Daily press. [volume] (Newport News, Va.) 1896-current, 1910-08-11
Application for Negroes Pardon
Makes Interesting Reading.
SENT UP FROM THIS CITY
Mike Thomas, Alias Pap, Who Was
Forty-three Years old Seven Years
Aoo. Now Claims TO be Eighty-year-
old Confederate Veteran.


Virginia State penitcntiary seven
gears ago to serve out life sen
tence. Mike Thomas, alias James
Smith. alias pap" a negro. who
was sent up" from this CITY. has
aged about one year in every seven
weeks according to the statements
contained in the petition for his par
oon, which vas presented ar Cover
nor Mann's Office yesterday by RAY
rond Hudson, an attorney of Norfolk,
" no formerly lived here.
This petition se;s forth that
Thomas is eighty years old; that he
is a Confederate soldier. and was
the body guard of General Kirby
Smith and a servant in the well
known Samuel 5. Seldom family, OF
lLynchburg. When arrested in this
city on November -. 1902, by De
tective Sergeant Reynolds and Dc
tective Payne on charges of house
breaking and larceny, Thomas gave
, his age as 43 years and his birth
ACE as Red Hill. Pa. Immediately
after his arrest the negro was photo
glaphed and his picture in the
rCgue's gallery ar police headquarters
shows that he gave about the right
age when he was arrested.
Criminal Record Here.
Detective Sergeant REYNOLDS yes
terday received from Attorney IIud-
son copy of the petition for the
IardOn with the request that he
sign it. Sergeant Reynolds immediate
" hunted up Thomas record here
and found that he was a bad negro"
Only a few months before his arrest
tor breaking into Motley d Odea's
butter store, 270S Washington ave
nue., he served term of three
months in the city Jail for stealing
chickens Thomas was tried in the
Corporation Court in February. 1903,
and sentenced TO one year in the
penitentiary However. Thomas had
previously served two terms in the
State prison and under the law his
sentence of one year became a sen
fence for life as it was the third
time hei had been sent up"
While there appears to be no
truth in the statements made in il,
the petition to the governor makes
very interesting reading. 1t says.
among other things. that while Mike
was with his master, Mr.. Selden.
engaged in the defense of Lynchburg,
he did his duty as soldier. Mr..
Selden fell on the field and Mike at
once grabbed his musket and fought
with courage born of revenge for an
injury 10 his master. He fought as
long as there was a blue uniform in
sight and then helped to remove the
body of Mr.. Selden from the field.
When Miss Cassie Selden married
General Kirby Smith the petition con-
times. Mike went along to look af
Ter the general, being given to Mrs.
Smith by her father. The old man
saw hard service and stuck to the
end He was "all wool and a yard
vide in his devotion to my white
folks as he called them.
Just Learning to Crawl.
Unless Mike lied about his age
when arrested by the police in this
city eight years ago, all the time that
the petition claims ne was fighting
for the Confederacy he was just
learning TO crawl and walk around at
bis home in Red Hill. Pa.
That the police and the court Of
ficers here will not sign the petition
ior the pardon is foregone con
clusion as they are satisfied that the
statements contained in il are with
CHt foundation.
Thomas was first sent TO the peni-
Tertiary from Lynchburg for seven
years for robbery and eleven years
after he finished that term he served
another one for two years for house
breaking.
Upon completing that term,
Thomas moved with his family TO
this city and continued his criminal
record here. His wife and children
Low live here and they are asking for
lis pardon.