The Republican journal., 1896-03-19
The Republican Journal Thursday Morning March 49, 1896

joice in partial third story built up in
the form of tower, surmounted by ter
race. All are in the form of hollow
square, having courts in the centre sur
rounded by galleries. One would never
suspect this from the blank and bare ap-
pearance they present from the street. The
| outer door, which always stands wide
open until late at night, leads into pas
sage which corresponds in length to the
breadth of the rooms. At the far end of
this passage carefully barred inner door
way leads to the patio, or court, open to
the sky, with usually a fountain in the
middle, and bananas, orange trees, roses
and jasmine, growing around it, If the
house is two storied, the store rooms,
kitchens, servants quarters and stables
, occupy the ground floor, while the family
lives above, and in every case all the
rooms open into the veranda that sur
is attached to the inner door. When Il
visitor arrives he pulls the string that
sounds the alarm, and Immediately a
shrill voice is heard from somewhere
above ''Quien vive?' (Who is it?) Should
there be no bell, the caller must clap his
hands until he gains somebody's atten-
ton.
At one end of the town, facing the sea.
stands the principal fort, that of San
Christobal. Its batteries are still very
strong and a tremendous surf pounds I'M
ceasingly at its base. The coast is com
manded by several other forts and various
redoubts; and altogether it would seem
that Spain took an unnecessary amount of
trouble to guard this barren rock which
nobody covets. There is a custom house.
a military hospital, aims house, prison,
three hermitages and several churches,
among the latter one of remarkable beau
ty, in which are still exhibited the faded
flags which were taken from the English
during Nelson's attack, one an ensign. the
other Union Jack. Among the several
schools are one of drawing and another of
navigation; yet education appears to be at
a low ebb, judging from the iiliteracy of
the So called "better classes Though
no religion but the Roman Catholic is toll
Grated in the Canaries, all the monkish in
situations have been suppressed through
out the islands, and the monasteries and
converts that are not kept up for secular
purposes are fast falling to decay. One
of the largest and finest of them, the old
Franciscan convent in the heart of the
city, now serves for sort of town hall in
which nearly all the public bodies hold
their meetings. The beach, with it's fine
mole of modern construction, presents
busy scene, though often for days to-
gether the heavy surf prevents boats from
landing. When nothing else can be done
barrels of wine are rolled down the steep
pebbly shore, and the natives, plunging
into the boiling surf, push and float them
off to the waiting vessel. Considerable
wine, brandy, almonds, honey, flax and
cochineal are exported, principally to the
mother country. Wine is the staple pro-
duct, about 80, 200 pipes per annum. 1t
used to find its principal market in the
Spanish colonies of South America; but
now, strange to say, it goes chiefly to
England. Uncle Samuel has very little to
III, with nonp,p,ca of tho Gopa,iar
The imports, consisting principally of
manufactured goods, come from England,
Spain, France and Germany. As to
Government, this archipelago is political
ly part OF the province of Andalusia, and
like other offshoots, it appears to be a
little more Spanish than anything in
Spain. The Governor General, who re-
sides at Santa Cruz, has chief command,
in military as well as in civil affairs; but
the actual administration of the laws is in
the hands of two Lieutenant Governors
who reside at Santa Cruz and Las Palmas.
On the other six inhabited islands of the
group are deputy governors, each acting
district he belongs. The population of
the whole archipelago is variously stated,
but is probably not far from 25O OOO-a
people of rather darker skin than the
average Spaniard, but possessing all the
Spanish traits intensitied-not given to
drunkenness, but inordinate gamblers;
quick, but lazy; extremely gentle and
polite, but faithless, treacherous and
superstitious. FANNIE b. WARD.
The Wreck of the Beatrice Havener.