Historia de Barcelona

Categoría: Epistolae Ho-Elianae

Howell////James//// //// //// //// ////1754////Epistolae Ho-Elianae: Familiar Letters Domestic and Foreign//// //// ////London////Ware, Knapton, Longman et al

  • Un ladrón honesto en las galeras

    I am now in Barcelona; but the next Week I intend to go on through your Town of Valencia to Alicant, and thence you shall be sure to hear from me farther, for I make account to winter there. The Duke of Ossuna passed by here lately, and having got Leave of Grace to release some Slaves, he went aboard the Cape Galleys, and passng through the Churma of Slaves, he asked divers of them what their Offences were: Every one excused himself; one saying, That he was put in out of Malice, another by Bribery of the Judge, but all of them unjustly: Amongst the rest there was one little sturdy black Man, and the Duke asking him what he was in for; Sir, said he, I cannot deny but I am justly put in here; for I wanted Money, and so took a Purse hard by Tarragone, to keep me from starving. The Duke, with a little Staff he had in his Hand, gave him two or three Blows upon the Shoulders, saying, You Rogue, what do you do amongst so many honest innocent Men? Get you gone out of their Company. So he was freed, and the rest remained still in statu quo prius, to tug at the Oar.

    I pray commend me to Signior Camillo, and Mazalao, with the rest of the Venetians with you; and when you go aboard the Ship behind the Exchange, think upon

    Yours, J. H. Barcelona, 10 Nov. 1620.

  • El entorno: Montserrat, banderolismo, piratería, supersticiones

    To Sir James Crofts.

    I am now a good way within the Body of Spain, at Barcelona, a proud wealthy City, situated upon the Mediterranean, and is the Metropolis of the Kingdom of Catalonia, called of old Hispania Tarraconensis. I had much ado to reach hither; for besides the monstrous Abruptness of the Way, these Parts of the Pyrenees that border upon the Mediterranean, are never without Thieves by Land (called Bandoleros) and Pirates on the Sea-side, which lie sculking in the Hollows of the Rocks, and often surprise Passengers unawares, and carry them Slaves to Barbary on the other Side. The safest Way to pass, is to take a Bordon in the Habit of a Pilgrim, whereof there are abundance that perform their Vows this Way to the Lady of Monserrat, one of the prime Places of Pilgrimage in Christendom: It is a stupendious Monastery, built on the Top of a huge Land-Rock, whither it is impossible to go up or come down by a direct Way, but a Path is cut out full of Windings and Turnings; and on the Crown of this craggy Hill there is a Flat, upon which the Monastery and Pilgrimage-place is founded, where there is a Picture of the Virgin Mary sun-burnt and tanned, it seems when she went to Egypt; and to this Picture, a marvellous Confluence of People from all Parts of Europe resort.

    As I passed between some of the Pyreney-hills, I perceived the poor Labradors, some of the Country People, live no better than brute Animals, in point of Food; for their ordinary Commons is Grass and Water, only they have always within their Houses a Bottle of Vinegar, and another of Oil; and when Dinner or Supper-time comes, they go abroad and gather their Herbs, and so cast Vinegar and Oil upon them, and will pass thus two or three Days without Bread or Wine; yet they are strong lusty Men, and will stand stiffly under a Musket.

    There is a Tradition, that there were divers Mines of Gold in Ages past amongst those Mountains: And the Shepherds that kept Goats then, having made a small Fire of Rosemary-stubs, with other combustible Stuff to warm themselves, this Fire grazed along, and grew so outrageous, that it consumed the very Entrails of the Earth, and melted those Mines; which growing fluid by Liquefaction, ran down into the small Rivulets that were in the Vallies, and so carried all into the Sea, that monstrous Gulph which swalloweth all, but seldom disgorgeth any thing: And in these Brooks to this Day some small Grains of Gold are found.

    The Viceroy of this Country hath taken much Pains to clear these Hills of Robbers, and there hath been a notable Havock made of them this Year; for in divers Woods as I passed, I might spy some Trees laden with dead Carcasses, a better Fruit far than Diogenes’s Tree bore whereon a Woman had hanged herself; which the Cynic cried out to be the best bearing Tree that ever he saw.

    In this Place there lives neither English Merchant or Factor; which I wonder at, considering that it is a maritime Town, and one of the greatest in Spain, her chiefest Arsenal for Gallies, and the Scale by which she conveys her Monies to Italy: But I believe the Reason is, that there is no commodious Port here for Ships of any Burden, but a large Bay. I will enlarge myself no farther at this time, but leave you to the Guard and Guidance of God, whose sweet Hand of Protection hath brought me thro’ so many uncouth Places and Difficulties to this City. So hoping to meet your Letters in Alicant, where I shall anchor a good while, I rest

    Yours to dispose of, J. H. Barcelona, 24 Nov. 1620.

  • «España estaría financieramente mejor sin Cataluña y Portugal»

    To Sir J. Brown, Knight.

    ONE would think, that the utter falling off of Catalonia and Portugal in so short a compass of Time should much lessen the Spaniard, the People of both these Kingdoms being from Subjects become Enemies against him, and in actual Hostility: Without doubt it hath done so, yet not so much as the World imagines. ‘Tis true in point of Regal Power and divers brave subordinate Commands for his Servants, he is a great deal lessened thereby, but tho’ he be less powerful, he is not a Penny the poorer thereby; for there comes not a Farthing less every Year into his Exchequer, in regard that those Countries were rather a Charge than Benefit to him, all their Revenue being drunk up in Pensions, and Payments of Officers and Garisons; for if the King of Spain had lost all except the West-Indies, and all Spain except Castile herself, it would little diminish his Treasury. Touching Catalonia and Portugal, especially the latter, ‘tis true, they were mighty Members of the Castilian Monarchy; but I believe they will sooner want Castile, than Castile them, because she filled them with Treasure: Now, that Barcelona and Lisbon hath shaken Hands with Sevil, I do not think that either of them hath the tithe of that Treasure they had before; in regard the one was the Scale whereby the King of Spain sent his Money to Italy; the other, because all her East-India Commodities were bartered commonly in Andalusia and elsewhere for Bullion. Catalonia is fed with Money from France, but for Portugal, she hath little or none; therefore I do not see how she could support a War long to any Purpose, if Castile were quiet, unless Soldiers would be contented to take Cloves and Pepper-corns for Pattacoons and Pistoles. You know Money is the Sinew and Soul of War. This makes me think on that blunt Answer which Capt. Talbot returned Henry VIII. from Calais, who having received special Command from the King to erect a new Fort at the Water-gate, and to see the Town well fortified, sent him Word, that he could neither fortify nor fiftify without Money. There is no News at all stirring here now, and I am of the Italian’s Mind that said, Nulla nuova, buona nuova, no News, good News. But it were great News to see you here, whence you have been an Alien so long to

    Your most affectionate Friend,
    J.H.
    Holborn, 3 June, 1640.