The morning news. [volume] (Savannah, Ga.) 1887-1900, 1894-03-04

Mayport and Thinks Training Should
be Made Enjoyable-The Sea Great
Help in Training.
Copyright lso4)
New York, March 3-Training is not
half so unpleasant as most people imagine
it to be. That much I am anxious to in
sist upon at the very beginning. Fight
ing is not 80 unpleasant eIther-when you
win. The editor has been kind enough to
ask me to write down here how train
and how fight. 1t would be hard to do
that in the brief limits Of a newspaper
article, yet 1 hope to be able TO tell
enough here to encourage those who read
it to try the benefits of a little training.
It is pleasant TO take, and it benefits a
manor woman, either-more than a
dozen doctors. If were TO give up box
ing forever l should still take a course Of
thorough conditioning once in year or
so, just for the pleasure Of the thing and
its beneficial influence on the health.
To begin with, the methods of training
as well as of boxing have changed vastly
since the ancient Mr.. Fig began TO teach
the manly ar, Of self-defense. The old
London prize ring rules, under which men
fought barehanded on the turf, have prac-
tically fallea into disusa. They should
never be revived. for they encouraged
brutality Under those rules 4 game man
was virtually knocked out half dozen
times before he was so beaten that he
could not come TO time at the end OF one
minutes rest. Under the Queens berry
rules. which now govern championship
battles, the man who Is knocked down
must be up and fighting wi hin ten sec
onds or he loses the contest This is
merciful to the conquered, and it does not
prevent the best man from winning, A
great many followers of the old system
complain that under modern rules the in
ferior fighter may win with chance
blow" II seems to me that there is
nothing h0phayard about it when two
trained athletes meet in the ring. Each
knows what the other is trying 10 10 TO
him, and it is his business TO take care of
himself. 1t is Jolly TO talk about "chancc
blows"
They say that Mr.. Cook, who coaches
the Yale crew, believes his men work best
when they are most comfortable. 1t is
the ,me way in training for fight. The
mole comfortable the boxer is the better
WORK he can DO and the better his cOndi-
ton will be On the DAY Of the Fl yAt. For
that reason / prefer TO do my training be-
side the ocean. A swim is always a lux
ury to a healthy person and Gouhly so to
an hour or two. Then there is something
restful in being by the ocean. The sea
always has something new to show. 1t
will be many years before l forget the
evenings az MaVport. We used 10 sit en
the yeranda after supper and watch the
fishing boats with their shining lanterns
when there was moonlight the scene was
like bit Of fairland. The long smooth,
white beach, the waving green palms that
SCENE black in the thin light. and an oc-
casional tapping sail made a charming
picture. Such things ada to the luxury
of training. When the nerves have been
irritated by a very hard days work. an
hour in the midst of such a scene as /
have mentioned will send a man To sleep
like a baby. 1t does him a wonderful
amount of good in his preparation for the
ring.
All my training for the recent contest
at Jacksonville was done as carefully as
possible. expected to 20 through twenty
rounds with Mitchell and ! tried to put
myself in good enoul condition to fight
all day ii necessary. The event showed
that all this anxiety was perhaps not nee
essary, but it is an imperative rule for
man defending the championship OF his
country always TO enter the ring in per-
feet condition.
The great thing to BE- done was to
bring ny power Of endurance to its best
condition For this il was necessary to
take longewalks and runs, TO box, to
punch the Mrikiug bag. to wrestle and to
play a great deal of handball In old
times a pusilist was dosed with purga-
tives for several days at the beginning Of
his course of preparation; then he was
set to running scores of miles on a heavy
road-all with the idea of getting rid Of
superhuous flesh. l had 70 superhuous
flesh to get rid of. Indeed l actually
gained weight in training.
Every morning there was a short stroll
along the hard white sand of the beach
before breakfast This was not really ex-
ercise, but a play spell in The open air by
way Of an appetizer. Ned, Bert and
Mollie, handsome collies, played with me
and raced with one another after sticks
thrown into the sea. With breakfast
shortly before o'clock the real business
of the day began. Fruits, chops,
tea and toast were the usual thing.
Sometimes the bill of fare was varied
with chicken or steak or a hit OF fish
" bile on the sub ect of diet | may add
that nothing was barred at any meal ex-
cept pastry and fancy sauces. There was
bottle of beer Al dinner every day and
sometimes one al supper. l drink tea in
stead of coffee.
With a cheerful companion at my side
l usually cover eight or nine miles every
and then with a run-gooI for the wind.
After boxing and wrestling. T enjoy the
luxury OF rundown until thoroughly
dry; then bath in a tub of sea water or
perhaps swim for five or ten minutes
Upon being rubbed dry again. [ was
stretched upon a high couch and thor
oughly rubbed by my trainers with lini-
ment Of alchol and witchhazel. This is
one of the pleasantest things about train
ing. To be well massaged after Turk
ish bath is well enough, but there Is not
half the comfort in it that an athlete en-
joys in a thorough rubbing after a brisk
mornings work. Billy Delaney managed
the job and Donaldson, McVey, Creedon
and Tracy did the rubbing. No brushes
or mittens were used.
The appetite that comes to one after
such course of work bathing and mas
sageing is something enormous. No one
will believe how much he can eat under
the circumstances until he has actually
enjoyed the experience. The chief meal
of the day was eaten about noon Our
dinner table vas a Jolly meeting place
Breakfast did not always bring us all to-
gether, so my wife, her father, Mr. and
Mrs Brady. and all the rest OF our party
met for the first time in the day at din
ner. One friend, who was always at hand.
and TO whose merry company we are all
indebted for much of the pleasure we had