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ey S aims Ralph ASS SS WES ~ S SS <S ! < SS Q@ After Battling With Ill-Health for Over a Year End Comes Sudden- ly at Rumsey Park—Widely Known as Writer and Lake Expert ALPH D. WILLIAMS, editor of Re. Marine Review for 15 years, died at his summer cottage in Rumsey park, near Cleveland, Monday, Aug. 14. Mr. Williams had been in poor health for several years and when, about 10 days ago, he was prostrated by typhoid-pneumonia, his weakened consti- tution was unable to resist the disease. Mr. ‘Williams was born near Notting- ham, Eng., in 1868 and came to Cleve- land when about 10 years old. He at- tended the public schools, but his school- ing was ended early, for at about the age many boys start to college, he be- came a reporter on The Cleveland Plain Dealer, in the ser- vice of which paper he remained until 1900, working his way up from = re- Horter to. city editor, managing editor and Wash- ington correspond- ear = in . 1900,: he resigned from The Plain Dealer and returned to Cleve- land, becoming €aqstor..of The Marine Review, which position he held until June 1, 1915, when he re- tired on account of it health. After that date, he was not actively en- gaged, but devoted limited time to sta- tistical work for the Lake Carriers’ Association. Mr. Williams was never married. In® ‘his long newspaper career, which was characterized by a vast amount of high grade work, two features were most prominent: his devotion to. art and his advocacy Of the plan of grouping all of Cleveland’s great public buildings. the result of his love of art. as it may, it was a great conception. Prank“ Jy Mars east ot Art. ty said “T always considered Ralph the originator of Cleveland’s group plan. do I remember how,. years ago, he and Fredric C. Howe, now - United States commissioner of immigration, talked about the group plan at alittle club to which we three and others be- the original submitted to the chamber They had and Pool, von. the RALPH D. WILLIAMS 309 Perhaps the latter was By George Smart of commerce for its consideration.” .The love of the beautiful wherever found did not interfere with success in the thoroughly practical duties of an editor of a marine paper and during his 15 years of editorship of The Marine Review Mr. Williams became _ recog- nized as an authority on all matters re- lating to the Great Lakes. “He was thoroughly saturated with facts about the lakes,” said. J. H. Sheadle, vice president of the Cleveland-Cliffs Iron Co., when he heard of his death. “He was an unfailing source of information. I feel that his loss is irreparable.” But this trained news- paper man, this lover of the beau- tiful, believed that facts could be and should be, when- ever possible, dressed in attrac- tive words and the best exemplification of this belief is found. in the book from his pen which was published in 1907, “The Honor- able Peter White, a biographical sketch of the Lake Superior iron coun- try.” Mr. Williams did a_ prodigious amount of work in compiling the data for this. book: ~ It is full of facts, but there is not a dry page in it: It isa romance, a_ fascin- ating story of the marvelous develop- ment of the great ore deposits. It is a real contribution to the life of the Superior region, more valuable than countless tons of ore, for though ore will be smelted and disappear, this book will live an endur- ing monument to its talented author, Ralph D. Williams.