Calm After the Storm

“I’ll be sad, indeed,” the poet wrote,

     “When they have that Reno fight”;

And when his companion asked him why

The poet sadly made this reply:

     “I’ll have naught about which to write.”

c. June 19, ‘10

July 4, 1910: The "Battle of the Century," takes place in a stadium built specifically for the fight in Reno, Nevada where Jack Johnson (Galveston Giant) defeats Jeffries (The Boilermaker) to become the first African American Heavyweight Champion of the World.

July 5, 1910: Johnson’s victory after the fifteen round bout ignites race riots and celebrations across the nation.

http://www.loc.gov/rr/news/topics/bigfight.html

                                                                                                                                                                                                                         http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/8/87/Johnson_jeff.jpg