BOXING

Dominion, Volume 3, Issue 781, 2 April 1910, Page 14

BOXING

(By Mebccbt.l

The "Referee's" American correspondent. forwards in his latest budget full particulars of the Battling. NelsonAd. Wolgast fight for the light-weight championship of the world, which, it w*s caWod somo time ago, was won by the latter in the fortieth round. Three things soem to stand up prominently. First, that the display of gamenoss by Nelson was . the greatest. over seen in the ring; second, tha't Wolgast proved himself to be a wonderfully clever, cool and heady boxer; third,.that it was the dirtiest fight on record in America, which is saying a, great ■ As to Nelson's gameness, . Mr. Naughton writes:— ' . • .\ Nekon never received suoti a;battering in his life, and at that he was never knocked down. As a matter of Tact; the extent of his. powers of endurance is still a thing to be guessed at. Smith simply interfered because he feared; a fatality. ' ' ._ : , The degree of punishment which Nelsbn can ; assimilate is little . short ol marvellous. '.In 'yesterday's -fight his. face was battered put of Vail' semblance to a human countenance,! and his stomach and rife, bore great, strawberry splotches where Wolgasi's fists had stung him. Even when he was. too weak to raise a hand, Nelson fought on with the gameness .of a bulldog. He had lost all sense of distance and direction, and could only fling out his arms in a feeble way. Hβ was a more punch-ing-bag for waspish Wolgast in the last, -dozen rounds of the fight. ' The referee waa ill at ease in several of the rounds before the finish. . He -watched Nekon. closely, especially when the, champion, straightened up wearily .after leaning across the ropes once oi twice. Smith moved towards him then, seemingly bent on stopping the unequal contest. Smith led Nelson to his corner at the end of the thirty-third ronnd, and asked him to give up. . Nelson refused, and in the following round, when the "Battler" was being smashed in a merciless manner, Smith stepped in and decided the contest in favour of Wolgast.

Nelson/ wanted to continue fighting, even though too far gone to raise an arm. Wolgast only laughed at him, and Nelson's seconds coaxed him away to his corner. ~'.:... I ;.,, In the thirty-fourth round it seemed to me that Nelson was dead on his feet. He had lost the power to hit with cither certainty or force, and the wonder was he did not sprawl upon the floor. When other battles have ceased to be talked about, Nelson's exhibition yesterday will be recalled as the greatest display of gameness the ring has known. Of Wolgast, it must be said that ho fought a remarkably "heady" fight. Hβ was as cool as an iceberg at every stage of the journey, and he never overlooked a chance. He certainly held up his end in the butting matches,' and there was so much of that thing that the honours '— -or dishonours—seemed equally divided. There was no one brave enough to say that either.,man offended more than his Ting-fellow. ; ■ ■ '.'■".

For once the "Battler"' appears to have met some one with a harder head than; himself. ~ ...■V^■■ People-in this.part :of,the.world' must be siokJ-Tinto:',death of .news of the latest deTClopments..'qf"tJie debating and oratoriealVcpiiiest.. betweea. Jeffries and Johnson, 1 but it may be interesting to note that on His return-' to San Francisco from his trip abroad Jeffries surprised the cognoscenti by his improved appearance. Already he has got down to within a few pounds of his old-time fighting weight,- appears/ in the very best of health, as active as in his palmy days, and <a 'more' finished 'boxer. This is about all we can hope to know before the contest which will decide the doubtful ; his vitality and endurance,, have been by his lengthy,'absence from the ring.' V At the Sydney. Stadium, on March 16, Jack M'Gowan, erstwhile feather-weight of Australia,.found out what many another found out beforo him—that old age is the biggest handicap a boxer can carry. ■ Sid. Sullivan pasted him throughout the whole of a twenty-rounds ■ journoy, ...and, but .for Sullivan's forbearance M'Gowan must.. '■■ have, been ■badly punished.',.;':..;,:•. ■ " ';..■',,'.