Savannah morning news. [volume] (Savannah) 1868-1887, 1886-05-24
THE STAGE AND THE RING.
What "Nym Crinkle" Saw at the
German Assembly Rooms.

made her rentTee here on Monday night.
She has been almost as successful as
! Dixey. | do not know if it be wealth or
art, but she has new dignity. She is
not the gaunt border beauty that she was
/ a few years ago, when she played "Pau-
! line" in IA 7-yard train and trumpeted my
! own dear Claude" like a cOrnet. The
| majesty of success has not added inches
"a thing she did not need-but it has given
/ discretion, a thing she did need. L mean
discretion Of utterance.
She played that carbOnacious "Gala-
! tea" and nothing was ever more care
! fully quarried and chlseled than her
! representation.
She is still the American girl. | insist
| upon it that she is the most pluribus,
| pro patria, continental, hail Columbia
orb in the starry banner OF the native
drama. Critics may weigh her tones and
dissect her cOnceptiOns-ah, what free
born cOnceptor she is-but the unshackled
American takes her at a draught and
asks no questions. She hangs over more
lonely bachelor bedsteads than any
woman alive. She creeps into all albums
and sets her divine features on all cigar
cites. Toilet soap glories IN her profile
and baking powder gets additional lustre
from her eyes. Her arms are round the
whole population like a pair OF lovely
anacondas, her foot is on all their necks.
That's all Ive got to say about Mary.
Smuggling matches are coming into
vogue again. 1t is long time since New
Workers have had an opportunity to pay
81 head to see couple Of beef-eating
priZe-fghters punch each other out OF all
recognition. But the enterprising gentle
men to whom is entrusted the manage
ment of these affairs have changed their
base of operations AS soon as the pub
lie found out that the knocking out bus
mess" in Madison Square Garden was
PLAYED out, and that the authorities were
determined to put an end to 1t, the public
stopped patronIzing pugilistic entertain
ments.
Why?
Because mere science and skill, IN
mixed with gore, tended to increase rather
than diminish the ennui to which all we'll
regulated club men and men about town
are supposed to be subject. They had
had a taste of smuggling and knocking out,
and the Marquis of Queensberry, and they
would not brook any milder form of pugi-
ism,
They had Just begun to have a critical
appreciation of sluggers' ability when
Capt. Williams baton put stop to the
smuggling.
Following this came a period of dull
ness and depression in sporting circles,
unDrOken till a week ago last W ednesday,
when Mr.. William Madden, the discOyerer
of John Lawrence Sullivan and Charles
Mitchell, came to the rescue alike OF the
impoverished prize fighter and the fam
ished dude, thirsting for the sight of
blood. | went to see the af1air-an affair
of six Queensberry rounds-partly to sat
isfy my curiosity, and partly to see dude
dom resuscitated.
Did | betake myself to Madison Square
Garden to witness the sanguinary con-
Uest2
Not a bit of it.
Then where?
To the Germania Assembly rooms, of
course, on the BOwery, with its myriads
of electric lights.
paid 81 for admission and 81 extra for
a seat.
The ring was pitched on a raised plat
form at the end of the hall. On either
side sat goodly number of dudes and
clubmen, wearing high silk hats, higher
collars, and trousers eXqulsitely creased.
They were the golden youth OF the me-
trOpOlis. They sucked their silver-headed
walking sticks and thanked their stars
that they were of Capt. Williams pre-
cinct ard in
Capt. McCullagn's.
Capt. McCullagh, than whom there is
not a more efficient officer on the Metro
politan police force, loves rafting set-to,
and looks upon pugilism with a kindly eye.
The preliminary contests over the
crowd waited impatieLtly for the gentle
men who were to do the knocking out.
This gave their hackers an opportunity
to select a referee. l could not help be-
ing impressed by the appearance of this
official when selected. He was scrupu-
lousy attred in gray business suit,
wore dark, closely cropped beard parted
in the English fashion, and dainty bou-
tOnniere in the lapel of his coat. He
looked like Wall street banker. When,
later on, learned his name knew that
he was a "bad man." that he had a
private cemetery in the vicinity Of Chi
cagO; that he shot and killed Jimmy"
Elliott in the latter city. In word, that
he was the notorious Jere Dunn, a
"tough," gambler and sport" who has
summary method of settling all 'argu-
ments" by means or siX-shOOter!
There was an uproar when the "princi-
pals" appeared. They were heavy
weights. Their names-Jack Ashton, of
Providence, X. l.; Dick Collier, OF Leices-
ter, Eng. The gentleman from Rhode
Island vas in the pink of condition. Not
so the Britsher. His flesh was flaccid.
He looked as though he had trained on
Canada malt and whisky sours. The
truth of these conclusions was borne out
by the result.
There was a sardOnic grin upon the
dudes faces when the ''glOves" were pro-
duced, the latter small enough 20 suit the
most tastidious swell in the house. A
little cOmmOtlon in the centre aisle, and
McCullagn, carrying small chair in his
hands, forces his way to the front and
sits down. Wealthy bankers, leading
lawyers and well known merchants look
at him with beaming cOuntenances. The
fighters cast sleeps eyes at him. So do
their hackers.
Tlmel
AT it they went like a couple OF batter
ing rams. IL was smuggling from start TO
finish. The dudes howled their delight.
The first round showed Collier to be
third-rate fighter, and put Ashton on a
not much higher plane. The latter could,
at any stage, hit his man when and where
he pleased, but not hard enough to put
him ITO sleep" as the patrons OF the
l.. X. say. The exhibition could have
been scarcely less brutal had these plug
uglies fought "harehanded." But it
pleased the dude, the lawyer. the mer-
chant and the banker, besides putting a
comfortable sum OF money into the pOck-
cts oftn suggers.
Did McCullagh interferey
He did, after it was clearly demons
trated that Mr.. Collier was oyermatched.
Witnessing this contest had a singular
effect on tn dudes. They felt eighty"
when the thing was over, and h. Berry
Wall, eX-king Of the Dudes. wanted 10
knock out Mr.. Fred May. Mr.. Wallis