Grant County herald. [volume] (Lancaster, Wis.) 1850-1968, 1906-07-14

= mere is Wnere the comedy COM
menCes. Nobody, but a few wise ones
believed 1 ever had a chance with
Hall. My fight with Dempsey ought
TO have put them wise, but it didn't,
and so when the betting was called
was the short end of it, and most OF
the club outfit could see almost any
thing tut Fitzsimmons. This is not
swelled head or anything like that, but
after I'd whipped Dempsey, that lad
was always watching out for me, and
his wife told me once that when he
was on his death-bed he put roll of
money he had saved into her hands
and said:
Whenever, or whoever Fitzsim-
mons fights, place your money on him.
for he's bound to beat every man OF
any weight ne ever meets
Poor Jack was wrong towards the
last, but it went then. Well. stories
like that had got about, and they
helped Inc little in the betting, but
tee big money was on Hall. Here
is where the fun commences. and
where fought myself out of hand
some stake.
jim and l got into the ring, and it
was all day for him. and he knew it.
He'd fOUr1ushed about long enough
and while l wanted to show him just
how much of ringer he was, | didn't
want the thing to get too short, for
believe in giving a crowd a run for
its money any time that's possible.
set it pretty stiff for jim, and long
before the first round was over
knew l had him on Queer street.
When the fourth round came in
jim was cinch, and | just handed
him his and began to count up that big
bit Of change in my mind. It's a
coed thing l counted it there, for it
was the only counting l did. While
was putting nice artistic finish on
Jim the good president of the club
was out. I'll give you five guesses
and you'll never hit it, unless you've
heard the story. The president was
down the street putting up the purse
on Jim Hail. AS / am a living man,
that's just what came off, There we
were in the ring, getting warm and
hruisy and the good president was
mixing from one place TO another put
ting up the $4,000 on a dead one
That's where 1 fought myself out OF
good bunch of ready stuff. If lG
have been beaten, I'd have taken down
the short end, and that would have
been something, but | had to go and
whip Jim into a plug hat, and just
because did, and the presidents judg-
ment had hole in it, l got a financial
slap that hurt
Then l thought of that fancy little
speech I'd made about sticking to my
old friends in New Orleans, and ]
could have sat down and hOwled an
ltGian war song. l thought of the
$4,000 we'd been offered in New
York. and l could have hb some one
with an ak. but l had to stand and
take the medicine, though I'll never.
forget how mean I felt when they
cane in and told me that it was al
up.
Where's the coin?" l asked.
There isn't any coin," said they
1T went up on Hail.
All of it?' / wanted to know.
Every red," said they, and then
kept quiet.
That was my good friend from New
Orleans. Say, but there are lot OF
things they can hand you in this
sporting game, and it's a new one
every minute. Think of me standing
70 hof JoJJ
down the ring for nothing. Of course
it was some satisfaction to have hand
ed James his, and to shut his trap
down about what he was going to &c
to me, but that money was a bitter
wallop. I've got many a worse one
in the ring, but they never hurt like
that did. And me all but broke
Vow
However, it's a good saying that it'll.
all come out in the wash, and it did
| got along somehow, but that les.
son taught me lot of things.
In the newspapers sometimes you've
read something like this: Some de
lay was caused at the ringside by
FitzsimmOns. He wanted the money
put up IN pain SlSnC, ana SAID ne
wouldn't go on unless some reputable
man held the stake
Maybe you've thought it mighty
queer for a man to act that way, anc
perhaps you've felt a little bit sore
and had a whole lot of contempt for
a man that couldn't trust anybcd
with the change he was going t.
fight for.
Well, now, do you blame Fitzsim
mons? Do you think he did that for
a joke, or because he didn't want any
one to get the hooks into him again
It's the old story, once bit, twice
shy, and it's burnt child that breads
the French ball.
I'm going to know where l get my
hands on that purse, no matter how
things go, and if any more president
want to gamble, they can do it will