Smyrna times., 1911-01-25
PAUL MORTON
DIES SUDDENLY
President Ot Equitable Lite
Victim Of kDOplGxy.
WAS STRICKEN IN HOTEL

Died Before They ArriVed-Was Sec
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 and half
later i'll an apartment just vacated by
Mr.. Kiernan earlier in the day and
just few minutes before his wife and
brother, Joy Morton. OF Chicago. reach.
ed the house.
Coroner Feinberg who is a physi-
clan. and Coroner's Physician OHan-
Ion agreed after they had examined
Mr.. Mortons body and had talked with
Joy Morton concerning his brothers
condition that death was caused by
apoplexy due to a 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.
1t was explained that a hotel maid
had noticed Mr.. Morton apparently
in a faint in the hallway outside of
suite SIS, on the fifth floor. This suite
had been vacatd by Mr.. Kiernan 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 a 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, 1878, 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 1873 at the age o
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 tool
the position of general passenge
agent
From the position of general pas
senger agent he was selected for tn,
general freight agency, and remained
with the Chicago, Burlington & Quinc,
in that position until 1890, when he en-
gagged in the coal and iron business a.
president of a coal company operating
in Iowa and Illinois, and vice pres
dent of what is now the Colorado Fme
and Iron company.
He remained with these companie
until the end of 1895, when he accept
ed the vice presidency of the Atchsor
Topeka & Santa Fe railway in charg
of its commercial affairs.
In 1904. largely owing TO his pc
sonal friendship for President ROns'
welt, he accepted the secretaryship {
the navy In doing this he sacrificed
salary of $25.000 for one of $4,000
Mr.. Morton was credited with po
sessing an independent fortune. val
ously estimated from S1,000.000 to s:
100000, having made nearly 100000
on the sale of the Indiana, Illinois
Iowa railroad to the Vanderhilts.
deciding regarding President Roos
velt's offer. therefore. the monetal
consideration did not enter into ii
question.
In 1905 he was elected president
the Equitable Life Assurance sOcie
at salary of s15OOOO a year
Mr.. Morton, in 1880. was married
Miss Charlotte Goodrich. an accol
plished and popular young woman
Chicago. They had two daughters.