Politics

J. Whitford, 1890 An English merchant made interest for us and procured us a lodging in the house of one Señor Martínez, a Spanish gentleman of rather reduced fortune, but ample habitation. He was literally living in a palace, by himself; a terrible “progresista” and a passionate admirer of Espartero; a great conner of the little scraps of paper that circulate here as newspapers and the very centre of the political circle of the place.

One evening we were sitting at our evening meal, which consisted of milk and rice and fruit. Martinez had just got his letters from Spain and was reading them with great agitation, when he suddenly got up, and ran out of the room, leaving us listlessly looking out upon the evening sky, and the broad leaves of the banana, and thinking how very quite and tranquil every thing was, but yet a little surprised at the agitation of our host. Suddenly we heard a great explosion and immediately saw the darting light of rockets as they rose one after another; and Martinez returning to us exclaimed: “Cohete! Cohete! A rocket! A rocket! Bravo! There is a republic in France and Louis Philippe is dead. Viva la República! May the Republic flourish!”

Thomas Debary, Notes of a residence in Canary Islands (1851)