Iron County register. [volume] (Ironton, Iron County, Mo.) 1867-1965, 1883-02-15
1 American Barbarism.

The American people are hard to
please. 1t is useless to cite the fact that
an aesthetic noodle from England walked
off with nice little fund made up OF
American dollars. Nor need it be men
toned that Eastern cities are paying at
the rate of 600 per week to see an
Indifferent actress with an alleged fine
complexion. AS we said at first, Amer
leans are hard to please. The other
night, in New York City, Mr.. Joe Co.
burn, late of Sing Sing, and the Hon.
John L.. Sullivan, champion slugger of
America, met on a stage in a friendly
bout. The play was atame affair; there
was no blood-letting, no mangling of
faces, no closing of eyes, and the hyper
critical audience manifested its disap-
proyal.s The two great men were lightly
tapping each Other evidently doing the
thing up very meagerly for the amount
Of money Spaids to see the exhibition.
This was not mp to expectations, and
cries ofssDon't tickle him, y and g Go in,
old baldhead," were heard. r3s5 on
. This last was a stab, hguratively
speaking, at the barren scalp of the
gentleman from Sing Sing, and he
paused to reply, saying s'Please don't
give as any remarks. We. are trying to
please you. Sullivan and myself are on
friendly terms, and don't intend to have
anv knocking out.'' But this did not
pacifH the audience, and MIR. Sullivan,
evidently approaching the character of
the crowd for whose amusement he was
acting, stepped to the footlights and
said s.(scntlemen, this is only a friend
ly set-to between Co5urn and myself.
On some future occasion L will kill
somebody for you-the big unknown
that Mace is fetching over here" This
met the approval of those present, and
the report SAYS that ''everybody. was
pacified," and the wind-up' finished
without further. uproar. Why not kill
somebody Somebody is wen nigh
killed in all such contests, while fatal
Examinations are not unknown. just
such crowds of slngSers and bruisers as
gather to see prize fights would be aug
mented very much were it but known
that somebody was to be killed, and that
killer and spectators would escape all
penalty. - q NSN@ 90 >''' -s,.7
This is not complimentary to modern
civilization. but by comparison there is
.encouragemeut TO believe that the world
is better in this respect. The gladiato-
rial fights at Rome were scarcely less
brutal, as in many instances brutes
were matched against men, the victor
alone leaving the field alive. Nor was
it q disgrace in those palmy days to be
present at such rnurderous pastimes.
RoysitY graced he@occasion, and the
mobility gathered about the 6 human
slaughter-pens to applaud the bloody
game. By a strange persistency relic
of this harharouS amusement still holds
sway in Spain and Mexico. Ignorance
among the masses fosters it, and brutal
ity among the higher, classes gives it
popularity. But it is going just as sure
ly as the days of the Inquisition are
gone, and the time is not far distant
when it will be impossible to find an
audience that can bessspacifed'' only by
the promise that next time, or some
time, a man will be pounded to death
for their especial delectation. Indian
apohs Journal. So =