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Show WANT TO SEE ATTELL DEFEATED Hebrew Not Popular With the Barroom Bar-room Sport and Patrons. "While the sports of the country are. besieging James J. Jeffries lo come out of retirement and fight Jack John son for the world's championship, many of them Jc ransacking both continents to get Abe Attell beaten. The little featherweight has been champion' of his class ever since George Dixon was defeated .by Terry McGovern nine years ago. After that contest McGoveru was too big to fight at 122 pounds, and was obliged to scale at 12G and 128 pounds, which practically made him a lightweight. At that time Attell was a' mere boy, but 1C years of age. The clover llttlo Californian then began his ring career, ca-reer, for in the year 1900 he stopped sixteen opponents in five rounds or less, among them being Eddie Hanlon. Quite an achievement for a 10-year-old boy. Begins March Up Ladder. The following year, 1901, he won decisions de-cisions over five men, Including one over George Dixon In fifteen rounds. He subsequently fought a ten and twenty-round draw with- the late world's champion, and added nine more knockouts to his list, being accomplished ac-complished In four rounds and leBS. In 1902, when but 18 years old. his march up the pugilistic ladder began, when he beat that rough ring general, gen-eral, Kid Broad, in twenty rounds, and won a fifteen-round decision over Her-vera, Her-vera, the rugged Mexican featherweight. feather-weight. From that date until the present time his record has been nothing more than a succession of draws and victories, vic-tories, the only decisive beating he ever received being a knockout by Tommy Sullivan, Oct 13, 1904. in St. Louis. It was always rated as a chance punch, as he never could be lured to repeat the trick. There Is probably no boxer In the American ring who has fought the same men so many times as has Abe Attell. He is one of those Individuals who has supreme confidence in his own ability. Whenever Attell fought a man and wa3 able to hold him safe, that fellow could have a dozen fights bo long as there was any money in sight. He gave Dixon three chanceB. Kid Broad had two. Attell met Harry Forber four times. Young Erne had four sessions. Battling Nelson could not onset tne elusive uie amui-nlan's amui-nlan's cleverness In two trials. Eddie Kelly, who was Nelson's sparring spar-ring partner, was given three opportunities oppor-tunities to prove his class. Frank Car-sey Car-sey was beaten twice, Harry Baker had two trials and Owen Moran, of England, had two tryouts. Thus all down the line Attell never denied an opponent a chance to prove his worth, but he Invariably had the better of the matchmaking Moran was the hardest nut that Attell At-tell attempted to crack, as at the end of two bouts the decisions were of the hair-lino order. The recent bout with Jem Drlscoll, no matter from which viewpoint It be regarded, was nothing to AjfceH's discredit. He made every concession to the Englishman, who. with Moran, was brought to this country coun-try especially to trim the American. That he did not suceed in a declslvo fashion is due only to Attell s remarkable remark-able skill. When a return match Is made Driscol will have to make 122 pounds or there will be no contest. Ho has 'always had a volco In his own matchmaking, is an astute business busi-ness fellow, and shuns the glitter of dissipation, eludes the hero worshippers, worship-pers, and for that reason has made himself unpopular with the rough classes. Thnl Is why two countries are being ransacked to beat him. The class of sports who spend their time In idleness picking up a dollar here and there have no time for the fellow who does not loosen up hence At-tell's At-tell's unpopularity. He was 25 years old Washington's birthday. Out'of more than 200 fights in nine years he has only one decisive beating "scored against him. He has a good pair of hands, Js as slippery in tho ring as the proverbial eel, a past muster of the hit and get away game, and at 122 pounds he can hold his own with Drlscoll, Moran or any other foreign for-eign boxer whom tho "disgruntled sports care to import. |
