We come now to another of the outstanding figures of the Prize-Ring, the famous Tom Spring. This man’s real name was Winter—“sharp as Winter, kind as Spring”—as Borrow has it. He was born in the county of Hereford in 1795. His height was 5 feet, 11? inches, and in perfect condition he weighed 13 stone 6 lb. During his career he fought a dozen main battles, being beaten once by Ned Painter, whom he had previously defeated. They refused to fight out the rubber because they had become fast friends, and Spring, who was perfectly confident of winning the third time, did not wish to risk that friendship.

It was Tom Cribb, visiting the West of England on a sparring tour, who inflamed the young man’s imagination. As a lad Winter drove a butcher’s cart, but he had a spirit above this humdrum avocation. And, contriving to win the old Champion’s confidence, he came to London and immediately made a name for himself. On Cribb’s retirement he became Champion, and remained so until he himself retired in favour of Jem Ward.

In the year following Neate’s victory over the Gasman, a match was arranged between him and Tom Spring for ￡200 a side, which, after being once postponed, finally took place at Hinkley Downs, near Andover, on May 20th, 1823. This was the first real fight for the championship since the defeat of Molineux by Cribb in 1811. The betting was in favour of Spring, though Neate did not lack support. He was seconded by Tom Belcher and Harry Harmer, while the old champion and Ned Painter, his late antagonist and warmest friend, looked after Spring.

It was a very short battle and was virtually won in the first 69 round, and before a serious blow had been struck. The men faced each other, and it was a long time before any effective move was made. Spring’s attitude was very much the same as the typical “English” attitude of to-day: that is, left foot some eighteen inches in front of the right, left knee slightly bent, left arm out ready to lead, right thrown across the mark to guard. Neate’s position has already been described. It was very stiff and awkward and effective only against a slow boxer. The men exchanged and stopped blows without one landing for some minutes. Once, when Neate sent in a specially hard smack and Spring stopped it coolly with his elbow, he grinned good-naturedly. Then he lowered his hands to tempt Bill Neate to come for him, raising them again the instant the other moved. After a few blows on either side which did at last get home, Spring landed twice on the face, so that Neate turned. The next instant he whipped round, just as though panic had seized him and he had then thought better of it, and rushed the champion to his corner. Tom Belcher cried out to him to go in. “Now’s the time!” But Spring kept perfectly cool, and with deliberation guarded each furious blow that his opponent sent in. Neate tried several times to break through that guard, still keeping Spring at bay in his corner. If he had gone on trying, he might have succeeded. But Spring’s coolness and skill daunted him. He hesitated, and in a measure lost heart. He experienced, at any rate, a momentary feeling of helplessness; and as he hesitated Spring dashed in and fought his way out of the corner. The greater will was Spring’s. Neate closed now to save being hit, and lifted his man nearly off his feet, but Spring was cleverer than he at wr............