Omaha daily bee., 1897-02-14
SPORTS FOR WANING WINTER
Entertaining Chat Anent the Big Gladiators
and Their Coming Mill.
A GLANCE OVER FlTzS ACHIEVEMENTS
The College AthIctcs-From on the
wntcr-Snmnhn on Game Laws
A Breezy Compendium
from Many Fields.

from Many Fields.
AS the eyes Of all sportdom are at present
focused on the two big fstic gladiators,
Fltzsimmons and Corbett. and will remain
so until next st. Patricks day, a good deal
OF space will naturally be surrendered to
them and their approaching meeting by the
press of the country and the readers OF The
Bee will get their full share. There seems
to be no matter offered today that Is in II
with the fight. All classes Of people are in
terested and 1t is talked about and com
mented on everywhere, the unanimous
opinion being that it is to be the athletic
event OF the century, and If the two men
have a proper regard for their own welfare
they will give cause for no fresh complca-
tions which may tend to delay the crisis
II either does there will be meager grazing
IN the pugilistic pastures for him hereafter
But there seems little danger Of this. Both
men are evidently very much in earnest and
an Intervention by some unseen power is all
that is likely to spoil the fun. 1t Is exceed
ingly gratifying to learn that both men will
In all likelihood be in the best possible form
when they toe the scratch out in the sage
brush state to decide the championship.
Corbett is pictured in the very acme of con-
dition, heathful and strong and just as
Timber and quick and tricky as OF old. He
has maintained a course of training while on
the road and is just right for the camp life
way that will render him fit to
battle for his life. But the
Californian hasn't any bulge on the Cornish
man in this regard, for he is known to be
as tlt as fiddle. He is bigger. stronger
and ruddier than ever before in his life, and
that, too, without Juggling around an ounce
of supetnuous adpose. With ten days in
the thin air of the Sierras, Fit2 will be just
right to win the fight of his life, or get his
first decisive licking. Anyway, with the
conditions which are said to exist we are
certain to witness a great contest, a. contest
in which courageousness, craftiness and gem
erdlship will be the elements that Will pilot
one or the other to victory. That it will
be tremendous betting affair is already an
assured fact but my advice to those who
have a little stuff" which they feel they
can use in speculation without dsCommoding
themselves, is to go slow. Do not be in
hurry to get 1t up on sentimental taVorte;
wait till day or so before the fight. Remem-
ber Sullivan, Dempsey, Maher. AS to the
Omaha enthusiasts | can assure them that
they will be afforded accommodations such
as few contingents in the country Will
enjoy, but just now nothing definite can be
said. ] will have, anyway, two palace
sleepers, a diner and an extra car out of here
under any and all circumstances, and pan
oplied with the good things of life in a meas
ure that will make the Waldorf in New York
look like an Indiana tavern.
Corbatt 1t seems has already planned
his battle with Fitz, and, as mapped out on
paper, the affair appears to be such gooi
thing for him that If | were Bob | would
order Al Smith to hand over the stakes
to him. Divested Of all unnecessary ver-
biage, Jim's plan is simply this: He will
take advantage of his height reach and
agility ard fight the New Zealander at long
range He will lab Bob until he is as weak
finishing frills-and there you are But Cor
bett manfully admits that in the rubescent-
headed hangar 90 he will find a crafty, shifty
fighter, shrewd tactic an a clever boxer,
stiff puncher, and stout-hearted aud sturdy
gladiator. But he has plans laid to cir
cumvent Bob's cunning, to eliminate his
powers of stiffness to offset his cleverness
and hard blows, and to bring about de-
terioration in the Maoriland mans tremen-
dous strength and sturdnesS. AS l said
before, Jim's plans are excellent, but at that
he has made a mistake that any older gen
eral would rot make and that is in mouth
ing his o-c9lled plans to the world. To be
forewarned, according to an aged saying,
Is to be forearmed and Robert is just the
foxy boy to take advantage of the situation.
Can it be that the Californian Is such a
believer in reciprocity that he expects Fitz
to make public declaration of his plans
of action? If that is so, he is mistaken,
for all that Bob has thus far enunciated
on the subject is that he may knock Jim
out in the first round!
All of. which leads me to remark that the
very gentlemanly and very vouble Mr.. Cor
bett may be laying up for himself the ma
terlal for a crushing humiliation. While
he raves and rants about what Ftzsmmons
is doing and saying, he is talking too much
himself. But COrbett would not be Corbett
unless allowed to make himself conspicu-
Gus. OF all the slush that finds it's way
to the public, nine-tenths of it is about Cor
bett. If Fitz INDUCES in a little playful
gasconade, his numerous malevolent enemies
are sure to jump on and roast him. while
they gulp down the Californian's CUFF like an
April trout does the first venturesome flies |
of spring Somehow or other | think there |
is decided surplusage of gush over the ex- |
champions incessant training, his bright |
eyes, his startling quickneas his magnih- |
cent form and what he and is going |
to do. We are overloaded with daily bulIe-
tins of all these numerous chara cteristics of |
Jim's, and of just what he 10 going to do to |
Bob when he gets him inside The ring out |
there in Nevada, and there Is an oppressive |
surfet OF detail of himself and his affairs |
In general. According to MY way of think |
ing. Mr. Corbett is taking desperate chances |
He may conquer Fitzslmmons, and conquer |
him easily, but cannot see by what process |
OF reasoning anyone arrives at that conclu- |
sion. Even II he should achieve this end |
In the approaching event, 1t would be to
his advantage to have been modest before |
the battle, for since he fought Jackson il
will have been the only fight he has had
with man anywise his equal. and after it |
is over, If he wins. for the first time in his
career will he have abundant reason to plume
himself. What II Corbett Is, or was, Fitz-
simmons superior In all the qualifications
which go to make up a successful heavy
weight champion. might It not be that some
sort OF excess, at which there have been end
less hints during the past two years, has
nhdermined his grand powers sufficiently to
drop him in Bob's class, or a trlde lower?
And then, II the Australian should whip
MN as easily as 1t is so glibly predicted
that he will whip the Australian how would
your boastful Adonis look then? How
would the ostentatious bulletins OF today
then read? Now while / myself think that
with Corbett the man he was supposed to
be he has shade the best OF the
probabilities, but not enough TO induce me
at this advance date to stake any of my
fold or silver pieces upon him, aud all /