Lancaster daily intelligencer. [volume] (Lancaster, Pa.) 1864-1928, 1882-01-12
i" SUNNY SPAIN"
IN THE SHADOW OF The PYBANEES.
A Nation that Is Way Behind the Age in Az.
r1cultural lmprOvements-A Glance at
Some Famous Spanish Cities-Madrtd.
Toledo, SeyiIIe-The Tomb Of Philip
Il-Mourish Architecture.

ll-MOorish Architecture.
Extracts from u Private Letter of Major 3. +.
Erenclnan.
HOTEL DE LAS CUATRo NACI'DSEs
SEVILLE, Dec. Is, lsSl.
Could confne the subject of this letter
to description Of any one of the many
places have visited in the past month,
know it would be much more interesting
but this would require more time and
thought than an willing to expend, par
| ticularly as my incoherent jottings are i'll
tended more to give you my whereabouts
than anything else. A trip through Spain
is wonderfully interesting but is not ac-
c)mplished without some sacrifice of time,
patience and comfort. There are num-
ber of railroads, but they are poorly built
and worse managed. The cruel ingenuity
displayed by the superintendent in arrang-
ing schedule by which the trains reach
all the principal points at midnight Or
leave at four in the morning, is worthy Of
the days OF the inquisiticn. The hotels
are small. Their prices large and the
cooking inferior. Politeness to the SER
wants, however with the addition of few
tips, will secure good attention. One suf-
fecs more from want Of fires than any
thing else. Every attention is given to
building honses t. exclude the scorching
| rays OF the sun, but when night comes on
and the winter winds blow over the snow
capped Pyranecs and Sierra Nevadas the
| temperature frequently reaches freezing
| poilt and brasier with u few hot Goals
! is poor substitute for furnace. The
peasants, who live il their little caves in
the mountain sides, are about the only
| ones who have comfortable homes in north
cru Spain during December and January.
What a grand country this would be
| did it bat have a little of the American
energy No finer soil Or climate exists,
yet therc has been but little progress for
| hundreds of years. The farmers use the
same rude implements rs those used by
their ancestors before Columbus discov-
cred America. The grain is still threshcd
BY the treading out of oxen on stone
| floors and is wiEnOwed in tho wind. The
wheat is ground in rude mills built by tho
Moor, 4 thousand years ago.
| OF tho Spanish cities Madrid is the
metropolis and the centre Of wealth and
fashion. It's population Of IL half a mil
lion appears to be rapidly increasing. 1t
is beautiful city, with magnificent
palaces, elegant public and private build
ings, one of the finest picture galleries i'll
the world and many fine squares, gardens,
parks, drives and walks. How it man.
ages to exist without manufactures Or
commerce is mystery. Its location
could not possibly he worse as it is sur-
rounded by an almost barren plain. Not
tree, shrub, garden Or blade Of grass is
| visible. All it's marketing, milk, butter,
eggs vegetables and meats have to be
| brought hundreds Of miles, adding largely
to their cost and making it most cxpcn-
| sive place to live.
Some forty miles from Madrid is located
"The Escorial," built by Philip H., Us a
convent, palace and tomb. This most
wonderful and interesting Of all modern
buildings, was the work of twenty-five
hundred men twenty five years. The en-
tire structure is of granite. with walls
twenty feet thick, aud will endure as does
the Pantheon at Rome. To describe the
beauty of the tombs, the elegance of the
palace. and the perfection of the chapel,
| would require volumes. One of the
smallest and most dingy rooms in the con-
| vent, is pointed out rs the room in which
this half monk aud half king lived, and in
| it he died /. horrible death, as he deserved
AS the Spaniards like the Romans, have
| always lavished immense sums Of money
| on their church, almost every city has its
| magnificent cathedral. Ono of the finest
and perhaps wcaithicst, is at Toledo.
miserable vandals and thieves, tho French,
and twenty three hundred weight of silver
melted up and carried off. 1t still has
enormous treasures. Through the kind
ness of friend was permitted to visit
the sacristy and saloons in which is kept tho
reliqaalies of gold, silver and precious
stcues. The value Of which is fabulous.
The image of the Virgin is one of the old
est and most valued in Spain. 1t is life
size, Of solid silver. seated on a silver
throne under a gold canopy. The
! crown, necklace, bracelets, and other
ornaments are radiant with precious stones.
The dress is embroidered in gold and COW
cred with pearls Of all sizes. Tho actual
value of the pearls alone being 5000, 600
Of pcsetas, Or almost 81, 0O0, 900 in Ameri-
can money. mention this one item only
to give you an idea of the great wealth of
some of the churches. Toledo was once a
capitol and a city of great magnificence
with manufactures and population of
quarter of million now it has dwindled
down to eighteen thousand. Its manufac.
tories are no more. Its great armory,
which once employed thousands of work.
men and produced the finest blades in tue
world, is now a small shop with not over
twenty hands, whose entire production of
swords, knives, scissors and few orna-
mental articles are bought up at enormous
prices by travellers as souvenirs. Two
fine bridges, several of the gates of the
OLE city and a number of we'll preserved
buildings OF the time of the Moors still
remain and are among Toledo's greatest
attractions.
Of the architecture OF the MoOrs, how