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 . 16, 1861.] afford to have carriages at all—drive volantes, which are a species of cabriolet.

I spent a very agreeable evening at the consul’s, where I met several Spanish ladies of considerable personal attractions, but who appeared as if they had been born and bred in the Castle of Indolence. Their very eyes, large and lustrous, had a lazy, listless motion; and when the lids, fringed with long, dark lashes, slowly sank upon them, they rested for an instant, as though raising them again were a painful exertion,exertion. [sic]

At an early hour I returned to my quarters, and retired to bed. My room was commodious, but somewhat cold and uncomfortable, in consequence of the floor being composed of concrete, which was quite bare, except at the side of the bed, where was a small, thin rug.

At sunrise I left my pillow, and sallied forth with the intention of taking a general survey of the establishment. The entrance to the hotel was through large, strong folding gates of oak, which opened to admit carriages; and through a wicket-door, on which was a small brass plate with “Almy” engraved upon it, for the ingress of foot passengers. Having entered by one of these modes of admission, you found yourself in a spacious quadrangular court-yard, in the centre of which was a fountain, not playing, however. The lower part of the building was used for stables, coachhouse, and offices of various kinds. On your left hand there was a. broad stone staircase, which conducted you to the residence portion of the mansion. On one side were the dining-room, and saloon, or drawing-room, which were long, wide, and lofty. The latter looked into the street, the former into the square before mentioned. The windows, iron grated, and without glass, like those of a prison, reached from the floor to the ceiling, and were furnished with thick, heavy shutters, being only closed to exclude the sun’s rays, which they did effectually, and with them every particle of light. The floors were concrete, on which there was no carpet, mat, or covering of any kind. Floors of this description are very suitable to hot climates, at least in the sitting and eating rooms. They are cool, easily swept, and they do not harbour vermin. They are an especial security against rats, the concrete not at all agreeing with their masticators. They are, however, very uncomfortable in bed-rooms. Access was obtained to the dormitories from galleries, which ran round the three other sides of the quadrangle. These galleries, which were about eight feet in breadth, and had massive wooden balustrades, afforded a cool and shady promenade. The whole structure greatly resembled those Elizabethan edifices, some of which remain in this country, and those old inns in the metropolis, as for instance the Spread Eagle, in Gracechurch Street, which yet stand as it were beyond their appointed hour, like guests, who, reluctant to leave, still linger, after the rest of the company have departed. There was nothing, however, peculiar in the house which I have described. Most of the Spanish residences within the walls of Havana, at least those of the wealthy, are similarly constructed.

The breakfast hour at Mrs. Almy’s hotel was nine o’clock, dinner three, and tea seven. About seventy persons, male and female, sat down to table. The matutinal meal was very substantial and satisfactory. There were excellent tea and coffee, and, placed between every two guests, was a bottle of light claret, deliciously iced. Ice, and iced water, were also handed round. People who have never lived in the tropics are unable to conceive the luxury of a morning draught of iced water in those torrid regions. There was bread in a variety of forms, which was good, and very white. Bread is, or was, rather an expensive article in Havana. The flour of which it is made is procured from wheat grown on the high lands in Cuba; and there is, or was, a protective duty on all kinds of foreign grain. This duty was so high, that it amounted to a prohibition: at least, so I was informed. There were tender beefsteaks, mutton cutlets served up with tomatos, grilled and stewed fowls, and magnificent peach-fed Cincinnati hams, equal, if not superior in flavour to those from Yorkshire.

The ham was a picture for painters to study,

The fat was so white and the lean was so ruddy.

There were also omelets. At every table in Spain, or in a country belonging to Spain, if the cook be a Spaniard, there is sure to be an omelet. At breakfast, dinner, supper, there is the eternal omelet. It is as certain to be at a Spanish table, as fowl and bacon at an Irish one. When an Irishman goes to an inn, he never thinks of ordering anything else for dinner. A Hibernian friend of mine told me that, once travelling on horseback through a certain part of Ireland, he stopped at a small road-side house of entertainment, to obtain refreshment for himself and his steed. The landlord appeared.

“Well, Pat, can you give me some dinner?”

“Can I give you some dinner? In coorse I can.”

“What can you give me?”

“Oh, whatever your honour chooses to order.”

“Can you give me a fowl and bacon, then?”

“The finest in Ireland.”

“Then let me have it, and as soon as possible.”

“You shall have it before you can count a hundred.”

Half an hour elapsed—an hour—and no signs of dinner. My friend, getting impatient, went out to ascertain the cause of the delay. In the yard he saw the landlord, with a thick stick in his hand, creeping stealthily up to a crest-fallen, disconsolate-looking cock which had taken refuge in a corner.

“Why, landlord, you said I should have dinner before I could count a hundred.”

“Be asy now,—I’ve been chasing that ould cock for the last half hour; I’ve got him into a corner now, and by the powers, your honour shall have dinner in less than no time.”

But to return to the omelet. The Spanish omelet is a very different affair from the English dish bearing that name. The latter is a thin sort of pancake, tasting of nothing but onions, salt, pepper, and parsley. The Spanish omelet is an inch and a half thick, generally contains fresh tomatos, and is flavoured with various herbs, with a soupçon of garlic.

The best omelet which I