His primary operating business, the Arlington Chemical Company, manufactured typical medicines of the late 1800s and distributed them worldwide.

Andrus' extraordinary skills, however, lay in finding and purchasing undervalued assets, usually in partnership with a knowledgeable operator.

He was active as a lay leader of the Methodist Church and held a long-term post as a trustee of Wesleyan University.

An early sound interview of Andrus exists,[4] recorded on February 27, 1930, in which he's asked about his health, opinion on the recent Wall Street crash of 1929, and thoughts on aging.

Andrus died of pneumonia in Yonkers, Westchester County, New York, on December 26, 1934 (age 93 years, 313 days).