A Despot, though not over-scrupulous himself, generally makes his subordinates honest;[27] but I doubt the possibility of any _set_ of men, who have been brought up on plunder, divesting themselves of the habit of _self-appropriation_ when possessed of the distribution of the loaves and fishes.
I must no longer, however, delay taking my departure from Gibraltar, or the gates of the fortress will be closed upon me for the night, and frustrate my intention of sleeping at San Roque.
SAN ROQUE--SINGULAR TITLE OF "THE CITY AUTHORITIES"--SITUATION--CLIMATE--THE LATE SIR GEORGE DON, LIEUTENANT GOVERNOR OF GIBRALTAR--ANECDOTE ILLUSTRATIVE OF THE CHARACTER OF THE SPANISH GOVERNMENT--SOCIETY OF SPAIN--THE TERTULIA--THE VARIOUS CIRCLES OF SPANISH SOCIETY TESTED BY SMOKING--ERRONEOUS NOTIONS OF ENGLISH LIBERTY AND RELIGION--STARTLING LENTAL CEREMONIES.
San Roque is the nearest town to the British fortress, and distant from it about six English miles. A mere village at the period of the last siege of Gibraltar, it has gradually increased, so as at the present day to cover a considerable extent of ground, and to contain a population of upwards of six thousand souls. The title of _City_ has even been vicariously bestowed upon it; all public acts, &c., emanating from its different authorities, being headed in the following singular manner,--"The President and Individuals of the Board of health of the _City of Gibraltar_, which, from the material loss of that place, is established in _this of San Roque_ within its territory, &c."[28]
The Corregidor, Alcalde, and other authorities, are also designated as of Gibraltar, and not of San Roque.
The town is pleasantly situated on an isolated knoll, the houses entirely covering its summit, and extending some way down its Northern and Western slopes; but towards Gibraltar and to the East, the ground falls very abruptly, so as to form a natural boundary to the town.
Though quite unsheltered by trees, and consequently exposed to the full power of the sun, San Roque possesses great advantages over Gibraltar in point of climate; for, whilst its elevation above all the ground in the immediate vicinity secures to it a freer circulation of air than is enjoyed by the pent-up fortress, it is sheltered from the damp and blighting levant wind that blows down the Mediterranean, by a low mountain range, known as the Sierra Carbonera, or Queen of Spain's Chair, which is distant about a mile from the town, and stretches in a North and South direction, between it and the sea.