Evening capital. (Annapolis, Md.) 1884-1910, 1885-02-25

try, Il we may believe the statements Of
Wong Chin Foo, an educated New York
Chinaman. He writes in the Clipper Of
that city:
There IL no Berch in China. Though
the denizens Of the Celestial empire pro
hibit all entertainments in which human
beings may be injured or knocked
out" they lave no objection to fights In
which the participants are animals. Re-
iigious persons, especially strict Bud
dhists who believe in the transmigration
OF souls, are strong opponents of these
sports; but the young men who in China.
as well as in the United States. are
FOUNDERS" and .'thoroughbreds, pat
ronize them extensively, and make them
social as well as a pecuniary success.
In every greet city such as Canton, Foo
Chow, Pekin and Keeling there are
hundreds of sporting men who make
their livelihood from these events. Bet
ting is conducted on a somewhat differ
ferent basis from what tits here. Mutu-
ais and auction pools are unknown.
Betting on results is the same there as
here. The bets are either made direct,
or when the parties are unknown the
money staked is put in the hands of a
third person.
Sometimes a syndicate is formed in
which dozen "bioods' on either side
back their favorite animal In this case
half OF the money goes to the owner and
half depends upon the result. Some
times a subscription is raised among
friends and neighbors touphold the hon
or OF the town or city, as the case may
be.
Fighting turtles are of two classes, either
the mud or swapping turtle. They are
caught and regularly trained. They are
fed with raw meat and q drug that cor
responds with the s'locor of Texas. In
six months the turtle becomes savage
aud ugly, and will fight and bite on the
smallest proyocation To increase its
bellicose powers the Jaws and teeth are
carefully filled and sand-papered until
its mouth is made into a series of razors
and needles. Each day its trainer leases
1t with cotton and wood until it is ex-
cited into a perfect frenzy and bites the
training instruments into small fragments.
Six months training puts it in good
fighting condition. Young and old tur-
ties are valueless. A middle-aged turtle
that is, one of seven or eight years-is
the best. When the fight comes off the
turtles have been starved and teased for
a week and are as ugly as may be mag
ined. Each is handled by its own trainer.
and is leased and tickled until it is in
violent rage. 1t is then placed in
small ring with its antagonist, and the
fun begins. The fight is always to the
death. A throat-hold means victory.
Generally the legs are the main points of
attack, and often both reptiles will lose
foreleg in the first round. Their vital
ity is so great that after head is almost
bitten off it win turn and seize leg or
tail and bite as if nothing had happened.
In one fight last year between Foo-Chow
and Tai-Wan, turtle that had lost its
tail, one foreleg and large part of its
head won the fight on neck-hold upon
its opponent. These fights last from one
to ten hours, and are always largely at
tended by men and boys.
In the Western provinces wild cats are
quite common. They resemble the Ameri-
can wild cat, but are larger aud fiercer.
They arc usually caught when young,
and are brought up so as to develop their
fighting qualities. A good commentary
upon their training is their market value.
When kittens they bring about one tael
($1. 40); at one year they are worth four
taels, and at two and q half they com
mand from ten to twenty. They are
matched against their own species, and
at times against dogs, of about the same
general type as our bull terriers. The
fight is fearfully bloody and horrible.
The animal knows instinctively that its
chief hope lies in severing the carotid
artery or the jugular vein of its antago-
mist, and the whole struggle is who shall
get the neck hold upon the other. In
some cities the contest is made more ex-
citing and terrible by putting metal
studded collars around the nccks of the
two cats. The fight is then resolved
into . matter of endurance, aud frequent
" lasts FIVE hours. When wild cat is
matched against bull terrier, the result
is very uncertain. If the dog catches
the cat by the nose, throat or leg, he
usually wins. But If the cat gets on his
back, which is often the case, the dog
has a hopeless case. After repeated at
tempts to dislodge his foe, he succumbs
from loss of blood and absolute fatigue.
Cock-ighting in China resembles that
in the United States. The rules are about
the same, but the qaffs are often more
deadly. Instead Of representing the
normal shape of the bird weapon, they
are made with two or three points and
with edges like raxors. Under such cir
cumstances fight is frequently deter
mined in few minutes. In Pc che-Iithe
beak is sometimes shOd with pointed
steel, and no gals are employed. IN
less the eve or throat Is struck the iiuht