THREE SILVER SPOONS

Evening Post, Volume CX, Issue 118, 14 November 1925, Page 16

THREE SILVER SPOONS

CERVANTES PEIZE IN POETICAL

COMPETITION.

With prizes for literary competitions running up into thousands or dojlars, can you picture any thrill over the award for literary effort of threo silver spoons? (asks the "New York Times"). Whatever the emotion, such was the guerdon giv'eu to the celebrated author of "Don Quixote." Although to-day Spain honours the memory of Cervantes with statues, monuments, tablets, fountains, paiatin^s, and every imaginable type of souvenir, his living days were not by any means full ofiglorjh

Un.able to make a living at literature, he turned his hand to anything that would supply him with daily sustenance. In 1587 he went to Seville to assist in gathering stores to provision the Invincible "Armada. After the defeat of this famous fleet he ber came. cpnimi?sary of the galleys, a, tiresome and thankless positionLater for some unbnpwn. reason he was thrown into prison and. upon his release souk into abject poverty. Nqne of these troubles and humiHatipns could dampen his literary aiv dour. In May, 1595, a great poetical tourney wag held at Saragpssa in hon* our of §t, Hyacinth, Cervantes, de» spjfce his previous disappointments, entered the lists and carried off tho first pri?c—three silver spoons. Al* thpugh we are told that his joy was overbounding, there is the temptation to believe these spoons were resppii' sible for a series of misfortunes coy» ering several years. Having been almost penniless before the tourney, how did he so shortly afterward ac* quire the sum of 7400 reals? Did he part with his precious spopn.3 fpr this am.ouijt?

At any rate, he foolishly entrusted this njpnoy to pne Simon Freire de Lima, instructing him to deposit it in the treasury.of Madrid. This transaction h.ad an unhappy ending. De Lima became a bankrupt and absupnded -with the money, leaving Cervantes to meet the deficit. The necessary amount was somehow raised, but the incident did not reflect to Cervantes's credit, He was regarded aa a very unbusinesslike person- And that resulted in suspicions being cast uppn his Government transaction's. Sopu afterwards he was ordered tp re? port at Madrid within twenty days and submit to the exchequer vouohr era for all moneys collected by him, Having no securities, unable tp meet the expenses of the trip Pr to furnish bail, he was again thrpwp into prison,