They wore round jackets (jalecos), wide linen bragas or
drawers scarce reaching to the knees and looking like kilts, red fajas
or sashes swathed tightly round their waists, sandals of espartal or
bass weed, colored kerchiefs round their heads somewhat in the style
of turbans but leaving the top of the head uncovered; in short,
their whole appearance having much of the traditional Moorish stamp.
On leaving Loxa we were joined by a cavalier, well mounted and
well armed, and followed on foot by an escopetero or musketeer. He
saluted us courteously, and soon let us into his quality. He was chief
of the customs, or rather, I should suppose, chief of an armed company
whose business it is to patrol the roads and look out for
contrabandistas. The escopetero was one of his guards. In the course
of our morning's ride I drew from him some particulars concerning
the smugglers, who have risen to be a kind of mongrel chivalry in
Spain. They come into Andalusia, he said, from various parts, but
especially from La Mancha, sometimes to receive goods, to be
smuggled on an appointed night across the line at the plaza or
strand of Gibraltar, sometimes to meet a vessel, which is to hover
on a given night off a certain part of the coast. They keep together
and travel in the night. In the daytime they lie quiet in barrancos,
gullies of the mountains or lonely farm-houses; where they are
generally well received, as they make the family liberal presents of
their smuggled wares.
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