John Leechman (Brassey) now came out with a definite cartel, that he was open to fight any 12st. man within 100 miles of Bradford for £25 or £50, and that his money was ready at the “Stag’s Head,” Preston Street, Sheffield. This brought Bendigo to the scratch, and the match was made for £25 a side, to come off on Tuesday, May 24th, 1836. The deposits were duly made, and on the appointed day, May 24th, 1836, the men met nine miles from Sheffield, on the Doncaster road. No reliable report of this fight, which was for £25 a side, is extant: nothing beyond a paragraph in the following week’s papers, declaring it to be won by Bendigo, “after a severe contest of 52 rounds, in which the superiority of science was on the side of the lesser man, Bendigo weighing 11st. 12lb., Brassey nearly 13st.” Brassey and his friends were not satisfied with this defeat, and immediately proposed a fresh match for £50; and Jem Bailey (not of Bristol, but an Irishman, afterwards twice beaten by Brassey) also challenged Bendigo. Bendigo accepted Bailey’s offer, but Paddy’s friends hung back and forfeited the deposit. Our hero now visited London, and was for some weeks an object of some curiosity, putting up at Jem Burn’s, where he kept the company alive by his eccentric “patter.” Jem offered to back Bendigo against Fitzmaurice (who had been beaten by Deaf Burke), but Fitz’s friends also backed out. It may be remarked, par parenthese, that the Deaf ’un was in America during this paper warfare. At this period a remarkably clever eleven stone black, hight Jem Wharton, who fought under the names of “Young Molyneux,” and “The Morocco Prince,” had successively polished off Tom M’Keevor, Evans, Wilsden, and Bill Fisher, and fought a gallant drawn battle of _four hours and seven minutes_, and 200 rounds, with the game Tom Britton, was the talk of the provincial fancy. A match was proposed for £50, half-way between Nottingham and London. But in the interval of talk Molyneux got matched with Harry Preston, and a most interesting fight, from the crafty style of both men, was lost for ever. A forfeit in the interim was paid to Bendigo by Flint, of Coventry. Molyneux also accepted Bendy’s offer, but insisted on raising the stakes to £100 a side, and to Bendy confining himself to 11st. 7lb. (!) Molyneux not to exceed 11st. 2lb., &c., &c. To these stipulations Bendy replied: “My Liverpool friends will back me £100 to £80, or £50 to £40, at catch weight, against Young Molyneux. I shall be in London in a few weeks, and shall be happy to meet Luke Rogers for £50 or £100, as Looney’s match is off, owing to his being under lock and key for his day’s amusement with Bob Hampson.――Nottingham, November 25, 1836.” Molyneux got matched with Bailey, of Manchester, and this second affair fell through.