The Royal Pastime of Cock-fighting

How happy were those Sons of Men, who in times past were reputed Persons indued with that noble Gift, aut facere scribenda, aut scribere legenda, that is, either to do such things as deserved to be writ, or to write that which was worth the reading: Now that this ensuing Treatise is worth the reading, and practising too, notwithstanding the little Esteem and Value, that the present Age affords it, I shall endeavour to prove both from the great Antiquity, and Usefulness of this noble Sport of Cocking: A thing esteem’d so Sacred, and held in such high Veneration amongst the Antients, that, as Diodorus Siculus testifies, the Fighting-Cock was reckon’d one of the principal Gods worshiped by the Syrians.

And Rabby David, a learned Hebrew Doctor, interpreting the 2 of Kings ch. 17. v. 30, 31. where Nergal is spoken, of which is (as he says) a Cock of the Field, a Champion Cock, a Cock for War, or a Fighting Cock, and by them there Worshiped as a God in Samaria. Which at once denotes the high Esteem and Value, with the great Antiquity also, of these Warlike Birds. And Athenæus and Dioscorides, both of them acknowledge the Fighting-Cock to be one of the Deities which the antient Greeks did greatly Adore. And that in their time there was an Altar found in a Vault far under Ground, whereon had been engraven’d a Cock, and inscribed thus

DEO MOUNO.

Which, as Macrobius also affirms, signifies One, or Only; and this Attribute they gave to the Cock, because he was the greatest, and almost the only Deity they Ador’d, the rest being accounted but his Assistants, and Coadjutors.

And Pliny in the tenth Book of his Natural History, sufficiently sets forth at large, the high and mighty Value and Respect that the antient Romans bore towards Fighting-Cocks, says he there:

These Birds about our Houses are our Centinels by Night, Nature has Created them to awaken and call Men up to do their Work; they have also a Sence and Understanding of Glory: Moreover, they are Astronomers, and know the Course of the Stars, they divide the Day by their Crowing, from three Hours to three Hours; when the Sun goes to Rest, they go to Roost: And like Centinels, they keep the Relief of the Fourth Watch; in the Camp they call Men up to their careful Labour and Travel: They will not suffer the Sun to rise and steal upon us, but they give us warning of it: By their Crowing, they tell us the Day is coming, and they foretel their Crowing likewise, by clapping their Sides with their Wings. Ye shall see them to march Stately, carrying their Neck bolt upright, with a Comb on their Heads, like the Crest of a Soldiers Helmet; and there is not a Bird besides himself that so oft looketh aloft to the Sun and Sky; and hereupon it is that marching thus Proudly as they do, the very Lyons (which of all wild Beasts be most Couragious) stand in Fear and Awe of them, and will not abide the sight of them.

So that hence may be inferred the great Use and Benefit that the Romans made of these vigilant Astronomical Monitors; Experience plainly taught them, what would be difficult to make some now-a-days to believe, Namely, that the Fighting-Cock is a Bird in himself both useful and profitable, as I shall prove more fully anon, to the silencing of all those whom Ignorance prompts to say any thing against it, for you know the abuse of a thing should not take away the right use of it; and if so, I don’t doubt but to clear the Point, against any one that shall oppose me herein; but before I leave this famous Philosopher, see here what Plinie yet farther says of Fighting-Cocks: —They are great Commanders, says he, and Rulers, and are made for War and Fighting; and the Countries from whence they first came, are grown into Name, being much renowned for their Breed, as namely, Tenagra and Rhodus in the first and highest Degree: in a second rank and place, be those of Melos and Chalcis. And unto these Birds (for their Worth and Dignity) the Purple Robe at Rome, and all Magistrates of State disdain not to give Honour. These rule our great Rulers every Day: And there is not a mighty Lord or State of Rome, that dare open or shut the Door of his House, before he knows the good Pleasure of these Fowles: And that which is more, the Soveraign Magistrate in his Majestie of the Roman Empire, with the regal Ensigns of Rods and Axes, carried before him, neither sets he forward, nor reculeth back, without Direction from these Birds; they give order to whole Armies to Advance forth to Battle, and again command them to stay and keep within the Camp.

These were they (says Plinie) that gave the Signal, and foretold the issue of all those Famous Foughten Fields, whereby we have Atchieved all our Victories throughout the whole World: In one Word, these Birds command those Great Commanders of all Nations upon the Earth.

Their Crowing out of Order too soon before their Hour, or too late, portendeth also, and presageth something remarkable, for well known it is, that by their Crowing at one time all Night long, they foresignified to the Bœotians, that noble Victory of theirs atchieved over the Lacedemonians. For this Interpretation, and Conjecture was given thereupon of a Fortunate Day (says Plinie) because that Bird never Croweth if he be Beaten or Overcome.

And at Pergamus every Year there is a solemn shew, exhibited openly to the People, of Cock-Fighting, as if Sword-Fencers were brought within the Lists to Fight at Outterance.

And Strabo, in Purchases Pilgrimage, extolling the Great and Royal exercise of Cocking, whence so many Benefits accrue to Mankind, if well observed, says also, that at Pergamus there was yearly Spectacles of Cock-Fighting offered where the Princes, Nobles and Gentlemen both old and young were sure to be, for as much as from hence they gathered not only and barely Courage and Audacity: But also did see the great necessity of a firm unshaken Resolution, with Perseverance and Stability of mind, even to the last Minute: So that by the Example of these unparallel’d Birds, the People in those Days were extimulated and spurred on to Great and Generous Enterprizes.

Nor did the Roman Empire shrink so long as Cocking was esteem’d in Rome. And ’tis reported of that Subtle, and most Victorious Emperor Severus, that when he was determin’d to Conquer (if possible) Great Britain, that to draw off his two Sons Antonine and Geta, from the Bewitching Vanities of the Theatre, and to prepare them in Mind the better to bear the many difficulties and hardships, that they must of Necessity undergo in the Prosecution of so great and bloody an Enterprize, as the subduing even Thule itself, which was then deemed the utmost Region of the North; he commands the Sport of Cock-Fighting, to be exhibited Dayly before his Sons, and the principal Officers of his Army, and that not only to make them emulous of Glory through the Performance of great Atchievements, but also to be firm and unshaken in the midst of Dangers, nay in Death itself.

And really were Cocking now-a-days exhibited to the People of this present Age wherein we live, by the supream Powers and Potentates of the World, for political ends. And certain Orators appointed at the same time to Comment thereupon, and in florid Speeches, Ductarious to War, and Marshal Exercises, and insinuating into the People the great magnanimous Temper and Disposition of these Heroic Birds, with variety of Inferences drawn from particular Passages and the great Essays that they discover to a judicious Eye, in their way and manner of Fighting. I Question not but Cocking would now produce as good Effects as then it did, and influence the British Valour to greater Things, than ever Roman Courage yet dared to Attempt.

Some Instances of this Practice, the Ingenious Nocoli-di-Conti has given in his History of Sumatra. This Kingdom is not only one of the greatest, but is also the most esteemed of all the Eastern Islands, insomuch that the Indians call it Tenarisem, or the delicious Land.

And for the Inhabitants, if we may credit, not only Di-Conti, but also Sir Ed. Michelborne and Sir James Lancaster, Men of Renown in Queen Elizabeth’s Days, and Famed for their Valour and great Integrity; these Knights, both of them, averr the Sumatrans to be a People truly Valiant and Magnanimous, and not only more Subtle and Politic, but also much more Just and Honest than any other of the Indians whatsoever.

None so much loved and courted, none so much by Enemies feared and dreaded, throughout all the East, as Sumatrans: where particular care is taken for the promotion of Cocking; for they annex stately Buildings to their Fanes and Temples, where they keep at public Charge, divers Fighting Cocks, which are brought forth, as the People come to Worship, and are fought in a spacious Court Eastward, on the Right-Hand of the Door of the House of their Gods: after which a certain Priest skilled in Cocking, and approved for his great Ability in Astronomy, and all natural Philosophy, having a voluble ready way of speaking, first takes up the conquering Cock, after the Battle is over, and presents him to their Deities, and then comes and takes up the slain Cock, and puts him into a Golden Cauldron, where he bathes his bloody Limbs in Sankereen; and then, with rich Gums and Spices, burns his Body upon an Altar made for that purpose; after which his Ashes are put carefully up in a Golden Pot, or Urn, there to remain for ever: And then the Brammen, or Priest makes a long Speech to the People, shewing the Excellency of Cocking, and the great Use and Benefit of it to all such as know how rightly to apply it, and Expatiates much upon the present Combate, drawing divers Inferences from the various passages and Transactions made use of by the late Foughten Cocks, shewing also the great Magnanimity, Courage, Skill, and Constancy of these Warriours.

And lastly, he applies it so Pertinently to all that are present, in Terms so fit and suitable, that it conduces greatly to their Edification, grounding in them a firm and stable temper of Mind, with an unshaken Valour, whereby they are now truly said to be a People Invincible; And verily I am of Opinion, that from hence at first came that Saying so common amongst us still, viz. He is gone to Church to see a Cock-Fight: And at this Day there are divers Places up in the East where Cocking is accounted a thing Sacred, and in great Use amongst them, as Magellan assures us.

For, says he, both in Borneo, Calegan, and Pulaoan, Cocks for the Game are kept, and are of Sacred use amongst them, but eat not of their Flesh, that being forbidden by the Bramens, or Priests.

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That great Man, the highly Celebrated Selden observes Cocking to be a thing of great Use, and much admir’d by rising Marshal Men, who with keen Swords cut out good Fortune to themselves, from the doubtful Loyns of Fate. And there is not a surer sign of a Nations or Peoples degenerating into effeminacy, and so consequently falling into Poverty and utter Ruin, than when they totally change the Warlike Exercise of Cocking for mimical Plays, silly Dancing, and such like Fopperies. Rome itself was a sad Instance of the Truth of this, when the proud Eagle stripd off all her Gaudy Plumes, lay naked and expos’d to the Rage, and Fury of the depopulating Goths and Vandals.

Gustavus Adolphus, when he came to rescue the then King of Denmark, out of the Tallons of German Power, told the distressed Prince, that he had now nothing to fear, since he was well assured that the Imperialists had given up the Gantlet, and had nothing left but a fringed Glove for their Guard, for instead of Cock-Fighting (says he) and Martial Exercise, they seem wholly to be devoted, and given up to Effeminate Dancing, and inervating Drunkenness, two Infallible Signs of a sinking People, as that Warlike King full well observed and after with his Sword made good what he then said, which wrought so upon the distressed Danes at that time, that they have been Noted ever since to be very great Cockers.

And Sir William Corly, who for some Years together was Resident in the Danish Court, assures his Country-men that a right bred English Cock, was at that Day accounted a Bird of Impreciable value in the Court of Denmark, and that not only the young Princes, but the then present King Christian himself was a great Admirer of the royal Sport of Cocking, insomuch that they not only appoint set times (says he) but do also hang out costly Ensigns, and Rich Flags, whereon is portrayed both the place, and also the very Gesture of the Cocks, as they at Rome, to which we find Horace alludeth;

Their Cockings also are attended with variety of Martial Aires, and loud Bellonian Notes, with preparatory Sounds of War, which first usher in the Cocks unarmed into the Pit, where both they and the Weapons with which they are to fight, are exposed to the view of all the Spectators that are present, after which they are taken up, and immediately heeled, and then set down to Fight.

For when a Cock of the Game is first brought into the Pit, to be shown, he only makes a Flourish, and takes a lofty turn, or two. But when he is heeled, and put in for the Battle, they then compose their Bodies according to the rules of Art, for the better warding of themselves, and the readier wounding of their Adversaries. And this the late King Christian the First, of Denmark, was pleased to take Notice of at public Cocking, where he professed that the Royal Sport, so sweetly Sung by the Mantuan Swan, upon Ascanius Son to Æneas, who first brought it out of Troy, was only an imitation of Cock-Fighting.—Thus the Poet.

See here, says the King, how the Cocks Advance now one against another, sometimes retiring, sometimes pursuing, sometimes in one Form, and sometimes in another, what variety of Strokes, what Diversity of Fight is here shown in this one Battle; were I to lead an Army against the Grand Infidel of Constantinople, I would chuse none but Cockers for my Commanders; nor should any common Soldiers be utterly Ignorant of this useful Exercise of Cocking.

So great an Esteem had his Majesty the late King of Denmark for Cocking. And that famed Hero, the young Swedeland King, at the Head of a Handful of Men, cuts through the frozen Muscovites, and makes the Haughty Czar, amidst his mighty Numbers tremble, and beg for Peace, resolving never hereafter to draw his Cimiter against a professed Cocker, as his Swedeish Majesty is notoriously known to be, and has been from his very Cradle almost.

And the great Hector of Europe, the most Christian King, Lewis the Fourteenth of France, is said to complain of nothing so much as the want of Cocking in his Country, where the Climate is such, that a Cock of the Game cannot bear the serenity, or rather the over Sharpness of the Air, which penetrates the otherwise hardy Bodies of these Martial Birds, to such a degree, that in a few days time they become so dull, heavy, and heartless, that they have no mind to Fight, and quickly after fall into some incurable Disease, such as the Black-Sickness, the Roop-evil, and the like, of which they soon die.

Yet in the hottest Climates in the World, in the most Burning Regions, such as Frying-pan Bay, and also in the Frigid Zone, where everlasting Winter seems to dwell, are Cocks of the Game frequently known both to Live, Breed, and Fight, and that as well as in any of the most Mild and Temperate Climates of the World, where they are kept, France and one part of Spain only excepted, which is a Wonder, and the natural cause a Secret as yet undiscover’d.

In Holland they are common, and Cocking is there greatly practised, and much encouraged by the States: And really it were to be wished that our own Nation were but as much inclined to countenance and encourage so innocent an Exercise as Cocking; and how great would the benefit be, if in nothing else, the good effects of it would soon be seen in this, that it would divert the English Gentry from effeminate Dancing, Whoring, and Drinking, which are three Evils grown now almost Epidimical.

For want of Cudgel-playing, and Cocking, Men take to Drinking, and Dancing, and now wear Swords more for shew than Service: a Basket-hilt, with a Blade three Inches broad, such as our Valiant Ancestors had wont to wear, is now derided by the effeminate Fops of our Days, who chuse to hazzard their Lives and Fortunes in the fatal Arms of a diseased Mistress, rather than venture a push at single Rapier, or take a turn at Back-sword with a skilful Antagonist, where with their flaming Blades they might hew bright Honour from the Errors of their Adversary, and gild their memories with Applause in immortal Date.

And verily a better expedient to rouse the drowsy Courage, and thaw the frozen Vallour of a People lull’d with soft Ease, and degenerated into base and servile Effeminacy, there cannot be found out than Cocking.

Next to which Sword-play, and Wrestling are the most Laudable and Masculine Recreations, and after these Hunting, provided it be a Chace that has somewhat of Audacity in it, as the Lion, Bear, Wolf, or Boar, all which are Bold and Noble Chases.

But to run Whooting after a poor timmérous Hare, or ride mading over Hedge and Ditch in pursuit of a Fox, that perhaps has pinched two or three Geese, or snap’d a Lamb from some unwary Shepherd, and is therefore by Diana doomed to Die and briskly followed by her rural Maids, dressed up each in her Cap and Feather, but for the Sons of Mars, to be drawn forth after so feeble a Chase, is really a very mean, and but little better than a base ignoble Divertisment, that spends a Man’s Time, wasts his Treasure, and profits him nothing: whereas Cocking fits a Man either for Peace, or War, and creates both Courage, and Constancy, with Good-nature, and ingenuity all glued together, according to the Poet, where he says thus;

And Cleveland in one of the sweetest Poems that ever was Pen’d, tells us,

And verily in all my life, I never knew that Man yet that was a Perfidious Man, or a real Coward, and yet loved Cocking intirely, so dissonant is Cocking, and Cowardice, nay so inconsistent they are with each other, that it is Morally impossible for a Coward unfeignedly to love Cocking, and therefore some timerous Souls to avoid the odium of Cowardice, have feigned a liking to Cocking.

And how any one can prove Cocking to be unlawful or wicked, I cannot imagine, seeing God Almighty has no where declared against it, neither has any Nation under Heaven ever made any Law against it, but divers have been made for it.

If not for Combate, why was the Fighting-Cock created? why has he that extraordinary hardness and vallour peculiar to him alone given him? and for what other end was this Stout and Daring Champion made, if not to Fight? the common Dunghill Cock eats as well, and breeds as well, or better, and is as good about a house, and as useful in all other respects (Fighting only excepted;) so that if they were not made for that end, they had this excellency bestowed upon them in vain, and the Royal Bird that in valour so far excells all other penigerous Creatures must be but a useless thing at best.

But ’tis plain Nature intended the Fighting-Cock to be a Bird of great use, and benefit to Mankind in several respects, as has already been sufficiently noted: for this Bird by his Fighting teaches Man Skill, and prompts him to be Stout and truely Valiant.

And though perhaps some few that understand not the right use of Cocking, may follow it for ill ends.

But what’s all this to the purpose? I would fain know, shall an innocent practice be forbidden to all, because some particular Persons make ill use of it? what think you, did that sober King do well, when he commanded all the Vines in his Dominions to be cut down, and by that means starved all his Subjects, because some few of his Slaves were Drunk?

But must Cocking therefore be laid aside, because some do abuse the greatest Blessings? no, by no means, but rather where we have one Pit now, let us have two for the time to come; and as we ought, let us improve this Exercise for the general good of Mankind, to which end it was undoubtedly intended.

Thus I think I have fully proved this Sport to be very honourable, and of ancient standing, and a thing in itself both Useful and Profitable.

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Amongst all the Pleasures and Delights this lower Sphere affords to Mortals here on Earth, there is nothing more taking with the Heroic, and truely generous Soul, than the Noble and most Princely Pastime of Cock-fighting, which really is in itself a Recreation becoming the greatest Potentate, and surely most suitable to all such whose natural Genius prompts them on to signalize their Valour in the Field of Honour, where like the Cock fitted for Battle, with their bright Arms they move their Fortune, and so raise themselves to the highest pitch of Glory.

So lively an Emblem of true Valour is the well bred-Cock, that he is not to be parall’d amongst the many Creatures which the Wise Creator of all things has been pleased to make Man the Lord and Master of.

Observable it is, that the best and bravest Men have ever had a high Esteem and Value for the Fighting Cock, by reason of the Warlike Pleasure which he affords to Couragious Men, who joy in nothing more then to see him hew it out in Blood to the last drop: And though reduced to the lowest Ebb of Fortune, yet even then to struggle with Fate itself, upon the very brinks of Death, for Victory.

But having in the foregoing Preface fully treated of the great Antiquity, Innocency, and Excellency of the Fighting Cock, I shall now as briefly as I can, set down such necessary Rules, and Observations, as are most requisite to be understood by all that practise the Royal Sport of Cocking: and that I may prove the more successful in the ensuing discourse, I shall endeavour to observe such a Method as may be most agreeable to the end at which I aim.

Now my design herein, is not barely to illuminate the understanding of such, whose want of Experience in the Art of Cocking has made them mindless of the admirable Creature, and, possibly out of pure ignorance, to speak ill of they know not what, for Nemo scientiæ Inimicus nisi ignorans. Nor do we find any more apt to inveigh against Cocking, than those that least understand Cocks.

And therefore I have also here extracted such choice and rare Secrets from the best and greatest Cock Masters, both Ancient and Modern, as may serve to fortify, and improve the skill and knowledge of those Gamesters which are already arrived at, and come up to a considerable pitch of understanding in Cocking, insomuch that I am apt to think the most skilful Master will not grudge at the Mony laid out upon this Book, and if so? then surely the unexperienced will have no cause to complain, who hitherto for want of good Instructions in this Art has been deprived of the greatest delight, and the most solid Pleasure that this lower Sphere affords to Men of Valour.

Now for the Election of these Royal Warlike Birds, for that is the first step in Cocking, you must note that there are four things chiefly to be observed in your choice of Cocks, viz. Courage, Close-heels, Shape, and Size.

And first I shall begin with Courage, which is a thing so absolutely necessary in a Cock of the Game that without it he can be nothing worth; and therefore be sure in your Election of Cocks to secure to your self such as have good Blood in their Veins, that is, such as are really and truly hard, Cocks that will carry on a Battle to the very last, and utmost extremity, against all the disadvantages imaginable, and though cut down and choaked in their own Blood, yet even then will rise and strike, or peck at least, till they expire, and die: For truly I am of opinion that these Cocks that happen to be worsted in their Fight so far as to be disabled, and put past striking, and do then stand like stocks without pecking, or making any resistance whilst their Antagonist hews them down (though they die upon the spot) yet are they nothing worth, seeing they want the true Valour, and innate Courage, which does indeed peculiarly belong to the right bred Cock, who never fails to strike, or peck whilst he has either Blood or breath left in him.

But here methinks I meet with some green Gamesters that will tell you that they can with impunity pass by the Cowardice of a quick or close stricken Cock, and that I am too curious in exacting so much Courage from a Creature which is disabled, and put past the hopes of Victory in all probability; for their parts, all that they desire of a Cock is to cut betime, and to convert his heels Argent into Gules, by which they oft get the field Or, and that is as much as they desire; but as for hewing it out to the last drop of Blood, and striking or pecking when they are past standing, is a piece of such Gallantry (display’d by a dying Animal) that they do not understand the bravery of, moreover they will perhaps farther tell ye, that the Author of the Compleat Gamester is altogether of another opinion.

But to silence such noises as these in a few Words, for no man that’s veterane in Cocking will be of this Opinion, seeing experience daily teaches us the contrary, and for that Gentleman that writ the Compleat Gamester, speaking of Cocks, does indeed give the preheminence to close heels, that is close striking, but when that’s done he requires true Courage, and absolute hardness in a Cock, without which he tells ye that he is not worth one Peny.

But however, I must needs tell you, that Author is no great Conjurer in the Art of Cocking, nor is he much to be regarded where he tells you that a sharp heeler that is soft, is to be preferred before a Cock that is hard but flat heeled, seeing both are to be rejected, in my Opinion he might as well have said nothing: but he had been yet more shallow, had he maintained or set forth, any thing that had but looked like the want of Courage in a Cock of the Game, for how many Hundred Guinys has there been won by Cocks cut and mangled Blind, Lame, and laid down for dead, when from their dying sprunts they have borrowed an unexpected blow, which has so far wrought upon their Adversary, as to give the seemingly vanquished Cock the Victory, and on the other hand, who has not seen divers deep heeling Cocks at a few blows cut thro’ more than three parts of the Battle, and then meeting with some slight Wound which has caused them basely to skut, and run away, loosing at once their Master’s Coin, and Credit too, and all for want of being hard, and true-bred at the bottom, wherefore I advise all such as are desirous to be compleat Cock-masters, in the first place to have respect unto the true Valour and hardness of a Cock.

And Secondly, Sharp Heels claim your Care, and Regard, for should you have a Cock as hard as Steel, and one that will strike as many blows as there are Stars, or single Sands betwixt Dover and Calis, yet if he fall too short, or strike too wide, and so fail to Point; what avails his vigorous Holds and many Stroaks, when there no Execution follows? such a Cock at first indeed may make a fair Show, and Fight a while with as much Grace, and seeming Gallantry, as if he Pointed true, and so fool the forward Better out of his Mony, who sees him act at present as if he scorned to be conquered by any thing but himself.

————Vt nemo Ajacem possit superare nisi Ajax.

But alass a little time will shew how vain such a Cock’s endeavours are, and withall discover to the Judicious Eye, the mighty difference betwixt a right Heeler and a Cock that cannot Point: And therefore I say, that next unto Hardness, and Valour, you must have respect unto Close-heeling, that is true Pointing, not but there are many ways to help a Cock and make him Point well, that otherwise would do it but indifferently (as I shall hereafter shew) yet if he be not naturally a Sharpheeler, and Point tolerably true of himself, you can never confide in him as otherwise you might, neither is he worth your keeping in my opinion, wherefore ’tis my advice, that in your Election of Cocks, you be very curious in examining their Lineage; and if you find their Progenitors were dull heel’d, wide, or short stricken, by no means be prevailed upon to except of such a Breed, but on the other hand, if you find they are descended from sure Heelers, such as have ever been noted to Point true, and Point well in the Battles, then boldly venture upon such a Bird, and doubtless you will find the good effects of his generous nature, in the well discharging of his Battle, let him either Winn, or lose: And as your Credit is hereby secured, so (if a right Cock-master) you are content, and better pleased to see your Cock die hard, and be handsomely beat, rather than basely, or by meer chance, or the like to win his Battle.

For so sometimes I confess it falls out, and tho’ it be very rare, yet I have seen a false-bred, foul foughten Cock matched against a true Heeler, which has carried the Battle, broad Gold to grey Groats, till on a sudden by a meer chance, or as the vulgar Cocker terms it, by an unlucky Blow, the delicate Heeler has been Killed, and the worthless Warriour has won the Day, tho’ little to his own, or his Master’s Honour, for the Victory is wholly attributed to a meer Chance, and in such a case nothing of Praise can redound to the conquering Cock. So that you see if you have an ill-natur’d Bird that to a wonder winns a Battle against a good Cock (which really is a thing that rarely happens) yet you no Credit gain thereby, and therefore you had better commit such a Cock to the Pot, than to the Pit, and more Profit you will find in stewing him for the Table, than in stiving him for the Battle, when once you discover him to be a Bird defective in his Heeling.

But now notwithstanding this that I have said, yet is not every Flat-Heeler always to be rejected, for the most Eminent Cock-masters of our Days are of opinion that if a Cock come of a good Race, and has true blood in him, and is not only fresh and full Feather’d, but also Sound and well shaped, that such a Bird with a good Hen, will breed as good Chickens as need to strike betwixt a pair of Wings, notwithstanding that he himself hath not the knack of Pointing true in his Fight: wherefore he ought (tho’ not for the Pit) yet for breed sake to be preserved, and wholly set apart for Procreation; seeing his Progeny ever proves good, and fit for the Field of War, if the Strain be crossed in breeding.

And who then (say they) would Pot so fine a Bird, whose Sire was a rare Heeler, and perhaps a Brother or two of the same hatch, were as good as ever struck, and for a need they’ll undertake to find you Forty Cockers that shall swear it down upon any Pit in Europe, that what the great Stagerite maintained concerning Men, holds good in Fighting-Cocks also, for (say they) you shall seldom observe a Chicken take after his Sire, when as nothing is more common than to see them in all respects imitate an Uncle, a Grandsire or some such near Relation.

Now I confess this is a point of Philosophy which some of our greatest Cock-masters maintain to that degree, that ’tis hard to argue them out of it: And therefore that I may not appear absolutely repugnant to them herein, I shall only say this (and leave them to enjoy their opinion) that if a Flat Heeling Cock that is well descended, and come of a good race (according to the Maxim they maintain) ought to be prised, and set apart for breeding; I am sure it ought to pass currant and unquestioned, as an Axiom in Cocking beyond dispute, that a Bird that is right bred, and in himself a true Heeler also, is best and safest, if not the only Bird to breed on; for I must allow room it seems for the Flat Heeler (if he be well descended) but when that’s done, the best Pointer is the best to breed of, in my opinion.

Now having furnished your self with a breed that is stout and sure stricken; see then to the Shape, and know that here you ought to be very nice and circumspect, strictly examining every Part, and if by the severest scrutiny you find your Cock to be foul Grown, or disproportioned, reject him as a Bird unhandsome to look on, uneasy to Match, unwealdy in his Fight, oft times unfortunate in his Battle, and for these reasons ever unfit for breed, and consequently unworthy of your care, or least regard, notwithstanding the Stock be never so good from whence he is derived.

And therefore I shall here delineate and set forth to you the true Shapes pertaining to a compleat Cock in all respects, whereby you may be able with all the ease and facility imaginable, to discover the defects and imperfections of these Birds, and give a right definition of a Cock exactly Shaped, when need requires it.

And first I shall begin with the Head, which must be adorned with a lofty tow’ring Frontlet, or Comb, smoothly cut into the exact Shape of a Half Moon, so that rising in the Middle, it serves both for a Guard, and an Ornament to the Royal Bird; his Beak, or Bill, ought to be crooked, strong, and firm, of a middle size, and well jointed in his Head, with large Nostrils therein: his Eyes should imitate the Sparrow-Hawks, appearing quick, clear, and large; his Head ought to be round, smooth and small; his Neck short, strong, and well cemented, with a full set of Feathers for his Mane, that are strong and glittering Plumes, the better to set off his Crest, which ought to rise a little in the middle: his Back strong, crook’d, and big at the setting on: his Breast broad and large; his Body in all respects strongly made, round, close and well built, penipotent, fresh, and full Feather’d; his Legs strong, clear, and impennous, and if a little crooked ’tis so much the better, for that always denotes a deadly Heeler; his Feet with a Frog flat, and small therein; his Claws almost straight, strong and sharp: and for his Spurs (so he have any) it matters not what they be, seeing they are now of no use, save only to set to the Weapons with which they Fight in pitched Battles. And as for the Colour of your Cock, that is the best which you fancy most, be it Black or White, Red or Dun, Grey or Piled, or any other Colour whatever: For though Captain Markham makes a great difference in the Colour of Cocks, preferring the Grey before the White or Dun, yet is there nothing in it, for the World affords no better Birds for the Game than many of your Duns, and Whites prove, both for Hardness and good Heeling, as we daily see and experience.

And therefore without taking any notice of the Colour, I shall only hold you close, to the afore-mentioned shape as being the all, and only parts necessary to make up a compleat Cock.

Lastly, having obtained a Cock that is hard, Sharp-Heel’d, and handsome shaped, it remains then that you pitch upon a fit Size for your purpose, for otherwise you will still be at a loss: Now tho’ there be almost as many different Sizes, as there are several Cocks, yet are these Birds commonly reduced into two sorts only, and distinguished by these two general terms, that is to say, the great Game Cock, or Shake-bag, and the little Match, or Battle-Cock.

First then of the Giant, or Herculean Cock called a Shake-bag by the English, and Dutch, but by the Indians they are called Mag Chantille Champone, and by the Scotch, who much esteem these gude Birds, Mag-Gal-And, as Baden assures us; (says he) the word Mag signifies Great, or Mighty, both to the Scotch, and the Indians, and is derived from the Latin Word Magnus, and by Gal may be understood Gallus the Cock, and for the Word And, the Patron of their Country St. Andrew is meant, who was (as he tells you) not only a great and a gude Man, but also a mighty admirer of these Royal Birds, wherefore they call them Mag-Gal-And, that is, Mighty Cocks of St. Andrew, or, St. Andrew’s great Cocks: Birds Powerful in Battle, &c. And the Indians from Chanticleer, draw the Word Chantile, and from Champion take the Word Champone, so that whereas they call them Mag-Cantille-Champone, they might more properly and with more Conciseness call them only great, or Champion Cocks, which is all that is comprehended in their long jingle of Words.

And Dr. Wilde gives this Reason, why these sort of Cocks are called Shake-bags; here in England (says he) they are so termed from a Scottish Custom that the Drunken Dutchmen have who are great admirers of large Cocks, because they may be Fought at a venture, without the trouble of Matching, and their way is (as he tells ye) to steep their own Brains in Brandy, till they are not only past judging of a Cock’s Size, but also past handling of him too, wherefore they neither see the Cock they are to Fight with before hand, nor lay a hand upon their own, after he is brought into the Pit, but take the Bag by the bottom, and shake the Cock out at the Mouth upon the Pit, and so let him go against his adversary, from which Custom they are called Shake-bags here in England.

But this Etimology perhaps may appear impertinent to some who have not so great a regard to Cocks of the Game, as they deserve, but for the more ingenious sort of Men, such I mean as are true lovers of Cocking, I know will think nothing too much that tends to the promotion of these Warlike Birds. And if so? seeing then the Shake-bag is a Cock judged able to fight with any thing, and has this Excellency attending him above the little Match-Cock, that you are never put to the trouble of matching, which oft proves both difficult and dangerous too, unless you are very skilful in handling: Also the great Game Cock is the more profitable Bird in that he carries away the Prizes given by Public Houses for their Custom, which serves not only to defray the Charge of Dieting of them, but also pays for their Walk the Year following; And therefore it is, that these Shake-bags, or great Game Cocks are by some Men much preferred before the small battle Cock, or little match Cock, call him which you will, and those think themselves the most happy (for the most part) that can gain a Bird of the largest Size, but in this they greatly err, who aim so much at Magnitude, for of Shake-bags the largest rarely proves the best, and a wonderful great Cock, seldom proves a Winning Cock; for they generally strike over, and seldom, or never come to Point until they are so weakened with their Wounds, that they can do no good, wherefore I advise them, who ever they be, that delights in Shake-bags, to make choice of a cock that is neither above Eight, nor yet under Six Pounds weight, when first he is brought up from his Walk and put to Feed (for afterwards he will weigh lighter if rightly managed) and with such a Bird, if right bred and well Shaped, you may boldly venture to Fight the biggest Cock that ever trod upon a Turf; for ’tis two to one upon the lesser Cock’s side, because he not only lies under the great Cock, by which means he is secured from almost all his blows, which for the most part are stricken quite over, but he also has the advantage of under holds, and having Strength withall to strike Home, and Close, he seldom fails to win, nor is there any thing more common than to see the unwieldy Lubbers over wrestled, and by far less Cocks cut down and conquered, wherefore in my opinion, the Cock that weighs nine or ten Pounds, or more, and measures six or eight and Thirty, or perhaps nigh Forty Inches long, is by no means a fit Bird to Fight, for a well turned Cock of six Pound weight, shall with ease overcome such a useless Rumbo.

But by the way, you must note, that this Rule in lesser Cocks is not observeable, for altho’ a Cock of six or seven Pound weight, have Strength and ability sufficient to conquer a Cock of nine or ten Pound, yet it is almost impossible for a Cock that weighs but three Pound, to beat a Bird that weighs five or more, for, observe it, and you will find, that from a Cock of seven or eight Pound weight, down to the smallest match, or battle Cock that you can meet with, and he will with all the ease imaginable (when need requires it) bend himself in his Fight, and proportion his blows suitable to the size of the Cock with whom he contends, so that in short he takes him in the rising, and commonly Rucks him at the first coming in: And if meer chance prevent it not, a hold or two, serves to lay the little Cock dead upon the spot.

But to speak no more of the Shake-bag, for truly notwithstanding all that has been spoken in his commendation, yet is the little Battle Cock much to be preferred before him, and that amongst others, for these Reasons.

First he is easily reared, and far cheaper kept all along afterwards, for the little Cock requires no more nor better maintainance than the common Dunghill Cock, whereas the great Game Cock must be choicely nursed and plentifully fed all his Life long, he knows not how to Labour nor will he ever learn to get his living, your hand must still sustain him or he comes to nothing, want quickly brings upon him the Black-Sickness, and the lazy lubber dies.

Secondly, the little Cock at a Year old becomes fit to Feed and Fight, whereas the Shake-bag must be two Year old, or more, e’er he is brought into the Pit.

Thirdly, a Fortnights Diet serves the little Cock, whereas three Weeks is not sufficient time to fit the great Cock for the Pit: and besides all this, the little Cock not only requires less cost and care, but also when he comes to Fight he affords you most Pleasure and Delight, no sooner is he set down, but like Lightning he falls upon his Enemy, Dances a Bloody round, and in his sparring Capers higher than your Head, then links and never looses ’till his hold breaks, or his Adversary dies. They rise and fall together, still striving to the last which shall strike most, and hardest blows, Stabing each other without intermission, till Death conclude the Combat.—O rare Birds! what Pleasure upon Earth can equal this?

But now the Shake-bag, or great Cock’s way of Fighting I confess is very different from the little Battle-Cock, and in my opinion far less delightful: for first when you set the great Cock down, he slowly moves towards the Warrior with whom he is to try his Fortune, and after twenty turns and hovers, perhaps he strikes a blow, then stands again, and either pecks, or may be scraps the Earth, as if he meant to Fight no more, or else were willing to see the effects of his first blow, e’er he a second struck; but first or last you shall have three or four of these long flights, and that he thinks sufficient for sparring; for after this, with Spanish Gravity he strides up to his Enimy’s Beard, and takes a hold, and most irreverently there pulls and lugs him too and fro, to try whether he may with safety rise and strike; for nothing baulks a great Cock more than a Fall, because like Elephants, when down, they find it difficult to rise; wherefore they seldom strike but when their hold is strong, and then with their broad Lances they dig such Orifices in each others bulky Sides, that like a Cane drawn, when a Butt of Claret is set to Float, their stock of Blood flows forth, boyling in bubbles as it rolls along the surface of the Earth, till their Strength as well as Blood be so far exhausted, that they are forced to strike their Beaks into the Earth, and makes their languid Necks help to prop up their Sinking Bodies: so that set thus a little to bleed their last, the Handler he steps in, and with a pinch behind, hopes yet to make the dying Cock to rise and strike at all, though ten to one he nothing hit: however, if he but peck, it serves to prolong the time, and shews the hardness of the Creature, which indeed is all, and in my opinion the only Excellency that pertains to Cocks of this sort, and Magnitude.

But to leave every Man to his liberty, to make choice of which sort of Birds best please him, I shall proceed in the next place to set down such necessary Rules and Observations as shall be requisite to be understood by all such as are desirous to be absolute Masters in the true way of breeding these Royal Birds, both Match-Cocks, and Shake-bags.

SO then, if you are desirous to breed a Cock of the Game, whose delicacy of Shape, and Excellency of Heels, whose admirable hardness, and most exquisite deportment in all respects, may not only prove pleasing, but also profitable to you: Imprint these subsequent Lines in your Memory: so that when you come to breed a Bird of this sort, you may not be wanting or unacquainted in those Misteries practised by the ablest Masters, in the World at this day, in the Noble Sport of Cocking.

First then know that the Cock which you intend to breed of, must be a Bird well descended, rightly Shaped, and sure Heel’d, he must also be Healthful, Fresh, and full of Feathers, nor let so much as his Tail be cut, for that greatly helps a Cock in his treading whereas the want of it many times causes Eggs to be defective, and prove adle, and come to nothing.

And now in the next place we come to the Hen which you purpose to breed of, for above all you must be exceeding careful herein, and therefore she must either be the Mother, or Sister of some admirable Cocks, who have been known to signalize their Valour in the Field of Honour, and not only they, but also their Progenitors to have been Champions renown’d for their Heroic deeds, your Hen also must be rightly Shaped, Healthful, Fresh, and full of Feathers, and for her Age it ought to be very different from that of the Cock, for if the Hen be old, then must the Cock be young, but if the Cock be old, your Hen must be young; and by no means let them be too near of Kin, for out of Brother and Sister, or Father and Daughter seldom or never good Cocks are bred, for they either prove thin, weak and ill Shaped, or else dull and false Heeled, and for the most part prove soft, and are apt to skut, if ever they come to be hewed, especially if they are great Cocks, for you must be much more cautious in breeding of them than you need be about the little match-Cock. And here note that February, March, and April, are the only Months for breeding, if you are for great Cocks: but if for small Cocks, June, July, August, or any time indeed serves for them, provided you allow them to be full a Year old before they Fight; but for the Shake-bag, he must be two Years old at least, before he comes into the Pit.

But whether you breed big or little Birds, when once you have pitched upon your Cock and Hen for that purpose, see that you place them at a private Walk, where they go undisturbed and free from the molestations of other Poultry: for if a neighbouring Cock do but happen to come within the confines of your Walk, he may do you a double diskindness; first by putting upon you a spurious breed, a hatch of ill-natur’d Bastards of his own getting; secondly, by Bathering of your Cock, so as to render him unfit for breed, and make his Chickens nothing worth. For when once a Cock is surfeited, he either fails to tread, or if he does tread, he is sure to get distempered feeble Chickens; and a Cock is this way the most apt of any to take a deadly surfeit, for being both foggy and full of Feathers, he is soon heated and overstrained, and for want of Stiving, his Blood grows stagnant, congeals, and becomes glutinous, not being able to circulate as Nature requires, for the carrying off of such humours as are by this means raised to so contagious a degree, that the whole Fabric of his Body becomes deeply infected with a Pluretic, or some such like Malady, which seldom is discovered in time, and so for the most part proves incurable: so that you may see by what has been said, that another Cock is not to be endured within Crow of your breeding Walk, nor indeed other Hens, though there be no Cock with them, for they also in a great measure will be injurious to your Breed: For a Cock is a most solacious Creature, naturally Hot, and extreamly lustful, and when prompted thereto by variety of Mates, he is apt to over-tread himself amongst his fresh Mistresses, whilst those you intend him for, have least of his Strength bestowed upon them, and assure your self this, that these Chickens which are thus got but in part, will prove but to the halves; and therefore when you have a Cock, and Hens to your mind, see that your Walk be secure from all other Poultry before you turn them down to breed, and in no case put above two Hens to your Cock at a time, if you would have your Chickens lusty and strong; your Walk also ought to be well watered and to yield a competency of Meat, both for your Cock and Hens during the time of treading, for as they should not be kept low and poor, so neither may they be fed Fat, for that will render them unfit for Procreation, making the Cock to tread seldom, and to yield but little Seed, and the Hens no less guilty of false conceptions bringing forth abortive Eggs without Shells, filled with nothing but Wind and slimy Matter, which never comes to good, and therefore your Hand must here be gauged.

Near unto the Roost, which ought carefully to be secured from all sorts of Vermin, if you have the conveniency of putting up a little Tablet, or Garret, where some artificial Nests may be made to entice your Hens to lay there, I would advise you to, for the better security of your Breed: And when your Hen first begins to Lay, if you are desirous to have her sit quickly, let all her Eggs remain together in the Nest, only do you carefully see to the turning of them once a Day, until she sits, and afterwards also, if the Hen do not save you that trouble, which you may know by marking an Egg, if you do but take notice when she is off her Nest, but if you would have good store of Eggs, and are in no hast of your Cock, then only let the last Egg remain in the Nest, to entice her to come there again to lay, and take the rest and put them carefully up into some Wheat-barn, in a Baskit, Pan, or little Tub fit for the purpose, and there keep them with turning, and that very gently too, until you find your Hen inclineable to sit.

And let me here warn you never to set your Eggs (if you have any regard for them) as some ignorant Persons do, under Crows, Turkeys, Ducks, Dunghill Hens, or the like, for certainly, there is nothing that more depraves a gallant parcel of Eggs, than putting them under such Hens as those, who differ so much in nature from the Bird that layed them: And this is seen by such as are Crow-hatched, for tho’ the Egg were got and laid by the best Cock and Hen in the World, yet such a Bird when he comes to Fight do nothing but lug, and pull, and hardly ever strike as he ought to do; and if they are Duck-hatched, then they will strike short, snutter, and be always upon their Noses: And as for those that are hatched under a Dunghill-Hen, if ever they are put to it, to Fight in Blood for the Battle, ’tis ten to one that they skut, and run away, being in Nature more hers that sat them than they are the Hen’s that laid them, for we reckon the Egg after it receives the Tread, to be Nourished but nine Days by the Hen before she lays it, whereas the Hen that sits it, is twice as long before it be hatched, so that from hence it may reasonably be inferred, that the Chicken is more the Hen’s that sits, and Hatches it, than hers that laid the Egg, but sat it not; and therefore, I chuse rather the Chickens that are Hatched by the same Hen, that laid the Eggs.

Know also, that if you take Eggs of a Hen that comes of a Strain proceeding from a straining Fight, and put them under a Hen to Hatch them that is by Nature a Runner, your Chickens will prove meer Mongrils, and have a kind of nodling Fight with them, which is by no means commendable in a Cock of the Game, and for this Reason, never put a Cock that has a standing Fight to a Hen that is of a shifting Breed, for such Birds rarely prove well foughten when they come to be tried.

Now when your Hen is disposed to Sit if you can with conveniency remove the Cock from that Walk, it will be a thing very grateful to your Hen, who now no more delights in the Company of the Cock, nor the Cock in hers, she slights his Court-ship, and by her froward carriage oft times provokes him not only to dismantle, and strip her of her Plumes, but also deprive her of her Life, unless she quit her self better in her escape, for Broody Hens are ever hated by Cocks of the Game, especially such Cocks as have in bloody Battles been engaged: but a Young unfoughten Cock is not so dangerously cruel towards a Sitting Hen, and therefore be farther trusted especially when the Walk cannot well be spared.

During the time that your Hen Sits you must be careful in this, that when she comes off her Nest, she may readily meet with her Craw full of good sweet Oats, and fresh Water, but give her no Barly until she have hatched; and in her absence from her Nest be you careful to turn her Eggs if need require it, and see that no Hawk haunt the House whilst the Hen Sits: and when she is hatching you must be very diligent in taking away her first Chickens from her, least she quit her Nest too soon, and leave many of her Eggs unhatched: give to each Chicken a little bit of White-bread, and dip their Bills in new Milk, and then put them into a Basket of Sheeps Wool close covered, and place it by the Fire until Night, at which time you must also feed them again as before, and so put them under the Hen as she Sits upon her Nest, to hurk them all Night, and the next Day when she comes off her Nest with her Flock, be they more or less, you must be sure to put them into some dry warm place, where plenty of Groats, Groundmalt, and such like Food may hourly be offered unto them, and a shallow Sawcer of new Milk set for them to drink and bibble in, and at the Fortnights end give them only Barly to eat, and fresh Water to drink, and now (if it may be) let them have the benefit of the Sun, and be admitted to walk in some Court, or Garden, where they may bather and dust themselves in some Sun-shiny Bank, or Sandy Walk, which is a thing that much delights and forwards Birds of this sort, and as their Strength increases let their Walk be enlarged, but withall remember that Weesles, Cats, and Kites are mortal Enemies to these young Duellers, and that a nasty Sink, or Dunghill-hole is a most destructive thing to Chickens, for they endanger, and breed ill humours in the Body, causing the Roop, Rot-gut and such like dangerous Diseases to come upon them betime, which are Maladies seldom or never cured; and therefore a walk that is clean, and dry, is ever to be best esteemed for breeding Birds of this kind. But for Perfuming either the Chickens, or the Room where they Roost, or by way of Antidote, to give them the blades of choped Leeks, Skellians, or such like things, to prevent the Roop, and other Diseases, proceeding either from foul feed, or ill smells, are things in my opinion altogether needless, and may as well, or better be let alone, than made use of; for certainly they avail nothing towards the preservation of Health in Birds of this sort; for when once they are able to eat it, give them but their fill of good Barly, and fresh Water, with once in three Days a handful of Wheat, or bread crums, and a clean Walk to range in, and you need do no more, for thus managed you will see them thrive and come to your Hearts content.

Let them Walk till the young Cockerils begin to disagree, and when once you find they are inclineable to quarrel, and raise up civil-Wars amongst themselves, you must speedily take them up, and if they are strong enough, cut their Combs and Wattles, and not before; for if you cut them too early, there will be no Comb remaining either to grace or guard the Head, and he’ll look so Capon like, that you will hate to see him when turned into the Pit. But on the other hand, if you let them wear their Wattles a Year, or may be five Quarters, as some unwisely do, they will then be heavy headed, and in spight of Fate must needs loose a World of Blood, which of all things is the most hurtful to a Cock of the Game; and, therefore, as you may not before a Quarter old at soonest, so you may not exceed three Quarters at the farthest, before you dub your young Cocks, for the Reasons aforesaid: And in cutting, if you observe this for a Rule, to leave the Comb round like a Half-moon, it will make the Cock appear as it were Roman-nos’d, or Hawk-bill’d, and will not only be a good guard to his Head, but will render him much handsomer to look upon: Whereas close cutting makes them appear sneaking, and also much weakens the Beak of a Cock, and by that means many times looses the Battle. But when you Cut, or Dub your Cocks, be sure to put them up into the Pens for a Week, or more, until you find their Wounded Heads begin to shell and heal; and this imprisonment will be of double advantage to the young Cocks, for it will both acquaint them with the Pens, and give you the advantage of often handling of them, which is the most compendious way to make them become tame and gentle, without which qualification, or good property, a Cock (tho’ never so well bred) is not to be trusted to Fight for any considerable Wager: for should he come to be sett, it is ten to one he skuts, and basely quits the Pit, and that more for fear of being handled by the feeder, than hurt by the other Cock, and so looses the Battle for want of prehandling, and being made tame, and gentle before he comes to Fight: And therefore, as ’tis a most notorious Crime in a Cock of the Game to be wild or shie, so it is as weak and silly in a Master, to Fight such a Bird, before he be familiaris’d, and made bold and gentle.

And now in the next place, after this Penning, and his Wounded Head is got well, you must send him to a Walk, where (like an absolute Monarch) he may Reign without controul, and be beyond the hearing of the hourly challenges of neighbouring Cocks, which is a thing apt to stir their Choller, and therefore it is that Captain Markham so much commends a Lodge, a Grange-house, or Mill, because that, for the most part, they are places remote, and far from Neighbours. And as you are always to chuse a Walk that is grac’d with Solitude, having green Fields, or pleasant Meadows on one hand, with Mountainous, Hilly, dry Ground on the other, and a murmuring Brook, or twatling Rivelet, or in their stead some pleasant Pools, or Ponds of clear sweet Water, with a good Barndoor, or else some loving Hand from the House that may daily afford plenty of Corn, especially if the Cock be large; So should you, if possibly you can, avoid the having of too many Hens in your Walk, for look how many above six your Cock walks with, so many Mates has he too many; and, indeed, had he but two or three it’s enough, and the Walk would be the better: for many Hens make a Cock to tread often, and much treading greatly debilitates a Bird of the Game, and makes him feeble when he comes to Fight; tho’ length of time and good Feeding will much restore a Cock that is decayed by hard Treading.

And now for the Roost of your Cock, which is one of the choicest things you are to look after in his Walk, for it makes or marrs a Cock I assure you; and therefore know, that there is nothing better than a Beam, or broad Struncheon, wraped round, and close with well twisted Thum-ropes of Hay, into which he may set his Claws, and by that means hold himself fast without stradling, or lying wide with his Legs: Whereas if his Roost be either small or narrow, he is forced to sit wide, and gripe hard, to hold himself on; and this many times spoils a good Cock, and makes him not worth a Groat, that might otherwise have been a Jewel of impreciable Value; and therefore be sure to be very careful and curious in the Roost: and see that the Floor be not too hard on which he is to light when he is to descend from his Roost, for that will be apt to break his Claws, and bruise his Feet, and make him Club-footed, and Gouty; neither is it good to give a Cock Meat either upon a Brick, Plaister, or Boarded-floor, for that will much harm the Bill, or Beak of a Cock, making it blunt, and dull, and many times breaks it quite off, to the spoyling of the Bird at present.

And here by the way give me leave to recommend to you the frequent sparring of your young Cocks: I confess ’tis a thing practised by few or none, and by the generality of Cock-masters judged injurious and hurtful, and therefore much declaimed against; yet notwithstanding all this, I have practiced it for many Years, with good success and advantage; And do constantly affirm it to be one of the greatest helps that can be conferred upon a young Cock, provided it be performed by a Skilful Master, whose care and diligence may be manifested in the well ordering of the Cocks in these their early heats: And a better way I know not than this, which I have ever observed, and been very successful in.

First then, after you have placed a young Cock some little time at his Walk, where he Reigns like a supream Lord and Master over all, without the least controul, or molestation from any Antagonist, then take a Brother, or some other young Cock, as near to his Age and Size as may be, and go to this his Walk, and there, after having secured their budding Spurs, by putting them on little Hutts made for that purpose; Take Ive-berry-leaves, Ground-Ive-leaves, bruised with Herb of Grace, Sweet Butter, and the fine Powder of brown Sugar-Candy, mix these well, and make them into Pills as big as a large Bean, give to each Cock a Pill, or two, and then turn them down in some green Field or Pasture, where they may run if they please, and by hard Wrestling and Sparring, heat themselves until they begin to close, and come to mouth it; then take them up and loose their Hutts, and bag them close, for should you permit them longer to Combat, they will by heavy strokes bruise and bather each other, and with deep mouthing displume themselves, and thereby make the damage far greater than the advantage would have been, had they been rightly managed.

Now the Bags wherein you put your heated Cocks, must be well lined with Rie Straw, and set in some warm place, for three or four Hours at least, and supposing it then near Roosting time, take the Cocks out of the Bags, and give to each a White-bread Toast, soaked in warm Urine, for there is nothing that tempers and cleanses a Cock after Sparring better than such a Toast. Also let the Head and Feet of the Cocks be well suppled, and bathed in warm Urine, and then put them up to Roost to the Hens, and so leave them to their Walks.

And thus if you serve your young Cocks once, or twice a Quarter, until they come to be of Age, fit to put up to Feed, you will find the good of it, in that they will grow both skilful and cunning in Fight; their Wind will be lengthened, their Sinews grow stronger, and their Joints more plyant, and flexible, and they in all respects more able, and powerful in Fight by much, than such as perhaps have hardly seen a Cock, or at least seldom or never been Sparred until they come to be put up and Dieted for Battle: And truly hence it is that we often see Cocks that have been well bred, Fight but very indifferently the first Battle, and come off but poorly, and all for want of early and often Sparring before they come to Fight.

But having gone thus far in Cocking, I shall in the next place, proceed to give some directions to know and understand the best way and means made use of by the ablest Cock-Masters of these times, in the way of ordering of Cocks, when put up to be Fed, or Dieted for to Fight: For I have often grieved to see a gallant Cock meerly lost and cast away for want of good feeding, and at the same time been no less sorry for the Owners of such Cocks, who perhaps were Gentlemen of Worth, and Quality, that delighted in the Royal Sport of Cocking, and with a World of Care and Cost, have brought up, and reared Cocks to be fit for feeding, and then unfortunately have put them into the hands of some unskilful Rascal that shall pretend to be a Feeder, tho’ he know no more than a Horse, how to Diet, or Order a Cock he should be Ordered to Fight. And hence it is that many an honest Gentleman looses his Mony, many a good Cock his Life, and both of them their Credit, and all for want of a good Feeder.

Now that no Gentleman Cocker may ever hereafter dash upon this common Rock, on which so many have been split, provided they keep to the Directions given in the following Pages, wherein they shall find all the Secrets and most hidden Misteries in Cock-feeding, laid open to them in terms so plain and easie, that they shall be able both to correct and instruct the mercenary Feeder, who Diets Cocks for Hire, and heeds not how they speed, when once they are out of his hands, and perhaps knows as little how to manage them as they should be whilst they are in his Custody, and therefore to prevent your giving of Mony to have your Cock marred, or that you may not pay for his being Pined instead of being Fed (as divers have done) or if not so, perhaps suffocated thro’ too hot or too high feed, and want of due Sparring with other such like injuries, too often put upon poor Cocks, by ignorant unskilful Feeders, I shall here make known to the great greif and sorrow of all such selfish narrow Soul’d Cock-Masters, who have made it their business rather to conceal, and lock up, than to divulge and make known the rare Art of Feeding.

And take it thus: First when your Cocks are brought up to feed, see that they are fresh, full, and fine in their Feathers, and that their Wings are strong and good; Examine also their Legs, and Feet, whether they be clean, unclubed, and free from the Gout, and such like swellings, and have all their Claws, and whether their Bill, or Beak be firm, sharp and strong; what plight of Body they are in, whether they look ruddy about the Head; and if so (provided they are of Age) you may then cut their Tails, and put them into the Pens to Feed: And let the first Meat that you give them be of a cleansing, drying quality; and therefore good clean, dry Barly that is sweet and free from Seeds, Spirt, or Mouldings, is a proper Food enough for the three first Days, with fresh Water to drink along with it.

And now let them be lustily Sparred, and long Stived, especially if they are Fat, and full of Flesh. But if a Cock be poor and low in case, you must then be more moderate, and not Stive, and Sparr so hard, least you over do him, and perhaps quite Kill him, or at least worst him so far, that he may not recover it again of many Days, and therefore besure strictly to examine what plight your Cock is in before you either Sparr or Stive him, and see that after you have hutted your Cocks, and by that means secured their Heels, forthwith then give to each Cock a Pill, or Roll as big as a Walnut made up in two or three Parts, and prepared in the following manner.

Take of white Sugar-candy, Rosemary, Fetherfew, Ground-Ivy bruised, mingle these with Sweet Butter, let the Sugar-candy be finely Powdered, and let these be well incorporated together, and just before you give the Cocks these Pills, put them into warm Urine; and these will cleanse a Cock of Grease, add to his Strength, and lengthen his Wind.

And after the Cocks have been Sparred (as aforesaid) let them take a Diaphoretic, or Sweating after this manner: First take off their Hutts, and then immediately Stive them very close in some warm Room, where no penetrating Air can come to annoy the heated Cocks; for otherwise they will loose the benefit of their Sparring, and in these Stoves you must leave the Cocks for three or four, six, eight or ten hours together, according as the Cocks are in Strength and Flesh; for a poor weak Cock will not bear long Stiving: And now in the Cock’s absence let their Pens be cleaned, and fresh Straw be put into them, and if need be, you may then alter their Perches higher, or lower, or remove them to another side of the Pen, as you see cause for it.

And when you take the Cocks out of the Bags or Stives, lick with your Tongue the Eyes and Heads of them, and so put them into their Pens, and so fill their Troughs with Cock-bread cut into small square bits, and steept in Urine, that so the Cocks may feed whilst ’tis warm; for this will cause their Scowering Pills to work and greatly cleanse, and purify both the Head and Body of your Cock.

Now to make Cock-bread aright, and at the same time, to have it suit with every Feeder’s humour, is a thing altogether impossible; seeing we are quot Homines tot Sententiæ.

Some fancy that the common Bakers Bread is as good as any: Others will tell you that there must be some Bean, or Pease Meal put amongst it, and a few Anniseeds, with the Whites of Eggs; and this is the best Cock-bread say they.

But there are others will tell you, that you must take of Wheat, Pease, Beans, and Oates, of each a like quantity in Meal, or Flower finely dressed, with the Juice of Liquorish, and a little Sack, or strong Stale-Beer, with Brown Sugar-candy, Anniseeds, Carroway-seeds, mixed together: But if the Season be very hot, you must put White-Wine instead of Sack, and as much common Ale as will make the Flower up into Dough, with the Whites of ten or twenty Eggs, and a Yolk or two amongst them; and this they take to be the best sort of Bread for to Feed Cocks withall.

But in my opinion there is yet a better sort than any of these, and I make it thus, viz. of the best and finest Wheat-meal, I take three-quarters of a Peck, and one quarter of Oat-meal of the purest sort, and first of all mix these well together; then add the Whites of twenty new laid Eggs, four Yolks, an Ounce of the best extract of Liquorish, and as much of the fine Powder of brown Sugar-candy, a quarter of an Ounce of Anniseeds, and Carroway-seeds grossly bruised, with a Lump of good sweet Butter as big as your fist at least, and a quarter of a Pint or more of the best White-Wine that can be bought for Mony, with three or four spoonfulls of Syrup of Clove-gilliflowers put into it, and a Date or two, with some Candyed Eringo Roots cut very small so that it may be scattered into every part, and let these Ingredients be all well worked together, in some Tub, or Pan fit for that purpose, with your hands, until you are Satisfied that they are thoroughly incorporated.

Then take Wood-sorrel, Ground-Ivy, Featherfew, Dandelion, and Burrage, of each a like quantity, and distill them in a cold Still, and add three or four Spoonfuls of the pure Juice of Lemmons to every Pint of distilled Water; And add as much of this Julip as will serve to make all into a good stiff Past; let this be wrought quick, and made into little flat Loaves, which ought to be a day or two old before you spend them, and then being well rasped, or pared, so that none of the burned or brown outside remain, they may then be cut and given to the Cocks, as aforesaid.

And this I take to be the best and fittest sort of Bread for English Cocks, it being a Food that does greatly strengthen and exhillate them, and at the same time cools, and keeps them Temperate in their Bodies, provided you have regard to the Season; for in Hot Weather, or where the Climate is more than ordinary hot, there must be more of the cooling Ingredients added; and fewer, or a less quantity of those that are hot in Nature.

There are those that think the finest Wheat-bread, with good store of hot Spices in it, and soaked or sprinkled only with the simple Water or Juice of Wood-sorrel to be the best of Food for a Cock.

And some again heed not what Bread they have, so that they have but good store of Flesh to give their Cocks, crying that up for the best and strongest Food.

But in my opinion these extreamly err in fancying Flesh to be Food fit for a Cock, these carniverous Sots understand not the nature of these valiant sort of Birds, who force such unnatural food upon them, nor is it possible for a Feeder to make a Cock strong, and at the same time Fight cool, and be long winded with such sort of Diet.

But suppose your Food to be either this, or that, or what you like best, be it what it will, yet is this on all hands agreed on by every one that pretends to Feeding, that the last Meal you give your Cock before he Fights must be common Manchet-bread, such as the Bakers usually make, with good store of Barm therein, and what they sell at every Market; for this sort of Bread is ever very light and goes off quick, it being soon digested, leaves the Craw or Crop of a Cock fine and clean, and so it ought to be when your Cock Fights, for otherwise you do in effect but throw your Cock away.

And tho’ ’tis highly necessary to bring a Cock into the Pit clean and empty, yet you may, and ought to give him five or six little bits of par’d Pippin put into a Cup, or Dish of Spring Water, out of which let him pick the Apple, and drink a little if he pleases, of the Water: Or, for want of Apple, you may (as I said before) give your Cock a bit of White-bread, and drink after it, and so turn him into the Pit to try his Fortune.

Some Feed their Cocks twice a Day, and others three times, and Water them after each Feeding, and that for the most part with common Fountain Water; but the following Barly Water is the best, especially in the Summer, and indeed all the Year long, where the Climate is any thing hot and Sultery: As in Jamaica, Madera, Bermudas, Guardeloope, and Pettiguavers.

For this Water excellently cools, and wonderfully refreshes the Vital Spirits that labour under Heat; it has also a cleansing quality, and is highly restorative where Feaverish Distempers afflict the Body; and therefore to be preferred before simple, or Common Fountain Water.

Take Barly and boil it in Spring Water, and let it stand to cool and settle; then pour off the Settlings, and give this to your Feeding-Cocks.

And for the Trimming of a Cock it is a thing so well known to almost all that ever saw a Cock of the Game, that I need not say any thing of it, but leave every Country to follow their own Fashion; for I must tell you that I have known some Feeders more angry when they have been told this, or that way is best, or looks most genteel, than a Spaniard when he is told of his Trunk Breeches, who strait claps his hand upon his Sword cries, Sacrament, me breech te boon breech by Gar, dam your French Fashions.

And for the Heeling of a Cock there can no certain Rule be given for that, because the way, and manner of some Cocks Fighting requires their Heels to be set extreamly high; others exceeding low: This Cock must have his Heels fixed narrow, and that Cock as wide as they can be set.

And therefore I would let no man Heel a Cock, unless he has first seen him Sparr, and know his way of Striking, let him be never so great an Artist at Heeling, I heed not that; but think him fittest to Heel the Cock, that fed him, and has seen him Sparr.

Then as for Matching of Cocks, ’tis now all the Mode of late to Weigh them, so that be they thick or thin, long or short, they take their chance, falling in according to Weight, let their Shape be never so different.

But in my opinion, the good old way of Matching small Cocks is still the best way, and most exact; to Measure them by Hand, and Match by the Eye (if the Handler have any Skill) will make them fall in tite: Besides, a Cock that is well fed shall Weigh far lighter than one that is ill Fed, or not Fed at all.

I Come now to the Handling of a Cock, wherein a great deal of Art is required; and divers niceties, which ought very curiously and strictly to be observed, and carefully performed also: For there is both a Lady’s Hand, and a Hawk’s Eye, a Fox’s Head, and a Lion’s Heart, to be found in every skilful Handler; and he that is wanting in any one of these, is a Person very unfit to have the management of a Cock, when turned into the Pit to Fight.

For a rough Handler will make his Cock affraid of him, and perhaps make him run away when he is sorely wounded, rather than stay to be griped by so heavy a Hand as his Master carries.

And if he be a Man that is not quick in discovering of Wounds, be they either given or received by his Cock, he can never play his Bird of War to the best advantage.

And farther, if he be not cunning in his Handling, either to get, or sometimes to avoid a Blow, and that without being discovered by the adverse party, he is unfit for the Office.

And lastly, he must be bold, and fearless, and as well Patient as Painful and Laborious in handling his Cock to the last, for whilst there is Life, there is Hope, if your Cock be true bred, and Fortune has more than once turn’d the Scale, and given the Victory to the dying Cock even at the last minute of the Battle.

And now in the next place we come to direct you how to order your Cocks after they have fought.

First then, as soon as the Battle is over, and you have taken up your Cock, whether he has won or lost, (if you deem him worth the saving) forthwith search him all over, and as many of his Wounds as you can find, you must speedily suck very clean, and by that means draw all the Blood and clutters out of them, then wash him with warm Urine, and give him a Roll or two of your best Scowering, and so stove him up very soft, and warm for two or three Hours or more, and then drawing him out of the Bag by the Fire side, or some other warm place, where no Air can come to harm him, gently open his Wounds, and pour into them the Oyl of Turpentine, and let it be somewhat more than just warm, yet let it not be scalding hot neither; and be sure to see that it be the best of the sort: Then give him five or six bits of soft White-bread diped in warm Urine.

And then gently take your Wounded Cock and put him into the Bag again, and let him not feel the Air till his swelling be abated, and his Wounds well nigh Healed up, which will be in a day or two’s time, provided his Wounds are not too deep, and numerous: And then you must put him into the Pens, where you may feed him twice a Day with Bread or Barly, and once a Day dress his wounds, as aforesaid, until he is fully cured; and then turn him out to his Walk to Grass, and pick Gravel till you find him fit to send to Feed again for another Battle.

The Powder of Herb-Robin is rare good for a Green Wound in a Cock, if after you have bathed his Wounds in Stale, you put it into a fine Ragg, and pounce the Sore therewith.

The greater Wild Daisy is also a Wound Herb of good respect both for inward, and outward Wounds; and used in Oyls, Ointments, and Salves: the Leaves being bruised, and applied to any part that is Swell’d and hot, doth dissolve it, and temper the Heat.

The Juice of Daisies droped into the running Eyes of any Cock that hath received a blow, or bruise therein, seldom fails to heal them, and that quickly too.

Ground-Ivy is an admirable thing for a Cock that is hurt in the Eye; take a Leaf or two, and chew it in your Mouth, and spit the Juice into the Eye of the Wounded Cock, and it will not only cure the present Malady, but prevent the growth of Films, Haws, Warts, and the like, which are things very destructive to the Eye-sight.

Take also young Hazell Twigs, and crush them hard, and they will yield a Drop or two of Juice, and with this dress your Cock’s Eye that has any Haw, Web, or Film a coming, and it will speedily Cure it.

Dandelion or Piss-a-bed, vulgarly so called, is of an opening, cleansing quality, and therefore a good Cock-herb, if rightly applied, and fitly made use of; but some Feeders make too much use of it.

The Meal, or fine Flower of Darnell is very good to stay Gangreens, and other such like fretting, and eating Cankers, and Putrid Sores, which often happen to old Wounded Cocks, towards their later end.

The Juice of Fox-glove-leaves is of rare use to cleanse, dry, and heal any Sore in a Cock of the Game, be it a green Wound, or of long standing.

Sorrel is moderately cold, and dry, somewhat binding, and cutteth tough humours, it cools the Blood and greatly provokes Appetite, and therefore is a rare thing for a Cock in his Food when the Season is hot, it being one of the best Coolers that I know.

The Leaves of Box are very binding, and of Singular use for Cocks of the Game that are troubled with a loosness, and too much Scowring, provided you powder the Leaves, and mix therewith a tenth part of the inner Bark of Elm-tree: Sift this Powder thro’ a fine Searce, and make it up into Pills with Sweet Butter, and give it the Cocks in two or three Pills as big as large Filberts, and let them Fast an Hour or more after them before they Eat or Drink.

If your Cock, or Hen of the Game have the Flux, which often times happens thro’ the overmuch eating of moist Meat, I have known them divers times cured by giving them scalded Pease Bran, and truly ’tis a Medicine that seldom fails to effect the Cure.

Featherfew opens and Purges well, and is therefore to be made use of for Cocks that are apt to be Costive, and too much bound in their Bodies.

Another Malady there is that these Birds of Game are incident to, which is commonly called the Roup, which like to a filthy Boyl, or swelling you may discover upon the Rump of your Cock, or Hen Chicken; and it will in a short time (if not prevented) corrupt the whole Body.

You may first perceive it by the staring, and turning back of the Feathers that are about it; and if you purpose to cure it, you must speedily pull away those Feathers, and lay the Place open so as to thrust out the Core; and then Syringe the place well with Salt and Urine, after which lay some Tarr thereon, and the Cure will be effected.

The Mallady called the Pipp, proves of dangerous consequence if not soon lookt after, for they are hereby rendred unable to Feed; and unless speedily prevented by uncaping the Tongue, they pine away, and die for want of Food, tho’ set in the midst of a Grainery.

And therefore when you see a White Scale upon the tip of your Cock or Hen’s Tongue, you must with a Needle, or your Thumb-nail get it clean off, and rub the end of the Tongue well with Salt.

Lice also are an infirmity common to Cocks and Hens, and usually proceeds from some one of these three things, either thro’ Poverty, and want of Food, or else from foul corrupt Food, or for want of Sand, Ashes, or the like, to bath, and cleanse themselves in.

Now they are cured by taking Pepper pounded small, and put into warm Water with which let them be well washed.

The Gout is a certain swelling either in the Claws, or Ball of a Cock’s Foot; it is sometimes hard, and sometimes soft and poosy, but ever hot and burning, and is a very troublesome Malady, and seldom so thoroughly cured as to render the Cock fit either to Fight or Breed after.

’Tis a hereditary distemper in some Cocks; but in others it proceeds from Wounds and loss of Blood, especially when once they begin to grow old, and Humours to grow predominant in them.

I shall here for the Readers benefit mention a trial of Skill which I made upon a very choice Cock of my own, thro’ the help and assistance of a Gentlewoman whose extraordinary Skill both in Physic and Surgery was well known and greatly Celebrated by all that were acquainted with her.

Now the Cock was about two Years old, fresh, fine, and in good tune when I sought him, and he came of a rare Breed, and was delicately Shaped, and sparr’d as fine as most Cocks that ever I saw in all my Life; but for all this meeting with a blow in the Throat at his first coming into the Pit which choaked him up, and being also veined in the Foot at the same time, from which wound he lost a World of Blood, he was at last very hardly, and with much difficulty beaten.

However I was offered half a Peice for him as he lay in my Hands seemingly Dying, but I refus’d it: And taking him Home observed the afore-mentioned method, ordering him as is directed for Cocks after Battle, (Page 67) by which means I soon recovered him and (as I thought) had him perfectly well.

But truly it was not long before I found I was under a mistake, for my Cock began to Limp, and grow Gouty, by reason of a Humour which fell down into that Foot in the which he was veined, and had lost such a great quantity of Blood when he fought last, so that in short it began to heat and swell betwixt the Claws, yet was it not very dicernable.

However I took him up, and having carefully searched his Foot, and for some Days applied Shoe-makers-Wax to it, but finding it not to do, and the Gout growing worse, I took him to the ingenious, and most Skilful Gentlewoman aforesaid, who promised me to do her best for the recovery of my valiant Cripple.

At first she Poultised his Foot, and after that applied the most violent drawing Salves, but to no purpose; for neither Venice Turpentine, nor all the Vehement things that she could think on would do any thing; until she applied Burdock Leaves to it, in the nature of a Poultise, and that, after some time did draw it, and brought away abundance of viscous, putrified Matter.

After which she tried to heal the Wound, but to no purpose, for it broke out again, whereupon I took out the Ball or Frog of the Cock’s Foot, and the Gentlewoman healed it again, but it swell’d after this and broke of itself, and run at several Places, so that I was forced a second time to cut out the Ball of my Cock’s Foot, and then after long Salving, with the Application of some drying Powders it was healed up firm and well, and his Foot proved sound and good to his dying Day, but was greatly Clubbed and ugly to look upon, yet did he breed good Chickens and fought divers admirable Battles after this, to my great delight and satisfaction.

And this I only mention by the way, to shew that if you will but use care with some little cost, and add thereto Pains and Patience, most Distempers will be found curable.

The Black Sickness is a Disease so highly destructive to Cocks of the Game, that Men try in vain to cure that incurable Distemper, when once it is got into the Blood, and the Cock or Hen begins to blacken about the Head, and grow Sick withal, no Medicine as yet was ever found that could retrieve a Cock from Death in such a condition.

And therefore to free the Royal Warrior from a Languishing Death, when once he appear to be contaminated and over run with this irresistable Plague, called the Black Sickness, I advise that with a tender hand you speedily strike off his Head, and thereby rescue him from those fatal ills which this mortal contagion most assuredly brings along with it.

And thus I think I have gone through the whole System of Cocking, with as much plainness and brevity as might be, without omitting any one particular that is necessary to be understood by the Ingenious Cock-Master.

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By the Author of this Treatise.

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By Sr. Rich. Blackmore.

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By a Person of Honour.

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By Dr. R. Wild.

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By a Lover of the Royal Sport.

FINIS.

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