MISS M. L. BUXTON ON A TRIP TO SPAIN. 669 
a short drive took us to the little town of Bonanza, on the 
banks of the Guadalquivir. From this spot, the same from 
which Christopher Columbus sailed on his famous expedition, 
we were at length able to cross the river. 
I'o any one who has read Abel Chapman’s “ Wild Spain,” 
anything I am now going to read will already be familiar. 
The “ Coto ” as it is called, or estate, is roughly divided up 
into pine forests and sandhills, and then flat plains and 
marshes. It is a sort of triangle between Cadiz Bay, the river 
Guadalquivir and the Marismas, which are huge tracts of 
level plain running up the valley of the Guadalquivir, about 
two feet under water six months of the year and hard baked 
mud the rest. 
Two keepers met us at the landing stage and we walked 
up to the lodge, through the warm scented pine forest, carpeted 
as usual with every kind of flower. The lodge was a great 
big place and most comfortable. The King of Spain had been 
there only about a week before us, so we lacked for nothing 
in the way of comforts. We then began to discuss our plans 
and found from the keepers it would be quite impossible to 
see much from this lodge, we must go to the other one, fifteen 
miles off. My host was a true sportsman and seeing how keen 
we were, immediately arranged everything for us. Soon 
after, he and his wife took their departure, leaving my cousin 
and myself with two keepers and a man-servant, and nothing 
to do but enjoy ourselves. The next day, Easter Monday, 
we were all in the saddle bv 8 o’clock, our manservant balanced 
on the top of an enormous pile of our provisions, bedding and 
luggage, beneath which nothing of his horse was visible but 
just its head and legs. 
First we rode through pine forest, seeing a great many 
warblers of different kinds in the open glades, the only ones 
I could identify being Black-headed, Dartford, and Rufous, 
the latter of which is especially conspicuous both in colour 
and habits. We also saw Woodchat Shrikes, which seemed 
to sit on every bush, and a good many Hoopoes. It was 
now also that I had a really good view of Bee-eaters for the 
first time since we landed. As they were all thing \er\ high. 
