THE LIFE OF A SPORTSMAN 171 



determine, but the improvement in the style in which 

 they are recorded is remarkable, and not, I should 

 imagine, to be excelled. And who can doubt but that 

 this adds to their celebrity ? " The Athenians," says 

 Sallust, "were clever fellows, but they owed much to 

 their historians, who made them as clever as their own. 

 wit and talent could represent them." 



"Harlston, in Norfolk, July 30. Yesterday, in the 

 afternoon, Slack and Pettit met and fought. At the first 

 set-to, Pettit seized Slack by the throat, and held him up 

 against the rails, and grained him so much as to make 

 him extremely black. This continued for half a minute 

 before Slack could break Pettit's hold, after which, for 

 near ten minutes, Pettit kept fighting and driving hard 

 at Slack, when at length Slack closed with his antagonist, 

 and gave him a very severe fall ; after that, a second and 

 third ; but between these falls Pettit threw Slack twice 

 off the stage, and, indeed, Pettit so much dreaded Slack's 

 falls, that he ran directly at his hams, and tumbled him 

 down, and by that means gave Slack an opportunity of 

 making the falls very easy. When they had been fighting 

 eighteen minutes, the odds ran against Slack, a guinea to 

 a shilling ; whereas, on first setting out, it was three or 

 four to one on his head ; but after this time Slack 

 shortened Pettit so as to disable him from running and 

 throwing him down in the manner he had done before 

 but obliged him to stand to close fighting. Slack then 

 closed one of his eyes, and beat him very much about 

 the face. At twenty minutes Pettit grew weaker, Slack 

 stronger. This was occasioned by Slack's straight way 

 of fighting. At twenty-two minutes, the best judge 

 allowed Slack to have the advantage over Pettit very 

 considerably, as he was then recovering his wind, which 

 was owing to game. When they had boxed twenty-four 

 minutes Pettit threw Slack again over the rails. This, 

 indeed, Slack suffered him to do, as by that means he 

 fixed a blow under Pettit's ribs, that hurt him much. 

 Whilst Slack was again getting upon the stage (it was not 

 half a minute before he was remounted), Pettit had so 

 much the fear of his antagonist before his eyes, that he 

 walked off without so much as civilly taking leave of the 

 spectators, or saying anything to any person. This the 

 backers call rogueing of it, for it is generally thought 

 that he ran away full strong. The whole time of their 



