The Cape Girardeau Democrat. (Cape Girardeau, Mo.) 1876-1909, 1894-02-10

his private secretary, and /. F. Shep-
ard, night editor of the paper. Sud-
denly Mr.. Childs began to slip forward
in his chair, and would have fallen to
the floor if the two gentlemen had not
sprang forward and raised him up.
Mr.. Shepard and Mr.. Steele and Mr..
Childs himself believed that the at
tack was nothing more than vertigo,
and Mr.. Childs laid down and DIR. J.
NJ. Dacosta. his family physician. was
sent for. When DIR. Dacosta arrived
he found that Mr.. Childs had had a
slight stroke of paralysis, due, as the
physicians have since learned, to the
breaking of a small blood vessel in the
head and the formation in the brain of
small clot of blood
Mr.. Childs was removed to his resi-
dence after DIR. Dacosta had completed
his examination and another physician
was called in. The two doctors at the
time did not apprehend any fatal re-
did not greatly affect his limbs, and
they had good basis to work upon in
Mr.. Childs' splendid constitution and
orderly life.
When the news of Mr. Childs' illness
was read in the papers throughout the
country on Friday morning kilograms
and letters of sympathy and hope of
his speedy recovery began to pour in
upon his family from the most eminent
and prominent men and women in the
United States and from many in En-
gland.
For more than week Mr.. Childs'
condition did not grow any worse. but
on the contrary showed slight signs of
improvement. The clot of blood on
the brain, however, was not absorbed,
as often happens in similar cases, and
after week the paralysis began to
progress slowly. Then Mr.. Childs'
physicians began battle against hope.
DIR. S. Weir Mitchell and DIR. Charles
X. Mills, two of Philadelphias' most
eminent specialists, were called in for
consultation.
On last Friday night week ago Mr..
Childs' condition changed for the
out the past week he has remained in
much the same condition, but Thurs
day and yesterday Mr.. Childs showed
some improvement and there was
faint hope that he might ultimately
rally.
AT no time before last night was Mr.
Childs' unconscious during his illness
He recognized those about his bedside
and conversed with them, expressing
a wish for anything that he wanted.
Shortly before 10 o'clock last night
Mr.. Childs respiration became en-
barrassed and his pulse began to flag.
His physicians recognized the signs of
approaching dissolution, and although
everything that medical science and
skill could do to prolong life was done,
Mr.. Childs sank rapidly, and at Sol
o'clock this morning the generous
heart that beat so kindly for his fellow
men was stilled in death.
Except his wife, Mr.. Childs had no
immediate family, but there were gath
cred at his house at the time of his
death George c. Thomas and James w.
Paul. of the firm of Drexel & Co.; Miss
Peterson, Mrs. Childs' niece; Miss STAN
ley, Mrs. Childs' companion; Mr.. and
Mrs. John Drexel, the son and daugh-
ter-in-law of the late A. J. Drexel and
Col. De V. Morrell, husband of the
youngest daughter of the late Frank
Drexel.
In the death of Mr.. Childs Philadel-
phia loses one of the citizens of which
the city was most proud, and the coun-
49,, n4l 10 90 &c hae
vate citizens. From his early boyhood
Mr.. Childs' life was such that it can
stand as a model and example to all
men for what n noble manhood and an
honest, upright, conscientious life
should be. The story of the struggles
of poor and friendless boy into the
position of one of the great publishers
of the world, and the honored and
sought-for friend of eminent men in all
walks of life, reads like a romance.
Mr.. Childs' career as publisher of the
better class of books, and his phenom-
email success in rebuilding the fortunes
of broken-down newspaper and max
ing it one of the leading and most
profitable journals of the land have
great as have his acts of benevolence
made him beloved wherever the En-
glish language is spoken.
Mr.. Chiids As q Newspaper Publisher.
During his early careers as publisher
of books Mr.. Childs never lost sight of
his favofite object, the control of a
great daily newspaper. The time came
when he could crafty this ambition.
The ] ublie Ledger, which was founded
in 1885 as paper, up to the beginning
of the civil war had been a very profit
able venture for its proprietors, but had
fallen on evil days. The war, by
doubling the cost of material and
labor, had render ed it impossible to con-
tinue it at the origi nal priee except
st Q loss, Moreover. one Of the three