The Princeton union. [volume] (Princeton, Minn.) 1876-1976, 1879-07-30

white, with brindled spots. Many had
foretold that the hon Nero was too tame to
fight, and this proved to he correct. Ne
70 having entered the iron cage from his
own caravan, all was at length ready for
the cruel combat; the lion himself SEEM
ing to be the only creature unconscious
of what was about to take place. The
spectators both above and below had
their eyes riveted on the iron cage. There
crouched Nero, king of brute creation;
there, near the cage, waited the inhuman
handlers of the dogs; and there stood,
licking their black lips, and struggling to
be let loose, the mastiff bulldogs, thirst
ing for the forest monarch's blood.
Captain, Tiger and Turk were first
| slipped at the lion, v no by some was ex-
pected to seize, and shake, and tear them,
as terrier dog does rat which he
caught on barn floor. Nothing of the
kind took place, however. Nero permit
| ted all the dogs to seize him-inueed
seemed not to understand how to protect
himself from his tormentors, who bit and
mangled and pulled at him at their pleas
ure. Had he been lamb instead OF
lion, he could hardly have acted a tanner
part. After time he shook off the dogs
at once; but even then he did not attempt
to hurt them, but kept flying about the
cage, endeavoring to make his escape.
1t was miserable and disgusting sight
to see the dogs hanging to the lips of the
agonized animal, selling him by the un-
der jaw, and pinning him by the nose;
the lion roaring with pain, not enraged.
Several times he tore off the dogs with
his claws, but never once used his form
liable teeth. Captain, the fallow-colored
dog, was at last taken away, famed and
much distressed; and Tiger and Turk
continued the fight. Tiger next crawled
out Of the cage dreadfully MANNED, leav-
ing Turk alone. This dog, the ightest
of the three, though wounded and bleed
ing from all parts Of his body, still con-
tended with the lion, which was twenty
times his weight, pinnlng him by the
nose at least half a dozen times over.
When Turk was, Withdrawn from the
cage, mangled and bleeding, he seemed
more dead than alive, and it was some
time before he exhibited any symptoms
of life.
During the twenty minutes respite
that followed, poor Nero, after being
slu1ced with pail of water by Womb
we'll, who at once went to his cage, rubbed
MS wounded head with the paws, like a
cat; he then Tapped for some time from
fresh pan of water, and was patted and
caressed by keeper, through the bars of
his cage. The savage throng beng now
impatient for renewal of the combat
three fresh dogs, larger than the others
Nelson, Rose and Nettie-were let loose.
The cage had been rendered slippery
by the water thrown down, so that the
poor lion, partly exhausted, could not
keep his feet when attacked by the three
dogs. They fastened upon him at once,
while he, as before, only tried to get
away from them. When the dogs were
taken away, the people cried out for them
to be brought again to the fight, as they
were not beaten. The dogs we're again
brought forward, and the same heart
sickening scenes of cruelty prevailed. At
length the strife was ended; the dogs,
wounded and manned, and the lion. torn
and bleeding, were separated. The first
fight lasted eleven minutes, and the last
five; and this, by the merciless assembly,
was called "sport" and "pastime"
In spite of the disgust and humilia-
ton called forth in the public mind in
this inhuman spectacle, during the same
week in which 1t occurred a second lion
fight was announced by Wombwell, who
| seemed bent on acquiring a lasting repu-
tation for inhumanity He matched his
lion Wallace, dubbed in Scotland, against
six of the best dogs that could be found.
Wallace, who had much of the ferocity
of forest lion, was put into the same
cage in which Nero had been so cruelty
baited. Spectators we're admitted to the
Old Factory Yard at five shiilings head,
and several we'll dressed women viewed
the contest from the factory window.
Three couple of dogs were slipped at
Wallace Tinker, Ball, Sweep, Turpin,
Billy and Tiger-one couple at time !;
the Wallace made quick work of them.
He clapped his paw upon Ball, took
Tinker in his teeth, walking about with
him like cat with a mouse. Turpin and
Sweep were treated in much the same
manner, and Tiger and Billy had no bet
ter success. Turpin ran away; Sweep
was half killed; Tiger made his escape
just in time, and Billy, said to be the best
dog in England, was wounded in the
head and severely manned. If in the
former lists the dogs got the better of the
lion, in the latter the lion had the mas
terry over the dogs. Both combats, how
ever, were equally discreditable, and
called forth the most unsparing reproba-