St. Paul daily globe. [volume] (Saint Paul, Minn.) 1884-1896, 1894-01-26
THE CORBETr MITCHELL
MILL,

Gov. Mitchell, of Florida, finds him.
self in very unenviable position, now
that the Corbett- Mitchell prize fight has
taken place at Jacksonville. He has
been very loud in his declarations dur
ing the past month that the contest
should not take place within the limits
of the EYerglade state. He issued
great number of prOclamations, pronun-
ciamentoeS and general orders. He Or
dered the militia 10 the scene. only to
order them back home again. He detied
the courts to interpoSe 10 thwart his
will, but when they did so he meekiy
obeyed their edictS. He has been one
of the three great braggartS of the cent
ury. The contestants in the fight were
the only men who could rival him in
carrying on a wordy warfare.
1t is 10 be regretted that Gov. Mitchell
was impotent to prevent the exhibition
of brutality yesterday. Such spectacles
are;never edifying nor instructive. None
but brutal men indulge in or patroniZe
them, although probably nine-tenths of
the people in the entire country will
doubtless peruse the details of the fight
with an eager interest. There is more
or less of the brute in all Of US. We adj
mire strong man and man of nerve.
Genuine men and women most admire
man who has moral and intellectual
strength, yet they cannot withhold from
the mere animal a tribute of esteem.
1t is q pity that no better use can be
found for strength than the prize ring
affords. There was in many of the
sports of the ancientS something that
taught the youth nobility of character
and a sublimity of courage that gave to
the Greeks and the Romans a place
among the grandest of the nations of
world. In these latter-day sports. how
ever, there is nothing of the sort. Gen
| orally they are mere hippodrome affairs,
gotten up TO enable few gamblers to
fleece the suckers" Nine out of ten
result by Encouragement so as to bring
the greatest possible amount of money
into the pockets of the managers. Men
''huke" who never finked before. Not
one of them is above suspicion of trick
cry. Even the best friends Of the most
noted pugilists fear to back them unless
they are ION the inside" and know that
III ID W tit peculiarly lulGIGSl VI
the better man of the two to ''tote
fair" Even the hackers of a pugilst
| never feel confidence in his Ion
esty. They keep him under constant
surveillance; see that he has no oppOr-
tunty to come in contact with any agent
of his opponent. Sleeping or waking,
he is never out of their sight. His food
is tested before he is permitted to touch
it; his drink is measured out to him
carefully after being subjected to chem
ical analysis, to see that no poison has
been introduced; and his every step is
guarded So that no accident may befall
him. 1t is the universal presumption
that every man engaged in the business
is dishonest, and needs continuous
Watchfulness. If he has been out of
sight of his guards for moment he
becames the object of suspicion. Per-
sonal honor is of no value 10 them
when compared with immediate pecuni-
airy gain.
The time will come when prize fight
ing will be no less crime than murder;
aud all engaged in it as principals,
hackers, employees and spectators will
be amenable to the severest punish
| ment. And that time is not far distant.
They already have become a plague to
the community, and call for suppression
| in every community having Its own ill.,