Honolulu star-bulletin. [volume] (Honolulu [Oahu, Hawaii]) 1912-2010, 1915-06-09
IBy Latest NALL

NEW YORK, n. Yin the summer
of 1911. or nearly four years ago. to
be exact, James Joseph Coffey, . 20
year-old son Of Castlerea, County Ros.
common, standing on the front end ol
= 'trollsy car, was riding ''on the loop
up and down Third avenue In New
!. York. With a biz of overtime here
and there he was pulling down some.
thing like SIS week He thought
he was well paid and was grateful.
All he had to do was to stop the
car every once in a while and let peo-
pie get on and off.
Today James Joseph Coffey is one
of the popular idols OF the fistic world,
with $4,000 in cold cash soaked away
in the bank, not to mention the so.
acre farm that he has bought for the
ould folks at home. With an admir-.
able physique and knowledge of ring
tactics, he is now on the trail OF Jess
Willard and the worlds championship.
And, listen, James also is the proud
owner OF stocks and bonds OF the
Third Avenue Street Railway line, the
first place he ever worked in the great
city Of New York.
Jim arrived i'm this country IN 1910,
his landing place being Boston. There
wasn't much doing In Boston at the
time, so James Joseph lit out for Prov.
idence. There were things to do In
Rhode Islands capital. and soon
James, for a spell, found himself hold
ing the reins over q team OF horses.
Events subsequently 50 shaped them.
selves that James quit his Transfers
duies for New York and his motor
mans job.
Never Had an inclination.
-Four years ago Jim Coffey hadn't
the slightest inclination toward ring
career. He didn't know what a
straight left was, right cross was
Greek to him, and left hook might
have been an animal he had never
heard of.
Coffey's job as motorman brought
him past upper Amsterdam avenue in
those days, and it wasn't long before
all the traffic cops along his line got
to know the big. good-looking son OF
the ould sod. They saluted him as he
passed and he waved reply.
One cold winters night, miserable
and wet, three-alarm fire tied up the
traffic Coffey's car was stalled and
Tom Shaw, the stationary post man,
hoped aboard for a BIT Of warmth.
Loaded down with winter clothes.
boots and heavy rubber coat. still
he was nipped by the cold. Inside
Coffey;s car be started to hop around,
at, ..,,k h., rrrffh HE
left and then bis right He was
shadow boxing to get warm. Shadow
boxing then seemed like the actions
of lunatfc to Coffey. The mans
crazy" he thought. Finally shaw
asked Coffey to hop off his car and
wrestle round bit TO get the blood
in circulation. Coffey did, and In q
jiffy had the copper on the ground.
In explaining this Coffey modestly re-
marked that his policeman friend was
bothered by his heavy clothing and
was so slow getting to his feet that
he had got the bell from the conductor.
and with a laugh at Shaw's disconl-
future was on his way. Shaw's COM
rades heard about 1t and the cop had
to stand for lot Of joshing and kid
ding at being put on his back by an
Irish greenhorn.
Shaw, evidently made OF the right
stuff, took it all goOd-naturedly. He
had been a boxer and wrestler, and
in fact now is the departments In
structor at police headquarters.
He wanted to see more of Coffey.
At their next meeting he asked James
Joseph IL he ever boxed or wrestled
at home. Sure Coffey never did.
well, then" said Shaw, "a man Of
your size and strength ought to make
a great fighter. Meet me Tuesday
afternoon and well go down to the
policemen's gym at One Hundred and
Thirteenth street and the river and
I'll try you out with the gloves"
coffey Put the Gloves on.
Coffey went. As he tells it himself,
they found lot of chairs all over the
floor. They gathered them together
and piled them in heap in corner.
Then they put on the gloves. Shaw
spent lot of time trying to tell James
how to land straight left. After
Coffey had absorbed the idea, Shaw in
vited him to fight in his own way and
bit as hard as he liked.
well, sir" said Coffey today, Tom
hit me Inany a punch; principally IN