Palestine daily herald. [volume] (Palestine, Tex.) 1902-1949, 1908-04-03
GREAT INTEREST IN BOUT
Hackenschmidt Will Contest For the
Worlds Championship Wrestling
Title With Frank Gotch.
Special to the Herald.

Special to the Herald.
Chicago, ILL.,, April 3.-Tonight, in
the big amphitheater at the Chicago
stockyards known as Dexter's Pavil-
ion. George Hackenschmidt, the
world renowned Graeco-Roman cham
pion, will contest for the worlds catch
as catch can wrestling title with
Frank Gotch, the American champion.
The bout has attracted attention on
both sides of the Atlantic and should
prove the choicest tid-bit that has
been offered followers of the wrest-
ling game in years.
In view of the fact that conflicting
statements have been made regarding
the conditions under which the men
are to wrestle it may be stated that
Graeco-Roman rules are not to gov
ern, as has been reported, but that
the bout will be straight catch as
catch can style, with the strange hold
barred. The conditions call for a
twenty-four foot ring, elevated four
feet. Two judges will officiate be-
side the referee The purse offered is
$4,000, sixty per cent of which will
go to the winner and forty per cent
to the loser
Both men are reported in the very
best of condition. Gotch recently put
in month of hard work at his Iowa
farm, and since then has been in daily
training to keep in condition. Hack
enschmidt is an athlete who needs
little training, being temperature in
his habits and always in condition to
appear on the mat at an hours notice.
While Hackenschmidt is a strong
favorite, it is doubtful whether he
will find Gotch so easy to pin to the
mat as many think 1t is true that
his victory over Tom Jenkins, on the
occasion of his visit to the United
States several years ago, would lead
to the belief that he will be the win
ner in tonight's contest, but it should
be borne in mind that in the last year
or two Gotch has been steadily i'm
proving. Hackenschmidt has kept
himself in good condition during a
corresponding period, but it is pos
sible that more or less continuous en-
gagements in the London music halls
and tours throughout the British
provinces may not have increased his
speed and stamina to the extent of
making him altogether invincible.
1t is this phenomenal speed, per-
haps, more than anything else that
makes the Russian wrestler SO great
IN attraction. Often he appears to
take big chances by getting to work
at once, whether there is an obvious
opening or whether there is not But
those who have seen Gotch at work
recently assert that his competitor
will not lead him to any appreciate
extent in the matter of quickness. Al
together there is every reason to be-
lieve that while the foreigner is like
ly to retain his title as champion, he
may not do so without a struggle
which he will remember for a long
while after the match.
coed in defeating his opponent, he will
certainly have much of which to be
proud, for Hackenschmidt has en-
gagged in something like three hun
dred and forty matches of more or
less Importance, often against men
considerably bigger than himself,
without having a single call recorded
against him. Whenever his oppon-
ents have endeavored to wear him
out by sheer dead application of
avoirdupois, the Russians marvellous
agility has more than Offset their
weight.
In nearly every respect, but partic-
ularly in the matter of long expert
ence at the game, the Russian appears
on paper to have some advantage over
uio AhiCi ivan COLuPClitoi- NCNOiI uS
less, the sport loving public of the
entire continent hopes, rather than
expects, to see Gotch, the Iowa farm
er. tear the half legendary veil from
the mighty Russian ring master in the
arena tonight.
The demand for seats indicates that
the crowd that will gather about the
arena will be as large as ever witness
ed sporting or athletic event in this
city. Many delegations are arriving
from out of town, some from Milwau-
kee, from Indianapolis, st. Louis. from
cities throughout Iowa and one con-
siderable party will put in an appear
ance from New York City.