Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1925-05-17

According TO rule. only one fight
occurred on the day of the showing
This was called for l o'clock. The
main was IL matches and their
weights graduated from the North
Carolina champion ID. DIS 4-pound-
g. downward Very imposing all the
arrangements were. The pit was in
the center of an empty warehouse,
which was built upon piles and eX-
tended out over the water. The pit
was circular. about 10 feet or so in
diameter, inclosed by boarding i foot
and a half high.
The mat was of some brown sub
stance or other, probably tanbark,
and was kept wet in order. as old Tom
Harrington said, TO gin EN- toe holt.
The 'set-to' line was painted white
Seats surrounded the pit and assembled
in tiers, one above the other. The
room which had been the office
served as the bar. II was in one
corner of the warehouse and had Il
door opening on the outside. Admis
sion to the fight was 90 cents.
THE North Carolina cocks were in
a pen at the south end Of the ware
house, and those of Washington City
were at the other end; the pens We're
kept locked. Presently Tom Har-
rington, the North Carolina pitter, ap.
peared, carrying. in white cloth bag,
the cock selected by our opponents
for that days combat. The crowd
recognized Tom and babel of voices
began chafiiing him.
Cicero Clark, the Washington pit
ter, appeared with his warrior in a
bag, and the crowd turned on him
When Tom and Cicero reached the pit
from opposite ends of the room, the
betting began in earnest.
= I; = =
N'TOM opened the white bag and
took from it the fighter that was
to represent North Carolina. He was
smaller than. the other. but a perfect
representative of his kind: small head,
hooked beak, and from the tip of his
trimmed comb to his long-toed feet he
looked the part that nature haf fash
Toned him for alone-a pitiless, relent.
less. courageous fighting machine.
"Cicero's champion was examined
thoroughly by the judge to see that
the cock tailed in every way with the
description; then he examined ours i'm
theasame way; after which the cocks
were returned to Tom and Cicero, who
held them near each other; let them
try to get at each other a few times
then set them down to fight TO the
death-one or both.
The partisans of each side APP
proved or jeered noisily, according as
victory seemed to favor first one, then
the other.
AT the end of five minutes they
were bleeding profusely and stagger-
ing, drunkenly, too weak to leap
from the mat. They reeled toward
each other and fell. Our cock was
badly used. His head dropped, heav-
ily. The Judge gave the count and
Tom and Cicero placed them, lying
down-they could no longer stand-on
the white-painted line, breast to
breast. Then the count began: One,
two, three, four Suddenly the
North Carolina cock raised his head,
made two weak, Intellectual attempts
to peck his opponent, then fell back,
f1uttered a little, his legs twitching,
and he was still. They were both
dead.
"a mighty tumult of applause went
up from the spectators that made the
rafters ring. The decision was for
North Carolina. Then, while the dead
cocks were removed the bets were
settled.
"In the first battle next day we
Washingtonians We're not a little
chagrined over the conduct of our
fighter. He had been fighting only a
few minutes when he turned tail and
ran.
North Carolina won the next en-
counter which, with the victory of the
day before, made our opponents three
to our nothing. The four following we
won without a break; then North
Carolina gained another. which put US
even, Al. North Carolina then
gained four straishts and we four;