The Birmingham age-herald. [volume] (Birmingham, Ala.) 1902-1950, 1904-10-30

| Sanchez, now custodian of the palace.
We stood spellbound at the beauty and
witchery Of the scene and | think each
one of us was wondering If fancy were
not playing some whimsical trick upon
u.s. 1t is said that Columbus discovered
America, but Irving discovered the Al
hambra, and surely no less superb a
writer could in any way do justice to the
| marvellous structure. Yet While he has
written so delightfully."- of the poetry and
romance of the palace and made his pages
glow with the record of wonderful events
no pen could ever do justice to the beauty
and charming witchery of the palace
itself. The power of words is too feeble
| to convey to the reader an adequate idea
/ OF its unique conception We were
| amazed to find so much of the palace
complete and In such splendid preserva-
ton. We found whole rooms perfect in
| their original perfection of color where
We had expected only ruined portions.
The Court of Lions is wonderfully pre-
served and Is the most precious specimen
of Arabesque architecture in Spain, with
12S white marble columns in the galleries
surrounding it, and floor of white mar
bic. So suggestive of the past are the
twelve stold lions, of the fountains from
which once flowed blood that we looked
around and vaguely expected to hear a
voice; but the respondent court is silent
! as death and we only read the luminous
| tracery in the walls with the Arabic in
scription, There is no god but Allah"
The Hall of the Ambassadors" still so
perfect in delicate coloring and fine trac-
cry and graceful arch is eloquent of the
historic past, while the Hall of the Aben-
cerrages" with it's bloody basin spoke of
evil and revengeful deeds.
The 1.-TWO Sisters an enpha ming si1ita
of tiny rooms, opens up little garden of
| jasmine, myrtle and orange trees, and
here We idled away many happy mo-
| ments while the handsome attendant
| brought oranges to the senoritas of the
party and twigs from the Love tree
which, he explained, blossomed before
the leaves put out Was it not merely
human and natural that just here the
young senoritas should have been more
| concerned with the young custodian than
his ancient palace that he guarded so
zealously? He seemed imbued with the
spirit of the place and told them story
after story of Spanish romances and the
wonderful deeds of bygone days. He, too,
was a Spaniard, he told them, and when
they marveled over his blue eyes he r.
piled that in Spain little ones born at
night have black eyes, but those who open
their eyes upon the daylight have blue
ones. He seemed to appreciate our ex-
pressed admiration for Washington IT.
wing and as a special favor opened for US
the rooms of the writer. Here in a small
suite opening upon the court of the palace
he lived for three months, while he wrote
his marvellous tales.
We climbed the high tower of the fort
ress for the view over the surrounding
| country. Not before could we appreciate
| the magnificent situation of the Alham-
| bra. It is perched on this rocky eminence
and to every appearance seemed impreg-
nable. Far In the distance are the white
| mountains, with their snowy peaks;
nearer are the foothills along whose
| chalky cliffs are the caves Of the gypsies
where we afterwards went to see them
dance. For the Spaniards love the dance
as the Italians love music. In the valley
beneath was spread Granada and many
haunts of the old Moorish capital could
be traced in some delicately arched
structure. Away towards the south and
west were sepia-toned hills, at whose base
we were told Boabdil turned away with
noble resignation from one of the lowell
est dreams ever wrought into marble, and
we know it as 1.-The last sigh of the
Moor"
With hearts that ached for the con-
quered ones we visited the cathedral
down in the heart of the city Here are
entombed In renaissant splendor the con-
querors. How small a place for so
much greatness!" said Charles the Fifth.
their illustrious grandson The royal
statues of Ferdinand and Isabella lie on
the sarcophagus. here are the crown and