tal e s
fr o m
nuts
(S
l a nd s
th e
a nd
g
ra
s
e
p
PA N I S H A N D P O RT UGU E S E F O L K L O R E)
CH A R L E S
1
L ON
SEL L ER S
8 88
.
.
D ON
‘
Fz el d £5 T u er , Tlz e L e a d enh a l l T r es s ,
'
S z mp k in ,
'
M
an
il a ! !
65 Co
.
H a m il to n , (”da m s 65 Co
.
FI ELD
T HE
(3°
T U ER
ES
L E A DE N H A L L
(T
,
PR
S
,
P R E FA C E
.
F I R ML Y b el iev e that the fo llowing ta l e s
have n e v e r s ee n the light of pub l icity
.
T hey
are the fo lkl o re o f Spai n and Portugal
S ince the day when H e r n a n d o de l Casti l l o
in 1 5 1 1 p u bl is h e d some of the romances o f
Spanish chival r y c o l lected fro m the people
vario u s w o rks have appeared at different times
adding to the already rich store from that
inexhaustible mine of song and story
B ut unfortunately fo r those who app reciate
o rigina l ity in a people
it was disco v ered that
Boccaccio had b ee n most unceremoniously
plagiarized and what was still worse that his
defects had not b ee n avoided
“
Decameron
The
has i n fact b ee n the
foundatio n of the maj ority of the romances
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i
PR E FA CE
.
attributed to the natives of the Peninsula when
as has too often been the case they have in
their songs o f chivalry o verstepped the limits
i m p o sed by decorum
But this does not arg ue that the S paniard s
and Portuguese have no p o etry and no folklore
but rather that the latter have
o f their own
been ign o red by the c o m pilers of such litera
ture in order to satisfy the cravings of the
unfo rtunately too many admirers even i n this
day of that which would have been of a d v a n
tage to the world at large had it never b ee n
i m agined
“
I n E ngland the ta l e of J ack the G iant
K iller is read with avidity by all young people
fo r it is a purely national ta l e ; but i n Spain
and Portugal such simple tales very seld o m
find a publisher and children and even their
elders have to content the m selves with hearing
them recited by th o se who enliven the l o ng
wintry nights with such lore as I hav e
atte m pted to repro duce fro m my m emory
t o l d m e in my youth i n the b o so m of th o se
two sister lands which produced the Cid
Campeador and the G ran Vasco da G ama
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A CE
PR E F
An d
.
be fore c l osing this preface I would
remark that the N orth of Portugal where I
w a s born and bred is richer i n folklore than
the rest of the kingdom especially in tales
about enchanted M oors and warlocks of whom
I
in common with the Portuguese say
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,
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,
Ab e r nu n c io
,
”
.
C S E L L ERS
.
.
CO NT
E N
TS
.
N G E N I O U S S T UDE N T
U G L Y PRI N C E S S
TH E I
TH E
WO L F
-
C
H IL D
M AG I C MI R R O R
L A C K S L AV E
B
LE G E
ND
WH IT E
OF ST
.
B A R TH O L O MEw
CAT O F E
C IJ A
HU R C H A U C TI O N EE R
THE C
THE
WISE
K
ING
O BBLE R
THE C
BA
RB A R A
THE
S
R
B
E LL S
O BI N
L
E ON
O F B U R Go s
G
WA T C H FU L
ILV E R
KING
,
TH E
OF
AN D
R A! I E R S W I F E
’
S
E R VA N T
C
L OW N
OF V ILL A R
CO
!
THE
WI C K E D
ALACE
TH E P
TH E S
L
A DY
G
OO D
EVE N
K
N TE NTS
ING
O F THE
E
N C H A N T ED M OO R S
I G E ON S
P
LA R E
C
ST
.
AM
E
S
J
,
AN D
THE
CO MPO S TEL L A
E
.
LV IRA
TH E E
,
TH E
S
A I N T ED
RI N C E S S
P
N C H A N T E D MU L E
ME RRY
B
A RB E R
OF
MTHE
LANDS OF
TALES FRO
NUTS AND GRAPES
TH E
.
S T UD E N T
[N GE N I O US
H E R E was once a student in Tuy who
was so very poor that if fai th i n P r o vi
,
dence be n o t reckoned he possessed no riches
B ut J uan R ivas w a s end o wed with a w o n
d e r fu l l y fine gift o f ingenuity and alth o ugh he
was so m ewhat behind in the pay m ent for th e
M asses o n behalf of his predecessors and even
m ore s o with his mundane credit o rs still was
he a man who meant well and Wo uld do the
right thing if he o nly h a d the opport unity
T o the m a n o f the world there is n o greater
pleasure than to pay his debts for by s o doing
he increases his credit
uan
R
ivas
would
wil
l
ingly
have
paid
ever
J
y
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B
TH E
2
[N GE N I O US
S T
UDENT
.
creditor had his pocket been as ful l of th e
wherewithal as his heart was of gratitude for
small mercies ; but there is no difficulty ab o ut
S howing o ne s self desir o u s of satisfying one s
—
debts the only diffi culty generally rests in
being able to do so
A t college he h a d proved himself a good
scholar and a true c o mpanion but as he could
no longer contribute toward the support o f his
co ll ege his college could not be expected to
support him
H is long black cap his flowing robes his
a n ta l o o n s a nd his shoes were altered i n sub
p
stance and s o was J uan R ivas
F inally he became reduced to his last mara
vedi and as his friends could n o longer assist
him he th o ught it w a s high time h e should
assist himself
“
“
Providen ce said he has never intended
me for a poor man but F ate has almost made
m e one I will believe i n Providence and
bec o me rich from this day
Saying which he
went to some of his c o mpani o ns w h o were
almost as po o r as he was and asked them i f
they d esired to be rich
DO you ask us if we want to be rich with
”
“
!
R ea l ly
so serious a face
answered th ey
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TH E
I
NGENI O US
S T
UD EN T
3
.
friend J uan you are so strange that you do not
S eem to belon
o this city
t
g
“
N 0 man c an be rich continued J uan
by
staying at h o me We are students and o u r
studies should meet with some recompense
Will you do as I bid you
Y es ! cried al l his p o or compani o ns ; so
long as you lead us no t to the gallows for we
like not such playthings
“
Well then fo l low me said J uan ; an d
when you see me release a prize that be l o ngs
to him who shall be bo l d enough to seize it
off with it to the market and dispose of it at
the best possible price
Done and agreed to
shouted all
if
you will but seize th e prize !
“
L eave that to me said the poor student
“
and I will hand you a prize fully worth
twenty d o llars without his garments
But surely y o u are not going to hand som e
man or wo m an o ver to us
inquired they
A s k me no questions as th e A rchbishop of
Co m p o s te l l a said to the pretty widow and I
will be honest with you
Th e prize I shall
hand you will fetch money i n the market an d
we sell not human beings in t his country
urged J uan
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TH E
4
[N GEN I O US
S T
UD EN T
.
That I s r I g h t they exclaimed ; and we
w ill follo w you
The st udents foll o wed J uan on to the high
road leading from the city to O ur e n s e ; and
when they had walked fo r about two h o urs
time J uan told his companions to get behind
the hedge and await results
Soon after th e j ingling of bells was heard
and a muleteer seated cross legged o n a mule
which preceded five others was see n a p
“
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’
,
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-
,
,
p
ro a c
h ing
.
AS
the muleteer ha d sold a l l h is wares h e
w a s indulging i n a sleep and had it not been
fo r the dog fl ie s that t eased the mules they
would also have slept
J uan let the muleteer pass ; but as the last
mule came up he seized i t and taking off its
trappings a nd disencumbering it of its p o nderous
albarda or saddle he f reed the ani m al o n
the roadside and rep l aced the trappings and
the saddle on h imself
H is companions were not S l o w i n seizing the
prize and hurrying away with it while J uan
R ivas con tinued for So me distance al o ng the
road following in the train o f m ules
A s so o n as he considered that his com
panions would be out of sight he commenced
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TH E
I
NGENI O US
S T
UD EN T
5
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backing with al l his strength which brough t
th e m ules t o a sudden halt and caused their
bells to tinkle
The mul eteer l ooked back to see if anything
was wro ng but perceiving noth ing bestowed a
hearty blow on his mule and on he went again
The student now began to rear and jump
about so that the muleteer pulled up and
having dism o unted proceeded to inquire into
the cause o f the m ule S O misbehaving itself ;
but his ast o nishment w a s great when instead
of a mule h e saw a human being bearing the
trappings and the saddle
“
What merry freak is this demanded the
that I see
m uleteer addressing th e student
you repla cing my m ul e
I t is no m erry freak indeed it is not
replied J uan R ivas
but a sad reality Yo u
see befo re you good m aster a p o o r miserable
creature who for his many offences against
M other Church was transformed into a mule
and sentenced to remain so for a number O f
years M y term of punishment has j ust e x
i
r e d and I am restored t o my natural form
p
B ut where is my mule that cost me one
!
n
hundred crow s not many years ago
aske d
the muleteer
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6
TH E
I
NGENI O US
S T
UD ENT
Y ou do not understand me good master
,
,
replied the student
I was the mule and the
mule was I no w I am I
When you used to
kick y o ur m ule you really kicked me ; when
o u fed it
you
fed
me
and
now
when
you
;
y
speak to me you speak to al l that remains of
your mule N ow do you understand P
I a m beginning to perceive
said the mu l e
teer scratching his head and looking very
“
s o rrowful that for your sins you were turned
into a m ule and that for mine I had the mis
fortune to purchase you
I always thought
there was something strange about that mule
T here is no doubt that we all m ust put up
with the conseq uences of our evil ways and as
you very properly say y o u have been punished
by the l o ss o f your mule ; but then you can
rejoice with me seeing that the s o n o f the first
G randee in Spain served you in the humble
capacity o f a beast o f burden and now is r e
stored to rank and wealth
“
A nd are you a G randee of Spai n
“
anxiously inquired the p o or m a n
Why
then your excellency will never fo rgive me fo r
the many kicks I have best o wed on your ex
for
c e l l e n c y s S ides ; and I am a ruined man
will
have
me
punished
u
o
y
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8
TH E
1
NGEN1 0 US
S T
UD ENT
.
looki ng a bout him for a serviceab l e mule when
an acquaintance called o ut to him to know why
he had pa r ted with th e other one
“
I have my private reas o ns answered the
m uleteer
and I am no t here to let you kn o w
them
V ery true continued his in q
uisitive friend
but the proverb says that th e m ule yo u
know is better than the mule you d o n t kn o w
and if you will take m y advice you will buy y o ur
—
l
d
h
mule back again for t ere it is
p o inting
O
t o it
The m uleteer lo o ked i n the direction men
t io n e d and was horrified at seeing his late m ule
again but trying to conceal his emotion he
appro ached the ani m al and whispered i n its
ear
Those who don t know what sort of a
mule your excellency is may buy you but I
kn o w the m u le you are ; and turning away h e
sorr o wfully exclai m ed H e has again offended
Terrible are the j udgments of Providence
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TH E
U GL Y PR I N CE S S
.
H E R E was once a king who had an only
daughter and S h e was s o very ugly and
deformed that when S h e rode through the
st r eets of A lcantara the children ran away
thinking S h e was a witch
H er father however th o ught her the most
l o vely creature in his ki ngdo m ; and as all the
c o urtiers agree d with him and the C o urt poet
was always singing her praises the princess
had been led to believe what most ladies like
t o believe ; and as she w a s expecting a prince
fr o m a distant c o untry w h o was coming e x
pressly to m arry her S h e had ordered many
rich dresses which only made her lo o k uglier
T he city of A lcantara w a s ready to receiv e
Prince A l a nb a m who was go ing to esp o use the
Princess A ltamira
Crowds thronged the streets martia l music
was heard everywhere and i n the public square
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TH E
I O
PR I NC
UGL Y
ES S
.
a splendid throne had been erected for the
king Princess A ltamira and Prince Al a nb a m
A r o und the throne were formed large b o dies
of well equipped cavalry dark Visaged warriors
clad i n white and g o ld and mounted on superb
A rab steeds
B ehind the king o n h is l eft side stood the
royal barber with his retinue of apprentices ;
and on his right side was seen N a b é the
headsman a nigger of gigantic stature with
his implemen t of office an axe over his
sh o ulder
S eated on the steps of the thro ne were a
number of musicians and bel o w these a guard
of hon o ur composed of fo o t s o ldiers dressed i n
“
sh o rt vests called a lj u b a s and wide l o wer
garments and with their a lj a v a s or quivers
full of bright arrow s
F rom th e throne the king c o u l d see the
splendid bridge on si x pillars built by Trajan
al o ng which a brilliant cavalcade was pro ceed
ing na m ely the pr o cession fo rm ed by Prince
A l a nb a m and his re tainers
A S so o n as the prince after saluting the
king beheld the princess he tu rned pale fo r
he had never seen any one so ugly ; and how
ever much he might have desired to keep up
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UGL Y
TH E
PR I NC S S
E
1 1
.
an app earance o f courtesy to the princess before
her father s subj ec ts he could n o t kiss her as
S h e expected him to do nor c o uld he be per
s u a d e d to
occupy the chair reserved fo r him
beside the princess
Y o ur mercy said he addres sing the king
must excuse my insuperable bashfulness ; but
the fact is that the Princess A ltamira is s o
transcendently beautiful a nd so dazzling to
behold that I can never expect to lo o k upon
her face again and live
T he king and the princess were highly
flattered ; but as Prince A l a nb a m c o ntinued
obdurate in his professions of bashfulness they
c o mmenced to feel somewhat vexed and at
last the king said in a loud voice
Prince A l a nb a m we fully appreciate the
m o tive that prompts your conduct but the
fact is the Princess A ltamira is present to be
wedded to y o u ; and as a Christian king the
first o f m y line I desire to lead to the altar
my only daughter Princess A ltamira and her
Prince A l a nb a m
a ffi a nc e d husband
“
I t cannot be said the prince
I would
rather marry some one less beautifu l
S ir
king forgive me if I annoy you but I will not
”
be wedded to so much beauty
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UGL Y
TH E
I 2
PR I NC S S
E
.
T he king was now i ncensed beyond measure
and the princess his daughter thinking to spite
Prince A l a nb a m said
With your perm i ssion royal father S ince I
am too beautiful for a prince I will be married
to the m o st learned m a n i n y o ur kingd o m
Bernardo the royal barber
A nd that yo u S hall said the king bu t o n
turning r o und to speak to the barber h e found
that this the m ost learned man in his kingdom
was all of a tre m ble as i f dancing to the music
of S t V itus
P
asked
What has possessed thee caitiff
the king
H earest not th o u the honour that
P
t
o
is
be conferred on thee
M y royal master
muttered the poor
frightened m a n of learning and lather
I can
no more avail m yself of the h o n o ur which
you w o uld confer on me than the A rchbishop
o f V illafranca c o uld
H is grace is bound t o
celibacy and I am already married
N ow the barber had o n m any o ccasions
rendered himself o bnoxi o us to S anchez the
royal cobbler who seeing the ki ng s perplexity
and a chance of avenging past insults ex
clai m ed
“
R oyal master it w o uld be most acceptable
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UGL Y
TH E
PR I
NCE S S
I
.
3
to your subj ects that so much beauty should be
wedded to so muc h l earning O u r go od friend
Bernardo was I t I s true married ; but S ince he
has been in attendance at th e pa l ace he has S O
fallen i n love with Princess A ltamira tha t he no
longer notices h is wife therefore may it please
your mercy to dissolve the first marriage and
announce this new o ne with her highness your
daughter
The barber at this harangue became so
infuriated that he rushed blindly a t the cobb l er
and with his raz o r w o uld have severed his
head from the rest of h is body but that he
was prevented by the guard who held h im
down
cried th e
E xecutioner do your work l
baffled king ; and at one blow the head of the
u nfortunate barber rolled on the ground
Prince A l a nb a m seeing this and fearing that
m ore m ischief might ensue prop o sed to th e
king that one hundred knights S hould be chosen
and that these should fight for the hand of the
l o vely Princess A ltamira
I m yself will enter
the lists said the prince ; a n d the survivor
will be rewarded by marrying your daughter
That is a good idea said the king ; a n d
calling together ninety nine of his bes t knights
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I
UGL Y
TH E
4
PR I NC S S
E
.
h e bade them fight va l iantly for their reward
was very precious
F ifty knights mounted on beautiful chargers
placed themselve s on one side and were
opposed by forty nine equally wel l mounted
knights and Prince A l a nba m ; an d at the word
of co m mand given by the king they advanced
at headlong speed against each other ; but
much to the ast o nishment o f the spectat o rs no
knight was u nh o rsed ; rather did it seem that
each knight did h is utmost to get run thro ugh
by his opponent
A t it they went again and again but with
the same result fo r no man was hurt although
seeming to c o urt death
“
We will alt e r the order of things ex
“
claimed the king
The knight who is firs t
wou nded shall be the o ne to marry the
”
princess
This was no so o ner said than the knights
seemed to be possessed of a blind fury and
at th e first charge nearly every knight was
u nhorsed and every one wounded while the
c o nfusi o n and noise were awful They were
all accusing each other of being the first
wounded ; so that i n utter despair the king
declared his daughter should be married to the
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16
TH E
UGL Y
PR I NC
ES S
.
I n my worl d handsome is that handsome
does
The king was so pleased with the blind
fi d d l e r s speech that he immediate l y made him
a G randee of S pain and acknowledged him as
his son in la w e l e ct
‘
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TH E
th e
N orth of Portugal there are many
s e questered spots where the enchante d
M oors and the wi zards meet when I t I S full
mo o n
These places are generally situated
a m ong high rocks on the precipitous sides of
the hills overlooking rivers ; and when the wind
is very b o ister o us the i r terrible s creams and
i ncantations can be distinctly heard by the
peasantry inhabiting the neighb o uring Villages
O n such occasions the father of the fa m ily
sets fire to a wisp of straw a n d with it makes
the S ign of the cross around his h o use which
prevents these evil spirits from approaching
The other members of th e family pl a ce a few
extra lights before the image of the V irgin ; and
the horse shoe nailed to the door co m pletes the
safety o f the house
B ut it will so happen that sometimes an
enchanted M o o r w ith more cunning than
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I
8
WOL F CHI L D
TH E
-
.
honesty will get through one of the windows
on the birth of a child and wi l l brand the
i nfant with the crescent on his shoulder or
arm i n which case it is wel l known that the
child on certain nights will be changed i nt o
a w o lf
The enchanted M oors have their cast l es and
palaces under the ground or beneath the rivers
and they wander about the earth seeing but
not seen ; for they died u nbaptized and have
therefore no rest i n the grave
They seem to have give n preference to the
N orth of Portugal where they are held i n
great fear by the ign o rant peasantry ; and it
has been O bserved that all such o f the natives
as have left their homes to study at the uni
v e r s itie s
on their return have never been
v i sited by the enchanted M o ors as it is well
known that they have a great respect fo r
l earning
I n fact one of the kings has said
that until all his subj ects we re educated they
would never get rid o f the enchanted M oors
and wizards
I n a village called Darque on the banks of
th e L ima there lived a farm er whose go o dness
and ignorance were only equalled by those o f
his wife T hey were both young and robust
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WO L F CHI L D
TH E
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19
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and were suffi ci e ntly well O ff to afford the
luxury of beef once or twice a month Their
c l othes were home spun and their hearts were
ho m ely B eyond their land l o rd s grounds they
had never stepped ; but as he owned nearly
the whole Village it i s very evident that they
knew someth ing of this worl d of ours T hey
were both born and married on the estate as
their parents had been before them and they
were c o ntented because they had never m i xed
with the w o rld
O n e day whe n the far m er came home to
have his midday mea l of broth and maize
bread he found h is wife i n bed with a new
born baby boy by her side and he was so
pleased that he spent h is hour o f rest looking
at the child so that his meal remained untasted
o n the table
K issing his wife and infant and bidding her
beware of evil eyes he hurried out of the house
back to his work ; and so great was his j oy at
being a father that he did not feel hungry
H e was digging potatoes and i n his e x cite
ment had sent his hoe through some of them
which h o wever he did not notice u ntil he
happened to strike one that was so hard that
the stee l of his hoe flashed
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WO L F CHI L D
TH E
20
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Th inking it was a pebble he stooped to
pick it up but was surprised to see that it was
no longer there
H owever he went on working when h e
struck another hard potato and his hoe agai n
flashed
“
“
A h said he
the evil one has been sowing
this field with stones as he did i n th e d ays of
good S aint E uphemia our patroness
S aying
whi ch he drew out the sma l l crucifi x from
u nder his shirt and the fl inty potato dis a p
r e d ; but he noticed that
one
of
its
eyes
e
a
p
m o ved
H e thought no m o re of thi s untoward event
and went on hoeing u ntil sunset when with
the other lab o urers he shouldered his hoe and
prepared to g o home
N ever had the distance seemed so great ;
but at last h e found himself by his wife s bed
side S he told him that while he was absent
an old w o man had called asking for something
t o eat and that as she seeme d to have met
ith
some
accident
beca
u
se
there
was
blo
od
w
running d o wn her face S h e invited her in
and t o ld her sh e might eat what her husband
had left untasted
S itting down at the table the O l d woman
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WOL E CHI L D
TH E
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2 I
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commenced eating without asking a blessing
o n the fo o d ; and when she had finished S h e
approached th e bed and looking at th e infant
she muttered some words and left the house
hurried l y
The h usband and wife were very m uch
afraid that the old woman was a witch but as
the child went o n growing and seemed wel l
they gradually forgot their visitor
The infant was baptized an d w a s named
J oh n ; an d whe n he was o l d enough he w a s
sent out to work to help h is parents A l l th e
labourers noticed that J ohn could get th rough
m ore work than any man h e was so strong
and active but he was very silent
The remarkable strength o f th e boy got to
be so sp o ken about in th e Village that at last
the wise w o m an who was al ways consulted
said that there was no doubt but that J ohn was
a wolf child ; and this having come to the ears
of his parents his body was carefully examined
and the mark of the cr escent was found under
his arm
N othing now remained to be done but to
take J oh n to the great wise woman of A r ifa na
and have him disenchanted
The day h a d arrived for th e parents to take
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WO L F CHI L D
TH E
22
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J ohn with them to A r ifa na but when they
looked for him he could n o where be found
—
They searched everywhere down the well in
—
the river i n th e forest and made inquiries at
a l l the Vi l lages but in vai n ; J ohn had dis
appeared
Weeks went by without any sign o f h im ;
and the winter having set i n the wolves
through hunger had become more undaunted
The
in their attacks o n the fl o cks and herds
farmer afraid of firing at them lest he migh t
S hoot h is son had laid a trap ; and one m o rn
i ng to his delight he saw that a very large
wolf had been caught which one of his fe l low
labourers w a s cudgelling F earing it might be
th e lost wo l f child he hastened to the sp o t
and prevented the wol f receiving more blows ;
b ut it was too late apparently to save the
creature s l ife fo r i t lay motionless o n the
ground as if dead H urrying off for the wise
woman o f th e Vi l lage she returned with him
and close to the head o f th e wolf she gathered
so me branches of th e common pin e tree and
lighting the m as some were green and o thers
dry a volume of sm o k e arose like a tower
reaching to the top of a hill where lived so m e
notorious enchanted M oors and wizards ; s o
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WOL F CHI L D
TH E
24
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which caused a l arger amount of smoke and
exc l aimed
,
H ie
th e e , s p i r i t, up th r o
u gh
sm o
ke
,
u e n c h e d b y wa ter an d b y fi r e
H ie th e e fa r fr o m Ch r i s ti a n fo lk
T O th e Wi ar d s h o m e r e ti r e
O pe n Wi d e y o u r e y e l i d s n o w
Al l th e s m o k e h a s cu r l e d a wa y
N e a th th e p e a c e ful o l i v e b o u gh
L e t u s g o a n d l et u s p r a y
!
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T hen
they all r o se and the wo l f was no
longer there Th e fire had burned itself out
and the stream was again run ni ng I n slow
pro cession they went to the oliv e grotto
headed by the wise woman ; and after pray
ing they returned to the house where they
found to their delight J ohn fast asleep i n his
bed ; but his arms showed signs of bru ises
which had been caused by the cudgelling he
had received whe n he was caught i n the trap
There were great rej oicings that day i n the
village of Darque ; and no o ne was better
pleased than J oh n at having regained his proper
S hape
H e was never known to j oin i n the i nhu m an
sport of hunting wolves for pleasure because
as he said although they may not be wolf
children they do but obey an i nsti nct which
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TH E
W OL F CHI L D
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25
.
was given them ; and to be kind hearted is to
o bey a precept
which was giv en us
A nd
o wing to the introduction int o
Portugal of the
B o ok i n which this commandment is to be
found wolf chi l dre n have become scarcer and
the peop l e wiser
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MA GI C
TH E
I
T
was proclaimed throughout the kingdom
of G ranada that the king had decided o n
marrying
The news was first told to the
court barber then to the night watch m en and
i n the third p l ace to the o l dest woman i n the
city of G ranada
The barber to l d a ll h is custo mers who agai n
told all their friends The nigh t watchme n i n
crying the hour proclaimed the news in a l oud
voice so that al l the maidens were kept awake
by thinking o f the news and by day they
were being constantly rem i nded by al l the old
d u e fi a s that the king had res o lved to marry
After the news had become somewhat sta l e
Wh o is the king
th é questio n was a sked
g o ing to marry
To which the barber m a de
“
reply that pro b ably
he would marry a
”
woman
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TH E
MA GI C MI R R O R
27
.
A
woman exclaimed his hearers
Why
!
what else could he marry
“
N ot al l w o men are worthy the name
“
answered the barber
S ome m o re resemble
the unbaptized of whom I say a ber n u ncz o
“
!
B ut what mean yo u good frie nd
de
“
I s not the king to
m a nd e d his customers
fi nd a woman fo r wife i n our land of Spain
H e would
replied the barber
with
greater ease find the reverse ; but to find a
woman worthy to be his wife I shall have
great trouble
“
What y o u ! exclaimed all of them
What
have you got to do with providing the king
9
with a wife
“
I am under royal licence remember sai d
“
he of the razor ; fo r I am the only man i n
the kingdom perm itted to rub the royal fea
tures I am the possessor of the magic mirro r
also i nto which if any woman not being
thoroughly good shall l ook the b l e m ishes on
her character will appear as so many spots on
i ts surface
I s this one of the condi tions
asked al l
This is the sole conditi o n replied the
barber placing his thumbs in the armho l es of
h is waistcoat and l ooki ng very wise
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28
MA GI C MI R R O R
TH E
.
!
”
B ut is there no l imit as to age
they
again inquired
“
A ny wo m an from eighteen years upwards
is eligible said the possessor o f the mirror
Then you will have every wo m an i n
G ranada c l aiming the righ t to be queen ! all
exclaimed
B ut first of all they wi l l have to j ustify
their c l aim for I will not take any woman at her
word N o she wil l have to gaze into the mirror
with me by her side continued the barbe r
The sole conditio n imposed o n th o se who
desired to become ! ueen o f G ranada was made
known and was m uch ridiculed as may naturally
be supposed ; but strange to say no w o man
applied to the barber to have a look into the
mirror
Days and weeks went by but th e k ing was
no nearer getting a wife S o me generous ladies
would try and prevail o n their lady friends to
make the trial but none seemed ambitious of
the h o nou r
T he king be it known was a very handsome
man and was beloved by all his subj ects fo r his
many virtues ; t herefore it was surprising that
n o ne O f the lovely ladies w h o attended court
shou l d try to become his wife
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MA GI C MI R R OR
TH E
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M any excuses and exp l anations were given
S ome were already engaged to be marri ed
others professed themselves too proud to enter
the barber s S hop whi l e others a s sured their
friends that they had reso l ved on remaining
S i ngle
The l atter seem to have been c l everer i n
their excuses for it was soon o bservab l e that no
man in G ranada wou l d marry assigning as a
reason fo r this that u nti l the king was suited
they would not think of marrying ; th o ugh the
real cause m a y have been due to the objection
o f the ladies to look into th e mirror
The fathers o f families were much annoyed
at the apparent want of female ambition i n their
daughters while the m oth ers were strangely
silent on the m atter
E very m orning the king w o uld ask the barber
if any y o ung lady had ventured o n looking
i nto the m irror ; but the answer was always
—
the same that many watched his s h O p to see
if others went there but none had ventured in
“
e x claimed the
A h G ranada G ranada l
king ;
hast thou no daughter to O ffer thy
!
king
I n this A lha m bra did my predecessors
enj oy the company of their wives ; and am I to
be denied this natura l comfort
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MA GI C MI RR OR
TH E
0
3
R oya l
.
“
master said th e barber i n those
days the magic m irror was u nknown and n o t
so much required
M en then only studied
the arts but now is science added to their
studies
“
Y ou mean then asked the king that an
i ncrease in know l edge has done n o good
“
I mean more than that continued the
barber ; I mean that people are worse than
they used to be
G o d is great ! is what these walls pro
c l aim to know is to be wise urged th e king
“
N ot always sir said the barber ; for the
maj o rity of men and w o men i n the present know
too much and are no t to o wise a l though so m e
deem them wise for being cunning There is
as great a distance between wisdom and cu n
ning as there is between the heavens and the
earth
“
“
B arber shouted the king thou shalt get
me a wife bright as the day pure as dew and
—
good as gold o ne who shall not be afraid to
loo k into thy magic mirror
“
“
S ir replie d the barber
the only magic
about my mirror is that which the evil con
sciences o f the ladies of G ranada conj ure up
The simple shepherdess on the mountain side
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TH E
2
3
MA GI C MI R R OR
.
wou l d show as many stains on its surface as
there might be b l emishes on her heart
“
S ir replied the maiden w e are a ll S inners
I n the s ight of G o d they say ; but I am a poor
shepherdess and surrou nded by my flock I
have known what it is to be loved for when
the sheep have perceived danger they have
come to me for protection The wild fl owers
have been my only ornament the sky almost
my only roof and G o d my truest and best
friend Therefore I fear no t to look i nto that
magic mirror ; for although I have no ambition
to become queen yet a m I not lacking i n that
pride which is b o rn of the desire to be good
S aying which she walked up to the mirro r
and gazed i nto it blushing slightly perhaps at
the sight of her own beau ty which before S h e
had only see n portrayed in the still bro o k
The court ladies surrounded her ; and when
they s a w that the magic mirro r showed no
stains on its surface they snatched it from her
and exclaimed
—
o
i
There is n magic in t a cheat has been
on
us
u
t
p
B ut the king said
N o ladies ; you have only yourselves to
thank H ad you be en a s innocent as this
.
”
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TH E
MA GI C MI R R O R
.
shepherdess who is going to be my queen
you would no t have dreaded looking into the
m irror
A fter the marriage the barber was heard to
say that as the magi c mirror had now los t its
Virtue who cou l d tell b u t wha t th i s charm
might be restored to G ra nad a
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TH E B L A CK S L A VE
T
.
H E R E was once a princess who had a
black man slave
Princess said the black slave one day I
know that yo u l o ve the good C o unt of Y a nno
ve r y much but you cannot marry him for he is
!
already married Why not then m arry me
“
I love as you say the Count of V anno
and I kno w that he is married ; but my father
is a ve ry powerful king a nd he can render his
”
marriage void A S for you continued th e
“
princess
I would rather marry the lowest
born man of my o w n race than a nigger
R emember princess for how many years
—
I have been your true slave how I used to
look after you when you were a child Did I
!
n o t once save you from the fangs o f a wolf
”
Y ou need n o t tell me
answered the
“
princess
that you l o ve me as s l aves love
their sup eriors ; but should you ever speak
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TH E
B
LA CK
S L A VE
35
.
again about ma rrying me I wil l te ll my royal
father
I f you mention the love that slaves generally
have to their owners I wil l not contradict you ;
but I think that sometimes masters are more
u nworthy the love of their S l aves than the
”
slaves are entitl ed to the l ove of their masters
said the slave
Y ou bel o ng to us by p urchase or by i n
heritance continued the pri ncess and we do
not belong to you The white man gains the
love of the lady of his choice by deeds of arms ;
he bears on h is lance the banner emb r oidered
by his l ady love and as a true knight he makes
”
verses in her honour
Chivalry as you understand it is to me
a fable ; fo r if one o f y o u r pale faced knights
risk his life it is on behalf of his family pride
although he may mention his lady love s name
with h is dying breath ; but if a slave lay down
his life for his master or mistress it is only
”
reckoned a part of his duty urged the slave
I command you not to S peak to me again
“
like this said the princess or I wil l have yo u
severely punished
The poor S lave was very sorrowfu l when h e
heard the princess whom he loved so dearly
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3
TH E
B
LA CK
S L A VE
.
threaten to have him punished
Death is the
leveller o f all ranks and o f all races said h e ;
“
the dust of the dead white man and of the
nigger are alike ; in death the king is no more
than the beggar I will run away fr o m this
palace and seek refuge in the n orthern provinces
where if the c l imate be c o lder they say the
hearts of the people are warmer
—
T hat very night did Mo b a r e c for that w a s
—
the name of the s l ave l eave th e pa l ace of his
lady l ove the beautiful banks of the G uadal
uring
D
u iv ir and his favourite orange groves
q
t h e day tim e h e hid i n the caves on the
mountain s id e s a nd as soon as night set in h e
would continue h is j ourney
When he had been travelling l ike this for
some weeks and as he w a s mak i ng his way
through a dark forest h e saw a brilli a nt light
in the distance ; and as he was very hungry
h e hoped tha t it might be fro m some house
where he might get food and rest
A s he
walked on he discovered that the l ight was
n o t from a house but that it was caused by
a large b o nfi r e a rou nd which some men and
w o m en were seated
F earing that he might be in th e neighbour
hood of ro bbers he took the precauti o n of
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TH E
B
LA CK
S L A VE
37
"
.
approaching by hiding behind the trees ; an d
when he got near enough to the group to see
them plainly, he O bserved that close to the fi re
there was a very o l d woman stand ing with her
arms over the fire and holding a child which
screamed as if it w ere bein g burned
Mo ba r e c though t that the child was going
to be roasted and did not know that what h e
saw was simply the act of disenchantment
which w a s being carried out by the wise
w o man of the Village on a child born with the
evil eye
A pproaching still nearer he heard the crone
mutter some words which Mo ba r e c imagined
t o b e used i n order to stifle the piteous cries of
the child
The crone suddenly c o mmenced shrieking
and j umping over the fire while the men and
w o men w h o surrounded her beat the air with
big sticks which is done whe n th e evil one
is supposed to be leaving the body of the
child
J ust at this moment Mo b a r e c happened to
show himself from behind the tree when h e
w a s immediately obser v ed by the wise woman
who directed all eyes to him ; and their horror
can be easily imagined when i t is said that
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8
3
TH E
Mb
B L A CR
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S L A VE
.
was the first nigger who had ever
v isited th e northern parts o f Spain
Mo ba r e c o n perceiving that he was seen
thought he would smile i n order to S h o w them
that he was a friend ; but this m ade h im l o ok
all the m o re terrible by the gla r e of the fire
and thi nking that he was the evil one that had
j ust left the body of the child they first of all
crossed themselves and then ran t o wards
Mo b a r e c with their bludgeons w ho without
more ado took to his feet and was soon l o st
i n the darkness of the forest
H aving baffled his pursuers Mo b a r e c sat down
to rest and to think over what he had seen
“
I suppose said he to himself that these
people were tryi ng to make a king by burning
a white child until he became black for I could
see that they were not g o ing to eat it I have
been told that i n some parts they wil l o nly
have black ki ngs and I am certainly in o ne o f
these parts
M using over this idea for a long time he at
la s t fell asleep and dreamt that he had arrived
at a large city where the people had cro wded
t o m eet h im and that he was placed on a
magnificent throne crowned king and had
married his dear princess
o
a rec
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TH E B
40
LA CK S LA VE
.
seeing him advance they dropped their baskets
and would have run away if fear had not
deprived them of the power to do so
“
B e not afraid S aid the nigger for I am
your king H itherto you have had to work fo r
the rich but now the rich S hal l work fo r you
There shall be no poverty i n m y kingdom no
hunger and no S orrow Bad husbands shall
take th e place of the asses at the mills and
quar r elsome wi v es shall have a borough to
themselves G o continued he addressing the
crowd
and tell the i nhabitants of the city
that I am approaching
“
shouted his hearers
L ong l ive the king !
L ong live the good king who will free us
from our qua rrelsome wives ! exclaimed the
“
m en ;
A nd who wil l send our crue l husbands
to rep l ace the asses at the mills ! shrieked the
women
L ong live the king wh o wil l banish
poverty
cried all together
H aving given vent to their enthusiasm they
hurried O ff to th e c ity a nd the good ne ws s o on
spre ad that a new king was coming and that
they would al l be rich
Then they prepare d a r i chly caparisoned
white mule with tinkling bells round its neck
and a cloth of gold on its back for the black
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TH E B
LA CK
S L A VE
1
4
.
king s use and t hey went out i n a body to meet
him
H a v ing approached Mo b a r e c they prostrated
themselves before him and were at first very
much afraid ; but hearing h im address the mule
in a grand speech they rose and listened
”
“
S ir said Mo b a r e c to the mule
I fee l
highly flattered by this ovation and I confer
on you here the post of pri ncipa l minister
which you richly deserve for the sagacity you
have shown in preserving silence when a l l want
to m ake themse l ves heard Y ou will see that
the poor are provided fo r and that they pro
vide for the wants of their king and his chosen
ministers of which you are the chief People
“
excl aimed Mo b a r e c
behold your king an d
his ministe r ! A nd from this day fo rward let
every man and w o man in my king do m strive
to be as sure footed patient and silent as this
m y mi nister
I t must be confessed that the peop l e were
somewhat surprised at the turn events had
taken ; but as recently they had had a m o st
u njust chief minister they c o ntented them
selves with the know l edge that his successor
could not introduce any cruel measures
With similar ideas occupying them they
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TH E
2
4
B
LA CK S LA VE
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retraced their way to the city preceded by
their black king and his ch ief minister
A rrived at the pa l ace Mo b a r e c entered and
took his seat on the thro n e his chief minister
standing cl o se to the lowest step H e then
addressed the audience as follows
I make it known that the rich persons o f this
kingdom S hall if s o required give u p their wealth
but as
t o the poor who will then become rich
I would not that th o se who have hitherto been
poor should forget their duty to their more
unfortunate fellow creatures I declare that they
shall have to contribute not only to the main
his minis ters and the
t e na nc e of the king
state but also to the require m e nt s o f those at
whose expense they h ave th e m s e l v e s a c qu ir e d
riches I als o c o mmand that al l disputes S hall
be submitted to the superi o r wisd o m of my
chief mi nister without whose verbal c o nsent
it S hall be treasonable to have recourse to
blows ; and I further require o f my liege sub
c ts that th ey engage in n o war with neigh
e
j
b o u r ing states without tak i ng their wives to
baitle
T his speech was very much applauded and
the white mule being unaccust o med to the
surroundings c o m menced braying so loudly
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TH E
5
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o
B
got
a rec
LA CK S LA VE
43
.
from his throne and
up
L isten
to the voice of my minister ; he bids
o u all be silent while you pay him homage
y
Then one by one t hey passed before the
mu l e bowing to h im ; and when this ceremony
was finished Mo b a re c i nfo rmed them that all
real kings were of his col o ur but that he had
res o lved on marrying th e daughter o f ! isto
false ki ng of A ndalusia ; and therefore he com
m a n d e d t wenty o f his subj ects t o p roceed to
that kingdom and bring back with the m the
fair Pri ncess ! eyn wh ich was the name of the
princess he loved
“
I f they ask you what I am like say that
you have never see n one like m e and that my
wisdo m is only approached by that of my chief
”
m inister
said Mo b a r e c
A t the end of a m onth the twenty men
returned with the lovely princess who u nti l
her marriage day was lodged in another
palace
G reat preparati o ns were made for the occa
sion excepting in one borough of the city
which was deserted fo r it had been assigned to
all quarrelsome wives
The princess was naturally very anxious to
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TH E B
44
LA CK
S L A VE
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see her future husband but e tiquette forbade
her doing so O ften had she thought of her
runaway s l ave and l over A bsenc e had made
her fonder of him and little by littl e h e had
grown less b l ack to her imagination
A t last the wedding day a rrived
Mo b a r e c ,
attended by all h i s court proceeded to th e
princess s palace dressed i n magnificen t a p
pare l his strong black arms bare but with
sp l endid gold bracelets round them and a
belt of the same me ta l round h is waist H is
coat of mai l was interwoven with threads o f
gold ; but his heart required no gold to set it
O ff it was purity itself
A S soon as the princess saw him S h e recog
n iz e d her former slave
and hurrying to mee t
him threw her arm s round h is n eck exclaim
ing
I am not worthy to marry so good a man ;
but if y o u wil l have me I am yours
“
Princess exclaimed Mo b a r e c if I before
was thy S lave I am none the less so n o w ; for
si nce the first man w a s created beautifu l
woman has made all men captives I f I have
aught to ask of thee now tis that thy d o minion
over thy new subjects shall be as pleasant to
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TH E
F rom
B
LA CK S LA VE
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45
wise a king and good a queen the
people d erived great benefit ; disputes never
went beyon d the ears of the chief minister
and in the words of the immorta l barber a nd
“
poet of the city
the kingdom flourished
under the guid a nce of a mule ; which proves
that there a r e qualities i n the irrational be i ngs
which even wisest ministers would do well to
I m itate
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A L E GE N D O F S T B A R TH O L O
.
I
ME W
T
is a point of faith accepted by all devout
Portuguese that thirty three baths i n the
sea must be taken o n or before the 2 4 th of
A lthough the motive
A ugust of every year
m a y not seem to be very reasonable still the
result is of great advantage to th o se believers
w h o o ccupy th irty three days in taking the
th irty three baths fo r otherwise the m ajority
of them would never undergo any fo r m o f
ab l ution
That the demon is l oose on the 2 4th of
A ugust is an established fact among the c r e d u
lous ; and were it no t for the compact entered
into between St Bartholomew and the said
d e mon that all who have taken thirty three
baths during th e year should be free from his
talons the list of the condemned would be
much i ncreased
N ow there was a very powerful baron whose
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A LEGEND
8
4
OF S T
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B
A R THOL OME W
would wander the baron s onl y
daughter A li na
S he w a s possessed of all
the qualities menta l and physical which went
towards making the daughter of a feudal lord
desired in marriage by all the gallants of the
day ; a nd as she was heiress to l arge estates
these would have been considered a sufficient
prize w i thout the said qualities But A lina for
all this was no t happy for she was enamoured of
a handsome chief who u nfo rtunately wore the
distinctive a l m e x ia which proved him to be
a Moor and conseque ntly not a fit suitor for
the daugh ter of a Christia n baro n
M y father she w o uld often soliloquize i s
kind to me and professes to be a Christian
M y l over as a follower of th e Prophet hates
my father b u t as a man he loves me F or
me h e says he wi ll do anything ; yet when I
ask h im to become a Christian h e answers me
that he will do so i f I can prevai l on my father
to so far conform with the Christian law as to
take the thirty three ba ths ; and th is my father
w ill not do Wha t am I to do
H e would
rather fight the demon than obey the saint
O ne day h o wever she res o lved on telling
her father about her courtship with the young
chief Al M u l i and of the on l y condition h e
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A LEGEND
OF S T
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B A R TH OL O
ME W
49
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made on which depended his becoming a
convert to Christianity which so infuriated the
baron that i n his anger he declared himself
willing to m eet the demon i n mortal combat
hoping thus to free the w o rld of h im and of
the necessity o f taking the thirty three baths
This S O much distressed A lina that when
during the afternoon of the sa m e day A l M u li
met her i n the arbour S h e disclosed to him her
firm resoluti o n of entering a convent a nd
spending the rest of her days there
”
“
T his sha ll not be ! cried A l M uli ; and
seizing her round the waist he lifted her on to
his shoulder sped through the baronial grounds
and having waded through the ditch placed
her on the albarda of h is horse and gall oped
away
A lina was so frightened that she could not
screa m and she S ilently resigned herself to her
fate trusting i n the h onour of her l o ver
The alcazar or palace of A l Muli was
situated on th e S panish side o f the frontier ;
and as they approached the principa l gate the
a lm o ca d e m
or captain of the guard hurried to
receive his master who instructed him to send
word to his m o ther that h e desired of her to
receive and l ook after A lina This done he
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LEGEND
OF S T
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B
A R THOL OME W
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“
assisted his bride elect to dism o unt and with
a veil hiding her lovely features S h e was ushered
by A l M uli s m other i nto a magnificently
furnished room and took a seat o n a richly
embroidered cushion called an almofada
T o h er future m o ther in law she related a ll
that referred to her conversati o n with her
father and how sh e had been brought away
from his castle ; and she further said that she
very much feared the baron w o uld su m mon al l
his numerous followers to rescue her
A l M uli s m o ther was a descendant of the
M o ors who first la n ded at A lg e z ir a s and from
them had descended to her that knowledge o f
the black art which has been peculiar to that
race She therefore replied that al though she
c o uld count on the resistance her a l m o g a v a r e s
would O ffer to the forces
o r garrison soldiers
still S h e w o uld do her utmost
o f the baron
to avoid a conflict S he then proceeded to
another roo m in which she kept her magic
m irror and having closed the door we must
le a ve her c o nsulting the oracle
T he baro n was n o t l o ng i n discoveri ng the
absence o f his daughter and he so storm ed
ab o ut the place that his servan ts were afraid to
come near him
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A
L
EGEND
OF S T
B
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A R THOL OME W
I
S
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I n a short tim e however his reason s eemed
to return to him and he sat down on his o l d
chair and gave way to grief when he saw that
his A lina s cushi o n was vacant
“
M y child — m y only child and love s o bbed
the old man
thou hast left thy father s
cast l e and g o ne with th e accursed M oor i nto
the hostile l an d of Spai n O h that I had
been a good Christian and l o o ked after my
daughter better ! I have braved the orders of
g o o d S t Bartholomew ; I would not take th e
thirty th ree baths in the sea and no w I am
wretched
The baron suddenly became aware of the
presence of a distinguished and patriarchal
looking stranger w h o addressed h im thus
Y ou m o rtals o nly think O f S t Barbara
when it thunders N ow that the st o rm of
s o rrow has burst on you you repr o ach yourself
fo r not having thought o f me and o f my in
But I see that you are penitent and
s tr u c tio n s
if you will d o as I tell yo u you will regain
y o ur daughter
I t was S t Bartholomew himself w h o was
speaking and the baron for the first ti m e i n
his life shook in his shoes with fear and S hame
R everend saint at l ast ejaculated the baron
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LEGEND
A
2
5
OF S T
.
B
A R TH O L OME W
.
help me in this my ho u r of need and I will
promise you anything— and what is more I
will keep my promises
A nd you had better do so continued the
saint ; for not even S atan has dared to break
his compact with me Y ou don t know how
—
terrible I can b e !
here the saint raised his
voice to such a pitch that the castle shook
“
O nly let me catch you p l aying false with me
—
and I ll I ll — I d o n t know what I ll do !
M ost reverend saint and father you have
only to co m mand me and I will o bey mur
mured the affrighted baron — I will indeed
G o od venerable S t Bartholo m ew only give me
—
back my daughter that is all I ask
Y o ur daughter is now i n the hands of
A l M uli her lover who dwells in a stronger
castle than yours and who moreover has a
mother versed in the black art I t is no good
your trying to regai n her by the force at y o ur
—
disp o sal ; you must rely on me only on me
asked the saint
Do yo u understand
Y es dear g o od noble and venerable saint
I do understand you ; but what am I to d o
S i m ply follow m e and say not a word as
”
you g o co m manded the patriarch
The baron did as he was told and out from
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A
LEGEND
OF S T
B
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A R THOL OME W
53
.
the castle the t w o went unseen by any one
The baron soon perceived that he was hurryi ng
through the air and he was s o afraid of falling
that he cl osed his eyes A l l at once he felt
that his feet were t o uching the ground ; and
looking aroun d him what was h is delight
t o fi nd
himself close to his dear daughter
A lina
—
F ather dear father !
exclaimed A lina ;
how did you c o me here so quickly for I
!
A nd how did you
have only j ust arrived
pass by the guards
The baron was going to tel l her but th e
saint in a whisper enj o ined silence on thi s
point ; and the baron now noticed that the
saint was i nvisib l e
N ever m ind dear child how I came here ;
it is en o ugh that I a m here replied her father
A nd I intend ta k ing you home with m e dear
The castle is so lonely without you
A lina
and the old man s o bbed
A t this mo m ent Al muli entered the chamber
and seeing A lina s father there he thought
there had been treachery among his guards ; so
stri k ing a go ng that was near him a number of
armed men rushed in
H ow now traitors ! said he
H ow have
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A LEGEND
54
OF S T
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B
A R THOL OME W
.
you been carefu l of your duties when you have
allowed th is stranger to enter unobserved
The soldiers pr o tested their innocence unti l
at last A l m uli commenced to think that there
m ust be some secret entrance into his castle
“
S earch everywhere
screamed the infuri
“
ated M o o r
H ave the guard d o ubled at all
the entrances and send me up the captai n
A l mul i s i nstructions were carried out and
the captain reported that all was safe
said the M o or addressing the
O ld man
baron I have thee now i n my power Th o u
wert the ene m y o f my noble race To thy blind
rage my predecessors owed their d o wnfall i n
Portugal Thy bitter hatred carried thee to
acts of vengeance Thou art now in my power
but I will n o t harm o ne of thy grey hairs
M oor replied the baro n with a proud
look can th e waters of the M anzanares and
of the G uadalquivir j oin
No
A nd so can
not and may not thy accursed race j oin with
T hy race conquered o u r people and in
o urs !
rising agai nst thine we did but d esp o il the
despoiler
Thy logic is as baseless as thy fury was
wont to be answered the Moor
Th o u gh
hundreds of miles separate the Manzanares
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A LEGEND
6
5
OF S T
.
B
A R THOL OME W
.
A l - M ul i
But not a soldier moved and when
was about to approach them to see what was
the m atter with them his scimitar dropped from
his hand and he fell on the ground
What charm hast thou brought to bear on
me bold baron screamed the M oor that I
!
am thus rendered powerless
A lina if thou
lovest me give me but that gob l et full of water
fo r I am faint
A l ina would have done as her lover bade
her but j ust then the figure of the venerable
S t B artholomew was seen with the cross i n his
right hand
M oor and infidel said the saint
thou
hast mocked at th is symbol of Christiani ty
and thou h ast done grievous inj ury to this
Christian baron ; but tho u hast been c o ns c ie n
tious in thy i nfidelity
N or am I sl o w to
recognize i n thy race a knowledge O f the arts
and sciences not yet extended to the Christian
Y et for al l this thou art but an i nfidel
Let
me but baptize thee with the water thou
wo ul dst have drunk and all will yet be
well
“
N 0 S ir saint answered the M oor
Whe n
i n my castle strangers thus treat me rudely I
can die but not bend to their orders I f yonder
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A
L
EGEND
OF S T
B
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A R THOL OME W
57
.
baron is a true Christi a n why has he not taken
the thirty three baths enjoine d by thee
A nd if my father do take them wilt thou
“
as thou didst promise me said A lina be
converted to the true faith
“
The M o or breaks not his promise A s the
golondrina returns to its nes t i n due seas o n so
the man of honour returns to his promise
T hen turning to the baron he demanded to
know if he wou l d c o mply with the saint s
i nstructions
“
Y es answered the baron ; I have promised
the g o od saint everything and I will fulfil my
pro mises A l M uli if yo u love m y daughter
love her faith al so and I wi l l then have
regained not only a daughter but a son i n my
old age
The promise of the M oor is sacred said
A l Muli
Baptize me and my household ;
and do thou go o d baron intercede fo r me with
the venerable sai nt fo r I like not this l owly
posture
M y dear A l M u l i sobbed A lina for joy
the Cross and the Crescent are thus united i n
the mightier o cean of l o ve and goodwill M ay
the two races wh o m one G o d has made be
reconciled ! A nd to morrow s su n must not set
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5
A
LEGEND
OF S T
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B A R TH OL O
ME W
.
before we al l comply with the condition imposed
by S t Bartholomew
The saint was rejoiced with the work he had
that day d one and declared that the churches
he liked men to co nstruct are those built within
them where the incense offered is prayer and
A s for the baths they
the work done love
are but desirab l e auxiliaries said he
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WH I
TE CA T O F £ 6 7 7 24
.
F
RO M
the gates of the pal ace situated o n
a gentle emine nce in the vicinity of E cija
down to the banks of the G enil the ground was
covered with olive trees ; and the wild aloes
fo rmed a natural and strong fence around the
property of the White Cat of E cij a whose
dating back to the days of Saracenic
o rigin
rule was u nknown to the liberated S paniard
There was a great m ystery attaching to the
palace and its occupants ; and alth o ugh the
servants of the White Cat were to all appear
still as they were deaf
a n ce s human beings
and dumb and would no t or could not u nder
stand signs the neighbours had not been able
to disc o ver the secret or mystery
The palace was a noble building after the
style of the alcazar at Toledo but not so large
and the garde n at the rear was laid out with
many small lakes round which at short dis
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TH E
WHI TE CA T
OF
E GI 7 A
.
tances stood beautifu l ly sculptured statu es of
young men and w o m en who see m ed to be
looking sorrowful l y into the water O nly the
brain and hand of an exceptionally gifted artist
could have so approached perfection as to
make the statues look as if alive A t night
strings of smal l l amps were hung round th e
l akes and from the interior of the palace pro
c e e d e d strains of sweet but very sad music
Curiosity had long ceased to trouble th e
neighbours as to the mysterious W hite Cat
and her household and with the exception of
crossing themselves w h e n they passed by the
grounds they had given up the affair as inc o m
prehe nsible
Those h o wever w h o had seen the Wh ite
Cat said that sh e was a beautiful creature ; her
coat was like velvet and her eyes were lik e
pearl s
O n e day a k night i n armour and mounted
on a coa l black charger arrived at the principal
hos telry i n E cij a and on his shield he bore
for his coat of arms a white cat rampant and
underneath the device I nvincible
H aving partaken of some slight repast he
put spurs to his horse and galloped i n the
direction of the palace of th e White Cat ; but
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WHI TE CA T
TH E
O F E CI 7 A
6
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I
as he was not s een to return th rough the town
the people supposed that h e had left by some
other road
The White Cat was seen next day wa l king
about in the grounds but she seemed more
sorrowful than usual
I n an o ther m onth s time there came another
knight fully equipped a n d m ounted o n a grey
charger O n his shield he als o displayed a
white cat with the device I wi n or die
He
also gall o ped O ff to th e palace or alcazar and
was not seen to return but next day the White
Cat was still more sorrowful
I n another month a fresh knight appeared
H e was a handsome youth and his bearing
was so manly that a crowd collected H e Wa s
fully equipped but on h is s h ield he displayed
a si m ple red cro s s
H e pa rto ok of some food
and then cantered out of the town with his
lance at rest H e was seen to approach the
palace and as soon as he thrust O pen the gate
with h is lance a terrific roar was heard and
then a S heet of fire flashed from the palace
d o or and they saw a horrid dragon whose
long tail as it lashed the air prod u ced such a
wind that it seemed as if a ga l e had sudden l y
sprung up
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62
WHI TE
TH E
CA T O F E C1 7 A
.
B ut the gallant knigh t was not d aunted and
eagerly scanned the dragon as i f to see where
he might strike h im
S uddenly it was seen that the dragon he l d
the White Cat u nder its tal o ns S O that the
K night of the Cross i n charging the dragon had
to take care n o t to strike her S purring his
horse on he never pulled up till he had trans
fixed the dragon with his lance and j umping
off the saddle he drew his sword and cut off
the monster s head
N o sooner had h e done this than he was
surrounded by ten en o rm ous serpents who
tried to coil rou nd hi m ; but as fast as they
attacked h im he strangled them
Then the serpents turned i nto twenty b l ack
with fiery beaks an d they tried to
v ultures
pick out his eyes ; but with his trusty blade
h e kept them off and one by o ne he killed
them all and then found himse l f surrounded
by forty dark haired and dark eyed l o vely
maide ns who w o uld have thr o wn thei r ar m s
around him but that he fearing their intenti o ns
were evil kept the m off ; when l o oking o n the
ground he saw the White Cat panting and
heard her bid him strike
H e waited no l onger but struck at them and
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64
WHI TE CA T
TH E
O F E C1 7 A
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was holding a banquet she said to h im M udi
Ben R aschid the crescent of th e H oly Prophet
—
i s waning in thy family thy daughter is a
renegade !
Then he was very much annoyed and ex
claimed that he would his palace and h is riches
were made over to the enemy of mankind and
I turned i nto a cat than that so great a stain
should fall on his family N O sooner had he
fi nish ed speaking than he fell dead and his
wicked wife also and I was turned i nto a cat ;
m y lover H aro un and all my young friends
were turned i nt o stone and my servants were
stricken deaf and du m b Many a bra ve knight
has been here to try and deliver me but they
all failed because they only trusted i n them
selves and were therefore defeated B ut thou
gal l ant knight didst trust more on the Cross
than on thyself and thou hast freed me I
am therefore the prize o f thy g o od sword ;
deal with m e as thou wilt
The K night of the Cros s assured her that
h e came fr o m Co m p o s te l la where it was con
s id e r e d a duty to rescue maidens in distress
and that th e highest reward c o veted was that
of d o ing their duty H e had i n various parts
o f the world been fort unate enough in freeing
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WHI TE
TH E
65
CA T O F
thers and h e ha d sti l l more work before h im
H e trusted that th e love l y M izpah might long
b e spared to H aroun and saluting her he
gall o ped O ff
T hen w a s the wedding held at which a ll the
people from E cij a attended and the bride
groom rising wished prosperity to the good
knight S t J ames of Co m p o s te l la w h o had been
the means of bringing about so m u ch happiness
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TH E
CH UR CH
CL O
AN D
A U C TI O N E E R
WN
OF
VI L L A R
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D
OWN
the s l opes of the neighbouring
mountains were heard th e stirring sounds
o f th e bagpipes and drums an d at short i nter
va l s a halfpenny rocket would explode in mid
a ir
streaking the blue sky with a wreath of
smoke
N earer and nearer came the sounds and the
vil l agers stood at thei r cottage doors waiting
for the musicians to pass N ext to the firing
o f rockets n o thi ng can be more heart stirring
than the martial sound of the pipes and drums
T he big drum was o n this occasion played
most master l y by the auctioneer and cl o wn
called J osé Ca r c u nd a o r
o f the parish church
J oseph the H unchback
J osé Ca r c u nd a was dressed i n his gala
—
uniform cocked hat scarlet coat with rich
old
lace
embroidery
white
trousers
and
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TH E
CHUR CH A UCTI ONEER
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67
E TC
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s l ipp ers H e was a clever man an d
c ould take many parts in the church p l ays acted
i n public for the benefit of the faithful S ome
times he was H erod a t oth ers S t J oseph ;
again he would appear as J udas and then as
S o l omon ; but i n thi s l atter capacity he h ad
give n some offence to the V icar by appearing
on the stage under the i nfluence of d rink
eaknesses to wh ich human flesh
O f a ll the W
i s heir n one is more despised i n Portugal than
drunkenness
Wine is emblematical of that
stream which flowed from the Cr u c ifi e d o n
Cal vary and the abuse of such a precious gift
is not easi l y overl ooked
Within the narrow bounds of their primitive
w a y of thi nking are cast some of the fi nest
traits i n the character of the Portuguese
peasantry although i n many instances to this
very same source must be attributed some of
their peculiar ideas as to fate
They are
fatal ists to a very great extent
I n R oman Catholic countries the S abbath
i s remembered by attending mass i n th e
morning and by amusements i n the afternoon
N o public house with its glittering lights within
with its brigh t and cosy fire and with its
grand display of mirrors and pictures ; invites
m orocco
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HUR CH A UCTI ON E E R A ND
TH E
C
th e peasant to step i nside and gossip abo u t his
neighbours while S ipping the genia l j uice of
the grape or the fi r e wa ter that gives to the
eye a supernatural brightness and to th e
tongue a rush of foolish language T here i s
no l a w against such houses but there is a
popular prej udice
J osé Ca r c u nd a w a s heard to say after h e
had been guilty of dri nking to excess when
attired as S o l omon that his faithfu l dog Ponto
refused to accompany him home on that
occasion ; A nd as the creature stared at me
“
said he
I could see shame and sorrow
mingling i n his eyes
There c o mes the Ca r c u nd a exclaimed the
Vi ll age belle Belmira
H e is half h idden by
the drum ; but to morr o w w e sha l l see him at
early mass wh e n the good S t A nthony i s to
be raised to the rank of major
“
Y es said her lover M anoel ; and it will
be a grand sight for the priest S howed me th e
St
Ga z el l e i n wh ich is the king s warrant
A nthony s regi m ent is to arrive to morr o w a nd
after the image has don ned the uniform the
soldiers will prese nt arms th e bombs wil l
explode ; rockets wil l b e fired and the band
will play
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CL O WN
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VI
LL A R
69
.
th e musicians entered the Village
heralding the grand entertainment to be held
next day the people cheered them heartily
situated on
a nd followed them t o the church
the top of a smal l hill around which bonfires
were i n course of preparation for the night
A cart laden with wa ter me l ons an o ther with
a pipe of green wine and a few stal ls where
s w e e ts tu ff was exposed
for sale formed the
principal feature of the fair
The door of th e church was thrown open
a nd th e main altar was lit up with many l ights
The chapels on each side were festooned with
garlands of flowers ; but that dedicated to the
miracu l ous S t A nthony j unior maj or i n the
l o th regi m ent of infantry was the grandest of
all with its magnificent S ilk draperies and the
altar decorated with flowers
J osé Ca r c und a was a proud man that day
H e had presided over all the arrangements
and they had given great satisfaction B elmira
had set the other girls the example of showing
him their gratitude by kissing him H e was
so overwhelmed by thei r caresses that he tried
to get clear of them lest his wife might be
j ealous ; but it was of no use trying to free
himself for they made him sit on a stone bench
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TH E
70
CHUR CH A UC TI ONEER
AND
and handing h im a guitar reques ted him
e x temporize some verses
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l a d i es m ine I l o v e th e wi ne;
B ut m u s i c I l o ve b etter ;
S till s tr o ng e r far th a n s o ng d i v i ne
I l o v e th e l a d i e s b etter
Fa i r
to
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l o v e th e fi el d s wi th fl o wer ets b r igh t
T h e bi r d s wi th ca r o l m err y ;
l o v e th e
,
I c annot sing j ust now ; I am t o o
happy exclaimed the hunchback
I fee l like
the rich m iser of S anti l lana when he recol l ected
that he would be buried at the e x pense of the
parish S o as my helpmate J oanna come not
here I care not how long th e troop s delay i n
arriving A h J oanna is too good for me as
the runaway cri m inal said of the gallows ; and
the older she gets the more I recognize it !
Y es J oanna i s to o good for me and for thi s
—
world ; but we don t make ourse l ves no w e
don t do that
H ere J osé Ca r c u nda S hook his head very
wise l y and looked at h is slippered feet with
some pardonable pride
“
L ook you here said one of his fair com
panions you are Very stupid to day you will
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TH E
2
7
HUR CH A UC TI ONEER
C
A ND
and I will obey so l ong as you p l ace no t my
eternal happiness i n j eopardy
“
The saints forbid answered the student
that I should ask you to do anything but what
a Christian man shou l d do ! N o friend J osé
my errand is indeed a strange and sad one ;
but I feel that I must be as true to (with your
leave) a mule as my professio n requires me to
be to a human being
What ! ex c l aimed I are you u nder some
spell som e wicked enchantment that you make
promises to (with you r excellency s leave) a
mu l e which is the accursed anima l since the
d ays of B ethlehem
N O good friend continued the sorrowful
student ; I am under no spell but u nder a v o w
for I have promised to convey some sad news
to (with your leave ) that mouse coloured mule
of yours and I feel that I must break it gently
to her
said I you see before you a man
who knows not the difference between the
when they are
ER
Cr edo and the P O MHOM
written ; and though I have heard say that if
you want to see thieves you must get i nside
a prison and look at the passers b y sti ll a m I
not i nclined to think that if you desire to see
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CL O WN
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VI LLA R
73
.
knaves you mus t l ook in at the wi ndows of th e
university M y mule (with your e x cellen cy s
permission) is but a mule and has no kn o w
ledge o f sorrow or of language ; therefore o f
what avai l to speak to her
Y o u are much mistaken answered th e
s tudent who now had tears i n his eyes
for it
i s well known that even the irrati o na l animals
have feelings and they have been heard to
speak G ood friend grant me my request for
a s I said before I am under a v o w
H ave your way dear sir said I ; but if
the animal bites you blame not me S he is
but a stubborn thing at the best of times
The si x mu l es were tied o ne to the other
and each had a big load of pots and pans
They were standing i n the m iddle o f the road
with their gay trappings and bells about them ;
and as I looked at the mouse coloured one I
wondered what the student could have to say
to her and h o w he would say it ; but as you
know these men w h o frequent the u niversity
are so learned that they can repeat the Cr ed o
backwards way which is the great secret i n the
black art
“
The student having obtained my perm i s
s ion
to speak to the mouse coloured mule
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HUR CH A UCTI ON E E R A ND
TH E
74
C
approached her gradual l y excl aiming at i nter
vals Poor creature h o w sh e will take it to
h eart ! But I am under a v o w I must tell
—
her I must ; but it is so painful
S enhor I exclaimed you remind me of
the A l caide of M ontij o who hesitated to
approach his mother in l a w until S h e was
gloved What you have to say that say an d
let me go my way
“
U nthoughtful man ! cried the studen t ;
littl e yo u wot of the sad news I have to break
to that poor creature ! To you a mu l e is bu t
a four legged creature the cathedral bell but
a thing of brass and the university but the
abode of the black art
Y ou are absolutely
ignorant S ir continued the student for which
you have much to be thankful for if you were
a student you wou l d not sel l earthenware pan s
and would therefore l ose the profit which you
n o w make
and were y o u a student you would
at thi s moment be all of a tremble for you
wou l d th e n know that we are at this presen t
mom ent standing over a frightfu l abyss that
wil l soon yawn to receive its prey
I was n o w terribly frightened lest the
student i n his calculations S h o uld have made
th e mistake of a minute so I rushed to the
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CL O WN
VI LLA R
OF
75
’
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foremost mule s O as to get h er to l ead th e way
out of the danger ; but the student prevented
—
me saying 7
N ot that way for you wi ll fal l into the p i t
L e t me first of al l whisper my news i nto the
mouse co l oured mule s ear and al l may yet be
well
H urry then said I or e l se We S ha l l al l
be l ost
I t is a very good thing to be i n a h u rry
when you kno w what to do answered the
student ; but we must be cautious Therefore
step lightly that w a y until you reach yonder
lofty tree and get up it ; but before doing so
fill your pockets with stones
“
I can assure you that I was not long i n
carrying out the student s instructi o ns and
never h ave I trod so lightly on the ground as
I did that day The student as soon as h e
saw me half way up the tree shouted out
H ere it c o mes ! O h this is awfu l — j ust as I
to l d her all about it ! O h dear oh dear !
I no w noticed that the student was taking
long jumps in the direction of the tree up
which I had c l imbed a nd at every j ump h e
would ca l l out S hut your eyes or yo u w il l
become blind
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6
7
TH E
CHUR CH A UCTI ON E E R A ND
Then I heard a most dreadful noise as if
the end of the world had come ; but I could
sti ll hear the student crying out S hut your
eyes good friend or you will be b l inded
“
I have never been so terrified either before
o r since that day and I w a s also in consider
ab l e pain as the stones which I had placed i n
the pockets of my pants had with climbing
almost sunk i nto me
A fter having kept my eyes c l osed for some
time I ventured o n opening them and then I
saw a S ight which told m e I was a ruined man
M y mules were rolling about i n th e dust and
all my pots and pans were wrecked Th e
mouse coloured mule moreover S eemed to be
demented ; she ro l led and writh ed so that it
seemed as if she were in awful distress and
there was no doubt but that S h e had dragged
the others down with her
“
S uddenly I heard the voice O f the student
a nd looking down I saw that he was seated on
A h poor creature
a branch j ust below me
said he h o w terribly she feels the bereave
ment ! L e t us descend continued he for the
d anger is n o w over and we must as Christian
men render aid to the poor dumb animals
S aying which he slid down the tree and I after
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CL O I VN
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VI LLA R
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him as we ll as I cou l d ; and as soon as we agai n
got on th e road he bid me tr y to pacify th e
mouse co l oured mule whi l e he wou l d do h is
utmost to get the leader to get up
I saw that al l my earthenware was broken
and I gave myse l f up to grief
U n l ucky man
that I am ! I exc l aimed
What harm can I
have done to have deserved S O great a punish
ment and what S ir student did you say to yon
mu l e to make her act s o
w e of the
A l as friend J osé said he
educated c l as s understand resignation but to
such as you as well as to the irrational creation
is this Virtue denied Y ou bemoan the loss of
your earthenware ; an d yonder dumb creature
with perhaps a glimmering of humanity abou t
her but certain l y with more reason than you
deplores the l oss of a good and beloved parent
who on his death bed imp l ored me to inform
his daughter whe n I should ne x t see her that
he had died thinking of her and that he
bequeathed to her al l he had to give namely
the right of pasturage over a ll the l ands i n Spain
a nd Portugal and as much more as she coul d
snatch from her neighbour when in the stable
G ood bye fr i end J osé my v o w is accompl i shed
and I leave yo u i n peace with your mu l es
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7
TH E
CHUR CH A UC TI ONEER
,
An d
E TC
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with the broke n earthenware sa i d I
and with my fortunes blasted and with my
l egs bleeding ; and all because I met you
“
Say not so friend J osé for had it not
been for me you wou l d mos t assured l y have
been s wa l lowed up by the underground abyss
N o say not so nor yet complain of your mouse
coloured mule for to lament the death of a
father is but natural
The student walked quietly away and I
then set to making the mules get up which
after much trouble I succeeded i n doing ; but
noticing that the mouse coloured mule kept
her head on one side as if in pa i n I examined
her and on looking into her ear I discovered
th e end of a cigarette which that vile student
had purposely dropped i nto it
I no w knew
that I had been deceived ; bu t the cheat had
already disappeared so like a wise man I
trudged home sold my anima l s to pay my
debts and having nothing better to do I
married j oanna a nd became as you know th e
church clown and a u ctioneer
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8O
WI S E KI NG
TH E
OF
LE O N
.
them up into a bund l e and l eft the pal ace by
a secret door
F or seven days and nigh ts did the princes s
walk through the forest subsisting o n wild
fruit and the water fr o m the rivule ts
F or
seven days and nights did her father seek for
her and not finding her he sent for the barber
and told him that he must immediately go i n
search of the princess and if he did not bring
her back within a year he should die
A t the end of the seventh day the princess
was so tired that she could not continue her
j ourney ; and being afraid of the wol v es she
managed to c l imb on to the first branch of a
large oak tree and when there discovering that
the trunk was hollow she let herse l f slip down
i nto the hollow and there rested
S he had not been long i n her hiding p l ace
when her lover the barber approached sigh
i ng and saying to himself
“
Woe is me for I sha l l never fi nd the pri n
cess ! The re are so ma ny l ove l y damsels i n
C asti ll e and y e t I m u st fall i n love with the
king s only daughter
The pri ncess hearing him speak said i n a
disguised voice
“
Wo e is the king s daugh ter ! There are
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TH E
WI S E KI NG
OF
LE O N
8I
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so many g a l la ntS in S pai n and yet S h e must
fall i n love with her father s barber !
The barber was much surprised to hear this
apt rej o inder ; but he cou l d not find out fro m
whence the voice ca m e
H e l o oked abou t
everywhere and at last feeling s l eepy h e lay
down u nder the oak tree where the pri ncess
was hidden
I n a very S hort time the barber was fast
asleep ; and the princess hearing him breathe
heavily g o t o u t o f her hiding place mounted
the barber s horse which the king had give n
h im and r o de away with the barber s bundle of
clothes leaving her own i n its place
When S h e had r idden at fu l l speed for some
hours S h e dism o unted and opening the barber s
bundle she then disrobed herself and put o n
m ale attire
N ext day S h e had arrived i n the kingdom of
L eon and she rode up to the king s palace and
offered her services to the ki ng as barber
Th e king be ing m uch struck by the stately
bearing of the stranger willingly accepted the
proffered services
When the real barber awoke and found his
h orse and clothes gone he was much alarmed
but seeing a bu ndle close to h im he opened it
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G
82
TH E
WI S E KI NG
OF
LE ON
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’
and w a s delighted to find h is lover s dresses
in it
B eing a beardless youth and very handsome
he bethought him of putting on the princess s
fi nest dress and as his hair was very long and
curly acc o rding to the fashion of the day he
m ade a ve ry pretty w o man
F oot sore and weary he at last arrived at the
palace of the K ing of L eo n a n d was ad m itted
to the king s presence as the daughter o f the
neighb o uring K ing of Castille
The K ing o f L e o n was so charmed with th e
beauty of the new arriva l that he could n o t
S leep and so h e sent for the barber to whom
h e confided his love
The real princess was much astonished to
hear that he r lover w a s in the palace for she
guessed it was he i n female attire ; but sh e
kept quiet until her lover was as l eep i n bed
and then she sto l e into his room put back his
clothes and took her own away
N ext morning when the real barber aw o ke
and found h is magnifice nt dresses gone and his
male attire restored to him he was i ndeed sur
—
p rised but there was no help for it h e m ust
agai n become a man and a barber
The pri ncess put on her o w n c l othes and
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TH E
WI S E KI NG
LE O N
OF
.
h id in a cupboard of the ro o m When she saw
her lover leave the room and heard him g o
d o wn the staircase , she closed the door behind
him and finished her toilet
The king got up earl ier than usual fo r h e was
so anxious to see the new arrival ; but before
doing so he sent for th e barber to S have him
They looked everywhere fo r h im but with
out success ; and at last i n despair they went to
the bedroom o f the new arrival and knocking
at the door intimated the king s command that
S h e should pres ent herself
The pri ncess was ready ; and S lipping past
the courtiers presented herself before the king
Who are you
inquired the king
I am the daughte r of the K ing of Casti l le
as I infor m ed y o ur mercy yesterday ans w er ed
the princess
B ut where then is m y barber
rej oi ned
the king
What does one king s daughter know
about another king s barber ! said the princess
A t this moment the real barber presented
himse l f and humbly begged the king s pard o n
for having deceived him
“
But who are you
roared the king
Ar e
you a barber or a thief
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84
WI S E KI NG
TH E
OF
LE ON
.
I am the youngest son of a m arq u ess
“
answered the youth
a barb er by trade and
a ffi a n c e d
to the daughter of the K ing of
Castille
Then the pri ncess stepped forward and
explained everything to the king who was so
interested with what h e hear d that the princess
and the barber had to tell the tale over and
over agai n to him Then he said
“
I have been shaved by the K ing of Cas
tille s daughter and I have courted h is barber
I will not be again deceived T hey shall now
be man and wife fo r ever
This w a s the wise K ing of L eon
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TH E
CO B B L E R
O F B UR G O S
.
far from the G arden o f the Widows
in B urgos lived a cobbler who was s o
p o o r that he had not even s m iled fo r m any
years E very day he saw the widow ladies
pass his smal l S hop on th e way to and from the
garden ; but i n their bereavement it would not
have been considered correct fo r them to have
bestowed a glance o n him and they required
al l the m o ney they could scrape together after
making a m ple provision fo r their comfort
—
which as ladies they did not neglect to pay
for M asses for the repose o f the souls of their
husbands according to the doctrines of the
faith which was pinned on to the m in childhood
The priests however would sometimes b e
stow their blessing o n S ancho the cobbler ; but
beyond words he got nothing fro m the com
fo r te r s of the widows and of the orphans
Some of th e great families would have their
OT
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86
TH E
COB B
LER
OF B
UR G O S
.
boots so l ed by h im ; but bei ng very great a nd
rich people they deman ded long credit so that
he was heard to say that a rich man s money
was a l most as scarce as virtue
N ow one night when he was about to close
his shop a lovely young widow lady pushed
her way by h im into th e S hop and S itting on
the only chair i n the ro o m she bid him close
the door immediately as she had something to
say to him in c o nfidence
B eing a true Spa niard he showed no surprise
but obeyed orders and stood before the young
widow lady w ho after lo o king at him carefully
for a minute impl o red him to go upstairs and
see that the window s were secure and the
shutters barred and bolted
This done h e again stood before her when
S h e S howed signs of fear and requested him to
ensure against the doors being burst open by
piling what furniture he had against them and
against the S hutters and then assuring herself
that she was safe she exclaimed
“
Ah friend S ancho it is good to beware of
evil ton gues I come to you because I know
you to be honest and silent To night you
must sleep o n the roof ; get o u t through the
skylight and I will rest here
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88
TH E
C OB B LER
OF B
UR G OS
.
he w a S S e nt to prison unti l such time as Don na
G uiomar should feel disposed to pardon him
A t the end of a year Donna G ui o mar
o btained h is lib e rty but on the c o ndition that
h e S hould forthwith proceed to R ome and d o
penance wh ich w a s to count for the benefit o f
her deceased husband
This act of piety on her part was very much
approved of by the priests who required of
Sancho that during the whole of his pilgri m age
there he should n o t S have nor have his hai r
nor his nails cut H e was furthermore to
wear a suit of h o rse hair cloth next to his skin
and was to subsist solely on onions garlic maize
bread and pure water
B ut liberty is s o sweet that Sancho did not
m ind his hard fare and he went on his way t o
R ome repeating penitential prayers while his
hair and beard grew until h is head and face
were nearly hidden
A rrived at R o m e the peop l e wondered much
to see such a strange looking being ; but when
h e o p e ne d h is mouth to inquire his way to
S t Peter s so strong was the smell o f o ni o ns
and garli c that the people accusto m ed as they
were to these vegetables could no t stand against
it a nd as S ancho spok e i n a foreign tongue
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TH E
O
C BB
LER
OF B
UR G O S
.
they cou l d n ot have u nderstood him very
easily
A t last he met a priest w h o was kind enough
to listen to him and he said he would be
al l owed audience of t h e Pope next morning
with other pilgrims b u t that meantime he had
better confess what h is fault had been
Sancho recounted al l about the lovely yo ung
widow and the priest v ery properly ad m onished
him for having dared to frighten a lady whose
anxiety respecting her deceased husband was
quite enough o f sorrow with o ut having it added
to by being fo rcibly detained by a cobbler
“
I t is a pity said th e worthy priest that
you were not handed over to the i nquisit o rial
brothers for they would have burned you
before you were allowed to import the odour
o f all the fields of Span ish onions and garlic
i nto the E ternal City I t is a sign of the bad
times that are a p proaching when errant cobblers
are allowed to Vitiate the precincts of S t Peter s
with their pestilentia l breath To morro w you
—
wil l be regaled with a View mind only a view
of his holiness s toe and then you must
”
depart this city
Sancho recognized the truth of what the
good priest said and ha ving refreshed himself
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TH E
90
C BB
LER
UR G OS
OF B
.
with some more onions and a glass of water
h e lay down to sle ep behi nd one of the large
stone pillars and slept u ntil next m o rning when
the large be l l o f the cathedral awoke him H e
then hurried i n to th e presence of the Pope
nor had he much di fficulty i n so doing for th e
other pilgrims were glad to get out of his way
B owi ng low before the go l den chair he
exc l aimed
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,
O n e we a r y
ul th o u gh c o bb l er h e b y tra d e
Co m e s h er e to s eek a p a r d o n fo r h is s in
Mo s t h o ly fa th er er e th e d a yl ight fa d e
so
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,
O h , l e t m e in
u nn y S p a i n wh er e r u ns th e Ar la nz o n
T o th e e O h fa th er c o m e I n o w to c r a v e
T h a t th o u wi l t ra i s e Do n Pe d r o T o rr e o n
Fr o m r e s tl ess gr a v e
Fr o m
s
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z
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An d to h is wi d o w h im
ga i n
T hi s d o n e d i s m i s s m e to m y h o m e in p e a c e
T o b e th y s er v a n t a s a p r i e s t in S p a i n
An d fa i th i nc r ea s e
r es to r e a
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T o wh ich the Pope rep l ied
We s m el t th ee fr o m a far o h s o n o f S p a i n
We k n o w th y er r a n d a nd we gra n t thy p ra y er
Wh er e o ni o n s s h ed th e i r p er fu m e s o n r e m a in
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T hy
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p r es enc e s p ar e
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.
TH E
BARBA RA ,
GR A ! I E R S
’
HEN
Spai n was fo rtunately i n posses
sion of the enlightened M o ors a spirit
of chivalry pervaded all classes which d e g e ne
rated after the departure of B oabdil from
G ranada
The M oorish b l ood permeated the veins of
the m ajority of the Spaniards ; but a religious
despotism completely subdued the m inds of
all and Spain under the yoke of the J esuits
became a land more famed for its a utos a a f e
than for its progress in the fi ne arts and
sciences which to a very great extent were
ign o red
S ome there were however i n whom the
blood of the M oors was stronger than the faith
i n their new religion which h o wever go o d in
the abstract was most pernicious in its co u se
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u e nc e s
q
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I t has been the abuse not the use of the
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B
A RB A R A
TH E
,
GR A ! I ER S WI FE
’
93
.
Christian rel ig ion which has made O f th e
Spaniard what his conqueror the M oor wou l d
have most l oathed
I n the province of G a ll iz a is situated the
Village of Po r r inh o lying i n a beautiful va ll ey
and surrou nded by meadow land and fields of
maize
H ere lived the merry grazier S ebastian de
las Cabras famous for his encounters with
wolves but looked down upon by h is neigh
bours because i t was known that he w a s
descended from the M o o rs
I n all the Village there was not a man could
handle the quarter staff like Sebastian and s o
correct was his aim that with a s l ing he would
at a hundred yards hurl a stone and hit a bull
between the eyes and so ki l l it
With his knife h e was equally skilful for he
could use the blade to pick up the O il fro m his
plate instead of licking it up wi th a spoon or
in a quarre l make it find a sheath i n the leg or
arm of a rival
N ow this S ebastian with all his ingenu i ty
and merriment had like most men a grievance ;
but u nlike most men s grievances his was
against the good St V i ncent whose patched u p
body (some of it having decayed being filled
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B A R B A RA ,
94
GR A ! I ER S WI PE
TH E
’
.
up with wax) is en tombed i n different cathe
d r a l s throughout Spai n and Portugal each
cathedral professing to p o ssess the veritable
body o f the veritable saint
B ut i n th is plurality o f S t V incent there is
nothing singular ; for did they not fill three
large S hips with th e eye teeth of g o od S t
J ames Of Co m p o s te l la when they were written
fo r from R ome and did not the Pope dec l are
them all genuine teeth
Spain in her religio us fanaticism i s no more
like other countries than S ebastian de las
Cabras was like other men
S t V inc ent be it known is worshipped i n
th e Peninsula as the guardian saint against that
horrible scourge small p o x
I n G a l l iz a it is declared all diseases and
misfortunes i n life were pro duced in order that
there S hould be patron saints ; and this is just
as true as the saying in L e o n that wheat was
p roduced so that there might be stomachs
S ebastian de las Cabras cared neither for th e
sai nts no r for the sayings ; he feared neither
the law nor the evil one but he qua i led before
his wife D B arbara whose beauty like that of
the demo l ished a l cazar at E cij a was a thing of
the past
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6
9
B
A RBA RA
GR A ! I ER S WI FE
TH E
,
’
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home troubles from S t V incent S ebast ian
recollected the faith of his fathers and b e
th o ught o f app l ying for advice to an old M oor
who lived in the neighbouring Village
To this wise man he therefo re went ; and
after expl a ining m atters he declared that he
bore no il l will to his wife but rather to th e
saint fo r that it was owing to h im that D Bar
bara w a s spared
“
I t is a difficult matter said the M oor
and o ne that will require great consideration
and prudence before attempting to master it
Y ou Christians make sai nts to serve you and
because your interests are not a ll alike you
b l ame th e saints for not doing what is obviously
i m possible N o w I know tha t he who m you
call S t V incent loved the tongue of a woman
no better than the scimitar of the S aracen and
for this reason di d he probab l y prefer to spare
the life of D B arbara than be importuned by
her in his place of rest
“
What then would you advise me to do for
!
W ith D B arbara I can no longer l ive
“
There are S t N icholas S t T ib u r tiu s
S t Bartholomew and others who equally fear
the noise o f a woman s tongue ; but little S t
F ra n cis died stone deaf and being natura l ly
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B
A RB A R A
,
GR A ! I ER S WI FE
TH E
97
’
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of an envious disposit i on nothing wou l d p l ease
him better than to revenge himse l f on his
col l eagues by foisting D Barbara on to them
“
B ut if little S t F rancis be deaf h o w shall
”
!
I make him hear my comp l aint
demanded
S ebastian
Thou art no t rue Catho l ic if thou knowe st
not the weakness of th e saints i n general but
o f their keepers here on
earth in particular
T hou mayest shout thyse l f deaf dance and
j ump but they may not hear thee ; but if thou
s h o w e s t them the bright yellow go l d thou wilt
be heard and u nderstood even if thou hadst
not a voice and wert as dumb as thou wou l dst
wish D Barbara to be answered the M oor
I wil l away then to th e market and sell
some of my finest beasts an d the money which
I receive for them will I glad l y bestow on little
S t F rancis said S ebastian
T he oxen were sold and S ebastian hurried
away with the money to the shrin e of littl e
S t F rancis ; and after devoutly praying he
proceeded to count out the go l d pieces one by
one ; and great w a s his j oy when he noticed
the saint commence to move open his eyes
stretch o ut his hands and declare that S ebas
tian s petition should be granted
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B
A RB A R A
GR A !
TH E
,
I ER S
’
WI FE
.
That v ery n ight when S ebastian and his
wife were i n bed and th e l at ter was de l ivering
a lengthy l ecture on th e coarseness and want of
breeding i n snoring when a lady was speaking
l i ttle S t F rancis appeared a t th e bedside with
a mirror i n his hand
“
“
Barbara said the saint
thy virtues are
known to us and as a reward we have decreed
that thou shalt be restored to youth and beauty
which thou shalt thyself behold when looking
into this m irror ; but beware no angry or vain
words pass thy lips for the n will thy lack o f
modesty be punished by hideous old age an d
infirmity therefore beware !
An d saying this
—
h e l eft the now happy pair Barbara admiring
herself i n the mirror by the l ight of a cruse
enj oying that unbroken sleep
a n d S ebasti a n
w hic h he had not known for years
The mirror never passed out o f D Barbara s
ossession
and
was
never
known
to
leave
her
p
h and u nt il her frame gradually tired out by
want o f rest succumbed to the fa s c ina tio n o f
l ittle S t F ra nc is s gift a nd the wisdom of the
f riendly M oor
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WA TCHF UL
TH E
1 00
S
ER VA NT
.
When you are s l eeping I wi ll be on guard a nd
when yo u are awake I wil l see that no harm
approaches you but I beg you not to b e
an noyed with me if in trying to be of service
to you I do unwillingly cause you any annoy
ance f
continued the prince say
G ood Pabl o
no more but return to your shop pack up you r
linen and come here as soon as you can this
evening I f I am i n bed when you arrive you
will know that it is because I must get up to
morrow morning by five o clock and see to it
that you l e t me not sleep beyond that ti m e
Pablo hurried home packed u p his few
articles of underclothing and then pro ceeded
to the principal wine tavern to tell his friends
of his good fortune They were all so pleased
to hear of Pablo s good luck that they drank to
his hea l th and he returned the co m pliment s o
often that at last the wine wa s beginni ng to tell
on him so he bid his friends good bye and left
“
saying to himself I must wake his highness
at five O clock
This he kept repeating s o
O fte n that he had arrived at the large courty a rd
of the pa l ace befo re he was aware of it
Th e pri nce s bedroom looked i nto the court
yard and Pab l o s a w by the dim light that was
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WA TCHF UL
TH E
S
ER VA NT
I OI
.
burning i n the room that the p rince had retired
to rest
A fraid lest the prince shou l d think h e had
forgotten all ab o ut awaking him and that h e
migh t therefore be keeping awake Pablo seized
a lo ng cane with which he tapped at the window
o f the prince
and kept o n tapping u ntil the
prince appeared and opened the wi ndow shout
ing out
Who is there
Who wants me
“
I t is I said Pablo
I have not forgotten
your orders ; to morrow morning I will wake
your highness at fi v e
V ery good Pablo but l et me s l eep awhile
o r else I shall be tired to morrow
A s soon as the pri nce had disappeared Pab l o
commenced thinking over all the princes of
who m he had heard and h e had become so
i nterested i n the subject that when he heard
the cock crow imagining it was daybreak he
again seized the cane and tapped loudly at the
window
The prince agai n l ifted up the sash and cried
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o ut
!
Who is it
What do you want
L et m e
s l eep or e l se I shal l be tir e d to morrow
”
“
S ir
excl aimed the barb er
the cock
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WA TCHF UL
TH E
102
S
ER VA NT
.
has a l ready crowe d and it m u st be ti me tO
rise
“
“
Y ou are mistaken r e p l ie d th e pr i nce for
i t is only half an hour a g o since you woke me
b ut I am not a nnoye d with you
Pab l o was now sore l y troubled i n his mind
because he thought he might give offence to
the prince and so he kept revo l ving i n his mind
a ll that h is mother had told h im about the ange r
of princes and how much it was to be dreaded
This though t so perplexed h im that he reso l ved
on putting an end to the life of the cock tha t
had caused the mistake
H e therefore pro
c e e d e d to the pou l try yard c l ose by and seeing
the offender s urrounded by the hens he made
a rush at him which set al l th e fowls cack l ing
as if a fo x had broken in
T h e prince heari ng the noise hurried to the
window and i n a loud voice inquired what the
noise was al l about
“
“
S ir said Pablo I was but trying to punish
th e disturber of your rest I have got hold of
him now and yo ur highness may go to sleep
without further care as I will not forget t o
waken yo u
“
B ut conti nued the prince
if you waken
me agai n before it is time I wil l most decidedly
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16
4
TH E
WA TCH F UL
S
ER VA N T
prince shall have a sharper spur than I co u l d
”
and proceeding to the pr i ncipal
e ver buckle o n ;
door of the pa l ace he wrote the foll owing words
with chalk Pablo has gon e before your high
”
ness to Cour t the Pri ncess of G ranada himself
This had the desired effect for whe n the
prince arose i n the morning and wa s l eaving
the pa l ace a l one he read the words and they
caused him to be so j ealous that h e performed
the distance i n half th e time he would other
wise have taken
“
Pab l o after that used to say that a j ea l o u s
m a n on horseback is first cousi n to a flash of
”
l ightn i ng and to a true Spaniard
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BEL L S
S I L VE R
.
T wa s in a l ovely pine wood tha t littl e M i ra
bella wandered lone l y and hungry The
sand under her feet was very cool and the
tufted pine trees she l tered her fro m the fi erce
rays of the su n
Through an avenue of tal l b u t bare p i ne
t rees she cou l d see the big sea which sh e
looked upon for th e fi rst time
F aint and
hungry as she w a s she cou l d not help wishing
to be nearer the waves ; but she rec o llected
what her father had once told her that l ittle
chi l dren should be car eful not to go too near
the sea when they are alone
H er father however was dead
H e wa s
K ing of the S i l ver I s l es and for his goodness
had been loved by a ll his subj ects M irabe ll a
was his only child ; and her mother having
married again she wanted to get rid of M ira
b el l a so that her l itt l e boy G l ig l u mig ht i nheri t
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1 06
SI
L VER
B
ELL S
.
the crown S o she ordered one of her serv ant s
to l ead M i rabella into the pi ne wood far away
an d leave her th ere hoping the wo l ves would
fi nd her and eat her
When M irabella w a s born her aunt w h o
was a fairy gave her a si l ver bel l which she
tied aroun d the ch i l d s neck With a fairy chai n
that cou l d not b e broken
I n vain did her
mother try to take it from her ; no scissors
cou l d cut through it and her stren g th Could
n o t break it so that wherever M irabe ll a wen t
the si l ve r bel l tinkled merrily
N ow it so h appe n ed that o n th e second n igh t
on which she w a s o u t the S ilver bel l tinkled
so l oud l y that a wolf who happened to b e
nea r hearing it approached her and said
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'
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S il v er
To
b ell
i lv er b ell d o n o t fear
O b ey yo u Mira b ella I a m h er e
,
s
,
,
,
.
At
firs t th e l ittl e girl w a s very much afraid
because she h a d heard of the cruelt y of
wolves ; b ut when h e repeated the words s h e
sa id
“
Dea r M r Wolf if you wou l d b e S O kin d
a s to bring me
I would be S O
m y mamma
”
ob l i ge d
O ff ra n the wol f without s aying anothe r
word and M irab el l a co mmenced j umpin g fo fi
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1 08
S I L YE R
S i l v er
Wh en
b ell
thy
B
ELL S
i lv er h ell d o
m o th er c o m es
,
s
,
,
.
no t
s te
fear ;
in
p
h er e
.
S o sang the canoe ; but she cou l d not under
stand why she should get i nto the canoe if her
mother came because she loved her mother
and thought her mother loved her A nyhow
she took ho l d of the mug and filling it with
water drank i t up Water which is always
the most refresh ing of a l l drinks was what the
tired l ittl e girl most needed and as her father
had brought her up very careful l y and properly
she had never tasted anything s tronger ; b u t
her thirst made her enj oy the water more than
s h e ever had
S uddenly sh e heard some one scream ing for
h elp and the screams came nearer and nearer
to her S he turned round and s a w the wolf
b earing her mother o n his back and however
much she tried to get off she could not because
the wolf threatened to bite her Springing up
to M irabella s side the wolf said
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S i l v er
To
b ell
i lv er b ell d o no t fear
i ra b ell a I a m h e r e
o b ey yo u M
,
s
,
,
,
.
wicked mother no w jumped off his back
a nd commenced scolding M irabella for ha v ing
s ent for her
S he said that as soon as she
l
aw
back
to
the
palace
she
wou
l
d
make
a
o
t
g
Th e
,
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’
S I L YE R B
ELL S
1 09
.
that a ll the wo l ves sho u l d b e ki ll ed and that i f
M irabella ever dared return she shou l d be
smothered
The poor littl e gir l felt very
miserab l e and was afraid tha t her mother
might kill her so she stepped i n to th e canoe
and said
,
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,
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,
B ea r m e wh er e m y fa th er
T i nkl e, ti nkl e, s i l ver b ell s
d well s
,
.
The stream conti nued to flow and as the
canoe moved on she saw her mother turne d
into a cork tree an d sh e bid good bye to the
wolf and the fox O n sped the boat and i t
soon neared the big sea ; but M irabella fe l t no
fear for the stream struck out across the ocea n
and the waves did not come near her F or
three days and nights th e silver bells ti nkled
and the canoe sped on ; and when the morning
of the fourth day came she s a w that they were
approaching a beautiful is l and on which wer e
growing many palm trees which are called
sacred palms The grass was far greener than
any she had ever seen fo r the sun wa s m ore
bril l iant but not so fierce and when th e canoe
—
—
touched the shore oh j oy
S h e s a w her dea r
father
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S i l v er
To
b ell
i lv er b ell d o no t fea r ;
p r o te c t th ee Mi ra b ell a I a m h ere
,
s
,
,
,
.
SI
L VER
BELL S
.
S he was SO p l eased to see her father again
a n d to hear him speak
I t was so nice to be
l oved to be cared fo r , to be spoke n kindly to
E ve rything seemed to welcome her ; the boughs
of the sacred palm s waved i n the sum mer
breeze an d the humming birds flitting about
see m ed like preci o us sto nes set i n a glorious
blaze of light
H er father was n o t changed
very much he looked somewhat younger and
s tronger and as he lifted her i n h is arms his
face seemed handsomer and his voice more
welc o me S he felt no pang of s orrow she had
n o fears
for she was i n her father s arms to
w hic h the fairy silver bells had l ed her
F arther up i n the i sland she saw groups o f
other children running to m eet her all with
S ilver bell s around their necks ; and some there
were among them whom she had known i n the
S ilver I slands T hese had been playmates o f
hers b u t had l eft before her
S O peri o ds of light sped on in which j oy
w a s her co m pan i o n when l ooking i nto a deep
b ut very clear pond she saw a gnarled cork tree
which s eemed to have been struck by lightning
L ong did she stand there gazing i nto it won
dering w here S h e had see n tha t tree A ll at
o nce she spied a canoe passing close by th e
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.
K I N G R OB I N
.
H E R E was once a little boy cal l ed S igli
w ho ,
,
I am sorry to say took great
p l easure i n catching and killing little birds
H is father w a s a notorious robber so it w a s
not surprisi ng that S igl i gave way to acts o f
cruelty H is mother died when he was little
more than a year o ld an d he did no t kno w
any other relation I n the north o f Portugal
bands of robbers used to frequent the ro ads
an d some of them lived in strong c a s tl e s an d
had a large retinue o f followers I n time o f
war these robber chiefs would side with the
king s party because after the war was over
th ey received large grants of land for the
assistance they had rendered the sovereign
S ometimes when the neighbouring kings o f
S pain i nvaded Portugal these robbers proved
of great advantage in repelling the i nvaders ;
but i n following up thei r victories they wou l d
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KI NG
R
OB I N
.
despoil al l the c hurches in the enemy s country
of the gold and silver idols which the priests
had caused to be made i n order to get the
ignorant peasantry to make offerings of money
c o rn and O il i n exchange for which the priests
i n the na m e of the id o ls o ffered a l l those who
gave pardon of their sins
N ow S igl i s father had on many occa sions
robbed go ld and silver idols and had murdered
a few brethren of the H oly I nquisition who
in their turn were well kn o wn for the wicked
deeds they had committed such as burning
Christian men and women who did n o t and
c o uld not profess the popish faith B ut i n
c o urse of ti m e th e J esuits for so they were
called made comm o n cause against these
robbers and either put them to death or o bliged
them to leave o ff robbing churches and take
to cheating the peasantry
S igli as I said before was a very cruel boy
and he w a s th e terror of al l the birds and
beasts H e would lay traps for them and
when he had caugh t them h e w o u l d take
pleasure i n tormenting them which clearl y
proved that he was not a Christian nor
possessed of any refi nement But he took
more pleasure i n catching R obin redbreasts
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I
KI NG
I 14
R
OB I N
.
than in anything e l se and for this purpose he
u sed bird lime
H e had caught and kil l ed so
many that at last K ing R o bi n of B irdland issued
invitations to al l his feathered subjects and to
the beasts of the field asking them to a meet
ing at which they might discuss the best means
of putting S igli to death or punishing him i n
some other way fo r the cruelty of which he
was guilty towards them
A mong the many who accepted the invita
tion was an old fox the first of the R eynards
and when it cam e to his turn to speak he said
that as S igli wa s s o fond of catch ing redbreasts
with bird lime he (M r R eynard ) would pro
pose catch ing S ig l i in the sa m e manner ; and
when caught they migh t discuss how they
shou l d punish h im either by pecking and
biting him or by getting the wolves to eat
h im
I n order to c arry o u t this idea he
suggested that the m o nkeys should be asked
to prepare the b i rd lime which they might use
with safety by oilin g their hands and then
gradually make a man of bird lime close to the
chief s castle
S igli would probably
o bb e r
take it for some poor man an d hit it and then
he would not be able to get away
Th i s idea was accepted by all in genera l and
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KI NG
I 16
R
OB I N
.
N o soone r said than done and the robb er
,
chief
glued o n to the bird lime figure
The screams of the t wo attracted the atten
tion of the servants who seeing their robber
master as they thought murdering his little
boy ran away and never came back again
K ing R obin was now master of the situation
and he directed ten thousand bees under
G eneral B umble and another ten thousand
wasps under Colonel H ornet to fall on the
robber and cruel S igli and sting them to death
But this was hardly necessary as the wriggling
of their bodies s o fixed them to th e figure that
they died o f suffocation
T he n K ing R obi n ordered the wolves to
dig a large grave into which the monkeys
rolled S igli his father and the bird lime figure ;
and after covering it up they all took charge
of the cas tle and lived th ere for many years
undisturbed acknowledging K ing R obin a s
their king ; and if the J esuits did not turn them
out I am certain they are still there
wa s
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TH E
T
WI CK E D
KIN G
.
H E R E was once a king who was so wicked
that he would not allow any widows to
live in h is kingdom because he w a s certain that
they had caused the death of their husbands ;
nor would he admit of any fat man or woman
as he was afraid that they would eat up every
thing in the kingdom
H e was also very pr o ud an d arrogant and
if any man happened to be taller than himself
he would give him the choice of bei ng l o wered
to a pr o per height by either having his head
or his legs cut off
H is subj ects were s o afraid of him and of
his laws that the married w o me n woul d not
let their husbands go out of their sight lest
any harm should happen to them and if they
turned at all pale or had br o ke n sleep or had
lost their appetites they would nurse them
night and day S o afraid were they of b e c o m
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WI CKED KI NG
TH E
.
ing widows that they a l ways agreed with their
husbands on all points lest by disagreeing they
S hould
bring ab o ut an attack of indigestion
or so m ething worse that m ight pro duce death
A n d when their children com m enced to
gro w rapidly their fears were doubled lest
they should bec o m e talle r than the king ; fo r
i f they fed them on pudding which does not
pro m ote growth they incurred the danger of
their becoming fat ; and if they fed them on
m eat so as to make them lean they would
pr o bably grow tall
I t very s o o n became evident that there were
more hunchbacks i n that cou ntry than in any
o ther ;
fo r as so o n as th e children were
appro aching the fo rbidde n height their parents
w o uld suspend heavy weights from their
shoulders so that their backs became rounded
and eventually humped
The young m en when they were at an age
t o m arry found it very difficult to get any
woman to have them because they were afraid
o f becoming wid o ws and also because so m any
o f the men were humpbacked
B ut notwithstanding th e king s wickedness
it was admitted by the married men that their
conditi o n had considerably improved
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WI CKED KI NG
TH E
.
“
man again feeling the edge of his axe has
m agnanimously increased your loy al tribute to
him by one part i n a hundred of the produce
of the land and yet you are not satisfied
The king s genero sity we all feel said the
deputation ;
but if we may be allowed to
express an O pinion to you S ir we would
Certainly yo u may i nterrupted the man of
dru gs running his hand quickly o ver the axe
!
certainly you may ; Wh y should you not
B y this time the chief sp o kesman had got
behind the others and i t was very evident
that the members of the deputation were
becoming aware that the logic of the e x e c u
t io n e r was t oo sharp for them
S eeing that they were all silent the e x e c u
t io n e r went o n to say that the king had in his
opi ni o n been extremely considerate ; fo r he
had by the l aw against widows contributed to
the happiness and long life of th e husbands ;
and by enacting that n o man sho uld exceed a
certain height or stoutness they had e c o no
m iz e d in many ways for they ate less and their
clothes would cost them less I n fact he saw
no reason for dissatisfaction ; but as they had
c o me to h im as a deputati o n he felt it to be his
duty to place thei r supposed grievances before
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TH E
WI CKED
K H VG
.
the king a nd he the executioner felt certain
that the king would reply to them in a suitable
manner A nd having said this he raised the
axe to the light t o see that there was no notch
on the edge which caused the deputation to
tremble m ost Vi o len tly an d to assure the exe
c u tio n e r that they were perfectly satisfied and
desired to withdraw
Th e executioner however wou l d not al l ow
—
them to retire for the grievances of a peop l e
s hould not be W ithheld fr o m the king s ear ;
but the members of the deputati o n became so
frightened that t hey made their escape through
the windows as fast as they could A nd when
the king heard all about it he remarked that
“
F olly had entered with dignity by the door
and Wisdom had unceremonio usly escaped
through the window
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TH E PA L A CE O F TH E E N CH A N TE D
MO O R S
.
the river Douro c l ose
to F reixo are some huge rocks s ituated
on the brink o f an al m ost perpe ndicular e m i
n e nc e
T o this spot d o congregate so it is
reported the souls of unbaptized children w h o
make the midnight h o ur hideous with their
shrieks when the te m pest is hurrying down
through the valley and over the sn o w capped
hills When the wind is at its highest do these
souls of the l ost utter their weird shrieks s o
nigh akin unto the howling o f the wind that
only the neighbouring villagers pretend to be
able to distinguish betwee n the clamouring
voices O f the unbaptized and the howling
caused by the fi tful gusts of the wintry blast
as it rushes impetuously among the rocks and
down the precipices
O n such nights wil l the farmer s wife light
VERL O O K I NG
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1 24
ALA CE
P
ENCHA NTED MO OR S
O F TH E
.
’
to have ascended to Paradise I t seems that
the chosen quadruped unaccustomed to the
pastures of the Mo h a m e d a n Paradise had
escaped and descended on earth close to the
palace or alcazar at F reixo where he was
found one morning by the dwellers when they
were on their way to the m o sque
H e was a fine specimen of an ass and
worthy of the Mo h a m e d a n creed Tradition
hints at a mil l er having laid claim to him ; but
as he could offer no proofs why the ass should
not have been i n Paradise a nd seeing that the
ass was as white as the pro phet s the m iller
was ordered to l ook for his donkey elsewhere
as this was the ass of the prophet
H ow long this favoured quadruped lived is
not recorded but no doubts have been raised
as to his eventual de m ise ; and he too was
heard braying furiously from his resting place
when the W inds blew high
B ut few vestiges are now l eft of this once
splendid alcazar
Time defied its ornamental
turrets and richly chased walls and levell ed
them with the ground O nly the surrounding
rocks hav e remained and with them m any
traditions These the inhabitants o f the district
have preserved intact or maybe added to their
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A LA CE
P
OF TH E
ENCHA N TED MO O R S
1 25
.
interest by investi ng them with a semb lance to
truth which renders them all the more worthy
of preservati o n as being stepping stones carry
i ng us back to a long past
But eve n where such doubtfu l l ore ho l ds the
people i n a w e a fe w may be found w h o
although rej ecting that par t o f the tradition
wh ich is evidently but the fruit of a ferti l e
imagination or o f religious fanaticism recognize
i n these legends the preservation o f a still
u nwritten history to whose identification with
facts the ruins of many a M o slem building o f
rare architectural beauty attest
A nd if after m any a sanguinary fight th e
Cross was Victori o us over the Cresce nt the
Christian population o f the I beri c Peninsula
m ust admit that the faint vestiges of beauty i n
their architecture of to day have an A rabic
o rigi n ; that to their M oorish conquer o rs they
owe much of the daring and endurance which
characterized the generation of great navigators
as also to the m was due the i ntroduction of
m any of the useful arts and sciences
The traveller wil l now look in vai n for the
alcazar of E l R achid at F r e ix o The mighty
rocks alone mark the spot and naught remains
of art to please the eye Traditionary l ore may
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LA CE
I 26
PA
ENCHA N TE D MO OR S
OF TH E
.
interest him but he must be ready to listen to
I t with all the additions which a gross s up e r s ti
tion can alone i nvent or believe
H ere then is it recorded that Al R achid
held a Christian maiden captive for many years
That she was as go o d as she was beautiful goes
with o ut further remark M aria das Dores fo r
so she is na m ed by h er chr o niclers w a s one
of those sp l endid women worthy to be the
m others o f that succeeding generation of heroes
who overthrew the M oors on the plains of
O urique
M aria was the daughter of a very wealthy
farmer who resided close to the mouth of the
river M inho I t was her duty to work with
the farm l ab o urers in the field and she would
mingle her sweet v o ice with theirs when sing
ing hymns to the V irgin as they plied their
hoes
O ften had Al R achid seen h er at work from
his h idi ng place in a neighbouring forest H e
loved the maiden altho ugh he had reason to
believe she w a s a Christian ; but he knew that
she had given her lov e to another and c o uld
t herefore not be his unless he took her by
force
O n e day at vesper time she did not ret u rn
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I 28
ALA CE
O F TH E
P
ENCHA NTE D MO O RS
.
not hope to fi nd and they had to content them
selves with following the sound unti l they came
within sight of Al R a c h id s palace
They were now i n the enemy s country and
with their little fo rce they could not successfully
besiege the palace so much against their will
they returned home
There was only one means of rescuing the
captive maiden and this w o uld take time N o
Christian m a n or wo m an could gain admittance
to the enchanted passage and no M o slem could
be found willing to attempt the rescue There
fo re they hit upon a plan of securing the services
o f a heretic
A child had been b o rn i n the
Village and h im it was resolved they S hould
not baptize When o l d enough he should be
entrusted with the task of rescue and being
unbaptized he wou l d gain admittance to all the
enchanted places
Y ears rolled by and th e youth had attaine d
the age of thirteen when he was informed of
the m ission on which it was intended to send
him Being o f a daring disposition he courted
da nger and buckling o n h is sword and bearing
his shield he left the farmer s house ; and
acc o mpanied by the wise wo m an he directed
his steps to the forest When the t wo had
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PA
LA CE
O F TH E
ENCH A N TE D MO O R S
9
I 2
.
reached an O l d oak tree the wise woman
repeated the foll o wing w o rds th ree times
-
,
H er e s ta n d s
T o th r ea
u nb a p ti z e d
s u b terr a n ea n
an
d th e
wa y
and then she knocked w ith her staff three times
on the ground which o p e ne d and th e y o uthful
heretic b o ldly descended the earth closing
above h im
Befo re h im was a magnificent
display of j ewels studding the walls on each
S ide
wh o se brilliancy at first dazzled him
G etting more accustomed to the stro ng light
he discovered a coal black horse fully capari
s o n e d standing by his side as if ready fo r him
to mount ; but he was not to be tempted for
he w o uld rather trust to his legs than to a
strange horse
T hen when he had walked
s o m e distance h e came t o a river o n which
there was a boat rowed by six lovely m aidens
who asked h im to get in and they would row
h im across
But he would not be tempted
and he b o ldly waded the stream and crossed
o ver
H aving pro ceeded a little further h o w
ever he heard the piteous cry o f a chil d and
hastening fo rward he saw a love l y little boy
dressed i n the O riental fashion who besought
him with tears in his eyes to carry h im a little
way fo r he was very tired and had still a long
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K
1
ALA CE
P
0
3
O F TH E
ENCHA NTED MOO R S
.
way to go H e cou l d not refuse him a nd
stooping S lightly raised h im in his ar m s ; but
no s o o ner had he done s o than this little boy
turned i nto a giant who twining his arms
around the heretic s neck would have strangled
him but that being unbaptized he could no t be
A fter many attempts to strangle the
killed
i ntruder th e giant relaxed his hold and as
suddenly disappeared
The heretic after a time came to a stand
still for he was co nfronted by total darkness
N othing daunted however he drew his sword
and hit out s o that th e blade striki ng against
the sides o f the passage caused the j ewels to
emit sparks and these lit up thousands o f la m ps
I n the distance he saw tw o enorm o us tigers
each having two heads They seemed to be
ready to tear him to pieces but on o bserving
him adva n ce sw o rd in hand they ran away
A t the e nd o f the third day he had walked
quick l y that he sto o d before th e secret
so
entrance to the alcazar of A l R achid
The
ponderous gates were wide O pen but he could
not enter because of an enorm o us frog that
blocked up the way and emitted flames of fire
fro m its m outh and eyes Do what he could
there w a s no getting near the hideous creature
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1
2
3
ALA CE
P
O F TH E
E
NCHA N TED MO OR S
.
he was bapti z ed with as little de l ay as possible
and for the rescue he had effected the rich
farmer amply rewarded him while the Church
accorded him plenary absolution for his past
heresy
,
,
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O
a deserted part of th e r o ck bound
C antabrian coast a poor fisherm an
na m ed Pedro discovered a love l y maiden
magnificently dressed combing her long j et
black hair with a golden comb studded with
dia m onds
I t was stil l early morning and the sun had
not attai ned its greatest power ; and as the tide
was at its lowest an innumerable nu m ber of
pon ds were fo rm ed by the ro cks which fo r a
distance o f half a m ile were l eft bare by the
receding sea
S eated near to o n e of these ponds and co o ling
her feet in the water sat th is l o vely maiden ;
and S h e was so intent o n performing her toilet
that S h e did not perceive Pedro who thinking
she was a mermaid and m ight therefore cast a
spell o ver him hid behind a ledge of rocks and
was able to see and hear her without being
S een
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I
TH E
34
Pedro
words
YE N
SE
heard
PI
GE O NS
her singing
.
th e following
d a ugh ter o f a k i ng
Wh o r ul e s in Ar a go n
My m es s enger s th e y b r i ng
Me fo o d to l i v e u p o n
My fa th er th i nk s m e d e a d
My d ea th h e d i d o r d a i n
Fo r th a t I wo uld n o t w e d
A wi ck e d k n i gh t o f S p a i n
B u t th o s e Wh o m h e d i d s e n d
T O k i ll m e in th i s p l a c e
My yo u th th ey d i d b efr i en d
B u t c r u e l is m y c a s e
I
am
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it even S O said Pedro to himsel f that
!
this lovely m aiden is the daughter o f a king
I f I render her assistance I may incur great
danger and if I leave her to die it will be a
crying sha m e ; what then am I to do
A s h e was th us pondering i n his m ind h e
heard a flapping of W ings and lo o king in the
direction whence the noise came he saw a pair
of
perfectly white pige o ns bearing a s m all
basket betwee n the m strung on a thin g o lde n
bar wh ich they held at each end between their
beaks
Descending they deposited the basket by
the side of the princess who caressed them
m o st tenderly and then took from th e basket
IS
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6
3
TH E
SE
YEN
PI
GE ON S
.
Pedr o observed that they were three beautiful
maidens
The princess sat on a richly ornamented
chair and the oth er two maidens o n velvet
cushions embroidered i n g o ld at her feet
O ver the m was spread a superb awning to
shelter them from the rays of the su n and the
vessel glided ab o ut over the vast expanse of
water now i n o ne directi o n n o w i n another
as if the breeze blew t o suit the sails
Pedro was so astonished at what he saw
that at last he g o t frighte ned and being
young and ni m ble he s o on l o st sight of the
ship ; but at e ve ry pace he see m ed to hear a
“
R u n n o t away future king of
v o ice saying
A rag o n
P edro continued running till he left the
beach far behind and was now i n the pine
fo rest ; nor did he st o p till he w a s i n the densest
part wh en fo r very fatigue he threw hi m self
o n the ground and then he dist i nctly heard a
voice say
Pedro you are destined to be
K ing of A rag o n ; but tell no one
N o t till then had he discovered that he was
longer dressed i n fi s h e r m a n s attire but
no
that his clothes were of the finest cloth fringed
with g o ld lace
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TH E
SE
YEN
Pe d r o f o n
PI
GE ONS
1
.
37
seeing this said I am enchanted
That pri ncess is indeed a mer m aid and has cast
a spell o ver me I am u ndone m y eyes deceive
m e and what I take fo r s o m uch grandeur is
but a decepti o n
S aying which h e started to
his feet and hurried towards his Village as fast
as h is legs w o uld carry him
A rrived at the fishing ha m let all his o l d
companions paid him such deference that h e
tried to get o u t o f their way thinking they did
but laugh at him and arriving at the d o o r of
his widowed mother s cottage he ran i nto the
kitchen H is m o ther happened to be frying
some fish and when she saw a grand gentleman
enter the apartment S h e took the pan off the
fire and b o wing l o w said M y noble sir this
house is to o hu m ble fo r such as you allow me
to c o nduct y o u to h is reverence s h o use for
there you will find accommodation m o re suited
to your high estate
Pedro w o uld have replied to his mother and
sought to kiss her hand and ask her blessing
after the cust o m of the c o u ntry ; but on attempt
ing to speak his tongue hung out of his mouth
and he made so strange a noise and so g e s tic u
lated that his mother was glad to get out o f
the house fo llowed however by her son and
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8
3
TH E
SE
YEN
PI
GE O N S
.
a l arge crowd o f Villagers who had congrega ted
to see the grand stranger
A s s o o n as it was known throughout the
Village of the arrival of the grand s tranger the
church bells pealed and the parish priest
mingled with the cro wd desirous of seeing the
new arrival ; but as soon as Pedro co m m enced
gesticulating as before the priest and all the
rest of the people were much frightened for
they thought that he was dangerously mad
Pedro noticing this sorrowfully turned away
from his native village and took the h igh r o ad
to the next t o wn
A s he was going along thinking of his
present trouble h e observed a wide gate made
opening into a beautiful garden int o
o f gold
which he hesitated not to enter ; for he r e c o l
l e c te d what the wise wo m an o f the Village had
“
—
once to l d him that
grand clothes beget
respect
O pen wide those gates O worker midst
the flowers exclai m ed Pedro to an old gardener
for
h
e
had
I
n o w recovered his speech )
(
come in cloth of g o ld to speak u nto m y love
S ir replied the old m a n y o u m a y always
enter here for you are D Pedro of A ragon
I well can see
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TH E
S
E VEN
PI
GE ON S
.
pure which does reflect thy form I quench my
heart s deep thirst
“
You see y o nder palace at the end of the
“
garden said the princess to Pedro
Well in
that palace you will be lodged for the ni ght ;
but should you ever tell any one W hat yo u see
there you will put yourself i n danger and cause
me great trouble
Pedro promised to keep secret whatever h e
might see that night and bidding g o od night
to the princess he hastened to the palace which
the princess had pointed out to h im and having
entered it he walked through the marble passage
which seemed to be interminable O n each
side of him were rows o f m aj estic c o lu m ns
by gold capitals and no w and
s urmounted
again he th o ught he saw th e for m s of l o vely
young maidens flitting a m ong the c o lumns
J ust as he was approaching a richly carved
fountain surrounded by sa cred palms a maiden
of surprising beauty seemed to be addressing
a M oor in m ost impassioned tones as if claiming
his indulgence ; but whe n Pedro got up to the m
he discovered that both were the work of the
statuary
A t every step the surroundings became more
magnificent and the carved ceiling was o f such
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TH E
SE
YE N
PI
GE ONS
141
.
I
e x quisite w o rkmanship that it seemed rather
the work of the l o o m being so like the fi nest
lace than of the sculptor
A t last he arrived at the end of this avenue
o f c o lu m ns and noticing a d o or in front of him
h e opened it and fo und himself standing on a
marble quay against which the sea waves were
washing
S canning the vast expanse of water before
h im h e O bserv ed a ppr o aching him the same
beautiful ship he had seen in the morning
When the ship came alongside the quay a
sail o r sprung o n shore and m ade her fast by
a golden cable ; then addressing Pedro h e
said
I am glad you have not kept us waiting
for our ro yal mistress is very W ishful to c o nsult
you as one o f her favourite doves has broken
its right wing and if yo u cann o t cure it the
princess will die of starvation
Pedro made no reply but stepped on board
the ship which soon got under way and within
a short time they were approaching the coast
he knew so well
H aving landed Pedro saw the princess
seated on the sand nursing one of her white
p igeons
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TH E
S
E VEN
PI
GE ONS
.
Pedro of A ragon the princess exc l ai med
a stranger dared to enter my r o yal father s
garden and in assisting to water th e pinks he
trod on the wing of my favourite pigeon and
”
h e has broken it
”
“
replied P edro the intruder did
S e fio ra
probably seek you and had no idea of hurting
the l o vely bird
“
That matters not continued the princess
for my principal supporter is w o unded and you
must cure her Cut out my heart and steep
this bird i n my warm blood and when I am
dead throw my body into the sea
!
asked
H o w can I kill one so l o vely
“
P edro
I would rather die myself than hurt
you !
“
Then you do not care for me or else you
would do as I bid yo u answered the princess
“
Princess I cann o t and will not kill you ;
but I will do anything else you bid me said
P edro
Well then since y o u will not kill me I
order you to take this pigeon back with yo u ;
for I know it w a s you wh o walked i n my
father s garden to day continued the princess
A n d t o m o rrow evening whe n y o u see that
princess who m you saw to day you must kill
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TH E
1 44
SE
YEN
PI
GE O NS
.
happen to it he c ommenced assisting th e
gardener to water the pi nks
A fter a S ilence of a fe w minutes the gardener
said
“
There were o nce seven pige o ns w h o said
S even pigeons are we and with o ther seven
pigeons we might al l be mated ; but as it is
we must remain seven pige o ns
“
“
Y es put i n Pedro ; but I want to know
who the princess s l o ver is
The O l d man took no heed of the interruption
and continued
There were once seven pigeons wh o said
S even pigeons are w e
“
Stop ! cried Pedro ; I will have no such
idle talk T ell m e w h o this noble l o ver is or
I will d o you an i nj ury
S ir cried th e gardener with a very serious
countenance
there were once seven pige o ns
who said S even pigeons are w e and
Take y o ur watering can sh o uted Pedro in
disgust ; I will not liste n to y our n o nsense
“
A nd yet there were o nce seven pige o ns
who said S even pigeons are we and n o w the
last o f them is g o ne fo r the noble l o ver has
been false to h is trust exclaimed the o ld man
looking very cunningly at Pedro
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TH E
YEN
SE
PI
GE ONS
I
.
45
At
these words Pedro l ooked towards the
place where he had placed the pigeon and i t
was no l onger there
Seized with a fit of fury he was about to l ay
hands on the gardener when to his astonish
ment he found that he was also gone
“
I am undone cried the unhappy Pedro
and no w I S hal l not see the princess again
S aying which he fainted away and might prob
ably have remained there some time but that
h e heard a voice saying i n a jocu l ar manner
There were once seve n pigeons w h o said
S even pigeons are w e and
Pedro started to h is feet and c l ose to him
was standing the princess whom he had pre
v io u s l
seen
i
n
the
balcony
y
“
Why do you thus tease me princess
said Pedro
I want to hear no more about the
seven horrid pigeons
Do n Pedro de A ragon answered the prin
“
cess I must te l l you that the old gardener to
whom you spoke is a mag ician and he has
possessed himself o f the last means I had of
regaining my liberty for I am under his power
I S it not true that you came here with the pur
pose o f killing me
I w a s under a vow to do so rep l ied Pedro
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1 46
TH E
SE
YE N
PI
GE ONS
.
but I cannot ki l l you although I wou l d rather
slay you fair princess than do you a more
grievous i njury
“
G o back then to the u nhappy l ady whom
o u left on the sea sh ore and tell her that you
y
have been false to your promises said the
princess
“
“
H ow sorry I am exclaimed Pedro
that
I was ever destined to be K ing of A ragon !
When I was a poor fisherman I was far happier
”
than I am now !
“
Pedro of A ragon the moon wil l be at the
”
ful l to night and you may then rescue me said
“
the princess if you have the courage to meet
the W icked magician i n this garden at midnight
for then is his power weakest
I am prepared for the worst rep l ied P edro
and I fear not your gao l er
“
Well then continued the princess when
the magician sees you h e will again tell you
about the seven pigeons ; but when he has
finish ed y o u must tell him that there were once
seven wives w h o had only one husband and
that they are waiting ou tside to see him Do
as I tell you and if you are not afraid of his
anger you may be able to free me
Pedro promised to do as he wa s to l d and
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TH E
S
E VEN
PI
GE ONS
.
me for I may tel l you i n con fi dence that a m a n
”
with seve n wives cannot p l ay th e magician
Pedro h urried away with the princess ; and
after they had been married and crowne d the
princess w h o w a s no w queen one day said to
him
“
Pedro the magician who held me captive
from you wa s R ank and therefore were th e
ba l conies so high When you saw me on th e
beach fed by pigeons it was that you shou l d
know my power ; o n the shore I w a s attended
by winged messengers and o n th e sea I sailed
about at pleasure
!
B ut what about the wounded pigeon
asked Pedro
“
R ecollect Pedro what y ou said to m e i n
th e garden answered the princess
that you
would rather slay me than do me a more
grievous injury
That poor pige o n with its
broken wing could no more h o pe to soar aloft
than an inj ured woman to mix with her forme r
associates
A n d what about the seven wives who were
waiting o utside and who so frightened the o l d
!
magician R ank
continued Pedro
They are the seven deadly sins w h o would
each have a tongue for itse l f and yet without
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TH E
SE
YEN
PI
GE ONS
1 49
.
tongues are enough to frighten R ank answered
the princess
“
A nd who am I then asked Pedro
to be
s o exalted n o w
“
Y ou are the wise man who strove to do his
best yet tried not to e x alt himself above his
position sweetly answered the princess
S o that the magician R ank has u nwillingly
raised the poor fi sherman to be king whispered
Pedro
N ot R ank a l one b u t much more so thy
”
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L A D Y CL A R E
TR
A N S L AT I O N
.
.
A DY
C L A R E was i n her garden ove r
looking the sea I t was a summer s day
and the many coloured butterflies fl itte d about
u nder the trees and among the s weet smelling
fl owers
L ady C l are w a s combing her go l den tresse s
with an ivory comb seated o n a crimson velve t
cushion S he l ooked towards the sea and she
s a w a gal l ant fleet making for the land
H e who was i n command stepped on shore
H e w a s a belted knight but his features cou l d
not b e seen as his Vizor was down
A pproaching L ady Clare he sa l uted her
and she thus addressed him
H ast thou noble knight seen my husband
wh o bid me good bye many years ago when h e
sai l ed for the H oly L a nd
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LA D Y CLA R E
1 52
.
stee l is my hand better acquain ted for I am
a warrior and I never saw thy husband B ut
what wou l dst thou give to have h im near
thee
cried the knight
I would let thee ch o ose one of my daugh ters ;
they are as fair as th e moon or as the s u n
when r i s i ng urged L ady C lare
I do not want thy daughters ; they may not
marry me for I am a soldier and engaged i n
warfare and I never cast eyes on thy husband
B ut what wou l ds t thou give to have thy o wn
knight here
exclaimed the warrior
“
I can not give thee more nor hast thou
”
more to ask o f me rep l ied L ady C l are
“
T hou hast still more to give for thou hast
”
thyself fair l ady said the
no t y e t offered
knight
“
A be l ted knight who dare so speak de
serves to b e dragged around my garden tied
to the tails of my horses Come hither my
”
e x c l aimed
v assa l s and punish this rude so l dier !
L ady C l are
“
Do not ca ll for thy vassals for they are
”
“
mine a l so said the k night ; and do not be
angry with me for I have already kissed
thee
Then thou art surely m y brave l ord sa i d
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LA D Y CLA R E
L ady
self
Clare
;
ho w
but
1
.
53
wilt thou prove thy
!
By the go l den ring with seven gems which
I divided with thee when I l eft answered the
knight
H ere is my ha l f W here is thine
M y daughters cried the L ady C l are
bring hither m y h a lf of the ring for your
father i s here to claim it ! B ut oh my husband
j oy at seeing thee agai n had n igh made thee
”
a widower
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'
G O OD
ST
.
A
7
ME R R Y B A R B E R
ME S
A N D TH E
,
OF CO
MP O S TE L L A
.
c l ose to th e cathedra l of Co m p o s te l la
lived a barber whose real name was Pedro
M oreno but w h o was better known by that of
the mule because he was so stub
E l Macho
born that if he happened to be p l aying the guitar
h e o I l d not l eave O ff though a dozen custo
mers were waiting to be S haved B ut in S pain
a barber a l so app l ies leeches draws teeth and
e x tracts corns so that it w a s very annoying
for a man w h o was sufferi ng from tooth ache
and wanted his tooth taken out or stopped to
have to wait unti l the barber had finished
p l aying on the gu itar
H e w a s a l so a soothsayer and cou l d repeat
the whole of th e prophetical B u em D ielI a by
heart H e was i n fact th e most useful nian
i n Co m p o s te l la and had cultivated the art o f
shaving the face an d head from the commence
US T
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1
G OOD
6
5
S T
.
7 A ME S
A ND
,
TH E
should appear a t earl y mass on the S unday
well shaved ; but in Spain cleanli ness of th e
face is a great recommendation for a rough
chi n never earned kisses Therefore is a bar
ber stil l he l d i n great respect i n the l and of the
Cid ; and although Do n Pedro M oreno was
known by th e name of E l M acho no one
would have dared address him thus
O ne day the archbishop ca ll ed on E l M acho
to request of him to come and look at the
image of S t J ames i n the cathedra l to whom
the edifice is dedicated because this miracu l ous
figure who had wrought so many miracles had
strange to say comme nced l etting his beard
row
much
to
the
astonishment
of
all
the
g
p riesthood and of the common people and to
the d ismay of severa l knights who had been
knighted at the altar O f S t J ames because in
those days knights did not use beards
The barber seeing the archbishop enter his
house advanced k nelt and kissed his ring ;
a nd knowing on what errand he was come he
was so solicitous of securing the archbishop s
favour that he put aside his guitar and respect
fully awaited the pre l ate s commands
The archbishop having informed Pedro of
the state of S t J ames s chin proceeded to
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MER R Y
B
A RB ER
O F CO
MP O S TE L L A
.
1
57
i nform him that it had been decided at a
meeting o f the clergy to entrus t the shaving of
the saint to him Pedro M oreno ; but that as
this growth of hair was mos t exceptional seeing
that the image was of wood it was probable
that the usual process of shaving might not be
suffi cient
A nd you are quite right most e x cel l ent sir
“
i n your supposition e x c l aimed the barber ; for
unless I obtain some of th e ho l y water i n which
the good saint w a s baptized and a piece of
the soap with which J udas I scariot greased th e
rope with which h e hanged himself it wi ll be
useless to try an d shave him for th e hair wi l l
”
grow as fast as it is taken O ff
“
B ut that is impossible answered the arch
“
bishop ; for we do not eve n know where th e
good saint w a s baptized ; and as for the soap
last used by the arch traitor I should not be
astonished to hear that S atan had take n i t away
with him when he came to fetch J udas N o
good Pedro ; you must help me out of this
difficulty i n some other manner
Then we must d o with S t J ames of Com
s te l l a what th e men of B urgos did with their
o
p
alcaide who persisted i n getting drunk when
he ought to have been getting sober They got
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G OOD
S T
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7 A MES
AN D
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TH E
alcaide as much l ike the other as pos
s ible excepting that he was not a Oo r m efi o
We must get another S t J ames l ike this one
but without a beard and the peop l e will be
none the wiser
B ut W hispered the venerab l e archb i shop
what are we to do without our real o w n
good sweet S t J ames whose mirac l es have
been the means of restoring so many erring
ones to th e fo l d an d bringi ng i n so much
!
money to the Church
H o w can we replace
!
A nd then again W here can we hide
h im
him
A l l this can be arranged very easi l y
“
answered E l Macho
A ny S t J ames will
perform the same mirac l es for the peopl e have
faith in h im
I t is the same with me ; the
h ida l gos have faith i n me and therefore believe
I am the only man i n Co m p o s te l l a that can shave
them although there are many oth er barbers
I t is th e peop l e s faith that performs the
m iracl es A s for hiding the saint I will put
h im i n a box I have got and l ock him up
”
safely
“
F air sir I l eave the ma tter i n y our hands
continued the archbishop
but beware l est the
”
people get to hear of it
anothe r
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G O OD
A
M
E
S
A
ND
7
S T
,
.
TH E
that S t J ames had a shaven face as former l y ;
and th e barber w h o was at th e door g ained
great praise by i nforming them that h e had
been the u nworthy means of shaving thei r
saint l y patron
N o w th e saint who heard this from his box
commenced t o hit about him and shouted
out
G ood people I am S t J ames with th e
beard E l M acho is a vil l ain
But the peopl e laughed thinking it w a s th e
apprentice who was in the al cova or i nner
room and had not got over the previou s
night s drinking
S o they went their w a y
l aughing at the idea of a beardless boy thinking
he w a s good S t J ames with the beard
M atters went on very well with regard to
the new S t J ames w h o was not deficient in
working such mirac l es as the people liked to
ascribe to h im and to believe of h im Th e
b e l ted knights were pleased to find out that th e
growing of a beard was only a passing fancy of
their patron ; and as all were satisfied and the
revenues increased the priests were a l so well
pleased
G ood S t J ames had been confined within his
box for about three mon ths when the day for
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MER R Y
B
A R B ER
OMP OS TELLA
OF C
.
1
61
h is annua l procession came round and great
preparations had been made for th e occasion
E ach knight had sent his war horse fully capari
s o n e d led by two servants i n the livery o f the
family and followed by h is shield and spear
bearers There were about one hu ndred and
fi fty such chargers which preceded the horse
bearing the image of S t J ames who was kept
secure i n the saddle by a knight walking on
each side holding his legs while another one
fol l owed bearing his banner T hen came the
standard bearers o f the knights each with a
pag e richly dressed and then came the arch
bish o p under th e pal l io surrounded by the
dignitaries of the cathedra l and minor priests of
the neighbouring villages Al l the h o ly brother
hoods presented themse l ves i n their different
co l oured robes with their gold an d silve r
cro sses their richly emb l a z oned banners ; an d
i n their midst walked littl e girl s dressed up to
imitate angels while the little boys swung
censers of burning i ncense I n the rear came
twelve squadrons of cavalry four batteries of
artillery and five brigades o f i nfantry w hich
h ad arrived from different garrison towns to
take part i n the procession
F rom every
window scarl et damask drapery hung as well
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M
G O OD
A
y
S T
.
ME S
AN D
,
TH E
as from the balconies where the l ovely d a ug h
ters of Spain i n al l their h oliday grandeur a p
—
ea re d
fanning themselves gracefully wh ich
p
art they have cultivate d to th e detriment of
conversation which to the m is stil l an art little
attended to
The stree ts through wh ich th e procession
had to pass were strewn with flowers especial l y
fl e u r s de l is and crowds had congregated on
the pavements
E l M acho had given his apprentice a ha l f
holiday an d was standing outside his house
s e a k in
o
m
so
e
customers
when
he
suddenly
t
p
g
h eard a great noise and turning r o und he s a w
that good S t J ames i n the box was running
towards th e cathedra l from which the p r o c e s
s i o n was emerging
Peals of laughter and
“
shouts of E l cajon ( The bo x ) were taken
up by th e multitude ; but fortunately for E l
M acho they did not see from which house th e
bo x on legs had come
N ot waiting for ad m ittance and knocking
over the sentries at th e door the saint i n the
box made straight for th e archbishop who
knowing what it was quietly walked into the
vestry fo l lowed by S t J ames and l ocked the
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G O OD
64
yA ME S ,
S T
.
E TC
.
That he did not relish being l ocked up i n
the bo x for three months i s proved by the fact
that when o n three or four occasions his va n
ity
got the better of h im and the archbishop
thought he saw signs of letting his beard grow
it was quite Sufficient to S how him the big box
for him to withdraw the O bnoxious bristles
The new S t J ames was presented to th e
parish church at C o rdova by E l M acho and
h is v o w having been thus accomplished h e
married the archbishop s n iece gave up busi ness
and died short l y after
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TH E S A I I V TE D PR I N CE S S
E L VI R A ,
A M BA
.
was king of the G oths w h o
inhabited the northern part of L usitania
H e was one of the bravest kings that ever
reigned and the wal l s of his palace still sta nd
as evidence of the skil l with which he studied
to improve h is capital B ut although he was
wise he was not a good man and his bravery
i n w a r was not tempered by mercy L ike all
h is predecessors he was cruel to his Victims
and was more feared than l oved
Wamba had but one daughter E lvira whose
mother was a princess of th e M oorish family
reigning i n A ndalusia
S he was so beautiful
and so good that she contributed i n no s ma l l
degree in rendering her father s re ign famous
H er long hair was of a l ovely gloss y black her
eyes of the same dark hue had a ll the softness
o f her r a c e a n d it w a s this very te n d e r ne s s o f
l ook that gave majesty to her appearance
I n those days there were but ve ry few
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1
66
B L VI R
A
TH E
,
S A I N TE D P RI
NCES S
.
Christian s i n E urope The Crescen t of the
false prophet had overcome for a time the
Cross of the t rue S aviour To the teachings
of an old man w h o i n secret worshipped the
true G o d E lvira owed the first l essons she got
of Christianity ; and once the good seed w a s
sown it mu l tip l ied
Wamba did not know tha t his daughter was
a Christian ; but he knew that sh e was very
good and that for her goodnes s she w a s very
much be l oved by a ll h i s subj ects
N ow it so happened that i n the dungeon of
his pal ace there were many prisoners condemned
to death by starvation and it perp l exed th e
king to know how it wa s that they continued
to live E very morning he wou l d ask of the
gao l er if th e prisoners had died and the answe r
w a s that they seemed quite wel l
S o o ne day he hid i n a nook of the staircase
hoping to find o u t wh o fed his prisoners H e
had not long to wait for he soon saw E lvira
descending followed by a young courtier
A laric and carrying something in her apron
E lvira u nknown to her father had been i n
th e custom of carrying bread to the poor
prisoners and she was assisted i n her work of
mercy by her l over A laric
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EL YI R A
168
'
,
TH E
S A I N TE D PR I
NCES S
.
was being prepared for burning th e l o v e r s wh en
E lvira s old tutor p resented h imself b efore
Wamba and said
K now 0 k ing that thy daughter fears no t
death for her comfort IS O II the Cross a nd not
o n th e Crescent I f any on e be to blame I am
L e t me then be
he f o r I instructed her
burned i n her stead
Wa mba gazed fi erce l y at the O l d man and
raising his massive olive staff surmounte d by a
go l d crown exclaimed
“
Th o u s hal t also die but not before thou
hast witnessed her sufferings Thy G o d is a
fa l se G o d or i f H e have power to save all of
you H e S hall cause this ancient olive staff to
grow and th row out green leaves by to morrow
morning o r e ls e you shal l all die ; and saying
this he stuck his royal staff into the ground
E lvira was to be al l owed to remai n close to
the staff but no one with her and so that S h e
might not escape g u ards w ere p o sted al l round
t h e square
K neeling at the S ide of that emble m o f
a uthority
which f o r generations had been
wielded by her ancestors she gave vent to her
prayers and tears and the latter fe ll so quickly
that they m oistene d the ground ; and w hen
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EL VI R A
TH E
,
S A I N TE D PR I
NCES S
169
.
morning came Wamba o n arriving saw h is
royal staff growing a sapling then but shortly
to grow into a tree even as the Christian faith
i n its sapling stage w a s to th row out its
spreading branches over th e kingdom till they
all became one people loving but on e G o d
Wa mba c a u s e d a church to be b u il t n ea r the
spot which church still exists ; and the O live
tree grows by its s ide giving the name o f
O live tree to the S quare
A l aric was m arried to E lvira ; and Wamba
h aving been c alled to the grave of his fore
fathers these two reigned conjointly and
appointed the o l d tutor the i r counsel l or
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MUL E
TH E
T
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H E R E was once a very merry but very
poor host l er i n S a l amanca H e w a s so
,
.
poor that he had to go about h is business i n
rags ; and one day when he wa s attending o n
the rich l y caparisoned mu l e be l onging to t h e
A rchbishop of Toledo he gave vent to his
fee l ings in words
A h said he
my father was always called
a donkey from the day of his marriage ; but
wou l d to goodness I were the archbishop s
mule ! L ook at the rich livery he bears ; look
at h is stout sides ; s ee how h e drinks up his
wine and eats his m aize bread ! O h it would be
a merry life indeed ! M y father w a s they say
an ass so I would be a mu l e
A nd then h e l eant against th e manger and
laughed so hearti l y that the archbishop s mule
stopped eating to look at h im
“
What ho ! said the mule
R emember that
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11
ENCHA NTED
TH E
2
7
I II UL E
.
’
d own
the road i n the d irection of h i s mother s
house
The archbishop though t his m u l e had gon e
ma d and as the servants follo w ed it r unning
“
—
and crying out S top the beast stop it ! th e
rabble j oined i n the chase ; but Pablo n ever
s topped till he got to h is m o th e r s h ouse
The o l d woman w a s at the door spi nning at
h er distaff and as she was very deaf she h a d
not heard the c l amour Pablo bending over
h e r tried to kiss h e r h a nd to ask her for her
blessing but h is tongue now failed h im S o
frightened w a s she at the approach of the
a nima l that she h it h im over the head with her
distaff and cried out Ab e r nu n c io
By this time the servants had surrounded
him and were trying to lead him back but he
would not go H e stood on his hind l egs and
then lay do w n on his s ide and rolled i n the
dust till the scarlet saddle c l oth was spoi l t and
then sudden l y rising rushed into the cottage
and tried to sit on his accustomed chair
H i s mother fled the house and the rabble
e ntered a nd so cudgelled Pablo that he w a s
fain to return to the i nn ; and after being
groomed he allowed the archbishop to m o unt
him H owever h e had not gone far before he
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TH E
E
NCHA NTE D MULE
1
.
73
“
exc l a imed
B y S t I ago this mu l e hath the
pace of a camel
Pablo no t being accustomed
to four legs did not know h o w to use them s o
that he w o u l d move his righ t fore and hind
l egs together
Th i s caused the archbishop
great inconvenience fo r being a corpu l ent man
it made him r o ll about on the sadd l e like th e
go l d ball on the cathedral of S evilla whe n th e
west wind loosened it and the east wind blew
it down
S eizing the pommel with both h is hands a nd
raising himself i n his shoe stirrups he looked a s
i f he i ntended to vault over the head of th e
mule ; and as they were at this moment going
through a vi ll age the i nhabitants who had
come out to see the archbishop thought h e
S o surround
w a s about t o deliver a sermon
ing the mule they uncovered their heads and
knelt awaiting the blessing
Pablo forgetting he was a mule thought th e
peop l e were d o ing homage to him and being
h e gave way to such
o f a merry disposition
i nward laughter that it brought on a Violent fi t
—
of coughing which the faithful not seeing th e
face o f th e archbishop fo r they devout l y ben t
—
their heads towards the grou nd took to be th e
natural cleari ng of th e th roat before speaking
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1
TH E
74
ENCHA NTED MULE
.
the archbishop wh o w a s no w b ecoming
ser i ous l y frightened and thinking that the evil
one had entered the body of his mule e x
”
“
—
claimed E x o r CI S o te a b e r nu n c io ! Then did
Pablo sit down on his hind quarters so that the
archbishop slid off the saddle and rol l ed on the
“
ground and another Ab e r nu n c io
in a deeper
tone brought th e devout people to their feet
Pablo at this moment got up and by so
doing completely capsized the venerab l e arch
bishop causing him to turn over on t o h is head
F ull of dust and a nger the prelate started to
h is feet and carefully examined his mule to see
if he could account fo r this peculiar behaviour
S orely grieved did Pablo feel at having caused
the go o d archbishop so much annoyance and
so as to show his contrition he went down
o n his fore l egs thi nking to kneel which so
frightened al l the peop l e that they instinctively
took shelter behin d the archbishop
B ut he
was as much afraid as th e rest and had it not
been that they held him by h is robes h e wou l d
have run away
“
cried o ne
T his beats the mu l e of M erida
who ran away with the miller s wife and then
regretted the bargain S ee he is craving for
”
pardon
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E N CH A I VTE D
TH E
MULE
.
it i n obedience to what his m other had taught
him as a child dropped down on h is knees
bending his head to the ground ; but this he
did so suddenly that the archbishop fel l off the
saddle o n to h is neck and to break his fall
caught ho l d of his servants by their ears nearl y
tearing them o ff and causing the m a l so to
tumble Thinking that the evi l one had seized
them they struck out right and l eft and nearly
stunned their master with the b l ows and kicks
Pablo hoping to retrieve his fortune started to
h is legs with the archbishop clinging round his
neck and ga l loped after the two servants with
h is mouth open so tha t should he catch them
he migh t bite th em B ut they surmising wha t
he meant sought refuge among the priests and
these i n their turn made haste to get int o a
small chapel c l ose by
“
O u r archbishop must h ave ch anged mu l e s
“
with B eelzebub said a fat priest
for no
earth l y animal wou l d thus treat a prince of th e
Church
A y continued one of the runaway servants ;
and if his neck had been a foot longer I S hould
have bee n dangling i n mid a ir like the co ffin of
the fa l se prophet
I never thoug h t to have run so fast again
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TH E
'
o
MULE
E N CH A N TE D
77
I
.
ejacu l ated a very short and stout priest
F aith
my legs seemed to grow u nder me as our
sacristan said after he had been tossed by the
abbot s bull
!
But what has become of the archbishop
“
said another
We must not l eave him i n his
sorry plight
S aying this he careful l y O pened the do o r of
the chapel and there they saw thei r prelate
swo o ning on the pavement and Pabl o dashing
full tilt among the crowd tryin g to wreak his
vengeance on as many as he c o uld possibly get
hold o f
H aving torn th e leather breeches o f some
half dozen sightseers and knocked down and
tra m pled on some score o f m e n and women
h e rushed out of the city by the same gate and
never stopped till he arrived at the inn where
he had been hostler The m aster o f the inn
thinking that some mishap had befallen the
archbishop made haste to secure the mule ; but
as it was already night he postponed sending
off o ne of his servants till next morning
O nce agai n at the m anger Pablo had time
to consider over the mistake he had made and he
w o uld gladly have undergone any punishment
could he but have regained his former shape
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TH E
E N CH A N TE
D
AI UL E
.
While he was thus m using he saw the m o nk
approaching l o o king very s o rrowful indeed
Pabl o said he h o w d o st th o u like being
a mule
N ow Pabl o was cunning and not wishing to
let th e m o nk know what had happened he
answered
A s fo r liking it I enjoyed carrying the
archbishop as m uch as he liked being carried ;
but I a m not accusto m ed to such gay trappings
and go od living s o that I am afraid o f i nj uring
m y health
I f that be th e case conti nued the monk
h o ld d o w n thy head and I will relieve thee
I fi nd
o f the danger ; fo r to tell you the truth
out that m y wife is still l ivi ng and she recog
n ize d m e although I was disguised as a m o nk
B y my faith I would rather bear my master s
harness to the grave than my wife s tongue
fro m m o rning ti l l night ! Ca r a m éa I hear her
kn o cking at the do o r ! Dear P ablo let us agai n
excha nge conditions
A nd Pablo when he awoke next m o rning
was tightly grasping a beam thi nking he was
the A rchbishop of Toledo c l inging on to the
mule s neck
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Wi th B d P p on s B st is i m p ossib l
(I s d b y h P o p i to s of Th
Th e Author 8 Paper Pad L d h ll P ss ) C ont ins i
fib
o
s
p
i
c
d d i ffi c l t to t
b l oc k fo m fi fty sh ts of p p
of lin n o v whi ch—b ing of n s l b
p i f l smoothn ss h
h si
s
li
p
s
w
i
th
p
f
ct
f
dom
E
s
il
y
d
t
ch
bl
of
h sh ts
p
d h p i c i on l y th t s
b o t 7 } ! Si
ll y ch g d f com
mon sc ibbling p p T A U T H O R S P A E R P m y b com fo t b l y
h d s k h l d i n h h nd
s d wh th
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