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UNIDENTIFIED : 1947 - 1949 ORIGINAL, HISTORICAL AND SIGNIFICANT MANUSCRIPT DIARY HANDWRITTEN BY AN AMERICAN TRAVELER IN POST WWII SPAIN UNDER THE HARSH, BRUTAL RULE OF FRANCISCO FRANCO

12mo - over 6¾" - 7¾" tall. On offer is a rare journal of first-hand observations of daily life in Franco's brutal dictatorship. This 3-ring binder measures 7.75 inches by 5.75 inches and contains 146 pages. It is approximately 50% complete. The hardbound cover is in good condition and the pages are intact. The handwriting is legible. The author of this journal is unknown. From context, he is an American, living and travelling in Spain between 1947 and 1949. The journal is organized using A-Z tabs with an article or prose piece behind each tab. Some are very pertinent to daily life and others are of a more philosophical nature. A number are dated. Life in Spain in 1947 was a very harsh experience under the brutal dictatorship of General Francisco Franco. Franco had come to power after a bloody 3 year civil war that claimed the lives of hundreds of thousands of Spaniards. At the time this journal was written, tens of thousands were still held as political prisoners. These years have become known in Spain as the 'anos de hambre' or the 'hunger years' in which tens of thousands more died of starvation. Many of his comments hint at the privations of the people: "I had been angry at the chica for spending so much money a sly thieving wench I said to myself and went poking into all the cupboards and drawers to see what was becoming of all my flour and my sugar - and far back on a pantry shelf I found a jar full of cigarette stubs. She was saving them from my ashtrays. I think I realized then what a difference is there between the life of the common people here and in the United States" [Tab D]; ... I didn't see Madam Moya because I forgot it was the day for our section to be without electricity …"[Tab C]. His descriptions of daily life can be quite evocative: "Sometime in the early morning [ ] the garbage man with his donkey cart arrives in front of my building. He has a big old grey burro and evidently he has taught it to give out with one of the most long, drawn out suspenseful brays I have ever heard for it comes out the same time every morning. It starts with the usual 'hee' then a 'haw' that notches along for about ten minutes so that one is sure he will choke before he is through. He only ends up with a little squeal. ..." [Tab Y]; "The Reformation that swept Europe in the 15th century apparently passed Spain by almost completely ... Today the Church is as medieval and corrupt as it was then. ..." [Tab R]. He makes numerous references to literature and philosophy, whether The Atlantic Monthly [Tab Q], Aldous Huxley [Tab N] or Don Quixote [Tab V]. For a researcher of this period in Spain's history, this journal offers an excellent window into daily life in the dictatorship. It is well-written by a very observant outsider (American) and offers a fascinating perspective on these dark days. It would be many decades before Spain would emerge from this dark period and take its place among fellow Europeans in the European Union. That grim time still casts a shadow over Spain as evidenced in its politics and social organization today.. Illustr.: /. Manuscript. Book Condition: Good

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