The Madison journal. (Tallulah, Madison Parish, La.) 1888-current, 1913-01-11

WISH to describe IL / can one OF
the most interesting features of
life In Madrid, feature peculiar
to Madrid among all the cities OF
the world as far as l am inform
ed. 1t is a long way in life albeit
short In distance from Prado to the
Rostrado. The extension of the Prado
into the Paseo de Castellana, leads one
to the part of the city where flats give
place to detached dwellings and where
mansions are seen that match In
grandeur almost anything seen along
Riverside Drive in New York. writes
George w. Burton in the Los Angeles
Times.
Not only the houses in this part OF
Madrid are grand, but the equipages
are as fine as may be seen anywhere,
and the horses exceed anything ever
beheld in horse flesh. The teams
are we'll matched, and the animals
stand IA to 16 hands high, each hand
representing nearly 100 pounds Of
finely-put-up horse flesh and gone.
They are, taking them all in all. the
finest, rangiest animals in the world.
The heads and ears are small, the
neck long and arched, holding the
head high without painful hitching.
The fore shoulders are high and so
are the launches, the back straight.
The fore legs are straight as a whip
stalk, the chest is deep, the haunch-
es and thighs are powerfully muscled.
and the bodies are round as bar
rel.
Seen on Sunday.
The Rastro is not along the Prado.
and no splendid turnouts are seen
there. The street Is in the center of
the city, a short walk from the Puerta
del Sol 1t is a narrow street SIS
rounded with old houses, begins in
an alley and ends In two which fork
into still narrower alleys farther on.
The English name for the peculiar
institution that has its home there is
the Rag Market Sunday is the day
to see it. The people who carry on
their trade in the Rastro are there
every day in the week in small nhm-
bers, but Sunday the whole place.
1000 feet long, by 80 feet wide, is
packed SO densely that one makes his
way through the throng slowly and
with much difficulty. To present a
general view of this motley gather.
ing In words or in picture Is impos-
sible. It must be taken bit by bit,
any analysed carefully. AS one en-
tiers the long, narrow street a mass
Of humanity. men, women, boys, girls
decrepit age and tenderest youth,
moves about in an interminable maze
beginning nowhere or everywhere, as
you may please to see 1t. The ground
space is encountered with big bas.
kets filled with all kinds of what we
call in America garden truck" and
fruits. In and out ply women, each
with half a dozen to a dozen fat
chickens hung around their necks
tucked under their arms, and held
In any way convenient for the mo-
ment. Eggs. game. anything the poor
may have to sell, is here, and here the
poor come to buy. II one gets there
about noon there may be seen a peas.
ant woman who has sold out her bas.
ket of cabbage. cauliflower and let
tuce. and has turned the debris out
on the ground. At once this is pounced
upon by some poor wretch Of a WON.
an who has not a centimo to get lit
tie something to eat. She bends down
and rakes about the leaves of the
vegetables and picks out every bit
that is in any way possible Of cook
ing. Each scrap is put in a bit of q
basket. in her apron or In a leaf OF
an old paper, or in an old box. One ID
irresistibly reminded of a hen in the
yard scratching for a tid-bit from
the kitchen.
Just beyond the vegetable market
the booths are reached where other
wares are on sale. The first may be
a shoe store. II you please. But it is
something that no one who reads this
letter ever saw or heard Of All days
in the week men, women and chill
dren range the streets and pick w
anything that promises a cent of gain
No old shoe II too poor to be passed
by. These are taken to the Rastro In