Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1890-09-27

the serious duel hold good also for the
common students duel, the latter, in Ger
msny,. is not regarded a. . duel at all;
| name, "mensur," of Latin root, origi-
| naliy means the place measured of for the
dnelists to stand upon so as to keep the right
distance. At present most people take it in the
| sense OF contest in which the contestants
measure their relative strength. In fact it is not
anything more than a fencing match. There need
| not be any Ill feeling between the adversaries.
THE CHALLENGE
| Is brought about in different ways. Two bands
of students come from different quarters,
where they have had a jolly night Their
| heated spirits easily enough bring about
quarrel: a look. a meaningless word, failure to
give ample room to pass, being sufficient to
start one. Instead Of engaging then and there
in q froe fight, visiting cards are most politely
exchanged and the parties separate quietly to
meet again, weapons in hand. on the fencing
ground. student who does not care to wait
for such an occasion. meeting another whom
he regards as about his equal, will politely in
form him that he desires a fencing contest with
him. The custom Of causing this contest BY
INJECTING slight insult. a so-called ''touche,"
is moro and more disappearing. There are
certain conventional forms which clearly show
its purpose, namely, to provoke q challenge;
for instance, one student says to another:
You are Ounce Isle sind Elm hummer
hardly thinks Of the meaning OF these words;
he simply understands that he is wanted for a
duel As it has often happened in this method
OF challenging that the contestants were of I'M
equal skill and strength, the provoked one be-
came The victim OF a brutal superiority.
LvESLY MATCHED.
Today most Of the students clubs send list
to their rivals containing the names of such
members as are willing to fight. The chal-
lenged club then chooses out OF its own number
such as are regarded as the equals of the others
to meet them. This list may be corrected
several times until, in the judgment OF both
sides, the couples are evenly matched. All
necessary provision is made to prevent serious
consequences The arms are rapers. long,
straight blades half inch wide, sharp on
both edges for about eleven inches from the
point. Only the chest. the face and the skull
are open for the blows, every other part, es-
pecially the eyes and the throat being pro-
tected The contest takes generally fifteen
minutes of actual fighting il q wound il not
sooner inflicted which calls for tho immediate
attendance Of the surgeon. The latter is always
present with his professional utensils ready for
use. As no pauses arc counted the time the
contestants stand opposite each other often
exceeds an hour.
AS AN EDUCATOR
this duel affords a tcst of courage. In it the
contestant shows his mettle and he comes out
of it with strengthened self-reiance, which
often in later life distinguishes him favorably
from those who have never gone through such
an experience. The pride that some of these
young men take in the scars which deface their
countenanco hardly deserves the sneer they SO
often get. 1t rather shows their chivalrous
mind. They are prcuder Of these marks of
manly character than of effeminate beauty.
1t Is fact that towards, afraid of the
scorn of their fellow-students, overcome their
fear of pain and after fighting two or three of
these duels wonderfully improve in their char
actcr and may be placed afterward in the
same rank with their most courageous COM
rades. For 1t takes great amount Of self
control for man. especially when he il bleed
ing with painful wounds. to stand unfnchingly
fo- over an hour before his antagonist I'm
fiinchingly" is used here in its strictest sense,
for the slightest sound of pain or movement of
the hand or even of the head under heavy
blow, will bring disgrace, both on him who
bears himself so unmanly and on his friends.
for whose colors he fights and who surround
him with anxious and tender looks. Besides
testing courage, these contests foster self
control, presence of mind, sclf-reliance and a
feeling Of solidarity and so serve as useful dis
cipline for later life.
Duels of either kind never gain the character
of an exhibition. 1t is hard for an outsider to
gain permission to witness them. Students
who boast OF their victories in duels are not
the most respected and no one who ia not con-
sidered gentleman is allowed to take active
part in them.
1t may seem strange that these duels and
many other things that students DO are more
or less connived at by the authorities. But we
should not forget that in Germany the young
man. until he goes to the university, that is,
until he is eighteen or nineteen years of age is
considered a mere school boy. without any
freedom at all; after the university life is over
the dignity of his office or profession leaves
him far less freedom of movement than men
of any other calling. Therefore, the few
academical years the only ones given him
in which he may enjoy life to his hearts con-
tent ERNST RICHARD.