man. 'She's gettin' it
too much.'

'An' serve 'er right too!' said one of the women. 'She deserves all
she gets an' a damn sight more inter the bargain.'

'Quite right,' put in a third; 'a woman's got no right ter tike
someone's 'usbind from 'er. An' if she does she's bloomin' lucky if
she gits off with a 'idin'--thet's wot I think.'

'So do I. But I wouldn't 'ave thought it of Liza. I never thought she
was a wrong 'un.'

'Pretty specimen she is!' said a little dark woman, who looked like a
Jewess. 'If she messed abaht with my old man, I'd stick 'er--I swear I
would!'

'Now she's been carryin' on with one, she'll try an' git others--you
see if she don't.'

'She'd better not come round my 'ouse; I'll soon give 'er wot for.'

Meanwhile Liza was standing at one corner of the ring, trembling all
over and crying bitterly. One of her eyes was bunged up, and her hair,
all dishevelled, was hanging down over her face. Two young fellows,
who had constituted themselves her seconds, were standing in front of
her, offering rather ironical comfort. One of them had taken the
bottom corners of her apron and was fanning her with it, while the
other was showing her how to stand and hold her arms.

'You stand up to 'er, Liza,' he was saying; 'there ain't no good
funkin' it, you'll simply get it all the worse. You 'it 'er back. Give
'er one on the boko, like this--see; yer must show a bit of pluck, yer
know.'

Liza tried to check her sobs.

'Yus, 'it 'er 'ard, that's wot yer've got ter do,' said the other.
'An' if yer find she's gettin' the better on yer, you close on 'er and
catch 'old of 'er 'air and scratch 'er.'

'You've marked 'er with yer nails, Liza. By gosh, you did fly on her
when she spat at yer! thet's the way ter do the job!'

Then turning to his fellow, he said:

'D'yer remember thet fight as old Mother Cregg 'ad with another woman
in the street last year?'

'Na,' he answered, 'I never saw thet.'

'It was a cawker; an' the cops come in and took 'em both off ter
quod.'

Liza wished the policemen would come and take her off; she would
willingly have gone to prison to escape the fiend in front of her; but
no help came.

'Time's up!' shouted the referee. 'Fire away!'

'Tike care of the cops!' shouted a man.

'There's no fear abaht them,' answered somebody else. 'They always
keeps out of the way when there's anythin' goin' on.'

'Fire away!'

Mrs. Blakeston attacked Liza madly; but the girl stood up b