There are many stories about the Alcázar, both true and fabulous. The Court of Maidens took its name from one of these. It was said that a tribute of a hundred maidens paid to the Mohammedan ruler had been lodged in that part of the Alcázar. History does not show that the calif ever asked for such a tribute, and it is probable that the Court of Maidens had not been built at the time when this incident is supposed to have taken place. Nevertheless, such a story has grown up, and has given the court a name that it will doubtless bear for all time. After Castile had thrown off Moorish rule Seville was made the capital of Spain. For several centuries Christian kings lived in the Alcázar, adding somewhat to the original structure as the Moors had left it. The name of Pedro is more closely connected than any other Spanish ruler with the history and fiction of the building. He was called Pedro the Cruel. A grim sense of humor and a habit of going through the streets of Seville in disguise have made him the subject of many odd tales and rumors. Some of these stories are merely whimsical. He is said to have met four candidates for a judge’s position beside a pool in the gardens where they had gone to find him. Pedro, turning to the first, asked him what was floating in the pool. “An orange,” replied the candidate without hesitation. The second and third gave him the same answer. The fourth fished out the piece of fruit with his staff, examined it, and replied more accurately, “Half an orange.” Pedro immediately gave him the appointment. PREPARED BY THE EDITORIAL STAFF OF THE MENTOR ASSOCIATION ILLUSTRATION FOR THE MENTOR, VOL. 1, No. 31 COPYRIGHT, 1913, BY THE MENTOR ASSOCIATION, INC. [Illustration: CATHEDRAL OF SEVILLE, SPAIN] _SPAIN AND GIBRALTAR_ _Cathedral of Seville_ FOUR There is a Spanish proverb that says, “Whom God favors he gives a house in Seville.” The privilege of living in that bright, gay city is considered by a Spaniard to be the height of happiness. Other cities are larger, wealthier, or more important politically than Seville; but none holds a higher place in the hearts of the Spanish people. When in the beginning of the fifteenth century the old cathedral was damaged by an earthquake, a meeting was held to discuss what should be done to restore it. Then one proposed that, instead of repairing the old church, they should build a new edifice, larger and more magnificent than had ever been imagined. They planned a cathedral that should make all who saw it wonder at the daring of those who began it. What the public funds would not supply they agreed to furnish out of their own purses.