Puerto Rico and its resources . om this queer and primitive receptacle. This is merely preliminary to the festivities ofthe day, and after all the good Cubanos and PuertoEiquenos have been to church, or during the latterhalf of the afternoon, they hie themselves to thebull ring or the cockpit, which are usually in thesuburbs of the city. Ladies are -countenanced atthe former, but only the sterner sex may indulgein the recreations of the latter. The largest valla de gallos of Puerto Rico isprobably that of San Juan, the capital of the island,and is situated just without the city walls, in theMa
Puerto Rico and its resources . om this queer and primitive receptacle. This is merely preliminary to the festivities ofthe day, and after all the good Cubanos and PuertoEiquenos have been to church, or during the latterhalf of the afternoon, they hie themselves to thebull ring or the cockpit, which are usually in thesuburbs of the city. Ladies are -countenanced atthe former, but only the sterner sex may indulgein the recreations of the latter. The largest valla de gallos of Puerto Rico isprobably that of San Juan, the capital of the island,and is situated just without the city walls, in theMarina beneath the frowning harbour-front of thegreat fortress. It is not an ambitious structurearchitecturally, being merely a rough wall of ma-son-work, topped by a roof of corrugated iron, in-closing a circular arena covered with sawdust. Ifyou are not acquainted with the locality and wishto ascertain where the pit is situated, you haveonly to do what you would be likely to in ourcountry in order to find the whereabouts of the. FOODS, DRINKS, DIVERSIONS, ETC. 179 most popular preacher—follow the crowd! Theysay, in truth, that in most places in Puerto Kico,especially in the small towns, you have only to fol-low the priest, who, as soon as services are over,tucks up his cassock, whips a favourite cock underhis arm, and streaks it for the arena! A fee of twenty-five cents gives general ad-mission, but an additional dollar secures a box seat,or palcoy where you may be free from intrusion andwhere you will bless your stars that you are notdown amongst that fighting, swearing, altogetherdisreputable crowd below; for it is a rough andnoisy collection of all sorts of Puerto Riqueiios, andfor Babel-like sounds and confusion generally noteven the redoubtable stock exchange can equal are sure to be surprised at several things, if thisbe your first visit to the valla: the amount of bet-ting that goes on, despite the apparent confusion;the quiet manner in which all bets are settle
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Keywords: ., bookauthoroberfrederickafrederi, bookcentury1800, bookdecade1890
