th an air of the utmost insolence, at the same time taking
him hold by the arm, added, What! neither charity, nor courtesy? By this
time, the stranger lost all patience, and was going to correct him for
his temerity:--Stop, Sir, (said the beggar, in a lower tone of voice)
hear me;--pardon, me, Sir; do you not know me? No, certainly; replied
the stranger, But, said he, you ought, for I was secretary to an embassy
in a certain capital, where we lived together in intimacy; and then told
him his name, and the particular misfortunes which had reduced him to
that condition; he expressed himself with art, address, and eloquence,
and succeeded in getting money from the gentleman, though he could not
convince him that he was his old acquaintance.

There are in Spain an infinite number of such sort of beggars, who are
men of sense and letters, and so _au fait_ in the art, that they will
not be denied. The grand secret of the art of begging is in
perseverance; and all the _well-bred_ part of beggars do not despair,
though they have ten refusals. But the worst sort of beggars in Spain,
are the troops of male and female gipsies: these are the genuine breed,
and differ widely from all other human beings. In Spain I often met
troops of these people; and when that interview happens in roads very
distant from towns or dwellings, the interview is not very pleasing; for
they ask as if they knew they were not to be refused; and, I dare say,
often commit murders, when they can do it by surprize. Whenever I saw
any of these people at a distance, I walked with a gun in my hand, and
near to the side of my chaise, where there were pistols visible; and by
shewing them I was not afraid, or, at least, making them believe so,
they became afraid of us. They are extremely swarthy, with hair as black
as jet; and form a very picturesque scene under the shade of those rocks
and trees, where they spend their evenings; and live in a manner by no
means disagreeable, in a climate so suitable to that style, where bread,
water, and idleness is certainly preferable to better fare and hard
labour. It is owing to this universal idleness that the roads, the inns,
and every thing, but what is absolutely necessary, is neglected; yet,
bad as the roads are, they are better than the _posada_, or inns. _El
salir de la posada, es la mejor jornada_,--"_the best part of the
journey_, say the Spaniards, _is the getting_ _out of the posada_." For
as neither king nor people a