The Sun.
London, England, 1834-03-06 00:00:00

STATE OF SPAIN.

2

(FROM A CORRESPONDENT.)
Spain is stationary. The fact is, that it he: _
cording to a census made by
creased considerably within the last fif
ty years.
tiro
It is an erroneous notion that the populatiroe.l
1788, it then amounted to 10,043,968. A ceases
to
was again taken in 1797, when it was falleni
to
amount to 10,541,221. In 1803 it had,
.e.
10,351,075. In 1821, the Cortes estinsateu the
-umbers at 111 millions ; in 1827, accordingek:,
Hassell's " Historical and Statistical Alton" re,
he population had reached 13,953,959; and a' Pface
sent it must exceed fourteen millions. The suro _ .
of Spain covers 15,005 square leagues of 20
discl.
degree, so that there are upon an average tlPwar ani,
especially Guiptiscoa, Asturias, Biscay. 800 inhabitants to every square league. Thei ns,
ritime provinces are by far the most PoPula,
the
g6B.
end Granada; so much so,that in 1803 the marl'
, blin
,ime •
Provinces collectively were found to con
904 inhabitants to the square league, and the inla
ys.
provinces) only 507, the mean population of Spi:
being at that time 690 to the square league. ~
of )I:oohdeopresumed, that besides the great quantity,
afforded by comm°
the sea, the facility a t, •
nication • • and conveyance which the coast preset)
must tend
mil e to increase the wealth of the inhabitanthe
onsequently to multiply their numbers. Ih.
superiorconclusion, Multi- ion of Portugal leads also to this
The territory of Spain has been,
inaccurately, compared to an embroidered waisted,
the edges full and ornamented,blank'
the centre a
with a few scattered flowers.
The greater. part of the land in Spain belongs VI
the nobility, the church, or corporate bodiet
Throughout the principal part of the cuntry, age'"
culture is in a most wretched state. Scarcely OA'
of the lands in Leon Castile, Estremadura, an:
Andalusia, are enclosed, which is priecipally owlet
prietors of the great sheep-flocks, of driving to the destructive privilege enjoyed by the PO'
from the provinces of the north to those of thei
lilt Igentho
e.
0,
south, for winter pasture. This right, en,io
'Yr,
chiefly by the association of owners of merino 60°
called La Mesta, and also by poorer individuals, has
the effect of turning the lands of Spain into a 0/
common every year, to which the lord has no 01°r°
right than any one el-e. Enclosures have been poi
hibAed, lest they shou'd prevent the migration °
the flocks, and it was of so late as 1789 the
n
in towns—they are unable to make the
lands in the track of the flocks were allowed to he
appropriated to kitchen-gardens, and the culture°
vines and seeds. Farms throughout Spain are
small, and the farmers worse off than the labourers
vancts on accor'nt of their operations, and ate
obliged to raise whatever funds they require,' "ti
mortgaging their crops. Land is not supPoseli;
yield the proprietors more than from one and gl'iT,,,
to two per cent. The great landowners, Whose
rents sometimes amount to a million of dola
are mostly embarrassed. h i
A most serious obstacle to the prosperity both
the
agriculture, arid of all internal traffic, 110,4:p:ice
want of means of communication from the in`. '- no
to the coast. Deficient in navigable rivers, 8,,
crested by enormous chains of mountains,
here.there
also a lamentable want of good roads and
11-gates
The funds for the roads are derived from toll-gara,
and local taxes, but it is believed that the go,‘7.‘ it
smallest gds
ment draws a greater revenue from the tollsdtat;'oo
roads and bridges was, in 1826,
expends on the roads. The sum exPende din
1827, 89,240/., which strikingly illustrats_ the
, Ptllo
backward state of the country, since, although
cr,
is three and a half times as large as Engiaandetb
out'ar on roads does not amount to one.tsve
a; ct 1°
part tf il e sums expended for the same 0-Je nil
Engle n I ',lone. The canal of the Ebro is the f
ano o
one f, r et ough advanced to be useful ; the e
,een
Castile, intended to lay open
the country bet,"rit,.
and the.
the Douro and
Reynosa, is.in operation, or
have been lately projects on foot for making,prey
gable the Tagus and Guadalquiver. Bat I" al •
no internal
sent there may be said to be next to 1
navigation. article/
Menu( actures of silk, cotton, end other last
have bet n established in Catalonia
carried on in the northern provinces, and
within the Iry
92,4001, an ty
ten years. There are cloth manufactures in At ~
• true'
gon, C talonia, and Valencia. Training la jos
the -. of
manufactures of Biscay are considerable, tholne
its
late Much depressed. In regard to foreign unofficial ,
trifling importance may be gathered from all
is was
return of 1826, in which the value of exports
475/.
equal to 1,799,485/., and of import is esti'
mated that nearly one-third more goods a.e, owns.
tinely imported than are given in the official „roas
Smuggling prevails to such an extent, Oat it
ciandev
The bulk of the taxes is divided into the_, ,rho
stamps, customs,
generates " and the " rentas provincialescho; of
former are collected throughout nearly the whole
Spain, and include the revenue of the 1.).
_. The
in tile r•
" rentas provinciales" are collected only _is ne
vinces of the Crown of Castile, and in then' ~ or
eluded a very oppressive one, the " alcaic' into
" octrois," levied on articles on their en trance
.o,othe
towns and villages. Next to the "aleaba.lit does
tithe is the imposition most complained ot, but it
tio nay
not all go into the hands of the clergy', ,o`abta're,
Ive°talluet and the Royal monopo.nes.
_ro,
ever two-ninths of the tithe as the Kir.F...ii have
venues hard] I e•ides being subject to other burdens,
_l',..ansh
% ery much impoverished the once %veldt! yr7ll_ tho
c ergy. There are good reasons for belte_v_i,the re,
ISY,l6.Ore, 0.
elusive of the interest of the debt. A
_bolt:tie
tl, WI
yncehveitri veaxsiroenedinedlB theoB
etxope,
00,__t
tine,
however, considerable reforms were intro
f i.eiteresii
the expenditure for that year (exclusive o
sterling,
the
was officially stated at 5,255,639/.
vs mof coection
revenue being 5,988,410. The s-' re is believed
is so arbitiary and full of abuses, that it
Dili'
that the ostensible tevenue of six millions ae"l0.0,
costs the country no less than twelve. The etio
tiny face of Spain does not exceed 46,00 a'od,
and their pay is constantly in arrear. The °Mu
holders fare still worse, seldom receiving more tide,
one quarter's interest in arrear. Spain may iibeing
be considered as in a state of insolvency, make
the desire, wholly unable, even if she had to
good her engagements
to her creditors.
and the
The
dmin.state of crime is most deplorable,o;cor..
ate' istration of justice abominably si.' such
in, and vicious. Crimes a," the person, .I. _
gainst seecia Dr
as assassination and highway-robbery, are edpwrdleo
d frequent.
The population of England an . _,,0
lifers little front that of Spain, and rningi
tool'
years 1826 and 1827 there were seven'''. lour 00_,
viduals,
being at the rate of thirty-seven each yes
cin victed of murder, and attempts to
less
de_
11'
whereas in Spain, in 1826, there were no
rnoriPeari
1,223 murders, and 1,773 attempts to
the t"for
accompanied by stabbing and wounding, so
.o.
eve!), one in England there were 81 in Spai
_re „..,r.
For fuller details see " Laborde's Ititieraiiihe.
scriptif de l'Espagne ;" the article, Spail'eta,,, ned
supplement to the " Encyclopte Zia 13ritanit Foreigil
the article in the ninth number of the
eill serve
Quarterly Review." The present notice vv_of a
to give same notion of the internal ea' nent
. a Just e
country whose political situation excite . „analog.
peculiar interest. It shows that, notwitne
there 4.
. ehere • nee
every natural source of prosperity, I. a eons.,
neither industry nor a free governments yet 4 ii'
will remain in ignorance and indigenee;ain ;cell':
consolatory to believe, that although '5,13 rodatiall'
to have reached so low a point of "love/rent.
there are still sufficient indications of °Potion.
not to allow us to despair of her regener

.._. ~==,,,,,,,retztegoe' ir
ISM °I
'
BIS.
On the 3d inst., at Harrow RT
WeHald, Middlesex, the
re,
the Rev. H. S. Foyster, of a son. truan-54°5 •
On the 3d inst., in Uppei Seymour-street, Pc°
Mrs. R. Oakley, of a son, still-born.
randr •
Harriet,'
MARRIED. la
te
On the 4th inst., at St Pancras New Church, ,Ir' Ale ' the
Robinson, of Regent-street, to
daughter of
Charles Steers, Esq., of the Stock Exchange.
. 1.04
~, 0 A •
PRINTED AND PUBLISHED BY MURDO YOtig' '
SUN OFFICO, 11'2, STRAND. ,
i