The Scranton tribune. [volume] (Scranton, Pa.) 1891-1910, 1898-12-14
LIFE IN PORTO RICO.
It Has Some Drawbacks. But the
ingenious American Can Manage
to Get Along.

San Juan Letter IL Chicago Hccu,d.
As to In" price of living, the best
hotel charge s! Il day. but the sleep
ing rooms all open into courts, have
no outside windows and are to the
last extremity hot. l'ndrr Spanish
laws, H. towns where houses adioin.
no outside windows arc allowed. This
vna to avoid tn danger Of dirr from
the interior blowing ON to adjacent
roofs and coltaminatiug the water, as
all the supply is collected from the
rainfall ana stored i'm cistcrns, from
which it is drawn by buckets in the
riore modest houses and by small force
pumps in those Of greater pretensiOn.
We have au advantage in our hous"
which has outside windows, furnished
with tropical blinds, but no glass,
which is but little used on the island.
The tropical blind consists Of Il shut
ter to the uHtsid' of which Il solid
piece of wooG is hinged, so that the
window can bo let entirely open, or
entirely closed, or closed with a shut
ter which excludes the sun but ad-
mits air ana Il certain amount of
light The doors are furnished with
moveahle shutters which can he closed
with bars of iron. giving the effect
of a solid door. Our house contains
a bathroom provided with a native
tile hathtub, eight bedrooms. sitting
room, dining room, double porch, al
so a kitchen containing Il native
stove. which is shaped like a dry goods
I box, made OF tiles and cement, with
little charcoal receptacles at the top.
The fumes Of the charcoal pass out
through a large funnel-shaped hood Of
tiles and cement built over the stove.
The homes Of the better class are
floored with tile, and practically no
rugs or carpets are used, owing to the
| insects--ileaS, cOCkroachcs two inches
or more long, and many other varieties.
| For this kind of house, with a large
yard containing the ever-present cocoa
nut palm and clmps of bananas, we
pay $50 "A month. Tenants can hire
all the necessary furniture for an eight
/ room house at from Sc to $S q month.
| outside of beds, linen, crockery and
/ Silrerware. Linen sheets are used eX-
/ clusiycly by the upper class, as other
! fabrics are too hot 4 bed is properly
! made when there are two sheets and
/ a pillow on il. Canvas cots with re-
movable covers, costing $l.75, are in
! general use. hut peculiar kind of iron
| bedstead is considered more fashion
/ able: it has small iron supports for a
/ canopy of mosquito netting; these nets
arc an absolute necessity. as there are
| plenty of mosquitoes at all seasons of
! the year in both town and country.
A native horse, carriage and harness
may be rented by the month for SO.
! The native horse Is about the size of
! our pony, he is fed but little grain, il
| any, and seems proof against ali kinds
of i'll treatment ana abuse. The ma
tives are most cruel to dumb animals.
Coal oil is usually sold I'm square five
! gallon cans. which, when emptied, are
used by the natives as lanterns on
their OK carts. One side is carefully
| punched full of nail holes, n door is i'm
provlsed on another side. hole is cut
! in the top ana the can is attached Ia
a board nailed to the side Of tho cart
This, with a candle for fuel, makes a
very fair light, and certainly looks pic
| turesque on the road.