The Washington times., 1906-07-29
BERGER AND JEFF.
It IS TO LAUGH
Weird Smoke About Bout
Between One-Fight Man
and Worlds Champion.
REAL GANS-NELSON DOPE
Question Is Not Their Merits But
Whether len Be or The
Level.
By THOMAS S. RICE.

By THOMAS s. RICE.
II you see a sporting editor so MUSCLE
bound that he can't crook his elbow
which is not likely TO occuT-then you
can know that he got his trouble fr0gT1
constantly throwing away stories about
sam Berger fighting Jim Jeffries.
or all the foolish smoke that has come
out of the pugilIstIc pipe in recent dec
AIDES that about Jeff and Berger is the
limit. II the promoters and the public
take the proposition seriously or give
It more than a passing glance and
smile. then it viii be time 10 transfer
all the fight fans 10 the psyChopathic
wards before they become violent and
bite the public buildings
One Bout-That With Tnckster.
Berger is merely husky amateur
who has had one bout OF consequence.
That bout was with a triclster who has
fooled The public in more bad fights
and done more TO lurt the fight game
than any man now in the ring. II is
rot even certain that the great showing
Berger made was not d stall from start
20 finish 70 land the suckers for "a hEnit
play on the coast. O'Brien IS a clever
fighter and an even cIeverer hxer and
buffer. II may be that he overdid his
part II he was pulling" with Berger,
but with lis reputation it IS hard TO
believe anything else.
None of the alleged heavyweight
championship material at present be
fore the public IS good enough Tor
three-rouni preliminary 90 a fight be-
tween really good men. and despite his
bad acting O'Brien is really the best OF
the lot He couldn't draw q house
worth the trouble If he We're 20 night
or any of the rest of that crowd, and be
has already whipped Al Kaufman. so
where WAS he To get an opponent whom
the followers OF pUglllsm would con-
slider capable of giving him a sufficiently
good run 20 Justify them In giving up
the big prices for seats?
Answered. Berger. the husky and
muCh-discussed amateur make good
points After that. twenty rounds in
Frisco or Los Angeles and the coin in
lunches.
Could JEFF Fight?
This is not saying that Berger Is not
already a good man and promises to be-
come an even better one with expert
ence. but 10 couple his name with Jen's
because Of hts victory over O'Brien un-
hAFL tAlcSr tAl At44LASbs1llNE1 IL a june All
reports indicate that JeHries is gross
and heavy now from his quiet life on a
farm. and that IL would be almost a
physical impossibnity for him to train
down to a point where he would have
the speed and wind to put up a fight
worth seeing He could go into the
ring now and pOnderously beat 20 death
three or four Of the alleged near
champs" at one and the same time,
= 10. n HFnHH 4 H.
" be interesting as a boxing spectacle
and would be simply one of those freak
an airs which are gotten up TO squeeze
the gullible and give the opponents OF
boxing material 10 be used in getting
their names into the papers.
JefTles knows his own condition and
that he could not do himself justice in
the ring again, and for that reason has
lot Of get-it-quick promoters who want
him as an advertisement, and II IS prob /
able that he laughs heartily, "Ha, Ia" |
Ike that, whenever he thinks of a bout !
with Berger.
Uncertain Betting Proposition.
It Is announced that Cans and Mel |
son are TO meet before snow flies. This /
is going 10 be one OF the most uncer- /
tain betting propositions ever advanced. !
Personally. / believe that If Cans IS I'm I
condition he will be clever enough /
to stall of Nelson until he gets an /
opening. and then send in one of those I
short jo-ts that would bother Jeffries /
and end the contention right there. /
Nor do I believe Nelson could get IN /
enough on Cans TO weaken him so that 4
the champion would not have the /
strength for the punch when the open
Inc came.
But, while this fight should. on its
face. be the best and most interesting
Hn# -
little men. Ii has so MANY angles that |
betting on II viii be something like bet
ting in handbook on race I'm which 1
there IS an added starter. You don't ]
know what may be up somebody's
sleeve, and after your dope has been
proved absolutely correct something
you couldn't possibly fOresee keeps YOU
from getting the money.
good way 20 dope the event is 10
cast out the respective merits OF the
two men as fighters and figure thusly;
Here's the Real Dope.
Does Cans think he is strong enough
TO keep on In the game for some years
20 come, or does he believe that he IS
almost in and must rely upon one more
big killing?
Is Cans ambition 20 be the aclnowl-
edged kingpin lightweight Of the whole
world strong enough 20 make him de-
cline a barrel Of money TO lie down?
Does he figure the money he could
make out Of exhibition bouts and travel
ing with theatrical tTOupes if he wins
would be more than he can get out of
those VINO might want to fix the fight?
To SUM 1t all up: Is Cans on the
level2
Cans Mysterious Weight.
Speaking Of Cans. he was to make
iS5 pounds for Dave Holly when he beat
Holly I'm Seattle last week. and the re-
ports are that he weighed 1895 pounds
In the afternoon. The great contention
has been that Cans could not make 1913
pounds and be strong, and I was OF
that opinion leyself but I am now not
so sure. He has always been extremely
secret tive about his weight in bouts in
which II cut any ice, and he and Al
hertord we're often the only ones who
had the slightest idea how close he was
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