Skin and Bone--A Mystery by Robin Blake

Author:Robin Blake
Language: eng
Format: epub
Publisher: St. Martin's Press

Chapter 17

I HAVE NEVER MUCH liked cock fighting. Luke on the other hand is passionate for it.

‘Why do you care for the game?’ I asked him once.

‘Because it is elemental,’ he said. ‘You cannot bribe a gamecock. All he wants is to fight and have the pit to himself. You can never persuade him to back away: he will fight or he will die. There is nothing more simple and magnificent I think.’

‘I would rather play bowls. It is usually less bloody.’

Preston had its own cockpit off Church Gate, not far from Lord Derby’s house. There was fighting every month or so, but these were mostly training bouts or matches for betting. The big prizefights – the mains, with silver trophies and awards of money for the winners – were held at Preston just three times a year: at Shrovetide, during the July races and at harvest end, on the twenty-ninth of September, Michaelmas. I have heard it said that in the old days, on farms where the corn had been safely cut, a cock would be imprisoned inside the last stook of corn, which was then set fire to. The ashes of that fire were kept until next season, when it was mixed with the seed corn before planting. This, I suppose, is why cocks are still linked to the Michaelmas season.

Fidelis had gone, as he said he would, to the Pride of the Pit Inn, where he found a rout of customers plunged in noisy conversation about the birds: of the cut of combs and the looseness of wattles, of the protuberance of spurs and the sleekness of sickle feathers. Disputes broke out over diet, grooming and keeping. Coarsely expressed views were aired on how often a bird should be exercised, and how long it should be allowed to roost.

Most of this talk was concerned with particular cocks. There was much exchange of news about wagers struck on the forthcoming contests, and of which birds are the betting favourites, and which the rag-tags. Public favouritism in betting is thought to be the most reliable guide to identifying likely winners. Second only to the gambling is the condition of the cocks themselves. A bird is rarely fancied that does not stand out in his physical appearance, with a clear eye, plump breast and gleaming feathers. Any sign that he begins to moult, or any loss of appetite, will damn him to defeat in the fancy’s eyes. My friend took part in these debates as hotly as anyone and at the same time drank deep.

He was standing beside O’Rorke, as they listened as a gamester detailed at exorbitant length the martial qualities of his favourite bird. After a minute of this, Fidelis drew the Irishman a little to one side and gestured towards Captain Strawboy. Sprawled on a wooden settle at the end of the room, with his captain’s tunic unbuttoned and a pot of wine in his fist, he was hailing each serving girl as she passed in front of him.

Download

Copyright Disclaimer:
This site does not store any files on its server. We only index and link to content provided by other sites. Please contact the content providers to delete copyright contents if any and email us, we'll remove relevant links or contents immediately.