Daily capital journal. (Salem, Oregon) 1903-1919, 1913-10-28
R|TCH|E AND CROSS
WILL FIGHT IN NOVEMBER
Eastern Critics Will Be Given An OPP
portunity to See if Champion is
Real Nit Artist.
IF CROSS IS WoRSTED
RITCHIE WILL GET MORE
Chances of Several More Combats Are
Good in Case New York is Slowed
Away by Champ.
BY HAL SHERIDAN
written for the United Press)

New York, Oct. 2S.-Willie Richie,
lightweight champion of the world, and
Leach Cross, the New York dentist
fighter, will fight here next month. The
battle was scheduled for today, but
Cross injured his hand. This means
THAT the eastern critics, as well as the
fight followers, are to be given a chance
to see Willie in what promises to be
real fight. Ritchie has been panned
more or less since his fight with Fred.
die Welsh was called off at Vancouver
and the eastern bugs now want to be
shown. 1t is up to Willie show wheth-
or he is of real championship calibre or
is of the cheese variety of which there
are large hunks, to say nothing of gobs
now operating about Manhattan.
Most any frosty morning during the
past three weeks you might have spot
ted Ritchie hitting it up along the roads
through Central Park, getting himself
into condition for the Cross bout. He
does not hold Leach lightly, consider
ing that Cross has a knockout over Bud
Anderson to his credit. But he does
not expect to run into a great deal Of
trouble handling Leach.
If he will just fight and not back
away and cover up / am sure to knock
him out, said Richie. "Leach is
strong for the covering up game, but if
he stands out and fights 1 II get him. !"
If Ritchie hangs one over on Cross
he may expect to have reasonably
busy winter if he cares to stay in the
east. There is Jack Britton and John.
ny Lore to draw on for fights. Ritchie
declares he is willing to meet Freddie
Welsh at any time. He may be accom-.
odated here if the going gets good A
word from Welsh and half dozen
fight managers would be in a scramble
to sign up such bout, providing Willie
shows something more than pair Of
arms, legs and title, The title sounds
good, but New York fight fans are
beginning to demand little fight on
the side.
Reich is Disappointment
One Of the big dsappointments Of the
early fight season here was the showing
of Al Reich, former amateur champion,
who blossomed out as "white hope. "
Bad matchmaking was largely responsi.
BILE for Reich IS downfall. He is a strap.
ping big fellow, well built and apparent.
ly has everything that a champion
should have sa far as physical fitness
is concerned He is mighty shy on OK.
perience however. Running him into
Carl Morris in what was virtually his
first professional fight spilled the
beans Reich didn't know even how to
keep out Of the way and went out in
two rounds. A slow bringing up and
Reich may yet be heard from.
In passing it might be mentioned
that Morris is showing a lot more this
fall than it was ever suspected he had
lurking about his person. He is bigger
than the sides Of two houses and pick.
ed up a surprising amount Of fight
knowledge within the last year He
certainly has Gunboat Smith 8 number
and Gunboat was strutting about New
York as the real goods in the heavy.
weight line.
All Talk Of Next Year.
BY this time the last abb should
have been offered and the last post
mortem held over the late lamented
Worlds series-lamented so far as the
Giant fans are concerned. The cry Is
now "next year" A week ago we gave
Clark Griffith his yelp in that grand
old chorus. After everybody has got
ten n good square size of the bunch
piloted by Connie Mack however, the
vote from around the stove in the win.
ter league is that Griff g new kid pitch.
crs are going to be in for a warm re.
ception when the new season rolls ar.
ound Mack had one Of the greatest
ball clubs that ever went on the field
this year but his "next year, song is
that he win have the greatest club no
ever managed. If the other seven clubs
in the American league can get any
satisfaction out Of that announcement
they are welcome to II.
Mack not only looks to next year, and
the next, but so far ahead we do not
know the exact limit Of his sight. Dur.
ing the world s series forty.seven young
mon sat In the grand.stand and watched
the game. Connie Mack had them there
10 learn something. They represented
his "bascball school" and from the
bunch may come another Baker, Col.
Inns Of Mc1nnes. Some Of them are only
high school boys, others were from col.
leges, but they all have shown n slant
toward baseball aud when they have
developed enough stuff they will be
pushed into Mack 3 fighting line.
with such a system as that working