OCR Text |
Show NEITHER HAS A STREAK Of YELLOW (By Harry D. Cashman.) New York, Jan 29. Is Jeffries game? Jb Johnson game These are questions the fight fans argue pro and con day la and day out There Is but one answer to b-.th queries. Each has done evor thing asked of him In the ring without showing a trace of the white feather. That constitutes game-ness, game-ness, no matter what Inkling of a faint heart may hae gone with these performances. I saw Jeff take an awful gruelling from Bob Fitislmmons In San Francisco Fran-cisco lor soven rounds, only to come back In the eighth and put "Ruby ' Robert" on his back for the long count with a single blow. Jeffs face was a sight to behold; a gash above tho right eye laid the skull bare for two Inches; another below the left eye showed raw flesh for a similar distance. dis-tance. Jeff didn't stop, although bo asked his seconds, "What are you trying to do, get me Jdlled?" There waa a reason. The ring was an Improvised affair in the open air. The flooring was an Inch . planking set on supports three feet apart. Under Un-der Jeff's hulk this flooring acted like a spring board and threw him off his balance while Fltz was able to glide about without getting the same effect. Childs Cut Jack Up. I saw Frank Childs cut Johnson up In a gruelling fight way back in 1902, but Jack stuck for the finish and earned a decision irom the hard hitting hit-ting negro, Nobody has really hurt the champion since, to my knowledge. He has played to the safe side In all his battles, winning by a shade without with-out endangering his countenance. Johnson's supposed cowardice may be based on the Idea that he has repeatedly played away from men ho might have knocked out. His answer to critics has always been unanswerable unanswer-able "I won. didn't I?" Jeff's case Is somewhat different. It may bo remembered that many times the big fellow "nas tried to find excuses for postponement some three or four weeks before his Important battles. Billy Delaney, who handled Jeff for many years, is In a quandry regarding his sameness. "Once in the ring he Is a bear," Delaney said many times, speaking of Jeff. "He never showed anything like a signal of distress. But I think 1 have seen symptoms cf stage fright before every one of his important engagements. en-gagements. His excuses for asking a delay were ludicrous at times; a sore thumb or a slight cold being sufficient for him to assert that he would not box on the night specified. It took all kinds of persuasion to make him change his mind. It may have been his disposition, but it certainly gave us many a scare." |