BOXING.

Dominion, Volume 3, Issue 828, 28 May 1910, Page 12

BOXING.

THE BISK OF THE GAME.

REMARKS BY A CORONER. (Br MmcoKx.J The recent boxing fatality has been very fully ventilated by' tho Sydney Press. Tho result has been that tho sport and all concerned with this particular happening have emerged exonerated. Tho accident was a regrettable ono, but one that must remain always possible in a physical contest. At the same time the sad occurrence has emphasised how important it is that those in charge of such contests should, as far as possible, take all steps to ensure that the possibility of fatal termination is reduced to its lowest terms.

This was very capably expressed by the coroner at the inquest, whose remarks were so. much to the point that they are reproduced in full. They ran as follows:—"It is quite evident that tho deceased was not in a fit state of health to enter upon a contest of this character, and I am of opinion that all candidates should be medically examined before entering the ring. The necossity for such examination is, I think, emphasised by the well-known fact that continued severe athletic exercises are almost certain to in somo cases injuriously affect the heart and blood vessels. Further, I think that the danger to tho 'contestants who may fall, or be knocked clown, should bo minimised by increasing tho thickness of tho felt or other padding placed under tho linoleum within the ring at the Gaiety Theatre and of other" places where such exhibitions take place. Although the floor of tho ring at the Gaiety Theatre has been prepared so that it is much softer than bare linoleum or boards would be; the fall of the deceased upon the back of bis head' was sufficient to rupture a blood vessel of the brain, causing death. Tho blow which caused the fall was not, in my opinion, a heavy one, lint I do. not place much reliance upon statements made that it was more of a push than a blow. Theatres and Public Halls Act of 1[)08 does not appear to give the Minister power to mako regulations governing these contests, and if this bo so, it may be deemed wise to give the Chief Secretary such powers by an amending Act. I intend to invite tho attention of the Government to the matter, in the hope that somo such stops may be taken. In the meantime, perhaps, the club, tho members of which do not appear to carry on these exhibitions for profit, may he disposed to act upon suggestions. After con r mooring the evidence as well as a number of authorities, I have como to tho decision that tho boxing contest at which tho unfortunate man met his injuries was a lawful sport, and therefore my decision is that Edward Sloane Cleburne accidentally met his death as the result of engaging in an amateur boxing competition held at the Gaictv Athletic Club on May 10 last."

Matters In Which Wo Lead. Thero has been a tendency "on the other sidn" to sneer at what there has been clubbed the "grandmotherly, legislation'' under which boxing .contests are controlled in the Dominion —legislation ivlncli insists upon the very precautious (hat flip Sydney coroner lias deemed to bo so necessary, but these remarks and other views which have since been published in the Australian papers go to show that New. Zealand has only done the right and proper thing in legislating in tiiis direction. The Sydney "I'ulletin" takes a very decided stand on tho question, and al-

though its contribution only emphasises the views expressed in this column at the time of the recent Murphy fatality in America they will bear quoting. Says tho "Bulletin" scribe:—"We never got cables when a jockey—unless it is a jockey of preeminence—gets killed in England, and wo don't hear of it when a footballer is smashed to bits in the U.S.A. It happens so often that nobody thinks much about it; and no ono dreams of advocating tho suppression of horse-racing, in which hundreds of boys risk their lives weekly to make an exciting gamble for tho fatuous punters. What is required is not tho abolition of boxing, but a more rigid inspection by medical men of those who enter the ring. Especially in the case of amatours. Only ono amateur in a dozen is properly fit; scoreß of them c ii '!P 0!1 tlle °° n dition acquired bv football, swimming, and other regular outdoor sports to fit them for a contest in the ring. Also, it should bo seen to that the floors whereon amateurs meet are properly padded., This is not so necessary in the case of professional mills—the professional is a past-master in Uib art of avoiding damage to his precious image. Writer, as a matter w business, has been attending professional mills in Sydney for about 10 y ? a^ s „S°!T- and > Dal ™g the smashing of M'Coll by Tim Murphy at the gaiety, never yet saw the punishment l it™? not slle « rful 'y have taken for naif the money—not even excepting -nat handed out to Noah Brusso by one named Johnson."

It is worthy of remark before leaving t! " s .sadsubject that the clergyman who omciated at the graveside referred to poor Cleburne's death as "a pure accident."

Amusing: Arnst With the Cloves. The following is taken from a recent Sydney "Sun":—About the most interesting and amusing feature of the Joe Donnelly benefit concert last night was a four-round spar between Dick world's sculling champion, and K. L. ( Snowy") Baker, the well-known all-round athlete. Arnst, stripped to the waist, showed up, brown as a berry, contrasting strongly with the white limbs of the gymnasium-trained Baker, those of the ainlience, however, who were looking for "skin and hair"' rare greatly disappointed, as the bout, was a highly proper and lady-like affair right through. Certainly, Arnst evinced a strong predilection for getting his face in the way of Baker's left hooks, upporcuts, straight lefts, etc., but these, or course, were only feather-weights. i>ick carried the long, strong swine which he employs when sculling into bis boxing, except that the said swings were not strong. Neither did they touch the dancing, prancing "Snowv." J-ney merely clove the atmosphere, while the sculler was fairly "eating" his opponent's lefts, which were, however very light and digestible. A roar -of laughter greeted the decision, "A dead neat!" \

Antagonists that Lost No Time. The Melbourne "Leader" waxes enthusiastic about the recent contest be-tween-Frank Thome, 9st. 2£lb., and the South African, Arthur Douglas, use. 41b., decided at the Cyclorama. The report states: The pace at the outset was set at a record gait, and it was maintained right through the contest at a smashing clip. No time was cut to waste in finessing for openings, and every second recorded a hit. At times tho boxers stood up toe to toe, and tore away at each other with both hands, while the crowd which filled the building to the doors, worked up to the utmost enthusiasm, stood up and cheered the contestants on. In the first round, in a rally fought too fast for anyone to take notice of detail, Douglas, in a clinch of infighting, jolted in a shore snappy right that dropped I horn to the boards. The fallen man wisely took 9sec, but then jumped straight,, into the fray with both hands rail of mischief, hitting right and left. From this onward there was very little to choose between tho men. Douglas scored in the infighting, and invariably in the break away, while Thorn made his points in the lead with a left drive. He also frequently reached Douglas's .face with his left overhand chop (a peculiar, but inefficient blow, which he seems to have copyrighted). With this he must have smitten his opponent in the face scores of times; yet the South' African left the ring with his graven "chart" calm and undisturbed. Had Thorn possessed a solid right upporcut in his offensive repertoire, he would probably have chopped an inch or two off the Boer's tongue, for Douglas almost always tries to reach his own ear with that organ when he means mischief. In the fifth round Thorn's left eye became conspicuous, owing to the repeated prods of Douglas's right, and other injuries of inferior importance were scattered over the Victorian's face. Douglas, on the other hand, whose frame is from tho waist up just a mass of hard, bulging muscle, and whose face is granite, was absolutely impervious, and he charged into each round fresh as a daisy, and so did his antagonist. Nothing happened further till tho last round, which was a hurricane in speed, but harmless as far as effect was concerned. Both men had made tremendous efforts to score a knock out; but so perfect was .their condition that neither was any the worse. They could have fought on! all night. The decision of the referee was given to Douglas, and undoubtedly he had won on points.

Chrlstchurch Events. The Cbristchurch Sports Club started off upon its present season on the night of last Wednesday week, with' a programme of three amateur bouts and a professional contest for the "heavy" championship of New Zealand. Mr. R. Cooke, the ex-New Zealand representative forward, was referee. The big match is described in tho "Weokly Press" thus:—

"Heavy-weight Professional Championship (fifteen rounds).—ln /this contest E. J. Pictou (Christchurch) met C. Herbert (Oamaru, late of Australia). The local man scaled 13st., while Herbert drew only list, olb. The. contest was a remarkably even one. Herbert was taller and more active than his opponent, and was also cleverer as a boxer. He piled up tho points rapidly in the first five rounds, and encountered his first difficulty in the next round, when Picton scored in some hard, close fighting. The succeeding rounds up to and including the eleventh were very even, with tho balance inclining towards Herbert. In the twelfth the Oamaru man got a bit groggy, but he recovered and made a fine finish. Tho next three rounds were in favour of Picton, who bustled his opponent frequently, Herbert taking refuge in clinching. The judge awarded a draw, and the decision got a mixed reception by the audience." The other results were:—'Welter Novice, four entrants. —J. Thompson, lOst. 711b., beat 31. Anderson, lOst. 7JIb., in tho final on points. Middle-weight— H. Marquet, list. 31b., beat L. Cade, list. 31b., after a close contest in which an extra round was necessary before tho men could be separated. Theso were tho only starters. Heavy-weight.—o. fiaflin, 12st. 31b., beat T. Wrenn, 13st. 101b., easily on points. The only starters.

"And the Rain Descended." Tim Sydney Stadium was to have boon, closed until tho spring frnm May 18, with a final bout between "Kanji" Burns ami "Alike" -Williams. Doth men wore (rained to tho hour, and a Croat contest was looked for, but, unfortunately, the elements took a hand in tho game, to such purpose that proceedings were, postponed until the following Monday—too late for the mail. Somo surprise has been expressed locally at the clo6iue of the Stadium

for tho winter, boxing being looked upon hero as a winter sport. _ The explanation is that the great majority of the Stadium matches are deoided at night, and naturally the management look for somo degree of certainty in the weather conditions. Devitt's Intentions. "Gus" Devitt returned by tho Ulinuv roa last week, but, according to the ".Referee," ho has undertaken to return to Australia in response to a challenge from "Ted" Johns, whom to lately defeated in Brisbane. Johns has backing for a match at £25 aside, and the WeUingtouian has. promised to meet him two months hence if tha money is put up. The World's Event. The following cablegrams on tho world's championobip combat were received in Sydney recently:— New York. Tho proposed evangelistic crusade, aj an offset to what is styled by tha clergy "tho brutalising influence of the big fight," is taking form. The Revs. Half and Callaghan will visit San Francisco and hold revival meetings in that city as a counter-attraction, to tho Jeffries-Johnson fight. San Franoisco. It is believed that Eddie Graney will be appointed to referee the championship fight between Jeffries and Johnson. For many years—in fact,.for tho past quarter of a century—Graney has been, associated with boxing in the United States. He has been connected wit! many of the foremost fighters, and haj been attached to a number of the best known sporting clubs as official referee. Apart from that, he has acted as the third man in the ring in connection with the majority of latter-day big contests; and should the choice for the Johnson-Jeffries championship fall upon him there will be little grumbling among the sporting community c 3 America.

The Cuessers at Work. The "Referee" has a discursive lefcfcej from its American correspondent this week on the big contest, but when tha chaff therein is separated from the grain there is not mnch left, and what'' is left is not the freshest of grain either. Mostly it is a recapitulation of the statements that Jeffries is looking much older than his years warrant, but that his work is decidedly satisfactory to the experts. The Johnson end of the news consists mostly of rumour. The black, when the mail left, had not started his preparation—in fact it is_ alleged that he was very coy about doing so, so much so that the promoters—Messrs. Rickard and Gleason—had become anxious on the matter. Mr. Naughton says:—"Gleason went to work on Johnson, and extracted a promise that Jack would come here about the middle of. April. 'I don't want' a long spell of training,' argued Johnson; when Gleason got after him. 'If I went into camp and began working before May 1, I'd be stale before fighting time came, and I am not going to do it.' " I Jeffries and Johnson: What "Gate?"

As to the financial aspect, Mr. Naughton states that "Rickard is the most frankly enthusiastic of them all about the takings. I asked him the other day what'his lowest estimate .of the receipts was, and he replied, 'See here, I have a low estimate, but I don't know why I happen to have such a thing about me. My low estimate is 850,00'j dollars. My . high estimate is the capacity of the house, and I think we'll turn people away.'" The capacity of tho house, by the way, is 630,000 dollars, so. that if Richard's dream comes true a new world's record in the line of gate receipts will have been - established—one, in fact, that the promoters of tho universe will tilt at with poor success for the balance of time. •. '■'

Apparently there is every chance of the promoter's "low" estimate coming near the mark, as a cablegram from London dated May 14 stated that tho booking to that date amounted ta 230,000 dollars (about £46,000). Elliott-Russell. Australian feather champion. "Billy"' Elliott has been matched against "Joe" Russell, of Brisbano, for June 4. This looks like- easy money for Elliott, aa tho Queenslander has never done anything to prove himself as being anywhere near championship class. On Monday. "Freddy" Welsh, of England, and "I'acky" MacFarland, of ' America, are to decide their argument concerning the allocation of a purse of £1000 and the title .of light-weight champion of England, at the National Sporting Club, London.