The Evening News. October 27, 1916

25. Amusements in the Forties

Among the chief amusements in the early 40's in San Jose were the Spanish theatrical companies. Their engagements lasted weeks and often stretched into months. They played both comedy and tragedy. Sometimes they produced operas. An old Spanish lady says that in 1840 she pawned her ear-rings to see the Spanish plays. The Spanish actors used to appear at the San Jose theatre, opposite the Victory. This theatre was the first in the city and it was turned into a stable.

The fashionable Spaniards in those days rode a great deal. The men were in bright colored costumes, but the women used the usual riding habit. The horses were gally decked out. The harnesses were beautifully embroidered in gorgeous silks. The women did the embroidering.

There were many private balls in the forties, for the Spaniards danced despite the prophecy of Father Catala, who predicted that they would be destroyed by a fair people which should come to California to find gold. When a ball was given at one of the great ranches people talked about nothing else for weeks.

All the friends of the family were invited to the ball, and that usually meant all their relatives. The Spanish Californians intermarried to such an extent that there was hardly an important family that was not related to the others. Guests arrived at the balls in carrettas and stayed for several days. They did not sleep during the festivity. Occasionally they napped. When the women danced the men threw their hats on the heads of the ladies who distinguished themselves for their grace. Then they scattered gold at their feet.

For the old gentlemen who did not care to dance, there was as today a trellised arbor called the ramada. It was built for smoking, conversation and cards.

The Spanish California men danced with much grace and vivacity. The Montereyans were supposed to excel all others.

Better than dancing the daring young men liked hunting bear, antelope and elk. It required great agility as well as deftness with a knife to kill an elk. Elks were very cautious. The sportsmen of the time had their legs bound to their horses, and then, pursued the elk down a precipice, shooting a knife into his rear leg, capturing the animal by wounding and laming him.

The elk skin was used in the transportation of tallow to Monterey and San Francisco. The tallow was hardened by the fat of the elk. So elk hunting had a practical aspect. Some of the old Dons used to send their sons elk hunting and tell them not to come back till they killed three or four.

Gambling was another popular amusement in the early days in California. Spanish-Californian women were extremely devout, but frequently during mass one saw outside the church the men gambling on out-stretched serapes. In their excitement, when they lost sometimes they borrowed the paid interest as high as twelve and fifteen per cent a day. After the Americans came, with their passion for profiteering, they capitalized this love of gambling among the Spanish-Californians. The Americans had the banks. They allowed the Spanish Californians to play monte.

The most exciting attraction of the town was the bear and bull fights that used to take place in the old Plaza. Always there was a bull fight on September 16, the day of the Independence of Mexico. A high fence was erected on the Plaza just back of where the city hall now stands. The best music in Northern California was engaged for the occasion. Traveling toreadors came as actors do nowadays.

When a toreador appeared in the inclosure he wore splendid striped trousers, a plumed hat and a flaming cape that he flaunted in the face of the animals. Sometimes a toreador killed three or four bulls in one afternoon. The animal was dragged out of the inclosure as soon as he met death. Occasionally the toreador himself was killed.

If a toreador met death in a bull fight he was not allowed to have mass said for his soul. He could not enter the church-dead-nor could he be buried in holy ground. The church was greatly opposed to bull fights.

The bull fights ended in 1854 when the Legislature passed a bill "to prevent noisy and barbarous amusements on the Sabbath.

This act seemed to the Spanish Californians about San Juan Bautista a very quaint and amazing piece of legislation. They couldn't live without a bull fight, but one cautious man consulted Dr. Wiggins, who had lived in San Juan Bautista since 1842, and was friendly with the Spaniards.

Dr. Wiggins was something of a wag and so, he said to the promoters of the bull fight: "Go ahead with the fight. They can't punish you. You're entitled to trial by jury. The Americans must prove that a bull fight is noisy. This they will find against you. They must prove that a bull fight is barbarous. This will be against you. But they will never find that it was an amusement in Christ's time. Go on with the fight."

They did. The Spanish Californians were arrested, tried and fined. This was the end of the picturesque if brutal institution in California.

Transcribed by Kitty LaFavor, for the Santa Clara Co. CAGenWeb Project. 2008

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