The Savannah morning news., 1904-11-11

Off to Louisville at the same time But
who would imagine a Blue Grass belle
listening to such absurdities as bank
troubles with her wedding day at hand,
the trousseau ready and the cake bak-
ed?
Yet from his brand new seat in the
Seventh Nationals presidents chair
young Mr.. Thomas calmly telegrapheG
postponing the wedding and canceling
all the arrangements for the honey
moon. Yet there were no seismic dis
turbances in Kentucky-not even when
the new bank president suggested that,
as he was too busy to go to Kentucky
to be married, Miss Lee come to New
York and have the knot tied while you
wait. And this is Just what happened.
| The whole of Kentucky and all who
knew the fame of Kentucky gasped.
After that e. r.. Thomas stood high
indeed in the confidence of his country
men.
When, presently. Mrs. Thomas put
her young millionaire husband up to
establishing a racing stable-as was ma
tural, she being from kentucky-every-
| body said she would easily get even
| for the upsetting of her wedding plans
All the racing hangers-on rubbed their
hands gleefully, thinking what they
would do to the easiest Mr.. Easy Mark
! of the turf. At first IL looked as
| though Mr.. Thomas was badly "stung."
| He bought expensive horses which al
! lowed themselves to be extensively
| left at the post, and was $3.50, 900 out
of pocket on this investment before
! he ever made a winning. Then one
! day his colt Pulsus won $4,000 in the
I Great Trial stakes, which more than
! recompensed him for the series Of de-
! feats suffered by the costly Hermis
who later far exceeded the triumph
| of PulsuS. Since that time Mr.. Thorn
as has steadily advanced in his knowl-
edge of turf matters, until his stable
now is one of the best in the country
and his winnings to correspond.
His "White Ghost" Career.
| 1t sounds strange but 1t is true, that
nowadays the more one goes into
horses the more he hungers for auto
mobiles. Mr.. Thomas responded to
this instinct in characteristic fashion.
| No half-hearted experimenting for
him. He went to w. X. Vanderbilt
and caused that gentleman nearly to
faint with joy by taking the deadly
white Ghost" off his hands-the ma
| chine known in the streets of New
| York and along every main country
road within a hundred miles as devil
ish in its thirst for human blood.
The white Ghost" had already half
a score of victims to tbs credit, but Mr.
Thomas was cool and confident. In his
hands the white Ghost" annihilated
| space at it never had done before
| Presently 1t scattered a group. of
school children. catching one of
them-little Edward Thies-killlng
him instantly. The millionaire prompt
| ly paid the amount of a civil judg-
ment in favor of the lads father, but
| this did not foot up to nearly the
aggregate of $57 per mile which Mr.
Vanderbilt had paid in fines.
Not long afterward the White
! Ghost" destroyed a dog, who proved
more costly dead than he had living.
And there followed other casualties in
the streets of New York and Brook
! lyn available for travel to and from
| the race track which came to make
Mr.. Thomas more celebrated than any
other autoist. At the time crowds in
the streets were becoming menacing
whenever he appeared in the white
Ghost" he went abroad. taking the
machine with him.
He had not been gone long before
cablegrams told how Mr.. Thomas
auto had run down and killed a peas
ant woman on the Naples highway
and how the italian authorities were
pursuing him in Paris. There was
quite a diplomatic uproar about it,.
but an absence of sufficient proof that
| il was really Mr.. Thomas in his ma
chine enabled him to come home I'M
scathed.
Mobbed in His Automobile.
When the white Ghost" reappeared
on New York streets II was welcomed
with so much violence by East Side
mobs that Mrs. Thomas was severely
hurt one day by stone which struck
her as she was sitting in the machine
beside her husband. Finally Mr..
Thomas sold the man-killer to Mr..
Drake of Chicago, purchasing in its
stead a $4,000 Panhard In that and
in his new Mercedes. he has been keep
ing UP his record as an ignorer of
speed regulations.
To buy Stone Acre at Newport of
John w. Ellis for S225,000 and to be-
come a shining social light was no
more than was expected of e. r.
Thomas but when he was suddenly
brought into court as a theatrical IAN
gel' there were gasps of establishment.
This was no Joke. When THE
Mocking Bird" comic opera ceased to
MARBLE and several of the actors had
to walk back to New York they sued
Mr.. Thomas for back salary. Mana
ger Fl. d. Sire testified that he sold
| the piece to Mr.. Thomas for $4,000,
and that he expressly stipulated that
Miss Madeline Beasley should play the
| title part. The court heartlessly de-
clared that Mr.. Thomas should pay the
| footsore actors a judgment of $4,455.17
This suit revealed also that Mr..
Thomas went into THE Mocking Bird"
with his eyes open. as he was one of
| the original angels" of Princess
Chic" sinking $4,000 therein. In this
| case. Miss Minnie Methot was the
tuneful lady who had to be starred.