UNIV] 



MEMOIR OF BRUCE. \X C/4 25 



he endeavoured to soothe his sorrows with study 

 and travel. 



For two years he devoted himself to the acquisi- 

 tion of the Spanish and Portuguese languages, and 

 also made considerable progress in several styles of 

 drawing. It fortunately happened that the concern 

 in which he was engaged required a regular and 

 constant intercourse with those countries, so that 

 his desire to visit the continent coincided with the 

 ordinary routine of the business. 



After having made a short visit to the islands of 

 Guernsey and Alderney, he sailed in the month of 

 July for the continent, and spent the remainder of 

 the year in Portugal and Spain. From Corunna, 

 where he landed, he proceeded to Ferrol, and thence 

 to Oporto and Lisbon. His professed object was to 

 be present at the vintage of that season, but his 

 journals showed that he had paid more attention to 

 the manners and customs of the people. From 

 Portugal Bruce entered Spain, passed through To- 

 ledo, and made an excursion over the mountains 

 into the province of new Castille. About the middle 

 of November he reached Madrid, having traversed 

 the districts of Cordova and Seville. His intimate 

 knowledge of the Spanish language was of great 

 service to him, in enabling him to appreciate more 

 narrowly the habits and condition of society. 



The traces of Oriental manners visible in the 

 south, the ruinous palaces of the Kaliphs, and the 

 romantic tales of Moorish chivalry, turned his atten- 

 tion to the unexplored collections of Arabic manu- 



