Los Angeles herald., 1910-07-05
ANGEL CITY FANS
MOURN LOST IDOL
Johnson, MaChine-like, FeIIS the
White Champion and Crowd
in Silence Leaves
RENO NOT AT ALL HILARIOUS
Promoter Richards Wife Enter
tains Party of Forty Women
in Arena Box
RENO NOT AT ALL HILARIOUS
BY j. G. GRIFFIN

reeking hot canvas In the arena of a
sun-stricken town an idol fell today.
The fall can be all expressed in five
words: "They can not come back"
Father Time must have his toll, and
the toll exacted from Jim Jeffries was
pathetic.
When the big bearlike white man
dropped slowly toward the floor in the
fifteenth round, his body going half
through the ropes, there was not the
usual enthusiastic reception which
greets an about-to-be victor. AS the
idol got to one knee, preparatory to
arising for what he knew was hope
less task, his opponent, rangy, ma
chine-like, graceful Jack Johnson,
stepped forward to finish a job handled
in masterlike style from the opening
bell until Tex Rickard rendered his
verdict.
There was no. cheering. Silent, like
spectators at the obsequies of king,
the monster throng sat as though pet
rified. Here and there a faint offer of
encouragement was offered Jeffries,
! but it was not given with the spon-
taneity that comes with hope, even
! the negroes in the audience, with the
pride of the race in Johnson, refrained
| from cheering, and while the tense
| silence held even the bated breaths of
his well-wishers, Jeffries rose to his
feet. With the certainty that comes
from superiority Johnson again
| stepped in and again Jeff sank to the
| floor. The stout heart that has made
the former champion noted as the
greatest who ever drew on glove,
refused to allow him to stay groveling
| in pain at his conqueror'S feet, and
| once more jeff assumed what his
poor battered senses considered
| fighting attitude. Johnsons third
| al IVthionio MI
| task. jeff, trying with every ounce
of his completely exhausted strength,
| could not do the impossible, and just
as he rose, tottering to his feet, Rick
ard counted the fatal tenth second.
LEAVE IN SILENCE
The cheer that greeted Johnson on
| his ascendancy to the heavyweight
throne could scarcely be called noise.
| White-faced men walked silently out
of the rough pinewood reeking arena,
| and the tale of a fallen idol was com
| plete.
Reno was not a very hilarious place
| tonight, at least up to the time the
| Los Angeles special left on its return
| journey. The big gambling houses re-
ceived scant play. The usually heavily
TERED bars were sparsely lined by sui
len, heavy voiced men who were not
even cheered by the potion passed out
| by the attendants. There was no as
suaging the grief. AS for the Los An
| geles special, at this writing 1t gives
promise of being more of a cortege
than what a few hours ago was an
ticipated as a joyful home-going for the
| 300 odd loyal Jeffries adherents who
braved the desert and mountains to
come here and cheer their champion
and friend on to victory.
King Jeffries is dead and King John |
son promises to be alive long time.
On his showing today no man in the
world, not even the Furnishing, fighting
! Sam Langford, can hope to take the
champions measure until the years
and customs accompanying his now
undisputed honors place him in the
same category as his age-worn op-
ponent Of the day.
GAY MORNING
All through the hours preceding the
sorry spectacle of King Jeffries' de-
thronement, Reno was the gayest of
the gay. Day and night nothing was
| recorded but a continuous round OF
| pleasure for most of the visitors, and
the city itself, one of the few truly
western towns left US in these days
| of crusades, seemed to take on new
| life. Every form Of entertainment was
given ample play
By II o'clock this morning long lines
of persons were vending their way
| toward the ndSClly erected arena to the !
east of the city's center. The carpen-
ters were hard at work when the
! vanguard arrived, and not until long
after the hour set for opening the
! doors was the first regular spectator
admitted to the big 1nclosure But
once the first was by the outside gate
| keeper they came in a steady stream |
and the monster arena filed rapidly.
| Mrs. Tex Rickard, as a compliment
from her promoter husband. was given
the privilege of private box high |
above the topmost tier of the gallery
| section, and here she entertained about |
| forty of the elite of Reno.
Many other women, high brow doubt |
full and Indifferent, entered the main
inclosure with and without escorts and
all were given the genteel Difference
usually accorded their sex by the mon
ster aggregations present.
MRS. JOHNSON THERE
Mrs. Jeffries was not in evidence at
the fight. But Mrs. Johnson was. |
The least that can be said of Mrs |
Johnson is that she is modest, unas-
suming and comely to a noticeable de- |
gree. She took her seat in the $50 sec |
tion ten or twelve rows from the ring |
side and there she sat to the end |
Even when her big, ebony shining
spouse was administering the finish |
ing touches to what was the making !
of his real fortune, the little woman |
refrained from making a spectacle of |
herself, which Is more than can be |
said for many other women in the vast |
assemblage.
Aside from Jack Gleason's faux pas |
in connection with fifteen or twenty |
newspaper men who had made long |
trips to perform their duties at the |
scene OF action everything connected |
with the greatest fistic performance
from the standpoint of dollars involved, |
went off smoothly. Gleason, 1t seems, |
had been in the habit of replying to |
reporters who wrote him for tickets to
the fight: "Sure old friend, glad to
do it," When they hit here these cor
respondents on inquiring for their seat
or seats were told Gleason had not |
even mentioned them, let alone leaving
a pasteboard in handy place When
Gleason was sought at his hotel he was
unluckily absent
The Los Angeles special, minus a
few disheartened individuals who have
decided to return by another route will
be on it's way homeward at O'Clock
tonight, and If the schedule Is better
than it was on the way up will arrive
at the home port tomorrow night about
8 o'clock.
According to all promises it will not
,o a vow, Ii1yaIu caGeiOn at auu STA 90 Of |