“Gentes de paz” (peaceful people), replied the surgeon; and this is the usual way to answer the question in Spain.
It presently appeared that Dr. Winstock was acquainted with the gentleman who lived in the house; and he received a cordial welcome from him. The young gentlemen were introduced to him, though he did not speak English; and they were shown the house.
In the vestibule, directly opposite the front door, was a pair of iron gates of open ornamental work, set in an archway. A person standing in the street can look through this gateway into the patio, or court of the mansion. It was paved with marble, with a fountain in the middle. It was surrounded with plants and flowers; and here the family sit with their guests in summer, to enjoy the coolness of the place. Thanking the host, and promising to call in the evening, the surgeon left with his pupils,—his “pupilos,” as he described them to the gentleman.
After lunch the sight-seers went to the Giralda, which is now the campanile or bell-tower of the cathedral. It was built by the Moors in 1296 as a muezzin tower, or place where the priest calls the faithful to prayers, and was part of the mosque that stood on this spot. It is square, and built of red brick, and is crowned with a lofty spire. The whole height is three hundred and fifty feet. To the top of this tower the party ascended, and obtained a fine view of the city and its surroundings,—so fine that they remained on their lofty perch for three hours. They could look down into the bull-ring, and trace the Guadalquiver for many miles through the flat country. The doctor pointed out all the prominent objects of interest; and when they came down they had a very good idea of Seville and its vicinity.
The next day, as Murray expressed it, they “commenced work on the cathedral.” It is the handsomest church in Spain, and some say in the world. It is the enlargement of an old church made in the fifteenth century. On the outside it looks like a miscellaneous pile of buildings, with here and there a semicircular chapel projecting into the area, and richly ornamented with various devices. It is in the oblong form, three hundred and seventy by two hundred and seventy feet, not including the projecting chapels.
“Now we will enter by the west side,” said the doctor, when they had surveyed the exterior of the vast pile. “The Giralda is on the other side. By the way, did I tell you what this word meant?”
“You did not; but I supposed it was some saint,” replied Sheridan.
“Not at all. It comes from the Spanish verb girar, which means to turn or whirl; and from this comes Giralda, a weathercock. The name is accidental, coming probably from the vane on the top of it at some former period,” continued the doctor as they entered the cathedral. “The central nave is about one hundred and twenty-five feet high; and here you get an idea of the grandeur of the edifice. Here is the burial-place of the son of Columbus. This slab in the pavement contains his epitaph:—
FERNANDO COLON.
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