Star.
London, England, 1827-08-28 00:00:00

PRIVATE CORRESPONDENCE.

LISBON, August 6.
THB BULL FIGHTS AT LISBON AND IN TUE COUNTBII--
SUBSECRA, &C.

The bull-fights at Lisbon continue every Sunday
during the summer months, and are attended by such
crowds of eager spectators as shew the very popular
nature of the exhibition. Persons who have scarcely
the means of buying bread to maintain their families
will expend the economical savings of a week to enjoy
this appendage to their Sunday devotions. As the bulls
ate not so fierce, nor the slaughter so great, as in Spain,
the proprietors and director of the Salitre are obliged to
vary the amusement with a kind of novelties which
would be as misplaced as they are unnecessary, where
the Interest of the spectator is rivetted by a continued
rtragedy. liy these novelties they keep up the attraction
of the show with the expenditure of only two bull's lives
a day, and almost no casualties of horses or men. Two of.
''the additions to the amusement of yesterday were very
curious. One of them was the entry into the ring, of a
man on stilts, three feet high ; and the other, the introduc-
tion of a puppet-figure, or African idol, to the notice of
the bulls. The man of stilts aff“rded great entertain-
ment. He was dressed like one of the Portuguese
capitinas (or what are called in Spain the banderilleros).
with the exception of having long white trowsers to cover
and conceal the manner in which tee upper end of the
stilts were attached to his ancles or le4s. In his left
band he held the bandarilla or flag, and in his right a
barbed dart, surrounded with a kind of garland, to strike
into the neck of the bull. Tnus accoutred, after stalking
round the ring, and making his obeisance to the judge
and spectators, he waited, like the other capinhas, the
egress of the enemy. The animal sprang forward with

fury through the door of the arena, galloped round it,
dispersing his other antagonists, and then trotted into
the middle of the ring to survey this strange congrega-
,tion of extremities--this striking collection of legs and
arms, with just body enough to stick them into—thil
novel heron-formed customer, with whom he had now to
contend. He-had, moss likely. been already several
times ip the ring, and was acquainted with the common
shapes of hi% to-mentors, but he had never seen such a
gaunt, stork-like specimen of humanity before. j-le
therefore seemed uncertain whether to rush upon it or
retreat from it. He stood for some moments, apparently
regardless of the numerous other distracting nhjects that
•urrounded him, with his e) e intently fixed upon ibis
alone, teasing up the sand with hi, feet, foaming at the
mouth, and uttering a kind of angry suppressed bellow.
The Thing advanced towards him in a menacing atd-
rude, sir eking its blue flag in his lace,^anel pointing its
bar! ed dart at his neck. This insult was twice or tt rice
repeated with impunity. The enraged animal seemed to
pre-er the attack of a knoll n antagonist, and therefore
seemed pleased when any of the other capinkas cast*
up to- provoke a pursuit, which relieved him from
the fascination of this monstrous nondescript. As
he trotted round the circle, panting and quivering with
fury and indignation, the Thing stalked after him
with gigantic strides; as he stopped, the Thing cf.
vanced and insulted him. The generous brute could
endure it no longer--tie-made a desperate onset upon
it, overturned it like a nine pin, and began to gore it
with fury when oit the ground. It lay quite motion-
less (which is the policy on such occasions), till the
other flag-bearers came up, and attracting the attention
of the bull to another quarter, set the Thing on its legs
again. It did not' seem at all injured hi the fall, but
sta!ked round the arena as nimbly, and with sir des as
large as before. The bull having now learnt that he had
to steal with an eattfilisfoe, seemed no longer to shun
the ccnflict. The Thing advanced with its flag and its
dart a dozen of times; and unless it avoided the onset
by thrusting the fig in the bull's face, and stepping
aside from the range of his horns, was sure to be thrown
down to its own great danger, and the ecstatic delight
of the spectators. On one occasion the horns of the
animal got in between its long legs, and fairly tossed
it over his back like a bundle of rags or-a man of straw.
After a f w of these somersets the man on stilts retired ;
and the bull, having done his duty to the general satis-
faction. was led off without any further torture than a
dart or two stuck in his neck.

The other novelty to which I alluded seems to be of
A rican origin. Among the mos of the fork Of they
are called), or those who, after the hull has been long
enough exposed in the combats of the sing. rush in upon
him, and master him by main force, are six neg'oes in
the peculiar costume of their country. T,:ese artists
brought into the Arena the automaton of a girl, dressed
in a blue silk gown, with a hideous mask, like that of
an American WA, surmounted by a straw bon, et. This
little slender American beauty was placed before the
door from which the bull was to rusts out. He passed
it at a distance, ran round the ring after the capiotios,
and then returned to survey it without daring to attack
it. The negroes continued to skirmish in the rear of the
image, trying to provoke him to pass over it, but he de.
elined the invitation, either from respect to the weakness
or terror at the hideousness of the infernal damsel. He
even kept at a respectful distance, we up the ground
with his hoofs, and scattered the sand in the air, panted.
foamed, and bellowed, but would not approach. After
he had been sufficiently tortured other* ise, he was led
out and another bull was admitted, the amphitheatre
vociferating a call for the stay of this formidable beauty
till her charms were tried upon a second combatant.
The latter behaved exactly like the former, refusing to
point a horn at the little blue devil, the object of his
mercy or of terror.

In the course of the evening, the lives of only two
bulls were sacrificed with the sword, and both were
clumsily dispatched. In one or two instance , amazing
boldness and dexterity were shewn by the capinhas and
*en of Me fork, one of whom stands before we enraged
animal, when bending his neck to make his rush, gets in
between his horns, and holding a horn in each hand, or
clasping his arms about his neck, clings to the head,
while the bull dashes him on the ground or tosses
him in the air, as a cruel boy would a rat or a
kitten, till his companions come up, surround and
master him. A great deal of merriment was ex.
cited towards the close of the evening, by one of the
bulls leaping over the ring among the .pectators.—
This is a rare occurrence, and a en it does happen.
always forms an interlude, or hors dceuvre, rni), e amus-
ing than the rest of the entertainment. Happily, on
this occasion, no person was hurt, though, of course,
many were alarmed.

Tire passionate fondness of the people for this cruel
sport is not confined to Lisbon. Many cif the smaller
t•wns have the bull-fights on anniversaries and fes.
rive occasions. The noted Conde de Subserra, wish.
ing lately to render himself popular wi,h the peasantry
in the neighbourhood of his quints (near Villa Francs),
could think of no means so successful as a gratis
bull•fight. lie therefore advertised one, procured bolls,
and engaged capinhas, matadors, and other actors. The
appointed day, arrived, the peasantry assembled, the
bulls were in readiness, but, to the surprise of the Count,
and the indignant disappointment of the multitude, none
of the biped performers appeared. The Conde de C—,
the Count's rival, had heard of the dead-.et which Sub.
terra was making at popularity, and maliciously bribed
the bull fighters to keep away.
It must be admitted, however, that bull-fighting isnot
now so popular as it once must have been with the upper
ranks of society, and with the fair sex. Formerly, as we
are told by an old Portuguese writer, " if a foreigner
wanted to see the Poi tugueseLadies decked out in all their
jewels and finery, he had only to go to a bull-fight." At
present, though weirsametimes see an old Lady enjoying
the sport through her spectacles, and a young one
through her veil, the number of females in the better
classes who attend is extremely limited. It was fors,
merly the custom for amateur performers among the
Nobility to enter the ring—but for several years past I
believe no example of this kind has occurred. As the
people acquire the means of enjoying more .ratilnal
entertainment, the rage. for this sport, like every other
relic of barbarism, may be expected to dimin:

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