MITCHELL, Chides, English pugilist: b. Birmingham, 1861; d. Hove, near Brigh ton, April 191& He first took to fencing, of which science he became a teacher be fore he was 20. Adding boxing to his reper tory, he had passed through several successful bouts with amateurs until he distinguished him self in 1882 by winning a competition open to all English heavyweights. Although he was little more than a lightweight himself, he had already won a similar competition for middle weights. He was then brought to America to meet John L. Sullivan, who then weighed 204 pounds against Mitchell's 150 pounds. In the second round at Madison Square Garden the Englishman knocked his .opponent off his feet, and at the close of the third round the fight was stopped by the police. Mitchell's two handed blows were so accurate and severe that for a long time Sullivan declined his chal lenge to a contest under Prize Ring rules in a 24-foot arena. On 10 March 1888, however, they met at Chantilly in France, and after a struggle of 39 rounds, lasting 3 hours, 10 minutes, 55 seconds, the fight was declared a draw. Fought in the open air, in a pouring rain, that battle formed one of the strangest chapters in the annals of old-style pugilism.
The rounds varied in duration from 7 minutes, 7 seconds to 10 seconds, Mitchell often going down at the slightest tap to economize his strength. In the earlier stages, Sullivan, with 42 pounds advantage in weight, had much the best of the fighting, but he could never really corner his elusive opponent, who seemed little the worse for the punishment he had received when the draw was mutually agreed to. Mitchell practically retired from the ring after the fight, but returned in 1894, past his prime and out of form, only to be knocked out in the third round by J. J. Corbett after an exciting contest. Mitchell had never been knocked out before. He was married to a daughter of George Washington Moore, popularly known as Moore, formerly a circus rider and one of the founders of the Moore and Burgess Minstrels. In temperament Mitchell, though a most brilliant and courageous boxer, was ex tremely sensitive and quick to take offense.