Decorah public opinion. (Decorah, Winneshiek County [Iowa]) 1895-1928, 1908-11-18
MARKET OF PAPEETE
DR.. EDWORDS WRITES OF PAPEETE
MARKET AND MARKET DAY.
Great Variety Of Eatables Sold in Fast and
Furious Manner to the Willing Purchas.
ers, Who Throng the Market Place.

institution of Papeete is the market
and the great market day is Sunday.
Ii you want to see the market at it's
best you have to get up very early in
the morning, for in less than an hour
after it opens the best is gone. l got
up at half past four and went down to
the big public market. l was half an
hour early but lost nothing by this
for saw many queer things that 1
weuld have missed had 1 waited
until the bell rang, which permits the
beginning of sales. Across the street
is the Chinaman S and there l got
cup of coffee and buttered loaf of
bread for half franc. or five cents.
''good money and sat and watched
the people enjoying themselves in a
similar manner. At this early hour
there was little talk, for the natives
who had brought their loads of ban
anas, cocoanuts, oranges. fish, yams
and other articles were too tired to
care for gossip so early.
Promptly at O'Clock big hell rang.
and the market place. which occupied
an entire square. became a chattering
chafferIng mass of humanity. Every
body was eager to sell to those who
wanted to buy. and such a babel of
sounds rarely heard. But the interest
ing part of the market as the character
and articles offered for sale. and the
prices charged for them. A largepart
of the market is devoted to fish and if
one desires to obtain perfect idea
OF the fish life of the island waters,
he need but go to Papeete market on
SUNDAY morning. There he will see
such strange things as usually come
only in dreams
Fish of all sizes, shapes and colors
are displayed on the sands, and ever
now and then man will come stagger-
ing in with load fresh from the sea.
Some of the colorings are beautiful
beyond conception. One that especial
ly attracted my attention had all the
colors of the rainbow in striped ar
ray along its sides. At one stand
could be found oysters. out of their
shells and strung on sticks, there being
about two dozen on a stick, the whole
being sold for ten cents.
In the other end of the market were
the meat and vegetable stalls, and L
was surprised to find that the best
cuts of beef and mutton were sold at
prices which would drive our butchers
to the poor house. Along the side of
this part of the market were num-
Der of men and women, offering for
sale chickens, ducks and small pigs
These fowls and animals were tied to
the railing by strings attached to their
legs, and seemed to have become ac-
customed to constant handling, for
they made no objection when picked
up and examined bv prospective buy
ers. All kinds Of the meat markets
except two were in charge of Chinese.
who seem to take to fhs sort of
thing. One enterprising Chinese Lad
q delicate stand where he sold cook
ed feeds, hot bread and other things
that looked good TO eat. He was not
we'll patronized for the natives do not
like Chinese Outside of the build
ing, all along the side, and along the
walls Of a fountain, were natives who
had come from the hills with their
little loads OF fruit. which they Off
red for sale at marvelously low prices.
A leaf basket holding about two doz-
Ell oranges, the sweetest / ever tasted
were sold for ten cents. A bunch of
six cocoanuts sold for the same amount
and enticing baskets of bananas were
five cents.
Along the sides of the market build
ings were ranged sticks of bamboo
which attracted my curiosity, and ON
investigation found them to be filled
with a sort of pie made of bananas,
yams. cocoanut milk and oranges Ii
is sweet and sticky, but / can not
say that it appealed to my taste. The
natives are exceedingly fond of it,
however, and it found ready sale at
half franc stick.
The selling was fast and furious,
and it looked as if tine whole town had
truned out to buy its days provisions.
| scarcely had time to make the rounds
of the various stalls before they began
to clean out and closed up By
O'Clock the place was deserted. except
for few natives sitting around. eat
ing their breakfast cf fruit Some of
these people had walked ten miles.
carrying loaa of fruit which they
of for less than half dollar.
They would spend the day in town ana
then walk back again in the evening.
content with the fact that they had
earned enough to furnish all necessi-
ties until the next Sunday market.
Clarence f. Edwords.