Daily capital journal. (Salem, Oregon) 1903-1919, 1910-05-20
eoerns q get into your blood and your

seems to get into your blood and your
bones and your muscle.
After winning my FIRST battle l was
urged by Billy Gallagher to go on the
road and fight everybody. But l was
just seventeen-year-old boy aud
didn't feel like leaving the old place
yet. I'm glad l didn't, for the two
years of hard work that followed help
ed give me a good level head and II
anybody needs one it's the young fel-
! low who makes good in the ring
| l hardly knew whether J. intended
I to take up fighting or not. l thought /
might If had good chance, but l
wasn't in a hurry. l boxed with Gal
lagher now and then. l bad pretty
good opinion Of my own cleverness;
but, looking back today, must admit
that / got of easy sometimes when
the newspaper writer's called me
"clumsy giant and a young ele-
| phant" | fought to win, and ! al
ways did win, and with a knockout at
that. What more can anybody want?
was nineteen years old when Bill
ly's urgings and the talk of my friends
began to sink in. At last l grew tired
of boxing for fun and decided to
change my trade and take a chance.
l was pretty well outfitted for fight
ing. At nineteen / stood six feet two
or very close to it, weighed 228 pounds
stripped and measured just thirty
three inches around the waist.
Billy Gallagher was quitting too He
had been doing a little fighting now
and then and had been offered a match
with Danny Needham, middleweight
in those days. Billy was going to San
Francisco to train and wanted me to
work with him.
After his fight he was to look around
and match me against some heavy
weight.
It's lucky didn't think much Of the
money end just about that time. Billy
Gallagher and went to San Francis
co. Billy trained, and | worked like
horse with him, boxing and rubbing
him down and making myself general
ly useful, not because ! regarded the
chance of getting coin out Of 1t, but
because he was my friend and l
wanted to help him win. He fought
Needham on the date set to a draw.
He got his end Of the purse. and then
he skipped without leaving me cent.
That was my first acquaintance with
the rough side of the game. They
say there's no gratitude in a fighter.
That was my opinion when / knew
that | had been left in the lurch by
my one friend However, l figured it
out that he probably needed the mon
ey more than did / was fat broke,
but / wasn't a soft handed dude.
could fight somebody.
l did
The gentleman's name was Dan
Long, and he hailed from Denver.
The purse for that fight was thou
sand dollars in good round, hard. use
full United States twenty dollar gold
pieces 1t looked like mint to me
after knocking out few dollars day
handling iron, That thousand dollars
settled things 1t made me decide
that there wasn't any trade for me
but singing fists.
have to laugh every time ! think
about that fight with Long He was
q good big fellow and strong enough
and knew little, so he had more OF a
reputation than | had.
Well, we got into the ring on the
night. Of the fight, and as soon as the
bell rang we walked into each other.
guess Long thought he'd lay me out
But had seen that purse, and a can
non ball wouldn't have stopped me.
The first round might have been
about an even thing In the second l
Strengthened my left arm out and
punched Long right on the nose so
hard that he dropped The referee
counted over him until he reached
ten. and that was enough. ! got the
coin.
Looking back over my first two
fights, | can't say that my style has
ever changed very much. have
fought lot Of champions and have
worked with lot of good men like
Corbett and Fitzslmmons in training
camps, and yet that trick of crouch
ing little and using my left hand for
the knockout blow has stuck to me. l
get them all In the body.
have never struck q man with my
full strength, because I've never cared