Barney Blake, the Boy Privateer; or, The Cruise of the Queer Fish

by Herrick Johnstone

  CHAPTER XV.

  BULL VERSUS BEAR.

  Two days after this, a great festival came off, and almost all thepeople of the Queer Fish were on shore to see the fun.

  Mexican holy days are a singular institution, if the one about to becited may be considered a fair sample of them all.

  Church-going forms a small portion of the ceremonies. It is true, thepriests went through the town in the morning, jingling their littlebells, and asking for alms, while the people of the place almostprostrated themselves before them, and the miserable old bell in thebelfry of the adobe cathedral kept up a dismal clang all the time, as iftolling the burial service of all mankind. But then, a few hours later,and the population were amusing themselves with firing off cannon atimaginary demons in the air--the priests directing the guns to theproper spots. I could not believe this at first, and it was only upondiligent inquiry that I found it to be true. But I never before heard ofthis duty being numbered among the sacerdotal functions of anycountry--even those of Catholic persuasion.

  Horse-racing was the next celebration in order, and we experiencedconsiderable pleasure in seeing the Californians compete with each otheron their swift steeds.

  After the horse-racing came the bull and bear fight, in which oldBluefish and myself evinced an especial interest.

  A broad tract of sward was inclosed in palings and ropes, just outsidethe town, on the ocean-shore. Long before the animals appeared, themerry people of Santa Barbara crowded round this inclosure, smokingtheir cigarettoes and having a good time generally, while thedistinguished visitors from the Queer Fish were allotted a good place ofobservation underneath a little pavilion, which was reared at thecommand, and for the benefit, of the commandant and his family.

  We waited a good while, but it was almost sunset, and the heat was notoppressive. At last, amid the cheers of the populace, the cart appearedbearing the grizzly. He was driven, still bound, within the inclosure,and there dumped unceremoniously upon the ground. Then the bull, a veryfine and ferocious one, was driven into the inclosure. While he wasprancing and bellowing about, taking his "bearings," the strong gates ofthe palisades were closed, and one of the Californians, who officiated,proceeded to cut the thongs which fettered the bear, by means of a knifemade fast to the end of a long pole, thus enabling him to perform theoperation and stand outside the stockade at the same time.

  Released from his long confinement, Bruin staggered to his feet andstretched himself. He was pretty soon himself again, and now began toeye the bull with suspicious glances, keeping on the opposite side ofthe ring, and not seeming especially anxious for a nearer acquaintance.The bull appeared somewhat more belligerent, but likewise averse tocommence the fight. He would advance this way and that, pawing theground and lashing his flanks with his angry tail, while the greatbear--which probably outweighed his antagonist by several hundredpounds, although he was not quite so bulky--shifted as the bull did,keeping his nose close to the ground, but apparently ready for anyemergency.

  The ceremony of making each other's acquaintance becoming rather tediousto the impatient spectators, the latter began to yell and shriek in ahideous manner, in the apparent hope of inducing a commencement of thescrimmage. But both bull and bear still being wary and cautious, the manwho had cut the thongs of the former commenced to goad, now the bull andthen the bear with his pole-knife.

  This had the desired effect, for presently the bull lowered his horns,and rushed upon the bear with a fierce bellow. Bruin took it coolly,stood on his hind legs, avoided the coming horns, and fetched hisantagonist such a wipe with one of his terrible forepaws that the bullstaggered back to his side of the arena, with one side of his neck rawand bloody.

  But Bruin, elated with his success, no doubt, forgot his caution, andfollowed up his antagonist, fetching him another wipe between the hips,but receiving, in his turn, one of the formidable horns under his leftshoulder, which seemed to paralyze one of his paws. He then retreated inhis turn, walking on three feet, and watching the bull with adistrustful wariness.

  The spectators were very much excited at this exhibition, and began tomake wagers as to the result of the combat. But I took notice thatalmost all of them preferred to bet on the bull.

  At length the bull lowered his head again and made another rush, butonly to be repulsed a second time by his powerful antagonist. But thistime the "round" was much more protracted than before, and both of thebeasts were much injured.

  The bear moved about with evident pain, but his injuries were more ofthe character of bruises than otherwise, while those of the bulloccasioned much loss of blood, the effects of which were alreadybeginning to tell painfully upon him. His courage was sublime. He didall the attacking, charging repeatedly, in spite of the terribleslashing he received from the forepaw of the grizzly, until at last bothof his sides were streaming with gore, and his eyes were almost blindedwith his blood.

  But now the bull, evidently feeling that his strength would soon beexhausted, gathered himself up for a prodigious effort, and sprung uponhis adversary with the momentum of a locomotive.

  In vain did Bruin lash out with those long sharp talons of his; the bullwould not be denied, and goring him to the ground, fairly pinned him tothe earth. One of his horns held the bear by the neck and the otherpierced deeply into his breast. The bear bellowed with pain and foughtwith all his paws, but his struggles grew gradually feebler, and thebull held him down bravely, until at last the movements of Bruin ceasedaltogether, a token that he breathed no more.

  Then, and only then, did the bull extract his horns from the fallen bodyand lift his bloody head. The plaudits of the spectators rung loud, butthe brave animal only staggered a few paces, when he fell in the centerof the arena and expired. His victory had cost him his life.