Omaha daily bee. (Omaha [Neb.]) 187?-1922, 1919-07-06

shall not forget if l live to be a
thousand, and yet it was a smile I
find hard to describe. 1t was a silly
sort of a smile/as of simple fellow
WHO cannot exactly understand
what is happening to him.
1t first appeared when that brown
mana l;ttle man as compared to
this preposterously big fellow
first leaped upon him in the opening
round, clawing like some animal. 1t
was there when the huge man sat in
neutral corner in the late stages
of that round, his legs outstretched
before him and his enormous hairy
body upright.
AS he sat in that position smiling
that silly smile he was most ridicu-
lous spectacle. He was plainly COM
pletely dazed by the punches which
had been pumped into his face and
frame and he reminded one of
drunken man sitting i'll an alley play
ing with his hands, or simpleton
picking at coverlid.
Willard was almost knocked out in
that first furious rush. of the Colo
RADIO boy. In fact, everybody
thought he was out and that the
fight was over. The faulty bell had
tinkled, but few had heard it, Men
rushed into the ring and confronted
Dempsey The new champion was
leaving the ring when Ollie Pecord,
the Toledo referee, who had kept his
head we'll during the clamor, made
his handlers understand that only
the round was over.
Willard Rallies for Space.
Then Jack Kearns, Dempsey's
manager, drew him back to his
corner. The ring was cleared as
the crowd settled back and the bell
tapped again. Out came Willard,
smiling that simple smile, his flabby
legs shaking under every step that
lifted his bulk forward and now, to
the establishment of everyone, the
giant rallied. =, =
No one believed he could possibly
weather that second round, but he
pushed on under veritable barrage
of hammering, not only to the end
of that round, but to the close of
the third. 1t was only question
of time when he must collapse, how
ever.
He almost fell when he went back
to his corner at the close OF the
third round and stood for an instant
before he sat down. 1t is doubt
full if he could have withstood an
other round of the, punishment he
had lived under in the nine minutes
that had passed In any event, he
decided not to respond to the Bell
for the fourth.
He was almost blind. He was
weller of blood. He was weak and
unable to defend himself. He fought
through the second and third rounds
with courage. He fought like a
good fellow. Perhaps the acme of
gameness might have been reached
had he gone out to be knocked
senseless in the fourth round, but
the spectacle had already passed the
stage of sport. 1t had become sheer
butchery. Willard decided wisely.
And for ali this he got 100000
besides the thousands he has col
lected at his training camp. Lieu
tenant Lockiear, the aviator. chang
ing planes in mid-air high above the
heads of the crowd just before the
fight. got nothing but the plaudits of
the people. He could not even hear
the plaudits.
After it was all over Willard
walked out unsteadily to meet his
conqueror. He congratulated him
after the time-honored custom of
beaten ring men. And Dempsey,
showing his white teeth in wide
grin where before his face had been
crinkled with sullen scowls, re-
sponded with sort of coincidence.
what makes 70 difference now
before delivering himself up to his
friends.
Ex-champion Enters Oblivion.
Then Willard lifted his ponderous
bulk down from the ring and went
into hstic oblivion, still smiling that
strangely simple smile, as they were
raising the new champion high
above the ring for all to see. The