The Birmingham age-herald., 1909-07-12
''LANKY BOB" TALKS
 OF RING BATTLES Former Champion Thinks He Is as Good as Ever LEACH CROSS DISGUSTiD Man That HyIand Whipped Got Less Than s4oo for His Share of
 the Fight on the Pacific
 Coast.
LEACH CROSS DlSGUSTiD
BY JEFF THOMPSON.

New York, July 11.-(Specal. )--Robert | Fitzsimmons-I won't refer to him as ''the grand old man of the prize ring" nor as Buddy Robert''-is with us again. MT. F1tzsimmons was accompanied by 1 Mrs. Bob and a foolish looking poodle picked up somewhere in John Bulls do- mains Robert has been doing acrobatic and theatrical stunts on the tight little isle'' for the past six months and returns | with a good deal of good English gold and a blooming cockney accent-don't you know Mir Fitzslmmons gave his opinion of Jack Johnson, the colored champion, in very picturesque language-in fact. It l wouldn't do to report Bob's language verbatim
 "of course Johnson put me out in two rounds year ago., said Robert, "but then he fouled me. He is a clever boxer 1 and a stiff puncher, but If he consents i to meet James J. Jeffries in the ring, and Jeff is in condition. MT. Jeffries will trim i MT. Johnson to the satisfaction of every ! fight follower in the world"
 ! Robert thinks he is as good as ever and | is anxious to regain the title that Jeffries took from him-middle and heavyweight | champion of the world. He says he is 1 as good as ever and believes it, but he forgets that the great scrapper, Father 1 Time. has put 1t all over him.
 1 Still it is good to hear the red-headed | terror talking as he did ten years ago. It hurts nobody and pleases Mrs. Bob. | Leach Cross is returning to the east the most disgusted scrapper that ever jour neyed across the continent. After Al | rounds of as pretty fight as was ever put up, Leachy was handed trife less than $4Oo as his share of the receipts by James J. Coffroth. After all expenses were paid Cross was somewhat to the bad in his cash account Cross tackled hard proposition when he hooked up with Dick Hyland. Hyland was born and bred on the coast, but Cross had only | short time to get acclimated and get in condition. Still there are fewer gamer boys in the business. He has made many friends by his show of grit, and the i'm pression Is prevalent that he can beat good many more boys than can beat him. After the fight Hyland said that Cross was one of the stiffest punchers he had ever met
 Hyland is enthused over himself and is talking of a return match with Battling Nelson, but the chances that club could \ be found to offer purse that would in duce Nelson to go into hard training are very slim, after the showing Hyland made against Nelson in their last go. Dick was simply outclassed that time and today there is none to say that the cham pionship crown is likely to move from its present owner for some time to come. Jack Johnson will have hard time in getting any club to guarantee him purse worth while after his poor showing with Ross, the Italian, at the Duquesne Gar dens, Pittsburg, recently. The manage ment of that club showed good business judgment when they refused to hand Johnson the 5000 guaranteed him until after the fight and warning him that any faking would result in total loss Mr. Johnson will have to show us that he is of championship calibre before he can draw $4oO purse. The public is about tired of the colored mans inability to make any kind of decent showing against fourth-raters When old John l.. Sulli- van started on a tour he used to chal- lenge any and all corners and agree to knock them out or forfeit the purse. Let our club managers insist that MT. John son dc the same thing and the public, which pays from s1 to $3 to witness q few tame rounds which end with neither man scratched. will get something for their money.
 Go, fnvd. oh mn and claimant of the championship of the world just touched the high spots in New York after landing from the Lusitania, and hurried to his home in Boston Sam s pockets were just bulging with money and so were those of Joe Woodman, his manager The fighter was paid $4500 for his ten minutes session with Ian Hague at the National Sporting club, in London. and after that there were few weeks in vaudeville.
 We came back just because there was no one over there to fight" said Wood man. "The season in London and Paris is closed. They won't box over there dur ing the hot months.
 We are after Jack Johnson, who we understand has nuked out of his match with Al Kaufman. If Johnson don't want to fight Kaufman Langford will take up the match and go any route up to a hundred rounds. I am confident that ] Langford can whip either Johnson or Kaufman. Sam is in excellent condition right now and I will bet $10.000 on the side that he whips either man."
 Woodman said he didn't blame Johnson for not going to England. He said the colored champ was very unpopular in London and the sporting men had ar ranged a very frieid reception should he appear there again.
 Young Corbett, who is training at San Raefel, Cal, for his match with Johnny Frayne, on July IT, at Coffroth's pavil- ion, will get match with Jimmy Britt providing he beats Frayne Coffroth has received a cable from Britt, who Is now | in Paris, in which the latter accepted Coffroth's terms for a second meeting with Corbett
 The hot weather on the coast at present Is just to Corbett's liking and the fat is coming off fast. Corbett says he will put Frayne away with punch. and his one ambition is to get another match with , Nelson. But he will have to beat Britt