The San Francisco Sunday Call he had shown he must Morrissey's eye now beyond all hope toTegain the early superiority left /was closed for Morrissey m of aid from.the: lance, but he ,was as fresh as in the do it now. He was again too swift heavy right and Iclt ;minute.', InVhis tactics, aside Tfrom.his careless thV'twenty-fqurth planted* first shoving through a rib searcher guard, .snap ; was the weakest hariders to the face, JOHN MORRISSEY'S FIGHT his' lack of and speed They joined point. He came on -slowly,.. delivering:ponderously as John plodded steadily on after him. of the Yan- and seemed not to.know thatthere were such maneu- for a hot exchange -in the middle ring,^ the head and Mor- WITH "YANKEE" SULLIVAN vers as dodging, shifting and retreating. His "single kee" deliveringslash'after slash to with an slam purpose was to hit solidly.'That the adversary should rissey countering to the body occasional al so hit him was quite; a minorv consideration. Proba- that drove Sullivan away wincing. part ma?, bly no other man who-ever a ring fought with It was a gaUant rallyon the of the older entered always ther^ Adventurer, Politician, Began W superb andsimplicity of Mor- but:brought him nothing. John was TER; the recklessness John blows, waiting P RIZEFIGH risscy. - ready, impervious to "Yankee's"- best . drive, evading fought through the seventh-round without his chance tolanda snapping never attf Sullivan afterward, Morrissey fouglrt taking a hit, landing twice to the face and once to the clash.' As Sullivan said .and fur- Congress; Defied Tweed body, before he fell..Morrissey, irritated by the other's asifhewere; wound up for a year s going. After toet^/dnJf^si 5 rorra£ slippery into the next session with ther mutual compliments* Sullivan .ended the BeateriUrtla-Fait \^ipf^H^^^f^MM method/hammered shaking his 2§P* Never ' a fullhead of steam, forced Sullivan literally to take by,dropping, Morrissey browning and head . indignant any man should wish to / '*oi§M^&Mß \u25a0' him all around-the ring, seek- at him, highly, that Ground. f. to his heels/and. drove abruptly. ing- in- vain' to land a blow. "Yankee," who would end such a pleasant argument so In the twenty-fifth.round Sullivan swept into his the firstperiod in the history of the prize \u25a0stride quickly and ipened with a flush hit to the face. Johnson, ring ends with "Tom" and the It was. the only blow seemed to promise any- ASsecond with "Tom" Spring, so the third thing. -He could' make no impression upon Morris- hope lay in blindtng closes with the brief championship of "Tom" sey's body and hiVnatural Jchn's swept through his left, and King. From the 60's on the ring became less and sound eye. Again he again., Morrissey returned heavily to the side of the exclusively British institution, the influence less ah head and ."Yankee,"'! jerked.off his feet by a futile of America, and later Australasia, changing condi- right swing, took to the grass. . ; tions and traditions. After the retirement of •It was'stilUSullivan and his left banders in the enough King, his old opponent, "Jem" Mace, who is still twenty-sixth. As •long aslie could foot it fast of reaching him, and "Yankee' living in London, a hale, hearty and well liked John had. small chance tried,hard to work the hit and getaway at the neces- old man, resumed the world's title, which had Morrissey's sary speed He lashed two wicked ones to been wrested from him. A retrospect at this point raw face and dropped when John took after him with is necessary to trace the course of the American heavy drives. championship before it became merged with the championship of the world. TAUNTS AND BLOWS The first recorded championship fight in this •Sullivan now sought to intersperse his tactics with country was between Jacob Hyer and Thomas some gentle badinage on the. chance that he might Beasley, in 1816, won by the former. The next incite the big fellow to a display of temper. He wiped hopped American boxer of note was "Tom" Hyer, who John's face .with a stinging left swing and beat John McCluster in101 rounds in1841. Hyer out laughing. retained the national title by defeating "Yankee" "Now, who's champion?" he taunted. But if Mor- Sullivan in1849. rissey was expected to read In this that he could never A few years later John Morrissey appeared as overcome s^ch a skillfuland active opponent the at-
claimant, \u25a0 made, • a and a match was but Hyer tempt was a failure. i forfeited. This left Sullivan and Morrissey to de- "l "That's to be seen," he answered calmlyand jammed cide between them the question of the American in a right' drive that sent "Yankee" to the ground in championship. a hurry. For the next two sessions Sullivan hit and > WjCht down without ceremony. were "gang" fights in Troy during In the thirtieth round John led off, brushing the 1849, the kind that used to rage in the streets other's guard aside and planting a rattling swing to of American cities as fiercely as any factional the left cheek. Sullivan whirled back with three THERErow of middle age Italy. Few persons were rapid rocking smashes to the face and dropped. He interested save the good citizens of Troy, who peppered Morrissey. in the next two rounds and es- thought dolefully upon their shattered windows, but caped unscathed. In the thirty-third they stood up out of the flurry of clubs and brickbats came a man. for a moment and exchanged counter hits to head and It was John Morrissej'. body, but "Yankee" was exhausted and could make John Morrissey never cared much for cudgels and nothing count. He had done everything possible, flying trick in his repertoire, apparently beaten missiles. Nature had endowed him with a tried every • frame of iron, two gigantic fists, the qualities of hon- his man to a pulp. And still John was with him, esty, shrewdness and the force of the leader. Instead steady as a rock, whollyunconscious of the fact that of marshaling his cohorts of the "uptown gang" in the by all precedents -he ought to consider himself .de- »ieaving of rocks upon the "downtown gang," he took feated. ":} a cleaner, a more effective and a more congenial way It was only a matter of time from this point on. of impressing his immediate views upon his oppo- Sullivan's strength declined, though he continued to nents. Within a year, having then attained the age exert himself to the utmost and he- had lost heart. of 18, he called out and conquered in single combat, He got to the face in the thirty-fourth round and fell. one after another, nine of the enemy. The thing was In. the- thirty-fifth John reached him again with a done quite casually and withno other reason than be- wide, stunning swing to the cheek that sent him to cause he preferred a standup fight to his breakfast the turf. The next was a wild session, Morrissey and the arbitrament of fists to that of rocks. When meeting Sullivan's ;desperate charge with battering is was over the "downtowners" were crushed, if that swings to face and body and sending his man down. meant anything, was thirty-seventh and John Morrissey a great name 'The big? fellow stood a minute weaving and '\u25a0.waving his arms, then fell' In the round even Sullivan's friend 3 in what sporting circles of the country could boast of. could -see- that' the- tide had turned strongly against Tipperary was the county of birth, they grew restless, swarming his and while he van stood up at about 156 pounds. He was a/stbeky vicious swing. .*.Then, ;as Sullivan sought to back have been slow and sluggish for a fast, scientific boxer, him and clost.about the was engaged in his vanquishing of the nine he ropes, yelling at Morrissey and threatening disturb- worked man, much shorter than Morrissey, -but hard ;bitten away from his position, Morrissey pressed after him was stillas elusive as a moth at dusk for the willing, firtt in a paper mill and later in > paid attention and when led an iron foundry, and solid as a stone pillar. Veteran 'of many battles, and slashed out a-terrific right hander that"caught straightforward. The chase lasted until Sulli- ance.: John no. Sullivan where one of his fellow employes Heenan, John. weakly- the rushed, bearing was John C. he was 40 years old, but'fresh 'arid;active, depending Sullivan fairly upon the left cheek', covering him with van went down. to face he "Yankee" back pugil- neck, who afterward made such an ambitious bid for not onlyupon his superior knowledge of the game, but crimson aridwhirlinghim across the ring. The spec- The ninth round was more spectacular. Sullivan irresistibly. Hugging his man about the he fame. In 1850 he found himself ground, \u25a0*• istic stranded inNew upon a strength and endurance as yet unsapped by tators caught sharp breaths for,ajnoment, but "Yan- had discarded some of his caution and went after lifted htm clear of the preparing for a heavy York, with $5 in his jeans, ready fight John to anything age. Whatever advantage in science lay between the kee"; was not knocked down. He^staggered back, sent viciously. Morrissey's aim seemed to be defective fall that hardly could have failed to end the battle. that stood on two feet. Nothing of that class being men decidedly Sullivan, though ;fight light tap The Sullivan supporters, however, took this instant rested with the. a to;the ribs andthen fell. in the hot rally that followed and his#blows generally forthcoming, he joined gold 1 ropes the rush and stowed was not likely to bring forth any startling display" of The situation was now clear. Sullivan was far the fell short. "Yankee". snapped in with a .to -swarm over and through the in a howling, away the mail mea~nwhile on steamer to Panama. , technique on either side. These were days when sci- more skillful, more wary, quicker and craftier. But straight slam to the face, getting away, came back, clawing mob, and the two fighters disappeared under Escaping righteous wrath by slipping wa,ve. ashore at the entific boxing was little known and lqss appreciated Morrissey /the punch. Ifhe/could land-many of got away and. back again^accurately and well. In the the invading Great confusion followed, the isthmus, he tried his $5 against faro bank, up /had a ran it on this side of the Atlantic, when a ring meeting was those" flailingright handers before blinded or weak- mixup John smashed one to the cheek that wiped men were separated and swept out of the ring and in to $700, ' .the and then lost his last cent. A steamer was a downright test of manhood within certain simple ened by his adversary's tactics Sullivan must yield. left eye, where he had inflicted damage^ before. Sulli- the midst of the uproar t-he referee gave the decision about to start from the other side for tick- Morrissey. California^ limits. Briefly,Sullivan was something of a boxer and some- van dropped as usual, and -in the interval it.became to His specific reason was that Sullivan ets quoted at $1,500. With a companion, Cunningham, • ring awaiting When the colored kerchiefs had been tied 'to the thing of»ai fighter; Morrissey was no boxer at all/but evident that he no longer had the advantage as to had left the first and without instruc- he evaded the armed sentries and away facts, stowed a stakes, stars and stripes, for Morrissey, black for,Sul- a most' formidable and dangerous fighter. "\u25a0:. sight, attentions' to the eye had done their tions." Whatever the exact which were long second time. Three days they were discovered for John's out livan, time was called and the men advanced to the In the interval after this round Morrissey's left eye, work. The 'tenth round was fast, Sullivan getting in disputed, there was no doubt that Morrissey was far and were about to be set ashore at the end of the center, eyeing each other watchfully. The attitude. of which had swollen greatly, was lanced.. His face had all over Morrissey's face without great injury and in the lead and deserved the victory. The fight had carth—Acapulco —when the steerage mutinied. neither could be called graceful. They stood upright, been slashed beyond recognition, but he was untainted taking another clip to his bad eye. After severe coun- "Who'll stand by me?*' the captain. asked with hands high and knees bent, ready for hard knocks in wind or strength. Hisone complaint to his attend- ter hitting Sullivan was down. • Morrissey's onlysubsequent appearance in the prize "We're here," said Morrissey, leading Cunningham rather than shifty play. At the last moment. Morris- ants .was that; vnot stand to him. It was "Yankee's" attendants warned him ;repeatedly at ring.was with John C. Heenan, the "Benicia Boy," forward. Sullivan would sey's second, eager to show himself awake to his a just grievance and;the grumbling grew general as this stage not to force the pace, but to hang back and who later drew with "Tom" Sayers, the great little "Can you fight?" asked the captain. . principal's interests, sprang forward and protested the fight progressed. Sullivan, taking advantage of wait for his man, whom he could .outmaneuver at his world's champion. He whipped Heenan out of hand "Why, sir," said Morrissey, speak- "in a mariner^of against the length of the. spikes in Sullivan's .shoes. one of the rules, went to grass throughout the battle leisure.', Sullivan,- however, was now warm for battle in 11 rounds in 1858 and announced that he would ing, it's my trade." So the two overawed the muti- - The quibble was contemptuously put aside by Mor- when hard pressed. Itis a fact quite inTkeeping with and led off the next session with smashes to"the face. never thereafter step within the ropes. He kept that neers and earned their passage to Francisco, San rissey, who took the occasion to make Sullivan a final the character of John Morrissey that not once did he He paid the penalty of overeagerness - by getting in resolve, though he did not mean that he would never Morrissey using the steerage as a training camp. offer of $800 to $1,000 side bet. Sullivan shook his seek to end a round, escape from. a corner or avoid the way of another of John's battering ram drives, fight again. John Morrissey without some kind of a After an unsuccessful venture to Queen Charlotte's head and hostilities were joined. punishment by dropping/A fight was what he wanted, which caught him in the ribs and lifted him clear fight in prospect would have been like a diamond island in search of gold Morrissey came back to San Sullivan feinted deftly and waded into heavy work whether he was; winning or losing, and "Old Smoke" across the ring to measure his length. The next three without the sparkle. He fought as occasion arose, and Francisco, once more penniless, to find that one styl- without more ado with a right -hand smash that was never ,the:one" to signal that he' had had enough. rounds were but hard, Morrissey getting carried the propensity with him through ?-" -- ing George Thompson short twice life himself was announced as the jammed Morrissey's guard and got home to his nose. Sullivan, recovering from the effects'' of the to the bad eye and accepting more face treatment He was successful with his gambling houses in general challenger for the pugilistic of California tremen- "with title came right back with,right and left drives, but dous facer he had the again in the New York and Saratoga and at one time was said to $1,000. This windfall. John received/took lead and was a Morrissey hunted was out of distance and gave Sullivan a chance that fourth round, opening right and left and advancing. be worth a milliondollars. He lost half of itin the up backers and put away Thompson his $1,000 ON TO THE FIFTEENTH and he improved with a neat clip to the left eye. There John parried, but could; not;force through Sullivan's crash of "Black Friday" and much of the rest through in 11 rounds. Then he east, ;Sullivan,had now handed out punishment returned to the chal- was no instant wasted in sparring between fighters of guard, and "Yankee,": stepping -in,' shot over a pun- enough unfortunate speculation. Commodore Vanderbilt lenged "Tom" Hyer, the champion of America, and to have ,any.ordinary fighter in a jdreamless sleep, this kind. Hit and take, dingdong, was tlicstj'le, with ishing lunge to the nose. The blow drew claret freely, laid stood his friend and aided him out of several assumed that title himself when Hyer but Mbrrissey, though terribly carved, difficul- forfeited. the victory waiting for the one who could land the and Morrissey,^already :half blind, was quite abroad. seamed to like ties. ;;^: Taking the management of a public it better with every :roundr He house in New hardest and stand the most. Sullivan's smash whipped Sullivan shifted ground quickly and \u25a0rushed, jabbing flinched not at all Morrissey,always had taken active part in politics, York, Morrissey became the center of local sporting from "Yankee's" battering receptions, Morrissey into quick action, and/breaking his set right and leftito the face.v But he counted a trifle too apparently in- and in 1866 he was .elected to congress by the demo- interest led a checkered and life for some viting the worst the could do and felt amply and active defense, he charged," milling fiercely, swinging and confidently onfjohn's-plight. As he drew off:for an- other crats from the fifth district. "Boss** Tweed was then years, finding rights, scratch, pitched or rough and rcpaid ;if he/could return one for six. This uppercutting as "Yankee" backed away* Sullivan was other opening Morrissey launched a wildright swing state of in full power and Morrissey owed the nomination to tumble, wherever an opportunity presented. During affairs was decidedly discouraging • master of few of the fine points of the game, but one which, more 'by chance than by direction, caught to Sullivan and: the him, but the man's innate honesty and pugnacity this time he gained his nickname of "Old Smoke." ' older man,' disregarding ofhis seconds, thing his long experience had taught him and that was "Yankee" a "rocking smash 'to the" left /side of the the advice con- would not permit him to be time server for any While engaged in a triflingdiscussion with a customer tinued; to desperate- to; one the trick of dropping in the face of danger,- so skill- head. Sullivan went spinning, but John could not or make efforts impress his and before the end of his first term he began to de- McCann, Morrissey knocked over a stove and adversary. named fully,if doubtfully/practiced by Bendigoand'Caunt. \yould noti.oilow-^^ami^YMlce^g^tur^^lMti^ strangely persistent John meanwhile was velop another fight, this with Tammany Hall. fell prostrate upon the glowing coals, where his ad- r quite fight Tweed When the Berserker youngster came rushing at him three swift'