Omaha daily bee., 1910-04-24

tEat it wasn't much Of stunt for john
son to beat him. Burns six inches shorter
and at least forty pounds lighter, was
knocked down with with afight-hand up
percut delivered by Johnson in the second
round. That blow won the fight, though
johnson. unwilling or unable to drive
home a knockout wailop. allowed Burns
to worry along until the fourteenth round,
when the police interfered.
Burns was nothing more than middle
weight or a very light heavyweight when
he began to fight about ten years ago
He couldn't have known much about the
game when Mike Schreck beat him IN
ten-round bout In 1901. Five years ago
Burns fought a twenty-round draw with
Jack Twin Sullivan and got a twenty
round decision over Dave Barry. Later
he got a verdict over Sullivan In similar
bout and knocked Barry out in the TWEEN
tieth round of a second encounter lie
also boxed two draws with hugo Helly'
one Of ten and the other o. ewenty rounds
and finally received the referees verdict
after outpointing the numbering Marvin
Hart for twenty rounds. On the strength
of that verdict Burns proclaimed himself
heavyweight champion, as Jeffries. with
nobody left to be whipped, had handed
over the title to Hart
( Philadelphia Jack o'Brien went twenty
rounds to a draw with Burns in November,
1906, and in the following May Burns.
double crossing and exposing o'Brien's
fakes beat him over the same route. 1t
took Burns fifteen rounds to stop Flynn.
Then Tommy decided to meet soft snaps
exclusively, so Bill Squires, Gunner Moir,
Jack Palmer. Jem Roche. Jewey Smith
and other pugiiistic lemons fell before him.
Not a Real Champion.
johnson, therefore. didn't whip real
champion heavyweight when Burns was
saved by the Sydney police, an assertion
that the negro will not attempt to deny.
1t is true that he toyed with Al Kaufman,
the California giant, in a ten-round bout
! last September but O'Brien knocked out
kaufman in 1905. The defeat Of Ketchel
by the negro should never have been re-
corded, for the match was a freak and
the result of foolish judgment. Ketchel
had the courage to tackle Johnson, though
five inches shorter and nearly fifty pounds
lighter. He also had the nerve to force
the fight and in the twelfth round he
scored knockdown when one of his great
swings landed on the side Of the cham
pion's head. But the next instant, as John
son jumped up and Ketchel tore in wide
open to land another smash, the black
man unlocked the same terrific right that
had stopped .Mcvey. The blow landed
flush on Ketchers jaw. knocked him cold
and broke off several back teeth
Going over these battles, therefore, ring
sters are not inclined to admit that John
sons victims were great puglists. In fact
they are reasonably sure they were not
But there's something about this muscular
cool headed, cold blooded black man that
has caused the belief that-Jeffries is going
to have the fight Of his life. Possibly this
is due to the fact that it's a question just
now whether Jeffries will be the great
pugilist of six years ago or not. II he has
lost that wonderful form Johnson will
quickly take advantage, it is thought, but
IL jeff is the real thing the colored mar
may see many stars and comets, ever
though the sun burns brightly on the after.
noon Of July T.