Chapter XI: Part 11

(_Endorsed_: recd. July 20, 1838)
MADRID, _July_ 9, 1838.

On the other side I beg leave to present my account. One or two items require some explanation.

1st, Mr. Borrego's bill of 3084 _reals_, of which 1760 are for the printing of the Basque Gospel, the remainder is for advertisements, boxes, package and freight of books to various parts of Spain, namely, to Valencia, Malaga, Santander, Corunna, etc. The original bill I shall forward as soon as it has been signed and vouched for by Messrs. O'Shea, who paid the money.

2nd, As to prison expenses, I must observe that the Government after placing me at liberty offered to indemnify me for all the expense I had incurred in prison, but I refused to accept their offer; should, however, the Committee think that I ought to have done so, they will deduct the amount.

3rd, 60 _reals_ for porterage; on receiving intelligence that my depots had been seized in various parts of the country, I thought it advisable to place my stock in Madrid in safety, and in consequence under cover of night removed it from the shop, and concealed it in portions in the houses of various friends.

In conclusion, I must beg that you will collate my present account with my last, as I am apprehensive that I may have charged the same outlay twice; the copy of my last account was lost when my papers were seized.

I make an excursion to-morrow to the rural districts of New Castile, which will probably occupy a fortnight. I have sent before me two hundred Testaments.

I remain, etc.,

G. BORROW.

To the Rev. A. Brandram

(_Endorsed_: recd. July 28, 1838)
VILLA SECA, DISTRICT OF TOLEDO,
_July_ 14, 1838.

REVD. AND DEAR SIR,--I write these lines from Villa Seca, a village situated on the bank of the Tagus about nine leagues from Madrid. A few minutes before my departure I received your letter of the 29th June, in which you mention letters being on the way for me. I, however, could not wait for them for many reasons, principally because in that event I should have lost a considerable number of Testaments, which I had sent before me. I am moreover tolerably well acquainted with the contents [of] those communications from the one which I have already received.

For some time past I have been determined at whatever risk to make an effort to circulate the Scriptures in the rural districts of New Castile, where I am grieved to say the most profound ignorance of true religion prevails. I have been induced to take up my quarters for the present in Villa Seca, from being well acquainted with a labourer of the place; moreover its situation is favourable to my views as there are many other villages in its vicinity. Poverty it is true abounds, but I am perfectly sure that our friends at home are disposed to make every reasonable sacrifice, and not for a moment to balance the dust of Mammon against the eternal welfare of their fellow-creatures.

For the last two days I have been riding in various directions. It is a great blessing that heat agrees with me wonderfully, as we have no less than thirty-six degrees according to Reaumur; otherwise it would be impossible for me to accomplish anything, the atmosphere resembling the flickering glow about the mouth of an oven. I have already disposed of about thirty Testaments, of course at exceedingly low prices. To-day, however, I have commenced a new course, and have sent abroad various peasants with some parcels of Testaments; my host, whom it has pleased the Lord to render favourable to the cause, has himself taken the field, and has proceeded to the neighbouring village of Vargas mounted on his donkey. If success do not attend my efforts, the Lord knows that it will be no fault of mine. It will be the working of His own holy will.

I had scarcely written the above lines when I heard the voice of the donkey in the court-yard, and going out I found my host returned. He had disposed of his whole cargo of twenty Testaments at the old Moorish village of Vargas, distant from hence about two leagues, and all in the space of about half an hour. Eight poor harvest-men, who were refreshing themselves at the door of the wine-house, purchased each a copy; whilst the village schoolmaster took all the rest for the little ones beneath his care, lamenting at the same time the great difficulty he had long experienced in obtaining religious books, owing to their scarcity and extravagant price. Many other persons were also anxious to procure Testaments, but my envoy (Juanito Lopez) was unable to supply them. At his departure they requested him to return within a few days.

I will not conceal from you that I am playing a daring game, and it is very possible that when I least expect it I may be seized, tied to the tail of a mule, and dragged either to the prison of Toledo or Madrid. Yet such a prospect does not discourage me in the least, but rather urges me on to persevere; for I assure you--and in this assertion there lurks not the slightest desire to magnify myself and produce an effect--that I am eager to lay down my life in this cause, and whether a Carlist's bullet or the jail-fever bring my career to an end, I am perfectly indifferent. But I have other matters now to speak of.

You hint that a desire is entertained at home to have a personal conference with me. In the name of the Highest I entreat you all to banish such a preposterous idea. A journey home (provided you intend that I should return to Spain) could lead to no result but expense and the loss of precious time. I have nothing to explain to you which you are not already perfectly well acquainted with by my late letters. I was fully aware at the time I was writing them that I should afford you little satisfaction, for the plain unvarnished truth is seldom agreeable. But I now repeat, and these are perhaps among the last words which I shall ever be permitted to pen, that I cannot approve, and I am sure no Christian can, of the system which has lately been pursued in the large sea-port cities of Spain, and which the Bible Society has been supposed to sanction, notwithstanding the most unreflecting person could easily foresee that such a line of conduct could produce nothing in the end but obloquy and misfortune.

It was unkind and unjust to taunt me with having been unsuccessful in distributing the Scriptures. Allow me to state that no other person under the same circumstances would have distributed the tenth part. Yet had I been utterly unsuccessful, it would have been wrong to check me with being so, after all I have undergone--and with how little of that are you acquainted. You are perfectly correct in concluding that certain persons are laughing in their sleeve. But at what? At the success of their own machinations? Not at all! They are laughing at the inconceivable fatuity which induces those whom _they once dreaded_ to destroy themselves and their own labours. The stone with immense toil is rolled up to the brow of the mountain, when they see it recoil, not at the touch of Jupiter but at the impulse of the insane Sisyphus, who pulls it down on his own body. With common sense and prudence very much might have been accomplished in Spain, and still may. I am sorry to say that hitherto very little of [that] has been used.

You are surprised that I should presume to hint that I have been linked to G. [Graydon], but at the same time admit that my identification with him by my enemies has been unavoidable. Now in the name of all that is reasonable, to what does such an admission amount but that I have been linked to this man, and it matters very little whether or not I have been brought into personal contact with him. But now farewell to him: and in taking leave of this subject, I will add that the unfortunate M. [Marin] is dying of a galloping consumption, brought on by distress of mind. All the medicine in the world would not accomplish his cure.

With God's permission I will write again in a few days and till then,

I remain, Revd. and dear Sir, most truly yours,

GEORGE BORROW.

To the Rev. A. Brandram

(_Endorsed_: recd. July 30, 1838)
VILLA SECA, NEW CASTILLE, 17 _July_ 1838.

REVD. AND DEAR SIR,--I addressed a letter to you on the 14th instant, which I hope you will receive in course of time, together with the present; in that letter I informed you where I was, stating my proceedings and intentions. It has pleased the Lord to permit me to be hitherto very successful in these regions, so much so that during less than a week I have disposed of the entire stock of Testaments which I brought with me, namely two hundred; only three or four remain, which are already bespoken. Last night I sent off a messenger to Madrid for a fresh supply, which I expect will arrive in a day or two.

I must here observe that up to the present moment I have endeavoured as much as possible to avoid noise, and notoriety. Advertisements and handbills I have utterly eschewed. I brought none with me, and in these rural places, the name of a printing press is unknown; nor have I much endeavoured to work upon the mind of the simple peasantry around me by words. I merely tell them that I bring them the words and life of the Saviour and His saints at a price adapted to their humble means. Nevertheless the news of the arrival of the book of life is spreading like wild-fire through the villages of the Sagra of Toledo, and wherever my people and myself direct our course we find the inhabitants disposed to receive our merchandise; it is even called for where not exhibited. Last night as I was bathing myself and [my] horse in the Tagus, a knot of people gathered on the bank crying: 'Come out of the water, Englishman, and give us books; we have got our money in our hands.' The poor creatures then held out their hands filled with _cuartos_, a copper coin of the value of a farthing, but I had unfortunately no Testament to afford them. My servant, however, who was at a short distance, having exhibited one, it was instantly torn from his hands by the people, and a scuffle ensued to obtain possession of it. It has very frequently occurred that the poor labourers in the neighbourhood, being eager to obtain Testaments and having no money to offer us in exchange, have brought various other articles to our cottage as equivalents--for example, rabbits, fruit and barley; and I have made a point never to disappoint them, as such articles are of utility either for our own consumption or that of the horses.

In Villa Seca there is a school in which fifty-seven children are taught the first rudiments of education. Yesterday morning the schoolmaster, a tall slim figure of about sixty, bearing on his head one of the peaked hats of Andalusia and wrapped notwithstanding the excessive heat of the weather in a long cloak, made his appearance, and having seated himself requested to be shown one of our books. Having delivered it to him, he remained examining it for nearly half an hour without uttering a word. At last he laid it down with a sigh and said that he should be very happy to purchase some of these books for his school, but from their appearance, especially from the quality of the paper and binding, he was apprehensive that to pay for them would exceed the means of the parents of his pupils, as they were almost destitute of money, being poor labourers. He then commenced blaming the Government, which, he said, established schools without affording the necessary books, adding that in his school there were but two books for the use of all his pupils, and these he confessed contained but little good. I asked him what he considered the Testaments were worth. He said, '_Senor Cavalier_, to speak frankly I have in other times paid twelve _reals_ for books inferior to yours in every respect, but I assure you that my poor pupils would be utterly unable to pay the half of that price.' I replied, 'I will sell you as many as you please for three _reals_ each; I am acquainted with the poverty of the land, and my friends and myself in affording the people the means of spiritual instruction have no wish to curtail their scanty bread.' He replied: '_Benedito seo Dios_' ('blessed be God'), and could scarcely believe his ears. He instantly purchased a dozen, expending therein, as he said, all the money he possessed with the exception of a few _cuartos_. The introduction of the reading of the Word of God into the country schools of Spain is therefore now begun, and I humbly hope that it will prove one of those events which the Bible Society after the lapse of years will have most reason to remember with joy and gratitude to the Almighty.

An old peasant is at present reading in the portico. Eighty-four years have passed over his head, and he is almost entirely deaf; nevertheless he is reading aloud the second [chapter] of Matthew. Three days since he bespoke a Testament, but not being able to raise the money he has not redeemed it until the present moment; he has just brought thirty farthings. As I survey the silvery hair which overshadows his sun-burnt countenance, the words of the song occur to me: 'Lord, now lettest Thou Thy servant depart in peace, according to Thy word: for mine eyes have seen Thy salvation.'

I will now conclude these anecdotes with one not divested of singularity. Over a branch of the Tagus by the bridge Azeca there is a large water-mill. I have formed an acquaintance with the tenant of this mill, who is known in the neighbourhood by the name of Don Antero. Two days ago, taking me into a retired place, he asked me to my great astonishment if I would sell him a thousand Testaments at the price at which I was disposing of them to the peasantry, saying that if I would consent he would pay me immediately; in fact he put his hand into his pocket, and pulled it out filled with gold ounces. I asked him what was the reason for his wish to make so considerable a purchase. Whereupon he informed me that he had a relation in Toledo whom he wished to establish, and that he was of opinion that he could do no better than take a shop there and furnish it with Testaments. I told him that he must think of nothing of the kind, as probably the books would be seized on the first attempt to introduce them into Toledo, as the priests and canons were much averse to their distribution. He was, however, not disconcerted, and said his relation could travel, as I myself was doing, to dispose of them to the peasants with profit to himself. I confess I was disposed at first to accept his offer, but at length declined it, as I did not wish to expose a poor man to the risk of losing money, goods, and perhaps liberty and life. I was likewise averse to the books being offered to the peasantry at an advanced price, being aware that they could not afford it; and the books, by such an attempt would lose a considerable part of that _prestijio_ (I know no English word to express my meaning) which they now enjoy. Their cheapness strikes the minds of the people with wonder, and they consider it almost as much in the light of a miracle as the Jews [did the] manna which dropped from heaven at the time they were famishing, or the spring which suddenly gushed from the flinty rock to assuage their thirst in the wilderness.

The following is a list of the villages of the Sagra; or champaign country of Toledo, already supplied with Testaments.

It will perhaps be expedient to print this list in the 'Extracts.' Vargas Mocejon Villa Seca Cobeja Villaluenga Yuncler. In about a week I shall depart from hence and proceed to another district, as it would not be prudent to make a long sojourn in any particular district under existing circumstances. It is my intention to cross the country to Aranjuez, and endeavour to supply with the Word the villages on the frontier of La Mancha. Write to me as soon as possible, always directing to my lodgings in Madrid. I wish to know the lowest price at which I am at liberty to dispose of Testaments, and conclude with hoping that what I have narrated will meet the approbation of you ALL.

(UNSIGNED.)

To the Rev. A. Brandram

(_Endorsed_: recd. Aug. 2nd, 1838)
MADRID, No. 16 CALLE SANTIAGO,
_July_ 23, 1838.

REVD. AND DEAR SIR,--As, I was about to leave Villa Seca for Aranjuez I received your letters of the 3rd and 7th inst., on the perusal of which I instantly returned to Madrid instead of pursuing my intended route.

My answer will be very brief, as I am afraid of giving way to my feelings; I hope, however, that it will be to the purpose.

It is broadly hinted in yours of the 7th that I have made false statements in asserting that the Government, in consequence of what has lately taken place, had come to a resolution of seizing the Bible depots in various parts of this country.

In reply, I beg leave to inform you that by the first courier you will receive from the British Legation at Madrid the official notice from Count Ofalia to Sir George Villiers of the seizures already made, and the motives which induced the Government to have recourse to such a measure.

The following seizures have already been made, though some have not as yet been officially announced:

The Society's books at Oviedo, Pontevedra, Salamanca, Santiago, Seville, and Valladolid.

It appears from your letters that the depots in the south of Spain have escaped. I am glad of it, although it be at my own expense. I see the hand of the Lord throughout the late transactions. He is chastening me. It is His pleasure that the guilty escape and the innocent be punished. The Government give orders to seize the Bible depots throughout the country on account of the late scenes at Malaga and Valencia. I have never been there, yet only _my_ depots are meddled with, as it appears! The Lord's will be done, blessed be the name of the Lord!

I will write again to-morrow. I shall have then arranged my thoughts, and determined on the conduct which it becomes a Christian to pursue under these circumstances. Permit me in conclusion to ask you:

Have you not to a certain extent been partial in this matter? Have you not, in the apprehension of being compelled to blame the conduct of one, who has caused me unutterable anxiety, misery, and persecution, and who has been the bane of the Bible cause in Spain, refused to receive the information which it was in your power to command? I called on the Committee and yourself, from the first, to apply to Sir George Villiers; no one is so well versed in what has lately been going on as himself. But no. It was God's will that I, who have risked all and lost almost all in the cause, be taunted, suspected, and the sweat of agony and tears which I have poured out be estimated at the value of the water of the ditch or the moisture which exudes from rotten dung. But I murmur not, and hope I shall at all times be willing to bow to the dispensations of the Almighty.

Sir George Villiers has returned to England for a short period; you have therefore the opportunity of consulting him. I _will not_ leave Spain until the whole affair has been thoroughly sifted. I shall then perhaps appear and bid you an eternal farewell.

Four hundred Testaments have been disposed of in the Sagra of Toledo.

(UNSIGNED.)

_P.S._--I am just returned from the Embassy, where I have had a long interview with that admirable person, Lord Wm. Hervey. He has requested me to write him a letter on the point in question, which with the official documents he intends to send to the Secretary of State in order to be laid before the Bible Society. He has put into my hands the last communication from Ofalia. It relates to the seizure of _my_ depots at Malaga, Pontevedra, etc. I have not opened it, but send it for your perusal.

To the Rev. A. Brandram

(_Endorsed_: recd. Aug. 14th, 1838)
No. 16 CALLE SANTIAGO, MADRID,
_August_ 3, 1838.

REVD. AND DEAR SIR,--Since writing to you last I have been at some distance from Madrid. Indeed my affairs at the time were in such a condition and so much depended upon my personal superintendence, that I was obliged to depart almost immediately after dispatching my answers to your two last. I am now returned principally on account of a rather unfortunate accident which occurred on the frontier of La Mancha, the particulars of which I shall give you presently. I shall, however, only tarry sufficient time to rest the horses and again go forth, for I am but too well aware that no time must now be lost, my enemies being numerous and watchful.

On leaving Madrid I proceeded in the direction of Aranjuez, selling from twenty to forty copies in every village that lay in the way or near it; my intention was to penetrate deep into La Mancha, and in that view I had forwarded a large supply of books to Aranjuez. Having arrived there I made a sojourn of three days, during which time, myself, [my] servant and Juan Lopez, of whom I have previously spoken to you, visited every house in the town. We found a vast deal of poverty and ignorance amongst the inhabitants, and experienced some opposition; nevertheless it pleased the Almighty to permit us to dispose of about eighty Testaments, which were purchased entirely by the very poor people, those in easier circumstances paying no attention to the Word of God, but rather turning it to scoff and ridicule. One circumstance was very gratifying and cheering to me, namely, the ocular proof which I possessed that the books which I disposed of were read, and with attention, by those to whom I disposed of them, and that many others participated in their benefit. In the streets of Aranjuez and beneath the mighty cedars and gigantic elms and plantains which compose its noble woods, I have frequently seen groups assembled, listening to individuals who, with the New Testament in their hands, were reading aloud the comfortable words of salvation.

It is probable that had I remained a longer period in Aranjuez I might have sold many more of our divine books, but I was eager to gain La Mancha and its sandy plains, and to conceal myself for a season amongst its solitary villages; for I was apprehensive that a storm was gathering around me. But when once through Ocana, the frontier town, I knew well that I should have nothing to fear from the Spanish authorities as their power ceased there, the rest of La Mancha being almost entirely in the hands of the Carlists, and overrun by small parties of banditti, from whom however I trusted that the Lord would preserve me. I therefore departed for Ocana, situate about three leagues from Aranjuez.

I started with my servant about six in the evening, having early in the morning sent forward Lopez with between two and three hundred Testaments. We left the high road and proceeded by a shorter way, through wild hills and over very broken and precipitous ground. Being well-mounted we found ourselves just after sunset opposite Ocana, which stands on a steep hill. A deep valley lay between us and the town; we descended and came to a small bridge which traverses a rivulet at the bottom of the valley, at a very small distance from a kind of suburb; we crossed the bridge, and were passing by a deserted house on our left hand when a man appeared from under the porch.

What I am about to state will seem incomprehensible to you, but a singular history and a singular people are connected with it. The man placed himself before my horse so as to bar the way, and said _Schophon_, which in the Hebrew tongue signifies a rabbit. I knew this word to be one of the Jewish countersigns, and asked the man if he had anything to communicate. He said: 'You must not enter the town, for a net is prepared for you. The _Corregidor_ of Toledo, on whom may all evil light, in order to give pleasure to the priests of Maria, in whose face I spit, has ordered all the _Alcaldes_ of these parts and the _Escribanos_ and the _Corchetes_ to lay hands on you wherever they may find you, and to send you and your books and all that pertains to you to Toledo. Your servant was seized this morning in the town above as he was selling the writings in the streets, and they are now awaiting your arrival in the _posada_; but I knew you from the accounts of my brethren, and have been waiting here four hours to give you warning, in order that your horse may turn his tail to your enemies and neigh in derision of them. Fear nothing for your servant, for he is known to the _Alcalde_ and will be set at liberty, but do you flee, and may God attend you.' Having said this, he hurried towards the town.

I hesitated not a moment to take his advice, knowing full well that, as my books had been taken possession of, I could do no more in that direction. We turned back, in the direction of Aranjuez, the horses notwithstanding the nature of the ground galloping at full speed, and like the true Moorish breed bearing their tails erect and stiff; but our adventures were not over. About mid-way, and about half a league from the small village of Antigola, we saw close to us on our left hand three men on a low bank. As far as the darkness would permit us to distinguish they were naked, but each bore in his hand a long gun; these were _rateros_, or the common assassins and robbers of the roads. We halted, and cried out 'Who goes there?' They, replied, 'What's that to you? Pass by.' Their drift was to fire at us from a position from which it would be impossible to miss. We shouted: 'If you do not instantly pass to the right side of the road, we will tread you down beneath the horses' hoofs.' They hesitated, and then obeyed, for all Spanish assassins are dastards, and the least show of resolution daunts them. As we galloped past, one cried with an obscene oath, '_Tiraremos_' ('fire') but another said, '_No_! _hay peligro_' ['there's danger']. We reached Aranjuez, where early next morning Lopez rejoined us, and we returned to Madrid.

I am sorry to state that two hundred Testaments were seized at Ocana, where they were sealed and despatched to Toledo. Lopez informed me that in two hours he could have sold them all, the demand was so great; as it was, twenty-seven were sold in less than ten minutes. He is just departed on another expedition, and I am about to follow, for with God's leave I will fight it out to the last.

I enclose you a list of all the towns and villages hitherto visited. I have nothing more to say for the present, but that you may make what use you please of this letter.

Such is my life in Spain.

(UNSIGNED.)

_Pueblos_. Villa Seca. Azana. Mocejon. Ylleicas. Magan. Forrejon. Oliar. Parla. Vargas. Pinto. Villaluenga. Baldemoro. Yuncler. Zetafe. Alameda. Leganez. Anober. Aranjuez. Cobena. Ocana. To the Rev. A. Brandram

(_Endorsed_: recd. Sept. 12, 1838)
[LABAJOS, PROVINCE OF SEGOVIA,
_Aug._ 23_rd_, 1838.]

REVD. AND DEAR SIR,--Lord William Hervey was perfectly satisfied with my conduct in the affair stated on the other side, and so was Count Ofalia, who expressed his regret that circumstances had compelled her Majesty's Government to take those steps against the circulation of the Scriptures with which you are already acquainted.

G. B.

Copy of Letter to the Right Hon. Lord William Hervey

LABAJOS, PROVINCE OF SEGOVIA,
_August_ 23rd, 1838.

MY LORD,--I beg leave to call your attention to the following facts. On the 21st instant I received information that a person in my employ of the name of Juan Lopez had been thrown into the prison of Villallos, in the province of Avila, by order of the _Cura_ of that place. The crime with which he was charged was selling the New Testament. At the time I alluded to, I was at Labajos, in the province of Segovia, and the division of the factious chieftain Balmaseda was in the immediate neighbourhood. On the 22nd, I mounted my horse and rode to Villallos, a distance of three leagues. On my arrival there, I found that Lopez had been removed from the prison to a private house. An order had arrived from the _Corregidor_ of Avila, commanding that the person of Lopez should be placed in full and perfect liberty and that the books which had been found in his possession should be alone detained. Nevertheless, in direct opposition to this order, a copy of which I herewith transmit, the _Alcalde_ of Villallos, at the instigation of the _Cura_, refused to permit the said Lopez to quit the place, either to proceed to Avila or in any other direction. It had been hinted to Lopez that, as the factious were expected, it was intended on their arrival to denounce him to them as a liberal, and to cause him to be sacrificed. Taking these circumstances into consideration, I deemed it my duty, as a Christian and a gentleman, to rescue my unfortunate servant from such lawless bands, and in consequence defying opposition I bore him off, though perfectly unarmed, through a crowd of at least one hundred peasants. On leaving the place I shouted '_Viva Isabela Segunda_.'

As it is my belief that the _Cura_ of Villallos is a person capable of any infamy, I beg leave humbly to entreat your Lordship to cause a copy of the above narration to be forwarded to the Spanish Government.

I have the honour to remain, my Lord, your Lordship's most obedient and most humble servant,

GEORGE BORROW.

To the Rev. G. Browne

(_Endorsed_: recd. Sept. 6th, 1838)
MADRID, _Aug._ 29, 1838.

REVD. AND DEAR SIR,--I am this moment arrived at Madrid from my expedition in Old Castile, and I have received your kind lines appended to my friend Mr. Brandram's communication.

I will set out for England as soon as possible; but I must be allowed time. I am almost dead with fatigue, suffering and anxiety; and it is necessary that I should place the Society's property in safe and sure custody.

It has pleased the Lord to assist me visibly in my last journey. In the midst of a thousand perils I have disposed of nine hundred Testaments amongst the peasantry on the north side of the precipitous hills of the Guadarama range, and all in the space of three weeks. In a day or two I shall write to Mr. Brandram with particulars.

Pray excuse these hasty lines; present my kindest remembrances to Mrs. Browne, and believe me, Revd. and dear Sir,

Gratefully and truly yours,

GEORGE BORROW.

To the Rev. A. Brandram

(_Endorsed_: recd. Sept. 10, 1838)
MADRID, _Sept._ 1, 1838.

REVD. AND DEAR SIR,--From my letter to the Revd. Geo. Browne of the 28 ult. you are already doubtless aware of my arrival at Madrid from my expedition in Old Castile. I now proceed to detail to you a few occurrences, premising that my notices will necessarily be brief, as I am considerably indisposed, and am moreover much occupied in making preparations for my departure for England, and in arranging the affairs of the Society in Spain in as satisfactory a manner as circumstances will permit.

I set out for my journey on the 4th of last month on horseback and accompanied by my servant. The first day brought us to La Granja, a distance of twelve leagues from Madrid, where I expected to find Lopez and another man whom I had sent before. Nothing particular occurred during this day's journey, except that notwithstanding my haste I sold some Testaments in the villages near the roadside and that it pleased God to permit us to traverse the pass of Pena Cerrada without coming in contact with the banditti that haunt the gloomy pine forests which embower it and extend for leagues in every direction. Arrived at La Granja, I could hear nothing of Lopez nor of the other individual, and in consequence after a stay of a day which was necessary to refresh the horses, I departed for Segovia. I did not attempt to distribute the Word at La Granja, being well aware that orders had been transmitted to the authorities of the place to seize all copies of the sacred writings which might be offered for sale. I may say the same with respect to Segovia, where still none of my people made their appearance. At Segovia I received from a friend a chest containing two hundred Testaments, and almost immediately after, by the greatest chance in the world, I heard from a peasant that there were men in the neighbourhood of Abades selling books. Abades is about three leagues distant from Segovia, and upon receiving this intelligence I instantly departed for the former place, with three _burricos_ [asses] laden with Testaments.

I reached Abades at nightfall, and found Lopez in the house of the surgeon of the place, where I also took up my residence. He had already disposed of a considerable number of Testaments in the neighbourhood, and had that day commenced selling at Abades itself. He had, however, been interrupted by two of three _Curas_ of the village, who with horrid curses denounced the work, threatening eternal condemnation to Lopez for selling it and to any person who should purchase it; whereupon Lopez, terrified, forebore until I should arrive. The third _Cura_, however, exerted himself to the utmost to persuade the people to provide themselves with Testaments, telling them that his brethren were hypocrites and false guides, who by keeping them in ignorance of the word and will of Christ were leading them to the abyss. Upon receiving this information, I instantly sallied forth to the marketplace, and that same night succeeded in disposing of upwards of thirty Testaments. The next morning the house was entered by the two factious _Curas_; but upon my rising to confront them they retreated, and I heard no more of them, except that they publicly cursed me in the church more than once, an event which as no ill resulted from it gave me little concern.

I will not detail the events of the next week; suffice it to say that arranging my forces in the most advantageous way I succeeded by God's assistance in disposing of in that period from five to six hundred Testaments amongst the villages from one to seven leagues distance from Abades. At the expiration of that period I received information from Segovia, in which province Abades is situated, to the effect that my proceedings were known in Segovia, and that an order was about to be sent to the _Alcalde_ of Abades to seize all books in my possession. Whereupon, notwithstanding that it was late in the evening, I decamped with all my people and upwards of three hundred Testaments, having a few hours previously received a fresh supply from Madrid. That night we passed in the fields and next morning proceeded to Labajos, a village on the high road from Madrid to Valladolid. In this place we offered no books for sale, but contented ourselves with supplying the neighbouring villages with the Word of God; we likewise sold it in the highways. We had not been at Labajos a week, during which time we were remarkably successful, when the Carlist chieftain Balmaseda at the head of his wild cavalry made his desperate inroad into the southern part of Old Castile, dashing down like an avalanche from the pine woods of Soria. I was present at all the horrors which ensued--the sack of Arrevalo--and the forcible entry into Martin Munoz and San Cyrian. Amidst these terrible scenes, we continued our labours undaunted, with the exception of my servant, who seized with uncontrollable fear ran away to Madrid. I now lost Lopez for three or four days, and suffered dreadful anxiety on his account, apprehending that he had been shot by the Carlists. At last I heard that he was in prison at Villallos, at the distance of three leagues. The steps which I took to rescue him you will find detailed in the communication which I deemed it my duty to transmit to Lord Wm. Hervey at Madrid, a copy of which, together with the letter of Lopez which informed me of his situation, I transmit herewith. After the rescue of Lopez, I thought it advisable to return to Madrid, more especially as my stock of Testaments was exhausted, we having in the course of little more than a fortnight disposed of nearly nine hundred Testaments--not in populous and wealthy towns but in highways and villages, not to the spurious Spaniards of Madrid and the coasts, but to the sun-blackened peasantry of Old Castile, the genuine descendants of those terrible men who subjugated Mexico and Peru.

My men returned by Pena Cerrada, whilst I, encumbered by two horses, crossed the Guadarama. I nearly perished there, having lost my way in the darkness and tumbled down a precipice. But I am now in Madrid and, if not well, trusting in the Lord and defying Satan. I shall probably be in England within three weeks.

I remain, Revd. and dear Sir, truly yours,

G. B.

To the Rev. A. Brandram

(_Endorsed_: recd. Sept. 28, 1838)
MADRID, 19 _Sepr._ 1838,
No. 16 CALLE SANTIAGO.

REVD. AND DEAR SIR,--I write this to inform you that for the last ten days I have been confined to my bed by a fever. I am now better, and hope in a few days to be able to proceed to Saragossa, which is the only road open.

I bore up against my illness as long as I could, but it became too powerful for me. By good fortune I obtained a decent physician, a Dr. Hacayo, who had studied medicine in England, and aided by him and the strength of my constitution I got the better of my attack, which however was a dreadfully severe one.

I hope my next letter will be from Bordeaux. I cannot write more at present, for I am very feeble.

I remain, Revd. and dear Sir, truly yours,

G. BORROW.

Account of Proceedings in the Peninsula

GENTLEMEN OF THE COMMITTEE OF THE BRITISH AND FOREIGN BIBLE SOCIETY--

I beg leave to call your attention to the following statements. They relate to my proceedings during the period which embraces my second sojourn in Spain--to my labours in a literary point of view--to my travels in a very remarkable country, the motive in which they originated and the result to which they led--to my success in the distribution of the Scripture, and to the opposition and encouragement which I have experienced. As my chief objects are brevity and distinctness I shall at once enter upon my subject, abstaining from reflections of every kind, which in most cases only tend to embarrass, being anxious to communicate facts alone, with most of which, it is true, you are already tolerably well acquainted, but upon all and every of which I am eager to be carefully and categorically questioned. It is neither my wish nor my interest to conceal one particular of what I have been doing. And with these few prefatory observations I commence.

In the first place, my literary labours. Having on my former visit to Spain obtained from the then Prime Minister Isturitz and his Cabinet permission and encouragement for the undertaking, I published on my return an edition of the New Testament at Madrid, a copy of which I now present to you for the first time. This work, executed at the office of Borrego, the most fashionable printer at Madrid, who had been recommended to me by Isturitz himself and most particularly by my excellent friend Mr. O'Shea, is a publication which I conceive no member of the Committee will consider as calculated to cast discredit on the Bible Society, it being printed on excellent English paper and well bound, but principally and above all from the fact of its exhibiting scarcely one typographical error, every proof having been read thrice by myself and once or more times by the first scholar in Spain.

I subsequently published the Gospel of Saint Luke in the Rommany and Biscayan languages. With respect to the first, I beg leave to observe that no work printed in Spain ever caused so great and so general a sensation, not so much amongst the Gypsies, that peculiar people, for whom it was intended, as amongst the Spaniards themselves, who, though they look upon the Roma with some degree of contempt as a low and thievish race of outcasts, nevertheless take a strange interest in all that concerns them, it having been from time immemorial their practice, more especially of the dissolute young nobility, to cultivate the acquaintance of the Gitanos as they are popularly called, probably attracted by the wild wit of the latter and the lascivious dances of the females. The apparition therefore of the Gospel of Saint Luke at Madrid in the peculiar jargon of these people was hailed as a strange novelty and almost as a wonder, and I believe was particularly instrumental in bruiting the name of the Bible Society far and wide through Spain, and in creating a feeling far from inimical towards it and its proceedings. I will here take the liberty to relate an anecdote illustrative of the estimation in which this little work was held at Madrid. The Committee are already aware that a seizure was made of many copies of Saint Luke in the Rommany and Biscayan languages, in the establishment at which they were exposed for sale, which copies were deposited in the office of the Civil Governor. Shortly before my departure a royal edict was published, authorising all the public libraries to provide themselves with copies of the said works on account of their philological merit; whereupon, on application being made to the office, it was discovered that the copies of the Gospel in Basque were safe and forthcoming, whilst every one of the sequestered copies of the Gitano Gospel had been plundered by hands unknown. The consequence was that I was myself applied to by then agents of the public libraries of Valencia and other places, who paid me the price of the copies which they received, assuring me at the same time that they were authorised to purchase them at whatever price which might be demanded.

Respecting the Gospel in Basque I have less to say. It was originally translated into the dialect of Guipuscoa by Dr. Oteiza, and subsequently received corrections and alterations from myself. It can scarcely be said to have been published, it having been prohibited and copies of it seized on the second day of its appearance. But it is in my power to state that it is anxiously expected in the Basque provinces, where books in the aboriginal tongue are both scarce and dear, and that several applications have been made at San Sebastian and in other towns where Basque is the predominating language.

I now proceed to the subject of my travels in Spain. Before undertaking them I was little acquainted with the genius of the Spanish people in general, having resided almost entirely in Madrid, and I was fully convinced that it was not from the inhabitants of one city that an accurate judgment could be formed of a population of nine millions, thinly scattered over a vast country so divided and intersected by mountain barriers as is the Peninsula. With this population under all its various circumstances and under all its various phases, the result of descent from a variety of foreign nations, I was anxious to make myself acquainted; for I reflected that he who builds a city on ground which he has not fully examined will perhaps discover when too late that his foundation is in a swamp, and that the whole of his labour is momentarily in danger of being swallowed up. I therefore went forth not so much for the purpose of distributing the Scriptures as to make myself acquainted with the prefatory steps requisite to be taken in order to secure my grand object. Before departing from Madrid I consulted with the many friends, some of them highly distinguished, which I had the honour to possess in that capital. Their unanimous advice, whether Catholics or Protestants, was that for the present I should proceed with the utmost caution, but without concealing the object of my mission which I considered to be the simple propagation of the Scripture--that I should avoid with diligence the giving offence to the prejudices of the people, especially in the rural districts, and endeavour everywhere to keep on good terms with the clergy, at least one-third of whom are known to be anxious for the dissemination of the Word of God though at the same time unwilling to separate themselves from the discipline and ceremonials of Rome. I bore this advice in mind, which indeed perfectly tallied with my own ideas, and throughout the two thousand miles of my peregrination during the summer of last year, I performed much if not all of what I proposed, and am not aware that in one single instance my proceedings were such as could possibly merit reproof. I established depots in all the principal towns of the north of Spain, and in all gave notice to the public of the arrival of the New Testament in a mild yet expressive advertisement which I here exhibit, and which I beg leave to state is the only advertisement which I ever made use of. The consequence was that the work enjoyed a reasonable sale, and I experienced no opposition--except in the case of Leon, a town remarkable for its ultra-Carlism--but on the contrary much encouragement especially on the part of the ecclesiastics. I visited Salamanca and Valladolid the chief seats of Castilian learning, I visited Saint James of Compostella, the temple of the great image of the Patron of Spain, and in none of these cities was a single voice raised against the Bible Society or its Agent. But I did not confine myself to the towns, but visited the small and large villages, and by this means became acquainted with both citizens and rustics; amongst the former I found little desire for sober serious reading, but on the contrary a rage for stimulant narratives, and amongst too many a lust for the deistical writings of the French, especially for those of Talleyrand, which have been translated into Spanish and published by the press of Barcelona, and for which I was frequently pestered. I several times enquired of the book-sellers of the various towns which I visited as to the means to be used towards introducing the Scripture amongst the villagers; but to this question they invariably replied that, unless the villagers came to the towns and purchased the work, they saw no means of making it known amongst them, unless I made friends in the villages in whose hands I could deposit copies for sale, though in such a case the difficulty of recovering the money would be immense. I therefore at last resolved to make an experiment, the result of which fully corresponded with an opinion which I had for some time formed--namely, that in the villages, sequestered and apart amongst the mountains and in the sandy plains of Spain, I might at any time be sure of a glorious harvest, far more rich than that which it was possible for me to expect in towns and cities, unless I had recourse to means unwarranted, nay forbidden, by the Book which I distributed, and which means had been proscribed by the Society itself on my departure for Spain. But now to proceed at once to the experiment, which I made at different periods and in different provinces.

I twice sallied forth one morning alone and on horseback, and proceeded to a distant village, bearing behind me a satchel of books. On my arrival, which took place just after the _siesta_ or afternoon's sleep had concluded, I proceeded in both instances to the market-place, where I spread a horse-cloth on the ground, on which I deposited my books. I then commenced crying with a loud voice: 'Peasants, peasants, I bring you the Word of God at a cheap price. I know you have but little money, but I bring it to you at whatever you can command, at four or three _reals_ according to your means.' I thus went on till a crowd gathered round me, who examined the book with attention, many of them reading it aloud. But I had not long to tarry; in both instances I disposed of my cargo almost instantaneously, and then mounted my horse without a question having been asked me, and returned to my temporary residence lighter than I left it. This occurred in Castile and Galicia, near the towns of Santiago and Valladolid.

The above are incidents which I have hitherto kept within the privacy of my own bosom and which I have confided to none; they were but experiments, which at that time I had no wish to repeat, nor to be requested so to do. I was perfectly aware that such a line of conduct, if followed before the proper time, would give offence to the clergy, not only to the Carlist but the liberal clergy, and likewise to the Government; and it formed no part of my plan to be on ill terms with either. For I remembered that I was a stranger and a labourer on sufferance in Christ's cause in a half-barbaric land, on which the light of freedom and true religion was just beginning to dawn, and I was unwilling by over-precipitance and for the sake of a mere temporary triumph to forego the solid and lasting advantages which I foresaw, and had been told that patience and prudence would assure. I resolved to use the knowledge which I had obtained by these experiments only as a last resource, provided any accident which it was impossible for me then to foresee should overturn all the plans which my friends and myself had been forming for the quiet and peaceful introduction of the Scriptures amongst the Spaniards with the consent or at least with the connivance of the Government and clergy, knowing well that a great part of the latter were by no means disposed to offer any serious opposition to such a measure, they having sense and talent enough to perceive that the old system can no longer be upheld of which the essential part is, as is well known, to keep the people in ignorance of the great sterling truths of Christianity. I now come to the most distressing part of my narrative and likewise to the most miserable of my own life.