Show 1 j. j T I i 1 An Authoritative Sport Fea Feature ture by the Foremost Foremost Foremost Fore Fore- most Sporting Writer P and Cartoonist in in 1 America v k i I By Rober Robert t Edgren good In war boxers Slavin I had it from Crom a wounded Listen to this thi stor story ot of Frank in itt enlisted Do D bo boy who back from the tho trenches trenches-L ft just Savin's Savins Canadian Sixteenth Canadian Scottish who with Slavin's regiment the sent with him in a n. hospital and final finally was Slavin through the fighting was that carried tho the old lion of or the prize c ring ship ilp home borne on tho the same hospital but bul he lie admitted of or age went to tho the war ho he was years cars When Then Slavin with it for tor he was wasa recruiting sergeant and got away a. a ay anI only 41 years cars to the Well YeU over six lx Ix feet feel tall taB Slavin Sla Is Is and as aM of oC manS a a. wonderful specimen u a even today to ay Stripped ho looks fit to fight anyone anono straight as an nn Indian In those a n youngster when John L. L Sullivan was and ho he was in fit his prime heavyweight cham chant champions champions rings ring's greatest Slavin was one of or tho the London prize layS days Sl without Sullivans Sullivan's trail for a a. year yeat nr or more mOle piouS and he campe camped close on of less noted a man than thon match I have it on tho the authority no getting Setting a n. Sullivan as at anyone that close to who was us as Professor Protessor- liko Donovan Slavin was the ono one wl white te man Sullivan dl didn't nt care to fight n. n A magnificent u veteran was wa Slav Slavin Sla l ii w when h os white whitehair ho went to Ute tile war ar lint But for his I hair lr and hI his white mustache he looked like a a. husky husk Yukon miner rather than thana a man who had pone gone through a long ring career and had boon been out of oC It and working work- work In ins ing as an engineer In the arctic wilderness wilderness wilder wilder- ears He ile nan line a adeep adeep ad ness nElSa for 01 nearly twenty years deep d l voice and a square cut fighting fi Jaw thrust forward a n lilt Hit that was always alas and hands that swung nearly near to his knees es WOULDN'T TAKE A COMMISSION Slavin went to England with the Sixteenth Sixteenth Six Six- Canadian Scottish and trained at t Salisbury Plains for Cor- Cora or a time and then went to France for two months' months more conditioning and then was rushed into tho hottest fighting in Belgium They The had off offered red Slavin a chance for a commission com corn this time because of oC hili hiJ knack mission by It refused had and he of ot handling men with the men because e he wanted to stay he lit had bad enlisted back In Victoria So black night seven months later found round one Frank Slavin Sia In out In a front line tr trench with the Germans pressing pr hardIn hard hardIn In their theIr- drive for tho sea and an no one knowing what might happen n next feeling well satisfied with life an and quite as much the tho aurora at home as ever he did under under- hot bote They The were working hard that night half finished 1 strengthening the the- thc narrow narrow trench they the had hat been sent for ard too to o occupy Slavin was at It with the trie rest lifting mUng tags hags of sand to build up ui the para para- pet Hed He'd lean over grasp sp a heavy nag Dag Dagand and toss it up into place Ba Bag after he did his snare of bag never neV r wearying work the Then Just as Sl Slavin vin lifted a bag and straightened to full tull height In ln the darkness darkness dark dark- some one struck a match to light a ness fag Slavin's head was above the ground toran Foran For tor opposite a loophole lovel level or perhaps Instant his lean face fa and his white an mustache stood out in the glow There was the thc Infinitely short abrupt sou sound of oC a rifle bullet and a sound like that of a butchers butcher's cleaver striking bone u i D is Slavin's Slavin s ba bag o of sand slipped II from n nis bandS hands and feil fell across his feet He Ho stood upright motionless In the darkness darness Jor Jora F or ora ra r- r a long minute he lie stood there And then one of the men stepped to his side he asked the matter Frank Not ot hit are you 11 0 Slavin raised his right hand lowy slowly He l-C wore heavy gauntlets and rubbing the tho back of It across his forehead peered steadily at it In the dim starlight Ho He didn't answer but stood there there- theresa j s a s a little on n his widespread feet Then he I took off oft his cap brought the edge edg of It across his eyebrows and jammed it on I tightly him I The whizzing bullet had struck just in front of the left temple and had I I plowed across his forehead ad following the curve cur of or the frontal bone but not crushIng crushIng crush crush- I clush Ing through It was a 0 terrific stunning bio blow xv I Silently Slavin turned and began to climb out of the thc trench and over oer the parapet rapet Another man caught him b by the tho I shoulder houlder only to bo ho shaken oft un got Into Inlo you he he- demanded Ara Ar you ou crazy Slavin drew himself over the parn parapet t tand and turned his head Either Im I'm not coming back he hc with me growled or Ill I'll bring a pal Ho crawled awa away into tho the darkness out through the wire SLAVIN GOT HIS MAN MANt Half an hour later Inter there was was wasa a scuffling scuffling fling ling sound soun on the edge of the tho trench and Rod tho the men leaping up saw m. m dim figures s looming against the blue-black blue sIt sky Blows and a B kick and a a. titan man in German Uniform fell headlong into the trench and Slavin Sl leaped down after him Without a word he Ito picked the tho German up b by the n neck ck stood him against the trench wall and knocked him down with a heavy blow on tho the jaw Then rhen as if it there was as nothing more to bo be done ho he walked away to go goback goback goback back to the dressing station The German was a sharpshooter who had been up In a 3 tree treo somewhere out in front of tho the English trench How Slavin crawling silently out like Ilke an Indian hunter had found him and how ho he got him hin out of the tree no one ono ever knew V I J For or Slavin never told Slavin Stavin was vas sent back to Blighty to a h hospital not And And not lon long afterward ho lie was given gl his hla discharge die dis USi i charge harKe and was shipped home to Canada where he lie Is i now flow busy working for Cor the tho I government as an art engineer in III charge of oC some Borne big construction won in the YuKon I There is ie a R. story too of an American bo boy who went to tOI the war in a Canadian I regiment He lie was as a professional boxer at the tho age of or 19 when he ho enlisted and andt t wa was a grown man In physique His Ills name was wae Robin Lilly LUb Ills His home homo was Lo Los An An- 1 j geles treles 1 4 Lilly was in the front line trenches one I 1 night bight where the tho outposts tH of ot his rc regi- regi l- l h 11 ment rubbed elbows elbow H with a Cockney outu out- out u t fit They called him hint Mac l knowing 3 hint him b by his ring name which was WIlS wa Mcp Mc- Mc p Carty There wa was an officer by by name namo l i Montieth And this passed par close j b by Lilly and said sald Mac wo we are going I over for a little visit Want Vant to go 10 alon along r I t And so quite informally he found him him- himself r self one of 01 a raiding party f It was a a. foggy a night and still sUllo j 1 There was wan no firing along line The Tho ThoI Thet t I raiding party part crawled across No Mans Man's Mansi i i Land with Ith utmost caution and through j the Gi wire And not even cven a dog barked U There mere were In luck lucIe Silently the they dropped into a section of 01 tho German u trench and silently they flung nung themselves II on the men they found there with hands I that gripped at German throats and knives that Slipped clipped quietly Into soft flesh Clesh II In n a few fow minutes there were no German Ger Ger- mans man 1 A 1 The raiding party gathered to slip over Into the next trench section congratulating ing themselves that they had not been I heard that heard that there had been no alarm And then with a sudden rush rues in the blackness black- black new ness of ot the trench the Germans from tho next section fell feU upon UI On them WHERE HERE FIST WON OUTI OUT I I had juSt turned around says Lilly l telling of or It and I had lost my weapon I r heard n. n trampling ruth rush and all of a sudden the Germans were on us I could j see Lee ec a at face coming at me rue In the dark and andI I struck o out t with my bare fist with all an my nay might I always alwa's was a heavy hitter but hut I never n vcr put so much into a blow beI befOre be- be I fOre In m my life Ilfe- I I lilt hit that German squarely between the and he ho eyes went down l I often Bonder wonder what his face tace i looks IM Uke Yke For or I 1 1 bone yet I 1 smashed my rny hand as if It I ha had struck a ft fi stona wall U See this lump mP 1 broko broke that thai knuckle square across ucross Some blow I 1 heard calling Stick to me boye y yand and then it was wag just Juat a free for all nU until we fought rought ourselves clear The Germans Germane Ger Ger- rt r- r mans mane gave back k those that were left lert t ft r j f I I I I and we hauled two of oC our wounded ou out Into tho fog of the and amI got awa away And Anti Mike MIkO lIk Donovan o was WiS telling t llin jno TtO no r C a story Mike Mike Donovan worlds world's middleweight middleweight middleweight middle middle- war story weight champion forty Cort years aso a o and ln th the theman man who ho boxes hoxel with presidents story Mike lIke foughi It was a Civil war story through four Cour long years sears e rs When he was r a abo bo boy Unlike the others otherE Mikes Mike's story tor was Wa rather hUmorous humorous hu hU- as a told with a laugh laugh just Juet personal reminiscence HOW MIKE DONOVAN GOT A DRINK Mike Uke down South We Vc rc were away awny said and we wo had our trenches trench s stretching valley and ami out for mlle over o hill bill and tho the Conf trenches were right along alons In front of us and not very fat far away wa J I never call them th rebels for they the were CIC I Just as good men a as aVo wo we were and tn fought for tor what they the thought was Wl s. rigid right Just as ns we lid did shot There were some mighty pretty prett over there In the Confederate trenches and belle believe mo me thc they mAde mado It hot for Cor u us head UI up without You couldn't stick your our getting jour hat knocked off oft find and lucky lUcli If It wasn't wor wore e. e e Down where where we e w wet were rc It was ml mighty ty r hot and antI we didn't have c a drop of water left We Ve knew that over o a ridge a few hundred yards way away there was a spring and but there was open ground between we couldn't gel get to It Gosh It Il was hot hotS I After a while we couldn't stand It any anymore m who ho rno more e and so we drew diew straws straw's to sec see would woula make a 3 run for It and try to get Jet getto Jetto getto to that spring and bring back some omo s water I drew Ire the th shortest straw and it ft wa wal was s up to meI meI meI me I didn't f feel el near as ns thirsty after that thinking of oC all an those sharpshooters but butI I took eight canteens and tied them to Inc hie and jumped up and ana ran for ItI HI itI It H. I never was wn any Dan Ken Kelly hut but I covered some seine ground that day da In re record ord time The bullets whistled b by and kicked d dup up UI a a. lot of dust arid and I dodged and ran until mv nw tongue hung hung- out and I didn't have hn a breath left lert In me and amI I got ot over 01 that ridge Then I was out of oC tango and andall andall all right I 1 started down lown to 10 tho spring and there was a bunch of men sitting around it Our men you ou know from other parts of the line They'd all aIl made mado madea a R. run for it to get Jet water Believe m me we sat around that spring and a ld got ot well weli cooled off before be Core we went backs back I got back hi all hll rl I think that was the thc hardest work a man ever er did ld to get a aI drink of water And there wasn't an any Stick In lit It either cither ht 1918 b the Press Publishing Copyright by Co the New V e York Evening World |