own delightful way, and were knocking each other about. At last, the
butcher felled the other man with a blow of a short club--like a
policeman's club--which is often made use of in these fights. As the man
lay motionless on the ground, the other, far from being content with what
he had done, seized a huge block of wood, one of those upon which they
chop up the meat, and, lifting it up with a great effort, dropped it on
his antagonist's head, with a dreadful sounding crack, which smashed his
skull, as one would a nut. Then, sitting triumphantly on the wooden
block, he solicited the compliments of the spectators.

Special interest is taken when the women fight, that is, among the very
lowest classes, and frequently the strings of _cash_ earned during the
day are lost or doubled on the odds of the favourite.

The better classes, it must be said to their credit, never indulge in
fist-fighting in public, though occasionally they have competitions in
their own compounds, champions being brought there at great expense and
made to fight in their presence. I believe they consider it to be
degrading, either first, to lose one's temper, or secondly, to administer
justice in such a fashion.

The most important contests of all are the stone and club-fights, which
are a national institution, approved by the Government and patronised by
everybody. They sometimes attain such large proportions as to be regular
battles. Supposing that one town or village has, from motives of jealousy
or other causes, reason to complain of a neighbouring city or borough, a
stone-fight during the first moon is invariably selected as the proper
method of settling the difference. Private families, with their friends,
fight in this way against other private families and their allies; and
entire guilds of tradesmen sometimes fight other guilds, several hundreds
of men being brought into the field on either side.

Children are much encouraged in this sport, it being supposed that they
are thus made strong, brave and fearless; and I have actually seen
mothers bring children of only eight or nine years old up to the scratch,
against an equal number of lads urged on by their mothers on the other
side. One boy on each side, generally the pluckiest of the lot, is the
leader, and he is provided with a small club, besides wearing on his head
a large felt hat with a sort of wreath round the crown, probably as a
protection against the blows that might reach his head