1906-04-05 Sam Langford W-PTS15 Joe Jeannette [Pythian Rink, Chelsea, MA, USA]

1906-04-06 The Boston Journal (Boston, MA) (page 11)

LANGFORD WINNER OVER JEANNETTE
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Sam Won From Bronze-Colored Giant at Lincoln Club--Gaines Knocked Out Geary.
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Sam Langford of Cambridge conceded twenty or more pounds to big Joe Jeannette, and gave the bronze-colored negro heavyweight a good beating. The bout was held at the Pythian rink, Chelsea, last night, and attracted less than 1000 spectators. It was not much of a fight, as it was Langford all the way, although at one spell he was very dangerous and had the jesting middleweight wobbly. Sam displayed a great inclination to send over the right wallop for a knock-out, but his left stab was his best punch.

Jeannette is a handsomely built fellow and weighed in the neighbourhood of 185 pounds. He is practically a novice at fighting and does not know how to hit or how to guard. Had he rushed in to Langford and played hard for the abdomen he would have stood a good chance, but instead he played on the defensive practically all the time. Langford was very fast and very quick at infighting, a left wallop being brought up to the chin and jaw whenever they came to close quarters. Langford also played a tattoo whenever he could on Joe's ribs and kidneys, and these punches hurt terribly, for the steam was taken out of Joe by these attacks.

Never in Danger.

There was no evidences of foul fighting, but the referee, Jack Sheehan, worked hard separating the men. While Jeannette transgressed the rules a great deal, yet Sam was also to blame on more than one occasion. Jeannette went down three times but never was in danger of a real knockout. The first time in the fifth round he was caught on the back of the neck and was off his balance when he was struck. The other time he was floored with a left to the nose but had his wits about him all the time.

There was a good deal of betting. Langford was the choice of all the wise fellows but there was a great deal of Jeannette money in sight.

The talent realized that Langford was out of condition when he fought Jeannette at Lawrence on Christmas day and, putting that in conjunction with the fact that Sam defeated Larry Temple, doped him out a sure winner. In the fifth round it looked as if Jeannette would not stay the distance, and his manager, George Armstrong, was like a hen on a hot griddle, dancing around in his corner with a sponge on his hand ready to throw the water on his yellow boy.

Langford was not trained to the minute and his flesh was just a bit loose. That was from the training plan to put on weight to cope with Jeannette in the clinching and hugging.

Still it worked disadvantageously for the 'Ho Ho' man, for he had "bellows to mend" in the thirteenth round.

The first and second rounds were really devoid of features. Langford worked his right punch on to Joe's kidneys at every clinch, and a left hook or jolt for the jaw whenever he could steal it up. Jeannette preferred long range attacks and tried to land several rights on Sam's jaw, working them from the side down at his hip. Langford's straight left was always in evidence, and his feinting to get Joe puzzled did not avail. Joe was as strong as a bull at the opening and did not try to guard against the body attacks.

Jerry Gaines added another knockout to his long list, Joe Geary of the South End falling a victim to his right in six rounds. It was a grand fight. Geary fought well and gave Jerry a grand argument. The preliminary was between Young Nelson of Lawrence and Charley Dwyer, the latter winning.


1906-04-06 The Evening Tribune (Providence, RI) (page 17)

LANGFORD WINS FROM JEANNETTE AFTER 15 ROUNDS.
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Battle at Chelsea Last Evening Was Hot One, Although Langford Was Outweighed Considerably. -- Several Times Latter Was in Bad Way But Came Back Strong.

Chelsea, Mass., April 6.--After 15 rounds of hard, fast fighting, Sam Langford of Cambridge was awarded the decision over Joe Jeannette of New Jersey, by Referee Jack Sheehan, at the Lincoln Club last night. In spite of the fact that Jeannette had once whipped Langford, and that he had many pounds the better of the weight last night, the local colored man performed most creditably against him, and at times had the Jerseyite weak and groggy and hanging on. Though Langford won by a good margin, he had no easy time, for at times the big New Jersey man whaled him pretty hard. Several times during the battle it looked as though Jeannette would be knocked out, especially in the fifth and ninth rounds. In these rounds Langford showed brilliantly, but Jeannette's powers of taking punishment pulled him through each time, and he invariably came back fresh as a daisy in the next rounds and fought fast and hard.

For the first three rounds the fighting was pretty nearly even, though it might be accredited to Langford on a pinch. The New Jersey man set the pace, getting to Langford hard and often. At the same time Langford hammered in some terrific body punches and when in clinches banged Jeannette pretty hard on the kidneys. In this way he appeared to hammer Jeannette down gradually until the fifth round, when he got to the visitor mighty hard, and at one time Jeannette went to the mat, partly from the effects of a punch and partly through slipping. However, Jeannette was up quickly enough and at it. In the next round Langford tried to finish the bout, and, though he fought hard and fast, Jeannette fought him back. Again in the seventh round Langford whipped a clean left hook to Jeannette's jaw, and the latter took the count.

Then it was terrific fighting for the remainder of the contest. Jeannette at times appeared to grow stronger as the contest progressed and, after being pretty well punched in the eighth round, he sent Langford to his corner at the end of the ninth round a bit weak. From the ninth to the end of the fifteenth round the pair tried hard to stop each other and though Langford had Jeannette a bit to the bad at times, he was not able to put over the knock-out punch. The pair finished the battle tired from the fast pace and tremendous punching that they had been through, the decision going rightfully to Langford, who won by a long margin, in a very fine contest.

Preceding this bout was one scheduled for eight rounds between Jerry Gaines and Joe Gerry the ex-am amateur. The pair put up a slashing contest for six rounds, during which each seemed to at times have the advantage, Gaines several times looking as though he was all but out. However, in the sixth round Gaines landed a right uppercut flush to Gerry's jaw, and the latter was down and out.

In the first preliminary Charles Dwyer, a fat boy from Cambridge, won the decision over Young Nelson of Lawrence, a much lighter chap in a six-round bout.


1906-04-06 The Evening World (New York, NY) (page 13)

LANGFORD SCORES ANOTHER VICTORY
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(Special to The Evening World.)

BOSTON, April 6.--Sam Langford was awarded the decision over Joe Jeannette after fifteen rounds of hard fighting at the Lincoln A. C., Chelsea, last night. The big Jerseyite had thirty pounds the best of the weights and a regular boarding-horse reach. Langford was as persistent as a mosquito, however, and kept boring in. He set a terrible pace for the big fellow, and early in the seventh, with a series of body blows followed by a terrific smash on the jaw, sent his man to the floor.