Waterbury Democrat., 1901-11-20
FIGHTS AND FIGHTERS.
Everything Looks Bright For
 the Fight in Hartford.

Manager Crowley Has Spent Several
 Thousand Dollars to Bring McGoy-
 ern and Young Corbett Together
 McGovern is Now in Active Train
 ing-Young Corbett is Confident He
 Will be the Winner.
 Mayor Harb:son of Hartford appears to be rather a level-headed persoh- This is evident from his attitude on the McGovern- Corbett bout set TOT that city on November 2S. As IS GUS tomary on such occasions people Who swallow football camels and strain at Queensbury gnats indulge in long, loud howls of lamentation over the ue- cadence of humanity. They would not know a boxing glove from q 1ool- ball nose guard or a skull protector and they have never seen q pout' wherein thex differ from the president of the United States. However. they do not hesitate to denounce boxing as the most brutal pastfme ever invented, and insist on the militia being called out to prevent any and all bouts.
 Several of that sort Of persons have been trying to influence Mayor Harbi- son against the Corbett-McGovern bout, but he does not appear to relish their interference.
 In a recent interview the mayor said the law as he understood it per mitted so-called boxing matches. and persons who didn't want them should get the law amended. He understood the prosecuting attorney had said that such athletic contests were not illegal if properly conducted.
 As the law permitted them his duty was rather that of administrator of the law than that of conservator of the public morals. Some objection had been made because the boxing match was to be on Thanksgiving Day. This might apply in the forenoon when the churches were open. but the scrap was to be in the afternoon. The theaterS were going afternoon and evening, there were other kinds of public en- tertainment, dances, etc, advertised, and the saloons were open all day. The police attended boxing matches with instructions to stop them at any evidence of brutality. It was an un- doubted and unquestioned fact that there were many citizens opposed to the exhibitions of the manly art of self-defense. but there was large por- ton of the citizens who favored that sort of entertainment. Last year there were fourteen exhibitions of that character in the city, for which the committee on amusements, of which Alderman George F. Kellogg was chairman issued licenses. but he (the mayOr) had made up his mind that that was too many and he would limit the number to one q month, which would be about six during the season. That was enough. He had also made up his mind that if two or more ath- letic associations wanted the same date neither would get it; they would have to decide upon their own dates without requiring him to decide which could have certain night.
 Boxing matches would be licensed in other cities and he did not think Hartford should be the only city in the state to prohibit them when the state law permitted them He understood that they were to take place in Kew Britain and Bridgeport, and from talk he had with Mayor Studley of New Haven, Saturday. he gathered that that chief magistrate would not interfere if the athletic events were conducted properly. One had been stopped in New London not because It was q boxing exhibition, but for come other cause