Americus times-recorder. [volume] (Americus, Ga.) 1891-current, 1906-12-05
BODY OF SPENCER
BORNE TO LONG HOME
Funeral Conpucted at National
Capital.
FUNERAL LARGELY ATTENDED
Many Distinguished Persons Present
to Pay Last Tribute-Hundreds of
tie Officials and Employees of the
Southern Railway Attended.


that is mortal of Samuel Spencer,
hate president OF the Southern rail-
way. whose tragic death on his own
railroad on the morning OF Thanks
giving Day shocked the people OF two
hem 9Dheres,, was laid To rest Sunday
afternoon il the receiving vault at
gpak Hill cemetery, there to await the
siRa9 disposition.
a notable tribute was paid to the
EGeH ny of tee distinguished railroad
magnate by his associates, by states
men and by men eminent in all the
walks Of public life. The funeral
onssEuies held in historic St. Johns
Ppst cetant Episcopal church, were at
teRaef by railroad officials, fiuanciers
ave public men from all parts of the
SsWAJry. Many OF them were life
1egg associates. Hundreds of
H6egds came from the south
Long before the hour announced for
me funeral, 2.oclock, p. m, admis-
siSsn to the church had to be denied
No all but the closest personal and
Official friends of Mr.. Spencer. Hun
dFeds Of people stood outside the edi
nee in the crisp December air through
out the service, paying solemnly and
silently their tribute OF respect.
Shortly before 1870 p. m. the Off
GERS and employees of the Southern
railway. 319 in number, assembled
at the general offices of the compa-
ny here and proceeded, as body,
TO St. Johns church They were
headed by the four general superin-
tendents of the company. Messrs.
Foraker, Loyal, Richie and Coap-
man, and included General Passenger
Traffic Manager Hardwick, General
Passenger Agent Tayloe and Assistant
General Passenger Agent Carey.
Practically all of the officers of the
company throughout the system of
nearly 5, 900 miles were in attendance
upon the services. Joining their friends
of the Southern railway in paying re-
spect to President Spencer were rep
resentatives of the Mobile and Ohio,
Georgia, Southern and F'lOrija: Gin
cinnai, New Orleans and Texas Pa
NOIIuCdSjCGu,
Central Of Georgia. Atlantic Coast
Line; SeabOard Air Line; Chesapeake
and OHIO; Pennsylvania and Norfolk
and western.
Among the distinguished people who
attended he church services, were
Vice President Fairbanks, Justice
White, Of the supreme court of the
United States; Senator and Mrs. For
aker, Of Ohio; Senator Bacon. of
Georgia; Governor Swanson and Sen
ator Kean, Of New Jersey; Secretary
Of the Interior Hitchcock; Senator
WetmOre, Of Rhode Island, and for
ner Senator Henry G. Davis, of West
Virginia
Just at 2 o'clock the soft strains Of
ChOpin's beautiful funeral march
pealed through the church from the
organ. Ii was rendered by Profess
sOr H. II. Freeman, the organist of
st. Johns. At the same instant
throughout the system of railroads
lately presided over by Mr.. Spencer,
every train came to a dead stop.
every wheel ceased to turn, every
employee put aside his work. For
five minutes over the thousands
of miles of railway every employee
paid silent respect to the lead presf-
dent.
To the strains of the funeral march
the surpliced choir of forty male
voices silently entered the church and
ranged itself on each side of the al
tar. The choir was followed by the
Rt. Rev, Henry V. Satterlee, bishop
OF Washington, Rev. Dr. Roland Cot
ton Smith, rector of ST. Johns and
the assistant rector of the church.
Immediately afterward, J. Pier
pOnt Morgan, of New York, a life
long friend and business associate of
President Spencer, Charles Steele,
of New York, and first Vice President
Andrews and Second Vice President
Finley of the Southern railway, en-
tered the pew reserved for chem.
They were followed by the funeral
party, the great concourse of people
rising and remaining standing as the
caSket bearing the remains was placed
MEM
bers OF the family were ushered to
their seats. 1t was peculiarly appro-
pirate that the body bearers should
have been selected from among the
cOlored porters of the Southern raTr-
way. All of them have been in the
service of the company for many years
several of them nearly a life time,
and all Of them were known personal
ly to President Spencer.
Following the body came the hon
Orary pallbearers, all of them person
al and official friends of Mr.. Spencer
They were principally presidents or
nigh officials Of the railroads of
America and it was noted that, either
personally or by proxy, they repre-
Sented quite one-third of the vast
wealth of the United, States n II