Cooper's Clarksburg register. [volume] (Clarksburg, Va. [W. Va.]) 1851-1861, 1853-11-16
The Prize Fighters.

The FIIze ElSnfefSs
We did not think it necessary to trea
! our readers with anything more about til
brutal affair between Sullivan and Morris
lsey, than was sufficient to impart knowl
edge of the fact. and of its lawless and re
tvolting character. Some ofthe New Y rl
papers contained detailed sketch an.
what the fancy no doubt esteemed a gra
phic portraiture of the whole affair
"a round" after :" round,' and blow aftei
blow. A more beastly, bloody and hor-
rible narrative we never met with, outside
the columns of flash London paper
The American press must become an abo-
mination, in sinking to the level of such
chronicles as these. This man Salivan
with another named Hyer, it may be re-
membered. some yearsssince profaned the
soil of Maryland with public display of
their obscene propensities. But TO the
honor of the civil authorities, the ut
most that skill and vigilance could
devise was resorted to for its preven-
ton though no adequate punishment
was enforced against the offenders.
perhaps at the suggestion of an &C.
centric sympathy attributable TO the fact
that only one of the party was caught.
1t appears that a radical mistake has
been made by the parties to the late Gu
counter between Sullivan and MorriSSey,
and that instead of fighting on dispute
ground, that affair came off within the
territory of Massachusetts. Ifshis should
prove to be the case, the old Bay State
should take this matter in hand in earnest.
Some decisive action is necessary to put a
stop to this sort of thing, or public send-
ment will eventually connivc at its fire.
quent recurrence. until we have an Anne
riean prize ring as prolific of diabolism as
is that of England, and without like
means of protection against it.
The New York Sunday Times speaks
in terms of bold and unqualified conden,>
nation of the whole party. In the cours.
OF his remarks. the writer introduces the
following passage, which should be of it.
self sufficient TO arouse any State of the
Union to vindication of the outraged
rights of society. Such an eruption of
villiany in unprotected rural districts. is
on ugh 10 curdle :he apprehensions of the
people with horror:
=" An eyewitness Informs US that bo-
dy of unmitigated rdffians from Il is city
attended the fight RowGy ism sent a dele
CATION OF its worse specimens TO the ground,
and their performances on the way lhither,
during The fight. and on coming back, were
lawless. feTocious, and villanous beyond
all precedent. They cleared the country
of fowls and turkeys for miles around the
place of meeting, and even took hogs from
the pen and carried them off ! On the
road home they entered several houses,
knocking down, indiscriminately, men, wo-
men and children, and helping themselves
to whatever they fancied. At one hotel
where they stopped TO refresh, they felled
the landlord to the floor when he asked
payment of his bill and their entire pro-
gress to and from the ground was one
continuous scene of rapine. violence,
drunkenness. and blasphemy. After refu-
sing to pay their fare in the cars, they de-
manded that the train should be stopped
to accommodate them, and this demand not
being complied with. they detached the
cars they occupied, from the engine In
one instance, a. gang of scoundrels com
menced placing fence rails and logs on the
track, swearing that If the engineer would
not stop the locomotive and suffer them TO
get on board. they would send the whole
concern to -. Our informant, who is
himself what is called sporting man."
says that he could not have believed that
civilized beings would commit the outrn-
ges he witnessed in coming from the fight.
Entire neighburhoods were thrown in a
state of terror not to be described whole
sale robberies pcrpetra:el. not STEALTH
ly, but open. and if the pIundered parties
ventured to demonstrate. they were in
stantIy knocked down."