The Cordova daily times., 1923-01-09
WESTERN MEN WERE SUPREME
 IN ATHLETICS

SAN FRANCISCO, Jan. 9.-Westerr athletes were supreme in various
 branches of sports during the past year. In football, boxing, track and field, wrestling, tennis, automobile racing and baseball the men from the far west continued high up among the leaders, several of them holding cham. pionships.
 Probably the vests best known ath, lete is Jack Dempsey, heavyweight ] boxing champion. Coloradoborn and Utah-bred, Dempsey now resides in Los Angeles. Although he did little last year in the ring, it was only be- cause capable opponent could not i be found.
 World honors also came to the west in wrestling when Ed (CStrangler") Lewis of San Jose, Cal, won the heavyweight title from Stanislaus Zbyszko to whom he had lost it ear Her. Lewis formerly was a resident of Kentucky but in recent years has made his home in California.
 On the automobile speedways of the nation, a native Californian, Jimmy Murphy, whose residence is claimed by both Los Angeles and San Fran cisco. forged to the championship ring, taking the title from another Californian, Tommy Milton.
 In college athletics the University of California retained it's title of na- tional intercollegiate track and field champion at Harvard last spring. Jack Merchant, California, was the individ- ual star, his work in the hammer discus, jumps and sprints causing customers to call him the greatest all-round athlete of the year Stan ford University finished third in the Harvard meet. Glenn Hartran1t' weight man and sprinter, making many of the Cardinal points. In track also, Bud Hauser, Oxnard, Cal, hlgh school boy, won the national inter- scholastic shot put champlonshlp' Snrintprs are still trying to break the vorld's cinder path records made i'll 1921 by Charles Paddock. Los Angeles the "world's fastest human being Paddock established more records last year and in 1923 will return to the University of Southern California for I, active competition.
 California this year produced an other great football team, said by many to be even greater than the "wonder team" of 1921 which blankeo Ohio State, Big Ten champions "Rrick" Muller, California's All-Amer- ;can end and Duke" Morrison, an Au-American possibility, were stars on the team.
 Western baseball players this year brought prices higher than ever pe- fore paid to minor league owners 1;mmv O'Conneu and Willie Kamm of the San Francisco Seals and sammy Hale of the Portland Beavers were sold for s75,O0O, $1O0,00O and $75,ooo' respectively. The Golden State was represented on the World champioh New York Giants by George Kelly ana Bill Cunningham.
 Probably the most picturesque fig ure in the western golf world this year was John Black, the grandfather golfer of Oakland, who was defeated in the national open tourney only by Gene Sarazen, present champion.
 In tennis four of the ten ranking players of the country hailed from San Francisco and one of them, William M Johnston, defeated the champion, William T. Tilden, at Berkeley early in the year. Helen Wills, a Berkeley girl. retained the national girls title and was defeated in the national Wo- mems tournament only by the cham pion, Mrs. Molla Mallory.
 If aeroplaning be ranked as sport, | it will be recalled that Lieut.. l.. K. Maughan, of Mills, Cal, at Mt. Clem- ems, Mich, travelled at speed of PAS miles an hour, and that Lieuts. Oakley Kelly and John MacReady, San Diego, | Cal, together established a record by remaining in the air continuously for 29 hours and shortly afterward broke the worlds nonstop flight rec ord with "hop" of 2,060 miles. In swimming this year, however, the west had to submit almost meekly to tbo ;puaoiop of tha DhanOmana al