Fort Worth gazette. [volume] (Fort Worth, Tex.) 1891-1898, 1895-10-03

I trivial matter. Representative Ward.
| who IL the author of the Hill in the
house. made the closing argument,
and a mastery one II was, demolishing
] one by one all the contentious q The
opposition. He began ~ saying 1t
seemed to be the concensus OF opinion
that the offense should be declared u
felony; also that this bill would pass.
Objections were leveled at the emer-
gency clause alone, not that the law
should not be adopted, but that GER
tain equities and rights had grown up
In Dallas. Two great equity maxims
were; lilo that comes into court of
equity must come with clean hands"
and "he that worketh inlquity hath
no equity" Nobody has ever heard OF
an equity growing out of n crime. Mr..
Ward quoted unanimously from Vari-
Gus authorities to show that prize
fighting was an offense under the
common law without specific enact
ment, and had never been recognized
by the courts of either England or this
country as n legitimate amusement.
Hundreds Of men had served terms IN
England for lighting under Marquis
OF tgueensbury rules.
a message from the senate an
nounced the passage of the mileage
and per diem bills by that body. Tar
yer inquired OF Ward about the bill
passed licensing prize fgntlng in this
state. Ward replied that neither this
legislature nor any other legislature
has any more right to license fight
between man and man than II has to
authorize a man to import into this
state case of smallpox. Whether we
have specific laws or not, prize lighting
Is an offense under the common law,
and could be punished under laws re-
lating to assault, rloting, mobs. etc.
y man can no more consent to hove
his body beaten and bruised than he
can consent to his own murder.
Touching the alleged equities OF the
| Florida Athletic club, Mr.. Ward said
II this were an action of trespass to
| try title aEinst this foreign expatri-
| ated Florida corporation II could not
prove the investments were made in
| good faith before court. There had
| not been one minute that these gem
! tlemen behind this enterprise had not
| knnwn call of the Legislature prob
able after the decision of Judge Hurt
| Tney had gone into the thing with
| eyes wide open, and had taken the
| chances. Prize fighting had been drlv-
| en- out Of the North and had come on
| down by the way of Maryland and
the Carolinns TO Mississippi. where 1t
| was by law only n misdemCanor, but
! Mississippi had risen in her majesty
and might and made 1t a felony. In
| Florida the entire state was shocked by
| similar brutal exhibitions and speedily
| made prize lighting a felony. Loulsl-
ana had made an exception of glove
contests given under the auspices of
athletic societies. but after the Cor
bett-Sullivan fight had also made that
kind Of contest n felony. These gem
tlemen, he was advised had inter.
view President Dlaz of Mexico with a
view of holding the fight In Mexico If
necessary, but the president of that
republic had replied that every state
ftN 40 A =
hghtlng n crime and Mexico, wi ich
was fairly In the march of progrlss of
modern civilization, would not be so
debauched. They then fell back M
Texas and had sought 10 take uiVui,t-
age Of technlcality 10 spring their
degrading exhibition UP m this people
Cough moved to suspend pending
business and take UP senate bill num-
Der three reported favorably by the
judiciary committee with amendments
conforming 1t to the house bill as
amended and that the rule requiring
Bill to be printed be suspended. Carried
| by unanimous consent. Owsley moved
| the suspension of the constitutional
rule requiring bills to be read on three
several days and that the bin be put
upon Its second reading. Ayes. iO7,
nays, Z, as follows: Allen Kennedy
and Tarver. Bill was read with com
mittee amendments. Graham moved
10 amend section four so as to make
the emergency clause include fights be-
tween man and animal. Adopted.
Evans renewed his fight on the al
legged dual character OF the bill. urg-
ing constitutional objections and also
denying that emergency existed as to
clause with reference TO fights between
men and animals. Tabled ON motion Ct
| Davis of Falls.
Reiger moved to strike out the
| emergency clause and Robbins Of VIII
| barger moved the previous question on
/ the amendment and bill Relgers mo-
tlon fell by the wayside. The bill then
| passed to the third reading. Cough
| moved the third reading and final pns-
| sage and an aye and no vote resulted
| in ITO ayes and noes. the opposition
| being the same as before. except that
| sprectSles voted aye and Tarvar had
! disappeared. Allen and Reiger spread
their reasons for voting no on the Jour
! nal. on the final passage the vote
/ stood. Ayes l06, nays 8. as before
| Representative Stubs was elsewhere
| on the final show down. and Represent
| tative Blair of Bexar was missing
| throughout the entire contest In the
| house. Adjourned to 10 q. m.