The Salt Lake herald. [volume] (Salt Lake City [Utah]) 1870-1909, 1891-03-08
THE MERRY MASKERS
AGlimpse of the Carnival Sports
OF in Peru.
INDIAN SONGS AND DANCES
-Burrying the Spirit of the Season on the Eve
Of ash Wednesdays Char
acteristic Doings.

AREoUIPA, Peru, Feb s, 1S91.-TSpecial
correspondence of The HERALD. Should
q stranger unacquainted with the carnival
customs Of Peru, chance to arrive in Are
quipa during that merriest and maddest
carousal of the. year, he would think the
whole city mad gone craZyl The railway
station is situated in the suburbs, a mile or
more from the hotels, and-there being
neither public nor private carriages-he
must walk that distance, or ride on
the horse cars. Either way would be
bad enough during carnival time, but the
latter presents the advantage of somewhat
shortening his misery. AS prisoners among
sayages are sometimes compelled to
RUN THE GAUNTLET OF BLOWS
rained upon them with thorns, cudgels, fire.
brands or spear points, those abroad in
Peru during the three days preceding Ash
Wednesday are pelted with egg shells
furled from all points of the compass, de-
luged with buckets of blood-red water
thrown from balconies and house-tops, COW
cred with flour colored in all the hues of
tie rainbow: and besides these indignities
their hats jammed over their ears, and a
thousand tricks and jokes perpetrated upon
them by ieering crowd Of carnival crea-
lures in strange attire, many of them with
hoofs, horns and forked tails, who look like
so many imps direct from the internal re-
gions.
The horse cars, passing at rare intervals,
are convenient target from every side,
and the luclzless passengers cannot take to
their heels as pedestrians might. The
drivers knowing well what to expect, are
swathed in oil-cloth from top to toe, and
each is additionally protected by an UNI
brella-like screen rugged up over head; but
though he whip his horses TO their utmost
speed, those inside the car are sure of rather
rough treatment for the carnival players
have ample time TO prepare their batteries
and turn them full force
INTO THE APPROACHING VEHICLE.
To have a realizing sense of this alleged
f'sport"-so like that between the boys and
the frogs-the reader may imagine the prln-
cipal streets of his own city packed with
maskerS bent on merry mlSchlef-people
on the payements, balconies and house tops
excited to the highest pitch of reckless fun,
with precedent and custom to uphold their
widest excuses; while not only the most
staid and dignifed citizens, but mischiev-
Gus small boys, children ana servants are
privileged to sling water, dd Hbitum, upon
everybody. There is no use getting angry,
however despitefully used for one cannot
fight a whole city-full; and nothing delights
the beIligerents more than to get hold of a
victim who RACES and wants to whip the
crowd.
AS before mentioned, carnival ends with
Ash Wednesday, and though only two or
three days are devoted to street battles, the
fun begins a week before. During the
whole year, every household in the land
has been carefully boarding its egg-shells,
with an especial view to cascarones for
this occasion; while every Senorita has
longed impatiently for its promised gaities,
and the gallant Dons have mapped out their
campaigns and planned their
GRoTEsQUE OR STUNNING COSTUMES.
What golden opportunities those mad rev
els afford for the tabooed lover to boldly
enter the home of his sweetheart under the
friendly shelter of a domino-even to clasp
her in his arms in the waltz and whisper
honeyed words in her ear, right before the
the eyes of the stern pdter fdmilidS-muct
as those warning households in old Verona
the Montagues and Capulets, became sc
fatally mixed up under similar circum
stances During all that lover encouraging
season there are semi-public balls in every
casa, and the ''gllded YOUTH (gilded age
too, for that matter), masked and in fancy
Qr6SS, go dTOuuu lIOLu uUuSG W uOuSe, ud1c
ing awhile and taking refreshment in eact
till dawning sends them home for few
hours slumber. The maskerS generally
perambulate in companies, headed by &
leader of known responsibility, who dis
closes his own identity to the master of eacf
house and vouches for the good conduct O.
his followers. Nc doors are closed agains
them, but on the contrary, the more
house is thronged with various companies
of maskers, the more its inmates plum,
themselves on being social favorites
Young and old JOIN in the dance, from thu
father down to the children, and it is no
uncommon to See
THE GRAY HAIRED GRANDMOTHER
swinging around the sdIG in the arms o
Bome unknown young blood disguised as
wild Indian, knight, prince, or devil
OF course efforts are made TO discover VIII
the guests really are, and the latter dis
guise their voices by adopting the high
pitched, squeaklng tone Of actors in
Chinese theatre.
The rough and tumble time begins i
earnest on Sunday, when till the eve 0
Ash "Wednesday, the streets are trans
formed into a perfect pandemonium, an
no lady dares venture out between tn
hours of 10 am. and five II the afternoon
The people are about evenly divided int
besieged and besiegers. Those inside tn
houses, including all females, have pre-
pared barrels, bath-tubs and tanks of waite
colored ruby-red; while the principal weap
ons of the belligerents are eggs emptied o
their Original contents through q small
hole in one end, relied with red water
-four or powder, and carefully sealed u
again with cloth or paper. These are GALE
cGScaOneS, and one may buy bushels o
them at the average rate of two dollars pc
hundred.
The great endeavor of the men in tn
streets is to force an entrance into tn
houses, and of those. inside to keep ther
out.
EVERY SHOP IS CLOSED,
every door locked and window barred, an
most of the balconies are partially protecte
by canvass curtains behind which the bC
sieged may dodge when too closely pressed
The lords Of creation come on foot and o
horseback, in groups in battalions an
singly, to lombard with eggs the casas
their lady friends, who return the fire wit
interest from their housetops and balco
MES; and the gentle senoritR considers hel
self most highly complimented when tn
greatest number Of eggs smash squarely
her face. The eminently "swell'' thing
TO go around on horseback closely followe
by servant, also on horse, carrying bi
basket OF eggs. A comparatively recen
innovation in the way of water-throwln
is the use of enormous tin syringes, @
squirtguns, by which considerable
stream may be sent some distance wit
great force.
The men endeavor by every means, fol
chile and strategic, to gain entrance to tn
houses. They bring ladders and climb
the balconies, or 'shin up'' convenient ri
lars, or run like cats from roof to roof an
drop down into inner court-yards, or fai
ing in every other method, a number wi
retreat a few yards, then, starting togethe
on a run, as if
sToRMING A BATTERY,