THE RING.

Lyttelton Times, Volume LXXV, Issue 9430, 3 June 1891, Page 7

THE RING.

, George Dawson, light-weight champion Of Australia, talks of visiting America. The . American correspondent of the Melbourne Sportsman states that Hall, the Australian, middle-weight, is very popular in the States. He is now known as ♦* Gentleman Jim,” His particular friend is Jack Dempsey, who will second him in his match with Fitzsimmons.

Carroll, the American light-weight who was behind Fitzsimmons until they quarrelled over the division of the spoil won by putting down Dempsey, has 'written to the Barrier champion, Joe Goddard, offering to take him in hand, train and manage him, should he decide upon visiting the States. 0 Referring to the report that Billy Murphy had been poisoned through taking * dose of belladonna by mistake, the Sydney Referee, says :—“lt is a trifle over even money that it’s a notoriety gag served upin true American style, and wa shall yet see the long, bony form of 'William of New Zealand prancing round a 24ft enclosure pursuing some agile victim, whilst his right hand cleaves junks out of ■pace, and leaves holes in the atmosphere.” According to latest files Murphy had recovered from the effects of the poison.

.Billy Murphy (says the Melbourne jSportman of May 13) called in on Monday 'to say that he had signed the articles for a piatch with Griffo that had beau sent over to Mick Dooley. They are to box at the Sydney Amateur Gymnasium in six weeks* time for a £l5O purse, the matter of a Bide wager to be optional. Murphy .Bays ho doesn’t care how small the purse is. All he wants is another chance at Griffc. He adds that he will at once go into careful training. He will build himself up, and will expect to scale nearly 9at. Said he: "I have been kuockiug about and making a fool of myself. Eat that's all over. I want to beat Qriffo, and I'm going to strain every nerve to do it. I want this fight if I never have another.” Jack Pnraett will in all probability take Murphy in hand. If he doss, the latter will speedily have the belladonna worked out of him.

The Sydney Referee announces anew departure in the following paragraph:—Mr M. \E. Evans, proprietor of the Sunday Times and Referee, has made np his mind to create a record for Australia by presenting a great silver belt, to be fought for under rules which will hereafter appear in the columns of one of his journals, to be known as the welter-weight champion belt of the world, open to be fought for by the champions of the world up to 12st 41b, no race, nationality, or colour barred, and it '.is most probable that the winner of the • Dooley-Choynski fight will battle with the 'winner of the Ryau-Sullivan contest for the trophy, or the well-known boxer Tom Lees, and the holder be matched against either George Godfrey or Charlie Mitchell, England and America’s best men at the ■weights. ChcynsJd and Dooley have been "wired to, and so also has Tom Lees, and .“their respective replies will appear later. To make the contest a greater success, the proprietor of this journal, with his usual -Sevel-headedness, has offered to put up a parse of £250 for the first pair to battle for who desire to compete for the greatest ; trophy ever offered in the Southern Hemisphere. Police officers will be invited to attend all contests in sufficient numbers to check attempts at rowdyism. Betting will "he discouraged in every way. Pair sized gloves will be used. The dangerous La Blanche swing will be barred, and no man ■offering from any infirmity will be allowed to contest.

Joe M’Anliffe, while endeavouring to knock out a heavy-weight named Daly, at Philadelphia, on March 19, had the misfortune to break a bone in his left hand. Beferring to the recent La BlancheMitchell fight, a San Francisco correspondent writes: —La Blanche was proven guilty of all things charged; but young Mitchell was in no way connected with the r fake.” Many of your readers who know Mitchell are well aware that he is a young jfellow of upright character, and not one of the "faking ’’ kind. He is a rising young pugilist, and, what is more, as honest as (the sun. I was sorry no decision was render ed in the meeting. I mean by this J am sorry that "no decision” was rendered by the Club. La Blanche’s picture was immediately taken from the walls o£ the Club, but young Mitchell’s still retains % prominent position in this celebrated organisation. Note the difference; La Blanche left this city penniless and disgraced; Mitchell remains, and is highly respected. This is as it ought to be, and I Lope such punishment will be meted out to mil " crooked ” fightors. ‘ The New York Sun (says a writer in an American paper) has of late published two different imputations upon the gameness of Bob Fitzsimmons. One of theseis made By Mr M’Cormick (“Macon”) and the other by Patsy Doody. The ugly, central ■defect of the Sun's treatment of fistic •vents has long been its undue exaltation of favourites and its grudging recognition of merit in any man who plays havoc with the pets whose pretensions the Sun’s writer support. There is up to date absolutely no particle of evidence upon which to impugn Fitzsimmons’ stoutness of heart or the fiintineas of hia " sand.” In fells disparagement there was, however, only one thing possible to say after, conIrary to all New York prediction, he had Vanquished Dempsey. "It could not be laid of him surely that he lacked science,” not that he “ couldn’t punish,” nor that ‘W was » “mere raw slugger,” nor that "he won by accident.” Gamenesa was the only quality, it must be admitted, that shone forth resplendent in our American middle-weight when he was put to tho touch against the Australian. It was, therefore,in order among Dempsey’s over-zealous and disgruntled supporters to find Fitzsimmons wanting in the only direction where nobody has been able to try him. Billy M'Carthy, Arthur O. Hpham, and lastly the American "Nonpareil,” the "Jack Kandall of American ring record,” have endeavoured with poor success, most surely, to find in Fitzsimmons the alleged craven streak. It is not, let jhe add, at all enhancing Dempsey’s just measure of credit for a gallant contest, every way creditable to him as an American and a fighter, to claim that he was trounced by a faint-heart and a "quitter.” I will believe that Fitzsimmons is a weakenor when such a defect shows forth in him under hot gruelling and deep gaffing. I don’t know how we are to see the truth of the Sun’s allegations proven until we find she man to gaff him and gruel him. ** Where is the man ? ” Well, he isn’t an American, lam sorry to believe. “ Ted ” Pritchard, the English middle-weight, on the showing of hia knock-out of Jack Burke in short order last week, seems the pick of the world at the present writing for a man to oppose to Fitzsimmons. There are, I know, high claims by Australians in behalf of Eal), who now seeks a customer in San Francisco, but so far we only know Hall as a finish fighter in America by tho claims made for him by two or three Australian bookmakers. He looks, I may say, in the way he is handled, like the customary “understudy” with which the Australians reinforce all their champions, big and little. He will have to play, I think, in American estimation until he gives us proof of his quality, second violin to Fitzsimmons.