Los Angeles herald., 1910-12-04
EDGREN FANC|ES
TOUCH R|NGSTERS
New York Scribe Cites Old School
MingIerS to Carry Out
His Pet Theory

According to Bob Edgren, the New
York sporting scribe, you can always
tell a real fighter by the way he takes
punishment. If he dogs 1t he'll never
reach the top, but no matter how game
he might be no boxer in the business
can be a champion unless he is physl-
cally able to stand the gaff. DdGren's
latest citation of this is Young Otto.
When the east side Kid met Lew
Powell the other night he all but put
the California boy out In the early
rounds, but Powell came right back
for more and made the Gothamite dog
it through sheer nerve.
"Sty, that Otto ought to be a cham
pion," says Edgren. He's got every
thing but d heart oh, yes, he took
fierce beating this time and didn't lie
down, | know, but he didn't show the
one thing that makes a real fighter at
that. He can box and hit like cham
pion. Clean punch-beautiful! But all
through the fight there was something
lacking. He hurt Powell and could
have knocked him out. But when
Powell put his head down and came
right back for more-like real fighter
-Ottos heart began to thump and he
was willing to stall and let Powell re-
cover. He lost his confidence
Fighters are born that way or they
don't get there. We have small
bunch of real live ones around here
lust n small bunch. Tommy Murphy
is a real fighter-game as they make
'em, and doesn't know how to quit
when he's hurt. And that Knockout
Browns a regular fighter. But some
how when | go to fights now l can't
help thinking it's not like the old
days Look at the lightweights that
used to be on the map at the same
time. There were Cans and Hawkins,
MnEqHdpn
and Mcfarland and DAILY, and about
twenty more all about in the same
class. What would that bunch do to-
day? And the big fellows. They were
fighters then, all right! Remember
how Tom Sharkey used to use his jaw
to block with? He'd rush in and keep
coming, no matter how hard he was
hit. He liked 1t. They punched him
on the jaw without any effect until
FitZsmmons solved the puzzle by
shooting a left into his stomach, and
Tom was knocked out at last.
"Jeffries used to walk in and let
them pound him to a pulp until he had
a chance to send over the Knockout.
Fitz never felt worried when he was
being beaten UP. He'd stand in close
and roll his head to make the punches
slide off, or he'd look little more
groggy than he felt, and get the other
fellow to rush into knockout wallop.
Elbows McFadden never backed up.
When they came too fast he'd spear
the other boys punches on his elbows
and put his hands out of commission.
Frank Erne would mix any old time
with anybody. So would Lavigne.
Walcott nearly tore Lavigne's ear off
with his punches, and had the little
fellow beaten to frizzle, and Liavigne
Just went in for more until Walcott
got discouraged and quit.
Look at Dal Hawkins. He was
fighter. Dal had an awful punch.
When he founght Cans 1t was toss
up. He'd knock Cans fiat and Cans
would fatten him. Hawkins always
got UP and mixed, no matter how
eroggy he was. And to come down a
little later, look at Nelson. There was
a fellow who'd walk into anybody's
punches and take them on the jaw
until the other scrapper got too arm
weary to hit any more. There wasn't
any quit in Nelson. He's a back num-
Der now, but he's as game as ever and
he's only been knocked out once"