Hot wire goes to coil, negative or ground side would be the single wire coming from the distributor. That is assuming it's all stock. Use a test light between the positive on the coil and any ground except for the negative side of the coil. Set the engine to tdc #1 and see if the test light goes out. If not, rotate the distributor until it does. That's static timing. Now, if you don't have a light at all, that means no power coming off the coil so check a few things. You can ohm out the coil, should be about 2k ohms between + and - side and 3-5k between the + and the center. If it goes to O.L. That means you have a bad coil. If it checks out good, check to make sure you have power to the coil. You can always run a hot wire directly from the battery to the coil only downfall is you won't be able to **** her off without pulling that wire. If you have power, your coil is okay, and your timing is right, replace the points and condenser. They used to be only a few bucks but I think now they're like 15-20 bucks. If it still doesn't start, sounds like you have something internal. Remember, a gasoline engine needs 3 things to start; air, fuel, and spark. If just one thing is missing(or if you have too much) you ain't gonna start. Good luck.