The Iola register. [volume] (Iola, Allen County, Kansas) 1875-1902, 1881-06-24
The American Colony in Mexico.

A ball in Mexico has many advan-
tages over ball anywhere else, because
you can always count on the weather,
and if the house is too small you have
all outdoors. People here don't under
stand remarks about the weather, and
in my capacity as general interpreter
I have had occasion fifty times to ex-
plain to my fellow-countrymen that
they need not expect me to translate
their comments on the weather. Some
times daring neophyte, flushed with
his mastery of Castilian, will open the
conversation with the remark, "Hace
bel TEMPO" s'It's very fine weather."
and 1 have never failed to notice look
of dismay and surprise on the face of
the Mexican-as much as to say, "What
does he mean by saying it's fine wealth
err" It's always fine weather, and the
weather for the Minister'S ball was what
it always is-not too fine, but just fine
enough.
The Legation is like nine houses out
of ten here, where a building lot is
100 feet square, and where, instead
of putting the house in the middle of the
yard, they put the yard in the middle of
the house. The Minister lives on the
first floor, and neither knows nor cares
who inhabits the ground floor nor the
second floor, except that there is a
concierge or porter in a cave near the
entrance. The porter and his wife are
Indians; they wear low-necked shirts
and trim their hair with jack-knife !;
their children don't wear much of any
thing, and don't trim their hair at all.
They earn their salary by saying
"Quien sabe " when visitors ask if the
family are at home, but on this occasion
their services are dispensed with, and
we walk upstairs in a procession of all
nations. Upstairs the landing opens
on broad porch that runs all
around the patio or court. OPP
posite the landing are the ante
room and main parlor, occupying one
side of the court, of which three sides
are given up to the reception. We pass
through the ante-room, and at the door
of the saloon we are received, by the
Minister and Mrs. Morgan; in the cen
ter are General and Mrs. Grant, and
Mrs. Grant is obliged to sit down, on &C
count of sprained ankle. Young Mrs.
Grant is not we'll, and can not come, but
there is Miss Sharp in the imperial
party, a niece of Mrs. Grant, and very
pretty girl, but with a dangerous resem-
blance to her aunt. Don Matias Romero
is steering the Grant party, an insignif-
cant-looking steersman; but think bet
ter of him subsequently, when l am pre-
scented to Mrs. Romero; she was Miss
Allen, of Washington, and her husband
showed good taste, if she didn't. Mrs.
Mariscal, the wife of the Minister of
Foreign Affairs, is q blonde from Balti-
more, and more than sustains the repu-
tation of the bellies of the Monument
City. In fact, America shows mp well.
Judge Morgan has three pretty, bright
eyed daughters, fresh from school IL
Paris, but thorough Americans for all
that. Consul Trowbridge has come up
from Vera Cruz with three daughters,
who were born in Decatur, ILL.,, but who
after twelve years. residence in the trop-
les are more Spanish than the Spaniards
in certain slimness of shape and q sin
uous grace of movement. Gen. Frisbie,
of Syracuse, has two daughters
who are more than half Spanish
in virtue of their descent from
old Governor Vallejo, the last Mexican
Governor of California. could make