Republican news item. [volume] (Laport, Pa.) 1896-19??, 1910-01-27
PAUL MORTON
DIES SUDDENLY
President Of Equitable Life
Victim Of kpop'exy.
WAS STRICKEN IN HOTEL

DIED BEFORE tney Arriveo-Wa as oec'
retary Of Navy Under President
Roosevelt.
Paul Morton, president Of the Equit-
able Life Assurance Society. was
stricken with apoplexy just after he
had gone to the Hotel Seymour, In
New York, for the purpose, his friends
said. of keeping an appointment with
Paul l.. Herman, the lawyer
Mr.. Morton died an hour I'd half
later In an apartment just vacated by
Mr.. Kiernan earlier in the day and
just a few minutes before his wife and
brother, Joy Morton, of Chicago. reach
ed the house.
Coroner Feinberg, who Is physi-
clan, and Coroner's Physician O'Han-
Ion agreed after they had examined
Mr. Morton's body and had talked with
Joy Morton concerning his brothers
condition that death was caused by
apoplexy due to rupture OF blood
vessel in the brain, which resulted
from artero-sclerosis, from which Mr..
Morton was found to be suffering with
in the past month.
It was explained that a hotel maid
had noticed Mr. Morton apparently
in faint in the hallway outside of
suite So, on the fifth floor. This suite
had been vacatd by Mr.. Herman and
he had moved to a larger suite. The
maid notified the telephone operator
and the manager of the hotel rushed
up to the fifth floor. He helped the
maid to assist Mr.. Morton into the
vacant suite. Word was sent for DR..
Henry Pearson.
When DR.. Pearson reached Mr.. Nor
tons bedside he was unconscious, and
1t was apparent to DR.. Pearson that
he had suffered stroke of apOplexy.
Then word was telephoned to Mr.. Nor
tons house and to the Metropolitan
club. Mrs. Morton was informed over
the phone that her husband had faint
ed at the Seymour, and was asked to
come to the hotel at once, but he was
dead before she arrived.
Paul Morton was born in Detroit,
May %, 1857, and went to Nebraska
with his parents six months later. He
began his railroad career in the land
department of the Burlington road in
Iowa In May, 1873, he was employed
in the general freight Office of the Bur-
lington road at Plattsmouth, Neb., and
from there he went to the general
freight Office in Chicago, being ap-
pointed assistant general freight agent
of the Burlington in 1878 at the age OF
twenty-one. He occupied this and bet.
ter positions in the freight service un
til 1886, when. at the request of the
management of the Burlington, he took
the position of general passenger
agent.
From the position Of general pas.
senger agent he was selected for the
general freight agency, and remained
with the Chicago, Burlington & Quincy
in that position until 1890, when he en-
gagged in the coal and iron business as
president of coal company operating
in Iowa and Illinois, and vice presi-
dent Of what is now the Colorado Fuel
and Iron company.
He remained with these companies
| until the end of 1895, when he accept
ed the vice presidency of the Atchison,
Topeka & Santa Fe railway. in charge
of its commercial affairs.
In 1904, largely owing to his per-
sonal friendship for President Roose-
welt, he accepted the secretaryship OF
the navy. In doing this he sacrificed a
salary of $4,000 for one of $4,000.
Mr. Morton was credited with pos.
sessiEg an independent fortune. vari-
ously estimated from $1,000.000 to $2,.
100000, having made nearly $1.000.000
on the sale of the Indiana, Illinois &
Iowa railroad to the Vanderbilts. In
deciding regarding President Roose-
velt's offer, therefore, the monetary
consideration did not enter into the
| question.
| In 1905 he was elected president of
the Equitable Life Assurance society
at salary of $150,000a year.
| Mr.. Morton, in 1880, was married to
Miss Charlotte Goodrich, an accom-
plished and popular young woman Of
Chicago. They had two daughters.