The Hood River glacier. (Hood River, Or.) 1889-1933, 1893-05-13
WHERE BEoeARs THRIVE.
Mexican Poverty Extremely picturesque
to u Casual Observer.

Chief among the many pW1llng ques.
tons with which my childish mind whiled
away the weary half hour Ot n Sunday
morniug sermon, was the existence OF
bepgars in Bible days, lpictmed Pales.
tiue to myself Ns land OF temples, tomhss
and gardens, Inhabited by Regga's aud
Phat,sves, Born and reared III the pros.
porous west, poverty such MS the senptural
tales dimly suggested was to me a thug
as vague as the He'll of the sane records,
fairy tale far more unreal than the sleep
ing palace or the caves of Aladdin, Now,
the puzzle is solved, | have seen poverty,
| have been to MeNico, | understand
Palestine. | can almost believe III Il horn
ed Satan and fire and brimstonc.
To a casual observer Mexican poverty
is extremely picturesque. 1t ~ not an
imitation of responsibility such aS the
humhlcst American will attempt, but 1t
is humanity in rags and uakcdness, too
often in sores, almost always III dirt.
Their, begging is Il trade, the occupation
of all the poorer population. BeSgats
inl,st the railroad stations at the interior
towns, aud motley array It Is, Ihey
are of all sexes, couditiousund ages, with
! au. without sores, the lame, the halt, and
the blind. Babies III arms holding out
dirty little hands for u "ccntavo, " old
women, Young women, healthy little
bows. crippled graudtathers all whining
To the same tune i'll their mougrel Spanish
For the love of God, SeuorIta, give me
Il ccut."
Give them cents | poured them
out upon them. Never had II copper
seemed of SO much value, | luNurlate,
in their delight. thought ont the porter
the newsletter and the conductor t'
satisfy the want that never could be saus
fed; for there is "a friendly feeling "mont
these uufor,uuates, and when they ilh'
one who will give, they spread the gla'
tidiups amoug all their class, aud lndce,
| suspected them of having discovered
some peculiar way of tclegruphing the III
formation To the next station, SO besicSc'
was for charity.
Some tourists who had been III tn
country before eudcavored to impress III
with the fact that was encouraging idle
ness, but who would not be idle when tn
sun was hot and water a luxury aud evcl
for labor, money was not Forthcoming
They must live. To live they must eat
and it seems to me that IN the more desc
late portion of the country to cat, the
must beg
Very picturesque were they seen trou
the car window in the soft gloom oi I'll
southern night, their dark eyes gleamm
like stars under their quaint hat or stlI
more primitive head dress, their whit
, teeth glittering as the musical SpansI
rippled forth i'll compliments calculate
TO appeal to the generosity of the senorit
, who seemed to them a small sized Prov
, dence. In the cruel glare OF the sun dc
3 fccts became evident, and ontsaw tn
coarseness in the squalor aud dirt, sti
never did they cease TO be poetic. The
harmonized so perfectly with the back
ground of cloudless sky, antique bulle
iugs. and tropical verdure. There was
beauty even in their very ugliness whic
I was plea for their existence and IN r'
t membering the pleasantcst journey {
: nv life / shall always have very tende
9 recollection of the beggars of Mexico
' Edih JE Day in kr5piS GT D'ydEH
i, Rail1cay and Marine Gazette.