I
Now Hurried To The Wharf; The Steamer Was Not Yet Arrived, But I
Heard Its Thunder Up The River
Every moment becoming more distinct:
there was mist and darkness upon the face of the waters, and I felt
awe
As I listened to the approach of the invisible monster booming
through the stillness of the night. It came at last in sight,
plashed its way forward, stopped, and I was soon on board. It was
the Peninsula, the best boat on the Guadalquivir.
What a wonderful production of art is a steamboat; and yet why
should we call it wonderful, if we consider its history. More than
five hundred years have elapsed since the idea of making one first
originated; but it was not until the close of the last century that
the first, worthy of the name, made its appearance on a Scottish
river.
During this long period of time, acute minds and skilful hands were
occasionally busied in attempting to remove those imperfections in
the machinery, which alone prevented a vessel being made capable of
propelling itself against wind and tide. All these attempts were
successively abandoned in despair, yet scarcely one was made which
was perfectly fruitless; each inventor leaving behind him some
monument of his labour, of which those who succeeded him took
advantage, until at last a fortunate thought or two, and a few more
perfect arrangements, were all that were wanting. The time
arrived, and now, at length, the very Atlantic is crossed by
haughty steamers. Much has been said of the utility of steam in
spreading abroad civilization, and I think justly. When the first
steam vessels were seen on the Guadalquivir, about ten years ago,
the Sevillians ran to the banks of the river, crying "sorcery,
sorcery," which idea was not a little favoured by the speculation
being an English one, and the boats, which were English built,
being provided with English engineers, as, indeed, they still are;
no Spaniard having been found capable of understanding the
machinery. They soon however, became accustomed to them, and the
boats are in general crowded with passengers. Fanatic and vain as
the Sevillians still are, and bigoted as they remain to their own
customs, they know that good, in one instance at least, can proceed
from a foreign land, and that land a land of heretics; inveterate
prejudice has been shaken, and we will hope that this is the dawn
of their civilization.
Whilst passing over the bay of Cadiz, I was reclining on one of the
benches on the deck, when the captain walked by in company with
another man; they stopped a short distance from me, and I heard the
captain ask the other, in a low voice, how many languages he spoke;
he replied "only one." "That one," said the captain, "is of course
the Christian"; by which name the Spaniards style their own
language in contradistinction to all others. "That fellow,"
continued the captain, "who is lying on the deck, can speak
Christian too, when it serves his purpose, but he speaks others,
which are by no means Christian: he can talk English, and I myself
have heard him chatter in Gitano with the Gypsies of Triana; he is
now going amongst the Moors, and when he arrives in their country,
you will hear him, should he be there, converse as fluently in
their gibberish as in Christiano, nay, better, for he is no
Christian himself. He has been several times on board my vessel
already, but I do not like him, as I consider that he carries
something about with him which is not good."
This worthy person, on my coming aboard the boat, had shaken me by
the hand and expressed his joy at seeing me again.
CHAPTER LI
Cadiz - The Fortifications - The Consul-General - Characteristic
Anecdote - Catalan Steamer - Trafalgar - Alonzo Guzman - Gibil Muza -
Orestes Frigate - The Hostile Lion - Works of the Creator - Lizard of
the Rock - The Concourse - Queen of the Waters - Broken Prayer.
Cadiz stands, as is well known, upon a long narrow neck of land
stretching out into the ocean, from whose bosom the town appears to
rise, the salt waters laving its walls on all sides save the east,
where a sandy isthmus connects it with the coast of Spain. The
town, as it exists at the present day, is of modern construction,
and very unlike any other town which is to be found in the
Peninsula, being built with great regularity and symmetry. The
streets are numerous, and intersect each other, for the most part,
at right angles. They are very narrow in comparison to the height
of the houses, so that they are almost impervious to the rays of
the sun, except when at its midday altitude. The principal street,
however, is an exception, it being of some width. This street, in
which stands the Bolsa, or exchange, and which contains the houses
of the chief merchants and nobility, is the grand resort of
loungers as well as men of business during the early part of the
day, and in that respect resembles the Puerta del Sol at Madrid.
It is connected with the great square, which, though not of very
considerable extent, has many pretensions to magnificence, it being
surrounded with large imposing houses, and planted with fine trees,
with marble seats below them for the accommodation of the public.
There are few public edifices worthy of much attention: the chief
church, indeed, might be considered a fine monument of labour in
some other countries, but in Spain, the land of noble and gigantic
cathedrals, it can be styled nothing more than a decent place of
worship; it is still in an unfinished state. There is a public
walk or alameda on the northern ramparts, which is generally
thronged in summer evenings: the green of its trees, when viewed
from the bay, affords an agreeable relief to the eye, dazzled with
the glare of the white buildings, for Cadiz is also a bright city.
It was once the wealthiest place in all Spain, but its prosperity
has of late years sadly diminished, and its inhabitants are
continually lamenting its ruined trade; on which account many are
daily abandoning it for Seville, where living at least is cheaper.
There is still, however, much life and bustle in the streets, which
are adorned with many splendid shops, several of which are in the
style of Paris and London.
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