OCR Text |
Show HENRY WALLACE ANSWERS GALL SECRETARY OF AGRICULTURE SUCCUMBS TO TOXEMIA POISON POI-SON AFTER OPERATION President and Mrs. Coolidge Offei Condolences to Mrs. Wallace; President Appoints Charles Marvin ss Successor Washington, Henry C. Wallace secretary of agriculture, died at o'clock last Saturday afternoon at the naval hospital of toxemia poisoning which developed after an operatior performed last week in an attempt to relieve sciatica. He was in his fifty-ninth year. Death came peacefully after long hours- of unconsciousness and aftei medical science was unable longer to check the ravages of the disease. At the bedside were Mrs. Wallace and their daughter, Miss Ruth. No other members of the family were in the city. The death of the secretary, although al-though expected throughout the day, came as a shock to official Washington Washing-ton and to his many friends both in the city and the country- After the operation Mr. Wallace began to improve im-prove and it was thought that he was convalescing rapidly. As late as Thursday night the secretary's sec-retary's condition was not considered alarming and at that time Mr. Wallace Wal-lace instructed Dr. Boone that the agricultural department might issue a denial of a recuring report that he expected to resvjn his cabinet post about the first of the year. The report has persisted for some time and several friends were prepared for such a step because of the secretary's health. His conditions after the operation became serious Friday, as an infection infec-tion developed and the poison began spreading through the secretary's system. Despite every effort of physicians, phy-sicians, his condition .steadily grew worse. Mr. Wallace lapsed into unconsciousness uncon-sciousness in the early . hours and as the morning wore away, physicians, although still clinging to i feeble hope that a change for the better might occur, announced thai his constitution was weakening rapidly. rap-idly. Shortly before noon it was said his condition "could hardly be more unfavorable," un-favorable," and it was feared that it was only a question as to how long his heart action would hold out. Several times in the afternoon it was thought that he was dying, but each time the secretary retained his hold on the thin thread of life until he passed peacefully away. In the hospital comforting Mrs. Wallace and her daughter throughout, the day was Mrs. Weeks, wife of the secretary of war, and James C. Davis, Da-vis, director of the railroad administration, admin-istration, and Mrs. Davis, close friends of the family. As soon as Mrs. Wallace returned to her home from the hospital President Presi-dent and Mrs. Coolidge called upon her to offer their condolences. |