The morning news. [volume] (Savannah, Ga.) 1887-1900, 1898-08-23
SPANS ODD PEOPLE.
Those Who InhRbit Her Three Bns-
que Provinces.

/ Nut AFoNAus
From tho St Louis Globe Democrat.
The most uufavorSble sign for the fu-
ture quiet of Spain was the arrival a few
days ago at tho capital of a large and in
! fluendal deputation from The Basque prov
inces. The men who composed this depu-
tatlon went TO Madrid for the purpose OF
| protesting against The 20 per cent increase
in taxation which has been announced by
the government as means OF defroying
the expenses of the war The increase was
! proclaimed for alt the provinces of the
kingdom. and dlstasteful as IT IS 90 people
OF every race and class IN Spain 1t is
doubly SO 10 the BasQues for these claim
! the right of regulating their own taxa
/ ton, which they stoufy Uphold against
| an aggression.
To levy their own taxes, and to pay
/ none but those assessed Icy their own
/ provincial and legislative assemblies Is
| one OF the fueros. OF privileges, which the
! Basqucs have from time immemorial en-
! joyed. Every Basque throughout spain
/ ranks as "a hidaigo. or nobleman, by rea-
1 sons of his birth. No Basque Is subject to
/ any laws other than those Of his own peo-
! pie. ana even in other parts of Spain
/ Basque committing a crime Is rot tried
! by he locai tribunal. but Is entitled TO
1 hearing before a Basque Judge; aud at
4 Nalladohd and other points there are
/ Basque courts for the trial OF such nom
/ bers of this race as may have transgressed
! the laws
The three Basque provinces OF Guipuz-
/ Goa Vizcaya and Alava are autonomous,
4 clecing their own legislature, their own
/ governors, their own officials OF every
( rank ana grade except postmasters ana
being for all practical purposes absolute
~ independent of the spanish government.
/ save that by convention they contribute
a certain amount to the Spanish revenues.
/ The Nizcayans are not liable 10 military
/ duty save when their country is invaded
! the CONSUMPTION IS never enforced i'm tbs
Basque provinces; Basque arrested for
| any crime, no matter what, cannot be
sent out OF Biscay for trial.
These fueros have been source OF In e
/ finite annoyance TO the government, from
/ the fact that the Nizcayans form thus an
/ Independent community in the kingdom
and have privileges so exaggerated that
/ the people of other provinces complain
! bitterly OF the immunities enjoyed by the
] Basques the latter. they say, are no
! better than themselves and should be
4 placed on the same footing as the rest
I OF Span's people, both an regard TO mill
/ tary duty and taxation. Every atempt,
! however that has been made to abolish
! the fueroS has resulted in a Basque insur-
reCtion characterized by so much Vigor
/ that the government has finally been fore
ed 10 yield and purchase peace by renew
/ ing tho fueros.
The people Of the Basque provinces are
I the descendants of the aborigines OF the
/ country who We're IN possession when
I Spain was conquered by the Romans. An
/ clenty they were known az Vasconi, and
/ a relic OF this primevai name is found In
/ Vizcaya, the people calling themselves
/ Nlzcayans When the Romans conquered
| Spain the aboriginal population retired to
/ the mountains of the north and the Py-
reueos region, and there, In fOrtresses,
/ rendered impreRnable by nature they de-
/ fed all efforts OF the conquerors. The
/ Romans finally concluded a convention
4 with them similar to that which the Span
! ish government has been forced to make,
and utilized thousands of them in the Ro-
man armies as auxliaries. The Goths
| succeeded the Romans, but the Goths
made no impression on the Basque coun-
( try. The Moors and the Spaniards wera
no more able to overcome them than were
the Goths. Like the Bretons in France,
4 the Welsh. the Highland Scotch. they have
! been oVerrun, but never overcome.
The country Of the Basques is peculiar
/ ly suited 10 guerrilla warfare, and the
1 officers who have conducted operations
/ against them are unanimous In declaring
1 that as guerrillas the Basques have no
! equals. While concentrated i'm the three
! provinces named 80 as to constitute the
/ great majority OF the poulation, they are
widely disseminated throughout the Py-
/ renees region, Northern Spain and South
ern France The whole Of North Spain
| Us mountainous. The Cantabrian range
/ following the coast at q distance Of forty
to fifty miles, and breaking up near the
/ sea into q number of branching chains
which cover several provinces Thus from
/ the Atlantic to the Mediterranean there
runs an almost continuous rugged chain.
4 densely wooded and exceedingly difficult
] otrac
! are the natural habitat OF the Basques,
! and whenever an insurrection has broken
I out the inhabitants remove to the noun
/ tain Businesses. and can infinitely pro-
! long the war against any force brought
/ TO bear upon them.
The last government reports give the
population Of the three Basque provinces
as: Vizcaya. 235 $50; Guipuzcoa, 1s1 ,s45;
4 and Alava, %. 9l5-a total Of over 500 900;
| but, as a matter Of fact this number does
| not adequately represent the Basque pop
! ulation, for there are large communities
! in Navarro and throughout saragossa.
! Huesca, Lerida, and Geronn they are al
most equally numerous. so that the Span
| ish Vizcayans are estimated 10 exceed
! 100000 IN number and on the other side
Of the Pyrenees. within the territorial
/ limits of France, they ore probably $50, 600
more.
The Basque country proper contains only
! a few important towns Many years ago
the Spanish government compllmented
the Basques by selecting San Sebastian
lsas the place of summer residence Of the
/ court. The Basques expressed their sat-
/ isfaction, but were not perceptIbly con-
| ciliated even by the residence Of royalty
/ in their midst.
Aside from San Sebastian the only large
town Of Importance IL Bilbao. the capital
Of Nizcaya IL is a handsome town for
Spain, and, although situated eight miles
from sea, on small stream and with q
bad bar at the mouth, Bilbao has a larger
commerce than any other city IN Spain
except Cadiz. II f. one of the most pic
turesque spots In the peninsula In n
mountain gorge, on both sides of a beauti.
! full stream, spanned by bridges so old that
memory Of their erection has been lost. II
| Us unique both la position and beauty
il has a magnificent cathedral, many pub