GOLFO 85 



passing under the arrangement with the rings, each 

 horseman tries to carry away one of them on his pole. 

 The one who secures most rings is declared the winner. 

 Sometimes in addition to the rings the horsemen tilt at 

 a crown which is kept moving rapidly up and down by 

 means of a string, and is in consequence a difficult object 

 to capture. I believe that carreras de cintas owe much 

 of their popularity to the opportunities they afford for 

 display. The Venezuelan is fond of show. He is in his 

 glory when, mounted on a fiery steed richly caparisoned, 

 he rides along the principal streets of the town to be 

 admired by the dark-eyed beauties who sit behind their 

 iron-barred windows to look at the passers-by. No 

 quiet horse, however perfect he might be, would suit a 

 caballero's ^ fancy then. It must be a restless animal ; 

 one that rears and curvets, that can turn suddenly on its 

 hind legs with a touch of the rein, or bound forward in 

 leaps on being pricked by the spur. In carreras de cintas 

 the horseman has every opportunity of showing off his 

 horse and himself, and, as I have said before, this accounts 

 in a great measure for the popularity of the sport. 



Venezuelans are passionately addicted to gambling. 

 At the clubs various games of cards and dice are played, 

 sometimes for very heavy stakes. In cards, baccarat, 

 golfo, and within recent years poker, are the games most 

 in vogue. Moiite de dados and paro pinto are played 

 with dice, and I should say that the latter is essentially 

 the national gambling game, all sorts and conditions of 

 men being addicted to it. Baccarat and poker are so 

 well known in all the most highly civilised countries 

 that they may be dismissed without comment. Besides, 

 they are not of Spanish origin. Golfo, on the contrary, 



' Caballero = knight, gentleman. 



