and the cadence of the _gansas_ to which they marched, it was a good
sight, received with cheers. [31]

In general, but few parties were armed; and, as elsewhere, there
were no old women. Some of the shyer people, coming from afar,
had brought their spears, and, squatted on the slopes round about,
apparently passed their time in silent contemplation of the great
game going on below. Everybody seemed to be in a good humor. This was
especially manifest in the great wrestling-match that took place on the
afternoon of the 6th, when _ranchería_ after _ranchería_ sent up its
best man to compete for the heads of the carabaos that had furnished
meat for the multitude. The wrestling itself was excellent. The
hold is taken with both hands on the gee-string in the small of
the back; and, as all these men have strong and powerful legs, the
events were hotly contested and never completed without a desperate
struggle. Defeat was invariably accepted in a good spirit. As before
remarked, however, when Mr. Worcester first organized these meetings,
the _rancherías_ came together armed to the teeth. Each would stick its
spears in the ground, with shields leaning on them, and then wait for
developments. Suspicion, hostility, defiance were the rule, and hostile
collisions were more than once only narrowly averted. But on these
occasions the native Constabulary proved its worth, by circulating in
the crowd, separating parties, and so asserting the authority of the
Government in favor of good order. Moreover, the highlanders soon
learned to respect the power of "the spear that shoots six times"
(the Krag magazine rifle, with which our Constabulary is armed);
but it can not be repeated too often that our hold on these people
is due almost entirely to the moral agencies we have employed.

Gradually Mr. Worcester satisfied some _rancherías_, at least, that