THE CHINA MAIL, JUNE 21, 1939.
Fighters Although Down Were Never Out While In Their Corners Crouched
By Leo Fuller
SPIDER KELLY....
KELLY....FIGHT FAKER EXTRAORDINARY
T is not always the weight of began to pace the ring looking all the the amazement of the fans he smashed They were both on the verge of ex- his way to a draw-but his iron fists hausted collapse when the gong ended a punch or magnificent box- time towards the dressing-rooms.
The crowd in the gallery stamped would have been useless without Spider the ninth session, and Spider hopped ing that decides a fight. In the their feet and started to hiss and cat- Kelly's quick wit to guide them. nimbly into the ring and caught Rafael crazy history of the boxing call. Officials went to the dressing- Even when a man was lying sense- just before he fell. He half carried game, many a fight has been room door and found it locked, and less on the canvas, the fight wasn't lost him to his corner, propped him up,
hammered inquiries only brought a if Spider was in his won outside the ring, muffled response.
corner. When washed his face with a sponge, combed lost and
Jimmy Britt met Willy Fitzgerald, the his hair neatly, as if he were going out the result dictated by the fast- In this fashion half an hour went by, "San Francisco Beau Brummel," as the to meet his best girl, and then he thinking and astute tricks of the with Gans becoming almost frantic in champion was called, he ran clean into caught him under the elbows and lifted
his impatience. He was getting more a murderous right swing that knocked him to his feet, handlers in the corner.
upset as the minutes ticked by, for na- him deader than a smoked herring! Rafael was literally semi-conscious. There are famous seconds, whose turally, if the fight had started on The crowd rose in amazement to see but Spider propelled him rapidly across sensational maneouvres are now le time, he would have been well into the their idol out for the night, and the the ring, so that, just as the bell sig- nalled the beginning of further hos- gend. But the greatest of them all battle, all his wonderings and specula- gamblers started paying up..
tions forgotten in the hot clash of But, as the referee started his count, tilities, the equally battered Herberts was Spider Kelly. He flourished in combat.
Spider Kelly's mind began to click. He glanced up to find his rival, towering the years just before the war, in Gans' manager ran frantically to the had less than ten seconds in which to over him, fresh as a spring morning,
to call the do something. Suddenly he leapt and apparently still spoiling for the golden days of Pacific Coast box- promoter and threatened ing, when the world's finest fights whole thing off if Walcott did not show into the ring, mouthing strange cries, fight..
up immediately. Just then a man slip- and rolling across the canvas, his arms It was too muth—with a groan Her- took place in California, and San ped out of Walcott's dressing-room. and legs worked convulsively; he froth- berts collapsed back on his stool, and Francisco was the mecca of Ameri- "Where's Walco ?" yelled the crowd ed at the mouth!
signalled his retirement! At that mo-
ca's sporting men.
*
Terrific Left
A
from the gallery. "He'll be out in a The referee stopped the count in ut- ment Spider let go of Rafael, and he minute," was the reply and then, hu- ter bewilderment; pandemonium reign- fell down in a dead faint! But the Because of his reputation for pheno- morously, "He had to get another pair ed; the Fitzgerald corner screamed at decision was his. menal thinking in a battle crisis, Spider of shoes. They sent him two lefts!" the referee to continue the count, while was always in great demand as a sec- The truth was that Spider and Wal- cries arose on all sides for a doctor, ond, and many, a famous fighter had cott were seated comfortably in the as poor Kelly was obviously him to thank for a victory snatched dressing-room with the fighter swig- throes of an epileptic fit!
Spider would stop at nothing to gain from the very arms of defeat, none ging cups of beef-tea to make
And all this time Jimmy Britt lay victory. him
One time he had a white hope more so than the hard-punching negro, heavier and stronger!
on the canvas, out to the world!
by the curious name of Toothpick Joe Walcott.
Kelly. He was a long, gangling bat-
Walcott was matched with perhaps the greatest lightweight of all time- Joe Gans, the Old Master'. Gans was a negro, too, a born fighting man, an incredible boxer--and heavily backed to win.
!
an important fight like this, a slight Argued Heatedly
weakness due to underweight meant everything.
were
in
Miraculous Recovery!
do
the
About forty minutes after Gans had entered that ring, Walcott was seen
tler, tall as Carnera, but as thin as a coming up the aisle. Joe, who wasn't This complete confusion lasted for ghost. However, he had a poem of a much more than five feet in height, about a minute, by which time the left hand, which he unleashed with was grinning from ear to ear. While round was over and the interval due, piston force. Few fighters could get behind him came Kelly, tall and lanky, and the referee had been too dumb- away from this left glove when Kelly apparently very much concerned over struck to finish the count. The other had a mind to use it. Unfortunately, Walcott had experienced great diffi- his man having kept the crowd wait- seconds in Britt's corner dragged Britt he preferred fighting to boxing, which culty in making the weight for this ing so long
back, and went to work on him, fever- was fatal. contest, which was one of the most im- They were greeted with ironic cheers ishly bringing him back to his senses. In a fight with a tough, slugging portant of his career, and he had been and boos, and Gans' manager, Al Her- Officials had carried Kelly out of the negro named Mul McDonald, Spider forced to train himself down well be- ford, looked at Kelly with a threaten- ring, where ho staged a miraculous re- died a thousand deaths in the corner. low his natural fighting poundage. ing scowl as he came over to the cor- covery.
! In fact he was well Toothpick insisted on swapping pun- Kelly knew this beforehand, and realis- ner to examine Walcott's hands. He enough to attend to Britt for the rest ches with the negro, despite Spider's
of the fight, ed that his charge would touch gloves took one glance, and let out a roar
hysterical admonitions. At last, when Furthermore, Jimmy well out-point- Toothpick had been floored three times, with Gans at a great disadvantage. In
ed Fitzgerald, which was all Spider Spider could stand it no longer. When wanted, even though he had to
a the bell clanged, he leaped on to the to "Look at this!" he screamed to the little explaining officials after stool and waited for his fighter to re-
1 The preliminaries
over, and referee. "Its over an inch thick." He wards.
turn. Even then, he scarcely reached Then there was the time Spider him. He grabbed the reckless warrior Gans marched towards the ring sur- pointed to the tape wound around Wal-
handled Frank Rafael, who was the by the hair, and, cocking his right fist, rounded by seconds, trainers, and sup- cott's knuckles.
on Kelly argued heatedly that the tape sworn enemy of George Herberts, an smashed him solidly the nose, porters. He climbed into the ring, and
came shouting: sat in his corner in his dressing-gown, was all right, but after about five min- other classy lightweight, They
their utes he agreed to take some off. Then together in a needle' fight, each an- "You big stiff! You listen to me waiting. The crowd exhausted preliminary cheers, and waited for there was another inspection, and Her- xious to give vent-to-their-bitter en- and do what I say after this!-- Walcott. Five minutes later he. ap- ford roared even louder and more an- mity.
The startled Toothpick came to heel The house was packed for the con- at once, and boxed out a clear points peared with his entourage. More cheer- grily than before. Spider had merely
test, and from the first gong the pair victory. But it was certainly an ori- ing. Then Spider Kelly gabbled some- taken off a couple of feet. thing unintelligible to the officials, Altogether, the fight was over an leapt ferociously at each other, ham- ginal form of seconding.
Of course Spider Kelly could not get seized Walcott by the arm, and rushed hour late in starting! And Gans had mering away, reeling across the ring him back the way they had come, to sat in miserable apprehension all this with defence and science thrown over away with such stunts these days. He time. And a fighter who is trained board. It was a jungle clash, and the belonged to a bye-gone era, to a more the dressing-room.
But he was certainly down too much can take on a lot of pace was so terrific that by the ninth colourful day.
had practically one of the shrewdest and most original weight and strength in an hour-which round both warriors is precisely what had happened to slugged themselves silly! Both had characters the boxing game has ever Walcott!
hit the canvas a dozen times; both seen. Walcott certainly. needed this were cut, bruised and bleeding. Arm
(COPYRIGHT) strength for the twenty rounds of tor- weary and rubber-legged, they flailed To-morrow The General Of The Tank
. But,
Corps. nadie milling that followed.
The spectators settled down patient- ly for another short wait. Five, ten, fifteen minutes avent by.
Plainly Nervous
Gans shuffled his feet and was plain- ly nervous. So was his manager, who
Racing
(Continued from Page 23)
to away.
by Mr. Proulx, it won the Boa Vista win without being seriously challeng-, HORSE SHOW Handicap (from the two mile post dis-ed. tance).
Courting Eve, after failing at the
Desert Star (Mr. S. W. Pan) won Annual Meeting and running unplac- Italian
the Hay and Corn Stakes, which was ed subsequently, came into prominence
a sprint affair, while Double Chance with a grand performance › when
the Ad- (Mr. Raymond) won the Taiwan Bay won
re
it
Brisbane Spring Handicap Success
Handicap (First Section) over six over 14 miles at the Fourth Extra furlongs, and Tribute carried off the Meeting. Taiwan Bay Handicap (Second
Sec-
On this occasion Strathroy returned
tion) also over six furlongs, with to the racing arena after a long ab London, To-day. At the Inter-
In the Taimoshan Handicap, vancing Time took the lead and mained there right up to the end, while in the Lama Handicap over 144 miles, although carrying 163 lbs. it took the lead and remained there to the end.
Sylvandale won the Shatin Handi- cap (1st section) over six furlongs as
Confusion Bay did not make an athe Lantao Handicap (One Mile) at pearance at the Annual Meeting, and the next meeting with Mr. Chao up to it was not until the Fifth Extra Meet-give an Amah Sydnicate the handsome ing that it returned to the track.
Carrying 168 lbs, with Mr. Black prize of $88,848.20 in the mammoth $1
a result of Dekko being disqualified. Bix furlongs, for crossing, but won cap (one mile) at the Fifth Extra
up, it won the Whitsun Plate over 1 miles to reveal its true form, and it will be interesting to see how well it will run against Rose Elect when they meet.
Old Subscription Griffins
Meeting.
Mr. Tao up.
sence, but found Courting Eve too national Horse Show, Lieut. Col. Dokko, with Mr. P. Y. T. Wei up, great a problem to tackle. Courting Alessandro Bettoni, of Italy, riding was disqualified after winning the Eve went on to win the Bondi Handi
the 14-year-old chestnut gelding Shatin Handicap (First Section) over
Adigrat, won the King George V. King's Privilege (Mr: Needa) won Gold Challenge Cup after a jump the Moonie Ponds Handicap (one off with Capt. Bizard, of France, mile) and Derby Day (Mr. Pih) car riding the 10-year-old black gelding ried off the Calliope Handicap, but it Honduras with which he won the failed badly when it was defeated by Tornado Star (Mr. S. W. Pan up) at cup two years ago. the Sixth Extra Meeting.
Sweep.
Old Australian Ponies Quite the best and most thrilling finishes of the various meetings were furnished by Australian ponies of the old brigade. Since changing to the ownership of Mrs. J. H. Taggart, Lan- cashire Chips has been performing re- With some of the old stalwarts gra- markably well, having been placed on dually fading away, races in which quite a few occasions. It capped these old subscription griffins figured with performances by winning the Albury success were few and far between. The Handicap "(one mile), beating Lucky best performance came from Fel Ying. Lad.
On the first day of the, Second Ex-In this race Mr. P. Y. T. Wel han- tra Meeting, this pony failed to secure dled his mount with fine Judgment, place, but on the second day, ridden keeping in, front most of the time to
:
Discovery Bay, ridden by Mr. S. L Yuen, paid out the biggest win divi dend of the. Extra Meetings. In the Cabramatta Handicap, Discovery Bay took the lead immediately on the rise of the gate and was never overhaul. ed, despite a great effort of Mr. T. Y! Woo on a Great Time. Bay's win paid out $434.80.
Capt. W. F. Butler, riding the 10-year-old chestnut mare
Big Sweep was the best English_com- petitor with four faults. Reuter,
win.
Criffel (Mr. Needa) won the Char- Discoveryters Towers Handicap.
Ridden by Mr. S. W. Tang, Perfect Day scored a surprise win in the St. Kilda Handicap, which was run on a rainy day, and this paid $113.50 for a
After remaining in the background for some time, Annabella, with Mr. Raymond up won the Manly Handi cap (one mile) beating a Great Time over the last length.