State

The First Lord Of Baseball Л11 over Ihe Soulli — lliis was one fan Ihe players came lo see. iti/ kobi:kt i.. WIIXIABS The day ihe President of the Unilcd Slates failed to appear for a campaign speech in Statesville, so ihe story goes, was also ihe day ihe first tilled lord in ihe history of professional baseball turned a potentially severe con¬ troversy into a pleasant and memora¬ ble occasion. And it would have been safe to bet that if the election had been held the following day. Lord Salisbury would have polled more votes than Harry S Truman. The first presidential election cam¬ paign following World War II was in full swing that year, and Give-em-Hell Harry was making a series of whistle stops throughout the South. But the rigors of the campaign had taken their toll on the President, and several speeches had to be cancelled. Unfortunately, one of the towns had gone to the trouble and cost of building speakers' stands and temporary bleachers for the festivities, and even though local papers and radio stations had carried the news that the President could not appear, a large number of citizens gathered, and were hearing sales pitches by local politicians whose gift for rhetoric often outweighed sound judgment. The day was less than a huge suc¬ cess: bored men and women grumbled and uttered imprecations against the first-born of all Democrats: children sweltered in the unseasonable heat and cried out against the entire concept of grass roots politics: and uneasy cclcb- THE STATE. JUNE I960 rities wondered what to try next as ap¬ peasement. Then, suddenly, the crowd ceased its noise: a funereal pall settled for a moment over the crowd; then, as if by cue. a roar of delight reverberated across the stadium as the crowd recog¬ nized the apparition that was slowly makings its way from the grandstand runway to the infield. What they saw was George Me- Poole, alias Lord Salisbury, a delight¬ ful combination of clown, leprechaun. Santa Claus, carnival shill, and am¬ bulatory rainbow. In All His Glory For this special day Lord Salisbury was modestly dressed in a green Prince Albert coat, blue lop hat, orange trousers, purple shoes, pink shirt with lavender polka dots, and yellow tie George Me Poole, lord Salisbury (photo courtesy the “Salisbury Port”) that reached to his knees. White spats complemented the outfit, which also included a black cane with a gold head. On each wrist and ankle was at least one wrist watch showing the time of day in various parts of the world, and an enormous watchchain spanned the distance between coat pockets. A sunflower added a touch of color to the coat lapel. On the end of the chain where the watch might be expected, there was a liny "thunder bowl." with several dollar bills crumpled into it. Oddly enough, few people were really surprised to see this walking carousel. Lord Salisbury seldom missed a public gathering, and on this day he made his way to the stand at the pitcher's mound, performed a few magic tricks, presented a few comic remarks, and then distributed soft drinks and balloons and other goodies calculated to delight children of all ages. This gentle, magnanimous man. dubbed "the loudest-dressed critter in Christendom" by a Piedmont newspa¬ perman. was well-known all over the Carolinas. Georgia, and other points south, and virtually everyone agreed that Solomon in all his glory was not arrayed like baseball's first lord. But while everyone knew about him and he was often mistaken in huge gatherings for P. T. Barnum. Judge Kenesaw Mountain Landis, and other dignitaries. George McPoole was an enigma, a mystery, and a paradox. Not much is known about his early years except that he worked in a grocery store in Spencer, that he ran away from home and worked for three years in a circus, and that he finally settled down to a rather mundane career as a deco¬ rator and part-time artist for the rail¬ road company. By his own admission, he lost a wife and a subsequent battle with the bottle, and his colorful attire was just one more effort, at first, to restore meaning to his life. A Natural Gift After the domestic tribulations, which left deep scars. Lord Salisbury retreated into his room at the old Caro¬ lina hotel in Salisbury and there nursed his wounded ego and struggled with his worst enemy: himself. At least that's the way the man him¬ self told it in bits and pieces when he attended the games in the old North Carolina State League, that superb baseball grouping that included Statesville. Mooresville. Lexington. High Point-Thomasville. Hickory. Concord. Landis, and Salisbury and which sent to the major leagues such 11