Rector, the Rev. Mr. White, was to
annex the Willenhall living whenever it become vacant. Whether they
looked upon it as being appurtenant to the more important office of their
own shepherding cannot be determined at this distance of time; but
certain it is that an intense feeling of rivalry existed between the men
of Darlaston and the men of Willenhall. The intensity of the feeling may
best be judged by a remarkable incident which occurred some five years
before Mr. Fisher appeared on the scene.

During the earlier months of the year 1827 it would appear that there had
been, from time to time, incursions and alarms between the two towns, and
even rioting that involved hand to hand fighting in the streets. Never
were such exciting times in these places. At last the rivalry culminated
in an act of aggression as daring in execution as it was original in
conception--the Willenhall men woke up one fine Sunday morning to find
that the Darlastonians had entered their town in the dead of night and
stolen the cock from the church steeple!

Now the desperate achievement of this triumph over their enemies had a
deeper significance than at first meets the eye. It must be borne in the
mind that those were the old cockfighting days, when town matched against
town their gamest birds, and sought the glories of a victory in the
cock-pit. As between these two neighbouring parishes in particular,
there had been much vaunting of birds and challenging to the arbitrament
of the spur; the Darlaston men would take a game cock into Willenhall,
hold him up to show him the weathercock on the steeple, and then give
vent to a roar of defiant laughter when the bird crowed his challenge.

By way of reprisal the men of Willenhall would raid Darlaston, and
pretend to call the cock from the steeple there by scattering corn in the
churchyard, in mocking allusion to an old tale of Darlastonian
simplicity. No wonder, therefore, that the ridiculed were at last
exasperated beyond endurance, and that the coup de main of stealing the
Willenhall cock was not only projected, but carried to its marvellously
successful issue.

Consternation reigned supreme in Willenhall; it was felt that the pass to
which matters had been brought by the enormity of this latest aggravation
by their enemies could only be met by an appeal to the law, which,
hitherto, both factions had so recklessly set at naught. So the
following public notice was promptly issued:--