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Show FITZSIMMONS CALLS 1DE1J0UTS JOKE Former Champion Says That Money Guarantee Is Ruin-' ing Pugilism as Sport. P.y Tr;b':n? pial Pport Service. Xi:w VOKK. May 30. And dow C'.'on oi'i Bob ViT7:nimons comes along and uttors some harih, cruel words in tbe general direction of the present-day present-day punching erons. Xot only does Bob verbally hammer the "white hopes." of whom Bob thinks darned little, but he also takes a poke at the entries in all other divisions. 'The borers of the present day are a menace to the sport," asserts Fitz, with much gusto. "They are money mad. They ask too much for their services, and the exhibitions some of thern irive are fierce. "Think of Ritchie demanding and getting a 5HJ.000 guarantee for ten rounds exactlv thirty minutes' work. Wiiv, it's absurd. Th'ose fellows ought to he made to fight on a percentage basis like we did in the old days, the winner receiving the major portion of the purse. "The reason that the fights of the present day are iokes and farces in comparison" with those in the old days is because of that guarantee business. When a figuter knows that he'll get a certain amount, no matter how the battle bat-tle ends, he doesn 't extend himself. He iust stalls along and defrauds the public, pub-lic, for be is taking their money under the pretense of fighting. "But ten and twenty years ago, before be-fore the guarantee idea became in vogue, there were real fights. A fighter knew that winning made a difference of from 20 to 30 per cent in his divvy, according to whether the purse was split 60-50 or 70-30. and vou can bet 011 it that ho humped himself some to grab off the big end. "It's too bad that, some of the old-time old-time fighters who gave, the fans ao honest run for their money aren't in their prime today, so that they could grab down some" of the big money. Thev were the bovs who gave the crowd the verv best exhibition possible. They fought "everv minute they wore on their feet." |