104 SPORTING STORIES 



man thrust in his hand, and the next moment there was a 

 yell of agony as a set of sharp teeth met in the flesh. The 

 pistol dropped from his grasp, and, with a blow of his 

 heavily loaded riding-whip, Tom sent the bold Turpin 

 spinning off his horse ; after which he cantered on his way 

 rejoicing. 



Jem Ward, sometime Champion of England, used to tell 

 a somewhat similar story of a trick played upon a police- 

 man who had been told off to arrest a well-known coloured 

 pugilist named Sambo Sutton (Charles Kingsley's instructor 

 in the noble art), who was under articles to fight Jem 

 Ward's brother Nick. The zealous officer of the law had 

 received information that Sambo was concealed in a bin in 

 an outhouse on a farm. He crept noiselessly to the bin in 

 the dim light, then suddenly flung up the lid, and cried, 

 " I've got you, my lad ; come out peacefully, or I'll give you 

 a wipe with my truncheon." But Sambo made no sign, 

 though the policeman could plainly see him move beneath 

 the sack which covered him. " What ! you won't come out, 

 won't you? Well, then, I'll lug you out." And with 

 that he plunged his hand into the bin. Then there rang 

 out on the still evening air a blood-curdling cry of agony, 

 followed by a succession of yells which finally brought the 

 farmer and his household on the scene. They found the 

 policeman piteously looking at his maimed and mangled 

 hand dripping with blood. The occupant of the bin was a 

 full-grown badger ! And for a long time afterwards the cry 

 of "Who nabbed the badger?" was sufficient to goad into 

 fury even the best-tempered member of the police force in 

 those parts. 



