positive; when we are as certain as we are of any right to use the words can and cannot, that there cannot be a limit to either space or time? Those who examine the views of different writers on the first principles of science, see a great variety of modes of expression on this point, but a uniform practical use of nothing more than the denial of finitude, accompanied by the mere expression of incapacity to attain infinity; resolutely coupled, in many cases, with a determination not to allow any words capable of expressing the absolute notion of infinity which actually is before the thoughts. Now it should be the object of elementary writing, while guarding the avenues to error which branch in all directions from an improper use of the word infinite, to acknowledge the existence of the idea, and to make a gradual preparation for its correct and legitimate use. Both infinitely small and infinitely great ought to become terms which may be employed without fear; and the student who has been trained to the natural and healthy use of all his notions, will in the end succeed better than the one who has had some of them tied up from the beginning because they are somewhat difficult to use at first. by the hard contrasts of Caravaggio, when he adopted the style of that master. Stung by a contemptuous remark of Guido's upon a picture that he had painted, Spada determined to avenge himself by opposing a bold and natural style to the delicate and ideal style of Guido. He accordingly went to Rome and became the scholar of Caravaggio, who then, as the rival of Cesari, was at the height of his reputation. Spada accompanied Caravaggio to Malta, and returned to and established himself at Bologna, master of a new style much after the manner of Caravaggio; as bold as Caravaggio's, but less vulgar, and softer and more harmonious. His design is natural, though not choice; his chiaroscuro powerful and rich; his colouring brilliant and true, though rather red in the shadows; but this may be the effect or time, for Malvasia appears to have considered him unsurpassed as a colourist. Spada's works were much admired by Tiarini, with whom he painted in competition several times; but some of his rivals in Bologna contemptuously styled him 'La Seimia,' or the ape of Caravaggio. He however soon earned the As soon as an attempt is made to fetter one branch of reputation of being one of the best painters of his time, and thought, the effect is sure to be immediately felt in others. he received several orders for great works in Reggio, MoThe infinite divisibility of space is a truth of the same sort dena, Parma, and other neighbouring cities; and in conseas its infinite extension. Matter may not be divisible with-quence of the successful execution of these works, Spada out end, and the truths of modern chemistry would seem to was appointed his court painter by Ranuccio, duke of show that there are ultimate particles inseparable by che- Parma: his fortune now equalled his reputation, and he mical, and still less by mechanical, means. But there is a spent the remainder of his life, which was however not a solvent which every one has it in his power to apply to long one, at the court of Ranuccio. He appears to have space; it is the intuitive conviction that every portion of it, been of a very humorous and satirical disposition (many however small, except that ultimate notion which is called a specimens of his humour are recorded by Malvasia), and point, is divisible into parts, which are themselves divisible presuming upon the great esteem and friendship of the into parts; a process which may be continued without end. duke for him, he made himself much disliked by the courNow a person who trifles with the notion of infinite exten- tiers and nobles of Parma; and upon the sudden death of sion, and persuades himself that he has not the idea, will Ranuccio by apoplexy, Spada found himself deserted. probably end by denying infinite diminution: and as mo- This appears to have had a great effect upon his mind, and tion, however small it may be, requires the succession of although in the prime of life, he shortly followed the duke positions answering to an unlimited separation of the time to the grave. He died in 1622, in the 46th year of his age. of motion into parts, the next step will be to deny the infinite divisibility of time, and the possibility of motion, as commonly conceived. Change of place will be imagined to be physically impossible, if it be asserted that between the first and last positions there have been an infinite number of others: and the mind will be driven, in order to avoid the notion of infinity, into a sort of opinion that motion is a very large (but finite) number of annihilations and re-creations; annihilation in one spot, and re-creation a little farther on, without anything intermediate. This is no imaginary case; and it seems to us that when this theory of motion is once attained, nature has taken a very proper revenge for the attempt to smother her conceptions. . The errors which arise from the improper use of the notion of infinite lie mostly in the idea that all that is proved of finite space or time must necessarily be true of the infinite. We pass over the error that all infinites must be equal, as being that of the merest beginner; there are enough remaining to claim great caution. The process adopted in the article INFINITE is perhaps the best way of habituating the young mind to the rigorous attainment of results; provided only that the understanding is duly apprised that such a course of proceeding is not pursued because there is not infinity, but because there is, and because the notion, though inevitable, is not easily used. The road need not be carried over any unsafe foundation, but that is no reason why the quicksand and the marsh should be left out of the map. SPACES, in Music, the intervals between the five lines forming the staff. [STAFF.] Spada superintended the decorations of the celebrated, and at that time unrivalled, theatre of Parma. The generality of his compositions are half-figures, of the natural size, after the manner of Caravaggio and Guercino. Holy Families by Spada are not rare in the galleries of Bologna and Lombardy; the Execution of John the Baptist was also a favourite subject of his. His masterpiece is generally considered to be the great picture of San Domenico burning the proscribed books of the heretics, in the church of that saint at Bologna. The following works also gained him great reputation:-The Miracle of St. Benedict, at the monastery of S. Michele in Bosco; a picture which so pleased Sacchi when he saw it, that he took a sketch of it; Susannah at the Bath, and the Return of the Prodigal Son, at Modena; a Madonna, at Reggio; and a St. Jerome, and a Martyrdom of a Saint, at Parma; the two last pictures are painted more in the style of the Caracci than any of his earlier works. Spada wrote verses, some specimens of which have been preserved by Malvasia. He left several scholars, and has had some imitators; Pietro Desani of Bologna, and Orazio Talami and Sebastiano Vercellesi of Reggio, were the most distinguished. (Malvasia, Felsina Pittrice; Lanzi.) SPADIX, a form of the inflorescence of plants, in which the flowers are closely arranged around a thick fleshy axis and the whole surrounded by a large leaf or bract called a spathe. The flowers of the Arum maculatum, cuckoo-pint, or wake-robin, are arranged in this manner. In this plant the central fleshy axis or rachis is much extended beyond the point on which the flowers are situated, forming a soft SPA'DA, LIONELLO, a distinguished painter, both in club-shaped mass, which is variously coloured. This is an fresco and in oil, of the early part of the seventeenth cen- instance of the same kind of development as occurs in the tury, and one of the best colourists of the Bolognese school. production of the spine at the growing point of the branch, He was born in Bologna, of very poor parents of the labour-only in the one it is soft and blunt, in the other it is hard ing class, in 1576. He was employed whilst a boy as a and sharp-pointed. This form of inflorescence is seen in colour-grinder by the Caracci; but through an observing all the plants belonging to the natural orders Araceæ and mind and an ambitious disposition, he was led himself to Acoraceae. This term is also applied to the collection of attempt design, and incited to an endeavour to emulate the female flowers of the Zea Mays, common maize, and to the great works by which he was surrounded. He at first copied inflorescence of Palms. in the school of the Caracci, but afterwards became the scholar of Baglione, and contracted a friendship with his fellow-scholar Dentone. From Dentone Spada learnt perspective, and most probably acquired that correct taste and true feeling for chiaroscuro for which his works are conspicuous, and which prevented him from being carried away SPAGNOLETTO. [RIBERA.] SPAHIS (or rather Sipahis, from the Persian sipan, meaning a cavalry soldier), are a body of Turkish cavalry organized by Amurath I. (Múrad), who was also the founder of the Janissaries. Their number varied according to circumstances, but amounted sometimes to 20,000. They enjoyed many privileges in common with the Janissaries. | if we except the estuary of the river Nervion and the bay Their pay was twelve aspers a day, unless employed on spe- of Santander, neither of which is a spacious harbour. All cial service, when they received a higher pay. They were the other indentations, which are rather numerous, are only composed of two classes; the spahaoglari, who had red, and narrow inlets of no great length, which are used by small the silkhadar, who had yellow banners. Those who held coasters. These inlets go by the name of rias, as they fiefs from the sultan were called Timari-sipháhis. Their generally constitute the mouths of small rivers. The whole usual arms were a sabre, a lance, a jereed or dart about line is rocky, and the rocks nearly always approach the sea, two feet long, which they hurled with great dexterity and where they form a mural line varying in height between strength, and a second sabre, or rather broadsword, at- 30 and 300 feet. But with the exception of one or two tached to the saddle. Some of them had also a carabine places, the coast is free from rocks and islands, and the and one or two pistols. At one time they were the most water is deep up to the shore. The coast farther west, formidable body of cavalry in the Turkish army; but being between Punta de los Cairos and Cape Ortegal, preserves an undisciplined and unruly militia, they were, together the same character, except that the inlets which occur along. with the Janissaries, dissolved by the last sultan Mahmud. this short distance are wider, and the headlands project SPAIN (España), a country in Europe, occupying the farther. From Cape Ortegal to Cape Finisterre, and thence greater part of that peninsula which is divided from France to the mouth of the Minho, the coast is less elevated, though by the mountain-range of the Pyrenees, from which cir- it is rocky, and the rocks come up to the beach. It is also cumstance it is sometimes called the Pyrenean Peninsula, very broken, and several headlands advance some miles into or briefly the Peninsula. It is situated between 36° and the sea, and some of the inlets enter several miles into the 43° 46' N. lat., and 2° 15′ E. long. and 9° 10' W. long. land, and form spacious harbours. The most remarkable The most northern point is Cape Ortegal (43° 46' N. lat.), is the Bay of Betanzos, which divides into three inlets, and the most southern Tarifa (36° 2′). From its most which form the harbours of Ferrol, Betanzos, and La Coruña. north-western point, Cape Finisterre, to the most eastern, South of Cape Finisterre are four rather large bays, called Cape Creus, is a distance of nearly 600 miles; from Tarifa Ria de Muros y. Noya, Ria de Arosa, Ria de Pontevedra, to Fuentarabia, near the boundary of France, on the Bay of and Ria de Vigo, all of which are deep and have good anBiscay, nearly 540 miles; and from Cape Ortegal to Cape chorage. Along this line of coast there occur several small de Gata, the most south-eastern promontory, about 556 rocky islands. miles. The area of Spain is stated by some authors to be nearly 190,000 square miles; but most probably it does not much exceed 185,000 square miles, being larger than that of the British Islands by about one-half their extent, and not quite one-tenth smaller than that of France. The coast-line of the Atlantic, between the mouth of the Guadiana and the Punta de Europa, is of a different character. From the hills on which the town of Ayamonte is built, at the mouth of the Guadiana, a low shore begins and extends eastward to the harbour of Huelva, which is formed Spain is washed on the east by the Mediterranean, and by the estuary of the rivers Odiel and Tinto. The coaston the south by the narrow sea which connects the Mediter-line is well defined, but skirted by low and sandy islands. ranean with the Atlantic and terminates on the west in Between the harbour of Huelva and the mouth of the river the Strait of Gibraltar, and partly by the Atlantic. On the Guadalquivir the coast is extremely low, swampy, and west it is bounded by Portugal, and on the north-west by sandy. Even small vessels cannot approach the beach. the Atlantic. On the north is the Bay of Biscay and South of the mouth of the Guadalquivir the shores are France. Spain is divided from France by the mountain- again well defined, though low and occasionally swampy range of the Pyrenees, whose highest portion, constituting Approaching Cape Trafalgar, at Torre de Roche, the coast the watershed between the rivers which run south and begins to rise, and a moderately high shore runs along the north, forms the boundary between these two countries, northern side of the Strait of Gibraltar, and into the Bay of with the exception of the Vale of Arran, which contains the Algeciras to the town of that name. The remainder of the sources of the Garonne, and belongs to Spain, though bay has a low and sandy shore, with the exception of the situated on the northern declivity of the mountain-chain. rock on which Gibraltar stands. Towards the Bay of Biscay, where the Pyrenees sink down into hills, a chain of heights which separates the basins of the rivers Niève and Bidasoa is a boundary, but for a few miles from the sea the boundary is formed by the course of the last-mentioned river. Spain bounds Portugal on the north and on the east. Along the northern line the boundary between Spain and Portugal is not marked by any natural object, except that the river Minho separates both countries for about 30 miles from its mouth. The western boundary of Spain towards Portugal is generally more distinctly marked. North of 41° N. lat it is formed by the south-south-western course of the river Duero. Between the Duero and the Tajo, the two countries are separated by the rivers Turones and Erjas, of which the former joins the Duero, and the second the Tajo; and by the mountains in which these rivers rise, which belong to the Sierra de Gata. The Tajo runs along the boundary for 30 miles as far west as the mouth of the river Sever. The lower course | of the Sever, and farther south a range of heights, separate Spain from Portugal between the Tajo and Guadiana. The Guadiana runs along the boundary-line for nearly 30 miles to 38° 30′ N. lat., but farther south, as far as 37° 55', the dividing-line traverses some ridges and valleys. Near 37° 55' N. lat. the river Chanza, an affluent of the Guadiana, begins to separate the two countries, and continues to be the boundary to its confluence with the Guadiana, which then separates Andalusia from Algarve. Coast.-The coast-line of Spain, without taking into account the numerous small inlets, is 1370 miles, of which 602 are washed by the Atlantic and 768 by the Mediterranean. The coast between the boundary of France and the mouth of the river Minho is 478 miles, and that between the Guadiana and the Punta de Europa, the most southern point of the tongue of land on which Gibraltar stands, is 124 miles. The northern coast of Spain, from the boundary of France to the Punta de los Cairos (7° 15' W. long.), runs hearly in a continuous line, without any considerable break, The coast of the Mediterranean from Punta de Europa to Cabo de Palos is in general elevated and rocky. The western portion, between the Strait and the mouth of the river Guadalfeo near Motril, does not rise to a great height, and occasionally sinks down nearly to the level of the sea. East of Motril the coast is generally very high, sometimes several hundred feet, and there is no flat along the sea. The road, which runs not far from the shore, passes from one mountain to another, and descends only in a few places, where the mouths of the small rivers occur. This elevated coast extends to Cabo de Gata, and north of it to the town of Moxacar. From Moxacar to Cabo de Palos the rocks along the coast are of moderate elevation, and in a few places interrupted by flats. This extensive line of rocky coast has no indentations, and no harbour which vessels of moderate size can enter, with the exception of the excellent harbour of Cartagena and the harbour of Malaga; the latter is partly artificial. The open bay of Almeria, between Punta de Elena and Cabo de Gata, has good anchorage, but it is too much exposed to southern, south-eastern, and south-western winds, and to the violent gales which sometimes blow from the mountains that surround the bay. At Cabo de Palos a low and sandy coast begins, which extends as far north as Cabo de Santa Pola, a short distance south of Alicante. It has no harbours even for small vessels or large boats, though it is intersected by several creeks, which in some places form small lagoons. Near Cabo de Palos is the large lagoon of Encañizada de Murcia, which is very shallow. From Cabo de Santa Pola to Villajoyosa the coast-line is generally low, but rocky, and in some places the ridges, which traverse the adjacent country, terminate on the sea with steep hills of small extent and moderate elevation. From Villajoyosa to Denia the coast is almost without exception rocky and high, but does not rise to a great elevation. Between Cabo de Palos and Denia there is no harbour, except that of Alicante. From Denia to the mouth of the Ebro the coast is low and sandy. North of Castellon de la Plana a few low ridges terminate on the sea, forming a moderately high shore. This coast line has no harbours even for vessels of moderate size; and Grao, the port of Valencia, is only a bad roadstead. Along this low coast there are many small lagoons, called albuferas. The largest is Albufera de Valencia, noted for the great quantity of salt which is made on its banks. South of the mouth of the Ebro is the Puerto de los Alfaques, which can only be entered by vessels not drawing more than 15 feet. a narrow glen, in which the river Navia descends to the Bay of Biscay. For about 40 miles the range runs northward, until it approaches the Bay of Biscay within about 12 miles, when it again turns westward, and after having run about 20 miles in that direction, turns southward, dividing the basin of the upper Minho from the lower country which lies to the west of it. The elevation of this chain is not known, but from the cold climate of the upper valley of the Minho, it may be inferred to be 6000 feet above the From the mouth of the Ebro to the boundary of France sea-level. Near the town of Orense the mountain-chain the coast is alternately high and low, and both the low and terminates, or rather, there is a depression through which the high shores generally continue for many miles. The the Minho flows; for on the east of the river rises another coast however does not rise to a great elevation, except at ridge, the Sierra de S. Mamed, which runs east-south-east, Cape Creus, and thence to the boundary-line. In this part and soon attains a considerable elevation, 7710 feet above there occur several harbours for small vessels; and two are the sea-level. This chain continues east-south-east until deep enough for large ships, Barcelona and Rosas. The it approaches the Duero, where it begins to form the bounGulf of Rosas is an excellent harbour, but is very little dary between Spain and Portugal. At this point it is used, as the neighbouring country is only partially culti-connected with the Serra de Roboreda, which lies within vated. The small harbour of Salou, which is the port of Portugal, and extends, parallel to the course of the Duero, Reus, is only fit for small vessels. to the point where the river turns to the west. Surface and Natural Divisions.-Spain presents greater and more marked differences in the form of its surface than any other country of Europe of equal extent. The interior is an elevated table-land, whose surface is from 2000 to 3000 feet above the sea-level. Though situated at the western extremity of Europe, and near the sea, which surrounds that part of the world, its elevation is higher than that of any other table-land of Europe. The elevated plains which surround the northern base of the Alps are only between 1000 and 1300 feet above the sea-level, and are about 700 feet lower than the lowest part of the table-land of Castile, as that of Spain is called. The table-land comprehends nearly the whole country which lies between 38° and 43° N. lat., and extends from near 1° to near 8° W. long. It does not advance to the sea, but on the north and west it is divided from the Bay of Biscay and the Atlantic by a comparatively narrow tract of mountainous country. Nor does it extend to the base of the Pyrenees, being separated from them by the basin of the river Ebro. Between the tableland and the Mediterranean there is also a lower country, which in some parts is hilly and even mountainous, and in others extends in wide plains. South of the table-land is the basin of the river Guadalquivir, by which the table-land is separated from another more elevated and more mountainous region, that of the Sierra Nevada, which extends over the southern part of Spain along the Mediterranean and the Strait of Gibraltar. Thus Spain contains six great natural divisions-the Table-land, the Northern and Western Maritime region, the Basin of the Ebro, the Eastern Declivity, the Basin of the Guadalquivir, and the Mountain Region of the Sierra Nevada. I. The Table-land comprehends the eastern districts of Galicia, the whole of the kingdom of Leon, that of Old Castile, with the exception of about one-fourth of its area which lies in the basin of the Ebro and along the Bay of Biscay, the whole of New Castile and Estremadura, the south-western districts of Aragon, and the northern districts of Murcia. According to a rough estimate it extends over a surface of about 92,000 square miles, or over nearly onehalf of the area of Spain. The table-land is nearly surrounded by mountains. Along its northern edge rise with a steep ascent the mountains of Asturias, which in elevation nearly rival the Pyrenees, but occupy a smaller extent of country. That part of the Montes de Asturias which is at the source of the Ebro is called Sierra de Sejos, and attains an elevation of 5700 feet above the sea. Farther west the elevation increases. The Sierra d'Alba, situated where the boundaries of Old Castile, Leon, and Asturias meet, rises to 6960 feet, and the Sierra de Pajares, farther west, to 8628 feet. At the mountain-knot which occurs near the sources of the river Sil (near 6° 20′ W. long.) the chain attains its highest elevation, one of the summits, the Sierra de Peñaranda, rising to 11,000 feet, and far above the snow-line. This mountain is only about 600 feet lower than the Pico de Mulhacen, the highest summit of the Sierra Nevada, and only 300 feet lower than the Pico de Neton, the highest summit of the Pyrenees. West of this large mountain-mass the chain lowers, but apparently not much, for the Sierra de Peñamarela, which lies near 7° W. long., is 9450 feet above the sea-level. So far the direction of the chain is from east to west, or nearly so, but in this part of the range the highest edge of the mountains runs south-west, but soon turns north, enclosing The high grounds which divide the table-land from the basin of the Ebro cannot be considered as a mountain-ridge in all their extent. Towards the western extremity of the river-basin, between the Sierra de Sejos and the great road which leads from France to Madrid, no mountain-range divides it from the table-land. East of the road and of the town of Burgos rises the Sierra de Oca, which attains the elevation of 4980 feet, or about 2000 feet above the adjacent parts of the table land. It extends from west-northwest to east-south-east, and is followed by the Sierra de Cameros, whose highest summit, the Pico de Urbion, is 7200 feet above the sea-level. Contiguous to it, and in the same direction, is the Sierra de Moncayo, which rises to 9600 feet at its eastern termination near 2° W. long. From this point the edge of the table-land is less marked. It runs to the river Xalon, which it crosses near Calatayud, and afterwards in a south-eastern direction along the high grounds which form the right bank of the river Xiloca, which gradually rise into mountains near the town of Montalban, whence the mountain chain continues to the boundary between Aragon and Valencia, where the Sierra de Peñagolosa attains 6000 feet. From this summit the edge of the table-land runs southward along the elevated ridge which extends east of the river Turia or Guadalaviar. It crosses this river north of Requena, and afterwards the river Xucar below its confluence with the Cabriel, and then continues southward, leaving the town of Almansa to the west, to the vicinity of Villena. South of the Xucar the edge of the table-land is not marked by a continuous ridge, though some isolated mountains occur along it. Near Villena is the Sierra del Carache, which runs first south-west, and afterwards north-west, to the neighbourhood of Albacete (39° N. lat. and 1° 55′ W. long.). The Sierra del Carache seems to rise only a little above the table-land, but it presents a considerable ascent from the deep valley of the Segura, and that of the Mundo, a tributary of the Segura. Along the southern border of the table-land extends that range, or rather mountain region, which is called Sierra Morena. It begins on the east, a short distance west of Albacete, with two ridges which run south-west, including the narrow valley of the river Guadarmena, and are called Sierra de Alcaraz. From the western of these ridges the mountain region extends westward to the boundary of Portugal. It consists of a great number of short ridges, running south-west towards the east, and south-east towards the west. These ridges, which enclose very narrow valleys, are connected by other ridges, lying frequently along their northern extremity or close to the extremity of the table-land, but sometimes also in the middle of the mountain region. Towards the east the Sierra Morena does not occupy more than 30 or 40 miles in width; but in proceeding westward it grows wider, and near the boundary of Portugal it is about 80 miles across. Some of the ridges advance à considerable distance into the basin of the Guadalquivir. At its western extremity one of its branches extends southward along the river Chanza and the lower course of the Guadiana, terminating near the sea in the hill on which the town of Ayamonte is built. North-east of that place is a summit called Monte Gordo, which is 2235 feet above the sea. This is the only summit of the Sierra Morena whose elevation has been determined by actual measurement. The difficulty which is encountered in traversing these mountains, and which is chiefly if not entirely to be attributed to their Dreadth and the steepness of the ridges, led to the opinion that the general level must be at least 6000 feet above the sea-level; but this supposition is not consistent with what we know of the climate, as few parts are covered with snow more than three months. Other mountain-ranges occur on the table-land itself. One of them constitutes a continuous range, traversing the plain in all its extent from east to west. It begins on the east near the high summit of the Sierra de Moncayo, and runs, under the name of Sierra de Deza, south-west until it approaches 44° N. lat., when it turns to the west north of the town of Siguenza. In this direction it continues to the place where it is crossed by the road leading from France to Madrid. The mountain-pass through which this road runs is 4950 feet above the sea, and this may be considered as the mean elevation of the Somasierra, as the range here is called. From this pass the range runs south-west, and is called the Sierra de Guadarama. The mean elevation of this part of the range does not seem greater than that of the Somasierra, as the mountain-pass from Madrid to Segovia, in its highest point, is only 4657 feet above the sea; but not far from it stands the Sierra de Peñalara, whose summit attains 7756 feet. The continuation of the Sierra de Guadarama is called Sierra de Avila, the branches of which enclose the small plain on which the town of Avila is built, 3485 feet above the sea. West of Avila the range makes a bend to the south, encircling the upper course of the river Tormes, an affluent of the Duero. At the southern extremity of this bend the range attains the greatest elevation, the Sierra de Gredos rising to 10,548 feet, and considerably above the snow-line. After the range has resumed its south-western direction it is called Sierra de Gata, and enters Portugal, where it again attains a considerable elevaton in the Sierra d'Estrella, and continues to the shores of the Atlantic Ocean, where it terminates with the Cabo da Roca, west of Lisbon. The table land is divided by the mountain-range just mentioned into two parts, which do not differ much in extent. That portion which lies north of it is called the table-land of Old Castile and Leon, and contains about 44,000 square miles. The other part south of the range is called the table-land of New Castile and Estremadura, and contains about 48,000 square miles. Table-land of Old Castile and Leon.-The north-western corner of this region is a mountainous country, which extends over the eastern districts of Galicia. The mountain-range, which separates it from the plain to the east of it, is con nected on the north with the mountain-knot of the Sierra de Peñaranda, and on the south joins the Sierra de Segundera, which is part of the Sierra de S. Mamed. This range is called, at least in its greatest extent, Sierra de los Cilleros. Its mean elevation probably does not much fall short of 6000 feet. The country between the Sierra de los Cilleros and the southern prolongation of the Montes de Asturias comprehends the valleys of the rivers Minho and Sil before their confluence. It is a very elevated country. The winters are cold, and the frost usually lasts for three months, sometimes without interruption. These facts lead to the conclusion that the higher districts of the valleys are not less than 4000 feet, and the lower at least 3000 feet above the sea-level. The valleys are, with a few exceptions, rather narrow; but the hills, which are contiguous to the level grounds, have generally a gentle slope, so that they admit of cultivation to a considerable distance up the declivities. They do not rise so high as the mountains which enclose this region. Those parts of the hills which cannot be cultivated are used as pasture-grounds for cattle, sheep, and goats. But many large tracts are covered with forests, and the dockyards of Ferrol are chiefly provided with timber from these mountains. The valleys are not adapted to the cultivation of maize, but wheat, barley, and flax succeed well. Chesnut and walnut trees are very numerous. This region contains about 7600 square miles, and is nearly equal to Wales in extent. The remainder of the table-land of Old Castile and Leon is a plain which extends over the greater part of these two kingdoms, and contains about 36,400 square miles. The eastern portion of the plain, between the Sierra de Moncayo on the north and the Sierras of Deza and Somasierra or the south, is probably not less than 3000 feet above the sea- | level. The surface is rather hilly, and the soil partly stony and partly sandy; its fertility rather indifferent, and large tracts are quite unfit for cultivation. Farther west, where the plain is crossed by the road leading from Burgos to | Madrid, the level sinks down to about 2500 feet above the sea; Burgos, which is on a hill, being 2873 feet. On the north of the river Duero the plain is nearly a level, here and there interspersed with small groups of low detached hills. The country is not fertile. The lower tracts are entirely destitute of trees, and generally even of bushes. The hills are partly overgrown with light thin woods and numerous low bushes. The woods consist almost exclusively of evergreen oaks and a kind of cistus. On the hills there are small miserable villages at a great distance from one another; they are surrounded by a few vineyards and cornfields. Farther west, along the road which connects Segovia with Valladolid and Valladolid with Palencia, the soil improves and cultivation increases. The level of the plain does not seem to be lower, but the rivers, having descended deeper, have excavated beds from 2 to 4 miles wide, which are from 100 to 200 feet below the general level, which is as flat as a table, and covered with heath, nor is the view intercepted by any tree. These elevated flats are without cultivation, and only used as pasture-ground for goats and sheep. But the valleys which extend along the beds of the rivers possess a considerable degree of fertility, and produce all kinds of grain; and the slopes of the higher grounds are well stocked with trees and vines. The soil consists of a mixture of clay and sand. Towards the boundary-line of Portugal the higher grounds which divide the valleys along the rivers are not quite level, but extend in gently sloping plains. These plains are likewise destitute of trees; but the soil, being more retentive of moisture, is more fertile; and even the higher grounds are here sown with wheat, rye, barley, and Indian corn. This part of the plain is rather thickly inhabited, and villages occur at short distances from one another. The Table-land of New Castile and Estremadura comprehends these two kingdoms, with the south-western districts of Aragon and the northern part of Murcia. The surface is much more diversified by hills and mountains than that of the northern plain. The mountain-chains are of considerable extent, but they do not form continuous ranges, being interrupted by several depressions, which sink nearly to the level of the country. In the eastern districts of the table-land is the Sierra Molina, which begins north-west of the town of that name, and south of the confluence of the Xiloca with the Xalon, in 41° N. lat. and 1° 30' W. long. It does not appear to be connected with the Sierra de Deza by a mountain-ridge, but only by high ground. The Sierra de Molina runs southward, and does not rise much more than 1000 feet above the general level of the country in the northern parts. The road from Molina to Teruel rises on the Sierra de Menara to 4333 feet above the sea-level. Farther south it rises still somewhat higher. Where the rivers Tajo and Turia originate, it is from 4500 to 4600 feet high, and at this place it sends off a branch, the Sierra de Albaracin, which runs south-east between the Turia on the east and the Xucar on the west, and extends to the edge of the table-land, near the town of Requena. This ridge rises to a great height, but its elevation has not been determined. From the sources of the Tajo the Sierra de Molina runs south-west, but near 40° S. lat., west of the town of Cuença, it turns again to the south, and soon subsides into hills, which are slightly elevated above the level of the country. The Sierra de Molina is of very inconsiderable width, but it constitutes the watershed between the rivers which fall into the Mediterranean and those that run to the Atlantic. West of Cuença a ridge of low mountains branches off from the Sierra de Molina, and runs westward, dividing the upper branches of the Tajo from those of the Guadiana. It terminates probably near Tarrancon, east of Aranjuez. In our maps this range is continued south-west, and afterwards west to the Sierra de Toledo, but this appears to be incorrect. The two great roads from Madrid to Manzanares and from Toledo to Ciudad Real traverse this tract, but travellers who have gone over it do not mention having passed or even seen a range of mountains, though they speak of having crossed some broken ground rising into hills. No mountain-range therefore exists between these two roads or in their vicinity; and the watershed between the Tajo and Guadiana is only formed by high ground broken into steep hills. The Sierra de Toledo seems to rise west o 4° W. long., and to extend to 5° W. long., running east and west; but we are very imperfectly acquainted with this ridge. It does not appear to occupy a great width, nor w rise more than 1000 feet above the plain. It is not traversed The eastern portion of the table-land of New Castile and Estremadura, comprehending the province of Cuença, the northern districts of Murcia, and the adjacent countries, is the highest part of the table-land, and about 3000 feet above the level of the sea. The surface is very uneven, with the exception of the higher ground between the river-basins, which in some places extends in plains, and in others is diversified by numerous hills or low ridges. A very small portion of this region, which lies in the valleys along the rivers, and in some depressions of the plain, is under cultivation; the remainder has rather a sterile and very dry soil, and is either quite useless or only used as sheep-walks, sheep constituting the principal wealth of the inhabitants. In some places wheat is cultivated, and in others there are tracts planted with vines and olive-trees. Saffron is rather extensively grown. Fruit-trees are abundant in the lower tracts. The higher grounds are quite destitute of wood, and covered with heath and odoriferous plants, on which numerous bees feed. Wax and honey are sent to other parts of Spain, and also wool of an inferior quality. without the least injury in the open air. The productive powers of this region differ greatly in different parts. In the districts north of the Tajo there are wide valleys, containing much level ground, between the ridges of the Sierra de Gata; they have a rich soil, are well cultivated, and yield good crops. The hilly tract between the Tajo and Guadiana is nearly a desert. The summits of the ridges are bare; their slopes are clothed with forests of the evergreen oak, but the lower parts are destitute even of bushes. They are never cultivated, but preserved as the pasture-grounds of the merino sheep in winter. The cultivated spots are only found in the narrower valleys, and they are few and of small extent, even in the level country on the banks of the Guadiana, between Merida and Badajoz. To the south of the Guadiana the country improves. At no great distance from the river are plantations of olive-trees, which increase in number as we proceed up the valleys of the Sierra Morena. Some level tracts of considerable extent and great fertility are enclosed by the ridges, as at Llerena, Zafra, and Jerez. Rain is comparatively scarce on the table-land of Spain. It is stated that the annual quantity on an average does not amount to more than 10 inches, which is partly to be ascribed to the elevation of the more level part of the tableland, and partly to the circumstance that it is in most parts bounded by mountains which rise considerably above the general level of the plain, and prevent the moisture from reaching the flat country. The rain generally falls in the winter, and only a few showers occur in other seasons. The least quantity of rain falls in the mountain region of the Sierra de Guadalupe, and on the high plains of Cuença and Murcia, where sometimes eight or nine months pass without a drop falling. To this scarcity of rain the want of cultivation is chiefly to be attributed which is observed in the two last-mentioned regions. In summer excessive heat, and in winter a great degree of cold, are experienced. Though Madrid is 10° south of London, the mean annual temperature of the winter at Madrid is 437°, or only 4° higher than at London. But during every winter a degree of cold is experienced for some days which is very rare in London. In 1830 the thermometer sunk to 9:5° Fahr., and a great quantity of snow fell. Every year for several nights the thermometer falls several degrees below 32 and the rivers are covered with ice, though it generally disappears in the day. The mean temperature of the three summer months is 76°2°, or 15° higher than in London. But during the south-eastern wind, which is called the solano, the thermometer frequently rises to 90° and even 100°. With the exception of the injurious effects of such changes in the temperature, the climate of the table-land is very healthy. The central region of the table-land is between 3° and 5° W. long. It consists of two plains, the Plain of Madrid and Toledo, which lies north of the mountains of Toledo, and the high broken ground which forms the watershed between the rivers Tajo and Guadiana; and the Plain of La Mancha, which lies to the south. These two plains are about 2000 feet above the sea-level. According to Bauza, Madrid is 2222 feet and Toledo 1868 feet above it. In the plain of La Mancha the town of Val de Peñas is 2119, and that of Villaria 1947 feet above the sea-level. The productive powers and the surface of these two plains are nearly the same. The country consists of extensive levels, intersected by short ridges of low hills and rocks. It is destitute of II. The Maritime region of the Atlantic and Bay of Bistrees, except some groves of evergreen oak, which are cay surrounds the table-land on the north-west and north, found near the hills, and plantations of olive-trees and vines and contains the western districts of Galicia, the province near the villages. The villages are large and well built, of Asturias, and the northern portion of Old Castile. That but at great distances from one another. The level tracts portion which lies south of Cape Ortegal is hardly more than between them produce wheat, but as part of these tracts 40 miles in width, and is traversed by numerous ridges, are at a great distance from the villages, in which alone the which have usually gentle slopes, so as to admit of cultivafarms are situated, a large portion of them is badly culti- tion to a considerable distance from their base. Their sumvated, and some tracts are partly overgrown with broom mits are crowned with forests. The lower country, which and the flax-leaved daphne (Daphne Gnidium). The crops about Santiago de Compostella stretches out in extensive however are tolerably good. The best cultivated and richest plains, is tolerably fertile and well cultivated. The farmers part of the plain is that which lies along the southern base live in single farms dispersed over the country. The climate of the Sierra de Guadarama, where the soil is a rich clay, is wet. Besides the cultivation of the common kinds of and the country presents a succession of vineyards, olive-grain, great attention is paid to vines and fruit-trees, among plantations, and excellent pastures, with numerous cornfields. The farmers of this tract are more wealthy than those of other districts in Spain. The western portion of the table-land of New Castile and Estremadura comprehends the country from 5 W. long. to the boundary of Portugal, or the province of Estremadura. This country has a very mountainous surface. The ridges of the Sierra de Guadalupe cover nearly all the country between the Tajo and the Guadiana. North of the Tajo several ffsets of the Sierra de Gata traverse the country in a south-western direction. South of the Guadiana several branches of the Sierra Morena advance within a short distance of the river. Plains of some extent occur only along the banks of the principal rivers. They are small on the banks of the Tajo, but rather extensive on those of the Guadiana. The general level of the country is lower than in the plains farther east, as we may infer from the circumstance that snow and frost are not common in the Sierra de Guadalupe, in which the merino sheep pass the winter which the chesnut plantations occupy large tracts, and the chesnuts furnish the ordinary food of the poorer classes. The heat of the summer is moderate, and the winters far from being severe, except when the gallegos, or north winds, blow, but they are not of long duration. The country between Cape Ortegal and Cape Ajo is of a different character. The Montañas de Asturias, which descend southward to the plain of Old Castile and Leon with a very rapid slope, decline towards the north in long ridges, which grow lower as they approach the Bay of Biscay. In the vicinity of the principal range these lateral ridges are too steep and too high to be cultivated, and are only used as pasture-ground for cattle and goats: a considerable part of them is covered with forests. Towards the sea the ridges are lower and their declivities less steep, and here cultivation has ascended to some distance from their base. The valleys which lie between these ridges are nar row and elevated near the great chain, but they grow wider towards the sea. They have a tolerably fertile soil, and are |