The Washington times. [volume] (Washington [D.C.]) 1902-1939, 1927-11-05
|onKYS
Kirk Miller

Over in Philadelphia a synGi-
cate is taking up a collection Of
something like $4,000. which
is a lot of money even to a
heavyweight champion, to offer
Gene Tunney to fight George
Godfrey, the Black Shadow Of
Leiperville, who fights for the
Baron of Leiperville, Mr.. James
Dougherty-the latter being no
mans fool.
Dougherty probably knows as
we'll as any of the rest of us
there isn't chance for this
fight to materialize, for outside
of Jimmy Maloney, who, we ask,
has Godfrey beaten? But Mr..
Dougherty, as we say, being
nobody's fool, understands that
such a gesture makes for good
publicity for his man, Friday,
and may, in the long run, get
said Friday a fight with some
one a little better than Tom
Sayer.
Besides, before Mr.. Dough-
erty's Black Shadow has
license to meet or. even speak
to Mr.. Tunney, he should form
a more thorough professional
acquaintance with Tom Heeney,
Dempsey or Sharkey, for in
stance.
But do not think for a mo-
ment that the Gentlemanly Gene
would not participate in mixed
match for the championship pro-
vided the challenger had dis
posed of the entire field lead
ing up to Tunney. The cham
pion made his attitude about
such business quite clear to a
group of correspondents up at
Lave Viii, ILL.,, when he was
training for the last Dempsey
fight.
GAS a challenger ! barred no
man." said Gene. you will re-
call that l actually signed with
Richard to box Harry Wills
about three years ago. Wills
turned down a $4,000 offer
and continued to chase Demp-
sey.
Il never boxed a negro, and
my sparrlng partners are all
white men, yet l hold that the
champion of the world should
be afraid of no man.
"If ever there is a colored
challenger who stands out over
the field and the public de-
mand establishes his rights over
other contcnders / will meet
him. l do not intend to box
'set-ups' of any description, but
as long as am champion l
will meet the most worthy
challenger at least once a year"
At the time Tunney said he
did not regard Godfrey seriously
as a BLACK menace"
"He has won some fights and
looked bad in Others" declared
Gene, "but he hasn't defeated
classy field"
But there is another angle to
the proposed $750,000 Tunney-
Godfrey meeting, and that con-
Germs the promoter. Tunney
can't fight for anyone but
Richard, at least until 1923 is
history, and Richard is about as
fond of mixed matches as a
bootlegger is of the law. Tex
wouldn't touch a Dempsey
Wills fight and he simply
wouldn't answer the telephone if
called up to listen to Tunney-
Godfrey proposition. So that's
. that!
And it would be just the
irony of fate at work again if
Godfrey was to ever get any
where in the heavyweight ranks
to have his position questioned
by boxing bodies outside of Penn
sylvania. Already the Quakers
are having a hard time getting
Tommy Loughran recognized as
light heavyweight champion as
we'll as Benny Bass as feather
weight king.
One can't help thinking of
Jack Kearns' stand at Shelby,
Mont, when he was trying to
collect that last 100000 of
Dempsey's guarantee money
when one reads of Max Wax
man and Joe Dundee cumming
up the Hudkins affairs at Los
Angeles night before last. That
flop out at Wrigley Field is a
black eye for boxine in a State
where toleranc" has just about
reached it's limit-pugilistically
speaking.