The Bridgeport evening farmer., 1915-11-24
Great Britain's Best Heavyweights Have All
 Been Midd dleweights

I It is strange but it is true that the
 best heavyVV eights that Great Britain
 has turned out in the last half cen- tdry havesa11, been small men, weigh ing Httlea if over theI midd1eweight
 limit England hasn't had really good big man since the days of Bill Perry, the Tpton S1asher, away back in the '50,s and he wasn't any wonder. When it comes to the pocket edition heayyWeights, however, John Bull has fellows of America have time and again fallen before the smaller men of the tight little is1and.'' .-~
 One of the best of these giant~ kill CTS was Charley Mitchell. who was born in Birmin gham, England, fifty fours.years ago today, Nov. 24,71861. Mitchell was only five feet nine and weighed in his fight clothes from 155 to 165 pounds, yet he tackled all comers,s regardless of size. When he
 was in his prime he fought John L.. Sullivan thirty~ni1ae rounds to a draw at Chantilly, France and, in the opinion of many spectators, he had the best of the argument with the Boston gladiator. Some years later. Mitchell was easily whipped by Jim Corbett at Jacksonville, but that was after the Brum man, had lost most of his for meE vigors and cleyerness through dis ssipation.
 Mitchell is only one among men
 men who have maintained the, ancient glory of British pugiisnl, although nearly always fighting at a. great dis advantage ia the matter of weight, Yankee Sullivan, a native of London, came over the pond in the '4Os and, although a Iliddleweight, beat Amer icass best with the exception of Tom flyer.
 ; Tom Sayer another English middle weight, standing five feet eight and 14e. ,5, fought his way to the top of the hea:Vy.weight ladder and engaged in a. memorable drawn battle with the giant John C. sHeenan,1 the big Aneri- can champion
 sJem Mace was the next EngIshman to conquer the biggest and brawniest Of American scrappers. lem who was part gypsy, whipped big Tom Hurst, the Staleybridge Infant and other hig men of sshis own country, and then came to America and clener up Tom Allen and Joe Coburn-
 Charley Mitchell was next in line, and, although never a champion, he was far and way a better man than Jem Smith, his contemporary and the last heavyweight champion of Eng land under London prize ring rules.
 But in due regard to Mitchell, Say CTS and Mace, the star of them all was Robert Fitzsimmons- Although fight fans are accustomed to regard Fitz as an Australian, he was born in Eng land and comes from Cornish stock. Ruby Rob had the length and the shoulder and sarmS development of fuIl-fledged heavyweight, but. owing to the slenderness of the lower part of his body, he was always able to make the rniddleweight limit. He gave away a big poundage in every one of his i'm portant battles. When he knock ed out Corbett at Carson City, and be- anne the heavyweight champion of the world, the freckled fellow was a legitimate mid ddleweight.
 The big men of old England seem to have deterforated, and, pugfIisticaI- ly speaking, they are but jokes Brit ain in late years never had a Sulli- van or Corbett. a Johnson nor Jess EViIlar1 but with her Mitchell, Mace, and Fftzsi f1irn ons sheS still has grounds for boasting of her fighting stock.