Waterbury evening Democrat., 1906-03-07
THE SPORTING NEWS.


 he went into the gambling game an
 opened up somewhere on Broadwa | in New York. I've been told on good ar thority that at one time Morrissey wa
 worth $2,500,000, and that he wa steered by old Commodore Vanderbil
 in some big real estate deal. Afte l the Commodore passed away Morrisse
 hit the toboggan, and passed on to joil
 the rest.
 It's fact, too, that his widow wen
 to work in collar factory up in Troy
 N. Y, and worked for years for dol
 lar a day. They tell lot of storie
 about Morrissey, and 1t has been sail
 he gave his wife $3O0,O0O worth of dia
 monds, and that she used to like t
 wear them all at once. Of course it'
 history that Morrissey became stat
 senator of New York. and later 1
 congl essman, but 1t didn't make hi
 fall any softer that I've heard.
 was his fault, in a way, too, that Bill
 Poole got his death in 1855. It's [
 long story to go into here, but Bil got mixed up in politics, and double crossed Morrissey some way. The! were going to mix it up with the bar' knuckles, and they were going to mee on a dock. Each man was to have two friends, but Poole showed up witt 300, and the beating Morrissey go
 soured him for years. Of course he was going to get square, and he did | in February, of the next year. 4 gang hcpped him one night when h. ] was in Stanwix hall, on the Bowery and Bill was shot. He lasted nine days, and he went over with the rest It isn't necessary to mention that he had two dollars and half when they looked him over.
 F George Fulljames got his up fir Manitoba a few years ago, while h. was ir the ring with an unknown. A local man had some heavy money or the unknown, and when the time came where George was going to hand his opponent his, the local man brained him with bung starter. I don't be. lleve the case was ever looked into by the police.
 Then there was John Gully, a crack erjack English fighter. He made a pot of money, and after he left the ring got seated in parliament. and then went in for racing and some dickerins on the exchange. He began to droI hls cash as if he was catching cold and towards the end feared he was going to die in the workhouse. A lot of his old pals, however, saved him from that, and he died a peuper ac- tually.
 Ned O'Baldwin, splendid fighter. who gave Jem Mace a whole lot of trouble to put away-come to think of it, Jem never would meet him for the worlds championship, after all-- was shot in the back in New York by loafer he had fed and taken care of for years. It was the merest accident that he didn't go to the potter's field. He was absolutely stone broke.
 Johnny Heenan went up with a rush after he beat Tom Sayres, and 1t looked as if he was going to get all the money, but he didn't He opened a gambling house on Broadway and went down with rapid rush. When they came to bury him they had to take up collection for him. He died out in Greene River, Col.
 Of course there are a whole lot of good men of to-day who have managed to keep a little of their money, but look at George Dixon. It's a safe bet that George drew in over a million at one time or another, but how much of it has he got now? I've seen Tom 0'Rourke hand him a ten-spot pretty Frequently. because he didn't have place to sleep, and guess a whole lot of others have seen the same. With George it was just the colored mans love for hot living. He couldn't seem to make money stick to him anyway he got it. He bought everything in sight and was a good fellow" all the tune. I'm wondering right now, how many of the lads who used to live on him are coming around now to hand him five or ten to help him along. I don't think there's any need for cop to keer the line in order, or the crowd in line for that matter.
 cont believe anybody ever figured up just how much John l.. Sullivan made during his lifetime. and it's not doing John a wrong to mention that he's no millionaire now. He isn't and that's all there Is to it.
 Remember Johnny Grimm. the handi- est little man with his fists that came down the roadway in a long while? Poor Johnny fell down a flight of stairs in New York and broke his neck and they put him away without a cent 10 his name. though there was a wo- nan who stuck to Johnny long after he was destitute and out at elbows. Whisky did Johnny. just as it's done . gooi many better men.
 Pnoi old Jack Dempsey died with but mighty little coin in his possession. and he gave that to his wife, but he made pile of 1t.
 Jake Kilrain made a lot of money in his day. but where did 1t eo7 The heavens only know.
 Charley Mitchell has his. but it was looked out for. for him by his vifeis family. You can go on down the list and you'll find. as . rule. there's some hing wrong between the average tighter and his money. They don't seem