Manchurian Books

The dress of the Chilians is quite in the European taste, especially
as regards the women. The only difference with the men is that,
instead of a coat, they frequently wear the Poncho, which is
composed of two pieces of cloth or merino, each about one ell broad
and two ells long. The two pieces are sewn together, with the
exception of an opening in the middle for the head to pass through;
the whole garment reaches down to the hips, and resembles a square
cape. The Poncho is worn of all colours, green, blue, bright red,
etc., and looks very handsome, especially when embroidered all round
with coloured silk, which is the case when the wearer is opulent.
In the streets, the women invariably wear large scarfs, which they
draw over their heads in church.
My intention, on coming to Chili, was to stop for a few weeks in
order to have time for an excursion to the capital, Santiago, and
after that to proceed to China, as I had been told in Rio Janeiro
that there was a ship from Valparaiso to China every month.
Unfortunately this was not the case.


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