El Paso herald. (El Paso, Tex.) 1901-1931, 1910-06-11

| Continued from Page 22.)
| bled like leaf for fear the white men
| in the audience would mob him and that
was in the east where mob violence Is
unknown. He would not leave the
ring until everyone was out of the
| house. Johnson was hit over the head
with bottle when he beat one man in
| Philadelphia and since then he has never
/ had the nerve to walk through a crowd
after beating a white man. When
Johnson knocked out Ketchel he was
afraid that he would be mobbed and he
might have been had not the white peo7
pie on the coast wanted to save him for
| Jeffries.
| Whites VIII Be Excited.
But this will be the whites last
chance to take the title from him.
Think of the way those fight fans will
! feel toward Johnson if he wins Think
| of the disappointment OF the men who
will have lost thousands of dollars
on the contest? No one who has really
studied the situation would be sur
prised to see the fans cut the ropes,
swarm the platform and mob the negro.
He will have police protection but what
will police protection amount to with
$4,000 angry men to oppose? 1t is also
ten to one shot that the police will
feel like the rest Of the white men at
the ringside.
1t would not surprise anyone either
to see the fans swarm into the ring and
prevent Johnson knocking out Jeffries
if they think that there is such a pos
sibility Of such a thing taking place.
or if they see that Jeffries is sure to
lose. In that event there could be no
decision OF the referee Is 1t posi-
BILE for a negro, especially a Texas
negro, to keep from fearing these
things?
IF He Wasn't Black.
A white man Of the build and fight
ing ability of Johnson would be a two
to one favorite over the retired cham
pion and it is a safe bet that Jeffries
would never have come out Of retire
ment to fight a white man. He be-
lieves, as many others do, that the ne
gro will not be game to go through the
mill and defeat him with the crowd Of
excited white men at the ringside all
eager to see Jeffries win.
Reports from California to the eff
feet that Johnson is already showing
cold feet are causing some to hold their
betting change until later in the game.
If Johnson is beginning to get nerv-
Gus because of the advertised good
condition of the retired champion he
when the fight takes place. His heart
will be IN his mouth and he will spit
it out before the first round is over.
Cry of "Fake7 Is Raised.
Old John L. Sullivan butted into the
Jeffries- johnson arena with a cry of
fake" recently and since that time this
feature of the July fight has been
discussed more than any other.
To the thinking man the charge is
simply absurd as neither man would
have anything to gain, especially as
the charge is made that Johnson will
lay down to Jeffries. If it was said
that Jeffries would let Johnson whip
him there might be found some reason
why frame up should result.
If Jeffries whips Johnson the expect
ed viii happen and neither would gain
anything by a fake" except a bad rep
utation. On the other hand by not fax
ing but putting up the fight of his life
Johnson would have every Involvement
If ne wins he wins the worlds cham
pionship and a fortune and what is
million timeB more desirable to an
egotistical negro like Johnson, news
paper nOtoriety and the adulation Of
a class of fight followers. If he loses
he becomes a back number a discredit-
ed performer anu VIII no longer De
able to earn a sadary as a vaudeville
performer
No Necessity for Frnmeup.
Then why should Jeffres have to ar
range a frameup TO defeat Johnson?
The big fighter was perfectly content
to remain out OF the ring. The only
inducement he had to come back in
was TO get the opportunity to trounce
the negro. who he considers a buffer
knows the character of Jeffries knows
that he would rather knock the big
smokes block off than to win the big
end of the purse. The whipping of
Johnson viii not add much to Jeffries'
reputation for II is generally conceded
that he has whipped a score OF bet
ter men in his time.
For these and many other reasons
the cry of fake" can be dismissed as
absurd and unworthy Of thinking men
everywhere There must be good rea-
sons for man risking his character
and in this instance there is not the
vestige of a reason for anything of the
kind.
Bad Taste Of John
The crv of fake" comes in bad taste
from Old John. The whole sporting
world has been kind TO the dissipated
b1oke and stood for a lot of things that |
no other fighter could have got !
away with. Just why he should al I
ways try to throw mud at any event IN |
which he IS not engaged is one Of the |
reasons why he had been termed a |
jealous old stiff. lust because he was |
always there with Yours on the Level. |
John L. Sullivan" the sporting world /
has always show cred iIs favors on him /
and now IN his declining DAYS he |
should not show a childish spirit that !
is likely to bring him into disrepute /
Il LII Ii