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Books: The Life of George Borrow

H >> Herbert Jenkins >> The Life of George Borrow





The letter goes on to say that if it can be shown that Lieut. Graydon
is acting in the same manner as he did in Valencia, for which he was
admonished,


"he will assuredly be recalled on this ground. You wonder perhaps
that we for a moment doubt the fact of his reiterated imprudence; but
audi alteram partem must be our rule--and besides, on reviewing the
Valencia proceedings, we draw a wide distinction. Had he been as
free, as you suppose him to be, of the trammels of office in our
service, many would say and think that he was prefectly at liberty to
act and speak as he did of the Authorities, if he chose to take the
consequences. Really in such a country it is no marvel if his Spirit
has been stirred within him! Will you allow me to remind you of the
strong things in your own letter to the Valencia ecclesiastic, the
well pointed and oft repeated Vae!"


Mr Brandram points out that strong language is frequently the sword
of the Reformer, and that there are times when it has the highest
sanction; but


"the judgment of all [the members of the Committee] will be that an
Agent of the Bible Society is a Reformer, not by his preaching or
denouncing, but by the distribution of the Bible. If Mr G's. conduct
is no worse than it was in Valencia," the letter continues, rather
inconsistently, in the light of the assurance in the early part that
recall would be the punishment for another such lapse into
indiscretion, "you must not expect anything beyond a qualified
disavowal of it, and that simply as unbecoming an Agent of such a
Society as ours.

"After what I have written, you will hardly feel surprised that our
Committee could not quite approve of your Advertisement. We have
ever regarded Mr Graydon as much our Agent as yourself. In three of
our printed reports in succession we make no difference in speaking
of you both. We are anxious to do nothing to weaken your hands at so
important a crisis, and we conceive that the terms we have employed
in our Resolution are the mildest we could have used. Do not insert
the Advertisement a second time. Let it pass; let it be forgotten.
If necessary we shall give the public intimation that Mr G. was, but
is not our agent any longer. Remember, we entreat you, the very
delicate position that such a manifesto places us in, as well as the
effect which it may have on Mr Graydon's personal safety. We give
you full credit for believing it was your duty, under the peculiar
circumstances of the case, to take so decided and bold a step, and
that you thought yourself fully justified by the distinction of
salaried and unsalaried Agent, in speaking of yourself as the alone
accredited Agent of the Society. Possibly when you reflect a little
upon the matter you may view it in another light. There are besides
some sentiments in the Advertisement which we cannot perhaps fully
accord with . . . If to our poor friend there has befallen the
saddest of all calamities to which you allude, should we not speak of
him with all tenderness. If he be insane I believe much of it is to
be attributed to that entire devotion with which he has devoted
himself to our work.


No complaint can be urged against the Committee for refusing to
condemn one of their agents unheard, and without documentary
evidence; but it was strange that they should pass resolutions that
contained no word of sympathy with Borrow for his sufferings in a
typhus-infested prison. It is even more strange that the covering
letter should refer to Graydon's sufferings and hardships and the
danger to his person, without apparently realising that Borrow HAD
ACTUALLY suffered what the Committee feared that Graydon MIGHT
suffer. There is no doubt that Borrow's impulsive letters had
greatly offended everybody at Earl Street, where Lieut. Graydon
appears to have been extremely popular; and the few words of sympathy
with Borrow that might have saved much acrimonious correspondence
were neither resolved nor written.

The other side of the picture is shown in a vigorous passage from
Borrow's Report, which was afterwards withdrawn:


"A helpless widow [the mother of Don Pascual Mann] was insulted, her
liberty of conscience invaded, and her only son incited to rebellion
against her. A lunatic [Lieut. Graydon] was employed as the
repartidor, or distributor, of the Blessed Bible, who, having his
head crammed with what he understood not, ran through the streets of
Valencia crying aloud that Christ was nigh at hand and would appear
in a short time, whilst advertisements to much the same effect were
busily circulated, in which the name, the noble name, of the Bible
Society was prostituted; whilst the Bible, exposed for sale in the
apartment of a public house, served for little more than a decoy to
the idle and curious, who were there treated with incoherent railings
against the Church of Rome and Babylon in a dialect which it was well
for the deliverer that only a few of the audience understood. But I
fly from these details, and will now repeat the consequences of the
above proceedings to myself; for I, I, and only I, as every
respectable person in Madrid can vouch, have paid the penalty for
them all, though as innocent as the babe who has not yet seen the
light."


If the General Committee at a period of anxiety and annoyance failed
to pay tribute to Borrow's many qualities, the official historian of
the Society makes good the omission when he describes him as "A
strange, impulsive, more or less inflammable creature as he must have
occasionally seemed to the Secretaries and Editorial Superintendent,
he had proved himself a man of exceptional ability, energy, tact,
prudence--above all, a man whose heart was in his work." {262a}

Borrow's acknowledgment of the Resolutions was dated 16th June. It
ran:-


"I have received your communication of the 30th ult. containing the
resolutions of the Committee, to which I shall of course attend.

"Of your letter in general, permit me to state that I reverence the
spirit in which it is written, and am perfectly disposed to admit the
correctness of the views which it exhibits; but it appears to me that
in one or two instances I have been misunderstood in the letters
which I have addressed [to you] on the subject of Graydon.

"I bear this unfortunate gentleman no ill will, God forbid, and it
will give me pain if he were reprimanded publicly or privately;
moreover, I can see no utility likely to accrue from such a
proceeding. All that I have stated hitherto is the damage which he
has done in Spain to the cause and myself, by the--what shall I call
it?--imprudence of his conduct; and the idea which I have endeavoured
to inculcate is the absolute necessity of his leaving Spain
instantly.

"Take now in good part what I am about to say, and O! do not
misunderstand me! I owe a great deal to the Bible Society, and the
Bible Society owes nothing to me. I am well aware and am always
disposed to admit that it can find thousands more zealous, more
active, and in every respect more adapted to transact its affairs and
watch over its interests; yet, with this consciousness of my own
inutility, I must be permitted to state that, linked to a man like
Graydon, I can no longer consent to be, and that if the Society
expect such a thing, I must take the liberty of retiring, perhaps to
the wilds of Tartary or the Zingani camps of Siberia.

"My name at present is become public property, no very enviable
distinction in these unhappy times, and neither wished nor sought by
myself. I have of late been subjected to circumstances which have
rendered me obnoxious to the hatred of those who never forgive, the
Bloody Church of Rome, which I have [no] doubt will sooner or later
find means to accomplish my ruin; for no one is better aware than
myself of its fearful resources, whether in England or Spain, in
Italy or in any other part. I should not be now in this situation
had I been permitted to act alone. How much more would have been
accomplished, it does not become me to guess.

"I had as many or more difficulties to surmount in Russia than I
originally had here, yet all that the Society expected or desired was
effected, without stir or noise, and that in the teeth of an imperial
Ukase which forbade the work which I was employed to superintend.

"Concerning my late affair, I must here state that I was sent to
prison on a charge which was subsequently acknowledged not only to be
false but ridiculous; I was accused of uttering words disrespectful
towards the Gefe Politico of Madrid; my accuser was an officer of the
police, who entered my apartment one morning before I was dressed,
and commenced searching my papers and flinging my books into
disorder. Happily, however, the people of the house, who were
listening at the door, heard all that passed, and declared on oath
that so far from mentioning the Gefe Politico, I merely told the
officer that he, the officer, was an insolent fellow, and that I
would cause him to be punished. He subsequently confessed that he
was an instrument of the Vicar General, and that he merely came to my
apartment in order to obtain a pretence for making a complaint. He
has been dismissed from his situation and the Queen [Regent] has
expressed her sorrow at my imprisonment. If there be any doubt
entertained on the matter, pray let Sir George Villiers be written
to!

"I should be happy to hear what success attends our efforts in China.
I hope a prudent conduct has been adopted; for think not that a
strange and loud language will find favour in the eyes of the
Chinese; and above all, I hope that we have not got into war with the
Augustines and their followers, who, if properly managed, may be of
incalculable service in propagating the Scriptures . . . P.S.--The
Documents, or some of them, shall be sent as soon as possible."


Nine days later (25th June) Borrow wrote:


"I now await your orders. I wish to know whether I am at liberty to
pursue the course which may seem to me best under existing
circumstances, and which at present appears to be to mount my horses,
which are neighing in the stable, and once more betake myself to the
plains and mountains of dusty Spain, and to dispose of my Testaments
to the muleteers and peasants. By doing so I shall employ myself
usefully, and at the same time avoid giving offence. Better days
will soon arrive, which will enable me to return to Madrid and reopen
my shop, till then, however, I should wish to pursue my labours in
comparative obscurity."


Replying to Borrow's letter of 16th June, Mr Brandram wrote (29th
June): "I trust we shall not easily forget your services in St
Petersburg, but suffer me to remind you that when you came to the
point of distribution your success ended." {265a} This altogether
unworthy remark was neither creditable to the writer nor to the
distinguished Society on whose behalf he wrote. Borrow had done all
that a man was capable of to distribute the books. His reply was
dignified and effective.


"It was unkind and unjust to taunt me with having been unsuccessful
in distributing the Scriptures. Allow me to state that no other
person under the same circumstances would have distributed the tenth
part; yet had I been utterly unsuccessful, it would have been wrong
to check me with being so, after all I have undergone, and with how
little of that are you acquainted." {265b}


In response, Mr Brandram wrote (28th July):


"You have considered that I have taunted you with want of success in
St Petersburg. I thought that the way in which I introduced that
subject would have prevented any such unpleasant and fanciful
impression."


That was all! It became evident to all at Earl Street that a
conference between Borrow, the Officials and the General Committee
was imperative if the air were to be cleared of the rancour that
seemed to increase with each interchange of letters. {265c} Unless
something were done, a breach seemed inevitable, a thing the Society
did not appear to desire. When Borrow first became aware that he was
wanted at Earl Street for the purpose of a personal conference, he in
all probability conceived it to be tantamount to a recall, and he was
averse from leaving the field to the enemy.


"In the name of the Highest," he wrote, {266a} "I entreat you all to
banish such a preposterous idea; a journey home (provided you intend
that I should return to Spain) could lead to no result but expense
and the loss of precious time. I have nothing to explain to you
which you are not already perfectly well acquainted with by my late
letters. I was fully aware at the time I was writing them that I
should afford you little satisfaction, for the plain unvarnished
truth is seldom agreeable; but I now repeat, and these are perhaps
among the last words which I shall ever be permitted to pen, that I
cannot approve, and I am sure no Christian can, of the system which
has lately been pursued in the large sea-port cities of Spain, and
which the Bible Society has been supposed to sanction,
notwithstanding the most unreflecting person could easily foresee
that such a line of conduct could produce nothing in the end but
obloquy and misfortune."


Borrow saw that his departure from Spain would be construed by his
enemies as flight, and that their joy would be great in consequence.

The Spanish authorities were determined if possible to rid the
country of missionaries. The Gazeta Oficial of Madrid drew attention
to the fact that in Valencia there had been distributed thousands of
pamphlets "against the religion we profess." Sir George Villiers
enquired into the matter and found that there was no evidence that
the pamphlets had been written, printed, or published in England; and
when writing to Count Ofalia on the subject he informed him that the
Bible Society distributed, not tracts or controversial writings, but
the Scriptures.

The next move on the part of the authorities was to produce sworn
testimony from three people (all living in the same house, by the
way) that they had purchased copies of "the New Testament and other
Biblical translations at the Despacho on 5th May." Borrow was in
prison at the time, and his assistant denied the sale. Documents
were also produced proving that the imprint on the title-page of the
Scio New Testament was false, as at the time it was printed no such
printer as Andreas Borrego (who by the way was the Government printer
and at one time a candidate for cabinet rank) lived in Madrid. In
drawing the British Minister's attention to these matters, Count
Ofalia wrote (31st May):


"It would be opportune if you would be pleased to advise Mr Borrow
that, convinced of the inutility of his efforts for propagating here
the translation in the vulgar tongue of Sacred Writings without the
forms required by law, he would do much better in making use of his
talents in some other class of scientifical or literary Works during
his residence in Spain, giving up Biblical Enterprises, which may be
useful in other countries, but which in this Kingdom are prejudicial
for very obvious reasons."



CHAPTER XVII: JULY-NOVEMBER 1838



Borrow's spirit chafed under this spell of enforced idleness. His
horses were neighing in the stable and "Senor Antonio was neighing in
the house," as Maria Diaz expressed it; and for himself, Borrow
required something more actively stimulating than pen and ink
encounters with Mr Brandram. He therefore determined to defy the
prohibition and make an excursion into the rural districts of New
Castile, offering his Testaments for sale as he went, and sending on
supplies ahead. His first objective was Villa Seca, a village
situated on the banks of the Tagus about nine leagues from Madrid.

He was aware of the danger he ran in thus disregarding the official
decree.


"I will not conceal from you," he writes to Mr Brandram on 14th July,
"that I am playing a daring game, and it is very possible that when I
least expect it I may be seized, tied to the tail of a mule, and
dragged either to the prison of Toledo or Madrid. Yet such a
prospect does not discourage me in the least, but rather urges me on
to persevere; for I assure you, and in this assertion there lurks not
the slightest desire to magnify myself and produce an effect, that I
am eager to lay down my life in this cause, and whether a Carlist's
bullet or a gaol-fever bring my career to an end, I am perfectly
indifferent."


He was not averse from martyrdom; but he objected to being
precipitated into it by another man's folly. In his interview with
Count Ofalia, he had been solemnly warned that if a second time he
came within the clutches of the authorities he might not escape so
easily, and had replied that it was "a pleasant thing to be
persecuted for the Gospel's sake."

In his decision to make Villa Seca his temporary headquarters, Borrow
had been influenced by the fact that it was the home of Maria Diaz,
his friend and landlady. Her husband was there working on the land,
Maria herself living in Madrid that her children might be properly
educated. Borrow left Madrid on 10th July, and on his arrival at
Villa Seca he was cordially welcomed by Juan Lopez, the husband of
Maria Diaz, who continued to use her maiden name, in accordance with
Spanish custom. Lopez subsequently proved of the greatest possible
assistance in the work of distribution, shaming both Borrow and
Antonio by his energy and powers of endurance.

The inhabitants of Villa Seca and the surrounding villages of Bargas,
Coveja, Villa Luenga, Mocejon, Yuncler eagerly bought up "the book of
life," and each day the three men rode forth in heat so great that
"the very arrieros frequently fall dead from their mules, smitten by
a sun-stroke." {269a}

It was in Villa Seca that Borrow found "all that gravity of
deportment and chivalry of disposition which Cervantes is said to
have sneered away" {269b} and there were to be heard "those grandiose
expressions which, when met with in the romances of chivalry, are
scoffed at as ridiculous exaggerations." {269c} Borrow so charmed
the people of the district with the elaborate formality of his
manner, that he became convinced that any attempt to arrest or do him
harm would have met with a violent resistance, even to the length of
the drawing of knives in his defence.

In less than a week some two hundred Testaments had been disposed of,
and a fresh supply had to be obtained from Madrid. Borrow's methods
had now changed. He had, of necessity, to make as little stir as
possible in order to avoid an unenviable notoriety. He carefully
eschewed advertisements and handbills, and limited himself almost
entirely to the simple statement that he brought to the people "the
words and life of the Saviour and His Saints at a price adapted to
their humble means." {270a}

It is interesting to note in connection with this period of Borrow's
activities in Spain, that in 1908 one of the sons of Maria Diaz and
Juan Lopez was sought out at Villa Seca by a representative of the
Bible Society, and interrogated as to whether he remembered Borrow.
Eduardo Lopez (then seventy-four years of age) stated that he was a
child of eight {270b} when Borrow lived at the house of his mother;
yet he remembers that "El ingles" was tall and robust, with fair hair
turning grey. Eduardo and his young brother regarded Borrow with
both fear and respect; for, their father being absent, he used to
punish them for misdemeanours by setting them on the table and making
them remain perfectly quiet for a considerable time. The old man
remembered that Borrow had two horses whom he called "la Jaca" and
"el Mondragon," and that he used to take to the house of Maria Diaz
"his trunk full of books which were beautifully bound." He
remembered Borrow's Greek servant, "Antonio Guchino" (the Antonio
Buchini of The Bible in Spain), who spoke very bad Spanish.

The most interesting of Eduardo Lopez' recollections of Borrow was
that he "often recited a chant which nobody understood," and of which
the old man could remember only the following fragment


"Sed un la in la en la la
Sino Mokhamente de resu la."


It has been suggested, {271a} and with every show of probability,
that "this is the Moslem kalimah or creed which he had heard sung
from the minarets":


"La illaha illa allah
Wa Muhammad rasoul allah."


Borrow recognised that he must not stay very long in any one place,
and accordingly it was his intention, as soon as he had supplied the
immediate wants of the Sagra (the plain) of Toledo, "to cross the
country to Aranjuez, and endeavour to supply with the Word the
villages on the frontier of La Mancha." {271b} As he was on the
point of setting out, however, he received two letters from Mr
Brandram, which decided him to return immediately to Madrid instead
of pursuing his intended route.

Borrow was informed that if, after consulting with Sir George
Villiers, it was thought desirable that he should leave Madrid, he
was given a free hand to do so. Furthermore, the President of the
Bible Society (Lord Bexley), with whom Mr Brandram had consulted, was
of the opinion that Borrow should return home to confer with the
Committee. It was clear from the correspondence that nothing short
of an interview could remove the very obvious feeling of irritation
that existed between Borrow and the Society. In his reply (23rd
July), Borrow showed a dignity and calmness of demeanour that had
been lacking from his previous letters; and it most likely produced a
far more favourable effect at Earl Street than the impassioned
protests of the past two months:-


"My answer will be very brief;" he wrote, "as I am afraid of giving
way to my feelings; I hope, however, that it will be to the purpose.

"It is broadly hinted in yours of the 7th that I have made false
statements in asserting that the Government, in consequence of what
has lately taken place, had come to the resolution of seizing the
Bible depots in various parts of this country. [Borrow had written
to Mr Brandram on 25th June, "The Society are already aware of the
results of the visit of our friend to Malaga; all their Bibles and
Testaments having been seized throughout Spain, with the exception of
my stock in Madrid."]

"In reply I beg leave to inform you that by the first courier you
will receive from the British Legation at Madrid the official notice
from Count Ofalia to Sir George Villiers of the seizures already
made, and the motives which induced the Government to have recourse
to such a measure.

"The following seizures have already been made, though some have not
as yet been officially announced:- The Society's books at Orviedo,
Pontevedra, Salamanca, Santiago, Seville, and Valladolid.

"It appears from your letters that the depots in the South of Spain
have escaped. I am glad of it, although it be at my own expense. I
see the hand of the Lord throughout the late transactions. He is
chastening me; it is His pleasure that the guilty escape and the
innocent be punished. The Government gave orders to seize the Bible
depots throughout the country on account of the late scenes at Malaga
and Valencia--I have never been there, yet only MY depots are meddled
with, as it appears! The Lord's will be done, blessed be the name of
the Lord!

"I will write again to-morrow, I shall have then arranged my
thoughts, and determined on the conduct which it becomes a Christian
to pursue under these circumstances. Permit me, in conclusion, to
ask you:

"Have you not to a certain extent been partial in this matter? Have
you not, in the apprehension of being compelled to blame the conduct
of one who has caused me unutterable anxiety, misery and persecution,
and who has been the bane of the Bible cause in Spain, refused to
receive the information which it was in YOUR power to command? I
called on the Committee and yourself from the first to apply to Sir
George Villiers; no one is so well versed as to what has lately been
going as himself; but no. It was God's will that I, who have risked
all and lost ALMOST all in the cause, be taunted, suspected, and the
sweat of agony and tears which I have poured out be estimated at the
value of the water of the ditch or the moisture which exudes from
rotten dung; but I murmur not, and hope I shall at all times be
willing to bow to the dispensations of the Almighty.

"Sir George Villiers has returned to England for a short period; you
have therefore the opportunity of consulting him. I WILL NOT leave
Spain until the whole affair has been thoroughly sifted. I shall
then perhaps appear and bid you an eternal farewell. {273a} Four
hundred Testaments have been disposed of in the Sagra of Toledo.

"P.S.--I am just returned from the Embassy, where I have had a long
interview with that admirable person Lord Wm. Hervey [Charge
d'Affaires during Sir George Villiers' absence]. He has requested me
to write him a letter on the point in question, which with the
official documents he intends to send to the Secretary of State in
order to be laid before the Bible Society. He has put into my hands
the last communication from Ofalia {273b} it relates to the seizure
of MY depots at Malaga, Pontevedra, etc. I have not opened it, but
send it for your approval."