The Saint Paul globe. (St. Paul, Minn.) 1896-1905, 1899-08-07

Real Fighter Is Yet to Be DtscOv-
ered-Feared No Man and Never
QuibbIed Over Details in Arrang-
ing 81 Match - "Reminiscences Of
the Great Gladiator.
Like the colored hero Of Lew Dock
stader's song, John L. Sullivan, the
champion of champions in the prize ring.
was in a class "all alone" His success
SCR is yet to be discovered. From the
day he locked the doors of the assembly
room in Boston, where a Hibernian So
ciety was holding heated debate-John
L. being at the time the vice president of
the organiZation-and thrashed three of
his colleagues, who differed with him.
Sullivan has been the ideal fighter. He
did not strut about with a chip on his
shoulder and ask some one to knock it off
but he was ever ready to give battle to
the ambitious aspirant, whoever he
might be. John L. gave out no nantes
toes. He had no advance agents. When
under the direction of Pat Sheedy, and AL
Smith and others, Sullivan was the man
who decided the fight question. So 1t was
when Sullivan was abroad with Phillips
That shrewd young man did not want
John to go out and fight Charley Nit
chell, knowing that the big fellow was
unfit to do battle with anyone. But John
went, and the result was the first set
back of his career.
FUN IN PRISON.
While Charley Mitchell and John L.
were in a French dungeon, standing in
water up to their ankles, with a file of
gendarmes to watch them, they banded
compliments until they tired of that sort
of entertainment Finally John called to
one of his guards:
Hey, there, Frog-Legs, bring me a
swallow of brandy, or I'll swing on your
jaw when 1 get out of here"
The guard gave the big boxer a scorn-
full look, but replied not Mitchell was
more diplomatic. He cautioned Sullivan
to keep quiet, and motioning to the SEN
tinel, said:
NOW, John, watch me fetch him. He
don't understand English. but he is up
in notions
Whereupon, Mitchell placed his right
hand upon the pit of his stomach, bent
forward and made wry face, as though
in great pain. He then raised his hand
in the air and bringing it back to
level with his mouth. made a motion as
though pouring in drink, following that
with a gurgling noise The Frenchman
smiled, disappeared, and returned with
bottle of Cognac. There was no diplo-
macy in Sullivan. He was a flghter-not
a diplomat.
SULLIVAN A MAGNET.
No boxer of modern or ancient times
had the hold upon the populace that had
Sullivan. Wherever the Boston Boy went
It was a certainty that there the crowd
would be found AS his carriage passed
along the streets it was followed by
hundreds, and this continued even after
his defeat by Corbett. Where dozens of
the curious followed Corbett and Fitz-
simmons, and Dempsey, and other noted
ring champions, hundreds f1ocked to get
a glimpse Of the only John l.. He was
the ideal hero of the squared circle. He
was never known to talk fight, but was
ever ready to fight. The sorrow of Sulli-
vans life came when Slavin visited him
In ST. Louis, and offered him battle
John was at that time under contract to
go abroad To have met Slavin would
have meant the loss of a considerable
sum of money, and endless lawsuits
would have followed. Sullivan did not
care for that. What worried him was
that the people might be led to believe
that he was lodging match with Sla-
vim. And so 1t was in all Sullivan 8
career He did not care how much
money was in sight. He was always WILL
ing for the winner to take 1t all. He eX-
nected to be the winner. He never
dreamed of defeat.
SUCCEEDING CHAMPIONS.
c,..1,o++ baoa mo tho nre.
rnier pugilist by vanquishing the old mar
u,bo had been the wonder Of the WorlC
In his youth there were many who hailed
him as a worthy successor OF the onl!
John L, He was magnetic. He seemed
To the masses to be the sort OF glaol'
ator to carry the honor and DEFEND 1t
And despite Brady's tactics that KEEP
Corbett away from defeat so long the
general public chung to him and Wor'
SHIPPED the counterfeit as a real GLADIATOR
WHY not? Had he not wrested the cham
nionshfp from the greatest of all fighters
Few stopped to reason that Sullivan mac
wrecked his magnificent physique by eX'
cesses. and to consider that the man de-
feated by Corbett was not the only Johr
7, but his shell or shadow. That Sulli
van never again sought to do battle
should have been sufficient to have open
ed the eyes of the heroworShipers, but
n TheX
heather, blindly worshiped it until g
niddleweight came along and thrashec
the counterfeit champion to a standsttll
Then they saw that Corbett was not the
legitimate successor to Sullivan.
FITZSIMMONS WILLING.
Robert Fitzsimmons was perhaps as
near a second real gladiator and cham
pion as his physique would permit. But
he was a middleweight, and the follow
ers of the game could not give him full
need of praise. They wanted a rea
heavyweight to defend the title once held
by Sullivan. They were therefore pleased
when Jeffries won. He was man who
could meet all corners. Had he not said
so? Aye, but how about Billy Brady:
Did not Corbett say, after he had defeat
ed Sullivan, that the only blank spot in
his happiness could be filed in but one
way-and that would be a battle with
Peter Jackson, who had fought him to a
draw, on one leg. He pined for Jackson
until he discovered that Jackson also
pinned, and then Corbett-or, rather
Brady-discovered that Jackson was a
negro and decided that they would draw
the color line. In plain words, Corbett
was nothing more than a counterfeit
who challenged him. Brady saw that he
did not.
HOW ABOUT JEFFRIES?
Here is a question that may have to
be answered by Jeffries in action. After
he had defeated Fitzsimmons Jeffries gave
out statement that he was not an actor.
He said that he did not propose to go
on the stage, but while in the fighting
business would meet all corners, in de-
Tense of his title. Has he done this? No,
he has lodged as much as did Corbett IN
his early days, with Brady as manager.
Now Jeffries has gone to England on a
money-making trip. Not for the honor
of his business, but for the gold there