The Minneapolis journal. [volume] (Minneapolis, Minn.) 1888-1939, 1903-11-14
MAHER A HAS.BEEN.
Jack Munroe's Easy Victory Over
Irish Champion Wins Him
\ Few Admirers.

Bob Fitzslmmons Appears to Be
Growing Anxious About Fight
With Gardner.
The easy. victory Of Jack Munro,
the Butte miner, over Peter Maher last
Saturday has failed to convince the
sporting fraternity that Munroe has
any chance with Jeffries. 1t is thought
that heswould prove easy meat for
the champion, or for Corbett or Fitz
Maher never was more than a sec
ond-rater, and he is now popularity
supposed to be all In. Many who saw
the fight say that Munroe did not
knock the Irish champion out, but
that the latter succumbed to exhaus-l
ton. Maher Is getting pretty we'll
along in years, and he never was "a
scientific fighter who could offset his
loss of endurance and strength by
cleverness. Munroe must do consid-
erably more than whip Maher before:
the public will concede him to be a
chang ionship possibility.
Bob Fitzsimmons has sent out a
call for aid to prepare him for his
coming fight with George Gardner, and
thereby given the impression that he
believes he has the fight of his life
on his hands. Fitz has asked Jack
Root, the Chicago light heavyweight,
| to come to California.
| The action is significant, inasmuch
as FitZsimmOns has never before cared
much for hints from thesoutside. The
Cornishman has much natural con-
ceit. He thinks that he knows as
much about boxing and about his OPP
ponents as any other living man. and
in all his preparations he has been a
hard man to give pointers to. Some
take the invitation to Root to be. q
slight confession of weakness on the
past Of the Cornishman. At all events,
it signifies that Robert has laid aside
| his belief in his own invincibility and
reached that point where he is willing
to ask for assistance.
There is another reason why Fltz-
simmons wants and needs good man
like Root. In most of his former
| battles FitZ has had the advice OF
George Dawson Of the Chicago Athletic
association, but in this instance DaW-
son is not with him. When F1tzslm-
! mons stopped In Chicago on his way
west, he said that he would make all
of his training arrangements after ne
arrived at San Francisco.
When he arrived there he failed TO
find lust the man he wanted. There
is no doubt that the Cornishman has
missed Dawson, as the friendship be-
tween the two men has been very
close. Hence the invitation extended
to Root is not surprising.
| There is probably no man in the
country who knows more about Gard
ner as an opponent than does Root.
He has fought the light heavyweight
champion three times. Root first won
| on a foul in seven rounds, then he
Host in seventeen rounds, and the third
time was beaten in twelve rounds.
Altogether Root has fought Gardner
thirty-six rounds, and in that time has
] undoubtedly gained some valuable
pointers as to methods that would de-
| feat Gardner.
/ Root realized after the battle at
Fort Erie last July that he took the
wrong tack with Gardner, and what
4 he could tell F,itzsimmons would prob
ably be of material aid to the Corn
ishman. Perhaps Root prefers to keep
4 his information for: his own use. Al
least he has not yet accepted fatz-
/ simmons bid. y - :.
i ner fight. He has heard a great deal
about the Lowell man and believes
1 him to be a tough customer. but ne
4 has never before worried for an In
1 slant about his ability to beat Gard
liner in the ring. The possibility that
The has underestimated Gardner now
ylseems to have taken hold OF F1tz, ana
he is willing to go to any lengtn 70
lind out something about his rival. II
i would cost the Cornishman a good bit
4 To take Root to San Francisco, and
1 Fitzsimmons never spends money UNI
/ less he thinks he is going TO GET
1 value received.
San Francisco fight promoters seem
1 ~3r~10 ~ M Il t.
fries into fighting Jack Johnson, !ne
colored heavyweight. champion, a title
he earned by defeating Sam Mcye Y;
when the latter put Denver Ed
. Martin out Of the championship run
lining in short order he was CONSIDERED
1.-The one man in the country capapie OF
giving Jeffries a fight. His lack OF
science was acknowledged, but his
| weight, strength and hitting powers
were equal, it was said, to anything
the champion possessed in that line.
Johnson, because of his light tapping
method of fighting, was not t. menuo ~.
in the same breath with Jeffries or Nc
Vey at that time, but since he out
pointed Sam, Frisco promoters are
pitchforking him to the front as the
coming champion. Jeffries has times
without number stated he would not
fight a colored man for the champion
ship. figuring that colore ID
Il
pugilism in this country. BY
making that statement he has
no fear as to the result of the
battle with the best of the colored
fighters, but manfully acknowledges
that if by some unforeseen happening
he should meet with defeat he would
never forgive himself for giving a col
ored man the opportunity to lord i
over the white fighters. There is not
the slightest doubt the men behind
Johnson would be the first to decry 9
colored heavyweight champion, but
their greed for money+is getting the
better of their Judgment,
Il Eddie Patterson, a well known Phil
. adelphia sporting. man, tells some in
teresting things in regard to the wa,
boxing is conducted in England, a:
observed by him on a, recent trip t.
the old country. Patterson says tina
all fights held in the old country art
on the level, but they are SO slow tina
! an American audience would howl fol
:, the referee to put the fighters off tht
stage. The fights, as a rule are be
! tween featherweights, but even these
! midgets appear slow when comparee
). with American fighters.
; THE fights begin at s o'clock" say
: Patterson, land the main event il
rarely over before midnight. The
price of admission is very low and thu
purses paid the fighters do not ALLOW
them to indulge in luxuries that Amer
lean fighters are used to. A $10i
!, purse is big money over there, but a