Iuka reporter. (Iuka, Miss.) 1888-1894, 1892-09-15
CONTAGIOUS DECENTRALIZATION.

! CONTAGIOUS GENERALIZATION.
| [Eatchez Democrat.
| Yesterday New Orleans entered up
Fon glorious fstic carnival week, and
is crowded with the sports. rouehs
and toughs OF America, who haye as
ssmbled to witness the prize fights
under the auspices OF the Olympic
! Club.
/ We ore assured all arrangements
have been made for the orderly con-
duet Of the slugging mpaches, which
are to be conducted on the most scien-
tific principles, and Ia the most ele-
giant Cd style that has ever been Wit
messed in the art OF brpising, smash
ing, knocking down, blood drawing.
beating, pammeling. aud putting to
sleep, end all viii be done '.deeedntly
and in good order
The good order may be preserved,
and fairness enforced. but as to the
''decency," it is questionable whether
that element can be counted on in. an
exhibition Of pure brutality. which is
the oae e2pHessige word that defines
the whole proceeaufe.
That is a marvellous psychological
effect that can induce the turning back
OF the longing and reaching forward
desire of the age and hoped for civili-
zation into the bestial desire to witnes s
the triumph of cruelty and strength in
the prize ring, and which. by its con-
tagion, carries away in the current of
excitement even those who had hatter-
ed themselves that they were beyond
the reach of Contamination.
And yet, deny it who may. when the
long proposed contest has been work
ed up by methods OF taunting, challen-
ges, the putting up of stakes, betting
on tho result which follows, the de-
I tailed condition of the pugilists during
the training season, the gorgeous pre-
parations for the journey by special
trains Of Pullman ears that are TO bear
the heroes to the place Of battle, us
well as Thousand other Influences
bropghtto bear through the press
and telegraph, ths pph.ic lets itself
tiown 11.ors rs resreatable pinhacle of
disgust and yields itself to the excite
ment and interest which hangs around
the brutal exhibition, aud for the time
we must confess that pure public sen
timont is overreaehed by the vile, that
civilization is retired or yelled, decen-
cy set aside and brutality is crowned
as King OF the Carnival
New Orleans has long been the only
city in the Union that has adopted the
Old World system of Mardi Gras. and
for 4 feason surrendered her keys to
the King Of Folly. a custom which has
been @ithetic and beautiful, a display
indeed classic and somewhat educa-
tional, but in her present carnival she
has reversed the wheel by the surreu-
der of her keys to the King OF Brutal
IVY "tiH s-1SetiAlcs uoiaiutNH over the
vi.est and lowest classes that can be
gathered from the four quarters to do
homage to depravity and the customs
Of barbarity.
1t isabsurd ana would be divefting
i il wsre not SO serious a matter to
read the ! cor ana himsy arguments
s 't IN BY the supporters Of Tho prize
riag ID defense Of the so-calcd sport,
and tae trained deductions to prove
the good effects Of the practice in the
"mnn'y art ef self-dofonse.
tmust be admitted. we say, that
the exciting Influences set in their
ncxious work ey5n within the hidden
\ crev'css Of society but this is all the
IN re deplerahie. and only proves the
,esfehWg qaaiiiies OF the evil, so that
it behooves She law-makars 10 cheek
the grlwth Of the bauefsl malady -
c vili2atlon and dscency as rieidly as
they would the entrance ofthe deadly
plague, for when once it oS!ains
fo9thci3, as we have said, the conta-
gion is Irresistible and the advancing
wheel of civilization ana dacency is
stopped, nay, turned back to The period
OF aarharisln