consort of London; 40l. was to be given to the male or female who gave most cuts with the sword, and 20l. for most blows at quarter-staff, besides the collection in the box. A poetical account of a battle of this kind, was published in the London Journal, and is, I think, worth preserving, especially as it is said to have been written by the author of the Pastoral in the Spectator beginning "My time, O ye Muses, was happily spent:"
"Long was the great Figg by the prize-fighting swains
Sole monarch acknowledg'd of Mary-bon plains;
To the towns far and near did his valour extend,
And swam down the river from Thame to Gravesend.
There liv'd Mr. Sutton, pipe-maker by trade,
Who, hearing that Figg was thought such a stout blade,
Resolv'd to put in for a share of his fame,
And so sent to challenge the Champion of Thame.
With alternate advantage two trials had past,