The old women sat down in rows, clapping their hands to the
music, and applauding the young ones. The music was lively, and
among the tunes, we recognized several of our popular airs, which
we, without doubt, have taken from the Spanish. In the dancing, I
was much disappointed. The women stood upright, with their hands
down by their sides, their eyes fixed upon the ground before them, and
slided about without any perceptible means of motion; for their feet
were invisible, the hem of their dresses forming a perfect circle
about them, reaching to the ground. They looked as grave as though
they were going through some religious ceremony, their faces as little
excited as their limbs; and on the whole, instead of the spirited,
fascinating Spanish dances which I had expected, I found the
Californian fandango, on the part of the women at least, a lifeless
affair. The men did better. They danced with grace and spirit,
moving in circles round their nearly stationary partners, and
showing their figures to great advantage.
A great deal was said about our friend Don Juan Bandini, and when he
did appear, which was toward the close of the evening, he certainly
gave us the most graceful dancing that I had ever seen.
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