The Forest Republican. [volume] (Tionesta, Pa.) 1869-1952, 1890-12-24
THE PLAZA OF SANTIAGO.
PICTURESQUE SCENES IN A oH1L-
IAN CITY.
A Charming Spot Filled With Shade
Trees, Fountains and Flowers-All
Traffic Concenters There,

Santiago, Chill, with its steeples and
towers and its wooded hill of Santa Lu-
| cia, lies toward one end of broad plain,
| hemmed in by mountains which are al
ways visible. The plan of the town is
the usual Tectilinear chess board arrange.
meut of uniform cundras, or blocks, with
a grand central square, and an avenue,
or alameda, of overarching trees. On
one side of the plaza are the cathedral
and the Archbishop's palace; on the 9th
er the Municipalidad, or town-hall, aswe
should call it, and the postofiice; and on
the two remaining sides portales, or ar
cades, with shops on the ground floor.
The architectural monuments of the
plaza call for no special commendation,
excepting the Postoffice, which is con-
veniently arranged on a North American
model, and served by obliging ladies and
and by male clerks, the latter as morose
and obstinate as postoffice employees in
Latin countries generally appear to be.
The plaza is the centre of all the move
ment of Santiago, the terminus and start
ing point for the tramways, the great
station for hackney coaches, the fashion,
able evening promenade, when the band
plays in the music kiosk. All the features
of this movement are interesting to the
visitor. At any hour of the day, from
early morning until late at night, the OBJ
server will find there something's to note,
something to reason about and speculate
upon. How pleasant this plaza is what
an important role it plays in the life of
the town. and what pity it is that the
builders of Anglo-Saxon towns in new
countries do not profit by the wise pre-
cepts of the old Spaniards, whose first care
was always to provide their cities With
lungs, breathing grounds, and agreeable
meeting places, that formed, as it were,
the common hearth around which the
citizens gathered both for pleasure and
for business-the continuation, in fact,
of the old Roman forum The plaza,
the cathedral, the town hall, the Gov
ernor's palace, representing the church,
the municipality, and the central author
ity, invariably form the center of the
Hispano- American towns, and invariably
you will find some effort to make of this
spot point of entertaining resort. Even
in the smallest village of Spanish South
America there is always plaza, planted
with trees and furnished with benches,
for the accommodation of the citizens,
the mothers, and the nurse maids; for
the plaza is not only the promenade of
the grown up persons, but also the play
ground of the young folks, who, how
ever, amuse themselves in a quiet and or
derly manner, having none of those bois-
ferrous games and violent exercises which
are needed to develop the conquering
muscle of the Anglo-Saxon youth. The
plaza of Santiago is of fine proportions,
and rendered very charming by the shade
trees planted around it, and by the small
but luxuriant garden and trellised walks
around the central fountain, which in
summer plays amidst a brilliant mass OF
perfumed flowers carefully protected by
iron railinrs and vigilant policeman,
who locks the gates at ten o'clock, so
that the garden and its blooming riches
may not be carried away surreptitiously
by night. As | was informed by an
Irish lady who has had thirty years eX-
perience of Chill at the head of a charit-
able institution for orphan girls. "The
vice of the country is thieving. Pro
tective measures are therefore neces-
sary."
In the daytime the plaza is visited
only by few people of the lower classes,
who sit on the benches to rest or to loaf.
Other people cross it diagonally on their
way to and from different parts of the
town. The coachmen wait for custom
ers for their two-horse landaus and
barouches which stand around the
plaza select few presenting a marked
contrast with the ordinary broken-down,
rickety, and dirty Santiago street car.
riage, drawn by a pair of miserable
horses, and driven by a disreputablC
and stupid human being, who sits undel
a hood in front of the coach The traffic
in the streets around the plaza, besides
the tramways and cabs consists of cart
drawn by three horses or mules hor
messed abreast, and one of them rlddeT
by the driver, armed with an active
whip; teams of four bulocks lowering
their heads under the heavy yoke, anc
preceded by man carrying a long BAN
boo goad, who prOds the beasts with &
bucolic dignity that Virgil forgot tl
aualyze; men riding on horses or mules
and wearing ponchos, and very wide
brimmed Panama hats with broad blacl
ribbons to tie them under the chm
Cholo cross breed women with parting
at the back and two long braids o
coarse black hair hanging over thu
shoulders; Cholitas and Chilenas wear
ing the black shawl or mauta, which i
the universal morning artire Of Soutl
American women, both Of high and o
, low degree.
; The baratillos are a great feature O
the plaza. They occupy the spaces be
tween the arches of the arcadcs O
portales, and consist of booths and stall
which, when closed at night, with thei
shutters, look like big cupboards sc
against the wall. In these booths. ar
sold cigars and cigarettes toilet articles
, toys, mercery, flowers and fruit, Will,
the other side of the arcade is lined witt
, regular shops. In the blocks adjoining
the plaza are some handsome passage
full Of shops, where French, German AM
. English manufactured articles Of all de
scriptions are displayed for the tempta
0 tion of the falr X.-HlTpcr'S Magazine
U
A woman first established in the Isl