Andalusian stallion of great
power and strength, . . . unbroke, savage and furious": the cargo, he
says, would tame the animal. He fixed his advertisement on the church
porch at Pitiegua, announcing the sale of Testaments at Salamanca. He
had the courage without the ferocity of enthusiasm, and in the cause of
the Bible Society he saw and did things which little concerned it, which
in fact displeased it, but keep this book alive with a great stir and
shout of life, with a hundred pages where we are shown what the poet
meant by "forms more real than living men." We are shown the unrighteous
to the very life. What matters it then if the author professes the
opinion that "the friendship of the unrighteous is never of long
duration"? Nevertheless, these pious ejaculations are not without their
value in the composition of the author's amazing character.

Borrow came near to being a perfect traveller. For he was, on the one
hand, a man whose individuality was carved in clear bold lines, who had a
manner and a set of opinions as remarkable as his appearance. Thus he
was bound to come into conflict with men wherever he went: he would bring
out their manners and opinions, if they had any. But on the other hand
he had abounding curiosity. He was bold but not rude: on the contrary he
was most vigilantly polite. He took snuff, though he detested it; he
avoided politics as much as possible: "No, no!" he said, "I have lived
too long with _Romany chals and Petulengres_ to be of any politics save
Gypsy politics," in spite of what he had said in '32 and was to say again
in '57. When he and the Gypsy Antonio came to Jaraicejo they separated
by Antonio's advice. The Gypsy got through the town unchallenged by the
guard, though not unnoticed by the townspeople. But Borrow was stopped
and asked by a man of the National Guard whether he came with the Gypsy,
to which he answered, "Do I look a person likely to keep company with
Gypsies?" though, says he, he probably did. Then the National asked for
his passport:

"I remembered having read that the best way to win a Spaniard's heart is
to treat him with ceremonious civility. I therefore dismounted, and
taking off my hat, made a low bow to the constitutional soldier, saying,
'Senor Nacional, you must know that I am an English gentleman travelling
in this country for my pleasure. I bear a passport, which on inspecting
you will find to be perfectly regular. It was given me by the gr