The Washington times., 1921-07-01
Today
bout tho Great Fight
7,sre Have Been Greater.
Man Adores Brutality.
Tho Smallpox Spot
AKTHUK BRlSRANE
Copyright 1871.

ky AM4AOH 0A4onAN FL
Copyright. 1921.
Tomorrow the great day. Ninety
thtusand viii watch, one hundred
1aillion. more or lsss. viii read Of.
The great fight. M
Thousands that would not walk
aeruss the street" to visit New
York's Metropolitan Museum. or
WA&hington's Congressional La
bEAry, will travel across the con-
ttn1nt and across the ocean to see
Ho men fighting in a primitive
onhton that went out Of date on
~ day that the bow and arrow
wQeU invented.
Mr.. Corbstt win be there, Mr..
Batting Nelson, Mike Gibbons,
a4d Tom Gibbons. Six Senator's. 1t
leest, VIII attsnd in one group.
1ho governor Of New Jersey will
entsrfain. This humble writer
vii ondoavor to describe the his
tofic scene amply, for future ages.
And finally Mr.. Tex Riekaid
V1n have in his box 'the whole
Roosevelt family, including three
lndies"-at least, so the announce
ment reads.
That viii be q welcome sight to
the great Roosevelt as he sits
qhove, surrounded by heavenly
Aosts, smiling, showing his strong
teeth to the seraphim and cheru-
bi1m. He win say to those celestial
pernonages, See that box? That's
my family. Red blood there"
It is difficrit to suggest comfort
Tor those SO, $40 900 that must miss
the fight This writer can assure
them, however, that they have
missed better fights than tomor-
rows fight. For instance, con-
| sid4r the last fight reported by
this writer for Charles A. Dana
between John L.. Sullivan and
Charley Mitchell, thirty-odd years
ago on Baron RothschilHs train
ing quarters near Chantilly. in
France.
The men fought with bare fists,
soaked in walnut juice to harden
the skin. They fought on muddy,
bare ground in a cold. drizzling
rain in midwinter. They had long,
sharp spikes in their shoes, to
grip the mud. Once Mitchell drove
his spikes into Sullivan's instep,
perhaps accidentally. And Sulli-
van uttered his famous remark of
mingled rebuke and self-restraint,
BE a gentleman, Charley, IL you
can. You - - = ."
No crowd and no gate receipts
at that real fight. It was fought
under London prize ring rules.
each round lasting until one man
went down, with at least one knee
| on the ground. There was no
Roosevelt family there, no Miss
Anne Morgan. no Laurette Taylor,
no Billie Burke, not q Senator. or
| Governor. But it was interesting.
Billy Porter, distinguished and
patriotic American hank. burglar,
who bad killed Two or threa Hafit
nnd fed to Enxl4nd, and gubse-
qdently died = convict in the Ger
Imam salt mines, stood just outside
the ropes in John L. Sullivan's
{corner.
He was neatly dressed. silk
hat, beautiful overcoat with velvet
collar and big pockets. Both
Hands were in his pockets. Before
the fight began he tilted his hands
upward and two ugly little round
points stuck up inside the cloth.
II am here to see fair play for
Sullivan" said Porter. II suppose
you Mitchell men. know what I
ksve got In my pockets? ?"
The Mitchell men. frst-ciass
thugs and carefully chosen. knew
veil that Porter had his two
gums" and would use them. They
behaved nicely. abandoning their
plan to break into the ring il
ehines went badly for Mitchell.
Those details from the ancient
| past let you know that you have
Ifnissod fights more romantic than
|the fight of tomorrow.
How the heart of savage, un-
)aivilixed, brutal man responds to
brutality. All Rome poured out to
see gladiators murder each other,
or to see religious questions set
tied by throwing the heretics to
wild beasts.
The rabble poured out from the
city and ran along the roadside
|hooting as the noblest soul ever
born on earth was scourged toward
(<he hill called Golgotha, meaning
the skull. there to be murdered.
And later in his name crowds
poured out to see one kind Of
Christian burned alive by some
other kind of Christian, or Jews
burned by both kinds of Christians.
"A hundred men are in 4 hurry.
Not one will stop to see what ails
h crying child. But the 100 will
top to see two boys fight, or watch
terrier tear rat set free from
cage.
The names that everybody
knows are fighting names. from
Alexander to Foch. The monu-
lments in the parks the world over
Rarc fighting monuments.
And tomorrow ninety thousand