Audubon County journal. (Exira, Iowa) 1884-1993, 1898-09-22

1He IOllOWluS paper Was pre-
pared by Mrs. J. c. Newton and
read at the last meeting of the
Ladies' of the Thursday Club, in
this city:
sPAIN-1Ts PHYSICAL AND GEOGRAPHICAL FEA-
TURES.
Spain is a country more than twice the
size of Great Britain, and including the
adjacent small islands. 1t constitutes, in
it's mainland portion, eleven-thirteenths
of the Iberian Peninsula, and has in adj
dition, an insular area of nearly five thou
sand square miles, and a total area of one
hundred and ninety-one thousand three
hundred and sixty-tive square miles.
Spain presents, within it's borders, exam
pies of every kind of climate to be found
on the northern hemisphere with the ex-
in the heart of the table landsi is character
lied by extremes as great as are to be met
with in a lmost any part of Central Europe.
The northern and northwestern provinces
have climate as equalole' and as moist
as that of the West of England or Scot
land. The vegetation exhibits variety
No other country in Europe, of equal
extent, has so great wealth of species as
Spain. The forest area is relatively small
the whole extent of forest is estimated at
little more than seven million five humid
red thousand acres, or less than six per
cent. of the area of the kingdom. Ever
green, oak, chestnut and coniferS are the
prevailing trees. The cork oaks of the
southern provinces of Catalonia are OF
immense value but the groves containing
reckless way in which the product has
been collected. Besides the date-paln
the dwarf-paln grows spontaneously IN
make up large element of vegetation.
Among the animals found in Spain are
faoM deer the afa
Ape, the only species of monkey still
found wild in Europe, is also native of
The birds are very numerous and MANY
species belonging to Central Europe pass
their winters there. Insect life is abund.
and fifty species of butter flies have been
been counted in the province OF Madrid
alone.
Trout abound in the mountain streams
and lakes. The catching of tunnies, sar-
dimes, anchovies and salmon, on the coast
employs large numbers of fishermen, and
the sailing, smoking and packing OF the
| first three gives employment to many
others.
and varied. In the production OF copper
ore, lead ore and quicksilver 1T leads the
list: In the production Of salt and silver
it is excelled, only by Austria Hungary
Agriculture is by far the most important
Spanish industry. though in very back
| ward condition.
cotton. The silk industry is of high inn
portance, but is inadequate to meet the
home demands Toledo is still noted, as
| for the excellence of its Sword-bladeS.
Boots and shoes and other articles from
leather form the only considerable export
of manufactured goods. Among indus,
| tries of less Importance are the making OF
porcelain, glass and earthenware, soap,
| chocolate and cork shoppers. The manu-
] facture of tobacco which is a royal mono
| poly, is carried on in seven factories, that
of Seville being the largest The foreign
commerce of Spain is chiefly carried on
with the United Kingdom, France, Cuba
and the United States. Railways have
made great advance since the middle OF
the century. The postal and Geographic
| systems have been placed on the same
footing as in other civilized countries.
| Military or Normal service is obligatory
| on all Spaniards, but in certain cases the
Liability of service begins with the first
| day of the calendar year in which the
| twentieth year is completed
The actual strength of the regular army
this number may be brought up to four
| hundred thousand men in time of war. In
1885 the number of Seanen in the navy
was fourteen thousand, that of marines
about seven thousand.
The established religion of Spain is the
Roman Catholic, and the church and
clergy are maintained by the State. In
1857 primary educatiOn was declared com
pulsory on all children of school age liked
/ the age at six to nine years. and made i
free to the poor, but the census makes II
clear that this law is far from being eff
GENTLY carried out. There are ten Univer
stiles, that of Madrid is the most celebra
! ted and the best attended.
Spain is Il hereditary monarchy, the SOW
erign becomes of age on completing his OF
her sixteenth birthday. The population o.
Spa in attained its highest development
during. the period of the early Roman En-
pire. when it numbered forty of fifty mil
lions. The last census gives it a popula
ton of slightly over twenty millions.