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Show Champion Is Chameleon I Naughton Calls Attention to Jack Johnson i Bewildering Changes Concerning Fights By W. W. Naughton SAN FRANCISCO. Jan. 27. "Jack Johnson is a queer fighter,' remarked re-marked a sport who keeps close tab on the developments In the pugilistic pugil-istic world. "He saya he won't tackle Sam McVea or Jim Flynn until he gets thirty thousand dollars cold, hut declares he is wiling to tiade punches with Jim Corbett Just for the fun of the' thing " Wen. what's the difference? What Jack Johnson says matters little. It is what he doeshet counts. And the man who can predict, with any degree de-gree of rertainty, the nature of Jack's activities during the next few months must be gifted with second sight in an extraordinary degree. Here are a eoupl of gneeses. If Johnson boxes either McVea or Flynn, the remuneration will be con-tddcrablj' con-tddcrablj' less th.-ln ?30,C00. If John-Bon John-Bon and Corbett meet facr- to face, there will be no bloM fined. JOHNSON'S speeches and SCtJonS for many months past ha-e been a jumble of contradictions, He has muddled things to such an extent ex-tent that at times it seems as though he is laughing in his sleeve at all I reatlon lie went to England and de-nounrofi de-nounrofi America. He came back hre and flouted England. While H'ross the pond he entered Into a contract to box McVea in Australia He changed his mind and pave out that he had retired. He was 5o persistent in telling that he was through with the vanities of the ring that experts the world round began arguing a o -e ho wr.s best entitled to grab his laurel. 'When appealed to for an opinion. Johnson said that he Jld not care a rap Who claimed tho championship or who fought for it He was out of It and took no further interest n it. Whon Jak .ame back, h" said, with n"vei" a suspicion Of a smirk or n tnule. that he Cpuldn'1 for the life of him imagine how that retirement nm"r not around. He had no? retired. Nr. in-d':-etl. He v. as still In ;he game with both feet and both hands and nil he wanted Was a price, Lei some one flaunt a check for 180,000 in 1mb face and he would olgn articles quickly enough to make the checkglvei's head swim. IT IS no fallacy to state that there wai ceneral pntisfacllon in sporting sport-ing cirvles when Johnson made known he was still in the game it nay be that the public, resented the Idea of Johnson breaking ittvav from the ring unllrked, e tt may be rhnt myriad! who ar tntered in boxing box-ing H that, with the. master Iioaw- weight withdrawn nrom the game, the bOttOtti WOUld full out of the top. notch division Am. how .loimson's announcement that be was ready to take up the cudgel aa.-tin. renewed Interest In th beavytwejghts and there wan much apecuiatlott as to where the first rhaliengex would coins from. Ilointoan. the Auatralkui prdmoier, repeat oj his offer of a math with BfrVea, ard johngou accepted. I am ti b". Sam MoVea In Sidney on Hawfer .Monday." said Jij.'.k. A little later the news was forthcoming forth-coming that tho match would take place In Parle, but that was one shift, or condition for which Johnson waa not responsible. The "Wowser element." ele-ment." as the opponents of boxing are called in Australia, had begun to agitate against Mcintosh's all-black all-black Queensberry attraction, and the far-seeing promoter thought a change of venue advisable. June 22. the evening even-ing of the day on which the Grand Prix was run, was fixed on as the date. THEN Jack Curley, as acltve and brainy an arranger of arenle. spectacles as ever traversed Publicity avenue, thought up a grand assault at arms bstween Jaek (Gotch) Johnson snd Jim (Haekensehmldt) Flynu and the champion swallowed the lure, hook, line and sinker. Did he stop to figure, think you. that little Flynn might prove a less formidable proposition than Gorilla McVea. or was it that he knew he could reach JH Nevada without --rosslnp the equator or becoming seasick? Anyhow the Flynn match appealed to Jack. "I v.iii ge Mcintosh to postpone th McVea ficht. There are more people peo-ple in Paris in'the fall." was whst the champion vouchsafed by way of ex- H Incidentally, not a Word has been H heard of the McVea affair since. Pei -haps Mcintosh has grown wean' of ehasing i.hlmeras. The Flynn article were signed, but there was no end to Js :ka jrame of cross purposes, He urged, nay. insisted, that Flynn cancel his bout with AI Palmer It looked as J though he was afraid of Palzer, that H he mlsht spoil the Nevada match. H P.Mt after bulldozing FV nn into cut- H ting loose from Palsei the champion H announced he was neKotiatin? for a ma trh with Falser on his own ac- I IN BETWEEN a couple of these I contradictions or Inconslsteaclegj Johnson learned he was barred from New York. Naturally, he was greatly worked up over this. Quick ar a flash, he framed a plan for get-ting get-ting H New Vork had barred blm and hs j WOUld erase from the list of the pes- H Slbje opponeuts the name of any H hea vwelcht who boxed In New York. H Flynn ;,-,.) ..the is please take H ft was a fearful threat, but It waa merely another of Jack's passing H T!"for thirty-six hours bad H pa--d. declared that he hud H hanged his mind. Instead of avoid- ing Vi v,rk and demanding that H 'pponents avoid New York he H take the Mr ""' by storm and H jef Boadng Commissioner O'Neill. H The Fran ley law. he argpedi wa' framed for blacks and whites alike H snd he would s'and upon rights as H an American He would box H ST know the H Aiid that's the way it goes. Jack H Is a shifty in bis conversation Is in bis ringwork. But acarcety a H u ' ' - K- ler.'i! t. |