Richmond daily palladium. [volume] (Richmond, Ind.) 1876-1904, 1899-02-03
PORTO RICO WOMEN
CURIOUS CUSTOMS OF FEMALES IA
T-E LAND WHERE NO ONE WALKS.

CURIOUS CUSTOMS OF FEMALES IN
T-E LAND WHERE NO ONE WALKS.
They Ride to Church on Mules and smoke
Big Black Cigars-sem- of Them Are
Bsautfsnl-Rosaries That Are Won for
Ornamental Beautiful Picture
No one ever walks in Porto Rico.
The mules the thing there. The wom-
en- ride a great deal The better
classes use the English side saddle.
although a few prefer the more pict-
unesaae and safer. but less graceful,
Spanish saddle In the country dis
rr1ctS the plllion IS occasionally en-
nloyed, while among the lower classes
many women ride as1ride without ex-
citing comment. Whe q the natives are
both pretty and good riders they dis
play considerable coquetry IN the sad
die.
l noticed one rider near Juana Diaz
writer says who took my mind back
TO the old days Of chiyalry. She was
81 lovely girl of about fifteen or sixteen,
with face like a madonna and
figure ike an artists model one little
foot crept out beneath her silk riding
skirt. and TO my surprise il was de-
void of hosiery. The skin was like pol
Ished velvet, anu was OF a plnkish
gold of an exquisite tint. Ii was shod
with a slipper of satin or silk, en-
broidered in color. and had an arched
instep which made the foot all the
more charming by its setting.
The time to see the women at their
best is on Sunday morning. when they
ride from their hoTues 10 mass in the
nearest church or cathedral. On one
Sunday morning while riding leisure
ly into small village on my way to
this town, l met crowd of worship
perS on their way 10 mass. Nearly all
the women We're on muleback and
sat or iolled as if they were in an easy
chair in their own homes. a few,
probably Weather than the others or
else delicate in health. Were accom-
panied by little darby boys. who held
over them parasol or an umbrella
On Sunday each woman wears a
huge rosary. sometimes so large as TO
be uncomfortable. | saw several that
We're 80 unwieldly that they went over
the shoulders and formed a huge line.
larger indeed than a string of sleigh
bells. These are ornamental roSaries
and are not used for prayer. The
praying rosary is as small and dainty
as those used by fashionable women
in our own Roman Catholic churches.
Resides the fan and the rosary every
woman was provided with neat and
often handsomely bound prayer book
and a huge lighted cigar or cigarette.
This is indeed the land for women
who love the weed. A few smoke
cigarettes and pipes, but a majority
like partajas perfectos, NapoIeons and
other rolls of the weed larger than
those usually seen in our own land.
They smoke them at home and In the
streets, at the table or on the balcony
lying III hammocks, or 1olling on their
steeds. and only desist when within
the sacred walls OF the church. Il he
moment mass is over and they emerge
into the sunlight the first thing the
women do is to light a fresh cigar and
then climb into the saddle.
They make a beautiful picture upon
the roads. Imagine an intensely blue
sky above, with below rich green vege-
tables and startling dashes of scarlet,
crimson. vermillion, orange and white
from the flowers which seem to bloom
the year through. setting off the bright
hues of the costumes. 1t combines the
picturesque side of New Orleans life,
of Florida scenery, of the Maine lake
country and of the New Hampshire
hills.