Memphis daily appeal. [volume] (Memphis, Tenn.) 1847-1886, 1885-12-09

SUDDEN STROKE OF PARALYSIS,
due to the bursting of a large blood vessel
at the base of the brain, of the kind that
are absolutely fatal at the moment. He
stated that Mr.. Vanderbilt's death vae as
painless as it was sudden. The doctor
knew bie patient most intimately, and
promptly certified to the cause of death to
avoid the unnecessary formsity or a
coroner's inquest and an autopsy. As
soon as il, wae ascertained beyonl doubt
that Mr.. Vanderbilt was dead the men
servants were summoned and helped to
carry the body of their dead master up
stairs to the bedroom he had occupied in
life. Mrs. Vanderbilt was Frustrated with
grief, and telephone messages we're sent TO
the Grand Central depot to summon her
sons, and TO the residences of her sons-in-
law TO inform them of the bereavement
Cornelius, VIM. K. and Frederick W.
Vanderbilt had been together in the Office
at the depot less than half an hour
BEFORE THE MESSAGE CANE,
and had gone away together. The message
found Cornelius Vanderbilt in a meeting
OF the trustees OF the American Bible So
ciety at the Bible House. He bas-
tened at once to the house whittier Mr.
Depew had preceded him, dumb with dis
tress over his friends death. One by one
the other children arrived, and, as the
the report spread with lightning like
rapidity throughout the city, nearer
friends OF the dead pagnate also came.
Universal CONSERVATION and grief pre-
vailed at the most unexpected news, Mr..
Vanderbilt, while he had for two wears
past been victim, more or less, of IN
digestion, with its attendant ills and kin
dred ne-iotis disorders, had lately, despite
the frequent reports of his death, been
apparently mending. There had been an
Improvement in the general tone of his
health that was particularly noticeable to-
day. Monday night he attended the per.
formance in the Metropolitan Opera
House, aud nothing was apparently fuf-
ther from his mind than sudden death.
Like most people, Dir. Vanderbilt had his
own
LITTLE PRIVATE sUPERsTITIoNs,
And one of them was that if he ever
passed the age of sixty-fve, which, for
some reason in the family's history is
looked upon as the critical age, he would
he good for twenty years more. In con-
versation with near friend more than
three weeks ago, he stated this as his be-
lief, when the subject was brought up.
and he rejoiced in the knowledge that the
turning point was nearly reached. Had
NJ. Vanderbilt lived to May Sth, next
year, he would have been sixty-five years
of age. He was born ct the Staten Island
homestead, on that date in the year 1921.
The rearnese OF the time, which he him.
self considered critical, gave him no ap-
parent concern, however. He did not tx
pect, neither did he fear death. 1t cam
10 him, it very simply, very gently. He
did not know it when it seizsd him. By
arrangement Of the nearest friends, with
members of the family, it was decided
that the funeral should be on Friday next
at 10 O'Clock, from st. Bartholomew
| church, at Madison avenue and Forty
fourth street, OF which Rev. DR.. Cook is
pastor. Mr.. Vanderbilt was vea1rymsn
in the church, to the construction of
which he had contributed largely. The
sexton OF the church wss charged with
THE FUNERAL ARRANGEMENTS.
At Mr.. Vanderbilt's own desire. he will
be inferred in the family mausoleum in
the Moravian Cemetery at New Dorp
Staten Island, which has lust been com
pleted. 1t was one of the last acts of his
life 10 turn over by deed, for 81, all the
old farm property of the family on Staten
Island to his son George, to do with as he
desired, and fot this purpose father and
son visited and went over the island 10
gether last Saturday, incidentally inspect
| ing also the just-coDpleted mauso cum
Mr.. Vanderbilt had made q will. Its pro-
| visions are net known to any one outside
of the family and his confidential counsel
and friend, Mr.. Depew. But the Wander
| bilts were a very united family. Depew
ventured the prediction that the million
| aires death would make no change in ex-
isting conditions. The Vanderbilt railroa d
| systems viii be managed and owned as
heretofore. The sons viii manage the es-
| tate and the properties, all OF which are
here, the same as if the master hand was
| at the helm. No
| CoMMoTIoN IN FINANCIAL CIRCLES
| need result. Mr.. Vanderbilt had long
| ago abandoned Wall street and tt q stock
| market. He owned no real estate as in
vestments. Like the commodore, his
| father, he had no faith in real estate, but
| believed that for men in active affairs ii
was the correct thing to Invest in prop
J critics that could be turned into money in
stantly if needed. He had, beside, a
| theory, which he used to express in
words to this effect-that real estate was
| really owned by the municipality; the
owners were really only the tenants.
The children Mr.. Vanderbilt leaves are
in their regular succession as to age from
| Cornelius, who is about forty years Of
4
! w. and George W., and five daughters
Mrs. Elliott F. Shepard, Mrs. William D
Sloane, Mrs. Hamilton Mex. Twom.
bley and MTs. DIR. Seward Webb. Corne
lius and William K. are both actively en-
gagged in the management of the family
railroad interests, and will so continue
Cornelius is the chairman of the Board o.
| Directors of the New. York Central snC
Michigan Central systems, and William
X. holds the same Office in the Lake Short
and Nickle-Plsts system. Frederick w
who is about thirty two years old, is
director in all the roads.
MR.. VANDERBILT
was, it is thought, richer than any sipgl,
member of the Rothschild family. The
| Duke of Westminster is said to be WoTtf
S200, 900, but Mr.. Vanderbilt wa
richer, becuase the dukes money onlI
pays him about 2 per cent. being mainl,
in lands and houses. Mr.. Vanderbilt hat
much larger income. Lsst year he helt
$54, 900 of per cent bonds, hut late
he reduced this amount to $50 5,000,00l @
81 per cents. His government bonds wer,
worth almost s75, 100000. At one time h,
owned 100000 shares of Michigan
Central, 10000 shares of North
western and 100000 shares of LAX,
Shore. He is ssid to have RolS
ton, he had 30 600 Chicago and Rocl
Island, 10000 Delaware and Lackswanns
and about 10000 shares in other railroads
making in all about $4,000 shares of rail
way stocks; also So, 100000 worth of rail
road bonds, SS2, 100000 of State and cit,
bonds, and s., 900, 600 In various manufact
uring stocks snd mortgages. he valued
his house on Fifth avenue, with its er
treasures, at 5000 900. His ordinary
household expenses were S200,000 year
In 1884 he gave a ball that cost $4,000
He loved horses and was good juds,
of horse-tissh. He sold Maud S
for $40 600. Mr.. Vanderbilt was wortl
TWO HUNDRED MILLIONS OF DOLLARS,
although his fortune shrank last year ma
terially, through a big decline in stocke
and through business depression, but III
"bulP movement of the past few month
culAtsd as follows: Two million three hun
dred and ssventy.two thousand q yea
rom government bonds, s., 1894 coo from
railroad stocks, $576, ,695 from m scellaneou
securities; total, over S10,000,000 yeai
or S2S,000 day, $1,000 an hour, or $40 Z
a minute. He made no ostentatious dis
play @of his wealth, and was charitable
although in this he had to be quiet, or b,
would have been overrun by impostcr;
he was shrewder in business than msn.
supposed he was. He knew enough I
sell 250,000 shares of New YORK Centrs
five years ago at l20 and buy government
at par.
THE DEATH SCENE.
The testimony from Mr.. Vanderbilt
boiy-servsnt, Lewis Maxwell, in Iegar
to the scenes at the time of and immed
lately after the death, was substantially i
accordance with the story already told
DR.. J. W. Mclean was the only other wi