The daily morning journal and courier., 1899-01-28
CHANGES FOR WOMEN IN CUBA
Who Have Profession, Little Money
 and Speak Spanish

Who Have Profession, Little Money and Speak Spanish.
 Tn one Of the previous letters of this series I have mentioned the chance for
 women In Cuba, but much remains to
 De said. Here are opportunities for the
 woman who Is equipped with some pro-
 ress1on, or who is proficient in some oc-
 cupation in which she can work for
 herself. The chances for any woman
 with fairly equipped brains are better
 than for another whose chief usefulness
 lies in her figure or her hands; the
 woman physician, the trained nurse,
 and the woman journalist will do bet
 ter in Cuba than the shop-girl, the
 sales-girl or the laundress. But the
 woman bound for Cuba has other
 things than her occupation or profess
 sion to consider. The right woman in
 that land of promise will not be she
 who thinks to find there fortune or a
 husband. For even now the island has
 20 women to every dollar, and 20 more
 to every bachelor. The right woman
 will be she who hopes modestly to
 make better living for herself or for others dependent upon Her than she is
 making at home who has the physique
 to withstand the change of climate;
 who can either speak Spanish or &C.,
 quire that language quickly, and who,
 when she puts her foot on Cuban soil,
 has a capital of at least $50 She who
 has not these essentials will be the
 wrong woman in Cuba.
 Assuming that the right woman has arrived in Havana, which will be the scene of at least her first trial in Cuba,
 what then? She has her $50 in that sa- cred pocket, her bosom, but she must think twice before spending one penny. So, instead of hiring a cab and driving to hotel she walks up to the Prado, a short hal-mile. She is in search of lodging. Along the Prado, near the principal hotels and hence In the heart of the town, there are dozen lodging houses where rooms, airy and clean and infinitely better than her hall bed room in New York, Boston, or Chica- go, can be had for a surprisingly small sum- The cost of the room is high or low according to its location up or down the broad, beautiful avenue. At No. 115 Dr. Wilson will rent her a room for month for $20. At No. 53 she can get just as good room for $1O She takes this room and pays the landlord the months rent She has a bed; now what about board? Morning coffee goes with the room. The landlord tells her about el canteneros, the canteen boys who serve meals all over the city at very reasonable rates She is now ready to look for work , NO matter what her occupation or profession, in getting a start in Cuba the woman worker has but one gen. erai course. She must first call on the American officials, stating her case ex- actly. The military officers at the pal ace will not be able to help her as much as the civil officers. She must go to the office of the sanitary inspectors and make the acquaintance of pr. Brunner and of Dr. Dudley. Both these men can help her. She will then call on the proprietors of the leading hotels, [ the Inglaterra and the Passaje, leaving { her cards for the American guests. She will also call on Mir. Leonadas, the edi- tor and proprietor of one of Havana's < best newspapers. Without hesitation she will then proceed to No. 45 Monte. i the residence of Mrs. Jose Gonzales, | the head of the Red Cross in Cuba, and a charitable woman who knows how to heln without giving aims. Mrs. Con- f zales will be our Woman-Worker's guide, philosopher, and friend. She will know just where employment is to be obtalned-whether in Havana or in one of the other cities, whether in towns or in the country. She keeps open house, and will introduce the American wonl- m to the right people.-Gilson Willets n Leslie's Weekly