in his life which, it is said, has always made him a bachelor. 
He loved a girl, but was too poor to marry. Just when Freer f s 
prospects were beginning to brighten, the young woman died. 
Hoy/ another blow followed this. In 1878 the little road was 
leased to the Wabash, and such costly appurtenances as audit¬ 
ors and superintendents were discontinued. It was a great 
blow to Freer and his chum. When they were thrown out of 
employment it looked as though fate were against them, but 
as a matter of fact, the loss of their positions made them 
both millionaires. Between them they had saved several 
thousand dollars, and together they came to Detroit. In 
those days there were no car shops in the middle west, so 
Hecker and Freer rented a building and began building cars 
on a small scale. To this company they gave the name of the 
Peninsular Car Works, which afterward became famous all over 
the world. Their business developed beyond their wildest 
dreams. Their "shops" grew larger and. larger, they paid 
for their buildings, erected others, and soon Y/ere counted 
rich men. A few years ago the company was purchased by the 
car trust, and both Freer and Hecker went out of it at a 
gain of several millions each. 
Long before that sale, and since, Mr. Freer devot&d 
himself to art. He has scoured the earth in his search for 
art treasures, yet very little has been written of him, and 
no photographs of him have ever been published, even in his 
own city. For, above all other things, Mr. Freer is a man 
