The Topeka state journal. [volume] (Topeka, Kansas) 1892-1980, 1922-09-16
|Stecher and Martinson to Meet
in Wrestling Bout.
Former World Champion Has
Eyes on Title Again.
AUTO RACES THIS AFTERNOON
Speed Demons Contend on
Heavy Track for Honors. :
Estimate Weeks Attendance at
$4,000 Persons.

Nt1zti
The Kansas Free Fair will come to
an end tonight with the big athletic
carnival to be held in front of the
grandstand on a specially built plate
form. n
Big Athletic Carnival.
Joe Stecher. of Dodge, Neb., the
idol of Nebraska fans and one of the
most popular wrestlers in this section.
will meet Joe Martinson, the huge
Dane, at s o'clock tonight on q spe-
cially built platform that will be in
full view from every seatin the grand
stand. A force of workmen
were engaged in the construc-
ton of the platform today and q COLI
lection of 5000 candle power electric
lights will make it as light as day.
Stecher was formerly heavyweight
champion of the world and this will be
the first bout of a fall and winter
campaign in which he will attempt to
regain the title. Martinson also ranks
as one of the leading heavyweight
wrestlers of America and has to his
credit many hard fought bouts witk
the big boys. Some fast preliminar2es
have also been-arranged, including =
three-round boxing exhibition by Au-
brey and Claude Busey, brothers. and
three wrestling and boxing exhibitions
by boys from the boys industrial
school. north of the city,
Stecher won the worlds heavy
weight wrestling championship in
1915 from Charles Cutter, but lost it
to Caddock, of Iowa, in 1915. But
in 1920 he forced Caddock to give him
back the belt, only to lose it to
Stanislaus Zbybsco last year. Now the
Nebraska heavyweight is again casting
longing eyes upon the title and after
the match tonight, especially II he
comes out of it successfully, will chai-
fenge Stranger Lewis for q cham
pionship bout.
First Appearance I'm Topeka.
This is Stecher's first appearance
in Topeka. He is the man who made
the body scissors famous-a hold that
is now the most popular in the wres-
Ting world and the fans will doubt
less see its effect in the match tonight
Altho it was doubtful for a time
this morning If the big program OF
auto races could be held, the an
nouncement was made this afternoon
that they would begin at o'clock.
Every resource was turned toward get
ting the track In the best possible
condition, but at the best it looked
like a dangerous undertaking for the
drivers of the speedy racing cars.
While the track bed is packed very
hard, there was from one to two
inches of mud on the surface when the
rain ceased falling this morning.
There were to be six racing events.
chief among them being the deciding
heat of the Sunflower sweepstakes,
the first two heats of which Louis
DisbroW and Fred Horey divided be-
tween them Wednesday afternoon.
These two veterans were also to con-
tend in a special race for a $500 purse
An auto polo contest was also on the
program for the afternoon.
Big Fair Drawing to Close.
The last Of the exhibits were to be
packed up this afternoon. taken home
or moved to other fairs on the Kansas
Oklahoma circuit. The grooms this
morning were packing their horses
away in cotton for shipment to other
tracks and the big exposition was
drawing to a. close.
The Con T. Kennedy shows were
the amusement solace for a stricken
public at the Kansas Free Fair
grounds this afternoon. The rain an
night and this morning SO softened
the track that the automobile races
were postponed until o'clock as the
very earliest hour at which the oval
could possibly be dry enough to per-
init of driving.
/ This left the Con T. Kennedy shows
as the sole amusement open to the
public, and at noon the usual Satur-
day fair crowd had completed its
weeks saunter thru the exhibits and
was eentered before the eighteen
major shows on the Kennedy midway.
Tonight the shows will continue to
operate until the last visitors have
left the fair grounds. The Royal Mid
gets. the Wild West show, the diving
(Continued on Page Two.)