A HISTORY OF HERTFORDSHIRE sawdust was brought into the kitchen, and the butcher and the baronet stripped and set to, with the servants looking on to see fair play. The fight was furious at the outset, but the butcher was soon defeated by the superior science of the baronet and had to depart without his money. The most memorable prize fight that took place on Royston Heath was the contest between Jem Ward and Peter Crawley for the championship on January 2, 1827. This event was the occasion of the greatest excite- ment, and the concourse of people that assembled at the lower end of the cricket ground was enormous. From ten to fifteen thousand persons were there, including all classes of society. Crawley stood 6 feet 2 inches in his stockings and Ward 5 feet 9 inches. The fighting took the form of such a furious onslaught upon each other that in twenty-six minutes and after eleven rounds both men were completely exhausted. Craw- ley had his cheek laid open and both eyes nearly closed, but Ward could not stand, and thus he lost his champion belt. Another well remembered prize fight took place between Owen Swift, a practised hand, and ' Brighton Bill,' a young inexperienced fighter of only twenty years of age. This took place in the year 1838 at Barkway, and it created an immense amount of interest. After a brutal exhibition the unfortunate young man from Brighton simply allowed himself to be pummelled to death, the out- come being an inquest and a trial for man- slaughter at the Herts Assizes. A verdict of manslaughter was returned, and the jury expressed their deep regret and concern that the magistrates of Hertfordshire had not inter- fered to prevent a fight which for some days previously had so notoriously been expected to take place. The fight caused many per- sons in the neighbourhood to look with sus- picion and shame upon the so-called ' noble art of self-defence,' and to turn with disgust from such exhibitions of brutality. Fights at Royston Heath have since 1838 been few and far between, and have only been carried out at great risk of apprehension of the principals and their abettors. A notorious battle took place on May 30, 1833, on No Man's Land, 'the arena of many a gallant encounter,' between Simon Byrne and Deaf Burke. Byrne was cham- pion of Ireland. After a battle lasting for three hours and sixteen minutes, during which no less than ninety-nine rounds were fought, Burke was declared the winner. Byrne, who was knocked out of time, was taken to the Wool Pack Inn at St. Albans, where not- withstanding the best medical skill, including Sir Astley Cooper's, he died four days later. Burke and his seconds were tried for man- slaughter at the Hertford Assizes, but were acquitted on the evidence of the doctor, who said that Byrne's death was not caused by the injuries he received from the battle. It is a curious coincidence that Simon Byrne had caused the death of McKay, the Scotch champion, on the same day of the month three years previously. Many other battles of less importance have been fought in Hertfordshire at Harpenden, Colney Heath, and on other open spaces, especially those on the confines of the county, where it was easy to cross over into another county to escape the police. The Park Hotel, No Man's Land, has been until quite recently a favourite training residence for pugilists. COCKFIGHTING The origin of this sport is curious. It is said that in the year 476 B.C. when Themistocles was marching with his army against the barbarians, he saw two cocks fighting. He halted his army and thus addressed them : ' These cocks are not fighting for their country or for their paternal gods, nor do they endure this for the monu- ments of their ancestors or for the sake of glory in the cause of liberty or for their offspring; their only motive is that one is determined not to yield to the other.' After this episode the Athenians made a law that one day in every year should be set apart for an exhibition of cockfighting. This Athenian law became the custom in England, Shrove Tuesday being the day set apart, and cockfighting was carried on through the length and breadth of England on that day until the year 1795, when it was sup- pressed. The pupils of the City of London Schools used to club together and present their masters with cocks to fight on Shrove Tuesday mornings. This county was well known for its love of the sport, and we find spots pointed out on most of the Hertfordshire commons as the scenes of historic cockfights. There is also a spot in Gorhambury Park that is still known as ' Bacon's cock pit.' It was also customary at inns to have 37
