Sam's Title

Sam Langford, "Boston Tar Baby," has won a championship after 20 years in the ring. It's not much of a title for one who might have been champion of the world, but they say old Tham is pleased. He knocked out Kid Savage in one round and took from him the championship of Mexico.

Since 1902 Langford has been known and respected by the followers of the prize ring. In better days he was so well known and so highly respected that none of the existing champions could be inveigled into the ring with him. Tommy Burns, Jack Johnson, Jess Willard--none of them would fight him after they acquired their titles. Accordingly Sam dug along fighting second raters for small money. Joe Jeanette, also a Negro, was his usual opponent. They fought more than 20 battles, Langford winning the majority. The one man in the world that Langford did not care to meet was Jim Jeffries. Even when Jeffries was slipping back Sam used to say: " Ah'll take 'em all, but doan gimme none ub dat big hairy boy." There are those who say that Langford at his best would have defeated the Dempsey of Toledo and of Thirty Acres.

Langford is the last bridge between the old school champions and the new. He is a little man. In his time heavyweight champions were not the giant race that rules the ring today. Jim Corbett weighed 184; Bob Fitzsimmons, 172; Tom Sharkey, 180; Peter Maher, 178. Jeffries was the only two hundred pounder among the champions of 30 years ago. Of the present group in prominence among the heavyweights, Dempsey stands 6 feet 1 inch and weighs 190. Harry Wills, Negro champion, rises to 6 feet 3 and weighs 215. Luis Firpo measures 6 feet 2 and weighs 225. Floyd Johnson, matched to meet Willard in New York in May, stands 6 feet 1 and weighs 195. Willard is the giant of the group: height 6 feet 6, weight 250. With the possible exceptions of Dempsey and Harry Wills, it is doubtful that these men could hold their own with Langford or any others to whom size was no handicap some two or three decades ago.