The Indianapolis times. [volume] (Indianapolis [Ind.]) 1922-1965, 1930-08-04
TALKING
IT OVER
BY JOE WILLIAMS

NEW YORK, Aug. 4. = William
IN James Breslin dropped in to see
me the other day. Il just wanted
to see If you we're in town." he said,
because in a day or so I'm going
TO be sending around those old
gloves I promised you. I'm finally
quitting the business" II seems
that some years ago in a sentimental
outburst I had extracted the promise
from Mr.. Breslin that when ne quit
the ring he was to give me his OLD
gloves.
4 think Il vas some ten or fifteen years
ago when the newspapers were writing
Rim up a. an old man and predicting that
II he didn't step down pretty soon some
vcunrster would come along and punch
his eyebrows down below his collar line
nrobabIv had the thought at the time
that I wouldn't have 70 walt yeIs long
~ 80 a follower OF sports because he is the
ana nd I suppose il is this fact that moved
me to ask him Tor ms si0's''
ATOw that the incident has been
~ brought back to my mind, or
what I use for a mind, I am very
grateful to Mr.. Breslin and 1 shall
Certainly be happy to get the gloves.
Mr.. Breslin happens to be none
other than old Jack Britton in pro-
fessionaI life, and there is a olt OF
1epitinate news in the fact that ne
Is actually quitting after twenty
six wears Of continuous ring war
fare.
This NAV not be a record for all ume'
hat IA certainly tops anything the mod
.rn game can offer. I saw Britton Hkn'
paekev Mcfarland in a skating rihN III
,g.unbiS hack in 1911. and that was
Ionz time ago as the crow HES 1et ne
was a veteran even then. He had oeen
erhtinr seven years and had had more
evbts than most fighters Of today In the
fun span Of their careers.
n
ia 10 sure Rritton started abnormally
Young. but once started ne never ei,, ne
iooks back on one of the most ama MAJ. ~
cords ever compiled by a prlze n ~ r
n Is popular to point to Johnny ounce 10 IS
: - = .5SsfTinr fstic Institution and 70 cite
~. lrsst number Of bouts he has had ana
the great number Of wears ne naS sor 81
sround. Britton had been hghtlng ior siA
Years before Dundee had glove on
DANNY MANDELL has won and
- lost the lightweight champion
shin. Mandell wasn't even born
when Britton was hanging around
a smelly Chicago gymnasium get
ting ready to knock out one Steve
kinney in a round to score his tlrSt
professional triumph in the ring.
rsrftton has outlastcd three generations
q . s- destined 10 20 on uninterruptedlv
FOR twenty-six wears. Johnny Couloh. ,.sIi
the bantamweight chamRion' r, ape 1sritt
Vas leader OF the lightweights; Dixie RIO l1
snd Toe WaIcott we're both claiming tne
welterweiEht ehamRonS sln31ap5iIsTei9 1iht JACK
Root. Philadelphia JACK o bs sieH y, anu claim
Fitzsimmons were all ouaiineso 70 2,s eiS not
much Of 4 title in those. DAYS; ana s Jlln
reffriss having far outdistancso MS n ii,,
was planning. to retire as hea'f
champion Of the ~oIso'
IL would take columns to INST tne cnam
,iors and alleged champions these NV
siorx have produced since. And stil BTU
tor kent moving along. Only the other
rt~ht he fought some tough vOungster IN
stanford. Conn. and lost close decision
n, never was cutie able to make the grace
in the lightweight division. He was lust
a few pounds too heavy.
. .
A FTER a long struggle he finally
N managed to win the welter-
weight championship, getting the
decision over Ted Lewis, the En-
rlishman. whom he met twenty
two times, another record OF some
sort. He held the title from 1917
to 1922, when Mickey Walker took
it away from him on points IN nj
teen rounds.
Britton doesn't know for sure Just how
many fights he has had The record
hooks are incomplete. He's certain he's had
considerably more than 400. Brittou came
along before the big money era, vet In
spite Of that he made close to quarter OF
a million dollars. Today. except for
home in Yonkers. uD the river from the
metropolis. he is broke.
The Florida crash took about 500; 600 in
eurdled. And ali the while it took money
70 keen the house. the missus ana the nve
little Brittons going. Some fellows GET the
breaks. Britton deserving. ambitious.
hopeful. got nothing but raps.
y
THE fates have had many fair
haired children in this strange
game of pugilism, but Britton was
never one of them. Not for long
anyway. A fellow who has been
throwing the leather for twenty-six
years can't just quit all of sudden.
He has to keep going at something.
q
So Britton will move in as boxing in
structor at the new Downtown Athletic
Club. a towering shaft Of brick and steel
that locks down on the West river and the
New York harbor where ocean liners tug
fretfuIly at anchor between voyages 1T
looks as II IL will be steady work anyway.
Britton remarked. land I don't mind tell
Ing YOU I think I'm pretty lucky to get 1t.