Detroit evening times. (Detroit, Mich) 1921-1958, 1941-03-09
BY DAN PARKER,
Noted Sports Commentator.
MfT11ofos


MuT NOT your trust in MONEY none wrote s'.
money in trust
August Ruggiere of New York City's
Bronx is now In position TO improve on the
sage advice of The Autocrat of the Breakfast
Table.
Put your money In trust" says Ruggiere
"but don't put your trust In relatives"
Ruggiere should know whereof he chirps
because putting his money In trust and put
ting his trust In relatives has caused him more
fgurative headaches and blackeyes in the past
year than los battles In the prize ring brought
him actual bruises.
As flyweight champion of New York State
and winner of 95 out of los professional bouts,
Ruggiere. known as Little Augie" of the prize
ring. was never called upon to fight more than
one opponent at time But as Augte Rug
giere, hapless wilmer of $e7 ,623 on the last
Irish Sweepstakes he finds himself assaDed
from all sides by relatives. lawyers, tax col
lectors and just plain chiselers, all of them
bent on getting hunk of what he thought was
easy money when he collected it on Bogskar,
25 to l shot winner of the Grand National
Steeplechase. at Aintree, England, last March
Little Augie had an idea his troubles
were ended when the $3.50 sweeps ticket he
bought in a Bronx coffee shop one bleak day
in February 1910 repaid him at the rate OF
almost 10000 to /. But he has since learned
that his woes were only starting then.-=
R,sxr1ere was down toshis last 1897 as he
sat slipping his java in a Greek restaurant mat
dreary afternoon and he was down to his last
saucer of coffee when along came destiny.
What the guys name was Little Augie
couldn't tell you to this day but he recalls that
he had a razor scar on his left check that dis
torted his toothy smile until 1t looked as wide
as a jack-o-lanterns.
Little Augie. in interpretive mood. had
inst finished reviewing his career for the
thousandth time and had come to the same old
conclusion that he was just palooka, meant
to be punched around by Fate. Here he was,
81 wears old out of job and with no pros
meets of getting one; estranged from his fam
ily because he wouldn't quit the ring when his
far-sighted father Julius Ruggiere retired
ice man. had told him to seven years before;
down TO his last few bucks; deserted by the
fair-weather friends who had helped him
spend the rest of his ring earnings and, to top
1t all, cross-eyed from ring injury.
Yeah, guess I'm just sparring partner
that's meant TO be punched around, Little
Aueie was saying to himself when the voice
of the gentleman with the wide dental smile
pierced his sub-conscious and brought MN
back to his saucer of java.
"Want to buy a sweepstakes ticket re-
peated the man with the scar, showing MN
all four of his wisdom teeth along with the
book of tickets
NO" snapped Little Augie
TITS only $3.50 and you may win 100000"
wheedled Scar Face.
How was the sweepstakes ticket yender to
know that Little Augie had $50 of his slim
fortune cached in back pocket against the
morrow's pangs of hunger and that the $780,
oo0 halt worked The quick desperate motion
with which the forlorn flyweight reached for
his hip gave the vendor other thoughts and
he ducked behind phone booth, trembling.
But out of thecorner of his eye the ticket
peddler caught a flash of green and heard the
authentic Jingle of two bits calling its mate.
He was back in a flash and with flash, tore
off ticket and picked up the $3.50 that lay
on the side-arm chair. Scribbling down Rug
..inro,a mama hn acrann1ed before the arrange