1897-05-19 San Francisco Chronicle (San Francisco, CA) (page 8)
THREE TAME FIGHTS AND A PACKED HOUSE.
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WINNERS ALL FAVORITES.
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LEONARD FOUGHT LIKE A MUSEUM FREAK.
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Six Thousand People Saw Jeffries Punch Baker to a Knockout.
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Woodward's
Pavilion was crowded to the doors last night with an audience that
sizzled and sweltered, mostly in its shirt-sleeves, in the big,
barn-like structure, and watched three fights, none of which came up to
expectations. While the exhibition produced by the Olympic Club after a
great deal of careful preparation, was a semi-failure as far as the
quality of the contest was concerned, the arrangement of the ring, the
promptness with which the contests were started and the fairness of the
various announcements were all favorably commented upon. It was no fault
of the club that the men did not show up to much advantage.
The
danger of holding entertainments in which there is such popular interest
in a building like Woodward's Pavilion is becoming more apparent with
every recurrence of the scenes of last night. Nearly 6000 persons,
crowded almost to suffocation, were shut in among a small forest of
wooden timbers, with the sole entrance door just five feet wide and
approachable only after a rush down two tortuous flights of steps. Over
2000 among the spectators smoked cigars throughout the whole evening,
dropping lighted and glowing match stems on every part of the floor.
Some day there will be a cry of fire, a frantic scramble of maddened
men, and San Francisco will witness a scene of death and disaster
unparallelled by any previous calamity on the continent.
The
fights presented last evening were very commonplace. Two of the contests
were fought to the limit and the decision of the referee was
satisfactory in each case, Lawler being given the victory over Riley and
the negro being announced the winner of the Gans-Leonard mystery. While
considerable interest was felt in the latter affair, the third battle
of the night, that between Jim Jeffries and Henry Baker, was watched
more carefully than any of the others, principally because people wanted
to see whether, under Billy Delaney's constant tuition, the Los Angeles
giant had learned any science to add to his immense strength.
To
put it mildly, Jeffries' showing last night did not prove that he had
become surfeited with cleverness. His hitting powers showed up in great
shape, and some of the punches he got in on Baker were terribly heavy.
But from the first round to the ninth, when he ended the fight with a
swing like the blow of a sledgehammer on his opponent's jaw, he showed
no science whatever. Jeffries is still very young, and presumably able
to learn. He will have to apply himself a great deal better in the
future than he has done up to this time in studying and practicing
something of the scientific tactics of the ring if he ever hopes to
aspire to the championship of the world. Giving him every allowance for
height, weight, reach and strength, a clever middle-sized man could best
him to-morrow in a finish fight.
His fight with Baker was simply
an exhibition of hard hitting and ability on the part of both men to
take punishment. Jeffries being the harder puncher of the two won out in
the ninth round. The result was never really in doubt from the minute
the men faced each other. The end ought to have come in the eighth, but
the Californian, having downed his man twice and phased him both times
did not know enough to follow up his advantage. After a minute's
fighting in the ninth he managed to put his opponent over the ropes,
Spider Kelly throwing up the sponge rather than have Baker submitted to
any more punishment.
The Gans-Leonard contest had more features
than ten ordinary battles, and it was hard to decide just what kind of a
freak it really was. Some considered it was merely the meeting of two
tourists who came out here at the expense of the Olympic Club and the
general public to give a sparring and clinching exhibition, and Phil
Wand, the referee, gave enough credit to this view to declare all bets
off for fear the Olympic Club might be party to a fake.
Still
while Gans did not seem desirous of using much steam with his blows the
men put up a lively fight for twenty rounds and showed that they were in
pretty good training from the condition they were in at the finish.
Leonard looked as if he had just come from a French dinner at which he
had partaken freely of wine. Gans seemed to have some knowledge of this
as he was careful not to hit Leonard in his stomach with any force and
he failed to take advantage of fully a hundred opportunities to land on
Leonard's weak spot.
The fight was marked by a lot of foul work
on the part of the dude. He clinched, threw his weight on Gans, spat in
his face and called him vile names, just to show the spectators that
they were not the friends they were reputed to be. The negro acted in an
apparently square manner. The dude stood a great deal of punishment,
such as it was, and was remarkably agile, but he did not have any
ability to land on Gans. He got in but two good blows during the entire
twenty rounds. Gans was the aggressor nearly all the time, and was
clearly entitled to the decision he received, though it appeared he was
only trying to gain this instead of beating his opponent as badly as he
seemed able to do. Possibly they will divide the purse.
Apparently
Leonard did not try to get down to weight. When the two men stepped
into the ring Referee Wand announced that Gans had weighed in at 133
pounds, according to the agreement to meet at that weight, give or take
three pounds. He also said that Leonard refused to weigh in and
forfeited $100 to Gans. Gans then agreed to fight at catch weights. Wand
announced that on account of Leonard's overweight "and other reasons"
he would declare all bets off.
The men then went at it, Leonard
acting like a clown for several rounds. The fighters evidently had it in
for the referee for calling bets off, as Gans sent him reeling once
with a hot left--accidentally, of course--and Leonard, to make the thing
as much of a farce as possible, squared off at the referee later and
then stopped the fight to laugh and apologize. The contest needs no
description. Gans did not show his usual ability, but tapped Leonard as
he pleased. Leonard clinched, choked and wrestled. He was hissed
continually. Cries such as, "Be careful, Gans, you'll knock him out!"
and "Mike, you're a kinetscope fighter!" were frequent.
1897-05-19 The Examiner (San Francisco, CA) (page 8)
GANS, LAWLER AND BIG JEFFRIES.
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This Was the Roll of Honor at the Olympic Boxing Carnival In Woodward's Pavilion.
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Leonard Was Overweight, and "for Other Reasons" Bets Were Declared Off.
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HARD PUNCHES FOR THE BEAU.
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He Fought Fiercely at First, but Wilted--Heavyweight Baker Lasted Nine Rounds.
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Jeffries,
Gans and Lawler were the winners at the Olympic Club's boxing carnival
in Woodward's Pavilion last night. Two of the bouts lasted the limit
allowed by the law, or the Supervisors, and the other--the
Jeffries-Baker one--came to an end in the ninth round. It wasn't a
complete knock-out that Baker received, but it was so close to it that
there was general satisfaction when the seconds hauled the dizzy
Chicagoan to his corner and the referee uttered the magic words
"Jeffries wins."
The scene in and around the Pavilion had all the
earmarks of a boxing boom. The street in front of Woodward's was packed
for a full block either way, and long before 8 o'clock the club had to
stop selling tickets of admission. The arena was crowded to its utmost
capacity by 8:30 p. m., and the 2,500 sports who were jammed together in
the gallery took off their coats to a man and sat in their shirt
sleeves.
Quite a number of the two, three and five-dollar people
on the main floor followed suit. Being an Olympic Club affair, the
better class of patrons were not as shy or as shrinking as they
generally are at a fighting fiesta. Many of our most respected citizens
actually hollered to each other across the benches and exchanged
compliments in the shape of cigars and chewing gum. Of course, all the
hardshell sports were there, the ubiquitous, one-eyed Connolly having a
forward location, cheek by jowl with Plunger Purser and a knot of
turfites.
The opening bout was scheduled to begin at 8:30 and
precisely to the minute feather-weights Jim Lawler and Jim Riley entered
the ring. Master of Ceremonies Kennedy introduced Phil Wand of the
Olympic Club as referee, and in a short space of time the two saplings
were hard at it.
Lawler held the lead throughout the ten rounds
that were boxed. Riley did not seem to have the greatest confidence in
himself, and he received quite a drubbing from his apparently lighter
opponent.
Wand had no hesitation in deciding in favor of Lawler,
and the little fellows were barely out of the ring when Mike Leonard the
Beau Brummel of Fistdom hove in sight with his black curly hair and his
blue-barred bathrobe. Leonard had for attendants Martin Murphy, George
Green and Bogie O'Donnell. Gans, his brown shoulders covered by a short
sack coat, followed Leonard, his attendants being Al King, Joe Reay and
another.
Ward, who was to referee this contest, also made an
announcement that all bets were off for the reason that Leonard was
considered overweight and for "other reasons." It was no secret that the
"other reasons" were mainly that the club had discovered the men had
agreed to "split the purse" when the match was first made, and that the
Olympic management was determined that the betting public should be
protected.
In defense of the arrangement entered into by Gans and
Leonard, it was explained that most of the Eastern fighters "split the
purse" nowadays, and that they fight equally as hard even when the
emoluments are divided in this manner. There is no guarantee, however,
that a boxer will try his best or that he will stand up to be punched
when he knows that taking a hiding will not increase his share of the
plunder.
In any case, the disclosure in connection with Gans and
Leonard's method of making community property of the $1,750 purse had a
salutary effect. It put the boxers on their mettle and caused them to do
their level best. Even at that Leonard's level best was "no great
shakes," for an injured leg had prevented him from conditioning himself
properly, and he was flabby in flesh when he toed the scratch.
When
the gong sent them together Mike shaped as if bent on winning the
fling-up in short order. He made a right-hand pass at Gans' ribs, and
the colored boy drew away. Gans, after one trial, landed a left swing on
the ear, and the next moment Mike rushed him to the ropes and let go a
hard right-hander at the body. Gans was lucky in escaping the punch, for
it was a vicious one.
The pace warmed up, Gans aiming for the
jaw principally, while Leonard clinched a good deal and battered away at
the ribs before breaking. Gans tossed Mike's curls with a straight
left-hander on the forehead and Mike rushed again. He crowded Gans
against the ropes and with left forearm across the colored boy's neck
pounded him hard on the short ribs.
The crowd hooted Leonard,
thinking he was fighting unfairly, and the rough usage made Gans gasp.
He looked pretty well used up as he went to his corner.
During
the minute's rest the referee explained that the men had agreed to fight
with one arm free, the explanation being drawn from him by the way the
galleryites were hissing Leonard.
Leonard began rushing again
when the second round started and Gans, who was better prepared for the
onslaught, sidled away and avoided him. Once when Mike became entangled
with the ropes Gans jumped in and floored him with a smash on the neck
from behind. Leonard laughed as he sat on his haunches.
There
were repeated clinched during the round and Beau Brummel evinced a
desire to wrestle. He got Gans' head under his arm once and punched him
in the face and made himself a mark for disfavor again. Gans tried to
land a right on Leonard's jaw, but Mike kept his guard high and
protected his face.
Then Leonard rushed some more, crowding Gans
to the ropes and smashing him several times in the ribs. The body
punching distressed Gans, but he fought back fiercely whenever he could
disengage himself from the New Yorker's embrace. Gans toward the end
sent in a hard left swing on Leonard's chin and Mike threw himself off
his feet in attempting a right counter.
In the third round Gans
did better. He avoided Leonard's rushes and sent his left home several
times on the face. Mike's nose bled and he held on several times without
punching. Occasionally Gans backed him against the ropes, which were of
the elastic kind always used at Olympic Club entertainments. While
standing braced against the ropes Leonard presented a comical
appearance. He would not stir until Gans went in to strike at him. Then
he would push backward and aided by the rebound the rubber ropes gave
him, would pitch headlong at his opponent and force him across the ring.
Leonard resorted to this practice several times, but it did not always
work, for Gans side-stepped and swung his left on the chin and ear and
the Beau's chest began to heave and his eyes to roll.
Once when
Leonard braced himself against the ropes he was too weak to try his
catapult act and Gans cuffed him repeatedly around the face with both
hands. Finally Leonard raised his arms and guarded his face. Then Gans
smashed him in the stomach. Soon after that Gans floored him with a left
on the chin, and a few seconds later Mike slipped and fell a second
time. At the end of the round Leonard was puffing badly and his face was
bruised, while Gans seemed to be full of confidence.
From that
time on Leonard only fought briskly in spots. His hopes of whipping Gans
by heart punches began to fade and he seemed more intent on lasting the
full limit of the contest than anything else. He began to do a jig step
around the ring, and for a while the best Gans could do was to stand in
one spot and take a flying crack at the Beau as he passed. Leonard bled
a good deal from Gans' punches, and his distressed breathing made it
look as if the end might come in any round.
But Leonard is
certainly a glutton for punishment. He was badly rattled several times
by Gans' hard knocks. The colored fellow could not hit him on the
desired spot--the point of the jaw--and while the whacks Gans gave the
New Yorker on ear and temple made the recipient dizzy, it cannot be said
that Leonard was ever groggy as the term is understood by ring-goers.
In any case, Mike managed to last the twenty rounds, although there were
several times in the last few rounds when Gans appeared to have him
going.
The decision went to Gans.
The go between
heavy-weights Harry Baker of Chicago and Jim Jeffries of Los Angeles was
not very interesting. Baker did some pretty footwork for half a dozen
rounds, and once or twice managed to land left and right on the Los
Angelan when the latter least expected it.
Jeffries was puzzled
at first and inclined to be rough in the clinches, thereby getting
himself in bad grace with the crowd. Jeffries ducked marvelously well
for a big man, getting well under Baker's left swings and picking the
Chicagoan clear off his feet as he straightened up.
Most of
Baker's swings with either hand fell far short of the big fellow's head,
while Jeffries managed to place his own left on Baker's body time and
again.
Baker baffled the big fellow by dancing around the ring,
and the crowd cheered whenever the shorter man got away from one of the
orange belt slugger's well-meant swings.
Baker put in two solid
blows in the second round--a left and right on the face, but he did not
score so clean or so well at any time in the subsequent rounds.
In
the eighth round Jeffries floored Baker twice with left-hand swings on
the jaw. In the ninth round Baker was caught with a terrible left-hander
on the chin as he was rushing around. The blow dropped him. Soon after
he arose Jeffries pressed in and met him on the chin with a similar
blow. Baker's head went through between the ropes and he sank until the
lower rope held him up. His seconds dragged him out of this
uncomfortable position and led him to his corner. He was dazed and
helpless and Jeffries was awarded the decision.
1897-05-19 The San Francisco Call (San Francisco, CA) (page 4)
BAKER WAS EASY FOR JEFFRIES
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The Los Angeles Heavy-Weight Wins in Nine Rounds.
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Leonard Was in Very Poor Condition, but Lasted the Limit.
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A Big Crowd Saw the Olympic Club Entertainment--Lawler Beat Reilly.
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Fifteen
hundred ringsters crowded into Woodward's Pavilion to see the boxing
entertainment of the Olympic Club last evening and sweltered through
three more or less interesting bouts.
Two of the six participants
were in noticeably bad condition, Mike Leonard being so fat that the
hard fight with Joe Gans trained him down at least five pounds during
the twenty rounds.
Henry Baker, the Chicago heavy-weight, who was
scheduled to go twenty rounds with Jeffries, the Los Angeles giant, had
rolls of fat hanging over his belt as he sat in his corner, and he had
bellows to mend before the fight had been in progress fifteen minutes.
It
is this matter of allowing pugilists to enter the ring in bad condition
that puts boxing in bad repute. Every little while some pugilist is
killed as a result of undertraining, and then a cry goes up against the
brutality of the sport.
Both Leonard and Baker looked as though
they had trained on steam beer, and their actions in the ring bore out
the supposition that they had. It was rumored before the gong sounded
for the first bout that the Leonard-Gans battle was off, because the
former could not weigh in at the limit of 133 pounds, but both appeared,
and it was announced that Leonard was ill and had refused to weigh in
and had forfeited his $100 deposit to Gans.
The colored lad was
willing to fight at any weight, and the referee announced that the fight
would go on, but that all bets were off.
Jim Reilly and Jim
Lawler, two willing local lads, who weighed in at 123 pounds each, put
up a hard-hitting battle of ten rounds, Lawler's straight left leads and
generally clever work winning him the decision of Referee Phil wand.
Gans
in his twenty-round go with Leonard took a strong lead from the start
and chased the fat dude of the ring persistently. Leonard got weak after
a few rounds and danced about and clinched to avoid punishment.
Occasionally he would back up against the ropes and, using them as a
spring against his back, lunge at Gans as the Baltimorean came at him,
but he inflicted no punishment after the tenth round.
Gans
apparently did not like Leonard's style, for he kept away whenever the
Beau Brummel of the pugilistic fraternity made a stand against the
ropes. His cautious leads and occasional scoring won him the decision,
though it was apparent he was almost as weak as his opponent when the
gong sounded in the final. Gans was a disappointment to those who saw
him knock Charley Rochette out several months ago.
Much interest
was manifested when the heavy-weights made their appearance. Henry
Baker, the fat boy of Chicago, came first. He looked like a New York
Alderman; layers of fat hung over his waistband.
Jeffries was
trained to a turn. He looked a magnificent specimen of the athlete. In
fact, his opponent, when they stood face to face, appeared as if he had
been put into the ring to fill up a gap.
Baker scaled 175 pounds
and Jeffries tipped the beam at 201 pounds, which is nine pounds lower
than he has ever fought. Baker looked like a pigmy alongside of the
California champion.
Baker proved right away that he was a clever
man on his feet. After considerable fiddling Baker shot out his left,
which landed lightly on "Jeff's" mouth. The latter returned the
compliment and then missed Baker's face with a right swing which, had it
landed, would have done damage.
Jeffries went bang against the
ropes. Considerable clinching was indulged in and as the round closed
Baker landed a left and right on Jeffries' mouth.
In the second
round Jeffries caught a hard right-hand punch in the left eye which left
the imprint. Jeffries ducked cleverly from several swings and in the
clinches which followed he was hissed by the gallery because he struck
at Baker when both men had one hand free, which was perfectly proper and
according to rule.
In the third round Jeffries played for
Baker's stomach, but the Chicago man backed away and danced around the
ring with the big fellow in hot pursuit. Both men landed, but the blows
were not very effective.
In the fourth round Jeffries sent Baker
under the ropes with a body blow, but near the end of the round Baker
landed a hard right on Jeffries' mouth.
After this round, and
until the ninth round, Jeffries scored a strong lead. In the eighth
Jeffries knocked Baker down with a left on the jaw and then hammered him
all over the ring, but failed to score a knockout. Baker went down
twice.
In the ninth round Baker received a left hand smash on the
jaw that sent him sprawling over the ropes, and "Spider" Kelly, his
second, threw up the sponge.
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