As night fell, Arthur left Kensington Palace and headed straight for Leicester Square.
The reason was simple. Several of his friends from "the British" were waiting for him at the Alhambra Theater.
Leicester Square was bustling at night. As Arthur's carriage entered the area, its speed slowed due to the surging crowd.
Through the window, he saw a group of idle folks gathered by the street, including vendors, passing tourists, and soldiers stationed at nearby barracks. They were huddled together around a makeshift wooden arena where a few proud roosters were fighting each other.
Beside the cockfighting arena hung a wooden sign that read—1 Shilling per match, odds 1 to 100.
No need to guess, this was definitely gambling on cockfighting.
Such activities weren't rare in London. There were dog fights, cockfights, bear fights, badger fights, even rat fights. Arthur wondered if there was anything these gamblers wouldn't bet on.
