The White Pine news. [volume] (Ely, Nev.) 1906-1910, 1907-08-24
HOW FALLEN STARS
CAN RISE AGAIN
(By Jimmy Britt.)

(By Jimmy Britt.)
1t is rather strenuous task for an
actor, politician or athlete to shatter
or correct public fallacies. 1t (the
public) gets an impression and sticks
to 1t like glue. If the public gets an
impression that theatrical star is on
the wane, the boxoffice receipts drop
off, and 1t matters little whether or
not the actor or actress, as the case
may be, is as good as ever, the strug-
gle against public opinion Is too
much of an uphill proposition, and
in the end the public must have it's
way. 1t is the same with the poll
tician. The public gets the idea that
they have had enough of him, and
that's generally the finish.
Fighters who have been on top of
the perch and then shaken off in the
uncertainties of competition, as a
rule never do what the public terms
come back" There is reason for
that. The fighter who goes along
beating everybody in sight for years,
and then finally runs into failure
as they all do in time-becomes dis
couraged. He is carried away back
to the land of the "also rams" on the
wave VI puDllC Opiulou. Anu JUDI DC-
cause nobody ever met the thing
everybody shakes their head and
say: HE can never come back"
The fighters friends tell him this.
He sees 1t written or limited at every
day in the newspapers, and his man
ayers find 1t out when he sits down
to talk business with a club or the
Rnb TO- MI iC 10 ahnUn
Finally, the fighter concludes that
the public must be right, and that
fate will it, that topnotcher, once
beaten, never shows his old form
again. Then he gets discouraged and
stops his exercise.
He generally throws himself open
to the easy-going bohemian life that
is held out to public characters, and
then that is the finish. After long
siege of this he concludes that he still
has fight left in him, and, without
sufficient training, he enters the ring
with an ordinary fighter, and gets
clicked"
That is the invariable finish, and
public opinion is at the bottom of it.
| made up my mind two years ago
when Battling" Nelson knocked me
out that could beat him. l knew
made a mistake when it was too late.
l studied the fight over, and took
good care to duck the public opinion
snare. l made up my mind that the
adage, fighters never come back, "
was a delusion, and that it would
take more than one beating to con-
vince me that it was time to put on
the carpet slippers and let the whis-
kers grow.
In my own mind l never allowed
the impression to get foothold, that
it was all over. Instead, l made up
my mind that | had much to learn
about the fighting game, even though
everybody thought l knew it all. 1t
was a tough job, but l never let go.
| went about the thing systematic
ally. For a whole year l hit over
those Marin county roads at least
three times aweek, and during that
time there was never a week that |
did not do at least two or three days
work in the gymnasium.
1 could note the Improvement in
my ability from the start. My
strength was not impaired that day
at Colma. Instead, l made up my
mind that l would take hold of the
situation like a bulldog, and never
let go till had accomplished the task
l had mapped out for myself. 1t was
really the turning point in my career,
but turned it to advantage to my
self instead of being swallowed up in
the whirlpool of popular fallacies. l
am better fighter, twice over, today
than I was the day my sun seemed to
set at Colma.
1t is bit of hardship, of course,
because like the good things of life;
but the public pays me we'll for my
work. I once wrote in these columns
after the Colma fight these words:
Success may turn my head, but fail
ure will never make me stop trying"
The year l put in over at Shannon S
was not all work, however. That
would never bring about the results
wanted. 1t would break the strong
est athlete in the world down if he
was to do nothing but train, train,
train. Routine is monotonous, and
whenever l found myself growing
stale laid aside the sleeveless shirts
and the dust-stained road clothes and
took fling in town.
A day or two, however, always
found me back on the old job, feeling
more like going on with the task of
building the pyramide from which
was to eventually look down upon
the slough of failure. l would have
fought Nelson for an old shoe.
knew l was the better man, and
wanted a chance to show the Mis-
sourians. l saw Cans and Nelson
fight in Goldfield, and I made up my
mind | could beat the both of them
l am over one hurdle and am now
facing the other. Most people would
laugh If l told them l consider Cans
made to order for me, and that l be-
lieve will knock him out before the
end of twenty rounds. l don't want
to boast l am going to beat Mr..
Cans, and then retire for at least a
year. l have worked hard and am
entitled to it.
Cans is a fast two-handed fighter
who has become marvelously expert
as a result of his years and years OF
boxing He has had more experience
than any fighter in the world, but
thing l am speedier and have more
vitality than Cans. The forty-two
rounds that he went through with
Nelson were slow. Nelson and I went
more than double the clip that Mel.
! son and Cans did at Goldfield. II
was more of wrestling match, with
flashes of open fighting here and
there, than anything else.
Has Hard Wallop Left.