Rock Island Argus. (Rock Island, Ill.) 1893-1920, 1913-01-04
WRESTLERS WHO
MADE The CAME
M. A. Connolly, R. D. M. Club
Matchmaker, Discusses
Some Old Timers.

Strange how fellow will drop
around to the old haunts," remarked I.
NJ. A. ConneLy matchmaker for the .
Il. d. & VI. Athletic club. Just Is
years ago this winter ! first mixed up
in the mat game in this city I was
ahead Of Howes Great London circus
that year and after the show was
shipped 10 winter quarters in Phiia-
delphia, / went 10 New York, where
met Tom Conuors, who had just
won the championship Of England and
had come 10 this country looking for
matches.
Rock Island was some mat town
in those days, and Farmer Burls was
the big noise, and when We offered
him a match, Conuors 10 beat him
three falls in one hour, he grabbed il,
hook, sinker and all. Well II took
Tom just q minutes 10 turn the trick
and he was small man, Weighing
only 156 pounds. Shortly after that
] went TO Frisco, where / was mixed
up in the affairs OF the old olympic
Athletic club, now run by Jimmie COT
froth. Ny old friend, Jim Corbett,
was boxing Instructor Of the Pacific
Coast club They had a wrestling in
struCtor by the name OF Tim McEear-
ncy. ana Dan Mcleod afterwards
worlds champion. acted IN the same
capacity for the Olympic club. Cor
hett and J arranged O. match between
them for tho coast championship aad
IL attracted one OF the largest crowds
that ever assembled for that or any
otEe- athletic event ever pulled of
in Frisco AS for the match, Mcleod
won after three hours and IS minutes
I'm one Of the hercest and roughes.
matches over wrestled. McNearney
was taken 10 a hospital. where he
died. never having recovered from
the effects Of the awful beating ad-
miuistered to- him by Mcleod.
About the middle of the following
summer. Mcleod gld ] sailed for Aus
tralia, where we remained for amour
10 months. Dan beat everything that
they had over there ard we clesuec
W. in grand shape on the trip Aus
tralia is sure a fine country, but
would hate TO go broke over there.
They try 10 make you think that they
like people from the states. but they
never made me believe H. The night
that Mcleod beat Pickup for the Aus
tralian championship the referee made
Mcleod hold his mans shoulders on
The mat COR exactly II miIutes. but
che fail was enough. Pickup coll1ps-
Oh 3. f1r a
. r.. h. .re r.m. no ~ a~ y.a 'hn
referee and he is now sporting editor
q, th. London .pggt.ug News. A,
that time the referee did not get into
t.o ring. but shouted his decisions
from tho mat side. The same is true
bon England. or was up TO about two or
three years ago.
Returning from Australia. I
brought Mcleod east for match
with Burns. and after following him
an over the country for about four
months, we finally got him into )
match which was pulled of at Daveu-
port late in the spring of ~, ! be.
licve. Burns got the decision. but he
was the worst beaten man that ever
left q mat. lie win carry the scars
Of that battle 70 his grave Nalachy
Hogan. now dead was the referee
aud there are many old timers IN
Davenport that vii tell YOU that
there never was such match wres
tied. About two months later. after
Burns had recovered. he met Mcleod
in Indianapolis. IL was all Mcleod