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SPAIN. 



which was granted by the Pope to Ferdinand in 1496, has been continued to the succeeding 

 sovereigns. In the king's title, are enumerated all territories which he holds, or at any time 

 has held. The heir apparent is called Prince of Asturias. The other royal children arf 

 called Infante or Infanta. During the present century, several attempts have been made to 

 revive the old cortes, or great council of the nation, once the most powerful of European legis- 

 lative assemblies. In 1837, a new constitution was proclaimed, intended to meet the more 

 liberal soirit of the present age. By this act, the Cortes, consisting of a senate, appointed by 

 the crown from a list nominated by the electors, and a congress of deputies chosen by the qual- 

 ified electors, forms the legislature, and has the power of enacting laws with the royal sanction. 

 The deputies are chosen for three years, and the senators for nine ; the crown, however, has 

 the right of dissolving the Cortes, and on each dissolution, one-third of the senators must be 

 renewed. 



20. Laws. Either the spirit or administration of the laws must be defective, for neither life 

 nor property is universally safe. There are several ancient codes, and the civil and canon 

 laws have some authority. Justice, in Spain, carries with it more terror than mercy ; and is 

 avoided as a pestilence. It is now, as in the time of Gil Bias, perilous alike for the guilty 

 and the innocent to enter its courts. When a murder is committed, all run from the dying 

 victim, as they would from the murderer ; and when one is found murdered in a house, the 

 very walls of the dwelling are stripped by the hungry followers of justice. One of the greatest 

 obstacles to public and private justice is found in the notaries, or escribanos. A more efficient 

 system could hardly be devised for the obstruction of justice. The notaries only, receive the 

 testimonies of witnesses, putting what questions they will, and reading such replies as may the best 

 advance their own interest ; and often in the absence of the judge. The notaries are, there- 

 fore, sometimes bribed before the commission of the crime. The clergy often interfere, to 

 obtain the pardon of an ofTender ; but when he has no friend among the notaries or clergy, the 

 execution of justice is generally certain and severe. The manner of executing criminals is 

 worthy the country where condemnation has so often been wrested from the groans of the in- 

 nocent. Death is inflicted by the garotte, which is an iron chair with a collar fitting close 

 about the neck ; this is tightened by a lever or screw, and causes instantaneous death. 



Hanging by the neck is, however, the most infamous and the most common. The Verdugo, 

 or hangman, is dressed in green, from an ultra catholic aversion to the sacred color of Mahomet. 

 He posts himself on the second round of the ladder, while the criminal, with pinioned arms, is 

 brought to the first. He grasps his victim under the arms, with an alacrity that shows his duty 

 and his pleasure to be the same, till both arrive at the proper height, while a clergyman in sack- 

 cloth, and girded with a scourge, follows closely, continually exhorting the criminal. The 

 hangman places two cords of equal length over the shoulder of the shivering wretch, seats him- 

 self firmly about his neck, with his feet in the crossed wrists, as a stirrup, and both swing off 

 and fall together. In this position, the Verdugo jumps up and down, while the assistants hang 

 upon the malefactor's legs below. Thus die the patriots as well as the malefactors of Spain, 

 and thus perished Riego. 



21. Antiquities. Spain abounds in the antiquities of three powerful nations ; of the Ro- 

 mans, the Goths, and the Moors. As the remains are chiefly architectural, all but those of the 

 Romans will be mentioned in the account of cities. The Roman antiquities are in good pres- 

 ervation, and some of them are monuments of art. At Corufia, is a columnar pharos, with an 

 inscription which somewhat confirms a tradition, that it was consecrated to Hercules by the 

 Phoenicians, and afterwards repaired by the Romans, who dedicated it to Mars. One half of 

 the bridge over the Tormes, at Salamanca, was built by the Romans, the rest was made by 

 Philip the Fourth. Segovia retains its Latin name, and it has a magnificent aqueduct, built by 

 Trajan. This has a double range of arcades, and it has conveyed water to the town for up- 

 wards of 1,700 years. It has 109 arches, the largest 90 feet from the ground to the conduit, 

 and the length of the space they cover is more than 2,530 feet. In Barcelona, are several 

 Roman remains. Near Villa Franca, is an ancient aqueduct, forming a line between two steep 

 mountains. Near Villanova, are the ruins of a fortress, and numerous sepulchres dug in the 

 rocks. These indicate the site of Carthago Vetus, a town mentioned b)^ Ptolemy. There is 

 a triumphal arch beyond the town of Vendrell, and near Torre-dam-Barra, a magnificent tomb, 

 which, according to a popular tradition, contains the ashes of Scipio. At Tarragona, is an- 

 other Roman aqueduct still used to convey water. At Alcantara, there is a noble bridge over 

 the Tagus, built by Trajan. It rises to the height of 211 feet 10 inches above the river ; its 



