Morning journal and courier. [volume] (New Haven [Conn.]) 1848-1894, 1892-01-02

/ "A
Charms Are Those Of Diversity
Rather Than Magnificence-spirite
Harbor Scenes-The Streets, Parks
and Architecture OF the Ancient
City.
| LISBON, Dec. 18.
| To the Editor of the JOURNAL AND COURIER:
1t requires nearly four days of steam
ship travel from Southampton, England,
to reach Lisbon, the seven-hilled city upon
the broad Tagus.
| The first land you will see is the grand
promontory of Roca, the last upon which
| Columbus looked when, nearly four hun
dred years ago, he sailed away from Lis
bon with his three miserable little ships
and his one hundred and twenty men.
Like white doves wings spread upon an
| emerald scarf, fair Cintra CLEANS against
old Roca's sides. Shortly your steamers
course is changed to the east. Cascase is
| passed. You have entered a noble bay
which is alone rivaied by that of Naples,
/ and the horn of whose southern crescent
terminates in lofty and sombre Cape Ispi
chell. Mountains rise picturesquely to the
north and east behind this crescent, purple
and far and suggestive of illimitsble lands
beyond, where the great river makes its
| way through the heights from it's sources
round about the Spanish capital; emerald
| or puce where the sun, from its liquid bed
in the west, lights the far forests and
| flames the serried heights.
Quaint old outlying forts appear; for
tresses of defense and salute. Then the
outer bay narrows to the Ria de Lisboa,
Lisbon's mouth, and a narrow mouth and
throat they are; bristling with forts, capa-
BILE of perfect defense in these days with
out fort at all; and after a passage of
perhaps six miles through this deep and
narrow channel you have entered an inner
hsrbor, twenty miles long, and from three
to seven in width. where twenty Thousand
| ships could ride at anchor in water scarce
ly stirred by wave OF ripple the whole year
long.
Lisbon is set upon the hills along the
northern shore. The entire estuary is
edged with villages and villas. Here g
| church, gray and old, half shows from
some verdure-clad defile There fshing
town is checkered with white cottages and
spIatches of drying nets. Yonder q half
ruined monastery, with its little hamlet of
houses creeping up TO its walls like patient
beggars for protection and aims, tells its
story of suppression and conversion to
workaday use. Here and there are quaint
and ancient docks, reminders of where the
olden gslleons were built which bore the
most intrepid of all men to conquest and
1israypry of nj lands What rrnr
drous change upon the whole worlds sur
face, what mighty revolutions in civiliza-
ton. what volumes of history, had their
humble origin here. Not to Rome, nor
England, should Americans come, rever-
entislly and with guide-books like prayer
books in hand, as to the cradle-spot of our
race. We were born on the shores of the
lordly Tagus. We are Portuguese in in
ception and conception. Our babyho
was rocked in the three old tubs which
bore Columbus from Ria de Lisboa to far
San Salvador.
The harbor scenes of Lisbon are full of
color and charm. Towers and castles,
churches and monasteries, show from all
the surrounding heights. The city itself,
almost as white and luminous as Algiers
rising from the sea, is fair to look upon.
Craft of all nations are here. Up through
the Ria de Lisboa the west wind is speed
ing feet of fishing and feluccas.
The lateen sails are of every color and tint
in the yellow sunlight Heaps of silrery
sardines flash aud glitter beneath the sails
Myriads of lowering gulls bear the vast
feet company, for their wise instinct tells
them the fishermen never begrudge them
share of their daily harvest from the deep.
Every manner of the smaller craft known
to Mediterranean waters are plying back
and forth, Boats full of customs officials
dart from vessel to vessel, now and then
converging towards narrow archway at
the waters edge where the fruits of the
chase are tithed and stored. Gentry and
peasantry from the surrounding villas and
farms are coming and going in the out
landieh craft pointed like gondolss at both
ends, propelled by swarthy boatmen with
breasts open and hairy to the waist The
blue and white flag of Portugal flutters
from countless harbor masts There are
music and laughter on boat and on shore.
The sky above is the sky of Italy. The
waters beneath have that tint of azure
which hints of bloom. And when one has
landed at Lisbon and is at rest upon some
pretty balcony, air and sky, sea and noun
tain, street aud garden, courts and foun-
tains, men and beasts, women and voices,
all sight and sound and seeming, prompt
to delicious siesta and enchant to tender
repose.
Lisbon is neither SO fair as Florence, SO
dazzling as Palermo, so brilliant as Paris,
nor by my means so impressive as Rome.
But its situation, its surroundings and its
striking contrasts lend the city and envi-
rons a deep and lasting charm. Palace,
church, monastery, convent, public build
ing, home and shop are jumbled together
in picturesque confusion. Its parks are
many and pleasant, somnolent and restful,
rather than brilliant and grand
Down by the waters's edge is the fine
broad quadrangle, Praca de Commercio,
or Black Horse Square, as the English
have called it. This is bordered by the
huge Stock Exchange, the India House,
the "Alfandega or Custom House, the
splendid naval arsenal, and the broad quay
at the shore of the Tagus. In the center
is the hugest memorial in Lisbon, the he
roic statue of King jose l., whose historic
reign was contemporary with our Revolu-
ton. Forty tons of bronze are in the
statne alone, supported by marble horse
and elephant carved of equal size for sym
metry. Leading out of this square to the
| north is magnificent triumphal arch; and
within the quadrangle, from river to arch,
are pleasing studies of the great city's
commercial life in its relation to the trade
| and affairs of foreign nations; while pic
| turesque groupings of Lisbon boatmsn
mingled with Portuguese officials, officers
from foreign war ships, debarking and en-
barking steamer passengers, with all man
ner of strange sailors and men-of- wars
| men in their various strange costumes,
continually change ard enliven the scene.
To the east a little distance along the
broad fine quay is the Praca dos Romu-
lares, which leads into the Attero, a mag
nificent seaside traffic thoroughfare of per-
haps two miles in length. In the former
are denser crowds of boatmen and water
side folk, and here is located the Caes do
Lodre where strangers are usually landed.
At all hours of day and night it is an in
teresting locality. The Lisbon boatmsn
have no other homes but their boats In
them they cook their meals and sleep.
Until long after midnight you can come
upon little fleets of from a dozen to a
score of these, grouped neighborly togeth-
er, their swarthy owners eating, drinking
and singing in an utter abandon of con-
tentment and good nature. They are a
wild and hairy lot, but the Lisbon police
tell me they are wholly peaceable, and are
governed in all their dealings and rela-
tions among themselves by ancient and
unbroken customs and laws. In this re-
spect they are most strikingly like the
fishemen of Claddagh, at Galway, Ireland.
They also bear strong physical and facial
resemblance to the latter, which is not to
| be wondered at since the latter, as we'll as
many of the other Galway Irish folk of
the present day. are descended from Span
ish and Portuguese parent stock.
Three fine, wide streets extend north
| from Praca do Commercio or Commercial