San Antonio light. [volume] (San Antonio, Tex.) 1911-1993, 1925-11-08

In Muncie, Ind, he was driving wagon
for a coffin manufacturer when he met
and married his first wife, Effie Harold.
Later he drove a grocery wagon and
trained his golden voice by calling up
dumb-waiter shafts.
Then someone, who knew, heard him
singing in church choir and, in quick
succession of leaps, he became a world
famous singer. But Mrs. Harold re-
manned always the same quiet little wife
of coffin driver she had been. The
tenor felt that what he needed now was a
wife of life, pep and ambition. Surely
"Lady" Talbot filled the bill, so he
divorced quiet little Effie and married the
gamblers snappy, aggressive widow.
Mr.. Harold stood the excitement a
good many years, longer than any of the
others did, perhaps because his work as a
singer took him all over the world and
away from home most of the time, and
also possibly because he knew what hap
pened to the first husband. 1t was while
he was singing at the Century in New
York that Mrs. Harold had hand-to-
hand duel with the janitress over a dis
pute of eight days rent.
The ianitress was a husky woman and
brandished an iron rod, but Mrs. Harold
charged in, took it away from her. and
the two ladies fought all over the place.
Neghbors foolishly separated them before
the fight was settled so it had to be fought
all over again in court, with charges and
counter charges. The bewildered Judge
listened as long as he could stand it. then
ordered all charges withdrawn and the
case dismissed. After which he adjourned
the court for a rest.
She was soon back in court again in
connection with a one-round, no-decision.
unsanctioned bout with a chauffeur over
purse of twenty-five cents. She landed
right-hander on the chauffeur's eye and
hit him on the head with a slipper, while
he hardly scored at all, but then he was
handicapped by his heavy uniform, while
she was skating about in her nightie
The chauffeur had been sent up from
a drug store to deliver some sleeping
powders to the Harold apartment He
arrived at midnight and the dispute arose
over his desire to collect a quarter for
his pains. Mrs. Harold was willing to let
him have that amount, but she had only
a half-dolar and doubted if she would get
any change from him. The chauffeur re-
fused to let go of the powders until he
had the money, which resulted in a
wrestling match.
Mrs. Harold said that he dragged her
out into the public hail. AS a lady in a
nightgown she resented such treatment
and punched him in the eye One of her
slippers came off and, before putting it
on again, she applied it to his head. At
least, that is the way he told it. Mrs Har-
rold maintained that she was only gestur-
ing with it and that he got in the way.
1t must have been forccful gesture, be-
cause a doctor had to take several stitches
in the mans forehead.
On big suits, as well as little ones, she
went to court. She sued Julian w. Rob-
bins, the banker, for $25, 900 because the
Robbins car bumped hers and broke her
leg. The suit was settled out of court, but
it would seem to have been easily worth
that amount to force such an energetic
person to keep quiet for a while.
Every one supposed that the tenor
enjoyed these cxcitements until one day
he sued that wife with punch for di-
vcrce, naming as correspondent Arthur H.
Marks, president of the Skinner Organ
Company. Mrs Harold, with her usual
speed and enterprise, came right back
with counter-suit, naming correspondents
and everything. To this the tenor replied
81 don't care who gets it, as long as it is
gotten"
Lydia Locke Talbot Harold won the
divorce and, leaving the singer wifeless
but the richer by a lot of experience,
mo Mr. rha hoI Lat a