Arizona weekly journal-miner., 1895-12-18
A SUNDAY WlTH JOHN |.
Two ComediAas' Day of Rest With Dos
 tons Foremost TrAgedian.


 1T don't believe I should oare to have John l.. Sullivan for referee, '" says William Fl. Crane Sullivan doesn't like to stand by and sec any man whipped; his sympathies are always with the under dog.
 Some years ago Nat Goodwin and 1 had an experience with Sulh- van. It was in what call my hal Cyon days. Nat and l had been cele- brating the close of the season, and we came ashore one Sunday morn ing from my yacht determined to be very ciroumspeot all the rest of our lives. We went Co a seaside ho- tel for the purpose of getting break. fast, when whom should we fall in with but John L. Sullivan and ono of his boon companions, Boston alderman. Both John and his friend were pretty we'll corked up, and they insisted that we should go with them to call upon another friend, Patsy Somebody, who was training for fight with Mike Somebodyelse at a small country roadhouso about four miles away.
 Goodwin and l did our best to shake the two, for wo feared that, full of liquor as they were, Sullivan and his satellite would get us into trouble. But Sullivan wouldn't take no for an answer, and finally, just to keep the peace. we went along in their wagon to visit the training grounds. Well, when we got there. Patsy and his trainer were having their usual morning bout. The trainer was big, broad shouldered, good natured fellow, genial and smiling of face as well fed child. He was a little too much for Patsy, and was giving him some pretty hard exercise. I suppose Sullivan fanoied that the trainer was unnec- essarily severe. At any rate, l saw SullivaR's face grow darker, and l knew that trouble was brewing, Finally Sullivan slipped of his coat and throw it over the back of a chair; then, waiting until he saw the trainer advancing to attack Patsy with redoubled energy, Sulli- van reached out that right arm of his, and his big fist caught the good natured Irishman full in the mouth It didn't look as though Sullivan put any force at all into the blow; it seemed to us as if he merely put out his fist-so-and let the other fellow run against it. But, gracious ! You should have seen that Irishman keel over. I'll bet he went back 20 feet before he stopped. Then he turned a back somersault over the hind wheel of our wagon and fell to the ground, apparently dead. He didn't regain consciousness for two hours, and you can imagine that those two hours were the most miserable Goodwin and ever spent We fan cied ourselves forever disgraced by being pulled into court as witnesses, perhaps as accessories, to the killing of this innocent man. Our suspense was simply dreadful. Finally, how ever, after hunting up doctor and working over the fellow for two hours, tho victim came to. The first thing he did was to put one hand feebly to his mouth as if to learn what damage that swollen orifioe had sustained And then, smiling amiably, he said, Be jabers, that was a wicked thrusht!" You see, he never lost his temper at all; as l have told you, he was the best na- tured fellow l ev1r saw.
 But the honCr of having been hit by Sullivan was too much for him. Having regained consciousness he proceeded to fill himself with liq- nor, and it wasn't long before the rural constabulary had to be called to take him into custody. As be was Q powerful creature and fought viciously, it became necessary to pound him into subjection, and by the time he was lodged in jail he was a bloody spectacle indeed. Next morning he was released, there be- ing nobody willing to prosecute him, but even then he had not lost all sense of the great honor of hay ing been hit by Sullivan. and so he hung about the jail all day boasting of that honor and expressing an am- bition to lick the combined oonstab- ulary force of the township
 II have never forgotten the incl dent, says Mir. Crane, "and it suf- fees to convince mo that as referee Mir. Sullivan is hardly the person l should choose. Chicago Record