MANNERS AND CUSTOMS.
Let us examine briefly in the first place what has been the management
of Porto Rico under Spanish rule, or, rather, perhaps we should call it
mismanagement, for no one of Spain's colonies has ever been properly
directed.
Porto Rico has been governed under a constitution voted by the Spanish
Cortes in 1869. The government has been administered by a
captain-general, assisted by an administrative council appointed at
Madrid.
The revenue has been about four millions of dollars a year, considerably
more than half of which has been derived from customs, and the rest from
taxation, direct and indirect.
The captain-general was president of the superior tribunals of justice
and of the superior juntas of the capital; but the fiscal administration
had a special chief called intendant. The supreme judicial power lay in
a royal _audience_. Justice was administered in the cities and in the
country by judges of the first instance and by alcaldes. There were nine
special tribunals: civil, ecclesiastical, war, marine, artillery,
engineers, administration, probate and commerce.
Ecclesiastical affairs were presided over by a bishop chosen by the
crown and approved by the pope.
For administrative purposes the island and its dependencies were
divided into nine districts: Porto Rico, Bayamon, Arecibo, Aquadilla,
Mayaguez, Ponce, Humacoa, Guayama and Vieques.
The Spanish administration in Porto Rico, although not so bad as in
other colonies, has, nevertheless, been one of cruelty and oppression.
The Spaniards, as will be remembered, began by exterminating the native
Indian population in less than a century.
There was not a branch of the administration which was not conducted
under a system of corruption. The law was constantly violated by the
Spaniards, and the natives deprived of their rights.
When elections took place the Spanish or Conservative party always won,
and this in spite of the fact that this party was in a large minority.
No more corrupt and farcical elections have even been known to take
place.
Such a thing as liberty of the press was utterly unknown. Articles that
had been printed in the Madrid or other Spanish papers attacking the
government could not be reproduced in any Porto Rican papers, without
the editors being arrested and punished. And this occurred even if the
article in question had not been considered as offering ground for the
prosecution by the authorities in Spain.
The papers, by the way, were ridiculously inadequate in every sense of
the word. Only one attempt was ever made to establish a magazine. This
was about eleven years ago. It was called the _Revista Puertorriquena_
and was intended "to carry the highest expression of our intellectual
culture to all the people of Europe and America where the magnificent
Castilian language is spoken."
The magazine was conducted by a committee composed of a director, two
editors, "and other illustrious persons" elected by the subscribers. The
founder of the magazine lamented that the "race of artists" who first
settled in Puerto Rico "were so overwhelmed by the exuberant and pompous
beauty of the tropics that the natural means of artistic expression were
exaggerated to the detriment of ideas," and that the crying evil of the
periodical press of the island was "the abundance of sonorous and
high-sounding articles having nothing to say to the understanding."
The founder of the magazine was Don Manuel Juncos, who is the author of
several books of travel. He speaks of the Brooklyn bridge as "a magic
vision of the Thousand and One Nights," while the smoke that rose from
myriads of New York chimneys "formed the holy and blessed incense of a
mighty and busy population, rising directly up to God from the fecund
altar of labor." In the streets he was amazed at the "incessant
avalanche of men, all having the purpose of certain or probable
utility."
No more than nineteen persons, under the old regime, were allowed to
meet in any place of the island, without special permission from the
government, and the mayor of the town was obliged to attend the meetings
to see that nothing was said or done against "the integrity of the
nation."
Licenses were required for everything, even for an ordinary dancing
party.
The manner of life in the large towns of Porto Rico is not dissimilar
from that of European countries, with the exception of some slight
differences due to the heat of the climate. The fashions for men and
women alike are imported, especially from Paris and London. Those who
are in comfortable circumstances dress just like people in European
countries. The men wear woolen clothes all the year round. The young
women dress very elaborately and all wear hats, the Spanish mantilla
being adopted by elderly women only.
In the small towns, men dress after the fashion of the cities, except
that their clothes are made of linen. Woolen fabrics are uncomfortable,
and they are considered a luxury to be donned only on Sundays and
holidays.
Laborers and farm hands wear neither coats nor shoes. They do not care
to do so, in the first place, and, in the second, they could not afford
to, as their earnings are very small.
In San Juan the streets are rectangular and are closely built with brick
houses usually two or three stories, stuccoed on the outside, and
painted in different colors. In one house live several families, and the
degree of rent, as well as of social position, rises with the height of
the floor above the ground.
The lower floors, as a rule, are very dirty, and are crowded in a most
unhealthful way by negroes and the servants of those who live above.
Sanitary conditions, by the way, as in all Spanish possessions, are the
very worst possible, and much will have to be done in this respect when
the United States takes permanent possession.
There is one feature which strikes every foreigner, and that is the roof
gardens. In many parts of the island, especially in the smaller towns,
the whole population enjoys itself at night on the housetops. The houses
are built a little off the ground, and they look not unlike castles in
the air which have been built for pleasure rather than for living
purposes.
In all tropical countries people have the habit of sleeping in the
daytime, and do their shopping and attend to their social duties in the
evening. In Porto Rico this custom is almost universal.
Every man of any means is the possessor of two houses, a town house and
a country house. At carnival times, or when any special celebration is
going on, he takes his family to town and brings them back again when
the sport is over.
Poverty is almost unknown in Porto Rico, for almost every man owns his
horse and every woman is the possessor of chickens. Horseback riding is
an almost universal pastime. There are many fine horses on the island,
and they are used daily by men and women.
The inhabitants have but few wants which are not satisfied by Nature
without any effort on their part. They lead a _dolce far niente_
existence, swinging to and fro in their hammocks all day long, smoking
cigarettes and strumming guitars.
Life at San Juan and the other principal towns is more or less
monotonous, amusements being few. There is a _retreta_ or concert by the
military bands twice a week and theatrical performances three or four
evenings a week. Matinees are very seldom given. The theatres are owned
by the cities and rented to European and American companies traveling
through the island at so much an evening.
Unlike Cuba, there are no bull fights, but cock fighting may be called
the national sport, and is universally indulged in. Game cocks are the
greatest attraction of the markets. Every Sunday there are public fights
in the cockpit, and these are invariably accompanied by betting, often
very large amounts being involved.
Gambling, by the way, may be said to be universal. Every one, from the
rich planter down to the lowest laborer and beggar, is given up to this
vice, and will squander away every dollar if the mood takes him.
There is nothing but hospitality on the island. The people are
exceedingly polite to strangers, and the traveler who offers money
deeply offends his host.
A curious feature of the streets is the milk delivery, which is not
unlike that prevailing in Cuba.
This takes place before and during the noon, or breakfast, hour,
breakfast being taken here between 12 and 2 o'clock. Sometimes the milk
is still being sold at 4 or 5 o'clock. The milkman drives from door to
door from one to four or five cows, each branded with a number and
usually one or more of them accompanied by a calf. The driver cries his
approach, and the customer fetches sends out a pan, pail, bottle, or
cup, which he hands to the milkman. The milkman puts into the receptacle
the quantity of milk paid for, which he induces the cow to yield after
the usual manner.
Mr. W. G. Morrisey gives an interesting description of how funerals are
conducted in Porto Rico. He says that when a native dies preparations
are immediately made for the burial.
No women are allowed to attend the funeral and the casket is carried on
the shoulders of four natives. The cemetery being reached, the remains
are deposited in one of the many vaults in the place, provided the sum
of four pesos per year is paid to the authorities. If this sum is not
forthcoming the corpse is placed in a corner of the graveyard and left
there to decay. Mr. Morrisey said it was a common occurrence to see
seven or eight funerals pass by every day.
Another thing that struck Mr. Morrisey was the railroad that runs from
Ponce to Playo. The train is made up of an old-fashioned engine and
three cars. There are first, second and third class coaches, the only
difference between the first and second class being the seats in the
first class coach, which are cushioned. It is first class in name only,
and very few of the visitors and the better class of natives use it,
because of the fact that the cushions are full of vermin. Everything
seems to be filthy, from the Hotel Ingleterra, which is considered the
best house in Ponce, to the most miserable of huts on the outskirts of
the city.
Mr. Morrisey said that it is not a question of one place being cleaner
than the other, but one place not being as filthy as another.
The facilities for lighting the city at night were investigated, and it
was found that very little light is used. The stores are lighted with
one or two incandescent lights, which are put in by the managers of a
small electric light plant that has been in operation for some time.
Kerosene oil cannot be bought for less than forty cents a pint, and
consequently is not used to any great extent. An ice plant has also been
established in Ponce, where they manufacture ice in small cakes about
the size of a brick. This sells at $1.50 per hundred-weight.
There is no public school system, and a large number of even the white
population can neither read nor write. The daughters of the well-to-do
are sent to convents on the island, while the sons go abroad to be
educated. Among this latter class there is considerable culture and
refinement, and most of them speak English.
The women are of medium size, but exquisitely formed. They have all the
coquetry which is typical of the women of the tropics, and no one who
visits Porto Rico can fail to be impressed with their beauty, delicacy
and grace.
It has been affirmed that Porto Rico has been in the past a perfect
Mecca for fugitives from justice. At one time no less than one hundred
of this description were traced there.
It is really possible to live on very little money there, and lives are
prolonged to an incredible period. Fugitives therefore find it a haven
in which to turn over a new leaf and begin a better life.
The Porto Ricans are naturally Roman Catholics and are very devout.
The manner of keeping Sunday would be apt to shock our New Englanders of
Puritan descent.
A correspondent of the New York Sun, who was with the army in Porto Rico
speaks of this as follows:
"Sunday at Ponce, if it continues as at present, will add still further
variety to the somewhat different observances of the day which now
characterize the territory of the United States.
"'To-morrow,' said a native last Saturday, 'to-morrow I shall go to the
theatre.'
"'It's Sunday,' said his American soldier companion. 'You should be
going to church.'
"An elevation of the shoulders.
"'The same thing,' said the native.
"The show at the theatre that day, by the way, was given by an American
troupe that has been touring the Indies.
"There is, of course, nothing new in the custom in Catholic countries of
giving Sunday mornings to church and Sunday afternoons to pleasure. In
Ponce the merchants are not willing to close their stores for the
religious observances of the day, but hold that it would be wholly wrong
to mar the hours of pleasure by business attentions. The stores are all
open Sunday mornings as on other days, but shut tight Sunday afternoons.
Vesper services are all but unknown. There may be a change regarding
services presently. The priests have not been paid since the arrival of
the American army. It was the Spanish custom to pay them from the
customs receipts. Colonel Hill has refused to give them any money since
he has been in charge of the custom-house, and has told them that
hereafter their people will have to support them voluntarily. What the
people will say to this at the start it is hard to guess. They may not
wholly understand it. Under existing laws they are taxed for the support
of the church. What their voluntary support of it will be remains to be
seen. Protestants have almost a clear field for mission work here. The
only Protestant church on the island is at Ponce, and that was opened on
the Sunday after the Americans' arrival, for the first time, it is said,
in ten years.
"The chief service at the cathedral is held at 9 o'clock Sunday
mornings, mass being said hourly from 5 o'clock until then. At the 9
o'clock service many Americans drift in. Even the Catholics among the
soldiers who have attended have appeared to drift in rather than go with
the purpose of doing their devotions. It may be that there seemed
something inconsistent in kneeling before the altar with a row of
cartridges girded around the body. One man crept into the nave behind
the seats, took off his cartridge belt and laid it beside him, and,
kneeling, bowed his head very low, while he joined in the prayers. When
the service was over he carried the war belt in his hand to the door and
there stopped and buckled it on. Fifty yards from the door a company of
the Nineteenth Infantry was encamped on guard duty in the principal
public square, on one end of which the cathedral stands.
"While the services were going on late comers of the native congregation
edged their way in at the rear doors, and, passing round the screen
beneath the choir loft, dropped to their knees on the marble floor,
there remaining until the close. Noticeable among these worshippers were
the old and widowed and the very poor. The last recked little or not at
all of the filthy floor, trailed with dirt and spotted with tobacco
juice. Some of the others brought with them prayer rugs, even though
they were but ragged strips of carpeting."
The same correspondent has also this to say about the shops, which is
interesting:
"One of the things revealed by a shopping tour is the absence from the
shops of anything distinctly characteristic of Porto Rico. The tourist
has not made the island a favorite stopping place, and the people seem
to prefer when buying anything not edible to buy foreign-made articles.
The only things that even bore a stamp indicative of Porto Rico found by
several hunters after curios were fit relics of a Spanish city--case
knives inscribed "Viva Ponce." Fortunate seekers after mementoes secured
a few of the peculiar native musical instruments called guiros. It is
straining courtesy as well as language to call them musical instruments,
but they are used by the natives to make what to the natives is music,
and one of them is included in each group of street or cafe musicians.
The instrument is a gourd shaped like some of our long-necked squashes,
hollowed out through two vents cut in one side, and the surface over
half the perimeter slashed or furrowed so as to offer a file-like
resistance to a metal trident, which is scraped over it in time to the
music made by the guitar, or whatever other instrument or instruments
make up the orchestra. There are times when the result is suggestive of
the couchee-couchee music and scratching."
For nearly three centuries slavery existed in Porto Rico, but it was
finally abolished by the Spanish Cortes in March 1873.
The New York Herald in its special correspondence has much to say about
the inhabitants that is of undoubted interest, and from this article we
have culled considerable that follows. The article in question was
written after the virtual surrender of Porto Rico.
These people have been accustomed to military rule all their lives, and
to withdraw it in toto and tell them to go in and govern themselves is
an experience which many regard as dangerous. Of a race excitable, with
blood that courses quickly and with wrongs of many years' standing, the
natives are intoxicated with their freedom. Their delirium has but one
course--revenge--and when the entire population is fully awake to the
opportunity offered there may come a break from all restraint, and then
it may be shown that the depletion of our army was a blunder.
Without the menace of the Spanish soldiery, without the fear of the
Church, and without the guiding hand of a good American officer and
wisely-located American army of occupation, there may be trouble ahead.
With the going of the soldiers comes the influx of the mercantile
classes. Salesmen are arriving in large numbers and promoters and
speculators abound. Everything is being boosted from its former
lethargic tropical calm. Prices of commodities are rising. Land has
quadrupled in value in the owners' minds, and even the street gamins now
demand twenty-five cents American money for a single button alleged to
be cut from the coat of a Spanish soldier, which they formerly had
trouble at disposing of at the rate of twelve and one-half cents per
dozen.
These commercial avant couriers are bright, active 'hustlers,' who make
the native nabobs gasp at their breezy ways, but, all the same, these
nabobs are pretty shrewd persons and know how to buy closely.
There is one thing the native merchants have to learn, and that is to
display their goods and wares. Not a single show window exists, and if
some enterprising Yankee will just tear out the forbidding front of one
of these business houses, replace it with one on the showcase style and
set forth a dazzling array of merchandize, arranged by the deft hand of
the artistic window decorator, there will be a revolution in trade in
this place.
Another portion of the business life to be renovated is the sugar
industry. The crudest system exists for the transformation of the juice
of the cane into the saccharine crystals of commerce. Machinery so
ponderous that it requires a volume of steam all out of proportion to
the energy actually needed, and wasteful methods in the extraction of
the syrup residue after crystallization, obtain. Yankee machinery,
coupled with Yankee push, will cause a wonderful difference in the cost
of the finished product.
"At the same time the manner of herding the hangs on these huge
plantations must surely be changed. Such conditions exist in the
quarters that a mere recital would be unprintable, and from an
examination I made of the quarters of a very large estate I came away
ill mentally and physically."
Members of the Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals have a
great field before them in this island. The inhabitants are the most
cruel in their handling of beasts of burden and, in fact, of all living
creatures below the grade of mankind that could be imagined.
Oxen and bulls furnish the principal means of merchandise
transportation. They are yoked together with a huge horn rising upon the
neck just back of the horns and held in place by bandages around the
forehead. The driver carries a goad about five feet in length, in the
end of which is inserted a sharp steel point about one inch long. This
is used so freely that it is common to see streams of blood running down
the sides of the poor maltreated beasts. Not satisfied with using the
sharp end, the inhuman drivers frequently deliver terrific blows with
the butt across the tender noses of their charges.
Many an American soldier has knocked down these cruel drivers for their
abuse of the patient beasts, but the drivers do not improve with the
thrashing. The American military authorities have imported several
American yokes and an effort is to be made to compel their use instead
of the timber of torture which now obtains.
An author of the last century has this to say about the Porto Ricans:
"They are well proportioned and delicately organized; at the same time
they lack vigor, are slow and indolent, possess vivid imaginations, are
vain and inconstant, though hospitable to strangers, and ardent lovers
of liberty."
Referring to the mixture of races, the same author continues:
"From this variety of mixture has resulted a character equivocal and
ambiguous, but peculiarly Porto Rican. The heat of the climate has made
them lazy, to which end also the fertility of the soil has conduced; the
solitary life of the country residents has rendered them morose and
disputatious."
A writer of more recent times declares that they are "affable, generous,
hospitable to a fault, loyal to their sovereign, and will to the last
gasp defend their island from invasion. The fair sex are sweet and
amiable, faithful as wives, loving as sisters, sweethearts and
daughters, ornaments to any society, tasteful in dress, graceful in
deportment, and elegant in carriage. In fact, visitors from old Spain
have frequently remarked their resemblance to the _doncellas_ of Cadiz,
who are world-renowned for their grace and loveliness."
"The truth is that they all have the Spanish _cortesia_," says Frederick
A. Ober, in the Century Magazine, when commenting upon the above
opinions, "and are more like the polite Andalusians of the south of
Spain than the boorish Catalans of the northeast. Even the lowliest
laborer, unless he be one of the four hundred thousand illiterates,
signs his name with a _rubrica_, or elaborate flourish and styles
himself 'Don,' after the manner of the Spanish grandees, and the
humblest innkeeper, when receipting a bill, will admit he 'avails
himself with intense pleasure of this occasion for offering to such a
distinguished gentleman the assurance of his most distinguished
consideration!'
"This need not imply affectation, nor even insincerity, but merely a
different conception of the social amenities from that of the
all-conquering American, who, it is to be hoped, will not treat this
foible with the contempt which, in his superior wisdom, he may think it
merits."