SECTION VII.

TRAZ OS MONTES.

THE province of Traz os Montes (Beyond the Mountains), so called on account of its separation from the rest of Portugal by the serras of the Marão and the Gerez, is about 90 miles long, by 50 in its extreme breadth-that is, is about the size of the counties of Northumberland and Durham. This is the least visited of all the provinces of Portugal, the rugged and impassable character of its bridle tracks, its miserable vendas, and the remoteness of its situation, combining to make it difficult of access to travellers. Even among the Portuguese themselves, an expedition into this province (i. e. beyond the wine country) is an event of some importance. In many respects it is also the least interesting part of Portugal. It has few antiquities; it possesses the site of scarcely any remarkable event; its towns are poor and small; and the scenery, though savage in the extreme, cannot be compared for a moment with that of Minho, or of Beira, or even of Estremadura. Further, the bleakness of its exposed plateau, its long-continued snow and backward vegetation, render its climate extremely unpleasant, though they may scarcely justify the proverb of the Minhotos-Nove mezes do inverno e tres do inferno (nine months of winter and three of hell). Nevertheless it has an interest of its own. The feudal system lingered longer here, and manners are at present more unchanged, than in any other part of Europe. The inhabitants have also a character of their own: rude, semi-barbarous, but honest and faithful, they are the Catalonians of Portugal. As Lord Caernarvon well expresses it, "they possess the savage virtues in perfection, and were the first to act and the last to submit." Agriculture is in the lowest condition, and its implements have remained unaltered for centuries. Mr. Forrester, in his Prize Essay on Portugal, thus relates an adventure of his own, in connection with the subject:-" When a cart descends by way of the steepest paths, ropes (held from behind by two carters) are usually attached to the horns of the oxen, literally to prevent their being crushed by the too rapid descent of the cart and its load. In travelling through these wine districts we had an opportunity of witnessing an incident of this nature, when, by a sudden jerk, the pipe sprung out of the cart, cleared the oxen, and bounded unassisted to the spot of level ground below. As a singular proof of the general strength of the construction of these elegantly-shaped casks, we can assert that this identical pipe was not in the slightest degree injured by all the somersaults it had made in its fall. Not so, however, its contents. As an angry nurse would punish a froward child, so the carters, to revenge themselves on the truant vessel, struck it two smart blows on its waist, on which the bung started into the air, and the men, seating themselves like huge Bacchi on either end, face to face, inserted their reeds into the aperture, and quaffed the ruby liquor to their hearts' content. And this was not all: they bade us and many other passers-by a hearty welcome, and that we would make ourselves at home. Curiosity tempted us to ascertain to whom the wine belonged, when, to our no little surprise and vexation, we discovered that our own brand was on the heading of the cask."

No contrast can be stronger than that between the inhabitants of Minho and of Traz os Montes: the one full of cheerfulness and gaiety, the Italians of the Peninsula; the other gloomy and morose, like their own mountains and barren moors. Here it is that all the wilder superstitions of Portugal are still strongest. The Bruxas, who, like the witches of Sweden, are believed to resort at stated times to a sabbath at which Satan presides in the shape of a monstrous goat, are still held in great terror. The watchword, which corresponds to the "horse and hattock" of Scottish fairy lore, is Por cima do vallado, e por baixo do telhado, over the roofs and under the eaves. Another belief is that of the escolar, a magician who is supposed to possess the power of impelling a legion of wolves on any given property or village which may have become the object of his vengeance, and of rendering those animals invulnerable by weapon or by shot. Here also the belief in bentas is in full force: they correspond very nearly to the possessors of the power of second sight in Scotland. A yet more gloomy credence is that in lobis homes. The lobis home is a young man or girl (for they never live to grow old) only to be known in the daytime by their general gloom and wretchedness, but under a spell which obliges them at night to take the form of a horse, and to gallop on wildly without pause or rest till daylight. If the clatter of horse-hoofs is heard through a village of Traz os Montes at night, the peasant will cross himself, and say, "God help the poor lobis home.” The only cure is to advance boldly to this miserable creature, and to draw blood from its breast-an action which is held to break the spell for ever. Another very poetical superstition is that of the Moura encantada (the enchanted Mooress). It is believed that many of the ruined castles in this province are haunted by a Moorish lady, who, in the morning or evening twilight, will be seen looking from the battlements, or leaning against one of the gates. She is held to be the guardian of treasure, and to gaze mournfully over the land which once belonged to her people, but nevertheless to be kindly disposed, and willing to help its present inhabitants. Many a peasant will affirm that he himself has seen a Moura, and will be ready to tell you how his grandfather or great-grandfather conversed with one. In the northern part of the province there is still some tradition of the accursed race of the Cagots, for an account of whom see the HANDBOOK FOR FRANCE.

The mountains and forests of this province abound in game, and wolves and wild boars are not uncommon. It was related to the writer by a gentleman now residing in Bragança, that two winters ago he was one evening pursued right into the town by a large wolf, which, as often as he faced round, retreated a little, and when he again pursued his way, advanced, clearly with the intention to take him at an advantage. Within 20 years the Valentoines (the banditti of Traz as Montes) were very formidable; now the country may be considered as tolerably safe.

The province embraces two administrações-that of Bragança and that of Villa Real. The number of inhabitants was, in 1845, 305,314; that of parishes, 435. The density of the population in Minho, as compared with Traz os Montes, is remarkable; the former contains 3333 to the square league, the latter only 898.

With the exception of the wines of the Paiz Vinhateiro (for which see Route 43), the productions of this province are not numerous. It is rather celebrated for its honey; its potatoes are among the best in Portugal; and the melons of Villariça have a reputation all over the Peninsula. The cheeses of Freixo d'Espada-á-cinta enjoy great reputation. The horses of Traz os Montes are the best in the kingdom, and supply the greater part of the cavalry in the Portuguese army. The wines, excluding those of the Paiz Vinhateiro, though little known out of the province, are very various. Those in the neighbourhood of the river Tua and the Sabor are considered by connoisseurs to resemble the celebrated Clos Vougeot. There is a remarkable red wine called Corni

festo; and the white wines of Arêas, Bragança, Moraes, Moncorvo, and Nosedo, are excellent.

The whole province is little more than a succession of mountains, the savageness and barrenness of which are their peculiar characteristics. There is a heavy lumpy appearance in the outlines of almost all, which greatly detracts from their effect; and they are far inferior to the Gerez in Minho, to the Estrella in Central Portugal, and to Monchique in Algarve. The Montezinho, to the N. of Bragança, has an altitude of nearly 8000 feet, and contests with Graviarra the honour of being the highest mountain in Portugal. The other principal ranges are the Marão, the loftiest peak of which, Ermelho, is 4400 feet high; Reboredo, 3500; and Villarelho, 3000. Next to the Douro, the Tua (receiving in its course the Tuela, the Baceiro, the Rabaçal, the Ragua, the Mercê, and other streams) is the principal; the Sabor, the Fervença, the Maçãas, and the Tamega, are also of some note.

As nothing but a determination to explore every inch of Portugal, and a thorough indifference to every kind of accommodation and comfort, would tempt the traveller to leave Minho or Beira for Traz os Montes, we suppose him in the following routes to enter that province by the way of Spain. Should he wish to combine with a Portuguese tour an expedition into the Asturias, or a visit to Burgos and Valladolid, he will then find this entrance into the kingdom the most convenient. The first route therefore that we give shall take up the tourist at Zamora, to which place he will have availed himself of the HANDBOOK OF SPAIN, and will conduct him thence to Miranda, the north-eastern entrance to the kingdom of Portugal.

ROUTE 40.

ZAMORA IN LEON ΤΟ MIRANDA

IN TRAZ OS MONTES.

For a description of Zamora see the HANDBOOK OF SPAIN.

Puente de Ricovalle. The road on first leaving Zamora ascends a high table-land, which in spring is covered with gum cistus, lavender, and wild peonies. The great size and beauty of the lizards, and the number of hoopooes, render the way very lively. The scenery round the bridge, especially to the left, is very grand, with peeps of the Serra de Reboredo, in Traz os Montes.

Posada de Ricovalle. A decent little inn. Here it is necessary to halt, as no kind of accommodation can afterwards be procured. The dialect alters very much, and hereabouts is as much Portuguese as Spanish. The road rises again, and passes over downs spotted here and there with plantations of oak; the peonies and daffodils are very beautiful. Gradually it becomes duller, and goes over a series of ploughed fields to

2 Castro, the last village in Spain. Beyond this you descend a steep woody glen, sprinkled over with great rocks and boulders, not unlike, though on a much grander scale than, some of the scenery in the north of Sussex. Crossing the little stream which flows through this dell, and runs on the left into the Douro, you enter the kingdom of Portugal (over a wild down, at the top of which one of the Altars for the Souls (see Introduction) will remind the traveller that he has left Spain) to

1 Paradella, the first village in Portugal: the scenery shortly after is of the grandest description; the gorge of the Douro opens to the left. Down a steep stony pass, by a dangerous road, to

2 MIRANDA (generally called Miranda do Douro, to distinguish it from Miranda in Old Castile). Here the traveller will have his first experience of a Portuguese inn, and he may comfort himself with the reflection that it is also about the worst. Miranda, the Sepontia of the Romans, formerly an episcopal city, and a frontier town of great importance, is

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