Above all these women are kind hearted and charitable. Though carefully guarding their homes, yet if a stranger is admitted into the family he is received with a generous welcome. Should he return after long absence, he is greeted almost as one of the family and without reservation. He is not only permitted but encouraged to call all the members by their given names and to use the pronoun tu or “thou” in his intercourse with them. This is an especial privilege among Spanish people who are very particular about familiarity in address. They will oftentimes deprive themselves for a friend. They have their faults too. Although smoking is not countenanced in public it is said that many of them smoke in their boudoirs and in the company of friends of their own sex. A great deal has been said of their lack of morality but this is a subject upon which only those very familiar with the facts should dare to speak, for it cannot be treated lightly, or solely with the intention of casting a slur on another race.
WASHING ON THE BANKS OF A STREAM
The lives of the Indian women of Mexico present a far different picture. Instead of living in great palaces, their homes are in little adobe cabins of one room, perhaps without the luxury of a window, or in bamboo huts covered with plantain leaves without chairs or table and only a mat of husks for a bed. There is no seclusion in their lives and the real duties of life begin at a very early age. I cannot call them serious duties for it is doubtful if these people regard any of the obligations of life as very serious. Their early experiences are with its hard realities. They can be seen on the streets and around their homes with baby brothers or sisters swung across their backs when they themselves are so small that the burden seems far too heavy for them. On the banks of the streams they can be seen doing the family washing with a great amount of rubbing and pounding and wringing. To the fountains and wells they come carrying earthen jars on their heads, which they fill with water and replace with a grace and charm that excites admiration.
Some of the Indian maids are handsome. Yet you can tell just what their future lives will be by observing those of the parents. They will live in the same squalor, the same poverty as their ancestors have dwelt for centuries. They will go through life bareheaded and barefooted and empty-minded just as the generations which preceded have done. At twenty they have begun to fade and at thirty they retain scarcely a trace of their beauty. This is due to hard labour and deprivations. At fourteen few are unmarried or at least unmated. The marriage ceremony is frequently omitted because of the high charges of the priesthood, yet both parties are usually faithful. The number of children among this class is truly marvellous. More than one half of the younger women when seen on the street have infant children with them.
No people could be more poorly housed or more poorly equipped for domestic duties than these small brown women; and none use the little they have to better advantage or are more loyal to the man they call lord and master. They frequently live and sleep on the bare ground and possess no more clothing than they have on their bodies. They will pound away at the metate, or stone kneading-board, all day making the tortillas which are both bread and meat to the peon class. These comely Indian women will bend their lithe, active bodies for hours washing clothes on large round stones which serve as wash-boards.
Their clothes are simple and the latest fashion has no attraction. The rebosa is a universal garment and answers for a shawl, a carry-all for babies and bundles, and a covering for the owner at night. These black-eyed women with their half-concealed faces, sober, unemotional manners, high-coloured garments and curious Egyptian-shaped pottery might well be from the shores of the Red Sea. Their love of warm, bright colours is even seen in their love for flowers since the many-hued, brilliant-coloured blossoms are everywhere. Mignonettes and roses, flowering geraniums and scarlet poppies, gigantic oleanders and dainty pansies share attention with the brilliant-hued tropical birds in gayest colours which usually hang beside the open door in a home-made cage of dried rushes. They are faithful workers in fancy work and will follow the most intricate design and reproduce it with fidelity and ease. Their art needle work on handkerchiefs and other linen articles is extremely fine and their drawn work is praised everywhere. It is not the work of the dainty fingers of educated women but of very humble and ignorant peon women in floorless cabins of adobe and of hands accustomed to drudgery.
The women of Tehuantepec are remarkable for their beauty of face and form. They are easily the finest looking Indian women in America and in beauty of figure will compare with any race in the world. They are dark-skinned, almost a soft olive-brown, with sparkling dark eyes, masses of wavy hair, exquisite features and beautiful teeth, which are kept clean and white. Their carriage will attract attention, for they walk erect and with a peculiar stride probably due to the prevailing habit of carrying baskets and water jars always on the head, where they are carefully balanced. They are small in stature, with fine limbs, and seem born models for an artist.
The “Tehuanas” wear a quaint head-dress called “huepil,” which is made of coarse white lace. It is arranged in three different ways according to the occasion. At a dance it is wound round the neck and stands out like a huge Elizabethan ruff. In church it is put on the head something like a Boulogne fish-wife’s cap. For ordinary wear it is simply laid back on the hair and the folds hang down the back resembling somewhat the feather head-dress of a North American Indian chief. It is indeed curious but is quite befitting. They always dress becomingly, with the quaint little short jackets which expose a section of brown back above the skirt band and are cut low about the neck in a fashion that women the world over have found graceful, and with extremely short sleeves. On extraordinary occasions this short jacket, or waist, is of richer material embroidered in handsome designs of brilliant colours. Some of the designs show oriental characteristics. The skirt of the dress is of soft material, linen or cotton, to the knees and below the knees is of a heavy lace or embroidery starched very stiff. The material used is not the usual cheap and gaudy fabrics sold to the Mexican Indian, but is of good quality and specially made by a certain Manchester house for these people.
These belles of Tehuantepec have a great liking for American gold coins which are worn on necklaces. British sovereigns or French napoleons are usually not desired, but a big premium will be paid for the eagle, half eagle, or double eagles of Uncle Sam. Every centavo that a woman can save goes into her fund for purchasing gold pieces. The gorgeous necklace with the gold coins attached makes a showy and rather beautiful ornament. The fortune and standing of a “Tehuana” is indicated by the number of gold coins on her necklace. One Tehuantepec heiress has—it is said—a necklace which is valued at three thousand dollars. The most striking feature in the dress of these women is that not one will wear shoes. Dressed in all her finery, head-dress, starched skirt, polka-dot waist, necklace and smile, she will appear barefooted—a strange anomaly. Without shoes they will dance over a stone floor, or even a dirt, gravel-bestrewn surface, with a grace that violates all rules of art. These dusky princesses will be found as graceful as gazelles on all occasions.