Cross had never seen Young Sammy in action until they had climbed into the ring, and you can imagine Leach’s surprise when he noticed that his opponent wore glasses. I never knew another boxer to appear in the ring with such heavy lenses. They were a quarter of an inch thick. Smith had a habit of placing his head close to that of his opponent when he was called to the center for instructions, squinting through his glasses as though trying to study his man. He did this to Cross as Referee Dan Tone reviewed the rules. Leach laughed out loud as he pointed to Sammy and his cheaters, and, turning to brother Sam, his manager, he remarked as he went back to his corner: “Can you imagine giving me a blind opponent! If he can’t see me with those headlights on, how does he hope to see me when he takes ’em off?” The gong sounded. Off came Sammy’s glasses and a rushing tearing-in, two-fisted fighter tossed punches from all sides effectively. Cross in later years met better men than Smith, but I doubt that he took more punishment than Young Sammy meted out that night. When the final gong ended the fray, Leach told brother Sam: “I hate to think what he might have done if he had perfect eyesight!” * * * * * The reason for Cross’s popularity was that he always gave the fans a run for their money. Though he never won a title, he was of championship caliber throughout his career. Most people flocked to the New York clubs hoping to see him knocked out, but they would invariably go home disappointed. Until Benny Leonard came along, Cross was New York’s most sensational battler. He was the cause of many Donnybrooks in New York clubs. It was something of a coincidence that Leach Cross began to slip the very night that Benny Leonard started his climb to fistic fame. That was on December 17, 1915, when Leach and Benny fought on the same card—Leonard against Joe Mandot and Cross against Ad Wolgast. Because of a law stipulating that the windup fight had to start no later than ten o’clock, Leach’s fight with Wolgast went on first. Wolgast was pretty well shot at the time and Cross stopped him in the second round. Ad’s legs were leaden, and it was obvious that he had passed his peak. Immediately after the fight Leach raced to his dressing room, and within ten minutes he came to the press box and sat with me to watch the Leonard-Mandot bout. Benny stopped Mandot that night in the seventh round and Leach raved about the boxing and hitting qualities of his successor. He watched him with more admiration than envy, but I could read his feelings in his expression, knowing as he did then that a young East Sider had come along to crowd him out of the picture.