The Sun.
London, England, 1863-12-11 00:00:00

THE GREAT FIGHT FOR £2,000,

The contest yesterday between Heenan and King ter-
minated, as the public already knows, in the unexpected
but absolute defeat of the former. AU through the even•
ing of Wednesday the sporting houses were besieged with
inquirers and tipplers, and, there'fore, it was not extra-
ordinary that when four o'clock, the hour named, arrived
the approaches to London-bridge Station, the place named,
wis crowded with those who meant to go and those who
wished to go, and those who looked upon the occasion in
the way that they look at a Lord Mayor's show, or a great
fire. A number of policemen of the M division kept a line
to the great gate of the South-Eastern Railway, through
the wicket of which those who had the money for the
tickets were allowed to pass.

Notwithstanding the vigilance of the police at the doors,
despite the necessity of showing the tickets before being
admitted to the platform, although every possible check
was established, not a tew fellows unprovided with the essen-
tial pasteboard managed to get into or about the carriages.
Some of them, it was said, had even got cn the line at New_
cross, and thence walked up, attempting when they reached
the terminus to take an empty carriage by storm ; some
others had ensconced themselves during the previous even-
ing in some of the spare carriages lying at the station, biding
their time patiently until the hour appointed. But the
railway officials were more than a match for these clever
patient people ; they instituted a thorough search under the
seats, on the roofs, and under the very carriages, the result
of their scrutiny being the discovery of some 20 roughs,
whose ingenuity in eluding the vigilance of the ticket-col-
lectors certainly deserved a better fate,

Never was a secret of such a kind better kept, and
the wide-awakes who "knew the exact spot to a yard,"
found themselves neck deep in the mire, after a fashion
they little calculated on. The cut-purse family, wiping
the frosty icicles from their noses in the west when
they should have been looking out for squalls in the
south-eastern horizon. The delightful result was that the
"congregation" of the fistio art passed easily through the
thin dark line of weary and worn snapper badgers. The
arrangements of the "conveyancers" were most excel-
lent; everybody was comfortably "taken in and
done for," whilst the presence of the ring constable
volunteers sent the foot of authority down with a
crash upon all attempts at " rigging the market."
In fact, one would think that we were all going to see an
early ploughing match, whilst the " Yahoo" business
didn't rise as high as the song of an old tea-kettle. And
that ugly element was wise in the course it was constrained
to adopt—had it done otherwise there was force enough
present to have brought every atom of it to grief. Both
the men reached the ground in good time, and both had
their fair quantity of supporters, who would persist in
blocking up each carriage door so that the entrance of a
breath of air was almost next to an impossibility.
The train consisted of 30 carriages, in each of which, to
use a theatrical phrase, there was not standing room. We
were " horsed" by two powerful engines, and, at about a
quarter-past six we glided out of the station without the
least confusion, and with the greatest regularity in the
world. The morning-stars were just beginning to show
signs of that glimmering faintness which indicates the near
approach of daybreak, Once the train goP in motion,
not a sound was to be heard save the outburst of some
occasional hearty laugh at the jocularity going on inside.
But even this was of the mildest possible character,
and there was an entire absence of that reprehensive boiste-
rous outpouring which has too often awoke the slumbering
people along the route, filling their half-dreamy imagina•
tions with the horror that the Philistines were veritably
upon them, We were more than half afraid that the new
plan of paying at the doors would have been productive of
the direst confusion. Fortunately for us, any mystery had
been so well ravelled that there was really nothing to pro-
duce interruption. Had there been a regular mob gather-
ing, we are strongly inclined to the opinion that not one of
the "excursionists" would have been able to have reached
the ticket window. However, as things turned out so far,
we raised our hands and felt grateful. On casting a quiet
running glance round the interior of each carriage, before
we started we found the genuine patrons of our national
manly "trial by battle" in very strong force indeed, We
heard one and all join in a universal chorus of satisfac-
tion at the way in which we had been got off. On and
on we rolled through the fair county of Kent, and as
the gray dawn of morning rose eastward on our track
the mild fresh breeze played upon our half-asleep
faces, waking us up to a sense of life and activity that was
as agreeable as it was invigorating. The morning was
beautiful and mild, and way now to our left the bright blue
tinged light of early day could be seen breaking gently and
softly, widening and lengthening as it imperceptibly came,
in a manner that would have excited the warm admiration
of a Claude or a Turner. Still on and onward we go
through deep cuttings and over high embankments; anon
the iron horses slacken in their speed, and the next instant
the reverberating sounds of our whirling wheels tell us we
are passing through the bowels of mother earth. On
emerging from the tunnel into the open country our ears
were saluted with voices that unmistakeably marked the
owners as denizens of the aristocratic regions west of Re-
gent-street. Speculation made itself heard, and 6 and 7 to
4 on the Benicia Boy seemed to be the chorus of the song.
Just as we could distinguish houses and buildings suffi-
ciently clear the train glided noiselessly into Reigate
Junction, where we were "regaled" by the sight of
a strong covey of early birds belonging to the Surrey
County Constabulary. It is needless to say that they
were not there on our invitation, we considered them more
free than welcome, and following the prudent and time-
honoured examples of those philosophic predecessors of
theirs, Masters Dogberry and Verges of blessed memory,
we stole ourselves out of their company with all possible
alacrity and despatch. A thin white frosty veil of mist
floated over the landscape as we again got in full swing,
whilst the leaden coloured clouds, as they lay heavy and
motionless overhead, gave us cause for grave anxiety, but
as our fears were rising to an uncomfortable grade on our
nervous thermometer, in we rushed to another tunnel.
When we issued forth we made a series of weather-
wise surveys all round us, and were joyed to find the
dark curtain lifting evenly and gradually up on our
right, whilst on the opposite side the bright broken
patches encouraged our most earnest hopes. Another turn
of the steam-valve, and away we sped at over forty miles
an hour; wood and dell, hamlet and village, and cottage
and mansion seemed to fly by like the magic of the kalei-
doscope, and the question of the journey's end took the
place of other topics for the moment. A few miles further
on and we shot by Tunbridge Wells. At length we drew
up in a secluded and well-selected spot, where we got out,
yawned, stretched ourselves, and gulped in the sharp
morning air most voraciously. On account of the ex-
treme softness of the ground it was some time before a
decent place could be found. At this hour, about a
quarter past nine o'clock, tho sun was shining out
as magnificently as on a fine May morning, and as we
toiled some mile and a half up a steep clayey hill, the 'stuff'
was taken out of many. At length a chosen spot was
taken possession of, and the ring pitched. King first tossed
in his castor amid loud cheers, and was immediately fol-
lowed by Heenan, who was similarly received. Colours
were now unfolded on both sides, and the combatants began
to dress. The choice of ground was won by Heenan, and
then came the referee. Some wrangling here took place in
respect to that functionary, during which the betting went
on with offers at 40 to 20, lee. on Heenan, but there did
not seem to be any takers. Confusion now became the
ruling element, wasting away precious time on the top of
a hill that could be seen for 20 miles around. There were
the men and their seconds ready, while the referee was ex-
pected to come from the clouds. Three quarters of an hour
was spent in this way before matters were.finally closed, and
the referee originally proposed was ultimately agreed to.
Heenan was the first to exhibit, to the loud cheers of his
admirers, and was instantly followed by King, for whom
another salvo rose up from the throats of his own party.
Exactly at 10 o'clock the men were delivered at the scratch,
shook hands, and prepared to commence
The manner of the men on their entrance to the ring was
thoroughly characteristic. King had a serious and thought-
ful aspect, and gazed about the ground with a careful
scrutiny that foreshadowed the anxiety which throughont
the fight he never ceased to exhibit. Heenan, on the other
hand, entered with a light and jaunty step, briskly shook
hands stith his opponent, and at once turned his attention
to the choice of the ground. The popular feeling in favour
of Heenan was manifestly increased, by the superior hearti-
ness and confidence of his bearing. Many extraordinary
wagers were offered and accepted, " 20 to 7" being a fre-
quent cry. At a few minutes past 10 o'clock the ring was
fairly cleared, the spectators were subdued into comparative
tranquillity, and the real work of the day began,
The following is an account of the " rounds," as Put'
fished in a special edition of Bell's Life :
Round 1. Heenan stood forward and made
left, both trying to measure their distance; some
anti
sparring ensued, an exchange or two, when Heena.n_ftr arm,
play with his
and closed, grasping King by the neck with hisoifold his
and put on the old. fashioned hug, continuing_ to
ring
_ai a n
man in such a way that the referee entered the
strictly cautioned him not to repeat that operation
simi-
lar manner.
2. King made the fightin as soon
scratch. There was some attempt at coatainhe came to the
tering by both,
t
and very
of the most homely description, /la-3: wilagain, aud threwpl him
Heenan rushed on King, got the
like a sack of malt on the :me:: hug
the men being lifted
Heenan was found to be bleeding from the mouth. First
blood was claimed and allowedto toth leeirtnwgoo•prekr(aCitnheeeewarrisii:esat,
will,and
3. Both men bent d
cams up with great caution, trying to
when after some hard exchanges Heenan again put
the hug on, and threw King on the ropes with an
awful spank, that bowed in every stake in the ring.
More cheering for Heenan, with
counter cheers of a
rather hopeless tone from King's corner. All was now go-
ing dead against King, except the first blood.
4, sing came up with a" mouse" rather visibly under
his left eye. They went to work in this round in a manner
that showed the indications of the slashing business that
was to follow. From Heenan again running iu for the hug
alter fighting King to his (Heenan's) corner, grasping him
and throwing him very forcibly, it was obvious that he
meant to fight nothing but a wrestling fight; the fists tz; be