He shook his head, and shrugged his shoulders,
as he interpreted it. "Such might have been the case," said he; "the
Moslems might still have been reigning in the Alhambra, had not
Boabdil been a traitor, and given up his capital to the Christians.
The Spanish monarchs would never have been able to conquer it by
open force."
I endeavored to vindicate the memory of the unlucky Boabdil from
this aspersion, and to show that the dissensions which led to the
downfall of the Moorish throne, originated in the cruelty of his
tiger-hearted father; but the Moor would admit of no palliation.
"Muley Abul Hassan," said he, "might have been cruel; but he was
brave, vigilant, and patriotic. Had he been properly seconded, Granada
would still have been ours; but his son Boabdil thwarted his plans,
crippled his power, sowed treason in his palace, and dissension in his
camp. May the curse of God light upon him for his treachery!" With
these words the Moor left the Alhambra.
The indignation of my turbaned companion agrees with an anecdote
related by a friend, who, in the course of a tour in Barbary, had an
interview with the Pacha of Tetuan. The Moorish governor was
particular in his inquiries about Spain and especially concerning
the favored region of Andalusia, the delights of Granada, and the
remains of its royal palace. The replies awakened all those fond
recollections, so deeply cherished by the Moors, of the power and
splendor of their ancient empire in Spain.
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