154 



THE PHILOSOPHY OF RELIGION. 



operation of the mind, I began to look without 

 tiorror on the calamities of both. The manner 

 of the fight is thus: the bull rushes in, and 

 makes an attack severally upon the picadores, 

 who repulse him ; he being always, upon these 

 occasions, wounded in the neck ; after a few ren 

 counters, he becomes somewhat shy ; but at 

 the same time, when he does rush on, he is 

 doubly dangerous. He follows up the atlack, 

 and frequently succeeds in overthrowing both 

 horse and rider. As long as the horse has 

 strength to bear the picadore, he is obliged to 

 ride him. This morning one of these wretched 

 animals was forced to charge, with his guts hang 

 ing in festoons between his legs ! His belly was 

 again ripped open by the bull, and he fell for 

 dead ; but the attendants obliged him to rise and 

 crawl out ! This seems the cruellest part of the 

 business ; for the men almost always escape ; but 

 the blood and sufferings of thirteen horses were 

 exhibited in the short space of two hours. Four 

 men were hurt ; one who was entirely overturn 

 ed with his horse upon him, was carried out like 

 a corpse ; but the spectators, totally disregarding 

 this melancholy sight, shouted for his companion 

 to renew the attack. The bull after his first rage 

 and subsequent fury during many rounds, begins 

 to feel weakness, and declines further attacks on 

 the horsemen. Upon this, a loud shout re-echoes 

 through (he theatre, and some of the attendants 

 advance and stick his gored neck full of arrows 

 which cause him to writhe about in great torment. 

 When the efforts he makes under these sufferings 

 have considerably spent his strength, the corregi- 

 dor makes a motion with his hand, and the 

 trumpets sound as a signal to the matador to de 

 spatch him. This is a service which requires 

 great skill and bravery ; for the madness of the 

 bull, and the torture he endures, prompt him to 

 destroy every one around. The matador ad 

 vances with a red cloak in one hand, and a sword 

 in the other. He enrages the bull with the cloak, 

 till, at length getting opposite to him, he rushes 

 forward, and the sword pierces his spinal mar 

 row, or what is more common, is buried ^o the hilt 

 in his neck; upon which he turns aside, at first 

 moaning, but a torrent of blood gushes from his 

 mouth ; and he staggers round the arena, and 

 falls. The trumpets sound ; three mules, orna 

 mented with ribbons and flags, appear, to drag 

 the wretched victim out by the horns, and the 

 horsemen to prepare for the attack of a fresh 

 animal.&quot; 



&quot; In the evening the show began at half-past 

 four, and ten bulls were brought forward. To 

 tame them before the matador approached, anew 

 expedient was resorted to, most infamously cruel, 

 namely, the covering of the darts with sulphur 

 and fireworks. The torments of these were so 

 dreadful, that th* animals whose strength was 

 fresh, raged about terribly, so that the assistants 

 were forced to use great agility to get from them. 



There were many hair-breadth escapes , one of the 

 animals in pursuit of a man, leaped the barrier ol 

 the arena, which is about eight feet high. A 

 second bull was still more furious, and made more 

 tremendous attacks. In one of these he pinned the 

 man and horse against the barriers, got his horns 

 under the horse, and lacerated him dreadfully ; 

 in a moment afterwards, he lifted him up, and 

 threw the man with such force through one ol 

 the apertures, as to kill him on the spot. He 

 was borne past the box in which we were with 

 his teeth set, and his side covered with blood ; 

 the horse staggered out spouting a stream of gore 

 from his chest. The remaining picador renewed 

 the charge, and another came in with shouts to take 

 the dead wian s place. One of these had his 

 horse s skin dreadfully ripped off his side, and 

 when he breathed, the entrails swelled out of the 

 hole ; to prevent which, the rider got off and stuff 

 ed in his pocket handkerchief,&quot; &c.* &quot; I have 

 seen,&quot; says Bourgoing, &quot; eight or ten horses torn, 

 and their bellies ripped open, fall and expire in 

 the field of battle. Sometimes these horses, af 

 feeling models of patience, of courage, of docility 

 present a spectacle, at which it may be allow* 

 able to shudder. You see them tread under their 

 feet, their own bloody entrails, hanging out o{ 

 their open sides, and still obey, for some time the 

 hand that guides them.&quot; 



Such are the amusements which, in Spain 

 fascinate all ranks of the community, from the 

 prince to the peasant. Young ladies, old men, 

 servant girls, and people of all ages and all cha 

 racters are present. The art of killing a bull, 

 which seems exclusively to be the business of a 

 butcher, is gravely discussed and exalted with 

 transport, not only by the rabble, but by men of 

 sense, and by women of delicacy. The day of 

 a bull-fight is a day of solemnity for the whole 

 canton. &quot; The people come,&quot; says Bourgoing, 

 &quot; from ten and twelve leagues dislance. The ar 

 tisan who can with difficulty earn enough for his 

 subsistence, has always sufficient to pay for tho 

 bull-fight. Wo be to the chastity of a young gin 

 whose poverty excludes her ! The man who pays 

 for her admittance, will be her first seducer. It is 

 indeed a very striking sight, to see all the inha 

 bitants assemble round the circus, waiting the 

 signal for the fight, and wearing in their exterior 

 every sign of impatience.&quot; There is not a town 

 in Spain, but what has a large square for the pur 

 pose of exhibiting bull-fights ; and it is said, that 

 even the poorest inhabitants of the smallest villa 

 ges will often club together, in order to procure a 

 cow or an ox, and fight them riding upon asses 

 for want of horses. f Can a spirit of pure bene- 



* Travels through Spain and part of Portugal in 

 1803, Vol. 2. pp. 3545. A more circumstantial ac 

 count of these fights, and in perfect accordance with 

 the above description, may be seen in Bourgoing s 

 &quot; Modern State of Spain,&quot; vol. II. pp. 346 SCO. 



tit is said that these fights were prohibited in 1805 

 to the deep regret of the most numerous part oj :ht 



