yi P R E F A C E .
The genuine fenfe intelligibly told,
Shews a tranflator both difcreet and bold'.
It now behoves me to apologize for the many defe&s and imperfe£tions that will prefent
themfelves to the eye of criticifm in the courfe of perufing this work« Should my fiyle appear
cold and inanimate when I climb the bleak fnawy mountains o f Aragon and Bifcay, how much
more mull I dread languor and torpidity in the fruitful plains o f Andalufia and Granada; or
amidft the flowery lawns o f captivating Valencia. But thus filuated at the bar of criticifm, I
truft myfelf to the candour of my jury, the impartial public; let me plead in defence of any defers
in language, a long abfence from my native country, which however afforded me great
fatisfa&ion, more particularly at the Court of Vienna, from the extraordinary favours I had the
honour to receive there, from two fuceeffive emperors..
It yields me a moft flattering retrofped to repafs in my memory, the various friendly offices I
received from many diftinguifhed perfons, during my tour through different parts of Spain,
and alfo the afliftance offome o f my friends in England, in the execution of'this defign. 1 hope
my learned friend, D.r. Withering, will pleafe to adcept m y fincereft acknowledgments for his
very liberal afliftance and obliging revifton of this work. I am further particularly indebted
for many communications to a Gentleman, whofe long refidence in Spain, gave him the beft
opportunities of information, equal to his kind difpofftion to promote literary refearches there,
and to whofe friendly afliftance the firft hiftorian of the age has exprefled £uch particular obligations.
The reader need not be furprited that I have, not engaged in politics, naval or military ope,
rations: they were foreign to my fubjeS, which leads.not tp.fpeak of fleets or armies, or the
efforts of contending princes, .no mote than o f national c h a r a d e s ,T h e refearches of-nature
alone, and the admiration o f providence in their difcovery; afford an ample field for the philo-
fophic traveller! If I have fcmetimes expatiated on the qualities or excelleneepf Spanifh productions
(a), I hope, neverthelefs, it will not be thought, that I mean to Mien or feci left
warmth for the innumerable advantages of my own country, wherein, i f we have not the rich
fruits of the fouthern climes, we enjoy fo many other eflential benefit;!; fuperadded to the great-
eft abundance of eveiy neceffary, every convenience o f life, as cannot fed, from our infular
fituation, to render us a moft happy people. Thus eveit fuppofing for a moment we grant IP
other nations every advantage of a luxuriant climate/of that the Spaniard lives in ten degrees
o f more indulgent ikies;
’Tis Liberty that crowns Britannia's iflef
And makes her barren rocks, and her bleak mountains fmile.
A D D ' l s o k .
Birmingham, April 15, 1780.
(a) Even the great Linnseus, freaking of-the natural advantages of the climate of Portugal has find,
Bone Deus ! Si Lufitani nofcent fua bona nature, quam infelicei effent, plerique sh>, qui non poffideut
terras Exoticas. See Linnseus in epiftola die. \% Februarii, 1765.
T A B L E o f C O N T E N T S .
P A R T I.
| Y. D IV IS IO N of the kingdom of Spain. a II. Itinerary from Bayonne to Pamplona, and from thence to Madrid. A mine offa l ^ .
gem at Valtierra defcribed. _
III. Natural biftory of thegrana kermesy or Jcarlet grain. ~ 1
IV. The method of making falt-petre in Spain.
V. O f the Merino fheep. ------\ \ r i n/r n t-.
VI. Inconveniencies arifing from the Merino fheep and the partial laws of the M>j a. 5,
VII. Mifcellaneous obfervations made at Madrid, withfome account of the royal cabinet ■ ^
of natural biftory. \ 01
VIII. Defcription of the palace and gardens of Aratjuez. 1
IX. The baths and mineral waters of Trillo. '
X . The royal feat and gardens of St. Udefonfo.— City of Segovia.
XI. departure from Madrid for the city of Burgos. “ 1 15
XII. Remarkable objects on the road from Burgos to the provinces ofAlaba and Guypufcoa3
as far as Irum3 the laft town on the frontiers of Spain towards France. 127
XIII. O f the iron ore of Mondragon in Guypufcoa and famous Toledo blades. 13+
XIV. Environs of ReinoJa, fource of the river Ebro.-—Intended canal of Caftite. 140
X V . Natural biftory of the Spanijh plant gayuba, or perennial leaved ftrawberry-tree. 145
XV I. Defcription of the lordfhip of Bifcay and its products. 153
XVII. Reflections on the genius and character of the Bifcayners.
XVIII. Defcription of the town of Bilbao and manners of the inhabitants. ----------- 172
XIX. Strictures on the injudicious method laid down in the Spanijh ordinances for the
propagation of timber. — —
X X . Defcription of the iron mines and forges at Sommoroftro in Bifcay. —- 187
XXI. Obfervations on the copper mines of La Platilla in the lordfhip of Molina. 196
XXII. The fource of the 'Tagus and its environs defcribed. . ~ ~ 205 ■
XXIII. Mine of cobalt in the Valley of Giftau3 in the Pyrenees of Aragon 211
XXIV. Obfervations on an alum mine near the town o f Alcaniz, in the kingdom of
Aragon. ------ — “ ' 22<3
X X V . Remarkable depofitory of fojftl bones3 near the village of Concud in Aragon. 224
P A R T II.
L e t p a g b
1 : d 0 N Guillermo Bowles infpeCts the quickfilver mine of Almaden3 by order of
government.— His new method of extracting the. quickfilver from the ore of
that mine. y 231
II. Itinerary of Don Guillermo Bowles continued from Almaden to the city of Met ida
in Eftremadura. “ 2 49
III. Natural biftory of the locufts that ravaged the province of Eftremadura, in the
j m r 1 7 5 4 , 1 7 5 5 , 1 7 5 6 , W 17 5 7 - 256