Newark evening star and Newark advertiser. [volume] (Newark, N.J.) 1909-1916, 1914-01-24
UNFAIR TO ROAST RITCHIE.
SAYS JAMES ]. CORBETT
"GentIeman Jim Declares
Champion Right in Not Fight
ing Murphy Until Fit.
Is ENTITLED TO SYMPATHY
Live Comment on Ring Matters
by Former King of Scien-
tific Boxers.
By JAMES J. CORBETT

undesefVed panning from the knock
ers' clubs of the country. For what
reason? Simply because illness has
twice compelled him to call off
matches with Harlem Tommy
Murphy. If Willie wasn't champion
the papers wouldn't have given Willie
and his troubles tumble. Sailor
Petroskey was forced to cancel the
match Tom McCarey had scheduled
Tor him with Jimmy Clabby last
week, but 1 haven't seen anything in
the sporting pages insinuating that
the tar had cold feet. or impugning;
his courage.
Different with RitchIe.
But with Richie 1t is different -
he is the champion Of his class. ana
rs such is the target for all the shots
the scribes feel like aiming In his
direction. 1t helps fill the sporting
columns and, after all. really does not
do the champion any great harm.
Still, it Is not the fair thing to roast
fighter of the Richie type for doing
what any sane person would have
done under like conditions. Suppose
Ritchie had gone into the ring with
Murphy in poor physical condition.
and an accident occurred what a
swell chance for the enemies of the
sport to get in their deadly work.
Probably the same critics who are
now taking the champion to task for
lodging" Murphy, without knowing
the why or wherefore. would then be
among the first to roast the club off,
Gals, fighters, managers and every
one connected with the mill for per-
hitting the champion to enter the
ring at all And there Won are
Willie Did Wonders.
The fact of the matter Is that
Willie Richie has accomplished more
In the short time he has been cham
pion than any of his immediate pred
ecessors. True. Wolgast fought half
a dozen short battles in the twelve
months following his defeat of Bat
b Ting Nelson, but there was not a
classy man in the bunch. Nelson
gave Joe Cans a return match two
months after he had beaten the negro
for the championship, but that match
was mistake. 1t should never have
been allowed. Cans was then on his
last legs and lasted twenty one
rounds because he was a wonderful
ring general and it was his brain
and not his strength that kept him on
his feet for that length of time be-
fore one of the toughest lightweights
the game has ever known.
His EnviabIe Record.
Now look at Ritchie's record for the
first year of his reign as champion.
Seven months after winning the title
he fought what was to have been 81
twenty-round bout with Joe Rivers,
recognized by press and public as his
most dangerous rival. and knocked
him out in ten or eleven rounds. 1
forget which. -Four months later lie
took on Leach Cross. by many con-
sidered a greater fighter than Rivers.
and gave him beating in ten rounds
so decisive that there was not dis
senting voice to the newspaper YER
diets, which is an unusual thing in
New York. where the friends and
supporters of a losing scrapper in so
important a contest put I'D howl
that can be heard from Harlem to
the Battery if there is q possible
chance of getting away with it.
Did Not Pick Lemons.
That's what l call going some for Il
champions first year at the top of
his class. And Willie didn't pick out
easy marks. it will be noticed. On
the contrary he let the matchmakers
do the picking and boxed the two
hardest propositions in the light
W61RnI QlNlSIOn. NOW. DtCduSt uC
has been unfortunate enough to meet
with an accident forcing him to call
off the Murphy bout for the second
time a number of knockers are filling
their columns with insinuations and
inuendoes concerning his courage.
Why, Richie is entitled to sympathy
instead of knocks any way one looks
at it. In the first place it isn't very
nice to Spring" bum heel. an acct
dent that would put him out of the
game altogether if not properly at
tended to, and in the second PLACE,
$4,000 is not to be picked up every
day-even these times, when the
purses are prodigal. And the Murphy
match looked like easy money for the
champion from any angle one sized
1t up
Truly the path of a champion is not
always strewn with roses.
McGoorty Out of Running.
With Eddie McGoorty out of the
running and an avowed candidate
for the heavyweight title according
to Australian advices). the midlle-
weight championship problem is just
that much closer to a solution Mike
Gibbons proved in the recent bout
with Bob McAllister that he must be
reckoned " IN as worthy candidate
Tor the long NdCdIeu llTOliS. ALO,
by the way, I believe Twas one of the
original Gibbons boosters. The first
time I ever saw Mike in action he
impressed me as the neatest work.
nan of his size ] had glimpsed in
many years. After watching him
polish off several second raters I ad-
vised him to go out after the middle
weight title. and suggested Eddie
McGoorty as the fellow in particular
to shoot at. The result of the Nc
Goorty- Gibbons conflict was disap-
pointment to me. At the weights 1
really thought Gibbons would prove
the winner. Mind you, / have con-
siderable respect for McGoorty's
prowess at all times. but Eddie had
to make 15S ringside for the bout,
several pounds below anything ne
should have attempted, and as big
forfeit was up he overdid the train
ing in his anxiety to reduce. with the
result that he was several pounds
below the mark called for.
Gibbons Was Nervous.
Gibbins also was too light. In
Mikes case, however, 1T appeared to
me more nervousness than anything