Wood County reporter. [volume] (Grand Rapids [i.e. Wisconsin Rapids], Wis.) 1857-1923, 1898-05-19

The first real combat and history OF
Spain began at one and the same time,
when the PhOenicians and Cartha-
ginians made a raid on Spanish terri
tory with $4,000 men and 200 ele-
plants, intending TO annex Spain to
Carthage, which they proceeded to do
after a good deal Of bloodshed.
1t should be understood that Span
ish territory was a valuable field to
conquer. It's silver mines were the
richest in the then known world.
From them the invading general, if
successful, got silver enough to pay
his armies and to carry on his war
fare. Spain owned till in very re
cent years the only quicksilver mines
in the world, and California, once her
own territory, has been for many
years now her only rival in the pro-
duction OF quicksilver. Her gold
mines Of the lesser minerals are i'm
mensely productive; hence Spain has
always been a country to covet, if her
people are left out of the considera-
ton.
The next page that Spain writes in
history ushers in the second Punic
war, about 206 B. c., when Spain be-
came the bloody battlefield where
Rome and Carthage fought for SUI
premacy, and the wage was almost to
the finish. First, the Roman army
was nearly eXterminated and her two
great generals, the two Sclplos, killed;
then the Carthaginians all but an
initiated by the desperate Romans,
who came off yictors, with Spain the
spoil of war. The Romans then d1-
Vided Spain into two provinces, and
these were governed by proconsuls,
praetOrs, or what ever it might be the
fancy to call them for the time.
All Rome cared for Spain was TO get
all the tribute out of her possible.
The people were miserably poor, and
were held as slaves by their oppres-
sors. They toiled for the old
mobiles" and feudal lords, and suf-
fered wrongs and crimes that have
never blotted the pages Of any book,
of the secret archives. Their Oppres-
sions and Outrages were constantly
goading the miserable people to re-
yolt, and one authority says that
these revolts were repealed by cavalry
charges and dripping swords. For
half a century" says Abbott, there
was seldom a day in which some of
the tribes were not in open insurrec-
ton. Not unfrequently the whole
peninsula would be in a blaze CT
war"
One hundred and thirty-two B. G.
occurred the destruction of Numidia,
which so paralyzed the energies of
Spain that they gave up the struggle,
and for a few hundred years remained
without objection under Roman rule.
Just the same they murdered and
assassinated; rapine, lust, cruelty,
and inhuman barbarities marked each
and all of the bloody years in which
Slyya and Sertcrius, Pompey and Per
penna were the knights upon horse
back, playing the people as pawns,
marking the battle trail with bleach
ing bones and ruined homes. Then
there came upon the scene great
Caesar, who made blood flow like
water. On the plains of Monda, not
far from Malaga. Pompey and Gaze
sar met, and when the battle was
ended full $4,000 men lay dead upon
the field of honor.
AS though stated with carnage, the
Spanish people then rounded up their
prejudices and getting onto their own
reservations, began to raise a little
corn and less hades, and to work
their wondrously rich mines. This
condition continued for nearly SO
years. and then the government
which had been growing more anC
more corrupt, declined; the imperla
arm weakened, robbers infested the
mountain passes, plumber was thu
motto of all, and the people were 81
poor that they concluded they nigh
as we'll fight the government to
finish as to let poverty lay them out
The Bible tells about the time whel
the devil shall be chained for
thousand years, but history demon
strates that he was turned loose il
Spain for about that length of time.
The Goths and Vandals, the Suage
and Alans came pouring their bar
barian hordes over the mountains
and Spain was stepped in infam!
Mariana. a Spanish historian, says:
The Eruption of these nations wa
followed by the most dreadful ca
antilles. As the barbarians exercise
their indiscriminate cruelty on tn
fortunes OF the Romans and tn
Spanish. and ravaged with equal fur
the cities and the open country, til
progress of famine reduced the mis-
cradle inhabitants to feed on tt
flesh of their fellow-creatures, an
even the wild beasts who multiple
without control in the desert we
exasperated by the taste of blood ar
the Impotence OF hunger boldly
attack and devour their human pre-
Pestilence soon appeared, the inse
arabic companion of famine. A lar
proportion of the people was swe
away, and the groans of the dyil
excited only the envy Of their su
viving friends. At length the ba
barians satiated with carnage a
rapine, afflicted with contagio
diseases which they themselves h
introduced, fixed their permane
seats in the depopulated country.
Then the Goths again came down