She Was His
Niece, And A Great Favorite With Him, So Old Don Domingo Had To
Join In The Laugh.
A great many such tricks were played, and many
a war of sharp manoeuvering was carried on between couples of the
younger people, and at every successful exploit a general laugh
was raised.
Another singular custom I was for some time at a loss about.
A pretty young girl was dancing, named, after what would appear to
us the sacrilegious custom of the country - Espiritu Santo, when a
young man went behind her and placed his hat directly upon her
head, letting it fall down over her eyes, and sprang back among
the crowd. She danced for some time with the hat on, when she
threw it off, which called forth a general shout; and the young
man was obliged to go out upon the floor and pick it up. Some of
the ladies, upon whose heads hats had been placed, threw them off
at once, and a few kept them on throughout the dance, and took
them off at the end, and held them out in their hands, when the
owner stepped out, bowed, and took it from them. I soon began
to suspect the meaning of the thing, and was afterward told that
it was a compliment, and an offer to become the lady's gallant
for the rest of the evening, and to wait upon her home. If the
hat was thrown off, the offer was refused, and the gentleman was
obliged to pick up his hat amid a general laugh.
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