he place, then placed his men so
that the light fell sideways, not directly upon either face.

"Shoes off, Doughty!" he ordered. "None of your nasty Devonshire ways
here!" For the Devon rules admit kicking, and that with shoes, while
Cornish, though allowing leg-play, insist it should be in stocking-feet,
and consist of tripping and locking only. The whole West Country style
of wrestling differs enormously from the North Country, in which Ishmael
would have stood a poor chance against an opponent so much his superior
in size. In the West they play for a hitch, instead of trying for a fall
by sheer strength and weight, and if the smaller wrestler has a stock of
good holds, and can only get under his opponent quickly enough, he may
bring off the "flying mare," the great throw clear over the shoulder.
Leg-play is the great feature, even in Cornwall, where prominence is
given to the hug, and Ishmael had very strong legs, though his shoulders
were not so heavy as Doughty's.

He took his stand opposite Doughty. He had never wrestled with him
before, but he had had much practice with boys of all builds. He eyed
him closely and knew his best chance lay in trying to rush him so as to
get under him and with a good inside lock of the leg trip him up. In
shoulder play he would otherwise stand small chance with one so much
taller. Doughty's best plan would be to stand off him, a thing not
possible in North Country wrestling. In the West a special jacket of
strong linen is worn for the taking of hitches, and Polkinghorne made
the two boys pull out their shirts as the nearest approach to it. All
was arranged to the satisfaction of the three who were acting as
"sticklers," and in what seemed to Ishmael the flashing of a moment he
and Doughty were crouching, cat-like, opposite each other, legs bent,
arms out, hands tense. They stood so for what seemed minutes, though it
was only a fraction of the time that had gone in the preparations.
Ishmael felt no fear of Doughty; exhilaration was still strong enough
within him to eliminate that dread, though the fear of losing that
always pricks at the fighter was not quite deadened. He circled, still
in that cat-like attitude, Doughty circling also, both waiting to
spring. Ishmael was intensely aware of superficial physical
sensations--the tense feeling in his skin, and under the soles of his
feet the hardness of the ground. He spread his feet a little and moved
his toes against the grass. All hi