212 RAMBLES OP A NATURALIST. 



quire this title by the purchase of land ; and he might 

 even assume those of gentleman, nobleman, or hi- 

 dalgo, which the Basques regarded as mere equiva- 

 lents of the former. 



The etcheco yauna did not, however, enjoy any 

 other privileges.* All professions were regarded 

 as equally worthy of esteem, and none of them was 

 considered to be derogatory to the honour of the 

 individual who exercised it. It may easily be un- 

 derstood, therefore, how perfect a state of equality 

 must result among all the citizens from such prin- 

 ciples as these. Thus even at Saint Sebastian, when 

 the Ayuntamiento gave a ball, no special invitation 

 was issued, but a notice was merely posted up in the 

 town containing the words " there will be a ball this 

 evening," and those who liked took part in the fes- 

 tivity. Even in the present day, we meet with nu- 

 merous traces of these patriarchal manners. These 

 will, however, no doubt, gradually disappear as the 

 Basques mix more and more with the neighbouring 

 populations, and here probably, as elsewhere, the 

 vanity of some and the jealousy of others will tend 

 to establish more strongly marked social distinctions. 

 Nevertheless, at the different singing classes and 



* Histoire des Cantdbres. This general equality is only charac- 

 terised by one exception. Certain houses, called infanzonos, gave 

 to their proprietors a distinguished place in certain churches, 

 together with the privilege of having the hells tolled for them on 

 their decease. It is, however, worthy of notice that these houses, 

 which have been preserved with much care and pride in the same 

 families, have almost all remained in the hands of cultivators of the 

 soil, who in France would be regarded as holding the rank of mere 

 peasants. 



