Page:History of the Reign of Ferdinand and Isabella the Catholic Vol. II.djvu/88

64 64 WAR OF GRANADA. PART bj which the convoys might visit the camp, and '. return without interrupting each other. At the same time, the queen bought up immense quanti- ties of grain from all parts of Andalusia, which she caused to be ground in her own mills ; and w^hen the roads, which extended more than seven leagues in length, were completed, fourteen thousand mules might be seen daily traversing the sierra, laden with supplies, which from that time forward were poured abundantly, and with the most perfect regu- larity, into the camp.^^ Isabella's Isabclla's next care was to assemble new levies energy. of troops, to relieve or reinforce those now in the camp ; and the alacrity with which all orders of men from every quarter of the kingdom answered her summons is w^orthy of remark. But her chief solicitude was to devise expedients for meeting the enormous expenditures incurred by the protracted operations of the year. For this purpose, she had recourse to loans from individuals and religious corporations, which were obtained without much difficulty, from the general confidence in her good faith. As the sum thus raised, although exceeding- ly large for that period, proved inadequate to the expenses, further supplies were obtained from weal- thy individuals, whose loans were secured by mort- gage of the royal demesne ; and, as a deficiency - still remained in the treasury, the queen, as a last resource, pawned the crown jewels and her own personal ornaments to the merchants of Barcelona 15 Peter Martyr, OpusEpist., lib. 2, cpist. 73. — Pulgar, Reyes Cat6- licos, cap. 116.