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 n z^s 
 
 NARRATIVE 
 
 OF A 
 
 FORCED JOURNEY 
 
 THROUGH 
 
 pain ant) jTrattce. 
 
 AS A 
 
 PRISONER OF W A R, 
 
 IN 
 
 THE YEARS 1810 TO 1814'. 
 
 By MAJOR-GENERAL LORD BLAYNEY. 
 
 IN TWO VOLUMES. 
 
 VOL. L 
 
 LONDON: 
 
 Piinted for E. Kerby, Bookseller and Statiouer. 
 Staflford Street, Bond Street. 
 
 LS14.
 
 LIBRARY 
 
 rrlntd by Cox and Bavlii, Great Queen Stie«t, 
 UncJlB't-lnn-Fields.
 
 ■:^p 
 
 3^ 
 
 :b 5 
 
 \ 
 
 , LIBRARY 
 
 tWrVERSITY OF CALIPOKNa 
 SANTA BAHBABA 
 
 TO 
 
 HIS ROYAL HIGHNESS 
 
 THE DUKE OF YORK. 
 
 SIR, 
 
 In presuming to solicit your 
 Royal Highnesses protection for the fol- 
 lowing pages, I at once gratify two of thq 
 first feelings of my heart; the expression 
 of profound reverence for Your Royal 
 Highness's illustrious person, and the most 
 perfect devotion to the service at the head 
 of which Your Royal Highness presides 
 with such distinguished honour. 
 
 A 2 To
 
 IV 
 
 To whom indeed can a soldier dedicate 
 his work with so much propriety as to a 
 Prince who by the unanimous suffrage of 
 the British Army is hailed by the glorious 
 title of " The Soldier's Friend?" 
 
 I can only regret that these volumes 
 are not more worthy the patronage with 
 which Your Royal Highness has been 
 pleased to honour them, by deigning to 
 accept their dedication j but whatever they 
 may want in interest, from the confined 
 opportunities of a Prisoner, I trust they 
 will be found to contain the expression of 
 the patriotic feelings of a British Officer, 
 who glories in his unalterable attachment 
 
 to
 
 to Your Royal Highness's August House, 
 as well as in the devotion and respect with 
 ^ which he has the honour to be, 
 
 SIR, 
 
 Your Royal Highness's 
 most obedient 
 
 and most faithful humble servant, 
 
 BLAYNEY^^
 
 PREFACE. 
 
 It is the common custom of travellers to 
 publish their Journals with a prefatory apology 
 for their literary faults, on the ground of their 
 not having been intended for publication ; but 
 although the author of the following pages is 
 truly entitled to plead this excuse in bar of severe 
 criticism, he waves that right, convinced that it 
 can neither add to the merit of the work nor 
 efficiently apologize for its defects. He begs the 
 reader, however, to bear in mind, that though 
 the peculiar situation in which he was placed 
 frequently deprived him of the opportunity of 
 immediately putting pen to paper, yet he has 
 endeavoured from recollection to supply that de- 
 ficiency though perhaps at some distance of time 
 
 A 4 after
 
 Vlll 
 
 after the circumstances happened. This, he 
 trusts, will excuse any inaccuracies that may be 
 met with ; for, without affectation, he must de- 
 clare that he had not original!}' any idea of offering 
 this narrative to pubhc notice. 
 
 Nor is it his nitcniion to enter into the circum- 
 stances, which from enemies united Great Britain 
 and Spain in one ooumion cause, the glorious one. 
 of Justice, Humanity, and the Independence of 
 all Europe. It is suiiicient to say, that the 
 syrnpathising generosity of the English nation 
 could not contemplate the freedom of a gallant 
 people, in danger of being annihilated, without 
 affording its assistance to snatch them from the 
 abj'ss. 
 
 The system of operations laid down for the 
 conduct of the war in Spain, at the time this Nar- 
 rative commences, being to distract the enemy's 
 attention by calling it towards as many distant 
 ])oints as possiiile, the author was in consequence 
 ajjpointed to the command of a detachment of 
 British and foreign troops in the English service, 
 
 and
 
 and a Spanish regiment, intended to make a di- 
 ^version on the coast of Andalusia ; and thou2:h 
 this object unfortunatv^ly failed, owing to circum- 
 stances which he could not foresee, and con- 
 sequently could not provide against, he dares 
 assert, with confidence, that no blame can be 
 attached to himself, or to the officers in general 
 who served under him ; and therefore he feels 
 comparatively happy in the consolatory reflexion 
 that though he could not *^ command success," he 
 endeavoured to *' deserve it," which was all that 
 depended on himself. 
 
 Although a prisoner, the author's rank entitled 
 him to a degree of personal liberty while travel- 
 ling, and procured him a familiar intercourse 
 with the first classes of society, both French 
 and Spanish, which afforded him opportuni- 
 ties of observation that could scarcely have oc- 
 curred to an officer of inferior rank. The re- 
 sult of these observations the author now pre- 
 sumes to offer to the public ; and though he is 
 far from expecting that his work will entirely 
 
 satisfy
 
 satisfy those who seek for instruction alone, he 
 hopes it will not be found destitute of reflections, 
 interesting to the politician and the patriot, and 
 that it will also afford to the most numerous class 
 of readers, that amusement which they principally 
 look for in works of this nature.
 
 CONTENTS OF VOL. I. 
 
 CHAPTER I. 
 
 Page 
 Motives of an expedition from Gibraltar to the vicinity 
 of jVIrilaga — Situation of the enemy's detachments in 
 Andalusia — Embarkation of the troops — Arrival at 
 Ceuta — Spanish military negligence — Sail for the coast 
 of Spain — Proposal to attack Malaga — Reasons for 
 declining it — Land at Calle de la Moralle — Digression 
 respecting military orders and distinctions 1 
 
 CHAPTER n. 
 
 March to Fiangerolla, and attack of that fortress — Mijas 
 —Observations on the persons employed by the Eng- 
 lish government to organize the Spanish peasantry ; 
 and on the application of the suras advanced by Eng- 
 land—Continuation of the operations against Fian- 
 gerolla 17 
 
 CHAPTER III. 
 
 Brutality of the Polish commandant— Reflections on 
 viewing our shipping — Proceed to Mijas — Return to 
 Fiangerolla — Interview with General Scbastiani — 
 Proceed for Malaga 37
 
 Xll 
 
 CHAPTER IV. 
 
 Page 
 Malaga 50 
 
 CHArTER V. 
 
 Brigands^- March from Malaga to Grenada — Torcal — 
 A ntequera— Sierra de los Aaiaros — Archidona — Moor- 
 ish castles — Loxa, LachaOj Santa Fe 59 
 
 CHAPTER VI. 
 
 Grenada— Punishment of the Garrotte — Braziers — Spa- 
 nish and French repasts — ^Theatre — Spanish comedy — 
 Alhambra 73 
 
 CHAPTER VII. 
 
 Grenada — Plain of Grenada — Colonial productions of 
 Andalusia — Poles — Praises of Buonaparte — Spa- 
 nish ball and pastimes — Pets — Convent of Chartreuse 
 — Carera theatre — Bon mot — Breakfast a la Proven- 
 ^ale 91 
 
 CHAPTER VIII. 
 
 Grenada — Defeat of Blake's army — French discipline 
 and soldiers — Advantages of occupying the coasts of 
 the Mediterranean — Method of separating corn from 
 the ear — Spanish husbandry — Spanish prisoners from 
 Blake's army — Sebastiani's birthday 110 
 
 CHAPTER IX. 
 
 From Grenada to Jaen — Mode of travelling — Appear-
 
 Xlll 
 
 Page 
 ance of the country — French dragoon— Alcala Reale 
 — Escape of Spanish prisoners — Road — Convoy rein- 
 forced — Alcaudete — Countess of Superonda — German 
 braggadocio — r Martos — Jaen — French mihtary exe- 
 cution 133 
 
 CHAPTER X. 
 
 Jaen to Andujar — Guadalquivir — Dinner with General 
 Blondeau — Sporting excursion — Cookery — Convoy 
 from Seville — Disagreeable Spanish custom 152 
 
 CHAPTER XT. 
 
 From Andujar to St. Helena — Unfeeling levity of a Pole 
 — Baylen — Surrender of Dupont's army— Effect of 
 the Cortes — Colonial town of Sierra Morena — Defile 
 of Penon de los Peros — Causes of the French army 
 forcing it Igg 
 
 CHAPTER Xll. 
 
 General observations on Andalusia — Soil and climate — 
 Face of the country — Forests— Population — Effects of 
 the French invasion — Agriculture — Horses — Manufac- 
 tures — Commerce — Distinguished characters — Na- 
 tional character — Mines — Mineral waters 178 
 
 CHAPTER Xni. 
 
 La Mancha— Contrast with Andalusia — Santa Cruz- 
 Beauty of the country — Val dc Penas — Regiment of 
 Nassau — Convoy from France — Italian Marquis — 
 Manzanares— Sunday evening dances. 198
 
 XIV 
 
 CHAPTER XIV. 
 
 Page 
 
 Toledo — Tomb of Caba — Cathedral — Roast beef and 
 plum pudding a la Fran^aise - Campaign in Flanders- 
 Sincerity of foreigners 219 
 
 CHAPTER XV. 
 
 From Toledo to Madrid — Tagus — Regiment of Hesse- 
 Darmstadt —Cruelty to a poor Spaniard — Miss the 
 mules ou the road — The General in the mud 23G 
 
 CHAPTER XVI. 
 
 Madrid — French politeness — Adjutant.de Place — Trai- 
 tors — Affairs of Egypt — Plaza del Sol et Mayor — 
 Treatment of the prisoners — French forgetful ness. . . . 245 
 
 CHAPITER XVII. 
 
 Madrid — Museum — Masonic meeting — Situation of the 
 prisoners — Spanish generosity — Prado — Pucrta d'AI- • 
 cala— Palace of Buonavista— Palace of the Duke of 
 Medina Sidonia .-; .~. 260 
 
 CHAPTER XVIII. 
 
 Madrid — French over-civility — Retiro —Prisoners' ren- 
 contre — Theatre 27S 
 
 CHAPTER XIX, 
 
 Madrid— Palace — English officers' neglect of their ser- 
 vants -IJuU-fight 28S
 
 XV 
 
 CHAPTER XX. 
 
 Page 
 
 Madrid — Excursion to Lyauos — Coursing — The broach 
 —Made a close prisoner in the Retire — Transactions 
 there— Give lectures on the veterinary art 303 
 
 CHAPTER XXI. 
 
 From Madrid to Burgos— Village of Guadarama — Escu- 
 rial — Observations on New Castille — Ingenious piece 
 of water machinery — Antero de Herrares 321 
 
 CHAPTER XXII. 
 
 From Segovia to Valladolid — Convoy of bread — German 
 Baron— Santa Maria de Neva — French servant deserts 
 —Moorish palace— Convoy attacked— German inso- 
 lence — Val de Stillas — Wretched accommodation — 
 French cruelty — English prisoners escape 347 
 
 CHAPTER XXIH. 
 
 Valladolid — General Kellerman — Parting breakfast — ^ 
 French dismounted dragoons — Botanical conversation 
 —Burgos— The Cid SGQ 
 
 CHAPTER XXIV. 
 
 From Burgos to Mendragon— Geiierosity of a priest — 
 Vittoria — Old Castile — Women on mules — Shoeing 
 oxen — JVonc/ia?aHce of a French soldier — Inveteracy of 
 ths Spaniards S7i.
 
 XVI 
 
 CHAPTER XXV. 
 
 Page 
 
 From Mendragon to St. Jean de Luz, in Fiance — To- 
 - losa — Villa Realc' — Urnieta — From St- Jolin de Luz — 
 
 CHAPTER XXVI, 
 
 Bay of Biscay ^Bayonne — Route to Bourdcaux v.-'j .'./- 406 
 
 CHAPTER XXVn. 
 
 Bourdeaux — Comparison of the former and present state 
 of this city — Oysters — Theatre — Modern French- 
 meji 42'S^ 
 
 CHAPTER XXVHI. 
 
 Bourdeaux — Masquerade — Valet de place, &c. - 443 
 
 CHAPTER XXIX. 
 
 From Bourdeaux to Perigueux — Meeting with an Officer 
 — St. Ubes — Carnival — Killing a bullock — Digression 
 onthestateofFrance — Sugar of Beet-root — Conscripts 
 — Cruelty to Spanish prisoners— Conscription 463
 
 NARRATIVE, 
 
 %C. S^C. ^C. 
 
 CHAPTER L 
 
 Motives of an expedition from Gibraltar to the vicinity 
 of Malaga . . . .Situation of the enemy's detachments 
 in Andalusia . . . .Embarkation of the troops .... 
 Arrival at Ceuta . . . .Spanish military negligence 
 . . . .Sail for the coast of Spain . . . .Proposal to 
 
 attack Malaga Reasons for declining it ... . 
 
 Land at Calle de la Moralle. .. .Digression re- 
 specting military orders and distinctions. 
 
 1810. 
 Cadiz being closely invested by the army 
 of the Due de Bellune,. it appeared from 
 the geographical position of the neighbour- 
 ing country, that the most effectual mode 
 of interrupting the siege, and harassing the 
 enemy, would be to send detachments to 
 various parts of the Spanish coast ; which, 
 VOL. u B . by
 
 2 
 
 by occupying their attention, would oblige 
 them to weaken the besieging army, in order 
 to succour the points menaced with attack. 
 
 It was also at this time of the utmost 
 moment to support and keep alive the 
 animosity of the peasantry, by affording 
 them every possible assistance ; without 
 which, their exertions would certainly grow 
 weaker ; and it was even to be feared that 
 they might ultimately surrender themselves 
 to the French in despair. Besides, the 
 French army before Cadiz drawing its sup- 
 plies chiefly from Seville, the seranos (or 
 mountaineers) of the Sierra de Xeres, and 
 of the chain of mountains extending from 
 Ronda Xeres, and from hence in a south- 
 east direction by Mijas and Fiangerolla, 
 were particularly to be encouraged, in order 
 to induce them to act with vigour in cut- 
 ting off the enemy's supplies. 
 
 To these circumstances must also be 
 
 added,
 
 added, that in the beginning of October, 
 information was received at Gibraltar, 
 through various channels, that at Ronda 
 the enemy's force consisted of only nine 
 hundred men, viz. one company of grena- 
 diers, one of riflemen, and eighty dragoons, 
 in all two hundred and forty French ; the 
 remaining six hundred and sixty being 
 composed of Germans, Poles, &c. upon 
 whom little dependance could be placed. 
 The same information stated that at Fi- 
 angerolla the enemy had but two hundred 
 men, at Mijas but forty, and at Ronda 
 one hundred, chiefly dragoons ; while the 
 country surrounding these ports, was said 
 to be in the possession of a body of well 
 armed, fierce, and exasperated moun- 
 taineers, nearly capable of keeping the 
 French in check, having already obliged 
 them several times to abandon St. Roque 
 and Algeziras, with considerable loss. 
 
 B 2 The
 
 The vicinity of these mountaineers, as 
 well as the extreme badness of the road be- 
 tween Ronda and Fiangerolla, appeared to 
 render it very difficult, if not impossible, for 
 the enemy to send any reinforcement from 
 the former to the latter place ; while at the 
 same time it was understood that much 
 dissatisfaction reigned in Malaga, and that 
 the inhabitants would readily unite their 
 efforts with any force that might be sent to 
 assist them in driving the French out of 
 the town. Such was the situation of the 
 enemy's detached forces, while they were 
 carrying on the siege of Cadiz with vigour, 
 having completed several batteries opposite 
 the town, from whence, by means of very 
 large mortars, they threw shells much far- 
 ther than the usual distance, and thereby 
 rendered the anchorage of our shipping 
 very insecure. 
 
 The most certain means of checking the 
 
 progffess
 
 ])rooress of the siege, was, as I have al- 
 ready observed, to call the attention of the 
 enemy to other points ; and, with this idea, 
 , several expeditions had been already sent 
 to various places with different degrees of 
 success. In furtherance of this principle, 
 and after a communication betu^een the 
 Lieutenant-Governor of Gibraltar and the 
 Spanish Government at Cadiz, it was de- 
 termined to send a force from the former 
 place against the ports already named, as 
 well as to co-operate with the loyalist party 
 in Malaga. 
 
 His Excellency Lieutenant - General 
 Campbell did me the honour of confiding 
 to me the conduct of this expedition ; and 
 on the 10th of October I accordingly re- 
 ceived orders to prepare for secret service, 
 and to take under my command four com- 
 panics of His Majesty's 89th regiment, 
 amounting to three hundred rank and file, 
 
 B 3 together
 
 together with five hundred German, Polish, 
 and Italian deserters. With this force I 
 was directed to proceed to Ceuta, where it 
 was to be increased by the Spanish regiment 
 of Toledo. As dispatch was an object of 
 the first consequence, not a moment was 
 lost, and the whole detachment was clothed, 
 accoutred, and embarked on the same day ; 
 and as soon as 1 received my final instruc- 
 tions, I repaired on board His Majesty's ship 
 Topaze, from whence I issued the necessary 
 orders and instructions, and also prepared 
 an address to the people of Malaga, which 
 will be found in the Appendix. 
 
 Early in the morning of the 11th Octo- 
 ber, the squadron weighed and stood across 
 for Ceuta; but light airs preventing our 
 anchoring there until a late hour in the 
 evening, I was obliged to defer going on 
 shore till the morning. That no time might 
 however be lost, I acquainted Major-Ge- 
 ne ral
 
 iieral Frazer of my arrival by letter, and 
 requested him to expedite the embarkation 
 of the Spanish regiment. The following 
 morning I proceeded on shore, and break- 
 fasted with the General, but found it im- 
 possible to prevail on him to interfere in 
 any manner, with respect to the object of 
 my orders; and I was therefore under the 
 necessity of applying personally to the 
 Spanish Governor, who received me most 
 politely, and chearfully assured me of every 
 assistance in his power. I must here ob- 
 serve, that the Spaniards of Ceuta looked 
 on the English with the most jealous sus- 
 picion, and though General Frazer's force 
 consisted of but one weak regiment (the 
 second battaHon of the fourth), the guns 
 of the citadel, in which it was quartered, 
 and which commands the town, had been 
 all removed. 
 
 The embarkation of the Spanish troops 
 
 B 4 being
 
 8 
 
 being completed in the forenoon, I visited 
 several of the transports, and in some of 
 them found the Spaniards much dissatisfied 
 with the nature of their provisions, owing 
 entirely to the masters adhering literally to 
 their instructions, and issuing meat on a 
 maigre day, when common sense should 
 have pointed out to them, the propriety of 
 serving out other species in lieu. Indeed, 
 I have frequently observed that foreign sol- 
 diers are dissatisfied with the species of 
 provisions they receive on board our ships ; 
 and as these complaints could be so easily 
 remedied, it seems extraordinary that no 
 attention has been hitherto paid to them. 
 
 The regiment of Toledo being better 
 cloathed, and apparently composed of a 
 more orderly set of men than the generality 
 of Spanish soldiers at this time, I paid 
 their Colonel some compliments on their 
 appearance, and requested to be informed 
 
 if
 
 9 
 
 if they were compleat in every respect, 
 which he assured me they were. Aware, 
 however, of the astonishing neglect which 
 ^pervaded every part of the Spanish miHtary 
 affairs, T did not choose to put impHcit 
 confidence in this assertion ; and on en- 
 quiring minutely into the state of their arms 
 and ammunition, I found a deficiency of 
 one hundred and forty-eight firelocks, and 
 that they had embarked literally without a 
 single round of ammunition. I immediately 
 wrote to the Spanish Governor, stating the 
 impossibility of my supplying the latter, as 
 our cartridges would not fit the Spanish 
 arms. He returned a very polite answer, 
 and the necessary ammunition was imme- 
 diately sent ofl': the deficiency of muskets 
 I supplied, together with one hundred 
 cartridges for each. 
 
 Having delivered the Spanish Colonel 
 his instructions, the squadron weighed and 
 stood for the coast of Spain. The lightness 
 
 of
 
 10 
 
 of the wind rendered our passage tedious, 
 and in the night of the 13th Captain Hall 
 of the navy, commanding a detachment of 
 gunhoats under my orders, came on board 
 from Gibraltar, with letters from his Ex- 
 cellency the Lieutenant-Governor. Captain 
 Hall expressed himself very sanguinely as 
 to the possibility of carrying Malaga by a 
 coup de main, and founded his opinion on 
 information received at Gibraltar, that the 
 guns on the Mole had been removed ; he 
 therefore proposed that the troops should 
 occupy the enemy's attention on the land 
 side, while the ships bombarded the town 
 to the eastward, and that the boats should 
 at the same time push for the Mole, and 
 throw a party into the town, to favour and 
 assist an insurrection of the inhabitants. 
 To this plan I found it impossible to give 
 my approbation, well assured that no intel- 
 ligence received from the Spaniards was to 
 be depended on ; and besides there being 
 
 an
 
 11 
 
 an extensive plain between the Rio Grande 
 and Malaga, in which a large body of 
 cavalry could act to the greatest advantage : 
 ^ and as I had every reason to believe that 
 the enemy could immediately collect a force 
 of this description, it seemed to me highly 
 imprudent to risque encountering it, with 
 the motley troop of foreigners that com- 
 posed two-thirds of my detachment. These 
 reasons induced me to determine on pro- 
 ceeding to the Calle de la Moralle, a small 
 bay, one league east of Marabella and two 
 west of FiangeroUa, with the intention of 
 attacking the latter fortress, the possession 
 of which would be of the greatest conse- 
 quence to my future proceedings, as afford- 
 ing the means of receiving regular and 
 certain information, as well as of organizing 
 the peasantry, and commanding the neigh- 
 bouring country. 
 
 On the morning of the 14th the Spar- 
 
 roivhawk
 
 12 
 
 roiohawk joined the squadron, and I was 
 informed that arms liad heen distributed to 
 the peasants, pursuant to orders which I 
 had previously given. At nine o'clock the 
 squadron anchored in the bay of Calle de 
 la Moralle, and the signals were imme- 
 diately made to prepare for landing the 
 troops, and for the boats to assemble along- 
 side the Topaze. The shoal ness of the 
 water preventing the larger vessels from 
 approaching the shore so as tc cover the 
 landing, the gunboats only were employed 
 in that service; and having taken their sta- 
 tion, at half past ten, the boats pushed for 
 the shore, and the troops landed without 
 accident or opposition on a fine sandy 
 beach : indeed there did not appear to be 
 any preparation whatever made by the 
 enemy to oppose us. As soon as the troops 
 were all formed on shore, I issued regula- 
 ting orders for their movements, calculated 
 
 to
 
 13 
 
 to prevent the confusion that might arise 
 from such a mixture of nations as composed 
 my small force, there being English, 
 ^French, ItaHans, Spaniards, Poles and 
 Germans. I therefore directed that all 
 movements should be carried into execution 
 by the sound of the bugle, and restricted 
 the sounds to four. When tolerably perfect 
 in this exercise, I gave orders to advance, 
 but found the country so very mountainous, 
 and without any road, that it was impossible 
 the artillery could accompany us, and it 
 was therefore of necessity sent by water. 
 
 Previous to marching I had some con- 
 versation with Captain Miller of the 95th 
 regiment, who, with several other officers, 
 had been latterly employed in organizing 
 the Spanish peasants. He informed me 
 that a considerable quantity of arms and 
 ammunition had been distributed anjongst 
 them, and consequently that I might ex- 
 pect
 
 14 
 
 pect a number to join me immediately ; in 
 this however I was entirely disappointed, 
 not more than ten or twelve making their 
 appearance. One Spaniard I am, however, 
 bound to notice, with the praise he deserves 
 for the loyalty and fidelity with which he 
 has always served the cause of his coun- 
 try ; he is well known at Gibraltar, but at 
 the present moment it would be improper 
 and imprudent to name him. His loy- 
 alty was entirely disinterested, and in- 
 deed it is but doing justice to the Spa- 
 niards in general to observe that their 
 zeal seems to proceed from real patriotism, 
 without any hope or expectation of pecu- 
 niary emolument. The services rendered 
 to the cause by the person above alluded to, 
 certainly entitled him to a considerable re- 
 ward from the English, yet his sole request 
 was to be permitted to wear a sash similar 
 to that of our officers, which of course 
 
 was
 
 15 
 
 was granted, and from it he seemed to 
 derive no small share of consequence in 
 the eyes of his countrymen. Indeed, when 
 fL observed the delight expressed by the 
 Spaniards at receiving the smallest honor- 
 ary distinction, I was surprised that the 
 Spanish loyal government had not created 
 a military order of merit, to reward those 
 who might be most active and enterprising 
 in the cause ; the hope of acquiring such a 
 distinction from their legal rulers, would 
 not only increase eouilation, but diminish 
 the value of the distinctions conferred bv 
 the French on their partisans. The desire 
 of chivalric distinctions is indeed universal 
 throughout all Christian Europe : the cold 
 phlegmatic German receives them with 
 pleasure, and the Italian, burning with tlie 
 ardour of a more genial climate, with de- 
 light ; but it is in France, above all other 
 countries, that they are sought after with 
 
 the
 
 16 
 
 the greatest avidity, and where they inspire 
 their possessors with the greatest degree of 
 vanity and self-consequenee, as well as of 
 niihtary ardour, and the hopes of the croLv 
 iVhonneur is perhaps the most powerful 
 stimulant to the courage of the French 
 soldier. When we reflect on this general 
 feeling-, we cannot account for the Junta's 
 and Regency's having hitherto neglected the 
 establishment of so certain and so cheap a 
 mode of attaching the people to their 
 cause. .
 
 17 
 
 CHAPTER II. 
 
 March to Fiangerolla, and attack of that fortress 
 
 Mijas Observations on the persons employed by 
 
 the English government to organize the Spanish 
 peasantry ; and on the application of the sums 
 advanced by England Continuation of the ope- 
 rations against Fiangerolla. 
 
 The mountains and ravines which oc- 
 cupy the entire space between the Calle de 
 la Moralle and Fiangerolla, rendered our 
 march extremely fatiguing and tedious, so 
 that we did not get sight of the fortress 
 till two o'clock in the afternoon ; when I 
 immediately sent in a flag of truce with a 
 summons, which was rejected. A project- 
 ing point of land to the westward of the 
 castle, for some time covered the gun- 
 boats in their course along shore, but oq 
 VOL. I. c passing \
 
 18 
 
 passing this point, they became exposed to 
 the ffuns of the castle, from which a heavy 
 fire was immediately commenced on them. 
 
 I now advanced close to the work with 
 the foreign riflemen, supported by the four 
 companies of the 89th, when a brisk fire 
 commenced on both sides ; ours being con- 
 fined to musquetry, while the enemy had 
 the advantage of firing grape from their 
 artillery, by which Major Grant of the 
 89th was mortally wounded, while receiving 
 my directions to take possession of a small 
 ridge of hills, which extending to the beacli 
 would have afforded cover to the regiment. 
 I felt severely the loss of this worthy officer, 
 who after serving the best part of his life 
 in the 86th regiment in the East-Indies, 
 had returned in hopes of spending the re- 
 mainder of his days in his native country; 
 but finding it still required his services, he 
 disdained to remain in idleness. He just lived 
 
 to
 
 19 
 
 to be landed at Gibraltar,where he was buried 
 with all military honours; the whole garrison 
 attending his funeral, and paying the last 
 melancholy tribute of respect to his remains. 
 The tire from the castle continued on the 
 gunboats, of which one was sunk, and se- 
 veral persons killed and wounded in the 
 others ; the troops, however, drawing a 
 considerable part of the enemy's attention 
 (which indeed was my motive for advan- 
 cing so close), the boats were at last enabled 
 to take their stations. 
 
 The castle I found to be infinitely 
 stronger than it had been represented, 
 consisting of a large square fort, situated 
 on a hillock, of which it occupies the entire 
 summit. Circumstanced as we were, and 
 having information of a large body of the 
 enemy being on its march towards us, it 
 would have been decidedly the most advisa- 
 ble plan, to have attempted an escalade, had 
 
 c 2 there
 
 20 
 
 there been any tolerable hopes of success *, 
 but, after a mature consideration of the 
 subject, I was obliged to relinquish this 
 idea, not only from its apparent impracti- 
 cability, but also from the certain great 
 loss of men that must have attended even 
 its success, and which would have rendered 
 me incapable of defending the conquest, or 
 of any further operations. 
 
 Having succeeded in silencing the guns 
 of the castle for a short time, I withdrew 
 part of the troops that were too much ex- 
 posed, and at the same time directed the 
 Spanish regiment to occupy a good position 
 on the summit of a rough commanding hill, 
 with a difficult ravine in front, which, in 
 the opinion of Captain Harding of the 
 engineers and myself, was a sufficient pro- 
 tection from a sudden attack. The Spanish 
 Colonel, however, now started an unex- 
 pected difficulty, namely that it was Sun- 
 day,
 
 day, and that it was not their custom to fight 
 on the Sabbath.* I found also that there 
 was much discontent amongst the men of 
 ;this regiment, from the want of a clergy- 
 man to perform divine service. This cir- 
 cumstance I could only lament, and would 
 liave cheerfully offered to officiate, had I 
 thought myself equal to the task. Here 
 I must observe, that during the considerable 
 period that I have conniianded either a 
 regiment or detachment in His Majesty's 
 service, I have always been extremely par- 
 ticular in enforcing a due observance of the 
 Sabbath, not only from religious motives, 
 but also because I have found it gradually 
 create an orderly and proper deportment in 
 the soldiers, which prevents the necessity 
 of frequent punishment. On the present 
 occasion I was, however, obliged to leave 
 
 c 3 the 
 
 ^ The same occurrence took place at Talavera.
 
 22 
 
 the cliurch to pray for ou^ success ; and 
 this I did with no small degree of confi- 
 dence, when I reflected that the contest we 
 ! were engaged in, was for the preservation 
 of order, religion and liberty to a whole 
 nation, against the unprovoked attacks of a 
 people, whose constant aim and end, for 
 the last twenty years, had been to complete 
 their overthrow. 
 
 The vicinity of Mijas, which is but five 
 English miles from, and in sight of Fian- 
 gerolla, making it necessary to endeavour 
 to cut off the communication between them 
 so as to prevent assistance being sent from 
 ife former to the latter, I therefore pre- 
 vailed on the Spanish commandant to de- 
 tach four companies of his regiment, toge- 
 ther with one hundred Germans, to execute 
 this service, by occupying the angle where 
 two roads or pathways meet, about half a 
 mile from Mijas, and by which the enemy 
 
 must
 
 23 
 
 must pass, there being no other road, and 
 the rocks on each side inaccessible. Captain 
 MuUins, my Brigade Major, volunteered 
 'Conducting this service, and though I gave 
 him positive orders to act only on the de- 
 fensive, the importunities of the Spaniards 
 led him to exceed these orders and to make 
 an attack on the town, where he met a 
 most vigorous and unexpected resistance, 
 that obliged him to fall back rapidly on the 
 main body of the troops. 
 
 Mijas is a small town, containing about 
 one thousand inhabitants, and the approach 
 to it is so difficult, that a very small force 
 may defend it against a very large one. It 
 is situated on the declivity of a rocky hill, 
 the side of which, facing Fiangerolla, is in- 
 accessible, except by a narrow and wind- 
 ing pathway, skirted on one side by a deep 
 rocky ravine. A river runs at the foot of 
 the hill, which divides into two branches, 
 
 c 4 and
 
 m 
 
 and at the point of separation is crossed by 
 an inconvenient brid^^e. 
 
 The castle of Fiangerolhi commanding 
 every point of the beach where boats could 
 put on shore, the landing of the artdlery 
 was obliged to be postponed till night, when 
 it was accomplished in a thunder storm, 
 accompanied by heavy rain, which con- 
 tinued to pour down the whole night, and 
 increased every rivulet to the magnitude of 
 a river. Neither difficulty nor danger could 
 however depress the persevering ardour of 
 the soldiers and sailors, who before day 
 broke had com pleated a battery of two 
 twelve-pounders and a howitzer, at the 
 distance of three hundred and fifty yards 
 from the castle, and on the summit of a 
 rocky hill, the ascent to which is difficult 
 even to an unincumbered individual. An- 
 other battery was also conipleated on the 
 beach with one thirty-two pound carronade. 
 
 The
 
 25 
 
 The whole of the detachment suffered se- 
 verely during this dreadful night, neither 
 officers or men having shelter or rest; those 
 ^only who have been accustomed to tropical 
 rains can form an adequate idea of the 
 torrents that poured down. 
 
 October 15. A little before daylight the 
 advanced piquets were called in ; and as 
 soon as we could see each other, a heavy 
 lire commenced on each side. A shell from 
 our battery bursting killed most of the men 
 at one of the enemy's Funs, and silenced it 
 for some time; our shot also destroyed part 
 of the parapet of the castle, and left the 
 people much exposed to our musquetry, 
 whicli evidently did p,reat execution. The 
 walls were, however, so solid, that our 
 small artillery could make but little im- 
 pression on them ; and, indeed, it would 
 have required twenty-four pounders to make 
 a practicable breach ; nevertheless, from the 
 
 supposed
 
 26 
 
 supposed smallness of the garrison, as at 
 first represented, I hoped that our shells 
 and musquetry a]one would soon oblige it 
 to surrender, unless it received very speedy 
 reinforcements. I was therefore greatly 
 mortified at learning that these reinforce- 
 ments had been received previous to our 
 arrival, and as I had therefore every reason 
 to expect that a sortie would be made, my 
 first object was to place the troops so as to 
 meet it with the greatest possible advantage. 
 At the same time I received information 
 that General Sebastiani was marching from 
 Malaga with a large force, and though 
 again contradicted, this intelligence was 
 soon positively confirmed. 
 
 Lieutenant-Colonel Basset, formerly of 
 the 5th regiment, Lieutenant-Colonel War- 
 rington, and one or two other officers joined 
 us from the Sierras, where they had been 
 employed in an attempt to organize the 
 
 peasants,
 
 27 
 
 peasants, the plan of which had heen sug- 
 gested to the British Government by the 
 Duke of Infantado ; and its advantages 
 would m all probability have been extreme- 
 ly great, had proper attention been paid to 
 the selection of the officers. 
 
 An officer entrusted with a service of this 
 delicate nature, should not only possess an 
 enterprising and active disposition, a know- 
 ledge of mankind, and a perfect acquaint- 
 ance with the language of the country, but 
 his circumstances should also be such as 
 to make him totally dependant on his ta- 
 lents and exertions for advancement. Such 
 persons would have been invaluable in 
 Spain, and many such might doubtless have 
 been found in London, languishing in in- 
 voluntary idleness, who would have been 
 happy to accept such an employment, and 
 by whose exertions the peasantry might 
 Jiave been better organized, and roused to 
 
 a more
 
 28 
 
 a more efficient resistance, vvhicli must 
 have ultimately succeeded in delivering their 
 country from its lawless and cruel invaders. 
 The expulsion of the Moors aflbrds the 
 Spaniards a grand example of what their 
 nation is capable of performing; and this 
 example is deeply impressed on the minds 
 of all classes. In that contest, as well as 
 in the present, the Spaniards were at first 
 defeated ; but the loss of a battle served 
 only io inspire fresh energy, while it taught 
 them to correct their militarv fauhs, and 
 the most perfect success crowned their per- 
 severance. I cannot quit this subject, 
 which perhaps has led me into too long a 
 digression, without doing justice to Captain 
 Miller of the 95th regiment, who being 
 perfectly acquainted with the Spanish lan- 
 guage, had been of the utmost service in 
 uniting the peasantry, and had acquired an 
 extended knowledge of the country in ge- 
 neral
 
 29 
 
 neral, and of the strong passes' of the 
 mountains in particular. The reports of 
 this officer, which I have had diiferent op- 
 portunities of seeing, appeared to he very 
 judicious. 
 
 Another circumstance, in some measure 
 connected with the ahove ohservation, 
 should not he passed over, namely, the 
 large sums advanced hy England for the 
 Spanish cause, and over the expenditure 
 of which no efficient control has heen hi- 
 therto estahlished, whence it is at least 
 possible they may not he always applied to 
 the intended purposes. When I was at 
 Gibraltar a person named Moretti resided 
 there, who assumed the title of Gene- 
 ral, and who was entrusted with the dis- 
 tribution of large sums, in which employ- 
 ment he contrived to enrich himself, until 
 arousing the jealousy or suspicion of the 
 Spanish government, he was recalled to 
 
 Cadiz,
 
 30 
 
 Cadiz, to undergo an enquiry, of the re* 
 suit of which I am ignorant. This soi* 
 disanf General I had formerly seen at 
 Palermo, where he was one of the princi- 
 pal performers in the orchestra of the 
 opera, and an excellent musician. I must 
 do him the justice to say that he appeared 
 to be active and intelligent in his new em- 
 ployment, and his musical talents rendered 
 him peculiarly agreeable to the Spanish 
 ladies, who are great admirers of that art. 
 Here I must claim a general indulgence for 
 the digressions I may be occasionally led into 
 in the course of this narrative, which 
 though not always immediately connected 
 with the main subject, I trust will tend to 
 enliven the otherwise dry recital of mili- 
 tary operations. 
 
 On the certain confirmation of the in- 
 telligence that Sebastiani was marching 
 against us with a large force, I considered 
 
 the
 
 31 
 
 the best means of opposing a successful 
 resistance with my small and badly com- 
 posed detachment. I therefore, in com- 
 pany with Captain Harding, minutely exa- 
 mined the ground ; in doing which we were 
 several times exposed to a heavy fire of 
 musquetry from the castle. I found that 
 the position we occupied was well suited 
 for operations against the latter, but not so 
 for defence against such a superior "force as 
 I had reason to expect, and which my in- 
 telligence stated to be four thousand seven 
 hundred infantry, eight hundred cavalry, 
 and sixteen pieces of artillery, commanded 
 by General Sebastiani in person ; while my 
 whole force now amounted only to fourteen 
 hundred infantry, and three pieces of ar- 
 tillery. The reason already assigned for 
 not landing the artillery by daylight, name- 
 ly, the exposure of the beach to the guns 
 of the castle, operated in like manner to 
 
 prevent
 
 32 
 
 prevent its re-embarkation ; and being de- 
 termined not to abandon it, nothing was 
 left but to make preparations for receiving 
 the enemy in the best manner possible; for 
 this purpose I intended to have made some 
 alterations in our position by occupying a 
 ruined tower, capable of containing about 
 fifty men, having a ridge of hills extending 
 on its right and the sea close behind it ; time 
 was not however allowed me to accomplish 
 this intention. 
 
 At this moment His Majesty's ship Bod- 
 ney, with a Spanish line of battle ship, 
 appeared oft' the coast, and I learnt that 
 they had on board the 82d regiment, one 
 thousand strong, which had been sent 
 from Gibraltar to reinforce me ; my anx- 
 iety to receive them was of course very 
 great, and boats were immediately sent off 
 to assist in landing them. 
 
 My principal fear was that the enemy's 
 
 cavalry
 
 33 
 
 cavalry would charge on the beach and 
 gain our rear ; to prevent which, if pos- 
 sible, I went with Captain Hall in a gun- 
 boat, with the intention of placing two 
 boats on each flank so as to rake the beach ; 
 these boats were so close to the shore that I 
 could have gone and returned in five mi- 
 nutes. During this arrangeuient, a des- 
 perate sortie was made from the castle by 
 about six hundred and fifty infantry and 
 sixtv cavalry, and entirely directed to the 
 left, where the Spanish and other foreign 
 troops were posted, who fled with scarce 
 any resistance, and abandoned the artillery 
 to the enemy. At this moment I observed 
 the boats with the troops had pushed ofT 
 from the ships, and were fast approaching 
 the shore, which gave me hopes of being 
 still able to retrieve the dav, both from the 
 strength of our position, and from my con- 
 fidence in the 82d regiment ; I therefore 
 VOL. I. D immediatelv
 
 34 
 
 immediately formed the 89tli, and, thoiigli 
 consisting of only two hundred and eighty 
 men, retook the guns by the bayonet. In 
 advancing to the charge my horse was 
 wounded, and soon after killed by a second 
 shot, so that I was obliged to charge on 
 foot. After a short but very severe contest, 
 the enemy wheeled and fled ; at the same 
 moment a strong body came running across 
 us in front, drest precisely similar to the 
 Spanish troops, and a cry of " they are 
 " Spa7iiards F' at the same time took place. 
 I therefore ceased firing for a few minutes, 
 both in order to form the troops more re- 
 gularly, and to ascertain whether this body 
 was really Spaniards or French, as well as 
 to economize the ammunition which began 
 to fall short. Unfortunately I was not 
 supported by the artillery, now again in 
 our possession, and the enemy had only 
 blown up a part of the ammunition, leav- 
 ing
 
 
 ing several loose rounds of grape in the 
 battery, which, had they been employed, 
 must have done great execution. Being 
 (dismounted I could not go to the left suffi- 
 ciently quick to ascertain vrhether the ap- 
 proaching body vv^ere French or Spaniards : 
 I soon, however, observed a column close 
 in from the left, on whose caps I perceived 
 the number 4 with an eagle, and which 
 proved to be the quatrieme Polonois. The 
 troops with me, after firing a few rounds, 
 charged this column, and a very severe 
 conflict ensued, which unfortunately ended 
 in my being made prisoner, having but 
 nine men remaining of those that advanced 
 w^ith me. 
 
 Those only who have suffered a similar 
 fate can form any idea of my sensations at 
 being thus obliged to surrender to a fero- 
 cious banditti, who loaded me with every 
 vile epithet, but in whose outrageous vio- 
 
 D 2 lence
 
 36 
 
 leiice I in great measure found my personal 
 safety, for they crowded so thick on me 
 that they had not room to give force to 
 their blows. They tore my cloaths, rifled 
 my pockets, and attempted to pull off my 
 epaulets, and the resistance I made to this 
 last indignity procured me several blows 
 from the butt ends of their muskets, that 
 covered me with contusions. I was indeed 
 probably indebted for my life to a Lieute- 
 nant Petit, of the Polish regiment, who 
 opportunely came up on horseback ; he was 
 the only French officer in the corps, and 
 his humane and gentlemanly conduct did 
 honour to his country. 
 
 Chap.
 
 37 
 
 CHAPTER IIJ. 
 
 Brutality of the Polish commandant . . . .Reflections on 
 viewing our shipping. ... Proceed to Mijas . . . . 
 Return to Fiangerolla. .. .Interview with General 
 Sebastiani . . . .Proceed for Malag^a. 
 
 On entering tl]e castle I was met by- 
 Captain Makosovitz, a Pole, who com- 
 manded, accompanied by several other 
 officers; the former accosted me in the 
 most brutal language, demanding " if it 
 " was I who had the insolence to send 
 " him in a flag of truce, and who had 
 *' caused so much bloodshed," at the same 
 time pointing to three houses in which the 
 dead bodies were collected. To this I re- 
 pHed, '' that it was to prevent the eflfusioii 
 " of blood that I had sent in a flag of 
 " truce, and that he would indeed have 
 
 D 3 '' had
 
 38 
 
 '* had reason to complain had I not done 
 " so/' The scene that presented itself at 
 this moment can never be effaced from my 
 memory; both officers and soldiers had all 
 the appearance of those desperate banditti 
 described in romances; their long mous- 
 tachios, their faces blackened by smoke 
 and gunpowder, and their bloody and torn 
 cloaths, giving to their whole appearance 
 a degree of indescribable ferocity. Mako- 
 sovitz conducted me up stairs with the 
 other officers made prisoners, and the 
 scene here was worse than that below, 
 the surgeons being employed in dressing 
 the officers, of whom scarce one escaped 
 without a wound or contusion. More me- 
 lancholy from the thoughts of my capti- 
 vity than from the pain of my bruises, 
 which was however sufficiently acute, I 
 went on the rampart, from whence I had 
 a full view of the shipping. The fort was 
 
 still
 
 39 
 
 still firing at the Rodney, and at the boats 
 with the troops, which approached close 
 to the shore. A few minutes would have 
 brought them to my assistance, and they 
 would certainly have changed the fortune 
 of the day in my favour ; but fate ordered 
 it otherwise. While thus absorbed in my 
 ow-n melancholy reflections, I could not 
 help exclaiming, as I looked on the Hod- 
 ney and Topa%e, there is the ship where a 
 few days since I dined in social friendship, 
 and there the frigate which brought me to 
 this shore, rejoicing in the sanguine hope 
 of serving my country ; all on board them 
 are free, while I am doomed to pass an 
 indefinite period in captivity, deprived of 
 the society of all those who are dear to me 
 in the world ! What, thought I, will my 
 country say of my failure, or how will it 
 appreciate my conduct in this unfortunate 
 day ? Will not the people, who too often 
 
 D 4 estimate
 
 40 
 
 estimate merit by success, will they not 
 overlook the insurmountable difficulties I 
 had to encounter, and consider want of 
 success as want of merit : although hither- 
 to fortunate in every enterprize with which 
 I have been charged, and thought worthy 
 the approbation of my superior officers, 
 will not these successes be sunk in oblivion, 
 while my present failure is alone remem- 
 bered ? 
 
 From the indulgence of this melancholy 
 sohloquy I was roused by the Pohsh com- 
 mandant slapping me violently on the 
 shoulder, and addressing me with, " Allons, 
 '' camarade, venc7^ hoire un coup d'eau de 
 " vie ; vous netes pas chez vans ! " — Indeed 
 this observation was too literally true, for 
 I never felt less at home in my life. I ac- 
 companied him however to a room, in 
 which every thing was in disorder, and 
 where officers and soldiers were promiscu- 
 ously
 
 41 
 
 ousiy helping themselves to agun ardiente, 
 from jars, while a succession of ruffians was 
 every moment entering and displaying the 
 ?poils taken from our unfortunate soldiers 
 made prisoners, or drest in the clothes and 
 accoutrements stripped from the dead ; the 
 entrance of each of these plunderers vv^as 
 loudly applauded by bravos from the whole 
 assembly. In order to shew their good 
 fellowship, some one or other of this ban- 
 ditti would every moment slap me on the 
 back, crying, " Allans^ camarade, buvons, 
 *' buvo?is !" The torment I suffered from 
 my bruises, which produced a spitting of 
 blood, was much increased by these acts of 
 manual kindness ; nevertheless, knowing I 
 should meet no commiseration, I concealed 
 my feelings and suffered in silence ; and 
 accepted some agua ardiente and water, 
 which was the first thing I had tasted 
 for twenty-four hours. ^'* 
 
 As
 
 42 
 
 As soon as an opportunity occurred of 
 conversing with my fellow prisoners, we na- 
 turally began to enquire into the causes of 
 our capture; when I learned that most of the 
 Germans had deserted to the enemy. Having 
 rested nearly two hours in the castle, I was, 
 with the rest of the prisoners, ordered to 
 Mijas, and after being paraded, we set oft' 
 with a strong escort of cavalry and infantry ; 
 Ensign Hopper and the rest of the wounded 
 remaining in the castle. Lieutenant Petit, 
 of whom I have before spoken, provided 
 me with a horse, and the other officers were 
 furnished with mules or asses. On our 
 arrival at Mijas the officers were sent to a 
 public house, and the soldiers confined in 
 the prison. I was particularly honoured 
 by having four centinels placed over me^ 
 besides a Polish officer for a companion. 
 The good people of the house in which I 
 was billeted, were all kindness and huma- 
 nity.
 
 43 
 
 nity; they immediately brought me some 
 vinegar to wash my contusions, and drest 
 me some eggs. Whenever the Polish offi- 
 qpr quitted the room, the mother and daugh- 
 ter would enter, and sympathising in my 
 misfortune, would lament it with tears in 
 their eyes. Here I passed the first part of 
 a miserable night ; for at three o'clock in 
 the morning (October 16), I was called up 
 to return to Fiangerolla to meet General 
 Sebastiani. Though in the greatest pain I 
 was oblis^ed to mount a horse, and was 
 escorted by one hundred dragoons, and 
 several officers, while the rest of the pri- 
 soners w^ere ordered to proceed direct to 
 Malaga. 
 
 On approaching Fiangerolla, I observed 
 the General surrounded by a large body of 
 troops, and was immediately presented to 
 him. After the first salutation, he en- 
 quired what had become of my sword, and 
 
 on
 
 44 
 
 on my answering that I supposed some of 
 the officers or soldiers had it in their pos- 
 session, General Milhaw instantly took oft' 
 his own and presented it to me, saying, 
 *' Monsieur le General, here is one which 
 ** has been employed in all the campaigns 
 " against the Austrians, Russians, and 
 *(c Prussians, and it is now much at your 
 " service." This speech, though tinctured 
 with the vanity natural to a Frenchman, 
 was applauded by the bravos of both officers 
 and soldiers who were within hearing ; I 
 accepted the sword, and indeed felt some- 
 what gratified at being paid such a public 
 compliment by an enemy. 
 
 I begged permission of the General to 
 visit the scene of action, which was readily 
 granted, and two of his aides de camp, one 
 of whom was his brother, were directed to 
 accompany me. The scene was such as a 
 recent field of battle usually exhibits ; it 
 V. was
 
 45 
 
 was^ strewed with the naked and terribly 
 mangled bodies of the soldiers of both par- 
 ties. Such a scene would probably have lost 
 much of its effect on my feelings, had for- 
 tune favoured instead of deserting me ; but 
 now the melancholy reflections on my situa- 
 tion, almost made me regret not having 
 shared the fate of the gallant fellows that 
 had fallen around me. On my return from 
 the field I entered into conversation with 
 the General, who, as well as his aides de 
 camp, soon recollected me as having served 
 in Egypt ; and their attentions from this 
 time were redoubled. 
 
 Quitting Fiangerolla we passed through 
 a very mountainous country, and by a 
 rugged pathway, not deserving the name 
 of road, and which skirting the sea, I had 
 still the mortification of contemplating our 
 shipping cruising in the offing, and ob- 
 served that they had been joined by the 
 
 Circe
 
 46 
 
 Circe frigate. The manner in which the 
 French conveyed their artillery through 
 this mountainoas track is worthy of notice; 
 two light pieces balancing each other are 
 slung one on each side of a mule, their 
 carriages are carried in hke manner on 
 another, and the ammunition boxes which 
 are moveable on a third. 
 
 After passing through the romantic vil- 
 lage of -Belameda, we arrived at Torre a 
 Molinas, a small toy»^n with about fifteen 
 hundred inhabitants. Here we put up at the 
 house of a priest, in which w^e found every 
 thing clean and comfortable, and the Ge- 
 neral's staff and some other officers, in all 
 thirty-six persons, sat down to an excel- 
 lent breakfast of cold and hot meats, pies, 
 &c. At this place the detachment from 
 Mij as joined us, and the officers signed a 
 parole ; this, however, seemed to be a very 
 useless formality, for they were escorted by 
 
 a strong
 
 47 
 
 a strong detaclimentj in the centre of 
 which they were placed ; a necessary pre- 
 caution, as it was affirmed, to prevent their 
 falling into the hands of the brigands, 
 whose parties were represented as formi- 
 dable in this part of the country. Their 
 concern lest I should straggle, and fall in 
 with any of these bands was so great, that 
 although I had also given my parole I was 
 always attended by an officer, who repeat- 
 edly assured me that he accompanied me 
 solely from this apprehension. It is easy 
 to conceive how much I differed from him 
 on this subject, for though I was well 
 treated by the General and his staff, no 
 condemned culprit ever looked with more 
 anxiety to a rescue, than I did to the ap- 
 pearance of a formidable body of brigands 
 coming to my relief Discretion, however, 
 directed me to conceal my hopes and wishes, 
 and although I did not believe a word of 
 
 my
 
 48 
 
 my companion's assurances, I replied to 
 them all with a *' Monsieur, vous 4tes hien 
 " bon ! '* and on his repeating his expres- 
 sions of care and tenderness for my safety, 
 I could only change the note to ^' Monsieur, 
 ** vous etes bien aimab/e ! " at which it was 
 impossihle for him to forbear smiling, while 
 he persisted in his absurd declamations. 
 However it may be with their other quali- 
 ties, we must cede to the French the palm 
 of dissimulation, in which indeed they are 
 perfect masters ; they not only justify 
 and glory in the grossest deceit, but often 
 gain the approbation of the spectators, by 
 srlossins: it over with the name of finesse. 
 
 Within a few Ic-igues of Malaga the 
 country totally changed its appearance. 
 Instead of the rugged mountains and bar- 
 ren rocks over which we had hitherto 
 passed, we now entered a most luxuriant 
 and highly cultivated plain, covered with 
 
 gardens
 
 49. 
 
 gardens and vineyards, and dotted with 
 handsome villas, of which the facades 
 having generally a colonnade gave them a 
 rich and, at the same time, a rural appear- 
 ance. We crossed the Rio Guadajo by a 
 ford, where the water was up to our 
 saddle skirts, though at times it is nearly 
 dry, being like all streams in the vicinity of 
 mountains subject to very sudden rises and 
 falls. At this river it was that Captain 
 Hall proposed leading the troops to attack 
 Malaga by a coup de main ; I now found 
 that my objections to this plan had been 
 perfectly well founded, for here is an ex- 
 tensive plain in which cavalry could act to 
 the greatest advantage, and the enemy had 
 in and about Malaga, a large and well 
 appointed force of that description. 
 
 VOL. I.
 
 50 
 
 CHAPTER IV. 
 
 Malasa. 
 
 'o" 
 
 We entered Malaga amidst a great con- 
 course of people, by a wide and handsome 
 street, that leads to the Mole and harbour. 
 Our cavalcade passing through the streets 
 had an imposing appearance, which could 
 not but annoy me. Circumstanced as the 
 French are in Spain, every species of mili- 
 tary parade is politic, and besides it costs 
 them nothing, for the inhabitants are 
 obliged to defray all expenses of this na- 
 ture, and indeed the contributions levied on 
 the people of Malaga were at this time 
 enormous and loudly complained of. 
 
 The disagreeable sensation of being gazed 
 at by the multitude, increased by observing 
 
 that
 
 51 
 
 that the General seemed to wish to exhibit 
 the prisoners, for the mere gratification of 
 his vanity, made me anxious to get under 
 tjover, and I would indeed have given any 
 thing to have been allowed to retire quietly 
 and indulge my melancholy reflections, as 
 well as to procure the rest and tranquillity 
 necessary to the state of my health. These 
 consolations were, however, denied me, for 
 on entering the house appropriated to the 
 General, we found it filled with public 
 functionaries, waiting to pay their respects 
 to him. I was obliged to submit to the 
 fatigue and plague of a ceremonious intro- 
 duction to this assembly, and afterwards to 
 sit down with a large party to dinner, which, 
 according to the French custom, was very 
 short, not exceeding three quarters of an 
 hour at table. In this respect the French 
 and English diflfer greatly : — the short 
 dinners of the former are far from being to 
 
 E 2 the
 
 52 
 
 the taste of the latter when in health 
 and spirits. Amongst the guests was 
 Mr. Kilpatrick, a Scotch gentleman of 
 excellent character, who had long been 
 established here in a commercial line, and 
 acted as American Consul. After dinner I 
 accompanied this gentleman to his house, 
 where I found a large party, or conver^a- 
 tione, assembled, and the solicitations of 
 my host obliged me to remain and partake 
 of an elegant supper, at which thirty per- 
 sons sat down. ; 
 The following morning (October 17)> I 
 rose early, being anxious to see the state of 
 the fortifications towards the sea, and for 
 that purpose I proceeded to the Mole, and 
 found that, instead of the guns having been 
 removed from it, it had a formidable bat- 
 tery of fourteen twenty-four pounders in 
 excellent order, with furnaces for heating 
 shot 5 and the Mole not being more than 
 
 the
 
 53 
 
 the height of a frigate's quarter-deck above 
 the water, I am convinced no fleet could 
 hope for success in attacking it ; and be- 
 vond all doubt the little squadron from 
 which I landed would have ran the risk 
 of almost certain destruction in the attempt. 
 I felt therefore happy that I had resisted 
 the proposals to that eft'ect. 
 
 From the Mole I walked to a spot from 
 whence I had a good view of the citadel, a 
 very strong work, well situated on an emi- 
 nence, though said to be commanded, 
 which, together with its supposed defence- 
 less state as reported by persons who had 
 long resided here, led to the general belief 
 at Gibraltar that little difliculty would be 
 met with in its reduction ; on the contrary, 
 however, the citadel was in the most perfect 
 state, mounting thirty-six pieces of heavy 
 ordnance, six twelve pounders, and four 
 mortars, with military stores and provisions 
 
 E 3 for
 
 54 
 
 for a garrison of two thousand men for 
 two or three months ; besides, the emi- 
 nence which commands it is distant fourteen 
 hundred yards. In short, it was at this 
 time capable of holding out against an 
 army thrice the number of its garrison for 
 a considerable time. From this specimen 
 we may judge of the little dependance to 
 be placed on the information received from 
 the Spaniards ; and this inaccuracy is the 
 less easy to be accounted for, when we re- 
 collect that the inhabitants of the country 
 being generally loyalists their reports may 
 reasonably be supposed worthy of credit ; 
 the contrary has, however, been too gene-, 
 rally the case, as is evident from the expe^ 
 rience of Sir John Moore, and indeed of 
 every person who has been connected with 
 the Spaniards during the present struggle. 
 It appears but justice to attribute this effect 
 rather to the too hasty judgments of an 
 
 over
 
 55 
 
 over ardent zeal, than to any intention to 
 mislead, for though the Spaniards may have 
 many faults as a people, they possess a dis- 
 tinguished place among modern nations for 
 honour, and a strict adherence to truth. 
 
 Having finished my promenade, I went 
 by invitation to breakfast with the Gover- 
 nor, whom I found to be a Frenchman, 
 and not behind any of his compatriots in 
 volubility of speech, or rather incessant 
 rattle. By the General's peraiission, in 
 the course of the forenoon, I sent on board 
 the squadron for my baggage ; for hitherto 
 I had been dependant on the General for 
 changes of linen, having with me only the 
 suit of cloaths in which I was made pri- 
 soner. I also took this opportunity of de- 
 tailing our situation by letter. A numerous 
 party were invited to meet me at dinner at 
 Mr. Kilpatrick's, and though I wished 
 for quietness, yet politeness and propriety 
 
 E 4 obliged
 
 56 
 
 obliged me to join a party assembled on 
 my account. 
 
 On the morning of the 18th I received 
 a notification to prepare to proceed imme- 
 diately to Grenada with General Sebas- 
 tiani, a journey which I endeavoured to 
 get excused from on account of my ill 
 health, but without success ; the General 
 in the politest manner stating the impossi- 
 bility of my remaining at Malaga, and 
 offering me a carriage if I found myself 
 unable to ride. Our short stay at Malaga 
 afforded me little opportunity of gaining 
 information respecting it : I observed, 
 however, that the favourable impression of 
 its beauty received on entering it, by the 
 handsome street I have mentioned, is soon 
 done away, the greater part of the other 
 streets being narrow and crooked. The 
 Plaza Mayor itself is by no means wor- 
 thy of its name : — it has, however, in the 
 
 centre
 
 centre a handsome marble fountain. The 
 cathedral and custom-house are worthy of 
 the traveller's notice ; the latter is a new 
 edifice on an extensive and noble plan. The 
 antiquary will find in this town the remains 
 of a Roman temple. 
 
 The population of Malaga is between 
 thirty and forty thousand souls, and though 
 it still retains some external appearance of 
 its former prosperity, it is but the unsub- 
 stantial shadow of departed reality. The 
 total cessation of commerce, and the losses 
 consequent on the war, have produced in- 
 numerable bankruptcies and universal dis- 
 tress ; the port, which is daily growing 
 shallower from the mud carried into it by 
 the Gua del Medina, has lost all appear- 
 ance of commercial life, some fishing boats 
 alone being seen in movement, while a 
 few polacres, feluccas, and other smaller 
 vessels are laid up rotting. What a con- 
 trast
 
 58 
 
 trast with the former flourishing commerce 
 of this city, whose annual exports were 
 valued at near half a million sterling in 
 wines, brandy, oil, fruits, anchovies, and 
 some silks. Its imports, which consisted in 
 woollens, hardware, cheese, butter, and 
 salt fish, did not exceed half the value of its 
 exports. Such have been the desolating 
 effects of the unprovoked and unjustifiable 
 invasion of the French, which, if success- 
 ful, must shake the throne of every legi- 
 timate prince of Europe ; for who shall 
 then dare setting bounds to the ambition of 
 Buonaparte, or say to him, *' thus far 
 " shalt thou go, and no farther ?'*
 
 »9 
 
 CHAPTER V. 
 
 Brigands .... March from Malaga to Grenada. . . . 
 Torcal .... Antequera .... Sierra de los Amaraos 
 . . . . Archidona .... Moorish castles .... Loxa, La- 
 chao, Santa Fe. 
 
 The wounded having been provided 
 for, the prisoners were marched off from 
 Malaga early in the morning, and at half 
 past ten o'clock a body of one thousand 
 cavalry, composed of the 16th dragoons, 
 a regiment of Lanciers Polonois and de- 
 tachments of other corps were paraded, 
 and a number of carriages and baggage- 
 waggons drawn out for departure. Having 
 no desire to exhibit myself in this pageant, 
 I requested and received permission to pro- 
 ceed through a different part of the town, 
 half a league outside of which I was to 
 
 join
 
 60 
 
 join the General. Monsieur Lavoisteen, 
 one of his aides-de-camp, with an escort, 
 was ordered to accompany me, and we 
 joined him at the appointed place. To 
 my surprise I found the road equal to 
 any turnpike road in England, contrary to 
 our information at Gibraltar, which stated 
 it to be generally broken up by the bri- 
 gands, who were said to be in such force 
 as to keep the French in continual alarm. 
 In fact, the' country being extremely 
 mountainous and the passes difficult, even 
 an irregular body of this nature might 
 have resisted all the attempts of the French, 
 and have kept possession of the country, 
 had they taken the necessary precaution to 
 destroy the bridges and break up the roads, 
 neither of which they seem to have thought 
 of. 
 
 A few horsemen appearing on the sum- 
 mit of a hill, a detachment of the Lan- 
 
 ciers
 
 61 
 
 ciers Polonois was ordered to reconnoitre 
 them, while the convoy halted to take some 
 refreshment at a small house on the road 
 side. The Poles ascended the hill with 
 great rapidity, and soon returned with five 
 horses, reporting that they belonged to the 
 brigands, of whom they had killed seven. 
 The General with an air of triumph bid me 
 observe the cattle on which our Allies were 
 mounted, while some of his suite, taking 
 their tone from him, observed, " voila Ics 
 " Allies de V Angleteri-e V^ These animals 
 were indeed most wretched, and a kind of 
 pad on which the country people convey 
 their things to market served for saddles. 
 From this, as well as other circumstances^ 
 I firmlv believe that these bripands were in 
 reality nothing more than a party of inof- 
 fensive peasants, whom the Poles had rob- 
 bed of their horses, in order to corroborate 
 the detail of their prowess ; besides it was 
 
 considered
 
 62 
 
 considered as a sufficient proof of brigand- 
 age for the peasants to be found in the 
 smallest number at any distance from their 
 villages. 
 
 The escort was augmented by a detach- 
 ment of the 10th dragoons near Antequera, 
 where we arrived so late in the evening that 
 the GeneraFs cooks had not time to exert 
 their abilities to the full, and we were 
 obliged to content ourselves with a scanty 
 repast. I could not help remarking the 
 distance at which the General kept the 
 inferior officers, whose stomachs even he 
 appeared to have reduced to discipline ; for 
 though about twenty-six of them sat down 
 to supper at the same time, not one of 
 them touched any thing until the general 
 officers had done. During this repast the 
 Alcaide and principal persons of the town 
 paid their respects to the General, who 
 received them with the greatest affability, 
 
 and
 
 63 
 
 and informed them of the heavy contiibu- 
 tions it would be necessary to lay them 
 under, with such grace and good humour, 
 tj}at they seemed to depart perfectly satis- 
 fied. The manner of the General, indeed, 
 afforded an excellent lesson in the art of 
 levying contributions. 
 
 The distance between Malaga and Ante- 
 quera is eight Spanish leagues, or about 
 thirty-six English miles ; the road ascends 
 the whole way, and is skirted with vine- 
 yards, which afford the well known Malaga 
 wine. The scenery is extremely romantic, 
 being diversified by steep rocks cloathed 
 with wood, fertile and well cultivated val- 
 lies, with abundance of fruit trees, particu- 
 larly almonds, and extensive fields of me- 
 lons. Within a league of Antequera the 
 mountains afford a most singular appear- 
 ance : rocks of various forms are seen as 
 if shaped by art to represent a town, with 
 
 its
 
 64 
 
 its streets, cliurches, towers, houses, foun- 
 tains, &c. together with men, women, and 
 animals, particularly camels ; from the 
 clefts of these rocks shoot out various 
 shrubs and plants, which compleat the ex- 
 traordinary aspect of this spot, called, I 
 believe, Torcal, and celebrated for its 
 beautiful marble. 
 
 Antequera, probably the Anticaria of the 
 Romans, and by some supposed to be built 
 on the ruins of the ancient SirigiHs, is one 
 of the most ancient towns of Spain. It is 
 situated on the declivity of a hill, and is 
 divided into the upper and lower town ; 
 through the latter runs the rivulets of La 
 Villa and Guadalorce, which turn many 
 mills near the town, and also supply it 
 with water from several handsome foun- 
 tains. On the summit of the hill is a 
 Moorish castle, commanding the town, 
 and which the French have put into a 
 
 respectable
 
 65 
 
 respectable state of defence. Antequeni 
 contains between thirteen and fourteen 
 thousand inhabitants ; it has given birth to 
 some celebrated men, particularly Antonio 
 Mohedano, a painter, and Solano Loqiie, 
 a physician, who made some important 
 discoveries in medicine in the last century. 
 My quarters here were at the house of 
 an old priest whose sister and her family re- 
 sided with him, from all of whom I re- 
 ceived the greatest attention and consider- 
 able information. I was indeed dad to ffet 
 away from the General's society as soon as 
 possible after dinner, in order to enjoy a 
 segar in quietness, together with the con- 
 versation of the family on which I was 
 billeted ; and as I was never accompanied 
 by any Frenchman, I was always certain of 
 being received with kindness and without 
 reserve. My desire of retiring fr'<m the 
 General's society was not, however, from 
 
 VOL. I. F rjjjy
 
 66 
 
 any want of attention on his part ; on the 
 contrary, I met with every poHteness, both 
 from him and his suite, and after leaving 
 Malaga my restraint was merely nominal. 
 These attentions I probably owed to my 
 acquaintance with many of tlie ancient 
 French noblesse, of whom Sebastiani, and 
 indeed all other Frenchmen high in station 
 whom I have lately met with, speak with 
 the greatest respect, and are happy when 
 they can trace any relationship to them. 
 The General's staff was generally of this 
 order, and their manners were so engaging 
 and their attentions so polite, that I found 
 myself perfectly at ease amongst them, 
 and came ultimately to be considered as one 
 of the establishment, with the character 
 of a parfaitement hon garcon. Da Cogni, 
 one of the aides-de-camp (of the family of 
 the celebrated Marshal Du Cogni), to 
 whose sister Sebastiani is married, in par- 
 ticular
 
 67 
 
 ticular deserves my warmest remembrance 
 for the liberality of his sentiments and 
 conduct, so different from the herd of 
 ijiodern parvenus. To the Adjutant- Ge- 
 neral de Bouille I was also indebted for 
 much civility ; with this officer I had for- 
 merly been acquainted, when he command- 
 ed the Hulans Britanniques, in the cam- 
 paigns of Holland in 1794 and 1795, the 
 events of which afforded us much matter of 
 conversation. 
 
 Leaving Antequera early in the morning 
 (Oct.l9) we passed through a generally level 
 country, with a few scattered hills, the whole 
 fertile and well cultivated, and arrived at a 
 narrow defile, formed by a high mountain 
 on the left and a lesser one on the right : 
 the former is named Sierra de los Amaraos, 
 or the Lover's Mountain, from a tradi- 
 tional tale that a Moorish prince precipi- 
 tated himself from its summit in despair, 
 
 F 2 at
 
 68 
 
 at being prohibited by his rehgion from 
 marrying a Christian Princess, with whom 
 he had fallen in love. However this may 
 be, the defile would form an excellent mili- 
 tary post for a small detachment. In the 
 course of this day's march I chiefly at- 
 tached myself to General Milhaud, who 
 had distinguished himself during the revo- 
 lution as a cavalry officer. Our conver- 
 sation now, however, chiefly turned on the 
 subject of good living, for the General 
 appeared to be a hon vivant in the utmost 
 extent of the term, and expressed the 
 greatest delight when I happened to hit on 
 a good dish, or made an a propos quotation 
 from the Journal des Gourmcrnds, the bible 
 of French epicures. 
 
 At Archidona we halted to breakfast, 
 which, since leaving Malaga, has always 
 been as substantial a repast as dinner, 
 consisting of rich ragouts and other made 
 
 dishes,
 
 69 
 
 dishes, with all the fruits of the season, 
 but more particularly melons. The wine 
 we have met with on the road has, however, 
 been much inferior to the eatables, but the 
 French seem to have little discrimination 
 in this respect, and therefore swallow it 
 without complaining. A great concourse 
 of people assembled to view our cavalcade, 
 among whom were a number of women, 
 conspicuous for their fine countenances and 
 simple dress. At breakfast we were at- 
 tended by four extremely pretty girls, whom 
 the French officers, to shew their gallantry, 
 pinched and pulled about, until the poor 
 girls were afiaid to approach the table, and 
 although I did not join in tormenting them, 
 I suffered as if I had, and was obliged to 
 assist myself 
 
 Archidona, as well as most of the towns 
 in the Grenadines, is romanticallv situated 
 at the foot of a hill, whose summit is 
 
 F 3 crowned
 
 70 
 
 crowned with a Moorish castle. These 
 places, which compleatly command the 
 towns and overawe the inhabitants, have 
 all been repaired and put into a state of 
 defence by the French. The neglect of the 
 Spaniards, in not occupying the castle at the 
 commencement of the invasion, is totally 
 unaccountable, being from their situations 
 defensible by very small garrisons, and 
 the possession of them would have en- 
 abled the loyalists to annoy the French 
 by that harassing and desultory warfare, 
 by which they suffer more than by pitched 
 battles. Archidona was formerly the pro- 
 perty of the Duke d'Assuyne, but the 
 French Emperor has been graciously pleased 
 to appropriate it to himself, and the in* 
 habitants have the peculiar blessing of 
 enjoying the immediate protection of Na- 
 poleon-le-Grand. ** Ces gens sont assez 
 '^ heureux en, appurtenant pai'ticulierement 
 
 '' a I'Ern-
 
 71 
 
 *< a rEmpei'eur" added Sebastian!, after in- 
 forming me of this circumstance ; " Quel 
 " bonheur !" replied I, and left him to put 
 feis own construction on the ambiguous 
 exclamation. 
 
 From Archidona to Loxa, where we 
 arrived in the evening, the road was indif- 
 ferent, passing through extensive groves of 
 olive trees ; oil, together with saffron, being 
 the principal productions of this part of the 
 country. Loxa is situated on a hill rising 
 from the banks of the Xenil, or Genii ; it 
 contains nothing worth notice, except some 
 extensive saltpetre and copper works. 
 
 We commenced our march from Loxa 
 early in the morning of the 20th (October), 
 and I availed myself of the polite offer of 
 Major Grotowski, commanding the 9th 
 Polonois, to take a seat in his carriage, a 
 great unwieldy machine drawn by eight 
 mules. Besides the Major and two other 
 
 F 4 persons,
 
 72 
 
 persons, we had the company of a Signor 
 Chevarial, a Spaniard, holding a situation 
 under the invading government. There 
 being a pack of cards in the carriage, we 
 played at Trente et Quarante till we reach- 
 ed Lachao, where we halted to breakfast. 
 This village had been totally destroyed by 
 the French, and the greater part of the 
 inhabitants massacred, but was now partly 
 rebuilt. The surrounding country is fertile 
 and well watered by the Xenil, which falls 
 into the Guadalquivir at Seville. 
 
 From Lachao our next stage was Santa 
 Fe, a strong town, where we were joined by 
 Generals Purmurent and Roison, with the 
 12th regiment of dragoons, in order to 
 render Sebastiani's entrance into Grenada 
 more imposing.
 
 ^ CHAPTER VI. 
 
 Grenada . . . .Punishment of the Garroie. . . . Braziers 
 .... Spanish and French repasts .... Theatre .... 
 Spanish comedy . . . .Alhambra. 
 
 Our entry into Grenada was conducted 
 with the greatest parade. After passing 
 through several streets we arrived at the 
 Plaza di Triompha, in which a great con- 
 course of people was assembled, to witness 
 a scene very different from what the name 
 of the place would seem to denote. In the 
 centre of the square is a large gallows, 
 with a staircase to ascend by, and on the 
 right a garrote, the mode of execution by 
 which deserves notice. On a platform are 
 placed a number of stools, with a perpen- 
 dicular post behind each ; the criminal be- 
 ing
 
 74 
 
 ing seated on the stool, an iron collar is 
 placed round his neck, and the executioner 
 by the turn of a screw puts an end to his 
 existence in a moment. This is an old 
 Spanish punishment, and seems to be one 
 of the easiest kinds of death. Scarce a 
 day passes without several similar execu- 
 tions, the sufferers being mostly those 
 whom the French stigmatize with the 
 names of rebels and brigands, but to whom 
 the page of history will accord those of 
 loyalists and patriots. 
 
 Passing from the Plaza di Triompha 
 through some narrow streets, followed by 
 the stupid mob, shouting viva ! viva ! we 
 reached the palace, a large uncomfortable 
 building, formerly the royal residence when 
 the Court visited Grenada, but now occu- 
 pied by Sebastiani. The arrangement of 
 the apartments in this edifice, as well indeed 
 as in most Spanish mansions, is exceed- 
 ingly
 
 75 
 
 ingly inconvenient. Long suites of rooms 
 leading through each other, without any 
 secondary outlet, obliges you to pass 
 tiirough the whole range to reach the 
 innermost ; indeed, the Spaniards have 
 great pride in throwing open all the doors, 
 and affording their visitors an uninterrupted 
 view of a range of saloons. Though the 
 winters are sometimes severe in this part of 
 Spain, the luxury of a fire-side is still un- 
 known, the apartments being warmed by 
 braziers, or large brass pans, two-thirds 
 filled with hot ashes and charcoal, the 
 smell ot which is extremely disagreeable, 
 and the effects injurious to the health ; 
 besides, the degree of heat they afford is 
 but just sufficient to create a wish for 
 more. 
 
 Immediately after our arrival at the pa- 
 lace, Sebastiani was waited on by the chief 
 civil and military authorities, and I was 
 
 conducted
 
 76 
 
 conducted to lodgings assigned me at the 
 house of M. Millones, collector of the 
 contributions for the French, whose wife 
 and family received me with civility, and 
 hoped Cin the common complimentary style) 
 that 1 would consider every thing in their 
 house entirely at my disposal. With respect 
 to their table there was little danger of my 
 presuming much on their invitation, for 
 Spanish repasts are little suited to an Eng- 
 lishman's palate, being chiefly composed of 
 meats swimming in rancid oil, and of lus- 
 cious and cloying sweetmeats, so that even 
 the French, whose stomachs are much 
 more accommodating than ours, (and who, 
 although ils sont des braves gens, are not 
 conspicuous for modesty in declining invi- 
 tations in general,) excuse themselves from 
 those of the Spaniards. 
 
 Having dressed myself as well as the 
 circumstances of my wardrobe would ad- 
 mit, I proceeded to dine at the palace, 
 
 where
 
 77 
 
 where I was certain of finding a repast 
 very different from that of my host's, tlie 
 General's cooks being masters of their art, 
 and so necessary are their services deemed, 
 that three of them alvvavs travel in his 
 suite. Indeed, in every respect the Gene- 
 ral's establishment is superb, and well cal- 
 culated, not only to acquire the respect of 
 the Spaniards, but also to maintain the 
 diffnitv of his elevated situation with his 
 own- troops. He had brought some English 
 cheese and porter from Malaga, as he 
 thought proper to say, for me ; but it ap- 
 peared that the French officers were at 
 least equal amateurs of the latter, and 
 those who tasted it, (^for there was not suffi- 
 cient for all), exclaimed, '^ Dieu, quelle 
 '* est homiCy la hierre port err e !" After 
 dinner I accompanied the General to the 
 theatre; an old building wretchedly fitted 
 up, but which is to be replaced by a mag- 
 nificent
 
 78 
 
 nificent one erected by the French, and 
 whicli it was intended to open on Sebas- 
 tiani's birth-day. The attention of the 
 General to me was here greater than I 
 could have wished, for he insisted on plac- 
 ing me in a crimson and gold chair, pecu- 
 liarly destined for himself, while he occu- 
 pied a common rush bottom one by me ; but 
 the splendour of my seat formed much too 
 great a contrast with my old regimental 
 coat, which had suffered greatly when I 
 was made prisoner. This marked attention 
 to me was, however, probably more poli- 
 tical than sincere ; for the French General 
 who had preceded Sebastiani at Grenada, 
 having treated the Spanish prisoners with 
 the most barbarous severity, Sebastiani now 
 hoped to soften the recollection of these 
 atrocities, by proving that all the officers of 
 his nation did not treat prisoners with the 
 
 same inhumanity. 
 
 The
 
 79 
 
 The piece performed this evening was a 
 long farce, the humour of which, though 
 it would not have saved it from certain 
 damnation on the poorest country stage of 
 England, gave the greatest delight to the 
 Spanish audience. A countryman enters a 
 barber's shop, and bargains with the mas- 
 ter to take off his beard and that of his 
 companion for six quarts.* The barber, 
 however, desires to see this companion be- 
 fore he commences on the countryman, but 
 this the latter slily avoids, and the barber 
 proceeds and finishes the operation. The 
 countryman then goes out to seek his com- 
 panion, and immediately returns with an 
 ass, which put the audience into an extacy 
 of delight : the barber hesitates at first to 
 fulfil his bargain, but, sooner than lose his 
 money, at last fixes his shaving cloth under 
 
 the 
 
 * A copper coin not quite the value of a halfpenny.
 
 80 
 
 the animal's cbin, and is about to com-* 
 mence, when another traveller enters and 
 interrupts him, &c. A judgment may be 
 formed of the Spanish comedies in general 
 from this specimen, few of them having a 
 more rational plot to recommend them. 
 The house was miserably lighted, but as 
 the cliief motive of a number of the spec- 
 tators for frequenting it seemed to be 
 founded on gallantry, this darkness visible 
 was convenient. From the theatre I retired 
 immediately to bed, and rested well in spite 
 of damp sheets and bugs : I had indeed of 
 late been so much accustomed to compa- 
 nions of this description, that I should 
 now have almost felt myself solitary with- 
 out them. The following morning I felt 
 much pain, and was seized with a spit- 
 ting of blood, caused by the exercise of 
 riding in my bruised state. 1 was not, 
 "however, allowed to remain quiet, being 
 
 expected
 
 81 
 
 expected to breakfast at the General's, 
 where a large company always assembled 
 at eleven o'clock, and this repast, which 
 . was almost as substantial as the dinner, was 
 at noon. These dejeunes a la fourchette, 
 which are now universal among the French, 
 have the disagreeable consequence of mak- 
 ing those unused to them heavy and in- 
 capable of exertion during the rest of 
 the day. 
 
 After breakfast the General proposed a 
 ride to the Alhambra, a palace of the 
 Moorish kings, of which I had heard and 
 read so much that I was very anxious to 
 visit it. It is situated on the summit of a 
 hill which entirely commands the town, 
 and whose foot is washed by the rivers 
 Darro and Xenil. The sides of the hill 
 are covered with wood, and the ascent is 
 so steep, that it has been necessary to form 
 a winding road up to the palace. The 
 VOL. I. G entrance
 
 82 
 
 entrance to this vast pile is through a 
 Moorish archway, surmounted by a square 
 tower, which is called the gate of judg- 
 ment : over the gate is a key in marble, 
 and above it at a little distance a hand, 
 the meaning of which device is said to be 
 that the fortress will be taken by the enemy 
 when the hand takes hold of the key. 
 
 The first apartments w^e entered were 
 the chambers of audience and of justice, 
 neither of which are so large as might have 
 been expected from the purposes to which 
 they were assigned. The floors are compos- 
 ed of a kind of mosaic, and from the ceilings 
 project a variety of fantastic figures. We 
 next entered a gallery of an oblong form but 
 not large, containing several pictures of the 
 Moorish and Christian kings of Spain ; and 
 from hence we proceeded to the apartments 
 of the royal family, in each of which, in an 
 alcove, is a fountain for water, and near the 
 
 alcove
 
 S3 
 
 alcove an elevation of curious workmanship 
 in porcelain, on which the bed was placed. 
 The queen's dressing room is a most sin- 
 gular apartment, arjd affords great scope 
 for conjecture respecting the dress and orna- 
 ments of the Moorish princesses. In this 
 cabinet is a marble urn, pierced with small 
 apertures to emit the vapours of the per- 
 fumes that were kent continually burning 
 in it. To this suite of apartments are at- 
 tached three baths, the king's, queen's, 
 and royal children's, and a music hall, 
 surrounded by an elevated gallery, in which 
 I suppose the audience sat while the or- 
 chestra was placed in the centre. From 
 these apartments we descended into an 
 oblong court paved v/ith white marble, and 
 surrounded by a gallery supported by mar- 
 ble columns. The walls and ceilino; of the 
 gallery are covered with mosaic, grotesque 
 paintings, and figures of stucco in relief, 
 
 G 2 of
 
 84 
 
 of delicate workmanship, intermixed with 
 Arabic sentences from the koran. The 
 middle of this court is occupied by a large 
 bason of running water deep enough to 
 swim in, and which served as a bath for 
 the royal household. It is surrounded by 
 orange trees and liowers. Descending a 
 few steps from this court we entered ano- 
 ther, on one side of which is the chamber 
 of execution, having in the middle a mar- 
 ble bason about three feet deep, sloping 
 gradually inwards, on the edge of which 
 the victims were decapitated, and the blood 
 received into the bason. 
 
 Some of the apartments have been fitted 
 up in the modern style by Sebastiani, which 
 certainly is no proof of his good taste, for 
 a Parisian salon or boudoir in a Moorish 
 palace five hundred years old, is almost as 
 absurd as dressing an antique statue in the 
 costume of a modern jje^zY maitre. We 
 
 next
 
 85 
 
 next visited the garden, which is well 
 stocked with a variety of fruit trees : — it 
 was now putting into order, having been 
 ^jeglected since the disturbances in the 
 country. Crossing the court on our return 
 from the garden, I observed at some dis- 
 tance the statues of Ferdinand and Isa- 
 bella. 
 
 The Alhambra is surrounded by a high 
 wall, flanked with towers and a kind of 
 bastions, in which the cannon are mount- 
 ed, pointing towards the city, to overawe 
 the inhabitants into tranquillity. Looking 
 over the parapet of the wall, a view of the 
 whole town and of the neighbouring coun- 
 try, which is highly cultivated, and pleas- 
 ingly diversified with hills and vallies, pre- 
 sents itself, while the villages seen on every 
 side with their churches give a lively appear- 
 ance to the whole landscape. 
 
 Near to the Alhambra is a magnificent 
 
 G 3 modern
 
 86 
 
 modern palace, commenced by Charles the 
 Fifth, but still unfinished. It occupies a 
 considerable extent of ground with no other 
 buildings near it, except a few temporary 
 erections for the accommodation of the 
 workmen. Its figure is nearly a perfect 
 square, each face having a superb entrance 
 differently ornamented. On that which 
 fronts the south-west are three large oval 
 bronze plates, the one on * the right repre- 
 senting the labours of Hercules, and the 
 other two ancient battles. The windows 
 are bordered with black marble, and 
 the key-stones represent eagles' heads. 
 Round the whole building, at equal 
 distances, are heads of lions, with an 
 immense bronze ring in the mouth of 
 each. The Cour des Lions is an ob- 
 long square, one hundred feet by fifty. 
 It is surrounded by a gallery supported on 
 slender columns of white marble, coupled 
 
 two
 
 87 
 
 two and two, and of very delicate work- 
 manship. The walls of the gallery are co- 
 vered with arahesque painting and gilding, 
 in stucco, elegantly executed, which have 
 received some injury. A handsome cupola, 
 fifteen or sixteen feet each way, is placed 
 at both ends of this court, and in the centre 
 is a large bason, in the middle of which is 
 a beautiful cupola of alabaster six feet high, 
 supported by several lions of marble, and 
 surmounted by a lesser cupola, from which 
 issues a superb jet <feau. Several other 
 jets d'eait throw up columns of water to 
 considerable heights. In short, the whole 
 plan of this palace is magnificent, and well 
 worthy the elevated ideas of the monarch 
 by whom it was commenced. We have, 
 however, to regret that it is not only left 
 unfinished, but is also suffering daily injury 
 from total neglect. 
 
 Above the Alhambra the French have 
 
 G 4 formed
 
 88 
 
 formed a strong and tolerably extensive 
 field work, which commands the whole 
 summit of the hill. 
 
 On our return from the Alhambra I 
 found the prisoners taken with me had 
 arrived ; they spoke in the highest terms of 
 the treatment they met with from the offi- 
 cers of their escort belonging to the 32d 
 and 58th regiments, who always ceded to 
 them the place of honour at table, and 
 shewed them every other mark of polite 
 attention. These regiments had heen warm- 
 ly engaged at the battle of Talavera, and 
 with the greatest liberality of sentiment did 
 ample justice to the gallant conduct of our 
 troops on that memorable day. I had, in- 
 deed, many opportunities of observing, on 
 our march, the superior liberality of the 
 French officers and soldiers, to the Ger- 
 mans and Spaniards in the French service ; 
 both of the latter conducting themselves to- 
 wards
 
 89 
 
 wardstheir prisoners with the most unmanly 
 brutality, while the former treated the sol- 
 diers with humanity, and the officers with 
 politeness and attention. Doubtless, these 
 mercenary Germans and rebel Spaniards 
 hope to recommend themselves to their 
 French masters, by the ferocity of their be- 
 haviour to their defenceless prisoners ; no 
 such effect, however, was produced, at least 
 on the officers of our escort, who expressed 
 a sovereign contempt both for the Germans 
 and Spaniards, but more particularly for 
 the former. 
 
 Our officers were at first jrranted their 
 parole, but in a day or two they were again 
 deprived of it, and confined in the Alham- 
 bra with the soldiers and seamen, by order 
 of Marshal Soult ; for my own part, I en- 
 joyed perfect liberty to employ my time as I 
 thouglit proper. The evenings I usually 
 passed at the Duchess of Goa's tertuiias, 
 or routs, which were always well attended, 
 
 and
 
 90 
 
 and the play tolerably deep. General Se- 
 bastian!, in particular, staked high, but 
 apparently more from ostentation than any 
 love of play. The most usual games were 
 Pharo, at which the deal went round, 
 Bouillotte and Monte. Madame d'Aguil- 
 lac, whose husband holds a lucrative place 
 under the French government in Spain, 
 also saw company in the evenings, and I 
 frequently made one of her party. -
 
 91 
 
 CHAPTER VII. 
 
 Grenada. . . .Plain of Grenada. . . .Colonial produc- 
 tions of Andalusia . . . .Poles . . . .Praises of Buona- 
 parte . . . .Spanish ball and pastimes .... Pets .... 
 Convent of Chartreux . , . .Carera theatre . . . .Bon 
 mot . . . .Breakfast a la Proxenqale. 
 
 Grenada is deliglitfully situated on 
 two hills, at the extremity of a beautiful 
 plain, called the Vega de Grenada. The 
 rivers Darro and Xenil, which fertilize the 
 plain, run through the town ; they are 
 both mountain streams, fordable almost 
 every where in summer, but subject to sud- 
 den rises, which often carry away the 
 bridges and do other damage. The plain 
 is about thirty leagues in circumference, and 
 is surrounded by mountains, whose sum- 
 mits, capped with snow throughout the 
 
 year.
 
 92 
 
 year, are seen at twenty leagues distance 
 from land in the Mediterranean. To 
 seamen these mountains are generally 
 known by the name of the Grenadines. 
 Besides the two .rivers already mentioned, 
 the plain has three others, named the Diler, 
 the Vogro, and the Monachil : this abun- 
 dance of water and the gentle declivity of 
 the ground enables the inhabitants to carry 
 irrigation to perfection, the result of which 
 is a perpetual vegetation and verdure, and 
 a most exuberant production of grapes, 
 olives, mulberries, lemons, oranges, and 
 the sugar-cane. The climate of Andalusia 
 is peculiarly favourable to the cultivation 
 of the latter, and is equally calculated for 
 the production of other tropical vegetables. 
 The sugar made from the canes of this pro- 
 vince is of the best quality, and near Ma- 
 laga and at other places are considerable 
 sugar works. The quantity of colonial 
 ' produce
 
 93 
 
 produce which may be derived from Anda- 
 lusia, is in itself a sufficient motive for our 
 using every exertion to prevent its remain- 
 ing under the power of France ; for there 
 can be no doubt that it would in a very 
 short time become a most formidable ri- 
 val to our West India colonies, if that 
 power was to enjoy the quiet possession of it. 
 Possessing an extensive coast both on the 
 Ocean and Mediterranean, with many good 
 harbours, or safe roads for shipping, the 
 facility of export would reduce the price of 
 its produce to foreign merchants, while by 
 inland navigation it would be conveyed to 
 the interior with equal advantage, and safe 
 from the danger of being intercepted by our 
 cruisers. 
 
 While at Grenada I occasionally break- 
 fasted with Major Growtowski of the 9th 
 Polonois, with whom I had formed an in- 
 timacy, as well as with some other officers 
 
 of
 
 94 
 
 of the same corps, who were in general 
 persons of rank and property in Poland, 
 and whose polite manners had procured 
 them a favourable reception at Grenada. 
 The conversation between the Major and 
 myself often turned on politics, and when- 
 ever I expressed my surprise that a warlike 
 nation, with a population of fifteen millions, 
 a large army of hardy troops, and a com- 
 pact territory, capable by its nature of an 
 easy defence, should submit to a foreign 
 dominion, his answer always was, " that 
 " of two evils the Poles chose the least; for 
 " that if they were not allies of France, 
 " they would probably become the slaves 
 ** of Russia; that they were under obliga- 
 *' tions to the former, for havinj?; in some 
 " measure restored them their countrv ; 
 ** and finally that every Pole, abhorring the 
 *' unjust partition of their kingdom, na- 
 *' turally felt the most implacable hatred 
 
 '' for
 
 95 
 
 " for the sharers in the spoils, and there- 
 *' fore thought any alternative better than 
 " subjection to them." These sentiments 
 I eould, however, easily perceive, proceeded 
 from the temporary impression made on 
 the Major by constantly hearing extolled 
 the grandeur of the French empire, and 
 the munificence of its sovereign. Indeed, 
 nothing could be more tiresome than the 
 eternal praises of the Emperor, which form- 
 ed the chief topic of conversation at Sebas- 
 tiani's parties. With a solemnity of coun- 
 tenance and a measured tone, so conspi- 
 cuous in French oratory, the General 
 would every day at table treat us with a 
 panegyric on the virtues and exploits of his 
 master, of which the following was usually 
 the burthen ; '* Messieurs , V Einpereitr est 
 *' un homme sans d^faut^ cest le seul 
 ** homme cm monde avec taut de pouvoir a 
 " qui per Sonne ne pent faire la moindre re^ 
 
 a 
 
 pr 
 
 oche.'
 
 96 
 
 " proche.'' Or, *' Messieurs, VEmpereur 
 " est le plus grand liomme, le plus grand 
 
 J/ her OS qui a jamais paru;^' and then he 
 would draw a comparison with Cesar or 
 Alexander, both of whom, of course, were 
 imbeciles to Napoleon. At length I got so 
 disgusted with this nonsense, that finding 
 no hero in Grecian or Roman history equal 
 to Buonaparte, I sought to match him in 
 more remote antiquity, and compared him 
 to Nimrod, who was a mighty one on the 
 earth, and a mighty hunter before the 
 
 . Lord. The ridicule which this comparison 
 threw on the subject produced the effect I 
 wished, in preventing a repetition of such 
 fulsome panegyrics, both in the General's 
 societies and in the other circles where his 
 suite retailed his oratorical declamations 
 respecting the French monarch. 
 
 Hitherto the whole of the prisoners were 
 confined in the Alhambra, and the Ger- 
 mans 
 
 I
 
 87 
 
 fiians and other foreigners being much more 
 numerous than the Enghsh, frequent quar- 
 rels arose^ which usually terminating in 
 battles, induced me to apply for their sepa- 
 ration, which was granted without diffi- 
 culty. 
 
 The return of the spitting of blood and 
 an oppression in my chest, obliging me to 
 seek for medical assistance, 1 applied to 
 Major Growtowski for his surgeon^ a Pole, 
 who accordinolv visited me, and endeavour- 
 ed to make himself understood in a mixed 
 jargon of French, Spanish, Hungarian, 
 and Polish. I soon discovered that little 
 dependence was to be placed upon his 
 skill. I, however, allowed him to bleed 
 me, but prescribed for myself some cool- 
 ing medicines and a low diet, which 
 in a few days produced a consider- 
 able amendment in my health and spirits. 
 When sufficient! V recovered, Madame Mil- 
 
 VOL. J. H Hones,
 
 98 
 
 iiones, my landlady, was obliging enough 
 to give a grand ball on my account, a ci- 
 vility I could have gladly dispensed with ; 
 but as she would not listen to such a propo- 
 sition, I was obliged to submit to suffer 
 her kindness. There were several Pohsh 
 officers at this ball, but not one Frenchman ; 
 and the former being all violin players, 
 each took it in turn to act as fiddler, there 
 being no regular musicians. Waltzes and 
 English country dances chiefly prevailed; 
 but the Spanish tunes are so diflerent from 
 ours, that it was scarcely possible to adapt 
 any figure to them ; besides, the ladies being 
 at our gentlemen's side of the dance, made 
 it exceedingly awkward to me, for my 
 landlady would not even excuse me from 
 dancing, and as the figures were called 
 English, the company naturally looked to 
 me for instruction. 
 
 When the dances were over, I was in 
 hopes I should be allowed to remain quiet ; 
 
 but.
 
 99 
 
 but, on the contrary, blindman's bufF com- 
 menced, in which I was also obhged to 
 join, to prevent myself being eternally im- 
 portuned by the ladies. This diversion dif- 
 fers something from ours of the same name; 
 the person blindfolded has a cane in his 
 hand, with which he endeavours to touch 
 one of the company who dance round him, 
 and when he has succeeded, all stand still, 
 and he guesses the name of the person 
 touched; if right, this person takes his 
 place. Another amusement of the evening 
 was mewing like cats ; and between the 
 acts of blindman's buff, a solemn looking 
 old gentleman several times pushed open 
 the door from outside, made a short speech, 
 with a variety of ridiculous grimaces, and 
 ran out again, every time receiving the 
 loudest applause from the company. This 
 kind of childish nonsense, indeed, pervades 
 all the domestic diversions of the Spaniards, 
 
 H 2 and
 
 100 
 
 and lias often made me heartily tired of 
 their parties. The entertainment was given 
 in my apartments, and when the company 
 were about to retire, at three o'clock in 
 the morning, and I was in hopes of getting 
 some repose, a violent thunder storm com- 
 menced, and detained them an hour longer. 
 The following day (October 24) I was 
 introduced by the intendant Chevalier to 
 Madame Quesada and her amiable daugh- 
 ter ; this lady's husband had been Gover- 
 nor of Minorca, when it was taken by 
 Sir Charles Stewart. She asked me many 
 questions respecting the island, and hav- 
 ing been there some time, I was enabled to 
 answer to her satisfaction. I often visited 
 this interesting family afterwards, and the 
 young lady obligingly undertook to improve 
 me in the Spanish language. In my inter- 
 course with Spanish families, I could not 
 help remarking the listless indolence in 
 
 which
 
 101 
 
 which the females doze away theh' lives ; 
 never have I seen a book or a needle in their 
 hands, and their sole occupation seems to 
 be playing with pet animals, particularly 
 cats and dogs. Besides a monkey, several 
 parrots and some pigeons, my landlady had 
 four little curs, whose barking and snarl- 
 ing made them complete nuisances ; she 
 had also a large and a small cat, for each 
 of which a proportionate sized liole was 
 cut in the bottom of everv door, not re- 
 collecting, I suppose, that the small cat 
 could pass through the large hole ; however 
 this might be, the current of air that these 
 holes admitted counterbalanced the effects 
 of the brasier, and made the apartments 
 most uncomfortable. 
 
 During my stay at Grenada, 1 often rode 
 about the environs with the General, who 
 was always attended by a numerous suite 
 and a strong guard, many straggling 
 
 H 3 French-
 
 102 
 
 FrenchQien having been lately murdered 
 close to the town. On these occasions the 
 whole cavalcade always passed through the 
 villages at full gallop, in order to strike 
 the inhabitants with astonishment and awe. 
 In one excursion we visited a convent of 
 Chartreux about a mile from Grenada, of 
 which the monks, twenty-five in number, 
 had been either massacred or expelled. This 
 edifice is beautifully situated, commanding 
 an extensive view, and contains several 
 spacious reception rooms, in one of which 
 were now collected several statues of Saints, 
 some valuable pictures, chiefly of Spag- 
 nioletto and Murilla, and a quantity of 
 church plate, the plunder of other reh'gious 
 buildings. These objects as well as the 
 edifice are in charge of Monsieur d'Aguil- 
 lar, who resides in elegant apartments in 
 the building, and to whose handsome wife 
 the General was said to be partial. 
 
 The
 
 103 
 
 The Sacrisiie of this convent is particu- 
 larly worthy of notice, from its light and 
 elegant appearance, and the good taste it 
 esihibits. The tables which surround it are 
 of the most valuable marbles, and of ex- 
 quisite workmanship, and the whole are 
 said to be the performance of one man. 
 While viewing the valuable articles of 
 church furniture collected here, Sebastiani 
 declaimed on the oppressive taxes the Spa- 
 niards must have borne, to furnish reli- 
 gious ornaments alone, and the advantages 
 that must result from the abolition of mo- 
 nastic institutions. Here I could not help 
 reflecting, that if plundering the churches 
 was for the good of the country, the French 
 had certainly taken a most lively interest in 
 its welfare. This idea I however kept to 
 myself, as well as most others that did not 
 coincide with those of the General, whose 
 amour-jn^opre would have made it very dif- 
 
 p 4 iicult
 
 104 
 
 ficult to convince him he was mistaken, and 
 more particularly so as his ipse dixit was 
 always received as an immutable truth by 
 every one around him. 
 
 One of my daily promenades was to the 
 Carera, where, when the weather is fine, 
 an immense concourse of people assemble 
 at three o'clock in the afternoon. This 
 walk is formed by a long street, which had 
 lately been widened and ornamented, and 
 at its extremity is a wood, intersected by 
 pleasant alleys. However the present con- 
 test may terminate, it must be admitted 
 that the Spaniards will be indebted to the 
 French for many works both of utility and 
 ornament, which under their old lethargic 
 government \fould probably have never 
 been thought of. Among otber public 
 works commenced bv the French at Gre- 
 
 ml 
 
 nada, are a bridge of a single arch over the 
 ^enil, and a theatre, on which a vast 
 
 number
 
 105 
 
 number of workmen were now employed, 
 in order to finish it before the General's 
 birthday, on which, as I have before said, 
 itris to be opened. The contrast between 
 this edifice and the old theatre is striking, 
 the latter being a heavy and gloomy build- 
 ing, without ornaments either external or 
 internal, while the former is light and airy, 
 with decorations approaching to the taw- 
 dry ; one reminds us of the sober serious- 
 ness of the Spaniard, the other of the gay 
 flippancy of the Frenchman. The orches- 
 tra in the French theatre is constructed on 
 a new principle, apparently well calculated 
 for the diffusion of sound. The boxes are 
 gaudily painted, and on the fronts alter- 
 nately is a gilt eagle and an A^. which re- 
 minded me of the pun of a Frenchman, 
 who, on visiting the Thuillerics, and ob- 
 serving this letter on every side, exclaimed, 
 *-^ Mafoi, il a des N. mis par tout!'' An 
 
 English-
 
 106 
 
 Englishnaan is satisfied with the government 
 while he can grumble out his constitutional 
 discontent without control or restraint ; a 
 Frenchman, on the contrary, consoles him- 
 self in every stage of oppression with a pun 
 or hon mot ; and in this respect his language 
 is peculiarly happy, but whether from its 
 perfection or imperfection I will not pretend 
 to determine. 
 
 In the evening of October 25, I accom-^ 
 panied my landlady and her daughter to a 
 tertulia at Madame Caracaos, where we 
 found a number of old ladies crowded 
 round a brasier in an apartment just suffi- 
 ciently lighted to make darkness visible. 
 On our arrival a play was commenced re- 
 sembling our Hunt the Slipper, to which 
 succeeded a dance, and in both of which 
 I was obliged to join, having the young 
 lady of the house for my partner in the 
 dance. There was not a Frenchman pre- 
 sent.
 
 107 
 
 sent, nor have I met one of them at any- 
 Spanish house, except the Duchess of 
 Goa's. The exercise of the evening brought 
 ori a return of my complaint, and obhged 
 me to have recourse again to the PoKsh 
 doctor's lancet, which, together with the 
 application of a strong blister and quiet 
 living for a day or two, once more gave me 
 relief. 
 
 October 30, being able to quit the 
 house, I visited the cathedral, a fine build- 
 ing, with a superb dome supported by 
 twelve large columns, the ceiling well 
 painted and ornamented with several gilt 
 iigures. Over the colonnade are two rows 
 of balconies richly gilt, and behind the 
 grand altar a chapel, with several monu- 
 ments, particularly those of Ferdinand and 
 Isabella, and of Philip the First and his 
 queen. The sacrisiie is very rich, the altar 
 being of valuable marble, and the tables of 
 scarce and curious dark coloured woods, 
 
 inlaid
 
 108 
 
 inlaid with gold and ivory, which has a 
 fine effect. Among the valuables collected 
 in this apartment are the crowns of Ferdi- 
 nand and Isabella, and a considerable quan- 
 tity of rich church plate and ornaments, 
 which however formed but a portion of 
 what it formerly possessed, the French hav- 
 ing considerably stripped it ; and indeed it 
 is probable that what remains has been 
 only left not too far to outrage the feelings 
 of the people, and that they will be carried 
 off at some other opportunity.   
 
 The same morning I was invited to ac- 
 company General Sebastiani to breakfast 
 with General Purmerent, who informed 
 me that this repast should be entirely a la 
 Provencale, and he kept his word so mi- 
 nutely that I never desire to partake of 
 such another ; every dish, whatever might 
 be its other ingredients, contained such an 
 abominable mixture of garlic and rancid 
 
 oiF,
 
 109 
 
 oil, that those of the company who could 
 command their stomachs so far as to get 
 some of them down, were ill for several 
 days after ; indeed the General and his 
 aide-de-camp seemed alone to relish the 
 breakfast. This General had been Am- 
 bassador to the United States, where he 
 picked up a few words of English ; amongst 
 which, " G — d — your eyes^ how do you 
 *' do f was the most expressive, and his 
 usual salutation to me.
 
 110 
 
 CHAPTER VIII. 
 
 Grenada .... Defeat of Blake's arrny .... French dis- 
 cipline and soldiers .... Advantages of occupying 
 the coasts of the Mediterranean .... Method of 
 separating corn from the ear . . . .Spanish husbandi^' 
 . . . .Spanish prisoners from Blake's army . . . .Sebas- 
 tiani's birthday. 
 
 November 1. Though the conversa- 
 tion at General Sebastiani's usually turned 
 on the military operations of the day, and 
 though aware that a Frenchman is a most 
 restless animal, whether he has any cause 
 or not for movement, I had for some davs 
 observed a more than usual bustle among 
 the Staff, and a mysterious manner, that 
 led me to suppose some serious movement 
 of the army was intended ; which was soon 
 confirmed by the arrival of Colonel Grou- 
 
 vel,
 
 Ill 
 
 vel, commanding the 16th leg ere, with a 
 report from the advanced posts. The con- 
 versation between this officer and Sebas- 
 tiuni was, on the part of the latter, pe- 
 remptory and warm, and some reply of the 
 Colonel's called forth such a reprimand 
 from the General as struck him speechless. 
 This Colonel was indeed so compleat a cari- 
 cature of a French soldier, that I could 
 not resist the temptation of taking a 
 sketch of him, which I have given as a 
 frontispiece. 
 
 This cavalier treatment of an officer of 
 rank by the General, leads me to offer a 
 few observations on the discipline of the 
 French army, which is certainly preserved 
 in a surprising manner, amongst the varie- 
 ty of temptations and provocations to in- 
 subordination. Although ill cloathed, bad- 
 ly paid, and often scantily fed, the soldier 
 performs his duty with alacrity and chear- 
 
 fulness.
 
 112 
 
 fulness, and is seldom missing when calle(i 
 upon : but, on the contrary, is generally 
 at the appointed rendezvous before the spe- 
 cified time, which saves the non-commis- 
 sioned officers a world of trouble. The 
 external appearance of the soldiers being 
 deemed of little moment, they have no 
 dress parades, but their arms they keep in 
 good order for their own preservation, and 
 are careful of their ammunition for the, 
 same reason. 
 
 The conscripts are perfectly drilled at a 
 depot before they are sent to join their 
 regiments, and this instruction seems to be 
 so impressed upon them that they never for- 
 get it. In their regimental manceuvres there 
 is often an appearance of disorder and confu- 
 sion which surprises an English officer, but 
 from which, however, the intention is fi« 
 nally accomplished ; such, for instance, is 
 the case in wheeling a column, when the 
 
 pivots
 
 113 
 
 pivots are always moveable ; when broken 
 they act on no fixed principle, and it would 
 seem impossible that they could be again 
 foyned by the manoeuvres they adopt : I 
 have however seen this accomplished with 
 great rapidity, even under a heavy fire. 
 Indeed, instead of mere automatons put in 
 motion by a power of whose principles they 
 are ignorant, every French soldier reasons 
 on the movements of the army he belongs 
 to, and says what he would have done in 
 such a case. I have been often sur- 
 prised at the shrewd observations and the- 
 oretical knowledge of some of the private 
 men, which often seemed to place them 
 above their officers. But though the want 
 of fixed principles of action may not per- 
 haps be of much consequence in an army 
 of veteran soldiers, amongst raw ones it • 
 must often be fatal, and probably this will 
 shortly be proved in Spain, where the ve- 
 voL. I. I terans
 
 114 
 
 terans who composed the first invading ar- 
 mies are mostly " killed off/' and two-thirds 
 of the present are conscripts, and mostly 
 boys, and all of them without practical 
 experience, which might make up for the 
 want of theory. It is said that Buonaparte 
 expresses his preference of young soldiers ; 
 however, in this respect, I doubt if he 
 does not resemble the spendthrift, whose 
 extravagance obliging him to cut down an 
 ancient wood, told his friend he did so 
 because he preferred young trees. 
 
 The confidence in their own judgment 
 which forms a part of the general French 
 character, is perhaps one of the causes 
 which prevents Frenchmen from making 
 good seamen, for a ship must be very badly 
 manoeuvred, where every one of her crew 
 pretends to have an opinion of his own. 
 Conversing with some merchants at Bay- 
 onne concerned in privateers, they assured 
 
 me
 
 115 
 
 me that one-third of this description of 
 vessels were either upset at sea, or run on 
 shore, from the self-sufficient confidence of 
 tlj,e men. To conclude my ohservations 
 on French soldiers ; I must do them the 
 justice to say that I have never found them 
 mercenary, but, on the contrary, that I 
 have often received civilities from them 
 without their asking or appearing to expect 
 any pecuniary reward : I must also observe 
 that their share of plunder is usually very 
 trifling, the superior officers taking care 
 not to forget themselves in the division. 
 
 I at length learnt (November 3) that the 
 unusual bustle I had observed at the Ge- 
 neral's was in consequence of a movement 
 made by Blake, who was at this time at 
 Baza near Lorca, with twelve thousand 
 men ; that the French troops were all in 
 motion, and that Sebastiani was to set out 
 the next morning to take the command. 
 
 T 2 On
 
 116 
 
 On consulting the map I found that the 
 French army was so distributed, that in twen- 
 ty-four hours a considerable force could be 
 assembled in any point menaced with at- 
 tack. At dinner the General informed me 
 of all the circumstances of Blake's move- 
 ment, and on rising from table he received 
 a dispatch from Marshal Soult, detaihng 
 the proceedings before Cadiz, the meeting 
 of the Cortes, the nature of their delibera- 
 tions, and the dismission of the Due d'Or- 
 leans from the isle of Leon by their order. 
 From the manner in which Sebastiani spoke 
 of the proceedings of this assembly, it was 
 evident that its proceedings was by no 
 means agreeable to the French interests. 
 
 In the course of the evening I entered 
 into conversation with Monsieur Cussini, 
 chief of the engineer department, who ex- 
 pressed much surprise at our not having 
 possessed ourselves of the coast of the 
 
 Mediter-
 
 117 
 
 Mediterranean, to enable us to land small 
 detachments at different points, by which 
 the French must be much harassed, as in 
 the state of the country it was impossible 
 for them to be guarded every where. These 
 observations in fact were perfectly just, for 
 with a Levant wind a squadron could run 
 down from Cape de Gata to Malaga in a 
 few hours, the distance being but about 
 thirty-five leagues ; the troops embarked 
 on board might be landed at Motril or 
 Almunecar, at which latter place there was 
 but a very trifling force, and no artillery; 
 nor could the French immediately assemble 
 any considerable force in that neighbour- 
 hood, while any troops Sebastiani might be 
 able to spare would have to march upwards 
 of one hundred miles through a mountainous 
 country, scarcely practicable for heavy ar- 
 tillery, and subject continually to the at- 
 tacks of the numerous bands of Guerillas 
 
 I 3 who
 
 118 
 
 who occupied these mountains. Thus a 
 respectable force being once established on 
 any part of the coast near Malaga, would 
 be able to maintain itself a<»:ainst any de- 
 tachments that could at this time have 
 been sent against it. Had I been fortunate 
 enough to have been joined by the 82d 
 regiment, it was my intention to have act- 
 ed on this plan. 
 
 November 4, according to arrangement, 
 General Sebastiani set oft' for Baza early in 
 the morning of the fourth, leaving his aide- 
 de-cmnji Lavoisteen to keep me company, 
 and with orders to his servants to furnish 
 our table as usual ; this day, however, I was 
 engaged to dine with General Dufour, Go- 
 vernor of the city, who though he has not 
 the character of being a great General, is a 
 most respectable old gentleman of the ancient 
 regime. After dinner information was re- 
 ceived of the total defeat of Blake's army, 
 
 of
 
 119 
 
 of which I shall have occasion to speak 
 more fully hereafter. 
 
 The next morning (Novemher5) I break- 
 fasted with Lavoisteen, when it was agreed 
 that we should dine tete a tete during the 
 General's absence. In the evening I visited 
 the Alhambra, and directed each of our 
 soldiers confined there to be furnished with 
 a shirt and pair of shoes ; for though, on 
 myprevious demand, I had been assured that 
 theyshould be immediately supplied with the 
 cloathing they might require by the French 
 government, I now found that no steps had 
 been taken for that purpose. From the 
 Alhambra I rode to a village three miles 
 from Grenada, situated in a fertile plain, 
 where I observed their manner of separat- 
 ing the corn from the ear. The corn is 
 placed on a paved circular spot, round 
 which two mares are driven, as we ring 
 horses, and who tread out the corn, I 
 
 I 4 have
 
 120 
 
 have observed that in Spain, in Egypt 
 South America, and the Cape of Good 
 Hope, mares are kept for this purpose and 
 for breeding alone, never being used for 
 the saddle or draft, while in France mares 
 are seen employed for these uses, the 
 horses being all bought up for the armies. 
 The valley which called forth these ob- 
 servations is well irrigated, and indeed this 
 seems to be the only part of husbandry in 
 which the Spaniards take any pains. Their 
 farming utensils in particular are most 
 wretched, the harrow being furnished with 
 wooden pins only, and is often drawn by 
 an ass and a goat, while it is very common 
 to see a plough worked by two mules or 
 bullocks only, with tackling of cow hide 
 and rope mixed, and no pains being taken 
 to make the animals step together, they 
 fatigue themselves and do scarce any work. 
 In France, where agriculture is carried to 
 
 much
 
 121 
 
 much higher perfection, I have ofteo seen 
 a mixture of animals yoked to the plough, 
 such as two half-starved horses at the 
 wheels, two bullocks in the middle, and 
 two asses as leaders ; or else the bullocks at 
 the wheels and the horses in the centre : 
 for I never remember to have seen the bul- 
 locks as leaders, though, from being the 
 slowest animals of the three, this arrange- 
 ment would certainly !)e the best, as it is 
 the leaders that regulate the pace. 
 
 On returning from my ride I found 
 Growtowski, whose regiment had marched 
 but a short distance when it received or- 
 ders to return. He shook me very cordial- 
 ly by the hand, and, forgetting himself I 
 suppose, congratulated me on the recent 
 victory, as if I had been a Frenchman. 
 According to agreement Lavoisteen and I 
 dined tete a tete, a Vjlngloise^ over a good 
 fire, to which, as well as to our customs in 
 
 general
 
 122 
 
 general and our country men, lie pretended 
 to be very partial. This gentleman's know- 
 ledge, as is the case with most Frenchmen, 
 is very multifarious, but superficial, and 
 his quotations from Voltaire and other phi- 
 losophic writers were so rapid, and often so 
 unconnected, that there was no answering 
 his arguments ; but although I do not pre- 
 tend to a profound knowledge of history, I 
 found that even in quoting from Voltaire's 
 historical works 1 had the advantage in 
 correctness, which my talkative companion 
 was oblio^ed to acknowledge. 
 
 On the 6th I received a trunk of cloaths 
 from Gibraltar, and at the same time learnt 
 that the moment my servants heard of my 
 being made prisoner, they plundered every 
 thing they could get at. I felt the more 
 sensibly this ingratitude, as I had treated 
 them with more than common kindness, 
 and even studied to make them comfortable. 
 
 On 
 
 I
 
 123 
 
 On the following day (November 7) a 
 Polish officer arrived who had been wounded 
 in the late action, and from whose account 
 if would have appeared that the victory was 
 entirely owing to his individual prowess ; 
 he also informed us that Sebastiani had 
 gone on to Baza, and would not return 
 to Grenada for five or six days. The arri- 
 val of several other officers gave me an 
 opportunity of enquiring by what misma- 
 nagement the army of Blake had been de- 
 feated bv a force so very inferior ; for it 
 appeared that of the French army the 5th 
 dragoons, one regiment of Polish Lanciers, 
 and an inconsiderable detachment of infan- 
 try, had alone been engaged. I learnt that 
 the Spanish army was composed principally 
 of recruits totallvii>:norant of the use of their 
 arms, and it was crowded into a plain with- 
 out any protection in front, nor did they even 
 take possession of some broken ground, or 
 
 form
 
 124 
 
 form trous de loup as a defence against 
 cavalry ; so that on the first charge the 
 army was broken, and the men throwing* 
 down their arms cried for quarter. About 
 eighteen hundred were said to be killed, 
 and upwards of eleven hundred, including 
 forty-seven officers, made prisoners. I had 
 seen General Blake at Gibraltar, when on 
 his way from Cadiz to Carthagena to take 
 the command of this army ; he had the 
 appearance of a good honest farmer, but 
 nothing in his countenance or manners 
 that denoted superior talents. His staff was 
 wretchedly made up, and, it was said, set 
 the example of seeking safety in flight. 
 
 The Spanish prisoners arrived on the 
 6th, and were marched through the Plaza 
 ^e Triompha, which was crowded with the 
 inhabitants. The officers seemed to have 
 been all wounded by the sabre : one-third 
 of the privates were half naked, and half 
 
 starved
 
 125 
 
 starved boys from fourteen to sixteen ; ano* 
 ther third infirm old men, just able to 
 crawl, for those who could not get on were 
 charitably shot on the road by their escort ; 
 the last third were composed of men of 
 a tolerable appearance, and could alone 
 have opposed any efficient resistance to the 
 French. 
 
 The next morning (November 9) I ac- 
 companied Lavoisteen to meet the General : 
 we had a pleasant ride of three leagues, 
 through a most romantic country, the ap- 
 pearance of which seemed to denote its 
 having undergone some great natural con- 
 vulsion. At a short distance on our risht 
 rose the Sierras de Grenada, a mountain- 
 ous ridge of considerable elevation, at the 
 foot of which stretches an extensive plain, 
 reckoned one of the most fertile tracts of 
 the kingdom. This ridge is inhabited bv a 
 brave and warlike people, so well protected 
 
 bv
 
 126 
 
 by the natural strength of the countryj 
 that while thev continue to defend their 
 fortresses it must be impossible to subdue 
 them ; nor indeed have the French yet 
 been able to retain the positions they have 
 occasionally occupied among them. 
 
 About three leagues from Grenada we 
 met General Sebastiani, escorted by the 
 Lanciers Polonois and a detachment of ca- 
 valry : the 12th dragoons also joined near | 
 Grenada, to render his entrance more im- 
 posing. The Plaza de Triompha was, as 
 usual, crowded with spectators to view the 
 triumph of their invaders. Having, how- 
 ever, seen the miserable wretches the 
 French had to contend with, I could give 
 them but little credit for their victory ; ne- 
 vertheless, according to their usual gas- 
 conade, every individual had encountered 
 a host and destroyed legions. In the even- 
 ing I went to a concert at Mr. Galvvay's, 
 
 an
 
 127 
 
 an Irish merchant, married to an agreeable 
 Spanish lady ; in their sitting room was a 
 chimney, the coi:;^iforts of which were so 
 w^ll appreciated by the lady, that she as- 
 sured me she seldom quitted the fireside. 
 
 The 10th was employed by the General 
 in making arrangements for the security of 
 the prisoners, but the succeedins: mornioo- 
 he proposed a ride to the village of Ro- 
 bach, two leagues from Grenada ; the 
 country between is richly cultivated, and 
 the village a very good one. We alighted 
 at the house of a respectable priest, who 
 possessed a tolerable library and a collec- 
 tion of pictures. While walking with him 
 through his garden, which was in neat 
 order, he told me that he had belonged to 
 the household of Charles the Third, and 
 indeed I soon found that he united the po- 
 lish of the court to the knowledge of tlie 
 scholar. Feeling that he had no occasion
 
 128 
 
 for reserve with me, he described what his 
 flock bad suffered from the invaders, with the 
 tenderness of a parent, whilst unaifected be- 
 nevolence was marked in his countenance. 
 When his eyes filled with tears, as he drew 
 the picture of the horrors he had witness- 
 ed, I could not help exclaiming : 
 
 Merciful Heaven ! 
 
 Thou rather with thy sharp and sulphurous Bolt 
 
 Splits the un^vedgeable and gnarled Oak, 
 
 Than the soft Myrtle :— O, but Man ! proud Man, 
 
 Drest in a little brief Authority, 
 
 Plays such fantastic Tricks before high Heaven 
 
 As makes the Angels weep !— 
 
 On our return from the garden the good 
 priest led us into a small chapel, adorned 
 with some pictures and images, and taking 
 down one of the latter of gold, offered it 
 to the General, who declined accepting it. 
 Several Alcaides and priests waited on him 
 Ijere, and were received with the greatest 
 
 politeness, 
 
 I
 
 129 
 
 politeness, while in their own language, 
 which he speaks with purity, he recom- 
 mended to them a strict attention to the 
 niGiality of the rising generation, and to en- 
 courage industry and orderly habits among 
 the peasantry of their respective villages. 
 His audience bowed with reverence, and 
 put on the outward signs of a satisfaction 
 it is almost impossible they could really feel. 
 In our return to Grenada we made a cir- 
 cuit of some miles, and passed through 
 several charming villages. On approaching 
 the city I had a good view of the field 
 works constructing above the Alhambra ; 
 they were four in number, pallisaded round, 
 mount thirty-six pieces of heavy ordnance, 
 and serve as a cavalier to the Alhambra. 
 
 On our arrival in the town the General 
 abruptly informed me that the prisoners 
 were to be sent off the next day, and that 
 I must prepare to accompany them : I, 
 
 VOL. I. K however.
 
 130 
 
 however, procured a day's delay for my- 
 self, in order to provide the necessary con- 
 veyance for my baggage ; and this being 
 the GeneraFs birthday (November 12), I 
 had an opportunity of being present at the 
 f4te given on the occasion. In the morn- 
 ing, before breakfast, he received the com- 
 pliments of the staff, of the garrison, and the 
 officers of corps, presented by their respec- 
 tive commandants ; to these succeeded the 
 civil staff of the army and the civil au- 
 thorities of the city. This ceremony con- 
 cluded, breakfast vi^as served, during which 
 an officer entered with a verbal report of 
 some deserters being retaken : *' qu'on les 
 ** pend tout de suite!'' replied the Gene^ 
 ral, without altering a feature, or saying 
 another word on the subject, and the offi- 
 cer bowed and retired. Such are the steps 
 deemed requisite under these circum- 
 stances. 
 
 After
 
 131 
 
 After breakfast Sebastian! proceeded to 
 church, attended by all the authorities, in 
 the greatest pomp, and as the procession 
 was crossing the Plaza de Triohipha, 
 the eleven hundred prisoners of Blake's 
 army appeared under a large escort. Whe- 
 ther this rencontre was accidental or pre- 
 meditated, I cannot say, but should rather 
 suppose the latter, and that the GenefafT 
 meant by it to remind the gaping multitude 
 that he united the hero and the christian. 
 I could not help reflecting, that probably 
 at this very moment another multitude was 
 assembled in a different part of the town, 
 to witness the execution of the unhappy 
 wretches whom the unjustifiable invasion 
 of Spain by France deemed a necessary sa- 
 crifice. 
 
 A ball, fireworks, and illuminations clos- 
 ed the day's rejoicing ; but the former was 
 rather meagre^ there being few attractive 
 
 K 2 females.
 
 132 
 
 females. Waltzes and what were called 
 English country dances chiefly prevailed, 
 one set only performing French country 
 dances, in which the men far excelled 
 the women. There was also deep play at 
 Trente et Quarante and Pharo. An 
 elegant supper was served after the hall, 
 and the whole evening's entertainment 
 was in a stile of magnificence and cheerful- 
 ness that precluded ennuL
 
 133 
 
 ^ CHAPTER IX. 
 
 From Grenada to Jaen . . . .Mode of travelling'. . 
 Appearance of the country . . . .French dragoon . . 
 Alcala Reale . . . .Escape of Spanish prisoners . . 
 
 Road Convoy reinforced Alcaudete . . 
 
 Countess of Superonda German braggadocio 
 
 Martos . . . .Jaen . . . .French military execution. 
 
 November 13. Having purchased two 
 mules and made all the necessary prepara- 
 tions for departure, in the morning I took 
 leave of the General, who politely begged 
 my acceptance of a horse, completely ca- 
 parisoned ; he also gave me several open 
 letters of recommendation, both general 
 and particular, desiring that I might be 
 paid every attention to. The officers of his 
 staff also individually took leave of me as 
 if I had been their dearest friend, and fur- 
 
 K 3 nished
 
 134 
 
 nished me with letters for their relations in 
 France. The attention both of the General 
 and his staff will never be effaced from my 
 memory. 
 
 I hired a French servant to conduct the 
 mules, on one of which I placed two trunks, 
 made purposely for this mode of ^ convey- 
 ance, containing my clothes, and on the 
 other two similar ones, filled with provi- 
 sions for a week, such as hams, for which 
 -Grenada is famous, pies, and other good 
 things, together with a small barrel of 
 wine ; in short, having neglected nothing 
 to make me independent of inns on the 
 road, I quitted Grenada, escorted by a de- 
 tachment of twelve dragoons, and accom- 
 panied by Colonel Marshall and Mon- 
 sieur de Billi, who were directed by the 
 General to provide me with suitable quar- 
 ters, while we remained together, and in 
 every other respect to attend to my com- 
 fort,
 
 135 
 
 fort. In spite, however, of all these at- 
 tentions, the prospect of a three months 
 journey at this inclement season was by no 
 means exhilarating. 
 
 The country we passed through for some 
 miles is flat, and cultivated as well as the 
 Spanish system of agriculture admits. At 
 a small village, called Pixor, where we 
 bated the cattle, the country assumes a 
 quite diflTerent appearance, being generally 
 hilly and rocky, with considerable woods, 
 which formerly reached quite to the road ; 
 but the trees for about four hundred yards 
 in depth on each side had been recently 
 cut down, to deprive the brigands of the 
 cover they afforded, to conceal themselves 
 and shoot at the straggling parties of 
 French. The abrupt inequalities of this 
 tract of country would lead one to suppose 
 it had undergone the effects of an earth- 
 
 K 4 quake.
 
 136 
 
 quake. The summits of several of the hills 
 are crowned by small Moorish towers, 
 which seem to have served for making 
 signals. 
 
 Having separated a little distance from 
 the body of the escort, I entered into con- 
 versation with a dragoon, whose manners 
 and address bespoke his superior education. 
 I found that his parents had been respectable 
 people, but that his having been drawn for 
 the conscription had so atfected his mother, 
 as to deprive her of her intellects, and that 
 his father had in consequence disposed of 
 his property, and removed from his former 
 residence to he knew not whither. This sim- 
 pie tale he delivered with a feeling and mo- 
 desty that could not fail of making a strong 
 impression, and certainly it did so on me. 
 
 A heavy storm of rain and wind coming 
 on before we could reach Alcala Reale, we 
 
 entered
 
 137 
 
 entered that town wet and uncomfortable, 
 and I had no change of clothes, having 
 been obliged to leave the mules in the rear, 
 to come on with a return escort. Colonel 
 Marshall, who commanded at Alcala Reale, 
 had, like most of the French superior offi- 
 cers, formed a temporary connexion with a 
 Spanish lady, from whom I met great ci- 
 vility, and spent the evening pleasantly 
 with the Colonel over a pipe and some hot 
 brandy and water ; for the wine was exe- 
 crable. Here I met a Portuguese officer in 
 the French service, who spoke good Eng- 
 lish ; he appeared to be much interested in 
 the fate of his countrv, and lamented that 
 circumstances obliged him to remain in the 
 service of her enemy. 
 
 Alcala Reale is a considerable town of 
 about eight to nine thousand inhabitants; 
 it is in Andalusia, nearly on i!\\^ borders of 
 
 Grenada,
 
 138 
 
 Grenada, and is situated on an elevated 
 plain. It is commanded by a strong 
 Moorish castle, and has been considerably 
 improved by the French, particularly by 
 the formation of public walks. 
 
 November 14. While at breakfast with 
 Colonel Marshall, the officer charged with 
 escorting the prisoners arrived, and re- 
 ported that some Spanish officers had' 
 escaped, at the same time proposing tfisLt 
 the person at whose house they were bil- 
 letted should be arrested and punished; but 
 the Colonel very properly demanded if a cen- 
 tinel had been placed over them ? and being 
 answered in the affirmative, replied, that 
 the officer of the guard or the centinel was 
 to blame, and not the Spaniard ; a very 
 unusual instance of considerate justice in a 
 French officer in Spain, for in general the 
 unfortunate Spaniards are punished for the 
 
 neg-
 
 
 139 
 
 negligence of the French officers and sol- 
 diers charged with the prisoners. 
 
 The main body of the escort having 
 quitted Alcala Reale early in the morning, 
 after breakfast I took advantage of a de- 
 tachment of cavalry to rejoin it. The road 
 skirted a ravine, which forms some strong 
 passes, formerly crossed by bridges, but 
 all now broken down, to obstruct the pas- 
 sage of the French ; the road was also 
 broken up in several places, and certainly 
 had the Spaniards defended these passes 
 with common resolution, the enemy could 
 never have penetrated into the country with 
 heavy artillery. The fact, however, is, 
 that at the commencement the Spaniards 
 were lukewarm in their own cause, and 
 would probably have still remained so, had 
 not the cruelties and excesses of the French 
 roused them to resistance and revenge. 
 
 Our escort, which originally consisted of 
 
 nineteen
 
 140 
 
 nineteen hundred Infantry and one hundred 
 cavalry, to guard eleven hundred Spaniards 
 and about one hundred and forty EngUsh 
 and Germans, was continually increased 
 by numbers of travellers, who availed them- 
 selves of the safety it offered them. The 
 curious vehicles of these travellers, the mix- 
 ture of animals by which they were drawn, 
 and the dresses of the passengers, formed an 
 amusing sight. With respect to the latter, 
 few of them paid much attention to exter- 
 nals, a dirty red night cap usually covering 1 
 their heads, which, had I not known that 
 thev have no such word, and are even ig- 
 
 ml 
 
 norant of its meaning, I might have thought 
 they intended for comfort. 
 
 After four hours march we reached Al- 
 caudete, an insignificant town, on irre- 
 gular ground, with narrov^ and badly paved 
 streets. Here we slept,, and resuming our 
 journey next morning ^November 15), 
 
 passed
 
 141 
 
 passed over a tract covered with beautiful 
 turf, interspersed with clumps of evergreen 
 oaks, and in every respect resembling a 
 highly drest English park. The escort 
 usually halted between the stages on the 
 brink of some rivulet to take refreshment, 
 and this as much from necessity as choice, 
 for we seldom met an isolated house in a 
 day's march. The Countess of Superonda 
 and her daughter, who were among the 
 travellers that joined the escort, when we 
 halted, politely invited me to partake of 
 their repast. This lady travelled in a large 
 coach, drawn by seven mules, and filled 
 with feather beds, live poultry, and drest 
 provisions ; she was accompanied by an 
 intelligent priest, and attended by several 
 domestics, mounted on asses. She inform- 
 ed me that the greater part of a consider- 
 able property which she possessed near 
 Malaga, had been confiscated by the French, 
 
 and
 
 142 
 
 and that she was now going to Madrid to 
 endeavour to arrange for the reception of 
 the part which, at the commencement of the 
 troubles, she had taken the precaution to 
 make over to a friend in that city. 
 
 Before we reached Martos we were met 
 by a Monsieur Saul, a German, who, though 
 but a Lieutenant, commanded in the town. 
 He immediately introduced himself to me, 
 and did not leave me long in doubt as to his 
 character's being that of a ferocious brag- 
 gadocio, which I suppose was his chief re- 
 commendation to a command in this un- 
 happy country. Among other stories equally 
 marvellous, he had singly attacked forty 
 armed Spaniards, of whom he killed thirteen 
 and made the rest prisoners ; which re- 
 minded me of the story of the Irish soldier, 
 who on bringing several prisoners before his 
 commander, and being asked how he singly 
 could have managed to take so many, answer- 
 ed. 
 
 I 
 
 ^1
 
 143 
 
 ed, " by my soul, I surrounded them, to be 
 " sure !" As we approached Martos this 
 ruffian pointed out to me two poor wretches 
 ha.jging at a tree, who had recently been 
 executed by his order, observing with an 
 infernal smile, *' that was the way to sub- 
 *^ due Spain!" to which I could not help re- 
 plying, " that it would require a vast deal 
 ** of rope and a great many hangmen to 
 " execute eleven millions of people, and 
 ** that if one only remained, revenge would 
 " be his motto." Clenching his fist, knitting 
 his diabolical brows, and curling his bushy 
 mustachios, he swore a terrible oath, that, 
 ** if it depended on him he would not leave 
 " one Spaniard in existence!" Determined 
 to glut me with sights of horror, on arriving 
 at the Plaza in the town, he desired me to 
 remark a marble seat covered with the blood 
 and brains of victims recently butchered ; 
 then suddenly changing the subject invited 
 
 me
 
 144 
 
 nie to dine with him, an honour which I 
 declined with httle appearance of pohteness, 
 so much was I shocked with the blood- 
 thirsty character of this monster. 
 
 At Martos 1 was billetted at the house of 
 an old officer of the Walloon guards, who 
 had served forty-six years, and whose pre- 
 possessing appearance singularly contrasted 
 with that of the ferocious Saul. This res- 
 pectable old gentleman led me overhis house, 
 which had been the family mansion for cen- 
 turies, and shewed me an apartment in 
 which he exultingly informed me that 
 Charles the Third had once deigned to nass 
 
 O 1 
 
 the night, and which he requested me to 
 occupy as the greatest honour he could 
 then do an Enollsh officer of distinction. 
 In this apartment was a splendid altar with 
 several figures of saints, and the good old 
 lady of the mansion who accompanied us, 
 informed me that I could there perform my 
 
 devotions 
 
 I
 
 145 
 
 devotions without fear of interruption, never 
 dreaming that I was a heretic, nor was 
 there any necessity for my enlightening her 
 oi: the subject. 
 
 These good people prepared me a com- 
 fortable dinner with six covers, to which J 
 invited our officers and Monsieur de Billi. 
 During a part of our repast our hosts sat 
 and conversed with us, and though they 
 seemed to be really rejoiced at being able to 
 treat us with hospitality, they could no^ 
 help expressing their surprise at the quantity 
 of wine we drank ; and as we several times 
 declined coffee, they concluded Englishmen 
 had a general aversion to it, which was also 
 a matter of astonishment. 
 
 November 16. Quitting Martos at an 
 early hour, our road lay over a rich, well 
 cultivated, and seemingly more populous 
 country than I had yet observed, for we 
 passed through two large villages before we 
 
 VOL. I. I. arrived
 
 f 
 
 146 
 
 arrived at Jaeii, on entering which I was 
 accosted by the Major de Phice, a genteel 
 young man who was raising a Spanish re- 
 giment for the French service, and who ac- 
 companied me to Colonel Schoumalu, the 
 Commandant, residing in the bishop's pa- 
 lace. From this gentleman I met an ex- 
 tremely civil reception, and accepted his 
 invitation to dinner. 
 
 Jaen is a middling sized town with a po- 
 'pulation of between eight and ten thousand 
 inhabitants. It is situated on very uneven 
 ground, with narrow, crooked and steep 
 streets, and is surrounded by an old Moorish 
 wall and commanded by a castle. The cathe- 
 dral which I visited before dinner, accom- 
 panied by the Commandant and Dean, stands 
 in the Plaza and opposite the bishop's palace. 
 It is a superb edifice : the correct Corinthian 
 order is preserved throughout, with the excep- 
 tion of the columns in the inside, which 
 
 are 
 
 I
 
 147 
 
 are rather heavy in proportion to the rest of 
 the building. It had formerly four hun- 
 dred canons or dignitaries, but is now much 
 reduced. Among the pictures particularly 
 worthy of notice were a Virgin by Mesci, 
 a St. Jerome by Spagnoletto, and the 
 Martyrdom of St. Chrysostom. The Sa- 
 cristie is well proportioned and elegant, and 
 the grand altar magnificent, being supported 
 by columns of a marble found in the neigh- 
 bourhood, resembling iapis lazuli. In many 
 houses on the road I had observed a head of 
 Christ, engraved in a singular manner, and 
 I now^ found that they were copies from a 
 painting in this cathedral, which on my re- 
 questing to see, the Dean politely prepared 
 to gratify my curiosity. Having retired for 
 some minutes he returned drest in his ca- 
 nonicals, accompanied by twelve priests 
 bearing lighted wax tapers in large golden 
 candlesticks : after a mass liad been said, 
 
 I. 2 two
 
 148 
 
 two small folding doors were thrown open 
 with great devotion, and by the light of 
 some candles I observed in a niche a dark 
 representation of the head and neck of our 
 Saviour, so inimitably executed that I was 
 struck with an awful sensation not to be 
 described. The eyes appeared to penetrate 
 the inmost recesses of the soul, and the 
 whole had so much the appearance of life, 
 that if any thing could excuse the super- 
 stitious worship of the material representa- 
 tion of the divinity, it would certainly be 
 this picture. The crown of the head is 
 covered with a veil, and the picture is placed 
 in a frame of solid gold, set with diamonds 
 and emeralds of immense value. The mi- 
 raculous history of this santa farsa is, that 
 an old woman is said to have placed a hand- 
 kerchief thrice folded on the face of our 
 Saviour, on his descent from the cross, and 
 when taken off each fold was found to have 
 
 i
 
 149 
 
 received an exact impression of the coun- 
 tenance ; one is preserved at Madrid, a 
 second at Toledo, and the third is that at 
 Jaen. 
 
 According to invitation I proceeded to 
 dine with the Commandant, where a party 
 of about thirty was assembled, and amongst 
 them the Dean, with whom I had much 
 pleasing and instructive conversation in 
 Spanish, which he spoke with such elegance 
 that I much regretted not being able to 
 spend some days in his society to improve 
 myself in that language. The Commandant 
 I also found to be a most respectable cha- 
 racter, with a degree of sincerity and frank- 
 ness in his manners and conversation seldom 
 met with in modern Frenchmen. 
 
 While at dinner I learnt that Major Ro- 
 pach had been sent with a detachment to 
 destroy a village about twelve miles distant, 
 where some French soldiers had been mur- 
 
 l3
 
 150 
 
 dered the preceding night ; for it is a ge- 
 neral order, that the inhabitants of the 
 place where such a crime is committed, are 
 to be put to the sword, without exception 
 of age or sex, and their habitations burned 
 to the ground ; nor is any enquiry ever made 
 into the provocation that may have occa- 
 sioned these excesses. By this system of 
 terror and extermination the French have 
 created the bands, which they name 
 brigands ; for the inhabitants of a village 
 who are fortunate enough to escape from, 
 these military executions, having no place 
 of refuge, join the first armed party they 
 meet, and urged by revenge and despera- 
 tion, commit the greatest crueUies on the 
 enemies that fall into their hands : in short, 
 such is the horrid manner of conducting 
 the war in Spain, that the French have 
 every individual Spaniard against them in 
 his heart ; and as to the ultimate result of 
 
 the 
 
 i
 
 151 
 
 the contest I can only observe, that the sub- 
 jection of a civilized and powerful nation, 
 united in the common defence of its liberty, 
 religion and property, by a foreign army, 
 would be an event hitherto unprecedented 
 in historv. 
 
 After dinner the Commandant politely 
 saw me to my lodgings, where I received 
 
 an invitation from mv host and his wife to 
 
 •I 
 
 accompany them to a tertuUa, which how- 
 ever I declined. I observed that the in- 
 habitants were obliged by order to keep a 
 candle burning in every window throughout 
 the night, by which the streets are lighted 
 in a cheap and easy manner. 
 
 I. 4
 
 152 
 
 CHAPTER X. 
 
 Jaen to Andujar , . . . Guadalquivir .,#. . Dinner with 
 
 General Blondeau Sporting excursion 
 
 Cookery .... Convoy from Seville .... Disagreeable 
 Spanish custom. 
 
 November 16, quitting Jacn early, we 
 passed over a flat country to Andujar, 
 where I found excellent quarters had been 
 secured for me at the house of the Marquis 
 de Contadura, in consequence of a notifi- 
 cation from General Sebastiani to Ge- 
 neral Blondeau. The latter invited me to 
 dinner the day of our arrival ; but I prefer- 
 red a quiet one at my lodgings, to which I 
 invited our officers ; the greatest part of the 
 dinner I drest myself, rather than be poi- 
 soned by Spanish cookery. The next morn- 
 ing
 
 153 
 
 ing CNoveniber 17) I learnt that we were to 
 remain at Andujar for four or five days, to 
 be joined by a convoy expected from Seville 
 and Cadiz, and also proceeding to Madrid. 
 Andujar is one of the principal towns of 
 Andalusia, containing about fourteen thou- 
 sand inhabitants. The streets are wide, 
 and kept tolerably clean, and many of tlie 
 houses have an appearance that denotes 
 the easy circumstances of their proprie- 
 tors. The Guadalquivir, after serpentizing 
 through an agreeable valley, passes by the 
 walls of the town, where it is crossed by a 
 stone bridge of several arches. By this 
 river, which is navigable for vessels of bur- 
 then from St. Lucar at its mouth in the 
 bay of Cadiz to Seville, the French convey 
 the artillery made in this last city, to sup- 
 ply their batteries against Cadiz. In the 
 founderv at Seville, the French have cast 
 mortars of such a size as. will throw the 
 
 shells
 
 154 
 
 shells much beyond the usual distance. A 
 great quantity of grain and provisions are 
 also conveyed down the Guadalquivir. The 
 plain in which Andujar is situated produces 
 wine, oil, and honey in abundance ; and 
 in the vicinity of the town is a very white 
 argillaceous clay, of which earthenware of 
 a good quality is manufactured to a consi- 
 derable extent, and the town has besides 
 extensive silk manufactures. 
 
 Here the English and Spanish prisoners 
 w^ere confined in the same convent, but in 
 separate parts ; the Spanish officers and 
 men were indiscriminately crowded into the 
 chapel, for since the desertion of the offi- 
 cers at Alcala Reale no distinction had been 
 made. After breakfast CNovember 18} I 
 paid my respects to General Blondeau, who 
 received me in the most polite manner, 
 doubtless chiefly owing to the flattering 
 letters of recommendation from General 
 
 Sebas-
 
 1 
 
 DO 
 
 Sebastian!, and gave me a general invita- 
 tion to his table while we remained at An- 
 dujar. This day the dinner party consisted 
 of above eighteen persons, besides the Ge- 
 neral's staff; amongst the strangers were 
 the Marquis de Contadura, and the Polish 
 Major commanding the convoy, with whom 
 I had some words on the road respecting 
 the treatment of the prisoners ; but we 
 afterwards became good friends, on his 
 changing the measures I complained of. — 
 General BlondeAu has all the appearance 
 of a plain honest farmer, both in his dress 
 and address, so that I felt perfectly at 
 home in his company, and on his asking 
 me to give my opinion of the dinner, I 
 candidly reconmiended a less proportion of 
 garlic and grease, and that the dishes 
 should be sent warm to table. These obser- 
 vations produced an invitation to dinner 
 the next dav, and the cook was sent for 
 
 and
 
 156 
 
 and orJered to take my directions. The 
 General at the same time informed me, the 
 neighbouring country abounded with hares, 
 and that the next morning he would mount 
 me on his cream coloured charsrer, take 
 out his fifteen greyhounds, and we should 
 have a fine morning's coursing, while he 
 would also send out a chasseur with his 
 gun, to procure a variety of game. 
 
 After dinner, when the rest of the party 
 had withdrawn, he politely invited me to 
 partake of a bowl of punch and smoke a 
 pipe over a good fire in his cabinet, and we 
 accordingly retired to this recess of socia- 
 bility, when he at full entertained me with 
 the history of his campaigns, and, like his 
 countrymen, 
 
 Fought all hvs battles o'er again 
 
 And thrice he slew the slain. 
 
 As this subject was most uninteresting to 
 me, I soon changed it to a disquisition on 
 
 the
 
 lo/ 
 
 the female sex, and particularly French 
 and Spanish women, to the latter of whom 
 the General adjudged the palm of beauty ; 
 an opinion in which not finding me inclined 
 to coincide, he determined to support it by 
 ocular demonstration, and ringing the bell, 
 it was answered by a beautiful Spanish girl 
 of about eighteen, whose elegant shape, 
 perfect head and bosom, shaded by the 
 most beautiful hair falling in PTaceful rinjr- 
 lets over her shoulders, might have entitled 
 her to sit for the picture of Venus. This 
 interesting young creature, the General 
 told me, had thrown herself on his protec- 
 tion to escape the brutality of the brigands, 
 and that she officiated as his housekeeper. 
 Without ceremony she drew a chair, seat- 
 ed herself beside me, and filled my glass 
 Avith excellent punch, which she told mc 
 was of her own making. The General ab- 
 senting himself for some time, the fair 
 
 Spaniard
 
 
 158 
 
 Spaniard related her interesting* story in 
 elegant Spanish, and with a simplicity and 
 modesty that gave it additional interest. 
 
 Having emptied our bowl of punch, the 
 General insisted on seeing me to my lodg- 
 ings, where I prevailed on him to partake 
 of a glass of grog, and a segar, which 
 kept us up till four o'clock, when it became 
 my turn to see him home. 
 
 Next morning (November 19) being 
 mounted on the General's cream coloured 
 horse, which, though shewy, 1 soon found 
 had neither speed nor bottom, we proceeded 
 in search of the promised sport, attended e?^ 
 prince by about one hundred dragoons. 
 Our pack was composed of several grey- 
 hounds, who all ran by the nose, which 
 the French consider a perfection, and were 
 much surprised, when I told them that in 
 England this quality would cause them to 
 be hanged for lurchers. Our party was 
 
 numerous.
 
 159 
 
 numerous, and consisted entirely of French 
 officers, except the Marquis de Contadura, 
 a Spanish nobleman, who had deserted his 
 country's cause and joined its invaders, 
 while the other members of his family, and 
 even his wife, remained steady in their loy- 
 alty ; indeed this lady informed me, that 
 his former friends had ceased all corres- 
 pondence with him, although he was one 
 of the most distinguished Hidalgos of 
 Spain. Our sport consisted in a few tole- 
 rable gallops, which completely knocked 
 up my charger, and the produce of our 
 three hours course was eighteen hares, the 
 dragoons forming a line and beating across 
 the fields, to put up the animals. 
 
 As I had promised to instruct the Gene- 
 ral's cook in making hare soup, on our 
 return I repaired to the kitchen, where 1 
 found four brace of partridges, brought in 
 by the chasseur, as well as some wild 
 
 ducks,
 
 160 
 
 ducks, and knowing that the French roast 
 game to a cinder, I with much difficulty 
 persuaded the cook to dress the ducks 
 simply a la hroche, and to serve them up 
 w^ith the sauce I should compose, taking 
 care to specify particularly, that they were 
 not to be put to the fire until the first course 
 was served up. Although the cook and his 
 assistants were diverted with the hizarre- 
 rie of the cuisine Aijglois, I had the satis- 
 faction to find at dinner that my liare soup 
 was universally relished, and the ducks de- 
 clared to be delicious. After dinner I re- 
 tired with the General to his cabinet, where 
 we played a party at piquet, while his 
 charming housekeeper kept our glasses re- 
 plenished with excellent punch, and pro- 
 mised to bring her sister to be of our party 
 the following evening. Thirty-six Spanish 
 prisoners made their escape this night. 
 In the morning (November 20) I strolled 
 
 about
 
 161 
 
 about the immediate environs of the town, 
 and even foi this short distance I was obliged 
 to have an escort, so great was the dread 
 of the brigands. At dinner at the Gene- 
 ral's I met a party of ten, one of whom 
 was a clergyman, who spoke his pohtical 
 opinions with a freedom that surprised me, 
 in a French military society, where such 
 kind of discussions are considered as little 
 less than treason ; a point in whicli the 
 French differ entirely from us, who are 
 taught to beheve, tliat truth is most cer- 
 tainly to be attained through the medium 
 of argument. 
 
 On retiring to the General's cal)inet, we 
 found the fair Iiousekeeper had not forgot 
 her promise of introducing her sister, 
 whose charms were equal to her own, and 
 whose conversation made the evening pass 
 with additional pleasure. 
 
 Next day (November 21), a convoy being 
 VOL. I. M expected
 
 162 
 
 pccted to arrive from Seville, I went out to 
 meet it, accompanied by Monsieur de Billi, 
 and by some of our officers. Before we 
 fell in with the convoy we met with three 
 Irishmen, without any escort, who pre- 
 tended they were prisoners taken at Cadiz, 
 hut who in reality were deserters from the 
 87th regiment. There were also with them 
 some English sailors, and among them a 
 young lad named Archibald Lindsey, be- 
 longing to the Thames frigate, who told 
 me that he had been constantly kept in 
 irons, and treated with the greatest cruelty, 
 to oblige him to enter into the French ser- 
 vice. 
 
 We at last met the convoy, which was 
 
 not very considerable, the number of pri- 
 soners in it being only fifty, among whom 
 were a few English soldiers and sailors. I 
 dined as usual with the General, but this 
 day most uncomfortably, from a custom 
 
 prevalent
 
 163 
 
 prevalent among the people of condition in 
 Spain, than which nothing can be more 
 contrary to an Englishman's habits and 
 ideas, that of making complimentary visits 
 dming dinneK ' Just as we had sat down 
 to table the Countess of Superonda and her 
 daughter paid one of those mal a propos 
 visits to a Madame Benedicio, who had 
 arrived with the convoy from Seville, and 
 dined with the General. '' Place auoc 
 " dames" was of course a necessarv civi- 
 lity, and I was obliged to retire my chair a 
 yard from the table, which made my situa- 
 tion most disagreeable ; and, what was 
 still worse, while the ladies were thus an- 
 noying me, as much as if they had studied 
 a week before how to do so, they cried oat 
 every moment, " Monsieur, ne d^rangez- 
 " vous pas, je vous en prie" Unfortu- 
 nately, neither these polite requests, nor 
 their frivolous chit-chat, consoled me for 
 
 M 2 the
 
 164 
 
 the almost entire loss of my dinner ; and I 
 could not help reflecting, that what one 
 people regards as the height of politeness, 
 another considers as the very extreme of 
 rudeness. 
 
 After returning to the salon for a short 
 time, and joining in the public conversation, 
 1 took leave of the good General, whose 
 kind attention I cannot easily forget ; and 
 on this occasion I must observe, that I 
 have always found the well educated 
 French extremely attentive to, and appa- 
 rently interested in an Englishman, as if 
 there was something extraordinary in him 
 that called forth their admiration. While 
 we remained in the salon, M. Huet and M. 
 Caviillos, the former Paymaster of the 9th 
 corps, and the latter Paymaster- General 
 of the army of Portugal, attached them- 
 selves to me, and laughed heartily at my 
 description of the annoyance I suffered at 
 
 dinner.
 
 165 
 
 dinner, from the intrusion of Madame 
 Superonda, who I observed was not badly 
 named ; for the enormous rotundity of her 
 perGon frightened me from entering the Hsts 
 with her against such dreadful odds, and I 
 thought it therefore most prudent to draw 
 back my chair, even at the expence of my 
 dinner. These observations called forth a 
 number of sarcastic remarks from the 
 Frenchmen on the Countess's embonpoint ; 
 and the levity of manner of her handsome 
 daughter gave occasion to others not less 
 cutting, but of a different nature. I could 
 not decline the invitation of my facetious 
 companions to sup with them, and we did 
 not part till four o'clock in the morning. 
 
 M 3
 
 166 
 
 .CHAPTER XI. 
 
 F^roni Andujar to St. Helena ..... .Unfeeling levity 
 
 of a Pole Baylen , . . ..; Surrender of Du- 
 
 pont's army ...... Effect of the Cortes . .... Colo- 
 nial town of Sierra IMoren a Defile of Penon 
 
 de los Peros Causes of the French army 
 
 forcing it. 
 
 At six o'clock in the morning of No- 
 vember 22d, we began our march from 
 Andujar, with an escort of one thousand 
 infantry and two hundred cavalry ; this 
 force being thought necessary to protect 
 six million of reals in specie going to Ma- 
 drid. In passing the place where the pri- 
 soners had been confined, I observed a poor 
 wretch with his brains knocked out, and 
 covered with stabs ; and on enquiring of 
 the Polish Major who commanded the es- 
 cort
 
 167 
 
 cort en second^ I learnt that it was a Spa- 
 niard who had attempted to escape ; and, 
 continued the Major with a sardonic grin, 
 ** Je sentinelle Vajoliment tue !** Though 
 shocked by the unfeeHng levity of the 
 expression, I made no reply. 
 
 The country, which near Andujar is 
 level and rich, soon became poor and 
 rocky, and continued so to Baylen ; an 
 insignificant town four leagues from An- 
 dujar, where we arrived at an early hour, 
 and found wretched accommodation ; it 
 having suffered greatly from the French, 
 who at this time occupied a large and 
 strong Moorish castle on the left entering 
 the town. Here the army of Dupont, 
 consisting of eight thousand men, laid 
 down their arms to the Spaniards, com* 
 manded by Castanos, Reding and Venagas. 
 This check caused Buonaparte to send a 
 fresh army of two hundred thousand vete- 
 
 M 4 rans
 
 168 
 
 rans into Spain, to ensure its conquest ; an 
 event which, at the moment I am writing 
 this, is certainly as far distant as ever, after 
 the loss of lialf a million of French soldiers : 
 and, indeed, it requires little penetration to 
 discover, that the exterminating system of 
 warfare adopted by France, although it 
 might succeed in a country where the 
 inhabitants could be hemmed into a little 
 space, must inevitably fail in one so exten- 
 sive and so naturally strong as Spain. 
 Cruelty, therefore, serves only to exaspe- 
 rate the whole nation, of which, while one 
 individual remains, the remeuibrance will 
 never be obliterated. The' assembly of the 
 Cortes has infused a new spirit into the 
 Spanish people, who look with confidence 
 to the wisdom of this august body, for the 
 salvation of their country and the preser- 
 vation of their liberty. It was a similar 
 confidence in their Congress that carried 
 
 the
 
 169 
 
 the Americans through every difficulty to 
 final success, and similar causes produce 
 similar effects. 
 
 Quitting Baylen early in the morning of 
 the 23d, we passed through Guaraman, 
 the first of a chain of villages huilt hy 
 Charles the Third, for the reception of a 
 colony of Germans, which he established 
 in the Sierra Morena. This village is re- 
 gularly built, and the houses exactly alike, 
 but they were now totally deserted, in con- 
 sequence of the French invasion. Indeed 
 the colony never arrived at any great pros^ 
 perity; and perhaps it maybe admitted as 
 an axioQi in politics, that the mere will of 
 the sovereign is totally inadequate for forc- 
 ing the progress of industry, commerce, 
 or manufactures, and more particularly 
 the latter, whose birth is in general spon- 
 taneous, and their growth the effect of 
 local causes and circumstances. 
 
 From
 
 170 
 
 From Guaraman we approached the co- 
 lonial town of Carolina by a fine shaded 
 alley, with rich gardens on each side. This 
 town, as well as 15 ve others which we passed 
 through in the Sierra, is surrounded by a 
 wall, with loop holes, and has been regu« 
 larly fortified by the French, by whom, 
 however, several of the houses have been 
 burnt, and most of the inhabitants had fled. 
 In short, the cruelty and exactions of the 
 invaders have caused this tract of country 
 to be nearly deserted, and hence the grounds 
 remaining uncultivated, the French find it 
 extremely difficult to subsist themselves ; 
 thus, in every respect, their exterminating 
 system injures their cause. 
 
 At Carolina we put up at a large inn built 
 with cut stone, which however did not afford 
 a single convenience, not even shelter from 
 the weather ; for the windows and doors 
 had been burnt and the roof destroyed, so 
 
 that 
 
 4 
 
 I
 
 171 
 
 that the wind and sleet found a free en- 
 trance into every apartment : it is not 
 therefore surprising that we were anxious 
 to^quit this scene of desohition, and at 
 break of day (November 24), resumed our 
 route over a most barren tract, and 
 through two colonial villages, both de- 
 stroyed, and arrived at St. Helena, six 
 leagues from Carolina, and similar to it. 
 This is the last of the colonial towns, it is 
 situated at the foot of the Sierra, and is 
 now totally abandoned. Here we received 
 information that the brigands meditated an 
 attack on the convoy ; and the troops in 
 consequence bivouaqued round the town, 
 and other precautions were taken. In a 
 council of war, composed of the principal 
 officers of the escort, it was determined that 
 the Spanish prisoners should be indiscrimi- 
 nately put to death at the moment of attack, 
 and they were accordingly tied two and two, 
 
 to
 
 172 
 
 to wait their fate. With this resolution I was 
 made acquainted the following morning by 
 Monsieur Garnier, who added, that *' it had 
 '* been determined to spare the English pri- 
 " soners, because they were sure they would 
 " join in repelling the brigands.'' My only 
 acknowledgment of this favour was by reply- 
 ing, '^ that we had six Frenchmen at least 
 in England for one EngUshman in the 
 power of the French, and that certainly 
 any violence perpetrated on an indivi- 
 *' dual subject of England, would be se- 
 " verely retaliated ; that for my own part, 
 " I had no fears either for my personal 
 ** safety or for that of any one of my coun- 
 *' trymen, fellow prisoners; and I was sure 
 «' the commander of the convoy must re- 
 *' fleet, tbat any atrocity of this nature 
 *^ would not only subject him to the exe- 
 ** cration of mankind, but that he would 
 " also be answerable to his own nation for 
 
 "• sul- 

 
 173 
 
 " sullyiug its honour, and to the whole 
 *^ civih'zed world, for a violation of the 
 " laws of war, as well as of the principles 
 ''of humanity/' I immediately retired, 
 and put on my uniform. 
 
 Towards the foot of the Sierra, among a 
 profusion of romantic views, are many de- 
 files, in passing which the convoy might 
 certainly have been attacked to the greatest 
 advantage : and indeed the expectation of 
 it was so great, that every preparation was 
 made for it ; the individuals of the civil 
 part of the escort aiming themselves ac- 
 cording to their fancy, with guns, swords, 
 or pistols, and some v/ith all three, while 
 their martial appearance was increased by 
 an immense cocked hat, generally stuck on 
 over a red night cap. At length we reach- 
 ed the famous Penon de los Peros, a tre- 
 mendous rocky precipice, from the sides of 
 which a great variety of large trees and 
 
 shrubs
 
 174 
 
 shrubs grew out in such a manner, as, on 
 a cursory view, to create astonishment 
 how they could vegetate amidst such bar- 
 renness ; but a nearer examination shews 
 that the rock is split in every direction, and 
 the cavities filled with rich and humid 
 mould, in which the trees strike their roots, 
 while the rock, which is calcareous, affords 
 a prolific warmth that renders the vegeta- 
 tion extremely luxuriant. At the foot of 
 the precipice Hows a river, which was now 
 much swollen by recent rains, and increas- 
 ed the romantic effect of the landscape. 
 Near the precipice is a drawbridge, and 
 on the left of the latter some elevated bat- 
 teries, commanding others beneath them, 
 the possession of which, had the brigands 
 attempted an attack, would have been of 
 much consequence to the convoy. Farther 
 in advance were the remains of several other 
 batteries, all commanding this formidable 
 
 pass.
 
 175 
 
 pass, which it was expected in England 
 would have prevented the penetration of 
 the French army into Andalusia. 
 
 Accompanied by General Briott and se* 
 veral Frencli officers, I visited this pass, 
 and found that, like most defiles, its ap- 
 pearance of strength is very deceitful ; but 
 even the Spaniards did not know how, or 
 neglected, to make the most of its natural 
 advantages. The sites of their batteries 
 were ill chosen, being commanded on all 
 sides by musquetry, and therefore at the 
 mercy of an enemy who miglit gain the 
 heights in their rear, or turn their flanks; 
 both of which the French succeeded in. In 
 the passage of theFrench army, Joseph Buo- 
 naparte commanded the centre, with Mar- 
 shal Soult and General Desolles. Marshal 
 Victor's corps proceeded to the right three 
 days before the movement of the centre, 
 and entered the Sierra nearly opposite Cor- 
 dova,
 
 176 
 
 dova, advancing in the rear of the Spani- 
 ards, with the intention of turning their 
 left; while Sebastiani's corps advanced on 
 the left, in order to turn their right ; and 
 thus the Spanish army being flanked and 
 commanded on every side, fled in all di- 
 lections, with scarce any resistance, and m 
 left the French an undisputed passage into 
 the heart of Andalusia. This unexpected 
 misfortune was attempted to be accounted 
 for in various ways, and many persons at- 
 tributed it to treachery ; but this idea, when 
 the nature of the pass, and the force of the 
 Spaniards are considered, must be aban- 
 doned ; for, first, there was no natural pro- 
 tection for either of the flanks, such as a 
 swamp or river ; and, secondly, the Spanish 
 army was barely sufficient to defend the 
 road by which it was to be presumed the 
 French would attempt to pass ; as the lat- 
 ter had several other points open to them, 
 
 by
 
 177 
 
 by which they might cross the mountains, 
 whose extent is so great, that their general 
 defence requires a force greatly superior to 
 what Spain and her allies could at this time 
 have spared for the purpose. The less the 
 event was expected, the greater was the 
 consternation on its arrival, and the Junto 
 of Seville, who had placed entire confidence 
 in thisThermopylee of Spain, was cautiously 
 and tediously proceeding in its delibera- 
 tions, without having once thought of pro- 
 viding against a disaster, which it had not 
 the most distant idea could ever arrive. 
 
 VOL. I. N
 
 178 
 
 CHAPTER XII. 
 
 General observations on Andalusia Soil and cli- 
 mate . . . .Face of the country Forests . . .Popu- 
 lation Effects of the French invasion Agri- 
 culture Horses Manufactures Commerce 
 
 . . . .Distinguished characters . . . .National character 
 . . . .Mines Mineral waters. 
 
 Before I quit Andalusia, I trust my 
 readers will not find uninteresting or mis- 
 placed, the few observations my mode of 
 travelling permitted me to make on that 
 kingdom, the chief seat of the war in Spain 
 at the time of my passing through it. 1 
 have already cursorily observed, that the 
 soil and climate of this part of Spain are 
 eminently calculated to afford the same ve- 
 getable productions as the tropical colo- 
 nies, and that therefore its possession by 
 
 France 
 
 I 
 
 t
 
 179 
 
 France would render those colonies almost 
 unnecessary to her. Like all mountainous 
 regions, Andalusia offers the most romantic 
 scenery to the picturesque traveller, while 
 the agriculturist admires the richness of its 
 vallies, which aided by a genial climate, 
 yield in the same extent of surface nearly 
 double the quantity of wine, oil, and corn, 
 produced in any other part of Europe : and 
 hence it has deservedly acquired the title 
 of ^' the wine cellar and granary of Spain." 
 Even the mountains, which in most other 
 countries are unproductive, are here a 
 source of riches, in the great variety of 
 marbles they contain, valuable both for the 
 fineness of grain and the mixture of co- 
 lours. 
 
 The extensive forests of Andalusia, and 
 particularly those of evergreen oak, con- 
 stitute an object of national riches. These 
 trees attain a magnitude that would in other 
 
 N 2 countries
 
 180 
 
 countries be considered with astonishment ; 
 nor, indeed, have I ever seen any of the 
 vegetable reign arrive at such immensity, 
 except those of Brazil, where several species 
 of trees grow to a size that entitle them to 
 the name of giants of the forest. 
 
 The population and industry of Anda- 
 lusia have never recovered the blow they 
 received by the expulsion of the Moors, at 
 which epoch an immense number of towns 
 and villages were seated on the banks of the 
 Guadalquivir alone, and the population of 
 the kingdom was estimated at seven mil- 
 lions, of which Grenada contained three 
 millions. According to the most recent 
 estimation, the number of inhabitants is 
 now but two millions, of which it is said 
 one fourth at least are useless to society by 
 their rehgious vows. Here I cannot help 
 observing that, whatever may be the event 
 of the present contest, the Spanish nation 
 
 will
 
 181 
 
 will derive an inestimable benefit from the 
 invasion of the French, in getting rid of 
 such legions of monks, who not only, like 
 drones in a hive, hang a dead weight on 
 the industry of the community, but, what 
 is still worse, are the great obstacles to all 
 national improvement, by the gross igno- 
 rance in which it is their interest to keep 
 the people ; for we can scarcely suppose it 
 possible that, should the French be finally 
 driven out of Spain, the Spanish govern- 
 ment or nation will be so lost to common 
 sense, as to restore the monastic orders. 
 
 The observation that, ** where nature is 
 ** most bountiful, the people are most in- 
 " dolent," is no where more completely 
 verified than in Andalusia. Even the olive 
 trees, which constitute a considerable por- 
 tion not only of the wealth, but of the very 
 subsistence of the people, are so neglected, 
 that generally nine out of ten are half de- 
 
 N 3 cayed.
 
 182 
 
 cayed, or the vegetation only preserved by 
 a single narrow strip of bark, while all the 
 rest of the trunk is naked ; nevertheless, 
 such is the fertility of the soil, that a tree 
 thus deprived of nine-tenths of its bark, is 
 seen loaded with fruit. 
 
 But though in general agriculture is little 
 understood in Andalusia, it is more ad- 
 vanced in some districts than in others, 
 which is probably to be ascribed to the dif- 
 ferent direction of leases. In many parts, 
 the tenant holds only for three years, in 
 others for five; but neither term is sufficient 
 to induce the faroier to go to any expence 
 in improvement : on the contrary, it is evi- 
 dently his interest to get the most he can 
 out of the soil, at the least possible ex- 
 pence. Such, however, is the richness of 
 the soil, the abundance of water consequent 
 to a mountainous country, and the equal 
 temperature of the climate, that the lands 
 
 retain
 
 183 
 
 retain their fertility almost undiminished, 
 in spite of the vicious system of agriculture. 
 
 The mesta, or ancient custom of driving 
 va^t flocks of sheep from one end of the 
 kingdom to the other for pasture, which is 
 protected hy the Government, is also ex- 
 tremely unfavourable to the improvement 
 as well as to the extension of cultivation. 
 
 The valley through which the Guadal- 
 quivir winds its course, is supereminently 
 fertile, and from it the French armies de- 
 rive the greatest part of their forage and 
 provisions. The sides of the mountains 
 to the north of Cordova are covered with 
 vineyards and gardens, interspersed with 
 groves of lemons and orange trees ; in 
 short, the territory of Fernan Nunez, about 
 four leagues from Cordova, is but one con- 
 tinued beautiful garden for many miles. 
 
 The provinces of Seville and Grenada 
 are the most fruitful in barley and maize ; 
 
 N 4 the
 
 184 
 
 the former, mixed with chopped straw, is the 
 general food of the horses, for giving them 
 barley alone is said to produce disease. The 
 neighbourhood of Seville, Cordova, and 
 Andujar produce abundance of wheat, and 
 the quantity of this grain raised in the 
 whole of Andalusia, is said to be double 
 its consumption. The crops particularly 
 near the coast are, however, very uncer- 
 tain, the Levant wind often destroying 
 them, as well as the Solano, which blows 
 in scorching blasts from the coast of Afri- 
 ca, and produces a similar effect to the 
 blight. The coasts of Grenada are most 
 exposed to this baneful wind, and here, 
 therefore, the cultivation of hemp is pre- 
 ferred, this plant receiving no injury 
 from it. 
 
 Amongst Spanish wines those of Anda- 
 lusia are the most esteemed, and particu- 
 larly those of Grenada. The wines of the 
 
 territory
 
 185 
 
 territory of Malaga are highly celebrated, 
 and of which there are twenty to thirty 
 varieties ; those of Pietro Zimenes, the 
 Mi;scatel, and the Tierno are of superior 
 quality. Farther west dry wines are chief- 
 ly produced, of which the most esteemed 
 are those of Rota and Xeres : of the latter, 
 known by the name of sherry, fifty thou- 
 sand quintals * are exported annually, 
 chiefly by the port of Malaga, from which 
 was also exported three hundred thousand 
 quintals of raisins, the grapes of this dis- 
 trict being of a very superior quality, and 
 requiring no other preparation than merely 
 hanging to dry in the sun. 
 
 The wine named Montella, produced in 
 the vicinity of Cordova, is the most es- 
 teemed in the country. The olives of the 
 
 territory 
 
 * A quintal in weight is one hundred pounds Eng- 
 lish J in liquid measure twelve gallons.
 
 186 
 
 territory of Seville are reckoned of a supe- 
 rior quality, but the oil made from tliem is 
 generally rancid, owing, doubtless, to the 
 negligent manner of preparing it. 
 
 The Andalusian horses are deservedly 
 considered the best of Spain, and this su- 
 periority they owe to the facility of crossing 
 them with those of Barbary, by the con- 
 stant intercourse between the coasts. 
 
 The manufactures of Andalusia, which 
 were formerly very considerable, particu- 
 larly those of Seville, have constantly de- 
 clined since the beginning of the seven- 
 teenth century. The silk manufactures of 
 Cordova, Grenada, Seville, and Malaga, 
 are, however, still flourishing, and those 
 of Xeres and Puerto de Santa Maria res- 
 pectable. Coarse woollens are also manu- 
 factured to a considerable extent in several 
 towns. From the royal tobacco manufac- 
 tory at Seville issues an immense quantity 
 
 of
 
 187 
 
 of segars and snuflT, the latter named pol- 
 villis. At Velez Malaga is a manufactory 
 of playing cards, the only one I believe in 
 Spai-n, and which suppHes both the wliole 
 kingdom and the colonies. Besides the 
 sugar works at Malaga, there are some 
 respectable ones at Motril. 
 
 The general commerce of Andalusia, 
 though much declined from its ancient 
 splendour, was still considerable at the pe- 
 riod of the present invasion, the chief 
 trading ports being Almeria, Malaga, and 
 Cadiz. Almeria was, during the Moorish 
 dominion, one of the most commercial ci- 
 ties of Europe, which it owed principally 
 to the goodness of its port, at the head of 
 a gulf, sheltered from the Levant winds by 
 the promontory of Cape de Gata. A pesti- 
 lential disease, which desolated the city in 
 the fourteenth century, gave the first blow 
 to its commerce, and the expulsion of the 
 
 Moors
 
 188 
 
 Moors totally annihilated it ; nor have two 
 centuries heen able to restore it. The com- 
 merce of Malaga, as I have before ob- 
 served, has been totally destroyed by French 
 fraternity or invasion, words synonymous 
 in their effects ; and this example ought to 
 warn every nation to guard as cautiously 
 against the one as the other. The exports 
 from Malaga formerly amounted to up- 
 wards of three millions of piastres, of 
 which oil alone furnished one million, 
 while the imports did not amount to two 
 millions. Cadiz, until 177^j enjoyed the 
 sole trade of the colonies, and though this \ 
 commerce has been opened to all the prin- 
 cipal ports of Spain, it still retained two- j 
 thirds of the whole. The wars with Eng- 
 land, however, reduced it to a cipher, 
 before the French invasion. In 1791 this 
 port sent one hundred and seventy-seven 
 ships to the colonies, and in 1801 only 
 
 twenty
 
 189 
 
 twenty cleared out from all the ports of 
 Spain ', no other proof need be adduced, 
 how greatly it is the interest of Spain to be 
 on ^ood terms with England, who can 
 thus in a moment annihilate the most valu- 
 able branch of her commerce, and upon 
 which the very existence of her govern- 
 ment, in the present state of the country, 
 depends. The French invasion, and the 
 vast efforts made by England to support 
 Spanish independence, will doubtless unite 
 the two nations more closely than ever, 
 and, therefore, even in a commmercial 
 view (supposing France to fail in the sub- 
 jection of the country, which I think is not 
 problematic), she must lose considerably 
 by the mistaken ambition of Buonaparte, for 
 Spain will certainly procure hereafter from 
 the British islands many of thearticles which 
 she formerly received from France, and 
 other nations now subject to her. Thus 
 
 Irisl^
 
 190 
 
 Irish linens have already superseded those 
 of Holland, and if the colonies should suc- 
 ceed in their efforts for independence, ano- 
 ther consequence of the French invasion, 
 they will certainly receive the manufactured 
 objects they require from England, rather 
 than from France. The exports of wool- 
 lens alone from Marseilles to Spain, chiefly 
 for the use of the colonies, was estimated 
 at twelve millions of francs. 
 
 At the head of the distinguished charac- 
 ters to whom Andalusia has given birth, 
 must be placed Seneca, the great master of 
 sententious morality. During the Moorish 
 dominion the arts and sciences were highly 
 cultivated, and rose to a great degree of 
 perfection ; particularly astronomy, mathe- 
 matics, and medicine, in the last of which 
 the Moors made vast improvements, and 
 introduced a new system of physiology, 
 which superseded that of the Greeks, and 
 
 which 
 
 II
 
 191 
 
 which was first adopted in France, from 
 whence it found its way into the rest of 
 Europe. 
 
 Andalusia has produced some poets of 
 eminence of both sexes. Among the men 
 Ferdinand de Herrera is the most esteemed, 
 and among the females Aischa of Cordova, 
 and Maria Alpharsati, surnamed the Sap- 
 pho of Spain, whose picture I observed in 
 several of the first collections. 
 
 This kingdom has also the honour of 
 giving birth to several eminent painters, at 
 the head of whom may be placed Paul 
 Cespides, who was a universal genius, ex- 
 celling equally in painting, engraving, ar- 
 chitecture and poetry. Antonio Murillo 
 deserves the second place. The Spaniards 
 being extremely fond of music, this art 
 has of course made considerable progress 
 among them, but the national music is still 
 far inferior to that of Italy or France. 
 
 Malaga
 
 192 
 
 Malaga has produced some good botanists 
 and chemists, whose works are to be found 
 in the public libraries. 
 
 It is justly a matter of surprise, that 
 during such a contest as the present, not a 
 single Spaniard of superior talents or abi- 
 lities has appeared on the great theatre of 
 action, while the French revolution has 
 brought forth geniusses of almost every des- 
 cription. Perhaps paucity of talent among 
 the Spaniards is owing to the influence of 
 the clergy not being yet sufficiently weak- 
 ened, to permit the general adoption of a 
 more liberal system of education, which 
 can alone produce the desired revolution in 
 the moral habits of the nation. In fact, 
 what energy of action can be expected 
 from a people, who trust more to a patron 
 saint for protection than to their own cou- 
 rage. The soldier, who places his sole confi- 
 dence ina relick suspended onhis breast, may 
 
 go
 
 193 
 
 go into battle with the appearance of va- 
 lour, but will surelv turn his back the mo- 
 ment he thinks his saint has forsaken him. 
 The inquisitorial prohibition of all books 
 containino' liberal sentiments on relioionj 
 morality, natural philosophy, or politics, 
 still exists, and a list of such books is seen 
 hung up in every church. In some of the 
 public libraries, however, these books are 
 allowed a separate place, over which is 
 inscribed *' Books of 'Reference,'' to denote 
 that they are for the use of the learned 
 alone, and not to be read by all persons 
 indiscriminately, although in general they 
 are the only books worth reading- in the 
 collections. 
 
 The Andalusians are distinguished from 
 the natives of the other provinces of Spain 
 by a peculiarity of costume and manners ; 
 the former they seem to have preserved 
 from a very early period, and the montero 
 
 VOL. I. o cap
 
 194 
 
 cap is still universally worn by the peasantry, 
 whose common dress is a light jacket with 
 three close rows of oval buttons, and two 
 of loops and tassels. Buttons indeed seem 
 to be their favourite ornament, for to each 
 knee of the breeches they have usually 
 twenty to thirty hung to silver chains, and 
 two rows to the waistcoat fixed in a similar 
 manner. Their shoes are out of measure 
 long quartered, and as well as the knee 
 bands fastened by enormous silver buckles. 
 The men plait their hair in a neat manner 
 and fasten it at the extremity with a black 
 ribbon, tied in a bow, which hangs half 
 way down the back. The Andalusian prides 
 himself on his country, and is seriously of- 
 fended at being mistaken for a native of any 
 other province, even though it should be 
 of Castille itself. The Bullero and Fan- 
 dango with castanets are the favourite 
 dances of the Andalusians, and they usually 
 
 accompany
 
 195 
 
 accompany them with a popular song, 
 which greatly adds to their eflect. The 
 number of Gustanos or gypsies, scattered 
 over this province is very considerable; their 
 women, though their complexions are very 
 dark, have in general fine features and 
 brilliant eyes ; these vagabonds were for- 
 merly protected by the nobles, in return for 
 which, their stiletto was ahvavs at their 
 patron's service, to revenge his injuries on 
 his enemies, or satisfy his jealousy of a 
 rival. In travelling through Spain the idea 
 of assassination is every moment recalled to 
 the mind, by the crosses erected to mark 
 the spots where this crime has been com- 
 mitted, and the number of these ecce-sig- 
 na proves the astonishing prevalence of 
 this cowardly species of revenge. 
 
 Even a sketch of the natural history of 
 Andalusia would lead mc far bevond the 
 limits I have prescribed to myself in this 
 
 o 2 journal.
 
 196 
 
 journal. I cannot however forbear men- 
 tioning the mines of gold and silver, which 
 during the Roman dominion were celebrated 
 for their richness, but which are at present 
 not worth the working. Amongst the most 
 noted are those of Linarez in the province 
 of Jaen, which were worked by the Car- 
 thaginians, and were the property of the 
 beautiful Himila, wife of Asdrubal. They 
 were still productive in the time of the Ro- 
 mans, and are described as being two thou- A 
 sand feet deep, and having several galleries. 
 There are some rich copper mines on the 
 banks of the Tinto, not far from Cordova. 
 The kingdom of Grenada has several warm 
 mineral springs chiefly sulphureous, of 
 which the most celebrated are those of Al- 
 bania at Grenada, and one within two miles 
 of Antequera, famous for the cure of gravel 
 complaints. To such of my readers as may 
 wish for a detailed account of the mineral 
 
 waters 

 
 197 
 
 waters of this province, I can recommend 
 a treatise on them by Don Juan de Dios 
 Aguda, a copy of which was lent me at 
 Ardujar by the good priest I have already 
 mentioned. 
 
 o3
 
 198 
 
 CHAPTER XIII. 
 
 La Mancha Contrast with Andalusia .... Santa 
 
 Cruz Beauty of the Country Val de Penas 
 
 Regiment of Nassau Convoy from France 
 
 Italian Marquis Manzanares Sunday 
 
 evening dances. 
 
 On entering La Mancha from Andalusia 
 the traveller is forcibly struck by the great 
 contrast both in the face of the country, the 
 architecture of the buildings, and the cos- 
 tume of the people, which are as different 
 from those of Andalusia, as if the two pro- 
 vinces formed distinct nations. Andalusia 
 is covered with chains or groups of moun- 
 tains, while La Mancha is but one immense 
 plain, the soil a deep clay, highly cultivated 
 and extremely productive. The stile of ar- 
 chitecture
 
 1^9 
 
 chitecture and the arrangement of the 
 apartments in Andalusia are Hght and chear- 
 ful, in La Mancha both are heavy and 
 sombre. 
 
 Though the roads of Spain are in general 
 horribly bad, that by which we entered La 
 Mancha is an exception, being sixty feet 
 wide, and in excellent order, so that we 
 advanced rapidly, and reached Santa Cruz, 
 from St. Helena, in the evening of No- 
 vember 24. Santa Cruz is the first town of 
 La Mancha, towards the Sierra Morena, 
 and has nothing worthy of note. The streets 
 are narrow and badly paved, and the houses, 
 built of clay or of dirty coloured bricks, 
 there being no stone in the neighbour- 
 hood, are entered by a large court yard, 
 round which are the stables and other out 
 offices. The naturally unchearfui look of 
 the town was now increased by the ravages 
 of war, the French having recently des- 
 
 o 4 troyed
 
 200 
 
 troyed nearly one half of it, and the des- 
 cription my hosts gave nie of their own de- 
 plorable situation and of the general misery, 
 by no means tended to chase away the me- 
 lancholy feelings inspired by this scene of 
 wanton criiehy. The invaders, however, 
 while they destroyed the houses of the de- 
 fenceless inhabitants, had taken care to re- 
 pair and garrison a castle close to the town. 
 November 25. Early in the morning we 
 resumed our journey towards Toledo by a 
 very bad cross road, the roughness of which 
 was however in some measure compensated 
 by the beauty of the country, which pre- 
 sented a series of luxuriant meadows, co- 
 vered with the finest turf, watered by nu- 
 merous rivulets, and clotted with clumps of 
 majestic evergreen oaks, under which vast 
 herds of cattle formerly sought shelter from 
 the wind and rain in winter, and which 
 doubtless in summer afforded them a shaded 
 
 retreat
 
 201 
 
 retreat from the ardour of the sun. But 
 this beautiful tract was now a desert, with- 
 out peasants to cultivate it, or cattle to crop 
 the herb. The numerous villages and ham- 
 lets which formerly afforded the traveller the 
 chearful appearance of rural comfort, were 
 now laid in ashes, the inliabitants either 
 massacred or fled, and nought to be seen 
 around but the desolation of an extermi- 
 nating warfare. In short, the painter of 
 landscape could in no part of the w^orld find 
 more beautiful scenery to occupy his pencil, 
 nor the poet more affecting objects to employ 
 his pen. 
 
 In the course of this day's march we had 
 to cross a piece of water and wind round a 
 small hill, which offers an excellent defen- 
 sive position for an army, the pass not be- 
 ing above twelve feet wide, and its flank 
 guarded by a deep river. We halted for a 
 short time at the village of Val de Penas, 
 
 midway
 
 202 
 
 midway between Santa Cruz and Man- 
 zanares, and which is celebrated for a wine 
 made in the vicinity resembling Port, but 
 not so strong. We were now obliged to 
 content ourselves with that of the last 
 vintage, the French troops in their pas* 
 sage having exhausted all the old ; but the 
 Alcade of the village kindly filled my little 
 barrel with the best that remained, and 
 which I calculated would serve me and my 
 companion to Toledo, 
 
 At Val de Penas our escort was increased 
 by six hundred infantry of the regiment of 
 Nassau, and two hundred hussars of the 
 same corps ; the battalion of infantry of 
 this regiment was now twelve hundred 
 strong, and remarkably well appointed. In- 
 stead of our cumbersome tin canteens, which 
 are continually wanting repair, each man 
 had a skin bottle with a wooden or bone 
 mouth piece, and holding about five pints ; 
 
 the
 
 203 
 
 the older these vessels are, the more va- 
 luable. 
 
 Among the officers of this corps I recog- 
 nized a Mr. Stelms, who had deserted from 
 the French to us, and afterwards re -desert- 
 ed back again to the French. This double 
 deserter was received by the French officers 
 with the greatest apparent cordiaHty, and 
 a Serjeant and some soldiers who had fol- 
 lowed his example were as graciously re- 
 ceived by their comrades, which induced 
 me to ask one of the officers if they really 
 considered this total want of honour as 
 meritorious? to which he made no other re- 
 ply than, the usual one of a Frenchman 
 when he does not know what to answer, a 
 shrug of the shoulders. Mr. Stelms re- 
 mained with his corps; but the serjeant, 
 who had all the appearance of a per- 
 fect ruffian, was marched onward, and I 
 
 had
 
 204 
 
 had the pleasure of seehig him put in irons 
 at Madrid. 
 
 Outside of Val de Penas we met a large 
 convoy from France going into Andalusia, 
 many of the persons in which could not re- 
 frain from loudly expressing their joy at 
 seeing a few English prisoners, as if the 
 fate of the war depended on our freedom or 
 captivity. In this convoy I observed several 
 carriages built on the model of English post 
 chaises, but incapable of supporting a com- 
 parison as to the finish. With respect to 
 the French convoys, care is taken that two 
 shall not meet at the same village ; but this 
 is dcmbtless more for their own sakes, to 
 prevent a scarcity of provisions and quar- 
 ters, than from any regard to the Spaniards. 
 In the present case however this precaution 
 was unnecessary, for we found provisions 
 abundant, even to profusion, at Val de Penas. 
 ! Betweeu
 
 205 
 
 Between tins village and Manzanares we 
 passed through or near several ruined vil- 
 lages. On approaching Manzanares, we 
 -^^;were met by several Polish officers and gen- 
 tlemen of tine town, amongst whom I was 
 surprised to see a certain Marquis de Sa- 
 HnasJ^ whom I had formerly met at Lord 
 Nelson's and Sir William Hamilton's houses 
 at Palermo. At that time he was the holder 
 of a Pharo bank, and besides collected 
 modern antiques for travelling gentlemen, 
 who wished to acquire the reputation of 
 cognoscenti. As the Marquis always pro- 
 duced his acquisitions of this nature in com- 
 pany, with a long harangue on their in- 
 estimable vahic, and the low price they 
 were to l)e sold for, he generally disposed 
 of them with ease, and J, among others, 
 took some oft' his hands, which, though cer- 
 tainly more antique now than when I bought 
 them, I would wilHngly spare under priuic
 
 206 
 
 cost. Long absence, we are told, weakens 
 friendship ; and with respect to the Itahan 
 Marquis, I found that it weakens shame also, 
 for though he was obliged to quit Palermo 
 precipitately, in consequence of being open- 
 ly detected cheating at play at Sir William 
 Hamilton's, in my presence, and was af- 
 terwards turned out of the English fleet by 
 Lord Keith, on violent suspicion of being a 
 spy of the French, he now accosted me with 
 an air of perfect composure, expressed his 
 happiness at meeting me, and insisted on 
 escorting me to my quarters. Knowing 
 him to be an entertaining fellow, from whom 
 I might derive both information and amuse- 
 ment. I deterniined to look over the slight 
 blemish of being a professed swindler ; and, 
 indeed, he seemed himself to think this no 
 blot in his character, for he adverted to 
 the transaction at Palermo, and treated it 
 as a mere bagatelle. The story he now re- 
 lated
 
 i?07 
 
 lated of himself was, that, expecting the 
 Frencri to hecome masters of Sicily, he 
 thought it the best policy to secure his pro- 
 perty there by espousing their cause ; that 
 he therefore quitted that island for Spain, 
 and being married to a Spanish lady, who 
 possessed property at Manzanares, he had 
 just come from Madrid to take possession 
 of it, but found that a French General had 
 been beforehand with him, and now occu- 
 pied his house by miUtary tenure ; at the 
 same time, that his Spanish tenants were 
 unable to pay their rents, from the dis- 
 turbed and distressed state of the country, 
 and, that being disappointed in his expec- 
 tations of the French becoming masters of 
 Sicily, he could draw no succours from 
 thence. The noble Marquis found in me a 
 Job's comforter ; for, instead of condoling 
 with him, I related the several unsuccessful 
 attempts of the French on Sicilv, and as- 
 
 sured
 
 208 
 
 sured him that they had now seemingly 
 given up the idea, as hopeless, while the 
 English retained their superiority at sea. 
 
 November 25. As the convov were to halt 
 for the day at Manzanares, in the morning 
 I u^alked out of the town over a fine plain, 
 and entered into conversation with some 
 country people, w^ho, when they understood 
 I was an English officer, told me all their 
 sufferings from the tyranny of the French, 
 and assured me, that if any of the English 
 officers wished to escape, they should be 
 provided that night with horses, money, 
 and guides. This was not the first by many 
 offers of the same nature that I had re- 
 ceived ; but even had I not been on parole, 
 the liberality of General Sebastiani's con- 
 duct to me had been such, that I should 
 have felt it impossible to take advantage of 
 them. On my return to the town, I waited 
 on General Loye, who received me politely, 
 
 invited 
 
 I
 
 209 
 
 invited me to dinner, and in the mean 
 time asked me to accompany him to see a 
 bull-fight. This diversion, which took 
 place in the public square, was, however, 
 wretched in the extreme, the animals, ex- 
 cept one, being mere calves, which the 
 squibs and darts thrown at them by some 
 men and boys on foot (for there were no 
 cavaliers) could not irritate ; tlie old one 
 was less patient, and soon cle*ired the 
 square. 
 
 The General gave me an excellent dinner 
 with a good fire, and many of the guests 
 being ofl^icers of the old school, and con- 
 sequently of gentlemanly manners, the even- 
 ing passed pleasantly, and was closed w^th 
 a dance, at which all the ladies of the 
 town were assembled ; in whose persons, 
 dress, or manners, I saw little to admire. 
 One lady and gentleman danced a Fan- 
 dango with castanets in a very good stile. 
 
 VOL. I. P In
 
 210 
 
 In all the large towns occupied by the 
 French, it is customary for the Governor 
 to give a dance to the inhabitants every I 
 Sunday evening, the expence of which is 
 either defrayed by the Government, or cer- 
 tain emoluments are granted the Governor 
 in lieu. 
 
 November 26. Early in the morning we 
 resumed our march, and in the evening 
 reached Villa Robeda, or Rubia, only wor- 
 thy of notice from its vicinity to the source 
 of the Guudiamar. On the following day 
 (November 27), after passing through a 
 level tract of country, formerly producing a 
 great quantity of corn, we arrived at Con- 
 istt6gra. In this day's march, a hare start- 
 ing up close to us : I followed it with Mon- 
 sieur Gamier, who had a greyhound, but 
 we were soon obliged to halt, on coming in 
 sight of some brigands' vedettes, who had 
 kept on our flanks for the last two days, 
 
 and
 
 211 
 
 and gave us continual alarm. Consuegra 
 is the best town we had yet seen in La 
 Mancha, but has suffered greatly from the 
 war, and more particularly, as I learnt, 
 from the German troops, who in the act of 
 desolation excel even the French. Our 
 present escort being entirely composed of 
 these demi savages, the prisoners felt the 
 full extent of their brutality, a blow with 
 the butt end of a musquet being the only 
 answer to any complaint. Witnessing a 
 fact of this nature myself, I remonstrated 
 with the commanding officer in the strong- 
 est terms, and positively refused to march 
 another step, even though death was to be 
 the consequence, unless the ruffian was 
 punished, and he was accordingly marched 
 on as a prisoner. 
 
 At Consuegra is a Moorish castle, capa- 
 ble of receiving a garrison of four thousand 
 men. It is in good repair, and almost inac- 
 
 p 2 cessible.
 
 212 
 
 cessible, so that the Spaniards must have 
 been infatuated, not to have seen the great 
 advantage of occupying it at the commence- 
 ment of the war. 
 
 On the following day (November 2/), 
 
 ■■■■. i<t 
 
 we reached Mora, a miserable village, 
 where we halted, to w^ait for a reinforce- 
 ment ; it being reported that II Medico 
 was in possession of the Castle of Almu- 
 naire, on the route to Toledo, and that he 
 had a considerable force. II 3Iedico (the 
 name which the French have, in derision of 
 his profession of physician, given to this 
 chief) is properly called Martinez. He was 
 forced into his present situation by the cru- 
 elties of the French, who not only confis- 
 cated his property, but personally ill treated 
 himself and his family, which rendering him 
 desperate, he joined a body of the patriots, 
 and was declared their chief. Elis force at 
 this time was said to be eight hundred m- 
 
 i
 
 213 
 
 fantry and four hundred cavalry, with 
 which he was extremely successful in ha- 
 rassing the French, and cutting off their 
 convoys. His acts of personal courage 
 have been also so daring, that his name 
 alone strikes terror. The two expresses 
 dispatched successively to Toledo for a re- 
 inforcement having fallen into the hands of 
 the patriots, w^e were obliged to halt a se- 
 cond day at Mora (November 28), and to 
 kill time, a jmrtie de chasse was proposed. 
 From the preparations of hawking bags, 
 powder and shot, flasks, and other sporting 
 I apparatus, as well as from the conversation 
 on the subject, I anticipated an excellent 
 day's sport : but a sportsman only can con- 
 ceive my disappointment, when I found 
 that the game was confined to larks and 
 sparrows ; nor did my companions expect 
 to meet any other than these last poor birds. 
 We in four hours killed a couple of dozen, 
 
 P 3 who
 
 214 
 
 who were tranquilly picking up the scat- 
 tered grains of corn in the yard of a corn 
 mill, which, together with half a dozen 
 larks, a couple of tomtits, a robbin red- 
 breast, and a wren, constituted our day's 
 sport. In this true Cockney shooting party 
 we were accompanied by a hundred cavalry 
 and infantrv. 
 
 On our return, I was invited to dine 
 with Monsieur Denia at six o'clock ; the 
 dinner was not, however, served till past 
 eight, and was as cold as the weather, 
 which was extremely severe, and kept me 
 in a shivering fit, though seated next to 
 Madame Benedicio, whose rotundity of 
 waist and ruddiness of countenance would 
 have entitled her to be drawn as the em- 
 blem of the rising sun. The produce of our 
 day's sport, roasted on wooden skewers, 
 were served up as head and foot dishes, and 
 afforded as animated a conversation on 
 
 shooting,
 
 215 
 
 shooting, as if we had been grouse or deer- 
 shooting in the Highlands of Scotland. 
 Our wine was little better than vinegar, 
 and as I could not get a drop of brandy to 
 qualify it, I was obliged to accept a glass 
 of agua ardiente from a soldier's canteen. 
 
 On my return to my quarters, I found a 
 French officer had put his baggage into my 
 apartment, which I did not much relish at 
 first ; but he soon waited on me, and apo- 
 logized so politely for his intrusion, that I 
 could not be angry. He greatly resembled 
 the pictures I have seen of Charles the 
 Twelfth, having a long beard and bald 
 head. He assured me that these had been 
 his regular quarters for the last three 
 months, whenever he was allowed to sleep 
 in a bed ; but added, that not having his 
 boots off for three weeks, one night more 
 would make no difference, and he insisted 
 
 p 4 on
 
 216 
 
 on not deranging me. Of course I repaid 
 Lis politeness, by expressing my satisfac* 
 tion at the accident that led to our acquaint- 
 ance. As I found he had served in Egypt, 
 we passed a part of the night conversing on 
 the military and civil proceedings of the 
 French in that country, over a bowl of 
 punch and a segar. 
 
 November 29. Early in the morning we 
 set out on our last day's march for Toledo, 
 leaving on our right the strong castle of 
 Almunaire, near which a battle was fought 
 the preceding year, between the French 
 and Spaniards, the former commanded by 
 Sebastiani. Colonel Watalais, of the en- 
 gineers, who was in our convoy, had been 
 present at this affair, and pointed out to 
 me the plain on which the Spaniards were 
 drawn up, without any protection either to 
 their front or flanks. He acknowledged 
 -ifft bfiii ; that
 
 217 
 
 that the French deserved little credit for the 
 defeat of a mere set of peasants, hastily 
 collected, hadly armed, and without dis- 
 cipline or conniianders, or even confidence 
 in each other ; so that the line being once 
 broken, it was impossible to reform it, 
 and a total route and dreadful carnage 
 
 to 
 
 took place. The town of Almunaire had 
 been reduced to ashes, as well as that of 
 Arano, between it and Toledo, where an- 
 other battle was fought with equal ill 
 success on the part of the Spaniards. In 
 this affair the infantrv was commanded 
 by Soult and Mortier, and the cavalry 
 by Sebastiani, who is, however, but a 
 general of infantry ; but the French often 
 make these transpositions, every French- 
 man being supposed to possess universal 
 genius. 
 
 On approaching Toledo, the country be- 
 comes mountainous and less fertile ; and the 
 
 road
 
 218 
 
 road by which the town is entered, is ab- 
 solutely dangerous for carriages, from 
 its steep and rocky declivity, and its bad 
 state. It leads to a bridge across the 
 Tagus, from which the view is romantically 
 wild. 
 
 i
 
 219 
 
 CHAPTER Xiy 
 
 Toledo Tomb of Caba Cathedral 
 
 Roast beef and plum pudding a la Franqaise 
 
 Campaign in Flanders Sincerity of foreigners. 
 
 We entered Toledo by the gate of St. 
 Martin, near which the first object that 
 attracts notice is the tomb of Caba, daugh- 
 ter of Count St. Julian, whose violation by 
 Roger the First, King of the Goths, was 
 the cause of the invasion of Spain by 
 the Moors. When this crime was perpe- 
 trated, St. Julian, who was of the blood 
 royal of Spain, was Governor of Ceuta, 
 on the coast of Barbary, and determining 
 to revenge the affront offered to his family 
 in the person of his daughter, solicited the 
 assistance of the Caliph of Bagdad, whom 
 
 in
 
 220 
 
 in return he promised to aid in the con- 
 quest of Spain, which could not he difficult, 
 the Spaniards detesting the yoke of the 
 Goths. The Caliph accordingly sent ten 
 thousand men, under the command of a 
 general named Tariff,* who landed at Gi- 
 braltar, and met w^ith little difficulty in the 
 conquest of Andalusia, so that the Caliph the 
 following year sent forty thousand men, un- 
 der Mufa, who subdued the peninsula with 
 the exception of Asturias, and founded the 
 empire of the Moors in Spain. The patrU" 
 cide St. Julian retired to Bagdad, where 
 it is supposed he w^as poisoned, and his 
 daughter dying at Toledo, the capital of 
 the kingdom of Andalusia, under the 
 
 Moors, 
 
 * Tarifta, now so conspicuous, near Gibraltar, for 
 the defence lately made by Colonel Skerrett and the 
 47th regiment, was so called from TariflTs landing 
 there.
 
 221 
 
 Moors, the tomb I have mentioned was 
 erected over her remains. 
 
 Immediately on my arrival at my quar* 
 ters, I received an invitation to dinner 
 from General Lavoiser, and, en attendant^ 
 
 ,'1,*' 1 - *' 
 
 1 accompanied him to visit the cathedral. 
 It being the ff^te of St. Andrew, high 
 mass was celebrating, so that we were 
 obliged to wait until it was finished, to see 
 the church more circumstantially. We 
 visited the cloisters, the walls of which 
 are finely painted in imitation of has relief, 
 by Francisco Bayeu, a modern artist, the 
 painting not being twenty years old, and 
 who certainly merits greater celebrity than 
 he has acquired. The most striking picture 
 represents the inside of a prison, tlie fi- 
 gures being the natural size, and the relief 
 so perfect, that it is scarcely possible to 
 avoid believing one's self in the company 
 of living captives, insomuch that one in- 
 stantaneously
 
 222 
 
 stantaiieously looks round for a way to es- 
 cape, which seems to be prevented by iron 
 bars and surrounding naked walls. In 
 short, this representation is, in painting, 
 what Sterne's picture of Captivity is in 
 writing. Another of the paintings repre- 
 sents mendicants receiving alms, at the 
 bottom of the staircase of a great house, 
 over the bannisters of which two persons 
 are leaning and giving them money ; a 
 third is the figure of a woman in the mid- 
 dle of a passage, soliciting charity; her 
 out-stretched arm and open hand, her dole- 
 ful countenance, tattered garments, and 
 appearance of superlative wretchedness, so 
 compleatly deceived me for the moment, 
 that I involuntarily put my hand into my 
 pocket to relieve her. There are also some 
 paintings in the same style by Morelli, but so 
 inferior, as only to serve as foils to those of 
 Bayeu. At one end of the cloister is a 
 
 column, 
 
 I 
 
 .?
 
 223 
 
 column, with a Latin inscription denoting 
 the consecration of the church in 630, 
 and in the first year of the reign of the 
 Gothic King, Flavius Recoredo. It is as 
 follows : 
 
 In nomina Deii consecra 
 
 la eclesia Seta. Maria 
 
 In Catolico clio privio 
 
 Idus Aprilis anno felicitur primo regni Domini 
 
 Nostri gloriosissimi Fl. Recaredi regis era. 
 
 DCXXX. 
 
 This cathedral was converted into a 
 mosque by the Moors, but they were oblig- 
 ed to restore it to the Christians by Queen 
 Constance, who dispossessed them of it by 
 an armed force. It was rebuilt by Ferdi- 
 nand in 1227. The inside is three hundred 
 and forty-eight feet long by one hundred 
 and sixty-four wide. The sacristie is sup- 
 ported by a great number of white marble 
 columns, and the pavement is of large 
 
 alternate
 
 224 
 
 alternate squares of white and black mar- 
 ble. The numerous secondary altars are 
 richly ornamented with sculpture, and 
 have some valuable paintings. Round the 
 aisle are several monuments of the arch- 
 bishops, and other dignitaries of the ca- • 
 thedral, and a great number of white mar- 
 ble statues of saints, patriarchs, and pro- 
 phets in niches. Among the pictures, one 
 of the Transfiguration is esteemed of the 
 highest value. In the sanctuary are many 
 interesting historical statues, particularly 
 one of the shepherd, who guided King 
 Alfonzo the Eighth at the battle of las 
 Nieva de Tolosa, and one of the Moorish 
 king Alfaqui. 
 
 In the sacristie are also the tombs of Al- 
 fonzo the Seventh, and of the Cardinal 
 Pedro de Mendoza ; the latter consists of 
 several figures, of which an evangelist at 
 each of the four corners, in has relief, are 
 
 inimitably
 
 inimitably executed : this monument is sur- 
 rounded by an iron railing. 
 
 Of the numerous chapels within the ca- 
 thedral, that of St. Peter is most worthy of 
 notice; it was rebuilt in I79I, and now 
 serves as a parish church. The architec- 
 ture is gothic, and the altars and tables are 
 composed of the most scarce and valuable 
 marbles ; the principal picture in it is St. 
 Peter curing the lame at the gate of the 
 Temple, by Vallego. The chapel de los 
 Reges Nuovos, or New King's Chapel, con- 
 tains the tombs of many of the sovereigns 
 and princes of Spain, particularly those of 
 John, eldest son of Henry the Second, 
 and his wife Eleanor ; of Catherine, wife 
 of Henry the Third, with a statue of John 
 the Second, whose remains are at Mira- 
 palous, near Burgos. This chapel has also 
 a large picture of the birth of Christ. 
 
 In the chapel of St. James, among other 
 VOL, r. Q objects
 
 226 
 
 objects of merit, are the magnificent tombs 
 of Fereguolo, Archbishop of Toledo, who 
 died in 1742, and that of Alvarez de Luna, 
 Grand Master of the Order of St. James, 
 and Constable of Castille, the favourite and 
 prime minister of John the Second, but 
 who lost his head by order of that sovereign 
 at Valladolid, in 1452. At each corner of 
 this monument is a figure the size of life, 
 kneeling with the strongest expression of 
 sorrow, and it has besides many fine has 
 reliefs. 
 
 Passing the chapel of St. Ildefonso, in 
 which there are some things worthy of 
 notice, that of Nuestra Senoria del Sa- 
 crario most forcibly calls the attention. It 
 consists of three distinct chapels : one, 
 from its octagon shape, is called the 
 Octravo; the second is square, and im- 
 mensely rich, the floor and pillars being 
 of the most beautiful marbles, and the 
 
 ceiling
 
 227 
 
 ceiling finely painted by Carducho ; and 
 the third is also an octagon, and equally 
 rich, having several golden urns set with dia- 
 monds and placed in niches, and an image 
 of the infant Jesus, a foot high, of solid 
 gold, ornamented with precious stones. On 
 a throne of massive silver formerly rested an 
 image of the Virgin, but both throne and 
 image have vanished ; a large silver hra- 
 sierOy however, still remains, doubtless to 
 form, with the other valuables, a bonne 
 bouche for the French on a future day. 
 The image of the Virgin in this chapel is 
 of the most exquisite workmanship. 
 
 The vestria7io, which adjoins the sacris- 
 tie, as well as another adjacent apartment, 
 still contains some rich church furniture, 
 though the French have taken care of the 
 most valuable. Amongst those which re- 
 main are a dress of the Virgin, covered 
 with pearls, and the archbishop's robes of 
 
 Q 2 the
 
 228 
 
 the richest embroidered stuffs. In this 
 apartment are also emblematical represen- 
 tations of the four quarters of the world. 
 
 The sactisiie is finely ornamented, the 
 dome painted by Jordan, the tables of 
 beautiful yellow marble, and the numerous 
 pictures encased in frames of gold, bronze, 
 and difterent marbles. The most valuable 
 paintings are a Samaritan by Reubens, 
 the Deluge by Bassan, an Assumption, I 
 believe by d'Onento, the Division of 
 Christ's Garments by the same artist, and 
 a St. Augustine. The tabernacle is of the 
 most superb workmanship ; and the library 
 contains a very large collection of books, 
 and above seven thousand manuscripts. 
 
 Before the grand gate of the cathedral is 
 a smull terrace, enclosed by an iron railing, 
 with six columns of white marble, each 
 surmounted by a lion of the same material. 
 The gate itself, and the architecture round 
 
 it.
 
 229 
 
 it, are ornamented with a variety of sculp- 
 tured figures, but rather too much crowd- 
 ed, and some good statues. 
 
 Having amply satisfied my curiosity in 
 the cathedral, we next visited the archie- 
 piscopal palace, now occupied by a French 
 General. It is a large uncomfortable 
 building, remarkable for nothing but a 
 library, in which are some scarce books 
 and manuscripts. 
 
 From this place I proceeded to the Ge- 
 neral's, where I found a large party had 
 been invited to meet me. The moment we 
 sat down the General informed me, that he 
 had purposely provided a treat of roast 
 beef and plum pudding, both of which 
 he assured me were drest u VAnglaise ; and 
 carving an immense slice, which proved to 
 be scarcely warmed, he exclaimed triumph- 
 antly, " du moinsje crois que cela doit ^tre 
 ^' a voire go fit F' This exclamation drew 
 
 Q 3 on
 
 230 
 
 on me the eyes of the whole company, who 
 seemingly expected, with anxious curiosity, 
 to see me devour this raw and tough car- 
 rion ; and as 1 could not with politeness 
 send it away untouched, I forced myself 
 to swallow a few mouthfuls, which a glass 
 of brandy assisted me to keep down. The 
 plum pudding was then served up, and could 
 only be equalled in execrableness by the 
 beef, being a solid lump of half-boiled 
 dough, that would have required the pow- 
 ers of an ostrich to digest. Added to these 
 little desagremens, the General was most 
 tiresomely civil, particularly with his hands, 
 which were scarce a moment off my shoul- 
 ders. He also wearied me with the history 
 of his achievements, when commanding a 
 ?3ody of cavalry under General Pichegru, 
 in Holland and Flanders ; and w^hen he 
 learnt that I had been in the same cam- 
 paign, he entered into some particulars 
 
 which 
 
 1
 
 231 
 
 which were not uninteresting to me. He, 
 I found, commanded the cavalry at Boxtel, 
 near Bois-le-Duc, at the affair of Michael 
 Ghastel's Bridge, where I was engaged 
 under General Doeering, and where the 
 Hesse Darmstadt troops were severely 
 cut up, losing in killed, wounded, and pri- 
 soners, nineteen hundred men, out of two 
 thousand five hundred, while the 89th 
 regiment, which I commanded, success- 
 fully resisted the same force of the enemy, 
 though not without considerable Joss. To 
 whatever cause the destruction of the Hesse 
 Darmstadt troops was owing, General Doeer- 
 ing felt it so severely, I understand, that he 
 shot himself shortly after the action ; and 
 my regiment, in consequence of its loss, 
 was ordered to fall back on a detachment 
 commanded by Sir William Erskine, at 
 Middlcroad. The followin*? morning de- 
 tachmcnts of the guards, and of the 12th 
 
 Q 4 and
 
 232 
 
 and 33(1 regiments, under the command of 
 Sir Ralph Abercrombie, marched to attack 
 the enemy, but binding them considerably 
 reinforced by Pichegru himself, the British 
 were obliged to fall back, and the retreat 
 of the whole army followed. This mili- 
 tary conversation being only interest- 
 ing to the General and myself, I endea- 
 voured to render it more general, by ques- 
 tioning a well informed priest respecting 
 Toledo, and other subjects. The General, 
 who is certainly one of the vainest of 
 Frenchmen, although in all respects a 
 bon gar con, soon interrupted our con- 
 versation by a long eulogium on his snuft- 
 hox, which on my praising he insisted on 
 my accepting, with, "^ cest Lien a voire 
 *' service, et je vous prie de la garder 
 " comrne un souvenir ;" and on my repeat- 
 ed rejection, it was '^ mettez-la dans voire 
 *' poche, je vous enprie^^ at the same time 
 
 squeezing
 
 233 
 
 squeezing my hand with such warmth, 
 that at one time I could have really 
 thought him sincere. But a propos of 
 snuffboxes and sincerity : I remember In 
 Sicily a Highland Quarter Master, a rough 
 diamond, who taking a Sicilian Marquis at 
 his word, quietly pocketed a snuffbox thus 
 pressed on him ; but nothing being farther 
 from the Marquis's intention or expecta- 
 tion, he complained to me, as commanding 
 officer, that he had been robbed of his snuff- 
 hox. On enquiry I found, from the testi- 
 mony of all the officers present, that the 
 Marquis had really pressed the box on the 
 Quarter Master, who deeming his right 
 to keep it undoubted, regarded not my 
 representations, that such offers made by 
 foreigners were considered by them as 
 mere words of course. The value of the 
 box, which he had nicely estimated, as 
 well as the advice of the junior officers, 
 
 who
 
 234 
 
 who wished to see some fun, made him 
 resohite in his determination, and it was 
 with a good deal of difficalty that I at last 
 persuaded him to return it. On enquiring 
 if he was under any other ohhgation to the 
 Marquis, he replied, that he recollected 
 none except for a glass of water, and that 
 he would repay it, when, calling for a 
 tumbler of water, he presented it to the 
 Marquis, saying, " now. Mynheer, we 
 ^' are quits ;" for having served in Hol- 
 land, where he discovered that mynheer 
 signified sir, he concluded it was the same 
 in every other foreign country. 
 
 But to return to the Generars. After 
 dinner several visitors arriving, he proposed 
 retiring up stairs, where were prepared 
 a good fire, plenty of punch, and cards. 
 After a sober rubber at whist, the punch 
 beginning to mount, Trente et Quarante 
 was introduced ; but as my purse was ra- 
 ther 
 
 4
 
 235 
 
 ther low, I told the General I could not 
 play deep, when he produced a heap of 
 gold and begged me to help myself. At 
 first I had a run of extreme bad luck, and 
 became considerably in debt, but fortune 
 changing, I at last rose a winner to the 
 amount of four hundred pounds.
 
 236 
 
 CHAPTER XV. 
 
 From Toledo to Madrid . . . .Tagus . . . .llegiment of 
 Hesse Darmstadt. . . .Cruelty to a poor Spaniard .... 
 Miss the mules on the road . . . .The General in the 
 mud. 
 
 November 30. It being daylight before I 
 could get away from the General, I found 
 the convoy in motion, and consequently 
 was obliged to mount my house, without 
 having been in bed. We passed through 
 the city from end to end, and through a 
 highly ornamented gate, outside of which 
 is a fine promenade. 
 
 The Tagus surrounds about two-thirds of 
 Toledo, and was navigable from this city 
 to the sea in 1588. The quay, at which the 
 boats loaded and discharged, is still to be 
 
 seen,
 
 237 
 
 seen, and is called the Plaza de los Barces. 
 The town is built on hills, the streets in ge- 
 neral are very narrow, and many of the 
 houses in ruin ; the whole presenting the 
 appearance of poverty and decline. 
 
 Though the General had invited me to 
 partake of a sumptuous breakfast, I pre- 
 ferred a crust of ration bread and a fflass 
 of spirits in the open air, to the necessity of 
 submitting a second time to his great atten- 
 tion. 
 
 I was somewhat surprised at finding Ge- 
 neral Lavoisier in the convoy, for though he 
 swore to me that his friendship was so great 
 that he would accompany me to Madrid, I 
 put no more faith in his sincerity in this 
 respect, than I had done in that of the snuff- 
 box. He insisted that I should live with 
 him during the journey ; but as I did not 
 admire this plan, I begged to decline his 
 polite offer. 
 
 A part
 
 238 
 
 A part of our escort consisted of a de- 
 tachment of the Hesse Darmstadt regi- 
 ment, in garrison at Toledo, and among 
 the officers were several who had served in 
 the British pay in Holland. A Spanish re- 
 giment also guarded us; and it would be 
 difficult to say which, the Spaniards or Ger- 
 mans, were most brutal in their conduct to 
 the prisoners. On the march I was ad- 
 dressed by a soldier, who at first pretended 
 to be a Spaniard ; but on observing to him 
 that his broad brogue denoted the green isle 
 of his nativity too plainly to admit of his 
 deceiving me, he acknowledged that he had 
 deserted from the S/th regiment. He re- 
 counted the misery to which the French 
 troops in Spain are often reduced, and said 
 that he had suffered so much since his deser- 
 tion, that he would willingly undergo any 
 punishment, short of death, to be once more 
 restored to his country. I listened to him 
 with the more satisfaction, as he was over- 
 heard
 
 239 
 
 heard by some of our soldiers, who had 
 shewn symptoms of an intention of entering 
 the French service. 
 
 We passed through a country, of which 
 the soil is a deep clay, retaining the marks 
 of cultivation though it now lays waste, 
 and arrived at the miserable village of 
 Allascas, which, as well as others in the 
 neighbourhood, were more than half de- 
 stroyed by the French. Here, there being 
 no quarters whatever for our officers, they 
 were obliged to take part of mine, which 
 were very little better than a stable. 
 
 On the 1st of December, the convoy set 
 out at day-hght for Madrid, but my mules 
 not being ready I walked on with the rear- 
 guard, composed of a detachment of the 
 18th legere, a regiment I was well acquaint- 
 ed with, from its having been continually op- 
 posed to us in Egypt. On quitting the vil- 
 lage I was witness to the cruel treatment of 
 
 a poor
 
 240 
 
 a poor old Spaniard, whom the French sol- 
 diers not only robbed of the things he was 
 carrying to market, but also beat most 
 unmercifully. My own safety I perceived 
 rendered silence prudent, for had I remon- 
 strated, it was very probable these ruffians 
 would have murdered me without hesitation. 
 As my mules were still behind, I entered 
 into conversation with a dragoon who led 
 his horse, and who entertained me with the 
 feats of arms he had achieved, particularly 
 in the campaign of Portugal. He passed 
 the highest eulogium on Massena, who he 
 had no doubt would chase the English into 
 the sea; a prophecy which has however 
 turned out as false as that of his imperial 
 master, on the same subject. In order to 
 get rid of this fellow's tiresome babble, I 
 quitted the road for the fields, where, 
 putting up a hare and some partridges, my 
 attention was entirely drawn to them, and 
 
 the
 
 241 
 
 the mules passed me on the road without 
 my observing them. On returning to the 
 road and not seeing them, I supposed they 
 were still behind, and walked back nearly 
 three miles to meet them, but not doing so 
 I began to fear some accident,particularly 
 as the people I met on the road had all the 
 appearance of brigands. I therefore re- 
 turned towards the convoy, and soon per- 
 ceived my servant gallopping towards me. 
 
 As we were now approaching Madrid, 
 the General mounted his charger, and put 
 on his full uniform, which is superb in the 
 extreme, and consequently calculated to in- 
 spire respect in the soldiery, though the hat, 
 edged with feathers, certainly too much re- 
 sembled that of a drum-major, and remind- 
 ed me of the anecdote of a cocknev sports- 
 man, who in the confusion of ajirst essay, 
 seeing some feathers waving over a hedge, 
 
 VOL. I. R instantly
 
 242 
 
 instantly fired, and lo, shot off the head of 
 a recruiting Serjeant. 
 
 On our right was pointed out to us a ru- 
 ined chapel in wliich one of the General's 
 aides-de-camp, with four other officers and 
 sixty men, were attacked a few days before 
 by the brigands, who set the chapel on fire 
 and burnt every soul of the party. We rode 
 to examine this ensanguined spot, in which 
 were still seen the half consumed carcases 
 of these victims of retaliation, who had been 
 intercepted by a party of 11 Medico's band 
 on their return from Madrid, whither they 
 had escorted a convoy. This sight seemed 
 to shock the General and his officers, who 
 could not help expressing their detestation 
 of the barbarous manner of carrying on 
 
 the war. 
 
 The General being excessively vain, both 
 
 ot his horse and horsemanship, in order to 
 
 shew
 
 243 
 
 diew them off, set out on a full gallop in the 
 deepest part of the road ; though on a mi- 
 serable Spanish hack, I was determined to 
 shew off too, and getting my beast into a 
 prancing canter, I soon passed the General, 
 who putting spurs to his horse, at the same 
 time that he slacked the reins, and the 
 animal being knee deep in nuid, came down, 
 as might be expected, and rolled over his 
 rider. The aide-de-camp and some chas- 
 seurs immediately ran to his assistance, but 
 the miserable pickle he was in, and his lu- 
 dicrous grimaces, almost discomposed their 
 gravity, and they could scarce refrain from 
 laughing aloud at the bedaubed face and 
 uniform of their General. Such is the force 
 of national pride even in trifles, that while 
 I pitied the General's plight, I congratulated 
 myself on having proved my superior horse- 
 manship, for the honour of Old England ; 
 and my satisfaction was increased by re- 
 
 R 2 fleeting-.
 
 244 
 
 fleeting, that had the same accident hap- 
 pened to me, the whole detachment would 
 have triumphed both at the expence of my 
 country and myself. 
 
 A short halt was the consequence of the 
 General's mishap, and when he was rubbed 
 down tolerably clean, we proceeded towards 
 Madrid over a flat and well cultivated 
 country, but with much fewer villages, or 
 inhabitants, than might have been expected 
 so near the metropolis ; these few however 
 were much superior in appearance to those 
 we had hitherto met with.
 
 1^45 
 
 CHAPTER XVL 
 
 0- 
 
 Madrid . . . .French politeness Adjutant de Place 
 
 . . . .Traitors .... Affairs of Egypt .... Plaza del 
 Sol et Mayor . . . .Treatment of the prisoners .... 
 French forgetfulness. 
 
 Previous to entering Madrid we crossed 
 a superb bridge of several elliptical arches, 
 with a beautiful marble balustrade sur- 
 mounted by marble statues. The gate of 
 Toledo, by which we entered, is also very 
 handsome, and creates a favourable prepos- 
 session of the general elegance of the city. 
 After riding through a great number of 
 streets at full gallop, over a very slippery 
 pavement, at the risk of breaking our 
 necks, or being trampled to death if our 
 horses came down, merely to gratify the 
 absurd vanity of the French General, who 
 
 » 3 wished
 
 246 
 
 wished to create astonishment, we arrived 
 at a wretched posadn,* where I was imme- 
 diately visited hy Messrs. Boulard and Cassa- 
 devant, merchants of respectabihty, who 
 informed me that they had received notice 
 from Mr. Kilpatrick at Malaga to furnish 
 me with money. General Lavoisier invited 
 me to dine with him at General Beliard's ; 
 this honour I declined until I had presented 
 my letters from General Sebastiani, which 
 I did in the course of the day, and was re- 
 ceived with great politeness, but was not a 
 little surprised at learning, that by King 
 Joseph's express order, I was to take up my 
 quarters in the Retiro ; to soften the harsh- 
 ness of which, however, the General said 
 he would particularly recommend me to the 
 commandant of that citadel. 
 
 I also delivered a letter from Monsieur 
 
 Chevariere 
 
 * A public-house. 

 
 247 
 
 Chevariere to his ftither, who immediately 
 offered me the use of his house, and of every 
 thing in it ; but when I only requested he 
 would allow my horse to be put in his empty 
 stable out of the rain, the difficulties were 
 so numerous that I begged he would give 
 himself no trouble about it. Being at a loss 
 where to seek for a dinner, I asked the ad- 
 vice of Monsieur Cassadevant, who shewed 
 me to a dirty house, kept by Messrs. Briere 
 and Colignon, where I got some good soup 
 and a cutlet, and not without difficulty a 
 bottle of Val de Penes, the other wines be- 
 ing execrable. 
 
 At an early hour I repaired to my quarters 
 in the Retiro, to pass a most uncomfortable 
 night on a hard bed swarming with vermin, 
 and in the morning (December 2) was called 
 up soon after daylight by the Adjutant de 
 Place, who informed me in a most dictatorial 
 manner that I was to accompany him to 
 
 R 4 breakfast
 
 i 
 
 248 
 
 breakfast with General Beliard. While I 
 was dressing he entered the room several 
 times, exclaiming, '^ alionsdonc,d^p^che%^ 
 " vous, le General vous attend.''* At length 
 he so tired my patience, that I told him, 
 " if he was to accompany me, he might 
 " return to the General and inform him, I 
 *' preferred staying where I was to having 
 '^ such an attendant," which sent him off 
 grumbling. I however was following him, 
 when to my great surprise the centinel at the 
 gate stopped me, presenting his bayonet to 
 my breast ; I of course returned, and finding 
 out the Adjutant enquired if it was by the 
 General's orders, I was thus made a close 
 prisoner, or if the centinel acted from his 
 orders only ? He rephed, that the centinel 
 received his orders from the officers of the 
 guard, of whom I immediately demanded 
 by what authority he acted, and found, that 
 in fact, the orders originated with the Ad- 
 jutant J
 
 249 
 
 jutant ; to this latter, I therefore stated, 
 that the General having invited me to break- 
 fast the evening before, could not be so in- 
 consistent as to order my being prevented 
 from accepting his invitation ; that there- 
 fore I would again proceed, and if stopped 
 would write to the General for an explana- 
 tion. This savage I suppose finding that he 
 would be likely to get into a scrape, walked 
 with me to the gate, and with much nori' 
 chalance ordered the centinel to let me pass : 
 I had not however walked many paces be- 
 fore I found him close by my side, and as I 
 did not think it worth while to he angry with 
 so insignificant a fellow, I entered into con- 
 versation with him. " Apparemment ^ Mo7i' 
 ** siewr est quelque temps Adjutant de 
 " Place.'' — *' Oui, parhleu, depuis le com- 
 ' ' jnencemen t!' — ' * Monsieur est ent7'4 done 
 '* avec Varmde lorsqu'elle a pris possession 
 "• de la vilUr-^'' Oui, parhleu r He then 
 
 told
 
 250 
 
 told me, that he comuiaiided a detachment 
 of grenadiers; pointed out as we passed the 
 heautiful gate d'Alcala, the principal point 
 of attack at the angle of the Calle d'Alcala, 
 and described the massacre of the inhabit- 
 ants with such energetic marks of delight, 
 that he seemed to fancy himself at the mo- 
 ment in the act of perpetrating the horrors 
 he recomited. I could not refrain from eja- 
 culating an involuntary sigh of pity for those 
 who should ever be in the power of this 
 wretch ; and this feeling was not diminished 
 by the recollection that I was myself at the 
 moment thus situated. These melancholy 
 reflections were however dissipated by the 
 cheerful elegance of the Prado which we 
 were crossing : the immense number of 
 statues, the numerous fountains, pouring 
 out streams of the purest water, the superb 
 Calle d'Alcala, terminated by the Plaza de 
 Sol, a perfect circus, with streets branch- 
 ing
 
 251 
 
 ing from it like rays from the sun, all unit- 
 ed to fix entirely the attention. 
 
 On my arrival at General Beliard's, I 
 found several officers in the anti-room, and 
 among them a Mr. Walsh, one of the 
 General's aides-de-camp, who had former- 
 ly served in our 9th regiment of infantry. 
 Though this person seemed to wish to he 
 extremely civil to me, I met his advances 
 with the greatest coolness ; or rather with 
 that contempt which every loyal man feels 
 for the traitor to his country and king, 
 when he considers the total dereliction of 
 principle which must he the attendant of 
 this species of crime ; for even the wretch 
 who hesitates not at rohhing on the high- 
 way, feels for the glory of his country, 
 and will resent the disrespectful mention 
 of it as a personal insult ; how low, there- 
 fore, must the man of family and educa- 
 tion
 
 252 
 
 tion be degraded, before he can join the 
 standard of his country's enemies ! 
 
 After some time the General made his 
 appearance ; his Httle round figure was en- 
 veloped in a uniform covered with lace and 
 embroidery. We immediately sat down to 
 an excellent breakfast, in company with 
 Generals Lavoisier, Buchot, and other 
 officers. The General knew I had served 
 in Egypt, where indeed I had rendered his 
 countrymen an essential service, on our 
 taking possession of Grand Cairo ; for be- 
 ing there attached to the Grand Vizier's 
 army, in a detachment commanded by 
 Colonel Stuart, it was only by our strong- 
 est exertions that we were able to prevent 
 the Turks from massacrelng all the French 
 and their adherents that fell in their wav. 
 The conversation, in consequence of our 
 mutual recognition, turned on the affairs 
 
 in
 
 253 
 
 in Egypt after the French had quitted it ; 
 and on my relating the massacre of the 
 Beys, the General observed that the eva- 
 cuation of the country by the French was 
 a real misfortune to its inhabitants, in 
 which I could not help concurring. Indeed 
 it would have been better, in the eye of 
 humanity, had they remained, for the 
 power of the Turks and Mamelukes being 
 so equally balanced that neither of them 
 can acquire a lasting superiority, the coun- 
 try suffers all the misery and desolation of 
 an endless civil war. 
 
 The General informed me, on taking 
 leave, that I was only to lodge in the Retire 
 until a hillet de logement could be procured 
 for me in better quarters. 
 
 In the course of the day I visited th« 
 Puerto del Sol, from which some of the 
 principal streets of the city branch off, 
 namely, the Calle de la Montera," de l^s 
 
 Carrelas,
 
 254 
 
 Carrelas, d'Alcala, Mayor, la Carrera de 
 St. Jeronimo, &c. The Plaza del Sol is 
 open and cheerful, with a superb fountain 
 in the middle, and surrounded by lofty ele- 
 gant buildings; from its central situation 
 it is the principal promenade of the loun- 
 gers of Madrid, and the rendezvous of the 
 merchants. In the Plaza Mayor is the 
 chief vegetable market ; it is of an oval 
 ligure, three hundred and fifty to four bun- 
 dred feet long, and three hundred wide ; 
 the houses are all of five stories, well built, 
 and each has a portico of hewn stone, bal- 
 conies, and an iron railing before the win- 
 dows. The centre house on one side of 
 the Plaza is called la Casa de la Panadeira, 
 and was appropriated formerly to receive 
 the royal family, during public spectacles 
 of bull -fights, fireworks, &c. which were 
 exhibited in this place. I entered the court 
 of this building, which presented nothing 
 
 but 
 
 -I
 
 255 
 
 but dirt and neglect, except that in its 
 centre still remained a marble statue of 
 Diana. This edifice was burnt down in 
 1672 and 1700, and after the hist confla- 
 gration rebuilt with superior magnificence. 
 
 The g-reater number of the streets lead- 
 ing from the Plaza Mayor by no means 
 correspond with it, being narrow, dirty, 
 and generally il! built. There are, how- 
 ever, a i'ew worthy of the metropolis of a 
 great kingdom, particularly the Calle de 
 Toledo, la Carrera de St. Jeronimo de 
 Antiocha, del Prado, Calle Mayor, and 
 Calle d'Alcala, which latter is inferior to 
 none in Europe, for width and elegant 
 termination. 
 
 After having amused myself in this pro- 
 menade I visited General Lavoisier, who 
 invited me to dinner, and recapitulated his 
 bill of fare, which was sumptuous ; he 
 also proposed a plan for spending the even- 
 ings,
 
 256 
 
 ings, by first attending the theatre, and 
 then visiting some ladies of his acquaint- 
 ance, where we should find an elegant 
 petit souper, which was too agreeable to 
 my wishes not to be immediately acceded to. 
 The officers having represented the situ- 
 ation of the men as extremely bad, I en- 
 quired into the subject, and found several 
 English and Maltese sailors confined with 
 a considerable number of Germans in a 
 small dungeon, where the air could not be 
 renewed, and that the only provisions they 
 received w^ere black bread and water. 1 
 remonstrated with the Adjutant de Place 
 on this treatment, which must inevitably 
 send many of the prisoners to the hospital, 
 if not to the grave ; and received, as I ex- 
 pected, a surly and evasive answer : indeed 
 there could not exist a more unfeeling 
 brute, nor one whose manners and appear- 
 ance more clearly indicated a proper in- 
 strument
 
 257 
 
 strument for the perpetration of the most 
 heinous acts. My remonstrances were, 
 therefore, at this time in vain, nor could 
 I even procure permission for the prisoners 
 to visit the fresh air once a dav under a 
 guard. 
 
 At the dinner hour 1 repaired to General 
 Lavoisier, feasting in imagination on the 
 sumptuous repast he had announced to 
 me; but was rather disappointed to find 
 he had forgot to say he dined at home, 
 and consequently that no dinner was pre- 
 pared ; I therefore, after writing him a 
 note to tell him I had waited on him ac- 
 cording to his invitation, ordered dinner at 
 Briere and Collignon's, which, though it 
 wanted all the good things I expected to 
 find at the General's, had at least the 
 comfort of not laying me under an obliga- 
 tion. 
 
 In the evening I received a visit from a 
 VOL. I. s Monsieur
 
 258 
 
 Monsieur Longeau, a French merchant, 
 who offered me his services with great civi- 
 lity. Knowing, however, that we were per- 
 fect strangers, and particularly as people 
 are seldom so polite without some sinister 
 view, I was cautions in my conversation with 
 this gentleman, and more particularly as 
 his first subject was very suspicious, for he 
 entered fully into the situation of the 
 French at Madrid, as well as into the cha- 
 racters of Generals Beliard and Lavoisier, 
 and, from the anecdotes he related of the 
 latter, I found that I ought not to be sur- 
 prised at his forgetting having invited me 
 to dinner. I however related the circum- 
 stance, adding that I was rejoiced at the 
 General's forgetfulness, as it had procured 
 me the acquaintance (Tun homme iX esprit 
 tel que monsieur ; in return for which com- 
 pliment he launched into an encomium on 
 England and the English. Our conversa- 
 tion 
 
 I.
 
 259 
 
 tion next turned on the history of Spain, 
 and I could not help losing sight for a mo- 
 ment of my prudential reserve, when I 
 recollected the glorious epoch of Ferdinand 
 and Isabella, and compared it with the pre- 
 sent moment. The Frenchman abused the 
 whole conduct of his government with such 
 virulence, that my suspicions of him were 
 increased, and I changed the conversation 
 to the objects worthy of a stranger's notice 
 in Madrid, with which he seemed to be 
 well acquainted, and offered to accompany 
 me in my perambulations, a civility which 
 I accepted. 
 
 s 2
 
 260 
 
 CHAPTER XVII. 
 
 Madrid . . . .Museum .... Masonic meeting .... Situa- 
 tion of the prisoners . . . .Spanish generosity . . . .Pra- 
 do . . . .Puerta d'Alcala . . . .Palace of Buonavista . . . 
 Palace of the Duke of Medina Sidonia. 
 
 During the time I remained at Madrid, 
 I amused myself with visiting the edifices 
 most worthy of notice, and of which I 
 shall endeavour to give my readers an idea, 
 without attending to the particular days on 
 which I saw them. My first visit was to 
 the Cabinet of Natural History, whither I 
 was accompanied by Monsieur Longeau, 
 who proved an excellent Cicerone. The 
 apartments of this building, which is 
 situated in the Calle d'Alcala, are by no 
 means prepossessing ; but I found the ob- 
 jectsthey contained well worthy of attention; 
 
 indeed, 
 
 V 
 
 ■C.I
 
 261 
 
 indeed, no country has had greater faci- 
 lities of forming a collection of this nature 
 than Spain, from her vast foreign posses- 
 sions. I shall, however, confine myself to 
 mentioning those which are esteemed the 
 most rare and valuahle. 
 
 1. A specimen of christal, named Fietras 
 figuratos espata calcareo, which doubles 
 the images presented to it. It came from 
 Biscay. 
 
 2. An extensive and fine collection of 
 Spanish marbles, the most beautiful of 
 which are from Loja and Xenil. 
 
 3. Some specimens of rich silver ore from 
 the mines of Almeria. 
 
 4. A lump of virgin gold, as taken out 
 of the mine, weighing 161b. 8 oz. 
 
 5. A lump of virgin silver, weighing 
 265 lb. 3 oz. 
 
 6. Several specimens of christalized an- 
 timony, sulphur, iron, &c. 
 
 s 3 7- Several
 
 262 
 
 7- Several agates and other stones. 
 
 8. A large collection of sponges. 
 
 9. A human skull, with a pair of horns 
 sprouting from it. On enquiry, I found it 
 belonged to a Spaniard, but could not learn 
 whether he was married or not ! 
 
 10. Many specimens of petrified woods. 
 
 11. A mummy, very perfect. 
 
 12. A Mexican about to be pounded to 
 death in a mortar. 
 
 13. A beautiful striped eagle, called the 
 Imperial. 
 
 In the second apartment I noticed, 
 
 1. The skeleton of an animal, exceeding 
 the mammoth in bulk, whose teeth denote it 
 to have been carnivorous ; but its family is 
 unknown. Found in the Rio de la Plata. 
 
 2. Some Egyptian figures, taken in the 
 Flora frigate. 
 
 3. The bark of some curious trees. 
 
 4. Several 
 
 J!
 
 263 
 
 4. Several ornaments of teeth worn round 
 the body and head. 
 
 5. The representation of some Spanish 
 arms in shell work. 
 
 In the third apartment: 
 
 1. A dinner and desert service in jasper, 
 onyx, and agate, said to he four hundred 
 years older than the Cliristian era. 
 
 2. A singularly shaped beautiful shell, 
 for which we were told that nine millions of 
 reals had been offered. 
 
 3. Several topaz cups and a bowl of lapis 
 lazuli. 
 
 4. A black topaz. 
 
 5. A service of plate, presented by Louis 
 XIV. 
 
 6. The Conquest of Mexico in Mosaic. 
 
 7. A dress of the Emperor of China. 
 
 8. Some American paintings. 
 
 The fourth apartment, named the Salle 
 cle la Junto, chiefly contains, pictures, of 
 
 s 4 which
 
 $64 
 
 which several are very valuable, particu- 
 larly 
 
 A group of Bacchanals, by Reubens. 
 A St. Jeronimo, by Murillo. 
 A Virgin, copied from Raphael. 
 A Woman and Child, by Murillo, pecu- 
 liarly fine. 
 
 A Transfiguration, by Raphael. 
 
 An Assumption, by Cespedes. 
 
 An Ave, by Raphael. 
 
 In the fifth apartment are some well exe- 
 cuted bronze figures. 
 
 A Venus, by Titian. 
 
 A Model of the Ruins of Saguntum. 
 
 Statues of Achilles and Patrocles. 
 
 A Statue of Venus. 
 
 The Battle of the Horatii and Curiatii, 
 in relief. 
 
 Having detained my companion a whole 
 day in taking only a cursory view of this 
 museum, I invited him to dine with me at 
 
 Briere
 
 265 
 
 Briere and Colignon's, and was entertained 
 by his volubility ; though it was with him, 
 as with most of his countrymen, vox et 
 'pretcerea nihil. — After dinner I received a 
 visit from an officer of the 26th Chasseurs 
 ^ Cheval, to request my company at a ma- 
 sonic meeting. The forms of admission 
 were very serious ; but I went through them 
 sufficiently well, and received a warm wel- 
 come from the brethren, particularly from 
 Colonel Vial, commanding the 26th Chas- 
 seurs, who was master of the lodge, and 
 who invited me to supper and to dinner the 
 next day. At supper, when the punch be- 
 gan to mount, each played some ridiculous 
 trick to divert the company ; one making 
 hideous grimaces, another taking off a 
 priest in his robe, by means of a towel on 
 his fingers ; a third shaped mice out of the 
 parings of apples, &c. &c. Indeed, I must 
 do the French the justice to acknowledge 
 
 that
 
 266 
 
 that they far excel us in the art of making 
 fools of themselves pour passer le tetnps. 
 
 On rising one morning I learnt, as I had 
 foretold, that several of the prisoners had 
 been obliged to be sent to the hospital, and 
 that some serious quarrels had taken place 
 between the English and Germans ; finding 
 also that the only provision yet supplied 
 them was bread and water, I made enquiry 
 whether the Government really allowed no- 
 thino- more, and found that it contracted 
 for half a pound of meat per man per diem, 
 and consequently that there was a gross 
 imposition somewhere. I therefore again 
 addressed myself to the Adjutant de Place, 
 who, as usual, fell into a passi(m, and en- 
 deavoured to bully me into silence ; but 
 finding me determined not to remain a tame 
 spectator of the cruel and fraudulent treat- 
 ment of those, for whom both duty and hu- 
 manity called upon me to interfere, his passion^ 
 
 knew
 
 267 
 
 knew no bounds, and he was about to draw 
 his sword on me, though unarmed and a 
 prisoner, when I told him that I had but 
 one Hfe to lose, and that I would cheer- 
 fully lay it down for the satisfaction of chas- 
 tising such a ruffian, and procuring justice 
 for my countrymen and fellow sufferers ; 
 that if he attempted to draw his sword, 
 he should mark the consequence ; and that 
 at all events I would write to General Be- 
 liard on the subject of the prisoners, for I 
 was well assured that it was with his (the 
 Adjutant's) connivance that they were thus 
 shamefully cheated of their provisions. This 
 I immediately did, and meat was in conse- 
 quence afterwards issued. 
 
 The condition of the prisoners while their 
 allowance was thus withheld, would have 
 been truly deplorable, had not the Spanish 
 inhabitants generously assisted them ; and 
 H was not uncommon to see women of re- 
 
 spectabihty
 
 266 
 
 spectability conveying to them not only 
 victuals but clothes, though they were 
 repeatedly repulsed by the guards, who 
 were also sometimes softened by the 
 charms of the females employed in these 
 acts of humanity. As I had gained my 
 point in the article of meat, I thought it 
 better to drop all appearance of animosity 
 towards the Adjutant ; and one day, when 
 a beautiful girl solicited permission to de- 
 liver some victuals to the prisoners in his 
 presence, and was refused, I addressed 
 him with *' Monsieur est Francois ^''-^ 
 to which he replied, ^' ParhleUy oui /" — 
 I then continued, " formerly the French 
 ^^ were conspicuous above all the nations 
 '* of the world for their gallantry and com- 
 '^ plaisance towards the fair sex, and I 
 " cannot conceive it possible that so great 
 '^ a change has taken place in their man- 
 ** ners, that a Frenchman can deny the 
 ^ request of a charming girl, to be per- 
 
 " mitted
 
 269 
 
 ** mitted to do a benevolent action, in sue- 
 *' couring the distrest prisoner !" This 
 address had the desired effect in softening 
 the Adjutant, who admitted not only the 
 girl in question, but several others, to con- 
 verse with the prisoners, and bring them 
 provisions, shirts, and other necessaries. 
 
 While at dinner one day with Colonel 
 Vial, I was waited on by a Monsieur Guil- 
 let, who, with a profusion of compliments, 
 imformed me that he had prepared apart- 
 ments for me in his house, concluding in 
 the usual style of French sincerity, " dis- 
 " posez de moi en tout ce que pouvez vous 
 ** faire plaisir.'^ On enquiring into the 
 character of this person, I found it was not 
 one of the best ; but being aware that th<? 
 French, as well as the Irish, abuse each other 
 without cause, I paid little attention to the 
 report ; besides I had no alternative but to 
 remain uncomfortable at the Retiro, or to 
 
 accept
 
 '270 
 
 accept his ofFei' ; and though I strongly sus- 
 pected that he was intended to be placed as 
 a spy over me, I prepared to take up my 
 quarters in his house ; besides, I learnt that 
 he was a connoisseur in paintings, and re- 
 ceived a salary from King Joseph, to col- 
 lect the most valuable pictures. I therefore 
 hoped to receive much information from 
 him on this subject ; and on my making 
 my wishes known to him, he offered to ac- 
 company me the following day to view the 
 hest collections. 
 
 In our way to the palace, we crossed the 
 Prado, which I have already mentioned as 
 probably the most superb promenade in the 
 world, and being almost the only one at 
 Madrid, it is crowded with people, whose 
 dresses and equipages cannot fail to amuse 
 the stranger. In both respects the Spa- 
 niards are at least a century behind the 
 English or French. Here we see a coach- 
 man
 
 271 
 
 man with a bag wig, a livery covered with 
 gold lace, and an enormous cocked hat, all 
 appearingto have served several generations, 
 avvkardly driving at a snail's pace, a pair of 
 mules in harness of crimson velvet, covered 
 with a profusion of gilt buckles and plates, 
 their manes platted with various coloured 
 ribbands, falling in large bowknots, and 
 attached to a heavy carriage, carved and 
 gilded all over, through the glasses of 
 which is seen an ancient Grandee, in full 
 dress ; but while admiring his serious air, 
 you are roused from your reverie by the 
 rattle of wheels, and on turning, observe a 
 modern Hidalgo, or parvenu, of French fa- 
 bric, gallopping over the pavement in a light 
 carriage, drawn by six or seven mules, and 
 with several running footmen or outriders, 
 in the most tawdry and ridiculous liveries. 
 The pedestrians form a no less strange con - 
 trast in the mixture of French officers, 
 
 Spanish
 
 272 
 
 Spanish merchants and citizens, all laugh- 
 ing at each other's costume, and each un- 
 conscious of what is ridiculous in his own ; 
 for it is plainly perceptible that the toilette 
 has occupied the minds of all in the prepa- 
 ration for exhibition on the Prado. 
 
 The Prado commences at the ancient 
 convent of Antiocha, at this time convert- 
 ed into an hospital, and extends to the 
 Calle d'Alcala, at the entrance of which 
 is a magnificent fountain, representing the 
 goddess Cybele in the centre of a white 
 marble bason, and in a chariot drawn by 
 hons; she holds in her hand a key, the 
 emblem of her attributes, as the goddess of 
 cities and garrisons. The whole is in white 
 marble inimitably executed. 
 
 The only fault in the Calle d'Alcala is a 
 small bend, which considerably injures the 
 effect that would be produced if it was 
 perfectly straight. The Puerta d'Alcala, 
 
 which
 
 273 
 
 which terminates it, consists of three su- 
 perb arches, of which the middle is consi- 
 derably the hirgest, being about thirty feet 
 high and fourteen broad. The gates are 
 iron richly worked, and the pillars white 
 marble of the Ionic order. Besides tlie 
 three great arches, destined for carriages 
 and horsemen, on the east side is a lesser 
 one for pedestrians. The total elevation of 
 the gate is sixty feet, and the architrave 
 is ornamented with lions' heads, &c. 
 
 Towards the end of the Calle d'Alcala is 
 a fountain, representing Neptune and his 
 queen, whom the god embraces round the 
 waist ; they are standing in a scallop 
 shell, drawn by Hippopotami and attended 
 by Nereids. A marble bason receives the 
 water. This street contains also several other 
 pieces of sculpture, and on one side of it is 
 a botanic garden founded by Charles the 
 Third, where a course of lectures are 
 
 VOL. I. T given
 
 274 
 
 given gratis. On the right in ascending 
 the street is an unfinished palace, named 
 Buonavista, huilt by the Prince of Peace ; 
 it is very extensive, but not free from 
 faults, particularly in the windows, which 
 are out of all proportion small. It however 
 boasts a good collection of pictures by Mu- 
 rillo, Reubens, Bayeu, Velasquez, &c. 
 amongst which the Marriage of the Adria- 
 tic, a pug dog by Velasquez, and a Vir- 
 gin by Murillo, are peculiarly excellent. 
 In one of the apartments is a bronze statue 
 of Charles the Fifth, which takes to pie- 
 ces ; and it would seem that turning is a fa- 
 vourite amusement of princes, for in, anr 
 other room is a lathe, and all the im- 
 plements employed in that art. This 
 palace has been several times on fire, and 
 indeed accidents of this nature are suF'- 
 prisingly common throughout Spain, where 
 the houses have not one-third of the 
 
 timber
 
 timber employed in those of England and 
 France. The principal apartments of this 
 building were now filled with corn and 
 wool. 
 
 The palace of the Duke of Medina 
 Sidonia occupies a considerable portion of 
 the Calle d'Alcala, and has one of its 
 fronts towards the Prado ; after having 
 been compleatly plundered, it was taken 
 possession of by Monsieur Denio, Com- 
 missary General of the French army. The 
 Duke on the entry of the French flea so 
 precipitately, that he did not carry off even 
 his diamonds, which fell into the hands of 
 the invaders. 
 
 After viewing these buildings I dined 
 with mv oflicers at the Fonda St. Martin, 
 which, though it has a high reputation, I 
 found wi^etched enough ; indeed the trai- 
 teurs in Spain at this time labour under 
 one great d4sagr4ment, which renders them 
 
 T 2 little
 
 276 
 
 little anxious to please, for the great ma- 
 jority of their guests being French officers, 
 who often in their hurry forget to settle 
 their bills, those who have more correct 
 memories are obliged, not only to make up 
 the deficit, but also suffer in the quality 
 and manner of their entertainment. A 
 party of French officers was this day dining 
 at an adjoining table, most of whom re- 
 tired after a very short repast. Amongst 
 the few who remained was a respectable 
 looking elderly man, with whom I entered 
 into conversation, and found him a plea- 
 sant and well informed person, very diffe- 
 rent from those who had withdrawn, whose 
 conversation turned solely on their achieve- 
 ments in love and war. One of those brag- 
 gadocios had seated himself at our table, 
 and attempted to join ,in conversation, 
 but I suppose being ennuyd with English 
 taciturnity, he soon left us and returned to 
 
 his
 
 277. 
 
 his own table, where, to shew his spite, he 
 wantonly broke several plates and glasses. 
 In this frolic I encouraged him, from 
 the pleasure, malicious I allow, of his in- 
 creasing his bill under the article of break- 
 ages. 
 
 T 3
 
 278 
 
 CHAPTER XVIII. 
 
 Madrid , . . .French over-civility .... Retiro .... Pri- 
 soners' rencontre . . . .Theatre. 
 
 Having shifted my quarters to the house 
 of Mr. Guillet, I accepted his invitation to 
 dinner ; but though it was good in itself, so 
 annoying was the super-attention of my host 
 and hostess, that I determined not to be a 
 second time surfeited by it, and to avoid all 
 eclaircissement I removed my things se- 
 cretly back to the Retiro, preferring even a 
 prison to the abominable tiresomeness of the 
 civility with which these people overwhelmed 
 me. Their ideas of politeness led them to 
 think they ought not to leave me d moment 
 alone; consequently! was tormented to death 
 with their insipid company. While at dinner, 
 
 because 
 
 I
 
 279 
 
 because I could not eat like a ploughman, 
 the lady every instant hoped I was not in- 
 disposed, or feared that there was nothing 
 to my liking. Perhaps I carry my dislike of 
 ceremonious manners farther than is strictly 
 just, for nothing can annoy me more than 
 wishing me a formal good morning at the 
 end of a visit, or pressing me to sit down at 
 its commencement. 
 
 The Retiro, which I thus preferred to my 
 new quarters, and which was now full of 
 prisoners, consists of a large square, with 
 a smaller one on the left, and one side of 
 another on the right. The buildings are 
 very irregular, and without ornaments. 
 When the occasional residence of the Spa- 
 nish monarchs, there was a theatre in 
 the centre of the great court, which was 
 now demolishing to employ the materials 
 somewhere else. The menagerie is an oc- 
 tagon, with pens round it for the animals, 
 
 T 4 and
 
 280 
 
 and a gallery above, from which they could 
 be looked down upon with safety ; the only 
 beast now remaining was a bear, blind Vvith 
 old age. The gardens, as well as the build- 
 ings, were entirely neglected : theje£s d'eau 
 no longer acted, and the basins, which were 
 filled by engines, the scite of the Retiro be- 
 ing higher than the town, were entirely 
 empty. The gardens were strewed with frag- 
 ments of sculpture and mutilated statues ; 
 that of Narcissus alone remaining perfect, 
 because it was out of the immediate reach 
 of the destroyers. In short, the whole 
 edifice presented the appearance of the de- 
 vastations of the Goths and Vandals, rather 
 than the visit of the encouragers and pro- 
 tectors of the arts, as the French stile them- 
 selves. 
 
 In one of the squares however still re- 
 mained an equestrian statue of Philip the 
 Second, in bronze, weighing 18,000 lb. 
 
 and
 
 281 
 
 and which is fixed in tlie pedestal hy the 
 hind lees of the horse only. There are also 
 a few other statues entire, particularly that 
 of Charles the First, with a laurel wreath ; 
 and in a small apartment, with marble co- 
 lunins, those of Pliilip the Second and Mary 
 Queen of Hungary. In a small separate 
 garden are also those of Ferdinand and 
 Isabella, This palace had formerly one of 
 the best collections of pictures to be found 
 in Europe, containing several chefs d'ceuvre 
 of Reubens, Titian, Poussin, Jordan, Ricci, 
 Zarborea, Carte, and other masters ; all of 
 which have been removed. Several royal 
 manufactures were established within the 
 walls, particularly of tapestry and porcelain, 
 which were established bv Charles the 
 Third, but have declined since his death, 
 and have now entirely ceased. In fact, the 
 only manufactures that Madrid still pos- 
 sesses to employ its numerous population, 
 
 are
 
 282 
 
 are some very insignificant ones, of coarse 
 woollens, hats and paper. 
 
 As I found the English prisoners were 
 suffering much from the inclemency of the 
 weather and the want of warm clothing, I 
 directed each man to be supplied with a pair 
 of woollen pantaloons, a shirt and pair of 
 stockings. For the two first articles I pro- 
 cured the cloth and gave it the men to make 
 for themselves, so that in the course of a 
 day or two I had the satisfaction of seeing 
 the poor fellows comparatively comfortable ; 
 and in doing this, it certainly cost me nothing 
 but a little personal trouble, as I drew bills 
 for the amount on account of the soldiers ar- 
 rears. When it is thus easy to relieve the 
 wants of the distressed, he must be entirely 
 destitute of humanity who peglects do- 
 ing so. 
 
 Several Spanish officers were confined in 
 the Retiro, and were supplied by their 
 
 countrywomen
 
 283 
 
 countrywomen with provisions and clothes ; 
 for I had occasion to observe, that what- 
 ever part the husbands take, the females 
 adhere to the joyal side, and consider those 
 who suffer in the cause as martyrs for their 
 rehgion and their country. Besides the 
 Spanish prisoners taken in arms, several 
 persons of respectability were also confined 
 in the same prison, because they could not or 
 would not pay the heavy contributions de- 
 manded by the French. With these I often 
 entered into conversation, and found them 
 animated by the most inveterate hatred of 
 their invaders, and with the perfect confi- 
 dence that they would ultimately not only 
 he driven out of the country, but that a 
 Spanish and English army would cross the 
 Pyrennces, and retaliate in the heart of 
 France the miseries they were suflTering. 
 
 Learning that Mr. Coosfeld, one of the 
 partners of Hope's house at Amsterdam, 
 
 and
 
 284 
 
 and whom I had formerly known, was at 
 Madrid, I called on him. He was not a 
 little surprised at finding me a prisoner in 
 the capital of Spain ; but for my own part, I 
 have had so many extraordinary and un- 
 expected rencounters in the course of my 
 life, that nothing of this kind seems strange 
 to me, and I felt more pleasure than surprise 
 at this meeting. Mr. C. told me that his 
 business at Madrid was to endeavour to re- 
 cover large sums of money lent by his house 
 to the late government ; and I have since 
 learnt, what indeed was only to have been 
 expected, that his mission was entirely un^ 
 successful. 
 
 In the evening of the same day, after 
 having dined with some French officers, I 
 accompanied them to the th<?atre, called 
 Canons del Peral, and found both the house 
 and performance equally wretched ; the 
 former being inconvenient, filthy and ill 
 
 lighted.
 
 285 
 
 lighted, and the latter a miserable attempt 
 at opera, which was barbarously murdered. 
 The French, who swallow their dinner in 
 a moment and content themselves with a 
 few glasses of common wine while eatino*. 
 find in the playhouse, however bad it may 
 be, a resource a2:ainst the ennui of a lonir 
 and idle evening. 
 
 There were formerly two other theatres at 
 Madrid, but l)0th were now shut. Indeed, 
 since the death of Ferdinard the Sixth, the 
 Spanish theatre is said to have declined, and 
 the French invasion has reduced it still 
 lower. The performers' emoluments are in 
 Spain, as well as in Italy and Portugal, very 
 trifling ; but the favourite singers and mu- 
 sicians used formerly to derive considerable 
 revenues from the nobility, who though to- 
 tally ignorant of every thing that, according 
 to our ideas, constitutes comfort, and though 
 
 thev
 
 286 
 
 they deny themselves ahiiost the necessaries 
 of life, hesitate not to give a hundred, or 
 a hundred and fifty guineas to a celebrated 
 performer for a night's private entertain- 
 ment in music or singing. 
 
 Being informed one morning that in the 
 preceding night a fray had taken place be- 
 tween the English and German prisoners, 
 I on enquiry found it had originated with 
 an English sailor, who being a powerful 
 bruiser, thought proper to have a round 
 with some of the foreigners, and a gigantic 
 Serjeant, who was the bully of the prison, 
 seeming a proper subject, he attacked him 
 secundum artem, and soon demolished him : 
 then taking outtwo others, he gave them such 
 desperate beatings, that Jhey were obliged 
 to be sent to the hospital, and the tar was 
 acknowledged by all sides to be the best man. 
 The foreigners however not relishing this 
 
 British
 
 287 
 
 British amusement, requested and obtained 
 a separation ; and I at the same time pro- 
 cured permission for one in ten of our men 
 to go out and wash the clothes of the rest, 
 this necessary indulgence having been hi- 
 therto denied them.
 
 288 
 
 CHAPTER XIX. 
 
 Madrid Palace . . . .English officers' neglect oi' 
 
 their servants . . . .Bull-fight. 
 
 Having obtained permission to visit 
 the palace while the King was abroad, I 
 went thither one afternoon, accompanied 
 by some French gentlemen, and found a 
 great number of workmen demolishing and 
 clearing away a convent and several houses, 
 which pressed so close on the front of the 
 palace as considerably to injure its effect. 
 The guards on dut^' were all Spaniards, 
 with rich blue uniforms, cocked hats, and 
 very large red feathers. Fine feathers, it 
 is said, make line birds ; but notwithstand- 
 ing the richness of their dress, and all the 
 arts used to attach them, I believe there are 
 
 but
 
 289 
 
 but very few Spaniards in the French service* 
 friends in their hearts to the invaders. 
 
 This palace was buih in the eleventh cen- 
 tury, and was scarcely finished when it was 
 taken by assault and plundered by the 
 Moors. It was also nearly destroyed by 
 an earthquake in the reign of Peter the 
 Cruel, and rebuilt by his successor, Henry 
 II. After being greatly improved and rich- 
 ly decorated by Charles the First, Philip II. 
 and their successors, it was reduced to 
 ashes in 1734, and rebuilt by Philip V. and 
 Ferdinand VI. The shape of the edifice is 
 rather an oblong square, the two longest 
 sides being about four hundred feet, and 
 the others somewhat less ; the elevation I 
 suppose to be about eighty to ninety feet. 
 The first view of the exterior convevs an 
 idea of magnificence, but on approaching, 
 the smallncss of the windows ijreatlv di- 
 minishes this idea, and the filthy state of 
 
 VOL. I. u the
 
 290 
 
 ^the courts, &c. entirely destroys it. On 
 entering, the staircase is immediately ob- 
 served to be much too small ; it is, however, 
 supported by fine marble pillars of the com- 
 posite order, but which the Goths have 
 most unaccountably whitewashed, so that 
 without a close inspection, they appear no 
 better than common stone. The interior 
 of the building compensates for the external 
 faults, being excelled by no palace in Europe 
 in splendour and elegance. The first apart- 
 ment w^e entered is small, but handsome, 
 with some good pictures by Reubens and 
 Jordan, particularly a Sabine Queen visit- 
 ing the Temple, the Judgment of Solomon, 
 and Dalilah cutting Samson's hair, by the 
 latter artist ; a Magdalene by Spagnoletto, 
 and a Spanish evening, are also very fine. 
 This apartment and some others adjoining 
 were occupied by the Princesses, and thence 
 are called the Princesses' apartments. 
 
 Those 
 
 I
 
 291 
 
 Those of the Queen, which we next en* 
 tered, are on a much grander scale, ex- 
 tending the whole length of the palace, and 
 communicating with each other, so that 
 when the folding doors are thrown open, 
 the eye is almost dazzled by the splendid 
 elegance of a long suite of magnificent sa- 
 loons. In the centre of the first apartment 
 is a superb golden brasiero, * a table of ele- 
 gant workmanship, and a very handsome 
 service of Seve porcelain ; besides several 
 good pictures, particularly a Centurion, by 
 Tintoretti. 
 
 In the centre of the reception room is 
 a fine marble table, and the ceiling is ele- 
 gantly painted by Francisco Baliega. In 
 this apartment is also a good Centurion, by 
 
 u 2 Paul 
 
 * A golden brasier may seem bordering on a bull ; 
 but these kind of stoves are named brasiero, of what- 
 ever metal they may be composed.
 
 292 
 
 Paul Veronese, and St. George and the 
 Dragon, by Reubens, remarkable for colour- 
 ing and effect. From the windows is a de- 
 lightful view of the Guadarama mountains, 
 the Casa del Campo, and the Escurial, with 
 the river Manganaris running beneath. 
 
 The third apartment contains some old 
 china and other handsome ornaments ; the 
 ceiling painted in an elegant and chaste 
 style by Baliego, and the four Phases of 
 the Moon by Mengs. In each apartment is 
 a very rich clock ; that in the fourth is pe- 
 culiarly superb, representing Atlas support- 
 ing the world. In this room is a good pic- 
 ture of Phihp II. by Titian, and the Family 
 of Phihp ?V. by Velasquez. The ceiling is 
 painted by Baliego, and represents the 
 taking of Grenada from the Moors. It has 
 likewise two superb vases of Seve porcelain, 
 and several highly ornamented tables. In 
 short, every thing is so magnificent, as to 
 
 shut
 
 293 
 
 shut out all idea of comfort : the eye is 
 dazzled, the mind struck with admiration, 
 but neither is pleased. For my own part, 
 the reflection I made was, how miserable I 
 should be if forced to inhabit these superb 
 apartments I for I am so unambitious as to 
 prefer a well polished snug mahogany ta- 
 ble, a good fire, and the society of a few 
 friends, to grandeur accompanied by cere- 
 mony and formality, which must have been 
 always the case here ; as none ever entered 
 these apartments but in full dress, and with 
 a feeling of their own inferiority. 
 
 The ceiling of the fifth salon represents 
 Columbus presenting the new world to 
 Ferdinand and Isabella, with its treasures 
 and uncommon productions. In this apart- 
 ment are also the celebrated pictures of 
 the Virgin de la Pinto, and the Madona 
 del Pace, by Raphael, some ceiling figures 
 by Mengs, and some beautiful china. The 
 
 u 3 porcelain
 
 294 
 
 porcelain salon contains various handsome 
 articles of that kind, together with a steel 
 clock on a fine pedestal ; and the ceiling, 
 painted by Mengs, represents the Triumph 
 of Religion. Adjoining this apartment is a 
 small elegantly fitted up library, the books of 
 which are so superbly bound, and so nicely 
 arranged, that one is almost afraid to touch 
 them. On the left of the library is a small 
 apartment with a white marble bath ; two 
 sides of this room are lined with looking 
 glasses of a single piece, and the ceiling is 
 finely painted. In a cabinet, communicating 
 with it, is a bed to repgse on after bathing. 
 The dinner room, which looks towards 
 the west, contains some valuable paintings 
 by Jordan, but a portrait of Buonaparte by 
 David by no means corresponds with 
 the celebrity of tliat artist. The ceil- 
 ing is well painted, and in the room are 
 some rich mosaic tables. 
 
 The
 
 295 
 
 The succeeding apartment has several 
 pictures by Reubens, particularly a St. 
 Andrew much admired ; the ceiling repre- 
 sents the death of Hercules, by Velasquez. 
 In another spacious apartment is a hand- 
 some large musical clock, and several pic- 
 tures by Reubens and Titian, of which the 
 finest are an Adam and Eve by each of 
 these masters, which are placed on either 
 side of a window, and both so exquisite 
 that it is impossible to give either a prefer- 
 ence ; the other most valuable pictures are 
 the discovery of the purple dye by the 
 Phenician and his dog, and a Titus and 
 Syriphus, both by Titian ; the ceiling is 
 painted by Mengs, 
 
 The apartment containing the throne is 
 magnificent ; the ceihng represents the cos- 
 tume of the different provinces of Spain, 
 finely painted by a young ItaHan artist, 
 named Philip Keholo, previously scarcely 
 
 u 4 known
 
 296 
 
 known, and the walls are covered with the 
 largest plate glasses in the world. On each 
 side of the throne is a very large gilt figure 
 of a lion. This apartment also contains 
 some bronze figures from Rome, and a 
 bronze statue of Philip the Second, much 
 admired. In the blue room are pictures 
 of this same prince and of Philip the 
 Fourth by Velasquez, of Charles the Fifth 
 by Titian, and of Fernandez, his father, 
 by Reubens, besides ten others by Titian, 
 and one by Reubens ; also some antique 
 vases, a handsome clock, and a lion in 
 bronze, greatly ad^iiired for the expression 
 of the eyes. 
 
 I have already observed, that in my visit 
 to the palace I was accompanied by some 
 French gentlemen. Amongst them was a 
 Monsieur Demoland, a fat and consequen- 
 tial personage, who had amassed ^150,000 
 by privateering against the English, chiefly 
 
 from 
 
 m
 
 297 
 
 from St. Sebastian. He was attended by amost 
 curious fellow, an Irishman, who had been 
 once at sea, and was afterwards servant to 
 an English dragoon officer, who when made 
 prisoner left him to shift for himself This 
 reprehensible neglect respecting their ser- 
 vants is indeed by far too common amongst 
 our officers, and has been the cause of 
 many good soldiers being lost to the service 
 and the country; for being thus left with- 
 oat succour to enable them to go comfort- 
 ably to a depot, where they would be found 
 on an exchange, they enter into the service 
 of the first Frenchman that will hire them. 
 The morning after my visit to the palace, 
 I accompanied Colonel Vial and some other 
 French officers to the village of Lyanos, 
 about two leagues from Madrid, whither 
 we were escorted by a detachment of the 
 Colonel's chasseurs. From hence we has- 
 tened back to be present at a bull-fight, 
 
 which
 
 298 
 
 which is certainly the most entertaining 
 spectacle that Spain offers to a stranger. 
 The amphitheatre, which might hold one 
 thousand persons, was filled by well drest 
 people, waiting in a kind of awful suspense 
 for the appearance of the animal, while a 
 band of music played a . slow and solemn 
 tune. When every thing was ready, a man 
 magnificently drest came forward, and after 
 sounding a trumpet addressed the Corre- 
 gidor. Then appeared two cavaliers named 
 piccadores, one drest in a jacket of white 
 sattin and green pantaloons, and the other 
 in a purple jacket and blue pantaloons, the 
 sleeves of the jackets notched with crimson 
 and gold, and the pantaloons covered with 
 gold lace ; their half-boots were of moroc- 
 co, with immense gold tassels, and round 
 their broad brimmed white hats was a gold 
 band. They were, however, miserably 
 mounted, for a hull sometimes killing fif- 
 teen
 
 •^ 
 
 299 
 
 teen or twenty horses, it would be expen- 
 sive to bring forward good ones j and be- 
 sides they are so sumptuously caparisoned, 
 that their. defects are scarcely visible. The 
 piccadore is armed with a lance, and when 
 the bull has been goaded to fury outside of 
 the arena, a door is opened and he rushes 
 forward, his tail in the air, and instantly 
 attacks one of the piccadores, who receives 
 him on his lance. The sensation I felt at 
 this moment is not to be described, but it 
 partook both of delight and apprehension. 
 The bull soon killed one of the horses, and 
 the piccadore not being able to extricate 
 himself readily, a bundarilla or footman 
 came to his assistance, and presenting a 
 handkerchief to the animal, amused him 
 with it, turning on one side as the bull 
 charged him, until the second piccadore 
 came forward and attacked him ; the dex- 
 terity of the men, as well as the exertions 
 
 of
 
 300 
 
 of the bull, are loudly applauded by the 
 spectators, who make the amphitheatre re- 
 echo with their acclamations. When this 
 part of the entertainment had lasted some 
 time, two bandarillas came forward, each 
 with a dart, to which are attached pieces 
 of coloured paper and a handkerchief: the 
 animal charges the handkerchief, which 
 gives way, and the bandarilla pricks him 
 with the dart until he becomes perfectly 
 furious ; at other times they drive him mad 
 with crackers and fireworks. When King 
 Joseph, who was present, thought that 
 this second act had lasted long enough, he 
 ordered the matadore to appear, who ac- 
 cordingly came forward on foot, richly 
 drest, and armed with a small sword only ; 
 the bull instantly rushed on him, and was 
 received on the point of the sword, which 
 entered the spine at the back of the rieck, 
 and the animal dropped lifeless at the feet 
 
 ©f
 
 301 
 
 of the triumphant matadore, who held up 
 the reeking sword, and received the loud- 
 est applause from the spectators : and 
 certainly his courage and dexterity were 
 equally great, for had he missed the vital 
 spot, which is not larger than a sixpence, 
 his life would most probahly have paid 
 the forfeit of his awkwardness. The ma- 
 tadore is however stimulated, by the know- 
 ledge that his courage and success will gain 
 him the plaudits of the fair sex, who con- 
 tend for the preference in his good graces. 
 A second bull was dispatched in the 
 same manner, but not until he had killed 
 two horses, one of whom supported a se- 
 cond charge with his bowels trailing on the 
 ground. Several other bulls were after- 
 wards brought forward, but with their 
 horns muffled, and a number of amateurs 
 entered the lists with them, and shewed 
 their dexterity by receiving them on their 
 
 hj.iider-
 
 302 
 
 handkerchiefs. Certainly there is no spec- 
 tacle in Spain so well worth seeing as a 
 good hull-fight. The pleasure derived from 
 it must, however, he allowed to be at the 
 expence of humanity, for men, as well as 
 horses and bulls, often lose their lives in 
 this sport. These fights had been discon- 
 tinued for some years, hut on the arrival 
 of the French were permitted to be renew- 
 ed. The summer and autumn are the most 
 common seasons for these spectacles, par- 
 ticularly th^ latter, when the bulls are more 
 fierce; they seldom take place in winter, 
 and the present one was in consequence of 
 the feast of Christmas.
 
 303 
 
 CHAPTER XX. 
 
 Madrid . . . .Excursion to Lyanos . . ,i. .Coursing .... 
 The broach . . . .Made a close prisoner in the Retiro 
 . . . .Transactions there . . . ,G\\q lectures on the 
 veterinary art. 
 
 Some days after the bull-fight I accom- 
 panied the Colonel of the 26th chasseurs 
 and some of his officers on a coursing party 
 to Lyanos. The Colonel had the politeness 
 to mount me on an English mare, taken at 
 Talavera ; and after partaking of a sump- 
 tuous breakfast, prepared for us at Lyanos, 
 we set out, escorted by a strong body of 
 dragoons and Polish lancers. We found 
 hares extremely numerous, and having six- 
 teen greyhounds all let loose at once, and 
 some of whom run by the nose, it was to be 
 
 expected
 
 304 
 
 expected that we should do much execution: 
 however, by taking advantage of several 
 spots of brushwood and fern, most of the 
 hares escaped, and we killed only four out 
 of fourteen courses. As there were some 
 fears that the brigands or peasants might 
 attempt to carry me off, a curious fellow, 
 of the name of Oliver, with a number of 
 dragoons, were ordered to protect me ; but 
 though they used every endeavour to keep 
 close to me, as I happened to be better 
 mounted, and, I may add without much 
 vanity, a better horseman, I fre(juently left 
 them far behind, and made them blow 
 several of their horses. This Oliver was 
 quite a mountebank, and the butt of the 
 Colonel, whom he amused with his gri- 
 maces and buffoonery ; and indeed, in most 
 French regiments there is a person of this 
 description, on whom the officers expend 
 their gross witticisms. Oliver was notwith- 
 standing
 
 305 
 
 standing a good soldier, who had risen from 
 the ranks, but had no pretensions to gen- 
 tility. He entertained me with an account 
 of his being encamped at Boulogne, and 
 employed in patrolling the coast to pre- 
 vent smuggling ; yet he candidly acknow- 
 ledged that he was not always incorrup- 
 tible, and that the smugglers often found 
 the means of engaging him to alter his in- 
 tended patrole. Thus, a smuggler asking 
 him in what quarter he intended going his 
 roundsj if he answered to the south, the 
 other replied, that the north was by far the 
 most pleasant, and accompanying his ad- 
 vice with a douceur, the business was de-^ 
 cided. 
 
 On our return from coursing, we found 
 
 an abundant dinner prepared, at whidi 
 
 H presided two ladles, one of whom was the 
 
 honne amie of the Colonel. The evening 
 
 passed so pleasantly with music, singing, 
 
 VOL. I. X and
 
 306 
 
 and plentiful libations of punch, that be- 
 fore we recollected we had to return to 
 Madrid, it was past the hour of shutting 
 the gates, and we were therefore obliged to 
 remain. As no beds could be procured, 
 cards were called for, and we spent the 
 night at Bouillot. I played with various 
 success, but was latterly a considerable 
 loser, when one lucky hit brought me near- 
 ly home. We left off at six o'clock, and 
 after refreshing myself by washing my face, 
 1 played a few games of billiards, but was 
 unsuccessful, from too soon exposing my 
 play. My loss in cash I regretted much 
 less than that of a gold broach, representing 
 a pointer dog, finely executed. These kind 
 of trinkets were so uncommon among the 
 French and Spaniards, that all the com- 
 pany mistook it for an order, and made 
 many enquiries respecting it.- I did not 
 think proper to undeceive them, and they 
 
 were 
 
 I
 
 307 
 
 Were ashamed to be too inquisitive, lest 
 they should expose their ignorance on a 
 subject, with which their amour-propre led 
 them to conceive tliey should be acquaint- 
 ed. The broach was in my shirt on sitting 
 down to dinner ; but one of the ladies 
 amusing herself with an innocent game of 
 romps, it disappeared ! 
 
 An inspector of review being expected to 
 examine some horses, the Colonel was 
 obliged to wait his arrival ; and as I could 
 not return to Madrid without an escort, I 
 was also obliged to wait till the review was 
 over, which was not till three o'clock, when 
 after a deJeHne u lafourchette, we set out, 
 and reached Madrid late in the evening. 
 On my return to the Retiro, 1 found that 
 our absence had given rise to several sto- 
 ries, some asserting that the party was cut 
 to pieces, and that I was carried off by the 
 brigands, while others were as confident 
 
 X 2 that
 
 308 
 
 that I had deserted, King Joseph being 
 informed of our absence, a search was or- 
 dered to be made in every direction. Had 
 I had the most distant idea of the conse- 
 quencesj I should certainly have returned 
 the same night ; but the fact was, I was so 
 well amused, that neither King Joseph, Ge- 
 neralBehard, the commandant of the Retiro, 
 or my being a prisoner, ever once entered 
 mv head. A certain insouciance of charac- 
 ter is occasionally a blessing, for it not 
 only prevents us from poisoning our plea- 
 sures, by anticipating evils, but it also en- 
 ables us to support them when they arrive ; 
 and had I not possessed a portion of this 
 happy indifference, I should probably have 
 sunk under the various difficulties 1 at 
 times have had to encounter. 
 
 The morning after my return, the Adju- 
 tant de Place called on me with the infor- 
 mation that King Joseph had ordered me 
 
 to
 
 309 
 
 # 
 
 to be closely confined. As I had no doubt 
 but that this order originated with the Ge- 
 neral himself, I wrote him an explanatory 
 letter on the subject of my last day's ab- 
 sence. I soon however discovered, that 
 had I not stirred from Madrid, I should 
 have been equally made a close prisoner, 
 from the apprehensions entertained of an 
 insurrection of the inhabitants, in which it 
 appeared that I was denounced as intending* 
 to take an active part. Five centinels were 
 at first placed over me, and two more were 
 afterwards added. During the day I re- 
 ceived several visits from my friends in the 
 city, and found that I had acquired their 
 esteem ; probably from never talking seri- 
 ously, but confining myself to chit chat, or 
 bagatelle, when in French society. The 
 ofKcers confined with me, namely. Captain 
 Annesley, Lieutenant Sheetry, and Ensigns 
 Watts and Moulson, all of the 89th, \ycrc 
 
 X 3 entirely
 
 310 
 
 entirely disposed to cheerfulness : my con- 
 finement therefore was not so disagreeable as 
 it would otherwise have been ; and, indeed, 
 I determined on appearing perfectly indif- 
 ferent on the subject, not to give my ene- 
 mies the satisfaction of believing they could 
 annoy me. 
 
 Happening to have with me White s Ve^ 
 terinQTy, and knowing the French and 
 Spanish ignorance of the treatment of 
 horses, I, in order to amuse myself, pro- 
 posed giving lectures on the subject, and 
 treating the horses of my friends gratis. 
 This w^as no sooner known, than sick and 
 lame horses came from all quarters. The 
 first I took in hand was an English mare of 
 Monsieur de Billi, who had received a se- 
 vere blow in the eye, and was pronounced 
 incurable. By frequent steeping I succeeded 
 in reducing the inflammation ; I then applied 
 finely pounded sugar, and lastly, Goulard's 
 
 extract
 
 311 
 
 extract of Saturn, made weak, which pro- 
 duced a perfect cure. The horse of a ge- 
 neral officer was next brought me, wliich 
 I was told the General highly esteemed, 
 and had tried every thing to restore. The 
 animal had not been able to put one of his 
 feet to the ground for nine montlis. I im- 
 mediately perceived that he had picked up 
 a nail, which produced a great inflamma- 
 tion and suppuration. Taking the horse's 
 foot between my legs, (which surprised the 
 attendants, as in France and Spain one 
 man holds up the leg while another puts on 
 the shoe, or performs any other operation*) 
 I pared down the foot near the heel with a 
 penknife, and soon perceived a small stump 
 of a nail ; on extracting which, a consider- 
 able discharge took place, and on letting 
 
 X 4 down 
 
 * In the Low Countriesj the horse's foot is raised 
 bj an iron chain.
 
 S12 
 
 down the foot, the animal walked with 
 great firmness, to the great astonishment of 
 the spectators, who could not be persuaded 
 but that I had acted by some charm. My 
 fame as a horse doctor was now spread 
 throughout Madrid, and I had so much 
 practice, that had I taken fees, I should 
 have made a handsome livelihood. In con- 
 sequence of this, I was allowed to go 
 to the stables and the forge, both within the 
 walls. I had often in foreign countries, as 
 w'ell as when hunting, experienced the iur 
 convenience of not being able to make and 
 put on a horse-shoe, I therefore at once ap- 
 plied seriously, and soon made myself ex- 
 pert in the business. My particular friends 
 now considered it as the highest favour to 
 liave a horse shod by me, and shewed 
 him about in all directions, with no 
 sm^ill vanity ; for although I might not be 
 considered as a first-rate blacksmith in 
 
 England,
 
 313 
 
 England, both my shoes and shoeing- were 
 infinitely superior to those of the Spaniards. 
 During the course of the French revolu- 
 tion, I frequently reflected in what manner 
 I could gain a livelihood if my country was 
 in similar circumstances, and felt a certain 
 confidence in my knowledge of the treat- 
 ment of horses. In another respect I was 
 also at ease, that was in Cookery ; having 
 often found the necessity of being my own 
 cook while on campaigns, or grousing 
 parties, I learnt to excel particularly in the 
 dressing of four dishes. Indeed I cooked 
 my own dinner almost the entire journey 
 from Grenada to Madrid ; for being allowed 
 six rations of meat and bread, with a pro- 
 portion of wine per day, I usually prepared 
 dinner at my quarters, which afforded me 
 an opportunity of inviting the officers of the 
 89th. As I was also allowed barley and 
 chopped straw for the mules, the only ar- 
 ticles
 
 314 
 
 tides I had to purchase were a few onions 
 and other vegetables ; and in fact there was 
 seldom any thing else to be bought, so that 
 n)y whole expences from Grenada toMadrid, 
 for living and fareing very well, did not ex- 
 ceed twelve francs, though the distance is 
 above three hundred miles. 
 
 In spite of my resolution to appear indif- 
 ferent, I soon found the want of hberty be- 
 come insupportable, and more particularly 
 so as I was under the charge of a brutish 
 lieutenant cf the 43d infantry, who, con- 
 ceiving I had treated hin) with contempt, 
 placed two additional centinels over me, and 
 greatly diminished the limits I had been 
 allowed to walk in. The conduct of this 
 fellow was indeed as illiberal as that of the 
 lowest ruffian, but had no other effect on ray 
 treatment of him, than causing me to ex- 
 press the most sovereign contempt both for 
 his mind and person. The sarcasms I threw 
 
 out 
 
 ii
 
 315 
 
 out on the latter in particular, made him 
 furious; for though a deformed little monster, 
 he had the highest opinion of his personal 
 beauty. In this respect, nature occasion- 
 ally compensates her stinginess, by giving to 
 such kind of animals a more than common 
 share of conceit and vanity. 
 
 Among my visitors were some Spanish 
 ladies, who sung and played, so that with 
 the assistance of my male fiiends, I was 
 enabled to produce an occasional and to- 
 lerable concert. Before I was thus closely 
 confined, I used to attend concerts at Mon- 
 sieur Denia's three or four times a week, 
 where there were always assembled some 
 first rate performers ; particularly Monsieur 
 Garnier, who is ranked among the first 
 hautboys in Europe. At Monsieur Croch- 
 ard's, who was an excellent violin, we used 
 also to have some pleasant dinner parties 
 and evening concerts, 
 
 December
 
 316 
 
 December 25. In spite of all my at- 
 tempts to rentier captivity less galling, 
 the time passed on but heavily, and I had 
 abundant proof that nothing can compensate 
 the loss of liberty, wanting which, " even 
 virtue mourns and looks round for hap- 
 piness in vain." At length Christmas day 
 arrived, and as I am one of those old 
 fashioned persons, who think that the good 
 old customs of our forefathers are not 
 " better kept in the breach than in the obser- 
 vance," I invited some of my friends, among 
 whom were General Briott and Messrs. 
 Cavallos and Hervot, to dinner, which they 
 accepted. Our repast was tolerably good, 
 but most exorbitantly dear ; the French 
 trail eio'Cresidhig in theRetiro) whofurnish- 
 ed it, doubtless thinking he had a right to 
 make me pay doubly, for the' double title 
 by which he addressed me, of J\ft/ Lord 
 General Anglois. I had however some 
 
 reason
 
 317 
 
 reason to suppose, that the Adjutant de 
 Place shared in his profits, from his always 
 highly praising him. This officer latterly 
 became good-humoured, and I once invited 
 him to dinner, when he swallowed our 
 anecdotes bordering on romance as greedilv 
 as he did his wine, of which he took a good 
 allowance. Indeed the character which the 
 French have acquired of great sobriety, is 
 only merited when they pay for their wine, 
 for I have always found them ready to do 
 justice to the bottle when at others expence. 
 But to return to our Christmas dinner. In 
 the midst of our conviviality, at nine o'clock, 
 the lieutenant of the 43d entered, with two 
 of the guard, and ordered us to disperse, 
 in such an insolent manner, that I asked 
 him, " if this brutal stile was natural to 
 " him, or if he had received orders to use 
 *' such uncouth language?'.' adding, ** that 
 '' if he would tiy the experiment, he would 
 
 '' find
 
 318 
 
 " find that a gentlemanly manner would be 
 " much more certain of producing a ready 
 *' compliance.'' We therefore determined 
 that he should use force to disperse us ; but 
 this extremity he did not choose, and at last 
 retired with his soldiers. 
 
 The arrival of troops from various quar- 
 ters, and of disabled soldiers about to return 
 to France to receive their discharge, in- 
 dicated that we were likely to march soon, 
 to the no small joy of our officers and sol- 
 diers, as well as of many French officers, 
 who were either to compose our escort, or 
 wxre returning to France for various causes. 
 General Beliard often inspected them in the 
 court of the Retiro, but I never spoke to 
 him : and on the 27th December, when it 
 was notified to us that we were to march on 
 the 29th, I received a polite note from him 
 requesting my company to dinner, which I 
 refused. Indeed, his conduct had been en- 
 tirely
 
 319 
 
 tirely unbecoming an officer and gentleman, 
 not only to myself, but to every English 
 officer at Madrid ; for though they were 
 nominally on parole, tliey were confined in 
 the Retiro ; or when occasionally permitted 
 to go into the town, were always accom- 
 panied by some subaltern officer, whose 
 appearance and manners denoted any thing 
 but a gentleman. For my own part, I re- 
 fused to quit the Retiro with such an at- 
 tendant, who I was sure would misrepresent 
 every thing he heard me say, and give a 
 false and garbled account of my conduct to 
 the General ; and I know that such mis- 
 representation had been made. The Ge- 
 neral paid no attention to the com- 
 plaints made by the officers of the studied 
 insults they received. It is however but 
 justice to the generality of the French su- 
 perior officers that I have had occasion to 
 
 meet
 
 320 
 
 meet in Spain, to acknowledge, that their 
 conduct formed a striking con^'ast to that 
 of General Beliard, and indeed they all 
 spoke in the most indignant terms of his 
 behaviour. 
 
 i
 
 321 
 
 CHAPTER XXI. 
 
 From Madrid to Burgos ... .Village of Guadarania 
 . . . .Escurial . . . .Observations on New Castille .... 
 Ingenious piece of watei' machinery .... Antero de 
 Herrares. 
 
 Early on tlie morning' of tlie 29tli 
 December a very large convoy, collected 
 from various parts of Spain, quitted Ma- 
 drid for France. Instead of passing through 
 
 I 
 
 the streets we made the circuit on the out- 
 side of the city, round which there is an ex- 
 cellent road, until we reached the Puerta de 
 St. Vincent, where we halted, and the offi- 
 cers who had accompanied their friends 
 bade them adieu ; not without envy, for 
 I there were very few who were not heartily 
 sick of the campaigns in Spain. After 
 passing along a beautiful road for a mile 
 VOL. I. Y and
 
 322 
 
 and a half, we went through the hand- 
 some gate of Segovia, and crossed the 
 Giiadarama by a superb bridge of that 
 name. The distance from Madrid to the 
 village of Guadarama is nine long Spa- 
 nish leagues, so that on arriving there the 
 convoy was greatly fatigued ; and particu- 
 larly the prisoners, after their long confine- 
 ment. The road was, however, tolerably 
 good, and the single row of trees on each 
 side relieving the eye, made it appear 
 shorter; the country also seemed to be 
 well cultivated. The village of Guadarama, 
 situated at the foot of the mountains of the 
 same name, was ia a wretched state, from 
 the constant passage of French troops to or 
 from Madrid ;• there being no other place 
 of accommodation near it. It was former- 
 ly celebrated for its cheeses ; the houses 
 were now heaps of ruins, and the inhabit- 
 ants deserted or destroyed. 
 
 Our
 
 323 
 
 Our convoy consisted of several carriages, 
 and about two thousand six hundred per- 
 sons, including the Spanish prisoners, 
 who had been retained at Madrid at hard 
 laboyr in the public works, in order to 
 force them to enter King Joseph's service ; 
 a service from which they are sure to de- 
 sert as soon as possible, witli their arms 
 and accoutrements. I was billetted in a 
 wretched house, half destroyed, where not 
 one single accommodation was to be found. 
 With difRculty we at last made a fire, and 
 prepared a bed of heath, of which, how- 
 ever, we were dispossessed by a French 
 officer and his wife (the most frightful 
 gorgon I ever beheld), who on enter- 
 ing the apartment placed their things 
 on our bed, sans ccremonie, and took pos- 
 session of the fire ; and some soldiers re- 
 turning home on leave also coming in, we 
 dared neither produce our provisions, or 
 
 Y 2 insist
 
 324 
 
 insist on our right to the fire and bed we 
 had been at the trouble of making : we had 
 therefore no alternative but that of taking 
 up our lodging in the stable with the mules, 
 where we past the night cold, wet, and 
 hungry. 
 
 December 30. In the morning, stiff and 
 unrefreshed, we quitted the village of Gua- 
 darama, to cross the mountains which sepa- 
 rate the New and Old Castilles. Here, as 
 usual, when we came to any difficult pass, 
 nothing but brigands was in the mouths of 
 the French officers, whose apprehensions 
 were plainly visible in their looks and con- 
 versation : and yet these were the bragga- 
 docios who, according to their own ac- 
 counts, had encountered hosts. I observed 
 that the greatest ruffians among them were 
 the most apprehensive ; and, indeed, I be- 
 lieve it will be always found, that persons 
 of mild and liberal manners encounter 
 
 danger
 
 325 
 
 danger with more fortitude than bullying 
 and blustering fellows. 
 
 We halted some time on the summit of 
 the ridge of mountains, from whence we 
 had a fine view of the Escurial, though at 
 too great a distance to give a circumstan- 
 tial description of it from my own observa- 
 tions; 1 trust, therefore, my readers will not 
 be displeased at my presenting them with 
 some details taken from other travellers. 
 This palace is considered as the eighth 
 wonder of the world by the Spaniards, 
 who in speaking of it use an emphatic 
 ardour peculiar to the inhabitants of warm 
 climates. 
 
 The edifice is an oblong with several 
 towers ; the two principal faces have be- 
 
 I tween six and seven hundred feet front, 
 and upwards of fifty in height ; each angle 
 
 I is flanked by a tower of two hundred feet 
 elevation, and within side is a magnificent 
 
 Y 3 church.
 
 326 
 
 church. At the distance I viewed it from, 
 the stile of architecture appeared to me to 
 be heavy. When at Madjid, I had much 
 satisfaction in being told by many Spanish 
 ladies, that they fled to the Escurial for 
 protection during its occupation by the 
 English, under the command of Sir John 
 Hope ; and although I beheve the British 
 force was four thousand men, it gave me 
 still greater pleasure to hear them remark, 
 that the discipline and good conduct of the 
 soldiers were such, that it was scarcely possi- 
 ble to perceive there was one in the palace. 
 On the summit of the mountain we ob- 
 served a large square obelisk, erected by 
 order of Charles the Third, to mark the 
 limits of the two Castilles. As I am now 
 about to quit New Castille, I shall beg leave 
 to offer my readers a few observations on 
 that kingdom, drawn from the authors I 
 have read on the subject, as well as from the 
 
 in for-
 
 327 
 
 information of intelligent Spaniards with 
 whom I have conversed. 
 
 New Castille occupies the central part 
 of the peninsula, being surrounded by the 
 kingdoms of Valencia, Arragon, Old Cas- 
 tille, Murcia, Estramadura, Cordova, Jaen, 
 and La Mancha ; it is about fifty-five 
 leagues in length north and south, and 
 fifty broad east and west, including the 
 tract of country named Celliberia by the 
 Romans. 
 
 The principal chain of mountains in this 
 part of Spain are those antiently called Mons 
 Orespadani ; they commence with the Sierra 
 d'OUa, and form the Sierras de Molina, de 
 Cuenca, and de Consuegra. This chain is 
 also connected, by other ridges, with the 
 Sierras d'Alcalas, Segura, and Cazorlo ; 
 thus forming a communication with the 
 great chain of Grenadines already noticed, 
 which extend in a south-west direction 
 
 Y 4 to
 
 328 
 
 to Gibraltar and Tarlffa, while the Sierras 
 de Guadarama, from whose summits I am 
 now supposed to write, connect them in a 
 north-west direction with the Pyrennees. 
 
 If the British government was to reflect 
 on the chains of mountains that run in all 
 directions through Spain, I am satisfied the 
 mode of carrying on the war in this coun-^ 
 try would be immediately changed : for the 
 many strong passes in these mountains 
 are particularly calculated for partizan war- 
 fare ; and if they had been properly occu- 
 pied, the French would have found it to-^ 
 tally impossible to have penetrated into the 
 country as they have done. Although this 
 is not the only instance of negligence or 
 mistake, on our parts or on that of the 
 Spaniards, yet such is the present temper of 
 the latter, that the minister who should 
 give up their cause as hopeless or despe- 
 rate, would deserve to lose his head ; while 
 
 the
 
 329 
 
 the French must, in the end, be convinced 
 of the absurdity of attempting the conquest 
 of a country of such a nature and extent. 
 
 New Castile possesses three considerable 
 rivers, navigable from the sea for a consi- 
 derable distance : they are the Tagus, the 
 Jacar, and the Guadiana. The lesser rivers 
 are extremely numerous, but the enumera- 
 tion of them would afford little gratifica- 
 tion to the reader ; if, however, he wishes 
 for more minute information, it will be 
 found in Monsieur La Borde's ^' Itineraire 
 '^ descriptif de VEspagne,'* a work chiefly 
 consisting of topographical and statistical 
 details. 
 
 The principal towns of New Castile are 
 
 Madrid, Toledo, Cuenca, Talavera de la 
 
 Ileyna,* Villa Nueva de los Infantos, II- 
 
 lescas, 
 
 * This town has become celebrated by the battle 
 
 fought near it in 1811, between the French and Bri- 
 
 tish'troops, when the latter gained a glorious victory 
 
 tinder the command of the Duke of Wellington.
 
 330 
 
 lescas, Zimita, Consuegra, Guadalaxara, 
 Tremblique, Alcala de Herrarez, and Al- 
 colea. 
 
 Among the numerous revolutions of the 
 peninsula, New Castile lias been conspi- 
 cuous for the struggles it has made in de- 
 fence of its liberties, and which have been 
 sung by its bards with a degree of en- 
 thusiasm, that cannot fail to inspire the 
 present race with the same patriot zeal in 
 the defence of their country against the 
 French. The title of King of the Two 
 Castiles became extinct in the year 1475, 
 and by the marriage of Ferdinand and Isa- 
 bella the whole of Spain was united into 
 one monarchy : this period is the most glo- 
 rious of the Spanish history. 
 
 Ever since the reign of Louis XIV. it 
 has been the policy of the French cabinet 
 to keep the Spaniards in a sort of child- 
 hood,
 
 331 
 
 hood, which, added to the effects of the 
 Inquisition on the acquirement of know- 
 ledge, seem to be the cause of Spain pro- 
 ducing so few men of talent in recent 
 times. 
 
 'Having descended the ridge of Guada- 
 rauia, we halted at a large venta^ at its 
 foot, called Fonda de St. Raphael, two 
 leagues from Guadararaa. Here we found 
 a strong guard posted, composed chiefly of 
 engineers, who had taken advantage of a 
 stream of water to execute a whimsical 
 and very ingenious piece of mechanism, 
 consisting of a ludicrous figure with a 
 huge cocked hat, a sawyer cutting timber, 
 a group of merry dancers on a horizontal 
 wheel, and a band of musicians ; the dress 
 and faces of all these figures were admi- 
 rably ridiculous, and the whole was put in 
 
 movement 
 
 * \\\ inn.
 
 332 
 
 movement by the force of the stream, in 
 such a manner that any man must have 
 been sadly philosophic, who couk] refrain 
 from laughing at them ; moreover, the va- 
 riety of costume and manner of the spec- 
 tators added not a little to the singularity 
 of the scene. 
 
 Monsieur Crochard having with him a 
 caravan filled with eatables (amongst which 
 I was surprised to find some uncommonly 
 fine oysters and Jamaica rum, of which 
 latter the French are extravagantly fond), 
 invited me with several others to partake of 
 hisbreakfast, and his invitation was the more 
 acceptable, as I had neither eat nor drank 
 the day before. I may here observe, with 
 respect to Mr. Crochard's good things, that 
 Paymasters and Commissaries General in all 
 armies have more than their share of com- 
 forts. 
 
 In the evening we reached Antero de 
 
 Herrares,
 
 333 
 
 Herrares, after passing through a bleak 
 country without trees, but retaining some 
 traces of cultivation, though now entire- 
 ly neglected ; for so inveterate are the 
 Spaniards against their invaders, that they 
 say they would cheerfully starve themselves 
 to cause the French to perish also. Antero 
 de Herrares is the poor remains of what 
 seems formerly to have been a tolerable 
 town, and at present consists of wretched 
 mud houses and dirty streets. Here the 
 experience of the last evening induced me 
 to procure a non-commissioned officer, to 
 prevent the soldiers from forcing them- 
 selves into my quarters. The serjeant ap- 
 pointed for this purpose was retiring to 
 France on leave, in expectation of procur- 
 ing his discharge, and was a steady, decent 
 man. 
 
 December 31. In the morning we quitted 
 the village for Segovia. The frost was now 
 
 verv
 
 334 
 
 very severe, and tlie cold greater than I ever 
 experienced in England, owing to the 
 great elevation of the country above the 
 level of the sea. Indeed it is a very mis- 
 taken idea that the degree of heat or cold 
 depends on the latitude, for though this has 
 a certain effect, elevation and local circum- 
 stances have still greater. There are parts 
 of Europe, several degrees south of Eng- 
 land, where the winters are infinitely more 
 severe than in the latter country. At Grand 
 Cairo, though in thirty degrees north, I 
 have experienced a heat much greater than 
 between the tropics, which is doubtless 
 caused by the winds blowing over large 
 tracts of burning sands. 
 
 We reached Segovia, which is four 
 leagues from Antero de Herrares, at 
 two o'clock in the afternoon. The street 
 we entered by was so narrow and so 
 crowded with carriages, driving in every 
 
 direction.
 
 335 
 
 direction, that it took us a considerable time 
 to reach the municipality, situated at the 
 farther extremity of the town. 
 
 Here is an aqueduct, considered one of 
 the greatest curiosities of. Spain, and be- 
 lieved by the Spaniards to be so antient 
 that my landlord very seriously assured me 
 it was the workmanship of the same ar- 
 chitect who built the temple of Seraphis in 
 Egypt ; more moderate antiquarians how- 
 ever ascribe it to the reign of Trajan. By 
 it the water is conducted across a ravine, 
 and traverses the place and valley of Azo- 
 guego ; it is from seventy to eighty feet long, 
 and eighty to ninctyhigh,and agreat number 
 of httle canals or pipes branch off from it 
 and convey the water to ail parts of the 
 city. 
 
 I was billetted in a magnificent house, 
 of which I occupied a large apartment, co- 
 vered with antient gilding and looking 
 
 a^lasses.
 
 336 
 
 glasses, but without fireplace or brasier, 
 so that I was starved with cold. I dined 
 with our officers, who were quartered at the 
 next door, and where a priest and several 
 Spaniards of consideration paid us a visit 
 in the evening, and indulged themselves in 
 abusing the French ; for having a perfect 
 confidence in us they spoke their sentiments 
 freely. My landlord and his family paid 
 much attention to the Spanish officers, and 
 made many anxious enquiries after their son 
 who had been made prisoner at Ciudad Ro- 
 drigo. There were also two daughters of the 
 master of the house, of very superior man- 
 ners, handsome, and obliging. 
 
 I here passed the last night of the year 
 most wretchedly, idmost frozen from want 
 of bed covering or fire, and suffiiring greatly 
 from the pain in my chest and spitting of 
 blood. Nor did the morning of the new year 
 (January 1, 1811) bring with it any meliora- 
 tion.
 
 337 
 
 tion. Cold and uiirefreshed,whcnIarose,my 
 reflections were melanclioly in the extreme, 
 from the contrast of my present situation 
 with that of the preceding year, — when I 
 received the congratulations and compli- 
 ments usual at this season from those friends 
 whose expressions and looks spoke the sin- 
 cerity of their good wishes, — now a prisoner 
 in a distant country, and separated for an 
 undetermined period from those I loved 
 most dearly. I attempted to drive away 
 these sad thoughts by a walk in the town ; 
 but the streets were so covered with ice, 
 that walking was disagreeable and dan- 
 gerous, and I was obliged to return. In 
 the forenoon I however received the visit of 
 a forward little Irish priest, whom I accom- 
 panied to the hospital, where I found se- 
 veral wounded English soldiers of the 
 guards, 61st and /^th regiments, most of 
 whom had lost a limb, and some two. It 
 VOL. I. z seemed
 
 338 
 
 seemed to me that the treatment of their 
 wounds by the French surgeon, was by no 
 means what might have been expected, from 
 their supposed excellence of this art. The 
 priest, as chaplain, had considerable influ- 
 ence in the management of the hospital^ 
 and introduced me to the director, who was 
 very civil. From hence I paid a visit to 
 General Filhie, commandant of the town, 
 and an officer of the old school, which sup- 
 poses a gentleman in manners and address. 
 He invited me to dinner ; but his hour be- 
 ing three o'clock, I was obliged to decline 
 it, for as I was to continue my journey next 
 morning, I wished to employ the afternoon 
 in seeing the town. The General was 
 lodged in the palace of the Alcazar, a very 
 antient and interesting building ; the apart- 
 ments richly ornamented with mosaic and 
 gilding, but generally ill proportioned. It 
 was inhabited hy Alfonzo the Wise, cele- 
 brated 

 
 339 
 
 b rated for his astronomical tables. In the 
 chapel there still remained some pictures 
 covered with dust, and in a gallery several 
 statues of Spanish princes and great men, 
 amongst whom I noticed that of Ferdinand 
 Gonzalez, proclaimed first Count of Castile 
 in 923, and of the famous warrior Ro- 
 derigue Dias de Bivar, better known by 
 the name of the Cid Campeadore. 
 
 From the Alcazar I visited the cathedral, 
 with my guide the priest, w^ho told me that 
 though he had been twenty-eight years in 
 Segovia, he now for the first time entered 
 this church ; and yet few in Europe are 
 more worthy of observation, either as to 
 architecture, situation or internal decora- 
 tion. Though built only in the sixteenth 
 century, it is chiefly Roman ; among the 
 ornaments which remain Cfor it had been 
 plundered of the most valuable) are several 
 marble statues well executed by an artist 
 
 z 2 named
 
 340 
 
 named Manuel Pachero. In the chapels 
 are also some tolerable pictures and figures 
 in has relief, but a large silver figure of the 
 Virgin has disappeared. — Having satisfied 
 my curiosity here I accompanied the priest 
 to the castle, a Moorish work situated on 
 an elevated granite rock, with the river on 
 the right and a perpendicular precipice some 
 hundred feet deep on the left, at the foot of 
 which runs another river, so that the rock 
 is placed at the junction of the two rivers. 
 Its shape has a considerable resemblance to 
 that of a ship, the town being longer than 
 it is broad, swelling out in the middle and 
 narrowing towards the stern ; and when 
 looking down on it from the castle, you 
 may fancy yourself in the foretop of a 
 vessel. The castle was now filled with sol- 
 diers, who were committing all kinds of de- 
 predations on the floors and walls, which 
 are covered with elegant mosaic. 
 
 On
 
 341 
 
 On quitting the castle, I heard myself 
 wished a happy new year in English ; and 
 certainly Robinson Crusoe could not have 
 been much more surprised at hearing his 
 parrot cry " j)oor Robin /" than I was at 
 being addressed in an English voice from 
 so unexpected a place. The compliment 
 was several times repeated ; but I for some 
 time looked round in vain for the speaker, 
 until at last I observed the unfortunate lad, 
 Archibald Lindsey, looking through the 
 grate of an upper apartment, and learnt 
 from him that he was confined there in 
 chains, without fire, or one earthly conso- 
 lation. The miserable situation of this poor 
 fellow made me feel most forcibly how little 
 my own Avas to be complained of, when 
 compared with his, which united captivity, 
 cold and hunger, and brought to my recol- 
 lection a passage in one of Sterne's sermons, 
 admirably appropriate. 
 
 z 3 " Heaven
 
 342 
 
 " Heaven have pity upon the youth, for 
 " he is in hunger and in distress, strayed 
 *' out of the reach of a parent, who counts 
 ^^ every hour of his absence with anguish ; 
 " cut off from all his tender offices by his 
 *^ folly, and from relief and charity from 
 *^ others, by the calamities of the times. 
 
 ** Nothing so powerfully calls home the 
 
 " mind as distress : the tense fibre then re- 
 
 " laxes, the soul retires to itself, sits pen- 
 
 ** sive, and is susceptible of right impres- 
 
 ^^ sions. If we have a friend, 'tis then we 
 
 *' think of him ; if a benefactor, at that 
 
 " moment all his kindnesses impress upon 
 
 ^* our mind. — Gracious and bountiful God, 
 
 " is it not for this that they who in their 
 
 " prosperity forget thee, do yet remember 
 
 '' and return to thee in the hour of sorrow! 
 
 '* When our heart is in heaviness, upon 
 
 *^ whom can we think but thee, who 
 
 " knowest our necessities afar off, puttest 
 
 *' all
 
 343 
 
 '* all our tears in thy bottle — seest every 
 *^ careful thought, hearest every sigh and 
 '* melancholy groan we utter V* 
 
 Every effort, as I have before noticed, 
 had been used to induce this poor lad to enter 
 into the French service, but without ef- 
 fect ; and as a punishment for his virtuous 
 patriotism, he was now thus starving in 
 chains. Indeed, I have observed many in- 
 stances of heroic constancy in this re- 
 spect, as well in Spaniards as in English, 
 which proved the great strength of charac- 
 ter of the former, and raised them infinite- 
 ly above the Germans, who change sides 
 with circumstances, and are indifferent 
 into whose hands their country falls. 
 
 From the castle we proceeded to the Go- 
 vernor's residence, where the priest, who 
 was entirely Irish as to the absence of 
 mauvaise honte, called for wine and brandy, 
 to which he did ample justice. From 
 
 z 4 hence
 
 344 
 
 lience we went to the place of military ex- 
 ecution, where the victim is placed on a 
 marble slab, close to a wall, which I ob- 
 served pierced with vast numbers of bul- 
 lets, and the ground strewed with pieces of 
 the skull of a Spanish lieutenant, who had 
 been shot here the preceding day. From 
 this fatal spot, well calculated to inspire 
 the most melancholy reflections, I retired, 
 oppressed and unwell, and visited the mint, 
 where brass is now only coined, and but 
 little of it; the building is insignificant, 
 and by no means answers the descriptions 
 I have read of it. 
 
 In returning to my lodging, I met Messrs. 
 Cavallos and Hervot, who pressed me to 
 dine with them, which I promised, if I 
 could get rid of my priest ; and in this I 
 only succeeded by plying him with brandy. 
 I did not feel without alarm in going to 
 dinner, for the evening was very dark, and 
 
 J knew
 
 345 
 
 I knew that several French had been killed 
 the same day in a scuffle with the Spaniards. 
 I had not gone far when I heard the firing of 
 musquets and a great outcry, and soon after 
 heard that four Frenchmen and a woman 
 had been massacred; one of the men, it 
 seems, was a follower of the army, a de- 
 scription of fellows who commit infinitely 
 more depredations than the soldiers. In 
 the act of spoliation, the female campaign- 
 ers are worse than the men ; for being lost 
 to every feminine virtue, they plunder and 
 murder with the greatest coolness and com- 
 posure. The house we dined at had for- 
 merly been an extensive woollen manufac- 
 tory, but was now much declined. The 
 party was pleasant, and the dinner toler- 
 able. On my return to my quarters, I 
 found my landlord and his amiable daugh- 
 ters assembled in the kitchen. They ex- 
 pressed the anxiety they had been under 
 
 for
 
 346 
 
 for my safety : and finding the old man in 
 a conversible humour, I sat down with a 
 scgar, and gave him all the information I 
 could respecting the state of affairs in the 
 interior of Spain. He soon became ani- 
 mated with the subject, and grasping the 
 tongs, exclaimed with energy, *' would I 
 *^ were young again ! but old as I am, I 
 '* hope before I die to assist in expelhng 
 *' these villains from Spain !'' Such, in- 
 deed, is the common sentiment of the Spa- 
 niards in general, and it is to be hoped and 
 expected that they will be ultimately suc- 
 cessful, for they are truly fighting j)ro ariii 
 etfocis.
 
 347 
 
 CHAPTER XXII. 
 
 From Segovia to Valladolid . . . .Convoy of bread .... 
 Gci'man Baron . . . .Santa Maria de Neva . . . .French 
 servant deserts . . . .Moorish palace Convoj at- 
 tacked . . . .German insolence . . . .Val de Stillas .... 
 Wretched accommodation . . . .French cruelty .... 
 English prisoners escape. 
 
 On the morning of January 2, 1 quitted 
 Segovia some time before the convoy, and 
 accompanied only by my batt-man Pierre, 
 who was charged with the care of the 
 mules, and who was much terrified from 
 the number of French killed the night be- 
 fore, expecting every moment to share the 
 same fate. We rode along the bank of the 
 river, having the walls of the town, which 
 are very high, on our left, and the castle, 
 situated on a rock, affording a romantic 
 
 view.
 
 348 
 
 view. We soon came up with the convoy, 
 whose march was much retarded by wag- 
 gons loaded with bread, sent from Ma- 
 drid, and intended for Massena's army in 
 Portugal, of which two hundred out of 
 the original five hundred were already lost 
 from various accidents. The country we 
 passed through was rather hilly, and now 
 covered with snow, so that I could not well 
 distinguish the nature of the soil ; but it 
 appeared to have been formerly cultivated. 
 At a late hour we reached Santa Maria de 
 Neva, an uncomfortable town. Here I 
 found the quarters assigned me occupied by 
 a German colonel, whom I soon discovered 
 to be my old acquaintance, Colonel Baron 
 de Faustein, Chamberlain to the Emperor, 
 and Colonel of the regiment of Baden. 
 With great politeness he offered me the 
 choice of three tolerable apartments, be- 
 sides which there was a good kitchen, and 
 
 plenty
 
 349 
 
 plenty of accommodation for the servants. 
 The Baron soon putting himself at ease en 
 dtshuhille, took post in the chimney corner 
 witli his pipe ; and certainly was a most 
 extraordinary figure, his thin body being 
 wrapped up in flannel. He wore immense 
 mustachios, and had on a large curious 
 nightcap ; so that he extorted a laugh even 
 from the solemn gravity of our Spanish 
 host. As v/e were dependent for our sup- 
 per on what the Baron's stock afford- 
 ed, we both began to prepare our repast, 
 he undertaking to compose a soup of pork, 
 rice and eggs, while I manufactured a hash, 
 and fricassied the fragments of a turkey. 
 During my employment in this momentous 
 business, we drank plentifully of snaps of 
 brandy, and when 1 laughed at the gro- 
 tesque figure of the Baron, which there was 
 no resisting, he thinking I was laughing at 
 our employment, joined heartily in it, 
 
 while
 
 350 
 
 while sympathy acted upon his man Frede- 
 rick, and by a kind of merry contagion, all 
 the persons present, amounting to ten or 
 twelve, resembled the picture of ^' all in 
 ^^ good humour.'* At our repast our solemn 
 host joined us, and he falling fast asleep, 
 1 could not resist the pleasure of blacking 
 his face with a burnt cork, which set the 
 Baron in so loud a roar of laughter, that 
 it actually woke the Spaniard, who, in his 
 turn, thinking there must be some good 
 joke, but ignorant that it was at his own 
 expence, laughed also ; and thus these two 
 caricatures amused each other, to the enter- 
 tainment of us all. 
 
 Before I went to bed I visited the cattle, 
 suspecting that they might be neglected, 
 and found that they had neither been clean- 
 ed or fed, nor their saddles taken off, and 
 that Monsieur Pierre had appropriated the 
 sheet of my favourite mare to cover himself. 
 
 On
 
 351 
 
 On sending for him, I received a most in- 
 solent answer to my remonstrance, and 
 knowing- 1 could get no other redress, I re- 
 venged myself pugilistically ; a kind of art 
 the French are totally unacquainted with, 
 and 'very averse to. He decamped next 
 morning, and left me to take care of the 
 cattle myself; for though I had another 
 servant, he had an antipathy to horses and 
 dogs, neither of which he would approach. 
 
 January 3. On quitting Santa Maria de 
 Neva, the country we passed through was 
 very, romantic, the soil rich, and retain- 
 ing the marks of cultivation ; hut now a 
 waste. The villages we saw were composed 
 of wretched mud hovels, and the peasants 
 universally drest in coarse brown frieze, and 
 both themselves and their habitations 
 seemed equally miserable. In several of 
 these villages all the doors and windows 
 
 were
 
 352 
 
 were closed^ nor did we see a single soul in 
 them. 
 
 The convoys had been often attacked in 
 this part of the country, and we were there- 
 fore now ordered to keep in close order. 
 At last we reached the Moorish palace of 
 Las Nav as de Colla, most beautifully si- 
 tuated on the banks of a river, and com- 
 manding an extensive view of a very rich 
 country. Accompanied by M. Crochard, 
 I went forward to view this building. We 
 observed that it had been fortified, and, from 
 its position, must have been impregnable 
 before the use of cannon. It is surrounded 
 by a ditch, crossed by a drawbridge, so 
 crazy, that we passed it with some diffi- 
 culty. The palace is of considerable ex- 
 tent, and retains all its Moorish ornaments, 
 the floors being of fine mosaic, and the 
 ceilings richly gilt and grotesquely painted. 
 Indeed, it seemed that neither expence nor 
 
 art
 
 353 
 
 art bad been spared to render it magni- 
 ficent according to the Moorisb taste, vvbicb 
 was so different to ours, tbat tbeir mode of 
 life, as described by historians, resembles 
 romance. 
 
 While examining the palace, a heavy 
 firing announced the convoy's being at- 
 tacked by the brigands, who, it appeared, 
 were composed of the inhabitants of the 
 village, of which we had seen the windows 
 and doors closed, and who had concealed 
 themselves until the convoy had arrived at 
 a bridge, crossing the river, which was 
 very winding, and bounded on each side 
 by steep hills. In this spot they attacked 
 the rear of the convoy, and I had a com- 
 plete view of the affair from the summit of 
 the hill. A detachment of the 10th hussars 
 charged the brigands, and troops were sent 
 in various directions. This skirmish cost 
 the French eight hussars and two wag- 
 
 voL. I. 2 a goners
 
 354 
 
 goners killed ; some soldiers, twelve horses 
 and four loaded carts taken, on one of 
 which was the Paymaster's military chest. 
 These brigands were commanded by a Ger- 
 man captain, who had deserted with his 
 company from Santa Maria de Neva, of 
 which he had been commandant. Their 
 number did not exceed two hundred, while 
 the convoy was upwards of twelve hundred ; 
 a proof of the daring spirit of the Spanish 
 peasantry ! Every individual Frenchman, 
 however, according to his own word, would 
 not have hesitated to attack the whole 
 party ; indeed, nothing could be more dis- 
 gusting than these fellows' continual gas- 
 conade. After this affair, we passed through 
 a very hilly and sandy track, and as our 
 horses were in wretched condition for want 
 of forage, we proceeded very slowly, added 
 to which the breaking down of several bread 
 waggons, retarded us still more. One of the 
 
 officers
 
 35o 
 
 officers requested me to ride forward and in- 
 form an officer of the 10th chasseurs of this 
 accident, and to tell him, that as It was neces- 
 sary to break up the case, his people might 
 have as much bread as they pleased. This 
 message I delivered in pure kii dness, and 
 without any signs of satisfaction in my man- 
 ner; nevertheless it put the officer in a vio- 
 lent passion, which he expressed both in 
 his language and gestures. He was a Ger- 
 man, and, as I have already observed, the 
 inferior German officers in the French ser- 
 vice are any thing but gentlemen. 
 
 Late at night we reached Olmeda, an 
 insignificant town, and next morning pro- 
 ceeded, through a very sandy country, by 
 very deep roads, to Val de Stillas, where I 
 was billetted at the house of a poor old man, 
 whose habitation consisted onlv of two 
 apartments, one of which was occupied by 
 
 2 A 2 himself
 
 ^56 
 
 himself and son, and the other was half 
 unroofed. There was neither chair, stool, 
 nor table, and but one earthen pot, in 
 which I boiled a few onions and some 
 mutton I had brought with ine, and which 
 made a mess sufficient for myself and 
 servants, as well as the old man and his 
 son; a treat indeed to them, for they had 
 not tasted flesh for a twelvemonth ! We 
 washed down this homely repast with agua 
 ardiente. Our table, at which we all set 
 indiscriminately, was a board I had pro- 
 cured in the village, and our seat a bank 
 of earth. My bed was the uneven mud floor, 
 wet from the rain, which poured in through 
 the roof ; and I had no other covering 
 than my clothes on my back, which were 
 likewise very wet from the day's rain. Not- 
 withstanding my situation, I slept as sound- 
 ly as if on a bed of down ; nor was this the 
 
 first
 
 357 
 
 iirst time that I enjoyed a sweeter repose, 
 thus exposed to the inclemency of the wea- 
 ther, than in a splendid apartment, sur- 
 rounded by luxury, but at the same time 
 annoyed by sameness and want of occu- 
 pation. 
 
 During the night, a wretched old man 
 sought refuge in the house, and informed 
 us that his son had just been murdered, and 
 himself desperately wounded by the sol- 
 diers, who had torn the roof ofFhis hovel 
 to make a fire. It is impossible, without 
 having witnessed it, to form an adequate 
 idea of the horrors inflicted on the Spanish 
 peasantry by the French soldiers; over 
 whom, in consequence of their being gene- 
 rally in long arrears of pay, and often in 
 total want of provisions, their officers have 
 scarce any control. In the morning we 
 found that the peasants had, during the 
 
 2 A 3 nightj
 
 358 
 
 night, gone off with the bullocks which 
 were to draw the bread-waggons, and the 
 bread was in consequence heaped up on 
 the outside of the village, without cover- 
 ing ; and a heavy rain coming on, it must 
 have been soon totally destroyed. Thus 
 Marshal Massena, for whose army it was 
 intended, was disappointed of this expected 
 and greatly wanted relief. 
 
 January 4. The day being wet, the 
 march of the convoy became very irregular, 
 for as there are two roads leading to Val- 
 ladolid, the first division took one, and the 
 second the other ; so that when the bugle 
 sounded a halt, one party, not hearing it, 
 pushed on, and arrived at Valladolid long 
 before the division that remained with the 
 commanding officer. From the irregu- 
 larity of the march, many of the English 
 prisoners effected their escape; indeed, 
 
 latterly^
 
 359 
 
 latterly, no great pains were taken to pre- 
 vent them, and seldom any inquiry was 
 made on their disappearing. Close to the 
 town, at the meeting of two roads, we were 
 greeted with the spectacle of a man's head 
 stUyk on a pole. ;"'-'' 
 
 2a4
 
 360 
 
 CHAPTER XXIII. 
 
 Valladolid . . . .General Kellerman . . . Parting break- 
 fast . . . .French dismounted dragoons . . . .Botanical 
 conversation . . .Burgos . . . .The Cid. 
 
 At Valladolid I was billetted in com- 
 fortable quarters, at a merchant's house, 
 which was some compensation for the va-? 
 rious privations I had lately suffered. As 
 soon as I had made myself fit to appear I 
 waited on General Kellerman, who received 
 me most politely, and whose mild and gentle- 
 manly manners could not fail to make a 
 strong impression in his favour, when com- 
 pared with the ferocious and vulgar brutes I 
 had encountered. He speaks English to- 
 lerably well, and seems to admire the Eng- 
 lish character ; though, from the illiberality 
 of his master, it is not very prudent to ex- 
 press
 
 361 
 
 press this sentiment openly. He invited me 
 to dinner with Monsieur and Madame 
 Crochard and M. Diniez ; the repast ^as 
 good and the wines excellent. In the 
 evening, the General advised me and M. 
 Di'-iiez to proceed with a convoy of dis- 
 mounted dragoons going to France to be 
 remounted, by which we should expedite 
 our journey ; and to this proposal we readily 
 assented. 
 
 On my return to my quarters I found the 
 family at cards, in which I joined, and at 
 ten o'clock supper was brought in, consist- 
 ing of a sallad of beet-root and other vege- 
 tables, and some anchovies. Indeed the Spa- 
 niards are extremely frugal or rather abste- 
 mious in their diet, of which flesh meat 
 forms a very small portion ; nor have they 
 the least idea of those enormous joints under 
 which our English tables groan. 
 
 January 5. In the morning I strolled 
 
 about
 
 36'2 
 
 about the town, which appears to have 
 been for some time on the decline; most 
 of the magnificent gateways are in ruins, 
 and many have never been finished, as 
 though the proprietors had began on too 
 great a scale, and wanted the means of 
 completing them. The two principal 
 squares are the Cam po- Grande and Plaza 
 Mayor ; the buildings of the former are 
 without regularity, and it is scarce possible 
 to pass through it for heaps of ordure. The 
 Plaza Mayor is surrounded by a colonnade, 
 under which is a promenade, adorned with 
 all the best shops. It is probable that 
 this colonnade was intended to be very 
 magnificent, and it may look well on paper, 
 but the execution is below mediocrity. 
 
 The Ochavo is an octagon place, the 
 buildings of which are in ruins, and the 
 centre occupied by heaps of mire, into one 
 of which I plunged up to my middle, in 
 
 returning
 
 363 
 
 returning home from dining with our offi- 
 cers, who had their quarters in this Plaza. 
 
 Valladolid is built on a low swampy soil, 
 which, added to the national want of clean- 
 liness, renders it filthy in the extreme. Its 
 promenades are celebrated, but neither the 
 weather (which was very wet) nor my time 
 would permit me to visit them ; the latter 
 being occupied in purchasing provisions, 
 which we were always obliged to do in every 
 large town to last us to the next, generally 
 a journey of three or four days. I saw 
 however the Prado de la Magdelaine, on 
 the Esquiva, which has some large trees, 
 and is probably a pleasant walk in summer, 
 but at this time all was dreary and gloomy 
 from the cold, wet and uncomfortable 
 weather. 
 
 The churches of Valladolid seem not to 
 equal those of many other inferior towns of 
 Spain, The cathedral is but half finished, 
 
 and
 
 364 
 
 and I observed nothing in the others worthy 
 of particular notice ; except some good 
 paintings in that of the Augustins, par- 
 ticularly a Descent from the Cross, by 
 Hernandez, 
 
 January J, we quitted Valladolid an hour 
 before day, but halted a considerable time 
 at the gate, which I believe was intentional ; 
 for I found on reaching it an officer waiting 
 for me, who informed me that he had in- 
 structions to apprehend and convey me vi 
 ef armis into a posada, where Messrs. Ca- 
 vallosand Hervot had prepared a sumptuous 
 breakfast of cold ham, hot mutton, salt 
 fish, and many other substantial things, 
 which I was obliged to wash down with 
 several parting glasses of liqneur and brandy; 
 and, on taking leave. Monsieur Hervot pre- 
 sented me with a small silver cup, as a 
 souvenir de Vamilid ^ternelle. Embracing 
 these gentlemen, who were here to quit the 
 
 convoy
 
 obo 
 
 convoy on their way to Portugal to join the 
 French army in that country, we bade each 
 other an afiectionate farewell ; not without 
 sensations of regret, on my part at leasts 
 
 Monsieur de Billi, another gentleman, 
 and myself, who had partaken of the re- 
 past, were obliged to gallop on to overtake 
 the light convoy. We found the road co- 
 vered with carts and waggons loaded with 
 wool, which had been levied by the French 
 as part of the contributions, and was on its 
 way to France. Our convoy was now com- 
 posed of the 20th and 2 1st light dragoons 
 returning from Portugal, and proceeding to 
 Pau to be remounted. These regiments, it 
 was said, neglected their horses very much, 
 and consequently were no favourites. One 
 of the officers, as is usual with Frenchmen, 
 entered familiarly into conversation with 
 me, recounting the miseries of the campaign 
 in Portugal ; hut which were scarcely wortli 
 
 mentioning
 
 366 
 
 mentioning in comparison with their sufTer- 
 ings since, particularly in Massena's retreat. 
 We halted at a village where -Monsieur 
 Diniez and some gentlemen had ordered a 
 repast to be prepared ; after partaking of 
 which, we continued our march and arrived 
 in the evening at Turcomania, eight Spanish 
 leagues from Valladolid. This place we 
 quitted early in the morning of January 8, 
 being anxious to get before the other convoy. 
 The road was good, and we advanced ra- 
 pidly. I was amused by the conversation 
 of a Monsieur Vilmansen, who introduced 
 himself by telling me, that he should soon 
 be happy, eating oysters at Bourdeaux; and 
 related the enormous quantity he had eat 
 when last there, with such an expressive 
 manner, as if he w^as swallowing them at 
 the moment. Our conversation was not 
 however confined to gourmandism, for the 
 appearance of the country leading us to 
 
 the
 
 367 
 
 the subject of botany, I found he was to- 
 lerably acquainted with this branch of na- 
 tural history, and as I knew a little of it 
 myself, we kept up the conversation with 
 mutual satisfaction. In the evening we 
 arrived at Alada, a small insignificant 
 village. 
 
 January 9. Next morning, though the 
 escort was much fatigued, we left Alada at 
 an early hour, and proceeded by a narrow 
 and broken road along the banks of the 
 Arlancon, which was now an insignificant 
 stream, but sometimes swells so much as to 
 overflow, and cause considerable damage. 
 A little before dark we reached Burgos, 
 on the outside of which we perceived 
 the shocking spectacle of eighteen poor 
 wretches hanging. These sights, so of- 
 ten presented to us in our march, 
 are doubtless intended to intimidate the 
 
 Spaniards,
 
 368 
 
 Spaniards, but have a directly opposite elf- 
 fect, inspiring them only with revenge. 
 
 After crossing a bridge over the Arlan- 
 gon, we entered Burgos by a gate, and 
 passed along a handsome promenade on 
 the banks of the river, planted with trees 
 and in good order. I found some difficulty 
 in procuring a billet, but at last was quar- 
 tered at a priest's house, who with his sis- 
 ter, a handsome girl, and maid servant, 
 composed the family. The females at first 
 received me in a most uncourteous manner, 
 but when they were informed that, instead 
 of being a German or other follower of the 
 French, I was an English prisoner, they 
 entirely changed their tone, and every thing 
 the house afforded was brought forward, 
 and the mules accommodated in the hall, 
 for want of any other place. In short, I 
 experienced the utmost hospitality, which 
 
 was
 
 369 
 
 was the more agreeable from the first for-^ 
 bidding reception. Nor was this the fiist time 
 bv iiianv that I had the satisfaction of ex- 
 perienciiig, that the name of EngUshman 
 is a passport to hospitahty and kindness in 
 all #parts of the world : even among the 
 Arabs of the desert I have found it so, 
 when entirely in their power. 
 
 January 10. In the morning I called to 
 pay my respects to General Count Dor- 
 senne, the governor, but not finding him 
 at home, I strolled through the town, 
 which is one of the best built that I have 
 seen in Spain. The gates, of which there 
 are several, are liandsome ; and a large 
 square, surrounded by a colonnade sup- 
 ported by marble pillars, and under it rows 
 of well filled shops, has the appearance 
 of industry and prosperity. At one side of 
 the square is a magnificent arch, also sup- 
 ported by marble columns of the Corinthian 
 
 VOL. r. 2 b order,
 
 370 
 
 order, wliicb leads to the promenade on the 
 banks of the river. Opposite to this gate 
 is the tomb of the Cid, to whom Burgos 
 has the honour of giving birth, as well as 
 of possessing his remains. J 
 
 The exploits of this renowned warrior 
 (the relation of which is supposed by Cer- 
 vantes to have principally caused the de- 
 rangement of the worthy knight of La 
 Mancha), are collected from the old Spa- 
 nish chronicles and ballads, and admirablv 
 put into English by Mr. Southey. As all 
 my readers may not have seen this extraor- 
 dinary and almost romantic narrative, I 
 trust I shall be excused for transcribing a 
 sketch of it from the review of Mr. South - 
 ey's work. 
 
 ** Roderigo of Bivar, a youth strong in 
 *' arms, and of good customs, destined to 
 '* protect his country from the Moors, was 
 " born at Burgos in the reign of King Fer- 
 
 " nando.
 
 371 
 
 *' nando of Castile ; and in the year 1026 
 *' his father Diego Laynez, chief of the 
 " nohle house, had received a blow from 
 *' the Count Don Gomez, the Lord of 
 " Gorniay. Now," says Mr. Southey, 
 " Diego was a man in years, and his 
 " strength had passed from him, so that 
 " he could not take vengeance, and he re- 
 ** tired to his home, to dwell there in soli- 
 *' tude and lament over his dishonour : 
 *' he took no pleasure in his food, neither 
 **^ could he sleep by night, nor would he 
 '' lift up his eyes from the ground, nor stir 
 " out of his house, nor commune with his 
 ** friends, but turned from them in silence, 
 *' as if the breath of his shame would taint 
 ** them. Roderigo was yet but a youth, 
 " and the Count was a mighty man in 
 " arms, one who gave his voice first in the 
 *' Cortes, and was held to be the best in 
 *' the war, and so powerful that he had a 
 
 2 B 2 ^^ thousand
 
 37^ 
 
 thousand friends among the mountauis. 
 Howbeit all these things appeared as no- 
 thing to Roderigo, when he thought of 
 the wrong done to his father, the first 
 which had ever been offered to the blood 
 of Layn Calvo. He asked nothing but 
 justice of Heaven, and of man he only 
 asked a fair field ; and his father, seeing 
 of how good heart he was, gave him his 
 sword and his blessing. The sword had 
 been the sword of Mudarra in former 
 times, and when Roderigo held its cross 
 in his hand, he thought within himself 
 that his arm was not weaker than Mu- 
 darra's. And he went out and defied 
 the Count, and slew him, and smote off 
 his head and carried it home to his fa- 
 ther. The old man was sitting at table, 
 the food lying before him untasted, when 
 Roderigo returned, and pointing to the 
 head which hung from the horse's collar 
 
 " dropping
 
 373 
 
 *' dropping blood, he bade him look up, 
 " for there was the herb which should 
 " restore to him his appetite ; the tongue, 
 " quoth he, which insulted you, is no 
 " longer a tongue, and the head which 
 '-* wronged you is no longer a head. And 
 " the old man rose and embraced his son, 
 " and placed him above him at the table, 
 " saying, that he who had brought home 
 " that head should be the head of the 
 " house of Lavn Calvo. 
 
 *' The Castilian monarch for some of- 
 " fence afterwards banished the Cid from 
 " his dominions. On his going the Cid 
 *' then assembled his relations, vassals, 
 " and retainers, whom his influence and 
 " high military reputation had attached to 
 " his person, and resolved at their head to 
 " have Castile, and subsist by a predatory 
 *' war among the Moors. 
 
 " And as he was about to depart he look- 
 
 2 B 3 '' ed
 
 374 
 
 " ed back upon his own house ; and when 
 " he saw his hall deserted, the household 
 " chests unfastened, the doors open, no 
 " cloaks hanging up, no seats in the porch, 
 " no hawks upon the perches, the tears 
 " came into his eyes, and he said, my ene- 
 " mies have done this I God be praised for 
 all things. And he turned towards the 
 east, and knelt and said, Holy Mary, 
 Mother, and all Saints, pray to God for 
 me, that he may give me strength to 
 destroy all the Pagans, and to win 
 enough from them to requite my friends 
 ^' therewith, and all those who follow and 
 help me, &c. &c/* 
 
 a 
 
 a 
 
 a 
 
 a 
 
 u 
 
 a 
 
 a
 
 
 CHAPTER XXiy. 
 
 From Burgos to Mendragon Generosity of a 
 
 priest .... Vittoria .... Old Castile . . . .Women on 
 
 mules Shoeing' oxen Nonchalance of a 
 
 French soldier .... Inveteracy of t!ie Spaniards. 
 
 We quitted Burgos at five o'clock in 
 the morning of January 11, in an extreme- 
 ly hard frost, and passed through a fertile 
 and well cultivated country, with numerous 
 villages, in all of which were parties of 
 the French imperial guards, who had forti- 
 fied themselves against the brigands, and 
 seldom stirred out of the works. In the 
 evening we reached the village of Bribies- 
 ca, eight Spanish leagues from Burgos ; 
 where I had the good fortune to be bil- 
 letted at the house of a w^orthy priest, who 
 
 2 B 4 the
 
 376 
 
 the moment he found I was Enghsh, stu- 
 died in every possible manner to make me 
 comfortable, even to the offering me mo- 
 ney, which, however, not being in want of, 
 I declined accepting. Indeed, the enthu- 
 siasm of the Spaniards of all classes, in fa- 
 vour of the English, was now at the high- 
 est ; and it is to this general attachment, 
 as well as to their hatred of the French 
 name, that we are to look for the final 
 triumph of Spain. The assistance of the 
 English is however not the less necessary, 
 in expediting this result, for the Spanish 
 regular armies scarce deserve the name. 
 
 January 12, at a very early hour, we 
 recommenced our march ; and about noon 
 reached the village of Pancorvo, so strong- 
 ly situated that a thousand men might easily 
 defend it against a great army. On the 
 summit of a hill is a regular fortification, 
 but from the inequality of the ground I 
 
 should
 
 377 
 
 should think it of little use ; neither does 
 it command the village, which is placed 
 between two high rocks, and approached 
 by a winding road with very short turns. 
 After quitting this village I had much con- 
 versation with Colonel Natalis, of the en- 
 gineers, a very diffident but well informed 
 officer, who expressed his conviction that 
 the conquest of Spain was at this time more 
 difficult than ever. After a tiresome march 
 of seven leagues we reached Miranda, a 
 tolerable village ; and here I was once more 
 quartered on a good priest, who was no less 
 rejoiced than myself ; for had he been sad« 
 died with a French officer, he must not 
 only have furnished him with every thing 
 he required gratis, but most probably 
 would have been insulted into the bargain. 
 January 13. In the morning we pursued 
 our march along the banks of a small ri- 
 ver, vvhich flows through a very rich valley, 
 
 to
 
 378 
 
 to the village of Mont Alban, where we 
 breakfasted, and at three o'clock entered 
 Vlttoria, by a very handsome promenade, 
 on which, the day being fine, a great 
 crowd of persons had assembled to view us. 
 After dressing I waited on Count Caffarelli, 
 the commandant, but he not being at home, 
 X amused myself viewing the chasseurs le- 
 gers of the imperial guard, who Avere on 
 the parade and made a good appearance ; 
 their band was extremely strong, there be- 
 ing thirty-nine performers on the parade. 
 The superior pay, and high consideration 
 in which this corps of the army is held, cre- 
 ates a general jealousy among the rest. I ob- 
 served thatthe officers inspected their soldiers 
 nearly in the same manner as in our ser- 
 vice. In returning from the parade 1 met 
 General Caffarelli, who received me polite- 
 ly ; and while we were walking to his resi- 
 dence he informed me with rapture of the 
 
 capture 
 
 I
 
 379 
 
 capture of Tortosa and nine thousand two 
 hundred Spanish troops ; at the same time 
 sivino' me the French official account to 
 
 CI o 
 
 read, seeming to forget that such news 
 could not be very agreeable to an English 
 officer. He was however very civil, and re- 
 gretted his being prevented from asking me 
 to dinner by an engagement abroad. We 
 walked together to the bishop's palace, si- 
 tuated in a new square, the buildings of 
 which, though small, are very handsome, 
 and kept in great order. Indeed, in every 
 respect, Vittoria is one of the best looking 
 towns I have seen in Spain, liaving in ge- 
 neral the appearance of industry and com- 
 fort. It is the chief town of Alava, for- 
 merly one of the provinces of Biscay, but 
 now united to Old Castile ; and has consi- 
 derable iron works, the produce of which 
 is sent to various parts of Spain. It was 
 formerly also an entrepot of colonial pro- 
 dace,
 
 380 
 
 duce, but this advantage it has almost to- 
 tally lost by Napoleon's prohibitory decrees. 
 Its manufactories of woollens, silk, and cot- 
 ton, however, still exist, and it has a great 
 number of straw, chair, and tin workshops. 
 Its population is about six thousand. The 
 most conspicuous public building is the 
 hospital, which is well distributed and re- 
 gulated; it has two hundred beds, and 
 though intended for the use of the people 
 of the town alone, it was now full of 
 French soldiers. 
 
 I dined late and alone at my quarters, 
 and in the evening enjoyed the pleasing so- 
 ciety of my landlord, a physician, and his 
 family, who with some neighbours, among 
 whom were some pretty girls, were assem- 
 bled in the kitchen. We played at Bouil- 
 lotte, and the young ladies, I suppose from 
 my being a stranger, took a great interest 
 in my game. The evening closed with a 
 
 supper.
 
 381 
 
 supper, and some delightfiiljy wild and sim- 
 ple Spanish airs, accompanied by the gui- 
 tar. 
 
 Having now quitted Old Castile, and 
 \l entered into a totally different country, I 
 trust, my readers will not be displeased with 
 a few observations I was enabled to make 
 on the former. The soil of Old Castile, 
 though inferior to that of several other 
 parts of Spain, is, generally speaking, 
 superior to France, and most other 
 parts of Europe ; and industry is alone 
 wanting to bring it to a high state of for- 
 wardness. Some districts afford good wincj 
 and the finest wool of the kingdom. 
 
 Two considerable rivers, the Douro and 
 the Ebro, rise in Old Castile; the former in 
 the Sierra d'Urbino, from whence it runs in 
 a western direction across Spain, and after 
 a course of three hundred and twenty miles 
 empties itself into the Atlantic Ocean, at 
 
 Oporto.
 
 382 
 
 Oporto. The Ebio lias its source in the 
 mountains of Santilhme^ near the Asturias, 
 and runs easterly to the Mediterranean. 
 Besides these principal rivers Old Castile has 
 a number of inferior ones, amongst which 
 are tlie Arlancon, Arlanca, Nazarilla, Val- 
 tayo Buryo, and the Paz, which runs 
 through the fertile valley of the same 
 name, and of whose waters the inhabitants 
 have taken advantage to carry irrigation 
 to a high state of perfection. The peasants 
 of this valley, known by the name of Pa- 
 ziegos, are celebrated for tlieir bodily 
 strength and personal courage. 
 
 Old Castille has several considerable 
 towns, but the present state of uncertainty 
 (as to who shall eventually remain master of 
 the country, as well as the natural indolence 
 of the Spaniards,) paralyzes all industry; 
 and hence the towns in general present the 
 appearance of lifeless stupor. 
 
 As
 
 383 
 
 As it is impossible to repeat too often how 
 effectually the Spaniards might resist tlielr 
 invaders by a properoccupation of themoun- 
 tain passes, I shall just notice those of Old 
 Castile, not only from my own observations, 
 and- an attention to the maps, but also from 
 various authors who have written on Spain. 
 The mountains of St. Andero extend from 
 Old Castile to the Bay of Biscay, and have 
 several passes of such a nature that a re- 
 gular army could never force them, if pro- 
 perly defended by the mountaineers. The 
 Sierra d'Atujio covers almost the entire 
 of Castile, to the frontiers of Arragon ; and 
 the Sierra d'Occa, the Mons Idubeda of 
 the Romans, extends to the kingdom of 
 Leon and the borders of Biscay, separating 
 Old Castile from the Asturias. Besides 
 these principal ridges there are several rami- 
 fications, rendering this country one of the 
 
 most defensible of Europe. 
 
 llavino-
 
 384 
 
 Havlno" quitted Vittoria at five o'clock 
 in the morning, the 14th of January, the 
 arrival of dayhght presented us with the 
 view of a country^ very different from that 
 which we had hitherto traversed. The 
 mountains of Biscay appeared wooded to 
 their summits, and the fertile vahies, even 
 at this dreary season, presented the most ro- 
 mantic scenery, which the appearance of 
 industry rendered douhly pleasing. The 
 soil appeared to he in general a stiff clay? 
 requiring many drains, and where a plough 
 can seldom he used ; instead of which, the 
 ground is turned up with long three pronged 
 forks. Four men, with one of these im- 
 plements in each hand, place themselves at 
 the side of the drain, and sticking the fork 
 in the ground spring up on them, keeping 
 exact time, while a woman clears the drahj. 
 Here I ohserved extensive fields of various 
 kinds of vetches, and of turnips, not so 
 
 large,
 
 385 
 
 large, but more solid than our Norfolk 
 turnips. This is the first time I have seen 
 this root cultivated in fields in Spain. 
 
 We frequently met mules vvithastrongbas- 
 ket slung on each sideof them, something re- 
 senxb ling those in which oysters are carried in 
 England ; on inquiry I found they contained 
 horseshoes, which are manufactured to a 
 great extent in this part of Biscay, and sent 
 to all parts of Spain. It is here customary 
 to shoe the oxen, which is thus performed. 
 The animal is placed in a frame resembling 
 that in which our farriers cut horses' tails : 
 in the centre is a pully, by which, and by 
 the power of a windlass, the ox is raised off 
 the ground, the fore knees are bent and 
 kept so by iron clasps near each knee, the 
 hind feet are extended on a board, so as to 
 presenttheflat of the hoof to receive theshoe, 
 and the tail is made fast to the top of the 
 frame, so that altos'ether tlie animal makes 
 
 VOL. I. 2 c a stranffe
 
 386 
 
 a strange ludicrous appearance as if going 
 to fly. 
 
 From the summit of a hill we got the first 
 view of the village of Sfilinas, where we 
 were to breakfast ; it appeared to be per- 
 pendicularly beneath us, and no visible road 
 to descend by ; we however found a zig-zag, 
 which reminded me of Ladder Hill, in the 
 island of St. Helena ; but with this diflfer* 
 ence, that there nothing but barren black 
 rocky precipices present themselves to the 
 eye, commanding a boundless view of the 
 Ocean ; while here you wind down the hill 
 through a thick wood, and hear the fall of 
 a cascade concealed among the trees. 
 
 As we entered Salinas, a discharged 
 French soldier solicited charity, telling me 
 a lamentable story of his sufferings and 
 wounds ; I gave him a picette,-' and while 
 
 sitting 
 
 * A silver coin worth about fourteen pence.
 
 387 
 
 sitting at breakfast at Sifonda, I was sur- 
 prised to see him enter the room, draw a chair 
 and seat himself at the table, with all the 
 nonchalance possible, while with a part 
 of my small donation he procured a hearty- 
 breakfast, and during the repa&c conversed 
 with me with perfect familiarity. Here I 
 may observe, that certainly I gained more 
 
 knowlediie of the manners of foreigners du- 
 el o 
 
 ring this bon s^rd mal gr^ ^ouvwqj ^^^^^ongh. 
 Spain, than I should probably have done in 
 travelling my whole life in the usual manner; 
 for I was now obliged to mix with all des- 
 criptions of persons, from the Gciieral to 
 the private soldier, and with Spaniards, 
 French, Poles, and that motley and debased 
 species of Germans that forms the con- 
 tingents of the Confederation of the Rhine. 
 From Salinas, the distance to Mendragon 
 is only four leagues, by a rapid descent, so 
 that we reached this latter place early, and 
 
 2 c 2 I had
 
 388 
 
 I bad the good fortune to be again billetted 
 on a priest. I found bowever mucb diffi- 
 culty in procuring rations for myself or 
 provender for the mules, from not baving 
 a feuille de route (my name being only in- 
 cluded in tbe general list of prisoners) 
 wbicb was left witb tbe officer command- 
 ing tbe preceding convoy ; but at last 
 succeeded, and after dinner spent tbe eve- 
 ning in the kitchen, where were assembled 
 several girls, who while they spun, amused 
 tbe time chanting Spanish ditties, which 
 derived an increased agreeableness from the 
 innocence and simplicity of the singers. 
 I was told that a girl could earn by spinning 
 at her leisure hours only, and merely as a 
 pastime, three reals a week, or about 
 twenty-one pence English. 
 
 Tbe appearance of the French chasseur 
 who took care of the mules, immediately 
 checked tbe gaiety of tbe Spanish girls, 
 
 and 
 
 ;i'^
 
 389 
 
 and a gloomy silence succeeded, of which 
 I immediately perceived the cause, and 
 taking an opportunity of getting rid of the 
 chasseur, good humour was immediiitely 
 restored. 
 
 ?.^Iendragon contains about three thou» 
 sand inhabitants ; is built between two lofty 
 hills, and intersected by a large river and 
 several rivulets ; and was formerly much fre- 
 quented for its mineral waters. A few days 
 before our arrival, the Cabildo and his son 
 had been executed, for (as we were told) the 
 assassination at various times of upwards 
 of two hundred French. When led to ex- 
 ecution, instead of feeling any compunction 
 for their murders, they gloried in them, 
 and reminded their countrymen, *' that, if 
 every Spaniard had, like them, performed 
 his duty ! the French would long before 
 ^* this have been exterminated and the 
 *' country freed." 
 
 2c3 
 
 (I
 
 390 
 
 CHAPTER XXV. 
 
 Frrm Mendragon to St. Jean de Luz, in France .... 
 
 Tolosa . . . .Villa Reale Urnieta . . . .From St. 
 
 John de Luz . . . .Biscay. 
 
 January 15. We resumed our march at 
 an early hour, and passed through a nioun- 
 tamous country, of which some parts were 
 highly cultivated, while others were cover- 
 ed with hanging woods of oak and ash. 
 The oaks were in general small and crook- 
 ed, nor was the common ash luxuriant; 
 but the mountain ash, intermixed and co- 
 vered with its red berries, had an agreeable 
 ejfect. 
 
 > 
 
 About noon we reached the town of To- 
 losa, the ancient Iturissa, on the rivers 
 Arexes and Orio, over each of which is a 
 
 handsome
 
 391 
 
 handsome bridge. It being market-day, 
 we had an opportunity of seeing a number 
 of Biscayners assembled, who had the ap- 
 pearance of prosperity in their dress, and of 
 affkbiHty in their manners. The women of 
 thic province are celebrated for their beau- 
 ty, and those we saw justified this charac- 
 ter. The market seemed to be well sup- 
 plied with all kinds of provisions. 
 
 Here we found an excellent inn, a very 
 uncommon thing in the small towns of 
 Spain. Monsieur de Billi, who was or- 
 dered to quit us, to join General Mont 
 Marie, as his aide-de-camp, at Valencia, 
 gave a sumptuous breakfast ; after which 
 we proceeded, and de Billi accompanied 
 me out of the town, being obliged to wait 
 at Tolosa for an escort. I hoped that, as 
 I was on horseback, I should have escaped 
 the parting embrace, a la Francoise; but was 
 disappointed, for when about to return, he 
 
 2 c 4 stopped
 
 392 
 
 stopped his liorse in the middle of the con- 
 voy, and kissed me very cordially on each 
 cheek. He was, however, a good fellow; 
 and I was afterwards very sorry to learn, 
 that he lost one of his arms in an affair at 
 Valencia. 
 
 During the day's march we passed 
 through several narrow and winding passes 
 in the Pyrennees, excavated in the solid 
 rock at vast labour ; and had an opportunity 
 of observing the singular mode of travelling 
 of the Biscay women, two being usually 
 conveyed by a mule, one on each side, ba- 
 lancing each other, while the strange ca- 
 parison of the animal, and the still stranger 
 costume of the women, afforded a subject 
 worthy the pencil of a Hogarth. 
 
 In the evening we reached Villa Reale, a 
 middling town, and the following morning 
 (Januaryl6j continued our journey in a hea- 
 vy rain, that had prevailed throughout the 
 
 preceding
 
 393 
 
 prec^'lino' night, and produced a great num- 
 ber of cascades, some of considerable size, 
 which tumbh'ng perpendicularly from great 
 heights, gave an additional interest to the 
 romantic scenery around. A commissary 
 invited me to take shelter in a caisson, and 
 1 was somewhat surprised to find so much 
 good sense and candour in a Frenchman of 
 that class ; but was soon undeceived, by his 
 telling me that he had the honour and hap- 
 piness to be a Swiss. Adverting to the 
 number of dismounted dragoons returning 
 to France, and who principally foriiied our 
 escort, I inquired the cause of so great a 
 destruction of horses in the French army, 
 and learnt that it was owing to the neglect 
 in the management of them. The commis- 
 sary, who was in a situation to ascertain the 
 fact, assured me that the French armies in 
 Spain had lost sixty thousand horses, va- 
 lued each at sixteen louis^ which makes the 
 
 total
 
 394 
 
 total loss in this article of military expen- 
 diture alone, amount to near one million 
 sterling. From this person I also received 
 some account of the French army in Por- 
 tugal, which he said was at times so short of 
 provisions, that the soldiers were frequently 
 upon one-sixth allowance ; hence he con- 
 cluded that they would soon he obliged to 
 evacuate that country, and that the eva- 
 cuation of Andalusia would probably soon 
 follow. He also spoke of Napoleon's popu- 
 larity among the superior officers in a very 
 different manner from what I had heard 
 from others ; and if he was correct, the 
 control and obedience in which he keeps 
 them, shews great ability, as well as firm- 
 ness of character. 
 
 We reached Urnieta before dark, and 
 I was quartered at the extremity of the 
 town, where my reception from my land- 
 lady was so uncouth, that I was obliged to 
 
 threaten
 
 395 
 
 threaten her with applying for other quar- 
 ters, in which case she would have a French 
 officer billetted on her ; a threat she did not 
 at all seem to relish. On my return from 
 procuring provisions and forage, I was 
 quite surprised at the change in this lady's 
 manner, for she was now civil in the ex- 
 treme. After dinner she entered the room, 
 and first fastening the door, asked me if it 
 was really true that I was an English offi- 
 cer, as somebody had told her; and when 
 I answered in the affirmative, and related 
 the manner of my being made prisoner, her 
 sensibility got the better of her ; her eyes 
 gradually filled, and at last she burst into 
 a flood of tears. When I asked her to sell 
 and dress me a fowl for next day's march, 
 the oflTer of payment made her think I was 
 still offended ; and to convince her of the 
 contrary, I was obliged to accept some 
 fowls and ham '' of her owncuring." Shealso 
 
 begged
 
 '^96 
 
 beffged permission to introduce her bro- 
 ther, who, she said, had been quite melan- 
 choly since the entrance of the French, and 
 that the sight of an English officer would 
 be highly gratifying and reviving to him ; 
 he accordingly made his appearance, and 
 his deportment was such as to command 
 respect and create confidence. He regretted 
 that while England was so generously 
 shedding her blood and expending her trea- 
 sures for the support of Spanish liberty, , 
 she had neglected sending officers and arms 
 to Biscay, for that, to his knowledge, there 
 were sixty thousand stout, determined fel- 
 lows registered, and ready for organization 
 at the first favourable moment. He also 
 mentioned the ports where arms might be 
 landed with safety, as well as those which 
 should be avoided, as being strictly watched 
 by the enemy. At the same time he drew 
 a topographical sketch of the country, 
 
 pointing
 
 397 
 
 pointing out the passes most capable of de- 
 fence ; adding that, though the Biscayners 
 wanted no other stimukis than their pa- 
 triotism, they would he sure to find ample 
 pecuniary reward, by the capture of the 
 treasure every day passing from France 
 into Spain. Before we parted, I concerted 
 some arrangements, in case a future chance 
 should cause me to land on that coast. 
 
 January 17- I vvas waked early in the 
 morning by the sound of the tocsin, an- 
 nouncing a fire, and on inquiry, learned 
 that the town-house had been set on fire by 
 the French soldiers. As my host told me 
 that it was very unsafe to walk alone in the 
 streets, even in the day, from the inveteracy 
 of the inhabitants towards the French, for 
 one of whom I might be taken, he ofl^ered 
 to accompany me through the town ; and I 
 found that his caution was not unnecessary, 
 as we met several scattered groups of sullen 
 
 and
 
 398 
 
 and apparently irritated people in the 
 streets. 
 
 About a league from the town we fell in 
 with a convoy of sick and wounded, be- 
 longing to the army of Portugal, going 
 into France. Here, from an elevation, 
 we caught a fine view of the Bay of Bis- 
 cay, the port of Saint Sebastian (about 
 half a league distant), and those of St. An- 
 dero, Santona, Guetaria, and Bilbao, all 
 in sight, being situated on a curve of the 
 coast. 
 
 We reached Irunto breakfast; and as 
 we were to separate here, I invited sixteen 
 of my compagnons de voyage to partake of 
 as good a breakfast as could be procured in 
 this miserable place, the last town of Spain : 
 on quitting which, there being no longer 
 any necessity for an escort, each individual 
 of the convoy was free to push on as he 
 thought fit for the place of his destination. 
 
 After
 
 399 
 
 After crossing a wooden bridge over tlie 
 Bidassoa, which separates Spain from 
 France, I at length arrived on the terri- 
 tory of lagrande nation. Here my baggage 
 was examined, at a kind of custom-house, 
 whore the duties are paid on merchandize 
 passing from Spain into France. This ce- 
 remony over, I Avas about to pursue my 
 route, but was stopped by a gend'arme, 
 who demanded my feidlle de route ; and on 
 my saying I had none, refused to let me 
 proceed. A Polish Major just then coming 
 up, offered to pass me on : but this I de- 
 clined, fearing he might esteem it a great 
 favour, and be inclined to honour me with 
 more of his company than would be agree- 
 able ; I therefore returned back to Irun, 
 and applied to the commandant for the 
 necessary paper, which he did not think 
 himself authorized to grant, although 
 the corporal of a guard might have gone 
 
 farther
 
 400 
 
 farther without straining his responsibility. 
 I however met the Lieutenant commanding 
 the convoy, who accompanied me to the 
 barrier ; and shewing my name in the 
 feuille de route ^ I was allowed to proceed 
 to St. Jean de Luz, about eight miles dis- 
 tant, and over a heavy road. Here I was 
 billetted at the house of two ancient maid- 
 en hidies, who every moment expressed 
 their dread of a visit from the Spaniards ; 
 but as I assured them that their virtue and 
 property were equally safe in that respect, I 
 succeeded in tranquillizing their fears. 
 
 According to agreement made at Irun, 
 I met Monsieur Pole and the Swiss Com- 
 missary at dinner at the Porte Imperiale, 
 an inn of considerable repute, but which 
 fell far short of the idea that had been 
 given me of it. Our dinner was made up 
 of scraps, consisting of the legs of a salt 
 goose, and the legs and neck of a fowl, with 
 
 some 
 
 11
 
 401 
 
 some vegetables. The wine was little bet- 
 ter than vinegar : added to which, the 
 whole was thrown on the table as if it fell 
 from Heaven by chance. My companions 
 praised every thing, exclaiming, '^ quel 
 ** honheur ! nous voila en France !" but for 
 my own part I could not help observing, 
 that if such was the fare I had to expect in 
 France, I should prefer returning into 
 Spain. I however at last succeeded in pro- 
 curing a little good Claret, which in some 
 degree compensated for the other deficien- 
 cies. 
 
 Before continuing my journey through 
 France, I shall offer a few observations 
 on the province of Biscay, and the road 
 through the Pyrennees, to cross which it 
 took us three days most fatiguing march. 
 
 Biscay is formed of three subdivisions, 
 viz. Guipuscoa, Beisorio, and La Montana. 
 The only carriage road through the Pyren- 
 
 voL. I. 2d nees.
 
 402 
 
 nees, on this side, is between St. Jean de 
 Luz, througli Irun to Vittoria, and was 
 at this time ahnost impassable, from the 
 continual passage of vehicles and the total 
 want of repairs. Between Vittoria and 
 Irun the road is skirted by numerous vil- 
 lages, wearing the appearance of industry 
 and comfort. 
 
 Biscay has twenty -one considerable 
 towns, of which the principal is Bilboa, 
 possessing a good port and considerable 
 trade, — with an air so pure that it may be 
 called the Montpelier of Spain ; patients, 
 therefore, particularly with chronical com- 
 plaints, are ordered here by the faculty. 
 The extent of the territory of Alava, which 
 formerly was included in the province of 
 Biscay, but is now united to Old Castile, 
 is fourteen leagues east and west, and ten 
 north and south. Guipuscoa, which is 
 considerably the largest of the divisions of 
 
 Biscay, 
 
 ...i
 
 403 
 
 Biscay, is eighteen leagues east and west, 
 and twelve north and south ; its surface is 
 composed of lofty mountains with narrow 
 passes, and inhahited by a brave and war- 
 like people, who should, above all the in- 
 habitants of the Peninsula, call the atten- 
 tion of the British government in the pre- 
 sent contest. This division has ten leagues 
 of coast, in which there are several good 
 ports, viz. St. Sebastian, Passages, &c. 
 Those of Guetaria, Orio, Zaraus, Zu- 
 maya, Deva, and Motrico, though of less 
 consideration, are accessible to vessels of a 
 certain size ; and indeed it seems astonish- 
 ing that England neglected occupying these 
 ports at the commencement of her alliance 
 with Spain, for their possession would have 
 been of inestimable value at different pe- 
 riods of the war. 
 
 Besides the three divisions already no- 
 ticed, there is a territory included in Bis- 
 
 2 D 2 cay
 
 404 
 
 cay called the Four Towns ; each of these 
 divisions is of a triangular shape, and they 
 all join each other. When Caesar invaded 
 Spain, in the century before the Christian 
 era, the whole of Biscay formed one pro- 
 vince under the name of Cantabria, and its 
 inhabitants in the fastnesses of their moun- 
 tains defied the armies of the Romans ; and 
 aided by their neighbours the Asturians, 
 and by the Gallicians, carried desolation 
 into the subdued provinces. Although 
 Augustus entered Avala and Guipuscoa 
 with a formidable army, and defeated the 
 Cantabrians and their allies in the plains, 
 they still held out in their mountains, and 
 were never entirely subdued. The Astu- 
 rians, after sustaining a long and bloody 
 siege in Oviedo, surrendered ; but the Gal- 
 licians, surrounded on all sides, preferred 
 death to subjection, and were exterminated 
 in the most desperate and unequal conflicts. 
 
 The
 
 405 
 
 The Cantabrians, in want of provisions^ 
 determined to die by each others hands, 
 and a great number put this desperate de- 
 sign into execution ; those who remained 
 harassed the Romans by a predatory war- 
 fare, and although Fabricius erected forts 
 in the mountains, and adopted every other 
 means to subdue them, after a century of 
 glorious struggle, they succeeded in expel- 
 ling their invaders, and continued to enjoy 
 undisturbed liberty until a century after 
 the establishment of the Moors in Spain. 
 From what I saw of them the modern Bis- 
 cayners have not degenerated from their 
 Cantabrian ancestors in firmness and cou- 
 rage. 
 
 2 D 3
 
 406 
 
 CHAPTER XXVI. 
 Bay of Biscay . . . .Bayonne . . . .Route to Bourdeaux. 
 
 On the 18th of January I quitted St. 
 Jean de Luz for Bayonne. The Bay of 
 Biscay presented its vast expanse of waters 
 on the left, and called up the reflection that 
 these waters alone separated me from all I 
 held dear in life, and that with a favour- 
 able breeze I could reach the coasts of Eng- 
 land in fourdays. TwoBritish cruiserswhich 
 appeared in the offing, did not fail to add 
 to my regret at the impossibihty of realizing 
 my visions. After a long and wishful look 
 and many a heavy sigli, I pursued my 
 journey, but could not recover my spirits 
 for the rest of the day. 
 
 The road between St. Jean de Luz and 
 
 Bayonne 
 
 IPt
 
 407 
 
 Bayonne is very hilly, and was now much 
 broken up by numbers of wheel carriages, 
 passing to and from Spain. On my arrival 
 at the latter town, I found all the inns so 
 crowded, that no accommodation was to 
 be had in them ; I therefore presented my 
 letters of introduction to Messrs. Dehne and 
 Bourdehus, extensive merchants, who were 
 extremely civil, and not only procured 
 me lodgings, but insisted on my dining with 
 them. I spent the evening, also, agreeably 
 in their society. 
 
 January 19, I waited on General Sols, 
 the commandant, who received me with the 
 politeness of the old French school. After 
 some conversation he shewed me a letter 
 from General Beliard, who it seems wished 
 to follow up his persecution, by recommend- 
 ing the strictest surveillance over me, being, 
 according to his expression, *' a dangerous 
 " character." Fortunately however Ge- 
 
 2 D 4 neral
 
 408 
 
 neral Sols had made inquiries respecting 
 me of some of the officers of the escort, 
 whose answers did away all the unfavour- 
 able impressions that might have been made 
 by General Beliard's letter. I also waited 
 on General Qiiesncl, commanding the stafF^ 
 for whom I had a letter from General Se^ 
 bastiani, and met with a frigidly polite re- 
 ception. 
 
 January 20. Having received intimation 
 from Marshal Bessieres, Due d'Istrie, that he 
 desired to see me, I accordingly waited on 
 him, and was received with great Jierte ; 
 but after some conversation his manners 
 altered, and became most gentlemanlike. 
 He mentioned the desertion of Captain 
 A. . . . who had been made prisoner with 
 me, and who had escaped from an escort in 
 the North of Spain, in a manner that gave 
 me reason to fear that myself and another 
 officer might in consequence be deprived of 
 
 our
 
 409 
 
 our parole. I therefore avoided entering 
 into the merits of the case, and only replied, 
 cest un malheur, mais il faut attendre a 
 ces choses. My subsequent conversation 
 with the Duke however removed all my 
 fears, for having introduced subjects with 
 which I happened to be well acquainted, he 
 took an interest in me, and invited me to 
 dinner the following day. On my return 
 to my lodgings, I received a visit from Co- 
 lonel F. . . . and the commander of the 
 convoy, who behaved in the most handsome 
 manner, and we made out a satisfactory 
 statement of Captain A. . . . 's escape. 
 
 January21. Accordingto invitation, Ipro- 
 ceeded to dine with the Due d'Istrie, in full 
 uniform. He was very attentive, gave me an 
 excellent dinner and wines, particularly jMa- 
 deira, of which he had opened a case pur- 
 posely forme. Our conversation turned prin- 
 cipally on the events in Spain, in which he ap- 
 peared.
 
 41U 
 
 peared,as might be expected, much interest- 
 ed. On retiring he begged me to call on him, 
 before I quitted Bayonne next day, and he 
 would give me some letters to his friends at 
 Bourdeaux, which would at least ensure 
 me a good dinner and excellent wine ; this of 
 course I did not fail to do, when he not only 
 presented me several letters but also an hun- 
 dred louis-d'or, offering to furnish me with 
 more if I wished ; but I declined his obliging 
 offer, and we parted with mutual regret. 
 
 During the few days I remained at Bay- 
 onne, I visited the environs, and particularly 
 that part in which were several American 
 vessels, lately confiscated, in consequence 
 of the Berlin decree, and re-purchased by 
 the Americans. There were also in the 
 river seven American built schooners, under 
 the French Imperial flag, ready for sailing, 
 and which had been equipped to make a 
 run to the Isle of France with troops, and 
 
 to
 
 411 
 
 to bring home the prockice of the island. 
 The crews of these vessels were mostly com- 
 posed of boys, raised by a recent maritime 
 conscription, and of whom it was doubtless 
 intended to make seamen in this voyage de 
 longue course. 1 felt no small satisfaction, 
 while viewing these schooners, in knowing 
 that the Isle of France was alreadv in our 
 possession, and that the intention of this 
 expedition was therefore entirely frustrated. 
 The town of Bayonne is about three miles 
 from the sea, at the junction of the little 
 rivers Adour and Neve, which divide it in- 
 to three parts ; the entrance of the port is 
 narrow, and a very dangerous bar crosses 
 it, on which, in westerly winds, there is a 
 most furious surf ; but which is not without 
 its advantage, for it shelters the port to- 
 wards the sea. The commerce of this town 
 was formerly very considerable, but the war 
 and the anti-commercial decrees of Buo- 
 naparte,
 
 412 
 
 faaparte, have left it only an insignificant 
 coasting trade. 
 
 I must not forget to observe, for the be- 
 nefit des gour?na?ids, that Bayonne is cele- 
 brated for its hams ; and I could not quit it 
 without satisfying myself whether it deserved 
 this celebrity. I accordingly had one drest 
 under my own inspection, and as a consi- 
 derable degree of science is required in dress- 
 ing a ham, I am sure the lovers of good 
 eating will not be sorry to have my receipt. 
 Boil it in hock, a quarter of an hour to 
 each pound ; then put it in an oven and 
 bake it another quarter of an hour to the 
 same weight ; and I will venture to say, 
 the epicures will acknowledge that nothing 
 can be more delicious. While I am on the 
 subject of cookery, I may be pardoned for 
 mentioning an anecdote which comes a 
 propos. In a passage to South America, a 
 confident epicure who was continually giving 
 
 us 
 
 11
 
 413 
 
 us receipts for dressing the albicore, bo~ 
 nettas and sharks, we occasionally took, 
 and as continually expatiating on tlie excel- 
 lence of the dolphin (of which we had not 
 yet caught onej) when properly drest, I 
 begged him to give me his receipt, which 
 he did at full length, and when he had 
 finished his tedious detail, I told him my 
 receipt began in a very different manner. 
 After his expressing much anxiety to 
 know my plan, and keeping him long in 
 suspence, I told him I always followed Mrs. 
 Glass's receipt, which begins with, Firsi 
 take.* While 
 
 * On the following day we actually did take a 
 dolpliin, and the dressing of it was left to me. I or- 
 dered it to be simply boiled in salt and water, and to 
 be stewed up with abundance of melted butter in a 
 Sfiuceboat, with plenty of Cayenne pepper to mix 
 with it ; and though this was so simple a process, 
 I found it was more universally relished than that of 
 the officer's, which was very complicated, and attended 
 with great trouble.
 
 414 
 
 While atBayonne, and happening to be in 
 company with Colonel Natalis of the En- 
 gineers, I observed an officer regarding 
 me steadily, and who at last asked me if I 
 had ever been in Egypt ? On my answer- 
 ing in the affirmative he recalled to my re- 
 collection my having been sent in advance, 
 with a detachment of British troops and 
 some Arnauts, by order of Colonel Stewart, 
 when we surprised and captured a convoy 
 of twenty-two boats, near Ramaniah, which 
 were conveying stores to the French army. 
 It was a most fortunate capture for our offi- 
 cers, who were almost barefooted, for we 
 found in the prize, boots and shoes, with 
 which we immediately fitted ourselves. This 
 officer, who was in one of the boats, ex- 
 pressed his gratitude for the protection the 
 English afforded him against the savage fe- 
 rocity of our Turkish allies. 
 
 Having received a feuille de route, on 
 
 the
 
 415 
 
 the 27tli I commenced my journey to 
 Bourdeaux on horseback. The road to 
 St. Vincent, the first stage, is a deep sand, 
 and was now almost impassable, being so 
 much broken up by the passage of waggons, 
 &€.. St. Vincent contains nothing worthy 
 of notice, and St. Juan, the second stage, 
 consists only of a few straggling houses. 
 At the latter I put up for the night, and 
 found the landlord of the inn civil, and 
 more particularly attentive when he learned 
 my country. He provided me with a to- 
 lerable supper, and I had nothing to 
 complain of except a legion of rats, that 
 amused themselves dancing about my room 
 all night. 
 
 January 28. As I found the high road 
 crowded with soldiers and carts, whose ren- 
 contre every moment was far IVom agree- 
 able, I inquired of my landlord if I coidd 
 not avoid it, and learned that by crossing 
 
 the
 
 416 
 
 the country about two leagues, I should get 
 into the old road, which would shorten the 
 distance to Bourdeaux, and that, though 
 deep, I should be able to get on very well 
 on horseback. He also offered to send his 
 son to shew me the way, and having taken 
 a glass of brandy with the obliging old 
 gentleman, and received his bon voyage^ I 
 proceeded across a heath, and through a 
 little wood, till I reached the road, where 
 my guide left me, and 1 entered into an 
 immense forest of firs. Most of the trees, 
 I observed, had large slices of the bark 
 stripped off from top to bottom for the pur- 
 pose of procuring the turpentine. 
 
 I soon arrived at a beautifully romantic 
 village, called Castels, situated in a ravine, 
 near a cascade. The houses were of wood, 
 and the whole had a neat and cheerful ap- 
 pearance, which, as well as the civility of 
 the auhergiste, induced me, though it was 
 
 only
 
 417 
 
 only noon, to rest here the remainder of 
 the day. It was the fete of the patron 
 saint of the village, and groups of peasants 
 were collected, dancing and running for 
 small prizes. The neat and simple costume 
 of the paysannes in particular struck me. 
 My landlord, however, assured me with a 
 sigh, that this appearance of cheerfulness 
 covered a great degree of misery, from the 
 total stagnation of trade, leavmg them no 
 means of exporting the produce of the pine 
 forests, in which consisted their sole riches. 
 At the same time, the price of corn had 
 nearly doubled, and sugar and coffee, which 
 in this part of the country long habit had 
 almost rendered necessaries of life, from 
 twenty to twenty-four sols the pound, were 
 now five and six francs. Here I could not 
 help reflecting, that sugar and coffee, being 
 luxuries, might at all events be dispens- 
 ed with, and therefore their high price 
 VOL. I. . 2 E could
 
 418 
 
 could only be felt by the superior class ; but 
 the dearness of grain, on the contrary, falls 
 entirely on the lower order, for grain is an 
 article of absolute necessity, that cannot 
 be dispensed with. I may here also ob- 
 serve, that the exorbitant price of sugar 
 and coffee reducing the consumption, re- 
 duced the revenues and prosperity of the 
 country, in a proportion that the framers 
 of the decrees of Berlin and Milan seem not 
 to have been aware of. 
 
 With respect to the produce of the pine 
 forests in this department, 1 received some 
 information here, which I trust will not be 
 found uninteresting. 
 
 The species of pine which composes the 
 forests of this and the neighbouring de- 
 partment, is that named in France the Pin 
 Maritime, which thrives in the most sandy 
 soils. When the tree has attained from three 
 to five feet circumference, a hole is bored 
 
 at
 
 419 
 
 at the bottom of the trunk, an inch deep 
 and three inches in diameter; below which 
 a small excavation is made in the ground 
 to receive the resinous sap of the tree, 
 which distils from it. The wound is 
 macle at the commencement of spring, and 
 is enlarged upwards several times during 
 the summer, and in successive years. The 
 substance received into the reservoir is 
 boiled to a certain consistence, to form 
 what is called in commeict hrac sac ; and 
 is converted into resin, by the following 
 simple process. While boiling, it is suffered 
 to run from the boiler into a wooden trousfh, 
 filled with water, from whence it is a^ain 
 returned into the boiler, and this continual 
 transversement gradually combines the wa- 
 ter and the brae, until by their intimate 
 union they become resin. 
 
 Tar is the produce of the sap of the pine, 
 
 combined with resin by the action of fire. 
 
 2 e2
 
 420 
 
 Besides resin and tar, the pine affords 
 turpentine, and lampblack, which is pro- 
 duced bv the combustion of the resin. 
 
 ^^ the 29th I resumed my journey 
 through a very deep sand, which doubtless 
 was the reason for changing the great road, 
 and reached a place, called Harrie, consist- 
 ing of a few houses, where I baited the 
 horses, and again proceeding, arrived in 
 the evening at La Bohat, the whole day's 
 journey being through pine forests. Though 
 my fare at the auberge was far from sump- 
 tuous, the civility of my landlord and his 
 wife, who produced the best their humble 
 but romantic mansion afforded, reconciled 
 me to remain here the night. They ex- 
 pressed their surprise at seeing a person of 
 my appearance travelling in so wretched a 
 country, and I found next morning that as 
 they seldom had such visitors, they were 
 
 determined
 
 421 
 
 determined to make the most of me, and to 
 be well paid for their compliments to my- 
 self and my country. I at first thought 
 of remonstrating on the exorbitance of their 
 charges, but when I recollected that the 
 hoiiour of England was concerned, I de- 
 termined to pay as they charged, comme un 
 Milord Anglois ; a title which the innkeep- 
 ers in France not seeming to understand 
 properly, generally act as if they supposed 
 lord to mean Vor, and consequently that 
 an Englishman, being a heap of gold, ought 
 not to be let to pass without a handsome 
 contribution. 
 
 January 30. This day's journey lay 
 through a more open country, but very 
 swampy; with numbers of small sheep scat- 
 tered over it, jumping from hillock to hil- 
 lock to graze. The boys who herded them 
 at first greatly surprised me, by the 
 apparent length and slenderness of their 
 
 2 E 3 legs ;
 
 422 
 
 legs; but on approaching, I found they 
 were mounted on stilts, fastened with a 
 strap to each thigh, by which means they 
 were elevated three or four feet from the 
 ground, and were enabled to walk dry over 
 the little pools of water. As the stilts 
 do not sink deep in the sandy soil, they ma- 
 nage them with great dexterity, running 
 and jumping with vast activity; and have 
 also a greater command jn the super- 
 intendence of their little flocks. While 
 thus occupied, they are also employed in 
 knitting stockings. I this night slept at a 
 place called Bard, and in the morning com^ 
 menced my last day's journey to Bourdeaux.
 
 423 
 
 CHAPTER XXVII. 
 
 Bourdeaux .... Comparison of the former and present 
 
 state of this city .... Oysters Theatre Mo- 
 
 •dern Frenchmen. 
 
 The road on approaching Bourdeaux 
 became excessively bad, but the country 
 was highly cultivated ; nevertheless there 
 was a general appearance of declining 
 prosperity. The merchants' country hou- 
 ses, which in a state of flourishing com- 
 merce are usually conspicuous for their 
 neatness, seemed now generally neglected, 
 and the chateaux presented a still more 
 desolate appearance. 
 
 On my arrival at Bourdeaux I proceeded 
 to the Hotel de Funal, on the Chartrons, 
 which commands a fine and extensive view 
 
 2 E 4 up
 
 424 
 
 up the Garonne. I had formerly visited 
 this city, when " commerce proudly flou- 
 " rished in the State ;" the river was then 
 covered with a forest of masts the whole 
 length of the Chartrons, which extends 
 four miles in the form of a crescent, and 
 its quays presented a scene of bustle and 
 activity never to be forgotten. What a 
 contrast did it now offer ! The few 
 ships in the river were unrigged and their 
 hulls rotting ; and a miserably dirty sloop of 
 war displayed the imperial colours as a 
 guard ship, on board which, however, all 
 the ceremonial and etiquette of a man of 
 war seemed to be enforced. Not a boat in 
 activity, except those that ply on the Dor- 
 dogne and Garonne for passengers ; in 
 short, the port and the quays evinced a 
 total stagnation of business. 
 
 Hearing that M. Crochard was in the 
 hotel, I paid him a visit, and received 
 
 from
 
 425 
 
 from him instructions as to the most agrree- 
 able way of living at Bourdeaux. I order- 
 ed my dinner according to his advice, com- 
 mencing with a dish of oysters, which are 
 here of a very fine quality, and found the 
 S?aterne, which by prescription is the only 
 wine drank with these fish, deserving of its 
 celebrity. It may be useful to some of my 
 readers, whose appetites are feeble, to know 
 that oysters are an excellent whetter, tak- 
 ing them immediately before dinner, and 
 not exceeding a dozen at the most, with a 
 small proportion of lemon juice squeezed 
 into each. — In the evening I accompanied 
 Monsieur and Madame Crochard to the 
 theatre, to see the Medecin malgre lui of 
 Moliere, which was followed by a ballet ; 
 but it being Saturday, which is the worst 
 day in the week for the receipts of the 
 theatre, the house was very thinly attended. 
 February 1. In the morning I strolled 
 
 about
 
 426 
 
 about the town, and as Bourdeaux is one 
 of the best places in France to get equipped 
 a V Anglaise, I called at a tailor's to order 
 some clothes, of which I stood much in 
 need. I also visited a coachmaker's repo- 
 sitory, having some idea of purchasing a 
 carriage, but the assortment was chiefly 
 confined to ciibriolets, which did not suit 
 me. Like all his countrymen, the coach- 
 maker neglected his business, four causer, 
 and instead of an eulogium on his carria- 
 ges, entertained me with a violent philip- 
 pic against the commercial measures of the 
 moment ; and certainly the daily bankrupt- 
 cies of the first houses in the country, in 
 consequence of the decrees of Buonaparte, 
 are sufficient causes for the complaints of 
 the mercantile class. 
 
 In the evening I again went to the thea- 
 tre, which was now brilliantly attended, 
 the Sabbath being the day of amusement 
 
 as 
 
 "il^ 

 
 427 
 
 as well as of rest from labour in France. 
 The piece was Cendrilloii, taken from the 
 story so well known to children of the Lit- 
 tle Glass Slipper. The music was in general 
 light and cheerful, and among the airs was 
 th*^ " bon voyage a Monsieur du Molet^^ 
 at this moment a favourite popular tune 
 throughout France, and of the same stamp 
 as those airs which in England get posses- 
 sion of all classes for a few months, until 
 some fresh nonsense supersedes them ; such 
 are Nancy Dawson, the Grinder, Yankee 
 Doodle, &c. to which airs many add verses 
 of their own composition. 
 
 The carriage which conveyed Cindrellon 
 to the hall was drawn by real ponies, and 
 the fat coachman and lackeys came out of 
 a hole on one side of the stage, intended 
 to denote their metamorphosis from rats ; 
 the machinery was indeed superlative, and 
 the whole had an admirable effect. The 
 
 concludins:
 
 428 
 
 concluding piece was Montano et Ste* 
 phano. Bourdeaux at this time possessed 
 Mesdames Clairville and Folleville, with 
 Mortelli, all superior performers in the 
 grand opera. In the petit opera it had 
 Mesdames Begran and Lorraine, as first 
 dancers. Of the men Ferdinand was con- 
 sidered the first, and Chou Chou the se- 
 cond ; the former was engaged for the 
 opera at Vienna. It is said there is much 
 more difficulty in finding good performers 
 for the comedy and petit opera than for 
 the grand, for which there are always abun- 
 dance of candidates. The salary of the 
 first men dancers, in the petit opera, is 
 ten thousand francs a year. 
 
 In the course of the following day (Feb. 2) 
 I visited several parts of the town, and en- 
 gaged an English party to dine at the Hotel 
 du Prince, ci-devant Hotel d' Angleterre, a 
 name which the proprietor found it advisabe 
 
 to
 
 429 
 
 to change in the present government ma- 
 nia against whatever bears any relation 
 to our country, but which he means to 
 restore when this frenzy ceases. Our din- 
 ner was uncommonly good, and the wine 
 so uelicious, that several of the party who 
 had long been obliged to put up w^ith the 
 wretched Spanish trash, did such credit 
 to the Bourdeaux, that its effects soon 
 began to appear in their merry pranks, 
 which astonished the people of the house, 
 who were not at all accustomed to the 
 freaks of an English drinking party. In- 
 deed a Frenchman, who is ten times more 
 volatile when sober than an Englishman, 
 becomes stupidly serious as the liquor 
 mounts. This trait of national character 
 is doubtless owing to the independent ideas 
 instilled into us from the cradle, and which 
 gives to every individual a peculiarity of 
 manner and of mind. All Frenchmen, on 
 
 the
 
 430 
 
 the contrary, resemble each other; being 
 unused to think for themselves, their con- 
 versation is made up of quaint sayings and 
 hackneyed bons mots, stupid beyond concep- 
 tion. The sayings of a great man, who 
 has the reputation of possessing de V esprit ^ 
 are repeated to satiety. In short, the man- 
 ners, dress, and address of a Frenchman 
 are equally disgusting, with the exception 
 of the few remains of the old noblesse, 
 who retain the polished manners of their 
 order, so totally opposite to those of the 
 2)iirvenus of the present day. 
 
 February 3. In the morning I waited 
 in uniform on General Boisvin, the Com- 
 mandant de Place, and was shewn into a 
 room by a servant ; here I waited some time, 
 and no General appearing, I again sent the 
 servant to announce me, and to inquire if 
 it was convenient for the General to receive 
 me, adding, that my visit was merely of 
 
 ceremony,
 
 431 
 
 ceremony, and that I had nothing parti- 
 cular to say. On his appearance he seem- 
 ed surprised, not having been informed by 
 the servant who I was, and the uniform of 
 a British general officer seemed to have an 
 imposing effect ; besides, I assumed a distant 
 and dignified air, which made him perceive 
 that I was displeased at being kept waiting, 
 for which he blundered out an apology as 
 well as his abilities would admit. On retir- 
 ing he had, however, the civility to attend 
 me to the carriage. 
 
 Having disencumbered myself of my uni- 
 form, I called on some of my acquaintan- 
 ces ; and also on Monsieur Lynch, the 
 Mayor of the city, descended from an Irish 
 family, and of most gentlemanly manners. 
 From him I went to visit Monsieur Pierre 
 Pierre, the commissary of police, a per- 
 sonage of no small consequence in a French 
 town, and whose good will it is necessary 
 
 for
 
 432 
 
 for all strangers, like myself on sufferance 
 only, to conciliate. He immediately told me 
 ihe number of bottles we had drank the 
 evening before, with the whole particulars 
 of our conversation, and appeared extreme- 
 ly proud of his esjnonnage; for he seemed 
 to have the vanity to think, that because 
 he received information of whatever passed 
 in all companies, public or private, he 
 thence derived as much consequence as if 
 he had been admitted to them. To humour 
 him, I expressed my astonishment at the 
 correctness of his information, although I 
 was very sure that he received it from an 
 American doctor, who by making himself 
 useful to all the English passing through 
 Bourdeaux, was always invited to their 
 parties ; and although it was well known 
 that he was employed by the police, it was 
 advisable to keep on good terms with him, 
 as a denunciation, however false, would 
 
 probably 
 
 11
 
 433 
 
 probably have been productive of a lodging 
 in a cachot, without any investigation ; be- 
 sides, he was capable of being extremely 
 useful to a stranger, knowing every thing 
 and every body in Bourdeaux. 
 
 After paying several other visits, I dined 
 off a boiled leg of mutton and turnips, a 
 dish I had not seen for so long a time, that I 
 almost fancied myself in England. At dinner 
 I met with Captain Geils of the 3d guards. 
 Captain Reynolds of the 83d, and a quar- 
 ter-master of the 4th, all taken in Spain, 
 and the two former severely wounded. As 
 they were very inquisitive about affairs in 
 Spain, and the wine being excellent, we 
 made a late sitting. 
 
 < February 4. Strolling through the streets 
 in the forenoon, I observed a very pretty 
 girl standing at a shop door, whom, pour 
 passer le temps, I accosted with a compli- 
 ment on her beauty, which she received as 
 
 VOL, I. 2 F most
 
 434 
 
 most pretty girls do, and more particularly 
 French grisettes, as if it was only her due* 
 Soon perceiving that I was an Englishman, 
 she launched into an eulogium on the na- 
 tion, but at the same time observing that 
 we had faults, of which not the least w^as 
 our neglect of the heau seoce ; then chang- 
 ing the subject with abrupt vivacity, she 
 observed that my coat was rather tarnish- 
 ed, and recommended its being scowered, 
 which her father, whose trade it was, would 
 speedily perform. I allowed her to shew 
 me into a back apartment, where the old 
 gentleman was at work, to whom I pro- 
 mised to send the coat as soon as I got 
 another from the taylor, this being the 
 only one I at present possessed. " Tenez," 
 replied he, ** en void un qui vous ira a mer- 
 " veilleT and though the cut was rather 
 outre, I put it on and left him mine, '' to 
 '' come out," as he expressed it, " entirely 
 
 " new!"
 
 435 
 
 ** new!'' From the repeated assurances of the 
 father and daughter that the coat fitted me 
 a niervellle, I thought I might pass without 
 notice ; but I had scarcely quitted tlie shop 
 when I met with three Enghsh gentlemen, 
 WHO burst into a horse-laugh at my cos- 
 tume ; and, it being Carnival time, ob- 
 served, " that I was already drest for the 
 *' masquerade." Although I joined in the 
 laugh, I did not choose to expose myself 
 to a repetition of it, and on reaching the 
 hotel immediately sent for my coat, but 
 was told that it was in the tub : and the 
 taylor not having finished either of those I 
 had ordered, I was under the necessity of 
 confining myself to the house for the rest 
 of the day. As our officers had taken up 
 their quarters at a hotel opposite, and were 
 in the article of dress even worse off than 
 myself (having only the old torn regimentals 
 x)n their backs), I invited them to keep me 
 
 2 F 2 in
 
 436 
 
 in countenance, and we passed the day 
 together in playing at piquet and laugh- 
 ing at each others dress. In the even- 
 ing I sent to desire the company of my 
 friend the scowerer, who immediately 
 arrived, and afforded me much amuse- 
 ment. Knowing the character of this 
 description of Frenchmen, I proposed to 
 send an excellent supper to his house, in 
 order to have the pleasure of passing the 
 evening with him and his lovely daugh- 
 ter, with which proposition he immediately 
 complied, and retired to make the neces- 
 sary preparations. I shortly followed him 
 to his apartments, which were very neatly 
 furnished. The young lady was very enter- 
 taining, and the old gentleman so complai- 
 sant as soon to retire, and leave me to enjoy 
 her fascinating conversation till late in the 
 evening. I afterwards learnt that this man 
 had acted a conspicuous part in the revolu- 
 tionary
 
 437 
 
 tionary committees, and during a part of 
 that blood-stained period was the terror of 
 Bourdeaux. 
 
 February 5. The next morning, accord- 
 ing to appointment, I went, accompanied 
 by the American doctor as Cicerone, to 
 inspect the curiosities of Bourdeaux. 
 
 We first visited the military hospital, in 
 which were several English officers, parti- 
 cularly a Mr. Grant, of the 24th regiment, 
 who had been badly wounded at the battle 
 of Talavera He was in the same ward with 
 several French officers ; for in the French 
 service an officer who reports himself sick 
 is obliged to go immediately to the hospi- 
 tal, which eft'ectually prevents their at- 
 tempting to evade their duty by pretending 
 illness : and it would be well if some strong 
 regulation was adopted in our service, to 
 prevent the numberless abuses which take 
 place in this respect. 
 
 In the course of our walk we passed a 
 
 2 F 3 very
 
 438 
 
 very fine Roman triumphal arch, disfigured 
 by modern ornaments; andoninquiringof my 
 companion, (who in whatever regarded the 
 things or people of Bourdeaux was a per- 
 fect Asmodeus) he informed me that the 
 arch had been erected to Trajan, but that 
 the modern decorations were attached to it 
 when Buonaparte was at Bourdeaux, it being 
 expected that he would pass under it, which 
 he however declined ; whether from a mo- 
 dest diffidence with respect to his equality 
 with the Roman Emperor, or as some people 
 said, from the conviction of his own supe- 
 riority, which caused him to despise this 
 kind of half homage, 1 cannot undertake 
 to decide.* 
 
 BourdeauxformerlythecapitalofGuienne, 
 
 and 
 
 * I afterwards understood the real cause was its 
 not having been erected from the foundation expressly 
 for himself.
 
 439 
 
 and at present the chief town of the de-^ 
 partment of the Gironde, is considered in the 
 first class of French cities, and contains up- 
 wards of one hundred thousand inhabitants. 
 It had formerly an university and an aca- 
 demy of arts and sciences, a court of ad- 
 miralty, &c. In 1642, it was granted a 
 parliament, by Louis XI. Its public es- 
 tablishments at present are, a lyceum, the 
 most magnificent theatre in France, and a 
 mint. It is the residence of a prefect, and 
 has a criminal tribunal and a tribunal of 
 appeal, for the departments of Charente, 
 Dordogne, and Gironde. 
 
 I this morning accompanied Monsieur 
 Cabanis to his country seat, about two 
 leagues from Bourdeaux, which is pleasantly 
 situated, commanding a fine and extensive 
 view, but greatly neglected. He inform- 
 ed me, that the want of a market for the 
 produce, reduced the value of the vine- 
 
 2 F 4 yards
 
 440 
 
 yards to less than the expences of their cuU 
 tivation, and that he would gladly let his 
 house and domain rent free, pn condition of 
 keeping* the vineyards in order. In many 
 of the walks 1 observed snares for taking 
 woodcocks, and one got entangled while I 
 was there. 
 
 It being Sunday the theatre was crowd- 
 ed as usual, and I must confers I am not so 
 rigid as to see any thing contrary either to 
 religion or good morals, in attending this 
 amusement on the Sabbath. In our pro- 
 testant countries Sunday is a day of moping 
 tiresomeness, yet surely we may observe 
 with Sterne, " that the Great Father of all 
 '' does not expect us to viex and shorten a 
 *' life, short and vexatious enough already ; 
 ^' that he who is infinitely happy cannot 
 " envy us our enjoyments, or that a Being, 
 ^* so infinitely kind, would grudge a mourn- 
 " ful traveller the short rest and refresh- 
 ^* mentSj necessary to support his spirits 
 
 ^' through
 
 441 
 
 ^' through the stages of a weary pilgrimage 5 
 '* or that he would call him to a severe 
 '* reckoning, because in his way he had 
 *' hastily snatched at some little fugacious 
 " pleasure, merely to sweeten this uneasy 
 "journey of life, and reconcile h m to the 
 " ruggedness of the road, and the many 
 " hard jostlings he is sure to meet with." 
 
 The entertainment this evening at the 
 theatre, was, however, analagous to the day, 
 for it was the story of Susannah and the 
 Elders, metamorphosed into a pantomime. 
 The two antient sinners attempt to ac- 
 complish their purpose on the chaste 
 damsel, while she is in the hath, but being 
 foiled, they denounce her guilty of ?i faux- 
 pas, and wickedly swear that they found 
 her under a tree in an awkward situation. On 
 this evidence she is condemned, an J about 
 to be executed, when the angel Gabriel 
 jiescends and advises the judges to examine 
 
 each
 
 442 
 
 each old man separately, when their stories 
 not agreeing, the damsel is released, and 
 her accusers are sentenced to be stoned to 
 death. The music of this entertainment was 
 exquisite, the scenery superb, and the des- 
 cent and ascent of the Archangel very 
 well managed. Indeed it was impossible 
 not to admire the ingenuity with which 
 so serious a subject was brought on the 
 stage in the shape of a pantomime. A 
 Mademoiselle Byrom acted Susannah, who 
 appeared a chaste actress, at least on the 
 stage. A mclo-drama succeeded the pan- 
 tomime. This is a new species of theatrical 
 entertainment, composed of a mixture of 
 comedy, opera and pantomime, and is at 
 present quite the rage in France.
 
 443 
 
 CHAPTER XXVIIL 
 Bourdeaux . . . .Masquerade . . . .Valet de place, &c. 
 
 From the theatre I went to sup with 
 the American doctor, who had invited a 
 party to meet me ; the formality and ce- 
 remony with whicli I was treated, did 
 away all idea of comfort, and I was glad 
 to he relieved hy pleading an engage- 
 ment to the hal masqui^, where I was 
 fully recompensed. The price of admission 
 was very trifling, and the hire of a dress 
 only thirty sols. I first chose the character 
 of a Benedictine Monk, which I thought 
 so easy to support, that there was no fear 
 of my heing discovered ; but I en- 
 joyed myself so much, and the scene was 
 altogether so novel, that I forgot the gravity 
 pf my character, and was soon discovered 
 
 to
 
 444 
 
 to be an Anglois ! My fellow officers, who 
 were also present, were soon known, and we 
 were obliged to accept numberless invita- 
 tions to drink Champagne-punch from our 
 French acquaintances, who paid many li- 
 beral compliments to the British character 
 I now changed my dress for that of a 
 Miller, and got on very well for some time, 
 until I met by chance one of our officers, 
 whose mask was off, and who was tormented 
 by a tall priest following him all over the 
 room. When I came up to him my friend 
 was in close conversation with a pretty 
 orange girl, and the priest looking at him 
 fixedly, uttered a deep groan ; ^'d — n the 
 *^ priest," said the Englishman, forgetting 
 himself, *^he persecutes me every where:" at 
 which I could not help laughing aloud, and 
 my laugh again discovered me. Round the 
 lobby were coffee rooms with all kinds of 
 refreshments, besides several convenient 
 
 priyate
 
 445 
 
 private apartments elegantly fitted up. I 
 accompanied my countrymen through all 
 the rooms, and it seemed as if the pleasure 
 we expressed gratified the whole assembly. 
 Among the most entertaining groups were 
 thirteen boys, who exhibited a singular 
 dance on stilts four feet from the ground, 
 on which they kept time and performed the 
 most difficult figures with the exactness of 
 opera dancers. A boy of eight years old 
 was the leader of this amusing group, and 
 when any mistake was committed, he would 
 frown on the defaulters, and put his finger 
 to his nose, so as to intimate forcibly, " be- 
 " ware how you make a second blunder !" 
 At five o'clock I retired, with a sufficiency of 
 pleasing reflections to last me a twelve- 
 month ; — nor shall I ever forget the hal 
 7nasque at Bourdeaux ! 
 
 February 7- Tbe following morning I 
 accompanied M. Crochard to a milliner's to 
 
 purchase
 
 446 
 
 purchase some cravats ; but being no great 
 judge of muslin, I requested a pretty shop 
 girl to select some for me, and bring them 
 to my hotel, where shortly after my return 
 she made her appearance. There was an in- 
 teresting: seriousness in her manner that 
 induced me to inquire into the cause of so 
 uncommon an appearance in a French 
 milliner of nineteen ; and I learnt that she 
 had lost both her father and mother (who 
 were of the lesser noblesse) by the guillotine, 
 in the revolution ; that about a year back 
 she had formed an attachment to a young 
 man, who returned her love, and with 
 whom she hoped to be happy the remainder 
 of her davs, and to be in some measure re- 
 compensed for the loss of her parents at so 
 early an age ; but that her lover was drawn 
 for the conscription a few months since, and 
 sent to Spain, where he added one to the 
 numberless victims of Buonaparte's ambi- 
 tion.
 
 447 
 
 tion, having been killed in battle. She told her 
 tale with a degree of melancholy sweetness 
 and sensibility, whilst the tears forced their 
 v^'^ay in spite of her, that not a little af- 
 fected me. While she was recounting her 
 story the American doctor entered, and 
 when she withdrew he bore testimony to its 
 truth, being well acquainted with her mis- 
 fortunes. 
 
 On my arrival at Bourdeaux, the doctor 
 had recommended me a laquaisde place, who, 
 accordingto his own account, was unequalled 
 by any of the tribe. Amongst his other qua- 
 lifications was that of dressing horses ; and 
 though his appearance bespoke very little of 
 the groom, I took him at his word, and 
 entrusted him with the care of mine. He 
 was a grey-headed old fellow, with a pig- 
 tail; two curls at each side; silk stock- 
 ings much soiled; black velvet breeches, 
 
 and
 
 448 
 
 l^ 
 
 and a peagreen coat, with standing collar, 
 and slack sleeves ; in short, he answered 
 completely to the description of the squires 
 that attended the ladies in the days of chival- 
 ry. After a day or two I recollected that it 
 was possible this piece of antiquity might not 
 be so au fait in the management of horses 
 as he pretended, and on visiting the stable 
 I found my doubts changed into certainty, 
 for although there were fifty-nine empty 
 stalls, the stupid fellow had put my horse 
 and mare into the sixtieth ; nor had they 
 been rubbed down since niv arrival, he 
 conceiving it quite enough if they had asse% 
 a hoireet a manger. I immediately turned the 
 sorry groom off and could not resist abusing 
 him, when my landlord called me aside and 
 advised me to beware and say little, as he was 
 a spy of the police, and might do me mis- 
 chief. This information induced me to make 
 further inquiries, when I found by a female 
 
 of
 
 449 
 
 of the house that I was surrounded by spies 
 who doubtless reported all idv actions and 
 words. 
 
 I this day dined with one of our officers 
 and the quarter- master, who towards the 
 eve'ning, as the wine began to operate, be- 
 came so laughably amusing that I persuaded 
 him to accompany me to a French party. 
 Though he had risen from the ranks, he 
 had a perfect confidence in his good breed- 
 ing, and to shew it oft made such strange 
 gestures, kissed the ladies hands, and 
 scraped and bowed till he became quite ri- 
 diculous. As his compliments were paid in 
 English they remained unanswered ; and the 
 silence of an old lady, to whom he particu- 
 larly addressed himself, I persuaded him 
 was owing to deafness, when he bawled so 
 loudly in her ear, that the poor woman was 
 near going into a fit. At last dancing com- 
 menced, and, in spite of all my entreaties, 
 
 VOL. I. 2 G he
 
 450 
 
 he resolved upon taking out a partner ; 
 but being unused to waxed floors, his heels 
 were soon tripped up, nor was he able to 
 get again on his legs, for as often as 
 he attempted to rise the slippery floor 
 again brought him down, and thus he re- 
 mained, to the great amusement of the 
 company, who exclaimed, '* Dieu, qu!il est 
 ** drdle !" I proposed dancing round this 
 fallen hero, which was immediately agreed 
 to, and I never saw people enjoy any thing 
 more : one of the young ladies observing, 
 that, ** certainly Messieurs les Anglois 
 ** were, from their singularities, always the 
 ^' life and spirit of the company." 
 
 I had now become quite the lion * of 
 Bourdeaux, and not a day passed without 
 a party being given on my account. These 
 
 pleasurable 
 
 * Ltion^ according to the English fashionable ima- 
 gination, is a person who all are curious to see. 
 
 N
 
 451 
 
 pleasurable days were however approaching 
 towards their termination, for General Boi- 
 vin began to look on me with an evil eye, 
 probably from not being invited to these en- 
 tertainments ; for although his pretensions 
 to esprit were very high, he was in reality so 
 silly that people did not choose to be an- 
 noyed by his company. 
 
 One morning I was not very agreeably 
 surprised with a visit from the Adjutant de 
 Place, a Pole, to inform me that I must 
 immediately depart from Bourdeaux. I 
 begged this officer to accompany me to the 
 General, to which he consented, and we 
 stepped into a hackney coach. The Gene- 
 ral, who was followed by a large greyhound, 
 which seemed a great favourite, received 
 me with an air of displeasure, and demanded 
 the cause of my remaining so long at 
 Bourdeaux? Instead of answering his 
 question I exclaimed, *^ Dieu, quel jolt 
 
 2 G 2 ^' ckien r
 
 452 
 
 i( 
 
 chien !'' and begged permission to inquire 
 if it belonged to him ? Upon this his counte- 
 nance immediately brightened, and he an- 
 swered, '' oui, monsieur, et f en ai trois 
 *^ mitres'^ I then told him I was fond of 
 dogs a lafoUe, and should esteem it a par- 
 ticular favour if he would allow me to see 
 see them. " Volontiers^^ was the reply, 
 and he conducted me to the yard, where 
 they were passed in review, and I of course 
 did not fail to praise their beauty and 
 points, although neither was very conspi- 
 cuous. The General next shewed me his 
 stud, which I also pretended to admire, 
 and begged to be gratified by his permit- 
 ting me to mount one of his chargers, that 
 I might judge better of his movements. A 
 horse was accordingly got ready with a deml- 
 peak, and I made him shew off to the best 
 advantage, withw4iich the General was so sa- 
 tisfied, and pleased wdth my compliments, 
 
 that
 
 453 
 
 that he forgot, or at least made no farther 
 mention of my quitting Bourdeaux, and 
 we parted with mutua] compliments. 
 
 The two succeeding days passed without 
 hearing any thing from the General ; hut 
 on the third he sent for me, and informed 
 me that he had received a letter from the 
 Minister of War, mentioning me '•' as a 
 *' dangerous character," and directing him 
 to send me off immediately with an escort ; 
 he therefore recommended my departure 
 immediately, to avoid the disagreeable at- 
 tendance of a gend'arme. I told him that 
 I should certainly set out next day, being 
 obliged to wait for my linen from the wash. 
 
 Monsieur," said he, " a warrior should 
 *•' always be ready to put his foot in the 
 '^ stirrup." As I saw that he wished to 
 inspire me with a high idea of his military 
 character, I replied, " certainly. Monsieur 
 ^* le General, that must always be the case 
 
 2 G 3 *^ with 
 
 (C
 
 454 
 
 *^ with an officer who has seen so much 
 '' service as you, and who has also such 
 ^* horses at command." — " Do you know, 
 " Monsieur," said he, '* that 1 travelled from 
 ** Germany hither in the depth of winter, 
 " and never thought aiiyihing of it !" — " I 
 " have no douht of it, Monsieur le Gene- 
 ** ral, but your situation and mine are very 
 " different : you travelled in a good warm 
 *' carriage, with all the comforts attached 
 *' to the rank of a French general ; while 
 " I have made a long journey through 
 " Spain as a prisoner, suffering many pri- 
 '^ vations, and extremely unwell with a 
 *' spitting of blood, owing to the bruises 
 " I received when taken ; therefore you 
 *' surely cannot deem me unreasonable in 
 ^' asking to remain until to-morrow;" to 
 which he consented, and we parted. 
 
 In the evening, accompanied by the 
 American doctor, I went privately to see 
 
 some
 
 455 
 
 some Portuguese, who had been arrested 
 at the commencement of the war with 
 Portugal, and detained as hostages. Our 
 visit was obliged to be secret, for if the 
 police had had knowledge of it, it might 
 have produced disagreeable consequences, 
 both to the Portuguese and to myself. One 
 of them, the Marquis de P. . . . , had been 
 Chamberlain to the Queen •of Portugal ; 
 and certainly her majesty did not shew 
 much taste in her choice, for he had much 
 more of the baboon than of the human 
 being in his appearance. His son, a cheva- 
 lier, was also a strange looking animal; 
 with his hair in curls and plastered with 
 powder and pomatum, his feet resting on 
 the railings of his chair, and his elbows 
 on his thighs, he grinned so strongly, that 
 he reminded me of jacko just about to 
 make a spring, and I could scarcely keep 
 my countenance. His father, however, 
 
 2 G 4 seemed
 
 456 
 
 seemed to entertain a high opinion of him : 
 most certainly if he possessed abihties La- 
 vater knew nothing of physiognomy. The 
 brother of the Marquis, the grand prior, 
 was however a rational man. But the per- 
 son who pleased me most was le Senateur; 
 he was turned of fifty, with a noble de- 
 portment and general information ; he 
 spoke Frenck and English, and formerly 
 executed the English business at Lisbon, 
 where he recollected having seen me with 
 the Duke of Sussex. Cards were intro- 
 duced, and I played with such success, 
 that winning two rubbers I found myself a 
 gainer of twelve sols. After cards tea was 
 served as a compliment to me, and it was 
 certainly of an excellent quality ; but M. 
 le Marquis unluckily taking it into his head 
 that I must be fond of sweet things, to 
 which however I have a mortal aversion, 
 obliged me to swallow a great piece of cake, 
 
 that
 
 457 
 
 that had nearly made nie sick, which 
 was only prevented by the introduction of 
 some excellent old Port, in the praise of 
 which I launched forth, in hopes of in- 
 ducing them to produce a few bottles more, 
 but we were obhged to be content with two. 
 We talked with warmth of the affairs of 
 Spain and Portugal, and I related the va- 
 rious successes of our armies«in the former 
 country, particularly Busaco, which led 
 the Portuguese rather too far; for I had 
 little doubt but that the doctor would re- 
 peat every word of our conversation to the 
 police. 
 
 Recollecting that Madame le Tapis had 
 promised me a good supper, and also to 
 invite Mademoiselle Byrom and some of the 
 opera performers, I quitted my Portuguese 
 friends ; and returning home found an ex- 
 cellent table set out, to which I had invited 
 the Polish Major Sitowiski and one of our 
 
 officers.
 
 458 
 
 officers. The party was so agreeable, that 
 with conversation, music, and champagne 
 punch, the night passed away impercep- 
 tibly, and it was five o'clock before we 
 broke up, when I retired with the melan- 
 choly reflection that the following morning 
 I was to quit this charming scene of dissi- 
 pation. It has often been remarked, that 
 we can no more endure intense pleasure 
 than intense pain ; but at this time I should 
 liked to have tried how much of the former 
 I could bear. The privations I had suffer- 
 ed in my journey through Spain, were ex- 
 cellent preparations for the full enjoyment 
 of the pleasures of Bourdeaux. 
 
 Early the following morning the cook 
 informed me that some fine sea fish and 
 other good things had just arrived; and 
 while he was enumerating them my land- 
 lady made her appearance, and expressed 
 her sorrow at my departure, adding that 
 
 her
 
 459 
 
 her house was never so gay j and promis- 
 ing, if I could only remain that day, she 
 would prepare a dinner that would do her 
 credit, and induce me to recommend her 
 to my compatriots. Having agreed to this 
 moderate request, I ordered dinner for six ; 
 the first course to be entirely of sea fish, 
 and the dishes were suited to display the 
 talents of the loquacious cook, to whom I 
 regularly paid a visit every morning before 
 breakfast. I had scarcely finished giving 
 him my orders, when the Polish Major de 
 Place, accompanied by two police officers, 
 paid me an unwished for visit, and de- 
 manded what detained nie at Bourdeaux } 
 I answered that I had intended setting off 
 that day, but that the persuasion of my 
 hostess and the abilities of her cook had 
 prevailed on me to remain ; that I was 
 sure Monsieur Pierre Pierre would not be 
 so unkind as to deprive the good lady of 
 
 the
 
 460 
 
 the profits of her dinner ; and still more, 
 that he would not wish nie to quit Bour- 
 deaux without the favourable impression 
 that this dinner could not fail to make. 
 I moreover promised solemnly to depart 
 the next morning; on which stipulation he 
 unwillingly consented to my remaining. I 
 soon after received a visit from Mr. Johns- 
 ton, who apologized for not having invited 
 me to dine ; for which however there was 
 no necessity, knowing, as I did, that had 
 the English merchants shewn any expensive 
 attentions to their countrymen, they would 
 most probably have attracted the notice of 
 the government, and might have been dou- 
 bly taxed, upon the principle that if they 
 could afford to give their countrymen en- 
 tertainments, they could no doubt also af- 
 ford to contribute largely to the state. I 
 however concluded, that though.it might 
 he dangerous for Mr. Johnston to give me 
 
 a dinner,
 
 461 
 
 a dinner, there could be none in his dining 
 with me, cind therefore invited him, as well 
 as Mr. Nero, who called himself a Swede, 
 but who spoke English and several other 
 languages so well that it would have been 
 diificult to tell to what country he really 
 belonged : for my own part, I was con- 
 vinced of his being an Englishman. He 
 had just returned from Paris with a licence 
 to freight a vessel for London, which was 
 to sail in a few davs ; and he was so kind 
 as to oft'er to take charge of a very beauti- 
 ful Spanish pointer, which I had procured 
 at Burgos, and for which, for fear of losing 
 him, I had taken an apartment in the hotel 
 at nine francs per day, to the great sur- 
 prise of my landlady. I have since heard 
 that he arrived safe in England, and was 
 much admired. 
 
 The evening passed very pleasantly over 
 some of 3Ir. Johnston's wine, which he 
 
 had
 
 462 
 
 had brought with him, and which I found 
 so excellent, that I would recommend him 
 to all who import their own wines. When 
 we broke up I went to a small but pleasant 
 society, where I supped, and did not get 
 home till four o'clock.
 
 463 
 
 CHAPTER XXIX. 
 
 From Bourdeaux to Perigueux . . . .Meeting with some 
 Officers . . . .St. Ubes . . . .Carnival . . . .Killing a Bul- 
 lock . . . .Di2;ression on the state of France . . . .Su<rar 
 
 of Beet-root Conscripts . . . .Cruelty to Spanish 
 
 Prisoners . . . .Conscription, 
 
 February 20, This being the day of my 
 departure, became indeed a day of reckon- 
 ing, for Madame le Tapis's bill was enor- 
 mous. At three o'clock I took leave of my 
 Bourdeaux friends, and whether tlieir re- 
 gret was real or fictitious, I will not presume 
 to say, but all the females of the house 
 were in tears ; nor did I depart without a 
 painful sentiment on my side. 
 
 Having crossed the Garonne by a ferry, 
 I mounted my horse on the opposite bank, 
 and had not proceeded more than a league 
 beyond Carbonblanc, the first post between 
 
 Bourdeaux
 
 464 
 
 Boui deaux and Paris, when I overtook three 
 of our officers on foot. It was raining 
 hard, and neither them nor myself had a 
 change of clothes, for I had brought only 
 a few shirts, a second waistcoat and pan- 
 taloons, in a small portmanteau behind my 
 servant. The officers were still worse off than 
 myself, as they had spent all their money at 
 Bourdeaux, and had only their travelling 
 French pay of fifty sols an etape (a day's 
 marching allowance) to support them on their 
 journey to Verdun, a distance of about four 
 Imndred and forty miles, during which they 
 were liable to all the disagreeable circum- 
 stances that usually assail foot travellers. 
 They were however cheerful, and laughed at 
 the prospect before them ; such are the ad- 
 vantages of good health and spirits, which 
 in everv situation in life, are infinitely su- 
 perior to riches. On inquiring into the 
 strength of their purses, they produced a 
 
 petit 
 
 I
 
 465 
 
 petit ecu* and some sols, which was to last 
 them to Angouleme, a distance of about 
 twenty leagues. In order to make their 
 marching money last out, they proposed 
 walking two or even three etapes in a day, 
 and by this means doubling or trebling their 
 daily receipt. Although my purse was very 
 low, I spared them a part of its contents, 
 which set them up, and we parted, our 
 feuilles de i^oute being in different directions. 
 As mine directed me to pass through Pe- 
 rigueux, I turned off the great Paris road 
 to the right, and soon reached the village 
 of St. Ubes, where I made myself as con- 
 fortable for the night as the small auberge 
 would permit. In the morning, finding my 
 horse's back so sore that it would have been 
 cruel to ride him, I determined on passing 
 the day at this village. After breakfast I 
 VOL. I. 2 H walked 
 
 * About half-a-crown.
 
 466 
 
 walked to a caffe, the landlord of wliicli, 
 surrounded by a numerous audience, was 
 reading the Moniteur, for which I learned 
 that the whole village united to subscribe, 
 on the express stipulation that the host 
 should read it aloud. This was just the 
 time Ayhen the Regency bill was passed in 
 England, and which the French politicians 
 expected would immediately produce a 
 change of ministers and measures favour- 
 able to a negotiation for peace. The Mo- 
 niteur of this day however informed them, 
 that no change either of men or measures 
 would take place, at which my host of the 
 caff's seemed rejoiced, exclaiming, " Bravo! 
 " voila un nation ! voila des gens qui ont 
 ** du caradere !" As these exclamations 
 sui'prised me, I asked the old gentleman, 
 " why he wished so well to England ?'* 
 <' Because," replied he, " the English sont 
 ** des braves gens. I have had many deal- 
 
 ** ings
 
 467 
 
 .'* ing Avith them, and always found them 
 *' most correct and honourable ; but," 
 continued he, " since this cursed silly de- 
 '* cree of Berlin, all is misery in this 
 ** country, and as was formerly said of the 
 '^ Non-Importation bill of the Americans, 
 " it may be justly called an act of political 
 '^ suicide." I now told the old gentleman 
 I was an English officer taken in Spain, on 
 which he immediately produced some cakes 
 and wine, made many bows, and requested 
 with much earnestness to be informed of the 
 real state of affairs in that country, for that 
 he knew the papers never told a word of 
 truth ; " and indeed," added he, '* they are 
 *' now become so notorious that their falsity 
 " is become a proverb, and il ment comme 
 '' le gazette, is the common expression to 
 '^ denote a first rate liar." He thanked me 
 for the information I gave him concerning 
 Spain, concluding with a ^^ parhleu, quelle 
 
 2 H 2 sottise
 
 468 
 
 *' sottise de pr^tendre faire la guerre 
 ** contre tout un peuple.'' Having drank 
 the health of this poHtician and his au- 
 dience in excellent wine, I departed, re- 
 ceiving from them a hearty hon voyage. In 
 returning to the auberge I met a party of 
 musicians playing before an uncommonly 
 fine ox, adorned with ribbons and garlands ; 
 on inquiring the meaning of which, I 
 learned that this was one of the amusements 
 of the Carnival which had now com- 
 menced, and that they were leading the 
 ox thus adorned to the slaughter-house ; 
 a custom, which reminded me of the 
 victims in the Pagan festivals : and indeed 
 the Carnival has, in every respect, more of 
 a Pagan than of a Christian festival, and 
 may well be compared to the Roman Sa- 
 turnalia. It commences the Sunday before 
 Lent, and lasts till the eve of Ash- 
 Wednesday ; during which period, all the 
 
 lower
 
 469 
 
 lower kind of people of the town parade 
 the streets in masquerade habits, and plague 
 the quiet passenger with impunity. At 
 night masked balls are given at the theatres, 
 to which all persons are admitted for one 
 or two francs, and here the worshippers of 
 Venus may pay their devotions at her shrine 
 without fear of detection ; here the wife 
 repays her infidel husband in his own coin ; 
 the widow consoles herself for the ungal- 
 lant restrictions of the Code Napoleon, by 
 which she cannot take a second, until ten 
 months after the decease of her dear first 
 husband, and the pale maiden here finds a 
 never failing remedy against the strange 
 propensities to feeding on brick and mortar. 
 While paying a visit to the stable, I heard 
 an extraordinary noise, and on inquiry 
 learnt that it was produced by skinning the 
 ox, I had just before seen so finely orna- 
 mented. On looking into th« place I found 
 
 2 H 3 that
 
 470 
 
 that they were literally beating the animaj 
 out of his skin ; for while one woman was 
 blowing with a great pair of bellows between 
 the flesh and the hide^ three others were 
 threshing it with sticks, which loosens the 
 skin and makes it come off more easily. 
 When this operation was finished, the car- 
 case was hung up and covered with artificial 
 flowers, ribbons, &c. 
 
 In the morning, though it rained heavily, 
 I resumed my journey, and passed through 
 a continued vineyard to the river I'lsle, 
 which falls into the Dordogne. I crossed 
 the latter (which is here of considerable 
 breadth) in a good boat : but before my 
 arrival at the river I had stopped under a 
 handsome gateway for shelter from a heavy 
 shower. I had not been here long when a 
 respectable looking old gentleman came out, 
 and begged me to alight and put my horse 
 in the stable till the shower was over ; his 
 
 countenance
 
 471 
 
 countenance bespeaking benevolence, pre- 
 vented a refusal, and I accompanied him into 
 the house, through a spacious hall, over the 
 chimney of which hung a large escutcheon 
 with the arms of a nobleman. This hall led 
 into a saloon, with large windows opening 
 on vineyards that sloped down to the river ; 
 pointing to them, the old gentleman said 
 with a sigh, " y4h Monsieur, voila ce qui 
 ** faisoient autrefois ma richesse; aujourd'hui 
 *^ ils me sont unejjerte.'^ He then observed 
 that apparently I was an Englishman, and 
 on my answering in the affirmative, he in- 
 vited me to partake of his soup with his 
 wife and daughter. This kind offer I at first 
 declined on account of the darkness of the 
 evening and the badness of the road ; but he 
 would not be refused. ^' You will get on the 
 •' better for it," said he, '^ and I will im- 
 *' mediately order your horse a feed of corn, 
 •* that both may proceed more cheerfully 
 
 2 H 4 '' on
 
 472 
 
 " on the road." The lady and her charm- 
 ing daughter now entered, and insisted so 
 kindly on my partaking their repast, that I 
 could not resist. Wc proceeded to the 
 dining room, where the old gentleman 
 placed me next his daughter, who was as 
 blooming as Hebe, and attired in a very 
 neat morning dress. Some superior wine 
 was produced, and the unaffected man- 
 ners of the whole family made me feel my- 
 self entirely at ease, so that I conversed 
 on several topics that pleased the old gen- 
 tleman. Another bottle succeeded, which 
 as it was emptied raised his spirits and in- 
 creased his civility. He swore that if a 
 French Marshal had stopped at his door, 
 he might have got wet to the skin before 
 he would have invited him to enter his 
 house ; but that the favour an English offi- 
 cer of my distinction had conferred on him 
 and his family he could never forget. He 
 
 then
 
 473 
 
 then spoke of the misery to which France 
 was reduced by the ambition and mistaken 
 policy of its ruler. ^' For what," said he, 
 ** do we make war ? for what end do we 
 *' exhaust the population and the resources 
 *** of the empire?" — " Doubtless, Mon- 
 *^ sieur," replied I, " you must have read 
 *' Montesquieu's Esprit des Loix, and you 
 *' may recollect the passage where he ob- 
 ** serves, that a country governed des- 
 *' potically only makes war to augment the 
 ** power and increase the dominions of its 
 " ruler. The French nation I believe now 
 *' began to see this truth, and instead of 
 *' exulting, as formerly, at the victories of 
 *' your armies, it reflects that these bril- 
 '' liant successes serve only to rivet its 
 " chains and perpetuate its distress ; while 
 '' they cover with misery and desolation 
 ** the countries of which they have gained 
 " Napoleon the possession. How different 
 
 '* is
 
 474 
 
 ** is it, Sir, with the conquests of England, 
 ** which not only enrich herself, but also 
 '^ the countries she subdues, by the reciprocal 
 " advantage of free markets for the ma- 
 ^^ nufactures of the one and the produce of 
 *^ the other. But, Sir," I continued, " it 
 *' has been the unvarying system of France, 
 ** since the revolution, to undermine and 
 *' level every antient government; while it 
 " has been the principle of England to 
 ** support them as far as possible. Un- 
 '^ fortunately for the cause of humanity, 
 " the imbecility of monarchs and the cor- 
 " ruption of their courts, have assisted the 
 *^ views of France, in a greater degree than 
 *' the energ-ies and the disinterestedness of 
 '^ England have been able to counteract 
 ^^ them. Such, Sir, are the causes of the 
 " calamities under which Europe is now 
 " groaning ; and strange it is to observe, 
 ^' that Spain, (which is of all countries of 
 
 *^ Europe
 
 475 
 
 '* Europe the least advanced in manufac- 
 ^^ tures, commerce and civilization,) should 
 *' be the first to see its own interest, and to 
 *^ resist the torrent. Hitherto the French 
 *^ arms have been generally successful, but 
 *' the war in Spain is of a very different 
 ^' nature from those vou have hitherto been 
 ^' engaged in. In Spain, you have to con- 
 *^ tend against a people in whom revenge is 
 ** the ruling passion, and every act of des- 
 *' potism exercised by the French in that 
 *' country, instead of tending to bend the 
 '^ people to your yoke, only augments their 
 *' hatred and animates their exertions. 
 *' Really, Sir, as a British subject, and 
 " still more, as a friend to humanity, I 
 " should not wish to see the French too 
 '^ rapidly driven out of Spain ; for thecon- 
 ^^ tinuation of the war for two or three 
 *' years longer, must so exhaust the re- 
 ^' sources of France, both in men and 
 
 " money,
 
 476 
 
 *^ money, as to oblige your Emperor to 
 *' listen to reason ; for, surely, he will not 
 *' be so infatuated as to go on towards his 
 ** destruction, when he finds that " God 
 *^ " no longer gives him the power to ac- 
 *^ ^^ complish what he wills." On these 
 ** grounds. Sir," I concluded, " as a pa- 
 *' triotic Frenchman, you ought to rejoice 
 ** at the defeats of your armies, for though 
 '•^ by their victories Napoleon may increase 
 *' his dominion, I believe his subjects have 
 ** always found, that the only eftbct of 
 *' such additions have been the increasing 
 ** their burthens." 
 
 To this discourse the family paid much 
 attention, and the old lady often remarked, 
 *^ cest Men vrai/' Turning to the daugh- 
 ter I observed, that " she ought also to re- 
 *' joice at the defeat of the French armies, 
 '^ for that was the only means of bringing 
 *' about a peace on reasonable terms, and 
 
 " peace
 
 477 
 
 '' peace could alone ensure young ladies 
 *' husbands, which were now so scarce 
 *' that the amiable sex were really to be 
 " pitied." I rose to depart, but the whole 
 family with one voice insisted I should not 
 quit them so soon, for that it w^as not every 
 day they had the honour of entertaining an 
 English officer ; at the same time the old 
 gentleman sprung up, and hurried off to the 
 cellar for another bottle, which I agreed to 
 see out provided the ladies w^ould stay and 
 partake of it ; " volontiers. Monsieur,'' 
 replied the old lady, " for I admire the 
 " English ;" — *' et pour moij' cried the 
 young one, '^ je les adore!'' — " C'est un 
 " peufort, Mademoiselle," said I. " Non^ 
 " en verite, Monsieur /" and this she said 
 in so kind a manner that proved it to come 
 directly from her heart. Indeed, had I been 
 inclined to vanity on a certain point, I 
 might have supposed that I was not indif- 
 ferent
 
 478 
 
 ferent to this young lady ; particularly 
 when she continued, " go where yoii will, 
 *' Monsieur, this family can never forget 
 ** you." — She seemed inclined to say more, 
 but the return of the old gentleman inter- 
 rupted her. 
 
 While emptying this bottle I related my 
 adventures at Bourdeaux, and impressed 
 both the ladies with an anxious desire to 
 visit that city, and partake of its amuse- 
 ments. I now recollected that my ser- 
 vant would be quite at a loss to know 
 what had become of me, for as I cannot 
 bear a servant riding behind or near me, I 
 always send him on before. The one I now 
 had, not speaking a word of French, often 
 committed blunders, and at one time I lost 
 him for two days ; but in the present case, 
 as the road was direct, and he must be 
 stopped by the ferry, I was not afraid of 
 his going astray. Having taken an affec- 
 tionate
 
 4/9 
 
 tionate leave of this worthy family, I pro- 
 ceeded, and soon met mv servant return- 
 ing at full gallop, and in the utmost con- 
 sternation. He informed me that he had 
 waited some time at the ferry, but at last, 
 Conceiving some accident had happened to 
 me, he was induced to return, and on 
 reaching a river liad observed a dead horse 
 on the bank, which he fancied resembled 
 mine, and thence concluded that I had 
 been drowned in giving the horse to drink, 
 and that some one had carried off the bri- 
 dle and saddle. On this conviction he de- 
 termined to return to Bourdeaux, and tell 
 the news. At the same time that I wished 
 him at the devil for his precipitation, 1 
 congratulated myself on not having delay- 
 ed longer at the hospitable old gentleman's, 
 which alone prevented the report of my 
 death being carried to Bourdeaux, from 
 
 whence
 
 480 
 
 whence it would have been immediately 
 forwarded to England. 
 
 Having crossed the Dordogne, I pro- 
 ceeded through a flat and fertile country 
 to the village of St. Suzanne, where I 
 determined to halt tor the night at a 
 little auberge, the people of which were 
 very civil ; but on inquiry into the state of 
 the larder, I found it afforded nothing bet- 
 ter than modest bacon and eggs, of which 
 I partook with the family before the kitch- 
 en fire. The wine was so truly execrable, 
 that I was obliged to ask for some spirits, 
 and they produced a kind of brandy distil- 
 led from the husk of the grapes after being 
 pressed. As, however, it is a fixed prin- 
 ciple with me to take things as they come, 
 I swallowed my humble repast cheerfully, 
 and amused myself with the children, who 
 crowded round me to admire my watch 
 
 chain
 
 481 
 
 chain and seals. The eldest daughter, a 
 fine girl, sung some pretty airs, and the 
 father recounted his campaign in Italy un- 
 der Massena, of whom he spoke with en- 
 thusiasm. I inquired of the old man if 
 the Carnival was yet over, and he answered 
 with rapture, " Dieu soil bSni, we have 
 ^' yet three days to come!" Happy people, 
 thought I, who laugh at all the cares and 
 evils of this life, and, while they are not 
 prohibited from dancing and singing, con- 
 sider with indifference the tearing away of 
 their sons by a conscription, and the impo- 
 verishing themselves by arbitrary taxes ! 
 
 Next morning, February 23d, after pas- 
 sing through a flat and swampy country, I 
 reached a rather considerable town called 
 Mussidan, where I put up at the post- 
 house, which was also an auberge; and 
 though it had no very promising appear- 
 ance, the windows being broke, and the 
 
 VOL. I, 2 I ascent
 
 482 
 
 ascent to the bed-room by a ladder, I found 
 the larder better supplied than at my last 
 night's sojourn, and in the morning was for 
 the first time surprised by the reasonable- 
 ness of the charge, for my supper, consist- 
 ing of some roast beef, a fowl and bacon, 
 and two bottles of wine, besides breakfast 
 for myself and servant, came to only four 
 francs ten sols ; and including the horses 
 the whole charge was but ten francs. While 
 breakfast was preparing I inquired of a 
 decent looking man if there was a coffee- 
 house in the town ? he answered there 
 were several, and offered to conduct me to 
 one of the best. We entered a large apart- 
 ment, in which was a billiard table, and a 
 great number of chess and trick- track 
 boards. The former game is particularly 
 a favourite among the French, and the 
 public tables are seldom vacant, day or 
 night. I expected to hear some of the 
 
 persons
 
 483 
 
 persons call for coffee, but on inquiry I 
 learnt that no such thing was to be pro- 
 cured here, for that this article, which 
 was formerly as great a necessary to the 
 middling class in France as tea is to the 
 English, was now only within the reach 
 of the wealthy. Sugar also, of which the 
 French are immoderately fond, they are 
 obliged to forego ; for though they have 
 been amused with the idea of extracting 
 this article from raisins, beet-root, &c. the 
 produce is only yet to be found in the Mo- 
 nileur, not a grain having appeared in the 
 market. It is true, indeed, a sirup of 
 grapes has been introduced into commerce, 
 but those who have once made use of it 
 will never be taken in a second time ; for, 
 independent of its possessing a very small 
 proportion of the sweetening principle, 
 which renders its use ?s dear as sugar, 
 
 2 I 2 it
 
 484 
 
 it contains a powerful acid, that acts 
 most disagreeably on the bowels. The 
 idea of ruining England, and rendering 
 colonies unnecessary to France, by the per- 
 fectins: of indigenous substitutes for colonial 
 productions, is indeed ridiculed by all clas- 
 ses to a degree very uncommon in France, 
 of making it the subject of caricatures ; 
 some of which have more humour than is 
 to be found in the generality of those seen 
 in the Paris print-shops. One represents 
 George the Third and Napoleon at oppo- 
 site sides of a table, with a cup of coffee 
 before each ; our king is dissolving the 
 point of a great loaf of sugar into his, 
 while Nap is grinning horribly in trying to 
 squeeze a drop of sweetening from a large 
 beet-root. A second caricature on the same 
 subject, shews how deeply the French are 
 interested in it ; it represents the King of 
 
 Rome
 
 485 
 
 Rome sucking a beet-root, making wry 
 faces, and exclaiming " voila un jolt tdiov- 
 ** ceau de sucre quenion jiapa m*a donn^V^ 
 Feb. 24. This clay's route was through a 
 clayey and swampy country, by very deep 
 roads, on which I was obliged to walk twenty- 
 five miles, my mare being unable to bear the 
 saddle ; at length I reached a single house, 
 called La Marsolia, and which, there be- 
 ing no other auberge on the road, is much 
 frequented. Here heavy rains and the 
 consequent floods kept me three days, dur- 
 ing which I saw numerous parties of Spa- 
 nish prisoners and refractory conscripts 
 pass ; the latter were always tied together, 
 often forty or fifty in a string, like negro 
 slaves going to the market, and only escort- 
 ed by two or three gend* armes a chevaL 
 Though their guards are seldom more nu- 
 merous, there is scarce an instance of their 
 resisting them, or attempting to escape ; 
 which, however, is made a capital oflfence. 
 
 2 I 3 The
 
 486 
 
 The gend^armeine, indeed, forms the most 
 efficient military police in Europe, and is 
 so well distributed, that not only the roads 
 are safe, but the people are also kept in com- 
 plete political subjection. The tame and sub- 
 missive disposition of the French is the great 
 cause of the perfection of this police ; and 
 in nothing can this disposition be more 
 strongly shewn, than the conscripts being 
 thus led like flocks of sheep to slaughter ; 
 for, if any of them desert, the chefs de corn- 
 plot (the leaders) are sure to be punished 
 with death, and the others have onlv to ex- 
 pect the galleys. When several conscripts 
 desert in company, and no chef de complot 
 can be discovered, then the oldest is con- 
 sidered as such, and suffers death.* 
 
 The Spanish prisoners that passed through 
 the village were in a most miserable con- 
 dition, and treated with the utmost bru- 
 tality 
 
 * Vide page 492, relative to the conscription.
 
 487 
 
 tality by their escort. Their shoes, which 
 had been originally only a leather san- 
 dal, fastened to the foot with a thong, 
 were worn out, and their feet dreadfully 
 lacerated. In this condition, half starved 
 and half dead with fatigue, they were goad-» 
 ed on by the gend'armes, who had orders 
 to shoot those who should lag behind, and 
 vast numbers of them were actually thus 
 murdered in cold blood ! ! ! — While France 
 exists as a nation, the barbarous treatment 
 of the Spanish prisoners must remain a stain 
 on its character. Formerly the French 
 soldier would have refused to be the instru- 
 ment of the sanguinary orders of his su- 
 periors ; but the revolution has entirely 
 changed the French character, and more 
 particularly that of the army. Before that 
 event, the officers were chiefly nobles, 
 who, however proud and licentious they 
 might be, at least possessed the elegance 
 of manners and liberality of sentiment 
 
 2 I 4 which
 
 488 
 
 which usually distinguish that order. At 
 present, the great majority even of the su- 
 perior officers are sprung from the dregs of 
 the people, without education or principles ; 
 their manners are brutal, and their courage 
 is ferocious. The revolution, in fact, swept 
 away whatever was estimable, and left only 
 the dregs of a corrupt society. It began 
 by destroying a generous and l)rave nobi- 
 lity, and annihilating the clergy. Wealth 
 then became the object of persecution, and, 
 finally, the miscreants who composed the 
 ephemeral governments, ignorant and wick- 
 ed themselves, proscribed all talent and 
 virtue. 
 
 If we formed our opinions hastily, we 
 might suppose that the revolution, like the 
 torrent which washes down the soil from 
 the mountains to fertilize the vallies, had 
 distributed the spoils of the rich among the 
 poor, and that consequently the peasantry 
 
 had
 
 489 
 
 had derived inestimable advantages from 
 the new order of things. A slight observa- 
 tion and inquiry will, however, convince 
 us that their situation is very little, if at 
 all, mended. The division of property 
 which the revolution and the svstem of as- 
 signats produced, has, indeed, enabled eve- 
 ry peasant to become a proprietor, and the 
 estate which formerly scarce supplied the 
 luxury of a single noble, or a few pam- 
 pered clergy, is now divided amongst a 
 thousand families. This acquisition of real 
 property by the lower class, which in theory 
 seems to add to the sum of human happi- 
 ness and national prosperity, in practice 
 has been found to produce the very con- 
 trary effects. Instead of improving agricul- 
 ture, cultivation has gone considerably back- 
 wards, for the small proprietors are too 
 miserably poor to meliorate their lands ; 
 they are often even obliged to borrow mo- 
 ney
 
 490 
 
 ney at usurious interest, to defray the 
 charges of common cultivation, and the 
 crop is thus mortgaged before the seed is 
 sown. Commons were complained of be* 
 fore the revolution, as injurious to cultiva- 
 tion, and all the commons of France were 
 divided among the peasantry, as nearly 
 as possible, in equal portions of good and 
 bad land. The evils of this hasty measure 
 are now very severely felt, for the good 
 patches of common, thus made property, 
 are alone cultivated, while the bad are en- 
 tirely useless, because divided among indi- 
 viduals, whereas when in common they 
 served to pasture the cattle of the peasants. 
 But to return from this digression to the 
 poor Spanish prisoners. I did what little 
 was in my power to relieve them, by re- 
 inonstrating with their guards, and by bar- 
 gaining with the landlord to furnish them 
 with a substantial soup of meat and vege- 
 tables.
 
 491 
 
 tables, for which they were extremely 
 grateful. 
 
 . On the 28th the floods permitted me to 
 quit La Marsolia, and I pursued my jour- 
 ney towards Perigueux, accompanied by 
 my landlord. The country was low, and 
 many parts overflowed, so that I had often 
 to ride in water up to my saddle skirts. 
 About a league from the town my compa- 
 nion pointed out a well, celebrated through- 
 out France for a phenomenon which has 
 occupied the attention of many naturalists, 
 without its being yet satisfactorily account- 
 ed for. Its water rises every morning so 
 precisely at nine o'clock, that watches and 
 clocks are set by it ; it overflows with great 
 force, and covers the country for some ex- 
 tent until eleven o'clock, when it again be- 
 gins to fall ; and though the ground is very 
 flat, the water is ail gone off in the course 
 of an hour.
 
 492 
 
 The reader will not perhaps be dis- 
 pleased at learning in what manner the 
 conscription, which may without impropriety 
 be stiled the palladium of French slavery, 
 is effected. The first compulsory enrolment, 
 termed a levy by requisition, took place 
 in February 17^3, and the army con- 
 tinued to be recruited in that manner till 
 1798, when the first conscription was de- 
 creed, by which every French subject, of 
 whatever class, is, when he arrives at the 
 age of nineteen, obliged to take his chance 
 to become a soldier. When a conscription 
 is decreed, notice is given to all those whose 
 age is completed within the year, to as- 
 semble at the town house, or other public 
 place of the chief town of the department, 
 where they are examined by surgeons, in 
 
 the 
 
 I
 
 493 
 
 the presence of the officers of Government, 
 and those who have any hodily defects 
 are passed over, while the rest draw lots 
 for the chance of becoming heroes. Those 
 who fall (the French expression is torn- 
 her^, if they cannot procure a substitute, 
 are immediately marched off to a depot, 
 where they are exercised, and from thence 
 sent to join their regiments. 
 
 During the drawing of a conscription, 
 the town hall is surrounded by the relations 
 of the youths, and an ignorant spectator 
 would rather suppose they were waiting 
 the sentence of a criminal court, about to 
 award life or death to their friends, than 
 the decision of chance, whether they are to 
 be citizens or soldiers. The only son of a 
 widow above sLxty years of age, whose sub- 
 sistence depends on the cultivation of the 
 ground by this son, >is. exempt from the 
 
 con-
 
 494 
 
 conscription. If twins fall in the same 
 conscription, one only is taken ; and the 
 youth who has a brother killed in battle, if*" 
 he falls, is not obliged to march, unless a 
 supplementary conscription is decreed for 
 that year. 
 
 Since this was written, the waste of the 
 French armies has been so enormous, 
 that the conscription of the current year 
 has not been able to replace it, and hence 
 the conscriptions of the succeeding years? 
 were at first anticipated ; but latterly, this 
 method being found still inadequate, re* 
 course has been had to the back years, and 
 those who had drawn and escaned, have been 
 obliged to draw over again. The price of 
 a substitute, which at the beginning of the 
 war did not exceed one hundred louis, in 
 1812 had risen to five hundred; and in 
 
 1813,
 
 495 
 
 1813, a substitute was, to make use of a 
 colloquial but strong expression, not to be 
 had for love or money. 
 
 END OF VOL. t 
 
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