Pine Bluff daily graphic., 1895-01-29
THE cooLIES OF TRiNlDAD.
A Graceful, Pleading People Transplsnted
 from Xndia.

Graceful, PIaasing People Transplsnted
 from xndfa.
 There is DO distinct connection be- tween the Southern Cross and the 0oolies of Tsinidsd, said the young botsnist, yet the one always reminds me of the other, because 1t was In starting out early one morning to see the coolies of Trinidad make one of the most interesting parts of that in- Aesesting country. There are some thousands of them on the island, and they stand alone, never mixing with Ahe negroes, Chinese or any other resi- dents of the island. This isolation Is purely from choice. not because they are afraid of losing caste; they are all Of low caste to begin with, and what eyer standing they have had at home. they lost 1t by leaving their native country. An American can look at these people from aa entirely unpreju- diced standpoint If anybody can. and make one wonder to see these men of lowest caste, what the higher east:s can be like. Every one of them is s's dignif1ed as-weu, as preacher. You never hear them jabbering and chat tering in the streets or at work, as some of theip fellow laborersdo. They have little to say, and when they talk 1t IS In low and musical tones. They are erect in carriage, prompt in execu- tien, and mind their own business etgietlY. Never seeking quarrel, they are always able to take care of them selves A slendeP coolie of one hundred end twenty pounds, when driven to it, will gird up his loins and thrash two ,hundred-pound negro with ease, A New YorkeY cannot help admiring such people.
 Speaking of slender coolie, they ere all slender. Generally they are tall, but oD their arrival in Trinidad they are almost skeletons That this Is the result of insufficient food at home is shown by the way they make muscle after they have been year or two onsfhe island. But they never grow fat; or if they do the fat ones all escaped ne. and I was so much inter eSted in them that took pains to be among them frequently. Their weists orc particularly small, and their ribs stand out prominently, but there is plenty of muscle on them, even when they first come from Hindostan. They are dark ip skin, but not one of the thousands saw could by any possible tty be mistaken for a negro. And ! thinh they must be the most graceful people in the world. Hard labor does not seem to iuteyfere with their grace os form and movement When they stand ib Is in graceful posture, with out, of course, any attempt at strik. ing an attitude. When they squat Aown (and they hover sit) they do it gracefully. Even when they are en. gagged at that most ungraceful labor of digging holes in 6 cane field with 0 heavy West Indian hoe, every movs- ment is study for an artist A great many of them have very intelligent faces
 These are the men am talking Ahout-the field laborera The women did not seem to me to be equally ad- mirable In appearance They are all modest in demeanor, of whatever age; hns when woman has passed twenty five her only handsome points are her shining eyes and her coal'black hair. They mature too early to preserve their beauty lopgi and as to tnodest demeenoS, it ratheE behooves woman to act modestly when she has hus, band who would think nothing of cut ting her windpipe. The women are generally clad In long gowns of thin stuff. particularly when they appear in the streets but in their own villages and tD their little homes are frequently eeen with nothing on but the native |''lungee," long, narrow cloth which they wind about themselves so skill fully that they can make of 1t mere breech.clout or 0 garment that covers the entire body. head and feet in-, eluded. if they so desire. If the hus, bands are terribly ready to slaughter their wives, 1t must be said for them that they are equally careless of their own lives When coolie Is abused by his master he sometimes avenges hiwsslf with knife or elubj but be ia far more likely to retire to the seclu> tioa od 8 canefeld and stick knifa into his own body, committing suicide because he had been ill-treated
 Tho long gown worn by the women Is not their native dress, but conces- Bson to western custom Tho woman's 0ative dress fs short waist, or bodice, generally made of brightuoiorcd stuff end highly oYnamented, end a short and scsnt skirt The lower part of thu bodice does not meet the skirt band by seveYal inches. and in the in- tervai q Aeld of tawny skin Is shown. The men all wear the "lungeen when they go into town, but at home or in their villages they seldom wear moro NAnu single garmcnt, that seems to nc fashioned precisely like pair of hNinmiHg 6xaHerss The children are