Waterbury evening Democrat., 1906-02-06
Copyright, by Joseph B. Bowles)
HOW I WON MY RING BATTLES

HOW I WON MY RING BATTLES
 In this, the preliminary bout l am taking on with the pen, want to say at once that l am not out to butter a nice hot slice of good advice, and then pry open the teeth of youth and shove it down the juvenile throat. I'm not going to take up physical culture and hold it up as the thing of all things, either, for what l don't know about it would fill book too big to carry around in the waistcoat pocket. Phy. sical culture is all right in its place. and good advice is, also, but I don't think I'm strong enough on either sub- ject to make it read true. I have written about the care of the body, and I meant it, but then my idea of it is quite lot different from the so-called professors and there are enough of them in the business to take care of it.
 I've been asked a good many times about my feelings when I step in the ring, and perhaps I'd better clean up that first of all. Looking back over the years I've been using the gloves, I think may say that the most impor- tant fight I've had was the one with Jim Corbett in Carson City. Anyway you look at it. it means about as much to me as anything could mean. If l jump in and tell the real tale of that little business, it ought to give pret- ty fair notion of what "the old man" feels like when he climbs through the ropes and looks the outfit over.
 I'll start off right here by saying never had nerve in my life. don't know anything about such things and I don't want to. When I was putting in good hard licks on the anvil back in New Zealand the only thing knew about nerves was when collided with a bit of hot iron, and that didn't last long. didn't know what it meant much, except that it was good thing to keep away from. I've walked into the ring something over 300 times in my life, and can't remember that ever had tremor or shake, except what got from the other fellow when I got careless. Nerves may be all right for some folks, but I've managed to get along without them, and I'd like to bet that some of the doctor boys would lose bunch of good bard money if the rest of humanity was like me. No healthy man ought to know whether he has nerves or not, any way. and if he has them he isn't healthy, and you can't go back of that. But what I wanted to talk about was that fight at Carson City.
 When that match was made think I was about as we'll satisfied as if I'd been left a million. for I'd been wait ing for a chance at Corbett a good long while, if you remember. Jim didn't think much of me those days, for some reason or other, and he never took any particular pains to hide it. either; but then he was young fellow and he's learned lot of things since then. I've trained for many a fight. but never as I trained for that one. and it was good hard work all the time Because I didn't fettle myself up the way the others had been doing lot of foolish stuff found it's way into the papers. and then the report got out that was only bluffing, and had it fixed up with a gang back east to lay down. That made me sore, for I'll say honestly that I'd have gone into the ring with Corbett if there hadn't been a dollar in it for me anywhere in sight. and I think he knew it just as we'll as I did. However, just kept on work ing and saying nothing much. and went through pretty stiff grind all around before the day came along. It was pretty hard work waiting. too. but I put the time in. for l knew that if I was going to whip Jim I'd have to be there when the last gong tapped.
 It's not swelling things little bit to say that over a thousand men have asked me how I felt just then when 1 climbed through the ropes. I've never really talked much about it. because  it never seemed worth while. but I'm going to tell the facts now. didn't feel much of anything except that I'd made up my mind that was going to whip my man if had to stick there for 2I hours. Iwalked around that ring in my bathrobe and looked the crowd over pretty well. remember there was one man in a soft gray felt hat who sat in my corner. and when l looked over al him he leaned over to a chap next to him and said:
 "Corbett n knock his blanked head of. Look at what he calls legs"
 That made me sore for a minute. and I leaned over the ropes and said to him:
 You biIly-soake1 kangaroo. I'll give you hundred if you'll say that again at my camp after the fight" And then felt foolish and went over to the other side of the ring. was thinking most of the time about Corbett's .>st. They'd always said ae Son most of his fights with them. and I was figuring out a way to put t on him with mine. If voIi ever saw tha nfefffreS they took