The Dawson news. (Dawson, Ga.) 1889-current, 1910-07-27
JUST A GOOD NATURED DARBY
GEORGIA EDITOR TALKS WITH
THE NEGRO CHAMPION.
johnson Says Victory Merely One of
Strength, and That Gorilla Could
Whip Him and Jeffries Both.


Editor Mccartney OF the Rome
Tribune recently visited New York,
and gives an interesting description
of Jack Johnson, the negro prize
fighter, with whom he had a talk.
Editor Mccartney writes as follows:
This is a story about Jack john
son, the huge Ethiopian, who put
bruises on the brow of one Jetfries,
and emptiness in the pOcketbOOks or
many white gem-mums.' SO no pen
siye highbrow need read it.
He comes lots nearer being an
unspoiled Texas darkey than most
men of his color would be. / went
to see him from curiosity the other
afternoon, where he is appearing on
the stage, and talked to him after
the performance He shows no dis
position to be impudent or 'uppety.'
To be sure he calls his manager, JEFF
fries, Corbett and other white men
by their first name, but they have put
themselves on a level with him, and
he is scarcely to be blamed for that
johnson does not take the view
that his victory over the burly Cali
fornian demonstrates the superiority
of his race over the white. In re-
spouse to a question as to this he
said: Why, no | reckon the white
folks will go on inventing things and
writing books and such like just the
same as if Mr.. Jeffries had whipped
me. A gorilla could whip us both,
and that wouldn't prove that the go
rilla race is better than the human
race,
j Probably some one put this idea
into his head, but it is a good idea
to have there all the same.
He is not the idol of the New
York darkey that one might suppose.
They flock to see him, but most of his
hangers-on are white men. Perhaps
he is too sensible to suit the blacks.
He is, of course, of limited education,
and says I seen, and I taxed, just
like the Georgia watermelon lovers.
He has a little speech that he has
learned by heart to say on the stage,
but insists on speaking of the JEFF
fries fraction instead of faction
Jack poOh-poOhs the talk of JEFF
fries being doped or having lost his
nerve. He asserts that the fight was
on the level, and he had only one
offer to throw it, from George Lit
tie, his former manager This may
not be true, but no one who has seen
Jack will be in any haste to call him
a liar
He is great specimen of physi
cal manhood, with wonderful should
ers and long arms. His head is sim
gularly fiat on top, sloping almost
back to the cone-shaped crown, and
might have been built by design for
glancing off blows. The head sets on
a short neck, and he has a wierdly
reptilian way of drawing it down be-
tween his immense shoulders or of
darting it from side to side like a
great turtle. His sparring partner
in his stage exhibitions is a big
white man, who is absolutely unable
to penetrate his marvellous defense.
He does practically no offensive
work, but seems able to stop any
blow by short-arm work, and occa-
sionally whips in cce of tSose light
ming Reno uppercuts.
He says he is ready to defend the
title against all corners, but the
corners bid fair to be few and far be-
tween. He declares he was never
nervous, and always knew he would
win the fight He is very good ma
tured and shows his gold teeth in
constant happy smiles.
He has three hobbies, hesiGes
fighting and these are: % playing
a base violin twice as big as Arthur
Vests cello, which he does afro
ciously; (2) eating chickens which
he does with great neatness and dis
patch, and 90 running a huge auto
mobile. He says he expects to enter
his car and drive it himself in the
Vanderbilt cup races.