E. Cobham Brewer 1810–1897. Dictionary of Phrase and Fable. 1898.
Bantam.
A little bantam cock. A little plucky fellow that will not be bullied by a person bigger than himself. The bantam cock will encounter a dunghill cock five times his own weight, and is therefore said to “have a great soul in a little body.” The bantam originally came from Bantam, in Java.
