The Saint Paul globe. (St. Paul, Minn.) 1896-1905, 1904-04-09
HOW PRIzFF|GHTFRS
JUGCLE THE WEIGHTS
FeatherWeight Limit Has Been
Forced Up From 1872 to
100 Pounds.

7. S. Andrews, of Milwaukee, the
well-known sporting editor of the
Evening Wisconsin, has the following
to say regarding the juggling of
weights by prize fighters:
The result of the Corbett-Britt fight at
San Francisco has caused many hot argu-
mentS as to whether Corbett retains his
title of featherweight champion. In my
opinion he does-that is, if he can be
styled the featherweight champion, which
very much doubt-aS he has never really
fought a prominent man at the feather
weight limit. which is 122 pounds ringside
There was time when 118 pounds was
the recognized limit for featherweights,
but when George Dixon, Johnnie Griffin,
SolIy Smith and men of that class got
into the game the weight was showed up
a notch, the extreme limit being placed
at 122 pounds ringside. Oscar Gardner
Ike Weir, Billy Murphy and others were
all around that weight and they haggled
over the pound of flesh then almost as
much as the fighters of today do. 1t was
johnnie Griffith who refused to make 118
pounds for Dixon and who succeeded in
getting the weight placed at 122 pounds
ringside. although there had been others
before him claim that as the legitimate
weight; Solly. Smith. who claimed the
recognized as the correct limit, just as
1873 pounds was recognized as the light
weight limit and 10 to II6 the bantam
Govern came into prominence that the
weight was showed up another point or
two. Sam Harris. manager of McGOvern,
placing it wherever he desired.
McGOVern is really to blame for the
manner in which the title and weight has
been juggled about and it is about time
that halt was called. 1t is simply ridic-
men of that class featherWeights They
are practically hghtweights and if not
lightweights then they belong in a special
class at 126 to 128 pounds, the same as
Mike Cushing. Austin Gibbons and Tommy
White. Those boys realized that they
were too heavy for the featherweight and
too small for the Hghtweights, so they
agreed to fight in special class, but they
never raised howl about the titles one
way or the other, preferring to let the
championships remain where they be-
IonSed, Terry McGOvern claimed the
championship in the featherweight class
by defeating George Dixon, the legitimate
claimant, but he soon got out of the class
and began fighting at a heavier weight.
He met Young COrbett at Hartford, Conn,
o'clock.
weight to suit themselves, but they did,
and the club managers permitted it to be
advertised as championship battle. Cor
bett then raised the weight to suit his
convenience and when he fought Eddie
HanlOn for the title it was at 129 pounds
Then he raised it to $50 pounds for Jimmy
Britt, but the. stipulation in this match
was that the title of featherweight cham
pion was not involved. Even if the pub
lie recognized the title at 1870 pounds
II would not count as the men had agreed
to leave that out of the contest. How
ever, 1t would be a ridiculous claim, as
l said before, as there is no getting away
from the legitimate weight Corbett cam
not fight at the featherweight limit-122
poundS-and he should be compelled to re-
linquish the title to the next best man
who can make the weight and then ad-
vance himself into the next class, which
IS the lightweight division, or if he pre-
fers into the special class as Mike Cush-
ing and the others did, but keep the cham
plonShlps at their proper weights. Jim
Jetfr1es defeated Bob Fitzsimmons but
that did not make him middIeWeight
champion, title that Bob had held since
he defeated Jack Dempsey and which he
always stood ready to defend at the proper
weight, 1853 pounds. George Lavigne. the
champion lightweight, defeated Joe
Walcott, but he never claimed the welter-
weight championship, an honor WaIcOtt
claimed after Tommy Ryan passed out
OF that class into the middleWeight di-
vision. 1t is just as silly to suppose that
Britt is featherweight champion. He
cannot make less than 40 pounds at 2
O'Clock, which means 1873 at ringside. Cor
pett may be able to make 1876 but there
are many who doubt his ability to get to
When you get down to facts the raaI
featherweight champion today is Abe Al
tell, as he can fight at 122 bounds RING
side. and he has defeated most all tRa
good men of that class in the country
The lightweight championship should lie
between Young Corbett and Jimmy Britt
as Joe Cans, who claimed the title. has
outgroWn it and has not been able to
make the weight for the past three years,