St. Paul daily globe. [volume] (Saint Paul, Minn.) 1884-1896, 1894-04-22
SOME INSIDE HISTORY
REGARDING THE FIGHT BETWEEN
HALL AND FfTZSIMM0NS.
COLD-BLOoDED IA,

Col. Benton Gives Us the True In.
wardness OF the Affair-Hall
Charged With Laying Down"
For a Consideration of $4,000
Facts of the Battle Given
Publicity For the First Time.
Sporting circles will be much sur
brised by the sensational statement
from Col. John ID. Hopkins that the
10000 fight between Bob FitzsimmonS
and Jem Hall was 4 cold-biooded fake.
A reporter of the GLOBE called OH
B. H. Benton, better known as Rob
10y, manager and hacker of Dick
Moore, to see if he could verify what
Col. Hopkins had stated.
Mr.. Benton was found at the West
hotel. where he was stopping, aud.
when questioned. sand:
so the murder is out at last. is it?
Well, L am glad of it. and it would
have been better for the sporting inter-
ests of this country if the truth had
been made public months ago. Yes, l
have no doubt but all that Col. Hopkins
says is true.
The facts as | learned them are
these: Squire Abingdon, Charley Nit
chell and Jim Hall were very confident
that the latter could beat FltZsimmOns,
and they considered the 200 purse
as good as won. The squire also Ill
tended to bet many thousands on
Hall. a few days before the day
set for battle DOminick OMalley,
III friendly way. tipped the Mitchell
Hall party CIT. that the club would be
unable to pay anything like the big
purse offered, and if as much as $4,000
was given, it would be big thing.
The Mitchell and Hail party considered
the $4,000 as good as won up to
this time, but the information they
had received from 0'Malley set them
thinking. a caucus was held, and Char
ley Mitchell and Teddy Bailey, the
confidential secretary of Squire Abing
don, decided on job 10 get some big
money. Hall agreed TO lie down 10
FitZsimmons on receiving $1,000 i'll adj
vance. He was also to receive the los
er's end of the purse. This. taken with
the advance money he had received
from the club. made tidy little figure
for Hall.
Mitchell and Bailey then set to work
to bleed the squire. They first received
S20, 600 TO bet OH Hall. but nearly all of
ii was placed on FitZSimmonS. A sec
Ond instaiment of &c. 600 from the squire
was split up between the smart pair.
''All those who witnessed the fight
will remember how decidedly the better
of it Hall had in the first three rounds.
Shortly after the fourth round began
FitZSimmon got an opening which all
amateur would not have left. and Hall
received what was generally supposed
TO be his Knockout blow.
MANY competent judges OF fighting
who witnessed the Dattle did NOT hesl-
tate to say that there was something
wrong about the affair. Fitzsimmons
knew nothing of the job. and. white ap-
parently surprised, honestly believed
that he had secured a fair Knockout
The truth of the business gradually
became known. Among we'll known
Eastern sporting men who learned the
truth were Jim Corbett, Billy Brady, Al
Smith, Capt. a. w. COUke, James West
colt, Nelse innes, Capt. Bill Daily, Col.
John D. Hopkins. James II. Wright,
James Colville. William Cameron and
Ham Brock.
From facts CLEANED Col. Hopkins
was persuaded that Dan Creedon could
beat FitZSimmonS, and the colonel has
match between them. The colonel has
offered to bet $4,000 even that Dan
could beat lanky Bob, but the latter
cannot be dragged into making match.
when l learned the above facts |
thought | saw chance to do some
good business. l knew that there was
no middleweight i'll the country that
Dick MoUre could not whip, unless it was
Dan Creed0n. That Is why l matched
that pair III Boston, where they fought,
and then matched them again. l fig
ured that if Moore could beat Creedon
he would have a cinch OH FitZ. and
was content TO lie low and blde my
time. Now that the expose has come,
amonly too glad to verify all thai
Hopkins has stated. and my information
comes from an authentic source.
lit was considered that 1t would be
better for the sport if tile truth about
that New Orleans job was not made
public, but l tlIiuk that Col. Hopkins
has been driven 10 make the statement
owing to the talk that the red-headet
freak is making. The colonel should b.
thanked for exposing the fraud, eSpe
cially as it shows that FltZsimnOns has
been living on great reputation tha
he has not earned. Bob Is good fight
er, but he Is hot the great one i'll hi
class that Corbett and Dixon are II
theirs. FitZsimmonS' whole reputation
comes from defeating poor Jack Demp
Sey, never at best over l42-pOund man
wnen he was at the end OF his career
and for getting a victory over Hal
when the latter lay down. If Die
Moore beats Creedon l will jump at til
chance to match him against EiIZ."