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

) after all. Charles I reigned 80 years
and they were years Of intrigue, in
saw Spain except when he wanted
J.. money TO pay his German troops OF
debts. and the consequences were, he
had war at nome most Of the time
Tired Of it all, he addicted at last
in favor Of his son, Philip II, whose
bloody persecution of Protestants
incarnadines all his perverted life. He
determined e stamp out all heresy
and to do so re-estabIish the Inquisi-
ton The low countries rebelled,
and g Council BIood''-so called be-
cause of it's horrible work, sent
many hundreds Of the noblest people
of the low countries to death. They
were hanged, burned, beheaded, and
incarcerated and left to starye. Most
OF them were Protestants, but many
Of them were Catholics, who were in
favor Of religious freedom. William
Of Orange and the cruel duke Of
Alva, the foremost man of war in all
Spain, went to war over the order
Of the king, and for five years they
battled. The Netherlanders won
and they were lost to Spain forever.
The duke Of Alva said, as he turned
his face toward Spain, that he was
happy to state that he had caused
$4,000 Netherlanders to be executed
in five years. A writer OF that time
race apart from the rest Of mankind;
not really human, but diabolical to
be hunted down and exterminated
like vicious wild beasts"
| The Spanish won victory at Le-
panto over the Turks in 1871, and
they suppressed a rising among the
Moors in 1857. Everywhere else
there was revolution, Instruction.
war, riot, and bloodshed. Spain had
started On the down hin, and she has
never stopped. The "Invincible Ar
mada," sent by Philip II to restore
the papal authority in England in
1888, met with ignominious defeat.
Spain had to accept the independence
of the new countries in 1909. Portugal
then declared its freedom of Spain
and crowned it's own king.
Then came the war of the Spanish
succession in 1902. Charles II died
without legitimate issue, and four
European powers began to scrap for
his debased throne, France, Germany,
Bavaria and Savoy claiming it. For
13 dreadful years war waged. Bavaria
and Savoy wore out early in the
scramble and retired, leaving England
and France to fight it out. England
joined issue with Germany, but the
willy old Louis XIV of France came
out ahead and Philip V got it. He
became king Of Spain, but lost
Sicily, which went to the duke of
Savoy, his italian possessions, which
went to the emperor of Germany, and
Gibraltar. which was reduced from the
Thus Spain was reduced from the
foremost power of the world to
second place. This Philip was the
first of the house of Bourbon, to
which the present boy king is ac-
credited, by virtue of descent from
and intrigues have scandalized the
I~esent century. For q years he
wore the crown, years of war, petty
intrigues which brought to Spain
only loss of prestige and power of
lives and money.
Then came the prince Of peace"
that sweet-scented darling of the
)c IL III -
queen, Marie Louise. He was ignorant
and illiterate, liceutious ard an in
trigante, but he was beloved by the
infamous queen, and was made prime
minister. The wars and broils that
he didn't get Spain into were not
worth mentioning. The French
thrashed the boots off the interfer-
ing Spanish and swarmed into Madrid.
Then this prince of peace went after
the British at Cape Vincent and lost
tremendously Then he ran up
against Lord Neson at Trafalgar, and
was nearly wiped eff the face of the
earth. Then he designed sending the
out to fight Napoleoni That gen
eraI didn't do thing to the prince of
peace but order him to send $4,000
Spanish troops to garrison a Prus-
sian fort which the French had just
takeni The troops were sent. Then
a little later Napoleon made the king
Of Spain get off the throne, which
caused more war, and placed upon it
his own brother, Joseph Napoleon,
who sat on a dynamite bomb for
five years, then lost his nerve and
laid the crown down when the people
finally turned themselves loose in an
instruction and riot that beggars
description. 1t lasted for a year
or two, and ended Napoleons attempt
to conquer Spain. It was the flrs'
time in the history of Spain too
, that her people acted with the spirit
: that would animate tomtit.
=, Ferdinand came back to the throne
from which he had been deposed BY
: Napoleon's brother, and his imbecilit,
caused a shocking state of affairs II
= Spain. Nobody's life was safe ant
= the streets of Madrid ran red will
y blood. Three times married Ferdi
nand had no children to take his tot
. tering throne, so ne married a fourth
time. "The Naples Woman" wa
Il what her daughter became after her
/, a creature too low to mention to ear
a polite. From that day to thi
/. Spanish revolutions and wars hav
0xr