The Saint Paul globe., 1898-05-08
THE DECADENCE OF SPAIN
WELL ILLUSTRATED BY AN
GENT MAPS

Works of a Century Ago Show the
Nation to Be the Dominating
European Power in the Western
Hcmisphere--CIima of Cuba as
Portrayed In Books In the Ma
tionaI Library at Washington.
Correspondence The st. Paul Globe.
WASHINGTON, May 5.-The, war
has sent a multitude of readers to the
libraries here, ransack1ng them for
works on Spain and Cuba. Much as
has been written about the gradual loss
Of her outside dominion by Spain, and 1t
is hard to realize the full meaning Of
these phrases suggestive aid to the
mind in grasping the extent Of the
decadence of Spanish power is furnish
ed by the educational books published
while Spain was still among the fore
most European powers.
1.-THE Preceptor: Containing General
Course of Education, Wherein the First
Principles Of Polite Learning Are Laid
Down in a Way Most Suitable for Try
Ing the Genius and Advancing the In
struction Of YOUTH Is one Of these.
It's fourth edition bears the imprint,
London, 1853" In the first volume we
find a compendium of geography. The
maps Of North and Sou n America show
that in the former, below the southern
boundary of the parts undiscovered" ="
now known as British Columbia, and
west of what would now be the 22d
meridian west of Washington, Spain
owned everything. These possessions
| ~ i
New Spain; New Mexico, or Granada,
| and California. Old Mexico then ran all
| the way down to the isthmus without
| a break. Spain's American dominion
| crossed the isthmus into the southern
| continent, beginning at the north with
! Terra Firma, a broad sweep Of coun-
| try, embracing what we now know as
the United States of Columbia, Vene-
zuela and the three Guianas. Then
came Peru, including what is now
Ecuador and good-slzed piece Of
Bolivia, the Land of the Amazons, COW
ering the rest Of Bolivia and about all
| of our present Brazil west of the 25th
| meridian, east of Washington; Chilli,
| considerably wider then in parts than
now; Terra Magellicana, or Patagonia,
| of about it's present dimensions, and
| TERRA del Fuego.
| Control of the Pacific.
| This gave Spain, on the mainland,
| control of the Pacific coast from British
| Columbia down to Cape Horn, while
on the Atlantic side she held In North
| America the Florida peninsula, and in
| South America everything except a
strip from the mouth of the Amazon 70
| the mouth of the Rio de la Plata. The
| Gulf of Mexico was bounded on the
east, west and south wholly, and on the
north in part, by her territorial lines,
| and it's entrance was commanded by
| the West Indies, of which Spain owned
| Cuba and Porto Rico entirely, then as
now, and shared Hispaniola, or Hayti,
| with France.
The text of the "Preceptor," in it's
| quaint phraseology and print, describes
| Cuba thus: "In Cuba there is ridge
of mountains, which runs almost
through the island from east to west,
| well replenished with timber; but the
land near the shore is generally plain
champain country. They have no WIN
| ters here, but great rains and tempests
usually when the sun is vertical IN July
and August; which cools the air, how
ever, and renders the climate toieraple.
The fairest season is, when the sun is
farthest from them; and then the
morning is much the hottest part OF
the day; for towards noon, the sea-
/ breeze begins to blow pretty briskly,
and continues to do SO till the evening.
| From October to April they have brisk
! north or northwest winds in these seas
of tina full and change Of the moon;