Evening star., 1938-12-11
Woman Boxing Promoter S. ed Into Sport Sullivan Battle 1879
Cousin John |. Hero
To 6-Year-0Id Lass
Al Boston Fight
Mrs. Mary Erne Now Runs
Amateur Ring Events at
Cleveland Center
BY KARL KEYERLEBER.

Cleveland Center
BY KARL KEYERLEBER.
CLEVELAND, Dec. 10.-It was a
long wait between prize fights, but
Mrs. Mary Erne was as excited as q
bride with new gift when she
watched Henry Armstrong success
fully defend his welterweight title
against Al Manfredo here Monday
night.
To be exact, 50 years had rolled
by since the white-haired Broadway
Recreation Center supervisor last
saw a professional boxing match-
and that makes a neat little story.
One of the principals in that fight
Of 50 years ago was John L. Sulli-
van.
It was in 1919 that little girl of
6 summers sat on her fathers lap
in . gas-lit Boston theater and
peeped out between widespread An
gers to watch John L. whale the
daylights out of one Dan Dwyer.
Strange enough that any member
Of the sex should be caught alive
at = prize fight in that Victorian
era; the presence of 6-year -old
in such surroundings was almost a
public scandal.
Given $50 by Cousin John L.
All this was lost on the 6-year-old.
John L. was her cousin and he was
winning and she had come all the
way from Sharon, Pa. by train to
see him fight. After it was over
1t didn't take long-the mighty Sui
Ivan lifted her in his arms and
pressed a crinkling $40 bill into her
tiny hands. Perhaps he said to her
that the Sullivan women are the
prettiest and the wittiest in the
world" 1t was one Of his favorite
phrases, to which he sometimes
added: And they raise the biggest
families, too"
Mrs. Erne wouldn't be sure about
what he said. She had a more vivid
recollection Of what some of the
family said when they heard that
she had seen the nght. But it
wouldn't look we'll in a family news
paper. A wide Irish smile flashed as
she recalled the escapade today.
"You see," she explained, my
father couldn't help himself. My
mother was sick and he had to take
care Of me. And he had to see
that fight =. My, he was proud
Of John L. his brothers boy .
%. he took me along"
And what did she do with the $40?
my father took it away from
mel"
Mrs. Erne has become something
OF . celebrity at Broadway Recrea-
ton Center because at an age (65,
and no evasions) when most women
are willing to leave new ventures
to younger hands, she has taken on
the headaches of promoting boxing
shows.
Only to her it isn't a headache.
In fact. Mary, Erne is amazed, no
less, at the stir she has caused, what
with reporters dropping in and am
bilious cameramen asking will she
please put on boxing gloves for q
picture.
This she did to oblige one enter
prising camera fiend, but swears she
will never do 1t again-"why, my
friends thought I was out of my
head"
But boxing-I love it! My hus-
band never would take me while he
was alive because I made such a
show Of myself, I got that excited.
i've gone to lot of them since,
though. That is, amateur shows"
Mrs. Erne promoted her first anna
teur boxing show last October.
What's more, she made money. It
went to buy head guards, boxing
gloves, tape and other supplies for
her boys At the Broadway Center.
She plans to hold another this
month. Meanwhile she saw how the
Cleveland News Christmas fund
show was run when she went to the
arena Monday night and caught up
With . treat that has eluded her for
these long years.
Never Saw Sullivan Again.
1t Is strange that one who got of
to such an early start should reach
the sixties without seeing another
big dght. 1t is stranger still to learn
that she never even saw Sullivan
again, in the ring or out of it.
MY family moved to Cleveland
when was IL, and somehow never
got . chance to see him again." she
relates.
But I used to read about him in
the Police Gazette. My, he was
grand. And were we proud of him?
1t nearly killed my father when he
lost his title to Jim Corbett. Why,
We couldn't believe it."
Outside Of that Boston fight, Mrs.
Erne doesn't recall much about her
famous cousin. It seems that. at
1irst, the family didn't know whether
to be proud Of him or ashamed. box
Ing at the time being rather a back
alley profession. The Sullvans rather
hoped their boy would be a priest.
But guess he just wasn't cut
out for that" Mrs. Erne concludes.
tcepyrisht, 1888, BY the North American