The Republican. [volume] (Oakland, Md.) 1877-current, 1896-07-02
EUROPEAN LETTER.
Our Special Correspondent Writes
NFrom the Land of the DonS.


tickets so as to avoid being cheated
blythe courteous employees of the
railroad, strongly advised US to
tale courier. He would be al
waysuseful, sometimes indispensa-
BILE, and he would cost us only three
dollars a dav besides his travelling.
But travelling in Spain is costly at
bests because one has to go first
class There are not the fairly
comfortable second class cOmpart-
mems of France and Italy, or the
clean third class ones of Germany,
where one can have cheerful con-
Yerse with the knitting peasant
women. Besides we had had a guide
in Gibraltar and the experience had
not filled US with enthusiasm.
When we were dumped with our
luggage on the landing warf, in the
midst of a drenching rain, we STUN
bled frpm the Charybdis of boatmen,
cab. rivers and porters into the
So I9f guide. He took us to
-e1Ie~Hotel Royal, where the bill for
one nights stay made our purses
quake, and we decided that we would
hardly fall among worse thieves in
Spain than we had in this little strip
of English territory. So we took
our lives in our hands and started.
And | want to say to the girls who
are preparing to come over here,
don't take guide. If you have
the least independence (and what
American girl has no0 you will
find him more of a bore than bene-
fit. Not the least trouble did we
have, and we did not know a word
of the language. We learned to
gesture eloquently and effectively
and to say "Cuanto?" which means
GLOW much does it COST And
though the answer was wholly un-
ineligible we would hold up our
fingers and then our interlocutor
would do the same. When he held
up ten we always shook our heads
vigorously and offered five. 1t was
much more fun to talk common
place English and have it trans
lated. And if the extra expense
isn't consideration las it was with
us) the money can be much more
profitably invested in mantillas and
bull fights. So for sentimental and
economical reasons, go alone. When
we took the little train at Alglcieras
we were lucky enough to get a COM
partment to ourselves and with the
instinct of the railway hog we piled
our luggage on the seats and looked
forbiddlng when anyone glanced IN.
But after the train had started the
conductors head appeared at the
window and he smilingly explained,
in perfectly plain Spanish that he
could have put other people in their
but-well-he had not. For which
consideration we presented him with
nine cents, which hereceived humbly
and gratefully, smiled all around,
winkcd and disappeared.
The railway service in Spain is
not as perfect as 1t might be. In
the provincial cities only one train
leaves a day. If you miss it you
have to wait twenty-four hours for
the next. For the further conven-
fence of the public this tram usu-
ally leaves at 6 a. M, and it is one
of the customs of the country to
reach it an hour before it starts.
So whenever we wanted to make a
Journey we had to submit to beng
called at four o'clock in the morn
ing, to dressing by candlelight to
driving an lntcrminable distance
through ghostlike rows of houses
(for stations are always in an mac
cessible part Of the town.; and to
waiting on cold dim platforms some
time after the appointed hour, when
the train would sleeplly start and
we would try to finish our maps II
corners of the compartment. But
even there uncomfortable incidents
are overlooked when we remember
that it is this very absence of modern
conveniences that makes Spain sc
novel and interesting. When the
country turns to adapt itself to the
ways of travellers, much of it,
originality and charm will van.
ish.
The first thing we dld when W.
reached Cordova was to start for the
mosque. Outside it Is rather disap
pointing; but the interior is a de
lightful surprise, with endless vlsta'
in every direction, the low arches
striped alternately in dull red ant
white. There were a Thousand
pillars, we were informed, and W.
preferred not to attempt to verify
the statement. We roamed arounC
in the maze, studied the ever chang
ing combinations of arches, anC
tried to imagine the mosque whel
it was first erected, to be the West