The Monmouth inquirer., 1925-11-12

personal adornment. The Chola's petit.
coats are her pride and wealth. She
wears one over the other. each of a
different brilliant interchangeable is
said to be the record Short, plump
and bright of face, with two neat black
braids hanging from under a round
straw hat, her head is as attractive as
her pretty little feet. She seldom
wears stockings, but her shoes are
high-heeled irnportations of coIored
leather. often ornamented with red and
yellow kid butterflies.
In contrast to the merry-faced
Cholas, so sumptuously bedecked, are
the aristocratic senoritas bopnd church
ward, wearing black garments and a
devout expression.
Color in the Market.
If La Paz is a peacock, the market
place is its tail. Here the maids of
the iridescent skirts hold court. The
stalls occupy an entire square under
cover, the overflow lining both sides
Of the street for blocks. Color runs
riot. Seated on the ground, encircled
in petticoats ranging in shade from
scarlet, rose, and pink to purple, violet,
and lavender the Chola merchants dis
play their wares spread out before
them on eolored blankets. Nothing is
sold by weight. The produce or mer
chandise is arranged in the primitive
way, in little heaps on which a price
is set. The people usually buy their
supplies only for one day One may
see modest purchaser, filling his
basket with two cents worth of chuno
(the frozen potato, on its native heath),
three cents worth of charque (jerked
beef, and four whole cents worth of
fruit.
1t is most interesting to see the
Quichau and Aymara types side by
side. They seldom blend in their ma
tive highlands. The pure blooded In
dian fears and dislikes all whites and
is not on intimate terms with the
Cholas. He often understands Span
ish, even when he can or will not
speak 1t. On the highway he appears
very respectful, greeting the stranger
with cultural ''Tata, asqui IRA churu-
TAM Gather, a good day to thee).
The shoe stall is the markets "star"
exhibit. Every possible combination
of color is displayed in the footgear
On the street one sees men and women
carefully carrying their shoes, saving
them for the following Fiesta day,
when they squeeze their poor rock
worn feet into the gorgeous yellow
creations decorated with pink, blue,
and purple designs. After paying for
any purchase the customer expects
some little thing to boot from the mer.
chant.
The Chuquiapu River.
The picturesqueness of La Paz is
enhanced by the Chuquiapu river
which flows through the city. 1t is
spanned by many bridges. 1t is a re-
markable stream, inasmuch that It
does not flow to the Pacific, as do most
rivers formed on the western slope of
the Andes The Chuquiapu defes the
natural order and flows through a
cleft in the mountains, joining the
streams bound for the Amazon
The visitor will find it interesting to
mount mule and follow the merry
little river. The way leads through
steep, narrow streets to the Alameda,
the city's park, and then by an ave-
nue. lined with stately trees to the
suburbs The road Is soon clinging to
the cliff and the canyon develops into
a miniature Yellowstone in coloring.
With each mile the mountain walls
grow more rugged, more picturesque in
their rainbow attire. The explorer is
reluctant to end his journey but fur
Their progress would land him too far
afieId. AS he turns cityward his gaze
is drawn back again and again by the
marvellous view Of snow-eIad Illimori,
the mountain known to the Aymaras as
THE Everlasting" guardian of the pic.
turesque canyon Of La Paz.