Jasper County Democrat, Volume 12, Number 43, Rensselaer, Jasper County, 11 September 1909 — LOVETT IN PLACE OF HARRIMAN [ARTICLE+ILLUSTRATION]

LOVETT IN PLACE OF HARRIMAN

FinancrerDied atOne Thirty In Afternoon. REPORT WAS WITHHELD Authorities Say Wizard's Passing Won't Hurt Properties. EULOGIZED BY JAMES J. HILL No Spiritual Adviser at Bedside, Rector Being Out When Called. —AArden, N. Y., Sept. 10.—The exact time of Edward 11. Harriman’s death is known only in that limited circle of relatives and associates who had so

effectively shielded Harriman from all outside annoyance during his last illness. The time was given to the world as 3:35 p. m., but Mrs. Mary Simons, sister of the dead man, says that the end had come at 1:30, more than two hours previous. Lovett Named as Successor. Whether this apparent discrepancy has any hearing on the current belief that every effort was made to lessen the influence of the financier’s death on the New York stock market Is problematical. But it is significant that the time of his death as officially announced was just 35 minutes after trading had ceased on thb exchange in New York. It is conceded generally that Judge Robert S. Lcvett will be selected to do the work Harriman had teen doing and to complete the work Harriman had started. Harriman died peacefully and to the end his brilliant mind retained its In tegrity. After a relapse on Sunday he sank slowly and soon after the noon hour Thursday there came a relapse which marked the approach of the end His wife, his two daughters, the Misses Mary and Carol, and his sons, Walter and Roland, who have been constantly with him, assembled at the bedside and a carriage was hastily dispatched for Mrs. Simons, whose home Is here in Arden, three miles from the Tower Hill mansion. Driving hurriedly up the mountain side, .Mrs. Simons entered the great silent house in time to be present at her brother's death. She joined the wife and children, who, with Dr. W. G. Lyle of New York and Orlando HarriSan. a brother, and the nurses, formed a group at the Ledside. , „ Mr, and Mrs. Robert L. Gerry also were present. Mrs. Gerry is Harriman's daughter. Gerry said the cause of Harriman's death probably will never be known. He succumbed to an intestinal disorder after a fight against disease which will rank for sheer grit with his remarkable struggles in the financial world. No Spiritual Adviser at Hand. No spiritual adviser was at hand. The swiftest automobile in the Harriman garage had been dispatched for Rev. Dr. J. Holmes McGuiness, an Episcopalian rector of Arden parish, and Harriman's personal chaplain, but Dr. McGuiness was not at home. When found later, although rushed up the mountain side at breakneck speed, he did not arrive until after death had come. '

With the secrecy that has been maintained at the Harriman residence unbroken to the very end, news of Harriman’s death was conveyed to New York before It came to Arden and the valley below. Then by way of New York, the report that death had arrived at the great estate on Tower Hi’J spread quickly- and confirmation was sought at the residence by telephone. A voice on the hill replied: “Yes, that is correct. Mr. Harriman died at 3:35 p. m.” Soon afterward the hundreds of workmen engaged on the uncompleted estate, learned of their master’s death when a page came out on the lawn and announced: “You may all quit work. Mr. Harris man is dead.” A hush fell over the group and the workmen, dropping their tools, trudged silently to the flat cars and descended on the private incline railway that bore them from the mountain top to their homes below. While the policy of reticence that prevailed during Harriman’s illness was maintained by his -relatives and associates after his death, Orlando Harriman, who is in New York, discussed the funeral arrangements briefly. He said that Harriman would be burled in the family plot in the little graveyard behind St. John’s Episcopal church at Arden. He will rest beside his eldest son, Edward H. Harriman, Jr., who died twenty-two years z ago, soon after the family first came to Arden. Funeral to Be Held Sunday. A shaft of blue stone, quarried from the steep sides of Tower Hist, marks the grave of the baby Edward, and it is probable that a similar stone of modest size will be erected over the last resting place of his distinguished father. The services will be held at 3:30 on Sunday afternoon next, and, it is understood, will be private. Dr. Lyle, who has been Harriman’s physician throughout this last illness, has issued no statement concerning his illness or the cause of death, but the general understanding is that there was no operation. Four persons are authority for this belief. They are Mrs. Simons, his sister; Charles T. Ford, superintendent of the Harriman estate; William A. McClelftin, superintendent of the Arden farms, and Thomas B. Price, Harriman's personal secretary in the Union Pacific offices. All four made such a declaration after Harriman’s death. Mrs. Simons discussed his death with more freedom than any one else, but even she professed not to know the exact nature of her brother’s ailment. Her eyes were red with weeping and her voice broke with emotion as she said: “You have heard the sad news. My dear brother passed away peacefully in the presence of all the members of our family.’’ “What time did Mr. Harriman die?” she was asked. "About 1-30 in the afternoon,” was the unexpected answer. Deny There Was an Operation. She said emphatically that there had been no operation, then became so overcome by her feelings that she begged to be excused and said she could not describe the scenes at the house during the last hours. Her husband, Charles D. Simons, said he had not arrived at Arden in time to see Harriman before he died. The family's decision in selecting the little country graveyard on the hillside near here, far removed from

the scene of Harriman’s business triumphs, is the first evidence that they intend to maintain Arden as their home. The unfinished palace that covers Tower Hill and the great estate that surrounds it was one of Harriman’s dearest hobbies. During the last days of his illness he took a great personal interest in the work and, sitting in the sunshine of his great veranda, often conversed with the laborers at their work. And it is believed that the family, carrying out his wishes, will complete the work under way find that the name of Harriman will continue to be a synonym of bounty in this part of Ramapo valley. Estimates of Harriman Fortune. A wedding party set forth from the Harriman residence while the master lay dead. George Murphy, chief engineer of the estate, was the bridegroom, and the bride was Mary Spalding, a parlor maid. They alone of all the employes on the estate were not apprised of Harriman's death until after the ceremony had been performed. The wedding was held in St. Mary’s Catholic church at Arden, and as it was Mrs. HarrimanX expressed wish that her husband's death should not- interfere with the plans and the happiness of the servants, they drove forth from the

estate in Mrs. Harriman’s own wagonette. Recent estimates of Harriman’s personal wealth have varied all the way from 350,000,000 to 3100,000,000. He was, of course, a large holder of securities of the various corporations with which he was Identified, Including in

JUDGE R. S. LOVETT.

MARY HARRIMAN AND BOAT HER FATHER GAVE HER FOR THE USE OF INVALIDS.