Sketches of Japanese Manners and Customs by J. M. W. Silver
page 37 of 61 (60%)
page 37 of 61 (60%)
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canvassed with an enthusiasm totally at variance with the stolid
indifference which usually characterises the people, when any subject is broached that does not directly concern their ordinary vocations. The professional wrestlers are generally men of herculean proportions. From constant practice they attain a muscular development that would eclipse that of our prize-ring champions; but their paunchy figures and sluggish movements render any further comparison impossible, as they neither practise nor appreciate what we call training. Size and weight are prized more than activity in the limited arena to which their performances are confined: so, instead of walking down superabundant flesh, they endeavour to increase it, dieting themselves on rice and fish, which is far from productive of any Bantingite result. The illustration of the Great Wrestling Amphitheatre at Yeddo conveys a fair idea of the estimation in which athletic games are held by the Japanese. The enclosure is capable of containing several thousand spectators, and is always filled when a match of importance takes place. In the centre is the '_docho_,' or 'boundary-ring,' which is about eighteen feet in diameter. The game is generally decided by one or other of the combatants being forced against this boundary; for, although a fair throw counts, it rarely decides the mastery, as the great weight and the crouching position of the wrestlers necessitate dragging, pushing, and even carrying; and the tenacity of their grasp is such, that any other results are almost impossible. The price of admission to these exhibitions is very low; and, like everything else of a public nature, is regulated by the government Officials are appointed to superintend the arrangements, and to see |
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