The Portland daily press. [volume] (Portland, Me.) 1862-1921, 1900-08-09

has no better use for much of his money
Than to spend 1T on rings; these he wears
on all fingers, including his thumbs, so
that when the sun strikes the diamonds
his hands seem blaze of light.
The principal stores are those with fans
and mantiIlas; q Cuban woman, young
Tor old, Without a fan would think her
toilet incomplete, consequently the i'm
| pOrtance OF the shops in which these are
Sold Though mantillas are not worn as
much as formerly, hats being more in
| favor, almost every native woman has
one in her possession, and never looks
as picturesque as when she has one
thrown over her head These lace scarfs
are mostly black, but white ones are us
ually seen in the evenings. Fans range
in price from cents up to as many hun
dred dollars; few at the latter price are
| bought by Americans, although at pawn
shops very valuable ones can be had for a
mere song. Americans are chiefly inter-
ested in the ornamental ones with pic
lures in brilliant cOlors OF bull fights
toreadOrs, senOrltas, and the lover with
his guitar.
Between the fan stores and pawnshops
the shopping time Of most American
women is spent At the latter many old
and curious articles are picked up, as we'll
as some very valuable ones. By now
there are few things left that curiosity
seekers care for, as the shops have been
| pISOtY we'll CduNdSSou ny uUuQI6NS Oh
Americans, who JOOK away the choicest
things. The FIRST Corners found some
handsome diamonds in antique settings
at nominal prices, buJ these are all gone,
| too. The paWnshOps are usually in OUT
Of way places, where one Is in more
or less danger of finding yellow fever
| lying in wait for whom it may devour,
and this is certainly an obstacle. A
physician remarked in my hearing that
he did not understand how American
women who went day after day into
these places escaped the disease.
There are a number OF dry goods stores
where fair line OF goods is displayed and
an excellent one kept in reserve for want
OF space in which to show it to advan-
tage. One pays two prices for most goods,
and then consoles herself by rejecting
that, at all events, the goods came from
Cuba, not remembering that those sold
in the states at half the price are made
In exactly the same mills Most OF the
dealers have very limited number Of
boards on which cloth is wrapped, and
these are used over and over, for their
weight would add to the freight, il one
came in each piece. When one buys a
large order at a store she is fortunate,
indeed, II she has a conveyance in which
to take or send it home, as the response
b1I1ty OF the shopkeeper ends when he
wraps up the parcel. Some grocery
stores have delivery wagons, but l have
never seen one belonging to dry goods
store.
The methods Of advertising adopted by
enterprlsing dry goods firms in the North
do not obtain here. The stranger may
search the English newspapers through
ana not IND word concerning dry
goods; the Spanish papers give scarcely
more light. There are no lists OF things
which are for sale at any place, no bar
gains offered, and no inducements of any
kind. The merchants wait to be sought,
rather than push themselves forward Ii
the ncKle public comes to them they are
glad, II not, they pursue the even tenor
OF their way without it. There is a store
whose proprietor is very anxious to secure
the patronage Of the American colony,
and it is interesting to hear him talk to
any American who may be a, prospective
buyer. lie assures the customer in excel
lent English that he very much wishes to
please her, and for this reason SAYS that
he gives her the desired article-Whatever
1t may beat much less price than he
would to Cuban; whereas, as a matter OF
fact, he asks an American fully as much
or more, after the foreign manner of
treating Americans. In the rear of the
store he has many beautiful Partisan
goods, which he takes great pride in
showing. Near at hand are some dainty
WinegIasses one of which filed with /
good wine from the cut-glass decanter, \
he presses on each customer whom he
wishes to honor. Imagine dry goods
merchant in large city in the States
offering his customers wine! At sOms
other places one is treated in the same
manner.
The clerks are uniformly polite, and
whether one makes a purchase or not,
she is shown much courtesy. There are
very few stores where women clerks are
employed. These are so rare as to cause
comment when they are seen in the
millinery shops, in the two or three
Partisan bazars, and in the largest fan
store. When Cuba has become more
Americanized than it now is they will
doubtless be more frequently employed
At present the centuries through which
custom has kept women in seclusiOn still
have their weight.
One seldom expects to pay the price
asked for an article, nor does the clerk
expect that she Will, although the
amount Is more apt to be fixed now than
itswas year ago. 1t is not often in the
States that clerks may make thu prices
to suit themselves; here they are appar-
emily given carte blanche in this respect.