urate information is not easily obtainable, the European _locus
in quo_ of the Eclipse being in the benighted and somewhat untravelled
countries of Portugal and Spain.

The intending Eclipse excursionist must first make his choice between
(practically) a journey of all sea or of all land. The several sea
routes are one and all very much cheaper than any possible land journey,
and almost as quick in point of time, with the minimum amount of
personal knocking about. But (some persons will say) sea is sea, and so
it is. On the other hand the land journey is exceedingly expensive; and
beyond France the trains are very incommodious as regards hours, speed,
and connections. Moreover, there being more frontiers than one to cross,
there are extra opportunities for Custom-house squabbles, and Spain
especially is famous for this sort of thing.

As the Eclipse shadow will strike Europe in Portugal and quit Europe in
Spain the intending traveller must first decide for himself whether he
will prefer to go to Portugal or Spain. This settled, he will have the
choice of several sea routes and, in particular, of two land routes. But
before considering these further it will be well to state what are the
chief of the various places which are available as observing stations
for mixed travelling parties of ladies and gentlemen who have no desire
to rough it in out-of-the-way parts of the country.

The line of central eclipse passes across the Peninsula diagonally from
N.W. to S.E. It enters Portugal on the coast not far from Oporto in
latitude 40 deg. 50' N., longitude 8 deg. 38' W. of Greenwich. It quits Spain on
the coast at Cape Santa Pola, not far from Alicante, in latitude 38 deg. 13'
N., longitude 0 deg. 30' W. At Ovar in Portugal (pop. 11,000), 23m. S. of
Oporto the duration of the total phase will be 1m. 331/2s., and the Sun's
altitude at totality will be 42 deg.. At Talavera de la Reina in Spain (pop.
9700) the duration will be 1m. 271/2s., and the altitude 39 deg.; whilst at
Alicante (pop. 40,000) the duration will be still less, 1m. 19s., and
the Sun's altitude only 34 deg.. The three towns of Ovar, Talavera and
Alicante are selected _Nautical Almanac_ Eclipse stations, for which
special calculations have been made.

Hotel accommodation may be had at all the foregoing places, Oporto,
Ovar, Talavera and Alicante, as will be stated later on, but the Hotels
at Ovar and Talavera are not of much account.

Other towns more or less