The Ogden standard. [volume] (Ogden City, Utah) 1902-1910, 1909-09-14
PRIZE FIGHTERS
HAVE WON MONEY
Large Sums Made by a Few of
the Big Men of
the Ring.

down, you'll find that Burns got lit
tie over $500 for every minute he
spent In the ring. That's pretty good
nav for pug at least. Did You ever
hear of a grand opera star getting S3O,-
600 for a good or bum performance.
as Burns did for putting up very
poor fight with Johnson.
Then look at the gate money,
$3.50 900, How's that for Australia
That beats the record, We've never
taken In any such money at fight IN
this country, says The Philadelphia
North American. The record-brealter
here was the COrbett-McCoy fake fight
in the Garden. which drew just half
that amount John l.. Sullivan was the
first fighter in the history of pugillsm
who drew big easy money. Why John
got at least 81 900 for every minute
he fought with Tug Wilson at the old
Garden. more than % years ago. and
he ought to have got more If the gate
money had been in good hands. The
rounds were cut almost In half in or.
der to save Wilson. so take 1t alto
gether John did about 10 minutes OF
real lighting and received over So.
900.
van was the greatest money-gcttcr
tho ring has ever produced. He must
have made million cold, and he blew
it like drunken sailor. ! remember
when he came back from winning the
Kilrain fight he had about $4,000 left.
He had been held up by sherifs and
other officials on the way up north
from Richburg, Miss and had given
up several thousands OF dollars TO
square himself These coppeTs thought
he had million or SO in his vest pock-
et and the way they put II TO the big
fellow was an outrage.
IF there's one place John l.. doesn't
care for it's a jail, and he would have
given up his entire winnings rather
than do ten days in the cooler. What
do YOU think he did with the $4,000
when he reached New York? Why,
he just handed it over TO burlesqus
actress for safekeepinG. Charley
Johnston. one of his closest friends
and backer, was amazed, and asked
Sullivan II he was crazy.
" Not on your life. Charley replied
John. She's as safe as any bank.
The burlesque queen, however
skipped off TO Boston in a few days
with Sulliyans Doodle John follow
ed her, but she lodged back and forth
between Philadelphia and the Hub
city for a month until the big fellow
gave up the chase in disgust John
never saw the queen or the coin again.
So between the coppers and the ac-
tress Sullivan was flat broke month
after winning big championship fight.
Then. to make matters worse, he
started In 10 drink up the town. A
responsible theatrical manager about
this time thought he saw a chance to
get some money with the champion,
and so tried to induce John 10 spar
three or four two-minute rounds at
Madison Square garden with anybody.
even Sullivan'S sparTing partner, Joe
Lannon, but John positively refused.
although the theatrical manager I'm
ally ran his OFFER up 10 5000 Sui
liYan's friends could not understand
how he could refuse such a generous
offer when he was stone broke. with
out dollar 10 his name. | asked him
one night some time after why he
turned down the 10000 At first he
declined to talk about It. but after
awhile he said that he was under GER
tain obligations to his hackers and
others. and that If he accepted the
offer they would declare themselves
In on the deal. so that his share would
be cut TO about $4,000 Sullivan was
a bit sore on some of his supposed
friends and did not want TO give them
a chance 10 make any more money out
OF his reputation.
Sullivan today Is a different man,
M. fri L. h1eptt trncbc1 "A lron
of liquor for the last four years. and
attends strictly to business. He's
got a burlesque show on the road and
is now playing the northwest to
crowded houses John has pretty
close TO 100000 In cold cash put
away where nobody can get II. He
swears he'll never drink another drop
as long as he lives He wants to run
his bank roll up 10 100000 and then
quit the stage for a stock farm. ] want
to tell you. boys. that Sullivan In his
cold. sober senses. Is a very wise guy
Nobody can fool him in a business
deal. and he has no use nowadays for
the fellows he formerly knocked
around with. In fact. he's turned
them all down. It's pity John didn't
swear on % years ago. for what a
pot Of money he would have had now,
There's been Let of coin in fight
ing in this country, and after certain
states get wise so that the game can
so on without constant police inter
ference there will be a whole lot
more. The old California A. c. start
ed the boxing club game about 90
years ago. and made tons of dough.
too. until the officials began to give
phony decisions for the purpose of
beating the fighters out of their lust
earnings You remember that Jim
Corbett fought Peter jackson at that
club for a $4,000 purse. The referee.
Hiram Cook. stopped the battle in the
6lst round and declared the mill no
contest There was a long wranglc
over this unjust decision. and the club
finally agreed to pay each Of the fight
ers $4,000 instead of $4,000 This af.
fair gave the California A. c. a black
eye and the sporting public soon lost
interest in it.
THE fighting game then seemed to
switch to New Orleans, and the Olym-
pic club OF that city became so pros.
porous that the stockholders coined
money with such attractions as the
mpSey-FitZsimmons. Sullivan, Cor
bett, McAuliffc-Myer, Dixon -SkelIy.
Fitzsimmons-Creedon EitzsimmOns,
Hail Fitzsimmons-Maher, Goddard.
Smith and many other important
fights. II is said that the Olympic
cleaned up about half million dol
lars in three years while the game
was going fast there. Finally the au.
thoritics began butting in. and the