l FROM TOW BOY TO WORLD’S \
X- CHAMPION--':
<t A History of the Life of John L. Sullivan
y (By H. C. Hamilton, United Press Staff Correspondent) £ j
5j (Copyright, 1918, by United Press) 5
CHAPTER III
A Cincinnati sports writer it was
who gave Sullivan his chance to be
conie prominent. Before this man went
to Boston and took a look at the touted
Boston Strong Boy, Sullivan gave seri
ous thought to becoming a ball player.
He had received an offer from the
famous old Cincinnati Red Stockings
and was just about ready to accept.
However, business took the sports
editor of a Cincinnati newspaper to
Boston, and after getting one look at
the wonderful muscular development
of Sullivan he realized that here was
p man likely to become the pugilistic
isensation of the age. He immediately
signed Sullivan to a contract that call
ed for his appearance in a match at
Cincinnati. Sullivan didn't know who
he was to meet and neither did the
promoter of the bout, but there was
no difficulty about that. The agree
ment was made and lived up to.
The sports editor went back to Cin
cinnati and began casting about for
a suitable opponent for the Boston
man. He had promised him only $100
for the bout, which, in those days, was
. ■ t .1 n ^ >1 mifflnlnnt rnm ii noi»o tlnn t'ci t*
any fighter. Fighters were supposed
to be boxing, in the main, to show how
good they were, and not for wealtti.
Their pay was supposed to be enough
to keep away hunger and to clothe
them.
Sullivan was getting rather impa
tient when one day “Prof.” Joe Don
aldson walked into the newspaper office
and offered his services. He showed
clippings from Chicago newspapers
which showed that he had some stand
ing as a boxer, so the match was on.
Sullivan was given a lot of advertis
ing through this bout.. The day it was
decided he should go to Chincinnati
to box, his discoverer began to exploit
him as the coming pugilistic champion,
so when he showed up in Chincinnati
he was an object of much curiosity.
Crowds would gather about the Bos
4on youngster on the street. It an
noyed Sullivan some, but he finally
came to regard it, even at that time in
his life, as an appreciation due him.
{Even then he had some vague idea
that there wasn’t a man alive who
could whip him, and he acted accord
ingly.
Sullivan was an extremely broke
young man when he landed in Cincin
nati. He never had taken part in a
real boxing match. He had no over- j
coat, though the time was in winter, |
and his clothes were threadbare at
spots. But—he was not a drinker. At
that time the rising boxer was just as
temperate a young man as there was.
He refused, when asked in Cincannati,
to have a drink of “something to warm
hint up.”
John L. Sullivan wore his first fight
ers’ trunks, his first fighters’ shoes,
and engaged in his first big advertised
bout when he stepped into the ring
with Donaldson—a man who had
gathered a reputation around the coun
try, and who was expected, therefore,
to make short work of his opponent.
Sullivan refused to spoil the shine
on his pretty new shoes when he en
tered the ring, and disregarded re
quests to put rosin on them. It prob
ably was a lucky thing for Donaldson
that this was so, for, in their new
ness, the shoes skidded around the
ring and enabled Donaldson to avoid
the real crushers in Sullivan’s reper
toire of swings and straight punches.
The bout went four rounds and the
crowd begged for more, but Donaldson,
aware of the class of the man he was
to meet, refused. Sullivan had smash
ed and torn at him until the man with
a reputation was nearly denuded of it.
Sullivan was confident he could win
decisively in a few more rounds. Fin
ally, as the clamor increased, Don
aldson offered to meet Sullivan again,
with a side bet of $500, the bout to go
i u a iimou,
Sullivan agreed to the terms, and
the fight finally was held, with Don
aldson sucumbing in ten rounds—a
badly beaten man.
CHAPTER IV
Thus was John L. Sullivan given to
the world as its foremost pugilist.
Fair and honest in all his dealing, a
champion of champions—he stands
jiow a shining example to other pugil
ists.
After the Donaldson bouts offers
were fast and were accepted with
equal rapidity. In those days it wasn't
customary for the newspapers to spec
ulate for several months or years over
the probabilities of such a match,
with much camouflage and deceit on
each side. Challenges were made and
accepted in the open. The public in
stantly knew when something was
going to take place. So Sullivan, tak
ing his championship ability seriously,
met everyone that could be found for
him to go against.
In 1881 Sullivan met and defeated
five men, among them being John
Flood, the fight being held on a barge
inchored in the Hudson river just off
Yonkers, N. Y. It was a vicious af
fair, fought under the old London
prize-ring rules, and with Flood taking
in unmerciful beating before he suc
cumbed.
Persistently then, Sullivan began to1
challenge Paddy Ryan, claimant of the
American championship. Billy Madden
was then handling Sullivan, and he
had painstakingly carried the young
ster through an early course of train
ing
The young giant had grown in!
strength and cleverness. At first just
i mauling lad with force predominant
aver everything, he hod merely stuck j
to first principles of boxing. As a re-!
suit his strength was often vainly ex-1
pended in endeavoring to hit shifty
antagonists. Madden relieved him
of this fault.
Madden had early found that in I
John L. Sullivan he had truly found ;
ri marvel of the boxing world. Really
ferocious in appearance when roused
to a fighting stage, Sullivan added to
his ability by believing himself un
conquerable. In some ways the mind
cf the fighter was simple. His very
simplicity, however, was the thing
that eventually endeared him to the
American sporting public. That his
brain was keen, however, was proved
through the gradual uplifting impulse
he gave the game that was his life's
choice.
Sullivan at his best weighed about
195 pounds. He stood five feet, eleven
and a quarter inches in height. His
arms were muscled with the long, rip
pling muscles that give power to
blows. His back was a thing of beau
ty. There wasn’t a bound muscle in
his makeup.
Madden had taken a gradual course
in fitting his young protege for the
battle that was to make him the
heavyweight champion and give
him a good claim to the world’s title,
and he went about his challenges to
the title claimant in the usual way.
Public demand, then, as now, was
the thing that mainly made matches
and cries began to arise for a battle
between Ryan and the youngster from
the east. Ryan was willing and so
were his backers and finally the match
was arranged, with $2,500 bet on the
side. The rules were to be the London
Prize Ring code. Richard K. Pox, a
prominent sporting man, was a chief
backer for Ryan. The place for the
bout had not been selected. The po
lice were, in those days, strong on the
trail of boxing matches. The sport,
as a matter of fact, was most brutal,
with the rules mainly made to disal
low foul striking, rather than to make
boxing really boxing. Contests in those
days were just what they were called
—prize fighting.
Early in February principals for the
bout went to New Orleans. There the
boxers went into training for the first
bout of any consequence in pugilism
ever held on American soil.
-^-4
Pood has now taken a dominant
position in the war. The American
people must prepare themselves to
sacrifice far more than was at first
thought necessary.
-4
Roumania is caught in between Rus
sia and the other belligerents. Her
people are short of food. Her sup
plies have been used up. We can see
no way in which they caji avoid dis
ease and starvation.
BASK OK AMERICAN FLOTILU'
IN BRITISH WATERS, Jan 25 (b;
mail).—Admiral Henry T. Mayo, com
mander of the Atlantic fleet, has
cabled to Vice Admiral Sims, ir
in charge of American naval opera
tions in the war zone, a request foi
information regarding the suitability
of the special winter outfits ot cloth
ing furnished to the naval men by the
navy department at Wash'neton. Ad
miral Mayo also wants to know of any
recommendations for changes in these
garments.
•The Associated Press correspondent
has yet to hear a word of complaint
against the present outfits worn hj
the men. Thanks to the busy women
who knit, most of the men, early in
their arrival here, received excellent
sweaters, jerseys and socks whicl
were sent by wives, relatives anc
friends back home. When the cok
weather came on these were aug
mented by an entirely new issue o
extra heavy winter clothing. Many
of these garments were designed bj
the British from their long experience
in torpedo boats in the hard winter;
off this coast.
Here are some of the things, whiet
when donned, make some of the mer
look more like Arctic explorers that
bluejackets:
Helmets of wool which cover all bu
the eyes, nose and mouth; light knit
ted coat sweaters, jerseys and eardi
gan jackets; knitted mittens anc
gloves; ektra heavy coarse under
clothing; heavy woolen socks anr
knee-length stockings; leather ses
boots; wind proof khaki-colored trous
ers; great coats lined with lambs
wool. The last named are worn ovei
the life jackets and help to make uj
the most serviceable combination worr
by Americans over here. They keei
the men warm on the damp, cold day;
with the biting winds when the slee1
squalls are hourly affairs and “yoi
can’t see an inch.”
Relatives of a large majority of the
men over here continue to sendr-tlfeir
knitted things. All sorts of knittei
garments arrive and are deeply ap
predated. Ofttimes the men receivr
knitted garments from wife or sweet
heart that are not very serviceable bu
accompanying letters from home an
so enthusiastic that the men hesitah
to utter a word of criticism.
Experience has shown that the wo
men folks back home ought to con
centrate on socks as they are in the
greatest demand and most appreciate!
of all things they send to the sailoi
boys over here.
-♦
Your eyes fitted. Compound anr
astigmatic lenses replaced. See O*
borne.
Aunty
Keatings
The Chesterfield blend
has in it the highest-grade
Turkish tobacco that
grows. They Satisfy—
and yet thev're MILD,
"" “ ",HB***^.
■
____,
| Deoosiits as reported' to the Territorial!
Banking Board under dates of
FEBRUARY 10, 1915 . $192,265.67
I “ 7, 1916 . . . 282,355.00
15, 1917 . ... . 458,688.55
14,1918 .. . . 513,580.89
Our Deposits on Feb.. 25, 1918 were
| $547,981.06 I
| THIS GROWTH is a reflection: of ttre*
increasing prosperity of
this community
First Bank of Cordova |
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NOTICE.
The Star of the Ka.at Auxiliary will
| meet at the home of Mrs. Jack Sapiro
on Monday afternoon at 2: 3*• o'clock
Everybody Invited.
MRS SOPHIA SCOTT,
l
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from 1 p. m. to 10 p. m.
REV E. P. ZIEGLER
Bupt.
' ..- ' T" ' ' ' " — .i inT- nr
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