Large Sums Wagered on Fighting Crickets

1920

Marines Back From China Tell of Orient's Popular Sport

SAN FRANCISCO, Cal. — Cricket fighting is a very popular sport in China, according to U.S. Marines who just returned here from a tour of duty in the Orient.

"The most celebrated cricket fights are those at Fa-ti, near Canton," says one of these sea-soldiers. "A number of sheds are provided, made of matting, and are divided into compartments. Each compartment contains a table with a vessel standing on it in which the encounters take place.

"Big contests are waged, the attendance is large and betting is heavy. Final results are posted conspicuously. Crickets are matched according to weight and color.

"When a cricket with a long record of victories dies its owner puts it in a tiny coffin and buries it, believing that funeral honors will assure him good luck in finding good fighting crickets."