The White Pine news. [volume] (Ely, Nev.) 1906-1910, 1907-08-28
SULLIVAN TELLS
OF HIS FAMILY
FATHER OF FAMOUS FIGHTEE
NEVER WEIGHED OVER
100 POUNDS.
{ BY John l.. Sullivan


After Donohue, the sculptor. had
produced his statue of THE Boxer,
for which | posed to him during a
whole summer, sharps on such mat
tiers said the shape of the statue was
one of the most perfect that had ever
come down any pike either in this
country or in Greece. Although this
statue which shows yours truly when
| was at my best, has been exhibited
in this country and Paris and praised
as the most perfect of human shape.
mention it only to show what re-
markable thing it is that | should he
the son of father who never
weighed over 100 pounds.
My mother was of fair size, weigh
ing $50 pounds, and it was said that
| got my strength from her. My
uncles and other relatives on my
fathers hide were large men and in
Ireland were called by a Celtic word
meaning 1.-The Big Sullivans. Ac-
cording to the yardstick measure
ments | didn't have much of a start
i'm life, yet here are some of the
names | have had put upon me dur
ing my career in the ring:
Boston Hercules; Knight of the
Elves, the HardHitting Sullivan, the
Boston Miracle, King of the Ring, the
Magnificent Sullivan, Boston's Phil
anthropist Prize Fighter. Boston Gil
ant. Trip Hammer Jack, Spartacus
Sullivan, Monarch of the Prize Ring
Scientific American, Boston's Pride
and JOY, Sullivan the Great, Sullivan
the Wonder, Prize Fighting Caesar,
Champion Founder, Goliath of the
Ring, etc.
Pretty strong for the son of a faith
er who never damaged any scales.
How He Tied Up The Street Cars.
Several times in my crowded hours
put the street car system of Boston
out of business. When | opened my
cafe, THE Champions Rest" in that
town that night the horse cars could
not run through Washington street
because all evening there was a jam
of people packed solid from wall to
wall for couple of hundred yards
on both sides of the cafe. Neither
Blaine nor Cleveland ever drew big
ger crowd in that town, and even the
Ben Butler crowds looked small COM
pared with that push. Sports came
from all parts to attend that meet
ing and those who got into the mid
die of the crowd didn't get out again
for hours. That Opening" was one
of the big things in the history of
Boston.
An official of the street railway
company came to me and told me
was worse than a house afire for
playing horse with their business and
if I'd move away and never come
back to Boston, he'd pay my fare as
far as I'd go. But | wasn't to blame
because the streets were too narrow.
Soon after this when horse car got
off the track on Washington street
and five or six men had tried to lift
it back on the iron, | lifted it on
alone. | sent word to the street rail
way official that what he needed at
the head of his outfit to keep his arks
going all. the time was a Sullivan or
two. They've got a Sullivan at the
head of the system now.
Refused Fortune to Fight Negro
A white man has nothing to gain
by swapping punches with a negro.
| have twice been almost goaded into
meeting a colored brother, but l took
a second think in time. A club in
San Francisco hung up fortune for
me to meet Peter ackson-there
was 100000 in it, and nobody ever
questioned my ability to win it-but
| ducked. | was insulted from one
end of the country to the other in
the attempt to stampede me into that
fight, and | was angry enough at one
time to throw principle to the winds
and give Jackson his. Another time
| almost came to a set-to with George
Godfrey, but | am glad to say
didn't
When | go out to battle with man
| agree that he is of equal standing.
A negro is not the equal of a white
man and it is no kindness to the
negro to let him think so. Fights be-
tween negroes is all right, but the
line should be drawn there.