The sun. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1916-1920, 1919-02-09
DEMPSEY CONTRACT
IN N. Y. WORTHLESS
Fight Agreements Here Illegal
- and Are Not Worth Paper
.-a
Written On.
CANNOT HOLD KEARNS
Jack Able to Raise Ante on
Richard If He ChoOses-May
-
Sign in New Jersey.
by GEORGE n. UNDERWOOD.

by GEORGE II. UNDERWOOD.
| If, as both Tex Richard and Jack
kearns say, Jack Dempsey will come on
here from Excelsior Springs. Mo, to-
morrow or Tuesday and sign n contract
with Richard TO meet Jess Willard on
July 4. the contrac. will not be binding
and Dempsey will be under no legal
obligations to fulfil the agreement. Incl
dentaly the verbal agreement kearnS
made with Richard here last week.
despite the fact nine witnesses can attest
! II. will not hold water, and Kearns,
| should he SO choose can raise the ante
and hold RCkard UP for moro none.
When the F'rawley law was repealed
pugilistic affairs I'm this state again came
within the full Jurisdiction OF Sections
! 1910 to 1916 of Article 1874 OF the Penal
Code--the same laws which prohibited
Jeffries and johnson from signing the
fight agreement here in 1910 and forced
the principals and promoters to cross
over to New Jersey.
| Section 1910 OF the Penal Code states
In part;
| "A person who. within this State. en-
cages in, instigates aids. encourages or
does any act to further a contention. OF
/ fight, without weapons. between two or
more persons or a fight commonly called
a ring or prizefght, EITHER WITHIN
OR WITHOUT THE STATE. is guilty
of a misdemeanor''
Police Can't Interfere.
Though the suggested signing up OF
Dempsey at the Claridge here is illegal
there is little doubt but there will be no
police interference. No one cares a ran
whether Dempsey signs here or not The
Art horiti"e m"Y not ~o0cern themselves
with so trivial a violation OF the law.
But as the act IL an illegal one and con-
trary to the laws of this State the cou-
tract legally would not be worth the
paper it Is written on. kearns's verbal
agreement with Richard last week Is not
binding and Richard can in no way hold
Kearns or Dempsey to It.
The contract will not be binding on
Richard, Dempsey, kearns. Willard o.
any OF the parties involved 1t will leave
an opening for Dempsey to break away
from Kearns and GO under the manage
ment Of Jack Curley or any other man.
0rer who may hold Richard up for .
greater sum than the $4,000 Kearna han
iagreed Dempsey Is to sign for. II Will
| nullfy the forfeits as we'll
\ contract with Dempsey signed here
will vice versa. leave Richard the privi-
lege of not fulfilling the called for obi
cations and will relieve the promoter of
tie necessity of paying the forteits
called for in event of his failure TO stage
the match. In short any fight contract
signed In this State is Illegal and there
fore worthless.
Apparently there IS nothing left for
Richard to do but the same thing he did
in 1910, when after the preliminary dis
oGssion at the Hotel Albany he. with JET
fries. Johnson and other parties In.
VOWED. crossed over 20 New Jersey 10
was drawn up by New York lawyer.
but on Jersey soil. For publicity pur-
poses the contract may be signed here
and later legally signed and witnessed
in some other State.
Richard yesterday declared he had re-
ceived telegram from Dempsey in
which Jack said he would arrive not
later than tomorrow In New York.
Eckard said the agreement Will be
signed at the Hotel Claridge tomorrow
OF Tuesday. Though there are those who
still insist that Dempsey is being tam
pered with by Curley, who is said 10 BE-
III the West. and that Jack will break
away from kearrs and go under Cur,
iey's management. Kearns scouts tho
idea.
kcarus saws he las been IN tslegraphjS
Communication with Dempsey daily. and
on Friday talked with him over tho
!, long distance telephone at Excelsior
Springs.
Jack Kearns Explains.
Worry over personal and domestic
troubles caused Dempsey. en- route from
salt Lake City 70 New York, to droa
| ha ~, 10 ~ -