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Show WOLGAST AFRAID TO MEET PACKEY (By James J. Corbett.) New Pork, Sept. 17. Threatened logal action to prevent the proioaed ! staging of a bout between Ad Wolgast, the lightweight champion, and Packoy McFarland in thiB city, on the ground that It was In the nature of a prizefight, prize-fight, was made unnecessary by the calling off of the bout scheduled to take place at Madison Square Garden on September 7. .Manager Billy Gibson or tbe Garden Athletic club announced its abandonment, abandon-ment, He averrod that Wolgast had refused to live up to the contract. Another good thing gono wrong Looks now as ir tho Wolgast-McFar-land match Is off. Whose fault? Not McFarland's, you can take It from me. Packey Ib a sore and very much Nvorrlcd "harp" over the turn affairs have taken. Wolgast has refused to llvo up to the agreement made with Billy Gibson Gib-son of the Gardon Athletic club, and Is asking for more coin. If he doesn't get the Increase the bout is off. That's Ad's ultimatum. Also ho has au injured in-jured arm. Tho articles of agreement signed by Wolgast and Gibson stipulated, stipu-lated, so I am Informed, that Ad was to receive $15,000 cash and a percentage percent-age of the moving picture receipts, the club to guarantee that his bit from the "movies" would equal $7,500, making mak-ing a total for tho champion of $22,-500. $22,-500. Wolgasfs latest demand callB for at leaBt 325,000 cash and 51 per cent of the net picture profits. It is not likely the Gardon management manage-ment will -accede to Ad's demands, so It looks like a cinch the bout Is off so far as Now York is concerned. For' it is' a safe bot tho boxing' com- ""i' " mission will take action should the lightweight champion refuse to live up to tho original agreement. la Wolgaot Afraid? I hate to think that Wolgast is araid to meet McFarland, but that's tho way It looks. I know that Tom JonoR, Ad's manager, objected to the match from the Jump. Jones evidently evident-ly can't Bee his boy giving weight to McFarland in a 10-round contest, over which distance tho Chicagoan can go at his liveliest clip. Jones no doubt has at last convinced con-vinced tho champion that ho would have tho worst of such a bargain, and that the caslost way out of a bad match is to insist upon a new deal. Wolgast will lose many friends If he falls to go through with his part of the program. A year ago when tho Wisconsin match was stopped by the authorities there was a rumor in circulation cir-culation that Ad's influence with certain cer-tain officials had much to do with the Interference. In this case the champion cham-pion will be accused of having developed devel-oped a bad case of cold feet How Packey Gets the Coin. McFarland has been training for tho match and making the preparatory prepara-tory stunts a source of profit. The plan, and It might be followed to advantage ad-vantage by all thrifty boxers, Is to put In the time usually allowed to camp routlno to public exhibitons with as many opponents as can be persuaded persuad-ed to meet him Packey Is a card wherever he appears, and can command com-mand oubstantlal guarantees, so It will be seen that his method of conditioning condition-ing himself for the more important battles is a very sensible and profitable profit-able one. The fight bugs are up In the air oer the McFarland-Wolgast mill, If my mall Js any criterion. What seems to bother the sports is the question of tho title changing hands in tho event of a decisive "win" by McFarland. McFar-land. The only way that cither man can scoro a victory that will go on record will be to land a knockout The boxing commissioners do not permit referees' decisions Ir. this state. Should the match take place, which Is doubtful, and Packey tumble Ad for the full count, the latter would still be champion, as this encounter calls for a weight two pounds above the recognized limit But Packey would be popularly proclaimed the champion. As mentioned in this column col-umn several weeks ago. It would be the young Corbett-Terry McGc'rn thing all over again Terry and Corbett Cor-bett met at 126 pounds, If I remember remem-ber correctly. Tho title was not at stake, but Corbett the winner, was hailed as champion. J |