BOXING.

Gisborne Times, Volume LXX, Issue 11132, 15 February 1930, Page 11

BOXING.

... qATNERA v. DIF-NER ■Discussing the contest, -hetwo " Italian giant. Primo (airnma, and

the German, Prana Dioner, E. B. Oshorn in the “Morning Post” writes: arnera, who came on with his araia e smile, looked none the worse tor his second fight with Striding: hranz Diener, on the other hand, uus manifestly much the uorse lor the wcar-and-tear of much fighting since: he took that te-rJllo pounding 10111 Scott iu Gorlin three years ago. Once more we saw the Camera of the gymnasium, and Diener, who has bad sight, was hit with everything except the Albert Memorial and an income-tax demand. It was a pathetic sight to see him peering at his opponent, and anon fighting back with punches which, unfortunately, as a rule, only punctuated the atmosphere. H, is impossible to describe such a contest iu detail. Diener took his punishment valiantly and I am not surprised that lie has the reputation in America of being the gamest boxer that ever put a glove on. !3v tho end of the fourth round everybody was tired of seeing a plucky fellow massacred, and the referee, Mat Wells, who now has a I patriarchal air, was implored to stop the fight. Ho did so a little later on, and Diener got an ovation for his courage. “Good thing tho Kaiser hadn’t got a million soldiers like him,” was the appropriate comment of a ringsido expert. If Camera, had a real punch he would have had the German out at least sixteen times! In point of fact, he never once put him down. Tho truth is that Camera is muscle-bound; his right comes out too slow and stiff to he really harmful. He should be trained to specialise on short ones inside, launching them on a shift so as to have the weight of his body swinging behind them. He will never, I am conduced. have a chance against a firstclass 14-stone man with a real punch.

“SMALL” MEN WHO BEAT GIANTS. BIG MEN NOT INVINCIBLE. A tremendous fuss has been made at Home and abroad about the great overgrown giant. Prnuo Camera. So far lie lias bad considerable success, but there is still time for some comparatively little fellow to topple him over. In the past grants have been no more invulnerable than other men. In 1733 James Fig matched a giant gondolier, who had been discovered by an English nobleman in Venice, with a man named Bob Whitaker. With the first blow of iho match the gondolier knocked Whitaker out of the ring, but the Englishman climbed back and with a terrific right-hand punch to the body ended the contest. The famous Bob Fitzsimmos knocked out a 20-stoner named Horsefield, and Boh was giving him over eight stone in weight. Early in the last century Isaac Perrins, weghing 17st, was beaten by T. Johnson, who scaled list. Later, Bendigo. 12st. outed Ben Caunt, 17st, and the list “Tipton Slasher” (William Perry) defeated an American named Freeman, whci was 6ft lOin in height and 23st in weight.

... PRIZE-RING DAYS. HIGHEST STAKE £2OO. OLD ENGLISH CONTESTS. In the days of the prize ring in England when pugilists fougld with bare knuckles, the highest slake- in the contests for the heavy-weight championship of England was only £2OO a-side; and the smaller fry in the prize ring were content to batter one another for hours for £25 a-side. The last big prize fight in England was he ween Tom Sayers, the English champion, and the young American giant, J.. O Heenan, the “Benicia Bov.” It was for £2OO a-side, and took place at Earn borough in JSBO. ft lasted 37 rounds and ended in a draw. Heonau, who was six feet two inches in height, and weighed list., had great physical advantages over his opponent, who was five feet eight indies in height and weighed lOst 10 lbs. Sayers had a tendon in his right arm broken in the fourth round, and though tho arm was useless for the remainder of the fight, he would not give in. In the final round lieenan had liis opponent’s neck pressed against tho ropes, and as Sayers’s supporters thought lie was being strangled, they cut the rope. Tbe police appeared on the scene, and as prize fights were then illegal, the fight was not resumed. (Each claimed a victory, and the supporters of the rivals presented each of them with a .championship; belt. Sayers’s supporters raised a sum of £3OOO for him, and ho was paid tho interest on this amount on condition that he never entered the prize ring again. He died of consumption five years after his fight with, Heenan, and Vas mourned throughout England. The illustrated papers published pictures of his empty chair at Ids favorite tavern at Camden Town, a northern suburb of London. They also published panorama, views of his funeral procession, which included a long string of carriages, hansom cabs and carts. Among them was the champion’s pony phaeton, in which Id's favorite mastiff sat in solitary state. In the days of the prize ring fights lasted much longer than they do in modern times, though rounds were shorter. The fight between William Thompson (“Bendigo”) and C. Langham lasted 92 rounds, mid that between .Thompson and William Looey 99 rounds. A round ended when a ‘ raa n was knocked down, but if a man went down in order to avoid punishment he ran the risk of having the victory awarded to his opponent, by xfche - referee. : I AI though the snp-

porters of the prize ring included men of noble birth and distinction, brutalities of all kinds were tolerated. It was the custom to fall on top of a man when he was down, so as to injure him, and even to- attempt to gouge out his eyes. “Gentleman” Jackson, who was the champion of England from 1795 to ISOO, introduced new tactics in his fight with the Jewish pugilist , Daniel Mendoza, which took place at Hornchurch, Essex, ou loth April, 1795. In those days pugilists wore their hair long, and “Gentleman” Jackson belied his nickname by holding Mendoza by the hair with one band and punching him with the other. The referee decided that this method of lighting was within tho rules of the game, but since then pugilists have worn their hair short.

BYRUN AND “GENTLEMAN” JACKSON.

“Gentleman” Jackson established a boxing saloon in Bond Street, London (which is now the most fashionable shopping quarter in Londm, with the most expensive shops in the world), and his saloon was always crowded with men of birth and breeding, for iu those days young scions o! nobility practised tho art of soildefence, and worshipped at tho shrines of the champions. Byron, who was then a young man, was in the habit of driving about in public with Jackson, and when taken to task by bis college tutor tor bis association with a pugilist he said that Jackson’s manners were “infinitely superior to those of follows of the collogo whom I meet at the high table.” Tom Moore lias left on record in liis “Memoirs” that Jackson made more than £IO9O a year by teaching sparring to the young bloods of the day. Prize fights were fought in the open, the ring being roped off- There was a line down the centre, at which each man stood facing the other at the beginning of each round. When a man was no longer able to “too the mark” the fight was over. Owing to the public outcry at the brutality of many of the prize fights they were made illegal, hut fights continued to take place. 'Pile spots selected for a match was kept a secret; nevertheless thousands of spectators managed to get possession of the secret and to be present. Others entrusted themselves to railway companies, who dispatched trains under sealed orders to the appointed place of meeting. As a. matter of fact, 'the police made very little, effort to suppress prize fights, and they wore continued for many years after they were illegal. NOTES AND NEWS. Although there are approximately 50 boxing asociations in New Zealand only 17 Aye re active last year, Taranaki with 11 matches heading the list. Wellington and Auckland being second with nine each.