BILL SQUIRES

NZ Truth, Issue 82, 12 January 1907, Page 3

BILL SQUIRES

To Meet Jeffries ' : Far tie Championship of tile WorH. ! X £6000 Purse and Expenses for the | Australian. A wire from Melbourne on Dec. 30, isaid:—"On Saturday" anotfter cable was received from Mr Naughton by Squires, through Mr John Wren : 'Jeffries signed with you, Rhyolite, April 30,000 dol., 60 and 40. Steamer ticket will be cabled you. Come .quickly before Sonoma, if possible ' The figures 60 a nd 40 refer- to the percentage of the purse to go to the winner and loser respectively. The winner gets 60 per oent.,^ the loser 40 per cent. Even if Sqiiires fails to beat Jeffries, he will still | gain something substantial from the match. Mr Wren telegraphed a copy of the cable to Squires at Newcastle on Saturday night. :As he has no other pressing engagement, it is posj sible that Squires will take the adJ vice tendered m _the cable, and hasten his departure from Australia, providing that an • earlier §tea*ner- g&&> be' etiuglit. - Squires will take a boxing companion to help "him m training. " The cable spannina; the ocean , that rolls 'twixt Australia and America has been used freely during the past several days m connection with an offer of a purse of .30,000 dollars ■for Bill Squires and Jim Jeffries. The following, telegraphed from Melbourne the previous Wednesday tells j of the first move :— "Bill Squires has received the following cable from Los Angeles (California), signed Skinner : -'Can match you with Jeffries, 30,000 dollars, finish fight, at Rhyolite, Nevada, April ; 10,000 dollars guarantee now m the Farmers and Merchants Bank.' " Squires communicated wit]? Mr Naughton : 'Received offer signed Skinner to make a match with Jeffries ; was it authorised?'' Squires is awaiting the peply. If .> Jeffries is agreeable, Squires will leave for America by the first available steamer.

"Squires leceivod a cable torday from.jMr-Naughtqn to the effect that the Rhyolite ofier was bona-fide, and it finished: 'Are you - coming? 1 Squires has decided to leave for America to meet Jeffries, by the R:M.S. Sonoma, on January 28; frota Sydney. He will take p-n attendant'-with him. Meantime, he will leave for his parents' home m the Newcastle district." v • . . ■ -v

The match may now be regarded as clinched, and 'tis dollars to doughnuts that tha<t knocking out of Mike Williams m three-quarters of a minute set the offer afoot. Jim Jeffries retiired some time ago to the' comparative ' quiet of farm life because 'there were no more kings to conquer. He settled down on a huge ranch, and mowed and hoed and ploughed from early morn till dewy eve, and at night slept the sleep that comes to all who follow the simple life, till his crops grew, and his live stock increased and multiplied. Then Jim didn't work so hard, because there was no necessity, and, though; ; he tramped the woods (up hill and down dale) m <. qwest of- game* every how and again, his load ;of "too, too solid" grew alarmingly,, till, some i months since, 'twas published from one end of the 'Murkan continent to the other that the shaggy r bodied retired champion, tipped the beam at something little short; of 20st.

■* When Jeffries withdrew from active service m the ring, he promised' that should anyone bearing high-class credentials happen 'along within a reasonable period, tie might be persuaded' to gird his armor; on again, and Jim has proved as good, as Ms word. Bill Squires, accompanied , by his mascotte trainer, Jimmy Russell,-ar-rived m Sydney on Friday last. ( 'He is the same old, modest, unpretentious Squires that fought Tucker £his first battle) inside, four ;yeats ago, and looks as well as ever.

"Fancy a mug like me getting a chance to meet the champion of the world, and for a £6000 purse, too," ciuoth Bill, with a smile, and it wasn't "kid," either, for Sq-uires isn't throwing any bouquets at himself at all. v ■ .

"You're going over, of course ?" "Oh, I'm to," was the answer ; "I'd be a fool to miss such an opportunity— that is, providing everything is satisfactory, but I'll want to be sure of that before leaving Australia."

"Won't Jimmy Russell be lonely when vqu leave ?" .

Both laughed ;, "Can't do without him," said the champion; "he's half the battle." '

Squires is pleased that there'll be no "manager" m the- business ; it's a straight-out. purse, and neither principal will require the services of anyone to look after his interests.

The champion said he had a fine time m Melbourne, and spoke of splendid treatment at the. hands of everybody, especially Mr Jack Wren— "one of the straightest 'and best sports I ever knew." Bill appears to feel that he cannot say enough m praise of Victoria's gritty speculator. Sqliires left for Newcastle on Saturday.

Mr Wren received a telegram m Melbourne on Monday from Messrs Mcllwraith, McEacharn, and Company, to the effect that a cablegram had come from their San Francisco agent telling that the passages of Squires, and his trainer from Australia to San Francisco had been paid, and asking that a cablegram be sent as to the date on which Squires would leave. Mr Wren telegraphed this information to Squires at Newcastle, but was informed that Bill had left to visit his parents' home some distance o"t, • If the champion elects to alter his arrangements m regard to leaving by the Sonoma on January 28, he can batch the Sierra next Monda-