Daily Kennebec journal. [microfilm reel] (Augusta, Me.) 1870-1975, 1910-10-06
WOMEN OF HAVANA.
Types of Beauty Found in the Now
Republic.

| Women of Havana have been famous
in the fiction of the English speaking
nations for nearly four centuries. Dur
ing all that time the English speaking
sailor has awarded them the palm for
| beauty over the women of every other
port.
| Particularly has tradition dwelt upon
the beauty of their great, languorous
eyes, peeping over the top of a fan
welded with unapproachable grace,
and upon the fetchingness of the man
tilla that draped the shapely head
reared upon a regal neck. Women of
Spanish race have always appeared in
romantic light to the Anglo Saxon.
| Since the women of Havana appear
in this light even to the people of
Spain itself, their appeal to the man
OF the north is understands pie.
| There is one predominant ting type
| among Havana women. but there are
several other types that are commonly
represented. This naturally follows
| from the fact that Spaniards are of
| divers origins and the mixture of blood
| is not uniform. The Castilian is often
blonde, for he has much Gothic blood
A chemical analysis, supposing it pos
| sible, would show the English, the
| north Italians and the Castilians some-
what alike; for all three are princi-
pally the result of mingling of Teu-
| tonic and Celtic strains. The Andalu-
sian shows the Moorish strain. There
| is also a good deal of Jewish and
Phoenician blood distributed through
| Spain. Folk from provinces where the
! Celtic blood has remained quite pure
often look surprisingly Irish
| So among the women of Havana you
| find many who look like Chicago wom-
| lea the same influences that produce
the general American type here after
a few generations naturally have mod
| flied the old Spanish types in Cuba.
| Whether it is coincidence or not,
girls of the more progressive Cuban
| families usually would be taken for
Americans. With few exceptions these
| girls are handsome of face and figure,
full of dash. bright of eye. intelligent
| and having that quality which causes
the society notes in Havana newspa-
pers to say Unfortunately of almost
every woman that she is "simpatica,"
sympathetic.
The prevailing type-the type to
which three -fourths of the women be-
| long and which you never mistake for
American or anything else-is singu-
larry uniform. The hair is black, or
very dark, and abundant; the eyes
are dark, and the skin is a very clear
and vivid. though dark white. Florid
women and men are all but absent
in Cuba. While the girls of the Amer
lean type usually have color in their
checks. those of the prevailing type
do not. though often the whole skin
has most delicate suffusion a ten
der undertone and beauteous luster
which Lope de Vega, the contemporary
and rival of Shakespeare in Internal
ional fame, styled. when speaking
of some women of his own country.
"nacreous as the inside of she'll"
1t is, of a truth pearly, though the
ulster is without glisten.
The typical Havana woman has a
long. straight chin. Often it is not
merely long. but heavy. Lantern laws
have always been recognized as a
Spanish characteristic. The Havana
Wonans figure inclines to embonpoint.
Even while still a young girl she is
likely to have buXomness rare with
rs. This seems strange when we OBJ
serve that the men are lean. even
meager. Grace, a remarkable grace
characterizes even the heavily built
woman The greatest stage dancers
Of the world have been Spaniards.
Trace belongs to the race. The warm
climate keeps the muscles elastic and
the joints flexible so thar. avon tho
old move with a supple ease. Part of
their grace comes from the shape of
the foot. which is very high in the
lhstep. and has natural high heeled.
dancing pitch.
The Havana woman's face is powder
ed and impressive. She has to use
powder in so hot a country and with
so much dust flying Powder with her
IS not a cosmetic, but sanitary pro-
lection. Many Havana men use pow
der too.
Inc Havana woman is impassive