Show TOM SHARKEY ONE OF THE BEST RING MEN IN HISTORY liST DRY NEVER WON CHAMPIONSHIP BY I P. P T. T KNOX Nc New York lork March Thomas 9 Thoman J. J sailor fighter actor ct lr cafe c proprietor trotting trotting- horse breeder trotting horse driver and and editor is s the exact opposite of ot tho the man without a home lome Irel Ireland td claims him New Now York claims him and Vallejo Cal Cat claim clairn I him He lie claims Irelands Ireland claim la Is that of ot priority I Ifor for or It was In Dun Dundalk that no lie Wk was born born on November No 26 G 1873 New Yorks York's claim Is that of ot a business resIdent resident res- res Ident but Tom calls calla Vallejo hom homo home and whicHever whenever he ho can separate himself from his business enterprises hero here he ho visits that thriving Pacific coast city was waR a n born fighter and a born jorn financier Combining ng those sO two natural assets nots ho he has accumulated d a 0 I fortune fortuno of no meagre proportions tIc lie made a lot lotof of f money fighting but homs ho he I has ms made mado more since Ho He was ono one of the he pupils o of the old school yf of p lI- lI tern lEm em who earl early solved the tha secret of ot fI fl- I success success saving saving and ogro and profitable Investment In Now ho IsI Is la reaping tho the result of or his planting planting- I Persuasion c cannot make n Tom TomI I state oven In round figures what ho he I la 18 worth werth but hut it is current gossip that I bank account has d Into six I numbers I Conducts Conduct Cafe Cate Iner Here litre I to Most t of ot his time is fe devoted to hl his cafe in lii Fourteenth street but business bustness bust busi I ness nina man that he hc Is is he ho has hns GO so ar arI arranged arranged ar- ar I ranged It that his Jaunts to i are arc combination business and pleasure trips Sharkey Is interested In tho thoI I publishing of tho the Vallejo Evening Nets lews This is how ho has hos added th the title of ot editor to his already compro comprehensive compre compro- list of ot titles For thirteen years ears ho ha hap con conducted his ils cafe and the tue profits that ho has made out of oC It he has Judiciously In Invested Invested invested In- In vested in other enterprises few ow of which have tailed failed to materialize profI prof- prof I tably Of Ot all tho tim men mon who have havo been bean as aa near nar the tho championship as Sharkey without ultimately realizing their ambition there Is none lOnO who has hils hasa hilsa a better bettor record as a fighter never nover refused to meet any anyone one in n tho the ring and ho probably scored d more knockouts and fought more baffles ana on an ona a all winner basis than any othI other oth oth- I er cr aspirant for worlds world's fisticuff honors hon hen 1 ors has The Tho great majority o of his 1 fr rh h a i 1 l 3 r I his ils entire car career er ho hovered Just without without with with- out the pale of 01 tho the title As a 0 bO boy scarcely launched d in his teens Tom realized tho first real ambitions that besot beset him him ho he b became a n. deep water seaman on board a vessel yes ves sd sel headed for tor Australia His had not yet jet been served when h ho 10 ran away and shipped on a a boat boot leaded headed out of this port ort for Cor Algiers In tho the course of his wan wanderings h ha he drifted into Now New Orleans Oilcans in 1892 In time to see James J J. J Corbett win the tho worlds world's heavyweight championship from John L. L Sullivan Oan wagered wagered wag waS ered ored all the tho mon money y he could spare on Sullivan and lost of oC course It was t then that ho first conceived tho the idea of oC fighting lIe He admits himself that i It t was more tho the pique he lie experienced I I at having lost his money roonEY that caused him to ent entertain an any tho l thought ht of be becoming becoming be- be coming a 0 fighter Uc lie was only 19 5 years cars of ago and was waft bubbling over o with Ith the tho confidence of youth ro t and strength lIe He ca candidly believed that ho could collIe beat both oth Sullivan encl and Cor- Cor I bett He came camo to N Jork w k and enlisted in the navy HO 0 W was wa A stationed on board the tho receiving Vermont for coven Jovon months Ho no was later tr trans trans- ns-J ns Correct forrett to to the U. U a s. B. B Philadelphia stationed at Honolulu and hec became mo a n master of cf arms I Sailor nin IlIs JI FIr PITI t Opponent nt Ills first real fight was with Nick Burley a a 0 sailor pallor with quite a no tion Sharkey d disposed of ot him in eight Then Tom was pitted against Tock Jock r from one ot tho the British BrIllh o men men or Langley Langle lasted last lat ed od d four rounds Rough Thompson another English tailor sailor Immediately challenged ea Sharkey but was knocked out In the second round Then rhan J. J Gardner 0 the tho champion of ot the English navy y who was as et at 11 B. B C. C challenged Stark Stark- cy ey to a n fight 1 ht for tor R. R aside aide bet of ot winner take talta all Thomas won on in tnt tout four rounds round It w wa was u after ter this that ho he happened Into Vallejo His victor victory over Gardner lIo had earned no little notoriety lor him He was matched with and knocked out Martin l J in nine rounds and Dunn the fought champion of ot the army for tor the championship of tho orm array army and nov navy and a Ido bet of ot 1000 winner take all lasted twenty seven seconds econ s. s keys key's real re start tart as a professional profession al ni pugilist was at Colma Calma Cal against John Miller 1 Miller withstood his rushes and swings for nine rounds and then was waa counted out time At that Australian BIlt Billy Smith was in San Son Francisco and ami a fair fall purse was offered for a meeting be between be- be tween Smith and Sharkey Nono None seemed to believe that Shork had a 1 chance and he entered the ring the outside choice at ot odds of ot 7 to 1 I. Sharkey Shark Shark- e cy ey knocked out Smith in tho the seventh I round Knocks Out ld Sharkey fought several minor fights l before ho he agreed to knock out Joo Cho or forfeit the purse The fight tight wa was wan hold hoM at Frisco and Cho was knocked out in the first round It was waa twenty minutes before ho was re revived re- re I ed but Tom rom agreed to permit him to proceed He knocked out again in the tho eighth round Jim Corbett saw Sharkey knock knockout out nut Jim lIm Williams nf nr f Salt Halt I r akA k elt i f in three rounds anti and was credited with with having hn made marIe the rem remark that he Corb Corbett Cor- Cor b bott bett tt could knock out both of ot them thorn Up to that time Sharkey did ld not b be- be that his opponents knocked out He says I 1 did Uld not realize what a knockout really was I 1 thought the they quit When I heard that Corbett said he could knock mo me out I Imm immediately t l ry challenged c him to try tn It Corbet Corbett re reconsidered r- r considered his hiM decision and sal said that ho lie would agree to outpoint mo rue in four foti- rounds round I turned around and announced an nn- flounced that I would to stop Inside of four rounds for tor a al l OMOO l-OMOO lOO purse p. p The Tho monc money was put up and in three and a a. half halt rounds I 1 had hadi Corbett helpless on th the ropes A captain cap cap- cap cap- tam bin tain of ot police pollee of or San Francisco named Whitman or ordered erea the affair stopped I and Corbett was officially 1 awarded a n draw drat Corbett a reed agreed to fight tight him for th the championship after atler that but stipulated ed that Sharkey should not nol fight for sit sh months previous to the tl titular ulL e event Tom wanted action and when th the chance offered ho onga engaged cd John T L. L Sullivan In a 0 no decision three thieo round bout in this city Fitzsimmons openly voiced th the opinIon opinIon opinion ion that he could l knock ou out In ton rounds and Sharkey rushed l hack back acl to Frisco lost the tho fight on a n. foul In tho the eighth round Just before Corbett Corbell ane and mons climbed Into tho the ring at Carson for tor I their memorable battle Sharkey put up ft It forfeit of at to rr ct th the th winner win win- nor ner but Fitz persisted In Ignoring the challenge of the thc sailor pallor fighter tighter After fighting Jim Williams an eight round draw at Salt Satt Lake CIl City came camo ca cast t and met Pet Peter r Maher Manor Ma Ma- ra- ra her nor at t the he old Lenox A A. C. C in III this thle city That battle in is officially recorded an as a draw but Sharkey la Is among th the tho many who say that It was stopped ln n the l seventh round to save cave Matter from froma a a. knockout Sharl Sharkey y next knocked out Joo Joe Goddard In six Mx rounds at nt San Francis co co and then ho made mado e. e tour of at Ir Ire ire- land hand offering to any man who would stay four rounds with him bun IP In order he ho disposed of ot Joe Craig In one round at E Belfast Pat at McCourt In n two rounds at Wren Tren Point Tom Torn Parks on ono one round at Dundalk and Punch Vaughn three rounds at Liv Liv- C Although Joe Soe roe Choyn kl was as awarded a an eight round draw against Sharkey at nt San Francisco Franeisco Torn Tom as asserts asserts as- as B rt that he knocked out In describing hl his his' fight with Jeffries 81 Sharkey says saya that he ho had Big BIJ Jim whipped all the way in th the twenty l rounds but the referee gave Jeffries the tho decision That disgusted me with Frisco Prisco said I dont don't know how far fur farI furI I would have havo been boen forC forced d to go to win officially I returned to tho the east and knocked ked Gus Ruhlin out in twenty twenty- seven seconds Then TIter came his hla fight with Jim Cur CIr bott bolt In this city in which Honest John Kell Kelly tho the referee declared nil 11 bets bots off oft after Corbetts Corbett's seconds Jumped Into th the ring to save Gentleman Gentleman Gentle man n Jim from further punishment In Inthe Inthe inthe the ninth round Early In ir the succeeding year oar 1899 Sharkey knocked out Kid McCoy Ic oy atthe ot at the Lenox A. A C. C In ten rounds Lose Lo to Jeffrie Jack McCormick In After r stopping two rounds round at Philadelphia and boxing a six round exhibition with Tommy Ryan at Qt Syracuse fought his hie I famous fight with Jim Jeffries it nt t Conc Coney Island which ho lost in twenty- twenty five rounds That was one of tho tIm gamest exhibitions ever witnessed Jeffries a could not knock the sailor saltor out but he hp ploughed his heavy right Into tho left side tide of or 8 bOI body so often that nn In i v the fact that several era of C Toms T- T ribs ribs were cr either cither broken or dislocated An Incident connected connect d with the fight tight which has never before been printed w was as s told tho the writer by br Sharkey On the tho da day of tho the fight I decided to make tho the trip to Coney Cone Island from Crom my training quarters at New Dorp Staten Island b by water We Wo had hac a i small man launch haunch and despite the fact that tho wind was blowing and a faIn farl fairly n a sea t was ts s running wo we nev never nevor r doubted that wo we would be he able abl to cross safely After we had harl gotten about 30 yards from shore the launch swamped an I was compelled to swim back wih ih nil ill my clothes on OIL That was aM about two o'clock In the afternoon and It was a 1 cold November cIa day I was chilled through h. h hut but after a a. rub down 1 I went to bed for a few rew hours and fou fought ht J 1 fries R at t 0 o'clock that night Then came my battle with mons Twenty five thousand persons rats rats' that affair In tho the first r round nd J I hit and floored him T r candidly believe that FI Fit Fita 7 was waa knocked out but tho the crowd was to so boisterous that no ono one could he hear r th tIm tun referee count Then of ot course courso Fit Fits came back in tho thio second anil knocked me ot ott tArter t. t After Arter m my six ix round bout Ith Jack Munroe at Philadelphia February 27 7 1901 I. I I decided to retire You can sa say lot for me however howo that I am nm convinced that tha t I could spoil the aspirations of or some somo of these white hopes hopes' if It I decided de decided de- de to get in the ring with th m. m |