The Richmond palladium and sun-telegram. [volume] (Richmond, Ind.) 1907-1939, 1922-05-24
idea THAT BOXERS
FULL OF INHERENT
BRAVERY IS WRONG
BY FRANK &. MENKE


The average person has the idea
that every ringman must, by nature,
be a rough, tough belligerent youth,
full of inherited bravery and love OF
fighting.
But not so.
Quite few of the knuckle whizzers
of the past and present had a yellow
ish tint on their earliest makeups-
and lot of them, even after reaching
ring heights, carefully avoided rough
and tumble brawIs.
| It is a fact that Jack Johnson, who
was a champion of champions for at
| least five years, was no hero in child
hoods happy hour. Jack, as p1cka-
ninny, never cared much about quar-
relling with the neighbours children.
At the first sign of trouble he'd take
it on the run for his domicile - and
stay there until things quieted down.
| It is related that Jacks sister often
| had to fight some of his earliest bat
ties for him. Eventually she tired of
it and complained to the mother, Mrs.
Johnson thereupon ruled that Jack
/ thereafter would have to do his own
| fighting and that If it was discovered
that he ran away from a fight he
would be rewarded with an artistic
lacing at home.
Battle Royal
The first public record of Johnson's
fistic activity was chronicled in 1888
by George Siler, the late referee
While in Springfield, Gid, Siler was
invited to witness a battle royal,
involving about dozen negroes.
A battle royal is one of those af
fairs where a gang is tossed into the
same ring, time is called and they al
get busy. Everybody bangs ant
smashes away at the other fellow. The
man who is knocked down is automat
ically counted out of the battle; the
winner is the fellow who is on his
feet after all the others have beer
beaten to the floor.
Siler was greatly impressed will
the work of the victor, powerful
young giant known as Jack Johnson
He commented later on the fact tina
! the youngster, in addition to possess
|, ing brute strength, also exhibited
much native boxing skill Some day
afterwards, in talking to Johnny Con
: ners, friend, he said
'That dark boy looks as he coul'
be made into great ringman. VIII,
. don't you grab him and give him try
out?"
! Wired Chance
, Corners wired to Johnson the mex
day and told him there was chanc
for him to fight another negro know
around Chicago as "Klondike."
Johnson arrived In Chicago jus
about an hour before fight time. H
9 didn't tell Corners that he had bee
forced to borrow the fare money an
that he had nothing to eat for tw
+. days. In half starved condition JohI
) son climbed through the ropes an
> took on the tough and very roug
: Klondike.
|, For three rounds Johnson put up
: good battle. Then the faintness frol
lack of nourishment began to tell o
: him. His strength slipped more an
more, and in the fifth, Klondik
| emerged as victor over Jack Johnso
J in the first fight the negro ever mad
under Marquis of Queensbury rules
:. That was in 1899.
= The showing of Johnson, even
:. defeat, was good enough to warrar
v his getting more chances. He gs
q them, mainly against negroes, an
won easily. That continued for nea
ly two years. Then he went back
Galveston, to visit his folks, Will
! there a local promoter gave him
: crack at Joe Choynsk.
= Johnson was knocked out in tn;
fight-the only knockout suffered
his whole career up to the time
1915 when Jess Willard won the tit
/, from him. But Choynski, after knoc
: ing out Johnson, got the negro boy i
9 to a gymnasium and said:
You've got a lot of ability, bl
| yoII'ra still cr11da COnp baro aver