Kentucky Irish American. (Louisville, Ky.) 1898-1968, 1899-03-04
The Women Of rIaniIa.

The women III Manila are OF three
classes: The true Spaniards, who have
come with their families from Spain to
bear company with their men folk while
they are serving in the army or mercan-
tile life; the Meztizos or half-breeds,
many of them the wives or daughters of
the Spanish soldiers; and the Tagalos or
native Filipinos.
The Spanish women are the typical Sc
noras and senoritas one may see in Spain
or any of the Spanish-American countries.
Most of them are wealthy, and before the
advent of the American soldier in Manila
they were the leaders in such society as
Manila could boast We see them now,
driving about in their victorias, proud
naughty, and casting disdainful looks at,
if they deign to notice at all, the shabby
American lads, who have taken the reins
of government from the hands of their
husbands and brothers.
The Meztizo women are an interesting
class, and combine in strangely ill-as-
sorted ways the characteristics of the
Spanish and their native ancestors. They
endeavor to initiate the Spanish women
in every way and sometimes it is com.
ical sight to see Meztizo woman wearing
the native costume, but topped off with a
glorious Partisan bonnet, and supremacy
happy in the idea that she is following in
the mode OF her more aristocratic sister
in the matter of headgear at least Some
of these half-breed women are very beau
tiful, for their intermixture of native
blood prevents the sallow and faded APP
pearance which this tropical cline inva-
riably produces in the faces of the daugh-
tiers of a more northern land. Like the
true Spaniards, their syapathies are all
with our enemies, so it Is difficult to learn
more Of them ana tbeif- ifotnes than one
may observe from very limited acquaint-
ance.
The true Filipino is the only friend Of
the American in these islands, and she is
by far the most interesting of the three
types of women to be found here.
The interesting little people are of Ma
lay extraction, and those in the neighbor-
hood of Manila at least seem to have a
plentiful supply of Chinese or japanese
blood in their veins, for many of them
have the almond eyes and tilted eyebrows
of the Mongolians But the resemblance
ceases here, for these little ladies are of a
rich, dark copper color, and in some OF
the younger girls a faint tinge of color
adds attractiveness to their by no means
homely faces. Some of them, in fact are
really beautiful, for they have all beauti.
fully long silky hair-sometimes wavy
but never by any means kinky, and usu'
ally either glossy black or a very dark
brown. Their features are usually clear
cut and regular and those that do not use
the betel nut have teeth that are white
and regular as are those of some of oul
American negroes. The carriage of These
people is perfect; carrying burdens OF
their heads, as do most Southern races
has taught them to stand and walk erect
and their symmetry of action and poise il
indeed beautiful.
One striking feature about these womer
is the beautiful development of neck
shoulders and arms, due, no doubt, to tn,
same habit of carrying her burdens OF
her head. have seen many a nativ,
laundress with the arms and shoulders O
Hebe, and any New York society CIR
would be proud to exhibit such charms a
Sherry's or Delmonico's as these untu
tored creatures gain by their hard labors
But the charm of the Tagalo woman i
not due to her appearance alone. They
are jolly, happy and musical race, and
above all, generous and hospitable, anC
inclined to be most friendly to the invad
ing Americans. Most of them, however
are not above turning an honest penny
and while the American troops were en-
camped at Camp Dewey. previous to tn,
capitulation of Manila, the camp wa
thronged daily with the native women
each with her basket of fruit or eggs anC
her bottle of vino, a native wine. The,
are clever bargainers, too, and to "bea
them down" is next to impossible.
The Tagalo woman is usually cleve
with her needle, and many an American
soldier lad, far from the folks at home
has had his mending done by the def
fingers of some semi-savage seamstress
Many of these women make the mos
exquisite embroidery--a kind of draw
work-done on native cloth called pima
This cloth is made from the fiber of thu
pineapple plant, and is beautifully fin'
and glossy. The pima is stretched Tight,
over a bamboo frame, and beautiful
designs are drawn in the cloth by tn
industrious workers. Time and labor j
of no object in these lazy islands, and
have seen handkerchiefs which hav
taken months of steady work to produce
These people fully realize the value o
this class of work, and it is no uncommol
thing for pima handkerchief or veil t.