Eagle River Democrat. [volume] (Eagle River, Vilas County, Wis.) 1893-1896, 1896-06-29
JIM'S STAR LOWERED.
Champion Corbett Narrowly Es-
capped Defeat at Frisco
Last Night.

San Francisco, Cal, June %
Champion Jim Corbett climbed down
last night from his pedestal of pugil-
istic greatness and at the same time
husky Tom Sharkey, who was eight
months ago a mere blue jacket at the
Mare Island navy yard, mounted to the
top notch in the sporting calendar Ten
thousand people saw the sailor give and
take blows with Corbett for twelve min
uteS and at the end of the fight they saw
an indicated worlds champion hanging
around his opponents neck weak, Hstless,
painting and leaning against the ropes to
prevent himself from falling. AS it was
the fight was declared draw. Had ii
lasted few minutes more there might
have been a different story to tell-a
story that would make pugilistic history.
There are in San Francisco today-and
their number is legion-peOple who say
that twelve more minutes of fighting
would have made new worlds cham
pion. Corbett went into the ring Smil-
ing and confident. He came out of it
trembling and crestfallen. He had not
only failed to stop the sailor in four
rounds, as he and his thousands of adj
mirers confidently expected he would,
but he narrowly escaped being a whipped
man. Round after round the champions
admirers cheered and goaded on to the
victory he could not win, and when he
went to his corner for the last time, the
crestfallen world beaten suffered the ig-
nOminy of having the sailor challenge
him to a finish fight for the worlds
championship. Corbett in the hope of re-
covering his laurels, accepted.
In all fairness to Corbett it is to be
said that he did not put up the fight last
night his admirers expected. Possibly
this shortening was due to over coI;1i-
dence; probably Tom Sharkey himself
was really the cause of it, for Sharkey
is a wonderful fighter. Corbett is mag
or is the best wrestler he ever met. The
blows rained thick and fast on the cham
pion's head. Twice the sailor tripped him
to the floor. Twice he fought him to the
ropes while Corbett in return failed to
deliver the looked for knockout blows.
The surprising feature of last nights do
ings was not so much that Corbett failed
to win as the narroWness with which he
escaped defeat. For reviewed from
whatever side one may look at it, Corbett
had the advantage. In stature he was
taller than his opponent. His superior
reach enabled him to land with effect.
In discussing the fight Corbett said:
when | say that Sharkey is a good
strong man | tell the whole story He
is bull, but he is no fighter. The people
are mistaken if they think he landed
serious blow on me. My face is now
WlIuOuL IL HldTA OF DEuISG. My
are little red from the effects of his
blows, but that is all. In the second
round | had him going and would have
put him out 1t the round had lasted ten
seconds longer. The referee stopped us
when | had Sharkey in his corner rat
tied in the second round and offered to
give me the decision, but / would not
accept it. had no difficulty in hitting
Sharkey, but he can stand more punish
ment than the ordinary man. | could
have blinded him by continuing to hit
him on the eye which [ nearly closed
in the second round, bEt it would have
done no good to hurt the poor fellow that
much, so | refrained from hitting the
right eye after the first blow The peo-
pie seemed to think that l was doing all
the hugging in the last round, but that
was a pardonable mistake Those who
was being done as the participants could.
Sharkey Rugged me is often and as long
as he could, and had a hard time of it
keeping him from crushing in the top
of my head with his arm. He aimed
blow after blow at my Uranium while
had landed | would have had a frac-
tured skull. If my seconds had made
the claim | would have secured the de-
cision on fouls. Sharkey was continual
Iy giving me the shoulder and cross but
took. But my seconds had instructions
to claim no fouls.
about the $4,000 proposition to fight
to finish, l am ready for Sharkey at
once. Let him cover the money and all
arrangements will be made at once for
the affair. l am going to leave the city
in few days, so he must act quickly.
Finish fights are what l desire and not
four-round battles in which a man can
not fight scientifically but must slug and
wrestIe''
The fight itself was good deal of
disappointment. There was more clinch-
ing than Furnishing. The gallery called
it wrestling MATCH" in derision.