the stage, until Petit ran away in terror, and the fight was given to Slack.
Slack was in turn defeated by Stevens, the Nailer, who became champion in 1760. In the report of their fight the winning blow is thus described: "Stevens, with his right hand beat Slack about the head, while at the same time tripping him off his centre with his foot."
There is nothing particularly interesting in the records of British boxers till the close of the century. Daniel Mendoza, a Jew, and James Belcher, were the most noted names. Then came John Gully, champion from 1805 to 1808, a man who afterward became a member of the British Parliament; Thomas Cribb, a really remarkable man and a great boxer; Peter Corcoran, champion of Ireland and England, and Dan Donnelly, champion of Ireland and England.
The condition of the "science" at this time may be judged from the fact that there were few crystallized principles of attack or defence. Every man had his own way for doing everything. For instance, the guard of Mendoza was to hold his hands pretty close together, directly opposite his mouth, the back of the hand toward his opponent; while another famous boxer named Johnson came on guard by planting his legs square, "with his arms held in almost a semi-circular direction before his head."
