The morning Astorian. [volume] (Astoria, Oregon) 1899-1930, 1904-12-07
puarl.rsM DOOMED.

dens that could easily be shed. True,
the particular burden In mind Is not
of alarming proportions, yet the fact
Iof its existence makes many people
doubt the genuineness Of mans refor-
Imstion. These people pertinently ask
why men who pretend to be enlight-
ened encourage the so-called sport OF
prize fighting. This question. of
course, Is not asked with the desire Of
getting an answer, II Is merely a
statement rejecting on the intelligence
!, |of the communities in which human
beings meet In the presence OF their
kind and batter each ether to the best
OF their ability
That the xe-hghting game is a
survival OF the brutal pastimes OF old
no one denies. Rome forced men to
fight beasts, and when even this did
not satisfy, the populace compelled its
gladiators 10 become murderers, In
the course Of time the gentle influence
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state of affairs, The gladiator dissap-
peared. and people were content with
contests between four-legged animals,
In Spain il was somewhat different.
There the battle between man and
beast known as the bullhght attained
popularity. and wherever Spanish peo-
pie went, to Cuba, to South America,
TO the Philippines the matador, the
picador and the bull found a field pre-
pared for combat. OF all concerned.
the bull was the least pugnacious. He
never did care much for game, but
man. his master. insisted that he make
more of brute OF himself than ma
ture Intended. Bullfighting. despite the
bulls objections. is still popular in
some communities. but it is tame af-
fair compared to the days when the
game was young. Whenever the ami
NAL can find way out OF the inclos-
ure there is no fight. 1t is the man
who demands bloodshed. The spirit
of reformation shown by the bull de-
tracts from the game, and there are
people Worth listening to who make
the confident prediction that II will not
be long. perhaps a generation or two,
before Spain and the Spanish Ameri-
can countries will have more humane
national pastime.
The rise and decline Of bullfighting
has taken place among people who
have taken little stock in pugillsm,
still the fate Of the one may be the
fate Of the other The fist-fghting
game got its first boom in England.
and II game across the ocean with the
early c@onists. In the infancy, OF the
sport men fought for the very love OF
fighting With bare knuckles they
beat each other until they were blind
and cut and bruised until even their
own mothers would not have known
them. II may be argued that this still
happens, but there is this difference.
It was the rule then; 1t is the exception
now. In those good old times" a
handful OF silver was a sufficient prize.
Some noble duke. or perhaps a petty
marquis, would get up a fight to add
a little excitement to life. No one
dreamed Of a day when bulging bags
Of gold would be the reward OF bruiser
champions.
When the game first crossed the sea
1t fourished on this side with the same
show OF brutality that marked Its
pioneer days in England. Just as
much blood was shed Just as many men
were beaten until their features
lacked human resemblance, and just as
little money was given to the fighters.
At last public sentiment became
aroused, and the "exponents Of the
manly art" were denied the privilege
OF pummeling each other with the ap-
proval Of authority This did not stop
the game, for matches were pulled eff
at night in. barns out in the country
and on barges that anchored In a river,
just out Of reach of the officers of the
law.
Finally there came day when pugi-
lists either had to battle with gloves
or find some other way Of making
living. Bare-knuckles fights lost ia
vor with the professionals, who ma
turally wanted to get all the money
they could with the least possible dam
age.
Profits Of the game have steadily in
creased until now the winner Of sew
eral thousand dollars. 1t is a matter
of pugilistic history that the gross re-
ceipts Of the first Corbett-Jeffries
match, which was fought in New York,
amounted to $4,000. In San
Francisco, which has only fraction of
the population Of the Atlantic metrop0-
lis, the record mark is In excess Of
$40, 200.
To note the space devoted by news
papers to prize-fighters and to see al
immense crowd gathered around ring
when eminent maulers meet to battle
for title, one might think that the
game is growing in popularity, but the
contrary is the case. Pugiism is
doomed. Every year the territory In
which it fiourlshes becomes more linn