The Roanoke times. [volume] (Roanoke, Va.) 1890-1895, 1895-07-25

luf1lliti VIII Int4kc HOOu MS BOAST. delivered
Immediately after his conquest of Sulli-
van, There's one fighter who'll never go
broke" Not bel The man from tho
'slope" Is too cautious ind thrifty to cx-
pend penny unnecessarily. He Is tho BUS
fell Sage of pugllisin. In this regard he is
The direct antithcsis of his predecessor,
John l. sullivan, who WAS hStio Coal
Oil Johnny. The Bostonian literally
burned" his money. The Californian
guards his rs previously Us Shylock did his
treasure c;iskct.
1t Is sad truth that the greatest OF fist
ic heroes 80 To their last resting place bro
Ken In hcnrt, health and purse. John Nor
rtsepy, once champion Of America, made
$1,000, coo OF moro in gambling and spccu-
AtioD and oven became state senator
and congressman from New York Yet
he died without q dollar His wife, who
once rrvclcd In riches, Is now working in
collar factory In Troy. His great rival,
John c. Hcenan, spent his last days in
Colorado pcnsioncr upon tho bounty Of
his friends. His wife, the beautiful Adah
Isnacs Menhen. the original Mazeppa, was
buried In the potter field in Paris, whore
she WIGS Oncp the favoritc of an emperor.
Fato has been almost equally unkind
with all the renowned champions of both
England and America. Tom Saycrs, Bill
Perry, tho Upton Slnshcr; Jack IIanghnrn,
Aaron Jones and Joe Goss of England,
and Tom Hyer, Mike McCoole, Joe Coburn
and Johnny Dwycr Of America oil died
without oven tn pence TO close their cyclitls.
Tom King, champion of England 30 years
age, who obtained U questionable victory
over John &, Hcenan soon after the L,ttcT's
battlo with Sayers, like our own John
MorrlsSey, accumulated " fortune on the
turf and was presumed to have died
wealthy Il fcw yN,ars ago Upon % rigid
Investigation, however, 1t was discovered
that but shadow Of his once magnificent
substance remained
OF course the life partners of these cclc-
brated champions were left in destitute
circumstances and Ind hard struggle.
The ono luminous exception Is that of the
widow OF tho American champion, John
i. Dwyer. She Is now tho vito Of Richard
X. Fox, u millionaire several times over,
and is able to spend several months Of tho
year In Europe.
Fighting Is n poor business from flnan-
cial point of view This may sound strange
In vicw of the munifcent purses which
great athletic clubs Offer but IL Is never
thelcss true. In tho first place, as tho old
love dirty has it, there's only room for
one" But ono man con win tho moed of
victory. The conquered mans lot Is a
mass of bruises, N broken spirit and loss
of friends. Tho world-and especially tho
sporting world--has no uee for o loser
The only two exceptions bAvo ever known
TO this rule arc those Of John l.. Sullivan
and Jack Dempsey. But 1t is their mag
nctic personality. their magnificent man
hood, their splendid qualities of head and
heart quite as much as their flstic prowcss
that keeps them enshrined in tho affections
OF tho sporting public.
1t must BIO remembered that only cham
plons in their respective classes can COM
mand big purses. Those next to Thorn. -
the men who have given the champions
the battle of their lives, must bc content
to fight for onc-tcnth of tho sum q cham
pion would look at. They must be salts
fled with occupying u stall In some mana
gers stable"
And the manager. All, there's tho pu.
gtlistic rub! No fighter seems to be able TO
set along without him. He Is usually q
clever, brainy fellow, suave, courteous to
degree and as glib of tongue as Wall
street promoter. He is the man who ''ar-
ranges matches for his principal Mt tho
various athletic clubs and fixes" matters
with tho authorities If menaccd by blue
coat interference. For the cerebral or dip
lometic work thus performed the manager
declares himself in" for half of his prin-
cipaPs purse, whether that purse be tho
winners or the loser end. The only ex-
ception know to this rule Is that of tho
present champion, James J Corbctt, who
splits" with no manager. He takes every
thing in sight, and, like Oliver Twist.
asks for moro
To return, ms our French cousins put 1t,
to our mutton. the manager He manages
one fighter or stable of fighters. If he
has good thing like Young Critic or Bill
IL Pummer, he is contcntcd with one string
to his bow, partly because his principal
won't permit any other course of action.
Champions are rs vain ms village bellies
and will not admit of any divided sover-
eighty.
Every one of the we'll known managers
has fat bank account made through
lighters With the exception of William A.
Brady, Parson Davies and Martin BOWL
Ing not one of them ever backs his Drinci-
pal for dollar, no matter how volubly he
may discourse about thousands They all
have angels who put up" the neccs-
sary collateral whenever match Is made.
These "angcls" are generally rich club
men or well to do sportsmen They arc
usually content to get their own money
back Sometimes the sportsman wants a
bit, but tho other kind of "angcr' nov
cr does
The manager is the greatest source of
expense to the fighter But there are 9th
ers. >" Principal among these Is the press
agent. Every we'll regulated stable" and
every champion has press agent to chron.
clc his sayings and exploit his deeds of
vnlor rs well as write his letters. a press
agent is absolutely essential to the modern
fighter to keep him and the show he par
ticipates in before the people" and swell
the box Office receipts. The press agent, OF