The Savannah morning news., 1901-01-07
P. D. ARMOUR DEAD
GREAT PIONEER MEAT PACKER
PASSES AWAY.
STAID TOO LONG IN HARNESS.
HEALTH BROKEN TWO YEARS AGO
NEVER RECLAIMED.


Earning Immense Profits-Hls
Wealth Estimated All the Way
From S25, ,O00. 900 to O,OO0, 900.
Chicago, Jan. 6.-Phihp d. Armour died
at his residence in Prairie avenue in this
city at 545 O'Clock this evening.
The end came after two years of i'll
ness during which time Mr.. Armour Wis
tied German baths, passed the cold
months in Southern California and devot-
ed himself largely to an attempt to restore
his health which, however, had been
broken never to be regained.
For several weeks the dead millionaire
had been living at the cd family home in
Prairie avenue, the usual trip to South
ern California not having been taken this
winter. He came down to the Office in
the Home Insurance building but seldom,
and as the cod increased he did not come
at all. 1t was understood in the office
that he had an incipient attack of pneu-
monia. but it was given out no later than
a week ago that he was on the road to
recovery. 1t was noted, however, that
the constant attendance of Or. Frank
Billings, the family physician, at the bed
side of the sick man, did not corroborate
the favorable reports at the downtown
office
Mr.. Armour had lost strength steadily
from day to day since the commencement
of the winter. The pneumonia was check
ed, but strength was not regained.
His treadmin of work and his firm grip
on affairs were maintained until the
spring 1899. Then the machine began 20
show signs of breaking Mr. Armour
was reported to be a sick man and these
reports were confirmed when he sailed
for Germany, to take baths at Bad
Nauheim. He spent most of the summer
as the baths. and was sufficiently restored
in health 20 take trip to Switzerland,
where he remained month among the
mountains.
When he returned to Chicago that fall
he was looking we'll and his friends hoped
his recovery was complete. He went to
! the summer home of his son, Philip d.
/ Armour, Jr., at Oconomowoc Lake, WIS,
and remained there until nearly winter.
Then he journeyed to Pasadena in South
| ern California for the cold months. All
| the time he was at Oconomowoc he made
! weekly trips to his Office In the Home In
surance building, and was receiving con-
| stant reports of the general drift of his
| business. affairs. The death of his son,
| Philip d. Armour, Jr., in Southern Cal
| iforna, on Jan. 20, 1900, was a great shock
| to the heahnbroken man, from which he
| never recovered. The son had gone on
/ eft to fat was n
denly with pneumonia. His death fol-
| lowed with scarcely days warning. The
son had largely interested the father, and
inherited the business ability of the Ar
mours.
Mr.. Armour was not able to accompany
| the funeral party to Chicago. When he
did return here he went direct to Ocouom-
owoc and remained there until the chin
weather IN the fail drove the summer
cottagers to their city homes.
| After the death of Philip D. Armour
| Jr.. the vast interests of Armour q CO..
! " hich had been carried on as a co-part-
| nership, were incorporated under the old
name of Armour & Co This was to pro-
! vide greater stability in case of death,
and made no change in the practical
| ownership of properties. Some years be-
fore, the grain department had been in.
corporated under the title of the Armour
| Elevating Company. The death of Simon
! 3. Armour at Kansas city, In March, 1899
| caused no particular change in the Ar
mour interests there, as they were operat-
| ed as a stock company.
| So careful ly had the plans for the future
been made that the death of Mr.. Armour
will have little effect on the outward
working of the great enterprise with
| which he had been so closely identified
| IL is believed all the Armour properties
| will be held intact until the grandchildren
| come into their own.
| Estimates Of Mr.. Armours own estate
! run from $4,000 900 to S25,000,O00 This, of
| course does not include the $l5,W0OD or
1 $50 100000 owned by the younger members
4 Of his family For years every enterprise
1 he was interested in has been making i'm
mense profits His holdings Of stocks have
| all advanced largely during the last three
| years.
muscular affection of the heart was
! the immediate cause of death. He had
been slowly recovering from pneumonia
that for three weeks had threatened his
life. At O'Clock this morning his heart
gave way under the strain of his recent
/ illness. his pulse running up to 103. That
was the beginning Of the end.
Mr. Armour was surrounded by his
! family when he died. Those at his bed
side besides his physician and nurses
were his wife. Mrs Philip ID. Armour,
! Jr.. Mr. and Mrs. j. Ogden Armour ana
Rev Frank w. Gunsaulus. The million
aire retained consciousness until within
an hour Of his death.
During the day he had realized that
death war near. To those around MIN
he had said:
IT know am very sick and am ready
for death when II comes"
Soon after luncheon and just before the
phvsiclan forbade his talking more Mr..
| Armour in feeble tones said that ne Would
/ ike TO hear the Lords prayer read.
one Of the trained nurses VINO had been
attending him. drew chair to the ped-
side and slowly read from the Bible the
prayer for which the dying man had ASK
| ed II was read, sentence by sentence
and each was repeated by Mr.. Armour.
| When the amen" had been repeated by
him he sank back on the pillow and closed
| his eyes restfully. IL was the last word
| the great financer spoke, except feeble
fareweis 10 his family little later
DR. Frank Billings. VINO was az Mr..
/ Armour's bedside when The end came, and
who had been almost constantly IN attend
auce upon the sick man. stated tonight
that he heard Mr. Armour make no men-
tion OF his interest iu or profits arising
from the gigantic Miwaukee-Great North
/ ern deal By which he was reputed 10
have made Sg00O.O0O 20 s., 10000 last week.
"He looked upon such holding" said Or.
| Billings, "as investments. rather than
from the speculative standpoint"
I u H. L death TnFaaA