The sun., 1901-07-12
SWIFT MEXICAN RUNNERS.
A rURIOyrs RACE BY THE SThhN"H
TaTRI MAURI INDIANS.
Il Was 40 Miles Lons. and. incidentahy. 'no
Racers Threw wooden Balls Before Ine"
nv Means Of Their Toes-Their swi'tn"s'
surpri,ing An Indian MAIL earno''

II Was l2O Miles Long. anu ineiue"'""y' "
Racers Threw wooden Balls Before mem
nv Means Of Their Toes swftn"s'
surpri,ing An Indian Mall CARRIER
cu,uu,prA. Mexico, July i0.--Most tour
ists In Mexico see little OF the strange ia'n
N,uri Indians The first Tauri Mauri we
saw was mail carrier among the oah i-o
renzo Mountains about 100 miles SCUM .,
chihuahua. This Indian makes two rouhu
trin. over n distance Of eighty-five miles
t,rics . week. making n total OF some $40
miles a week on foot. Several times Nneh
the Government had reasons for re~iinS
mails to their destination. he made oven three
round trips in seven and hall Gays ino
ror,. Land. from Guarichic to San jose de
10, Cruces over as rugged n mountain Uaii
as ever tricd mountaineers muscle.
The Indian mail carrier was oareheaoeo
and barelegged, his entire suit Consisting
Of about three yards Of narrow cloth woven
ont of goats hair. On his back was man
sock that with its contents, weighed forty
mounds This was supported by strap
across his forehead and another across hiS
chest He came trotting down the hili srhok-
ing a cigarette and moving as easily ana
gracefully as il lust starting out. instead OF
having some twenty miles already 10 MS
credit that morning
A, he reached the level ground in the val
lev he dropped ball about the size OF oase-
ball on the ground. and. catching ~ deily
an his toas gave il throw forward and raced
after il with the apsed Of deer. picking u
| I'M on his toes and throwing II forward again
without In the least, so far as We coulh see
checking his speed As he overlook us the
bsi was nlacad In his armpit, and he trotted
along by the side Of the mules, chatting quite
| sociably
The Tauri Mauri Indian carries one OF
| these wooden balls with him everywhere.
| tucked under the armpits until he Is In hurry
| then n IA thrown forward. and away the
| owner PUSHES after it 1t " their way OF keep
| ing in trainint all ths time, aud OF hurrying
| themselves over the ground. II Is always
| thrown from tho toes, and never from the
| hand.
| There are some 5000 Tauri Mauri Indians
| IN Mexico Twice every summer they meet
| iOr a sort Of tournament. II ls ustoh,
| centuries old IL was the writer's sood
| fortune 10 be present at one OF these period
| zeal assemblies among the san lofehHpS
| about twenty miles southwest from I'M
""T,,,'' The rauri Mauris are climbed and
| slender. giving the impression oil being over
the average height There rs, Is soSs pSa,y chssts ss
nre deeU' and their backs broad. and their
limbs "a trim and muscular as greyhound 8.
TRE 9Ts n,s.t 4 f2s sRsea
race The wasers Of the rival towns were
piled up In the centre Of the Rlaaa ana Hs con
arrnSs sandal goats. chickens, and sheep
With two wooden ploughs for nigh prizes,
but the,s were thrown far In the shade wheiit
| some A,perican visitors added cnpful OF
| conner coins a gaudy hthograph, and water
| color painting Of cross surrounded Win
rovnrs Such prizes had never been offered
the runners swore that II should be the race
" IN In Tic afternoon they asked Us to look
found tha, /, was twelve miles long and that
the circuit was TO be made ten times. A
roysi race, indeed. Of 100 miles, The race
was 10 be run IN tho night ana oohcluued
| in the cool OF the next afternoon.
| About o clock in the afternoon everything =
wns ready Ten athletes stood On ne right
| side Of rho plaza and ten On N" lett 10
On ch side one wooden ball was allotted. The
| racers were dressed in native trunks 0i goat !
| hair cloth, and ma ~ OF these were discarded
'eiI' A. the ~ word both Of the balls were brown
| forward and the twenty bounded forward
ut % speed that I! would taxa blcycllst 10 Keel,
no ~ith We thought that such burst OF
| -Iood would soon tire them out. but II was
! meant only for the start OF three miles 81 sht
AWAY across The valley Beiore redchihR z
cutting of the corners and racing ahead
on the oval course 90 a. 20 receive and carry
on ne hal! 81 Ac[ p"}i - M tbo 's sr.t W1 on
ihgt -i1n 10 reach A. snd If rival could reach
! IL first II was thrown back on the cOHr@e
Tho purpos" was 70 get ne hall sropni the
prescribed course no matter how, 50 long as
| II v1e touched only by the feet Of the ria ver@
To touch il with the hand was TO lose all bets
Tripping. crowdns, and al me ropgn
work of football player- were permitted 10
prevent nm opponent from reaching or ;hIov
iue the bal! Runners were permitted 20
cut across IA" valley AZ Jog irot. ana 50 80 ne
and then spurt with II lmrirHS and Judges
we're stationed all over the route 20 soc that
tho bal was kent along the designated trnCt
| Bv O'Clock the moon calne mp and the valley
wns nearly as light as day lsls as fierce
a. any that greet nm audience NJ Yale or
i1chicas he hurled the wooden sphere through
the Ihza 100 feet ahead Of the bill from
Zln,iri on the first trir, r,Sr2Vnd the valley.
afternoon they ran. but in a lttle less thnn
fourteen hours the balls had made the pre-
! scrlbed number uf trips around the valley
the other were coming AZ Tho, top of their
speed over the last three miles ~ grassy
lawns toward the goal \ lin" was drawn
In the dust across the strt"'t AZ the edg" n.
the plrla aud the crowd gathered back,
! awaiting the victor.
A. they rushed toward us il was impossible
TO say which would win But A. one runner
from cnch sldn reached thc. balls ono failed
tn catch tho ball ot hl- side fairly on hi- foot
vhl" going M luli speed and his throw Wa
weak. tho other. catching tn" ball fairly
rave n great bound and. twisting his leg U-
II II were IN arm. hurled the bill fnir aud
square ovcr The line and over our heads
ZnDuri had won by hundred feat
How The crowd yelled. md how We yelled
with them. and how the rocking victors wer"
praised and prt'od as they sat down ~ divide
| th,ir winning soon after a Cuur-r Z
| about ten mllNs vas laid ont around
the town and race was run hv the Gir's n,
the two puehlos Like their hroth'r,. fh"v
! had only the blue sky over them and about
thrcn wards 'of cloth and the Republic oi
| MoNico around them, hut how they dud run,
ard how they sot tho hall spinning Ih"
bronze Di1uaS u' GnaDhioChic won 'hor'hy
soitruiug the defeat of their duSky brothers
Killed the Man Who Was irving to stcal