CHAPTER XXIII

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IN ZARAGOZA.

Bygone days--Sumptuous roosting--Old exchange--Traders of taste--Glory of Aragon--Cathedral of La Seo--Modernised exterior--Interior charms and mesmerises--Next to Barcelona--Magnifice effect--Parish church--Moorish ceiling--Tomb of Bernardo de Aragon--The old priest--Waxes enthusiastic--Supernatural effect--Statuette of Benedict XIII.--Mysterious chiaroscuro--One exception--Alonza the Warrior--Moorish tiles--Bishop's palace--Frugal meal--Trace of old Zaragoza--Fifteenth century house--Juanita--Streets of the city--Caesarea Augusta--Worship of the Virgin--Alonzo the Moor--Determined resistance--Days of struggle--Falling--Return to prosperity--Fair maid of Zaragoza--The Aljaferia--Ancient palace of the Moorish kings--Injured by Suchet--Salon of Santa Isabel--Spanish cafe--Four generations--Lovely voice--Lamartine's _Le Lac_--Recognised--Reading between the lines--Out in the night air--An inspiration--Night vision of El Pilar--In the far future 343

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