The Yakima herald. [volume] (North Yakima, W.T. [Wash.]) 1889-1914, 1909-12-29
BOTH BIG ONES
WORKING HARD
JEFF AN0 JOHNSON CONFIDENT
Not Much Dope Going the Rounds
According to Chicago Mans
Idea of Situation.

Bill Curtis, sporting writer on the
Chicago Tribune, thinks that both
claimants f I the mpionship in the
prize ring will go to the mat intent on
winning. Here's his latest. which
came out Sunday:
Temporarily something like Il hush
has fallen on the Jefries-J ohnson
situation. The main reason for this
condition of quiet seems to be that
there is nothing particular to say
about either of the fighters which has
not been said already. They must get
down to really hard training before
they can furnish much of real inter-
est to followers of the game.
Jeffries has announced he will 60
after Johnson from the jump when
they meet, and that he expects to win
the battle in short order Johnson
has edited the public by the an
nouncement that he never in his life
took part in a crooked fight and that
he frequently has had the opportunity
to do so.
Johnson remarked recently that it
would for m oment think of lying
down before Jeffries. He pointed out
the enormous financial value a VIC
to him. He discussed this question at
some length a week ago. If ever Il
fight between big men will be on the
square it will be the fight between
Jeffries and Johnson. The talk that
! it may be crooked is in my opinion
rather foolish. Neither would receive
enough for lying down to equal the
value of a victory; and moreover nei-
/ : Co :, = 1,
other in any agreement which is not
embodied in the articles.
Many Looked Queer.
Johnsons remark that he never
took part in crooked fight in his life
may be true. He may be merely one
of those unfortunate men who get
mixed up IN things which has a bad
look. Certain it is that he has been
a principal in more than one fight
which looked bad.
When he fought Marvin Hart out
in San Francisco he looked as if he
ought to be a hot favorte in the bet
ting. AS a matter of fact he was, up
to the last minute. | happened to be
in San Francisco at the time of that
fight and | received information di-
rect from Harris camp that Hart
would win. The information was for
betting purposes, and it was correct.
Now that Hart-J johnson fight may
have been perfectly on the square, but
L can never believe that it was UNI
der the circumstances. But all that
has nothing to do with the Jeffries-
johnson fight. The coming bout will
be on the square because no frameup
or crookedness could net either fight
O. SO much as a victory would, il
there We're no other reason.
Jeiiries in Condition?
Reports of Jeffries' condition con-
tinue 10 be of a contradictory nature
one man, who is credited with being
4 good judge of condition, says he
does not believe the big fellow car
ever get back to anything like his
former shape. Another trainer de
clares that JeffIies is in fine form al
ready.
Recent picture of the Californian dc
not carry out this latter statement. He
looks heavy about the waist. In one
picture, where he is standing up
right with his chest thrown out anG
his stomach drawn in, there is the
rounding outline just below the solar
plexus which shows that Jeffries ha.
not been able to get off all the super.
! fluous flesh. and in another picture
in which the former champion i:
: shown in his famous crouching pc.
sition he looks fiehy just above the
hips and in the abdoman.
To increase his speed Jeffries ar.
ranged, it was reported, to secure the
services of Jim Corbett and Tommy
Ryan, past masters at the speed
game. This would make it look as il
Jeffries intended to attempt to outdc
Johnson at cleverness. Already one
well known critic of fighters has re-
marked that the fighter who attempt:
to train himself to beat his oppon.
ent at the latter's own game makes I
mistake. He adds that Jeffries /!
a rough, hard smuggling fighter and
that he will only weaken his naturall,
great advantages at this kind of work
if he devotes a lot of time to attempt.
ing to become clever enough to pu
it over Johnson's cleverness.
What Ryan Is Ding.
1t will be quite a 81 1rise to see
Tommy Ryan. in JefA training
camp. To Ryan the in -ies crouch
is generally credited. 1t il ertain tha
it had a lot to do with Geffries' de-
velopm ent in the earlyN Jays of thai
fighters great career. Then some
trouble arose between TIN. two and fol
a long time Ryan wSs loutspoken ir
his bitterness agains ,e dig heavy
weight. W.
johnson has alreadH Ia. 1 I'd the