The Waterbury Democrat., 1937-04-15
EASY WINNERS LOSE DECISIONS
 IN A. A. J. MEET
Boys Travel $500 Miles on $2OO Only to Get
 "Gypped" at Hub
By ERNEST BARCELLA United Press Stan COrrespOndent)

United Press Stan COrrespOndent)
 Boston, April 15- (UP)-Gold badges, emblems of national su- premacy in amateur boxing, hung today from the bosoms of eight stal- wart but slightly weary youths who outlasted 182 others in 181 elimina- tion bouts fought over 8 three-day period.
 Only four cities in the entire country shared in the titles won in this 35th annual National A. A. U. tourney which ended in the small hours this morning. Philadelphia and Detroit monopolized the cham pionships, gaining three each, while San Francisco and Newark, N. J., divided the other two.
 Robbery
 But for some weird decisions in last nights semi-finals, the story might have been different. Hawaii, for instance, might well have boast ed its first national amateur box ing championship in the history of the islands. In fact, it might have carried off two titles.
 Instead, the brown-skinned bat tiers who came $500 miles on the generous $200 allowance granted them by the A. A. U., were forced to go home empty-handed after being rocked, gyped and otherwise robbed of apparently we1l-earned decisions.
 To all intents and purposes, Jose Mercado, smart little flyweight, dished out 8 pasting in the semi finals to William Speary of Phila- delphia. This would have meant an all-Hawaiian final in the fly weight as Gilbert Murakani later went on to beat Fred Pope of Gin cinnati. But the officials decided against Mercado.
 Then Speary won the title on a close decision over the courageous Murakani, who fought with five stitch wound over his right eye suffered earlier in the night against Pope.
 Young Won But Lost
 The 6,709 cash customers booed the anti-Mercado- verdict long and lustily, but nowhere near as long or as Justify as the split decision that eliminated another Hawaiian, featherweight David Young, in his semi-final battle with Edgar Wal ing of Detroit. Young, easily the class of his division, appeared from the ringside to have won the fight hands down.
 New England, which has housed this tournament of thump for 30 of its 35 years, placed only one man in the finals-Yancy Henry, Lynn, Mass, negro, who ook gosh awful beating from heavyweight champion James Robinson of Phil adelphia.
 Most sensational sockfests of the finals were provided by the light weights and the ight-heayies. Joe Kelly of Philadelphia won the 135- pound crown on two-round tech- nical knockout after pounding AL bany's Frank Mirabile into some thing resembling red pulp. Mira bile refused to stay licked and the referee finally halted the slaughter in mercy gesture.
 A two-fisted attack had given Mirabile victory over Roy Crombie of Washington, D. C., in the semi finals. New York states lone rep resentative in the finals fought Kelly on fairly even terms during the first round. He took lot, but retaliated in kind, never giving. ground. But Kelly threw too many lefts in the second and when Mira bile went down, bleeding profusely from the nose and mouth, the battle was halted.
 To Mirabile's credit, he was game to the finish.
 James Williams, Richmond, Va, light heavyweight, kayoed John Hayes, Boston negro, in the second round after battle that had all the earmarks of an alley brawl, only to go into the finals and get fiattened in the second heat by Timmie Hill, Detroit negro.
 Perhaps the smartest looking win ner was Johnny Marquez of San Francisco who seemed to know what it was all about in pounding out clean-cut victory over Fred Lewis of Philadelphia to take the welter- weight title. Heavyweight Cham pion Robinson also handled him. self smavtly.
 From the winners, semi- -finalists and perhaps one or two others will be selected United States team that will meet Central and South American and Mexican teams in the Pan-American exposition at Dallas, Texas, in August.