. The barber’s pole, with its painted bandage riband, the -support by which the arm was kept extended, is wanting to the threshold -of the Figaros of Spain, very much because bleeding is generally -performed in the foot, in order that the equilibrium of the whole -circulation may be maintained. The painting usually presents a female -foot, which being an object, and not unreasonably, of great devotion in -Spain, is selected by the artist; tradition also influences the choice, -for the dark sex were wont formerly to be bled regularly as calves are -still, to obtain whiteness of flesh and fairness of complexion: as it -was usual on each occasion that the lover should restore the exhausted -patient by a present, the purses of gallants kept pace with the venous -depletion of their mistresses. The <i>Sangrados</i> of Spain, professional as -well as unprofessional, have long been addicted to the shedding of -innocent blood; indeed, no people in the world are more curious about -the pedigree purity of their own blood, nor less particular about -pouring it out like water, whether from their own veins or those of -others. One word on this vital fluid with which unhappy Spain is too -often watered during her intestine disorders.</p> - -<div class="sidenote">HERALDIC BLOOD.</div> - -<p>If the Iberian anatomists did not discover its circulation, the heralds -have “tricked” out its blazoning, as we do our admirals, with all the -nicety of armorial coloring. <i>Blue blood, Sangre<a name="page_260" id="page_260"></a> azul</i>, is the ichor of -demigods which flows in the arteries of the grandees and highest -nobility, each of whose pride is to be</p> - -<div class="poem"><div class="stanza"> -<span class="i0">“A true Hidalgo, free from every stain<br /></span> -<span class="i1">Of Moor or Jewish blood,”<br /></span> -</div></div> - -<div class="sidenote">FIGARO’S SHOP.</div> - -<p class="nind">a boast which like some others of theirs wants confirmation, as it is in -the power of one woman to taint the blood of Charlemagne; and nature, -which cannot be written down by Debretts, has stamped on their -countenances the marks of hybrid origin, and particularly from these -very and most abhorred stocks; it is from this tint of celestial azure -that the term <i>sangre su</i> is given in Spain to the elect and best set of -earth, the <i>haute volée</i>, who soar above vulgar humanity. <i>Red</i> blood -flows in the veins of poor gentlemen and younger brothers, and is just -tolerated by all, except judicious mothers, whose daughters are -marriageable. <i>Blood</i>, simple blood, is the puddle which paints the -cheek of the plebeian and roturier; it has, or ought to possess, a -perfect incompatibility with the better coloured fluid, and an oil and -vinegar property of non-amalgamation. There is more difference, as -Salario says, between such bloods, than there is between red wine and -Rhenish. These and other dreams are, it is to be feared, the fond -metaphors of heralds. The rosy stream in mockery of <i>rouge</i> croix and -<i>blue</i> dragons flows inversely and perversely: in the arteries of the -lusty muleteer it is the lava blood of health and vigour; in the monkey -marquis and baboon baron it stagnates in the dull lethargy of a blue -collapse. Their noble ichor is virtually more impoverished than their -nominal rent-roll, since the operation of transmission of wholesome -blood from young veins into a worn-out frame, which is so much practised -elsewhere, is too nice for the <i>Sangre su</i> and <i>Sangrados</i> of Spain; the -thin fluid is never enriched with the calipash heiress of an alderman, -nor is the decayed genealogical stock renewed by the golden graft of a -banker’s only daughter. The insignificant grandees of Spain quietly -permitted Christina to barter away their country’s liberties; but when -her children by the base-born Muñoz came betwixt them and their -nobility, then alone did they remonstrate. Indifferent to the -degradation of the throne, they were tremblingly alive to the punctilios -of their own order. Those Peninsular ladies who are blues, by blood not -socks, are equally fastidious in the serious matter of its admixture -even by<a name="page_261" id="page_261"></a> Hymen: one of them, it is said, having chanced in a moment of -weakness to mingle her azure with something brownish, alleged in excuse -that she had done so for her character’s sake. “<i>Que disparate, mi -Señora.</i>” “What nonsense, my lady!” was her fair confidante’s reply; -“ten bastards would have less discoloured your blood, than one -legitimate child the issue of such a misalliance.”</p> - -<p>To stick, however, to our colours; <i>black blood</i> is the vile Stygean -pitch which is found in the carcasses of Jews, Gentiles, Moors, -Lutherans, and other combustible heretics, with whose bodies the holy -tribunal made bonfires for the good of their souls. Nay, in the case of -the Hebrew this black blood is also thought to stink, whence Jews were -called by learned Latinists <i>putos</i>, quia putant; and certainly at -Gibraltar an unsavoury odour seems to be gentilitious in the children of -Israel, not however to unorthodox and unheraldic nostrils a jot more so, -than in the believing Spanish monk. Recently the colour <i>black</i> has been -assigned to the blood of political opponents, and a copious “<i>shedding -of vile black blood</i>” has been the regular panacea of every military -Sangrado. How extremes meet! Thus, this aristocracy of colour, in -despotical old Spain, which lies in the veins, is placed on the skin in -new republican America. Where is the free and easy Yankee would -recognise a brother, in a black?</p> - -<div class="sidenote">THE BARATERO.</div> - -<p>To return to Figaro. There is no mistaking his shop; for independently -of the external manifestations of the fine arts practised within, his -threshold is the lounge of all idlers, as well as of those who are -anxious to relieve their chins of the thick stubble of a three days’ -growth. The house of the barber has, since the days of Solomon and -Horace, been the mart of news and gossip,—of epigram and satire, as -Pasquino the tailor’s was at Rome. It is the club of the lower orders, -who here take up a position, and listen, cloaked as Romans, to some -reader of the official Gazette, which, with a cigar, indicates modern -civilization, and soothes him with empty vapour. Here, again, is the -mint of scandal, and all who have lived intimately with Spaniards, know -how invariably every one stabs his neighbour behind his back with words, -the lower orders occasionally using knives sharper even than their -tongues. Here, again, resort gamblers, who, seated on the ground with -cards more begrimed than the earth,<a name="page_262" id="page_262"></a> pursue their fierce game as eager -as if existence was at stake; for there is generally some well-known -cock of the walk, a bully, or <i>guapo</i>, who will come up and lay his hand -on the cards, and say, “No one shall play with any cards but with -mine”—<i>aqui no se juega sino con mis barajas</i>. If the parties are -cowed, they give him a halfpenny each. If, however, one of the -challenged be a spirited fellow, he defies him—<i>Aquí no se cobra el -barato sino con un puñal de Albacete</i>—“You get no change here except -out of an Albacete knife.” If the defiance be accepted, <i>Vamos alla</i> is -the answer—“Let’s go to it.” There’s an end then of the cards, all -flock to the more interesting <i>écarté</i>; instances have occurred, where -Greek meets Greek, of their tying the two advanced feet together, and -yet remaining fencing with knife and cloak for a quarter of an hour -before the blow be dealt. The knife is held firmly, the thumb is pressed -straight on the blade, and calculated either for the cut or thrust.</p> - -<p>The term <i>Barato</i> strictly means the present which is given to waiters -who bring a new pack of cards. The origin is Arabic, <i>Baara</i>, “a -<i>voluntary</i> gift;” in the corruption of the <i>Baratero</i>, it has become an -involuntary one. Our legal term <i>Barratry</i> is derived from the mediæval -<i>Barrateria</i>, which signified cheating or foul play. Cervantes well knew -that <i>Baratar</i> in old Spanish meant to exchange unfairly, to -thimble-rig, to sell anything under its real value, and therefore gave -the name of <i>Barrateria</i> to Sancho’s sham government. The <i>Baratero</i> is -quite a thing of Spain, where personal prowess is cherished, and there -is one in every regiment, ship, prison, and even among galley-slaves.</p> - -<div class="sidenote">FIGARO’S SHOP.</div> - -<p>The interior of the barber’s shop is equally a <i>cosa de España</i>. Her -neighbour may boast to lead Europe in hair-dressing and clipping -poodles, but Figaro snaps his fingers at her civilization, and no cat’s -ears and tail can be closer shaved than his one’s are. The walls of his -operating room are neatly lathered with white-wash; on a peg hangs his -brown cloak and conical hat; his shelves are decorated with clay-painted -figures of picturesque rascals, arrayed in all their Andalucian -toggery—bandits, bull-fighters, and smugglers, who, especially the -latter, are more universally popular than all or any long-tail-coated -chancellors of exchequers. The walls are enlivened with rude prints of -fandango<a name="page_263" id="page_263"></a> dancings, miracles, and bull-fights, in which the Spanish -vulgar delight, as ours do in racing and ring notabilities. Nor is a -portrait of his <i>querida</i>, his black-eyed sweetheart, often wanting. -Near these, for religion mixes itself with everything of Spain, are -images of the Virgin, patron saints, with stoups for holy water, and -little cups in which lighted wicks burn floating on green oil; and -formerly no barber prepared for an operation, whether on veins, teeth, -or beards, without first making the sign of a cross. Thus hallowed, his -implements of art are duly arranged in order; his glass, soap, towels, -and leather strap, and guitar, which indeed, with the razor, constitutes -the genus barber. “These worthies,” said Don Quixote, “are all either -<i>guitarristas o copleros</i>; they are either makers of couplets, or -accompany other songsters with catgut.” Hence Quevedo, in his ‘Pigsties -of Satan,’ punishes unrighteous Figaros, by hanging up near them a -guitar, which tantalizes their touch, and moves away when they wish to -take it down.</p> - -<div class="sidenote">SPANISH SHAVING.</div> - -<p>Few Spaniards ever shave themselves; it is too mechanical, so they -prefer, like the Orientals, a “razor that is hired,” and as that must be -paid for, scarcely any go to the expensive luxury of an every-day shave. -Indeed, Don Quixote advised Sancho, when nominated a governor, to shave -at least every other day if he wished to look like a gentleman. The -peculiar sallowness of a Spaniard’s face is heightened by the contrast -of a sable bristle. Figaro himself is dressed much after the fashion in -which he appears on transpyrenean stages; he, on true Galenic -principles, takes care not to alarm his patients by a lugubrious -costume. There is nothing black, or appertaining to the grave about him; -he is all tags, tassels, colour, and embroidery, quips and quirks; he is -never still; always in a bustle, he is lying and lathering, cutting -chins and capers, here, there, and everywhere. <i>Figaro la, Figaro qua.</i> -If he has a moment free from taking off beards and making paper cigars, -he whips down his guitar and sings the last seguidilla; thus he drives -away dull care, who hates the sound of merry music, and no wonder; the -operator performs his professional duties much more skilfully than the -rival surgeon, nor does he bungle at any little extraneous <i>amateur</i> -commissions; and there are more real performances<a name="page_264" id="page_264"></a> enacted by the -barbers in Seville itself, than in a dozen European opera houses.</p> - -<p>These Figaros, says their proverb, are either mad or garrulous, -<i>Barberos, o locos, o parleros</i>. Hence, when the Andalucian autocrat, -Adrian, when asked how he liked to be shaved, replied “Silently.” -Humbler mortals must submit to let Figaro have his wicked way in talk; -for when a man is fixed in his operating chair, with his jaws lathered, -and his nose between a finger and a thumb, there is not much -conversational fair play or reciprocity. The Spanish barber is said to -learn to shave on the orphan’s head, and nothing, according to one -described by Martial, escaped except a single wary he-goat. The -experiments tried on the veins and teeth of aching humanity, are -sometimes ludicrous—at others serious, as we know to our cost, having -been silly enough to leave behind in Spain two of our wise teeth as -relics, tokens, and trophies of Figaro’s unrelenting prowess. We cannot -but remember such things were, and were dearer, than the pearls in -Cleopatra’s ears, which she melted in her gazpachos. “A mouth without -molars,” said Don Quixote to Sancho, “is worse than a mill without -grinding-stones;” and the Don was right.<a name="page_265" id="page_265"></a></p> - -<div class="sidenote">WHAT TO OBSERVE IN SPAIN.</div> - -<h2><a name="CHAPTER_XX" id="CHAPTER_XX"></a>CHAPTER XX.</h2> - -<div class="blockquot"><p class="hang">What to observe in Spain—How to observe—Spanish Incuriousness and -Suspicions—French Spies and Plunderers—Sketching in -Spain—Difficulties, How Surmounted—Efficacy of Passports and -Bribes—Uncertainty and Want of Information in the Natives.</p></div> - -<div class="sidenote">DIFFICULTIES OF OBSERVING.</div> - -<p class="nind">N<small>OW</small> that the most approved methods of travelling, living, and being -buried in Spain have been touched on, our kind readers will naturally -inquire, what are the peculiar attractions which should induce gentlemen -and ladies who take their ease at home, to adventure into this land of -roughing it, in which <i>rats</i> rather than hares jump up when the least -expected. “What to observe” is a question easier asked than answered; -who indeed can cater for the multitudinous variety of fancies, the -differences by which Nature keeps all nature right? Who shall decide -when doctors disagree, as they always do, on matters of taste, since -every one has his own way of viewing things, and his own hobby and -predilection? Say not, however, with Smellfungus, that all is a -wilderness from Dan to Beersheba,—nor seek for weeds where flowers -grow. The search for the excellent is the high road to excellence, as -not to appreciate it when found is the surest test of mediocrity. The -refining effort and habit teaches the mind to think; from long pondering -on the beautiful world without, snatches are caught of the beautiful -world within, and a glimpse is granted to the chosen few, of glories -hidden from the vulgar many. They indeed have eyes, but see not; nay, -scarcely do they behold the things of external nature, until told what -to look for, where to find it, and how to observe it; then a new sense, -a second sight, is given. Happy, thrice happy those from whose eyes the -film has been removed, who instead of a previous vague general and -unintelligent stare, have really learnt to <i>see</i>! To them a fountain of -new delights, pure and undefiled, welling up and overflowing, is opened; -in proportion as they comprehend the infinite form, colour, and beauty -with which<a name="page_266" id="page_266"></a> Nature clothes her every work, albeit her sweetest charms -are only revealed to the initiated, reserved as the rich reward of those -who bow to her shrine with singleness of purpose, and turn to her -worship with all their hearts, souls, and understandings.</p> - -<p>It was with these beneficent intentions that our good friend John Murray -first devised Handbooks; and next, by writing them himself, taught -others how to dip into inkstands for red books, which tell man, woman, -and child what to observe, to the ruin of <i>laquais de place</i>, and -discomfiture of authors of single octavos and long vacation excursions. -Few gentlemen who publish the notes of their Peninsular gallop much -improve their light diaries by discussing heavy handbook subjects; -skimming, like swallows, over the surface, and in pursuit of insects, -they neither heed nor discern the gems which lurk in the deeps below; -they see indeed all the scum and straws which float on the surface, and -write down on their tablets all that is rotten in the state of Spain. -Hence the sameness of some of their works; one book and bandit reflects -another, until writers and readers are imprisoned in a vicious circle. -Nothing gives more pain to Spaniards than seeing volume after volume -written on themselves and their country by foreigners, who have only -rapidly glanced at one-half of the subject, and that half the one of -which they are the most ashamed, and consider the least worth notice. -This constant prying into the nakedness of the land and exposing it -afterwards, has increased the dislike which they entertain towards the -<i>impertinente curioso</i> tribe: they well know and deeply feel their -country’s decline; but like poor gentlefolks, who have nothing but the -past to be proud of, they are anxious to keep these family secrets -concealed, even from themselves, and still more from the observations of -those who happen to be their superiors, not in blood, but in worldly -prosperity. This dread of being shown up sharpens their inherent -suspicions, when strangers wish to “observe,” and examine into their -ill-provided arsenals and institutions, just as Burns was scared even by -the honest antiquarian Grose; so they lump the good and the bad, putting -them down as book-making Paul Prys:—</p> - -<div class="sidenote">DISLIKE TO OBSERVERS.</div> - -<div class="poem"><div class="stanza"> -<span class="i0">“If there’s a hole in a’ your coats,<br /></span> -<span class="i2">I rede ye tent it;<br /></span> -<span class="i1">A chiel’s amang ye, taking notes,<br /></span> -<span class="i2">And faith! he’ll prent it.”<br /></span> -</div></div> - -<p><a name="page_267" id="page_267"></a></p> - -<p>The less observed and said about these Spanish matters, these <i>cosas de -España</i>—the present tatters in her once proud flag, on which the sun -never set—is, they think, the soonest mended. These comments heal -slower than the knife-gash—“<i>Sanan cuchilladas, mas</i> <span class="smcap">no</span> <i>malas -palabras</i>.” Let no author imagine that the fairest observations that he -can take and make of Spain as she is, setting down nought in malice, can -ever please a Spaniard; his pride and self-esteem are as great as the -self-conceit and low consequence of the American: both are morbidly -sensitive and touchy; both are afflicted with the notion that all the -world, who are never troubling their heads about them, are thinking of -nothing else, and linked in one common conspiracy, based in envy, -jealousy, or ignorance; “you don’t understand us, I guess.” Truth, -except in the shape of a compliment, is the greatest of libels, and is -howled against as a lie and forgery from the Straits to the Bidasoa; -Napier’s history, for example. The Spaniard, who is hardly accustomed to -a free, or rather a licentious press, and the scavenger propensity with -which, in England and America, it rakes into the sewers of private life -and the gangrenes of public, is disgusted with details which he resents -as a breach of hospitality in strangers. He considers, and justly, that -it is no proof either of goodness of breeding, heart, or intellect, to -be searching for blemishes rather than beauties, for toadstools rather -than violets; he despises those curmudgeons who see motes rather than -beams in the brightest eyes of Andalucia. The productions of strangers, -and especially of those who ride and write the quickest, must savour of -the pace and sources from whence they originate. Foreigners who are -unacquainted with the language and good society of Spain are of -necessity brought the most into contact with the lowest scenes and the -worst class of people, thus road-scrapings and postilion information too -often constitute the raw-head-and-bloody-bones material of their -composition. All this may be very amusing to those who like these -subjects, but they afford a poor criterion for descanting on whatever -does the most honour to a country, or gives sound data for judging its -real condition. How would we ourselves like that Spaniards should form -their opinions of England and Englishmen from the Newgate calendars, the -reports of cads, and the annals of beershops?<a name="page_268" id="page_268"></a></p> - -<div class="sidenote">DISLIKE TO OBSERVERS.</div> - -<p>Various as are the objects worth observing in Spain, many of which are -to be seen there only, it may be as well to mention what is <i>not</i> to be -seen, for there is no such loss of time as finding this out oneself, -after weary chace and wasted hour. Those who expect to meet with -well-garnished arsenals, libraries, restaurants, charitable or literary -institutions, canals, railroads, tunnels, suspension-bridges, -steam-engines, omnibuses, manufactories, polytechnic galleries, pale-ale -breweries, and similar appliances and appurtenances of a high state of -political, social, and commercial civilization, had better stay at home. -In Spain there are no turnpike-trust meetings, no quarter-sessions, no -courts of <i>justice</i>, according to the real meaning of that word, no -treadmills, no boards of guardians, no chairmen, directors, -masters-extraordinary of the court of chancery, no assistant poor-law -commissioners. There are no anti-tobacco-teetotal-temperance-meetings, -no auxiliary-missionary-propagating societies, nothing in the blanket -and lying-in asylum line, nothing, in short, worth a revising-barrister -of three years’ standing’s notice, unless he be partial to the study of -the laws of bankruptcy. Spain is no country for the political economist, -beyond affording an example of the decline of the wealth of nations, and -offering a wide topic on errors to be avoided, as well as for -experimental theories, plans of reform and amelioration. In Spain, -Nature reigns; she has there lavished her utmost prodigality of soil and -climate, which Spaniards have for the last four centuries been -endeavouring to counteract by a culpable neglect of agricultural -speeches and dinners, and a non-distribution of prizes for the biggest -boars, asses, and labourers with largest families.</p> - -<div class="sidenote">WHAT TO OBSERVE.</div> - -<p>The landed proprietor of the Peninsula is little better than a weed of -the soil; he has never observed, nor scarcely permitted others to -observe, the vast capabilities which might and ought to be called into -action. He seems to have put Spain into Chancery, such is the general -dilapidation. The country is little better than a terra incognita, to -naturalists, geologists, and all other branches of ists and ologists. -Everywhere there, the material is as superabundant as native labourers -and operatives are deficient. All these interesting branches of inquiry, -healthful and agreeable, as being out-of-door pursuits, and bringing the -amateur in close contact with nature, offer to embryo authors<a name="page_269" id="page_269"></a> who are -ambitious to <i>book something new</i>, a more worthy subject than the old -story of dangers of bull-fights, bandits, and black eyes. Those who -aspire to the romantic, the poetical, the sentimental, the artistical, -the antiquarian, the classical, in short, to any of the sublime and -beautiful lines, will find both in the past and present state of Spain, -subjects enough in wandering with lead-pencil and note-book through this -singular country, which hovers between Europe and Africa, between -civilization and barbarism; this land of the green valley and barren -mountain, of the boundless plain and the broken sierra; those Elysian -gardens of the vine, the olive, the orange, and the aloe; those -trackless, vast, silent, uncultivated wastes, the heritage of the wild -bee;—in flying from the dull uniformity, the polished monotony of -Europe, to the racy freshness of that original, unchanged country, where -antiquity treads on the heels of to-day, where Paganism disputes the -very altar with Christianity, where indulgence and luxury contend with -privation and poverty, where a want of all that is generous or merciful -is blended with the most devoted heroic virtues, where the most -cold-blooded cruelty is linked with the fiery passions of Africa, where -ignorance and erudition stand in violent and striking contrast.</p> - -<div class="sidenote">WHAT TO OBSERVE.</div> - -<p>“There,” says the Handbook, in a style which qualifies the author for -the best bound and fairest edited album, “let the antiquarian pore over -the stirring memorials of many thousand years, the vestiges of -Phœnician enterprise, of Roman magnificence, of Moorish elegance, in -that storehouse of ancient customs, that repository of all elsewhere -long forgotten and passed by; there let him gaze upon those classical -monuments, unequalled almost in Greece or Italy, and on those fairy -Aladdin palaces, the creatures of Oriental gorgeousness and imagination, -with which Spain alone can enchant the dull European; there let the man -of feeling dwell on the poetry of her envy-disarming decay, fallen from -her high estate, the dignity of a dethroned monarch, borne with -unrepining self-respect, the last consolation of the innately noble, -which no adversity can take away; let the lover of art feed his eyes -with the mighty masterpieces of ideal Italian art, when Raphael and -Titian strove to decorate the palaces of Charles, the great emperor of -the age of Leo X. Let him gaze on the living nature of Velazquez and -Murillo, whose<a name="page_270" id="page_270"></a> paintings are truly to be seen in Spain alone; let the -artist sketch frowning forms of the castle, the pomp and splendour of -the cathedral, where God is worshipped in a manner as nearly befitting -his glory as the arts and wealth of finite man can reach. Let him dwell -on the Gothic gloom of the cloister, the feudal turret, the vasty -Escorial, the rock-built alcazar of imperial Toledo, the sunny towers of -stately Seville, the eternal snows and lovely vega of Granada; let the -geologist clamber over mountains of marble, and metal-pregnant sierras; -let the botanist cull from the wild hothouse of nature plants unknown, -unnumbered, matchless in colour, and breathing the aroma of the sweet -south; let all, learned and unlearned, listen to the song, the guitar, -the castanet; or join in the light fandango and spirit-stirring -bullfight; let all mingle with the gay, good-humoured, temperate -peasantry, free, manly, and independent, yet courteous and respectful; -let all live with the noble, dignified, high-bred, self-respecting -Spaniard; let all share in their easy, courteous society; let all admire -their dark-eyed women, so frank and natural, to whom the voice of all -ages and nations has conceded the palm of attraction, to whom Venus has -bequeathed her magic girdle of grace and fascination; let all—but -enough on starting on this expedition, ‘where,’ as Don Quixote said, -‘there are opportunities, brother Sancho, of putting our hands into what -are called adventures up to our elbows.’”</p> - -<div class="sidenote">SUSPICION OF OBSERVERS.</div> - -<p>Nor was the La Manchan hidalgo wrong in assigning a somewhat adventurous -character to the searchers in Spain for useful and entertaining -knowledge, since the natives are fond, and with much reason, of -comparing themselves and their country to <i>tesoros escondidos</i>, to -hidden treasures, to talents buried in napkins; but they are equally -fond of turning round, and falling foul of any pains-taking foreigner -who digs them up, as Le Sage did the soul of Pedro Garcias. Nothing -throughout the length and breadth of the land creates greater suspicion -or jealousy than a stranger’s making drawings, or writing down notes in -a book: whoever is observed <i>sacando planes</i>, “taking plans,” <i>mapeando -el pais</i>, “mapping the country,”—for such are the expressions of the -simplest pencil sketch—is thought to be an engineer, a spy, and, at all -events, to be about no good. The lower classes, like the Orientals, -attach a vague mysterious<a name="page_271" id="page_271"></a> notion to these, to them unintelligible, -proceedings; whoever is seen at work is immediately reported to the -civil and military authorities, and, in fact, in out-of-the-way places, -whenever an unknown person arrives, from the rarity of the occurrence, -he is the observed of all observers. Much the same occurs in the East, -where Europeans are suspected of being emissaries of their governments, -as neither they nor Spaniards can at all understand why any man should -incur trouble and expense, which no native ever does, for the mere -purpose of acquiring knowledge of foreign countries, or for his own -private improvement or amusement. Again, whatever particular -investigations or questions are made by foreigners, about things that to -the native appear unworthy of observation, are magnified and -misrepresented by the many, who, in every place, wish to curry favour -with whoever is the governor or chief person, whether civil or military. -The natives themselves attach little or no importance to views, ruins, -geology, inscriptions, and so forth, which they see every day, and which -they therefore conclude cannot be of any more, or ought not to be of -more, interest to the stranger. They judge of him by themselves; few men -ever draw in Spain, and those who do are considered to be professional, -and employed by others.</p> - -<div class="sidenote">OFFICIAL SUSPICION.</div> - -<p>One of the many fatal legacies left to Spain by the French, was an -increased suspicion of men with the pencil and notebook. Previously to -their invasion spies and agents were sent, who, under the guise of -travellers, reconnoitred the land; and then, casting off the clothing of -sheep, guided in the wolves to plunder and destruction. The aged prior -of the Merced, at Seville, observed to us, when pointing out the empty -frames and cases from whence the Messrs. Soult and Co. had “removed” the -Murillos and sacred plate,—“<i>Lo creira usted</i>—Will your Grace believe -it, I beheld among the <i>ladrones</i> a person who grinned at me when I -recognised him, to whom, some time before the invaders’ arrival, I had -pointed out these very treasures. <i>Tonto de mi!</i> Oh! simpleton that I -was, to take a <i>gabacho</i> for an honest man.” Yet this worthy individual -was decorated with the legion of honour of Buonaparte, whose “first note -in his pocket-book” of agenda, <i>after</i> the conquest of England, was to -“carry off the Warwick vase;” as Denon, who too had spoiled the -Egyptians, told Sir E. Tomason. We English, whose shops,<a name="page_272" id="page_272"></a> “bursting with -opulence into the streets,” have not yet been visited, although the -temptation is held out by royal pamphleteers, can scarcely enter into -the feelings of those whose homes are still reeking with blood, and -blighted by poverty. The Castilian cat, who has been scalded, flies even -from cold water.</p> - -<p>Some excuse, therefore, may be alleged in favour of Spanish authorities, -especially in rarely visited districts, when they behold a strange -barbarian eye peeping and peering about. Their first impression, as in -the East, is that he may be a Frank: hence the shaking, quaking, and -ague which comes over them. At Seville, Granada, and places where -foreign artists are somewhat more plentiful, the processes of drawing -may be passed over with pity and contempt, but in lonely localities the -star-gazing observer is himself the object of argus-eyed, official -observation. He is, indeed, as unconscious of the portentous emotions -and ill-omened fears which he is exciting, as was the innocent crow of -the meanings attached to his movements by the Roman augurs, and few -augurs of old ever rivalled the Spanish alcaldes of to-day in quick -suspicion and perception of evil, especially where none is intended. -Witness what actually occurred to three excellent friends of ours.</p> - -<div class="sidenote">DRAWING IN SPAIN.</div> - -<p>The readers of Borrow’s inimitable ‘Bible in Spain’ will remember his -hair-breadth escape from being shot for Don Carlos by the miraculous -intervention of the alcalde of Corcubion, who, if still alive, must be a -phœnix, and clearly worth observation, as he was a reader of the -“grand Baintham,” or our illustrious Jeremy Bentham, to whom the Spanish -reformers sent for a paper <i>constitution</i>, not having a very clear -meaning of the word or thing, whether it was made of cotton or -parchment. Another of the very best investigators and writers on Spain, -Lord Carnarvon, was nearly put to death in the same districts for Don -Miguel; Captain Widdrington, also one of the kindest and most honourable -of men, was once arrested on suspicion of being an agent of Espartero; -and we, our humble selves, have had the felicity of being marched to a -guard-house for sketching a Roman ruin, and the honour of being taken, -either for Curius Dentatus, an alligator, or Julius Cæsar,—as there is -no absurdity, no inconceivable ignorance, too great for the local -Spanish “Dogberries,” who rarely deviate into sense; when their fears or -suspicions are<a name="page_273" id="page_273"></a> roused, they are as deaf alike to the dictates of common -reason or humanity as adders or Berbers; and here, as in the East, even -the best intentioned may be taken up for spies, and have their beards, -at least, cut off, as was done to King David’s envoyés. All classes, in -regard to strangers, generally get some hostile notions into their -heads, and then, instead of fairly and reasonably endeavouring to arrive -at the truth, pervert every innocent word, and twist every action, to -suit their own preconceived nonsense, until trifles become to their -jealous minds proofs as strong as Holy Writ. In justice, however, it -must be said, that when these authorities are once satisfied that the -stranger is an Englishman, and that no harm is intended, no people can -be more civil in offering assistance of every kind, especially the lower -classes, who gaze at the magical performance of drawing with wonder: the -higher classes seldom take any notice, partly from courtesy, and much -from the <i>nil admirari</i> principle of Orientals, which conceals both -inferiority and ignorance, and shows good breeding.</p> - -<div class="sidenote">CAPTAIN-GENERAL’S PASSPORT.</div> - -<p>The drawing any garrison-town or fortified place in Spain is now most -strictly forbidden. The prevailing ignorance of everything connected -with the arts of design is so great, that no distinction is made between -the most regular plan and the merest artistical sketch: a drawing is -with them a drawing, and punishable as such. A Spanish barrack, -garrison, or citadel is therefore to be observed but little, and still -less to be sketched. A gentleman, nay, a lady also, is liable, under any -circumstances, when drawing, to be interrupted, and often is exposed to -arrest and incivility. Indeed, whether an artist or not, it is as well -not to exhibit any curiosity in regard to matters connected with -military buildings; nor will the loss be great, as they are seldom worth -looking at. The troops in our time were in a most admired disorder. If -they wore shoes they had no stockings; if they had muskets, flints were -not plentiful; if powder was supplied, balls were scarce; nothing, in -short, was ever according to regulation. Nay, the buttons even on the -officers’ coats were never dressed in file: some had the numbers up, -some down, some awry; but uniformity is a thing of Europe and not of the -East. At this moment, when the church is starved, when widows’ pensions -are unpaid, when governmental bankruptcy walks the land, whose bones, -marrow, and all are wasted to sup<a name="page_274" id="page_274"></a>port the army, whose swords uphold the -hated men in office, the bands of the Royal Guard, the Prætorian bands, -do not keep tune, nor do the rank and file march in time. However -painful these things to pipe-clay martinets, the artist loses much, by -not being able to sketch such tumble-down forts and ragged garrisons, -each <i>Bisoño</i> of which is more precious to painter eye than the officer -in command at Windsor; while his short-petticoated <i>querida</i> is more -Murillo-like than a score of patronesses of Almack’s.</p> - -<div class="sidenote">ORIENTAL ANALOGIES.</div> - -<p>The safest plan for those who want to observe, and to book what they -observe, is to obtain a Spanish passport, with the object of their -curiosity and inquiries clearly specified in it. There is seldom any -difficulty at Madrid, if application be made through the English -minister, in obtaining such a document; indeed, when the applicant is -well known, it is readily given by any of the provincial -Captains-General. As it is couched in the Spanish language, it is -understood by all, high and low; an advantage which is denied in Spain -to those issued by our ambassadors, and even by the Foreign Office, who, -to the <i>credit</i> of themselves and nation, give passes to Englishmen in -the French language, whereby among Spaniards a suspicion arises that the -bearer may be a Frenchman, which is not always pleasant. We preserve -among rare Peninsular relics a passport granted by our kind patron the -redoubtable Conde de España, and backed by the no less formidable -Quesada and Sarsfield, in which it was enjoined, in choice, intelligible -Castilian, to all and every minor rulers and governors, whether with the -pen or sword, to aid and assist the bearer in his examination of the -fine arts and antiquities of the Peninsula. These autocrats were more -implicitly obeyed in their respective Lord Lieutenancies than Ferdinand -himself; in fact, the pashas of the East are their exact types, each in -their district being the heads of both civil and military tribunals; and -as they not only administer, but suit the law according to the length of -their own feet, they in fact make it and trample upon it, and all in any -authority below them imitate their superiors as nearly as they dare. -These things of Spain are managed with a gravity truly Oriental, both in -the rulers and in the resignation of those ruled by them; these great -men’s passport and signature were obeyed by all minor authorities as -implicitly as an<a name="page_275" id="page_275"></a> Oriental firman; the very fact of a stranger having a -Captain-General’s passport, is soon known by everybody, and, to use an -Oriental phrase, “makes his face to be whitened;” it acts as a letter of -introduction, and is in truth the best one of all, since it is addressed -to people in power in each village or town, who, true sheikhs, are -looked up to by all below them with the same deference, as they -themselves look up to all above them. The worth of a person recommended, -is estimated by that of the person who recommends; <i>tal recomendacion -tal recomendado</i>. To complete this thing of Oriental Spain, these three -omnipotent despots, who defied laws human and divine, who made dice of -their enemies’ bones, and goblets of their skulls, have all since been -assassinated, and sent to their account with all their sins on their -heads. In limited monarchies ministers who go too far, lose their -places, in Spain and Turkey their heads: the former, doubtless, are the -most severely punished.</p> - -<p>Those who wish to observe Spanish man, which, next to Spanish woman, -forms the proper study of mankind, will find that one key to decipher -this singular people is scarcely European, for this <i>Berberia Cristiana</i> -is a neutral ground placed between the hat and the turban; many indeed -of themselves contend that Africa begins even at the Pyrenees. Be that -as it may, Spain, first civilized by the Phœnicians, and long -possessed by the Moors, has indelibly retained the original impressions. -Test her, therefore, and her males and females, by an Oriental standard, -how analogous does much appear that is strange and repugnant, if -compared with European usages. Take care, however, not to let either the -ladies or gentlemen know the hidden processes of your mind, for nothing -gives greater offence. The fair sex is willing, to prevent such a -mistake, to lay aside even their becoming <i>mantillas</i>, as their hidalgos -doff their stately Roman cloaks. These old clothes they offer up as -sacrifices on the altar of civilization, and to the mania of looking -exactly like the rest of the world, in Hyde Park and the Elysian Fields.</p> - -<div class="sidenote">INDIFFERENCE TO THE BEAUTIFUL.</div> - -<p>Another remarkable Oriental trait is the general want of love for the -beautiful in art, and the abundance of that <span title="Greek: Aphilokalia">Αφιλοκαλια</span> with -which the ancients reproached the genuine Iberians; this is exhibited in -the general neglect and indifference shown towards Moorish works, which -instead of destroying they ought rather to<a name="page_276" id="page_276"></a> have protected under -glasses, since such attractions are peculiar to the Peninsula. The -<i>Alhambra</i>, the pearl and magnet of Granada, is in their estimation -little better than a <i>casa de ratones</i>, or a rat’s hole, which in truth -they have endeavoured to make it by centuries of neglect; few natives -even go there, or understand the all-absorbing interest, the -concentrated devotion, which it excites in the stranger; so the Bedouin -regards the ruins of Palmyra, insensible to present beauty, as to past -poetry and romance. Sad is this non-appreciation of the Alhambra by the -Spaniards, but such are Asiatics, with whom sufficient for the day is -<i>their to-day</i>; who care neither for the past nor for the future, who -think only for the present and themselves, and like them the masses of -Spaniards, although not wearing turbans, lack the organs of veneration -and admiration for anything beyond matters connected with the first -person and the present tense. Again, the leaven of hatred against the -Moor and his relics is not extinct; they resent as almost heretical the -preference shown by foreigners to the works of infidels rather than to -those of good Catholics; such preference again at once implies their -inferiority, and convicts them of bad taste in their non-appreciation, -and of Vandalism in labouring to mutilate, what the Moor laboured to -adorn. The charming writings of Washington Irving, and the admiration of -European pilgrims, have latterly shamed the authorities into a somewhat -more conservative feeling towards the Alhambra; but even their benefits -are questionable; they “repair and beautify” on the church-warden -principle, and there is no less danger in such “restorations” than in -those fatal scourings of Murillo and Titian in the Madrid gallery, which -are effacing the lines where beauty lingers. Even their tardy -appreciation is somewhat interested: thus Mellado, in his late Guide, -laments that there should be no account of the Alhambra, of which he -speaks coldly, and suggests, as so many “English” visit it, that a -descriptive work would be a <i>segura especulacion!</i> a safe speculation! -Thus the poetry of the Moorish Alhambra is coined into the Spanish prose -of profitable shillings and sixpences.</p> - -<div class="sidenote">FAMILIARITY BREEDS CONTEMPT.</div> - -<p>Travellers however should not forget, that much which to them has the -ravishing, enticing charms of novelty, is viewed by the dull sated eye -of the native, with familiarity which breeds<a name="page_277" id="page_277"></a> contempt; they are weary, -oh fatal lassitude! even of the beautiful: alas! exclaimed the hermit on -Monserrat, to the stranger who was ravished by exquisite views, then and -there beheld by him for the first and last time, “all this has no -attraction for me; twenty and nine are the years that I have seen this -unchanged scene, every sunrise, every noon, every sunset.” But <i>sordent -domestica</i>, observes Pliny, nor are all things or persons honoured in -their own homes as they ought to be, since the days that Mahomet the -true prophet failed to persuade his wife and valet that his powers were -supernatural. Can it be wondered that ruins and “old rubbish” should be -held cheap among the Moro-Spaniards? or that their so-called “guides” -should mislead and misdirect the stranger? It cannot well be avoided, -since few of the writers ever travel in their own country, and fewer -travel out of it; thus from their limited means of comparison, they -cannot appreciate differences, nor tell what are the wants and wishes of -a foreigner: accordingly, scenes, costumes, ruins, usages, ceremonies, -&c., which they have known from childhood, are passed over without -notice, although, from their passing newness to the stranger, they are -exactly what he most desires to have pointed out and explained. Nay, the -natives frequently despise or are ashamed of those very things, which -most interest and charm the foreigner, for whose observation they select -the modern rather than the old, offering especially their poor pale -copies of Europe, in preference to their own rich, racy, and natural -originals, doing this in nothing more than in the costume and dwellings -of the lower classes, who happily are not yet afflicted with the disease -of French polish: they indeed, when they dig up ancient coins, will rub -off the precious rust of twice ten hundred years, in order to render -them, as they imagine, more saleably attractive; but they fortunately -spare themselves, insomuch that Charles III., on failing in one of his -laudable attempts to improve and modernise them, compared his loving -subjects to naughty children, who quarrel with their good nurse when she -wants to wash them.</p> - -<div class="sidenote">WANT OF INFORMATION.</div> - -<p>Again, no country in the world can vie with Spain, where the dry climate -at least is conservative, with memorials of auld lang syne, with tower -and turret, Prout-like houses and toppling balconies, so old that they -seem only not to fall into the torrents<a name="page_278" id="page_278"></a> and ravines over which they -hang. Here is every form and colour of picturesque poverty; vines -clamber up the irregularities, while below naiads dabble, washing their -red and yellow garments in the all-gilding glorious sun-beams. What a -picture it is to all but the native, who sees none of the wonders of -lights and shadows, reflections, colours, and outlines; who, blind to -all the beauties, is keenly awake only to the degradation, the rags and -decay; he half suspects that your sketch and admiration of a smuggler or -bullfighter is an insult, and that you are taking it, in order to show -in England what Mons. Guizot will never be forgiven for calling the -“brutal” things of Spain; accordingly, while you are sincerely and with -reason delighted with sashes and <i>Zamarras</i>, he begs you to observe his -ridiculous Boulevard-cut coat: or when you sit down opposite to a -half-ruined Roman wall, some crumbling Moorish arch, or mediæval Gothic -shrine, he implores you to come away and draw the last spick and span -Royal Academical abortion, coldly correct and classically dull, in order -to carry home a sample which may do credit to Spain, as approximating to -the way things are managed at Charing Cross.</p> - -<p>Without implicitly following the advice of these Spaniards of better -intention than taste, no man of research will undervalue any assistance -by which his objects are promoted, even should he be armed with a -captain-general’s passport, and a red Murray. Meagre is the oral -information which is to be obtained from Spaniards on the spot; these -incurious semi-Orientals look with jealousy on the foreigner, and either -fence with him in their answers, raise difficulties, or, being highly -imaginative, magnify or diminish everything as best suits their own -views and suspicions. The national expressions “<i>Quien sabe? no se -sabe</i>,”—“who knows? I do not know,” will often be the prelude to “<i>No -se puede</i>,”—“it can’t be done.”</p> - -<div class="sidenote">DIFFICULTIES OF SIGHT-SEEING.</div> - -<p>These impediments and impossibilities are infinitely increased when the -stranger has to do with men in office, be it ever so humble; the first -feeling of these Dogberries is to suspect mischief and give refusals. -“No” may be assumed to be their natural answer; nor even if you have a -special order of permission, is admission by any means certain. The -keeper, who here as elsewhere, considers the objects committed to his -care as his own private pro<a name="page_279" id="page_279"></a>perty and source of perquisite, must be -conciliated: often when you have toiled through the heat and dust to -some distant church, museum, library, or what not, after much ringing -and waiting, you will be drily informed that it is shut, can’t be seen, -that it is the wrong day, that you must call again to-morrow; and if it -be the right day, then you will be told that the hour is wrong, that you -are come too early, too late; very likely the keeper’s wife will inform -you that he is out, gone to mass, or market, or at his dinner, or at his -<i>siesta</i>, or if he is at home and awake, he will swear that his wife has -mislaid the key, “which she is always doing.” If all these and other -excuses won’t do, and you persevere, you will be assured that there is -nothing worth seeing, or you will be asked why you want to see it? As a -general rule, no one should be deterred from visiting anything, because -a Spaniard of the upper classes gives his opinion that the object is -beneath notice; he will try to convince you that Toledo, Cuenca, and -other places which cannot be matched in Christendom, are ugly, odious, -old cities; he is ashamed of them because the tortuous, narrow lanes do -not run in rows as straight as Pall Mall and the Rue de Rivoli. In fact -his only notion of a civilized town is a common-place assemblage of -rectangular wide streets, all built and coloured uniformly, like a line -of foot-soldiers, paved with broad flags, and lighted with gas, on which -Spaniards can walk about dressed as Englishmen, and Spanish women like -those of France; all of which said wonders a foreigner may behold far -better nearer home; nor is it much less a waste of time to go and see -what the said Spaniard considers to be a real lion, since the object -generally turns out to be some poor imitation, without form, angle, -history, nationality, colour, or expression, beyond that of utilitarian -comfort and common-place convenience—great advantages no doubt both to -contractors and political economists, but death and destruction to men -of the pencil and note-book.</p> - -<div class="sidenote">HOW TO BE ADMITTED.</div> - -<div class="sidenote">OFFICIAL CORRUPTION.</div> - -<p>The sound principles in Spanish sight-seeing are few and simple, but, if -observed, they will generally prove successful; first, persevere; never -be put back; never take an answer if it be in the negative; never lose -temper or courteous manners; and lastly, let the tinkle of metal be -heard at once; if the chief or great man be inexorable, find out -privately who is the wretched sub who keeps the key, or the crone who -sweeps the room; and<a name="page_280" id="page_280"></a> then send a discreet messenger to say that you -will pay to be admitted, without mentioning “nothing to nobody.” Thus -you will always obtain your view, even when an official order fails. On -our first arrival at Madrid, when but young in these things of Spain, we -were desirous of having daily permission to examine a royal gallery, -which was only open to the public on certain days in the week. In our -grave dilemma we consulted a sage and experienced diplomatist, and this -was the oracular reply:—“Certainly, if you wish it, I will make a -request to Señor Salmon” (the then Home Secretary), “and beg him to give -you the proper order, as a personal favour to myself. By the way, how -much longer shall you remain here?”—“From three to four weeks.”—“Well, -then, after you have been gone a good month, I shall get a courteous and -verbose epistle from his Excellency, in which he will deeply regret -that, on searching the archives of his office, there was no instance of -such a request having ever been granted, and that he is compelled most -reluctantly to return a refusal, from the fear of a precedent being -created. My advice to you is to give the porter a dollar, to be repeated -whenever the door-hinges seem to be getting rusty and require oiling.” -The hint was taken, as was the bribe, and the prohibited portals -expanded so regularly, that at last they knew the sound of our -footsteps. Gold is the Spanish <i>sesame</i>. Thus Soult got into Badajoz, -thus Louis Philippe put Espartero out, and Montpensier in. Gold, bright -red gold, is the sovereign remedy which in Spain smooths all -difficulties, nay, some in which even force has failed, as here the -obstinate heads may be guided by a straw of bullion, but not driven by a -bar of iron. The magic influence of a bribe pervades a land, where -everything is venal, even to the scales of justice. Here men who have -objects to gain begin to work from the bottom, not from the top, as we -do in England. In order to ensure success, no step in the official -ladder must be left unanointed. A wise and prudent suitor bribes from -the porter to the premier, taking care not to forget the -under-secretary, the over-secretary, the private secretary, all in their -order, and to regulate the douceur according to each man’s rank and -influence. If you omit the porter, he will not deliver your card, or -will say Señor Mon is out, or will tell you to call again <i>manaña</i>, the -eternal to-morrow. If you forget the<a name="page_281" id="page_281"></a> chief clerk, he will mislay your -petition, or poison his master’s ear. In matters of great and political -importance, the sovereign, him or herself, must have a share; and thus -it was that Calomarde continued so long to manage the beloved Ferdinand -and his counsels. He was the minister who laid the greatest bribe at the -royal feet. “Sire, by strict attention and honesty, I have just been -enabled to economise 50,000<i>l.</i>, on the sums allotted to my department, -which I have now the honour and felicity to place at your Majesty’s -disposal.”—“Well done, my faithful and good minister, here is a cigar -for you.” This Calomarde, who began life as a foot-boy, smuggled through -the Christinist swindle, by which Isabel now wears the crown of Don -Carlos. The rogue was rewarded by being made <i>Conde de Sª. Isabel</i>, a -title which since has been conferred on Mons. Bresson’s baby—a delicate -compliment to his sire’s labours in the transfer of the said crown to -Louis Philippe—but Spaniards are full of dry humour.</p> - -<div class="sidenote">SPANISH IGNORANCE.</div> - -<p>In the East, the example and practice of the Sultan and Vizier is -followed by every pacha, down to the lowest animal who wields the most -petty authority; the disorder of the itching palm is endemic and -epidemic, all, whether high and low, want, and must have money; all wish -to get it without the disgrace of begging, and without the danger of -highway robbery. Public poverty is the curse of the land, and all -<i>empleados</i> or persons in office excuse themselves on dire necessity, -the old plea of a certain gentleman, which has no law. Some allowance, -therefore, may be made for the rapacity which, with very few exceptions, -prevails; the regular salaries, always inadequate, are generally in -arrear, and the public servants, poor devils, swear that they are forced -to pay themselves by conniving at defrauding the government; this few -scruple to do, as all know it to be an unjust one, and that it can -afford it; indeed, as all are offenders alike, the guilt of the offence -is scarcely admitted. Where robbing and jobbing are the universal order -of the day, one rascal keeps another in countenance, as one goître does -another in Switzerland. A man who does not feather his nest when in -place, is not thought honest, but a fool; <i>es preciso, que cada uno coma -de su oficio</i>. It is necessary, nay, a <i>duty</i>, as in the East, that all -should live by their office; and as office is short and insecure, no -time or means is neglected<a name="page_282" id="page_282"></a> in making up a purse; thus poverty and their -will alike and readily consent.</p> - -<p>Take a case in point. We remember calling on a Spaniard who held the -highest office in a chief city of Andalucia. As we came into his cabinet -a cloaked personage was going out; the great man’s table was covered -with gold ounces, which he was shovelling complacently into a drawer, -gloating on the glorious haul. “Many ounces, Excellency,” said we. “Yes, -my friend,” was his reply—“<i>no quiero comer mas patatas</i>,—I do not -intend to dine any more on potatoes.” This gentleman, during the -<i>Sistema</i>, or Riego constitution, had, with other loyalists, been turned -out of office; and, having been put to the greatest hardships, was -losing no time in taking prudent and laudable precautions to avert any -similar calamity for the future. His practices were perfectly well known -in the town, where people simply observed, “<i>Está atesorando</i>, he is -laying up treasures,”—as every one of them would most certainly have -done, had they been in his fortunate position. Rich and honest Britons, -therefore, should not judge too hardly of the sad shifts, the strange -bed-fellows, with which want makes the less provided Spaniards -acquainted. <i>Donde no hay abundancia, no hay observancia.</i> The empty -sack cannot stand upright, nor was ever a sack made in Spain into which -gain and honour could be stowed away together; <i>honra y provecho, no -caben en un saco o techo</i>; here virtue itself succumbs to poverty, -induced by more than half a century of mis-government, let alone the -ruin caused by Buonaparte’s invasion, to which domestic troubles and -civil wars have been added.</p> - -<div class="sidenote">A QUESTION OF DAYS.</div> - -<p>To return, however, to sight-seeing in Spain. Lucky was the traveller -prepared even to bribe and pay, who ever in our time chanced to fall in -with a librarian who knew what books he had, or with a priest who could -tell what pictures were in his chapel; ask him for <i>the</i> painting by -Murillo—a shoulder-shrug was his reply, or a curt “<i>no hay</i>,” “there is -none;” had you inquired for the “blessed Saint Thomas,” then he might -have pointed it out; the <i>subject</i>, not the artist, being all that was -required for the service of the church. An incurious bliss of ignorance -is no less grateful to the Spanish mind, than the <i>dolce far niente</i> or -sweet indolent doing nothing is to the body. All that gives<a name="page_283" id="page_283"></a> trouble, or -“fashes,” destroys the supreme height of felicity, which consists in -avoiding exertion. A chapter might be filled with instances, which, had -they not occurred to our humble selves, would seem caricature -inventions. The not to be able to answer the commonest question, or to -give any information as to matters of the most ordinary daily -occurrence, is so prevalent, that we at first thought it must proceed -from some fear of committal, some remnant of inquisitorial engendered -reserve, rather than from bonâ fide careless and contented ignorance. -The result, however, of much intercourse and experience arrived at, was, -that few people are more communicative than the lower classes of -Spaniards, especially to an Englishman, to whom they reveal private and -family secrets: their want of knowledge applies rather to things than to -persons.</p> - -<div class="sidenote">UNCERTAINTY OF SPANISH THINGS.</div> - -<p>If you called on a Spanish gentleman, and, finding him out, wished -afterwards to write him a note, and inquired of his man or maid servant -the number of the house;—“I do not know, my lord,” was the invariable -answer, “I never was asked it before, I have never looked for it: let us -go out and see. Ah! it is number 36.” Wishing once to send a parcel by -the wagon from Merida to Madrid, “On what day, my lord,” said I to the -potbellied, black-whiskered <i>ventero</i>, “does your <i>galera</i> start for the -Court?” “Every Wednesday,” answered he; “and let not your grace be -anxious”—“<i>Disparate</i>—nonsense,” exclaimed his copper-skinned, -bright-eyed wife, “why do you tell the English knight such lies? the -wagon, my lord, sets out on Fridays.” During the logomachy, or the few -words which ensued between the well-matched pair, our good luck willed, -that the <i>mayoral</i> or driver of the vehicle should come in, who -forthwith informed us that the days of departure were Thursdays; and he -was right. This occurred in the provinces; take, therefore, a parallel -passage in the capital, the heart and brain of the Castiles. “<i>Señor, -tenga Usted la bondad</i>—My lord,” said I to a portly, pompous -bureaucrat, who booked places in the dilly to Toledo,—“have the -goodness, your grace, to secure me one for Monday, the 7th.”—“I fear,” -replied he, politely, for the <i>negocio</i> had been prudently opened by my -offering him a real Havannah, “that your lordship has made a mistake in -the date. Monday is the 8th of the current month”—which it was not. -Thinking to settle the matter,<a name="page_284" id="page_284"></a> we handed to him, with a bow, the -almanack of the year, which chanced to be in our pocket-book. “<i>Señor</i>,” -said he, gravely, when he had duly examined it, “I knew that I was -right; this one was printed at Seville,”—which it was—“and we are here -at Madrid, which is <i>otra cosa</i>, that is, altogether another affair.” In -this solar difference and pre-eminence of the Court, it must be -remembered, that the sun, at its creation, first shone over the -neighbouring city, to which the dilly ran; and that even in the last -century, it was held to be heresy at Salamanca, to say that it did not -move round Spain. In sad truth, it has there stood still longer than in -astronomical lectures or metaphors. Spain is no paradise for -calculators; here, what ought to happen, and what would happen elsewhere -according to Cocker and the doctrine probabilities, is exactly the event -which is the least likely to come to pass. One arithmetical fact only -can be reckoned upon with tolerable certainty: let given events be -represented by numbers; then two and two may at one time make three, or -possibly five at another; but the odds are four to one against two and -two ever making four; another safe rule in Spanish official numbers; <i>e. -g.</i> “five thousand men killed and wounded”—“five thousand dollars will -be given,” and so forth, is to deduct two noughts, and sometimes even -three, and read fifty or five instead.</p> - -<div class="sidenote">CERTAINTY OF BULL-FIGHTS.</div> - -<p>Well might even the keen-sighted, practical Duke say it is difficult to -understand the Spaniards exactly; there neither men nor women, suns nor -clocks go together; there, as in a Dutch concert, all choose their own -tune and time, each performer in the orchestra endeavouring to play the -first fiddle. All this is so much a matter of course, that the natives, -like the Irish, make a joke of petty mistakes, blunders, -unpunctualities, inconsequences, and pococurantisms, at which accurate -Germans and British men of business are driven frantic. Made up of -contradictions, and dwelling in the <i>pays de l’imprévu</i>, where exception -is the rule, where accident and the impulse of the moment are the moving -powers, the happy-go-lucky natives, especially in their collective -capacity, act like women and children. A spark, a trifle, sets the -impressionable masses in action, and none can foresee the commonest -event; nor does any Spaniard ever attempt to guess beyond <i>la situacion -actual</i>, the actual present, or to foretell what the morrow will bring; -that he leaves to the<a name="page_285" id="page_285"></a> foreigner, who does not understand him. -<i>Paciencia y barajar</i> is his motto; and he waits <i>patiently</i> to see what -next will turn up after another <i>shuffle</i>.</p> - -<p>There is one thing, however, which all know exactly, one question which -all can answer; and providentially this refers to the grand object of -every foreigner’s observation—“When will the bull-fight be and begin?” -and this holds good, notwithstanding that there is a proviso inserted in -the notices, that it will come off on such a day and hour, “if the -weather permits.” Thus, although these spectacles take place in summer, -when for months and months rain and clouds are matters of history, the -cautious authorities doubt the blessed sun himself, and mistrust the -certainty of his proceedings, as much as if they were ir-regulated by a -Castilian clockmaker.<a name="page_286" id="page_286"></a></p> - -<div class="sidenote">THE SPANISH BULL-FIGHT.</div> - -<h2><a name="CHAPTER_XXI" id="CHAPTER_XXI"></a>CHAPTER XXI.</h2> - -<div class="blockquot"><p class="hang">Origin of the Bull-fight or Festival, and its Religious -Character—Fiestas Reales—Royal Feasts—Charles I. at -one—Discontinuance of the Old System—Sham Bull-fights—Plaza de -Toros—Slang Language—Spanish Bulls—Breeds—The Going to a -Bull-fight.</p></div> - -<p class="nind">O<small>UR</small> honest John Bulls have long been more partial to their Spanish -namesakes, than even to those perpetrated by the Pope, or made in the -Emerald Isle; to see a bull-fight has been the emphatic object of -enlightened curiosity, since Peninsular sketches have been taken and -published by our travellers. No sooner had Charles the First, when -prince, lost his heart at Madrid, than his royal -father-in-law-that-was-to-be, regaled him and the fair inspirer of his -tender passion, with one of these charming spectacles; an event which, -as many men and animals were butchered, was thought by the -historiographers of the day to be one that posterity would not willingly -let die; their contemporary accounts will ever form the gems of every -tauromachian library that aspires to be complete.</p> - -<div class="sidenote">BULL FESTIVALS.</div> - -<p>These sports, which recall the bloody games of the Roman amphitheatre, -are now only to be seen in Spain, where the present clashes with the -past, where at every moment we stumble on some bone and relic of -Biblical and Roman antiquity; the close parallels, nay the identities, -which are observable between these combats and those of classical ages, -both as regards the spectators and actors, are omitted, as being more -interesting to the scholar than to the general reader; they were pointed -out by us some years ago in the Quarterly Review, No. cxxiv. And as -human nature changes not, men when placed in given and similar -circumstances, will without any previous knowledge or intercommunication -arrive at nearly similar results; the gentle pastime of spearing and -killing bulls in public and single-handed was probably devised by the -Moors, or rather by the Spanish Moors, for nothing of the kind has ever -obtained in Africa<a name="page_287" id="page_287"></a> either now or heretofore. The Moslem Arab, when -transplanted into a Christian and European land, modified himself in -many respects to the ways and usages of the people among whom he -settled, just as his Oriental element was widely introduced among his -Gotho-Hispano neighbours. Moorish Andalucia is still the head-quarters -of the tauromachian art, and those who wish carefully to master this, -the science of Spain <i>par excellence</i>, should commence their studies in -the school of Ronda, and proceed thence to take the highest honours in -the University of Seville, the Bullford of the Peninsula.</p> - -<div class="sidenote">FIESTAS REALES.</div> - -<p>By the way, our boxing, baiting term bull-<i>fight</i> is a very lay and low -translation of the time-honoured Castilian title, <i>Fiestas de Toros</i>, -the feasts, festivals of bulls. The gods and goddesses of antiquity were -conciliated by the sacrifice of hecatombs; the lowing tickled their -divine ears, and the purple blood fed their eyes, no less than the -roasted sirloins fattened the priests, while the grand spectacle and -death delighted their dinnerless congregations. In Spain, the Church of -Rome, never indifferent to its interests, instantly marshalled into its -own service a ceremonial at once profitable and popular;<a name="FNanchor_13_13" id="FNanchor_13_13"></a><a href="#Footnote_13_13" class="fnanchor">[13]</a> it -consecrated butchery by wedding it to the altar, availing itself of this -gentle handmaid, to obtain funds in order to raise convents; even in the -last century Papal bulls were granted to mendicant orders, authorising -them to celebrate a certain number of <i>Fiestas de Toros</i>, on condition -of devoting the profit to finishing their church; and in order to swell -the receipts at the doors, spiritual indulgences and soul releases from -purgatory, the number of years being apportioned to the relative prices -of the seats, were added as a bonus to all paid for places at a -spectacle hallowed by a pious object. So at the <i>taurobolia</i> of -antiquity, those who were sprinkled with bull blood were absolved from -sin. Protestant ministers, who very properly fear and distrust papal -bulls, replace them by bazaars and fancy fairs, whenever a fashionable -chapel requires a new blue slate roofing. Again, when not devoted to -religious purposes,<a name="page_288" id="page_288"></a> every bull-fight aids the cause of charity; the -profits form the chief income of the public hospitals, and thus furnish -both funds and patients, as the venous circulation of the mob thirsting -for gore, rises to blood heat under a sun of fire, and the subsequent -mingling of sexes, opening of bottles and knives, occasion more deaths -among the lords and ladies of the Spanish creation, than among the -horned and hoofed victims of the amphitheatre.</p> - -<p>It is a common but very great mistake, to suppose that bull-fights are -as numerous in Spain as bandits; it is just the contrary, for this may -there be considered the tip-top æsthetic treat, as the Italian Opera is -in England, and both are rather expensive amusements; true it is that -with us, only the salt of the earth patronises the performers of the -Haymarket, while high and low, vulgar and exquisite, alike delight in -those of the Spanish fields. Each bull-fight costs from 200<i>l.</i> to -300<i>l.</i>, and even more when got up out of Andalucia or Madrid, which -alone can afford to support a standing company; in other cities the -actors and animals have to be sent for express, and from great -distances. Hence the representations occur like angels’ visits, few and -far between; they are reserved for the chief festivals of the church and -crown, for the unfeigned devotion of the faithful on the holy days of -local saints, and the Virgin; they are also given at the marriages and -coronations of the sovereign, and thence are called Fiestas <i>reales</i>, -<i>Royal</i> festivals—the ceremonial being then deprived of its religious -character, although it is much increased in worldly and imposing -importance. The sight is indeed one of surpassing pomp, etiquette, and -magnificence, and has succeeded to the <i>Auto de Fé</i>, in offering to the -most Catholic Queen and her subjects the greatest possible means of -tasting rapture, that the limited powers of mortal enjoyment can -experience in this world of shadows and sorrows.</p> - -<div class="sidenote">AN INVOLUNTARY CHAMPION.</div> - -<p>They are only given at Madrid, and then are conducted entirely after the -ancient Spanish and Moorish customs, of which such splendid descriptions -remain in the ballad romances. They take place in the great square of -the capital, which is then converted into an arena. The windows of the -quaint and lofty houses are arranged as boxes, and hung with velvets and -silks. The royal family is seated under a canopy of state in the balcony -of the central mansion. There we beheld Ferdinand VII. pre<a name="page_289" id="page_289"></a>siding at the -solemn swearing of allegiance to his daughter. He was then seated where -Charles I. had sat two centuries before; he was guarded by the unchanged -halberdiers, and was witnessing the unchanged spectacle. On these royal -occasions the bulls are assailed by gentlemen, dressed and armed as in -good old Spanish times, before the fatal Bourbon accession obliterated -Castilian costume, customs, and nationality. The champions, clad in the -fashions of the Philips, and mounted on beauteous barbs, the minions of -their race, attack the fierce animal with only a short spear, the -immemorial weapon of the Iberian. The combatants must be hidalgos by -birth, and have each for a <i>padrino</i>, or god-father, a first-rate -grandee of Spain, who passes before royalty in a splendid equipage and -six, and is attended by bands of running footmen, who are arrayed either -as Greeks, Romans, Moors, or fancy characters. It is not easy to obtain -these <i>caballeros en plaza</i>, or poor knights, who are willing to expose -their lives to the imminent dangers, albeit during the fight they have -the benefit of experienced <i>toreros</i> to advise their actions and cover -their retreats.</p> - -<p>In 1833 a gentle dame, without the privity of her lord and husband, -inscribed his name as one of the champion volunteers. In procuring him -this agreeable surprise, she, so it was said in Madrid, argued thus: -“Either <i>mi marido</i> will be killed—in that case I shall get a new -husband; or he will survive, in which event he will get a pension.” She -failed in both of these admirable calculations—such is the uncertainty -of human events. The terror of this poor <i>héros malgré lui</i>, on whom -chivalry had been thrust, was absolutely ludicrous when exposed by his -well-intentioned better-half, to the horns of this dilemma and bull. Any -other horns, my dearest, but these! He was wounded at the first rush, -did survive, and did not get a pension; for Ferdinand died soon after, -and few pensions have been paid in the Peninsula, since the land has -been blessed with a <i>charte</i>, constitution, liberty, and a -representative government.</p> - -<div class="sidenote">CHARLES I. AT A BULL-FIGHT.</div> - -<p>One anecdote, where another lady is in the case, may be new to our fair -readers. We quote from an ancient authentic chronicler:—“It will not be -amiss here to mention what fell out in the presence of Charles the First -of Blessed Memory, who, while Prince of Wales, repaired to the court of -Spain, whether<a name="page_290" id="page_290"></a> to be married to the Infanta, or upon what other design, -I cannot well determine: however, all comedies, playes, and festivals -(this of the bulls at Madrid being included), were appointed to be as -decently and magnificently gone about as possible, for the more -sumptuous and stately entertainment of such a splendid prince. -Therefore, after three bulls had been killed, and the fourth a coming -forth, there appeared four gentlemen in good equipage; not long after, a -brisk lady, in most gorgeous apparel, attended with persons of quality, -and some three or four grooms, walked all along the square a-foot. -Astonishment seized upon the beholders, that one of the female sex could -assume the unheard boldness of exposing herself to the violence of the -most furious beast yet seen, which had overcome, yea almost killed, two -men of great strength, courage, and dexterity. Incontinently the bull -rushed towards the corner where the lady and her attendants stood; she -(after all had fled) drew forth her dagger very unconcernedly, and -thrust it most dexterously into the bull’s neck, having catched hold of -his horn; by which stroak, without any more trouble, her design was -brought to perfection; after which, turning about towards the king’s -balcony, she made her obeysance, and withdrew herself in suitable state -and gravity.”</p> - -<p>At the <i>jura</i> of 1833 ninety-nine bulls were massacred; had one more -been added the hecatomb would have been complete. These wholesale -slaughterings have this year been repeated at the marriage of the same -“<i>innocent</i>” Isabel, the critical events of whose life are -death-warrants to quadrupeds. Bulls, however, represent in Spain the -coronation banquets of England. In that hungry, ascetic land, bulls have -always been killed, but no beef eaten; a remarkable fact, which did not -escape the learned Justin in his remarks on the no-dinner-giving crowned -heads of old Iberia.</p> - -<p>These genuine ancient bull-fights were perilous and fatal in the -extreme, yet knights were never wanting—valour being the point of -honour—who readily exposed their lives in sight of their cruel -mistresses. To kill the monster if not killed by him, was, before the -time of Hudibras, the sure road to women’s love, who very properly -admire those qualities the best, in which they feel themselves to be the -most deficient:—<a name="page_291" id="page_291"></a></p> - -<div class="sidenote">RUIN OF OLD BULL-FIGHT.</div> - -<div class="poem"><div class="stanza"> -<span class="i0">“The ladies’ hearts began to melt,<br /></span> -<span class="i1">Subdued by blows their lovers felt;<br /></span> -<span class="i1">So Spanish heroes, with their lances,<br /></span> -<span class="i1">At once wound bulls and ladies’ fancies.”<br /></span> -</div></div> - -<p>The final conquest of the Moors, and the subsequent cessation of the -border chivalrous habits of Spaniards, occasioned these love-pastimes to -fall into comparative disuse. The gentle Isabella was so shocked at the -bull-fights which she saw at Medina del Campo, that she did her utmost -to put them down; but she strove in vain, for the game and monarchy were -destined to fall together. The accession of Philip V. deluged the -Peninsula with Frenchmen. The puppies of Paris pronounced the Spaniards -and their bulls to be barbarous and brutal, as their <i>artistes</i> to this -day prefer the <i>bœuf gras</i> of the Boulevards to whole flocks of -Iberian lean kine. The spectacle which had withstood her influence, and -had beat the bulls of Popes, bowed before the despotism of fashion. The -periwigged courtiers deserted the arena, on which the royal Bourbon eye -looked coldly, while the sturdy people, foes—then as now—to Frenchmen -and innovations, clung closer to the sports of their forefathers. Yet a -fatal blow was dealt to the combat: the art, once practised by knights, -degenerated into the vulgar butchery of mercenary bull-fighters, who -contended not for honour, but base lucre; thus, by becoming the game of -the mob, it was soon stripped of every gentlemanlike prestige. So the -tournament challenges of our chivalrous ancestors have sunk down to the -vulgar boxings of ruffian pugilists.</p> - -<div class="sidenote">CRAVING FOR BULLS AND BREAD.</div> - -<p>Baiting a bull in any shape is irresistible to the lower orders of -Spain, who disregard injuries to the bodies, and, what is worse, to -their cloaks. The hostility to the horned beast is instinctive, and -grows with their growth, until it becomes, as men are but children of a -larger growth, a second nature. The young urchins in the streets play at -“<i>toro</i>,” as ours do at leap-frog; they go through the whole mimic -spectacle amongst each other, observing every law and rule, as our -schoolboys do when they fight. Few adult Spaniards, when journeying -through the country, ever pass a herd of cows without this dormant -propensity breaking out; they provoke the animals to fight by waving -their cloaks or <i>capas</i>, a challenge hence called <i>el capeo</i>.<a name="page_292" id="page_292"></a> The -villagers, who cannot afford the expense of a regular bull-fight, amuse -themselves with baiting <i>novillos</i>, or bull-youngsters—calves of one -year old; and <i>embolados</i>, or bulls whose horns are guarded with tips -and buttons. These innocent pastimes are despised by the regular -<i>aficion</i>, the “fancy;” because, as neither man nor beast are exposed to -be killed, the whole affair is based in fiction, and impotent in -conclusion. They cry out for Toros de <i>muerte</i>—bulls of <i>death</i>. -Nothing short of the reality of blood can allay their excitement. They -despise the makeshift spectacle, as much as a true gastronome does -mock-turtle, or an old campaigner a sham fight.</p> - -<div class="sidenote">THE PLAZA DE TOROS.</div> - -<p>In the wilder districts of Andalucia few cattle are ever brought into -towns for slaughter, unless led by long ropes, and partially baited by -those whose poverty prevents their indulgence in the luxury of real -bull-fights and beef. The governor of Tarifa was wont on certain days to -let a bull loose into the streets, when the delight of the inhabitants -was to shut their doors, and behold from their grated windows the -perplexities of the unwary or strangers, pursued by him in the narrow -lanes without means of escape. Although many lives were lost, a governor -in our time, named Dalmau, otherwise a public benefactor to the place, -lost all his popularity in the vain attempt to put the custom down. When -the Bourbon Philip V. first visited the <i>plaça</i> at Madrid, all the -populace roared, <i>Bulls! give us bulls, my lord</i>. They cared little for -the ruin of the monarchy; so when the intrusive Joseph Buonaparte -arrived at the same place, the only and absorbing topic of public talk -was whether he would grant or suppress the bull-fight. And now, as -always, the cry of the capital is—“<i>Pan y toros</i>; bread and bulls:” -these constitute the loaves and fishes of the “only modern court,” as -<i>Panes et Circenses</i> did of ancient Rome. The national scowl and frown -which welcomed Montpensier at his marriage, was relaxed for one moment, -when Spaniards beheld his well-put-on admiration for the tauromachian -spectacle. Nothing, since the recent vast improvements in Spain, has -more progressed than the bull-fight—convents have come down, churches -have been levelled, but new amphitheatres have arisen. The diffusion of -useful and entertaining knowledge, as the means of promoting the -greatest happiness of the greatest number, has thus obtained the best -consideration of those patriots<a name="page_293" id="page_293"></a> and statesmen who preside over the -destinies of Spain; the bull is master of his ground. This last remnant -and representative of Spanish nationality defies the foreigner and his -civilization; he is a <i>fait accompli</i>, and tramples <i>la charte</i> under -his feet, although the honest Roi citoyen swears that it is désormais -une <i>vérité</i>.</p> - -<p>In Spain there is no mistaking the day and time that the bull-fight -takes place, which is generally on Saint Monday, and in the afternoon, -when the mid-day heats are past.</p> - -<p>The arena, or <i>Plaza</i>, is most unlike a London Place, those enclosures -of stunted smoke-blacked shrubs, fenced in with iron palisadoes to -protect aristocratic nurserymaids from the mob. It is at once more -classical and amusing. The amphitheatre of Madrid is very spacious, -being about 1100 feet in circumference, and will hold 12,000 spectators. -In an architectural point of view this ring of the model court, is -shabbier than many of those in provincial towns: there is no attempt at -orders, pilasters, and Vitruvian columns; there is no adaptation of the -Coliseum of Rome: the exterior is bald and plain, as if done so on -purpose, while the interior is fitted up with wooden benches, and is -scarcely better than a shambles; but for that it was designed, and there -is a business-like, murderous intention about it, which marks the -inæsthetic Gotho-Spaniard, who looked for a sport of blood and death, -and not to a display of artistical skill. He has no need of extraneous -stimulants; the <i>réalité atroce</i>, as a tender-hearted foreigner -observes, “is all-sufficing, because it is the recreation of the savage, -and the sublime of common souls.” The locality, however, is admirably -calculated for seeing; and this combat is a spectacle entirely for the -eyes. The open space is full of the light of heaven, and here the sun is -brighter than gas or wax-candles. The interior is as unadorned as the -exterior, and looks positively “mesquin” when empty; around the sanded -centre rise rows of wooden seats for the humbler classes, and above them -a tier of boxes for the fine ladies and gentlemen; but no sooner is the -theatre filled than all this meanness is concealed, and the general -appearance becomes superb.</p> - -<div class="sidenote">BULL-FIGHT SLANG.</div> - -<p>On entering the ring when thus full, the stranger finds his watch put -back at once eighteen hundred years; he is transported to Rome under the -Cæsars; and in truth the sight is glorious, of the assembled thousands -in their Spanish costume, the novelty of<a name="page_294" id="page_294"></a> the spectacle, associated with -our earliest classical studies, are enhanced by the blue expanse of the -heavens, spread above as a canopy. There is something in these -out-of-door entertainments, <i>à l’antique</i>, which peculiarly affects the -shivering denizens of the catch-cold north, where climate contributes so -little to the happiness of man. All first-rate connoisseurs go into the -pit and place themselves among the mob, in order to be closer to the -bulls and combatants. The <i>real thing</i> is to sit near one of the -openings, which enables the fancy-man to exhibit his embroidered gaiters -and neat leg. It is here that the character of the bull, the nice traits -and the behaviour of the bull-fighter are scientifically criticised. The -ring has a dialect peculiar to itself, which is unintelligible to most -Spaniards themselves, while to the sporting-men of Andalucia it -expresses their drolleries with idiomatic raciness, and is exactly -analogous to the slang and technicalities of our pugilistic craft. The -newspapers next day generally give a detailed report of the fight, in -which every round is scientifically described in a style that defies -translation, but which being drawn up by some Spanish Boz, is most -delectable to all who can understand it; the nomenclature of praise and -blame is defined with the most accurate precision of language, and the -delicate shades of character are distinguished with the nicety of -phrenological subdivision. The foundation of this lingo is gipsy Romany, -metaphor, and double entendre; to master it is no easy matter; indeed, a -distinguished diplomat and tauromachian philologist, whom we are proud -to call our friend, was often unable to comprehend the full pregnancy of -the meaning of certain terms, without a reference to the late Duke of -San Lorenzo, who sustained the character of Spanish ambassador in London -and of bull-fighter in Madrid with equal dignity; his grace was a living -lexicon of slang. Yet let no student be deterred by any difficulty, -since he will eventually be repaid, when he can fully relish the -Andalucian wit, or <i>sal Andaluça</i>, the salt, with which the reports are -flavoured: that it is seldom Attic must, however, be confessed. Nor let -time or pains be grudged; there is no royal road to Euclid, and life, -say the Spanish fancy, is too short to learn bull-fighting. This -possibly may seem strange, but English squires and country gentlemen -assert as much in regard to fox-hunting.<a name="page_295" id="page_295"></a></p> - -<div class="sidenote">SPANISH BULLS.</div> - -<p>The day appointed for a bull-feast is announced by placards of all -colours; the important particulars decorate every wall. The first thing -is to secure a good place beforehand, by sending for a <i>Boletin de -Sombra</i>, a shade-ticket; and as the great object is to avoid glare and -heat, the best places are on the northern side, which are in the shade. -The transit of the sun over the Plaza, the zodiacal progress into -Taurus, is decidedly the best calculated astronomical observation in -Spain; the line of shadow defined on the arena is marked by a gradation -of prices. The different seats and prices are everywhere detailed in the -bills of the play, with the names of the combatants and the colours of -the different breeds of bulls.</p> - -<div class="sidenote">BEST BREED OF BULLS.</div> - -<p>The day before the fight, the bulls destined for the spectacle are -driven towards the town, and pastured in a meadow reserved for their -reception; then the fine amateurs never fail to ride out to see what the -cattle is like, just as the knowing in horseflesh go to Tattersall’s of -a Sunday afternoon, instead of attending evening service in their parish -churches. According to Pepe Illo, who was a very practical man, and the -first author on the modern system of the arena, of which he was the -brightest ornament, and on which he died in the arms of victory, the -“love of bulls is inherent in man, especially in the Spaniard, among -which glorious people there have been bull-fights ever since there were -bulls, because the Spanish men are as much more brave than all other -men, as the Spanish bull is more fierce and valiant than all other -bulls.” Certainly, from having been bred at large, in roomy unenclosed -plains, they are more active than the animals raised by John Bull, but -as regards form and power they would be scouted in an English -cattle-show; a real British bull, with his broad neck and short horns, -would make quick work with the men and horses of Spain; his “spears” -would be no less effective than the bayonets of our soldiers, which no -foreigner faces twice, or the picks of our <i>Navvies</i>, three and -three-eighths of whom are calculated by railway economists to eat more -beef and do more work than five and five-eighths of corresponding -foreign material. By the way, the correct Castilian word for the bull’s -<i>horns</i> is <i>astas</i>, the Latin <i>hastas</i>, spears. <i>Cuernos</i> must never be -used in good Spanish society, since, from its secondary meaning, it -might give offence to present company: allusions<a name="page_296" id="page_296"></a> to common calamities -are never made to ears polite, however frequent among the vulgar, who -call things by their improper names—nay, roar them out, as in the time -of Horace: “Magnâ compellens voce cucullum.”</p> - -<p>Not every bull will do for the Plaza, and none but the fiercest are -selected, who undergo trials from the earliest youth; the most -celebrated animals come from Utrera near Seville, and from the same -pastures where that eminent breeder of old Geryon, raised those -wonderful oxen, which all but burst with fat in fifty days, and were -“lifted” by the invincible Hercules. Señor <i>Cabrera</i>, the modern Geryon, -was so pleased with Joseph Buonaparte, or so afraid, that he offered to -him a hundred bulls, as a hecatomb for the rations of his troops, who, -braver and hungrier than Hercules, would otherwise have infallibly -followed the demigod’s example. The Manchegan bull, small, very -powerful, and active, is considered to be the original stock of Spain; -of this breed was “Manchangito,” the pet of the Visconde de Miranda, a -tauromachian noble of Cordova, and who used to come into the -dining-room, but, having one day killed a guest, he was destroyed after -violent resistance on the part of the Viscount, and only in obedience to -the peremptory mandate of the Prince of the Peace.</p> - -<p>The capital is supplied with animals bred in the valleys of the Jarama -near Aranjuez, which have been immemorially celebrated. From hence came -that <i>Harpado</i>, the magnificent beast of the magnificent Moorish ballad -of Gazul, which was evidently written by a practical <i>torero</i>, and on -the spot: the verses sparkle with daylight and local colour like a -Velazquez, and are as minutely correct as a Paul Potter, while Byron’s -“Bull-fight” is the invention of a foreign poet, and full of slight -inaccuracies.</p> - -<p>The <i>encierro</i>, or the driving the bulls to the arena, is a service of -danger; they are enticed by tame oxen, into a road which is barricadoed -on each side, and then driven full speed by the mounted and -spear-bearing peasants into the <i>Plaza</i>. It is an exciting, peculiar, -and picturesque spectacle; and the poor who cannot afford to go to the -bull-fight, risk their lives and cloaks in order to get the front -places, and best chance of a stray poke <i>en passant</i>.</p> - -<div class="sidenote">THE ENCIERRO.</div> - -<p>The next afternoon all the world crowds to the <i>Plaza de toros</i>.<a name="page_297" id="page_297"></a> You -need not ask the way; just launch into the tide, which in these Spanish -affairs will assuredly carry you away. Nothing can exceed the gaiety and -sparkle of a Spanish public going, eager and full-dressed, to the -<i>fight</i>. They could not move faster were they running away from a real -one. All the streets or open spaces near the outside of the arena -present of themselves a spectacle to the stranger, and genuine Spain is -far better to be seen and studied in the streets, than in the saloon. -Now indeed a traveller from Belgravia feels that he is out of town, in a -new world and no mistake; all around him is a perfect saturnalia, all -ranks are fused in one stream of living beings, one bloody thought beats -in every heart, one heart beats in ten thousand bosoms; every other -business is at an end, the lover leaves his mistress unless she will go -with him,—the doctor and lawyer renounce patients, briefs, and fees; -the city of sleepers is awakened, and all is life, noise, and movement, -where to-morrow will be the stillness and silence of death; now the -bending line of the <i>Calle de Alcalá</i>, which on other days is broad and -dull as Portland Place, becomes the aorta of Madrid, and is scarcely -wide enough for the increased circulation; now it is filled with a dense -mass coloured as the rainbow, which winds along like a spotted snake to -its prey. Oh the din and dust! The merry mob is everything, and, like -the Greek chorus, is always on the scene. How national and Spanish are -the dresses of the lower classes—for their betters alone appear like -Boulevard quizzes, or tigers cut out from our East end tailors’ -pattern-book of the last new fashion; what <i>Manolas</i>, what reds and -yellows, what fringes and flounces, what swarms of picturesque -vagabonds, cluster, or alas, clustered, around <i>calesas</i>, whose wild -drivers run on foot, whipping, screaming, swearing; the type of these -vehicles in form and colour was Neapolitan; they alas! are also soon -destined to be sacrificed to civilization to the ’bus and common-place -cab, or vile fly.</p> - -<div class="sidenote">FILLING THE THEATRE.</div> - -<p>The <i>plaza</i> is the focus of a fire, which blood alone can extinguish; -what public meetings and dinners are to Britons, reviews and razzias to -Gauls, mass or music to Italians, is this one and absorbing bull-fight -to Spaniards of all ranks, sexes, ages, for their happiness is quite -catching; and yet a thorn peeps amid these rosebuds; when the dazzling -glare and fierce African sun calcining the heavens and earth, fires up -man and beast to madness,<a name="page_298" id="page_298"></a> a raging thirst for blood is seen in flashing -eyes and the irritable ready knife, then the passion of the Arab -triumphs over the coldness of the Goth: the excitement would be terrific -were it not on pleasure bent; indeed there is no sacrifice, even of -chastity, no denial, even of dinner, which they will not undergo to save -money for the bull-fight. It is the birdlime with which the devil -catches many a female and male soul. The men go in all their best -costume and <i>majo</i>-finery: the distinguished ladies wear on these -occasions white lace mantillas, and when heated, look, as the Andaluz -wag Adrian said, like sausages wrapped up in white paper; a fan, -<i>abanico</i>, is quite as necessary to all as it was among the Romans. The -article is sold outside for a trifle, and is made of rude paper, stuck -into a handle of common cane or stick, and the gift of one to his -nutbrown <i>querida</i> is thought a delicate attention to her complexion -from her swarthy swain; at the same time the lower Salamander classes -stand fire much better on these occasions than in action, and would -rather be roasted fanless alive <i>á la auto de fe</i> than miss these hot -engagements.</p> - -<p>The place of slaughter, like the <i>Abattoirs</i> on the Continent, is -erected outside the towns, in order to obtain space, and because horned -animals when over driven in crowded streets are apt to be ill-mannered, -as may be seen every Smithfield market-day in the City, as the Lord -Mayor well knows.</p> - -<div class="sidenote">SEAT OF THE CLERGY.</div> - -<p>The seats occupied by the mob are filled more rapidly than our shilling -galleries, and the “gods” are equally noisy and impatient. The anxiety -of the immortals, wishes to annihilate time and space and make -bull-fanciers happy. Now his majesty the many reigns triumphantly, and -this—church excepted—is the only public meeting allowed; but even -here, as on the Continent, the odious bayonet sparkles, and the soldier -picket announces that innocent amusements are not free; treason and -stratagem are suspected by coward despots, when one sole thought of -pleasure engrosses every one else. All ranks are now fused into one mass -of homogeneous humanity; their good humour is contagious; all leave -their cares and sorrows at home, and enter with a gaiety of heart and a -determination to be amused, which defies wrinkled care; many and not -over-delicate are the quips and quirks bandied to and fro, with an -eloquence more energetic than unadorned; things and persons are -mentioned to the horror of peri<a name="page_299" id="page_299"></a>phrastic euphuists; the liberty of -speech is perfect, and as it is all done quite in a parliamentary way, -none take offence. Those only who cannot get in are sad; these rejected -ones remain outside grinding their teeth, like the unhappy ghosts on the -wrong side of the Styx, and listen anxiously to the joyous shouts of the -thrice blessed within.</p> - -<p>At Seville a choice box in the shade and to the right of the president -is allotted as the seat of honour to the canons of the cathedral, who -attend in their clerical costume; and such days are fixed upon for the -bull-fight as will not by a long church service prevent their coming. -The clergy of Spain have always been the most uncompromising enemies of -the stage, where they never go; yet neither the cruelty nor profligacy -of the amphitheatre has ever roused the zeal of their most elect or most -fanatic: our puritans at least assailed the bear-bait, which induced the -Cavalier Hudibras to defend them; so our methodists denounced the -bull-bait, which was therefore patronised by the Right Hon. W. Windham, -in the memorable debate May 24, 1802, on Mr. <i>Dog</i> Dent. The Spanish -clergy pay due deference to bulls, both papal and quadruped; they -dislike being touched on this subject, and generally reply “<i>Es -costumbre</i>—it is the custom—<i>siempre se ha praticado asi</i>—it has -always been done so, or <i>son cosas de España</i>, they are things of -Spain”—the usual answer given as to everything which appears -incomprehensible to strangers, and which they either can’t account for, -or do not choose. In vain did St. Isidore write a chapter against the -amphitheatre—his <i>chapter</i> minds him not; in vain did Alphonso the Wise -forbid their attendance. The sacrifice of the bull has always been mixed -up with the religion of old Rome and old and modern Spain, where they -are classed among acts of charity, since they support the sick and -wounded; therefore all the sable countrymen of Loyola hold to the -Jesuitical doctrine that the end justifies the means.<a name="page_300" id="page_300"></a></p> - -<div class="sidenote">COMMENCEMENT OF THE BULL-FIGHT.</div> - -<h2><a name="CHAPTER_XXII" id="CHAPTER_XXII"></a>CHAPTER XXII.</h2> - -<div class="blockquot"><p class="hang">The Bull-fight—Opening of Spectacle—First Act, and Appearance of -the Bull—The Picador—Bull Bastinado—The Horses, and their Cruel -Treatment—Fire and Dogs—The Second Act—The Chulos and their -Darts—The Third Act—The Matador—Death of the Bull—The -Conclusion, and Philosophy of the Amusement—Its Effect on Ladies.</p></div> - -<p class="nind">W<small>HEN</small> the appointed much-wished-for hour is come, the Queen or the -<i>Corregidor</i> takes the seat of honour in a central and splendid box, the -mob having been previously expelled from the open arena; this operation -is called the <i>despejo</i>, and is an amusing one, from the reluctance with -which the great unwashed submit to be cleaned out. The proceedings open -at a given signal with a procession of the combatants, who advance -preceded by <i>alguaciles</i>, or officers of police, who are dressed in the -ancient Spanish costume, and are always at hand to arrest any one who -infringes the severe laws against interruptions of the games. Then -follow the <i>picadores</i>, or mounted horsemen, with their spears. Their -original broad-brimmed Spanish hats are decorated with ribbons; their -upper man is clad in a gay silken jacket, whose lightness contrasts with -the heavy iron and leather protections of the legs, which give the -clumsy look of a French jackbooted postilion. These defences are -necessary when the horned animal charges home. Next follow the <i>chulos</i>, -or combatants on foot, who are arrayed like Figaro at the opera, and -have, moreover, silken cloaks of gay colours. The <i>matadores</i>, or -killers, come behind them; and, last of all, a gaily-caparisoned team of -mules, which is destined to drag the slaughtered bulls from the arena. -As for the men, those who are killed on the spot are denied the -burial-rites if they die without confession. Springing from the dregs of -the people, they are eminently superstitious, and cover their breasts -with relics, amulets, and papal charms. A clergyman, however, is in -attendance with the sacramental wafer, in case <i>su majestad</i> may be -wanted for a mortally-wounded combatant.<a name="page_301" id="page_301"></a></p> - -<div class="sidenote">ENTRANCE OF THE BULL.</div> - -<p>Having made their obeisances to the chief authority, all retire, and the -fatal trumpet sounds; then the president throws the key of the gate by -which the bull is to enter, to one of the <i>alguaciles</i>, who ought to -catch it in his hat. When the door is opened, this worthy gallops away -as fast as he can, amid the hoots and hisses of the mob, not because he -rides like a constable, but from the instinctive enmity which his -majesty the many bear to the finisher of the law, just as little birds -love to mob a hawk; now more than a thousand kind wishes are offered up -that the bull may catch and toss him. The brilliant army of combatants -in the meanwhile separates like a bursting shell, and take up their -respective places as regularly as our fielders do at a cricket-match.</p> - -<p>The play, which consists of three acts, then begins in earnest; the -drawing up of the curtain is a spirit-stirring moment; all eyes are -riveted at the first appearance of the bull on this stage, as no one can -tell how he may behave. Let loose from his dark cell, at first he seems -amazed at the novelty of his position; torn from his pastures, -imprisoned and exposed, stunned by the noise, he gazes an instant around -at the crowd, the glare, and waving handkerchiefs, ignorant of the fate -which inevitably awaits him. He bears on his neck a ribbon, “la devisa,” -which designates his breeder. The picador endeavours to snatch this off, -to lay the trophy at his true love’s heart. The bull is condemned -without reprieve; however gallant his conduct, or desperate his -resistance, his death is the catastrophe; the whole tragedy tends and -hastens to this event, which, although it is darkly shadowed out -beforehand, as in a Greek play, does not diminish the interest, since -all the intermediate changes and chances are uncertain; hence the -sustained excitement, for the action may pass in an instant from the -sublime to the ridiculous, from tragedy to farce.</p> - -<div class="sidenote">BULL BASTINADO.</div> - -<p>The bull no sooner recovers his senses, than his splendid Achillean rage -fires every limb, and with closing eyes and lowered horns he rushes at -the first of the three picadores, who are drawn up to the left, close to -the <i>tablas</i>, or wooden barrier which walls round the ring. The horseman -sits on his trembling Rosinante, with his pointed lance under his right -arm, as stiff and valiant as Don Quixote. If the animal be only of -second-rate power and courage, the sharp point arrests the charge, for -he well remembers this <i>garrocha</i>, or goad, by which herdsmen en<a name="page_302" id="page_302"></a>force -discipline and inculcate instruction; during this momentary pause a -quick picador turns his horse to the left and gets free. The bulls, -although irrational brutes, are not slow on their part in discovering -when their antagonists are bold and dexterous, and particularly dislike -fighting against the pricks. If they fly and will not face the picador, -they are hooted at as despicable malefactors, who wish to defraud the -public of their day’s sport, they are execrated as “goats,” “cows,” -which is no compliment to bulls; these culprits, moreover, are soundly -beaten as they pass near the barrier by forests of sticks, with which -the mob is provided for the nonce; that of the elegant <i>majo</i>, when -going to the bull-fight, is very peculiar, and is called <i>la chivata</i>; -it is between four and five feet long, is taper, and terminates in a -lump or knob, while the top is forked, into which the thumb is inserted; -it is also peeled or painted in alternate rings, black and white, or red -and yellow. The lower classes content themselves with a common -shillelah; one with a knob at the end is preferred, as administering a -more impressive whack; their instrument is called <i>porro</i>, because heavy -and lumbering.</p> - -<p>Nor is this bastinado uncalled for, since courage, address, and energy, -are the qualities which ennoble tauromachia; and when they are wanting, -the butchery, with its many disgusting incidents, becomes revolting to -the stranger, but to him alone; for the gentler emotions of pity and -mercy, which rarely soften any transactions of hard Iberia, are here -banished altogether from the hearts of the natives; they now only have -eyes for exhibitions of skill and valour, and scarcely observe those -cruel incidents which engross and horrify the foreigner, who again on -his part is equally blind to those redeeming excellencies, on which -alone the attention of the rest of the spectators is fixed; the tables -are now turned against the stranger, whose æsthetic mind’s eye can see -the poetry and beauty of the picturesque rags and tumbledown hamlets of -Spaniards, and yet is blind to the poverty, misery, and want of -civilization, to which alone the vision of the higher classed native is -directed, on whose exalted soul the coming comforts of cotton are -gleaming.</p> - -<div class="sidenote">A GOOD BULL.</div> - -<p>When the bull is turned by the spear of the first picador, he passes on -to the two other horsemen, who receive him with similar cordiality. If -the animal be baffled by their skill and<a name="page_303" id="page_303"></a> valour, stunning are the -shouts of applause which celebrate the victory of the men: should he on -the contrary charge home and overwhelm horses and riders, then—for the -balances of praise and blame are held with perfect fairness—the fierce -lord of the arena is encouraged with roars of compliments, <i>Bravo toro</i>, -<i>Viva toro</i>, Well done, bull! even a long life is wished to him by -thousands who know that he must be dead in twenty minutes.</p> - -<p>A bold beast is not to be deterred by a trifling inch-deep wound, but -presses on, goring the horse in the flank, and then gaining confidence -and courage by victory, and “baptized in blood,” à la Française, -advances in a career of honour, gore, and glory. The picador is seldom -well mounted, for the horses are provided, at the lowest possible price, -by a contractor, who runs the risk whether many or few are killed; they -indeed are the only things economised in this costly spectacle, and are -sorry, broken-down hacks, fit only for the dog-kennel of an English -squire, or carriage of a foreign <i>Pair</i>. This increases the danger to -his rider; in the ancient combats, the finest and most spirited horses -were used; quick as lightning, and turning to the touch, they escaped -the deadly rush. The eyes of those poor horses which see and will not -face death, are often bound over with a handkerchief, like criminals -about to be executed; thus they await blindfold the fatal horn thrust -which is to end their life of misery.</p> - -<div class="sidenote">DEATH OF THE HORSE.</div> - -<p>The picadors are subject to most severe falls; the bull often tosses -horse and rider in one ruin, and when his victims fall with a crash on -the ground exhausts his fury upon his prostrate foes. The picador -manages (if he can) to fall off on the opposite side, in order that his -horse may form a barrier and rampart between him and the bull. When -these deadly struggles take place, when life hangs on a thread, the -amphitheatre is peopled with heads; every feeling of anxiety, eagerness, -fear, horror, and delight is stamped on their expressive countenances; -if happiness is to be estimated by quality, intensity, and -concentration, rather than duration (and it is), these are moments of -excitement more precious to them, than ages of placid, insipid, uniform -stagnation. Their feelings are wrought to a pitch, when the horse, -maddened with wounds and terror, plunging in the death-struggle, the -crimson seams of blood streaking his foam and<a name="page_304" id="page_304"></a> sweat-whitened body, -flies from the infuriated bull still pursuing, still goring; then are -displayed the nerve, presence of mind, and horsemanship of the dexterous -and undismayed picador. It is in truth a piteous sight to see the poor -mangled horses treading out their entrails, and yet gallantly carrying -off their riders unhurt. But as in the pagan sacrifices, the quivering -intestines, trembling with life, formed the most propitious omens—to -what will not early habit familiarise?—so the Spaniards are no more -affected with the reality, than the Italians are with the abstract -“tanti palpiti” of Rossini.</p> - -<div class="sidenote">WOUNDED HORSES.</div> - -<p>The miserable horse, when dead, is dragged out, leaving a bloody furrow -on the sand, as the river-beds of the arid plains of Barbary are marked -by the crimson fringe of the flowering oleanders. A universal sympathy -is shown for the horseman in these awful moments; the men rise, the -women scream, but all this soon subsides; the <i>picador</i>, if wounded, is -carried out and forgotten—“<i>los muertos y idos no tienen amigos</i>”—a -new combatant fills up his gap, the battle rages—wounds and death are -the order of the day—he is not missed; and as new incidents arise, no -pause is left for regret or reflection. We remember seeing at Granada a -matador cruelly gored by a bull: he was carried away as dead, and his -place immediately taken by his son, as coolly as a viscount succeeds to -an earl’s estate and title. Carnerero, the musician, died while fiddling -at a ball at Madrid, in 1838; neither the band nor the dancers stopped -one moment. The boldness of the picadors is great. Francisco Sevilla, -when thrown from his horse and lying under the dying animal, seized the -bull, as he rushed at him, by his ears, turned round to the people, and -laughed; but, in fact, the long horns of the bull make it difficult for -him to gore a man on the ground; he generally bruises them with his -nose: nor does he remain long busied with his victim, since he is lured -to fresh attacks by the glittering cloaks of the <i>Chulos</i> who come -instantly to the rescue. At the same time we are free to confess, that -few picadors, although men of bronze, can be said to have a sound rib in -their body. When one is carried off apparently dead, but returns -immediately mounted on a fresh horse, the applauding voice of the people -outbellows a thousand bulls. If the wounded man should chance not to -come back, <i>n’importe</i>, however courted outside the <i>Plaza</i>,<a name="page_305" id="page_305"></a> now he is -ranked, like the gladiator was by the Romans, no higher than a -beast,—or about the same as a slave under the perfect equality and man -rights of the model republic.</p> - -<div class="sidenote">A COWARD BULL.</div> - -<p>The poor horse is valued at even less, and he, of all the actors, is the -one in which Englishmen, true lovers and breeders of the noble animal, -take the liveliest interest; nor can any bull-fighting habit ever -reconcile them to his sufferings and ill-treatment. The hearts of the -picadors are as devoid of feeling as their iron-cased legs; they only -think of themselves, and have a nice tact in knowing when a wound is -fatal or not. Accordingly, if the horn-thrust has touched a vital part, -no sooner has the enemy passed on to a new victim, than an experienced -picador quietly dismounts, takes off the saddle and bridle, and hobbles -off like Richard, calling out for another horse—a horse! The poor -animal, when stripped of these accoutrements, has a most rippish look, -as it staggers to and fro, like a drunken man, until again attacked by -the bull and prostrated; then it lies dying unnoticed in the sand, or, -if observed, merely rouses the jeers of the mob; as its tail quivers in -the last agony of death, your attention is called to the <i>fun</i>; <i>Mira, -mira, que cola!</i> The words and sight yet haunt us, for they were those -that first caught our inexperienced ears and eyes at the first rush of -the first bull of our first bullfight. While gazing on the scene in a -total abstraction from the world, we felt our coat-tails tugged at, as -by a greedily-biting pike; we had caught, or, rather, were caught by a -venerable harridan, whose quick perception had discovered a novice, whom -her kindness prompted to instruct, for e’en in the ashes live the wonted -fires; a bright, fierce eye gleamed alive in a dead and shrivelled face, -which evil passions had furrowed like the lava-seared sides of an -extinct volcano, and dried up, like a cat starved behind a wainscot, -into a thing of fur and bones, in which gender was obliterated—let her -pass. If the wound received by the horse be not instantaneously mortal, -the blood-vomiting hole is plugged up with tow, and the fountain of life -stopped for a few minutes. If the flank is only partially ruptured, the -protruding bowels are pushed back—no operation in hernia is half so -well performed by Spanish surgeons—and the rent is sown up with a -needle and pack-thread. Thus existence is prolonged for new tortures, -and a few dollars are saved to the<a name="page_306" id="page_306"></a> contractor; but neither death nor -lacerations excite the least pity, nay, the bloodier and more fatal the -spectacle, the more brilliant is it pronounced. It is of no use to -remonstrate, or ask why the wounded sufferers are not mercifully killed -at once; the utilitarian Spaniard dislikes to see the order of the sport -interrupted and spoilt by what he considers foreign squeamishness and -nonsense, “<i>Ah que! no vale nã</i>,”—“Bah! the beast is worth nothing;” -that is, provided he condescends to reply to your <i>disparates</i> with -anything beyond a shrug of civil contempt. But national tastes will -differ. “Sir,” said an alderman to Dr. Johnson, “in attempting to listen -to your long sentences, and give you a short answer, I have swallowed -two pieces of green fat, without tasting the flavour. I beg you to let -me enjoy my present happiness in peace and quiet.”</p> - -<p>The bull is the hero of the scene; yet, like Satan in the Paradise Lost, -he is foredoomed. Nothing can save him from a certain fate, which awaits -all, whether brave or cowardly. The poor creatures sometimes endeavour -in vain to escape, and have favourite retreats, to which they fly; or -they leap over the barrier, among the spectators, creating a vast hubbub -and fun, upsetting water-carriers and fancy men, putting sentinels and -old women to flight, and affording infinite delight to all who are safe -in the boxes; for, as Bacon remarks, “It is pleasant to see a battle -from a distant hill.” Bulls which exhibit this cowardlike activity are -insulted: cries of “fuego” and “perros,” fire and dogs, resound, and he -is condemned to be baited. As the Spanish dogs have by no means the -pluck of the English assailants of bulls, they are longer at the work, -and many are made minced-meat of:—</p> - -<div class="poem"><div class="stanza"> -<span class="i0">“Up to the stars the growling mastiffs fly<br /></span> -<span class="i1">And add new monsters to the frighted sky.”<br /></span> -</div></div> - -<div class="sidenote">CHULOS AND SECOND ACT.</div> - -<p class="nind">When at length the poor brute is pulled down, he is stabbed in the -spine, as if he were only fit for the shambles, being a civilian ox, not -a soldierlike bull. All these processes are considered as deadly -insults; and when more than one bull exhibits these craven propensities -to baulk nobler expectancies, then is raised the cry of “<i>Cabestros al -circo!</i>” tame oxen to the circus. This is a mortal affront to the -<i>empresa</i>, or management, as it infers that it has furnished animals -fitter for the plough than for the arena. The<a name="page_307" id="page_307"></a> indignation of the mob is -terrible; for, if disappointed in the blood of bulls, it will lap that -of men.</p> - -<p>The bull is sometimes teased with stuffed figures, men of straw with -leaded feet, which rise up again as soon as he knocks them down. An old -author relates that in the time of Philip IV. “a despicable peasant was -occasionally set upon a lean horse, and exposed to death.” At other -times, to amuse the populace, a monkey is tied to a pole in the arena. -This art of ingeniously tormenting is considered as unjustifiable -homicide by certain lively philosimious foreigners; and, indeed, all -these episodes are despised as irregular <i>hors d’œuvres</i>, by the real -and business-like amateur.</p> - -<div class="sidenote">THE MATADOR AND THIRD ACT.</div> - -<p>After a due time the first act terminates: its length is uncertain. -Sometimes it is most brilliant, since one bull has been known to kill a -dozen horses, and clear the <i>plaza</i>. Then he is adored; and as he roams, -snorting about, lord of all he surveys, he becomes the sole object of -worship to ten thousand devotees; at the signal of the president, and -sound of a trumpet, the second act commences with the performances of -the <i>chulo</i>, a word which signifies, in the Arabic, a lad, a merryman, -as at our fairs. The duty of this light division, these skirmishers, is -to draw off the bull from the <i>picador</i> when endangered, which they do -with their coloured cloaks; their address and agility are surprising, -they skim over the sand like glittering humming-birds, scarcely touching -the earth. They are dressed in short breeches, and without gaiters, just -as Figaro is in the opera of the ‘<i>Barbiere de Seviglia</i>.’ Their hair is -tied into a knot behind, and enclosed in the once universal silk net, -the <i>retecilla</i>—the identical <i>reticulum</i>—of which so many instances -are seen on ancient Etruscan vases. No bull-fighters ever arrive at the -top of their profession without first excelling in this apprenticeship; -then, they are taught how to entice the bull to them, and learn his mode -of attack, and how to parry it. The most dangerous moment is when these -<i>chulos</i> venture out into the middle of the <i>plaza</i>, and are followed by -the bull to the barrier. There is a small ledge, on which they place -their foot, and vault over, and a narrow slit in the boarding, through -which they slip. Their escapes are marvellous, and they win by a neck; -they seem really sometimes, so close is the run, to be helped over the -fence by the bull’s horns. The <i>chulos</i>, in the second act,<a name="page_308" id="page_308"></a> are the -sole performers; their part is to place small barbed darts, on each side -of the neck of the bull, which are called <i>banderillas</i>, and are -ornamented with cut paper of different colours—gay decorations under -which cruelty is concealed. The <i>banderilleros</i> go right up to him, -holding the arrows at the shaft, and pointing the barbs at the bull; -just when the animal stoops to toss his foes, they jerk them into his -neck and slip aside. The service appears to be more dangerous than it -is, but it requires a quick eye, a light hand and foot. The barbs should -be placed to correspond with each other exactly on both sides. Such -pretty pairs are termed <i>buenos pares</i> by the Spaniards, and the feat is -called <i>coiffer</i> le taureau by the French, who undoubtedly are -first-rate perruquiers. Very often these arrows are provided with -crackers, which, by means of a detonating powder, explode the moment -they are affixed in the neck; thence they are called <i>banderillas de -fuego</i>. The agony of the scorched and tortured animal makes him plunge -and bound like a sportive lamb, to the intense joy of the populace, -while the fire, the smell of singed hair and roasted flesh, which our -gastronome neighbours would call a <i>bifstec à l’Espagnole</i>, faintly -recall to many a dark scowling priest the superior attractions of his -former amphitheatre, the <i>auto de fe</i>.</p> - -<p>The last trumpet now sounds, the arena is cleared, and the <i>matador</i>, -the executioner, the man of death, stands before his victim alone; on -entering, he addresses the president, and throws his cap to the ground. -In his right hand he holds a long straight Toledan blade; in his left he -waves the <i>muleta</i>, the red flag, or the <i>engaño</i>, the lure, which ought -not (so Romero laid down in our hearing) to be so large as the standard -of a religious brotherhood, nor so small as a lady’s -pocket-handkerchief, but about a yard square. The colour is always red, -because that best irritates the bull and conceals blood. There is always -a spare slayer at hand in case of accidents, which may happen in the -best regulated bull-fights.</p> - -<div class="sidenote">PREPARATION FOR EXECUTION.</div> - -<p>The <i>matador</i>, from being alone, concentrates in himself all the -interest as regards the human species, which was before frittered away -among the many other combatants, as was the case in the ancient -gladiatorial shows of Rome. He advances to the bull, in order to entice -him towards him, or, in nice technical idiom, <i>citarlo á la jurisdiccion -del engaño</i>, to cite him into the<a name="page_309" id="page_309"></a> jurisdiction of the trick; in plain -English, to subpœna him, or, as our ring would say, get his head into -chancery. And this trial is nearly as awful, as the matador stands -confronted with his foe, in the presence of inexorable witnesses, the -bar and judges, who would rather see the bull kill <i>him</i> twice over, -than that he should kill the bull contrary to the rules and practice of -the court and tauromachian precedent. In these brief but trying moments -the matador generally looks pale and anxious, as well he may, for life -hangs on the edge of a razor, but he presents a fine picture of fixed -purpose and concentration of moral energy. And Seneca said truly that -the world had seen as many examples of courage in gladiators, as in the -Catos and Scipios.</p> - -<p>The matador endeavours rapidly to discover the character of the animal, -and examines with eye keener than Spurzheim, his bumps of combativeness, -destructiveness, and other amiable organs; nor has he many moments to -lose, where mistake is fatal, as one must die, and both may. Here, as -Falstaff says, there is no scoring, except on the pate. Often even the -brute bull seems to feel that the last moment is come, and pauses, when -face to face in the deadly duel with his single opponent. Be that as it -may, the contrast is very striking. The slayer is arrayed in a ball -costume, with no buckler but skill, and as if it were a pastime: he is -all coolness, the beast all rage; and time it is to be collected, for -now indeed knowledge is power, and could the beast reason, the man would -have small chance. Meanwhile the spectators are wound up to a greater -pitch of madness than the poor bull, who has undergone a long torture, -besides continued excitement: he at this instant becomes a study for a -Paul Potter; his eyes flash fire—his inflated nostrils snort fury; his -body is covered with sweat and foam, or crimsoned with a glaze of gore -streaming from gaping wounds. “<i>Mira! que bel cuerpo de sangre!</i>—look! -what a beauteous body of blood!” exclaimed the worthy old lady, who, as -we before mentioned, was kind enough to point out to our inexperience -the tit bits of the treat, the pearls of greatest price.</p> - -<div class="sidenote">CHARACTERS OF BULLS.</div> - -<p>There are several sorts of <i>toros</i>, whose characters vary no less than -those of men: some are brave and dashing, others are slow and heavy, -others sly and cowardly. The <i>matador</i> foils and plays with the bull -until he has discovered his disposition. The<a name="page_310" id="page_310"></a> fundamental principle -consists in the animal’s mode of attack, the stooping his head and -shutting his eyes, before he butts; the secret of mastering him lies in -distinguishing whether he acts on the offensive or defensive. Those -which are fearless, and rush boldly on at once, closing their eyes, are -the most easy to kill; those which are cunning—which seldom go straight -when they charge, but stop, dodge, and run at the man, not the flag, are -the most dangerous. The interest of the spectators increases in -proportion as the peril is great.</p> - -<p>Although fatal accidents do not often occur (and we ourselves have never -seen a man killed, yet we have beheld some hundred bulls despatched), -such events are always possible. At Tudela, a bull having killed -seventeen horses, a picador named Blanco, and a banderillero, then leapt -over the barriers, where he gored to death a peasant, and wounded many -others. The newspapers simply headed the statement, “<i>Accidents</i> have -happened.” Pepe Illo, who had received thirty-eight wounds in the wars, -died, like Nelson, the hero’s death. He was killed on the 11th of May, -1801. He had a presentiment of his death, but said that he must do his -duty.</p> - -<p>Every <i>matador</i> must be quick and decided. He must not let the bull run -at the flag above two or three times; the moral tension of the -multitudes is too strained to endure a longer suspense; they vent their -impatience in jeers, noises, and endeavour by every possible manner to -irritate him, and make him lose his temper, and perhaps life. Under such -circumstances, Manuel Romero, who had murdered a man, was always saluted -with cries of “<i>A la Plaza de Cebada</i>—to Tyburn.” The populace -absolutely loathe those who show the smallest white feather, or do not -brave death cheerfully.</p> - -<div class="sidenote">THE MEDIA LUNA.</div> - -<p>There are many ways of killing the bull: the principal is when the -matador receives him on his sword when charging; then the weapon, which -is held still and never thrust forward, enters just between the left -shoulder and the blade-bone; a firm hand, eye, and nerve, are essential, -since in nothing is the real fancy so fastidious as in the exact nicety -of the placing this death-wound. The bull very often is not killed at -the first effort; if not true, the sword strikes a bone, and then it is -ejected high in air by the rising neck. When the blow is true, death is -instantaneous,<a name="page_311" id="page_311"></a> and the bull, vomiting forth blood, drops at the feet of -his conqueror. It is indeed the triumph of knowledge over brute force; -all that was fire, fury, passion, and life, falls in an instant, still -for ever. The gay team of mules now enter, glittering with flags, and -tinkling with bells; the dead bull is carried off at a rapid gallop, -which always delights the populace. The <i>matador</i> then wipes the hot -blood from his sword, and bows to the spectators with admirable sang -froid, who fling their hats into the arena, a compliment which he -returns by throwing them back again (they are generally “shocking bad” -ones); when Spain was rich, a golden, or at least a silver shower was -rained down—<i>ces beaux jours là sont passés</i>; thanks to her kind -neighbour. The poverty-stricken Spaniard, however, gives all he can, and -lets the bullfighter dream the rest. As hats in Spain represent -grandeeship, so these beavers, part and parcel of themselves, are given -as symbols of their generous hearts and souls; and none but a huckster -would go into minute details of value or condition.</p> - -<p>When a bull will not run at the fatal flag, or prays for pardon, he is -doomed to a dishonourable death, as no true Spaniard begs for his own -life, or spares that of his foe, when in his power; now the <i>media Luna</i> -is yelled for, and the call implies insult; the use is equivalent to -shooting traitors in the back: this <i>half moon</i> is the precise Oriental -ancient and cruel instrument of houghing cattle; moreover it is the -exact old Iberian bident, or a sharp steel crescent placed on a long -pole. The cowardly blow is given from behind; and when the poor beast is -crippled by dividing the sinew of his leg, and crawls along in agony, an -assistant pierces with a pointed dagger the spinal marrow, which is the -usual method of slaughtering cattle in Spain by the butcher. To perform -all these vile operations is considered beneath the dignity of the -<i>matador</i>; some, however, will kill the bull by plunging the point of -their sword in the vertebræ, as the danger gives dignity to the -difficult feat.</p> - -<div class="sidenote">CONCLUSION OF BULL-FIGHT.</div> - -<p>Such is a single bull-fight; each of which is repeated eight times with -succeeding bulls, the excitement of the multitude rising with each -indulgence; after a short collapse new desires are roused by fresh -objects, the fierce sport is renewed, which night alone can extinguish; -nay, often when royalty is present, a ninth bull is clamoured for, which -is always graciously granted<a name="page_312" id="page_312"></a> by the nominal monarch’s welcome sign, the -pulling his royal ear; in truth here the mob is autocrat, and his -majesty the many will take no denial; the bull-fight terminates when the -day dies like a dolphin, and the curtain of heaven hung over the bloody -show, is incarnadined and crimsoned; this glorious finish is seen in -full perfection at Seville, where the <i>plaza</i> from being unfinished is -open toward the cathedral, which furnishes a Moorish distance to the -picturesque foreground. On particular occasions this side is decorated -with flags. When the blazing sun setting on the red Giralda tower, -lights up its fair proportions like a pillar of fire, the refreshing -evening breeze springs up, and the flagging banners wave in triumph over -the concluding spectacle; then when all is come to an end, as all things -human must, the congregation depart, with rather less decorum than if -quitting a church; all hasten to sacrifice the rest of the night to -Bacchus and Venus, with a passing homage to the knife, should critics -differ too hotly on the merits of some particular thrust of the -bull-fight.</p> - -<p>To conclude; the minds of men, like the House of Commons in 1802, are -divided on the merits of the bull-fight; the Wilberforces assert -(especially foreigners, who, notwithstanding, seldom fail to sanction -the arena by their presence) that all the best feelings are -blunted—that idleness, extravagance, cruelty, and ferocity are promoted -at a vast expense of human and animal life by these pastimes; the -Windhams contend that loyalty, courage, presence of mind, endurance of -pain, and contempt of death, are inculcated—that, while the theatre is -all illusion, the opera all effeminacy, these manly, national games are -all truth, and in the words of a native eulogist “elevate the soul to -those grandiose actions of valour and heroism which have long proved the -Spaniards to be the best and bravest of all nations.”</p> - -<div class="sidenote">PHILOSOPHY OF THE BULL-FIGHT.</div> - -<p>The efficacy of such sports for sustaining a martial spirit was -disproved by the degeneracy of the Romans at the time when bloody -spectacles were most in vogue; nor are bravery and humanity the -characteristics of the bull-fighting Spaniards in the collective. We -ourselves do not attribute their “merciless skivering and skewering,” -their flogging and murdering women, to the bull-fight, the practical -result of which has been overrated and misunderstood. Cruel it -undoubtedly is, and perfectly congenial to<a name="page_313" id="page_313"></a> the inherent, inveterate -ferocity of Iberian character, but it is an effect rather than a -cause—with doubtless some reciprocating action; and it may be -questioned, whether the <i>original</i> bull-fight had not a greater tendency -to humanise, than the Olympic games; certainly the <i>Fiesta real</i> of the -feudal ages combined the associated ideas of religion and loyalty, while -the chivalrous combat nurtured a nice sense of personal honour and a -respectful gallantry to women, which were unknown to the polished Greeks -or warlike Romans; and many of the finest features of Spanish character -have degenerated since the discontinuance of the original fight, which -was more bloody and fatal than the present one.</p> - -<p>The Spaniards invariably bring forward our boxing-matches in -self-justification, as if a <i>tu quoque</i> could be so; but it must always -be remembered in our excuse that these are discountenanced by the good -and respectable, and legally stigmatised as breaches of the peace; -although disgraced by beastly drunkenness, brutal vulgarity, ruinous -gambling and betting, from which the Spanish arena is exempt, as no bull -yet has been backed to kill so many horses or not; our matches, however, -are based on a spirit of <i>fair play</i> which forms no principle of the -Punic politics, warfare, or bull-fighting of Spain. The Plaza there is -patronised by church and state, to whom, in justice, the responsibility -of evil consequences must be referred. The show is conducted with great -ceremonial, combining many elements of poetry, the beautiful and -sublime; insomuch that a Spanish author proudly says: “When the -countless assembly is honoured by the presence of our august monarchs, -the world is <i>lost in admiration</i> at the majestic spectacle afforded by -the happiest people in the world, enjoying with rapture an exhibition -peculiarly their own, and offering to their idolised sovereigns the due -homage of the truest and most refined loyalty;” and it is impossible to -deny the magnificent <i>coup d’œil</i> of the assembled thousands. Under -such conflicting circumstances, we turn away our eyes during moments of -painful detail which are lost in the poetical ferocity of the whole, for -the interest of the tragedy of real death is undeniable, irresistible, -and all absorbing.</p> - -<div class="sidenote">PHILOSOPHY OF THE BULL-FIGHT.</div> - -<p>The Spaniards seem almost unconscious of the cruelty of those details -which are most offensive to a stranger. They are reconciled by habit, as -we are to the bleeding butchers’ shops which<a name="page_314" id="page_314"></a> disfigure our gay streets, -and which if seen for the first time would be inexpressibly disgusting. -The feeling of the chase, that remnant of the savage, rules in the -arena, and mankind has never been nice or tender-hearted in regard to -the sufferings of animals, when influenced by the destructive -propensities. In England no sympathy is shown for game,—fish, flesh, or -fowl; nor for vermin—stoats, kites, or poachers. The end of the sport -is—death; the amusement is the <i>playing</i>, the <i>fine</i> run, as the -prolongation of animal suffering is termed in the tender vocabulary of -the Nimrods; the pang of mortal sufferance is not regulated by the size -of the victim; the bull moreover is always put at once out of his -misery, and never exposed to the thousand lingering deaths of the poor -wounded hare; therefore we must not see a toro in Spanish eyes and wink -at the fox in our own, nor</p> - -<div class="poem"><div class="stanza"> -<span class="i0">“Compound for vices we’re inclined to<br /></span> -<span class="i1">By damning those we have no mind to.”<br /></span> -</div></div> - -<p class="nind">It is not clear that animal suffering on the whole predominates over -animal happiness. The bull roams in ample pastures, through a youth and -manhood free from toil, and when killed in the plaza only anticipates by -a few months the certain fate of the imprisoned, over-laboured, -mutilated ox.</p> - -<p>In Spain, where capital is scanty, person and property insecure (evils -not quite corrected since the late democratic reforms), no one would -adventure on the speculation of breeding cattle on a large scale, where -the return is so distant, without the certain demand and sale created by -the amphitheatre; and as a small proportion only of the produce possess -the requisite qualifications, the surplus and females go to the plough -and market, and can be sold cheaper from the profit made on the bulls. -Spanish political economists <i>proved</i> that many valuable animals were -wasted in the arena—but their theories vanished before the fact, that -the supply of cattle was rapidly diminished when bull-fights were -suppressed. Similar results take place as regards the breed of horses, -though in a minor degree; those, moreover, which are sold to the Plaza -would never be bought by any one else. With respect to the loss of human -life, in no land is a man worth so little as in Spain; and more English -aldermen are killed indirectly by turtles, than Andalucian picadors -directly by bulls; while, as to <i>time</i>, these <a name="page_315" id="page_315"></a>exhibitions always take -place on holidays, which even industrious Britons bouse away -occasionally in pothouses, and idle Spaniards invariably smoke out in -sunshiny <i>dolce far niente</i>. The attendance, again, of idle spectators -prevents idleness in the numerous classes employed directly and -indirectly in getting up and carrying out this expensive spectacle.</p> - -<div class="sidenote">PHILOSOPHY OF THE BULL-FIGHT.</div> - -<p>It is poor and illogical philosophy to judge of foreign customs by our -own habits, prejudices, and conventional opinions; a cold, unprepared, -calculating stranger comes without the freemasonry of early -associations, and criticises minutiae which are lost on the natives in -their enthusiasm and feeling for the whole. He is horrified by details -to which the Spaniards have become as accustomed as hospital nurses, -whose finer sympathetic emotions of pity are deadened by repetition.</p> - -<p>A most difficult thing it is to change long-established usages and -customs with which we are familiar from our early days, and which have -come down to us connected with many fond remembrances. We are slow to -suspect any evil or harm in such practices; we dislike to look the -evidence of facts in the face, and shrink from a conclusion which would -require the abandonment of a recreation, which we have long regarded as -innocent, and in which we, as well as our parents before us, have not -scrupled to indulge. Children, <i>l’age sans pitié</i>, do not speculate on -cruelty, whether in bull-baiting or bird’s-nesting, and Spaniards are -brought up to the bull-fight from their infancy, when they are too -simple to speculate on abstract questions, but associate with the Plaza -all their ideas of reward for good conduct, of finery and holiday; in a -land where amusements are few—they catch the contagion of pleasure, and -in their young bias of imitation approve of what is approved of by their -parents. They return to their homes unchanged—playful, timid, or -serious, as before; their kindly, social feelings are uninjured: and -where is the filial or parental bond more affectionately cherished than -in Spain—where are the noble courtesies of life, the kind, considerate, -self-respecting demeanour so exemplified as in Spanish society?</p> - -<div class="sidenote">PHILOSOPHY OF THE BULL-FIGHT.</div> - -<p>The successive feelings experienced by most foreigners are admiration, -compassion, and weariness of the flesh. The first will be readily -understood, as it will that the horses’ sufferings cannot be beheld by -novices without compassion: “In troth it was more<a name="page_316" id="page_316"></a> a pittie than a -delight,” wrote the herald of Lord Nottingham. This feeling, however, -regards the animals who are forced into wounds and death; the men -scarcely excite much of it, since they willingly court the danger, and -have therefore no right to complain. These heroes of low life are -applauded, well paid, and their risk is more apparent than real; our -British feelings of fair play make us side rather with the poor bull who -is overmatched; we respect the gallantry of his unequal defence. Such -must always be the effect produced on those not bred and brought up to -such scenes. So Livy relates that, when the gladiatorial shows were -first introduced by the Romans into Asia, the natives were more -frightened than pleased, but by leading them on from sham-fights to -real, they became as fond of them as the Romans. The predominant -sensation experienced by ourselves was <i>bore</i>, the same thing over and -over again, and too much of it. But that is the case with everything in -Spain, where processions and professions are interminable. The younger -Pliny, who was no amateur, complained of the eternal sameness of seeing -what to have seen once, was enough; just as Dr. Johnson, when he -witnessed a horse-race, observed that he had not met with such a proof -of the paucity of human pleasures as in the popularity of such a -spectacle. But the life of Spaniards is uniform, and their sensations, -not being blunted by satiety, are intense. Their bull-fight to them is -always new and exciting, since the more the toresque intellect is -cultivated the greater the capacity for enjoyment; they see a thousand -minute beauties in the character and conduct of the combatants, which -escape the superficial unlearned glance of the uninitiated.</p> - -<div class="sidenote">PHILOSOPHY OF THE BULL-FIGHT.</div> - -<p>Spanish ladies, against whom every puny scribbler shoots his petty -barbed arrow, are relieved from the infliction of ennui, by the -never-flagging, ever-sustained interest, in being admired. They have no -abstract nor Pasiphaic predilections; they were taken to the bull-fight -before they knew their alphabet, or what love was. Nor have we heard -that it has ever rendered them particularly cruel, save and except some -of the elderly and tougher lower-classed females. The younger and more -tender scream and are dreadfully affected in all real moments of danger, -in spite of their long familiarity. Their grand object, after all, is -not to see the bull, but to let themselves and their dresses be seen. -The better classes generally interpose their fans at the most painful -incidents,<a name="page_317" id="page_317"></a> and certainly show no want of sensibility. The lower orders -of females, as a body, behave quite as respectably as those of other -countries do at executions, or other dreadful scenes, where they crowd -with their babies. The case with English ladies is far different. They -have heard the bull-fight not praised from <i>their</i> childhood, but -condemned; they see it for the first time when grown up; curiosity is -perhaps their leading feature in sharing an amusement, of which they -have an indistinct idea that pleasure will be mixed with pain. The first -sight delights them; a flushed, excited cheek, betrays a feeling that -they are almost ashamed to avow; but as the bloody tragedy proceeds, -they get frightened, disgusted, and disappointed. Few are able to sit -out more than one course, and fewer ever re-enter the amphitheatre—</p> - -<div class="poem"><div class="stanza"> -<span class="i0">“The heart that is soonest awake to the flower<br /></span> -<span class="i1">Is always the first to be touched by the thorn.”<br /></span> -</div></div> - -<p>Probably a Spanish woman, if she could be placed in precisely the same -condition, would not act very differently, and something of a similar -test would be to bring her, for the first time, to an English -boxing-match. Be this as it may, far from us and from our friends be -that frigid philosophy, which would infer that their bright eyes, -darting the shafts of Cupid, will glance one smile the less from -witnessing these more merciful <i>banderillas</i>.<a name="page_318" id="page_318"></a></p> - -<div class="sidenote">SPANISH AMUSEMENTS.</div> - -<h2><a name="CHAPTER_XXIII" id="CHAPTER_XXIII"></a>CHAPTER XXIII.</h2> - -<div class="blockquot"><p class="hang">Spanish Theatre; Old and Modern Drama; Arrangement of -Playhouses—The Henroost—The Fandango; National Dances—A Gipsy -Ball—Italian Opera—National Songs and Guitars.</p></div> - -<div class="sidenote">THE THEATRE.</div> - -<p class="nind">H<small>AVING</small> seen a bull-fight, <i>the sight</i> of Spain, those who only wish to -pass time agreeably cannot be too quick in getting their passports viséd -for Naples. A pleasant <i>country</i> life, according to our notions, in -Spain, is a thing that is not; and the substitute is but a Bedouin -Oriental makeshift existence, which, amusing enough for a spurt, will -not do in the long run. Nor is life much better in the <i>towns</i>; those in -the inland provinces have a convent-like, dead, old-fashioned look about -them, which petrifies a lively person; nay even an artist when he has -finished his sketches, is ready to commit suicide from sheer Bore, the -genius of the locality. Madrid itself is but an unsocial, second-rate, -inhospitable city; and when the traveller has seen the Museum, been to -the play, and walked on the eternal roundabout Prado, the sooner he -shakes the dust off his feet the better. The maritime seaports, as in -the East, from being frequented by the foreigner, are a trifle more -cosmopolitan, cheerful, and amusing; but generally speaking, public -amusements are rare throughout this semi-Moro land. The calm -contemplation of a cigar, and the <i>dolce far niente</i> of <i>siestose</i> quiet -indolence with unexciting twaddle, suffice; while to some nations it is -a pain to be out of pleasure, to the Spaniard it is a pleasure to be out -of painful exertion: existence is happiness enough of itself; and as for -occupation, all desire only to do to-day what they did yesterday and -will do to-morrow, that is nothing. Thus life slips away in a dreamy, -listless routine, the serious business of love-making excepted; leave -me, leave me, to repose and tobacco. When however awake, the <i>Alameda</i>, -or church-show, the bull-fight, and the rendezvous, are the chief -relaxations. These will be best enjoyed in the Southern provinces, the -land<a name="page_319" id="page_319"></a> also of the song and dance, of bright suns and eyes, and not the -largest female feet in the world.</p> - -<p>The theatre, which forms elsewhere such an important item in passing the -stranger’s evening, is at a low ebb in Spain, although, as everybody is -idle, and man is not worn out by business and money-making all day, it -might be supposed to be just the thing; but it is somewhat too expensive -for the general poverty. Those again who for forty years have had real -tragedies at home, lack that superabundance of felicity, which will pay -for the luxury of fictitious grief abroad. In truth the drama in Spain -was, like most other matters, the creature of an accident and of a -period; patronised by the pleasure-loving Philip IV., it blossomed in -the sunshine of his smile, languished when that was withdrawn, and was -unable to resist the steady hostility of the clergy, who opposed this -rival to their own religious spectacles and church melodramas, from -which the opposition stage sprung. Nor are their primitive mediæval -Mysteries yet obsolete, since we have beheld them acted in Spain at -Easter time; then and there sacred subjects, grievously profaned to -Protestant eyes, were gazed on by the pleased natives with too sincere -and simple faith even to allow a suspicion of the gross absurdity; but -everywhere in Spain, the spiritual has been materialised, and the divine -degraded to the human in churches and out; the clergy attacked the -stage, by denying burial to the actors when dead, who, when alive, were -not allowed to call themselves “<i>Don</i>,” the cherished title of every -Spaniard. Naturally, as no one of this self-respecting nation ever will -pursue a despised profession if he can help it, few have chosen to make -themselves vagabonds by Act of Parliament, nor has any Garrick or -Siddons ever arisen among them to beat down prejudices by public and -private virtues.</p> - -<div class="sidenote">ANCIENT DRAMA.</div> - -<p>Even in this 19th century, confessors of families forbade the women and -children’s even passing through the street where “a temple of Satan” was -reared; mendicant monks placed themselves near the playhouse doors at -night, to warn the headlong against the bottomless pit, just as our -methodists on the day of the Derby distribute tracts at turnpikes -against “sweeps” and racing. The monks at Cordova succeeded in 1823 in -shutting up the theatre, because the nuns of an opposite convent -observed the devil and his partners dancing fandangos on the roof. -Al<a name="page_320" id="page_320"></a>though monks have in their turn been driven off the Spanish boards, -the national drama has almost made its exit with them. The genuine old -stage held up the mirror to Spanish nature, and exhibited real life and -manners. Its object was rather to amuse than to instruct, and like -literature, its sister exponent of existing nationality, it showed in -action what the picaresque novels detailed in description. In both the -haughty Hidalgo was the hero; cloaked and armed with long rapier and -mustachios, he stalked on the scene, made love and fought as became an -old Castilian whom Charles V. had rendered the terror and the model of -Europe. Spain then, like a successful beauty, took a proud pleasure in -looking at herself in the glass, but now that things are altered, she -blushes at beholding a portrait of her grey hairs and wrinkles; her flag -is tattered, her robes are torn, and she shrinks from the humiliation of -truth. If she appears on the theatre at all, it is to revive long -by-gone days—to raise the Cid, the great Captain, or Pizarro, from -their graves; thus blinking the present, she forms hopes for a bright -future by the revival and recollections of a glorious past. Accordingly -plays representing modern Spanish life and things, are scouted by pit -and boxes as vulgar and misplaced; nay, even Lope de Vega is now known -merely by name; his comedies are banished from the boards to the shelves -of book-cases, and those for the most part out of Spain. He has paid the -certain penalty of his national localism, of his portraying men, as a -Spanish variety, rather than a universal species. He has strutted his -hour on the stage, is heard no more; while his contemporary, the bard of -Avon, who drew mankind and human nature, the same in all times and -places, lives in the human heart as immortal as the principle on which -his influence is founded.</p> - -<div class="sidenote">MODERN STAGE.</div> - -<p>In the old Spanish plays, the imaginary scenes were no less full of -intrigue than were the real streets; then the point of honour was nice, -women were immured in jealous hareems, and access to them, which is -easier now, formed <i>the</i> difficulty of lovers. The curiosity of the -spectators was kept on tenter-hooks, to see how the parties could get at -each other, and out of the consequent scrapes. These imbroglios and -labyrinths exactly suited a <i>pays de l’imprévu</i>, where things turn out, -just as is the least likely to be calculated on. The progress of the -drama of Spain was as<a name="page_321" id="page_321"></a> full of action and energy, as that of France was -of dull description and declamation. The Bourbon succession, which -ruined the genuine bull-fight, destroyed the national drama also; a -flood of unities, rules, stilted nonsense, and conventionalities poured -over the astonished and affrighted Pyrenees: now the stage, like the -arena, was condemned by critics, whose one-idead civilization could see -but one class of excellence, and that only through a lorgnette ground in -the Palais Royal. Calderon was pronounced to be as great a barbarian as -Shakspere, and this by empty pretenders who did not understand one word -of either;—and now again, at this second Bourbon irruption, France has -become the model to that very nation from whom her Corneilles and -Molières pilfered many a plume, which aided them to soar to dramatic -fame. Spain is now reduced to the sad shift of borrowing from her pupil, -those very arts which she herself once taught, and her best comedies and -farces are but poor translations from Mons. Scribe and other scribes of -the vaudeville. Her theatre, like everything else, has sunk into a pale -copy of her dominant neighbour, and is devoid alike of originality, -interest, and nationality.</p> - -<div class="sidenote">SPANISH TRAGEDY.</div> - -<p>It was from Spain also that Europe copied the arrangement of the modern -theatre; the first playhouses there were merely open covered -court-yards, after the classical fashion of Thespis. The <i>patio</i> became -the <i>pit</i>, into which women were never admitted. The rich sat at the -windows of the houses round the court; and as almost all these in Spain -are defended by iron gratings, the French took their term, <i>loge -grillée</i>, for a private box. In the centre of the house, above the pit, -was a sort of large lower gallery, which was called <i>la tertulia</i>, a -name given in those times to the quarter chosen by the erudite, among -whom at that period it was the fashion to quote <i>Tertulian</i>. The women, -excluded from the pit, had a place reserved for themselves, into which -no males were allowed to enter—a peculiarity based in the Gotho-Moro -separation of the sexes. This feminine preserve was termed <i>la cazuela</i>, -the stewing pan, or <i>la olla</i>, the pipkin, from the hodgepotch -admixture, as it was open to all ranks; it was also called “<i>la jaula de -las mugeres</i>,” the women’s cage—“<i>el gallinero</i>,” the henroost. All -went there, as to church, dressed in black, and with mantillas. This -dark assem<a name="page_322" id="page_322"></a>blage of sable tresses, raven hair, and blacker eyes, looked -at the first glance like the gallery of a nunnery; that was, however, a -simile of dissimilitude, for, let there be but a moment’s pause in the -business of the play, then arose such a cooing and cawing in this -rookery of turtle-doves,—such an ogling, such a flutter of mantillas, -such a rustling of silks, such telegraphic workings of fans, such an -electrical communication with the Señores below, who looked up with -wistful glances on the dark clustering vineyard so tantalizingly placed -above their reach, as effectually dispelled all ideas of seclusion, -sorrow, or mortification. This unique and charming pipkin has been just -now done away with at Madrid, because, as there is no such thing at -Covent Garden, or Le Français, it might look antiquated and un-European.</p> - -<p>The theatres of Spain are small, although called Coliseums, and -ill-contrived; the wardrobe and properties are as scanty as those of the -spectators, Madrid itself not excepted; when filled, the smells are -ultra-continental, and resemble those which prevail at Paris, when the -great people is indulged with a gratis representation; in the Spanish -theatres no neutralizing incense is used, as is done by the wise clergy -in their churches. If the atmosphere were analysed by Faraday, it would -be found to contain equal portions of stale cigar smoke and fresh garlic -fume. The lighting, except on those rare occasions when the theatre is -illuminated, as it is called, is just intended to make darkness visible, -and there was no seeing into the henroosts towards which the eyes and -glasses of the foxite pittites were vainly elevated.</p> - -<div class="sidenote">THE BOLERO.</div> - -<p>Spanish tragedy, even when the Cid spouts, is wearisome; the language is -stilty, the declamation ranting, French, and unnatural; passion is torn -to rags. The <i>sainetes</i>, or farces, are broad, but amusing, and are -perfectly well acted; the national ones are disappearing, but when -brought out are the true vehicles of the love for sarcasm, satire, and -intrigue, the mirth and mother-wit, for which Spaniards are so -remarkable; and no people are more essentially serio-comic and dramatic -than they are, whether in <i>Venta</i>, <i>Plaza</i>, or church; the actors in -their amusing farces cease to be actors, and the whole appears to be a -scene of real life; there generally is a <i>gracioso</i> or favourite wag of -the Liston and Keeley species, who is on the best terms with the pit, -who says and does what he likes, interlards the dialogue<a name="page_323" id="page_323"></a> with his own -witticisms, and creates a laugh before he even comes on.</p> - -<div class="sidenote">NATIONAL DANCES.</div> - -<p>The orchestra is very indifferent; the Spaniards are fond enough of what -they call music, whether vocal or instrumental; but it is Oriental, and -most unlike the exquisite melody and performances of Italy or Germany. -In the same manner, although they have footed it to their rude songs -from time immemorial, they have no idea of the grace and elegance of the -French ballet; the moment they attempt it they become ridiculous, for -they are bad imitators of their neighbours, whether in cuisine, -language, or costume; indeed a Spaniard ceases to be a Spaniard in -proportion as he becomes an <i>Afrancesado</i>; they take, in their jumpings -and chirpings, after the grasshopper, having a natural genius for the -<i>bota</i> and <i>bolero</i>. The great charm of the Spanish theatres is their -own national dance—matchless, unequalled, and inimitable, and only to -be performed by Andalucians. This is <i>la salsa de la comedia</i>, the -essence, the cream, the <i>sauce piquante</i> of the night’s entertainments; -it is <i>attempted</i> to be described in every book of travels—for who can -describe sound or motion?—it must be seen. However languid the house, -laughable the tragedy, or serious the comedy, the sound of the castanet -awakens the most listless; the sharp, spirit-stirring click is heard -behind the scenes—the effect is instantaneous—it creates life under -the ribs of death—it silences the tongues of countless women—on -n’écoute que le ballet. The curtain draws up; the bounding pair dart -forward from the opposite sides, like two separated lovers, who, after -long search, have found each other again, nor do they seem to think of -the public, but only of each other; the glitter of the gossamer costume -of the <i>Majo</i> and <i>Maja</i> seems invented for this dance—the sparkle of -the gold lace and silver filigree adds to the lightness of their -motions; the transparent, form designing <i>saya</i> of the lady, heightens -the charms of a faultless symmetry which it fain would conceal; no cruel -stays fetter her serpentine flexibility. They pause—bend forward an -instant—prove their supple limbs and arms; the band strikes up, they -turn fondly towards each other, and start into life. What exercise -displays the ever-varying charms of female grace, and the contours of -manly form, like this fascinating dance? The accompaniment of the -castanet gives employment to their <a name="page_324" id="page_324"></a>upraised arms. <i>C’est</i>, say the -French, <i>le pantomime d’amour</i>. The enamoured youth persecutes the coy, -coquettish maiden; who shall describe the advance—her timid retreat, -his eager pursuit, like Apollo chasing Daphne? Now they gaze on each -other, now on the ground; now all is life, love, and action; now there -is a pause—they stop motionless at a moment, and grow into the earth. -It carries all before it. There is a truth which overpowers the -fastidious judgment. Away, then, with the studied grace of the French -danseuse, beautiful but artificial, cold and selfish as is the flicker -of her love, compared to the real impassioned <i>abandon</i> of the daughters -of the South! There is nothing indecent in this dance; no one is tired -or the worse for it; indeed its only fault is its being too short, for -as Molière says, “Un ballet ne saurait être trop long, pourvu que la -morale soit bonne, et la métaphysique bien entendue.” Notwithstanding -this most profound remark, the Toledan clergy out of mere jealousy -wished to put the bolero down, on the pretence of immorality. The -dancers were allowed in evidence to “give a view” to the court: when -they began, the bench and bar showed symptoms of restlessness, and at -last, casting aside gowns and briefs, both joined, as if -tarantula-bitten, in the irresistible capering—Verdict, for the -defendants with costs.</p> - -<p>This <i>Baile nacional</i>, however adored by foreigners, is, alas! beginning -to be looked down upon by those ill-advised señoras who wear French -bonnets in the boxes, instead of Spanish mantillas. The dance is -suspected of not being European or civilized; its best chance of -surviving is, the fact that it is positively fashionable on the boards -of London and Paris. These national exercises are however firmly rooted -among the peasants and lower classes. The different provinces, as they -have a different language, costume, &c., have also their own peculiar -local dances, which, like their wines, fine arts, relics, saints and -sausages, can only be really relished on the spots themselves.</p> - -<div class="sidenote">PRIVATE DANCES.</div> - -<p>The dances of the better classes of Spaniards in private life are much -the same as in other parts of Europe, nor is either sex particularly -distinguished by grace in this amusement, to which, however, both are -much addicted. It is not, however, yet thought to be a proof of <i>bon -ton</i> to dance as badly as possible, and with the greatest appearance of -<i>bore</i>, that appanage of the so-called <i>gay</i><a name="page_325" id="page_325"></a> world. These dances, as -everything national is excluded, are without a particle of interest to -any one except the performers. An extempore ball, which might be called -a <i>carpet</i>-dance, if there were any, forms the common conclusion of a -winter’s <i>tertulia</i>, or social meetings, at which no great attention is -paid either to music, costume, or Mr. Gunter. Here English country -dances, French quadrilles, and German waltzes are the order of the -night; everything Spanish being excluded, except the <i>plentiful want</i> of -good fiddling, lighting, dressing, and eating, which never distresses -the company, for the frugal, temperate, and easily-pleased Spaniard -enters with schoolboy heart and soul into the reality of any holiday, -which being joy sufficient of itself lacks no artificial enhancement.</p> - -<p>Dancing at all is a novelty among Spanish ladies, which was introduced -with the Bourbons. As among the Romans and Moors, it was before thought -undignified. Performers were hired to amuse the inmates of the Christian -hareem; to mix and change hands with men was not to be thought of for an -instant; and to this day few Spanish women shake hands with men—the -shock is too electrical; they only give them with their hearts, and for -good.</p> - -<div class="sidenote">MORRIS DANCES.</div> - -<p>The lower classes, who are a trifle less particular, and among whom, by -the blessing of Santiago, the foreign dancing-master is not abroad, -adhere to the primitive steps and tunes of their Oriental forefathers. -Their accompaniments are the “tabret and the harp;” the guitar, the -tambourine, and the castanet. The essence of these instruments is to -give a noise on being beaten. Simple as it may seem to play on the -latter, it is only attained by a quick ear and finger, and great -practice; accordingly these delights of the people are always in their -hands; practice makes perfect, and many a performer, dusky as a Moor, -rivals Ethiopian “Bones” himself; they take to it before their alphabet, -since the very urchins in the street begin to learn by snapping their -fingers, or clicking together two shells or bits of slate, to which they -dance; in truth, next to noise, some capering seems essential, as the -safety-valve exponents of what Cervantes describes, the “bounding of the -soul, the bursting of laughter, the restlessness of the body, and the -quicksilver of the five senses.” It is the rude sport of people who -dance from the necessity of<a name="page_326" id="page_326"></a> motion, the relief of the young, the -healthy, and the joyous, to whom life is of itself a blessing, and who, -like skipping kids, thus give vent to their superabundant lightness of -heart and limb. Sancho, a true Manchegan, after beholding the strange -saltatory exhibitions of his master, in somewhat an incorrect ball -costume, professes his ignorance of such elaborate dancing, but -maintained that for a <i>zapateo</i>, a knocking of shoes, none could beat -him. Unchanged as are the instruments, so are the dancing propensities -of Spaniards. All night long, three thousand years ago, say the -historians, did they dance and sing, or rather jump and <i>yell</i>, to these -“<i>howl</i>ings of Tarshish;” and so far from its being a fatigue, they kept -up the ball all night, by way of <i>resting</i>.</p> - -<p>The Gallicians and Asturians retain among many of their aboriginal -dances and tunes, a wild Pyrrhic jumping, which, with their shillelah in -hand, is like the Gaelic Ghillee Callum, and is the precise Iberian -armed dance which Hannibal had performed at the impressive funeral of -Gracchus. These quadrille figures are intricate and warlike, requiring, -as was said of the Iberian performances, much leg-activity, for which -the wiry sinewy active Spaniards are still remarkable. These are the -<i>Morris</i> dances imported from Gallicia by our John of Gaunt, who -supposed they were <i>Moorish</i>. The peasants still dance them in their -best costumes, to the antique castanet, pipe, and tambourine. They are -usually directed by a master of the ceremonies, or what is equivalent, a -parti-coloured fool, <span title="Greek: Môros">Μωρος</span>; which may be the etymology of -<i>Morris</i>.</p> - -<div class="sidenote">GADITANIAN GIRLS.</div> - -<p>These <i>comparsas</i>, or national quadrilles, were the hearty welcome which -the peasants were paid to give to the sons of Louis Philippe at Vitoria; -such, too, we have often beheld gratis, and performed by eight men, with -castanets in their hands, and to the tune of a fife and drum, while a -<i>Bastonero</i>, or leader of the band, clad in gaudy raiment like a -pantaloon, directed the rustic ballet; around were grouped <i>payesas y -aldeanas</i>, dressed in tight bodices, with <i>pañuelos</i> on their heads, -their hair hanging down behind in <i>trensas</i>, and their necks covered -with blue and coral beads; the men bound up their long locks with red -handkerchiefs, and danced in their shirts, the sleeves of which were -puckered up with bows of different-coloured ribands, crossed also over -the back and breast, and mixed with scapularies and small prints of<a name="page_327" id="page_327"></a> -saints; their drawers were white, and full as the <i>bragas</i> of the -Valencians, like whom they wore <i>alpargatas</i>, or hemp sandals laced with -blue strings; the figure of the dance was very intricate, consisting of -much circling, turning, and jumping, and accompanied with loud cries of -<i>viva!</i> at each change of evolution. These <i>comparsas</i> are undoubtedly a -remnant of the original Iberian exhibitions, in which, as among the -Spartans and wild Indians, even in relaxations a warlike principle was -maintained. The dancers beat time with their swords on their shields, -and when one of their champions wished to show his contempt for the -Romans, he executed before them a derisive pirouette. Was this -remembered the other day at Vitoria?</p> - -<p>But in Spain at every moment one retraces the steps of antiquity; thus -still on the banks of the Bætis may be seen those dancing-girls of -profligate Gades, which were exported to ancient Rome, with pickled -tunnies, to the delight of wicked epicures and the horror of the good -fathers of the early church, who compared them, and perhaps justly, to -the capering performed by the daughter of Herodias. They were prohibited -by Theodosius, because, according to St. Chrysostom, at such balls the -devil never wanted a partner. The well-known statue at Naples called the -Venere Callipige is the representation of Telethusa, or some other Cadiz -dancing-girl. Seville is now in these matters, what Gades was; never -there is wanting some venerable gipsy hag, who will get up a <i>funcion</i> -as these pretty proceedings are called, a word taken from the pontifical -ceremonies; for Italy set the fashion to Spain once, as France does now. -These festivals must be paid for, since the gitanesque race, according -to Cervantes, were only sent into this world as “fishhooks for purses.” -The <i>callees</i> when young are very pretty—then they have such wheedling -ways, and traffic on such sure wants and wishes, since to Spanish men -they prophesy gold, to women, husbands.</p> - -<div class="sidenote">GIPSY DANCE.</div> - -<p>The scene of the ball is generally placed in the suburb Triana, which is -the Transtevere of the town, and the home of bull-fighters, smugglers, -picturesque rogues, and Egyptians, whose women are the premières -danseuses on these occasions, in which men never take a part. The house -selected is usually one of those semi-Moorish abodes and perfect -pictures, where rags, poverty, and ruin, are mixed up with marble -columns, figs, fountains and<a name="page_328" id="page_328"></a> grapes; the party assembles in some -stately saloon, whose gilded Arab roof—safe from the spoiler—hangs -over whitewashed walls, and the few wooden benches on which the -chaperons and invited are seated, among whom quantity is rather -preferred to quality; nor would the company or costume perhaps be -admissible at the Mansion-house; but here the past triumphs over the -present; the dance which is closely analogous to the <i>Ghowasee</i> of the -Egyptians, and the <i>Nautch</i> of the Hindoos, is called the <i>Ole</i> by -Spaniards, the <i>Romalis</i> by their gipsies; the soul and essence of it -consists in the expression of certain sentiment, one not indeed of a -very sentimental or correct character. The ladies, who seem to have no -bones, resolve the problem of perpetual motion, their feet having -comparatively a sinecure, as the whole person performs a pantomime, and -trembles like an aspen leaf; the flexible form and Terpsichore figure of -a young Andalucian girl—be she gipsy or not—is said by the learned, to -have been designed by nature as the fit frame for her voluptuous -imagination.</p> - -<div class="sidenote">OPERA IN SPAIN.</div> - -<p>Be that as it may, the scholar and classical commentator will every -moment quote Martial, &c., when he beholds the unchanged balancing of -hands, raised as if to catch showers of roses, the tapping of the feet, -and the serpentine, quivering movements. A contagious excitement seizes -the spectators, who, like Orientals, beat time with their hands in -measured cadence, and at every pause applaud with cries and clappings. -The damsels, thus encouraged, continue in violent action until nature is -all but exhausted; then aniseed brandy, wine, and <i>alpisteras</i> are -handed about, and the fête, carried on to early dawn, often concludes in -broken heads, which here are called “gipsy’s fare.” These dances appear -to a stranger from the chilly north, to be more marked by energy than by -grace, nor have the legs less to do than the body, hips, and arms. The -sight of this unchanged pastime of antiquity, which excites the -Spaniards to frenzy, rather disgusts an English spectator, possibly from -some national malorganization, for, as Molière says, “l’Angleterre a -produit des grands hommes dans les sciences et les beaux arts, mais pas -un grand danseur—allez lire l’histoire.” However indecent these dances -may be, yet the performers are inviolably chaste, and as far at least as -ungipsy guests are concerned, may be compared to iced punch at a rout; -young girls go through them before the<a name="page_329" id="page_329"></a> applauding eyes of their parents -and brothers, who would resent to the death any attempt on their -sisters’ virtue.</p> - -<p>During the lucid intervals between the ballet and the brandy, <i>La caña</i>, -the true Arabic <i>gaunia</i>, song, is administered as a soother by some -hirsute artiste, without frills, studs, diamonds, or kid gloves, whose -staves, sad and melancholy, always begin and end with an <i>ay!</i> a -high-pitched sigh, or cry. These Moorish melodies, relics of auld lang -syne, are best preserved in the hill-built villages near Ronda, where -there are no roads for the members of Queen Christina’s <i>Conservatorio -Napolitano</i>; wherever l’académie tyrannizes, and the Italian opera -prevails, adieu, alas! to the tropes and tunes of the people: and -now-a-days the opera exotic is cultivated in Spain by the higher -classes, because, being fashionable at London and Paris, it is an -exponent of the civilization of 1846. Although the audience in their -honest hearts are as much bored there as elsewhere, yet the affair is -pronounced by them to be charming, because it is so expensive, so -select, and so far above the comprehension of the vulgar. Avoid it, -however, in Spain, ye our fair readers, for the second-rate singers are -not fit to hold the score to those of thy own dear Haymarket.</p> - -<div class="sidenote">MUSIC IN VENTAS.</div> - -<p>The real opera of Spain is in the shop of the <i>Barbero</i> or in the -court-yard of the <i>Venta</i>; in truth, good music, whether harmonious or -scientific, vocal or instrumental, is seldom heard in this land, -notwithstanding the eternal strumming and singing that is going on -there. The very masses, as performed in the cathedrals, from the -introduction of the pianoforte and the violin, have very little -impressive or devotional character. The fiddle disenchants. Even -Murillo, when he clapped catgut under a cherub chin in the clouds, -thereby damaged the angelic sentiment. Let none despise the genuine -songs and instruments of the Peninsula, as excellence in music is -multiform, and much of it, both in name and substance, is conventional. -Witness a whining ballad sung by a chorus out of work, to encoring -crowds in the streets of merry old England, or a bagpipe-tune played in -Ross-shire, which enchants the Highlanders, who cry that strain again, -but scares away the gleds. Let therefore the Spaniards enjoy also what -they call music, although fastidious foreigners condemn it as Iberian -and Oriental. They love to have it so, and will<a name="page_330" id="page_330"></a> have their own way, in -their own time and tune, Rossini and Paganini to the contrary -notwithstanding. They—not the Italians—are listened to by a delighted -semi-Moro audience, with a most profound Oriental and melancholy -attention. Like their love, their music, which is its food, is a serious -affair; yet the sad song, the guitar, and dance, at this moment, form -the joy of careless poverty, the repose of sunburnt labour. The poor -forget their toils, <i>sans six sous et sans souci</i>; nay, even their -meals, like Pliny’s friend Claro, who lost his supper, <i>Bætican olives -and gazpacho</i>, to run after a Gaditanian dancing-girl.</p> - -<div class="sidenote">THE GUITAR.</div> - -<p>In venta and court-yard, in spite of a long day’s work and scanty fare, -at the sound of the guitar and click of the castanet, a new life is -breathed into their veins. So far from feeling past fatigue, the very -fatigue of the dance seems refreshing, and many a weary traveller will -rue the midnight frolics of his noisy and saltatory fellow-lodgers. -Supper is no sooner over than “après la panse la danse,”—some muscular -masculine performer, the very antithesis of Farinelli, screams forth his -couplets, “screechin’ out his prosaic verse,” either at the top of his -voice, or drawls out his ballad, melancholy as the drone of a -Lincolnshire bagpipe, and both alike to the imminent danger of his own -trachea, and of all un-Spanish acoustic organs. For verily, to repeat -Gray’s unhandsome critique of the grand Opéra Français, it consists of -“des miaulemens et des hurlemens effroyables, mêlés avec un tintamare du -diable.” As, however, in Paris, so in Spain, the audience are in -raptures; all men’s ears grow to the tunes as if they had eaten ballads; -all join in chorus at the end of each verse; this “private band,” as -among the <i>sangre su</i>, supplies the want of conversation, and converts a -stupid silence into scientific attention,—ainsi les extrêmes se -touchent. There is always in every company of Spaniards, whether -soldiers, civilians, muleteers, or ministers, some one who can play the -guitar more or less, like Louis XIV., who, according to Voltaire, was -taught nothing but that and dancing. Godoy, the Prince of the Peace, one -of the most worthless of the multitude of worthless ministers by whom -Spain has been misgoverned, first captivated the royal Messalina by his -talent of strumming on the guitar; so Gonzales Bravo, editor of the -Madrid <i>Satirist</i>, rose to be premier, and conciliated the vir<a name="page_331" id="page_331"></a>tuous -Christina, who, soothed by the sweet sounds of this pepper-and-salted -Amphion, forgot his libels on herself and Señor Muñoz. It may be -predicted of the Spains, that when this strumming is mute, the game will -be up, as the Hebrew expression for the ne plus ultra desolation of an -Oriental city is “the ceasing of the mirth of the guitar and -tambourine.”</p> - -<p>In Spain whenever and wherever the siren sounds are heard, a party is -forthwith got up of all ages and sexes, who are attracted by the -tinkling like swarming bees. The guitar is part and parcel of the -Spaniard and his ballads; he slings it across his shoulder with a -ribbon, as was depicted on the tombs of Egypt four thousand years ago. -The performers seldom are very scientific musicians; they content -themselves with striking the chords, sweeping the whole hand over the -strings, or flourishing, and tapping the board with the thumb, at which -they are very expert. Occasionally in the towns there is some one who -has attained more power over this ungrateful instrument; but the attempt -is a failure. The guitar responds coldly to Italian words and elaborate -melody, which never come home to Spanish ears or hearts; for, like the -lyre of Anacreon, however often he might change the strings, love, sweet -love, is its only theme. The multitude suit the tune to the song, both -of which are frequently extemporaneous. They lisp in numbers, not to say -verse; but their splendid idiom lends itself to a prodigality of words, -whether prose or poetry; nor are either very difficult, where common -sense is no necessary ingredient in the composition; accordingly the -language comes in aid to the fertile mother-wit of the natives; rhymes -are dispensed with at pleasure, or mixed according to caprice with -assonants which consist of the mere recurrence of the same vowels, -without reference to that of consonants, and even these, which poorly -fill a foreign ear, are not always observed; a change in intonation, or -a few thumps more or less on the board, do the work, supersede all -difficulties, and constitute a rude prosody, and lead to music just as -gestures do to dancing and to ballads,—“<i>que se canta ballando</i>;” and -which, when heard, reciprocally inspire a Saint Vitus’s desire to snap -fingers and kick heels, as all will admit in whose ears the <i>habas -verdes</i> of Leon, or the <i>cachuca</i> of Cadiz, yet ring.<a name="page_332" id="page_332"></a></p> - -<div class="sidenote">THE LADIES SINGING.</div> - -<p>The words destined to set all this capering in motion are not written -for cold British critics. Like sermons, they are delivered orally, and -are never subjected to the disenchanting ordeal of type: and even such -as may be professedly serious and not saltatory are listened to by those -who come attuned to the hearing vein—who anticipate and re-echo the -subject—who are operated on by the contagious bias. Thus a fascinated -audience of otherwise sensible Britons tolerates the positive presence -of nonsense at an opera—</p> - -<div class="poem"><div class="stanza"> -<span class="i0">“Where rhyme with reason does dispense,<br /></span> -<span class="i1">And sound has right to govern sense.”<br /></span> -</div></div> - -<p>In order to feel the full power of the guitar and Spanish song, the -performer should be a sprightly Andaluza, taught or untaught; she wields -the instrument as her fan or <i>mantilla</i>; it seems to become portion of -herself, and alive; indeed the whole thing requires an <i>abandon</i>, a -fire, a <i>gracia</i>, which could not be risked by ladies of more northern -climates and more tightly-laced zones. No wonder one of the old fathers -of the church said that he would sooner face a singing basilisk than one -of these performers: she is good for nothing when pinned down to a -piano, on which few Spanish women play even tolerably, and so with her -singing, when she attempts ‘Adelaide,’ or anything in the sublime, -beautiful, and serious, her failure is dead certain, while, taken in her -own line, she is triumphant; the words of her song are often struck off, -like Theodore Hook’s, at the moment, and allude to incidents and persons -present; sometimes they are full of epigram and <i>double entendre</i>; they -often sing what may not be spoken, and steal hearts through ears, like -the Sirens, or as Cervantes has it, <i>cuando cantan encantan</i>. At other -times their song is little better than meaningless jingle, with which -the listeners are just as well satisfied. For, as Figaro says—“ce qui -ne vaut pas la peine d’être dit, on le chante.” A good voice, which -Italians call <i>novanta-nove</i>, ninety-nine parts out of the hundred, is -very rare; nothing strikes a traveller more unfavourably than the harsh -voice of the women in general; never mind, these ballad songs from the -most remote antiquity have formed the delight of the people, have -tempered the despotism of their church and state, have sustained a -nation’s resistance against foreign aggression.<a name="page_333" id="page_333"></a></p> - -<div class="sidenote">MOORISH GUITARS.</div> - -<p>There is very little music ever printed in Spain; the songs and airs are -generally sold in MS. Sometimes, for the very illiterate, the notes are -expressed in numeral figures, which correspond with the number of the -strings.</p> - -<p>The best guitars in the world were made appropriately in Cadiz by the -Pajez family, father and son; of course an instrument in so much vogue -was always an object of most careful thought in fair Bætica; thus in the -seventh century the Sevillian guitar was shaped like the human breast, -because, as archbishops said, the <i>chords</i> signified the pulsations of -the heart, <i>à corde</i>. The instruments of the Andalucian Moors were -strung after these significant heartstrings; Zaryàb remodelled the -guitar by adding a fifth string of bright red, to represent blood, the -treble or first being yellow to indicate bile; and to this hour, on the -banks of the Guadalquivir, when dusky eve calls forth the cloaked -serenader, the ruby drops of the heart female, are more surely liquefied -by a judicious manipulation of cat-gut, than ever were those of San -Januario by book or candle; nor, so it is said, when the tinkling is -continuous are all marital livers unwrung.</p> - -<p>However that may be, the sad tunes of these Oriental ditties are still -effective in spite of their antiquity; indeed certain sounds have a -mysterious aptitude to express certain moods of the mind, in connexion -with some unexplained sympathy between the sentient and intellectual -organs, and the simplest are by far the most ancient. Ornate melody is a -modern invention from Italy; and although, in lands of greater -intercourse and fastidiousness, the conventional has ejected the -national, fashion has not shamed or silenced the old airs of -Spain—those “howlings of Tarshish.” Indeed, national tunes, like the -songs of birds, are not taught in orchestras, but by mothers to their -infant progeny in the cradling nest. As the Spaniard is warlike without -being military, saltatory without being graceful, so he is musical -without being harmonious; he is just the raw man material made by -nature, and treats himself as he does the raw products of his soil, by -leaving art and final development to the foreigner.</p> - -<div class="sidenote">ENGLISH EXAMPLE.</div> - -<p>The day that he becomes a scientific fiddler, or a capital cotton -spinner, his charm will be at an end; long therefore may he turn a deaf -ear to moralists and political economists, who cannot abide the guitar, -who say that it has done more harm<a name="page_334" id="page_334"></a> to Spain than hailstorms or drought, -by fostering a prodigious idleness and love-making, whereby the land is -cursed with a greater surplus of foundlings, than men of fortune; how -indeed can these calamities be avoided, when the tempter hangs up this -fatal instrument on a peg in every house? Our immelodious labourers and -unsaltatory operatives are put forth by Manchester missionaries as an -example of industry to the <i>Majos</i> and <i>Manolas</i> of Spain: “behold how -they toil, twelve and fourteen hours every day;” yet these -philanthropists should remember that from their having no other -recreation beyond the public or dissenting-house, they pine when -unemployed, because not knowing what to do with themselves when <i>idle</i>; -this to most Spaniards is a foretaste of the bliss of heaven, while -occupation, thought in England to be happiness, is the treadmill doom of -the lost for ever. Nor can it be denied that the facility of junketing -in the Peninsula, the grapes, guitars, songs, skippings and other -incidents to fine climate, militate against that dogged, desperate, -determined hard-working, by which our labourers beat the world hollow, -fiddling and pirouetting being excepted.<a name="page_335" id="page_335"></a></p> - -<div class="sidenote">PHILOSOPHY OF THE CIGAR.</div> - -<h2><a name="CHAPTER_XXIV" id="CHAPTER_XXIV"></a>CHAPTER XXIV.</h2> - -<div class="blockquot"><p class="hang">Manufacture of Cigars—Tobacco—Smuggling <i>viâ</i> Gibraltar—Cigars -of Ferdinand VII.—Making a Cigarrito—Zumalacarreguy and the -Schoolmaster—Time and Money Wasted in Smoking—Postscript on -Stock.</p></div> - -<p class="nind">B<small>UT</small> whether at bull-fight or theatre, be he lay or clerical, every -Spaniard who can afford it, consoles himself continually with a cigar, -sleep—not bed—time only excepted. This is his <i>nepenthe</i>, his pleasure -opiate, which, like Souchong, soothes but does not inebriate; it is to -him his “Te veniente die et te decedente.”</p> - -<div class="sidenote">SMUGGLED CIGARS.</div> - -<p>The manufacture of the cigar is the most active one carried on in the -Peninsula. The buildings are palaces; witness those at Seville, Malaga, -and Valencia. Since a cigar is a <i>sine quâ non</i> in every Spaniard’s -mouth, for otherwise he would resemble a house without a chimney, a -steamer without a funnel, it must have its page in every Spanish book; -indeed, as one of the most learned native authors remarked, “You will -think me tiresome with my tobacconistical details, but the vast bulk of -readers will be more pleased with it, than with an account of all the -pictures in the world.” They all opine, that a good cigar—an article -scarce in this land of smoking and contradiction—keeps a Christian -hidalgo cooler in summer and warmer in winter than his wife and cloak; -while at all times and seasons it diminishes sorrow and doubles joy, as -a man’s better half does in Great Britain. “The fact is, Squire,” says -Sam Slick, “the moment a man takes to a pipe he becomes a philosopher; -it is the poor man’s friend; it calms the mind, soothes the temper, and -makes a man patient under trouble.” Can it be wondered at, that the -Oriental and Spanish population should cling to this relief from whips -and scorns, and the oppressor’s wrong, or steep in sweet oblivious -stupefaction the misery of being fretted and excited by empty larders, -vicious political institutions, and a very hot climate? They believe -that it deadens their over-excitable imagination, and appeases their too -exquisite nervous sensibility; they agree with Molière, although they -never read him,<a name="page_336" id="page_336"></a> “Quoique l’on puisse dire, Aristote et toute la -philosophie, il n’y a rien d’égal au tabac.” The divine Isaac Barrow -resorted to this <i>panpharmacon</i> whenever he wished to collect his -thoughts; Sir Walter Raleigh, the patron of Virginia, smoked a pipe just -before he lost his head, “at which some formal people were scandalized; -but,” adds Aubrey, “I think it was properly done to settle his spirits.” -The pedant James, who condemned both Raleigh and tobacco, said the bill -of fare of the dinner which he should give his Satanic majesty, would be -“a pig, a poll of ling, and mustard, with a pipe of tobacco for -digestion.” So true it is that “what’s one man’s meat is another man’s -poison;” but at all events, in hungry Spain it is both meat and drink, -and the chief smoke connected with proceedings of the mouth issues from -labial, not house chimneys.</p> - -<p>Tobacco, this anodyne for the irritability of human reason, is, like -spirituous liquors which make it drunk, a highly-taxed article in all -civilized societies. In Spain, the Bourbon dynasty (as elsewhere) is the -hereditary tobacconist-general, and the privilege of sale is generally -farmed out to some contractor: accordingly, such a trump as a really -good home-made cigar is hardly to be had for love or money in the -Peninsula. Diogenes would sooner expect to find an honest man in any of -the government offices. As there is no royal road to the science of -cigar-making, the article is badly concocted, of bad materials, and, to -add insult to injury, is charged at a most exorbitant price. In order to -benefit the Havañah, tobacco is not allowed to be grown in Spain, which -it would do in perfection in the neighbourhood of Malaga; for the -experiment was made, and having turned out quite successfully, the -cultivation was immediately prohibited. The iniquity and dearness of the -royal tobacco makes the fortune of the well-meaning smuggler, who being -here, as everywhere, the great corrector of blundering chancellors of -exchequers, provides a better and cheaper thing from Gibraltar.</p> - -<div class="sidenote">SMUGGLED CIGARS.</div> - -<p>The proof of the extent to which his dealings are carried was -exemplified in 1828, when many thousand additional hands were obliged to -be put on to the manufactories at Seville and Granada, to meet the -increased demand occasioned by the impossibility of obtaining supplies -from Gibraltar, in consequence of the yellow fever which was then raging -there. No offence is more dread<a name="page_337" id="page_337"></a>fully punished in Spain than that of -tobacco-smuggling, which robs the queen’s pocket—all other robbery is -treated as nothing, for her lieges only suffer.</p> - -<p>The encouragement afforded to the manufacture and smuggling of cigars at -Gibraltar is a never-failing source of ill blood and ill will between -the Spanish and English governments. This most serious evil is contrary -to all treaties, injurious to Spain and England alike, and is beneficial -only to aliens of the worst character, who form the real plague and sore -of Gibraltar. The American and every other nation import their own -tobacco, good, bad, and indifferent, into the fortress free of duty, and -without repurchasing British produce. It is made into cigars by Genoese, -is smuggled into Spain by aliens, in boats under the British flag, which -is disgraced by the traffic and exposed to insult from the revenue -cutters of Spain, which it cannot in justice expect to have redressed. -The Spaniards would have winked at the introduction of English hardware -and cottons—objects of necessity, which do not interfere with this, -their chief manufacture, and one of the most productive of royal -monopolies. There is a wide difference between encouraging real British -commerce and this smuggling of foreign cigars, nor can Spain be expected -to observe treaties towards us while we infringe them so scandalously -and unprofitably on our parts.</p> - -<div class="sidenote">LIGHTING CIGARS.</div> - -<p>Many tobacchose epicures, who smoke their regular dozen or two, place -the evil sufficient for the day between fresh lettuce-leaves; this damps -the outer leaf of the article, and improves the narcotic effect; <i>mem.</i>, -the inside, the trail, <i>las tripas</i>, as the Spaniards call it, should be -kept quite dry. The disordered interior of the royal cigars is masked by -a good outside wrapper leaf, just as Spanish rags are cloaked by a -decent <i>capa</i>, but l’habit ne fait pas le cigarre. Few except the rich -can afford to smoke good cigars. Ferdinand VII., unlike his ancestor -Louis XIV., “qui,” says La Beaumelle, “haïssoit le tabac singulièrement, -quoiqu’un de ses meilleurs revenus,” was not only a grand compounder but -consumer thereof. He indulged in the royal extravagance of a very large -thick cigar made in the Havañah expressly for his gracious use, as he -was too good a judge to smoke his own manufacture. Even of these he -seldom smoked more than the half; the remainder was a grand perquisite, -like our palace lights. The cigar was one of his pledges of love and -hatred:<a name="page_338" id="page_338"></a> he would give one to his favourites when in sweet temper; and -often, when meditating a treacherous <i>coup</i>, would dismiss the -unconscious victim with a royal <i>puro</i>: and when the happy individual -got home to smoke it, he was saluted by an Alguacil with an order to -quit Madrid in twenty-four hours. The “innocent” Isabel, who does not -smoke, substitutes sugar-plums; she regaled Olozaga with a sweet -present, when she was “doing him” at the bidding of the Christinist -camarilla. It would seem that the Spanish Bourbons, when not -“cretinised” into idiots, are creatures composed of cunning and -cowardice. But “those who cannot dissimulate are unfit to reign” was the -axiom of their illustrious ancestor Louis XI.</p> - -<div class="sidenote">LIGHTING CIGARS.</div> - -<p>In Spain the bulk of their happy subjects cannot afford, either the -expense of tobacco, which is dear to them, or the <i>gain</i> of time, which -is very cheap, by smoking a whole cigar right away. They make one afford -occupation and recreation for half an hour. Though few Spaniards ruin -themselves in libraries, none are without a little blank book of a -particular paper, which is made at Alcoy, in Valencia. At any pause all -say at once—“<i>pues, señores! echaremos un cigarrito</i>—well then, my -Lords, let us make a little cigar,” and all set seriously to work; every -man, besides this book, is armed with a small case of flint, steel, and -a combustible tinder. To make a paper cigar, like putting on a cloak, is -an operation of much more difficulty than it seems, although all -Spaniards, who have done nothing so much, from their childhood upwards, -perform both with extreme facility and neatness. This is the mode:—the -<i>petaca</i>, Arabicè Buták, or little case worked by a fair hand, in the -coloured thread of the aloe, in which the store of cigars is kept, is -taken out—a leaf is torn from the book, which is held between the lips, -or downwards from the back of the hand, between the fore and middle -finger of the left hand—a portion of the cigar, about a third, is cut -off and rubbed slowly in the palms till reduced to a powder—it is then -jerked into the paper-leaf, which is rolled up into a little squib, and -the ends doubled down, one of which is bitten off and the other end is -lighted. The cigarillo is smoked slowly, the last whiff being the bonne -bouche, the <i>breast</i>, <i>la pechuga</i>. The little ends are thrown away: -they are indeed little, for a Spanish fore-finger and thumb are quite -fire-browned and fire-proof, although some polished exquisites use -silver holders;<a name="page_339" id="page_339"></a> these remnants are picked up by the beggar-boys, who -make up into fresh cigars the leavings of a thousand mouths. There is no -want of fire in Spain; everywhere, what we should call link-boys run -about with a slowly-burning rope for the benefit of the public. At many -of the sheds where water and lemonade are sold, one of the ropes, -twirled like a snake round a post, and ignited, is kept ready as the -match of a besieged artilleryman; while in the houses of the affluent, a -small silver chafing-dish, with lighted charcoal, is usually on a table. -Mr. Henningsen relates that Zumalacarreguy, when about to execute some -Christinos at Villa Franca, observed one (a schoolmaster) looking about, -like Raleigh, for a light for his last dying puff in this life, upon -which the General took his own cigar from his mouth, and handed it to -him. The schoolmaster lighted his own, returned the other with a -respectful bow, and went away smoking and reconciled to be shot. This -urgent necessity levels all ranks, and it is allowable to stop any -person for fire; this proves the practical equality of all classes, and -that democracy under a despotism, which exists in smoking Spain, as in -the torrid East. The cigar forms a bond of union, an isthmus of -communication between most heterogeneous oppositions. It is the <i>habeas -corpus</i> of Spanish liberties. The soldier takes fire from the canon’s -lip, and the dark face of the humble labourer is whitened by the -reflection of the cigar of the grandee and lounger. The lowest orders -have a coarse roll or rope of tobacco, wherewith to solace their -sorrows, and it is their calumet of peace. Some of the Spanish fair sex -are said to indulge in a quiet hidden <i>cigarilla</i>, <i>una pajita</i>, <i>una -reyna</i>, but it is not thought either a sign of a lady, or of one of -rigid virtue, to have recourse to these forbidden pleasures; for, says -their proverb, whoever makes one basket will make a hundred.</p> - -<div class="sidenote">TIME LOST BY TOBACCO.</div> - -<p>Nothing exposes a traveller to more difficulty than carrying much -tobacco in his luggage; yet all will remember never to be without some -cigars, and the better the better. It is a trifling outlay, for although -any cigar is acceptable, yet a real good one is a gift from a king. The -greater the enjoyment of the smoker, the greater his respect for the -donor; a cigar may be given to everybody, whether high or low: thus the -<i>petaca</i> is offered, as a polite Frenchman of La Vieille Cour (a race, -alas! all but extinct) offered his snuff-box, by way of a prelude to -conversation and<a name="page_340" id="page_340"></a> intimacy. It is an act of civility, and implies no -superiority, nor is there any humiliation in the acceptance; it is twice -blessed, “It blesseth him that gives and him that takes.” It is the -spell wherewith to charm the natives, who are its ready and obedient -slaves, and, like a small kind word spoken in time, it works miracles. -There is no country in the world where the stranger and traveller can -purchase for half-a-crown, half the love and good-will which its -investment in tobacco will ensure, therefore the man who grudges or -neglects it is neither a philanthropist nor a philosopher.</p> - -<p>A calculation might be made by those fond of arithmetic—which we -abhor—of the waste of time and money which is caused to the poor -Spaniards by all this prodigious cigarising. This said tobacco -importation of Raleigh is even a more doubtful good to the Peninsula -than that of potatoes to cognate Ireland, where it fosters poverty and -population. Let it be assumed that a respectable Spaniard only smokes -for fifty years, allow him the moderate allowance of six cigars a -day—the Regent, it is said, consumed forty every twenty-four -hours—calculate the cost of each cigar at two-pence, which is cheap -enough anywhere for a decent one; suppose that half of these are made -into paper cigars, which require double time—how much Spanish time and -private income is wasted in smoke? That is the question which we are -unable to answer.</p> - -<div class="sidenote">SPANISH STOCK.</div> - -<p>Here, alas! the pen must be laid down; an express from Albemarle-street -informs us, that this page must go to press next week, seeing that the -printer’s devils celebrate Christmas time with a most religious -abstinence from work. Many things of Spain must therefore be left in our -inkstand, filled to the brim with good intentions. We had hoped, at our -onset, to have sketched portraits of the Provincial and General -Character of Spanish Men—to have touched upon Spanish Soldiers and -Statesmen—Journalism and Place Hunting—Mendicants, Ministers and -Mosquitoes—Charters, Cheatings, and Constitutions—Fine Arts—French -and English Politics—Legends, Relics, and Religion—Monks and Manners; -and last, not least—reserved indeed as a bonne bouche—the Eyes, Loves, -Dress, and Details of the Spanish Ladies. It cannot be—nay, even as it -is, “for stories somehow lengthen when begun,” and especially if woven -with Spanish yarn, even now the indulgence of our fair readers<a name="page_341" id="page_341"></a> may be -already exhausted by this sample of the <i>Cosas de España</i>. Be that as it -may, assuredly the smallest hint of a desire to the flattering contrary, -which they may condescend to express, will be obeyed as a command by -their grateful and humble servant the author, who, as every true Spanish -Hidalgo very properly concludes on similar, and on every occasion, -“kisses their feet.”</p> - -<p><i>Postscript.</i>—In the first number of these Gatherings, at page 38, some -particulars were given of Spanish Stock, derived, as was believed, from -the most official and authentic sources. On the very evening that the -volume was published, and too late therefore for any corrections, the -following obliging letter was received from an anonymous correspondent, -which is now printed verbatim:—</p> - -<div class="blockquot"><p class="r"><i>London, 30th November, 1846.</i></p> - -<p class="nind">S<small>IR</small>,</p> - -<p>I <small>HAVE</small> just perused your valuable and amusing work, ‘Gatherings -from Spain;’ but must own I felt somewhat annoyed at seeing so -gross a misrepresentation in the account you give of the national -debt of that country; the amount you give is perfectly absurd. You -say it has been increased to 279,033,089<i>l.</i>—this is too bad. Now -I can give you the exact amount. The 5 per cents. consists of -40,000,000<i>l.</i> only; the coupons upon that sum to 12,000,000<i>l.</i>; -and the present 3 per cents. to 6,000,000<i>l.</i>; in all, -58,000,000<i>l.</i>, and their own domestic debt, which is very -trifling. Now this is rather different to your statement; besides, -you are doing your book great injury by writing the Spanish Stock -down so; more particularly so, as there is no doubt some final -settlement will be come to before your second Number appears [?]. -The country is far from being as you misrepresent it to -be—bankrupt. She is very rich, and quite capable of meeting her -engagements which are so trifling—if you were to write down our -Railroads I should think you a sensible man, for they are the -greatest bubbles, since the great South Sea bubble. But Spanish is -a fortune to whoever is so fortunate as to possess it now. I am, -and have been for some years, a large holder, and am now looking -forward to the realization of all my plans, in the present Minister -of Finance, Señor Mon, and the rising of that stock to its proper -price—about 60 or 70.</p> - -<p>I should, as a friend, advise you to correct your book before you -strike any more copies, if you wish to sell it, as a true -representation of the present existing state of the country. Your -book might have done ten years ago, but people will not be gulled -now; we are too well aware that almost all our own papers are -bribed (and, perhaps, books), to write down Spanish, and Spanish -finance, by raising all manner of reports—of Carlist bands -appearing in all directions, &c. &c. &c. &c., which is most -absurd—the Carlists’ cause is dead.<a name="page_342" id="page_342"></a></p> - -<div class="sidenote">THE AUTHOR’S POSTSCRIPT.</div> - -<p>I hope, Sir, you will not be offended with these lines, but rather -take them as a friendly hint, as I admire your book much; and I -hope you will yourself see the falsity of what has been inserted in -a work of amusement, and correct it at once.</p> - -<p class="c"> -I remain, Sir,<br /> -Your obedient and humble Servant,<br /> -<span style="margin-left: 6em;">A FRIEND OF TRUTH.</span></p> - -<p class="nind"><i>To —— Ford, Esq.</i></p></div> - -<p>It is a trifle “too bad” to be thus set down by our complimentary -correspondent as the inventor of these startling facts, figures, and -“fallacies,” since the full, true, and exact particulars are to be found -at pages 85 and 89 of Mr. Macgregor’s Commercial Tariffs of Spain, -presented to both Houses of Parliament in 1844 by the command of Her -Majesty. And as there was some variance in amount, the author all -through quoted from other men’s sums, and spoke doubtingly and -approximatively, being little desirous of having anything connected with -Spanish debts laid at his door, or charged to his account. He has no -interest whatever in these matters, having never been the fortunate -holder of one farthing either in Spanish funds or even English -railroads. Equally a friend of truth as his kind monitor, he simply -wished to caution fair readers, who might otherwise mis-invest, as he -erroneously it appears conceived, the savings in their pin-money. If he -has unwittingly stated that which is not, he can but give up his -authority, be very much ashamed, and insert the antidote to his errors. -He sincerely hopes that all and every one of the bright visions of his -anonymous friend may be realized. Had he himself, which Heaven forfend! -been sent on the errand of discovery whether the Madrid ministers be -made, or not, of squeezable materials, considering that Astræa has not -yet returned to Spain, with good governments, the golden age, or even a -tariff, his first step would have been to grease the wheels with -<i>sovereign</i> ointment; and with a view of not being told by ministers and -cashiers to call again to-morrow, he would have opened the <i>negocio</i> by -offering somebody 20 per cent. on all the hard dollars paid down; thus -possibly some breath and time might be economised, and trifling -disappointments prevented.</p> - -<p class="c">London: Printed by W<small>ILLIAM</small> C<small>LOWES</small> and S<small>ONS</small>, Stamford Street<a name="page_343" id="page_343"></a></p> - -<div class="footnotes"><p class="cb">FOOTNOTES:</p> - -<div class="footnote"><p><a name="Footnote_1_1" id="Footnote_1_1"></a><a href="#FNanchor_1_1"><span class="label">[1]</span></a> The word <i>Gabacho</i>, which is the most offensive -vituperative of the Spaniard against the Frenchman, and has by some been -thought to mean “those who dwell on Gaves,” is the Arabic <i>Cabach</i>, -detestable, filthy, or “qui prava indole est, moribusque.” In fact the -real meaning cannot be further alluded to beyond referring to the clever -tale of <i>El Frances y Español</i> by Quevedo. The antipathy to the Gaul is -natural and national, and dates far beyond history. This nickname was -first given in the eighth century, when Charlemagne, the Buonaparte of -his day, invaded Spain, on the abdication and cession of the crown by -the chaste Alonso, the prototype of the wittol Charles IV.; then the -Spanish Moors and Christians, foes and friends, forgot their hatreds of -creeds in the greater loathing for the abhorred intruder, whose “peerage -fell” in the memorable passes of Roncesvalles. The true derivation of -the word <i>Gabacho</i>, which now resounds from these Pyrenees to the -Straits, is blinked in the royal academical dictionary, such was the -servile adulation of the members to their French patron Philip V. -<i>Mueran los Gabachos</i>, “Death to the miscreants,” was the rally cry of -Spain after the inhuman butcheries of the terrorist Murat; nor have the -echoes died away; a spark may kindle the prepared mine: of what an -unspeakable value is a national war-cry which at once gives to a whole -people a shibboleth, a rallying watch-word to a common cause! <i>Vox -populi vox Dei.</i></p></div> - -<div class="footnote"><p><a name="Footnote_2_2" id="Footnote_2_2"></a><a href="#FNanchor_2_2"><span class="label">[2]</span></a> <i>Razzia</i> is derived from the Arabic <i>Al ghazia</i>, a word -which expresses these raids of a ferocious, barbarous age. It has been -introduced to European dictionaries by the Pelissiers, who thus -<i>civilize</i> Algeria. They make a solitude, and call it peace.</p></div> - -<div class="footnote"><p><a name="Footnote_3_3" id="Footnote_3_3"></a><a href="#FNanchor_3_3"><span class="label">[3]</span></a> Faja; the Hhezum of Cairo. Atrides tightens his sash when -preparing for action—Iliad xi. 15. The Roman soldiers kept their money -in it. Ibit qui <i>zonam</i> perdidit.—Hor. ii. Ep. 2. 40. The Jews used it -for the same purpose—Matthew x. 9; Mark vi. 8. It is loosened at night. -“None shall slumber or sleep, neither shall the girdle of their loins be -loosed.”—Isaiah v. 27.</p></div> - -<div class="footnote"><p><a name="Footnote_4_4" id="Footnote_4_4"></a><a href="#FNanchor_4_4"><span class="label">[4]</span></a> The dread of the fascination of the evil eye, from which -Solomon was not exempt (Proverbs xxiii. 6), prevails all over the East; -it has not been extirpated from Spain or from Naples, which so long -belonged to Spain. The lower classes in the Peninsula hang round the -necks of their children and cattle a horn tipped with silver; this is -sold as an amulet in the silver-smiths’ shops; the cord by which it is -attached <i>ought</i> to be braided from a black mare’s tail. The Spanish -gipsies, of whom Borrow has given us so complete an account, thrive by -disarming the <i>mal de ojo</i>, “<i>querelar nasula</i>,” as they term it. The -dread of the “<i>Ain ara</i>” exists among all classes of the Moors. The -better classes of Spaniards make a joke of it; and often, when you -remark that a person has put on or wears something strange about him, -the answer is, “<i>Es para que no me hagan mal de ojo</i>.” Naples is the -head-quarters for charms and coral amulets: all the learning has been -collected by the Canon Jorio and the Marques Arditi.</p></div> - -<div class="footnote"><p><a name="Footnote_5_5" id="Footnote_5_5"></a><a href="#FNanchor_5_5"><span class="label">[5]</span></a> The <i>garañon</i> is also called “<i>burro padre</i>” ass father, -not “<i>padre burro</i>.” “<i>Padre</i>,” the prefix of paternity, is the common -title given in Spain to the clergy and the monks. “Father jackass” might -in many instances, when applied to the latter, be too morally and -physically appropriate, to be consistent with the respect due to the -celibate cowl and cassock.</p></div> - -<div class="footnote"><p><a name="Footnote_6_6" id="Footnote_6_6"></a><a href="#FNanchor_6_6"><span class="label">[6]</span></a> When George IV. once complained that he had <i>lost</i> his -royal appetite, “What a scrape, sir, a <i>poor</i> man would be in if he -<i>found</i> it!” said his Rochester companion.</p></div> - -<div class="footnote"><p><a name="Footnote_7_7" id="Footnote_7_7"></a><a href="#FNanchor_7_7"><span class="label">[7]</span></a> The very word <i>Novelty</i> has become in common parlance -synonymous with danger, change, by the fear of which all Spaniards are -perplexed; as in religion it is a heresy. Bitter experience has taught -all classes that every change, every promise of a new era of blessing -and prosperity has ended in a failure, and that matters have got worse: -hence they not only bear the evils to which they are accustomed, rather -than try a speculative amelioration, but actually prefer a bad state of -things, of which they know the worst, to the possibility of an untried -good. <i>Mas vale el mal conocido, que el bien por conocer.</i> “How is my -lady the wife of your grace?” says a Spanish gentleman to his friend. -“<i>Como está mi Señora la Esposa de Usted?</i>” “She goes on without -Novelty”—“<i>Sigue sin Novedad</i>,” is the reply, if the fair one be much -the same. “<i>Vaya Usted con Dios, y que no haya Novedad!</i>” “Go with God, -your grace! and may nothing new happen,” says another, on starting his -friend off on a journey.</p></div> - -<div class="footnote"><p><a name="Footnote_8_8" id="Footnote_8_8"></a><a href="#FNanchor_8_8"><span class="label">[8]</span></a> Forks are an Italian invention: old Coryate, who introduced -this “neatnesse” into Somersetshire, about 1600, was called <i>furcifer</i> -by his friends. Alexander Barclay thus describes the previous English -mode of eating, which sounds very <i>ventaish</i>, although worse mannered:— -</p> - -<div class="poem"><div class="stanza"> -<span class="i0">“If the dishe be pleasaunt, eyther flesche or fische,<br /></span> -<span class="i1">Ten hands at once swarm in the dishe.”<br /></span> -</div></div> - -</div> - -<div class="footnote"><p><a name="Footnote_9_9" id="Footnote_9_9"></a><a href="#FNanchor_9_9"><span class="label">[9]</span></a> The kings of Spain seldom use any other royal signature, -except the ancient Gothic <i>rubrica</i>, or mark. This monogram is something -like a Runic knot. Spaniards exercise much ingenuity in these intricate -flourishes, which they tack on to their names, as a collateral security -of authenticity. It is said that a <i>rubrica</i> without a name is of more -value than a name without a rubrica. Sancho Panza tells Don Quixote that -his rubrica alone is worth, not one, but three hundred jackasses. Those -who cannot write rubricate; “<i>No saber firmar</i>,”—not to know how to -sign one’s name,—is jokingly held in Spain to be one of the attributes -of grandeeship.</p></div> - -<div class="footnote"><p><a name="Footnote_10_10" id="Footnote_10_10"></a><a href="#FNanchor_10_10"><span class="label">[10]</span></a> “Chacun fuit à le voir naître, chacun court à le voir -mourir!”—<i>Montaigne.</i></p></div> - -<div class="footnote"><p><a name="Footnote_11_11" id="Footnote_11_11"></a><a href="#FNanchor_11_11"><span class="label">[11]</span></a> Hallarse en <i>Cinta</i> is the Spanish equivalent for our -“being in the family way."</p></div> - -<div class="footnote"><p><a name="Footnote_12_12" id="Footnote_12_12"></a><a href="#FNanchor_12_12"><span class="label">[12]</span></a> Recopilacion. Lib. iii. Tit. xvi. Ley 3.</p></div> - -<div class="footnote"><p><a name="Footnote_13_13" id="Footnote_13_13"></a><a href="#FNanchor_13_13"><span class="label">[13]</span></a> The love for killing oxen still prevails at Rome, where -the ambition of the lower orders to be a butcher, is, like their white -costume, a remnant of the honourable office of killing at the Pagan -sacrifices. In Spain butchers are of the lowest caste, and cannot prove -“purity of blood.” Francis I. never forgave the “Becajo de Parigi” -applied by Dante to <i>his</i> ancestor.</p></div> -</div> - -<hr class="full" /> - -<p class="c"><a name="TRNS" id="TRNS"></a>Typographical error corrected by the etext transcriber:</p> - -<p class="c">which recal the memory of those=> which recall the memory of those {pg -250}</p> - -<hr class="full" /> - - - - - - - -<pre> - - - - - -End of the Project Gutenberg EBook of Gatherings From Spain, by Richard Ford - -*** END OF THIS PROJECT GUTENBERG EBOOK GATHERINGS FROM SPAIN *** - -***** This file should be named 41611-h.htm or 41611-h.zip ***** -This and all associated files of various formats will be found in: - http://www.gutenberg.org/4/1/6/1/41611/ - -Produced by Chuck Greif and the Online Distributed -Proofreading Team at http://www.pgdp.net (This file was -produced from images available at The Internet Archive) - - -Updated editions will replace the previous one--the old editions -will be renamed. - -Creating the works from public domain print editions means that no -one owns a United States copyright in these works, so the Foundation -(and you!) can copy and distribute it in the United States without -permission and without paying copyright royalties. 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