New Britain Herald Newspaper, January 23, 1915, Page 9

THE BEAUTY AND THE | BRUSER--A ROMANCE ke Al Mealen Osee Wit of HGfiflfifl, “The Benica BOY." ‘‘He's only a bruilser.’ The speaker was ayouth whose faco expréised. vacuity and vainglory, but | whose slender body was clad in all the sartorial embellishments that « “smart’ tailor of the ’50s could de- vise. He was seated at a small table in a flashy restaurant frequented by the “sporty” and theatrical set. Acr from him sat one of the most ravish- ing, flashing, dashing beautics that masculine eves ever gazed upon. Her dark, glorious, expressive eves wers -tut@ied, in scarcely veiled admiration upon a tall handsome, athletic man Who had just entered the room. Theo newcomer was a veritable giant, for he stood well over six feet, but he ried himself with an easy grace, and Wwithout a trace of awkwardness. “A bruiser?” repeated the lady. “A pugilist?” The empty-faced youth nodded as- sent’® It was plain that his little soul was filled with peevishness, for he was ma.i'lv in love with the little | beauty who sat so near him, and y; was as distant as a star. That an- | other man, and that man a profes- slonal fighter, could arouse her inter- est, was to him gall and wormwood. The lady spoke again. ‘A bruiser? That makes him all the more interesting. Bring him to me.” Reluctant sulkly and petulant, the £11d€d youth obeyed. A moment lat- €r John Carmel Heenan, better known 1o the ‘““fancy’” as ‘“The Benicia Boy,” was introduced to the lovely, charm- ing, talented actress, Adah Isaacs Menken, the reigning beauty of Amer ica, and soon to be the pet of two continents, and - the most celebrated heart-breaker of modern times. Mhe bruiser and the beauty talked only in commonplaces, but when they parted it was with the light of mu- tual admiration burning in their eyes, and with the whispered promise to meet again soon. It was hurried, impassioned, violent Wwooing, and before the New Year of 1860 had been ushered in Adah Isaacs Mesken had become Mrs. John C. Heenan, the wife of the famous American pugilist who had just chal- lenged Tom Sayers, the champion of England, to do battle for the world's title. The bruiser who thus captivated the heart of the women who had re- fused dozens of the richest young | “Queen of the Plaza reddish-brown hair and a dark mus- tache. He wore black broadcloth and a tall hat, and dilamonds sparkled here and there.” Exit the Fickle Adah. A dashing couple they must have made—but not for long. The bruiser soon left for Kngland to prepare for his battle with Savers. Tncidentally, the American was victorious, but was robbed of the world’'s title which was rightfully his. The gifted Adah was as fickle as she was beautiful, and she soon tired of her stalwart fighter hus- band. Within three years she secured a divorce, and again returned to her | destined task of breaking masculine hearts. The gallant “Benicia Boy defeated by Tom King in another bat- tle for the world's championship, de- | Charles Dickens, and her volume of verse, ‘“Infelicia,” published in T.on- don in 1867, was dedicated to the great novelist. Adah Menken died in Paris in 1868 at the age of thirty-three, and sh~ sleeps the long sleep in a modest grave in the French capital. Anothcr grave on the Trov-Albany road mavks the last resting place of John €. Heen- an, who was a native of Troy, N. Y. He was “only a bruiser,” but a gentle- man for all of that. The romance of the bruiser and the beauty was from the first doomed to bring disappointment and disillusion, for Heenan was a man of action, « born fighter, and Adah Menken was a dreamer and an idealist In her i quest for the ideal she found only | emptiness. Shortly before her deati the wrote these verses: prived of his charming wife was for a | time inconsolable. Time healed ki other actress, Sara Stevens, in kn land. The whole career of Adah Isaaes | Menken was a mingling of folly and tragedy. A woman or rarc intellect as well as remarkable beauty, she was fickle and restless in love as in ev- erything. She went through her brief | life like a flaming meteor, unsa heart-hungry, secking always change. In her beautiful body mingled the | blood of a French mother and a Span- ish . Jew father. Dolores Adios | Fuertes was the name she boré in her maiden days in her native city of Ne Orleans. At seven she went on the stage as a dancer, and at thirteen she became a full-fleged actres IFrom the first she was immensel popular, and her mascu vietims doubtless numbered thousands. New “irleans hailed her as the Qucen of the love, Born in the soul of a drcam, dove, When she flics over the stream. Leaves pailid, and sombre, and rudd: Dead fruits of the fugitive years; Some stained as with wien and made bloody. And some as with tea CHAMPIONSHiP BOUT A MILE IN THE AR (Continued From Eighth Page.) tuth, and HMavana crowned her | She was a “merry widow,” and twenty-four years old, when she met and married John . Heenan. JIour years before she had become the bride of Alexander Isaacs Menken at Gal- vestor Texas and ever after she was BC known as Adah acs Men- ken er her first marriage she | quit the stage and published a volume or really creditable verse, ‘“Memor- ies,”” under the pen name of “Indig- cna."” Her first dream of love was soon rudely shattered, and in 1858"it ended in the divorce courts. Adah returned to the stage, and in the intervals of her theatrical tours of the south stud- ied sculpture in Cincinnati. Then came her romance with Heen- en. She went abroad with her hus- band, and, when they separated, she remained in Europe. Playing in the role of ‘“Mazeppa,” at Astley’s thea- ter in London, she broke the hearts of half the fast youths of the British me- tropolis. Men of title, and others in- poets, and artists, were in her train of admirers. In Paris she was the cen- ter around which flocked many fam- Juarez race course is a trip of about ten minutes, the spectators crossing the international bridge spanning the Rio Grande, which separates the two countries at this point. Once in Mex ico the visitors will witness the novel spectacle of a prize fight under gov- ernment sanction and control. Mex- ican troops will police the course and the ring within, General Villa having agreed to assign some 2,000 soldiers for this service on the day of the con- | test. ‘ International Golf Match. appears to be a possibility that the coming golf season will be featured by at least one internationai tourna- ment. The entry of several of the more prominent of the English pro- fessionals in the American open cham- | plonship at Baltursol, June 15 to 18 is almost certain in case the KEnglish open, set for about the same period, The English golfing authorities have not as vet made a definite announce- close observers of the trend of the sport abroad are of the opinion that the open golf championship will be : | Visions of beauty, of light, and of wounds, however, and he married an- | Lost like the phantom bird, under the Contrary to carly reports, there | is declared off on account of the war. | ! race and other English sports classic With their principal home tourneys abandoned these professionals would | would welcome the opportunit to { play in America for their sources of {revenue have been greatly curtailed | i since the beginning of hostilitic There is another side to the | situation, however, which leaves | | the question of ultimate entry in | doubt. While there are a number | of prominent professionals who arc not serving with the Inglish regi- ments on the continent, a large ma- | jority are connected with various home defense organizations and are {1oath to leave KEngland this spring | for fear their motives might be mi ; unde od If the war situation clea sufliciently, Braid, Vardon Taylor and others may vet he seen in the American open in TODAY IN PUGILISTIC ANNALS. 1804—Henry Pearce defeated Joo in twenty-four rounds near { Londen. By this bout Pearce, gen { orally known as *The Game Chicken, { demonstrated his right to the cham- ! pionship of Iingiand Berks made a game fight, but in the end he had io give in. ‘‘Chicken,” said the pros- trate gziant, in his Shropshire dinlect, “tha’s licked me. T reckon tha is i too good for me, laad But 1 hear { no malice. Gie me thy hand.” “Ifen” | Pearce—he always insisted that he { had been christened “Hen.” and not Henry, and wrote his nime that way —was a Bristol lad and 1 his {irst | fighting experience in that old hothed | of pugilism. When Belcher retired | i he called upon Pearce to uphold Bris- ‘(nl’.\ honor and® the boy was equal {to the job. he London sports | dubbed him “Chicken,” because of his ! first name, but they soon lengthened this to “Game Chicken.” Peace died at the age of thirty-two, and the ring | lost a gentleman as well a fighter. ¢ 1902— A1 Weinig stopped Dan Crec- don in' the second round at [lot | Springs, Ark. 1903—Martin Duffy knocked out Tom Wallace in the sixth round at Milwaukee. | 1903—Belfield Walcott and Patsy Sweeney fought an cight-round draw i at Boston. TO INVESTIGATE EXPLOSION. Washington, Jan. 23.—Under the usual naval procedure, Rear Admiral Howard, commander of the P, fleet, will appoint a board of officer to investigate the explosion on board ! { the cruiser SanDiego, resulting in | the death of five sailors and the wounding of eight others. $670,000,000 WAR 1.OAN, Vienna, via Amsterdam and Lon result of the subscriptions for the | Austrian war loan, it is officially an- nounced, amounted to $670,000,000. Gutterson Expects to Break Broad Jumping Record....... (Gur7eRs0/ ] GEl Claim Shif Toss © London, Jan, 28§ two survivors of men of the Wilson sank off the Donej Giants’ Causeway i | inclined to believe the boat was sent t@ submarine, They cargo was probabi the loes of the vel news of the remali vho when last seen open boat Despatches from ind, state that the er Horda has been of ten men off Le Because of the gl igh steamer Durwan two British merchan about to leave the have been detained these hag 450 refugi for England VATICAN STRIC Osscrvatore Roman of Belgian O Rome, Jan, 22,4 Osservatore Roma organ, is answerin Belgian Catholic pa it of conducting a paign ainst cong tyrized Belgium,” maintained the st | publishing impartial | munications from | Osservatore Roman | “If the Belgian pf suppression of ®0; irding the announ | dinal Mercier, we | cause we knew, 1 the news of that ar ONE MAN FATA Four Others Hurt W Twenty Hartford, Jan. 2 which were severa tance of twenty-six house in process of | ersfield avenue yei { were injured, one hurried to St, ¥ran will | Willlam Campbell L | | | i | ternationally celebrated as authors, | ment regarding their tournament, but | don, Jan. 23, 10:05 a. m.—The Vln:\l' bloods of America was described by | ous men. The elder Dumas was sald | dropped for the season of 1915 as | Of this sum Austria contributed Gutterson, Vermont's | do at least twenty-five feet this year. | The others are Ed a cBllege professor of that period as| to have been deeply attracted by her. | has been done with the Henley re- | $433,000,000 and Hungary $237,000,.( broad jumper, is preparing to break |The record is 24 feet 11 3-4 inches, [ seph Conet and ag ““a tall, grave, urbane gentlemen, with | She carried on a correspondence with | gatta, the Oxford-Cambridge crew | 000 ! the world’s record this year. Tle 1s!held by P. O’Connor not yet known, ; g i - l Have Your Building Piped for Gas During Construction Our records show that sooner or later we are called upon to furnish gas for light and fuel to occupants of most every building in this city New Britain Gas Light Company