EL MER CADO CEN TRAL, A S UNCION, PA RA G UA V. 



417 



year upon some part of this piazza, in varied conditions 

 of luxuriance. 



With great difficulty we pick our way among these 

 obstructions to one of the four main entrances which 

 lead into the interior, only noticing as we go the gullies 

 worn in the brick pavement by the feet of an unknown 

 number of generations, and never repaired since it was 

 first laid. 



If the throng and confusion are so great without, what 

 shall we say of the interior ? Here are congregated 500 

 women at least, all laughing, screaming and talking at 

 once in that strange guttural jargon known as the Guarani 

 language, and the hubbub is equal to that of Babel. 

 I don't understand Guarani, but I judge from the merri- 

 ment exhibited on all sides, that it is an easy tongue 

 in which to crack jokes ! 



The most of the rooms contained in the quadrangular 

 part of the building are used as stores, eating houses 

 and liquor shops ; but four of them are reserved as 

 butcher's stalls in which sides of fresh meat killed only 

 last night, beef and mutton, are hung up or laid upon 

 marble benches. Women do all the service here as well 

 as elsewhere in the market, but as for the meat cutting, 

 heaven save the mark ! They apparently haven't the 

 slightest idea of roasting pieces, cutlets, joints, steak, 

 tenderloin, rump or saddles; the flesh is hacked up into 

 junks and you take it as it comes, have it cut off by the 

 foot or yard as you like, paying for it about seven cents 

 per pound, Paraguayan money (some five cents in our 

 currency). The beef of Paraguay would be very nice 

 if it were properly cut and kept somewhat longer. The 

 beeves are well fed, fat, peaceful and good natured, and 

 their flesh is tender and juicy. 



Along this side of the building just inside of the meat 

 stalls is a long row of benches upon, under and around 

 which are heaps of mandioca roots, lettuce, cabbages, 

 radishes, parsley, beets, tomatoes, peppers, onions, egg- 

 plants and the like, all of which are sold by the single 

 piece or dozen, and never by the peck or bushel. Next 

 to these are benches bearing baskets or heaps of lemons 

 and eggs, and here are two women chaffering over the 

 price of eggs. " Qiianto vale?"' says the buyer, picking 

 up an egg and holding it in a scornful way between 

 fingers and thumb, " Ctiarto centavos" (four cents) 

 answers the other in a sharp tone, as if nettled to have 

 any one put such a simple question ; then up fly the arms 

 of the purchaser and she gesticulates, wildly . ' ' Que esper- 

 anza .' " (what a hope!) she cries, making as though she 

 would throw theegg at the other woman's head. " h'lu vos 

 frescos, lindos, lindos" (fresh eggs, beautiful, beautiful) 

 shrieks the seller, bound to hold up her end of the bar- 

 gain : but finally she consents to take three cents, and 

 the purchaser buys two eggs at that price, and walks 

 away triumphantly ; but let me whisper in your ear that 

 she had better look out when she breaks those eggs into 

 a bowl, as they are neither over clean on the outside, 

 nor by any means sure to be fresh on the inside. 



Just across the way are screaming loros (parrots) and 

 loritos (paroquets), chattering monkeys, magpies and 



other birds, many of them with brilliant plumage, and 

 even fawns, armadillos and agoutis. On the floor near 

 by are scores of turkeys and chickens, tied together by 

 the legs, and generally remonstrating loudly against their 

 confinement. Poultry is always sold alive throughout 

 South America. 



Yonder are the milk, butter, lard and candle quarters, 

 where you are offered a bottle of milk containing about 

 a gill for ten cents, or pats of white, unsalted butter 

 which usually turns to oil before you can get it home, or 

 dip candles which are in universal use among the common 

 people for lighting their houses at night. Hard by are 

 benches on which are spread piles of galletas, or the 

 round biscuit, so hard that you have to break it open 

 with a hammer, and which, in consequence, has the ex- 

 cellent quality of being able to keep good for months ; or 

 the soft fresh wheat flour cakes which are baked every 

 night by the bakers of Asuncion, and are in so much re- 

 quest at all the city restaurants. Here, if yon prefer, 

 you may obtain the bread peculiar to the country, made 

 of what is there called farina or mandioca flour. This 

 bread is made into rolls or rings of a mixture of cheese, 

 coriander seed and mandioca flour, and is both palatable 

 and cheap in price. It is the bread of the country out- 

 side of Asuncion. 



If you are disposed to purchase other things outside 

 of the line of provisions, you may obtain in another 

 quarter jewelry, most of it very rich and expensive, for 

 even the commonest Paraguayan will wear nothing but 

 silver, gold or stones of the first quality ; glass ware, the 

 delicate hand made laces of the country, toilet articles, 

 the large pottery jars with long necks and large round 

 bottoms which are used all over Paraguay for holding 

 and cooling water, and nice dining-room ware made of 

 the same pottery. Then if you are a smoker, you will fi nd 

 great stacks of tobacco leaves and the cigarros del pais as 

 they are named, the cigars of the country, made of ex- 

 cellent material, but rolled in the roughest style, and 

 sold for a media (five cents) a dozen. By the way, 

 nearly every woman you meet has a cigar in her mouth, 

 for they are inordinate smokers, but they prefer a cigar 

 which is nearly twice as large at the outer as at the inner 

 end, a peculiar taste which I could never understand, 

 for such cigars as these are seldom or never offered for 

 sale, and I never saw a man using them. 



Another thing which is pretty sure to excite your 

 attention is the absence of tills and purses. These are 

 common enough in the city stores, but I never saw either 

 among the market traders ; there the bosom of the dress 

 is the invariable purse that holds any amount of change, 

 whether copper or paper {Paraguay has no gold or silver 

 coinage) ; and if I ever dreaded touching paper fractional 

 currency, it was there — ragged, soiled, defaced, I never 

 put a piece of the stuff into my pocket-book without 

 wishing to wash my hands with a disinfectant ! 



Half of the women who frequent this place are cooks 

 or head servants, who are sent daily from the households 

 of the city to obtain the necessary provisions for the 

 family table. They bring large open baskets, or big 



