The Fargo forum and daily republican., 1909-05-07

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Through the autocratic self confidence
Of the champion. there flashed a mes
sage, bearing presentiment of de-
feat. At that same moment the young
and cautious Corbett knew that he was
going TO win. The great moment of
the battle had come. What came after
that was simply Fastening the end.
The great John l.. was beaten, and he
knew 1t long before the battle was
terminated.
All the jabs that bore thLir physical
sting, were as nothing to the mental
agony that told Sullivan that he was
being beaten. His brain grew sick,
and lost it's power of directing coolly
and carefully. Every blow brought it's
sting to the big fellow; but the one
thing that was beating him down, that
saps his fighting s. irit, was the knowl-
edge that he was a beaten man.
Take the Corbett -Fitzsimmons fight.
Before the gong brought the men to
the center of the ring for the fatal
fourteenth round James J. Corbett
knew he was a beaten man. Again
the message had shot its way to the
brain OF the desperately struggling
gladiator, crashing his hope of victory.
In the sixth and seventh rounds Cor
bett gave Fitzsimmons an awful beat
ing. Men at the ringside who had
wagered small fortunes upon the chan
ces of Gentleman Jim waved their
hats in a frenzy of excitement. They
believed the battle was all but over. II
was expected that Fftz would last but
round or two.
That was not the great moment of
the Corbett- Fftzsimmons battle. The
great moment came long in the
twelfth round. Suddenly the confident
smile left the face of the champion, as
1t had left the face of another cham
pion FIVE years previous. The message
had done its work. Corbett was a
beaten man. He took the blows that
Fitzsimmons landed with never a show
of physical suffering, but the agony
borne by the message that flashed the
defeat signal to his brain.
In the fourteenth round Fitzsimmons
hit Corbett a terrific blow in the solar
plexus. The suffering of the man will
always be one OF the most dramatic
moments of +he American prize ring.
blow alone that brought misery and
suffering to the face of Corbett. 1t
was the knowledge that he was beaten,
that his will and strength were gone,
that brought look of misery to the
face of the champion.
Out OF the west came a young LIoch-
invar to battle with freckIed Bob FTtz-
simmons. The younger giant was not
taken seriously in the east. He was
placed in the sa me- class of Ed Dunk
hurst, '"The Human Freight Car" He
was not given ch nee with Fitzsim-
mons. This young giant from the state
Of the golden west, was James ]. JEFF
fries.
Fftzsimmons walked back to his cor
ner at the end OF tn second round
with the knowledge that IL not beaten
then, he had the greatest fight OF his
career upon his hands. The brain
message-it has n;ver been proven
that Fttz had any brains-was incom-
plete; yet the champion knew that
the odds of the battle were in favor
of the hercules who was beating him
to pieces. To the last he hoped to
land the right that had never failed
him, but the passing OF the second
round, when Jeffries stretched Fitz-
simmons upon the canvas, was the
great moment OF the fight.
Fftz discovered that his blows were
not hurting the wonderful mass of
bones and muscle in front of him. and
the message began to bear its agoniz-
ing augury OF defeat to the ruby
fighter.
y The great moment had come and
with it's message, the tide of battle
turned. Fitzsimmons was no longer
the self confident champion of the
world. He was a desperate man, with
the frenzy OF nameIess fear crowding
In upon him. -
In the Goldfield fight OF Cans. he
broke his hand. The twingling pain
made the black man vince. despite
his stocial training. Quick as flash
he began to limp. making the battling
Dane believe that he had sprained his
foot, Nelson never knew that Cans
had disabled his Land. although II
gave the negro excruciating pain to
hit with II, The physical pain never
kept Cans from coming all the time:
brain message giving presentment
of defeat would have sickened and
crushed the black man down to defeat.
game as they must nocesr
sarily be. are not beaten by physical
pain unless II comes beyond human en-
durance; 1t 10 the phygical message
that takes championships away,
When Cans fought Nelson the first
time after the Geldfield fight, 1t was
that Cans weuld beat the
Dane all the way, Ii was believed that
the Baltimore black had the goat of
the Dane.
The message came to Cans early in
the fight, He knew he was beaten, For
five or six rounds he fought like the old
champion. Then came the fear that
makes towards OF heroes,
Cans knew that he had made mis-
take. that he was battling against
better man, And Though Cans never
wilted under the blews the Dane dealt
hin, never ftnehed frem the physical
pain, there was a pain In his brain and