Grant County herald. [volume] (Lancaster, Wis.) 1850-1968, 1878-03-07

from her high position as first clas,
power. Blu; l hear the Russians anG
Germans say ont here England dare
oot war on any Qua that wears
trousers. | cant say that | have
any personal interest in the mat CT
beyond the fact that il will increass
our commerce and G rrespondingly
our navy but | have professions
aud scientific into 10 tho irun
clad and torpedo On astiops ,hst are
likely 70 be solved. As regards .he
length OF my sray en-: here that too,
is Indefinite unlass my health brea.is
down. Ii | continue as we'll as am
at present, | think l am likely TO be
hers two years longer. All the ves-
sells on this station except the Mon
ongaheld, are of iron, and they may
be Kept here till worn out The Mon
acacy and Ashantdt have been here
ten years already, officers and crew
being relieved when their time has
expired. | like it out here very
much, next to Europe, but ones
mind gets very little nutriment in
the way eff scientific knowledge
when executive officer of a small
vessel like this. L. is quite a relic!
to get on shore occasionally.
| went the other day, by the way,
to see some Japanese wrestlers. Ia
the old days every Damio or Prince
had number OF wrestlers in his train,
but nowadays these wrestlers, Of
whom there are but few left in the
country, 60 about in companies of one
hundred or more and give public per-
formances, which are very popular
with the common people. They per-
form in large covered enclosure. the
walls and roofs consisting of nothing
but mats. In the middle is a small
platform about fifteen feet square and
covered with loose earth. On this
platform the wrestlers engage in pairs
and in succession, the performances
commencing about IL o'clock in the
forenoon and continuing till shutdown.
The men are, as rule, the largest
japanese | ever saw, few not less
than SIX and half feet high. Ordina
ry Japs are understood. These wreset
lers wear no clothing except purpl
cloth four inches wide around the
loins, and, unlike our athletes, Guilt
vate fat, and many of them are per-
fectly enormous, weighing over three
hundred pounds. They stand very
straight, and the protuberance of the
stomach, girted in as it is by the loin
cloth, is sometimes as much as a foot.
and when STOPPING down on all tours.
head to head, which is their position
to engaging, some of the
stomachs nearly touch the platform.
The effort seems to be. to grapple
around each others shoulders, no un-
ierhold being allowed; thea, after
being locked. to reach down to the
DIN girdle and drag each other out
side the boundary ring. Occasionally
there is a good square fall, but not Of
ten. The preparatory arrangements
are more amusing to foreigners than
the wrestling itself, for each, on en-
tering the ring, spreads his legs, slaps
his thighs, takes mouthful of water,
blows it on his arms rubs dirt under
bis arms, blows his nose on a paper
handkerchief, and goes through a va
riety of contortions to timber his Joints
and muscles. The grave umpire and
judges, dressed in silks and armed
with fans for scepters, adds not lit
tie to the comicality of the scene.
while the stolid countenances of the
wrestlers show no sign of either graf
ltication or annoyance, which ever
way fortune turns. The audience,
however, are by no means stolid. but
oudly encourage their favorites.
throwing small rolls of paper into the
ring, which the umpire opens and
reads aloud, usually to this effect So.
and-so is brave and gallant wrest.
Ter. | live at such place, and will
be happy to have him come and take
'schow" Good with me this evening.
Or / have fan to give him, or a
piece of rare lacquer, etc., etc.
The audience are seated close
together on mats, with their feet
,urled up under them, and there they
remain nearly all day long, while boys
and men are constantly passing
around hot rice, tea, sweet cakes, can.
1y (made of beans), and saki (made
rom rice). They smoke weak native
tobacco in very small pipes that hold
about two whifs. They eat, drink,
smoke, eat again, in manner sagges-
i've of apoplexy, seeming never to
get enough. l was particularly
struck with the indifference of the
wrestlers to cold, and,in fact the JAP
anese seem to pay little regard to it
1t all times, The thermometer stood
at thirty degrees in the building, or
rather enclosure, and these fellows in
their undress uniform of a simple
four inch wide loin girdle, sat around
as stoical as bronze castings. think
It was the most Enthusiastically ma
tional sight | have yet seen in Japan.
And not the least curious was their
method of giving checks. When you
wish to 60 out between the acts their
process is exceedingly simple: a man
stood by the door with saucer of in
iigo ink and pad spotting you on
the hand as you passed out. (These
checks are not transferable.) Anoth-
er individual stood by to see that this
was done, and in case you declined
the dab of blue ink you were obliged
to pay the entrance fee over again.
bu-(about 81 cents) on coming back.
This plan of having two individuals
N every position where money is re-
,eived or paid out and honesty re
Iuired seems to be common both in
China aud Japan. At even the small
'st shows there are two men to re.
.eive your money, two to give you
arge wooden tally, and two to take
he tally again when you have passed
he box Office. The Chinese have
ately sent an embassy here and they
rave carried out the principle even in
hat by having two ministers plenipo-
entiary and all the diplomatic body
q Takio are in quandary as to what
8 to be their order of precedence on
,oooaiouc vuhou tho roora.oo.o.;,o,I