Jimmy Wilde Fort Wayne Sentinel 22 November 1919 The English invasion of America is on. If any one doesn't take it seriously just let him talk to any Englishman about Jimmy Wilde, who is conducting the invasion. He'll get an earful. There are Englishmen who think James can lick Jack Dempsey. And there isn't an Englishman living who believes for a moment that any American, Frenchman, Australian, Swede, Dane or Chink within ten pounds- of Wilde's weight has any right to go into a ring with him unless insured against sudden death. That's what they think of Wilde in England. The English invasion of America is on. If any one doesn't take it seriously just let him talk to any Englishman about Jimmy Wilde, who is conducting the invasion. He'll get an earful. There are Englishmen who think James can lick Jack Dempsey. And there isn't an Englishman living who believes for a moment that any American, Frenchman, Australian, Swede, Dane or Chink within ten pounds- of Wilde's weight has any right to go into a ring with him unless insured against sudden death. That's what they think of Wilde in England. This Jimmy Wilde boy is reckoned the greatest fighter turned out in England since Figg threw away his club and invented the gentle are of tapping a gent on the lower maxillary with a right hook. There have been fighters in England now and then, but no Jimmy Wildes. Last fall I was talking with an American bantamweight who went over and tried to get a reputation by flattening Wilde, who was somewhat prominent. Young Rosner it was. Young Rosner said to me: "Why, this Wilde is on top of you all the time. He's a skinny, tired looking duck, and you'd think he couldn't fight a lick. But when he starts! Oh, boy! Say, Zulu Kid is pretty fair, but he'll come home licked just the way I did. Wilde knocked out Rosner in eleven rounds. He knocked out the Zulu Kid in eleven rounds, too. Seems to like that distance. And Zulu Kid's doleful tale was the same as Rosner. Wilde was "on top" of him all the time," too, those skinny arms pumping away like mad, yet never missing a punch, never swinging a punch, just one-two, one-two, one-two, and every crack like the crack of a mallet. Wilde is a Welshman, like the great Jem Driscoll arid like Freddy Welsh. He was born at Pontypridd in 1892, so he is nearly 28. and no youngster in ring affairs. He has a large family and is a settled citizen. His height is 5 feet 2 ½ inches, and at the heaviest he weighs 102 pounds. During the late war Jimmy Wilde tried eight times to get into the British army. Seven times he was rejected because he was under height and weighed only 98 pounds. He tried to stretch out an inch or two and ate more, but couldn't grow or put on weight, so at last they took him anyway and made him a boxing instructor, like Jem Driscoll. They might have given him a chance with a bayonet. That skeeter-like in and out action of his would have made him a wicked opponent, even if he was half the size of the average Boche. While in the army Wilde went right on taking part in boxing contests, and was tremendously popular. He met a reverse In the inter allied contests, when Wilson (Pal) Moore outpointed him in a four-round bout, winning the decision. This was not fatal setback for Wilde, as he proved later. He had already trimmed Joe Lynch, decision in four rounds, and this year showed that he could do it over the long route. Wilde Always Gave Away Weight. When you figure Wilde fighting Pal Moore and Joe Lynch, two of the best bantams in America — probably the- best — although Kid Herman holds the title — you have to take into consideration that Wilde isn't a bantam himself, but only flyweight champion" of England. Pal Moore claims that Wilde weighed 109 pounds when they met But Moore weighed much more, for even his manaper , Nate Lewis, claims no more than that Moore can make 115 pounds ringside. Officially, Wilde's weight was 102 pounds when he corralled the flyweight; title. Wilde's boxing style is much like Jem Driscoll's. Jem was master of the "one-two" punch, which is also Wilde's specialty. Wilde hits like lightning with his following right hand and delivers most of his knockouts in this way. For a little fellow he carries an astonishing punch. He starts deliberately and gradually works up speed until he is fighting like a streak, with no let-up, round after round, until his opponent caves in. He is apparently tireless. Capt. Tom Flanagan told me a story about Wilde. Early in the war Flanagan was put in charge of the athletic work of the Canadian troops, and was later sent to England to introduce his system of athletics there, Tom had a lot of first-class scrappers among his Canadian troops and he got up a tournament In which a number of them met the English army champions. One of his boys was to fight. Wilde. Of course Wilde was known as a wonder in his class and the Canadian was comparatively green. But the Canadian was strong, fast, game and willing to try. He proposed to go right out and slug with the Canadian. Flanagan, who was an old fox in athletic sports, advised differently. "Go a l o n g smoothly until the last round," said Flanagan, "and don't get him mad. Then in the last round you can fight your head off. There isn't much danger that you'd be knocked out in that round and you'll have a possible chance of slipping one over. Anyway, you'll have the honor of going the limit with Wilde, and that's good enough." The Canadian started s o f t l y enough. Wilde came out slowly, locking heavy-eyed, indifferent, cold, hardly interested in putting away an unknown opponent. Wilde made no effort to take a lead, and in about a minute the Canadian youngster, forgetting instructions and finding himself holding his own, went tearing in with a wild rush, landed a swing and nearly knocked Wilde for a goal. Tom Flanagan, crouching in his man's corner, groaned and exclaimed to himself: "It's all off!" He had seen Wilde fight before. And off it was. Wilde suddenly woke up and became a ripping, tearing demon, in and out like a flash, with both arms pumping like pistons and never a blow missing. In a couple of rounds he knocked the Canadian cold. "You should have done what I told you," said Captain Flanagan when they brought his man to. "He looked so easy I thought I had him," mumbled the victim. That's the way Wilde Is. Aroused, he fights with double power and speed But he never loses his head, his judgment, his deliberation in applying all of his boxing skill to offense and defense all the time. Stinging him with a hard blow is like stepping on the trigger of a bear trap. Looks Don't Make the Fighter in Wilde's Case. In ordinary clothes Jimmy Wilde wouldn't attract unusual attention any where. Even stripped he doesn't look particularly like a trained fighter, although he has good square shoulders and a strong pair of hands and good forearms. He looks rather skinny than muscular, and shows nothing of the beefy, rugged appearance we are accustomed to recognizing in English fighters. Perhaps that why every new opponent thinks he ought to be an easy mark, until about the starting of the second round. American names are popular with English pugs, judging from Wildes early record.After knocking out Matt Wells in one round at the beginning of his career he knocked out Joe Gans in seven, Young Langford in two, and Billy Papke in three rounds. From the start Wilde has been a remarkable knockout artist.Upto the time he went into the army he fought 89 ring battles. He won 47 with knockouts ( most of them in the third round ), won 29 decisions and fought only three draws. In 1915 he won eight and lost one, to Tancy Lee, in 17 rounds. In 1916 and 1917 he knocked out Tancy Lee in 11 rounds and won 16 fights, most of them with quick knockouts. Last year he, won three fights, two knockouts, and lost a four-round decision to Pal Moore. A little while ago, fearing that Wilde might stay in the game too long and go down like, other champions, a party of English sportsmen offered him an income for life if he would retire: But Wilde preferred to go on and make his money in his own way, with his padded fists. American boxers who lost to him went home and "kicked" about the decisions, He decided that he'd go over to America on a sight,-seeing trip, and just to pay expenses and make it more interesting, take on a few of the best little men somewhere near his weight here and prove his superiority on their own side of the pond. Jimmy Wilde is a remarkable champion in many ways, but one of the most unusual In his entire indifference to the weight of the man he fights.