The Springdale news., 1898-11-11
STAINS DECADENCE.
From ths Ref n oi Philip IL She Has
 Stoa...:y Gone Down Hill.


 On. his accession to the Spanish throne, Philip II. found himself ruler of the greatest empire the world had seen since Rome was at the zenlth of its power. Its neighbors were fa- nous for their greatness and they ruled the ocean. its armies were ia nous for their prowess, she swayed the destinies of Europe, had possessions in all the continents, and may be said to have owned the Americas, North and South. Samuel Johnson, writing as recently as 114O, when com plaining of the poor peoples hard ships, said:
 Are there no regions yet unclaimed py
 Spain?
 Quick let us rise those happy lands ex-
 plore.
 And bear oppression's insolence no more"
 The Spanish empire was the result of marriages. conquest and discover ies; it's decline and fall may be as cribed to tho ruthless character of the Spanish people. The inquisition and bull fighting were evolutlons from this character; Torquemada and the matador were no more cruel than the nature of tie people required. Cardinals were frequently prime min isters, and Tamerfane never treated Central Asians more merclessly than Spain treated the Indians of North America. When Columbus discovered San Domingo it had population of 2,000,O0O; in l530 this population had dwindled to @50,000. Cortez in Mexico and Pizlrro in Peru were ideal Spanish concuerors.
 In the latter part of Philips reign Spain lost all, or nearly all, of her de- pendencies in North Africa, and early in the next reign. Burgundy, Naples, Sicily and the AIilanese.
 lC0o-The Ny;herlands.
 1628- AIalacca, Ceylon, Java and other islands.
 1OiU-I OFlu9al.
 1G48-Spain renounced all claim to Holland.
 1G48-Brabart and part of Elan ders.
 Maestricht, Hertogenbosch, Breda, Bergen-op-Zoom, and many other fortresscs in the low countries. In :his year also she tacitly surren- dered supremacy cn the seas in north ern Europe,
 1G59-Rousillon and Cardague. Those places were cedod to France, thus making the Pyrenees the bound ary between the two countries.
 1GG8-Other sections of Flanders.
 1672-Many towns and cities in Flanders.
 Gibraltar.
 11OEM Majorca. Minorca and Iy- izza.
 1791-The Nootka Sound settle ments.
 1194-San Domingo.
 1800-Louisiana.
 18O2-Trinidad.
 1819-Florida.
 1810-21-Mexico, Venezuela, Co., lumbia, Ecuador, Peru, Molivia, Chili, Argentina, Uruguay, Paraguay, Pat agonia, Guatemala, Honduras, Nica- ragua, San Salvador, lGayti, San Do- mingo, besides numerous islands, re- taining not foot of ground in Amer ica
 In 1898 she may lose Cuba, Puerto Rica, the Philippine islands and the Ladrone and Caroline islands.
 During all those years, while other nations were discovering new regions or capturing those discovered or conquered by Spain, the land of the Cid Campeador was going steadily down the hill. The only time she stood still was in 1860, when Marshal O'Donnell took Tetuan ard Ccuta from the Moors.
 In the heydey of Morosco ascend ancy, Spain had population of 20,- 000,O00, in the time of Ferdinand and Isabella 12,O0O,O0O, and in the beginning of the eighteenth century only G,000,000 The present popula- tion is about 18,000,0Q0.
 It may be said in conclusion that education in Spain is limited to con- paratively few. Thirty or forty years ago it was no disgrace for Spanish grandee not to be able to write his own namn-N " Herald