SPORT ANCIENT AND MODERN 



burgh St. Leger, divided the Biggar Stakes with 

 ' Wigton Lass ' (bred in the same kennel as 

 ' Royal Water '), ran up for the Sundorne 

 Cup (Salop), and divided the Bridekirk Cup 

 with ' Princess Royal.' ' Fairy Glen ' (grand- 

 daughter of ' Cavalier,' a celebrated son of 

 ' Cauld Kail ') won Mr. Forster his third 

 Corrie Cup, whilst the last really good one 

 at Stonegarthside was ' Fugitive ' (by ' Cock 

 Robin ' out of ' Fortuna '), whose record when 

 a puppy was signalized by dividing the Wig- 

 townshire St. Leger and the Border Union 

 Derby, also running into the semi-finals of 

 the Waterloo Cup, when he was put out by 

 ' Magnano,' the winner, and a son of ' Cauld 

 Kail.' In his second season ' Fugitive ' divi- 

 ded the Netherby Cup. 



In the ' fifties ' and ' sixties ' the Cumber- 

 land farmers had a notable representative 

 courser in Mr. George Carruthers, the then 

 tenant of Gale Hall near Penrith. Mr. 

 Carruthers' name will go down to posterity 

 as the owner of the third Cumberland Water- 

 loo Cup winner. This was ' Meg,' not bred 

 in the county, by-the-bye, but in Dumfries- 

 shire, by Mr. John Jardine, her sire being 

 Lord John Scott's ' Terrona,' and her dam 

 ' Fanny Fickle,' both full of the best Cumber- 

 land blood. A slow greyhound, ' Meg ' never- 

 theless was quick in seizing openings, and once 

 behind a hare stayed there. It was these valu- 

 able qualities that won her the Netherby Cup, 

 whilst she ran second next year and was put 

 out by ' Johnny Cope.' It was only a month 

 after this reverse that the Cumberland bitch 



succeeded in winning the Waterloo Cup. 

 ' Bonus,' her brother, won the Brougham 

 Cup, and ran second to ' Tullochgorum ' for 

 the Brampton Cup, and to ' Beckford ' for the 

 Bridekirk Cup. Many old coursers however 

 unhesitatingly point to ' Crossfell ' as the best 

 of Mr. Carruthers' greyhounds. He was a 

 son of the Scotch celebrity ' Canaradzo ' and 

 the Waterloo Cup heroine ' Meg.' ' Cross- 

 fell,' within a month of dividing the Brampton 

 Cup, won the Great Scarisbrick Cup (sixty-four 

 entries) in Lancashire, and the year following, 

 when the stake had been doubled in number 

 of entries, he Was defeated in the last four by 

 the invincible 'Bab' at the Bowster. Mr. 

 Carruthers also owned ' Canzonette,' her 

 daughter ' Coupland Lass,' and several other 

 winning greyhounds. 



With the decadence of coursing in Cumber- 

 land the references to its greyhounds towards 

 the close of the nineteenth century are neces- 

 sarily few and far between, and it must suffice 

 to remark that the one and only kennel of 

 note remaining worthily upholds the prestige 

 of past years. The Stonerigg Kennel in fact 

 produced another Waterloo Cup winner in 

 1897, that is to say, ' Gallant,' who is owned 

 by a native of Cumberland, resident in the 

 county of Durham, but was trained in Cum- 

 berland. 'Gallant's' sire is 'Young Fullerton,' 

 a brother of the great ' Fullerton,' and his dam 

 ' Sally Milburn,' so that he is full of the best 

 Cumberland blood of bygone days, and at the 

 stud the performances of ' Gallant's ' stock are 

 substantial evidences of his great value as a sire. 



GAME COCKFIGHTING 



Seventy or eighty years ago cockfighting 

 was one of the most popular sports in the 

 country. If not admired, yet it was toler- 

 ated by all ranks, and eagerly followed by a 

 numerous class, both high and low, rich and 

 poor, from the nobleman with his hundreds of 

 carefully bred and carefully treated birds to 

 the peasant with his one favourite, proudly 

 strutting before his thatched cottage. Boys 

 at nearly all public schools were brought up 

 and initiated into all the mysteries of cock- 

 fighting. Clergymen of our national religion, 

 when the offices of minister of the Church 

 and school teacher were combined, frequently 

 officiated as high priests at the Shrovetide 

 gatherings, nay, made the practice a means to 

 increase their stipends. Most towns had 

 their annual mains of two, three, or four 

 days' fighting. County was arrayed against 

 county, or district against district, sometimes 

 for extravagant sums. Most villages, parti- 



cularly throughout the northern part of the 

 kingdom, had their Shrovetide cockfights, 

 when mains and single matches were 

 fought. A main might consist of any un- 

 even number of birds agreed upon ; a match, 

 of two birds. The stakes might be in the 

 main, say ,1 in each battle, 10 the 

 main, the result of the latter being governed 

 by a majority of wins. Schools throughout 

 all parts of the country had their ' captain 

 matches,' a ridiculous and senseless arrange- 

 ment, which yearly brought into existence 

 hundreds of youthful cockers. Masters and 

 pupils were often more conversant with the 

 points, qualities and colours of cocks than 

 with grammar or arithmetic. 



Farmers throughout the country were be- 

 sieged with solicitations and offers of remun- 

 eration varying from 2s. 6d. to 4*. a year for 

 ' cock walks.' Huts too might often be seen 

 dotted over fields erected purposely for ' walks.' 



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