Grant County herald. [volume] (Lancaster, Wis.) 1850-1968, 1903-05-16

t.
in that enervated passiveness, in that
eternal melancholy which seems to
constitute the real character the pc
culiar physiognomy, the distinctive
temperament of these races, that live
under this ardent, beautiful, tropical
sun!
The strife begins furiously and
implacably without one minute of
truce between two agitated enemies
who may be heard chattering frantical-
ly: the combatants pursue it with in
structive eagerness and who, already
impatient and irritated stretch their
long necks adorned with beautiful
and variated ring of long frizzled
| feathers. The soltadOres who hold
their spirited combatants by their long,
brilliant and abundant tails, which
resemble beautiful tufts of metallic
lustres, expect to be addressed as
decisive judge" who is, in general,
an elderly Filipino to whom, on ac-
count of his long practice, his recog-
nized impartiality and his special
knowledge in such difficult matter,
is given entire authority to decide
everything in connection with con-
tests between cocks and players; the
bets are being regulated in detail, the
gestures and hubbub of the mob are
continually accentuated; and you hear
at the same time one hundred voices
greet excessively:
i go five for the red.
Three against two for the white.
Who! Who, goes with me!
The money falls over the table like
incessant silver hail, then the transac-
lions are noted, there is an instant
silence, precursor of a grave and tran
scendental incident, and, suddenly,
general greet announces that the
gladiators have begun their combat.
The betting continues, the astute and
alert combatants, advance and retreat,
stop for an instant and look untremb-
lingly athwart each other as if they
were lying in ambush ready for sud-
den attack then they shake with
fierceness their ruffled feathere, raise
their heads with a spirited arrayance
and little by little approach, when, all
of sudden their wings are opened,
they jump with an amazing celebrity,
and on meeting in the air leave to fall
cloud OF beautiful floating feathers.
Instantly they are again front to front
with their bills protracted, looking
with eyes that flash intense anger, the
assaults are more frequent; many
wounds are inflicted with the pointed
spurs, their madness increases, they
pierce each other in the head, in the
eyes. in the neck, tearing out pieces of
blood-stained flesh, until in one of
their giddy whirls, one of the contest
ants drives his steel blade into the
breast Of his adversary who, complete
ly exhausted falls, kicking violently,
and even while enduring the terrible
agony of his death struggles, receives
numerically the continual and i'm
placable thrusts of his eXecutioner,
who Immediately Stays him without
hesitation and without mercy. Then
the proud, arrogant, provocative, vic
tor, satiated with blood and vengeance
intonates in prolonged ke-ke-rebere.
the hymn of victory, confusing his
piercing echos with the deafening
shouts of the frantic mob. The loser
takes as trophy of his defeat, the i'm
brued corpse, which was his best
FRIEND his inseparable companion, his
idol, and returns sadly to his little in
compact hut, there his loving wife
awaits him, that sympathetic heroine
of the indigenous home, resigned to
the sacrifice, always disposed to work
and produce, while the fortunate
father of her sons dIssipated at his
leisure during his miserable existence,
depriving from those lovable beings
| the caresses which he lavish9s so pro-
fusely on his fighting cock, and waists
mpatiently for Sunday, to see them
die in the sanguinary and mercilers
fight, perhaps; to leave an unfortunate
family without it's daily bread
BARTHOLOME TARI.