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diff --git a/.gitattributes b/.gitattributes new file mode 100644 index 0000000..d7b82bc --- /dev/null +++ b/.gitattributes @@ -0,0 +1,4 @@ +*.txt text eol=lf +*.htm text eol=lf +*.html text eol=lf +*.md text eol=lf diff --git a/LICENSE.txt b/LICENSE.txt new file mode 100644 index 0000000..6312041 --- /dev/null +++ b/LICENSE.txt @@ -0,0 +1,11 @@ +This eBook, including all associated images, markup, improvements, +metadata, and any other content or labor, has been confirmed to be +in the PUBLIC DOMAIN IN THE UNITED STATES. + +Procedures for determining public domain status are described in +the "Copyright How-To" at https://www.gutenberg.org. + +No investigation has been made concerning possible copyrights in +jurisdictions other than the United States. Anyone seeking to utilize +this eBook outside of the United States should confirm copyright +status under the laws that apply to them. diff --git a/README.md b/README.md new file mode 100644 index 0000000..4da2298 --- /dev/null +++ b/README.md @@ -0,0 +1,2 @@ +Project Gutenberg (https://www.gutenberg.org) public repository for +eBook #55034 (https://www.gutenberg.org/ebooks/55034) diff --git a/old/55034-0.txt b/old/55034-0.txt deleted file mode 100644 index 148cd72..0000000 --- a/old/55034-0.txt +++ /dev/null @@ -1,6817 +0,0 @@ -The Project Gutenberg EBook of Through Portugal, by Martin Hume - -This eBook is for the use of anyone anywhere in the United States and most -other parts of the world 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. If you are not located in the United States, you'll have -to check the laws of the country where you are located before using this ebook. - - - -Title: Through Portugal - -Author: Martin Hume - -Illustrator: A. S. Forrest - -Release Date: July 3, 2017 [EBook #55034] - -Language: English - -Character set encoding: UTF-8 - -*** START OF THIS PROJECT GUTENBERG EBOOK THROUGH PORTUGAL *** - - - - -Produced by Richard Tonsing and the Online Distributed -Proofreading Team at http://www.pgdp.net (This file was -produced from images generously made available by The -Internet Archive) - - - - - - - - - - THROUGH PORTUGAL - - -[Illustration: FROM A WINDOW, OPORTO.] - - - - - THROUGH - PORTUGAL - - - BY - MARTIN HUME - - - WITH 32 ILLUSTRATIONS IN COLOUR BY - A. S. FORREST - AND 8 REPRODUCTIONS OF PHOTOGRAPHS - - “_Oh Christ! it is a goodly sight to see - What heaven hath done for this delicious land; - What fruits of fragrance blush on every tree, - What goodly prospects o’er the hills expand._” - - BYRON. - - - NEW YORK - M^cCLURE, PHILLIPS & COMPANY - 1907 - - - - - Printed by - BALLANTYNE, HANSON & CO. - Edinburgh - - - - - _This record of - a pleasure journey through Europe’s - “Garden by the Sea” - is dedicated by gracious permission to - His Majesty - The King of Portugal_ - ------------------------------------------------------------------------- - - - - - CONTENTS - - - CHAPTER I - - PAGE - - OPORTO 1 - - - CHAPTER II - - BRAGA AND BOM JESUS 34 - - - CHAPTER III - - CITANIA AND GUIMARÃES 54 - - - CHAPTER IV - - BUSSACO 90 - - - CHAPTER V - - COIMBRA, THOMAR, AND LEIRIA 122 - - - CHAPTER VI - - BATALHA AND ALCOBAÇA 169 - - - CHAPTER VII - - CINTRA 199 - - - CHAPTER VIII - - LISBON 229 - - - CHAPTER IX - - SETUBAL, TROYA, AND EVORA 264 - - - CHAPTER X - - HINTS TO TRAVELLERS IN PORTUGAL 308 - - - - - ILLUSTRATIONS - - - IN COLOUR - - FROM A WINDOW IN OPORTO _Frontispiece_ - - EVENING: OPPOSITE OPORTO _To face page_ 8 - - FROM THE RIBEIRA, OPORTO _To face page_ 16 - - A SHOP IN OLD OPORTO _To face page_ 28 - - THE AFTER-GLOW AT BRAGA _To face page_ 40 - - ON THE TERRACE, BOM JESUS _To face page_ 50 - - ON THE HOLY STAIR, BOM JESUS _To face page_ 52 - - ON THE WAY TO MARKET, TAIPAS _To face page_ 58 - - FROM THE BATTLEMENT, BUSSACO _To face page_ 96 - - THE HOTEL FROM THE WOODS, BUSSACO _To face page_ 102 - - IN THE GARDENS, BUSSACO _To face page_ 106 - - THE PORTA DA SULLA, BUSSACO _To face page_ 108 - - “BUSSACO’S IRON RIDGE” _To face page_ 112 - - THE BATTLE MONUMENT, BUSSACO _To face page_ 116 - - ENTRANCE TO THE CLOISTER, BUSSACO _To face page_ 120 - - ON THE SUMMIT OF BUSSACO. THE CRUZ ALTA _To face page_ 122 - - A STREET IN COIMBRA _To face page_ 128 - - SANTA CLARA, COIMBRA _To face page_ 136 - - A COUNTRY RAILWAY STATION _To face page_ 142 - - A CORNER OF THE TOWN HALL AND THE MONASTERY, THOMAR _To face page_ 144 - - SOME BEAUTIES OF THOMAR _To face page_ 146 - - CHURCH OF S. JOÃO IN THE PRAÇA, THOMAR _To face page_ 156 - - THE BRIDGE AT THOMAR _To face page_ 158 - - IN THE MAIN STREET OF OUREM _To face page_ 160 - - THE CASTLE, LEIRIA _To face page_ 164 - - ON THE ALAMEDA, LEIRIA _To face page_ 166 - - THE ENCARNAÇÃO, LEIRIA _To face page_ 168 - - ON THE PRAÇA AT ALCOBAÇA _To face page_ 188 - - UNDER THE ACACIAS, ALCOBAÇA _To face page_ 192 - - THE OLD PALACE, CINTRA _To face page_ 204 - - ON THE QUAY, LISBON _To face page_ 234 - - LISBON, FROM THE NORTH _To face page_ 306 - - - FROM PHOTOGRAPHS - - MANUELINE ARCHITECTURE AT THE HOTEL, BUSSACO _To face page_ 94 - - ON THE VIA SACRA, BUSSACO _To face page_ 104 - - THE CHOIR AND CHAPTER HOUSE, THOMAR _To face page_ 148 - - THE CLOISTERS, BATALHA _To face page_ 180 - - THE UNFINISHED CHAPELS, BATALHA _To face page_ 182 - - MANUELINE WINDOWS IN THE OLD PALACE, CINTRA _To face page_ 224 - - THE SOUTH DOOR AT BELEM _To face page_ 238 - - THE “TEMPLE OF DIANA,” EVORA _To face page_ 300 - - - - - INTRODUCTION - - -Portugal had been familiar to me from my earliest youth, for my road to -and from Spain had often lain that way, and circumstances had made me -conversant with the language and history of the country; and yet this -book is not the outcome of any such previous knowledge, but mainly of -one short voyage in search of change and health. It happened in this -way. As oft befalls men who in this striving world have to wring their -brains for drachmas, the completion of a particularly arduous book had -left me temporarily a nervous wreck, sleepless and despairing. The first -and most obvious need dictated to me by those who settle such matters, -was to forget for a time that pens, ink, and paper existed, and to seek -relaxation in a clime where printers cease from troubling and reviewers -are at rest. But where? Spain certainly would offer me no such a haven: -France was too near home, Germany I disliked, Switzerland was trite and -overrun, the novelty of Italy I had long before exhausted, and Greece -was too far away. A sea voyage was a desideratum, but it must not be too -long, and as the autumn was already verging towards winter the south -alone was available. - -Then in the midst of my perplexity the happy thought suggested itself -that, often as I had passed through Portugal, I had never seen the -country. Why not try Portugal? I had some prejudices to overcome, -prejudices, indeed, which up to that time had prevented me from seeking -a deeper knowledge of the land and people than could be gained by an -incurious glance on the way through. For I had been brought up in the -stiff Castilian tradition that Portugal was altogether an inferior -country, and the Portuguese uncouth boors who in their separation from -their Spanish kinsmen had left to the latter all the virtues whilst they -themselves had retained all the vices of the race. But, withal, I chose -Portugal, and have made this book my apologia as a self-prescribed -penance for my former injustice towards the most beautiful country and -the most unspoilt and courteous peasantry in Southern Europe. Portugal -and the Portuguese, indeed, have fairly conquered me, and the voyage, of -which some of the incidents are here set forth, was for me a continual -and unadulterated delight from beginning to end, bringing to me -refreshment and renewed vigour of soul, mind, and body, opening to my -eyes, though they had seen much of the world, prospects of beauty -unsurpassed in my experience, and revealing objects of antiquarian and -artistic interest unsuspected by most of those to whom the attractions -of the regular round of European travel have grown flat and familiar. - -It is impossible, of course, to pass on to others the full measure of -enjoyment felt by an appreciative traveller in a happy trip through an -unhackneyed pleasure-ground; but it has occurred to me that some record -of my impressions on the way may lead other Englishmen to seek for -themselves a repetition of the pleasure and benefit which I experienced -in the course of a short holiday trip through Portugal from north to -south. I am not pretending to write a guidebook: those that exist are -doubtless sufficient for all purposes, although I have intentionally -refrained from consulting any of them, in order that my impressions -might not be biassed, even unconsciously, by the opinions of others; nor -do I claim to speak of Portugal with the fulness of knowledge exhibited -by Mr. Oswald Crawford in his books on the country where he resided so -long. My object is rather to treat the subject from the point of view of -the intelligent visitor in search of sunshine, health, or relaxation; to -suggest from my own experience routes of travel and points of attraction -likely to appeal to such a reader as I have in my mind, and to warn him -frankly of the inevitable small inconveniences which he must be prepared -to tolerate cheerfully if he would enjoy to the full a holiday spent in -a country not as yet overrun by tourists who insist upon carrying -England with them wherever they go. If he will consent to “play the -game,” and not expect the impossible in such a country, I can promise my -traveller a voyage full of colour, interest, and novelty in this “garden -by the side of the sea,” where pines and palms grow side by side, and -the stern north and softer south blend their gifts in lavish luxuriance -beneath the happy conjunction of almost perpetual sunshine and moist -Atlantic breezes. - - MARTIN HUME. - - - - - THROUGH PORTUGAL - - - - - I - OPORTO - - -I stood in the centre of a daring bridge, spanning with one bold arch of -nigh six hundred feet a winding rocky gorge. Far, far below me ran a -chocolate-coloured river crowded with quaint craft, some with -high-raised sheltered poops and crescent-peaked prows, some low and long -astern with bows like gondolas and bright red lateen sails, upon which -the fierce sun blazed sanguinely. On the right side thickly, and on the -left more sparsely, climbing up the stony sides of the gorge, were piled -hundreds of houses, pink, pale-blue, buff, and white, all with glowing -red-tiled roofs, and each set amidst a riot of verdure which trailed and -waved upon every nook and angle uncovered by buildings. Trellised vines -clustered and flowers flaunted in tiny back-yards and square-enclosed -courts by the score, all on different levels, but all open to the -down-gazing eyes of the spectator on the bridge high above them. Here -and there a tall palm waved its plumes as in unquiet slumber, but -everywhere else was the impression of ardent, throbbing, exuberant life, -such as all organic creation feels under the spur of stinging sunshine -and the salt twang of the sea-breeze. The river gorge winds and turns so -tortuously that the view forward and backward is not extensive, but as -far as the eye reaches on each side of the umber stream the hills of -houses and far-spread terraced vineyards beyond rise precipitously, with -just a quayside at foot on the banks of the stream, thronged now with -folk who swarm, gather, and separate like gaudy ants, and apparently no -bigger, as seen from the coign of vantage on the bridge. To my left, as -I stand looking towards the west, there crowns the summit of the ridge -close by a vast white monastery against a green background; a monastery -now, alas! like all others in this Catholic land, profanated and turned -to purposes of war instead of peace, but, withal, there still rears its -modest rood aloft upon the crest one poor little round chapel where the -sainted image of Pilar of the Ridge stolidly receives the devotion of -the faithful. To the right, the height is crowned by a vast square -episcopal palace, and near it, over all, is the glittering golden cross -that shines upon the city from the summit of the square cathedral -towers. This is Oporto, The Port _par excellence_, which gives its name -to Portugal, seen from the double-decked iron bridge of Dom Luis over -the Douro. - -For days I had been striving in vain to get into touch with the psychic -principle of this strange city. I had mixed with the motley multitudes -that lounge and labour upon the quays, I had lingered in the gilded -churches where worshippers were ominously few, and stood for hours -observant in chaffering marketplaces and amidst the crowds of sauntering -citizens in the inevitable Praça de Dom Pedro; but till the revelatory -moment came to me in one enlightening flash upon the Bridge of Dom Luis, -I had always been alone in a foreign throng whose composite inner soul I -could not read. But now all was changed. Thenceforward I saw Oporto -whole and not in disintegrated fragments as before; for I had learnt the -secret of putting the pieces of the puzzle together and the heart of the -city was bared to me, a stranger. - -Every large, enduring community comes to attain a distinct character of -its own, which the outlander can only know by long association or -sympathetic insight, sometimes not at all. I had looked for a people -exuberant and gay in outward seeming with an underlying spirit of bitter -mockery, such as I had known in so many other Iberian cities; but -somehow these Oporto people were quite different. Grave and quiet, with -introspective eyes, even the children seemed to take their play soberly. -Look at the slim slip of a boy who gravely walks at the head of this -team of enormous fawn-coloured oxen, toilsomely dragging their ponderous -load up a hill so steep as almost to need a ladder to ascend. The urchin -cannot be more than ten or eleven, and in any other country would -alternately skip and idle, or at least allow his attention to wander -with every fresh object that struck his fancy. Here he stalks along for -hours at a time, without lingering or straying, always calm and patient, -whilst his soiled and hardened bare feet plod on, heedless both of the -white mire and sharp stones of the way. Over his shoulder he carries a -long lithe wand, double as tall as himself, with which he directs the -course of the great wide-horned bullocks. A mere turn of the wand is -sufficient to indicate the way, and with low bowed heads beneath the -heavy yoke the dull beasts plod slowly onward as long-suffering as their -guide. The whole equipage might belong to the times when the world -itself was young, so idyllic is it in form. The wain is narrow and -high-set upon two wheels, like an ancient chariot, with boards or high -rods to form its sides; the wheels are built up ponderously of solid -wood, the two thick spokes that connect the heavy tire with the hub -filling up most of the circle, and the axle, a heavy log of wood, itself -turns with the wheels. In this part of Portugal there stands erect upon -the neck of the team an adornment which is usually the pride of the -owner’s heart, and the one superfluous article of luxury he possesses. -It is a thick board of hardwood, about eighteen inches high and some -five feet broad, intricately and beautifully carved in fretted open-work -arabesques. The patterns are traditional, handed down from time -immemorial, and usually consist of involved geometrical and curvilinear -designs; sometimes, but not often, with a cross introduced in the -centre, and with a row of little bristle brushes as an extra adornment -along the top. A glance at this elaborate piece of ox furniture will -show that its decoration is of Moorish origin, and the _canga_ itself -may be the survival of the high ox yoke still seen in some oriental -countries. To complete the quaint picture of the universal ox team, for -this part of Portugal is not a country of horses or mules, the dress of -the small teamster must be described. The boy’s breeches usually do not -reach below the knee, the rest of the legs and feet being bare; a jacket -of brown homespun is slung upon one shoulder, except at night or during -the cold winter days of December and January, when it is worn, and the -shirt, open at the neck and breast, leaves much of the upper part of the -body exposed. The headgear is peculiar. It is nearly always a knitted -stocking bag cap, something like an old-fashioned nightcap, with a -tassel at the end of the bag which hangs down the back or upon the -shoulder of the wearer, its colour being sometimes green and red, but -more frequently black. - -The boy, like his similarly garbed elders, takes life very seriously, -but neither he nor they seem sad or depressed. There is here none of the -squalid misery or whining mendicancy that are so distressing to -strangers in Spain and Southern Italy, for the Portuguese of the north -is a sturdy, self-respecting peasant, who works hard and lives frugally -upon his three testoons (1_s._ 3_d._) per day; and so long as he can -earn his dried stockfish, his beans, bread, and grapes, with a little -red wine to drink, he scorns to beg for the indulgence of his idleness. - -These are the people, and their social betters of the same race, whom a -sudden flash of sympathy brought closer to me, as in the pellucid golden -sunlight all Oporto was spread before and beneath me, palpitating with -life. The absence of vociferation and vehemence in the people did not -mean sulkiness or stupidity, but was the result of the intense -earnestness with which their daily life was faced; their unregarding -aloofness towards strangers was not rudeness, but the highest courtesy -which bade them avoid obtrusive curiosity; and soon I learnt to know -that their cold exterior barely concealed a disinterested desire to -extend in fullest measure aid and sympathy to those who needed them. In -all my wanderings I have never met, except perhaps in Norway, a -peasantry so full of willingness to show courtesy to strangers without -thought of gain to themselves as these people of north Portugal, almost -pure Celts as they are, with the Celtic innate kindliness of heart and -ready sympathy, though, of course, with the Celtic shortcomings of -jealousy, inconstancy, and distrust. - -I know few more characteristic thoroughfares than the road by the -river-side at Oporto, called the Ribeira, which is the centre of -maritime activity of the port. The path runs beneath what was the -ancient river-wall, now pierced or burrowed out to form caverns of -shops, where wine and food, cordage and clothing are sold to sailor men. -Many of the open doors have vine trellises before them, in the shade of -which quaintly garbed groups forgather, and a constant tide of men and -women flows along the path, eddying into and out of the cavernous -recesses in the ancient wall. Colour, flaring and fierce in the sun, -flaunts everywhere; for the multi-tinted rags of the south festoon and -flutter from every door and window and deck the persons of all the -womankind. Swinging along, with peculiar and ungainly gait, go the women -with prodigious burdens upon their heads. Everything, from babies to -bales of merchandise, is borne upon the female head in Portugal; and -these women of the north wear a peculiar headgear adapted to this -custom. It is a round, soft, pork-pie hat of black cloth or velveteen, -fitting well upon the top of the head, the upper rim being adorned with -a sort of standing silk fringe. Such a hat, especially when surmounted -by a knot, suffers no damage from a burden placed upon it; but the -constant carrying of tremendous weights upon the head of females, even -of little girls, quite spoils the figures of the women, thrusting the -hips and pelvis forward inordinately, and rendering the movements in -walking most ungraceful. The women and girls almost invariably go -barefooted, whilst the men, except the fishermen, usually are shod; and -the females of a family share to the full the work and hardships which -are the common lot. - -[Illustration: EVENING OPPOSITE OPORTO.] - -Along the shore of the busy Ribeira lie ships unloading, small craft -they usually are, for the bar of the Douro is a terrible one, and the -big ships now enter the harbour of Leixões, a league away. In a constant -stream the men and women pass across the planks from ship to shore, -carrying the cargo upon their heads or shoulders in peculiar boat-shaped -baskets, which are the inseparable companion of the Oporto workers. Here -is a smart schooner hailing from the Cornish port of Fowey, from which -stockfish from Newfoundland is being landed on the heads of women, flat -salt slabs as hard and dry as wood, but good nutritious food for all -that; and farther along, with their prows to the shore, rest a dozen -un-ladened wine and fruit boats from up the Douro, and flat-bottomed -passenger skiffs into which women and men with baskets and bundles, -representing their week’s supplies purchased in Oporto, are crowding to -be carried back to their homes in the rich vineyard villages miles up -the river. One by one the quaint craft hoist their crimson sails, and -struggle out from the tangle of the bank, until the breeze catches them, -and in a shimmer of red gold from the setting sun they hustle through -the brown tide until a projecting corner hides them from view. It is a -scene never to be forgotten. - -The centre of the Ribeira is the Praça called after it, where a sloping -square facing the water opens out. The scene is picturesque in the -extreme. The space is thronged by men, either sleeping in their baskets -or carrying them filled with fish or merchandise upon their heads: a -motley, water-side crowd, men of all nations, pass to and fro, or gossip -under the vine trellis before the wine shop overlooking the square, and -as the observer casts his eyes upwards he sees the gaily coloured houses -piled apparently on the top of one another, until at the top of all, as -if overhead, is the glaring white palace of the bishop, and the -glittering cathedral cross, standing out hard and clear against a sky of -fathomless indigo. - -This busy river-side way of the Ribeira is, so to speak, a street of two -storeys. Below is the walk I have described, with the cavernous shops in -the face of the old river-wall, and on the top of the wall is another -path reached by occasional flights of steps, and also bordered by the -squalid medley of dark shops in which strange savoury-odoured victuals -are washed down by strong red wine, and quiet brown men and women, and -grave-eyed swarthy babies are inextricably mixed up with brown -merchandise in the gloom beyond the glaring sunlight. Unexpected steep -alleys, arched and mysterious, lead to the thoroughfares higher up the -precipitous slope, and the next storey, a parallel narrow street, the -Rua do Robelleiro, narrow, dark, and ancient, is almost as picturesque -as the Ribeira itself. - -A slab let into the river-wall by the beach commemorates one of the most -terrible days in Oporto’s history. The English army had been chased to -its ships at Corunna, and the Spanish levies scattered: the Peninsula -seemed to be at the mercy of the French legions, which, under Napoleon’s -greatest marshals, held the richest provinces of Spain in the name of -King Joseph Bonaparte. But 9000 English troops remained in Lisbon, and -with Portugal in the hands of his enemies Napoleon knew that he would -never be master of Spain. So the word went forth that Soult was to march -down with a great army from Galicia, and sweep the English out of -Portugal. It seemed easy, and authorities even in England believed that -Portugal was untenable and should be evacuated. All but one man, Arthur -Wellesley, whose victory at Vimeiro in the previous year had been wasted -by the inept old women who were his superior officers. With 20,000 men, -said Wellesley, he would hold Portugal against 100,000 French, the -marshals notwithstanding; and the great Englishman had his way. -Beresford was sent out to reorganise the scattered Portuguese fighting -men, and Arthur Wellesley sailed from England with his little army to -face Soult in Portugal. Before he arrived in Lisbon the French had swept -down from Galicia, and on the 27th March 1809, Soult summoned Oporto to -surrender. The warlike Bishop of Oporto was heading the hastily -organised defence; his forces were undisciplined and badly armed, but -their hearts were stout, and behind their poor earthworks the citizens -of Oporto and their bishop bade defiance to Soult and his invading army. - -On the 29th March at dawn the devoted city was stormed by Napoleon’s -veterans, who swept all before them. There was no quarter, no mercy, and -the steep streets of the city were turned to blood-smeared shambles. -Down to the river bank flocked the affrighted people, falling as they -ran under the rain of bullets that pursued them. Over the river from the -Ribeira was a bridge of boats, and upon this the crowd of panic-stricken -fugitives poured. The weight sank it, and thousands were drowned in the -Douro, or struggled ashore only to be despatched by the French, whilst -many of those who had been in arms deliberately drowned themselves -rather than surrender. Eighteen thousand Portuguese perished on that -awful day, without counting the drowned who were never recovered; whilst -of the whole Portuguese host only two hundred live prisoners were taken. - -Six weeks afterwards the tables were turned; six weeks spent by Soult in -intrigues for his own advancement, and by his officers in discontented -idleness. On the 12th May Wellesley and his army from Lisbon surprised -him at Oporto in broad daylight, crossing the river a few miles above -the city by a brilliant piece of daring, and Soult ignominiously fled -north, leaving impedimenta and baggage behind him, harassed and -scattered by the Portuguese peasants in arms, until a mere remnant of -his force finally found refuge in Spain. The very dinner to which he was -about to sit down at Oporto when he was surprised regaled Sir Arthur -Wellesley instead, and the victor took up his residence in that big -white monastery on the Serra de Pilar, which from the height on the left -of the bridge affords a panorama of unequalled beauty of the city -opposite on its amphitheatre of hills, shining white and stately against -the dark background of the sky. - -However you go from the lower level by the river-side to the main -streets of the city the climb is a severe one, for in this town of -precipitous hills the gradients are startling, even for the electric -trams which of late years have completely taken possession of the -streets. But we will leave the electric trams on this peregrination, and -face the ascent on foot from the lower level of the bridge on the -Ribeira itself to the upper town. First some toilsome flights of steps -which have taken the place of the lower end of a precipitous alley, cut -away to make the approach to the bridge, lead you up about two hundred -feet to an ancient winding lane which itself is almost a flight of -steps. Quaint foreign interiors are disclosed through the open doors of -the dark humble abodes that line the way, and poor little home -industries are carried on _coram populo_; half-way up the ladder-like -ascent there is a ruined church, and by-and-by on the right we skirt the -great battlemented wall of the vast disestablished monastery of Santa -Clara. At a turn in the wall the corner of the grim old edifice itself -appears, fortress-like and looming here as built for defence in the -fierce times of long ago. Through the doubly-grated windows, a few feet -above our heads, brown paws are thrust out, and a hoarse murmur from -within takes form, by-and-by, as a demand for alms in the name of God. A -glance inside makes one start back in horror, almost in disgust, though -the sorry spectacle unfortunately soon becomes familiar to those who -sojourn in any large Portuguese town. Huddled in squalor and filth -together are half-naked, savage-looking criminals, old men, sturdy -vagabonds, and youths almost children, staring out from the gloom of the -prison-house through the unglazed barred windows, with whining prayer -for charity, ribald jest, or explosive curses. These gaol-birds, herded -publicly in their unutterable degradation behind the gratings, form the -blackest spot visible in Portuguese life. Even Spain for the most part -has brought her prisons into some semblance of civilised order, but -Portugal in this one respect lags inexplicably behind. - -[Illustration: FROM THE RIBEIRA, OPORTO.] - -A few yards distant, through a little maze of mediæval streets, is the -cathedral, the Sé, with a quiet little courtyard before it, from the -parapet of which the red roofs and abundant verdure of the city spread -downward in waves to the water-side. These north Portuguese cathedrals -are marvellously alike; sharing the early beauties and later barbarities -of their successive generations of masters. This of Oporto is a good -specimen. The sturdy warrior kings who wrested Portugal, bit by bit, -from Castilian and from Moor, in the twelfth and thirteenth centuries, -were true crusaders. Where they set their foot sprang up the Christian -church, to testify for ever their gratitude for victory vouchsafed to -the Cross that symbolised their faith. Solid and staidly devotional were -the edifices they raised; and wherever their work remains unconcealed by -the scrolly banalities of a later age, it bears still the impress of -simple faith and unostentatious grandeur. Here on the hill crest at -Oporto stand two massive low towers, one still crowned by the pointed -Morisco machicolations of the twelfth century, whilst its fellow, partly -rebuilt, is spoilt by the addition of a trivial eighteenth-century -parapet, with urns as an adornment. Still, the massive solidity of the -towers remains, which is something to be thankful for when we regard the -hideous top-heavy early eighteenth-century façade that connects them. -The south door, of majestic romanesque, is similarly marred. Around it -has been built a barbarous porch, overloaded with meaningless ornament, -which not only obscures the serious work of the early builder, but half -covers and cuts in two a lovely old round window above the door which -lights the transept inside. But, however much these curly horrors of the -late seventeenth and early eighteenth centuries may distract the eye, -they do not destroy what is still visible of the old edifice. The double -flight of low steps, for instance, which leads to this south door has -for handrails two ancient stone serpents, so simple in design, yet so -effective and perfectly adapted for their purpose, as to prove the -unaffected but consummate artistry of the designer, whose taste must -have been formed whilst yet the Byzantine traditions were strong in the -stern romanesque. - -One is struck at once in entering any of these cathedrals, and more -particularly that of Oporto and its close congener Braga, with the vast -difference between them and the pompous, splendid Spanish cathedrals. In -the latter the span of the nave is usually tremendous, the church is -plunged in tinted gloom, and the whole of the centre of the nave is -blocked by an immense choir. Here in North Portugal the note struck in -the cathedrals is not mystery richly dight, as in Spain, but sincere -austerity, and a simple faith so essential in the edifice that the grave -granite columns and arches appear as unaffected by the heaps, and piles, -and masses of curly carved gilt wood around them as a monolith might be -by the lizards that bask and slither round its base. Here in Oporto, for -instance, the low, massive, granite pillars that line the narrow nave, -and support the round romanesque arches, seem sullenly to bid defiance -to time and decay; such is their prodigious solidity. And yet even these -a later age has surmounted, if not adorned, with curly Corinthian -capitals of carved gilt wood! Every altar here, and indeed nearly all -over Portugal, is an overloaded mass of this particular barbaric style -of decoration dear to the Portuguese since the seventeenth century. The -skill in its production is undeniably great, especially in the chapel of -St. Vincent in Oporto Cathedral; and in moderation the employment of -richly painted, carved, and gilded wood generally may be advantageous -where the light is low and the architectural style ornate. But here, -where the simple romanesque prevails and the churches are flooded with -light, it overwhelms one. In this low, old, plain Sé, either gilded wood -or high-relief designs in beaten gold or silver in endless intricacy -strike the eye unmercifully at every turn. On one of these ornate -altars, screened by a curtain which a fee will raise, stands the ancient -effigy, which those who still hold the simple faith of their fathers -venerate so devoutly—Our Lady of Alem. Ages ago, so the story runs, when -this old fane was yet a-building in the twelfth century, some Douro -fishermen found their nets heavy with an unusual burden, and raising -them, found this image, a miraculous gift vouchsafed them from the sea. -Since then the prayers of those who win their living on the deep have -been ceaselessly offered to the Lady of Alem for safety and good luck, -and simple offerings of gratitude for boons thus gained—for sickness -healed or safe return—hang thickly round the shrine. - -The beautiful little cloisters of the cathedral are of a later date than -the church—grave and simple Gothic of the late fourteenth century, with -three small pointed lancet arches in each span, and a plain round light -in the tympanum above. But even here the eighteenth century has done -some damage by building out highly ornamental buttresses between the -main spans. All around on the inner wall of the cloister is a decoration -which abounds in nearly every Portuguese church that has lived through -the seventeenth and eighteenth centuries—namely, large pictorial -representations in blue and white tiles, like those commonly connected -with the town of Delft. In the churches these tile pictures usually -represent scenes from Scripture history, with a large admixture of -heathen mythology or ordinary emblematic fancies, as here in Oporto, and -the effect is quaint and not unpleasing. One of the things indeed which -most strongly strike a stranger in Portugal, in the north especially, is -the almost universal employment of glazed tiles, _azulejos_, both inside -and outside buildings of all kinds, the majority of the better sort of -dwelling-houses being entirely covered outside by tile designs in -colours, sometimes very elaborate and beautiful. The custom exists to -some extent in Spain, but is not so common there as in Portugal. In each -case, however, the taste and original manufacture, like the name of -these tiles, are clearly Moorish, and in some of the older edifices, to -be mentioned later, the tiles themselves date from a period when Moors -or Mudejares produced them. - -In the sacristy of Oporto Cathedral they will show you a painting on -terra-cotta of the Virgin and Child, backed by St. Joseph and angels -bearing a cross, which is asserted to be a Raphael. The composition and -drawing are clearly the work of a disciple of his school, but the -colouring is dull and grey, such as the great one of Urbino would never -have produced. Not this so-called Raphael, but another picture of the -highest interest and beauty, is the principal artistic treasure of the -city. In the board-room of Oporto’s most cherished and beneficent -institution, the vast charitable organisation called the Misericordia, -there hangs a painting that has few, if any, equals in Portugal. It is -claimed for Jan Van Eyck, who is known to have been in Portugal for two -years at about the period (1520) represented by the work, though -personally I could see but slight traces of the peculiar quality of -either of the brothers Van Eyck. Certainly it is broader in style than -anything I have seen from the brush of the younger brother Jan, and may -well be the work of Hubert Van der Goes or Hans Memling. But, whoever -may be the painter, the picture is a magnificent one. Against a -background representing a typical Flemish landscape and walled town, -such as Memling loved to paint, there is a highly ornamented font filled -with a pool of blood replenished from the stream that issues from the -Saviour’s side, as He hangs upon the cross rising from the centre of the -pool. Upon the edge of the font, on each side of the cross, in attitudes -of prayer, stand two lovely life-size figures of the Virgin and St. -John, whilst in the foreground there kneel, in regal robes of crimson, -ermine, and gold brocade, the figures of the founder of the Misericordia -in 1499, King Manuel the Fortunate and his wife. Kneeling behind them in -decreasing size are members of their family, and on the farther side -beyond the font are groups of ecclesiastics and laymen, all evidently -life-like portraits of prominent courtiers, or benefactors of the -institution. The colouring of the picture is glowing and gorgeous in the -extreme, and the loving care expended upon the details is such as only -the early Flemings had patience to exercise, accompanied by a breadth -and boldness unusual in most of them. Fons Vitæ, as the painting is -called, from an inscription on the edge of the font, is emblematical of -the foundation of the home of mercy it adorns. Nor is it the only art -treasure the Misericordia possesses, apart from the hundreds of awful -daubs representing dead and gone benefactors that crowd every inch of -wall-space. There is to be seen a beautiful Gothic gold chalice of -fifteenth-century Portuguese work, some fifteen inches high, a specimen -of the famous handicraft of the city, of great interest, the work being -of the most intricate and elaborate description, and the condition of -the jewel perfect. - -Away from the river-side and the immediate surroundings of the -cathedral, Oporto has little to show in the form of architectural -quaintness. A busy, bustling place of modern-looking houses for the most -part, the streets dominated by the indispensable electric tramways, -casting scorn upon the lumbering ox wains that alone compete with them. -Yet the city has some striking points that should not be missed. The -view is very fine, for instance, from the top of the main modern -shopping thoroughfare, the Rua de S. Antonio, which swoops down suddenly -like a giant switchback to the Praça de Dom Pedro, the centre of the -city, and then as the Rua dos Clerigos soars aloft again as suddenly to -another eminence crowned by the extraordinary tower of the Church of the -Clerigos, one of the loftiest spires in Portugal. The effect, looking up -on either side from the Praça de Dom Pedro, is as curious as any -streetscape of its kind in Europe. The Praça de Dom Pedro itself, -crowded almost day and night with people, busy and idle, is a typical -Portuguese “place,” paved, as most of them are, by the strange wave -pattern in black and white stone mosaic that gives to the Praça de Dom -Pedro in Lisbon (the Rocio) the English name of “rolling motion square.” - -From the Praça de Dom Pedro in Oporto, leading downward towards the -river-side, is the famous street of the old city called Rua das Flores, -where now, as for centuries past, the gold and silver filigree jewelry -for which Oporto is famous is made and sold in a score of dark -old-fashioned little shops; and still farther down is the Praça do -Comercio, with a striking statue amidst the flower-beds of Portugal’s -national hero, Prince Henry the Navigator. In this square stands, too, -the principal architectural boast of modern Oporto, the Exchange, of -which the interior is really grandiose in the florid style so beloved by -the Portuguese. The elaborate high-relief carvings prevalent in Portugal -are usually executed in soft marble-like limestone, which hardens with -exposure to the air; but here in the Bolsa of Oporto the intricate -festoons and ingenious caprices that stand out everywhere in relief on -walls, pillars, and staircases are carved out of the solid grey granite -of which the edifice is built, as if out of defiance the most difficult -material had been sought. Some of the fine apartments, especially the -Tribunal of commerce, are beautifully decorated in frescoes by Salgado, -in style much resembling those of Lord Leighton; and the great ballroom -is a gorgeous hall in the brilliant gold and coloured arabesques of the -Alhambra. - -The Exchange is built upon the site of a disestablished Franciscan -monastery, and cowering under the shadow of its modern magnificence -there still stands the convent Church of St. Francis. The seventeenth -century has left little of the original fifteenth-century church -standing, and the interior is a mass of extravagantly rococo carved and -gilt wood and other monstrosities; but in an ancient south transept -chapel there is an altar-piece of interest in the style of Mantegna, -though the sacristan ascribes it to some impossible artist of another -school and century. Nothing, indeed, can equal the ignorance of, and -apparent indifference to, antique and artistic objects in Portugal by -the persons in charge of them. Even in national museums and historic -buildings belonging to the Government, the guardians appear to have been -chosen without the slightest regard to their fitness for understanding -or describing the objects in their care, and the demeanour of the -Portuguese people generally towards such objects is such as to force the -conviction that, however proud they may be that their country has -produced gems of art admired by strangers, they themselves have but a -vague appreciation of their beauties or their merit. - -The precipitous street leading up from the Praça de Dom Pedro to the -conspicuous Church of the Clerigos is gay with a line of the drapers’ -shops, with the gaudy wares aflaunt, which appeal specially to the -country folk who flock in with their produce to the picturesque market -of the Anjo behind the church. Red and yellow, blue and green, strive -for mastery from street kerb to parapet, for the stock is as much -outside the shops as in; and under the blazing sun, with the eternally -deep azure sky overhead, the feast of colour in the clear air is so -lavish as to dazzle eyes accustomed to the low tones and soft outlines -of England. But relief is near. Through the chaffering market, with its -piles of luscious fruit and all the bounteous gifts of earth and sea -spread temptingly before brightly clad country wenches with flashing -black eyes, the wayfarer may pass but need not tarry; nor is it worth -his while to penetrate into the over-florid eighteenth-century churches -of the Clerigos and the Carmo, which lie in his way—for just beyond them -is a beautiful sub-tropical garden where shady groves of palms invite to -repose, and towering planes temper the glare with a soft haze of -sea-green. Seated in a quiet nook, with leisure now to watch the -passers-by closely, one is struck by the prosperous busy look of the -working people. There is no undue noise, and a stranger is allowed to go -his way without unwelcome attention; above all, marvellous to relate, -beggars are rare, whilst the persistent, offensive, mendicancy, -amounting often to sheer blackmail, which is a perfect plague in Spain, -is here quite unknown. - -[Illustration: A SHOP IN OLD OPORTO.] - -The manners of these people of North Portugal, indeed, are -irreproachable. So courteous are they that it seems almost rude of the -stranger to note too closely the quaint garb of the working people -around him. The peasant women especially keep their ancient costume -unchanged. Barefoot they go, old and young, with their heavy burdens -piled in their boat-shaped baskets upon the black, pork-pie hats they -wear. Their skirts, usually black but often with a broad horizontal -stripe of colour round the bottom, are very short, and gathered with -great fulness at the waist and over the hips. Upon the shoulders there -is almost invariably a brilliantly coloured handkerchief, and sometimes -another upon the head beneath the hat; and long, pendant, gold earrings -shine against their coarse jet-black hair. It is evident that for the -most part they work quite as hard as the men, but they have no -appearance of privation or ill-treatment, except that their habit of -carrying heavy weights upon their heads has the effect of ruining their -figures in the manner already described. There are no indications -anywhere of excessive drinking, and even smoking is not conspicuous -amongst the working men and boys in the streets; they seem, indeed, too -seriously busy for that, except on some feast day, when, with their best -clothes on, they are gay enough, though not vociferous even then, as -most southern peoples are. - -There is an ancient little church in the northern suburb of Oporto, -which will be of some interest to students of architecture. It is little -more than a fragment now, but represents the earliest orthodox Catholic -foundation in the city, and indeed in this part of the Peninsula. In the -clashing of creeds in the early centuries of Christianity, Visigothic -Spain had been officially Arian, whilst orthodox trinitarianism was the -creed of the great churchmen, and the majority of the Romanised people. -In 559 Mir, King of the Suevians, who ruled in the north-west corner of -the Peninsula, was distracted by the imminent danger of his son, who was -ill apparently to death. He was an Arian, but the priests of the -orthodox Church assured him that safety to his son might be gained by -the aid of certain relics of St. Martin of Tours, and Mir swore that if -the relics worked the miracle he and all his people would join the -Catholic communion, and he would build a church to St. Martin within a -year in his capital city. The prince recovered, and Mir was as good as -his word. To the dismay of the Gothic monarchs of Spain, Suevia joined -the orthodox fold, and in hot haste this Church of St. Martin was built; -“Cedofeita,” “soon done,” being its name to this day. The upper part of -the little cruciform church has been restored and the inner walls have -been lined with the universal blue and white picture tiles; but the -pillars and arches are pure romanesque, with capricious carvings on the -capitals, and the charming little cloister is entered by a romanesque -doorway of great beauty. The capitals, too, of the north doorway of the -church are very curious, though apparently later than the cloister door, -one of the carvings representing a man in a long gown being devoured by -an animal’s head, doubtless an allegory of which the significance is -lost to us. - -Another church of some interest is that of Mattosinhos, a large and -prosperous village adjoining the harbour of Leixões, where those who -come by sea to Oporto land. The way thither from the city by the -electric tramway lies along the river-side, and past the charming -tropical-looking public gardens at the Foz de Douro, where in the summer -heat the citizens of Oporto idle, flirt, and disport themselves in the -surf that breaks upon the sandy beach. The Church of Mattosinhos is a -great place of pilgrimage, for it possesses amongst other attractions a -miraculous image of Christ, which is venerated throughout Portugal, and -the shrine is a famous one. The church lies on a gentle eminence, and is -approached by a beautiful, wide, mosaic pavement, bordered by avenues of -planes and cork trees, under the shadow of which are six chapels -containing life-sized groups representing scenes in the passion of Our -Lord. The soft warm air from the sea comes heavy-laden with the scent of -flowers, and on one side of the church a grove of orange trees shelters -a merry school of boys, who do not even pause in their games to glance -at the curious stranger peering about amongst them. The outside of the -church, somewhat squat and solid eighteenth-century work, presents a -fair specimen of a style of which we shall see much later; a style not -at all ineffective, although its description may not sound attractive. -Its peculiarity consists in the admixture of brownish-grey granite, of -which all the architectural lines and salient points consist, with -panels or spaces of snow-white plaster between. In this pure air, under -a brilliant sun, the subdued colour of the granite softens the outlines, -whilst the white spaces prevent an appearance of gloom or heaviness. -Inside, the Church of Mattosinhos is grave and simple in its -architectural features, but, as usual, the altars, and especially the -chancel, are a riotous mass of gilt wood carving, without repose or -restraint. - -Down by the shore the great Atlantic rollers are thundering upon the -beach, as if hungering to devour the crescent-shaped sardine boats drawn -higher up for safety; and a long mail steamer, in the little harbour of -Leixões, has its blue peter flying and its funnel smoking ready to sail -for England. It is autumn there, no doubt, for the calendar tells us so -and cannot lie; but here it is glorious summer still, for the palms and -planes wave softly green in the languorous air, and the flowers, in -great white and purple masses, hang over every wall and wrestle with the -blue-black grapes that deck the trellises before the cottage doors. -Everywhere is vivid colour and sharp outline in an atmosphere of -marvellous clarity, and as we are carried rapidly through the balmy, -voluptuous breeze to the city, we feel that life under such conditions -is indeed worth living. - - - - - II - BRAGA AND BOM JESUS - - -The famous port-wine is grown upon a well-defined region nearly sixty -miles up the river from Oporto, and, interesting as the manufacture is, -the arid and inhospitable-looking land of terraced hillsides, where the -glorious grape grows upon the loose, stony soil, offers little -attraction to the seeker after the picturesque. To the north of Oporto, -and indeed in most of the province of Minho, the wine produced, though -varying in excellence, is generally of stout claret character, not -unlike the Rioja wine grown in the north of Spain. But North Portugal, -though cultivated like a garden wherever possible by a peasantry -probably unequalled in Europe for self-respecting independence and -laboriousness, thanks largely to causes that have made them practically -owners as well as tillers of the soil, does not strike a cursory -observer as being naturally fertile. For miles together, and as far as -the eye reaches, pine-clad hillsides stretch: beautiful straight pines, -rising in huge forests or isolated clumps, the light-green feathery -foliage shining against the clear indigo background of the sky, high -above the sandy soil carpeted with a thick soft cushion of pine-needles. -But closer view shows that down in the sheltered valleys between the -hills and on the lower slopes there nestle hundreds of little vineyards -and fields of maize and rye, the staple breadstuffs of the people. - -The peasantry live well in their way, and are not content with inferior -food. Not for them is the poor makeshift of white bread and the fat cold -bacon of the English farm hand. The bread of rye with an admixture of -maize flour, the _broa_ or _brona_, as it is called in north-western -Spain, is dark in colour and coarse in texture; but it is a fine -sustaining food, upon which, in Galicia, I have often made a good meal. -The ever-present dried codfish, _bacalhau_, cooked with garlic and oil, -and sometimes with rice, flavoured with saffron, is also not by any -means a food to be contemned, unpalatable as it is to those who taste it -for the first time. But this, although forming the staple fare of the -Minho peasant and small farmer, does not exhaust his _menu_. There is -for high days and holidays the savoury _estofado_ of stewed meat and -vegetables, of which the Portuguese peasant housewife is pardonably -proud; there are olives, onions, and fruit _ad libitum_, and good, -sound, new wine, tart, but not unpleasant, at the price of the cheapest -small beer in England. - -But the foreign visitor who comes simply for a short pleasure trip on -the more or less beaten tracks will not be expected to regale himself -upon this peasant fare, good as it is in its way. Of mutton he will find -little or none, but veal, especially in the national stew, he will see -at most meals, and ox-tongue, with a rich sauce, will appear on the -table more frequently than is usual elsewhere. A thin, and, it must be -confessed, usually tough steak, to which the adopted English name of -beef (spelt _bife_) is given, will be placed before him pretty often, -and he will find both the thing and the word omelette—which is never -used in Spanish—universal in Portuguese dining-rooms. - -Through a glorious country of pine-clad uplands and sheltered vineyards -the railway runs from Oporto to the former great city of Braga, in Roman -times _Bracara Augusta_, and capital of the whole north-western part of -the Iberian Peninsula. Its position on a slight elevation in the midst -of a vast undulating plain or _cuenca_, surrounded by mountains, has -made of Braga the natural emporium of the province, and in each -succeeding racial dispensation a royal seat and capital; and it remains -to-day, though shorn of its splendour, the ecclesiastical capital of the -Spains, claiming precedence over imperial Toledo for its archbishopric -and primacy. It is a busy, prosperous place, humming with little -spinning and weaving factories, where woollen and cotton fabrics are -turned out in great quantities, and hold their own not only here in -Minho, but in the rest of Portugal and far Brazil and Portuguese Africa. - -At the railway station at Braga, in the outskirts of the city, a noisy, -assertive little steam-train of several carriages is waiting in the -street, and with much puffing and whistling, it carries the travellers -up the slope into the narrow thoroughfares of the town. It is Sunday, -and the streets are thronged with gaily-dressed people, the women, -heavily decked with the ancient gold jewellery, long earrings, heavy -neck chains, and crosses upon the white shirt that covers the bosom. -Across the shoulders of most of them there is a brilliantly coloured -silk handkerchief, whilst their full-pleated short skirts are usually of -some thick dark-coloured cloth, and upon their heads here in Braga they -often wear, like their sisters in Oporto, the peculiar round cloth -pork-pie hat, with the curling silk fringe on the top of the rim. The -men are less picturesque in their Sunday trim, for many of them wear -felt wide-brimmed hats instead of the workaday bag cap; but even they -have usually added a bit of colour to their sombre masculine garb in the -form of a bright scarf encircling their waists to do the duty of braces. - -Under the Porta Nova the fussy little train rushes, and up the narrow, -picturesque street, the top-heavy stone scutcheon upon the -eighteenth-century gate striking at the very entrance the dominant note -of the ancient city. Here and everywhere the archiepiscopal insignia, -the tasselled hat and mitre, and the Virgin and Child on the city arms, -tell that the place from the earliest Christian times has been an -ecclesiastical seignory. Churches, too, greet the eye at every turn; -most of them massive seventeenth and eighteenth century structures in -the peculiar style mentioned in the description of the Church of -Mattosinhos in the last chapter: brownish grey granite outlines and -salient points, with dazzling white plaster spaces between. Opposite one -such church, in a tiny praça leading off from the main square of the -city, the Largo da Lapa, I came across a picturesque scene worthy of the -brush of John Philip. In a corner of the little square of San Francisco -was an ancient recessed fountain in the wall, and around it, with water -jars high and graceful like Roman amphoræ, there fluttered a group of -women waiting their turn at the jet. Moving to and fro and clustering in -the deep shadow contrasting with the blinding sunlight, these -full-bosomed, black-haired women, with fine Roman heads and flashing -eyes, were so many points of glaring colour, forming a brilliant giant -kaleidoscope, whilst the chattering of many tongues, the jest and taunt -thrown over the shoulder to rival or to swain, the careless laughter, -seemed to blend and fill the languid air with a vague harmony to the -ear, such as the mixed discordant colours in their aggregation produced -to the eye. By the side of the gay fountain stood the contrast that -heightened its effect. A frowning monastery with heavily grated windows -high upon the wall, from which glowered evil faces and thrust thievish -hands. For here, again, on this happy holiday afternoon in Braga, the -gaol-birds held their levee. Beneath their bars stood their womenkind -and children, consoling or grieving; and little bags hung down at the -end of strings from the windows to receive the gifts it pleased their -friends to send up to the sinister rascals, whose hoarse ribaldry or -whining appeal broke in ever and anon upon the gay chatter of the -fountain. As if in irony, the church that faced the monastery prison -bore upon its front the name the “Temple of the Sacred Order of -Penitence.” Of contrition one saw little sign on the part of those who -from behind their bars looked for all their weary day upon the church -commemorating the unmerited self-reproach of the “Seraphic Father St. -Francis.” - -[Illustration: THE AFTER-GLOW AT BRAGA.] - -There is one thing throughout Portugal that may be unhesitatingly -condemned, and here in Braga the evil is as patent as elsewhere. The old -traditional and, in many cases, historical names of the praças and -streets have been changed wholesale and wantonly for those of passing -and second-rate celebrities, political and otherwise. In Braga the -ancient Largo da Lapa has been turned into Largo de Hintze Ribeiro, -after the leader of the Liberal party in the Cortes, and there is hardly -a town in Portugal in which the principal squares and thoroughfares do -not bear the name of Hintze Ribeiro, or of his rival politician, -Conselheiro João Franco. Serpa Pinto and Mouzinho de Albuquerque, two -fire-eating African explorers, who in the jingo colonial fever of a few -years ago, when the feeling against England ran high, were made heroes, -are commemorated in streets innumerable throughout Portugal, to the -exclusion of names which were often quaint and significant landmarks of -long ago. - -The palace of the Archbishops of Braga hardly corresponds in appearance -with the high claims of the primate, for the church in Portugal is sadly -shorn of its splendour, and part of the rambling palace is a ruin; but -the cathedral offers many points of interest. Enthusiastic local -antiquarians are confident that the first edifice was raised by Saint -James himself in the lifetime of the Holy Virgin. But, however that may -be, the present church certainly dates from the twelfth century; and -though, as usual, the seventeenth century did its best to spoil and -smother its primitive simplicity; yet, as in the case of Oporto -Cathedral, which that of Braga much resembles, the stern solidity of the -original work stands out clear from the frippery by which it is -overlaid. - -The narrow nave is divided from the aisles by massive low clustered -granite pillars supporting slightly pointed arches, above which spring -the simple groins that form the vaulted roof. At the west end the church -is darkened by the gilt wooden ceiling that supports the choir and the -great gilded organ with spread trumpet pipes that is the pride of the -cathedral. The choir itself, raised upon a loft and occupying the whole -west end of the church, is of surprising magnificence; carving and -gilding have run wild; cupids, cherubim, angels, musicians, and fabulous -monsters jostle each other exuberantly upon choir stalls, lecterns, and -panels: all the caprice, skill, and invention of sixteenth and -seventeenth century Portuguese art have been lavished upon the work. And -the effect is rich in the extreme, but utterly incongruous with the -sober early ogival of the church itself. Even in the nave the massive -granite pillars have been crowned by later vandals with florid capitals -of carved gilt wood. The walls, too, are much covered with pictorial -blue and white tiles, and the effect of this, though inartistic, is -quaint and not displeasing. From the tiny cloister of plain romanesque -there opens the chapel of St. Luke, where in two splendid sepulchres lie -the bodies of the Leonese princess, Teresa, and her Burgundian husband, -Count Henrique, to whom she brought the county of Portugal in the late -eleventh century. These are the progenitors of the Kings of Portugal, -the parents of Affonso Henriques, of whom we shall hear much later; and -to Donna Teresa is owing the re-foundation of the Cathedral of Braga. In -the side chapels, in the cloisters, and in the sumptuous chapel of St. -Gerald, the patron saint, there lie dead and mouldering archbishops not -a few; one of them, it is said, incorrupt after eight centuries, though -in consequence of the flesh having been varnished he has the appearance -of a mulatto, and shows to this day the honourable scar across his cheek -that the warrior archbishop gained whilst fighting valiantly by the side -of the Master of Avis at the ever-memorable battle of Aljubarrota, that -gave the regal crown of Portugal to the illegitimate scion of the House -of Burgundy. Another coffin there is, just inside the west door, that -has for most people a still more human interest. It is of gilt copper, -apparently French in design, bearing upon its lid an effigy of a pretty -boy of ten, the little Prince Affonso, whose bones lie within, and who -died at Braga in the year 1400. - -The exterior of the cathedral has, like the interior, been much spoilt -by later builders, the little square towers having been crowned by a -mean-looking balustrade and crockets; but the exterior of the -sixteenth-century Lady Chapel is a favourable specimen of the peculiar -florid Portuguese renaissance style called Manueline, of which I shall -have more to say later. Here at the Lady Chapel at Braga it is more -restrained and presents fewer daring departures from the Gothic canons -than elsewhere, though the surprising intricacy of the parapet and -pinnacles show that the new spirit was strongly moving when it was -built. That the artists who executed the work were Spaniards from Biscay -is probably the reason why in this instance the peculiar and more -questionable features of the style are less conspicuous than in the -productions of native Portuguese craftsmen of the same period. The other -churches of Braga have little show. They are mostly rococo -seventeenth-century structures, granite and plaster outside, and -nightmares of carved gilt wood inside; but almost under the shadow of -the overloaded rococo façade of Santa Cruz there is a lovely little -early ogival votive chapel standing by itself, and containing a -characteristically Portuguese group of the dead Christ, infinitely -touching and beautiful. - -And so through the quaint old streets the stranger finds his way, -passing by a house here and there whose balconies and windows are -covered with the intricate wooden jalousies that linger still as a -tradition of oriental civilisation. The whole place is bathed and -flooded with vivid sunlight, except where the lengthening shadows fall -almost purple in their depth; and wandering without special aim, past -the public garden called the Campo de Sant’ Anna, towards the outskirts -of the city, I found myself at the foot of a steep hill rising suddenly -on the left of the walk. Climbing it, I found a little plateau on the -top with a tiny quaint seventeenth-century hermitage chapel, the -Guadalupe I learned was its name, under a clump of shady planes and -chestnut trees. Around the plateau was a dwarf parapet upon which two -lovers were sitting, oblivious to all around save each other; but as I -reached the parapet, and my eyes took in the prospect spread before me, -a cry of wonderment at its marvellous beauty sprang involuntarily from -me, and aroused for a moment the attention of the youth and the girl, -who sat with their backs to the landscape, caring nothing for such -things. It was but a glance they gave me, and I could enjoy -thenceforward without interruption or notice the rapture I felt from the -scene, the first of many such peculiarly Portuguese prospects of rolling -valleys and soaring mountains to be gained from comparatively low -elevations; scenes such as in other countries can only be attained after -long and arduous climbs up high mountains. I soon found, it is true, -that this view from the Guadalupe in Braga was but a trifle in -comparison with many others to be encountered in the course of a few -weeks’ travel; but when it first burst unexpectedly upon me it filled me -with an ecstasy that no subsequent prospect, however fine, could -produce. - -Just below me was a tangle of vines, and then a mass of oaks, planes, -cork-trees, and acacias, with their fluttering light foliage, descending -in a gracious ocean of greenery of every shade across a broad valley -till they climbed half up the glowing red mountains miles away. White -houses gleamed amidst the trees, and upon every hill-top a hermitage or -shrine stood out with its shining cross above it. But that which -attracted the eye most was what looked like a giant white marble -staircase of immense width, leading right up the side of a wooded -mountain spur opposite, upon the summit of which, at the head of the -stupendous stair, set deep in the verdure of woods, stood a huge white -temple. Seen from the Guadalupe, the architectural approach up the -mountain side to the place of pilgrimage above looked almost too vast to -be made by man. Beyond, on the right, rose a majestic range of granite -peaks, bare of vegetation, and scattered to the summit with tremendous -boulders; and over all the setting sun threw a glow of golden light that -tipped the grey granite with crimson, orange, and purple, and deepened -the shadows of the climbing woods to umber and to black. The light fell, -and by-and-by only the crests of the red and grey mountains glowed, for -the woods across the vast plain lay in the black shadow of the peaks. -But still, white and gleaming, like a stupendous staircase of shining -silver, there shone, clear from the surrounding gloom, the great -pilgrimage of Bom Jesus do Monte. And so in the gathering twilight, -sated with the beauty of the inanimate world, I slowly wandered down -into the pulsing city again, leaving the lad and his lass still -whispering on the parapet, alone in their happy blindness. - -From the door of the hotel in the Campo Sant’ Anna the tyrannical little -street train that bullies Braga several times a day carries us to the -foot of the Bom Jesus on the spur of Mount Espinho. For nearly two miles -of continuous gentle ascent the road passes through a long stretching -suburb of humble houses; and then a quarter of a mile through a close -grove of shady trees brings us to the outer portico of the sanctuary, a -white gateway at the head of a flight of steps, backed apparently by a -dense luxuriant wood. Hard by the portico is the starting platform of an -elevator railway, by which pilgrims may, if they please, dodge the -rigours of the penance, and arrive at the summit without exertion. This -course, on my arrival, commended itself to me, and I left until the next -day a full exploration of the place. On the summit of the spur, by the -side and behind the great church, white outlined by brown granite as -usual, there lies a land of enchantment. Vegetation of surprising -luxuriance is everywhere, giant trees full of verdure nearly all the -year round, mosses, ferns, and flowers in every crevice. Gushing -fountains and cascades, rustic bridges, and sweet winding paths through -the woods, everything that can conduce to tranquil repose and comfort is -here, with air so pure and exhilarating at this great elevation as to -raise the most depressed to vivacity. On a picturesque little clearing -on the summit there are two or three hotels, the principal of which, the -Grand Hotel, a long one-storey wooden building overhung by great trees, -I can vouch for as excellent. - -The sanctuary is naturally a great resort amongst the people of Braga in -the hot summers on the plain, and I cannot conceive a more agreeable -place to pass a few days for rest at any time of the year; but the -special religious element draws many devotees who conscientiously go -through the pilgrimage to the shrines, and on the 3rd of May and Whit -Sunday especially many hundreds of pilgrims flock to the sanctuary for -devotion as well as for pleasure. The astonishing feature of the place -is, of course, the devotional approach to the church up the side of the -mountain, and it is difficult in a few words to give an idea of the -eccentricity of the structure. It may be admitted at once that the taste -displayed is atrociously bad, for it belongs to that eighteenth century -which has loaded Portugal with rococo monstrosities; but the very -vastness of Bom Jesus, and its exquisite position, save it from -triviality; and looked at as a whole, either from above or below, the -effect is grandiose in the extreme. - -[Illustration: ON THE TERRACE, BOM JESUS.] - -Some sort of sanctuary had existed here from the fifteenth century, but -it was not until the middle of the seventeenth that a miraculous figure -of Christ drew to the hermitage large numbers of pilgrims, and gradually -in the later eighteenth century the present structures grew under the -care of successive archbishops of Braga. Standing upon the spacious open -terrace before the church on the summit I looked down soon after sunrise -upon the scene spread before me. If the view hitherward from the -Guadalupe was fine this was more striking still. Wreaths of grey mist -still floated in the valley far below, and the vast plain with Braga in -its centre embosomed amongst trees, and surrounded as far as the eye -reached with red-roofed hamlets, still lay in grey shadow. But ridge -over ridge, crag beyond crag, in the background rose the mountains all -tipped with shining gold with chasms of tender heliotrope; and then, -before the mind had well realised the beauty of the contrast, the whole -plain woke and smiled with sunshine. - -The platform or terrace upon which I stood with my back to the church -was flanked with granite obelisks and statues, and fronted by a wide -stone parapet with a beautiful stone fountain above it. By two broad -flights of steps at the sides a lower landing, or platform, was reached -with an arched fountain set in the face of the wall, then by steps down -to a similar platform, whence a pair of flights led to yet another, and -so on, the parapets and balustrades in each case being surmounted by -obelisks and statues, the fountains on the wall-faces being, like the -figures, an extraordinary mixture of sacred and mythological art. Each -alternate pair of platforms, after the first six, extending right across -the structure and paved with the favourite black and white stone mosaic, -was flanked by two shrines or little open chapels, each with a beautiful -life-sized coloured group of figures representing scenes in the passion -of our Lord. Half-way down there was an entrance from one of the -platforms into a lovely old-world terraced garden, overflowing with -flowers, palms, and sweet-scented verdure, and overhung by the dark yews -and pines that bordered the graded descent from top to bottom. At length -after descending many flights of steps and passing many terraced -platforms with fountains, figures, and obelisks, a large mosaic-paved -semicircular space was reached, ending in a stone parapet. Turning and -looking upwards from here an extraordinary effect was presented. The -alternate zigzags of the stairs and the faces of the walls, indeed all -the architectural features, were outlined, like the great church -towering far overhead, with brown grey granite, and faced with perfectly -white plaster. Stage upon stage the great staircase rose, its parapets -at the side and the centre line being marked by statues rising -alternately one over the other at each successive stage of the ascent. -Dark greenery, palms, yews, acacias, orange trees, and trailing flowers -overhung the ascent on each side, and it was not difficult to understand -the devotional fervour of pilgrims, who with tears and contrition toil -up this vast _viâ dolorosa_ by the hundred on the special anniversary, -worshipping at the affecting shrines on the landings, and ending in an -agony of remorse at the foot of the miraculous Christ which is the main -attraction of the Sanctuary. Nor is the scene looking down over the -parapet at the bottom of the main flight less striking. Sheer over the -precipice you see the billowy masses of dark thick woods far below. On -one side of the wide mosaic landing is a stair leading to another -chapel, and so down by a succession of zigzag flights, bordered by thick -greenery, to the porch, set in its grove of yews, and leading to the -outer world. But mere words are weak to describe the charm and beauty of -the Bom Jesus. There is nothing quite like it anywhere else in Europe, -and as sanctuary, health resort, and architectural curiosity it deserves -to be better known than it is. - -[Illustration: ON THE HOLY STAIR, BOM JESUS.] - - - - - III - CITANIA AND GUIMARÃES - - -I drove out of Braga in the early morning. Passing over the ancient -bridge spanning the little stream, at which lines of women knelt and -washed their household linen, we left the city behind us and faced the -mountain range beyond which lay my goal. Far above reared the grey crest -of Mount Picoto, with a gilt cross dominating its highest point; and as -the road wound upwards and ever upward in zigzags, at each turn of the -path Braga, white and shining, set in its bed of verdure, receded far -below. All around were glorious sun-kissed peaks scattered to the summit -with huge granite boulders, as if the youthful Titans had there indulged -in the sport of stone-throwing. Then over a hill pass, we dipped into a -valley with the Falperra range clear before us, and beautiful St. Marta, -with its crown of woods and its gleaming hermitage in the foreground, -almost, as it seemed, over our heads. Maize fields spread across the -valley and on the hill slopes all around us; and on the wayside, and -dividing the fields, rows of oaks, chestnuts, planes, and, above all, -white poplars, ran, every tree covered to the top by a trailing vine, -loaded with purple grapes. The effect produced is most extraordinary, -and the practice of thus utilising timber trees is peculiar to this part -of the country. - -For many miles, as we drove over valley and hill, tall poplars by the -thousand, their light green leaves blending with the bronze, served as -vine poles; and every white cottage had its shady trellis pergola before -its open doorway, the great luscious bunches of fruit hanging temptingly -over the heads of the women busy spinning, surrounded by quiet, brown, -barefooted children. - -The prevalence of granite is noticeable everywhere. The fields are -divided from the path by granite walls, gate-posts, trellis standards, -and even telegraph poles are slender granite monoliths, and the cottages -themselves are granite built, solid and weather-proof. Many people meet -us on their way to Braga: men in velvet jackets, wide, brown, homespun -trousers, often with inserted patterns of other coloured cloth, and -broad brimmed hats; the women, gay with bright kerchiefs over head and -shoulders, but all barefooted, and many carrying poised upon their heads -the slender red water jars, the fashion of which has known no change -since the time when the legions of Augustus ruled the Celts and Suevians -with iron hand from Bracara Augusta. Ox-carts slowly toil along, the -bowed necks of the bullocks bearing above them the elaborately carved -_canga_, here seen at its best. And still the road lies mainly upward -through the keen pure air, the mountain slopes below and around us green -with pine forests, and above us the eternal grey granite boulders. The -land is bathed in a flood of sunlight, with here and there upon the -widespread slopes and valleys the dark shadow of a passing cloud. Even -up here amidst the masses of granite the fruit-laden vine persists, -covering and embracing with its reaching tendrils poplars, oaks, and -olives on the sheltered slopes, whilst the proud pines alone, towering -on the exposed surfaces, defy the creeper’s insidious caress. - -At length the high pass of the Falperra range is crossed, and before us -spreads a vast fertile plain, with villages and homesteads scattered -across its bosom. Soon the grey boulders disappear from around us, and -the air grows softer, though granite still supplies the place of wood by -the roadside. The fields of maize are usually not above an acre in -extent, and are bordered everywhere by vine-clad poplars. It is clear to -see that the little farms are for the most part cultivated by the owners -and by hand labour, for no yard of tillable soil is left to waste. It is -market day at Taipas, and flocks of picturesque husbandmen and their -womenkind are wending their way into the village from distant hillside -hamlets and lonely granite granges. It is a gaily clad and -prosperous-looking crowd that chaffer and bargain for their herds of -thin porkers, their vegetables, fruit, red clay pottery, and flaring -textiles; all spread out to the best advantage beneath the trees of the -market-place and by the shady wayside. The women almost invariably carry -upon their heads in long spacious baskets the merchandise they buy or -sell, be it live-stock, produce, yarn for weaving, or household stuff; -and as invariably is the burden covered with a snowy cloth, and the -woman herself is clean, well-fed, and upstanding. - -Taipas, the famous thermal mineral baths of the Romans, did not detain -me except to order lunch to be ready when I should return a few hours -later to the primitive inn attached to the ancient baths, for I was -bound for a place still more ancient than Roman Taipas, the mysterious -buried city of Citania, the Portuguese Pompeii. - -A few miles’ drive upon an excellent road and through a prosperous -smiling country of maize, vines, and olives, brought me to the tiny -hamlet of São Estevão de Briteiros, just a humble little grey church, a -large farmhouse, an inn, a few cottages and a school. The road had led -almost at right angles to that by which we had reached Taipas, and the -Falperra range, which we had crossed earlier in the day, again loomed -nearer; the nearest spur, a bold hill of nine hundred or a thousand feet -high at some distance from the range, projecting far out into the plain, -and rising precipitously from the little village of Briteiros, which was -the present limit of my drive. Long before we reached it the abrupt hill -with its tiny white hermitage chapel of São Romão on the highest point -had stood out conspicuously, and seen from below looked impossible of -ascent. From Briteiros, however, the climb was seen to be not so -formidable; for a rough path started from behind the humble schoolhouse, -through little farmsteads, gradually winding and zigzagging up the -precipitous slope through the trees and brushwood that clothed the lower -portion of the hill. The population of Briteiros were mostly at Taipas -for the market, and a demand for the services of _um rapaz_, a boy, to -guide the stranger to the lost city of long ago met with the reply that -no man nor boy was readily available. - -[Illustration: ON THE WAY TO MARKET, TAIPAS.] - -After some short delay an aged woman produced a substitute in the form -of an elfin little maiden of ten or eleven, with great black eyes, -half-bashful, half-bold, and jet black hair floating unrestrained over -her shoulders. With her bare feet and scanty floating raiment she -skipped like a dryad from stone to stone over the rugged pathway, -looking back now and again as if in wondering contempt at the lumbering -stranger slipping and floundering after her upon the thick carpet of -pine needles that clothed the spaces between the boulders forming the -track. Track it was and no more, scarped on the hillside, and evidently -had been made by hands; for the stones still showed some signs of -regularity and the larger masses had been removed to the side, whilst -those which stood upon the causeway itself proved by their flat and -polished surfaces that ages of human feet had passed over them up and -down the hill. As the weird little damsel sprang with the free action of -a wild thing from stone to stone, her black hair floating in the -pine-scented breeze, it was easy for me to imagine how the people who -long, long ago, before history records, had dwelt upon this hill and -made this causeway had looked and moved. Racial inundations had passed -over the land since then, leaving traces perhaps in this or the other -type of the countryside, but the girl’s far-off ancestors, dwelling -always upon the same spot, had struck deeper and more lasting root than -their stone walls and causeways, and as the little guide flittered up -the rough climb before me, the ages seemed to fall away and the dim past -to grow in clearness. - -Half up the hill the trees cease, and the stony causeway rises -precipitously through a region of purple heather, broom and yellow -gorse, thickly strewn with giant granite boulders. Presently the ruins -of a wall of rough stones cemented together stretch across right and -left; and running parallel, and just inside of it, a dry water channel -well made of hewn stones. The ground-plans and walls a yard or two high, -of houses are on all sides of us; and climbing a little higher and -turning the shoulder of the hill we see spread before us, covering the -whole of the south upper slopes of the declivity, a vast stretch of -uncovered ruins—a once-populous town of the unrecorded past. - -Before describing in detail these, by far the most complete and -interesting Celtiberian remains in the Peninsula, a few words may be -said with regard to the discovery and exploration of them, as well as to -the theories as to their origin. For reasons which need not be re-stated -here the Celtic element was less intimately mixed with the Iberian in -the north-western part of the Peninsula than elsewhere, and the tribes -in this part of the country were those which withstood longest the -imposition of the Roman bureaucratic system after the assassination of -the patriot Viriatus, and the fall of Numancia in the second century -B.C. Not till the time of the great Julius did the legionaries, -stationed then permanently at Braga, sweep all this province clean of -revolt, and bring the tribesmen to their knees after dire slaughter and -destruction. The Celtiberian tribes in this remote corner had lived -their simple pastoral lives from time unrecorded in small family clans, -each independent, with its own law and its own gods; but for purposes of -mutual defence in later times confederations of many clans were formed, -_mòr thuatha_, as in Ireland. Each of these confederations possessed a -fortified centre or stronghold as a place of assembly and refuge, -usually upon an eminence, wherein the scattered clans might meet for -defence or in council to treat of common interests. The Roman historian, -Valerius Maximus speaks especially of some such fortress upon a mountain -in Lusitania, and praises its inhabitants for their stubborn bravery. He -calls it by the name of Citania, and antiquaries have given to the -extensive ruins now before us that name during the last few years, on -the assumption that this may be the place referred to by the Roman -chronicler. - -Vague stories had always pervaded the countryside of buried ruins, with -the accompanying legends of witches, warlocks, and enchanted Moors -existing upon the hill of São Romão; and in the eighteenth century the -curate of São Estevão de Briteiros at the foot of the hill had brought -down from the hill-top and placed in his church porch a great mysterious -slab of stone covered with mystic devices and of strange fashioning. But -not until our own times did a man come with public spirit enough to -devote his life and small fortune to the exploration of this city of the -past, for in Portugal public encouragement of any such objects is rare -indeed. This man was Dr. Sarmento, who for many years until his death -recently, made a labour of love in uncovering systematically the -vestiges of the prehistoric city. - -All over the plain, for many miles around, the ruins of Celto-Roman -villages have been found, and in many cases partially explored by Dr. -Sarmento and others; the objects discovered, like those found in -Citania, having been deposited in the museum at Guimarães belonging to -the explorer, but in consequence of his death henceforward to be a -public institution subsidised by the State. As I shall point out when I -describe my visit to the museum, the objects unearthed at Sabroso, St. -Iria, and other neighbouring places are immensely more numerous than -those from Citania itself; great masses of coins, personal ornaments, -arms, inscriptions, and utensils in the museum proving that these places -existed far into Roman times, and perhaps much later. The chaotic -condition of the Sarmento collection at present, and the apparent -absence of any skilled and enthusiastic guardianship, have probably been -a reason why certain investigators have attributed to Citania many -objects discovered elsewhere, and have founded upon them theories which -must necessarily be misleading. Dr. Hübner, who did not see the place -personally, aroused the wrath of Dr. Sarmento in this way, and other -archæologists have spoken somewhat loosely as to the nature of the finds -in the Citania excavations. The great interest of the hill stronghold, -indeed, consists in the fact that we have here practically an unspoilt -Celtic or Celtiberian town, in which Roman civilisation had but little -part. It will be seen by the objects actually unearthed that the place -was inhabited after the Roman influence and language had dominated the -district, as late, indeed, as the time of Hadrian; but of purely Roman -remains, so plentiful elsewhere in the district there are in Citania -hardly any; the construction and plan of the houses having much in -common with the Irish and Scotch Celtic _cashels_, and the absence of -all indications of Christianity being complete. - -Following a well-paved causeway of some seven or eight feet wide, the -flat stones of which have been worn smooth by countless generations of -forgotten footsteps, we can perceive perfectly the ground plan of the -houses on each side. In most cases Dr. Sarmento has excavated down to -the stone-laid flooring of the houses inside, and to the base of the -masonry outside; and it is possible to wander through the main lanes or -streets of the town, crossing each other at right angles here and there, -and interspersed by little circular paved open spaces, and to -reconstruct in the mind’s eye the primitive life of this city of long -ago. Here, for instance, just inside the wall by which we entered is a -little square house, some twelve feet wide, containing two rough -millstones, of which many have been found. The walls are of huge, rough -stones, evidently taken as they came and fitted together with small -stones where necessary to fill in interstices, the whole cemented -together by some hard rubbly compost. Running past this building and -through the town (in one or two cases, indeed, through the houses -themselves) is one of the several stone water channels protected by low -walls on each side, and supplied in ancient times by the springs that -still gush out plentifully on the hillside. - -Some of the houses are much larger, and must have contained two or more -apartments. But what strikes the eye of the observer most is the -relatively large number of purely circular edifices, and this it is that -has mainly attracted the speculations of archæologists. Mr. Oswald -Crawford, who went over the place whilst the excavations were in their -earlier stages many years ago, was mistaken in his estimate that the -round buildings were eight or nine times more numerous than the square, -and he founded upon this and other data the opinion that the whole place -was a great granary, where the food of the tribes might be stored in -safety. So far from the round houses being eight times as numerous as -the square, found at least four square houses to every one round; but -that which struck me as most curious, and so far as I could learn, it -had not specially attracted the attention of previous visitors, was that -in a large number of cases the round houses were enclosed in a square or -angular walled space, not very much larger than the circle, but leaving -a passage of some two feet wide, in most cases on the right-hand side, -between the two walls, leading to a space at the back between the -circular wall and the wall of the square enclosure, the left-hand side -of the circular wall being mostly built to touch the square wall on that -side. Dr. Sarmento was of opinion that the space thus formed was for the -purpose of sheltering cattle and domestic animals, and says that he had -found some rough stone excavations like troughs in them, with, in one or -two cases, a ring in the wall as if to tether beasts. The width of the -entrance passage and the extent of the enclosed space in the rear of the -circle would be too small to admit any large animal; but probably goats -would be housed in them easily. In one or two cases I noted that the -stone post forming a jamb to the entrance to the passage between the -round house and the square enclosure was grooved on the inner surface. -This in Dr. Sarmento’s opinion proved that the entrance to the passage -was closed by a lifting hatch of wood, which to some extent confirms the -idea that the back space was intended to shelter animals such as goats, -as a lifting door set in a groove would be much less likely to be forced -by them than a swing door turning, as the house door did, on wooden -pegs. - -There are very few instances of party walls being utilised for two -adjoining houses, though the buildings are often only a few inches -apart. Even in the case of the round houses enclosed in square spaces -and touching the square wall, the circular structure is quite complete -at the point of contact. In one instance I measured a large walled -parallelogram fronting on the principal causeway, seventeen yards in -length, enclosing within it one square house of nine yards wide, and two -circular houses, one on each side, the structures in each case being -complete, but the circular walls in this instance merged for a few -inches only at the point of contact with the square outer wall at the -side. Whether these square or outer enclosures were tiled or were merely -enclosed yards it is difficult to say, but that the houses themselves -were so covered is evident from the immense number of well-made red -shards scattered everywhere, and particularly inside the houses, the -tiles being turned up at each end, so that a concave tile to cover over -the joint between them would make a roof covered with them quite -watertight. A door jamb and lintel in one house showed a well-carved -rope moulding, but in most cases they were plain, the lintels and -doorsteps containing, however, at the side a square-cut hollow, in which -a block of wood was apparently inserted to receive the wooden peg or -pivot which formed a sort of hinge for the door, an arrangement still -adopted for the doors of barns, &c., in the neighbourhood; though Dr. -Sarmento was of opinion that no wood was employed in the construction of -the houses themselves, the polished rounded stones fixed to the walls in -some of the houses, which Dr. Hübner considered to be bases of pillars, -being in the opinion of the Portuguese archæologist seats for the -inhabitants. - -The round houses are usually about fourteen feet in diameter, and the -walls remaining rarely rise above four or five feet from the surface. -The doorstep is usually raised a foot or so above the level of the -ground. One round house has been tentatively rebuilt by Dr. Sarmento on -the level space on the top of the hill, an unattractive beehive-looking -structure without windows, but later investigation convinced him that he -had built it too high; and that it should not be of so great an -elevation as the measure of its diameter. The principal thoroughfares -running transversely on the slope of the hill are carefully walled upon -the scarped inner side, and in some cases the stone water channel runs -alongside of it. - -On reaching the bare space at the very summit of the hill, upon which -the little modern Christian chapel stands, a good idea may be formed of -the whole plan of the place. The town, covering perhaps five or six -acres, all lies over the crest and down the south and south-west slopes. -The wall by which we entered from the south is apparently the inner wall -of three, and practically encloses the top of the hill and the centre of -the town on the slope. The second wall, which shows signs of a moat, is -of greater extent, following the irregular contour of the hill, whilst -the third or outer defence extends far down almost to the plain on the -west and south-west side; traces of buildings, although but little -explored, being very abundant between the two inner walls on the south -and south-west, and clearly defined paths leading down from the main -city to the outer defences and the suburbs. In consequence of the -formation of the ground, attack was to be looked for mainly from the -most accessible point, namely, the north-east; for here the three lines -of defences are almost close together, and each of the walls is here -brought to a rough angle. From the apex of the outer wall on this side -there are indications of another defence running straight out at right -angles along the saddle which connects the hill with an outlying spur -easy of approach, and at the end of this long projection there appears -to have been two parallel horizontal outworks running across the end of -the saddle, this being the vulnerable point of the fortress. - -It is easy to imagine how almost impregnable such a place could be made. -The hill at any other point than this could only be scaled, if at all, -with the greatest difficulty, and the huge boulders on its side would -enable even weak defenders under their cover to hurl down stones or -spears upon an advancing foe. The south side of the hill is the least -accessible of all for any considerable body, and there the defences are -the most distant and the weakest. - -In the midst of the ruined town I found a bright intelligent peasant -lad, busy arranging fragments of pottery upon a stone for the later -inspection of some one in authority; and from him I heard much quaint -and simple local folklore. His own interest was greatest in what he -called the cemetery, four or five small grave-like troughs, about three -or four feet long and a foot deep, neatly made and lined with dressed -stone slabs. The so-called graves lie close to the causeway and amongst -the houses, in an irregular group, and can hardly have been sepulchral, -considering their size and position; Dr. Sarmento inclining to the -belief that they were troughs for feeding cattle. The cemetery, if there -be any, would probably lie far down the slope outside the second, -perhaps outside the outer, wall, but here no excavation of any -importance has been executed. At some little distance down have been -found three perfectly plain dolmens of the usual shape, which are -usually sepulchral; and doubtless extensive exploration around them -would reveal human remains. My peasant friend was also much concerned in -a mysterious “mine,” as it is called, from which he assured me, in -awe-stricken tones, that enchanted Moors came at night and carried evil -over the plain. It is supposed that this cave, which is of no great -extent, some two yards in diameter at the mouth, and a few yards deep, -was adjoining or under the place where the great slab which the -country-people call _Pedra Formosa_, the handsome-stone, to which I -shall revert presently, was found. - -I have mentioned that Mr. Crawford was of opinion that the round houses -were granaries, but seeing that the Celts of Ireland and Scotland -frequently built and lived in round houses within their _cashels_, and -bearing in mind the existence of the spaces for animals, which I have -described as attached to those of Citania, I am strongly of opinion -that, comfortless as they appear, these were the veritable dwellings of -many of the neolithic folk who for centuries held their foes at bay upon -this headland jutting out upon the rich plain of Guimarães. Still -another solution of the round-house problem is, as I understand his -words, suggested by my friend Professor Altamira in his _Historia de -Espana y de la Civilization espanõla_. The earlier generations of this -people, he says, buried their dead under dolmens which when covered were -circular; and later generations retained the tradition of circular -sepulchres. “They were built round,” he says, “with a sort of domed -roof, the middle of which was supported by a pillar of wood or stone. -Some of such tombs had passages (or galleries) to enter by—which was -frequently the case also with the dolmens—and some had lateral -chambers.... Of this class are those discovered at Citania, on the hill -of San Roman in Portugal.” Apart from the fact that no human remains -have been found in these round houses at Citania, there is no sepulchral -suggestion about them. They are, it is true, if Dr. Sarmento be right, -windowless and rough, but the comparison must not be made with the -dwellings of to-day, but with the haunts of cave men, who had been the -progenitors of the early settlers of Citania; and judged by that -standard, these stout, weather-proof, stone houses, with doors and an -enclosed separate space behind for cattle, were almost luxurious. In any -case, a close examination of them left in my mind no doubt at all that -they had been the dwellings of human creatures in the earlier stages of -civilisation. - -It required no great effort of the imagination to people the narrow -paved paths on the hillside and the little round central spaces with the -dwellers in these rough abodes: wild-looking, shaggy men, with long -hair, and clad in skin or rough woollen garments, going about their -daily toil as hunters, husbandmen, potters, or smiths, to paint to -oneself the alarm of an approaching foe, the savage warfare to repel -attack, and finally the victorious host of Roman legionaries of Augustus -levelling the poor homes, slaughtering, ravishing, destroying, until the -poor remnant of the vanquished knelt in the dust and bowed their necks -evermore to the yoke of discipline and civilisation. - -The place continued to be the abode of men long afterwards, for Latin -became the speech of some people who lived there, and coins as late as -Tiberius and one of Hadrian (117 A.D.) have been unearthed at Citania; -but with the Roman officers supreme at Braga, and the whole plain -prospering and smiling under the arts of peace and Roman luxury, poor -Citania on its bold hill-top lost its reason for existence, and must -have dwindled, until long before the time of the Goths and Suevians all -men forgot it, and the ages covered it with the mantle of earth, -undisturbed till now. - -But whilst I am thus speculating, my little girl guide is getting -restless, and the westerly tending sun tells me that I have long -outstayed the appointed time when I was to return to Taipas. So, -reluctantly, and with my brain full of idle fancies which made me dream -of creatures such as those I have pictured lurking behind the -thick-strewn boulders, and challenging my intrusion upon their -stronghold, I slowly paced the paved lanes again through the lines of -stark ruined walls, and so out upon the precipitous hillside down to -Briteiros, where the carriage awaited me in the grateful shade. - -The market people were homeward bound from Taipas now; the women with -their purchases or unsold wares swaying rhythmically upon their heads as -they walked, and the men leading live stock or bent beneath burdens, but -never too heavily laden to prevent them from courteously saluting the -passing stranger. The inn, nearly empty of bathing visitors now that the -summer was past, was feverishly anxious to do its best; and, though -Citania had detained me for hours longer than I had reckoned, Taipas -contrived to offer me a tolerable lunch, the first meal I had eaten in -that long day of delight. Upon a wall of the open courtyard before the -inn is an ancient fountain with a pompous poetical inscription, setting -forth that John I. of Portugal, _Para que a morte mais tropheos não -conte_, “that death should no more trophies boast,” had raised this -miraculous fountain of healing water. But John I. was a mere modern in -these ancient _thermes_; for here the great Hadrian was cured of his -malady, and founded the sumptuous baths, of which extensive remains have -in recent times been discovered, but not explored to any extent. In a -field nearly opposite the inn is an enormous block of granite, upon -which a long Roman inscription tells that this work was erected by the -orders of the Imperial Cæsar Trajan, son of Nerva, conqueror of the -Germans, and much more to similar effect; whilst upon another face of -the block an interminable list of modern Portuguese names of gentlemen -interested in the rehabilitation of the baths in recent times shows the -universal hankering after immortality in company with the great felt by -the little men of the world. - -The bathing establishment itself is primitive enough, consisting of -about twenty baths large and small, in separate wooden compartments, -built round three sides of a square, the temperature of the water being -about 85° Fahr., very abundant, clear, and bright, and with a strong -sulphureous taste and smell. The waters are said to be extraordinarily -efficacious in cutaneous affections, maladies of the mucous membranes, -laryngitis, bronchitis, and rheumatism, and as many as 1500 patients -visit them from May to September every year, the flow of water being a -quarter of a million litres a day. - -All the way from Taipas to Guimarães the road lay through maize fields -bordered thickly by vine-covered poplars; a prosperous land of well-fed, -laborious people. Near the ancient city, the birthplace of the -Portuguese monarchy, the ground rises, and the pine forests spread for -miles on the uplands all around, the fresh sweet scent of the woods -adding one more sensuous joy to a closing day of incomparable -loveliness. As the carriage clattered over the cobble stones, through -the narrow streets of the town, and so into the beautiful alameda and -the public garden, in which the principal hotel stands, there rose as if -from the end of the alameda the giant granite peak of the Penha, all -glorified and transfigured by the setting sun. The mountain, almost -sheer as seen from this side, seemed to tower right overhead: green -woods clothed its sides up the greater part of its height, and then, -like a wall, sprang a precipice of bare scarred rock, now orange and -purple against a violet sky. On the summit of the apparently -inaccessible saw edge of the peak stood out the white walls of a -building, which may have been a hermitage, but I am told is now a -guest-house, where in the most torrid summer the citizens of Guimarães -find cool breezes and refreshment. As I gazed, entranced at the changing -colours of the sunset on the peak—orange deepening to crimson and to -bronze, purple fading by soft degrees to slaty-blue, and the rose-pink -of the growing after-glow softening the rugged outlines with tender -light—there came the clanging of an acolyte’s bell, and across the -alameda there wound a devout little procession bearing the Host, with -flaring tapers, swinging censers, priests, and choristers. It was the -one note needed to complete the picture. Guimarães in the gathering -twilight took me back in one happy moment to the ages long ago, when -simple faith unbroken reigned, and all was beautiful and all was true. - -Guimarães has a proper pride in itself, and boldly asserts its claim to -be not only one of the most ancient, but the most glorious and -prosperous city in Portugal. - - “A nobre Guimarães tem por brazão - Ser Corte primeira Portugueza,” - -sings the poet, but the pride of Guimarães extends far beyond this -boast. Seated in the centre of the province of Minho, in the very garden -of Portugal, with abundant streams and fertile valleys for miles round, -protected by the mountains on each side that enclose the plain from -inclement winds, the town is in an ideal situation. Forming, as it did -in old times, one of the fiefs of the left-handed royal house of -Braganza, that made the dukes richer than the king, one of the -legitimate Infantes is said to have exclaimed jealously, as he looked -down upon the rich domain, _Quem te deu não te via; se te vira não te -dera_, “he who gave thee never saw thee; if he had seen thee he would -not give thee,” and one of the greatest of Portuguese writers, Manoel de -Faria, speaking of Guimarães said: “If the Elysian fields ever existed -on earth it must have been here, and if they did not exist they should -have been created in order to place them here.” But another subject of -pride, and an article of faith with all good citizens of the town, is -that Guimarães possesses the most beautiful women in Europe. Personally -I must confess that they did not strike me as being more comely than -their sisters of the rest of North Portugal, especially of Braga and -Coimbra, but from ancient times the women of Araduca, the modern -Guimarães, were held to be pre-eminent, and it is too late now to -gainsay it, confirmed as it is by writers Portuguese and French -innumerable. - -In any case, the city is as beautiful as it is historically interesting. -Here on the site of the ruined ancient town of Celts and Romans, a -Leonese princess, in the tenth century, founded the great Benedictine -house, around which the mediæval town gradually grew. But its principal -glory began when Count Henrique of Burgundy and his royal Leonese bride, -Teresa, came to govern Portugal as Count, for his father-in-law, Alfonso -VI., the friend and foe of the Cid. Here at Guimarães in the splendid -castle, even now sturdy in its dismantlement, the first Count of -Portugal held his court, and here his great son, Affonso Henriques, the -national hero and first king, was born in 1109 and passed his youth. - -It is impossible to imagine a ruin more stately than that of the grand -mediæval castle which, upon a gentle eminence on the outskirts, -dominates the town. Granite built upon a granite base, the walls sharp -and clear to-day, look as if cut but nine years ago instead of nine -centuries. Here is the dignity of age without its feebleness. A vast -battlemented outer wall, with corner bastions and pointed crenellations, -surrounds the majestic keep, the monolithic battlements of which, huge -single stones, stand uninjured still by time or the more destructive -hand of man. The cyclopean masses are reddened now by lichen and stained -by weather, but nine centuries have failed to crumble them, and they -stand a splendid monument of the first of the two outstanding epochs in -Portuguese history, when the nation was stirred with vast ambitions and -endowed with heroic energy to fulfil them. Affonso Henriques of -Guimarães was the protagonist of the first epoch, that of national -independence; Prince Henry the Navigator, the protagonist of the second, -that of national expansion. - -Guimarães is delightful, and an artist might spend a month in its quaint -streets and alleys without exhausting the “bits” that call for -delineation. One charming old-world corner is the square in which stands -the church that alone remains of the vast monastery founded by the -Leonese Princess Munia—the Collegiada the townspeople call it, although -I believe it bears officially another name. The early florid Gothic -tower is a beautiful one, and more beautiful still the detached rood -canopy at its west end, with its quaint mixture of early Gothic with -Greek and Byzantine ornament. Opposite this is the low-arched -sixteenth-century arcade beneath the town-hall, and the houses that -surround the irregular little praça are in picturesque keeping with the -rest. There is in a street called Largo dos Trigães, one of the finest -stretches of crenellated wall that ever I saw. It must be three hundred -yards long, and at least five-and-twenty feet high, independent of its -pointed battlements, and is in the most perfect preservation though many -centuries old. It is said to enclose the grounds of a disestablished -monastery, for Guimarães was in old times monastic or nothing. - -But curious and interesting as Guimarães is, I was not drawn thither -mainly to see the town, but to examine in the Sarmento museum the -objects discovered in the excavation of Citania. The collection is at -present in a state of chaos, which may possibly be remedied when the -reconstruction of the house is completed by the authorities. The number -of objects is immense, though by far the greater part of them came from -other places in the neighbourhood than Citania, and are mainly -attributable to the Roman period, though many of them are very early and -ante-Christian. The few purely Roman objects, however, found at Citania -are neither peculiar to the place nor of special interest. What is far -more attractive to the student are the relics that exist of the real and -original Celtiberian makers of the hill town. - -First of all is the famous _Pedra Formosa_, to which reference has been -made. It stands at present in the open at the back of the Sarmento -house, but protected from the weather by a low roof which unfortunately -prevents a photograph being secured of it. It is a thick slab of -granite, seven feet long by nine feet wide, and notwithstanding the -contention of Dr. Hübner, who has not seen it, I am convinced that, -whatever may have been its purpose, its position was intended to be -horizontal, and that it is not a sepulchral stone to be set on edge. At -present it is mounted on four low posts or pillars, like a table, and -the elaborate carving upon it can be consequently seen plainly. At the -top of its shorter diameter in the centre is a hollow, ending in a -point, the outer circumference of the hollow being about the size of a -human head. From this, extending downwards about six feet to a -semicircular gap cut into the stone, at the foot is a raised cord-like -pattern cut out of the thickness of the stone, beneath which is bored a -tunnel, or channel, leading from the point of the hollow cone at the top -down to a hole through the stone at the bottom, a few inches from the -semicircular gap. From the base of the hollow at the top, leading -obliquely to the sides, are two other raised cord-like ridges similar to -that from top to bottom; the main design being roughly that of a human -being with the hollow for the head, the straight cord from top to bottom -for the body and legs, and the oblique cords for the arms. The whole of -the spaces between the cords are filled with a most intricate series of -designs, beautifully incised in the stone, concentric whorls, curves, -and scrolls being in each case the main motive. - -Whatever may have been the purpose of the stone—religious, sacrificial, -or tribal—the work must have occupied many men for a long period, and -the skill, both of design and execution, prove that the artificers must -have reached a relatively high stage of artistic development. The art is -obviously ante-Christian, and the form of the stone suggests that it may -have been sacrificial, with the hollow cone to receive the blood from a -severed jugular and the tunnel beneath the central cord to convey it to -where the priest stood in the gap to catch it as it ran through the hole -at the bottom of the stone. The incised design shows no indication of -Greek or Roman influence, but the concentric curves are identical with -some of the earliest ornamental decoration of the stonework in the -museum brought from other Celto-Roman places in the neighbourhood, and -also with the decoration upon Celtic pottery found elsewhere in Portugal -and at Carmona in Spain. - -[Illustration] - -A stone of great interest found also at Citania may perhaps add more to -our knowledge than the mysterious _Pedra Formosa_. It bears an -inscription in the Celtiberian character, of which comparatively few -specimens have hitherto been discovered, and no key has been found to -decipher them. One of those known and reproduced by Dr. Hübner was found -at Peñalba de Castro in Spain, and appears to be nearly identical in -character with that from Citania; whilst another, also in Hübner, -brought from Barcelona, presents several important differences. The -Citania inscription is here reproduced, and I am indebted to Professor -Rhys, the famous Celtic authority, for an interesting suggestion, -namely, that the whole inscription, although written in the unknown -Celtiberian character, may be intended to be read in Latin; in which -case the first line and a half might represent Syatenunius. This point, -however, I must leave as being too abstruse for a book of this kind. We -are on firmer ground in the case of the very numerous specimens of red -pottery found at Citania and stamped with a mark entirely unknown -elsewhere. The marks of Roman potters on jars and pitchers were always -printed in small letters _outside_ the mouth, whereas the marked pieces -in question from Citania bear in letters an inch long _inside_ the mouth -“Camal” or “Arg,” and sometimes both words, and scores of red tiles have -also been found similarly marked ARG CAMAL. Upon a lintel-stone from -Citania in the museum I read the words CORONERI CALI DOMUS, and another, -apparently from the same house, is mentioned by Dr. Sarmento, but which -I did not see, bearing the inscription CRON CAMALI DOMUS, most of the -pottery bearing Camal’s name having been found near this house. Whether -Camal was a Celto-Roman potter, or, as seems much more likely, a great -personage or chief of Citania, is a point yet to be decided; but from -the fact that the name on the clay vessels is not situated where the -potter’s mark is usually inscribed, would tend to the belief that he was -the owner rather than the manufacturer. Arg, or Airg, as it may be read, -may have represented a Celtiberian title or dignity, and Camal, or -Camalus, is undoubtedly a Celtic name. It is unlikely, moreover, that if -Camal had simply been a potter his son Coronerus would have considered -it necessary to record upon his stone door-lintel the fact of his -descent, which he probably would have done if his father Camalus was a -person of consequence. Another peculiar fact in connection with the -incised ornamentation upon stones at Citania is the repetition of the -Swastick or wheeled cross and the wheeled whorl, which are of -pre-Christian and oriental origin, this design being also quite frequent -in the objects found in other places in the neighbourhood, and amongst -Celtic remains in other parts of the Peninsula. - -The death of Dr. Sarmento has, of course, put an end to his -self-sacrificing life-task, leaving by far the greater part of the -exploration of the outer zones of Citania unattempted. It is almost too -much to hope that any other similarly public-spirited Portuguese will -provide the funds needed for the purpose, for there is little enthusiasm -for such subjects in the country; but if funds could be obtained to -excavate extensively the lower slopes of the hill on the south side -where numerous hillocks suggest that sepulchral remains may lie beneath, -it is probable that discoveries of great importance in Celtiberian -civilisation would be made, and perhaps the riddle of the Celtiberian -alphabet solved. - - - - - IV - BUSSACO - - -After losing sight of the marvellous view across the river of the city -upon its amphitheatre of hills, the road from Oporto towards the south -runs through a country of drifting sands parallel with the seashore. -Pines bending away from the prevailing westerly wind stand singly and in -clumps at first, and then in vast tracts, as in the Landes about -Arcachon, binding the unstable soil together; and within a few miles of -Oporto here and there a sea-bathing village of châlets and houses of -entertainment breaks the monotony of the scene. It was but seven in the -evening, but the autumn day had already sunk into dusk with an angry -streaked black and crimson after-glow when I came to the little thermal -bathing village of Luzo, on the lower slopes of the mountains that cover -the whole of the north of Portugal except the strip of country bordering -the sea. For some miles, ever since we had left the main railway line -from Oporto to Lisbon at Pampilhosa junction, we had been rising, whilst -the pines bordering the line had been growing thicker and more sturdy, -and from Luzo onward the way grew still steeper. The stars shone -brightly, but a dew almost as heavy as rain was falling as the carriage -that had met me at the station drawn by two gigantic mules, rattled -along the excellent road through Luzo. - -There is always a feeling of uncanniness in speeding through an unknown -town at night for the first time. Here at Luzo little white cottages -flashed past us, a dim light flickered before a shrine at a street -corner, a man dimly visible tinkled a _bandurra_ a by the side of a -grated window, little groups whispered mysteriously in the -semi-darkness: they were all shadows to me, whilst I, poor waif, to them -was nothing, for the clatter of the mules and the rattle of the carriage -over the cobble stones were the only signs they had of the momentary -presence of a man who, like a ship passing in the night, flitted in the -darkness through the village which to them was life and death and all -things. Our road lay ever upward. By the dim light of a waning moon one -could see the trunks of great pines close together, and the soft moist -air was heavily charged with the grateful balsamic scent of the trees. -As we toiled patiently upward and still upward, in the darkness of the -night the hush of the woods fell deeply upon us, for no breath of wind -stirred the lofty tops that closed over us like an arch, and the summer -night-birds had already taken flight farther south. Presently we passed -through what in the dimness looked like an imposing architectural -gateway set in a high wall, and then the wood grew perceptibly denser. -By the wayside the bank on the left rose sheer from the road covered -with verdure, and one felt rather than saw that up and up, as it seemed -infinitely, the great trees towered higher and higher upon the steep -slope, whilst on the right hand the huge eucalyptus trunks shining white -through the blackness of the night, stood upon the brink of a -precipitous drop, from which emerged now and again tree tops and a -tumult of vegetation that showed, even though one saw but little of it, -that we were in the midst of a luxuriant forest such as those I have -seen on the Amazon and in Brazil, but never before in Europe. - -Presently we drove into a circle of light, and one of the surprises of -my life burst upon me. A palace so stately and beautiful, so new and -spotless withal, as to seem like a scene from a fairy tale. But no—this -flashing white dream in stone is no scenic illusion; the carved tracery, -like petrified lace, and leaves, and branches, infinite in caprice and -variety, the lovely cloistered terrace, the monumental staircase, and -the almost insolent wealth and intricacy of sculptured ornament, are all -solid chiselled stone, and this splendid royal castle in the most -wondrous wood in Europe is an ordinary hotel, or rather an extraordinary -one run on ordinary lines. - -The first instinct of a traveller when he lights upon such a find as -this is to keep it to himself rather than diminish his enjoyment in the -possession of his secret by sharing it with others; but Bussaco is big -enough, and it would be ungenerous to hide it. It was built by the -Portuguese Government, it is said, for a royal residence, and is hardly -yet quite finished, for an annexe is now being constructed for the use -of the royal family during their summer sojourn, and some of the -frescoes in the main castle are still to be added; but it is difficult -to understand—unless the intention really was, as stated, to make the -place a permanent royal residence—the reason for spending the vast sums -of money that the place must have cost upon a house of public -entertainment. However, there it stands, with its stately tower, its -majestic carved staircase, and all its heraldic blazonry, in the midst -of a crown domain seized from a Carmelite monastery, probably the most -beautiful hotel in Europe, certainly by far the best in the Peninsula; -in an exquisite climate, with perfect sanitation and water, a good white -wine grown on its own hillside, a cuisine with which no fault can -reasonably be found, cleanliness, and order; a Swiss lessee who speaks -English fluently and understands English needs, a bill of almost -disconcerting moderation ... and the woods! For, after all, the -hotel-palace, the golf-links, the tennis-lawn, the ballroom, and all the -rest of the added attractions of the place, are but subsidiary incidents -to the terrestrial paradise that surrounds it, enclosed in its high -granite wall six miles in circumference. - -[Illustration: MANUELINE ARCHITECTURE AT THE HOTEL, BUSSACO] - -It was night when the gleaming salt-white palace first flashed upon me -out of the darkness, but when I opened my shutters as the dawn was -breaking the next morning, and stepped out upon the wide battlements of -the castle, the scene before me was so wonderful as to force from me an -involuntary prayer of praise and thankfulness to God that so much of -beauty should be vouchsafed to my senses. Below and around me for miles -on all sides stretched the woods, woods such as I have seen nowhere else -in Europe, though the private gardens and plantations of Cintra and -Monserrat approach them in luxuriant fertility. Great palms and towering -cedars of Lebanon grow side by side with oaks of giant bulk: oranges and -fig-trees, cork and acacia, maple, birch, and willow stand beneath the -straight eucalyptus, “tall as the mast of some great admiral”: -araucarias spread their spiny branches with a luxuriance never seen at -home, and mosses, ivy, and ferns clothe thickly every inch of ground, -every bank, and even the time-worn stones, that all around testify to -the existence of dwelling here long before the white palace raised its -tall tower over the darkening wood. - -Beyond the trees, on the fair morning I first beheld the scene, the -shadow of twilight still lingered in the valleys and the horizon was -veiled in mist, but already the sun was touching the mountain-tops all -around. One range after another caught the golden light, and as far as -the vision reached mountain succeeded mountain like mighty waves -suddenly stayed in their onward sweep and turned into rosy rock. Here -and there amidst the greenery, far below upon the plains, a white -cottage, or the clustered red roofs of a village lit up the picture with -a note of emphasis, and the sweet, cool air of the mountains, fresh with -the scent of pine, eucalyptus, and wild flowers innumerable, came to the -jaded town-dweller like a foretaste of some exquisite new sense to endow -mankind in a fuller life to come. - -Straight before me, as I stood upon the battlements looking towards the -south, there rose as it seemed quite close a steep mountain slope -clothed with a mass of verdure so thick as to look like a solid billowy -surface of every tint of green, from tender primrose to deepest bronze. -Here and there a straight pine or cedar, more lofty than its fellows, -caught with its feathery top a glinting sun-ray and held it, whilst high -up, almost overhead, upon a rocky spur emerging from the foliage there -stood a humble hermitage, and on the very summit, looking so -inaccessible that no human foot could reach it, a little white tower of -another hermitage reared its cross over all. - -[Illustration: FROM THE BATTLEMENT, BUSSACO.] - -On the right hand, as one looked down over the battlements, the pretty -gardens of the palace, with flowers and palms, are spread at the foot, -whilst, resting humbly under the shadow of the palace, is the ancient -church and the tiny monastery, which for centuries housed the silent -Trappists, whose loving care made this holy wood to grow upon the spurs -and glens of a granite mountain. Beyond the garden, the wood slopes -suddenly down in billows of greenery, and then at its foot spreads the -vast plain, with towns and villages nestling in its hollows. And as the -sun grows in brightness I see beyond the limits of the plain, far away, -a long strip of white, and over it, high up, as it seems above the -horizon, a deep violet wall. It is the sea, the broad Atlantic, with its -fringe of silvery sand many miles distant, and it gives the supreme -touch to a scene of perfect beauty. On the other side of the castle the -view is just as lovely in a different way. Beyond the palms and flowers -at the foot, seen over a hundred carved crockets and capricious stone -pinnacles and gargoyles, with the great tower of the castle and its -armillary sphere over all, is a far stretch of undulating wood; and then -a vast tumble of mountains, range over range, all but the highest -clothed to the top with forests, and beyond and above them all the bare -granite peaks of the Caramulo range, iridescent now with the morning -sun. The domain occupies the whole of the north-western end of a long -continuous mountain ridge, some eight miles in total length, running -from south-east to north-west and extremely precipitous on all sides. -From the earliest times, at all events since the fourth century, the -glens and ravines that score these slopes have been jealously guarded by -ecclesiastical masters. The sheltered position and soft westerly breezes -from the Atlantic endowed the spot with a climate mild, equable, and -healthy, even for Portugal, whilst the purity and abundance of the -springs and the marvellous fertility of the soil in the deep, moist -gorges on the mountain-side made it an enviable place of secluded -residence. Whilst the minimum winter temperature is about forty degrees, -frost being unknown, the summer heat is tempered by the altitude of the -place and by the abundant shade of the woods, so that the temperature -rarely exceeds that of a warm July day in England. - -With these climatic conditions it is natural that this end of the ridge, -protected on all sides, should develop a vegetation of extraordinary -luxuriance. So remarkably was this the case that the successive -ecclesiastical bodies to which it belonged for fifteen hundred years -decreed that the woods were for ever to be held sacred as a place of -sanctuary and devotion. From the eleventh century onward the domain -belonged to the Archbishops of Braga, and in 1626 one of them granted it -to the order of shoeless Carmelites, as a retreat remote from the world, -where the monks following the strict Trappist rule might meditate in -silence undisturbed by the turmoil of their fellow-men. In poverty, and -with the hard labour of their own hands, the monks built the little -monastery and humble church as they now stand, with other portions since -demolished; and, year by year, for two hundred years, planted and tended -with devout care the sacred wood which was their one earthly concern. -From all quarters of the globe where the Portuguese flag waved, from -India, South America, and the Far East, rare plants and trees were sent -by Carmelites to their beloved “Matto de Bussaco.” Medicinal herbs, rare -and lovely ferns, and exotic fruit and flowers, impossible in other -places in Europe, here grew luxuriantly, and the silent, white-robed -gardeners planted and tended their domain until it became not a wood but -a sylvan garden of surpassing beauty, as it remains to-day. - -A high wall shuts it in from the rest of the world, whilst a special -Bull of Urban VIII., deeply cut to this day upon a great slab on the -principal gateway, condemned to major excommunication any person who -violated the sanctuary or injured any plant within the sacred precincts; -and another papal Bull bans any woman who dares to set her foot upon the -domain. Beautiful terraced paths were cut upon the hillsides, and -zigzagging down the ravines, fountains that gushed spontaneously from -the mossy rocks were dedicated to saints and adorned with sculptured -shrines or rustic grottoes. Everything that single-hearted toil and -devotional spirit could do, for centuries the shoeless Carmelites did -for their remote monastery and the fairy glens of Bussaco; and since the -abolition of the monastic orders in Portugal, the Government have tended -and guarded the spot as carefully as the silent monks before them. One -trembles for each innovation in such a spot as this, and the present -road-cutting operations through the wood and just around the palace, -though the new approaches will doubtless add to the accessibility of the -place, cannot fail to injure somewhat its sylvan beauty; just as the -building of the palace itself, and especially of the new annexe now in -course of construction, further dwarfs and hides the quaint little -monastery, which really seems to strike the note harmonious with the -place. - -To describe in detail the beauties of Bussaco is impossible in the space -at my disposal, but one ramble amongst many may be cited as an example -of the effect produced by them upon an appreciative visitor. The sky was -the deep, lustrous, sapphire blue of which Portugal alone seems to hold -the secret, and the fierce sunlight, held in check by the lofty canopy -of leaves, just dappled with golden tesselation the steep path up which -I wandered from the palace door. On each side of the well-kept walk -stood low stone walls, a mass of brilliant emerald, clothed, as they -were, with long trailing mosses and tender fronds of ferns innumerable. -Autumn as yet had done nothing to braise and brand the greenness of -summer; for in this favoured spot the seasons make but slight difference -in the vegetation. Verdant glades and dim recesses of sea-green shadow -open up at every turn in the winding path; domed masses of foliage above -and below on the steep sides of the glen seem like the silent naves and -aisles of vast cathedrals. To say that the air was like wine is a -commonplace. This was primeval air, the breath of a myriad trees and -sweet health-giving plants, inhaled upon a mountain top overlooking the -boundless sea. Not like wine grossly made by man was this, but like some -vital elixir distilled in a magician’s laboratory, bringing new life and -vigour, with a sensuous joy added by the spirit of the place and the -soft warmth of the shaded sun. - -Towering eucalyptus trees, the fawn-coloured bark hanging in long loose -strips and showing the silver skin beneath, alternated with pied planes -and feathery palms. Pines and cedars of Lebanon, and a score of trees -one knows not by name, tower over all, their great trunks (I measured -one cedar twenty feet round), clothed at foot by a dense undergrowth of -flowering plants. Large camellia trees, agaves and magnolias full of -bloom, the big white pendent flower of the datura, the pink and blue -masses of hydrangea, and the glistening foliage of orange trees, lit up -the shadowy slopes overhung by the dense foliage of the forest; and -trails of smilax, and I know not what other verdant creepers hung in -festoons from branch to branch. - -[Illustration: THE HOTEL, BUSSACO, FROM THE WOODS.] - -At the top of the path a moss-grown cross at the foot of a flight of -broken stone steps, hard by a crumbling archway, marks the beginning of -one of the several pilgrimages of the Cross scattered through the woods, -a lichen-covered slab upon the cross recording that: “These two -hermitages of the pilgrimage of the Cross were built by order of the -Illustrious João de Melo, Bishop and Count, in the year 1694.” The -little hermitages stand almost intact, though their thick walls are all -overgrown with bright mosses and reaching arms of verdure. Passing -beneath the archway, shadowed by a mighty cedar, I find myself at the -foot of this Via Sacra, a steep ascent with green and crumbling steps -before each open shrine of the Passion every hundred yards or so. The -shrines, little quaint square buildings, with the window-like opening -breast high, and a kneeling-stone before each, are all dismantled and -empty now; though with their cloak of foliage and ferns and their -lichen-clothed slabs telling the scene of the sacred Passion which used -to be exhibited inside, they are perhaps more beautiful so than ever -they were. Weeks after, when I saw at Caldas, in course of construction, -some very fine sacred groups in enamelled earthenware, the figures half -life-size, and was told that these scenes of the Passion were intended -by the Government for the restoration of the shrines at Bussaco, I -breathed a silent hope that, though the groups might be replaced, no -attempt would be made to restore to newness the shrines themselves. - -As one trod the old path of the pilgrimage, up mossy steps and past -despoiled shrines, with glimpses of sunlit glades and shady green dells, -it was impossible to shut away from one’s thoughts those generations of -silent white-clad figures, who, shoeless, had toiled so often up the Via -Dolorosa, with tears of penitence, perhaps agonies of regret, for the -life from which they had fled. All around were relics of their -unrecorded labour. Sculptured stones, chapels, hermitages, fountains, -grottoes, and shrines were all built by their patient hands; paths -scarped on steep hillsides, seats placed in quiet nooks for the -meditative and the weary, nay, the trees and plants from all lands -growing so proudly now had all been tended anxiously by the same dumb -shadows that for centuries waited for death within the walls enclosing -the sacred wood. If ever a place was haunted by sad, harmless ghosts, -these paths of pilgrimage at Bussaco must still be thronged by the -white-robed phantoms of those who made them. - -[Illustration: ON THE VIA SACRA, BUSSACO.] - -Turning aside and descending the glen by a narrower path, a ramble of -half a mile brings me to another scene of marvellous beauty. In the -foreground is a pool covered with water lilies and overshadowed by -trees; and from it, leading straight up the hillside, is the “holy -stair,” or cold spring, as it is called. Eleven double flights of stone -stairs, each pair of flights leading to a landing of black and white -mosaic, whilst in the centre between the two lines of steps a rocky -cataract leads a rushing stream of icy cold clear water from the -fountain gushing at the top from the rock in its mosaic recess down to -the bottom of the hill, where it tumbles tumultuously into the pool. -Through the whole length of the long fall, flanked by stairs, perhaps -two hundred feet, rare ferns and mosses grow with wild luxuriance, -especially in and about the pools on the ten landings; and, embosomed as -the whole hillside is in dense greenery, it is impossible to exaggerate -the delicious coolness and beauty of this secluded spot. - -From the top of the Fonte Fria, or Scala Santa, the path leads through a -valley, and then precipitously up the ascent that faced me when on the -morning after my arrival I stood upon the battlements for the first -time. The hermitage of St. Antão stands upon a ledge high up the slope, -a tiny dismantled cell, from which a view is gained on a clear day that -fairly takes one’s breath away. Below, set in its vast bed of verdure, -the white stone castle stands, the gold armillary sphere that crowns its -tower glittering in the sun; whilst on the left the far-flung panorama -of the plain, with the blue wall of the sea beyond, and the grey -mountains on the north, is flooded with an inundation of light, and -scattered with the abodes of men—the sombre masses of greenery and the -profound silence that surround us making the contrast the more striking. -A wider view still than this is obtained from the highest point of the -domain, on the very outskirts towards the south, where the Cruz Alta, -the “high cross,” marks the site of what in ancient times was a -watch-tower of soldier-monks, overlooking the country towards Coimbra, -whence the Moors might come to invade the sacred wood. - -[Illustration: IN THE GARDENS, BUSSACO.] - -A greater battle than ever Christian and Moslem fought raged in later -times upon this “Bussaco’s iron ridge,” just outside the granite walls -of the wood on the north-west slopes of the long mountain. “Victory’s -darling,” Massena, was to bring stubborn Portugal to heel at last. Soult -had been expelled in 1809, after Wellington’s surprise of Oporto; and -the Emperor was determined that nothing should stand between him and his -small victim this time. Massena was at the height of his glory and -success, and the flower of the imperial legions, eighty thousand men, -marched through Spain, and carried all before him at first in Portugal. -Almeida and Vizeu fell into his hands without a struggle; and the -invaders thought that no serious obstacle would be offered to the march -upon Lisbon by way of Coimbra. The road led them through the valley -between the long mountains of Bussaco and the Cremullo range opposite, -and Wellington, whose headquarters were at Coimbra, fifteen miles -distant, decided to stop their progress there. Before the whole of his -forces could be got into position, news came that the French had crossed -the river Mondego, and the Anglo-Portuguese force gradually fell back, -always fighting with the French advance-guard, until the whole of -Wellington’s army of nearly 50,000 were stationed upon the long ridge of -Bussaco, from the east wall of the domain to the river Mondego, where -the mountain ends. - -A curious relation exists, hitherto unnoted in English narratives, in -which a monk of Bussaco gives a minute account from day to day of the -events there from the 20th September 1810 until after the battle on the -27th, and the artless details of the good man are more personally -interesting perhaps than the broad facts of the great battle itself. He -tells that, on the 20th September, an orderly of Lord Wellington came to -the monastery, and: “As soon as the door was opened to him he said, ‘I -want to see the monastery, ha! ha! ha! To-morrow at two o’clock the -commander-in-chief is coming here. He slept last night at Lorvão, and -the French have already arrived at Tondella....’ The prior was told, and -he showed the orderly the monastery and chapel, ordering the best -lodging-chamber to be cleaned and got ready for the general, and the -orderly, after drinking a little wine, galloped back to Lorvão.” - -[Illustration: THE PORTA DA SULLA, BUSSACO.] - -Early next morning the whole wood, the hermitages, the monastery, and -the chapel were filled with English officers, fifty officers being -quartered in the monastery itself. Wellington arrived at midday, and -when the prior showed him the best guest-chamber, swept and garnished -for his use, he refused it, “although it was the best,” because it had -only one door, and another apartment with two doors had to be found for -him. Whilst this lodging was being prepared and cleaned, the general -rode out of the domain by the gate on the north side and inspected the -whole position from the highest point of the ridge to the east, on the -bare granite crest of which he fixed his own position for the day of the -battle. Standing upon this spot there spreads below the steep slopes in -the foreground an undulating plain, some five miles across, with -Caramulo mountains on the other side. Through this broken plain Massena -was forced to march in order to turn or cross the Bussaco mountains, and -proceed on his road to Coimbra, Lisbon, and Oporto. When he learnt that -the English general had decided to risk everything by making a stand -there with forces inferior to his own he at first refused to believe it, -for constant success had made him think that his troops could do -anything; and if Wellington were beaten here, then annihilation would -await the English, and Portugal would follow Spain in bowing to the yoke -of France. But if Wellington does take the risk, said Massena, “_Je le -tiens! demain nous finirons la conquête de Portugal, et en un pen de -jours je noyerai le léopard_.” Ney, Junot, and Regnier in vain -counselled Massena not to fling his men away upon attacking such a -tremendous position as that of Bussaco, and urged him to retire and -await reinforcements from France; but Massena laughed at their wise -fears, and decided to storm the height. “_There is only the rearguard of -the English there_,” he said; “_if the whole army is there so much the -better, the good luck of the darling of victory will not abandon him_.” - -Every cell and every corner of the monastery and dependencies were full -of English troops, “except Father Antonio of the Angels’ cell, which no -one would have, as it was filled with all sorts of old rags, rubbish, -and old iron he could pick up, and the monks had to sleep anywhere.” On -the 26th September the French were seen on the mountains opposite and -upon the plain below, where skirmishing was constant between -advance-guards. The north-east wall of the domain was partly demolished -and crowded with English troops, whilst batteries of artillery topped -the crest of the ridge, and Crawford’s corps held an outlying spur that -projects into the plain from opposite the north gate (Porta da Rainha) -of the wood. Lord Wellington rose very early on the morning of the 27th, -and to the dismay of the monks ordered his baggage to be sent out of the -wood towards Coimbra. It was not for flight, as the monks feared, but -prudence, and after breakfast the great general rode out and took his -stand upon the top of the ridge of Bussaco, overlooking the long valley. -His own troops were to a large extent hidden behind the crest of the -hill, and occupied the whole length of the mountain from beyond the -Mondego on the north-east to the monastery on the west, Crawford’s -position on the projecting spur on the English left flank making the -position at that end practically semicircular; this left flank -consequently enfiladed with its artillery the face of the declivity upon -whose crest Wellington’s centre was stationed. On the extreme right of -the English, on the other side of the Mondego, General Hill was in -command, with the Portuguese under General Fane; but the whole of the -rest of the Anglo-Portuguese army was posted upon or behind the long -crest of Bussaco, the extreme left under General Crawford being thrust -forward upon the projecting spur. At six o’clock on the morning of the -27th September, under cover of a heavy mist, two desperate attacks were -delivered upon the centre of the English position. That on the right of -the centre was led by Regnier with incredible dash and bravery, but with -terrible loss to the French. A whole division of Frenchmen at one point -here finally struggled to the summit of the ridge, and the eagles -planted on the granite crest proclaimed to Massena that the victory was -won. But the 88th and 45th regiments were in reserve behind the crest, -and at the captured position gallant Picton was in command. Like an -avalanche the two regiments, with a Portuguese battalion, advanced along -the ridge with fixed bayonets at the charge. With irresistible impetus -they swept all before them. The French division was hurled -helter-skelter down the precipitous declivity with hideous ruin and -devastation. All the face of Bussaco at that point was sown with the -dead and dying, the French loss exceeding four thousand, and the legions -of the Darling of Victory experienced the bitterness of their first -defeat. This awful carnage took place at some little distance to the -right of where Wellington stood on the summit of the ridge though well -within sight, and a similar attempt, but with even less success was made -still nearer to him on his left; whilst a stubborn and sanguinary -struggle took place upon the spur on the extreme English left occupied -by Crawford and Packe, upon one point of which now stands the obelisk -commemorating the battle. - -[Illustration: BUSSACO’S IRON RIDGE.] - -The English and Portuguese under English officers vied with each other -in stubborn bravery, and the moral result of Bussaco was tremendous, -though the material advantage was small. From that hour of defeat the -legions of the Emperor knew that they were not invincible, and the sun -that was to set at Waterloo first turned its meridian when Massena’s -gallant infantry were hurled headlong down the hill. By a masterly piece -of strategy Wellington, the day after the victory, sent off a division -to occupy Coimbra, and when defeated Massena by a circuitous route -arrived in the neighbourhood of the city he found himself forestalled, -though the English shortly after evacuated it and fell back. The lines -of Torres Vedras finally frustrated the French, but Bussaco was the -turning-point of victory. - -The monkish diarist has many poignant little stories to tell of the -horrors into which the monastery was plunged during and after the -battle. The wounded were everywhere, but were packed especially close in -the little unfinished chapel outside the walls of the wood opposite -Crawford’s position, now a commemorative chapel where many relics of the -fight are shown. - -At midnight on the 28th an English officer hurried to the monastery and -reported that Massena was retreating and endeavouring to reach Coimbra -by another road. The night was dark and the rain fell heavily, but -Wellington rose from his bed, and at once gave orders for the English -army to march upon Coimbra. Like magic the monastery and wood—even the -great mountain itself—was freed from armed men, and before midday -nothing was left but the débris of battle and the dead and wounded. The -monk who tells his simple tale says that they managed to give beds in -the monastery to most of the English officers during their stay, “and a -general who was in the bishop’s chapel had a tablecloth, two brass -candlesticks, and a great copper jar for water, and also some napkins. -All of this,” he adds, “was lost.” “To Lord Wellington,” he continues, -“we gave the best napkins we had, four dozens of candles, and everything -that the other officers were continually asking for. Even to the common -soldiers and the people who came for refuge, we gave salt and all we -could. We gave out a lot of wine, bread, cheese, oil, and other things -for the troops, and when Lord Wellington was leaving he sent word to the -prior that he would pay for what had been supplied, if he would tell him -the amount. The prior replied that he asked for nothing but peace. This -monastery of ours lost very heavily by the troops. Nearly everything we -provided for the beds and tables of the officers disappeared, and not a -thing of any value was left.... Besides this they stole all the oranges -in our two orchards, they forced the door of the storehouse and took all -the bread and wine they chose, with a basket of eggs, and a comb of -honey, and many other things. Indeed they acted just as badly or worse -than the French.” - -And so, after the short agony, the wave of war and horror swept away -from Bussaco, leaving only the memory behind; and the sacred wood was -abandoned to the white-robed monks:— - - “The Carmelite, who in his cell recluse - Was wont to sit, and from a skull receive - Death’s silent lesson, wheresoe’er he walked, - Henceforth may find his teacher. He shall see - The Frenchman’s bones in glen and grove, on rock - And height where’er the wolves and carrion birds - Have strewn them, washed in torrents bare and bleached - By sun and rain, and by the winds of Heaven.” - -[Illustration: THE BATTLE MONUMENT, BUSSACO.] - -It is all forgotten now, and nothing matters much, I mused, as I -wandered up the dark avenue of cypress, yew, and pine that leads to the -low three-arched façade of the old monastery. Before the quaint little -one-storey porch, faced with designs of coats-of-arms, flowers, and -scrolls in black and white mosaic, stands an ancient cross, and within -the entrance is the tiny cloister and church that alone remains of the -monastery. I wandered into the dim cloister full of thoughts of -Bussaco’s baptism of blood, though it was all quiet and peaceful now in -this humble retreat. At each corner of the cloister stands a dismantled -altar, faced with coloured tiles of Talavera majolica, and the walls -between the windows are hung with mouldering and tattered canvases of -dead and gone Carmelites—saintly men whose bones lie beneath our feet -and in the little green enclosure formed by the cloister. Around the -walls on three sides are the doors of the cells, each door covered, as -are the timbers of the cloister, with rough cork bark, which adds to the -appearance of antiquity. One picture attracted my attention, a poor -defaced painting, faded by time and weather, representing at full length -a white-clad monk holding a skull in his left hand, and in his right a -scroll. Something noble and dignified in the appearance of the face -attracted me, and I tried to decipher the almost effaced inscription on -the scroll. It was difficult, but at last I read that the monk was the -“Reverend Father, Fray Luis de Jesus,” who in the world had been called -the Marquis of Mancera, when the seventeenth century was young. And -beneath the name this distich ran:— - - “A morte me fas deixar - O que me podia danar.” - -As I pondered on this curious couplet, “Death makes me leave What might -me grieve,” in the shadowy cloister, there came towards me a phantom of -the past. It was an old, old man dressed in brown undyed homespun, short -jacket, and breeches of a bygone fashion, and the universal black -knitted stocking nightcap of the Portuguese peasant. He hobbled out of -the cell where the great duke had slept the nights before the battle; -and as he came slowly towards me, supported by a long staff, he -courteously doffed his cap, and wished me good day. He was, he told me, -ninety-three years old, but his eyes were still bright and his skin -clear, and I fell into discourse with the ancient, as we rested together -upon a bench in the darkling cloister, through the end door of which a -bright splash of orange sunlight sent shimmering waves into the dimness. - -Yes! _graças à Deus_, he was well, notwithstanding his great age, and he -dwelt, past work now, with his son, a sort of foreman on the domain, in -the double cell which had been that of the prior of the monastery. He -was born in a neighbouring village, and had never been far away. He had -witnessed the expulsion of the monks and the building of the beautiful -palace that had pushed aside the pathetic abode of penitence, humility, -and patience. In his prime he had known and talked to many of those who -had witnessed the great battle on Bussaco’s slopes, and he told me -artlessly, and in his quavering treble, how all down the slope, upon -which I saw him the next day, the dead and wounded Frenchmen had lain -thickly, with their arms, drums, and big shakoes scattered around them; -how the poor wretches, crying in their agony for a draught of water, -were refused by the country people, who hated so bitterly the invaders -of their fatherland; how the good monks strove their hardest, succouring -the wounded, French, English, and Portuguese alike, and reverently -burying the dead in consecrated ground. - -As the old man spoke, quietly and gently, telling at first-hand the -story of nearly a century ago, my mind went back to another old man whom -I had known when I was little more than a child, who himself had fought -in this battle; but to my eager inquiries for details had little of -satisfaction to impart. But, somehow, the mere fact of having known an -actor in the scene, however inarticulate, and now to be speaking upon -the spot with one who had all his life heard direct from those who -witnessed it the story that made his countryside for ever famous, -brought nearer to me the vivid vision of long ago. Bussaco fight to me -for a brief space was real, as Salamanca and Vitoria never can be, and I -feel that for one half hour I have lived in the time when the giants of -the world contended for mastery. - -Outside the cloister the dream vanished. The lofty white tower with its -golden globe, emblem of Portugal’s princely pioneer of extended empire, -spoke of another age and aroused other memories: peace, luxury, and -security reigned now supreme in this ancient abode of austerity, and no -invader of the land was possible. The far-spread forest wafted its -balsamic breath to me, and the myriad leaves softly whispered in the -sensuous breeze, as if that awful day of the 27th September 1810 had -never dawned upon the sacred wood. Bussaco is beautiful enough to live -in the present without its one cruel memory, gently pensive occasionally -at the thought of the stern, sad, anchorites who laboured to make it -perfect for the glory of God. But to Englishmen—aye, and to Frenchmen -and Portuguese too—there must come at least once during their stay a -rousing bugle blast that calls their souls to arms and bids them honour -their glorious dead who stood and fell so gallantly upon Bussaco’s -granite ridge in the long long ago. - -[Illustration: ENTRANCE TO THE CLOISTER, BUSSACO.] - - - - - V - COIMBRA, THOMAR, AND LEIRIA - - -The morning was sparkling, the sky without a fleck, and the air like -draughts of nectar, as I slowly descended from the monastery and hotel -of Bussaco, through the lovely umbrageous “valley of ferns” to the “Gate -of Grottoes,” in the south wall of the wood, where I had directed a -carriage to await me and carry me to Coimbra, fifteen miles distant. I -was loath to leave this exquisite spot, which art and nature have -conspired to make perfect; the fairy glens, the unrivalled prospects -from the heights, the spacious magnificence and homely comfort of the -guest-house—but I had already exceeded my allotted time, and other -places called me. - -[Illustration: ON THE SUMMIT OF BUSSACO, THE CRUZ ALTA.] - -Our road lay downward for a mile or two, through a beautiful country of -pines and gorgeous stretches of purple heather in full bloom; and here -and there long trellised vineyards, with the red bronze of the -vine-leaves adding a splash of colour to the scene. As we wound down and -along the plain, there always towered above us, as it seemed right -overhead, the “Cruz Alta” of Bussaco amidst the trees at the highest -point of the wood, near where the wall limited the greenery; and soon -the whole of the long, sharp hog’s-back of granite ridge, standing clear -and distinct from surrounding mountains, tremendous in bulk, is seen -from the plain. It was hard to realise that only yesterday I had stood, -without fatigue or trouble, upon that giddy height of the Cruz Alta, -which looked from here as if an eagle alone might reach it. - -Patient ox-teams toil along, led by small boys in black nightcaps, -gravely courteous to the stranger, and black-eyed solemn children play -soberly by the wayside and take no heed. Soon we pass through the big, -poor-looking village of Pampilhosa, and leave the pines and heather -behind us; for here down in the valley olives, cork trees, ilex, and -vines abound, with figs, pears, and apples, in orchards nestled round -the white cottages. Aloe hedges, with the big, fleshy lancet leaves of -silver-grey, show that we are in a sub-tropical land, and patches of -succulent sugar-cane for cattle fodder grow brilliantly green against -the maize and millet fields; whilst all along the wayside the -light-leafed poplars rear their straight shafts, heavily burdened by -masses of purple grapes and flaming vine leaves, the only sign of -autumn, though October is now upon us. - -As we near Coimbra, though it is not much past noon, we meet many groups -of handsome country women, with, as usual, heavy burdens upon their -heads, returning home from the weekly market in the city. Barefooted -they go invariably, with their fine broad shoulders, full bosoms, -classical faces, and broad, low brows, their gay kerchiefs on head and -bosom, and their fine eyes gazing straight forth with modest dignity; -and mentally I deny assent to the boast of Guimarães that its maids and -matrons reign supreme in buxom grace, for those of Coimbra need bow the -head to none on earth. All around the city are gently rounded undulating -hills covered by olive orchards, and as the road tops one of them we see -the picturesque old capital beneath us upon its steep slope, the broad -Mondego at its foot, and beyond the river a high green ridge crowned by -an immense white convent. - -In the ancient times, as the Christian monarchs wrested from the Moors -one territory after another, and drove the Crescent ever farther south, -the capital of Portugal followed the victorious standard, and Guimarães -soon had to cede its place to Coimbra, which remained the capital from -the time of the first Affonso (Henriques) in the twelfth century until -the extinction of his dynasty in the fourteenth, and occasionally later. -Coimbra is crowded with memories of the heroic times, of combats with -the Moors, and of deeds of violence and blood perpetrated within its -walls; and in its quaint crowded streets are corners that can hardly -have changed since the Affonsos and Sanchos here held their court—the -Arco d’Almedina leading out of the principal street, Rua do Visconde da -Luz, for instance, and the quaint renascence palace, incorrectly called -the palace of the martyred Maria de Telles, in the Rua de Sub-Ripas. - -But to the famed Church of Santa Cruz, all that remains intact of a vast -Augustian monastery, the pilgrim’s steps first turn. It stands in an -open place at the end of the Rua do Visconde da Luz, sunk several feet -below the present level of the street, and the magnificent Manueline, or -Portuguese renascence front is spoilt by a mean and hideous detached -portico, in front of the real doorway, with its fine carved figures and -capricious canopies. The lower part of the octagonal tower is much -damaged, and the delicately carved decorations destroyed; but enough -remains of the upper part to prove the magnificence with which King -Manuel in the beginning of the sixteenth century rebuilt the sepulchre -of the earliest kings. In this church, of which the interior, lined with -pictorial blue tiles, is now reduced to eighteenth-century aridity, with -the exception of the roof and chancel where the magnificent tombs with -recumbent figures of Affonso Henriques and his son, King Sancho, shame -the tastelessness of the later work, a dramatic scene was once enacted. -Both these first kings of Portugal had worn the habit of St. Augustine, -and were lay members of this monastery where their bones were laid. In -order to establish his right to the patronage of the foundation, King -Manuel, in 1510, rebuilt the church and monastery in the exuberant and -gorgeous style associated with his reign; and when the time came to -restore the bodies of the kings to the new sepulchres prepared for them, -Manuel caused the mummified corpse of Affonso Henriques to be clad in -royal robes and kingly crown, enthroned before the high altar of Santa -Cruz, and there receive the homage of his subjects as if still alive. -The pulpit of the church, the work of Jean de Rouen, though stripped now -of its side pilasters and famous canopy, is one of the most splendid -examples of early French renascence; but the richest treasure of the -church is a splendid early triptych, in the mysterious style of the -so-called Gran Vasco (who is a mythical painter), in which the early -Flemings are imitated exactly by apparently Portuguese hands. This -triptych, which should be compared with the “Fountain of Life” described -in the chapter on Oporto, and also with the famous “St. Peter” at Vizeu, -is signed “Vellascus,” and represents in its three panels the “Ecce -Homo,” the “Calvary” and the “Pentecost,” with the exquisite finish and -glowing colour of Van Eyck and Memling. The cloisters of the church are -a beautiful specimen, as is much of the exterior of the church itself, -of the peculiar Manueline renascence Gothic, of which I have so -frequently spoken, the motives being the capricious intertwining of -cordage and branches, spiral bossed mouldings, exuberant pinnacles, and -pendent floreated ornaments on the interior lines of arches and -vaultings. Of this style the Bussaco palace-hotel is a notable modern -specimen, and in a later chapter I propose to treat in some detail the -other examples inspected during my trip. By the side of Santa Cruz, -separated from it by a road formerly spanned by a high bridge, lies a -splendid massive tower, and a huge block of the old monastic buildings -now turned into a squalid barrack, so often the fate of the profanated -religious houses in Portugal, whilst behind the church and cloister lies -another large portion also turned to secular uses. - -[Illustration: A STREET IN COIMBRA.] - -Coimbra is famous as the seat of learning for all Portugal—for many -centuries, and still, the only university town in the realm. The huge -square bulk of the university buildings on the crest of the hill -overlooking the town typify the absolute domination of the place by the -academical tradition. The hotel on the Alameda, like other hostelries of -its sort, has no lack of commercial customers, but even they, assertive -as they are, are swamped by the university professors, staff and -graduates, who flock to its tables for their meals; whilst in the -streets bookshops jostle each other all filled with text-books, and the -unmistakable students are everywhere. And yet, with all this academical -presence, there is none of that staid atmosphere of aloof erudition -which is especially noticeable at Cambridge, and, to a lesser degree, at -Oxford. It is true that the youngsters at Coimbra affect a garb at which -the present-day undergraduate at Cambridge would scoff, if he did not -proceed to more violent means to reduce its primness. A very -clerical-looking black frock-coat, buttoned to the chin, is _de -rigueur_, covered by a long black cloak reaching to the wearer’s heels, -although, to tell the truth, this cloak, like a Cambridge third-year -man’s gown, is oftener festooned over one shoulder or trailed along upon -the arm than worn decorously as intended. - -These Coimbra youths wear no head covering, and affect a gravity of -demeanour whilst in the streets that gives them all the appearance of -budding priests. But the absence of a collegiate system brings both -staff and students into more direct contact with the town than is the -case with our older universities, and the peculiar learned atmosphere of -the High at Oxford or King’s Parade at Cambridge does not exist. It is a -stiff climb up the hill to the university, and the cathedrals. The -former is built round three sides of a large court, with a tower in one -corner and an observatory in the open face, the enormous palace of the -rector occupying one entire side of the square. Seven good light -classrooms and a fine hall, senate-house, and examination rooms, give -ample accommodation; and the view of the city from the end of the -corridor containing the lecture-rooms is exceedingly fine. The library -is a gorgeous gilt and over-decorated room in the florid taste of the -eighteenth century, the worst possible style for a place of quiet study; -and almost the only attractive feature in the exterior of the university -is the fine Manueline doorway to the chapel in the great quadrangle. -Here twisted cables, rich mouldings, floreated crockets and pinnacles, -armillary spheres and crosses, the usual notes of the style, mark the -work as being of the period when Portugal was ebullient with feverish -energy and ambition. - -Hard by is the bishop’s palace, now almost a ruin, but with some lovely -bits of Manueline, and a delightful sixteenth-century courtyard like a -scene upon the stage. The old cathedral (Sé Velha) upon the same hill, -is perhaps the most perfect and unspoilt specimen of pure Romanesque of -the twelfth century in the Peninsula. The deeply recessed west door, -with round arch, quadruple ball mouldings, finely decorated Byzantine -Romanesque pillars, and a large, recessed window in the same style -above, occupy a square projecting battlemented tower flanked on each -side by other square towers at the corners. On the south side the early -renascence door reaching to the battlemented roof of the aisle is -practically in ruins; but the pure, solid Romanesque of the rest of the -building stands sturdy as ever after eight centuries. Small and grave, -the nave and aisles, with the beautiful round-headed, recessed -clerestory windows and capricious Romanesque Byzantine capitals, remain -unmarred, though gilt and alabaster altars and chapels clamour for -notice, and splendid sarcophagi of bishops and nobles on all sides -contrast with the stern lines of the original building. Two features of -the more recent periods deserve attention, the truly superb high-altar -of Flemish workmanship of the first years of the sixteenth century, and -the circular chapel of the Soares family, dated 1566. I could not tear -myself away from the contemplation of the exterior of this old Sé on the -hill over Coimbra, and at night when the darkness of the ancient city -was hardly disturbed by flickering lamps, I lingered in the square -around the battlemented walls and sturdy towers, reconstructing the -scenes that had been enacted here, and calling up in imagination from -their eternal sleep those great ones who rested so quietly within. - -The new cathedral (Sé Nova) is a plain and ugly pseudo-classical -building, in the so-called Jesuit style, standing on the summit of the -hill, and only merits notice on account of its treasures. These form a -veritable museum of early ecclesiastical art, from the twelfth century -onward. I have rarely seen a finer specimen of goldsmith’s work than the -custode of George d’Almeida, of pure Portuguese Gothic, in a similar -style, but more imposing than the chalice already described at the -Misericordia at Oporto. - -Looking across the beautiful river Mondego from the acacia-shaded -alameda where stands the hotel, the high wooded ridge straight opposite -is crowned by the vast white convent of Santa Clara, once the glory of -Coimbra and the cloister of queens, now partly destroyed and partly -desecrated and turned into a factory. The heat was oppressive on the -morning after my arrival at Coimbra, but a pilgrimage to the shrine of -Saint Isabel the Queen, and to the shrine of love near to it, could not -be foregone. Crossing the bridge I first wended my way to a beautiful -villa almost on the banks of the river, in whose grounds there stands -the Gothic ruin of a palace, and adjoining it gushing from a rock shaded -by dark cedars a copious spring leaps joyously along a stone channel of -some twenty feet long into a stone tank covered with water lilies. It is -a lovely tranquil spot, where no sound reaches but the rustling of -leaves and the gurgling of crystal water, and yet here, tradition says, -was enacted in the long ago one of those tragedies that inspire poets, -painters, and dramatists for all time. It was in 1355, and Ines de -Castro, the lovely mistress of the Prince Dom Pedro, had so infatuated -him that he refused to marry another at his father’s bidding. The King, -Alfonso IV., incensed at the recalcitrancy of his heir, caused Ines to -be done to death here beside the “Fountain of Love” by three courtiers. -The son, Dom Pedro, rose in rebellion, and saw his father no more; but -when two years afterwards the king died and Pedro succeeded him, he -worked his ghastly revenge upon those who had persecuted his beloved. -Ines had been buried at Santa Clara, the convent near, to which this -estate belonged, and now her body was disinterred, dressed in royal -robes, crowned with a diadem and adorned with jewels, and placed, a -crumbling corpse, thus arrayed upon a throne in the monastery-Church of -Alcobaça, whilst all the courtiers upon their knees kissed the dead hand -of her whom they had insulted and contemned in life. Upon a stone by the -side of the fountain this verse of Camões is inscribed:— - - “As filhas do Mondego morte escura, - Longo tempo chorando morarão: - E por memoria eterna em fonte pura - As lagrimas choradas transformarão, - O nome e reputação que inda dura - Dos amores de Ignes que ali pasarão - Vede que fresca fonte rega as flores - Que lagrimas são agua, e o nome amores.” - -“The fountain of love in the garden of tears” is the spot called to this -day, and a crumbling little Gothic convent founded by the lover king -between this and the river bears the name of “the convent of tears.” - -Above us gleams the long white building of Santa Clara, and zigzagging -up the steep hill lies the path, shrines at each turn of the way -inviting to devotion and to rest. The sun beats fiercely on the steep -white road, but the view from the summit upon the esplanade that faces -the convent church repays the trouble of the climb. Opposite, across the -river, the city is piled up upon its grand amphitheatre of hills, the -huge, square bulk of the university and the Sé Nova topping it all; -whilst beyond the rolling hills covered with olives provide a dark-green -background, which throws into higher relief the blue, white, and pink -houses grouped in the limpid air, under a cloudless sky, flooded with -sunlight. - -Of all the rich foundation of the royal convent of Santa Clara all that -now remains devoted to religious uses is the white church, and the -adjoining sanctuary of the saintly queen, tended by ladies dedicated to -charitable work, but not cloistered. The church is mainly of the -seventeenth century, in the usual “Jesuit” style, and is crowded with -gilt and carved woodwork; a large stately, unencumbered interior, -containing several sarcophagi of members of the royal house, and the -rich treasure in the sacristy must on no account be missed. A turret -stair at the west end leads into a small loft overlooking the church, -and richly, but sombrely decorated. Here stands a little altar, and on -lifting a trap in the centre of it, and peering down through a grating a -most impressive scene is presented to the view. A large, solemn -choir-chamber, with carved stalls in rows, extending lengthwise along -it, and the ample central space occupied by a magnificent canopy, under -which, lit by a tiny red lamp burning eternally before it, lies a great -coffin of rich repoussé silver, in which there rests the body of the -sainted queen, the patron of Coimbra, the heroic Aragonese princess, who -in 1323, rode between the armies of her husband, King Diniz, and their -rebellious son, and stayed their unnatural strife at her own great -peril. - -[Illustration: SANTA CLARA, COIMBRA.] - -One other royal shade at least haunts the royal convent of Santa Clara. -Here, retired from the turmoil of ambitions and wrongs, of which through -her youth she had been the victim, passed the long years of her devout -renunciation that injured Princess Joan, “the Beltraneja,” daughter of -Henry IV. of Castile, whom the great Isabel the Catholic ousted from her -inheritance. Here in Coimbra, too, the tragedy of Maria de Telles, -subject of poems and plays innumerable, was enacted in real life. King -Ferdinand the Handsome, about 1371, though betrothed to a Castilian -princess, fell in love with a lady called Leonor de Telles, and so -endangered the recently concluded alliance. His people rose in revolt, -and the lady’s family, especially her sister Maria, resented the -adulterous connection. Leonor, secure in her mastery over the king, -wreaked a terrible revenge upon those who opposed her; poison, the -dagger, and the dungeon doing her fell work, until all Portugal was in -fear at her feet, and the king became her wedded husband. The virtuous -sister, Maria de Telles, happily married to the king’s half-brother, -João, and safe in her palace at Coimbra, was difficult to attack. But -the wicked Leonor was equal to the occasion, and, like a female Iago, -instilled into the ears of the prince suspicions of his wife’s fidelity, -and with forged evidence prompted him to revenge. The enraged husband -murdered his protesting and innocent wife in cold blood at Coimbra (but -not at the house now shown as the scene of the tragedy), and as soon as -the foul deed was done Queen Leonor, who had been waiting in an -adjoining room, entered, and, in the presence of the murdered Maria, -mocked at the husband’s pain, and showed him that her sister was -innocent. The prince in his rage attempted to murder the treacherous -queen, but was seized, and subsequently escaped into exile, whilst -Leonor lived to perpetrate other misdeeds. - -I paced the acacia-shaded alameda as the sun sank below the hills, -thinking of these sad memories of the times long past; of the noble -self-sacrifice of the sainted queen, of the long agony of the -Beltraneja, and of the blood-stained soul of Leonor. The air was cool -and fresh, and the glowing sunset faded from crimson to dead rose in the -west; but across the shimmering river the after-glow, like a luminous -opal dawn, threw up the black silhouette of the wooded ridge, and the -vast bulk of Santa Clara on the crest stood sharp and clear as if cut -out of black velvet and laid upon pearly satin. And just over the great -convent church a star of dazzling brilliancy—the brightest star, it -seemed to me, I have ever beheld—blazed out alone in the pellucid sky, -and tipped with diamond the cross above the silent silver shrine with -its dim red lamp burning through the centuries. Thus sweet -self-sacrifice conquers over time and death. The mouldering bones are -naught, darkness enshrouds even the huge building in which they lie; yet -far aloft the cross still stands distinct above all, gemmed with its -glittering star, as the eternal memory of good deeds done still -illumines the blackness of the world. - -The next morning I took the train for Chão de Maçãs, a little roadside -station, where a carriage had been ordered to meet me, and carry me two -leagues over the mountains to Thomar. There was some stay at Pombal, -where it was a feast day, and the peasant costumes were seen at their -best—good upstanding people these, gaily clad, sober, and orderly, -coming to the railway stations in good time and unhurried, but not hours -before the train starts, as the peasants do in Spain. In the market, -under the shadow of the great mediæval castle ruins on the hill, they do -their buying and selling, live-stock for the most part to-day, without -vociferation, but with an earnest quietness which is as far as possible -from depression. Here at Pombal, and at Albergaria near, the men wear -brown undyed homespun jackets, and trousers girt with red sashes. The -bag cap is almost universal, and mutton-chop whiskers are the rule, but -what will attract a foreign visitor most in their dress are the curious -triple-caped ulsters, made of layers of grass, seen in many places in -Portugal in wet weather, but especially in this neighbourhood. These -garments, bulky as they look, are not heavy, and are an excellent -protection against heavy rain. - -The women here have very full, short, gathered skirts, and though none -of them wear shoes or stockings hardly any are without heavy ancient -jewelry of gold filigree apparently of considerable value. The bodices -of the dresses are mostly red or yellow, and a broad horizontal stripe -of bright colour often enlivens the skirt also, their brilliant -head-kerchiefs being usually topped by a broad-brimmed velveteen hat, -for the pork-pie hat of the north has been left behind now. - -We had mounted into the country of pines and heather when we stopped at -the little station of Chão de Maçãs, dumped down, as it seemed, in the -wilderness with just a row of one-storey whitewashed cottages opposite. -But where was the carriage? None had been heard of there, and I found -myself several miles from anywhere, and with no means of conveyance. -Sympathetic interest was not wanting. A muleteer loudly deplored that he -was engaged to carry a load of goods to Ourem, and could not take me to -Thomar. Clearly something must be done, however; so the little meeting -of grave consultants adjourned from the station platform to the door of -the humble general shop and tavern opposite to continue the important -discussion. It happened that the whole village was just then deeply -absorbed in witnessing an itinerant barber cutting a man’s hair in an -open stable whilst the onlookers criticised and suggested improvements -and variations in the process; but when the news spread that a strange -gentleman was stranded at Chão de Maçãs with no conveyance to take him -to Thomar, the critics of the barber’s art adjourned _en masse_ to the -tavern, and respectfully joined in the discussion as to my fate. They -were quite unanimous in agreeing that the Senhor Mathias Araujo, the -hotelkeeper at Thomar, could not have received the letter or he would -certainly have sent the carriage, of that there could be no doubt -whatever. But oh! that _correio_, the post, was always at fault; and -then many anecdotes were given at great length of hairbreadth escapes -and heavy losses incurred by the sins and omissions of the Portuguese -post-office. All this was no doubt interesting, but not helpful to me in -my quandary, and I gently led the talk again to the chance of my getting -a conveyance. The outlook was not hopeful, but the sympathetic muleteer -somewhat doubtfully suggested to the innkeeper that some one near had a -pair of mules. A significant look passed round, but the hint was not -lost upon me, and by dint of much diplomacy a _rapaz_ was sent off for -the mules. He returned by-and-by with an excellent-looking pair of -animals, and an ancient shandrydan was pulled out of a stable. I -wondered what had caused the hesitation, but my wonder did not last -long. No sooner were the mules hitched to the bar than they began to -kick furiously. Kicking chains were of little use; the lout who drove -the team used his whip with heart and arm, the pieced and spliced rope -and chain harness was strained almost to breaking, and the ancient -“machine” threatened every moment to disintegrate into splinters. - -[Illustration: A COUNTRY RAILWAY STATION.] - -And so the team kicked their hardest all the seven miles to Thomar, and -performed the distance, as it seemed to me, in one continued gymnastic -exercise, more on their fore-legs than on their full complement of -limbs. But kicking mules were powerless to mar the delight of the drive. -The road was a perfect one, over hills covered with pines and dales -ablaze with purple heather. The cool mountain breeze, laden with the -scent of wild thyme, brought with it a new sense of delight which made -breathing a conscious enjoyment, and the jaded elderly person in the -shivering shandrydan felt impelled to shout aloud in mere exhilaration -of living in such an atmosphere. Only a three weeks before I had seen -Deeside at its best, but Deeside heather was dull, and the Deeside -pine-clad hills in their wreaths of clouds were depressing, in -comparison with this sparkling sweep of sandy moor and mountain. - -Turning the shoulder of the highest ridge we came in sight of the vast -and beautiful valley below us with Thomar in its midst upon its river -bank nestling in greenery, with its steep, abrupt hill and castle -standing sentinel over it. It was Sunday, and, although broad daylight -when I drove into Thomar, a flight of rockets rushed into the air from -the town-hall, and the braying of a brass band told me that the town was -_en fête_. It was, I learnt, the ceremony of prize-giving and treating -the school children by the town council, and all the little ones, clean, -chubby, and well-clad they looked, were trooping, shouting, and -cheering, as children do the world over. I found a warm welcome at the -Hotel União, and was soon convinced that the Chão de Maçãs meeting was -right in their assurance that the failure to send the carriage was from -no fault of the host, a gentleman of cultured manners and tastes, quite -unlike the ordinary type of Portuguese innkeeper. He was distressed to -have received no letter to advise him of my coming, as he ought to have -done two days before, but an hour or two afterwards he rushed into my -room, excited and triumphant. He had forced them to open the -post-office, Sunday though it was, and had rescued my letter from a heap -which some careless postman had neglected to deliver! Thenceforward -Senhor Jose Mathias Araujo, a pattern of Portuguese hotelkeepers, was -indefatigable in making me, a mere passing stranger though I was, of -whose name he had only heard vaguely, feel at home and comfortable at -Thomar. - -[Illustration: A CORNER OF THE TOWN HALL AND THE CONVENT, THOMAR.] - -The place is one which to my latest days I shall never forget. A clean -little rectangular town with straight streets of singularly modern -aspect, on the banks of an exquisitely beautiful stream fringed by trees -and gardens. The shops for the most part are but doorways open upon the -street, for they have not adopted the modern fashion of windows for the -display of goods. And life in general seems to pass drowsily, for with -the exception of a small factory in some ancient conventual buildings on -the farther bank of the stream, there is not much doing in the place. - -But the object of my coming to this sweet, dull, little town pervades it -everywhere. At the end of the three straight streets running from the -river to the square market-place, with its ancient church and town-hall, -there looms upon a steep hill, right up over the roofs as it seems, the -most splendid and interesting mediæval castle-monastery in this land of -hill-top strongholds—the ancient fortress headquarters of the crusading -knights of the Order of Christ, successors in Portugal of the Templars. -Thomar was the metropolis and fief of the Order, and on all sides the -emblem of their peculiar cross is evident. Impressed upon my mind for -ever is the view as I first gazed upon it from the main street (of -course, incongruously called now after Serpa Pinto) on the sparkling -autumn day. Clear and sharp high up on the hill against the indigo sky -stood a ruined bell tower through whose gaping window the light shone, -with tall, pointed cypresses by its side, and flanked by a mighty -stretch of warm, grey battlements, above which rose the bulk of a great -square keep. - -A zigzag path leads from behind the sixteenth-century town-hall in the -praça up the rocky sides of the precipitous hill. Gnarled olive trees, -dwarf oaks, and aloes grew in the crevices and amidst the ruins of outer -walls upon the face of the declivity; and the outer donjon, still -standing unwrecked across the path, shows the tremendous strength even -of these exterior defences. Above these loomed the Titanic walls, their -battlemented sides and turrets, all stained a golden yellow with the -lichen that covered them. The inner donjon, which adjoins the -picturesque ruined bell tower, gives entrance to a charming grassy -garden with tall cypresses, orange trees, and gay flowers, growing in -what was once the wide courtyard of the castle; and the huge square main -keep standing in the midst, all dismantled as it is, rears its -flame-tinged battlements as proudly as when the soldiers of the Cross -held this isolated stronghold against the hordes of Islam. The walls are -everywhere pierced with loopholes in the shape of a cross surmounting a -globe, and the cruciform device of the Order is graven upon stones on -all sides. - -[Illustration: SOME BEAUTIES OF THOMAR.] - -Connected with the walls of the ancient castle, and upon a somewhat -higher level than the keep, there stands the high round church of the -Templars, with buttresses of immense strength reaching to the parapet, -and a crumbling square bell tower upon one of its faces. Upon an ancient -slab let into the sides of the church an inscription tells how Dom -Affonso, first King of Portugal, and Gualdrim Paes, master of the -Portuguese Templars, constructed this edifice in 1108. Joined to this -ancient structure is one of the most astounding specimens of Manueline -architecture in Portugal, built in the early sixteenth century, when all -the country was pulsating with new life and eager longings. It is the -choir and chapter-house, and behind them is the ruin of the great -monastery of the Order of Christ. Words are weak to convey an idea of -the capricious splendour of the choir and chapter-house so far as they -remain undefaced, for later ages have done their best to spoil the -edifice. Eight cloisters have been built around it, and tacked on to it, -by the sixteenth and seventeenth centuries. Its lovely Manueline doorway -has been marred, and the east end of the building blocked as high as its -upper windows by the “Cloister of the Philips.” - -[Illustration: THE CHOIR AND CHAPTER-HOUSE, THOMAR.] - -But notwithstanding all the vandalism, enough of the Manueline building -remains intact to strike the beholder with reverent wonder at the -intricate beauty of the work, and the inexhaustible invention of the -design. The doorway stands in a recess reaching to the parapet, and -enclosed within an arch of surprising beauty, of which the under curve -is lined with an elaborate pendent ornament. Within the recess filling -the whole space and over the door itself, figures in niches stand under -canopies and upon pillars in which caprice and intricacy surpass -themselves. Coiled cables, bossed spirals, floreated pinnacles, -armillary spheres, crosses, and intertwined branches, stand out in high -relief and under cut, as if the sculptors had purposely sought -difficulties in order to overcome them. The arch of the door itself is -beyond description, so luxuriant is the design of the chiselled stone -which forms the three grooves and two spiral pilasters around it. The -parapet of the whole edifice is similarly rich, alternating the cross of -the Order with the armillary sphere; and although most of the lower part -of the walls is hidden, the view of the east end with its two corner -towers, as seen from the roof of the adjoining cloister, is magnificent. -The lower window, which lights the interior of the choir, is a massive -tangle of outstanding cables; each point being crowned by the cross and -the armillary sphere which formed the device of the grand master, the -famous Prince Henry the Navigator. Around one of the corner towers a -great chain cable, each link carved entire in stone, is braced, and -around the other an equally tremendous buckled belt, representing the -Order of the Garter, which the Prince, a Plantagenet on his mother’s -side, possessed. The upper window which lights the chapter-house is more -suggestive still. It is a highly decorated circular light bevilled into -the deep thickness of the wall, and represents upon the sloping inner -face of the circle a series of bulging staysails, each held down by a -rope. - -But all this description in detail is incapable of conveying an idea of -the richness of effect produced by the whole work. The exuberance of the -style and its tricky capriciousness may be, and are, condemned by -purists as in questionable taste; but as an outcome of national feeling, -and as an example of original inventive ingenuity and patience, this and -other notable specimens of the style, to which reference will be made -later, are of the highest interest to the student, and a delight to the -ordinary observer who can free himself from the straightlaced traditions -of the schools. - -Inside the grave old round church of the Templars, to which this -gorgeous edifice was to serve as a choir for the warrior monks of -Christ, a fine Byzantine altar stands in the centre. The interior of the -edifice itself is a quaint and curious mixture of Byzantine, Moorish, -Romanesque, and Gothic, the pillars being painted and gilt in oriental -taste, whilst the splendid canopy over the central altar is pure Gothic, -and dated 1500. In four of the eleven arched spaces upon the wall of the -circular church there are some ancient pictures of the highest interest, -the remaining seven having been stolen by the French invaders in the -Napoleonic wars. The paintings are fine enough to be by the hand of Jan -Van Eyck himself, and are, as usual, ascribed by Portuguese to the -mythical Gran Vasco. It is far more likely, however, that they may be -the work of a painter called Jean Dralia of Bruges, who was living in -this monastery at the end of the fifteenth century, and is buried here. -It is lamentable to see the condition to which these masterpieces have -been allowed to fall from sheer want of care; and unless they are -promptly rescued, a few years more will complete their ruin. - -The great choir, added on to the round church, presents in its interior -the same wealth of fancy as that already described on the outside; but -the wonderful choir stalls of the Manueline period were stolen or -destroyed during the French invasion. As I stood under the exquisitely -carved ceiling of this choir, looking towards the Byzantine altar in the -round church before me, my mind flew back to a scene enacted here in -April 1581, which I had more than once endeavoured to describe in -writing without having seen the place. Philip II. had followed in the -devastating steps of Alba to wrest from the native Portuguese pretender -the crown he coveted. Portugal had sullenly bent its neck to the yoke, -and the nobles had either been exiled or bought to the side of the -Spaniard. But one thing more was needed to make grim Philip legally King -of Portugal as well as King of Spain. The Portuguese Cortes, elected of -the people, though in this case elected with Alba’s grip upon its -throat, had to swear allegiance to the new monarch, and Philip had to -pledge his oath to respect the rights and liberties of his new subjects. -The stronghold of the Knights of Christ at Thomar was chosen by the -Spaniard for the crowning act of Portuguese national subjection; and -here Philip arrived on the 15th March 1581. On the 3rd April, in one of -those charming little letters to his orphan daughters, he wrote from -Thomar saying that the Cortes would sit soon, for many people were -already arriving, and the oaths would be taken as soon as they were met. -“You have heard,” he says, “that they insist upon my dressing in -brocade, much against my will, but they say it is the custom here.” - -On the 16th of April the church of the monastery was aglow with shimmer -of gold and gems and rich stuffs. Under a dais at the end of this choir -Philip sat in a robe of cloth of gold over a dress of crimson brocade; -though his heart was sad for the death of his last wife, and he hated -splendour in his broken old age. After mass had been said, the Cortes -did homage and swore to keep their faith to him as king; and then -stepping down from the throne, he advanced to the high altar and -solemnly pledged his word to respect the laws and liberties of Portugal. -How little he relished the splendour is seen in a letter he sent to his -girls from Thomar a fortnight later, as soon as he could find time to -write to those whom he loved more dearly than any other creatures on -earth. “How much I wish,” he wrote, “you could have seen the ceremony of -taking the oath from a window as my nephew [the Archduke Albert] did, -who saw everything excellently. But I send you a full account of it -all.... I have given the Golden Fleece to the Duke of Braganza, and he -went with me to mass, both of us wearing the collar of the Order; which -upon my mourning looked very bad, and I can tell you he looked much -smarter than I did, although they say that the day of the oath was the -first time he had worn low shoes, though everybody is wearing them here -now except myself.” Thomar, for the last time in its existence, was a -blaze of splendour for those six feverish weeks; for Spanish and -Portuguese nobles, jealous of each other, vied in lavish expenditure; -and then the fortress of the Knights was left to its solitude: gradually -royal encroachments stripped the Order of its wealth and power, and -Thomar lived in memory alone. - -The upper chamber of the Manueline building over the choir is the -chapter-house of the Order of Christ. A grand, low, pillared hall, with -the twisted cables and the repeated cross and sphere, testifying once -more to the reigning idea of the period of the Navigator Grand-Master. -Here it was that the Portuguese Cortes sat to confirm the religious act -of allegiance to Philip, and set the seal of subservience upon the -nation for nearly a century. Every carved stone and crocket has a story -to tell if we could but hear it. Here in the older monastic building the -Navigator himself held his chapters, dwelling in the adjoining palace, -in the intervals of his life-task upon his eyrie at Sagres; here in the -“cloisters of the Philips,” dull Philip III. held his monastic court -upon his one visit to Portugal; and the magnificent cloister of John -III. testifies to the classical reaction after the exuberance of the -times of his father Dom Manuel. - -In the quaint little Gothic cloister around the burial-place of the -monks, called the “Cloister of Dom Henrique,” a strange sight is to be -seen in the upper ambulatory. Baltasar de Faria was the instrument of -Philip II. in forcing the Spanish form of Inquisition ruthlessly upon -Portugal, and in cruelty surpassed his master. So bitterly hated was he -that the saying ran that earth itself would reject and refuse to -assimilate the body of such a monster. In the lid of a stone coffin in -the cloister a pane of glass is set, and he who will may gaze and see -how Baltasar de Faria looks now. He was a splendid courtier in his time, -and doubtless a gallant-looking one too, for it was a sumptuous age; but -the poor gentleman’s looks have now little to recommend them, as he lies -contorted and mummified but perfect in his narrow home, to be gazed and -wondered at by those who list—a scoff for the ribald, a text for the -moralist. - -More there was, much more, to describe in this wonderful monastery, -but I have said more than enough to prove that the visitor to -Portugal who misses Thomar has failed to see a relic, which, in its -way, has hardly an equal in Europe. The drives around Thomar are -exquisitely beautiful, the view from the hill across the river -embracing the monastery and the great white sanctuary of the -Misericordia, with its long _scala sacra_, upon the twin hill, being -one never to be forgotten. Just outside the town, hard by an ancient -pillar marking the junction place of the armies which won for a -second time the independence of Portugal from Spain (at Aljubarrota, -1385), there stands the beautiful old church of Santa Maria, a -perfect Gothic fane; and close to its west end a strong tower built -as a place of refuge for its constructors against the constant -attacks of the Moors. Much I should like to linger upon Thomar: upon -the quaint garb of the peasants, the picturesque bits of the old -Manueline church of St. João in the praça, upon the lovely private -gardens by the side of the stream, upon the noble aqueduct, and upon -the sweet tranquillity of the acacia-shaded walks; but I dare not -delay further, for the carriage is at the door of the humble though -hospitable, Hotel União, to carry me on this brilliant morning the -twenty-five miles to Leiria, where I must pass the night. As we -drove clear of the town the loveliness of its situation came home to -one with more intensity than ever. The peaceful stream winding -through the plain, its course marked by a continuous line of -poplars, the pine-clad hills all around—miles away but in this clear -air seeming within touching distance of the hand—the cluster of -white and pink houses with red roofs, and, almost sheer above them, -the two hills, one crowned by its never-to-be-forgotten -monastery-castle with its long battlemented walls, its high keep, -and, most striking of all, its gaunt bell tower, with its guard of -tall cypresses; whilst climbing up the gentler green slope of the -other hill is the snow-white _scala sacra_ of twenty-five flights of -steps leading to the gleaming sanctuary of the Misericordia. Above -all a sky of deep luminous blue, and pervading all the soft warm -air, sweet with the scent of thyme, basil, cistus, and pines. - -[Illustration: CHURCH OF ST. JOÃO IN THE PRAÇA, THOMAR.] - -Thus, for two hours or more, I drove over a good road, winding round the -foot of rising hills, and following the sinuosity of fertile valleys, -above me grey boulders, around me pines, olives, and sweeps of flowering -heather on the red earth. At length, afar off, there loomed a bolder -hill than the rest, rising abruptly and crowned by another great -fortress, as it seemed at an unscalable height, with a cluster of -ancient houses nestled just beneath it. Patience and a scarped road on -the hillside, however, enabled us to reach without apparent difficulty -half up the hill to the modern village of Ourem, where a rest for the -horses and a meal for myself had been agreed upon. The place was dead, -basking in the hot sunshine, all the village, as it seemed, baked to the -uniform yellowish-white colour of the soil of the hill upon which it -stood. The gaunt yellow castle above[1] softened only by the verdure of -a crown of pines, and just below its walls the ancient town and a great -monastery of long ago. - -[Illustration: THE BRIDGE AT THOMAR.] - -The hostelry was humble enough, but a chatty, shrewd-looking, old lady -provided an excellent luncheon for me in an upper room, and became -charmingly friendly when I praised her wine, of which she was very -proud, and with reason, grown, as she told me, in the vineyard at the -back of the house, and as good a wine of its sort as I care to drink. -She was equally pleased with the approval of her quince marmalade, and -pressed no end of home-made confections upon her passing guest, whilst -she kept repeating that “_os senhores ingleses que veem sempre alabão -muito o nosso vinho_;” for the approval of Englishmen in this country is -always taken as fixing the final seal of excellence upon anything. - -Outside in the main street of the town complete quiet reigned in the -fierce sunshine of midday. Against the indigo sky the immense castle on -its peak showed clear, as nothing is ever seen in our mist-laden -atmosphere. A man passes, bearing a great boat-shaped basket piled with -big black grapes, the bloom upon them still undisturbed; four cronies in -black nightcaps and with long staves in their hands gossip in the -parallelogram of black shadow thrown athwart the road by the church -tower; and, by-and-by, three lithe damsels with bright yellow -head-kerchiefs flowing as they walk, swing by joyously; then comes, -painfully hobbling beneath a heavy burden of yellow gourds, a barefooted -old woman, and anon a man riding _à la gineta_, a pacing nag with -brass-embossed harness, and great box stirrups. Then silence again for -another half-hour, and this is life at Ourem. - -Still through a land of pine and heather with beautiful little valleys -full of vines, figs, and olives, we drove for two hours more, and, just -as the black shadows began to lengthen, we drove into the town of -Leiria, the Calippo of the Romans, and for long the stronghold whence -the Moors harried the advancing Christians to the north. It is a lovely -place on the banks of the Liz, set in the midst of pine-clad hills, and -the centre of a great agricultural district. Here, again, the two abrupt -eminences that loom over the town are crowned respectively by the -enormous mediæval stronghold and the religious house that for ever seems -to keep it company—the sword and the cross, twin instruments of soldier -and priest, to keep the people in subjection, both alike happily now -superseded, in Portugal at least, by more enlightened means. - -[Illustration: IN THE MAIN STREET OF OUREM.] - -I started soon after my arrival at the inn, where there was no -particular temptation to remain, to scale the hill from which the castle -frowned down upon the town. The townspeople seemed to care nothing for -the vast ruin that to me was the one attraction of the place. No one -cared to guide me up the steep. It was easy, they said, to find the way -by following the path, and the castle ruins were open to all. So I -started alone, and wound round the lower ascent, finding myself at last -on the side of the hill farthest from the town, and at a point from -which the castle was apparently quite inaccessible, as the ascent was -almost a sheer precipice. A couple of women and some children were in a -field by the wayside, and from them I learnt that I should have taken -another path, and have ascended on the opposite face of the hill. It was -annoying, for the day was already declining, and I had other things to -do on the morrow. Just then an officious urchin of twelve volunteered to -show me a way he knew of by the side I was on, and rather than lose my -opportunity I followed him across a ploughed field to the foot of the -steep. - -A rocky path aslant the hill amidst the undergrowth seemed to offer no -great difficulty at first, and I began the climb. The path, if it can so -be called, was continued by other slanting ascents more difficult than -the first, but still intent only upon each next step, I scrambled on by -the aid of tufts of esparto grass, until I became aware that the track -had ended altogether, and that the farther ascent was apparently -impossible. Not until then had I looked down, but when I did so I -understood in a moment the peril in which I was. I stood at a height of -some five hundred feet above the level, and descent by the way I had -come was absolutely impossible. For the last hundred feet I had only -scrambled up by the aid of occasional stones that afforded a momentary -lodgment for the toe and by clutching tufts of grass, but these would -not help me to descend. The pine-needles that lay thick underfoot made -the slope as slippery as ice, and I knew that if I attempted to retrace -my steps I should certainly be dashed to pieces. The poor women below -knew it too; for one was wringing her hands in horror, and had thrown -her apron over her face to hide from her the coming catastrophe, whilst -the other was loudly bewailing, whilst she belaboured the head of the -urchin who had been the cause of the trouble. For one moment panic -seized me, but it was succeeded immediately by a cool wave of critical, -speculative interest, as if another person’s life and not mine were at -stake, as to the sporting chance of my ever being able to negotiate the -hundred feet of sheer precipice that lay between me and the top. Each -step achieved was a triumph, and my whole soul was concentrated upon the -chances of the next being successful. Of course, the ascent had to be -made by long zigzags on the face of the precipice, and again and again, -as a stone slipped from beneath my foot or a frond of bracken yielded to -my grasp, I gave myself up for lost. But I never glanced below, and the -jagged and frowning battlements above me gradually drew nearer and -nearer, until at last, I know not how, I stood beneath them, panting but -safe, and then, looking from the giddy height to the field below, I saw -quite a large group of peasants now, waving their black nightcaps, and -shouting in token of rejoicing at my safety. - -The great castle around me, built by King Diniz the Farmer, in the -thirteenth century, upon the site of the Moorish stronghold, was of -immense extent, and included ruins of residential edifices of later -mediæval times. As I saw it now it was a dream of beauty. The setting -sun falling athwart its lichen-covered stones dyed them as red as blood. -Within the vast crenellated walls two distinct castles stood, one the -cyclopean early structure, and the other a lovely Gothic palace, whose -ogival windows, pointed arches, and slender pillars were still graceful -in decay. The dismantled chapel is exquisite, and if light had served or -any intelligent guidance had been obtainable, the inscriptions in it -would have been interesting. But the twilight was falling, and the -magnificent view from the battlements over the town, the plain, and the -mountains called to me. - -[Illustration: THE CASTLE, LEIRIA.] - -It was a feast of loveliness to the eye. The golden light of the setting -sun glorified the vast plain below me, with its silver river fringed by -poplars winding through it for many a mile, and the hills in the -distance clothed to the crests with lofty pines, black and solemn now in -the fading light. On a hill adjoining that upon which I stood the great -white Convent and Sanctuary of the Incarnation looks across at the -crumbling castle that it has outlived; and, just below me, between the -inner and outer defences of the stronghold, on a green grassy slope, -some children are playing joyously. As I wander down the way, safe and -easy on this side, through mighty donjons, and thick, tunnelled walls -which have seen so many bloody sights and echoed so many dismal sounds, -the very spirit of peace seems to pervade the place. Half-way down, -leaning over one of the grim walls, was a beautiful peasant girl talking -to her young lover, who stood at the foot, and cascading masses of -purple flowers fell across the jagged stones here and there, giving the -just touch of colour needed to perfect the scene. Past a quaint old -desecrated church and the enormous monastery of St. Peter, now, like -most of such places, a barrack, I tread the picturesque praça of the -town again, and stroll along the fine avenue of planes and eucalyptus by -the side of the river as the after-glow lights up the cliff and the -castle with a pearly reflected glamour. The hill from below is like that -of Edinburgh, but apparently double as high, and the vast extent of the -battlements is more evident than when seen on the summit. Huge -buttresses of rock seem to sustain the curtain that connects the keep of -the fortress with the Gothic palace, and everywhere the grey of the -granite is covered with a patina of yellow lichen, and the crevices -filled with yew, aloes, and olives. - -[Illustration: ON THE ALAMEDA, LEIRIA.] - -The next day was market-day at Leiria, and long before dawn the town was -busy. This was by far the largest country market I saw in Portugal, and -the gathering of peasantry the quaintest and most picturesque. The -shops, particularly those in the mosaic-paved praça, are mainly -wholesale warehouses for the supply of village traders, and a very -extensive distributing trade must be done. The town itself, on this -occasion, was one vast emporium, and multitudes of people bargained from -early morning till past midday in the acacia avenues under the brilliant -dark-blue sky. A gay-looking crowd they were: for the costume here is -quite distinct. The women invariably wear a velvet pork-pie hat over a -yellow or red head-kerchief, of which the ends hang down the back, and -the older women have full black cloaks with hoods, whilst most of them -have a broad band, some nine inches wide, of yellow cloth round the -bottom of the skirt. The wares exposed for sale were infinite. In the -praça great heaps of maize, grapes, potatoes, chestnuts, and beans -covered the mosaic pavement, whilst stalls displayed calicoes and cloths -of vivid colours. Giant yellow gourds in high piles lined the footpath, -and elsewhere under the shade of the trees stacks of grass-fodder and -maize-leaves for cattle stood. In another space heaps of salt, and long -lines of stalls for the sale of salted sardines and salted pork, were -followed by a score of temporary butchers’ shops. Then came stands for -the sale of fresh fish, skate, sardines, and cod, with the inevitable -bacalhau; and farther on, spread upon the ground, were hundreds of -homely crocks, red amphoræ, slender and beautiful in shape, coarse -household dishes gaudily decorated, and unglazed jars to keep water -cool. Beneath a beautiful picturesque arcade of ancient arches in the -praça women were seated before panniers piled with pears, figs, apples, -melons, and grapes, such as Covent Garden might glory in; and hard by -strings of garlic, onions, and eschalot claimed their purchasers. In a -field by the side of the river long lines of oxen, horses, and asses -were for sale, and men in red and green nightcaps, and trousers made of -two or three different coloured cloths, soberly bargained for the -beasts. Over all was the dark-blue arch of the sky, and the brilliant -sun, tempered beneath the trees by the light-green of the acacia leaves: -but what strikes most an observer who is familiar with the south, is the -absence of vociferation and apparent excitement. There was no shouting, -no pushing or quarrelling, and every transaction in the chaffering town -seemed to be got through with serious deliberation. Even the cluster of -gaily-dressed women around the stately sixteenth-century fountain -adjoining the hotel, gossiped staidly, and the children playing beneath -the trees were as grave as little judges. This is Leiria as I saw it on -market-day; but long before sunset the country people trudged homeward -again; the ox-wains carried away the produce and merchandise; the stalls -and booths folded their canvas sides and disappeared, and the next -morning Leiria resumed its habitual sleep, from which it awakens but -once a week. - -[Illustration: THE ENCARNAÇÃO, LEIRIA.] - ------ - -Footnote 1: - - I noted with interest that this castle of Ourem, and others of these - vast hill-top strongholds, had the outer defences arranged similarly - to those I have described in the chapter on the buried city of - Citania; namely, that on the side of the hill, where attack was - difficult or impracticable, the outer walls dipped far down the slope, - whilst at the point where danger might be apprehended the three lines - of circumvallation were comparatively close together. This arrangement - of hill-top defences was evidently long pre-Roman in the Peninsula, - and seems to have been adopted by the Romans and their Gothic - successors. - - - - - VI - BATALHA AND ALCOBAÇA - - -I drove out of Leiria in the morning just as the business of the market -was in full swing; and for the first half-hour of the upward way amidst -a country of vines and olives, we met crowds of country people riding -into the town on heavily laden asses. Then, mounting high above the -plain, we passed into the region of pines and heather, where the warm -but invigorating air came charged with the scent of thyme, lavender, and -rosemary. At a point of the road, about eight miles from Leiria, a deep -hollow opens to the left, and at the bottom of it, and reached by a -downhill road running almost parallel with the way we came, lies the -world-famed abbey of Batalha, the wonder and envy of ecclesiastical -architects for six centuries, and even now, dismantled and bedevilled as -it is, one of the most beautiful Gothic structures in existence. - -Before its west front I stand lost in admiration. The whole edifice is -built of a marble-like limestone, which time has turned to a beautiful -soft yellowish cream colour, similar to that of an old Japanese ivory -carving. Like most Portuguese cathedrals the body of the church is -somewhat narrow; but in this case a large chapel on the north side -extends the apparent width of the exterior west front. How can one hope -to convey in written words an adequate impression of this exquisite -façade? To the severe perpendicular parallel lines over the door and -window, reminiscent of the west front of Lincoln, is added a lace-like -elaboration of parapets, pinnacles, and glorious flying buttresses, -which almost bewilders by its aerial gaiety and transparent richness. A -beautiful Gothic breastrail stands before a double flight of steps -leading down to the west door, for the abbey is lower even than the road -before it; “the portal,” wrote William Beckford, a hundred and twenty -years ago, “full fifty feet in height, surmounted by a window of -perforated marble of nearly the same lofty dimensions, deep as a cavern, -and enriched with canopies and imagery in a style that would have done -honour to William of Wykeham, some of whose disciples or co-disciples in -the train of the founder’s consort, Philippa of Lancaster, had probably -designed it.” - -To me this door presented itself rather more in detail. I saw a portal -the whole width of the nave-space, the deep, bevilled sides being -occupied by the Twelve Apostles standing under rich Gothic canopies, and -from the capitals above them a slightly pointed arch sprang ending in a -floreated cross finial, the arch itself being composed of six orders, -each occupied by a row of Kings of the House of David under exquisite -Gothic canopies. The great window above is full of tracery so intricate -and plastic in appearance as almost to banish the impression of a work -in stone. The octagonal lantern of the side chapel is supported by -flying buttresses of indescribable grace and lightness, and is fronted -by a screen pierced with three Gothic windows almost level with the main -west front; and upon every point of the building and along each side of -the roof of the nave crocketed pinnacles rise, supported by fairy flying -buttresses—the effect of the whole exterior from the west front being an -exquisite blending of seriousness and exuberant rejoicing. - -And these were precisely the feelings that prompted the establishment -here of the Dominican abbey at the instance of its English foundress, -Philippa of Lancaster, daughter of John of Gaunt, married in 1386 John, -the Master of Avis, the high-minded and patriotic bastard of the royal -house, who had successfully resisted Spanish aggression the year before, -and, with the assistance of the English archers at Aljubarrota, had -gained for himself the crown of Portugal. Here in the neighbourhood of -the battle, at the instance of Philippa, was built this abbey of -Dominican monks in devotional thankfulness for the signal victory, and -for the rescue of the King from threatened death. All through the older -portion of the building the English Plantagenet influence is -predominant, and marks the abbey as being entirely different from all -other ecclesiastical buildings in Portugal. - -The monastery was always a poorly endowed one, in glaring contrast to -the neighbouring Cistercian house of Alcobaça, one of the richest -monastic houses in the world. Beckford, in his humorous description of -his visit to both houses in 1782, draws a lively comparison between the -two. Accompanied by two great Portuguese prelates, of whom he makes -merciless fun, he had gone to see Alcobaça at the wish of the Prince -Regent. His great train of servants and attendants had been received -with lavish splendour and Gargantuan gluttony at Alcobaça, and on the -way with the prelate of the latter house to visit Batalha, the whole -party had got drunk at Aljubarrota, whose wine is famous. They arrived -at Batalha at night. - - “Whilst our sumpter mules were unloading, and ham and pies and - sausages were rolling out of plethoric hampers, I thought these poor - monks looked on rather enviously. My more fortunate companions—no - wretched cadets of the mortification family these, but the true - elder sons of fat mother church—could hardly conceal their sneers of - conscious superiority. A contrast so strongly marked amused me not a - little.... The Batalha prior and his assistants looked quite - astounded when they saw the gauze-curtained bed and the Grand - Prior’s fringed pillow, and the Prior of St. Vincent’s superb - coverlid, and basins and ewers and other utensils of glittering - silver being carried in. Poor souls! they hardly knew what to do or - say or be at—one running to the right, another to the left—one - tucking up his flowing garments to run faster, and another rebuking - him for such a deviation from monastic decorum.” - -I have in my library a manuscript account by Lord Strathmore of the -visit he paid to the two monasteries twenty years before Beckford, and -his account of the poverty of Batalha in comparison with Alcobaça is -more emphatic still. He says:— - - “Though far from rich, they received us with great hospitality. The - prior, an exceedingly good, kind, old man, exerted his utmost - efforts to do us honour, and had a cook sent to him from the Bishop - of Leria upon ye occasion. We here with many thanks dismist our - militia, who had been mounting guard hitherto at ye door of our - apartment. This convent is of ye most elaborate and exquisite Gothic - architecture I ever saw, one part being left imperfect, being so - beautiful that nobody dar’d to finish it. When we took leave of our - old prior next morning ye only request he made us was that we would - relate to ye minister how much their fabric had suffered by the - earthquake [_i.e._ of 1755], and how much they needed ye King’s - assistance to repair it: whereas I could not help observing that - every one of our friends who had been particularly assiduous about - us at Alcobaça desired us to remember their names particularly at - Lisbon.” - -Alas! priors and monks, rich and poor, have all gone now, and the place -is a “national monument,” with hardly a pretence of being a place of -worship. - -The interior of the church is almost severe in its plainness, the lofty -narrow nave being divided by clustered pillars arranged in a somewhat -peculiar manner; the three pillars facing the nave supporting the groins -of the main roof, whilst from the remaining three spring the groining of -the aisle. Before the high altar, and close to the steps, are two -magnificent tombs side by side, the recumbent figures upon them hand in -hand; the male in full armour, the woman clasping a book. “_Hic Jacet -Eduardus I., Port. et Alg., Rex et Regina, Elenora Uxor Ejus_,” runs the -inscription around the fillet; and this is the tomb of the unhappy -Duarte, son of John the Great and Philippa of Lancaster, who died of a -broken heart, whilst still young, at the disaster to his arms and house -in the defeat of his crusading attack upon Tangier. - -As Beckford saw the church during service it must have throbbed with the -life and colour that it now lacks. - - “There is greater plainness [_i.e._ than Winchester], less - panelling, and fewer intersections in the vaulted roof: but the - utmost richness of hue, at this time of day at least, was not - wanting. No tapestry however rich, no painting however vivid, could - equal the gorgeousness of the tint, the splendour of the golden and - ruby light which streamed forth from the long series of stained - glass windows: it played, flickering about in all directions on - pavement and on roof, casting over every object myriads of glowing - mellow shadows, ever in undulating motion, like the reflection of - branches swayed to and fro in the breeze. We all partook of these - gorgeous tints, the white monastic garments of my conductors seemed - as it were embroidered with the brightest flowers of paradise, and - our whole procession kept advancing invested with celestial - colours.” - -Iconoclasm and war have wrought their fell work upon Batalha since then; -but still the lovely fane stands materially uninjured. The -transept-chapels and sacristy are fine, especially the latter, though -the seventeenth-century carved woodwork matches ill with the exquisite -pure Gothic groining of the roof, and the great yellow sarcophagus of -Diego Lopez de Souza, master of the Order of Christ, in the adjoining -chapel of St. Barbara, is a remarkable piece of sixteenth-century work. - -One of the great glories of Batalha is the side chapel already -mentioned, the octagonal “chapel of the Founder.” The arrangement of it -and its general effect are strikingly like those of Queen Victoria’s -mausoleum at Frogmore. In the centre, standing high and imposing in all -the pomp of Gothic tracery, are the twin tombs of John the Great and his -English wife, their sculptured effigies hand in hand as the noble pair -went through life; and around the chapel are ranged the sarcophagi of -their sons Pedro, João, Fernando (who chivalrously passed all the best -years of his life a hostage to the Moor), and, the greatest of them all, -the Prince Dom Henrique the Navigator, who made Portugal a world power. -Upon each stone coffin are carved the insignia of the Garter and the -arms of England quartered with those of Portugal, and along the fillets -run the quaint mottoes that each royal personage adopted for his device. -Some of them are enigmatical; such as that which consists of the -repetition of the word “_Désir_” alternating with the scale of justice, -and the other that offers the riddle of “VII.,” a cogwheel, and -“_Jamais_” repeated again and again. “Pro rege pro grege,” on the other -hand, if hackneyed, is still quite intelligible. - - “All these princes,” says Beckford, “in whom the high bearing of - their intrepid father and the exemplary virtues and strong sense of - their mother were united, repose after their toil and suffering in - this secluded chapel, which, indeed, looks a place of rest and holy - quietude; the light equally diffused, forms, as it were, a tranquil - atmosphere, such as might be imagined worthy to surround the - predestined to happiness in a future world. I withdrew from the - contemplation of these tombs with reluctance, every object in the - chapel that contains them being so pure in taste, so harmonious in - colour, every armorial device, every mottoed label, so tersely and - correctly sculptured.... The Plantagenet cast of the whole chamber - conveyed to me a feeling so interesting, so congenial, that I could - hardly persuade myself to move away.” - -Every word written by Beckford a hundred and twenty years ago of this -chapel is true to-day, and I could have lingered for hours before the -coffins of these heroic princes and their parents in a day-dream of -recollection prompted by their noble lives and deeds. - -Just outside the door of the chapel, in the pavement of the nave, is a -stone bearing the almost effaced inscription that below it lies the body -of “Martin Gonsalves de Maçada, who saved the life of the King Dom John -in the battle of Aljubarrota”; and one speculates that had it not been -for the fortunate deed of this obscure gentleman, this great abbey would -never have been built, and the kings and princes that lie in it would -never have existed, with the exception of the Master of Avis himself, -who would have passed down to history not as the founder of a dynasty -but as an unsuccessful rebel. - -A door in the south aisle leads into the renowned cloister, and here, -the work being of a later date than the church, controversy has spent -itself as to whether the luxuriant exuberance of the sculpture is, or is -not, in perfect taste. Personally I find the cloister exquisite beyond -description, and I care not whether the purists condemn it or not. The -sensation produced, it is true, is—like all Manueline sculpture—neither -purely devotional nor highly exalted, but rather one of joyous delight -in the actual handiwork, in the gracious curves, in the kaleidoscopic -variety, in the dexterous adaptation of means to ends, and these -sensations, though I am told that they are vulgar when produced by -ecclesiastical sculpture, I experience in the fullest measure as I gaze -at this marvel of human skill, the cloistered court of Batalha. Standing -in the centre of the courtyard and looking up at the abbey, one sees -three beautiful lace-like parapets rise one above the other along the -whole length, on cloister, clerestory, and nave, clear-cut edges of -perfect curves against the blue sky. Each of the cloister arches is -filled with stone tracery of amazing richness and variety, the cross of -the Order of Christ and the armillary sphere being deftly introduced in -the fretwork with great effect. This cloister, like that of Belem, of -which I shall speak later, seems to mark the purer and less extravagant -development of the Manueline style, in which the Gothic traditions have -not been entirely cast aside, and only the most callous soul could -remain unmoved by its exquisite beauty. From the cloister there opens a -chapter-house of the same style and period, a perfect gem, although the -entrance arch leading to it shows signs, in the lace-like pendent -ornament that lines it, of the over-elaboration which finally led to -decadence. The chapter-house is thus described by Beckford with special -reference to what struck me most—namely, the exquisite groining, -springing like palm branches from clustered pillars in the wall, and all -centring in the apex of the roof:—“It is,” he said, “a square of seventy -feet, and the most strikingly beautiful apartment I ever beheld. The -graceful arching of the roof, unsupported by console or column, is -unequalled; it seems suspended by magic, indeed human means failed twice -in constructing this bold unembarrassed space. Perseverance and the -animating encouragement of the sovereign founder at length conquered -every difficulty, and the work remains to this hour secure and perfect.” - -Close by is the great refectory of the monks, now used as a sort of -lumber-room museum of débris; and leading from it the vast, vaulted -kitchen, its stone roof blackened still by the smoke of centuries of -cooking fires. The humble little ancient cloister of the original -monastery still remains, with its rows of cells in the upper ambulatory. -Here there is no Manueline exuberance or wealth, only reverent pointed -Gothic, grave groined roofs and arches unadorned, enclosing, as of old, -the sweet, quiet little garden that more than a century ago aroused the -admiration of Beckford. - -[Illustration: THE CLOISTERS, BATALHA.] - -From there the distance is but a few steps to the “unfinished chapels”; -but the contrast of feeling between the two places is wide indeed. The -chapels consist of a sort of Lady chapel or apse built out at the back -of the high altar, like Henry VII.’s chapel at Westminster. A large -central chapel with ten smaller chapels round it rise to perhaps half -their intended height, and roofless, for when King Manuel died in 1521 -the work was stopped and has never been resumed. The first view of this -fragment, and particularly of the great arch by which it was intended to -connect it with the church, strikes an observer with astonishment that -human brains and hands could ever compass such intricacy of design and -execution. Convolutions more tortuous than those of Arab art, floridness -more overloaded than Churriguerra ever dreamt of, boldness for which the -only just word is insolence, here run riot unrestrained, fatiguing the -eye, tiring the mind, and ending by palling upon the senses from mere -over-exuberance. The lower portion and pillars, and the exterior of the -chapels, are restrained and sober, and this makes the more overwhelming -the arches and the upper pillars designed to support the roof. One feels -that the design is that of a genius, but of a genius whom another step -would have led to madness, and who threw aside all the accepted canons -of his art. But, withal, though Beckford avoids detailed notice of these -chapels, it is impossible even for the purist in architecture to pass -such work by without some admiration being mixed with his surprise. The -great arch leading into the church is the culminating point of the work; -its western side being a mass of intertwined foliage, knots, cables, -flowers, and concentric lines, cut in high relief in seven distinct -mouldings or orders, and the inner line of the arch is decorated with a -deep pendent open-work border; whilst forming part of the intricate -design of the whole arch, the enigmatical words “_Tanias el Rey_” are -repeated hundreds of times on small labels. What the words mean nobody -knows, though the most probable guess is that they may be an anagram for -“_Arte e Linyas_” (“art and lines,” in old Portuguese). - -[Illustration: “THE UNFINISHED CHAPELS,” BATALHA] - -As I walked up the road leading from the hollow in which the abbey -stands, I looked back again and again at the perfect loveliness of the -building I was leaving behind. The flying buttresses, the lines upon -lines of fretwork edging, the multitude of floreated pinnacles, and the -glorious Gothic of the west front, all of the softened hue of old gold, -presented in my eyes the perfection of a Gothic building. I have seen -the stately grandeur of Amiens, the soaring pride of Cologne, the vast -magnificence of Burgos, and the fairy prettiness of Milan, and I have -worshipped at the shrines of Ely, Norwich, and Lincoln. Each one in its -way is supreme and incomparable; but Batalha, reservedly nestling in its -green hollow far from the busy haunts of men, has a charm of its own -that I have found in no other Gothic church; and as I finally turned my -back upon it, I carried with me a memory which in my life will never -fade. - -We are soon amongst the pines and heather again, driving along an -elevated ridge with a valley and bold mountain ranges beyond upon either -side, the effect of the distant hills seen through the perpendicular -lines formed by the straight pine trunks that cluster on each side being -very beautiful. A sort of light-blue veil seems to cover the far -landscape, such an atmosphere as Corot loved to paint; not a mist -arising from dampness, but the azure tint of the air itself seen by its -clarity to a vast distance through the dark pine copses. - -The first sign of systematic begging that I had experienced in Portugal -was at Batalha; groups of children, encouraged apparently by the -constant visitors to a show place, making a regular business of cadging: -for we were getting now into the centre of Portugal where the people are -less sturdy and the position of the peasant less prosperous than in the -north. Along the road from Batalha to Alcobaça, a new and really -charming form of begging was resorted to by the children on the -wayside—chubby, well-fed mites they looked most of them, evidently not -in abject want. They kneel on the roadside in an attitude of prayer, -their hands joined in supplication, their eyes closed reverently and -their expression rapt, like little dirty angels. They have before them a -few cut flowers, and the moment the carriage passes them they start like -a flash of lightning from their devotions, and throw the flowers into -the stranger’s lap, whilst they begin to trot by the side of the vehicle -in a dogged, persistent way, not articulately asking for alms, but -simply trying to win a penny by reproachful glances and disregard of all -entreaties to them to stop their dog-trot and go away. Needless to say, -such tactics are usually successful, for only a very hard heart could -withhold the small coin they covet, when an angelic-looking child of -seven has panted half a mile barefooted by the side of a carriage going -at a brisk pace. - -Half-way to Alcobaça the ridge upon which the road runs narrows to a -mere knife edge, and on the left hand a wide valley sweeps down -suddenly, a bold long hill rising beyond. This is the battlefield of -Aljubarrota, upon which John, the Master of Avis, won his crown, and for -the second time asserted the independence of Portugal from Castile on -the 14th August 1385. From Thomar he had brought all the power that -patriotic Portugal could raise, and upon this ridge awaited the attack -of the Castilians, who, if once they could pass it, would have all the -seacoast of Portugal at their mercy down almost to the mouth of the -Tagus. The position is not very dissimilar from that of Bussaco, but -upon a smaller scale. The Portuguese right and left flanks were both -defended by projecting spurs; upon one of which the English bowmen were -posted, and by standing upon the centre of the position it is easy to -see, even to-day, how skilfully John the Great had chosen his ground for -the decisive struggle, and how difficult it was for the Castilians to -succeed. They dared not proceed along the valley leaving this strong -force of enemies upon the heights behind them, able to cut them off from -their base, and harass them flank and rear; whilst to swarm up these -precipitous slopes in the face of a semicircle of determined opponents, -and enfiladed by archers on both flanks, seemed inviting defeat. All was -against the Spaniards. A mysterious epidemic was prostrating them, the -King of Castile was ill, and had to be carried to the battle in a -litter, and, above all, the Portuguese were struggling for the -independence of their country, whilst the Spaniards were fighting at the -behest of a corrupt and unpopular king. So on that fateful morning in -August, five hundred and twenty-three years ago, as the chivalry of -Castile struggled up these broken slopes, the men upon the ridge from -which I look down now over the smiling plain, stood like a steel wall, -and with mace and battle-axe, and double-handed swords, clove and smote -them, whilst the cloth-yard arrows pierced and bowled them over by -hundreds ere they reached the summit. The hearts of the Spaniards failed -them, and down the slope they fled, delivered now to carnage and to -capture. Ten thousand of them, the best fighting men in Castile, fell, -the king barely escaped by flight, whilst half his court were taken. -Aljubarrota was won, the house of Avis fixed upon the throne for two -hundred years, and the alliance between England and Portugal cemented so -strongly as to have lasted unbroken to this day. - -Through the poverty-stricken looking village of Aljubarrota, where some -questionable relics of the battle are exhibited for a consideration -(though no one offers me wine, as they did to Beckford’s princely -cavalcade), a few miles more brings me to a point, whence looking down -on the right side of the ridge the town of Alcobaça is seen below, -surrounded by miles of vineyards, touched now with bronze and crimson, -for the vintage is nearly over, and a big hummock of a building over -all, that I know is the famous Cistercian monastery, the sepulchre of so -many princes of the ancient royal house of Portugal that I have -travelled thus far to see. - -The church and monastery stand fronting a very extensive triangular -praça, crossed by long avenues of acacias, and the first sight of the -edifice is distinctly disappointing. An ordinary façade in the -seventeenth-century, Spanish “Jesuit” style of the time of Philip IV., -with white walls and yellow stone outlines, and flanked on both sides by -monastery buildings of great extent in the same taste, or want of it, -did not quite fulfil the hopes which Beckford’s description of the -splendours of Alcobaça had aroused. It is true that the west door of the -church somewhat redeemed it, for it was evidently the remains of the -original front in pure unadorned Gothic. The whole edifice is raised -above the surface of the praça upon a platform some ten feet high, and -upon this parade the monks in old time were mustered to receive -distinguished visitors. Beckford thus describes the reception of his own -party— - -[Illustration: ON THE PRAÇA AT ALCOBAÇA.] - - “The first sight of this regal monastery is very imposing, and the - picturesque well-wooded and well-watered village out of the quiet - bosom of which it seems to rise relieves the mind from the sense of - oppression the huge domineering bulk of the conventual buildings - inspire. We had no sooner hove in sight, and we loomed large, than a - most tremendous ring of bells of extraordinary power announced our - speedy arrival. A broad hint from the Secretary of State - recommending these magnificent monks to receive the Grand Prior and - his companions with peculiar graciousness, the whole community, - including fathers, friars and subordinates, at least four hundred - strong, were drawn up in grand spiritual array on the vast platform - before the monastery to bid us welcome. At their head the Abbot - himself, in his costume of High Almoner of Portugal, advanced to - give us a cordial embrace.” - -All is quiet enough now, for the monks are gone these seventy years, and -the huge dilapidated edifice behind, forming a vast square, is partly -occupied as a barrack, and the rest falling into ramshackle ruin. Nor is -anything stirring in the prim little town, which has grown up around the -wealthy foundation, and now lives placidly upon the produce of its -vineyards. - -The interior of the church presents a marked contrast to the façade. The -impression produced is one of ponderous solidity and permanence, and the -stern devotional character of all the ecclesiastical buildings founded -by the great Affonso Henriques, first king of Portugal, in the twelfth -century is again conspicuous, though even here a cornice of gilt curly -wood lines the fine chancel arch. The nave though somewhat narrow is -impressive and handsome, separated from the aisles by square pillars of -immense size, broader than the spaces between them. From brackets or -ledges at various heights from the ground upon the front and sides of -these pillars spring the simple arches and groining of the roof, each -pillar carrying its arch right over the nave, so that each set of simple -groins is separated from the rest by the arch moulding. The aisles, very -narrow, seem overwhelmed by the immense square pillars, and it is easy -to understand in the face of this stern interior that the notoriously -luxurious and self-indulgent monks of Alcobaça did their best to soften -the austerity of their surroundings. That they did so to some purpose is -seen both by Beckford’s account of his visit and by my Strathmore -manuscript of 1760. The account given by Lord Strathmore is worth -transcribing:— - - “The minister having ... ordered them to do us ye utmost honour they - were capable of, we found a large place before the convent so - crowded with people that it was necessary for a guard of militia - which they had summoned to make a lane for us up ye steps. At ye - door we were reciev’d in form by ye guardian and first people of ye - fraternity with ye utmost ceremony, and conducted by ye light of - torches thro’ cloisters of Gothic arcades with ye whole college in - procession to our apartments.... Our rooms were extremely spacious, - and were hung with crimson damask and gold, ye floor cover’d with - Persian carpets, and our beds in alcoves deck’d with embroidered - coverlids. We had a basin and ewer brought to wash before supper, - and on another salver a napkin of fine linen, curiously pinck’t and - strew’d with rose-leaves and orange-flowers. We then pas’t into the - next room, where we found a large table groaning under a service of - monstrous dishes.” - -The writer comments unfavourably upon all the eatables placed before -him, reeking, as they did, he says, of garlic, bad oil, and other -horrors, and he comments upon the tasteless lavishness of the fare. He -then continues:— - - “At last, after having drank reciprocally all ye healths that we - thought would be required on either side, we retir’d to repose. The - next morning we were no sooner dres’t than we found ye whole college - assembled in ye next room at our levee. We breakfasted in state, at - ye end of a long table with ye rest seated round ye room, and - admiring ye peculiar grace with which we put every morsel into our - mouths. After breakfast we were attended thro’ ye convent, and had - everything explain’d to us, which I must own gave me great pleasure. - They are of ye Cistercian order, and ye richest in Portugal, - possessing a vast tract of land which is said to bring them in - £50,000 per annum. Their magnificence is in every way - proportionable. Their church is Gothic, but extremely noble, ye - plate, jewels and ornaments, copes, etc. are as rich as possible.... - They have no taste or design in their expenditure, and seem to study - richness rather than elegance in all they do. As they reign, so they - entertain, like princes over the district. In the evening we saw - their great altar lighted up at vespers, which at the end of a long - Gothic aisle had a most striking effect with ye organ and voices - altogether impressing upon the mind most solemn awe.” - -Remains of the tasteless splendour referred to are still to be seen on -all sides. The gilt-trimmed chancel arch, the high altar, with its blue -starred globe and wooden gilt rays in the centre, and popes carved and -gilt in niches each side, amidst gold whirligigs galore, are as -incongruous as can be with the stern, simple nave: and the altars of the -north transept and retro choir all present the same features, some of -them, moreover, being in a lamentable state of dilapidation, inciting to -derision rather than devotion. In the north transept, hard by the -thirteenth-century sepulchral stones of Affonso II. and Affonso III., is -a dark but beautiful Gothic hall, the holy of holies of the monastery, -“the chapel of the tombs,” the resting-place of several of the earlier -princes of the royal house. - -[Illustration: UNDER THE ACACIAS, ALCOBAÇA.] - -The most striking objects in it are two magnificent sarcophagi in florid -decorated Gothic. The recumbent figures of king and queen upon them, as -fair and perfect as the day they were sculptured, rest, not hand in hand -as upon most similar tombs, but foot to foot. For these are the -sepulchres of Pedro the Just and his murdered mistress, Ines de Castro, -done to death by servile nobles beside the “fountain of love” in the -“garden of tears” at Coimbra, and the faithful king ordered the body of -himself and his beloved to be laid thus, so that when the universal -trump should call him to arise, the first object upon which his reopened -eyes should rest would be her, who, though unwed, was yet his wife -through all eternity. - -Kings, queens, and princes, whose names now mean little even in the -country where they held sway and nothing elsewhere, lie around in tombs -of varying magnificence, together with débris and relics of times -earlier than any of them. The usual dense ignorance is displayed by the -guardian of the objects he is supposed to describe; for he points out -two very small ancient sarcophagi, one of them obviously Byzantine -Romanesque, and the other probably pre-Christian, and tells you gravely -that they once contained the bodies of Ines de Castro’s children. Both -of them are centuries earlier than her time, and her only children grew -up and survived her. But this is not more absurd than the -representation, in the current English “History of Portugal,” of a lady -in the height of the Portuguese fashion of the end of the seventeenth -century as Ines de Castro, who lived in the fourteenth. - -The cloister of the monastery presents the characteristics of two -styles. The lower part is pure early Gothic, like the church and -chapter-house, with simple rose lights in each arch; but the upper -storey has evidently been added or rebuilt in the early sixteenth -century in good Manueline taste; and in one corner there is a very -beautiful fountain in the same style bearing the monogram of the -“Fortunate” monarch Manuel himself. The vast refectory, of which -Beckford spoke so sneeringly, as dirty and slovenly, is entered by a -handsome Manueline doorway, and is now being restored. The entrance to -the sacristy is also a fine specimen of Manueline, but inside the bad -taste of the late seventeenth-century monks is rampant. All around the -great square apartment are carved and gilt niches, in which are dozens -of life-sized busts also carved and gilt, of saints and bishop, each of -which has a hollow for a relic upon the breast, all now despoiled of -their contents; and the precious treasury of jewels, ornaments, and -embroidery that aroused the envious admiration of the virtuoso Beckford, -has all disappeared, many of the most beautiful and precious objects -being now in the Museum of Fine Arts at Lisbon, a storehouse of mediæval -goldsmith’s work unsurpassed in Europe, though almost completely -neglected both by residents and visitors to the capital. - -One more show chamber there is in the “national monument” portion of -Alcobaça: a hall lined with eighteenth-century pictorial blue tiles, -representing in large tableaux memorable deeds of the kings of Portugal, -with statues of the kings themselves upon brackets above; the great -tableau at the end, representing the coronation of Affonso Henriques, -being an exceptionally good specimen of a poor artistic medium. As I -walk through the grave, silent church again, and so out into the bright -praça, with its avenues of shady acacias casting long shadows, the -façade of the church strikes me as more inharmonious than before, now -that the wonderful glow of the slanting sunrays touch the salient points -with fire. The front with its seventeenth-century figures, its Manueline -central round window, and its elaboration of outlines, so characteristic -of the Spanish “Jesuit” style, are utterly incongruous with the pure -early Gothic of the doorway, and it is with a sigh of regret that one -turns from the contemplation of such a result of wealth divorced from -artistry. - -The vast monastic building behind the church is squalid and ugly, for -the occupation of soldiery does not tend to the æsthetic maintenance of -a building. The famous kitchen of the monastery is used now for military -purposes, but may be seen by easily obtained permission. As I looked -upon it, a bare, great, vaulted hall, with the channel for water still -running through it, and the marks of the long line of ovens extending -across the wall, I cast my thoughts back at the busy scene that the -place presented in the palmy days of the monks, when the flesh-pots of -Alcobaça were proverbial through the land. This is how the place struck -Beckford on his memorable visit. - - “The three prelates lead the way to, I verily believe, the most - distinguished temple of gluttony in all Europe. What Glastonbury may - have been in its palmy state I cannot answer, but my eyes never - beheld in any modern convent of France, Italy, or Germany, such an - enormous space dedicated to culinary purposes. Through the centre of - the immense and nobly groined hall, not less than sixty feet in - diameter, ran a brisk rivulet of the clearest water, flowing through - pierced wooden reservoirs, containing every sort and size of the - finest river fish. On one side loads of game and venison were heaped - up, on the other vegetables and fruit in endless variety. Beyond a - long line of stoves extended a row of ovens, and close to them - hillocks of wheaten flour whiter than snow, rocks of sugar, jars of - the purest oil, and pastry in vast abundance, which a numerous tribe - of lay brothers and their attendants were rolling and puffing up - into a hundred different shapes, singing all the while as blithely - as larks in a cornfield.” - -Abbots and monks, lay brothers, and cooks have gone the way of all -flesh; and of the plethoric plenty of old no vestige remains in the -enormous dingy hall. So, there being no fatted calf killed for me in -these degenerate days, I wend my way through the acacia avenues to the -humble hostelry where a dinner is prepared for me, eatable, it is true, -but a sad falling off from the culinary splendours of Alcobaça in the -good old times. - -Then in the gloaming I drove four miles through woods of pine and -eucalyptus, balsamic now in the soft evening air, to Vallado station on -the railway to Lisbon. Out of the darkness at about seven there sprang a -long spinning factory blazing with electric light, and humming with the -whirr of wheels. The “hands” were just flocking out from their daily -toil, and filled the black, unlit road with a gay babbling crowd. There -was no town near, and the mill was deeply embosomed in the pine woods: -this seemed to me an ideal form of factory life, in which the house of -toil, instead of debouching its crowd of pallid workers into fetid -town-slums to fester unwholesomely until the morrow, needed but a step -from its threshold to plunge them into the sweet air of the pines and -heather; and where the “hands,” though they worked in crowds underneath -a roof, never ceased to be country folk. It was but a passing flash and -hubbub to me in the darkness of my lonely drive, and the toilers to me, -and I to them, but fleeting shadows. But seen thus, there seemed to me -something of suggestive possibilities in this hive of what is usually an -urban industry, set in the midst of lofty pines, sweet mountain herbs, -and far-flung folds of purple heather. A railway journey of -three-quarters of an hour brought me to the famous medicinal thermal -watering-place of Caldas da Rainha, where in the excellent Hotel -Lisbonense, which the proprietor, one of those frugal, honest, Gallegos -who are the industrial salt of the Peninsula, told me was the largest in -Portugal, as it is certainly one of the best, I ended a long day of -overcrowded impressions by a night of delightful dreamless sleep. - - - - - VII - CINTRA - - -I had often before seen Caldas in the height of the bathing season, when -the midsummer heat made Lisbon intolerable and inspired people with more -or less imaginary maladies to get cured. The place then, with its crowds -of visitors and pleasant parties, was bright and lively enough; but now -that the last pleasure-seeker had fled, and the only people taking the -wonderful health-giving waters were the few really sick, and the inmates -of the great “Queen’s hospital” adjoining the hot springs, Caldas looked -mean and ugly. The drives through the pine forests in the neighbourhood, -it is true, are pleasant; but for a fortnight I had been passing through -a glorious pine country much more diversified and elevated than these, -and Caldas had no fresh attractions to offer me. A visit to the famous -factory of enamelled _faience_, charmingly situated in the midst of -gardens, yielded an hour’s interest in the inspection of the late -Bordallo Pinheiro’s fine sacred figure groups now in course of -production for the shrines at Bussaco, and the hundred curious -Palissy-like pieces in high relief, plates of fruit, fish, &c., which -are the specialty of the factory. But that being finished the charms of -Caldas were exhausted, so far as I was concerned, and the train for -Cintra claimed me irresistibly. - -The first station from Caldas (Obidos), with its little town, nestles at -the foot of an eminence upon which another of the stupendous mediæval -castles peculiar to Portugal rears its massive battlements, castles in -comparison with which most of the English feudal strongholds are mere -sentry-boxes. For these Portuguese fortresses were national outposts -thrust forward successively into conquered or debatable land; bases for -further extension southward and bulwarks against the return of the tide -of Islam. Another two hours of travelling brought us into a country of -red rolling hills, with a bold granite ridge on the east and a still -loftier ridge beyond merging into the blue mist on the horizon. For -miles on either side grand sweeps of flowering heather flushed against -breaks and slides of ochre-earth, touched here and there with the light -feathery green of the pines; whilst in the dips of hills sheltered -valleys of bronzing vines and little white granges, slept tranquilly -after the bustle of the just finished vintage. Soon we get nearer the -granite hills before us, and looming over the station, upon a great -projecting spur of one of these there frowns another of these tremendous -strongholds, from which, running towards the east and south between us -and Lisbon, there bars the way a series of gigantic ridges and peaks. -Most of the heights are capped by towers, and scored along the faces of -the mountains may still be discerned lines and marks of earthworks and -redoubts. These are the never-to-be-forgotten lines of Torres Vedras, by -which the genius of Wellington finally held the legions of Napoleon at -bay, and saved Portugal—and incidentally Europe—from the domination of -the French. - -All the earth seems soaked and saturated in sunlight and brilliant -colour; little ancient towns, like Runa, perched on the tops of cliffs, -at the foot of which more modern hamlets cluster, testify to the changed -conditions between the days when the first need was safety from -aggression, and the later times when, the danger of wanton attacking -being past, men sought accessibility and ease. Acacias, aloes, canes, -olives, and vines spreading down the plain, tell of a benign and equable -climate enjoyed in security and peace; a beautiful and favoured land, -where nature has done its best to make man happy without making him -idle. As the twilight begins to fall we change trains at Cacem, the -junction of the small local line from Lisbon to Cintra, and -thenceforward we travel due west towards the sea. Before us looms a -great isolated mountain, the “Rock of Lisbon,” which seafarers know so -well, with its bold outline and its gleaming towers on the topmost crag. - - “And Cintra’s mountain greets them on the way.” - - —_Childe Harold_, canto i. - -The “mountain of the moon,” and of its goddess Cynthia, devoted from the -dawn of time to the worship of deities that, one by one, have been -deposed, this long-backed hummock, stretching nearly fifteen miles from -end to end and rising well-nigh two thousand feet above the plain, is -one of Europe’s acknowledged beauty spots, and, like a human -professional beauty, on this occasion coyly hid its charms from too -ready a discovery by cloaking its summit with a cloud as black as ink, -forerunner of the coming night. The gradient of the line continues -upward as we wind round the base of the hill, and it is quite dark when -the terminal station of Cintra is reached, and after a long drive upward -the quaint little English hostelry, known to four generations of -Britons, welcomes me to dinner and to rest. - -Like the similar mountain of Bussaco, the “Rock of Lisbon” is scored by -ravines and dells innumerable, sheltered valleys open to the soft -sea-breezes charged with grateful moisture; and from time immemorial the -luxuriance and variety of its vegetation have been proverbial. At a time -when Lisbon, only some fifteen miles away, is sweltering and breathless -within its south facing semicircle of hills, the slopes of the mountain -of Cintra are fresh and invigorating, and some of its gardens are a -veritable paradise all the year round. But beautiful as it undoubtedly -is, Cintra owes much of its fame to its nearness and accessibility to -the capital, and so far as English celebrity is concerned, to the -accident of several influential Englishmen persistently singing its -praises at a time when Lisbon was a fashionable winter and health -resort. - -The village of Cintra lies in one of the folds of the great hill, at -perhaps a third of its height up the side: a little Swiss-looking -pleasure-town round an open praça, like a set scene upon a stage. A few -hotels and shops, a church, the inevitable big stone building at the -most conspicuous corner, with the heavily barred windows on the level of -the footpath, and the squalid prisoners begging and bandying repartee -with the passers-by: at one end of the praça, a lovely ancient Manueline -cross upon a palm-shaded mound, at the base of which a picturesque group -is usually lounging, and close by, the courtyard of an old, old palace -whose most conspicuous features are two curious protruberances from the -roof, looking like a cross between Kentish oast-houses, and giant -champagne bottles. This is Cintra as seen from its central point, but -over it all there towers that which gives unique distinction to its -otherwise somewhat trite, self-conscious picturesqueness. Sheer aloft -upon a precipice a thousand feet and more above its roofs there stretch -the mighty battlements and massive keeps of a huge castle of -fawn-coloured stone, a castle so immense as to dwarf Thomar, Leiria, and -even Obidos almost to insignificance. Long lines of crenellated walls -following the dips and sinuosities of the crest of the peak appear to -grow out of the mighty rounded boulders; some of these great masses of -rock seeming to hang over perilously—as they must have done for -thousands of years—top-heavy and threatening. - -[Illustration: THE OLD PALACE, CINTRA.] - -To climb such an eminence looks impracticable when seen from the praça -of the little town, and yet it is but a pleasant and easy walk up the -zigzag road round the projecting shoulder of the hill. As I start in the -early morning to ascend the two twin peaks, only one of which is visible -from the praça, the air is indescribably sweet with the mingled -freshness of the sea and the perfume of herbs and flowers. The way winds -upwards between the trim walls of villas embosomed in gardens. -Ampelopsis, blood-red now, long trails of wistaria and starry clematis, -and large fuchsia trees loaded with flower, hang over the pathway -everywhere, whilst masses of heliotrope clothe the jutting gables and -corners, and pervading all are the scent and sight of oceans of flowers. -Palms, planes, poplars, and firs shoot upward, and around their straight -bare trunks there clusters a tangle of figs, laurels, mimosa, camellias, -aloes, and cactus. On the outer side of the road, as the villas are left -behind, you may look over the dwarf-wall down the tree-clad slopes into -glens of deep shade, with here and there a glimpse through the branches -of a vast sunlight plain far below, whilst on the inner side of the -zigzag way, the mosses and ferns, and the pendent greenery of the -precipitous hillside, with an occasional break into a deep ravine, -exhibit at each turn and step some new beauty of tint or atmosphere. -Presently at a turn of the road, after half-an-hour’s climb, you see -right over head the bare granite cliff covered with huge overhanging -boulders, and on the summit a long stretch of yellow battlements and a -huddle of enormous towers. The trees around us are mostly oaks now, and -the grey boulders are covered on their inner faces with ivy and lichens, -whilst clumps of purple crocuses star the grass by the wayside. The sun -is as hot as July in England, but the breeze is delightfully fresh and -pure, the sky of spotless azure, and the air so clear that the ancient -fortress, still far above us, is seen in all its detail as if we had it -near to us under a giant microscope. - -Suddenly as I turned a corner there burst upon my view another and a -loftier peak than the one upon which stands the Moorish stronghold that -had hitherto been my objective. A crag so inaccessible it looked, as to -suggest that the imposing building upon it with its lofty towers was the -work of a magician. The royal palace of the Penha is this, piled up -rather than built upon a sheer precipice.[2] Here upon the highest point -of the rock of Lisbon was King Manuel the Fortunate wont to linger for -hours and days for many months together, climbing up from his palace in -the town below, that he might gaze far out upon the Atlantic, watching -and praying for the return of Vasco da Gama from his voyage to India -round the African continent, the route that in two generations the -impetus of Prince Henry the Navigator had opened up. There was but a -tiny Jeronomite hermitage or penitentiary here in this savage eyrie to -shelter the anxious king,[3] and during his vigils he vowed that if the -great explorer came home successful he would build upon the spot a -worthy monastery of the Order in memory of the event. The work must have -been a prodigious one, for even now the place is hardly accessible by -carriages, and the quantity and the weight of material necessarily -brought from below was enormous. This monastery like the rest, was -disestablished and secularised by the State in 1834, and King Ferdinand, -the consort of the Queen of Portugal, and a first cousin of Queen -Victoria and Prince Albert, bought the building for conversion into a -royal palace, as it remains to-day, and here he lived the latter years -of his life with his second wife, the ex-opera-dancer, the Countess of -Edla. Ferdinand altered his palace, in many cases with very doubtful -taste, Moorish and German baronial features being liberally grafted on -to the Manueline edifice, with the result that the whole building when -seen closely is a pretentious muddle, saved from contempt by some of its -ancient portions, and by its sublime situation. - -The palace on the peak was soon lost to sight again on my climb upward, -and the path led direct to the outer donjon of the Moorish stronghold -opening upon a narrow path cut along the face of the rock, and bordered -on the outer side by a low stone wall. The view down over the steep, -rocky slope, with the town of Cintra far below, and the plain limitless -beyond, is very fine, and the walls that border the path are clothed -with mosses and ferns almost as lovely as those of Bussaco. The fortress -must have been impregnable by force; and indeed was only gained at last -from the Moors by treason, this very gate having been bought by the -Christians from an unfaithful guardian. This narrow path cut on the face -of the precipice is the only practicable approach to the fortress, and -leads soon to yet another gate flanked by a strong tower built upon one -vast, solid boulder. The dells below are filled with billows of verdure; -the face of the rock on the inner side of the path is covered with -creepers, ferns, and flowers, whilst above them, high up in the dips -near the summit, great trees lean over, shading the way by which we -come. Yet another strong gate tower we pass through; and with a sudden -turn we are inside the fortress, on the right of us a ruined chapel, -once a mosque, and on the left a watch-tower, with, at its foot, a -monument upon which the cross is graven surmounting the crescent, -emblematical of the fate of the adjoining chapel. - -To describe in detail this prodigious ruin would be impossible in any -reasonable space. The summit of the crag consists of two separate peaks -at some distance from each other, the higher one occupied by the main -keep, “the royal tower,” and long battlemented walls reach from one -point to the other, with bastions at intervals and massive square keeps -at the salient angles. On all sides within the great enclosure formed by -the battlements, covering the whole summit, remains of towers and -buildings of various sorts are scattered, amidst the dense growth of -trees and brushwood that have intruded upon the space. The battlements, -many of them built upon the rounded boulders that border the precipice -and following the contour of the hill top, are strong and perfect still; -and it needs but little imagination to people them again with the -turbaned and mailed warriors, sheltered snugly behind them, watching for -the advancing hosts of the Christian king, certain that, so long as -Islam was true to itself, no force could take this stronghold of their -race. The view over the battlements on all sides is tremendous. Just -below the walls a Titanic scatter of boulders, varying in size from a -few feet in diameter to the bulk of a cathedral, and then the descending -folds of greenery, with the sunlit plains and clustering towns below; -and there on the west, seemingly almost at the foot, a long stretch of -breaker-strewn beach, and the blue line of the sea. The view on the -Cintra side is almost appalling, the drop from the battlements and -boulders to the town being almost sheer, and on the south-east a great -bay opens, and the mouth of the Tagus bounds the prospect. - -As I gazed, entranced at this wonderful scene, surrounded by yet sturdy -relics of the war of civilisations eight centuries old; musing upon the -immutability of nature’s face in comparison with even the most enduring -works of man, I noticed a wire fixed on the face of the Moorish -battlement, and thence to a boulder, and so from point to point, I know -not whither—to the palace or the adjoining peak, perhaps. A telegraph -wire! A familiar object enough, but, as it seemed to me, strangely out -of harmony with the stern battlements from which for centuries the sons -of the prophet held back the advance of Western civilisation. - -The point upon which the Moorish stronghold stands is connected with the -higher site of the palace by a saddle-back dipping considerably and then -rising very precipitously. The vegetation on all sides is marvellously -luxuriant, and inside the well-kept gardens of the royal domain flowers -and plants, temperate and sub-tropical, make the place a horticultural -paradise. Through graceful Moorish archways, bright with Alambresque -decorations and _azulejos_, under rocky tunnels and over mediæval -drawbridges, all redolent of the gimcrack taste of the forties, the -upward way leads at length to the little inner _patio_ of the castle, -and here, at last, some of the Manueline monastery still remains. It is -little enough, a window here and a door there, and is almost swamped by -modern Alambresque and German baronial additions, but the ancient chapel -in the _patio_ is a gem. The beautiful groined ceiling especially -attracts attention, but the pride of the place is the exquisite altar of -translucent alabaster or jasper and black marble in the purest style of -the classical Renaissance, dated 1532, a thank-offering of King John -III. for the birth of an heir. The many groups of figures in alabaster -are extremely beautiful, and as the whole structure turns upon a pivot -the perfection of the work can be seen in various lights. A concession -to the Portuguese Manueline taste of the time is made by the pendent -festoons on each side of the altar, which are formed of two lengths of -knotted and twisted cable in alabaster, a _tour de force_ of execution, -though rigid purists may perhaps question their artistic -appropriateness. - -The chapel is marred by the hard, bright German stained glass inserted -in the principal window by King Ferdinand; but the modern Portuguese is -very far from being critical in matters of art, and though hundreds of -people yearly toil up the mountain to venerate the holy image of the -Virgin of the Penha in this chapel, and the lovely ivory figure of St. -John in the sacristy, no one apparently thinks of removing the flashing -offence of the stained glass window in favour of some subdued medium -more appropriate to this beautiful little church. A climb to the highest -tower of the palace is said to be rewarded by a magnificent view. I was -content to take it on trust, for I had already climbed high enough, and -could hardly hope to behold a more striking prospect than those I had -enjoyed from the castle battlements, and from the inner _patio_ of the -palace itself, which is perhaps the most striking of them all. - -As I retrace my steps down the long zigzags to Cintra again, and ever -and anon look up at the heights from which I have come, they seem quite -inaccessible. Equally, or more so, does the somewhat lower, but even -more precipitous eminence called the Cruz Alta, from which the prospect -is of surpassing extent over land and sea. - - “Eis campinas que ao ceo seu canto elevam, - Aqui o espaço, alem a immensidade,” - - “Behold the plains their psalms raise to the sea, - Here spread below in space, beyond immensity,” - -as the Portuguese poem on the base of the cross proclaims. - -Everywhere the flowers trail over the walls of villas, and the high -palms within rock softly in the heliotrope scented breeze. Very -beautiful it is; but the gardens belong to other people, and are -jealously closed by stone walls and iron gates. From above them, at -hundreds of points all over Cintra, you may command views of gardens of -tropical luxuriance; but without permission of the wealthy owners you -may not enter them. Cintra’s beauty is not free like the sacred wood of -Bussaco, where you may wander at your will through purely sylvan scenery -that not even Cintra can surpass. The grandeur of the towering Moorish -stronghold on its crest of grey boulders is more imposing than anything -Bussaco can show, and the interior of some of the highly cultivated -private gardens of Cintra are as fine as any in Europe; but, so far as -the enjoyment of the mere traveller is concerned, I am inclined to agree -with the opinion of those who hold that Cintra’s fame is quite equal to -its merits. Beckford had very much to do with it. His friends the -Marialvas were amongst the first of the Portuguese aristocracy, and owed -the large palace of Seteaes, where Byron and some guide-books -erroneously say that the humiliating convention of Cintra was signed by -the victorious English generals. Beckford’s visits to them and to the -court at Cintra inspired him with an enthusiastic admiration for the -place, and his letters are full of references to its beauty. To the -immensely wealthy and eccentric young Englishman desires and their -accomplishment ever went hand in hand, and Beckford purchased a -picturesque valley and slopes of the mountain some two miles from the -town round the shoulder of the hill towards the west. Here he built an -eccentric house, partly in the Moorish style, and here he displayed the -virtuoso tastes and exotic luxury which afterwards made Fonthill -famous.[4] - -All that money and skill could do was lavished upon the gardens in the -ravines and slopes of Monserrate; and long before Beckford died the -place became famous throughout Europe. Sir Francis Cook, Viscount de -Monserrate, to whom Monserrate belonged for many years, greatly extended -and improved the property, and his son, Sir Frederick Cook, the present -owner, has followed the same course of munificent maintenance of this -earthly paradise; with the result that now the beauties of the glens at -Monserrate are probably unequalled in their own way. It was the middle -of October when I visited the gardens on this occasion, although I had -seen it in all the glory of its spring and summer splendour on other -visits, and the luxuriance of the vegetation showed as yet no signs of -waning. Great magnolias, daturas, and bougainvilliers were in full -flower, with roses, clematis, brilliant coleas, and immense quantities -of heliotrope. Tree ferns, aloes, agaves, and palms grew with a freedom -in the open air that not even the hot-houses of Kew could surpass, -whilst the crimson ampelopsis and golden-leaved maples presented -gorgeous masses of colour. Some of the sylvan views are perfectly -charming; but after all, one feels that one is simply an interloper -seeing the showplace on sufferance by payment of a shilling—which the -owner gives to a charity—and a sylvan scene, perhaps less lovely, but in -which I could roam at will, as at Bussaco, would have had greater -attraction for me. - -Upon a peak opposite Monserrate, and belonging to the same owner, -stands a humble little monastery that once belonged to the -Franciscan-Capuchins. It is a quaint and curious place, the cloister, -a tiny one, being joined to a rock, out of which the cells are -excavated. These and the doors and ceilings of the cloister are lined -with cork bark for warmth and cosiness in this exposed position, and -for centuries the hermit-monks lived and prayed on this peak -overlooking almost as great a panorama as the Jeronomites on the high -crest of the Penha. Franciscans and Jeronomites are alike gone now; -but in this case at least the place has been saved from desecration, -and the little chapel is maintained with reverent care by Sir -Frederick Cook, to whom the place belongs. Byron and Southey, too, did -much for the fame of Cintra. In a room at Lawrence’s Hotel, commanding -a fine view of plain and sea, the former wrote a portion of “Childe -Harold,” and his references in verse to the beauty of the place are -numerous. Writing of the cork convent, Byron refers thus to Honorius, -a rigid ascetic who in a cave there lived long years in self-imposed -penance:— - - “Deep in yon cave Honorius long did dwell, - In hope to merit heaven by making earth a hell.” - -Volumes of poetry, indeed, have been in the aggregate written about -Cintra. Byron made it practically his first stage of “Childe Harold’s -Pilgrimage,” and went in raptures over it:— - - “Lo, Cintra’s glorious Eden intervenes - In variegated maze of mount and glen. - Ah, me! what hand can pencil guide or pen - To follow half on which the eye dilates, - Through views more dazzling unto mortal ken - Than those whereof such things the bard relates - Who to the awe-struck world unlocked Elysium’s gates— - The horrid crags by toppling convent crown’d, - The cork-trees hoar that clothe the shaggy steep, - The mountain moss by scorching skies embrown’d, - The sunken glen whose sunless shrubs must weep, - The tender azure of the unruffled deep, - The orange tints that gild the greenest bough, - The torrents that from cliff to valley leap, - The vine on high, the willow branch below, - Mixed in one mighty scene with varied beauty glow.” - -The poet, in one of his letters to his mother complaining of the dirt -and discomfort of Lisbon, says: “To make amends for the filthiness of -Lisbon and its still filthier inhabitants, the village of Cintra, about -fifteen miles from the capital, is perhaps in every respect the most -delightful in Europe. It contains beauties of every description, natural -and artificial; palaces and gardens rising in the midst of rocks, -cataracts, and precipices; convents on stupendous heights; a distant -view of the sea and the Tagus.... It unites in itself all the wildness -of the Western Highlands with the verdure of the south of France.” - -Robert Southey, too, calls Cintra “the most blessed spot in the -habitable globe,” and Beckford’s letters are crowded with eloquent -passages to the same effect. “The scenery,” he says, “is truly Elysian, -and exactly such as poets assign for the resort of happy spirits.... The -mossy fragments of rock, grotesque pollards and rustic bridges you meet -with at every step, recall Savoy and Switzerland to the imagination; but -the exotic cast of the vegetation, the vivid green of the citron, the -golden fruitage of the orange, the blossoming myrtle, and the rich -fragrance of the turf, embroidered with the brightest coloured and most -aromatic flowers, allow me, without a violent stretch of fancy, to -believe myself in the garden of the Hesperides.” - -The Portuguese poets have of course dwelt much upon the beauties of -Cintra, especially Almeida Garrett, the principal Portuguese poet of -modern times. One stanza by him is cut upon a slab erected on one of his -favourite walks in the village as a memorial, and the following lines -from it may be quoted:— - - “Cintra, amena estancia, - Throno da vegetante primavera: - Quem te não ama, quem em teu regaço - Uma hora da vida lhe ha corrido, - Essa hora esquecerá?” - - “Ah! Cintra, blest abode, - The throne of budding spring, - Who loves thee not: and who - Can e’er forget in life - An hour passed in thy lap?” - -When the stronghold on the crest of the mountain was securely held by -the Moslem soldiery, before the great Affonso Henriques swept southward -with the Cross victorious, the Moorish kings of Lisbon lived in silken -ease below in their summer alcazar in the praça of Cintra—a building -this full of interest still, though injudicious or inexperienced -travellers have caused no little disappointment by comparing it -unjustifiably with the splendid Arab remains at Seville, Granada, and -Toledo. Truth to say, the palace at Cintra is no Alhambra, and should -not be approached with expectations of anything of the sort. And yet the -place is very quaint and charming as you enter the courtyard from the -praça, hard by the Manueline cross with its spiral shaft. The front of -the palace appears to be purely Manueline, the elaborate window and door -decoration, consisting of twisted cables and intertwined branches, and -even the pillars, spouts, and gargoyles are all redolent of Portugal’s -age of heroic expansion and wealth under the “Fortunate” king. - -It was a regal Christian palace long before his time; for his -great-grandfather, John the Great and his wife Philippa of Lancaster, -had adapted the Moorish alcazar for their summer residence and made it -their favourite palace, their grandson and successor Affonso being born -here. But it was in the palmy times of Dom Manuel that the palace of -Cintra became the centre of culture, wit, and poetry, where gaily-clad -courtiers listened to the wondrous tales of Portuguese explorers -returned from Africa and the Indies, and poets sang the national epics -telling of the opening of the mystic East with its wealth untold to -Portuguese commerce and dominion. - -Though the outside of the palace is Portuguese Manueline, the interior -exhibits at every step portions of the original Moorish edifice -unaltered. The vast kitchen, with its enormous champagne-bottle chimneys -in the centre, has never ceased to be available for culinary uses from -the time of the Arab kings until to-day; whilst the dining-room is pure -Moorish, lined with beautiful Arab tiles. Arab tiles, indeed, remain in -many rooms, and the chancel of the chapel, once of course a mosque, is -exquisitely paved with them. There is a beautiful little Moorish _patio_ -too, with its marble fountain and laurels, that might be a portion of a -palace at Fez or Mequinez now, so pure and intact is it. The older rooms -of the palace generally are dark, for the Moorish architects shut out -the sun wherever possible, and the up and down floors on all sorts of -queer levels impress upon one the immense antiquity of the place as a -dwelling-house. - -The finest rooms are the hall of magpies, the hall of swans, and the -hall of stags. The first-named is a square apartment with beautiful -Moorish tiles, and a coved ceiling covered with paintings of magpies, -each one with a motto issuing from its mouth saying, _Por Bem_, “with -good intent.” The legend told is that Queen Philippa one day surprised -John the Great, who was a gallant lover, kissing a maid of honour and -offering her a rose. The Plantagenet queen had a temper of her own, -which John probably feared more than the Castilian charge up the slope -of Aljubarrota, and the king in exculpation cried to his wife, “Por -Bem”; as who should say, _Honi soit qui mal y pense_. The reputation of -John was such that his excuse passed from mouth to mouth derisively, the -queen’s sycophantic maids repeating it with such significant emphasis, -and so frequently, that the king to shame them adopted “Por Bem” as his -motto, and had his reception hall at Cintra painted with the chattering -birds repeating it. - -[Illustration: MANUELINE WINDOWS IN THE OLD PALACE, CINTRA] - -Another fine Moorish hall is called the hall of swans, of which the -ceiling is painted with those birds, in memory of a pair of them kept in -the _patio_ below, and given to King Manuel by his brother-in-law, -Charles V., as a very great rarity. Another large apartment, with a -conical roof, was constructed by King Manuel himself, who gave to it the -name of the hall of stags. Here the king collected the armorial -achievements of all the Portuguese nobility. Seventy-four stags are -ranged around the room, each one having dependent from its neck the -scutcheon of a noble family—except one, that of Tavora, which the great -minister Pombal, in the eighteenth century, ordered to be erased—whilst -upon a frieze running round the hall is the following verse:— - - “Pois com esforços e leaes - Servicios, foram ganhados, - Com estes e outros taes - Devem ser conservados.” - - “By prowess stout and loyal fame - These honours bright were gained; - By others like or eke the same - They needs must be retained.” - -The small and plain hall of audience or justice has at the end a seat of -tiled brick upon which the Sovereigns sat, and here tradition says the -Council met, summoned by the rash young King Sebastian in 1578, to -sanction the crusading attack upon Morocco upon which he had set his -heart. All his fiery zeal and imperiousness were needed to persuade his -nobles to agree to an adventure from which many foresaw disaster. But -the ambitious youth had his way, and his mysterious fate, never solved -when he disappeared for ever from the eyes of men at the battle of -Alcacer Kebir, ended the male line of the house of Avis which John I. -had begun at Aljubarrota two hundred years before. In this gloomy -chamber the die was cast, and with the loss of Sebastian his uncle -Philip II. and his descendants became kings of Portugal for a century. - -A more modern tragedy was enacted within these ancient walls. The -vicious young debauchee, Affonso VI., was deprived of his crown and his -wife by his brother Dom Pedro, in 1667; and here in the palace, in a -room called after him, the wretched king passed the last twelve years of -his imprisonment, shut off entirely from the sight of men. The windows -of his prison-chamber still show the sockets wherein the strong bars -were set, and a deep groove worn in the brick floor along one side marks -the spot where the footsteps of the caged king, as he paced up and down -for years before his bars, have worn his enduring epitaph. Up in a -little closely barred cell overlooking the choir of the chapel, where -Affonso used to hear mass, he died suddenly in 1683. - -The old palace of Cintra, indeed, is full of memories, a place to linger -in and about, rather than to rush through at the tail of a guide; -although it must be confessed that the guardian in this case does take -an intelligent interest in the objects under his care. Cintra, in short, -is beautiful beyond compare in certain directions; but, as happens in -most frequented show-places, the chief beauties can only be enjoyed by -the permission of others, and by the use of a silver key. The beautiful -villa-gardens are jealously shut in by high walls and forbidden by gates -marked private; the palace of the Penha, a royal residence, is -approached with bated breath and whispering humbleness, and the palace -in the town, though not now inhabited by royalty, is still only shown on -special application. But there is one thing in Cintra that may be -enjoyed freely and uncontrolled by all, the finest thing that Cintra can -show, the view from the town of that stupendous Moorish fortress on its -precipitous height. In sylvan beauty, in sweetness and freshness of -atmosphere, even in its sublime prospects of mountain, vale, and sea, -Bussaco may rival and, in some respects, surpass it; but the -long-stretched yellow battlements and massive towers piled upon the -eternal granite boulders, sheer up a thousand feet and more over the -little pleasure-town and its leafy ravines, would be worth the voyage to -Portugal alone to see, even though the gardens of the rich were more -reserved and exclusive than they are. - ------ - -Footnote 2: - - Byron thus speaks of this climb up the hill of Cintra:— - - “Then slowly climb the many winding way, - And frequent turn to linger as you go, - From loftier rocks new loveliness survey, - And rest ye at Our Lady’s house of woe.” - - This last epithet for the monastery, which is now the royal palace, is - an error arising from a misunderstanding, which Byron shares with many - other people to the present day. The original name of the venerated - image of the Virgin, after which the monastery was named, is “Nossa - Senhora da Penha,” “Our Lady of the Rock.” For some reason the place - is still often referred to as the “Pena,” which means “sorrow,” and - the Saint becomes “Our Lady of Woe,” as Byron called it. - -Footnote 3: - - Two German ecclesiastics, who in 1450 were sent to Lisbon by the - Emperor Frederick III. to ask for the hand of the Portuguese Infanta - Leonor, thus mention Cintra in the narrative of their voyage: “Oh! - Cintra, most pleasant place and royal garden, with a little river in - which there are good trout. Here, too, there are devout brethren in a - Jeronomite monastery, who live according to their rule.”—_Historia - Desponsationis Frederici III. cum Eleanora Lusitanica._ - -Footnote 4: - - When Byron visited Cintra in 1809, Beckford, whose fame as an author - rests upon his curious Eastern tale of “Vathek,” had left his villa at - Monserrate for the more pretentious splendours of Fonthill, and the - Peninsular war was pending. - - “And yonder towers the Prince’s palace fair; - There thou, too, Vathek, England’s wealthiest son, - Once formed thy paradise, as not aware, - When wanton wealth her mightiest deeds hath done, - Meek peace voluptuous lures was ever wont to shun. - Here didst thou dwell, here schemes of pleasure plan, - Beneath yon mountain’s ever beauteous brow; - But now, as if a thing unblest by man, - Thy fairy dwelling is as lone as thou.” - - - - - VIII - LISBON - - -No capital city in Europe, with the exception of Constantinople, can -compare with Lisbon in beauty of situation. On approaching the city up -the Tagus from the sea the panorama presented is most striking; although -the unæsthetic Portuguese have done their best to mar it by fringing the -foreshore with possibly profitable, but certainly hideous and offensive, -industrial and commercial excrescences, from the noble and historic -tower of Belem at the mouth of the river, almost hidden in the midst of -defiling gasometers, to where the city merges into the country at Poço -do Bispo three miles away. Piled up upon a grand amphitheatre of hills, -the city rises tier over tier, the river opening out before it in the -form of an extensive bay. Away above Belem the vast square Ajuda palace -stands conspicuously upon a hill-top backed afar off by the huge mass of -Cintra; whilst at the other end of the panorama towards the east the -ancient citadel-palace of St. Jorge looks down from its height upon the -busy river-bank and the central valley running inland, in which the -rectangular main streets are cramped.[5] - -The noble Praça do Comercio, Black Horse Square, as English visitors -call it, fronts the river in the foreground, the most imposing public -square in Europe, with the exception perhaps of the Place de la Concorde -in Paris. Previous to the great earthquake of 1755 a royal palace stood -upon a portion of this site, and the valley behind it was a closely -crowded congeries of narrow and filthy lanes. In my manuscript already -referred to of Lord Strathmore’s travels in the country, an interesting -account is given of the condition of things in 1760, when he saw the -ruined city; and a quotation from his description of the plans then -existing for rebuilding the portion destroyed will give a good idea of -the present aspect, since the plans were executed precisely. - - “The prospect,” writes Lord Strathmore, “of this great city rising - from its ruins is still distant, as besides ye arsenal there are but - three houses built upon the intended plan. The plan of the streets - and squares is extremely well imagin’d. There is a pretty broad - valley between two hills, running down to ye Tagus in ye part where - ye palace stood. Thro’ this they intend to make their principal - street, all ye houses regularly built after one model and _tirés au - cordon_, terminating in a noble square open in front to ye river, - which is of great breadth here, with old Lisbon upon high ground - opposite. The other three sides [of the square] will be surrounded - by a very handsome, narrow arcade, with public buildings above and - an equestrian statue of ye King in ye centre. The other streets will - likewise be regular, and will lead at right angles into ye great - street from ye hills on each side. Tho’ ye design is extremely noble - ye architecture is as bad [_i.e._ as before] except in ye square - already described. They seem to consider ye front of a house only as - a high wall with holes larger or smaller to admit light as occasion - requires.” - -This exactly pictures Lisbon as it stands to-day. From Black Horse -Square on the Tagus bank run the Rua Augusta and two other parallel -streets, called respectively the streets of “gold” and “silver,” -straight as a line to the busy centre of Lisbon, the fine parallelogram, -called the Praça de Dom Pedro, or the Rocio, paved with its inevitable -mosaic of black and white waves, at the end of which is the theatre of -Donna Maria, the central railway station, and the entrance to the -handsome Avenida da Libertade, a garden and tree-shaded drive of good -houses occupying the whole of the narrow valley for nearly two miles -into the suburbs. On either side of the Avenida and the principal -rectangular streets in the valley the hills rise precipitously, and when -the tops of these have been surmounted a series of sudden dips and rapid -ascents succeed east and west. The city is, therefore, a most fatiguing -one to explore, as to go anywhere away from the river-bank, which with -the exception of Black Horse Square is irretrievably ugly and squalid, -and from the streets “_tirés au cordon_” in the central valley, -formidable hills have to be faced. This of late years has been much -relieved by a complete system of electric trams, which practically cover -the city, and by the instalment of funicular railways and lifts up some -of the more difficult ascents. - -The city, on the whole, is decidedly disappointing at close quarters. -The straight principal streets and rectangular cross thoroughfares, with -their flat, prosaic architecture, the high white houses all alike, are -the antipodes of picturesqueness, whilst the authorities seem perversely -to have done their utmost to make the river-side as ugly as Rotherhithe -or Wapping. This is the more to be regretted, as since I first knew the -city many years ago, great tracts of land have been reclaimed from the -sludge and ooze of the foreshore which might well have been treated with -some regard for public amenity. The large strip reclaimed from the -river, however, almost as far as Belem, has for the most part been -turned into untidy deserts of dust, shabby-looking docks, and -dumping-places for débris. The utter lack of æsthetic taste is -observable on all hands. The terrace before the king’s residence, the -palace of the Necesidades, for instance, is upon the brow of a low hill, -and commands a splendid view of the river and the opposite shore for -many miles on either hand; and yet even here, between the palace and the -river factory chimneys belch black smoke day and night, hopelessly ugly -industrial buildings block the prospect, and the reclaimed foreshore and -docks are as desolate as elsewhere. - -Of the pure picturesque, indeed, little remains in Lisbon; but what -still exists must be sought amongst the fisher folk on the river-side, -and especially in the markets that have been built on the reclaimed land -of the Ribeira Nova, not far from the centre of the city and close to -the Hotel Central. It was pleasant to turn into the cool, spacious, -covered fish-market out of the brilliant sunlight, which even quite -early in the day drove people to welcome shade. The air was clear, -crisp, and elastic, and every object seemed to sparkle with light and -colour. Inside the market hundreds of people were bargaining quietly, -for even here the absence of vociferation was remarkable; servants -buying their stocks of provisions for the day, housewives of the humbler -class doing their own marketing, baskets on their arms, and women fish -hawkers by the score laying in their stocks. They were all shoeless, as -usual, wearing under their vast head burden black pork-pie hats over red -or yellow kerchiefs, and they have girdles below the hips into which the -upper portion of their pleated skirts is drawn to relieve the waist of -their weight. Upon the ground, spread around the women sellers, were -great heaps of glistening fish; cod, dory, skate, whiting, and large -quantities of squids or cuttlefish, which are much liked by the -Portuguese poor. - -[Illustration: ON THE QUAY, LISBON.] - -The male fish-sellers of Lisbon are for a wonder even more picturesque -than the women; for here on the Tagus the seafarers of the south are -first noticeable, quite distinct in racial characteristics as they are -from those of the north. These Lisbon fishermen go barefooted, which the -poorest men of the north never do, they wear breeches only to the knee, -girt by a crimson sash, and the hanging tasselled bag-cap falls and -waves over their shoulder as they loup along with a peculiar springing -gait under a long flexible pole balanced transversely across the -shoulders, at each end of which a flat, shallow basket of fish is -suspended. The vegetable market adjoining that devoted to fish is a -brilliant sight in this favoured land. Heaps of scarlet pimentos and -tomatoes are flanked by enormous yellow gourds, and mountains of purple -grapes incredibly cheap, pomegranates, and big luscious pears jostle -piles of humbler vegetables of the kitchen, and some of the groups of -bright-coloured produce seem to reproduce the old pictures of the -mythical cornucopia overflowing with all the best fruits of the earth. - -It is a long and tiring walk from here to Belem, but two lines of -electric trams go thither, one along the river-bank and the other by the -parallel route past Alcantara, and either will serve our turn. Belem is -now but a suburb of Lisbon, continuous lines of houses covering the two -miles of the route. There still remains, however, something of -distinction in this royal village, full of memories as it is of -Portugal’s great day of power and wealth. For here it was that at length -the dream came true, and those long vigils of the Fortunate King on the -savage peak of Cintra were rewarded by the coming of Vasco da Gama to -the squat, sturdy old tower of Belem, that had been in his yearning -thoughts through so many trials and dangers. King Manuel greeted his -great subject, who had brought to his native land the potentiality of -wealth illimitable, here in the village of Belem, at the mouth of the -Tagus; and as the explorer stepped ashore, the king, overjoyed at his -coming, swore to build upon that very spot a Jeronomite monastery -splendid enough to be worthy even of that great occasion. And he kept -his word; for two years afterwards, in 1500, the first course was laid -of a building which surpasses all others in its particular style, and in -some respects is one of the most remarkable ecclesiastical structures in -the world. - -A long line of church and monastery adjoining runs parallel with the -sea, the conventual portion partly in ruins but now in course of -reconstruction, and the eye is at first perfectly bewildered by the -richness of the details of the doors and windows of the edifice. Here -Manueline architecture is at its earliest and best, before extravagance -like that of the unfinished chapels at Batalha overwhelmed it. Here the -orthodox florid Gothic and Renaissance styles are leavened, but not -obliterated, by the new spirit of expansion and aspiration that found -its national expression in what is called Manueline. The west door of -the church, where the monastic buildings join it, is extremely -beautiful. On each side are rich canopies under which kneel the king and -queen with their patron saints, and smaller figures exquisitely carved -surround the rest of the door, which is surmounted by flamboyant -pinnacles in the Manueline taste. The general idea of the windows, which -are very large and high, is of a round-topped arch three or four courses -or orders deep, each course being set with bosses of a different, but -always elaborate, pattern, an outer moulding representing a twisted -cable or twined branches in infinite variety, ending in a series of -pinnacles, surrounding the window on the surface of the wall. - -The great south doorway facing the road and the Tagus, the principal -door of entrance, almost defies description by its richness and -complexity of ornament, this and the cloisters of the church being -perhaps the best specimen of Gothic Manueline in Portugal. Between the -two doorways into which the entrance is divided there is a pillar or -column, upon which, under a rich Gothic canopy, stands a large figure of -a man wearing a tabard. The scheme of decoration is carried up by a -series of flamboyant pinnacles and canopied figures beautifully -interlaced to the top of the aisle wall. The two great windows flanking -this gorgeous doorway match it in magnificence, and one feels on turning -away from this monument of human skill and ingenuity that here the -short-lived art of the Portuguese Renaissance has reached its highest -flight. - -[Illustration: THE SOUTH DOOR AT BELEM] - -The impression, however, hardly survives the moment when you cross the -threshold and enter the church itself; for here you see an interior -unlike any other great temple. The first impression is one of immense -unencumbered spaciousness. The ordinary arrangement of nave and aisles -does not exist, but from the floor there spring straight up to a height -that seems prodigious six slender isolated marble pillars, three on each -side. They form no continued arcade, although, of course, they are -aligned, and each pillar is decorated lavishly in high relief with -Renaissance ornamentation in panels, with canopied niches half-way up -their height. From the top of each column spring a series of branches -like the fronds of a palm-leaf, which, meeting in beautiful graceful -curves, form the intricate series of bossed groins which compose the -vaulted marble roof. At the west end of the church three low-pointed -Manueline arches support the choir-loft, and along the north wall twelve -Manueline doorways are ranged, with rich canopied niches above them, -whilst the magnificent transept, with its gorgeous ceiling and royal -chapels and tombs, and its vast Manueline chancel arch of twisted cables -and cordage supporting rich canopied pulpits, altogether produce an -effect of overpowering majesty. - -Here in the chancel repose, in splendid tombs, the ashes of the king, -Manuel the Fortunate, and his son, John III., the two great builders of -the fane; and here too lie, in a transept chapel, Vasco da Gama himself, -and Camões, who enshrined in deathless epic the spirit of exalted -enterprise of which the great explorer was the personification, and the -Infante, Prince Henry, the prophetic inspirer. Kings, queens, princes, -and princesses lie around in fretted sepulchres—that ill-used Catharine -of Braganza, Queen-Consort of England, amongst them, here where she -passed the long years of her widowhood—but their very names are for the -most part forgotten now; and this memorable church of Belem, whilst its -daring beauty stands, will remain the shrine of the two greatest figures -of Portugal’s golden age, and of the “Fortunate Monarch,” Manuel, in -whose reign the vision of the Infante was realised. - -The cloisters of the monastery vie with those of Batalha in beauty, -which is saying much. Each of the twenty arches, four on each face and -one at each corner, is filled with Manueline tracery, exhibiting -inexhaustible caprice and invention, no two being alike in pattern; -whilst highly decorated Manueline doorways line the inner walls. The -upper ambulatory is wider and, if possible, more elaborate than the -lower, an unusual arrangement, each upper arch buttress being capped by -a beautifully decorated finial. The chapter-house, as usual, leads out -of the cloister, an exquisitely rich specimen of Manueline, and is now -devoted to the stately tomb of Alexandre Herculano, the -nineteenth-century Portuguese historian. Pompous as are the sepulchres -of kings and heroes in the adjoining church, this monument to the -historian—a respectable figure in literature, it is true, but by no -means a genius of universal fame—surpasses them all. Here, alone in the -midst of this grandiose chapter-house of the monks, the dead -man-of-letters rests more splendidly than monarch or millionaire. Modern -Portugal, at least, can honour the gifted pen; for the names of Camões, -of Almeida-Garrett, the nineteenth-century poet, and Herculano, the -historian, are all through the country commemorated by street names. How -long shall we have to wait before Englishmen, so ready to bow the knee -before successful finance, will thus do homage to an historian? Verily, -little as we may relish the truth, we have much to learn from Portugal, -and not in this alone. - -The monastery buildings of Belem shelter twelve hundred orphan boys, who -are there clothed, fed, and educated by the State, and it was a fine -sight to witness them all at table in the great Manueline refectory of -the vanished monks, and pleasant to hear the ringing of their youthful -laughter as they played joyously in the stately cloisters. In the museum -adjoining there is a collection of ancient royal coaches, some of them -very imposing and curious, but generally speaking not so interesting a -collection as that in the royal _caballerizas_ at Madrid. - -Sated almost with sculptural richness, I left the monastery, and rested -beneath the grateful shade of palms in the public garden opposite, with -the broad Tagus before me and the glowing blue sky overhead until the -perfect day began to wane. Then through the fine Praça de Dom Fernando, -with its handsome Manueline pillar and statue of Albuquerque, the great -viceroy of the Indies, I slowly wended my way back by the chaotic -river-bank to Lisbon. Belem is beautiful and suggestive enough to -provide reflection for one day without allowing other impressions to -disturb it, and the sordid sights and sounds of the water-side were -nothing to me, for the airy fancies of the artist in stone and the -romantic memories of the heroic days surrounded me as with a mantle. - -Lisbon is a city of prospects, and, uninteresting as are its main -streets, it is only necessary to stand upon one of its many eminences to -see spread before you a wide and varied panorama. The end windows of the -upper corridors in the Hotel de Bragança afford a splendid view of the -port and the mouth of the Tagus, whilst from the ancient citadel of St. -Jorge, and from the dome of the big classical church of Estrella, the -city and the rolling hills for miles around are spread out at the foot -like a map in relief. Speaking for myself, I have always considered one -of the most attractive coigns of vantage in Lisbon to be the Largo da -Gloria just over the entrance of the Avenida. This can be reached either -up the Rua de São Roque or by the funicular lift from the Avenida -itself. The view from this pretty public garden on the top of a -precipitous bluff is charming. The whole of the central valley lies -under you with its straight lines of streets, starting from the great -parallelogram of the Rocio just below and reaching the Tagus. Just in -front of you across the valley rise the hills covered with houses of all -colours amidst greenery, with the great old citadel of the Moors and -their conquerors crowning the highest point towards the river; the -square battlemented towers of the old cathedral being seated upon a -lower hill at its foot. To the left an ocean of mountainous hills -covered with verdure and buildings stretch as far as the eye reaches; -whilst on the right beyond the extensive Black Horse Square shines the -wide estuary of the river, and miles away across the water the mountains -that bound the prospect towards the south. - -As you stand and look down from the garden of Gloria to the big busy -square, with its wavy black and white pavement, and tall column just -underneath you, you may notice that at the north-east corner of the -square the valley broadens somewhat, and a maze of narrow streets starts -from that corner. If when you descend from your eminence you penetrate -and explore this corner you will find in it all that is left of the -quaint Lisbon of before the great earthquake. For here, in a district -still called the Mouraria, and in what once was the Villa Nova de -Gibraltar adjoining it, dwelt outside the ancient walls the Moors and -Jews, who for centuries almost monopolised the wealth of Portugal, until -at the bidding of his Spanish father-in-law and mother-in-law, Ferdinand -and Isabel, the “Fortunate” King Manuel made short work of the children -of Israel. Here in the ghetto, of which the ancient gateway still -stands, the streets are narrow and tortuous. Crumbling gables and quaint -corner turrets overhang the pathway, and dark mysterious entries, lined -with oriental _azulejos_, tell of the time when men lived in daily fear -of rapine and violence. - -Almost sheer over the district of the Mouraria towers the hill upon -which the fortress of St. Jorge stands, and if you care to climb it you -may see Lisbon, and beyond from the point opposite to that from which -you have just descended. The cathedral stands upon a hill nearer the -river, and may best be reached by following the tram-lines up the Rua da -Conceição. The sturdy old church fronts a triangular space, from which -picturesque glimpses of the roofs of the old town and river-bank may be -caught. Two square Romanesque towers, which, like the rest of the -cathedral, are now in course of restoration from the vandalism of the -seventeenth and eighteenth centuries, stand on each side of and connect -with a large square porch before the west door. Cupolas and a railed -parapet formerly surmounted these towers, but battlements in accordance -with the original design are in future to replace them, and the lavish -additions of carved wood capitals to the pillars and coats of stucco -over ancient decorations are being cleared away, thanks largely to the -encouragement of the present Queen of Portugal, who is interested in the -work. - -Here on this hill stood the mosque of the Moslem kings, and here, when -in 1147 Affonso Henriques, the first King of Portugal, captured the -city, the first Christian church was built by the conqueror, who -nominated an English warrior-monk, Gilbert, to be the first bishop of -the new See. Upon a stone within the porch of the west door, the carved -legend tells how the Moors were vanquished by the Christian king, and -the cross set up in this place, and the twelfth-century round-arched -doorway with the grotesque capitals of its pillars demonstrate that this -part of the edifice at least dates from the earliest years of the -Portuguese monarchy. - -The interior presents six round arches on clustered marble columns, now -stripped of the stucco that disfigured them for centuries, though the -Corinthian capitals which were added in the eighteenth century still -remain. When Lord Strathmore saw the church in 1760, five years after -the earthquake, he referred to these Corinthian capitals in a sketch he -drew of the church: “I have left out,” he says, “the large Corinthian -capitals and marble pedestals which have been added to the pillars -within memory. The fire has burnt most of the capitals off, both of the -ambulatory and the nave arches, and the other capitals have been so much -impaired that you can only see remains of basket-work, foliage, and -flowers.” The intention referred to by Lord Strathmore to restore the -church to its original simplicity was so far from being carried out that -new gilt wood acanthus leaf capitals were added to these fine old -Romanesque pillars. At last, however, the church is really being -judiciously treated, and is rapidly assuming the grave, devotional -appearance of the early Christian temples raised after the victories of -Affonso Henriques. - -The roof is particularly striking in its solid majesty, the middle flute -of each cluster of columns springing to the ceiling and supporting a -round arch carried over the nave to the opposite column, something like -the roof plan at Alcobaça. The transepts have majestic rose windows at -each end, and the central lantern tower or cimborio stands on pillars of -lofty clustered columns, forming round arches rising as high as the roof -of the nave; all this being as early as the first foundation of the -church. The chancel is very beautiful early Gothic, with pointed arches, -and a gorgeous ceiling, and the little Gothic chapels round the -ambulatory are many of them interesting. Tombs and sarcophagi of -archbishops, most of ages long past, crumble in dark corners and dim, -grated chapels, and two splendid royal tombs of Affonso IV. and his wife -are on the left of the high altar. Here, to be seen only on great -occasions, rest the bones of the patron saint, Vincent, opportunely -discovered by the king, Affonso Henriques, in their hiding-place far -away, where, guarded by ravens, they had been saved from the desecration -of the unbelieving Moors. The ship that brought the holy relics from the -southernmost point of Portugal, for reverent preservation, to Lisbon was -always escorted by the faithful ravens, thenceforward sacred birds for -the cathedral church of Lisbon, where some of them are kept to this day -in memory of their piety. - -Along the walls of the aisles run large pictorial tableaux of scenes in -the life of St. Vincent and incidents in the miracles of the ravens, the -ancient blue and white tiles of which the pictures are composed showing -clear indications of the still lingering Moorish traditions in early -Christian ceramics. It was Saturday afternoon as I mused in the old -church, which was blocked and encumbered in many places by the materials -of the restoring workmen; and, wandering past an open doorway in the end -of the south aisle, I heard the hum of voices. It came from the ruined -cloister, where a sad-looking young priest and a sister of charity were -teaching classes of little children. It was a charming picture. The -bright sun filtered through the half-ruined twin lancet lights of the -ogival arches and fell in dappled patches of gold upon the ancient -sarcophagi and dismantled altars that lined the humble arcade: a wild, -neglected little garden, all abloom with untended masses of autumn -flowers and trails of crimson creepers, and the droning hum of the -children reciting in turn the sacred lesson they were conning. Peace and -remoteness from the world seemed to reign in this quiet nook of the busy -capital. Here was none of the sculptured glories such as dazzled the -beholder at Belem or Batalha; only two plain pointed narrow arches in -each bay of the arcade, with a round light above, bordered by a simple -nailhead or rouleau moulding. Everything is ruinous and in course of -restoration, but devout humility is the note struck throughout the -cathedral, from the solemn, restrained Romanesque of the nave to the -plain sepulchral little Gothic cloister, where, in the dim sea-green -light filtering through leaves and crumbling arches young children learn -the letter of their faith. - -There is in these Portuguese churches no affectation of the gloomy -splendour and mystery which is the characteristic of the Spanish -cathedrals. At mass on Sundays the faithful gather, and on other days a -certain number attend; but the constant coming and going of worshippers -at all hours of the day, and the celebration of mass at one altar or -another continuously from dawn to midday that in Spain is universal, -find no counterpart in the Portuguese portion of the Peninsula. Here, -and above all in the north, the priest is not constantly in evidence, as -he is in Spain, and his garb is, as a rule, as unobtrusive as that of an -English clergyman; for the shovel-hat and flowing cassock and cloak have -in Portugal almost disappeared. However religious the Portuguese may be -the apparatus and panoply of religion are not conspicuous, and when once -mass is over in the Portuguese church, the place is usually deserted. - -Although with justice, Lisbon is usually considered an extremely -unæsthetic capital, and has not much to show worth seeing in pictorial -art, there is one feature, in which, little known or noticed as it is by -visitors, Lisbon can boast of unrivalled artistic possessions. I mean in -that of ecclesiastical _orfèvrerie_. When the religious houses were -suppressed, and the State appropriated church property, the priceless -productions of the old goldsmiths, gifts of devout sovereigns and -grandees for centuries to sacred shrines, were not plundered or -frittered away in private hands, as happened in England and France, but -carefully preserved by the State for public enjoyment. Truth to say, no -one seems to enjoy these exquisite objects very much now, for of the -many times I have spent hours in admiring the collections in the -National Museum, and in that of São Roque, I have rarely seen any but an -occasional stranger in either place. - -The Museum of Fine Arts at Lisbon possesses, it is true, few objects of -importance, apart from the goldsmith’s work and ecclesiastical -embroidery, and the lack of a catalogue of the paintings—except for the -collection given to the nation by Count de Carvalhido—stands in the way -of their enjoyment. Most that is worth seeing here in pictorial art -comes from the suppressed religious houses and churches, especially the -early Flemish and German paintings, of which several are really fine. -But the collection of ancient pictures is so lamentable in condition as -a whole, and so badly lit, as to make the study of them difficult. Count -de Carvalhido’s large collection, which is separately housed in two -rooms in the Museum, contains a few good pictures and many by obscure -artists quite the reverse, the specimens of the Flemish and Germanic -schools predominating. The attribution of the works to named painters is -often quite wide of the mark, many pictures bearing no resemblance -whatever to the style of their alleged authors. There is, for instance, -a little panel attributed to Sir Thomas Lawrence. It is called -“Seduction,” and represents, in the usual eighteenth-century French -genre style, an interior with a young man seated at an open escritoire -offering jewels and money to a girl, whilst an old woman watches through -a half-closed door. Anything more unlike Lawrence, either in technique -or subject, it would be difficult to conceive. Another picture, a large -canvas attributed to Zaniberti, an Italian painter, who died in 1636, -represents a Carnival in Rome with a large number of maskers and -spectators, all of whom are dressed in the fashion of the late -eighteenth century, a hundred and fifty years after Zaniberti’s death. - -But the wealth of church and altar plate more than makes up for the -shortcomings of the picture galleries. Monstrances in gold of great -antiquity and beauty, covered with precious stones, are to be seen -literally by the dozen. Silver gilt processional crosses of the -fourteenth and fifteenth centuries, some almost Byzantine, some nearly -Mudejar in design, abound; chalices of unimaginable richness in pure -Gothic and Manueline styles, reliquaries in gold and gems beyond price, -and gold and enamelled crowns and girdles, altar crosses, and -candlesticks without number, are displayed in cases in a suite of rooms -commanding a fine view over the Tagus. Alcobaça has contributed the -lion’s share of these treasures, but Batalha and many other religious -houses have been placed under involuntary contribution; and the result -is a collection of early ecclesiastical art in gold and silver that I -have never seen approached elsewhere. The church vestments, too, are -rich and numerous beyond description; and a large series of beautifully -embroidered court dresses of the eighteenth century displays the -influence exerted by the Portuguese connection with the far East upon -artistic embroidery of the period. - -The collection of church property contained in the small museum attached -to the Jesuit church of São Roque is circumscribed in period to the late -seventeenth and early eighteenth centuries; but as the whole collection -is derived from the possessions of a single chapel—that of St. John—in -the adjoining church, a vivid idea is gained of the lavishness with -which the church in Portugal was endowed in the days of the national -prosperity. - -The church and district of São Roque have always possessed special -interest for me. The monastery, standing upon a bluff overlooking the -valley, was the point of attack when the English under Norris and the -Earl of Essex tried to capture Lisbon for the Pretender, Dom Antonio, in -1589;[6] and, though the monks were in favour of the English _protégé_, -the Spanish musketeers filled the long line of windows commanding the -approach from the English camp, on the opposite hill outside the gate of -São Antão, and frustrated all attempts to force the position. - -Inside the great square church there is an object of interest that first -attracted my attention many years ago, and always demands from me a -pilgrimage to São Roque, up the hill of the Carmo, as soon as I arrive -in Lisbon. Sir Francis Tregian was one of those stout Cornish Catholic -recusant gentlemen whose career in the days of Elizabeth I had had -occasion to follow in detail; and his persecution and escape were -familiar to me, as they are to many students of the religious troubles -of the last years of the Tudor queen; but I had never known where he had -found a last resting-place. Here in São Roque a large upright slab -stands beneath the pulpit on the north side of the church which quaintly -tells the story: “_Aqui esta, em pé, o corpo de Dom Francisco Tregian, -fidalgo inglés mui illustre, o qual depois de confiscados os seus -estados, e grandes trabalhos padecidos em 28 annos de prisam, polla -defensa da fe catholica em Inglaterra, na persecuçam da Rainha Isabel, -no anno 1608 ao 25 Dezembro morreó nesta cidade de Lisboa, com fama de -santidade. Avendo 17 annos que estava sepultado nesta igrega de S. Roque -da Companhia de Jesus, no anno de 1625 ao 25 Abril, se achouo seu corpo -inteiro e incorrupto, e foe collocado neste lugar pelos ingleses -catholicos residentes en esta cidade, ao 25 Abril 1626._” “Here upright -stands the body of Sir Francis Tregian, a very illustrious English -gentleman, who, after his estates were confiscated and he had suffered -great tribulation during twenty-eight years of imprisonment for the -defence of the Catholic faith in England, in the persecution of Queen -Elizabeth, died on the 25th December 1608 in this city of Lisbon, famed -for his saintliness. After he had been entombed for seventeen years in -this church of São Roque of the Company of Jesus, in the year 1625, on -the 25th April, his body was found intact and uncorrupted, and was -placed in this position by the English Catholics resident in this city -on the 25th April 1626.” - -The chapel on the north side of São Roque nearest the altar is the -beautifully decorated chapel of St. John. It had been for centuries the -poorest chapel in the sanctuary; but with the advent of King John V., at -the dawn of the eighteenth century, the new monarch declared his -intention of making the shrine of his patron saint the richest altar in -Portugal. And he did so, with gifts both lavish and beautiful, an -example naturally followed by his courtiers; so that when the Jesuits -were expelled, the treasures of St. John, the property thenceforward of -the State, formed a museum of their own. The objects exhibited, -monstrances, reliquaries, crosses, altar furniture, banners, frontals, -and vestments, are of surpassing magnificence; although they often -attract more by their intrinsic worth than by the purity of their taste, -as, for instance, the silver-gilt altar candlesticks ten feet high, and -the great silver _repousé_ altar front: but as specimens of the -decorative art—Italian, French, and Portuguese—of their period, they are -well worth study. - -Lower down the hill stands the beautiful ruined Gothic-Manueline church -of the Carmo, now an archæological museum, filled with many fragments of -the older buildings of Lisbon saved from the ruin of the earthquake that -wrecked the Carmo itself. - -Lisbon abounds in public gardens of almost tropical luxuriance. The fine -plantations before the big classical church of the Estrella, the park of -the Necessidades palace, the square of the Principe Real, the Avenida -itself, and the pretty garden of the Gloria already referred to, might -for the vegetation in them almost be in the West Indies; whilst the -Botanic Gardens, especially, can show palm groves to be matched nowhere -in Europe, except at Elche in the east of Spain. And not palms alone -grow here in a way wonderful in the midst of a populous city, but cacti, -aloes, daturas, and magnolias bloom with great luxuriance, and huge -tropical forest trees from South America thrive in the open as if on -their native soil. - -The climate of Lisbon, indeed, is extraordinarily soft and mild -relatively to its latitude, owing to its sheltered position and to the -prevalence of westerly sea breezes. As a winter resort it has -unaccountably fallen somewhat out of fashion of late years in favour of -the Mediterranean Riviera, where the climate is much less equable and -more trying to those in delicate health. The latitude of Lisbon is about -the same as that of Palermo, three hundred miles south of that of the -Mediterranean Riviera, and the mean winter temperature (December, -January, and February) in Lisbon is 10.63° Centigrade (51° Fahrenheit), -against 7.79° at Biarritz, and 7.91° at Nice. Not only is Lisbon thus -much warmer on an average than the winter resorts now most affected by -English visitors, but the climate is more uniform, the diurnal -fluctuation in winter being considerably less at Lisbon than at -Biarritz, Nice, or even at Palermo in the same latitude. The winter -atmospheric humidity of Lisbon slightly exceeds that of Biarritz and -Nice, though in summer Lisbon is atmospherically much drier than either: -but in the matter of the entire winter rainfall the average of Lisbon is -considerably higher, and this it is that to some extent has set English -physicians against the place as a winter health resort, although the -average rainfall for the whole year is much less at Lisbon[7] than -either at Biarritz or Nice. The rains in Lisbon, however, which fall -heavily in the months of November, December, and January (a mean of 277 -milimetres, as against 254 milimetres at Biarritz and 167 milimetres at -Nice), are usually rapid and torrential, and pass away at once. - -Snow is practically unknown at Lisbon, and frost is extremely rare. But, -withal, equable and mild as the average hibernal climate of Lisbon is, I -do not personally recommend it as a residence for those who are forced -in the winter to seek a warm, dry, and bracing atmosphere. The smoke of -the numerous factories, and the mist that clings about the river and in -the narrow gullies that contain much of the town, make the place -somewhat depressing. But within fifteen miles of the city, and free from -the objections natural to the valley of the Tagus, there are two resorts -which are, in my opinion, and I speak from experience of both of them, -ideal places in which the unpleasantness and danger of winter in a -northern climate may be escaped. It is, indeed, difficult to overrate -the attractions in this respect of Cascaes and Mont’ Estoril, especially -the latter. Cascaes stands in a lovely bay surrounded by bold, rocky -scenery, and backed by hills which protect it from the north. A fine -sheltered promenade facing the sea possesses a grove of palms more -luxuriant than any that Nice or Cannes can show, and the walks along the -coast are beautiful. Mont’ Estoril, which is within a mile or so of -Cascaes, on the point of the Bay, is of more modern reputation, but is -in some respects to be preferred to Cascaes as a winter resort. The -train from Lisbon, running along the coast for fourteen miles, lands the -visitor to Mont’ Estoril in the midst of a beautifully picturesque -village of hotels and villas, grouped upon the slope of a hill -descending in a semicircle to the sea, with pines and eucalyptus woods -above, and palms everywhere below. The high range of Cintra, and the -lower hills on the north and east, completely protect the place from -inclement winds, whilst the open sea-front on west and south prevents -the sweltering stuffiness and relaxing effect of so many shut-in places. -There are several excellent hotels specially intended for winter -visitors; and for any one to whom a three-days’ voyage at sea in a -commodious, well-found steamer has no terrors, this Portuguese Riviera -just outside the Tagus forms a winter refuge which it will be difficult -to beat in Europe. The climate of Mont’ Estoril is noticeably warmer -than Lisbon in the winter, and the diurnal variations of temperature are -smaller; whilst the humidity and rainfall, which in Lisbon during the -three winter months form its only natural drawback, are very much -smaller at Mont’ Estoril. It is, indeed, very rare that mist is seen at -the latter place, even when the Tagus valley is full of haze. From -personal knowledge of both places I should say that the mean winter -rainfall of Mont’ Estoril is much less than that of Biarritz, whilst -certainly its temperature is higher and its uniformity greater. - -I have dwelt only upon the winter climatic conditions, because it is in -this respect that misapprehension usually exists. The spring and autumn -climate generally is simply perfect, and from the middle of March onward -fine warm weather, with only an occasional heavy shower in April, May, -and October, may be counted upon almost with certainty. During the -particular tour of which this book is a record, I passed thirty days in -Portugal in the month of October. Out of this period I saw rain on four -days only—namely, three hours of deluge at Oporto, a portion of the day -at Bussaco, and two days at Lisbon; whilst in previous journeys in -Portugal I have on more than one occasion seen an even smaller quantity -of rain in October, April, and May. November is usually wet, though not -so wet as at Biarritz or Nice for the same month (Lisbon, 106 -milimetres; Biarritz, 122 milimetres; Nice, 114 milimetres), whilst in -December and January Lisbon and Biarritz have about an equal rainfall, -Nice being in those months drier than either. From March onward Lisbon -has a decided advantage over both places. - ------ - -Footnote 5: - - Byron, who, much as he loved Cintra, hated Lisbon and the Portuguese - generally, which perhaps is not very surprising when it is considered - that he visited it in 1809, after the first French invasion and before - the Peninsular War, thus wrote of Lisbon:— - - “What beauties does Lisboa first unfold; - Her image floating on that noble tide, - Which poets vainly pave with sands of gold, - And now whereon a thousand keels do ride. - - But whoso entereth within this town, - That sheening far celestial seems to be, - Disconsolate will wander up and down, - Mid many things unsightly to strange ee.” - -Footnote 6: - - The story of the expedition is told in full in “The Year after the - Armada,” by the present writer. - -Footnote 7: - - Lisbon, 738 milimetres; Biarritz, 1067 milimetres; Nice, 766 - milimetres. - - - - - IX - SETUBAL, TROYA, AND EVORA - - -Tyneside itself cannot be more disagreeable than Lisbon on the rare -occasions when really bad weather comes up the Tagus from the west. -Smoke of unusual blackness and abundance is poured without let or -hindrance from innumerable industrial chimneys by the water-side, and -the heavy sea-mist, clinging and wet, holds the carbon in its embrace -until the atmosphere would hardly disgrace a London particular at -Blackwall. I had stood it for a day, but as I knew I could get away from -it by a short railway journey out of the valley of the Tagus I -determined to endure it no longer, but to fly to the other side of the -hills. The weather was as bad as ever when I started the next morning by -the ferry-boat to cross the four miles or so of river to Barreiro, which -is the terminus of the southern system of railways for Lisbon. Through -an arid-looking country of vines producing the famous Lavradio wine, but -ugly and poor, on the slopes of the Tagus watershed, we gradually rose -to the region of pines and eucalyptus. Leaving all the mist and rain -behind us we topped the sandy hills and descended towards the south in -an atmosphere brilliantly clear and as exhilarating as nitrous oxide -gas. - -Portuguese railways are slow, and it took an hour and a half to cover -the eighteen miles between Barreiro and Setubal—the Saint Ubes of the -English geographies. A clean spacious little town, beautifully situated, -is this metropolis of sardines and salt. The days of its saline -preeminence, it is true, have passed away—the times of humming -prosperity at the salt-pans, when the harbours was wont to be crowded by -ships loading salt for England and elsewhere; but still the local trade -is considerable, and the great extension of the tinned sardine trade in -Portugal has made up for everything, there being as many as thirty-four -sardine-packing factories at present in full work at Setubal. Five -minutes after we had got clear out of the Tagus valley and over the last -ridge, the aspect of the land had changed as if by magic. Oranges, -lemons, and almond-trees stretch in groves and orchards on all sides; -broad tracts of cereal land and dark olive plantations mix with the -vineyards, telling of a country of overflowing fertility; whilst long -lines of tall eucalyptus trees, with hanging strips of bark, add a -strange and exotic note to the scene. This fertile plain descending to -the sea on the south is enclosed by high mountain ranges, especially -towards the west, upon an outlying spur of which, a great isolated hill, -stands aloft Palmella, another of those stupendous fortresses for which -Portugal bears the palm. At the foot of the plain, on the edge of the -sea, sits the sparkling little town of Setubal, with Palmella, six miles -away, looming behind it, but in the marvellous clear air looking as if -within reach of one’s hand. - -Before the town of Setubal, and three miles away across the estuary, -there extends a long sandy spit or island completely enclosing the -harbour and river mouth on the south, the only entrance being from the -west where a rocky point, an extreme spur of the great Arrabida range, -runs out into the Atlantic facing the sandy point. This land-locked -haven of clear blue water is one of the most beautiful I have ever seen, -especially when entering it from the sea. The climate of Setubal is -perhaps the warmest of any in Portugal, and the fertility of the country -at the back is remarkable, the hills behind it completely shutting off -the winds from the north. - -And yet the people in this part of the country present an undefinable -trace of poverty and hardship, such as is never seen in North Portugal. -They are hard-working and frugal, but they are somehow less upstanding -and independent in their bearing, and their conditions of life are -evidently inferior. The difference is no doubt to some extent racial; -for here the sturdy Teutonic and Celtic stocks left fewer traces than in -the north: but the land in the south is mostly owned in large estates, -and not by the small cultivators themselves, as it is in North Portugal, -and this has probably more to do with it. A population of wage-earners -is never so well conditioned as one of independent workers, and in some -such direction as this, surely, must be sought the explanation for the -marked difference between the people of the north and south of a country -so small and so homogeneous as Portugal. - -The long sandy island across the bay was my objective, and I lost no -time in bargaining with the owner of a sardine-boat to carry me across. -The boat was a heavy, clumsy craft, as it needs to be for the sardine -fisheries, the shape of a crescent-moon with pointed prow and stern, a -high-peaked lateen sail of red canvas stretched on canes, and long -sweeps which worked over a pin in the thwarts, fitting into a hole in a -mighty block of wood in the centre of the oars instead of between -rollocks. If the craft was picturesque the crew was still more so: the -owner, a sturdy old seaman, and his son, a bright lad of twenty, wore -the universal bag-cap, when they wore any head-covering at all, which -was seldom. The old man had boots as well, evidently more for appearance -than use, for he took them off for good as soon as the bargain with me -was concluded. A flannel shirt and trousers tucked up to the knees, and -girded at the waist by a red sash, completed the costume. The other -member of the crew, presumably a hired hand, was a striking Levantine or -Greek-looking fellow of about seven-and-twenty, far more intelligent -than the _patrão_ or his son, brimming over with eager interest in the -expedition, an incessant talker, with all sorts of queer lore and -information about the strange place we were going to see. He, for all -his intelligence and readiness, had but two ragged and scanty cotton -garments to cover him, and made no pretence of head or foot covering. - -Whilst the boat was being brought round to the stair, I explored the -town and found a fine old Manueline door in the church São Julião at the -corner of the spacious praça called after the eighteenth-century poet -Bocage, who having been born at Setubal is the principal literary glory -of the town. - -Not a breath of wind was stirring, and the lumbering sardine-boat, with -its big sweeps weighing nearly half a hundredweight each, was a heavy -pull for two men. But the _patrão_ and his son put their backs into the -work cheerfully and with good will, the vivacious, black-eyed -tatterdemalion of a crew chattering incessantly whilst he held the -tiller; his being by far the easiest job, apparently as a concession to -the superiority of mind over matter. No ripple stirred the blue, clear -water as we slowly pushed out into the bay and got clear of the town. -The air was of exquisite clarity and fineness, with some sort of subtle -pungency in it that seemed to blend the freshness of the salt sea with -the languor of the lotus land; and as we receded from the shore there -gradually opened out behind us, in clear, sharp outline sparkling with -colour and brilliancy, one of the most striking coast panoramas I have -ever beheld. The bay was almost land-locked, and at the brink of the -blue water shone the town as white as snow in the sunlight. Behind, in a -great amphitheatre, rose the hills from the deep green masses of the -orange groves upon the broad plain at their feet. Bright red earth -glowed in big gashes upon the slopes, amidst the varying verdure of -olives, cork, and pines; and then above the trees and hills towards the -west soared the peaks and crags of the great Arrabida range, tinted in -this golden morning from orange to ochre and from ochre to violet, with -shadows here and there of deepest indigo. Right behind the town the -great stronghold of Palmella, upon its sudden hill six miles away, -seemed to stand sentinel over the verdant plain and white houses: and -there, in the near distance, on the west, upon a promontory of rock -forming the point of the inner bay, was another ancient fortress, that -of St. Philip, looking sheer down into the sea. Beyond that as we -advanced we saw still another castle on a point; and, farther off, the -end of the Arrabida range, whose towering peaks dwarfed all the lower -hills, pushes far into the sea its precipitous bluff, bounding the -landscape on that side. - -An hour’s hard pull brought us close to the long island. A wild, -uninhabited place it looked as we approached it, all blown sand in dunes -and hillocks overgrown with coarse rank tussock and esparto. Even before -we reached the sandy shore, fragments of walls and broken tiles in -abundance could be seen through the pellucid water, half-buried in the -soft, sandy bottom; and when I landed upon the beach of pure sand some -twenty feet or more wide, a glance sufficed to show that this was the -site of a place where many people had dwelt in the long ago. A long sand -dune, some fifteen feet high, runs parallel with the sea, and in the -face of this dune strong walls, doorways, and ruins of all sorts are -embedded. The sand in many places has been removed sufficiently to -uncover entire rooms and passages, and the whole beach below is -literally covered with broken tiles, apparently Roman, which presumably -formed the roofs of the ruined dwellings. The walls are usually formed -of undressed stones, with some rubble cement almost as hard, the -courses, and sometimes corners, being composed of coarse red bricks or -tiles eighteen inches long by twelve broad and two thick. - -Mounting the top of the dune I saw beneath me the houses that at various -times had been excavated, and partially cleared of sand by the -successive adventurers, who, for the sake of profit or curiosity, have -undertaken the work. It has been done unsystematically and -unscientifically; but in the three-quarters of a century or so that have -elapsed since renewed interest has been displayed in the place, an -immense number of Roman coins, some of the latest period of the -domination, have been found; and numerous relics of Roman, and, as I -believe, of a much earlier civilisation have also been discovered, many -of the objects being now in the Belem museum. Mr. Oswald Crawford wrote -an amusing account of a visit he paid to the place about thirty years -ago, and advanced some attractive theories with regard to it; but -apparently the excavations that have taken place since his time must -have been considerable, as some of the most significant features noticed -by me were presumably not uncovered when he was there, as he does not -mention them. - -The place has been called Troia by the Portuguese from time immemorial; -but it agrees in position with, and probably is, the important Roman -town of Cetobriga. The name of Cetobriga can hardly be of pure Latin -origin, nor is the situation of the place, at the end of a barren, -low-lying sandbank, such as Romans usually chose for a settlement. It is -known, however, that a people called Bastuli, some of whom Strabo says -lived upon a narrow strip of land by the sea in this part of Portugal -were of Phœnician origin, and inhabited this coast[8]; and this at once -provides a clue to the original founders of the city. The Phœnicians and -their successors in the Peninsula, the Carthaginians, were a Semitic -people whose trading depôts were carried to the extreme of the then -known world. At first, and for many centuries, purely traders and men of -peace, they made no attempt to dominate, but established their -factories, with defensive stockades and walls around them in places, -which, though unadapted for aggression, were capable of easy defence. It -is difficult to imagine an easily accessible place, well situated for -maritime traffic, better calculated than Troia upon its sandy island -opposite a fertile plain for the purposes of such a people as this; and -the opinion of antiquarians since the re-discovery of Troia has been in -favour of its Phœnician origin. - -The later Roman period, it is true, has provided most of the remains -unearthed. I saw and measured myself, amongst many other houses, two of -undoubted Roman construction, one apparently a temple, to judge by the -now empty niches which are constructed round three sides of the inner -wall, and the doorway of well-dressed stone in the fourth side. Another -house near it, of which the chief apartment was twenty-two feet in -diameter, possessed a dressed stone piscina or font in the wall, and -what appeared to be a bath of five feet in diameter and nearly six feet -deep of rubble and tiles. These houses and practically all the others -stood some fifteen feet below the present top of the dune, but in no -case has the excavation been completed, sand silting up almost to the -door lintels in most cases. On the beach itself near the point, I -noticed what appeared to be the base of a hollow tower ten feet in -diameter, which may well have been a pharos; and in many places not much -above sea-level are square cemented tanks, which some authorities assert -were used for fish salting, although its suggestion is not a very -convincing one considering the position of the tanks. - -The largest house that has been excavated is of undressed rubble for the -walls, the angles and doors and window frames being squared with tiles, -and the principal doorway topped by a flat arch of brick, the pitch of -the roof being evidently angular. On the other side of a sandy peninsula -facing the south, and farthest from Setubal, a very large villa has been -partially uncovered, presenting the same construction as the rest, but -with the base of a round tower at one corner; whilst on the point of the -beach there is a house containing four uncovered very large square -concreted tanks, sunk in the ground some twenty-five feet deep, -apparently reservoirs—perhaps vivaria for edible fish. There is no -indication—at least to a layman in the matter like myself—that these -buildings are earlier than the Roman occupation, though, of course, some -of them may have been, whilst a large building standing high at the very -end of the point, which the energetic boatman who constituted himself my -companion insisted was “the chapel,” is evidently much later than Roman -times, and may probably have been a Christian church. - -Mr. Crawford advances a theory to account for the foundation of a -populous settlement upon a mere sandbank. He is of opinion that when the -town was originated the sand did not exist there, but has been blown or -cast up since. Although the dune facing the beach has doubtless -accumulated greatly since the city was finally abandoned, I cannot -believe, after looking well at the buildings, that the level has changed -more than perhaps a dozen or fifteen feet since the town was inhabited; -and there must, I think, have been hills of sand here from Roman times -at least. Still it is possible that a thorough excavation would -establish that the remains of the Phœnician town on solid earth underlie -the Roman buildings now existing amidst the sand. The most interesting -object that I saw at Troia is not mentioned by Mr. Crawford, though as -it stands at the highest point of the sand dune (though perhaps with a -base of solid earth beneath the sand) it is curious if it was not -uncovered when he visited the place. In any case, there it is now, the -most convincing proof possible that the city was Phœnician, -notwithstanding the extensive Roman remains of a later time. Upon a -square base or plinth there rises a smooth conical column, some ten feet -high, four feet in diameter at base and tapering conically to a diameter -of less than two at its apex. There is no mistaking the shape of this -column or its significance by any one who has studied the beliefs of the -ancient peoples and the symbols of their worship. The column is -apparently composed of red tiles smoothly covered with fine white -cement; and standing, as it does, in the most conspicuous position over -the settlement, it seems to prove that the Nature-worshippers, -Phœnicians, Carthaginians, or those who inherited their traditions, must -have been the constructors of this column supporting nothing. It may be -advanced that this sign of ancient paganism would not have been allowed -to remain by the Romans for four hundred years after the Christian era; -but it is possible that even then the ritual symbolism of the column had -been lost sight of or forgotten, and that it remained as a landmark. - -I was glad to embark in my sardine boat again, for the glare and heat of -the sun beating down upon the shadeless sand was almost intolerable, and -the treacherous black sandflies, so harmless looking and so venomous, in -the three hours I had been at Troia had rendered my face unrecognisable -by my nearest friends, and turned my hands to agonised dumplings. So, -with a slight puff of breeze now and again to help us, we slowly crossed -the blue bay to Setubal where much needed refreshment awaited me. - -I was bound for the ancient city of Evora, and I could have gone by -train to Pinhal Novo junction, where the train to the south was to -receive me. But the plain over which Palmella lords it had captivated -me, and I decided to traverse by road the ten miles to the junction. As -I drove out of Setubal, with its clean white houses, and gaily decked -women in a long kneeling row washing their linen in the river, the -glamour of the south was over all. Cactus hedges lined the way, the -glistening green of the orange trees with the abundant fruit already -showing, the bronzed vines and the grey olive orchards chequered the -light red earth; the rolling slopes were thickly wooded to the summits, -and nestling amidst the verdure on many hill-tops were glistening white -houses, abandoned cloisters, or shrines of pilgrimage. The aspect was -Andalusian, as were the traits of the people, and North Portugal seemed -very far away. Before us always towered the huge castle of Palmella, -with its tremendous stretches of battlements and square towers, seen -first from one side and then from another, as we gradually wound round -and round the base of the eminence upon which it stands. The way is -always upward, and on all sides spread below us, growing more extensive -as we round each successive rising turn of the hill, is the fertile -plain and the sea beyond. Wheat, maize, olives, and oranges grow here -luxuriantly, the lower folds of the sandy hillsides are covered with -vines, and the rich brown velvet trunks of the stripped cork-trees are -all along the way. - -My coachman is one of the talkative type of south Portuguese, almost -oriental in the voluble vehemence of his manner, and his eagerness to -impart information. Ah! yes Troia, Setubal, and Palmella were all very -well in their way: but Evora! That indeed is a place. What a pity his -Excellency was not going to see Evora. His Excellency replied that Evora -was his present destination, and the patriotic Eborense, for, of course, -the voluble coachman came from Evora, broke out into unrestrained -panegyric of his native city. Lisbon was nothing, Oporto was nothing, to -Evora; why, Evora was a great city and a capital when they were -villages: Evora made Portugal what it is—and much more to the same -effect the wild-eyed coachman rattled off with much gesticulation, -whilst the patient horses, left to themselves, slowly toiled up the -winding road to the town of Palmella, now to the right now to the left, -and anon straight overhead, apparently inaccessible. - -At length we entered the town, a poor squalid looking place upon the -steep slope; and whilst the tired horses rested I climbed the top of the -hill to the castle. The tremendous outer defences covered with yellow -lichen, and the round bastions of the inner circumvallation, are -evidently of Moorish origin, whilst the great square battlemented towers -inside appear to be mediæval. The whole of the top of the hill is -occupied by the fortress; the outer walls following the contour, with -corner bastions on the spurs of the summit. The views obtained from the -battlements of the salient bastions are tremendous. The central keep, -standing high above the rest, is veiled with mist, though where I stand -upon the battlements is clear and bright. Over the vast plain spread -below me bathed in sunlight dark patches of cloud wander, and, on the -south side beyond it, is Setubal and the sea; whilst on the other, -towards the north, far away stretches the broad estuary of the Tagus, -and the distant mountains loom upon the west. Ancient as the castle is, -it shows signs of more recent habitation than is usual, indeed a row of -humble dependencies within the walls are still occupied by poor people. -The roofs of the principal buildings are everywhere destroyed; and upon -the very ancient walls of one portion there rises the ruin of a -sixteenth-century palace; whilst by the side of the great mediæval keep -is the shell of a beautiful chapel of Romanesque Gothic. The inner -gateway of the fortress bears upon it a tablet with the arms of Portugal -and the date of 1689; and I was informed by one of the residents in the -row of dwellings that the place had only been entirely dismantled in -living memory. All is silent and abandoned now; and the great Moorish -stronghold which Affonso Henriques captured from the Moors in 1147, the -royal fortress of the Commandery of the Order of Santiago, and the seat -of the powerful Dukes of Palmella, as the place successively has been, -has now become what for all future time it will remain, a worthy compeer -with the rest of the proud old Portuguese hill-top fortresses, whose -sturdy walls dismantled though they be, refuse to crumble into dust. -Long may they rear their noble towers intact from man’s destroying hand, -and tell their silent lesson of heroic times to a generation that sorely -needs it. - -As we wind down the hill again from the poverty-stricken town beneath -the castle walls, carts of little black grapes meet us winding up the -hill for the belated vintage, and through the open doors of granges we -see the wide shallow tubs being filled with grapes trodden under the -feet of swarthy lads. The air is soft and close as the sun sets red and -orange behind the tree-clad hills, and I pass the hour waiting for the -train at Pinhal Novo under a grove of lofty eucalyptus trees, whilst the -shrill twittering of millions of cicadas, and the languorous perfume in -the air tell me that I have left the strenuous land behind, and am in a -clime where to strive is folly. - -The next morning Evora revealed its quaint charms to me, for in the -night when I arrived all seemed gloomy and threatening in its narrow -tortuous ways. Under a glowing blue sky and the fierce sun the place was -charming, and few cities in Portugal, if any, present so many -attractions to the archæologist, the antiquarian, or the simple seeker -after the picturesque. The long irregular space of the principal praça -is lined by ancient arcades like the plazas in Spanish towns, and the -people who flock hither and thither under the covered ways are purely -Andalusian in appearance, the men wearing sheepskin _zamarras_ over -gaudy waistcoats, and upon their heads wide-brimmed velvet _calañeses_ -surmount bright-coloured kerchiefs. We have almost lost sight now of the -ox as a draught animal, and big mules, drawing a somewhat light waggon, -are universal. - -At unexpected corners and unlikely angles relics of unfathomed antiquity -meet you: a Roman tower built into a sixteenth-century wall, a Moorish -arch, a low-browed doorway that may go back to the time of the Goths, -though the house to which it gives entrance may be comparatively modern, -fragments of palaces and beautiful bits of Manueline are everywhere. For -this city of Evora is an epitome of the historical vicissitudes of -Portugal, and under each successive régime has played a principal part. -Ebora of the Phœnicians and Iberians, Liberalitas Julia of the Romans, -seat of government of the patriot rebel Sertorius, who here defied the -legions of the Cæsars (80 B.C.), Gothic capital of Lusitania, Yebora of -the Moslems for four hundred years, and now chief city of Alemtejo and -the south—the walls and towers of its Latin and Gothic masters are still -clearly traceable, and the mediæval defences still surround the ancient -city. - -Its modern Portuguese history dates from its capture from the Moors in -1165 by the freebooter Gerald and his band of desperadoes, who -surrendered the place to King Affonso Henriques in exchange for pardon -and reward; and from that time its archbishops have vied with those of -Braga in the north in wealth and dignity. Infantes of Portugal have -often worn its mitre, and one of them, Cardinal Henry, the last of his -race, became king. It is difficult to realise, looking at this crumbling -old city of fifteen thousand inhabitants, the magnificence of which it -was the scene in times when the population must have been much smaller -than at present. I have before me as I write an account written at the -time by an Italian ecclesiastic in the train of the papal Legate, who -came to Portugal in 1571, of the reception of the embassy by the -Archbishop of Evora (João de Mello), on which occasion lavishness seems -to have outdone itself. The king’s lieutenant, with five hundred -followers and ten thousand armed militia of the province, had met the -Legate some miles outside the city, and at the gates the governor and -magistracy awaited the visitors in full panoply, with several bands of -trumpeters dressed in cloth of gold and scarlet caps, many companies of -halberdiers smartly garbed in various uniforms, black drummers and -cymbal players on velvet-draped mules, the mayor and aldermen and civic -officers with their respective armed escorts, followed by— - - “Ten boys dressed in green, dancing a Morris-dance to the sound of - tambourines, and then ten more dressed in yellow with fife and drum, - also dancing, each one carrying an arch which they intertwined and - disentangled with great rapidity and dexterity. Then came ten boys - dressed as pilgrims dancing round a drum, and singing the praises of - the Legate. Then came ten women gipsies dancing their usual dance to - the sound of the drum, and performing dexterous tricks with wands - and scarfs. Following them came ten gipsy men with a drum, and - placing themselves alternately with the women, they made a very - pretty chain. Finally at the gate of the city there were ten boys - dressed in white with branches in their hands, dancing round a - carrying chair of red velvet striped with gold, which was carried by - eight little boys with white kilts, and golden haloes round their - heads. They bowed low to the Legate as the rest did separately when - they danced their measure, and then all together, the dances - continuing all the while before the Legate. The archbishop of Evora - entertained the Legate and prelates sumptuously at his palace, and - the _fidalgos_ splendidly received the rest in their houses. The - apartments were lined with the finest Flanders hangings, and the - floors were covered with green sprigs and rushes, which is the - custom here at weddings and feasts. They usually remain at table two - or three hours. Each person has a separate cup, and when dinner is - half through the tablecloth is changed. The roast meats are placed - upon the table already cut up and covered, and they are wont to put - into these dishes and others, eggs, many spices, and sugar. The - viands are not sumptuous, but are abundant, and they say most of the - dishes are Moorish. They only serve one dish at a time, and this it - is that makes their dinners last so long, whilst they pass the time - chatting, drinking healths, and helping each other to what is - brought to table, they being very gay the while.”[9] - -Of this splendour in the Evora of the past little is now apparent to the -visitor, though the modern Barahona palace, of which, and its wealthy -owner, the Eborenses seem very proud, could probably furnish forth a -good twentieth-century equivalent for it; and behind the closed doors -and frowning walls of many ancient noble palaces, now mostly in the -hands of rich landowners and cultivators of the district, are doubtless -luxurious interiors. - -From the Hotel Eborense, with its sixteenth-century outside staircase -and trellised balcony-landing, looking upon a quaint, tree-shaded, -little praça, I descend through narrow streets, that remind me of -Toledo—streets that for the most part still bear historic names, though -of course the inevitable “Serpa Pinto” has modernised one of them. Peace -and stillness reign over all, for the sun stings shrewdly; and those who -are obliged to be out linger drowsily under white walls and the frequent -shade of acacias, cork-trees, and vine-trellises. A ruined church and a -vast monastery attached, and now used as a barrack, first attract my -attention, for the edifice shows signs of past magnificence, and the -white, roofless walls and façade against the indigo sky form a beautiful -picture even in their decay. An Augustinian monastery-church, that of -Our Lady of Grace, I am told it is; and over the broken portico I read -that it was built “_sub imp. Divi Joannis III., Patris Patriæ._” This -John III. was the son of the “Fortunate” Manuel, and was one of the -principal builders of Belem; so that we are justified in expecting -something good from him in architecture. The expectation is not -disappointed, for the work is a gem in its uncommon way. It is, indeed, -but little touched with the Manueline taste of the time it was built -(1524); and has more affinity with the fine cloister of John III. at -Thomar, built by the same monarch. It is, in fact, almost the only -specimen I have seen in Portugal of the pure Italian Renaissance in the -style of Michael Angelo. Columns, trophies, shields, and decorative -statuary, all tell the same story of direct Florentine influence, as -apart from the less virile Raphaelesque tendency of the French -Renaissance, which is much more common in Portugal, and, indeed, -elsewhere. Even in the later decorations of this very church of Graça -the graved medallions, festoons, and delicate panel carving in low -relief, show that, even a few years after the church was built, the -French style was preferred. - -It is but a step from the Graça to a splendid church which is deservedly -one of the boasts of Evora, and, for skilful solidity of construction, -one of the most extraordinary churches in Portugal, if not in Europe. -Situated in a wide praça, and flanked on one side by shady groves of -cork-trees, stands the great square church of S. Francisco, all that -remains intact of an important Franciscan monastery of immense -antiquity. Adjoining it, until recent times, stood a royal palace, of -which this church and monastery were privileged to form a part; and the -Franciscans of Evora were altogether very lordly monks indeed. Without a -tower, as is usual with monastery churches, the big square building, -with its rows of battlemented roof ridges, looks more like a fortress -than a church; and from the peculiarity of its construction, it is safe -to say that, unless the hand of man or some great natural convulsion -destroys it, the next four centuries will have as little effect upon it -as the last four have had since its construction at the end of the -fifteenth century. - -The great west porch extends the whole width of the building in fine -Romanesque-Gothic. The arches of this porch are almost Moorish in form, -with elaborated twisted-cord capitals; and the peculiar arrangement of -supports noticed in the nave at Alcobaça is also seen here, where the -great inner supports of the arches do not reach the ground, but start -suddenly three-quarters up the pillar, producing the effect of the lower -portion having been cut away. The double doorway itself is fine early -Manueline marble, surmounted by the pelican and young, the device of -John II., and the armillary sphere, which was that of his son, King -Manuel the Fortunate. The inside of the church is very striking. The -immense width of nave (42 feet) is unbroken by pillars or aisles, the -side chapels being apparently embedded in the walls and separated from -each other by fine pure Gothic pillars on the wall surface, each pillar -being carried right up to the spring of the roof and its uninterrupted -arch carried over to the corresponding pillar on the other side, the -effect being one of great width and spaciousness, as the length of the -nave to the chancel arch is no less than eighty-eight feet. - -The chapels, some of which are very beautiful with carved figures of the -good sixteenth and seventeenth century Spanish period, are separated -from the nave by a handsome black and white marble balustrade of the -same period. The transepts are exceptionally majestic, and, like the -nave, of good unadorned Romanesque-Gothic, but the tiled walls and -overloaded altars—the latter still greatly venerated by the -faithful—sadly mar the simple grandeur of their main plan. The chancel -is magnificent, with its elaborately bossed and groined roof, and fine -carved choir-stalls, the work of the Fleming, Oliver of Ghent, who -carved the now plundered stalls for the Templars’ church at Thomar; and -over the noble chancel arch again the devices of John II. and Manuel, -with the arms of Portugal, are carved. - -In the chapels, and especially in one of the transepts, are some -paintings of the highest interest; but the light is so bad that it is -impossible to inspect them carefully. They can, however, be seen -sufficiently well—notwithstanding their deplorable condition—to prove -that some of the great mysterious Flemish-Portuguese masters of the late -fifteenth and early sixteenth centuries must have painted them. One -representing St. Anthony preaching to the fishes is perfectly exquisite -in its minute conscientiousness. I was informed that in the bishop’s -palace twelve fine paintings of the same school, attributed to the -brothers Van Eyck, are kept in similar semi-darkness and neglect; but -these I could not see. It is a thousand pities that these art treasures -and others of the same sort which I have mentioned,[10] should not be -rescued and reverently kept. - -A peculiarity of this church of St. Francisco, as of the cathedral of -Evora, which I shall mention presently, is that the brown granite blocks -of which it is constructed are clearly marked out with staring white -divisions of cement, either real or simulated. The effect is one of very -questionable taste, but the peculiarity is not a modern innovation, and -the series of white transverse lines traced upon the brown background -has some attraction from its very strangeness. The story goes that this -monastery-church, founded originally in 1224, twice fell down, and when, -after the second disaster late in the fifteenth century, the famous -architect, Martin Lourenço, was commissioned to construct a new church, -he swore that his building, at least, should never share the fate of its -predecessors. Instead of a single main outer wall he built two on each -side of the church, all of similar height, the space between the inner -and outer walls being about five feet or less, and in the lower portion -of this space the side chapels are accommodated. The two walls were tied -together by transverse walls of similar strength and height between the -chapels, and upon each of these transverse walls, which are carried over -the roof to the opposite pair of walls, similarly constructed, the roof -arches rest. The roof is, therefore, divided into six independent -sections, each one supported by its own separate walls and arch. As if -this were not enough, a similar arrangement was made below the ground, -where corresponding sets of transverse walls were carried across to the -other side, and thus the whole nave consisted of six complete and -self-supporting bodies joined together. Even this did not satisfy Martin -Lourenço. He built yet another wall longitudinally along the central -ridge of the roof, and a similar one underground along the same axis -binding together both above and below the transverse sections from end -to end, and increasing the stability of the building by the added -weight. All this it is, of course, impossible to see from the inside, -but from the praça the top battlements of the four long lines of wall -and the roof-ridge are discernible, and the skeleton of the church, so -to speak, can be understood. - -A door in the transept leads to an extraordinary chapel of considerable -size (58 feet long by 34 broad), divided into a nave and two aisles, the -whole of the walls, pillars, and ceiling of which are lined or -constructed of skulls and other human bones, arranged in symmetrical -patterns. The remains of many thousands of human beings are contained in -this ghastly chamber, probably constructed by the monks in the -seventeenth century from the contents of ancient crypts and -charnel-houses. The specially venerated figure of our Lord, of which -this was formerly the chapel, has now been transferred to an adjoining -apartment better adapted for modern worship. - -Evora stands upon a gentle eminence in the midst of a vast fertile -plain, surrounded by distant mountains, and upon the very summit of the -hill, hidden away between narrow, winding streets leading up from the -main arcaded praça, stands the venerable Sé—the cathedral of the -archbishopric. In a quiet little open space it rears its two solid, -square, granite Romanesque towers of the twelfth century, flanked by the -whitewashed, monastic-looking palace of the archbishop, the two towers -being united by a pure Gothic doorway porch which fills the space -between them. The inner doorway pillars are adorned by early Gothic -statues of the disciples, all so direct and vivid as to put to shame the -affected elaborations of a later time. Slabs in the porch over ancient -sarcophagi in Gothic niches tell that all this has been restored in -recent years; but it is easy to see that here, at least, the restorer -has been reverent and has spoilt nothing. - -Like most of the Portuguese cathedrals of the period the first effect -produced by the interior is that of grave massiveness. The narrow nave -and aisles separated by clustered Romanesque pillars, supporting early -Gothic arches, very slightly pointed, and a graceful triforium, have all -the beauty of serene severity.[11] Here again, the clustered pillars -shoot sheer up to the spring of the roof, and carry an arch over to the -other side, and the cimborio or lantern at the intersection of the -transepts and the nave is especially striking. The pillars that support -it on four sides, chancel, nave, and two transepts, are as bold and -aspiring as those of Ely, and seem to cry out aloud in exalted -triumphant devotion. To gaze up at this cimborio with its lovely -groining and its graceful spandrils carried to a prodigious height at -one sweep is a sensation worth coming from England to experience. - -High up on the wall of the nave there is roughly sculptured the -life-sized figure of a man, bearing upon his breast a cartouche with the -Gothic letters C. C. E. cut upon it, representing, as local antiquarians -insist, the figure of the twelfth-century architect of the building, -Martin Dominguez, and the coats-of-arms and sepulchral figures in -chapels and on walls are many. One florid Gothic sarcophagus in the -south transept is that of André de Resende, a relative of Garcia de -Resende, the earliest Portuguese historian, whose house, with its -beautiful Manueline windows, still stands in Evora. The chapels on each -side of the cathedral are much disfigured by tawdry decorations and -curly gilt wood carvings, but several have finely painted altar-pieces, -badly lit and uncared for; and one altar, Our Lady of the Angel, against -a pillar in the nave, evidently much venerated, for it is hung all over -with votive offerings, is grotesquely hideous, with its ill-carved, big, -staring doll upon a gilt monstrosity of a stand. - -The little choir loft over the west end of the nave, like that at Braga, -is filled with finely carved oaken choir-stalls, and the episcopal -throne, with Scripture scenes in high relief carved upon the panelling, -probably French or Italian work of the Renaissance period. The Eborenses -complain that the French plundered the cathedral of most of its valuable -treasures; but the church plate and vestments are still of very great -richness, and I was much struck by a great jewelled altar cross said to -contain a fragment of the True Cross. The precious stones upon it amount -altogether to 1425, of which 840 are diamonds; and a chalice of enamel -and gold of the sixteenth century is a veritable thing of beauty. The -chancel and high altar of the eighteenth century, though of precious -marbles, are quite out of keeping with the church, and I was glad to -turn away from them and linger in the pretty little ruined cloister of -the monks, of simple devotional Gothic. - -But the exterior of the old Sé after all is more picturesque than the -interior. Glimpses of shady little white courtyards, with acacias, -orange-trees, and abundant flowers; corners and gateways of ancient -palaces, with florid and beautiful Manueline doorways; here and there a -Roman tower or arch; narrow white streets, almost alleys, with -supporting arches from side to side across the way; and over all a blue, -blue sky. The bold, long, battlemented ridges of the aisles and nave of -the cathedral, and the pointed round tower of the wonderful cimborio, -with its eight turrets ranged around it, seem to force upon the mind the -dignified antiquity of the place, hardly marred by the modern classicism -of the trivial chancel apse tacked on to it. Outside the north-west -corner of the cathedral is a Roman tower and arch in perfect -preservation, and adjoining it a quaint triangular praça called S. -Miguel, gives entrance to a ruined mediæval palace of the Counts of -Basto. But, take a few steps to the north of this, turn the corner of -the archbishop’s palace and the choir-boys’ college, and there bursts -upon your view, silhouetted against the blue sky, an object that draws -an exclamation of surprise and delight from the most apathetic. In an -open space, almost surrounded by ancient battlemented buildings, there -stands alone in the midst a majestic ruin, which makes even their hoary -antiquity but a thing of yesterday. A Roman temple, almost complete, -with six Corinthian columns at the end of its parallelogram and five out -of the ten that formerly existed on each side. The supporting wall upon -which they stand is of rough stone with well-dressed granite plinths and -corners, all perfect and complete, and standing over eleven feet from -the ground. Upon this rise the beautiful fluted columns of granite, with -bases and carved capitals of white marble, the granite entablature over -the pillars being almost perfect. - -At what was the entrance of the temple the remains of a noble flight of -steps, the whole width of the edifice and twelve feet high, exist, and -it requires no effort of the imagination, turning one’s back to the -cathedral, to repeople the space before us with figures of the long -past. Up the steps to the lovely temple under the blue sky mount the -white-clad citizens of imperial Rome. Slaves there are in many, and -half-civilised Iberian tribesmen, still, perhaps, recalcitrant to the -yoke. Trembling, perchance, for the savage vengeance of Diocletian, they -sullenly look upon the sacrifice to the pagan gods, whilst they in their -hearts hold with the strange new creed of the Nazarene; for this temple -must have been raised in the second century after the advent of Christ, -when already the trumpet sound of Christianity had pierced the hearts of -the Celtiberian peoples, and had awakened vague longings for -emancipation from the oppressive unconsoling gods of old. - -And I turn back and contemplate the grave old mediæval cathedral close -by, with its modern addition covered with flourishing cardinals hats and -saintly frippery; and I see there, too, the temple of a creed that is -losing its hold upon the hearts and minds of men. For the great -cathedral I have just left is as empty and silent now as the temple to -the unknown God before me. In successive ages surely the same old -yearning is re-born for direct appeal and nearer personal access to God, -free from the trammels and man-made mediations with which all creeds in -time burden the simplicity of their faith. Here in this temple—called of -Diana with no historical warrant—devout souls offered their sacrifice -without misgiving; and in the old Sé hearts have pierced the -church-raised clouds and reached the Throne any day this nine hundred -years. But as the thirst for equal direct appeal for all souls overthrew -the gods of the temple, so the same longing empties the great fane that -has departed from the severe sincerity of the age that founded it; and -thus the gods do come and go, whilst God lives on for ever. - -[Illustration: THE “TEMPLE OF DIANA,” EVORA] - -It is difficult to shake oneself free from retrospective visions when -standing between this stately ruin and the cathedral that has supplanted -it; but regarded simply as a Roman material relic, the ruin is -remarkable. It is of a similar period and much resembles the Maison -Carrée at Nimes, although as I recollect it appeared much larger. The -temple at Evora is about eighty feet long and nearly fifty feet broad, -the height of the columns being twenty-five feet. Behind the temple -there is a pretty shady public garden, ending in a balustrade where the -hill drops suddenly away to the plain spread out at the foot for miles -to the mountains far away. It was a spot which will linger in my memory -to the last; and I left it sorrowfully. - -Opposite the temple is the Archæological Museum of Evora, containing a -large collection of Roman and mediæval relics, found in the city and -rescued from ruined buildings; and in the streets still the remains of -ancient architecture greet the visitor at every turn. Evora, indeed, is -a museum of itself; and it is impossible even to mention a quarter of -the objects in it that would appeal to an antiquarian or archæologist. -Two buildings there are, however, that cannot be entirely passed over. -The so-called palace of Dom Manuel is now used as an agricultural -museum, and some of the upper portion has been rebuilt in semi-Moorish -style; but the lower portion is intact, and is a splendid specimen of -early sixteenth-century stonework. The hall is low but tremendously -massive, the walls being three yards thick, and the octagonal pillars -supporting the simple groined roof in the centre being massive in -proportion. - -From the beautiful semi-tropical public garden in which this palace -stands, just beyond the mediæval walls of the city, it is but a step -across the road to the extraordinary hermitage church of St. Braz. A -great plague had assailed Evora in 1479, and here a temporary pesthouse -was established outside the walls. The bishop vowed that if St. Braz -would free the place from the epidemic he would build here a permanent -temple to his honour. When the plague disappeared in the following year, -1480, the bishop kept his word, and the present church has stood here -ever since. The style, in my experience, is unique—Norman-Gothic local -archæologists call it—the building being a long, low, fortress-like -structure, with six pointed turrets along each side, and with -battlemented parapets; the two first turrets supporting a massive -battlemented ante-porch, with plain pointed arches and Byzantine -capitals, the porch being perhaps a third the length of the church, and -of the same height. For a building so late as the end of the fifteenth -century, just on the verge of the period that went crazy over the -exuberant Manueline, this survival of the Norman-Byzantine tradition is -extraordinary. - -Evora was all aglow with the glories of the setting sun when I left it. -Long lines of lofty eucalyptus trees stretched as far as the eye reached -along the railway, the long hanging strips of bark and the bright clean -trunks shining a brilliant orange, whilst the drooping foliage was a -bright bronze tipped with gold. Wistaria and clematis hung in wondrous -bunches and masses over walls and in wayside gardens, and no sign of -coming winter marred the beauty of the day. Long rows of trucks and -waggons filled with cork lined the way, and open doors of depôts and -warehouses disclosed overflowing stores of cork in bales ready for -transport; for Evora is the centre of this profitable industry, and -derives from it much of its prosperity. Over all the gold and emerald -after-glow cast its strange glamour; high overhead the deep blue of the -sky was just flecked by purple cloud, and the soft scented air was like -a breath from the Arabian Nights. - -Once only in the four hours’ journey through the night to Barreiro and -Lisbon was I aroused from the series of reveries into which the -impressions of these scenes had cast me. It was at a station by the way, -dimly lit with smoky oil lamps. Some bundles of rags topped by nightcaps -lounged about in the gloom of the platform, and across the way a few -white cottages stood out from a background of trees and the hills -beyond, whilst overhead, through the high branches of the eucalyptus, -the stars shone brilliantly. There was nothing special in all this, for -the same picture is presented by most Portuguese and Spanish railway -stations by night during the interminable waits inherent to travelling -by a train whose first interest is the conveyance of merchandise; but -what did strike me as I looked was the name of the place: MONTEMOR. - -From here, then, from this humble remote place, came the man, the poet, -Jorge de Montemor—or Montemayor as he came to be called—who set all -cultured Europe running again after the preposterous pastoral romances -of lovelorn shepherds and shepherdesses, which had been forgotten since -the eclogues and bucolics of classical Italy had been voted -old-fashioned. From here came the inspiration that made Cervantes write -the “Galatea,” Sidney write the “Arcadia,” and Spenser write the “Fairy -Queen”: these sweet fertile hillsides and vales of southern Portugal -were the scenes which the native poet peopled with the erotic swains of -his Spanish pastoral, “Diana Enamorada.” It was a style utterly foreign -to arid Spain, for there the flocks had to travel in vast multitudes -from desert to desert in search of the scanty pasture; but it caught the -fancy of a people sated with knights-errant, and the pastoral became the -rage. That Spain itself should have given it new birth was incredible, -though Jorge de Montemor wrote in Spanish. The neighbourhood of his -birthplace gives us the key; for here in rich pastures and lush, -half-tropical valleys flocks would need but little tending or -travelling, and here beneath the sunny skies shepherds and their lasses -might as easily as in Italy be imagined piping, singing, and telling -their long-winded love stories to their hearts’ content. - -Lisbon was all smiles when I arrived; clear and crisp as if no -rain-clouds and wreaths of wet mist had ever crept up the Tagus and put -her out of temper. But the big steamer was lying in the harbour ready to -sail for England, and though Lisbon tempted me, I could not choose but -go. Forth from the splendid panorama we went, past the great white -fortress high on the hill, the city piled up on its amphitheatre and set -in verdant frames, the majestic square palace of Ajuda looking down upon -Belem and its glorious church, and the sturdy old tower rising from the -water dumbly protesting against its desecration by the gasworks that -surround it. - -[Illustration: LISBON FROM THE NORTH.] - -The next day at noon I stood and gazed over an indigo sea, from whose -waves the light breeze lifted the white foam and cast it wantonly to -leeward in a shower of diamonds. All along the coast gleaming towns -nestled in the laps of the hills. The mountains of fair Lusitania, -pine-clad to the tops, were slowly receding from my view, covered with a -glory of opal grey and gold, touched here and there where the shadows -fell with tints of darkling green and lavender, whilst the sky over all -melted from a horizon of palest primrose, through turquoise, to an -illimitable vault of sapphire. As the lovely scene faded in the -distance, and the bold jagged rocks of Spain loomed ahead, I turned away -full of thankfulness for the ineffable beauty of the world: but I could -find no word to say more than the quaint outburst of the simple-minded -priest whom the Emperor sent to bring home his Portuguese bride five -centuries ago: “_O Portugallia, O Portugallia, bona regio!_” Fifty-two -hours afterwards I was shrinking from the chill embrace of a November -fog in London. - ------ - -Footnote 8: - - Oswald Crawford, “Portugal: Old and New.” - -Footnote 9: - - The manuscript quoted is in the Vatican Library, and is reproduced at - length by Herculano in an article called Archeologia Portugeza in - “Opusculos.” - -Footnote 10: - - There are fourteen of the same sort in the Cathedral of Viseu, one the - famous St. Peter. - -Footnote 11: - - The whole interior width of the church is only 46 feet, much less than - the nave alone of Toledo, Seville, or York. - - - - - X - HINTS TO TRAVELLERS IN PORTUGAL - - -_How to get there._—By railway the direct route is by the Sud Express, -which leaves Paris twice or thrice a week, according to the season, for -Oporto and Lisbon, _via_ Bordeaux, Medina, and Salamanca, covering the -distance from Paris to Lisbon in thirty-five hours—the cost from Paris, -single fare, first-class, being 222 francs. The journey is naturally -tedious, as well as costly, and for tourists and pleasure-travellers who -are not absolutely averse from sea-voyages the journey by steamer is -much preferable. The Royal Mail steamships from Southampton and the -Pacific Line from Liverpool both have splendid steamers, which run -fortnightly to Lisbon or Oporto (Leixões), the voyage to Lisbon usually -occupying rather under three days, the fare being £8 single and £12 -return on both lines. But for those who wish to visit Portugal either -for health or pleasure, and desire to see something of the country under -favourable conditions the steamers of the Booth Steamship Line offer -much greater facilities than either of the previously mentioned -companies, combined with considerable economy. I have travelled to -Portugal by all three lines, and can find little to choose between them; -the newer vessels especially of the Booth Line being in all respects as -comfortable and well served as the others, whilst the fare is lower. It -is, however, chiefly in the organisation of tours through Portugal that -the Booth Line offers the greatest advantages to travellers, the -arrangements being such that most of the difficulties of travelling in a -foreign country are obviated by holders of through tourist tickets. The -system provides for the meeting of travellers on board the steamers and -at railway stations by representatives of the hotels, and advice is sent -forward of the travellers to be expected. The tickets issued include -coupons for hotel expenses, carriages, and all the necessary outlay of -the journey from place to place, and, speaking from my own experience, I -may say that the portions of my journey that were covered by Booth Line -tickets were much easier and less troublesome than those which were -undertaken without them. I found, moreover, that the people at the -hotels were, if anything, more anxious to show attention to travellers -accredited by the Booth Line tickets and forward advice than to visitors -arriving unannounced. Some of the Portuguese tours of the Booth Line -seem extremely moderate in price, including, as they do, hotel expenses -as well as travelling by sea and land, and, so far as my experience -went, everything possible was done for the convenience and pleasure of -ticket-holders. - -_Hotels._—We English are not particularly popular on the Continent as -travellers, though we are better liked in Spain and Portugal than -elsewhere. Nor is the reason of our lack of popularity far to seek. We -are apt to assume a demeanour and tone towards foreigners in their own -country which imply a belief in our superiority, and a claim to assert -priority for our own needs and pleasures over those of others. This -attitude is worse than useless in Spain and Portugal, for not only is it -ineffectual, but it turns otherwise polite and civil people against us. -In Portugal an honest desire to please and serve will be encountered by -travellers everywhere, almost without exception. But tourists must repay -this, if they wish to travel smoothly, by cheerfully accepting the best -that the people know how to give them, and must not claim to establish a -new standard for themselves. The hotels in the smaller towns of Portugal -do not exist for tourists. They live almost entirely upon commercial -travellers, and residents, business, professional men, and officials, -who board at the hotel table by contract. A tourist arriving at such an -hotel will be civilly received, but no fatted calf will be killed for -him, nor charged for, and the fare and accommodation considered -satisfactory by the regular customers of the hotel must be good enough -for him or he must go without. Generally speaking these are fair, even -in the small towns, the beds being usually clean, if hard and skimpy of -pillow; and of the dishes offered, some, at all events, will be found -palatable, even to an untravelled Englishman. In any case, it will be -useless to ask for others. These remarks are not applicable either to -the hotels in Oporto and Lisbon, nor to those which specially depend -upon visitors in search of health and pleasure, like those of Bom Jesus, -Caldas, and Bussaco. In Oporto the Grand Hotel is said to be the best, -but it still leaves much to be desired in many respects. The cuisine, -however, is good, though there is a tendency to charge unduly high -prices for extras, such as wine, table water, &c. The same may be said -of the Hotel Central at Lisbon, where the cuisine is excellent and the -rooms generally good, but the extras are charged too high. This hotel -has been greatly improved of late years, and especially since the -reclamation of the foreshore has done away with what formerly was its -principal objection. It is very central for all the tramway routes, and -for a stay of a day or two may be convenient. The noisy, self-assertive -German commercial element is, however, too conspicuous and demonstrative -to be agreeable to most English people travelling for pleasure, and -personally I much prefer the Hotel Braganza, which stands on high ground -overlooking the river, and is quieter than the Central. The Grand Hotel -at Bom Jesus, in its way, is excellent, though purely Portuguese, and -the proprietor, the son of the late Senhor Gomes, whose enterprise made -Bom Jesus what it is, is always anxious to do his best, both here and -with his partner at their hotel at Braga, to be useful and agreeable to -visitors. The Grand Hotel at Bussaco stands in a class by itself, and I -have spoken of it elsewhere. - -_Luggage._—As little luggage should be taken as possible, as above 60 -lbs. is charged extra on the railways, and a careful traveller will -contrive to get what he really needs in packages that may, at a pinch, -be carried, or at all events lifted, by himself. For clothing, some warm -garments should be worn until Portugal is reached, and again on -embarking, but for use in the country summer clothing, with one light -over-garment, is all that will be needed. The tyranny of the top hat is -almost at an end in Portugal, and this impedimentum may be dispensed -with, though it may be advisable for some men-travellers to take with -them a dinner jacket-suit, as these are frequently worn on board the -larger steamers, and in some of the hotels, such as that at Bussaco. - -_Language._—Some acquaintance with the Portuguese language is, of -course, a great advantage, but the knowledge of such words as are -necessary for the purposes of travel may be acquired easily by a few -hours of study. Spanish will be generally understood in the hotels, as -practically all the hotel servants in Portugal are Spanish Gallegos, -though the ability of the latter to reply in Castilian is variable and -limited. Generally a foreigner speaking Spanish will be _understood_ in -Portugal; but a knowledge of Spanish, though enabling him to _read_ -Portuguese without difficulty, will not aid him much in understanding it -when spoken, as the pronunciation of the two languages is radically -different. A little French is also not uncommonly spoken and understood -even in the smaller hotels, though very rarely is any English at -command. In Lisbon and Oporto, of course, especially the former, English -is quite common, and is spoken at all the principal hotels. - -_Wine._—In all the smaller hotels the wine is served on the table -without charge, as in Spain; and as it is, in most cases, the produce of -the neighbourhood, it is quite pure and genuine, and in some places -excellent. Where it is not liked other wines can always be ordered. -Collares, white and red, grown at the foot of the Cintra mountain, is -always a safe wine to order, and is very moderate in price, usually -about 250 reis per bottle (1_s._ 1_d._). At Lisbon Termo is also a good -wine at very reasonable price; whilst in the north of Portugal Bucellas -may be recommended, and Mirandella is a good cheap little wine. The new -or green wine, Vinho Verde, is much liked by the Portuguese in the hot -autumn weather, as it is light and slightly acidulous; but it is not -much adapted to English tastes. The country wine at Bussaco is -excellent—as it is at Cintra, Ourem, and other places. As I have -mentioned elsewhere the prices charged in the hotels named in Lisbon and -Oporto for ordinary Portuguese wines appear to be excessive in -comparison with the price of these wines in other places. The prices of -foreign wines are everywhere well-nigh prohibitive. - -_Water._—The traveller will be wise to regard with suspicion the water -in most places, and to insist upon having some of the excellent bottled -table waters from the springs which abound in Portugal. One of the best -and safest of these waters is Sameiro, drawn from the mountain adjoining -Bom Jesus. It is in character almost identical with Apollinaris. -Lombadas is another pure neutral water from Madeira, somewhat resembling -St. Galmier; whilst Monte Banzão, Pedras Salgadas, and Vidago are -digestive waters similar to those of Vichy. The medicinal waters of -Luzo, just below Bussaco, are like those of Carlsbad, Kissingen, and -Vittel, powerfully digestive and rather laxative. It will be unnecessary -to order any such waters—unless for purely medicinal purposes—at Bom -Jesus, Bussaco, or Cintra, the ordinary drinking water of these places -being excellent. - -_Travelling in Portugal._—The roads are usually very good, and open -carriages with one or two horses can be hired in any town at an -extremely reasonable price, four or five milreis a day being ample for a -carriage and two horses, which for the price will cover some -five-and-twenty miles or more according to circumstances. In railway -travelling it must be borne in mind that the trains on Portuguese -railways for the most part run primarily to convey goods and -merchandise, and that passengers must be content to wait whilst the -goods are being loaded or discharged. The trains, except an express on -the main line, are very slow. The carriages are, however, usually -comfortable. The absence of vociferation in Portugal, which in a general -way is a boon, is somewhat a drawback in railway travelling, as the -names of the stations are not called out, and as they are often painted -inconspicuously, and are not visible from the carriage windows, it is -necessary for strangers to be on the alert in order not to pass their -station. The best way is to provide oneself with a railway guide and -count the stations as they are passed. There is, however, usually a wait -at the stations long enough for inquiries to be made, as things are -rarely done in a hurry in Portugal. - - - THE END - - - Printed by BALLANTYNE, HANSON & CO. - Edinburgh & London - - - - - ERRATUM - - - Page 44. From line 2 read as follows: ‘whilst fighting valiantly by - the side of the Master of Avis at the ever-memorable battle of - Aljubarrota, that gave the regal crown of Portugal to the - illegitimate scion of the House of Burgundy.’ - ------------------------------------------------------------------------- - - - - - TRANSCRIBER’S NOTES - - - 1. Made the correction mentioned in the ERRATUM. - 2. Silently corrected typographical errors. - 3. Retained anachronistic and non-standard spellings as printed. - 4. Enclosed italics font in _underscores_. - 5. Superscripts are denoted by a carat before a single superscript - character or a series of superscripted characters enclosed in - curly braces, e.g. M^r. or M^{ister}. - - - - - -End of the Project Gutenberg EBook of Through Portugal, by Martin Hume - -*** END OF THIS PROJECT GUTENBERG EBOOK THROUGH PORTUGAL *** - -***** This file should be named 55034-0.txt or 55034-0.zip ***** -This and all associated files of various formats will be found in: - http://www.gutenberg.org/5/5/0/3/55034/ - -Produced by Richard Tonsing and the Online Distributed -Proofreading Team at http://www.pgdp.net (This file was -produced from images generously made available by The -Internet Archive) - - -Updated editions will replace the previous one--the old editions will -be renamed. - -Creating the works from print editions not protected by U.S. copyright -law 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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- margin: .67em auto; } - .overunder {display: inline-block; vertical-align: middle; text-align: center; - font-size: 75%; } - </style> - </head> - <body> - - -<pre> - -The Project Gutenberg EBook of Through Portugal, by Martin Hume - -This eBook is for the use of anyone anywhere in the United States and most -other parts of the world 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. If you are not located in the United States, you'll have -to check the laws of the country where you are located before using this ebook. - - - -Title: Through Portugal - -Author: Martin Hume - -Illustrator: A. S. Forrest - -Release Date: July 3, 2017 [EBook #55034] - -Language: English - -Character set encoding: UTF-8 - -*** START OF THIS PROJECT GUTENBERG EBOOK THROUGH PORTUGAL *** - - - - -Produced by Richard Tonsing and the Online Distributed -Proofreading Team at http://www.pgdp.net (This file was -produced from images generously made available by The -Internet Archive) - - - - - - -</pre> - - -<div class='tnotes covernote'> - -<p class='c000'><strong>Transcriber's Note:</strong></p> - -<p class='c000'>The cover image was created by the transcriber and is placed in the public domain.</p> - -</div> - -<div class='ph1'> - -<div class='nf-center-c1'> -<div class='nf-center c001'> - <div>THROUGH PORTUGAL</div> - </div> -</div> - -</div> - -<div id='Frontispiece' class='figcenter id001'> -<img src='images/i_004.jpg' alt='' class='ig001' /> -<div class='ic001'> -<p>FROM A WINDOW, OPORTO.</p> -</div> -</div> - -<div> - <h1 class='c002'><span class='xlarge'>THROUGH</span><br /> PORTUGAL</h1> -</div> - -<div class='nf-center-c1'> -<div class='nf-center c003'> - <div><span class='xsmall'>BY</span></div> - <div><span class='large'>MARTIN HUME</span></div> - <div class='c003'><span class='small'>WITH 32 ILLUSTRATIONS IN COLOUR BY</span></div> - <div>A. S. FORREST</div> - <div><span class='small'>AND 8 REPRODUCTIONS OF PHOTOGRAPHS</span></div> - </div> -</div> - -<div class='lg-container-b c004'> - <div class='linegroup'> - <div class='group'> - <div class='line'>“<em>Oh Christ! it is a goodly sight to see</em></div> - <div class='line in2'><em>What heaven hath done for this delicious land;</em></div> - <div class='line'><em>What fruits of fragrance blush on every tree,</em></div> - <div class='line in2'><em>What goodly prospects o’er the hills expand.</em>”</div> - </div> - <div class='group'> - <div class='line in48'><span class='sc'>Byron.</span></div> - </div> - </div> -</div> - -<div class='nf-center-c1'> -<div class='nf-center c003'> - <div>NEW YORK</div> - <div>M<sup>c</sup>CLURE, PHILLIPS & COMPANY</div> - <div>1907</div> - </div> -</div> - -<div class='nf-center-c1'> -<div class='nf-center c001'> - <div>Printed by</div> - <div><span class='sc'>Ballantyne, Hanson & Co.</span></div> - <div>Edinburgh</div> - </div> -</div> - -<div class='nf-center-c1'> -<div class='nf-center c001'> - <div><em>This record of</em></div> - <div><em>a pleasure journey through Europe’s</em></div> - <div><em>“Garden by the Sea”</em></div> - <div><em>is dedicated by gracious permission to</em></div> - <div><em>His Majesty</em></div> - <div><em>The King of Portugal</em></div> - </div> -</div> - -<div class='pbb'> - <hr class='pb c005' /> -</div> - -<div class='chapter'> - <span class='pageno' id='Page_vii'>vii</span> - <h2 class='c006'>CONTENTS</h2> -</div> - -<table class='table0' summary='CONTENTS'> -<colgroup> -<col width='86%' /> -<col width='13%' /> -</colgroup> - <tr><td class='c007' colspan='2'>CHAPTER I</td></tr> - <tr><td> </td></tr> - <tr> - <th class='c008'></th> - <th class='c009'>PAGE</th> - </tr> - <tr><td> </td></tr> - <tr> - <td class='c008'>OPORTO</td> - <td class='c010'><a href='#Page_1'>1</a></td> - </tr> - <tr><td> </td></tr> - <tr><td> </td></tr> - <tr><td class='c007' colspan='2'>CHAPTER II</td></tr> - <tr><td> </td></tr> - <tr> - <td class='c008'>BRAGA AND BOM JESUS</td> - <td class='c010'><a href='#Page_34'>34</a></td> - </tr> - <tr><td> </td></tr> - <tr><td> </td></tr> - <tr><td class='c007' colspan='2'>CHAPTER III</td></tr> - <tr><td> </td></tr> - <tr> - <td class='c008'>CITANIA AND GUIMARÃES</td> - <td class='c010'><a href='#Page_54'>54</a></td> - </tr> - <tr><td> </td></tr> - <tr><td> </td></tr> - <tr><td class='c007' colspan='2'>CHAPTER IV</td></tr> - <tr><td> </td></tr> - <tr> - <td class='c008'>BUSSACO</td> - <td class='c010'><a href='#Page_90'>90</a></td> - </tr> - <tr><td> </td></tr> - <tr><td> </td></tr> - <tr><td class='c007' colspan='2'>CHAPTER V</td></tr> - <tr><td> </td></tr> - <tr> - <td class='c008'>COIMBRA, THOMAR, AND LEIRIA</td> - <td class='c010'><a href='#Page_122'>122</a></td> - </tr> - <tr><td> </td></tr> - <tr><td> </td></tr> - <tr><td class='c007' colspan='2'>CHAPTER VI</td></tr> - <tr><td> </td></tr> - <tr> - <td class='c008'>BATALHA AND ALCOBAÇA</td> - <td class='c010'><a href='#Page_169'>169</a></td> - </tr> - <tr><td> </td></tr> - <tr><td> </td></tr> - <tr><td class='c007' colspan='2'><span class='pageno' id='Page_viii'>viii</span>CHAPTER VII</td></tr> - <tr><td> </td></tr> - <tr> - <td class='c008'>CINTRA</td> - <td class='c010'><a href='#Page_199'>199</a></td> - </tr> - <tr><td> </td></tr> - <tr><td> </td></tr> - <tr><td class='c007' colspan='2'>CHAPTER VIII</td></tr> - <tr><td> </td></tr> - <tr> - <td class='c008'>LISBON</td> - <td class='c010'><a href='#Page_229'>229</a></td> - </tr> - <tr><td> </td></tr> - <tr><td> </td></tr> - <tr><td class='c007' colspan='2'>CHAPTER IX</td></tr> - <tr><td> </td></tr> - <tr> - <td class='c008'>SETUBAL, TROYA, AND EVORA</td> - <td class='c010'><a href='#Page_264'>264</a></td> - </tr> - <tr><td> </td></tr> - <tr><td> </td></tr> - <tr><td class='c007' colspan='2'>CHAPTER X</td></tr> - <tr><td> </td></tr> - <tr> - <td class='c008'>HINTS TO TRAVELLERS IN PORTUGAL</td> - <td class='c010'><a href='#Page_308'>308</a></td> - </tr> -</table> - -<div class='chapter'> - <span class='pageno' id='Page_ix'>ix</span> - <h2 class='c006'>ILLUSTRATIONS</h2> -</div> - -<h3 class='c011'>IN COLOUR</h3> - -<table class='table1' summary='IN COLOUR'> -<colgroup> -<col width='65%' /> -<col width='34%' /> -</colgroup> - <tr> - <td class='c008'>FROM A WINDOW IN OPORTO</td> - <td class='c010'><em><a href='#Frontispiece'>Frontispiece</a></em></td> - </tr> - <tr><td> </td></tr> - <tr> - <td class='c008'>EVENING: OPPOSITE OPORTO</td> - <td class='c010'><em>To face page</em> <a href='#fp8'>8</a></td> - </tr> - <tr><td> </td></tr> - <tr> - <td class='c008'>FROM THE RIBEIRA, OPORTO</td> - <td class='c010'><em>To face page</em> <a href='#fp16'>16</a></td> - </tr> - <tr><td> </td></tr> - <tr> - <td class='c008'>A SHOP IN OLD OPORTO</td> - <td class='c010'><em>To face page</em> <a href='#fp28'>28</a></td> - </tr> - <tr><td> </td></tr> - <tr> - <td class='c008'>THE AFTER-GLOW AT BRAGA</td> - <td class='c010'><em>To face page</em> <a href='#fp40'>40</a></td> - </tr> - <tr><td> </td></tr> - <tr> - <td class='c008'>ON THE TERRACE, BOM JESUS</td> - <td class='c010'><em>To face page</em> <a href='#fp50'>50</a></td> - </tr> - <tr><td> </td></tr> - <tr> - <td class='c008'>ON THE HOLY STAIR, BOM JESUS</td> - <td class='c010'><em>To face page</em> <a href='#fp52'>52</a></td> - </tr> - <tr><td> </td></tr> - <tr> - <td class='c008'>ON THE WAY TO MARKET, TAIPAS</td> - <td class='c010'><em>To face page</em> <a href='#fp58'>58</a></td> - </tr> - <tr><td> </td></tr> - <tr> - <td class='c008'>FROM THE BATTLEMENT, BUSSACO</td> - <td class='c010'><em>To face page</em> <a href='#fp96'>96</a></td> - </tr> - <tr><td> </td></tr> - <tr> - <td class='c008'>THE HOTEL FROM THE WOODS, BUSSACO</td> - <td class='c010'><em>To face page</em> <a href='#fp102'>102</a></td> - </tr> - <tr><td> </td></tr> - <tr> - <td class='c008'>IN THE GARDENS, BUSSACO</td> - <td class='c010'><em>To face page</em> <a href='#fp106'>106</a></td> - </tr> - <tr><td> </td></tr> - <tr> - <td class='c008'>THE PORTA DA SULLA, BUSSACO</td> - <td class='c010'><em>To face page</em> <a href='#fp108'>108</a></td> - </tr> - <tr><td> </td></tr> - <tr> - <td class='c008'>“BUSSACO’S IRON RIDGE”</td> - <td class='c010'><em>To face page</em> <a href='#fp112'>112</a></td> - </tr> - <tr><td> </td></tr> - <tr> - <td class='c008'>THE BATTLE MONUMENT, BUSSACO</td> - <td class='c010'><em>To face page</em> <a href='#fp116'>116</a></td> - </tr> - <tr><td> </td></tr> - <tr> - <td class='c008'>ENTRANCE TO THE CLOISTER, BUSSACO</td> - <td class='c010'><em>To face page</em> <a href='#fp120'>120</a></td> - </tr> - <tr><td> </td></tr> - <tr> - <td class='c008'>ON THE SUMMIT OF BUSSACO. THE CRUZ ALTA</td> - <td class='c010'><em>To face page</em> <a href='#fp122'>122</a></td> - </tr> - <tr><td> </td></tr> - <tr> - <td class='c008'>A STREET IN COIMBRA</td> - <td class='c010'><em>To face page</em> <a href='#fp128'>128</a></td> - </tr> - <tr><td> </td></tr> - <tr> - <td class='c008'>SANTA CLARA, COIMBRA</td> - <td class='c010'><em>To face page</em> <a href='#fp136'>136</a></td> - </tr> - <tr><td> </td></tr> - <tr> - <td class='c008'>A COUNTRY RAILWAY STATION</td> - <td class='c010'><em>To face page</em> <a href='#fp142'>142</a></td> - </tr> - <tr><td> </td></tr> - <tr> - <td class='c008'>A CORNER OF THE TOWN HALL AND THE MONASTERY, THOMAR</td> - <td class='c010'><em>To face page</em> <a href='#fp144'>144</a></td> - </tr> - <tr><td> </td></tr> - <tr> - <td class='c008'>SOME BEAUTIES OF THOMAR</td> - <td class='c010'><em>To face page</em> <a href='#fp146'>146</a></td> - </tr> - <tr><td> </td></tr> - <tr> - <td class='c008'>CHURCH OF S. JOÃO IN THE PRAÇA, THOMAR</td> - <td class='c010'><em>To face page</em> <a href='#fp156'>156</a></td> - </tr> - <tr><td> </td></tr> - <tr> - <td class='c008'><span class='pageno' id='Page_x'>x</span>THE BRIDGE AT THOMAR</td> - <td class='c010'><em>To face page</em> <a href='#fp158'>158</a></td> - </tr> - <tr><td> </td></tr> - <tr> - <td class='c008'>IN THE MAIN STREET OF OUREM</td> - <td class='c010'><em>To face page</em> <a href='#fp160'>160</a></td> - </tr> - <tr><td> </td></tr> - <tr> - <td class='c008'>THE CASTLE, LEIRIA</td> - <td class='c010'><em>To face page</em> <a href='#fp164'>164</a></td> - </tr> - <tr><td> </td></tr> - <tr> - <td class='c008'>ON THE ALAMEDA, LEIRIA</td> - <td class='c010'><em>To face page</em> <a href='#fp166'>166</a></td> - </tr> - <tr><td> </td></tr> - <tr> - <td class='c008'>THE ENCARNAÇÃO, LEIRIA</td> - <td class='c010'><em>To face page</em> <a href='#fp168'>168</a></td> - </tr> - <tr><td> </td></tr> - <tr> - <td class='c008'>ON THE PRAÇA AT ALCOBAÇA</td> - <td class='c010'><em>To face page</em> <a href='#fp188'>188</a></td> - </tr> - <tr><td> </td></tr> - <tr> - <td class='c008'>UNDER THE ACACIAS, ALCOBAÇA</td> - <td class='c010'><em>To face page</em> <a href='#fp192'>192</a></td> - </tr> - <tr><td> </td></tr> - <tr> - <td class='c008'>THE OLD PALACE, CINTRA</td> - <td class='c010'><em>To face page</em> <a href='#fp204'>204</a></td> - </tr> - <tr><td> </td></tr> - <tr> - <td class='c008'>ON THE QUAY, LISBON</td> - <td class='c010'><em>To face page</em> <a href='#fp234'>234</a></td> - </tr> - <tr><td> </td></tr> - <tr> - <td class='c008'>LISBON, FROM THE NORTH</td> - <td class='c010'><em>To face page</em> <a href='#fp306'>306</a></td> - </tr> -</table> - -<h3 class='c011'>FROM PHOTOGRAPHS</h3> - -<table class='table1' summary='PHOTOGRAPHS'> -<colgroup> -<col width='64%' /> -<col width='35%' /> -</colgroup> - <tr> - <td class='c008'>MANUELINE ARCHITECTURE AT THE HOTEL, BUSSACO</td> - <td class='c010'><em>To face page</em> <a href='#fp94'>94</a></td> - </tr> - <tr><td> </td></tr> - <tr> - <td class='c008'>ON THE VIA SACRA, BUSSACO</td> - <td class='c010'><em>To face page</em> <a href='#fp104'>104</a></td> - </tr> - <tr><td> </td></tr> - <tr> - <td class='c008'>THE CHOIR AND CHAPTER HOUSE, THOMAR</td> - <td class='c010'><em>To face page</em> <a href='#fp148'>148</a></td> - </tr> - <tr><td> </td></tr> - <tr> - <td class='c008'>THE CLOISTERS, BATALHA</td> - <td class='c010'><em>To face page</em> <a href='#fp180'>180</a></td> - </tr> - <tr><td> </td></tr> - <tr> - <td class='c008'>THE UNFINISHED CHAPELS, BATALHA</td> - <td class='c010'><em>To face page</em> <a href='#fp182'>182</a></td> - </tr> - <tr><td> </td></tr> - <tr> - <td class='c008'>MANUELINE WINDOWS IN THE OLD PALACE, CINTRA</td> - <td class='c010'><em>To face page</em> <a href='#fp224'>224</a></td> - </tr> - <tr><td> </td></tr> - <tr> - <td class='c008'>THE SOUTH DOOR AT BELEM</td> - <td class='c010'><em>To face page</em> <a href='#fp238'>238</a></td> - </tr> - <tr><td> </td></tr> - <tr> - <td class='c008'>THE “TEMPLE OF DIANA,” EVORA</td> - <td class='c010'><em>To face page</em> <a href='#fp300'>300</a></td> - </tr> -</table> - -<div class='chapter'> - <span class='pageno' id='Page_xi'>xi</span> - <h2 class='c006'>INTRODUCTION</h2> -</div> - -<p class='c012'>Portugal had been familiar to me from my -earliest youth, for my road to and from Spain -had often lain that way, and circumstances had -made me conversant with the language and history -of the country; and yet this book is not the -outcome of any such previous knowledge, but -mainly of one short voyage in search of change -and health. It happened in this way. As oft -befalls men who in this striving world have to -wring their brains for drachmas, the completion -of a particularly arduous book had left me temporarily -a nervous wreck, sleepless and despairing. -The first and most obvious need dictated to me -by those who settle such matters, was to forget -for a time that pens, ink, and paper existed, and -to seek relaxation in a clime where printers cease -from troubling and reviewers are at rest. But -where? Spain certainly would offer me no such -a haven: France was too near home, Germany -I disliked, Switzerland was trite and overrun, -the novelty of Italy I had long before exhausted, -and Greece was too far away. A sea voyage was -<span class='pageno' id='Page_xii'>xii</span>a desideratum, but it must not be too long, and -as the autumn was already verging towards winter -the south alone was available.</p> - -<p class='c000'>Then in the midst of my perplexity the happy -thought suggested itself that, often as I had -passed through Portugal, I had never seen the -country. Why not try Portugal? I had some -prejudices to overcome, prejudices, indeed, which -up to that time had prevented me from seeking -a deeper knowledge of the land and people than -could be gained by an incurious glance on the -way through. For I had been brought up in -the stiff Castilian tradition that Portugal was -altogether an inferior country, and the Portuguese -uncouth boors who in their separation from their -Spanish kinsmen had left to the latter all the -virtues whilst they themselves had retained all the -vices of the race. But, withal, I chose Portugal, -and have made this book my apologia as a -self-prescribed penance for my former injustice -towards the most beautiful country and the most -unspoilt and courteous peasantry in Southern -Europe. Portugal and the Portuguese, indeed, -have fairly conquered me, and the voyage, of -which some of the incidents are here set forth, -was for me a continual and unadulterated delight -from beginning to end, bringing to me refreshment -and renewed vigour of soul, mind, and -body, opening to my eyes, though they had seen -<span class='pageno' id='Page_xiii'>xiii</span>much of the world, prospects of beauty unsurpassed -in my experience, and revealing objects of -antiquarian and artistic interest unsuspected by -most of those to whom the attractions of the -regular round of European travel have grown -flat and familiar.</p> - -<p class='c000'>It is impossible, of course, to pass on to others -the full measure of enjoyment felt by an appreciative -traveller in a happy trip through an unhackneyed -pleasure-ground; but it has occurred -to me that some record of my impressions on -the way may lead other Englishmen to seek for -themselves a repetition of the pleasure and benefit -which I experienced in the course of a short -holiday trip through Portugal from north to -south. I am not pretending to write a guidebook: -those that exist are doubtless sufficient -for all purposes, although I have intentionally -refrained from consulting any of them, in order -that my impressions might not be biassed, even -unconsciously, by the opinions of others; nor -do I claim to speak of Portugal with the fulness -of knowledge exhibited by Mr. Oswald Crawford -in his books on the country where he resided so -long. My object is rather to treat the subject -from the point of view of the intelligent visitor -in search of sunshine, health, or relaxation; to -suggest from my own experience routes of travel -and points of attraction likely to appeal to such -<span class='pageno' id='Page_xiv'>xiv</span>a reader as I have in my mind, and to warn him -frankly of the inevitable small inconveniences -which he must be prepared to tolerate cheerfully -if he would enjoy to the full a holiday spent in -a country not as yet overrun by tourists who -insist upon carrying England with them wherever -they go. If he will consent to “play the game,” -and not expect the impossible in such a country, -I can promise my traveller a voyage full of colour, -interest, and novelty in this “garden by the side -of the sea,” where pines and palms grow side by -side, and the stern north and softer south blend -their gifts in lavish luxuriance beneath the happy -conjunction of almost perpetual sunshine and -moist Atlantic breezes.</p> - -<div class='lg-container-r'> - <div class='linegroup'> - <div class='group'> - <div class='line'>MARTIN HUME.</div> - </div> - </div> -</div> - -<div class='ph1'> - -<div class='nf-center-c1'> -<div class='nf-center c001'> - <div>THROUGH PORTUGAL</div> - </div> -</div> - -</div> - -<div class='chapter'> - <span class='pageno' id='Page_1'>1</span> - <h2 class='c006'>I<br /> <span class='large'>OPORTO</span></h2> -</div> - -<p class='c012'>I stood in the centre of a daring bridge, spanning -with one bold arch of nigh six hundred feet a -winding rocky gorge. Far, far below me ran -a chocolate-coloured river crowded with quaint -craft, some with high-raised sheltered poops and -crescent-peaked prows, some low and long astern -with bows like gondolas and bright red lateen -sails, upon which the fierce sun blazed sanguinely. -On the right side thickly, and on the left more -sparsely, climbing up the stony sides of the gorge, -were piled hundreds of houses, pink, pale-blue, -buff, and white, all with glowing red-tiled roofs, -and each set amidst a riot of verdure which -trailed and waved upon every nook and angle -uncovered by buildings. Trellised vines clustered -and flowers flaunted in tiny back-yards -<span class='pageno' id='Page_2'>2</span>and square-enclosed courts by the score, all on -different levels, but all open to the down-gazing -eyes of the spectator on the bridge high above -them. Here and there a tall palm waved its -plumes as in unquiet slumber, but everywhere -else was the impression of ardent, throbbing, -exuberant life, such as all organic creation feels -under the spur of stinging sunshine and the salt -twang of the sea-breeze. The river gorge winds -and turns so tortuously that the view forward -and backward is not extensive, but as far as the -eye reaches on each side of the umber stream -the hills of houses and far-spread terraced vineyards -beyond rise precipitously, with just a quayside -at foot on the banks of the stream, thronged -now with folk who swarm, gather, and separate -like gaudy ants, and apparently no bigger, as -seen from the coign of vantage on the bridge. -To my left, as I stand looking towards the west, -there crowns the summit of the ridge close by -a vast white monastery against a green background; -a monastery now, alas! like all others -in this Catholic land, profanated and turned to -purposes of war instead of peace, but, withal, -there still rears its modest rood aloft upon the -crest one poor little round chapel where the -<span class='pageno' id='Page_3'>3</span>sainted image of Pilar of the Ridge stolidly -receives the devotion of the faithful. To the -right, the height is crowned by a vast square -episcopal palace, and near it, over all, is the -glittering golden cross that shines upon the -city from the summit of the square cathedral -towers. This is Oporto, The Port <i><span lang="fr" xml:lang="fr">par excellence</span></i>, -which gives its name to Portugal, seen from -the double-decked iron bridge of Dom Luis -over the Douro.</p> - -<p class='c000'>For days I had been striving in vain to get -into touch with the psychic principle of this -strange city. I had mixed with the motley -multitudes that lounge and labour upon the -quays, I had lingered in the gilded churches -where worshippers were ominously few, and -stood for hours observant in chaffering marketplaces -and amidst the crowds of sauntering -citizens in the inevitable Praça de Dom Pedro; -but till the revelatory moment came to me in -one enlightening flash upon the Bridge of Dom -Luis, I had always been alone in a foreign throng -whose composite inner soul I could not read. -But now all was changed. Thenceforward I -saw Oporto whole and not in disintegrated fragments -as before; for I had learnt the secret of -<span class='pageno' id='Page_4'>4</span>putting the pieces of the puzzle together and the -heart of the city was bared to me, a stranger.</p> - -<p class='c000'>Every large, enduring community comes to -attain a distinct character of its own, which the -outlander can only know by long association or -sympathetic insight, sometimes not at all. I had -looked for a people exuberant and gay in outward -seeming with an underlying spirit of bitter -mockery, such as I had known in so many other -Iberian cities; but somehow these Oporto people -were quite different. Grave and quiet, with -introspective eyes, even the children seemed to -take their play soberly. Look at the slim slip -of a boy who gravely walks at the head of -this team of enormous fawn-coloured oxen, toilsomely -dragging their ponderous load up a hill -so steep as almost to need a ladder to ascend. -The urchin cannot be more than ten or eleven, -and in any other country would alternately skip -and idle, or at least allow his attention to wander -with every fresh object that struck his fancy. -Here he stalks along for hours at a time, without -lingering or straying, always calm and patient, -whilst his soiled and hardened bare feet plod on, -heedless both of the white mire and sharp stones -of the way. Over his shoulder he carries a long -<span class='pageno' id='Page_5'>5</span>lithe wand, double as tall as himself, with which -he directs the course of the great wide-horned -bullocks. A mere turn of the wand is sufficient -to indicate the way, and with low bowed heads -beneath the heavy yoke the dull beasts plod -slowly onward as long-suffering as their guide. -The whole equipage might belong to the times -when the world itself was young, so idyllic is -it in form. The wain is narrow and high-set -upon two wheels, like an ancient chariot, with -boards or high rods to form its sides; the wheels -are built up ponderously of solid wood, the two -thick spokes that connect the heavy tire with the -hub filling up most of the circle, and the axle, -a heavy log of wood, itself turns with the wheels. -In this part of Portugal there stands erect upon -the neck of the team an adornment which is -usually the pride of the owner’s heart, and the -one superfluous article of luxury he possesses. -It is a thick board of hardwood, about eighteen -inches high and some five feet broad, intricately -and beautifully carved in fretted open-work -arabesques. The patterns are traditional, handed -down from time immemorial, and usually consist -of involved geometrical and curvilinear designs; -sometimes, but not often, with a cross introduced -<span class='pageno' id='Page_6'>6</span>in the centre, and with a row of little bristle -brushes as an extra adornment along the top. A -glance at this elaborate piece of ox furniture will -show that its decoration is of Moorish origin, -and the <i><span lang="pt" xml:lang="pt">canga</span></i> itself may be the survival of the -high ox yoke still seen in some oriental countries. -To complete the quaint picture of the universal -ox team, for this part of Portugal is not a -country of horses or mules, the dress of the -small teamster must be described. The boy’s -breeches usually do not reach below the knee, -the rest of the legs and feet being bare; a jacket -of brown homespun is slung upon one shoulder, -except at night or during the cold winter days -of December and January, when it is worn, and -the shirt, open at the neck and breast, leaves -much of the upper part of the body exposed. -The headgear is peculiar. It is nearly always a -knitted stocking bag cap, something like an old-fashioned -nightcap, with a tassel at the end of -the bag which hangs down the back or upon the -shoulder of the wearer, its colour being sometimes -green and red, but more frequently black.</p> - -<p class='c000'>The boy, like his similarly garbed elders, takes -life very seriously, but neither he nor they seem -sad or depressed. There is here none of the -<span class='pageno' id='Page_7'>7</span>squalid misery or whining mendicancy that are -so distressing to strangers in Spain and Southern -Italy, for the Portuguese of the north is a sturdy, -self-respecting peasant, who works hard and lives -frugally upon his three testoons (1<i><span lang="la" xml:lang="la">s.</span></i> 3<i><span lang="la" xml:lang="la">d.</span></i>) per day; -and so long as he can earn his dried stockfish, -his beans, bread, and grapes, with a little red wine -to drink, he scorns to beg for the indulgence of -his idleness.</p> - -<p class='c000'>These are the people, and their social betters -of the same race, whom a sudden flash of sympathy -brought closer to me, as in the pellucid -golden sunlight all Oporto was spread before and -beneath me, palpitating with life. The absence -of vociferation and vehemence in the people did -not mean sulkiness or stupidity, but was the -result of the intense earnestness with which their -daily life was faced; their unregarding aloofness -towards strangers was not rudeness, but the -highest courtesy which bade them avoid obtrusive -curiosity; and soon I learnt to know that -their cold exterior barely concealed a disinterested -desire to extend in fullest measure aid and sympathy -to those who needed them. In all my -wanderings I have never met, except perhaps in -Norway, a peasantry so full of willingness to -<span class='pageno' id='Page_8'>8</span>show courtesy to strangers without thought of -gain to themselves as these people of north -Portugal, almost pure Celts as they are, with -the Celtic innate kindliness of heart and ready -sympathy, though, of course, with the Celtic shortcomings -of jealousy, inconstancy, and distrust.</p> - -<p class='c000'>I know few more characteristic thoroughfares -than the road by the river-side at Oporto, called the -Ribeira, which is the centre of maritime activity -of the port. The path runs beneath what was the -ancient river-wall, now pierced or burrowed out -to form caverns of shops, where wine and food, -cordage and clothing are sold to sailor men. -Many of the open doors have vine trellises before -them, in the shade of which quaintly garbed -groups forgather, and a constant tide of men -and women flows along the path, eddying into -and out of the cavernous recesses in the ancient -wall. Colour, flaring and fierce in the sun, -flaunts everywhere; for the multi-tinted rags of -the south festoon and flutter from every door -and window and deck the persons of all the -womankind. Swinging along, with peculiar and -ungainly gait, go the women with prodigious -burdens upon their heads. Everything, from -babies to bales of merchandise, is borne upon the -female head in Portugal; and these women of -the north wear a peculiar headgear adapted to -this custom. It is a round, soft, pork-pie hat of -black cloth or velveteen, fitting well upon the -top of the head, the upper rim being adorned -with a sort of standing silk fringe. Such a hat, -especially when surmounted by a knot, suffers no -damage from a burden placed upon it; but the -constant carrying of tremendous weights upon -the head of females, even of little girls, quite -spoils the figures of the women, thrusting the -hips and pelvis forward inordinately, and rendering -the movements in walking most ungraceful. -The women and girls almost invariably go barefooted, -whilst the men, except the fishermen, -usually are shod; and the females of a family -share to the full the work and hardships which -are the common lot.</p> - -<div id='fp8' class='figcenter id002'> -<img src='images/i_025.jpg' alt='' class='ig001' /> -<div class='ic001'> -<p>EVENING OPPOSITE OPORTO.</p> -</div> -</div> - -<p class='c000'><span class='pageno' id='Page_9'>9</span>Along the shore of the busy Ribeira lie ships -unloading, small craft they usually are, for the -bar of the Douro is a terrible one, and the big -ships now enter the harbour of Leixões, a league -away. In a constant stream the men and women -pass across the planks from ship to shore, carrying -the cargo upon their heads or shoulders -in peculiar boat-shaped baskets, which are the -<span class='pageno' id='Page_10'>10</span>inseparable companion of the Oporto workers. -Here is a smart schooner hailing from the Cornish -port of Fowey, from which stockfish from Newfoundland -is being landed on the heads of women, -flat salt slabs as hard and dry as wood, but good -nutritious food for all that; and farther along, -with their prows to the shore, rest a dozen un-ladened -wine and fruit boats from up the Douro, -and flat-bottomed passenger skiffs into which -women and men with baskets and bundles, representing -their week’s supplies purchased in Oporto, -are crowding to be carried back to their homes -in the rich vineyard villages miles up the river. -One by one the quaint craft hoist their crimson -sails, and struggle out from the tangle of the -bank, until the breeze catches them, and in a -shimmer of red gold from the setting sun they -hustle through the brown tide until a projecting -corner hides them from view. It is a scene never -to be forgotten.</p> - -<p class='c000'>The centre of the Ribeira is the Praça called -after it, where a sloping square facing the water -opens out. The scene is picturesque in the -extreme. The space is thronged by men, either -sleeping in their baskets or carrying them filled -with fish or merchandise upon their heads: a -<span class='pageno' id='Page_11'>11</span>motley, water-side crowd, men of all nations, pass -to and fro, or gossip under the vine trellis before -the wine shop overlooking the square, and as -the observer casts his eyes upwards he sees the -gaily coloured houses piled apparently on the -top of one another, until at the top of all, as -if overhead, is the glaring white palace of the -bishop, and the glittering cathedral cross, standing -out hard and clear against a sky of fathomless -indigo.</p> - -<p class='c000'>This busy river-side way of the Ribeira is, so -to speak, a street of two storeys. Below is -the walk I have described, with the cavernous -shops in the face of the old river-wall, and on -the top of the wall is another path reached -by occasional flights of steps, and also bordered -by the squalid medley of dark shops in which -strange savoury-odoured victuals are washed down -by strong red wine, and quiet brown men and -women, and grave-eyed swarthy babies are inextricably -mixed up with brown merchandise in -the gloom beyond the glaring sunlight. Unexpected -steep alleys, arched and mysterious, -lead to the thoroughfares higher up the precipitous -slope, and the next storey, a parallel -narrow street, the Rua do Robelleiro, narrow, -<span class='pageno' id='Page_12'>12</span>dark, and ancient, is almost as picturesque as the -Ribeira itself.</p> - -<p class='c000'>A slab let into the river-wall by the beach -commemorates one of the most terrible days in -Oporto’s history. The English army had been -chased to its ships at Corunna, and the Spanish -levies scattered: the Peninsula seemed to be at -the mercy of the French legions, which, under -Napoleon’s greatest marshals, held the richest -provinces of Spain in the name of King Joseph -Bonaparte. But 9000 English troops remained -in Lisbon, and with Portugal in the hands of -his enemies Napoleon knew that he would never -be master of Spain. So the word went forth -that Soult was to march down with a great army -from Galicia, and sweep the English out of -Portugal. It seemed easy, and authorities even -in England believed that Portugal was untenable -and should be evacuated. All but one man, -Arthur Wellesley, whose victory at Vimeiro in -the previous year had been wasted by the inept -old women who were his superior officers. With -20,000 men, said Wellesley, he would hold -Portugal against 100,000 French, the marshals -notwithstanding; and the great Englishman had -his way. Beresford was sent out to reorganise -<span class='pageno' id='Page_13'>13</span>the scattered Portuguese fighting men, and -Arthur Wellesley sailed from England with his -little army to face Soult in Portugal. Before -he arrived in Lisbon the French had swept down -from Galicia, and on the 27th March 1809, -Soult summoned Oporto to surrender. The -warlike Bishop of Oporto was heading the hastily -organised defence; his forces were undisciplined -and badly armed, but their hearts were stout, -and behind their poor earthworks the citizens of -Oporto and their bishop bade defiance to Soult -and his invading army.</p> - -<p class='c000'>On the 29th March at dawn the devoted city -was stormed by Napoleon’s veterans, who swept -all before them. There was no quarter, no -mercy, and the steep streets of the city were -turned to blood-smeared shambles. Down to -the river bank flocked the affrighted people, -falling as they ran under the rain of bullets that -pursued them. Over the river from the Ribeira -was a bridge of boats, and upon this the crowd -of panic-stricken fugitives poured. The weight -sank it, and thousands were drowned in the -Douro, or struggled ashore only to be despatched -by the French, whilst many of those who had been -in arms deliberately drowned themselves rather -<span class='pageno' id='Page_14'>14</span>than surrender. Eighteen thousand Portuguese -perished on that awful day, without counting the -drowned who were never recovered; whilst of -the whole Portuguese host only two hundred -live prisoners were taken.</p> - -<p class='c000'>Six weeks afterwards the tables were turned; -six weeks spent by Soult in intrigues for his -own advancement, and by his officers in discontented -idleness. On the 12th May Wellesley and -his army from Lisbon surprised him at Oporto in -broad daylight, crossing the river a few miles -above the city by a brilliant piece of daring, and -Soult ignominiously fled north, leaving impedimenta -and baggage behind him, harassed and -scattered by the Portuguese peasants in arms, -until a mere remnant of his force finally found -refuge in Spain. The very dinner to which he -was about to sit down at Oporto when he was -surprised regaled Sir Arthur Wellesley instead, -and the victor took up his residence in that big -white monastery on the Serra de Pilar, which -from the height on the left of the bridge affords -a panorama of unequalled beauty of the city -opposite on its amphitheatre of hills, shining -white and stately against the dark background -of the sky.</p> - -<p class='c000'><span class='pageno' id='Page_15'>15</span>However you go from the lower level by the -river-side to the main streets of the city the -climb is a severe one, for in this town of precipitous -hills the gradients are startling, even for -the electric trams which of late years have completely -taken possession of the streets. But we -will leave the electric trams on this peregrination, -and face the ascent on foot from the lower level -of the bridge on the Ribeira itself to the upper -town. First some toilsome flights of steps which -have taken the place of the lower end of a -precipitous alley, cut away to make the approach -to the bridge, lead you up about two hundred -feet to an ancient winding lane which itself is -almost a flight of steps. Quaint foreign interiors -are disclosed through the open doors of the dark -humble abodes that line the way, and poor little -home industries are carried on <i><span lang="la" xml:lang="la">coram populo</span></i>; half-way -up the ladder-like ascent there is a ruined -church, and by-and-by on the right we skirt the -great battlemented wall of the vast disestablished -monastery of Santa Clara. At a turn in the -wall the corner of the grim old edifice itself -appears, fortress-like and looming here as built -for defence in the fierce times of long ago. -Through the doubly-grated windows, a few feet -<span class='pageno' id='Page_16'>16</span>above our heads, brown paws are thrust out, -and a hoarse murmur from within takes form, -by-and-by, as a demand for alms in the name -of God. A glance inside makes one start back -in horror, almost in disgust, though the sorry -spectacle unfortunately soon becomes familiar to -those who sojourn in any large Portuguese town. -Huddled in squalor and filth together are half-naked, -savage-looking criminals, old men, sturdy -vagabonds, and youths almost children, staring -out from the gloom of the prison-house through -the unglazed barred windows, with whining prayer -for charity, ribald jest, or explosive curses. These -gaol-birds, herded publicly in their unutterable -degradation behind the gratings, form the blackest -spot visible in Portuguese life. Even Spain for -the most part has brought her prisons into some -semblance of civilised order, but Portugal in this -one respect lags inexplicably behind.</p> - -<div id='fp16' class='figcenter id003'> -<img src='images/i_035.jpg' alt='' class='ig001' /> -<div class='ic001'> -<p>FROM THE RIBEIRA, OPORTO.</p> -</div> -</div> - -<p class='c000'>A few yards distant, through a little maze of -mediæval streets, is the cathedral, the Sé, with a -quiet little courtyard before it, from the parapet -of which the red roofs and abundant verdure of -the city spread downward in waves to the water-side. -These north Portuguese cathedrals are -marvellously alike; sharing the early beauties and -<span class='pageno' id='Page_17'>17</span>later barbarities of their successive generations of -masters. This of Oporto is a good specimen. -The sturdy warrior kings who wrested Portugal, -bit by bit, from Castilian and from Moor, in the -twelfth and thirteenth centuries, were true crusaders. -Where they set their foot sprang up the -Christian church, to testify for ever their gratitude -for victory vouchsafed to the Cross that -symbolised their faith. Solid and staidly devotional -were the edifices they raised; and wherever -their work remains unconcealed by the scrolly -banalities of a later age, it bears still the impress -of simple faith and unostentatious grandeur. -Here on the hill crest at Oporto stand two -massive low towers, one still crowned by the -pointed Morisco machicolations of the twelfth -century, whilst its fellow, partly rebuilt, is spoilt -by the addition of a trivial eighteenth-century -parapet, with urns as an adornment. Still, the -massive solidity of the towers remains, which is -something to be thankful for when we regard the -hideous top-heavy early eighteenth-century façade -that connects them. The south door, of majestic -romanesque, is similarly marred. Around it has -been built a barbarous porch, overloaded with -meaningless ornament, which not only obscures -<span class='pageno' id='Page_18'>18</span>the serious work of the early builder, but half -covers and cuts in two a lovely old round -window above the door which lights the transept -inside. But, however much these curly horrors -of the late seventeenth and early eighteenth centuries -may distract the eye, they do not destroy -what is still visible of the old edifice. The double -flight of low steps, for instance, which leads to -this south door has for handrails two ancient -stone serpents, so simple in design, yet so effective -and perfectly adapted for their purpose, as to -prove the unaffected but consummate artistry of -the designer, whose taste must have been formed -whilst yet the Byzantine traditions were strong in -the stern romanesque.</p> - -<p class='c000'>One is struck at once in entering any of these -cathedrals, and more particularly that of Oporto -and its close congener Braga, with the vast difference -between them and the pompous, splendid -Spanish cathedrals. In the latter the span of the -nave is usually tremendous, the church is plunged -in tinted gloom, and the whole of the centre of -the nave is blocked by an immense choir. Here -in North Portugal the note struck in the cathedrals -is not mystery richly dight, as in Spain, but -sincere austerity, and a simple faith so essential in -<span class='pageno' id='Page_19'>19</span>the edifice that the grave granite columns and -arches appear as unaffected by the heaps, and -piles, and masses of curly carved gilt wood around -them as a monolith might be by the lizards that -bask and slither round its base. Here in Oporto, -for instance, the low, massive, granite pillars that -line the narrow nave, and support the round -romanesque arches, seem sullenly to bid defiance -to time and decay; such is their prodigious -solidity. And yet even these a later age has -surmounted, if not adorned, with curly Corinthian -capitals of carved gilt wood! Every altar -here, and indeed nearly all over Portugal, is an -overloaded mass of this particular barbaric style -of decoration dear to the Portuguese since the -seventeenth century. The skill in its production -is undeniably great, especially in the chapel of St. -Vincent in Oporto Cathedral; and in moderation -the employment of richly painted, carved, and -gilded wood generally may be advantageous where -the light is low and the architectural style ornate. -But here, where the simple romanesque prevails -and the churches are flooded with light, it overwhelms -one. In this low, old, plain Sé, either -gilded wood or high-relief designs in beaten gold -or silver in endless intricacy strike the eye unmercifully -<span class='pageno' id='Page_20'>20</span>at every turn. On one of these ornate -altars, screened by a curtain which a fee will -raise, stands the ancient effigy, which those -who still hold the simple faith of their fathers -venerate so devoutly—Our Lady of Alem. Ages -ago, so the story runs, when this old fane was yet -a-building in the twelfth century, some Douro -fishermen found their nets heavy with an unusual -burden, and raising them, found this image, a -miraculous gift vouchsafed them from the sea. -Since then the prayers of those who win their -living on the deep have been ceaselessly offered -to the Lady of Alem for safety and good luck, -and simple offerings of gratitude for boons thus -gained—for sickness healed or safe return—hang -thickly round the shrine.</p> - -<p class='c000'>The beautiful little cloisters of the cathedral -are of a later date than the church—grave and -simple Gothic of the late fourteenth century, with -three small pointed lancet arches in each span, and -a plain round light in the tympanum above. But -even here the eighteenth century has done some -damage by building out highly ornamental buttresses -between the main spans. All around on -the inner wall of the cloister is a decoration which -abounds in nearly every Portuguese church that -<span class='pageno' id='Page_21'>21</span>has lived through the seventeenth and eighteenth -centuries—namely, large pictorial representations -in blue and white tiles, like those commonly connected -with the town of Delft. In the churches -these tile pictures usually represent scenes from -Scripture history, with a large admixture of -heathen mythology or ordinary emblematic fancies, -as here in Oporto, and the effect is quaint and -not unpleasing. One of the things indeed which -most strongly strike a stranger in Portugal, in -the north especially, is the almost universal employment -of glazed tiles, <i><span lang="pt" xml:lang="pt">azulejos</span></i>, both inside -and outside buildings of all kinds, the majority of -the better sort of dwelling-houses being entirely -covered outside by tile designs in colours, sometimes -very elaborate and beautiful. The custom -exists to some extent in Spain, but is not so -common there as in Portugal. In each case, however, -the taste and original manufacture, like the -name of these tiles, are clearly Moorish, and in -some of the older edifices, to be mentioned later, -the tiles themselves date from a period when -Moors or Mudejares produced them.</p> - -<p class='c000'>In the sacristy of Oporto Cathedral they -will show you a painting on terra-cotta of the -Virgin and Child, backed by St. Joseph and -<span class='pageno' id='Page_22'>22</span>angels bearing a cross, which is asserted to be -a Raphael. The composition and drawing are -clearly the work of a disciple of his school, -but the colouring is dull and grey, such as -the great one of Urbino would never have -produced. Not this so-called Raphael, but -another picture of the highest interest and -beauty, is the principal artistic treasure of the -city. In the board-room of Oporto’s most -cherished and beneficent institution, the vast -charitable organisation called the Misericordia, -there hangs a painting that has few, if any, -equals in Portugal. It is claimed for Jan Van -Eyck, who is known to have been in Portugal -for two years at about the period (1520) represented -by the work, though personally I -could see but slight traces of the peculiar -quality of either of the brothers Van Eyck. -Certainly it is broader in style than anything -I have seen from the brush of the younger -brother Jan, and may well be the work of -Hubert Van der Goes or Hans Memling. -But, whoever may be the painter, the picture -is a magnificent one. Against a background -representing a typical Flemish landscape and -walled town, such as Memling loved to paint, -<span class='pageno' id='Page_23'>23</span>there is a highly ornamented font filled with -a pool of blood replenished from the stream -that issues from the Saviour’s side, as He -hangs upon the cross rising from the centre -of the pool. Upon the edge of the font, on -each side of the cross, in attitudes of prayer, -stand two lovely life-size figures of the Virgin -and St. John, whilst in the foreground there -kneel, in regal robes of crimson, ermine, and -gold brocade, the figures of the founder of -the Misericordia in 1499, King Manuel the -Fortunate and his wife. Kneeling behind them -in decreasing size are members of their family, -and on the farther side beyond the font are -groups of ecclesiastics and laymen, all evidently -life-like portraits of prominent courtiers, or -benefactors of the institution. The colouring -of the picture is glowing and gorgeous in the -extreme, and the loving care expended upon -the details is such as only the early Flemings -had patience to exercise, accompanied by a -breadth and boldness unusual in most of them. -Fons Vitæ, as the painting is called, from -an inscription on the edge of the font, is -emblematical of the foundation of the home -of mercy it adorns. Nor is it the only art -<span class='pageno' id='Page_24'>24</span>treasure the Misericordia possesses, apart from -the hundreds of awful daubs representing dead -and gone benefactors that crowd every inch of -wall-space. There is to be seen a beautiful -Gothic gold chalice of fifteenth-century Portuguese -work, some fifteen inches high, a specimen -of the famous handicraft of the city, of great -interest, the work being of the most intricate -and elaborate description, and the condition of -the jewel perfect.</p> - -<p class='c000'>Away from the river-side and the immediate -surroundings of the cathedral, Oporto has little -to show in the form of architectural quaintness. -A busy, bustling place of modern-looking -houses for the most part, the streets dominated -by the indispensable electric tramways, casting -scorn upon the lumbering ox wains that alone -compete with them. Yet the city has some -striking points that should not be missed. The -view is very fine, for instance, from the top of -the main modern shopping thoroughfare, the -Rua de S. Antonio, which swoops down suddenly -like a giant switchback to the Praça de Dom -Pedro, the centre of the city, and then as the -Rua dos Clerigos soars aloft again as suddenly -to another eminence crowned by the extraordinary -<span class='pageno' id='Page_25'>25</span>tower of the Church of the Clerigos, -one of the loftiest spires in Portugal. The -effect, looking up on either side from the -Praça de Dom Pedro, is as curious as any -streetscape of its kind in Europe. The Praça -de Dom Pedro itself, crowded almost day and -night with people, busy and idle, is a typical -Portuguese “place,” paved, as most of them -are, by the strange wave pattern in black and -white stone mosaic that gives to the Praça de -Dom Pedro in Lisbon (the Rocio) the English -name of “rolling motion square.”</p> - -<p class='c000'>From the Praça de Dom Pedro in Oporto, -leading downward towards the river-side, is the -famous street of the old city called Rua das -Flores, where now, as for centuries past, the -gold and silver filigree jewelry for which -Oporto is famous is made and sold in a score -of dark old-fashioned little shops; and still -farther down is the Praça do Comercio, with -a striking statue amidst the flower-beds of -Portugal’s national hero, Prince Henry the -Navigator. In this square stands, too, the -principal architectural boast of modern Oporto, -the Exchange, of which the interior is really -grandiose in the florid style so beloved by the -<span class='pageno' id='Page_26'>26</span>Portuguese. The elaborate high-relief carvings -prevalent in Portugal are usually executed in -soft marble-like limestone, which hardens with -exposure to the air; but here in the Bolsa of -Oporto the intricate festoons and ingenious -caprices that stand out everywhere in relief on -walls, pillars, and staircases are carved out of -the solid grey granite of which the edifice is -built, as if out of defiance the most difficult -material had been sought. Some of the fine -apartments, especially the Tribunal of commerce, -are beautifully decorated in frescoes by -Salgado, in style much resembling those of -Lord Leighton; and the great ballroom is a -gorgeous hall in the brilliant gold and coloured -arabesques of the Alhambra.</p> - -<p class='c000'>The Exchange is built upon the site of a disestablished -Franciscan monastery, and cowering -under the shadow of its modern magnificence -there still stands the convent Church of St. -Francis. The seventeenth century has left little -of the original fifteenth-century church standing, -and the interior is a mass of extravagantly rococo -carved and gilt wood and other monstrosities; -but in an ancient south transept chapel there is -an altar-piece of interest in the style of Mantegna, -<span class='pageno' id='Page_27'>27</span>though the sacristan ascribes it to some -impossible artist of another school and century. -Nothing, indeed, can equal the ignorance of, and -apparent indifference to, antique and artistic objects -in Portugal by the persons in charge of -them. Even in national museums and historic -buildings belonging to the Government, the -guardians appear to have been chosen without -the slightest regard to their fitness for understanding -or describing the objects in their care, -and the demeanour of the Portuguese people -generally towards such objects is such as to -force the conviction that, however proud they -may be that their country has produced gems -of art admired by strangers, they themselves -have but a vague appreciation of their beauties -or their merit.</p> - -<p class='c000'>The precipitous street leading up from the -Praça de Dom Pedro to the conspicuous Church -of the Clerigos is gay with a line of the -drapers’ shops, with the gaudy wares aflaunt, which -appeal specially to the country folk who flock -in with their produce to the picturesque market -of the Anjo behind the church. Red and yellow, -blue and green, strive for mastery from street -kerb to parapet, for the stock is as much outside -<span class='pageno' id='Page_28'>28</span>the shops as in; and under the blazing sun, with -the eternally deep azure sky overhead, the feast -of colour in the clear air is so lavish as to dazzle -eyes accustomed to the low tones and soft outlines -of England. But relief is near. Through -the chaffering market, with its piles of luscious -fruit and all the bounteous gifts of earth and sea -spread temptingly before brightly clad country -wenches with flashing black eyes, the wayfarer -may pass but need not tarry; nor is it worth his -while to penetrate into the over-florid eighteenth-century -churches of the Clerigos and the Carmo, -which lie in his way—for just beyond them is -a beautiful sub-tropical garden where shady -groves of palms invite to repose, and towering -planes temper the glare with a soft haze of sea-green. -Seated in a quiet nook, with leisure now -to watch the passers-by closely, one is struck -by the prosperous busy look of the working -people. There is no undue noise, and a stranger -is allowed to go his way without unwelcome -attention; above all, marvellous to relate, beggars -are rare, whilst the persistent, offensive, -mendicancy, amounting often to sheer blackmail, -which is a perfect plague in Spain, is here quite -unknown.</p> - -<div id='fp28' class='figcenter id002'> -<img src='images/i_049.jpg' alt='' class='ig001' /> -<div class='ic001'> -<p>A SHOP IN OLD OPORTO.</p> -</div> -</div> - -<p class='c000'><span class='pageno' id='Page_29'>29</span>The manners of these people of North -Portugal, indeed, are irreproachable. So courteous -are they that it seems almost rude of the -stranger to note too closely the quaint garb of -the working people around him. The peasant -women especially keep their ancient costume -unchanged. Barefoot they go, old and young, -with their heavy burdens piled in their boat-shaped -baskets upon the black, pork-pie hats -they wear. Their skirts, usually black but -often with a broad horizontal stripe of colour -round the bottom, are very short, and gathered -with great fulness at the waist and over the -hips. Upon the shoulders there is almost invariably -a brilliantly coloured handkerchief, and -sometimes another upon the head beneath the -hat; and long, pendant, gold earrings shine -against their coarse jet-black hair. It is evident -that for the most part they work quite as hard -as the men, but they have no appearance of -privation or ill-treatment, except that their -habit of carrying heavy weights upon their -heads has the effect of ruining their figures in -the manner already described. There are no -indications anywhere of excessive drinking, and -even smoking is not conspicuous amongst the -<span class='pageno' id='Page_30'>30</span>working men and boys in the streets; they seem, -indeed, too seriously busy for that, except on -some feast day, when, with their best clothes -on, they are gay enough, though not vociferous -even then, as most southern peoples are.</p> - -<p class='c000'>There is an ancient little church in the -northern suburb of Oporto, which will be of -some interest to students of architecture. It is -little more than a fragment now, but represents -the earliest orthodox Catholic foundation in the -city, and indeed in this part of the Peninsula. -In the clashing of creeds in the early centuries -of Christianity, Visigothic Spain had been officially -Arian, whilst orthodox trinitarianism was the -creed of the great churchmen, and the majority -of the Romanised people. In 559 Mir, King -of the Suevians, who ruled in the north-west -corner of the Peninsula, was distracted by the -imminent danger of his son, who was ill apparently -to death. He was an Arian, but the -priests of the orthodox Church assured him -that safety to his son might be gained by the -aid of certain relics of St. Martin of Tours, -and Mir swore that if the relics worked the -miracle he and all his people would join the -Catholic communion, and he would build a -<span class='pageno' id='Page_31'>31</span>church to St. Martin within a year in his -capital city. The prince recovered, and Mir -was as good as his word. To the dismay of -the Gothic monarchs of Spain, Suevia joined -the orthodox fold, and in hot haste this Church -of St. Martin was built; “Cedofeita,” “soon -done,” being its name to this day. The upper -part of the little cruciform church has been -restored and the inner walls have been lined -with the universal blue and white picture tiles; -but the pillars and arches are pure romanesque, -with capricious carvings on the capitals, and the -charming little cloister is entered by a romanesque -doorway of great beauty. The capitals, too, of -the north doorway of the church are very curious, -though apparently later than the cloister door, -one of the carvings representing a man in a -long gown being devoured by an animal’s head, -doubtless an allegory of which the significance -is lost to us.</p> - -<p class='c000'>Another church of some interest is that of -Mattosinhos, a large and prosperous village adjoining -the harbour of Leixões, where those who -come by sea to Oporto land. The way thither -from the city by the electric tramway lies along -the river-side, and past the charming tropical-looking -<span class='pageno' id='Page_32'>32</span>public gardens at the Foz de Douro, -where in the summer heat the citizens of Oporto -idle, flirt, and disport themselves in the surf that -breaks upon the sandy beach. The Church of -Mattosinhos is a great place of pilgrimage, for it -possesses amongst other attractions a miraculous -image of Christ, which is venerated throughout -Portugal, and the shrine is a famous one. The -church lies on a gentle eminence, and is approached -by a beautiful, wide, mosaic pavement, -bordered by avenues of planes and cork trees, -under the shadow of which are six chapels containing -life-sized groups representing scenes in -the passion of Our Lord. The soft warm air -from the sea comes heavy-laden with the scent -of flowers, and on one side of the church a -grove of orange trees shelters a merry school -of boys, who do not even pause in their games -to glance at the curious stranger peering about -amongst them. The outside of the church, -somewhat squat and solid eighteenth-century -work, presents a fair specimen of a style of -which we shall see much later; a style not at -all ineffective, although its description may not -sound attractive. Its peculiarity consists in the -admixture of brownish-grey granite, of which all -the architectural lines and salient points consist, -<span class='pageno' id='Page_33'>33</span>with panels or spaces of snow-white plaster between. -In this pure air, under a brilliant sun, -the subdued colour of the granite softens the -outlines, whilst the white spaces prevent an -appearance of gloom or heaviness. Inside, the -Church of Mattosinhos is grave and simple in its -architectural features, but, as usual, the altars, -and especially the chancel, are a riotous mass of -gilt wood carving, without repose or restraint.</p> - -<p class='c000'>Down by the shore the great Atlantic rollers -are thundering upon the beach, as if hungering to -devour the crescent-shaped sardine boats drawn -higher up for safety; and a long mail steamer, -in the little harbour of Leixões, has its blue peter -flying and its funnel smoking ready to sail for -England. It is autumn there, no doubt, for the -calendar tells us so and cannot lie; but here it is -glorious summer still, for the palms and planes -wave softly green in the languorous air, and the -flowers, in great white and purple masses, hang -over every wall and wrestle with the blue-black -grapes that deck the trellises before the cottage -doors. Everywhere is vivid colour and sharp outline -in an atmosphere of marvellous clarity, and as -we are carried rapidly through the balmy, voluptuous -breeze to the city, we feel that life under -such conditions is indeed worth living.</p> - -<div class='chapter'> - <span class='pageno' id='Page_34'>34</span> - <h2 class='c006'>II<br /> <span class='large'>BRAGA AND BOM JESUS</span></h2> -</div> - -<p class='c012'>The famous port-wine is grown upon a well-defined -region nearly sixty miles up the river -from Oporto, and, interesting as the manufacture -is, the arid and inhospitable-looking land of terraced -hillsides, where the glorious grape grows -upon the loose, stony soil, offers little attraction -to the seeker after the picturesque. To the -north of Oporto, and indeed in most of the -province of Minho, the wine produced, though -varying in excellence, is generally of stout claret -character, not unlike the Rioja wine grown in -the north of Spain. But North Portugal, though -cultivated like a garden wherever possible by -a peasantry probably unequalled in Europe for -self-respecting independence and laboriousness, -thanks largely to causes that have made them -practically owners as well as tillers of the soil, -does not strike a cursory observer as being -naturally fertile. For miles together, and as far -<span class='pageno' id='Page_35'>35</span>as the eye reaches, pine-clad hillsides stretch: -beautiful straight pines, rising in huge forests or -isolated clumps, the light-green feathery foliage -shining against the clear indigo background of -the sky, high above the sandy soil carpeted with -a thick soft cushion of pine-needles. But closer -view shows that down in the sheltered valleys -between the hills and on the lower slopes there -nestle hundreds of little vineyards and fields of -maize and rye, the staple breadstuffs of the -people.</p> - -<p class='c000'>The peasantry live well in their way, and are -not content with inferior food. Not for them is -the poor makeshift of white bread and the fat -cold bacon of the English farm hand. The -bread of rye with an admixture of maize flour, -the <i><span lang="pt" xml:lang="pt">broa</span></i> or <em>brona</em>, as it is called in north-western -Spain, is dark in colour and coarse in texture; -but it is a fine sustaining food, upon which, in -Galicia, I have often made a good meal. The -ever-present dried codfish, <i><span lang="pt" xml:lang="pt">bacalhau</span></i>, cooked with -garlic and oil, and sometimes with rice, flavoured -with saffron, is also not by any means a food to -be contemned, unpalatable as it is to those who -taste it for the first time. But this, although -forming the staple fare of the Minho peasant and -<span class='pageno' id='Page_36'>36</span>small farmer, does not exhaust his <i><span lang="pt" xml:lang="pt">menu</span></i>. There -is for high days and holidays the savoury <i><span lang="es" xml:lang="es">estofado</span></i> -of stewed meat and vegetables, of which the Portuguese -peasant housewife is pardonably proud; -there are olives, onions, and fruit <i><span lang="la" xml:lang="la">ad libitum</span></i>, and -good, sound, new wine, tart, but not unpleasant, -at the price of the cheapest small beer in England.</p> - -<p class='c000'>But the foreign visitor who comes simply for a -short pleasure trip on the more or less beaten -tracks will not be expected to regale himself upon -this peasant fare, good as it is in its way. Of -mutton he will find little or none, but veal, -especially in the national stew, he will see at most -meals, and ox-tongue, with a rich sauce, will appear -on the table more frequently than is usual elsewhere. -A thin, and, it must be confessed, usually -tough steak, to which the adopted English name -of beef (spelt <i><span lang="pt" xml:lang="pt">bife</span></i>) is given, will be placed before -him pretty often, and he will find both the thing -and the word omelette—which is never used in -Spanish—universal in Portuguese dining-rooms.</p> - -<p class='c000'>Through a glorious country of pine-clad uplands -and sheltered vineyards the railway runs -from Oporto to the former great city of Braga, -in Roman times <em>Bracara Augusta</em>, and capital of -the whole north-western part of the Iberian Peninsula. -<span class='pageno' id='Page_37'>37</span>Its position on a slight elevation in the -midst of a vast undulating plain or <i><span lang="es" xml:lang="es">cuenca</span></i>, surrounded -by mountains, has made of Braga the -natural emporium of the province, and in each -succeeding racial dispensation a royal seat and -capital; and it remains to-day, though shorn -of its splendour, the ecclesiastical capital of -the Spains, claiming precedence over imperial -Toledo for its archbishopric and primacy. It is -a busy, prosperous place, humming with little -spinning and weaving factories, where woollen -and cotton fabrics are turned out in great quantities, -and hold their own not only here in Minho, -but in the rest of Portugal and far Brazil and -Portuguese Africa.</p> - -<p class='c000'>At the railway station at Braga, in the outskirts -of the city, a noisy, assertive little steam-train of -several carriages is waiting in the street, and with -much puffing and whistling, it carries the travellers -up the slope into the narrow thoroughfares -of the town. It is Sunday, and the streets are -thronged with gaily-dressed people, the women, -heavily decked with the ancient gold jewellery, -long earrings, heavy neck chains, and crosses upon -the white shirt that covers the bosom. Across the -shoulders of most of them there is a brilliantly -<span class='pageno' id='Page_38'>38</span>coloured silk handkerchief, whilst their full-pleated -short skirts are usually of some thick -dark-coloured cloth, and upon their heads here -in Braga they often wear, like their sisters in -Oporto, the peculiar round cloth pork-pie hat, -with the curling silk fringe on the top of the rim. -The men are less picturesque in their Sunday -trim, for many of them wear felt wide-brimmed -hats instead of the workaday bag cap; but even -they have usually added a bit of colour to their -sombre masculine garb in the form of a bright -scarf encircling their waists to do the duty of -braces.</p> - -<p class='c000'>Under the Porta Nova the fussy little train -rushes, and up the narrow, picturesque street, -the top-heavy stone scutcheon upon the -eighteenth-century gate striking at the very -entrance the dominant note of the ancient -city. Here and everywhere the archiepiscopal -insignia, the tasselled hat and mitre, and the -Virgin and Child on the city arms, tell that -the place from the earliest Christian times has -been an ecclesiastical seignory. Churches, too, -greet the eye at every turn; most of them -massive seventeenth and eighteenth century -structures in the peculiar style mentioned in -<span class='pageno' id='Page_39'>39</span>the description of the Church of Mattosinhos -in the last chapter: brownish grey granite outlines -and salient points, with dazzling white -plaster spaces between. Opposite one such -church, in a tiny praça leading off from the -main square of the city, the Largo da Lapa, -I came across a picturesque scene worthy of -the brush of John Philip. In a corner of the -little square of San Francisco was an ancient -recessed fountain in the wall, and around it, -with water jars high and graceful like Roman -amphoræ, there fluttered a group of women -waiting their turn at the jet. Moving to and -fro and clustering in the deep shadow contrasting -with the blinding sunlight, these -full-bosomed, black-haired women, with fine -Roman heads and flashing eyes, were so many -points of glaring colour, forming a brilliant -giant kaleidoscope, whilst the chattering of -many tongues, the jest and taunt thrown over -the shoulder to rival or to swain, the careless -laughter, seemed to blend and fill the languid -air with a vague harmony to the ear, such as -the mixed discordant colours in their aggregation -produced to the eye. By the side of the -gay fountain stood the contrast that heightened -<span class='pageno' id='Page_40'>40</span>its effect. A frowning monastery with heavily -grated windows high upon the wall, from which -glowered evil faces and thrust thievish hands. -For here, again, on this happy holiday afternoon -in Braga, the gaol-birds held their levee. -Beneath their bars stood their womenkind and -children, consoling or grieving; and little bags -hung down at the end of strings from the -windows to receive the gifts it pleased their -friends to send up to the sinister rascals, whose -hoarse ribaldry or whining appeal broke in ever -and anon upon the gay chatter of the fountain. -As if in irony, the church that faced -the monastery prison bore upon its front the -name the “Temple of the Sacred Order of -Penitence.” Of contrition one saw little sign -on the part of those who from behind their -bars looked for all their weary day upon the -church commemorating the unmerited self-reproach -of the “Seraphic Father St. Francis.”</p> - -<div id='fp40' class='figcenter id002'> -<img src='images/i_063.jpg' alt='' class='ig001' /> -<div class='ic001'> -<p>THE AFTER-GLOW AT BRAGA.</p> -</div> -</div> - -<p class='c000'>There is one thing throughout Portugal that -may be unhesitatingly condemned, and here in -Braga the evil is as patent as elsewhere. The -old traditional and, in many cases, historical -names of the praças and streets have been -changed wholesale and wantonly for those of -<span class='pageno' id='Page_41'>41</span>passing and second-rate celebrities, political and -otherwise. In Braga the ancient Largo da -Lapa has been turned into Largo de Hintze -Ribeiro, after the leader of the Liberal party -in the Cortes, and there is hardly a town in -Portugal in which the principal squares and -thoroughfares do not bear the name of Hintze -Ribeiro, or of his rival politician, Conselheiro -João Franco. Serpa Pinto and Mouzinho de -Albuquerque, two fire-eating African explorers, -who in the jingo colonial fever of a few years -ago, when the feeling against England ran high, -were made heroes, are commemorated in streets -innumerable throughout Portugal, to the exclusion -of names which were often quaint and -significant landmarks of long ago.</p> - -<p class='c000'>The palace of the Archbishops of Braga -hardly corresponds in appearance with the -high claims of the primate, for the church -in Portugal is sadly shorn of its splendour, -and part of the rambling palace is a ruin; -but the cathedral offers many points of interest. -Enthusiastic local antiquarians are confident -that the first edifice was raised by Saint -James himself in the lifetime of the Holy -Virgin. But, however that may be, the present -<span class='pageno' id='Page_42'>42</span>church certainly dates from the twelfth -century; and though, as usual, the seventeenth -century did its best to spoil and smother its -primitive simplicity; yet, as in the case of -Oporto Cathedral, which that of Braga much -resembles, the stern solidity of the original work -stands out clear from the frippery by which it -is overlaid.</p> - -<p class='c000'>The narrow nave is divided from the aisles -by massive low clustered granite pillars supporting -slightly pointed arches, above which -spring the simple groins that form the vaulted -roof. At the west end the church is darkened -by the gilt wooden ceiling that supports the -choir and the great gilded organ with spread -trumpet pipes that is the pride of the cathedral. -The choir itself, raised upon a loft and occupying -the whole west end of the church, is of -surprising magnificence; carving and gilding -have run wild; cupids, cherubim, angels, -musicians, and fabulous monsters jostle each -other exuberantly upon choir stalls, lecterns, -and panels: all the caprice, skill, and invention -of sixteenth and seventeenth century Portuguese -art have been lavished upon the work. And -the effect is rich in the extreme, but utterly -<span class='pageno' id='Page_43'>43</span>incongruous with the sober early ogival of the -church itself. Even in the nave the massive -granite pillars have been crowned by later -vandals with florid capitals of carved gilt -wood. The walls, too, are much covered with -pictorial blue and white tiles, and the effect -of this, though inartistic, is quaint and not -displeasing. From the tiny cloister of plain -romanesque there opens the chapel of St. -Luke, where in two splendid sepulchres lie -the bodies of the Leonese princess, Teresa, and -her Burgundian husband, Count Henrique, to -whom she brought the county of Portugal in -the late eleventh century. These are the progenitors -of the Kings of Portugal, the parents -of Affonso Henriques, of whom we shall hear -much later; and to Donna Teresa is owing the -re-foundation of the Cathedral of Braga. In -the side chapels, in the cloisters, and in the -sumptuous chapel of St. Gerald, the patron -saint, there lie dead and mouldering archbishops -not a few; one of them, it is said, -incorrupt after eight centuries, though in consequence -of the flesh having been varnished he -has the appearance of a mulatto, and shows -to this day the honourable scar across his -<span class='pageno' id='Page_44'>44</span>cheek that the warrior archbishop gained -whilst -fighting valiantly by the side of the Master -of Avis at the ever-memorable battle of -Aljubarrota, that gave the regal crown of -Portugal to the illegitimate scion of the House -of Burgundy. -Another coffin there is, just inside the west -door, that has for most people a still more -human interest. It is of gilt copper, apparently -French in design, bearing upon its -lid an effigy of a pretty boy of ten, the little -Prince Affonso, whose bones lie within, and -who died at Braga in the year 1400.</p> - -<p class='c000'>The exterior of the cathedral has, like the interior, -been much spoilt by later builders, the little -square towers having been crowned by a mean-looking -balustrade and crockets; but the exterior -of the sixteenth-century Lady Chapel is a favourable -specimen of the peculiar florid Portuguese -renaissance style called Manueline, of which I shall -have more to say later. Here at the Lady Chapel -at Braga it is more restrained and presents fewer -daring departures from the Gothic canons than -elsewhere, though the surprising intricacy of the -parapet and pinnacles show that the new spirit -was strongly moving when it was built. That -the artists who executed the work were Spaniards -<span class='pageno' id='Page_45'>45</span>from Biscay is probably the reason why in this -instance the peculiar and more questionable -features of the style are less conspicuous than in -the productions of native Portuguese craftsmen -of the same period. The other churches of Braga -have little show. They are mostly rococo seventeenth-century -structures, granite and plaster outside, -and nightmares of carved gilt wood inside; -but almost under the shadow of the overloaded -rococo façade of Santa Cruz there is a lovely -little early ogival votive chapel standing by itself, -and containing a characteristically Portuguese -group of the dead Christ, infinitely touching and -beautiful.</p> - -<p class='c000'>And so through the quaint old streets the -stranger finds his way, passing by a house here -and there whose balconies and windows are -covered with the intricate wooden jalousies that -linger still as a tradition of oriental civilisation. -The whole place is bathed and flooded with vivid -sunlight, except where the lengthening shadows -fall almost purple in their depth; and wandering -without special aim, past the public garden called -the Campo de Sant’ Anna, towards the outskirts -of the city, I found myself at the foot of a steep -hill rising suddenly on the left of the walk. -<span class='pageno' id='Page_46'>46</span>Climbing it, I found a little plateau on the top -with a tiny quaint seventeenth-century hermitage -chapel, the Guadalupe I learned was its name, -under a clump of shady planes and chestnut trees. -Around the plateau was a dwarf parapet upon -which two lovers were sitting, oblivious to all -around save each other; but as I reached the -parapet, and my eyes took in the prospect spread -before me, a cry of wonderment at its marvellous -beauty sprang involuntarily from me, and aroused -for a moment the attention of the youth and the -girl, who sat with their backs to the landscape, -caring nothing for such things. It was but a -glance they gave me, and I could enjoy thenceforward -without interruption or notice the rapture -I felt from the scene, the first of many such -peculiarly Portuguese prospects of rolling valleys -and soaring mountains to be gained from comparatively -low elevations; scenes such as in other -countries can only be attained after long and -arduous climbs up high mountains. I soon found, -it is true, that this view from the Guadalupe in -Braga was but a trifle in comparison with many -others to be encountered in the course of a few -weeks’ travel; but when it first burst unexpectedly -upon me it filled me with an ecstasy -<span class='pageno' id='Page_47'>47</span>that no subsequent prospect, however fine, could -produce.</p> - -<p class='c000'>Just below me was a tangle of vines, and then -a mass of oaks, planes, cork-trees, and acacias, -with their fluttering light foliage, descending in a -gracious ocean of greenery of every shade across a -broad valley till they climbed half up the glowing -red mountains miles away. White houses gleamed -amidst the trees, and upon every hill-top a -hermitage or shrine stood out with its shining -cross above it. But that which attracted the eye -most was what looked like a giant white marble -staircase of immense width, leading right up the -side of a wooded mountain spur opposite, upon -the summit of which, at the head of the stupendous -stair, set deep in the verdure of woods, -stood a huge white temple. Seen from the Guadalupe, -the architectural approach up the mountain -side to the place of pilgrimage above looked -almost too vast to be made by man. Beyond, on -the right, rose a majestic range of granite peaks, -bare of vegetation, and scattered to the summit -with tremendous boulders; and over all the -setting sun threw a glow of golden light that -tipped the grey granite with crimson, orange, and -purple, and deepened the shadows of the climbing -<span class='pageno' id='Page_48'>48</span>woods to umber and to black. The light fell, -and by-and-by only the crests of the red and grey -mountains glowed, for the woods across the vast -plain lay in the black shadow of the peaks. But -still, white and gleaming, like a stupendous staircase -of shining silver, there shone, clear from the -surrounding gloom, the great pilgrimage of Bom -Jesus do Monte. And so in the gathering -twilight, sated with the beauty of the inanimate -world, I slowly wandered down into the pulsing -city again, leaving the lad and his lass still whispering -on the parapet, alone in their happy -blindness.</p> - -<p class='c000'>From the door of the hotel in the Campo Sant’ -Anna the tyrannical little street train that bullies -Braga several times a day carries us to the foot of -the Bom Jesus on the spur of Mount Espinho. -For nearly two miles of continuous gentle ascent -the road passes through a long stretching suburb -of humble houses; and then a quarter of a mile -through a close grove of shady trees brings us to -the outer portico of the sanctuary, a white gateway -at the head of a flight of steps, backed -apparently by a dense luxuriant wood. Hard by -the portico is the starting platform of an elevator -railway, by which pilgrims may, if they please, -<span class='pageno' id='Page_49'>49</span>dodge the rigours of the penance, and arrive at -the summit without exertion. This course, on -my arrival, commended itself to me, and I left -until the next day a full exploration of the place. -On the summit of the spur, by the side and -behind the great church, white outlined by brown -granite as usual, there lies a land of enchantment. -Vegetation of surprising luxuriance is everywhere, -giant trees full of verdure nearly all the year -round, mosses, ferns, and flowers in every crevice. -Gushing fountains and cascades, rustic bridges, -and sweet winding paths through the woods, -everything that can conduce to tranquil repose -and comfort is here, with air so pure and exhilarating -at this great elevation as to raise the most -depressed to vivacity. On a picturesque little -clearing on the summit there are two or three -hotels, the principal of which, the Grand Hotel, -a long one-storey wooden building overhung by -great trees, I can vouch for as excellent.</p> - -<p class='c000'>The sanctuary is naturally a great resort -amongst the people of Braga in the hot summers -on the plain, and I cannot conceive a more -agreeable place to pass a few days for rest at any -time of the year; but the special religious element -draws many devotees who conscientiously go -<span class='pageno' id='Page_50'>50</span>through the pilgrimage to the shrines, and on -the 3rd of May and Whit Sunday especially -many hundreds of pilgrims flock to the sanctuary -for devotion as well as for pleasure. The astonishing -feature of the place is, of course, the -devotional approach to the church up the side of -the mountain, and it is difficult in a few words to -give an idea of the eccentricity of the structure. It -may be admitted at once that the taste displayed -is atrociously bad, for it belongs to that eighteenth -century which has loaded Portugal with rococo -monstrosities; but the very vastness of Bom -Jesus, and its exquisite position, save it from -triviality; and looked at as a whole, either from -above or below, the effect is grandiose in the -extreme.</p> - -<div id='fp50' class='figcenter id002'> -<img src='images/i_075.jpg' alt='' class='ig001' /> -<div class='ic001'> -<p>ON THE TERRACE, BOM JESUS.</p> -</div> -</div> - -<p class='c000'>Some sort of sanctuary had existed here from -the fifteenth century, but it was not until the -middle of the seventeenth that a miraculous -figure of Christ drew to the hermitage large -numbers of pilgrims, and gradually in the later -eighteenth century the present structures grew -under the care of successive archbishops of Braga. -Standing upon the spacious open terrace before -the church on the summit I looked down soon -after sunrise upon the scene spread before me. -<span class='pageno' id='Page_51'>51</span>If the view hitherward from the Guadalupe was -fine this was more striking still. Wreaths of -grey mist still floated in the valley far below, -and the vast plain with Braga in its centre -embosomed amongst trees, and surrounded as -far as the eye reached with red-roofed hamlets, -still lay in grey shadow. But ridge over ridge, -crag beyond crag, in the background rose the -mountains all tipped with shining gold with -chasms of tender heliotrope; and then, before -the mind had well realised the beauty of the -contrast, the whole plain woke and smiled with -sunshine.</p> - -<p class='c000'>The platform or terrace upon which I stood -with my back to the church was flanked with -granite obelisks and statues, and fronted by a -wide stone parapet with a beautiful stone fountain -above it. By two broad flights of steps at the -sides a lower landing, or platform, was reached -with an arched fountain set in the face of the -wall, then by steps down to a similar platform, -whence a pair of flights led to yet another, and so -on, the parapets and balustrades in each case being -surmounted by obelisks and statues, the fountains -on the wall-faces being, like the figures, an extraordinary -mixture of sacred and mythological art. -<span class='pageno' id='Page_52'>52</span>Each alternate pair of platforms, after the first -six, extending right across the structure and -paved with the favourite black and white stone -mosaic, was flanked by two shrines or little open -chapels, each with a beautiful life-sized coloured -group of figures representing scenes in the passion -of our Lord. Half-way down there was an -entrance from one of the platforms into a lovely -old-world terraced garden, overflowing with -flowers, palms, and sweet-scented verdure, and -overhung by the dark yews and pines that bordered -the graded descent from top to bottom. -At length after descending many flights of steps -and passing many terraced platforms with fountains, -figures, and obelisks, a large mosaic-paved -semicircular space was reached, ending in a stone -parapet. Turning and looking upwards from -here an extraordinary effect was presented. The -alternate zigzags of the stairs and the faces of -the walls, indeed all the architectural features, -were outlined, like the great church towering -far overhead, with brown grey granite, and faced -with perfectly white plaster. Stage upon stage -the great staircase rose, its parapets at the side -and the centre line being marked by statues -rising alternately one over the other at each -<span class='pageno' id='Page_53'>53</span>successive stage of the ascent. Dark greenery, -palms, yews, acacias, orange trees, and trailing -flowers overhung the ascent on each side, and -it was not difficult to understand the devotional -fervour of pilgrims, who with tears and contrition -toil up this vast <i><span lang="la" xml:lang="la">viâ doloros</span>a</i> by the hundred on -the special anniversary, worshipping at the affecting -shrines on the landings, and ending in an agony -of remorse at the foot of the miraculous Christ -which is the main attraction of the Sanctuary. -Nor is the scene looking down over the parapet -at the bottom of the main flight less striking. -Sheer over the precipice you see the billowy -masses of dark thick woods far below. On one -side of the wide mosaic landing is a stair leading -to another chapel, and so down by a succession -of zigzag flights, bordered by thick greenery, to -the porch, set in its grove of yews, and leading -to the outer world. But mere words are weak -to describe the charm and beauty of the Bom -Jesus. There is nothing quite like it anywhere -else in Europe, and as sanctuary, health resort, -and architectural curiosity it deserves to be better -known than it is.</p> - -<div id='fp52' class='figcenter id001'> -<img src='images/i_079.jpg' alt='' class='ig001' /> -<div class='ic001'> -<p>ON THE HOLY STAIR, BOM JESUS.</p> -</div> -</div> - -<div class='chapter'> - <span class='pageno' id='Page_54'>54</span> - <h2 class='c006'>III<br /> <span class='large'>CITANIA AND GUIMARÃES</span></h2> -</div> - -<p class='c012'>I drove out of Braga in the early morning. -Passing over the ancient bridge spanning the -little stream, at which lines of women knelt and -washed their household linen, we left the city -behind us and faced the mountain range beyond -which lay my goal. Far above reared the -grey crest of Mount Picoto, with a gilt cross -dominating its highest point; and as the road -wound upwards and ever upward in zigzags, -at each turn of the path Braga, white and -shining, set in its bed of verdure, receded far -below. All around were glorious sun-kissed -peaks scattered to the summit with huge granite -boulders, as if the youthful Titans had there -indulged in the sport of stone-throwing. Then -over a hill pass, we dipped into a valley with -the Falperra range clear before us, and beautiful -St. Marta, with its crown of woods and its -gleaming hermitage in the foreground, almost, -<span class='pageno' id='Page_55'>55</span>as it seemed, over our heads. Maize fields -spread across the valley and on the hill slopes -all around us; and on the wayside, and dividing -the fields, rows of oaks, chestnuts, planes, and, -above all, white poplars, ran, every tree covered -to the top by a trailing vine, loaded with -purple grapes. The effect produced is most -extraordinary, and the practice of thus utilising -timber trees is peculiar to this part of the -country.</p> - -<p class='c000'>For many miles, as we drove over valley -and hill, tall poplars by the thousand, their -light green leaves blending with the bronze, -served as vine poles; and every white cottage -had its shady trellis pergola before its open -doorway, the great luscious bunches of fruit -hanging temptingly over the heads of the women -busy spinning, surrounded by quiet, brown, -barefooted children.</p> - -<p class='c000'>The prevalence of granite is noticeable everywhere. -The fields are divided from the path -by granite walls, gate-posts, trellis standards, -and even telegraph poles are slender granite -monoliths, and the cottages themselves are -granite built, solid and weather-proof. Many -people meet us on their way to Braga: men in -<span class='pageno' id='Page_56'>56</span>velvet jackets, wide, brown, homespun trousers, -often with inserted patterns of other coloured -cloth, and broad brimmed hats; the women, -gay with bright kerchiefs over head and -shoulders, but all barefooted, and many carrying -poised upon their heads the slender red -water jars, the fashion of which has known no -change since the time when the legions of -Augustus ruled the Celts and Suevians with -iron hand from Bracara Augusta. Ox-carts -slowly toil along, the bowed necks of the -bullocks bearing above them the elaborately -carved <i><span lang="pt" xml:lang="pt">canga</span></i>, here seen at its best. And still -the road lies mainly upward through the keen -pure air, the mountain slopes below and around -us green with pine forests, and above us the -eternal grey granite boulders. The land is -bathed in a flood of sunlight, with here and -there upon the widespread slopes and valleys -the dark shadow of a passing cloud. Even up -here amidst the masses of granite the fruit-laden -vine persists, covering and embracing -with its reaching tendrils poplars, oaks, and -olives on the sheltered slopes, whilst the proud -pines alone, towering on the exposed surfaces, -defy the creeper’s insidious caress.</p> - -<p class='c000'><span class='pageno' id='Page_57'>57</span>At length the high pass of the Falperra range -is crossed, and before us spreads a vast fertile -plain, with villages and homesteads scattered -across its bosom. Soon the grey boulders -disappear from around us, and the air grows -softer, though granite still supplies the place -of wood by the roadside. The fields of maize -are usually not above an acre in extent, and are -bordered everywhere by vine-clad poplars. It -is clear to see that the little farms are for the -most part cultivated by the owners and by hand -labour, for no yard of tillable soil is left to -waste. It is market day at Taipas, and flocks -of picturesque husbandmen and their womenkind -are wending their way into the village -from distant hillside hamlets and lonely granite -granges. It is a gaily clad and prosperous-looking -crowd that chaffer and bargain for -their herds of thin porkers, their vegetables, -fruit, red clay pottery, and flaring textiles; all -spread out to the best advantage beneath the -trees of the market-place and by the shady -wayside. The women almost invariably carry -upon their heads in long spacious baskets the -merchandise they buy or sell, be it live-stock, -produce, yarn for weaving, or household stuff; -<span class='pageno' id='Page_58'>58</span>and as invariably is the burden covered with a -snowy cloth, and the woman herself is clean, -well-fed, and upstanding.</p> - -<p class='c000'>Taipas, the famous thermal mineral baths of -the Romans, did not detain me except to order -lunch to be ready when I should return a few -hours later to the primitive inn attached to the -ancient baths, for I was bound for a place still -more ancient than Roman Taipas, the mysterious -buried city of Citania, the Portuguese Pompeii.</p> - -<p class='c000'>A few miles’ drive upon an excellent road and -through a prosperous smiling country of maize, -vines, and olives, brought me to the tiny hamlet -of São Estevão de Briteiros, just a humble little -grey church, a large farmhouse, an inn, a few -cottages and a school. The road had led almost -at right angles to that by which we had reached -Taipas, and the Falperra range, which we had -crossed earlier in the day, again loomed nearer; -the nearest spur, a bold hill of nine hundred or -a thousand feet high at some distance from the -range, projecting far out into the plain, and -rising precipitously from the little village of -Briteiros, which was the present limit of my drive. -Long before we reached it the abrupt hill with -its tiny white hermitage chapel of São Romão -on the highest point had stood out conspicuously, -and seen from below looked impossible of ascent. -From Briteiros, however, the climb was seen to -be not so formidable; for a rough path started -from behind the humble schoolhouse, through -little farmsteads, gradually winding and zigzagging -up the precipitous slope through the trees -and brushwood that clothed the lower portion -of the hill. The population of Briteiros were -mostly at Taipas for the market, and a demand -for the services of <i><span lang="pt" xml:lang="pt">um rapaz</span></i>, a boy, to guide -the stranger to the lost city of long ago met -with the reply that no man nor boy was readily -available.</p> - -<div id='fp58' class='figcenter id002'> -<img src='images/i_087.jpg' alt='' class='ig001' /> -<div class='ic001'> -<p>ON THE WAY TO MARKET, TAIPAS.</p> -</div> -</div> - -<p class='c000'><span class='pageno' id='Page_59'>59</span>After some short delay an aged woman produced -a substitute in the form of an elfin little -maiden of ten or eleven, with great black eyes, -half-bashful, half-bold, and jet black hair floating -unrestrained over her shoulders. With her bare -feet and scanty floating raiment she skipped like -a dryad from stone to stone over the rugged -pathway, looking back now and again as if in -wondering contempt at the lumbering stranger -slipping and floundering after her upon the -thick carpet of pine needles that clothed the -spaces between the boulders forming the track. -<span class='pageno' id='Page_60'>60</span>Track it was and no more, scarped on the hillside, -and evidently had been made by hands; for the -stones still showed some signs of regularity and -the larger masses had been removed to the side, -whilst those which stood upon the causeway -itself proved by their flat and polished surfaces -that ages of human feet had passed over them -up and down the hill. As the weird little damsel -sprang with the free action of a wild thing from -stone to stone, her black hair floating in the -pine-scented breeze, it was easy for me to imagine -how the people who long, long ago, before history -records, had dwelt upon this hill and made -this causeway had looked and moved. Racial -inundations had passed over the land since then, -leaving traces perhaps in this or the other type -of the countryside, but the girl’s far-off ancestors, -dwelling always upon the same spot, had struck -deeper and more lasting root than their stone -walls and causeways, and as the little guide -flittered up the rough climb before me, the ages -seemed to fall away and the dim past to grow -in clearness.</p> - -<p class='c000'>Half up the hill the trees cease, and the stony -causeway rises precipitously through a region of -purple heather, broom and yellow gorse, thickly -<span class='pageno' id='Page_61'>61</span>strewn with giant granite boulders. Presently -the ruins of a wall of rough stones cemented -together stretch across right and left; and running -parallel, and just inside of it, a dry water channel -well made of hewn stones. The ground-plans -and walls a yard or two high, of houses are on -all sides of us; and climbing a little higher and -turning the shoulder of the hill we see spread -before us, covering the whole of the south upper -slopes of the declivity, a vast stretch of uncovered -ruins—a once-populous town of the unrecorded -past.</p> - -<p class='c000'>Before describing in detail these, by far the -most complete and interesting Celtiberian remains -in the Peninsula, a few words may be said with -regard to the discovery and exploration of them, -as well as to the theories as to their origin. For -reasons which need not be re-stated here the -Celtic element was less intimately mixed with the -Iberian in the north-western part of the Peninsula -than elsewhere, and the tribes in this part of the -country were those which withstood longest the -imposition of the Roman bureaucratic system -after the assassination of the patriot Viriatus, and -the fall of Numancia in the second century B.C. -Not till the time of the great Julius did the -<span class='pageno' id='Page_62'>62</span>legionaries, stationed then permanently at Braga, -sweep all this province clean of revolt, and bring -the tribesmen to their knees after dire slaughter -and destruction. The Celtiberian tribes in this -remote corner had lived their simple pastoral -lives from time unrecorded in small family clans, -each independent, with its own law and its own -gods; but for purposes of mutual defence in later -times confederations of many clans were formed, -<i><span lang="gd" xml:lang="gd">mòr thuatha</span></i>, as in Ireland. Each of these confederations -possessed a fortified centre or stronghold -as a place of assembly and refuge, usually -upon an eminence, wherein the scattered clans -might meet for defence or in council to treat -of common interests. The Roman historian, -Valerius Maximus speaks especially of some such -fortress upon a mountain in Lusitania, and praises -its inhabitants for their stubborn bravery. He -calls it by the name of Citania, and antiquaries -have given to the extensive ruins now before us -that name during the last few years, on the -assumption that this may be the place referred -to by the Roman chronicler.</p> - -<p class='c000'>Vague stories had always pervaded the countryside -of buried ruins, with the accompanying -legends of witches, warlocks, and enchanted -<span class='pageno' id='Page_63'>63</span>Moors existing upon the hill of São Romão; -and in the eighteenth century the curate of -São Estevão de Briteiros at the foot of the hill -had brought down from the hill-top and placed -in his church porch a great mysterious slab of -stone covered with mystic devices and of strange -fashioning. But not until our own times did -a man come with public spirit enough to devote -his life and small fortune to the exploration of -this city of the past, for in Portugal public encouragement -of any such objects is rare indeed. -This man was Dr. Sarmento, who for many years -until his death recently, made a labour of love -in uncovering systematically the vestiges of the -prehistoric city.</p> - -<p class='c000'>All over the plain, for many miles around, -the ruins of Celto-Roman villages have been -found, and in many cases partially explored by -Dr. Sarmento and others; the objects discovered, -like those found in Citania, having been deposited -in the museum at Guimarães belonging to the -explorer, but in consequence of his death henceforward -to be a public institution subsidised by -the State. As I shall point out when I describe -my visit to the museum, the objects unearthed -at Sabroso, St. Iria, and other neighbouring places -<span class='pageno' id='Page_64'>64</span>are immensely more numerous than those from -Citania itself; great masses of coins, personal -ornaments, arms, inscriptions, and utensils in the -museum proving that these places existed far -into Roman times, and perhaps much later. -The chaotic condition of the Sarmento collection -at present, and the apparent absence of -any skilled and enthusiastic guardianship, have -probably been a reason why certain investigators -have attributed to Citania many objects discovered -elsewhere, and have founded upon them -theories which must necessarily be misleading. -Dr. Hübner, who did not see the place personally, -aroused the wrath of Dr. Sarmento in this -way, and other archæologists have spoken somewhat -loosely as to the nature of the finds in the -Citania excavations. The great interest of the -hill stronghold, indeed, consists in the fact that -we have here practically an unspoilt Celtic or -Celtiberian town, in which Roman civilisation -had but little part. It will be seen by the objects -actually unearthed that the place was -inhabited after the Roman influence and language -had dominated the district, as late, indeed, as -the time of Hadrian; but of purely Roman -remains, so plentiful elsewhere in the district -<span class='pageno' id='Page_65'>65</span>there are in Citania hardly any; the construction -and plan of the houses having much in common -with the Irish and Scotch Celtic <em>cashels</em>, and the -absence of all indications of Christianity being -complete.</p> - -<p class='c000'>Following a well-paved causeway of some -seven or eight feet wide, the flat stones of -which have been worn smooth by countless -generations of forgotten footsteps, we can perceive -perfectly the ground plan of the houses -on each side. In most cases Dr. Sarmento has -excavated down to the stone-laid flooring of the -houses inside, and to the base of the masonry -outside; and it is possible to wander through -the main lanes or streets of the town, crossing -each other at right angles here and there, and -interspersed by little circular paved open spaces, -and to reconstruct in the mind’s eye the primitive -life of this city of long ago. Here, for instance, -just inside the wall by which we entered is a -little square house, some twelve feet wide, containing -two rough millstones, of which many -have been found. The walls are of huge, rough -stones, evidently taken as they came and fitted -together with small stones where necessary to -fill in interstices, the whole cemented together -<span class='pageno' id='Page_66'>66</span>by some hard rubbly compost. Running past -this building and through the town (in one or -two cases, indeed, through the houses themselves) -is one of the several stone water channels protected -by low walls on each side, and supplied -in ancient times by the springs that still gush -out plentifully on the hillside.</p> - -<p class='c000'>Some of the houses are much larger, and must -have contained two or more apartments. But -what strikes the eye of the observer most is the -relatively large number of purely circular edifices, -and this it is that has mainly attracted the speculations -of archæologists. Mr. Oswald Crawford, -who went over the place whilst the excavations -were in their earlier stages many years ago, was -mistaken in his estimate that the round buildings -were eight or nine times more numerous than the -square, and he founded upon this and other data -the opinion that the whole place was a great -granary, where the food of the tribes might be -stored in safety. So far from the round houses -being eight times as numerous as the square, -found at least four square houses to every one -round; but that which struck me as most curious, -and so far as I could learn, it had not specially -attracted the attention of previous visitors, was -<span class='pageno' id='Page_67'>67</span>that in a large number of cases the round houses -were enclosed in a square or angular walled space, -not very much larger than the circle, but leaving -a passage of some two feet wide, in most cases on -the right-hand side, between the two walls, leading -to a space at the back between the circular -wall and the wall of the square enclosure, the -left-hand side of the circular wall being mostly -built to touch the square wall on that side. -Dr. Sarmento was of opinion that the space thus -formed was for the purpose of sheltering cattle -and domestic animals, and says that he had found -some rough stone excavations like troughs in -them, with, in one or two cases, a ring in the -wall as if to tether beasts. The width of the -entrance passage and the extent of the enclosed -space in the rear of the circle would be too small -to admit any large animal; but probably goats -would be housed in them easily. In one or two -cases I noted that the stone post forming a jamb -to the entrance to the passage between the round -house and the square enclosure was grooved on -the inner surface. This in Dr. Sarmento’s opinion -proved that the entrance to the passage was closed -by a lifting hatch of wood, which to some extent -confirms the idea that the back space was intended -<span class='pageno' id='Page_68'>68</span>to shelter animals such as goats, as a lifting door -set in a groove would be much less likely to be -forced by them than a swing door turning, as the -house door did, on wooden pegs.</p> - -<p class='c000'>There are very few instances of party walls -being utilised for two adjoining houses, though -the buildings are often only a few inches apart. -Even in the case of the round houses enclosed in -square spaces and touching the square wall, the -circular structure is quite complete at the point -of contact. In one instance I measured a large -walled parallelogram fronting on the principal -causeway, seventeen yards in length, enclosing -within it one square house of nine yards wide, -and two circular houses, one on each side, the -structures in each case being complete, but the -circular walls in this instance merged for a few -inches only at the point of contact with the square -outer wall at the side. Whether these square -or outer enclosures were tiled or were merely -enclosed yards it is difficult to say, but that the -houses themselves were so covered is evident from -the immense number of well-made red shards -scattered everywhere, and particularly inside the -houses, the tiles being turned up at each end, so -that a concave tile to cover over the joint between -<span class='pageno' id='Page_69'>69</span>them would make a roof covered with them quite -watertight. A door jamb and lintel in one -house showed a well-carved rope moulding, but -in most cases they were plain, the lintels and -doorsteps containing, however, at the side a -square-cut hollow, in which a block of wood was -apparently inserted to receive the wooden peg -or pivot which formed a sort of hinge for the -door, an arrangement still adopted for the doors -of barns, &c., in the neighbourhood; though -Dr. Sarmento was of opinion that no wood was -employed in the construction of the houses themselves, -the polished rounded stones fixed to the -walls in some of the houses, which Dr. Hübner -considered to be bases of pillars, being in the -opinion of the Portuguese archæologist seats for -the inhabitants.</p> - -<p class='c000'>The round houses are usually about fourteen -feet in diameter, and the walls remaining rarely -rise above four or five feet from the surface. -The doorstep is usually raised a foot or so -above the level of the ground. One round -house has been tentatively rebuilt by Dr. Sarmento -on the level space on the top of the -hill, an unattractive beehive-looking structure -without windows, but later investigation convinced -<span class='pageno' id='Page_70'>70</span>him that he had built it too high; and -that it should not be of so great an elevation -as the measure of its diameter. The principal -thoroughfares running transversely on the slope -of the hill are carefully walled upon the scarped -inner side, and in some cases the stone water -channel runs alongside of it.</p> - -<p class='c000'>On reaching the bare space at the very summit -of the hill, upon which the little modern Christian -chapel stands, a good idea may be formed of -the whole plan of the place. The town, covering -perhaps five or six acres, all lies over the crest -and down the south and south-west slopes. The -wall by which we entered from the south is -apparently the inner wall of three, and practically -encloses the top of the hill and the centre of the -town on the slope. The second wall, which -shows signs of a moat, is of greater extent, -following the irregular contour of the hill, -whilst the third or outer defence extends far -down almost to the plain on the west and south-west -side; traces of buildings, although but -little explored, being very abundant between -the two inner walls on the south and south-west, -and clearly defined paths leading down from -the main city to the outer defences and the -<span class='pageno' id='Page_71'>71</span>suburbs. In consequence of the formation of -the ground, attack was to be looked for mainly -from the most accessible point, namely, the north-east; -for here the three lines of defences are -almost close together, and each of the walls is -here brought to a rough angle. From the apex -of the outer wall on this side there are indications -of another defence running straight out at right -angles along the saddle which connects the hill -with an outlying spur easy of approach, and at -the end of this long projection there appears to -have been two parallel horizontal outworks -running across the end of the saddle, this being -the vulnerable point of the fortress.</p> - -<p class='c000'>It is easy to imagine how almost impregnable -such a place could be made. The hill at any -other point than this could only be scaled, if at -all, with the greatest difficulty, and the huge -boulders on its side would enable even weak -defenders under their cover to hurl down stones -or spears upon an advancing foe. The south -side of the hill is the least accessible of all for -any considerable body, and there the defences -are the most distant and the weakest.</p> - -<p class='c000'>In the midst of the ruined town I found a -bright intelligent peasant lad, busy arranging -<span class='pageno' id='Page_72'>72</span>fragments of pottery upon a stone for the later -inspection of some one in authority; and from -him I heard much quaint and simple local folklore. -His own interest was greatest in what -he called the cemetery, four or five small grave-like -troughs, about three or four feet long and -a foot deep, neatly made and lined with dressed -stone slabs. The so-called graves lie close to the -causeway and amongst the houses, in an irregular -group, and can hardly have been sepulchral, -considering their size and position; Dr. Sarmento -inclining to the belief that they were troughs for -feeding cattle. The cemetery, if there be any, -would probably lie far down the slope outside -the second, perhaps outside the outer, wall, but -here no excavation of any importance has been -executed. At some little distance down have -been found three perfectly plain dolmens of the -usual shape, which are usually sepulchral; and -doubtless extensive exploration around them -would reveal human remains. My peasant -friend was also much concerned in a mysterious -“mine,” as it is called, from which he assured -me, in awe-stricken tones, that enchanted Moors -came at night and carried evil over the plain. It -is supposed that this cave, which is of no great -<span class='pageno' id='Page_73'>73</span>extent, some two yards in diameter at the mouth, -and a few yards deep, was adjoining or under the -place where the great slab which the country-people -call <i><span lang="pt" xml:lang="pt">Pedra Formosa</span></i>, the handsome-stone, -to which I shall revert presently, was found.</p> - -<p class='c000'>I have mentioned that Mr. Crawford was of -opinion that the round houses were granaries, -but seeing that the Celts of Ireland and Scotland -frequently built and lived in round houses within -their <em>cashels</em>, and bearing in mind the existence of -the spaces for animals, which I have described as -attached to those of Citania, I am strongly of -opinion that, comfortless as they appear, these -were the veritable dwellings of many of the -neolithic folk who for centuries held their foes -at bay upon this headland jutting out upon the -rich plain of Guimarães. Still another solution -of the round-house problem is, as I understand -his words, suggested by my friend Professor -Altamira in his <cite><span lang="es" xml:lang="es">Historia de Espana y de la Civilization -espanõla</span></cite>. The earlier generations of this -people, he says, buried their dead under dolmens -which when covered were circular; and later -generations retained the tradition of circular -sepulchres. “They were built round,” he says, -“with a sort of domed roof, the middle of which -<span class='pageno' id='Page_74'>74</span>was supported by a pillar of wood or stone. -Some of such tombs had passages (or galleries) -to enter by—which was frequently the case also -with the dolmens—and some had lateral chambers.... -Of this class are those discovered at Citania, -on the hill of San Roman in Portugal.” Apart -from the fact that no human remains have been -found in these round houses at Citania, there is -no sepulchral suggestion about them. They are, -it is true, if Dr. Sarmento be right, windowless -and rough, but the comparison must not be made -with the dwellings of to-day, but with the haunts -of cave men, who had been the progenitors of the -early settlers of Citania; and judged by that -standard, these stout, weather-proof, stone houses, -with doors and an enclosed separate space behind -for cattle, were almost luxurious. In any case, -a close examination of them left in my mind no -doubt at all that they had been the dwellings -of human creatures in the earlier stages of -civilisation.</p> - -<p class='c000'>It required no great effort of the imagination -to people the narrow paved paths on the hillside -and the little round central spaces with the -dwellers in these rough abodes: wild-looking, -shaggy men, with long hair, and clad in skin or -<span class='pageno' id='Page_75'>75</span>rough woollen garments, going about their daily -toil as hunters, husbandmen, potters, or smiths, to -paint to oneself the alarm of an approaching foe, -the savage warfare to repel attack, and finally the -victorious host of Roman legionaries of Augustus -levelling the poor homes, slaughtering, ravishing, -destroying, until the poor remnant of the vanquished -knelt in the dust and bowed their necks -evermore to the yoke of discipline and civilisation.</p> - -<p class='c000'>The place continued to be the abode of men -long afterwards, for Latin became the speech of -some people who lived there, and coins as late as -Tiberius and one of Hadrian (117 <span class='sc'><span lang="la" xml:lang="la">A.D.</span></span>) have -been unearthed at Citania; but with the Roman -officers supreme at Braga, and the whole plain -prospering and smiling under the arts of peace -and Roman luxury, poor Citania on its bold hill-top -lost its reason for existence, and must have -dwindled, until long before the time of the Goths -and Suevians all men forgot it, and the ages -covered it with the mantle of earth, undisturbed -till now.</p> - -<p class='c000'>But whilst I am thus speculating, my little girl -guide is getting restless, and the westerly tending -sun tells me that I have long outstayed the -appointed time when I was to return to Taipas. -<span class='pageno' id='Page_76'>76</span>So, reluctantly, and with my brain full of idle -fancies which made me dream of creatures such -as those I have pictured lurking behind the thick-strewn -boulders, and challenging my intrusion -upon their stronghold, I slowly paced the paved -lanes again through the lines of stark ruined walls, -and so out upon the precipitous hillside down to -Briteiros, where the carriage awaited me in the -grateful shade.</p> - -<p class='c000'>The market people were homeward bound -from Taipas now; the women with their purchases -or unsold wares swaying rhythmically upon -their heads as they walked, and the men leading -live stock or bent beneath burdens, but never too -heavily laden to prevent them from courteously -saluting the passing stranger. The inn, nearly -empty of bathing visitors now that the summer -was past, was feverishly anxious to do its best; -and, though Citania had detained me for hours -longer than I had reckoned, Taipas contrived to -offer me a tolerable lunch, the first meal I had -eaten in that long day of delight. Upon a wall -of the open courtyard before the inn is an ancient -fountain with a pompous poetical inscription, setting -forth that John I. of Portugal, <i><span lang="pt" xml:lang="pt">Para que a -morte mais tropheos não conte</span></i>, “that death should no -<span class='pageno' id='Page_77'>77</span>more trophies boast,” had raised this miraculous -fountain of healing water. But John I. was a -mere modern in these ancient <i><span lang="fr" xml:lang="fr">thermes</span></i>; for here -the great Hadrian was cured of his malady, and -founded the sumptuous baths, of which extensive -remains have in recent times been discovered, but -not explored to any extent. In a field nearly -opposite the inn is an enormous block of granite, -upon which a long Roman inscription tells that -this work was erected by the orders of the Imperial -Cæsar Trajan, son of Nerva, conqueror of -the Germans, and much more to similar effect; -whilst upon another face of the block an interminable -list of modern Portuguese names of -gentlemen interested in the rehabilitation of the -baths in recent times shows the universal hankering -after immortality in company with the great -felt by the little men of the world.</p> - -<p class='c000'>The bathing establishment itself is primitive -enough, consisting of about twenty baths large -and small, in separate wooden compartments, built -round three sides of a square, the temperature of -the water being about 85° Fahr., very abundant, -clear, and bright, and with a strong sulphureous -taste and smell. The waters are said to be -extraordinarily efficacious in cutaneous affections, -<span class='pageno' id='Page_78'>78</span>maladies of the mucous membranes, laryngitis, -bronchitis, and rheumatism, and as many as 1500 -patients visit them from May to September every -year, the flow of water being a quarter of a million -litres a day.</p> - -<p class='c000'>All the way from Taipas to Guimarães the -road lay through maize fields bordered thickly -by vine-covered poplars; a prosperous land of -well-fed, laborious people. Near the ancient city, -the birthplace of the Portuguese monarchy, the -ground rises, and the pine forests spread for miles -on the uplands all around, the fresh sweet scent -of the woods adding one more sensuous joy to -a closing day of incomparable loveliness. As the -carriage clattered over the cobble stones, through -the narrow streets of the town, and so into the -beautiful alameda and the public garden, in which -the principal hotel stands, there rose as if from -the end of the alameda the giant granite peak of -the Penha, all glorified and transfigured by the -setting sun. The mountain, almost sheer as seen -from this side, seemed to tower right overhead: -green woods clothed its sides up the greater part -of its height, and then, like a wall, sprang a -precipice of bare scarred rock, now orange and -purple against a violet sky. On the summit of -<span class='pageno' id='Page_79'>79</span>the apparently inaccessible saw edge of the peak -stood out the white walls of a building, which -may have been a hermitage, but I am told is -now a guest-house, where in the most torrid -summer the citizens of Guimarães find cool -breezes and refreshment. As I gazed, entranced -at the changing colours of the sunset on the -peak—orange deepening to crimson and to bronze, -purple fading by soft degrees to slaty-blue, and -the rose-pink of the growing after-glow softening -the rugged outlines with tender light—there came -the clanging of an acolyte’s bell, and across the -alameda there wound a devout little procession -bearing the Host, with flaring tapers, swinging -censers, priests, and choristers. It was the one -note needed to complete the picture. Guimarães -in the gathering twilight took me back in one -happy moment to the ages long ago, when -simple faith unbroken reigned, and all was beautiful -and all was true.</p> - -<p class='c000'>Guimarães has a proper pride in itself, and -boldly asserts its claim to be not only one of -the most ancient, but the most glorious and -prosperous city in Portugal.</p> - -<div class='lg-container-b c004'> - <div class='linegroup'> - <div class='group'> - <div class='line'>“<span lang="pt" xml:lang="pt">A nobre Guimarães tem por brazão</span></div> - <div class='line'><span lang="pt" xml:lang="pt">Ser Corte primeira Portugueza</span>,”</div> - </div> - </div> -</div> - -<p class='c000'><span class='pageno' id='Page_80'>80</span>sings the poet, but the pride of Guimarães extends -far beyond this boast. Seated in the centre of -the province of Minho, in the very garden of -Portugal, with abundant streams and fertile valleys -for miles round, protected by the mountains on -each side that enclose the plain from inclement -winds, the town is in an ideal situation. Forming, -as it did in old times, one of the fiefs of the left-handed -royal house of Braganza, that made the -dukes richer than the king, one of the legitimate -Infantes is said to have exclaimed jealously, -as he looked down upon the rich domain, -<i><span lang="pt" xml:lang="pt">Quem te deu não te via; se te vira não te dera</span></i>, -“he who gave thee never saw thee; if he had -seen thee he would not give thee,” and one of -the greatest of Portuguese writers, Manoel de -Faria, speaking of Guimarães said: “If the Elysian -fields ever existed on earth it must have been -here, and if they did not exist they should have -been created in order to place them here.” But -another subject of pride, and an article of faith -with all good citizens of the town, is that -Guimarães possesses the most beautiful women -in Europe. Personally I must confess that they -did not strike me as being more comely than -their sisters of the rest of North Portugal, especially -<span class='pageno' id='Page_81'>81</span>of Braga and Coimbra, but from ancient -times the women of Araduca, the modern -Guimarães, were held to be pre-eminent, and it -is too late now to gainsay it, confirmed as it is -by writers Portuguese and French innumerable.</p> - -<p class='c000'>In any case, the city is as beautiful as it is -historically interesting. Here on the site of the -ruined ancient town of Celts and Romans, a -Leonese princess, in the tenth century, founded -the great Benedictine house, around which the -mediæval town gradually grew. But its principal -glory began when Count Henrique of Burgundy -and his royal Leonese bride, Teresa, came to -govern Portugal as Count, for his father-in-law, -Alfonso VI., the friend and foe of the Cid. Here -at Guimarães in the splendid castle, even now -sturdy in its dismantlement, the first Count of -Portugal held his court, and here his great son, -Affonso Henriques, the national hero and first -king, was born in 1109 and passed his youth.</p> - -<p class='c000'>It is impossible to imagine a ruin more stately -than that of the grand mediæval castle which, -upon a gentle eminence on the outskirts, dominates -the town. Granite built upon a granite -base, the walls sharp and clear to-day, look as -if cut but nine years ago instead of nine centuries. -<span class='pageno' id='Page_82'>82</span>Here is the dignity of age without its feebleness. -A vast battlemented outer wall, with corner -bastions and pointed crenellations, surrounds the -majestic keep, the monolithic battlements of -which, huge single stones, stand uninjured still -by time or the more destructive hand of man. -The cyclopean masses are reddened now by lichen -and stained by weather, but nine centuries have -failed to crumble them, and they stand a splendid -monument of the first of the two outstanding -epochs in Portuguese history, when the nation -was stirred with vast ambitions and endowed with -heroic energy to fulfil them. Affonso Henriques -of Guimarães was the protagonist of the first -epoch, that of national independence; Prince -Henry the Navigator, the protagonist of the -second, that of national expansion.</p> - -<p class='c000'>Guimarães is delightful, and an artist might -spend a month in its quaint streets and alleys -without exhausting the “bits” that call for -delineation. One charming old-world corner -is the square in which stands the church that -alone remains of the vast monastery founded -by the Leonese Princess Munia—the Collegiada -the townspeople call it, although I believe it -bears officially another name. The early florid -<span class='pageno' id='Page_83'>83</span>Gothic tower is a beautiful one, and more -beautiful still the detached rood canopy at its -west end, with its quaint mixture of early Gothic -with Greek and Byzantine ornament. Opposite -this is the low-arched sixteenth-century arcade -beneath the town-hall, and the houses that -surround the irregular little praça are in picturesque -keeping with the rest. There is in a -street called Largo dos Trigães, one of the finest -stretches of crenellated wall that ever I saw. It -must be three hundred yards long, and at least -five-and-twenty feet high, independent of its -pointed battlements, and is in the most perfect -preservation though many centuries old. It is -said to enclose the grounds of a disestablished -monastery, for Guimarães was in old times -monastic or nothing.</p> - -<p class='c000'>But curious and interesting as Guimarães is, -I was not drawn thither mainly to see the town, -but to examine in the Sarmento museum the -objects discovered in the excavation of Citania. -The collection is at present in a state of chaos, -which may possibly be remedied when the reconstruction -of the house is completed by the -authorities. The number of objects is immense, -though by far the greater part of them came -<span class='pageno' id='Page_84'>84</span>from other places in the neighbourhood than -Citania, and are mainly attributable to the -Roman period, though many of them are very -early and ante-Christian. The few purely Roman -objects, however, found at Citania are neither -peculiar to the place nor of special interest. -What is far more attractive to the student are -the relics that exist of the real and original -Celtiberian makers of the hill town.</p> - -<p class='c000'>First of all is the famous <i><span lang="pt" xml:lang="pt">Pedra Formosa</span></i>, to -which reference has been made. It stands at -present in the open at the back of the Sarmento -house, but protected from the weather by a low -roof which unfortunately prevents a photograph -being secured of it. It is a thick slab of granite, -seven feet long by nine feet wide, and notwithstanding -the contention of Dr. Hübner, who -has not seen it, I am convinced that, whatever -may have been its purpose, its position was intended -to be horizontal, and that it is not a -sepulchral stone to be set on edge. At present -it is mounted on four low posts or pillars, -like a table, and the elaborate carving upon it -can be consequently seen plainly. At the top -of its shorter diameter in the centre is a hollow, -ending in a point, the outer circumference of -<span class='pageno' id='Page_85'>85</span>the hollow being about the size of a human -head. From this, extending downwards about -six feet to a semicircular gap cut into the -stone, at the foot is a raised cord-like pattern -cut out of the thickness of the stone, beneath -which is bored a tunnel, or channel, leading -from the point of the hollow cone at the top -down to a hole through the stone at the bottom, -a few inches from the semicircular gap. From -the base of the hollow at the top, leading -obliquely to the sides, are two other raised -cord-like ridges similar to that from top to -bottom; the main design being roughly that of -a human being with the hollow for the head, -the straight cord from top to bottom for the -body and legs, and the oblique cords for the -arms. The whole of the spaces between the -cords are filled with a most intricate series of -designs, beautifully incised in the stone, concentric -whorls, curves, and scrolls being in each -case the main motive.</p> - -<p class='c000'>Whatever may have been the purpose of the -stone—religious, sacrificial, or tribal—the work -must have occupied many men for a long -period, and the skill, both of design and execution, -prove that the artificers must have -<span class='pageno' id='Page_86'>86</span>reached a relatively high stage of artistic development. -The art is obviously ante-Christian, -and the form of the stone suggests that it may -have been sacrificial, with the hollow cone to -receive the blood from a severed jugular and -the tunnel beneath the central cord to convey -it to where the priest stood in the gap to -catch it as it ran through the hole at the -bottom of the stone. The incised design shows -no indication of Greek or Roman influence, but -the concentric curves are identical with some of -the earliest ornamental decoration of the stonework -in the museum brought from other -Celto-Roman places in the neighbourhood, and -also with the decoration upon Celtic pottery -found elsewhere in Portugal and at Carmona -in Spain.</p> - -<div class='figcenter id002'> -<span class='pageno' id='Page_87'>87</span> -<img src='images/i_117.jpg' alt='' class='ig001' /> -</div> - -<p class='c000'>A stone of great interest found also at Citania -may perhaps add more to our knowledge than the -mysterious <i><span lang="pt" xml:lang="pt">Pedra Formosa</span></i>. It bears an inscription -in the Celtiberian character, of which comparatively -few specimens have hitherto been discovered, and -no key has been found to decipher them. One -of those known and reproduced by Dr. Hübner -was found at Peñalba de Castro in Spain, and -appears to be nearly identical in character with -that from Citania; whilst another, also in Hübner, -brought from Barcelona, presents several important -differences. The Citania inscription is here -reproduced, and I am indebted to Professor Rhys, -the famous Celtic authority, for an interesting -suggestion, namely, that the whole inscription, -although written in the unknown Celtiberian -character, may be intended to be read in Latin; -in which case the first line and a half might -represent Syatenunius. This point, however, I -must leave as being too abstruse for a book of -this kind. We are on firmer ground in the case -of the very numerous specimens of red pottery -found at Citania and stamped with a mark entirely -unknown elsewhere. The marks of Roman -potters on jars and pitchers were always printed -<span class='pageno' id='Page_88'>88</span>in small letters <em>outside</em> the mouth, whereas the -marked pieces in question from Citania bear in -letters an inch long <em>inside</em> the mouth “Camal” or -“Arg,” and sometimes both words, and scores of -red tiles have also been found similarly marked -<span class='overunder'>ARG<br />CAMAL</span>. Upon a lintel-stone from Citania in the -museum I read the words CORONERI CALI -DOMUS, and another, apparently from the same -house, is mentioned by Dr. Sarmento, but which -I did not see, bearing the inscription CRON -CAMALI DOMUS, most of the pottery bearing -Camal’s name having been found near -this house. Whether Camal was a Celto-Roman -potter, or, as seems much more likely, a great -personage or chief of Citania, is a point yet to -be decided; but from the fact that the name on -the clay vessels is not situated where the potter’s -mark is usually inscribed, would tend to the -belief that he was the owner rather than the -manufacturer. Arg, or Airg, as it may be read, -may have represented a Celtiberian title or -dignity, and Camal, or Camalus, is undoubtedly -a Celtic name. It is unlikely, moreover, that -if Camal had simply been a potter his son -Coronerus would have considered it necessary to -record upon his stone door-lintel the fact of his -<span class='pageno' id='Page_89'>89</span>descent, which he probably would have done if -his father Camalus was a person of consequence. -Another peculiar fact in connection with the -incised ornamentation upon stones at Citania is -the repetition of the Swastick or wheeled cross -and the wheeled whorl, which are of pre-Christian -and oriental origin, this design being also quite -frequent in the objects found in other places in -the neighbourhood, and amongst Celtic remains -in other parts of the Peninsula.</p> - -<p class='c000'>The death of Dr. Sarmento has, of course, put -an end to his self-sacrificing life-task, leaving by -far the greater part of the exploration of the -outer zones of Citania unattempted. It is almost -too much to hope that any other similarly public-spirited -Portuguese will provide the funds needed -for the purpose, for there is little enthusiasm for -such subjects in the country; but if funds could -be obtained to excavate extensively the lower -slopes of the hill on the south side where -numerous hillocks suggest that sepulchral remains -may lie beneath, it is probable that discoveries -of great importance in Celtiberian -civilisation would be made, and perhaps the -riddle of the Celtiberian alphabet solved.</p> - -<div class='chapter'> - <span class='pageno' id='Page_90'>90</span> - <h2 class='c006'>IV<br /> <span class='large'>BUSSACO</span></h2> -</div> - -<p class='c012'>After losing sight of the marvellous view across -the river of the city upon its amphitheatre of hills, -the road from Oporto towards the south runs -through a country of drifting sands parallel with -the seashore. Pines bending away from the prevailing -westerly wind stand singly and in clumps at -first, and then in vast tracts, as in the Landes about -Arcachon, binding the unstable soil together; and -within a few miles of Oporto here and there a -sea-bathing village of châlets and houses of entertainment -breaks the monotony of the scene. It -was but seven in the evening, but the autumn -day had already sunk into dusk with an angry -streaked black and crimson after-glow when I -came to the little thermal bathing village of -Luzo, on the lower slopes of the mountains that -cover the whole of the north of Portugal except -the strip of country bordering the sea. For some -miles, ever since we had left the main railway -<span class='pageno' id='Page_91'>91</span>line from Oporto to Lisbon at Pampilhosa junction, -we had been rising, whilst the pines bordering -the line had been growing thicker and more -sturdy, and from Luzo onward the way grew -still steeper. The stars shone brightly, but a -dew almost as heavy as rain was falling as the -carriage that had met me at the station drawn -by two gigantic mules, rattled along the excellent -road through Luzo.</p> - -<p class='c000'>There is always a feeling of uncanniness in -speeding through an unknown town at night for -the first time. Here at Luzo little white cottages -flashed past us, a dim light flickered before a -shrine at a street corner, a man dimly visible -tinkled a <i><span lang="pt" xml:lang="pt">bandurra</span></i> a by the side of a grated window, -little groups whispered mysteriously in the semi-darkness: -they were all shadows to me, whilst I, -poor waif, to them was nothing, for the clatter -of the mules and the rattle of the carriage over -the cobble stones were the only signs they had of -the momentary presence of a man who, like a -ship passing in the night, flitted in the darkness -through the village which to them was life and -death and all things. Our road lay ever upward. -By the dim light of a waning moon one could -see the trunks of great pines close together, and -<span class='pageno' id='Page_92'>92</span>the soft moist air was heavily charged with the -grateful balsamic scent of the trees. As we toiled -patiently upward and still upward, in the darkness -of the night the hush of the woods fell -deeply upon us, for no breath of wind stirred -the lofty tops that closed over us like an arch, -and the summer night-birds had already taken -flight farther south. Presently we passed through -what in the dimness looked like an imposing -architectural gateway set in a high wall, and then -the wood grew perceptibly denser. By the wayside -the bank on the left rose sheer from the -road covered with verdure, and one felt rather -than saw that up and up, as it seemed infinitely, -the great trees towered higher and higher upon -the steep slope, whilst on the right hand the -huge eucalyptus trunks shining white through -the blackness of the night, stood upon the brink -of a precipitous drop, from which emerged now -and again tree tops and a tumult of vegetation -that showed, even though one saw but little of -it, that we were in the midst of a luxuriant forest -such as those I have seen on the Amazon and -in Brazil, but never before in Europe.</p> - -<p class='c000'>Presently we drove into a circle of light, and -one of the surprises of my life burst upon me. -<span class='pageno' id='Page_93'>93</span>A palace so stately and beautiful, so new and -spotless withal, as to seem like a scene from a -fairy tale. But no—this flashing white dream in -stone is no scenic illusion; the carved tracery, -like petrified lace, and leaves, and branches, infinite -in caprice and variety, the lovely cloistered -terrace, the monumental staircase, and the almost -insolent wealth and intricacy of sculptured ornament, -are all solid chiselled stone, and this -splendid royal castle in the most wondrous wood -in Europe is an ordinary hotel, or rather an -extraordinary one run on ordinary lines.</p> - -<p class='c000'>The first instinct of a traveller when he lights -upon such a find as this is to keep it to himself -rather than diminish his enjoyment in the possession -of his secret by sharing it with others; -but Bussaco is big enough, and it would be -ungenerous to hide it. It was built by the -Portuguese Government, it is said, for a royal -residence, and is hardly yet quite finished, for -an annexe is now being constructed for the use -of the royal family during their summer sojourn, -and some of the frescoes in the main castle are -still to be added; but it is difficult to understand—unless -the intention really was, as stated, -to make the place a permanent royal residence—the -<span class='pageno' id='Page_94'>94</span>reason for spending the vast sums of money -that the place must have cost upon a house of -public entertainment. However, there it stands, -with its stately tower, its majestic carved staircase, -and all its heraldic blazonry, in the midst -of a crown domain seized from a Carmelite -monastery, probably the most beautiful hotel in -Europe, certainly by far the best in the Peninsula; -in an exquisite climate, with perfect sanitation -and water, a good white wine grown on its own -hillside, a cuisine with which no fault can reasonably -be found, cleanliness, and order; a Swiss -lessee who speaks English fluently and understands -English needs, a bill of almost disconcerting -moderation ... and the woods! For, after -all, the hotel-palace, the golf-links, the tennis-lawn, -the ballroom, and all the rest of the added -attractions of the place, are but subsidiary incidents -to the terrestrial paradise that surrounds -it, enclosed in its high granite wall six miles in -circumference.</p> - -<div id='fp94' class='figcenter id003'> -<img src='images/i_125.jpg' alt='' class='ig001' /> -<div class='ic001'> -<p><span class='sc'>Manueline Architecture at the Hotel, Bussaco</span></p> -</div> -</div> - -<p class='c000'>It was night when the gleaming salt-white -palace first flashed upon me out of the darkness, -but when I opened my shutters as the dawn was -breaking the next morning, and stepped out upon -the wide battlements of the castle, the scene -<span class='pageno' id='Page_95'>95</span>before me was so wonderful as to force from me -an involuntary prayer of praise and thankfulness -to God that so much of beauty should be vouchsafed -to my senses. Below and around me for -miles on all sides stretched the woods, woods such -as I have seen nowhere else in Europe, though -the private gardens and plantations of Cintra and -Monserrat approach them in luxuriant fertility. -Great palms and towering cedars of Lebanon -grow side by side with oaks of giant bulk: oranges -and fig-trees, cork and acacia, maple, birch, and -willow stand beneath the straight eucalyptus, -“tall as the mast of some great admiral”: araucarias -spread their spiny branches with a luxuriance -never seen at home, and mosses, ivy, and -ferns clothe thickly every inch of ground, every -bank, and even the time-worn stones, that all -around testify to the existence of dwelling here -long before the white palace raised its tall tower -over the darkening wood.</p> - -<p class='c000'>Beyond the trees, on the fair morning I first -beheld the scene, the shadow of twilight still -lingered in the valleys and the horizon was -veiled in mist, but already the sun was touching -the mountain-tops all around. One range after -another caught the golden light, and as far as the -<span class='pageno' id='Page_96'>96</span>vision reached mountain succeeded mountain like -mighty waves suddenly stayed in their onward -sweep and turned into rosy rock. Here and -there amidst the greenery, far below upon the -plains, a white cottage, or the clustered red roofs -of a village lit up the picture with a note of -emphasis, and the sweet, cool air of the mountains, -fresh with the scent of pine, eucalyptus, -and wild flowers innumerable, came to the jaded -town-dweller like a foretaste of some exquisite -new sense to endow mankind in a fuller life to -come.</p> - -<p class='c000'>Straight before me, as I stood upon the battlements -looking towards the south, there rose as -it seemed quite close a steep mountain slope -clothed with a mass of verdure so thick as to -look like a solid billowy surface of every tint of -green, from tender primrose to deepest bronze. -Here and there a straight pine or cedar, more -lofty than its fellows, caught with its feathery top -a glinting sun-ray and held it, whilst high up, -almost overhead, upon a rocky spur emerging -from the foliage there stood a humble hermitage, -and on the very summit, looking so inaccessible -that no human foot could reach it, a little white -tower of another hermitage reared its cross over all.</p> - -<div id='fp96' class='figcenter id001'> -<img src='images/i_129.jpg' alt='' class='ig001' /> -<div class='ic001'> -<p>FROM THE BATTLEMENT, BUSSACO.</p> -</div> -</div> - -<p class='c000'><span class='pageno' id='Page_97'>97</span>On the right hand, as one looked down over -the battlements, the pretty gardens of the palace, -with flowers and palms, are spread at the foot, -whilst, resting humbly under the shadow of -the palace, is the ancient church and the tiny -monastery, which for centuries housed the silent -Trappists, whose loving care made this holy wood -to grow upon the spurs and glens of a granite -mountain. Beyond the garden, the wood slopes -suddenly down in billows of greenery, and then -at its foot spreads the vast plain, with towns and -villages nestling in its hollows. And as the sun -grows in brightness I see beyond the limits of the -plain, far away, a long strip of white, and over it, -high up, as it seems above the horizon, a deep -violet wall. It is the sea, the broad Atlantic, -with its fringe of silvery sand many miles distant, -and it gives the supreme touch to a scene of perfect -beauty. On the other side of the castle the view -is just as lovely in a different way. Beyond the -palms and flowers at the foot, seen over a hundred -carved crockets and capricious stone pinnacles -and gargoyles, with the great tower of the castle -and its armillary sphere over all, is a far stretch -of undulating wood; and then a vast tumble of -mountains, range over range, all but the highest -<span class='pageno' id='Page_98'>98</span>clothed to the top with forests, and beyond and -above them all the bare granite peaks of the -Caramulo range, iridescent now with the morning -sun. The domain occupies the whole of the -north-western end of a long continuous mountain -ridge, some eight miles in total length, running -from south-east to north-west and extremely -precipitous on all sides. From the earliest times, -at all events since the fourth century, the glens -and ravines that score these slopes have been -jealously guarded by ecclesiastical masters. The -sheltered position and soft westerly breezes from -the Atlantic endowed the spot with a climate -mild, equable, and healthy, even for Portugal, -whilst the purity and abundance of the springs -and the marvellous fertility of the soil in the -deep, moist gorges on the mountain-side made -it an enviable place of secluded residence. Whilst -the minimum winter temperature is about forty -degrees, frost being unknown, the summer heat -is tempered by the altitude of the place and by -the abundant shade of the woods, so that the -temperature rarely exceeds that of a warm July -day in England.</p> - -<p class='c000'>With these climatic conditions it is natural -that this end of the ridge, protected on all sides, -<span class='pageno' id='Page_99'>99</span>should develop a vegetation of extraordinary -luxuriance. So remarkably was this the case -that the successive ecclesiastical bodies to which -it belonged for fifteen hundred years decreed -that the woods were for ever to be held sacred -as a place of sanctuary and devotion. From the -eleventh century onward the domain belonged -to the Archbishops of Braga, and in 1626 one -of them granted it to the order of shoeless Carmelites, -as a retreat remote from the world, -where the monks following the strict Trappist -rule might meditate in silence undisturbed by -the turmoil of their fellow-men. In poverty, -and with the hard labour of their own hands, -the monks built the little monastery and humble -church as they now stand, with other portions -since demolished; and, year by year, for two -hundred years, planted and tended with devout -care the sacred wood which was their one earthly -concern. From all quarters of the globe where -the Portuguese flag waved, from India, South -America, and the Far East, rare plants and trees -were sent by Carmelites to their beloved “Matto -de Bussaco.” Medicinal herbs, rare and lovely -ferns, and exotic fruit and flowers, impossible in -other places in Europe, here grew luxuriantly, -<span class='pageno' id='Page_100'>100</span>and the silent, white-robed gardeners planted -and tended their domain until it became not -a wood but a sylvan garden of surpassing -beauty, as it remains to-day.</p> - -<p class='c000'>A high wall shuts it in from the rest of -the world, whilst a special Bull of Urban VIII., -deeply cut to this day upon a great slab on the -principal gateway, condemned to major excommunication -any person who violated the sanctuary -or injured any plant within the sacred precincts; -and another papal Bull bans any woman who -dares to set her foot upon the domain. Beautiful -terraced paths were cut upon the hillsides, and -zigzagging down the ravines, fountains that gushed -spontaneously from the mossy rocks were dedicated -to saints and adorned with sculptured -shrines or rustic grottoes. Everything that -single-hearted toil and devotional spirit could -do, for centuries the shoeless Carmelites did for -their remote monastery and the fairy glens of -Bussaco; and since the abolition of the monastic -orders in Portugal, the Government have tended -and guarded the spot as carefully as the silent -monks before them. One trembles for each -innovation in such a spot as this, and the present -road-cutting operations through the wood and -<span class='pageno' id='Page_101'>101</span>just around the palace, though the new approaches -will doubtless add to the accessibility -of the place, cannot fail to injure somewhat its -sylvan beauty; just as the building of the palace -itself, and especially of the new annexe now in -course of construction, further dwarfs and hides -the quaint little monastery, which really seems -to strike the note harmonious with the place.</p> - -<p class='c000'>To describe in detail the beauties of Bussaco is -impossible in the space at my disposal, but one -ramble amongst many may be cited as an example -of the effect produced by them upon an appreciative -visitor. The sky was the deep, lustrous, -sapphire blue of which Portugal alone seems to -hold the secret, and the fierce sunlight, held -in check by the lofty canopy of leaves, just -dappled with golden tesselation the steep path -up which I wandered from the palace door. On -each side of the well-kept walk stood low stone -walls, a mass of brilliant emerald, clothed, as -they were, with long trailing mosses and tender -fronds of ferns innumerable. Autumn as yet -had done nothing to braise and brand the greenness -of summer; for in this favoured spot the -seasons make but slight difference in the vegetation. -Verdant glades and dim recesses of sea-green -<span class='pageno' id='Page_102'>102</span>shadow open up at every turn in the winding -path; domed masses of foliage above and below -on the steep sides of the glen seem like the silent -naves and aisles of vast cathedrals. To say that -the air was like wine is a commonplace. This -was primeval air, the breath of a myriad trees -and sweet health-giving plants, inhaled upon a -mountain top overlooking the boundless sea. -Not like wine grossly made by man was this, -but like some vital elixir distilled in a magician’s -laboratory, bringing new life and vigour, with -a sensuous joy added by the spirit of the place -and the soft warmth of the shaded sun.</p> - -<p class='c000'>Towering eucalyptus trees, the fawn-coloured -bark hanging in long loose strips and showing -the silver skin beneath, alternated with pied -planes and feathery palms. Pines and cedars -of Lebanon, and a score of trees one knows not -by name, tower over all, their great trunks (I -measured one cedar twenty feet round), clothed -at foot by a dense undergrowth of flowering -plants. Large camellia trees, agaves and magnolias -full of bloom, the big white pendent -flower of the datura, the pink and blue masses -of hydrangea, and the glistening foliage of -orange trees, lit up the shadowy slopes overhung -by the dense foliage of the forest; and -trails of smilax, and I know not what other -verdant creepers hung in festoons from branch -to branch.</p> - -<div id='fp102' class='figcenter id001'> -<img src='images/i_137.jpg' alt='' class='ig001' /> -<div class='ic001'> -<p>THE HOTEL, BUSSACO, FROM THE WOODS.</p> -</div> -</div> - -<p class='c000'><span class='pageno' id='Page_103'>103</span>At the top of the path a moss-grown cross at -the foot of a flight of broken stone steps, hard -by a crumbling archway, marks the beginning -of one of the several pilgrimages of the Cross -scattered through the woods, a lichen-covered -slab upon the cross recording that: “These -two hermitages of the pilgrimage of the Cross -were built by order of the Illustrious João de -Melo, Bishop and Count, in the year 1694.” -The little hermitages stand almost intact, though -their thick walls are all overgrown with bright -mosses and reaching arms of verdure. Passing -beneath the archway, shadowed by a mighty -cedar, I find myself at the foot of this Via -Sacra, a steep ascent with green and crumbling -steps before each open shrine of the Passion -every hundred yards or so. The shrines, little -quaint square buildings, with the window-like -opening breast high, and a kneeling-stone -before each, are all dismantled and empty -now; though with their cloak of foliage and -ferns and their lichen-clothed slabs telling the -<span class='pageno' id='Page_104'>104</span>scene of the sacred Passion which used to be -exhibited inside, they are perhaps more beautiful -so than ever they were. Weeks after, when I saw -at Caldas, in course of construction, some very -fine sacred groups in enamelled earthenware, -the figures half life-size, and was told that -these scenes of the Passion were intended by -the Government for the restoration of the -shrines at Bussaco, I breathed a silent hope -that, though the groups might be replaced, no -attempt would be made to restore to newness -the shrines themselves.</p> - -<p class='c000'>As one trod the old path of the pilgrimage, -up mossy steps and past despoiled shrines, with -glimpses of sunlit glades and shady green dells, -it was impossible to shut away from one’s -thoughts those generations of silent white-clad -figures, who, shoeless, had toiled so often up -the Via Dolorosa, with tears of penitence, -perhaps agonies of regret, for the life from -which they had fled. All around were relics -of their unrecorded labour. Sculptured stones, -chapels, hermitages, fountains, grottoes, and -shrines were all built by their patient hands; -paths scarped on steep hillsides, seats placed in -quiet nooks for the meditative and the weary, -nay, the trees and plants from all lands growing -so proudly now had all been tended anxiously -by the same dumb shadows that for centuries -waited for death within the walls enclosing -the sacred wood. If ever a place was haunted -by sad, harmless ghosts, these paths of pilgrimage -at Bussaco must still be thronged by -the white-robed phantoms of those who made -them.</p> - -<div id='fp104' class='figcenter id002'> -<img src='images/i_141.jpg' alt='' class='ig001' /> -<div class='ic001'> -<p><span class='sc'>On the Via Sacra, Bussaco</span>.</p> -</div> -</div> - -<p class='c000'><span class='pageno' id='Page_105'>105</span>Turning aside and descending the glen by a -narrower path, a ramble of half a mile brings -me to another scene of marvellous beauty. -In the foreground is a pool covered with water -lilies and overshadowed by trees; and from it, -leading straight up the hillside, is the “holy -stair,” or cold spring, as it is called. Eleven -double flights of stone stairs, each pair of -flights leading to a landing of black and white -mosaic, whilst in the centre between the two -lines of steps a rocky cataract leads a rushing -stream of icy cold clear water from the -fountain gushing at the top from the rock in -its mosaic recess down to the bottom of the -hill, where it tumbles tumultuously into the -pool. Through the whole length of the long -fall, flanked by stairs, perhaps two hundred -<span class='pageno' id='Page_106'>106</span>feet, rare ferns and mosses grow with wild -luxuriance, especially in and about the pools -on the ten landings; and, embosomed as the -whole hillside is in dense greenery, it is impossible -to exaggerate the delicious coolness -and beauty of this secluded spot.</p> - -<p class='c000'>From the top of the Fonte Fria, or Scala -Santa, the path leads through a valley, and -then precipitously up the ascent that faced -me when on the morning after my arrival I -stood upon the battlements for the first time. -The hermitage of St. Antão stands upon a -ledge high up the slope, a tiny dismantled cell, -from which a view is gained on a clear day -that fairly takes one’s breath away. Below, set -in its vast bed of verdure, the white stone castle -stands, the gold armillary sphere that crowns -its tower glittering in the sun; whilst on the -left the far-flung panorama of the plain, with -the blue wall of the sea beyond, and the grey -mountains on the north, is flooded with an -inundation of light, and scattered with the -abodes of men—the sombre masses of greenery -and the profound silence that surround us -making the contrast the more striking. A -wider view still than this is obtained from the -highest point of the domain, on the very outskirts -towards the south, where the Cruz Alta, -the “high cross,” marks the site of what in -ancient times was a watch-tower of soldier-monks, -overlooking the country towards Coimbra, -whence the Moors might come to invade -the sacred wood.</p> - -<div id='fp106' class='figcenter id002'> -<img src='images/i_145.jpg' alt='' class='ig001' /> -<div class='ic001'> -<p>IN THE GARDENS, BUSSACO.</p> -</div> -</div> - -<p class='c000'><span class='pageno' id='Page_107'>107</span>A greater battle than ever Christian and -Moslem fought raged in later times upon this -“Bussaco’s iron ridge,” just outside the granite -walls of the wood on the north-west slopes of the -long mountain. “Victory’s darling,” Massena, -was to bring stubborn Portugal to heel at last. -Soult had been expelled in 1809, after Wellington’s -surprise of Oporto; and the Emperor -was determined that nothing should stand -between him and his small victim this time. -Massena was at the height of his glory and -success, and the flower of the imperial legions, -eighty thousand men, marched through Spain, -and carried all before him at first in Portugal. -Almeida and Vizeu fell into his hands without -a struggle; and the invaders thought -that no serious obstacle would be offered to -the march upon Lisbon by way of Coimbra. -The road led them through the valley between -<span class='pageno' id='Page_108'>108</span>the long mountains of Bussaco and the Cremullo -range opposite, and Wellington, whose headquarters -were at Coimbra, fifteen miles distant, -decided to stop their progress there. Before the -whole of his forces could be got into position, -news came that the French had crossed the -river Mondego, and the Anglo-Portuguese -force gradually fell back, always fighting with -the French advance-guard, until the whole of -Wellington’s army of nearly 50,000 were -stationed upon the long ridge of Bussaco, -from the east wall of the domain to the -river Mondego, where the mountain ends.</p> - -<p class='c000'>A curious relation exists, hitherto unnoted in -English narratives, in which a monk of Bussaco -gives a minute account from day to day of the -events there from the 20th September 1810 until -after the battle on the 27th, and the artless -details of the good man are more personally -interesting perhaps than the broad facts of the -great battle itself. He tells that, on the 20th -September, an orderly of Lord Wellington came -to the monastery, and: “As soon as the door -was opened to him he said, ‘I want to see the -monastery, ha! ha! ha! To-morrow at two -o’clock the commander-in-chief is coming here. -He slept last night at Lorvão, and the French -have already arrived at Tondella....’ The prior -was told, and he showed the orderly the monastery -and chapel, ordering the best lodging-chamber to -be cleaned and got ready for the general, and -the orderly, after drinking a little wine, galloped -back to Lorvão.”</p> - -<div id='fp108' class='figcenter id001'> -<img src='images/i_149.jpg' alt='' class='ig001' /> -<div class='ic001'> -<p>THE PORTA DA SULLA, BUSSACO.</p> -</div> -</div> - -<p class='c000'><span class='pageno' id='Page_109'>109</span>Early next morning the whole wood, the -hermitages, the monastery, and the chapel were -filled with English officers, fifty officers being -quartered in the monastery itself. Wellington -arrived at midday, and when the prior showed -him the best guest-chamber, swept and garnished -for his use, he refused it, “although it was the -best,” because it had only one door, and another -apartment with two doors had to be found for -him. Whilst this lodging was being prepared -and cleaned, the general rode out of the domain -by the gate on the north side and inspected the -whole position from the highest point of the -ridge to the east, on the bare granite crest of -which he fixed his own position for the day of -the battle. Standing upon this spot there spreads -below the steep slopes in the foreground an -undulating plain, some five miles across, with -Caramulo mountains on the other side. Through -<span class='pageno' id='Page_110'>110</span>this broken plain Massena was forced to march -in order to turn or cross the Bussaco mountains, -and proceed on his road to Coimbra, Lisbon, and -Oporto. When he learnt that the English general -had decided to risk everything by making a stand -there with forces inferior to his own he at first -refused to believe it, for constant success had -made him think that his troops could do anything; -and if Wellington were beaten here, then -annihilation would await the English, and Portugal -would follow Spain in bowing to the yoke of -France. But if Wellington does take the risk, -said Massena, “<i><span lang="pt" xml:lang="pt">Je le tiens! demain nous finirons la -conquête de Portugal, et en un pen de jours je noyerai -le léopard</span></i>.” Ney, Junot, and Regnier in vain -counselled Massena not to fling his men away -upon attacking such a tremendous position as -that of Bussaco, and urged him to retire and -await reinforcements from France; but Massena -laughed at their wise fears, and decided to storm -the height. “<em>There is only the rearguard of the -English there</em>,” he said; “<em>if the whole army is there -so much the better, the good luck of the darling of -victory will not abandon him</em>.”</p> - -<p class='c000'>Every cell and every corner of the monastery -and dependencies were full of English troops, -<span class='pageno' id='Page_111'>111</span>“except Father Antonio of the Angels’ cell, -which no one would have, as it was filled with -all sorts of old rags, rubbish, and old iron he -could pick up, and the monks had to sleep anywhere.” -On the 26th September the French -were seen on the mountains opposite and upon -the plain below, where skirmishing was constant -between advance-guards. The north-east wall -of the domain was partly demolished and crowded -with English troops, whilst batteries of artillery -topped the crest of the ridge, and Crawford’s -corps held an outlying spur that projects into -the plain from opposite the north gate (Porta -da Rainha) of the wood. Lord Wellington rose -very early on the morning of the 27th, and to -the dismay of the monks ordered his baggage -to be sent out of the wood towards Coimbra. -It was not for flight, as the monks feared, but -prudence, and after breakfast the great general -rode out and took his stand upon the top of the -ridge of Bussaco, overlooking the long valley. -His own troops were to a large extent hidden -behind the crest of the hill, and occupied the whole -length of the mountain from beyond the Mondego -on the north-east to the monastery on the west, -Crawford’s position on the projecting spur on -<span class='pageno' id='Page_112'>112</span>the English left flank making the position at -that end practically semicircular; this left flank -consequently enfiladed with its artillery the face -of the declivity upon whose crest Wellington’s -centre was stationed. On the extreme right of -the English, on the other side of the Mondego, -General Hill was in command, with the Portuguese -under General Fane; but the whole of the rest -of the Anglo-Portuguese army was posted upon -or behind the long crest of Bussaco, the extreme -left under General Crawford being thrust forward -upon the projecting spur. At six o’clock on -the morning of the 27th September, under cover -of a heavy mist, two desperate attacks were -delivered upon the centre of the English position. -That on the right of the centre was led -by Regnier with incredible dash and bravery, -but with terrible loss to the French. A whole -division of Frenchmen at one point here finally -struggled to the summit of the ridge, and the -eagles planted on the granite crest proclaimed to -Massena that the victory was won. But the 88th -and 45th regiments were in reserve behind the -crest, and at the captured position gallant Picton -was in command. Like an avalanche the two -regiments, with a Portuguese battalion, advanced -along the ridge with fixed bayonets at the charge. -With irresistible impetus they swept all before -them. The French division was hurled helter-skelter -down the precipitous declivity with hideous -ruin and devastation. All the face of Bussaco -at that point was sown with the dead and dying, -the French loss exceeding four thousand, and -the legions of the Darling of Victory experienced -the bitterness of their first defeat. This awful -carnage took place at some little distance to the -right of where Wellington stood on the summit -of the ridge though well within sight, and a -similar attempt, but with even less success was -made still nearer to him on his left; whilst -a stubborn and sanguinary struggle took place -upon the spur on the extreme English left -occupied by Crawford and Packe, upon one point -of which now stands the obelisk commemorating -the battle.</p> - -<div id='fp112' class='figcenter id002'> -<img src='images/i_155.jpg' alt='' class='ig001' /> -<div class='ic001'> -<p>BUSSACO’S IRON RIDGE.</p> -</div> -</div> - -<p class='c000'><span class='pageno' id='Page_113'>113</span>The English and Portuguese under English -officers vied with each other in stubborn bravery, -and the moral result of Bussaco was tremendous, -though the material advantage was small. From -that hour of defeat the legions of the Emperor -knew that they were not invincible, and the sun -that was to set at Waterloo first turned its -<span class='pageno' id='Page_114'>114</span>meridian when Massena’s gallant infantry were -hurled headlong down the hill. By a masterly piece -of strategy Wellington, the day after the victory, -sent off a division to occupy Coimbra, and when -defeated Massena by a circuitous route arrived -in the neighbourhood of the city he found himself -forestalled, though the English shortly after -evacuated it and fell back. The lines of Torres -Vedras finally frustrated the French, but Bussaco -was the turning-point of victory.</p> - -<p class='c000'>The monkish diarist has many poignant little -stories to tell of the horrors into which the -monastery was plunged during and after the -battle. The wounded were everywhere, but -were packed especially close in the little unfinished -chapel outside the walls of the wood -opposite Crawford’s position, now a commemorative -chapel where many relics of the fight are -shown.</p> - -<p class='c000'>At midnight on the 28th an English officer -hurried to the monastery and reported that -Massena was retreating and endeavouring to -reach Coimbra by another road. The night was -dark and the rain fell heavily, but Wellington -rose from his bed, and at once gave orders for -the English army to march upon Coimbra. Like -<span class='pageno' id='Page_115'>115</span>magic the monastery and wood—even the great -mountain itself—was freed from armed men, and -before midday nothing was left but the débris -of battle and the dead and wounded. The monk -who tells his simple tale says that they managed -to give beds in the monastery to most of the -English officers during their stay, “and a general -who was in the bishop’s chapel had a tablecloth, -two brass candlesticks, and a great copper jar -for water, and also some napkins. All of this,” -he adds, “was lost.” “To Lord Wellington,” he -continues, “we gave the best napkins we had, -four dozens of candles, and everything that the -other officers were continually asking for. Even -to the common soldiers and the people who came -for refuge, we gave salt and all we could. We -gave out a lot of wine, bread, cheese, oil, and -other things for the troops, and when Lord -Wellington was leaving he sent word to the -prior that he would pay for what had been -supplied, if he would tell him the amount. -The prior replied that he asked for nothing -but peace. This monastery of ours lost very -heavily by the troops. Nearly everything we -provided for the beds and tables of the officers -disappeared, and not a thing of any value was -<span class='pageno' id='Page_116'>116</span>left.... Besides this they stole all the oranges -in our two orchards, they forced the door of the -storehouse and took all the bread and wine they -chose, with a basket of eggs, and a comb of honey, -and many other things. Indeed they acted just -as badly or worse than the French.”</p> - -<p class='c000'>And so, after the short agony, the wave of -war and horror swept away from Bussaco, leaving -only the memory behind; and the sacred wood -was abandoned to the white-robed monks:—</p> - -<div class='lg-container-b c004'> - <div class='linegroup'> - <div class='group'> - <div class='line'>“The Carmelite, who in his cell recluse</div> - <div class='line'>Was wont to sit, and from a skull receive</div> - <div class='line'>Death’s silent lesson, wheresoe’er he walked,</div> - <div class='line'>Henceforth may find his teacher. He shall see</div> - <div class='line'>The Frenchman’s bones in glen and grove, on rock</div> - <div class='line'>And height where’er the wolves and carrion birds</div> - <div class='line'>Have strewn them, washed in torrents bare and bleached</div> - <div class='line'>By sun and rain, and by the winds of Heaven.”</div> - </div> - </div> -</div> - -<div id='fp116' class='figcenter id002'> -<img src='images/i_161.jpg' alt='' class='ig001' /> -<div class='ic001'> -<p>THE BATTLE MONUMENT, BUSSACO.</p> -</div> -</div> - -<p class='c000'>It is all forgotten now, and nothing matters -much, I mused, as I wandered up the dark avenue -of cypress, yew, and pine that leads to the low -three-arched façade of the old monastery. Before -the quaint little one-storey porch, faced with -designs of coats-of-arms, flowers, and scrolls in -black and white mosaic, stands an ancient cross, -and within the entrance is the tiny cloister and -<span class='pageno' id='Page_117'>117</span>church that alone remains of the monastery. -I wandered into the dim cloister full of thoughts -of Bussaco’s baptism of blood, though it was all -quiet and peaceful now in this humble retreat. -At each corner of the cloister stands a dismantled -altar, faced with coloured tiles of Talavera majolica, -and the walls between the windows are hung -with mouldering and tattered canvases of dead -and gone Carmelites—saintly men whose bones -lie beneath our feet and in the little green enclosure -formed by the cloister. Around the -walls on three sides are the doors of the cells, -each door covered, as are the timbers of the -cloister, with rough cork bark, which adds -to the appearance of antiquity. One picture -attracted my attention, a poor defaced painting, -faded by time and weather, representing at full -length a white-clad monk holding a skull in -his left hand, and in his right a scroll. Something -noble and dignified in the appearance of -the face attracted me, and I tried to decipher the -almost effaced inscription on the scroll. It was -difficult, but at last I read that the monk was the -“Reverend Father, Fray Luis de Jesus,” who in -the world had been called the Marquis of -Mancera, when the seventeenth century was -<span class='pageno' id='Page_118'>118</span>young. And beneath the name this distich -ran:—</p> - -<div class='lg-container-b c004'> - <div class='linegroup'> - <div class='group'> - <div class='line'>“<span lang="pt" xml:lang="pt">A morte me fas deixar</span></div> - <div class='line'><span lang="pt" xml:lang="pt">O que me podia danar.</span>”</div> - </div> - </div> -</div> - -<p class='c000'>As I pondered on this curious couplet, “Death -makes me leave What might me grieve,” in the -shadowy cloister, there came towards me a phantom -of the past. It was an old, old man dressed -in brown undyed homespun, short jacket, and -breeches of a bygone fashion, and the universal -black knitted stocking nightcap of the Portuguese -peasant. He hobbled out of the cell where -the great duke had slept the nights before the -battle; and as he came slowly towards me, supported -by a long staff, he courteously doffed his -cap, and wished me good day. He was, he told -me, ninety-three years old, but his eyes were still -bright and his skin clear, and I fell into discourse -with the ancient, as we rested together upon a -bench in the darkling cloister, through the end -door of which a bright splash of orange sunlight -sent shimmering waves into the dimness.</p> - -<p class='c000'>Yes! <i><span lang="pt" xml:lang="pt">graças à Deus</span></i>, he was well, notwithstanding -his great age, and he dwelt, past work now, -with his son, a sort of foreman on the domain, in -the double cell which had been that of the prior -<span class='pageno' id='Page_119'>119</span>of the monastery. He was born in a neighbouring -village, and had never been far away. He -had witnessed the expulsion of the monks and -the building of the beautiful palace that had -pushed aside the pathetic abode of penitence, -humility, and patience. In his prime he had -known and talked to many of those who had -witnessed the great battle on Bussaco’s slopes, -and he told me artlessly, and in his quavering -treble, how all down the slope, upon which I -saw him the next day, the dead and wounded -Frenchmen had lain thickly, with their arms, -drums, and big shakoes scattered around them; -how the poor wretches, crying in their agony for -a draught of water, were refused by the country -people, who hated so bitterly the invaders of their -fatherland; how the good monks strove their -hardest, succouring the wounded, French, English, -and Portuguese alike, and reverently burying -the dead in consecrated ground.</p> - -<p class='c000'>As the old man spoke, quietly and gently, -telling at first-hand the story of nearly a century -ago, my mind went back to another old man -whom I had known when I was little more than -a child, who himself had fought in this battle; -but to my eager inquiries for details had little -<span class='pageno' id='Page_120'>120</span>of satisfaction to impart. But, somehow, the -mere fact of having known an actor in the scene, -however inarticulate, and now to be speaking upon -the spot with one who had all his life heard direct -from those who witnessed it the story that made -his countryside for ever famous, brought nearer -to me the vivid vision of long ago. Bussaco -fight to me for a brief space was real, as Salamanca -and Vitoria never can be, and I feel that -for one half hour I have lived in the time when -the giants of the world contended for mastery.</p> - -<p class='c000'>Outside the cloister the dream vanished. The -lofty white tower with its golden globe, emblem -of Portugal’s princely pioneer of extended empire, -spoke of another age and aroused other memories: -peace, luxury, and security reigned now supreme -in this ancient abode of austerity, and no invader -of the land was possible. The far-spread forest -wafted its balsamic breath to me, and the myriad -leaves softly whispered in the sensuous breeze, as -if that awful day of the 27th September 1810 -had never dawned upon the sacred wood. Bussaco -is beautiful enough to live in the present -without its one cruel memory, gently pensive -occasionally at the thought of the stern, sad, -anchorites who laboured to make it perfect for -<span class='pageno' id='Page_121'>121</span>the glory of God. But to Englishmen—aye, -and to Frenchmen and Portuguese too—there -must come at least once during their stay a -rousing bugle blast that calls their souls to arms -and bids them honour their glorious dead who -stood and fell so gallantly upon Bussaco’s granite -ridge in the long long ago.</p> - -<div id='fp120' class='figcenter id001'> -<img src='images/i_167.jpg' alt='' class='ig001' /> -<div class='ic001'> -<p>ENTRANCE TO THE CLOISTER, BUSSACO.</p> -</div> -</div> - -<div class='chapter'> - <span class='pageno' id='Page_122'>122</span> - <h2 class='c006'>V<br /> <span class='large'>COIMBRA, THOMAR, AND LEIRIA</span></h2> -</div> - -<p class='c012'>The morning was sparkling, the sky without -a fleck, and the air like draughts of nectar, as -I slowly descended from the monastery and -hotel of Bussaco, through the lovely umbrageous -“valley of ferns” to the “Gate of Grottoes,” -in the south wall of the wood, where I had -directed a carriage to await me and carry me -to Coimbra, fifteen miles distant. I was loath -to leave this exquisite spot, which art and -nature have conspired to make perfect; the -fairy glens, the unrivalled prospects from the -heights, the spacious magnificence and homely -comfort of the guest-house—but I had already -exceeded my allotted time, and other places -called me.</p> - -<div id='fp122' class='figcenter id001'> -<img src='images/i_171.jpg' alt='' class='ig001' /> -<div class='ic001'> -<p>ON THE SUMMIT OF BUSSACO, THE CRUZ ALTA.</p> -</div> -</div> - -<p class='c000'>Our road lay downward for a mile or two, -through a beautiful country of pines and gorgeous -stretches of purple heather in full bloom; -and here and there long trellised vineyards, -<span class='pageno' id='Page_123'>123</span>with the red bronze of the vine-leaves adding -a splash of colour to the scene. As we wound -down and along the plain, there always towered -above us, as it seemed right overhead, the -“Cruz Alta” of Bussaco amidst the trees -at the highest point of the wood, near where -the wall limited the greenery; and soon the -whole of the long, sharp hog’s-back of granite -ridge, standing clear and distinct from surrounding -mountains, tremendous in bulk, is seen -from the plain. It was hard to realise that -only yesterday I had stood, without fatigue or -trouble, upon that giddy height of the Cruz -Alta, which looked from here as if an eagle -alone might reach it.</p> - -<p class='c000'>Patient ox-teams toil along, led by small boys -in black nightcaps, gravely courteous to the -stranger, and black-eyed solemn children play -soberly by the wayside and take no heed. Soon -we pass through the big, poor-looking village -of Pampilhosa, and leave the pines and heather -behind us; for here down in the valley olives, -cork trees, ilex, and vines abound, with figs, -pears, and apples, in orchards nestled round the -white cottages. Aloe hedges, with the big, -fleshy lancet leaves of silver-grey, show that -<span class='pageno' id='Page_124'>124</span>we are in a sub-tropical land, and patches of -succulent sugar-cane for cattle fodder grow -brilliantly green against the maize and millet -fields; whilst all along the wayside the light-leafed -poplars rear their straight shafts, heavily -burdened by masses of purple grapes and flaming -vine leaves, the only sign of autumn, though -October is now upon us.</p> - -<p class='c000'>As we near Coimbra, though it is not much -past noon, we meet many groups of handsome -country women, with, as usual, heavy burdens -upon their heads, returning home from the -weekly market in the city. Barefooted they -go invariably, with their fine broad shoulders, -full bosoms, classical faces, and broad, low -brows, their gay kerchiefs on head and bosom, -and their fine eyes gazing straight forth with -modest dignity; and mentally I deny assent -to the boast of Guimarães that its maids and -matrons reign supreme in buxom grace, for -those of Coimbra need bow the head to none on -earth. All around the city are gently rounded -undulating hills covered by olive orchards, and -as the road tops one of them we see the picturesque -old capital beneath us upon its steep -slope, the broad Mondego at its foot, and -<span class='pageno' id='Page_125'>125</span>beyond the river a high green ridge crowned by -an immense white convent.</p> - -<p class='c000'>In the ancient times, as the Christian monarchs -wrested from the Moors one territory after -another, and drove the Crescent ever farther -south, the capital of Portugal followed the -victorious standard, and Guimarães soon had -to cede its place to Coimbra, which remained -the capital from the time of the first Affonso -(Henriques) in the twelfth century until the -extinction of his dynasty in the fourteenth, and -occasionally later. Coimbra is crowded with -memories of the heroic times, of combats with -the Moors, and of deeds of violence and blood -perpetrated within its walls; and in its quaint -crowded streets are corners that can hardly -have changed since the Affonsos and Sanchos -here held their court—the Arco d’Almedina -leading out of the principal street, Rua do -Visconde da Luz, for instance, and the quaint -renascence palace, incorrectly called the palace -of the martyred Maria de Telles, in the Rua de -Sub-Ripas.</p> - -<p class='c000'>But to the famed Church of Santa Cruz, all -that remains intact of a vast Augustian monastery, -the pilgrim’s steps first turn. It stands -<span class='pageno' id='Page_126'>126</span>in an open place at the end of the Rua do -Visconde da Luz, sunk several feet below the -present level of the street, and the magnificent -Manueline, or Portuguese renascence front is -spoilt by a mean and hideous detached portico, -in front of the real doorway, with its fine -carved figures and capricious canopies. The -lower part of the octagonal tower is much -damaged, and the delicately carved decorations -destroyed; but enough remains of the upper -part to prove the magnificence with which King -Manuel in the beginning of the sixteenth century -rebuilt the sepulchre of the earliest kings. In -this church, of which the interior, lined with -pictorial blue tiles, is now reduced to eighteenth-century -aridity, with the exception of the roof -and chancel where the magnificent tombs with -recumbent figures of Affonso Henriques and -his son, King Sancho, shame the tastelessness -of the later work, a dramatic scene was once -enacted. Both these first kings of Portugal -had worn the habit of St. Augustine, and were -lay members of this monastery where their -bones were laid. In order to establish his -right to the patronage of the foundation, King -Manuel, in 1510, rebuilt the church and monastery -<span class='pageno' id='Page_127'>127</span>in the exuberant and gorgeous style -associated with his reign; and when the time -came to restore the bodies of the kings to the -new sepulchres prepared for them, Manuel -caused the mummified corpse of Affonso Henriques -to be clad in royal robes and kingly crown, -enthroned before the high altar of Santa Cruz, -and there receive the homage of his subjects -as if still alive. The pulpit of the church, -the work of Jean de Rouen, though stripped -now of its side pilasters and famous canopy, -is one of the most splendid examples of early -French renascence; but the richest treasure of -the church is a splendid early triptych, in the -mysterious style of the so-called Gran Vasco -(who is a mythical painter), in which the early -Flemings are imitated exactly by apparently Portuguese -hands. This triptych, which should be -compared with the “Fountain of Life” described -in the chapter on Oporto, and also with the famous -“St. Peter” at Vizeu, is signed “Vellascus,” and -represents in its three panels the “<span lang="la" xml:lang="la">Ecce Homo</span>,” -the “Calvary” and the “Pentecost,” with the -exquisite finish and glowing colour of Van Eyck -and Memling. The cloisters of the church are -a beautiful specimen, as is much of the exterior -<span class='pageno' id='Page_128'>128</span>of the church itself, of the peculiar Manueline -renascence Gothic, of which I have so frequently -spoken, the motives being the capricious intertwining -of cordage and branches, spiral bossed -mouldings, exuberant pinnacles, and pendent -floreated ornaments on the interior lines of -arches and vaultings. Of this style the Bussaco -palace-hotel is a notable modern specimen, and -in a later chapter I propose to treat in some -detail the other examples inspected during my -trip. By the side of Santa Cruz, separated -from it by a road formerly spanned by a high -bridge, lies a splendid massive tower, and a -huge block of the old monastic buildings now -turned into a squalid barrack, so often the -fate of the profanated religious houses in Portugal, -whilst behind the church and cloister -lies another large portion also turned to secular -uses.</p> - -<div id='fp128' class='figcenter id001'> -<img src='images/i_179.jpg' alt='' class='ig001' /> -<div class='ic001'> -<p>A STREET IN COIMBRA.</p> -</div> -</div> - -<p class='c000'>Coimbra is famous as the seat of learning for -all Portugal—for many centuries, and still, the -only university town in the realm. The huge -square bulk of the university buildings on the -crest of the hill overlooking the town typify -the absolute domination of the place by the -academical tradition. The hotel on the Alameda, -<span class='pageno' id='Page_129'>129</span>like other hostelries of its sort, has no lack of -commercial customers, but even they, assertive -as they are, are swamped by the university -professors, staff and graduates, who flock to its -tables for their meals; whilst in the streets -bookshops jostle each other all filled with -text-books, and the unmistakable students are -everywhere. And yet, with all this academical -presence, there is none of that staid atmosphere -of aloof erudition which is especially noticeable -at Cambridge, and, to a lesser degree, at Oxford. -It is true that the youngsters at Coimbra affect -a garb at which the present-day undergraduate -at Cambridge would scoff, if he did not proceed -to more violent means to reduce its primness. -A very clerical-looking black frock-coat, buttoned -to the chin, is <i><span lang="fr" xml:lang="fr">de rigueur</span></i>, covered by a long black -cloak reaching to the wearer’s heels, although, -to tell the truth, this cloak, like a Cambridge -third-year man’s gown, is oftener festooned over -one shoulder or trailed along upon the arm than -worn decorously as intended.</p> - -<p class='c000'>These Coimbra youths wear no head covering, -and affect a gravity of demeanour whilst in the -streets that gives them all the appearance of -budding priests. But the absence of a collegiate -<span class='pageno' id='Page_130'>130</span>system brings both staff and students into more -direct contact with the town than is the case with -our older universities, and the peculiar learned -atmosphere of the High at Oxford or King’s -Parade at Cambridge does not exist. It is a stiff -climb up the hill to the university, and the -cathedrals. The former is built round three -sides of a large court, with a tower in one corner -and an observatory in the open face, the enormous -palace of the rector occupying one entire -side of the square. Seven good light classrooms -and a fine hall, senate-house, and examination -rooms, give ample accommodation; and the view -of the city from the end of the corridor containing -the lecture-rooms is exceedingly fine. The -library is a gorgeous gilt and over-decorated -room in the florid taste of the eighteenth century, -the worst possible style for a place of quiet study; -and almost the only attractive feature in the -exterior of the university is the fine Manueline -doorway to the chapel in the great quadrangle. -Here twisted cables, rich mouldings, floreated -crockets and pinnacles, armillary spheres and -crosses, the usual notes of the style, mark the -work as being of the period when Portugal was -ebullient with feverish energy and ambition.</p> - -<p class='c000'><span class='pageno' id='Page_131'>131</span>Hard by is the bishop’s palace, now almost a -ruin, but with some lovely bits of Manueline, -and a delightful sixteenth-century courtyard like -a scene upon the stage. The old cathedral (Sé -Velha) upon the same hill, is perhaps the most -perfect and unspoilt specimen of pure Romanesque -of the twelfth century in the Peninsula. -The deeply recessed west door, with round arch, -quadruple ball mouldings, finely decorated -Byzantine Romanesque pillars, and a large, recessed -window in the same style above, occupy -a square projecting battlemented tower flanked -on each side by other square towers at the corners. -On the south side the early renascence door -reaching to the battlemented roof of the aisle -is practically in ruins; but the pure, solid Romanesque -of the rest of the building stands -sturdy as ever after eight centuries. Small and -grave, the nave and aisles, with the beautiful -round-headed, recessed clerestory windows and -capricious Romanesque Byzantine capitals, remain -unmarred, though gilt and alabaster altars and -chapels clamour for notice, and splendid sarcophagi -of bishops and nobles on all sides contrast -with the stern lines of the original building. -Two features of the more recent periods deserve -<span class='pageno' id='Page_132'>132</span>attention, the truly superb high-altar of Flemish -workmanship of the first years of the sixteenth -century, and the circular chapel of the Soares -family, dated 1566. I could not tear myself -away from the contemplation of the exterior of -this old Sé on the hill over Coimbra, and at -night when the darkness of the ancient city was -hardly disturbed by flickering lamps, I lingered -in the square around the battlemented walls and -sturdy towers, reconstructing the scenes that had -been enacted here, and calling up in imagination -from their eternal sleep those great ones who -rested so quietly within.</p> - -<p class='c000'>The new cathedral (Sé Nova) is a plain and -ugly pseudo-classical building, in the so-called -Jesuit style, standing on the summit of the hill, -and only merits notice on account of its treasures. -These form a veritable museum of early ecclesiastical -art, from the twelfth century onward. I -have rarely seen a finer specimen of goldsmith’s -work than the custode of George d’Almeida, of -pure Portuguese Gothic, in a similar style, but -more imposing than the chalice already described -at the Misericordia at Oporto.</p> - -<p class='c000'>Looking across the beautiful river Mondego -from the acacia-shaded alameda where stands -<span class='pageno' id='Page_133'>133</span>the hotel, the high wooded ridge straight opposite -is crowned by the vast white convent of -Santa Clara, once the glory of Coimbra and the -cloister of queens, now partly destroyed and -partly desecrated and turned into a factory. -The heat was oppressive on the morning after -my arrival at Coimbra, but a pilgrimage to the -shrine of Saint Isabel the Queen, and to the -shrine of love near to it, could not be foregone. -Crossing the bridge I first wended my way to a -beautiful villa almost on the banks of the river, -in whose grounds there stands the Gothic ruin -of a palace, and adjoining it gushing from a rock -shaded by dark cedars a copious spring leaps -joyously along a stone channel of some twenty -feet long into a stone tank covered with water -lilies. It is a lovely tranquil spot, where no -sound reaches but the rustling of leaves and the -gurgling of crystal water, and yet here, tradition -says, was enacted in the long ago one of those -tragedies that inspire poets, painters, and dramatists -for all time. It was in 1355, and Ines de -Castro, the lovely mistress of the Prince Dom -Pedro, had so infatuated him that he refused to -marry another at his father’s bidding. The -King, Alfonso IV., incensed at the recalcitrancy -<span class='pageno' id='Page_134'>134</span>of his heir, caused Ines to be done to death -here beside the “Fountain of Love” by three -courtiers. The son, Dom Pedro, rose in rebellion, -and saw his father no more; but when two years -afterwards the king died and Pedro succeeded -him, he worked his ghastly revenge upon those -who had persecuted his beloved. Ines had been -buried at Santa Clara, the convent near, to which -this estate belonged, and now her body was -disinterred, dressed in royal robes, crowned with -a diadem and adorned with jewels, and placed, -a crumbling corpse, thus arrayed upon a throne in -the monastery-Church of Alcobaça, whilst all the -courtiers upon their knees kissed the dead hand -of her whom they had insulted and contemned -in life. Upon a stone by the side of the fountain -this verse of Camões is inscribed:—</p> - -<div class='lg-container-b c004'> - <div class='linegroup'> - <div class='group'> - <div class='line'>“<span lang="pt" xml:lang="pt">As filhas do Mondego morte escura,</span></div> - <div class='line'><span lang="pt" xml:lang="pt">Longo tempo chorando morarão:</span></div> - <div class='line'><span lang="pt" xml:lang="pt">E por memoria eterna em fonte pura</span></div> - <div class='line'><span lang="pt" xml:lang="pt">As lagrimas choradas transformarão,</span></div> - <div class='line'><span lang="pt" xml:lang="pt">O nome e reputação que inda dura</span></div> - <div class='line'><span lang="pt" xml:lang="pt">Dos amores de Ignes que ali pasarão</span></div> - <div class='line'><span lang="pt" xml:lang="pt">Vede que fresca fonte rega as flores</span></div> - <div class='line'><span lang="pt" xml:lang="pt">Que lagrimas são agua, e o nome amores.</span>”</div> - </div> - </div> -</div> - -<p class='c000'>“The fountain of love in the garden of tears” -is the spot called to this day, and a crumbling -<span class='pageno' id='Page_135'>135</span>little Gothic convent founded by the lover king -between this and the river bears the name of -“the convent of tears.”</p> - -<p class='c000'>Above us gleams the long white building of -Santa Clara, and zigzagging up the steep hill lies -the path, shrines at each turn of the way inviting -to devotion and to rest. The sun beats fiercely -on the steep white road, but the view from the -summit upon the esplanade that faces the convent -church repays the trouble of the climb. Opposite, -across the river, the city is piled up upon its grand -amphitheatre of hills, the huge, square bulk of -the university and the Sé Nova topping it all; -whilst beyond the rolling hills covered with olives -provide a dark-green background, which throws -into higher relief the blue, white, and pink houses -grouped in the limpid air, under a cloudless sky, -flooded with sunlight.</p> - -<p class='c000'>Of all the rich foundation of the royal convent -of Santa Clara all that now remains devoted to -religious uses is the white church, and the adjoining -sanctuary of the saintly queen, tended by -ladies dedicated to charitable work, but not cloistered. -The church is mainly of the seventeenth -century, in the usual “Jesuit” style, and is crowded -with gilt and carved woodwork; a large stately, -<span class='pageno' id='Page_136'>136</span>unencumbered interior, containing several sarcophagi -of members of the royal house, and the rich -treasure in the sacristy must on no account be -missed. A turret stair at the west end leads into -a small loft overlooking the church, and richly, -but sombrely decorated. Here stands a little -altar, and on lifting a trap in the centre of it, -and peering down through a grating a most impressive -scene is presented to the view. A large, -solemn choir-chamber, with carved stalls in rows, -extending lengthwise along it, and the ample -central space occupied by a magnificent canopy, -under which, lit by a tiny red lamp burning -eternally before it, lies a great coffin of rich -repoussé silver, in which there rests the body of -the sainted queen, the patron of Coimbra, the -heroic Aragonese princess, who in 1323, rode -between the armies of her husband, King Diniz, -and their rebellious son, and stayed their unnatural -strife at her own great peril.</p> - -<div id='fp136' class='figcenter id002'> -<img src='images/i_189.jpg' alt='' class='ig001' /> -<div class='ic001'> -<p>SANTA CLARA, COIMBRA.</p> -</div> -</div> - -<p class='c000'>One other royal shade at least haunts the royal -convent of Santa Clara. Here, retired from the -turmoil of ambitions and wrongs, of which through -her youth she had been the victim, passed the -long years of her devout renunciation that injured -Princess Joan, “the Beltraneja,” daughter of -<span class='pageno' id='Page_137'>137</span>Henry IV. of Castile, whom the great Isabel -the Catholic ousted from her inheritance. Here -in Coimbra, too, the tragedy of Maria de Telles, -subject of poems and plays innumerable, was -enacted in real life. King Ferdinand the Handsome, -about 1371, though betrothed to a Castilian -princess, fell in love with a lady called Leonor -de Telles, and so endangered the recently concluded -alliance. His people rose in revolt, and -the lady’s family, especially her sister Maria, -resented the adulterous connection. Leonor, -secure in her mastery over the king, wreaked a -terrible revenge upon those who opposed her; -poison, the dagger, and the dungeon doing her -fell work, until all Portugal was in fear at her -feet, and the king became her wedded husband. -The virtuous sister, Maria de Telles, happily -married to the king’s half-brother, João, and -safe in her palace at Coimbra, was difficult to -attack. But the wicked Leonor was equal to -the occasion, and, like a female Iago, instilled -into the ears of the prince suspicions of his wife’s -fidelity, and with forged evidence prompted him -to revenge. The enraged husband murdered his -protesting and innocent wife in cold blood at -Coimbra (but not at the house now shown as -<span class='pageno' id='Page_138'>138</span>the scene of the tragedy), and as soon as the -foul deed was done Queen Leonor, who had been -waiting in an adjoining room, entered, and, in -the presence of the murdered Maria, mocked at -the husband’s pain, and showed him that her -sister was innocent. The prince in his rage -attempted to murder the treacherous queen, but -was seized, and subsequently escaped into exile, -whilst Leonor lived to perpetrate other misdeeds.</p> - -<p class='c000'>I paced the acacia-shaded alameda as the sun -sank below the hills, thinking of these sad -memories of the times long past; of the noble -self-sacrifice of the sainted queen, of the long -agony of the Beltraneja, and of the blood-stained -soul of Leonor. The air was cool and fresh, and -the glowing sunset faded from crimson to dead -rose in the west; but across the shimmering -river the after-glow, like a luminous opal dawn, -threw up the black silhouette of the wooded -ridge, and the vast bulk of Santa Clara on the -crest stood sharp and clear as if cut out of black -velvet and laid upon pearly satin. And just over -the great convent church a star of dazzling brilliancy—the -brightest star, it seemed to me, I have -ever beheld—blazed out alone in the pellucid sky, -and tipped with diamond the cross above the -<span class='pageno' id='Page_139'>139</span>silent silver shrine with its dim red lamp burning -through the centuries. Thus sweet self-sacrifice -conquers over time and death. The mouldering -bones are naught, darkness enshrouds even the -huge building in which they lie; yet far aloft the -cross still stands distinct above all, gemmed with -its glittering star, as the eternal memory of good -deeds done still illumines the blackness of the -world.</p> - -<p class='c000'>The next morning I took the train for Chão -de Maçãs, a little roadside station, where a carriage -had been ordered to meet me, and carry me two -leagues over the mountains to Thomar. There -was some stay at Pombal, where it was a feast -day, and the peasant costumes were seen at their -best—good upstanding people these, gaily clad, -sober, and orderly, coming to the railway stations -in good time and unhurried, but not hours before -the train starts, as the peasants do in Spain. -In the market, under the shadow of the great -mediæval castle ruins on the hill, they do their -buying and selling, live-stock for the most part -to-day, without vociferation, but with an earnest -quietness which is as far as possible from depression. -Here at Pombal, and at Albergaria near, -the men wear brown undyed homespun jackets, -<span class='pageno' id='Page_140'>140</span>and trousers girt with red sashes. The bag cap -is almost universal, and mutton-chop whiskers -are the rule, but what will attract a foreign -visitor most in their dress are the curious triple-caped -ulsters, made of layers of grass, seen in -many places in Portugal in wet weather, but especially -in this neighbourhood. These garments, -bulky as they look, are not heavy, and are an -excellent protection against heavy rain.</p> - -<p class='c000'>The women here have very full, short, gathered -skirts, and though none of them wear shoes or -stockings hardly any are without heavy ancient -jewelry of gold filigree apparently of considerable -value. The bodices of the dresses are mostly -red or yellow, and a broad horizontal stripe of -bright colour often enlivens the skirt also, their -brilliant head-kerchiefs being usually topped by -a broad-brimmed velveteen hat, for the pork-pie -hat of the north has been left behind now.</p> - -<p class='c000'>We had mounted into the country of pines -and heather when we stopped at the little station -of Chão de Maçãs, dumped down, as it seemed, -in the wilderness with just a row of one-storey -whitewashed cottages opposite. But where was -the carriage? None had been heard of there, -and I found myself several miles from anywhere, -<span class='pageno' id='Page_141'>141</span>and with no means of conveyance. Sympathetic -interest was not wanting. A muleteer loudly -deplored that he was engaged to carry a load -of goods to Ourem, and could not take me to -Thomar. Clearly something must be done, however; -so the little meeting of grave consultants -adjourned from the station platform to the door -of the humble general shop and tavern opposite to -continue the important discussion. It happened -that the whole village was just then deeply -absorbed in witnessing an itinerant barber cutting -a man’s hair in an open stable whilst the onlookers -criticised and suggested improvements and variations -in the process; but when the news spread -that a strange gentleman was stranded at Chão -de Maçãs with no conveyance to take him to -Thomar, the critics of the barber’s art adjourned -<i><span lang="fr" xml:lang="fr">en masse</span></i> to the tavern, and respectfully joined in -the discussion as to my fate. They were quite -unanimous in agreeing that the Senhor Mathias -Araujo, the hotelkeeper at Thomar, could not -have received the letter or he would certainly -have sent the carriage, of that there could -be no doubt whatever. But oh! that <i><span lang="pt" xml:lang="pt">correio</span></i>, -the post, was always at fault; and then many -anecdotes were given at great length of hairbreadth -<span class='pageno' id='Page_142'>142</span>escapes and heavy losses incurred by the -sins and omissions of the Portuguese post-office. -All this was no doubt interesting, but not helpful -to me in my quandary, and I gently led the -talk again to the chance of my getting a conveyance. -The outlook was not hopeful, but -the sympathetic muleteer somewhat doubtfully -suggested to the innkeeper that some one near -had a pair of mules. A significant look passed -round, but the hint was not lost upon me, and -by dint of much diplomacy a <i><span lang="pt" xml:lang="pt">rapaz</span></i> was sent off -for the mules. He returned by-and-by with an -excellent-looking pair of animals, and an ancient -shandrydan was pulled out of a stable. I wondered -what had caused the hesitation, but my -wonder did not last long. No sooner were the -mules hitched to the bar than they began to kick -furiously. Kicking chains were of little use; -the lout who drove the team used his whip with -heart and arm, the pieced and spliced rope and -chain harness was strained almost to breaking, -and the ancient “machine” threatened every -moment to disintegrate into splinters.</p> - -<div id='fp142' class='figcenter id002'> -<img src='images/i_197.jpg' alt='' class='ig001' /> -<div class='ic001'> -<p>A COUNTRY RAILWAY STATION.</p> -</div> -</div> - -<p class='c000'>And so the team kicked their hardest all the -seven miles to Thomar, and performed the distance, -as it seemed to me, in one continued -<span class='pageno' id='Page_143'>143</span>gymnastic exercise, more on their fore-legs than -on their full complement of limbs. But kicking -mules were powerless to mar the delight of the -drive. The road was a perfect one, over hills -covered with pines and dales ablaze with purple -heather. The cool mountain breeze, laden with -the scent of wild thyme, brought with it a new -sense of delight which made breathing a conscious -enjoyment, and the jaded elderly person in the -shivering shandrydan felt impelled to shout aloud -in mere exhilaration of living in such an atmosphere. -Only a three weeks before I had seen -Deeside at its best, but Deeside heather was dull, -and the Deeside pine-clad hills in their wreaths of -clouds were depressing, in comparison with this -sparkling sweep of sandy moor and mountain.</p> - -<p class='c000'>Turning the shoulder of the highest ridge -we came in sight of the vast and beautiful -valley below us with Thomar in its midst -upon its river bank nestling in greenery, with -its steep, abrupt hill and castle standing sentinel -over it. It was Sunday, and, although -broad daylight when I drove into Thomar, a -flight of rockets rushed into the air from the -town-hall, and the braying of a brass band told -me that the town was <i><span lang="fr" xml:lang="fr">en fête</span></i>. It was, I learnt, -<span class='pageno' id='Page_144'>144</span>the ceremony of prize-giving and treating the -school children by the town council, and all the -little ones, clean, chubby, and well-clad they -looked, were trooping, shouting, and cheering, as -children do the world over. I found a warm -welcome at the Hotel União, and was soon convinced -that the Chão de Maçãs meeting was right -in their assurance that the failure to send the -carriage was from no fault of the host, a gentleman -of cultured manners and tastes, quite unlike -the ordinary type of Portuguese innkeeper. He -was distressed to have received no letter to advise -him of my coming, as he ought to have done -two days before, but an hour or two afterwards -he rushed into my room, excited and triumphant. -He had forced them to open the post-office, -Sunday though it was, and had rescued my letter -from a heap which some careless postman had -neglected to deliver! Thenceforward Senhor -Jose Mathias Araujo, a pattern of Portuguese -hotelkeepers, was indefatigable in making me, -a mere passing stranger though I was, of whose -name he had only heard vaguely, feel at home -and comfortable at Thomar.</p> - -<div id='fp144' class='figcenter id001'> -<img src='images/i_201.jpg' alt='' class='ig001' /> -<div class='ic001'> -<p>A CORNER OF THE TOWN HALL AND THE CONVENT, THOMAR.</p> -</div> -</div> - -<p class='c000'>The place is one which to my latest days -I shall never forget. A clean little rectangular -<span class='pageno' id='Page_145'>145</span>town with straight streets of singularly modern -aspect, on the banks of an exquisitely beautiful -stream fringed by trees and gardens. The -shops for the most part are but doorways open -upon the street, for they have not adopted -the modern fashion of windows for the display -of goods. And life in general seems to pass -drowsily, for with the exception of a small -factory in some ancient conventual buildings on -the farther bank of the stream, there is not -much doing in the place.</p> - -<p class='c000'>But the object of my coming to this sweet, -dull, little town pervades it everywhere. At the -end of the three straight streets running from -the river to the square market-place, with its -ancient church and town-hall, there looms upon -a steep hill, right up over the roofs as it seems, -the most splendid and interesting mediæval castle-monastery -in this land of hill-top strongholds—the -ancient fortress headquarters of the crusading -knights of the Order of Christ, successors -in Portugal of the Templars. Thomar was the -metropolis and fief of the Order, and on all -sides the emblem of their peculiar cross is -evident. Impressed upon my mind for ever -is the view as I first gazed upon it from the -<span class='pageno' id='Page_146'>146</span>main street (of course, incongruously called now -after Serpa Pinto) on the sparkling autumn day. -Clear and sharp high up on the hill against the -indigo sky stood a ruined bell tower through -whose gaping window the light shone, with -tall, pointed cypresses by its side, and flanked -by a mighty stretch of warm, grey battlements, -above which rose the bulk of a great square -keep.</p> - -<p class='c000'>A zigzag path leads from behind the sixteenth-century -town-hall in the praça up the rocky -sides of the precipitous hill. Gnarled olive -trees, dwarf oaks, and aloes grew in the crevices -and amidst the ruins of outer walls upon the -face of the declivity; and the outer donjon, -still standing unwrecked across the path, shows -the tremendous strength even of these exterior -defences. Above these loomed the Titanic -walls, their battlemented sides and turrets, all -stained a golden yellow with the lichen that -covered them. The inner donjon, which adjoins -the picturesque ruined bell tower, gives entrance -to a charming grassy garden with tall cypresses, -orange trees, and gay flowers, growing in what -was once the wide courtyard of the castle; and -the huge square main keep standing in the -midst, all dismantled as it is, rears its flame-tinged -battlements as proudly as when the -soldiers of the Cross held this isolated stronghold -against the hordes of Islam. The walls -are everywhere pierced with loopholes in the -shape of a cross surmounting a globe, and the -cruciform device of the Order is graven upon -stones on all sides.</p> - -<div id='fp146' class='figcenter id001'> -<img src='images/i_205.jpg' alt='' class='ig001' /> -<div class='ic001'> -<p>SOME BEAUTIES OF THOMAR.</p> -</div> -</div> - -<p class='c000'><span class='pageno' id='Page_147'>147</span>Connected with the walls of the ancient castle, -and upon a somewhat higher level than the keep, -there stands the high round church of the Templars, -with buttresses of immense strength reaching -to the parapet, and a crumbling square bell -tower upon one of its faces. Upon an ancient -slab let into the sides of the church an inscription -tells how Dom Affonso, first King of -Portugal, and Gualdrim Paes, master of the -Portuguese Templars, constructed this edifice in -1108. Joined to this ancient structure is one of -the most astounding specimens of Manueline -architecture in Portugal, built in the early -sixteenth century, when all the country was -pulsating with new life and eager longings. It -is the choir and chapter-house, and behind them -is the ruin of the great monastery of the Order of -Christ. Words are weak to convey an idea of -<span class='pageno' id='Page_148'>148</span>the capricious splendour of the choir and chapter-house -so far as they remain undefaced, for -later ages have done their best to spoil the -edifice. Eight cloisters have been built around -it, and tacked on to it, by the sixteenth and -seventeenth centuries. Its lovely Manueline -doorway has been marred, and the east end of -the building blocked as high as its upper -windows by the “Cloister of the Philips.”</p> - -<div id='fp148' class='figcenter id001'> -<img src='images/i_209.jpg' alt='' class='ig001' /> -<div class='ic001'> -<p><span class='sc'>The Choir and Chapter-House, Thomar</span>.</p> -</div> -</div> - -<p class='c000'>But notwithstanding all the vandalism, enough -of the Manueline building remains intact to -strike the beholder with reverent wonder at -the intricate beauty of the work, and the inexhaustible -invention of the design. The doorway -stands in a recess reaching to the parapet, -and enclosed within an arch of surprising beauty, -of which the under curve is lined with an -elaborate pendent ornament. Within the recess -filling the whole space and over the door itself, -figures in niches stand under canopies and upon -pillars in which caprice and intricacy surpass themselves. -Coiled cables, bossed spirals, floreated -pinnacles, armillary spheres, crosses, and intertwined -branches, stand out in high relief and -under cut, as if the sculptors had purposely -sought difficulties in order to overcome them. -<span class='pageno' id='Page_149'>149</span>The arch of the door itself is beyond description, -so luxuriant is the design of the chiselled -stone which forms the three grooves and two -spiral pilasters around it. The parapet of the -whole edifice is similarly rich, alternating -the cross of the Order with the armillary -sphere; and although most of the lower part -of the walls is hidden, the view of the east -end with its two corner towers, as seen from -the roof of the adjoining cloister, is magnificent. -The lower window, which lights the interior -of the choir, is a massive tangle of outstanding -cables; each point being crowned by the cross -and the armillary sphere which formed the -device of the grand master, the famous Prince -Henry the Navigator. Around one of the -corner towers a great chain cable, each link -carved entire in stone, is braced, and around -the other an equally tremendous buckled belt, -representing the Order of the Garter, which -the Prince, a Plantagenet on his mother’s side, -possessed. The upper window which lights -the chapter-house is more suggestive still. It -is a highly decorated circular light bevilled -into the deep thickness of the wall, and represents -upon the sloping inner face of the -<span class='pageno' id='Page_150'>150</span>circle a series of bulging staysails, each held -down by a rope.</p> - -<p class='c000'>But all this description in detail is incapable -of conveying an idea of the richness of effect -produced by the whole work. The exuberance -of the style and its tricky capriciousness may -be, and are, condemned by purists as in questionable -taste; but as an outcome of national -feeling, and as an example of original inventive -ingenuity and patience, this and other notable -specimens of the style, to which reference -will be made later, are of the highest interest -to the student, and a delight to the ordinary -observer who can free himself from the straightlaced -traditions of the schools.</p> - -<p class='c000'>Inside the grave old round church of the -Templars, to which this gorgeous edifice was to -serve as a choir for the warrior monks of Christ, -a fine Byzantine altar stands in the centre. The -interior of the edifice itself is a quaint and curious -mixture of Byzantine, Moorish, Romanesque, and -Gothic, the pillars being painted and gilt in -oriental taste, whilst the splendid canopy over -the central altar is pure Gothic, and dated 1500. -In four of the eleven arched spaces upon the -wall of the circular church there are some -<span class='pageno' id='Page_151'>151</span>ancient pictures of the highest interest, the remaining -seven having been stolen by the French -invaders in the Napoleonic wars. The paintings -are fine enough to be by the hand of Jan Van -Eyck himself, and are, as usual, ascribed by -Portuguese to the mythical Gran Vasco. It is -far more likely, however, that they may be the -work of a painter called Jean Dralia of Bruges, -who was living in this monastery at the end of -the fifteenth century, and is buried here. It is -lamentable to see the condition to which these -masterpieces have been allowed to fall from sheer -want of care; and unless they are promptly -rescued, a few years more will complete their -ruin.</p> - -<p class='c000'>The great choir, added on to the round -church, presents in its interior the same wealth -of fancy as that already described on the -outside; but the wonderful choir stalls of the -Manueline period were stolen or destroyed during -the French invasion. As I stood under the -exquisitely carved ceiling of this choir, looking -towards the Byzantine altar in the round -church before me, my mind flew back to a scene -enacted here in April 1581, which I had more -than once endeavoured to describe in writing -<span class='pageno' id='Page_152'>152</span>without having seen the place. Philip II. had -followed in the devastating steps of Alba to -wrest from the native Portuguese pretender the -crown he coveted. Portugal had sullenly bent -its neck to the yoke, and the nobles had either -been exiled or bought to the side of the Spaniard. -But one thing more was needed to make grim -Philip legally King of Portugal as well as King -of Spain. The Portuguese Cortes, elected of the -people, though in this case elected with Alba’s -grip upon its throat, had to swear allegiance to -the new monarch, and Philip had to pledge his -oath to respect the rights and liberties of his new -subjects. The stronghold of the Knights of -Christ at Thomar was chosen by the Spaniard -for the crowning act of Portuguese national -subjection; and here Philip arrived on the 15th -March 1581. On the 3rd April, in one of those -charming little letters to his orphan daughters, -he wrote from Thomar saying that the Cortes -would sit soon, for many people were already -arriving, and the oaths would be taken as soon -as they were met. “You have heard,” he says, -“that they insist upon my dressing in brocade, -much against my will, but they say it is the -custom here.”</p> - -<p class='c000'><span class='pageno' id='Page_153'>153</span>On the 16th of April the church of the -monastery was aglow with shimmer of gold -and gems and rich stuffs. Under a dais at -the end of this choir Philip sat in a robe of -cloth of gold over a dress of crimson brocade; -though his heart was sad for the death of his -last wife, and he hated splendour in his broken -old age. After mass had been said, the Cortes -did homage and swore to keep their faith to -him as king; and then stepping down from -the throne, he advanced to the high altar and -solemnly pledged his word to respect the laws -and liberties of Portugal. How little he relished -the splendour is seen in a letter he sent to his -girls from Thomar a fortnight later, as soon -as he could find time to write to those whom -he loved more dearly than any other creatures -on earth. “How much I wish,” he wrote, “you -could have seen the ceremony of taking the oath -from a window as my nephew [the Archduke -Albert] did, who saw everything excellently. -But I send you a full account of it all.... -I have given the Golden Fleece to the Duke of -Braganza, and he went with me to mass, both -of us wearing the collar of the Order; which -upon my mourning looked very bad, and I can -<span class='pageno' id='Page_154'>154</span>tell you he looked much smarter than I did, -although they say that the day of the oath was -the first time he had worn low shoes, though -everybody is wearing them here now except -myself.” Thomar, for the last time in its existence, -was a blaze of splendour for those six -feverish weeks; for Spanish and Portuguese nobles, -jealous of each other, vied in lavish expenditure; -and then the fortress of the Knights was left -to its solitude: gradually royal encroachments -stripped the Order of its wealth and power, and -Thomar lived in memory alone.</p> - -<p class='c000'>The upper chamber of the Manueline building -over the choir is the chapter-house of the Order -of Christ. A grand, low, pillared hall, with the -twisted cables and the repeated cross and sphere, -testifying once more to the reigning idea of the -period of the Navigator Grand-Master. Here -it was that the Portuguese Cortes sat to confirm -the religious act of allegiance to Philip, and set -the seal of subservience upon the nation for -nearly a century. Every carved stone and -crocket has a story to tell if we could but hear -it. Here in the older monastic building the -Navigator himself held his chapters, dwelling -in the adjoining palace, in the intervals of his -<span class='pageno' id='Page_155'>155</span>life-task upon his eyrie at Sagres; here in the -“cloisters of the Philips,” dull Philip III. held his -monastic court upon his one visit to Portugal; -and the magnificent cloister of John III. testifies -to the classical reaction after the exuberance of -the times of his father Dom Manuel.</p> - -<p class='c000'>In the quaint little Gothic cloister around the -burial-place of the monks, called the “Cloister -of Dom Henrique,” a strange sight is to be seen -in the upper ambulatory. Baltasar de Faria was -the instrument of Philip II. in forcing the Spanish -form of Inquisition ruthlessly upon Portugal, -and in cruelty surpassed his master. So bitterly -hated was he that the saying ran that earth itself -would reject and refuse to assimilate the body of -such a monster. In the lid of a stone coffin in -the cloister a pane of glass is set, and he who will -may gaze and see how Baltasar de Faria looks -now. He was a splendid courtier in his time, -and doubtless a gallant-looking one too, for it -was a sumptuous age; but the poor gentleman’s -looks have now little to recommend them, as he -lies contorted and mummified but perfect in his -narrow home, to be gazed and wondered at by -those who list—a scoff for the ribald, a text for -the moralist.</p> - -<p class='c000'><span class='pageno' id='Page_156'>156</span>More there was, much more, to describe in -this wonderful monastery, but I have said more -than enough to prove that the visitor to Portugal -who misses Thomar has failed to see a relic, -which, in its way, has hardly an equal in Europe. -The drives around Thomar are exquisitely -beautiful, the view from the hill across the -river embracing the monastery and the great -white sanctuary of the Misericordia, with its -long <i><span lang="it" xml:lang="it">scala sacra</span></i>, upon the twin hill, being one -never to be forgotten. Just outside the town, -hard by an ancient pillar marking the junction -place of the armies which won for a second time -the independence of Portugal from Spain (at -Aljubarrota, 1385), there stands the beautiful -old church of Santa Maria, a perfect Gothic -fane; and close to its west end a strong tower -built as a place of refuge for its constructors -against the constant attacks of the Moors. Much -I should like to linger upon Thomar: upon the -quaint garb of the peasants, the picturesque bits -of the old Manueline church of St. João in the -praça, upon the lovely private gardens by the side -of the stream, upon the noble aqueduct, and upon -the sweet tranquillity of the acacia-shaded walks; -but I dare not delay further, for the carriage is -at the door of the humble though hospitable, -Hotel União, to carry me on this brilliant -morning the twenty-five miles to Leiria, where -I must pass the night. As we drove clear of -the town the loveliness of its situation came -home to one with more intensity than ever. -The peaceful stream winding through the plain, -its course marked by a continuous line of poplars, -the pine-clad hills all around—miles away but -in this clear air seeming within touching distance -of the hand—the cluster of white and pink houses -with red roofs, and, almost sheer above them, -the two hills, one crowned by its never-to-be-forgotten -monastery-castle with its long battlemented -walls, its high keep, and, most striking -of all, its gaunt bell tower, with its guard of tall -cypresses; whilst climbing up the gentler green -slope of the other hill is the snow-white <i><span lang="it" xml:lang="it">scala -sacra</span></i> of twenty-five flights of steps leading to -the gleaming sanctuary of the Misericordia. -Above all a sky of deep luminous blue, and -pervading all the soft warm air, sweet with the -scent of thyme, basil, cistus, and pines.</p> - -<div id='fp156' class='figcenter id001'> -<img src='images/i_219.jpg' alt='' class='ig001' /> -<div class='ic001'> -<p>CHURCH OF ST. JOÃO IN THE PRAÇA, THOMAR.</p> -</div> -</div> - -<p class='c000'><span class='pageno' id='Page_157'>157</span>Thus, for two hours or more, I drove over a -good road, winding round the foot of rising -hills, and following the sinuosity of fertile valleys, -<span class='pageno' id='Page_158'>158</span>above me grey boulders, around me pines, olives, -and sweeps of flowering heather on the red earth. -At length, afar off, there loomed a bolder hill -than the rest, rising abruptly and crowned by -another great fortress, as it seemed at an unscalable -height, with a cluster of ancient houses -nestled just beneath it. Patience and a scarped -road on the hillside, however, enabled us to reach -without apparent difficulty half up the hill to -the modern village of Ourem, where a rest for -the horses and a meal for myself had been agreed -upon. The place was dead, basking in the hot -sunshine, all the village, as it seemed, baked to -the uniform yellowish-white colour of the soil of -the hill upon which it stood. The gaunt yellow -castle above<a id='r1' /><a href='#f1' class='c013'><sup>[1]</sup></a> softened only by the verdure of -a crown of pines, and just below its walls the -ancient town and a great monastery of long ago.</p> - -<div id='fp158' class='figcenter id002'> -<img src='images/i_223.jpg' alt='' class='ig001' /> -<div class='ic001'> -<p>THE BRIDGE AT THOMAR.</p> -</div> -</div> - -<p class='c000'><span class='pageno' id='Page_159'>159</span>The hostelry was humble enough, but a chatty, -shrewd-looking, old lady provided an excellent -luncheon for me in an upper room, and became -charmingly friendly when I praised her wine, -of which she was very proud, and with reason, -grown, as she told me, in the vineyard at the -back of the house, and as good a wine of its -sort as I care to drink. She was equally pleased -with the approval of her quince marmalade, and -pressed no end of home-made confections upon -her passing guest, whilst she kept repeating that -“<i><span lang="pt" xml:lang="pt">os senhores ingleses que veem sempre alabão muito -o nosso vinho</span></i>;” for the approval of Englishmen -in this country is always taken as fixing the final -seal of excellence upon anything.</p> - -<p class='c000'>Outside in the main street of the town complete -quiet reigned in the fierce sunshine of -midday. Against the indigo sky the immense -castle on its peak showed clear, as nothing is -ever seen in our mist-laden atmosphere. A man -passes, bearing a great boat-shaped basket piled -with big black grapes, the bloom upon them -still undisturbed; four cronies in black nightcaps -and with long staves in their hands gossip in the -parallelogram of black shadow thrown athwart -the road by the church tower; and, by-and-by, -<span class='pageno' id='Page_160'>160</span>three lithe damsels with bright yellow head-kerchiefs -flowing as they walk, swing by joyously; -then comes, painfully hobbling beneath a heavy -burden of yellow gourds, a barefooted old woman, -and anon a man riding <i><span lang="pt" xml:lang="pt">à la gineta</span></i>, a pacing -nag with brass-embossed harness, and great box -stirrups. Then silence again for another half-hour, -and this is life at Ourem.</p> - -<p class='c000'>Still through a land of pine and heather with -beautiful little valleys full of vines, figs, and -olives, we drove for two hours more, and, just -as the black shadows began to lengthen, we drove -into the town of Leiria, the Calippo of the Romans, -and for long the stronghold whence the Moors -harried the advancing Christians to the north. -It is a lovely place on the banks of the Liz, -set in the midst of pine-clad hills, and the centre -of a great agricultural district. Here, again, -the two abrupt eminences that loom over the -town are crowned respectively by the enormous -mediæval stronghold and the religious house -that for ever seems to keep it company—the -sword and the cross, twin instruments of soldier -and priest, to keep the people in subjection, both -alike happily now superseded, in Portugal at -least, by more enlightened means.</p> - -<div id='fp160' class='figcenter id001'> -<img src='images/i_227.jpg' alt='' class='ig001' /> -<div class='ic001'> -<p>IN THE MAIN STREET OF OUREM.</p> -</div> -</div> - -<p class='c000'><span class='pageno' id='Page_161'>161</span>I started soon after my arrival at the inn, -where there was no particular temptation to -remain, to scale the hill from which the castle -frowned down upon the town. The townspeople -seemed to care nothing for the vast ruin that to -me was the one attraction of the place. No one -cared to guide me up the steep. It was easy, -they said, to find the way by following the path, -and the castle ruins were open to all. So I -started alone, and wound round the lower ascent, -finding myself at last on the side of the hill -farthest from the town, and at a point from -which the castle was apparently quite inaccessible, -as the ascent was almost a sheer precipice. A -couple of women and some children were in a -field by the wayside, and from them I learnt -that I should have taken another path, and have -ascended on the opposite face of the hill. It -was annoying, for the day was already declining, -and I had other things to do on the morrow. -Just then an officious urchin of twelve volunteered -to show me a way he knew of by the side -I was on, and rather than lose my opportunity I -followed him across a ploughed field to the foot -of the steep.</p> - -<p class='c000'>A rocky path aslant the hill amidst the undergrowth -<span class='pageno' id='Page_162'>162</span>seemed to offer no great difficulty at first, -and I began the climb. The path, if it can so -be called, was continued by other slanting ascents -more difficult than the first, but still intent only -upon each next step, I scrambled on by the aid of -tufts of esparto grass, until I became aware that -the track had ended altogether, and that the -farther ascent was apparently impossible. Not -until then had I looked down, but when I did so -I understood in a moment the peril in which I -was. I stood at a height of some five hundred -feet above the level, and descent by the way I -had come was absolutely impossible. For the last -hundred feet I had only scrambled up by the aid -of occasional stones that afforded a momentary -lodgment for the toe and by clutching tufts of -grass, but these would not help me to descend. -The pine-needles that lay thick underfoot made -the slope as slippery as ice, and I knew that if -I attempted to retrace my steps I should certainly -be dashed to pieces. The poor women below -knew it too; for one was wringing her hands in -horror, and had thrown her apron over her face to -hide from her the coming catastrophe, whilst the -other was loudly bewailing, whilst she belaboured -the head of the urchin who had been the cause -<span class='pageno' id='Page_163'>163</span>of the trouble. For one moment panic seized -me, but it was succeeded immediately by a cool -wave of critical, speculative interest, as if another -person’s life and not mine were at stake, as to -the sporting chance of my ever being able to -negotiate the hundred feet of sheer precipice that -lay between me and the top. Each step achieved -was a triumph, and my whole soul was concentrated -upon the chances of the next being -successful. Of course, the ascent had to be made -by long zigzags on the face of the precipice, and -again and again, as a stone slipped from beneath -my foot or a frond of bracken yielded to my -grasp, I gave myself up for lost. But I never -glanced below, and the jagged and frowning -battlements above me gradually drew nearer and -nearer, until at last, I know not how, I stood -beneath them, panting but safe, and then, looking -from the giddy height to the field below, I saw -quite a large group of peasants now, waving -their black nightcaps, and shouting in token of -rejoicing at my safety.</p> - -<p class='c000'>The great castle around me, built by King -Diniz the Farmer, in the thirteenth century, -upon the site of the Moorish stronghold, was of -immense extent, and included ruins of residential -<span class='pageno' id='Page_164'>164</span>edifices of later mediæval times. As I saw it now -it was a dream of beauty. The setting sun falling -athwart its lichen-covered stones dyed them -as red as blood. Within the vast crenellated -walls two distinct castles stood, one the cyclopean -early structure, and the other a lovely Gothic -palace, whose ogival windows, pointed arches, and -slender pillars were still graceful in decay. The -dismantled chapel is exquisite, and if light had -served or any intelligent guidance had been obtainable, -the inscriptions in it would have been -interesting. But the twilight was falling, and -the magnificent view from the battlements over -the town, the plain, and the mountains called -to me.</p> - -<div id='fp164' class='figcenter id001'> -<img src='images/i_233.jpg' alt='' class='ig001' /> -<div class='ic001'> -<p>THE CASTLE, LEIRIA.</p> -</div> -</div> - -<p class='c000'>It was a feast of loveliness to the eye. The -golden light of the setting sun glorified the vast -plain below me, with its silver river fringed by -poplars winding through it for many a mile, and -the hills in the distance clothed to the crests with -lofty pines, black and solemn now in the fading -light. On a hill adjoining that upon which I -stood the great white Convent and Sanctuary of -the Incarnation looks across at the crumbling -castle that it has outlived; and, just below me, -between the inner and outer defences of the -<span class='pageno' id='Page_165'>165</span>stronghold, on a green grassy slope, some children -are playing joyously. As I wander down -the way, safe and easy on this side, through -mighty donjons, and thick, tunnelled walls which -have seen so many bloody sights and echoed so -many dismal sounds, the very spirit of peace seems -to pervade the place. Half-way down, leaning -over one of the grim walls, was a beautiful peasant -girl talking to her young lover, who stood at the -foot, and cascading masses of purple flowers fell -across the jagged stones here and there, giving -the just touch of colour needed to perfect the -scene. Past a quaint old desecrated church and -the enormous monastery of St. Peter, now, like -most of such places, a barrack, I tread the picturesque -praça of the town again, and stroll -along the fine avenue of planes and eucalyptus -by the side of the river as the after-glow lights -up the cliff and the castle with a pearly reflected -glamour. The hill from below is like that of -Edinburgh, but apparently double as high, and -the vast extent of the battlements is more evident -than when seen on the summit. Huge buttresses -of rock seem to sustain the curtain that connects -the keep of the fortress with the Gothic palace, -and everywhere the grey of the granite is covered -<span class='pageno' id='Page_166'>166</span>with a patina of yellow lichen, and the crevices -filled with yew, aloes, and olives.</p> - -<div id='fp166' class='figcenter id002'> -<img src='images/i_237.jpg' alt='' class='ig001' /> -<div class='ic001'> -<p>ON THE ALAMEDA, LEIRIA.</p> -</div> -</div> - -<p class='c000'>The next day was market-day at Leiria, and -long before dawn the town was busy. This -was by far the largest country market I saw in -Portugal, and the gathering of peasantry the -quaintest and most picturesque. The shops, -particularly those in the mosaic-paved praça, are -mainly wholesale warehouses for the supply of -village traders, and a very extensive distributing -trade must be done. The town itself, on this -occasion, was one vast emporium, and multitudes -of people bargained from early morning till past -midday in the acacia avenues under the brilliant -dark-blue sky. A gay-looking crowd they were: -for the costume here is quite distinct. The -women invariably wear a velvet pork-pie hat -over a yellow or red head-kerchief, of which the -ends hang down the back, and the older women -have full black cloaks with hoods, whilst most of -them have a broad band, some nine inches wide, -of yellow cloth round the bottom of the skirt. -The wares exposed for sale were infinite. In -the praça great heaps of maize, grapes, potatoes, -chestnuts, and beans covered the mosaic -pavement, whilst stalls displayed calicoes and -<span class='pageno' id='Page_167'>167</span>cloths of vivid colours. Giant yellow gourds -in high piles lined the footpath, and elsewhere -under the shade of the trees stacks of grass-fodder -and maize-leaves for cattle stood. In another -space heaps of salt, and long lines of stalls for -the sale of salted sardines and salted pork, were -followed by a score of temporary butchers’ shops. -Then came stands for the sale of fresh fish, skate, -sardines, and cod, with the inevitable bacalhau; -and farther on, spread upon the ground, were -hundreds of homely crocks, red amphoræ, slender -and beautiful in shape, coarse household dishes -gaudily decorated, and unglazed jars to keep water -cool. Beneath a beautiful picturesque arcade of -ancient arches in the praça women were seated -before panniers piled with pears, figs, apples, -melons, and grapes, such as Covent Garden might -glory in; and hard by strings of garlic, onions, -and eschalot claimed their purchasers. In a field -by the side of the river long lines of oxen, horses, -and asses were for sale, and men in red and green -nightcaps, and trousers made of two or three -different coloured cloths, soberly bargained for -the beasts. Over all was the dark-blue arch of -the sky, and the brilliant sun, tempered beneath -the trees by the light-green of the acacia leaves: -<span class='pageno' id='Page_168'>168</span>but what strikes most an observer who is familiar -with the south, is the absence of vociferation and -apparent excitement. There was no shouting, -no pushing or quarrelling, and every transaction -in the chaffering town seemed to be got through -with serious deliberation. Even the cluster of -gaily-dressed women around the stately sixteenth-century -fountain adjoining the hotel, gossiped -staidly, and the children playing beneath the -trees were as grave as little judges. This is -Leiria as I saw it on market-day; but long before -sunset the country people trudged homeward -again; the ox-wains carried away the produce -and merchandise; the stalls and booths folded -their canvas sides and disappeared, and the next -morning Leiria resumed its habitual sleep, from -which it awakens but once a week.</p> - -<div id='fp168' class='figcenter id001'> -<img src='images/i_241.jpg' alt='' class='ig001' /> -<div class='ic001'> -<p>THE ENCARNAÇÃO, LEIRIA.</p> -</div> -</div> - -<hr class='c014' /> - -<div class='footnote' id='f1'> -<p class='c000'><span class='label'><a href='#r1'>1</a>. </span>I noted with interest that this castle of Ourem, and others -of these vast hill-top strongholds, had the outer defences -arranged similarly to those I have described in the chapter on -the buried city of Citania; namely, that on the side of the hill, -where attack was difficult or impracticable, the outer walls -dipped far down the slope, whilst at the point where danger -might be apprehended the three lines of circumvallation were -comparatively close together. This arrangement of hill-top -defences was evidently long pre-Roman in the Peninsula, -and seems to have been adopted by the Romans and their -Gothic successors.</p> -</div> - -<div class='chapter'> - <span class='pageno' id='Page_169'>169</span> - <h2 class='c006'>VI<br /> <span class='large'>BATALHA AND ALCOBAÇA</span></h2> -</div> - -<p class='c012'>I drove out of Leiria in the morning just as -the business of the market was in full swing; -and for the first half-hour of the upward way -amidst a country of vines and olives, we met -crowds of country people riding into the town -on heavily laden asses. Then, mounting high -above the plain, we passed into the region of -pines and heather, where the warm but invigorating -air came charged with the scent of -thyme, lavender, and rosemary. At a point of -the road, about eight miles from Leiria, a deep -hollow opens to the left, and at the bottom of it, -and reached by a downhill road running almost -parallel with the way we came, lies the world-famed -abbey of Batalha, the wonder and envy of -ecclesiastical architects for six centuries, and even -now, dismantled and bedevilled as it is, one of -the most beautiful Gothic structures in existence.</p> - -<p class='c000'>Before its west front I stand lost in admiration. -<span class='pageno' id='Page_170'>170</span>The whole edifice is built of a marble-like limestone, -which time has turned to a beautiful soft -yellowish cream colour, similar to that of an -old Japanese ivory carving. Like most Portuguese -cathedrals the body of the church is somewhat -narrow; but in this case a large chapel -on the north side extends the apparent width -of the exterior west front. How can one hope -to convey in written words an adequate impression -of this exquisite façade? To the severe -perpendicular parallel lines over the door and -window, reminiscent of the west front of -Lincoln, is added a lace-like elaboration of -parapets, pinnacles, and glorious flying buttresses, -which almost bewilders by its aerial gaiety and -transparent richness. A beautiful Gothic breastrail -stands before a double flight of steps -leading down to the west door, for the abbey -is lower even than the road before it; “the -portal,” wrote William Beckford, a hundred -and twenty years ago, “full fifty feet in height, -surmounted by a window of perforated marble -of nearly the same lofty dimensions, deep as a -cavern, and enriched with canopies and imagery -in a style that would have done honour to -William of Wykeham, some of whose disciples or -<span class='pageno' id='Page_171'>171</span>co-disciples in the train of the founder’s consort, -Philippa of Lancaster, had probably designed it.”</p> - -<p class='c000'>To me this door presented itself rather more -in detail. I saw a portal the whole width of -the nave-space, the deep, bevilled sides being -occupied by the Twelve Apostles standing under -rich Gothic canopies, and from the capitals above -them a slightly pointed arch sprang ending in -a floreated cross finial, the arch itself being -composed of six orders, each occupied by a -row of Kings of the House of David under -exquisite Gothic canopies. The great window -above is full of tracery so intricate and plastic -in appearance as almost to banish the impression -of a work in stone. The octagonal lantern of -the side chapel is supported by flying buttresses -of indescribable grace and lightness, and is fronted -by a screen pierced with three Gothic windows -almost level with the main west front; and -upon every point of the building and along -each side of the roof of the nave crocketed -pinnacles rise, supported by fairy flying buttresses—the -effect of the whole exterior from -the west front being an exquisite blending of -seriousness and exuberant rejoicing.</p> - -<p class='c000'>And these were precisely the feelings that -<span class='pageno' id='Page_172'>172</span>prompted the establishment here of the Dominican -abbey at the instance of its English -foundress, Philippa of Lancaster, daughter of -John of Gaunt, married in 1386 John, the -Master of Avis, the high-minded and patriotic -bastard of the royal house, who had successfully -resisted Spanish aggression the year before, -and, with the assistance of the English archers -at Aljubarrota, had gained for himself the -crown of Portugal. Here in the neighbourhood -of the battle, at the instance of Philippa, was -built this abbey of Dominican monks in devotional -thankfulness for the signal victory, and -for the rescue of the King from threatened -death. All through the older portion of the -building the English Plantagenet influence is -predominant, and marks the abbey as being -entirely different from all other ecclesiastical -buildings in Portugal.</p> - -<p class='c000'>The monastery was always a poorly endowed -one, in glaring contrast to the neighbouring -Cistercian house of Alcobaça, one of the richest -monastic houses in the world. Beckford, in his -humorous description of his visit to both houses -in 1782, draws a lively comparison between -the two. Accompanied by two great Portuguese -<span class='pageno' id='Page_173'>173</span>prelates, of whom he makes merciless -fun, he had gone to see Alcobaça at the wish of -the Prince Regent. His great train of servants -and attendants had been received with lavish -splendour and Gargantuan gluttony at Alcobaça, -and on the way with the prelate of the latter -house to visit Batalha, the whole party had got -drunk at Aljubarrota, whose wine is famous. -They arrived at Batalha at night.</p> - -<p class='c015'>“Whilst our sumpter mules were unloading, and ham and -pies and sausages were rolling out of plethoric hampers, I -thought these poor monks looked on rather enviously. My -more fortunate companions—no wretched cadets of the mortification -family these, but the true elder sons of fat mother -church—could hardly conceal their sneers of conscious superiority. -A contrast so strongly marked amused me not a little.... -The Batalha prior and his assistants looked quite -astounded when they saw the gauze-curtained bed and the -Grand Prior’s fringed pillow, and the Prior of St. Vincent’s -superb coverlid, and basins and ewers and other utensils of -glittering silver being carried in. Poor souls! they hardly -knew what to do or say or be at—one running to the right, -another to the left—one tucking up his flowing garments to -run faster, and another rebuking him for such a deviation from -monastic decorum.”</p> - -<p class='c000'>I have in my library a manuscript account -by Lord Strathmore of the visit he paid to the -two monasteries twenty years before Beckford, -and his account of the poverty of Batalha in -<span class='pageno' id='Page_174'>174</span>comparison with Alcobaça is more emphatic -still. He says:—</p> - -<p class='c015'>“Though far from rich, they received us with great hospitality. -The prior, an exceedingly good, kind, old man, -exerted his utmost efforts to do us honour, and had a cook sent -to him from the Bishop of Leria upon ye occasion. We here -with many thanks dismist our militia, who had been mounting -guard hitherto at ye door of our apartment. This convent is of -ye most elaborate and exquisite Gothic architecture I ever -saw, one part being left imperfect, being so beautiful that -nobody dar’d to finish it. When we took leave of our old -prior next morning ye only request he made us was that we -would relate to ye minister how much their fabric had -suffered by the earthquake [<i><span lang="la" xml:lang="la">i.e.</span></i> of 1755], and how much they -needed ye King’s assistance to repair it: whereas I could not -help observing that every one of our friends who had been -particularly assiduous about us at Alcobaça desired us to -remember their names particularly at Lisbon.”</p> - -<p class='c000'>Alas! priors and monks, rich and poor, have -all gone now, and the place is a “national -monument,” with hardly a pretence of being -a place of worship.</p> - -<p class='c000'>The interior of the church is almost severe -in its plainness, the lofty narrow nave being -divided by clustered pillars arranged in a -somewhat peculiar manner; the three pillars -facing the nave supporting the groins of the -main roof, whilst from the remaining three -spring the groining of the aisle. Before -<span class='pageno' id='Page_175'>175</span>the high altar, and close to the steps, are -two magnificent tombs side by side, the recumbent -figures upon them hand in hand; -the male in full armour, the woman clasping a -book. “<i><span lang="la" xml:lang="la">Hic Jacet Eduardus I., Port. et Alg., Rex et -Regina, Elenora Uxor Ejus</span></i>,” runs the inscription -around the fillet; and this is the tomb of the -unhappy Duarte, son of John the Great and -Philippa of Lancaster, who died of a broken -heart, whilst still young, at the disaster to his -arms and house in the defeat of his crusading -attack upon Tangier.</p> - -<p class='c000'>As Beckford saw the church during service -it must have throbbed with the life and colour -that it now lacks.</p> - -<p class='c015'>“There is greater plainness [<i><span lang="la" xml:lang="la">i.e.</span></i> than Winchester], less -panelling, and fewer intersections in the vaulted roof: but the -utmost richness of hue, at this time of day at least, was not -wanting. No tapestry however rich, no painting however -vivid, could equal the gorgeousness of the tint, the splendour of -the golden and ruby light which streamed forth from the long -series of stained glass windows: it played, flickering about in -all directions on pavement and on roof, casting over every -object myriads of glowing mellow shadows, ever in undulating -motion, like the reflection of branches swayed to and fro in the -breeze. We all partook of these gorgeous tints, the white -monastic garments of my conductors seemed as it were embroidered -with the brightest flowers of paradise, and our whole -procession kept advancing invested with celestial colours.”</p> - -<p class='c000'><span class='pageno' id='Page_176'>176</span>Iconoclasm and war have wrought their fell -work upon Batalha since then; but still the -lovely fane stands materially uninjured. The -transept-chapels and sacristy are fine, especially -the latter, though the seventeenth-century -carved woodwork matches ill with the exquisite -pure Gothic groining of the roof, and the great -yellow sarcophagus of Diego Lopez de Souza, -master of the Order of Christ, in the adjoining -chapel of St. Barbara, is a remarkable piece of -sixteenth-century work.</p> - -<p class='c000'>One of the great glories of Batalha is the side -chapel already mentioned, the octagonal “chapel -of the Founder.” The arrangement of it and -its general effect are strikingly like those of -Queen Victoria’s mausoleum at Frogmore. In -the centre, standing high and imposing in all -the pomp of Gothic tracery, are the twin tombs -of John the Great and his English wife, their -sculptured effigies hand in hand as the noble -pair went through life; and around the chapel -are ranged the sarcophagi of their sons Pedro, -João, Fernando (who chivalrously passed all -the best years of his life a hostage to the Moor), -and, the greatest of them all, the Prince Dom -Henrique the Navigator, who made Portugal -<span class='pageno' id='Page_177'>177</span>a world power. Upon each stone coffin are -carved the insignia of the Garter and the arms -of England quartered with those of Portugal, -and along the fillets run the quaint mottoes -that each royal personage adopted for his -device. Some of them are enigmatical; such -as that which consists of the repetition of the -word “<i><span lang="fr" xml:lang="fr">Désir</span></i>” alternating with the scale of -justice, and the other that offers the riddle of -“VII.,” a cogwheel, and “<i><span lang="pt" xml:lang="pt">Jamais</span></i>” repeated -again and again. “<span lang="la" xml:lang="la">Pro rege pro grege</span>,” on -the other hand, if hackneyed, is still quite -intelligible.</p> - -<p class='c015'>“All these princes,” says Beckford, “in whom the high bearing -of their intrepid father and the exemplary virtues and strong -sense of their mother were united, repose after their toil and -suffering in this secluded chapel, which, indeed, looks a place of -rest and holy quietude; the light equally diffused, forms, as it -were, a tranquil atmosphere, such as might be imagined worthy -to surround the predestined to happiness in a future world. I -withdrew from the contemplation of these tombs with reluctance, -every object in the chapel that contains them being so -pure in taste, so harmonious in colour, every armorial device, -every mottoed label, so tersely and correctly sculptured.... -The Plantagenet cast of the whole chamber conveyed to me a -feeling so interesting, so congenial, that I could hardly persuade -myself to move away.”</p> - -<p class='c000'>Every word written by Beckford a hundred -and twenty years ago of this chapel is true to-day, -<span class='pageno' id='Page_178'>178</span>and I could have lingered for hours before -the coffins of these heroic princes and their -parents in a day-dream of recollection prompted -by their noble lives and deeds.</p> - -<p class='c000'>Just outside the door of the chapel, in the -pavement of the nave, is a stone bearing the -almost effaced inscription that below it lies -the body of “Martin Gonsalves de Maçada, -who saved the life of the King Dom John in -the battle of Aljubarrota”; and one speculates -that had it not been for the fortunate deed of -this obscure gentleman, this great abbey would -never have been built, and the kings and princes -that lie in it would never have existed, with -the exception of the Master of Avis himself, -who would have passed down to history not as -the founder of a dynasty but as an unsuccessful -rebel.</p> - -<p class='c000'>A door in the south aisle leads into the renowned -cloister, and here, the work being of a -later date than the church, controversy has spent -itself as to whether the luxuriant exuberance of -the sculpture is, or is not, in perfect taste. -Personally I find the cloister exquisite beyond -description, and I care not whether the purists -condemn it or not. The sensation produced, -<span class='pageno' id='Page_179'>179</span>it is true, is—like all Manueline sculpture—neither -purely devotional nor highly exalted, but -rather one of joyous delight in the actual handiwork, -in the gracious curves, in the kaleidoscopic -variety, in the dexterous adaptation of means to -ends, and these sensations, though I am told that -they are vulgar when produced by ecclesiastical -sculpture, I experience in the fullest measure as -I gaze at this marvel of human skill, the cloistered -court of Batalha. Standing in the centre of the -courtyard and looking up at the abbey, one sees -three beautiful lace-like parapets rise one above the -other along the whole length, on cloister, clerestory, -and nave, clear-cut edges of perfect curves -against the blue sky. Each of the cloister arches -is filled with stone tracery of amazing richness -and variety, the cross of the Order of Christ and -the armillary sphere being deftly introduced in -the fretwork with great effect. This cloister, -like that of Belem, of which I shall speak later, -seems to mark the purer and less extravagant -development of the Manueline style, in which -the Gothic traditions have not been entirely cast -aside, and only the most callous soul could remain -unmoved by its exquisite beauty. From -the cloister there opens a chapter-house of the -<span class='pageno' id='Page_180'>180</span>same style and period, a perfect gem, although -the entrance arch leading to it shows signs, in -the lace-like pendent ornament that lines it, of -the over-elaboration which finally led to decadence. -The chapter-house is thus described by -Beckford with special reference to what struck -me most—namely, the exquisite groining, springing -like palm branches from clustered pillars in -the wall, and all centring in the apex of the -roof:—“It is,” he said, “a square of seventy -feet, and the most strikingly beautiful apartment -I ever beheld. The graceful arching of the -roof, unsupported by console or column, is unequalled; -it seems suspended by magic, indeed -human means failed twice in constructing this -bold unembarrassed space. Perseverance and the -animating encouragement of the sovereign founder -at length conquered every difficulty, and the -work remains to this hour secure and perfect.”</p> - -<p class='c000'>Close by is the great refectory of the monks, -now used as a sort of lumber-room museum of -débris; and leading from it the vast, vaulted -kitchen, its stone roof blackened still by the -smoke of centuries of cooking fires. The -humble little ancient cloister of the original -monastery still remains, with its rows of cells -in the upper ambulatory. Here there is no -Manueline exuberance or wealth, only reverent -pointed Gothic, grave groined roofs and arches -unadorned, enclosing, as of old, the sweet, -quiet little garden that more than a century ago -aroused the admiration of Beckford.</p> - -<div id='fp180' class='figcenter id002'> -<img src='images/i_255.jpg' alt='' class='ig001' /> -<div class='ic001'> -<p><span class='sc'>The Cloisters, Batalha.</span></p> -</div> -</div> - -<p class='c000'><span class='pageno' id='Page_181'>181</span>From there the distance is but a few steps -to the “unfinished chapels”; but the contrast -of feeling between the two places is wide indeed. -The chapels consist of a sort of Lady chapel -or apse built out at the back of the high altar, -like Henry VII.’s chapel at Westminster. A -large central chapel with ten smaller chapels -round it rise to perhaps half their intended -height, and roofless, for when King Manuel died -in 1521 the work was stopped and has never -been resumed. The first view of this fragment, -and particularly of the great arch by which -it was intended to connect it with the church, -strikes an observer with astonishment that human -brains and hands could ever compass such intricacy -of design and execution. Convolutions more -tortuous than those of Arab art, floridness more -overloaded than Churriguerra ever dreamt of, -boldness for which the only just word is insolence, -here run riot unrestrained, fatiguing -<span class='pageno' id='Page_182'>182</span>the eye, tiring the mind, and ending by palling -upon the senses from mere over-exuberance. -The lower portion and pillars, and the exterior -of the chapels, are restrained and sober, and this -makes the more overwhelming the arches and -the upper pillars designed to support the roof. -One feels that the design is that of a genius, -but of a genius whom another step would have -led to madness, and who threw aside all the -accepted canons of his art. But, withal, though -Beckford avoids detailed notice of these chapels, -it is impossible even for the purist in architecture -to pass such work by without some admiration -being mixed with his surprise. The great arch -leading into the church is the culminating point -of the work; its western side being a mass of -intertwined foliage, knots, cables, flowers, and -concentric lines, cut in high relief in seven -distinct mouldings or orders, and the inner line -of the arch is decorated with a deep pendent -open-work border; whilst forming part of the -intricate design of the whole arch, the enigmatical -words “<i><span lang="pt" xml:lang="pt">Tanias el Rey</span></i>” are repeated -hundreds of times on small labels. What the -words mean nobody knows, though the most -probable guess is that they may be an anagram -for “<i><span lang="pt" xml:lang="pt">Arte e Linyas</span></i>” (“art and lines,” in old -Portuguese).</p> - -<div id='fp182' class='figcenter id001'> -<img src='images/i_259.jpg' alt='' class='ig001' /> -<div class='ic001'> -<p>“<span class='sc'>The Unfinished Chapels,” Batalha</span></p> -</div> -</div> - -<p class='c000'><span class='pageno' id='Page_183'>183</span>As I walked up the road leading from the -hollow in which the abbey stands, I looked back -again and again at the perfect loveliness of the -building I was leaving behind. The flying -buttresses, the lines upon lines of fretwork -edging, the multitude of floreated pinnacles, and -the glorious Gothic of the west front, all of -the softened hue of old gold, presented in my -eyes the perfection of a Gothic building. I have -seen the stately grandeur of Amiens, the soaring -pride of Cologne, the vast magnificence of Burgos, -and the fairy prettiness of Milan, and I have -worshipped at the shrines of Ely, Norwich, and -Lincoln. Each one in its way is supreme and -incomparable; but Batalha, reservedly nestling -in its green hollow far from the busy haunts of -men, has a charm of its own that I have found -in no other Gothic church; and as I finally -turned my back upon it, I carried with me a -memory which in my life will never fade.</p> - -<p class='c000'>We are soon amongst the pines and heather -again, driving along an elevated ridge with a -valley and bold mountain ranges beyond upon -either side, the effect of the distant hills seen -<span class='pageno' id='Page_184'>184</span>through the perpendicular lines formed by the -straight pine trunks that cluster on each side -being very beautiful. A sort of light-blue veil -seems to cover the far landscape, such an atmosphere -as Corot loved to paint; not a mist -arising from dampness, but the azure tint of -the air itself seen by its clarity to a vast distance -through the dark pine copses.</p> - -<p class='c000'>The first sign of systematic begging that I -had experienced in Portugal was at Batalha; -groups of children, encouraged apparently by -the constant visitors to a show place, making -a regular business of cadging: for we were -getting now into the centre of Portugal where -the people are less sturdy and the position of -the peasant less prosperous than in the north. -Along the road from Batalha to Alcobaça, a -new and really charming form of begging was -resorted to by the children on the wayside—chubby, -well-fed mites they looked most of -them, evidently not in abject want. They -kneel on the roadside in an attitude of prayer, -their hands joined in supplication, their eyes -closed reverently and their expression rapt, like -little dirty angels. They have before them a -few cut flowers, and the moment the carriage -<span class='pageno' id='Page_185'>185</span>passes them they start like a flash of lightning -from their devotions, and throw the flowers -into the stranger’s lap, whilst they begin to -trot by the side of the vehicle in a dogged, persistent -way, not articulately asking for alms, but -simply trying to win a penny by reproachful -glances and disregard of all entreaties to them to -stop their dog-trot and go away. Needless to -say, such tactics are usually successful, for only -a very hard heart could withhold the small coin -they covet, when an angelic-looking child of -seven has panted half a mile barefooted by the -side of a carriage going at a brisk pace.</p> - -<p class='c000'>Half-way to Alcobaça the ridge upon which -the road runs narrows to a mere knife edge, and -on the left hand a wide valley sweeps down -suddenly, a bold long hill rising beyond. This is -the battlefield of Aljubarrota, upon which John, -the Master of Avis, won his crown, and for the -second time asserted the independence of Portugal -from Castile on the 14th August 1385. From -Thomar he had brought all the power that -patriotic Portugal could raise, and upon this -ridge awaited the attack of the Castilians, who, -if once they could pass it, would have all the seacoast -of Portugal at their mercy down almost to -<span class='pageno' id='Page_186'>186</span>the mouth of the Tagus. The position is not -very dissimilar from that of Bussaco, but upon -a smaller scale. The Portuguese right and left -flanks were both defended by projecting spurs; -upon one of which the English bowmen were -posted, and by standing upon the centre of the -position it is easy to see, even to-day, how skilfully -John the Great had chosen his ground for -the decisive struggle, and how difficult it was -for the Castilians to succeed. They dared not -proceed along the valley leaving this strong force -of enemies upon the heights behind them, able -to cut them off from their base, and harass them -flank and rear; whilst to swarm up these precipitous -slopes in the face of a semicircle of determined -opponents, and enfiladed by archers on -both flanks, seemed inviting defeat. All was -against the Spaniards. A mysterious epidemic -was prostrating them, the King of Castile was -ill, and had to be carried to the battle in a litter, -and, above all, the Portuguese were struggling -for the independence of their country, whilst the -Spaniards were fighting at the behest of a corrupt -and unpopular king. So on that fateful morning -in August, five hundred and twenty-three years -ago, as the chivalry of Castile struggled up these -<span class='pageno' id='Page_187'>187</span>broken slopes, the men upon the ridge from -which I look down now over the smiling plain, -stood like a steel wall, and with mace and battle-axe, -and double-handed swords, clove and smote -them, whilst the cloth-yard arrows pierced and -bowled them over by hundreds ere they reached -the summit. The hearts of the Spaniards failed -them, and down the slope they fled, delivered -now to carnage and to capture. Ten thousand -of them, the best fighting men in Castile, fell, -the king barely escaped by flight, whilst half his -court were taken. Aljubarrota was won, the house -of Avis fixed upon the throne for two hundred -years, and the alliance between England and -Portugal cemented so strongly as to have lasted -unbroken to this day.</p> - -<p class='c000'>Through the poverty-stricken looking village -of Aljubarrota, where some questionable relics -of the battle are exhibited for a consideration -(though no one offers me wine, as they did to -Beckford’s princely cavalcade), a few miles more -brings me to a point, whence looking down on -the right side of the ridge the town of Alcobaça -is seen below, surrounded by miles of vineyards, -touched now with bronze and crimson, for the -vintage is nearly over, and a big hummock of a -<span class='pageno' id='Page_188'>188</span>building over all, that I know is the famous -Cistercian monastery, the sepulchre of so many -princes of the ancient royal house of Portugal -that I have travelled thus far to see.</p> - -<p class='c000'>The church and monastery stand fronting a -very extensive triangular praça, crossed by long -avenues of acacias, and the first sight of the -edifice is distinctly disappointing. An ordinary -façade in the seventeenth-century, Spanish -“Jesuit” style of the time of Philip IV., with -white walls and yellow stone outlines, and flanked -on both sides by monastery buildings of great -extent in the same taste, or want of it, did not -quite fulfil the hopes which Beckford’s description -of the splendours of Alcobaça had aroused. -It is true that the west door of the church somewhat -redeemed it, for it was evidently the remains -of the original front in pure unadorned Gothic. -The whole edifice is raised above the surface of -the praça upon a platform some ten feet high, -and upon this parade the monks in old time -were mustered to receive distinguished visitors. -Beckford thus describes the reception of his own -party—</p> - -<div id='fp188' class='figcenter id002'> -<img src='images/i_267.jpg' alt='' class='ig001' /> -<div class='ic001'> -<p>ON THE PRAÇA AT ALCOBAÇA.</p> -</div> -</div> - -<p class='c015'>“The first sight of this regal monastery is very imposing, -and the picturesque well-wooded and well-watered village out -<span class='pageno' id='Page_189'>189</span>of the quiet bosom of which it seems to rise relieves the mind -from the sense of oppression the huge domineering bulk of the -conventual buildings inspire. We had no sooner hove in sight, -and we loomed large, than a most tremendous ring of bells of -extraordinary power announced our speedy arrival. A broad -hint from the Secretary of State recommending these magnificent -monks to receive the Grand Prior and his companions -with peculiar graciousness, the whole community, including -fathers, friars and subordinates, at least four hundred strong, were -drawn up in grand spiritual array on the vast platform before -the monastery to bid us welcome. At their head the Abbot -himself, in his costume of High Almoner of Portugal, advanced -to give us a cordial embrace.”</p> - -<p class='c000'>All is quiet enough now, for the monks are -gone these seventy years, and the huge dilapidated -edifice behind, forming a vast square, is -partly occupied as a barrack, and the rest falling -into ramshackle ruin. Nor is anything stirring -in the prim little town, which has grown up -around the wealthy foundation, and now lives -placidly upon the produce of its vineyards.</p> - -<p class='c000'>The interior of the church presents a marked -contrast to the façade. The impression produced -is one of ponderous solidity and permanence, -and the stern devotional character of -all the ecclesiastical buildings founded by the -great Affonso Henriques, first king of Portugal, -in the twelfth century is again conspicuous, -though even here a cornice of gilt curly wood -<span class='pageno' id='Page_190'>190</span>lines the fine chancel arch. The nave though -somewhat narrow is impressive and handsome, -separated from the aisles by square pillars of -immense size, broader than the spaces between -them. From brackets or ledges at various heights -from the ground upon the front and sides of -these pillars spring the simple arches and groining -of the roof, each pillar carrying its arch right -over the nave, so that each set of simple groins -is separated from the rest by the arch moulding. -The aisles, very narrow, seem overwhelmed by -the immense square pillars, and it is easy to -understand in the face of this stern interior -that the notoriously luxurious and self-indulgent -monks of Alcobaça did their best to soften the -austerity of their surroundings. That they did -so to some purpose is seen both by Beckford’s -account of his visit and by my Strathmore manuscript -of 1760. The account given by Lord -Strathmore is worth transcribing:—</p> - -<p class='c015'>“The minister having ... ordered them to do us ye utmost -honour they were capable of, we found a large place before the -convent so crowded with people that it was necessary for a -guard of militia which they had summoned to make a lane for -us up ye steps. At ye door we were reciev’d in form by ye -guardian and first people of ye fraternity with ye utmost ceremony, -and conducted by ye light of torches thro’ cloisters of -<span class='pageno' id='Page_191'>191</span>Gothic arcades with ye whole college in procession to our -apartments.... Our rooms were extremely spacious, and were -hung with crimson damask and gold, ye floor cover’d with -Persian carpets, and our beds in alcoves deck’d with embroidered -coverlids. We had a basin and ewer brought to wash -before supper, and on another salver a napkin of fine linen, -curiously pinck’t and strew’d with rose-leaves and orange-flowers. -We then pas’t into the next room, where we found a -large table groaning under a service of monstrous dishes.”</p> - -<p class='c000'>The writer comments unfavourably upon all -the eatables placed before him, reeking, as they -did, he says, of garlic, bad oil, and other horrors, -and he comments upon the tasteless lavishness -of the fare. He then continues:—</p> - -<p class='c015'>“At last, after having drank reciprocally all ye healths that -we thought would be required on either side, we retir’d to -repose. The next morning we were no sooner dres’t than we -found ye whole college assembled in ye next room at our levee. -We breakfasted in state, at ye end of a long table with ye -rest seated round ye room, and admiring ye peculiar grace with -which we put every morsel into our mouths. After breakfast -we were attended thro’ ye convent, and had everything explain’d -to us, which I must own gave me great pleasure. They are of -ye Cistercian order, and ye richest in Portugal, possessing a -vast tract of land which is said to bring them in £50,000 per -annum. Their magnificence is in every way proportionable. -Their church is Gothic, but extremely noble, ye plate, jewels -and ornaments, copes, etc. are as rich as possible.... They -have no taste or design in their expenditure, and seem to study -richness rather than elegance in all they do. As they reign, -so they entertain, like princes over the district. In the evening -we saw their great altar lighted up at vespers, which at the -<span class='pageno' id='Page_192'>192</span>end of a long Gothic aisle had a most striking effect with ye -organ and voices altogether impressing upon the mind most -solemn awe.”</p> - -<p class='c000'>Remains of the tasteless splendour referred to -are still to be seen on all sides. The gilt-trimmed -chancel arch, the high altar, with its blue starred -globe and wooden gilt rays in the centre, and -popes carved and gilt in niches each side, amidst -gold whirligigs galore, are as incongruous as can -be with the stern, simple nave: and the altars of -the north transept and retro choir all present the -same features, some of them, moreover, being in -a lamentable state of dilapidation, inciting to -derision rather than devotion. In the north -transept, hard by the thirteenth-century sepulchral -stones of Affonso II. and Affonso III., is -a dark but beautiful Gothic hall, the holy of -holies of the monastery, “the chapel of the -tombs,” the resting-place of several of the earlier -princes of the royal house.</p> - -<div id='fp192' class='figcenter id002'> -<img src='images/i_273.jpg' alt='' class='ig001' /> -<div class='ic001'> -<p>UNDER THE ACACIAS, ALCOBAÇA.</p> -</div> -</div> - -<p class='c000'>The most striking objects in it are two magnificent -sarcophagi in florid decorated Gothic. -The recumbent figures of king and queen upon -them, as fair and perfect as the day they were -sculptured, rest, not hand in hand as upon most -similar tombs, but foot to foot. For these are -<span class='pageno' id='Page_193'>193</span>the sepulchres of Pedro the Just and his murdered -mistress, Ines de Castro, done to death by -servile nobles beside the “fountain of love” in -the “garden of tears” at Coimbra, and the faithful -king ordered the body of himself and his -beloved to be laid thus, so that when the universal -trump should call him to arise, the first -object upon which his reopened eyes should rest -would be her, who, though unwed, was yet his -wife through all eternity.</p> - -<p class='c000'>Kings, queens, and princes, whose names now -mean little even in the country where they held -sway and nothing elsewhere, lie around in tombs -of varying magnificence, together with débris and -relics of times earlier than any of them. The usual -dense ignorance is displayed by the guardian of -the objects he is supposed to describe; for he -points out two very small ancient sarcophagi, one -of them obviously Byzantine Romanesque, and -the other probably pre-Christian, and tells you -gravely that they once contained the bodies of -Ines de Castro’s children. Both of them are centuries -earlier than her time, and her only children -grew up and survived her. But this is not more -absurd than the representation, in the current -English “History of Portugal,” of a lady in the -<span class='pageno' id='Page_194'>194</span>height of the Portuguese fashion of the end of -the seventeenth century as Ines de Castro, who -lived in the fourteenth.</p> - -<p class='c000'>The cloister of the monastery presents the -characteristics of two styles. The lower part is -pure early Gothic, like the church and chapter-house, -with simple rose lights in each arch; -but the upper storey has evidently been added or -rebuilt in the early sixteenth century in good -Manueline taste; and in one corner there is a -very beautiful fountain in the same style bearing -the monogram of the “Fortunate” monarch -Manuel himself. The vast refectory, of which -Beckford spoke so sneeringly, as dirty and -slovenly, is entered by a handsome Manueline -doorway, and is now being restored. The entrance -to the sacristy is also a fine specimen of -Manueline, but inside the bad taste of the late -seventeenth-century monks is rampant. All -around the great square apartment are carved -and gilt niches, in which are dozens of life-sized -busts also carved and gilt, of saints and bishop, -each of which has a hollow for a relic upon the -breast, all now despoiled of their contents; and -the precious treasury of jewels, ornaments, and -embroidery that aroused the envious admiration -<span class='pageno' id='Page_195'>195</span>of the virtuoso Beckford, has all disappeared, many -of the most beautiful and precious objects being -now in the Museum of Fine Arts at Lisbon, a storehouse -of mediæval goldsmith’s work unsurpassed -in Europe, though almost completely neglected -both by residents and visitors to the capital.</p> - -<p class='c000'>One more show chamber there is in the -“national monument” portion of Alcobaça: a -hall lined with eighteenth-century pictorial blue -tiles, representing in large tableaux memorable -deeds of the kings of Portugal, with statues of -the kings themselves upon brackets above; the -great tableau at the end, representing the coronation -of Affonso Henriques, being an exceptionally -good specimen of a poor artistic medium. -As I walk through the grave, silent church again, -and so out into the bright praça, with its avenues -of shady acacias casting long shadows, the façade -of the church strikes me as more inharmonious -than before, now that the wonderful glow of the -slanting sunrays touch the salient points with fire. -The front with its seventeenth-century figures, its -Manueline central round window, and its elaboration -of outlines, so characteristic of the Spanish -“Jesuit” style, are utterly incongruous with the -pure early Gothic of the doorway, and it is with a -<span class='pageno' id='Page_196'>196</span>sigh of regret that one turns from the contemplation -of such a result of wealth divorced from -artistry.</p> - -<p class='c000'>The vast monastic building behind the church -is squalid and ugly, for the occupation of soldiery -does not tend to the æsthetic maintenance of a -building. The famous kitchen of the monastery -is used now for military purposes, but may be -seen by easily obtained permission. As I looked -upon it, a bare, great, vaulted hall, with the -channel for water still running through it, and the -marks of the long line of ovens extending across -the wall, I cast my thoughts back at the busy scene -that the place presented in the palmy days of -the monks, when the flesh-pots of Alcobaça were -proverbial through the land. This is how the -place struck Beckford on his memorable visit.</p> - -<p class='c015'>“The three prelates lead the way to, I verily believe, the -most distinguished temple of gluttony in all Europe. What -Glastonbury may have been in its palmy state I cannot answer, -but my eyes never beheld in any modern convent of France, -Italy, or Germany, such an enormous space dedicated to -culinary purposes. Through the centre of the immense and -nobly groined hall, not less than sixty feet in diameter, ran -a brisk rivulet of the clearest water, flowing through pierced -wooden reservoirs, containing every sort and size of the finest -river fish. On one side loads of game and venison were heaped -up, on the other vegetables and fruit in endless variety. Beyond -<span class='pageno' id='Page_197'>197</span>a long line of stoves extended a row of ovens, and close to them -hillocks of wheaten flour whiter than snow, rocks of sugar, -jars of the purest oil, and pastry in vast abundance, which a -numerous tribe of lay brothers and their attendants were rolling -and puffing up into a hundred different shapes, singing all the -while as blithely as larks in a cornfield.”</p> - -<p class='c000'>Abbots and monks, lay brothers, and cooks -have gone the way of all flesh; and of the -plethoric plenty of old no vestige remains in -the enormous dingy hall. So, there being no -fatted calf killed for me in these degenerate -days, I wend my way through the acacia avenues -to the humble hostelry where a dinner is prepared -for me, eatable, it is true, but a sad falling -off from the culinary splendours of Alcobaça in -the good old times.</p> - -<p class='c000'>Then in the gloaming I drove four miles -through woods of pine and eucalyptus, balsamic -now in the soft evening air, to Vallado station -on the railway to Lisbon. Out of the darkness -at about seven there sprang a long spinning -factory blazing with electric light, and humming -with the whirr of wheels. The “hands” were -just flocking out from their daily toil, and filled -the black, unlit road with a gay babbling crowd. -There was no town near, and the mill was deeply -embosomed in the pine woods: this seemed to -<span class='pageno' id='Page_198'>198</span>me an ideal form of factory life, in which the -house of toil, instead of debouching its crowd of -pallid workers into fetid town-slums to fester -unwholesomely until the morrow, needed but -a step from its threshold to plunge them into -the sweet air of the pines and heather; and -where the “hands,” though they worked in -crowds underneath a roof, never ceased to be -country folk. It was but a passing flash and -hubbub to me in the darkness of my lonely -drive, and the toilers to me, and I to them, -but fleeting shadows. But seen thus, there -seemed to me something of suggestive possibilities -in this hive of what is usually an urban -industry, set in the midst of lofty pines, sweet -mountain herbs, and far-flung folds of purple -heather. A railway journey of three-quarters -of an hour brought me to the famous medicinal -thermal watering-place of Caldas da Rainha, -where in the excellent Hotel Lisbonense, which -the proprietor, one of those frugal, honest, -Gallegos who are the industrial salt of the -Peninsula, told me was the largest in Portugal, -as it is certainly one of the best, I ended a long -day of overcrowded impressions by a night of -delightful dreamless sleep.</p> - -<div class='chapter'> - <span class='pageno' id='Page_199'>199</span> - <h2 class='c006'>VII<br /> <span class='large'>CINTRA</span></h2> -</div> - -<p class='c012'>I had often before seen Caldas in the height -of the bathing season, when the midsummer -heat made Lisbon intolerable and inspired people -with more or less imaginary maladies to get -cured. The place then, with its crowds of -visitors and pleasant parties, was bright and -lively enough; but now that the last pleasure-seeker -had fled, and the only people taking the -wonderful health-giving waters were the few -really sick, and the inmates of the great -“Queen’s hospital” adjoining the hot springs, -Caldas looked mean and ugly. The drives -through the pine forests in the neighbourhood, -it is true, are pleasant; but for a fortnight -I had been passing through a glorious pine -country much more diversified and elevated -than these, and Caldas had no fresh attractions -to offer me. A visit to the famous factory of -enamelled <em>faience</em>, charmingly situated in the -<span class='pageno' id='Page_200'>200</span>midst of gardens, yielded an hour’s interest in -the inspection of the late Bordallo Pinheiro’s -fine sacred figure groups now in course of production -for the shrines at Bussaco, and the -hundred curious Palissy-like pieces in high -relief, plates of fruit, fish, &c., which are the -specialty of the factory. But that being finished -the charms of Caldas were exhausted, so far -as I was concerned, and the train for Cintra -claimed me irresistibly.</p> - -<p class='c000'>The first station from Caldas (Obidos), with -its little town, nestles at the foot of an eminence -upon which another of the stupendous mediæval -castles peculiar to Portugal rears its massive battlements, -castles in comparison with which most of -the English feudal strongholds are mere sentry-boxes. -For these Portuguese fortresses were -national outposts thrust forward successively into -conquered or debatable land; bases for further -extension southward and bulwarks against the -return of the tide of Islam. Another two hours -of travelling brought us into a country of red -rolling hills, with a bold granite ridge on the -east and a still loftier ridge beyond merging -into the blue mist on the horizon. For miles -on either side grand sweeps of flowering heather -<span class='pageno' id='Page_201'>201</span>flushed against breaks and slides of ochre-earth, -touched here and there with the light feathery -green of the pines; whilst in the dips of hills -sheltered valleys of bronzing vines and little -white granges, slept tranquilly after the bustle -of the just finished vintage. Soon we get nearer -the granite hills before us, and looming over the -station, upon a great projecting spur of one of -these there frowns another of these tremendous -strongholds, from which, running towards the -east and south between us and Lisbon, there -bars the way a series of gigantic ridges and -peaks. Most of the heights are capped by -towers, and scored along the faces of the mountains -may still be discerned lines and marks of -earthworks and redoubts. These are the never-to-be-forgotten -lines of Torres Vedras, by which -the genius of Wellington finally held the legions -of Napoleon at bay, and saved Portugal—and -incidentally Europe—from the domination of the -French.</p> - -<p class='c000'>All the earth seems soaked and saturated in -sunlight and brilliant colour; little ancient towns, -like Runa, perched on the tops of cliffs, at the -foot of which more modern hamlets cluster, -testify to the changed conditions between the -<span class='pageno' id='Page_202'>202</span>days when the first need was safety from aggression, -and the later times when, the danger of -wanton attacking being past, men sought accessibility -and ease. Acacias, aloes, canes, olives, -and vines spreading down the plain, tell of a -benign and equable climate enjoyed in security -and peace; a beautiful and favoured land, where -nature has done its best to make man happy -without making him idle. As the twilight -begins to fall we change trains at Cacem, the -junction of the small local line from Lisbon -to Cintra, and thenceforward we travel due west -towards the sea. Before us looms a great isolated -mountain, the “Rock of Lisbon,” which seafarers -know so well, with its bold outline and its -gleaming towers on the topmost crag.</p> - -<div class='lg-container-b c004'> - <div class='linegroup'> - <div class='group'> - <div class='line'>“And Cintra’s mountain greets them on the way.”</div> - </div> - <div class='group'> - <div class='line in26'>—<cite>Childe Harold</cite>, canto i.</div> - </div> - </div> -</div> - -<p class='c000'>The “mountain of the moon,” and of its -goddess Cynthia, devoted from the dawn of time -to the worship of deities that, one by one, -have been deposed, this long-backed hummock, -stretching nearly fifteen miles from end to end and -rising well-nigh two thousand feet above the plain, -is one of Europe’s acknowledged beauty spots, -and, like a human professional beauty, on this -<span class='pageno' id='Page_203'>203</span>occasion coyly hid its charms from too ready a -discovery by cloaking its summit with a cloud -as black as ink, forerunner of the coming night. -The gradient of the line continues upward as we -wind round the base of the hill, and it is quite -dark when the terminal station of Cintra is -reached, and after a long drive upward the -quaint little English hostelry, known to four -generations of Britons, welcomes me to dinner -and to rest.</p> - -<p class='c000'>Like the similar mountain of Bussaco, the -“Rock of Lisbon” is scored by ravines and dells -innumerable, sheltered valleys open to the soft -sea-breezes charged with grateful moisture; and -from time immemorial the luxuriance and variety -of its vegetation have been proverbial. At a time -when Lisbon, only some fifteen miles away, is -sweltering and breathless within its south facing -semicircle of hills, the slopes of the mountain of -Cintra are fresh and invigorating, and some of -its gardens are a veritable paradise all the year -round. But beautiful as it undoubtedly is, -Cintra owes much of its fame to its nearness -and accessibility to the capital, and so far as -English celebrity is concerned, to the accident -of several influential Englishmen persistently -<span class='pageno' id='Page_204'>204</span>singing its praises at a time when Lisbon was a -fashionable winter and health resort.</p> - -<p class='c000'>The village of Cintra lies in one of the folds -of the great hill, at perhaps a third of its height -up the side: a little Swiss-looking pleasure-town -round an open praça, like a set scene upon a -stage. A few hotels and shops, a church, the -inevitable big stone building at the most conspicuous -corner, with the heavily barred windows -on the level of the footpath, and the squalid -prisoners begging and bandying repartee with -the passers-by: at one end of the praça, a lovely -ancient Manueline cross upon a palm-shaded -mound, at the base of which a picturesque group -is usually lounging, and close by, the courtyard -of an old, old palace whose most conspicuous -features are two curious protruberances from the -roof, looking like a cross between Kentish oast-houses, -and giant champagne bottles. This is -Cintra as seen from its central point, but over -it all there towers that which gives unique distinction -to its otherwise somewhat trite, self-conscious -picturesqueness. Sheer aloft upon a precipice a -thousand feet and more above its roofs there -stretch the mighty battlements and massive keeps -of a huge castle of fawn-coloured stone, a castle -so immense as to dwarf Thomar, Leiria, and -even Obidos almost to insignificance. Long -lines of crenellated walls following the dips -and sinuosities of the crest of the peak appear -to grow out of the mighty rounded boulders; -some of these great masses of rock seeming to -hang over perilously—as they must have done for -thousands of years—top-heavy and threatening.</p> - -<div id='fp204' class='figcenter id001'> -<img src='images/i_287.jpg' alt='' class='ig001' /> -<div class='ic001'> -<p>THE OLD PALACE, CINTRA.</p> -</div> -</div> - -<p class='c000'><span class='pageno' id='Page_205'>205</span>To climb such an eminence looks impracticable -when seen from the praça of the little town, and -yet it is but a pleasant and easy walk up the -zigzag road round the projecting shoulder of the -hill. As I start in the early morning to ascend -the two twin peaks, only one of which is visible -from the praça, the air is indescribably sweet with -the mingled freshness of the sea and the perfume -of herbs and flowers. The way winds upwards -between the trim walls of villas embosomed in -gardens. Ampelopsis, blood-red now, long trails -of wistaria and starry clematis, and large fuchsia -trees loaded with flower, hang over the pathway -everywhere, whilst masses of heliotrope clothe the -jutting gables and corners, and pervading all are -the scent and sight of oceans of flowers. Palms, -planes, poplars, and firs shoot upward, and around -their straight bare trunks there clusters a tangle -<span class='pageno' id='Page_206'>206</span>of figs, laurels, mimosa, camellias, aloes, and -cactus. On the outer side of the road, as the -villas are left behind, you may look over the -dwarf-wall down the tree-clad slopes into glens -of deep shade, with here and there a glimpse -through the branches of a vast sunlight plain -far below, whilst on the inner side of the zigzag -way, the mosses and ferns, and the pendent -greenery of the precipitous hillside, with an occasional -break into a deep ravine, exhibit at each -turn and step some new beauty of tint or atmosphere. -Presently at a turn of the road, after -half-an-hour’s climb, you see right over head the -bare granite cliff covered with huge overhanging -boulders, and on the summit a long stretch of -yellow battlements and a huddle of enormous -towers. The trees around us are mostly oaks -now, and the grey boulders are covered on their -inner faces with ivy and lichens, whilst clumps -of purple crocuses star the grass by the wayside. -The sun is as hot as July in England, but the -breeze is delightfully fresh and pure, the sky of -spotless azure, and the air so clear that the -ancient fortress, still far above us, is seen in all -its detail as if we had it near to us under a -giant microscope.</p> - -<p class='c000'><span class='pageno' id='Page_207'>207</span>Suddenly as I turned a corner there burst -upon my view another and a loftier peak than -the one upon which stands the Moorish stronghold -that had hitherto been my objective. A -crag so inaccessible it looked, as to suggest that -the imposing building upon it with its lofty -towers was the work of a magician. The royal -palace of the Penha is this, piled up rather than -built upon a sheer precipice.<a id='r2' /><a href='#f2' class='c013'><sup>[2]</sup></a> Here upon the -highest point of the rock of Lisbon was King -Manuel the Fortunate wont to linger for hours -and days for many months together, climbing -up from his palace in the town below, that he -might gaze far out upon the Atlantic, watching -and praying for the return of Vasco da Gama from -his voyage to India round the African continent, -<span class='pageno' id='Page_208'>208</span>the route that in two generations the impetus -of Prince Henry the Navigator had opened up. -There was but a tiny Jeronomite hermitage or -penitentiary here in this savage eyrie to shelter -the anxious king,<a id='r3' /><a href='#f3' class='c013'><sup>[3]</sup></a> and during his vigils he vowed -that if the great explorer came home successful -he would build upon the spot a worthy monastery -of the Order in memory of the event. The work -must have been a prodigious one, for even now -the place is hardly accessible by carriages, and -the quantity and the weight of material necessarily -brought from below was enormous. This -monastery like the rest, was disestablished and -secularised by the State in 1834, and King -Ferdinand, the consort of the Queen of Portugal, -and a first cousin of Queen Victoria and Prince -Albert, bought the building for conversion into a -royal palace, as it remains to-day, and here he -lived the latter years of his life with his second -wife, the ex-opera-dancer, the Countess of Edla. -<span class='pageno' id='Page_209'>209</span>Ferdinand altered his palace, in many cases -with very doubtful taste, Moorish and German -baronial features being liberally grafted on to -the Manueline edifice, with the result that the -whole building when seen closely is a pretentious -muddle, saved from contempt by some of its -ancient portions, and by its sublime situation.</p> - -<p class='c000'>The palace on the peak was soon lost to sight -again on my climb upward, and the path led -direct to the outer donjon of the Moorish stronghold -opening upon a narrow path cut along the -face of the rock, and bordered on the outer side -by a low stone wall. The view down over the -steep, rocky slope, with the town of Cintra far -below, and the plain limitless beyond, is very -fine, and the walls that border the path are clothed -with mosses and ferns almost as lovely as those of -Bussaco. The fortress must have been impregnable -by force; and indeed was only gained at -last from the Moors by treason, this very gate -having been bought by the Christians from an -unfaithful guardian. This narrow path cut on -the face of the precipice is the only practicable -approach to the fortress, and leads soon to yet -another gate flanked by a strong tower built upon -one vast, solid boulder. The dells below are -<span class='pageno' id='Page_210'>210</span>filled with billows of verdure; the face of the -rock on the inner side of the path is covered with -creepers, ferns, and flowers, whilst above them, -high up in the dips near the summit, great trees -lean over, shading the way by which we come. -Yet another strong gate tower we pass through; -and with a sudden turn we are inside the fortress, -on the right of us a ruined chapel, once a mosque, -and on the left a watch-tower, with, at its foot, a -monument upon which the cross is graven surmounting -the crescent, emblematical of the fate -of the adjoining chapel.</p> - -<p class='c000'>To describe in detail this prodigious ruin would -be impossible in any reasonable space. The -summit of the crag consists of two separate peaks -at some distance from each other, the higher one -occupied by the main keep, “the royal tower,” -and long battlemented walls reach from one point -to the other, with bastions at intervals and massive -square keeps at the salient angles. On all -sides within the great enclosure formed by the -battlements, covering the whole summit, remains -of towers and buildings of various sorts are scattered, -amidst the dense growth of trees and brushwood -that have intruded upon the space. The -battlements, many of them built upon the rounded -<span class='pageno' id='Page_211'>211</span>boulders that border the precipice and following -the contour of the hill top, are strong and perfect -still; and it needs but little imagination to people -them again with the turbaned and mailed warriors, -sheltered snugly behind them, watching for the -advancing hosts of the Christian king, certain -that, so long as Islam was true to itself, no force -could take this stronghold of their race. The -view over the battlements on all sides is tremendous. -Just below the walls a Titanic scatter -of boulders, varying in size from a few feet in -diameter to the bulk of a cathedral, and then -the descending folds of greenery, with the sunlit -plains and clustering towns below; and there on -the west, seemingly almost at the foot, a long -stretch of breaker-strewn beach, and the blue line -of the sea. The view on the Cintra side is almost -appalling, the drop from the battlements and -boulders to the town being almost sheer, and on -the south-east a great bay opens, and the mouth -of the Tagus bounds the prospect.</p> - -<p class='c000'>As I gazed, entranced at this wonderful scene, -surrounded by yet sturdy relics of the war of -civilisations eight centuries old; musing upon -the immutability of nature’s face in comparison -with even the most enduring works of man, I -<span class='pageno' id='Page_212'>212</span>noticed a wire fixed on the face of the Moorish -battlement, and thence to a boulder, and so from -point to point, I know not whither—to the palace -or the adjoining peak, perhaps. A telegraph -wire! A familiar object enough, but, as it -seemed to me, strangely out of harmony with -the stern battlements from which for centuries -the sons of the prophet held back the advance -of Western civilisation.</p> - -<p class='c000'>The point upon which the Moorish stronghold -stands is connected with the higher site of the -palace by a saddle-back dipping considerably and -then rising very precipitously. The vegetation -on all sides is marvellously luxuriant, and inside -the well-kept gardens of the royal domain flowers -and plants, temperate and sub-tropical, make the -place a horticultural paradise. Through graceful -Moorish archways, bright with Alambresque -decorations and <i><span lang="pt" xml:lang="pt">azulejos</span></i>, under rocky tunnels and -over mediæval drawbridges, all redolent of the -gimcrack taste of the forties, the upward way -leads at length to the little inner <i><span lang="es" xml:lang="es">patio</span></i> of the -castle, and here, at last, some of the Manueline -monastery still remains. It is little enough, a -window here and a door there, and is almost -swamped by modern Alambresque and German -<span class='pageno' id='Page_213'>213</span>baronial additions, but the ancient chapel in the -<i><span lang="es" xml:lang="es">patio</span></i> is a gem. The beautiful groined ceiling -especially attracts attention, but the pride of -the place is the exquisite altar of translucent -alabaster or jasper and black marble in the -purest style of the classical Renaissance, dated -1532, a thank-offering of King John III. for the -birth of an heir. The many groups of figures in -alabaster are extremely beautiful, and as the whole -structure turns upon a pivot the perfection of the -work can be seen in various lights. A concession -to the Portuguese Manueline taste of the time is -made by the pendent festoons on each side of the -altar, which are formed of two lengths of knotted -and twisted cable in alabaster, a <i><span lang="fr" xml:lang="fr">tour de force</span></i> of -execution, though rigid purists may perhaps -question their artistic appropriateness.</p> - -<p class='c000'>The chapel is marred by the hard, bright -German stained glass inserted in the principal -window by King Ferdinand; but the modern -Portuguese is very far from being critical in -matters of art, and though hundreds of people -yearly toil up the mountain to venerate the holy -image of the Virgin of the Penha in this chapel, -and the lovely ivory figure of St. John in the -sacristy, no one apparently thinks of removing -<span class='pageno' id='Page_214'>214</span>the flashing offence of the stained glass window -in favour of some subdued medium more appropriate -to this beautiful little church. A climb -to the highest tower of the palace is said to be -rewarded by a magnificent view. I was content -to take it on trust, for I had already climbed high -enough, and could hardly hope to behold a more -striking prospect than those I had enjoyed from -the castle battlements, and from the inner <i><span lang="es" xml:lang="es">patio</span></i> -of the palace itself, which is perhaps the most -striking of them all.</p> - -<p class='c000'>As I retrace my steps down the long zigzags -to Cintra again, and ever and anon look up at -the heights from which I have come, they seem -quite inaccessible. Equally, or more so, does -the somewhat lower, but even more precipitous -eminence called the Cruz Alta, from which the -prospect is of surpassing extent over land and -sea.</p> - -<div class='lg-container-b c004'> - <div class='linegroup'> - <div class='group'> - <div class='line'>“<span lang="pt" xml:lang="pt">Eis campinas que ao ceo seu canto elevam,</span></div> - <div class='line'><span lang="pt" xml:lang="pt">Aqui o espaço, alem a immensidade</span>,”</div> - </div> - <div class='group'> - <div class='line'>“Behold the plains their psalms raise to the sea,</div> - <div class='line'>Here spread below in space, beyond immensity,”</div> - </div> - </div> -</div> - -<p class='c000'>as the Portuguese poem on the base of the cross -proclaims.</p> - -<p class='c000'>Everywhere the flowers trail over the walls -<span class='pageno' id='Page_215'>215</span>of villas, and the high palms within rock softly -in the heliotrope scented breeze. Very beautiful -it is; but the gardens belong to other people, -and are jealously closed by stone walls and iron -gates. From above them, at hundreds of points -all over Cintra, you may command views of -gardens of tropical luxuriance; but without -permission of the wealthy owners you may not -enter them. Cintra’s beauty is not free like the -sacred wood of Bussaco, where you may wander -at your will through purely sylvan scenery that -not even Cintra can surpass. The grandeur -of the towering Moorish stronghold on its crest -of grey boulders is more imposing than anything -Bussaco can show, and the interior of some of the -highly cultivated private gardens of Cintra are as -fine as any in Europe; but, so far as the enjoyment -of the mere traveller is concerned, I -am inclined to agree with the opinion of those -who hold that Cintra’s fame is quite equal to -its merits. Beckford had very much to do with -it. His friends the Marialvas were amongst -the first of the Portuguese aristocracy, and -owed the large palace of Seteaes, where Byron -and some guide-books erroneously say that the -humiliating convention of Cintra was signed by -<span class='pageno' id='Page_216'>216</span>the victorious English generals. Beckford’s visits -to them and to the court at Cintra inspired -him with an enthusiastic admiration for the -place, and his letters are full of references to -its beauty. To the immensely wealthy and -eccentric young Englishman desires and their -accomplishment ever went hand in hand, and -Beckford purchased a picturesque valley and -slopes of the mountain some two miles from -the town round the shoulder of the hill towards -the west. Here he built an eccentric house, -partly in the Moorish style, and here he displayed -the virtuoso tastes and exotic luxury -which afterwards made Fonthill famous.<a id='r4' /><a href='#f4' class='c013'><sup>[4]</sup></a></p> - -<p class='c000'>All that money and skill could do was lavished -upon the gardens in the ravines and slopes of -Monserrate; and long before Beckford died -<span class='pageno' id='Page_217'>217</span>the place became famous throughout Europe. -Sir Francis Cook, Viscount de Monserrate, to -whom Monserrate belonged for many years, -greatly extended and improved the property, -and his son, Sir Frederick Cook, the present -owner, has followed the same course of munificent -maintenance of this earthly paradise; with -the result that now the beauties of the glens -at Monserrate are probably unequalled in their -own way. It was the middle of October when -I visited the gardens on this occasion, although -I had seen it in all the glory of its spring and -summer splendour on other visits, and the -luxuriance of the vegetation showed as yet -no signs of waning. Great magnolias, daturas, -and bougainvilliers were in full flower, with -roses, clematis, brilliant <span lang="es" xml:lang="es">coleas</span>, and immense -quantities of heliotrope. Tree ferns, aloes, -agaves, and palms grew with a freedom in the -open air that not even the hot-houses of Kew -could surpass, whilst the crimson ampelopsis -and golden-leaved maples presented gorgeous -masses of colour. Some of the sylvan views -are perfectly charming; but after all, one feels -that one is simply an interloper seeing the showplace -on sufferance by payment of a shilling—which -<span class='pageno' id='Page_218'>218</span>the owner gives to a charity—and a -sylvan scene, perhaps less lovely, but in which -I could roam at will, as at Bussaco, would have -had greater attraction for me.</p> - -<p class='c000'>Upon a peak opposite Monserrate, and belonging -to the same owner, stands a humble -little monastery that once belonged to the -Franciscan-Capuchins. It is a quaint and -curious place, the cloister, a tiny one, being -joined to a rock, out of which the cells are -excavated. These and the doors and ceilings -of the cloister are lined with cork bark for -warmth and cosiness in this exposed position, -and for centuries the hermit-monks lived and -prayed on this peak overlooking almost as -great a panorama as the Jeronomites on the -high crest of the Penha. Franciscans and -Jeronomites are alike gone now; but in this -case at least the place has been saved from -desecration, and the little chapel is maintained -with reverent care by Sir Frederick Cook, to -whom the place belongs. Byron and Southey, -too, did much for the fame of Cintra. In a -room at Lawrence’s Hotel, commanding a fine -view of plain and sea, the former wrote a portion -of “Childe Harold,” and his references in verse -<span class='pageno' id='Page_219'>219</span>to the beauty of the place are numerous. -Writing of the cork convent, Byron refers thus -to Honorius, a rigid ascetic who in a cave there -lived long years in self-imposed penance:—</p> - -<div class='lg-container-b c004'> - <div class='linegroup'> - <div class='group'> - <div class='line'>“Deep in yon cave Honorius long did dwell,</div> - <div class='line'>In hope to merit heaven by making earth a hell.”</div> - </div> - </div> -</div> - -<p class='c000'>Volumes of poetry, indeed, have been in the -aggregate written about Cintra. Byron made it -practically his first stage of “Childe Harold’s -Pilgrimage,” and went in raptures over it:—</p> - -<div class='lg-container-b c004'> - <div class='linegroup'> - <div class='group'> - <div class='line'>“Lo, Cintra’s glorious Eden intervenes</div> - <div class='line'>In variegated maze of mount and glen.</div> - <div class='line'>Ah, me! what hand can pencil guide or pen</div> - <div class='line'>To follow half on which the eye dilates,</div> - <div class='line'>Through views more dazzling unto mortal ken</div> - <div class='line'>Than those whereof such things the bard relates</div> - <div class='line'>Who to the awe-struck world unlocked Elysium’s gates—</div> - <div class='line'>The horrid crags by toppling convent crown’d,</div> - <div class='line'>The cork-trees hoar that clothe the shaggy steep,</div> - <div class='line'>The mountain moss by scorching skies embrown’d,</div> - <div class='line'>The sunken glen whose sunless shrubs must weep,</div> - <div class='line'>The tender azure of the unruffled deep,</div> - <div class='line'>The orange tints that gild the greenest bough,</div> - <div class='line'>The torrents that from cliff to valley leap,</div> - <div class='line'>The vine on high, the willow branch below,</div> - <div class='line'>Mixed in one mighty scene with varied beauty glow.”</div> - </div> - </div> -</div> - -<p class='c000'>The poet, in one of his letters to his mother -complaining of the dirt and discomfort of -<span class='pageno' id='Page_220'>220</span>Lisbon, says: “To make amends for the filthiness -of Lisbon and its still filthier inhabitants, -the village of Cintra, about fifteen miles from -the capital, is perhaps in every respect the most -delightful in Europe. It contains beauties of -every description, natural and artificial; palaces -and gardens rising in the midst of rocks, -cataracts, and precipices; convents on stupendous -heights; a distant view of the sea and the -Tagus.... It unites in itself all the wildness -of the Western Highlands with the verdure -of the south of France.”</p> - -<p class='c000'>Robert Southey, too, calls Cintra “the most -blessed spot in the habitable globe,” and Beckford’s -letters are crowded with eloquent passages -to the same effect. “The scenery,” he says, -“is truly Elysian, and exactly such as poets -assign for the resort of happy spirits.... -The mossy fragments of rock, grotesque pollards -and rustic bridges you meet with at every step, -recall Savoy and Switzerland to the imagination; -but the exotic cast of the vegetation, the -vivid green of the citron, the golden fruitage -of the orange, the blossoming myrtle, and the -rich fragrance of the turf, embroidered with the -brightest coloured and most aromatic flowers, -<span class='pageno' id='Page_221'>221</span>allow me, without a violent stretch of fancy, to -believe myself in the garden of the Hesperides.”</p> - -<p class='c000'>The Portuguese poets have of course dwelt -much upon the beauties of Cintra, especially -Almeida Garrett, the principal Portuguese poet -of modern times. One stanza by him is cut -upon a slab erected on one of his favourite -walks in the village as a memorial, and the -following lines from it may be quoted:—</p> - -<div class='lg-container-b c004'> - <div class='linegroup'> - <div class='group'> - <div class='line'>“<span lang="pt" xml:lang="pt">Cintra, amena estancia,</span></div> - <div class='line'><span lang="pt" xml:lang="pt">Throno da vegetante primavera:</span></div> - <div class='line'><span lang="pt" xml:lang="pt">Quem te não ama, quem em teu regaço</span></div> - <div class='line'><span lang="pt" xml:lang="pt">Uma hora da vida lhe ha corrido,</span></div> - <div class='line'><span lang="pt" xml:lang="pt">Essa hora esquecerá?</span>”</div> - </div> - <div class='group'> - <div class='line'>“Ah! Cintra, blest abode,</div> - <div class='line'>The throne of budding spring,</div> - <div class='line'>Who loves thee not: and who</div> - <div class='line'>Can e’er forget in life</div> - <div class='line'>An hour passed in thy lap?”</div> - </div> - </div> -</div> - -<p class='c000'>When the stronghold on the crest of the mountain -was securely held by the Moslem soldiery, -before the great Affonso Henriques swept southward -with the Cross victorious, the Moorish -kings of Lisbon lived in silken ease below in -their summer alcazar in the praça of Cintra—a -building this full of interest still, though injudicious -or inexperienced travellers have caused no -<span class='pageno' id='Page_222'>222</span>little disappointment by comparing it unjustifiably -with the splendid Arab remains at Seville, -Granada, and Toledo. Truth to say, the palace -at Cintra is no Alhambra, and should not be -approached with expectations of anything of the -sort. And yet the place is very quaint and -charming as you enter the courtyard from the -praça, hard by the Manueline cross with its -spiral shaft. The front of the palace appears to -be purely Manueline, the elaborate window and -door decoration, consisting of twisted cables and -intertwined branches, and even the pillars, spouts, -and gargoyles are all redolent of Portugal’s -age of heroic expansion and wealth under the -“Fortunate” king.</p> - -<p class='c000'>It was a regal Christian palace long before his -time; for his great-grandfather, John the Great -and his wife Philippa of Lancaster, had adapted -the Moorish alcazar for their summer residence -and made it their favourite palace, their grandson -and successor Affonso being born here. But it -was in the palmy times of Dom Manuel that the -palace of Cintra became the centre of culture, wit, -and poetry, where gaily-clad courtiers listened to -the wondrous tales of Portuguese explorers returned -from Africa and the Indies, and poets -<span class='pageno' id='Page_223'>223</span>sang the national epics telling of the opening of -the mystic East with its wealth untold to Portuguese -commerce and dominion.</p> - -<p class='c000'>Though the outside of the palace is Portuguese -Manueline, the interior exhibits at every step -portions of the original Moorish edifice unaltered. -The vast kitchen, with its enormous -champagne-bottle chimneys in the centre, has -never ceased to be available for culinary uses -from the time of the Arab kings until to-day; -whilst the dining-room is pure Moorish, lined -with beautiful Arab tiles. Arab tiles, indeed, -remain in many rooms, and the chancel of the -chapel, once of course a mosque, is exquisitely -paved with them. There is a beautiful little -Moorish <i><span lang="es" xml:lang="es">patio</span></i> too, with its marble fountain and -laurels, that might be a portion of a palace at -Fez or Mequinez now, so pure and intact is it. -The older rooms of the palace generally are dark, -for the Moorish architects shut out the sun -wherever possible, and the up and down floors -on all sorts of queer levels impress upon one -the immense antiquity of the place as a dwelling-house.</p> - -<p class='c000'>The finest rooms are the hall of magpies, -the hall of swans, and the hall of stags. The -<span class='pageno' id='Page_224'>224</span>first-named is a square apartment with beautiful -Moorish tiles, and a coved ceiling covered with -paintings of magpies, each one with a motto -issuing from its mouth saying, <i><span lang="pt" xml:lang="pt">Por Bem</span></i>, “with -good intent.” The legend told is that Queen -Philippa one day surprised John the Great, who -was a gallant lover, kissing a maid of honour and -offering her a rose. The Plantagenet queen had -a temper of her own, which John probably feared -more than the Castilian charge up the slope of -Aljubarrota, and the king in exculpation cried to -his wife, “<span lang="pt" xml:lang="pt">Por Bem</span>”; as who should say, <i><span lang="pt" xml:lang="pt">Honi -soit qui mal y pense</span></i>. The reputation of John was -such that his excuse passed from mouth to mouth -derisively, the queen’s sycophantic maids repeating -it with such significant emphasis, and so frequently, -that the king to shame them adopted -“<span lang="pt" xml:lang="pt">Por Bem</span>” as his motto, and had his reception -hall at Cintra painted with the chattering birds -repeating it.</p> - -<div id='fp224' class='figcenter id001'> -<img src='images/i_309.jpg' alt='' class='ig001' /> -<div class='ic001'> -<p><span class='sc'>Manueline Windows in the Old Palace, Cintra</span></p> -</div> -</div> - -<p class='c000'>Another fine Moorish hall is called the hall of -swans, of which the ceiling is painted with those -birds, in memory of a pair of them kept in the -<i><span lang="es" xml:lang="es">patio</span></i> below, and given to King Manuel by his -brother-in-law, Charles V., as a very great rarity. -Another large apartment, with a conical roof, was -<span class='pageno' id='Page_225'>225</span>constructed by King Manuel himself, who gave -to it the name of the hall of stags. Here the -king collected the armorial achievements of all -the Portuguese nobility. Seventy-four stags are -ranged around the room, each one having dependent -from its neck the scutcheon of a noble -family—except one, that of Tavora, which the -great minister Pombal, in the eighteenth century, -ordered to be erased—whilst upon a frieze running -round the hall is the following verse:—</p> - -<div class='lg-container-b c004'> - <div class='linegroup'> - <div class='group'> - <div class='line'>“<span lang="pt" xml:lang="pt">Pois com esforços e leaes</span></div> - <div class='line'><span lang="pt" xml:lang="pt">Servicios, foram ganhados,</span></div> - <div class='line'><span lang="pt" xml:lang="pt">Com estes e outros taes</span></div> - <div class='line'><span lang="pt" xml:lang="pt">Devem ser conservados.</span>”</div> - </div> - <div class='group'> - <div class='line'>“By prowess stout and loyal fame</div> - <div class='line'>These honours bright were gained;</div> - <div class='line'>By others like or eke the same</div> - <div class='line'>They needs must be retained.”</div> - </div> - </div> -</div> - -<p class='c000'>The small and plain hall of audience or justice -has at the end a seat of tiled brick upon which -the Sovereigns sat, and here tradition says the -Council met, summoned by the rash young King -Sebastian in 1578, to sanction the crusading -attack upon Morocco upon which he had set his -heart. All his fiery zeal and imperiousness were -needed to persuade his nobles to agree to an -adventure from which many foresaw disaster. -<span class='pageno' id='Page_226'>226</span>But the ambitious youth had his way, and his -mysterious fate, never solved when he disappeared -for ever from the eyes of men at the -battle of Alcacer Kebir, ended the male line of -the house of Avis which John I. had begun at -Aljubarrota two hundred years before. In this -gloomy chamber the die was cast, and with the -loss of Sebastian his uncle Philip II. and his descendants -became kings of Portugal for a century.</p> - -<p class='c000'>A more modern tragedy was enacted within -these ancient walls. The vicious young debauchee, -Affonso VI., was deprived of his crown -and his wife by his brother Dom Pedro, in -1667; and here in the palace, in a room called -after him, the wretched king passed the last -twelve years of his imprisonment, shut off entirely -from the sight of men. The windows -of his prison-chamber still show the sockets -wherein the strong bars were set, and a deep -groove worn in the brick floor along one side -marks the spot where the footsteps of the caged -king, as he paced up and down for years before -his bars, have worn his enduring epitaph. Up -in a little closely barred cell overlooking the -choir of the chapel, where Affonso used to hear -mass, he died suddenly in 1683.</p> - -<p class='c000'><span class='pageno' id='Page_227'>227</span>The old palace of Cintra, indeed, is full of -memories, a place to linger in and about, rather -than to rush through at the tail of a guide; -although it must be confessed that the guardian -in this case does take an intelligent interest in -the objects under his care. Cintra, in short, -is beautiful beyond compare in certain directions; -but, as happens in most frequented show-places, -the chief beauties can only be enjoyed by the -permission of others, and by the use of a silver -key. The beautiful villa-gardens are jealously -shut in by high walls and forbidden by gates -marked private; the palace of the Penha, a royal -residence, is approached with bated breath and -whispering humbleness, and the palace in the -town, though not now inhabited by royalty, is -still only shown on special application. But there -is one thing in Cintra that may be enjoyed freely -and uncontrolled by all, the finest thing that -Cintra can show, the view from the town of -that stupendous Moorish fortress on its precipitous -height. In sylvan beauty, in sweetness -and freshness of atmosphere, even in its sublime -prospects of mountain, vale, and sea, Bussaco -may rival and, in some respects, surpass it; but -the long-stretched yellow battlements and massive -<span class='pageno' id='Page_228'>228</span>towers piled upon the eternal granite boulders, -sheer up a thousand feet and more over the -little pleasure-town and its leafy ravines, would -be worth the voyage to Portugal alone to see, -even though the gardens of the rich were more -reserved and exclusive than they are.</p> - -<hr class='c014' /> - -<div class='footnote' id='f2'> -<p class='c000'><span class='label'><a href='#r2'>2</a>. </span>Byron thus speaks of this climb up the hill of Cintra:—</p> - -<div class='lg-container-b c004'> - <div class='linegroup'> - <div class='group'> - <div class='line'>“Then slowly climb the many winding way,</div> - <div class='line'>And frequent turn to linger as you go,</div> - <div class='line'>From loftier rocks new loveliness survey,</div> - <div class='line'>And rest ye at Our Lady’s house of woe.”</div> - </div> - </div> -</div> - -<p class='c000'>This last epithet for the monastery, which is now the royal -palace, is an error arising from a misunderstanding, which -Byron shares with many other people to the present day. The -original name of the venerated image of the Virgin, after which -the monastery was named, is “Nossa Senhora da Penha,” -“Our Lady of the Rock.” For some reason the place is still -often referred to as the “Pena,” which means “sorrow,” and -the Saint becomes “Our Lady of Woe,” as Byron called it.</p> -</div> - -<div class='footnote' id='f3'> -<p class='c000'><span class='label'><a href='#r3'>3</a>. </span>Two German ecclesiastics, who in 1450 were sent to Lisbon -by the Emperor Frederick III. to ask for the hand of the -Portuguese Infanta Leonor, thus mention Cintra in the narrative -of their voyage: “Oh! Cintra, most pleasant place and -royal garden, with a little river in which there are good trout. -Here, too, there are devout brethren in a Jeronomite monastery, -who live according to their rule.”—<cite><span lang="la" xml:lang="la">Historia Desponsationis -Frederici III. cum Eleanora Lusitanica.</span></cite></p> -</div> - -<div class='footnote' id='f4'> -<p class='c000'><span class='label'><a href='#r4'>4</a>. </span>When Byron visited Cintra in 1809, Beckford, whose fame -as an author rests upon his curious Eastern tale of “Vathek,” -had left his villa at Monserrate for the more pretentious splendours -of Fonthill, and the Peninsular war was pending.</p> - -<div class='lg-container-b c004'> - <div class='linegroup'> - <div class='group'> - <div class='line'>“And yonder towers the Prince’s palace fair;</div> - <div class='line'>There thou, too, Vathek, England’s wealthiest son,</div> - <div class='line'>Once formed thy paradise, as not aware,</div> - <div class='line'>When wanton wealth her mightiest deeds hath done,</div> - <div class='line'>Meek peace voluptuous lures was ever wont to shun.</div> - <div class='line'>Here didst thou dwell, here schemes of pleasure plan,</div> - <div class='line'>Beneath yon mountain’s ever beauteous brow;</div> - <div class='line'>But now, as if a thing unblest by man,</div> - <div class='line'>Thy fairy dwelling is as lone as thou.”</div> - </div> - </div> -</div> - -</div> - -<div class='chapter'> - <span class='pageno' id='Page_229'>229</span> - <h2 class='c006'>VIII<br /> <span class='large'>LISBON</span></h2> -</div> - -<p class='c012'>No capital city in Europe, with the exception -of Constantinople, can compare with Lisbon in -beauty of situation. On approaching the city -up the Tagus from the sea the panorama presented -is most striking; although the unæsthetic -Portuguese have done their best to mar it by -fringing the foreshore with possibly profitable, -but certainly hideous and offensive, industrial -and commercial excrescences, from the noble -and historic tower of Belem at the mouth of -the river, almost hidden in the midst of defiling -gasometers, to where the city merges into the -country at Poço do Bispo three miles away. -Piled up upon a grand amphitheatre of hills, -the city rises tier over tier, the river opening out -before it in the form of an extensive bay. Away -above Belem the vast square Ajuda palace stands -conspicuously upon a hill-top backed afar off -by the huge mass of Cintra; whilst at the other -<span class='pageno' id='Page_230'>230</span>end of the panorama towards the east the ancient -citadel-palace of St. Jorge looks down from its -height upon the busy river-bank and the central -valley running inland, in which the rectangular -main streets are cramped.<a id='r5' /><a href='#f5' class='c013'><sup>[5]</sup></a></p> - -<p class='c000'>The noble Praça do Comercio, Black Horse -Square, as English visitors call it, fronts the -river in the foreground, the most imposing public -square in Europe, with the exception perhaps -of the Place de la Concorde in Paris. Previous -to the great earthquake of 1755 a royal palace -stood upon a portion of this site, and the valley -behind it was a closely crowded congeries of -narrow and filthy lanes. In my manuscript -already referred to of Lord Strathmore’s travels -in the country, an interesting account is given -<span class='pageno' id='Page_231'>231</span>of the condition of things in 1760, when he saw -the ruined city; and a quotation from his description -of the plans then existing for rebuilding -the portion destroyed will give a good idea of -the present aspect, since the plans were executed -precisely.</p> - -<p class='c015'>“The prospect,” writes Lord Strathmore, “of this great city -rising from its ruins is still distant, as besides ye arsenal there are -but three houses built upon the intended plan. The plan of the -streets and squares is extremely well imagin’d. There is a pretty -broad valley between two hills, running down to ye Tagus in ye -part where ye palace stood. Thro’ this they intend to make -their principal street, all ye houses regularly built after one -model and <i><span lang="fr" xml:lang="fr">tirés au cordon</span></i>, terminating in a noble square open in -front to ye river, which is of great breadth here, with old Lisbon -upon high ground opposite. The other three sides [of the -square] will be surrounded by a very handsome, narrow arcade, -with public buildings above and an equestrian statue of ye King -in ye centre. The other streets will likewise be regular, and -will lead at right angles into ye great street from ye hills on -each side. Tho’ ye design is extremely noble ye architecture -is as bad [<i><span lang="la" xml:lang="la">i.e.</span></i> as before] except in ye square already described. -They seem to consider ye front of a house only as a high -wall with holes larger or smaller to admit light as occasion -requires.”</p> - -<p class='c000'>This exactly pictures Lisbon as it stands to-day. -From Black Horse Square on the Tagus -bank run the Rua Augusta and two other parallel -streets, called respectively the streets of “gold” -and “silver,” straight as a line to the busy centre -<span class='pageno' id='Page_232'>232</span>of Lisbon, the fine parallelogram, called the Praça -de Dom Pedro, or the Rocio, paved with its inevitable -mosaic of black and white waves, at the -end of which is the theatre of Donna Maria, the -central railway station, and the entrance to the -handsome Avenida da Libertade, a garden and -tree-shaded drive of good houses occupying the -whole of the narrow valley for nearly two miles -into the suburbs. On either side of the Avenida -and the principal rectangular streets in the valley -the hills rise precipitously, and when the tops of -these have been surmounted a series of sudden -dips and rapid ascents succeed east and west. -The city is, therefore, a most fatiguing one to -explore, as to go anywhere away from the river-bank, -which with the exception of Black Horse -Square is irretrievably ugly and squalid, and from -the streets “<i><span lang="fr" xml:lang="fr">tirés au cordon</span></i>” in the central valley, -formidable hills have to be faced. This of late -years has been much relieved by a complete -system of electric trams, which practically cover -the city, and by the instalment of funicular railways -and lifts up some of the more difficult -ascents.</p> - -<p class='c000'>The city, on the whole, is decidedly disappointing -at close quarters. The straight -<span class='pageno' id='Page_233'>233</span>principal streets and rectangular cross thoroughfares, -with their flat, prosaic architecture, the -high white houses all alike, are the antipodes -of picturesqueness, whilst the authorities seem -perversely to have done their utmost to make -the river-side as ugly as Rotherhithe or Wapping. -This is the more to be regretted, as since I first -knew the city many years ago, great tracts of -land have been reclaimed from the sludge and -ooze of the foreshore which might well have been -treated with some regard for public amenity. -The large strip reclaimed from the river, however, -almost as far as Belem, has for the most -part been turned into untidy deserts of dust, -shabby-looking docks, and dumping-places for -débris. The utter lack of æsthetic taste is -observable on all hands. The terrace before the -king’s residence, the palace of the Necesidades, -for instance, is upon the brow of a low hill, -and commands a splendid view of the river and -the opposite shore for many miles on either -hand; and yet even here, between the palace -and the river factory chimneys belch black -smoke day and night, hopelessly ugly industrial -buildings block the prospect, and the reclaimed -foreshore and docks are as desolate as elsewhere.</p> - -<p class='c000'><span class='pageno' id='Page_234'>234</span>Of the pure picturesque, indeed, little remains -in Lisbon; but what still exists must be sought -amongst the fisher folk on the river-side, and -especially in the markets that have been built -on the reclaimed land of the Ribeira Nova, not -far from the centre of the city and close to the -Hotel Central. It was pleasant to turn into -the cool, spacious, covered fish-market out of the -brilliant sunlight, which even quite early in the -day drove people to welcome shade. The air -was clear, crisp, and elastic, and every object -seemed to sparkle with light and colour. Inside -the market hundreds of people were bargaining -quietly, for even here the absence of vociferation -was remarkable; servants buying their stocks of -provisions for the day, housewives of the humbler -class doing their own marketing, baskets on their -arms, and women fish hawkers by the score -laying in their stocks. They were all shoeless, -as usual, wearing under their vast head burden -black pork-pie hats over red or yellow kerchiefs, -and they have girdles below the hips into which -the upper portion of their pleated skirts is drawn -to relieve the waist of their weight. Upon the -ground, spread around the women sellers, were -great heaps of glistening fish; cod, dory, skate, -whiting, and large quantities of squids or cuttlefish, -which are much liked by the Portuguese -poor.</p> - -<div id='fp234' class='figcenter id001'> -<img src='images/i_321.jpg' alt='' class='ig001' /> -<div class='ic001'> -<p>ON THE QUAY, LISBON.</p> -</div> -</div> - -<p class='c000'><span class='pageno' id='Page_235'>235</span>The male fish-sellers of Lisbon are for a -wonder even more picturesque than the women; -for here on the Tagus the seafarers of the south -are first noticeable, quite distinct in racial characteristics -as they are from those of the north. -These Lisbon fishermen go barefooted, which -the poorest men of the north never do, they -wear breeches only to the knee, girt by a crimson -sash, and the hanging tasselled bag-cap falls and -waves over their shoulder as they loup along -with a peculiar springing gait under a long -flexible pole balanced transversely across the -shoulders, at each end of which a flat, shallow -basket of fish is suspended. The vegetable -market adjoining that devoted to fish is a -brilliant sight in this favoured land. Heaps of -scarlet pimentos and tomatoes are flanked by -enormous yellow gourds, and mountains of -purple grapes incredibly cheap, pomegranates, -and big luscious pears jostle piles of humbler -vegetables of the kitchen, and some of the -groups of bright-coloured produce seem to reproduce -the old pictures of the mythical cornucopia -<span class='pageno' id='Page_236'>236</span>overflowing with all the best fruits of the -earth.</p> - -<p class='c000'>It is a long and tiring walk from here to -Belem, but two lines of electric trams go thither, -one along the river-bank and the other by the -parallel route past Alcantara, and either will serve -our turn. Belem is now but a suburb of Lisbon, -continuous lines of houses covering the two miles -of the route. There still remains, however, -something of distinction in this royal village, -full of memories as it is of Portugal’s great day -of power and wealth. For here it was that at -length the dream came true, and those long vigils -of the Fortunate King on the savage peak of -Cintra were rewarded by the coming of Vasco -da Gama to the squat, sturdy old tower of -Belem, that had been in his yearning thoughts -through so many trials and dangers. King -Manuel greeted his great subject, who had -brought to his native land the potentiality of -wealth illimitable, here in the village of Belem, -at the mouth of the Tagus; and as the explorer -stepped ashore, the king, overjoyed at his coming, -swore to build upon that very spot a Jeronomite -monastery splendid enough to be worthy even of -that great occasion. And he kept his word; for -<span class='pageno' id='Page_237'>237</span>two years afterwards, in 1500, the first course -was laid of a building which surpasses all others -in its particular style, and in some respects is one -of the most remarkable ecclesiastical structures in -the world.</p> - -<p class='c000'>A long line of church and monastery adjoining -runs parallel with the sea, the conventual portion -partly in ruins but now in course of reconstruction, -and the eye is at first perfectly bewildered -by the richness of the details of the doors and -windows of the edifice. Here Manueline architecture -is at its earliest and best, before extravagance -like that of the unfinished chapels at -Batalha overwhelmed it. Here the orthodox -florid Gothic and Renaissance styles are leavened, -but not obliterated, by the new spirit of expansion -and aspiration that found its national -expression in what is called Manueline. The -west door of the church, where the monastic -buildings join it, is extremely beautiful. On -each side are rich canopies under which kneel -the king and queen with their patron saints, -and smaller figures exquisitely carved surround -the rest of the door, which is surmounted by -flamboyant pinnacles in the Manueline taste. -The general idea of the windows, which are -<span class='pageno' id='Page_238'>238</span>very large and high, is of a round-topped arch -three or four courses or orders deep, each course -being set with bosses of a different, but always -elaborate, pattern, an outer moulding representing -a twisted cable or twined branches in infinite -variety, ending in a series of pinnacles, surrounding -the window on the surface of the wall.</p> - -<p class='c000'>The great south doorway facing the road -and the Tagus, the principal door of entrance, -almost defies description by its richness and -complexity of ornament, this and the cloisters -of the church being perhaps the best specimen -of Gothic Manueline in Portugal. Between the -two doorways into which the entrance is divided -there is a pillar or column, upon which, under -a rich Gothic canopy, stands a large figure of a -man wearing a tabard. The scheme of decoration -is carried up by a series of flamboyant -pinnacles and canopied figures beautifully interlaced -to the top of the aisle wall. The two -great windows flanking this gorgeous doorway -match it in magnificence, and one feels on -turning away from this monument of human -skill and ingenuity that here the short-lived art -of the Portuguese Renaissance has reached its -highest flight.</p> - -<div id='fp238' class='figcenter id001'> -<img src='images/i_327.jpg' alt='' class='ig001' /> -<div class='ic001'> -<p><span class='sc'>The South Door at Belem</span></p> -</div> -</div> - -<p class='c000'><span class='pageno' id='Page_239'>239</span>The impression, however, hardly survives the -moment when you cross the threshold and enter -the church itself; for here you see an interior -unlike any other great temple. The first impression -is one of immense unencumbered -spaciousness. The ordinary arrangement of -nave and aisles does not exist, but from the -floor there spring straight up to a height that -seems prodigious six slender isolated marble -pillars, three on each side. They form no -continued arcade, although, of course, they -are aligned, and each pillar is decorated lavishly -in high relief with Renaissance ornamentation in -panels, with canopied niches half-way up their -height. From the top of each column spring -a series of branches like the fronds of a palm-leaf, -which, meeting in beautiful graceful curves, -form the intricate series of bossed groins which -compose the vaulted marble roof. At the west -end of the church three low-pointed Manueline -arches support the choir-loft, and along the -north wall twelve Manueline doorways are -ranged, with rich canopied niches above them, -whilst the magnificent transept, with its gorgeous -ceiling and royal chapels and tombs, and its -vast Manueline chancel arch of twisted cables -<span class='pageno' id='Page_240'>240</span>and cordage supporting rich canopied pulpits, -altogether produce an effect of overpowering -majesty.</p> - -<p class='c000'>Here in the chancel repose, in splendid -tombs, the ashes of the king, Manuel the -Fortunate, and his son, John III., the two -great builders of the fane; and here too lie, -in a transept chapel, Vasco da Gama himself, -and Camões, who enshrined in deathless epic -the spirit of exalted enterprise of which the -great explorer was the personification, and the -Infante, Prince Henry, the prophetic inspirer. -Kings, queens, princes, and princesses lie around -in fretted sepulchres—that ill-used Catharine of -Braganza, Queen-Consort of England, amongst -them, here where she passed the long years of -her widowhood—but their very names are for -the most part forgotten now; and this memorable -church of Belem, whilst its daring beauty -stands, will remain the shrine of the two -greatest figures of Portugal’s golden age, and -of the “Fortunate Monarch,” Manuel, in whose -reign the vision of the Infante was realised.</p> - -<p class='c000'>The cloisters of the monastery vie with those -of Batalha in beauty, which is saying much. -Each of the twenty arches, four on each face -<span class='pageno' id='Page_241'>241</span>and one at each corner, is filled with Manueline -tracery, exhibiting inexhaustible caprice and invention, -no two being alike in pattern; whilst -highly decorated Manueline doorways line the -inner walls. The upper ambulatory is wider and, -if possible, more elaborate than the lower, an -unusual arrangement, each upper arch buttress -being capped by a beautifully decorated finial. -The chapter-house, as usual, leads out of the -cloister, an exquisitely rich specimen of Manueline, -and is now devoted to the stately tomb of -Alexandre Herculano, the nineteenth-century -Portuguese historian. Pompous as are the -sepulchres of kings and heroes in the adjoining -church, this monument to the historian—a -respectable figure in literature, it is true, but -by no means a genius of universal fame—surpasses -them all. Here, alone in the midst of -this grandiose chapter-house of the monks, the -dead man-of-letters rests more splendidly than -monarch or millionaire. Modern Portugal, at -least, can honour the gifted pen; for the names -of Camões, of Almeida-Garrett, the nineteenth-century -poet, and Herculano, the historian, are -all through the country commemorated by -street names. How long shall we have to -<span class='pageno' id='Page_242'>242</span>wait before Englishmen, so ready to bow the -knee before successful finance, will thus do -homage to an historian? Verily, little as we -may relish the truth, we have much to learn -from Portugal, and not in this alone.</p> - -<p class='c000'>The monastery buildings of Belem shelter -twelve hundred orphan boys, who are there -clothed, fed, and educated by the State, and it -was a fine sight to witness them all at table in the -great Manueline refectory of the vanished monks, -and pleasant to hear the ringing of their youthful -laughter as they played joyously in the stately -cloisters. In the museum adjoining there is a -collection of ancient royal coaches, some of them -very imposing and curious, but generally speaking -not so interesting a collection as that in the -royal <i><span lang="es" xml:lang="es">caballerizas</span></i> at Madrid.</p> - -<p class='c000'>Sated almost with sculptural richness, I left -the monastery, and rested beneath the grateful -shade of palms in the public garden opposite, -with the broad Tagus before me and the glowing -blue sky overhead until the perfect day began to -wane. Then through the fine Praça de Dom -Fernando, with its handsome Manueline pillar -and statue of Albuquerque, the great viceroy of -the Indies, I slowly wended my way back by the -<span class='pageno' id='Page_243'>243</span>chaotic river-bank to Lisbon. Belem is beautiful -and suggestive enough to provide reflection for -one day without allowing other impressions to -disturb it, and the sordid sights and sounds of -the water-side were nothing to me, for the airy -fancies of the artist in stone and the romantic -memories of the heroic days surrounded me as -with a mantle.</p> - -<p class='c000'>Lisbon is a city of prospects, and, uninteresting -as are its main streets, it is only necessary to stand -upon one of its many eminences to see spread -before you a wide and varied panorama. The -end windows of the upper corridors in the Hotel -de Bragança afford a splendid view of the port -and the mouth of the Tagus, whilst from the -ancient citadel of St. Jorge, and from the -dome of the big classical church of Estrella, the -city and the rolling hills for miles around are -spread out at the foot like a map in relief. -Speaking for myself, I have always considered -one of the most attractive coigns of vantage in -Lisbon to be the Largo da Gloria just over the -entrance of the Avenida. This can be reached -either up the Rua de São Roque or by the funicular -lift from the Avenida itself. The view -from this pretty public garden on the top of a -<span class='pageno' id='Page_244'>244</span>precipitous bluff is charming. The whole of the -central valley lies under you with its straight -lines of streets, starting from the great parallelogram -of the Rocio just below and reaching the -Tagus. Just in front of you across the valley -rise the hills covered with houses of all colours -amidst greenery, with the great old citadel of the -Moors and their conquerors crowning the highest -point towards the river; the square battlemented -towers of the old cathedral being seated upon a -lower hill at its foot. To the left an ocean of -mountainous hills covered with verdure and -buildings stretch as far as the eye reaches; whilst -on the right beyond the extensive Black Horse -Square shines the wide estuary of the river, and -miles away across the water the mountains that -bound the prospect towards the south.</p> - -<p class='c000'>As you stand and look down from the garden -of Gloria to the big busy square, with its wavy -black and white pavement, and tall column just -underneath you, you may notice that at the -north-east corner of the square the valley broadens -somewhat, and a maze of narrow streets starts -from that corner. If when you descend from -your eminence you penetrate and explore this -corner you will find in it all that is left of the -<span class='pageno' id='Page_245'>245</span>quaint Lisbon of before the great earthquake. -For here, in a district still called the Mouraria, -and in what once was the Villa Nova de Gibraltar -adjoining it, dwelt outside the ancient walls the -Moors and Jews, who for centuries almost -monopolised the wealth of Portugal, until at -the bidding of his Spanish father-in-law and -mother-in-law, Ferdinand and Isabel, the “Fortunate” -King Manuel made short work of the -children of Israel. Here in the ghetto, of which -the ancient gateway still stands, the streets are -narrow and tortuous. Crumbling gables and -quaint corner turrets overhang the pathway, and -dark mysterious entries, lined with oriental -<i><span lang="pt" xml:lang="pt">azulejos</span></i>, tell of the time when men lived in daily -fear of rapine and violence.</p> - -<p class='c000'>Almost sheer over the district of the Mouraria -towers the hill upon which the fortress of St. -Jorge stands, and if you care to climb it you may -see Lisbon, and beyond from the point opposite -to that from which you have just descended. -The cathedral stands upon a hill nearer the -river, and may best be reached by following the -tram-lines up the Rua da Conceição. The sturdy -old church fronts a triangular space, from which -picturesque glimpses of the roofs of the old -<span class='pageno' id='Page_246'>246</span>town and river-bank may be caught. Two square -Romanesque towers, which, like the rest of the -cathedral, are now in course of restoration from -the vandalism of the seventeenth and eighteenth -centuries, stand on each side of and connect with a -large square porch before the west door. Cupolas -and a railed parapet formerly surmounted these -towers, but battlements in accordance with the -original design are in future to replace them, -and the lavish additions of carved wood capitals -to the pillars and coats of stucco over ancient -decorations are being cleared away, thanks largely -to the encouragement of the present Queen of -Portugal, who is interested in the work.</p> - -<p class='c000'>Here on this hill stood the mosque of the -Moslem kings, and here, when in 1147 Affonso -Henriques, the first King of Portugal, captured -the city, the first Christian church was built by -the conqueror, who nominated an English warrior-monk, -Gilbert, to be the first bishop of the -new See. Upon a stone within the porch of the -west door, the carved legend tells how the Moors -were vanquished by the Christian king, and the -cross set up in this place, and the twelfth-century -round-arched doorway with the grotesque capitals -of its pillars demonstrate that this part of the -<span class='pageno' id='Page_247'>247</span>edifice at least dates from the earliest years of the -Portuguese monarchy.</p> - -<p class='c000'>The interior presents six round arches on clustered -marble columns, now stripped of the stucco -that disfigured them for centuries, though the -Corinthian capitals which were added in the -eighteenth century still remain. When Lord -Strathmore saw the church in 1760, five years -after the earthquake, he referred to these Corinthian -capitals in a sketch he drew of the church: -“I have left out,” he says, “the large Corinthian -capitals and marble pedestals which have been -added to the pillars within memory. The fire -has burnt most of the capitals off, both of the -ambulatory and the nave arches, and the other -capitals have been so much impaired that you can -only see remains of basket-work, foliage, and -flowers.” The intention referred to by Lord -Strathmore to restore the church to its original -simplicity was so far from being carried out that -new gilt wood acanthus leaf capitals were added -to these fine old Romanesque pillars. At last, -however, the church is really being judiciously -treated, and is rapidly assuming the grave, devotional -appearance of the early Christian temples -raised after the victories of Affonso Henriques.</p> - -<p class='c000'><span class='pageno' id='Page_248'>248</span>The roof is particularly striking in its solid -majesty, the middle flute of each cluster of -columns springing to the ceiling and supporting -a round arch carried over the nave to the opposite -column, something like the roof plan at Alcobaça. -The transepts have majestic rose windows at each -end, and the central lantern tower or cimborio -stands on pillars of lofty clustered columns, -forming round arches rising as high as the roof -of the nave; all this being as early as the first -foundation of the church. The chancel is very -beautiful early Gothic, with pointed arches, and -a gorgeous ceiling, and the little Gothic chapels -round the ambulatory are many of them interesting. -Tombs and sarcophagi of archbishops, most -of ages long past, crumble in dark corners and -dim, grated chapels, and two splendid royal -tombs of Affonso IV. and his wife are on the -left of the high altar. Here, to be seen only -on great occasions, rest the bones of the patron -saint, Vincent, opportunely discovered by the -king, Affonso Henriques, in their hiding-place -far away, where, guarded by ravens, they had been -saved from the desecration of the unbelieving -Moors. The ship that brought the holy relics -from the southernmost point of Portugal, for -<span class='pageno' id='Page_249'>249</span>reverent preservation, to Lisbon was always -escorted by the faithful ravens, thenceforward -sacred birds for the cathedral church of Lisbon, -where some of them are kept to this day in -memory of their piety.</p> - -<p class='c000'>Along the walls of the aisles run large pictorial -tableaux of scenes in the life of St. Vincent and -incidents in the miracles of the ravens, the ancient -blue and white tiles of which the pictures are composed -showing clear indications of the still lingering -Moorish traditions in early Christian ceramics. -It was Saturday afternoon as I mused in the old -church, which was blocked and encumbered in -many places by the materials of the restoring -workmen; and, wandering past an open doorway -in the end of the south aisle, I heard the -hum of voices. It came from the ruined cloister, -where a sad-looking young priest and a sister of -charity were teaching classes of little children. -It was a charming picture. The bright sun -filtered through the half-ruined twin lancet lights -of the ogival arches and fell in dappled patches -of gold upon the ancient sarcophagi and dismantled -altars that lined the humble arcade: a -wild, neglected little garden, all abloom with -untended masses of autumn flowers and trails of -<span class='pageno' id='Page_250'>250</span>crimson creepers, and the droning hum of the -children reciting in turn the sacred lesson they -were conning. Peace and remoteness from the -world seemed to reign in this quiet nook of the -busy capital. Here was none of the sculptured -glories such as dazzled the beholder at Belem or -Batalha; only two plain pointed narrow arches -in each bay of the arcade, with a round light -above, bordered by a simple nailhead or rouleau -moulding. Everything is ruinous and in course -of restoration, but devout humility is the note -struck throughout the cathedral, from the solemn, -restrained Romanesque of the nave to the plain -sepulchral little Gothic cloister, where, in the -dim sea-green light filtering through leaves and -crumbling arches young children learn the letter -of their faith.</p> - -<p class='c000'>There is in these Portuguese churches no affectation -of the gloomy splendour and mystery -which is the characteristic of the Spanish cathedrals. -At mass on Sundays the faithful gather, -and on other days a certain number attend; but -the constant coming and going of worshippers at -all hours of the day, and the celebration of mass -at one altar or another continuously from dawn to -midday that in Spain is universal, find no counterpart -<span class='pageno' id='Page_251'>251</span>in the Portuguese portion of the Peninsula. -Here, and above all in the north, the priest is not -constantly in evidence, as he is in Spain, and his -garb is, as a rule, as unobtrusive as that of an -English clergyman; for the shovel-hat and flowing -cassock and cloak have in Portugal almost -disappeared. However religious the Portuguese -may be the apparatus and panoply of religion are -not conspicuous, and when once mass is over in the -Portuguese church, the place is usually deserted.</p> - -<p class='c000'>Although with justice, Lisbon is usually considered -an extremely unæsthetic capital, and has -not much to show worth seeing in pictorial art, -there is one feature, in which, little known or -noticed as it is by visitors, Lisbon can boast of -unrivalled artistic possessions. I mean in that of -ecclesiastical <i><span lang="fr" xml:lang="fr">orfèvrerie</span></i>. When the religious houses -were suppressed, and the State appropriated church -property, the priceless productions of the old -goldsmiths, gifts of devout sovereigns and grandees -for centuries to sacred shrines, were not -plundered or frittered away in private hands, as -happened in England and France, but carefully -preserved by the State for public enjoyment. -Truth to say, no one seems to enjoy these -exquisite objects very much now, for of the many -<span class='pageno' id='Page_252'>252</span>times I have spent hours in admiring the collections -in the National Museum, and in that of -São Roque, I have rarely seen any but an occasional -stranger in either place.</p> - -<p class='c000'>The Museum of Fine Arts at Lisbon possesses, -it is true, few objects of importance, apart from -the goldsmith’s work and ecclesiastical embroidery, -and the lack of a catalogue of the paintings—except -for the collection given to the nation by -Count de Carvalhido—stands in the way of their -enjoyment. Most that is worth seeing here in -pictorial art comes from the suppressed religious -houses and churches, especially the early Flemish -and German paintings, of which several are really -fine. But the collection of ancient pictures is so -lamentable in condition as a whole, and so badly -lit, as to make the study of them difficult. Count -de Carvalhido’s large collection, which is separately -housed in two rooms in the Museum, contains -a few good pictures and many by obscure -artists quite the reverse, the specimens of the -Flemish and Germanic schools predominating. -The attribution of the works to named painters -is often quite wide of the mark, many pictures -bearing no resemblance whatever to the style of -their alleged authors. There is, for instance, a -<span class='pageno' id='Page_253'>253</span>little panel attributed to Sir Thomas Lawrence. -It is called “Seduction,” and represents, in the -usual eighteenth-century French genre style, an -interior with a young man seated at an open escritoire -offering jewels and money to a girl, whilst -an old woman watches through a half-closed door. -Anything more unlike Lawrence, either in technique -or subject, it would be difficult to conceive. -Another picture, a large canvas attributed to Zaniberti, -an Italian painter, who died in 1636, represents -a Carnival in Rome with a large number of -maskers and spectators, all of whom are dressed -in the fashion of the late eighteenth century, a -hundred and fifty years after Zaniberti’s death.</p> - -<p class='c000'>But the wealth of church and altar plate more -than makes up for the shortcomings of the picture -galleries. Monstrances in gold of great -antiquity and beauty, covered with precious stones, -are to be seen literally by the dozen. Silver gilt -processional crosses of the fourteenth and fifteenth -centuries, some almost Byzantine, some nearly -Mudejar in design, abound; chalices of unimaginable -richness in pure Gothic and Manueline -styles, reliquaries in gold and gems beyond price, -and gold and enamelled crowns and girdles, altar -crosses, and candlesticks without number, are -<span class='pageno' id='Page_254'>254</span>displayed in cases in a suite of rooms commanding -a fine view over the Tagus. Alcobaça has -contributed the lion’s share of these treasures, but -Batalha and many other religious houses have been -placed under involuntary contribution; and the -result is a collection of early ecclesiastical art in -gold and silver that I have never seen approached -elsewhere. The church vestments, too, are rich -and numerous beyond description; and a large -series of beautifully embroidered court dresses -of the eighteenth century displays the influence -exerted by the Portuguese connection with the far -East upon artistic embroidery of the period.</p> - -<p class='c000'>The collection of church property contained -in the small museum attached to the Jesuit church -of São Roque is circumscribed in period to the -late seventeenth and early eighteenth centuries; -but as the whole collection is derived from the -possessions of a single chapel—that of St. John—in -the adjoining church, a vivid idea is gained -of the lavishness with which the church in Portugal -was endowed in the days of the national -prosperity.</p> - -<p class='c000'>The church and district of São Roque have -always possessed special interest for me. The -monastery, standing upon a bluff overlooking the -<span class='pageno' id='Page_255'>255</span>valley, was the point of attack when the English -under Norris and the Earl of Essex tried to -capture Lisbon for the Pretender, Dom Antonio, -in 1589;<a id='r6' /><a href='#f6' class='c013'><sup>[6]</sup></a> and, though the monks were in favour -of the English <i><span lang="fr" xml:lang="fr">protégé</span></i>, the Spanish musketeers -filled the long line of windows commanding the -approach from the English camp, on the opposite -hill outside the gate of São Antão, and frustrated -all attempts to force the position.</p> - -<p class='c000'>Inside the great square church there is an object -of interest that first attracted my attention many -years ago, and always demands from me a pilgrimage -to São Roque, up the hill of the Carmo, -as soon as I arrive in Lisbon. Sir Francis -Tregian was one of those stout Cornish Catholic -recusant gentlemen whose career in the days of -Elizabeth I had had occasion to follow in detail; -and his persecution and escape were familiar to -me, as they are to many students of the religious -troubles of the last years of the Tudor queen; -but I had never known where he had found a -last resting-place. Here in São Roque a large -upright slab stands beneath the pulpit on the -north side of the church which quaintly tells the -<span class='pageno' id='Page_256'>256</span>story: “<i><span lang="pt" xml:lang="pt">Aqui esta, em pé, o corpo de Dom Francisco -Tregian, fidalgo inglés mui illustre, o qual depois de -confiscados os seus estados, e grandes trabalhos padecidos -em 28 annos de prisam, polla defensa da fe catholica -em Inglaterra, na persecuçam da Rainha Isabel, no -anno 1608 ao 25 Dezembro morreó nesta cidade de -Lisboa, com fama de santidade. Avendo 17 annos -que estava sepultado nesta igrega de S. Roque da -Companhia de Jesus, no anno de 1625 ao 25 Abril, se -achouo seu corpo inteiro e incorrupto, e foe collocado -neste lugar pelos ingleses catholicos residentes en esta -cidade, ao 25 Abril 1626.</span></i>” “Here upright stands -the body of Sir Francis Tregian, a very illustrious -English gentleman, who, after his estates were -confiscated and he had suffered great tribulation -during twenty-eight years of imprisonment for -the defence of the Catholic faith in England, in -the persecution of Queen Elizabeth, died on the -25th December 1608 in this city of Lisbon, famed -for his saintliness. After he had been entombed -for seventeen years in this church of São Roque -of the Company of Jesus, in the year 1625, on -the 25th April, his body was found intact and -uncorrupted, and was placed in this position by -the English Catholics resident in this city on the -25th April 1626.”</p> - -<p class='c000'><span class='pageno' id='Page_257'>257</span>The chapel on the north side of São Roque -nearest the altar is the beautifully decorated -chapel of St. John. It had been for centuries -the poorest chapel in the sanctuary; but with -the advent of King John V., at the dawn of -the eighteenth century, the new monarch -declared his intention of making the shrine of -his patron saint the richest altar in Portugal. -And he did so, with gifts both lavish and -beautiful, an example naturally followed by his -courtiers; so that when the Jesuits were expelled, -the treasures of St. John, the property -thenceforward of the State, formed a museum -of their own. The objects exhibited, monstrances, -reliquaries, crosses, altar furniture, -banners, frontals, and vestments, are of surpassing -magnificence; although they often attract -more by their intrinsic worth than by the -purity of their taste, as, for instance, the silver-gilt -altar candlesticks ten feet high, and the great -silver <i><span lang="pt" xml:lang="pt">repousé</span></i> altar front: but as specimens of the -decorative art—Italian, French, and Portuguese—of -their period, they are well worth study.</p> - -<p class='c000'>Lower down the hill stands the beautiful -ruined Gothic-Manueline church of the Carmo, -now an archæological museum, filled with many -<span class='pageno' id='Page_258'>258</span>fragments of the older buildings of Lisbon -saved from the ruin of the earthquake that -wrecked the Carmo itself.</p> - -<p class='c000'>Lisbon abounds in public gardens of almost -tropical luxuriance. The fine plantations before -the big classical church of the Estrella, the -park of the Necessidades palace, the square of -the Principe Real, the Avenida itself, and the -pretty garden of the Gloria already referred to, -might for the vegetation in them almost be in -the West Indies; whilst the Botanic Gardens, -especially, can show palm groves to be matched -nowhere in Europe, except at Elche in the -east of Spain. And not palms alone grow here -in a way wonderful in the midst of a populous -city, but cacti, aloes, daturas, and magnolias -bloom with great luxuriance, and huge tropical -forest trees from South America thrive in the -open as if on their native soil.</p> - -<p class='c000'>The climate of Lisbon, indeed, is extraordinarily -soft and mild relatively to its -latitude, owing to its sheltered position and to -the prevalence of westerly sea breezes. As a -winter resort it has unaccountably fallen somewhat -out of fashion of late years in favour of -the Mediterranean Riviera, where the climate is -<span class='pageno' id='Page_259'>259</span>much less equable and more trying to those in -delicate health. The latitude of Lisbon is about -the same as that of Palermo, three hundred -miles south of that of the Mediterranean -Riviera, and the mean winter temperature -(December, January, and February) in Lisbon -is 10.63° Centigrade (51° Fahrenheit), against -7.79° at Biarritz, and 7.91° at Nice. Not only -is Lisbon thus much warmer on an average -than the winter resorts now most affected by -English visitors, but the climate is more uniform, -the diurnal fluctuation in winter being -considerably less at Lisbon than at Biarritz, -Nice, or even at Palermo in the same latitude. -The winter atmospheric humidity of Lisbon -slightly exceeds that of Biarritz and Nice, -though in summer Lisbon is atmospherically -much drier than either: but in the matter of -the entire winter rainfall the average of Lisbon -is considerably higher, and this it is that to -some extent has set English physicians against -the place as a winter health resort, although -the average rainfall for the whole year is much -less at Lisbon<a id='r7' /><a href='#f7' class='c013'><sup>[7]</sup></a> than either at Biarritz or Nice. -<span class='pageno' id='Page_260'>260</span>The rains in Lisbon, however, which fall heavily -in the months of November, December, and -January (a mean of 277 milimetres, as against -254 milimetres at Biarritz and 167 milimetres -at Nice), are usually rapid and torrential, and -pass away at once.</p> - -<p class='c000'>Snow is practically unknown at Lisbon, and -frost is extremely rare. But, withal, equable -and mild as the average hibernal climate of -Lisbon is, I do not personally recommend it as a -residence for those who are forced in the winter -to seek a warm, dry, and bracing atmosphere. -The smoke of the numerous factories, and the -mist that clings about the river and in the -narrow gullies that contain much of the town, -make the place somewhat depressing. But -within fifteen miles of the city, and free from -the objections natural to the valley of the -Tagus, there are two resorts which are, in my -opinion, and I speak from experience of both -of them, ideal places in which the unpleasantness -and danger of winter in a northern climate -may be escaped. It is, indeed, difficult to overrate -the attractions in this respect of Cascaes -and Mont’ Estoril, especially the latter. Cascaes -stands in a lovely bay surrounded by bold, -<span class='pageno' id='Page_261'>261</span>rocky scenery, and backed by hills which protect -it from the north. A fine sheltered promenade -facing the sea possesses a grove of palms more -luxuriant than any that Nice or Cannes can -show, and the walks along the coast are -beautiful. Mont’ Estoril, which is within a -mile or so of Cascaes, on the point of the -Bay, is of more modern reputation, but is in -some respects to be preferred to Cascaes as a -winter resort. The train from Lisbon, running -along the coast for fourteen miles, lands the -visitor to Mont’ Estoril in the midst of a -beautifully picturesque village of hotels and -villas, grouped upon the slope of a hill -descending in a semicircle to the sea, with -pines and eucalyptus woods above, and palms -everywhere below. The high range of Cintra, -and the lower hills on the north and east, -completely protect the place from inclement -winds, whilst the open sea-front on west and -south prevents the sweltering stuffiness and -relaxing effect of so many shut-in places. -There are several excellent hotels specially -intended for winter visitors; and for any one -to whom a three-days’ voyage at sea in a -commodious, well-found steamer has no terrors, -<span class='pageno' id='Page_262'>262</span>this Portuguese Riviera just outside the Tagus -forms a winter refuge which it will be difficult -to beat in Europe. The climate of Mont’ -Estoril is noticeably warmer than Lisbon in the -winter, and the diurnal variations of temperature -are smaller; whilst the humidity and rainfall, -which in Lisbon during the three winter -months form its only natural drawback, are -very much smaller at Mont’ Estoril. It is, -indeed, very rare that mist is seen at the -latter place, even when the Tagus valley is -full of haze. From personal knowledge of -both places I should say that the mean winter -rainfall of Mont’ Estoril is much less than that -of Biarritz, whilst certainly its temperature is -higher and its uniformity greater.</p> - -<p class='c000'>I have dwelt only upon the winter climatic -conditions, because it is in this respect that -misapprehension usually exists. The spring and -autumn climate generally is simply perfect, -and from the middle of March onward fine -warm weather, with only an occasional heavy -shower in April, May, and October, may be -counted upon almost with certainty. During -the particular tour of which this book is a -record, I passed thirty days in Portugal in the -<span class='pageno' id='Page_263'>263</span>month of October. Out of this period I saw -rain on four days only—namely, three hours of -deluge at Oporto, a portion of the day at -Bussaco, and two days at Lisbon; whilst in -previous journeys in Portugal I have on more -than one occasion seen an even smaller quantity -of rain in October, April, and May. November -is usually wet, though not so wet as at Biarritz -or Nice for the same month (Lisbon, 106 milimetres; -Biarritz, 122 milimetres; Nice, 114 -milimetres), whilst in December and January -Lisbon and Biarritz have about an equal rainfall, -Nice being in those months drier than -either. From March onward Lisbon has a -decided advantage over both places.</p> - -<hr class='c014' /> - -<div class='footnote' id='f5'> -<p class='c000'><span class='label'><a href='#r5'>5</a>. </span>Byron, who, much as he loved Cintra, hated Lisbon and -the Portuguese generally, which perhaps is not very surprising -when it is considered that he visited it in 1809, after the -first French invasion and before the Peninsular War, thus -wrote of Lisbon:—</p> - -<div class='lg-container-b c004'> - <div class='linegroup'> - <div class='group'> - <div class='line'>“What beauties does Lisboa first unfold;</div> - <div class='line'>Her image floating on that noble tide,</div> - <div class='line'>Which poets vainly pave with sands of gold,</div> - <div class='line'>And now whereon a thousand keels do ride.</div> - </div> - <div class='group'> - <div class='line'>But whoso entereth within this town,</div> - <div class='line'>That sheening far celestial seems to be,</div> - <div class='line'>Disconsolate will wander up and down,</div> - <div class='line'>Mid many things unsightly to strange ee.”</div> - </div> - </div> -</div> - -</div> - -<div class='footnote' id='f6'> -<p class='c000'><span class='label'><a href='#r6'>6</a>. </span>The story of the expedition is told in full in “The Year -after the Armada,” by the present writer.</p> -</div> - -<div class='footnote' id='f7'> -<p class='c000'><span class='label'><a href='#r7'>7</a>. </span>Lisbon, 738 milimetres; Biarritz, 1067 milimetres; Nice, -766 milimetres.</p> -</div> - -<div class='chapter'> - <span class='pageno' id='Page_264'>264</span> - <h2 class='c006'>IX<br /> <span class='large'>SETUBAL, TROYA, AND EVORA</span></h2> -</div> - -<p class='c012'>Tyneside itself cannot be more disagreeable than -Lisbon on the rare occasions when really bad -weather comes up the Tagus from the west. -Smoke of unusual blackness and abundance is -poured without let or hindrance from innumerable -industrial chimneys by the water-side, and -the heavy sea-mist, clinging and wet, holds the -carbon in its embrace until the atmosphere would -hardly disgrace a London particular at Blackwall. -I had stood it for a day, but as I knew I could -get away from it by a short railway journey out -of the valley of the Tagus I determined to endure -it no longer, but to fly to the other side of the -hills. The weather was as bad as ever when I -started the next morning by the ferry-boat to -cross the four miles or so of river to Barreiro, -which is the terminus of the southern system of -railways for Lisbon. Through an arid-looking -country of vines producing the famous Lavradio -<span class='pageno' id='Page_265'>265</span>wine, but ugly and poor, on the slopes of the -Tagus watershed, we gradually rose to the region -of pines and eucalyptus. Leaving all the mist -and rain behind us we topped the sandy hills and -descended towards the south in an atmosphere -brilliantly clear and as exhilarating as nitrous -oxide gas.</p> - -<p class='c000'>Portuguese railways are slow, and it took an -hour and a half to cover the eighteen miles -between Barreiro and Setubal—the Saint Ubes -of the English geographies. A clean spacious -little town, beautifully situated, is this metropolis -of sardines and salt. The days of its saline preeminence, -it is true, have passed away—the times -of humming prosperity at the salt-pans, when -the harbours was wont to be crowded by ships -loading salt for England and elsewhere; but still -the local trade is considerable, and the great -extension of the tinned sardine trade in Portugal -has made up for everything, there being as many -as thirty-four sardine-packing factories at present -in full work at Setubal. Five minutes after we -had got clear out of the Tagus valley and over -the last ridge, the aspect of the land had changed -as if by magic. Oranges, lemons, and almond-trees -stretch in groves and orchards on all sides; -<span class='pageno' id='Page_266'>266</span>broad tracts of cereal land and dark olive plantations -mix with the vineyards, telling of a country -of overflowing fertility; whilst long lines of tall -eucalyptus trees, with hanging strips of bark, -add a strange and exotic note to the scene. This -fertile plain descending to the sea on the south -is enclosed by high mountain ranges, especially -towards the west, upon an outlying spur of which, -a great isolated hill, stands aloft Palmella, another -of those stupendous fortresses for which Portugal -bears the palm. At the foot of the plain, on the -edge of the sea, sits the sparkling little town of -Setubal, with Palmella, six miles away, looming -behind it, but in the marvellous clear air looking -as if within reach of one’s hand.</p> - -<p class='c000'>Before the town of Setubal, and three miles -away across the estuary, there extends a long -sandy spit or island completely enclosing the -harbour and river mouth on the south, the only -entrance being from the west where a rocky point, -an extreme spur of the great Arrabida range, runs -out into the Atlantic facing the sandy point. -This land-locked haven of clear blue water is -one of the most beautiful I have ever seen, -especially when entering it from the sea. The -climate of Setubal is perhaps the warmest of any -<span class='pageno' id='Page_267'>267</span>in Portugal, and the fertility of the country at -the back is remarkable, the hills behind it completely -shutting off the winds from the north.</p> - -<p class='c000'>And yet the people in this part of the country -present an undefinable trace of poverty and hardship, -such as is never seen in North Portugal. -They are hard-working and frugal, but they are -somehow less upstanding and independent in their -bearing, and their conditions of life are evidently -inferior. The difference is no doubt to some -extent racial; for here the sturdy Teutonic and -Celtic stocks left fewer traces than in the north: -but the land in the south is mostly owned in -large estates, and not by the small cultivators -themselves, as it is in North Portugal, and this -has probably more to do with it. A population -of wage-earners is never so well conditioned as -one of independent workers, and in some such -direction as this, surely, must be sought the -explanation for the marked difference between -the people of the north and south of a country -so small and so homogeneous as Portugal.</p> - -<p class='c000'>The long sandy island across the bay was my -objective, and I lost no time in bargaining with -the owner of a sardine-boat to carry me across. -The boat was a heavy, clumsy craft, as it needs -<span class='pageno' id='Page_268'>268</span>to be for the sardine fisheries, the shape of a -crescent-moon with pointed prow and stern, a -high-peaked lateen sail of red canvas stretched -on canes, and long sweeps which worked over a -pin in the thwarts, fitting into a hole in a mighty -block of wood in the centre of the oars instead -of between rollocks. If the craft was picturesque -the crew was still more so: the owner, a -sturdy old seaman, and his son, a bright lad of -twenty, wore the universal bag-cap, when they -wore any head-covering at all, which was seldom. -The old man had boots as well, evidently more -for appearance than use, for he took them off -for good as soon as the bargain with me was -concluded. A flannel shirt and trousers tucked -up to the knees, and girded at the waist by a -red sash, completed the costume. The other -member of the crew, presumably a hired hand, -was a striking Levantine or Greek-looking fellow -of about seven-and-twenty, far more intelligent -than the <i><span lang="pt" xml:lang="pt">patrão</span></i> or his son, brimming over with -eager interest in the expedition, an incessant -talker, with all sorts of queer lore and information -about the strange place we were going to -see. He, for all his intelligence and readiness, -had but two ragged and scanty cotton garments -<span class='pageno' id='Page_269'>269</span>to cover him, and made no pretence of head or -foot covering.</p> - -<p class='c000'>Whilst the boat was being brought round -to the stair, I explored the town and found a -fine old Manueline door in the church São -Julião at the corner of the spacious praça called -after the eighteenth-century poet Bocage, who -having been born at Setubal is the principal -literary glory of the town.</p> - -<p class='c000'>Not a breath of wind was stirring, and the -lumbering sardine-boat, with its big sweeps -weighing nearly half a hundredweight each, was -a heavy pull for two men. But the <i><span lang="pt" xml:lang="pt">patrão</span></i> and -his son put their backs into the work cheerfully -and with good will, the vivacious, black-eyed -tatterdemalion of a crew chattering incessantly -whilst he held the tiller; his being by -far the easiest job, apparently as a concession -to the superiority of mind over matter. No -ripple stirred the blue, clear water as we slowly -pushed out into the bay and got clear of the -town. The air was of exquisite clarity and fineness, -with some sort of subtle pungency in it that -seemed to blend the freshness of the salt sea -with the languor of the lotus land; and as we receded -from the shore there gradually opened out -<span class='pageno' id='Page_270'>270</span>behind us, in clear, sharp outline sparkling with -colour and brilliancy, one of the most striking -coast panoramas I have ever beheld. The bay -was almost land-locked, and at the brink of the -blue water shone the town as white as snow -in the sunlight. Behind, in a great amphitheatre, -rose the hills from the deep green -masses of the orange groves upon the broad -plain at their feet. Bright red earth glowed in -big gashes upon the slopes, amidst the varying -verdure of olives, cork, and pines; and then -above the trees and hills towards the west -soared the peaks and crags of the great Arrabida -range, tinted in this golden morning from orange -to ochre and from ochre to violet, with shadows -here and there of deepest indigo. Right behind -the town the great stronghold of Palmella, upon -its sudden hill six miles away, seemed to stand -sentinel over the verdant plain and white houses: -and there, in the near distance, on the west, upon -a promontory of rock forming the point of the -inner bay, was another ancient fortress, that of -St. Philip, looking sheer down into the sea. -Beyond that as we advanced we saw still another -castle on a point; and, farther off, the end of -the Arrabida range, whose towering peaks -<span class='pageno' id='Page_271'>271</span>dwarfed all the lower hills, pushes far into the -sea its precipitous bluff, bounding the landscape -on that side.</p> - -<p class='c000'>An hour’s hard pull brought us close to the -long island. A wild, uninhabited place it looked -as we approached it, all blown sand in dunes -and hillocks overgrown with coarse rank tussock -and esparto. Even before we reached the sandy -shore, fragments of walls and broken tiles in abundance -could be seen through the pellucid water, -half-buried in the soft, sandy bottom; and when -I landed upon the beach of pure sand some -twenty feet or more wide, a glance sufficed to -show that this was the site of a place where -many people had dwelt in the long ago. A -long sand dune, some fifteen feet high, runs -parallel with the sea, and in the face of this -dune strong walls, doorways, and ruins of all -sorts are embedded. The sand in many places -has been removed sufficiently to uncover entire -rooms and passages, and the whole beach below -is literally covered with broken tiles, apparently -Roman, which presumably formed the roofs of -the ruined dwellings. The walls are usually -formed of undressed stones, with some rubble -cement almost as hard, the courses, and sometimes -<span class='pageno' id='Page_272'>272</span>corners, being composed of coarse red -bricks or tiles eighteen inches long by twelve -broad and two thick.</p> - -<p class='c000'>Mounting the top of the dune I saw beneath -me the houses that at various times had been -excavated, and partially cleared of sand by the -successive adventurers, who, for the sake of -profit or curiosity, have undertaken the work. -It has been done unsystematically and unscientifically; -but in the three-quarters of a century -or so that have elapsed since renewed interest -has been displayed in the place, an immense -number of Roman coins, some of the latest -period of the domination, have been found; -and numerous relics of Roman, and, as I believe, -of a much earlier civilisation have also been -discovered, many of the objects being now in -the Belem museum. Mr. Oswald Crawford -wrote an amusing account of a visit he paid -to the place about thirty years ago, and advanced -some attractive theories with regard to it; but -apparently the excavations that have taken place -since his time must have been considerable, as -some of the most significant features noticed -by me were presumably not uncovered when he -was there, as he does not mention them.</p> - -<p class='c000'><span class='pageno' id='Page_273'>273</span>The place has been called Troia by the Portuguese -from time immemorial; but it agrees in -position with, and probably is, the important -Roman town of Cetobriga. The name of Cetobriga -can hardly be of pure Latin origin, nor is -the situation of the place, at the end of a barren, -low-lying sandbank, such as Romans usually chose -for a settlement. It is known, however, that a -people called Bastuli, some of whom Strabo says -lived upon a narrow strip of land by the sea in -this part of Portugal were of Phœnician origin, -and inhabited this coast<a id='r8' /><a href='#f8' class='c013'><sup>[8]</sup></a>; and this at once provides -a clue to the original founders of the city. -The Phœnicians and their successors in the Peninsula, -the Carthaginians, were a Semitic people -whose trading depôts were carried to the extreme -of the then known world. At first, and for -many centuries, purely traders and men of -peace, they made no attempt to dominate, but -established their factories, with defensive stockades -and walls around them in places, which, -though unadapted for aggression, were capable -of easy defence. It is difficult to imagine an -easily accessible place, well situated for maritime -traffic, better calculated than Troia upon its -<span class='pageno' id='Page_274'>274</span>sandy island opposite a fertile plain for the -purposes of such a people as this; and the -opinion of antiquarians since the re-discovery -of Troia has been in favour of its Phœnician -origin.</p> - -<p class='c000'>The later Roman period, it is true, has provided -most of the remains unearthed. I saw -and measured myself, amongst many other -houses, two of undoubted Roman construction, -one apparently a temple, to judge by the now -empty niches which are constructed round three -sides of the inner wall, and the doorway of -well-dressed stone in the fourth side. Another -house near it, of which the chief apartment was -twenty-two feet in diameter, possessed a dressed -stone piscina or font in the wall, and what appeared -to be a bath of five feet in diameter and -nearly six feet deep of rubble and tiles. These -houses and practically all the others stood some -fifteen feet below the present top of the dune, but -in no case has the excavation been completed, sand -silting up almost to the door lintels in most cases. -On the beach itself near the point, I noticed what -appeared to be the base of a hollow tower ten feet -in diameter, which may well have been a pharos; -and in many places not much above sea-level are -<span class='pageno' id='Page_275'>275</span>square cemented tanks, which some authorities -assert were used for fish salting, although its -suggestion is not a very convincing one considering -the position of the tanks.</p> - -<p class='c000'>The largest house that has been excavated is -of undressed rubble for the walls, the angles and -doors and window frames being squared with -tiles, and the principal doorway topped by a flat -arch of brick, the pitch of the roof being evidently -angular. On the other side of a sandy peninsula -facing the south, and farthest from Setubal, a very -large villa has been partially uncovered, presenting -the same construction as the rest, but with -the base of a round tower at one corner; whilst -on the point of the beach there is a house containing -four uncovered very large square concreted -tanks, sunk in the ground some twenty-five feet -deep, apparently reservoirs—perhaps vivaria for -edible fish. There is no indication—at least to -a layman in the matter like myself—that these -buildings are earlier than the Roman occupation, -though, of course, some of them may have been, -whilst a large building standing high at the very -end of the point, which the energetic boatman -who constituted himself my companion insisted -was “the chapel,” is evidently much later than -<span class='pageno' id='Page_276'>276</span>Roman times, and may probably have been a -Christian church.</p> - -<p class='c000'>Mr. Crawford advances a theory to account -for the foundation of a populous settlement -upon a mere sandbank. He is of opinion that -when the town was originated the sand did not -exist there, but has been blown or cast up since. -Although the dune facing the beach has doubtless -accumulated greatly since the city was finally -abandoned, I cannot believe, after looking well -at the buildings, that the level has changed more -than perhaps a dozen or fifteen feet since the -town was inhabited; and there must, I think, -have been hills of sand here from Roman times -at least. Still it is possible that a thorough -excavation would establish that the remains of -the Phœnician town on solid earth underlie the -Roman buildings now existing amidst the sand. -The most interesting object that I saw at Troia -is not mentioned by Mr. Crawford, though as it -stands at the highest point of the sand dune -(though perhaps with a base of solid earth beneath -the sand) it is curious if it was not uncovered -when he visited the place. In any case, -there it is now, the most convincing proof -possible that the city was Phœnician, notwithstanding -<span class='pageno' id='Page_277'>277</span>the extensive Roman remains of a later -time. Upon a square base or plinth there rises -a smooth conical column, some ten feet high, -four feet in diameter at base and tapering -conically to a diameter of less than two at its -apex. There is no mistaking the shape of this -column or its significance by any one who has -studied the beliefs of the ancient peoples and the -symbols of their worship. The column is apparently -composed of red tiles smoothly covered -with fine white cement; and standing, as it does, -in the most conspicuous position over the settlement, -it seems to prove that the Nature-worshippers, -Phœnicians, Carthaginians, or those who -inherited their traditions, must have been the -constructors of this column supporting nothing. -It may be advanced that this sign of ancient -paganism would not have been allowed to remain -by the Romans for four hundred years after the -Christian era; but it is possible that even then -the ritual symbolism of the column had been lost -sight of or forgotten, and that it remained as a -landmark.</p> - -<p class='c000'>I was glad to embark in my sardine boat again, -for the glare and heat of the sun beating down -upon the shadeless sand was almost intolerable, -<span class='pageno' id='Page_278'>278</span>and the treacherous black sandflies, so harmless -looking and so venomous, in the three hours I -had been at Troia had rendered my face unrecognisable -by my nearest friends, and turned my -hands to agonised dumplings. So, with a slight -puff of breeze now and again to help us, we -slowly crossed the blue bay to Setubal where -much needed refreshment awaited me.</p> - -<p class='c000'>I was bound for the ancient city of Evora, and -I could have gone by train to Pinhal Novo junction, -where the train to the south was to receive -me. But the plain over which Palmella lords it -had captivated me, and I decided to traverse by -road the ten miles to the junction. As I drove -out of Setubal, with its clean white houses, and -gaily decked women in a long kneeling row washing -their linen in the river, the glamour of the -south was over all. Cactus hedges lined the way, -the glistening green of the orange trees with -the abundant fruit already showing, the bronzed -vines and the grey olive orchards chequered the -light red earth; the rolling slopes were thickly -wooded to the summits, and nestling amidst the -verdure on many hill-tops were glistening white -houses, abandoned cloisters, or shrines of pilgrimage. -The aspect was Andalusian, as were -<span class='pageno' id='Page_279'>279</span>the traits of the people, and North Portugal -seemed very far away. Before us always towered -the huge castle of Palmella, with its tremendous -stretches of battlements and square towers, seen -first from one side and then from another, as we -gradually wound round and round the base of -the eminence upon which it stands. The way is -always upward, and on all sides spread below us, -growing more extensive as we round each successive -rising turn of the hill, is the fertile plain -and the sea beyond. Wheat, maize, olives, and -oranges grow here luxuriantly, the lower folds -of the sandy hillsides are covered with vines, -and the rich brown velvet trunks of the stripped -cork-trees are all along the way.</p> - -<p class='c000'>My coachman is one of the talkative type of -south Portuguese, almost oriental in the voluble -vehemence of his manner, and his eagerness to -impart information. Ah! yes Troia, Setubal, -and Palmella were all very well in their way: -but Evora! That indeed is a place. What a -pity his Excellency was not going to see Evora. -His Excellency replied that Evora was his present -destination, and the patriotic Eborense, for, -of course, the voluble coachman came from -Evora, broke out into unrestrained panegyric of -<span class='pageno' id='Page_280'>280</span>his native city. Lisbon was nothing, Oporto was -nothing, to Evora; why, Evora was a great city -and a capital when they were villages: Evora -made Portugal what it is—and much more to the -same effect the wild-eyed coachman rattled off -with much gesticulation, whilst the patient horses, -left to themselves, slowly toiled up the winding -road to the town of Palmella, now to the right -now to the left, and anon straight overhead, -apparently inaccessible.</p> - -<p class='c000'>At length we entered the town, a poor squalid -looking place upon the steep slope; and whilst -the tired horses rested I climbed the top of the -hill to the castle. The tremendous outer defences -covered with yellow lichen, and the round bastions -of the inner circumvallation, are evidently of -Moorish origin, whilst the great square battlemented -towers inside appear to be mediæval. -The whole of the top of the hill is occupied by -the fortress; the outer walls following the contour, -with corner bastions on the spurs of the -summit. The views obtained from the battlements -of the salient bastions are tremendous. -The central keep, standing high above the rest, -is veiled with mist, though where I stand upon -the battlements is clear and bright. Over the vast -<span class='pageno' id='Page_281'>281</span>plain spread below me bathed in sunlight dark -patches of cloud wander, and, on the south side -beyond it, is Setubal and the sea; whilst on the -other, towards the north, far away stretches the -broad estuary of the Tagus, and the distant -mountains loom upon the west. Ancient as the -castle is, it shows signs of more recent habitation -than is usual, indeed a row of humble dependencies -within the walls are still occupied by poor -people. The roofs of the principal buildings are -everywhere destroyed; and upon the very ancient -walls of one portion there rises the ruin of a -sixteenth-century palace; whilst by the side of -the great mediæval keep is the shell of a beautiful -chapel of Romanesque Gothic. The inner gateway -of the fortress bears upon it a tablet with the -arms of Portugal and the date of 1689; and I -was informed by one of the residents in the row -of dwellings that the place had only been entirely -dismantled in living memory. All is silent and -abandoned now; and the great Moorish stronghold -which Affonso Henriques captured from the -Moors in 1147, the royal fortress of the Commandery -of the Order of Santiago, and the seat -of the powerful Dukes of Palmella, as the place -successively has been, has now become what for -<span class='pageno' id='Page_282'>282</span>all future time it will remain, a worthy compeer -with the rest of the proud old Portuguese hill-top -fortresses, whose sturdy walls dismantled -though they be, refuse to crumble into dust. -Long may they rear their noble towers intact -from man’s destroying hand, and tell their silent -lesson of heroic times to a generation that sorely -needs it.</p> - -<p class='c000'>As we wind down the hill again from the -poverty-stricken town beneath the castle walls, -carts of little black grapes meet us winding up -the hill for the belated vintage, and through the -open doors of granges we see the wide shallow -tubs being filled with grapes trodden under the -feet of swarthy lads. The air is soft and close as -the sun sets red and orange behind the tree-clad -hills, and I pass the hour waiting for the train at -Pinhal Novo under a grove of lofty eucalyptus -trees, whilst the shrill twittering of millions of -cicadas, and the languorous perfume in the air tell -me that I have left the strenuous land behind, -and am in a clime where to strive is folly.</p> - -<p class='c000'>The next morning Evora revealed its quaint -charms to me, for in the night when I arrived -all seemed gloomy and threatening in its narrow -tortuous ways. Under a glowing blue sky and -<span class='pageno' id='Page_283'>283</span>the fierce sun the place was charming, and few -cities in Portugal, if any, present so many attractions -to the archæologist, the antiquarian, or the -simple seeker after the picturesque. The long -irregular space of the principal praça is lined by -ancient arcades like the plazas in Spanish towns, -and the people who flock hither and thither -under the covered ways are purely Andalusian in -appearance, the men wearing sheepskin <em>zamarras</em> -over gaudy waistcoats, and upon their heads -wide-brimmed velvet <em>calañeses</em> surmount bright-coloured -kerchiefs. We have almost lost sight -now of the ox as a draught animal, and big mules, -drawing a somewhat light waggon, are universal.</p> - -<p class='c000'>At unexpected corners and unlikely angles -relics of unfathomed antiquity meet you: a -Roman tower built into a sixteenth-century wall, -a Moorish arch, a low-browed doorway that may -go back to the time of the Goths, though the -house to which it gives entrance may be comparatively -modern, fragments of palaces and -beautiful bits of Manueline are everywhere. For -this city of Evora is an epitome of the historical -vicissitudes of Portugal, and under each successive -régime has played a principal part. Ebora of -the Phœnicians and Iberians, Liberalitas Julia of -<span class='pageno' id='Page_284'>284</span>the Romans, seat of government of the patriot -rebel Sertorius, who here defied the legions of -the Cæsars (80 <span class='sc'><span lang="la" xml:lang="la">B.C.</span></span>), Gothic capital of Lusitania, -Yebora of the Moslems for four hundred years, -and now chief city of Alemtejo and the south—the -walls and towers of its Latin and Gothic -masters are still clearly traceable, and the mediæval -defences still surround the ancient city.</p> - -<p class='c000'>Its modern Portuguese history dates from its -capture from the Moors in 1165 by the freebooter -Gerald and his band of desperadoes, who -surrendered the place to King Affonso Henriques -in exchange for pardon and reward; and from -that time its archbishops have vied with those of -Braga in the north in wealth and dignity. Infantes -of Portugal have often worn its mitre, and one -of them, Cardinal Henry, the last of his race, -became king. It is difficult to realise, looking -at this crumbling old city of fifteen thousand -inhabitants, the magnificence of which it was -the scene in times when the population must -have been much smaller than at present. I have -before me as I write an account written at the -time by an Italian ecclesiastic in the train of the -papal Legate, who came to Portugal in 1571, of -the reception of the embassy by the Archbishop -<span class='pageno' id='Page_285'>285</span>of Evora (João de Mello), on which occasion -lavishness seems to have outdone itself. The -king’s lieutenant, with five hundred followers -and ten thousand armed militia of the province, -had met the Legate some miles outside the city, -and at the gates the governor and magistracy -awaited the visitors in full panoply, with several -bands of trumpeters dressed in cloth of gold -and scarlet caps, many companies of halberdiers -smartly garbed in various uniforms, black -drummers and cymbal players on velvet-draped -mules, the mayor and aldermen and civic officers -with their respective armed escorts, followed by—</p> - -<p class='c015'>“Ten boys dressed in green, dancing a Morris-dance to -the sound of tambourines, and then ten more dressed in yellow -with fife and drum, also dancing, each one carrying an arch -which they intertwined and disentangled with great rapidity and -dexterity. Then came ten boys dressed as pilgrims dancing -round a drum, and singing the praises of the Legate. Then -came ten women gipsies dancing their usual dance to the sound -of the drum, and performing dexterous tricks with wands and -scarfs. Following them came ten gipsy men with a drum, and -placing themselves alternately with the women, they made a -very pretty chain. Finally at the gate of the city there were -ten boys dressed in white with branches in their hands, dancing -round a carrying chair of red velvet striped with gold, which -was carried by eight little boys with white kilts, and golden -haloes round their heads. They bowed low to the Legate as -the rest did separately when they danced their measure, and -then all together, the dances continuing all the while before the -<span class='pageno' id='Page_286'>286</span>Legate. The archbishop of Evora entertained the Legate and -prelates sumptuously at his palace, and the <i><span lang="pt" xml:lang="pt">fidalgos</span></i> splendidly -received the rest in their houses. The apartments were lined -with the finest Flanders hangings, and the floors were covered -with green sprigs and rushes, which is the custom here at -weddings and feasts. They usually remain at table two or three -hours. Each person has a separate cup, and when dinner is -half through the tablecloth is changed. The roast meats are -placed upon the table already cut up and covered, and they are -wont to put into these dishes and others, eggs, many spices, and -sugar. The viands are not sumptuous, but are abundant, and -they say most of the dishes are Moorish. They only serve one -dish at a time, and this it is that makes their dinners last so -long, whilst they pass the time chatting, drinking healths, and -helping each other to what is brought to table, they being very -gay the while.”<a id='r9' /><a href='#f9' class='c013'><sup>[9]</sup></a></p> - -<p class='c000'>Of this splendour in the Evora of the past -little is now apparent to the visitor, though -the modern Barahona palace, of which, and its -wealthy owner, the Eborenses seem very proud, -could probably furnish forth a good twentieth-century -equivalent for it; and behind the -closed doors and frowning walls of many -ancient noble palaces, now mostly in the hands -of rich landowners and cultivators of the -district, are doubtless luxurious interiors.</p> - -<p class='c000'><span class='pageno' id='Page_287'>287</span>From the Hotel Eborense, with its sixteenth-century -outside staircase and trellised balcony-landing, -looking upon a quaint, tree-shaded, -little praça, I descend through narrow streets, -that remind me of Toledo—streets that for -the most part still bear historic names, though -of course the inevitable “Serpa Pinto” has -modernised one of them. Peace and stillness -reign over all, for the sun stings shrewdly; -and those who are obliged to be out linger -drowsily under white walls and the frequent -shade of acacias, cork-trees, and vine-trellises. -A ruined church and a vast monastery attached, -and now used as a barrack, first attract my -attention, for the edifice shows signs of past -magnificence, and the white, roofless walls and -façade against the indigo sky form a beautiful -picture even in their decay. An Augustinian -monastery-church, that of Our Lady of Grace, -I am told it is; and over the broken portico -I read that it was built “<i><span lang="la" xml:lang="la">sub imp. Divi -Joannis III., Patris Patriæ.</span></i>” This John III. -was the son of the “Fortunate” Manuel, and -was one of the principal builders of Belem; -so that we are justified in expecting something -good from him in architecture. The expectation -is not disappointed, for the work is a gem -<span class='pageno' id='Page_288'>288</span>in its uncommon way. It is, indeed, but little -touched with the Manueline taste of the time -it was built (1524); and has more affinity with -the fine cloister of John III. at Thomar, built -by the same monarch. It is, in fact, almost -the only specimen I have seen in Portugal of -the pure Italian Renaissance in the style of -Michael Angelo. Columns, trophies, shields, -and decorative statuary, all tell the same story -of direct Florentine influence, as apart from -the less virile Raphaelesque tendency of the -French Renaissance, which is much more common -in Portugal, and, indeed, elsewhere. Even in -the later decorations of this very church of -Graça the graved medallions, festoons, and -delicate panel carving in low relief, show that, -even a few years after the church was built, -the French style was preferred.</p> - -<p class='c000'>It is but a step from the Graça to a splendid -church which is deservedly one of the boasts -of Evora, and, for skilful solidity of construction, -one of the most extraordinary churches -in Portugal, if not in Europe. Situated in a -wide praça, and flanked on one side by shady -groves of cork-trees, stands the great square -church of S. Francisco, all that remains intact -<span class='pageno' id='Page_289'>289</span>of an important Franciscan monastery of immense -antiquity. Adjoining it, until recent -times, stood a royal palace, of which this church -and monastery were privileged to form a part; -and the Franciscans of Evora were altogether -very lordly monks indeed. Without a tower, -as is usual with monastery churches, the big -square building, with its rows of battlemented -roof ridges, looks more like a fortress than a -church; and from the peculiarity of its construction, -it is safe to say that, unless the -hand of man or some great natural convulsion -destroys it, the next four centuries will have -as little effect upon it as the last four have -had since its construction at the end of the -fifteenth century.</p> - -<p class='c000'>The great west porch extends the whole -width of the building in fine Romanesque-Gothic. -The arches of this porch are almost -Moorish in form, with elaborated twisted-cord -capitals; and the peculiar arrangement of -supports noticed in the nave at Alcobaça is -also seen here, where the great inner supports -of the arches do not reach the ground, but -start suddenly three-quarters up the pillar, producing -the effect of the lower portion having -<span class='pageno' id='Page_290'>290</span>been cut away. The double doorway itself is -fine early Manueline marble, surmounted by -the pelican and young, the device of John II., -and the armillary sphere, which was that of -his son, King Manuel the Fortunate. The -inside of the church is very striking. The -immense width of nave (42 feet) is unbroken -by pillars or aisles, the side chapels being -apparently embedded in the walls and separated -from each other by fine pure Gothic pillars on -the wall surface, each pillar being carried right -up to the spring of the roof and its uninterrupted -arch carried over to the corresponding -pillar on the other side, the effect being -one of great width and spaciousness, as the -length of the nave to the chancel arch is no -less than eighty-eight feet.</p> - -<p class='c000'>The chapels, some of which are very beautiful -with carved figures of the good sixteenth and -seventeenth century Spanish period, are separated -from the nave by a handsome black and white -marble balustrade of the same period. The -transepts are exceptionally majestic, and, like -the nave, of good unadorned Romanesque-Gothic, -but the tiled walls and overloaded -altars—the latter still greatly venerated by the -<span class='pageno' id='Page_291'>291</span>faithful—sadly mar the simple grandeur of -their main plan. The chancel is magnificent, -with its elaborately bossed and groined roof, -and fine carved choir-stalls, the work of the -Fleming, Oliver of Ghent, who carved the -now plundered stalls for the Templars’ church -at Thomar; and over the noble chancel arch -again the devices of John II. and Manuel, -with the arms of Portugal, are carved.</p> - -<p class='c000'>In the chapels, and especially in one of the -transepts, are some paintings of the highest -interest; but the light is so bad that it is -impossible to inspect them carefully. They can, -however, be seen sufficiently well—notwithstanding -their deplorable condition—to prove -that some of the great mysterious Flemish-Portuguese -masters of the late fifteenth and -early sixteenth centuries must have painted -them. One representing St. Anthony preaching -to the fishes is perfectly exquisite in its minute -conscientiousness. I was informed that in the -bishop’s palace twelve fine paintings of the -same school, attributed to the brothers Van -Eyck, are kept in similar semi-darkness and -neglect; but these I could not see. It is a -thousand pities that these art treasures and -<span class='pageno' id='Page_292'>292</span>others of the same sort which I have mentioned,<a id='r10' /><a href='#f10' class='c013'><sup>[10]</sup></a> -should not be rescued and reverently -kept.</p> - -<p class='c000'>A peculiarity of this church of St. Francisco, as -of the cathedral of Evora, which I shall mention -presently, is that the brown granite blocks of -which it is constructed are clearly marked out -with staring white divisions of cement, either real -or simulated. The effect is one of very questionable -taste, but the peculiarity is not a modern -innovation, and the series of white transverse lines -traced upon the brown background has some -attraction from its very strangeness. The story -goes that this monastery-church, founded originally -in 1224, twice fell down, and when, after the -second disaster late in the fifteenth century, the -famous architect, Martin Lourenço, was commissioned -to construct a new church, he swore that -his building, at least, should never share the fate -of its predecessors. Instead of a single main -outer wall he built two on each side of the -church, all of similar height, the space between -the inner and outer walls being about five feet or -less, and in the lower portion of this space the -<span class='pageno' id='Page_293'>293</span>side chapels are accommodated. The two walls -were tied together by transverse walls of similar -strength and height between the chapels, and -upon each of these transverse walls, which are -carried over the roof to the opposite pair of walls, -similarly constructed, the roof arches rest. The -roof is, therefore, divided into six independent -sections, each one supported by its own separate -walls and arch. As if this were not enough, a -similar arrangement was made below the ground, -where corresponding sets of transverse walls were -carried across to the other side, and thus the whole -nave consisted of six complete and self-supporting -bodies joined together. Even this did not satisfy -Martin Lourenço. He built yet another wall -longitudinally along the central ridge of the roof, -and a similar one underground along the same -axis binding together both above and below the -transverse sections from end to end, and increasing -the stability of the building by the added -weight. All this it is, of course, impossible to -see from the inside, but from the praça the top -battlements of the four long lines of wall and -the roof-ridge are discernible, and the skeleton -of the church, so to speak, can be understood.</p> - -<p class='c000'>A door in the transept leads to an extraordinary -<span class='pageno' id='Page_294'>294</span>chapel of considerable size (58 feet long by 34 -broad), divided into a nave and two aisles, the -whole of the walls, pillars, and ceiling of which -are lined or constructed of skulls and other -human bones, arranged in symmetrical patterns. -The remains of many thousands of human beings -are contained in this ghastly chamber, probably -constructed by the monks in the seventeenth -century from the contents of ancient crypts and -charnel-houses. The specially venerated figure -of our Lord, of which this was formerly the -chapel, has now been transferred to an adjoining -apartment better adapted for modern worship.</p> - -<p class='c000'>Evora stands upon a gentle eminence in the -midst of a vast fertile plain, surrounded by distant -mountains, and upon the very summit of the -hill, hidden away between narrow, winding streets -leading up from the main arcaded praça, stands -the venerable Sé—the cathedral of the archbishopric. -In a quiet little open space it rears -its two solid, square, granite Romanesque towers -of the twelfth century, flanked by the whitewashed, -monastic-looking palace of the archbishop, -the two towers being united by a pure -Gothic doorway porch which fills the space -between them. The inner doorway pillars are -<span class='pageno' id='Page_295'>295</span>adorned by early Gothic statues of the disciples, -all so direct and vivid as to put to shame the -affected elaborations of a later time. Slabs in -the porch over ancient sarcophagi in Gothic -niches tell that all this has been restored in -recent years; but it is easy to see that here, at -least, the restorer has been reverent and has spoilt -nothing.</p> - -<p class='c000'>Like most of the Portuguese cathedrals of the -period the first effect produced by the interior is -that of grave massiveness. The narrow nave and -aisles separated by clustered Romanesque pillars, -supporting early Gothic arches, very slightly -pointed, and a graceful triforium, have all the -beauty of serene severity.<a id='r11' /><a href='#f11' class='c013'><sup>[11]</sup></a> Here again, the -clustered pillars shoot sheer up to the spring of -the roof, and carry an arch over to the other -side, and the cimborio or lantern at the intersection -of the transepts and the nave is especially -striking. The pillars that support it on four -sides, chancel, nave, and two transepts, are as -bold and aspiring as those of Ely, and seem to -cry out aloud in exalted triumphant devotion. -To gaze up at this cimborio with its lovely -<span class='pageno' id='Page_296'>296</span>groining and its graceful spandrils carried to a -prodigious height at one sweep is a sensation -worth coming from England to experience.</p> - -<p class='c000'>High up on the wall of the nave there is -roughly sculptured the life-sized figure of a man, -bearing upon his breast a cartouche with the -Gothic letters C. C. E. cut upon it, representing, -as local antiquarians insist, the figure of the -twelfth-century architect of the building, Martin -Dominguez, and the coats-of-arms and sepulchral -figures in chapels and on walls are many. One -florid Gothic sarcophagus in the south transept -is that of André de Resende, a relative of Garcia -de Resende, the earliest Portuguese historian, -whose house, with its beautiful Manueline windows, -still stands in Evora. The chapels on each -side of the cathedral are much disfigured by -tawdry decorations and curly gilt wood carvings, -but several have finely painted altar-pieces, badly -lit and uncared for; and one altar, Our Lady of -the Angel, against a pillar in the nave, evidently -much venerated, for it is hung all over with -votive offerings, is grotesquely hideous, with its -ill-carved, big, staring doll upon a gilt monstrosity -of a stand.</p> - -<p class='c000'>The little choir loft over the west end of -<span class='pageno' id='Page_297'>297</span>the nave, like that at Braga, is filled with -finely carved oaken choir-stalls, and the episcopal -throne, with Scripture scenes in high relief -carved upon the panelling, probably French or -Italian work of the Renaissance period. The -Eborenses complain that the French plundered -the cathedral of most of its valuable treasures; -but the church plate and vestments are still of -very great richness, and I was much struck by a -great jewelled altar cross said to contain a -fragment of the True Cross. The precious -stones upon it amount altogether to 1425, of -which 840 are diamonds; and a chalice of enamel -and gold of the sixteenth century is a veritable -thing of beauty. The chancel and high altar -of the eighteenth century, though of precious -marbles, are quite out of keeping with the church, -and I was glad to turn away from them and -linger in the pretty little ruined cloister of the -monks, of simple devotional Gothic.</p> - -<p class='c000'>But the exterior of the old Sé after all is -more picturesque than the interior. Glimpses -of shady little white courtyards, with acacias, -orange-trees, and abundant flowers; corners and -gateways of ancient palaces, with florid and -beautiful Manueline doorways; here and there -<span class='pageno' id='Page_298'>298</span>a Roman tower or arch; narrow white streets, -almost alleys, with supporting arches from side -to side across the way; and over all a blue, blue -sky. The bold, long, battlemented ridges of the -aisles and nave of the cathedral, and the pointed -round tower of the wonderful cimborio, with its -eight turrets ranged around it, seem to force -upon the mind the dignified antiquity of the -place, hardly marred by the modern classicism of -the trivial chancel apse tacked on to it. Outside -the north-west corner of the cathedral is a -Roman tower and arch in perfect preservation, -and adjoining it a quaint triangular praça called -S. Miguel, gives entrance to a ruined mediæval -palace of the Counts of Basto. But, take a -few steps to the north of this, turn the corner -of the archbishop’s palace and the choir-boys’ -college, and there bursts upon your view, silhouetted -against the blue sky, an object that -draws an exclamation of surprise and delight -from the most apathetic. In an open space, -almost surrounded by ancient battlemented -buildings, there stands alone in the midst a -majestic ruin, which makes even their hoary -antiquity but a thing of yesterday. A Roman -temple, almost complete, with six Corinthian -<span class='pageno' id='Page_299'>299</span>columns at the end of its parallelogram and -five out of the ten that formerly existed on -each side. The supporting wall upon which -they stand is of rough stone with well-dressed -granite plinths and corners, all perfect and -complete, and standing over eleven feet from -the ground. Upon this rise the beautiful fluted -columns of granite, with bases and carved -capitals of white marble, the granite entablature -over the pillars being almost perfect.</p> - -<p class='c000'>At what was the entrance of the temple the -remains of a noble flight of steps, the whole -width of the edifice and twelve feet high, exist, -and it requires no effort of the imagination, -turning one’s back to the cathedral, to repeople -the space before us with figures of the long -past. Up the steps to the lovely temple under -the blue sky mount the white-clad citizens of -imperial Rome. Slaves there are in many, and -half-civilised Iberian tribesmen, still, perhaps, -recalcitrant to the yoke. Trembling, perchance, -for the savage vengeance of Diocletian, they -sullenly look upon the sacrifice to the pagan -gods, whilst they in their hearts hold with the -strange new creed of the Nazarene; for this -temple must have been raised in the second -<span class='pageno' id='Page_300'>300</span>century after the advent of Christ, when already -the trumpet sound of Christianity had pierced -the hearts of the Celtiberian peoples, and had -awakened vague longings for emancipation from -the oppressive unconsoling gods of old.</p> - -<p class='c000'>And I turn back and contemplate the grave old -mediæval cathedral close by, with its modern addition -covered with flourishing cardinals hats and -saintly frippery; and I see there, too, the temple -of a creed that is losing its hold upon the hearts -and minds of men. For the great cathedral I have -just left is as empty and silent now as the temple -to the unknown God before me. In successive -ages surely the same old yearning is re-born for -direct appeal and nearer personal access to God, -free from the trammels and man-made mediations -with which all creeds in time burden the -simplicity of their faith. Here in this temple—called -of Diana with no historical warrant—devout -souls offered their sacrifice without -misgiving; and in the old Sé hearts have pierced -the church-raised clouds and reached the Throne -any day this nine hundred years. But as the -thirst for equal direct appeal for all souls -overthrew the gods of the temple, so the same -longing empties the great fane that has departed -from the severe sincerity of the age that founded -it; and thus the gods do come and go, whilst -God lives on for ever.</p> - -<div id='fp300' class='figcenter id002'> -<img src='images/i_391.jpg' alt='' class='ig001' /> -<div class='ic001'> -<p><span class='sc'>The “Temple of Diana,” Evora</span></p> -</div> -</div> - -<p class='c000'><span class='pageno' id='Page_301'>301</span>It is difficult to shake oneself free from retrospective -visions when standing between this -stately ruin and the cathedral that has supplanted -it; but regarded simply as a Roman material -relic, the ruin is remarkable. It is of a similar -period and much resembles the Maison Carrée -at Nimes, although as I recollect it appeared -much larger. The temple at Evora is about -eighty feet long and nearly fifty feet broad, the -height of the columns being twenty-five feet. -Behind the temple there is a pretty shady public -garden, ending in a balustrade where the hill -drops suddenly away to the plain spread out -at the foot for miles to the mountains far -away. It was a spot which will linger in my -memory to the last; and I left it sorrowfully.</p> - -<p class='c000'>Opposite the temple is the Archæological -Museum of Evora, containing a large collection -of Roman and mediæval relics, found in the city -and rescued from ruined buildings; and in the -streets still the remains of ancient architecture -greet the visitor at every turn. Evora, indeed, is a -<span class='pageno' id='Page_302'>302</span>museum of itself; and it is impossible even to -mention a quarter of the objects in it that would -appeal to an antiquarian or archæologist. Two -buildings there are, however, that cannot be -entirely passed over. The so-called palace of -Dom Manuel is now used as an agricultural -museum, and some of the upper portion has been -rebuilt in semi-Moorish style; but the lower -portion is intact, and is a splendid specimen of -early sixteenth-century stonework. The hall is -low but tremendously massive, the walls being -three yards thick, and the octagonal pillars -supporting the simple groined roof in the centre -being massive in proportion.</p> - -<p class='c000'>From the beautiful semi-tropical public garden -in which this palace stands, just beyond the mediæval -walls of the city, it is but a step across the -road to the extraordinary hermitage church of -St. Braz. A great plague had assailed Evora in -1479, and here a temporary pesthouse was established -outside the walls. The bishop vowed that -if St. Braz would free the place from the epidemic -he would build here a permanent temple -to his honour. When the plague disappeared in -the following year, 1480, the bishop kept his -word, and the present church has stood here ever -<span class='pageno' id='Page_303'>303</span>since. The style, in my experience, is unique—Norman-Gothic -local archæologists call it—the -building being a long, low, fortress-like structure, -with six pointed turrets along each side, and with -battlemented parapets; the two first turrets supporting -a massive battlemented ante-porch, with -plain pointed arches and Byzantine capitals, the -porch being perhaps a third the length of the -church, and of the same height. For a building -so late as the end of the fifteenth century, just -on the verge of the period that went crazy over -the exuberant Manueline, this survival of the -Norman-Byzantine tradition is extraordinary.</p> - -<p class='c000'>Evora was all aglow with the glories of the -setting sun when I left it. Long lines of lofty -eucalyptus trees stretched as far as the eye reached -along the railway, the long hanging strips of bark -and the bright clean trunks shining a brilliant -orange, whilst the drooping foliage was a bright -bronze tipped with gold. Wistaria and clematis -hung in wondrous bunches and masses over walls -and in wayside gardens, and no sign of coming -winter marred the beauty of the day. Long rows -of trucks and waggons filled with cork lined the -way, and open doors of depôts and warehouses -disclosed overflowing stores of cork in bales ready -<span class='pageno' id='Page_304'>304</span>for transport; for Evora is the centre of this -profitable industry, and derives from it much of -its prosperity. Over all the gold and emerald -after-glow cast its strange glamour; high overhead -the deep blue of the sky was just flecked by -purple cloud, and the soft scented air was like a -breath from the Arabian Nights.</p> - -<p class='c000'>Once only in the four hours’ journey through -the night to Barreiro and Lisbon was I aroused -from the series of reveries into which the impressions -of these scenes had cast me. It was at a -station by the way, dimly lit with smoky oil -lamps. Some bundles of rags topped by nightcaps -lounged about in the gloom of the platform, -and across the way a few white cottages stood out -from a background of trees and the hills beyond, -whilst overhead, through the high branches of -the eucalyptus, the stars shone brilliantly. There -was nothing special in all this, for the same -picture is presented by most Portuguese and -Spanish railway stations by night during the -interminable waits inherent to travelling by a -train whose first interest is the conveyance of -merchandise; but what did strike me as I looked -was the name of the place: <span class='sc'>Montemor</span>.</p> - -<p class='c000'>From here, then, from this humble remote -<span class='pageno' id='Page_305'>305</span>place, came the man, the poet, Jorge de Montemor—or -Montemayor as he came to be called—who -set all cultured Europe running again -after the preposterous pastoral romances of lovelorn -shepherds and shepherdesses, which had -been forgotten since the eclogues and bucolics -of classical Italy had been voted old-fashioned. -From here came the inspiration that made Cervantes -write the “Galatea,” Sidney write the -“Arcadia,” and Spenser write the “Fairy Queen”: -these sweet fertile hillsides and vales of southern -Portugal were the scenes which the native poet -peopled with the erotic swains of his Spanish -pastoral, “Diana Enamorada.” It was a style -utterly foreign to arid Spain, for there the flocks -had to travel in vast multitudes from desert to -desert in search of the scanty pasture; but it -caught the fancy of a people sated with knights-errant, -and the pastoral became the rage. That -Spain itself should have given it new birth was -incredible, though Jorge de Montemor wrote in -Spanish. The neighbourhood of his birthplace -gives us the key; for here in rich pastures and -lush, half-tropical valleys flocks would need but -little tending or travelling, and here beneath the -sunny skies shepherds and their lasses might as -<span class='pageno' id='Page_306'>306</span>easily as in Italy be imagined piping, singing, and -telling their long-winded love stories to their -hearts’ content.</p> - -<p class='c000'>Lisbon was all smiles when I arrived; clear -and crisp as if no rain-clouds and wreaths of wet -mist had ever crept up the Tagus and put her -out of temper. But the big steamer was lying in -the harbour ready to sail for England, and -though Lisbon tempted me, I could not choose -but go. Forth from the splendid panorama we -went, past the great white fortress high on the -hill, the city piled up on its amphitheatre and set -in verdant frames, the majestic square palace of -Ajuda looking down upon Belem and its glorious -church, and the sturdy old tower rising from the -water dumbly protesting against its desecration -by the gasworks that surround it.</p> - -<div id='fp306' class='figcenter id002'> -<img src='images/i_399.jpg' alt='' class='ig001' /> -<div class='ic001'> -<p>LISBON FROM THE NORTH.</p> -</div> -</div> - -<p class='c000'>The next day at noon I stood and gazed over -an indigo sea, from whose waves the light breeze -lifted the white foam and cast it wantonly to -leeward in a shower of diamonds. All along the -coast gleaming towns nestled in the laps of the -hills. The mountains of fair Lusitania, pine-clad -to the tops, were slowly receding from my -view, covered with a glory of opal grey and gold, -touched here and there where the shadows fell -<span class='pageno' id='Page_307'>307</span>with tints of darkling green and lavender, whilst -the sky over all melted from a horizon of palest -primrose, through turquoise, to an illimitable -vault of sapphire. As the lovely scene faded in -the distance, and the bold jagged rocks of Spain -loomed ahead, I turned away full of thankfulness -for the ineffable beauty of the world: but I could -find no word to say more than the quaint outburst -of the simple-minded priest whom the -Emperor sent to bring home his Portuguese bride -five centuries ago: “<i><span lang="la" xml:lang="la">O Portugallia, O Portugallia, -bona regio!</span></i>” Fifty-two hours afterwards I was -shrinking from the chill embrace of a November -fog in London.</p> - -<hr class='c014' /> - -<div class='footnote' id='f8'> -<p class='c000'><span class='label'><a href='#r8'>8</a>. </span>Oswald Crawford, “Portugal: Old and New.”</p> -</div> - -<div class='footnote' id='f9'> -<p class='c000'><span class='label'><a href='#r9'>9</a>. </span>The manuscript quoted is in the Vatican Library, and -is reproduced at length by Herculano in an article called -<span lang="pt" xml:lang="pt">Archeologia Portugeza</span> in “Opusculos.”</p> -</div> - -<div class='footnote' id='f10'> -<p class='c000'><span class='label'><a href='#r10'>10</a>. </span>There are fourteen of the same sort in the Cathedral of -Viseu, one the famous St. Peter.</p> -</div> - -<div class='footnote' id='f11'> -<p class='c000'><span class='label'><a href='#r11'>11</a>. </span>The whole interior width of the church is only 46 feet, much -less than the nave alone of Toledo, Seville, or York.</p> -</div> - -<div class='chapter'> - <span class='pageno' id='Page_308'>308</span> - <h2 class='c006'>X<br /> <span class='large'>HINTS TO TRAVELLERS IN PORTUGAL</span></h2> -</div> - -<p class='c012'><em>How to get there.</em>—By railway the direct route is -by the Sud Express, which leaves Paris twice -or thrice a week, according to the season, for -Oporto and Lisbon, <i><span lang="pt" xml:lang="pt">via</span></i> Bordeaux, Medina, and -Salamanca, covering the distance from Paris to -Lisbon in thirty-five hours—the cost from Paris, -single fare, first-class, being 222 francs. The -journey is naturally tedious, as well as costly, and -for tourists and pleasure-travellers who are not -absolutely averse from sea-voyages the journey -by steamer is much preferable. The Royal Mail -steamships from Southampton and the Pacific -Line from Liverpool both have splendid steamers, -which run fortnightly to Lisbon or Oporto -(Leixões), the voyage to Lisbon usually occupying -rather under three days, the fare being £8 single -and £12 return on both lines. But for those -who wish to visit Portugal either for health or -pleasure, and desire to see something of the -<span class='pageno' id='Page_309'>309</span>country under favourable conditions the steamers -of the Booth Steamship Line offer much greater -facilities than either of the previously mentioned -companies, combined with considerable economy. -I have travelled to Portugal by all three lines, -and can find little to choose between them; the -newer vessels especially of the Booth Line being -in all respects as comfortable and well served -as the others, whilst the fare is lower. It is, -however, chiefly in the organisation of tours -through Portugal that the Booth Line offers the -greatest advantages to travellers, the arrangements -being such that most of the difficulties -of travelling in a foreign country are obviated -by holders of through tourist tickets. The -system provides for the meeting of travellers on -board the steamers and at railway stations by -representatives of the hotels, and advice is sent -forward of the travellers to be expected. The -tickets issued include coupons for hotel expenses, -carriages, and all the necessary outlay of the -journey from place to place, and, speaking from -my own experience, I may say that the portions -of my journey that were covered by Booth Line -tickets were much easier and less troublesome -than those which were undertaken without them. -<span class='pageno' id='Page_310'>310</span>I found, moreover, that the people at the hotels -were, if anything, more anxious to show attention -to travellers accredited by the Booth Line -tickets and forward advice than to visitors arriving -unannounced. Some of the Portuguese tours -of the Booth Line seem extremely moderate in -price, including, as they do, hotel expenses as well -as travelling by sea and land, and, so far as my -experience went, everything possible was done for -the convenience and pleasure of ticket-holders.</p> - -<p class='c000'><em>Hotels.</em>—We English are not particularly popular -on the Continent as travellers, though we -are better liked in Spain and Portugal than -elsewhere. Nor is the reason of our lack of -popularity far to seek. We are apt to assume -a demeanour and tone towards foreigners in -their own country which imply a belief in our -superiority, and a claim to assert priority for our -own needs and pleasures over those of others. -This attitude is worse than useless in Spain and -Portugal, for not only is it ineffectual, but it -turns otherwise polite and civil people against -us. In Portugal an honest desire to please and -serve will be encountered by travellers everywhere, -almost without exception. But tourists -must repay this, if they wish to travel smoothly, -<span class='pageno' id='Page_311'>311</span>by cheerfully accepting the best that the people -know how to give them, and must not claim to -establish a new standard for themselves. The -hotels in the smaller towns of Portugal do not -exist for tourists. They live almost entirely -upon commercial travellers, and residents, business, -professional men, and officials, who board -at the hotel table by contract. A tourist arriving -at such an hotel will be civilly received, but no -fatted calf will be killed for him, nor charged -for, and the fare and accommodation considered -satisfactory by the regular customers of the hotel -must be good enough for him or he must go -without. Generally speaking these are fair, even -in the small towns, the beds being usually clean, -if hard and skimpy of pillow; and of the dishes -offered, some, at all events, will be found palatable, -even to an untravelled Englishman. In -any case, it will be useless to ask for others. -These remarks are not applicable either to the -hotels in Oporto and Lisbon, nor to those which -specially depend upon visitors in search of health -and pleasure, like those of Bom Jesus, Caldas, -and Bussaco. In Oporto the Grand Hotel is -said to be the best, but it still leaves much to be -desired in many respects. The cuisine, however, -<span class='pageno' id='Page_312'>312</span>is good, though there is a tendency to charge -unduly high prices for extras, such as wine, table -water, &c. The same may be said of the Hotel -Central at Lisbon, where the cuisine is excellent -and the rooms generally good, but the extras are -charged too high. This hotel has been greatly -improved of late years, and especially since the -reclamation of the foreshore has done away with -what formerly was its principal objection. It is -very central for all the tramway routes, and for -a stay of a day or two may be convenient. The -noisy, self-assertive German commercial element -is, however, too conspicuous and demonstrative -to be agreeable to most English people travelling -for pleasure, and personally I much prefer the -Hotel Braganza, which stands on high ground -overlooking the river, and is quieter than the -Central. The Grand Hotel at Bom Jesus, in its -way, is excellent, though purely Portuguese, and -the proprietor, the son of the late Senhor Gomes, -whose enterprise made Bom Jesus what it is, is -always anxious to do his best, both here and -with his partner at their hotel at Braga, to be -useful and agreeable to visitors. The Grand -Hotel at Bussaco stands in a class by itself, and -I have spoken of it elsewhere.</p> - -<p class='c000'><span class='pageno' id='Page_313'>313</span><em>Luggage.</em>—As little luggage should be taken -as possible, as above 60 lbs. is charged extra on -the railways, and a careful traveller will contrive -to get what he really needs in packages that -may, at a pinch, be carried, or at all events -lifted, by himself. For clothing, some warm -garments should be worn until Portugal is -reached, and again on embarking, but for use -in the country summer clothing, with one light -over-garment, is all that will be needed. The -tyranny of the top hat is almost at an end in -Portugal, and this impedimentum may be dispensed -with, though it may be advisable for some -men-travellers to take with them a dinner jacket-suit, -as these are frequently worn on board the -larger steamers, and in some of the hotels, such -as that at Bussaco.</p> - -<p class='c000'><em>Language.</em>—Some acquaintance with the Portuguese -language is, of course, a great advantage, -but the knowledge of such words as -are necessary for the purposes of travel may be -acquired easily by a few hours of study. Spanish -will be generally understood in the hotels, as -practically all the hotel servants in Portugal -are Spanish Gallegos, though the ability of the -latter to reply in Castilian is variable and -<span class='pageno' id='Page_314'>314</span>limited. Generally a foreigner speaking Spanish -will be <em>understood</em> in Portugal; but a knowledge -of Spanish, though enabling him to <em>read</em> Portuguese -without difficulty, will not aid him -much in understanding it when spoken, as the -pronunciation of the two languages is radically -different. A little French is also not uncommonly -spoken and understood even in the -smaller hotels, though very rarely is any English -at command. In Lisbon and Oporto, of course, -especially the former, English is quite common, -and is spoken at all the principal hotels.</p> - -<p class='c000'><em>Wine.</em>—In all the smaller hotels the wine is -served on the table without charge, as in Spain; -and as it is, in most cases, the produce of the -neighbourhood, it is quite pure and genuine, -and in some places excellent. Where it is -not liked other wines can always be ordered. -Collares, white and red, grown at the foot of -the Cintra mountain, is always a safe wine to -order, and is very moderate in price, usually -about 250 reis per bottle (1<i><span lang="la" xml:lang="la">s.</span></i> 1<i><span lang="la" xml:lang="la">d.</span></i>). At Lisbon -Termo is also a good wine at very reasonable -price; whilst in the north of Portugal Bucellas -may be recommended, and Mirandella is a good -cheap little wine. The new or green wine, -<span class='pageno' id='Page_315'>315</span>Vinho Verde, is much liked by the Portuguese -in the hot autumn weather, as it is light and -slightly acidulous; but it is not much adapted -to English tastes. The country wine at Bussaco -is excellent—as it is at Cintra, Ourem, and other -places. As I have mentioned elsewhere the -prices charged in the hotels named in Lisbon -and Oporto for ordinary Portuguese wines -appear to be excessive in comparison with the -price of these wines in other places. The prices -of foreign wines are everywhere well-nigh prohibitive.</p> - -<p class='c000'><em>Water.</em>—The traveller will be wise to regard -with suspicion the water in most places, and to -insist upon having some of the excellent bottled -table waters from the springs which abound -in Portugal. One of the best and safest of -these waters is Sameiro, drawn from the mountain -adjoining Bom Jesus. It is in character -almost identical with Apollinaris. Lombadas -is another pure neutral water from Madeira, -somewhat resembling St. Galmier; whilst Monte -Banzão, Pedras Salgadas, and Vidago are digestive -waters similar to those of Vichy. The -medicinal waters of Luzo, just below Bussaco, -are like those of Carlsbad, Kissingen, and Vittel, -<span class='pageno' id='Page_316'>316</span>powerfully digestive and rather laxative. It will -be unnecessary to order any such waters—unless -for purely medicinal purposes—at Bom Jesus, -Bussaco, or Cintra, the ordinary drinking water -of these places being excellent.</p> - -<p class='c000'><em>Travelling in Portugal.</em>—The roads are usually -very good, and open carriages with one or two -horses can be hired in any town at an extremely -reasonable price, four or five milreis a day being -ample for a carriage and two horses, which for -the price will cover some five-and-twenty miles -or more according to circumstances. In railway -travelling it must be borne in mind that the -trains on Portuguese railways for the most -part run primarily to convey goods and merchandise, -and that passengers must be content -to wait whilst the goods are being loaded or -discharged. The trains, except an express on -the main line, are very slow. The carriages -are, however, usually comfortable. The absence -of vociferation in Portugal, which in a general -way is a boon, is somewhat a drawback in -railway travelling, as the names of the stations -are not called out, and as they are often painted -inconspicuously, and are not visible from the -carriage windows, it is necessary for strangers -<span class='pageno' id='Page_317'>317</span>to be on the alert in order not to pass their -station. The best way is to provide oneself -with a railway guide and count the stations as -they are passed. There is, however, usually a -wait at the stations long enough for inquiries -to be made, as things are rarely done in a hurry -in Portugal.</p> - -<div class='nf-center-c1'> -<div class='nf-center c003'> - <div>THE END</div> - </div> -</div> - -<div class='nf-center-c1'> -<div class='nf-center c003'> - <div>Printed by <span class='sc'>Ballantyne, Hanson & Co.</span></div> - <div>Edinburgh & London</div> - </div> -</div> - -<div class='chapter'> - <span class='pageno' id='Page_318'>318</span> - <h2 id='ERRATUM' class='c006'>ERRATUM</h2> -</div> -<p class='c016'>Page <a href='#Page_44'>44</a>. From line 2 read as follows: ‘whilst -fighting valiantly by the side of the Master -of Avis at the ever-memorable battle of -Aljubarrota, that gave the regal crown of -Portugal to the illegitimate scion of the House -of Burgundy.’</p> - -<div class='pbb'> - <hr class='pb c005' /> -</div> -<div class='tnotes'> - -<div class='chapter'> - <h2 class='c006'>TRANSCRIBER’S NOTES</h2> -</div> - <ol class='ol_1 c003'> - <li>Made the correction mentioned in the <a href='#ERRATUM'>ERRATUM</a>. - - </li> - <li>Silently corrected typographical errors. - - </li> - <li>Retained anachronistic and non-standard spellings as printed. - </li> - </ol> - -</div> - - - - - - - - -<pre> - - - - - -End of the Project Gutenberg EBook of Through Portugal, by Martin Hume - -*** END OF THIS PROJECT GUTENBERG EBOOK THROUGH PORTUGAL *** - -***** This file should be named 55034-h.htm or 55034-h.zip ***** -This and all associated files of various formats will be found in: - http://www.gutenberg.org/5/5/0/3/55034/ - -Produced by Richard Tonsing and the Online Distributed -Proofreading Team at http://www.pgdp.net (This file was -produced from images generously made available by The -Internet Archive) - - -Updated editions will replace the previous one--the old editions will -be renamed. - -Creating the works from print editions not protected by U.S. copyright -law 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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