The old and the new Peru

by Marie Robinson Wright

THE PRESENT STANDARD OF LIMA, AS MODIFIED IN 1808.

A PICTURESQUE SUBURBAN DRIVEWAY, LIMA.

CHAPTER XIII
PERUVIAN HOSPITALITY AND CULTURE

A MODERN PRIVATE RESIDENCE OF LIMA.

If the Spanish-Americans have inherited from their European ancestors too much of the aristocratic pride and military arrogance that distinguished Peninsular crusaders, they have also fallen heir to the courtly grace and admirable savoir faire which made the Knights of Santiago and Alcantara famous among the first gentlemen of Europe four centuries ago, and which, descending to their children’s children, have become characteristic of the Spanish-speaking people all over the world. In America, and more particularly in Peru, the influence of New World conditions fostered a relaxation of austere exclusiveness and a softening of military severity; the lavish opulence that reigned in the viceroyalty, with its attendant pleasures, led colonial society to assume a gayety and freedom which would have been impossible in the atmosphere of rigorous etiquette that dominated Madrid, and Lima gradually became more renowned for its sociability than for the strictness of its court. Both influences may be seen, however, in the development of the Peruvian society of to-day, which is reserved and dignified in manner, clever, hospitable, and kind.

Although the national traits vary according to locality and inherited tendencies, the inhabitants of the coast possessing characteristics which are not so clearly defined in the people of the sierra, while these again differ in their customs from their neighbors of the Amazon valleys, yet, everywhere and at all times, the Peruvian’s Mi casa es á Và—“My house is yours”—is a spontaneous word of welcome. The Limeños, as natives of the capital are called, are noted for their esprit and imagination, and are especially gifted in the social qualities for which their ancestors were celebrated a hundred years ago; while they are, happily, outgrowing the heritage of less admirable tendencies, bequeathed by the luxurious and extravagant society of the viceregal court. The progress of the nation within the past half a century shows that the race is strong, full of purpose, and capable of working out a noble destiny. During the first twenty years of the republic, the social life of Lima did not change greatly from what it had been in the pleasure-loving court of the viceroyalty. Visitors to Peru in those early times tell us that the propensity for card playing was one of the greatest evils the new government had to combat, and that ministers, envoys, and officers of all ranks fell under its spell. It is said that the celebrated Baquijano once had to send for a bullock cart to take home his winnings, amounting to more than thirty thousand dollars. The chroniclers do not state whether the game resembled our modern poker or our bridge whist! Those were the days when General San Martin gave his assemblies at the palace once a week, and balls were held at which round dances began to take the place of the minuet, the mariquita, and the fandango. As the influence of the new régime made itself felt everywhere, political and literary coteries lessened the number of card parties and music and dancing became more popular in the houses of the leading people.

It was not so easy to reform the custom, popular among the ladies of those days, of wearing the saya y manto, a coquettish feminine dress of the viceregal period, which had been under the ban of devout churchmen for two hundred years before the independence. Its evil influence seems to have been of a subtle kind, to judge from the conflicting impressions it made on different travellers. It is described by one who was in Lima a century ago and saw the ladies of that day arrayed in all their charming grace and armed with their irresistible coquetries, as “a very handsome and genteel costume;” though not all foreigners described it in such moderate and conventional terms. The saya was a skirt of velvet, satin, or stuff, of black, purple, pale blue, or other colors, sometimes striped; it was pleated in small folds and clung to the figure in such a way as to display the contour to the best advantage. Some of these sayas were very narrow at the bottom so that the wearer was obliged to take short steps in walking, a custom that made the Limeña’s tiny feet look still smaller as she tripped daintily along the street; the bottom of her saya was often trimmed with lace, fringe, pearls, or artificial flowers; the smaller her feet, the richer and more elaborate was the garniture that bordered her saya. With this garment went the manto, a hood of thin black silk drawn around the waist and then carried over the head and held together in front so as to hide all the face except one eye. It is said that in this costume a lady could pass her most intimate friend without being recognized, and mystery enveloped the identity of every feminine figure seen on the street in those days. A dainty lace handkerchief, a rosary in the hand, a glimpse of satin shoes and silk stockings, and an abundance of jewels completed the toilette. The manto was undoubtedly derived from the Moors, and must have appeared a curious headdress when seen for the first time. The Limeñas wore it in the most fascinating style, and the one eye that was visible between its folds was made to do double duty as a weapon of war or love. The secret of enhancing its potent charm was as complicated as are the mysteries of the tocador in modern Spanish boudoirs. It was customary to darken the brows and heighten the brilliancy of the eyes with cosmetics when Nature proved unkind or too sparing of her favors; though it was the exception, as it is to-day, when a Limeña’s eyes lacked beauty and brilliancy. Gradually the saya y manto gave place to the very full skirt and mantilla,—similar to the costume still worn to church service. A long war was waged against the manto by the authorities of the viceroyalty, who claimed that it fostered intrigue and a thousand dangerous proclivities; but the wearers insisted that it protected their complexion from the sun, and was necessary for their personal comfort as well as convenience. As early as 1609 an attempt was made to prohibit the saya y manto in Lima, but not until it declined in fashion, more than two hundred years later, did the Lima belles abandon this mode for a more modern costume. It is said that the saya y manto played a very important part in the cause of independence, and that the wearers of this effective disguise carried messages, assisted the patriots when imprisonment or hardship overtook them, and rendered a great many valuable services to the cause of liberty.