Belmont chronicle. [volume] (St. Clairsville, Ohio) 1855-1973, 1886-08-05

Modest tFaced-society LadIes-The Mar
riage Relation-scAooIs.
To properly present Paraguay and its beau
tiful little capital, Asuncion, is a task some
thing like that of properly estimating the
value of stout, obStreperous boy who has
exhibited pluck and been worsted, but whose
texture is sure to make him a future As we
steam up in front of the capital it appears at
its best. Lying on gentle slope rising from
the bank of the river, the city is seen in every
section at glance. The white houses, though
only one story high, have the appearance Of
thrift In the foreground is the unfinished
palace of the tyrant Lopez 1t was intended
to be the best house in the republic
Away in the distance one sees the tower of
the railroad depot, fine, modern building.
The railroad runs into the country about forty
miles. The Spanish American hotel is a
superior building, once a palace. It is built
around pateo. Its entrance is stately, with
large columns It's pateo is enriched with the
same massive and tasteful pillars. We found
no English here except in the cooking. This
was a most fortunate place to find English,
with little Spanish of my own, and with q
most elaborate and accurate and ready amount
in my companion, DIR. Wood. We Jared much
better in talking with the natives than we did
in eating with them.
SCENES IN THE STREETS.
The streets, running parallel with the river
and near it, are sufficiently level to admit of
the use of wagons. There are very few carts
and no wagons to be seen. These carts are
drawn by ropes hitched to the girth of the
horse. The nearest approach to carriage
was cart of quibracha wood, made without
any iron, having not even linchpin of iron.
The felloes are about six inches wide, and the
hubs twenty inches in diameter. The wheels
are low. The box sets fiat down on the axle
tree. There are willow work sides to the box
three feet high, and corrugated, galvanized
shest-iron roof. This is drawn by oxen with
croSsOar tied on the horns. Some of your
readers who saw the Red River outfits of the
half-breeds in the early days will appreciate
the music made by these carts in motion. The
wheels, never creased, excel q troupe
Of horse fiddles. It is related that one
mai creased his cart wheels and stopped
the noise. And he also stopped his
cattle. They refused to go in silence. The
quibracha cart was the nearest approach to a
carriage we remember to have seen during
the days Of our stay in the capital 1t is
owned by wealthy English gentleman, long
a resident of the city. He keeps it for the
comfort and pleasure of his wife and children.
Travel in Paraguay, away from the rivers, is
either on foot or ON horseback.
The people are chiefly Guarani, or mixed
Guarani and Spanish, with very few Spanish.
They are gentle, docile and pleasant in ap-
pearance. The women are the chief mark
and product of the country. They are comely
and modest faced Their dress is sparse,
adapted to the heat of the climate and to
their poverty. Their dress is intended to con-
sist of white cotton skirt, stopping a little
above the ankle; a chemise, with lace embroi-
dered yoke, open to the waist, and piece of
cotton cloth, not unlike a sheet, wrapped
about the head and shoulders Thus attired,
with their black eyes and usually brunette
faces, they make a picturesque appearance
Many Of them are without the skirt, and
some chiefly pure Guarani women have only
the sheet-like wrap. Then this is worn wrap
ped round the body, either over the shoulders
or under the arms, covering the body. At
certain hours in the day the street is filed
with these women attending to their market
ing. They constitute the great mass of the
population, and do nearly, if not quite all, the
work. In the market Ghe building covers a
thousand of these women, moving about in
all directions. We saw but one woman on
the street wearing shoes.
THE MARRIAGE RELATION.
The ladies who compose what we call so
ciety are very few, and are dressed and culti-
waited after the fashions of Europe. 1t is
said to be almost impossible to find score Of
them in the entire republic outside of the cap
ital and the nine chief towns. The women
greatly exceed the men in number-in the
bola han 10 in flao
cities sometimes twenty to one. They nearly
all have families. The marriage ceremony is
not considered a necessity. 1t may rather be
called luxury for the opulent Not long
Eince priest, by direstion Of the authorities,
announced that he would marry, free of
charge, any persons who wished the service.
This offer reached hundreds of families not
formally married, but not one accepted the
offer. This state of things has been brought
about by the war and by the high charges
made by the priests for performing the mar
riage ceremony. In the states down the
river, and here also, formerly the lowest price
was $40 Without this sum the priest would
not serve them. Many of them never in all
their lives have so much money. This has
not prevented their essential marriage, though
it deprived them Of q marriage ceremony.
This has proportionately decreased the sane
tity of the covenant.
1t is the hope of Paraguay that she is shak-
ing herself free from her old superstidons
and Is intensely interested in the education of
her children. As our steamer, Cisne, anchored
from time to time in the leisurely methods of
southern travel, frequeat conversations with
the natives discovered a widespread interest
in schools. While the half-clad women car
ried oranges on their heads through the hot
sun to load on ship, men sat in the shade and
drank mate, a native tea. They had come to
the solitary house on the bank of the river to
watch the loading Of the oranges. They mani
tested the deepest interest in all the details of
this educational system, and in the provisions
made by the government to give the children
of these women a chance. Over 100 youths
are taken from the public schools selected by
competitive examinations--and educated at
the capital All bills are paid and their future
is practically secured, This touches every
community in the republic. The standard in
the National university is not very high, but
it is good start, and must move forward
Bishop C. d. Fowler in Chicago News.