The Birmingham age-herald. [volume] (Birmingham, Ala.) 1902-1950, 1918-03-14
Chatter Among the Bugs Ouer the Circuit
TohnIl.ssZnepHu
%JanlcS J.CnrbeH

(Note: This is the twenty-fifth of
series of articles which Mr.. Corbett is
writing on John l.. as I Knew Him. I
incidents in the life of the great warrior
The next installment will appear tomor-
row).
My fight with Peter jackson was the
make or break battle Of my career.
Triumph over the skiIlful negro would
rank me next to John l.. Sullivan among
the heavyweight warriors of that era;
a defeat would undo all that had
gained through my victories over Joe
Choynski, Dave Campbell. Jake Kilrain
and Dominick McCaffrey.
I was getting along fine in my train
ing until about three weeks before the
battle was to be staged. Then I suffered
from a bad case OF malaria, which first
attacked me in New Orleans, and my
physician issued orders against my going
into that fight. But with my whole fu-
ture depending upon that contest, I ig-
, nored his advice. My heart was set
upon fightng-and whipping-the negro.
| II seem to some that I way trying to
run out" of the match. So stubborn
| ly refused to heed the physician and
although about 10 pounds under normal
weight, and considerably weakened by ILL
ness / answered the gong on May 21,
1891, that sent me into the longest bat
tie of my entire career
My friends. who felt that / was due
1 fnr 10 ri lack
son, much heavier than /, couldn't put
me out. l gave as much as l had to
| take through more than four solid hours
| of battling. Many of the spectators
claim that I was justly entitled to the
verdict. But the referee, at the behest
OF a gambling clique, stopped the fight
| In the sixty-first round and called 1t
mo contest" which automatically nulled
all bets. That saved the thousands. of
dollars which the Jackson supporters had
wagered that / wouldn't last a certain
number of rounds. Had the referee called
1T draw, those bets would have been
payable. But when he termed it mo
| contest"-an outrageous decision-he
saved the Jackson followers their bank
rolls.
The stories circulated before the fight
| that Peter Jackson had a bad ankle
ment which was back of jackson. The
negro was a 8 to 1 shot to win. None
of my friends figured / had chance
| os whipping the negro If he was In
| condition. So the gamblers pictured
Jackson as semi-crippled, hoping to lure
my friends into betting on me to win
Right up to the time the first bel
changed, the bad ankle story was re-
lpeated But the moment Jackson jumped
| 1t evident that he
was operating on two very solid legs
and ankles.
jackson was in perfect condition wher
he went into that contest. The best
proof of that is his own statement just
before the battle began
II never was in better condition In
lrny life I have trained with the closest
care and left nothing undone. ! VIII win
lif it is in me to win. If | don't win
and decisively--it is because Corbett is
the better man."
| After the fight, Major Mclaughlin,
| then one of the leading sportsmen on the
| Pacific coast, summed up the situation
in the following words:
Jim Corbett proved in his fight with
jackson that he belongs in the front
| row of present-day heavyweights. AL
though the referee called the bout mo
contest" the battle really was vic
tory for Corbett and a sad defeat for
Jackson.
"Jackson's name is Dennis today. With
his superior weight he ought to have
4 forced the fighting all the way. Instead,
| he showed that he was barely able to
keep off Corbett. The work of the Cal
ifornian proved beyond shadow OF
doubt that he is a real fighter
! "Corbett was much quicker than jack
son and much faster and showed more
skill. II Corbett carried the same weight
into the ring as did Jackson the Cali
firnian would have knocked out Jackson
| as clean as a whistle. 1t was only the
lack of weight that kept Corbett from
winning by a knockout.
| 'Jackson's hopes of championship
died with that fight, last night, He no