Richmond planet. [volume] (Richmond, Va.) 1883-1938, 1919-07-12

New Yrk, July 5.o-"Joc Cans was.
\ the greatest lightweight that ever liv|
ed and don't let anyone tell you 9th
erwisc" declares Battling Nelson,
who fought the marvellous Negro
three times and knocked him out
twice.
"But you didn't have any trouble
beating him." someone commented.
That's true" answered the form
er king Of lightweights, "but there
were reasons. l had the Indian sign
OH that boy. He could lick every
other man in tho world but he could
not do it to me. Every fighter has
such rival; a man who is inferior
to himself yet the inferior man can
whip him in every start.
Terry McGovcrn was better all
around fighter than Young Corbctt
But Corbct! knocked Terry kicking
both times. jim ColIey was an infinite
ly better man than Frank Moran yet
Moran whipped him in each start.
Ring history records hundred cas-
es where great fighters went down
to defeat before poorer men who
somehow or other had their number.
COULD NOT OVERCOME NELSON
Cams could whip every man I
whipped about ten times faster than
did He could have gone against
some who gave me awful beatings or
!. knocked them kicking in round or
two with one hand tied behind his
back But he couldn't get me.
Tho records show that Cans won
from me on n foul In Goldfield I'M
1896 In the fortysecond refund.
But the real truth is that /
knocked out Cans as fairly In that
fight as did on July 4, 1909 and also
on September 0. 1909 when I gave him
q return match. I ued tho very same
left body punch In 1906 when the
referee disqualified me as I did in
my winning fight three years later.
But foxy little Joe got away with 1t
in 1906 even though tho wellop Land
co high up on the body.
"Gans knew mroe about the science
of fighting than oil the men / met
put together. He was master ring
man, skilled in every department Of
the game. His footwork was marVe-
lous, his speed bewildering, his stock
OF tricks inexhaustible and he was
game to tho core.
HIT WITH GREAT POWER.
"And Cans could hit, oh, boy, how
he could nit. He was fundamentally
a boxer, but no packed power in eth
or hand, that only ono lightweight
since I began has eclipsed. And the
/, v WI .uld dris harl~: ta-:. Cans
was Amelio Herrera, the Mexican who
began knocking the boys cold in 1898
and faded from the ring ten years
later.
Herrera hit like heavyweight.
fIe was tho greatest knock 'em dead
artist the lightweight ranks ever pro
duced. His record Is one long list OF
knockouts. And practically all OF
them wore scored with the pile drlV-
er right hand Of his. felt 1t once,
and I never liked to think about 1t
afterward.
gave Herreara a fight in 1904 in
Butte, Mont, when the Mexican was
at his best Somewhere along in the
second or third found he drew me
into range and that right handler hit
me on the forehead I went over back
wards. and in so doing my head crash
Ell against tHe ilool "1ell XII ""iuA
bump. The crowd began leaving. 1t
figured tho fight was over, for no
man that Hcrreara ever had dropred
got back to his feet again before ten
was sounded over him. But I fooled
'em and beat the Mexican in the end.
But was silent for moment as his
mind roamed back over the stormy
fighting days OF his spectacular
youth.