The character of the Conde de España has been variously represented. All admit, however, that he is a man of most determined and fearless character; and that Catalunia, which, to be preserved in tranquillity in these perilous times, requires to be ruled with a rod of iron, could not be entrusted to any man better qualified to wield it. When he first took upon him the government of the province, he committed many oppressive acts; some of which I have related in the chapter entitled “State of Parties,” consisting, for the most part, in banishment without trial; and even in some instances, carried so far as secret execution. This was soon after the fall of the constitution; and some apologists of the Conde excuse these proceedings upon the plea of political necessity; an expression that, in my mind, involves a sophism, because I do not believe that the moral government of the universe can ever include in it a necessity for doing evil. The government of the Conde de España has sanctioned many lesser acts of inquisitorialness and oppression. Several despotic orders were issued immediately upon the French revolution breaking out: ever since that time, no greater number than four persons are permitted to dine together in a coffee-house; nor are politics allowed to form the subject of conversation in any house open to the public; and it is believed, that the Conde is not entirely ignorant of the conversation that passes in many private houses also. He has even had the boldness to interfere with the usages of the church, by interdicting the celebration of the midnight mass in the cathedral, at Christmas; probably, because he disliked the assemblage of so great a number of persons during the night: but, of course, mass was permitted to be celebrated in a more private way. The strictness of the Conde extends also to morals: all houses of ill-fame are suppressed, and instances occurred, even while I was in Barcellona, of inquisitorial strictness in more private matters relating to morals. Dining one day in company, one of the gentlemen at table received a message while at dinner, which he immediately attended to, and withdrew; I saw a smile pass round the table, and I afterwards learnt, that the occurrence was not unusual. The gentleman had a _liaison_ with a _chére amie_, who lived in lodgings provided by him; but this the police would not permit; and, to escape their interference, these lodgings were changed every few days; and every few days he was questioned as to his secret, and obliged to pay a fine. This was the act of the police; and, although the police is not within the department of the Conde, who is captain-general, not civil governor of the province, yet it is well known that both the military and civil government are in his hands; and that the civil authorities do not move a step without his permission. Along with this strict surveillance of morals, the Conde’s own morals are irreproachable, and he neglects no opportunity of