The Fargo forum and daily republican. [volume] (Fargo, N.D.) 1894-1957, 1909-11-19
Wisconsin Chicago.

c. E. Van Loan writes: Is there q
sport in the country, above the age
Of thirty. who does not recall every
circumstance of the Corbett -Fitzsim-
mons fight at Carson City?
Everybody remembers how, chased
all over the West, the fighters found
one state in which they could fight to
finish. The men went into training
at once and sporting writer's rained
into the Washoe valle.- from every
point Of the compass.
Jim Corbett, feeling the need of some
thing more than boxing, sent out word
that he would like to find a good
husky young man who could pull and
haul with him and take a slamming If
necessary. Jim Jeffries filled the bill
He was shipped to Carson City to be a
sort of human bag.
There is story to the effect that
when Corbett started in to give JEFF his
tryout in private, the tank builder boy
encouraged to come en- and fight his
best, gave the champion a fearful
mauling. Certainly no word of il ever
crept into the papers and the big, ST.
lent hairy giant became one of the
staff.
The newspaper people did not find
him interesting. He did his work and
put in the rest of his time in the cor
ner behind the stove, for it was Bit
terly cold and JEFF, being from southern
California, was not used to snow and
zero weather. When people asked
questions OF him. he had three ways
Az -
a grunt which might signify almost
anything.
, When he became champion there
were plenty of men to say that they
had seen him at Carson and marked
him for coming man, but it is a
certainty that they never said any
thing about 1t in 1897.
You have seen the race horse come
into the paddock with his big, tumble
footed companion animal? That was
Jeff's job in these days. He ate three
times day; he worked with Corbett
after the handball was over, and he
made himself generally useful about
the busy training quarters-and that
"let him OUT
One story of the Carson days il
worth telling because 1t is true, Boz
Davis, now brilliant magazine mar
but in those days a Star sporting writ
er and one of the youngest of the fleet
was filling his story one night in the
telegraph Office at Carson City.
The governor Of the state came into
the place, and as Carson has only
about 5000 Inhabitants and every mar
speaks to every other man, governor
in Nevada is usually no worse thar
any other man
The governor asked Davis what he
thought about the fight Davis was g
strong Fitzsimmons man and said so.
| Queer how these champions come
up" unused the governor
YES" said Davis. you can't tell 9
thing about it. Why, the coming
heavyweight champion may be right
in this room. Might be that big guy
sitting behind the stove.
4 The "big guy behind the ssove" was
Jim Jeffries, and he recalled the cir
cumstances and the men had a laugh
over the remarkable offhand guess
which came true.
/ The Carson fight set at least one man
to thinking. That afternoon, when the
training quarters were deserted and
special trains were hurrying victor anc
Ivanquished over the Sierras into Cali.
fornia, the work horse" OF the Corbett
camp took a long tramp with q
friend.
Il believe can lick 'em bothl" sait
JEFF shortly. He was not Dragging; hi
really thought he could do It,
The fact that he had been with Cor.
lbett made it easy for Jeffries to get an