The Indianapolis journal. [volume] (Indianapolis [Ind.]) 1867-1904, 1900-09-02
IN ANCIENT SALAMANCA
ONCE A GREAT SEAT OF LEARNING,
IT Is NOW A TOWN IN RUINS.
Traditions and Traces of Its Former
Greatncss-Crumbl Col
Iege Buildings.


appointing. and yet how interesting. is this
old city of song and story. For centuries
the world has been accustomed to think
of Salamanca, with its celebrated univer-
sity and troubadouring students, as the
synonym of erudition-the Oxford. Yale.
Harvard, Heidelberg Of southern Europe;
and most Of the world has gone on think
ing to this day, though the melancholy
fact is that the ancient seat OF learning
has for many years been little more than
a heap Of ruins, abandoned to rats and
owls. From Avila to Salamanca is a tedi-
Gus night journey by railway, over an arid
and treeless country. which even 1.-THE hal
lowed benediction of the moon" fails to
beautify. You leave Avia at / a. m,
guided by lanterns down the narrow,
crooked streets from hotel to station. i'm
portuned every step of the way by whining
beggars and lottery ticket sellers, who are
as numerous and as persistent by night
as by day when strangers are their prey.
So slowly joys the train that day is well
advanced before you sight Salamanca
horseshoe in shape, pale yellow in color,
with the wide, blue River Tonnes flowing
close under its ancient walls. This mighty
river, by the way, than which a bluer or
more beautiful does not exist, proves
dangerous acquaintance to the foreigner.
Its water holds In solution some unex-
planned mineral or organic matter, which
not only plays havoc with the elmer man.
Of one unaccustomed to drinking 1t, but
covers the body of the bather with minute
sores, resembling an aggravated case of
al
water standing several days in els
terms before drinking it in order to al
low the injurious substance to deposit.
The Tonnes, rising somewhere in the
northern mountains. flows more than a
hundred miles through Spanish territory,
to it's junction with the Duero, the great
river OF Portugal. A lazy, shallow trout
stream through the arid region where
water is most needed, it suddenly becomes
very broad and imposing near Salamanca,
where it is crossed by magnificent stone
bridge of twenty-five arches.
THE RULE OF TWENTY-FIVE.
The rule of twenty-five appears to prevail
in this ancient seat of learning.-twenty-fi
colleges, twenty-five churches, twenty-five
converts, twenty-five professorships and
twenty-five arches to its Roman bridge;
but the last alone remain intact-the rest
being mostly among the things of long ago.
In the fourteenth century Salamanca
boosted the most splendid collegiate build
ings in Europe and twelve thousand stu
dents in its great university alone. It's pride
was first laid in the dust by the French,
in the summer Of 1912, who not only de-
stroyed twenty Of the colleges and all the
richest converts, together with private pal
aces worthy the Corso of Rome or the
Grand Canal Of Venice, which they first
looted of valuables and then burned for
firewood Later on, the law of Queen Isa-
bella II-that no corporate body in Spain
could hold any property (made especially
for royal plunder) completed the devasta-
ton of Salamanca. A few notable buildings
remain to show what the city must once
have been-the great cathedral. dozen col
leges and converts, the monastery of San
Bartolome, now used as residence for the
civil governor, and the archbishops palace,
occupied by what remains of the celebrated
Colegio de Noblesses Irlandeses, college
of Irish Noblemen," founded by Philip III,
in 1880, to spite his sister-in-law, Elizabeth
of England, and dedicated to st. Patrick
The beautiful cream-colored stone which
formed the walls of the larger buildings,
was quarried close by the city on the banks
of the Tonnes. Most Of them were erected
early in the fifteenth century, although, of
course, many are much older; and 1t is safe
to say that nothing whatever has been built
in Salamanca during the last hundred
years. Furnishing up your ancient history,
you remember that Plutarch relates how.
5s2, B. c.. Hannibal raised the siege of
Salamanca, after the Spaniards had prom
ised to pay three hundred talents of silver
and to hand over three hundred hostages.
1t seems that the race was not famous for
keeping its word even In that early day.
and having failed to comply with the terms
agreed upon. the punic chief returned and
gave the place over to plumber. He ordered
the male population to come out unarmed.
and being afraid to trust them, demanded
that they leave their cloaks behind But he
did not reckon on the women. The latter
concealed swords under their sayas. and
when the Massaesylian guard placed over
the presumably unarmed prisoners. left
their charge to join in the pillage, the wom-
en- gave the swords to the men, who rushed
back and killed hundreds of the plumber
erS.
A CENTER OF CULTURE.
So much for Plutarch's contribution to
the history Of Salamanca, true or false.
We know that under the Romans this city
became the ninth military station on the
Via Plata, "Silver Way"-the broad road
that led from Santander on the north coast
OF the peninsula. to Cadiz. on the south.
AT Salamanca the Goths coined their gol-
den money, until the place was ravaged by
the Moors, and Spaniards reconquered 1t in
1866. Although fully three-fourths Of the
city Is now ruins, it is still wonderful
mass OF colleges, converts and churches.
Indeed. nowhere else in the world. upon so
small an area, can be found such a wealth
OF sculpture, such pomp of architectural
display. as in this corpse of a city whose
population has dwindled from $1,000 to
hardly 5000. You put up at La Burga-
lesa," the only hotel now open in the place,
and are surprised to find 1t mot half bad
as. the English say-considering the ex-
IRENE poverty of the region and the gen.
eral badness of Spanish inns. Close by it is
the Plaza Mayor, the great square which
for three hundred years enjoyed the repu-
tation OF being the finest in Spain, capable
Of holding twenty thousand people. where
bull fights were held for the amusement