Page:The New International Encyclopædia 1st ed. v. 03.djvu/744

* BXJLLEB. 063 BULLFINCH. lieroic defender of Ladysmith, abandon the siege and surrender liis troops to the enemy, advice which the latter refused to adopt inder any cir- cumstances. The Secretary for War, in com- menting on the incident, said that had this been carried out, it wouUl have been the "most calam- itous reverse in Knglish military history." With the publication of these oflicial doeiuuents and statements was swept away the last vestige of Buller's reputation as a war commander. BULLET (Fr. bouMtc. dim. of OF. boule, ball, from Lat. bulla, knob, boss). The projec- tile discharged from a rifle, pistol, machine-gun, or similar weapon. For military purposes, in its spherical form, it is practically olisolete, its i)lace being taken by various forms of elongated projec- tiles. The small-bore bullets of modern rifles have a pressed leaden core, and a covering or thin envelope of steel, copper, or nickel, and are gradually becoming longer in length. The cop- per-coated bullet is generally condemned becauae of its poisonous cliaracter. Formerly bullets were placed in the firearm independent of the powder; both are now contained together in the cartridge. See Amjiuxition; Cartridge; Pro- jectiles; and Smali, Arms. BULL-FIGHT. A combat of men with bulls, for the entertiiinment of the public. They were common in tlrcece, particiilarly in Thessaly. and at one time in Rome under the emperors. They are still a favorite pastime in Spain and Mexico, and, in a modified and more merciful form, in Portugal. In Spain they were abolished by Charles IV. : but Joseph', Napoleon's brother, reestablished them out of policy, the mass of the Spanish popul.ation being passionately fond of the sport. The most magnificent bull-fights were at one time instituted by the monarchs them- selves: at present, both in the capital and in the larger towns of Spain, they are held either as private speculations or for the benefit of public institutions. In Madrid, during the bull-fighting season, there is at least one afternoon in every ■week devoted to the sport. The fights take place in a kind of open-air circus, called the /'/<i^(( de Toros, round which the scats rise one above an- other, with a tier of boxes over them. The /-Voc;a is capable of containing from 10.000 to 12,- 000 people. The best Andalusian bulls are bred at Utrera. the best Castilian ones on the .Tarama, near Aranjuez. The latter are the breed usually employed in Madrid. The bull-fight has been described as a tragedy in three acts. The i)rinci- pal performers in the first are the picmlores or horsemen ; in the second, the haiidrrilleroti. or footmen, are the actors: the third act devolves on the matador, or swordsman. The piradores. dressed in picturesque Spanish costume, and armed with a lance, take up their position in the middle, of the circus, opposite the bull- stalls. The bandcriUcroR. gay with ribbons and bright-colored cloaks, distribute themselves in the space between the barriers. The matador, or chief combatant, is also on foot. He is, dur- ing the preliminary parade, handsomely dressed, but when he ent(?rs the ring for luisiness he has dolled his expensive trappings, and holds in the right hand a naked sword, in the left the mu- leta, a small stick, with a scarlet-colored silk at- tached. On a sign given by the chief magistrate, a bull is let out from the stalls: the picadores stand ready in the arena, lance in hand, await- ing his charge. With a brave bull, they find all their skill requisite in acting on the defensive; with a cowardly one, they act on the offensive, and should their stabs be ineffectual in rousing the animal to the requisite fury, the poor beast is hooted by the crowd, and ultimately stabbed ingloriously in the spine. Whenever a horse is wounded, the rider betakes himself to flight; and when either the above casualty happens or a picador is thrown, the banderilleros rush in, and attract the bull by their cloaks, saving llicm- selves, if need be, by leaping over the palisade which incloses the circus. When the bull begins to Hag, the picadores are succeeded by the ban- derilleros. who bring with them the baiiderillas. i.e. barbed darts, about two feet long, ornamented with colored paper flags, which they stick into- the neck of the anim;il. Sometimes these darts have firecrackers attached to them, the ex- plosion of which makes the bull furious. The matador then enters alone to complete the tragic business. As soon as the bull's eye catches the scarlet-colored silk by means of which the iiiala- dor lures the bull, he generally rushes blindly at it; and then the matador, if he is well skilled, dexterously plunges the sword "between the left shoulder and the blade,' and the animal drops dead at his feet. Sometimes the matador essays a bolder coup, and with his cape crossed over his breast, awaits the onslaught, or he may leap over the charging bull and stab him with a fioador's lance; or he deftly jiUices two lances, one from each hand, between the shoulder-blades of the bull. The victorious matador is greeted w'ith acclamations, and not less so the bull, should he wound or even kill the matador, in which case another matador steps forth into the arena; but human life is rarely sacrificed. Eight or ten bulls are often dispatched in a sin- gle day, twenty minutes being about the time usually t.-ikcn to slay one. BULLFINCH. A finch of the genus P.vr- rhula, characterized by the short, thick, rounded bill, bulging at the sides, and hence suggesting the liead of a bull; specifically the familiar I'^uro- pean species (I'l/rrhula Kv.ropwa), cultivated as a cage-bird. The bullfinch has very soft and dense plumage, delicate bluish-gray above, the under parts bright tile-rcd, the crown of the head and the beak jet-black, which color also ap- jiears in the greater wing and tail coverts, in the quills, and in the tail-feathers; the wings are crossed by a conspicuous white bar. The colors of the female are less bright than those of the male. It frequents woods and gardens, builds its nest in low trees or Ijushes. feeds chiefly on seeds and l)erries in winter, and in spring IS excessively destructive to the buds of fruit-trees in those localities in which it is abundant, as it selects the flower-buds. The song of this bird, in a wild state, is very simple, and has no particular (piality to recom- mend it; but it is remarkably susceptible of im- provement by education, and trained 'piping" bullfinches of superior acquirements are sold at a very considerable price. Some of these birds learn to whistle an air very accurately, and with a power and variety of intonation far exceeding their natural song. The ability to whistle as many as six airs well has been attained. The training of these birds is a work both of time and trouble; it is chiefly carried on in (xermany, where regular 'schools' exist for the purpose, and where various hybrid races are produced for the