Show nr tra TIO or T THE I 1 ae C ci HI 11 L the conflagration calig artion which it hn just juit oc burred ia alic I appears to have well nigh destroyed an edifice which has been claimed as i the eighth wonder of till the world it WM was commenced in occupied occur bcd twenty ono tears years in ia the iho coo con tro truc clion tion and cost a aboul out uli a at ranza conceit the iho plan was nis that ol at a in guinon ru d inon nod supposed oscil to IM be e vatic of f tho the rit of torture on which st L awrence suffered martyr dent it was planned to comprise a monastery m ion astery a royal palace and a alcum cum in ia which elie remains of the 8 spanish kings l indis should bo preserved th ahe gridiron fridi roo consisted of seventeen range ran ranft fB a of buil building dingi 4 crossing each other at ab right 1 angles forming firming a 10 a closing cloDin ft 24 courts willi a figare tower toner 1 00 feet in hight bight flanking each of the four corners comara of the he building tho towie representing tho feet of the gridiron Brili roti which v is as supposed pp ap tobe to bo lying on its ila back A winit feet in length formed the handle ond and COM contained AIDed tho the royal apart minu tho the walla wails were GO CO fret feet ghigli and the total length of the building was M W feet hy by 58 it contained bained a royal palace a royal chapel chameli a monastery with cells 3 2 co gea 3 ter hon bon cs 3 libraries 5 4 great ath hulls Is G i ormi ties 3 hospit ils IS 27 ot other CX bills r earle 6 5 a countless onto number r 0 of A apartments artmen for attendants 80 ij 1100 windows I 1 oki outward a and 1678 1111 I 1 looking 0 inward w AUX d es 14 gates gate and 4 8 ag to foun iams tuns I 1 it ho church was its built a t in in I 1 amita mita tanon of st peters at leonii llo 10 nii a and was a fine coo piece of architecture containing 40 clia chapels with wilh 3 altars and 7 awe the dome rising riling ma feet 2 bovo the floor floora tho the grand alto altar r was vaa 00 feet high nod and SO 40 feet wide and comp oed or of jasper and gilded broad broi zoi directly und under er the high altar WM ivas the boyrd mausoleum built of josper jasper tied mack marble mar lili tho the remains of all tho rings icings of spain bince charles claric 1 tho the V reposed in one beloro before the iho L iras if the french in 1808 it it contained it fine collection or of paint inga and a library peculiarly rich in it is is kaid home however r 1 that babl it at least one third of the most moett valuable 1 of them were stolen it at that time and bince nee then tho the most valuably valila ablo blo objects hato bave acon acca transferred to madrid erected in tho the of a barren and desolate region the th Es escorial escurial curial presented cited no inducements to tho the royal pamily family as a residence and of Is late te years it it des has only kept from falling into ruin by periodical grants from the public I 1 rca fury y it has twice bifero blits suf but mur fm from fire uro lout but unless the reports of ft the bOt aro much exaggerated gc atad this has been by far tho the most serious y S FIl F record ecord |