Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1929-01-28
BY TEX RICHARD.
In Collaboration with Bozeman BuIger.

Il HAWKINS ana MarCln fIanerIy.
Perhaps I have given the i'm
preston that I never was interested
in fights before the Gans-Nelson af
fair. ] did not intend to do so. A
a reader of newspapers I always wa
interested in boxing, and OCCASIONAL,
I had a chance to see some OF thu
earlier fights, particularly those held IL
the Far West.
The Hawkins-Flaherty fight was IL
Carson City, New, the day before thu
great heavyweight scrap between FitZ
simmons and Corbett. Tom Finlay, {
native son, was in Madison Square
Garden with me years later, and tolc
the story again. I did not attend thi!
fight myself, but the story ought to bt
repeated here.
Just 4 seconds after Hawkins came
out of his corner, the time required fol
him to reach the center of the ring
and set himself, Martin Flaherty was
sprawled on the floor, knocked cold.
They had left their corners stimuli
taneously. Arriving in the center Of
the ring. where usually the principals
do little sparring, Hawkins, without
any preliminaries whatsoever, shot out
his left. His glove landed squarely on
Martins jaw for knockout
If there have been quicker fights than
that I do not know of them. Some
knocked out fellow named Rossler in
exactly two seconds, but I have nc
record of it,
Hawkins Great Fighter.
Dial Hawkins, by the way, was a
great little fighter. Had he been able to
use his right hand as he did his left
there is no doubt he would have been
q champion. Dial actually loved to fight
Hawkins proved his greatness by lick
ing Joe Cans in Is rounds, though a
little while later, when Cans fought
him again, the Diary knocked out Haw-
kinS in three rounds.
Dial Hawkins not only figured in the
shortest fight on record, but he had the
distinction of also figuring in the long
est one. I know there can be no con-
tradiction of that.
This long fight was between Hawkins
and Freddie Brogan. another San Fran
cisco boy. The fight lasted two days.
This Will require some explanation,
I'm sure. The Hawkins Brogan scrap
was at the Golden Gate Athletic Club.
with Eddie Graney as referee. For
VlciouSneSS no fight ever surpassed it.
Graney stood in the ring for the first
70 rounds and was getting very tired.
He was physically tired as well as tired
OF the fight. At the end Of that round
ne called the two boxers to the center
Of the ring.
Boys" he said, you've had enough
for one night. We'll resume this battle
tomorrow"
To the amazement of the spectators
and OF Hawkins and Brogan and their
seconds Graney left the ring.
Brogan, a game little fellow, started a
protest.
"All right" he finally agreed when
Graney insisted, "I'li be here"
Me, too" declared Hawkins, Just as
eager as Brogan to go on.
A Whole Night of Arguments.
The gamblers and the fight sharps
had a whole night of bets and argu-
ment. They never had heard of such a
thing. Some of the biggest gamblers
even laid odds that Brogan would not
show up again. They had figured wrong
They didn't know Brogan. He had no
intention of quitting.
Although Brogan was stiff and sore
from fighting the night before he sailed
right into Hawkins with the sound of
the gong. Instead of quitting he carried
the fight to Dali
Hawkins fought gamely, but was
stopped in the fifteenth round the Sec
ond night.
The fights I have mentioned are on
the record books as the longest and the
shortest.
There are many who insist on Nell
sons right to the short-distance distinc-
ton by knocking out RosSler in two
seconds. On the other hand there still
are hundreds of old-timers who say
the long-distance record should go to
Andy Bowen and Jack Burke, who
fought ITO rounds at New Orleans April
6, 1893. This fight lasted seven hours
and nineteen minutes. But it didn't go
two days!
The Burke-Bowen fight started at
9;l5 in the evening, and it was early in
the morning when the referee ordered
the fighters to stop and called it draw
They divided a purse of $4,000.
During this long fight Burke tried
several times to have it stopped and
called draw. He made this PROPOSE
ton to Bowen at the end of the nifty
eighth round.
Not me-" declared the bruised and
battered Bowen. 1T was to go to a
finish, and it's going to a finish"
The proposition was repeated several
times later, but Bowen was determined
to fight to finish. And it went on. At
the end of the 10th round both men
were plainly tired, their eyes were
pulled, their arms swollen from stop
ping each others blows and their faces
looked as If some one had hit them with
q cleaver.
Referee Duffy walked over to Mr..
DickerSon, president of the club.
Neither of these men has an adj
vantage" he pointed out They have
made each other helpless. Let's call it
draw and stop it,
NO" answered Mr.. Dickerson. 1.-The
crowd here has paid to see a finish
fight. It's up to us to give it to them.
Go on. Let 'em fight"
Duffy a man with very human
heart started back to the ring.
ITO h with the spectators" he
called back over his shoulder. They've
seen more for their money than they'll
ever see again. These men deserve
sympathy. I'll see that they get it,"
With that he called the fighters to-
gether and declared the bout a draw.
There was great commotion. Even
the fighters protested vigorously, eSpe-
CIdIIy bOWeH.
Man, beat him to standstill," he
argued persistently. II outboxed him
and outfought him. ought to get the
decision"
Il agree with you, Andy" replied
Duffy. You did beat him. Put listen:
When a fellow outboxes another for
ITO rounds and can't stop him think
the other fellow entitled to a draw,
don't you?"
That ended the great battle. Andy
Bowen was mulatto and that fight
added to the glories of the negro race.
In 1894 Kid Lavigne beat Bowen in
ID rounds. The following night Bowen
died.
(Copyright, 1929. by the North American
Newspaper Alliance
Next: THE Greatest Fighter Of ALI. y
(Copyyisht, 1920