Omaha daily bee., 1909-01-31
JEFF MAY GO TO AUSTRALIA
Fight Promoter from Adelaide Is
After the Big One.

NEW YORK, Jan. @-Despite the many
offers that Jim Jeffries is receiving from
fight promoters from coast to coast and
the former champions declaration that in
the event of his re-entering the ring he
will fight in this country, and not in Aus
tralia, Hugh Mcintosh, the enterprising
promoter of the antipodes, who staged the
Burns-Johnson match, is headed for this
country with the expressed intention of
signing up the one-time boilermaker for a
bout with the big negro at. his stadium at
Rushcutters Bay. Mcintosh is not at all
perturbed by Jeffries' persistent statement
that he will never again take up the sport
that made his name famous among sporting
men the world over, and insists that he
will offer Big Jim a purse the magnitude
of which will cause him to reconsider his
decision.
The gloved sport is booming in the island
continent and the farseeing promoter plans
to maintain the interest that has already
been evidenced by staging the great at
traction at his new stadium. He also has
made public the announcement that he has
taken Tommy Burns in charge and that
the shrewd Canadian will be managed by
him from now on. 1t is planned TO send
Burns on a tour of the world as the lead
ing man of a proposed play, but as yet
nothing definite has been determined upon.
This, in a manner, bears out the reports
from Australia that Burns backs Mcintosh
| and Mcintosh is backing Burns.
Sporting men are continually talking
about the proposed Jeffries-Johnson match
and the great interest that contest would
create were it finally held. Is foreshadowed
by the betting that is already in evidence.
| 4 49, T. ~ ,aaargA fha nr0xfCn
Of the men meeting attached to all wagers,
Hearing that the negro sporting contingent
of Chicago has raised 5000 TO place on
their young hero, fight fans Of the far
coast have collected an equal amount and
stand ready to place 1t at even figures
that Jeffries will defeat the negro should
they meet. Several well known followers
OF the ring game in the west have eN-
pressed their opinion of Jeffries and, judg.
ing from their statements. the confidence
of his hackers does not appear to have
been misplaced.
Jim .Coffroth, the well known fight pro-
moter, declares himself as follows: "Jef.
fries was a surprise to me. or course. l
have seen him many times in Los Angeles.
but was afraid that he would lose that
speed. He's as lively on his feet as a
schoolboy and he hasn't forgotten how
to fight. All 1 want is 10 handle the match
when he signs with johnson"
Sam Berger. manager. y promoter and
heavyweight boxer. believes that Jeffries
would win easily. He said; There was
never another man like Jeffries. He can
be as good as ne ever was II he wants to
knuckle down. and in the old days there
was no man who worked as hard as JEFF.
All he needs to fit himself for a fight is
for him to go on the road"
II is a notable fact, the manner in which
the manager of Sam Lsngford speaks OF
the prowess Of the former heavyweight
king. His statement is as follows; There
is only one man in the world barred by
Langford and that fellow Is Jim Jeffries.
After seeing him in action on the stage l
am more firmly convinced than ever that
/ Langford has done the right thing in
drawing the Ieffries line. He can get
back any time he wants to, and when he
does it will be a sorry day for Johnson