Sweet shades of Ammondell! I remember them well,—that Gothic bridge, that plantation that skirts the river; where, when a boy, “just let loose from school,” I used to be met and welcomed by that fine, grey-headed man, your Lordship’s sire,—the elegant, the learned, the witty, the eloquent, the consistent politician, the upright man, the unrequited;—Ay! the unrequited; heaven rest His soul! who remembered not his friends in the day of His prosperity.
It is difficult to tear oneself from the “deep solitudes” and quiet glades of Ammondell; and I know that your Lordship enjoys there the elegancies of life—the delights of rural retirement—and the sweets of literary leisure; but your honourable father had battled with the world, and in the cause of independence and freedom, before he retired to the tranquil shades of the Ammon, and said—
Give me a nook in some secluded spot
That business shuns, and din approaches not;
Some quiet retreat, where I may never know
Which monarch reigns,—what ministers bestow.
Your Lordship inherits the genius, with the titles of your family; and it were a noble spectacle to see the Aristocracy of the land stand forth, the champion of Political Liberty, and lending the weight of its influence to the claims of those who have only right and reason on their side. Forgive, my dear Lord, this boldness; which must only be attributed to the respect and great regard with which I have the honor to subscribe myself,
Your Lordship’s affectionate Cousin,
HENRY DAVID INGLIS.
Barcellona, Jan. 2nd, 1831.
CONTENTS OF VOL. I.
| [CHAPTER I. —— BISCAY.] | |
|---|---|
| PAGE | |
| Departure from Bayonne, the Bidassoa, and entrance intoSpain; Precautions against Robbery; Black Mail, andAnecdote; Charming and novel Scenery; Mail Travellingin Spain; Vittoria; Spanish Bread; Priests; the SpanishCloak; Women; Arrival of the Infante Don Francis; aNational Trait; Spanish Money and Expense of Travelling;Journey through Biscay to Bilbao; Chocolate; thePlain of Vittoria; Passage of the Biscayan Mountains;Durango; a Village Misfortune; Biscayan Recreation;the Muleteer’s Song; Bilbao; Traits of Spanish Character;Markets; Biscayan Political and Religious Opinions;State of the Inhabitants, and Mode of Life; Riches of theCorporation of Bilbao; Prices of Provisions; the CampoSanto; the Iglesia de Bigonia and its Superstitions; Traitof Spanish Pride and Generosity; the Convents and theirInmates; the Hospital; curious Customs, and extraordinaryscene in a Coffee House; Improvement of Landin Biscay, Climate, Disease, &c.; peculiar Rights andPrivileges of Biscay | [1] |
| [CHAPTER II. —— JOURNEY FROM BISCAY TO MADRID.] | |
| Waggon Travelling; Scenery; Bills of Fare, and Expenses;Second Visit to Vittoria; Departure for Madrid; the Ebro;Privileges of the Military; Old Castile; Husbandry;Burgos; Beggars; Posadas; Traits of Misery in a CastilianVillage; New Castile; Quixotic Adventure; theSomo-Sierra, and Approach to the Capital; Sketches ofthe Environs, and Arrival in Madrid; Information forTravellers. | [44] |
| [CHAPTER III. —— MADRID.] | |
| Streets and Street Population; Female Dress: the Mantilla;the Fan; Aspect of the Streets of Madrid at differenthours; the Siesta; Shops; Good and Bad Smells; Stateof the Lower Orders; Analysis of the Population; StreetSketches; Sunday in Madrid; the Calle de Alcala; Convents;the Street of the Inquisition; Private Apartmentsin Madrid; the Prado and its Attractions; LudicrousIncongruities; Spanish Women, and their Claims; theFan and its Uses; Portraits; Inconvenient Exaction ofLoyalty; the Philosophy of Good Walking; the Retiro;Castilian Skies; the Café Catalina and its Visitors; otherCoffee Rooms, and Political Reflections; the BotanicalGarden, strange Regulation on entering; the Theatres;Spanish Play Bills; Teatro del Principe; the Cazuela andIntrigue; Spanish Comedy; the Bolero; the Italian Company;Cultivation of Music in Madrid; the Guitar;Vocal Music; Spanish Music | [65] |
| [CHAPTER IV. —— MADRID.] | |
| The King, Queen, and Royal Family; Personal Appearanceof Ferdinand; a Royal Jeu d’esprit; the King’s Confidencein the People, and Examples; Character of the King; aCarlist’s Opinion of the King; Favourites,—Calomarde,—Alegon,—Salsedo,—theDuque d’Higar; Rising Influenceof the Queen; Habits of the Royal Family; CourtDiversions; Rivalry of Don Carlos; the Queen’s Accouchement,and Views of Parties; Detection of a CarlistPlot; the Salic Law; Court Society; Persons of Distinction,and Ministerial Tertulias; Habits and Manner ofLife of the Middle Classes; a Spanish House, and itsSingular Defences; Abstemiousness of the Spaniards;Evening and Morning Visits; Balls and Spanish Dancing;Character of Spanish Hospitality; Spanish Generosity andits Origin; Examples of Ostentation; Morals; Gallantryand Intrigue; the Morals of the Lower Orders; ReligiousOpinions in the Capital, and Decline of the Priestly Influence;Jesuitical Education; the Influence of the Friars;Causes of the Decline of Priestly Influence, and the Continuanceof that of the Friars; Convent Secrets; CuriousExposé at Cadiz; Devotion in Madrid | [112] |
| [CHAPTER V. —— MADRID.] | |
| The Profession of a Nun; Reflections; Description of theInterior of a Convent; the Monastic Life; Description ofa Bull-Fight; Sketches of Spanish Character; a HorseRace | [168] |
| [CHAPTER VI.] —— | |
| Memoir of Murillo | [203] |
| [CHAPTER VII. —— MADRID.] | |
| The Picture Gallery; the Works of Murillo; the Annunciation;the Virgin Instructed by her Mother; Landscapes;Velasquez and his Works; Meeting of Bacchanalians; theForges of Vulcan; Españoletto and his Works; Villavicencio;Juanes; Alonzo Cano; Cerezo; Morales; Juanes’Last Supper; the Modern Spanish School; Aparicio;the Famine in Madrid; Italian Gallery; Flemish School;the Sala Reservada; Statuary; Cabinet of Natural History;Sala Reservada; the Patrician’s Dream; the Desengañode la Vida; Private Collections; the Duke of Liria’sGallery; Churches and Convents; Church of San Isodro;San Salvador; Santa Maria; San Gines; Santiago; SanAntonio de Florida; Convent of Las Salesas; de la Encarnation;the Franciscans; Santa Isabella; Hidden Pictures;San Pasqual; Santa Teresa; the Palace. | [233] |
| [CHAPTER VIII. ——] | |
| Literature; Difficulties to be encountered by Authors; theBook Fair; Digression respecting the Claims of Spain toGil Blas; Public and Private Literary Societies; Libraries;Obstacles to Improvement, from the State of Society; FemaleEducation; Education for the Liberal Professions;Course of Study for the Bar; Course of Medical Studies;Charitable Institutions; Consumption of Madrid; Prices ofProvisions. | [265] |
| [CHAPTER IX.] —— | |
| State of Parties, and Political Prospects. | [293] |
| [CHAPTER X. —— THE ESCURIAL—ST. ILDEFONSO—SEGOVIA.] | |
| Journey from Madrid; First View of the Escurial; Philip II.;Situation of the Escurial; the Church; Lucas Jordan; theRelics; the Santa Forma; the Sacristy and its Pictures;a Reverie; the Hall of Recreation; the Library; theTomb of the Kings; the Manuscript Library; Ignoranceand Idleness of the Monks, and Anecdotes; Manner ofLife among the Monks; the Palace; Particulars of theExtent and Cost of the Escurial; Pedestrian Journeyacross the Sierra Guaderrama to Ildefonso; the Palace,Waters, and Garden of La Granja; Road to Segovia; itsRemains, and Present Condition; Expensiveness of RoyalHonours; Return to Madrid | [328] |
| [CHAPTER XI. —— TOLEDO.] | |
| Journey from Madrid; Proofs of the backwardness of Spain;Appearance of the Country; Spanish Mule-driving; aVenta; First View of Toledo; Toledo Recreations andSociety; Remains of Former Grandeur, and Proofs ofPresent Decay; Picturesque Views; the Tagus; Intricacyof Toledo; Bigotry and Priestcraft; Reasons for the Prevalenceof Religious Bigotry in Toledo; Proofs of Bigotry;Aspect of the Population; the Cathedral and itsRiches; Scene in the Cathedral; the Alcazar; HistoricalRetrospect; Praiseworthy Institutions of the ArchbishopLorenzana; the University; Toledo Sword Manufactory;the Franciscan Convent; Return to Madrid | [305] |