The Opelousas courier., 1895-07-13
Mexico.

- ~ & course our party could not affnrd
20 leave Mexico without seeing q hniil
hgnt' ana as the amusements 9I ",t,,
!aS; IaSe piace on Sunday. our entire partv2
,nu'es nn hciaded-decided to remain Owe,
une uay 1or that express purpose. A
w. n'uch better posted on the sul,.
Jecc .aan we are, gives the followino
Man;n description of the national
mexican amusement:
Mucl, has been wr;ttan nf ,,,n
nght'ng IN Spain and in Mexicn-it j.
the same in both Countries 'Tho LII II
rlng' called the plaza de toros' is an
immense amphitheatre, with = rinn
oo1ndlng 1t by wooden wall ahnnf
eighta1eet high-the seats rising ont.
sue 9E these, those on the shadv siIa
are tfte choice and are sold to the hettar
c!assS1 at a higher price than thosn on
the snnny side, which corresnond to
the bleaching boards both as tn
location and occupants, of the Ameri.
can base ball ground. The prices m
the shady are from one to three dolIars
according to the attraction of the biIi !:
those seats on the sunny side yarv frnm
twenty-five to fifty cents. "
Inc program Is the same at all ner-
1ormances. The crowd assemblies.
warts, grows Impatient the band plays
plays all the tlme-the crowd grows
more impatient and the band plays
asRan-hnally the president of per
formance enters (every function has a
between the audience and the nerfnrm'
ers) and the band plays again. Then
there is the coming of the companv, n
gate opens and a gaily costumed troune
enters amid loud huzzas on the part of
the audience. They approach the pre-
sident's box, the leader addresses him.
asking his permission and approval
the president assents (wlat is he there
Tor y. and throws the keys Of the bnll
pens into the ring. The fine en-
broldeTed capes or cloaks OF the bull
fighters are thrown to their favorites
among the audience to hold for them
until the fight is over. All the super
numeraries leave the ring.
"All is quiet for an instant, Il low
heavy gate is opened aud from dark
pen, where for some hours he has been
confined, bull bounds into the ring
and the fight is on. He gallops to the
centre, head and tail up. The sbonts of
the crowd. the music of the band
astonlsh aud frighten him, perhaps, but
not much. He looks about him for his
enemy, the probable cause of this
eAan g." ou'uShy uOiSc uISJ comes
10 his way, not being able to get out of
it, and the rider, the picador, not being
able to hold the bull off, tie horse is
killed, or disabled and led out, if the
bull will permit it. The horses out or
killed, the next source of worry and
object of attack is the bandeyiller0s,
men with sharp baIbed dalts, one in
each hand, to be placed in the animals
shoulders, two men in turn with two or
more banderiltas each-this done more
or less successfully then comes the kill
ing of the bull.
"'rhe star m,atador approaches with the
red cloth and long sharp sword. calls
the bull and kills him by thrust be-
tween the shouldeIs-if he can-any-
how he must bring the animal to his
knees and he is dispatched by dagger
thrust between the hOrns. This done
with five or six bulls and the show
ia over.
1.-THE only variety in the perform
ance (D is in the placing of the bdnder-
illas while sitting in Il chair or while
on horse back, or in jumping over the
bull with the aid of long pole, or
when a man is killed instead of the
horse, which is exciting, to say the
least. Most Americans go to the bull
lights once. some go twice and some
more go oftener-the ladies are usually
after the first ''actn of the first
but they all want to say
that they have seen a bull fight and
always wish they hadn't"