.ANDALUSIAN SKKTCHES. 51 



there " thin as laths/' and had gone away " fat as butter-firkins/' 

 Some of the tales to which I was obliged to listen were long and 

 tedious, and without much point, but still his chatter was always in 

 some degree entertaining. He had a slight smattering of history, 

 making, however, sad havoc with dates and persons. One of his 

 legends, for instance, informed me that the Emperor Trajan came to 

 " Las Hediondas" under pretence of being cured of some disease, 

 but in reality to carry on an amour with a celebrated Moorish beauty, 

 the daughter of the alcalde of the neighbouring town of Cizares (the 

 Roman Cesarium). I listened to, and laughed at his tales, so that I 

 became more and more favoured by old Tio Juan. An occasional 

 extra peseta (fifth of a dollar) for himself, delicately left in the palm 

 of his hand at our friendly leave-taking, might perhaps have aided 

 somewhat in cementing our friendship ; but the great attraction cer- 

 tainly was a nightly jorum of whiskey-punch, which, notwithstanding 

 his high opinion of the mineral waters, he had no objection to add as 

 a rectifier. One evening, during our conversation over an extra potion 

 of the seducing beverage I had prepared for him, he gave me a sort 

 of history of himself. 



" Escucha Usted" said he, "Listen. I have not always been a 

 bath-keeper. I am the son of parents of good family. My father 

 had valuable property in the Sierra, and particularly in the town of 

 Benaraba, where I was born. He had property, too, in various small 

 villages and hamlets which are studded over the wild valley of the 

 1 Genal,' that beautiful river which takes its rise at the back of the 

 Bermeja mountains, and empties itself into the Guadiaro about four 

 leagues from its mouth. In Atajate, Benadalid, Algatocin,Benalau- 

 ria, Genalquacil ' todos nombres de los Moras' (all Moorish names) 

 were houses or gardens belonging to my father, Don Gaspar de Guz- 

 man. We are descended from the Moors, and I love to repeat the 

 names of these villages, bearing as they do, even at this day, the very 

 Arabic appellations given to them when built by my ancestors. They 

 saved their lives and some of their possessions at the period of l The 

 Expulsion from Spain/ by having become true converts to our Holy 

 Catholic religion. In this delightful valley of the Genal, and in the 

 heart of the Sierra, I passed my childhood, my education having been 

 well attended to by the friars of the convent of San Geronimo at 

 Guacin. I had just completed my fourteenth year when death de- 



E rived me, in one short week, of both my revered parents. I was 

 jft to the guardianship of my uncle Don Felipe, alcalde of Olbera, 

 to whose residence I was removed. He proved to be a villain ! In 

 order to possess himself of my property, he administered to me in 

 my daily food a slow poison, the secret of which had been nanded 

 down in our family, from the first entrance into Spain of our race. 

 I was not, of course, aware of his designs. His diabolical scheme 

 gradually took effect ; my health and intellects became impaired. 

 I must soon have fallen a victim had not his proceedings been de- 

 tected by my old nurse Ramona, herself a kinswoman and learned in 

 all the mysteries of poisonous drugs and antidotes. She dared not, 

 however, denounce the traitor, or even warn me of his plans ; yet 

 did this faithful creature so far counteract them, as to induce mo 



