Wrestling in the West (1822)
“I run, I wrestle, I can well throw the barre” – Barclay
To the editor of the Sporting Magazine.
SIR,
THE men of Devon have ever been renowned for their great skill in the manly sport of wrestling. They are, in general, particularly well formed for the play, broad in the shoulder, strong in the arm, light and extremely active in the leg, and rarely exceeding the standard of mediocrity in their stature. Wrestling is their chief pastime, and they certainly exceed all the other men of England in the sport. They are usually divided into parties, which are headed by stout veterans, whose names they bear, and under whose colours they in variably play. The followers of Old Par,”and the Lusty Blind Man,” some few years ago, bore down all before them. The latter chief was in himself a host; very few had the courage to enter the lists with him, for notwithstanding he had been blind from his birth, he rarely suffered a fall, and threw heavier than any one of his sturdy party. Old Par was descended from a long line of renowned ancestors, whose trophies he proudly exhibited to his friends and visitors-seldom mentioned his own exploits but expatiated with great delight on the achievements of his grandfather, the famous Benjamin Par, or the no less renowned deeds of his great uncle Habbakkuk.
I never recollect hearing of these two parties playing together but once, on which occasion I was present. The followers of each of the veterans had clubbed together a good round sum of money, which, together with the ten guineas usually added to the prize on great occasions by Squire, the chiefs had laudably expended in the purchase of a handsome silver cup. The match excited great interest in the neighbouring parishes, and the road to the scene of action exhibited considerable bustle on the morning appointed for the sport.
In the green lap of three beechclad little hills a ring was formed, and carefully roped in, on a fine smooth sward; and a couple of athletic men, armed with huge hedge-stakes, were already engaged in clearing a space round the ropes, for the accommodation of the players in waiting, when I arrived. The tryers were immediately chosen, and an umpire appointed. In a few moments after they had taken their allotted station, a sturdy youth from Old Par’s party hurled his hat into the ring, and gaily leaped over the ropes. The gauntlet of defiance had scarcely reached the ground, when another hat from the Blind Man’s group, scudded swiftly into the enclosure, and pounced exactly upon it. A middle-aged thick-set dark-visaged man, equipped in an “everlasting jacket,” corded smallclothes, coarse worsted stockings, and thick shoes, shortly afterwards vaulted into the ring. The tryers then proceeded to their usual task, and after rigidly inspecting the shoes of the players, and assuring themselves that there were no nails or plates of tin inserted in the soles, gave the signal to begin.
This was a most interesting moment. The sides of the hills, which formed a sort of amphitheatre round the little vale, were thickly studded with eager, anxious-looking faces; the beech trees were peopled with boys, who protruded their white heads through the green leaves, and stretched their little necks to the utmost degree of tension, to carry their inquisitive optics an inch nearer to the glorious scene in the ring. The women (who are often spectators on these occasions) stood more aloof, raising themselves on tiptoe, or crouching to the level of a casual opening between the bodies of the nearer men, to catch a moment’s glimpse of the glorious play, while many a heartemanating prayer quivered on their lips for the success of a fond brother or beloved sweetheart.
The wrestlers, after warmly shaking hands, and drinking each other’s health in stout October, manœuvred for a few moments, and then grappling each other by collar and elbow, commenced a vigorous and most scientific bout. Nothing could exceed the agility, acuteness of tact and vision, elasticity of body, and unyielding strength of muscle, which the two countrymen exhibited. The hard sole of the shoe often inflicted many reiterated kicks on the adverse shin, and returned to its position in an instant. Sometimes they appeared to be rooted to the ground, and anon every muscle of their bodies was in active and most turbulent motion. It was an equal match, and many were the heartbeatings felt by the Blind Man’s party, as well as their adversaries, before the youth (who was on the side of the latter), by a most minute and imperceptible motion of the wrist, threw his adversary off his equilibrium, and laid him on his back in an instant. The voices of the spectators blended into one applauding shout, and the young lasses joyously footed it on the bright green turf, when they heard that the gay and gallant Harry Bottley was the happy victor.
Another player entered the ring in a few minutes, and after going through the usual ordeal of vigilant inspection by the lynx-eyed tryers, boldly attacked the stout young conqueror. Harry kept his opponent busily employed for the first eight minutes prescribed by the local laws of wrestling for fair collar and elbow play, after which time, that is to say, during the remaining two minutes of the bout, the players are allowed to take their holds any where above the waistband. Harry Bottley’s adversary, immediately the time for taking irregular holds was announced by the tryers, availed himself of the canon to rush ” in for the gripes,” as Sir Thomas Parkyns phrases it; but the wary youth penetrated into his design, and catching him in the very moment of his burst, gave him as neat a fall as ever was suffered in the county.
Another general shout of applause rewarded the young wrestler for this dainty feat, which hadjust subsided into a murmuring buz, when another hat dropped at his feet, and a man of most appalling exterior walked up to the tryers” to be looked over.” He was one of the most athletic fellows I ever beheld; his arms and shoulders were immense, and he stood full a head taller than young Bottley. The hearts of the young maidens beat with tremor and anxiety, and the roses faded from their cheeks, as the gigantic player clutched their young favourite, and towering proudly over his head, endeavoured to run him down with one vigorous and overwhelming rush. Harry could not bear up against the strength of his colossal adversary, but hastily fell back several paces, vigorously followed by his elated opponent. The youth’s downfall seemed to be inevitable -he was already cowering beneath the other’s huge body; another stout thrust would most probably have ensured the triumph of the latter, when young Bottley, by a most extravagant and unexpected contortion of his whole body, contrived to step aside, and by the same motion, dexterously turned his adversary in the very fury of his career, and easily stretched him on the broad of his back. The speed with which he was travelling, and the position of his body, ensured him a most tremendous fall. Harry assisted him to rise, and nimbly vaulted over the ropes, amid the hearty cheers of the amazed spectators. Many a hand was stretched out to receive him, and many bright eyes smiled upon him as he ascended the hill. The young lasses pressed forward to greet him, and seemed happy to receive a nod of recognition from the kind-hearted youth.
Having given three falls, he was allowed to quit the ring, and set down as one of those who would close the sports of the day, by “playing out” for the prize with those who happened to be as fortunate as himself. Three side falls are considered equivalent to one on the back; and three joints on the ground, or the whole of either side, constitute a side fall. If a player is victorious once or twice, and then receives a fall, he is allowed to enter the ring again in order to complete his trio of winnings; but none are suffered to “give in” until they have fairly thrown three different men. Any one who receives a fall before he has given one, is altogether shut out from any participation in the remainder of the day’s play. A leathern guard, lined with flannel, is usually worn inside the stocking from the ancle to the knee, (above which no kicks are allowed to be inflicted), for the protection of the skin. Old Par refused to depart from the ways of his great ancestors, and invariably used a guard made of the rough bark of a tree.
But to return to the contest. Many other bouts were played between the two parties; but only two on each side threw the necessary number of men to qualify them for the great contest. The two chiefs declined taking an active part in the day’s play, and left the prize entirely to their young companions. Harry Bottley, and his elder brother, with two fine young fellows, named Tapp, nephews of the Blindman, were the lucky players, and they seemed determined to shew considerable sport before the cup was carried off. There is no distinction of parties in this final contest; one player enters the ring, and if he disposes of all his temporary foes, his friends and fellow pupils in due time supply their places. He is bound to grapple with any of the players out who present themselves, and the prize is usually awarded to the man who successfully keeps possession of the ring until all the players out” are thrown; so that the best wrestler on the ground, whether he goes into the ring first or last, generally triumphs.
I shall not detail the particulars of the final playing out. Suffice it to say, that after a most spirited and protracted contest, replete with critical situations, nice points, and dilemmas from which there appeared to be no possibility for the player to extricate himself, Harry Bottley overthrew the sturdy Tapps; and his brother having declined to compete with him, the delighted youth was instantly endowed with the glittering cup, his elated companions bore him off in triumph on their shoulders, and the two parties of manly disputants passed the remainder of the day at the hospitable Squire’s old mansion, in all the manifold and heartcheering pleasures of rustic sport and revelry.
Sporting Magazine: Or, Monthly Calendar of the Transactions of the Turf, the Chase and Every Other Diversion Interesting to the Man of Pleasure, Enterprize, and Spirit, Volume 9; Volume 59. Rogerson & Tuxford., 1822. Sporting Magazine: Or, Monthly Calendar of the …, Volume 9; Volume 59. pp. 161-164. Available online via Google Books.