Show 1 v l sN IN THE DAYS OF REAL FIGHTING I IRIT RIT RITCHIE HIE CLEANLY KNOCKED OUT BUT REFEREE FORT FORGOT TO START COUNT ANn AN HE HE CAME BACK AND DEFEATED KOHLER i r Fi First t Punch Knocked American Champion C Cold id but Third Man Was So- So Surprised He Missed a Few Seconds Never Knew He Was Hit and ind nd Thought Seventh the First Round By ROBERT EDGREN a No 3 3 A punch one-punch knockout came within an ace of keeping S. S Willie Ritchie from becoming worlds world's light weight champion Sometimes it isn't necessary to go back fifteen or OP twenty years to find finda a fight th that t was was a fight Willie Ritchie the American light weight cham cham- pion-is pion one cin n fellow who like the old timers never disappoints those who expect to see see action when he steps into the ring ring Willie has shown some some fighting in in N New w York Once just after becoming champion he boxed Leach Cross here herer and just to show h his is goods stepped Into Leachie and lugged all the way Again he chased Freddy Welsh for ten r rounds hammered ham ham- ered him hm into and out of every corner of the ring and outclassed the the Briton so far that every spectator was kas was convinced the English decision that took toek Ritchie's light weight title away must have been one of the most astonishing ever given in in a ring ring Ritchie has had some hard fights eights Joe Rivers once nearly finished him im in in the first round and Willie came through and knocked the Mexican i cold colds cold's ld a few rounds later Charlie White nailed him with a right sight on the chin that nearly robbed him of his senses in the first round and Willie fought himself out of the hole and at the end of the h six was p piling r into t White and ana anu doing agni l I his ii nis u. ae-u. deadly w. w ke best to even the score p piling r into t White and ana anu doing agni ii nis u. ae-u. B But Bitt t the toughest fight of his life 1912 nearly was on New Years Year's day eleven months before he became champion What happened then killing Ritchie's chance to came c me near get the fight that earned him the title tite Ritchie began fighting when he was 18 H Ho He had a lot of short bouts and won often H His is first long fight was with Matty Baldwin whom he beat in twenty rounds in m San Fran CISCO Boxed Wels Welsh Twenty Rounds o on Short Notice Just f four ur months after Efter fter th this s fight Ritchie Ritchie- was at home and and not very very bus busy s hen he lle received a wire asking him to lo start Mart at once for Los Angeles seve several l' l hu hundred dred miles away to substitute substitute sub sub- t for ii Ad Wolgast in a R twenty twenty- round rUnd nd bo bout bot t with Freddy Welsh Wolgast Wolgast Wol- Wol gast Ji had s suddenly y been knocked out by an attack of f appendicitis and was was in the hospital Ritchie accepted b by bj wire rode all aU night arrived in Los Angeles in the afternoon and afternoon and fO fought fOght Welsh twenty rounds that night Although Ritchie flitchie had gone in without with with- o out oit t a days day's training he fought a fas fast t twenty rounds and lost a decision to the clever English boxer only by a narrow margin Welsh elsh was trained to the moment for an attempt to take tak the tue title from Wolgast Ritchie's Ritchie B sens sensational exploit established him as I one of the best light weights hi In the country and he started for the East to increase his reputation and gather same coin t tOne I One month after meeting Welsh elsh Willie fought Paul Koehler in Cleve- Cleve JUin i J K Koehler ehler was s a tall taB rangy rang fellow tel fel- I fel-I floW low with Ith boxing skill kill and a punch pw He had harf fought Packey McFarland and had given gl Packey the time In his experience while the bout lasted He lie was no easy mark I anxious t to make a hit i in the East walked straight ht a at vJ lOehler Koehler oehler i e ready dy to t begin hostilities without any preliminary sparring Right flight here I Willie made math the mistake of ot underestimating under under- under under-j e estimating his man Tt It was was Koehler began not Willie Wilile As As' As Willie Villie stepped ped within range Koehler loehler suddenly sud sud- denly dent slammed a right fist over on his Jaw with all an the strength of arm armand an and back and shoulder and legs be beh behind be- be h hind hid nd the blow Ritchie Rithie Never Knew What Wh t Struck Him HII Ritchie never neer knew kiew he was hit He I flopped over forward like hike 11 IL man truck struck down b by a bullet and fell tell flat flaton on on hIs face knocked out cold I It was was' waSso ro sudden that Koehler stood st staring ring at t Ritchie paralyzed with astonishment The referee laughingly laughing laughing- ly turned to Koehler and waved him to his his' corner EmU Emil Thiry who was b behind Ritchie and was supposed to chief adviser turned hi his back backon on his his' hisman man malt and walked awa away from the ring He fe deserted the ship When three or four foul seconds had passed it suddenly occurred to the r referee that he ho ml might ht as well count over ver Ritchie and id d announce his hla official finish fin fin- ish lab He began Ritchie lay on hi hl hi face fac completely l b out The Koehler Koebler being a local favorite was enjoying isis his task tak He lie smilingly ly glanced at t the wildly en enthusiastic enthusiastic en- en spectators At seven something stirred in the back jack of Ritchie's s brain Perhaps he didn't didn t tactually actually I think Some instinct aroused bythe slow tolling of the count ten count drove d ove o him to a action U tiOn n. n Mechanically he rolled over to his knees and nd just at nine pushed himself t to his feet and stood tottering If It tt the referee had begun counting at pace no ms o doubt I Willie would have b been en err counted out and in that case he have had the match with Vol Wolgast ast later on Su Such buch n small things two things two or three ap apparently p- p I patently unimportant some seconds some seconds some sometimes times make all the difference In the i world orld I Ritchie was up But he be was in ba baI 11 shape hape His hands hung at his hilS- sides ides Koehler ehler rushed in anxiously to finIsh finish fin- fin ish lab him Ritchie swaying reeling J falling headlong forward somehow I managed to 10 move his chin away from the blows that were rained upon him And after round his hia strength slowly slow returned At first in his corner cor cor- ner ncr he made no answer to the de deserting de- de Thiry wh who had been brought lt I back and nd was anxiously asking Willie I how I he clU After Atter the seventh ro round nd Ritchie came came to to his hl corner with the the dazed Juo look gone from his eyes What li l i happened Is the ti first st round o er over he asked ked He had been fighting lighting for tOI seven rounds purely purel on the fighters fighter's instinct He never re reI reIn remembered re- re I In anything about the beginning beginning begin begin- ning of t that fight PUri UBY trying to finish the wor work ho II no un had Iwa begun Paul A u. u n Koehler had U ho II no un Iwa begun A u. u n U fought himself arm weary He lie had bad I nearly shot his bolt And now in the I seventh ro TO nd Ritchie turned the I tide of ot battle against him Ritchie flitchie I had come back He pressed his ri rival rival ri- ri val hard bard Koehler was as game as Ritchie He lie fought his best right to be end In the last list round the thet t Ritchie beat Koehler until he e ha had 1 him Im hanging over oer the ropes There Ritchie was cas trying to turn him around in n time to put over a knockout knockout knock knock- out ont punch when the last bell rang Knocked cold in tn the first round Ritchie had beaten the man who had bad hadI Continued I Continued on page 5 I IN HE THE DAYS OF Continued Continued from page 4 put him down for the referees referee's deci decision e i ision sion was was that Willie won Ritchie's flitchie's end In this this fight was less than 6 5 per cent of ot what McFarland McFarland McFarland land received for boxing te ten l' l rounds zounds safely and cleverly with wih Mike Gibbons Gib Gib- bons Willie made such a hit that he was matched to meet Koehler again at t the Eagles' Eagles club 0 of Cleveland Cleveland Cleveland Cleve Cleve- land but Koehler drew out and Yankee Yankee Yan Yan- YanI I kee Ieee Schwartz was was substituted i ij j Ritchie knocked him out In three three j rounds It I was a somewhat easier casler task And It I paid him more money than the Koehler Koshler fight which he lie looks back upon now as the tho most desperate in all al his experience I |