El Paso herald. (El Paso, Tex.) 1901-1931, 1914-12-12
Champion Boxers Are Prone To Injury
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Ritchie Has Disappeared From Limelight
BY T. 5.

by L =
AKDWAUKEE. Wis, Dec. ~
MI Champion boxers need as much
- care these days as a high class
race horse. The champions, especially,
have been accustomed of late years to
drawing down small fortunes nearly
every time they start and when any
thing goes wrong with their fists there
is woe in the camp Immediately Dur
ing the Dast few months three cham
mons have suffered set backs-Ereddy
Welsh. Jimmy Ciabby n Johnny Kill
bane. Welsh hurt his hand in his bout
with Fred Yelle at Boston some Few
weeks ago, although it did not pre-
vent him from going on with Young
Shugrue at Madison Square Garden,
New York, last week. However, it
might have cost him dearly, Tor mad
Shugrue gone in and taken more
chances he might have made it very
bad for the champion. A knockout
would have put Freddy to the bad and
no one would listen to any story about
his right hand being out Of commits
sion. There is little doubt that Welsh
hurt his hand and was obliged to
it all through the fight with Shugrue,
for the press reports stated that the
champion did not use his right hand
but Onee or twice during the entire
contest, except as a shield However,
Freddy made a record Of earning $5O,-
900 in a few weeks with short DouIss
and that helps a lot.
Jimmy Clabby injured his shoulder
again in his championship battle with
George Chip at San Francisco n VIII
be unable to fight again for a lew
weeks; in fact, it is keeping Jimmy
out of the ring for at least two months.
He injured the same shoulder in his.
bout with Jimmy Gardner Over four
years ago and again in Australia he
sprained it while playing baseball.
Johnny Kilbane hurt his thumb several
weeks ago and was obliged to lay OH
for two months. Johnny figured that
il cost him about $4,000. Boxers can
not be too careful of their hands. It
might be added that Ad WOlgast claims
he was about $4,000 out during the
time he was ~incapacitated by a broken
arm and again by an operation when
he was champion.
Ritehie Has Disappeared.
What has become of Willie Richie,
the former Champion For a time
Willie was very much in the public
eye, but during the past few months
he seems to nave disappeared from off
the earth. Since he was beaten by
Freddy Welsh for the worlds cham
piOnship in the lightweight class Willie
has not lived up to his reputation as a
hustler.
He was supposed to be matched with
two or three BOYS on the Pacific coast,
D4L E4AA AAAGAE NAAlN NAAA S45AA eAA& ~
date Ritchie has not engaged in a real
contest. Unless Willie gets busy n
fights as a lightweight he will lose
all title to the American championship
for there are other boys, especially
Charles White, anxious to annex the
title and defend it. Reports from the
coast are to the effect that Richie has
gained in weight and annOt make the
limit of 133 pounds any more, which,
if true, will throw him into the class
ahead and give Charlie White a chance
to claim the American title Of cham
piOn lightweight. The boxing season
has been in full bloom for the past two
and a half months, but Ritchie has re-
manned idle. To make matters worse
for the California boy the game on the
coast has been killed, at least for the
present, and he will have to drift east
if he intends to get into the Hmelight
before the 1914-15 season ends. Richie
is a most pleasing fighter and it is to
be regretted that he has not hustled
along a bit faster since the London
affair with Welsh.
War Brings Old Timers Together.
TIT European war was the means Of
bringing two old time featherweights
together-Pedlar Palmer and Digger
Stanley-after a lsSse of Il years. In