New-York tribune., 1919-03-14

he laid down to Willard, but he adds
the insult that the present champion"
was so bad that he dare not quit in the
tenth round as he had previously
agreed. He waited until the twenty
sixth, when he had received a prear-
ranged signal from his wife, who was
in the crowd, that the cash sum agreed
upon had been paid over. Then he
pretended to be mortally stricken and
dropped to the canvas.
Said to Feel Bitter
1t is stated that Johnson's confession
is inspired partly by bitterness over
the fact that the promoters were un-
able to make good on the promise to
get him back to the United States and
partly by the naive belief that he can
return to the ring. Supplementing the
confession is a challenge to Jess Will
lard for a return match, with the
threat that if he does not comply, he
(Johnson) will claim the championship
The statement given to The Associ-
ated Press by Johnson in part follows:
Jack Curiey came to London from
New York to arrange the fight. He
asked if I would be willing to fight
Willard end said would if he gave
me my price. | thought I could
beat his man for him. Curley said
that he didn't want that. / told
Curley that I would make the match.
when ready to leave London I
wired Curley for a certain sum of
money which he readily sent. Well,
it went on and on and began to
bother me and l spoke to my wife,
who advised me not to do it, but I
told her that if I were going to lose
"a send her word to get out in time.
The reason | said this was because
there was more money coming to me
and | did not want to lose until I
found out whether they would pay
me the sum l asked for and guar
anteed that they would get me out
of trouble in America, the most i'm
portant thing for me.
linen we figured on the best round
to lose in and agreed upon the tenth
They were to give the word in the
first three of four rounds if Willard
could make good showing.
"At the end of the tenth round
Wizards showing had been so poor
1T was necessary to continue the fight
further. The signal agreed upon was
given IN the twentieth round, but I
considered Wizards showing so poor
| was forced to wait until the TWEEN
ty-sixth round before carrying out
the agreement.
81 was to have all the moving pict-
ure rights in Europe and 33 1-3 per
cent of those in America and in
Canada. When I finally received the
moving picture film it was a black
one. | took it to the best film experts
In Europe and it was found to be
worthless.
Everybody knows how anxious I
was to straighten out the little Chi
cago difference. l would have done
almostanything to be able to visit
my mother, who was old and feeble.
Unless Willard agrees to fight with
in a reasonable time, which he should
do to prove if he can that he beat me
fairly, | shall claim the worlds
title..'
Rise and Fall of Negro
The rise and fall of Jack Johnson
is an example of the worst that the
prize ring can develop. That he was
the most consummately clever ring
man of all the heavyweights will not
be denied by any competent and fair
minded judge of ring matters. He was
suddenly lifted from the docks of
Galveston into the limelight and his
childish, primitive African brain was
turned by the silly adulation of white
duulItlS, MATT ana lSHldit
1t was the fact that his brain was
so primitive that made him such a
dangerous opponent in the ring. He
had skull as thick as gorillas, the
reach and strength of gorilla in his
arms, and he possessed sixth sense
that was emphatically animal. He
could Sense" a punch before it was
started. AT his best--and he was far
from being at his worst when he
fought Willard-there was no normal
human being who was match for
him.
Some of the aftermath of the fight
Is held up to corroborate the confes-
sion. Willard came to the United
States without cent after the fight
but ready to realize on his newly ac-
quired title. Johnson carried all OF
the gate receipts away with him. There