For the Use of such as may propose the propagating or culture of the Pine-Apple in more southern Parts, the necessary Directions are given in the following Letter, which I drew up on Purpose for Mr. John Clark, an eminent Merchant at Oporto ; which, with that ingenious Gentleman's Answer to it, may be of good Use to help our Observations, and teach us to judge of the Difference of Climates ; and that the Management of a Plant in one Climate, should be different from the Management of it in another Latitude.
To Mr. John Clark, Merchant, Oporto.
London, Jan, 28, 1722/3.
S I R,
THE worthy Gentleman your Father acquaints me, that you have a Design of propagating the Ananas or Pine-Apple in Portugal the Method of doing which with us you will find in Mr. Telende's Account, and which I suppose Mr. Clark has sent you. But as your Climate has much the Advantage of ours in ripening Fruit of any sort, fo you must surely have extraordinary Success, though there must be some Alteration in the Way of Management.
In the first Place, your Sun is so hot in the Summer Months, that the Glasses of your hot Bed Frames would scorch and burn your Plants, if they were to be cover'd in the hot Time of the Day therefore I rather recommend Frames of Canvas to cover the Plants in the Time of the Sun's great Heats, and the Glasses only to be put over the Plants about an Hour before Sun set, to cover them a Nights, and keep a Body of warm Air in the Frame, till the Warmth of the following Day approaches ; so likewife in your hot Weather, the Plants will require more frequent Waterings than with us, but not more at a Time than we would allow them in our Climate.
Your Season of Spring, I suppose, is about six Weeks before us, and as much good Time for ripening of Fruit after us : But I would gladly know from you, how far I am right in my Conjectures concerning your Spring and Autumn Seasons ; and also when your great Rains fall, which will help to inform us how to cultivate Plants that come from the Country where you are.
We have got a Thermometer for you, whereby your Heats may be regulated; but it is rather, to direct your artificial Heat in Winter than in Summer ; for your Summer Heats will fling the Spirit so very high in the Glass, that it will be beyond Regulation ; and as the Summer Sun is a natural Heat, so it needs not be any otherwise regarded, than by keeping it from scorching the Plants.
This Instrument shews the Degrees of Heat or warm Air necessary for Plants which grow near the Equinoctial Line, and from thence is mark'd upon the Scale the several Degrees or Proportions of warm Air requir'd for Plants which are Natives of Climates in several Degrees of Latitude, as far as 40, which is as much or more than we have Occasion to use in or about the Latitude of London, which is 51 Deg. 30 Min. for we find by Experience, that the Plants of Virginia, whose Latitude in the most Northern Point is about 58 Degrees, will live Abroad, and defend themfelves against the Rigour of our Frofts. So likewife we have many Examples of Plants from the North of Carolina, whose Latitude is about 34 Degrees, that will generally bear our Winters without Shelter: But from about 34 Degrees, to about 26 or 27 Degrees, we must [298] shelter them every Winter in a common Greenhouse, so that no Frost may invade them.
After this, as we come nearer to the Tropicks, or the Line, we must be diligent to give the Plants the several Degrees of Watering natural to the respective Climates ; and for that end we should learn when the Seasons are that the Rains fall in Countries of different Latitudes. Nor should we too inadvertently attempt to harden Plants, but rather seek to increase their Strength, by making them grow and increase in their Bodies; for in the common Way of making them hardy, though they yet live with us, they lose their natural Intent of bearing Fruit, and so become useless.
In the Culture of Plants therefore, it is not enough only to give them such a Share of Warmth or Shelter, as will barely keep them alive ; but we must give them such Heat at proper Seasons, as may equal, if possible, that of their native Country, which in a particular manner should be regarded in the Culture of such Plants as grow between the Tropicks ; but that has remain'd an Uncertainty, till Mr. Tellende luckily discover'd the Degree of warm Air in Nevis and St. Chriftopher's, where the Pine-Apples chiefly delight themselves ; and as they succeed under the Influence of the Heat he gives them, so we may be sure, every other Plant growing in the same Degree of Latitude may be made to prosper with us, whether they come from the North or South Side of the Line.
It is necessary likewise to observe the Course of the Sun, in the Culture of Plants which come from any of those Latitudes mark'd in the Thermometer, and apply to them the strongest
Heats [299] of their respective Countries, at the Time when the Sun is nearest those Places which they were brought from ; and when we receive Plants from Countries where the Sun passes over twice in a Year, our artificial Heats should at such Times be chiefly supported.
Thus, Sir, I have mention'd what I think will be necessary for your Use at this Time, with regard to the Thermometer ; but when I know the State of your Climate, can say more: In the mean while, though I am unknown to your Person, I am no Stranger to your Merits, and conclude,
Your most humble Servant,
to command,
R. BRADLEY.
Mr. Clark of Oporto's Answer to the foregoing Letter.
To Mr. Bradley, F. R. S. London.
Oporto, April 16, 1713.
SIR,
I Am extreamly oblig'd to you for your Favour of the 28th of January, and the Advice you give me concerning the Culture of the Ananas : I have had much Trouble to preserve the two Plants my Father sent me, through the little Care Masters of Ships generally take in [300] bringing Plants ; and besides, I have not had the Opportunity to mind their Propagation so well as to expect Fruit from them this Season, but am fully bent upon all Diligence for to have it the next.
The Ananas is a Plant very common in the Portugueze Colonies in Brazil, so that few Seafaring Persons and Factors who have been there, are unacquainted with it.
Doubtless, the Thermometer you have contriv'd, to shew the proper Degrees of Heat natural to each Plant, will render their Culture prodigiously easy ; I impatiently expect that which you have been pleas'd to finish [sic] me, for which I give you my hearty Thanks.
We are situated here within a League of the Sea, in a hilly, rocky Country ; few Grounds are improv'd, but what are humid, or else have little Springs of Water near them, to moisten in Summer Time. In our Wine Country, which is about sixty Miles distant, Eastward, the Heat and Cold is more excessive than with us, by reason the Mountains are much higher and steeper. The Summer Western Sea-Breezes do not reach that Country ; and the Reverberation of the Sun from those rocky Hills heat the Air to such a Degree, that the Night in the Summer Season is as hot as the Day.
We have our Spring sooner about a Month than in your Climate, and the same Continuance of good Weather longer in Autumn. The Winter Air is very sharp and piercing to Plants,, though we feel little or no cold Weather ; but I suppose the Reason is, that our Air is more subtle, and not so condens'd as yours is. I have known in Winter a continual Rain for six [301] Weeks, but some Years we escape without any. Our worst Months are from the middle of December to the middle of February; for in the latter End we reckon Spring begins.
I obferv'd, in fome of your Writings, the Experiment of cutting or laying the Branches of a Tree in the Ground, and the next Seafon raising the Roots into the Air, which will do the Office of the former Branches. It is the Practice here to do so in the Increase of the Fig-tree, because they find it very tedious before it will bear from Suckers. Their Method is laying the top Boughs of any Branch into the Ground, and in the new Seafon sawing off the Branch, and staking it as upright as possible ; which top Stump in the Air will shoot vigorously, and quickly give Fruit: I am told, that the China Orange may be us'd so ; and then, they say, the Fruit of the new made Tree is without Kernels.
A Fryar has promis'd to graff me this Seafon the Carnation upon Fennel; he iays, the Flower will be entirely green, as well as the Plant ; and, he assures me, the Colour will keep two or three Years the same, and after that, changes to the Colours common to that Flower. He adds, that in this Country the best Stock for graffing Stone Fruit upon, is the Peach, for its Flavour is communicated into the Fruit of the Graff ; as likewise, if you graff a Peach upon a Mulberry, the Fruit will have the purple Dye to the Stone, and the pleasant acid Flavour. If I can make any Observations here worth your Notice, I shall communicate them to you with Pleasure: The Natives are the least curious in Gardening of any Nation in Europe; any Thing uncommon [302] is in the Convents, where they seldom part with it. I am,
Sir,
Your moft humble Servant,
JOHN CLARK.
A general treatise of husbandry & gardening: containing a new system of vegetation: illustrated with many observations & experiments
Richard Bradley, Professor of Botany in the University of Cambridge and F.R.S.
Vol. II
LONDON
Printed for T. Woodward at the Half-Moon over against St. Dunstan's Church in Fleetstreet, and J. Peele at Locke's Head in Pater-noster Row
MDCCXXVI [1726]
Saturday, 1 August 2009
A month in Portugal (1854)
[144] I went to Cintra early in the morning by omnibus, with my kind conductor of yesterday and two of his friends, all Englishmen. I should have preferred spending this day in Lisbon, as being one of the chief festivals of the year, it would have enabled me both to attend Divine Service myself, and to see something of the religious habits of the Portuguese capital; but as the omnibus only went and returned on alternate days, this was my sole opportunity of seeing Cintra, with Byron's description of which in Childe Harold, I had been familiar from early boyhood. The road from Lisbon is very good, but there is nothing particularly interesting in the country through which one passes. In the village of Bemfica we went by the residence of the Count de Farroba, which is considered the most splendid nobleman's residence in Portugal. The ground in front was very tastefully laid out with turf, flowers, and shrubs, but we could not see much of the house. We also came in view of the palace of Queluz, which stands some distance from the road, and has been a favourite residence of some of the Portuguese sovereigns. Here Dom Pedro breathed his last. As we got towards the [145] end of our journey, we passed near another royal habitation, the palace of Ramalhao; but it has been for some years unoccupied and unfurnished. The first view of Cintra, as it is entered in this direction, is wild and rugged, consisting principally of a succession of rocky peaks, rising to an immense elevation in naked barrenness. When, however, it is fairly reached, there are other features added to the scene, which quite change its character. Below these rocks, which seem to have been formed by some natural convulsion, is a mountain height covered with all kinds and degrees of verdure, sloping down into a valley of the sweetest luxuriance. 'The village itself stands half-way up,—nestled as it were in the bosom of the hill,—amidst groves of pine and cork, orange and lemon trees, with a profusion of geraniums and evergreens of all kinds.' [Diary of an Invalid, p. 15] ' It contains,' says Lord Byron, ' beauties of every description, natural and artificial. Palaces and gardens rising in the midst of rocks, cataracts, and precipices, convents and stupendous heights—a distant view of the sea and the Tagus......... It unites in itself all the wildness of the western Highlands, with the verdure of the south of France.' [Life and Works, vol. i, p.280] All this is true, and yet I must confess, the scenery of Cintra somewhat disappointed me. This perhaps arose from the extravagant ideas I had conceived of it at a very early age, which, it may be, no scenery would have been able fully to satisfy: and again, from my having beheld views and objects during my present tour, with which what I gazed on here, beautiful as it was, would [146] yet not stand a comparison. However it was well worth visiting, and I am very glad that I visited it. Perhaps the words of Mr. Southey convey as accurate a description of it as can be given—' It is,' says he, ' more beautiful than sublime, more grotesque than beautiful.' [Letters, &c., p. 510]
We arrived at the end of our journey about ten o'clock, and took up our quarters at Durand's Hotel, where we were made very comfortable, at a moderate expense. After breakfast we walked to the palace of the Marquis Marialva, said to have been the place where the Convention of Cintra was signed, though in reality it had no connexion with it, as the Convention was arranged, settled, and signed, thirty miles off. It is a large, good looking mansion, with an open space before it of some extent, much frequented on summer evenings as a promenade. We next mounted our mules and rode to Montserrat, where Mr. Beckford, ' England's wealthiest son, Once formed his paradise.' The situation is very beautiful, on the brow of an eminence projecting from the serra, and commanding in every direction views of the most lovely character. The house, however—a Grecian villa, in the construction and decoration of which, there had been no lack of either taste or expenditure—is now in ruins, ' as if a thing un-blest by man.'
' Here giant weeds a passage scarce allow To halls deserted, portals gaping wide ; Fresh lessons to the thinking bosom, how Vain are the pleasaunces on earth supplied; Swept into wrecks anon by Time's ungentle tide !'
[147] There is in fact an air of desolation about the whole scene, house and grounds together, the more remarkable and melancholy from its modern character. We are, in some degree, reconciled to Time having done his work on an ancient edifice, but to see a building, so to speak, of yesterday in ruins, is contrary to our expectations, and has in it something peculiarly saddening. We next proceeded through the valley of Collares, watered by natural streams, and abounding in orange groves and orchards, and thus affording a delightful contrast to the mountain that rises above it,—to the far-famed rock of Lisbon, the most westerly point of the European continent. This is a most remarkable spot. Some distance from the edge of the precipice, which rises perpendicularly out of the ocean to a height of about three hundred feet, we looked down a hole and could see the sea and hear its roar, which by continually chafing against the rock, had worked itself a way beneath the spot where we were standing. We advanced to the edge. The view of the ocean, bright and blue, and of the romantic coast consisting of bold projections, intermingled with sharp and lofty rocks, was truly sublime. It was almost fearful to look below; but what will the reader think, when he is told that down and up this rock ran several men and boys, (who, with a number more, had followed us from a neighbouring village,) without any support but what nature had afforded them, for the mere purpose of exhibiting their skill, and obtaining a small sum in return ? The breeze which is constantly blowing from the sea, must, I imagine, serve in some degree to keep them up; but still the slightest slip on their part, or any [148] want of firmness in the rock where they happened to tread, could hardly fail of being attended with instant destruction. It really filled us with horror to gaze upon them; and yet it would have been impossible to prevent them from thus endangering themselves. The guide of our party, my yesterday's lionizer, told us that he once accompanied two of his friends to this spot, strangers, who requested him not to permit any of the people to run this fearful risk. He accordingly told them that he had been directed by his friends to promise them two crusados, on condition that they kept away from the rock, but that if they went down, they should not have a single vintem. All however was to no purpose. Down they would go; and when they came up, because the visitors were as good as their word, they set to and pelted them. This exploit, which they are so fond of exhibiting, has apparently been handed down from generation to generation. Beckford gives a description of its performance when he was here, nearly seventy years ago. When we had reached Collares on our way back, we varied our route by returning to Cintra by the high road. We passed various mansions and quintas belonging to different members of the Portuguese nobility and gentry, into one of which we entered for the purpose of drinking of a mineral spring. The possessors of these places evidently take much delight in their gardens, and pay great attention to the raising of plants and flowers; of which the more choice ones are distinguished, as in English nurseries, by labels bearing their names. The water of Cintra is noted for its excellence and frigidity. It flows down from the mountains in numberless rills, [149] which are never known to fail even in the driest season. The climate, again, is most refreshing and delicious. Along these mountain heights, with the sea so near, there is no want of exhilarating breezes even in the most sultry time. In the summer season it must be a residence perfectly luxurious. The people of Lisbon are happy in having such a spot so near, nor is it to be wondered that they so generally avail themselves of it. Rents, too, here are very low. A palace built for one of the royal dukes was pointed out to me, which was offered to be let for twenty-five pounds a year; whilst for a family in private life, a convenient house might be procured at the rate of seven or eight pounds. I ought to have said that the road along which we passed, was as good as could be desired. It was formerly far otherwise, but had been recently repaired, and if I rightly remember, was much indebted for its improvement to the aid and influence of the Pope's Nuncio. He was spoken of as a man of much public spirit, always ready and anxious to cooperate in measures conducive to the general good. We reached our hotel between five and six o'clock, and closed the day with a sociable and pleasant dinner. We retired to rest early, and assembled again in good time on the morrow, when immediately after breakfast we bent our steps to the royal palace. This is a large irregular building, of Moorish origin, as is evident from its architecture and construction, but with many additions from successive Portuguese Sovereigns. I went over it with great interest, having never before seen a building of similar character. The windows, on the exterior, were surrounded with arabesque ornaments. [150] One of the rooms, with (I think) a marble floor, contained in its centre a circular reservoir, filled with water, around which, it was said, its first inhabitants used to luxuriate in the heat of the day. There are also fountains and jets d'eau to be met with in other parts, one of which, in a court adjoining the bath-room, is sometimes employed to besprinkle visitors unawares. All these bring to mind the founders of the palace : but it is also rich in historical reminiscences of a later date. Thus one room is pointed out, in which the unfortunate Sebastian held his last audience and the chair in which he sat, before he set out on his unhappy expedition into Africa, from which he never returned. Another, with a handsome tiled floor, part of which is worn by the footsteps of D. Affonso VI, who was here kept prisoner for the last fifteen years of his life, after he had been most deservedly compelled to abdicate the throne. Another, the roof of which is adorned with the royal arms of Portugal, the escutcheons of the sons and daughters of D. Manoel, and those of the Portuguese nobility, of which, however, two have been removed—those of the families of Aveiro and Tavora, from their having been suspected of being concerned in the attempt on the life of D. Jose in 1758. To this apartment, which is now used as a billiard-room, there is a magnificent marble door-way of Moorish architecture ; and from its windows, with the aid of a glass, we had a very good view of the palace of Mafra. Interesting, however, as this palace is, yet considered as a royal residence, it is very deficient. The bed-rooms are very small; the furniture is shabby and scanty ; even the private apartments of the late Queen though comfortable, [151] Were but little more. We were however much struck with the vast dimensions of a mahogany bed which she used to occupy. Two young English midshipmen, whose ship was lying in the Tagus, opposite Lisbon, once came to Ciutra, climbed up into the palace, threw down a cross, and danced on this bed. For this outrageous conduct they were on the point of being sent back to England, and dismissed the service; but at her Majesty's especial request, this was not carried into effect. They were however very deservedly confined to the ship, and no more allowed to come on shore, whilst the vessel remained at Lisbon. I mention this circumstance as a specimen of the Queen's forbearance and kindness of heart, which secured her the love, and alas! the regret, of all her subjects. But to proceed with the palace—The architecture of the Chapel is of a Christian character, but the walls are whitewashed, the floor is of brick, and the windows are partly blocked up. There is a tribune for the royal family on the south side, near the high altar. Before we left, we went into the kitchen, but it contained nothing remarkable except two immense chimneys, shaped like Birmingham glass-houses, which form a conspicuous feature in the building when viewed on the outside.
Having here satisfied our curiosity, we mounted our mules to climb the heights, for which Cintra is so celebrated. First, however, we stopped at the quinta of the Marquis de Vianna, access to which is kindly permitted to the public. The house is a neat looking building, and the gardens are very pretty and extensive. We here saw a swan on a small piece of water, followed by a number of gold fish, with which he appeared to be on [152] the best of terms. We next ascended to the fountain of St. Euphemia, of which we drank, and then went on to the Chapel, at the back of which is an inscription, stating that she was the daughter of a heathen king of Braga— that her mother had eight sons at one birth, all of whom were put to death by him, A. D. 125, for having embraced Christianity—that through her intercession, wounds and diseases (particularly the itch) are cured by drinking of her fountain; and that this inscription is placed over the foot-print which she left, when she last appeared on earth, A. D. 1757. If we may judge from the mark, stated to be the impress of her foot, she would appear to have been a lady of no ordinary weight and dimensions. We next proceeded to the Pena Convent, which formerly belonged to the Jeromites of Belem, and stands on one of the highest peaks of the Serra. This is the ' toppling convent' celebrated by Lord Byron, wherewith 'the horrid rocks are crowned.' It has been purchased by the King Regent, who at much expense, and with great taste and judgment, is restoring it in the Moorish style, for a private palace. It was originally founded by D. Manoel, on the spot whence he was the first to descry the fleet of Vasco da Gama, for which he had so often watched, returning from its Indian expedition. ' From this elevation,' says Southey, 'the eye stretches over a bare and melancholy country to Lisbon on the one side, and on the other to the distant Convent of Mafra, the Atlantic bounding the greater part of the prospect. I never beheld a view that so effectually checked the wish of wandering. Had I been born at Cintra, methinks no inducement could have tempted me to leave its delightful [153] springs and shades, and cross the dreary wilderness that insulates them.' [Letters, &c., p. 511.] The King, in his restoration, is preserving, as much as possible, the monastic character of the building; but I fancy the grounds below must present a somewhat different aspect from what they wore under their former proprietors. They are now laid out as tasteful and elegant gardens, wherein are cultivated the choicest fruits, the rarest and most beautiful flowers. We walked from these having ordered our mules to meet us at a spot below, along a path which leads to the ruins of a Moorish castle, on the summit of the next elevation. This was the last place in Portugal from which the Moors were driven. There is now but little of it remaining. Just below is a stone quadrangular cistern, with a vaulted roof, which is supposed to have been a Moorish bath. A spring of the purest water rises within it, and keeps it constantly full. Still farther down are the ruins of a mosque, to which however we could not obtain admission, as the woman in charge was unable to produce the key. With a view of the different ruins on this peak we brought our morning's rambles to a close, and returned to our hotel; whence, early in the evening, we started back in the omnibus for Lisbon, where we arrived after a drive of about two hours. I was glad to rejoin the companion of my tour at the Braganza, and to give him an account of what I had seen since we parted.
A month in Portugal.
Joseph Oldknow
London Longman & Co. 1855
We arrived at the end of our journey about ten o'clock, and took up our quarters at Durand's Hotel, where we were made very comfortable, at a moderate expense. After breakfast we walked to the palace of the Marquis Marialva, said to have been the place where the Convention of Cintra was signed, though in reality it had no connexion with it, as the Convention was arranged, settled, and signed, thirty miles off. It is a large, good looking mansion, with an open space before it of some extent, much frequented on summer evenings as a promenade. We next mounted our mules and rode to Montserrat, where Mr. Beckford, ' England's wealthiest son, Once formed his paradise.' The situation is very beautiful, on the brow of an eminence projecting from the serra, and commanding in every direction views of the most lovely character. The house, however—a Grecian villa, in the construction and decoration of which, there had been no lack of either taste or expenditure—is now in ruins, ' as if a thing un-blest by man.'
' Here giant weeds a passage scarce allow To halls deserted, portals gaping wide ; Fresh lessons to the thinking bosom, how Vain are the pleasaunces on earth supplied; Swept into wrecks anon by Time's ungentle tide !'
[147] There is in fact an air of desolation about the whole scene, house and grounds together, the more remarkable and melancholy from its modern character. We are, in some degree, reconciled to Time having done his work on an ancient edifice, but to see a building, so to speak, of yesterday in ruins, is contrary to our expectations, and has in it something peculiarly saddening. We next proceeded through the valley of Collares, watered by natural streams, and abounding in orange groves and orchards, and thus affording a delightful contrast to the mountain that rises above it,—to the far-famed rock of Lisbon, the most westerly point of the European continent. This is a most remarkable spot. Some distance from the edge of the precipice, which rises perpendicularly out of the ocean to a height of about three hundred feet, we looked down a hole and could see the sea and hear its roar, which by continually chafing against the rock, had worked itself a way beneath the spot where we were standing. We advanced to the edge. The view of the ocean, bright and blue, and of the romantic coast consisting of bold projections, intermingled with sharp and lofty rocks, was truly sublime. It was almost fearful to look below; but what will the reader think, when he is told that down and up this rock ran several men and boys, (who, with a number more, had followed us from a neighbouring village,) without any support but what nature had afforded them, for the mere purpose of exhibiting their skill, and obtaining a small sum in return ? The breeze which is constantly blowing from the sea, must, I imagine, serve in some degree to keep them up; but still the slightest slip on their part, or any [148] want of firmness in the rock where they happened to tread, could hardly fail of being attended with instant destruction. It really filled us with horror to gaze upon them; and yet it would have been impossible to prevent them from thus endangering themselves. The guide of our party, my yesterday's lionizer, told us that he once accompanied two of his friends to this spot, strangers, who requested him not to permit any of the people to run this fearful risk. He accordingly told them that he had been directed by his friends to promise them two crusados, on condition that they kept away from the rock, but that if they went down, they should not have a single vintem. All however was to no purpose. Down they would go; and when they came up, because the visitors were as good as their word, they set to and pelted them. This exploit, which they are so fond of exhibiting, has apparently been handed down from generation to generation. Beckford gives a description of its performance when he was here, nearly seventy years ago. When we had reached Collares on our way back, we varied our route by returning to Cintra by the high road. We passed various mansions and quintas belonging to different members of the Portuguese nobility and gentry, into one of which we entered for the purpose of drinking of a mineral spring. The possessors of these places evidently take much delight in their gardens, and pay great attention to the raising of plants and flowers; of which the more choice ones are distinguished, as in English nurseries, by labels bearing their names. The water of Cintra is noted for its excellence and frigidity. It flows down from the mountains in numberless rills, [149] which are never known to fail even in the driest season. The climate, again, is most refreshing and delicious. Along these mountain heights, with the sea so near, there is no want of exhilarating breezes even in the most sultry time. In the summer season it must be a residence perfectly luxurious. The people of Lisbon are happy in having such a spot so near, nor is it to be wondered that they so generally avail themselves of it. Rents, too, here are very low. A palace built for one of the royal dukes was pointed out to me, which was offered to be let for twenty-five pounds a year; whilst for a family in private life, a convenient house might be procured at the rate of seven or eight pounds. I ought to have said that the road along which we passed, was as good as could be desired. It was formerly far otherwise, but had been recently repaired, and if I rightly remember, was much indebted for its improvement to the aid and influence of the Pope's Nuncio. He was spoken of as a man of much public spirit, always ready and anxious to cooperate in measures conducive to the general good. We reached our hotel between five and six o'clock, and closed the day with a sociable and pleasant dinner. We retired to rest early, and assembled again in good time on the morrow, when immediately after breakfast we bent our steps to the royal palace. This is a large irregular building, of Moorish origin, as is evident from its architecture and construction, but with many additions from successive Portuguese Sovereigns. I went over it with great interest, having never before seen a building of similar character. The windows, on the exterior, were surrounded with arabesque ornaments. [150] One of the rooms, with (I think) a marble floor, contained in its centre a circular reservoir, filled with water, around which, it was said, its first inhabitants used to luxuriate in the heat of the day. There are also fountains and jets d'eau to be met with in other parts, one of which, in a court adjoining the bath-room, is sometimes employed to besprinkle visitors unawares. All these bring to mind the founders of the palace : but it is also rich in historical reminiscences of a later date. Thus one room is pointed out, in which the unfortunate Sebastian held his last audience and the chair in which he sat, before he set out on his unhappy expedition into Africa, from which he never returned. Another, with a handsome tiled floor, part of which is worn by the footsteps of D. Affonso VI, who was here kept prisoner for the last fifteen years of his life, after he had been most deservedly compelled to abdicate the throne. Another, the roof of which is adorned with the royal arms of Portugal, the escutcheons of the sons and daughters of D. Manoel, and those of the Portuguese nobility, of which, however, two have been removed—those of the families of Aveiro and Tavora, from their having been suspected of being concerned in the attempt on the life of D. Jose in 1758. To this apartment, which is now used as a billiard-room, there is a magnificent marble door-way of Moorish architecture ; and from its windows, with the aid of a glass, we had a very good view of the palace of Mafra. Interesting, however, as this palace is, yet considered as a royal residence, it is very deficient. The bed-rooms are very small; the furniture is shabby and scanty ; even the private apartments of the late Queen though comfortable, [151] Were but little more. We were however much struck with the vast dimensions of a mahogany bed which she used to occupy. Two young English midshipmen, whose ship was lying in the Tagus, opposite Lisbon, once came to Ciutra, climbed up into the palace, threw down a cross, and danced on this bed. For this outrageous conduct they were on the point of being sent back to England, and dismissed the service; but at her Majesty's especial request, this was not carried into effect. They were however very deservedly confined to the ship, and no more allowed to come on shore, whilst the vessel remained at Lisbon. I mention this circumstance as a specimen of the Queen's forbearance and kindness of heart, which secured her the love, and alas! the regret, of all her subjects. But to proceed with the palace—The architecture of the Chapel is of a Christian character, but the walls are whitewashed, the floor is of brick, and the windows are partly blocked up. There is a tribune for the royal family on the south side, near the high altar. Before we left, we went into the kitchen, but it contained nothing remarkable except two immense chimneys, shaped like Birmingham glass-houses, which form a conspicuous feature in the building when viewed on the outside.
Having here satisfied our curiosity, we mounted our mules to climb the heights, for which Cintra is so celebrated. First, however, we stopped at the quinta of the Marquis de Vianna, access to which is kindly permitted to the public. The house is a neat looking building, and the gardens are very pretty and extensive. We here saw a swan on a small piece of water, followed by a number of gold fish, with which he appeared to be on [152] the best of terms. We next ascended to the fountain of St. Euphemia, of which we drank, and then went on to the Chapel, at the back of which is an inscription, stating that she was the daughter of a heathen king of Braga— that her mother had eight sons at one birth, all of whom were put to death by him, A. D. 125, for having embraced Christianity—that through her intercession, wounds and diseases (particularly the itch) are cured by drinking of her fountain; and that this inscription is placed over the foot-print which she left, when she last appeared on earth, A. D. 1757. If we may judge from the mark, stated to be the impress of her foot, she would appear to have been a lady of no ordinary weight and dimensions. We next proceeded to the Pena Convent, which formerly belonged to the Jeromites of Belem, and stands on one of the highest peaks of the Serra. This is the ' toppling convent' celebrated by Lord Byron, wherewith 'the horrid rocks are crowned.' It has been purchased by the King Regent, who at much expense, and with great taste and judgment, is restoring it in the Moorish style, for a private palace. It was originally founded by D. Manoel, on the spot whence he was the first to descry the fleet of Vasco da Gama, for which he had so often watched, returning from its Indian expedition. ' From this elevation,' says Southey, 'the eye stretches over a bare and melancholy country to Lisbon on the one side, and on the other to the distant Convent of Mafra, the Atlantic bounding the greater part of the prospect. I never beheld a view that so effectually checked the wish of wandering. Had I been born at Cintra, methinks no inducement could have tempted me to leave its delightful [153] springs and shades, and cross the dreary wilderness that insulates them.' [Letters, &c., p. 511.] The King, in his restoration, is preserving, as much as possible, the monastic character of the building; but I fancy the grounds below must present a somewhat different aspect from what they wore under their former proprietors. They are now laid out as tasteful and elegant gardens, wherein are cultivated the choicest fruits, the rarest and most beautiful flowers. We walked from these having ordered our mules to meet us at a spot below, along a path which leads to the ruins of a Moorish castle, on the summit of the next elevation. This was the last place in Portugal from which the Moors were driven. There is now but little of it remaining. Just below is a stone quadrangular cistern, with a vaulted roof, which is supposed to have been a Moorish bath. A spring of the purest water rises within it, and keeps it constantly full. Still farther down are the ruins of a mosque, to which however we could not obtain admission, as the woman in charge was unable to produce the key. With a view of the different ruins on this peak we brought our morning's rambles to a close, and returned to our hotel; whence, early in the evening, we started back in the omnibus for Lisbon, where we arrived after a drive of about two hours. I was glad to rejoin the companion of my tour at the Braganza, and to give him an account of what I had seen since we parted.
A month in Portugal.
Joseph Oldknow
London Longman & Co. 1855
William Morgan Kinsey
The village of Bemfica is situated at the extremity of the liberties of Lisbon, and abounds with pretty quintas, belonging to the nobility and rich merchants of Lisbon ; the most ornamental of which are those of the Marquess of Fronteira, in the Italian style, and of Mr. Devisme, an English merchant, whose national taste has been displayed in the peculiar architecture of his house, and in the arrangement of his gardens.
Portugal illustrated
William Morgan Kinsey
1828
p.126
Portugal illustrated
William Morgan Kinsey
1828
p.126
Memoirs of William Beckford of Fonthill
CHAPTER VIII.
VISIT TO PORTUGAL AND SPAIN—MISTAKES REGARDING THE RESIDENCE THERE—BYRON's CHILDE HABOLD—NARRATIONS OF TRAVELLERS—FALMOUTH AND ITS VICINITY—THE PORTUGUESE CHABACTEB —THE MARIALVAS—REFLECTIONS—HONOURS TO ST. ANTHONY.
It was six months after his return from Switzerland, and the breaking up of his domestic establishment on his favourite shores of the Leman, that he made his voyage to the south; a visit respecting which there has been no end to exaggerations. A visit of eight or nine months has been magnified into one of years in duration, and into housebuilding and permanent establishments in a foreign country, that never had a real existence. He took with him a large household establishment, because it suited the Portuguese taste; and from twenty to thirty persons composed his train. [278] Less would not have comported with the figure he desired to make abroad. The second visit he paid was while the contractor erected the wall round Fonthill, which was completed in about September or October, 1796. Yet Byron apostrophises Montserrat, in Childe Harold, and wrote:—
" There thou, too, Vathek ! England's wealthiest son,
Once formed thy Paradise, as not aware
When wanton wealth her mightiest deeds hath done,
Meek peace voluptuous laws was ever wont to shun.
"Here didst thou dwell, here schemes of pleasure plan,
Beneath yon mountain's ever-beauteous brow ;
But now, as if a thing unblest by man,
Thy fairy dwelling is as lone as thou!
Here giant weeds a passage scarce allow
To halls deserted, portals gaping wide,
Fresh lessons to the thinking bosom, how
Vain are the pleasaunces on earth supplied;
Swept into wrecks anon by Time's ungentle tide."
This would have been striking had it been true. That Mr. Beckford, going to Portugal for eight or nine months, after his wife's death, when he was still grieving her loss, and that for such a term of residence he should build a house, was rather too extravagant. Indeed, on his first visit, he did not reside at Montserrat at all, [279] because the owner, Mr. De Visme, a merchant, who built the factory hospital, would not let it. On his second visit to Portugal, which lasted some months more than the first, he was successful in becoming a temporary holder. It was a barbarous Gothic imitation house, built by a carpenter from Falmouth, which had been erected on the foundations of the older house of Mr. De Visme; and of this new building Mr. Beckford succeeded in becoming the tenant. The site was lovely, and surrounded by a most delightful country. He proceeded by way of Madrid, in 1794, and spent a year and better in Portugal, during which he inhabited Montserrat.
Hear another jeremiad about Montserrat:— " The princely mansion of Beckford is now mouldering in ruins. It was an exceedingly elegant and tasteful building, quite in the English style. Not a vestige of the roof remains; and within, the bramble, the thorn, and the thistle, flourish in undisturbed luxuriance. A few short years more, and a guide will have to lead the traveller to the spot where the eccentric author of 'Vathek' held his court. It is a most romantic spot, commanding, in its prospect, every [280] beauty that Cintra and the surrounding country affords. The lofty, tree-clad mountains behind, the undulating cultivated plains before, in the distance the illimitable sea, and around groves of the finest orange and lemon trees, force an exclamation of rapture, sadly qualified by regret at the utter destruction to which this most lovely of retreats is fast hastening. On the western turret still stands the flag-staff from which the silken banner of Old England so often fluttered in the breeze; it seemed conscious of the dignity it once possessed; and, in defiance of the ruin going on around, was determined to ' spin it out, and fight to the last!'" This is from " Wilde's Travels," which show un grand talent, as the French have it, for building castles in the air.
Memoirs of William Beckford of Fonthill
Cyrus Redding
London, C.J. Skeet, 1859
William Hickey 1782
We had several very pleasant parties with Mr. De Visme, at a beautiful seat of his a few miles from Lisbon, where he entertained in a manner never surpassed and seldom equalled. The establishment was in every respect princely, the house a perfect cabinet, the grounds laid out with peculiar taste, having in them all the rarest plants of the European world and some even from Asia and America, but what delighted me was the songs of nightingales innumerable pouring out their sweet notes in broad daylight. Mr. De Visme told us he had been at great expense in enticing them by various stratagems to his woods, but had at last so completely succeeded as to have their music for full eight months in the year. This gentleman was brother to the supercargo at China, of whom I have already spoken.
Memoirs of William Hickey
Vol. II (1775-1782) 7th ed
William Hickey
London Hurst & Blackett, Ltd., 1782
p. 377
I had now the misery to see the health of my darling Charlotte in a declining state, and that, too, without any apparent cause, having no particular malady, yet she gradually fell away, entirely lost her appetite and spirits, and felt it unpleasant to move even from one room to another. I consulted Dr. Hare, the principal physician of the British factory, who had the reputation of being very skilful in his profession. After attending her twice a day for some time, trying a variety of medicines, though without advantage, he recommended me to change the air by taking her away from Lisbon. Mr. De Visme, who happened to be visiting me when Dr. Hare gave this advice, immediately offered a country house of his about eighteen miles from the city, in, he said, as healthy a spot as any in Portugal. I accepted his polite offer. Two days after he sent us thither in one of his carriages with a confidential servant, who had orders to supply all our wants. We found it a romantic and beautiful situation, upon a small rise from the sea, from which it was not quite a mile distant. Charlotte was delighted with everything about it, finding material benefit in four-and-twenty hours. She continued mending so rapidly that in ten days her health was perfectly restored. We therefore returned to Lisbon.
p.383 (March 1782)
Memoirs of William Hickey
Vol. II (1775-1782) 7th ed
William Hickey
London Hurst & Blackett, Ltd., 1782
Wimbledon Lodge
Wimbledon Common is surrounded with seats of the nobility and gentry; particularly Wimbledon Lodge, built by Gerard de Visme, Esq. This is an elegant modern structure; the architecture of which is in the most chaste and beautiful stile; ornamented with emblems, etc. The grounds are also laid out with superior taste.
London: being an accurate history and description of the British metropolis and its neighbourhood, to thirty miles extent, from an actual perambulation
David Hughson
Printed by W. Stratford ..., for J. Stratford, 1808
vol. 5, p. 394
London: being an accurate history and description of the British metropolis and its neighbourhood, to thirty miles extent, from an actual perambulation
David Hughson
Printed by W. Stratford ..., for J. Stratford, 1808
vol. 5, p. 394
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