T RAV

PÂIN'l'INGS OF THE OL"D MASTERS. 65ing to St. Peter; another, a Queen of Hungary administering to thesick. In one of the churches, on the wall, is a painting of St. Christopher,thirty feet high, and admirable for the accuracy of the proportions.But, in fact, Spain is one vast mine of riches in this art; andartists ought ere this to have bestowed an the time it wou Idhavetaken tomake researches and form catalogues of so much matter ofl'eal value, now in great measure 10st to the world.The snuff manufactory is one of the wonders of Beville.The wholenation uses tbis unnecessary article, fabricated for it de par le roi, andof course heavily taxecl.As aIl is free will, they have consequently norigbtto complain on the latter subject. The French, for their domesticpurposes, be their relish for' it more or less, are obliged to take, fortaxation's sake, each a portion of salt. But fortunately it has not Jetoccurred to Spanish fill~nciers to compel their people in likemannerto take snuff; for which reason, probably, aIl do. The general demand,however, influenced perhaps by the foreign, is not so great as formerly.Still the manufactory sends out annually ta the amount of a millionsterling. 1t is sold at t\\'o duras (hard dollars) a. pound. It may bejudged wlmt an immens.e profit reverts on it to ~he state. The regularstock on handis thirteen millions of pounds.the nation is an estancia (a licensed shop) for retailing it.lnevery town throughoutIt improvesby age, and that of the bestquality iskept in the manufactoryforaboutnine years' in canistersc9ntaining·six pounds each. The l'est lS piled infield near ten feet high,of sa.cks holding a hundedwerghtandupwards.Phy:üognomies aIl around are shuff. To conclude: the building is a vastquadrangle,: cootaining twenty-four cQurts, and has but one 'gate oro~ltlét,wbere thesearch upon exition is as close as in the {1Ïamondminesof Iodia.One bundreô-'and-fifty horses, and one thousarldmen,six hundred of wboni 'maRe segars, are daily employed in iLThe sllutfVOL. II.Je