A HISTORICAL AND DESCRIPTIVE ACCOUNT OF THE SEVEN PRINCIPAL PALACES OF THE SPANISH KINGS. WITH 164 PLATES.
Spain is beyond question the richest country in the world in the number of its Royal Residences, and while few are without artistic importance, all are rich in historical memories. Thus from the Alcazar at Seville which is principally associated with Pedro the Cruel, to the Retiro, built to divert the attention of Philip IV. from his country’s decay; from the Escorial, in which the gloomy mind of Philip II. is perpetuated in stone, to La Granja, which speaks of the anguish and humiliation of Christina before Sergeant Garcia and his rude soldiery; from Aranjuez to Rio Frio, and from El Prado, darkened by the agony of a good king, to Miramar, to which a widowed Queen retired to mourn: all the history of Spain, from the splendid days of Charles V. to the present time, is crystallised in the Palaces that constitute the patrimony of the crown.
VIZCAYA AND SANTANDER
SOME ACCOUNT OF THE CANTABRIAN LAND AND OF SPANISH NAVARRE. BY ALBERT F. CALVERT
Whether or not the Basques be the aboriginal inhabitants of the Peninsula, they are at least the oldest of its peoples, and among the most interesting. Their language, their customs their fueros of local code, above all their mysterious origin, have been the themes of discussion and speculation among the learned for centuries—and are likely to continue so. Meanwhile they flourish exceedingly, and their towns, or at least their sea-ports hum with life and energy.