Idaho semi-weekly world. [volume] (Idaho City, Idaho Territory) 1875-1908, 1890-08-29
THE /" GYMkF3hlsA.s
Medley - Du4dear tsasnes tndufged ~ |
by English otsEeess In India.

ffE GIMkf3AfsA-1
Medley - outdsar tsasnes tndulged ~
b English ohEeesx in India.
A ..gymkliana- Wen. what Is it1a
The word 10 itself il 4 compound Hin
dostanee term, meaning the horne Of
games, and with many another Indian
phrase has been Incorporated into the
sporting vocabulary Of the sport loving
AngioS Saxon race. To put it terseiy,
It i medley Of games To enliyen
the monotony of garrison life in the
many stations In India the officers
from time to time get ap steepicchases
and athletic sports for the men. After
the conquest OF the Punjaub men
learnt new games that were i1nme-
diately dubbed good Tent psgging,
lemon cutting. and last but not least,
polo, were at once adopted BY the
English All these sports were incor-
porated into the programme and added
q new zest
An animal race always forms part OF
q ssgymkhana Here each competitor
brings to the starting post some quad
ruped or biped Pigs, dogs, fowls. cats,
rats, rabbits, the gentle tortoise, all are
eligible, and If some strange animal or
bird can be procured the fun Is all the
merrier- Each animal or bird must be
held by string, but it is not advisable
for the harmony Of the race to place
the dog next in line to the cat, or the
latter in juxtaposition to the rat The
writer, when in Africa, saw = race In
which secretary bird was entered with
every chance of winning. Next it was
rat. Tho bird espied the rodent few
moments before the start, and with one
thump of its foot killed it. The NEXT
second the rat had been swallowed
The secretary bird was ruled out Of the
race
An obstacle race is indispensable
This is q race for men, and it must be
left to. the ingenuity of the stewards to
devise the obstacles. A race the writer
remembers began with some fairly stiff
hurdles; beyond these an entangle-
ment, easily made with stout stakes and
wire run in every direction around
them Beyond that was . wide water
trench and then a tarpanlin, riveted in
the ground, under which the compel:
tors had to crawl Next table, with
q good old dry bun for each, which had
to be eaten, and then a large bottle Of
efervescing ginger beer. Flour bar
rels, with both ends knocked out and
suspended from scaffold, improved
the appearance of the men when they
Owed through them, and last climb
over palisades, built close together,
was about as much as most men cared
to go through in an obstacle race.
A blindfold wheelbarrow race il
amusing. especially when the pusher
makes straight for one of the adjoining
bitches. For the horsemen, pretty
and excellent competition is tent peg
ging." An ordinary tent peg ia firmly
fixed in the ground Each competitor,
at full gallop, with his lance tries tc
strike the peg and carry it off on tn,
tip of the lance. These lances are al
ways made of bamboo and tipped with
steel The rider carries the lance in his
right hand, with the elbow of the arm
bent well outward. If the peg is square
ly struck, the lucky rider brings it home
on the point of his lance AS rule,
however, he comes to the finish with
only a few scraps of mother earth
Another capital race is d riding tan
dem race. Each man rides one pony
while he drives the leader, and ever,
one must carry tandem whip. A cigal
race causes a good deal of fun. Tbs
competitors start on bareback steeds
and, on reaching one limit, jump off
saddle their ponies, light a cigar and
make the best time to the winning post
The cigar must be alight when the judge
Is reached.
Local industries may be used in aid
ing the programme. A race for soldier.
in full marching order adds to the in
terest of the sports, and the small boy;
of the village will gladly join in a potato
race In this a certain number of po
tatoes are placed in line, and eacf
youths task is to run and pick then
up one by one, and return them to 6
basket. -New York Tribune.