Honolulu star-bulletin. [volume] (Honolulu [Oahu, Hawaii]) 1912-2010, 1914-01-02
CLAIM GUNBOAI
Smith BETTER
Than JEFFRIES

The San Francisco Bulletin of re.
cent date carries the following story
by Marion T. Salazar, member Of
its sporting staff. ~. ;
Gunboat Smith q better fighter than
James j. Jeffies! Now don't laugh
Give fellow a chance to explain
The Gunboat is alleged by no less an
authority than Promoter James W.
Coffroth to have a better ring record
now than Jeffries had up to the time
he won the worlds championship
from Robert Fitzsimmons. g.
And when you come to look into the
records of both men it must be aek.
nowledged that Ceffroth is pretty
near correct in his deduction. The
record of Jeffries prior to his win
ming of the championship was by nc
means a formidable one. Ten fights
Jeff had engaged in within period
extending over two years. And in
only six of those fights did he score
knockouts 49, /
Gunboat Smith, on the other hand
has engaged in about thirty fights in
two years and has scored twenty five
knockouts
Now the question arises as to the
class OF men the pair met We're the
victims OF the Gunboat's fists easier
to whip than were those of Jeffries
The first ring man to. face Jeffries
in the ring was Dan Long. We all
remember Dan. We're he in the
fighting business today he might be a
main eventer among the four round
ers. He lasted two rounds with JEFF
fries.
Then came Theodore Van Buskirk.
Theo' was the champion of Marys-
vile and was just about as formidable
as Long. Jeff put him out in cou-
pie of rounds and followed up by
knocking out Henry Baker, another
cheese, In nine rounds.
After that came the NOR pretentious
Gus Rubin. Gus was, just coming to
the front then and on his record fig
ured to win over Jeffries But the
latter managed to make draw OF it.
and, as result Of his showing, got a
match with Joe Choynski. Joe,
though on the down grade, gave jeff
a ton Of weight and fought him to a
standstill The best the big fellow
could get with choysski was a draw.
Jeff's next opponent was the old
war-horse Joe Goddard. Joe had
long since seen his best days and
was beaten in four rounds
On the strength Of his win over
Goddard the Los Angeles boilermaker
got the fight that brought him nation
al prominence that with Peter
Jackson Peter had but recently re-
turned from England, and in the esti-
nation of the general public was still
rated among the best of the heavy
weights, I'll
But in truth the once great black
was a mere shell of his former self.
High living had robbed him Of his
health and started him on his way to
the grave. Poor old Peter proved an
easy victim for the swings Of his
young and thoroughly healthy oppo-
Inent ,r>t IL
At the conclusion OF the bout jim
Jeffries stood forth as the man whe.
had whipped Peter jackson. -
Jeff's next opponent was that Mexi-
can ''tamale," Pete Everett ALI that
Pete knew about fighting you could
pass through the eye of needle. He
lasted less than three rounds-twice
as long as he should have lasted.
"A 20-round go in which Jeffries
was unable to stop the smaller Tom
Sharkey, and bout with Bob Arm
strong in New York, in which the Los
Angeleno displayed sucha Rpor form
that he came home in Aisgust and
threatened to quit the gfsye+ game,
wound up Jeffs ring career prior to
the time that Billy Delaney managed
to convince the. promoters that his
man ought to have fight with Bob
Fitzsimmons., 41.4sss&.e7.~
That is the record that CUffrLth
takes lin making lis chit risen be-
tween JeffIieS and GIHIaEt' Smith
The Gunboat's victims, as a whole,
are, of course, very ordinary lot;
h: they arc the bcs. that lusl!ism
now has, and who can say that such
men as Bombardier Wells, Boer Roe.
del and Jim Flynn, all of whom the
Gunboat knocked out, were not as
capable fighters as were the Longs,
the Van Buskirks, and the Henry
Bakers. who, helped to swell Jeffries'
record before he won the champion,
ship?
The one good man Jeffries whipped
when he was climbing toward the top
was Tom Sharkey. But even then
he received only decision on points
To offset this victory is the one Of
Gunboat Smith over Sam Langford
Sam may not be tie fighter he once
was. Yet. fat as he is today, Lang
ford would undoubtedly have proven
a mouthful for the novice that Shar-
key was when he met Jeffries the
first time
Then consider along with all this
that Gunboat Smith is q smaller man
by some 40 pounds than Jeffries WaS
and you must acknowledge that he
ex-tar is some fighter
'Eut," YOU may say, If the Gun
boat had not met and knocked uut So
many unknows his record would be-
hNNE h,k @c Lee