The St. Mary banner. (Franklin, Parish of St. Mary, La.) 1889-1931, 1919-07-12
DEMPSEY HANDS
SLEEPING DOPE
TO WILLARD
1t Took But Three Rounds for
Challenger to Best
Champion.

the speediest and most oneslded bat
ties which ever decided a big fistic
event, Jack Dempsey Friday became
the worlds champion heavyweight
boxer
To all intents and purposes he whip
ped the huge Jess Willard in one
round. Dempsey thought the referee
had announced him winner and &C
tually left the ring. But he was called
back and the battle continued for two
rounds more, when Jess, sitting in his
corner with a bewildered look on his
swollen countenance, failed to respond
to the gong for the fourth round.
1T was no use to continue" said
the ex-champion, my strength went
from me in the first round"
First round: Willard loomed up like
Goliath against his five-inch shorter
David. and opened the engagement by
punching his long left twice into
Dempsey's face with force enough to
make the latter blink. The challenger
missed a swing, and, slipping into a
clinch, landed three body blows with
his free left hand, carrying but little
force. Willard held him easily in a
clinch and partly turning him around,
used his rapier-like left again, twice
to the head and once to the head after
the break
| Then Dempsey, as if he had got the
range, opened his heavy artillery and
swung his Earring left to the jaw, fol
lowed by right and left to the body.
| The almost superhuman power of the
| punches was Immediately apparent. A
| partly silly, partly stupid expression
Overspread the champions fGce, and
as he rocked on his heels his whole
body Quivered. He pulled himself to-
gether, and Dempsey crowded in
| again, shot left to the mouth end re-
even cause his youthful Nemesis to
hesitate, and lodging past the out
stretched left as it snapped for the
third time, he whipped over a right
and left almost simultaneously, the
blows landing flush on Wizards jaw,
and for the first time in his champion
ship career Willard was dropped to
the floor. He was up again at the
count of six, only to be sent to the
canvas with another right as he rose
slowly to his feet. The blood began
to pour from his mouth.
He turned away from his opponent,
who struck again twice with his right,
Willard falling on his hands and
knees. When he arose Dempsey
crowded him into a corner and with
a right and left to the face sent him
to the floor again. AS he arose a
fusillade of body blows dropped him
in a corner, where he sat when the
bell terminated the round and led
Dempsey to believe that Willard had
been counted out.
Second Round.
Dempsey started where he left off
and Willard, with big circle under
his eye, appeared to be in bad way. |
He managed to snap a left to Demp |
sey's face and puny right uppercut |
to the chin. Dempsey replied with |
several body blows and Willard fell |
partly through the ropes. When he |
regained his feet he stumbled into a
clinch, but Dempsey easily tore loose |
and proceeded to batter him almost at |
will, the champion retaliating with but |
three feeble stabs to the face during |
the melee. When Willard went to his
ho fn1 Ui1v IN n ahoir
and it was seen that his right eye
was completely closed and that the
side of his face was swollen entirely
out OF shape, while Dempsey was un-
marked
Third Round.
The final session was simply a SER
les of rapid-fire swings which fell on
Wizards face and body with pile-driv-
ing power, which left Willard Com
pletely helpless as he staggered about
the ring and wobbled along the ropes
utterly unable to defend himself
Just as the bell rang and Willard
collapsed in his chair he spat out a
tooth and it was seen that he was in
a bad condition. AS he sat lolling
from side to side, his chief second,
Walter Monahan, talked earnestly to
him, and when Willard nodded his
head Monahan walked over and spoke
to Pecord. The referee threw I'D his
hands and hurried to Dempseys cor
ner He gesticulated in the uproar
and finally pulled Dempsey toward
the center of the ring before the new
champion realized that Wizards Sec
onds had thrown up the sponge. As
soon as he grasped the situation he