The Richmond Virginian. (Richmond, Va.) 1910-1920, 1918-02-17

4 Knew Him" 1t relates many here
tofore unpublished incidents In the
life of the great warrior. The next
instalment will appear tomorrow
John L Sullivan went to HIS grave
taking with him the only champion
ship he ever held. This statement
may seem strange TO some, but the
fs CT is indisputabie that John l.. never
lest the title he won from Paddy
Ryan in 1882.
Sullivan became the king OF heavy
weights when he whipped Ryan In the
bare-knuckled contest OF thirty-stx
years ago London prize ring rules
governed the battle. From that his
ory-naking day none OF the many
warriors who tried conclusions with
the mighty Bostonian under London
prize ring rules could send him down
TO defeat. Sullivan never was de-
lthroned as London prize ring cham
pion.
John L. met defeat but once In his
wonderful career. That was when
won from him in New Orleans in 1892.
But that battle was conducted under
Marquis of Queenbury rules. 1t was
tho hrst championship fight ever
sta ged under those modern ring reg
hHd WA& ~ 0E%EI nv elAO
London prize ring and Marquis of
iQueensbury championship. but the
Marquis OF Queensbury title alone.
! After Sullivans bare-knuckle fight
with Jake Kiirain IN 1ss9-which John
l.. won--A new era of pugilism began.
All contests after that were conduct
ed under Marquis OF bloomsbury
rules There was no real champion
under those regulations at the time.
John L. laid claim to the title. Peter
jackson disputed it,Sbut Sullivan, hav-
ing drawn the color line. refused to
hight him When I fought John L. in
1882 in the first heavyweight cham
pionship match ever staged under
| Queensbury rules. I won and so I be-
came first real champion under the
the Queensbury laws. But my victory
did not dethrone John L as king
under the London prize ring rules and
/ he remained such until the end OF his
days
/ The old generation of fight fans
Undoubtedly are aware OF the distlnc-
ticn between the two types of fighting.
| But the younger ones, although IA
milfar with the Queensbury regula
tons, know the London prize ring
rules only vaguely. SO for their hene-
| 1T this explanation--vital in any story
OF JOnn careers pSAHE
; The London prize ring rules call
for bare knuckles fighting in a six
,tecn-foot ring: Queensbury demands
glove contests in a twenty-four foot
ring and orders that each round con-
sist OF three minutes of fighting with
one minute of rest between, Under
the London rules every knockdown
WAS a round and no round was over
Euntii one fighter of the other had been
sent to the floor. Oftentimes it hap
lpened that men battied ten and NJ
teer minutes without fighter floor
ing the other.
On the other hand. when a fighter
wss in trouble in those days. he would
walk to the center OF the ring, toe
and scratch" and as soon as his foe
lla.d a hand on him would fall to the
ground. BY his action he ended the
round and was permitted thirty sec
ionds of rest in his corner before the
Inext session OF fighting began. Groggy
but brAfny fighters often repeated the
foI. for ten to twenty rounds Now
ladays when a fighter Is knocked down
he must get to his feet unaided with
in ten seconds. Under London rules
hi. seconds were permitted TO drag
him back to his corner and were al
lowed thirty seconds to revive him.
ring rules permitted the type of COM
ba: termed rough and tumble" these
days. Ring science OF the present was
ar unknown quantity. Brute strength
and knowledge of wrestling tricks were
1.-THE greatest assets fighter could
have. A ringman in those days not
only was permitted TO punch his rival
hut also could wrestle him. trip him or
Use any other methods in an effort to
throw the man to the ground, and
thus score a knockdown.
( The main ambition OF each fighter
wac to hurl his foe to the ground with
so much force as to knock the wind
'out OF him and to render him hors
du combat. Oftentimes bones OF fight
ers were broken by the tremendous
force with which they yere dashed to
earth. Frequently men were knocked
out" without ever having been struck
BY a solid blow from the fist. The OPP
ponent would grab him. lift him high
and send him crashing to the ground.
and then fall on top OF him. knees
Icr ashing into the fallen lighters chest
or head, rendering him unconscious.
John l. became the champion in
that era: a period when great strength
and wrestling tricks were the chief
needs of fighter. Punching wasn't
Ia trick that had been developed to any
degree. But the Boston Highland
Strong Boy" disliking the wrestling
tactics set about developing the
\ punching end of the game. And it
fwas John L. who really perfected the
knockout wallop and made it world
famous.
From obscurity as n Boston iahorer
to fame such as few men ever have
known: from poverty to riches
which enabled him t. become 'the
best spender in America; for nearly
forty years the most spectacular figure
In the life of sport loving America;
the most idolized man that pugilism
lever produced. That is Sullivan's
life story.
The mighty warrior has passed in
to the great beyond. But he will
live ever In memory. The tales OF
his triumphs through the years he
reigned supreme. taking on one ar
tier another of the mighttest battlers
that decade could produce. They'v We
I called John L. the Champion of
Champions" And SO he was
Il The browning achievement in the
career of John l. was his brilliant.
wonderful victory over the drink evil.
l -