Evening public ledger. [volume] (Philadelphia [Pa.]) 1914-1942, 1916-03-27


a no.decision bout in the history Of the
prize ring. They numbered through 10
cumbersome sessions, and at the end their
efforts were appreciated. Both boxers
received their share of applause. and
the S151.254 audience sought the open
air with only feelings of gratitude surg
ing on their breasts. They saw n boxing
contest--many called 1t n prize fight-no
one was killed and they were happy
They could pull out their seat stubs-re.
ceipts ranging from SO to S25-smile hap.
PLY and admit that a pleasant time was
had by all.
Boxers Tried Hard
But the opinion of the usher cannot be
held against Frank and Jess. They tried
hard from start to finish, put forth their
best efforts but their boxing styles did
not produce any undue excitement Only
once and that was in the seventh round.
was the crowd aroused, but it lasted only
q few seconds Then the contributors
settled back in their seats and became
Interested spectators again. They re-
mained passive until the end.
The usher admitted he was wise
guy" He knew the boxing game. and
nothing short of murder would have sat
isfed him. The spectators-well, they
were just spectators who paid high prices
to see something out of the ordinary They
EaW IL. lHey ulull I hllpW lIt ullltltuCt
between boxing and fighting, and didn't
care. They wished to be present when
this notable event was staged, and they
got their wish
1t was the kind of an audience gener-
ally found at worlds series baseball
games or the Army and Navy football
battle While the majority of spectators
know little or nothing of what is going
on, they are Interested because they are
comprised the larger part Of the audience
Saturday night
Big Battle Is Slow
As was predicted the big battle failed
to satisfy the rabid fight fan. Had two
unknowns been in the ring, they would
have been arrested. But it was Willard
and Moran, and that was enough. No
wonder the usher was indignant
Willard and Moran are boxers of the
waiting" class. That Is, they stand
back, wait until the opponent rushes in,
and then counter heavily with a right
or left hook. Many times during the bat
tie each waited for the other to lead.
and the result was n sho.t period of
inaction. Whenever this occurred, it was
Moran who resumed hostilties.
Moving pictures were taken of the bout,
but the operators had little work to do.
An artist easily could have kept up with
the fighters, and a common, ordinary pho
tographer could have caught every move
with a series of snap shots.
Notwithstanding the slowness. how
ever, there was some interest in the bout.
It was known that both men possessed a
knockout punch, and they were con-
stantly looking for an opportunity to
slip it across. 1t was this feature that
held the attention of the fight fan. The
spectacle was enough for the others.
Moran Bleeds; Crowd Cheers
Every one said the first four rounds
were very slow, but after that the men
boxed better. This sudden change was
due to the fact that Moran was cut over
the eye, blood was streaming down his
face, and he looked ready to be battered
into Inconsistencies. The eager crowd
was expecting a knockout They shouted
and shrfehed to Jess to put him away"
They did nat know that Frank was as
strong as ever,
But 1t was an uneven battle. After the
first minute of the first round. every one
In the Garden realized that Moran could
win only by a miracle. Willard lowered
above him like a parent over his small son
and looked twice as big. Jess outweighed
his rival 5S pounds, was six inches taller
and had the longer reach. 1t was like
tugboat fighting a battleship or light
weight trying to whip heavyweight.
Moran fought a game, hard battle. So
did Jess. II wasn't their fault that the
spectators did not yell themselves hoarse
They did their best and earned their
money 1t is true that a longer battle
would have been more satisfactory, but
there could have been but one outcome
Willard would have won in the end.
Frank Makes One Rally
Moran had the better of the first round
but that was all. Up to the seventh, he
found Wizards left fist sticking him In
the face every time he rushed and was
forced TO take several blows to land one.
In the seventh, however, Frank broke viii
!ard's guard, backed the champion against
the ropes and landed three right swings
on Jess's jaw They landed flush but
DRTEY Tho Nan