Salt Lake Tribune | 1913-12-04 | Page 9 | Murphy Admittedly is Clever Fighter

MURPHY-ADIUIITTEDLY IS CLEVER FIGHTER Works With Zeal for His Championship Bout With Willie Ritchie. By W. W. NATJGHTON. By International News Service. SAN FRANCISCO, Dec. S While watching "Harlem" Tommy Murphy at work in his gymnasium and noting the evident zest with which ho tackles his oxcrcl.sos and tho energy ho infuses into the things ho does, it is hard to reallco all that the sturdy llttlo New Yorker has been through In tho boxing line. Tho fact remains that Murphy has flourished contemporaneously with four world's champions In his division that ho has seen threo of them pass into defeat de-feat and out of tho limelight, nnd is now about to box tho fourth after many years of waiting for a chanco at tho blue ribbon. rib-bon. To thoso who do not know Murphy or havo not scon him in action, a recital of this kind might suggest that it is hardly hard-ly fair to expect such a veteran to cope successfully with a strong young follow llko Wllllo Ritchie, but dial's tho wonderful won-derful thing about Murphy. In tho mattor of bolng well preserved, ho 13 in a class with Bob FitzsimmonB, who in his fighting years scorned to havo drunk of tho fountain of youth. A glanco at Murphy's record is highly lntorosting. It containu tho names of such performers as "Kid" Broad, "Young" Corbott, Benny Tangor, Terry McGovern and Frankio Nell, lighters who havo been out of tho gamo theso many yGars. When the "Battling" Nelson-Joo Gans feud was at its holght Tommy was fighting fight-ing such men a3 Leach Cross, Matty Baldwin and Paclcoy McFarland, and this Is ample proof that ho would havo boon a fair enough championship Candida to at that tlmo If the chanco had come his way. Murphy was never sorioualy taken an an opponent for Gans. but "Battling" Nelson, It Is said, resolutely rofused to Blgn with tho Hnrlem boy, giving as a rcanon that Murphy tried to "put ona over" on him whllo giving an exhibition exhibi-tion with eight-ounce gloves at tho Polo grounds in Now York. This was four years or moro ago and shortly afterward Murphy gave Ad Wol-gast Wol-gast a hard tlmo of it during a. six-round bout In Pittsburg, co hard that after Wolgast became champion he rofused to entertain a ohallenge from Tommy.