The Indianapolis times. [volume] (Indianapolis [Ind.]) 1922-1965, 1936-05-06

EDITORS N0TE-This rowing reporter
for The Times goes where he pleases.
when he pleases, in search Of odd stories
about this and that.
NAXACA, Mexico, MAY eff
~ the psychologists are genuinely
interested in the advancement of
their art, they might come down
here and study me a while. For
I've gone nuts again.
This time it is on Mexican Sc
rapes. I'm completely balmy about
serapes. look at them all day and
dream about them all night. I'd
like to have 10000 of them.
I want house with the floor of
every room knee-deep in sserapes,
and the walls hung solidly with Sc
rapes, and serapes on the beds, and
under the beds. and over the chairs,
and on the tables, and N the bath
tub, and serapes for window eur
tains. and serapes hanging in the
trees out in the yard, and I want an
overcoat made of serape, and If this
keeps up could probably eat a Sc
rape or two for breakfast every
morning. s,
A serape, in case you don't know.
is a heavy hand-woven blanket,
made of pure wool and woven on
a hand loom by Mexican Indian.
TT may be big enough to cover
l. the Yankee Stadium, or it may
be the size of dolly. But the usu-
al sizes are two: by feet, which
the Indians wrap around their
shoulders and let fall enfoldingly
over their bodies; and about 8 by
feet, with a slit in the center. The
Indian slips the smaller one over
his head, and lets it fall. 1t comes
about to the waist, front and back.
and covers the shoulders, leaving
the arms free.
At night, when 1t Is chilly, you
can pick out any 1000 Indians, and
500 of them will have on serapes.
They are as common to the Mex
lean Indian as overalls are to the
Midwest farmer.
The serapes worn by the Indians
usually seem rather drab. That's
partly because they're really made
in sonber color, and partly be-
cause even if they weren't you
couldn't tell the difference, be-
cause the Indians apparently don't
wash them very often.
DUT the new ones you buy at
- market, they're wild with color.
I have one now that is blue, green,
red, orange, purple, yellow, white
and everything.
The way I happened to get this
Serape was like this:
was looking at some in the
OaXaca market, and the fellow said
he wanted 40 pesos for one, so my
little Mexican boy-guide crooked his
finger and shook his head at me,
and We walked away. The Indian
started yelling and making queer
sounds, and although I didn't look
back, I could feel him waving his
arms and jumping up and down and
shouting, Il didn't mean it; I didn't
mean it. Come on back, favor, and
I'll make you Christmas present
of it,"
But we didn't go back, and the
little boy took me a block or so
away, and through courtyard filled
with about 400 tethered burros, and
through dark passageway into a
little room with serapes on shelves
all around the wall. It was SO
dark you had to take the serapes to
the door to see what they looked
like.
NELL, I found one I liked, and
w they said 18 pesos, and I said
Is, and they said no, and after
much arguing they said II, and
said Is. and it ended there in a
stalemate, and I went away for
lunch.
But I got to thinking it over, ana
after lunch I went back to buy thu
serape for bargain at II, but they
had sold it in the meantime. That
coming back business definitely
catalogued me, of course, and from
tAACi Oll COulO1l cNcll Seb OIlS p6SQ
off the established price. (.
But I think I won anyhow. For
in rummaging around I found /
loud one, exactly like one I had seeh
in Mexico City. There they had
asked 100 pesos for it, and here III
Oaxaca it was just. 10 pesos. So I
bought it, and that's the ,one I'm
going to wear all the time to work
when get back to Washington.
Also I bought a bigger one, for 81
pesos. It's black and white and
gray, not a color in it, and it's q
beautiful thing. And yesterday I
bought another one-a little black
and white one-down in the tth
town of Tlocolula Bought it of a
guy who was wearing it, for FIVE
pesos (S1.40). So now have three.
AS soon as get the other 9997, ana
a house to put them in, maybe III
be satisfied.