The Saint Paul globe. (St. Paul, Minn.) 1896-1905, 1899-07-23
A POEMS HOME.
steady work lasts only for about five or
SIX months Of the year.
NOT SO DRINK 40 WI ARn

STEADY work lasts only for about five or
SIX months Of the year.
NOT so DRUNK AS WE ARE.
Sundays the poems market day. On
this day you will see the country roads
lined with men, women and children on
tEeir way to market. Each man carries
bottle, holding it by string tied to its
neck. The usual bottle is half pint
and 1t Is taken to bring back the mans
supply of rum for the following week.
A half pint is not, too much, but this Is
all he wants, although rum Is the ma
t1onal drink and he takes some eyerv
morning before breakfast Indeed
have been surprised to see so little
drunkenness here. The chief cases of
lntoxication are among our soldiers. and
L nave so far seen ten drunken Ameri-
cans to every drunken Porto Rican.
POOR MANS HOME.
I wish I could transport one of these
Porto ,Rican huts to the United States 7
would like to show President MCKINLEY
now some of his subjects are living on
this beautiful island. The house I
should choose would be one of a COM
mon laborer's on a rich sugar or coffee
plantation. There are thousands like it
all over Porto Rico. Here is how It
looks. It is made of poles about a 9
thick around as your arm and paln
leaves as thick as the average book cover
and about half as wide as a page of this
paper.
The framework. including the bridge
roof, is of poles tied together Then the
palm leaves are laid on and other noles
or about the thickness of a broomstick
are tied horizontally across the walls
OF the house to keep the palm leaves
together. The floor Of the hut is Of
poles, so loosely put together that all ths
roof IS so poorly made that the rain
drops through, and at night the cold
oreezes whistle through the walls.
Inc nut has no windows It's door Of
palm leaves can be lifted away during
the daytime 1t has absolutely no fur.
nlture, The family sleeps on the floor.
The cooking is done In a little lean-to at
the pack upon fire bed of earth, the pot
be1ng raised upon stones above the Goals
In this house, which I have described
from notes made in the hut itself. there
were eight children, three of them stark
naked. and one of the three was five
years old. 1t was deformed, and couId
only crawl over the floor in its naked
ness. All the children were exceedingly
lean, although their heads and eyes were
good.
CAN'T HAVE GARDENS.
AS I looked about this hut, which be-
Ionged to the peon of rich coffee nlant-
er, asked It's owner why he did not have
garden. He replied that the planter
d1d not allow his laborers to have gar
dens, for then they could raise what
they wished to eat and would not have
to buy at his store.
by inquiry L found this was so almost
everywhere. These people are surround
ed by good land, but they dare not use
It. Many of them may be working among
the bananas all day and at the close
nave to take the tin disks they receive in
pay and walk a mile perhaps to the
touch-me" stores and buy the bananas
which they use for their evening meals
The streams are full Of fish, but thew are
not allowed to fish in them because the
waters belong to their masters. They
Will be arrested If they steal vegetables.
and they dare not cut a stick without
the consent Of the men for whom thew
work
TAKING MEN FOR CHAIRS.
1t was for long time a wonder to me-
that there was no furniture In the houses
I found only few rude beds and now
and then a hammock or so in the huts of
the better class. 1t was very rare to
see table or chair. I asked one man
why this was so. He replied that the
possession Of chairs largely increased his
tax rate. Said he:
81 once bought two chairs and brought
them home. and for a time my wife and
myself enjoyed them after our hard DAYS
work in the field. Then the tax assessor
came along and wanted to increase my
taxes three pesos. asked him why, and
said 1 had just the same possessions on
which had been taxed before. But he
replied: You have furniture MOVE See