The herald., 1893-01-22

and high binders of thstcity aud Albany,
joined the throng. They went to
Catham Four Corners, where the trains
disgorged their vast living freight. A
ring was pitched and at it they went
Morrisey's brute strength was no match
for Sullivsn's artistic boxing, but, after
getting his face cut up till it looked like
cranberry tart, Morrissey's seconds
finally claimed foul against Sullivan,
who went out of the ring without mark
on him, while the stakes were awarded
to Morriesey.
From this time out Morrissey was a
power in the land. He became leader
in politics in New York and had share
in no less than seven faro banks in that
city at once. His wife, who was the
daughter of an old steamboat pilot
named Ike Smith of Newburgh, dressed
with the greatest taste of any woman in
New York although she was very mas
culine, to my eve He was a leader in
the Tammany factions, and beat Horace
Greeley for an election to congress. At
that time Schuyler Colfax WAS speaker OF
the houee. One day, ABOUT a month
after Morrissey's taking his seat in that
body, Andy Sheehan took run down to
Washington to see him. They had
hearty breakfast, and then went out for
stroll and cigar. On their way they
met Colfax, who gave them his property
smile.
"Mr. Colfax, allow me to introduce
r1y friend Mr.. Sheehan, from New
York"
The sly smiler bowed gracefully, and
Morrissey added: ,ai.,ii e 4ou
ANDY, this gentleman's the referee
down there to the capital"
x*x nol.
Morrissey was curious compound of
honesty and villainy. He kept "brace
dealers" in every game he had to his
name and never had square card pulled
if he could help it. But as q judge of a
horse race, no moneyed considerations
in the world could have swayed him.
His decision in the world famed dead
heat for the Saratoga cup of 1875 was
proof enough of that; and as to his vote
in congress-, no lobbyist living or dead
ever bought it. He was as unpurchas
sble as an apostle and as fearless as a
Roman centurion A curious case in
pont was that of the Goat island matter
in 1872.
x*x
The Central Pacific railway folks
wanted Goat island for depot grounds
and am only sorry they did not get it.
Had they got it they would have made
q great dockya ard of it and all the ships
that now load at Mission Rock, Vallejo,
Port Costa, Martinez and Benicia would
have loaded and discharged there. The
crews would have spent their nights
ashore in San Francisco and their money
rs well, But that is now neither here
nor there. An old man named Bowling,
who had lived on the island since 1S49,
wanted either to stay there or be paid
for his land Stanford would do neither.
He wanted the island, and that was all
there was about it. Poor old Dowling
went on to Washington and eaw Nor
rissey, recalling the scene of the fight in
1868.
For Gods sake, shut up" cried the
burly ex-pugilist. "I'll do anything in
Gods world for you if you won't cay
that you saw me fightin' in the ring"
x*x
The fight came on and Huntington
had the strongest iobby there that had
ever surrounded congress since the close
of the civil war. Sam Ward dined and
wiped the senators and Dick Winter
smith gave no end of swell feeds to the
house, but the Democratic vote was inn
pregnable. Morrissey held it with
grip of steel. and congress adjourned
without granting foot of Goat island to
the leviathan corporation. Morrissey
had made good his word to old Dowl ng,
who was finally paid goodly sum for
the land when 1T was taken for light
house purposes by the government.
Morr:ssey's declining years were full
of suffering. He had the gout so
badly that his once hard and bony hands
were swollen all out of shape, and he
died when the disease reached his heart.
Within year after his death, his
widow was penniless, while three of his
partners are now millionaires. He was
strage man and one who was we'll
worth watching, though hardly fit
subject for imitation.
#~x
Along in 1856 new Hercules sprang
into view. He worked in the Pacific
Benecia, while his uncle, old Mark
Heenan, was a journeyman laborer at
the brass works at the same place. The
nephew, John Heenan. went down to
San Francisco and sparred at an ex-
hibition given foi the benefit of James
(Yankee) Sullivan, who was about to
leave for the east. A day or two after
this boxing match. James p Casey shot
James King of William, editor OF the
Bulletin, and the vigilance committee
was organized They arrested every
bollot box suffer and every fighter they
could lay their hands upon; aud He
nan escaped from the City while Sulli-
van was caught and imp rispned. Then
began the expatriation OF these fellows,
and Sullivan was known to have escaped
in 1645 from Botany baySs He feared
be would be shipped back to Sydney,
and dreading the lash ON Church Hill as
he had gotten it in the days of yore,
he committed suicide inthe vigilance
committee rooms. Nm
Hesnen fingered around Northern
California until the winter of 1878,
when he sent a friend to buy q ticket to
New York. in the name OF John Keenan
All these tickets were ecrutinized by
the vigilantes but from the name they
supposed the party TO be well known
Sacramento saloon keeper. The "Be-
nicia Boy" got into San Francisco at 10
that night, and at l0-fhei next day the
steamer showed out for Panama with
"The Boy" on board Arriving in New
York he was met bysJim Hughes,
noted fighter and gambler OF that pc
riod, who took him in charge and began
getting him in shape to fight any man
in the wide world.