The morning news. [volume] (Savannah, Ga.) 1887-1900, 1888-06-20
HEIRS TO BIG FORTUNES.
GEORGIANS WHO HAVE BECOME
RICH THROUGH WINDFALLS

RICH THROUGH WINDFALLS.
The Scarborough BaroEetcy and It's
Claimant-Romantic Story of a Ware
County Family That Became Rich
Through the Estate of an English
Merchant Whose Wife Ran Away
With Her Husbands Bookkeeper.
The publication of the Scarborough
Drake legacy claim in yesterdays MORNING
NEWS not only occasioned great deal of
comment, but revived "reminiscences of
Enos Hardy Scarborough, who is well re-
membered by the older citizens of Savan-
nah. He was man of great probity and
force of character. At one time ne owned
about 90, 900 acres of land in the neighbor
hood of Scarborough. "Reminiscences of
the elder Scarborough have also brought
out stories showing the manner of railroad
ing in the primitive day of railroads in
Georgia.
A train going from Savannah to Macon
would have part Of the cars moved up to
Scarborough, where the trainmen would
stay all night at Scarborough's Inn, and in
the morning they would come back down
the road for the other half which would be
taken to Scarborough where the trainmen
would stop over the second night, and after
breakfast would pull out for Macon, taking
about week to make the trip Mr.. Scar
borough always counted on having the
trainmen on every train going To Macon
stop with him two successive nights.
The article also tended to revive stories
of other Georgians who have come INTO pos
session of great wealth by the death OF rel
ativeS in the mother country, one OF the
most remarkable of which is the following
A ROMANTIC STORY
In the early history of Georgia man,
woman and one child, a boy emigrated
from England and settled in an isolated
place on Seventeen mile creek, Ware county,
that part of which is now Coffee county.
Two sons were born in that almost unsettled
section, and the three boys grew to man
hood almost as wild and fearless as the
Creek Indians who then existed in large
numbers in the state The boys were veri-
table COWBOYS who were cattle herders and
drovers, and skilled hunters and marksmen,
but the father was educated and taught
them the rudiments of language. In the
pioneer days this did not extend as far as
the three Rs, so that the young men were
almost illiterate. The father when
he first settled on Seventeen
mile creek had some English money
which was current in those days, but in
time his finances were reduced, and being
unused to manual labor, he eked out bare
existence teaching school in pioneer log
cabin to scholars who attended school when
they chose and went hunting or to shooting
matches when thoy wanted to.
After the three boys had grown to man.
hood an inquiry from a London house to
their merchants in Savannah came, par
ticularly describing the emigrants of long
ago, and asking if they had landed at
Savannah, and if SO to trace them up, as
there was very large estate which the
child tbaNy had hrO11pnt with than vyO113d
inherit. The Savannah house in
due time located the people on Seven
teen-mile creek, and after investigation
in London developed romantic story. The
couple had eloped from London. The man
was the bookkeeper and trusted and con-
fidential clerk of a wealthy London mer-
chant, and resided with his employer.
RAN AWAY TO AMERICA.
The merchants wife and the bookkeeper
became infatuated with each other, and
during the absence Of the merchant thecouple
concluded TO putth ocean between them and
the confiding husband. They did so, taking
the child with them, which was the
merchants only son. Settling SO far inland
in an almost uninhabited place, they were
completely Isolated, and all trace of them
was lost. In after years the merchant
died, leaving a princely estate to his
abducted son, and in due time the heir
afterward received it, or the greater part
of it, for large portion of the money that
was acquired went to some shrewd neigh
bors who took the initiative in working the
case up and going to England for the
money The wealth of some families in
Ware and Coffee counties had its foundation
in the legacy. The London family, how
ever, was not trained to habits of rrugality,
knew little of the value of money, and it
did not stick to the fingers of them and
their heirs. Some idea, however, of the
vast sum brought back from England may
be gained when 1t is said that it enriched
some seven or eight families, and the money
was so current that it was largely counter
feited and passed readily throughout this
section of Georgia. so that it was difficult
to distinguish between the genuine and the
spurious coin.
ANOTHER CASE
Another case is mentioned where a man
living in almost abject poverty in country
district on the line of the Savannah, Florida
and Western railway, learned that an in
quiry was being made from London for a
man of his name as heir to a large estate
He communicated with an uncle in an east
ern city, and shortly afterward he left sud
denly and did not return to his humble
home for eight months. When he did come
back he came back wealthy, having proved
to be an uncles heir to rich legacy, and
he is now said to be one of the wealthiest
Aen Of Jesup.
II the Drake estate of $2oO,0 900 should
come TO Georgia, it would make all other
English legacies seem small. Hardy Scar
borough told a MORNING NEWS reporter
that he would not exchange his American
citizenship for au English baronetcy, so that
If his father is successful in establishing his
claim, his eldest son will not renounce his
allegiance to his native land, but will enjoy
his patrimony in Georgia.
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