BOXING.

NZ Truth, Issue 84, 26 January 1907, Page 2

BOXING.

(By Upper- Cut). Last week's Australian mail brought a letter to the secretary of the Wellington Boxing Association from a Perth (W.A.) featherweight, who was ■anxious to know (what chance there was of a match being arranged on the "percentage basis, with him and any 9st 6ft man that the Association could put forward. In the opinion of a New Zealander now m the Old Country, "Snowy" Baker has a great chance indeed of winning the middle-weight amateur championships to be decided m March. Having seen "Snowy" perform with the gloves m Sydney he is confident that the Englishmen will have to bring out a real topnotcher to check the Australian's series of successes. The New Zealander says that * doughty opponent m Douglas, the cricketer, now touring the colony with the Mary lebone combination will be missincr from the contest. Douglas won the. championship m this division m 1905, and should have again secured the verdict last year, the decision of the referee m favor of his oppoodent being absolutely a wrong one. The New Zealander was not sent into ecstacies over the exhibition given at several English boxing carnivals at which he was present. j Bob* Whitelaw., of Newcastle, met. Ted WhiMi^, :Qf Melbourne, m a 20---found contest recently. -, 'The .affair(says.the Sydney "Sportsman") went five rounds, when Whitelaw was 'given the decision on a foul. Though the fight opened up promisingly, it assumed an ominous appearance as it progressed. It would be an insult to readers to describe the rounds of the fiasco. The success of Bovis Bros.' enter-tainment-at the Sydney National Am-T-hithea'tre means that boxing is off at that hall. Manager ,Jim Brennan will m future spend his time dodging petticoats instead of pugs, and every I sport will wish him an en-joyabl-o I and profitable innings m his new venture. J.B. has handed over a lot of i pictorial matter to Charlie Campbell to embellish the Gaiety, which will m future be the grand convincing ground. ! Many of Australia's first . flight pugs, who hitherto .stave Charlie the glassy eye, now 'doff their headgear to the Gaiety squire.-. . Acording to the .London correspondent, ot the Auckland "Star," Blewden. arid' Baker will have some very tough rirooositions to meeft m the light and /toddle w.eight divisions of the. Eng[liah amateur championships. Wells, I the hotter of the light-weight championship for the past two years,' is i boxing m great form this season, and J. H. W. T. Douglas, 'the middles champion, will be hard to beat if he defends his title, and'E. Mann, the runner-up last year and winner m 1900, 1902, and 1904, "will again be seen, m the ring. Besides ' the old hands, there are also several very promising- new men coming on ait both weights-, and the visitor who reaches the final m either event will probably have to put up with thumpings from several men. Win or lose .the visitors can rest assured that they will have a great reception from the amateur boxing fraternity, and will enjoy a real good time m England. If they don't; the fault . will certainly be their own. . With reference ' to the foregoing, I have already drawn .attention to the fact 1 that - Douglas . did not win the middleweight championship last 'year. Anyway, he will be 'unable to enter the lists this year as he will be touring the colony with the English cricket team when the championships come up for decision; v ßob Turner and Hock Keys will meet once more on February 23. Turner purposes going away so as to get thoroughly fit. Keys and Monty Andrews are to try conclusions on the 9th prox. ■ Of the hardihood of old-time boxers proof is found by perusing incidents m connection with a. fight that took nlace many years ago on Harpenden Common between Tom Hickman, the Gaslight man, and Jack Cooper. Hickman was a most deadly pugilist, and he administered such punishment as to win his first thiree matches inside of eighteen minutes. For his bout with Cooper Hickman trained m the South, but Cooper was m business m Scotland, when the match was made, and there he did his work. I Present-day boxers will read with surprise that Cooper rode all the way from Edinburgh to the fight on horseback, a trifling distance of about 400 miles.