Page:The Homes of the New World- Vol. III.djvu/199

Rh mouths, and the most beautiful teeth. They look less good-humoured and gay than the other negro tribes, but have evidently more character and intelligence. The nation is regarded as rich, in consequence of the great prizes which it has won in the lottery, and this wealth it is said to apply to a good use—the purchasing the freedom of slaves of this tribe.

These Cabildos are governed, as I have already said, by queens, one or two, who decide upon the amusements, give tone to the society, and determine its extension. They possess the right of electing a king, who manages the pecuniary affairs of the society, and who has under him a secretary and master of the ceremonies. The latter presented me with a small printed card, which gave admission to the “Cabildo de Señora Santa Barbara de la nation Lucumi Alagua.”

After this, and when we had made a little offering to the treasury of the society, we took our departure, in order to visit other cabildos. And in all cases they were so polite as to give free access to la Signora, la bonita, and her companions. I do not know whether this politeness is to be attributed to the negro-character, or to the Spanish influence upon it, but am inclined to believe the latter.

I was received in the Cabildo de Gangas by the two Queens, two young and very pretty black girls, dressed in perfectly good French taste, in pink gauze dresses, and beautiful bouquets of artificial roses in their bosoms and their hair; they both smoked cigarettes. They took me kindly each by the hand, seated me between them, and continued to smoke with Spanish gravity. One of them had the very loveliest eyes imaginable, both in form and expression. On the wall opposite to us, was a large and