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 Effective Cybersecurity
Understanding and Using Standards and Best
Practices

William Stallings

Upper Saddle River, NJ • Boston • San Francisco • New York

Toronto • Montreal • London • Munich • Paris • Madrid
Cape Town • Sydney • Tokyo • Singapore • Mexico City
Many of the designations used by manufacturers and sellers to distinguish their products are claimed
as trademarks. Where those designations appear in this book, and the publisher was aware of a
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Copyright © 2019 Pearson Education, Inc.
All rights reserved. This publication is protected by copyright, and permission must be obtained from
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ISBN-13: 978-0-13-477280-6
ISBN-10: 0-13-477280-6
1 18

Executive Editor
Brett Bartow

Development Editor
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Managing Editor
Sandra Schroeder

Senior Project Editor

Lori Lyons

Copy Editor
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Project Manager
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Indexer
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To Tricia, my loving wife, the kindest and gentlest person.
Contents at a Glance
Preface
CHAPTER 1 Best Practices, Standards, and a Plan of Action

PART I PLANNING FOR CYBERSECURITY

CHAPTER 2 Security Governance
CHAPTER 3 Information Risk Assessment
CHAPTER 4 Security Management

PART II MANAGING THE CYBERSECURITY FUNCTION

CHAPTER 5 People Management
CHAPTER 6 Information Management
CHAPTER 7 Physical Asset Management
CHAPTER 8 System Development
CHAPTER 9 Business Application Management
CHAPTER 10 System Access
CHAPTER 11 System Management
CHAPTER 12 Networks and Communications
CHAPTER 13 Supply Chain Management and Cloud Security
CHAPTER 14 Technical Security Management
CHAPTER 15 Threat and Incident Management
CHAPTER 16 Local Environment Management
CHAPTER 17 Business Continuity

PART III SECURITY ASSESSMENT

CHAPTER 18 Security Monitoring and Improvement
 Appendix A: References and Standards
Appendix B: Glossary
Index

Appendix C (Online Only): Answers to Review Questions

You can find Appendix C at informit.com/title/9780134772806. Click the
Downloads tab to access the PDF file.
Table of Contents
Preface
Chapter 1: Best Practices, Standards, and a Plan of Action
1.1 Defining Cyberspace and Cybersecurity
1.2 The Value of Standards and Best Practices Documents
1.3 The Standard of Good Practice for Information Security
1.4 The ISO/IEC 27000 Suite of Information Security Standards
ISO 27001
ISO 27002
1.5 Mapping the ISO 27000 Series to the ISF SGP
1.6 NIST Cybersecurity Framework and Security Documents
NIST Cybersecurity Framework
NIST Security Documents
1.7 The CIS Critical Security Controls for Effective Cyber Defense
1.8 COBIT 5 for Information Security
1.9 Payment Card Industry Data Security Standard (PCI DSS)
1.10 ITU-T Security Documents
1.11 Effective Cybersecurity
The Cybersecurity Management Process
Using Best Practices and Standards Documents
1.12 Key Terms and Review Questions
Key Terms
Review Questions
1.13 References

Part I: Planning for Cybersecurity

Chapter 2: Security Governance
2.1 Security Governance and Security Management
2.2 Security Governance Principles and Desired Outcomes
Principles
Desired Outcomes
2.3 Security Governance Components
Strategic Planning
Organizational Structure
Roles and Responsibilities
Integration with Enterprise Architecture
Policies and Guidance
2.4 Security Governance Approach
Security Governance Framework
Security Direction
Responsible, Accountable, Consulted, and Informed (RACI)
Charts
2.5 Security Governance Evaluation
2.6 Security Governance Best Practices
2.7 Key Terms and Review Questions
Key Terms
Review Questions
2.8 References
Chapter 3: Information Risk Assessment
3.1 Risk Assessment Concepts
Risk Assessment Challenges
Risk Management
Structure of This Chapter
3.2 Asset Identification
Hardware Assets
Software Assets
 Information Assets
Business Assets
Asset Register
3.3 Threat Identification
The STRIDE Threat Model
Threat Types
Sources of Information
3.4 Control Identification
3.5 Vulnerability Identification
Vulnerability Categories
National Vulnerability Database and Common Vulnerability
Scoring System
3.6 Risk Assessment Approaches
Quantitative Versus Qualitative Risk Assessment
Simple Risk Analysis Worksheet
Factor Analysis of Information Risk
3.7 Likelihood Assessment
Estimating Threat Event Frequency
Estimating Vulnerability
Loss Event Frequency
3.8 Impact Assessment
Estimating the Primary Loss
Estimating the Secondary Loss
Business Impact Reference Table
3.9 Risk Determination
3.10 Risk Evaluation
3.11 Risk Treatment
Risk Reduction
Risk Retention
Risk Avoidance
 Risk Transfer
3.12 Risk Assessment Best Practices
3.13 Key Terms and Review Questions
Key Terms
Review Questions
3.14 References
Chapter 4: Security Management
4.1 The Security Management Function
Security Planning
Capital Planning
4.2 Security Policy
Security Policy Categories
Security Policy Document Content
Management Guidelines for Security Policies
Monitoring the Policy
4.3 Acceptable Use Policy
4.4 Security Management Best Practices
4.5 Key Terms and Review Questions
Key Terms
Review Questions
4.6 References

PART II: Managing the Cybersecurity Function

Chapter 5: People Management
5.1 Human Resource Security
Security in the Hiring Process
During Employment
Termination of Employment
5.2 Security Awareness and Education
 Security Awareness
Cybersecurity Essentials Program
Role-Based Training
Education and Certification
5.3 People Management Best Practices
5.4 Key Terms and Review Questions
Key Terms
Review Questions
5.5 References
Chapter 6: Information Management
6.1 Information Classification and Handling
Information Classification
Information Labeling
Information Handling
6.2 Privacy
Privacy Threats
Privacy Principles and Policies
Privacy Controls
6.3 Document and Records Management
Document Management
Records Management
6.4 Sensitive Physical Information
6.5 Information Management Best Practices
6.6 Key Terms and Review Questions
Key Terms
Review Questions
6.7 References
Chapter 7: Physical Asset Management
7.1 Hardware Life Cycle Management
 Planning
Acquisition
Deployment
Management
Disposition
7.2 Office Equipment
Threats and Vulnerabilities
Security Controls
Equipment Disposal
7.3 Industrial Control Systems
Differences Between IT Systems and Industrial Control
Systems
ICS Security
7.4 Mobile Device Security
Mobile Device Technology
Mobile Ecosystem
Vulnerabilities
Mobile Device Security Strategy
Resources for Mobile Device Security
7.5 Physical Asset Management Best Practices
7.6 Key Terms and Review Questions
Key Terms
Review Questions
7.7 References
Chapter 8: System Development
8.1 System Development Life Cycle
NIST SDLC Model
The SGP’s SDLC Model
DevOps
8.2 Incorporating Security into the SDLC
Initiation Phase
Development/Acquisition Phase
Implementation/Assessment Phase
Operations and Maintenance Phase
Disposal Phase
8.3 System Development Management
System Development Methodology
System Development Environments
Quality Assurance
8.4 System Development Best Practices
8.5 Key Terms and Review Questions
Key Terms
Review Questions
8.6 References
Chapter 9: Business Application Management
9.1 Application Management Concepts
Application Life Cycle Management
Application Portfolio Management
Application Performance Management
9.2 Corporate Business Application Security
Business Application Register
Business Application Protection
Browser-Based Application Protection
9.3 End User-Developed Applications (EUDAs)
Benefits of EUDAs
Risks of EUDAs
EUDA Security Framework
9.4 Business Application Management Best Practices
9.5 Key Terms and Review Questions
Key Terms
Review Questions
9.6 References
Chapter 10: System Access
10.1 System Access Concepts
Authorization
10.2 User Authentication
A Model for Electronic User Authentication
Means of Authentication
Multifactor Authentication
10.3 Password-Based Authentication
The Vulnerability of Passwords
The Use of Hashed Passwords
Password Cracking of User-Chosen Passwords
Password File Access Control
Password Selection
10.4 Possession-Based Authentication
Memory Cards
Smart Cards
Electronic Identity Cards
One-Time Password Device
Threats to Possession-Based Authentication
Security Controls for Possession-Based Authentication
10.5 Biometric Authentication
Criteria for Biometric Characteristics
Physical Characteristics Used in Biometric Applications
Operation of a Biometric Authentication System
Biometric Accuracy
 Threats to Biometric Authentication
Security Controls for Biometric Authentication
10.6 Risk Assessment for User Authentication
Authenticator Assurance Levels
Selecting an AAL
Choosing an Authentication Method
10.7 Access Control
Subjects, Objects, and Access Rights
Access Control Policies
Discretionary Access Control
Role-Based Access Control
Attribute-Based Access Control
Access Control Metrics
10.8 Customer Access
Customer Access Arrangements
Customer Contracts
Customer Connections
Protecting Customer Data
10.9 System Access Best Practices
10.10 Key Terms and Review Questions
Key Terms
Review Questions
10.11 References
Chapter 11: System Management
11.1 Server Configuration
Threats to Servers
Requirements for Server Security
11.2 Virtual Servers
Virtualization Alternatives
 Virtualization Security Issues
Securing Virtualization Systems
11.3 Network Storage Systems
11.4 Service Level Agreements
Network Providers
Computer Security Incident Response Team
Cloud Service Providers
11.5 Performance and Capacity Management
11.6 Backup
11.7 Change Management
11.8 System Management Best Practices
11.9 Key Terms and Review Questions
Key Terms
Review Questions
11.10 References
Chapter 12: Networks and Communications
12.1 Network Management Concepts
Network Management Functions
Network Management Systems
Network Management Architecture
12.2 Firewalls
Firewall Characteristics
Types of Firewalls
Next-Generation Firewalls
DMZ Networks
The Modern IT Perimeter
12.3 Virtual Private Networks and IP Security
Virtual Private Networks
IPsec
 Firewall-Based VPNs
12.4 Security Considerations for Network Management
Network Device Configuration
Physical Network Management
Wireless Access
External Network Connections
Firewalls
Remote Maintenance
12.5 Electronic Communications
Email
Instant Messaging
Voice over IP (VoIP) Networks
Telephony and Conferencing
12.6 Networks and Communications Best Practices
12.7 Key Terms and Review Questions
Key Terms
Review Questions
12.8 References
Chapter 13: Supply Chain Management and Cloud Security
13.1 Supply Chain Management Concepts
The Supply Chain
Supply Chain Management
13.2 Supply Chain Risk Management
Supply Chain Threats
Supply Chain Vulnerabilities
Supply Chain Security Controls
SCRM Best Practices
13.3 Cloud Computing
Cloud Computing Elements
 Cloud Computing Reference Architecture
13.4 Cloud Security
Security Considerations for Cloud Computing
Threats for Cloud Service Users
Risk Evaluation
Best Practices
Cloud Service Agreement
13.5 Supply Chain Best Practices
13.6 Key Terms and Review Questions
Key Terms
Review Questions
13.7 References
Chapter 14: Technical Security Management
14.1 Security Architecture
14.2 Malware Protection Activities
Types of Malware
The Nature of the Malware Threat
Practical Malware Protection
14.3 Malware Protection Software
Capabilities of Malware Protection Software
Managing Malware Protection Software
14.4 Identity and Access Management
IAM Architecture
Federated Identity Management
IAM Planning
IAM Best Practices
14.5 Intrusion Detection
Basic Principles
Approaches to Intrusion Detection
 Host-Based Intrusion Detection Techniques
Network-Based Intrusion Detection Systems
IDS Best Practices
14.6 Data Loss Prevention
Data Classification and Identification
Data States
14.7 Digital Rights Management
DRM Structure and Components
DRM Best Practices
14.8 Cryptographic Solutions
Uses of Cryptography
Cryptographic Algorithms
Selection of Cryptographic Algorithms and Lengths
Cryptography Implementation Considerations
14.9 Cryptographic Key Management
Key Types
Cryptoperiod
Key Life Cycle
14.10 Public Key Infrastructure
Public Key Certificates
PKI Architecture
Management Issues
14.11 Technical Security Management Best Practices
14.12 Key Terms and Review Questions
Key Terms
Review Questions
14.13 References
Chapter 15: Threat and Incident Management
15.1 Technical Vulnerability Management
 Plan Vulnerability Management
Discover Known Vulnerabilities
Scan for Vulnerabilities
Log and Report
Remediate Vulnerabilities
15.2 Security Event Logging
Security Event Logging Objective
Potential Security Log Sources
What to Log
Protection of Log Data
Log Management Policy
15.3 Security Event Management
SEM Functions
SEM Best Practices
15.4 Threat Intelligence
Threat Taxonomy
The Importance of Threat Intelligence
Gathering Threat Intelligence
Threat Analysis
15.5 Cyber Attack Protection
Cyber Attack Kill Chain
Protection and Response Measures
Non-Malware Attacks
15.6 Security Incident Management Framework
Objectives of Incident Management
Relationship to Information Security Management System
Incident Management Policy
Roles and Responsibilities
Incident Management Information
Incident Management Tools
15.7 Security Incident Management Process
Preparing for Incident Response
Detection and Analysis
Containment, Eradication, and Recovery
Post-Incident Activity
15.8 Emergency Fixes
15.9 Forensic Investigations
Prepare
Identify
Collect
Preserve
Analyze
Report
15.10 Threat and Incident Management Best Practices
15.11 Key Terms and Review Questions
Key Terms
Review Questions
15.12 References
Chapter 16: Local Environment Management
16.1 Local Environment Security
Local Environment Profile
Local Security Coordination
16.2 Physical Security
Physical Security Threats
Physical Security Officer
Defense in Depth
Physical Security: Prevention and Mitigation Measures
Physical Security Controls
16.3 Local Environment Management Best Practices
16.4 Key Terms and Review Questions
Key Terms
Review Questions
16.5 References
Chapter 17: Business Continuity
17.1 Business Continuity Concepts
Threats
Business Continuity in Operation
Business Continuity Objectives
Essential Components for Maintaining Business Continuity
17.2 Business Continuity Program
Governance
Business Impact Analysis
Risk Assessment
Business Continuity Strategy
17.3 Business Continuity Readiness
Awareness
Training
Resilience
Control Selection
Business Continuity Plan
Exercising and Testing
Performance Evaluation
17.4 Business Continuity Operations
Emergency Response
Crisis Management
Business Recovery/Restoration
17.5 Business Continuity Best Practices
17.6 Key Terms and Review Questions
 Key Terms
Review Questions
17.7 References

Part III: Security Assessment

Chapter 18: Security Monitoring and Improvement
18.1 Security Audit
Security Audit and Alarms Model
Data to Collect for Auditing
Internal and External Audit
Security Audit Controls
18.2 Security Performance
Security Performance Measurement
Security Monitoring and Reporting
Information Risk Reporting
Information Security Compliance Monitoring
18.3 Security Monitoring and Improvement Best Practices
18.4 Key Terms and Review Questions
Key Terms
Review Questions
18.5 References
Appendix A: References and Standards
Appendix B: Glossary
Index

Appendix C (Online Only): Answers to Review Questions

You can find Appendix C at informit.com/title/9780134772806. Click the
Downloads tab to access the PDF file.
Preface
There is the book, Inspector. I leave it with you, and you cannot doubt that it contains a full
explanation.
—The Adventure of the Lion’s Mane, by Sir Arthur Conan Doyle

Background
Effective cybersecurity is very difficult. A number of organizations, based
on wide professional input, have developed best-practices types of
documents as well as standards for implementing and evaluating
cybersecurity. On the standards side, the most prominent player is the
National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST). NIST has created a
huge number of security publications, including 9 Federal Information
Processing Standards (FIPS) and well over 100 active Special Publications
(SP) that provide guidance on virtually all aspects of cybersecurity. Equally
important is the International Organization for Standardization (ISO) 27000
series of standards on information security management systems. Other
organizations that have produced cybersecurity standards and guidelines
include:
ISACA/COBIT: The COBIT-5 for information security and related
documents are widely used by the industry.
ITU Telecommunication Standardization Sector (ITU-T): Most
important are the series X.1050 through X.1069 on security
management.
Internet Society (ISOC): A number of published standards and RFCs
relate to cybersecurity.
In addition, a number of professional and industry groups have produced
best-practices documents and guidelines. The most important such
document is The Standard of Good Practice for Information Security
(SGP), produced by the Information Security Forum (ISF). This almost
300-page document provides a wide range of best practices based on the
consensus of industry and government organizations. Another key
organization is the Center for Internet Security (CIS), which has published
detailed lists of industry-approved security controls and metrics. Other
respected organizations have also produced a number of similar documents.
Thus, there is an immense amount of practical, widely accepted material
available. The problem is that the amount of information is so massive that
it is difficult for cybersecurity practitioners to take advantage of it to build
and maintain effective cybersecurity systems and policies.
The objective of this book is to organize, consolidate, and explain all this
material to enable the security practitioner to make effective use of it.
This book is addressed to people in both IT and security management,
people tasked with maintaining IT security, and a wide range of others
interested in cybersecurity and information security.

Organization of the Book

The book consists of three parts:
Part I, “Planning for Cybersecurity”: This part of the book provides
guidelines for effectively managing the cybersecurity mission,
including security governance and security requirements. The ISF
defines security governance as “the framework by which policy and
direction is set, providing senior management with assurance that
security management activities are being performed correctly and
consistently.” Part I of this book provides guidance in developing a set
of risk and security requirements to ensure that there are no gaps in an
organization’s cybersecurity practices.
Part II, “Managing the Cybersecurity Function”: This part of the
book examines in detail the security controls intended to satisfy the
defined security requirements. The 13 chapters in this part encompass
the broad range of management, operational, and technical means used
to achieve effective cybersecurity.
Part III, “Security Assessment”: This part of the book discusses
techniques for auditing and monitoring the performance of
 cybersecurity controls, with a view to spotting gaps in the system and
devising improvements.

Supporting Websites
The author maintains a companion website at
WilliamStallings.com/Cybersecurity that includes a list of relevant links
organized by chapter and an errata sheet for the book.
WilliamStallings.com/Cybersecurity Companion website

The author also maintains the Computer Science Student Resource Site at
ComputerScienceStudent.com. The purpose of this site is to provide
documents, information, and links for computer science students and
professionals. Links and documents are organized into seven categories:
Math: Includes a basic math refresher, a queuing analysis primer, a
number system primer, and links to numerous math sites.
How-to: Provides advice and guidance for solving homework
problems, writing technical reports, and preparing technical
presentations.
Research resources: Provides links to important collections of papers,
technical reports, and bibliographies.
Other useful: Provides a variety of other useful documents and links.
Computer science careers: Lists useful links and documents for those
considering a career in computer science.
ComputerScienceStudent.com Computer Science Student Resource Site

Writing help: Provides help in becoming a clearer, more effective

writer.
Miscellaneous topics and humor: You have to take your mind off
your work once in a while.
Register This Book
Register your copy of Effective Cybersecurity on the InformIT
site for convenient access to updates and/or corrections as they
become available. To start the registration process, go to
informit.com/register and log in or create an account. Enter the
product ISBN (9780134772806) and click Submit. Look on the
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for sale by smoking men, instead of being, as with us, handed to you by
smiling houries. The modern merchants, however, enter their shops by a
door, instead of clambering over the counter; and they occupy chairs instead
of sitting in the cross-legged fashion of the founders of this remnant of
Mohammedanism. At a certain hour in the evening the bazaar is closed, and
given over to the care of three or four large dogs, which, shut into the
building for the night, will not suffer any one to enter but him whose office
it is to feed them, and to unlock the gates.
The population of Granada may be reckoned at 60,000 souls; and I think
the female portion of it the least good looking, not to speak harshly, of all
the dark complexioned natives of southern Spain. The Granadinas have not
the carriage of either the Sevillanas, or Gaditanas, nor even of the
Malagueñas, who are celebrated rather for beauty than gracia; and,
consequently, the lovely Alameda, on the banks of the Genil, has no
attraction for strangers beyond that of its own intrinsic beauty.
The ladies of Granada lose somewhat, perhaps, in the comparison with
the fair of other places, from having adopted, in a greater degree, a
harlequin French costume, that but ill becomes them,—or, more correctly
speaking, perhaps, that they do not become. Thus, the admirable set of their
well poised heads is lost under a huge silk chapeau and groves of Roses de
Meaux, clematis, and woodbine; their lustrous eyes no longer range, en
barbette, as it were, over three quarters of a circle, but, pointed through a
narrow embrasure, can only carry destruction in one direction. Their fans,
too,—telegraphs of their slightest wishes or commands,—can no longer be
flirted with the wonted effect; and their stately, though somewhat peculiar
gait, does not receive its just tribute of admiration, unless set off by the
black silk basquiña, under whose graceful folds their well tutored limbs
have been accustomed to move.
The Granadinas of all classes are passionately fond of masked balls;
which circumstance may partly be accounted for by one of the above-
named disadvantages under which they labour-want of beauty; and all the
masquerades at which I “assisted” seemed expressly got up for carrying on
intrigues. No character, in any sense of the word, appeared to be
maintained; and the whole amusement seemed to consist in the ladies going
about to the gentlemen, who were almost all unmasked, and asking in a
screaming voice, “mi conoces?”[146]
 Although every body went to these balls, which were held at the theatre,
yet, amongst the elite, it was deemed fashionable (now quite a Spanish
word) for the ladies to have a box and receive masks. But the temptation of
the waltz was too strong to be resisted, and all, I observed, descended
occasionally, putting on a mask and domino, to join in its fascinating
circumgyrations.
A letter of introduction to Madame Martinez de la Rosa,[147] equally
noted for her accomplishments and her hospitality, gave us an opportunity
of seeing the best society of Granada. The same want of beauty was
observable amongst the beau monde at her Tertulia, as on the paseo on the
banks of the river; but, to make amends, the music and waltzing were
particularly good. The Spaniards may certainly be reckoned the best
waltzers in Europe, now that the Germans have converted that graceful
dance into a mere bear’s hug.
I afforded some amusement in the course of the first evening passed at
Madame Martinez’ house, by asking a Spanish gentleman the name of a
most laborious performance, which all appeared to be engaged in with great
delight, to the total sacrifice of the graces. He started back with
astonishment. “What description of dance? why it is an English country
dance!” He thought it too good a joke to keep to himself, and, the
performance concluded, went about telling all the ladies they had so
disguised an English country dance that one of its countrymen did not
recognise it. This information occasioned great dismay, contra danzas
Inglesas being, at that particular juncture, “muy facionables;” and all the
Señoritas crowded round with exclamatory “Jesuses!” to gather the
appalling truth from my own lips, and ask instructions as to their future
proceedings.
I explained, in the best manner I could, that, though the ladies and
gentlemen in our national dance were deployed in two long opposing lines;
in the same way that their sexes had respectively been drawn up, yet that
various preliminary evolutions were performed by us, ere the parties began
racing up and down the middle at full speed, in which their imitation
entirely consisted; and, moreover, that we did not hurry the matter over, by
beginning at both ends, as they did.
Before leaving Granada, a favourable opportunity presenting itself, I will
enable my readers to form some idea of the taste and style in which the
Spanish aristocracy fit up their country houses, taking as my pattern that of
the Marques de Montijo, which, combining the comforts of the English with
the classic taste of the French, I was assured I should find a very choice
specimen. It is situated on a slightly elevated hill, rising from and
commanding a lovely view over the wide vega. For the selection of the site,
small praise is due, however, to the Marquis, as he would have had
difficulty in fixing on any spot within the same distance of the city, that did
not afford equally as fine a view. But the embellishments of the house and
grounds are “all his own;” to these, therefore, I shall confine my
description.
The grounds are laid out in stiff parterres, intersected with twisting
footpaths, “à la Inglesa,” as they call it; a portion being hedged off as a
labyrinth, which is thickly studded with rustic arbours, furnished with
modern sofas. On the summit of an artificial hillock is a shallow fish-pond,
from the centre of which rises a cave, or grotto (built, I believe, in imitation
of the Giant’s Causeway), composed of fragments of stalactites, brought at
a great expense from a cavern in a distant mountain.
A whirligig, with two horses and two coches—such as may be seen at
Bartholomew fair—weathercocks of all sizes and devices, sun-dials
innumerable, hedge-rows of zoophytes, &c. are scattered tastefully about,
and in fact nothing is wanting but “the sucking pig in lavender,” and “Adam
and Eve in juniper,” of the inimitable Mr. Drugget, to complete the long
catalogue of absurdities.
The show-suite of apartments consists of a succession of small carpetless
rooms on the ground-floor, each furnished with a bed, a few shabby gilt
chairs, a sofa, some yet more Monmouth-street-looking chintz window
curtains, a profusion of miserly little mirrors, and two or three old family
pictures.
In the library, which contained some hundreds of ill-bound books,
chiefly French, sat the Marquis himself—the genius of the place—a
grandee of Spain of the first class, a reputed scholar, dilettante, and patron
of the fine arts; a distinguished statesman, and at one time a pretender to the
regency of Spain; now, alas! the victim of paralysis, disappointed intrigues,
inordinate vanity, and insane ambition.[148]
Whilst at Malaga I had become slightly acquainted with the Marquis’s
brother, the Conde de Teba, who, by turns, a violent Legitimista,
Afrancesado, and Exaltado, was then, in the latter character, doing duty as
corporal in the City Light Horse, and bore about on his crippled person the
just reward of his treason to his country, having received a wound which
disfigured him for life, whilst serving in the French ranks.
The Conde married a Miss K——, “the beautiful and accomplished
daughter” (as the newspapers say) of one of the first British merchants of
Malaga. His union with this lady had been forbidden by the late king of
Spain, on the grounds that the pure blood of a Spanish grandee was not to
be contaminated by admixture with the grosser current flowing in plebeian
veins. To overcome this objection, reference was made to the heraldic
records of Scotland (the country of the lady’s family), and a genealogical
tree was shipped off to Spain, which proved without flaw, cross-bar, or
blemish, that the family of K—— was an offset from the great Fingal
himself. Ferdinand, who, morose as he has usually been represented,
enjoyed a joke as much as most people, burst into a hearty laugh on this
document being placed before him, exclaiming at length, “In God’s name,
let Teba marry the Scotch king’s daughter!”
This speech, though made in perfect good humour, was not soon
forgotten by the lady, who, when I had the pleasure of meeting her, wore
round her king-hating person (forgetting her high descent) the terrific
words, constitucion ò muerte, embroidered on a green sash ribbon.
Granada, by the way, is reckoned a most constitutional city. I first visited
it a few months previous to the invasion of the Duc d’Angoulême, when
every one breathed the most deadly hate against the French, and every thing
promised a most sanguinary struggle. The streets of Granada, if the vile
Gavachos ever got so far, were to be their burial place; the city was to be
another Zaragoza; the contest another “guerra hasta el cuchillo.”[149] I
pictured to myself the beauteous groves of the Generalife formed into
abattis to defend the town; the pure streams of the Darro and Genil
reddened with the gore of its brave inhabitants; the tottering towers of the
elevated Alhambra pounded into dust; the venerable deputy-governor[150]
of the royal palace exposed to the insults of a licentious soldiery! Happily,
however, all my anticipated fears were groundless. The French troops
marched quietly into the city long after the garrison had left it by an
opposite gate, and the invaders were received by the inhabitants with every
outward mark of neighbourly esteem and affection.
 During the first days of the constitutional portion of the reign of
Ferdinand “the beloved,” military schools were established in most of the
principal cities of the kingdom. That of Granada was on a scale
proportioned to the “exaltacion” of the place, 90 students being maintained
at it. A large monastery, which, ever since the expulsion of the Moslems,
had been under the protecting care of St. Jerome, was handed over to the
more bellicose Santiago,[151] for the purpose of training up the youthful
Granadinos to deeds of arms; and if the saint-militant attended to their
studies as well as he did to their feeding and clothing, no complaint could
possibly be brought against him.
The attempt to regenerate the national army by the infusion of a body of
educated officers, whose advancement should depend entirely upon their
own conduct and acquirements, was a praiseworthy effort to break through
the barriers of presumption, ignorance, and vice, with which the pampered
nobles of Spain had, until then, closed the door of promotion against every
kind of merit; reserving for themselves all the most influential and lucrative
posts, and placing in the inferior, the illegitimate branches of their houses,
their numerous hangers-on and menials, and, even yet worse, the debased
panders to their vices.
But venality is so strictly entailed upon all public departments in Spain,
that the same gross corruption and glaring favouritism continued, as before,
to regulate the distribution of favour and promotion. The patronage had
passed into other hands, but the new hands were not more delicate than the
old; “aunque vistan à la mona de seda, mona se queda.”[152] Legitimists
and liberals were both equally corrupt; their object was the same, namely, to
fill their pockets from the public purse. The difference between them
consisted merely in the means by which they effected their purpose. The
intrigues that had formerly been employed to manage the court were now
directed to influence the political clubs, and, under their dictation, the
constitutional ministers (to retain their places) were obliged to nominate the
noisiest braggarts to the command of their armies, and select for all the
minor posts such as were most vociferous in their cries of “constitution or
death.” These, as might naturally have been expected, were, for the most
part, lawyers’ clerks, tavern waiters, and barbers’ apprentices—self-
imagined Gracchi and Bruti, who thought they would be doing a great
public good by bettering their own particular condition. The youths, who,
under the new system, crowded the military schools, were all chosen under
the same influence, and mostly from the same class. But whatever germs of
future Cids and Gonzalvos these seminaries may have cherished, not any
were destined to reach maturity, for, Santiago not being so quick in his
operations as San Anton, the French army cut up the tree of liberty, root and
branch, ere these seeds of military greatness had even sprung up.
The extraordinary deterioration that has taken place in the Spanish army,
since the days of Philip II., is only to be accounted for by the demoralized
state of the upper ranks of society, and the consequent corruption that
pervades every department of the state. The soldiers, who now run away,
are chosen from the same race of men, that fought so gallantly under the
Dukes of Alba and Parma; the religion they profess is the same that it was
then, nay is stript in some slight degree of its bigotry and superstition. The
last king to whom they swore obedience, was not a whit more despotic than
any of his predecessors; so that it is futile to say, that tyranny or liberty had
any weight in the matter. Could any sway be more absolute than that of the
Spanish sovereigns of the House of Hapsburg? and yet under them the
Spaniards behaved most nobly. Would it be possible to frame a more liberal
constitution than that of 1820? and yet no troops ever conducted themselves
more shamefully than those ranged under its standard.
Nor can this marked change be attributed to any inferiority of theoretical
military knowledge on the part of the Spanish nation; for their schools of
artillery and engineers are indisputably good, and their military writers by
no means behind the age. Indeed, the “reflexiones militares” of the Marques
de Santa Cruz may be traced throughout the scientific pages of Jomini and
Dumas, and are, in fact, the groundwork of some tactical compilations of
recent date in our own language.
The experience of the War of Independence proved, however, that very
few officers of superior rank in the Spanish army were qualified to
command;[153] and, at the same time, one cannot but be struck at the very
small number amongst the inferior grades, who rose to distinction during
the long period of its continuance.
The civil war that followed brought forward no new men of military
talent; and the invasion of the French, in 1823, proved the utter incapacity
of all the leaders who had been transformed into generals under the
constitutional government.
 The bombast of these latter worthies rendered their imbecility the more
ridiculous. I heard one say to the late Sir George Don, just before the entry
of the Duc d’Angoulême into Spain, “If we Spaniards drove the French
across the Pyrenees, like a flock of sheep (!) when commanded by
Napoleon’s best generals, with how much greater ease shall we now do so,
being led only by a despotic Bourbon!”
Not very long after, I witnessed an act of imbecility yet more laughable.
In ascending the staircase of the government house at Gibraltar one
morning, I saw, on the landing place, a Spanish general officer (then, as at
this moment, holding a most important command) explaining to an officer
of the governor’s staff how, by “una grande combinacion,” he, Riego, and
other “inclitos heroes,” proposed cutting off Marshal Molitor’s division of
the French army, then marching on Granada. As the success of their
combined operations depended entirely upon the secrecy and celerity with
which they were to be conducted, it could not but be extremely amusing to
hear the gallant general explain the “whole progress” of the affair, before a
host of orderly serjeants, messengers, and servants; who, attracted to the
spot by his loquacity and gesticulations, were listening with open-mouthed
astonishment, to the elucidation of his cunningly devised plan. Ere I passed
on, I too was fortunate enough to witness the hypothetical termination of
“his marchings and counter-marchings,” in the most complete success; as,
suiting the action to the word, he described a wide circle with his
outstretched arms and gold-headed cane, and enclosed the outmanœuvered
French marshal and his entire corps d’armée.
The result of this “grande combinacion” turned out, however, to be that
the Marshal effected the passage of the mountains between Guadiz and
Granada, ere the Spanish captain general had yet fully explained the
impossibility of his escaping from the strategical toils about to be spread for
him.
Return we now to Granada—from which city, having announced at
Madame Martinez’ tertulia that it was our intention to depart on the
following morning, taking the road to Cordoba, certain symptoms of uneasy
curiosity were manifested, attended with sundry mysterious hints, that led
us to fancy some extraordinary perils were to be encountered on that
particular road. Less communicative than the Spanish captain general,
however, the utmost we could elicit from our various acquaintances was,
that the country round about the city whither we were about to proceed, was
in a very volcanic state, and that a political explosion might be daily
expected.
As none of our party had professed an over-boiling admiration of the
existing state of things, I believe we were set down as aiders and abettors in
the revolt of the troops which shortly afterwards took place—though not
until we had safely returned to the shelter of the British fortress.
We left Granada as proposed, taking the direct road to Cordoba, by
Alcalà la real. As far as that town, the road, at the period of which I write,
was the only carriage route leading from Granada towards Madrid. Another
by way of Jaen has been opened within the last few years. If ocular
demonstration of this first-named road being practicable for carriages had
not, however, been afforded us, we should certainly have doubted the
possibility of any thing less fragile than a bullock’s cart getting over some
parts of it; but as far as Piños de la Puente, that is, for the first twelve miles,
it is tolerably good, traversing the north-eastern portion of the Vega, and
leaving the Sierra de Elvira at some little distance on the right. The village
of Piños stands on the right bank of the river Cubillas, and inscriptions,
which have been found and are preserved there, prove it to have been the
town of Ilurco, mentioned by Pliny. It is celebrated, in more recent times, as
a spot where many a fierce struggle took place between the Moors and
Christians; for, in their forays into each other’s country, the bridge of Piños
was generally the point chosen for effecting a passage across the
impracticable little stream that, in this direction, bounds the Vega.
The hilly country begins immediately on leaving Piños de la puente, and
a fine view is obtained from the heights above the village: Granada, and the
line of mountains beyond, are seen to great advantage, and to the right lies
the rich vega, stretching westward as far as Loja. The Soto de Roma[154]
occupies the very heart of the fruitful plain; appearing from hence to be
thickly wooded. Such, however, is not the case, although some well grown
timber is upon one part of it.
Proceeding onwards, over a very hilly country, and crossing the little
river Moclin, in an hour and a half we reached the Venta del puerto Lope,
(pass of Lopez) distant six miles from Piños de la puente. About three miles
beyond the Venta, a view of the most romantic kind presents itself. The
Sierra Nevada, and part of the plain of Granada, are seen through a
tremendous rent that intersects the lofty mountains which now encircle the
traveller; the entrance of the rugged defile being defended by two towers,
standing on bold, and almost inaccessible, rocks.
Some miles up this impracticable tajo, is situated the crag-based fortress
of Moclin, which, from the command it possessed of the principal pass
through this mountain range, was called by the Moors, “the Shield of
Granada.” The celebrated Conde de Cabra experienced a signal defeat in
attempting to surprise this fortress; which, a few years after, (A.D. 1487)
fell into the hands of Ferdinand the Catholic, by the accidental explosion of
its powder-magazine.
About a league from the Puerto de Lope, the town of Illora, erroneously
placed on the road in most maps, is seen two miles off, on the left. It stands
on a rocky eminence, crowned by an old castle, and overlooking a fertile
plain. The ancient name of the place is lost; but it was one of the
strongholds of the Moors, and fell to the Christian arms only a few weeks
prior to the capture of Moclin, when the renowned Gonzalvo was appointed
its Alcaide.
The country henceforth becomes more open and cultivated, but the soil
looks cold and ungrateful after that of the plain of Granada. The hills
bordering the road are studded with towers at the distance of about a league
asunder, which, in the days of the Moslems, must have formed a very
perfect line of telegraphic communication between the capital and the
northern frontier towns of the kingdom of Granada.
The old castle of Alcalà la real, situated on an eminence, is seen at a
considerable distance, and, on a near approach, some modern works thrown
up by the French give it rather an imposing appearance. The town is so pent
in by hills as not to be seen until one has passed under the triumphal arch by
which it is entered. It was called by the Moors Alcalà Abenzaide, the Castle
(Al Kala) of Abenzaide, and received its present distinguished name on
falling to the victorious arms of Alfonzo XI. A.D. 1340. From this date it
became the principal bulwark of the Christian frontier, and the base of most
of the offensive operations undertaken against Granada. A remarkable brick
tower, built by the Conde de Tendilla as a night beacon, to assist the erring
footsteps of the Christians in escaping from captivity, still stands on an
elevated knoll, clear of all the other hills, on the opposite side of the town to
the castle.
 Antiquaries are at issue as to what Roman town stood in this important
position. Some imagine it to be the situation of the Agla menor of Pliny;
whilst others—as it appears to me with more reason, considering the order
in which that methodical writer enumerated the cities of note lying between
Bœtis and the Sea—are of opinion that it is the site of Ebura Cerealis.
Alcalà la real has always been considered a military post of importance,
and many a desperate conflict has been witnessed from its walls. The last
(not a very desperate one, however) was in January, 1810, between a
division of the French army, commanded by General Sebastiani, and a
disorganized mob of Spaniards, under Areizaga,—by turns the most rash,
and most desponding, and always the least successful, of all the Spanish
generals. By the defeat of the Spanish host, the road to Granada was thrown
open to the invaders.
The Old Castle, called La Mota, is a Moorish work, which the French
strengthened by some interior retrenchments. The city, though sunk in a
deep hollow, stands high as compared with the surrounding country; the
springs on the opposite sides of the chain on which it is situated falling to
the Guadalquivir and Genil respectively. The streets are tolerably wide and
well paved, but steep; the plaza is spacious, and rather handsome; the
Alameda is shady, and abounding in fountains; and the Posada vile, and
overrun with vermin. The population may be estimated at 4000 vecinos
escasos,[155] or 20,000 souls, including the inmates of six large convents.
On our next day’s journey, to Castrò el Rio, we were most disagreeably
convinced of the little dependence that can be placed on the information of
the peasantry respecting distance. They invariably compute space by time;
an hour’s ride being reckoned one league. As, however, the rate at which
their animals travel is by no means the same, their computation of distance
varies accordingly; so that a man possessed of a good mule reckons that
distance seven leagues, which the owner of the more tardy burro estimates
at nine. To exemplify this by our own case—we set out from Alcalà under
the impression, received overnight from information obtained from a party
of arrieros—that the distance to Baena was seven leagues. After riding an
hour we overtook two peasants, mounted on sorry animals, who told us it
was still seven leagues. Ten minutes after, (fancying we must have taken a
wrong road) we questioned a priest, bestriding a sleek mule, and learnt that
it was four leagues to Baena, or five from a knoll some hundred yards
behind us. In another hour the distance had increased to four leagues and
three quarters; but for the next hour and a half, we proceeded in the proper
descending progression, until we had reduced the distance to three leagues,
and a shrug of the shoulders, implying good measure.
With this radius, and Baena as a centre, we were doomed to describe the
arc of a circle for two tedious hours; and at length, by a figure which it
would be difficult to explain geometrically, found ourselves suddenly
within a league and a half of our destination. From this stage, our journey
diminished pretty regularly to its end, excepting that we were a quarter of a
league from that desideratum before we were half of one!
I think the real distance may be reckoned twenty-four English miles; for
it occupied us seven hours to accomplish. The country is rough and
intricately broken, without being elevated; and it is devoid of much interest.
The road is a mere mule track, (for from Alcalà the Madrid road proceeds to
Alcaudete) and must be almost impassable in winter, as well from the stiff,
clayey nature of the soil, as from the depth of the mountain rivulets which
have to be forded, and which are very numerous. The plains, which here
and there present themselves, are well, that is generally, cultivated;
producing corn chiefly. The line of beacon-towers is continued along the
points of the distant hills.
The town of Alcaudete (distant three leagues from Alcalà) lies about six
miles off the road on the right; and Luque (some little distance farther on)
stands on a slight eminence, about a mile and a half off, on the left.
On drawing near Baena, the country becomes wooded with olives, and
the hills lose somewhat of their asperity. It is a large town, containing 1000
Vecinos, and stands on the side of a rugged mound, overhanging the right
bank of the little river Marbella. The summit of the crag, in the usual
Moorish fashion, is crowned by an old castle, the enceinte of which is rather
extensive. The walls of the town are also standing, and, within the last few
years, have been plastered up and loop-holed, to enable them to resist a
coup de main, or an attack of cholera.
Baena is another town to which antiquaries are puzzled to affix a Roman
name. By some it is imagined to be Ulia; but this I do not think at all likely,
for, in the first place, the Itinerary of Antoninus makes Ulia distant but
eighteen Roman miles from Cordoba, whereas Baena is, at least, thirty two;
and, in the next, because Cæsar, who, on his second coming to Spain, found
his own army assembled at Obulco, (Porcuna) and that of his adversaries
besieging Ulia,[156] would scarcely have ventured to make a flank
movement on Cordoba, to draw Cneus Pompey from the siege of Ulia,
leaving his own magazines exposed to the enemy within half a day’s march
of that place. Had he been strong enough to act in the bold manner this
would imply, it seems more probable that he would have marched at once
with his whole army to the relief of the beleaguered fortress. It strikes me,
as being more probable, that Baena is the Baebro of Pliny, enumerated by
that author (amongst the towns of note on the left bank of the Guadalquivir)
next in order to Castra Vinaria, now Castrò el Rio.
The last Moslem King of Granada, the “luckless” Boabdil, made
prisoner at the battle of Lucena, (A.D. 1483), was confined for some time in
the castle of Baena; in which also the banners and other trophies, taken on
the field of battle, were deposited by the victor, the enterprising Conde de
Cabra.
The accommodation of the Posada we found very hard; so, after
exploring the place, and attempting to take a Siesta, we proceeded on to
Castrò El Rio. The distance from Baena to this place is two very short
leagues—scarcely more than six miles. The road, during the greater part of
the way, is along the confined valley of the Marbella; but, on approaching
Castrò, the bounding hills gradually lose themselves in an extensive plain,
that stretches along the winding course of the River Badajocillo.
Castrò El Rio has all the appearance of a very ancient place, and almost
all accounts agree in placing at this spot the Roman city of Castra Vinaria,
called, in some authors, Castra Postumii.[157] It is now an insignificant and
thinly populated place, having little or no trade; and most of the land in its
vicinity is laid out in pasture. The River Badajocillo, or Guadajoz, washes
its walls, and, by many, is supposed to be the Salsus, so frequently
mentioned in the “Spanish war” of Hirtius; but without any reason, that I
have been able to discover, if we are to place reliance in that author’s
description of the river and adjacent country.
We found Castrò occupied by the head-quarters and greater part of one
of the royal regiments of Carbineers; and every stable in the place being
crowded with the troopers’ horses, we had the greatest difficulty in
obtaining accommodation for our own wearied animals. Indeed, but for the
interference of a Caballero, muffled up in a capacious cloak (who seemed
to possess extraordinary influence over the Innkeeper), we should have
been obliged to proceed on, or bivouac outside the walls of the town. His
interference, however, caused a small shed, crowded with mules and
borricos, to be cleared for the reception of our horses, into which, after
some little trouble, they were all squeezed. A room for ourselves we were
assured was quite out of the question;—and, as for beds, every mattress,
bolster, manta, and blanket, that the posada afforded, had been secured by
the Spanish officers. The same civil and influential personage again,
however, befriended us, for, after a short time, whilst we were consulting
where we should spread our cloaks for the night, the Innkeeper came to
acquaint us that “ese Caballero Español”[158] had resigned in our favour
“una pequeñissima sala,”[159] which had been reserved for his use; and that
he had further directed it to be furnished with four sacks of chopped straw
for our accommodation.
The Spanish officers, who had entered into conversation with us whilst
standing at the portal of the posada, evinced great curiosity to know whence
we had come, whither we were going, and what was the motive for our
travelling, and very civilly invited us to pass the evening with them at some
house where they were in the habit of assembling nightly. But being both
hungry and weary, we made the latter an excuse for declining their
invitation. They then plied us with questions touching the state of Granada;
asked our opinion of the political condition of the kingdom in general; and,
complaining of the difficulty experienced in obtaining news of any kind that
could be relied on, begged to be informed if we had recently heard of any
thing stirring at Madrid, and whether we purposed visiting that capital. To
all these queries we replied that, our object being merely amusement, we
had not troubled ourselves much by inquiring into the state of parties—that
every thing seemed to be quiet wherever we had been—and that our future
plans were undetermined.
With numerous offers of service, they then wished us good night, and we
betook ourselves to the Sala, sending a message to the Caballero, who had
so kindly given it up, to request he would do us the pleasure of joining his
smoke with our’s; an invitation that did not require pressing.
Our visitor, whom we now had an opportunity of inspecting more
closely and critically, was a tall, powerful man, with marked but good
features, though the general expression of his countenance was decidedly
bad. His brows were dark and shaggy, his cheeks covered with a forest of
whisker, and his fierce, uneasy eyes intimated that he was one who had
stopped and would stop at nothing to effect his purpose.
His curiosity concerning the object of our travels was not less, though
more guardedly expressed, than that of the Spanish officers; and, by
degrees, a kind of distrust, with which at first he evidently regarded us,
wore off, and he expressed his unbounded love for and admiration of the
English nation, collectively and individually. “I have seen much of your
compatriots,” he proceeded, filling himself a bumper of wine, “though of
late years my opportunities of mixing with them have been but few. I have
ever found them to be true lovers of liberty—ever ready to lend a helping
hand to neighbours in distress; yes, yes! whenever an oppressed people
stand up for their rights, carajo![160] an Englishman has a G—d—n in his
mouth, and a musket on his shoulder in a credo.—Pardiez, Señores! but
these are excellent cigars! They are indeed legitimos,[161] and, entre nous,
they are the only things being legitimas that I have any great taste for. To
you Englishmen I may say as much. You, like myself, are lovers of
constitutional liberty—detesters of absolutism, of a domineering
aristocracy, of religious bigotry, and priestly mummery. These things are all
very well for the ignorant; but we, who have read, and studied, and
reflected, know the just value to set upon them.”
We gave a ready assent.
“This wine is sad trash,” he continued, after a flask of execrable black
strap had been disposed of, “and I know that you English like a good glass
of Xeres seco. I will therefore take the liberty, con licencia, of sending for
some that I think will please your palate.” Upon which, calling the mozo
charged with the care of the stables, he directed him to go to the house of a
certain Don Hilario, and request su merced to send some bottles of wine.
“Say it is for me, Juan,” added our guest, or rather our host, with a
marked emphasis on the personal pronoun; “say it is for me, and he will be
sure to give you the right sort; but cuida’o![162] Tell him I have some
friends with me—English officers; is it not so?” turning interrogatively to
us, “and that half a dozen bottles will not be too many.”
Juan took his departure with a knowing glance at our friend, and in less
than the “fumar de un cigarro,”[163] returned with the wine. It was excellent
—the real “Sherris sack.” Bottle after bottle was drained, and every draught
of the “fertile” liquor seemed, in the words of Shakspeare’s droughty
knight, to have a “two-fold operation” upon our convivial entertainer;
“drying him up the crudy vapours” that environed his suspicious brain
concerning us, and rendering him extremely communicative respecting his
own affairs: so that long before even the second bottle was emptied, he had
pronounced us to be gente with whom he saw he could converse “con toda
confianza,”[164] and had awakened much curiosity on our parts, with regard
to himself.
Although he had appeared to us to be on a friendly footing with the
officers of Carbineers, he now abused them in most unmeasured terms;
asking if they had not evinced very impertinent curiosity, (how much
sooner are the faults of others seen than our own!) to know all about our
movements. “Those alacranes,”[165] said he, “are all traitors to their
country, enemies to our glorious charter of liberty, and—whatever
professions they may make to the contrary—have as little liking for a free-
born Englishman as Sancho Panza had for unadulterated water.” “Indeed,”
we replied;—truly enough, though somewhat jesuitically perhaps, wishing
to draw him out;—truly, “from some observations they let fall, it is evident
they are no great admirers of the present constitutional government.”
“Admirers!” he exclaimed; “no, indeed, it brings them down to their proper
level. But, carajo! if I had my way I would bring them down something
lower; for I’d shoot every mother’s son of them, without the benefit of a
dying confession. I’ll tell you how I would set about establishing a
constitutional government, caballeros. I would first hang up the king; then
give the garrote to all your dukes, marquisses, and condes; and lastly, to
make things sure, root every bishop, priest, cura, and fraile, out of their
snug hiding-places. That would be——” “But your religion?” interrupted
we. “Qu ... e Religion! disparate![166] That would be the way to keep the
French on their own side the Pyrenees! But let them come! they will find us
ready to receive and able to beat them, in spite of the defection of our
dastardly nobles. As for these carbineer officers, they are a set of
fanfarrones, who are only fit to pavonearse por las calles.[167] I have done
more service to my country than the whole of them put together. Look
here,” he added, removing the handkerchief bound across his forehead,[168]
and exhibiting a formidable scar; “this was not obtained in a brothel brawl;
nor this,” showing a mutilated hand. “No, no, caballeros, my skin would not
serve to carry wine in.”
“You have seen much service then,” we observed.—“Wherever any was
to be seen,” he replied. A fresh supply of cigars was brought, another cork
drawn, and before the bottle was finished, we had persuaded our visitor to
give us his whole history.
The narration occupied the best part of the night, and will consequently
require a proportionate space in these pages. Not therefore to detain my
readers in a miserable country venta, and break the thread of my journey, I
will reserve it for future chapters, concluding this with a brief description of
the remaining portion of the road between Granada and Cordoba.
We left Castrò at dawn, (minus the curb chains, valise straps, and divers
other little detachable articles of our equipment, which are serviceable to
cavalry soldiers); taking leave of our new acquaintance, who, though he had
impressed us with no great feeling of admiration for his character or
principles, had, nevertheless, greatly interested us by the narration of his
adventures.
The road to Cordoba is dreary in the extreme; being principally across
extensive plains of pasture, uninterrupted by a single tree, uncheered by a
solitary cottage, or even rancha, and after leaving the banks of the
Guadajoz, unrefreshed by a single drop of water. It does not, however, leave
the river immediately on quitting Castrò; on the contrary, so eccentrically
does the stream wind, that it is twice crossed (by fords) within a very short
distance of the town, and then continues for a considerable distance along
its right bank. Indeed, until arrived within a league and a half of Cordoba,
the road does not altogether lose sight of the winding river.
The quality of the route depends upon the season. In summer it is
carriageable;[169] in winter, knee-deep in mud, and liable to be flooded.
The distance between the two towns is reckoned six leguas regulares, i. e.
about 24 miles.
On reaching some high table land, about five miles from Cordoba, the
glorious capital of the western caliphs, and the splendid valley of the
Guadalquiver, first burst upon the sight. The view is less extensive, perhaps,
but far more striking than that on approaching Granada from Alhama; and
when arrived at the edge of the range of hills bordering the rich valley, it
becomes perfectly enchanting. The bright city, with its venerable cathedral,
its Moorish bridge, its castle and royal palace, is offered to the spectator’s
close inspection. The gracefully winding Guadalquiver, bathing its
mouldering walls, may be traced for miles along the spacious plain that
stretches to the East; its flat and fertile banks covered with the varied
foliage of the olive, pomegranate, and citron. Beyond the city, a range of
wooded mountains, studded with numerous cortijos, convents, and quintas,
rises abruptly from the plain; presenting a fine relief to the sun-lit edifices
of the city; and behind this, again, successive ranges of wild mountains
show themselves, terminating at length in the cloud-capped ridge of the
Sierra Morena.
 CHAPTER XIII.

BLAS EL GUERRILLERO.

A BANDIT’S STORY.
“La murmuracion, como Hija natural del odio y de la enbidia, siempre anda
procurando como manchar y escurecer las vidas y virtudes agenas. Y assi en la
gente de condicion vil y baja, es la salsa de mayor apetito, sin quien alguna
viando no tiene buen gusto, ni està sazonada.”
“Guzman de Alfarache.”

THE tale which occupies this and the succeeding chapters interested us,
however unworthily, so deeply, that the following day—whilst its details, as
well as the peculiar phrases of the narrator, were yet fresh in our memories
—was chiefly devoted to transmitting them to our journals, in as regular
order as the case would admit of. By a strange coincidence, however,
(which will be noted in the course of my wanderings) an opportunity was
some years afterwards afforded me of revising and correcting my MS.
under the eye of the hero of the tale himself; who, besides adding many
minor details that had escaped our recollection, explained various
circumstances which had struck us as somewhat obscure and
unaccountable.
I leave the tale, however, so far in its original state, as to make our
acquaintance himself relate

THE ADVENTURES OF BLAS EL GUERRILLERO,

Who, having first carefully examined the outer apartment, which was
used as a kind of granary, and then closed the door of that we occupied, thus
commenced his story.
My name, caballeros, is Blas Maldonado; my present office, that of
Corregidor[170] of the neighbouring town of ——.[171] The place of my
birth was M——, a small pueblo[172] on the other side of the Serranía de
Ronda, of which my father and mother were natives.
I believe, notwithstanding the somewhat Italian sound of my appellido,
[173] that there is a tolerable proportion of the red blood of the Moors in my
veins, and that my name is corrupted from the Arabic.
My parents were both of respectable, though humble, birth, and owned a
small pacienda in the vicinity of Utrera, which, from time immemorial, had
been in possession of my mother’s family. Devoid alike of pride, education,
and ambition, they lived in monotonous contentment on the proceeds of
their miserable farm, which I, as their only child who had reached maturity,
was destined to inherit.
I was beloved by my parents, but especially by my mother, with the most
unbounded affection; and from my earliest youth was accustomed to have
every wish gratified, every whim indulged. As I advanced in years, I soon
showed that I possessed a spirit which soared above the pruning of vines
and gathering of olives; and my kind mother checked not this rising
ambition; for, though unaspiring herself, she was anxious that her child
should be distinguished above the common herd of mankind. My father,
however, was desirous of bringing me up to the occupation of my
forefathers; saying to my mother, that they themselves had always been
happy in the state to which it had pleased their maker to call them;—a
condition which, if humble, was one of independence, and placed them, in
point of worldly wealth, above the most part of their associates; and that, if
they consulted their child’s welfare, they should not bring him up above his
calling; for he would only thereby lose the friendship and esteem of his
neighbours, without increasing their respect; and might, by idleness and
pride, be led to his perdition here and hereafter.
These old-fashioned notions were fortunately overruled; though I must
needs confess, that in the early part of my career, I often thought my father
had been endowed with the gift of prophecy. My more tender-hearted parent
declared, that I had a mind above the direction of a plough, even if my
bodily frame had been strong enough to bear the fatigue of a life of labour;
and closing her arguments with a flood of tears, she reminded my father of
the children they had lost in early life, and begged that I, their last hope,
might not also be sacrificed.
 I was accordingly sent to Seville, to be educated for the church; that
being the only profession my well-intentioned father would hear of my
embracing. My fond mother paid me constant visits, to convince herself that
my health was not suffering from too close an application to study;
supplying me with money saved by her household economy, to enable me
to purchase books, and whatever else I might stand in need of. Her fears
were not perhaps so groundless as, judging from my present strength and
health, you might imagine; for, following the natural bent of my inclination,
a thirst for knowledge, I gave up the whole of my time to reading; despising
the amusements of my schoolfellows, to whom I felt myself as superior in
intellect, as they prided themselves on being in the accidental matter of
birth.
I soon, however, wearied of the lives of the saints, and other good books
placed in my hands; and leaving them for such as wished to learn how to
merit canonization, I sought for more worldly knowledge in the pages of
Guzman de Alfarache, Gil Blas, and other adventurers, who, like myself,
had had their fortunes to seek; and, whilst I considered the last-named hero
a mere driveller, devoid of all honourable ambition, I adopted his code of
morality, as the only one to be followed by one who has to push his way
through the selfish crowd that throngs every avenue to wealth and power.
My parents, informed by those to whose care I was entrusted, that I was
by no means likely to become an ornament to the church, were at length
persuaded to allow me to make trial of the law. But though at the outset I
applied very diligently to the dry study to which my mind was now
directed, yet I soon found it suited my taste as little as that of divinity. Of
the two, indeed, I think I preferred the lives of the Holy Fathers to the Siete
Partidas of Alfonzo el Sabio; for the former, at all events, contained ample
matter for satire and ridicule, for which I had a natural turn; whereas the
latter formed a mass of heavy reading, replete with incongruities, and
clogged with technicalities, which ill-suited my peculiar humour.
During the latter years of my residence at Seville, however, my reading
was altogether diverted into another channel. I became acquainted with a
French youth, by name Louis Xavier le Bas, who, intended for the
mercantile profession, had been sent to our commercial capital, where some
of his mother’s relatives were settled, for the purpose of acquiring a
knowledge of the Spanish language.
 Though this person was several years my senior in age, a similarity of
tastes soon warmed into the closest friendship an acquaintance that had
been commenced merely with a view to our mutual advantage. I initiated
him in all the mysteries of Spanish life, and he, in return, undertook à me
decrasser, as he termed it, and render me fit to jouer un rôle distingué on
the theatre of the world. In short, we became inseparable; and our despised
and despising fellow-students thence designated us Don Cleofas and
Asmodeus.
This valuable friend, devil or not, was the means of my acquiring a
tolerable knowledge of the French language, (which has proved of infinite
service to me,) and of my understanding being enlarged by the writings of
Voltaire, Diderot, Condorcet, and other enlightened materialists of his
nation, whose depth of reasoning and witty satires were, at that period,
effecting such beneficial changes in France; removing from the eyes of the
people the bandages of ignorance and bigotry that had so long blinded them
to their state of slavery and debasement.
These works, though forbidden by the despot government of Spain, were
surreptitiously obtained for me by my kind friend; and their perusal opened
my eyes also to the deplorable state of degradation in which my own
country was plunged. I accordingly became a philosopher, and, I may say,
even a liberal, long before the term was heard or understood in this
enslaved and priest-ridden land.
Our school companions, unable to comprehend the elevated principles
by which we were governed, shunned us as plebeian democrats and
blasphemous free thinkers. But we soon collected around us a set of more
congenial spirits, and became the founders of a secret political association,
that has since spread widely throughout the whole kingdom.
I had nearly completed the fifth year of my sojourn at Seville, when an
unwelcome summons from my father bade me repair forthwith to M——.
His letter briefly stated, that, concluding I must by this time have
thoroughly digested the contents of all the law books ever published in the
universe—my father, as you may perceive, was very ignorant in such
matters—he had embraced a most favourable opportunity that presented
itself of establishing me in the world agreeably to my desire; and,
accordingly, was about to place me, together with a handsome bonus, in the
hands of Don Benito Quisquilla, the village attorney, to be by him initiated
into all the practical quirks and chicaneries of the law; with the view, if I
gave promise of becoming a useful co-operator in the work of litigation, of
being eventually admitted to a share of his daily increasing profits.
This prospect of settling down as a country attorney was, as my friend
and counsellor Le Bas said, quite insufferable to one of my intellectual
powers, cultivated mind, and honourable ambition. If I had finally
determined on following the profession of the law, he observed, the only fit
field for one of my abilities was the capital. There, he had no doubt, I
should soon rise to distinction; whereas, in a country town, my pursuit of
fame would be as vain as that of partridges en campo raso.[174]
This opinion tallied exactly with my own; for, feeling myself as superior
in mental endowments as in physical powers to the decrepit piece of
nobility who owned the vast plains surrounding the miserable inheritance to
which I was born, I saw no reason why I should be inferior to him in
worldly wealth and consideration. With these and various other arguments,
therefore, I replied to my father, urging him to break off with Don Benito,
and furnish me with the means of accompanying my friend, Le Bas, to
Madrid, where he was about to establish himself as a merchant. My father,
however, would not listen to reason. He replied, that the Duke of Medina
Celi was born a grandee of Spain, and I a peasant; and, with respect to a
reflection I had cast upon the justice of Providence in distributing so
unequally the good things of this world, he maintained that, though my life
was doomed to be one of labour, yet it was as sweet, probably even sweeter,
than that of him whose lot I seemed so much to envy.
Finding that it was predicar en el desierto[175] to argue with my father,
and that my mother did not give me the support on which I had reckoned, I
had no alternative but to acquiesce in the proposed plan, and wait for the
favourable moment of relieving myself from the paternal yoke. I, therefore,
took a most affectionate leave of Le Bas, who promised to summons me to
the capital as soon as he had an opportunity of serving me, and, with a very
bad grace, obeying my father’s commands, proceeded to M——.
My parents were delighted with the improvements that had taken place
in my health, person, and deportment, and not less proud of the superiority
my education and accomplishments had given me over the companions of
my childhood. I was now, my fond mother declared, entitled to llamar de
vos[176] the first hidalgo in the land; and, I believe, Caballeros, that,
without vanity, I may say, my coming caused some little sensation in my
natal town.
I was not long in discovering, however, that the place contained no fit
associate for one of my stamp. Those few amongst the inhabitants whose
professions had rendered some little education necessary, were, from
morning to night, occupied at their respective vocations, and affected rather
to treat me as a parvenu. The youths of my own age, on the other hand,
were ignorant clowns, of whom I could not possibly make companions;
and, with pain I make the admission, even on the authors of my being I
could not now avoid looking down with some slight feeling of contempt.
They were all kindness, however, and my father spared not the means of
enabling me to continue the same expensive manner of life to which I had
so long been accustomed.
Deprived as I now found myself of associates of my own sex—for I
believe every boor in the place hated me most thoroughly—my time was
exclusively devoted to the society of the other; and I need not, therefore, tell
you—for most young men are aware of the expenses attendant on such
intimacies—that my father’s purse was drawn heavily upon to meet my
increasing exigencies.
Meanwhile my legal studies were prosecuted with no great assiduity.
Don Benito, who, whilst my father’s money was fresh in his pocket, had,
for the sake of appearances, treated me with affected kindness, soon threw
off the mask of hypocrisy, and neglected no occasion of making me aware
of the little interest he took in my welfare. The soft and speaking eyes of his
fair daughter told me, however, that she entertained a kindlier feeling
towards me; an avowal which was quickly followed by the admission that I
was the sole possessor of her affections.
I must make the ungallant confession, Caballeros, that expediency was
the only incentive I had for encouraging the passion of the lovely girl. My
life had been too dissolute to admit so pure an affection as her’s readily to
take root within my breast; but I saw in it the only sure stepping-stone to
greatness—money; for Don Benito was a wealthy man, Alitéa his only
daughter.
Whilst yet undecided as to the best means to be adopted for the
accomplishment of my purpose (for it was a matter requiring some
consideration, since I was perfectly aware the crafty old lawyer would
never consent to our union, my dissipated mode of living having involved
me in pecuniary difficulties of which he could not well be ignorant), events
occurred which, by opening other prospects to me, for a time drove Alitéa
altogether out of my thoughts.
The trifling sum that my father’s frugal habits had enabled him to lay by,
had been entirely swallowed up in placing me with Don Benito; and to meet
my increasing expenditure, which he fully believed was merely money put
out to interest, he conceived that increased exertions on his part were
necessary. Against this—since in replying to my mother’s objections to my
following the plough, he had ever maintained that agricultural pursuits were
of all others the most healthy—I could have nothing to say. But these
exertions soon proved too much for the old man’s strength, and he
contracted a painful disorder, from which, after a tedious confinement, it
became a mercy to be relieved.
I mention these circumstances, Caballeros, not for the purpose of
repelling the charge brought against me by my kind fellow-townsmen, of
having wilfully accelerated my parent’s death, a crime of which, God be
praised, my conscience is quite clear, but to show the ill will they
entertained towards me; a feeling to which, in the course of my story, I shall
again have occasion to refer.
I had always expected, on the death of my father, to find myself in the
possession of a comfortable independence, as he had ever represented to me
that such would be the case.
But, during his protracted illness, every thing had gone wrong at the
farm: the cattle died; those of our neighbours intruded upon our crops; the
vines remained unpruned; the olives rotted upon the ground; the property, in
fact, had become a perfect wilderness; and, to obtain money to defray the
expenses of my parent’s funeral, I was obliged to sell the implements of
husbandry upon the farm; those being the only property which could be
immediately rendered available.
Before proceeding to this extremity, however, I had applied to Don
Benito for assistance. The pettifogging rascal in reply said, that he had
every disposition in the world to befriend me, and, with that view, felt
called upon to say, that the further study of a profession for which I had
neither the requisite talent nor application, would be merely a waste of time
and money; and to advise me to apply myself to the healthful occupation of
my forefathers, for which, on the other hand, my bodily strength peculiarly
fitted me. “On this condition only,” he concluded, “can I render you
assistance. Give me your promise to devote your best energies to this honest
calling, and I am ready at once to return the sum advanced by your father,
though not called upon to do so, either by law or equity.”
I spurned his offer with the contemptuous indignation it merited,
withdrew from all further intercourse with the miserly wretch, and, as I
have already said, sold every thing that I could lay my hands upon.
Could I have acted otherwise? impossible! But the blow inflicted on my
mother by this sudden destruction of her long-indulged hopes was too
heavy for her to bear up against. Staggering already under her late loss, and
now with the dread of penury and want added to her sufferings, she sank
broken-hearted to the grave.
I can ill describe my feelings on the heart-rending occasion. I had loved
my mother with the fondest affection; yet had it been my fate to drug the
cup that agonised her last moments! With pleasure would I have laid down
my own life to prolong her’s; yet had it been my unlucky destiny to inflict
the blow that hurried her to the tomb! She nevertheless felt more for me
than for herself, even in her last moments; and her dying breath was spent
in calling down a blessing on my head. Ya està en el cielo.[177]
To meet the fresh expenses my mother’s illness and death had brought
upon me, as well as to liquidate my former debts, I was now under the
necessity of raising more money. I tried in vain to effect a mortgage on my
property: nobody would advance a maravedi upon it! To obtain a few paltry
doubloons, therefore, I had no alternative left but to sell the patrimony
handed down to me by a long line of ancestors. My hacienda was
accordingly put up to public auction; and—deteriorated in value as it was
represented to be, by every one but the auctioneer—sold for something less
than one third of its real value. The purchaser was Don Benito Quisquilla.
The proceeds of the sale, after paying the customary expenses, were
barely sufficient to satisfy the various demands made upon me; and I was
left a bankrupt in wealth as well as expectations; a being without a relative
in the wide world to speak comfort to him; without a friend to advise him;
without a home; without even the means of subsistence!
Was life any longer worth preserving? I weighed its value in the scales
of experience—fleeting joys on the one side, rankling injuries on the other;
and the preponderating weight of the latter had well nigh determined me to
rid myself of the burthen of existence, when the sweetness of revenge, cast
into the opposing balance, turned the scale, and decided me to live—to live
to be revenged on mankind.
The purchaser of my property, or rather the swindler who had obtained
possession of it, again outraged my wounded feelings by the repetition of
his humiliating offer of assistance. Thus insulted and scorned by the
specious villain whose robberies had rendered me a beggar, I swore to let
fall on him the first stroke of my revenge. I kept my oath! I tore from his
arms his daughter, his darling Alitéa—the solace of his widowed hearth—
the prop of his declining years. She fled from the paternal roof, and became
my—mistress!
Ignorant of all that had passed between her father and myself, and but
too ready to lend a favouring ear to my tale, few persuasions were
necessary to induce Alitéa to comply with my proposal. I assured her that I
had sounded Don Benito on the subject of a marriage, and that he objected
only on account of the disparity of years: she who was then entering her
twenty-third year, being two years older than myself. But as this objection,
trifling as it could not but be considered, was nevertheless one which would
always exist, I convinced her that it could only be overcome by the step I
proposed, a step which would readily be forgiven by an indulgent father.
She trusted to my honour and her father’s kindness, and became my victim.
We fled to the mountains, and sought a refuge amongst the lawless
bandits of Olbera, a place proverbial for sheltering the outcasts of society.
There we remained for several months, subsisting on the few onzas that
remained in my purse from the sale of my patrimony, and by disposing of
various trinkets that Alitéa had brought away with her. But our funds were
soon exhausted, and it became necessary to take some steps to procure the
means of maintenance.
On matters reaching this stage, it had originally been my intention to
abandon Don Benito’s daughter to her fate, and seek my fortune in
America; for, as I have already said, Alitéa had awakened no feeling of love
within my breast, and the idea of making her my wife, though entertained
previous to my rupture with her father, had never once entered my thoughts
on taking her from the paternal roof. Revenge alone had instigated me to an
act, by which I purposed bringing everlasting disgrace on Don Benito, and
his vaunted high connexions.
But, besides that Alitéa possessed great personal attractions, and had
given proof of loving me with the most boundless affection, which naturally
disposed my feelings to warm towards her, she, even now, on discovering
the deceit I had practised; that I was a libertine; a beggar; nay, even when I
told her she was the mere instrument of my revenge, did not reproach me
with one bitter word.—“Blas, Blas, I trust to your honour,” was the only
appeal made to her seducer’s feelings.
Was it in human nature to spurn so confiding, so affectionate a being?
For my punishment (so a confessor would, probably, have told me) it was
ordained, that the cold admiration with which I first regarded Alitéa should
gradually warm into the most fervent, the most ardent love, to make me feel
more poignantly the wrong I had done, the misery I had brought on this
admirable being!
Bitterly as I upbraided fate, and curst the author of my misfortunes, more
bitter still were my self-reproaches at having exposed the object of my
adoration to the hardships and privations we were doomed to suffer; for we
were now obliged to labour from daylight to dark to earn a miserable
pittance, barely sufficient to procure the necessaries of life, and to be
satisfied with the humblest lodging, the coarsest garments, and the poorest
food.
At length, urged by my love for Alitéa, and yet more by the prospect of a
family, I determined on opening a communication with Don Benito, which I
did by proposing to marry his daughter, and thus save the blighted honour
of her family. This proposal was, of course, coupled with a stipulation—for
it was now my turn to dictate terms—that a handsome settlement should be
made upon us.
The medium I selected for carrying on this delicate negociation was one
of the villagers, a smuggler, with whom I had become intimate, and whose
avocation afforded the opportunity of communicating with Don Benito,
without furnishing a clue, by which our place of concealment could be
discovered. On the fidelity of my friend—having exacted a promise of the
most inviolable secrecy—I thought the fullest reliance might be placed; but
“honour and profit will not both keep in one sack,” as the saying is. The
scoundrel had not enough virtue to resist a bribe of a few dollars, and he
acquainted Don Benito with every thing concerning us.
This abominable piece of treachery, whilst it served to increase the
hatred I bore mankind, had a considerable influence in stamping my future
character, for I became habitually wary and distrustful. But, to resume my
narrative, on returning one evening from my daily work, I found Don
Benito at my Alitéa’s bed-side, and that she had prematurely given birth to a
male child—an illegitimate child.
I pass over the scene of mutual recrimination that ensued. What might
have happened, but for the precarious state in which Alitéa was lying, I
know not. Enraged beyond measure at the circumstance, which, for the
moment, had caused the failure of his project to recover his daughter, Don
Benito took his departure, calling down upon me every possible
malediction, and declaring to the village authorities his firm resolve to
return without loss of time, armed with power to lodge me in a gaol, and
place his daughter in a convent; but I baulked his purpose, by making Alitéa
my wife that very night. Her father had dropped his purse upon the floor,
and I scrupled not to employ its contents in so legitimate a purpose.
I soon found an obsequious priest, ready to do my bidding. They are not
over-scrupulous in religious matters at Olbera, neither are the laws very
rigidly enforced there[178]; so that on my father-in-law’s return, a few days
after, with the justicia, I set him at defiance.
I had, some time previously, made up my mind to perform this tardy act
of justice to my Alitéa, but had delayed it with the view of exacting
favourable terms from her father, who, I thought, as our Spanish saying has
it, would rather see La hija mal casada que bien abarraganada.[179]
Having failed in this, it became necessary to marry her for my own sake;
since, though Don Benito might still send me to prison, I could now insist
on my wife accompanying me.
He was outrageous on finding that his revengeful intention was
thwarted; but, seeing that menaces had no effect upon me, changed his tone,
and proposed that I should resign his daughter for a sum of money. This I
resolutely declined, whilst Alitéa, on her knees, implored his forgiveness.
How the monster could refuse I know not; but he did, and they parted, to
meet no more.
 A few days after this scene, a letter was delivered to Alitéa from her
unnatural parent. In it, after declaring that he would no longer hold
communion with the villain who had brought misery on her, and disgrace
on the name she bore, and who, but on her account, he would pursue with
the utmost vengeance of the outraged laws of our country, he proceeded to
state, that still prompted by the recollection of the unbounded affection he
had borne her mother, he had determined to make an allowance sufficient
for our bare support, and that a certain sum would, for that purpose, be
lodged periodically in the hands of the superior of the convent of San Pablo
de la Breña, in our vicinity; where he charged her, if the religious precepts
he had implanted in her breast were not entirely eradicated, to make the
frequent confessions necessary for the salvation of her soul. The money
indeed, he added, was to be paid only on these conditions, and into her own
hands, and so long as he was assured that she experienced proper treatment
from me. Convinced, however, he pursued, that I was actuated solely by the
vilest of motives, and not influenced by any regard for her in refusing to
give her up, he once more repeated the offer made at our last interview; or
even offered to settle on me alone the sum he purposed to allow us jointly,
if I would formally resign his daughter, and allow the marriage to be
annulled. In conclusion, he informed her, that though his door would ever
be open to admit a repentant daughter, it was closed for ever against that
daughter’s seducer, and the offspring of our criminality.
My wife perused the letter, and, with a steady countenance, but brimful
eye, placed it in my hands. “Well, Alitéa,” said I, “will you return to your
father and luxury, or remain to share the poverty of your husband? I pledge
you my word it shall be as you may choose—decide.”—“I have already
decided,” she replied: “I remain.”
I sent a scornful reply to Don Benito’s letter, returning, with usurious
interest, the opprobrious terms he had lavished upon me. “Villain,” indeed,
from him who was the source of all my misfortunes!—Nevertheless, he was
as good as his word; the allowance was regularly paid into the hands of
Alitéa; and, added to the profits arising from the cultivation of a vineyard, it
enabled us, without much labour, to live in comfort, if not luxury.
But short, alas! was this period of happiness; the cup of life appeared
only to have been sweetened for a brief space, to render more bitter the long
draught of misery that was in reserve for me. My Alitéa had never entirely
recovered from the effects of the shock occasioned by her father’s sudden
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