The Evening statesman. [volume] (Walla Walla, Wash.) 1903-1910, 1905-02-02
CORBEIT on FITzsIMMONs
TELLS SOME
AMUSING THINGS OF THE
CORNISH FIGHTER.
cerbett Says He Started Jeffries OF
in the Fighting Game and 10
Sorry Of It.

/ CHICAGO, ILL.,, Feb. III see by re-
ports in the daily papers that Fitz is
on the warpath and must have fight,
says James j. Corbett. Every time l
read anything about the great Cornish
man 1 think of the day he arrived In
this country from Australia.
1 happened to be one of the first
men Bob ran across in the fighting
game, and his pleasant manners inte-
rested me in his future really more
than his looks did.
Shortly after our first meeting I re-
ceived letter from Bat Calvin, New
Orleans promoter whom l had met
| when in the Louisiana metropolis pre-
pairing for my round battle with
Jake Kilrain Calvin wanted me to
send George La Blanche, or Young
| Mitchell, to New Orleans to fight Art
Upton, who had considerable following
| in those days.
I cared little about La Blanche or
Mitchell. and was thinking of writing
letter to Calvin, when who should
pop up but F'itz and his manager.
put the proposition of going to New
Orleans up to them, and when they
heard that $4,000 purse was in it for
them they Immediately said they would
accept. 80
Gets Fitx q Job.
I wired Calvin that neither Young
Mitchell nor La Blanche was available,
but that had discovered another mid
dleweight who would surely give his
man Upton a good battle. I received
telegram at once saying for Fftz and
his manager to leave for New Orleans
on the first train.
There were lot of men in New Or
leans who liked the looks Of the lanky
Cornishman, and when he stepped into
the ring with Upton he carried lot of
| money. Fitz proved at once that he
was great fighter. and to this day I
guess no one has doubted it.
This start gave the Cornishman was
the beginning of the ending of myself
as the champion heavyweight fighter
Of the world.
Jeffries is another man started out
in the pugilistic game and afterwar1
had to take my hat off to. 1t was while
training for my battle with F1tzsim
mons at Carson City that I received
letter from an old friend of mine at
San Francisco. De Witt Van Court,
| asking me If needed a sparring part
ner. didn't, but the recommendation
of Van Court was enough to assure me
that 1 could not make a mistake by
bringing on the big fellow.
jeff Kept His Eyes Open.
One Sunday afternoon there appeared
at my training quarters a big, clumsy
| looking chap who said that his name
| was Jim Jeffries, and that he had a let
| ter from a San Francisco friend of
| mine which would explain his errand.
| Jeffries was given the glad hand by
all my friends, and he took all the
kidding and joshing of the other fell
| lows good naturally.
| He would put on the gloves with me
any time 1 wanted to, and always took
all the punching that l would give
him in an ordinary workout without
/ hinching a particle
| When 1 faced Fitz. jeff was behin.7
| me, and you can bet he was getting ali
kinds of pointers from Fitz that after
ward meant lot to him. The sporting
world knows well the outcome Of that
battle, but few at that time thought
| the big, clumsy fellow in my corner
| would develop so rapidly into the great
ring champion he is today.
! The resolution made and expressed
openly that night that he would some
| day take the honor that F'itz had taken
| from me was realized at New York
t few years later. T sat not an inch
| farther away from him when he did it
| than he sat from me that day in Carson
City