The Indianapolis journal. [volume] (Indianapolis [Ind.]) 1867-1904, 1901-09-13
THE WAYS OF HAVANA.
Changes That May he Effected by
American influence.

Letter in Brooklyn Eagle.
The Spanish way of living implies a dead
" distrust Of every one outside OF your
family. You bar your window on the ground
floor lest thieves break in or your daughter
break out: you keep the carriage in the
parlor lest the coachman should run of
with ii or forget TO oil it, you allow the
women OF your family to take the air only
on the balconies. for il they were TO sit on
the doorstep, as they do in Brooklyn. the
young men would look at them I'm a way to
make an American father jump out and
hand them one between the eyes. Nobody
gets into a Cuban house, except on bust
ness or with an introduction, and nobody
who is in gets out 1t is not right TO walk,
if you are woman, anyway. You sit
around in a wrapper till evening and then
you are allowed to ride down the Prado TO
the Punta, where the Yankees have con-
verted heap of rocks and strip OF sand
into pretty little park with a circle where
the carriages can turn without backing
There you look of across the sea and up
at the Morro, g0Wering from the rocks
across the strait the flame in its tall light
house glaring against the fast darkentng
heavens. Then you ride home and have
something more TO drink and take another
smoke. And the next day is like this and
yesterday was the same as the other.
But, with the Americanization Of the
place, who knows but there will be an
Americanizing of manners2 Now that the
young ones have fallen into the habit Of go
ing 10 school. the Cuban woman may keep
up the practice of walking around the block
without asking leave Of her husband. her
brother or her grandmother. one thing,
though. 1t makes you sorry TO seeEths
dresses in the same fashion as the usual
woman OF New York, which IS sorrow.
The Spanish way has grace. The clothes
-
bases and cores and shirrs and all those
things as our women have. ana just hang
down without starch or soap, and the man
till2 a lace thinguma jig. is worn over the
head and one shoulder and around the neck
and under one ear IN free, artiess way
that costs ten minutes work before the
glass most likely, though the charm OF IL
is that il looks IL It was just tossed on.
begin TO believe, however. that nothing
on a woman is just tossed on. 1t is all
planned deliberately and studied out over
night. in the evening, when the woman
retires-as you can tell by hearing her 90
arounG and around, opening doors and bu-
reaus, and drawing water, and taking
clothes down, and hanging clothes M. and
dragging clothes out and putting clothes
back. and stirring things around on the
toilet table, and Juggling bottles, and eN-
changing the furniture, and pulling OF
shoes, and struggling with buttons. and
shying boots over the floor, and seeing IL
the man under the bed has arrived yet.
and closing the window the night air
shall not get in. and smoothing out the
but to plan changes OF complexion and or
nament for the morrow. 1 presume an
American woman would never feel that she
had quite caught the trick Of wearing a
mantilla till she had gone 10 Cuba OF 10
Mexico TO learn il. Hence travellers in those
lands are chsry about sending home these
delicate fabrics. for. like the man whose
new slippers required a new carpet TO
match. and then new furniture 10 agree
with the carpet, and then a new house TO
go with the furniture. the mantila may
Signify an eventual visit 70 the people who
wear it-which is expensive.
In casting off their habitual raiment and
putting on shirtwaists made by Russian
Hebrews for German Hebrews In the Amer
lean metropolis, will the Cubans take on
American ways. do you suppose2 IL will be
some time before they do. at all events.
One of the American ways the people ara
slow TO take on IS that Of quarreling. They
are moderate in their drink. and they know
that I'm quarrels people may be hurt. and
they have an ambition not 10 be hurt. IL
they had ever had occasion 10 fight some
real fighters their revolutions would have
lasted about a day and half Give me
two regiments of cavalry for the country
places, two batteries OF artillery 10 dis
tribute among the moros. and nothing for
the cities, and I'll make contract 10 keep
Cuba in order" remarked an army officer.
and I'll warrant IL could be done.