The Saint Paul globe. (St. Paul, Minn.) 1896-1905, 1898-06-12
ALLEN AND M'COOLE.

little more than twenty years have
passed since Tom Allen and Mike Nc
Coole were the bright particular stars
of the prize ring in America. McCoole is
dead. He was last heard of among ring
followers when he called upon John L,
Sullivan, in New Orleans Sullivan.
with his characteristic generosity. of
Tered money to McCoole, but it was
declined. Later it was Sullivan who
paid the funeral expenses of the once
formidable gladiator. McCoole went
down the ladder with a rush He was
finally compelled to seek livelihood
by rolling barrels and loading freight
on steamers at New Orleans. When
he called on Sullivan McCoole was lit
tie more than a skeleton-and he was
the man who caused Aaron Jones, the
famous heavyweight, when he first saw
McCoole stripped for battle, to remark:
Say, boys, where did you get the buff
falo?"
''THE CHAMPIONS REST"
Allen, McCoole's rival in the days
when they fought with ''the raw 'uns,"
is hale and hearty. He is the central
figure of real old-fashioned ''free and
easy" such as delights the Briton TO
the manner born. Aliens place" is
On Market street, in the ''tenderloin"
district of st. Louis 1t is a ramshackle
old building, bent with years, and re-
minds one Of "a leaning tower" In
the rear room sits the eX-champion,
surrounded each evening by a choice
coterie Of admirers. He is armed with
a diminutive gavel and at the slight
est evidence of levity down comes the
mallet on the table, with warning
admonition: "Horder, gents. You mar
the 'armony hof the hevening." And
Allen is monarch there. Woe betide
the bibulOuS carouser who persists in
marring the harmony of the evening"
Allen sings base yes, that is the way
to spell it in his case-there is a piano
and a number of "hartists.' who, in
turn, sing Hi Ham a Rowing Blade"
and kindred melodies. Toms favorite
ditty goes something like this:
There was bleemin sparrow
Went up a blComn' spout
And the bloomin' bleemin. rain came down
And washed the bloomin' sparrow CUT
Nothing pleases Allen better than to
discuss old-time ring battles.
''THE BELFAST CHICKEN"
There is another veteran of veterans
of the prize ring who has pitched his
tent in st. Louis. He was known in
merry old ENGLAND as '"The Belfast
Chicken" a featherweight of renown,
who personally knew 1.-THE Upton
Slasher," and all the big ones of those
days. 1.-THE Chicken is now any
thing but a feather He tips the
beam at over 200 pounds, has the ap-
pearance of a prosperous merchant or
banker, and is popular with all classes
in the Mound City. The name borne
by this celebrity of the ring is Prof.
William Clark, but his intimate friends
generally address him as plain Bill"
Prof. Clark is proprietor OF a swim
ming school and livery stable. He is
well-provided with worldly goods. And
he has not forgotten his early training,
at that. In the conduct of his natato-
rum, the professor has to employ life
savers. He chooses athletes when he
can get them, and one day engaged a
big fellow who was "handy with his
hands," There came a disagreement
and the life-saver remarked to the pro-
feSsor:
Its lucky for you, you have gray
hair"
Don't let that disturb YOU" re-
sponded the Chicken" all the old fire
returning in an instant.
The big life-saver took the professor
at his word, and then he wished he
hadn't. for. like the man who tackled
a bear, he was SOON shouting for some
one to help him let loose. The profess
sor taught him lesson In the manly