They would then stand face to face, and one would bend forward meekly, whilst the other dealt her a truly terrific blow between the shoulders or on the head--not with a cane or a light stick, be it remembered, but a really formidable club.

The blow (which would be enough to kill an ordinary white woman) would be borne with wonderful fortitude, and then the aggressor would hand the club to the woman she had just struck.
The latter would then take a turn; and so it would go on, turn and turn about, until one of the unfortunate, stoical creatures fell bleeding and half-senseless to the earth.

The thing was magnificently simple.

The woman who kept her senses longest, and remained on her legs to the end, was the victor.

There was no kind of ill-feeling after these extraordinary combats, and the women would even dress one another's wounds.
I now come to an event of very great importance in my life.