THE BULLDOG. 



37 



1825 the following account of what, after 

 all, must have been an exhibition disgusting 

 to those who witnessed it and degrading to 

 the dogs themselves : 



" The Westminster Pit was crowded on 

 Tuesday evening, January i8th, with all 

 the dog fanciers in the metropolis to witness 

 a battle between the celebrated dog Boney 

 and a black novice called Gas, lately intro- 

 duced to the fancy by Charley, to whom 

 the dog belongs. The stakes were forty 

 sovereigns, and everything was arranged 

 to the satisfaction of the amateurs. The 

 pit was lighted with an elegant chandelier 

 and a profusion of wax lights. The dogs 

 were brought to the scratch at eight o'clock 

 in excellent condition, and were seconded 

 by their respective masters. Boney was 

 the favourite at 3 to i, and so continued 

 till within ten minutes of the termination 

 of the contest a confidence arising solely 

 from his known bottom, for to the impartial 

 spectator Gas took the lead throughout. 

 The battle lasted an hour and fifty minutes, 

 when Boney was carried out insensible. He 

 was immediately bled and put into a warm 



bath. There were nearly three hundred 

 persons present." 



The method of conducting the fight was 

 for each dog in turn to cross a chalked 

 line and bring his opponent out of his 

 corner. The dogs were handled by their 

 keepers in the ring, and once they were 

 released they flew at each other's throats, 

 and having established a hold they pro- 

 ceeded to grind and tear each other to the 

 death. 



The tactics adopted by the dogs varied 

 according to the training they had received. 

 Some would fight at the head, others at the 

 legs, which were frequently broken, whilst 

 others attempted to tear open the. throat. 

 When a dog loosened his hold to breathe 

 the " round " was terminated, and each 

 dog was taken to his respective corner and 

 sponged down by his keeper. A minute's 

 grace was allowed between each round, and 

 the fight sometimes lasted for two or three 

 hours. 



It will be observed in the picture of the 

 Westminster Pit that three of the dogs 

 outside the arena are being forcibly held 



WESTMINSTER PIT (182O). 

 From an Old I'rint. 



