He said he had tried to forget it, but
he could not; that the ruah was continually upon him, and that even
from his childhood he had borne its terrors with a troubled mind,
till at last he could bear himself no longer; so he went to my
grandsire, with whom he remained one whole night; he then returned
to his diocese, where he shortly afterwards died, in much renown
for sanctity.
Myself. - What you say surprises me. Have you reason to suppose
that many of you are to be found amongst the priesthood?
Abarbenel. - Not to suppose, but to know it. There are many such as
I amongst the priesthood, and not amongst the inferior priesthood
either; some of the most learned and famed of them in Spain have
been of us, or of our blood at least, and many of them at this day
think as I do. There is one particular festival of the year at
which four dignified ecclesiastics are sure to visit me; and then,
when all is made close and secure, and the fitting ceremonies have
been gone through, they sit down upon the floor and curse.
Myself. - Are you numerous in the large towns?
Abarbenel. - By no means; our places of abode are seldom the large
towns; we prefer the villages, and rarely enter the large towns but
on business. Indeed we are not a numerous people, and there are
few provinces of Spain which contain more than twenty families.
None of us are poor, and those among us who serve, do so more from
choice than necessity, for by serving each other we acquire
different trades. Not unfrequently the time of service is that of
courtship also, and the servants eventually marry the daughters of
the house.
We continued in discourse the greater part of the night; the next
morning I prepared to depart. My companion, however, advised me to
remain where I was for that day. "And if you respect my counsel,"
said he, "you will not proceed farther in this manner. To-night
the diligence will arrive from Estremadura, on its way to Madrid.
Deposit yourself therein; it is the safest and most speedy mode of
travelling. As for your animal, I will myself purchase her. My
servant is here, and has informed me that she will be of service to
us. Let us, therefore, pass the day together in communion, like
brothers, and then proceed on our separate journeys." We did pass
the day together; and when the diligence arrived I deposited myself
within, and on the morning of the second day arrived at Madrid.
CHAPTER XII
Lodging at Madrid - My Hostess - British Ambassador - Mendizabal -
Baltasar - Duties of a National - Young Blood - The Execution -
Population of Madrid - The Higher Orders - The Lower Classes - The
Bull-fighter - The Crabbed Gitano.
It was the commencement of February when I reached Madrid.
