The old and the new Peru

by Marie Robinson Wright

BARRANCO, A SEASIDE SUBURB OF LIMA.

The hospitality of the Peruvians is especially seen in their homes, where the stranger finds them thoughtful, courteous, and invariably polite and attentive. One has here a good opportunity to learn the family customs, which are simple and cordial. The houses of Peru are generally of one or two stories, and are built around a court or patio, which is usually beautified with plants and flowers and often paved with ornamental tiles, making it a delightfully cool and comfortable place for the family reunion in the evening. It takes the place of the verandah, so popular in North America. The daily routine of a Peruvian family does not differ greatly from that of the Latin people in all countries, where the desayuno, or early breakfast, consists of a cup of coffee and a roll, taken in one’s room, sometimes as early as six o’clock, the midday meal, or breakfast proper, being much more elaborate than the same meal in England or the United States, while the dinner, between six and eight in the evening, is more or less the same as in all countries. Criollo cooking, as the preparation of food according to Spanish-American taste is called, has given place in many houses to the French cuisine, though one may still enjoy the peppery dishes of native origin in the sierra, and a few choice specialties of traditional excellence retain their hold on the national palate. The after-dinner coffee is usually taken in the patio in summer and in the drawing-room during the season of the garúa. In the evening, music and dancing are favorite amusements, the piano, guitar, mandolin, or other musical instruments being among the necessities of every well-regulated home. The foreigner is at once impressed by the refinement and grace which distinguish the people in their home life, and which are evidences of the long inheritance of a cultured race. Travellers have extolled the people of Lima for their intelligence, imagination, and charming hospitality; the Arequipeños are eulogized by Flammarion, who says: “Arequipa is the most agreeable place of abode in South America, not only for the suavity of its climate but also because of the hospitable customs of its people.” The cordiality of the families of Cuzco is no less abundantly proved by those who have enjoyed a visit to this historic city, in which it is the custom to extend charming hospitality to the stranger. It is the same in the other cities of the republic, where a kindly welcome awaits the visitor and every courtesy is shown to the traveller.

PARK AT BARRANCO.

The increasing population of foreigners in Peru, and the custom among well-to-do Peruvians of sending their children to Europe and the United States to complete their education has led to the introduction of more cosmopolitan social customs than formerly existed, and this is seen especially in the outdoor sports and amusements. Although the bull fight and the Spanish game of pelota still attract a large number of spectators, the lawn tennis games are also popular; football and baseball claim a great many enthusiastic Peruvian players, and regattas are always attended by immense crowds of people. The horse races have become a regular feature of sport, and at the Cancha, or race track, on “Derby Day,” the best Lima society may be seen in its most fashionable attire, which is usually of Parisian style and is often imported direct from the French capital. The new president-elect of Peru, Don Augusto Leguia, has a stock farm near the capital, on which some of the best thoroughbreds of South America have been reared, and his horses are usually among the favorite winners on Derby Day.

STAIRWAY OF THE NATIONAL CLUB, LIMA.

Though most of the private fortunes of Limeños were swept away at the time of the war with Chile, when the destruction of property was great in Lima and its suburbs, as well as on the haciendas of the wealthy planters, yet the present generation has recovered a great deal of the former prosperity, and at important social functions, such as the balls given within the past two years to the Duke of the Abruzzi and Prince Udine, of Italy, to General Saenz Peña of Argentina, and to Hon. Elihu Root of the United States, the costumes and jewels displayed are of the most costly and elegant description. The ladies of Lima have always been famous for their winning and gracious manners, and every writer on Peru has paid a compliment to their tiny feet, in which one traveller finds a sufficient excuse for the Q. b. s. p. (“who kisses your feet”) with which letters to ladies are usually finished in Spanish, instead of the very matter-of-fact “Yours sincerely” that closes an epistle in English. The Peruvian hostess entertains with the grâce du salon which is hers by inheritance, and her tertulias are altogether charming. But she does not confine her energies to social duties alone, her charities occupying a great deal of attention. Three years ago, a number of ladies of the best society of Lima formed a club, called the “Centro Social,” for the purpose of establishing institutes in which the daughters of gentlewomen without fortune could secure, free of charge, the necessary training to fit them for earning their living. It was proposed to teach stenography, bookkeeping, telegraphy, photography, drawing, and other branches, which would provide the knowledge required by girls in search of remunerative employment. This effort shows the spirit of practical benevolence which animates the Limeña in her charitable work. It is a long step toward relieving the pressure of modern needs when a race, whose women have been so closely guarded as have those of Spanish ancestry, can throw off the prejudices of traditional custom and meet a present demand with a present remedy. The adverse fortunes of war in the southern part of the United States forced many gently born women to enter the business world. At first they stayed at home and earned a pittance bending over the embroidery frame, but modern machinery made even this a hopeless effort in the face of too strong competition, and they turned their attention to more lucrative posts. While war continues to destroy the natural breadwinners of society and to deplete the home treasury, it is useless to preach about “woman’s sphere.”