A High-Stakes Wrestling Match at the Opera House
The Victoria champion Quinn faced off against Matsada Karakichi in a brutal match that ended in controversy and injuries.
The story, cleaned up
A cleaned-up reading of the newspaper page: spelling and layout repaired, one story lifted off a crowded page. It follows the original closely but it is not a transcription. The original page is below; read it if a detail matters.
A wrestling match between W. H. Quinn, the champion of the Pacific coast, and Matsada Karakichi, the champion of the world, took place last evening at the opera house. Though Quinn took the first fall and the second was snatched by the latter, the match was awarded to the latter owing to the fact that Quinn was unable to come to time. In the last fall, Quinn struck his head against the stage, receiving injuries so severe that he was unable to come to time. The crowd began to pour into the theater at 9 o'clock. When the two men finally faced each other, Quinn was four inches taller and the disproportion seemed very great. Matsada was at least 15 pounds heavier than when he met Klemacher, weighing 164 pounds. After the struggle, Quinn was taken to his dressing room, looking weak and pale. In conversation with the reporter, he said: 'I admit that the second fall was rightfully the Jap's, but if the accident had not occurred, I think that my chances of winning the bout were fine.' The two were seen shaking hands later, and it was agreed that they would meet at the post and arrange for another match.
“He tipped the scales at 164 pounds. This was evidenced in his face, which was like the full moon and in strict accordance with his old time countenance.”
This match reflects the vibrant, gritty theater culture of 19th-century Seattle, where local sports spectacles served as major civic events. Today, the site of these old opera houses is often occupied by corporate office towers, marking the transition from a town of colorful public displays to a modern, more corporate metropolis.
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