Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1891-06-27

| Inc asylums Tor widows and orphans arr
mostly in charge of the Sisters de la Provi
dencia. from the dominion of Canada. During
the last forty years they have established and
nobly sustained six convents-in Santiago
valparaiso Conception, Serena and Limache
and have given shelter to thousands of un-
| Iortunates. In various wars and opochs OF
epidemic these good women have shown the
| most heroic devotion.
Speaking Of Gillian generosity, 1t is asserted
that the owners OF Santiagos marble palaces
are so free with their wealth that Irish and
American tramps easily make from ten to
twenty dollars a day by begging at their doors
lnis careless giving, however. should not be
| called charity, but rather a weak indulgence in
the luxury Of spending money, which can
scarcely be counted among the saving virtues.
sANTIAaos THEATEns.
| In noting Santiago's public institutions we
must not omit the theaters. Besides the Teatro
Politeama, the Teatro Santiago, the French
theater on Santa Lucia and q few other third
rate temples of music and the drama there IL a
splendid government opera house known as
the Teatro Municipal, which is the finest struct-
ure OF the kind in South America, and for size,
gorgeousness and arrangement surpasses any
| thing we have in the United States. A descrip-
ton in the cold black and white Of print can
convey but q faint idea of how it looks at its
best, brilliantly lighted and filled with the
creme de Ia creme of the Chllian capital-when
the blaze Of jewels is not more dazzling than
the gances that fash from southern eyes nor
the music sweeter than beauty's smile
when Partisan toilets, bare arms, fiuttering fans
and thousand opera glass flirtations bewider
the spectator. The building is constructed in
horseshoe form, and its internal arrangement is
| on the European plan, with four balconies. three
OF which are divided into boxes. tier above tier,
In semi-circular shape, all luxuriously up
holstered with crimson brocade and decorated
| in white and gold. The balconies have no
pillars to obstruct the view, but are supported
upon brackets, each bracket being beautiful
female figure with uplifted arms.
BoNNETs AND NO BoNNETs.
Formerly none but men, and those not Of the
upper classes, ever sat in the body of the house,
though in reality it is quite as comfortable as
the boxes; but the English residents. with the
natural independence Of loyal Britons
who are known to stand as high
| socially and financially as anybody to
| the CHILEAN manor born succeeded
In time in elevating the character of the pit by
perssting in occupying it with their we'll
dressed ladies'. Now, though perhaps not SO
| fashionable as the show places above. the floor
| OF the house is always filed, at the average
| price OF u a seat, even when the boxes are
comparatively empty. But inexorabie custom,
| which In Spanish America must not be de-
parted from, DEGREES that ladies in the pit must
| wear their bonnets or some other light cover
| ing for the head, while never bonnet appears
| above, all tie ladies in the boxes being dressed
for the simplest farce Cor rather half undressed
| 30 far as the bodice is concerned) as for the
grand opera in Paris or London.
LIGHT OPERA THE RULE
The Teatro Municipal. it's name implies. is
| controlled by the city authorities and every
year its boxes are sold at auction for the sea-
son, under the direction of the MAYOR and the
| receipts given, in whole or in part. as subsidy
to the opera management The fashionable
evenings are Thursdays, saturdays ana especial
Sundays, the attendance on other night being
very slim. unless some fiesta is i'll progress.
The lightest Of operettas are the rule-such as
"Dona Juanita, the ballet of Drama" and
'orteO in los lnfiernos;" but have seen "B0-
cacio," 'RiSoletto" and the ancient but always
acceptable Chimes of Normandy" rendered
better here than is usual la the United States.
Like all Latin peoples, the SantiaSoans are
judges of music. and would hiss indifferent
company OF the stage. In this theater every
ching bears the monogram IF. NJ. s. CTeatro
Municipal de Santiago. on chair backs. music
racks and wherever monogram can be placed.
The orchestra numbers scventy-iiye piec S,
| the stage furniture is fauities&, and there il a
splendid prosceiium box especially reserved
for the president. But he will not be likely to
occupy it at present. for by his order the NUM-
| clpai theater remains closed this wiuter 4.
seems odd TO be writing of June, July and
August winter. but on this side of the
| equator. you know. the alm,nac with which We
are familiar is all oct of JOINT, and the coolest
season occurs while northern people are suffer-
| ing most with heat. The closing OF .hc ol,ri
| house is Il grief to Santiago society. and com
| plants more bitter thaa ever against
| Dictator Eiuiaccda.' Owing to war troubles,
foreign performers cannot be imported. and
the harassed government has neither though.
nor money to bestow upon the IN iH,. Lnlts
tue rebellion of n few cranky congrcssms,. is
felt in every circle of Chiiian society but to the
presidcn is attributed the blame.
ANXIOUS For PEACE.
| From time to tiiae B macada. who ia more
anxious for peace than any other m an in the
country, has offered the olive branch To his
| cne:n!cs. of cours, with conditions. But the
handfnt OF greedy pOiiticid!s who ed the re-
| volt will accept no conditions they want the
earth, or all of it that Chill: claims. demanding
nothing more than that Balmace;la shall resign
his power altogether i:!io their hands and ie
them run the government after their own fash
| ion.
! The other day Mr.. Patrick EaSan. the United
States minister, lat, from DIb.in. undertook 10
| negotiate terms between the president and the
rebels. Well, the upshOt Of his overtures be
tween the president ana the insurgents was
| that the latter returned Il scorntul mcs3ag; to
| the OBJECT tina! they considered Bainlceda a,
| usurper, as opposed to the new government
| they have lately established in the northern
provinces. The absurdity of this needs no
comment The Constitutional president whom
| they themselves helped 10 elect now nearin.,
| the end OF his legal term. can hardly be called
| a usurper; ana the federal government. under
which Chill has long been the E.ost Prosperous
| of south American republics, iromises better
| for the people than that set up by party OF
nialcOntents whose greatest grievance is ti.at
| they cannot all rule at once.
THE True STATE OF POLITICAL AFFAIRS.
| The rebel congressman who has been sent to
the United States because he is half an Ameri-
can, is reported to have frequently said in high
places that lit il time the true state of political
affairs made known in the north" but the
''true state will hardly he presented by SO
know!edged object is to gain in the United
States official sanction Of tlls rebel cause.
1t is particularly unfortunate for budding
been in any way brought into this affair, for in
regard for the stronger northern republic
The prejudice against us, which grew out of
the attitude assumed by our government dur
ing the Peru-Chili war (ended in 49, has not
yet died out. On this subject the mos; famous
| OF Gillian writers says i'll a recent book: "A
generous policy on the part of Chilli. and the
unreasonable and unwarranted interference Of
Secretary Blaine of the United States, through
his agents, Hurlburt in Lima and Adams in La
Paz (at that time United States ministers in
Peru and bolivia, imposed on Chill heavy ex-
penditures OF life and money without in the
least lettering the defenders or causing any
| manifestation of inability on the part of the
victor to maintain her own interests much less
TO accept the forced Intervention OF any neutral