The Salt Lake herald-Republican. [volume] (Salt Lake City, Utah) 1909-1918, 1910-06-16

hibitions'' prizefighting, under the
guise of this amendment, has greatly
increased and has been tolerated in
California. until today our state is a
Mecca for prizefighters, much to our
discredit
Our people have the right to de-
msnd that prizefighting shall cease in
this state, and il will. IL our present
laws are enforced-especially II our
courts follow the decisions of the SUI
preme courts Of our sister states in
defining a prizefight. In Michigan a
prizefight exists when there is IAN
expectation Of reward to be gained by
the contest or competition, either to
be won from the contestant, OF to be
otherwise awarded, coupled with an
intent TO inflict upon such contestant
some degree of bodily harm" In
Kansas the supreme court held "the
contest must be a fight, and that
there must be an intent on the part
Of the contestants to do violence to
and inflict some degree OF bodily
harm on each other" and the fight
must be for some prize or reward.
Other states have made similar rul-
ings.
To show that the so-called spar
ring exhibitions" held in this state
under the auspices OF incorporated
exhibitions. but prizefights, / need
but refer you to the files of our daily
papers. 1 will call your attention to
two or three Of the recent ones. First.
the Moran-McCarthy fight. The Oak
land Tribune. in its issue of April 80,
in reporting it, uses this language;
After the sixteenth round had
gone some fifty seconds Moran land
ed a blow on McCarthy's jaw. 1t did
- =. l.. 4. a.
young fighter went over backwards
his head seemingly dropping below,
as though his neck had been injured.
and as he struck the floor the sound
Of the impact could be heard through
out the pavilion" Mccarthy died.
Next. the Nelson-wolgast fight,
that took place on Washington's
birthday (it seems that prizefighters
always want to fight on Washkgton's
birthday. Decoration day and indie
pendence day., and reported in all
the daily papers of the state by
rounds. 1 quote from the San Franz
cisco Chronicle of February %:
Round 13-Nelson's lips were puffed
and his mouth and eyes swollen. They
mixed it like tigers, Wolgast having
all The better of 1t, landing repeatedly
on the body and Jaw. with Nelson
fighting wildly and splitting blood.
WoIgast literally cut the Battler's faco
to ribbons. but still the Dane came in
for more"
Round ss-wolgast appeared 10th
TO put in the finishing punch. He
jabbed necessarily at the Battler's
anatomy. and again the blood flowed
in a stream. Wolgast almost beat Nell
son to the floor. landing blow after
blow on the defenseless champions
face"
In the same issue of the Chronicle
is a report Of the fight between Con-
ley and Attel. which took place near
Los Angeles on February %. L quote
from t..
After wearing HIS opponent down
until he had practically no strength
left with which to make an adequate
defense, much less to put up an Of
fensive style of battle, frankie Con-
ey rushed in and gave Monte Attel
such a terrific drubbing inf the forty
second round of their scheduled forty
five-round fight. at Vernon this ar
ernoon, that the san Francisco toy
was unable TO arise when knocked to
the floor with a full right swing that
caught him on the back of his head.
Attel was lying unconscious upon his
back. sprawled at full length. and did
not move when his seconds lifted him
/ fights, then the historic battle be-
tween Heenan and Savers was not
one. / have no doubt that the COM
( ing contest between Jeffries amd
Johnson will be a repetition Of the
brutality mentioned in the foregoing
fights. only on a larger scale.
II "sparring exhibitions" as per-
mitted by our laws. make fights
where men are killed. beaten into in
sensibility. and their faces "cut into
ribbons" ere lawful acts, then it Is
time that the legislature should in
/ terfere and make such exhibitions OF
contests a felony. Such contests are
prizefights not permitted by the law,
and should be punished as such.
Those who engage in them are prize
/ fighters and make their living by
fighting each other for prizes and re-
wards.
! The whole business is demoralizing