The Bridgeport evening farmer., 1914-12-05

Orleans are not inclined to show fa.- vor1tism towards the native sons, they have found it does not pay, that a lair field and no favor is better for in the southern metropolis on account or attempts to stop outsiders butting 1n- Had the newcomers been per- m1tted to go along everything would nave been lovely but the constant pickering and fighting between the rival associations attracted the atten- uons Of the refOrmers to the fact that gambling was going on, and once that agitation is started it is 8 case of cur ta.ins for the sport
 :. One can hardly blame Tortorich, however. for feeling a trif1e peeved at the ieda. Of McCarey coming into the field at this time-after he has carried the game along. for years in spite of the handicap it was under. Now that there is chance to put New Orleans on the map pugi1istically again Tortor1ch would like to gather all the gravy for himself. However, <McCarey is entitled to all he can get if he decides to open up there. While it is true that he had a monopoly of the game in Los Angeles permitting no outsiders to butt in on him, that is nothing to his discredtt. In fact he is due considerable praise for the masterly manner he handled affairs
 
 frame up thing that there can be no competition.
 Tortorich had the same opportunity in New Orleans, but doubt if he can swing 1t. With New Orleans the only city in the country where champion ship bouts can be held there should be plenty of room for two big clubs: If not, it will be a case of the sur vival of the fittest.
 In view of the fact that Freddie l Welsh has been ducking all offers to box where decisions are allowed, and has engaged in something like seven no-decision affairs in the last four or five weeks, what are we to think of him. It was not so very long ago that Fred and manager Harry Pollok were bounding Ritctie for a match and trying to fasten on the Willie the op- probtus title of tno-decision" Ritchie. They sent out reanS of stuff to sport l ing editors calling attention towards l Wi11fe's penchant for the decisdOnless matches. when as matter of fact Ritchie had only engaged in one af- fair of that kind up to that time. If one win care to investigate the record book he will learn that Ritchie has fought vast majority of his ring en- 1 gagements to decisions.
 1 Furthermore Welsh, or probably it I was his press agent, took particular pains to condemn Packey Mcfarland l because that young man had very un- 1 sportsrnanlike habit of forcing oppon- 1 ents to weigh in at the light weight I limit while he(Pacfney) came in a 1 catch weight. According to Welsh. l then only English champion, that was l a crime which should have been at l tended to by the proper authorities. l But now we have the spectacle of Welsh insisting on weighing whatever he please and compelling dangerous | looking adversaries to make the so- called lightweight limit at ringside. He has tried to get away with this l thing several times, and very likely has been successful, if the truth were | known.
 Ritchie never forced a. challenger to make a weight which would give him undue advantage. Mcfarland l has been accused of it 8 number Of times. But Packey never held title i to a championship, and had every
 right in the world to make matches I at any weight he saw fit. But there l is supposed to be 8 hard and fast rule l covering matches in which a boxing l title is at stake, and for which Welsh appeared to be a great stickler be- l fore he grabbed the honors himself I In matter of strict sportsmanship 1 Welsh falls considerably short of the 1 standard set by Ritchie-who made every concession to secure the match
 with Welsh in order to prove that he was not trying to dodge the British champion, even consenting that the
 bout be held in England where he knew that he would not be shown any favors. Not that Referee Corr
 contemplated any wrong action. but
 Ritchfe well knew that the strict ob-
 servance of the rules and the methods of calculating points were all against his chances In spite of this handi-
 cap he consented to the bout witt
 Welsh.
 ) If Freddy has overlooked the mat : ter we think it abuot time he offered a tardy apology to Ritchie about tha1
 .sno-decision'' tag he tried to pin or . him. ssNo-decision Freddy would icome closer to the truth just now JAS J. CORBETT.