Rock Island daily Argus. (Rock Island, Ill.) 1886-1893, 1891-01-23
WAS ONCE A CHAMPION.
SoT NOW He IS OLD AND AN rrts.
Grant veNDER OF LEMONS

ne was Bred Among FiRhters-He Co.
Up the Business When He M
Iisn' That Made His Fortune lat Nearly
wrecked Hts Home-He Tells the ss.~-
httie man with face that n se>r,e<5
w tne experience Of three score rear. INT
WIN keen, bright eyes, an erect form and
QUICK, nervous movements that coutra8Srt
sne seory OF age told in his countenanca
Inc huie man carries basket of lemons
and ne goes In and out of the MANY nIscss
OF resort In the business part of the citv
ouenng the fruit. He is known nv ne.-,r
AL the crowd in which he miueles. and
eacn one has kindly word for '.Davy. ~
NOV many know his story, but all who have
seen MN often, and he is a familiar figure
ON the streets of Seattle, recognize him "a
one VINO pursues his business quietly and
respectfully, and deserves fair treatment in
return. -''
occasionally some quarreIsome indiyid-
ual, relying on ais greater size. atternnts
20 impose upon Davy, but before the
friends OF the lemon peddier have time tn
in1erIere The Old man shows that he needs
no protector. The basket goes down. two
ready nsts come into position and two ewes
Inat nave not begun to fade CLEAN out
dangerously from under the heavy eve
brows
III the piece of impudence was ONLY a
silly bluff matters end Immediately. but IL
the FOOLISH meddler still believes he is safe
IN SURFING up maliciously an inoffensiye
little old man and continues in his course
there Is short, sharp conflict. The old
man steps forward quickly, his left
straightens itself, and as the bully before
rT ba
from the right that finds its mark some
where about the figurehead of the agrees
sor Another and another comes so ouick-
~ that there is no time for ANYTHING but
oelense, and before he knows it the big
rufnan goes down, dizzy and weak.
A FIGHTER By NATURE
A reporter, by dint of much persuasion,
gained the story of the old man from his
own lips, and 1t explained the swift move
ments so mysterious to the casual spectator
OF one OF his stands for self defense.
was born on the 18th of March. 1S23
SAID Davy, AN if it had been two DAYS
later I'd have been an Irishman. Ye're
night, By guml From the time | was II
years old till ! was 35 I worked in the
mines In Staffordshire, England, for I'm
Upton man, an know every bit of the
black country There's where they hav,
lighters. Why, man, there's boys there
who know more of heavy blows in the ring
than half the men that are advertised from
one end OF America to the other as pugilists.
an yet they don't go about talkin' of il
Ye're right, by gumi Fightin' comes rs
nat rally as eatin' there. Why, had INV
first regular good one when l was only 10,
an 1t was about three ha'p'worth O. oysters.
The officers stopped us, or we heard 'em
a-comin' an run off an hid ourselves. but
I'd lost my front teeth first, an he had
some marks that put on him.
Yes, I've had seven fights in the ring
Tor money, an | never was whipped, but
that was years ago. an I'm no good now
They called me the best man o. nv WEIGHT
in England, an was open to anything. /
weighed 40 then. when / trained dogn-
feather weight, you know, an no chance
70 make great reputation, but / was in
some good ones. Twice fought over two
hours. Backers in plenty for me always
1e're right, by gum They knowed I'd
stan 1t even if / vas beat, but / wasn't
beat
STORY OF ONE FIGHT.
II fought Ike Turns twice-the first time
draw, but the second / worried him. /
fought Joe Wilson three times in all. He
IL was struck me first about the three ha'-
p'orth o. oysters, an there was bad blood
between Us till 1T was settled. The first
time the officers stopped il: the next tine
II was draw, after an hour an thr&-
quarters, but the last time beat him.
There's story in that fight, an it was
my last one. You see / was married then
Il was "a years old-an' our baby was in
the cradle. Wen, knew my wife wouldn't
hear o my fghtin' then, but when nv old
hacker come to me an says, They re willin'
IN mt L
Davy, an the mans Joe Wilson, i could
not help thinkin' of it, So agreed to 90
in the ring agin, for there was elO0 IN
agi'n the fifty my hacker had, an he said
half the winnin' should be for me. Fifty
pound was a deal o money in those days.
II would buy home for poor man.
well, went to trainin', an every night
I'd black my face when | went home to
make my wife think was still workin, in
the mine. When the day come SAYS to her
the night before: Unjust be MP early in the
mornin'. There's hard job before me.
but I've got to do it, So got up atore
day almost an away to the ring.
We'll, we were at it two hours an tyen
ty minutes, an when it was over of course
was marked up some But when went
home my wife says, You've been fightin'.'
You're wrong says l; I've been hurt il
picked up the baby out o. the cradle, an at
the door she says, III beg my bread from
door TO door before III live with a fighter
and then off to her mother.
NEARLY LOSES HIS WIFE
81 had the ESQ in my hand had won, an
j threw il on the table and sat down. The
money was all right, but warn't worth a
wife and baby. But soon here comes nv
wife's mother. My daughters left ye,'
says she. We'll, ye can keep your daugh-
ter says |. No child o. mine shall ever
live with fighter says she. AN right
says i, we can take the furniture an am
off, An got up an made great show o.
sweepin' the ESQ, all in gold, off the table
= into my pocket. Then the old woman be-
gan to soften. knew she would Ye're
right, by gum! Don't co. says she; the
girl will forgive ye.
i don't want no forgiveness says ].
But she runs away home an soon my wife
comes an takes hold o. me. Iwant We to
stay, Davy, says she, but wouldn't show