Show I SPORTS CAVE MEN MEM ARE ARE- EXTINCT FIJi SAYS Robert Fitzsimmons declares the cava men of the rin ring are extinct and tc t the he champions of today arc are children c compared with the old school I 1 had my first fight when I was 15 y years ears of age said the old gladiator I I had iad three bare knuckle fights with h heavy eavy weights when I was a kid weigh weigh- i n ng less than pounds Ini the school I learned arned In Toay Today To- To Today day ay they get a purse that would equal my entire ring earnings r and they e have havet i t handed J t to them for six ag or t ten rounds O d on n decision no-decision fighting Jim Jeffries was the greatest fighter that hat ever lived I say so BO because I If f ight him twice and I trained him for that hat fight with Corbett Do you know why he lost Not age Bah Ilah Age counts nothing Some of his smart friends thought they thoy loy would tune him up and they used chloral on him and it killed every chance he e had That's as true as Im I'm Bob l Fitz- Fitz sammons lie He was wall doped You dont don't think a manlike manlike man manike like ike Jim would lie do you He has never said a word since but some day you will hear henr lear the whole story I think I know who slipped it to him The best bantam and feather weight to o my mind was little Dixon He was a a tighter fighter lIe He was a boxer Joe Joe Cans Gans was the best light weight and so 80 much greater than the rest of the field that only one compares with him him him- Kid Lavigne A fight between them would have been a great battle Mysterious 1 Billy Smith was the best of the welter weights if watched and trained rained right He lie seemed Immune to all allne P punishment ne Pardon me but 1 t think old Fitz was a good g heavy weight Fair Fall kind of a a. chap Never Jever wasted any time peeping into the looking glass but nevertheless he was a fair sort of a fighter at his pounds I fought Jack Johnson I had a broken woken arm at the time I took a chance with Jeffries as a pug dog would with the butchers butcher's terrier Hh re Is the difference between the present day fighters and the tue veterans Every time I let one go I tried for knockout Today they outpoint men As a school they have hwe us tied Ill I'll say that hat A knockout is a rare event today In n the old days they fought to a a. decision I used to say to myself Well Bob you just lust keep leep firing and you'll land When Is a a. fighter in his prime That depends I know of oC oarsmen at 45 who have been at their best and I 1 have seen sprinters In m my time who at 40 were going faster than they ever did lid I was 45 and a champion and In my prime Any man with normal living Jiving should live to be 80 SO at least What checks fighters The merry life lite They Jump off oft a wagon or come up ur out of a mine and earn a fortune Then Thea they get car careless less and the first thing they know they are trying to whip the best of 01 them all nil nature and down they go and I they seldom get up |