On Madrid

Madrid is one of the gayest cities of the world which combines the spirit of Europe and the East, which has adopted the orderliness, the convenience, the bon ton of civilized Europe without disdaining, without repelling, the brilliant colors, the ardent passions, the primitive customs of the African tribes, of the chivalrous Arabs whose traces are still recognizable everywhere, in the look, feelings, and prejudices of the people, and even in their laws.