Ruddy and got his hands on him, but Ruddy slipped
away. Then Jack hit Ruddy, and Ruddy kind of wheeled around; and Jack
rushed for Ruddy again, and again got his hands on him, but they
slipped off. Then they seemed to get close together and just pound each
other; and pretty soon Ruddy hit Jack and knocked him down. But Jack got
right up and grabbed Ruddy and got an awful grip on him. "He's goin' to
choke him now. He'll get him now, sure." And they tusseled for a while,
Jack tryin' to get Ruddy's throat, but Ruddy always keepin' away, though
pretty near gettin' it. Finally Ruddy broke clear loose and hit Jack an
awful blow right in the chest. Then Jack went crazy mad. He rushed on
Ruddy and got him by the throat and began to choke him. Meanwhile Ruddy
was fightin' Jack's hands away and finally slipped 'em off again and as
Jack came for him, Ruddy hit him and knocked Jack down again. Then he
rushed on Jack and was about to choke him too, but Jack hopped up and
kind of run off a little, then turned around and made for Ruddy again
and struck Ruddy and knocked him into a heap. This was the first time
for Ruddy; and he got right up and as Jack came up, he just rained the
blows on Jack until Jack began to wilt and finally he came up with a
regular sledge hammer and Jack fell over on the sand flat on his back,
and lay there, his big white chest just goin' up and down like a
bellows. I forgot to say that Harold Carman was there; and every time
one was knocked down, he began to count. Mitch said if they counted 25
and you didn't get up, you was whipped. Well, this time Harold Carman
counted 25 and then went on and counted 50 and still Jack didn't get up,
but lay there his breast goin' up and down for air. Then everybody began
to laugh. And the fight was given to Ruddy Hedgpeth; and when it was,
Jack got up and picked up a club and started for Ruddy to kill him. So
all the men pitched on to Jack and began to hold him; and Jack was
bloody and was swearin' and sayin' he had been tricked and that he could
lick Ruddy with one hand in a fair fight. "Ruddy Hedgpeth is a coward,"
says Jack; "he put sweet oil on his chest and throat so I couldn't choke
him when I got my hands on him. He's a coward and I've been tricked."

My pa was not a very big man, but he warn't afraid of no one. And he
says: "Anything was fair, so as to whip, and you're whipped and you'd
better shut up." So Jack made for my pa and pa stooped down and picked
up a rock a