Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1927-03-27

Retired Lightweight Champion Of the World
n YEW YORK, March 26.--The
fighting instinct.
Nj In these days, when profess
4 sionaI boxing is so generally
discussed, we hear more and
more frequently discussions among
the fans about the various champions
and near-champions. Naturally, the
heavyweight champion of the world
is the most widely discussed.
I frequently have heard converse
tons among the fight fans in various
cities about our present heavyweight
champion, Gene Tunney, and practi
cally every time some one in the party
rose to remark:
'Tunney may be the best of the
present crop of heavyweights right
now, but he seems to lack the fight
ing instinct"
Then they'd all begin comparing the
Jack Dempsey of old with the Gene
Tunney of today. They'd stress the
fact that Dempsey was killer" and
they'd wind up by agreeing among
themselves that the present incum
bent of the heavyweight championship
is not overburdened with fighting in
stinct.
Fans Wrong About Tunney.
Not wishing to take issue with the
fight fans particularly, l cannot help
declaring that they are absolutely
wrong when they say that Tunney
lacks fighting instinct.
No man who is lacking in this in
stinct can possibly win any boxing
title. to say nothing of the heavy
weight championship.
Practically every man in the work
every normal man, that ts-hat
fighting instinct. Everybody likes tt
hit something. That's one of tbs
things that makes golf such popular
game today. Millions of people play
golf. yet comparatively few play Gro
quet A man can go out and take
good healthy swipe at a golf ball. 50
can woman, for that matter.
You can let out all you have ir
driving off the tee. whereas in gamt
like croauet a more delicate touch II
needed. You can fight the BALI In
golf-that is, you can hit it at times
with all your might.
have watched men in the gym
nasium. just visitors walking
through. An inoffensive punching
bag would be hanging from it's stand
Nine out of ten, the visitor would
take a swipe at the bag when he came
within arms reach of it.
Captivating the Instinct.
At various summer resorts / have
seen a little wooden spool on a wire
with lever arrangement and big
mallet with which you could strike one
end of the lever and send the wooder
spool sliding up the wire along grad
uated scale to show. how high the
spool went. The fellows who raT
these contraptions invariably showed
a profit at the end of the season. They
were appealing to the fighting instinct
in man.
There is big difference between
the fighting instinct" and the killer
instinct True enough. Dempsey did
have the latter well developed when
he was in his prime. But as man
grows older he becomes more cautious.
He never loses his desire to hit some.
thing, but he does become less eager
TO hit something that will hit back
Gene Tunney not only has fighting
instinct well developed, but he pos.
sesses gameness to a remarkable de.
gree. / saw Tunney in one fight
that stands out as one of the most
marvellous exhibitions of gameness
ever shown in boxing ring. 1t was
his fight with Harry Gfeb in 1929
That was the time he had an artery
cut and bied so copiously that the ref
cree wanted to stop the fight. How
Tunney ever stood up under the pun,
ishment and the loss of blood he suf