Rensselaer Union, Volume 7, Number 39, Rensselaer, Jasper County, 17 June 1875 — The Washerwoman of Sienna. [ARTICLE]

The Washerwoman of Sienna.

Charles Warren Stoddard writes to the San Francisco Chronicle of Sienna, Italy: ‘‘Wandering down one of the narrow streets we came upon a low roof supported by heavy columns. It looked like a mill-house, and as a stream, small, but lively, dashed in at one end of the building and out at the other we conclnded that it was a factory of some kind or other. When we came to it we were sainted by twenty buxom women who stood, in a row along the side of a stone cistern in the center of the shed through which the stream was flowing, livery woman had a pile of linen at her , feet and a garment in her hand which die was washing in the ice-cold water. This was one of the public wash-houses; the matrons and maidens gather in them to do their week's work and learn the news of the hour. Just fancy the gossip

that flows from those busy tongues in the course of a week. They all paused for a moment to exchange u word witji us, and then the business of the day was resumed without embarrassment, and, as pretty faces, big black eyes and brawny arms are not uncommon in Italy, we withdrew. Twenty women switched twenty damp garments in the air and sent a shower of drops over us; but it was their way of bidding us farewell, and as wc shook the suds from our hats thev laughed lustily, for the episodes in thelives of the watery nymphs of Sienna are few. We are continually coming upon open-air laundries in every town we visit, and, judging from the good spirits that seem to prevail in every case, it must be rather jolly than otherwise to be an Italian washerwoman.”