El Paso herald. (El Paso, Tex.) 1901-1931, 1913-10-26

q IDE bets for the big fights seems
to be almost a thing of the past
An old sporting authority while
talking fight, was lamenting the fact
that the old fashioned contest for side
bets was dying out, and he regretted
the same claiming that the, side pct
mad much to do with putting the men
more on their metal For a great many
years no boxing bouts of any import
ance was considered genuine unless
each of the boys put up side bet
either his own money or that of an
enthusiastic admfrer. The system or
iginated in the old days of bare knuckle
lighting, when gate money was I'M
known and when a fighter had no
earthly chance of becoming a cham
pion unless he could find wealthy
patron TO put up money for him.
Fortunes Won and Lost.
In those days there was a great deal
more betting on the result of boxing
bouts than there is at the present time
and many of the sporting Corinthians
(as they weer called in those days)
made and lost vast fortunes by means
of wagers on fighters. When glove
fighting superseded the knuckle game,
the practice of side bets was continued
down to the present year of grace OF
late side bets have not been so much
to the fore, mainly owing to the big
gates at most of the chief centers OF
boxing, but occasionally there is a bat
tie between two boys of quite moderate
ability, battling for a side wager out
of all proportion of their worth.
Quite recently Johnny Hughes and
Bill Beynon, the present holder of the
,bantamweight championship in Eng
land, fought 20 rounds at a private
house before about so wealthy sports
The side wager was $500 each, the
money being put I'D by supporters of
the boys. The winner got a share of
= l. II =
the boys divided a sum collected for
them from the few privileged specta-
tors.
Side Bets In London.
OF course, all of the advertised side
bet contests are not genuine affairs,
but those that take place at the Lon
don National Sporting club are. Every
contender for a title must put up a
side bet of S50O-S1O00 in the case of
heavyweights holders of cham
pionship belts must put up a similar
amount. The Wells-Carpentier battle
will be a side bet in addition to the
purse The Scotch bantam champion,
Alec Lafferty, has issued a defiance
to all boys at 1!6 pounds, at which he
declares himself willing to box any
one at the weight for a purse and a
side wager, the winner to take all.
"Winner Take Alp Not Good.
This notion of winner take all is not
a good one and moreover is very rare
wanted to box Freddy Welsh in 1910
on this basis. but the club declined the
They do not care how the
purse is split. 1t can be 80 per cent to
the winner and 10 per cent to the loser
if the boys agree, but the club manage
ment insist upon a losers end.
There was supposed to be a side
wager between Johnson and Jeffries,
but nothing was ever heard of it after
wards John L. Sullivan and James J.
COrbett fought at New Orleans for the
eally last big side bet, the amount in
volved being $50, 600. and it was real,
too. But Nelson and Joe Cans fought
for a good sized side bet, but few
lightweight battles since then have
been for a side wager. There is al
ways lots of talk. about the side bets,
etc, but seldom is any real coin put
up. Especially by the fighters.
LightWeights as a rule, find the trav-
cling about pretty smooth. but during
the past few weeks the road has not
been strewn with roses for many Of
them Freddy Welsh, the British cham