Westminster Pit

A legal enterprise at the time, the Westminster Pit openly declared its activities,[1] ushering notoriety on the district in which it existed.

[1] The gallery was 3 feet (0.91 m) above the arena and was capable of containing 200 people – or, by report of William Pitt Lennox, "perhaps a greater number of less refractory persons, for the common run of spectators were so obstreperous and so agitated by various emotions, according to the amount of bets depending, and the various turns of the conflict, that a decent orderly person would feel himself much incommoded by a considerably less number.

It was common in the Westminster Pit (and other venues like it) for cheating to occur, often by way of covering a dog with substances – such as acid or pepper – that would deter his opponent from biting him.

For this reason, it was compulsory that all combatants be washed in water or milk, and a participant was permitted to lick his opponent's dog as a precaution.

[2] Perhaps the most famous dog to perform in the Westminster Pit was a bull and terrier named "Billy", whose fame was his rat-baiting ability.