Little Falls transcript. [volume] (Little Falls, Morrison County, Minn.) 1876-1894, 1883-11-05
Travelling In Spain.

. The real Spain is the least attractive
country in Europe to the tourist. The
traveller goes there to see certain unique
objects. He sees them, enjoys them, is
entranced by them, leaves them with
regret and tender memory, and is glad
to get out of Spain. There are six
things to see: the ALEXANDRIA, the Seville
cathedral and Alcazar the Mosque of
Cordova, Toledo and its cathedral, the
Gallery of Madrid, and Monserrat. The
rest is mainly monotony and WEAKNESS
With the exception of the Alhambra,
which has spell that an idle man finds
hard to break, and where perhaps he
could be content indefinitely, there is
no place like Spain that one can imag ne
he would like to live in, for the pleasure
of living. Taking out certain historical
features and monuments, the towns re-
peat each. other in their attractions
and their disagreeables.> Every town
dividusi character and nd Special
charm. To go from one to another is
always to change the scene and the de-
light. This is true OF the old German
towns also. Each has a character. The
travelez sees many place in each coun-
try where he thinks he could stay on
from month to month, with growing
home-like feeling. think there is moth
ing OF this attraction in Spain. The
want OF it may be due to the country it.
sell, or to the people. I fancy that with
its vast arid plains, treeless, and tire.
some, its 9ulled hills and it's bare es-
capped mountains, Spain resembles New
Mexico. 1t is an unsoftened, unrelie we'd
landscape, for the most part, some
times grand in it's vastness and sweep
but rugged and unadorned. The want
OF grass and gentle verdure is serious
drawback to the pleasure Of the eve,
not compensated by the magic tricks of
the Sunlight, and the variegatcd reds,
browns, and yellows of the exposed soil
and rocks, and the spring-time green of
the nascent crops. Ispeak, of course,
OF the general aspect, for the mountain
regions are rich in wild-fowers, and the
cultivation in the towns is everywhere
re deeming feature.
The traveller. of course, gets his inn
pressions of a people from the outside.
These are correct so far as they 20, and
It is in sense safe to generalize on them,
though not to particularize. He catches
very soon the moral atmosphere s.of a
IS
agreeable or otherwise, whether the
people seem pleasant or the reverse.
He learns to discriminate for example.
between the calculated gemuthl,chkeit
of Switzerland and the more spontan-
eous, friendliness of Bavaria, He can
pronounce once up n the cordial good
humor OF the Viennese, the ob|igingness
Of the people Of Edinburgh, the agree
ableness OF the SHedes, simple on street.
knowledge. without ever entering pri-
vate house or receiving any personal
hospitality. He knows the willy, poet
lcdt ways by which he is beguiled in
Italy. but grows fond OF the sunny
race. y = ~: H#
In Spain he is pretty certain to be
rubbed the wrong way most Of the time.
He is conscious Of an atmosphere of
suspicion, of distrust, Of contempt often.
He cannot understand. for instance, why
attendants in churches and cathedrale
are 50 curt and disobliging, keeping him
away on one pretense or another, from
the sights he has come far to Gee, and
for wAich he is willing to pay. Incidents
occurred beth at Granada and Toledo
that could only be accounted
for only on the supposition that
the custodians like to Sdiaconmode
strangers. If we had been Frenchmen,
whom tho Spdniards hate as the dispoil-
ers OF churches and galleries. we could
have understood it. BY reputation
the Spaniard is st home hospitable,
and on acquaintance gracious, and
generally willing to oblige. But
the national atmosphere il certainly not
what the Germans call gemuthlich. En-
no other European country is the trav-
eler likely to encounter 90 much incivil.
ity and rud eness, 50 little attempt ct
pleasing him and making him like the
country. AT least the attitude ID that 81
indifference whether the country
pleases him or not. Perhaps this
springs from 4 noble pride and superior
ity. Perhaps il Is from i provincial con-
sciousness Of being about 200 years be-
hind the age. But, elsewhere the
pleasantest people to travel among are
those whose clocks stopped two cent,1-
ries ago. Individually &c have no doubt,
the spaniardsare charmi1 g. Collective
y, they do not appear % welcome q
stranger, or put themselves out to mako.
his sojourntagreeab Charles Dudley
Warner ~ November Atlantic
Ex-set1etary Bellnap q doing Nell With
hfa law 01ncfScn III W. h3Isx, 4ors S.s