New-York tribune. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1866-1924, 1898-07-23
THE .SP1NIA RDS.
THEIR INCAPACITY FOR BIZ SI%ESS-SO
CIAL QUALITIES-TH POSITION
OF WOMEN
David Hsnnay in The Pail Mall Magazine.

OF WOMEN
David Hannay in The Pail Mall Magazine.
! II enc wrote II explain fairly why he the
| Salniard, has failed in the world the answer
! mus. be that No is tho most unhusin"sslike or
| mankind
| This unhusinesslikc incapacity is ehowr In IN
| Vulnerable ways Barcelona for example IS
| Grea' trading port. about on level win Mar
| seNles II has grown very much within recent
| years Tho Barcelonese consider themselves
| model 10 an spain In Tho matter ~ industry
| and m common sense f"i IN this toWn-Which
| IS really a handsome place and rich-the head
telegraph Office Is in tho suburbs. there is only
| one branch Office in tho town ana messages
| have - 10 sent from thai by hand The post
| on'co is we'll away from the port IN by street.
| II YOU ar" there N business You VIII ma As
likely not. that orc clerk * In attendance ou'
| 4 ar inncr.e stan He VIII probably be very
| polite but ~ VIII pu, hts hand - pen or a
| tundic ~ letters a. u he feared they would
| burn And barcelona is . model ~ smartnes@
| conipa -ed TO Madrid one wonders what would
| happen to IN" dan ding officials one sees at
these places Il The! N.re ,ranspoIt,h 1y s W5G
| noss would probably b" their fate II they mhq"
| an effort To meet the call But then they would
| not. the hurry and drive would simply revolt
! their sense 81 what VAS due 10 a gentleman
| As the pos'oflcc g.. SO are tho railways That
| they all on single lines Is nothing Inc
| country Is not rch enough nor tho tratiic sum,
GENTLY great To- call for double Neither need
! one complain n Tho trains are slow. y wise
| man does not want - hurry when h" Is travel
| Ing on holiday. aad why should a business
| man make haste when no Spaniard does But
| ihe c.,en, to which this p. ople abstains from
! hurry is wonder Take. Tor example L"rida,
! Witch u.s. for the Peninsula. a busy Junction
| Tn" branch linc from Tarragona meets IN"
| main linc from barcelona t. Saragossa at
this pla~c No". you ar" , ""mlms IRON
/ hc registered afresh. II Is Impossible 10
| book through The process is lesson IN
| tranquility \ porter trund.cs the traps from
| one end II the Platform To- the other as Gravely
| a. II h. were conducting a-funcraL Tho receipt
| given AT Tarragona has To- he cancelled II
| takes two clerks 10 do tho work now on" IS
| issued and again TWO clerks are employed
| Their pens 20 az II they were signing their
| death-wArrlnis one looks on and wonders
| what would happen At Liverpool-st II things
! were managed in that style.
There are four languages spoken In Spain
Gacian. which is closely akin to th@ f2r'u,
branch ~ 80 southern French and me cas-
titan. But they ar" all spoken alike IN al
classes There is 10 distinction between the
| language 81 The upper and lower class. The
| Tolcdan speaks better Castilian than an An
| dalusian.
In the south the language has been much
| DEGRADED in pronunciation. and 10y tho admixt-
/ urc Of gypsy ana other slang. hut differences go
| according TO the provinces. not according 10
| rank or social position This uniformity ~ lam
| guaSe is as IL were the outward and visible
| sign of n certain social equality which prevails
| among the Spaniards. II Is perfectly compatible
with the recognition of Official rank or social
| distinction But that is given among the Span
! iards az II is among the officers % an army,
without serVility
the major general commanding the garrison.
civil official holding good post. the landlord
and the cook-the last with his cap and apron
| on-al playing dominos together at the same
table The general sits at the end of a sofa, and
| is addressed not conGtantly. hut at reasonable
| intervals. as Don jose or whatever 1t may be.
He says Senior TO- the landlord or, or rhe COOK.
| distinction In the middle of the game guests
| return from the theatre and ask foi supper
! The cook gets up and serves them. "a matter
| Of
| and they all talk with ms much ease as any
| four gentlemen at club 49,
| The inner social lie Of a people is always diff
| ncui to know As rule. man only gets 10
understand 1t thoroughly by marrying into the
! race and then he himself becomes so fully natu-
! rallied that he ceases to be able to judge 1t
| from the out side Besides. 1t must always be
| remembered that even in Spain there are wide
| differences The merchant banker or shopkeeper
| Of largo seaport lives. and also thinks. very
| differently from the peasant Of CASTLE. In the
| parts II Spain which have been least affect
ed by foreign example habits have changed
| little since the seventeenth century. The women
| are much secluded They hardly ever go out.
| except to church. or for walk on the Alameda
when the band plays Then tn" unmarried ones
! does not hold true Of the working class. In
! the East from which the Spaniard certainly
drew much through the Moor. II is only among
/ people Of Some means that the women are sit
! ters behind the curtain" Yet tho Spanards
! arc the people who have formed the proverb
| that broken legs. hens ana women are best al
| homo" In the most advanced parts Of spain
II would b thoucht rather scandal for
| married woman 20 he seen walking with any
| man excnp, her husband or one OF her own fam
IIv T, Is rerhans from the Oriental that the
| STANDARD has received his conception Of family
| honor" as something which depends mainly on
| this-that The women OF his household shall not
| he talked about. ! have known an old-fashioned
Standard deeply offended when young coun
truman asked after the health of su esposa"-
his wife As the old gentleman explained to me.
this was the result Of a bad French example.
| The youth ought TO have said How Is your
| house, MY old acquaintance was behind his
| time hut great deal Of this feeling survives.
To mn IN extreme case. II is doubtful whether
| n Spanish Jury could he found to give verdict
against the head Of n family who had killed
| mishehaving wife. daughter or sister They
would he sorry for him. not for the victim.
| Distinction still PLAYING the races" asked the
| ignorant person -, ...,,,,.L4. -, ...x A..