Audubon Republican. [volume] (Audubon, Iowa) 1894-1925, 1899-06-29
THE BRAVE BASQUE.
A Proud and Unconquered People who
Live I'm the Mountains OF SPAIN.

Live I'm the Mountains OF SPAIN.
In the most northern part OF Spain,
where the Pyrenees dip into the Bay
of Biscay, is the country of the
Basques, the unconquered Spaniards.
These are the people of whom Caesar,
in his account of his conquest Of
Spain, writes, "a few pretty people
higher up in the mountains, did not
make submission or send hostages"
The Roman poets called these people
lberians, and pictured them as almost
supernatural, whom neither hunger,
heat, cold. nor armies could conquer,
and whose greatest JOY was facing
peril. The Basques of today bear the
stamp of this ancient people; in char
acter, disposition, language and Gus
toms, they are entirely different from
the Spaniards south Of them, and in
deed they can be classed with no other
race of the earth. Their earliest an
cestors were probably the cave dwell
ers of the Alps and Pyrenees, whose
bones are found in the caverns of tn
mountains, together with the remains
of those gigantic animals which were
the ancestors of our present quadru-
peds. Only in this tiny country,
among the mountains have these
sturdy, stalwart people succeeded in
retaining anything of their own in
dividuality. If this is their true ORR
gin, their earliest ancestors must have
lived twenty centuries before Christ,
and have been surrounded by a coun-
try different in physical features, and
covered with plants and animals which
have long since ceased to exist. Since
those days long ago, their whole force
has been used in fighting their way in
the world, in trying to preserve their
racial distinction. All previous to the
Roman conquest Of Spain is, as far
as Basque history is concerned, a
blank. Even the Romans found 1t i'm
mountains, who, when hard pressed
by armies, or besieged In their forti-
fed towns, dashed themselves from
the highest rocks, and died by their
own hands rather than surrender. At
length Caesar, with great wisdom.
made them his allies, since they would
not become his slaves. AS followers
OF his army they left their mountain
homes and often the tide of battle, and,
indeed, the trend OF history has been
turned by their boldness and courage.
A few centuries later, 1t was the
Basques who fell upon the army Of
Charlemagne and brought death and
disaster to the cause of the Franks.
But no sooner had they established
their claim to liberty with their north
ern neighbors than they were met by
the Saracens, who had crossed into
Spain from Africa. In overcoming
these uusurpers, the Basques took so
active a part that they were all en-
nobled. and now there is but one class
among the Basques; to be Basque Is
to belong to the nobility. When the
late queen, Isabella, came to the
throne, the Basques sent to her the fol-
lowing message: Sonora, In a little
corner of your kingdom is a people
few, living in a poor and rugged re-
gion; we will be loyal to you, If you
will, as we beg you to do, respect our
fueros (parliaments) and the freedom
which has never been impaired"
The Basque language Is unlike any
European tongue and Is, in fact, al
most unique, for 1t can scarcely be
classed with any other language nor Is
any other allied to 1t. 1t Is highly in
fiected, each word and even each letter
of the alphabet being capable to
change to express many different ideas.
Students of the Basque language tell
us that although 1t Is hardest OF
tongues to learn, it Is the richest of
languages. Until the fifteenth century
there was no written Basque so, Of
course, the literature is quite unim-
portant. This is a matter Of much
regret for had this people written ira
ditions of the far away centuries they
might throw much light upon those
early days. There are three Basque
provinces, Biscay (Vizcaya), Guipriz-
Goa, and Alva. Each province has Its
parliament, chosen by it's own people,
and there is also a parliament of the
three, which decides the general policy
of the people and deals with the Span
ish government.
In the mountains there are rich
mines of iron, lead and zinc and the
valleys are sufficiently fertile to yield
grain of various kinds. Along the sea
coast the fisheries are extensive.