The Bridgeport times and evening farmer., 1919-04-28
JOE LEONARD'S
 CAREER MOST
 METEORIC ONE
Clever New York Boy Has Fought Way to Topnotch- CTS Under Guidance of Silvey Burns.

RT EVER has a boxer Ieaped to the | " IimeIight as rapidly as Joe Leon ard, the sensational Brooklyn feather weight who bids fair to suppaant Champion Johnny Kilbane as the king of that division. Starting from a
 novice Leonard has punched his way through q score Of aspirants until he
 Is now looked upon as the logical contender for the featherWeight crown now clutched tightly by the Cleveland boy.
 Credit for Leonard's rapid rise is due to SiIvey Burns. the youthful manager. Silvey has made Leonard the great fighter that he is today and to SiIvey credit must be given. He picked Joe out of the preliminary
 ranks and from a two dollar fighter he has slowly but surely sent Leonard
 along in rapid stride until the latter has worked so fast that he is now likely to obtain a match with Kil- bane which will bring him plenty of , American dollars and possibly 1 worlds championship.
 It was while Silvey was doing the l matchmaking at the CIermont Rink | in Brooklyn during the F'raWley days ! that he first ran across Leonard. The | IdLLSE was q A1O ana GAIlbIl4OLi5 LO DS
 a fighter and what a taIkative chap he was Silvey says that in those days Leonard could reel off 2,O00 words in a minute. Leonard was l boxing pre1ims and was knocking his l opponents out two a week.
 1 One night Silvey had Joe Lynch carded to box Mickey Dunn at the | CIermont Club and at the eleventh
 hour Dunn phoned in to the club that he was unable to appear and l SiIvey was in mysteries, having no | substitute around to tackle Lynch. In | a sudden a thought flashed through
 Silveys mind. The only bantam l around was Joe Leonard, the prelim
 kid, and here was a chance for SiIvey
 to get rid of the taIkative one by put
 ting him on with the great Lynch.
 Joe was asked by Silvey if he would go on with Lynch and to Buns sur
 prise Leonard accepted.
 Silvey sure got one fine surprise
 that evening. Instead, of being bat
 tered around by Lynch, Leonard sur prised everybody in the spacious
 arena by tearing after Lynch and giv- ing him a, stiff fight. He never stopped fighting and he had Lynch surprised
 by the continuous rushing and fight ! ing tactics. After the bout Lynch himself said that it was the hardest encounter he had ever been in that he would rather fight a niddelweight
 than tackle Leonard again.
 . Immediately after this fight Silvey took Joe in tow and after nursing along for a few months, he sent him after some of the topnotchers and in the space of 8 years time the New Yorker has held his own with such
 men as Joe Lynch, Frankie Burns. Al Shubert, Jack Sharkey, Eddie 3 Morgan, Abe Friedman and many 7 others
 Leonard has a style like the late !. ' Stanley Ketcheu and like the former = middleweight king. he never stop: fighting. Joe punches ike @ welter : weight and he has a sting to hi. t punches that has sent many an anbi- : tious rival to sleep. It is with hi . terrific punch that Silvey Burns 7 hopes to see Leonard gain the feather f title.
 A little loyal patriot = that's jus ' what Leonard is Night after nigh @ Joe goes to the different hospitals ol . camps sheltering wounded soldier t and boxes for them, sometimes thre
 to four opponents a night. Leonard is sure a big hit with the wounde, = doughboys and he can rest assured n that if he meets Klbane there vii
 be many a doughboy dollar waged ol
 his chances.
 = Joe is only a little fellow; he cal = scale the bantam limit if Decesseary e but was forced to enter the feathe v ranks for lack of opponents in th' r. bantam division None of the smal a fellows wanted any of Joe's game
 amonh them be1nE bantam cham]