Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1899-08-12

came on the ship she gave the cocks over
to the steward with the charge that he feed
and water them carefully. Some Of the
CABIN boys. however. cast covetous eyes
upon the birds and one evening they opened
the cages and took out the cocks. They
formed a ring on the lower deck thinking
| to separate the cocks after one round The
cocks, however We're not in training and
| they were so gamey that they battered each
other to such an extent that the boys fear
ed to put them back So they rung their
neckS and threw them overheard, telling
the woman they had gotten away.
Training Cocks for Fighting.
Our ordinary roosters are far different in
appearance from one of the Porto Rican
cocks when ready for the ring. The game
cock has been in the hands of his trainer
for weeks, and has been denuded of his
feathers. He has, like prize fighter been
stripped of his clothes for the battle He
has had the feathers picked from his back.
neck, legs and from under the wings on the
body, so that he looks pitiablv cold His
neck and head are red and his red ears
shlne out of his badness. 1t costs from $40
to $50 to trim and train chicken p:operlv
for fight. The feathers are picked ont one
by one from time to time, so as not to in
Jure the cock. and so that in the end the
e COCK mas only hi, his tail feathers and wing
Ieathers left. This is because the cocks
when fighting, catch hold of each Others
feathers with their bills, and so drag them
to the ground. where they snur ~, -
death. -
After taking out the feathers the flesh of
the chicken is toughened by The massage
system, the flesh and skin being squeezed
and pinched many times day until nj last
they are only muscle and gristle Indeed
Fftzsimmons and Corbett when trained for.
a prize fight are not in a better condition
as to hard muscle than the prize Porto
Rlcan COCK when ready for the ring
They Bet High.
1t is no wonder that the birds are care
fully cared for The bets are often high
and hundreds may be won or lost on the
training of a cock. In Ponce $500 recently
changed hands on one cock fight. 1t is not
uncommon for 800 or 500 to be put on a
single match. Along the west coast there
is quite a rivalry between the towns as to
game cocks. The cocks of Mayaguez and
Aguidilla, for instance. will be pftted
against each other with purses ranging
from $50 to S10o The chief betting. how
ever, springs up while the fight is going on
and the scenes at Porto Rican cock fight
are crazier than those of the Wall street
stock exchange at the time of panic.
In "a Porto Rican Cock Pit.
I went to see a cock fight today that l
might tell you just how this cruel sport is
carried on in our new island. An army Off
cial went with me and we spent ar hour
watching the brutal exhibition and making
the notes from which the following is
taken:
The cock pit we visit is right in the CEN
ter of MayagueZ 1t is within a stones
throw of the cathedral and not far from
the post Office. You go down one of the
main business streets, enter an alley and
stop before Il big round building about
enty-five feet in diameter This is the ring.
The entrance zee is fifty cents We pay
our money and are passed into circular
room fifty feet square and forty feet i.lgh.
About the room run tiers of seats, one
above the other. like those of an amphi-
theater The arena is the cock pitwhich is
about thirty feet wide.
Thee are several hundred men in the
seats as we enter. 1 see lawyers and bank
ers among them. Over there is Porto
Rican school teacher and here near US are
two of the city officials. They are talking
quietly and look like peaceable persons.
The chief noise comes from the Growing of
the ROSTERS There are scores OF them in
cages around the walls of the building.
There others in cages hung from the
center of the pit. The latter are, am told,
the crack cocks of the day, and to be
fought for big money.
Preparing for Hattie.
AS we enter two cocks are brought into
the ring They are first weighed on steel
yards each being put into bag for the
purpose. They must weigh just alike, or
the lighter chicken will have the right to
odds AS rule only chickens of the same
weight are fought. The two now in the
ring jCst balance.
Now the bags are opened and he cocks
are passed around for examination and
bets How queer they look! They are
shaved of feathers, except on their wings
and a tasse. at the tail. Their heads are
blood red, and their backs and legs are as
blue as your nose in the zero cold of mid
winter.
Now the owners take their knives and
sharpen the spurs. Each spur is pared
down until 1t has a point like a needle
The cocks seem to realize the situation,