Miss E. Brackenbury

“ I don’t care to have it in my private apartments. Burn it.” And she watched with a malicious smile the flames as they consumed the handsome, though heavy features of her mother’s husband.
The ministers took leave: and soon after, V. de la V., who had not been with his colleagues, begged and obtained an audience.
“What do you suppose is smouldering there?” the queen asked. “It is the portrait of the Duque de Rianzares. The ministers advised me to have it taken from this room, and when they got it down they burned it.” She laughed a hearty laugh at the game she was playing. ”

“ This picture had been an eyesore to all the Spanish nobles, whose pride could ill brook that the portrait of one of ignoble birth should be hung up in a semi-official apartment where foreign ambassadors and people of note were received by H. M. At last one of them ventured to remark that it would be more in honour of H. M.’s ancestry of “kings of long descent” that the portrait of the Duque de Rianzares should not be in that room, but transferred to one of the private apartments. ”

“ The original name given to that sonorous instrument in Europe was crótalo, from the Greek word krŏtĕo, equivalent, according to Plutarch, to pulso or verbero in Latin. The word castañuela, one of the many names given to the castanet in Spain, may have its origin from the custom of keeping time to the national dances and music by cracking the fingers, which is called a castañeta, a word easily transformed into castañuela, to express the instrument used for the same purpose. ”

“ After the conquest by the Christians, a great distinction was made in favour of the Egyptians, as the aristocratic, educated, and civilised, race; but subsequently, one after one, their privileges were curtailed ”

“ The most ancient crótalo was round, and made of metal; later, they were made concave, and of the wood of the pomegranate, cherry, or of ebony, and in the shape of an almond; but for the last 200 years an oreja (or ear) was substituted for the pointed almond shape.
They are paired male and female; [1] the latter (hembra) has a shriller and sharper tone than her mate, and is played in the right hand and more quickly than the macho, or male. ”