, 1890-02-27
AFO0T IN SPAIN.
Walreman Writes From
the Capital.
MADRID A MODERNCITY
An Uninviting Field for
the Antiquary.
WASHERNOMEN OF The CITY,.
epain's Mad Poet and His Beau
tiful Daughter-A Royal
Separation.
BaSHEREOMEN OF The CITY.

You will see moro oidcn, quaint and
cnrious sights In the great calzadas OF
5tonc-covercd highways leading into
3iadrid than you WIN find in the Span
ish capital itself For old Madrid. tho
Madrid tlint was once but the advanced
post 70 Toledo, when the latter city was
IN tho hands OF the Arabs, has entirely
Disappeared, Tho Madrid OF to-day II a
modern city with modern architecture
and only when now and then one STUN
blrs upon rnusty, old and forgotten
corner whore antiquity and filth have
been uuwittinaly overlooked, or when
Jon come upon the gigantic apartment
houses with their cheap renaissance Of
Moorish traccry and balconies. will your
oxpsctant eyes rest upon anght OF BY
rAntino flavor or design. To the travel
or primcd with romantic fancies oi
Moorish conquest, occupancy and relics,
y n tho most disappointing city in all
Spain. To tho cities OF the South one
must go, 80 Toledo, Seville, Cordova.
Cadix and 10 vermillion-walled Granada,
for the enchantmcnt and exuItation
promised In one's far-away dny-dfeams
Df medieval Spain.
One might better see New York, Bos-
ton or Philadelphia to know historic
ground; lowly life along the Thames In
london will furnish mare interesting
nludicS OF characteristic classes, and
Paris In score Of quarters can show in
hntfely greater pianancy aud zcst.
Hadrid II bleak, solemn, pondcrous. rs
streets nre wide, clean, but without life
~ color. Its royal palace is vast granite
and marble barn. It's Escurinl is huge,
damp out-oi-door cellar. Jts squares.
IL II "A.
tdlers, convey Q sense OF austere So
lcmnity and Loneliness. Its royal picture
gallery. admitting OF no equal IN the
world In point OF rare works Of the old
cst and grcatcst uiastcrs. may also with
equal Justice admit OF no equal in the
world as the most Inadequate collection
OF representatives schools Of art oxtrit
II has nor Jingle great piece OF sculp-
ture among It's hundreds oi public stat
ucs- Its most tremendous and costly
fountains look like gay show-pieoes of
rome opniently advertised American
foundry of yesterday. 1t does not
possess single cathedrali and you can
not iind church within is cnvirons
worthy moments attention by tbe
suidcnt OF feccieaiaatical art. Its river of
4 high-sounding name. the ManEanares,
n q srattcr Of wet from the Cuadarrama
mountains IN winter, n muddy torrent
IN sprina. n aand-hlown ditch in the
summer, and hardly a capable sewer at
nny time OF the year. Its people apo the
ntrs In the saddle or carriage and
posscss none OF the better, and all OF tie
vorar e.i1racl cristics and qualities of the
cnfire nation. Madrid is simply the
ecaI p-isou,honse Of lettering Spanish
ruyalty The breeding spot of almless
revolution and disorder; socially the
most corrupt of all Earopenn cities and,
- an abiding place. from It's inexprcss-
nbiy wrpfrhet climate, the certain be-
ginning and end Of lingering death.
All iiiis being triiN and inmeasurably
more emphatic in the experience than
through The consciousness derived from
realizing IL IN print, my own interest
quickly passed from contemplation of
Madrid Ms the royal city Of Spain. with
nothing. truly Spanish about IL, to he
study Oftwo iowly classes, the lavande-
rms. or wnsherwoinen of the Manzaneres;
the Spanish Glpsies of the quarter known
rs the ''Barrlo dc las injufias Y cambro-
nerat." and 10 a few hours idling in tlse
. Campo Santo. ut the lowly grave OF Es-
h pronceda, the ''inad poet Of Spain"
TifE MANaANAHKs.
This dripping thing they call river,
tho Manzanares, comes down from the
cold, gray heights to the north OF Mad
& rid. and winds half way around the city
from the northwest to the southeast
What water tiows through 1t, breaks in
sxndy shadows, forming innumerable
little islands and cufiously bounded
strips of lands, all accessible by any
barefoot boy or girl and it is an odd
Z fact that though there are two vast and
prefentious bridges across II, the Puentc
dc Segcyia, nearly 200 feet long with nine
arches, designed by the great architect,
4
nearly 400 feet in length, crowned by the
statues Of San Isidro and his holy wife
its sole use 20 the city OF Madrid is thn,
Of an endlessly used and all-sunicient
wash tub. Ten thousand women soak
and splash and rouse and beat the linen
of Madrid within its scant waters every
day. Not an article of clothing is else.
!, whefe washed. No other than
these Manzanares lavandens arc
permitted 70 labor MS laun.
dresses; and for three miles up and
down the stream, from opposite the in
fartry and artillery barracks upon the
hcights Of Montana del Principe, past
the windows OF the queen regents apart.
ments In the royal palace. anu circlsng
around away beyond Toledo Gate, the
moving dots of red and blue, yellow and
gray, comprise this great army OF am
nzons with nrma aud legs on them like
tree trunks with volup,uous breasts
and fhnpny necks; hard. .musclcd and
bronxed as Turks; the most arduous
toilers, the wickedest blackguards, and
wilhni the sunnieat tempered souls In
Spain. There are three grades in this
labor- They are the mistresses, or
amnh, the oyerseers or ayudantas, and
the layanderas themselves. All are
women. The first are the agents who
receive tile uork from the hotels, great
houses and the city agcnclas, In huge
lots. and are responsible Tor Its safe ne
turn. Thc ayudanias, or oycrsrers, arc
really tho foIewomen of from dozen to
scorr OF lnynnderas each, and thev
nre real,ons,bie for work placed In their
hands by the anlas. AT Ia the morn
ing. winter nnh summer, the laYanderas
VIII he seen, many OF them with chill.
drcn trandIng beside them. creeping
along from tie 5arrios nbajos or lower
Z quarters Of the city toward the Man.
znnafcs- Sear tho river Ii an asilo or
nsylnsn. a refuge for their children.
Here the lavandera first deposits her
fta-Kcs. where they haye food.
sen ,s ,ssn. Sna training free, Tree, until until
unss o. night Then she sauntess 10 a
venta DC layandoras. or cheap washer
NoIlan's inn and takes llor copeta OF
1rzuuy Gffup OF coffee, and nt once re-
pairs 70 htt own bhnea, or little wash.
tnR-Sqx cr. AAtion. provided for each
I' XnrHct iy y O'Clock you might count
3 lny& opvoto dltoo 81 these strange crea-
turH ~ work. The entire nloping.
esndf hanks nre covered with drying
poles At tilz time ofthe year the water
4fotil u1aIuounfaiusi Of 'icv tcnapcrn.
4kf< MI y @cemk " make no differ,
1(lc< ~t<o lDmir lni,ofr- Here and there
11pGr cAldrbps contain boiling water.
ro'n ,,n,r \. ',n p Hrs TIPS ,rine q this Is