loafing fellow, who travels the Vale not for much good, I fancy:

"Full twenty times was Peter feared
For once that Peter was respected"

in fact. And then three or four other hats, including the glossy castor
of Joe Willis, the self-elected and would-be champion of the
neighbourhood, a well-to-do young butcher of twenty-eight or
thereabouts, and a great strapping fellow, with his full allowance of
bluster. This is a capital show of gamesters, considering the amount of
the prize; so while they are picking their sticks and drawing their
lots, I think I must tell you, as shortly as I can, how the noble old
game of back-sword is played; for it is sadly gone out of late, even in
the Vale, and maybe you have never seen it.

The weapon is a good stout ash-stick with a large basket handle, heavier
and somewhat shorter than a common single-stick. The players are called
"old gamesters"--why, I can't tell you,--and their object is simply to
break one another's heads: for the moment that blood runs an inch
anywhere above the eyebrow the old gamester to whom it belongs is
beaten, and has to stop. A very slight blow with the sticks will fetch
blood, so that it is by no means a punishing pastime, if the men don't
play on purpose, and savagely, at the body and arms of their
adversaries. The old gamester going into action only takes off his hat
and coat, and arms himself with a stick: he then loops the fingers of
his left hand in a handkerchief or strap which he fastens round his left
leg, measuring the length, so that when he draws it light with his left
elbow in the air, that elbow shall just reach as high as his crown. Thus
you see, so long as he chooses to keep his left elbow up, regardless of
cuts, he has a perfect guard for the left side of his head. Then he
advances his right hand above and in front of his head, holding his
stick across so that its point projects an inch or two over his left
elbow, and thus his whole head is completely guarded, and he faces his
man armed in like manner, and they stand some three feet apart, often
nearer, and feint, and strike, and return at one another's heads, until
one cries "hold," or blood flows; in the first case they are allowed a
minute's time, and go on again; in the latter, another pair of gamesters
are called on. If good men are playing, the quickness of the returns is
marvellous; you hear the rattle like that a boy makes drawing his stick
along palings, only h