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Show william j. era DIES WHILE ASLEEP t-REAT COMMONER PASSES AWAY PEACEFULLY DURING AFTERNOON AFTER-NOON NAP World Mourns Passing of Man Whoso End Came While Apparently In Best of Health; Nurse DIs--, covers Death Dayton, Tenn. Wllllnm Jennings Bryan died here Sunday July 26th. The man who had won and held the title of "The Great Commoner," and whom many predicted would again emerge into the political limelight lime-light as a candidate for the presidency presi-dency on the religious issues raised by the Dayton evolution trial, passed peacefully, apparently worn out by the strain of the recent dramatic events here. The Commoner was sleeping when the end came. No one was with him. Dr. A. C. Broyles and Dr. W. F. Thomason stated that death was caused caus-ed by a hemorrhage of the brain, causing apoplexy. Mrs. Bryan was seated on the porch looking through the screen door during dur-ing the entire time Mr. Bryan was asleep. She said she thought the Commoner was sleeping longer than usual and did not want to disturb him. Mr. Bryan, who had come here three weeks ago to attend the scopes trial, had spent Saturday at Winchester Winches-ter and Chattanooga, coming here by automobile. At 11 o'clock July 26th he attended services at the MethodiBt Episcopal church, South. He led in prayer and after the benediction went to the home of Mrs. Richard Rogers, where he and Mrs. Bryan have been making their home since coming to Dayton. The dinner hour was spent with Mrs. Bryan. There were no guests at dinner. Mr. Bryan ate with relish, then retired to his room to rest. The exact hour when death came is not known. Mrs. Stevens, the nurse who is constantly with Mrs. Bryan, who for years has been an invalid, passed through Mr. Bryan's room at four o'clock. She noticed a strange pallor on the face. She bent over him. He was dead. Mrs. Bryan was self-possessed when told that the end had come for her illustrious husband. A sob, a tear i.hen she took charge of the situation. She addressed messages to their son and daughter, telling of their father's death. The news spread over the village and countryside; the people of Dayton Day-ton loved Bryan. He stood as the champion of their cause, for most of these people are Democrats and most of the men of the older generation had voted for Mr. Bryan in his free silver campaign for the presidency. Mr. Bryan had gone to Chattanooga Saturday to have printed the address he had expected to make before the jury in the scopes trial. He had not rbeen able to make the address because be-cause of the sudden termination of the trial. The address was a defense of the fundamentalists. Saturday, before going to Chattanooga, Chatta-nooga, Mr. Bryan had delivened an address at Winchester, Tenn. He spent the night of July 25th with A. W. Lesley, owner and manager of the Ross hotel, and they motored to Dayton Day-ton next morning. Mr. Bryan was cheerful and enthusiastic over the prospect of his latest lecture, which he was scheduled to deliver July 27th. It was entitled, "What Can I Do With Jesus?" "Mr. Bryan prayed fervently at church Sunday morning" said F. E. Robertson, who attended church with Mr. Bryan. "He appeared to enjoy the services and went home saying he would have dinner with his wife and spend the afternoon resting quietly." Mr. Bryan's final act before detir-lng detir-lng to his room was to call over long distance George F. Milton, Chattan-oga Chattan-oga publisher, asking him to complete com-plete arrangements for the printing of the speech which was to have been delivered at the Scopes trial, but which was prevented by its unexpected unexpect-ed termination. He also informed Mr. Milton that be had declined the request of a syndicate syn-dicate to write a series of articles in reply to one to be written by Clarence Darrow on the subject of evolution. "My fight is with the modernists in the church and not with agnostics", Mr. Bryan told Mr. Milton. Mrs. Bryan was the only member of the family in Dayton when he died. His daughter and was was in other cities. |