A LADY WRESTLER.

New Zealand Mail, Issue 1612, 21 January 1903, Page 12

A LADY WRESTLER.

A CHAMPIONSHIP MATCH. (Prom Our Special Correspondent.) LONDON, December 5. “Lady” wrestlers have been quite a feature of_ London music-hall performances during the past twelve months, and if the spectacle of a couple of buxom wenches in tights pawing and struggling and indulging in all the antics and posturing associated with “catch-as-cateh-can” is not edifying it is on occasion diverting in the extreme. Last Piiday afternoon a colonial friend turned tp, wishful to he shown some of the sights of London. Being mail day, I had rerforce to “cry off,” and as he was at a loose end I packed him in a hansom and sent him off to see Miss Bradford and Miss Adelina Levey wrestle for vhe “Chanjpionship of the world” at the Royal Music Hall. He appears to have enjoyed himself mightily, and out of sheer gratitude has placed his experiences at my disposal. He says:—“You put me on to a real good thing. First of all, a Johnny came on and gave a long explanation of what the girls wer e going to do, and then the girls got to work. Levey was the bigger of the two, but Bradford went for her at once. Levey, however, wasn't anxious to get. to grips, and for about five minutes the pair of them wandered all over the carpet, sometimes getting right out 1 of sight behind the wings, aud next minute threatening to tumble into the orchestra. But they never got fairly hold of each other, and if I hadn’t known, they were supposed to be wrestling I should have thought they were playing a new sort of blind man’s buff. Once, however, the show looked more like a prize-fight, for in trying to grab Levey’s neck Bradford gave that lady a smack in the face, whereupon Levey raised a threatening forefinger. Then they got together for half a moment, but the only result was an appeal from Bradford to Levey to “let my hair alone.” So ended round one. In the next stained-glass attitudes and open-handed sparring, with Levey continually on the retreat and occasionally bumpipg hard against the scenery led to remarks from the audience. ‘Keep on the carpet,’ someone yelled as for the dozenth time the pair almost disappeared behind the wings. This interruption brought forth another speech from the Johnny aforementioned. He explained that Levey had the right to retreat wherever she liked. The audieiTce, however, seemed to think that as they had paid to see the ladies wrestle they had also some rights, and it struck me as only fair that if there was to be any wrestling it ought to be done where we conli see it. What do you say? However, the ladies continued to exercise their “rights’, till th a end of the round. By this time the audience was getting rather rude, so the Johnny made another speech. The gist of it was that Levey had hurt heir arm the day before, and that if she found she couldn’t go on after the next bout she would forfeit her money. Levey endorsed this, but an unsympathetic brute upstairs inquired 'How about our money ?’ So the third bout started. The remarks of the audience had evidently put the girls’ backs up, for they sparred and hopped around in a ferocious fashion. They were in deadly earnest, Bradford especially, hut beyond grabbing one another’s necks occasionally nothing came of it, except more remarks from the audience. 'Oh! do leave me alone;’ 'Mind the paint! 'Oh-h, yon do tickle;’ '’Ware orchestra!’ were among the choicer expressions; and once a wag started to whistle ‘Dear Old Pals.’ Throughout it all the girls worked nard, bumping the scenery and cavorting round generally. Once tremendous excitement supervened. A desperate neck grab by Levey brought Bradford down on one knee. But this was the first, last and only time that any portion of either girl’s body bar the feet touched the carpet. At the call of 'Time/ Levey retired, Bradford being awarded the stakes. The audience generally took their disappointment badly, and expressed their dissatisfaction in the usual way, but I can truly say that I never regretted spending half a crown less. Dan Leno and Herbert Campbell couldn’t have put up a funnier show. The girls are going to wrestle ‘later on’ for <£soo—perhaps. If they do I shall be there to see them perform, even if it costs' a r sov/”