The morning news. [volume] (Savannah, Ga.) 1887-1900, 1899-09-03
WILLING SLAVES TO THE MEN.
ARE OUR GENTLE Puerto RICAN
SISTERS.

SISTERS.
Impossible for Males to Engage In
Business and the Women Are the
Bread Winners-COmmOn Law
Marriages Made Necessary by I'm
just Laws OF the old Spanish
Regime.
From the Cincinnati Enquirer.
Puerto Rico.-Much has been written Of
the climate, natural beauty, products and
possibilities of Porto Rico, the gem Of the
Antilles but very little. If anything. def
mite has been said Of the women. Since
we are to look upon the native Porto RI
can woman as our newest cousin, and
many families at home are having the
closer tie of daughter introduced by mar
rage. as In the case of two young Off
GERS stationed here at san Juan, who have
married Porto Rican bellies, it may be per-
tinent to send home few pictures of her
whose hand is TO rock the cradle of our
new territorial race.
| While there are widely separated CLASSES
| found here by reason of birth OF financial
condition yet the tyranny of Spain these
| many years has marked both high and low
| with many common characteristics. The
! more fortunate wife and daughter of some
native subofficial of the old regime, may
| lounge all day in greater elegance upon
her second-story balcony than her less for
| tunate sister who occupies the ground
floor of the same dwelling, yet true it s,
both women do lounge and smoke cigar
cites, embroider a little. rarely read, and
! to III the
other The best houses are meagerly
furnished, bare floors. a center table. six
| rocking chairs arranged with military
| precision on each side and face the table,
a large mirror and the best room of the
| house is complete.
The greater part of the daily food Is
| bought, prepared at general shops ana
| brought to the door by vendors. with the
| lower classes the food is taken at any
time of day it happens along-there is no
| regular family gathering at table. The
| purchase of a roll of bread a mango, pine
| apple or bananas, with occasionally CO.
coanut fo- drink, forms a complete feast
within the limits of the family fund.
Few Legal Marriages.
The peculiar system of taxation upon
| marriage rites imposed by the church has
| in the past years changed the standard OF
| morals in this one direction, and common
| law or behind the church" marriage has
| been the rule and under this law the fam
J lily ties are as well, If not better, pre-
served than under the civil or church re-
! qulrements and protection. The priest was
| permitted to charge SO for the marriage
| ceremony alone, and that amount repre-
| sents more money than many even we'll
TODD people of this island ever have at
once during their entire lifetime. Should
| a young couple secure the church rites
on the credit system it but creates slav-
4. g. no he arafa
| accruing each year upon the amount can
| not be more than paid from the income of
the little family to the human vulture.
! Under such conditions it is a great COM
pliment and credit to the people that this
| tyranny of the church was supplanted by
a system of mutual VOWS made stronger
perhaps by the fact and preserved with
almost divine fidelity
| A story is told of a wealthy native whose
| span of life had almost run its length
under the common law system recently
| giving a three days fete in honor of his
final church and civil marriage to the
loved and honored old wife.
1t appears that from among the many
| grown children daughter had been sent
to New York for some study in special
line of work Upon her return, impressed
| with the Importance of the marriage rite,
she urged 1t upon her parents, not as
| reproof, but rather as a crOwning glory
to their successful lives and high station.
There Is a legal phase also to this in
cident which may have prompted this
wise young woman's action. as the moral
phase was an unquestoned factor.
A Legal Injustice.
Under the laws then prevalent the wife
and children of a common law union could
not Inherit the property of the husband
and father, and his death would mean
confscation of the entire estate by the
nearest male relative of the deceased
nephew, cousin or more distantly allied
relative; in the absence of such an heir
the property reverted to the crown
The Provisional Court established by the
army has just such a case for decision,
that the rights of a mother end daughter
may be restored. BY the death of a native
not long since eviction of the mother ana
daughter was the result, and a nephew
of the dead man took possession. The
daughter became a servant for means of
support of herself and mother, and the
death of the nephewheir few weeks be-
fore the American occupation placed the
property in the hands of the Spanish rep
resentatives and in turn becoming the
property of the United States. This case
will, no doubt, be adjusted with equity pc
culiar to our own sense of justice ana
right and by means of this court we may
find mother and daughter once more In
their little home.
Something pathetically absurd may be
told in connection with the above case
of the peculiar sympathy and the emo
tional natures of these people.
Amalia, the young woman above referred
10, had a sweetheart also to support, who
cheered her hours of recreation by permit
ting her to buy him sweets and rum. In
the Incidents of adjusting affairs under
military occupancy, Maxine came in con-
tact with a native policeman one night
not long since, and next day said good-by
to the girl-wife for the long journey 30 Of
ten taken in the name of so-called honor
and its defense.
According 10 the rule, not only Amafia
must resign her duties for a term of
mourning and grief, but also Francesca,
as her nearest friend and companion, as
matter of course, assumed the habiliments
of woe and left her work for a term not
less than Amalia's absence.
Everybody MOurns.
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