The Bridgeport evening farmer., 1913-09-20
(By James J. Corbett, Former Heavy weight Champion of the World.)
 Written for The Farmer.)


 The calling off of the Willie Ritchie- Freddy Welsh match at Vancouver was a big knock to boxing in Western Canada Ritchie says he withdrew because the promoters failed to live up to their agreement to deposit that S15,000 guarantee, or any part or it. in advance. Naturally Freddy welsh is a sore individual and it looks as if he were given very shabby deal, but if Ritchie tells the truth the pro moters only are responsible Tor the fizzle-
 Ritchie is not in the game for the love of it any more than the fellows who handle the promotion end of the game, and when he refused number of corking good offers from Cal1for- mia and New York promoters and ac- ceuted the offer of the Canadians to hos, welsh he naturally expected to get the amount guaranteed him. AL that it was not so much the money with Willie as it was a desire 10 get hunk with Welsh for the loss of 8 twenty round decision at Los Angeles two years ago that prompted nm 70 accept the Vancouver proposition
 Ritchie lived up to his end of the i bargain with the promoters He posted $2.5O0 for weight and appear ! ance But when he discovered that ! the S15,O00 was not forthcoming de- cided he had been handed the ''rasp- ] berry, and hiked for home to protect his own good money he had previous 1y posted in the shape of a. check on a San Francisco bank
 while welsh has a good kick com ing 1t looks as though Ritchie was jus tif7ed in his action. Willie went to Vancouver a month ago prepared to box Freddy on Labor Day last only to 1 learn that the Briton had been in 5Elred and that the bout had been | postponed until September 20. Had willie been afraid of defeat, as sever I al despatches put it, he could have withdrawn from the match then and there. but instead consented to the pcstponement and kept faith in every ! way with everybody concerned think he did theSright think when he refused to stand for the bunk
 I don't know the Vancouver pro- moters or anything about them. They are new oness on me. They surely handed the sports of Vancouver and vicinity a fine ripe lemon. From what I can learn someone took a long chance of getting something for noth- ing, but the bluff was called Possibly the promoters thought they might con Rttchie into consenting to go through with the match rather than be censured for running out at the ] eleventh hour, but Willie evidently profited by his experience with Billy Nolan and refused to fall for the work
 However, 'tis an i'll wind that blows no good. Ritchie has wired New York promoters that he is prepared to talk fight with anyone in the lightweight division and it looks like a sure thing he will be seen in a local arena early in October if not before Either Tommy Murphy or Leach Cross will be chosen as his opponent with the latter the choice of the pro- 1noters. However, 1t is known that Cross is in receipt of a splendid offer from Tom McCarey to box Joe Rivers at Los Angeles and it is thought Mur- phy will be given first local chance with the champion
 Packey Mcfarland has been making strenuous efforts to get a match with Ritchie and may be rewarded lift tie later on in the season. Just now the champion can get big mon ey for boxing men who do not class with Packey and he is too good business man to pass them up. Af- ter Ritchie has cleaned up the easy s.members'' he may talk business with Mcfarland.
 McFarland told me recently he had just about made up his mind to quit the game entirely He has been chasing the champions for the past half a dozen years, but as yet has never succeeded in getting one of them fin the ring with him. AS he is not growing younger and must
  keeps at the game he very sens:bly figures that the time to get out is drawing closer every day McFar- land could retire now recognized as the greatest lightweight in the ring although he has never held title to the championship.
 Packey says he will stick around a while longer, however, if Ritchie will agree to give him a battle And he says he will make weight for Ritchie, too. But not for anyone else. Hard training does not appeal to McFar- land any more The novelty of the thing has long worn off, and nothing short of championship match would be inducement enough for him to make the lightweight limit
 If any boxer ever deserved a match for the championship it is Packey Mcfarland. He stands out to-day as the premier boxer of his weight in the world and is the only American lightweight who looks to have as good as an even chance with Ritchie.
 It will not be the fault of Billy Gibson, matchmaker for the Madison Square Garden club, if a bout is not arranged between Mcfarland and Rftchie for this Fall Gibson has been working on the match ever since Ritchie won the title from Wolgast
 When Ad Wolgast was worsted @ few weeks ago by Jose Azevedo he E1NG It OAA lAA1t AAO tO QLiit the ring for all time, hat he realized he was all in and had no desire lo remain in the game to be beaten up by second raters-
 was glad to hear that bit of esws- Nothing pains a. lover of tine sport more than to see a boy who was the champion of his class beaten by second raters-who would hay ve been marks for him when at his best. And that's what happened to Ad when this Azevedo fighter trimmed him
 Now I understand that WoIgast