SPECTATOR'S LIBRARY.

Tuamotu,

Spain and the Spaniards in 1843. By Captain S. E. Widdrington, R.N., K.T.S., &e.; Author of " Sketches in Spain, in 1829-30-31-32." In two volumes. ?CUNHA!. PH11.011.19IY, BOOM* Geology, Introductory, Descriptive, and Practical. By David Thomas AmAed, MA.. F.R.S., Fellow or Jesus College, Cambridge; Professor of Geology in King's College, Londou. In two tolumes Van Vourst.

PDXTRT.

The Poetical Works of Charles Churchill. With copious Notes, and a Life of the Author. By W. Tooke, F.R.S. lu three volumes. (Aldine Poels)....Pickeriag.

CAPTAIN WIDDRINGTON'S SPAIN AND THE SPANIARDS IN 1843.

CAPTAIN WIDDRINGTON is a naval officer, of varied acquirements. Besides the knowledge appropriate to a " man of war," as Davy terms Falstaff, he is a geologist, an economist, a naturalist, and a connoisseur in painting, sculpture, and architecture. He has also a turn for working in brass and iron upon a large scale, a good eye for the beauties of landscape, and, it would seem, a notion of bull- fights, the mantilla, and Spanish costume in general. Be is, moreover, well acquainted with Spain and the Spaniards ; having sojourned in the romantic land from 1829 to 1832, and published an account of his experiences a dozen years since. With so many sources of inquiry, Captain WIDDRINGTON has that solid matter- of-fact mind which seems to distinguish "the Services." As it will not do to "base an operation" on fancy or romance, officers of a certain age and standing acquire a preference for the real, how- ever minute or common it may be.

The present volumes originated both in public and private moa tives. After the civil war was over, Captain WIrumunoxost felt desirous of revisiting the country, to see how his personal friends and affairs in general were getting on. At the same time, the Agricultural Society of Great Britain were anxious that the "very curious and unique formation of phosphorite which had been long known to exist in Estremadura " should be examined, to ascertain whether the mineral could be imported as a substitute for bones; and Dr. DAUBENY had offered to undertake the task. As the phi- losopher appears to have known little or nothing of the language or the country, Captain WIDDRINGTON offered to accompany him; and the two departed in the spring of 1843, provided with all re- quisite introductions, official and private.

As the book is not Dr. DAUBENY'S, we need not follow the phos. phorite further than to say that sufficient samples of it were pro- cured, and sent to England to be analyzed. The general route com- menced at Bayonne ; whence they proceeded by diligence through Vittoria and Burgos to Madrid. After inspecting the changes which years had made in the capital, and making the requisite pre- parations, Captain WIDDRINGTON and the Doctor started for Logrosan, where the vein of phosphorite was situated; passing in their journey through Talavera and Truxillo. When Dr. Etsussa business was despatched, our author accompanied his friend Colonel ELonza, the managing director of a mining company, on a tour of inspection ; and, after visiting these mines and exploring the country, reached Seville. He thence took another road, little if at all used by foreign travellers, to Honda, Malaga, Granada, and Madrid. During this journey, the commotion was beginning that subse- quently ended in the expulsion of ESPARTERO and Captain WID■ DRINGTON witnessed the commencement of the affair in a " Prontm- ciamento " at Malaga, which seemed and was so ridiculous, that but for the results produced by prevailing dissatisfaction, the weak- ness of character in the Executive, and the want of money to pay the troops, the whole would have served as a subject for a farce. In his second tour through the North-western provinces of Spain, by Valladolid, Leon, Oviedo, Corunna, Santiago, and Vigo, where he embarked for England, Captain WIDDRINGTON was travelling in the midst of the insurrection, if such it can be called. At Valla- dolid, he saw the Pronunciamento beginning, and took his depar- ture; at Leon, he was under exatnination by the authorities ; at Santiago, he was stopped in the street and questioned ; at Ponte- vedra, be was under arrest, and only saved himself from detention by his knowledge of the Spanish character. The topics treated of in Captain WIDDRINGTON'S volumes are of great variety, as may be imagined from the various nature of his pursuits ; and he has a further source of change in the comparison he could institute between Spain as it was and as it is. This variety, however, rather complicates the narrative. We go from a picture gallery to a church, from a church to the manners and cos- tumes of the people, from the people to a sight, from a sight to a landscape ; and the landscape introduces us to a geological forma- tion, the mineralogy of the district, with the agricultural and eco- nomical character of the place, and probably some discussion on public affairs. There are consequently two or three classes of sub- jects which rather interfere than interchange ; the criticism on art having no cognate affinity with the scientific matters, and the materials of a popular tour having slight relation to either. This is remedied in some degree by removing entire subjects, systemati- cally treated, to the appendix,—several articles on the forests of Spain, the geology of certain provinces, a general survey of Spanish agriculture, together with a review of Spanish history and politics for the last ten years. The perception of Captain WIDDRINGTON is clear and just,

except perhaps on the very complicated question of Spauish politics. His style is plain and unaffected, but with something approaching to pleasantry. His manner is rather of the old school than the new, without any attempt at brilliancy or literary effect; -so that his sobriety sometimes approaches monotony. We think much of this result, however, is to be ascribed to the intermixture of subjects which we have already spoken of, which really address themselves to different classes of readers.

The most interesting but most inexplicable subject in the vo- lumes is the Spanish character and the late revolution • rendered perhaps still more complex by Captain WIDDRINGTON'S leanings to the Regent, and a Gallophobia which induces him to attribute the present state of things to the money and intrigues of Louts Put- LIPPE,—though he abstains, with a curious caution, from mention- ing his name or country, but designates the French, when speak- ing diplomatically, as the" neighbours." So far as we are able to judge from what is before us, the last revolution took place with- out any particular public object whatever in view, and scarcely any party purpose. Putting aside French money and intrigue, about which we have little of either particulars or evidence, the true source of the frequent disturbances in the Peninsula would seem to be want of means and want of occupation. The grandees of Spain, though possessing both their rank and their property, appear to be so personally contemptible that they are publicly insignifi- cant; but the mass of what would here be called the gentry and middle classes seem to be without any profitable pursuit. They are pretty much as the Duke of Wruuntuxott described the French on the first downfall of NAPOLEON—" plus de trois quarts de la classe de la societe, non employee a la main-creeuvre ou a labourer la terre, soot en etat d'indigence, et par consequence, mecontens": a state which renders any change desirable, because there is a chance that in the scramble of the revolution they may get a place ; and the Spaniards are too sanguine to calculate the number of revolutionists and the number of places, and too ignorant to perceive the injury that these constant commotions must cause to such industry as the country possesses. These elements of incessant revolution can only be controlled by the energetic force of a reign of terror, such as NARVAEZ is employ- ing. ESPARTERO failed, we think, from indecision and from Spanish procrastination. The first Pronunciaunentos, which could easily have been put down, were permitted to go on till they became too strong for his feeble-minded agents to cope with. In the last stage they could not be overthrown, because the troops of the Regency were cor- rupted, or rather detached, by something in band and the promise of their arrears. Where the revolutionary officers and Juntas could Jay their hands upon money or equipments, the revolution pros- pered. Where the functionaries were men of activity and firmness, and they had any possible means of "touching the Spanish," the troops, and consequently the place, remained loyal to the Regent. At the same time, this mode of maintaining order cannot last long under any Government ; and we think with Captain WIDDRINGTON, that another revolution is brewing, despite the activity and un- scrupulous resoluteness of NARVAEZ. The intermixture of subjects we have already spoken of is rather felt in continuous reading than in occasional perusal, and is advantageous for the purposes of extract. The separate sections, too, derive a value from the author's knowledge of the country, the unfrequented districts he often travelled through, his means of acquiring information, and his inquiring mind. For these reasons, we will draw pretty freely upon his pages.

A TRUE SPANISH TOWN AND DISTRICT.

Logrosan is an ill-built and dirty place : the streets are narrow and incon- venient, the masses of elate on which it stands protruding, and making the passage through narrow and ill-kept streets excessively incommodious; and when they are flooded by the descent of the water from the higher grounds, some of them are nearly impassable. The population is about 4,000; and it is a perfect specimen of that class of towns called labradores or farmers and agricultural labourers. There are a few houses with escutcheons over the doors, to which are attached small mayorazgos or independent properties ; but they are little distinguished from those of their neighbours, and there appears to be nearly the sort of equality among them so often found in such places in Spain. There are no shops, and scarcely any commerce, the whole business of the people being with the cultivation of the land. There are three large estates belonging to the town, in which every inhabitant has a share; two of which are in cultivation, and the other in monte or woodland, to supply fuel and pasture. The custom is, once a year to divide or portion out the arable land ; and lots are then drawn for each Parcel; a single one being allotted to each man uho has not a yoke of oxen a double one to those provided with it. These lands, in fact, form the basis Uf their existence, and afford a fair sample of one of the most curious and little noticed parts of Spanish economy. It is perfectly evi- dent that in this system the lands must be badly cultivated : as they are of necessity changed every year, no one has a further interest than to make all he can during his occupation, and to do as little as possible in the way of improve- ment. I suggested whether the allowing each man to retain his portion would not be a better plan than this annual change, by which the good cultivator is made to suffer by the mismanagement or selfishness of his predecessor. This they instantly admitted would be the better system ; but it cannot be adopted without .some legislative enactment, and then there would be great practical difficulty in carrying it into effect. The abuses in the management of these town-lands are among the oldest, most inveterate, most extended, and most in- curable, in the whole economy of Spain. An immense portion of laud, of the extent ot which I know not that any account exists, is held by this sort of tenure. It is one cause both of the poverty and of the independence and dig- nity. so striking in the uemeanour of the Spanish peasant. By his share in the common lands he is a proprietor, and nearly above absolute want, being in the situation of a small freeholder. By being on an equality with his neigh- bours at the distribution and other arrangements, which are made in full as- sembly by the Alcaldes and other authorities of the place, and with the right of checking and controlling or opposing any plan which is a departure from an- cient usage, or which does not meet with his approbation, be has many of the advantages of freedom, prescriptively and quite abstracted from any political or constitutional eight. This system is drawn from the most remote antiquity, and there is little doubt chiefly from the Visigothic customs, whence many of the traditional liberties of Spain are derived. lin most parts of Spain the towns would be not only thriving, but would be extremely rich, were their lands under proper management ; and nothing in all their economy wiil require more careful or attentive examination from Govern- meat than this great question; nor will any, although it is imperatively called for, be more difficult to deal with.

A GENUINE SPANISH INN.

After passing an archway, close to the Casa del Ayuntamiento, I descended, and found myself in a caravansera of the genuine Spanish style. An ample space was covered by a rude and irregular roof; portions of which appeared to have been added at different times. Under this were arranged every descrip- tion of package,—alabardas or pack-saddles, titiaxas or jars carried on asses, bales made to balance each other, bags of salt, and every sort of merchandise carriel by the arrieros. Baggage was laid out, and the muskets of the parties near it ; cooking was going on at an open fire ; the most unsavoury odours were exhaled by the rancid oil forming the basis of it, which would have been insupportable but from their being tempered and softened by the ammonia and other correctives issuing from the stables which opened into it. Mantas were being spread, and the respective mozos were preparing to pass the early part of night in this elysium, lulled by the tinkling of the bells attached to their steeds,

and only likely to he occasionally disturbed by the amorous whining° of some and the more amorous responses of others, with an occasional battle in conse- quence. In abort, it was so true a specimen of a haunt of arrieros, that yoa might travel from Cadiz to Pamplona, or from Coruna to Barcelona, without meeting anything more perfect in the line.

SPANISH PEELING TOWARDS NEGROES.

We had a tolerably pleasant party of fellow-travellers ; one of the inside pas- sengers being a campaigner of the old time, and a very superior, well-informed person. The coupe was occupied by a gentleman from the Habana with his Black servant ; as, owing to this peculiar encumbrance, he had been obliged to take the whole. In a short time, a very agreeable-looking family of females, who were in the hinder compartment, showed evident signs of what the Spaniards call codicia, or hankering after places in the front ; and, after a good deal of neat and pretty maneuvering, they effected an entrance : but before the arrangement could be completed, the poor Black was obliged to be dislodged ; which operation produced rather a curious scene. We had no room in the centre, and the remainder of the party behind refused him admittance to the place of the lady who had taken his seat in the coupe. They next tried to ob- tain a vacant-place by the escort who was perched outside : but this fellow, who was a half-reclaimed robber, and if he had had his deserts, instead of riding there, should have been in presidio, or possibly on the horca or gibbet, not only refused to let him keep company, but declared aloud, that if he presumed to get up be would pitch him off At last it was settled in some way, and the Black disappeared : I found afterwards that he was packed among the baggage under the " vache," or leather cover ; which in the state of the atmosphere must have been a perfect black-hole. The people carried their insolence so far, that they would not allow the man to eat in company with them ; and as I suppose he thought it probable those of the posada would refuse to serve him, his master told me afterwards that he never tasted anything during the journey.

I felt very much for the poor fellow, and took the first opportunity, when we stopped for the night, of entering into conversation with him. I found him to be a very superior person in his station, extremely well-informed on all matters relating to the colony be belonged to, and speaking the language in the utmost purity : he was nearly as much dissatisfied as his master with the manners and customs of travelling in Spain.

CHANGES IN MADRID.

The bustle and movement in the streets is quite extraordinary ; nor do I ever remember seeing such a change in a few years in any place. The ordinary daily passage is equal to that of the festival-days in the time of Ferdinand.. Every thing connected with the commerce and activity of the place has made equal progress. The shops, instead of the paltry appearance they presented at the former epoch, are now nearly as good and well-filled as those of Paris in 1814. Spacious repositories abound, where every article of French and Eng- lish dress is exhibited in the greatest profusion. Formerly it was a misfortune to have anything to do with tailors; and if any one had the ill-luck to be stripped near the gate of the capital, be had great difficulty in replacing his losses. Now he need only cover himself with a caps, and, sallying out, may very soon complete his wardrobe; which is no small advantage where the Spanish practice of skinning, "guitar el pellejo," is still practised. Most of these articles are French, and many of them have probably taken their turn in the exhibitions of the Palais Royal before being transferred to the capital of the Castile. Some are English, however ; and in my first walk through these districts of fashion, I saw appended foulards or printed silks, of the identical patterns I

had recently purchased as the newest in England. • •

The day we arrived was an era in the economy of Madrid; for on it was the first starting of a set of omnibuses, most gaily painted, which traverse the principal parts of the city drawn by mules, the number of which, compared with the lightness of the vehicle, is a curious contrast to that in use at Paris and London. They will be of great use in the heat of summer and in the wet days of winter; otherwise, in general the Spaniards, like ourselves, are too much in the habit of walking to avail themselves of them. One of the great- est improvements recently made has been the regularly numbering the houses. Formerly they were divided by stacks or isolated masses of building, called in Spain manzanae. Each of these was numbered separately, and without refer- cove to the streets which formed the boundaries ; and it became excesaively difficult, in most cases, to make out the residences of the inhabitants of the spacious houses, containing many families, and generally unprovided with porters. At present they are regularly marked, and the name of the streets, which was seldom the ease then, painted as in other places.

SPARE DIET FOR TRAVELLERS.

Iii the latter part of the route, subsequent to leaving Almaden, we had lived a good deal in the Spanish manner, and with great temperance. We drank little wine and abundance of goats' milk—that is not only the best in the world but superior to any other milk I ever tasted : I am not aware of the cause of its superiority, unless it be the plants on which they browse at this season. We consumed large quantities of it, generally commencing and ending the day by emptying capacious bowls, and the people were often surprised at the number of quartilloa or pints that were ordered : it is sweet, and so light as to be of quire imperceptible digestion. At Pedroso, owing to the regulations above mentioned, it was obliged to be brought from some distance ; the goats being driven down for the purpose of supplying our wants, but of course not allowed to quit the road or browse on the land. Another article strongly to be recom- mended is a water salad. The lettuce, which is deliciously crisp and tender, is mixed in the usual way with oil and vinegar, and then put in a bowl that is filled with water; so that you sup the liquid with the green herb. It is im- possible to describe how refreshing and wholesome this simple dish is after a hot and dusty ride ; and we always commenced the evening repast with it. This diet suited me so well, that at the end of the journey I was in perfect health; which was by no means the case when I set out, or when I arrived in Estrema- dura. I had entirely abandoned the bota that was formerly a constant part of my travelling-equipage, and found their delicious springs a pleasant and whole- some substitute for it.

DINTS FOR THE ROAD.

There are two modes of managing this [hiring horses)—the one, to take the horses by the day and keep them yourself. This is frequently practised in the North, and may do for short distances, and when you return to the same point from which you set out ; but as it leads to extravagance and cheating, ape- daily in the South, I would by no means recommend it for general adoption. Besides other difficulties in such a place, you may not be able to purchase the food they choose, excepting at an exorbitant rate, and by favouring jobbing with the people at the posadas. Therefore, whenever it is possible, make your bargain complete, return and everything included, and let it he understood that the mozo finds himself. You must, if he behaves well, give him the remains of your meals, and be is easily satisfied ; but if you engage to feed him, he will pro- bably turn out a cormorant. From my not attending to this, I have known one devour the provisions intended to last for several days in the course of a few hours. Among the best I have seen are those at Gibraltar, where they are used to good company, and are somewhat disciplioed. The rules for dealing with these people in general are, to treat them kindly but coolly. No familiarity, nor too much respect or deference ; and give your orders, after hearing what they have to say, in a cool and determined manner, never wrangling nor enter- ing into altercation with them. If in a wild or unfrequented district, pay little attention to the difficulties they may choose to find Out; but always hear them patiently, and, after appearing to consider, adopt your own plan, and go through with it. Be very careful in talking at ventas and such places, and always keep your movements and time of departure as secret as possible ; as in every village, of the South especially, there are loose fish hanging about, or probably others upon the tramp may drop in. Eat little, and you will find yourself the better, as everything they give you is more or less hard of digestion. Request them to use rnanteea or lard instead of oil, which they always conform to ; leaving your mozo to enjoy his rancid oil, which he invariably prefers, and will make you join Lim if you leave the arrangement to himself. Always inquire what 111 to be bad in the plaza or market, because they vary very much. In some there is game; others, as the Cuenca district, and some others, occasionally mutton, hares, rabbits, pigeons, partridges; and by looking out you may see fellows carrying them about, who are the pastures or shepherds, and have con- trived to poach a brace or two on their walks. The law is altered by which the Ayuntamiento frequently bad the monopoly and the supply of food; and everything belonging to posadas is now open to the public.

THE WANT OF SPAIN.

There is the greatest possible want of that useful article the valet de place, all over the country ; and even at Madrid the breed hardly exists. At Seville, there is a man called Bailey, a mixture of French, English, and Spanish, a perfect linguist, and a most able and intelligent guide, whom I have heard highly spoken of by those who have employed him ; and, in addition to other requisites, he is a capital cook and travelling-servant. I am the more induced to mention him, because he complained bitterly that he had furnished their best anecdotes to several tourists, one dead and at least two living, without their making any mention of the source whence they obtained the information, and even in some instances actually taking pains to conceal it. He felt this the more sensibly, because they had always promised to mention him in their works; but somehow had forgotten to do so, although he saw, by the exactness with which they repeated his stories, their memories were not equally defective in other respects. He is well read in gipsy poetry and other lore, and, from what he stated, must have studied their manners very deeply. In short, he must be considered a most useful ally to those who may wish to add a little information to the common routine of tours in steam-boats and diligences, and have not time to dig deeply into the mines of Spanish history. I certainly feel it a duty to fultil my promise of mentioning him ; and the last party I beard of his serving spoke to me in the highest terms of his attention. The only thing I fear is, that in faqir* be may be less communicative; and Le was extremely irate with some of those he mentioned, one especially, whose me- mory had been peculiarly deficient.