Description
Hazlitt, William ‘The Fight’ 1929 limited edition hardcover book of 1,000. Woodstock: Vermont. The Elm Tree Press. 30-pages. All three books in light blue cloth are in very good condition. Number 492 of 1,000 has the scarce thin dust jacket with internal tape repairs along most of the internal spine of the jacket. $75.00 for this one.
# 271 of a limited edition of 1,000 copies signed by Marjorie Barlow in very good condition, no dust jacket, and # 428 of 1,000 in very good condition with no dust jacket. $35 each.
The Fight is a masterpiece of early sports journalism and one of the most famous essays ever written about boxing. First published in The New Monthly Magazine in 1822, this 1929 Elm Tree Press edition revives William Hazlitt’s vivid, firsthand account of the historic, brutal bare-knuckle prize fight between Bill Neate and Tom Hickman (known as “The Gas-light Man”), which took place in Berkshire, England, on December 11, 1821.
Rather than just reporting the outcome, Hazlitt captures the entire subculture of 19th-century British boxing—often referred to as “The Fancy.” The essay is structured as a travelogue and a philosophical reflection, detailing:
The Journey: Hazlitt’s chaotic, muddy trek from London to the countryside alongside a colorful cast of trainers, gambling men, and rowdy spectators.
The Philosophy of Violence: Deep reflections on courage, physical endurance, and human nature, contrasting the primal urge to fight with the technical mastery of the sport.
The Bout: A gripping, round-by-round psychological breakdown of the clash, charting how Neate’s stoic endurance ultimately overcame Hickman’s arrogant, aggressive style.
The 1929 edition beautifully frames this foundational sports text as a piece of fine literature, celebrated for elevating prizefighting from an illegal spectacle into an art form worthy of high literary merit.
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