Show MARRIAGE A J LA FILIPINO I I What I Costs to Keep House in I Negros I I I I I was a listener tho other evening while a Filipino senorita made lave to a bunklo of mine writes a correspondent of tho Now York Sun from Isabella Negros Smlthlc and I were ou outpost In the outskirts out-skirts of the village We had a little nlpa leanto for a shelter front tho dew and vera posted there for the night There wns a bench In front of the leanto Just at dark three Filipino maidens sauntered out of the village and camo our way I was a fine moonlight evening and we were having May weather Smithlo sings Bucayaneso lUo a native and Is a hard longued bird In any language lie balled tho scnorltas and offered to share time bench wllh them They accepted and tho fun began Tho senorIta n ° xt to Smithies opened tho ball by asking If ho had a wJio In the States Snilthio vowed that he had none Then Hiiid tho bashful malden poco tempo after awhile you matrimony Filipino Fili-pino Js It not How you ika mo9 I came so suddenly that It lock Smlthlo off his guard Instead of answering with a compliment ho said Oht I Im only a private 1 got only 3 pesos n month 1 couldnt marry on that you know Thirty pesos exclaimed Miss Matrimony Matri-mony On That mocha dlnero Mueha money You can rent a mucha grnnda nlpahut for 1 peso a month and for four pcsoa we live much granda Smllhie took tho proposal under consideration consid-eration orlon 1 asked Clemeote Senor Holljoas cook hpw much f man needed to start housekeeping house-keeping Clcmcnto scratched his head Then he said Filipino 10 pesos Iso mas no more Amurlcnno muuha granda caaa 50 pesos pe-sos J doesnt cost much to navlgato tho troubled sea of matrimony over here Pap Isi a graybended old rascal of a native who soils the soldiers gin and beno regardless of military regulations Tho men call him Pup because ho Is believed be-lieved lo bi a Pap cclo at heart Pap has three women In his household one old and two young At llrat I took the old one for his wife and the others for his daughters As I mastered tho dialect I discovered my eiror 1 threw ore his wives I tncklfd tho youngest of the three for polnlcrs on matrimony the other day I wanted to know how much It would cost to Ilvo III a state or matrimony Mrs Pap chewed her linger nnllo and Fled me up critically out of lie corner of heroics her-oics II Finally Hha asked You drink much gin I shook my head You light manuek chicken r she ask < d No Yon play monte No Play paglngl pitch dukkos I asHiircd tier that I had no bad habits but that of Bliootlng at Filipinos Mrs Pap called the eldest Mrs Pap and hey had a whlnpored conversation Then the eldest Mrs Pap hurriedly left Limo nlpahm Tort minutes later f bo relumed accompanied by I toothless old woman and four young girls Tim old woman was tho mother Time four daughters were 12 It 15 und 1C yearrt of age Mrs Pap bcamcd trl trlimphantly and chattered I chat-tered In a whisper with tlio old hug Meanwhile I was mystified Finally Mrs Pap enlightened me Taking me by the elbow she waved four lingers toward tIme gins who stood In a semicircle and chewed betel except the eldest who smoked a black cigar nine Inches long Cinuro exclaimed Mr Pup with animation 1 four You Tmurlmony You pay tho mother glockappolo J20 Mexican Pup ho r n you a nlpahut for S3 Mexican Give all your dlnero to tile big ono aud she will mucha save Si Then she went onlo tell mo In her Jumble of Spanish and Bucayancso that since tho pupa went to the mountains hero waR no priest and that Pap tat would perform tho ceremony I Is as east to get married over hero as It la I to get divorced In tho States When 1 ob jected to a plural marriage the old haic offered me her homeliest daughter for two pesos And yet I roll in a Spanish book hok descriptive of the Philippines that thnxn people took but ono woman to wife and hit the tic was for life Somebodys time htundrNJ blunderer and 1 assure you that Im not |