The dwellings and other buildings are of gray stone or brick, stuccoed
over and tinted blue, yellow, drab or any other color but pink.

About half the houses are two stories in height, the others one story;
but all are flat-roofed and without chimneys. The main or upper story
has iron balconies which project over the narrow streets and darken
them. The houses have no windows of glass, but the window openings are
provided with heavy shutters. We enter these houses through interior
courts or patios.

Many of the rich Puerto Ricans have fountains, trees, and flowers in
these open central courts; a few have roof gardens. Here the family sits
in the evening to catch the cool sea breezes. Others sit on their
balconies along the outside of the house, or along the inner court or
patio.

The patio is the coolest place about the house during the heated hours
of the day. Here the women bring their sewing or embroidery, and chat.
It is also the favorite playground of the children, and in its shade the
men of the household take their afternoon nap.

There are no yards or gardens attached to these houses. The only green
spots to be found are the inner courts, the public squares or plazas,
and the garden of the Governor-General's palace.

There is no portion of the city set aside for the rich or the poor.
People of means, of education, and of refinement live in the upper
stories. The poor live in crowded rooms and patios, and in basements or
in dirty alleys.