The news scimitar. (Memphis, Tenn.) 1907-1926, 1919-05-28

without bothering with the chrono,,
logical order of he affair, pecause
don't want captious souls writing let
ters of correction, somewhere in along
here Jack boxed and beat DICK Hll-
bert. a sawed off, chunky little CHAP
hailing from Denver, Col. JACKS lel-
low ~Coloradoans certainly gave MN IL
lot to do, one way and another.
Gilbert was not much taller than zoe
Walcott, and a Joes pehcnan' +ban
meeting big men. He nefted more than
Joe, however, and he didn't have Joe
punching ability. But ne was quite d
trial horse in his day.
Up to this time-not meaning up 10
the time of the Gilbert flight, partic,
ularly, but up to this general PERIOD
Of Jacks career, he had never had a
real Andy Malloy, his boy
hood mentor, had figured but briefly
in that role, while Jack Gill, who TOOK
Dempsey to Goldfield for the battie
with ~Sudenberg, figured still more
briefly,
In fact, Dempsey really hadn't needed
a manager. He could look after such
| affairs as he had In those days him
! self. A promoter could name a figure
| for Jacks services, n Jack could take
1t or leave It. He required no mlddle-
| mar and no bookkeeper.
But don't think that all this time
Jack had been fighting without gam
ing some fame. In fact, rumors OF him
had commenced to drift beyond the
Mississippi, clear to New York. | think
| am the first sporting writer to men-
ton his name in an Eastern newspaper,
and | first heard of him through Bily
Roche, the old-time referee, VINO hAi
been out West.
One rainy day, a bunch of sporting
folks happened to be gathered in the
pffIra of JinndV Johnson a volatile,
voluble little fistic manager and pro
moter OF long experience in handling
| fighters. Jimmy was at that time Try
ing to convince the world that he had
a logical bean for the heavyweight
| crown on the wide shoulders of a
| giant he called the agile, astounding
Andre Anderson
Ard the heavyweight crown was then,
as now, worn by Jess willard, who not
| so many months before had hung
| around this same Jimmy Johnston, and
other Eastern managers, sombrero IN
hand, begging them To assume charge
of his destiny. .
Well. anyway they were talking Of
| one thing and another up in Johnston,s
office that day, when up spoke OLD
Billy Roche to about the following ef'
feet
Gentleman, I've seen a big fellow out
West hat I'd like to get hold of. Hes
liable to be champion some day. He's
a big, rough, raw hand, who is stu
several years away, but he can fight
like all g%it-out. His name Is Jack
| Dempsey. You'd better remember 1T. J
| tried to land him, but couldn't"
why not?" some one asked
He won't come east said Billy,
The following morning, in the col.
umns of the New York American
| quoted Roche as above and then forgot
the incident entirely. The rest Of the
party probably couldn't have recalled
the name of Bills pnenom two hour'
later. .
But it would appear that almost about
the time Billy was talking, the idea
of coming east was buzzltg in Demp-
sey's dome. Not far east, 1t Is true,
but what Is well eastward to a fellow
in Utah. He was thinking of Kansas
City.
There had come into Jacks life a
genial soul named Jack Price. He was
brother-in-law to Hardy Downey, the
Salt Lake promoter. Jack Price was
is, for we are rapidly nearing the very
present tense in our s~tory-what you
would call stout, In fact, corpulent
In short, fat. But beneath his wide
shirt front beats a kindly, generous
heart.
He liked Dempsey. Dempsey was
very fond of him. They had some
money between them, and they decided
to go travelling, seeking business for
Dempsey's fists. Jack Price to act as
the business agent for same, 1t was
not at all their notion to go very FAR
when they started out, but eastward
the star of Dempsey's empire took ITS
way.
1t was a dilatory way. for in the
interests of business II was necessary
for the pair to aus here and there,
in this and that town. TO see If they
couldn't smoke up a fight. There wac
nothing stirring anywhere along the
line, and the first thing they knew they
found themselves at the Mississippi
river.
Lets go to New York" suggested
Jack Dempsey, the more adventurous
of the pair, and to New York they came
Had Billy Roche known they were com
ing he would probably ave met them
at the outskirts Of the town,
We got off the train at the Grand
Central say Dempsey, grinntng at
the recollection. Il can see ourselves
now. 1t was in summer, and thunder
ing hot. at that, n we wore those
high western hats. Then we both had
on coats that fit US rather sudden
being a good old fashioned box cut
They looked pretty nifty out home, but
somehow they didn't seem so stylish
in New York. MY suit cost me eight
bucks in Salt Lake.
well, I'll never forget my first sight
Of that big old station. | thought II
must be the biggest place in all the
world, and there were so many peo-
pie running around that / was scared
stiff. It took US quite II while to find
our way out into AID street,
I'VE were carrying our valises in our
hands. And don't forget we had those
badger haircuts-the kind like nav
used to give you when she put the
crock over your mead and cut off the
hair that stuck out around the edges
Yes, we had badgers-blg, high ones.
About 900 guys gathered around us
: the minute w showed up. hollerins