The daily morning journal and courier., 1902-06-12
STAINS NATIONAL nSpORT"
THE DE1LORALIZING RRUTALI-
 TY OF THE BULL RING.
The Most Attractive Part of tho Re- cent Coronation Ceremonies to the Average Citizen.

TO the average Spaniard, and espec
 ially those of low degree, the feature O
 the ceremonies that attended the cor,
 onation of the young king, Alfonso
 XIII, that was of the most absorbing
 interest, was the series of bull fights
 that took place after the official func-
 tions were concluded. in the Plaza dc
 Toros, In gay Madrid At all festive
 occasions in Spain, whatever the ex-
 cuse, the bull fight Is part of the pro-
 gramme and is that which attracts the
 most attention and draws the bibbest
 crowd. Hence the coronation, without
 the bull fight, would be to the Span-
 lard like meat without salt or soup
 without garlic. The king was in at-
 tendance as a matter oe course. for he
 would have lost much of that loyal re-
 spect which, it Is reported, his people
 give him, had he remained away. But,
 to his credit, be it said, the cable re-
 corded that he was d!sgusted at the
 spectacle. He cannot stop bull fighting
 without prectpitating a revolution, so
 firm hold has the national Sport"
 upon the public, but his attitude may
 to a degree, make 1t unfashionable in
 court circles. Bull fighting is brutal
 degenerate, unclvilizing and demoral-
 izng to all the instincts of humanity
 But in Spain, as in Spanish Central and
 South America, 1t has a hold that is
 stronger than any of the sports, be
 they horse racing, baseball, cricket,
 football golf or what not than amuses and enthuses the Anglo-saxon.
 In a recent letter from Madrid, L. H.
 Tnnrn t11,f, rT 70 Alfonso XIII. on behalf of the London Express, tells in plain words of the hold
 bull fighting has upon the Spaniard.
 There are, he says, four weekly jour- nals in Madrid devoted solely to the in terests and literature of the bull-ring. There are dozens of books written on the subject, and on every day of 6. fight Madrid Is simply painted green with copies of the 'Programa de Espec- taculos," a four-page sheet sold by hundreds, perhaps thousands, of hawk CTS. This gives pictures of the bulls to be slaughtered on the day in question, their dedigrees and owners and short histories of the animals, together with the names of all the performers in the days spectacle. About an hour before  adores, dressed in their clumsy but pie turesque costume, set out from their hotel in the Puerta del Sol for the Pla- ga de Toros, about a mile away. These gentry are mounted on fine horses, not the sorry hacks they use in the ring, and are followed by immense crowds of admiring men, women and children, who consider it an honor to be near their heroes
 The spectacle begins at about four, earlier or later, according to the num- Der of animals to be killed. The scene for couple of hours before this time beggars description. A sense of furi- ous struggle, wild desire, fierce eager ness hangs over the city-eomes pour ing down with the rays of the hot sun, rises with the dust from the suffocating streets. gets into the blood of every and compels him or her-for women go to bull fights in their thou sands-to make mad rush for the place of slaughter Even if he cannot afford to enter the show-and 1t is an old saying that Spaniard will sell his shirt to go to @ bull fsht-to be near the ring is something. Perhaps he may hear wounded bull below with rage l or a dying horse scream in his agony, l and he is certain to see the chief actors | come or go.
 Private carriages, with well-dressed | men and daintily-clad women, electric | cars succeeding each other with amaz- ng rapidity, each laden to the full with | sweltering humanity Cor inhumanity), | horse and mule stages that chatter nadly over the cobbles, extra omnibus IS, and open cars drawn by five, six or eight red-tasselled mules, all dash at ull gallop for the Plaza de Toros to urn out their doads and tear back for nore.
 It is not gay, it is feverish, exciting, 1ewildering. Mems faces are set and seen. There is no badinage or merri- nent, even if it were possible, while laundering over the ill-paved streets. The one idea is to get to the fight Iuickly. Anger is swift to the surface, rivers are urged and sworn at, and voc be to the wretched horse or mule hat stumbles. He is greeted with a hover of curses from roof and window f the vehicle and flogged unmercifully " his driver. If any one is of opinion hat bull-fighting does not brutalize, let i'm watch the crowd that goes to the 'laza de Toros any Sunday in Madrid. Ie need not go inside the amphitheatre he will see enough outside to change is mind.
 "We are having fights nearly every ay just at present" writes MT. Moore. I went to one contest, and saw six ulls and fifteen horses slaughtered. l , fas dlsgusted and bored, and came way simply worn out, not with excite 1ent but with a sinking stomach and heart My first feeling was hat of anger at the men in the ring for rutally sacrificing the poor horse who , yith his bandaged eye on the side to- rards the bull was made to receive T roadside the cruel horns of the mad 1, ened and worried brute. The result ras sckenng. The horse was ripped ' pen, and amid screams of pain he was ' breed to stand again with his entrails \ tagging on the sand of the arena. \ very step he took he trod on his en- \ ,ails but was not allowed to lie down T nd die until he could no longer bear \ le burden of the picador, who urged r i'm forward as long as possible with I ours while his servant slashed the dy- a ,,, b,,,,+a nya, he head With a stick q