Rensselaer Semi-Weekly Republican, Volume 41, Number 24, Rensselaer, Jasper County, 4 December 1908 — BOLIVIAN PETTICOATS. [ARTICLE]

BOLIVIAN PETTICOATS.

They Are Numerous and of All the Colors of the Rainbow. The prized possession of the Bolivian Indian woman and her chief pride also, whether she is pure Indian or chola, is her petticoat. Her dowry is in this garment. Like the Dutchwoman of tradition, she carries her wealth about with her. These petticoats are of all colors of the rainbow and diverse other hues not found therein.' I first noticed them at Nazarene and remarked the *ove of color', wnich must be inborn, for tne garments were of yellow, purple, violet, fiery red, crimson,, scarlet, subdued orange, glaring saffron, blue and green. They were short, reaching barely below the knee, and no difference was observed between childhood, maidenhood, matronly middle life ana wrinkled old age. Glancing from my window in Tuplza, I thought it was a parade of perambulating balloons. These women have a habit which the bashful traveler does not at first understand. When he sees one of them calmly removing a petticoat ne is apt to turn away, but ue need not do so. It may be that the advancing heat of the day has caused the wearer to discard the outer skirt, but more likely it is the vanity of her sex and the desire to make her sisters envious by showing what is beneath for each new vesture disclosed is more brilliant than the one wbicn overlapped it. I sat in the plaza at Tupiza and watched two Inaian women try to make each other envious. The first one removed the outer petticoat, which was of purple. This divestment disclosed another garment of blazing red, and after, taat came a brilliant yellow. The other woman started with a green petticoat and gradually got down to a mixture of blue and yellow. By that time I had begun to fear for the consequences and made a pretense of turning my back by strolling to the horei. —National Geographical Magazine.