THE WOMEN OF MODERN SPAIN
Spain, in all the days of her history, has been conspicuous among all
other continental countries for the number of women who have wielded the
sovereign power, and the reasons for this fact are not far to seek
perhaps. In both Germany and Italy there has been little of national
life or government in the broadest sense of the word until a very recent
date, the custom of the empire has given male rulers to Austria, the
illustrious Catherine of Voltaire's day has been the one woman to
achieve prominence in Russia, and in France the ancient Salic law did
not allow women to ascend the throne; so that, all in all, by this
process of exclusion, it is easy to see that in Spain alone the
conditions have been favorable for woman's tenure of royal office. A
scrutiny of the list of Spanish monarchs reveals the fact that in all
the long line there are no names more worthy of honor than those of
Berenguela and Isabella the Catholic, and that, irrespective of sex,
Isabella stands without any formidable rival as the ablest and most
efficient ruler that Spain has ever had. The right of woman's accession
to the Spanish throne was seriously threatened, however, early in the
eighteenth century with the advent of the French Bourbons. Young Philip
V., acting under French influences in this affair, as he did continually
in all his various undertakings, had induced the Cortes to introduce the
French Salic principle; and for the greater part of the century this
law was allowed to stand, although nothing happened to test it severely.
By way of comment on this circumstance, it is interesting to note that
this young king, Philip V., who had been instrumental in barring women
from the succession, was, by tacit confession, unequal to his own task,
and found his wisest counsellor in the person of the clever Princess
Orsini. Spanish feeling and Spanish custom in regard to this matter were
so strong, however, that Charles IV., when he came to the throne in
1789, had prevailed upon the Cortes to abolish the Salic law and to
restore the old Castilian succession. While this was done secretly, a
decree to this effect had never been issued, and legally the Salic law
was still in force when Charles's son, Fernando VII., approached his
last days. Fernando had been unlucky with his wives, as the first three
proved to be short-lived, and the fourth, Maria Cristina, Princess of
Naples, presented him with two daughters and no sons.
It happened that, before the birth of these daughters, Fernando had been
induced by his wife to attack the Salic law and to restore the Castilian
rule of succession, and in this way the elder princess, who was to
become Isabella II., had a clear claim to the throne from the time of
her birth. The person most interested in opposing this action was Don
Carlos, brother of Fernando, who was the rightful heir in the event of
his brother's death under the former procedure. When the fact became
known that Don Carlos had been dispossessed in this way by the
machinations of Maria Cristina, he and his followers put forth every
effort to induce Fernando to undo what he had done; but all to no avail,
and in 1833, when the king died, Maria became regent during the minority
of the youthful Isabella. For the next seven years Spain was in a
turmoil as the result of the continual revolts which were raised by the
friends of Don Carlos, and Maria for a time had much trouble in making
headway against them.
The political game she was playing gave her strange allies during these
days, for she was naturally in favor of an autocratic government, after
the manner of the old regime; but as Don Carlos had rallied to his
standard the clerical and conservative parties of the country, Maria was
forced, as a mere matter of self-protection, to make friendly advances
to the growing liberal forces in society, which had been brought into
permanent existence by the success of republicanism in France. In spite
of this nominal espousal of the liberal cause, Maria was continually
trying to avoid popular concessions and to retain unimpaired the
despotic power of the monarchy, but she was soon forced to see that, in
appearance at least, she must pretend to advance the popular cause and
give her subjects more extended privileges. Accordingly, she issued a
decree in 1834 establishing a new constitution and creating a
legislature composed of two chambers; but there was more pretence than
reality in this reform, and the dissatisfaction of the liberals
increased as the queen-regent's real purposes became more clearly
understood. Fortunate in having at the head of her armies a great
general, Espartero, Maria finally succeeded in dispersing and exhausting
the Carlist armies; but then differences arose between the queen and
Espartero over the rights of the chartered towns, which she was
endeavoring to abolish; and the popular sentiment was so in favor of the
liberal side of the discussion, that a revolution was threatened and
Isabella was forced to seek safety in flight. For three years the
general-statesman ruled, until the majority of the Princess Isabella was
declared in 1843, and in that same year Espartero was forced into exile,
as he had become unpopular on account of his friendship for England.
With this change in governmental affairs, Maria Cristina was allowed to
return to Madrid, and she and her daughter, the new queen, Isabella II.,
controlled the destinies of the country. A husband was found for
Isabella in the person of her cousin, Francis of Assis, but he was a
sickly, impotent prince, with no vigor of mind or body, and the married
life of this young couple was anything but happy. The country meanwhile
continued in a state of unrest, and there were frequent revolutionary
outbreaks. Isabella was no less unreliable than her mother had been, and
her capricious manner of changing policy and changing advisers was
productive of a state of lawlessness and disorder in all branches of the
government which daily became more shameful. This shifting policy in
matters of state was equally characteristic of the queen's behavior in
other affairs. Dissatisfied with her pitiful husband, she soon abandoned
her dignity as a queen and as a woman, in a most brazen way, and her
private life was so scandalous as to become the talk of all Europe. But
the court was kept in good humor by the lavish entertainments which were
given; the proverbial Spanish sloth and indifference allowed all this to
run unchecked, for a time at least; and the sound of the guitar and the
song of the peasant were still heard throughout the land.
Some idea of the social life in Madrid at this time can be obtained from
the following charming description of an afternoon ride in one of the
city parks, written in September, 1853, by Madame Calderon de la Barca:
"This beautiful _paseo_, called Las Delicias de Ysabel Segunda, had been
freshly watered. Numbers of pretty girls in their graceful _amazones_
galloped by on horseback, with their attendant _caballeros_. Few actual
mantillas were to be seen. They were too warm for this season, and are
besides confined to morning costume. Their place was supplied either by
light Parisian bonnets or by a still prettier head-dress, a veil of
black lace or tulle thrown over the head, fastened by gold pins, and
generally thrown very far back, the magnificent hair beautifully
dressed. Certainly this appeared to me the prettiest head-dress in the
world, showing to the greatest advantage the splendid eyes, fine hair,
and expressive features of the wearers. I was astonished at the richness
of the toilettes, and M---- assured me that luxury in dress is now
carried here to an extraordinary height; and to show you that I am not
so blinded by admiration for what is Spanish as not to see faults, at
least when they are pointed out to me, I will allow that French women
have a better idea of the fitness of things, and that there is an
absence of simplicity in the dress of the Spanish women which is out of
taste. I allude chiefly to those who were on foot. The rich silks and
brocades which trail along the Prado, hiding pertinaciously the
exquisitely small feet of the wearers, would be confined in Paris to the
_elegantes_ who promenade the Bois de Boulogne or the Champs-Elysees in
carriages. Here the wife and the daughter of the poorest shopkeeper
disdain chintz and calico; nothing short of silk or velvet is considered
decorous except within doors. But, having made this confession, I must
add that the general effect is charming, and as for beauty, both of face
and figure, especially the latter, surely no city in the world can show
such an amount of it."
In spite of the general tone of gayety which was pervading Madrid in
these days of the early fifties, many of the members of the older
nobility, conservative to the core, were holding somewhat aloof from the
general social life of the time. Society had become too promiscuous for
their exclusive tastes, and they were unwilling to open their drawing
rooms to the cosmopolitan multitude then thronging the capital. Details
of this aristocratic life are naturally somewhat difficult to obtain,
but this same sprightly Madame Calderon de la Barca, through her
connection with the diplomatic corps at Madrid, was able to enter this
circle in several instances, and her chatty account of a ball given by
the Countess Montijo, one of the leaders in this exclusive set, if not
one of its most exclusive members, is not lacking in interest: "A
beautiful ball was given the other night at the Countess Montijo's. She
certainly possesses the social talent more than any one I ever met with,
and, without the least apparent effort, seems to have a kind of
omnipresence in her salons, so that each one of her guests receives a
due share of attention. The principal drawing room, all white and gold,
is a noble room. The toilettes were more than usually elegant, the
jewels universal. The finest diamonds were perhaps those of the Countess
of Toreno, wife of the celebrated minister. The Countess of Ternan-Nunez
and the Princess Pio (an Italian lady), wore tiaras of emeralds and
brilliants of a size and beauty that I have never seen surpassed. The
Duchess of Alva was, as usual, dressed in perfect taste, but, alas! I am
not able to describe. It was something white and vapory and covered with
flowers, with a few diamond pins fastening the flowers in her hair. I
observed that whenever a young girl was without a partner, there was the
hostess introducing one to her, or if any awkward-looking youth stood
neglected in a corner, she took his arm, brought him forward, presented
him to some one, and made him dance. Or if some scientific man, invited
for his merits,--for her parties are much less carefully winnowed than
those of the aristocracy in general,--stood with his spectacles on,
looking a little like a fish out of water, there was the countess beside
him, making him take her to the buffet, conversing with him as she does
well upon every subject, and putting him so much at his ease that in a
few minutes he evidently felt quite at home." Such a description as
this must inevitably lead to the reflection that charming as the
Countess Montijo may have been, she was in no way peculiar or remarkable
except in so far as she represented the highest type of a polished,
tactful Spanish hostess, for in every civilized modern country there are
women of this class who excite general admiration.
The wavering policy of the capricious Isabella was somewhat strengthened
in 1856, when the long-suffering people, unable to countenance for a
longer time the universal corruption which existed in all branches of
the government, rose in such threatening revolt, under the leadership of
O'Donnell, that the queen was forced to give heed. The revolt counted
among its supporters members of all political parties, who were now
banded together from motives which were largely patriotic, and so great
was their influence that Isabella was forced to accept their terms or
lose her crown. For a few years there was an increased prosperity for
Spain, but the improvement could not be of long duration, so long as the
government remained under the same inefficient leadership. Finally, the
end came in 1868, when there broke forth a general revolution which was
but the forcible expression of the real and genuine spirit of discontent
which was to be found among all classes of the people. The navy rebelled
at Cadiz, and the fleet declared for the revolution, and then, to take
away Isabella's last hope of support, certain popular generals, who had
been sent into exile, returned, and led the royal troops against the
hated sovereign. In the face of this overwhelming array of hostile
forces, the queen crossed the Pyrenees as a fugitive, and when she went
she left her crown behind her. After five years of upheaval, which
descended at times to complete anarchy, with the advantage resting now
with the conservatives and now with the liberals, the crown was finally
offered to the son of the dethroned queen, who, as Alfonso XII., began
his reign under most auspicious circumstances. With his unlooked-for
death in 1886, his wife and widow, Maria Cristina, was left as the
regent for her unborn son, who has so recently attained his majority.
This Maria was a most careful mother, who devoted herself with the
utmost fidelity to the education of her son; and her conception of this
duty was so high and serious that she practically put a stop to the
social life of the court, that she might give herself unreservedly to
her important task. With what success, the future alone can tell, but,
in the meanwhile, there is but one opinion as to her personal worth and
character.
Without venturing a prediction as to the probable future for Spain in
the history of the world, the fact remains that in recent years the
country has advanced greatly from many points of view, so far as its
domestic affairs are concerned. There has been a remarkable commercial
activity, railroads have opened up much of the country which had been
cut off from the main currents of life from time immemorial, and the
widespread use of electricity for lighting and for motive power is
perhaps unexcelled in any other European country. The greatest question
now confronting Spain is, in the opinion of many, the question of
popular education, and here there is continual advancement. As might be
expected in a country like Spain, where southern, and in some cases
semi-Oriental, ideas must of necessity exist with regard to women, their
education has not yet made great progress, although the question is
being considered in a most liberal and enlightened spirit. No movement
in this day and generation can be successfully brought to an issue
unless it can be shown that there is some general demand for the
measures proposed, and until very recently in Spain there was general
apathy with regard to the education of women. For many years girls have
been carefully instructed in two things, religion and domestic science,
and for neither of these things was any extended course of study
necessary. The parochial schools, with all their narrowness, prepared
the maiden for her first communion, and her mother gave her such
training in the arts of the housewife as she might need when she married
and had a home of her own to care for. These two things accomplished,
the average middle-class Spaniard, until a very recent day, was utterly
unable to see that there was anything more necessary, or that the system
was defective in any way. But the modern spirit has entered the country,
and an organized effort is now being made to show the advantages of a
higher education and to furnish the opportunity for obtaining it. In
this work of educational reform among Spanish women, an American, Mrs.
Gulick, the wife of an American missionary at San Sebastian, has played
a leading part. Organizing a school which was maintained under her
supervision, she has been quite successful in what she has accomplished,
and believes that she has "proved the intellectual ability of Spanish
girls." Her pupils have been received in the National Institute, where
they have given a good account of themselves; and a few of them have
even been admitted to the examinations of the University of Madrid,
where they have maintained a high rank. Mrs. Gulick is not the only
leading exponent of higher education for Spanish women, however, as the
whole movement is now practically under the moral leadership of a most
competent and earnest woman, Emilia Pardo Bazan, who understands the
wants of her fellow countrywomen and is striving in every legitimate way
to give them the sort of instruction they need. Free schools exist in
all the cities and towns for both boys and girls, and recent attempts
have been made to enact a compulsory education law. Numerous normal
schools have been established in the various cities, which are open to
both men and women, and the number of women teachers is rapidly
increasing. Secular education is far more advanced and far more in
keeping with the spirit of the times than is the instruction which is to
be found in the schools conducted by the teaching orders. The girls in
the convents are taught to adore the Virgin in a very abstract and
indefinite way, and are given very little practical advice as to the
essential traits of true womanhood. A remarkable article, written
recently in one of the Madrid papers by one who signed himself "A Priest
of the Spanish Catholic Church," says, apropos of this very question:
"Instead of the Virgin being held up to admiration as the Mother of Our
Lord and as an example of all feminine perfection, the ideal woman and
mother, the people are called upon to worship the idea of the Immaculate
Conception, an abstract dogma of recent invention...." This Madonna
worship is one of the characteristic things in the religious life of
Spain, and everywhere _La Virgen_, who is rarely if ever called _Santa
Maria_, is an object of great love and reverence. There are many of
these _Virgenes_ scattered throughout the country, and each is
reverenced. Many of them are supposed to work miracles or answer
prayers, and their chapels are filled with the votive offerings of those
who have been helped in time of trouble. Not the least pathetic among
these offerings are the long locks of hair tied with ribbons of many
colors, which have been contributed by some mother because her child has
been restored from sickness to health. Women are more devout than the
men in their observance of religious duties, although the whole
population is religious to an unusual degree so far as the outward
forms are concerned, but the real religion which aims at character
building is little known as yet.
With regard to the general position of women in Spain, and their
influence upon public life, which as yet is not of any considerable
moment, Madame L. Higgin, in her recent volume upon Spanish life, writes
as follows: "As a rule, they take no leading part in politics, devoting
themselves chiefly to charitable works. There is a general movement for
higher education and greater liberty of thought and action among women,
and there are a certain limited number who frankly range themselves on
the side of so-called emancipation, who attend socialistic and other
meetings, and who aspire to be the comrades of men rather than their
objects of worship or their play-things. But this movement is scarcely
more than in its infancy. It must be remembered that even within the
present generation the bedrooms allotted to girls were always approached
through those of their parents, that no girl or unmarried woman could go
unattended, and that to be left alone in a room with a man was to lose
her reputation. Already these things seem dreams of the past; nor could
one well believe, what is, however, a fact, that there were fathers of
the upper classes in the first half of the last century who preferred
that their daughters should not learn to read or write, and especially
the latter, as it only enabled them to read letters clandestinely
received from lovers and to reply to them. The natural consequence of
this was the custom, which so largely prevailed, of young men,
absolutely unknown to the parents, establishing correspondence or
meetings with the objects of their adoration by means of a complacent
_doncella_ with an open palm, or the pastime known as _pelando el pavo_
(literally, "plucking the turkey"), which consisted of serenades of love
songs, amorous dialogues, or the passage of notes through the
_reja_--the iron gratings which protect the lower windows of Spanish
houses from the prowling human wolf--or from the balconies. Many a time
have I seen these interesting little missives let down past my balcony
to the waiting gallant below, and his drawn up. Only once I saw a
neighbor, in the balcony below, intercept the post and, I believe,
substitute some other letter."
This seclusion of the young girls is in itself a sufficient comment upon
the sentiments of honor and duty which are current among the male
portion of the population, and it is plain that this condition of
affairs can find little betterment until the nation finds new social
ideals. Such conditions as these are mediaeval, or Oriental at best, and
it is to be hoped that the newer education which is now influencing
Spain may help to bring about a better and saner view of the social
intercourse of men and women. As a direct result of the general
attitude, the men upon the streets of a Spanish city will often surprise
a foreigner by their cool insolence in the presence of the women they
may happen to meet. Her appearance is made the subject for much audible
comment, and such exclamations as _Ay! que buenos ojos! Que bonita
eres!_ [Oh! what fine eyes! How pretty you are!] are only too common.
The woman thus characterized will modify her conduct according to the
necessities of the situation; and if her casual admirer happens to be
young and good-looking and she herself is not averse to flattery, she
will reward him with a quick smile. In any case, the whole matter is
treated as an ordinary occurrence, as it is, and no insult is felt where
none is intended. Such remarks are but an expression, which is
oftentimes naive, of the admiration which is felt at the sight of
unusual feminine charms. The incident simply goes to show that
everywhere in Spain there is tacit recognition of the general
inferiority of women. In the laboring and peasant classes, where the
women work with the men, such lapses from the conventional standard of
good manners would not cause so much comment; but under these
circumstances the dangers and the annoyances are not so great, as these
women of the people, with their practical experience in life, ignorant
as they may be, are often more competent to take care of themselves than
are their more carefully educated sisters in polite society who have
been so carefully fenced from harm.
[Illustration 6:
_SPANISH POST-NUPTIAL OBSERVANCES
After the painting by J. Agrasot y Juan
Marriage laws and customs may always be considered as telling bits of
evidence in the discussion of any question of this nature. As the result
of an enlightened public sentiment, which is somewhat unexpected in that
it is in advance of many other social customs, there is a law which
gives a girl the right to marry the man of her choice, even against her
parents' wishes. No father can compel his daughter to marry against her
will; and if there is any attempt to force her in the matter, she is
entitled to claim the protection of a magistrate, who is empowered by
law to protect her from such oppression._]
Many of the objectionable features of Spanish life which spring from
these long-standing notions in regard to women are bound to disappear as
both men and women become more educated, and in several particulars
already encouraging progress has been made. Marriage laws and customs
may always be considered as telling bits of evidence in the discussion
of any question of this nature, and in Spain, as the result of modern
innovations, the rights of the woman in contracting the marriage
relation are superior to those enjoyed elsewhere on the continent or
even in England. In the old days, the _mariage de convenance_ was a
matter of course in educated circles, and the parents and relatives of a
girl were given an almost absolute power in arranging for her future
welfare. Now, as the result of an enlightened public sentiment, which is
somewhat unexpected in that it is in advance of many other social
customs, there is a law which gives a girl the right to marry the man of
her choice, even against her parents' wishes. No father can compel his
daughter to marry against her will; and if there is any attempt to force
her in the matter, she is entitled to claim the protection of a
magistrate, who is empowered by law to protect her from such oppression.
If the parents are insistent, the magistrate may take the girl from her
father's house and act as her guardian until the time of her majority,
when she is free to marry according to her own fancy. Nor is any such
rebellious action to be construed as prejudicial to the daughter's right
to inherit that portion of her father's estate to which she would
otherwise have a legal claim. Madame Higgin relates the following cases
which came within the range of her personal experience: "In one case,
the first intimation a father received of his daughter's engagement was
the notice from a neighboring magistrate that she was about to be
married; and in another, a daughter left her mother's house and was
married from that of the magistrate, to a man without any income and
considerably below her in rank, in all these cases the contracting
parties were of the highest rank."
With regard to the wedding service, customs have changed greatly during
the course of the last century. It was natural that Spain, in common
with all other Catholic countries, should have given the Church entire
control of the marriage sacrament for many years, and it was not until
the republicanism of the nineteenth century forced a change that the
civil marriage was instituted as it had been in France. While not
compulsory, the religious service is almost always performed, in
addition to the other, except among the poor, who are deterred by the
cost of this double wedding; and sometimes the religious service is held
at the church and sometimes at the home of the bride. It was generally
the custom in the church weddings for all the ladies in the wedding
party, including the bride, to dress in black; but there was finally so
much opposition to this sombre hue at such a joyous occasion, that the
fashionable world within recent times has made the house wedding a
possibility, and at such a function there was no limit to the brilliant
display possible. The English and American custom of taking a wedding
journey immediately after the ceremony is not common in Spain, and the
Spaniards, in their conversation and sometimes in their books, are not
slow to express their opinions with regard to the matter, insisting that
it is much preferable to remain at home among friends than to "expose
themselves to the jeers of postilions and stable boys," to quote a line
from Fernan Caballero's _Clemencia_. In spite of this firmly rooted
opinion, however, that the national customs are best, and in this
particular it seems indeed as if they were more reasonable, the wedding
journey is slowly being adopted in what they call "_el_ high life," and
it may some day become one of the fixed institutions of the land, as it
is with us. All this is but another proof of the fact that fashions are
now cosmopolitan things, and that among the educated and wealthy classes
in all countries there are often many more points of resemblance than
are to be found between any given group of these cosmopolites and some
of their own fellow countrymen taken from a lower class in society.
Some time after the Prince of Naples, who is now the King of Italy, had
attracted the favorable comment of all thinking people for his
determination not to wed until he married for love, a similar occurrence
in Spain revealed the fact that Maria Cristina, the queen-regent, was
determined to accept the modern and sensible notion of marriage for one
of her own children, and thus incidentally to give to her people in
general the benefit of a powerful precedent in such matters. Mention has
already been made of the fact that, according to certain laws, a Spanish
girl may now refuse to marry at her parents' dictation; but, in spite of
the fact that such laws exist, it cannot be said that they are often
called into play, for the daughter is still in such a state of childish
dependence upon her father and mother, that any such step as described,
which amounts to nothing more or less than a revolt against parental
authority, would fill her with dismay and would prove more than she
would dare to attempt. The laws upon the statute books indicate that
there is a public appreciation of the fact that marriage should not be a
matter of coercion, but among the people in general the old idea is
still more powerful, and Spanish daughters are married daily to the
husbands chosen by their match-making mothers or aunts. In the face of
this popular custom, and in spite of the fact that royal marriages, on
account of their somewhat political character, have generally been made
without regard to sentiment, the queen-regent decided that her oldest
daughter, the Princess of Asturias, should marry the man she loved.
There were various worldly, or rather political, reasons against the
proposed alliance; but Maria brushed them all aside and allowed the
whole affair to progress in a natural way, as there seemed to be nothing
in the proposed alliance which gave her cause for alarm. Here are the
facts in the case. Among the playfellows of the little King Alfonso
XIII. there were two distant cousins, the sons of the Count of Caserta,
and between the elder, Don Carlos, and the young princess a warm
attachment soon sprang up which led to a betrothal, with the queen's
consent. At once there was a protest which would have intimidated a
person of weaker character. It was pointed out that Don Carlos the youth
was the son of a man who had been chief of staff to the Pretender Don
Carlos, who had been responsible for so much of the disorder in Spain
within the last quarter of a century; and although Caserta and his sons
had taken the oath of allegiance to Alfonso XIII., it was feared that in
some way this marriage might give the Pretender a new claim upon the
government, and that in future years it might lead to renewed domestic
strife. Furthermore, it was alleged that the Jesuits, who are known
conservatives and legitimists everywhere, and who had been accused of
sympathizing with the Pretender's claims, were behind this new alliance,
and, as the work of their hands, it was popularly considered as a matter
of very doubtful expediency. But the queen persisted in her course,
entirely without political motives, so far as anyone has been able to
discover, and preparations for the wedding were begun in earnest.
Then it was that the affair began to assume a more national and more
serious character. The liberal party, which was in power and which
naturally looked with suspicion upon anything tainted with conservatism,
decided to oppose the marriage, and the prime minister, who was no other
than the great Sagasta, allowed the queen to understand plainly that the
whole affair must be dropped. Maria Cristina informed her prime minister
that _her_ will was to be law in the matter, and that she was unwilling
to allow any sort of governmental interference. The marriage now
precipitated a national crisis, Sagasta and all the members of his
cabinet resigned their portfolios of office, and the queen was left to
form a new ministry. She appointed the new members from the ranks of the
conservative party, and, now without cabinet opposition, the marriage
was celebrated. Then the storm arose again: there were riots and
disturbances in most of the large cities; the Jesuits, who were made
responsible for this turn of affairs, were openly attacked, even in
Madrid. It was even claimed that the young king's confessor belonged to
the hated order, and everywhere there were fears expressed that the
government might soon be delivered up to the Carlists. This impression
was only increased when the conservative ministry suspended the
constitutional guarantees and assumed to rule with unlimited authority.
This move was simply taken, it appears, as a matter of extreme necessity
under the circumstances, as the queen and her advisers were determined
to keep the upper hand and make no concession under such riotous
pressure. Finally, as the disorder was unabated, and it became evident
that the cabinet could never gain public confidence, Sagasta, by dint of
much persuading, was again induced to become prime minister, and with
his return peace was restored and the revolution which was surely
threatening was averted.
So ended this memorable contest wherein the queen seemed almost willing
to sacrifice her son's crown that she might humor her daughter's whim,
and a satisfactory explanation of the whole affair which would be
convincing to all the parties concerned is doubtless difficult to make.
In the absence of any political motives which can be proved or
rightfully suspected, it would seem that Maria Cristina, even though a
queen, had been making a most royal battle for the idea that marriage
should be a matter of inclination and not a matter of compulsion; and
her heroic measures to carry out her ideas cannot fail to produce a
great impression upon liberal Spain, as soon as the scare about the
Jesuits and the Carlists has had time to subside.
The national amusements of Spain, as they affect the whole people, may
be reduced to two, bull-fighting and dancing. While women never take
part in the contests of the arena, they are none the less among the most
interested of the spectators, and the Plaza de Toros on a Sunday is the
place to see their wonderfully brilliant costumes. With regard to
Spanish dancing, as a popular amusement it is almost universal, and
rarely are two or three gathered together but that the sound of the
tambourine, guitar, and castanets is heard and the dance is in full
swing. Much has been written about some of these national dances, and
often the idea is left in the mind of the reader that they are all very
shocking and indecent, but this is hardly the fact. Certain dances are
to be seen in Spain to-day, among the gypsies, which have come down
practically unchanged from the Roman days, when Martial and Horace were
enchanted by the graceful motions of the dancing girls of their time;
and these are undoubtedly suggestive in a high degree, and are not less
objectionable than the more widely known Oriental dances which have
recently made their advent into the United States; but these dances are
in no way national or common. They are rarely seen, except in the gypsy
quarter of Seville, and there they are generally arranged for
money-making purposes. In short, they are no more typical of Spanish
dances than the questionable evolutions of the old Quadrille at the
Moulin Rouge were representative of the dances of the French people, and
it is time that the libel should be stopped. The country people and the
working classes dance with the enjoyment of children, and generally they
sing at the same time some love song which is unending, and sometimes
improvised as the dance proceeds.
In athletic matters it cannot be said that Spanish women are very
active, and in this they are somewhat behind their brothers, who have
numerous games which test their skill and endurance. Though the bicycle
is well known now in Spain, the Spanish women have not adopted it with
the zest which was shown by the women of France, and it is doubtful if
it will ever be popular among them. Horseback riding is a fashionable
amusement among the wealthy city women, but their attainments in this
branch of sport seem insignificant when compared to the riding of
English and American women. The Spanish riding horse is a pacer rather
than a trotter, and this cradle-like motion is certainly better suited
to the Spanish women. Few, if any, of them aspire to follow the hounds,
a ditch or a gate would present difficulties which would be truly
insurmountable, and they never acquire the ease and grace in this
exercise which are the mark of an expert horsewoman.
The dark beauty of the Spanish women has long been a favorite theme, and
there is little to say on that subject which has not been said a
thousand times before, but no account of them would be complete without
some word in recognition of their many personal charms. In the cities,
the women, so far as their dress is concerned, have lost their
individuality, as the women of other nations have done, in their efforts
to follow the Parisian styles; but there is still a certain charming
simplicity of manner which characterizes the whole bearing of a Spanish
lady, and is quite free from that affectation and studied deportment
which are too often considered as the acme of good breeding. This almost
absolute lack of self-consciousness often leads to acts so naive that
foreigners are often led to question their sense of propriety. But with
this naivete and simplicity is joined a great love for dress and
display. Madame Higgin says on this subject: "Spanish women are great
dressers, and the costumes seen at the race meetings at the Hippodrome
and in the Parque are elaborately French, and sometimes startling. The
upper middle class go to Santander, Biarritz, or one of the other
fashionable watering places, and it is said of the ladies that they only
stop as many days as they can sport new costumes. If they go for a
fortnight, they must have fifteen absolutely new dresses, as they would
never think of putting one on a second time. They take with them immense
trunks, such as we generally associate with American travellers; these
are called _mundos_ (worlds)--a name which one feels certain was given
by the suffering man who is expected to look after them. In the
provinces, however, among the women of the peasant class, Parisian
bonnets are neither worn nor appreciated; the good and time-honored
customs in regard to peasant dress have been retained, and there rather
than in the cities is to be seen the pure type as it has existed for
centuries, unaffected and unalloyed by contact with the manners and
customs of other nations."
It is difficult to say what the condition of Spanish women will be as
the years go by, but it is at least certain that they will be better
educated than they are to-day, and better able to understand the real
meaning of life. Now they are often veritable children, who know nothing
of affairs at home or of the world abroad, somewhat proud of their
manifest charms and ever ready for a conquest; but with a better mental
training and some enlarged conception of the real and essential duties
in modern life, the unimportant things will be gradually relegated to
their proper position, and the whole nation will gain new strength from
an ennobled womanhood.
CONTENTS
PREFACE
PART FIRST
I. THE AGE OF THE COUNTESS MATILDA OF TUSCANY
II. THE NEAPOLITAN COURT IN THE TIME OF QUEEN JOANNA
III. WOMEN AND THE CHURCH
IV. THE WOMEN OF THE MIDI
V. INFLUENCE OF WOMEN IN EARLY LITERATURE
VI. WOMEN IN THE EARLY RENAISSANCE
VII. WOMEN IN THE LATER RENAISSANCE
VIII. THE BORGIAS AND THE BAD WOMEN OF THE SIXTEENTH CENTURY
IX. THE BRIGHTER SIDE OF THE SIXTEENTH CENTURY
X. THE SEVENTEENTH AND EIGHTEENTH CENTURIES
XI. ITALIAN WOMEN IN THE NINETEENTH CENTURY
PART SECOND
XII. THE CONDITION OF SPAIN BEFORE THE MOORISH INVASION
XIII. WOMEN AMONG THE MOORS
XIV. THE WOMEN OF THE LITTLE MONARCHIES
XV. WOMEN IN EARLY POLITICAL LIFE
XVI. THE THIRTEENTH AND FOURTEENTH CENTURIES
XVII. THE AGE OF ISABELLA--SPANISH UNITY
XVIII. THE WOMEN OF THE SIXTEENTH CENTURY
XIX. THE SLOW DECAY OF SPANISH POWER
XX. THE WOMEN OF MODERN SPAIN
List of Illustrations
Boccaccio's merry raconteurs Jacques Wagrez.
Italian wedding costumes and customs, fifteenth century.
Contemporary painting.
Alexander VI. entertaining an ambassador H. Kaulbach.
Beatrice Cenci L. Valles.
Isabella receiving Columbus M. V. Crispo.
Spanish post-nuptial observances J. Agrasoty Juan.