IN A ROMAN THEATRE

Dominion, Volume 7, Issue 1921, 2 December 1913, Page 9

IN A ROMAN THEATRE

BULL-RUNNING AT ARLES; AN IMPRESSION OF PROVENCE. Aries, October 8. Oil Sunday there had been a real .Spanish bull light, a gran corrida de muerte, as tho posters called it. Six lulls had been brought from distant Salamanca m wretched cramped packing cases that leit them no room to turn in order that tiiov might die at Aries. Stupid, weary animals they looked after their long journey, and stupidly and wearily they went to their death at tho hands of two famous Spanish bull-lighters. Their uneomSortable deaths, as well as those oi' tho two poor horses bought from tho tacal knacker who v.ere. ripped up by their horns, were merely a matter of business. Nearly every Arlesien was ready to admit that this kind of show was sauvage ot barbarc, but he would add: "Thev cannot be stopped; they bring too much money into the town." So six Spanish bulls and two horses wero killed, with a considerable deal of ceremony and much pain, in order to attract several thousand .Marsciilais to tho ancient Roman amphitheatre of Aries, and to Sill to overflowing that most excellent and named of hostelnes. the Hotel <!u Forum.

On Monday the amphitheatre was the scene of a very different- festival, though in it, too, the principal part was played by bulls, but they were bulls of tho. Ciimargue, tho great marshy plain that stretches from Aries to the sea between the two branches of the R hone, and their cunning and agility, and tho skill of the Provencal rasct-aire were sufficient without bloodshed to provide all the sensation and amusement that was needed. On Sunday tho best seats had cost 20 franrs; oil Monday you could have thoso same scats for nothing. It was not a ceremonious occasion. Everyone wore their working clothes, and the Arlesiennes were content- to bring out their sec-ond-best coiffcs and Helms, but none the less the scene in the old Roman ruins was gay and animated. To a Northerner it was marvellous how many of the 30,000 inhabitants of tho town had with trim Midi insouciance left their work to look after itself for tho whole afternoon. Tlio splendid structure of tho ancient- amphitheatre gained after its eighteen hundred years of existeneo fresh life and meaning from tlio voices of tho spectators who gathered there, black against the grey weathered stomc, to watch tho show, just as tho Roman legionaries and the natives ot Aries had done in the first century A.D. In ono respect at least the speciachs must have been more impressive m tho year of grace 3913, since time had softened the sines of the massive building and laid bare tlio bold arches which once wore hidden by tiers of seats, and on whicii some five or six fair Arlesieiines stoeo at. a giddy height picturesquely silhouetted against the sky.

Sociote Taurine. The Sociote Taurine of Arle-a had lunched long ' mid thoroughly. Its members had gorged themselves with ailloli, a dish in which ehopped garlic plays tho principal part, and tlruuk desp of tho country wines. When they came into tho arena they wore very raerry, and amid roars of laughter -a mock parade was ma do by tiio mora youthful members of tho society, .who, with the red capo of the bull-fighter thrown about them, mimicked the pomp ami ceremonial of tho Spanish bttllfight. / , Thcu the doors of the Total were drawn aside, and after a littlo coaxing a small, wiry Camarguo bull pranced into the arena. His horns were padded with leather wrappings, which wero so loose fitting that they gave him tho appearance of a dissipated stag. Between his horns was tied a rosette. Whoever was skilful enough to snatch tho rosette from him would receive a priz'j, varying in value between ten ami fifty francs, to the experience and cunning of tho bull. Very cheerfully ho charged the fifty men scattered about the arena. Thoso immediately in front of him took to their heels, and jumped behind tho refuge ol the barricade with wondrous agility. Ho was an old hand at the game, simply ignoring the red c»pcs flapped in front of him by the youthful Provcneaux, and chasing mercilessly tho veterans of tno game, comfortable aud portly gentlemen, who ran as though they woro still in their teens. Ho had, however, olio surprise. A very tall man in a mauvo shirt actually had the impertinenco to await his charge. lie had his head down to toss him, and his horns wero almost touching him, when suddenly tlw man in tho mauve shirt disappeared from the face of the earth. 'J ho bull novcr realised that ho bad picked out one of the Spanish hull-fighters who had been engaged for the great corrida do tmiorlc, and that ho had sprung gracefully into tho air just as the horns reached him, landing lightly behind the bull's tail.

The bulls of tho Cam-argue are very cunning and agile, and this specimen of tho breed would pretend to bo engrossed in tho pursuit of a fat gentleman who was rapidly Hearing the barrier, and •would then suddenly whip round, and charge the men who won running alter him. Afier one of these feints ho succeeded in catching a worthy Provencal of about fifty, who. had ail tho time shown great daring in Ilia attacks upon tho rosette. The padded horns caught liini, and hurled him down on his back, legs in the air, ami for about thirty seconds the bull banged him about mercilessly, ripping bis shirt oli his back. But the man was gnmo to th;s end, and oven iu his uncomfortable position his right band groped between tho bull's horns lor the rosette, and just as ho got a particularly nasty bang, which made liim turn a .backward somersault, wrenched it clear. Then there came a rush of tho other players from all sides, tho bull's attention w?iS diverted ,and, amid a volley of cheering and apnlause, the worthy Provencal struggled to his feet, very soro aud bruised, but extremely proud aud delighted at having won tho rosette.

Mimic Slayin?. Tlie:i came, the linal "scene," the mimic slaying of the bull by the matador. After some difficulty he was persuaded io charge the red cape, and tiie man who played the part of matador pricked liim over the heart with long stick, which had at its end a small barb attached to a detachable paper rosette. The prick was nothing compared to the sting of the terrible gadfly that haunts the Camar'v.ie. and the ammal was only suvsiriscd to find something dangling on his ' faronuarters. After a few more cbni'oes someone snatched the ro;;eflo off him. Then a bngle war, blown. The doors of the Toril were opened, and a wise old hull of many years' exneriencp of hull-rnnniitg, with a bo!'i round his neck, who is known ns the Dountairo. or Simbeu, cantered into the arena, to bring li-e other animal biHc to its stable. The Simbeu is called in in the ordinary life of the Camnruue whenever the. young bulls are insuhordinntc or fr-iaht-oued. Thus when, as often happens, the herd has to swim one of the branches of the I'hnne and the mounted <w-punrhe."s (gardian'i cannot wersuade if. to take the water, they send to one of the neighbouring farms for a Siinhou, who plunges in at, once, and the whole herd follows him meek!'.'. Ou this occasion the Siiiibcu was clearly a lover of the name, and he galloped merrily two or three times round the_ ring, charging evervono who came into his way before lie returned with his companion into the Tori!. Butting a Padded Cylinder. Another bull was then released. He was another old hand, aud quite pre-

pared for tl:o trick that was played 1.1 pou liius. A largo mattress encased in basket-work rolled up like n drainpipe, with just, room inside it l'or a nuui, was brought into the arena.. A man gat into this cylinder, and within its protection, his head just emerging, stood immediately in front of the charging animal, Over wont the mattress, and the bull rolled it along in front of him, butting it again and again, while the man pulled in his feet and head and mado himself as small as he conveniently could inside, like a. snail in its shell. The bull trundled it along with every sign of satisfaction, just as the dog in Jlarnum's circus used to knock a bladder into the air with his head and bang it iii all directions with obvious delight. This rolling process cannot have been very comfortable for the map,, but his feelings must have been indescribable when the animal grew tired of a game which he must often have played before and tried a trick of his own invention. He made no further attempt to butt tho cylinder in the middle, but he turned' his attention to one of its open ends. Into this end he inserted a horn, obviously rejoicing in his own ingenuity, for all the world like a man extricating n. winkle from its shell with a pin. The horn was padded, so that the man inside got 110 more than a few bruises, and in a few seconds tho hull's attention . was _ directed by tho other players, but during- iha.t afternoon 110 one else cou'd be persuaded to entrust himself to the shelter of tho mattress-cylinder. Tho - hull himself received an ovation from the public. Unpadded Horns.

Some younger bulls with unpadded horns wero released afterwards, and with one „t' Uiem the Spanish, bullfighter gave a marvellous exhibition of' skill. .Standing in front of him, he waved the red capo at tho animal until it charged, and as it did so lie gave a quick twist of .his body just sufiieieut to evade its rush. Tho animal followed the red cape, and the same thing was repeated perhaps a dozen times, until it seemed that man and bull were performing together some complicated figure in a serpentine dance. "It may be said tliat this Provencal bull-running is cruel. Certainly tho bull is a good deal teased, and the whole game is riislinctly rough. But it is equally certain that, after n little experience, the bull enters thoroughly into the spirit of tho game, lie returns to the Toril long beforo he shows any signs of exhaustion or pants even one-half so desperately as the rasetairo who are baiting him. The Marquis do Uaroncelli nad some littlo time ago a famous bull named Prouvenco (Provence), who had so thoroughly realised tho. whole idea of tho game that never ouco during his long career was tho roncttc 011 which 200 fraises was set

taken from between his bores. Provence almost, went into mourning when one unlucky day Prouvenco was slain by two of his own kind, by two young bulls who combined together to kill the loader of t'iia herd. when they were pasturing on the Camargue.—London "Morning Post."