The Alaska citizen., 1915-05-03
OF A SPORTING NATURE

| principal battles previous to his vic
 tory over Ryan were all knockouts George Rooke went down in two i Prof John Donaldson in ten. Steve 1 Taylor in two. John Flood in eight, and Jim Dalton in four rounds. These i five knockouts made John Is repu-
 tation and very speedily found back | ing for him to battle Ryan for the ! championship. But there never was
 a title holder who climbed to the
 fistic honors with such rapidity and | with such flashy spectacular fire works.
 | Many old-tme fans in Boston
 pronounced Sullivan the coming ! champion after he boxed couple of fairly clever opponents. so prom
 ising did he appear in fistic action
 from the very start. John never
 was near defeat before he became
 the pugilistic king. nor for about | three years after. until after he be- i gan to hit the White Way trail, and
 then his grand physique began to 1 fade away and lose form. Jim Corbett was another bis chief of Fistiana who never knew what defeat was before he won his | crown from Sullivan in 1892. He | had fought four draw contests. one l with Peter Jackson at 61 rounds,
 which proclaimed him a boxing marvel. Many always considered Corbett'5 battle with Jackson his greatest fight. The big. scientific | negro from Australia at that time was at the height of his fame and glory, while Corbett was almost a novice. It was a great feather in Jims cap to stand the giant master | from the Antipodes off for 6l rounds. He at once loomed up a. contender for the big crown. which he easily won from broken down John L. in 2l rounds.
 7itchie Gets the Coin
 To clean up s150,000 in six years is not so bad for poor boy without capital, profe ssional training or busi- ness experience, but that is the rec ord of a San Francisco youth, Geary A. Steffen.
 For purposes of further identifica tion. it may be added that this Stef- fen person operates under the alias of Willie Ritchie. On his twenty fourth birthday-for he was born in San Francisco, February 13, 1891 young Steffen found himself minus the worlds lightweight title which was his during brief period of glory, but in full possession of comfortable fortune and the Ameri can lightweight crown.
 Just how much of his earnings Willie has saved it is impossible to say, but, as ice cream soda is his principal dissipation, he probably has enough "kale" to enable him to live in a scrumptuously furnished apartment on the street called Easy.
 Willie annexed the lightweight title from Ad. Wolgast, in November 1912 and lost the worlds champion ship to Freddie Welsh in i4Jud last July. During his championship career Ritchie got more than a hundred thousand beans as a re ward for his ring labor
 The fight with Joe Rivers, at San Francisco in July, 1913 added $19,000 to Willie for defeating Ad Nolgast in Milwaukee. San Francis co fight fans contributed s17,50O to the Ritchie treasury when he de feated Tommy Murphy last April
 The fight with Charley White in Milwaukee in which tie Hebrew got the popular decision, boosted Ritchie's income to $10,000, Willie got $25000 for losing the title to Freddie Welsh in London-which was some salve.
 These six bouts brought Ritchie a total of s97500, Minor bouts and theatrical work doubtless will bring Ritchie's total receipts for his six years of ring work well above Sl5' 900. Most of it he has probably salted down in real estate.
 As spender Willie isn't any wild and eXtravagant Sharkey. and he can loosen up a little on occasion out the sporty crowds that follow n the wake of champions have seen mighty little of his coin. The golf links have a greater attraction for Willie than the gay white way, and when he is thirsty he goes right by the swinging doors and patron izes soda fountain.
 Before he became famous as a boxer, Willie developed his intellect uals by attending school and his muscle by handling large chunks of coal in his paternal ancestors coal yard. After graduating from these two institutions he entered an auto mobile repair shop and, after being wised up as to the true inwardness of gasoline buggies, became dem onstrator and a salesman. While thus engaged he took part in pre- Iiminary bouts at the old Dream land in San Francisco, but only for the sport and not with any idea