The Mentor: Spain and Gibraltar, Vol. 1, Num. 31, Serial No. 31, September 15, 1913 — Themes and Context

Moorish Palaces and Christian Kings

The Alcázar at Seville is described as standing 'tranquilly amid its gardens that glow with roses and orange blossoms,' a phrase that captures the blend of natural beauty and historical endurance. Elmendorf notes that the palace 'replaces an old Gothic castle, which had been erected on the foundations of a Roman villa,' illustrating layers of occupation. The text recounts the legend of the 'Court of Maidens,' a tribute story that 'history does not show' ever occurred, yet the name persists. King Pedro the Cruel is linked to the Alcázar through tales of his disguised wanderings; one anecdote describes him testing candidates for a judge's position by asking what floats in a pool. The correct answer—'Half an orange'—earns the appointment. These details show how the author weaves fact and folklore, treating the building as a repository of stories rather than a mere structure.

Madrid as a Cultural Center

Elmendorf presents Madrid as a modern city that has 'been from the beginning a center of art and literature.' He cites Velasquez, Cervantes, and Lope de Vega as key figures. The claim about Lope de Vega is striking: 'more than a hundred of his plays were written so quickly that it took only twenty-four hours from the time he started to compose each one of them until it had been produced on the stage.' The author adds that Lope 'wrote 1,800 plays' and 'printed 21,300,000 lines,' a figure that strains credulity but is presented without skepticism. This section reveals the Mentor's educational style: it offers memorable, sometimes exaggerated, facts to engage readers. The text also mentions that 'scientific forestry can probably redeem the error that was committed centuries ago' regarding deforestation, a rare nod to environmental change that goes beyond simple description.

Gibraltar and the Limits of the Excerpts

The catalog includes 'Gibraltar—Description and travel,' but the provided excerpts contain no substantial discussion of Gibraltar. The title page lists 'Gibraltar' as a topic, and the table of contents mentions it, but the text excerpts break off before reaching that section. This gap between catalog subjects and available evidence is significant: readers expecting coverage of Gibraltar will not find it in these passages. The excerpts instead focus on Seville, Madrid, and the Alhambra (mentioned in the list of illustrations). The absence of Gibraltar material underscores the importance of consulting the full text. Based solely on the excerpts, the work is primarily about southern Spain's Moorish heritage and Madrid's cultural history, with Gibraltar remaining a promised but undelivered subject.

Readers should approach this Mentor issue as a period piece that reflects early 20th-century travel writing. The text is designed for quick, enjoyable learning, with anecdotes that prioritize entertainment over strict accuracy. The catalog subjects are a reliable guide to the intended scope, but the excerpts show that the actual content may be unevenly distributed. For a complete picture, the full text—including the missing Gibraltar section—would be necessary. This edition preserves the original 1913 formatting and illustrations, offering a window into how American audiences were introduced to Spanish landmarks and legends.

I remember reading this old travelogue on Spain and Gibraltar late one autumn, and it felt like walking through rooms where history hasn't quite left. The same quiet ache came over me years ago with Trip to the West and Texas comprising a journey of eight thousand miles, through New-York, Michigan, Illinois, Missouri, Louisiana and Texas, in the autumn and winter of — Inside the Classic—that sense of a place holding its secrets while you merely pass through.