Spanish Life in Town and Country

II. and the restoration of her son. The progress is now much more steady and more diffused over the whole country, but it is by no mea

her possibility, she is more likely now to regain her old position among European nations, when left at peace to develop her enormous resources and set her house in order without the distraction of war, either at home or abroad. When one remembers that this happy condition has never obtained in the country since the death of Ferdinand VII. until the close of the Spanish-America

her rich internal resources, had hitherto wrapped herself in her national capa, and considered that she was amply sufficient to herself, condescended to throw open her mountain barriers to immigrants. It was not until 1848 that the first Spanish railway was opened, and it wa

he country, and were supposed by some people to represent the cause of legitimacy, and which had, in fact, the sanction of the Church and of the Pope. It was not, in the majority of cases, that the people sympathised with Don Carlos, but it was easier and more amusing for the lazy and the ne'er-do-weels to receive pay and rations for carrying a gun, and taking pot-shots at any object that presented itself, human or oth

te did not fall in with the ideas of English capitalists. They desired a guaranteed rate of interest, while the Spanish Government would have nothing but a subvention paid down in one lump sum, arguing that it would be impossible to tell when a line was making more than the guaranteed interest, "as the companies would so a

Commercial and Industrial Spain, "the money that we so candidly lent to the swarm of defaulting South American Republics had be

the most hopeful of all the signs of progress the country is making. In 1899, there were working 12,916 kilómetros of railways, or 7.9 kilómetros for each 10,000 of the population. A kilómetro equals 1.609 English mile. There is no part of the country now isolated, either from the centre of gove

obalt and antimony; and 8,313,218 tons of minerals of all these twenty-two classes were raised in 1882 against 1,201,054 in 1862. The value of mines in 1880 was represented by one hundred and eleven millions of pesetas (francs), but in 1898 by three hundred and nineteen millions (pesetas). The value of imports in 1882 was 816,666,901 pesetas, and of expor

e near future will see the country free from the necessity of importing manufactured iron, or, in fact, metal of any kind. A Catalan company has established important works for reducing the sulphur of the rich mines near Lorca, and confidently expects to produce some thirty thousand tons of sulphur per annum. The rich silver mines of the Sierra Almagrera

d packing have become the object of many large companies and private individuals. Dates, bananas, grapes, plums, tomatoes, melons, as well as asparagus and other early vegetables, are now being shipped to foreign markets as regular articles of trade, in a condition which insures a rapid and increasing sale. The exportation of fruit has doubled wit

ne-growers has, however, been steadily turned to this subject during the last twenty years; greater care has been taken in the production; the best methods have been ascertained and followed, and it is possible now to obtain u

ountry is the establishment of the Boletin de la Cámara de Comer

e thirsty animals, that they like a big drink, but they are not really desirous of becoming intoxicated by it. In fact, they would most of them prefer to be able to drink more without bad effects. The writer goes on to say that if the English workman could obtain pure wine that would cost no more than his customary beer, and would not make him intoxicated, and if Spanish light wines-which he says could be sold in England for less than good beer-were offered in tempting

y than the Australian wines, and forming a delicious drink with water, are delivered at one's own door carriage free for a price which works out, inclu

le to their strength. Native-grown spun and woven silk forms such an important part in the national costumes of the people that it has attained to great perfection without attracting much foreign notice. The silk petticoats of the women, the velvet jackets and trunk hose of the men, the beautiful silk and woollen mantas, with their deep fringes of silken or woollen balls; the madro?os, or silk tufts and balls, used as decorations for the Andalusian or the gypsy hats, not to mention the beautifully soft and pure silks of Barcelona, or the silk laces made in such perf

in the last very few years that they can be said to have had any market at all in England, and now they are called "Pyrenean" rather than Spanish goods. One of the suggestions of the little

Arabian flocks, and certainly the appearance of one of these impassive-looking shepherds leading his flock to "green pastures, and beside the still waters," takes one back in the world's history in a way that few other things do. The flock k

big pigs, dark, light, fat, thin pigs,-pigs of every description,-and joined the procession headed by this sombre-looking herdsman, with his long stick and his blue-and-white striped manta thrown over his shoulder. By the time he had reached the end of the village he had a large herd following him. Then the whole party slowly disappeared in the distance, under the groves of cork-trees or up the mountain paths. The evening performance was more amusing still. Just about sundown the stately herdsman again

and flour, coal and coke, iron and tools figure amongst her imports-the first two in very large proportions. Although the vast plains of Estremadura and Castile produce the finest wheat known to commerce, the quantity, owing to the want of water, is so small in relation to the acreage under cultivation, that it does not suffice for home consumption, except in very favourable years; while the utilisation of the magnificent rivers, which now roll their waters uselessly to the sea, would make the land what it once was when the thrifty Moor

rs. For a long time the cheap, bounty-fed beet sugars of Germany, which never approach beyond being an imitation of real sugar-as every housewife can testify who has tried to make jam with them-were able to undersell the produce of the cane; but the latest statistics show that this industry is now making steady progress, the production of 1899 being thirty-one thousand tons, or exactly three times that of 1899. à propos of the difference

culture, it is rich in magnificent rivers and in smaller ones, all of which are allowed to run to waste in many parts of the country, while even a small portion of their waters, artificially dammed and utilised for irrigation, if only of the lands lying on each side of them, would mean wealth and prosperity and an abounding

generations past; but even now the Government scarcely seems to have awakened to its necessity. Perhaps, however, the Spaniard who goes on his way, never troubling to listen to the opinion or advice of his neighbour, has not, after all, been so wanting in common sense as some of the more energetic of his critics have thought. In spite of all the changes and disasters of successive Governments, a

PARTY IN E

e of the canals which would have turned whole valleys into gardens have been allowed to go to ruin, or to become actually obliterated, while the scanty crops are raised once in two or three years from the same soil, which will yield three crops in one year by the help of water. Difficulties arose about the sale of the water-a prolific cause of dispute even in the old irrigated districts-and the people said: "What do we want with water, except what comes from heaven? If the Virgin thi

cultivation for centuries past; but in any district the value of dry land is never more than a twelfth of what it is when irrigable. In truth, however, there is more than irrigation needed to bring the lands of Castile and Estremadura into profitable cultivation, and it cannot be done without the expenditure of large sums of money at the outset in manures, and good impl

entre of Spain. Seeing that the principal item of the revenue is derived from the land tax, and that it is calculated on the value of the land, it would a

ny reference to the wishes of the proprietor at his death. Not only are all large estates broken up and practically dissipated, so that it is to no one's interest to improve his property or spend money on it, but the small farms of the peasant proprietor are broken into smaller fragments in the same way; and it is no uncommon thing to see a field of a few acres divided into six or eight furrows, none of them enough to suppor

the large landowner, who knows that, whatever he may do to improve his estate, it is doomed to be cut to pieces and divided amongst his next of kin until it is eventually extinguished. Whether, in some future time, an enlightened scheme of co-operation could work the arid lands into cultivation again, if the Government would give the necessary aid in the form of irrigation, remains among the u

dustrial enterprise, is so much invested in a settled state of affairs. When the individual has everything to lose by revolutionary changes, when the commerce of the country is becoming too important to be allowed to be upset easily, and it is everybod

ery possible means, native industries and the development of the rich resources of the country. If it be only in the superior education required of the workm

ds the high reputation which Spain has never lost, but the output is very largely increased. Gold and silver inlaid on iron, iron inlaid on copper and silver, are some of the forms of this beautiful work. That executed in Madrid differs from that of Toledo, Eibar, and other centres of the craft. The iron gate-work executed in Madrid and Barcelona is very hard to beat, and the casting of bronzes is carried out with every modern improvement. The wood-carvers of Spain have always been famous, and the craft appears to be in no danger of falling behind its old reputation, much beautiful decorative work of this description being produced for modern needs. The Circulo de Artes holds an exhibition i

s, and preparing and packing the finer kinds of tobacco. The cigar-girl of Seville is a well-known type, almost as much dreaded by the authorities as admired by her own class. The women are mostly young, and often attractive, extremely pron

on to use force, and unless the army of irate women can be persuaded to retire from the contest it is probable that, relying w

s of the Pretender, the town-which boasts that it has never been taken, although twice almost demolished during the two insane civil wars-was wrecked and well-nigh ruined, its industries destroyed, its commerce at an end. With peace and quietness came one of the most extraordinary revivals of modern times: the population increased at a marvellous rate, the new town sprang into existence on the left bank of the Nerrion, the river was deepened, the bar, which used to block almost all entrance, practically removed, extensive dock-works carried out; so that in ten years the shipment of ore from the port sprang up from four hundred and twenty-five thousand tons to 3,737,176, and is increasing daily. Bilbao, with its five railway stations, its electric tramways, and its population of sixty-six thousand, has b

ports for foreign markets. Although no official information has been published since that year, the increase since the close of the war has been in very much greater ratio. From the same records we find that during the year 1899 no fewer than sixty-nine large companies were form

urs in the form of too deep a hole to be got through, the track takes a turn outside it, and returns to the direct line as soon as circumstances permit. An arroyo is given in the dictionary as "a rivulet"; it is, in fact, generally a rushing torrent during the rains, eating its way through the l

re specially appointed from qualified engineers. In addition to the care of the construction and repair of all highways and Government works in his district, the engineer-in-chief has the overlooking of all works which, although they may be the result of private enterprise and private capital, are authorised or carried out under Government concession. These concessions are only granted after the project has been submitted to, and approved by, the Ministry of Public Works, and it passes under the supervision of the engineer of the provinces. In old days

elegraph office, and in all the important towns this is kept open all night. A peseta for twenty words, including the address, is the uniform charge, every additional word being ten centimos. The telegraphs were established by the Government, and are under