Los Angeles herald., 1908-05-26
FREDDIE WELSH
IS A FADDIST
BRITISH BOXER HAS MANIA
FOR CURI0S
BATTERED FLAG is ONE OF HIS
CHIEF TREASURES
Banner Was Contested for More Than
Sixty Years Ago--EngIish
Fighters of Glass
Are Rare

Freddie Welsh, the English light
weight, now training at the South SIDE
Athletic club for his fight at Vernon
with Phil Brock next Saturday, has one
bug that but few other fighters carry
around in their noodles. This is
mania for collecting ring curios, and
no matter what he has TO do in order
to get one, Freddie will go after every
boxing trophy in sight.
The collection now in the possession
of the crack lightweight runs all the
way from torn towels and frayed shoes
to a belt presented him by the natives
of Pontypridd, Wales, in token of his
winning the English welterweight
championship. But above them all, in
the estimation of their owner, stands
tattered flag on which age has left its
mark in the shape of faded colors and
fast dying lettering.
A remarkable history is attached to
the banner, and despite an offer of $1,000
Welsh has refused to part with it. 1t
was in 1S45 when Ben Caunt and Ben
digo fought for the heavyweight cham
pionship of his majesty's own home do
main, and along with the honors and
money which went to the winner was
awarded the flag.
Bendigo won the battle, but a few
months later lost it to a better man.
Little by little he dropped out of the
memory of the fight fans, and at his
death some years later was forgotten.
The flag was lost sight of until
George Alexander, president of the
Amateur Boxing association of Eng
land, stumbled across it while looking
over batch of old junk in an auction
GERS room in London. He Immediately
recognized the trophy and secured it
for nominal sum, intending to keep 1t
as a curio.
Presents Flag to Welsh
Not long after this Welsh made his
appearance in the amateur ranks, and
so cleverly did he perform in defeating
all the boys opposed to him that Alex
ander presented him with the flag.
Since then Freddie has been made sew
eral f1attering offers for the bit of
bunting, but no sum can tempt him to
part with it.
Welsh seldom brags, but yesterday,
while lolling around his Vernon train
ing quarters he was forced 10 aomit
that he hoped to add a little to his
collection after Saturday. Those gloves
I whip Brock with will go well with the
rest of my stuff he said. And / sup
pose the old flag will have to take a
second place in my esteem"
There was but little doing around the
Welsh camp yesterday, as the English
boy decided he was in good enough
condition to take a short rest. Brock
was more restless than his opponent,
however, and in addition to putting in
a hard siege on the road spent some
time in the gymnasium after lunch, fid-
ding with the pulleys and boxing with
Danny Webster.
Fight fans who have taken to dis
cussing the match between Welsh and
Phil Brock are remarking of the fact
that Freddie Welsh is one of the cor
poraPs guard of English fighters who
have crossed the water and have made
good in the pugilistic gardens of the
American battlers. Welsh and owen
Moran are the two men hailing from
the British isles who have picked most
of the few fruits that have gone to
Britons. Not a heavyweight fighter
worthy of the name has come out of
England since the days of Charlie
Mitchell, but several of the lighter lads
have done good work. Moran by his
twenty-round draw with Abe Attell, in
which Abe was cut down to the cham
pionship of America, and Welsh, by his
game fights against Mcfarland, Car
sew, Neary Maurice Sayers and others
of the 1873 Founders, have won recogni-
tion as the real goods in their respec-
tive class. Freddie has been doing bet
ter work at every meeting, and the
British lion will suffer no disgrace If
the Cleveland fighter lowers his flag
in defeat.