Free trader-journal. (Ottawa, Ill.) 1916-1920, 1917-07-06

New YORK, July o. liOSlng fanS OF
Philadelphia and other cities within
easy reach of Quakertown are going
to be given the golden opportunity
of their lives to ptay the sucker ON
July %. when Johnny kilbane ard
siNround bout.
The promoters of the Leonard Xii.
bane tango tea have guaranteed the
boxers fiat sum of 5000 for the
terrific eXertions they will be forced
to endure in six rounds of tangoiag.
and naturally enough the gullble
boxing public will be expected to pay
the freight.
With all due respect to the fight
ing ability OF both Kilbane and Leon
ard, the greatest little men of the
present day, it appears that the match
is big sell, considering the fat purse
that is to be paid over for eighteen
minutes of boxing in a state where no
decision can be rendered,
The press agents who will inject
the come on boosts into the public
press will dwell on the wonderful
possibilities of knockout and the
changing hands OF a championship.
But the only thing that will change
hands will be perfectly good currency
bales OF it-and the boxing fans
will hand it over
The articles call for 1873 pounds at
s o'clock on the night of the fight
This means that the only way a cham
pionship can change hands will be
for kilbane to put over a knockout
punch, which would win him the light
weight championship. Should Leon
ard knock kilbane out kilbane would
still be featherweight champion be-
cause of the weights, and If We know
anything about the methods Of pres
ent-day boxers and their managers it
is a foregone conclusion that Leonard
/ isn't worrying over what will happen
to him in six rounds.
Leonard is good ring general, and
clever enough to hold his own with
any boxer OF his weight for six
rounds kilbane, fast and clever az
he is, can never wear a sturdy OPP
ponent like Leonard down in six
rounds and his chances of putting
over Il knockout punch are just about
as brilliant as Nick Romanoff $
chances of recovering his throne
The coming tango party. therefore
will no doubt go down in tistiC annals
with several other grand iiascos. The
boxing fan who shells ont his honest
coin to see it will leavev the ringSide
with the realization that he Is /
sucker, and the conviction that Bar
num- was right There's sucker
born every minute and two to take
him.
Look back at the McFafland-Gib
bons Burlesque at Brighton Beach. n
Y, in 1908, when the boxers pulled
down IA purse of $4,000 for ten unn
teresting rounds in a no-decision bout
Pipe the willard Moran practica
joke in 1916, when Willard go
1880 and Moran S23.750 for imi
tatlng couple of trick elephants il
ten-round no-decision affair Tn,
memory of these two joke bouts Il
3 still fresh in the minds OF the fan
who paid to see them.
It il Il safe bet that no high.prcet
boxing bee, involving champions. vii
be ever anything else but ajoke un
less the referee is empowered to ren
der decision
No one can blame Leonard or XII
bane for jumping at the chance Il
collect $4,000 apiece for n six.roun,
bout They are not to blame for al
imposition on the public, but tn
sooner the boxing fans teach promo
ters that they are not going to b
5, wheedled into paying the fiddler VIII
q doesn't furnish any music the bette
y 1t Will be for boxing in general.