The times. [volume] (Washington [D.C.]) 1897-1901, 1900-02-18

SEVILLE, Spain, Jan. 21.-There is q
couplet which says:
ouitn no Ia visto Sevills
No la yisto mlravella-
meaning that he who has not seen Sc
vile has missed seeing a wonder. The
same might be truthfully said Of Other
Spanish cities; but this Andalusian capita
differs from the rest, with warmth ant
gaie;y of life peculiarly its own, ant
Astounding in "reminiscences of the noble
! and cultured Moors. whose palaces and VIII
las we're unlike those in any other part OF
the world. Through 500 years 1t was theii
sacred city. in which they gathered all that
wealth could buy or fashion design, oil
bravery win. It's splendid mosques were
| crowded with worshippers OF the Prophet
when from the lofty Gerald the muezzer
called the faithful TO prayer; its schools
were thronged with eager students in
science and the arts; and in its glorious
Alcazar-( Al-Kasr. House of CarsarD
4 were gathered the statesmen, warriors and
cuurtiers OF great and powerful people
All this began in the eighth century, and
ended more than 200 years before the Wes-
tern World was discovered; but many oil
/, the Moorish palaces are still intact and
the glories of that long-past period have
| left an indelible Impression upon the whole
region of the Guadalquivir.
The Antiquity of Seville.
| Long, long before the day of the Moors
| Seville was old and gray, its foundations
having been laid in the morning twilight
OF history by Hercules himself. If any
body doubts the tradition, he may be reas-
sured by reading quaint inscription
carved above one of the city gates, which
asserts that Hercules was the founder. and
| that Julius Caesar captured it from the
| Carthagenians more than half century
before Christ was born. We know that
much OF the wealth for which Tyre and ST.
don were renowned. was derived from the
region of the Baetica-the Guadalquivir OF
todsy-a land OF promise, especially pro-
tected by the gods and coveted by men. Its
marvels figured prominently in classic
| mythology, as related by Homer, Herodo-
| tus, Cicero and others. 1t was on the ISL
and OF Juno, near the river'e mouth, sixty
miles or SO below this point, where Ger
| yon pastured his nocks. The chief city OF
Baetica, which the Carthagenians called
Sephelia and the Romans H.spalis became
rich and powerful capital under Julius
| Caesar, who changed its name to Julia
Romula, in grateful recognition Of its aid
during his wars with Pompey. II was the
seat of the Proconsul and the favorite res
idence of the provincial nobility. Three
Roman emperors were born here-Trojan,
Adrian, and Theodosius.
At the foot of the olive covered hills.
FIVE miles away, Scipio built a splendid
pleasure resort, with a spacious amphi-
theatre and many sumptuous residences
Like other Roman cities in Spain, the
ruins OF these have served as quarry for
generations OF subsequent builders. Sci
pio's amphitheatre may yet be clearly
traced. though its walls and those OF ad-
jacent palaces went to make modern
breakwater in the Guadalquivir, TO fur
nish building material for neighboring
| converts, and even TO pave the streets Of
Seville. Many Of the busts and statues
OF Caesars time now grace the Spanish
museums and the palaces of yrandees, and
the very pavements you walk upon today
may have been trodden by the MODEST
Roman of them all in the ancient city.
A portion of the double-stone walls which
Julius Caesar built around his capital are
yet standing. Defended by barbicans and
thanking towers, they look as formidable
! as when they repealed the attacks of bar
barians though SCARED by the storms and
wars OF twenty centuries.
surround Seville. are of Moslem building.
their six or eight miles in circuit pierced
by fifteen enormous gateways, and sur
mounted by sixty six watchtowers. In the
DAYS of the Caliphs there were 166 of these
quaint towers; but when The Holy King
Saint Ferdinand" drove out the infi'.el
lin the year 12iSD, the rest were demolish-
cd In this dry climate the passing centu-
ries have made little impression on the old
. ha hos In
Seville The Moors, by the way. dis
carding the Roman name. undertook to re
sumo its remote Chaldean title Sephelia.
but in their harsher tongue rendered IT
Sibidia: which has been corrupted TO the
present name pronounced by the Span
ards, Sah-veel-yah.
An Era of Changes.
Fully half the city preserves its ancient
character. but-sad to say-changes are
.aking place every year. The narroT,
winding. haphazard streets. completely
overshadowed by spacious m,-sions with
ample courts and gardens, SO admirably
suited TO the summer climate of this
oven CT SPAIN as the section is called,
arr slowly, but, alas! too surely giving way
to wide. unpieturesque avenues, with al
legged Improvements" in their small, hot,
common .,lace houses. open TO the room
dav blaze In the Moorish quarters. where
the foreth bought of the baildcis made the
streets SO narrow that two carriages could
not possibly pass one another, barriers are
placed at each end, TO prevent wheeled
vehicles from attempting to enter. In
some of them an ordinary umbrella, when
raised will barely clear the walls III turn
ing their zig-Zag corners. and dOnkeys
filing through in solemn procession, jGstle
pedestrians with their bullying panniers.
The names OF the streets are In them
selves an interesting study, having refer
enee to some celebrated parsonage who
once lived in them, or an historical event
that transpired in the neighborhood. The
word Gale (stTeet) never appears. but
merely the name. as "Murillo,' Juan de
Nina "Abul- Kasin,'' 'Auto-de-Fc.' etc.
As in Oriental communities, the differ
ent sects are separated. the Jews being
restricted to one quarter, the Moors 10
another, the gypsies TO third. The wide,
spacious mansions, with their cool courts
and gardens and walls almost meeting
| overhead in the winding alleys, are as
| charming as unique, and prove the wisdom
of the shade loving Moors. They are gen
orally ornamented with Moorish things.
called azuellos and have an entrance arch.
called I'll Zaguan. which leads 10 the chan
eel or great gate OF open worked iron. be-
hind which the family life goes on. secure
~ locked from the public gaze. The in
terror walls always er lose patios or open
courts. surrounded on all sides by wide
corridors supported by pillars-marble in