Daily capital journal. (Salem, Oregon) 1903-1919, 1910-01-22
JEFFRIES HAS
THE BATTLE 2
OF HIS LIFE
Both Men Realize That They
Have Contracted for a
Fight.

The great subject of discussion
and speculation in the sporting
world today is the approaching bat
tie between Jim Jeffries, the retired
heavy weight champion of the
world, and Jack Johnson, the negro,
who wrested this title from Tommy
Burns after he had fallen heir to 1t
through the retirement of Jeffries.
And never before in the history OF
pugilism has there been a more inn
portant fight; never before a fight
where the judgment of sporting
public as to the outcome was more
divided, and never before has there
been fight which has drawn from
the sporting writer's so much criti-
cism.
Jeffries at the present is the fav-
orite with the betting public but
this is probably due more to the SEN
timent that it feels with relation to
the contest than cool and calculat-
ing Judgment with relation to the
merits of the two men, because since
the day of John L. Sullivan, who
went down into defeat before the
shifty and scienced Corbett, Amer
lea has not had champion who has
been more popular than the big CAL
ifornian So much for the general
public But when it comes to the
men who make prize fights study
and who in a calculating way weigh
the merits and weakness of the two
fighters and bet their money, not be-
cause of sentiment, but because
they want to win, it is different.
These men recognize the fact that
! when man has been in retirement
as long as the big Californian has
that it operates as severe hand'-
cap to him; and they recognize the
! further fact that in Johnson Jeffries
has a strong strong rugged, scienced
and fast opponent and that, If at
| his best, he will measure up inch
for inch and foot for foot with JEFF
fries and that he will exchange blow
for blow until knockout is deliv-
erred, and when all things are con-
sidered it would look as though the
black man had the best chances to
win.
1t seems to be the opinion of the
men who have given the coming
battle careful consideration and
thought and weighed cody and i'm
partially the merits of the two
| fighters that it is a necessary con-
dition to begin with that Jeffries to
win must be in the best of condition
equally as good as when he met
and defeated Corbett. 1t seems to
be the further opinion of them that
with this condition present that
Jeffries must make his fight from
the sound of the gong in the first
round, and that if the black man
does not go down to defeat or with
in the tenth round that the chances
for the Californian with each sue
ceeding round will grow less Of
scoring a victory. In support Of this
contention and view 1t is cited that
the negro is young-just in the
prime of life-has had more ring
practice within the last two years
than his opponent; that he Is just
as clever a boxer as Corbett was,
just as hard a puncher as Bob Fitz-
simmons was and just as hard and
tough as Jeffries, and that unless
Jeffries wins within the tenth round
that the chances are great that the
negro will wear his man out and
win.
That is the opinion Of the men
who have given thought to the COM
ing hattie and who when II comes
off will lay aside sentiment and play
their money on the man their judg-
ment tells them is going to win and
it looks reasonable; looks as though
that if Jeffries wins he must sail in
on his fight in the very first round
and fight fast and hard, play for the
blackman's stomach and avoid his
iron jaw, and watch his opportunity |
to deliver a solar plexus blow like
that which FitzsimmOns planted Ia
the stomach of Corbett and the ef-
fects of which he still feels and has
never fully recovered from.
Certain it is that Jeffries has the
battle of his life before him and |
while the odds seem to be in favor
of Johnson, he also seems to feel