The daily morning journal and courier. [volume] (New Haven, Conn.) 1894-1907, 1901-02-02
THE CHARM OF MEXICO,
A Land of Spacious Houses Courtesy
and Hospitality.

A Land of Spacious Houses, Courtesy
and Hospitality.
For men and women of foreign races
the lands Of the south have an indefl-
nable attraction; 1T is as if our race
originating in the tropics, perpetually
Tended to return to them. Life In
northern countries is continual strug.
gle against rude and variable climate
1t Is an exotic existence at the best in
the winter when people try to approx
Mate tropical conditions by artificial
heat in the production of which, in a
satisfactory manner, great ingenuity
has been shown on the part of many
inventors. Russians and Americans
have carried the art of household heat
ing to high point of perfection: the
British people, living in chilly and hui
mid winter climate, have created an
artificial thing called comfort and so
contribute word to the worlds COM
mon stock of useful terms. Comfort is
but means Of reaching degree Of
pleasurable sensation denied by nature
to lands of fog and east winds Many
| WOl uS nave ColllG IIllO UtILS, DIS ~ were,
| to express shades of comfort, a ''cozy
house" for instance. In southern coun-
tries coziness is not sought for; rather
do the Italians, the Spaniards and the
Mexicans strive when they are able to
build themselves great and roomy
| houses, with apartments on vast
scale. The old fashioned houses here
are not cozy, but they achieve comfort
! as no small house can. Wide corridors,
big bed rooms and huge parlors suit
well the sunny climate with but hrief
season of cold weather
We should say that much of the
charm of Mexico, aside from it's eli
mate, Is the spaciousness of the typical
houses, the sense of generous ampli-
tude, the feeling of having plenty of
room. Some of the most delightful
homes in the world are found on remote
haciendas; the residence part of the
building is always on a noble and
princely scale. This is the Moro
Spanish idea; it comes down from the
Persians by way of Saracens to the
Moors who SO long held southern Spain.
There are hacienda homes here which
appeal to the foreigner from countries
where the climate compels ''coziness,'
small and low-celled rooms. One comes
to take great delight in the lofty rooms,
in the red-tiled floors, in the wilderness
and abundant light, and the sense of
living out of doors while well within
the privacy of the home The court
yard came by architectural descent
from the Persians to the southern
Cr,n nj a ri G mr. q n
leo. In this city we have many exam
pies of noble patios in the older houses
which, we must hope will never give
place to the limitations of northern
architecture, untitled to this climate
In the interior cities notably Guadala-
lara and Peubla, there are superb pa
tios and in the former city genitl eli
mate favors lovely display of tropi-
cal plants in the cou~t-yards. even the
humblest homes being thus embellished.
And part Of the charm of Mexico is
due to the haunting spirit Of the grand
old Spaniards who planted here the
semi-oriental civilization of Andalusia
Those powerful and chivalric spirits
impressed themselves not merely on the
of the country, but on it's
daily life; they brought here the ira
ditions of an Arabian hospitality, still
found apart from the more common
routes of travel. They had lofty dis
dain for petty economies and We're law |
ish in their expenditures, and to this I
day the Mexican people are almost .
spenders of their money. The
traditions of a strong and Warlike race,
soldiers for long centuries, persist here;
q military race is not commercial The
Mexican gentleman is an
hidalgo; he Is the true caballero trans
from Srain and partaking of
the generosity Of his own privileged
and Something of the feudal noble
man is found in the upper-class Mexi-
IAN, His stately language his man
ners as of grand segneur, his innate
make him something dis
.inct from the human product Of the
ands Of hurry and competitive scram-
de !
So 1t is composite charm that MeXi-
% gives forth; her very beggars are
courteous, the poor poems doff their hats
o one another on the roadside, and an
,ld-world slowness and tranquility,
as Of the orient. makes the
little towns of Mexico restful and great
ul to the traveller who seeks the de-
light of perfect repose Long may the
unny land retain it's manifold charm:
aking of the best that modernciviliza-
ion has to offer, but copying not its ]
nervousness and its crazy hustle.
Thus may happiness abide here and the {
ouls of men be Standardization
Herald.
T1TT 81,