Show the boxing same the hostile attitude of the gover nors of many states caused a distressing slump in the pugilistic game during the year of 1907 writes george slier on this account the year was the most disastrous known for a decade one by one the states open to the promoters of the game ing the manly art of self defence were closed either by force of public sentiment or by the desire of state and county officials to seek favor by prohibiting hi events even los angeles where tho game has flourished without disfavor joined the procession andt bouts to ten rounds governor danloy ot indiana effectually killed tho sport in the hoosier state by his rigorous en of the law and later in the year governor cummins of iowa put vp the bars but not so effectually in nevada and certain parts of california the roped arena is still high in favor but the distance to tho coast makes otherwise easy matches practically impossible in philadelphia boston and milwaukee fights are sull permitted the game is dead in chi cago by the same powers that killed the american derby and put the tatu PK washington park club out of ex Is burns still on top it was not a year in which championships pion ships were made tommy bums enoah brusso the canadian is still on top of the heavyweight heap he has defended his title gained when he defeated marvin hartin nevada more than two years ago against several challengers challen gera but the caliber or the men ho met in the ring was tai belew the average of other years his most notable light was against squires of australia the antipodean it proved was overly touted for bums to put him out in one round burns fight with anil adelthia jack obrien should hardly be referred to in a serious review oi pugilistic events of course burns thrasher his man handsomely but tho contest revealed the fact that obrien was a faker of the first water late in tho year bums battle with gunnor moir in england established him as the worlds champion in this labb always making a mental exception in favor of the big fellow out california way who can whip them all but who will not gatei the ring again joe cans remains champion of tho lightweight class in all that the name implies early in toe year he whipped kid herman after this bat clebe made oae of his frequent freau ent announcements noun cements of his retirement from the ring and handed the championship title over to george who flights under tho stage name of jimmy auroa then gans reconsidered and like an indian giver took back the title alleging that alembic would be unable to fight at pounds gans then made packey mcfarland his but did not band him the title As gans is sure to enter acain whenever he sees a large enough to tempt him he may hilll be considered the lightweight champion no real champions in the welter and middleweight ranks there is a pretty contest be tween a host of claimants there are so many who declare themselves the in these classes that the rival claims are confusing contusing con and it Is bard to decide definitely many of the claimants are fighting in both classes stanley ketchel seems to have tho strongest claim to middleweight honors through his victory over joe thomas but ango keuy billy and others dispute his claim and there must be several catties before the real champion can be sifted out 0 the heap one of the surprises of the year was the defeat of honey mellody by frank antell in fifteen rounds by the knockout route mellody only a little more than a year ago was rec as the best in the welterweight class mantell until bis defeat of the boston boy was almost an unknown mike twin sullivan jimmy gardner and several others dispute the welter championship with among the little fellows in the featherweight division abe attel still stands bead and shoulders above his rivals in tho bantam class owen moran the stocky ene ashman is easily the leader while in the pound division johnny too ion anil kid murphy occupy tho center of the stage |