Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1904-07-15

gowns are made here In Manila by native
dressmakers of native homespun materials
at cost that seems remarkably low, The
one and only cheap thing in Manila Is a
womans wardrobe. '-
Fashionable Native Society.
The fashionable native society Is made up
of mestizos or half-Gastes, whose ancestors
mixed the blood of the European and
Asiatic races, and for that reason in Brit
ish colonies are called Eurasians. You will
see number of very pretty and animated
women wearing rich jewels and expensive
Partisan costumes, whose grandmothers
great -grandmotherss were common Fill
pluos. and were married by SDaniards,
EngliShmen and other foreigners who set
tied in the country. Many of them have
been educated in Europe. usually in French
converts. and have acquired French man.
| ners, which are enliyened with their native
wit. They are graceful. attractive and
hospitable, and loyal friends. Some Of them
live IN fine houses and entertain lavishly:
One hears stories OF balls. receptions and
other entertainments with features that
sound almost magical. These ladies may
be called the leaders Of Manila society. but
| ciates are almost altogether foreigners.
Spaniards, French German, English and
American, because the full blood Filipino
women do not seem to have social aspira-
tions and live very quietly They are
satisfied with the company Of their rela-
| tives and neighbors avoid strangers and
foreigners. but family parties are frequent:
The natives have the Spanish custom of
several generations; of living under the
same roof-as many as the house will hold,
and on feast days, birth days. name days.
and other anniversaries they call in all
of their name, even to the third and fourth
cousins, and exchange compliments and
congi atulationS.
But the tales that are told Of habits Of
the beautiful mestizos behind the blinds are
not so charming and do not elevate them
in the admiration of the gringos. We pre-
fer not to believe them, and to remember
| the beautiful beings as we saw them in
the cool twilight. bewitchingly adorned and
lounging gracefully in their victorias
Women of the Lower Glasses.
The women of the lower class whom we
see in the streets and market places wear
full skirts of bright colors-red, orange,
purple or green-starched very stifr and
standing out like balloons They are usu
ally made of imported cotton. They wear
no corsets or underclothes and their legs
and feet are bare with the exception of a
pair of slippers. called chinelas. with the
heel trodden down. or a sandal made OF
straw.
The native waist is a chemsette of white
cotton, and over it is worn a curious and
unique garment known as the panuelo. 1t
is square, folded triangularly with the
points down the back and the two ends
crossed upon the breast, as our grand
mothers used to wear their neck handker-
chiefs. 1t is made of pineapple or hemp
fiber woven like mosquito netting starched
so stiff that 1t stands out like an armOr of
gauze from the shoulders and the back OF
the neck The sleeves are short, reaching
to the elbows, but are very wide and stand
out from the arms This garment which
looks if 1t were made of wire, is worn
only in the street and on dress occasions.
and the number of other garments worn
under it depends upon the weather. 1t Is
intended more for ornament than utility,
oil t,,,t hos oil
ways been the distinctive feature of the
Filipino costume. and every girl, no matter
how poor or humble, must have one as soon
as she is five six years old.
Most of the native women have beautiful
and abundant hair, and they give 1t a great
deal of attention, using quantities of
coanut oil and combing 1t for hours in sue
cession. 1t is familiar sight to those 60
ing through the streets of Manila to see
groups of women in the nipa hutS brushing
each others tresses. No matter how poor
or how busy, they wash their hair with a
soap bark In cold water at least once a
week. When they come out the hair is
brushed back from the forehead and fas-
tened in tight coil, and over the head a
OF bright colors. Their necks and arms
are covered with as much cheap jewelry
as they can acquire. They are as fond of
glitter and jingle as savages. and at all
the market places and in the country stores
bushels of glass beads are sold to the
natives.
Have Bad Teeth.
The native women not at all pretty.
Their faces are unattractive. Their fea-
lures fiat, their compilations are bad
and usually their teeth are decayed, which
Is due to the excessive use of sugar cane.
You seldom see a native woman or child
who Is not chewing cane, and the acid de-
stroys the enamel of the teeth On the
other hand. many of the men have fine
teeth like the negroes of the United States
and the North American Indians.
The peasant women at market in the
fields and along the highways are clad in
the plainest sort of stuff. designed for use
and not for adornment, and seem to be
much more Industrious than the men: In
deed. 1t is the universal testimony that the
Filipino woman is superior in every way. in
morals, intelligence. industry and integrity.
to her husband, and that she does her best
to correct his vices and make him as indus
classes smoke cigars and cigarettes the
same as the men. In the market places you
Will find half the country women smoking.
They carry their babies astride their hips
in an easy, careless sort of way, and few
grown women seem to be without them.
The birth rate among the native Filipnos Is
as high as 1t Is anywhere in the world
But. as l have already told you in previous
letters, the death rate among infants Is
phenomenally high because Of ignorance
and carelessnesS in the treatment of the
new born.
Dress Of the Men.
The native man. almost invariably dressed