CHAPTER IV
GRANADA
OVER two thousand feet above the sea stands the ancient city of Granada, once the teeming centre of the kingdom of the Moors and now a town of memories eloquent of the grandeur of older days. The province bearing its name is bounded on the north by sterile ranges, while close to the southern seaboard stretch the huge shoulders and serrated peaks of the noble Sierra Nevada, rivalling in height the chief summits of the Pyrenees. Between these ranges spread fertile vegas, or plains, rising here and there to over a thousand feet, a district of vineyards and olive groves, and semi-tropical plants find a favourable habitat.
Granada, though on the verge of an arid territory, is in a strip of great fertility, watered by the Genil and the Darro, the latter—the Hadarro of the Moors—a stream that is heavily taxed by the farmers for purposes of irrigation. Théophile Gautier praised the river of Granada for its beauty, but since his day the stream has shrunk, and nowadays the volume of water is insignificant, especially during a dry summer.
The waters of the Darro have a reputation for their healing qualities, and cattle that drink from it are said to recover quickly from diseases. Hence, in the ancient speech, the river had the title of "The Salutary Bath of Sheep." Under the Moors the environs of Granada were in the highest state of cultivation, and they are still very productive. The land yields plenteous wine and oil. The chief crops are grains of various sorts. Hemp and flax flourish, and oranges, lemons, and figs are a source of income to the agriculturists. Granada is also famed for its mulberry trees, whose leaves provide food for the silk caterpillar, though the silk trade is in a state of sad decay.
The soil around the city never rests. There is no waste of land. Oranges and pomegranates grow profusely. The cactus is cultivated for the production of the cochineal insect. Clovers yield several cuttings each year in this fecund territory.
In the neighbouring mountains there are rich veins of marble, and jasper and amethyst are found. Yet the mining industry in the Sierra Nevada remains to be developed. The Granadines are hardly a commercial population, though numerous crafts are practised in their city. Factories for the production of sugar from beetroot have been erected in recent years, and it is hoped that this industry will increase.
The life of Granada in its lighter aspects can be well studied on the promenade of the Salón, one of the most beautiful parades in Europe. Here, under the shade of luxuriant trees, amid handsome fountains, and by parterres decked richly with many flowers, the people of the city stroll upon summer evenings after the great heat of the day. From the Salón you gain a superb view of the purple Sierra Nevada, which at sunset wears a wealth of changing hues.
A walk along the promenade precedes the evening gathering in the patios of the houses of the upper and middle classes, when to the sound of guitar and the rattle of castanets, young and old dance together. At these tertulia, or evening parties, singing alternates with dancing the bolero and the jota. And later, when the lights are dim, and the watchman tramps slowly through the streets, you see the lovers, the "novios" waiting beneath the windows of the adored fair ones, or lightly strumming serenades on their guitars.