18.—Cooper’s nob exhibited severe punishment, and Shelton, upon commencing this round, appeared a little better. Two heavy counter hits on the head followed, and it was altogether a sharp round. Cooper was completely turned by a hit. In struggling, both down.
19.—After some sharp exchanges at the ropes, on which Shelton was hanging, Cooper might have finished the battle, but he held up his hands and walked away, and Shelton went down. (“Bravo! that’s noble. Who would not respect true courage, and admire the English character?” were the general observations of the ring.)
20.—Shelton recovering; both down in the corner of the ring, and Cooper undermost.
21.—This was a truly desperate round. The men again hit each other away—stood still for a few seconds, but could not proceed; both were too game to go down. Severe fibbing at the ropes finished the round, till both fell. Cooper had the worst of it.
22.—The nob of Cooper was clareted in profusion. He came to the scratch feeble; and, after two or three blows, nearly laid himself down. (“Here’s a change!” was the cry, and Shelton again the favourite.)
23.—Cooper was soon down. Shelton, from the lead he had taken in the last three rounds, seemed quite an altered man. He took the bottle out of his second’s hand, and drank some water, and, in a scrutinizing manner, turned round to look at the distressed situation of Cooper; he seemed, from the smiling state of his countenance, to think that “it was all right.”
24.—Sharp work; but Cooper down.
25.—The latter made some good hits, but was sent down.
26.—Cooper getting extremely weak, but his science never deserted him, and he made some hits tell before he got down upon the turf. (Four to one on Shelton.)
27.—This round was completely Shelton’s own. Cooper received all the hits, one of which, in the mug, was enough to finish any man in such a languid state; he went down exhausted in the extreme. In consequence of Shelton’s commencing this round rather quickly, in the Gas style, Belcher called out to the umpires to observe that both of the men set-to from the scratch. The umpires immediately attended to the request, and cautioned Shelton. (Shelton for almost any odds, but five and six to one might be had in any part of the ring.)