The Butte inter mountain. [volume] (Butte, Mont.) 1901-1912, 1901-09-27
IN SPORTY BUTTE
OLD TIMER TELLS OF BYGONE
DAYS OF LIVELY FUN.
BULL AND BEAR FOUGHT
Stories Told Of Columbia Gardens
When the Gardens Were New
They Close Tomorrow Much
to the Regret Of Many.

"Butte is a great city for sports Of all
classes, bull fights excepted" said
sporting man in one of the pool rooms
today. ut has had prize fights, football
games. foot races on the square and
otherwise horse races and dozen or
more other things along that line. IT
may possibly have some of these things
again. The nearest approach to bull
fight occurred several years ago when
lessee Of the Columbia Gardens con-
ceived the idea of drawing a crowd by
turning q maddened bull loose on a bear
that had been starved all summer in an
iron barred cage at the gardens A large
number of persons went from the city
to see the"1ght," and the garden bars,
of which there three or four did rush
ing business. The bear, however, was
no match for the bull. In its weakened
condition it submitted to the goring 1t
received from the horns of the infu-
rated bull and was soon toss II over the
range. The crowd was disappoin eel. 1t
had gone to the gardens to see a hard
battle between a hungry bear and a
mad bull. The disappointment. was so
keen that it was bathed in liquid, not Of
the brand that trinkles through the
verdant grove and goes dancing and
glimmering in it's long mach to the
Pacific OCEAN, but the KIM that eXhil-
crates for an hour or two and makes
the consumer feel like satan for three
days afterwards.
"At that time the gardens were in
other hands than those controlling them
at present and there was no humane
society to step in and arrest the pro-
moters of the bull and bear battle" A
,e,,l ol,n ho, ynnGr1n1
their style Of management From a
place whore any lady ouid no- go with
out running the risk of being iusultea.
they have been Transformed into re.
sort of beauty and splendor with total
absence of that ruffianism which once
characterized them. In season beds OF
richly pe.frned flowers are t. be seen
on every side and in the middle. TheH
are no ba3s for the sale Of intoxicating
liquors. bat there are fountains from
which flow cool, sparkling water. y
nagnific ~ pavilion has tax. the place
of the old shake down. the m''n il'of
Of which was used as beer sarden.
There are lakes for shooting the c';"ie
boats and lakes in which several spc
cies of wler fowl enjoy themselves.
There is a, &C lection of beasts and Dlrds
that might e wild if separate! from the
c;yilizing influences of h ,marity ana
they are Ill veil cared for by the man
agement. In the collection is a large
brown bear. He appears to be as foEo-
cious as any other big bear, but he has
learned to take the world and its IN
habtants philosophically and IS as do
Gle as kitchen cat. He Will eat pea
nuts or candy from the hand that or
fers them without as much as grow.
He is very careful in this respect-he
seems to realize with almost human
reason that hand thrust into his cage
As not to be chewed or claWed.
"There is one nice thing about the
gardens and those who visit them.
Anybody can go there and spend few
hours with profit, and their patrons
take personal interest in them. Moth
ing is ever disturbed. Tomorrow they
will be closed for the season"