The evening times. [volume] (Grand Forks, N.D.) 1906-1914, 1912-12-20
Prize Fighters Come From
All Sorts of Professions
Flash Across Queensberry Horizon, but Glory is Fleeing,
-Pugilists Nowadays Thriftier than Old Timers

Mutations Of the ring are 'ceaseless.
Probably in no line OF sports is the
glory more fleeting. A strong. clever
boy springs from comparative obscur-
ity. flashes across the Qu%eensberry
STAGE" drops from the headlines to
the agate paragraph. and rounds out
his days in some prosaic business or
profession. :.
But while the glory is fieeting, the
fighters fame is not always transient.
There are exceptions. They still talk
about Tom Fig. Jem Mace, and Tom
Sayer. John L. Sullivan's name will
be synonymous with the. ring as long
as pugilism continues to flourish.
The old-time pugilist frequently
bitches. or. if he felt that work was
beneath his dignity. became a bum
or public ward. Boxing under mod
ern conditions has attracted a new
class of men. AS a rule they are
Of a higher type intellectually, and
thrifty. Today when a new cham
pion retires he is likely to put in the
remainder Of his. days clipping bond
coupons. Not only does the ring now
offer greater "get-rich-quick" posi-
bilities. but the, men have developed
tH0 hldCk u lIlNC6IltlS IItclI tbOACS
where it will grow and expand.
Pugilists Grow Easily.
Fighters spring from no Particular
class. They issue from banks. mer-
camille establishments. the various
trades, and sometimes from nowhere
in particular. There is a time in near
~ every normal boys life when he
aspires to be a great. boxer. Some OF
them steal away from the family wick
yup and box in preliminaries under
assumed anne Dad would be hor-
IL he gecones a champion. We have
vet to learn of a case in which a: real
champion has been disowned by his
family. Still others make their start
in the amateur bouts. A vast ma
iority. however. are stopped before
they really get started. One thorough
trouncins is enough to convince the
average ambitious youth that he never
was intended for a champion" It
Is a, case Of the survival Of the fttest,
and the surviving is limited to a com
parative few.
.Ad .Wolgast Made Cigars.
Ad Wolgast was a ~cigarnlaker be-
fore he took up. boxing. He be-
came so expert that he could roll a
fine, fat stogy with his yes shut and
both hands in his pockets. Ad has
a strong leaning toward pastoral
pursuits. From this II: should not be
inferred that he has an ambition to
become a sheep herder. No. when Ad
retires it will be to become q gentle.
man farmer. He already has the
stinct. Ad now knows the difference
between a parsnip and a sweet pota-
to. and with the further knowledge
which he will gain in the intervening
years. there Is every reason to believe
that he will become the champion
lightweight farmer Of Wisconsin.
Joe Mandot emerged from a New
Orleans bread and pie foundry to be,
come a boxer. Joe is an expert on ap.
pie pie: He can recognize an apple
pie blindfolded. He does this solely
wasn't anything in particular before
he became a boxer. He was too young
to classify. We don't know what III
intends to do when he quits. Probabl,
he will be content merely to collec'
the rents at the enc Of each month.
Johnny Kilbane q Switchman.
Johnny kilbane. the featherweigh'
champion. was a railway switchmar
before he became glove famous. I
was then that he mastered the art o,
s~idestepping. Few things can max.
a mar step -livelier than a through ex
press. Johnny ia. not particular,
fond Of the fighting game. It wal
the financial end. that lured him int
h ring. His ambition is to :becom,
a politician. Who knows but tina
some day he will be a. rival of Bos.
Cox. Garry Hermann. and other we'll
known Ohio people?
Jim Flynn is credited with hayin,
fired an engine in early youth. Luther
NrfSo h}, 'oAOt 4nn4e~~ " -,
adventurous soul. and would max,
good material for sorne of our abb,
fiction writer's. He started his career
as a, messenger boy. became a deep
sea. sailor. punched cattle a while
and later blossomed forth as a whit,
hope
Johnny Dundee. who is camping OF
kilbane's trail with commendabl
persistency used to act as chauffeur
The older Dundee Is a fish merchan
in New York.
Campi Once 0 Fisherman.
Eddie Campi. Tim McGrath's bud
ding phenom. is another who quit tn,
fish business to become. an angler aft
ear fat purses. Eddie's father is
sure-enough fisherman and figures Il
the Alaskan trade.
Dundee and Campi can tell som
great fish stories. Each claims tn
championship in this respect. TIL
Tuna club should get busy m mattel
them.
Johnny Coulon. who is trying L
steer his championship caravel safel
through the troubled waters Of tn
bantamweight division. was a mes
scnger boy.
philadelphia Jack O'Rrien. VIII
tried to ease his way into the heavy
weight championship under false pre-