Morning journal and courier., 1892-01-09

wAKEmAN,s wANDRRINGs.

wAKEMAN,S wANDERINGS.
A Tramp In Portugal-A Study O
Lisbon women, Men and Manners
Quaint street Sighta and Scenes
Lowly Types and Ways-The Water
Carriers of Lisbon.
LISBON, Portugal, Dec. 90, 1891.
To the Editor Of the JOURNAL AND COURIER:
There is hardly another city in the world
where neatness in attire is SO general as In
Lisbon You cannot find an unclsanly ol
slovenly person in the city outside Of
beggars, who are numerous, licensed and
therefore professional, and who all affeci
both rags and filth. The middle Glasses
and the aristocracy are faultlessly dressed
and spotless linen from nobleman to light.
erman and fisherman is hero as delightful
a universally as in that other elysium OF
the lavendera, fair and brilliant Havana
With men, throughout the various ranks
of the aristocracy and among gentlemen
of leisure, gallants, merchants, profession
nj men and even with clerks, the normal
condition seems to be ono Of faultlese
dressing. 1t Is also observable that no one
seems gotten up for any occasion, or as II
only occasionally gotten up. You can
never surprise these Portuguese gentle
mon, or discover them, out Of good form
as to their attire. They are never over
dressed; but they are always well dressed.
1t Is dif6cnlt to say how much Of this Ia
the result of national good taste. But II
Is certainly more possible with Portuguese
men, where a finger is never lifted in man.
ual labor, than with Englishmen or Amer
leans, to whom the idea of helping ones
self and others, or performing any duty
necessary to the furtherance of business Ia
not repugnant. The men of Lisbon are
the best served men in the world. More
than ten thousand Spaniards are practical
ly their slaves. These are my old friends
the Gsllegans, from the north of Spain,
among whom I wandered two winters ago.
They are most docile of all servants and
the best. For the value of an American
five-cent piece they will go anywhere and
perform miracles of service. They are not
usually attached to single individual OF
household. They are everywhere, and are
any ones porter, ssrvant or valet at a mo-
ment's warning. The magical missing
sound, "Sh-s-s-s-s!" uttered anywhere in
Lisbon will bring one instantly to your
side. And 80 the poorest clerk may have
his valet, seamstress-for he will nend
your clothing with the de1terity of tailor
and all, in one, as much or little as he
likes or can afford.
AS much cannot be said for the women.
Their street appearance Is not SO charac-
teristic nor SO graceful as the Spanish wo-
men. The beautiful mantilla is less worn
here than seems fitting, or as one could
wish. One feels, when group of senho.
ritas are met in the pracas or seen in cost
ly equipages on the Campo Grande, that
unlike all other women of the Latin race,
they possess no distinct air or style, or
presence of their own. In dress they are
in fact composite; and like Bayreuth arch
itecture, which is in Europe the universal
simile for every manner of style iucon-
gruously composed, Portuguese lady
often presents startling combinations of
date and style in her most priced and
sumptuous attire. She still possesses q
fine carriage and figure, and, as l have
previously stated, certain honesty and
wholesomeness of face and look, and par
ticularly an ever glowing radiance of eye
and smile, which command the best sort
of liking and respect.
The artist and sentinentslist in general
will not find the poetic and rhapsodic type
80 frequent here as in Spain, Italy and Al
giere: but the compensation is at hand in
better type of womanhood. In what
may be termed the middle classes there are
few ravishingly beautiful women. They
are often tall and angular, or short and
stout, in either of which cases the rather
small and oval face has not the same at
tractiveness as with daintier women of Pc
lite and symmetrical figure. Women of
the latter type are oftener found in Lisbon
in the two farthest removed classes, among
the nobility and peasant and servant CLASS
es. The latter are most invariably beauti-
full in face and figure. So many of the
female servants as may be seen upon the
streets can always be readily observed at
the fountains, where with the Gsllegsns
they perform the duties of water-carriers;
while they often to the number of two and
three accompany their mistress for prone
nades or to the shops. Then the flower
market is full of beautiful girls; the daily
procession of the fish-women from Belem
contains many extraordinary types, though
painfully straight from always carrying
their fish upon their heads; and the peas
ant women who come with flowers, butter,
milk, eggs and cheese from the outlying
farms are almost invariably wenches OF
graceful carriage, perfect figure, and pi-
quaint and often lovely face.
No kinder-hearted, more hospitable OF
polite people sxist than those of Portugal
Politeness here has not the fippsncy of the
French nor the unmeaning pretence of the
| Spanish. 1t is more redundant and opu
| lent than with either of the former, but il
possesses genuine sincerity. The effort tc
| please comes from right feeling rather thar
through form and custom, with cold-heart
| ed calculations of profit behind. This ex
| tends to, and is even more marked among
| the lowly, who seem to be the most sunny
faced and kind hearted people who live
| Among every manner of city serving mer
and women there is a chivalry aud appa
rent earnestness in interchange of greet
| ing and commonest civility which often
| reaches the ludicrous to brusque Ameri
cans. Their gravity and dignity in thi
! regard are really wonderful. The cumula
| tive adjectives applied to intensifying tn,
formal expression OF mutual regard ani
leadidg up to those highest titles of respect
Senior and Senhora, never are less ex
pressive than "most adored," 'truest re
garded," "most heart thrillingly beloved,
or exceeding and most illustrious."
Even the beggars speak to each other il
ptecisely these courtly terms, and If yol
should refuse them aims with the custom
ary phrase, "Pardon!-in the name o
God!' they will follow you only to bles
and shower benedictions upon you.
You can never tire of the street scene
of Lisbon. From Belem, nearer the sea
every morning comes the PROFESSIONS o
fish-women. They are most picturesqu
in their blue kirtles, huge black felt hats
bare feet and legs, massive gold earrings
complexion brown and eyes as piercinI
black as Spanish gipsies, and their basket
of white and cleaning fish. They remin,
one strangely of the same class of womel
who come up from the Claddagh ever.
morning in Galway. But the lives of tn
former are SUMMER; and they are gsnia
kindly lot without vulgar word on thei
endlessly chattering tongues.
Over from SeiIal, Aldea Gallega and Al
cochete every morning come boat-loads .
market stuff and peasantry; while dow
from the mountain villages behind the cit
stream the peasant men and women. Tn
women among these bring along, with eve
; ~ manner of small produce, some of th
prettiest feet and ankles the bare-foote
. habits of many, and the short-skirted pei
ticoats of all, ever give unconscious dis
a