And thus if you serve your young Cocks once, or twice a Quarter, until they come to be of Age, fit to put up to Feed, you will find the good of it, in that they will grow both skilful and cunning in Fight; their Wind will be lengthened, their Sinews grow stronger, and their Joints more plyant, and flexible, and they in all respects more able, and powerful in Fight by much, than such as perhaps have hardly seen a Cock, or at least seldom or never been Sparred until they come to be put up and Dieted for Battle: And truly hence it is that we often see Cocks that have been well bred, Fight but very indifferently the first Battle, and come off but poorly, and all for want of early and often Sparring before they come to Fight.
_The method of Dieting, & feeding Game-Cocks._
But having gone thus far in Cocking, I shall in the next place, proceed to give some directions to know and understand the best way and means made use of by the ablest Cock-Masters of these times, in the way of ordering of Cocks, when put up to be Fed, or Dieted for to Fight: For I have often grieved to see a gallant Cock meerly lost and cast away for want of good feeding, and at the same time been no less sorry for the Owners of such Cocks, who perhaps were Gentlemen of Worth, and Quality, that delighted in the Royal Sport of Cocking, and with a World of Care and Cost, have brought up, and reared Cocks to be fit for feeding, and then unfortunately have put them into the hands of some unskilful Rascal that shall pretend to be a Feeder, tho’ he know no more than a Horse, how to Diet, or Order a Cock he should be Ordered to Fight. And hence it is that many an honest Gentleman looses his Mony, many a good Cock his Life, and both of them their Credit, and all for want of a good Feeder.
Now that no Gentleman Cocker may ever hereafter dash upon this common Rock, on which so many have been split, provided they keep to the Directions given in the following Pages, wherein they shall find all the Secrets and most hidden Misteries in Cock-feeding, laid open to them in terms so plain and easie, that they shall be able both to correct and instruct the mercenary Feeder, who Diets Cocks for Hire, and heeds not how they speed, when once they are out of his hands, and perhaps knows as little how to manage them as they should be whilst they are in his Custody, and therefore to prevent your giving of Mony to have your Cock marred, or that you may not pay for his being Pined instead of being Fed (as divers have done) or if not so, perhaps suffocated thro’ too hot or too high feed, and want of due Sparring with other such like injuries, too often put upon poor Cocks, by ignorant unskilful Feeders, I shall here make known to the great greif and sorrow of all such selfish narrow Soul’d Cock-Masters, who have made it their business rather to conceal, and lock up, than to divulge and make known the rare Art of Feeding.