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Thrice he rushed him to the ropes, and once the man fell through them into the

laps of the hooting spectators--only now they were not hooting Billy. Until the

gong Billy played with his man as a cat might play with a mouse; yet not once

had he landed a knock-out blow.

Why didn't you finish him?" cried Professor Cassidy, as Billy returned to his

corner after the round. "You had 'im goin' man--why in the world didn't yeh finish

him?"

"I didn't want to," said Billy; "not in that round. I'm reserving the finish for the

fifth round, and if you want to win some money you can take the hunch!"

Do you mean it?" asked Cassidy.

Sure," said Billy. "You might make more by laying that I'd make him take the

count in the first minute of the round--you can place a hundred of mine on that,

if you will, please."

Cassidy took the hunch, and a moment later as the two men faced each other he

regretted his act, for to his surprise the "white hope" came up for the fifth round

smiling and confident once more.

"Someone's been handin' him an earful," grumbled Cassidy, "an' it might be all he

needed to take 'im through the first minute of the round, and maybe the whole

round--I've seen that did lots o' times."

As the two men met the "white hope" was the aggressor. He rushed in to close

quarters aiming a stinging blow at Billy's face, and then to Cassidy's chagrin and

the crowd's wonder, the mucker lowered his guard and took the wallop full on the

jaw. The blow seemed never to jar him the least. The "hope" swung again, and

there stood Billy Byrne, like a huge bronze statue taking blow after blow that

would have put an ordinary man down for the count.

The fans saw and appreciated the spectacular bravado of the act, and they went

wild. Cheer on cheer rose, hoarse and deafening, to the rafters. The "white hope"

lost his self-control and what little remained of his short temper, and deliberately

struck Billy a foul blow, but before the referee could interfere the mucker swung

another just such blow as he had missed and fallen with in the second round;

but this time he did not miss--his mighty fist caught the "coming champion" on

the point of the chin, lifted him off his feet and landed him halfway through the

ropes. There he lay while the referee tolled off the count of ten, and as the official

took Billy's hand in his and raised it aloft in signal that he had won the fight the

fickle crowd cheered and screamed in a delirium of joy.

142

The Mucker