Page 20 - To Dragma October 1933
P. 20
18 To DRAG MA
u over the La Plata, the rivers cover the islands
Mary Elisabeth Ellis is a student at w i t h five o r six feet o f m u d d y water. Because
Vanderbilt University.
of these sudden rises all the houses are built
"Senora" must have an opportunity to say
whether o r not she wishes to see y o u . on poles several feet high.
The older houses in Buenos Aires are sel- I t is on these islands that one can see the
dom equipped w i t h chimneys as we k n o w them.
H e a r t h s and fireplaces are f e w , and c o m f o r t a - true picture of the Argentine family without
bly warm houses are scarce. However, during
the last few years some houses have been con- European influences. L i f e is simple, and w i t h
structed with c e n t r a l h e a t i n g plants. We
thought we were very lucky to have a chimney not many worries other than those of tide
in o u r hall so w e could have a small coal
and weather. The head of the family makes
stove in w i n t e r . Y o u can imagine my surprise
his l i v i n g either by fishing o r in the "bunco"
when 1 arrived in Nashville and found lire-
places in every room. I n our home we did a trade. Huncos are tall reeds found in the shal-
large share of our cooking on a native b:azero
with charcoal. A brazero looks like a brick low water along the banks of the rivers. The:
platform, about waist high, coming out f r o m
the wall o f the kitchen. I t has two or three natives cut these reeds, dry them, and sell them
holes in the top with little grates like a black-
smith's f o r g e . A small charcoal fire i n one o f in the city, where wicker chairs, shades and
these grates makes a v e r y good cooking fire.
W e also had a gas stove, as gas is available mats are made f r o m them. A l l the thatched
in all of Buenos Aires proper, and in most of
the suburbs. roofs of the huts are made f r o m these huncos,
Y o u r visit to Buenos A i r e s w o u l d not be though there is also some bamboo industry.
complete i f you d i d not see the T i g r e . T h e
Tigre is the estuary the Parana and Uruguay T h e m o t h e r is the h a r d w o r k e r o f the fa-
rivers make as they empty into the La Plata
river not far above Buenos Aires. This delta mily. She rears the children, keeps the housed
is a mass of thousands of islands, varying in
size f r o m a few blocks square to many square and very often helps her husband with his
miles. The islands are very fertile, and in
their natural state are covered with thick tall fishing. H e r meals are plain but h e a l t h f u l . She'
grasses and reeds, but very few trees. The
streams of the delta also vary in size, f r o m generally has a little garden where she raises
rivers as w i d e as the Mississippi to l i t t l e creeks
which at times run dry. They are, however, all her vegetables. Every island has its orchard
very deep, and the current is generally very
strong. The tide and the wind on the Plate of oranges, lemons, peaches, plums or grapes.-
causes the water to rise and f a l l ; and often
when there is a strong w i n d blowing inland She bakes her bread in a little mud and brick
oven. This oven is formed by two low brick
walls in which a large tin is placed, over which
is built a round mud oven. Fire is placed
under the oven, and when the tin is very hot
the bread is put i n . W h e n it comes out it
would compete w i t h any bread advertised in
Good Housekeeping. Her tea is the Paraguyan
verba mate. This verba mate is made w i t h the
dry leaves of a certain native tree. She takes
a beautifully hand carved gourd, also called
the mate, into which she puts some of thai
leaves on w h i c h she pours hot water, and at
times adds a little sugar. She passes this to the
head of the house with a "bombilla," a metal'
tube through w h i c h he sips the entire guord
f u l l . Then more hot water is poured on the;
old leaves and handed to another member o f :
the family. This continues until all have hadj
their share.
Just the thought of the mate makes me wantj
to stay longer i n Buenos A i r e s , but m y fifteen'
minutes are up and I must get back to Mathe-i
matics and French verbs. I want to say, how-
ever, that I am waiting and longing f o r thel
v e r y first chance I can get to go back to that'
land of tangos, of cattle, of wheat, of beauty^
of home. A n d I hope that every one of yottl
w i l l be able to go w i t h me to see these beau-|
t i f u l places w h i c h I have so poorly painted. I
I
Suburban transportation is a bit slow and antique.
