The Liverpool Standard and General Commercial Advertiser.
Liverpool, Merseyside, England, 1854-05-30 00:00:00

MR MOORISH INVASION OF SPAIN.

Thence it is that we find so many false, misrepresented,
or at the least imperfectly developed relations, contami-
nating and obscuring our history in this highly important
part ; and thence arises the belief, most commonly enter-
tained, that the Moors, when they entered Spain, arrived
in hordes innumerable,—not as brave and fortunate war-
riors, but as fierce, cruel barbarians, without culture and
without order, a mere troop of savages, delivering all
things to fire and to the sword, pitiless and inhuman to
both sexes and every age, destroying whatever they found
in their path, and leaving no one stone upon another in
the hapless towns they subdued. At a word, that Chris-
tianity fled in dismay before the aspect of these barbarians,
and that they left no traces behind them but those of
horror, desolation, and death.
But the conditions imposed on the conquered nation
were such, that the people found consolation rather than
oppression in the presence of their conquerors ; and when
they compared their then fate with that which they had
previously endured, could not fail to consider the change
a fortunate one. The free exercise of their religion, a
careful preservation of their churches from all injury, the
security of their persons, with the unimpeded enjoyment
of their goods and possessions,—such were the first re-
turns which they received for their submission to the
stranger, and for the tribute (a very moderate one) which
they paid to their victors. But there was yet more : the
fidelity of the Arabs in maintaining their promises, the
equal-handed justice which they administered to all
classes, without distinction of any kind, secured them the
confidence of the people in general, as well as of those
who held closer intercourse with them ; and not only in
these particulars, but also in generosity of mind, and in
amenity of manner, and in the hospitality of their customs,
the Arabians were distinguished above all other people of
their times.

Surely slavery never rode in a more superbly
gilded car than the Spaniards were indulged with
the use of, if the above picture be a true one. How
comes it, then, that the name even of the Arab
domination smells so foully in the Spanish nostril ?
And on what ground has a prejudice so deeply
rooted and so widely expanded found nourishment
and grown to strength ? " Disguise thyself as
thou wilt, still slavery thou art a bitter draught ;
and though thousands have been made to drink of
thee in all ages, thou art not the less bitter-on that
account !" The conditions and the miseries of
slavery, however they may be tinselled over, are
hateful to the mind of a cultivated people, and
fortunately the sense of degradation is not blunted
because the chain may be cushioned with velvet,
nor is the feeling of thraldom the less poignant on
account of the silken robe in which it is permitted
to attire itself. In deprecation of the above re-
marks, however, we must admit that the work is
compiled and written with an air of truthfulness,
and that the details are elaborated with much skill,
and display great and painstaking research.

The Chemistry of Common Life, No. VI. The
Liquors we Ferment. By James F. W. John-
ston, M.A. Edinburgh and London : William

Blackwood and Sons.

The liquors we ferment form in themselves a
subject of contemplation worthy of attentive con-
sideration, from the phenomena evolved in the
course of their fermentation, scarcely less impor-
tant, in a physical point of view, than are the social
consequences which flow from their use. Foremost
in consideration in this treatise, is the manufacture
and the chemical and physiological characteristics
of beer ; next in order to these are the various
wines, and vinous preparations, all of which are
described with scientific accuracy, yet in so opular
a manner, that "he who runs may read." Due
attention is also paid to the various processes of
adulteration, as- these are chiefly practised in this
country, and the different kinds of effect produced
by the respective adulterating ingredients, are
skilfully and lucidly traced. As a book for general
household consultation on all subjects of sanitary
regulation, or ingestive preparations, it would
be impossible to meet with a superior one, its di-
rections are given with such conciseness and
perspicuity. It should find a place in every cottage
and in every hall ; and it is equally adapted to the
village library and the Mechanics' Institute. Every
class in the community will find something in it to
amuse, to interest, and to instruct.

The Wriggleses ; or, the Awkward Family. By
Yrneh Koorbezarg. Liverpool : Edward Howell.

This brochure possesses considerable pungency
of satirical remark, but if that satire were more
generalised, it would remove from . the reader's
mind the painful, though no doubt unfounded sup-
position, that he is perusing pasquinade levelled at
some individual family who may have been unfortu-
nate enough to incur, it may be unconsciously and
undeservedly, the ill-will of the writer. This is an
unhappy feature of the production, which, if over-
come, the work would deserve and receive a heartier
and more extended welcome.

Among the serials which have reached us, but
at present, are Punch for April, with its
which want of space forbids us more particularly
to specify
pungent jokes and racey carricatures. Tice Home
Companion, sober, sedate, and pleasing. The
Journal of Industrial Progress, No.. V. ; one of
the gratifying indicators of social progress in Ire-
land. The fifth part of Orr' 8 .Household Medicine;

and also the fifth number of the Library of Bibli-
cal Literature. The Irish Church Journal,
No. V. The Bulwark, and the Protestant
Magazine,—all of them doing good service in the
cause of social improvement in their respective
spheres.