The lakes of Spain are neither large nor numerous, but some are curious from a geographical point of view. On the high plateaux whence the Guadiana, the Guadalimar, the Segura, and the Jucar take their rise, either a dam or a trench would suffice to turn the waters either to the Atlantic or the Mediterranean; and here alone in Western Europe are found temporary lakes with no outlet, and consequently salt from excess of evaporation. For the same reason salt springs and brackish streams abound in these highlands. All around the coast, both on the Atlantic and Mediterranean, salinas, or salt-works for making salt, either from the sea or from the brackish water of lagoons and tidal marshes, abound; those of Cadiz, and of the coast between Cartagena and Alicante are celebrated for the excellence of their salt. Besides these are the five Albuferas, or lagoons, of Valencia, Alicante, Elche, Auna, and Oropesa. Of these that of Valencia is far the largest, and feeds enormous quantities of fish and of aquatic fowl of all kinds. The interior lakes, as that of Sanabria in Zamora, Gallocanta in Aragon, and those from which many of the rivers take their source, are noted only for their picturesque beauty. We can hardly show the value of water in Spain better than by directing the reader's attention to the number of places which take their name from water of some kind: thus there are forty-four villages or towns whose names are compounded of _Aguas_, waters; 238 into which the word _Fuente_, fountain, enters; 144 _Rios_, rivers; 54 _Arroyos_, brooks; 44 _Pozos_, wells; 30 _Salinas_, salt waters; 9 _Rio Secos_, dry rivers; and about 600 _Molinos_ or water-mills. The multiplicity of these last dates perhaps from the time when every seigneur had his own mill, and obliged his vassals to grind their corn there; but assuredly in a moister climate water would not have played so great a part in the nomenclature, or toponymy, of the country. We add the following table, deduced from Reclus' "Nouvelle Geographie Universelle," 6 deg. Serie, p. 886, compared with an article in "La Revista Contemporanea," December 30th, 1880:-- Area of Length of Mean Outfall compared Rivers. basin. course. rainfall. with rainfall. Sq. miles. Miles. Inches. Per cent. Northern {Minho&Sil 10,000 190 47-1/2 50 Rivers. {Ebro 25,000 466 18 20 Rivers of {Douro 35,000 506 20 40 the {Tagus 30,000 556 16 33 Central {Guardiana & Plateau. {Zancara 24,000 553 14 20 Andulasia Guadalquiver 21,000 340 19 30 Mediterranean {Segura 8500 217 12 10 Rivers. {Jucar 5800 317 12-1/2 15 E. & S.E. {Guadalaviar 3200 187 -- 12