Omaha daily bee., 1888-12-11
RELIGION IN THE BULL RING.
Mexicans Celebrate the Anniversary
of Our Lady Of Guadalupe.
THE HANDSOME eANDERiLLeRos.
They Charm the Pretty Senoras With
Their Feats of Daring and Elicit
Applause From Several Amer
can Lady Spectators.
hating the Rmlls.

solemn fiesta of its patron saint, our Lady
of Guadalupe, with all the cClat possible. This
fiesta commences on the 9th of December
and ends on Christmas day. IL commemor-
ates the appearance of the Virgin Mary on a
barren hill a few miles out of the City of
Mexico, at the village of Guadalupc-Hidalgo,
TO a poor and miserable Indian peon named
Juan Diego, to whom she delivered u divine
message. This was on the 9th of December
IN the year 1881, aud shortly after the In
dams were converted en- masse to the Catho-
lie faith. Since then the Lady Of Guadalupe
has been the Mexican patron saint, and her
memory is wo%rshipped during the
greater part of December by high and low.
IL is one of the strange pcculiartties
of tho Mexican character that with the great
mass OF the people this worship takes the
shape of bull and cock fighting and the wild
est kind of gambling. OF course, this does
cot refer to the higher, the educated and re-
fined classes, who are OF Spanish descent,
but it does apply, almost without exception,
to three-quartors of the population, who are
still of uumixed Aztec origin. Thus we find
that in Paso del NOrte, where the population
is as yet largely Aztec, the people are from
the 9th to the 25th of December excessively
pious, which they prove by d~evoting nearly
VIC NhIOIc I'M W SdillDIIHS, JUL III IOCh
fighting, The bull fighting is the most aris-
~tocratic sport, and is only participated in by
the wcll-to-do, for it costs a Mexican dollar
to be admitted INTO the ring. The
INDECENT masses have to be con-
tent with an occasional cock fight and
the countless gambling tables on the pcaza
where n tlaco, a local Mexican coin, worth
about IL cents, is considered comparatively
high stakes, and where, with q capital of 20
cents to on, you can gamble the
whole day long, and perhaps not TO be ut
terly broke when evening comes.
The first performance in the bull ring was
given on Saturday afternoon, and was par
ticipatcd in by almost loo American spec
tators. with enough McXicans TO pretty freely
test the seating capacity of the ring. Yes
terdaY there was a mucn larger attendance
of both Americans and Mexicans, Ell Paso
being en- maSsc.
The bull ring is situated in the rear of the
ancient cathedral, not far from the barracks
and Jail in which Cuttings detention and
confinement nearly brought on an interna-
tional embrOglio.
Shortly after 3 o'clock the bulk Of the mill
tary company, which was stationed in a
prominent and commanding position, sounded
a few blaring notes on the trumpet, and the
gate was thrown open for the entering rush
of the first bull. His advent is calmly
awaited by the professional fighting troupe,
eight or ten young men of splendid physique,
active and agile, and dressed in rich and
snowy costumes OF bright silk and silver
braid. Two of them are mounted on small,
rather poor, but active ponies. These two
are the plcadores, and they are armed with
short and heavy lances. The horses right
side and the picadore's left leg are protected
by ii side of thick sole leather that hangs
loosely down nearly to the ground and
breaks the force Of the furious thrusts which
the bull lntiicts with his horn. The right eye
of the horse, the poor animal which is the
only participant that is exposed to any par
ticuiar danger, is bandaged so that he is up-
able to see the rushing onslaught of his as
s%ailant, and has TO be guided in his move
ments entirely by the rider. -Four Of the
bull fighters are on foot, holding in their
hands and waving in the bulls face large red
blankets. These are the banderillerOs, and
their function is to worry and infuriate the
bull and stick into his sides the banderillos, |
cruel iron bars decked out with elaborate
paper fOwery ornaments and a profusion of |
gold and silver tinsel. Besides these there |
were in yesterdays performance mounted |
banderillos, quite a daring innovation a ma
tador. or espada, whose office is to dipatch |
the bull with a well directed sword-tnrust |
when he has been sufficiently worried and
tortured. As q special attraction there is,
also, during the present bul[lighting season,
Antonio Fuentes, who jumps over the rush |
ing bulls back with the aid of a long pole.
The leap is a perilOus one.
When the first bull rushed in the two pea
doris We're stationed each at one side of the /
gate, while fronting it, ranged in "a line, were
bLD sAitN ~ w. StN FiN' t'p oAAh Va
tended and inviting the first onslaught. AS /
the bull dashes through the gate an attend
ant concealed behind it sticks a short, sharp
barb into his back to thoroughly liven him
up and let hin know what is in store for
him.. With fOaming muzzle he makes for the
nearest red blanket. The nimble Mexican
for whom he goes jumps quickly aside ana
escapes the vicious thrust that the horns of
the animal make at him. The bull tries the
next blanket with equally poor success, then
dashes to the outer side of the arena, turns
around, eyes his foes for a moment, |
and makes for the nearest horse, which
animal receives the full force of the
mad rush on his side, but, protected by the
heavy leather shield, is only thrown aside a
dozen feet against the wooden fence, but not
before the picador has had a chance to thrust
his pike into the bulls tough hide, making
an ugly and no doubt very painful wound,
from which the red blood spOuts into the air.
The animal is about to renew the attack, but
two or three OF the banderilleros throw
in his front and with their blank
cts divert his attention. He now goes for
the other horse, strikes the leather shield,
and by tho sheer force of his wild rush
throws him off his feet and sends him rolling
and kicking in the sand, but before the bull
can attack and gore him in his helpless con
dition the nimble Danderilleros jump be.
tween, shout at the bull, beat him over the
head with their red blankets and draw him
off. Meanwhile he has received another deep
cash in his tough skin.
Meanwhile the sadly battered horse and
the two picadors are given a chance to es-
cape through the side gate and the banderil-
leros now get in their work. One OF them
himself with a couple of the gayly
decorated darts, which he succeeds in stick
ing into the animals neck. To do this prop
erly and neatly, two at a time, one on each
side of the neck, requires skill, courage and
.quickness of no ordinary degree; but II is
done in first-rate style, the banderillerOs
jumping nearly in front Of the maddened
animal and afixing the dart so quickly that
the bull has no time TO catch him on his
horns, so nimbly jumps the Mexican aside.
Among the spectators yesterday was q
party Of ladies dressed in the latest fashion,
and in rich black silks, chGperoned by an
elderly gentleman who, | am informed, is at
the head Of a big manufacturing establish
ment in Philadelphia, and who is taking his
family to Los Angeles TO spend the winter.
They were not Quakers-fO their dress in
Dictated that-but at home they are no doubt
the pink of propriety, probably prominent
Of the church and of the Society
for the Prevention of Cruelty TO Animals
they took their seats here apparently
conjunction, seemingly obliyious
TO the fact that the spectacle they
were about TO witness was one of
brutal cruelty and abhorrent barDarity,
at exciting periods in the performance,
while the Mexican part of the audience
were frantic with vociferous delight, a
---a-1 a Al n To- Il