FARMERS' REGISTER. 



437 



Hieronomites, as well, indeed, as thnmost ofthose 

 I saw in the neighborhood ofXeres, were planied 

 on a riclier soil, and were of much larger dinien- 

 pions ; but this could never cause sucii a dillerence 

 as to reconcile the difierent siatenienip. 



The principal exports from Seville are bitter 

 and sweet oranges, and lemons. The sweet 

 oranges are more cultivated than the bitter. I 

 visited several plantations; one belonging to Mr. 

 Welherall, the merchant to whom I had brought 

 an introduction. The plants are all raised from 

 pips of the bitter orange, and when the stocks are 

 ibur years old ihey bud them with two or three 

 eyes of the sweet orange. The orange ijroves are 

 reckoned of great value. The trees are planted 

 at the distance of 21 or 22 (i^et each way, and, in 

 good years, will yield from 1,000 to 1,200, or even 

 1,500 orange.s each. They are irrigated every 

 ten days, and the soil is (Jisposed in small trenches 

 to allow the water to spread. This plantation was 

 watered by means of a steam engine, which was 

 erected in a neighboring tan yard. Seville also 

 exports wool and oil ; but very little wool has been 

 exported tliis season, in consequence of an expec- 

 tation that Saxony wools would be excluded li-om 

 the ports of England on account of the cholera 

 viorbus. Prices have risen so largely, on this 

 account, that the merchants cannot execute the 

 orders of their correspondents. The wools shipped 

 I'rom Seville are those of Esfremadura, and are 

 of inferior quality. The chief shipments of the 

 Segovian and Leonesian fleeces are made from 

 IJilboa. I believe no person in New South Wales 

 wag aware, at the time the prices of their wools 

 Bunk more than 50 per cent, in the English mar- 

 ket, (4 or 5 years ago,) that the Spanish govern- 

 ment had repealed an export duty of two rials (10 

 cents) on the wools of Esfremadura, and three 

 rials (15 cents) on those of Segovia and Leonesia: 

 and thu.s enabled wools to be exported to a vast 

 extent, which would never otherwise have reached 

 the English market. About 50 vessels, of fi-om 

 80 to 120 tons burthen, are annually loaded with 

 oranges and lemons at Seville. The chief plnnla- 

 lions are at some distance from the town. It ap- 

 pears to be a fruit not much used by the inhabitants 

 themselves. There was scarcely an orange tree to 

 be seen in private gardens, or in any of the small 

 villages round Seville. At the present season they 

 are gathering the Grenadilla, or pomegranate, 

 which is very abundant; and this, with melons, 

 and bread, and olives, seems to constitute, at this 

 season, the principal fare of the common people at 

 all times of the day. 



Wednesday, 19/A October. — On Thursday morn- 

 ing last 1 joined the caravan of the ordtnario, 

 which, on its starting, consisted of six wagons, 

 besides a covereil cart with stuffed seats and hacks, 

 called a tertana, in which were three friars and 

 myself. A number of persons, on asses and on 

 foot, also accompanied us, but these gradually 

 chopped off as we proceedeil. It look six days, 

 including a day spent at the town of Anteqiiera, 

 to accomplish the journey to Malaga, a distance 

 of 130 miles. About eight miles before reaching 

 the former town, a parly of horsemen came in 

 sight, to the evident consternation of every one. It 

 was said they belonged to the party of Jose JVIaria, 

 a famous brigand, who has 35 men well mounfed 

 and equipped, and levies contributions on all the 

 roads throughout the province. They did not, 



however, approach nearer than half a mile ; and 

 one of the muleteers having gone off to them, 

 returned in three quarters of an hour, and said they 

 were not robbers, but soldiers. Two miles farther 

 on, however, we stopped at a house where we 

 were told it was customary lo make a contribution 

 to guaranty travellers against robbers; and 14 

 dollars having been collected, we saw no moie 

 of the parly which caused such alarm. 



With little exception, the whole tract of country 

 from Seville to Antequera is of the richest possible 

 description, but in the most wretched stale of culti- 

 vation. There are no enclosures save here and 

 there a vineyard ; and such is the stale of personal 

 insecurity, that no farmer or proprietor ventures 

 to live on his land. The inhabitants are congre- 

 gated in the towns or in miserable villages, and 

 only visit the distant fields to give them ihc least 

 possible culture, and lo gather in the harvest when 

 ripe. This being a cross-road, the inns were of 

 the meanest description ; and the fare, which 

 was undoubtedly superior to the daily fare ever* 

 of those above the rank of a peasant, was such as 

 to indicate the greatest poverty. I did not see lOO 

 head of cattle or twice as many sheep, during the 

 whole journey ; and only once was butcher's meat 

 set upon the table. My companions seemed to 

 consider themselves fortunate when the bill oflare 

 included a stewed rabbit or haie ; and this was in 

 a country rich enough to support ten times its 

 population, in the greatest abundance. From 

 Antequera lo Malaga, about 22 miles, the charac- 

 ter of the country was totally different. Instead 

 of the rich and extensive plains, bounded by 

 gently rising hills covered with the olive, the road 

 here wound through a continuation of sleep rocks 

 and hills, in many places approachinu in character 

 to mountains. But here the hand of industry had 

 been at work, and, instead of a track formed by 

 the successive marks of wheels, there was a road 

 cut out of the sides of the hills, and winding 

 through them wiih considerable art. Here .and 

 there, also, where a favourable spot was presen'ed, 

 a |)easant had established himself; ami the plan- 

 tations of vines and olives, with which his industry 

 liad surrounded his habitation, had given lo the 

 narrow valleys, and s!ee|i decliviiies of the moun- 

 tains, nn appearance of cultivation and feriilily that 

 might be looked for in vain in the wide-snreading 

 and rich valleys through which we had previously 

 passed. As we approached Malaga these plan- 

 tations became fre(]uent, although the country 

 only presents a succession of steep hills; the soil 

 a loose brown loam, plentifully mixed with the. 

 gravel of the strata beneath, vvhich is a blue or 

 gray shale or schistus, turning brown and falling 

 lo pieces on exposure to the aimosphere. In 

 many places, as apfieared at the sides ol" the road, 

 there were five or six feet in depth of this loose 

 soil, be'bre it came upon the more solid materia'. 

 It was evident the vines had been planted without 

 the ground having underiione any previous pre- 

 paration ; and no provision was madt% even in the 

 steepest places, to prevent the soil from being 

 washed away. Tlie vines, in general, seemed 

 to be treated in a very slovenly manner; the stock 

 was close to the ground; and numerous weak 

 shoots were springing out in every direction. 



It was seven in the evening when we enlered 

 Malaga, having been travelling from ihree o'clock 

 in the morning, at which lime we started by torch 



