It cannot now be determined whether the Moors derived this extraordinary union of softness and cruelty, of delicacy and barbarity--this generous rivalry in courage and in constancy from the Spaniards, or whether the Spaniards acquired these characteristics from the Moors. But when it is remembered that they do not belong to the Asiatic Arabs, from whom these gallant knights originally sprang; that they are { 169} found, even in a less degree, if possible, among these followers of Mohammed in that portion of Africa where their conquests have naturalized them; and, that after their departure from Spain, the Grenadians lost every trace of the peculiarly interesting and chivalrous qualities by which they had previously been so remarkably distinguished, there is some ground for the opinion that it was to the Spaniards that their Moslem neighbours were indebted for the existence of these national attributes. In truth, before the invasion of Spain by the Arabs, the courts of the Gothic kings had already offered knightly examples of a similar spirit. And after that event we find the cavaliers of Leon, Navarre, and Castile equally renowned for their achievements in war and their romantic devotion to the fair sex. The mere name of _the Cid_ awakens in the mind recollections alike of tenderness and bravery. It should be remembered, too, that, long after the expulsion of the Moors from the Peninsula, the Spaniards maintained a reputation for gallantry far superior to that of the French, some portion of the spirit of which, though extinct among every other European nation, still lingers in Spain.
But, be this point decided as it may, it is not to be disputed that the daughters of Grenada merited the devotion which they inspired: they were perhaps the most fascinating women in the world. We find in the narrative of a Moorish historian, who wrote at Grenada during the reign of Mohammed the Old, the following description of his countrywomen:
"Their beauty is remarkable; but the loveliness which strikes the beholder at first sight afterward receives its principal charm from the grace and gentleness of their manners. In stature they are above the middle height, and of delicate and slender proportions. Their long black hair descends to the earth. Their teeth embellish with the whiteness of alabaster, vermillion lips, which perpetually smile with a bewitching air. The constant use which they make of the most exquisite perfumes, gives a freshness and brilliancy to their complexions possessed by no other Mohammedan women. Their walking, their dancing, their every movement, is distinguished by a graceful softness, an ease, a lightness, which surpasses all their other charms. Their conversation is lively and sensible, and their fine intellects are { 171} constantly displayed in brilliant wit or judicious sentiments."
