VERSATILE MR. JOHNSON.

Dominion, Volume 2, Issue 401, 9 January 1909, Page 12

VERSATILE MR. JOHNSON.

CHAIiIJBMGES BTJRNS IN EVERT SPORH ART, ARCHAEOLOGY, AND -AEROPLANES. Jack Johnson,! the new Ji al £ : pieh,','seems, according fa the story- ha telle, tr. bo a manof, many part& . : •»• - \ Uebently, -at -ione of--the leading ..motoi . - ItSsi W■ , ;■ of his' abilities, in'.lines outside pugilistio.; en- , "I^ffief-'go' ;ia; ;- answer'i.tov'a -q'uesHon.Vr A, oontemp.toiu rbok sfiread overhis Countenance.; ,sooknere,fl9 Sued!'"l don't mind telttng you hat Burns is-absolutely -no goeA,., certainl^here,;^ .iiW $hv ~ he is looked upon; merely, na a. ..." tho man was a, mere child in my, hands on Boxing Day. I could havo beaten hinin two '-rounds.; but I -was -ma Merry mood, that day,.... and just gave hihr little.-bit by_little bit ®f . that 'in case he. fought V; f might .know - a wrinkle or two. Wasn t that ; ~ fr ''Bnras beat me!" oontinhed'the negro, as . : ' ■ he- lay took" with folded arms, in his niotor . ear 'Why, I could-beat Burns at any line of snortl We hfiar daily bulletins -about .Tommy. in his motor oar; how he.drove_fr.om- Medlow ■or went to National Park aiui otlifrpkces m mihhtes!' Bah!,' I-met Burns-the 'other day ori : the road_to Tom' Ugly s. I wafi to an -oia> rattletrap of :a car,^ for th< day None other swos availftVle, 6o L had . , ; take it.- Who Bhould:6pme un'behind us,bri , Mr. l'ommy on Ids auto. -Didn t I lougrhj ,'Shake her/up.' I-said'to;. my, v chauffeur. Bui.. . Tommy 'hung; oi\y and wtnt fast-inside a mile.. , . Then'-I- took-the . wheel,, and iff our. old buzz- ■. ... cart'didn't hum.-, I'm , not. champion, of the World;; In'-less-than,.five, mmutesj was along(tide' The" struggle .was short..l simply left . Toininy as if he'd been .w'altog,:;.and L. did so . 'by skilful' and superior, handling of the motor, ■afe the old crook'.l was .on was decidedly, slower

' "But' that ; is nbt the- only thing I canbeat Tommy- at," continued the; champion. .' ..'I can beat : him atv ahy' line' of •■sport, he chooses io : name; -I'will-' deposit:i2o that I- can wollop him as. easily as fid icycling, -, running, swimming,* :tennjs, .-baseball, golt. At bowls, -1 am an, adept,; and would . like a match oven -with, any local ohampion; but l ... need not dwell oi my. iwwers there,,;as -Tommy doesn't, even.; know, \vhat , bowls are.,. -As for / aoullin'g, I know a. littlo -bit there, too, and. i£ boxing. groM-s W-popular you. mav soon seo me .out' against" Diok-Arnst. . And; if I'M-, The'sunrays struck Johnson's golden stnile, ana illuminated the .whole, garage. .. . ' . : " I don't know whether Burns knows anyj. - thing' of Other, sports;' • . said; Johnson, '• only J, : feel 'Sydney ipeople about-Bnrns's: merits.that•,l-;want_ to show that I 'can :heat- him' at, anything. ; Tou , ask hini, will be play,mo, a, game, of .Uilliarfle, and take 30 in,the: ICO? ...Find.out if-he .will tacklo me on thel piano,, the guitar, the fiddly or the banjo, or even tne concertina. , i; . . . - • " What;. about chasing, chickens, or: was,-it .'rabbitsr" was asked. ' .. . ••• " Chickens," replied the negro with , a broad grin; " Wall, now 'I 'seo you are trying .to poke fun at . me. All .gentlemen of my, calibre are supposed 1 to .be fond .of chickens;.-but, say, .; thero's none of tho ohicken about lner You can say that. X am a better man than Burns, in any line of sport, and will back myself to - beat him in any. one mentioned. < ... ■ Johnson added that he intended .remaining Some -weeks ■ in Sydney/- before- visiting,; Met: bourne and Adelaide., !' X like this.,country, and do you know,''-he remarked, -.r spend most of mv spare time: m the -art-galleries, and the . miisoun.l.' Mv.vprincipal. hobby is arohaeology; When I visit yotir.musemu and seo the flumes - rous specimens of. prehistorio, man's art, your boomerangs of many. - varieties, your stone - axes from 'Tfltious States and the .many ex- , amples "of : Palaeolithic , and. Neolithic'- man's skill—l simply envy you. , We.'in; America have . our rude , stone' flint quartz implements, , but they do not show, anything like the same forethought 'or ' skill as yours.' Your central Australian natives must, have been men of geniur ; to have turned out such : artiatio and idea weapons, look'," ,he continued, f'you , .won't bo---lieve it.-I kliow; but I'm real interested in aeronautics. ■; I. have an idea of a new kind o?, iying lii&ehlfie,: whioh' will, turn out,.;l...think, t fine success. . It has got the;usual niotor-en-gine and planes,' and propeller,;, and all' that, but, in addition, possesses some innovations of my- own' invention that should make it fly bet, ter than some of tho machines now on tho market."—" Sydney Morning Herald."