kept at my side filling my hands with flowers ter? Was anything we did not see lovelier did it so gallantly that I forgot he was only a than just Seville itself, with its sun-drenched guide in gardener's clothing.

squares and cellar-like streets under awnings, its thousands of iron gateways, chiefly in

arabesque patterns, revealing to the passer-by THE HOUSE OF PILATE.

on the street the green pateos within its twiOne day by chance we came upon the cele- lit churches and houses « close-latticed to the brated House of Pilate. At once the great brooding heat,» its gardens and courts and stretch of bare white wall, broken here and fountains, its strange intermingling of Moorish there by a window mysterious behind its and Gothic memories, its crowds and life and grille, and the balcony with its beautiful laughter and irrepressible gaiety? decoration, made us know it to be the one house of importance in the narrow, winding

A RIDE IN A SPANISH DILIGENCE. street. Opposite was a pretty, round, open green space, a stone seat forming a circle I might as well tell the truth, humiliating as under the dusty trees, a few men dozing it is: in the heat of Seville I gave up comaway the morning hours when the Northern pletely; I could go no farther. And so I let world works its hardest. Everyone has J. start alone for Cadiz, and the report he gave heard the oft-told story of this House of Pilate: how a pious Duke of Tarifa, coming home from the Holy Land, now almost five hundred years ago, built, in the freshness of his ardor, what he meant to be an exact copy of the Jerusalem palace where Christ was brought before the Roman ruler. But, whatever his intention, he succeeded in raising a building that all but rivals the Alcazar in the richness and lavishness of its azulejos, its resplendent purple and green tiles, and the fair spaciousness and grace of its halls and courts. Nor can the Alcazar boast so noble a stairway; and as you mount it you look into a garden full of wide-spreading bananas, the white of a marble column or bust showing among the dark of the leaves. But where, indeed, can you go in Seville, the city of gardens, that your eyes, tired from the glare and glitter, do not fall upon some such green inclosure of trees and flowers? The secret of making these cool, sweet oases in the town's burning desert was best mastered by the Moor, and he left it an heirloom forever to his degenerate conquerors. At the top of the stairway you pass almost directly out upon the terraced roof, at one end that exquisite balcony where, the old woman who went with us said, Pilate stood when he presented Christ to the rabble-Ecce Homo! She told the story as seriously and reverently as if she believed herself to be in the real palace in the real Jerusalem, and as if she had not already told it, in the same words, to hundreds of eager or listless tourists.

In Seville one simply yields oneself to the charm of the town without stopping to analyze the reason of one's pleasure. I am really surprised at myself when I consider with how few murmurs, comparatively, I bore the unspeakable heat. We did nothing in the way of regular sight-seeing. But what mat

NIGHT ON THE SEA-FRONT OF ALGECIRAS.

made me both glad and sorry that I had stayed accomplish, as, indeed, I had with him to behind.

take a journey in a real diligence. First he He found it another white town, but much thought he would stay and study the diligence more Oriental than any we had yet seen, be- and its habits; but toward midday the whole cause of its blank walls, its flat roofs, and low town was enveloped in a sirocco, and grew as domes. The houses that looked seaward were hot as the mouth of a blast furnace, so that

ch crowned with a little observatory, where his one idea was to get away from it as soon the old ship-owners must have waited for their as possible. The people in the hotel were very

ships, which, unlike ours, did come in. But the kind, and put up a large lunch for him. It most curious thing about Cadiz was not the seemed a bother to carry it along with all his town itself, palm-grown and Oriental as it is, other luggage, and he asked if the diligence but the approach to it. For after one leaves did not stop somewhere for breakfast, lunchJerez—where every dead wall is covered with eon, or dinner in the course of eighteen hours? placards of somebody's sherry, so that one But they only laughed. In company with a wonders at the way the Spaniard goes in for Spanish «commercial," and for an insignificant advertisements, until it suddenly occurs to sum, he hired the three seats in the coupé; one that it is from behind these dead walls that is, the seats under the large hood at the all the world's sherry comes-after this the top of the diligence, which are supposed to train slowly travels out on a great marshland, be the best. The commercial hurried him to cut up with dikes and wide, dead pools, and the office an hour or so before the diligence on the only bits of dry ground stands a city started. There it was in an open plaza in the of pyramids dazzling in the sunlight-the salt blistering sunlight, and though no horses were which is gathered in these marshes. It is an about, the inside was already filled with uncanny country, a country of mirages, where people. The commercial insisted upon climbone passes through a dreamland of pyramids. ing up at once, and suggested that he and J. Finally, away out, as if in the middle of the should each take a corner and spread themsea, is the glittering town of Cadiz. It is like selves out as much as they could.

This a great spider: one long, thin leg connects it settled, they sat down, but it was only to with the land, another stretches into the jump up with a yell: the diligence had been ocean to a lighthouse, and a third encircles standing there all morning, and the seat the harbor.

was like a red-hot stove. More people beJ. stayed in Cadiz only a very few days, and gan to come, and more again, but still there then went back to San Fernando. His ob- were no horses. Presently a large, fat man, ject in getting to this dust-swept, sand-driven armed with live chickens and water-bottles place, which is probably one of the most un- and various other breakable and killable attractive towns in Spain, was to do some- things, scrambled up and sat in the middle thing which for years he had been longing to of the coupé. J. tells me that he said very

a

strong things in several languages, and re- cracked their whips like mad; the men who ferred the matter to the commercial, who had had hold of the mules let go; there was paid with him that they might have the seat a plunging, a crash, a gallop, that ought to quite to themselves. But the commercial only have pulled the whole machine to pieces. answered calmly that they ought to be thank- Away went the diligence, shaving houses, ful they had the corners. At their feet was sending people flying, clearing the streets. what looked like a foot-board; at least four J. thought it would be splendid, despite the people came and sat on that. At their back crowd into which he was now wedged imwas another board like it; lots of people came movably. In a few hundred yards, however, and sat on that. They spread their feet, like- the paving came to an end, and before the wise their chickens and their wine-skins and mules were off it they were lost in a cloud their water-bottles, all over J., and they stuck of dust. In a second the nearest pair could their umbrellas down his back, and every one scarcely be seen. The whole diligence was seemed happy except himself. The commer- enveloped in a thick, choking cloud of dust, cial told him, for consolation, that if he did and in five minutes every face in the perspirnot like it he had better get out and take the ing, wilting crowd was covered with a mask train, and leave those who did like it a little more space. And then boxes were put up on the top, and people on the boxes, and pigs among the people, and chickens all over the sides, and no one except the man who sold the tickets could have had the faintest idea of how many passengers there were. They were solid inside, they were solid on top, they were solid on almost every ledge to which any one could hang.

In the course of time the driver appeared, all in gray, with a short jacket, a big hat, and an enormous whip. He carried a huge waterbottle, from which all the people had a drink, holding it in the air, and allowing a stream to pour down their throats. But this required too much experience for J. to venture when his turn came. The team was now brought out, eight mules, all jingling bells. Those at the pole alone were controlled with reins by a man who sat somewhere underneath, and not by the driver at all. A vast army of the men who always hang about stables succeeded in getting the heads of the squealing, kicking, bucking mass somewhat in the same direction; a horse was attached to the head,-a very tall horse decorated with real jackboots, -and then followed a very small boy with a very big jockey cap, a brass-mounted whip, and a red-and-white shirt.

There was a tremendous arré-ing, a very Babel. Two of mud. Nothing could be heard but the arré men seized the small boy, threw him across of the driver, the cracks of the whip like the high, brass-mounted saddle, and he pistol-shots, the creaking and crashing of the dived into the jack-boots. He and the whole vehicle, the clatter of the mules' hoofs conductor in gray shrieked like fiends and on the stones, and the incessant jingling of

ROMAN BRIDGE, RONDA.

the many bells. In this whirlwind of stifling they only showed that the dust had thickmisery, everything completely hidden from ened again. J. tried to eat, but the bread was them, they traveled for an hour or more buttered with dust, and the chicken leg was across the plain. Then a third man tooted salted with it. On they went, a rocking, a horn as they swayed and jolted through crashing load of discomfort. Suddenly a the streets of a village, and there was a lantern was swung just in front, and there sudden stoppage. The people scraped the were yells and howls; the mules stopped in cake of mud off their faces; they could not a tangled mass, some carbines glittered, stretch where they were, for there was not and four civil guards appeared. They clamroom; they literally could not move. But bered up at once, sitting on everybody's lap. now J. thought they could get down at least They rode for an hour, and then got off. for a moment. Not a bit of it. Right along. Whether they were there to protect the pas

a

side the diligence was another kicking, squeal- sengers from the Spanish brigand, or only to ing team to take the place of the panting, get a lift, J. never knew. On and on went the done-up mules. The small boy was thrown diligence through the long, terrible, aching from one horse to another, and the diligence nightmare. Only now and then, as morning was off again. There was not even time to was near, one man would get down, and two pass the water-bottle.

fat Spanish marketwomen going into AlgeAnd this went on the whole livelong after- ciras would take his place, putting down noon. Toward evening they got into higher their bags of prickly cacti, the fruit of which ground. There was less dust. Bold, rugged the people eat, just where they scratched mountains were before them. The huge, lum- every one's legs-poor legs wedged in so tight bering machine was slowly pulled up long, they could not move away. Tearing on and on steep inclines, dropping into holes and pitch- and on, J. had visions of carts in the ditch and ing over stones. But the dust was much less, trains of donkeys taking to the fields. And especially when the pace was slow. Suddenly just at the darkest hour before dawn there night fell, and with it came a cold blast from was a wild tooting, he saw some white houses, the mountains; it was a change from midsum- the machine stopped before a big white inn, mer to midwinter. Dripping with perspiration, ladders were put up, and the people were litJ.'s clothing seemed almost to freeze upon erally lifted off. He was in Algeciras. It was him; and the whole crowd shivered and warm, it was even hot, it was dirty; but it was groaned as one man. Lamps were lighted, but like heaven to be out of that diligence. And

yet this is what our fathers have taught us, of Tommy Atkinses, their wives, and children, and Ruskin has preached, is the perfect way off for a picnic in the cool woods, solemnly of traveling in Europe!

singing «Two Lovely Black Eyes, and stately Moors and Spanish officers and English officials

and Tangerine Jews, all on a ferry-boat steamA GLIMPSE OF GIBRALTAR.

ing along peacefully between the African ALGECIRAS possesses the most beautiful mountains and the Spanish Sierra. market-place and the loveliest view of Gibraltar that one can imagine. J.went across to the fortress. In many ways the town is quaint. It

PICTURESQUE RONDA. is funny for the first time to walk in streets THEN he went to Ronda, which is a dream of where British redcoats, Moors from Africa, picturesqueness. There is incongruity in negroes from Ethiopia, and Spanish swells all the thought that you can make the journey jostle one another as if it were the most natu- thither as simply as if you were going from ral thing in life. It is funny, too, to cross the New York to Philadelphia. The town, as J. neutral ground, guarded on one side by Eng- walked through it, seemed commonplace at lish soldiers, on the other by Spanish sentinels, first-commonplace, that is, for a Southern to Linea, where, in face of both nations, there town, where one accepts marvels of color and is an army of Spaniards hiding about their light as matters of course. His impression persons tobacco and other dutiable articles was one of awful glaring heat; of donkeys, before going into Spain, and then to see at and donkeys, and more donkeys everywhere; the gate a long line of people waiting to be of little low houses so white one could hardly examined from head to foot by Spanish cus- look at them; of glimpses into long, cool entoms officers. As J., who wore a new suit tries, where people were forever standing of clothes, sauntered toward the gate to look waiting for an inner door to open. And then, at it, a word of command was given by an suddenly, there before him was the bridge officer, the gates were opened, the guard flung across that wonderful chasm-the saluted him. He was very much impressed, bridge that joins old to new Ronda; the and walked in. But he soon walked out, for bridge that so many artists, since the days the place seemed to consist only of tumbled- of David Roberts, have tried to draw or paint, down houses, drinking-shops, and dust. He despairing even while they sought to record trudged back again to Gibraltar, and when the strange, almost exaggerated, picturesquehe reached the shady avenue that leads into ness of the wild mountain gorge, with the little the town, where there are a barrier, a turn- white town looking down so fearlessly from stile, and a guard, everybody was passing its dizzy post. There is something in the through this turnstile and showing a white contrast that seems to suggest-but with a ticket. He had no white ticket, and besides difference--the gay villages that nestle so he did not see why lie should go through a confidently at the base of Vesuvius. The turnstile, so he kept on down the middle of strangest part of it is that until one comes the road. As he reached the guard-house to the bridge one does not know, except there was a word of command, a spruce cor- from the guide-book, that the gorge is there poral and his guard turned out and presented at all. Who could suppose that the river, aparms. Not to be outdone, J. saluted in a most parently at least, would force its way through off-hand, patronizing, indifferent fashion, and the very highest part of the mountain? There if he was highly flattered he did not show it. is a little Alameda where one can stand, leanWhen he returned to the hotel, however, he ing against the railing, and gaze down for I asked the proprietor what it meant. Why were do not know how many hundreds or thousands the officials so polite to him? The proprietor of feet. It is here, of all places, that one nearly fainted, but he managed to gasp, «Good realizes the awful height of the precipice; heavens! they took you for a general officer!» but it is from below one sees the marvel best And then he asked, “Where is your pass?» and most comprehensively-from far below, and J. said, “What pass? » «Why,” said the where one can follow the windings of the proprietor, « no foreigner is allowed to stay white road along the very edge of the cliff

, on the rock overnight without a pass. And and under stately white gateways, and look you-you have done what hardly the governor to the bridges hanging in the air, as it were, would dare to do.»

across the roaring stream, as fantastic and It seemed as absurd the next day to be unreal and entrancing as any Arabian Nights crossing back again to Algeciras, from Eng- picture. It is only as it should be to find the land into Spain, with a whole steamboat-load people as fantastic as their high-built town

VOL. LII.-83-84.