FROM THE TOW-PATH TO THE WHITE HOUSE. 
 
 THE 
 
 EARLY LIFE AND PUBLIC CAREER 
 
 OF 
 
 JAMESA.GARFIELD, 
 
 MAJ. GEN L U. S. A. 
 
 THE RECORD OF A WONDERFUL CAREER WHICH, LIKE THAT OF ABRAHAM 
 LINCOLN, BY NATIVE ENERGY* AND UNTIRING INDUSTRY, LED 
 THIS MAN FROM OBSCURITY TO THE FOREMOST POSI 
 TION IN THE COUNCILS OF THE NATION. 
 
 . INCLUDING ALSO A SKETCH OF THE LIFE OF 
 
 HON. CHESTER A. ARTHUR. 
 
 BY GEN L JAS. S. BRISBIN, 
 
 AUTHOR OF "LIFE OF GRANT AND COLFAX/ "BELDEN, THE WHITE CHIEF," "THE 
 BEEF BONANZA," AND OTHER POPULAR WORKS. 
 
 PUBLISHED BY 
 HUBBARD BROS.,, PHILADELPHIA; 
 SPRINGFIELD, MASS.; CHICAGO; CINCINNATI; ATLANTA, GA. 
 C. H. LILLINGSTON & Co., ST. Louis : T. PROTHERO, EMPORIA, 
 KANSAS: A. L. BANCROFT & Co., SAN FRANCISCO, CAL. 
 
COPYRIGHTED, 1880. 
 
TO 
 
 JAMES A. GARFIELD, 
 
 THIS VOLUME, 
 
 Recording, though poorly, the steps in a splendidly typical 
 American career a career that will incite every one who 
 reads it to a braver, better life is inscribed by his friend, 
 
 THE AUTHOR. 
 
TO THE READER. 
 
 THIS book is not written in any spirit of political par 
 tisanship but merely to give to my countrymen a true 
 account of the life and character of our fellovr-citizen 
 JAMES A. GARFIELD. 
 
 JAS. S. BRISBIN. 
 
 Chingledamouche 
 
 Snow SAoe, Pa. t July zbth, 2880. 
 
PUBLISHER S NOTICE. 
 
 The American nation is about entering on a campaign 
 which is destined to be ever memorable in the political annals 
 of the country. The strife of factions has already begun, and 
 from now until tie issue is decided on the 2d of next 
 November, there will reign paramount a war of words, a 
 hurricane of argument. The Democratic Party enters the 
 struggle flushed with the applause of its first reputable nomi 
 nation in a long period, and confident that the waiting honors 
 are to be its own. The Republican Party presents a man for 
 the suffrages of the nation, who fitly and fully embodies in his 
 public services the grand principles for which the party has 
 victoriously striven during a deserved ascendency of twenty 
 years. 
 
 It would have been more than wonderful, if during this long 
 continuance in power, the Republican Party had not some act 
 to regret, some measure of the public welfare unfulfilled to 
 lament, some blunder for which to need an apology. It is im 
 possible in the procession of measures and men to avoid here 
 and there a failure. The ideal is never accomplished. Re- 
 membering this, the defections, the grumblings, the dissatisfac 
 tion that sprung up within the party four years ago are readily 
 understood and appreciated. These were based partly upon 
 the unfitness of a great soldier to be a great statesman. This 
 is no disparagement of the military achievements of General 
 Grant, they stand unrivaled in the history of the New World. 
 But as a statesman, in the eyes of some, he was a failure. He 
 had not the necessary training ; for, clearly, his life was intended 
 to be shaped with the sword. The nomination by the Republi 
 can Party this year, has overcome every objection just hinted at, 
 
 M70535 
 
PUBLISHER S NOTICE. 
 
 and solidly together as of yore, shoulder to shoulder in the 
 ranks, the party appeals to the nation and furnishes the high 
 est justification for the nation s confidence ever offered a 
 nominee as able and brilliant as the great principles of the 
 party he represents. 
 
 The Democratic Party has chosen as its standard-bearer, & 
 soldier of pre-eminent soldierly qualities, but a man untried in 
 the devious ways of government, unversed in the subtleties of 
 power, unknown in the paths of legislation. To oppose him 
 there is one whose views upon the vital issues of the hour are 
 not guesses ; whose theories of governing have been proved by 
 the fire of experience to be axioms of government; whosft 
 statesmanship has excited admiration and challenged criticism 
 for a score of years ; whose manly defense at all times of the 
 best and of the right, has attracted applause even from his 
 enemies, and whose courageous patriotism can never be over 
 looked by a nation of brave men James Abram Garfield. 
 
 The story of his life and services illustrates but sketchily 
 the wonderful career and magnificent record of this man. In 
 the haste necessarily attendant upon the production of a cam 
 paign biography, much has perhaps been omitted that would 
 be received by the reader with grateful relish. At the same 
 time care and diligence, time and trouble, and money have 
 been expended on the story, and it is as complete as it is possi 
 ble to make it under the circumstances. 
 
 The story is fascinating in its romance, in its faithful, well 
 drawn picture of a representative American career ; for General 
 Garfield illustrates with peculiar force the grandest principle 
 of American life and American liberty, its equality. Begin 
 ning with no greater blessings than a sound constitution and a 
 strong ambition, he has risen to the top of the ladder, every 
 round of which has been a merited elevation. His life, indeed, 
 is a national lesson, a march of honor. As a boy, he was an 
 humble worker on the tow-path of an Ohio canal, as a man, 
 he becomes the first citizen of the Republic, the Chief Magis 
 trate of the first power among the civilized nations of the 
 globe. The incidents, the struggles, the reverses, the successes, 
 the shadow and the sunshine of such a life are as instructing as 
 
PUBLISHERS NOTICE. 
 
 they are entertaining, and in the following pages the reader 
 will find a story that will command his admiration, excite his 
 emulation and justify the confidence of the vote he proposes to 
 cast for its hero. 
 
 The sketch of the life of General Chester A. Arthur, has 
 been compiled with great care and will be found a readable 
 story of the life of the distinguished gentleman who has been 
 nominated for Vice-President upon the ticket so worthily 
 headed by General Garfield. 
 Philadelphia, July 1, 1880. 
 
CONTENTS. 
 
 GARFIELD AS A BOY AND MAN. * 
 
 CHAPTER I. 
 
 PAGE. 
 
 A Fire and its Result 21 
 
 CHAPTER II. 
 The Home in Early Days 30 
 
 CHAPTER III. 
 Days of Earnest Work , 35 
 
 CHAPTER IV. 
 The Pirate s Own Book 41 
 
 CHAPTER V. 
 Inter Folio Fructus Fruit between leaves 59 
 
 CHAPTER VI. 
 Garfield at Williams 75 
 
 CHAPTER VII. 
 A College President 89 
 
 CHAPTER VIII. 
 The Birth of a Political Career 104 
 
 GARFIELD AS A SOLDIER. 
 
 CHAPTER IX. 
 The Storm Bursts 115 
 
x CONTENTS. 
 
 CHAPTER X. 
 
 PAGE. 
 
 At the Head of a Regiment 123 
 
 CHAPTER XI. 
 Opening the Big Sandy Campaign 133 
 
 CHAPTER XII. 
 Hail Columbia s Soldier at the Battle of Middle Creek... 150 
 
 CHAPTER XIII. 
 A Steamboat Captain and the Capture of Pound Gap 167 
 
 CHAPTER XIV. 
 Off to Aid Grant 184 
 
 CHAPTER XV. 
 Garfield as Chief-of-Staff. 197 
 
 CHAPTER XVI. 
 The Battle of Chickamauga 208 
 
 GARFIELD AS A STATESMAN. 
 
 CHAPTER XVII. 
 He Appears in Congress 241 
 
 CHAPTER XVIII. 
 The Ladder of Honor 247 
 
 CHAPTER XIX. 
 An Ornament of Congress 262 
 
 CHAPTER XX. 
 The Orator s Power ..... f .. 269 
 
CONTENTS. x j 
 
 CHAPTER XXI. 
 
 PAGE. 
 
 Questions of Political Economy 278 
 
 CHAPTER XXII. 
 Arraigning his Enemies 290 
 
 CHAPTER XXIII. 
 A Visit to Lawnfield .., 310 
 
 CHAPTER XXIV. 
 The Family Circle 329 
 
 CHAPTER XXV. 
 Two Pen Portraits 351 
 
 THE REPUBLICAN NATIONAL CONVENTION. 
 
 CHAPTER XXVI. 
 Preparing for Battle 359 
 
 CHAPTER XXVII. 
 The Battle Begun 374 
 
 CHAPTER XXVIII. 
 The Second Day s Fight 386 
 
 CHAPTER XXIX. 
 War to the Knife, and Knife to the Hilt 399 
 
 CHAPTER XXX. 
 The Thunders of Oratory 418 
 
 CHAPTER XXXI. 
 A Day of Doubt , 459 
 
X |J CONTENTS. 
 
 CHAPTER XXXII. 
 
 PAGE. 
 
 The People s Choice 470 
 
 CHAPTER XXXIII. 
 How it Happened, and What was Said of It 486 
 
 CHAPTER XXXIV. 
 A Tour of Triumph 505 
 
 CHAPTER XXXV. 
 The Future 530 
 
 LIFE OF HON. CHESTER A. ARTHUR. 
 
 CHAPTER I. 
 Arthur s Early Life 537 
 
 CHAPTER II. 
 Arthur as a Lawyer 542 
 
 CHAPTER III. 
 Arthur in Politics 548 
 
 APPENDIX. 
 
 CHAPTER I. 
 A Victim of Success 551 
 
 :HAPTER n. 
 
 De Golyer Contract 578 
 
LIST OF ILLUSTRATIONS. 
 
 PAGE. 
 
 FRONTISPIECE James A. Garfield. 
 " Chester A. Arthur. 
 
 Home of Garfield s Childhood 20 
 
 James A. Garfield at the age of Sixteen 43 
 
 Young Garfield Conquering a Peace 53 
 
 Hiram College 91 
 
 The Fight at Paintville 143 
 
 Battle of Middle Creek 153 
 
 Now, Boys, we must go at them 161 
 
 View of Pound Gap 165 
 
 View of Middle Creek 165 
 
 Pickets on Duty 185 
 
 Army Head-quarters 185 
 
 The Battle of Chickamauga 213 
 
 Chattanooga Battle-field and Approaches 217 
 
 General George H. Thomas 223 
 
 Missionary Ridge 223 
 
 Block House at Chattanooga 227 
 
 Head-quarters of Thomas , 227 
 
 Battle-field as it appears to-day 233 
 
 Redoubt on Lookout Mountain 233 
 
 General Garfield s Home, Mentor, Ohio 313 
 
 Parlor General Garfield s Home 317 
 
 Dining-room General Garfield s Home 343 
 
 Reception of General Garfield at the Depot 59 
 
 General Garfield Addressing the People 5*3 
 
GENERAL GARFIELD S CREED. 
 
 The Republican party of this country has said, and it says 
 to-day , that, forgetting all the animosities of the war, forgetting 
 all the fierceness and the passion of it, it reaches out both its 
 hands to the gallant men who fought us and offers all fellow* 
 ship, all comradeship, all feelings of brotherhood, on this sole 
 condition, and that condition they will insist forever: That in 
 the war for the Union we were right, forever right, and that 
 in their war against the Union they were wrong, forever wrong. 
 We never made terms, we never will make terms, with the man 
 who denies the everlasting rightfulness of our cause. That 
 would be treason to the dead and injustice to the living; and 
 on that basis alone our pacification is complete. We ask that 
 it be realized, and we shall consider it fully realized when it is 
 just as safe and just as honorable for a good citizen of South 
 Carolina to be a Republican there as it is for a good citizen of 
 Massachusetts to be a Democrat here. 
 
 Speech of Genera/ Garfo/d, at Faneuil Hall, 1878. 
 
GARFIELD AS A BOY AND MAN. 
 
Poverty is uncomfortable, as I can testify ; but nine times 
 out of ten the best thing that can happen to a young man is 
 to be tossed overboard and compelled to sink or swim for 
 himself. In all my acquaintance I never knew a man to be 
 drowned who was worth the saving. 
 
 Garfi eld" 1 s Address to the Students of Hiram College. 
 
CHAPTER I. 
 
 . 9 
 
 A FIRE AND ITS RESULT. 
 
 ABRAM GARFIELD, worn out with a night 
 of bitter toil, bead-drops of perspiration 
 standing upon his forehead and coursing 
 down his heated, cinder-stained cheeks, walked to 
 his home with a weary step. All night long the 
 fires had ravaged the woods surrounding his little 
 homestead, and all night long, assisted by the 
 stout arms of his neighbors, he had valiantly 
 fought the flames that threatened his all, twenty 
 acres of good wheat growing on the land he him 
 self had cleared around his cabin. 
 
 The fires were now well down, the trunks of 
 unburnt trees stood out against the sky,, black 
 ened witnesses of destruction, and the wind was 
 scattering the ashes hither and thither, as the 
 farmers, knowing their scanty crops were saved, 
 turned homeward. 
 
 Abram Garfield, honest, hard-working farmer 
 that he was, naturally had taken pride in his grain, 
 a pride he could not afford to see humbled by the 
 agency of a vagrant fire in the woods. When it 
 approached the edge of his fields, he had gone 
 forth to the fight, and after hours of exhausting 
 work, succeeded in getting the better of his enemy. 
 
 21 
 
22 LIFE AND PUBLIC CAREER OF 
 
 Reaching his cabin, he sank wearily on a three- 
 legged stool that stood by the open door and 
 raised his hat, that he might wipe away the per- 
 r sfdra,tion bearfin,g his forehead. With no thought 
 but that of "rest", he allowed the breezes that blew 
 hi S^sa-MeaL wheat fields to cool his face with 
 their grateful breath. 
 
 In this most natural act he contracted a severe 
 cold and sore throat, the over-tension of his system 
 laying it open to influences, that his otherwise 
 hardy nature would have easily withstood. 
 
 Chill followed chill, and inflammation set in, be 
 coming rapidly so intense, that his good wife Eliza 
 determined to send for the only doctor the county 
 boasted, a semi-quack, who lived several miles 
 away. The leech responded promptly, came, and 
 with many a profound gesture that illustrated 
 nothing so well as his profound ignorance, ordered 
 a blister for the sick man s throat it was applied 
 with all the instant virulence of quack practice in 
 an unsettled country. The treatment was in faith 
 so heroic, that Abram Garfield shortly after the 
 blister was applied choked to .death. Feeling 
 that the last great act of his life had come, he 
 motioned his wife to his side, and said, with thick, 
 broken utterance : " I am going to leave you, 
 Eliza. I have planted four saplings in these 
 woods, and I must now leave them to your care." 
 
 Then, giving a last, long look upon his little 
 farm as it stretched beyond the window toward 
 
JAMES A. GARFIELD. 2 ^ 
 
 the rising sun, he called his oxen by name, turned 
 upon his side, and expired. 
 
 The poor widow was stunned by the sudden 
 ness of her great misfortune. It had come upon 
 her so quickly, it was impossible to realize at the 
 moment of her husband s passing away, the full 
 extent of her loss. Gradually, the iron entered 
 her soul, she became aware of her loneliness. 
 Bowing her head, she wept bitterly. 
 
 " Do not cry, my mother, I will take care of 
 you," said her son Thomas, a mere slip of a boy, 
 who stood by her side, scarce comprehending 
 what he said, or why he said it. 
 
 " God bless you, my son ; I will try to be brave for 
 your sweet sakes," said the stricken woman, as she 
 wound her arms convulsively about the boy. Ris 
 ing, she called two little girls to her side, and ex 
 plained to them their loss the death of their 
 father. Tenderly she lifted them in her arms and 
 bade them kiss the cold, calm face, for the last 
 time. Then from the cradle she lifted the young 
 est, her baby-boy, James, almost two years old, the 
 pride of her hearth-stone. The boy looked down, 
 wonderingly, out of his great blue eyes at his 
 father s face so still upon the pillow. With a 
 childish, questioning look, he lisped, "Papa sleep?" 
 The mother s tears, flowing rapidly, was the only 
 answer. 
 
 Two days later, Abram Garfield was laid to rest, 
 and the baby-boy was carried to the funeral in the 
 
*>A LHE AND PUBLIC CAREER OF 
 
 arms of his uncle, William Letcher. The child, 
 as was natural in one so young, paid no attention 
 to the sad ceremonies, until he was brought beside 
 the coffin to take a last look at the dead. Rec 
 ognizing his father, he called aloud for him, the 
 tears following each other rapidly down his face. 
 When the earth was thrown upon the coffin, the 
 child continued his cries, until the whole company 
 burst into tears. 
 
 Who of us that have passed through such 
 a scene, can ever forget it ? The agony of a few 
 brief moments then, often lives forever. They 
 are to the mind what scars are to the body, and 
 remain upon us while life lasts, teaching always, 
 however, their lesson, just as the rock, when 
 rent, discloses the gem, or the little obstacle that 
 impedes the onward progress of the brook serves 
 to make music and keep pure its water. So with 
 Eliza Garfield. The influence of her chastening 
 is upon her; it will be to her a softening thought 
 and one to nerve her arm, for hers is a heroic 
 soul she comes from no common mould; she 
 will come forth from the death-chamber well armed 
 for the battle of life. In her veins runs the blood 
 of the Puritans, and all the energy, intelligence 
 and perseverance of that grand old race lies 
 mingled in her frame. No danger it will fail her 
 now ; no danger but that such a woman will suc 
 ceed ; no danger but that such a mother is a fit 
 woman to raise a President. 
 
JAMES A. GARFIELD. 2 r 
 
 Her lineage will guarantee this anywhere. Let 
 us look back a moment at the names that stand 
 sponsor for her courage and devotion. When the 
 Edict of Nantes was revoked, Maturin Ballou fled 
 to America and took refuge at Cumberland, 
 Rhode Island. The fifth in descent from this 
 great man was James Ballou, who, after some 
 vicissitudes, finally found a home at Richmond, 
 New Hampshire, and a wife in the person of Me- 
 hetabel Ingalls, of that place. Four children 
 were born to Ballou, one of whom was christened 
 Eliza. Soon after her birth, on September 2ist, 
 1 80 1, at the age of eight, her father dead, she re 
 moved with her mother to Worcester, Otsego 
 County, New York. At the close of the War of 
 1812, a removal was again thought advisable, this 
 time once more toward the West. Zainesville, 
 Ohio, was selected as the Mecca of this pilgrim 
 age, and after the household effects had been 
 loaded into heavy carts, the adventurous party set 
 out. Six weeks were occupied in the journey, and 
 six more in settling in the new home. At the age 
 of eighteen, Eliza Ballou fell in love with the man 
 whose death we have just described, Abram Gar- 
 field. 
 
 His lineage was as strongly marked by all the 
 qualities that made " men " in the brave days of 
 old, as was that of the woman he chose to be his 
 wife. In the stout, strangely-shaped ship that 
 
2 5 LIFE AND PUBLIC CAREER OF 
 
 brought the famous Governor Winthrop to the in 
 hospitable shores of his New England home, to 
 
 " The stern and rock-bound coast," 
 
 came also Edward Garfield, a Welshman of brave 
 heart, who left his birthplace (Chester in Wales) 
 for an unknown, untried home in the New World. 
 The name he bore was probably in those days 
 pronounced differently to the way it is now 
 sounded, for, as old names always did, it meant 
 something. In Anglo-Saxon it meant "field 
 watch." Was this prophetic of the military 
 honors coming to the name of Garfield in later 
 years? An ancient coat of arms, derived from 
 Gaerfili Castle, in Wales, has on the shield a gold 
 ground crossed by three red horizontal bars, and 
 in the upper dexter corner (left hand looking 
 toward the shield) on an ermine canton, is a red 
 Maltese cross, (croix fi rmcc) . The crest consists 
 of a helmet with a raised visor, above which is an 
 arm with a drawn sword, similar to the familiar 
 device in the State seal of Massachusetts. The 
 motto is "In cruce vinco" (Through faith I con 
 quer). The Maltese cross seems to indicate that 
 the bearer had been in the Crusades, and the 
 ermine signifies that the coat of arms was con 
 ferred by the king. 
 
 Edward Garfield thought little of this as he 
 landed in Massachusetts Bay. He had come to a 
 i-ountry where such heraldic glories were of little 
 
JAMES A. CAR FIELD. 2 J 
 
 moment. He settled at Watertown, Massachu 
 setts, where he and some of his descendants lie 
 buried. Solomon Garfield, one of Edward Gar- 
 field s descendants, soon after the Revolutionary 
 War, in which the Garfields upheld fully the honor 
 of their name, moved with his children, one of 
 whom bore the name of Thomas, to Worcester, 
 Otsego County, New York. It was here that 
 Abram Garfield was born. 
 
 When the question came up in the quiet of the 
 simple family circle : What shall we name the 
 boy? not many minutes discussion decided that 
 he should be called after his uncle Abram, a man 
 who deserved well of his country, for he served it 
 well. He was among the foremost of the farmers 
 who, with their rusty rifles, hastened to repulse the 
 British assault on Concord Bridge; and he was 
 selected, with John Hoar, grandfather of the pres 
 ent Judge Ebenezer Rockwood Hoar, as witnesses, 
 whose depositions concerning the British assault 
 were taken at the request of the Continental Con 
 gress, which wished to show that the British gov 
 ernment made the first illegal aggression, and 
 began the War of Independence. 
 
 The young Garfield bearing his uncle s worthy 
 name, was born in December, 1 799. When two 
 years old he lost his father by an attack of the 
 small-pox, and the boy henceforth was under the 
 care of a mother who possessed a sufficient meas 
 ure, of those sterling virtues the women of our 
 
2 $ LIFE AND PUBLIC CAREER OF 
 
 Revolution always displayed, to give him a sturdy 
 start in life. What education he gathered was 
 obtained at the maternal knee, and his constitution 
 became hardened and moulded on the broad fields 
 of the family farm. As a boy, rugged and sun 
 tanned, he had made the acquaintance of a prim 
 little girl, born in a New England town, Eliza Bal 
 lon by name, who interested him not a little, and 
 who occupied such of his moments as were given 
 over to heart hopes and heart troubles. But 
 Eliza Ballou moved West, and left Abram Garfield 
 alone in his Eastern home. He was not long fol 
 lowing where his heart prompted, and in the au 
 tumn of 1819 he journeyed westward to meet 
 and win his bride. 
 
 The leisure hours from his occupation a con 
 tractor s work on the Ohio Canal were agree 
 ably filled in with the courtship of Eliza Ballou, 
 whom he in due course married. His contractor s 
 work over, the canal built, with a fair profit in his 
 pocket, he moved to Orange, Cuyahoga County, 
 and bought a piece of land. He moved practi 
 cally into the wilderness, for there was but one 
 house within seven miles. Life here flowed 
 quietly on, just as in many another Western log 
 cabin. The father managed his farm, and added 
 an acre or two of clearing to it every year. The 
 mother looked after the cabin comforts, and did 
 what she could to make her children fit for the 
 struggle of existence. The father prospered fairly. 
 
JAMES A. GARFIELD. 2 g 
 
 The little country town grew rapidly, neighbors 
 gathered on other farms, and a larger, more vigor 
 ous life settled upon the little place. Everything 
 went well until the outbreak of the fire mentioned 
 at the opening of this chapter. The death of 
 Abram Garfield was the first cloud upon a life of 
 successful happiness. 
 
 The children, who were around their father s 
 death-bed on that mid-summer morning, in 1831, 
 were four, the eldest, a girl, Mehetabel, bearing 
 her grandmother s Puritan name; the second, 
 Thomas, called after his uncle; the third, Mary, 
 and the last, the blue-eyed baby, James Abram, 
 christened for his great uncle, almost as soon as 
 he was born (November igth, 1831). 
 
 It is the life of this boy, James Abram Garfield, 
 that is portrayed in the following pages. 
 
LIFE AND PUBLIC CAREER OF 
 
 CHAPTER II. 
 
 THE HOME IN EARLY DAYS. 
 
 ELIZA GARFIELD had but a sunless 
 prospect before her the morning after her 
 husband was buried. A small farm in- 
 cumbered with debt, a dense forest only partially 
 broken by clearings, a scattered population almost 
 as poor as herself, made up her immediate envi- 
 ronment^. Putting aside the mistaken but kindly- 
 meant advice of friends, she said the house should 
 not be broken up, the children should not be scat 
 tered. Advisers yielded to her will, and she had 
 her way. She took up the mantle of head of the 
 family, and with that brevet rank which widowhood 
 never fails to confer upon deserving women, she 
 made herself thoroughly respected by her sterling 
 force of character and high resolve to dare and do 
 for the weal of her children. Though small of 
 stature, and thirty years of age, she had the ability 
 and energy of a larger ^nd older woman. The 
 farm was to be kept up, the home continued as it 
 had been since 1830, the "four saplings" cared 
 for until they were ready to be transplanted. 
 Then, and not till then, would she give up the 
 farm. 
 
 This was a resolve that boded a harvest in its 
 
JAMES A. CARFIELD. 3 ! 
 
 fruition. For there was nothing strikingly beau 
 tiful in the country where she dwelt, there was 
 nothing remarkably attractive. The soil was not 
 noticeably excellent. There were a thousand 
 farms that surpassed it, and she had nothing to 
 work with but energy and willingness. She rose 
 early and retired late. Her work never sought 
 her, she sought it. The homestead assumed a 
 more homelike appearance each year, as new 
 comforts were added by the thrifty woman who 
 managed it. The young orchard which Abram 
 Garfield had planted grew amazingly, and the 
 trees fulfilled the promise of their planting. 
 Cherries, apples and plums, and later currants, 
 proved quite an addition to the frugal fare of the 
 family, and the gathering of these was always a 
 delight to the children. Often could young James 
 be seen perched on the top of a tree, with a pail, 
 picking cherries for his mother to preserve, or 
 gathering apples for her to dry. Out-door life to 
 the boy, who had already toddled through infancy 
 and was now a rousing youngster of eight, pre 
 sented many an attraction that some children 
 never seem to perceive. 
 
 Indian histories, then the liveliest and most vivid 
 of all border reminiscences, were often told over 
 in the twilight to the eager boy, eager for any 
 news of that world to which his yet unformed fan 
 cies had carried him but which he was yet unable 
 to people properly or quite understand. He car- 
 
32 LIFE AXD PUBLIC CAREER OF 
 
 ried his bright fancies into his play and every tree 
 in the orchard received at his hands the name of 
 some noted author of whom he had but imperfectly 
 heard and still more imperfectly admired; or of 
 some statesman who had figured in the scraps of 
 American history which he had listened to; or 
 better still of some noted Indian Chief whose deeds 
 had excited the boy s admiration. The noblest 
 tree of the orchard received in the boy s estimation 
 the noblest name Tecumseh. 
 
 As a boy he was always a busy spectator and 
 assistant at the various harvest ceremonies; cider 
 making, apple gathering for butter, corn husking 
 and the like. So seldom perhaps has an apple- 
 butter boiling on the border been seen by any of 
 our readers that we may be pardoned perhaps for 
 turning aside a moment to describe one. In those 
 days there were no carriages and but very few 
 roads. Paths through the forest led from one farm 
 to another, and it: was only the highways between 
 the larger villages that rose to the dignity of 
 township roads. Everybody rode on horseback 
 and the men generally carried the women behind 
 them upon the same horse. In the fall when the 
 apples were gathered it was given out far and 
 near that there would be an apple-butter boiling 
 at a certain farm-house and all the neighbors were 
 cordially invited to attend. In the afternoon came 
 the older women who pared the apples and made 
 ready for the night. Large tubs full of pared, 
 
JAMES A. GARFIELD. 33 
 
 quartered and cored apples stood about the 
 kitchen, and a great black kettle was hung in the 
 yard. As night approached youths and maidens, 
 some on foot and some on horseback, came from 
 miles around and then the fire under the kettle 
 was lighted. The kettle was filled about two- 
 thirds full of cider and a bushel of quartered ap 
 ples thrown in as soon as the cider came to a boil. 
 It had to be unceasingly stirred with a long handled 
 stirrer lest it burn. With a maid to assist, a young 
 man took charge of the kettle and standing face 
 to face with their hands on the stirrer, they moved 
 the apples about in the kettle and chatted of love, 
 war or the gossip of the neighborhood. What 
 man that has ever stirred apple butter with his 
 sweetheart has forgotten it? And who of these 
 cannot now remember with a thrill of delight the 
 paring bees and the fun of counting the apple 
 seeds to know if the girl next you really loved 
 you? And who but recalls the sweet blushes as 
 the tell-tale seeds revealed the hidden secret, the 
 agitated flight of the maiden to escape the shock 
 ing public announcement of the discovery just 
 made? 
 
 The frolics of apple-butter boiling were hardly 
 forgotten before the corn-huskings lightened the 
 cool autumn days, and gave to labor wings of 
 pleasure. Here young Garfield was in his ele- 
 ment, as he assisted everybody in the long line of 
 men and women who, with many a happy jest, 
 
34 
 
 LIFE AA D PUB 1. 1C CAREER OF 
 
 many a frolic, vigorously applied the shucker to 
 the yielding leaf. Here, again, the youth and 
 maiden were found side by side. She working 
 assiduously, he less earnestly, though more watch 
 fully for fear some red ear not noticed might lose 
 him the privileged kiss. They were happy days, 
 those before the modern march of machinery in 
 vaded our harvest fields to shorten our labor, and 
 to steal away all the sweet privileges that the cus 
 tom of decades had interwoven with it. But while 
 they lasted upon the Orange farm of the Gar- 
 fields young James took his share of the romping, 
 for he was fond of it, or of the work, of which he 
 was fonder. For there was not a lazy bone in his 
 body, and he possessed the full boyish enthusiasm 
 that oftentimes makes die whole world seem ob 
 tainable. 
 
JAMES A. GARFIELD. * ? 
 
 CHAPTER III. 
 
 DAYS OF EARNEST WORK. 
 
 THE early spring of 1843 finds the Garfield 
 family still humbly prosperous. The not 
 over-productive farm yields a subsistence, 
 a subsistence made somewhat more bountiful, now 
 that the children are all able to do work that 
 counts. The elder son works the farm with the 
 aid of hired hands, and James, now twelve years of 
 age, is beginning to help. He drives in the cattle, 
 carries wood, hoes the potatoes and corn, builds 
 fires and does whatever his little hands can find to 
 do. The girls assist their mother with her house 
 hold duties ; and the family, though poor, is thor 
 oughly happy. James has obtained some tools 
 a saw, a chisel, a gimblet, and a shaving-knife 
 and with these he mends the chairs, puts latches 
 and hinges on the doors, and is so handy, his 
 brother says, he will " surely be a carpenter some 
 day and build houses." 
 
 In winter the children go to the village-school, 
 and are fast acquiring the rudiments of knowledge. 
 The mother helps them with their little lessons. 
 The district school only lasts for a few months in 
 winter, and often the weather is so inclement the 
 children cannot go out. Then the mother teaches 
 
LIFE AND PUBLIC CAREER OF 
 
 
 them herself, reads to them, and as the embers 
 crackle and sparkle in the open fire-place, diffusing 
 a gentle warmth, the family gathers about it, and 
 little heed is paid to the driving storm without. At 
 night stories are told, the scanty library over 
 hauled and its precious information repeated with 
 out end. There is one book which is a source of 
 never-ending comfort, the Holy Bible, and from 
 this the mother reads every night to her children 
 selecting those interesting Bible stories which their 
 young minds can comprehend. 
 
 Among the books were two of greatest interest 
 to young James, Weem s " Life of Marion," and 
 Grimshaw s " Napoleon." " Mother, read to me 
 about that great soldier," he says almost every 
 night, and as the martial deeds of the first man of 
 France are recited the boy s eyes dilate, his breast 
 swells, and once he exclaims, enthusiastically^ 
 44 Mother, when I get to be a man, I am going to 
 be a soldier." 
 
 At this the girls laugh heartily, and James, 
 chagrined, says, " Well, you will see that I will be 
 a soldier, and whip people as Napoleon did. 
 The good-natured and matter-of-fact Thomas re 
 minds him that it is far better to be a farmer, and 
 so the matter drops. 
 
 The little school that he attends is not far from 
 the house, and within its walls on due effort, he 
 easily leads the boys and girls who are his class 
 mates. One day, he and his brother are caught 
 
JAMES A. GARFIELD. -, 7 
 
 j I 
 
 whispering, and the teacher sends them home. 
 Thomas stays around the school-house, hoping 
 that somehow he will be forgiven. Jim runs right 
 home and then right back again. When he comes 
 into the room the teacher says: "James, I thought 
 I sent you home. Didn t I ?" 
 
 "Yes, ma am," says Jim. 
 
 "Well, why didn t you go ?" 
 
 "I did go, I just got back," and, with a laugh, 
 the teacher allows Jim to stay. He was very 
 clever at this age, and not infrequently he would 
 go to Sunday-school with the teacher and would 
 sit on the desk and ask the boys Bible questions, 
 such as these: "Who was the wisest man?" 
 "Who was the meekest man?" "Who was in the 
 whale s belly?" The boys did not know, and then 
 Jim s superior knowledge would come into play, 
 and he would gravely inform them, and always 
 with accuracy. Thus the winter passes away, and 
 the summer comes on all too soon. 
 
 With the opening leaves, the summer s work 
 begins. The manure has to be hauled out and 
 spread upon the land, then the land is plowed, har 
 rowed mellow, and made ready for the corn. Far 
 rowing out, or marking the earth for the corn, is a 
 neat job, and often a boy has to ride the horse to 
 keep him going straight. The dropping of the 
 corn is always done by boys and girls. With a 
 basket full of kernels on one arm, four grains at 
 a time are taken out, and put in a hill. Some take 
 
~g LIFE AND PUBLIC CAREER OF 
 
 a handful out at a time, and measure out fouf 
 grains with the thumb and the two front fingers, 
 letting them slide off into the hill. The hills must 
 be put the same distance apart, and the droppers 
 generally w ilk in the farrow, planting the kernels 
 just in front of the big toe, three feet being allowed 
 between hills. The girls and boys run in their 
 bare feet, and each one vies with the other in plant 
 ing the hills regularly and with expedition. What 
 jolly races we have had along the corn rows to 
 beat the hoers out and have time to gather the 
 raspberries that grew in the fence corners ! Each 
 corn-dropper" is followed by a man with a hoe, who 
 carefully covers up the seed, and grumbles inces 
 santly if the kernels are scattered too far apart. 
 
 After the corn-planting season comes the stone- 
 picking from the land that is to be mowed, and 
 this must be done early, before the grass gets so 
 high as to conceal the smaller stones. To prop 
 erly cleanse a piece of grass land from stones is 
 no small job, and often have we seen the boys 
 with their finger-nails worn into the quick, and the 
 skin so thin on their fingers that the blood oozed 
 through. In those days, before reapers and mow 
 ers were known, the smallest stone would spoil a 
 scythe, and every one had to be carefully picked 
 up and carried away or placed in little heaps, 
 around which the scythe men could mow. 
 
 Planting potatoes, cultivating the corn to keep 
 down the weeds, hoeing potatoes, weeding in the 
 
JAMES A. GARFIELD. 39 
 
 garden, milking the cows, churning and butter- 
 making occupied the time until the grass was 
 grown, and then came the hay making. Who 
 that has ever lived on a farm will forget the jolly 
 time when the scythes were broughtOut, and the 
 whet-stones rang against their blue- steel blades ? 
 What music was sweeter than the sonof of the 
 
 o 
 
 mowers ? And when the hay was turned to dry in 
 the sun, we raked it into windrows for the pitch 
 ers. Then the wagon, with its wide ladders ; the 
 bright forks, with their long handles ; the fragrant 
 odor of the grass, as it was pitched on the wagon, 
 to be caught in our arms, and built into a long, 
 wide sugar loaf overhanging the wheels; the sun 
 shining, the meadow-larks singing, and our own 
 little sweetheart adding her tender voice, as with 
 nut-brown hands and disheveled hair she rakes 
 the fragrant hay! It is always the province of a 
 farm boy to build the hay on the wagon, and often 
 the little maid assisted, sometimes tramping with 
 naked feet on a hidden brier, which causes her to 
 scream gently, and necessitated a search for the 
 nasty jagger. 
 
 The haying season is speedily followed by the 
 grain-cutting. "The harvest is ripe," is a welcome 
 announcement to the husbandman, but not always 
 to the farmer s son, for it means "strength, labor and 
 sorrow" to him. Up at daylight to turn the grind 
 stone for the cradle-scythes, out with the lark to 
 bring in the cows and get the morning work done, be- 
 3 
 
4O LirE AA D PUBLIC CAREER OF 
 
 fore the harvesters begin. Then following the reap 
 ers and binders, to gather up the sheaves for the 
 shocks, while the sun, each hour grows hotter and 
 hotter, until the light quivers with waves of heat. 
 The bringing out of the ten o clock piece, the carry 
 ing of water for the thirsty men, and the toiling until 
 the welcome dinner-bell rings ! How often have 
 we thought it never would ring, and the great, hot, 
 red sun seemed to have been commanded by an 
 other Joshua to stand still in the sky. Then the 
 sweet noon rest under the trees, the renewal of 
 labor, the long, hot afternoon, with night at last ! 
 What farmer-boy does not remember these days 
 in his early life ? 
 
 To James Garfield such life was pregnant with 
 interest, engendered by duty. He was not an en 
 thusiastic farmer, but he was an enthusiastic helper 
 of his mother, and from the time he was able he 
 was always willing he shouldered his full share 
 of all the farm-work, finding his special province 
 in the lighter labors of seed-time and harvest. In 
 the fall, "chores" about the barn-house, until the 
 winter s snowy mantle covered the ground, and 
 the district school-teacher summoned the boys and 
 girls to reopen their neglected books, for another 
 season. And so the years fled their even course 
 until 1846. 
 
JAMES A. GARFIELD. 
 
 CHAPTER IV. 
 
 THE PIRATE S OWN BOOK. 
 
 THERE was a wide difference between the 
 Garfield boys. Thomas, the older brother* 
 was quiet, unambitious, and aspired to 
 nothing more than the honest, regular round of a 
 farmer s life. James, the younger, was enterpriz- 
 ing, ambitious and pushing in his temperament. 
 It is more than doubtful if he ever intended to be 
 a farmer, and, probably, from his earliest years his 
 brain was tenanted with visions of greatness. 
 He had now become so expert in the use of tools 
 that he could, while yet a mere boy, make or build 
 almost anything, and his talent as a carpenter was 
 in constant demand. Hardly a building or enter 
 prise of any kind in the section of. Ohio where he 
 lived, but bore some marks of his skill. He had 
 a carpenter s bench, and on this he worked early 
 and late, though his labor brought him but small 
 financial return. The land on which the Garfields 
 lived was so poor it yielded them but a scanty 
 living, and James felt the necessity of "working 
 out," as it was called, to increase the limited re- 
 sources of the family. He was early and late in 
 the village, and among the neighbors, seeking odd 
 jobs for his dexterous hands, and soon came to be 
 
42 LIFE AND PUBLIC CAREER OF 
 
 known as the most industrious lad in all Orange. 
 His life was a hard one, but James was patient 
 bein" willing to "labor and wait" for the better 
 
 o o 
 
 times that he knew would come when he deserved 
 them. 
 
 His popularity with the citizens of Orange was 
 great, and they often put themselves out to do a 
 favor for the youth who was so firmly resolved to 
 become a fully equipped man, and they gave him 
 employment mornings, evenings and Saturdays. 
 In this way he earned enough to clothe and main 
 tain himself, and also help the family a little. The 
 summer vacation afforded him more time to work, 
 and added largely to his earnings. He was sober 
 and steady, a gaint in labor, and never seemed to 
 even give himself time to rest. The savings of 
 his busy vacations, earned with a jack-plane and 
 hammer, made a full purse to the lad whose pre 
 vious supplies of money had been more than 
 
 meagre. 
 
 From his earliest appreciable days, young Gar- 
 field had been fond of books. Before he could read, 
 he loved to listen to what others would tell him, 
 treasuring every word his unpracticed memory 
 could recall. When he was able to read, his ap 
 petite for it grew with every hour of his life. 
 What he could obtain in the way of literature he 
 devoured, not merely read, but re-read and re-read, 
 until every word was more than a " twice told 
 tale. Books of adventure, talcs of daring, lives 
 
UAMES A. GARFIELD 
 
 *T THE AGE OF SIXTEEN. FROM A PHOTOGRAPH. 
 
JAMES A. GARFIELD. 
 
 45 
 
 of freebooters, seemed to fascinate his mind the 
 most. The air of wild freedom, the nonchalance 
 and absence of care with which pirates lived, was 
 a great attraction to the boy s spirit, already equal 
 in its boldness to the most daring freebooter the 
 sea ever knew. " The Pirate s Own Book " was a 
 treasure-house of stories in which Garfield took 
 an extreme, ever vivified delight. No matter how 
 many times he pored over the book ; no matter 
 how often he absorbed its wild life and seemed to 
 breathe the very atmosphere in which his heroes 
 lived and moved, it was ever a well-spring of 
 pleasure to him. He shared in all the dangers of 
 the pirates, he made the bivouac with them on the 
 lonely beach among the shadows, he drank their 
 coffee, he eat their biscuits and fruit, he stole with 
 them on stealthy foot over the difficult paths to 
 where the gold was buried from the last great 
 prize, a Spanish treasure galleon, he boarded the 
 stranger ship, he carried a torch that set her on 
 fire with the best of them, and he joined with all 
 a boy s ardor in the lusty cheer as the prize went 
 down. He lived their lives over again, he was 
 every brave chief in turn, and he loved the salt 
 waves with the most enthusiastic of them all. 
 
 It was perhaps fortunate at this juncture that 
 there were no opportunities to gratify the wild 
 fancies thus born within the boy s heart, fancies 
 the black shadows of which he hardly saw. As it 
 was the Pirate s Own Book only fired his ambition 
 
4 6 
 
 LIEE A. YD PUBLIC CAREER OF 
 
 to be something, and so did no harm. He saw too 
 that his ambition could only be gratified with 
 money and upon a larger field of life that opened 
 to him in the Cuyahoga wilderness or was con 
 tained within the bounds of Orange. 
 
 One day he came to his mother and said, 
 
 "Mother, I have engaged to chop a hundred 
 cords of wood for twenty-five dollars." 
 
 "But are you sure you are quite strong enough 
 for such an undertaking?" inquired the careful 
 woman. 
 
 "Oh, yes," replied James, laughingly, "I shall get 
 through with it some how." 
 
 He went bravely to work, but soon found he 
 had indeed undertaken a formidable task. His 
 pride forbid him to give up. He had said he 
 could do it and do it he would let it cost what it 
 might. The task was that of a man, and his boy s 
 strength began to fail him before it was half over, 
 but he toiled on day after day. At every stroke 
 of the axe he could look up and catch the sun s 
 glimmer on the slaty-blue waves of Lake Erie. 
 It prompted all the imaginings of his young heart 
 so deeply stirred by the Pirate s Own Book. He 
 thought the lake to be the sea and already he 
 saw Jiimself a bold rover with a gallant crew, com 
 manding a staunch black ship that proudly carried 
 the black flag at the peak, floating out upon its 
 restless bosom. And when he would lie down at 
 night his day thoughts turned into dreams of the 
 
JAMES A. GARFIELD. ,~ 
 
 sea and its life of wild attractiveness. In his 
 dreams he was ever a sailor. 
 
 When his wood-chopping was done and his hun 
 dred cords were neatly piled, he went to the New- 
 burg farmer, for whom he had worked, received 
 his twenty-five dollars and carried it straight to 
 his mother. Mrs. Garfield looked at the pale boy, 
 and though proud of his manly achievement, she 
 saw, with some apprehension, that he had over 
 tasked himself. She softly remonstrated with his 
 ardor, urging it as a caution for the future. It was 
 precisely this future that was on the boy s mind, 
 and still strong in his sailor fancies, it was this that 
 he had come to speak about. 
 
 " Mother, I want to be a sailor, and I am going 
 to sea," said he, abruptly. 
 
 Mrs. Garfield turned pale, for she knew too 
 well, alas ! this meant a separation for years, and, 
 perhaps forever, from her son. 
 
 " Nay, James," she replied, gently; "why not be 
 content with us at home? the sea is a hard life, and 
 I fear I could not part with you just yet. The hay 
 ing season is at hand, and your brother will need 
 your assistance on the farm. I pray you give up 
 this sea-faring idea for the present." 
 
 James said not a word, but went about the work 
 on the farm. He assisted in the hay-fields and 
 the gathering of the harvest, but when it was all 
 over he came again to his mother, and announced 
 to her that he could no longer restrain his desire 
 
48 LIFE AND PUBLIC CAREER OF 
 
 fora life on the wave. He had resolved to imme 
 diately depart. Then he packed a few clothes in 
 a bundle, and placing them on a stick across his 
 shoulder, like all the boys in pictures he had 
 ever seen, set out on foot for Cleveland. Amid 
 prayers and forebodings, the poor mother had 
 bidden him good-bye, and he carried with him 
 her kiss and her blessing, as his only fortune 
 
 He plodded along cheerfully. His heart never 
 failed him, his courage never sank. . He was always 
 hopeful and in good spirits. After a tramp of sev 
 eral days, he reached Cleveland, and at once sought 
 the harbor, that paradise wherein he believed 
 he should find a career of indescribable happiness. 
 There was but one ship in port. This he boarded, 
 and not without some trepidation inquired for the 
 captain. 
 
 His idea of a ship s captain had been formed 
 from his reading, and then gilded with the honest 
 goodness of his own nature. He imagined that any 
 man who was good and great enough to command 
 a ship, must, at least, be a dashing, brave and 
 gallant fellow, capable, when occasion required, of 
 performing desperate deeds, but disposed to be, as 
 a general thing, generous to a fault. To his ques 
 tion, where he could see the captain, a deck-hand 
 replied: "The cap n s below, he ll be up soon." 
 Garfield, somewhat disturbed, waited the fulfillment 
 of the deck-hand s information. In a moment it 
 proved true. The "cap n" came on deck, an- 
 
JAMES A. GARFIELD. *g 
 
 nouncing his coming" with volley after volley of 
 oaths that would have done no disgrace to "our 
 army in Flanders." A second after the oaths 
 came the captain, and then he greeted the as 
 tonished youth: 
 
 " What do you want hyar ?" rolled out in gruff 
 est thunder. 
 
 " I would like to ship as a hand on board your 
 vessel," promptly replied our hero, as he recollec 
 ted his errand. His only answer was a renewed 
 volley of oaths, fired directly at him instead of 
 into space, followed by a suppresed titter from the 
 men. Hurt, shocked and stunned, young Gar- 
 field left the vessel. 
 
 Once on shore, he sat down to consider his 
 plans, and resolve on his next move. The sea 
 after all did not seem quite as blue, and quite as 
 attractive as it had earlier in the day. He went 
 back to the city. As he strolled on, his philoso 
 phic mind reasoning on his situation, he chanced 
 upon the canal. "As the canal is to the lake, so is 
 the lake to the sea. I will go to work on the 
 canal and learn there first." 
 
 Armed with this new resolve, which now seemed 
 to be reinforced with all the love and ambition he 
 had originally felt for his sea-faring project, he 
 sought out a canal boat. The EVENING STAR, 
 Captain Amos Letcher, was tied to the bank. 
 Stepping on board, he asked to see the captain. 
 Amos Letcher looked into the boy s frank, open 
 
c O LIFE AMD PUBLIC CAREER OF 
 
 countenance and his bright blue eye, and was men 
 tally prepossessed in his favor. Letcher is still 
 living, and recalls his boy-driver to-day in the fol 
 lowing fashion : 
 
 " There was nothing prepossessing about him at that time, 
 any more than he had a free, open countenance. He had no 
 bad habits, was truthful, and a boy that everyone would trus 
 on becoming acquainted with him. He came to me in the 
 summer of 1847, when I was Captain of the EVENING STAR, 
 and half owner B. H. Fisher, now Judge Fisher, of Wichita, 
 Kansas, being my partner. Early one morning, while dis 
 charging a cargo, Jim Garfield tapped me on the shoulder and 
 said: Hello, Ame, what are you doing here? You see 
 what I m doing. What are you doing here? Hunting 
 work. What kind of work do you want? Anything to 
 make a living. I came here to ship on the lake, but they 
 bluffed me off, and called me a country greenhorn. You d 
 better try your hand on smaller waters first ; you d better get 
 so you can drive a horse and tie a tow-line. I should like 
 to have you work for me, but I ve nothing better than a 
 driver s berth, and suppose you would not like to work for 
 twelve dollars a month? I have got to do something, and, 
 if that is the best you can do, I will take the team. All 
 right, I will give you a better position as soon as a vacancy 
 occurs. I called my other driver, and said, Ikey, go and 
 show Jim his team. Just as they were going to start, Jim 
 asked, Is it a good team? As good as is on the canal. 
 What are their names? Kit and Nance. Soon after we 
 were in the eleven-mile lock, and I thought I d sound Jim 
 on education in the rudiments of geography, arithmetic and 
 grammar. For I was just green enough those days to imagine 
 that I knew it all. I had been teaching school for three win 
 ters in the backwoods of Steuben County, Ind. So, I asked 
 him several questions, and he answered them all ; and then 
 
JAMES A. GARFIELD. r i 
 
 he asked me several that I could not answer. I told him he 
 had too good a head to be a common canal hand. 
 
 "As we were approaching the twenty-one locks of Akron, I 
 sent my bowsman to make the first lock ready. Just as he got 
 there, the bowsman from a boat above made his appearance, 
 and said : Don t turn this lock, our boat is just round the 
 bend, ready to enter. My man objected, and began turning 
 the gate. By this time, both boats were near the lock, and 
 their headlights made it almost as bright as day. Every man 
 from both boats was on hand ready for a field fight. I mo 
 tioned my bowsman to come to me. Said I : Were we here 
 first? It s hard telling, but we ll have the lock anyhow. 
 All right, just as you say. Jim Garfield tapped me on the 
 shoulder, and asked : Does that lock belong to us ? I sup 
 pose, according to law, it does not. But we will have it any 
 how. No, we will not. Why ? said I. Why ? with a 
 look of indignation I shall never forget, why, because it 
 don t belong to us. Said I : Boys, let them have it. 
 
 " Next morning, one of the hands accused Jim of being a 
 coward, because he would not fight for his rights. Said I : 
 Boys,, don t be hard on Jim. I was mad last night, but I 
 have got over it. Jim may be a coward for aught I know, 
 but if he is, he is the first one of the name that I ever knew 
 that was. His father was no coward. He helped dig this 
 canal, and weighed over two hundred pounds, and could take 
 a barrel of whisky by the chime and drink out of the bung- 
 hole and no man dared call him a coward. You ll alter your 
 mind about Jim, before fall. 
 
 "The next trip, Jim was bowsman. Before we got to 
 Beaver we were bound for Pittsburg the boys all liked him 
 first-rate. Before we got back to Cleveland, Jim had the 
 ague. He left my boat at the eleven-mile lock, and struck 
 across country to his home." 
 
 On this, his first trip, he had his first fight. He 
 was holding his " setting-pole " against his shoul 
 der ; Dave, a hand, was standing a short distance 
 
r 2 LIFE AND PUBLIC CAREER OF 
 
 away, when the boat took a sudden lunge, the 
 pole slipped from the young man s shoulder and 
 flew with terrible force toward Dave. A loud call 
 " Look out, Dave !" was not in time to warn him, 
 and he was struck a painful blow in the ribs. 
 Furiously enraged, he threatened to thrash the 
 offender within an inch of his life, and with his 
 head down, rushed like a mad bull at Garfield. 
 The latter took in the situation at a glance, and 
 stepping aside he waited Dave s approach with 
 quiet confidence. When he was close, he dealt 
 him a terrible blow under the ear, that felled him 
 to the deck of the boat. In an instant he was 
 upon him with his clenched fists raised to strike. 
 " Pound him, him !" called out Captain 
 Letcher, " - if I interfere. A man who ll git 
 mad at an accident orto be thrashed." Jim didn t 
 strike. He saw his antagonist was helpless and he 
 let him up. Dave and he arose, shook hands and 
 were ever after fast friends. This fight was, how 
 ever, but preliminary to many others during his 
 three months on the tow-path, as the boys on the 
 canal undertaking to bully him, it was constantly 
 necessary to remind them that he wouldn t be 
 bullied, which he always did most effectually by 
 the virtue of his toughened muscles. 
 
 Such was his disposition, capacity and attention 
 to duty that in the completion of the first round 
 trip he had learned all there was to be learned on 
 the tow-path. He was promptly promoted from 
 

 
 z 
 
 K 
 U 
 
 D 
 C- 
 z 
 C 
 
 C 
 
 Q 
 
 - 
 
JAMES A GARFIELD. 
 
 driver to bowsman, he was accorded die proud 
 privilege of steering the boat instead of steering 
 the mules. 
 
 By actual count during his first trip in his new 
 position he fell overboard fourteen times. This 
 was serious. The malaria of the canal remon 
 
 o 
 
 would in all probability have taken hold of his 
 system in due time anyhow, but these frequent 
 baths greatly helped it. He could not swim a 
 stroke, and aid to fish him out was not always 
 forthcoming. One dark and rainy midnight as the 
 EVENING STAR was leaving one of those long reaches 
 of slack water which abounded in the Ohio and 
 Pennsylvania Canal the boy was called out of his 
 berth to take his turn in tending bow-line. Bund 
 ling out of bed, his eyes only half opened, he took 
 his place on the narrow platform below the bow 
 deck and began uncoiling a rope to steady the 
 boat through a lock it was approaching. Sleepily 
 and slowly he unwound the coil till it knotted 
 and caught in a narrow cleft in the edge of the 
 deck. He gave it a sudden pull, but it held fast, 
 then another and a stronger pull and it gave way, 
 but sent him over the bow of the EVENING STAR 
 into the water. Down he went into the dark 
 night and still darker water and the EVENING 
 STAR glided on to bury him among the fishes. No 
 human help was near; God only could save him 
 and He only by a miracle. So the boy thought as 
 he went down saying the prayer his mother had 
 
c^6 LIPE AND PUBLIC CAREER OF 
 
 taught him. Instinctively clutching the rope, IK; 
 sank below the surface, but then it tightened in 
 his grasp and held firmly. Seizing it, hand over 
 hand he drew himself up on deck and was again 
 a live boy among the living. Another kink had 
 caught in another crevice and proved his salvation. 
 Was it the prayer or the love of his praying 
 mother that saved him? The boy did not know 
 but long after the boat had passed the lock 
 he stood there in his dripping clothes pondering 
 the question. 
 
 Coiling the rope, he tried to throw it again into 
 the crevice, but it had lost the knack of kinking. 
 Many times he tried six hundred it is said and 
 then set down and reflected: "I have thrown this 
 rope six hundred times, I might throw it ten times 
 as many without its catching. Ten times six 
 hundred are six thousand, so there were six thou 
 sand chances against my life. Against such odds 
 Providence alone could have saved it. Providence, 
 therefore, thinks it worth saving, and if that s so I 
 won t throw it away on a canal boat. I ll go home, 
 get an education, and become a man." 
 
 Straightway he acted on the resolution, and not 
 long after stood before his mother s log cottage in 
 the Cuyahoga Wilderness. It was late at night. 
 The stars were out, and the moon was down, but 
 by the firelight that came through the window, 
 he saw his mother kneeling before an open book, 
 which lay on a chair in the corner. She was read- 
 
JAMES A. GARFIELD. - 7 
 
 ing, but her eyes were off the page looking up to 
 the Invisible: 
 
 "Oh turn unto me, and have mercy upon me! 
 Give Thy strength unto Thy servant, and save the 
 son of Thy handmaid!" 
 
 Then she read what sounded like a prayer, but 
 this is all the boy remembered, as he for the first 
 time comprehended that his departure had crushed 
 her. - 
 
 He opened the door, put his arm about her 
 neck, and his head upon her bosom. What words 
 he said we do not know, but there, by her side, he 
 gave back to God the life which He had given. 
 So, the mother s prayer was answered. So sprang 
 up the seed which in toil and tears she had 
 planted. 
 
 For a short time he remained at home, com 
 forting his mother and endeavoring to reconcile 
 
 o o 
 
 her to his hopes of a sea-faring life. This he more 
 than accomplished, and was just about to take his 
 second departure, when the malaria took hold of 
 him and he was seized in the*vice-like grip of fever 
 and ague. For six months his strong frame was 
 shaken. He lay upon the bed, the "ague-cake" 
 in his side. Tenderly, indefatigably, his mother 
 nursed him during his days of suffering, which her 
 care and his iron constitution, at last permitted 
 him to overcome. He was still determined, how 
 ever, to return to the canal, and thence to the lake 
 and ocean. Mrs. Garfield well knew that any op- 
 
-g LIFE AND PUBLIC CAREER OF 
 
 position would be useless, so she argued that he 
 had better attend school, for a time, at least, until 
 he was able to resume severe labor, and thus fit 
 himself to teach during the winter months, when 
 he could not sail. He reluctantly consented to his 
 mother s wishes. So came about a great change 
 a change that worked for Jim Garfield a wonder 
 ful, far-differing future than that which he had 
 woven from his net of fancies, by the aid of the 
 " Pirate s Own Book." 
 
JAMES A. GARFIELD. 
 
 CHAPTER V. 
 
 INTER FOLIO FRUCTUS FRUIT BETWEEN LEAVES. 
 
 UP to this time, in our hero s life, there are 
 no political impressions to record. The 
 boy well remembers attending a political 
 meeting in the ever-memorable Harrison cam 
 paign, but merely as a curiosity seeker. Nor is it 
 to be recorded that he had any deep religious 
 emotions. He went regularly, when at home, to 
 the Disciples meeting, first at Bentleyville, and 
 later at the school-house near his home, where his 
 Uncle Boynton had organized a congregation. 
 The polemics of religion interested him deeply at 
 that time, but his heart was not touched. He was 
 familiar with Bible texts, and was often a formid 
 able disputant. One day, when about fifteen, he 
 was digging potatoes for Mr. Patrick, in Orange, 
 and carrying them in a basket from the patch to the 
 cellar. Near the cellar door sat a neighbor talk 
 ing to the farmer s grown-up daughter about the 
 merits of the sprinkling and immersion contro 
 versy, and arguing that sprinkling was baptism 
 within the meaning of the Scriptures. James 
 overheard him say that a drop was as good as a 
 fountain. He stopped on his way to the field, and 
 4 
 
6o 
 
 LIFE AND PUBLIC CAREER OF 
 
 began to quote this text from Hebrews: " Let us 
 draw near with a true heart in full assurance of 
 faith, having- our hearts sprinkled from an evil 
 conscience." "Ah, you see," said the man, "it 
 says sprinkled. " "Wait for the rest of the text," 
 replied James " and our bodies washed with 
 pure water! Now, how can you wash your body 
 in a drop of water?" and, without waiting for a 
 reply, he hastened off to the potato field. 
 
 James was now seventeen years of age, but it 
 would seem he had cherished little ambition for 
 anything beyond the prospects offered by that la 
 borious life of a sailor which he had entered upon. 
 It happened that during the winter of his ague- 
 illness there came to Orange, to teach the district 
 school, a young man named Samuel D. Bates 
 now a distinguished minister of the Gospel at 
 Marion, Ohio who had been to the adjacent 
 township to school. He had attended what was 
 then a high school, and known as the Geauga 
 Seminary, and he and Garfield became firm friends. 
 Bates was full of his school experiences, and find 
 ing his new acquaintance so intelligent, with true 
 proselyting spirit, as was so common among men 
 in the backwoods who were beginning to taste the 
 pleasures of education, he was very anxious to 
 take back several new students with him. Gar- 
 field listened to the representations of his eloquent 
 friend and was tempted. He was too weak and 
 ill to carry out his plan of becoming a sailor at 
 
JAMES A GARFIELD. 
 
 61 
 
 once, and he finally resolved to attend the high 
 school one session, and postpone sailing until the 
 next fall. It was this resolution made a major 
 general, a senator, and a President of him, instead 
 of a common sailor before the mast, on a Lake 
 Erie schooner. 
 
 Accordingly he joined two other young men, 
 Wm. Boynton (his cousin), and Orrin H. Judd, of 
 Orange, and they reached Chester, March 6th, 
 1849, and rented a room in an unpainted frame 
 house nearly west from the seminary and across the 
 street from it. Garfield had seventeen dollars in 
 his pocket, scraped together by his mother and his 
 brother Thomas. They took provisions along 
 and a cooking stove, and a poor widow prepared 
 their meals and did their washing for an absurdly 
 small sum. The academy was a two-story 
 building, and the school, with about a hundred 
 pupils of both sexes, drawn from the farming 
 country around Chester, was in a flourishing con 
 dition. It had a library of perhaps one hundred 
 and fifty volumes more books than young Gar- 
 field had ever seen before. A venerable gentle 
 man named Daniel Branch was principal of the 
 school, and his wife was his chief assistant. Then 
 there were Mr. and Mrs. Coffin, Mr. Bigelow and 
 Miss Abigail Curtis. Mrs. Branch had introduced 
 an iconoclastic grammar, which assailed all other 
 systems as founded on a false basis, maintained 
 that but was a verb in the imperative mood, and 
 
62 
 
 LIFE AND rUBLIC CAREER OF 
 
 meant be out; that and was also a verb in the im 
 perative mood, and meant add; and tried in other 
 ways to upset the accepted etymology. Garfield 
 had been reared in "Kirkham" at the district 
 school, and refused to accept the new system. 
 The grammar classes that term were a continuous 
 battle between him and the teacher. Here, 
 though he did not know it at the time, he first saw 
 his future wife. Lucretia Randolph, a quiet, stu 
 dious girl in her seventeenth year, was among- the 
 students. There was no association between the 
 two, however, save in classes. James was awk 
 ward and bashful, and contemplated the girls at a 
 distance as a superior order of beings. 
 
 He bought, soon after arriving, the second alge 
 bra he had ever seen. He studied it as well as 
 natural philosophy. At the close of the spring 
 term he made his first public Speech. It was a 
 six minutes oration at the annual exhibition, de 
 livered in connection with a literary society to 
 which he belonged, and he recorded in a diary 
 that he kept at the time that he "was very much 
 scared," and "very glad of a short curtain across 
 the platform that hid my shaking legs from the 
 audience." Among the books he read at this 
 time was the autobiography of Henry C. Wright, 
 and the determined lad was much impressed with 
 the author s account of how he lived in Scotland 
 on bread and milk and crackers, and how well he 
 was all the time, and how hard he could study. 
 
JAMES A, GARFIELD. - 
 
 Fired with the idea, he told his cousin that they 
 had been too extravagant, and that another term 
 they must board themselves and adopt Wright s 
 diet. 
 
 At the close of the session he returned to Orange, 
 helped nis brother build a barn for his mother, and 
 then went at the hard work of earning money 
 for from the time he left Chester until to-day he 
 has always paid his way to continue his studies 
 at Chester when the fall term began. He worked 
 at harvesting, and secured enough to guarantee 
 his continuance at the Geauga Seminary, and to 
 pay off some of the doctor s bills incurred during 
 his protracted illness of the winter before. On 
 his return to the seminary the "boarding them 
 selves" experiment was not repeated. An arrange 
 ment was entered into with Heman Woodworth, 
 a carpenter of Chester, to live at his house and 
 have lodging, board, washing, fuel and light for 
 one dollar and six cents a week, and this sum he 
 expected to earn by helping the carpenter on 
 Saturdays and at odd hours on school days. The 
 carpenter was building a two-story house on the 
 east side of the road a little way south of the sem 
 inary grounds, and James s first work was to get 
 out siding at two cents a board. The first Satur 
 day he planed fifty-one boards and so earned one 
 dollar and two cents, the most money he had ever 
 got for a day s work. He began that fall the 
 study of Greek. That term he paid his way, 
 
6 4 
 
 LIFE AND PUBLIC CAREER OF 
 
 bought a few books, and returned home with 
 three dollars in his pocket. He now thought him 
 self competent to teach a country school, but in 
 two clays tramping through Cuyahoga County, 
 failed to find employment. Some schools had al 
 ready engaged teachers, and where there was 
 still a vacancy the trustees thought him too young. 
 He returned to his mother completely discouraged, 
 and greatly humiliated by the rebuffs he had met 
 with. He made a resolution that he would never 
 again ask for a position of any sort, and the resolu 
 tion was kept, for every public place he has since 
 had has come to him unsought. 
 
 Next morning, while still in the depths of de 
 spondency, he heard a man call to his mother from 
 the road : " Widow Gaffield," (a local corruption 
 of the name Garfield), "where s your boy Jim? I 
 wonder if he wouldn t like to teach our school at 
 the Ledge ?" James went out and found a neigh 
 bor from a district a mile away, where the school 
 had been broken up for two winters by the row 
 dyism of the big boys. He said he would like to 
 try the school, but before deciding must consult 
 his uncle, Amos Boynton. That evening there 
 was a family consultation. Uncle Amos pon 
 dered over the matter and finally said : ""You go 
 and try it. You will go into that school as the 
 boy Jim Gaffield; see that you come out as Mr. 
 Garfield, the schoolmaster." The young man 
 mustered the school in the school-room, after a 
 
JAMES A. GARFIELD. ^ 
 
 hard tussle with the bully of the district, who re 
 sented a flogging", and tried to brain the teacher 
 with a billet of wood. No problem in his after 
 life ever took so much absorbing thought and 
 study as that of making the Ledge school success 
 ful. He devised all sorts of plans for making 
 study interesting to the children ; joined in the 
 out-door sports of the big boys, read aloud even 
 ings to the parents where he boarded, and won 
 the hearts of old and young. Before spring he 
 got the name of the best schoolmaster who ever 
 taught at the Ledge. His wages were "twelve 
 dollars a month and found," and he "boarded 
 around " in the families of the pupils. 
 
 He returned to the seminary in the spring 
 (1850) to find the principal, Mr. Branch, had left 
 and was succeeded by Spencer J. Fowler, while 
 John B. Beach had stepped into the shoes of the 
 crusty, iconoclastic grammarian, Mrs. Branch. Dur 
 ing this, his third term at the seminary, he and his 
 cousin Henry boarded themselves and put in 
 practice Henry C. Wright s dietary scheme. At 
 the end of six weeks the boys found their ex 
 penses for food had been just thirty-one cents per 
 week apiece. Henry thought they were living too 
 poorly for good health, and they agreed to in 
 crease their outlay to fifty cents a week apiece. 
 James had, up to this time, looked upon a college 
 course as wholly beyond his reach, but he met a 
 college graduate who told him he was mistaken 
 
66 
 
 LIFE AND PUBLIC CAREER OF 
 
 in supposing that only the sons of rich parents 
 were able to take such a course. A poor boy 
 could get through, he said, but it would take a 
 long time and very hard work. The usual time 
 was four years in preparatory studies and four in 
 the regular college course. James thought that 
 
 o o Jo 
 
 by working part of the time to earn money, he 
 could get through in twelve years. He then re 
 solved to bend all his energies to the one purpose 
 of getting a college education. From this reso 
 lution he never swerved a hair s breadth. Until 
 it was accomplished, it was the one overmastering 
 idea of his life. The tenacity and single-hearted 
 ness with which he clung to it, and the sacrifices 
 he made to realize it, unquestionably exerted a 
 powerful influence in moulding and solidifying his 
 character. 
 
 In March of this year, after having exercised his 
 full freedom in reaching conclusions, he joined his 
 uncle s church, the Church of the Disciples, or 
 Campbellites, and was baptized in a little stream 
 that flows into the Chagrin River. His conver 
 sion was brought about by a quiet, sweet-tempered 
 man, who held a series of meetings in the school- 
 house near the Garfield homestead, and told in 
 the plainest manner, and with the most straight 
 forward earnestness, the story of the Gospel. The 
 creed he then professed, and which was then held 
 by few, but now by about half a million followers, 
 is as follows : 
 
JAMES A. GARFIELD. 
 
 6 7 
 
 1. We call ourselves Christians or Disciples. 
 
 2. We believe in God the Father. 
 
 3. We believe that Jesus is the Christ, the Son of the living 
 God, and our only Saviour. We regard the divinity of 
 Christ as the fundamental truth in the Christian system. 
 
 4. We believe in the Holy Spirit, both as to its agency in 
 conversion and as an indweller in the heart of the Christian. 
 
 5. We accept both the Old and New Testament Scriptures 
 as the inspired word of God. 
 
 6. We believe in the future punishment of the wicked and 
 the future reward of the righteous. 
 
 7. We believe that Diety is a prayer-hearing and prayer- 
 answering God. 
 
 8. We observe the institution of the Lord s Supper on 
 every Lord s Day. To this table it is our practice neither to 
 invite nor debar. We say it is the Lord s Supper for all the 
 Lord s children. 
 
 9. We plead for the union of all God s people on the Bible 
 and the Bible alone. 
 
 10. The Bible is our only creed. 
 
 11. We maintain that all the ordinances of the Gospel 
 should be observed as they were in the days of the Apostles. 
 
 When the summer came he went again to his 
 old trade, and was happy among the hammers and 
 planes, the saw and chisel. He earned a fair 
 amount, and returned in the fall to the seminary. 
 During this fall he entered a school of book-keep 
 ing, penmanship and elocution, kept by Dr. Alonzo 
 Harlow, located at Chagrin Falls, Cuyahoga 
 County, Ohio. Garfield was the doctor s janitor, 
 paying his tuition in that manner, and at the same 
 time earning his board of a neighboring farmer by 
 doing chores about the place. It was here that 
 
^g LIFE AND PUBLIC CAREER OF 
 
 he took his first lessons in elocution, and received 
 the first real encouragement to fit himself for pub 
 lic life. 
 
 In the winter he taught a village school in 
 Warrensville, receiving sixteen dollars a month 
 and board. One of the boys under his charge 
 at this school desired to study geometry. Gar- 
 field had never got so far in mathematics, but 
 he bought a text-book, studied nights, kept ahead 
 of his pupil, and took him through without his 
 once suspecting that the master was not an expert 
 in the science. This was the last of Garfield in 
 Chester or its neighborhood. Writing many years 
 afterward on the time spent here, he said : 
 
 " I remember with great satisfaction the work which was ac 
 complished for me at Chester. It marked the most decisive 
 change in my life. While there I formed a definite purpose 
 and plan to complete a college course. It is a great point 
 gained, when a young man makes up his mind to devote 
 several years to the accomplishment of a definite work. 
 With the educational facilities now afforded in our country, 
 no young man, who has good health and is master of his own 
 actions, can be excused for not obtaining a good education. 
 Poverty is very inconvenient, but it is a fine spur to activity, 
 and may be made a rich blessing." 
 
 In the spring he went with his mother to visit 
 relatives in Muskingum County, and rode for the 
 first time in a railroad train. The Cleveland and 
 Columbus Railroad was then just opened, and he 
 went to Columbus from Orange. Hon. Gamaliel 
 
JAMES A, GARFIELD. g 
 
 Kent, then representative from Geauga, showed 
 him over the State capital and the legislative 
 halls. From Columbus Garfield and his mother 
 went by stage to Zanesville, and then floated 
 eighteen miles in a skiff down the Muskingum 
 River to their destination. While there, James 
 taught a spring school in a log building on Back 
 Run, in Harrison Township. The coal burned in 
 the school-house he was obliged to dig from a 
 bank in the rear of the house. 
 
 In the summer he returned with his mother to 
 Orange. He decided to go on with his education 
 at a new school, established by the Disciples the 
 year before at Hiram, Portage County, a cross 
 roads village, twelve miles from any town or rail 
 road. His religious feeling naturally called him 
 to the young institution of his own denomination. 
 In August, 1851, he arrived at Hiram, and found 
 a plain brick building standing in the midst of a 
 cornfield, with perhaps a dozen farm-houses, near 
 enough for boarding places for the students. It 
 was a lonely, isolated place, on a high ridge divid 
 ing the waters flowing into Lake Erie from those 
 running southward to the Ohio. The Rev. A. S. 
 Hayden was the principal ; Thomas Munnell and 
 Norman Dunshee were teachers ; the latter teach 
 ing mathematics and Greek. Recently General 
 Garfield said, in an address : 
 
 "A few days after the beginning of the term, I saw a class 
 of three reciting in mathematics geometry, I think. I had 
 
^ Q LIFE AND PUBLIC CAREER OF 
 
 never seen a geometry, and, regarding both teacher and class 
 with a feeling of reverential awe for the intellectual height tc 
 which they had climbed, I studied their faces so closely that 
 I seem to see them now as distinctly as I saw them then. 
 And it has been my good fortune since that time to claim 
 them all as intimate friends. The teacher was Thomas Mun- 
 nell, and the members of his class were William B. Hazen,- 
 George A. Baker and Almeda A. Booth." 
 
 He lived in a room with four other pupils, stud 
 ied harder than ever, having now his college pro 
 ject fully anchored in his mind, got through his six 
 books of Caesar that term and made good pro 
 gress in Greek. He met, on entering the institute, 
 a woman, who exercised a strong influence on his 
 intellectual life, Miss Almeda Booth the Margaret 
 Fuller of the West a teacher in the school. She 
 was nine years older than the young student, pos 
 sessed a mind of remarkable range and grasp, and 
 a character of unusual sweetness, purity and 
 strength. She became his guide and companion 
 in his studies, his mental and moral heroine, and 
 his unselfish, devoted friend. 
 
 When the winter came he returned to Warrens- 
 ville, and taught school again, earning eighteen 
 dollars a month. Spring found him again at 
 Hiram, and during this term, in company with 
 Corydon E. Fuller, he aided Miss Booth in writing 
 a colloquy for the public exercises at the close of 
 the school year. During the ensuing summer 
 (1852), he helped to build a house in the village, 
 planing the sides and shingling the roof himself. 
 
JAMES A. GARFIELD. y x 
 
 In the fall, when the institute opened, one of the 
 tutors in the department of English and ancient 
 languages fell ill, and James Garfield was ad 
 vanced to his place. Henceforward he taught and 
 studied at the same time, his eye all the while fixed 
 upon the bright beacon of a college education. 
 He began Zenophon s Anabasis among other 
 things. That winter he became a member of 
 President Hayden s household. 
 
 The summer vacation of 1853 only brought 
 harder work. In company of eleven students, he 
 formed a class, and hired Professor Dunshee to 
 give them private lessons for one month. During 
 that time he mastered the Pastorals of Virgil, the 
 Georgics and Buccolics entire, and the first six 
 books of Homer s Illiad, accompanied by a thor 
 ough drill in the Latin and Greek grammar at each 
 recitation. He was also a member of an active 
 literary society during this month. When the fall 
 term was fairly under way, Garfield went at it again, 
 to hasten his preparation for college. He, with 
 some other students, formed a Translation Society, 
 that met at Miss Booth s rooms two evenings a 
 week, and made a joint translation with her of 
 the Book of Romans. The work done was more 
 thorough than rapid. An entry in Garfield s 
 diary for December I5th, 1853, reads: "Transla 
 tion Society sat three hours in Miss Booth s rooms, 
 and agreed upon the translation of nine verses." 
 To this class, Professor Dunshee contributed some 
 
72 LIFE AND PUBLIC CAREER OF 
 
 . . 
 
 essays on the German commentators, De Wette and 
 Tholock. During the winter (1853-54), Garfield 
 read the whole of "Demosthenes on the Crown." 
 
 When he went to Hiram he had studied Latin 
 only six weeks, and just begun Greek; and was, 
 therefore, just in a condition to fairly begin the 
 four years preparatory course, ordinarily taken by 
 students before entering college in the freshman 
 class. Yet, in three years time, he fitted himself 
 to enter the junior class, two years further along, 
 and, at the same time, earned his own living, thus 
 crowding six years study into three, and teaching 
 for support at the same time. To accomplish it, 
 he shut the whole world out from his mind, save 
 that little portion of it within the range of his 
 studies; knowing nothing of politics or the news 
 of the day, reading no light literature, and enga 
 ging in no social recreations that took his time 
 from his books. 
 
 The college question was now before him. But 
 where should he go ? He had recently read some 
 lectures by President Hopkins, of Williams, that 
 had made him think favorably of that institution. 
 But he had originally intended to enter Bethany 
 College, the institution sustained by the church of 
 which he was a member, and presided over by 
 Alexander Campbell, the man above all others he 
 had been taught to admire and revere. A fa 
 miliar letter shall tell us how he reasoned and 
 acted : 
 
JAMES A. GARFIELD. 
 
 73 
 
 " There are three reasons why I have decided not to go to 
 Bethany : ist. The course of study is not so extensive or 
 thorough as in Eastern colleges. 2d. Bethany leans too 
 heavily toward slavery. 3d. I am the son of Disciple 
 parents, am one myself, and have had but little acquaintance 
 with people of other views, and, having always lived in the 
 West, I think it will make me more liberal, both in my religi 
 ous and general views and sentiments, to go into a new circle, 
 where I shall be under new influences. These considerations 
 led me to conclude to go to some New England college. I 
 therefore wrote to the presidents of Brown University, Yale 
 and Williams, setting forth the amount of study I had done, 
 and asking how long it would take me to finish their course. 
 
 "Their answers are now before me. All tell me I can 
 graduate in two years. They are all brief, business notes, but 
 President Hopkins concludes with this sentence : If you 
 come here we shall be glad to do what we can for you. 
 Other things being so nearly equal, this sentence, which 
 seems to be a kind of friendly grasp of the hand, has settled 
 the question for me. I shall start for Williams next week." 
 
 Some points in this letter of a young man about 
 to start away from home to college will strike the 
 reader as remarkable. Nothing could show more 
 mature judgment about the matter in hand than 
 the wise anxiety to get out from the Disciples in 
 fluence and see something of other men and other 
 opinions. It was notable that one trained to look 
 upon Alexander Campbell as the master intellect 
 of the churches of the day should revolt against 
 studying in his college, because it leaned too 
 strongly to slavery. And in the final turning of 
 the decision upon the little friendly commonplace 
 that closed one of the letters, we catch a glimpse 
 
-4 LIFE AND PUBLIC CAREER OF 
 
 of the warm, sympathetic nature of the man, 
 which much and wide experience of the world in 
 after years has never hardened. 
 
 So, in the fall of 1854, the pupil of Geauga 
 Seminary and of the Hiram Institute received 
 admission at the venerable doors of Williams. 
 
JAMES A. GARFIELD. 
 
 CHAPTER VI. 
 
 GARFIELD AT WILLIAMS. 
 
 WHEN Garfield reached Williams Col 
 lege, in June, 1854, he had about three 
 hundred dollars, which he had saved 
 while teaching at Hiram ; and with this amount 
 he hoped to get through the first year. The col 
 lege year had not quite closed, a few weeks re^ 
 mained, which he utilized by attending the recita^ 
 tions of the sophomore class, in order to become 
 familiar with the methods of the professors before 
 testing his ability to pass the examinations of the 
 junior year. He had a keen sense of his want of 
 the advantages of society and general culture 
 which the students with whom he came in contact 
 had enjoyed all their lives, but his homely man 
 ners and Western garb did not subject him to any 
 slights or mortifications. The spirit of the col 
 lege was generous and manly. No student was 
 estimated by the clothes he wore ; no one was 
 snubbed because he was poor. The intellectual 
 force, originality and immense powers of study 
 possessed by the new-comer from Ohio were soon 
 recognized by his classmates, and he was shown 
 as much respect, cordiality and companionship as 
 if he had been the son of a millionaire. His old 
 5 
 
~ LIFE AXD PUBLIC CAREER OF 
 
 mates recall him as a big young man, quite Ger 
 man in appearance so strong is good Saxon 
 blood, after centuries of exile from the Saxon 
 land blonde and bearded, strong-limbed, serious, 
 but sociable, and with the Western easy-going 
 manners, ready wit and broad sympathy going 
 out toward all his fellows. The boys called him 
 " Old Gar," so readily did he assume the patri 
 archate of the college in the brief two years he 
 was there. He boarded in club, and did not smoke 
 or drink. 
 
 The beauty of the scenery around Mechanics- 
 ville made a strong impression upon his fancy. 
 He had never seen mountains before. The spurs 
 of the Green Hills, which reach down from Ver 
 mont and inclose the little college town in their 
 arms, were to the young man from the monoto 
 nous landscapes of the Western Reserve a won 
 derful revelation of grandeur and beauty. He 
 climbed Greylock and explored all the glens and 
 valleys of die neighborhood. 
 
 The examination for entering the junior class 
 was passed without trouble. Although self-taught, 
 save for the help of his friend and companion in 
 his studies, Miss Booth, his knowledge of the 
 books prescribed was thorough. A long summer 
 vacation followed his examination, and this time 
 he employed in the college library, the first large 
 collection of books he had ever seen. His ab 
 sorption in the double work of teaching and fitting 
 
JAMES A. GARFIELD. 
 
 77 
 
 himself for college had hitherto left him little time 
 for general reading, and the library opened a new 
 world of profit and delight. He had never read a 
 line of Shakespeare, save a few extracts in the 
 school reading-books. From the whole range of 
 fiction he had voluntarily shut himself off at 
 eighteen, when he joined the church, having 
 serious views of the business of life, and imbibing 
 the notion, then almost universal among religious 
 people in the country districts of the West, that 
 novel reading was a waste of time, and, therefore, 
 a simple, worldly sort of intellectual amusement. 
 When turned loose in the college library, with 
 weeks of leisure to range at will over its shelves, 
 he began with Shakespeare, which he read through 
 from cover to cover. Then he went to English 
 history and poetry. Of the poets, Tennyson 
 pleased him best, which is not to be wondered at, 
 for the influence of the Laureate was then at its 
 height. He learned whole poems by heart, and 
 can repeat them now. 
 
 After he had been six or eight months at col 
 lege, and had devoured an immense amount of 
 serious reading, he began to suffer from intel 
 lectual dyspepsia. He found his mind was not 
 assimilating what he read, and would often refuse 
 to be held down to the printed page. Then he 
 revised his notions about books of fiction, and 
 concluded that romance is as valuable a part of 
 intellectual food as salad of a dinner. He pre- 
 
yo LIFE AND PUBLIC CAREER OF 
 
 scribed for himself one novel a month, and on this 
 medicine his mind speedily recuperated and got 
 back all its old elasticity. Cooper s Leatherstock- 
 ing Tales were the first novels he read, and after 
 ward Walter Scott. An English classmate intro 
 duced him to the works of Dickens and Thack 
 eray. He formed a habit in those days of making 
 notes while he read of everything he did not 
 clearly understand, such as historical references, 
 mythological allusions, technical terms, etc. These 
 notes he would take time to look up afterward in 
 the library, so as to leave nothing obscure on his 
 mind concerning the books he absorbed. The thor 
 oughness he displayed in his work in after life 
 was thus begun at that early period, and applied 
 to every subject he took hold of. The ground his 
 mind traversed he carefully cleared and plowed 
 before leaving it for fresh fields. 
 
 Garfield studied Latin and Greek and took up 
 German as an elective study. One year at Wil 
 liams completed his classical studies, on which 
 he was far advanced before he came there. 
 German he carried on successfully until he could 
 read Goethe and Schiller readily and acquired 
 considerable fluency in the conversational use of 
 the language. He entered with zeal into the lit 
 erary work of the college, was a vigorous debater 
 and a member of the Philologian Society, of which 
 he was president in 1855-56. The influ 
 ence of the mind and character of Dr. Hopkins 
 
JAMES A. GARFIELD. 
 
 was seriously felt in shaping the direction of Gar- 
 field s thought and his views of life. He often 
 says that the good president rose like a sun before 
 him, and enlightened his whole mental and moral 
 nature. His preaching and teaching were a con 
 stant inspiration to the young Ohio student and 
 he became the centre of his college life, the object 
 of his hero-worship. 
 
 At the end of the fall term of 1854, Garfield 
 enjoyed a winter vacation of two months which he 
 spent in North Pownal, Vt, teaching a writing 
 class in the same school-house where a year be 
 fore Chester A. Arthur was the principal. Gar- 
 field wrote a broad, handsome hand, a hand that 
 was strongly individual, and the envy of the boys 
 and girls who tried to imitate it. 
 
 At the end of the college year in June, Garfield 
 returned home to see his mother, who was then 
 living with a daughter at Solon. His money was 
 exhausted and he had to adopt one of two plans, 
 either to borrow enough to take him through to 
 graduation at the end of the next year or set to 
 work as a teacher until he earned the requisite 
 amount ; and so break the continuity of his col 
 lege course. He, however, did neither, but in 
 sured his life for eight hundred dollars, his brother 
 Thomas undertaking to furnish the funds on in 
 stalments, but, being eventually unable, the obliga 
 tion was assumed by Dr. Robinson, of Hiram, who 
 advanced the money and took the insurance 
 policy as security. 
 
g o LIFE AND PUBLIC CAREER OF 
 
 He returned to Williams in the fall, and was 
 again active in his contributions to the College 
 Magazine, the Williams Quarterly. Of his con 
 tributions we cannot quote as liberally as we would 
 like. We find three poetical productions. One 
 is a political satire, called " Sam," and contains 
 the lines : 
 
 " Twas noon of night, and by his flickering lamp, 
 That gloated o er his dingy room and damp, 
 With glassy eye and haggard face there sat, 
 A disappointed, worn-out Democrat ; 
 His eloquence all wasted plans all failed, 
 His spurious coin fast to the counter nailed, 
 Deception s self was now at length deceived, 
 His lies, political, no more believed." 
 
 Another, evidently a squid at some college 
 prank, and is modeled on Tennyson. It is en 
 titled " The Charge of the Tight Brigade." The 
 first verse leads off: 
 
 Bottles to right of them. 
 Bottles to left of them, 
 Bottles in front of them, 
 
 Fizzled and sundered t 
 Ent ring with shout and yell, 
 Boldly they drank and well, 
 They caught the Tartar then ; 
 OA, -what a perfect sell! 
 
 Sold the half hundred. 
 Grinned all the dentals bare, 
 Swung all their caps in air, 
 Uncorking bottles there, 
 Watching the Freshmen while 
 
 Every one wondered ; 
 Plunged in tobacco smoke, 
 With many a desperate stroke, 
 
JAMES A. GARFIELD. g 
 
 Dozens of bottles broke, 
 Then they came back, but not, 
 But not the half hundred." 
 
 The third contribution, in verse, we reproduce 
 entire. It is entitled " Memory :" 
 
 " Tis beauteous night; the stars look brightly down 
 Upon the earth, decked in her robe of snow. 
 No light gleams at the window save my own, 
 Which gives its cheer to midnight and to me. 
 And now with noiseless step sweet Memory comes, 
 And leads me gently through her twilight realms. 
 What poet s tuneful lyre has ever sung, 
 Or delicatest pencil e er portrayed 
 The enchanted shadowy land where Memory dwells ? 
 It has its valleys, cheerless, lone and drear, 
 Dark-shaded by the mournful cypress tree. 
 And yet its sunlit mountain-tops are bathed 
 In heaven s own blue. Upon its craggy cliffs, 
 Robed in the dreamy light of distant years, 
 Are clustered joys serene of other days; 
 Upon its gently-sloping hillsides bend 
 The weeping-willows o er the sacred dust 
 Of dear departed ones ; and yet in that land, 
 Where er our footsteps fall upon the shore, 
 They that were sleeping rise from out the dust 
 Of death s long, silent years, and round us stand, 
 As erst they did before the prison tomb 
 Received their clay witMn its voiceless halls. 
 The heavens that bend above that land are hung 
 With clouds of various hues : some dark and chill, 
 Surcharged with sorrow, cast their sombre shade 
 Upon the sunny, joyous land below ; 
 Others are floating through the dreamy air; 
 White as the falling snow their margins tinged 
 With gold and crimson hues ; their shadows fall 
 Upon the flowery meads and sunny slopes, 
 Soft as the shadows of an angel s wing. 
 When the rough battle of the day is done, 
 And evening s peace falls gently on the heart, 
 I bound away across the noisy years, 
 
g 2 LIFE AND PUBLIC CAREER OF 
 
 Unto the utmost verge of Memory s land, 
 
 Where earth and sky in dreamy distance meet, 
 
 And Memory dim with dark oblivion joins ; 
 
 Where woke the first-remembered sounds that fell 
 
 Upon the ear in childhood s early morn ; 
 
 And wandering thence, along the rolling years, 
 
 I see the shadow of my former self 
 
 Gliding from childhood up to man s estate. 
 
 The path of youth winds down through many a vale 
 
 And on the brink of many a dread abyss, 
 
 From out whose darkness comes no ray of light, 
 
 Save that a phantom dances o er the gulf, 
 
 And beckons toward the verge. Again the path 
 
 Leads o er a summit where the sunbeams fall ; 
 
 And thus in light and shade, sunshine and gloom, 
 
 Sorrow and joy, this life-path leads along." 
 
 The prose contributions were many, and upon 
 many subjects. During his second year, iS55~ 56, 
 he formed, with W. R. Baxter, Henry E. Knox, E. 
 Clarence Smith and John Tatlock, the editors for 
 the class of 56. In the opening number of his 
 year, September, 1855, he supplied the Editor s 
 Table. How pleasantly he voices the trouble 
 every newspaper editor or writer has gone through, 
 when he says in his opening lines : 
 
 " It is, indeed, an uninviting task to bubble up sentiment 
 and elaborate thought in obedience to corporate laws ; and 
 not unfrcquently those children of the brain when paraded 
 before the proper authorities, show by their meager propor 
 tions that they have not been nourished by the genial warmth 
 of a willing heart." 
 
 Speaking of the Quarterly, which was in those 
 days a really high class magazine, he states its 
 purpose: 
 
JAMES A. GARFIELD. g., 
 
 "It proposes a kind of intellectual tournament where we 
 may learn to hurl the lance and wield the sword, and thus 
 prepare for the conflict of life. It shall be our aim to keep 
 the lists still open and the arena clear, that the knights of the 
 quill may learn to hurl the lance and wield the sword of 
 though , and thus be ready for sterner duties. We shall also 
 endeavor to decorate the arena with all the flowers that our 
 own gardens afford, and thus render the place more pleasant 
 and inviting. We should remember, however, that it is no 
 honor or profit merely to appear in the arena, but the wreath 
 is for those who contend" 
 
 From a brilliant review of the life and writings 
 of the unfortunate Karl Theodor Korner, that ap 
 peared in the number for March, 1856, we cut a 
 single paragraph : 
 
 " The greater part of our modern literature bears evident 
 marks of the haste which characterizes all the movements of 
 this age ; but, in reading these older authors, we are impressed 
 with the idea that they enjoyed the most comfortable leisure. 
 Many books we can reaxl in a railroad car, and feel a harmony 
 between the rushing of the train and the haste of the author; 
 but to enjoy the older authors, we need the quiet of a winter 
 evening an easy chair before a cheerful fire, and all the 
 equanimity of spirits we can command. Then the genial 
 good nature, the rich fullness, the persuasive eloquence of 
 those old masters will fall upon us like the warm, glad sun 
 shine, and afford those hours of calm contemplation in which 
 the spirit may expand with generous growth, and gain deep 
 and comprehensive views. The pages of friendly old Gold 
 smith come to us like a golden autumn day, when every object 
 which meets the eye bears all the impress of the completed 
 year, and the beauties of an autumnal forest." 
 
 Another extract, and we will hurry on to later 
 
g , LIFE AND PUBLIC CAKEEX OF 
 
 dales and other things. Writing on " The Prov 
 ince of History," Garfield defined the historian s 
 duty: 
 
 "There are two points which the historian should ever 
 have before him : 
 
 "First The valuation of facts to each other and the whole 
 body of history ; and, 
 
 "Second The tendency of the whole toward some great 
 
 end. 
 
 ** ##** * # 
 
 "For every village, State and nation there is an aggregate of 
 native talent which God has given, and by which, together 
 with his Providence, he leads that nation on, and thus leads 
 the world. In the light of these truths we affirm that no 
 man can understand the history of any nation, or of the 
 world, who does not recognize in it the power of God, and 
 behold His stately goings forth as He walks among the nations. 
 It is His hand that is moving the vast superstructure of human 
 history, and, though but one of the windows were unfurnished, 
 like that of the Arabian palace, yet all the powers of earth 
 could never complete it without the aid of the Divine Archi 
 tect. 
 
 "To employ another figure the world s history is a divine 
 poem, of which the history of every nation is a canto, and 
 of every man a word. Its strains have been peaiing along 
 down the centuries, and, though there have been mingled the 
 discord of roaring cannon and dying men, yet to the Chris 
 tian, Philosopher and Historian the humble listener there 
 has been a divine melody running through the song, which 
 speaks of hope and halcyon days to come. The record of 
 every orphan s sigh, of every widow s prayer, of every noble 
 deed, of every honest heart-throb for the right, is swelling 
 that gentle strain ; and when, at last, the great end is attained 
 when the lost image of God is restored to the human soul ; 
 when the church anthem can be pealed forth without a dis- 
 
JAMES A. GARFIELD. g r 
 
 cordant note, then will angels jojn in the chorus, and all the 
 sons of God again shout for joy. 
 
 Young Garfield s connection with the Quarterly 
 proved of great benefit to him, as it gave him ex 
 perience and brought him into closer contact with 
 the men around him. He first came to know Sam 
 Bowles through the Quarterly, the magazine being 
 printed in Bowies office. Among the constant 
 contributors during Garfield s connection with it 
 as editor, we notice Professor Chadbourne, Horace 
 E. Scudder, G. B. Manly, S. G. W. Benjamin, J. 
 Gilfillan, W. R. Dimmock, John Savery and W. S. 
 B. Hopkins, some of whom survive to-day to a 
 more distinguished fame than the pages of the 
 College Quarterly. 
 
 His second winter vacation was passed at Pres- 
 tenkill, New York, a country neighborhood, about 
 six miles from Troy, where one of the Disciple 
 preachers from Ohio, named Streeter, was occu 
 pied in preaching. Garfield organized a writing 
 school, to keep himself busy, and occasionally 
 preached in his friend s church. During a visit to 
 Troy he became acquainted with the teachers and 
 directors of the public schools of that city, and was 
 one day surprised by the offer of a position in 
 them, at a salary far beyond his expectations of 
 what he could earn on his return to Ohio after his 
 graduation. The proposition was debated gravely. 
 If he accepted, he could pay his debts, marry the 
 girl to whom he was engaged, and live a life of 
 
86 
 
 LIFE AND PUBLIC CARF.FK OF 
 
 comparative comfort in an Eastern city. But he 
 could not finish his college course, and he would 
 have to sever the ties with friends in Ohio and 
 with the struggling school at Hiram, to which he 
 was deeply attached. He settled the question in 
 a conversation. Walking on a hill, called Mount 
 Olympus, with the gentleman who had made the 
 proposition, Garfield said to him: 
 
 " You are not Satan, and I am not Jesus, but we are upon 
 the mountain, and you have tempted me powerfully. I think 
 I must say, get thee behind me. I am poor, and the salary 
 would soon pay my debts and place me in a position of inde 
 pendence ; but there are two objections. I could not accom 
 plish my resolution to complete a college course, and should 
 be crippled intellectually for life. Then my roots are all 
 fixed in Ohio, where people know me and I know them, and 
 this transplanting might not succeed as well in the long run 
 as to go back home and work for smaller pay." 
 
 Study at Williams was easy for Garfield. He 
 had been used to much harder work at Hiram, 
 where he had crowded a six years course into 
 three, and taught at the same time. Now he had 
 the stimulus of a large class, an advantage he had 
 never enjoyed before. His lessons were always 
 perfectly learned. Professor Chadbourne says he 
 was "the boy who never flunked/ and he found a 
 good deal of time for courses of reading that in 
 volved as much brainwork as the college text 
 books. He graduated August, 1856, with a class 
 honor established by President Hopkins and 
 
JAMES A. GARF1ELD. o- 
 
 highly esteemed in the college that of Meta 
 physics reading an essay on "The Seen and the 
 Unseen." It is singular how at different times in 
 the course of his education he was thought to have 
 a special aptitude for some single line of intellec 
 tual work, and how at a later period, his talents 
 seemed to lay just as strongly in some other line. 
 At one time it was mathematics, at another the 
 classics, at another rhetoric, and finally he excelled 
 in metaphysics. The truth was that he had a re 
 markably vigorous and well-rounded brain, capa 
 ble of doing effective work in any direction his 
 will mfght dictate. The class of 1856 contained 
 among its forty-two members a number of men 
 who have since won distinction. Three became 
 general officers in the volunteer army during the 
 rebellion Garfield, Daviess and Thompson. Two, 
 Bolter and Shattuck, were captains, and were 
 killed in battle ; Eldridge, who now lives in Chi 
 cago, was a colonel ; so was Ferris Jacobs, of 
 Delhi, N. Y. ; Rockwell is a quartermaster in the 
 regular army ; Gilfillan is Treasurer of the United 
 States. Hill was Assistant Attorney-General and 
 is now a lawyer in Boston. Knox is a leading 
 lawyer in New York. Newcombe is a professor 
 in the New York University, of New York. 
 
 During his last term at Williams he made his 
 first political speech, an address before a meeting 
 gathered in one of the class-rooms to support the 
 nomination of John C. Fremont. Although he 
 
88 
 
 LIFE AND PUBLIC CAREER OF 
 
 had passed his majority nearly four years before 
 he had never voted. The old parties did not in 
 terest him ; he believed them both corrupted witl 
 the sin of slavery; but when a new party arose t( 
 combat the designs of the slave power it enlistee 
 his earnest sympathies. His mind was free frorr 
 all bias concerning the parties and statesmen ol 
 the past, and could equally admire Clay or Jack 
 son, Webster or Benton. 
 
JAMES A. GARFIELD. 
 
 CHAPTER VII. 
 
 A COLLEGE PRESIDENT. 
 
 JAMES A. GARFIELD left the venerable dome 
 of Williams decorated with her high towers 
 and went straight back to his Ohio home, to 
 take a higher step in his hard won career. He 
 entered Hiram College in the fall of 1856 as a 
 teacher of ancient languages and literature. The 
 next year, at the age of twenty-six, he was made 
 president of the institution. This office he held 
 until he went into the army in 1861. Hoping that 
 he might return unwilling to part even with his 
 name the board kept him nominally at the head 
 two years longer. Then he fell out of the cata 
 logue, to re-appear as a trustee and as advisory 
 principal and lecturer in 1864 and 1865. Then 
 his name finally disappears from the faculty page 
 of the catalogue. His last service as an instructor 
 was an admirable series often lectures on "Social 
 Science," given in the spring of 1871. 
 
 Hiram, when he returned to it, had not much 
 improved since two years before. It was a lone 
 some country village, three miles from a railroad, 
 built upon a high hill, overlooking twenty miles of 
 cheese-making country to the southward. It con 
 tained fifty or sixty houses clustered around the 
 
QO I U K AXD PUBLIC CAREER OF 
 
 green, in the centre of which stood the homel) 
 red-brick college structure. Plain living and high 
 thinking was the order of things in those days, 
 The teachers were poor, the pupils were poor, 
 and the institution was poor, but there was a 
 great deal of hard, faithful study done, and many 
 courageous plans formed. 
 
 The young president was ambitious for the suc 
 cess of the institution under his charge. There 
 probably never was a younger college president, 
 but he carried his new position remarkably well, 
 and brought to it energy, vigor and good sense, 
 which are the mainsprings of his character. Under 
 his supervision, the attendance on the school at 
 Hiram soon doubled, and he raised its standard of 
 scholarship, strengthened its faculty, and inspired 
 everybody connected with it with something of his 
 own zeal and enthusiasm. At that time the lead 
 ing Hiram men were called Philomatheans, from 
 the society to which they belonged. Henry James, 
 an old Philomathean, mentioning recently the 
 master-spirits of that time, thus referred to the 
 president: 
 
 Then began to grow up in me an admiration and love for 
 Garfield that has never abated, and the like of which I have 
 never known. A bow of recognition, or a single word from 
 him, was to me an inspiration." 
 
 The young president taught, lectured and 
 preached, and all the time studied as diligently 
 
JAMES A. GARFIELD. 
 
 Jo 
 
 as any acolyte in the temple of knowledge. His 
 scholars all regarded him with respect, admi 
 ration and affection. His greatness as a teacher 
 and administrator did not lie so much in his tech 
 nical scholarship, his drillmaster teaching, or his 
 schoolmaster discipline. His power was in ener 
 gizing young men and women. He stimulated 
 thought, aroused courage, stiffened the moral 
 fibre, poured in inspiration, widened the field of 
 mental vision, and created noble ideal of life and 
 character. He was more than a teacher and ad 
 ministrator ; the student found him a helper and 
 friend. 
 
 A notable instance of this is on record. The 
 present president of Hiram College, Professor B, 
 A. Hinsdale, was greatly troubled, during the win 
 ter of i856- 57, in his mind, concerning the ques 
 tions of life. He wrote to Garfield for relief. 
 Garfield s reply was as follows : 
 
 " HIRAM, January i5th, 1857. 
 
 " MY DEAR "Bko. BURKE : I was made very glad a few days 
 since by the receipt of your letter. It was a very acceptable 
 New Year s present, and I take great pleasure in responding. 
 You have given a vivid picture of a community in which in 
 telligence and morality have been neglected and I am glad 
 you are disseminating the light. Certainly, men must have 
 some knowledge in order to do right. God first said, Let 
 there be light.* Afterward He said, It is very good. I am 
 glad to hear of your success in teaching, but I approach with 
 much more interest the consideration of the question you 
 have proposed. Brother mine, it is not a question to be dis- 
 6 
 
94 
 
 LIFE AND PUBLIC CAREER OF 
 
 cussed in the spirit of debate, but to be thought over and 
 prayed over as a question out of which are the issues of life. 
 You will agree with me that every one must decide and direct 
 his own course in life, and the only service friends can afford 
 is to give us the data from which we must draw our own con 
 clusion and decide oupcourse. Allow me, then, to sit beside 
 you and look over the field of life and see what are its aspects. 
 I am not one of those who advise every one to undertake the 
 work of a liberal education ; indeed, I believe that in two- 
 thirds of the cases, such advice would be unwise. The great 
 body of the people will be, and ought to be, intelligent farmers 
 and mechanics, and in many respects these pass the most in 
 dependent and happy lives. But God has endowed some of 
 His children with desires and capabilities for a more extended 
 field of labor and influence, and so every life should be shaped 
 according to what the man hath. Now, in reference to 
 yourself. I know you have capabilities for occupying posi 
 tions of high and important trust in the scenes of active life; 
 and I am sure you will not call it flattery in me, nor egotism 
 in yourself, to say so. Tell me, Burke, do you not feel a 
 spirit stirring within you that longs to know, to do and to dare 
 to hold converse with the great world of thought, and hold 
 before you some high and noble object to which the vigor of 
 your mind and the strength of your arm may be given? Do 
 you not have longings like these, which you breathe to no 
 one, and which you feel must be heeded, or you will pass 
 through life unsatisfied and regretful? I am sure you have 
 them, and they will forever cling round your heart till you 
 obey their mandate. They are the voice of that nature which 
 God has given you, and which, when obeyed, will bless you 
 and your fellow-men. Now, all this might be true, and yet it 
 might be your duty not to follow that course. If your duty 
 to your father or your mother demands that you take another, 
 I shall rejoice to see you taking that other course. The path 
 of duty is where we all ought to walk, be that where it may. 
 But I sincerely hope you will not, without an earnest struggle, 
 
JAMES A. GARFIELD. 
 
 95 
 
 give up a course of liberal study. Suppose you could not be 
 gin your study again till after your majority? It will not be 
 too late then, but you will gain in many respects ; you will 
 have more maturity of mind to appreciate whatever you may 
 study. You may say you will be too old to begin the course, 
 but how could you spend the earlier days of life? We should 
 not measure life by the days and moments that we pass on 
 earth. 
 
 " The life is measured by the soul s advance ; 
 
 The enlargement of its powers ; the expanded field 
 
 Wherein it ranges, till it burns and glows 
 
 With heavenly joy, with high and heavenly hope. . 
 
 " It need be no discouragement that you are obliged to hew 
 your own way, and pay your own charges. You can go to 
 school two terms every year, and pay your own way. I know 
 this, for I did so, when teachers wages were much lower than 
 they are now. It is a great truth, that where there is a will 
 there is a way. It may be that by and by your father could 
 assist you. It may be that even now he could let you com 
 mence on your resources, so that you could begin immedi 
 ately. Of this you know, and I do not. I need not tell you 
 how glad I should be to assist you in your work ; but if you 
 cannot come to Hiram while I am here, I shall still hope to 
 hear that you are determined to go on as soon as the time will 
 permit. Will you not write me your thoughts on this whole 
 subject, and tell me your prospects ? We are having a very 
 good time in the school this winter. Give my love to Polden 
 and Louise, and believe me always your friend and brother, 
 
 "J. A. GARFIELD. 
 
 "P. S. Miss Booth and Mr. Rhodes send their love to 
 you. Henry James was here and made me a good visit a few 
 days ago. He is doing well. He and I have talked of going 
 to see you this winter. I fear we cannot do it. How far is it 
 from here ? Burke, was it prophetic that my last word to you 
 ended on the picture of the Capitol of Congress ? 
 
 "J. A. G." 
 
9 6 
 
 LIFE AND PUBLIC CAREER OF 
 
 The significance of the last sentence is seen 
 when it is understood that it was written on a 
 sheet of Congress note paper, and the last words 
 came across the little picture of the capitol which 
 adorns its upper left-hand corner. 
 
 A pleasant picture of his methods and manners 
 is drawn for us from another source the recol 
 lections of an old pupil, the Rev. J. F. Darsie. 
 He pictures Garfield graphically : 
 
 "I attended school at the Western Reserve Eclectic Insti 
 tute when Garfield was principal, and I recall vividly his 
 method of teaching. He took very kindly to me, and assisted 
 me in various ways, because I was poor and was janitor of the 
 buildings, and swept them out in the morning and built the 
 fires as he had done only six years before, when he was a 
 pupil at the same school. He was full of animal spirits, and 
 he used to run out on the green almost every day and play 
 cricket with us. He was a tall, strong man, but dreadfully 
 awkward. Every now and then he would get a hit on the 
 nose, and he muffed his ball and lost his hat as a regular 
 thing. He was left-handed, too, and that made him seem all 
 the more clumsier. But he was most powerful and very quick, 
 and it was easy for us to understand how it was that he had 
 acquired the reputation of whipping all the other mule-drivers 
 on the canal, and of making himself the hero of that thorough 
 fare when he followed its tow-path ten years earlier. 
 
 " No matter how old the pupils were Garfield always called 
 us by our first names, and kept himself on the most familiar 
 terms with all. He played with us freely, scuffled with us 
 sometimes, walked with us in walking to and fro, and we 
 treated him out of the class-room just about as we did one 
 another. Yet he was a most strict disciplinarian, and enforced 
 the rules like a martinet. He combined an affectionate and 
 
JAMES A. GARFIELD. c 
 
 confiding manner with respect for order in a most successful 
 manner. If he wanted to speak to a pupil, either for reproof 
 or approbation, he would generally manage to get one arm 
 around him and draw him close up to him. He had a pecu 
 liar way of shaking hands, too, giving a twist to your arm and 
 drawing you right up to him. This sympathetic manner has 
 helped him to advancement. When I was janitor, he used 
 sometimes to stop me and ask my opinion about this and that, 
 as if seriously advising with me. I can see now that my 
 opinion could not have been of any value, and that he proba 
 bly asked me partly to increase my self-respect, and partly to 
 show me that he felt an interest in me. I certainly was his 
 friend all the firmer for it. 
 
 " I remember once asking him what was the best way to 
 pursue a certain study, and he said : Use several text-books. 
 Get the views of different authors as you advance. In that 
 way you can plow a broader furrow. I always study in that 
 way. He tried hard to teach us to observe carefully and ac 
 curately. He broke out one day in the midst of a lesson with 
 Henry, how many posts are there under the building down 
 stairs? Henry expressed his opinion, and the question went 
 around the class, hardly one getting it right. Then it was : 
 How many boot-scrapers are there at the door? How 
 many windows in the building ? How many trees in the 
 field ? What were the colors of different rooms, and the 
 peculiarities of any familiar objects? He was the keenest 
 observer I ever saw. I think he noticed and numbered every 
 button on our coats. 
 
 " Mr. Garfield was very fond of lecturing to the school, 
 He spoke two or three times a week, on all manner of topics, 
 generally scientific, though sometimes literary or historical. 
 He spoke with great freedom, never writing out what he had 
 to say, and I now think that his lectures were a rapid compi 
 lation of his current reading, and that he threw it into this 
 form partly for the purpose of impressing it on his own mind. 
 His facility of speech was learned when he was a pupil there 
 
9$ 7.//VT AND PUBLIC CAREER OF 
 
 The societies had a rule that every student should take his 
 stand on the platform and speak for five minutes, on any topic 
 suggested at the moment by the audience. It was a very 
 trying ordeal. Garfield broke down badly the two first times 
 he tried to speak, but persisted, and was at last, when he went 
 to Williams, one of the best of the five-minute speakers. 
 When he returned as principal his readiness was striking and 
 remarkable. 
 
 As president of an institute, it was natural that 
 Garfield should appear on the platform on every 
 public occasion. The Church of the Disciples, as 
 "before stated, like the Society of Friends, is accus 
 tomed to accord large privileges of speaking to 
 its laity; and so it came to be expected that Presi 
 dent Garfield should address his pupils on Sun 
 days briefly even when ministers of the Gospel 
 were to preach more at length when no one 
 else was present to conduct the services. The 
 remarks of the young president were always 
 forcible, generally eloquent, and the community 
 presently began to regard him as its foremost 
 public speaker, to be put forward on every occa 
 sion, to be heard with attention on every subject. 
 His pupils also helped to swell his reputation and 
 the admiration for his talents. 
 
 His larcre brain was stored with information al- 
 
 o 
 
 ways at his command; he was fluent without being 
 verbose ; and he had in an unusual degree the 
 happy quality of clearness. This, added to his 
 commanding appearance and effective delivery, 
 made him sought for on all public occasions. His 
 
JAMES A. GARFIELD. gg 
 
 sincerity, his unblemished character, and his elo 
 quence were well known, not only all about the 
 region where he lived, but throughout the 
 State, and the fact that Mr. Garfield was to 
 appear in the pulpit anywhere always drew a 
 great crowd. 
 
 He remained, as we have said, at Hiram, until 
 the war called him away, and steadily refused all 
 efforts made to induce him to desert the institu 
 tion for whose welfare he had done so much. In 
 March, 1861, he was offered the place of vice- 
 principal of the Cleveland Institute, at a salary of 
 fifteen hundred dollars a year. To the offer he re 
 turned this reply: 
 
 "I am very much obliged to you for your kind offer, but 
 you would not want to employ me for a short time, and I feel 
 it my duty to say that some of my friends have got the insane 
 notion in their heads that I ought to go to Congress. I know 
 I ain t fit for the position, and I have fought against it all I 
 cofcld. I know nothing about political wire-pulling, and I have 
 told my friends plainly that I would have nothing to do with 
 that kind of business, but I am sure that I can be nominated 
 and elected without my resorting to any unlawful means, and 
 I have lately given authority to allow my name to be used. I 
 don t know that anything will come of it; if there does not, 
 I will gladly accept your offer." 
 
 During his term as president at Hiram, he had 
 continued the study of law, begun some time be 
 fore, and he was admitted to the bar of Cuyahoga 
 County, in 1860. He also paid some attention to 
 Masonry, into which order he was initiated. He 
 
100 
 
 /.// /: AND PUBLIC CAREER OF 
 
 has not been, however, a very active member, 
 though he has taken a number of degrees. When 
 he was in the army so many of his regiment were 
 Masons that they organized a lodge, which he 
 joined to please them. He is a charter member 
 of Pentalpha Lodge, No. 23, and a member of 
 Columbia Chapter, No. i ; Columbia Command- 
 ery, No. 2, and Mithras Lodge of Perfection, A. 
 and A. Rite, all of Washington. 
 
 With this last mention, President Garfield drops 
 from the record of educational history in this 
 country, to take his place in the procession of 
 figures that stand silhouetted against our national 
 
 o o 
 
 horizon, as men who made and saved our country. 
 The mature teacher was transformed into the 
 youthful statesman. But before we turn the page 
 to follow him upon the stormy sea of politics, we 
 must relate aji incident of his life that has proved 
 to have been the happiest red-letter of his ex 
 istence. 
 
 In his earlier days, when a pupil, he met, as re 
 lated, a sweet-faced girl named Lucretia Rudolph. 
 She was the daughter of a Maryland farmer, 
 Zebulon Rudolph, from the banks of the Shenan- 
 doah. The uncle of this man served with dis 
 tinguished bravery in the war of the Revolution, 
 and after sheathing his sword here, he went to 
 France to draw it in the service of the great Na 
 poleon, and he rose to be, so says a cherished 
 tradition in the Rudolph family, that brilliant sol- 
 
JAMES A. GAR HELD: IOI 
 
 dier, Michel, Duke of Elchingen, Marshal Ney. 
 Zebulon Rudolph s wife was from an old Connec 
 ticut family, and was Arabella Mason, of Hartford, 
 Vermont. This was Lucretia Rudolph s parent 
 
 age. 
 
 When Garfield first met her as a fellow-student 
 at Hiram, she was a refined, intelligent, affection 
 ate girl, who shared his thirst for knowledge and 
 his ambition for culture, and had, at the same 
 time, the domestic tastes and talents which fitted 
 her equally to preside over the home of the 
 poor college professor and that of the famous 
 statesman. A Hiram poet, celebrating the La 
 dies Literary Society of the college in verse, so 
 sung: 
 
 " Again a Mary ? Nay, Lucretia, 
 The noble, classic name 
 That well befits our fair ladie, 
 Our sweet and gentle dame, 
 With heart as leal and loving 
 As e er was sung in lays 
 Of high-born Roman matron, 
 In old, heroic days ; 
 Worthy her lord illustrious, whom 
 Honor and fame attend ; 
 Worthy her soldier s name to wear, 
 Worthy the civic wreath to share 
 That binds her Viking s tawny hair; 
 Right proud are we the world should know 
 As hers, him we long ago 
 Found truest helper, friend." 
 
 When Garfield went to Williams, Miss Rudolph 
 started for Cleveland to teach in the public schools 
 and to patiently wait the realization of their hopes, 
 
IO2 i-WE AND PUBLIC CAREER OF 
 
 which was agreed to be as soon as he should 
 graduate and become established in life. This he 
 considered accomplished when he succeeded to 
 the head of the Hiram Institute, and accordingly, 
 in 1 858, they were married. A neat little cottage 
 was bought, fronting the college campus, and the 
 wedded life begun, poor in worldly goods, but 
 wealthy in the affection of brave hearts. The 
 match was a love-match and has turned out very 
 happily. The general attributes much of his 
 success in life to his wise selection. Hi wife 
 has grown with his growth, and has been, during 
 all his career, the appreciative companion of his 
 studies, the loving mother of his children, the 
 graceful, hospitable hostess of his friends and 
 guests, and the wise and faithful helpmeet in 
 the trials, vicissitudes and successes of his busy 
 life. 
 
 Both she and the general keep up their classical 
 studies yet, and derive great satisfaction from 
 doing so. It is said that, when a girl at Hiram^ 
 she used to remark that her Latin and her Greek 
 would be of no use to her in after life. Two or 
 three years ago, having grown a little "rusty" on 
 the dead languages, she expressed a wish that she 
 had not forgotten her Latin, as she would like to 
 take the boys. One day, the general gave her a 
 Caesar, and told her he would hear her recite a 
 page of it that night. She had not looked at the 
 great commentaries for years, but when night 
 
JAMES A. GARFIELD. Jo ^ 
 
 \J 
 
 came she recited the page very fairly, and from 
 that time on, for two years, she took the two older 
 boys and carried them through their Latin, and , 
 the little children have never been to school, but 
 have been taught at home by their accomplished 
 mother, a wiser, better way. 
 
LIFE AND PUBLIC CAREER OF 
 
 CHAPTER VIII. 
 
 THE BIRTH OF A POLITICAL CAREER. 
 
 "P to 1856, General Garfield had taken no 
 particular interest in public affairs. He 
 ^^ had been occupied with other matters. 
 But now that his general education was finished, 
 and he was ready to devote himself to the work of 
 the world, his political pulses began to stir. A 
 year or two before the Republican party had 
 sprung up as an immediate consequent of the 
 Kansas-Nebraska legislation. Its original mission 
 has been thus stated by its present standard- 
 bearer : 
 
 " Long familiarity with traffic in the bodies and souls of 
 men had paralyzed the consciences of a majority of our 
 people. The baleful doctrine of State sovereignty had shaken 
 and weakened the noblest and most beneficent powers of the 
 National Government ; and the grasping power of slavery was 
 seizing the virgin territories of the West, and dragging them 
 into the den of external bondage. At that crisis the Repub 
 lican party was born. It drew its first inspiration from that 
 fire of liberty which God has lighted in every human heart, 
 and which all the powers of ignorance and tyranny can 
 never wholly extinguish." 
 
 In the campaign of 1857 and 1858, he took the 
 stump and became quite well-known as a vigor 
 ous, logical stump orator. And it is extremely 
 
JAMES A. GARFIELD. 
 
 105 
 
 probable that he, during the excitement of the 
 campaign, felt the promptings of a political ambi 
 tion that he did not even acknowledge to himself. 
 It was natural then, thinking that a few weeks at 
 Columbus would not interfere with his duties at 
 Hiram, that he should accept the nomination to 
 the Ohio Senate from the counties of Portage and 
 Summit, when it was tendered him in 1859; and 
 equally natural that he should be thought of by 
 the strong anti-slavery voters of those counties. 
 His speeches, during his first campaign, were 
 warm, fresh and impassioned, and added not a 
 little to his already growing popularity. He was 
 elected by a very handsome majority. 
 
 Senator Garfield a n t once took high rank in the 
 Legislature as a man well informed on the sub 
 jects of legislation, and effective and powerful in 
 debate. He seemed always prepared to speak ; 
 he always spoke fluently and to the point ; and his 
 genial, warm-hearted nature served to increase 
 the kindness with which both political friends and 
 opponents regarded him. Three Western Re 
 serve senators formed the Radical triumvirate in 
 that able and patriotic Legislature, which was to 
 place Ohio in line for the war. One was a highly- 
 rated professor of Oberlin College ; another, a 
 lawyer already noted for force and learning, the 
 son-in-law of the president of Oberlin ; the third 
 was our village carpenter and village teacher from 
 Hiram. He was the youngest of the three, but 
 
IO6 LIFE AND PUBLIC CAREER OF 
 
 he speedily became the first. The trials of the 
 next six years were to confirm the verdict of the 
 little group about the State capital that soon 
 placed Garfield before both Cox and Monroe. 
 The college professor was abundantly sat sfied 
 with the success in life which made him a consul 
 at a South American port. The adroit, polished, 
 able lawyer became a painstaking general, who, 
 perhaps, oftener deserved success than won it, and 
 who at last, profiting by the gratitude of the people 
 to their soldiers, rose to be Governor of the State, 
 but there (for the time, at least), ended. The vil 
 lage carpenter started lower in the race of the 
 war, and rose higher, became one of the leaders 
 in our national councils, and confessedly one of 
 the ablest among the younger of our statesmen. 
 
 During the session of 1 860-61, he was charac 
 teristically active and vigorous in aiding to pre 
 pare the State to stand by the General Govern 
 ment, in opposition to the rising storm of rebellion; 
 a storm that he met bravely, as we shall see later. 
 In committee work, we find from his pen an able 
 report in favor of a State Geological Survey; an 
 other from a select committee in favor of author 
 izing active measures to protect and instruct neg 
 lected, destitute and pauper children. Further, 
 the now famous report to punish treason, in w r hich 
 he urged that it was " high time for Ohio to enact a 
 law to meet treachery when it shall take the form 
 of an overt act ; to provide that, when her soldiers 
 
JAMES A. GARFIELD. 
 
 107 
 
 go forth to maintain the Union, there shall be no 
 treacherous fire in the rear." 
 
 Something about the man as he then was is 
 written us by Mr. W. D. Howells, editor of the 
 Atlantic Monthly, who was legislative correspon 
 dent and news editor of the Ohio State Journal 
 during the years Garfield was in the Ohio Senate : 
 
 "One winter there was an exchange of visits between the 
 Tennessee Legislature and ours to promote a sentiment of 
 good-feeling. Garfield was prominently in the affair, and ex 
 tremely popular with the Tennesseeans, on account of the 
 manly and self-respectful good feeling with which he, a 
 Western Reserve anti-slavery man, not then on the common 
 ground of their Americanism and devotion to the Union. I 
 think he was more acceptable to them than any other Ohioan, 
 though there was no question about his political opinions. 
 He had then, as now, that simple, affectionate way, which 
 charms people. 
 
 " I knew him, then, for his literary taste, and I particularly 
 remember his passion for Tennyson s poetry. I had printed 
 my first poems in the Atlantic, and it was, no doubt, his con 
 fidence in my literary sympathy which brought him one morn 
 ing to the Journal office, with his Tennyson, to read me some 
 passages that had especially moved him in The Poet. The 
 rich fullness of his voice, and his fine, self-forgetfulness, as he 
 read impressive enough to a boy of twenty, who had looked 
 up to him as a law-giver." 
 
 This literary reminiscences calls forth another 
 from a correspondent who knew the young sena 
 tor at^the time. Remarking on Garfield s love of 
 Pascal, he says : 
 
 "One of the passages from Pascal, which the general is 
 
LIFE AND PUBLIC CAREER OF 
 
 most fond of quoting is where that great philosopher said that 
 the true way to study history is to treat the whole human race 
 as one colossal, immortal man, forever living, always learning ; 
 who sometimes stumbles and falls, but who in the long run 
 always advances in intelligence and civilization. I well re 
 member the general s quoting this. Do you know, he 
 said, that thought of Pascal s is one of remarkable beauty 
 and value? I have often dwelt over it, and carried it 
 much further than it is developed by the philosopher. 
 The people of a Republic like ours are peculiarly like a 
 single great individual man, full of passions prejudices 
 often but with a great heart, despising anything like show or 
 pretense, and always striving forward in a general right direc 
 tion. The popular verdict, expressed as the voice of this 
 giant man, is sometimes wrong for the nonce, but in the course 
 of time it assumes the right tendency again. This individual 
 pays but little attention to infinite things, unless there is 
 something very peculiar about them. He casts his ox-like eye, 
 in a sort of slow and easy way, along the horizon, and ascer 
 tains about where a great many men are. If any of these men 
 who appear before his general vision make any special effort 
 to attract his attention, he probably smiles a sort of contempt- 
 ous smile, and passes on. Men often attempt to attract his 
 attention some one way, and others another. If the old fel 
 low once fastens his eyes on a man or woman from some 
 legitimate act or course of action of his or hers, that person 
 has that thing happen to him known as fame. If the old fel 
 low s eye is caused to rest on a person from some outlandish 
 caper performed on purpose to catch his eye, that man is only 
 notorious. The way to make the old giant take special no 
 tice of a man of worth is not to pay much attention to him, 
 but keep on one s course, regardless of whatever he sees or 
 not. It has been so often illustrated that the men who by 
 Liliputian efforts attempt to court the old fellow generally fall 
 short of capturing his favor. It is like a woman courting a 
 man. There is something in man s nature that makes him 
 
JAMES A. GARFIELD. 
 
 revolt against anything of that kind. No woman is so pretty, 
 charming and well-dressed that she can safely say to him, 
 " Here, marry me ! You love me, and I know it. I am now 
 ready for you; why should we delay?" The man would say, 
 "I was going to ask you to marry me, yesterday; but now I 
 don t want you at all. You are just a little too willing. I 
 think I d rather not." That is man s nature he can t help 
 but show it ; and that is the nature of the old giant we are 
 discussing. He would much rather seek his man when he 
 wants to look at one or bestow any special favors. 
 
 On the 4th of July, 1860, at Ravenna, Mr. Gar- 
 field delivered an oration which rings with the 
 sterling patriotism of the man and forms a fitting 
 prelude to the story of war, to which we must next 
 invite the reader s attention. At Ravenna, Gar- 
 field said : 
 
 " We have seen that our Republic differs in its origin from 
 all the monarchies of the world. We may also see that it 
 differs widely from all other republics of ancient or modern 
 times. These all centred round a conquering hero or a pow 
 erful city ours round a principle. In the brightest days 
 of the Grecian Republic, its strength and glory rested 
 upon the life and fortunes of Pericles. In^the old Dutch 
 Republic of Holland and the later establishments of mod 
 ern Germany, freedom was of the city and not of the 
 people. The burghers were the only freemen, and they 
 constituted an aristocracy more haughty and imperious 
 than the hereditary peers of England. The peasants of the 
 rural districts, the toiling thousands, were hardly known to 
 the government, except that they bore many of its heavy 
 burdens. But here, cities are not tyrannies, and freedom in 
 her best estate is found in the green fields of the country, 
 among the hardy tillers of the soil. Heroes did not make 
 our liberties, the- but reflected and illustrated them, Indi- 
 7 
 
110 
 
 LIFE AND 2>UBL1C CAKEEK OF 
 
 viduals may wear for a time the glory of our institutions, bu 
 they carry it not with them to the grave. Like rain-drop 
 from heaven, they pass through the circle of the shining bow 
 and add to its lustre, but when they have sunk in the eartl 
 again, the proud arch still spans the sky and shines gloriously 
 on. Governments, in general, look upon man only as i 
 citizen, a fraction of the state. God looks upon him as ar 
 individual man, with capacities, duties and a destiny of hi 
 own ; and just in proportion as a government recognizes the 
 individual and shields him in the exercises of his rights, in 
 that proportion is it Godlike and glorious. The village 
 church and the village school have become our great civil 
 izing and elevating guardians, and we mention with honest 
 pride the fact that more than half of all the revenue of our 
 State government is annually expended in the education of 
 our youth. And yet there are other States in the Union 
 which, in this respect, wear still brighter laurels than Ohio. 
 To all these means of culture is added that powerful incen 
 tive to personal ambition which springs from the genius of 
 our Government. The pathway to honorable distinction lies 
 open to all. No post of honor so high but the poorest boy 
 may hope to reach it. 
 
 "It is the pride of every American that many cherished 
 names, at whose mention our hearts beat with a quicker bound, 
 were worn by the sons of poverty, who conquered obscurity 
 and became fixed stars in our firmament. None appreciate 
 this more fully than our adopted citizens, who have felt the 
 crushing hand of power in other lands. It cannot but destroy 
 the high hopes of a noble nature to know that, though the 
 blood that visits his heart leaps as free and ruby red as that 
 which courses the veins of king or lord, and though in God s 
 sight he is every whit their peer, yet the strong crust of cen 
 turies is above him, the shadow of power gloomily enshrouds 
 him, and all the high places of distinction and trust are for* 
 ever barred against him. 
 
 "And here we are brought to that question of deepest in- 
 
JAMES A. GARFIELD. j j j 
 
 terest to the patriot s heart our nation s future. Shall it be 
 perpetual ? Shall the expanding circle of its beneficent in 
 fluence extend, widening onward to the farthest shore of time? 
 Shall its sun rise higher and yet higher, and shine with ever- 
 brightening lustre? Or, has it passed the zenith of its glory, 
 and left us to sit in the lengthening shadows of its coming 
 night ? Shall power from beyond the sea snatch the proud 
 banner from us ? Shall civil dissension or intestine strife rend 
 the fair fabric of the Union ? The rulers of the Old World 
 have long and impatiently looked to see fulfilled the prophecy 
 of its downfall. Such philosophers as Coleridge, Allison and 
 Macauley have, severally, set forth the reasons for this 
 prophecy the chief of which is, that the elemenf of sta 
 bility in our Government will sooner or later bring upon it 
 certain destruction. This is truly a grave charge. But whether 
 instability is an element of destruction or of safety, depends 
 wholly upon the sources whence that instability springs. 
 
 "The granite hills are not so changeless and abiding as 
 the restless sea. Quiet is no certain pledge of permanence 
 and safety. Trees may flourish and flowers may bloom upon 
 the quiet mountain side, while silently the trickling rain 
 drops are filling the deep cavern behind its rocky barriers, 
 which, by and by, in a single moment, shall hurl to wild ruin 
 its treacherous peace. It is true, that in our land there is no 
 such outer quiet, no such deceitful repose. Here society is a 
 restless and surging sea. The roar of the billows, the dash of 
 the wave, is forever in our ears. Even the angry hoarseness 
 of breakers is not unheard. But there is an understratum of 
 deep, calm sea, which the breath of the wildest tempest can 
 never reach. There is, deep down in the hearts of the Amer 
 ican people, a strong and abiding love of our country and its 
 liberty, which no surface-storms of passion can ever shake. 
 That kind of instability which arises from a free movement 
 and interchange of position among the members of society, 
 which brings one drop up to glisten for a time in the crest of 
 the highest wave, and then give place to another, while it 
 
j i 2 LIFE AND PUBLIC CAREER OF 
 
 goes down to mingle again with the millions below ; such in 
 stability is the surest pledge of permanence. On such insta 
 bility the eternal fixedness of the universe is based. Eacl 
 planet, in its circling orbit, returns to the goal of its depar 
 ture, and on the balance of these wildly-rolling spheres God 
 has planted the broad base of His mighty works. So the hope 
 of our .national perpetuity rests upon that perfect individual 
 freedom, which shall forever keep up the circuit of perpetual 
 change. God forbid that the waters of our national life 
 should ever settle to the dead level of a waveless calm. It 
 would be the stagnation of death the ocean grave of indi 
 vidual liberty." 
 
GARFIELD AS A SOLDIER. 
 
"General Gar field proceeded to the Front." 
 
 General Rosecrans 1 s official report of the battle of Chicka- 
 mauga. 
 
A. CARFIELD. } T - 
 
 CHAPTER IX. 
 
 THE STORM BURSTS. 
 
 TO write the career of James A. Garfield 
 during the trying hours of the Rebellion 
 is to write at once a history of intrepid 
 bravery, exquisite coolness in danger and sure 
 success in action. His career has been rarely 
 equaled by any American who entered the war as 
 a civilian and laid down his sword with the rank 
 of a major-general. His record, while bearing testi 
 mony to the marvelous spirit that always pervades 
 a great people in a great crisis, and brings to the 
 front a leader for every emergency, is a strangely 
 complete illustration of how perfectly a man of 
 brains and determination may succeed in some 
 difficult walk in life, for which special and particular 
 training have been always considered necessary. 
 When the South chose to inaugurate the return 
 
 o 
 
 of the flowers, the budding of the leaves, in 1861, 
 by tearing from the old flag some of its sacred 
 stars, the country paused a moment, waiting, as it 
 were, actors for the tragedy about to begin, leaders 
 for the now inevitable armies. The guns that had 
 opened upon Sumter on the memorable i2th of 
 April, had not merely crumbled the walls of that 
 Southern fortress, but they shattered also all hopes 
 
I L 5 LIFE AND PUBLIC CAREER OF 
 
 of a peaceful solution of the problems then before 
 the country. 
 
 Civil war had become a sad necessity ; a bitter 
 fact to write upon the pages of a nation s history 
 begun so gloriously in 1776. The President s pro 
 clamation of the 1 5th called forth the militia for 
 objects entirely lawful and constitutional, and it 
 was responded to with a patriotic fervor which 
 melted down all previously existing party lines. 
 This " uprising of a great people," as it was well 
 termed by a foreign writer, was a kindling and 
 noble spectacle. The hearts of a whole land 
 throbbed as one. But we cannot now glance back 
 upon the brilliant and burning enthusiasm that 
 lighted our beloved country like a torch without a 
 touch of sadness. For there was commingled with 
 it so much ignorance, not merely of the magnitude 
 of the contest before us, but of the nature of war 
 itself. The high-spirited young men who thronged 
 to swell the ranks of the volunteer force at the 
 call of duty, marched off as gayly as if they were 
 participants in a holiday turnout, a party of pic 
 nickers rather than devoted patriots upon a high 
 percentage of whom the death seal was already 
 set. The Rebellion was to be put down at once, 
 and by little more than the mere show of the pre 
 ponderating force of the loyal States ; and the 
 task of putting it down was to be attended with 
 no more danger than was sufficient to give the 
 enterprise a due flavor of excitement. War was 
 
JAMES A, GARMELD. 
 
 j j 7 
 
 unknown to us except by report ; the men of the 
 Revolution were but spectres of a jeweled past ; 
 the veterans of 1812 were some of them still 
 alive, but even they were gray with years and the 
 memories of events. 
 
 " All of which they saw, and part of which they were," 
 
 could be but dimly, disjointedly recalled. We 
 had read of battles ; we had seen something 
 of the pomp of holiday soldiers ; but of the grim 
 realities of war we were absolutely ignorant. In 
 deed, not a few had come to the conclusion that 
 war was a relic of barbarism, which civilization had 
 so outgrown that modern times had forever dis 
 pensed with the soldier and his sword. 
 
 It need hardly be said that the call to conflict 
 found us totally unprepared for the great storm 
 about to break. Our regular army was insignifi 
 cant in numbers and scattered over our vast ter 
 ritory or along our Western frontier, so that it 
 was impossible to collect any considerable force 
 anywhere together. Our militia system had every 
 where fallen into neglect, allowed to die for want 
 of interest, and in some States had almost ceased 
 to have any existence whatever. The wits laughed 
 at it ; it was a common subject of newspaper criti 
 cism ; it was christened "the cornstalk militia;" 
 platform orators declaimed against it. Indeed, so 
 low had it fallen in public estimation, that it re 
 quired some moral courage to march through the 
 streets at the head of a company. 
 
T T g LIFE AND PUBLIC CAREER OF 
 
 The South had been. wiser, or at least, more 
 provident in this respect. The military spirit had 
 never been discouraged there. Many of the politi 
 cal leaders had long been looking forward to the 
 time when the unhappy sectional contests which 
 were distracting the country would blaze into a 
 civil war, and preparing for it. They watched the 
 smouldering fire of discontent, and waited the great 
 conflagration of blood. In some of the States 
 there had been military academies where a military 
 education had been obtained, so that they had a 
 greater number of trained officers to put into their 
 regiments. This gave them a considerable ad 
 vantage at the start, an advantage more real than 
 seeming, and one they were not slow to turn to its 
 fullest promise. 
 
 At the North the people paused a moment to 
 ask themselves where were they to get the needed 
 officers. Graduates of West Point were scattered 
 over the country ; to them the civil authorities 
 turned for assistance. This they rendered freely 
 and ably, but it was, of necessity, limited in its 
 scope. In most States the militia elected their 
 own officers, and there was no other resource than 
 to continue the system until time and the fire of 
 the enemy s guns should level the abilities of the 
 civilians, and bring to the front those who had the 
 best title to be there. This produced a result of 
 which we have no reason to be the least ashamed. 
 A race of civilian officers, proving their right to 
 
JAMES A. CARFIELD. T Jg 
 
 command by deeds, not diplomas, winning expe 
 rience at the point of the bayonet, and testing 
 bravery beneath the bullets of the foe, sprang 
 everywhere into sight in the great upholding of 
 the Stars and Stripes. To this class, now occupy 
 ing a place in our history, that is to us a crown 
 ing wreath of credit, James A. Garfield belonged, 
 and of those who were his comrades few show a 
 better, braver record than he. 
 
 When the secession of the Southern States be 
 gun, National considerations were of paramount 
 importance in Ohio as elsewhere. Indeed, the 
 early signs of the dissolution between the North 
 and South had attracted earnest attention and se 
 vere comment in that State. In its Senate and 
 House of Representatives many a debate had 
 been held, wherein the seeds of secessionists doc 
 trines had been sought to be planted by men who 
 saw amiss. Garfield, as it will be remembered, 
 was a member of the Senate, having been elected 
 to represent Portage and Summit Counties two 
 years before. The spring of 1861 found the Sen 
 ate, of which he was a member, earnestly occupy 
 ing its time with those questions that had so 
 much interest within as well as beyond the bor 
 ders of Ohio. Garfield s course on all these ques 
 tions was manly and outspoken. He was fore 
 most in the very small number (only six voting 
 with him) who thought the spring of 1861 a bad 
 time for adopting the Corwin Constitutional 
 
j 20 LIFE AND PUBLIC CAREER OF 
 
 Amendment, forbidding Congress from ever legis 
 lating on the subject of slavery in the States. He 
 was among the foremost in maintaining the right 
 of the National Government to coerce seceded 
 States. " Would you give up the forts and other 
 government property in those States, or would 
 you fight to maintain your right to them?" was 
 his adroit way of putting the question to a con 
 servative Republican who deplored his incendiary 
 views. 
 
 When the "Million War Bill," as it was popu 
 larly known at the time, came up, he was the most 
 conspicuous of its defenders. Judge Key, of 
 Hamilton County (subsequently a noted member 
 of McClellan s staff), preluded his vote for it with 
 a protest against the policy of the Administration 
 in entering upon the war. It was left to Garfield 
 to make the reply. The newspapers of that day 
 all made mention of* his effort in terms of highest 
 admiration. He regretted that Senator Key 
 should have turned from honoring his country to 
 pay his highest tribute of praise at a time like this 
 to party. The senator approved a defense of 
 national property, but denounced any effort to re 
 take it if only it were once captured. Did he 
 mean that if Washington were taken by the rebels 
 he would oppose attempts to regain possession of 
 the national capital ? Where was this doctrine of 
 non-resistance to stop ? He had hoped that the 
 senator would not, in this hour of the nation s 
 
JAMES A. GARFIELD. T 2 { 
 
 peril, open the books of party to re-read records 
 that ought now, at least, to be forgotten. But 
 since the senator had thought this a fitting time 
 to declare his distrust of the President, and of the 
 Cabinet, and particularly of Ohio s honored repre 
 sentative in that Cabinet, he had only this to say 
 in reply; that it would be well for that senator 
 and his partisan recollections to remember whose 
 Cabinet it was that embraced traitors among its 
 most distinguished members, and sent them forth 
 from its most secret sessions to betray their 
 knowledge to their country s ruin. 
 
 It was under his leadership, and of his own per 
 sonal initiation, that a bill was passed declaring 
 any resident of the State, who gave aid and com 
 fort to the enemies of the United States, guilty of 
 treason against the State, to be punished by im 
 prisonment in the penitentiary for life. 
 
 Ohio, when the great call came, was as unpre 
 pared as were other States. There was a small 
 force of militia nominally organized, but the con 
 stitution and laws of the State provided that 
 all its officers should be elected by the men, and 
 the governor was limited in his selection of officers, 
 in case the militia was called out, to the parties 
 so chosen. Everywhere, however, there was en 
 thusiasm for the cause and a wild willingness to 
 help the government by every possible sacrifice 
 that a great people could make. When the 
 president s call for seventy-five thousand men was 
 
I ?2 LIFE AND PUBLIC CAREER OF 
 
 announced to the Ohio Senate, Senator Garfield 
 was instantly on his feet, and amid the tumultuous 
 acclamations from the assemblage, moved that 
 twenty thousand troops and three millions of 
 money" should be at once voted as Ohio s quota! 
 His speech he immediately illustrated by offering 
 his own services in any capacity Governor Denni- 
 son might choose. That he should uphold the flag 
 was demanded both by patriotism and by the logic 
 of the Republican doctrine, that he had so nobly, 
 so bravely upheld. It was but the second stage 
 of resistance to slavery. While waiting a wider 
 field, he occupied himself with the arming of the 
 militia or any measure that had for its object the 
 advancement of the plans then in progress. He 
 made a hasty journey to Illinois, and procured five 
 thousand muskets, which he shipped to Columbus 
 to arm some of the first regiments that formed 
 upon Ohio soil. He then returned to the capital. 
 
JAMES A. GARFIELD. j 2 . 
 
 CHAPTER X. 
 
 AT THE HEAD OK A REGIMENT. 
 
 U "T "T THEN the time came for appointing 
 \ \l officers for the troops so hastily got 
 together, Garfield displayed," says 
 Whitelaw Reid, in his "Ohio in the War/ "his 
 signal want of tact and skill in advancing his own 
 interests. Of the three leading Radical senators, 
 Garfield had the most personal popularity. Cox 
 was at that time, perhaps, a more compact and 
 pointed speaker, he had matured earlier as (to 
 change the figure) he was to culminate sooner. 
 But he had never aroused the warm regard which 
 Garfield s whole-hearted, generous disposition 
 always excited, yet Cox had the sagacity to see 
 how his interests were to be advanced. He aban 
 doned the Senate-chamber, installed himself as 
 assistant in the governor s office, made his skill 
 felt in the rush of business, and soon convinced 
 the appointing power of his special aptitude for 
 military affairs. In natural sequence he was pres 
 ently appointed a brigadier-general, while Gar- 
 field was sent off on a mission to some western 
 States to see about arms for the Ohio volunteers." 
 On the 1 4th of August, 1861, some months after 
 the adjournment of the Legislature, Governor 
 
T 24 LIFE - 4xn rr/!L/C CAREER OF 
 
 Dennison offered Garfield the lieutenant-colonelcy 
 of the Forty-second Ohio, a regiment not yet 
 formed, and one which Garfield had been instru 
 mental in bringing into existence with the active 
 aid of Judge Sheldon, of Illinois, Don A. Pardee, 
 of Medina, Ralph Plumb, of Oberlin, and other 
 patriotic citizens of his district. He did not ac 
 cept the tendered command hastily, he did not 
 grasp the glitter of command with the avidity of 
 an aspirant for honors. He went home, opened 
 his mother s Bible, and pondered upon the sub 
 ject. He had a wife, a child, and a few thousand 
 dollars. If he gave his life to the country, would 
 God and the few thousand dollars provide for his 
 wife and child ? He consulted the Book about it. 
 It seemed to answer in the affirmative, and before 
 morning he wrote to a friend : 
 
 "I regard my life as given to the country. I am 
 only anxious to make as much of it as possible 
 before the mortgage on it is foreclosed." 
 
 At the same sitting he wrote Governor Denni 
 son his acceptance of the appointment. The regi 
 ment with which he had thus considerately chosen 
 to cast his lot was principally recruited from Por- 
 tege and Summit Counties. Most of the officers 
 and privates had been students of Hiram College, 
 and it was in a certain degree the transfer of that 
 Campbellite institution en masse to another field 
 where the church militant was to become militant 
 in truth and finally the church triumphant. 
 
JAMES A. GARFIELD. r 2 
 
 Five weeks were spent in drilling, and the regi 
 ment was encamped at Camp Chase near Columbus, 
 Companies A, B, C and D were mustered into ser 
 vice September 25th, 1861, Company E, October 
 3Oth, Company F, November I2th, and Companies 
 G, H, I and K, November 26th, at which time the 
 organization was completed. 
 
 Garfield at once set vigorously to work to mas 
 ter the art and mystery of war, and to give his 
 men such a degree of discipline as would fit them 
 for effective service in the field. Bringing his saw 
 and jack-plane again into play, he fashioned com 
 panies, officers and non-commissioned officers 
 out of maple blocks, and with these wooden- 
 headed troops he thoroughly mastered the infan^ 
 try tactics in his quarters. Then he organized a 
 school for the officers of his regiment, requiring 
 thorough recitation in the tactics, and illustrating 
 the manoeuvres by the blocks he had prepared for 
 his own instruction. This done, he instituted regi 
 mental, company, squad, skirmish and bayonet 
 drill, and kept his men at these exercises from six 
 to eight hours a day, until it was universally 
 admitted that no better drilled or disciplined regi 
 ment could be found in Ohio. 
 
 At the time Garfield was appointed lieutenant 
 colonel, it was understood that had he cared to 
 push the matter he might have been made colo 
 nel, but, with a modesty quite unusual in those 
 early days of the war, he preferred to start low 
 8 
 
I 26 LIFE * N > PUBLIC CAREER OF 
 
 and rise as he learned. It was but a just tribute, 
 therefore, that on the completion of his organiza 
 tion he was, without his own solicitation, promoted 
 to the colonelcy. The regiment saw three years 
 of service ; the last of the men were mustered out 
 December 2d, 1864. 
 
 It was not until the i4th of December that 
 orders for the field were received at Camp 
 Chase for Colonel Garfield s command. Yet 
 to this date no active operations had been at 
 tempted in the great department that lay south of 
 the Ohio River. The spell of Bull Run still hung 
 over our armies. Save the campaign in Western 
 Virginia and the attack by General Grant at Bel- 
 mont, not a single engagement had occurred over 
 all the region between the Alleghanies and the 
 Mississippi. General Buell was preparing to 
 advance upon Bowling Green, when he suddenly 
 found himself hampered by two co-operating forces 
 skillfully planted within striking distance of his 
 flank. General Zollikoffer was advancing from 
 Cumberland Gap toward Mill Spring ; and Hum 
 phrey Marshall, moving down the Sandy Valley 
 from Virginia, was threatening to overrun Eastern 
 Kentucky. Till these could be driven back, an 
 advance upon Bowling Green would be perilous, 
 ?f not actually impossible. To General George 
 H. Thomas, then just raised from his colonelcy of 
 regulars to a brigadiership of volunteers, was com 
 mitted the task of repulsing Zollikoffer ; to the un- 
 
JAMES A. GARFIELD. } 2 - 
 
 tried colonel of the raw Forty-second Ohio the 
 task of repulsing Humphrey Marshall. And on 
 their success the whole army of the Department 
 waited. 
 
 Colonel Garfield s orders directed him to move 
 his command to Catlettsburg, Kentucky, a town at 
 the junction of the Big Sandy and the Ohio, and 
 to report immediately, in person, to the Depart 
 ment Head-quarters at Louisville. The regiment 
 went by rail to Cincinnati, and thence by boat to 
 Catlettsburg, where it arrived on the morning of 
 December I7th. By sunset of the iQth, Colonel 
 Garfield reported to General Buell, at Louisville. 
 In his interview with that officer, he was informed 
 that he was to be sent against Humphrey Mar 
 shall, who had in his advance reached as far north 
 as Prestonburg, driving the Union forces before 
 him. 
 
 Our hero was now face to face with the actuali 
 ties of the conflict, he was to command an expedi 
 tion to which great importance was attached, and 
 on which great results might depend. The prize 
 at stake was Kentucky. If the rebel plan was 
 successful, Kentucky would probably go out of the 
 Union at once; if the Federal operations suc 
 ceeded, secession might be delayed indefinitely or 
 prevented. Marshall was expected by the rebel 
 authorities to advance toward Lexington, unite with 
 Zollikoffer and establish the authority of the Pro 
 visional Government at the State capital. These 
 
LIFE AND fl BLIC CAREER OF 
 
 hopes were fed by the recollection of his great in 
 tellectual abilities and the soldierly reputation he 
 had borne ever since he led the famous charge of 
 the Kentucky volunteers at Buena Vista. It was 
 also feared that he, with the large army he could 
 gather, if unmolested, would hang upon Buell s 
 flank, and so prevent his advance into Tennessee; 
 or, if he did advance, cut off his communications 
 and falling on his rear while Beauregard encoun 
 tered him in front, crush him, as it were, between 
 the upper and nether millstones. This done, Ken 
 tucky was lost, and that occurring so early in the 
 war, the dissolution of the Union might have 
 followed. 
 
 To check this dangerous advance, meet Marshall, 
 a thoroughly educated military man, and the 
 uncounted thousands whom his reputation would 
 draw about him, Colonel Garfield was asked to 
 plan a movement. He had come into the war 
 with a life not his own and was now called upon to 
 prove his title to the confidence his State had re* 
 posed in him. He knew nothing of war beyond 
 its fundamental principles ; which are, as stated by 
 some writer, that "a big boy can whip a little boy, 
 and that the big boy can whip two little boys, if he 
 take them singly one after another." He knew 
 no more about it when General Buell, one of the 
 most scientific military men of his time, selected 
 him to solve a problem which has puzzled the 
 heads of the ablest generals ; namely, how two 
 
JAMES A. GARFIELD. T 2 g 
 
 smair bodies of men stationed widely apart can 
 unite in the face of an enemy and beat him, when 
 he is twice the united strength, and strongly post 
 ed behind intrenchments. 
 
 To do this Garfield was given, what? Twenty- 
 five hundred men, eleven hundred of whom under 
 Colonel Cramer were at Paris, Ky., the remainder, 
 his own regiment and the half-formed Fourteenth 
 Kentucky, under Colonel Moore, at Catlettsburg; 
 a hundred miles of mountain country, overrun 
 with rebels being between them. This was the 
 problem of the big boy of uncertain size, but 
 known to be skilled in war, and the two little boys 
 who were to whip him when only by a miracle 
 could they act together, and when they knew no 
 more of war than can be learned from the postur 
 ing of wooden blocks and the crack perhaps of 
 squirrel rifles. 
 
 "That is what you have to do, Colonel Gar-. 
 field drive Marshall from Kentucky," said Buell, 
 when he had finished his view of the situation, 
 " and you see how much depends on your action. 
 Now, go to your quarters, think of it over night 
 and come here in the morning and tell me how 
 you will do it." 
 
 On his way to his hotel, the young colonel 
 bought a rude map of Kentucky, and then shut 
 ting himself in his room, spent the night in study 
 ing the geography of the country in which he was 
 to operate, and in making notes of the plan which, 
 
j * 2 Z// X XD PUBLIC CAREER OF 
 
 at Louisa on the morning of December 24th, and 
 thence forward he became an actor in, all its cir 
 cumstances considered, one of the most wonder 
 ful dramas to be read of in history. 
 
 
A. GARFIELD, 
 
 CHAPTER XI. 
 
 OPENING THE BIG SANDY CAMPAIGN. 
 
 GARFIELD had two very difficult things to 
 accomplish. He had to open communica 
 tions with Colonel Cranor, while the in 
 tervening country, as has been said, was infested 
 with roving bands of rebels and populated by 
 disloyal people. He had also to form a junction 
 with the force under that officer in the face of a 
 superior enemy who would doubtless be apprised 
 of his every movement and be likely to fall upon 
 his separate columns the moment either was set 
 iri motion, in the hope of crushing them in detail. 
 Either operation was hazardous if not well-nigh 
 impossible. 
 
 Evidently the first thing to be done was to find 
 a trustworthy messenger to convey dispatches 
 between the two halves of his army. To this end 
 Garfield applied to Colonel Moore of the Four 
 teenth Kentucky. 
 
 " Have you a man" he asked, "who will die rather 
 than fail and betray us?" 
 
 The Kentuckian reflected a moment, then 
 answered : 
 
 "I think I have, John Jordan from the head of 
 the Elaine." 
 
t 33 LIFE AXD PUBLIC CAREER OF 
 
 at Louisa on the morning of December 24th, and 
 thence forward he became an actor in, all its cir 
 cumstances considered, one of the most wonder 
 ful dramas to be read of in history. 
 
JAMES A. GARFIELD, 
 
 CHAPTER XI. 
 
 OPENING THE BIG SANDY CAMPAIGN. 
 
 GARFIELD had two very difficult things to 
 accomplish. He had to open communica 
 tions with Colonel Cranor, while the in 
 tervening country, as has been said, was infested 
 with roving bands of rebels and populated by 
 disloyal people. He had also to form a junction 
 with the force under that officer in the face of a 
 superior enemy who would doubtless be apprised 
 of his every movement and be likely to fall upon 
 his separate columns the moment either was set 
 in motion, in the hope of crushing them in detail. 
 Either operation was hazardous if not well-nigh 
 impossible. 
 
 Evidently the first thing to be done was to find 
 a trustworthy messenger to convey dispatches 
 between the two halves of his army. To this end 
 Garfield applied to Colonel Moore of the Four 
 teenth Kentucky. 
 
 "Have you a man" he asked, "who will die rather 
 than fail and betray us?" 
 
 The Kentuckian reflected a moment, then 
 answered : 
 
 "I think I have, John Jordan from the head of 
 the Elaine." 
 
134 
 
 LIFE AA"D PUBLIC CAREER OF 
 
 Jordan was sent for and soon entered the tent 
 of the Union commander. He was somewhat of 
 a noted character in that region, a descendant of 
 a Scotchman belonging to a family of men who 
 ever died in the defense of some honor or trust. 
 Jordan was also a born actor, a man of unflinching 
 courage, of great expedients and devoted to the 
 true principles that bind this land in the solidity of 
 a great union. 
 
 On his appearance, Garfield was at once im 
 pressed in his favor. He remembers him to-day 
 as a tall, gaunt, sallow man, of about thirty years, 
 with gray eyes, a fine falsetto voice, pitched in the 
 minor key, and a face that had as many expres 
 sions as could be found in a regiment. To the 
 young colonel he seemed a strange combination 
 of cunning, simplicity, undaunted courage and un- 
 doubting faith, but possessed of a quaint sort of 
 wisdom, which ought to have given him to history. 
 He sounded him thoroughly, for the fate of the 
 campaign might depend upon his fidelity; but 
 Jordan s soul was as clear as crystal, and in ten 
 minutes Garfield had read it as if it had been an 
 open volume. 
 
 "Why did you come into this war?" at last 
 asked the commander. 
 
 "To do my part for the country, colonel," an 
 swered Jordan, "and I made no terms with the 
 Lord. I gave Him my life without conditions, and 
 if He sees fit to take it in this tramp, why, it is 
 His. I have nothing to say against it." 
 
JAMES A. CARFIELD. 
 
 "You mean you have come into the war not 
 expecting to get out of it?" 
 
 "I do, colonel." 
 
 "Will you die rather than let this dispatch be 
 taken?" * 
 
 "I will." 
 
 The colonel recalled what had passed in his own 
 mind, when poring over his mother s Bible that 
 night at his home in Ohio, and it decided him. 
 
 "Very well," he said; "I will trust you." 
 
 The dispatch was written on tissue paper, rolled 
 into the form of a bullet, coated with warm lead, 
 and put into the hand of Jordan. He was given 
 a carbine and a brace of revolvers, and mounting 
 his horse when the moon was down, he started on 
 his perilous journey, where, in spite of its most ro 
 mantic interest, we cannot follow him. 
 
 By midnight of the second day Jordan reached 
 Colonel Cranor s quarters, at McCormick s Gap, 
 and delivered his precious billet. The colonel 
 opened the dispatch. It was dated Louisa, De 
 cember 24th, midnight, and directed him to move 
 his regiment at once to Prestonburg. He would 
 encumber the men with as few rations as possible 
 and as little baggage, bearing in mind that the 
 safety of his command would depend on his expe 
 dition. He would also cause the dispatch to be 
 conveyed to Lieutenant-Colonel Woolford, at 
 Stamford, and direct him to join the march with 
 his three hundred cavalry. Hours were now worth 
 
136 LIFE AND PUBLIC CAREER OF 
 
 , 
 
 months of common time, and on the following 
 morning Cranor s column was set in motion. 
 
 The dispatch fully revealed to Cranor Garfield s 
 intention to move at once upon the enemy. Of 
 Marshall s real strength he is ignorant, but his 
 scouts and the country people report that the 
 rebel s main body which is intrenched in an al 
 most impregnable position near Paintville is from 
 four to seven thousand, and that an outlying force 
 of eight hundred occupies West Liberty, a town 
 directly on the route by which Colonel Cranor is 
 to march to effect a junction with Garfield s men. 
 Cranor s column is one thousand one hundred 
 strong, and the main body, under Garfield, num 
 bers about seventeen hundred, consisting of the 
 Forty-second Ohio Infantry, one thousand and 
 thirteen strong, and the Fourteenth Kentucky In 
 fantry, numbering five hundred, rank and file, but 
 imperfectly armed and equipped. All told, Gar- 
 field s force, therefore, counted two thousand eight 
 hundred, in a strange district, cut off from rein 
 forcements, with which to meet and crush an army 
 of at least five thousand, familiar with the country 
 and daily receiving recruits from the disaffected 
 southern counties. Evidently a forward movement 
 is attended with great hazard, but the Union com 
 mander does not waste time in considering the 
 obstacles and dangers of the expedition. On 
 the morning following the scout s departure for 
 Cranor s camp, Garfield sets out with such of his 
 
JAMES A. GARFIP;LD. 
 
 command as are in readiness, and halting at 
 George s Creek, .only twenty miles from Mar 
 shall s intrenched position, prepares to move at 
 once upon the enemy. 
 
 The roads along the Big Sandy are impassable 
 for trains, and the close proximity of the enemy 
 renders it unsafe to make so wide a detour from 
 the river as would be required to send supplies 
 by the table-lands to the westward. Under these 
 circumstances Garfield decides to depend mainly 
 upon water navigation to transport his supplies, 
 and to use the army-train only when his troops 
 afe obliged, by absolutely impassable roads, to 
 move away from the river. 
 
 The Big Sandy is a narrow, fickle stream, that 
 finds its way to the Ohio through the roughest and 
 wildest spurs of the Cumberland Mountains. At 
 low water it is not navigable above Louisa, except 
 for small flat-boats pushed by hand, but these as 
 cend as high as Piketon, one hundred and twenty 
 miles from the mouth of the river. In time of 
 high water small steamers can reach Piketon; but 
 heavy freshets render navigation impracticable, 
 owing to the swift current filled with floating tim 
 ber, and to the overhanging trees, which almost 
 touch one another from the opposite banks. At 
 this time the river was only of moderate height, 
 but, as will be readily seen, the supply of a bri 
 gade at mid-winter by such an uncertain stream, 
 and in the presence of a powerful enemy, was a 
 thing of great difficulty. 
 
! ^g LIFE AND PUBLIC CAREER OF 
 
 However the obstacles did not intimidate Gar- 
 field. Gathering ten days rations, he charters 
 two small steamers and impresses all the flat-boats 
 he can lay hand on, and then taking his army 
 wagons apart, he loads them with his forage and 
 provisions upon the flat-boats. This is on New 
 Year s Day, 1862. Next morning Captain Bent, 
 of the Fourteenth Kentucky, entering Garfield s 
 tent, says to him: 
 
 "Colonel, there s a man outside who says he 
 knows you, Bradley Brown, a rebel thief and 
 scoundrel." 
 
 "Brown," says Garfield, raising half-dressed 
 from his blanket. "Bradley Brown! I don t know 
 any one of that name." 
 
 "He has lived near the head of the Blaine, been 
 a boatman on the river, says he knew you on the 
 canal in Ohio." 
 
 "Oh, yes," answered Garfield, "bring him in, 
 now I remember him." 
 
 In a moment Brown is ushered into the col 
 onel s quarters. He is clad in country homespun, 
 and spattered from head to foot with the mud of 
 a long journey, but, without any regard for the 
 sanctity of rank, he advances at once upon the 
 Union commander, and grasping him warmly by 
 the hand, exclaims, "Jim, ole feller, how ar ye!" 
 
 The colonel received him cordially, but noticing 
 his ruddy face, says : 
 
 "Fifteen years haven t changed you, Brown; 
 
JAMES A. GARFIELD. l ^ 
 
 you will take a glass of whisky ? But what s this 
 I hear ? Are you a rebel ?" 
 
 " Yes," answers Brown, " I belong to Marshall s 
 force, and" this he prefaces with a burst of 
 laughter, " I ve come stret from his camp to spy 
 out yer army/ 
 
 The colonel looks surprised, but says, coolly : 
 
 " Well, you go about it queerly." 
 
 "Yes, quar, but honest, Jim when yer alone, 
 I ll tell yer about it." 
 
 As Bent was leaving the tent he said to his 
 commander, in an undertone : 
 
 " Don t trust him, colonel ; I know him, he s a 
 thief and a rebel." 
 
 Brown s disclosures, in a few words, are*, these : 
 
 Hearing, a short time before, at the rebel camp, 
 that James A. Garfield, of Ohio, had taken com 
 mand of the Union forces, it at once occurred to 
 him that it was his old canal companion, for whom, 
 as a boy, he had felt a strong affection. This sup 
 position was confirmed a few days later by his 
 hearing from a renegade Northern man something 
 of the antecedents of the colonel. Remembering 
 their former friendship, and being indifferent as to 
 which side was successful in the campaign, he at 
 once determined to do an important service to the 
 Union commander. 
 
 With this object he sought an interview with 
 Humphrey Marshall, stated to him his former ac 
 quaintance with Garfield, and proposed that he 
 
I 40 LIFE AXD PUBLIC CAREER OP 
 
 should take advantage of it to enter the Union 
 camp, and learn for the rebel general all about his 
 enemy s strength and intended movements. Mar 
 shall at once fell into the trap, and the same night 
 Brown set out for the Union camp, ostensibly to 
 spy for the rebels, but really to tell the Union 
 commander all that he knew of the rebel strength 
 and position. He did not know Marshall s exact 
 force, but he gave Garfield such facts as enabled 
 him to make, within half an hour, a tolerably accu 
 rate map of the rebel position. 
 
 When this was done, the Union colonel said to 
 him: 
 
 " Did Bent blindfold you when he brought you 
 into camp ?" 
 
 " Yes, colonel, I couldn t see my hand afore me." 
 
 " Well, then, you had better go back directly to 
 Marshall." 
 
 " Go back to him ! Why, colonel, he ll hang me 
 to the first tree!" 
 
 " No he won t not if you tell him all about my 
 strength and intended movements." 
 
 o 
 
 " But how kin I ? I don t know a thing. I tell 
 ye I was blindfolded." 
 
 " Yes, but that don t prevent your guessing at 
 our numbers, and about our movements. You 
 may say that I shall march to-morrow straight for 
 his camp and in ten days be upon him." 
 
 Brown sat for a moment musing, then he said : 
 
 "Wall, Colon l ye d be a durned fool, and if ye s 
 
JAMES A. CARFIELD 
 
 141 
 
 thet ye must hev growed to it since we were on 
 ther canal ef ye went upon Marshall, trenched as 
 he is, with a man short on twenty thousand. I kin 
 <guess ye s that many/ 
 
 " Guess again. I haven t that number." 
 
 " Then, ten thousand." 
 
 " Well, that will do for a Kentuckian. Now, to 
 day, I will keep you under lock and key, and to 
 night you can go back to Marshall." 
 
 At nightfall, Brown set out for the rebel camp, 
 and, on the following day, Garfield put his little 
 army, reduced now by sickness and garrison-duty, 
 to fourteen hundred, in motion. 
 
 It was a toilsome march. The roads were knee- 
 deep in mire, and encumbered as it was with only 
 a light train, the army made very slow progress. 
 Some days it marched five or six miles, and some 
 considerably less, but on January 6th, it arrived 
 within seven miles of Paintville. Here the men 
 threw themselves upon the wet ground, and Gar- 
 field laid down in his boots, in a wretched log hut 
 to catch a few hours of slumber. 
 
 About midnight, he was roused from his sleep 
 by a man who said his business was urgent. The 
 colonel rubbed his eyes, and raised himself on 
 his elbow. 
 
 "Back safe?" he asked. "Have you seen 
 Cranor ?" 
 
 " Yes, colonel ; he can t be any more than two 
 days behind me," 
 o 
 
j A 2 LIFE AND PUBLIC CAREER OF 
 
 " God bless you, Jordan ! You* have done us a 
 great service," said Garfield, warmly. 
 
 " I thank you, colonel," answered Jordan, his face 
 trembling, "that is more pay than I expected." 
 
 He had returned safely, but the Providence 
 which so wonderfully guarded his way out, seemed 
 to leave him to find his way back, for, as he ex 
 pressed it, " The Lord cared more for the dispatch 
 than He cared for me, and it was natural He 
 should, because my life counts only one, but the 
 dispatch, it stood for the whole of Kentucky." 
 
 Next morning, another horseman rode up to the 
 Union head-quarters. He was a messenger direct 
 from General Buell, who had followed Garfield up 
 the Big Sandy with dispatches. They contained 
 only a few hurried sentences, from a man to a 
 woman, but their value was not to be estimated in 
 money. It was a letter from Humphrey Marshall to 
 his wife, which Buell had intercepted, and it revealed 
 the important fact that the rebel general had five 
 thousand men four thousand four hundred in 
 fantry and six hundred cavalry with twelve pieces 
 of artillery, and was daily expecting an attack from 
 a Union force of ten thousand ! 
 
 Garfield put the letter in his pocket, and then 
 called a council of his officers. They assembled 
 in the rude log shanty, and the question was put 
 to them : 
 
 " Shall we march at once, or wait the coming of 
 Cranor?" 
 
/,AA\ 
 
 \ REBEL RIFLE f \*<RIFLE PITS 
 
 i AAAA 
 
 KA A A A 
 
 : \ COL GARFIELD S CAMP 
 
 JAN. 611: 1862. 
 
 \ \ 
 
 THE FIGHT AT PAINTVILLE. 
 
JAMES A. GARFIELD. -J^K 
 
 All but one said " Wait !" He said, " Move at 
 once, our fourteen hundred can whip ten thou 
 sand rebels." 
 
 Garfield reflected awhile, then closed the coun 
 cil with the laconic remark : " Well, forward it is. 
 Give the order." 
 
 Three roads led to the rebel position one at 
 the east, bearing down to the river and along its 
 western bank; another, a circuitous one, to the 
 west, coming in on Paint Creek at the mouth of 
 Jenny s Creek, on the right of the village; and a 
 third between the two others, a more direct route 
 but climbing a succession of almost impassible 
 ridges. These three roads were held by strong 
 rebel pickets, and a regiment was outlying at the 
 village of Paintville. 
 
 The diagram opposite will show the situation. 
 
 To deceive Marshall as to his real strength and 
 designs, Garfield orders a small force of infantry 
 and cavalry to advance along the river road, drive 
 in the rebel pickets, and move rapidly after them 
 as if to attack Paintville. Two hours after this 
 small force goes off, a similar one, with the same 
 orders sets off on the road to the westward, and 
 two hours later still another small party takes the 
 middle road. The effect is that the pickets on the 
 first route being vigorously attacked and driven, 
 retired in confusion to Paintville, and dispatched 
 word to Marshall that the Union army is advanc 
 ing along the river. He hurries off a thousand 
 
146 
 
 LIFE AND PUBLIC CAREER OF 
 
 infantry and a battery to resist the advance of 
 this imaginary column. 
 
 When this detachment had been gone an 
 hour and a half, Marshall hears from the routed 
 pickets on his left that the Union forces are ad 
 vancing along the western road. Countermand 
 ing his first order, he now directs the thousand 
 men and the battery to check the new danger, and 
 hurries off the troops at Paintville to the mouth of 
 Jenny s Creek, to make a stand at that point. Two 
 hours later the pickets on the central route are 
 driven in, and finding Paintville abandoned, they 
 flee precipitately to the fortified camp with the 
 story that the whole Union army is close at their 
 heels, and already occupying the town. Conceiving 
 that he has thus lost Paintville, Marshall hastily 
 withdraws the detachment of a thousand to his 
 camp, and then, Garfield moving rapidly over the 
 ridges of the central route, occupies the abandoned 
 position. 
 
 So affairs stand on the evening of the 8th of 
 January, when a rebel spy enters the camp of 
 Marshall with tidings that Cranor, with three thou 
 sand three hundred men, is within twelve hours 
 march at the westward. 
 
 On receipt of these tidings, the rebel general 
 conceiving himself vastly outnumbered, breaks up 
 his camp which he might have held for a twelve 
 month and retreats precipitately, abandoning or 
 burning a large portion of his supplies. Seeing 
 
JAMF.S A. GAKFIKLD. 
 
 1 4/ 
 
 the fires, Garfield mounts his horse, and with a 
 thousand men enters the deserted camp at nine in 
 the evening, while the blazing stores are yet un- 
 consumed. He sends off a detachment to harass 
 the rebel retreat, and waits the arrival of Cranor, 
 with whom he means to follow and bring Marshall 
 to battle in the morning. 
 
 In the morning Cranor comes, but his men are 
 footsore, without rations and completely ex 
 hausted. The most of these cannot move one 
 leg after the other. But the Union commander is 
 determined on a battle, so every man who has 
 strength to march is ordered to come forward. 
 Eleven hundred, and among them four hundred of 
 Cranor s tired heroes, step from the ranks, and 
 with them, at noon on the Qth, Garfield sets out 
 for Prestonburg, sending all his available cavalry 
 to follow the line of the enemy s retreat, and har 
 ass and destroy him. 
 
 Marching eighteen miles he reaches, at nine 
 o clock that night, the mouth of Abbott s Creek, 
 three miles belowPrestonburg he and the eleven 
 hundred. There he learns that Marshall is en 
 camped on the same stream, three miles higher 
 up; and, throwing his men into bivouac in the 
 midst of a sleety rain, he sends back an order to 
 Lieutenant-Colonel Sheldon, who had been left in 
 command at Paintville, to bring up every available 
 man with all possible dispatch, for he shall force 
 the enemy to battle in the morning. He spends 
 
148 
 
 LIFE AND PUBLIC CAREER OF 
 
 the night in learning the character of the sur 
 rounding country, and the disposition of Mar 
 shall s forces, and makes a hasty dinner off of 
 stewed rabbit eaten out of a tin-cup he sharing 
 the single spoon and the stew with one of his 
 officers. 
 
 Jordan, the scout, now comes into play once 
 more. A dozen rebels are grinding at a mill, and a 
 dozen honest men come upon them, steal their corn 
 and take them prisoners. The miller is a tall, 
 gaunt man, and his "butternuts" fit Jordan as if 
 they were made for him. He is a rebel too, and 
 his very raiment should bear witness against this 
 feeding of his enemies. It does. It goes back to 
 the rebel camp, and Jordan goes in it. That 
 chameleon face of his is smeared with meal, and 
 looks the miller so well that the miller s own wife 
 might not detect the difference. The night is 
 pitch dark and rainy, and that lessens the danger; 
 but still Jordan is picking his teeth in the very 
 jaws of the lion. 
 
 Jordan s midnight ramble in the rebel ranks 
 gave Garfield the exact position of the enemy. 
 They had made a stand, and laid an ambuscade for 
 him. Strongly posted, on a semi-circular hill at 
 the forks of Middle Creek, on both sides of the 
 road, with cannon commanding its whole length, 
 and hidden by the trees and underbrush, they 
 awaited his coming. 
 
 Deeming- it unsafe to proceed furthei in the 
 
JAMES A. CARFIEI.D. j . 
 
 darkness, Garfield, as lias been said, ordered his 
 army into bivouac, at nine o clock in the evening, 
 and climbed the steep ridge called Abbott s Hill. 
 His tired men threw themselves upon the wet 
 ground to wait till morning. It was a terrible 
 night, fit prelude to the terrible day that followed. 
 A dense fog shut out the moon and stars, and 
 shrouded the lonely mountain in almost Cimmerian 
 darkness. A cold wind swept from the north, 
 driving the rain in blinding gusts into the faces of 
 the shivering men, and stirring the dark fires into 
 the cadences of a mournful music. But the slow 
 and cheerless night at last wore away, and at four 
 in the morning the tired and hungry men, their 
 icy clothing clinging to their half-frozen limbs, 
 were roused from their cold beds and ordered 
 to move forward. Slowly and cautiously they 
 descended into the valley, that to so many of 
 them seemed the Valley of the Shadow of Death. 
 The enemy was waiting them, they were wait 
 ing him. The last bivouac had been held, and 
 there was nothing left but to advance and meas 
 ure their lives against the foe. 
 
e o LIFE AND PUBLIC CAREER OF 
 
 CHAPTER XII. 
 
 HAIL COLUMBIA S SOLDIER AT THE BATTLE OF MIDDLE CREEK. 
 
 AS the day breaks in the east, and the gra) 
 mists that have been the blankets foi 
 Garfield s little force slowly draw up frorr 
 the inhospitable ground, the advance guard, round 
 ing a hill that juts out into the valley, is chargec 
 upon by a body of rebel horsemen. Forming his 
 men in a hollow square, Garfield gives the rebels 
 a volley that sends them reeling up the valley, al 
 but one, and he with his horse plunges into the 
 stream, and is captured. 
 
 The main body of the enemy, it is now evident 
 is not far distant, but whether he has changed his 
 position since the visit of the scout Jordan is ye 
 uncertain. To determine this, Garfield sends for 
 ward a strong corps of skirmishers, who sweep the 
 cavalry from a ridge they have occupied, anc 
 moving forward, soon draw the fire of the hidder 
 rebels. Suddenly a puff of smoke rises from be 
 yond the hill, and a twelve-pound shell whistles 
 above the trees, then, plowing up the hill, buries 
 itself in the ground at the feet of the adventurous 
 little band of skirmishers. 
 
 It is now twelve o clock, and throwing his whole 
 
JAMES A. GAR FIELD. T j 
 
 force upon the ridge whence the rebel cavalry 
 have been driven, Garfield prepares for the im 
 pending battle. It is a trying and perilous mo 
 ment. He is in the presence of a greatly superior 
 enemy, and how to dispose his little force, and 
 where first to attack, are things not easy to deter 
 mine. But he loses no time in idle indecision. 
 
 Looking in the faces of his eleven hundred men, 
 he goes at once into the terrible struggle. His 
 mounted escort of twelve soldiers he sends for 
 ward to make a charge, and, if possible, to draw 
 the fire of the enemy. The ruse succeeds admir 
 ably. As the little squad sweeps round a curve in 
 the road, another shell whistles through the valley, 
 and the long roll of nearly five thousand muskets 
 chimes in with a fierce salutation. The battle has 
 begun in earnest. 
 
 A glance at the ground will best show the real 
 nature of the conflict. It was on the margin of 
 Middle Creek, a narrow and rapid stream, and 
 three miles from where it finds its way into the 
 Big Sandy, through the sharp spurs of the Cumber 
 land Mountains. A rocky road, not ten feet in 
 width, winds along this stream, and on its two 
 banks abrupt ridges, with steep and rocky sides, 
 overgrown with trees and underbrush, shut closely 
 down upon the narrow road and little streamlet. 
 At twelve o clock Garfield has gained the crest of 
 the ridge at the right of the road, and the charge 
 of his handful of horsemen has drawn Marshall s 
 
T r-o LIFE A. YD PUHLIC CAREER OF 
 
 I 
 
 fire and disclosed his actual position. It will be 
 clearly seen from the subjoined diagram. 
 
 The main force of the rebels occupied the crests 
 of the two ridges at the left of the stream, but a 
 strong detachment was posted on the right, and a 
 battery of twelve pieces held the forks of the 
 creek and commanded the approach of the Union 
 army. It was Marshall s plan to lure Garfield 
 along the road, and then taking him between two 
 enfilading fires, surround and utterly destroy him. 
 But his hasty fire betrayed his design and un 
 masked his position. 
 
 Garfield acts with promptness and decision. A 
 hundred undergraduates, recruited from his own 
 college, are ordered to cross the stream, climb the 
 ridge whence the fire had been hottest, and bring 
 on the battle. Boldly the little band plunges into 
 the creek, the icy water up to their waists, and 
 clinging to the trees and underbrush, climb the 
 rocky ascent. Half way up the ridge the fire of 
 at least two thousand rifles open upon them, but 
 springing from tree to tree, they press on, and at 
 last reach the summit. Then suddenly the hill is 
 gray with rebels, who, rising from ambush, pour 
 their deadly volleys into the little band of only a 
 hundred. For a moment there are signs of wav 
 ering, then their leader calls out : " Every man to 
 a tree ! Give them as good as they send, my 
 brave Bereans !" 
 
 The rebels, behind rocks and rude intrench- 
 
JAMES A. GARFIELD. } - 
 
 ments, are obliged to expose their heads to take 
 aim at the advancing column, but the Union troops, 
 posted behind the huge oaks and maples, can stand 
 erect and load and fire fully protected. Though 
 they are outnumbered ten to one, the contest is 
 therefore for a time not so very unequal. But soon 
 the rebels, exasperated with the obstinate resist 
 ance, rush from cover and charge upon the little 
 handful with the bayonet. Slowly they are driven 
 down the hill, and two of them fall to the ground 
 wounded. One never rises, the other, a lad of 
 only eighteen, is shot through the thigh, and one 
 of his comrades turns back to bear him to a place 
 of safety. The advancing rebels are within thirty 
 feet, when one of them fires, and his bullet strikes 
 a tree directly above the head of the Union sol 
 dier. He turns, levels his musket, and the rebel 
 is in eternity. Then the rest are upon him ; but, 
 zigzagging from tree to tree, he is soon with his 
 driven column. But not far are the brave boys 
 driven. A few rods lower down they hear the voice 
 of their leader. 
 
 " To the trees again, my boys," he cries. " We 
 may as well die here as in Ohio !" 
 
 To the trees they go, and in a moment the ad 
 vancing horde is checked, and then rolled back 
 ward. Up the hill they turn, firing as they go, and 
 the little band follows. Soon the rebels reach the 
 spot where the Berean boy lies wounded, and one 
 of them says to him : 
 
156 
 
 LIFE AXD PUBLIC CAREER OF 
 
 " Boy, guv me yer musket.* 
 
 " Not the gun but its contents," returns the lad, 
 and the rebel falls, mortally wounded. Another 
 raises his weapon to brain the prostrate lad, but 
 he too falls, killed with his comrade s own rifle. 
 And all this is done while the hero-lad is on the 
 ground bleeding. An hour afterward, his com 
 rades bear him to a sheltered spot on the other 
 side of the streamlet, and then the first word of com 
 plaint escapes him. As they are taking offhis leg, 
 he says, in his agony : " Oh, what will mother do ?" 
 
 A fortnight later, the words of this patient, patri 
 otic lad Charles Carlton, of Franklin, Ohio re 
 peated in the Senate of Ohio, aroused the State to 
 at once make provision for the widows and mothers 
 of its soldiers. 
 
 As the college boys retreat, the quick eye of 
 the Union commander, standing upon a rocky 
 height on the other side of the narrow valley, dis 
 cerns, through the densely-curling smoke, the real 
 state of the unequal contest. " They are being 
 driven," he says; " they will lose the hill unless 
 supported." 
 
 Immediately, five hundred of the Ohio Fortieth 
 and Forty-second, under Major Pardee and Colo 
 nel Cranor, are ordered to the rescue. Holding 
 their cartridge-boxes above their heads, they dash 
 into the stream, up the hill and into the fight 
 shouting: 
 
 " Hurra for Williams and the brave Bereans !" 
 
JAMES A. GARFIELD. 
 
 But shot, and shell, and canister, and the fire of 
 four thousand muskets, are now concentrated 
 upon the few hundred heroes. 
 
 "This will never do," cries Garfield. "Who 
 will volunteer to carry the crest of the moun 
 tain?" 
 
 "We will!" shouts Colonel Munroe, of the 
 Twenty-second Kentucky. " We know every inch 
 of the ground." 
 
 " Go in, then," cries Garfield, " and give them 
 Hail Columbia!" 
 
 Fording the stream lower down, they climbed 
 the ridge to the left, and in ten minutes are upon 
 the enemy. Like the others, these rebels are 
 posted behind rocks, and, when uncovered, heads 
 soon become ghastly targets for the sure Ken 
 tucky rifles. 
 
 "Take good aim, and don t shoot till you see 
 the eyes of your enemy," shouts the brave col 
 onel. 
 
 The men have never been under fire, but in a 
 few moments are as cool as if at one of the tradi 
 tional Kentucky turkey matches. 
 
 "Do you see that reb," says one to a comrade, 
 as a head appears above the rock. "Hit him while 
 I m loading." 
 
 Another is bringing his cartridge to his mouth 
 when a bullet cuts away the powder and leaves 
 the lead in his fingers. Shielding his arm with his 
 body, he says, as he turns from the foe and rams 
 
53 
 
 LIFE AND PUBLIC CAREER OF 
 
 home another cartridge: "There, see if you can 
 hit that?" 
 
 Another takes out a piece of hard-tack and a 
 ball shivers it in his hand. He swallows the rem 
 nant, and then coolly fires away again. One is 
 brought down by a ball in the knee; and, lying on 
 the ground, rifle in hand, watches for the man who 
 shot him. Soon the rebel s head rises above a 
 rock, and the two fire at the same instant. The 
 Union man is struck in the mouth, but as he is 
 borne down the hill he splutters out: " Never 
 mind, that secesh is done for." The next morn 
 ing the rebel is found with the whole upper part 
 of his head shot away by the others bullet 
 
 The brave Kentuckians climb or leap up along 
 the side of the mountain. Now they are hidden 
 in the underbrush, now sheltered by the great 
 trees, and now fully exposed in some narrow 
 opening, but gradually they near the crest of the 
 ridge, and at last are on its very summit. As 
 they come in open sight a rebel cries out: 
 
 " How many are there of you ?" 
 
 "Twenty-five millions, tl m you," shouts 
 
 back a Kentucky Union officer. 
 
 Then comes a terrible hand-to-hand struggle, 
 and the little band of less than four hundred, over 
 powered by numbers, are driven far down the 
 mountain. 
 
 Meanwhile another cannon has opened on the 
 hill and round shot and canister fall thickly among 
 
JAMES A, GARFIELD. j 
 
 the weary eleven hundred. Seeing his advance 
 about to waver the Union commander sends 
 volley after volley from his entire reserve at the 
 central point between his two detachments, and 
 for a time the enemy is silenced in that quarter. 
 But soon it opens again, and then Garneld orders 
 all but a chosen hundred upon the mountain. 
 There the battle grows terrible. Thick and thicker 
 swarm the rebels on the crest, sharp and sharper 
 rolls the musketry along the valley, and as volley 
 after volley echoes among the hills and the white 
 smoke curls up in long wreaths from the gleaming 
 rifles a dense cloud gathers overhead as if to shut 
 out the scene of carnage from the very eye of 
 Heaven. 
 
 So the bloody work goes on, so the battle 
 wavers till the setting sun wheeling below the hills 
 glances along the dense line of rebel steel move- 
 ing down to envelop the weary eleven hundred. 
 It is an awful moment, big with the immediate 
 fate of Kentucky. At its very crisis two figures 
 stand out against the fading sky, boldly defined 
 in the foreground. 
 
 One is in Union blue with a little band of 
 heroes about him. He is posted on a projecting 
 rock which is scarred with bullets and in full view 
 of both armies. His head is uncovered, his hair 
 streaming in the wind, his face upturned in the 
 darkening daylight and from his soul is going up 
 a prayer a prayer for Sheldon and reinforce- 
 
T 5o LIFE A. VI) PUBLIC CAREER Of 
 
 ments. He turns his eyes to the northward, his 
 lips tighten, he pulls off his coat and throws it into 
 the air and it lodges in a tree top out of reach, 
 then he says to his hundred men: 
 
 "Boys, we must go at them." 
 
 The men threw up their caps with a wild shout 
 and rush in, following the Union colonel who led 
 them at a run, and in his shirt sleeves. 
 
 The other figure is in Rebel gray. Moving 
 out to the brow of the opposite hill and placing a 
 glass to his eye, he too takes a long look to the 
 northward. Suddenly he starts, for he sees some 
 thing which the other on lower ground does not 
 distinguish. Soon he wheels his horse and the 
 word "RETREAT" echoes along the valley between 
 them. It is his last word; for six rifles crack, 
 and the rebel major lies on the ground quivering. 
 The one in blue looks to the north again as he 
 clambers up the mountain and now floating proudly 
 among the trees he sees the starry banner, that ban 
 ner that has meant liberty and life to millions. It is 
 Sheldon and his forces. On they come like the 
 rushing wind filling the air with their shouting. 
 The rescued eleven hundred take up the strain 
 and then above the swift pursuit, above the lessen 
 ing conflict, above the last boom of wheeling 
 cannon goes the wild huzza of victory. 
 
 As they come back from the short pursuit, the 
 young commander grasps man after man by the 
 hand, and says: 
 
JAMES A. GARFIZLD. j 5 * 
 
 " God bless you, boys ! You have saved Ken* 
 tucky !" x 
 
 They had, indeed, and in a wonderful battle. 
 Says that genial writer, Edmund Kirke : " In the 
 history of the late war, there is not another like it. 
 Measured by the forces engaged, the valor dis 
 played and the results that followed, it throws into 
 the shade the achievements of even that mighty 
 host that saved the nation. Eleven hundred foot 
 sore and weary men, without cannon, charged up 
 a rocky hill, over stumps, over stones, over fallen 
 trees, over high intrenchments, right into the face 
 of five thousand fresh .troops with twelve pieces 
 of artillery!" 
 
 To the reader, the action may seem insignificant, 
 but it was of considerable importance to the Fed 
 eral armies at this juncture. Captain F. H. Mason, 
 in his history of the Forty-second Ohio Infantry, 
 defines its place in history : 
 
 "The battle of Middle Creek, trifling though 
 it may be considered in comparison with later con 
 tests, was the first substantial victory won for the 
 Union cause. At Big Bethel, Bull Run, in Mis 
 souri, and at various points at which the Union 
 and Confederate forces had come in contact, the 
 latter had been uniformly victorious. The people 
 of the North, giving freely of their men and their 
 substance in response to each successive call of 
 the government, had long and anxiously watche ! 
 and waited for a little gleam of victory to show 
 10 
 
164 
 
 LIFE AXD PUD LIC CAREER OF 
 
 that northern valor was a match for southern im 
 petuosity in the field. They had waited in vain 
 since the disaster at Bull Run, during the previous 
 summer, and hope had almost yielded to despair. 
 The story of Garfield s success at Middle Creek 
 came, therefore, like a benediction to the Union 
 cause. Though won at a trifling cost it was deci 
 sive so far as concerned the purposes of that im 
 mediate campaign. Marshall s force was driven 
 from Kentucky, and made no further attempt to 
 occupy the Sandy Valley. The important vic 
 tories at Mill Spring, Forts Donaldson and Henry, 
 and the repulse at Shiloh,- followed. The victory 
 at Mill Creek proved the first wave of a returning 
 tide." 
 
 Speaking of the engagement, Garfield said, after 
 he had gained a wider experience in war: " It was a 
 very rash and imprudent affair on my part. If I 
 had been an officer of more experienee, I probably 
 should not have made the attack. As it was, hav 
 ing gone into the army with the notion that fight 
 ing was our business. I didn t know any better." 
 
 "And, during it all," says Judge Clark, who was 
 in the Forty-second, "Garfield was the soldiers 
 friend. Such was his affection for the men that 
 he would divide his last rations with them, and 
 nobody ever found anything better at head-quar 
 ters than the rest got" 
 
VIEW OF POUND GAP. 
 
 VIEW OF MIDDLE CREEK. 
 
JAMES A. GARFIELD. 
 
 167 
 
 CHAPTER XIII. 
 
 A STEAMBOAT CAPTAIN AND THE CAPTURE OF POUND GAP. 
 
 THE night closed in upon the happy, but 
 tired men ; another night, the long watches 
 of which were lived out upon the frozen 
 ground. Garfield took the time to consider the 
 situation. Marshall s forces were broken and de 
 moralized. Though in full retreat, they might be 
 overtaken and destroyed ; but his own troops 
 were half dead with fatigue and exposure, and had 
 less than three days rations. In these circum 
 stances, Garfield prudently decided to occupy 
 Prestonburg, and await the arrival of supplies be 
 fore dealing a final blow at the enemy. On the 
 day succeeding the battle he issued the following 
 address to his army, which tells, in brief, the story 
 of the campaign: 
 
 " SOLDIERS OF THE EIGHTEENTH BRIGADE : I am 
 proud of you all! In four weeks you have 
 marched, some eighty, and some a hundred miles, 
 over almost impassable roads. One night in four 
 you have slept, often in the storm, with only a 
 wintry sky above your heads. You have marched 
 in the face of a foe of more than double your num 
 ber, led on by chiefs who have won a national re* 
 
j 6g LIFE AND PUBLIC CAREER OF 
 
 nown under the old flag, entrenched in hills of his 
 own choosing, and strengthened by all the appli 
 ances of military art. With no experience but the 
 consciousness of your own manhood, you have 
 driven him from his strongholds, pursued his in 
 glorious flight, and compelled him to meet you in 
 battle. When forced to fight, he sought the shel 
 ter of rocks and hills. You drove him from his 
 position, leaving scores of his bloody dead un- 
 buried. His artillery thundered against you, but 
 you compelled him to flee by the light of his burn 
 ing stores, and to leave even the banner of his 
 rebellion behind him. I greet you as brave men. 
 Our common country will not forget you. She 
 will not forget the sacred dead who fell beside 
 you, nor those of your comrades who won scars 
 of honor on the field. I have recalled you from 
 the pursuit, that you may regain vigor for still 
 greater exertions. Let no one tarnish his well- 
 earned honor by any act unworthy an American 
 soldier. Remember your duties as American citi 
 zens, and sacredly respect the rights and property 
 of those with whom you may come in contact. 
 Let it not be said that good men dread the ap 
 proach of an American army. Officers and sol 
 diers, your duty has been nobly done. For this I 
 thank you." 
 
 The retreat of Marshall had by no means gotten 
 rid of the dangers by which the small army of the 
 Union colonel was hampered. A fresh peril now 
 
JAMES A. CARFIELD. 
 
 169 
 
 beset the force. An unusually violent rain-storm 
 broke out, the mountain gorges were all flooded, 
 and the Sandy rose to such a height that steam 
 boat-men pronounced it impossible to ascend the 
 stream with supplies. The troops were almost 
 out of rations, and the rough, mountainous coun 
 try was incapable of supporting them. Colonel 
 Garfield had gone down the river to its mouth. 
 He ordered the "Sandy Valley," a small steamer, 
 which had been in the quarter-master s service, to 
 take in a load of supplies and start up. The cap 
 tain declared it was impossible. Efforts were 
 made to get other vessels, but without success. 
 
 Finally, Garfield ordered the captain and crew 
 on board, and stationed himself at the wheel. The 
 captain still protested that no boat could possibly 
 stem the raging current, but Garfield turned her 
 head up the stream and began the perilous trip. 
 The water in the usually shallow river was sixty 
 feet deep, and the tree-tops along the banks were 
 almost submerged. The little vessel trembled 
 from stem to stern at every motion of the engines, 
 the water whirled her about as if she were a skiff, 
 and the utmost speed the steam could give her 
 was three miles an hour. When night fell the 
 captain of the boat begged permission to tie up. 
 To attempt ascending the flood in the darkness 
 was madness. But Garfield kept his place at the 
 wheel, now as always no mere considerations of 
 danger affected his purpose. Finally, in one of 
 
j 7Q LIFE AND PUBLIC CAREER OF 
 
 the sudden bends of the river they drove, with a 
 full head of steam, into the quicksand of the bank. 
 Every effort to back off was in vain. Mattocks 
 were procured, and excavations made around the 
 embedded bow. Still she stuck. Garfield, at 
 last, ordered a boat to be lowered to take a line 
 across to the opposite bank. The crew protested 
 against venturing out on the flood. Garfield 
 leaped into the boat and steered it over. The 
 force of the current carried them far below the 
 point they sought to reach, but they finally suc 
 ceeded in making fast to a tree, and rigging a 
 windlass with rails sufficiently powerful to draw 
 the vessel off and get her once more afloat. 
 
 It was on Saturday that the boat left the mouth 
 of the Sandy. All night, all day Sunday, and all 
 through Sunday night they kept up their struggle 
 with the current, Garfield leaving the wheel only 
 eight hours out of the whole time, and that during 
 the day. By nine o clock on Monday morning 
 they reached the camp, and were received with tu 
 multuous cheering. Garfield himself could hardly 
 escape being borne to head-quarters on the shoul 
 ders of the delighted men. 
 
 It was but natural that the confused retreat of 
 She troops under Humphrey Marshall should have 
 precipitated an alarm among the simple country 
 people. The flying rebels had spread the most ex 
 aggerated reports of the strength and character 
 of the Union forces, and the inhabitants of the 
 
JAMES A. CARPI ELD. I 7 I 
 
 district looked for the immediate inauguration of 
 a reign of terror, that should deprive all non- 
 combatants of life and liberty. Fleeing from 
 their homes, they took refuge in the woods and 
 mountains, and the towns were well-nigh deserted 
 for a time. On his return with the supplies, Garfield 
 determined to attempt the quieting of the fright 
 ened people, and to that end issued the following : 
 
 " CITIZENS OF SANDY VALLEY : I have come among you 
 to restore the honor of the Union, and to bring back the old 
 banner which you once loved, but which, by the machina 
 tions of evil men, and by mutual misunderstanding, has been 
 dishonored among you. To those who are in arms against 
 the Federal Government I offer only the alternate of battle or 
 unconditional surrender. But to those who have taken no 
 part in this war, who are in no way aiding or abetting the 
 enemies of this Union even to those who hold sentiments 
 averse to the Union, but will give no aid or comfort to its 
 enemies I offer the full protection of the Government, both 
 in their persons and property. 
 
 " Let those who have been seduced away from the love of 
 their country to follow after and aid the destroyers of our 
 peace lay down their arms, return to their homes, bear true 
 allegiance to the Federal Government, and they shall also 
 enjoy like protection. The army of the Union wages no war 
 of plunder, but comes to bring back the prosperity of peace. 
 Let all peace-loving citizens who have fled from their homes 
 return and resume again the pursuits of peace and industry. 
 If citizens have suffered any outrages by the soldiers under 
 my command, I invite them to make known their complaints 
 to me, and their wrongs shall be redressed and the offenders 
 punished. I expect the friends of the Union in this valley to 
 banish from among them all private feuds, and let a liberal 
 
j ~ 2 LIFE AND PUBLIC CAREER OP 
 
 love of country direct their conduct toward those who have 
 been so sadly estrayed and misguided, hoping that these days 
 of turbulence may soon be ended and the days of the Re 
 public soon return. 
 
 "J. A. GARFIELD, 
 
 " Colonel Commanding Brigade." 
 
 Encouraged by this promise of protection, the 
 people soon issued from their hiding-places and 
 began to flock about the Union head-quarters. 
 From, them Garfield obtained various reports of the 
 whereabouts and intentions of Marshall. By some 
 he was told that Marshall, reinforced by three Vir 
 ginia regiments and six field-pieces, had made a 
 stand and was fortifying himself in a strong position, 
 about thirty miles above, on the waters of the 
 Big Beaver. Others claimed to know that he was 
 merely collecting provisions and preparing to re 
 treat into Tennessee as soon as the runs and 
 rivers should become passable. 
 
 All information pointed to the truth that Mar 
 shall had made a stand, and was still within the 
 limits of Kentucky. Garfield determined to learn 
 his exact position, and dispatched a body of one 
 hundred cavalry, under Captain Jenkins, of the 
 Ohio cavalry, with orders to go up the Big Sandy 
 as far as Piketon, and not to return until they had 
 ascertained the position and intentions of the 
 enemy. 
 
 From information brought back by Captain 
 Jenkins, and reports gathered from other sources 
 
JAMES A. CAR FIELD. 
 
 1 / J 
 
 mainly from the scout Jordan during the suc 
 ceeding weeks Garfield was pretty well able to 
 keep posted as to the movements of Humphrey 
 Marshall, who was still sufficiently near to be ob 
 noxious. Let us see what this was. 
 
 Pound Gap is a wild and irregular opening in 
 the Cumberland Mountains, about forty-five miles 
 south-west of Piketon, and leads into Virginia. It is 
 the only avenue for wagon communication between 
 the southerly portions of Virginia and Kentucky, 
 and derives its name from the fertile track of 
 meadow-land which skirts the southerly base of 
 the mountains, and is inclosed by a narrow stream 
 called Pound Fork. In the early history of the 
 district, this mountain locality was the home of a 
 tribe of Indians, who made irregular and constant 
 expeditions into Virginia in search of plunder. 
 Returning with the stolen cattle of the settlers, 
 they pastured them in this meadow inclosure. In 
 this way it was christened the " Pound," which in 
 time it bestowed both to the gap and the streamlet. 
 
 In this " Pound," and on the summit of the 
 gorge through which the road passes, the rebels 
 had built long huts, capable of quartering nearly 
 a thousand men ; and across the opening, to make 
 their position apparently impregnable, they had 
 built directly across the gap a formidable breast 
 work completely blocking up the way, and be 
 hind which five hundred men could resist success 
 fully five thousand. 
 
jy^ 1-11 H AND ^L Bl.lC CAREER OF 
 
 In several weeks Pound Gap had been garri 
 soned by about six hundred rebel militia under 
 a Major Thompson, and though incapable of ef 
 fective service in the field the troops had been of 
 no small value to the rebel cause by holding this 
 gateway into Virginia and establishing a constant 
 reign of terror among all the loyal citizens of the 
 surrounding country. Imitating the Indians, the 
 rebels would issue from this stronghold in small 
 parties, descend to the valleys, rob and murder 
 the peaceful inhabitants, and before pursuit was 
 possible would be once more behind the protect 
 ing breastworks. Many of these predatory bands 
 had been captured through the ceaseless activity 
 of the Kentucky cavalry, but as soon as one party 
 was captured another would start out from the 
 stronghold to continue the work of spoliation and 
 perpetuate the reign of blood. It soon became 
 evident that the only way to effectually stop these 
 inroads was to break up once and forever the 
 nest on the mountain. This Garfield had long 
 determined to do. He waited only for reliable 
 information as to the strength and position of 
 the rebels and for a definite description of the 
 route to be taken to get in the rear of the in- 
 trenchments. 
 
 This information the scout Jordan, after sur 
 mounting many difficulties and encountering great 
 dangers, was enabled to supply. He made for 
 Garfield an accurate map of the position and 
 wrote to him: 
 
JAMES A. CARFJKLD. 
 
 J /5 
 
 "General Marshall has issued an order for a 
 grand muster of the rebel militia on the 1 5th of 
 March. They are to meet at the Pound in the 
 rear of their intrenchments, and it is expected they 
 will muster in sufficient strength to enter Ken 
 tucky and drive the Union forces before them." 
 
 Garfield at once determined to forestall the 
 intended gathering and to break up the entire 
 swarm of guerillas. He set out on the following 
 morning with three days rations in the haversacks 
 of his men, and a quantity of provisions packed 
 on the backs of mules. He took with him two 
 hundred and twenty of the Fortieth Ohio, under 
 Colonel Cranor, two hundred of the Forty-second 
 Ohio, under Major Pardee, one hundred and 
 eighty of the Twenty-second Kentucky, under 
 Major Cook, and a hundred cavalry, under Major 
 McLaughlin, a total of seven hundred. 
 
 The roads were deep in mud, and the countless 
 rivulets that thread through this mountainous 
 region, were filled with ice and swollen to the size 
 of respectable torrents. The little army made 
 light of the difficulties, however, and pressed on 
 with perseverance over the rough roads in the 
 midst of the drenching rain. Late on the second 
 day Elkborn Creek was reached, a small stream 
 which flows along the northern base of the moun 
 tains and empties into the Big Sandy, only two 
 miles below the rebel position. Here the troops 
 went into camp on the wet ground, and waited the 
 coming- of dawn. 
 
j 76 T.IFE AXD PUKl.rc CAREER OF 
 
 Garfield s plan was to send his one hundred 
 cavalrymen up the road to make a demonstration 
 against the enemy s intrenchments, and to engage 
 his attention while he, with the six hundred infan 
 try, should climb the steep side of the mountain 
 and, filing alono; a narrow ledofe of rocks at the 
 
 o o o 
 
 summit, reach the gap and attack the rebels upon 
 the flank. To prove successful, absolute secrecy 
 was required ; and to obtain this every male resi 
 dent of the vicinity was brought into camp and 
 detained, that he should not carry information to 
 the enemy. Questions were asked of every one 
 as to some practicable route to the rear of the 
 rebel intrenchments. There was no route. The 
 mountain was steep, and in many places precipi 
 tous, and it was tangled with dense thickets, ob 
 structed with fallen logs, and covered with huge 
 boulders which, coated with ice and snow, formed 
 an almost impassable barrier to the passage of 
 any living thing, save the panther or the cata 
 mount. Then again, even if the adventurous 
 band succeeded in gaining the mountain summit 
 in the face of these obstacles, there was still to be 
 traversed for a long distance a narrow ledge, 
 buried .three feet in treacherous snow, where 
 one false step would be dangerous a place 
 where ten men could dispute the passage of ten 
 thousand. 
 
 Though tempted with liberal offers of money, 
 not one of the " natives " would undertake to 
 
JAMES A. GARFIELD 
 
 ] 7/ 
 
 guide the expedition on the perilous journey about 
 to be undertaken. Garfield laid down at midnight 
 on the floor of a miserable log shanty, near the 
 foot of the mountains. The prospect was in no 
 way encouraging. But, turning back was out of 
 the question. Even if failure was to be the re 
 ward of his pains, the Union commander deter 
 mined to scale the mountain in the morning. 
 
 These thoughts in his mind, he dropped off to 
 sleep. Before morning he was aroused by a num 
 ber of men entering his apartment one of them 
 said : 
 
 " Colonel, this old fellow has just come into 
 camp, and offers to guide us over the mountains. 
 He says he knows every road of this region, and 
 can lead us to the rebel nest in safety." 
 
 Garfield raised himself on his blanket, and by 
 the dim light of the logs that were smouldering 
 on the hearth looked narrowly at the old native. 
 He was apparently not far from seventy, with a 
 tall, bent form, and long hair and beard which 
 were almost of snowy whiteness. He wore the 
 common homespun of the district, and over his 
 shoulder carried, slung by a stout leather thong, a 
 brightly-burnished squirrel rifle. His enormous 
 beard and huge slouch hat more than half hid his 
 face, but enough of it was exposed to show a 
 tawny, smoke-begrimed skin, and strongly-marked, 
 determined features. Hastily scanning him from 
 head to foot, the Union officer said, smiling : 
 
j ~g LIFE AND PUBLIC CAREER OF 
 
 " You ! old man, do you think you can climb 
 the mountain ?" 
 
 " I hev done it, gineral, many and many a 
 time," said the native in a voice that sounded 
 much like a cracked kettle. 
 
 " I know, but in winter the slope is a sheet of 
 ice and three feet of snow on the summit." 
 
 "I komed down it not ten days ago. Whar I 
 kin come down ye kin go up." 
 
 " I should think so up or down. Is there a 
 bridle path we can follow ?" 
 
 " Yes, eight miles below. But ye d better make 
 yer own path. Ye must cum unto them unbe 
 known and sudden, and to do that ye must foller 
 the path squirrels travil." 
 
 "And do you think we can get over it safely ?" 
 
 "Yes, if ye s men of narve as means to do 
 what they has come about." 
 
 "Well," continued Garfield, after a pause, "what 
 induces an old man like you to undertake a thing 
 so hazardous ?" 
 
 "The hope to rid ther kentry of a set of 
 murderin thieves as is carrying terror and death 
 inter every poor man s home in all the valley." 
 
 "And what reward do you look for ?" 
 
 "Nary reward only your word that I shall go 
 as I come, with no one to let or hinder me." 
 
 Garfield took a long, steady look at him, and 
 replied : 
 
 " Very well. I ll trust you. Be here early in 
 the morning." 
 
JAMES A. GARFIELD. j . 
 
 When the morning came, the snow was falling 
 so thickly thatobjects only a few rods distant were 
 totally invisible. At nine o clock, the little body 
 of cavalry was started up the road to engage the 
 attention of the enemy and draw him from his in- 
 trenchments. Then the infantry was set in motion, 
 In a long, bristling, serpent-like column, catching 
 at every twig, and shrub, and fallen log that lay 
 in their way, they clambered slowly up the icy 
 mountain-side, the old guide leading the way and 
 steadying his steps by the long iron-shod staff 
 in use among mountaineers. The ridge at this 
 point rises two thousand feet above the valley, 
 and half-way up breaks into abrupt precipices, 
 which seem to defy the approach of any foot but 
 that of the deer. After a hard scramble through 
 
 o 
 
 the tangled thickets, over the ice-coated rocks and 
 along the steep ridge which crowns the summit of 
 the mountain, the native, turning sharply to the 
 left, said to Garfield : 
 
 " You are now within half a mile of the rebel 
 position. Yonder is their outside picket, but the 
 way is clear ; press on at the double and you have 
 them." 
 
 The picket had now descried the advancing 
 column, and firing his gun, he set out at the top of 
 his speed for the rebel intrenchments. A dozen 
 bullets made shrill music about his ears, but he 
 kept on, and the eager blue-coats followed. When 
 within sight of the rebel camp, a line was thrown 
 
PUBLIC CAREER OF 
 
 down along the eastern slope of the mountain 
 and pressing rapidly forward was formed along 
 the deep gorge through which the high road 
 passes. Up to this time the rebels had been skir 
 mishing with the cavalry in front of their intrench- 
 ments, but now they gathered on the hill directly 
 opposite the advanced portion of the Union in 
 fantry 
 
 To try the range, Garfield sent a volley across 
 the gorge, and as the smoke cleared away, he saw 
 the unformed rebel line melt like mist into the 
 opposite forest. The enemy s position being now 
 understood, the Fortieth and Forty-second Ohio 
 were ordered to the already formed left wing, and 
 then along the line rang the words, "Press for 
 ward, scale the hill and carry it with the bayonet!" 
 
 A ringing shout was the only answer, and then 
 the long column swept down the ridge, across the 
 ravine, through the rebel camp and up the oppo 
 site mountain. The rebels gradually fell back 
 among the trees, but when the Union bayonets 
 clambered up the hill they broke and ran in the 
 wildest confusion. The Unionists followed, firing 
 as they ran and for a few moments the mountains 
 echoed with the quick reports of the Ohio rifles. 
 Pursuit in the dense forest was impossible and 
 soon the recall was sounded. 
 
 Only one was killed and seven were wounded. 
 But this well-nigh bloodless victory rid Eastern 
 Kentucky of rebel rule. The troops were re-as- 
 
JAMES A. GARFIELD. 
 
 181 
 
 sembled and passed a comfortable night in the 
 enemy s quarters, faring sumptuously upon the 
 viands there found. The next morning the cabins, 
 sixty in number, were burned, the breastworks 
 destroyed and the general set out on his return 
 to Piketon, which he reached the following night, 
 having been absent four days and having marched 
 in that time about one hundred miles over a rough 
 and broken country. 
 
 Six days afterward an order was received to 
 leave a small garrison at Piketon, and to transfer 
 the rest of the command, as rapidly as possible, to 
 Louisville. 
 
 This ended the campaign on the Big Sandy, a 
 campaign that more than justified every hope of 
 Garfield s friends, and won him a military reputa 
 tion that has continued unto the end. The opera 
 tions in the Sandy Valley had been conducted 
 with such energy and skill as to receive the special 
 commendation of the commanding-general, and of 
 the Government. General Buell was moved to 
 words of unwonted praise, and sent to Garfield the 
 following congratulatory order : 
 
 HEAD-QUARTERS DEPARTMENT OF THE OHIO, 
 LOUISVILLE, Ky., January 2oth, 1862. 
 
 General Orders, No. 40. 
 
 The general commanding takes occasion to thank General 
 
 Garfield and his troops for their successful campaign against 
 
 the rebel force under General Marshall, on the Big Sandy, 
 
 and their gallant conduct in battle. They have overcome 
 
 II 
 
!32 LIFE AND PUBLIC CAREER OF 
 
 formidable difficulties in the character of country, condition 
 of the roads and the inclemency of the season ; and, without 
 artillery, have in several engagements, terminating in the 
 battle of Middle Creek, on the loth inst., driven the enemy 
 from his intrenched position and forced him back into the 
 mountains, with a loss of a large amount of baggage and 
 stores, and many of his men killed or captured. 
 
 These services have called into action the highest qualities 
 of a soldier fortitude, perseverance and courage. 
 By order, DON CARLOS BUELL, 
 
 Major- General Commanding. 
 
 The War Department, to show its appreciation, 
 made Colonel Garfield a Brigadier-General, the 
 commission bearing 1 the date of the battle of Mid 
 dle Creek, January roth, 1862. And the country, 
 without understanding very well the details of the 
 campaign, fully appreciated the tangible result. 
 The discomfiture of Humphrey Marshall was a 
 source of special chagrin to the rebel sympathizers 
 in Kentucky, and of amusement and admiration 
 throughout the loyal West. Garfield at once took 
 rank in the public estimation, as worthily among 
 the most promising of the younger volunteer 
 generals. 
 
 In his "Ohio in the War," Whitelaw Reid passes 
 this judgment on the campaign: "Later criticism 
 will confirm the general verdict then passed 
 upon the Sandy Valley campaign. It was the 
 first of the brilliant series of successes that made 
 the spring of 1862 so memorable. Mill Springs, 
 Fort Henry, Fort Donelson, Nashville, Island 
 
JAMES A. GARFIELD. 1 g 
 
 No. 10 and Memphis, followed in quick succession; 
 but it was to Garfield s honor that he had opened 
 this season of victories. His plans, as we have 
 seen, were based on sound military principles ; the 
 energy which he threw into their execution was 
 thoroughly admirable, and his management of the 
 raw volunteers, was such that they acquired the 
 fullest confidence in their commander and endured 
 the hardships of the campaign with fortitude not 
 often shown in the first field-service of new troops. 
 But the operations were on a small scale, and 
 their chief significance lay in the capacity they de 
 veloped, rather than in their intrinsic importance." 
 
1 84 
 
 LIFE AND PUBLIC CAREER OF 
 
 CHAPTER XIV. 
 
 OFF TO AID GRANT. 
 
 GARFIELD has now to be transferred to a 
 wider field of operations. His conspicu 
 ous ability, developed in battle, and his 
 great bravery could not be allowed to remain idle 
 within the bounds of the Big Sandy district, so 
 effectively freed by him from the control of the 
 rebels. 
 
 When he arrived at Louisville, he found that the 
 Army of the Ohio was already beyond Nashville, 
 on its way to aid Grant at Pittsburg Landing. He 
 hastened after it, and reported to General Buell 
 about thirty miles south of Columbia, and under 
 his orders at once assumed command of the 
 Twentieth Brigade, then a part of the division un 
 der General Thomas J. Wood. General Wood was 
 making all possible effort to reach the Union forces 
 under Grant, as the approaching battle with Sidney 
 Johnson was anticipated as very probably a battle 
 of the greatest importance. 
 
 The battle .began on the morning of April 6th. 
 About ten that day, Grant hearing that Wood, 
 with the second division of Buell s army, had ar 
 rived at Savannah, sent him the following order : 
 
 "You will move your command, with the utmost 
 
PICKETS ON DUTY. 
 
 ARMY HEAD-QUARTERS. 
 
JAMES A. GARFIRLD. 
 
 187 
 
 dispatch, to the river at this point (landing), where 
 steamers will be in readiness to convey you to 
 Pittsburgh 
 
 Still later in the day another dispatch was sent 
 to the commanding officer of Buell s forces, urging 
 him to hurry up. 
 
 It is not necessary to recount here how 
 thoroughly the Union forces were whipped on the 
 first day, and how extremely probable it seemed 
 that the defeat would turn into a rout. But here, 
 as on many another field later in the bloody con 
 flict, Ohio saved the day. When a halt was called 
 on the evening of the 6th it was determined by 
 Grant that the Ohio troops were to form upon the 
 left in the morning, and the attack was to be re 
 newed. During the night of the 6th, Buell busied 
 himself in getting his troops up. Nelson s column 
 and nearly all of Crittenden s and McCook s divi 
 sions were ferried across the river and put in 
 position. All night long the gun-boats dropped 
 shells at intervals on the rebel lines, and the woods 
 caught fire, lighting up the battle-field for miles 
 away. But for a merciful shower of rain thousands 
 of helpless wounded would have been burned to 
 death on that blazing battle-field. The orders 
 were: 
 
 "As soon as it is light enough to see, attack 
 with a heavy skirmish line, and when you have 
 found the enemy, throw upon him your whole 
 force, leaving no reserve." 
 
I 88 7//V? AXD FVFIJC CAREER OF 
 
 With the first gray of dawn this orcier was put 
 in execution. The Ohio troops \vcre given the 
 left of the field, Grant s army, or what of it could 
 be gathered together, undertook to form and main 
 tain the right. As rapidly as the Ohioans could 
 come up they went into action. As may be in 
 ferred, they fought with splendid energy. During 
 the early part of the day Grant met the First Ohio 
 marching toward the northern part of the field, 
 and immediately in front of a position which it was 
 important should be taken. The regiment on the 
 left was fighting hard, but about to yield ; in fact, 
 had given away, when Grant called upon the Ohio 
 boys to change direction and charge. The sol 
 diers, with a cheer, obeyed, and the retreating 
 troops, seeing what was going on, took new cour 
 age, and rallying with loud shouts, drove the 
 enemy from their strong position. 
 
 Garfield had all this time been actively engaged 
 in every possible exertion to bring up his brigade 
 in time to assist before either defeat or victory 
 silenced the cannonading, that he so distinctly 
 heard. About one P. M., he reached the front, 
 and with a wild cheer his men dashed at the rebels, 
 he leading through the storm of lead. The fresh 
 onslaught, in which Garfield s brigade participated, 
 changed the fortunes of the day, and the rebels 
 were soon flying from where they had fought so 
 long and well. The Union troops were too much 
 exhausted for pursuit, and halting in the camps 
 
JAMES A. G ARTIE I. D. ^ 
 
 from which they had been driven the day before, 
 were content to call it a victory. 
 
 On the Qth, the War Department issued the 
 following complimentary order to all concerned: 
 
 " The thanks.of the department are hereby given 
 to Generals Grant and Buell, and their forces, for 
 the glorious repulse of Beauregard, at Pittsburg, 
 in Tennessee." 
 
 The next morning (the 8th), Garfield s brigade 
 formed a part of Sherman s advance, and partici 
 pated in a sharp encounter with the enemy s rear 
 guard, a few miles beyond the battle-field. The 
 brigade formed a part of the Union advance upon 
 Corinth, to which place Beauregard had retreated. 
 This advance was slow, so slow that it took six 
 weeks to march fifteen miles. It was not until the 
 2 1 st of May that the armies were fairly in line, 
 three miles from Corinth, and everything ready for 
 the expected battle. 
 
 But all the preparations for a battle were of no 
 use, and when Halleck was ready to engage 
 Beauregard, the latter was no longer in Corinth. 
 He had retreated. Garfield s brigade had the 
 empty honor of being among the earliest that en 
 tered the abandoned town. 
 
 Then when General Buell, turning eastward, 
 sought to prepare for a new aggressive campaign 
 with his inadequate forces, General Garfield was 
 assigned the task of rebuilding the bridges and 
 reopening the Memphis and Charlestown railroad 
 
LIFE AND PUBLIC CAREER OF 
 
 eastward from Corinth to Decatur. Crossing 
 the Tennessee here, he advanced to Huntsville, 
 where he remained during the rest of that cam 
 paign, carrying out every instruction received, 
 with absolute fidelity, and at all times with perfect 
 success. 
 
 One of the constant objects of General Buell 
 during the time General Garfield was engaged in 
 bridge-building, a task for which his energy and 
 familiarity with building-work peculiarly fitted him, 
 was the enforcement of discipline and the reduc 
 tion of the somewhat loose habits of the men of 
 his command to the army standard. Court mar- 
 tials were frequent, and it was not always easy to 
 find officers thoroughly fitted for such duties. 
 Garfield s legal mind, his dispassionate, fully-rea 
 soned judgment, singled him out from among his 
 fellows for just such \vork. His first detail in this 
 class of army experience was the case of Colonel 
 Turchin, charged with committing gross excesses. 
 These charges were neglect of duty, to the preju 
 dice of good order and discipline, in permitting 
 the wanton and disgraceful pillage of the town of 
 Athens, Alabama ; conduct unbecoming an officer 
 and a gentleman in failing to pay a hotel bill in 
 the town ; and insubordination in disobeying the 
 orders against the molestation of peaceful citizens 
 in persons and property. Some of the specifica 
 tions particularized very shameful conduct. The 
 court found him guilty (except as to the hotel bill 
 
JAMES A. GARFIELD. T T 
 
 story) and sentenced him to dismissal from the 
 service. Six of its members recommended him to 
 clemency, but General Buell was determined, and 
 the sentence was carried out. The newspapers 
 took up the case and championed the colonel, and 
 those of Chicago were very vehement in his de 
 fense. On his return to Chicago, he was given a 
 public reception, and the President, as if to in 
 dorse the deeds of the disgraced colonel, ap 
 pointed him a brigadier. 
 
 The old tendency to fever and ague, contracted 
 in the days of his tow-path experience on the 
 Ohio Canal, was now aggravated in the malari 
 ous climate of the South, and Garfield returned 
 home on sick-leave, on the i st of August. Hardly 
 had he started for Ohio, when the secretary 
 of war, who seems, at this early day, to have 
 formed a high estimate of Garfielcl, which he con 
 tinued to entertain through the war, issued orders 
 to him to proceed to Cumberland Gap, and relieve 
 General George W. Morgan of his command. 
 But when they were received, Garfield was too ill 
 to leave his bed. A month later, the secretary 
 ordered him to report in person, at Washington, 
 as soon as his health would permit. 
 
 On his- arrival, soon after, it was found that the 
 estimate placed upon his knowledge of law, his 
 judgment and his loyalty, had led to his selection 
 as one of the first members of the court-martial 
 for the trial of the noted Fitz John Porter. 
 
192 
 
 LIFE AND PUBLIC CAREER OF 
 
 The intimacy that sprung up during this trial be 
 tween Garfield and General Hunter, the president 
 of the court-martial, led to an application for him 
 for service in South Carolina, whither Hunter was 
 about to start. Garfield s strong anti-slavery views 
 had been greatly strengthened by his experience 
 thus far during the war, and the South Carolina ap 
 pointment under a commander so radical as Hunter 
 was on this account particularly gratifying. But 
 in the midst of his fears and preparations the old 
 army in which he had served, plunged into the 
 battle of Stone River. A part of the bitter cost 
 of the victory that followed was the loss of 
 Garesche, the lamented chief of staff to the com 
 manding general. Garfield was at once selected 
 to take his place, the appointment to South Car 
 olina was revoked, and early in January, 1863, he 
 was ordered out to join Major-General Willliam S. 
 Rosecrans, then in command of the Army of the 
 Cumberland. 
 
 When he arrived at Rosecrans s head-quarters 
 that officer was already prejudiced against him. 
 For the general understood that he was a preacher 
 who had gone into politics, and a man of that cast 
 he was naturally opposed to. Rosecrans kept 
 him at head-quarters for a couple of days, as he 
 1 desired to make his acquaintance and sound the 
 man before assigning him to active duty. The 
 more he saw of him the more he liked him, and 
 finally he gave Garfield his choice, confirmation as 
 
JAMES A. GARFIELD. 
 
 , J 9o 
 
 chief of staff or the command of a brigade. Most 
 men would have taken the brigade, but Garfield 
 chose to remain with the general. That Rose- 
 :rans never regretted the appointment as chief of 
 staff, which he made immediately after the inter 
 view, is evidenced by what he has said. 
 
 " We were together until the Chattanooga affair. 
 
 found him to be a competent and efficient officer, 
 in earnest and devoted patriot, and a man of the 
 lighest honor. His views were large and he 
 vas possessed of a thoroughly comprehensive 
 Bind" 
 
 His appointment as chief of staff gave great 
 atisfaction throughout the army, and it was every 
 where expressed. The country was equally 
 >leased, especially Ohio. The editor of the Zenia 
 Torchlight, a paper published at Garfield s home, 
 hus commented on the appointment : 
 
 " We have known General James A. Garfield for 
 everal years, and entertain for him the highest 
 >ersonal regard. He is one of the most eloquent 
 nen in Ohio, as well as one of the ripest scholars. 
 Socially and morally, he has no superior. He is 
 popular with all, as the attachment of his scholars, 
 is well as his soldiers, for him demonstrates. 
 
 ". In respect to abilities, nature has by no means 
 Deen unfriendly to him ; and he has neither de- 
 pised nor slighted her gifts. A severe course of 
 nental training, combined with the mental prac- 
 ice obtained by presiding over one of the colleges 
 
] Q, LIFE AND PUBLIC CAREER OF 
 
 of Ohio, has fully developed his natural endov 
 ments. 
 
 " Above all these considerations, every one n 
 spects General Garfield for his stern, unyielding 
 uncompromising patriotism. The permanent goo 
 of his country, the restoration of its unity, and th 
 perpetuation of the National power and glor 
 through all coming time, are the objects which h 
 keeps steadily in view." 
 
 Once installed in his new position, he rapidl 
 grew into a favorite. Possessed of sound, nature 
 sense, an excellent judgment, a highly-cultivatej 
 intellect, and the deserved reputation of a success 
 ful mflitary leader, he was soon to be the mentor c 
 the staff, and his opinions sought, and his counsel 
 heeded by many who were older and not less dis 
 tin<niished than himself. 
 
 o 
 
 Edmund Kirke, in his picturesque war stor) 
 "Down in Tennessee," written in 1863, draws th 
 following pen-portrait of Garfield in his ne\ 
 capacity: 
 
 "In a corner by the window, seated at a smal 
 pine desk a sort of packing-box, perched on ; 
 long-legged stool, and divided into pigeon-hole;- 
 with a turn-down lid was a tall, decp-chestec 
 sinewy-built man, with regular, massive features, ; 
 full, clear blue eye, slightly tinged with gray, an< 
 a high, broad forehead, rising into a ridge over tli 
 eyes, as if it had been thrown up by a plow. Then 
 was something singularly engaging in his oper 
 
JAMES A. GARFIELD. 1 
 
 Jo 
 
 expressive face, and his whole appearance indi 
 cated, as the phrase goes, great reserve power. 
 -lis uniform, though cleanly brushed and sitting 
 easily upon him, had a sort of democratic air, and 
 everything about him seemed to denote that he 
 was *a man of the people/ A rusty slouched 
 lat, large enough to have fitted Daniel Webster, 
 ay on the desk before him ; but a glance at that 
 vas not needed to convince me that his head held 
 nore than the common share of brains. Though 
 
 is yet young not thirty-three the reader has 
 leard of him, and if he lives he will make his name 
 ong remembered in our history." 
 
 Garfield was looked upon as the only mature 
 member of the staff, Rosecrans having a par- 
 iality for young and gallant spirits, like Captain 
 "harles Thompson, Major Bond, Colonel Mickler, 
 Captain Hunter Brooke, Major Horace Porter, 
 subsequently on Grant s staff, and Major Morton 
 VlcMichael. Not that Garfield was much older than 
 hese officers, but he had a mature look always, 
 and his mood was ever serious, as if there was in 
 the peril of the nation something more of personal 
 concern and personal interest to him than to most 
 of his associates. 
 
 It was while acting 1 in this capacity that Gar- 
 leld had a conversation with Clement C. Valland- 
 ngham. Vallandingham having been banished 
 br his treasonable sentiments, was brought to 
 Murfeesboro, Tenn., where the army lay, to be 
 
I (/) 
 
 LIFE AND PUBLIC CAREER OF 
 
 sent by flag of truce into the rebel lines, a ft 
 miles distant, at Tullahoma. When brought in 
 camp, Vallandingham was taken, in the usu 
 course of business, to Rosecrans s head-quartei 
 and he and Garfield being acquaintances, it was n 
 tural they should fall into conversation, and equal 
 natural that the conversation should turn upc 
 the policy and conduct of the war, in a politic 
 sense. 
 
 Vallandingham was to go 4 off the next da 
 escorted as far as the rebel lines, in the vicinity 
 Tullahoma. He entered Rosecrans s tent at 2 
 early hour of the morning with an affectation of ui 
 concern and light-heartedness which he could n< 
 have felt, threw himself into a tragic attitude, ar 
 in a mock heroic vein exclaimed, quoting froi 
 Romeo and Juliet : 
 
 " Night s candles are burnt out, and jocund day 
 Stands tiptoe on the misty mountain tops." 
 
 Here he hesitated, when Garfield quickly bi 
 quietly finished the speech, by adding, in a ha 
 aside, to the aid-de-camp in charge of the flag c 
 truce escort, waiting to convey Vallandingham 1 
 the rebel lines, 
 
 " I must begone and live, or stay and die." 
 
 Vallandingham, however, overheard and caugl 
 the hidden meaning of the citation, and blushe 
 scarlet, as he made its application. 
 
JAMES A. GAKFIELD. 
 
 CHAPTER XV. 
 
 GARFIELD AS CHIEF OF STAFF. 
 
 THE chief of staff should bear the same re 
 lation to his general that a minister oi 
 state does to his sovereign. What this 
 relation is, that brilliant historian, Kinglake, tells 
 us in his " Crimean War :" 
 
 " The difference between a servant and a minis 
 ter of state lies in this, that the servant obeys the 
 orders given him, without troubling himself con 
 cerning the question whether his master is right or 
 wrong, while a minister of state declines to be the 
 instrument for giving effect to the measures which 
 he deems hurtful to his country. The chancellor of 
 the Russian Empire was sagacious and politic. 
 That the czar was wrong in these transactions 
 against Turkey, no man knew better. But, un 
 happily for the czar and for his empire, the minis 
 ter did not enjoy so commanding a station as to 
 be able to put restraint upon his sovereign, nor 
 even, perhaps, to offer him counsel in his angry 
 mood." 
 
 We now see that in some respects our chief of 
 staff went through a similar experience. From 
 the day of his appointment, General Garfield be 
 came the intimate associate and confidential ad- 
 
Ul- J^ AXD n*!3LlC L AXKEX OF 
 
 viser of his chief. But he did not occupy sc 
 commanding a station as to be able to put 
 restraint upon him. 
 
 The time of General Garfield s arrival marks 
 the beginning of that period of quarrels with the 
 War Department, in which General Rosecrans 
 frittered away his influence and paved the way 
 for his removal. That great strategist and gallant 
 soldier was always unwise in caring for his own 
 interests, and generally was very imprudent in his 
 intercourse with his superiors. Yet he was nearly 
 always right in his demands, especially when he 
 made appeals to the War Department for more 
 cavalry and revolving arms. In these requests Gar- 
 field was heart and soul with his superior. At the 
 same time, he did all in his power to soften the 
 tone of asperity which his chief adopted in his 
 dispatches to Washington. Sometimes he took 
 the responsibility of totally suppressing an angry 
 message. Oftener he ventured to soften the 
 
 o 
 
 phraseology. But in all this there was a limit 
 beyond which he could not go, and when Rose 
 crans had pronounced certain statements of the 
 department, "a profound, grievous, cruel and un 
 generous official and personal wrong," the good 
 offices of the chief of staff were no longer effica- 
 
 o 
 
 cious the breach was irreparable. Thencefor 
 ward he could only strive to make victories in the 
 field atone for errors in council. 
 
 He regarded the organization of the army as 
 
JAMES A. ti 
 
 99 
 
 vitally defective. Almost the first recommendation 
 made by General Garfield was the displacement 
 of A. M. McCook and T. L. Crittenden. This 
 recommendation was made in course of a dis 
 cussion on the battle of Stone River, in which 
 Rosecrans explicitly said that these officers had 
 shown themselves incompetent in that engage 
 ment. Garfield then, with his clear-headed judg 
 ment utterly unmoved by popular prejudice, and 
 thoroughly well able to perceive real ability be 
 neath concealing misfortune recommended that 
 McCook and Crittenden be replaced by Irvin Mc 
 Dowell and Don Carlos Buell. Garfield did not 
 take the ground that Buell and McDowell had 
 proved themselves equal to the high commands 
 they had already held, but without discussing this, 
 he argued at length their masterly qualifications 
 for important subordinate positions, as well as the 
 fact that this offer of an opportunity to come out 
 from the cloud under which they rested would in 
 sure their gratitude and incite them to their very 
 best efforts. With George H. Thomas already in 
 command, with men like these as his associates, and 
 with the energy and genius of Rosecrans to lead 
 them, the Army of the Cumberland would have 
 been the best officered army in the service of the 
 nation. But " Rosecrans was unwilling to adopt 
 the suggestion for a reason creditable to his kind 
 ness of heart, but not to his military character 
 
 Crittenden and McCook ought to be removed, 
 12 
 
2 OO LIFE AND PUBLIC CAREER OF 
 
 of that he had no doubt, but lie hated to injure 
 two such good fellows/ and the two good fellows 
 remained with him until Chickamauga." 
 
 From January 4th to June 24th, Rosecrans lay 
 at Murfreesboro. Through five months of this 
 delay Garfield was with him. The War Depart 
 ment demanded an advance, and, when the spring 
 opened, with unusual vehemence. General Rose 
 crans delayed, waiting for cavalry, for reinforce 
 ments, for Grant s movements before Vicksburg, 
 for the movements of the enemy, for the opinions 
 of the generals. The chief of staff at first ap 
 proved the delays till the army should be strength 
 ened and massed, but long before the delaying 
 officers were ready he was urging movement with 
 all his power. In a private letter, dated June I2th, 
 1863, he urged an advance. He wrote: 
 
 "Bragg s army is weaker than it has been since 
 the previous battles. If Grant succeeds at Vicks 
 burg, it will take weeks to recover from the shock 
 and strain. * * * The turbulent aspect of 
 politics in the loyal States renders a decisive blow 
 against the enemy at this time of the utmost im 
 portance. * * The country is anxiously hop 
 ing for the army to move. * * * Our true 
 objective is the rebel army. Our army is superior 
 in efficiency and morale. * * * For these rea 
 sons I believe an immediate advance of all our 
 available forces is advisable, and under the provi 
 dence of God will be successful." 
 
JAMES A. GARFIELD. 
 
 This information he procured through a secret- 
 service system that he had established ; then, per 
 haps, the most perfect in any of the Union armies. 
 As he subsequently said, he refused to believe 
 that this army, which defeated a superior at Stone 
 River, could not now move upon an inferior one 
 with reasonable prospect of success. 
 
 The Army of the Cumberland agreed with Gar- 
 field, who was a great favorite with the officers 
 and men. His ringing letter on the atrocities of 
 rebel prison-pens, written a few months previous 
 to this, had added greatly to his popularity. The 
 closing sentence of this letter is good reading even 
 now: 
 
 "We cannot believe that the justice of God will 
 allow such a people to prosper. Let every soldier 
 know that death on the battle-field is preferable 
 to a surrender followed by such outrages as their 
 comrades have undergone." 
 
 x Finally, General Rosecrans formally asked his 
 corps, division and cavalry generals as to the pro 
 priety of a movement. With singular unanimity, 
 though for divers reasons, they opposed it Out 
 of seventeen generals not one was in favor of an 
 immediate advance, and not one was even willing 
 to put himself upon the record as in favor of an 
 early advance. 
 
 General Garfield collated the seventeen letters 
 sent in from the generals in reply to the questions 
 of their commander, and fairly refuted their sub- 
 
202 
 
 LIFE AND PUBLIC CAREER OF 
 
 stance, coupled with a cogent argument against 
 them and in favor of an immediate movement. 
 This report, says an excellent authority, is " the 
 ablest military document known to have been sub 
 mitted by a chief of staff to his superior during 
 the war." General Garfield stood absolutely 
 alone, every general commanding troops having, as 
 we have seen, either openly opposed or failed to 
 approve an advance. But his statements were so 
 clear, and his arguments so convincing, that he 
 carried conviction. 
 
 Twelve days after the reception of this report 
 the army moved, to the great dissatisfaction of its 
 leading generals. One of the three corps com 
 manders, Major-General Thomas L. Crittenden, 
 approached the chief of staff at the head-quarters 
 the morning of the advance: "It is understood, 
 sir," he said, " by the general officers of the army 
 that this movement is your work. I wish you to 
 understand that it is a rash and fatal move, for 
 which you will be held responsible." 
 
 This rash and fatal move was the Tullahoma 
 campaign, a campaign perfect in its conception, 
 excellent in its general execution, and only hindered 
 from resulting in the complete destruction of the 
 opposing army by the delays which had too long 
 postponed its commencement. It might even yet 
 have destroyed Bragg, but for the terrible season 
 of rains which set in on the morning of the advance, 
 and continued uninterruptedly for the greater part 
 
JAMES A. CAIU IELD. OQ ^ 
 
 of a month. With a week s earfier start it would 
 have ended the career of Bragg s army in the war. 
 Let us turn aside from the direct story of con 
 flict for a moment to a personal word about our 
 hero. One of the most prolific war writers J. R. 
 Gilmore who spent a month with Rosecrans, 
 gives us some interesting gem pictures of Gar- 
 field, as he was at this time, the spring and sum 
 mer of 1 863. " We rode one day out to Sheridan s 
 head-quarters," says Gilmore, "and as we entered 
 the forest encircling the town, Garfield broke out 
 with Hosea Bigelow s poem : 
 
 " I du believe in Freedom s cause/ 
 
 and if the * Down East poet would have any ap 
 preciation of his own lines, he should hear them in 
 such grand, old woods, the words echoed back 
 from the great spreading trees and set to the 
 music of an hundred horses heels. He had 
 scarcely ended, when Rosecrans began to tell how 
 
 " * Zekle crep up, quite unbeknown, 
 An peeped in thru the winder : 
 While there sot Huldy all alone 
 Ith no one nigh to hinder. 
 
 " What would you give to have written that? 
 Rosecrans said, as he finished the recitation. 
 
 " All the castles I ever built in the clouds, was 
 the reply. 
 
 " So would I. You know what Wolie said be 
 fore his great battle ? 
 
 " That he would rather have written Gray s 
 Elegy than take Quebec. Would you have said 
 
204 LIFE AND PUBLIC CAREER OF 
 
 that before Stone River? 
 
 " He hesitated a moment, and then answered : 
 " No, for now we need victories more than 
 poems. 
 
 "We soon arrived at Sheridan s. There we 
 had some relaxation. Sheridan had invented 
 a game he called Dutch Ten-Pins. On the 
 lawn in front of his quarters, between two im 
 mense elms, he had suspended a long rope, and to 
 the end of it attached a small cannon-ball. On 
 the ground, midway between these trees, was a 
 square board which held the ten-pins. The game 
 lay in throwing the ball so that it would miss the 
 pins in going out, and strike them in coming back. 
 To do this a peculiar twist had to be given to the 
 rope by bending the wrist, and it seemed impossi 
 ble to avoid hitting the pins on the direct throw. 
 Three throws were a game, and only thirty 
 strokes could be made. Sheridan, by much 
 practice, had become an expert at the play, and 
 could make pretty regularly twenty strokes, but 
 a novice did well if he made ten. Sheridan soon 
 challenged Rosecrans, Garfield, and the dozen 
 officers with him to enter the lists and the chal 
 lenger opened the play. He cleared the board 
 twice, and missed it altogether the third throw. 
 Twenty/ cried the scorer, and another took his 
 place. He did indifferently well. Others fol 
 lowed with more or less success, though none 
 came up to Sheridan s score. 
 
JAMES A. GAR FIELD. 2 
 
 \J 
 
 " Now for the general/ shouted the major, 
 laughing, as Rosecrans took his place. He ll 
 score thirty, sure. 
 
 " Don t laugh until you win, my boy, answered 
 the general, with his peculiar smile. 
 
 " Calculating deliberately the motion of the ball, 
 he let it go. Every pin fell on the direct throw, 
 and a general laugh followed. Not at all dis 
 concerted, he tried again and again until he had 
 played three or four games with scarcely better 
 success. Amid the mock congratulations of the 
 whole assemblage he at last sat down, and Gar- 
 field entered the lists. It s nothing but mathe 
 matics, said Garfield, you only need an eye and 
 a hand/ and carelessly throwing the ball he 
 cleared the board and scored twenty-three I 
 
 " You can t do that again. 
 
 " I ll try/ answered the modest brigadier, and 
 he did do it several times in succession." 
 
 Another anecdote and one that well illustrates 
 the instant correctness of Garfield s reasoning on 
 subjects of the most vital and serious importance 
 and we will hurry on to Chickamauga. Toward the 
 close of May, 1863, Rosecrans received a letter, in 
 which the scheme for a general uprising and arm 
 ing of the blacks, followed by attacks on the 
 whites, in all the slave States, on the first of the 
 following August, was outlined. The support of 
 Rosecrans was asked for in his department, and 
 he was told that a similar plan had been sent to a 
 
E AND ^L ALSC CAREER OF 
 
 Union commander in each department. Rose- 
 crans deliberated over the communication and 
 asked a bystander his opinion. 
 
 " It would end the rebellion. Co-operating" with 
 our forces, it would certainly succeed ; but the 
 South would run with blood." 
 
 " Innocent blood ? Women and children ?" 
 
 " Yes ; women and children. If you let the 
 blacks loose, they will rush into carnage like 
 horses into a burning- barn. St. Domingo will be 
 multiplied by a million." 
 
 " But the letter says that no blood is to be shed 
 except in self-defense." 
 
 "It says so, and the leaders may mean so, but 
 they cannot restrain the rabble. Every slave has 
 some real or fancied wrong, and he would take 
 such a time to avenge it." 
 
 " I am puzzled. I must go and talk with Gar- 
 field. Come, go with me." 
 
 They crossed the street to Garfield s lodgings 
 and found him bolstered up in bed, quite sick of a 
 fever. Rosecrans sat clown at the foot of the bed 
 and handed him the letter. Garfield read it over 
 carefully, and then laying it down, said : 
 
 " It will never do, general. We don t want to 
 whip by such means. If the slaves of their own 
 accord rise and assert their original right to them 
 selves, that will be their own affair; but we can 
 have no complicity with them without outraging 
 the moral sense of the civilized world." 
 
JAMES A. CAKFfELD. 
 
 " I knew you would say so ; but the writer 
 speaks of other department commanders. May 
 they not come into it ?" 
 
 " Yes, they may, and that should be looked to. 
 Send this letter to - and let him head off the 
 movement." 
 
 The insurrection, as every one knows, did not 
 take place, save in some unimportant outbreaks 
 in Georgia and Alabama in the following Septem 
 ber. 
 
208 
 
 LTFE AND PUBLIC CAREER OF 
 
 CHAPTER XVI. 
 
 THE BATTLE OF CIIICKAMAUGA. 
 
 THERE now sprang up renewed differences 
 between General Rosecrans and the Wat 
 Department. In the general policy that 
 controlled the movements of the army Garfield 
 heartily sympathized ; he had, in fact, given shape 
 to that policy. But he deplored his chiefs testy 
 manner of conducting his defense to the com 
 plaints of the War Department, and did his best 
 to soften the asperities of that correspondence. 
 
 September was now nearly come, the summer 
 almost gone, and the coming autumn was ripe in 
 its promise of immediate results. The air was 
 full of rumors of approaching conflicts, and the 
 North waited the echo from the battle-field. 
 
 On August 5th, General Halleck telegraphed 
 Rosecrans peremptory orders to move. Rose 
 crans quietly waited till the dispositions along his 
 extended lines were completed, till stores were 
 accumulated and the corn had ripened, so that his 
 horses could be made to live off of the country, 
 On the 1 5th he was ready. 
 
 The problem now before him was to cross the 
 Tennessee River and gain possession of Chatta 
 nooga, the key to the entire mountain ranges ol 
 
JAMES A. GARI IELD. 
 
 last Tennessee and Northern Georgia, in the 
 ice of an enemy of equal strength, whose busi- 
 ess it was to oppose him. Two courses were 
 pen. Forcing a passage over the river above 
 hattanooga, he might have essayed a direct at j 
 ick upon the town. If not repulsed in the dan- 
 erous preliminary movements, he would still 
 ave had upon his hands a siege not less formid- 
 ble than that of Vicksburg, with difficulties in- 
 omparably greater in maintaining his supplies. 
 Jut, if this plan was not adopted, it then behooved 
 im to convince the enemy that he had adopted 
 
 while crossing below he hastened southward 
 ver the ruggedest roads, to seize the mountain 
 aps, whence he could debouch upon the enemy s 
 ne of supplies. More briefly, he could either 
 ttempt to fight the enemy out of Chattanooga or 
 ank him out He chose the latter alternative. 
 
 By the 28th the singular activity of the National 
 Drees along a front of one hundred and fifty miles, 
 ad blinded and bewildered Bragg as to his an- 
 agonist s actual intentions. Four brigades sud- 
 enly began demonstrating furiously against his 
 nes above Chattanooga, and the plan was 
 bought to be revealed. 
 
 Rosecrans must be about attempting to force a 
 assage there, and straightway a concentration to 
 ppose him was ordered. Meantime, bridges, se- 
 retly prepared, were hastily thrown across thirty 
 liles further down the river at different points, 
 
: ,/.v/> rrni.ic CAREER OF 
 
 and, before "Bragg had finished preparing to resij 
 a crossing above, Rosecrans, handling with rai 
 skill his various corps and divisions, had securel 
 planted his army south of the Tennessee; an< 
 cutting completely loose from his base of supplie 
 was already pushing southward his flank ne? 
 the enemy being admirably protected by impai 
 sable mountains. 
 
 For Bragg but one thing was the least feasibl< 
 As he had been forced out of Shelbyville, out < 
 Wartrace, out of Tullahoma ; precisely had th 
 same stress been placed upon him by the sam 
 hand in a still stronger position ; and in all hast 
 he evacuated Chattanoogo, leaving it to the neai 
 est corps of Rosecrans s army to march quiet! 
 in and take possession. The very ease of th: 
 occupation proved its strongest element of dange 
 For men, seeing the objective point in the can 
 paign in their hands, forgot the columns toilin 
 through the mountains away to the south ware 
 whose presence there alone compelled the reb< 
 evacuation. But for them, the isolated troops i 
 Chattanooga would have been overwhelmec 
 Thenceforward there was need of still greate 
 generalship to reunite the scattered corps. The 
 could not return by the way they had gone, fc 
 the moment they began such a movement Bragj 
 holding the shorter line, and already re-enforce 
 by Longstreet s veteran corps of the Army < 
 Northern Virginia, could sweep back over th 
 
JAMES A. GAKFIELD. 
 
 T 
 
 >ute of his late retreat. Plainly, they must pass 
 irough the gaps, and place themselves between 
 ragg and Chattanooga before the stronghold 
 -beyond a mere tentative possession could be 
 ithin their grasp. And so it came about that a 
 ittle the bloody one of Chickamauga was 
 ught to enable the Federal army to concentrate 
 : the position one of its corps had already occu- 
 .ed for days without firing a shot. 
 
 Unfortunately, the concentration was not speedy 
 lough. Indeed, there are some plausible reasons 
 r believing that Rosecrans was, perhaps for a 
 w days, deceived by his easy success, into a be- 
 *f that Bragg was still in full retreat. Certainly 
 ^e general-in-chief and the War Department did 
 1 they could to encourage such an idea, and 
 ^en after Rosecrans, every nerve tense with 
 .e struggle to concentrate his corps, was striving 
 * prepare for the onset of the re-enforced rebel 
 my, General Halleck informed him of reports 
 at Bragg s army was re-enforcing Lee, and pleas- 
 itly added, that after he had occupied Dalton it 
 ould be decided whether he should move still 
 rther southward ! 
 
 By this time, Bragg had gathered in every 
 Bailable re-enforcement, Longstreet from the east, 
 uckner from Knoxville, Walker from the army 
 Joseph E. Johnston, militia from Georgia and, 
 gether waiting near Lafayette, hoped to receive 
 e isolated corps of Rosecrans s army as they 
 
o r 2 LIFE AA D J UBLIC CAREER OF 
 
 debouched through the gaps, and annihilated! 
 in detail. For a day or two, it looked as if 
 would be successful. One way or another, h 
 ever, he failed. Rosecrans gathered toget 
 his army, repelling whatever assaults sought 
 hinder the concentration, yielding part of the ! 
 of the Chickamauga, and marching one of 
 corps all through the night of the battle. 
 September 1 9th, Bragg made his onset with < 
 tainly not less than seventy-five thousand rr 
 Rosecrans claimed for him ninety-two thouss 
 Rosecrans had fifty-five thousand. Of the ba 
 Whitelaw Reid gives the following account : 
 
 "Bragg s plan was to turn his antagonist s 
 and thus clear the way into Chattanooga, but rr 
 unfortunately for Bragg, the left was held 
 Geo. H. Thomas, and shortly after the attack 
 gan, Rosecrans, divining the danger, stren< 
 ened Thomas s corps with one or two divisk 
 Disaster overtook us at first, artillery was lost ; 
 ground yielded, but Thomas reformed and 
 vanced his lines, regained all that had been 1 
 sustained every shock of the enemy, and at ni 
 held his position firmly. 
 
 "Meanwhile the contest on other parts of 
 line had been less severe, and had ended decide 
 in our advantage. But it was seen that we w 
 outnumbered, and as they came to think how ev 
 brigade in the whole army, two only excepted, I 
 been drawn into the fight the soldiers begar 
 realize the dispiriting nature of the situation. 
 
JAMES A. GARi-IELD. 
 
 " J 
 
 "Through the night, the last of Longstrect :; 
 corps came up, led by himself and Bragg, pre 
 pared for a vigorous onset on the National left. 
 Rosecrans transferred another division (Negley s) 
 to Thomas, and placed two more in reserve to be 
 hurried to Thomas s aid if needed. At daybreak, 
 he galloped along the front to find McCook s line 
 ill-formed, and also to learn that Negley had not 
 yet been forwarded to Thomas. The errors were 
 corrected as well as possible ; but long before 
 Thomas s needed re-enforcements had come, the 
 battle was raging on his front and flank. Pro- 
 
 foundly conscious of the danger, Rosecrans sought 
 
 to render still further aid, and ordered over Van 
 
 Cleve s division from the right, directing the sev- 
 jeral division commanders and the corps general 
 
 to close up the line on the left. In the heat of the 
 
 battle, which by this time was broken out along 
 1 the right also, one of these division commanders 
 IT. J. Wood, of Kentucky misunderstood his 
 
 I orders, and though he has subsequently stated 
 that he knew the consequences of his action must 
 be fatal, he chose to consider himself bound by 
 I the order to break the line of battle and march to 
 Jthe rear of another division. Longstreet per 
 ceived the gap and hurled Hopd into it. The 
 battle on the right was lost. The whole wing 
 crumbled ; the enemy poured forward and all that 
 was left of McCook s corps, a broken rabble, 
 streamed back to Chattanooga. 
 
2 j 5 / // 7i y/A7> PUBLIC CAREER Ol- 
 
 "General Rosecrans, himself, was caught in this 
 rout and borne along, vainly striving to stem its 
 tide. Finally conceiving that if the wing least 
 pressed was thus destroyed, Thomas, upon whom 
 he knew the main efforts of the enemy were con 
 centrated, could not hold out beyond nightfall 
 he hastened to Chattanooga to make dispositions 
 for the retreat and defense which he already re 
 garded as inevitable. Meanwhile, his chief o: 
 staff, General Garfield, was sent to Thomas, to 
 convey to him information of what had happened 
 and of the plans for the future." 
 
 As chief of staff, it was Garfield s duty to remain 
 with General Rosecrans, and it happened that the 
 latter established his head-quarters for the day in 
 the rear of the right wing and centre, leaving to 
 General George H. Thomas the duty of directing 
 the fortunes of the left wing. McCook and Crit- 
 tenden, it will be remembered, were commanders 
 of the other two corps. Shortly after the fog, 
 which for the most of the morning enveloped 
 the field, and made manoeuvring almost impos 
 sible, the rebels, under Longstreet, who had 
 come from Lee s Virginia army to take part in the 
 great contest, made a grand assault on the right 
 and centre. They were just in time to take ad 
 vantage of Wood s fatal mistake, which left a gap 
 in the Union line. The rebels penetrated far to 
 the rear of the Federal line at this point, and turn 
 ing, drove back the right of Thomas s forces and 
 
CHATTANOOGA BATTLE-FIELD AND APPROACHES. 
 
JAMES A. GAR FIELD. 2 l 
 
 the left of the other two corps. The latter were 
 eventually routed, driven across the ridge of hills 
 to roads leading to Chattanooga, toward which 
 they retreated in dreadful disorder and panic. In 
 the tumult of defeat of the centre and right, Mc- 
 Cook, Crittenden and Rosecrans, with their staff 
 officers, were driven beyond the ridge named, and 
 they, too, started for Chattanooga, not knowing 
 whether Thomas had been annihilated or had 
 escaped. 
 
 Garfield followed his commander about half way 
 to Chattanooga. Riding up to Rosecrans, he said, 
 "General, I ask permission to return and join 
 General Thomas." Some slight remonstrance 
 was made, but Garfield persevered in his desire, 
 and obtained permission. Captain William B. 
 Gaw, of the engineers, upon this offered to act as 
 guide, knowing the country thoroughly, and shar 
 ing the general s wish to be where there was dan 
 ger. Accompanied by Gaw and his orderly, Gar- 
 field set out on his now famous ride. Striking 
 through the Rossville Gap, in the mountain range, 
 he rapidly pushed southward in search of General 
 Thomas, the firing of whose guns, indicating that 
 the Union troops were by no means in retreat, 
 could be plainly heard. The sounds borne on the 
 peaceful breeze were as fire to the heels of Gar- 
 field s horse, and on he dashed, his whole energy 
 bent upon reaching the scene of action. For his 
 was the true soldier s spirit ; his the true soldier s 
 13 
 
220 
 
 Z//7i AXD rUBLIC CARLLR CF 
 
 creed, Napoleon s advice to his generals : " March 
 in the direction of the heaviest firing." 
 
 At the time he made this attempt the road by 
 which Garfield expected to reach General Thomas 
 was under cover by sharp-shooters and the ad 
 vance guards of the rebels, who were pushing 
 forward to secure possession of the road, and 
 thereby cut off Thomas s line of retreat. Garfield 
 did not know of their presence there until admon 
 ished of it by the pattering of their too lively bul 
 lets. Garfield s horse and that of his guide, Cap 
 tain Gaw, were shot at the first discharge, and 
 Garfield s orderly was wounded, though not se 
 riously. They were compelled to abandon the 
 road, and take to the fields and the mountain-side, 
 where Gaw s familiarity with the topography of 
 the country came into play. Intrusting himself 
 implicitly to Gaw, Garfield was -eventually, after 
 repeated avoidance of danger, brought in safety to 
 General Thomas s side. 
 
 The "Rock of Chickamauga" was reached just 
 after the repulse of the enemy in a formidable as 
 sault all along Thomas s line, which the rebels en 
 veloped on both flanks. He found Thomas and 
 his staff, General Gordon Granger, General J. B. 
 Steedman, General Wood, and others, grouped in 
 a hollow of the open field, a depression just suffi 
 cient to protect them from the. direct rebel fire. 
 
 Garfield at once gave Thomas a brief account 
 of the disaster to the right and centre. Thomas, 
 
JAMES A. GARFIELD. 2 j 
 
 in return, stated his own intention and his situa 
 tion. The conversation, however, was not finished, 
 it was cut short by a fresh rebel assault. It was 
 made in great force and with great desperation, 
 the rebels evidently foreseeing, that if repulsed, 
 they could not get their troops in position for yet 
 another assault before the sun went down and 
 darkness came to the aid of the enemy. The fire 
 lasted furiously for half an hour, when the rebels 
 again broke and abandoned the assault. During 
 this desperate melee Garfield quietly sat on the 
 ground behind a dead tree, and coolly indited a 
 dispatch to General Rosecrans detailing the situa 
 tion ; and while he sat there, and during the 
 heaviest of the firing, a white dove, after hovering 
 around and above for several minutes, finally set 
 tled on the topmost perch of the tree above Gar- 
 field s head. He re it remained during the heat of 
 the fight, and when the musketry ceased, it flew 
 away to the north. The attention of Garfield and 
 General Wood was called to the bird. Garfield 
 said nothing, ,but went on writing. Wood re 
 marked : " Good omen of peace." Garfield fin 
 ished his dispatch, sent it by an officer, and himself 
 remained on the field with General Thomas until 
 the retreat was effected the same night to Chatta 
 nooga. At seven o clock that evening a shotted 
 salute of six Napoleon guns fired into the woods, 
 after the last of the retreating assailants, under 
 the personal supervison of General Gordon Gran- 
 
222 LirE AND PUBLIC CAXEER OF 
 
 ger and General Garfield, were the last shots fired 
 in the battle of Chickamauga. What was left of 
 the Union army was master of the field. For the 
 time the enemy evidently regarded himself as re 
 pulsed, and Garfield said that night, and has always 
 since maintained, that there was no necessity for 
 an immediate retreat on Rossville. 
 
 This was Garfield s last military service of mo 
 ment. He wrote every order that day but one 
 that one was the fatal order to General Wood, 
 which, displacing his brigade, enabled Hood to 
 break through and turn the Union flank. That 
 order Rosecrans wrote himself. But after Wood 
 had been moved, and after Davis had been shat 
 tered and beaten back, when the whole right wing, 
 mad with panic, surged back through the gaps, 
 Garfield came upon the field, showing clearly that 
 communication could be established between the 
 reserve and Thomas, who still stood as steadfast 
 as the spur of Mission Ridge, that loomed behind 
 him. Through him the reserves were pushed to 
 the left of Thomas, enabling him to hold Polk and 
 Longstreet at bay during that long, sad afternoon 
 of shock and repulse. And it should never be for 
 gotten, in Garfield s praise, that it was on his own 
 earnest representations that he procured permis 
 sion by half refusing to further retreat to go to 
 Thomas, and so back into battle. He refused to 
 believe that Thomas was routed or the battle lost. 
 
 General Wood, in his official report of Chicka- 
 
GEN. GEORGE H. THOMAS. 
 
 MISSIONARY RIDGE. 
 
. , *" 
 * , - - , 
 
JAMES A. GARFILLD. 2 , 
 
 mauga, said of General Garfield s action on that 
 day of disaster: 
 
 "It affords me much pleasure to signalize the 
 presence with my command, for a length of time 
 during the afternoon (present during the period 
 of hottest fighting), of another distinguished of 
 ficer, Brigadier-General James A. Garfield, chief 
 of the staff. After the disastrous rout on the 
 right, General Garfield made his way back to the 
 battle-field (showing clearly that the road was open 
 to all who might choose to follow it), and came to 
 where my command was engaged. The brigade 
 which made so determined a resistance on the 
 crest of the narrow ridge during all the long Sep 
 tember afternoon, had been commanded by Gen 
 eral Garfield when he belonged to my division. 
 The men remarked his presence with much satis 
 faction, and were delighted that he was a witness 
 of the splendid fighting they were doing. 
 
 Rosecrans, in his official report, added his 
 measure of praise 
 
 "To "Brigadier-General James A. Garfield, chief 
 of staff, I. am especially indebted for the clear and 
 ready manner in which he seized the points of ac 
 tion and movement, and expressed in orders the 
 ideas of the general commanding." 
 
 On an afternoon not long afterward the army 
 was then at Chattanooga Garfield approached his 
 commander, Rosecrans, and said to him: "Gen 
 eral, I have been asked to accept the Republican 
 
22 6 LIFE AND PUBLIC CAREER OF 
 
 nomination for Congress from the Ashtabula dis 
 trict. What ought I to do? What is your advice? 
 Ought I to accept? Can I do so honorably?" 
 
 "I am glad, for your sake," returned Rosecrans, 
 "that you have a new distinction, and I certainly 
 think you can accept with honor, and, what is 
 more, I deem it your duty to do so. The war is 
 not over yet, nor will it be for some time to come. 
 There will be, of necessity, many questions aris 
 ing in Congress which will require not alone 
 statesmanlike treatment, but the advice of men 
 having an acquaintance with military affairs. For 
 this, and other reasons, I believe you will be able 
 to do equally good service to your country in Con 
 gress as in the field. Now, let me give you a 
 piece of advice. When you go to Congress, be 
 careful what you say. Don t talk too much, but 
 when you do talk speak to the point. Be true to 
 yourself, and you will make your mark before the 
 country." 
 
 After a week or two further service, he was sent 
 as bearer of dispatches to Washington. He there 
 learned of his promotion to a major-generalship of 
 volunteers "for gallant and meritorious conduct at 
 the battle of Chickamauga." He might have re 
 tained this position in the army, and the military 
 capacity he had displayed, the high favor in which 
 he was held by the Government, and the certainty 
 of assignment to important commands seemed to 
 augur a brilliant future. He was a poor man, too, 
 
BLOCK-HOUSE AT CHATTANOOGA 
 
 
 HEAD-QUARTERS OF THOMAS. 
 
LIFE AND PUBLIC CAREER OF 2 2Q 
 
 and the major-general s salary was more than 
 double that of the congressman. But, on mature 
 reflection, he decided that the circumstances under 
 which the people had elected him to Congress, 
 bound him to an effort to obey their wishes. He 
 was, furthermore, urged to enter Congress by the 
 officers of the army, who looked to him for aid in 
 procuring such military legislation as the country 
 and the army required. Under the belief that the 
 path of usefulness to the country lay in the direction 
 in which his constituents pointed, he sacrificed what 
 seemed to be his personal interests and, on the 
 5th of December, 1863, resigned his commission, 
 after nearly three years of service. 
 
 He left the Army of the Cumberland, followed 
 by the regrets and good wishes of every man in 
 it for each was his friend and he laid down his 
 unstained sword, to enter an arena where he has 
 won a prouder fame, a soldier of few but shining 
 laurels. A distinguished military critic thus sums 
 up his soldierly achievements : 
 
 " He proved himself a good, independent com 
 mander in the small, but important operations in 
 the Sandy Valley. His campaign there opened 
 our series of successes in the West, and, though 
 fought against superior forces, began with us the 
 habit of victory. After that he was only a subor 
 dinate. But he always enjoyed the confidence of 
 his immediate superiors and of the department. 
 As chief of staff, he was unrivaled. There, as 
 
030 JAMES A. GARFIELD. 
 
 elsewhere, he was ready to accept the gravest re 
 sponsibilities in following 1 his convictions. The 
 bent of his mind was aggressive ; his judgment in 
 military matters was always good; his papers on 
 the Tullahoma campaign will stand a monument 
 of his courage and his far-reaching soldierly saga 
 city; and his conduct at Chickamauga will nevei 
 be forgotten by a nation of brave men." 
 
 In following Garfield s career upon the field 
 of battle, we have steadily pursued the thread 
 of the direct story, rather than turn aside to 
 garner here and there a flower of incident, or to 
 gather a blossom growing beside the smoking 
 cannon s mouth, There were many such scat 
 tered about the path he trod with such earnest 
 feet. And we may, therefore, with entire rele 
 vance and appreciable purpose, devote a page 
 to the humors of conflict, as Garfield found, ab 
 sorbed and generated them. 
 
 No man has a keener sense of justice thar 
 General Garfield. One day, a fugitive slave came 
 rushing into the camp, with a bloody head and ap 
 parently frightened almost to death. He hac 
 only passed my tent, says a staff officer of General 
 Sherman, when, in a moment, a regular bully of a 
 fellow came riding up and, with a volley of oaths: 
 began to ask after his " nigger." 
 
 General Garfield was not present, and he 
 passed on to the division commander, who hap 
 pened to be a sympathizer with the theory that 
 
JAMES A. CARFIELD. ^ T 
 
 2 X 
 
 fugitives should be returned to their masters, and 
 that the Union soldiers should be made instru 
 ments for returning them. He accordingly wrote 
 a mandatory order to General Garfield, in whose 
 command the darkey was supposed to be hiding, 
 telling him to hunt up and deliver over the prop- , 
 erty of the outraged citizen. 
 
 The staff officer who brought the order stated 
 the case fully to General Garfield before handing 
 him the order, well knowing the general s strong 
 anti-slavery views. The general took the order 
 and, after reading it carefully, deliberately wrote 
 on it the following indorsement: 
 
 "I respectfully but positively decline to allow 
 my command to search for, or deliver up any 
 fugitive slaves. I conceive that they are here for 
 quite another purpose . The command is open 
 and no obstacle will be placed in the way of the 
 search." 
 
 When the staff officer read the general s in 
 dorsement he was inclined to be frightened, and 
 remonstrated against Garfield s determination. 
 He said if he returned the order in that shape 
 to the division commander he certainly would 
 arrest and court-martial the writer. To this the 
 Ohio general simply replied: 
 
 "The matter may as well be tested first as last. 
 Right is right, and I do not propose to mince 
 matters at all. My soldiers are here for far other 
 purposes than hunting and returning fugitive 
 slaves." 
 
2 3 2 
 
 LIFE AND PUBLIC CAREER OF 
 
 The staff officer returned to the divisioi 
 commander and communicated Garfield s indorse 
 ment and resolve. The division commander wa; 
 highly incensed, and at once sent for Garfield, whon 
 he attempted to bull-doze into abandoning hii 
 position. The Ohio abolitionist was, however, no 
 the man for the operation, and in return the divi 
 sion commander was obliged to listen to such 
 lecture as made him think possibly that he was if 
 the wrong. At all events no court-martial wa< 
 convened to try the general who had so fla 
 grantly refused to obey orders, and thereafter the 
 division commander refrained from issuing orden 
 on the subject of slavery. 
 
 General Garesche, Rosecrans s chief of staff be 
 fore Garfield, was killed the first day of thu 
 fight at Murfreesboro. A solid shot took his heac 
 off. "Old Rosey," as he was familiarly called, whc 
 was at Garesche s side when the fatal shot struct 
 him, glanced at the headless body of his faithfu 
 officer and exclaimed "poor fellow! poor fellow! 1 
 Then he called out, "scatter, gentlemen, scatter! 
 The order was obeyed by staff and orderlies witl 
 more than alacrity, as the enemy had the staff ii 
 blank range of a well-manned battery and the sho 
 were flying thick and fast without any respect t< 
 persons. "A few days after," says Thoma 
 Dougherty, " I do not remember how many, whei 
 we had got into quarters at Murfreesboro, Gen 
 eral Ganfield joined us to take the dead man 
 
v 
 
 BATTLE-FIELD AS IT APPEARS TO-DAY. 
 
 REDOUBT AT PAINTVILLE. 
 
JAMES A. GARFIELD. ^ 
 
 O \j 
 
 lace as chief of staff. The boys were delighted and 
 hought him a perfect success. As an illustration 
 f his kindness of heart, a virtue not practiced 
 ften by army officers in the field, they delighted to 
 elate the following story as told by a sergeant in 
 osecrans s army. 
 
 " One night, very late, the boys were rolled in 
 eir blankets on the hall floor asleep, and I was 
 t my post, sitting on a chair at the door of the tent 
 f the general commanding, awaiting orders to be 
 taken to their destination by the then sleeping men. 
 e light was but a tallow candle, stuck in a sar- 
 ine-box. I, with chair tilted against the wall, had 
 alien asleep, when General Garfield, the new 
 hief of staff, emerged from the head-quarter 
 room with quick step. Not noticing my extended 
 imbs, he tripped over them and dropped on his 
 ands and knees on the floor. He was no light 
 weight, and even then the fall was not easy. Af 
 frighted, I started from my sleep, sprang to my 
 feet and, as the general arose, saluted. I ex 
 pected nothing else than to be cursed, and proba 
 bly kicked and cuffed, too, from one end of the 
 hall to the other. To my astonishment, the tall 
 general said, kindly and quietly : * Excuse me, ser- 
 jjj geant, I did not see you. I not only excused him, 
 but with my comrades, to whom the incident was 
 related, we all learned to revere and respect the 
 kindly-hearted man who had come to us as chief 
 of staff." 
 
236 
 
 LIFE AND PUBLIC CAREER OF 
 
 George O. Gardener relates a storv that is 
 
 > ~ 
 
 apropos to end our chapter: 
 
 " After the great and sanguinary battle of Chickamauga, ] 
 was bound North on a twenty days furlough. At Louisvilk 
 I met Generals Garfield and Steedman. Garfield was going 
 to Congress, and Steedman North on business. We happened 
 to go down to the ferryboat in the same bus, on top of which 
 were Garfield s #nd Steedman s negro servants. It appean 
 that, owing to the fact that the emancipation proclamatior 
 was not general, and did not at that time apply to Kentucky, 
 that State s Legislature had taken advantage of it and passec 
 laws regarding the kidnapping and*confiscating of every straj 
 negro the gangs of civil officers and citizens could lay theii 
 hands upon. Officers with posses were stationed at the levees 
 instructed and authorized to seize all negroes attempting tc 
 cross the river on the boats, no matter where they were from 
 When we went on the boat we were all in ignorance of thi: 
 State law, and of the fact that a strong force of men were 01 
 the boat for the purpose of seizing any unlucky darkey wh( 
 might be going North with the Union officers. My attentior 
 was first called to the fact by hearing General Garfield ask i 
 pompous-looking man : What do you want with that boy ? 
 
 "I looked out of the bus window and noticed that the man 
 in company with others, was ordering the two boys to *ge 
 down from the bus and go ashore with them. The man, wh( 
 claimed to be the sheriff, said the boys could not go acros; 
 the river; that he should take possession of them, etc., am 
 proceeded to force them off the boat. At this, Garfield anc 
 Steedman jumped out of the bus. Garfield was mad ; he tok 
 these insolent men that he had been fighting rebels in the fielc 
 for two years, that he would now do some fighting on th< 
 water, and that if they did not leave the boat at once the] 
 would get hurt. He stood between the negroes and tin 
 officers, and shook his fist in their faces, and dared them tc 
 touch the black boys who had so faithfully stood by him ir 
 
JAMES A. GARFIELD. 2 - 
 
 Ihe camp and on the battle-grounds of Stone River and 
 thickamauga. General Steedman was mad ; he pulled off 
 his coat and marched into the crowd, saying he could fight 
 puch a white-livered set of rascals with good relish; Chicka- 
 pauga had had no terrors for him, neither had kidnappers. 
 
 "It was an exciting time for them. While Garfield and 
 bteedman were getting the negroes away from the sheriff and 
 his deputies, us fellows in the bus were getting our revolvers 
 
 t of our valises, and we soon were out and forming a line 
 of battle, one deep and far apart, in the rear of Garfield and 
 Steedman. The sheriff finally exhibited a disposition to take 
 the negroes at any risk. Garfield, followed by us blue-coats, 
 moved on the enemy in force. They retreated right smart 
 to the shore. The sheriff, from his safe place on the shore, 
 ordered the captain of the boat not to move the boat with the 
 negroes on board. The captain then came to Garfield, and 
 told him that he, the captain, could not take the boys across 
 the river without incurring a heavy fine, and therefore would 
 not move the boat. General Garfield said he would relieve 
 him of responsibility, so he announced he would pilot the 
 boat across if some one would volunteer to run the engine. 
 Upon several of the soldiers agreeing to do it, the captain 
 caved and ordered the boat untied, saying he would take the 
 crowd across, arid stop the tarnal fuss. The boat started and 
 the row ended." 
 
GARFIELD AS A STATESMAN. 
 
Statesmanship consists rather in removing causes than in 
 punishing or evading results. 
 
 Garfield s Speech on the Ninth Census* 
 
JAMES A. GARFIELD. 2 . l 
 
 CHAPTER XVII. 
 
 HE APPEARS IN CONGRESS. 
 
 GENERAL GARFIELD entered, on re 
 signing from the army, a wider field of 
 usefulness than that permitted him at the 
 ront. But he still remained one of the nation s 
 .efenders. His election to Congress was the re- 
 ult of a popular idea in the North during the 
 ummer of 1862 that the war would end in a few 
 lonths, or be over at least by Christmas. Be- 
 eving this, it was but rational that the people 
 hould take up, for the purpose of rewarding them 
 /ith Congressional honors, those who had won 
 .istinction in arms. Garfield was one of the 
 Dumber. 
 
 The Congressional district in which he lived is 
 ;enerally called the Ashtabula district, and has 
 >een more faithful to its representatives than any 
 f those of the North having had but four in 
 alf a century. It now consists of the counties of 
 Ashtabula, Lake, Granger, Trumbull and Mahoney. 
 lie County of Portage, which was a part of it 
 fhen Garfield was first elected, was detached a 
 ear aeo. The district is the Nineteenth, and is 
 
 o 
 
 ituated in the Western Reserve the New Eng- 
 
LIFE AND PUBLIC CAREER OF 
 
 land of the North-west in North-east Ohio. It 
 was originally settled by New Englanders, and its 
 population has the thrift, the keen intelligence, the 
 habits of local self-government, the political in 
 stincts, and the morals of New England. There 
 is no population of equal numbers on the long 
 line reaching from New York to Chicago, that 
 writes so many letters and receives through the 
 mails so much reading matter. There is less illit 
 eracy in proportion to the population, than in any 
 other district in the United States. The district is 
 essentially a rural one, with the exception of some 
 iron-working portions in the southern end. It is 
 the eastern portion of the Reserve. It early be 
 came deeply interested in the anti-slavery move 
 ment, and this greatly quickened the interest of 
 its people in public affairs. It is this intelligent 
 interest in national welfare that has made the 
 district acce&ible to General Garfield s earnest, 
 straight-forward exposition of solid political doc 
 trines, to his high bearing, to the impact of his 
 mental and moral power upon intelligent and 
 honest minds, rather than by any managing or 
 demagogic measures. 
 
 This district was the same that was long made 
 famous by Joshua R. Giddings, the anti-slavery 
 champion. Grown careless of the arts of politics 
 toward the end of his career, he came to look 
 upon a nomination and re-election as a matter of 
 course. His over-confidence was taken advan- 
 
JAMES A. GARFIELD. 
 
 tage of by an ambitious lawyer named Hutchins, 
 to carry the convention of 1858 against him. The 
 friends of Giddings never forgave Hutchins, and 
 cast about for a means of defeating him. The 
 old man, himself, was comfortably quartered in his 
 consulate at Montreal, and did not care to make 
 fight to get back to Congress. So, his supporters 
 made use of the popularity of General Garfield, 
 and nominated him while he was with his brigade. 
 He had no knowledge of any such movement in 
 his behalf, and when he accepted the nomination 
 he did so in the belief that the war would be over 
 before he would be called upon to take his seat. 
 He was elected by a large majority. He con 
 tinued his military service up to the day Congress 
 met. Even then he seriously thought of resign 
 ing his position as a representative, rather than his 
 major-general s commission, and would have done 
 so had there been any prospect of active opera 
 tions during the winter months. He has often 
 expressed regret that he did not fight the war to 
 the end. Had he . done so he would, doubtless, 
 have ranked at its close among the foremost of 
 the victorious generals of the Republic. 
 
 In the great arena he entered in December, 
 1863, he has ever since remained seventeen 
 years. Only one member of that body antedates 
 him Judge Kelley. All this time he has been an 
 active participant in the events that have tran 
 spired in Congress, and he has left the imprint of 
 
A LIFE AND PUBLIC CAREER OF 
 
 2 44 
 
 his ability and patriotism as thoroughly upon the 
 legislation of the country as any one man now in 
 public service. He certainly realizes the meaning 
 of the title, " a public benefactor." We will de 
 fine that in his own words, from a speech made on 
 December loth, 1878: 
 
 " The man who wants to serve his country must put him 
 self in the line of its leading thought, and that is the restora 
 tion of business, trade, commerce, industry, sound political 
 economy, hard money and the payment of all obligations, 
 and the man who can add anything in the direction of ac 
 complishing any of these purposes is a public benefactor." 
 
 No man with such an ideal could fail to at once 
 take high rank. Nor did Garfield fail to clo so. 
 At the outset he was recognized as a leader, and 
 his influence grew with his service. He was ap 
 pointed on the military committee, under the 
 chairmanship of General Schenck, the colleague- 
 ship of Farnsworth, both fresh from the field, and 
 was of great service -just as Rosecrans antici 
 pated he would be in carrying through the 
 measures that served to recruit the armies durin^ 
 
 o 
 
 the closing months of the war. His activity, in 
 dustry and thorough knowledge of the wants of 
 the army, were of the first value in all legislation 
 pertaining to military matters. He was appointed 
 chairman of a select committee of seven, ap 
 pointed to investigate the alleged frauds in the 
 money-printing bureau of the Treasury. He soon 
 
JAMES A. GARFIELD. 
 
 bccame known as a powerful speaker, remarkably 
 ready and always effective in debate. 
 
 His first speech of any length, on January 28th, 
 1864, gave ample promise in the bud of the 
 flowers of powerful oratory so soon to bloom. It 
 was a reply to his Democratic colleague, Mr. 
 Finck, and was in favor of the confiscation of 
 rebel property. We quote from its brilliant pas 
 sages : 
 
 "The war was announced by proclamation, and it must 
 end by proclamation. We can hold the insurgent States in 
 military subjection half a century- if need be, until they are 
 purged of their poison and stand up clean before the country. 
 They must come back with clean hands, if they come at all. 
 I hope to see in all those States the men who fought and 
 suffered for the truth, tilling the fields on which they pitched 
 their tents. I hope to see them, like old Kasper of Blenheim, 
 on the summer evenings, with their children upon their knees, 
 and pointing out the spot where brave men fell and marble 
 commemorates it. 
 
 ##***## 
 
 "I deprecate these apparently partisan remarks ; it hurts me 
 to make them, but it hurts me more to know they are true. I 
 conclude by returning once more to the resolution before 
 me. Let no weak sentiments of misplaced sympathy deter us 
 from inaugurating a measure which will cleanse our nation 
 and make it the fit home of freedom and a glorious manhood. 
 Let us not despise the severe wisdom of our Revolutionary 
 fathers, when they served their generation in a similar way. 
 Let the republic drive from its soil the traitors that have con 
 spired against its life, as God and His angels drove Satan and 
 his host from Heaven. He was not too merciful to be just, 
 and to hurl down in chains and everlasting darkness the 
 
246 
 
 LIFE AND PUBLIC CAREER OF 
 
 traitor angel who first broke peace in Heaven/ and 
 rebeled against Him." 
 
 Soon after he spoke in favor of the payment of 
 prompt and liberal bounties by the Federal Gov 
 ernment to encourage enlistments, and rapidly 
 earned Congressional reputation. 
 
 This readiness at trenchant debating proved, in 
 some respects, injurious to his rising fame. He 
 spoke so readily that members were constantly 
 asking his services in behalf of favorite measures, 
 and in the impulsive eagerness of a young man 
 and a young member, he often consented. He 
 thus came to be too frequent a speaker, and the 
 House wearied a little of his polished periods, and 
 began to think him too fond of talking. His su 
 perior knowledge, too, used to offend some of his 
 less learned colleagues at first. They thought 
 him bookish and pedantic, until they found how 
 solid and useful was his store of knowledge, and 
 how pertinent to the business in hand were the 
 drafts he made upon it. But this in time wore off. 
 His genial personal ways soon made him many 
 warm friends, and reaction set in. The men of 
 brains in both houses, and in the departments, 
 were not long in discovering that here was a fresh, 
 strong, intellectual force that was destined to 
 make its mark upon the politics of the country. 
 They sought his acquaintance, and befoVe he had 
 been long in Washington, he had the advantage 
 of the best society in the capital. 
 
JAMES A. GARFIELD. 
 
 247 
 
 CHAPTER XVIII. 
 
 THE LADDER OF HONOR. 
 
 TO the steadily-growing good opinion of his 
 district, Garfield lived out his first term. 
 When the time came for holding the Con 
 gressional Convention of 1864, in the Nineteenth 
 District, it was whispered around in the Western 
 Reserve that Garfield had written the Wade-Davis 
 manifesto against President Lincoln, or, at least, 
 was in sympathy with it. The convention was 
 eager to nominate him, but it was objected, and 
 the objection seemed to have some force with the 
 delegates, that he had not condemned the mani 
 festo. He was called upon to explain himself, and 
 the way he did so will never be forgotten. En 
 tering the convention hall, he walked up to the 
 platform, planted himself firmly on it, and began a 
 speech that he must have thought would dig his 
 political grave. He spoke only for half an hour, 
 and he told his hearers he had not written the 
 Wade-Davis letter, but he had only one regret 
 connected with it, and that was that there was a 
 necessity for its appearance. He approved the 
 letter, defended the motives of the authors, asserted 
 his right to independence of thought and action, 
 and told the delegates that if they did not want a 
 
248 
 
 LIFE AND PUBLIC CAREER OF 
 
 free agent for their representative, they had better 
 find another man, for he did not desire to serve 
 them longer. 
 
 As he warmed up to his subject he captivated 
 the convention with his plain, hard reasoning and 
 his glowing eloquence. When he had finished 
 speaking, he left the platform and strode out of 
 the hall. As he reached the front of the stairs, on 
 his way out of the building, he heard a great 
 noise, which -he imagined was the signal of his 
 unanimous rejection. On the contrary, it was 
 the applause that followed his nomination by 
 acclamation. His very boldness had stunned 
 the convention, expecting, as it did, something 
 entirely different from the party leader. It was 
 some seconds before anything was said, but 
 finally an Ashtabula delegate got on his feet, and 
 said : "By , the man who can face a conven 
 tion like that, ought to be nominated by acclama 
 tion." It didn t take the convention long to find 
 out that it entertained a similar admiration for his 
 independence and pluck, and the result was as 
 related, before his opponents in the convention 
 had time to open their mouths. 
 
 Governor Todd closed the meeting with the re 
 mark : "A district that will allow a young fellow 
 like Garfield to tweak its nose and cuff its ears in 
 that manner, deserves to have him saddled on it 
 for life." 
 
 General Garfield, speaking of this incident, said 
 he knew it was a bold action for a youngster, bu{ 
 
JAMES A. CARFIELD. 
 
 2 49 
 
 he believed both Mr. Wade and Mr. Davis to be 
 right, and he determined to stand by them. "This 
 showed me, completely, the truth of the old 
 maxim, that Honesty is the best policy, and I 
 have ever since been entirely independent in my 
 relations with the people of my district." 
 
 The news of his action spread far and wide. A 
 day or two afterward he met Ben Wade, who 
 seized him by the hand, and roared out: 
 
 " Look here, do you know you did a d brave 
 
 thing at that convention the other day ?" 
 
 " It was my duty, Mr. Wade, to say what I did, 
 as I believed you and Mr. Davis to be in the 
 right," replied Garfield. 
 
 " Bosh," cried old Ben, " I say it was d cl 
 
 brave. Why, not one fellow in a dozen but would 
 have given Davis and I the go-by. All you had 
 to do was to go in and teter a little before the con 
 vention, and they would have promised in advance 
 to re-nominate you. But you didn t do it ; devil the 
 bit did you do it. You took the bull by the horns 
 like a man, and told the convention it was wrong, 
 and I say it was d d brave in you to do so. 
 Now, mind you, Garfield, you have got that 
 district, and they won t fool with you any more. 
 The people of Ohio like a bold and honest man, 
 and they have found one in you, and they ain t 
 going to give you up soon. Just you go ahead, 
 they know you are worth a dozen limber-jacks, 
 and they will stick by you. It s a clear case you 
 
250 
 
 LIFE AND PUBLIC CAREER OF 
 
 won t turn for anybody you had the best chance 
 to turn the other day before that convention you 
 
 will ever have, and you didn t do it no d if 
 
 you did. The people hate a trimmer, and I tell 
 you your action at that convention has given the 
 men and women of your district a new idea of you. 
 As for me," added old Ben, the tears starting to 
 his eyes, " I won t say how much I am obliged to 
 you for the way you stood by me, but I shall 
 never forget it, never, sir, while I live on this 
 earth." Then the old war-horse went abruptly 
 away, and the young statesman knew he had made 
 a friend for life of the oldest and best statesman 
 Ohio ever had. 
 
 When the election came off he was returned by 
 a majority of twelve thousand. 
 
 On his return to Congress on the opening of 
 his second term, having proved himself such an 
 invaluable worker, and having risen to such in 
 fluence in the handling of financial questions, that 
 the Secretary of the Treasury requested he be 
 appointed on the Committee of Ways and Means,* 
 the leading committee of the House. This was 
 much more in the line of his tastes and studies. 
 His work during this term was earnest, thorough 
 and incessant, and he steadily gained in the estima 
 tion of his colleagues. He delivered a noted speech 
 on the "Constitutional Amendment to Abolish 
 
 * The committee which matures the financial legislation of Congress and provide* 
 the means of raising the revenue. 
 
JAMES A. GARFIELD. 2 
 
 Slavery," and from the Committee on Military Af 
 fairs, on which he had been appointed, made a 
 report on the discharge of soldiers who enlisted 
 to fill old regiments. a 
 
 He made noted speeches also on the"Freedman s 
 Bureau" and the "Restoration of the Rebel States," 
 on the "Public Debt and Specie Payments," and on 
 "the National Bureau of Education." On March 
 6th of this year ( 66) he argued the L. P. Milligan 
 conspiracy case against the Government, ap 
 pealed to the Supreme Court from the courts of 
 Indiana. Ben. Butler, Hon. James Speed, Hon. 
 Henry Stanberry appeared for the United States, 
 and with Mr. Garfield for the petitioners were the 
 Hon. J. A. McDonald, Hon. J. S. Black and Hon. 
 David Dudley Field. Mr. Garfield s argument 
 was most elaborate and bristled with precedents 
 and telling points. Its peroration was as follows: 
 
 "It is in your power, O Judges! to erect in this citadel of 
 our liberties a monument more lasting than brass; invisible 
 indeed to the eye of flesh, but visible to the eye of the spirit, 
 as the awful form and figure of justice, crowning and adorning 
 the Republic ; rising above the storms of political strife, 
 above the din of battle, above the earthquake shock of rebel 
 lion ; seen from afar and hailed as protector by the oppressed 
 of all nations; dispensing equal blessings, and covering with 
 the protecting shield of law the weakest, the humblest, the mean 
 est, and, until declared by solemn law unworthy of protection, 
 the guiltiest of its citizens." 
 
 When the nominating convention met again in 
 
2 r 2 LIFE AND PUBLIC CAREER OF 
 
 the late summer of 1866, some few of his constitu 
 ents, living in the Mahoning Valley, an iron pro 
 ducing district, opposed his re-nomination on tin 
 ground that he did not favor as high a tariff 01 
 iron as they wanted. The convention, howevei 
 was overwhelmingly on his side, not a single anti 
 Garfield delegate securing a seat, and in afte 
 years he succeeded in convincing these opponent 
 that a moderate duty, affording a sufficient margii 
 for protection, was better for their interests thai 
 a high prohibitory rate. During his third tern 
 he was chairman of the Committee on Militar 
 Affairs, being placed at the head of this com 
 mittee in 1867. In this committee he had plent; 
 of work to do looking after the demands of th< 
 discharged soldiers for pay and bounty, of whicl 
 many had been deprived by red-tape decisions o 
 the Government accounting officers. It wa 
 during this term that everything seemed drifting 
 toward greenbacks and repudiation. He took i 
 bold stand, as his views were opposed to those o 
 many leading men of his party, and to the declara 
 tions of the Republican State Committee of Ohic 
 he indeed seemed to hazard his re-nomination, bu 
 he did not hesitate firmly and fully to avow his con 
 victions. His financial doctrines were at lengtl 
 adopted by the entire party, and fully indorsed ii 
 the Chicago Republican platform. 
 
 These two years are marked by speeches on "Re 
 construction," "the Currency," "Taxation of Unitec 
 
JAMES A. GARFTELD. 2 
 
 j 
 
 States Bonds," an address on "College Education," 
 (June i^th, 1867,) at Hiram, Ohio, before the liter 
 ary societies of the Eclectic Institute, and a Deco 
 ration Day address at Arlington, Va., May 3oth, 
 1868. 
 
 He was opposed in the nominating convention 
 of 1868, by Darius Cadwell, of Ashtabula County, 
 who secured forty votes chiefly from his own 
 county, and had the pleasure of seeing his oppo 
 nent elected by one of his overwhelming majori 
 ties. When he reached Congress he was 
 appointed chairman of the Committee on Banking 
 and Currency, and during this Congress, beside 
 work on this committee, he did most of the hard 
 work on the Ninth Census. His work is this ses 
 sion is noted for a most elaborate, painstaking 
 report on remodeling the army and investigation 
 into the causes of Black Friday. This report, 
 which is far too long to print here, is a fascinating 
 story for any reader, possessing little of the saw 
 dust filling common to "Pub. Docs." April ist, 
 1870, he made a speech on the tariff. 
 
 This year there was no opposition either in the 
 convention or the field, and Garfield returned to 
 the capital for his fifth two years. In 1871, he 
 was promoted to the chairmanship of the Commit 
 tee on Appropriations, as successor to Henry L. 
 Dawes, which he held until the Democrats got 
 control of the House, in 1875. He made speeches 
 on the "McGarrahan Claim," the "Right to Orig- 
 
LIFE AND PUBLIC CAREER F 
 
 inate Revenue Bills," "Enforcing the Fourteenth 
 Amendment," "National Aid to Education." He 
 delivered, on November 25th, 1871, an elaborate 
 eulogy on General George H. Thomas, and Feb 
 ruary Qth, 1872, argued the Henderson case be 
 fore the Supreme Court. 
 
 In 1872, a few blank ballots were cast in the 
 nominating convention, and a liberal Republican 
 was taken up by the opposition at the election, but 
 Garfield received his old-time majority and re 
 turned again to Washington. He delivered, on 
 July 2d, 1873, an oration to the -students of Hud 
 son College, on "The Future of the Republic." 
 In October, the same year, he was in the Supreme 
 Court, in the Rogers case, and contributed some 
 papers to the Western Reserve and Northern 
 Ohio Historical Society. 
 
 The year 1874 was the year of the Democratic 
 tidal wave, the Credit Mobilier and the salary 
 grab having alienated many of the Republican 
 thousands. Nowhere did these two affairs make 
 a deeper impression than in the sensitive and jeal 
 ous constituency represented by Mr. Garfield. 
 Mr. Whittlesey and Mr. Giddings, who had pre 
 ceded Mr. Garfield, were men of unsullied repu 
 tation. The faintest semblance to anything like a 
 wrong or improper course of conduct was enough 
 to draw forth the honest, plain-spoken indignation 
 of men who were not ready to justify the slightest 
 departure from the line of right. General Gar- 
 
JAMES A. GARFIELD. 
 
 ield had now represented the district in five suc- 
 ;ssive Congresses, and, though not so well known 
 is he is to-day, his name had crossed the conti- 
 lent to the West and the ocean to the East. The 
 listrict felt very proud of him. No representative 
 icld his constituency with a firmer hand. His 
 inure promised to be as long as that of Whittle- 
 >ey or Giddings. But now all was changed. A 
 .epublican convention, that met in Warren for 
 ;ome local purpose, demanded his resignation. 
 IMost men denounced, all regretted, none defended 
 hat had been done. All that the staunchest 
 I friends of General Garfield presumed to do was 
 to say: "Wait until you hear the case; hear what 
 Garfield has to say before you determine that he 
 is a dishonest man." Garfield wrote from Wash 
 ington to a friend: "The district is lost, and as 
 soon as I can close up my affairs here I am coming 
 home to capture it." 
 
 And he did capture it. He issued his pamph 
 lets, "Review of the Transactions of the Credit 
 Mobilier Company " and " Increase of Salaries " 
 from Washington, and then came on to Hiram. 
 These pamphlets, with a personal speech in War 
 ren somewhat later, constituted his direct defense. 
 When the next campaign opened, he went, as 
 usual, upon the stump. He rarely referred to 
 the charges against him, and never did unless 
 compelled to. He grappled with the questions of 
 the day. He went from county to county, and 
 
256 LIFE AND PUBLIC CAREER OF 
 
 almost from village to village. His knowledge 
 was so great, his argumentation so logical, his 
 spirit so earnest, and his bearing, both public and 
 private, so manly, that men began to ask : " Can 
 it be true that Mr. Garfield is such a man as they 
 tell us ?" Prejudice was slowly but surely over 
 come, and at the polls the people s belief was thus 
 expressed: Garfield, 12,591; Regular Democratic 
 ticket, 6,245 ; Independent Republican ticket, 
 3,427. His antagonist this time was a Republi 
 can, named Casement, who is to-day one of the 
 general s best friends. During all the storm of 
 abuse that darkened this year, the sunshine of the 
 future was predicted. A sonnet appeared in the 
 Washington Evening Star, in the winter of 74: 
 
 "TO JAMES A. GARFIELD. 
 
 " Thou who didst ride on Chickamauga s day, 
 All solitary, down the fiery line, 
 And saw the ranks of battle rusty shine, 
 Where grand old Thomas held them from dismay, 
 Regret not now, while meaner factions play 
 Their brief campaigns against the best of men ; 
 For those spent balls of slander have their way, 
 And thou shalt see the victory again. 
 Weary and ragged, thou( h the broken lines 
 Of party reel, and thine own honor bleeds, 
 That mole is blind fhat Garfield undermines ! 
 That shot falls short that hired slander speeds ! 
 That man will live whose place the State assigns, 
 And whose high mind the mighty nation needs !" 
 
 In 1876, he was again re-elected. He served 
 in this term as a member of the Committee on 
 Rules, in recognition of his rare knowledge of 
 
JAMES A. GARFIELD. 
 
 Darliamentary law. In 1877, Mr. Blaine took his 
 seat in the Senate, and the mantle of Republican 
 eadership in the House, by common consent, de 
 scended to Mr. Garfield ; a mantle which he has 
 worn with honor ever since. He was, at the 
 opening of this Congress, the Republican candi 
 date for the speakership, but the Democrats were 
 .argely in the majority, and Mr. Randall was 
 elected over him. In this same year, upon the 
 ippointment of Senator Sherman to the post of 
 Secretary of the Treasury, his own inclinations 
 jind the support of his friends in Ohio led him to 
 ispire to the vacant Senatorial chair. The repre 
 sentations of President Hayes are understood to 
 nave been effective in preventing him from be- 
 :oming a candidate for that place, on the ground 
 that his services were more needed as Speaker of 
 the House of Representatives, and Mr. Stanley 
 Matthews was elected Senator. When the House 
 was organized, however, the Speakership was car- 
 jried off by the Democracy, and General Garfield 
 was left "out in the cold." It was just as well for 
 him, for two years later the Democracy also car 
 ried Ohio and elected " Gentleman George " Pen- 
 dleton to Matthews s seat in the Senate. 
 
 In 1878, he was re-elected by a majority of 
 9,613. Opposition was now no more. Men who 
 bad been most denunciatory was now warmest in 
 bis praise ; and it was actually left to the friends 
 who had stood by him through all the storm to 
 15 
 
256 
 
 LIFE AND PUBLIC CAREER OF 
 
 almost from village to village. His knowledge 
 was so great, his argumentation so logical, his 
 spirit so earnest, and his bearing, both public and 
 private, so manly, that men began to ask : " Can 
 it be true that Mr. Garfield is such a man as they 
 tell us ?" Prejudice was slowly but surely over 
 come, and at the polls the people s belief was thus 
 expressed: Garfield, 12,591; Regular Democratic 
 ticket, 6,245 ; Independent Republican ticket, 
 3,427. His antagonist this time was a Republi 
 can, named Casement, who is to-day one of the 
 general s best friends. During all the storm of 
 abuse that darkened this year, the sunshine of the 
 future was predicted. A sonnet appeared in the 
 Washington Evening Star, in the winter of 74: 
 
 "TO JAMES A. GARFIELD. 
 
 " Thou who didst ride on Chickamauga s day, 
 All solitary, down the fiery line, 
 And saw the ranks of battle rusty shine, 
 Where grand old Thomas held them from dismay, 
 Regret not now, while meaner factions play 
 Their brief campaigns against the best of men ; 
 For those spent balls of slander have their way, 
 And thou shall see the victory again. 
 Weary and ragged, thou( h the broken lines 
 Of party reel, and thine own honor bleeds, 
 That mole is blind fhat Garfield undermines ! 
 That shot falls short that hired slander speeds ! 
 That man will live whose place the State assigns, 
 And whose high mind the mighty nation needs !" 
 
 In 1876, he was again re-elected. He served 
 in this term as a member of the Committee on 
 Rules, in recognition of his rare knowledge of 
 
JAMES A. GARFIELD. 
 
 257 
 
 parliamentary law. In 1877, Mr. Blaine took his 
 seat in the Senate, and the mantle of Republican 
 leadership in the House, by common consent, de 
 scended to Mr. Garfield ; a mantle which he has 
 worn with honor ever since. He was, at the 
 opening of this Congress, the Republican candi 
 date for the speakership, but the Democrats were 
 largely in the majority, and Mr. Randall was 
 elected over him. In this same year, upon the 
 appointment of Senator Sherman to the post of 
 Secretary of the Treasury, his own inclinations 
 and the support of his friends in Ohio led him to 
 aspire to the vacant Senatorial chair. The repre 
 sentations of President Hayes are understood to 
 have been effective in preventing him from be 
 coming a candidate for that place, on the ground 
 that his services were more needed as Speaker of 
 the House of Representatives, and Mr. Stanley 
 Matthews was elected Senator. When the House 
 was organized, however, the Speakership was car 
 ried off by the Democracy, and General Garfield 
 was left "out in the cold." It was just as well for 
 him, for two years later the Democracy also car 
 ried Ohio and elected " Gentleman George " Pen- 
 dleton to Matthews s seat in the Senate. 
 
 In 1878, he was re-elected by a majority of 
 9,613. Opposition was now no more. Men who 
 had been most denunciatory was now warmest in 
 his praise ; and it was actually left to the friends 
 who had stood by him through all the storm to 
 5 
 
2bO 
 
 LIFE AND PUBLIC CAREER OF 
 
 so cordial, generous and general a greeting, without distinc 
 tion of party, without distinction of interests, as I have re 
 ceived here to-night. 
 
 " I came here, fellow-citizens, to thank this general assembly 
 for their great act of confidence and compliment to me. I 
 do not undervalue the great office that you have tendered to 
 me yesterday and to-day ; but I say, I think without any 
 mental reservation, that the manner in which it was tendered 
 to me is far higher to me, far more desirable, than the thing 
 itself. That it has been a voluntary gift of the general as 
 sembly of Ohio, without solicitation, tendered to me because 
 of their confidence, is as touching and high a tribute as one 
 man can receive from his fellow-citizens, and, in the name of 
 all my friends, for myself, I give you my thanks. 
 
 " I recognize the importance of the place to which you 
 have elected me ; and I should be base if I did not also re 
 cognize the great man whom you have elected me to succeed. 
 I say for him, Ohio has had few larger-minded, broader- 
 minded men in the records of her history than that of Allen 
 G. Thurman. Differing widely from him, as I have done 
 in politics and do, I recognize him as a man high in character 
 and great in intellect ; and I take this occasion to refer to 
 what I have never before referred to in public that many 
 years ago, in the storm of party fighting, when the air was 
 filled with all sorts of missiles aimed at the character and 
 reputation of public men, when it was even for his party 
 interest to join the general clamor against me and my associ 
 ates, Senator Thurman said in public, in the campaign, on the 
 stump when men are as likely to say unkind things as at any 
 place in the world a most generous and earnest word of de 
 fense and kindness for me, which I shall never forget so long 
 as I live. I say, moreover, that the flowers that bloom over 
 the garden wall of party politics, are the sweetest and most 
 fragrant that bloom in the gardens of this world, and, where 
 we can fairly pluck them and enjoy their fragrance, it is 
 manly and delightful to do so. 
 
JAMES A. GARFIELD. 2 6l 
 
 "And now, gentlemen of the general assembly, without 
 distinction of party, I recognize this tribute and compliment 
 made to me to-night. Whatever my own course may be in 
 the future, a large share of the inspiration of my future public 
 life will be drawn from this occasion and these surroundings, 
 and I shall feel anew the sense of obligation that I feel to the 
 State of Ohio." 
 
 June loth this year he was nominated at Chi 
 cago for the presidency, and on July 6th he was 
 elected a trustee of Williams College. 
 
 We have not in this chapter given anything 
 more than a skeleton outline of his career, upon 
 which to hang the fuller flesh of the succeeding 
 pages, believing this arrangement will prove more 
 agreeable to the reader than following General 
 Garfield step by step. 
 
262 
 
 LIFE AND PUBLIC CAREER OF 
 
 CHAPTER XIX. 
 
 
 
 AN ORNAMENT OK CONGRESS. 
 
 GENERAL GARFIELD S career in Con 
 gress has been essentially one of work. 
 The number of his speeches, reports, reso 
 lutions, debates, etc., is high in the hundreds. 
 What he was as an orator we shall see later. As 
 a debater he has had few equals. Producing al 
 ways an overwhelming array of facts, he has ever 
 been a 
 
 Tower of strength, 
 Which stands four square to all the winds that blow ! 
 
 He was thorough in committee work, assiduous 
 in private study of pending questions and an able 
 debater, by no means a common combination of 
 qualities. He interested himself in many subjects 
 of great importance to the public, in which your 
 common congressman has small interest; in the 
 census, in education, in the scientific surveys, in 
 the life-saving service, and in many more. As the 
 Republican leader in the House, he has been more 
 conservative and less rash than Elaine, and 
 his judicial turn of mind made him prone to look 
 for both sides of a question, and always relieved 
 him of the charge of partisanship. When the 
 
JAMES A. GARFIELD. 2 ^ 
 
 issue fairly touched his convictions, however, he 
 became thoroughly aroused and struck tremen 
 dous blows. Elaine s tactics were to continually 
 harass the enemy by sharp-shooting, surprises and 
 picket-firing. Garfield waited always for an op 
 portunity to deliver a pitched battle, and his gen 
 eralship was shown to best advantage when the 
 fight was a fair one, and waged on grounds where 
 each party thought itself the strongest. Then his 
 solid shot of argument was exceedingly effective. 
 He has always taken a genuine pride in the histor 
 ical achievements of the Republican party, with 
 which he has been identified from its birth. He 
 has a traditional leaning toward all measures for 
 the advantage of the freedmen or the curtailing the 
 influence of the party which he holds to have been 
 responsible for the rebellion. Nevertheless, he is 
 by no means deficient in generous impulses toward 
 the South, and has more than once exerted his in 
 fluence to prevent the passage of rash partisan 
 legislation against the interests of that section. The 
 " Confederate brigadiers " in Congress have found 
 him a determined and loyal adversary, but he has 
 never stooped to take unfair advantage of the nu 
 merical preponderance of his party. As leader of 
 the Republican minority in the present House of 
 Representatives he has known how to reconcile 
 the party fealty with a concilatory disposition 
 toward the party in power, and has not been un 
 duly obstructive of any legislation which di4 not, 
 
264 
 
 LIFE AND PUBLIC CAREER OF 
 
 in his opinion, transcend the fair limits of part; 
 predominance. He is in all things a calm, cour 
 teous, determined leader of men 
 
 rich in saving common sense, 
 
 And, as the wisest only are, 
 In his simplicity sublime. 
 
 He is not a practical politician and knows littl< 
 of the machinery of caucuses and conventions o 
 the methods of conducting close campaigns. A 
 a politician in the larger and better sense o 
 shaping the policy of a great party, however, h< 
 has few equals. To no man is the Republicai 
 party more indebted for its successes in recen 
 years than to James A. Garfield. 
 
 With the single exception of 1867, when h< 
 spent several weeks in Europe, partly in company 
 with Senator Elaine and Senator Morrill, he ha: 
 done hard work on the stump for the Republicai 
 party in every campaign since he entered Con 
 gress. On the stump, he is one of the best ora 
 tors in his party. He has a good voice, an air o 
 evident sincerity, great clearness and vigor o 
 statement, and a way of knitting his argument: 
 together, so as to make a speech deepen its im 
 pressiorj on the mind of the hearer, until the cli 
 max clinches the argument forever. For th< 
 past teq years, his services have been in demanc 
 in all parts of the country. He has usually re 
 served half his time for the Ohio c^rjvass, anc 
 given the other half to other States. The No 
 
JAMES A. GARFIELD. 265 
 
 vember election finds him worn and haggard with 
 travel and speaking in the open air, but his robust 
 constitution always carries him through, and after 
 a few weeks rest on his farm he appears in 
 Washington refreshed and ready for the duties of 
 the session. 
 
 A mind so prone as his to look philosophically 
 into his surroundings could not fail to have studied 
 into the history and functions of the body of which 
 he has made such an illustrious member, and it 
 will be fitting to follow a criticism of him as a 
 member of that body, with his own remarks upon 
 it. In July, 1877, he contributed to the Atlantic 
 Monthly an article, entitled "A Century in Con 
 gress," from which we extract his views of the 
 same: 
 
 " Congress has always been and must always be the theatre 
 of contending opinions, the forum where the opposing forces 
 of political philosophy meet to measure their strength ; where 
 the public good must meet the assaults of local and sectional 
 interests, in a word, the appointed place where the nation 
 seeks to utter its thoughts and register its will. 
 
 "In the main, the balance of power so admirably adjusted 
 and distributed among the three great departments of the 
 Government has been safely preserved. It was the purpose 
 of our fathers to lodge absolute power nowhere; to leave each 
 department independent within its own sphere; yet, in every 
 case, responsible for the exercise of its discretion. But some 
 dangerous innovations have been made. And first, the ap 
 pointing power of the President has been seriously encroached 
 upon by Congress, or rather by the members of Congress. 
 Curiously enough, this encroachment originated in the act of 
 
266 LIFE AND PUBLIC CAREER OF 
 
 the chief executive himself. The fierce popular hatred of the 
 Federal party, which resulted in the elevation of Jefferson to 
 the presidency, led that officer to set the first example of re 
 moving men from office on account of political opinions. 
 For political causes alone, he removed a considerable number 
 of officers who had recently been appointed by President 
 Adams, and thus set the pernicious example. His immediate 
 successors made only a few removals for political reasons. 
 But Jackson made his political opponents, who were in office, 
 feel the full weight of his executive hand. From that time 
 forward, the civil officers of the Government became the 
 prizes for which political parties strove ; and twenty-five years 
 ago, the corrupting doctrine that * to the victors belong the 
 spoils was shamelessly announced as an article of political 
 faith and practice. It is hardly possible to state with ade 
 quate force the noxious influence of this doctrine. * * * 
 The present system invades the independence of the ex 
 ecutive, and make him less responsible for the character of 
 his appointments ; it impairs the efficiency of the legislator, 
 by diverting him from his proper sphere of duty, and involv 
 ing him in the intrigues of aspirants for office ; it degrades 
 the civil service itself, by destroying the personal independ 
 ence of those who are appointed ; it repels from the service 
 those high and manly qualities which are so necessary to a 
 pure and efficient administration ; and, finally, it debauches 
 the public mind by holding up public office as the reward of 
 mere party zeal. To reform this service is one of the highest 
 and most imperative duties of statesmanship. This reform 
 cannot be accomplished without a complete divorce between 
 Congress and the Executive in the matter of appointments. 
 It will be a proud day when an administrator, senator or re 
 presentative, who is in good standing in his party, can say as 
 Thomas Hughes said, during his recent visit to this country, 
 that though he was on the "most intimate terms with the mem 
 bers of his administration, yet it was not in his power to se 
 cure the removal of the humblest clerk in the civil service of 
 his government." 
 
JAMES A. GARFIELD. 267 
 
 " I have long believed that the official, relations between 
 the Executive and Congress should be more open and direct. 
 They are now conducted by correspondence with the pre 
 siding officers of the two Houses, by consultation with com 
 mittees, or by private interviews with individual members. 
 This frequently leads to misunderstandings, and may lead to 
 corrupt combinations. It would be far better for both de 
 partments if the members of the cabinet were permitted to sit 
 in Congress and participate in the debates on measures re 
 lating to their several departments but, of course, without a 
 vote. This would tend to secure the ablest men for the chief 
 executive offices, it would bring the policy of the administra 
 tion into the fullest publicity by giving both parties ample 
 opportunity for criticism and defense. 
 
 " The most alarming feature of our situation is the fact that 
 so many citizens of high character and solid judgment pay but 
 little attention to the sources of political power, to the selec 
 tion of those who shall make their laws. The clergy, the 
 faculties of colleges, and many of the leading business men of 
 the community never attend the township caucus, the city 
 primaries or the county conventions ; but they allow the less 
 intelligent and the more selfish and corrupt members of the 
 community to make the slates and l run the machine of poli 
 tics. They wait until the machine has done its work, and 
 then, in surprise and horror at the ignorance and corruption 
 in public, sigh for the return of that mythical period called 
 the better and purer days of the Republic. It is precisely 
 this neglect of the first steps in our political processes that has 
 made possible the worst evils of our system. Corrupt and in 
 competent presidents, judges and legislators can be removed, 
 but when the fountains of political power are corrupted, when 
 voters themselves become venal and elections fraudulent, there 
 is no remedy except by awakening the public conscience and 
 bringing to bear upon the subject the power of public opinion 
 and the penalties of the law. The practice of buying and 
 selling votes at our popular elections has already gained a foot- 
 
LIFE AXD PUBLIC CAREER OF 
 
 hold, though it has not gone as far as in England. In j 
 word, our national safety demands that the fountains of politi 
 cal power shall be made pure by intelligence, and kept pun 
 by vigilance : that the best citizen shall take heed to th 
 selection and election of the worthiest and most intelligenl 
 among them to hold seats in the national legislature ; and 
 that when the choice has been made, the continuance of theii 
 representatives shall depend upon his faithfulness, his abilitj 
 and his willingness to work." 
 
JAMES A. GARFIELD. 
 
 CHAPTER XX. 
 
 THE ORATOR S POWER. 
 
 WE must now invite the reader s attention 
 to Garfield as he appears in his 
 speeches, and if we cannot follow him 
 as fully as we would like to show his rare orator 
 ical power and splendid statesmanship, to develop 
 in his own words what he is it is because space 
 forbids. His speeches alone make volumes and 
 we can only cull here and there a flower from the 
 thickly blossoming fields. 
 
 It was impossible for a man so large hearted, so 
 patriotic as Garfield is not to have felt deeply the 
 death of Abraham Lincoln. He saw that it was 
 not the hand of one man but the spirit of seces 
 sion aiming a last despairing blow at the great 
 principles that had conquered it. Naturally then 
 his was the tongue to give some expression to the 
 nation s grief. And in the exciting hours that 
 followed Booth s cowardly pistol shot, when the 
 whole North was roused with a whirlwind of mad 
 passion, Garfield s hand was apparent in staying 
 the impending storm, in counseling that course 
 that led to the wiser way, the better plan. 
 
 In the incident we are about to relate the extra 
 ordinary moral power always exerted over men by 
 
270 
 
 LIFE AND PUBLIC CAREER OF 
 
 the nominee for the Presidency, was perhaps 
 never shown to a better advantage. The incident 
 is contributed to this volume by a distinguished 
 public man, who was an eye-witness of the ex 
 citing scene : 
 
 "I shall never forget the first time I saw General Garfield. 
 It was the morning after President Lincoln s assassination. 
 The country was excited to its utmost tension, and New York 
 city seemed ready for the scenes of the French revolution. 
 The intelligence of Lincoln s murder had been flashed by the 
 wires over the whole land. The newspaper head-lines of the 
 transaction were set up in the largest type, and the high crime 
 was on every one s tongue. Fear took possession of men s 
 minds as to the fate of the Government, for in a few hours 
 the news came on that Se ward s throat was cut, and that at 
 tempts had been made upon the lives of others of the Govern 
 ment officers. Posters were stuck up everywhere, in great 
 black letters, calling upon the loyal citizens of New York, 
 Brooklyn, Jersey City and neighboring places to meet around 
 the Wall-Street Exchange and give expression to their senti 
 ments. It was a dark and terrible hour. What might come 
 next no one could tell, and men spoke with bated breath. 
 The wrath of the workingmen was simply uncontrollable, and 
 revolvers and knives were in the hands of thousands of Lin 
 coln s friends, ready, at the first opportunity, to take the law 
 into their own hands, and avenge the death of their martyred 
 President upon any and all who dared to utter a word against 
 him. Eleven o clock A. M was the hour set for the rendez 
 vous. Fifty thousand people crowded around the Exchange 
 Building, cramming and jamming the streets, and wedged in 
 tight as men could stand together. With a few to whom a 
 special favor was extended, I went over from Brooklyn at 
 nine A. M., and, even then, with the utmost difficulty, 
 found my way to the reception room for the speakers in the 
 
JAMES A. GARFIELD. 
 
 271 
 
 front of the Exchange Building, and looking out on the 
 high and massive balcony, whose front was protected by a 
 heavy iron railing. We sat in solemnity and silence, waiting 
 for General Butler, who, it was announced, had started from 
 Washington, and was either already in the city or expected 
 every moment. Nearly a hundred generals, judges, states 
 men, lawyers, editors, clergymen and others were in that 
 room waiting Butler s arrival. We stepped out to the balcony 
 to watch the fearfully solemn and swaying mass of people. 
 Not a hurrah was heard, but for the most part a dead silence, 
 or a deep, ominous muttering ran like a rising wave up the 
 street toward Broadway, and again down toward the river on 
 the right. At length the batons of the police were seen 
 swinging in the air, far up on the left, parting the crowd and 
 pressing it back to make way for a carriage that moved 
 slowly, and with difficult jogs, through the compact multi 
 tude. Suddenly the silence was broken, and the cry of 
 Butler! Butler! Butler! rang out with tremendous and 
 thrilling effect, and was taken up by the people. But not a 
 hurrah ! Not once ! It was the cry of a great people, asking 
 to know how their President died. The blood bounced in 
 our veins, and the tears ran like streams down our faces. 
 How it was done I forget, but Butler was pulled through and 
 pulled up, and entered the room, where we had just walked 
 back to meet him. A broad crape, a yard long, hung from 
 his left arm terrible contrast with the countless flags that 
 were waving the nation s victory in the breeze. We first 
 realized, then, the truth of the sad news that Lincoln was 
 dead. When Butler entered the room we shook hands. 
 Some spoke, some could not ; all were in tears. The only 
 word Butler had for us all, at the first break of the silence, 
 was, Gciitlcmeji, he died in the fullness of his fame / and as 
 he spoke it his lips quivered and the tears ran fast down his 
 cheeks. Then, after a few moments, came the speaking. 
 And you can imagine the effect, as the crape fluttered in the 
 wind, while his arm was uplifted. Dickinson, of New York 
 
272 
 
 LIFE AND PUBLIC CAREER OF 
 
 State, was fairly wild. The bid man leaped over the iron 
 railing of the balcony and stood on the very edge, overhang 
 ing the crowd, gesticulating in the most vehement manner, 
 and almost bidding the crowd burn up the rebel, seed, 
 root and branch, while a bystander held on to his coat-tails 
 to keep him from falling over. By this time the wave of 
 popular indignation had swelled to its crest. Two men lay 
 bleeding on one of the side streets, the one dead, the other 
 next to dying ; one on the pavement, the other in the gutter. 
 They had said a moment before that Lincoln ought to have 
 been shot long ago ! They were not allowed to say it again. 
 Soon two long pieces of scantling stood out above the heads 
 of the crowd, crossed at the top like the letter X, and a looped 
 halter pendent from the junction, a dozen men following its 
 slow motion through the masses, while Vengeance was the 
 cry. On the right, suddenly, the shout rose, The World ! 
 the World ! the office of the World ! World ! World ! 
 and a movement of perhaps eight thousand or ten thousand 
 turning their faces in the direction of that building began to 
 be executed. It was a critical moment. What might come 
 no one could tell, did that crowd get in front of that office. 
 Police and military would have availed little or been too late. 
 A telegram had just been read from Washington, Seward is 
 dying. Just then, at that juncture, a man stepped forward 
 with a small flag in his hand, "and beckoned to the crowd. 
 Another telegram from Washington! And then, in the 
 awful stillness of the crisis, taking advantage of the hesitation 
 of the crowd, whose steps had been arrested a moment, a 
 right arm was lifted skyward, and a voice, clear and steady, 
 loud and distinct, spoke out, Fellow-citizens ! Clouds and 
 darkness are round about Him ! His pavilion is dark waters 
 and thick clouds of the skies ! Justice and judgment are the 
 establishment of His throne ! Mercy and truth shall go be 
 fore His face ! Fellow-citizens ! God reigns, and the Gov 
 ernment at Washington still lives! The effect was tremen 
 dous. The crowd stood riveted to the ground with awe, 
 
JAMES A. GARFIELD. 
 
 273 
 
 gazing at the motionless orator, and thinking of God and the 
 security of the Government in that hour. As the boiling 
 waves subsides and settles to the sea, when some strong wind 
 beats it down, so the tumult of the people sank and became 
 still. All took it as a divine omen. It was a triumph of 
 eloquence, inspired by the moment, such as falls to but one 
 man s lot, and that but once in a century. The genius of 
 Webster, Choate, Everett, Seward, never reached it. What 
 might have happened had the surging and maddened mob 
 been let loose, none can tell. The man for the crisis was on 
 the spot, more potent than Napoleon s guns at Paris. I in 
 quired what was his name. The answer came in a low whis 
 per, It is General Garfield, of Ohio ! 
 
 At another meeting in the same city, he spoke 
 upon the great event : 
 
 "By this last act of madness, it seems as though the Re 
 bellion had determined that the President of the soldiers 
 should go with the soldiers who have laid down their lives on 
 the battle-field. They slew the noblest and gentlest heart that 
 ever put down a rebellion upon this earth. In taking that 
 life they have left the iron hand of the people to fall upon 
 them. Love is on the front of the throne of God, but jus 
 tice and judgment, with inexorable dread, follow behind ; and 
 when law is slighted and mercy despised, when they have re 
 jected those who would be their best friends, then comes jus 
 tice with her hoodwinked eyes, and with the sword and scales. 
 From every gaping wound of your dead chief, let the voice go 
 up from the people to see to it that our house is swept and 
 garnished. I hasten to say one thing more, fellow-citizens. 
 For mere vengeance I would do nothing. This nation is too 
 great to look for mere revenge. But for security of the future 
 I would do everything. 
 
 It was Garfield who made the speech when the 
 16 
 
LIFE AND PUBLIC CAREER OF 
 
 House took official action on the death of the 
 President, and it was he, again, who (February 
 1 2th, 1878), retouched with his eloquent powers 
 the same theme on receiving F. B. Carpenter s 
 painting of Lincoln and Emancipation, on behalf 
 of the nation. 
 
 It was eminently natural that he should have 
 been chosen on such occasions, for every act of 
 his life has been a testimony in defense of his 
 country ; that country which he loves so well. 
 Speaking on its future, he said, at Hudson Col 
 lege : 
 
 " Our great dangers are not from without. We do not live 
 by the consent of any other nation. We must look within to 
 find elements of danger. The first and most obvious of these is 
 territorial expansion, overgrowth, and the danger that we shall 
 break to pieces by our own weight. This has been the common 
 place of historians and publicists for many centuries, and its 
 truth has found many striking illustrations in the experience of 
 mankind. But we have fair ground for believing, that new 
 conditions and new forces have nearly if not wholly removed 
 the ground of this danger. Distance, estrangement, isolation 
 have been overcome by the recent amazing growth in the 
 means of intercommunication. For political and industrial 
 purposes California and Massachusetts are nearer neighbors 
 to-day, than were Philadelphia and Boston in the days of the 
 Revolution. It was distance, isolation, ignorance of separate 
 parts, that broke the cohesive force of the great empires of 
 antiquity. Fortunately, our greatest line of extension is from 
 east to west, and our pathway along the parallels of latitude 
 are not too broad for safety for it lies within the zone of 
 national development. The Gulf of Mexico is our special 
 providence on the south. Perhaps it would be more fortu- 
 
JAMES A. GARFIELD. V 
 
 nate for us if the northern shore of that gulf stretched west 
 ward to the Pacific. If our territory embraced the tropics, 
 the sun would be our enemy. The stars in their courses 
 would fight against us. Now these celestial forces are our 
 friends, and help to make us one. Let us hope the Republic 
 will be content to maintain this friendly alliance. 
 
 " Our northern boundary is not yet wholly surveyed. Per 
 haps our neighbors across the lakes will some day take a hint 
 from nature, and save themselves and us the discomfort of an 
 artificial boundary. Restrained within our present southern 
 limits with a population more homogenious than that of any 
 other great nation, and with a wonderful power to absorb and 
 assimilate to our own type the European races that come 
 among us, we have but little reason to fear that we shall be 
 broken up by divided interests and internal feuds, because 
 of our great territorial extent. Finally, our great hope for 
 the future our great safeguard against danger, is to be found 
 in the general and thorough education of our people and in 
 the virtue which accompanies such education. And all these 
 elements depend, in a large measure, upon the intellectual 
 and moral culture of the young men who go out from our 
 higher institutions of learning. From the standpoint of this 
 general culture we may trustfully encounter the perils that 
 assail us. Secure against dangers from abroad, united at 
 home by the stronger ties of common interest and patriotic 
 pride, holding and unifying our vast territory by the most 
 potent forces of civilization, relying upon the intelligent 
 strength and responsibility of each citizen, and, most of all, 
 upon the power of truth, without undue arrogance, we may 
 hope that in the centuries to come our Republic will continue 
 to live and hold its high place- among the nations as 
 
 " The heir of all the ages in the foremost files of time. " 
 
 From our Republic and its future, we turn aside 
 to gather in a literary scrap, an address on Burns, 
 
276 
 
 LIFE AND PUBLIC CAREER OF 
 
 in which we find this, from a fine comparison of 
 three of the world s song-writers 
 
 "To appreciate the genius and achievements of Robert 
 Burns, it is fitting to compare him with others who have been 
 eminent in the same field. In the highest class of lyric 
 poetry their names stand eminent. Their field covers eighteen 
 centuries of time, and the three names are Horace, Beranger 
 and Burns. It is an interesting and suggestive fact, that each 
 of these sprang from the humble walks of life. Each may 
 be described as one 
 
 " Who begs a brother of the earth 
 To give him leave to toil, 
 
 and each proved by his life and achievements that, however 
 hard the lot of poverty, a man s a man for a that. 
 
 "A great writer has said that it took the age forty years to 
 catch Burns, so far was he in advance of the thoughts of his 
 times. But we ought not to be surprised at the power he 
 exhibited. We are apt to be misled when we seek to find the 
 cause of greatness in the schools and universities alone. 
 There is no necessary conflict between nature and art. In 
 the highest and best sense art is as natural as nature. We do 
 not wonder at the perfect beauty of the rose, although we may 
 not understand the mysteries by which its delicate petals are 
 fashioned and fed-out of the grosser elements of earth. We 
 do not wonder at the perfection of the rose because God is 
 the artist. When He fashioned the germ of the rose-tree He 
 made possible the beauties of its flower. The earth and air 
 and sunshine conspired to unfold and adorn it to tint and 
 crown it with peerless beauty. When the Divine Artist would 
 produce a poem, He plants a germ of it in a human soul, and 
 out of that soul the poem springs and grows as from the rose- 
 tree the rose. 
 
 " Burns was a child of nature. He lived close to her beat, 
 ing heart, and all the rich and deep sympathies of life glowed 
 
JAMES A. GARFIELD. 2 JJ 
 
 and lived in his heart. The beauties of earth, air and sky 
 filled and transfigured him. 
 
 " < He did but sing because he must, 
 And piped but as the linnets sing. 
 
 "With the light of his genius he glorified the banks and 
 braes of his native land, and, speaking for the universal 
 human heart, has set its sweetest thought to music : 
 
 " Whose echoes roll from soul to soul, 
 And grow forever and forever. " 
 
2 7 8 
 
 LIFE AND PUBLIC CAREER OF 
 
 CHAPTER XXI. 
 
 QUESTIONS OF POLITICAL ECONOMY. 
 
 CONTEMPORANEOUSLY with his entry 
 into Congress, Garfield began a course of 
 severe study of financial and political 
 economy, going home every evening to his modest 
 lodgings on Thirteenth Street, with an armful of 
 books borrowed from the Congressional Library, 
 into which he deeply burrowed. This study was 
 superbly lucrative. For his financial views have 
 always been sound and based on the firm founda 
 tion of honest money and unsullied national 
 honor. His record in the legislation concerning 
 these subjects is without a flaw. No man in Con 
 gress made a more consistent and unwavering 
 fight against the paper money delusions that 
 flourished during the decade following the war, 
 and in favor of specie payments and the strict ful 
 fillment of the nation s obligations to its creditors. 
 His speeches became the financial gospel of the 
 Republican party. 
 
 We will quote some texts from this gospel. In 
 the course of his strenuous fight against the re 
 peal of the resumption act, Mr. Garfield said : 
 
 "The men of 1862 knew the dangers from sad experience 
 in our history; and, like Ulysses, lashed themselves to the 
 
JAMES A. GARFIELD. 
 
 mast of public credit when they embarked upon the stormy 
 and boisterous sea of inflated paper money, that they might 
 not be beguiled by the siren song that would be sung to them 
 when they were afloat on the wild waves. 
 
 " But the times have changed ; new men are on deck, men 
 who have forgotten the old pledges, and now only twelve 
 years have passed (for as late as 1865 this House, with but six 
 dissenting votes, resolved again to stand by the old ways and 
 bring the country back to sound money), only twelve years 
 have passed, and what do we find? We find a group of 
 theorists and doctrinaires who look upon the wisdom of the 
 fathers as foolishness. We find some who advocate what they 
 call absolute money, who declare that a piece of paper 
 stamped a dollar is a dollar; that gold and silver are a part 
 of the barbarism of the past, which ought to be forever 
 abandoned. We hear them declaring that resumption is a 
 delusion and a snare. We hear them declaring that the eras 
 of prosperity are the eras of paper money. They point us to 
 all times of inflation as periods of blessing to the people and 
 prosperity to business ; and they ask us no more to vex their 
 ears with any allusion to the old standard the money of the 
 Constitution. Let the wild swarm of financial literature that 
 has sprung into life within the last twelve years, witness how 
 widely and how far we have drifted. We have lost our old 
 moorings, and have thrown overboard our old compass ; we 
 sail by alien stars, looking not for the haven, but are afloat on 
 a harborless sea. 
 
 "Suppose you undo the work that Congress has attempted 
 to resume specie payment what will result? You will de 
 preciate the value of the greenback. Suppose it falls ten 
 cents on the dollar? You will have destroyed ten per cent, 
 of the value of every deposit in the savings banks, ten per 
 cent, of every life insurance policy and fire insurance policy, 
 of every pension to the soldier, and of every day s wages of 
 every laborer in the nation. The trouble with our greenback 
 dollar is this : it has two distinct functions, one a purchasing 
 
2 8 O LIFE AND PUBLIC CAREER OF 
 
 power, and the other a debt-paying power. As a debt-paying 
 power, it is equal to one hundred cents ; that is, to pay an 
 old debt. A greenback dollar will, by law, discharge our 
 hundred cents of debt. But no law can give it purchasing 
 power in the general market of the world, unless it represents 
 a known standard of coin value. Now, what we want is, that 
 these two qualities of our greenback dollar shall be made 
 qual its debt-paying power and its general purchasing 
 power. When these are equal, the problems of our currency 
 are solved, and not till then. Summing it all up in a word, the 
 struggle now pending in this House is, on the one hand, to 
 make the greenback better, and on the other, to make it 
 worse. The resumption act is making it better every day. 
 Repeal that act, and you make it indefinitely worse. In the 
 name of every man who wants his own when he has earned it, 
 I demand that we do not make the wages of the poor man to 
 shrivel in his hands after he has earned them ; but that his 
 money shall be made better and better, until the plow-holder s 
 money shall be as good as the bondholder s money ; until our 
 standard is one, and there is no longer one money for the 
 rich and another for the poor." 
 
 He has never wavered upon this issue. He 
 voted to sustain the credit of the Government in 
 all stages of the finance question. Many faltered, 
 he always stood firm. In 1870 he pressed a reso 
 lution upon Congress pledging that body and the 
 country to an honorable performance of its con 
 tracts, and in 1876, when the "fiat" rage was upon 
 the people, and his party friends in Ohio fell away 
 from him in all directions, he stood firm. To all 
 protests and appeals he had but one answer, "It 
 is honorable ; it is just ; it is right. Standing here 
 may defeat my nomination, may defeat my elec- 
 
JAMES A. CARFIRLD. 
 
 tion ; but I would rather be beaten in right than 
 succeed in wrong." In his speech at Missillon, 
 O., August 24th, 1878, speaking of resumption, he 
 said: 
 
 "It is right because the public faith demands it; it is as 
 unpatriotic as it is dishonest to attempt to prevent it. The 
 highest interests both of labor and capital demand it." 
 
 Referring in the same speech to the substitu 
 tion of greenbacks for national bank notes, he 
 said : 
 
 " This makes a complete divorce between the business of 
 the country and the volume of its circulating mediums. Are 
 we prepared, under a Government which our fathers meant 
 should be a hard-money Government, to banish gold and sil 
 ver from circulation in the country for all time to come, and 
 do the business of the country upon nothing but irredeemable 
 paper, depending for its volume upon the will and caprice of 
 the moment or upon the views of members of Congress seek 
 ing re-election or aspiring to higher places?" 
 
 When Mr. Garfield entered Congress, he ob 
 served that no one devoted himself to an exami 
 nation of the appropriations in detail, and in order 
 to acquaint himself so as to vote intelligently upon 
 them, he submitted them to a careful analysis. 
 This analysis he yearly delivered to the House, 
 and it was from the start well received. It came 
 in time to be called "Garfield s budget speech." 
 Now each year he examines the appropriations 
 carefully being a member of the committee 
 
LIFE AND PUBLIC CAREER OF 
 
 and then makes his speech, which is always ac 
 cepted as the exposition of the nation s condition. 
 By its means and his committee work, he has 
 largely reduced the expenditures of the Govern 
 ment and thoroughly reformed the system of esti 
 mates and appropriations, providing for closer 
 accountability on the part of those who spend the 
 public money, and a clear knowledge on the part 
 of those who vote it of what it is used for. 
 Illustrating this he said on one occasion : 
 
 "The necessary expenditures of the Government form the 
 base line from which we measure the amount of our taxation 
 required, and on which we base our system of finance. We 
 have frequently heard it remarked since the session began, 
 that we should make our expenditures come within our reve 
 nues that we should cut our garment according to our 
 cloth. This theory may be correct when applied to private 
 affairs, but it is not applicable to the wants of nations. Our 
 national expenditures should be measured by the real necessi 
 ties and the proper needs of the Government. We should cut 
 our garment so as to fit the person to be clothed. If he be a 
 giant we must provide cloth sufficient for a fitting garment. 
 
 "The Committee on Appropriations are seeking earnestly 
 to reduce the expenditures of the Government, but they reject 
 the doctrine that they should at all hazards reduce the expend 
 itures to the level of the revenues, however small those reve 
 nues may be. They have attempted rather to ascertain what 
 are the real and vital necessities of the Government; to find 
 what amount of money will suffice to meet all its honorable 
 obligations, to carry on all its necessary and essential func 
 tions, and to keep alive those public enterprises which the 
 country desires its Government to undertake and accomplish. 
 When the amount of expenses necessary to meet these objects 
 
JAMES A. GARFIELD, 28^ 
 
 is ascertained, that amount should be appropriated, and ways 
 and means for procuring that amount should be provided. 
 On some accounts, it is unfortunate that our work of appro 
 priations is not connected directly with the work of taxation. 
 If this were so, the necessity of taxation would be a constant 
 check upon extravagance, and the practice of economy would 
 promise, as its immediate result, the pleasure of reducing 
 taxation." 
 
 We will touch here upon a question of only 
 secondary importance, the tariff. It is often urged 
 against Garfield that he is a free-trader, and it is 
 sought to be proved by the fact that he is an 
 honorary member of the Cobden Club. This cir 
 cumstance has no significance, as will be seen by 
 an extract from one of his letters written in 1879 : 
 
 "In 1868, I made a speech in favor of the resumption of 
 specie payments, in which I discussed elaborately the doc 
 trines of money and the obligation of the nation to pay its 
 debt. The Secretary of the Treasury sent some copies of 
 that speech to our minister in London, believing that it would 
 strengthen our credit abroad. John Bright received a copy, 
 and was so pleased with it that he had me elected an hono 
 rary member of the Cobden Club. I had never before heard 
 of this club, and, up to that time, Charles Sumner was the 
 only member of Congress who had ever been thus compli 
 mented. Some years after that I learned that the Cobden 
 Club believed in free trade, as nearly all Englishman do ; 
 but, of course, I was in no way responsible for their belief. 
 
 Referring more particularly to his record, it is 
 both just and proper that we should state the pro 
 tectionists of the country who have kept watch 
 over tariff legislation during the past twenty 
 
284 
 
 LIFE AND PUBLIC CAREER OF 
 
 years, and who have assisted to shape and main 
 tain the present tariff, are perfectly satisfied with 
 his tariff votes and speeches. They and all other 
 protectionists have, indeed, abundant reason to be 
 thankful to him for valuable assistance rendered 
 to the cause of home industry when it was in 
 serious peril from free-trade attacks . His votes 
 and speeches have been uniformly and constantly 
 in favor of the protective policy. His first tariff 
 speech in Congress was made in 1866. In this 
 speech he carefully defined his position on the 
 question of protection, as follows : 
 
 "I hold that a properly adjusted competition between 
 home and foreign products is the best gauge to regulate in 
 ternational trade. Duties should be so high that our manujac- 
 turers can fairly compete with the foreign product, but not so 
 high as to enable them to drive out the foreign article, enjoy 
 a monopoly of the trade, and regulate the price as they 
 please. This is my doctrine of protection. If Congress 
 pursues this line of policy steadily, we shall, year by year, 
 approach more nearly to the basis of free trade, because we 
 shall be more nearly able to compete with other nations on 
 equal terms. I am for a protection that leads to ultimate free 
 trade. I am for that free trade which can only be achieved 
 through a reasonable protection." 
 
 In his next tariff speech, delivered in 1870, upon 
 General Schenck s tariff bill, which provoked a 
 long and bitter controversy, General Garfield ad 
 vised the protectionists of the House to assent to 
 a moderate reduction of the war duties which 
 were then in force ; for the reason that they were 
 
JAMES A. GAR FIELD. 2 gc 
 
 higher than was then necessary for the protection 
 of our industries, and, being so, they gave occa 
 sion for unfriendly criticism of the protective 
 policy, from which it should be relieved. He said: 
 
 "After studying the whole subject as carefully as I am able, 
 I am -firmly of the opinion that the wisest thing that the pro 
 tectionists in this House can do is to unite in a moderate re 
 duction of duties on imported articles. He is not a faithful 
 representative who merely votes for the highest rate proposed 
 in order to show on the record that he voted for the highest 
 figure, and, therefore, is a sound protectionist. He is the 
 wisest man who sees the tides and currents of public opinion, 
 and uses his best efforts to protect the industry of the people 
 against sudden collapses and sudden changes. Now, if I do 
 not misunderstand the signs of the times, unless we do this our 
 selves, prudently and wisely, we shall before long be com 
 pelled to submit to a violent reduction, made rudely and 
 without discrimination, which will shock if not shatter all 
 our protected industries. 
 
 " The great want of industry is a stable policy ; and it is a 
 significant comment on the character of our legislation that 
 Congress has become a terror to the business men of the 
 country. This very day, the great industries of the nation 
 are standing still, half paralyzed at the uncertainty which 
 hangs over our proceedings here. A distinguished citizen of 
 my own district has lately written me this significant sen 
 tence : If the laws of God and nature were as vacillating 
 and uncertain as the laws of Congress in regard to the busi 
 ness of its people, the universe would soon fall into chaos. 
 
 "Examining thus the possibilities of the, situation, I be 
 lieve that the true course for the friends of protection to pur 
 sue is to reduce the rates on imports when we can justly and 
 safely do so ; and, accepting neither of the extreme doctrines 
 urged on this floor, endeavor to establish a stable policy that 
 will commend itself to all patriotic and thoughtful people." 
 
2 86 LIFE AND PUBLIC CAREER OF 
 
 General Schenck s bill passed the House, June 
 6th, 1870, General Garfield voting for it in com 
 pany with all the protectionists in that body. It 
 passed the Senate during the same month, such 
 leading protectionists as Senators Howe, Scott, 
 Morrill, of Vermont, Sherman and Wilson, voting 
 for it. The bill reduced the duties on a long list of 
 articles pig iron, for instance, from nine dollars to 
 seven dollars but it was a triumph of the pro 
 tective policy and a disastrous defeat of the free 
 traders and revenue reformers, who had favored 
 still lower duties. It embodied provisions that are 
 retained in the existing tariff, with which all pro 
 tectionists are entirely satisfied. 
 
 In 1872, two years after the passage of General 
 Schenck s bill, a bill to reduce duties on imports 
 and to reduce internal taxes was reported to the 
 House of Representatives, by Mr. Dawes, the 
 chairman of the Ways and Means Committee, 
 and after discussion it passed by a large majority, 
 such prominent protectionists as Dawes, Frye, 
 Foster, Frank W. Palmer, Ellis H. Roberts, Wil 
 liam A. Wheeler, and George F. Hoar voting for 
 
 o o 
 
 it. General Garfield voted for it. Judge Kelley 
 and sixty other protectionists voted against it. It 
 became a law, passed the Senate by a two-thirds 
 vote, such leading protectionists as Ferry, Howe, 
 the two Morrills, Morton, Sherman and Wilson, 
 supporting it. Protectionists, as will be seen, were 
 not united upon the merits of this bill, which, 
 
JAMES A. GARFIELD. 
 
 among other provisions, reduced the duty on many 
 iron and steel products ten per cent., but there 
 was no conflict of principle involved in their dif 
 ferences nothing but a question of expediency. 
 
 Says a recent writer on this subject, giving a 
 page of its history : 
 
 "In 1875, three years after the passage of the bill just re 
 ferred to, Mr. Dawes, still chairman of the Ways and Means 
 Committee, reported a bill to further protect the sinking fund 
 and to provide for the exigencies of the Government, which 
 provided among other things for the restoration of the ten 
 per cent, which had been taken from the duties on iron and 
 steel by the act of 1872. This bill passed the House by a 
 close vote, General Garfield voting for it, as did nearly every 
 protectionist in the House. The bill passed the Senate and 
 became a law, the vote being very close yeas, 30; nays, 29. 
 The protectionists in the Senate were almost unanimously in 
 favor of it. Mr. Sherman made a strong speech against it, 
 and Mr. Scott and Mr. Frelinghuysen very ably supported it. 
 Mr. Sherman voted against it. The passage of this bill gave 
 great encouragement to our prostrated iron and steel in 
 dustries. 
 
 "The next tariff measure that came before Congress was 
 the bill of Mr. Morrison, which was presented in the House 
 in 1876, but was so vigorously opposed that it never reached 
 the dignity of a square vote upon its merits. Two years after 
 ward Mr. Wood undertook the preparation of a tariff bill 
 which greatly reduced duties on most articles of foreign man 
 ufacture, and which he confidently hoped might become a 
 law. This bill possessed more vitality than that of Mr. Mor 
 rison s, and it was with great difficulty that the friends of pro 
 tection were able to secure its defeat. On the 4th of June 
 General Garfield delivered an elaborate speech against it in 
 committee of the whole, in the course of which he said : 
 
2 gg LIFE AND PUBLIC CAREER OF 
 
 " I would have the duty so adjusted that every great Amer 
 ican industry can fairly live and make fair profits. The chiel 
 charge I make against this bill is that it seeks to cripple the 
 protective features of the law. 
 
 "He further said, in concluding his speech: 
 
 " A bill so radical in its character, so dangerous to our busi 
 ness prosperity, would work infinite mischief at this time, 
 when the country is just recovering itself from a long period 
 of depression and getting again upon solid ground, just com 
 ing up out of the wild sea of panic and distress which has 
 tossed us so long. 
 
 " Let it be remembered that twenty-two per cent, of all the 
 laboring people of this country are artisans engaged in manu 
 factures. Their culture has been fostered by our tariff laws. 
 It is their pursuits and the skill which they have developed 
 that produced the glory of our Centennial Exhibition. Tc 
 them the country owes the splendor of the position it holds 
 before the world more than to any other equal number of oui 
 citizens. If this bill becomes a law, it strikes down their occu 
 pation and throws into the keenest distress the brightest and 
 best elements of our population. 
 
 " When the first paragraph has been read I will propose tc 
 strike out the enacting clause. If the committee will do thai 
 we can kill the bill to-day. 
 
 "On the day following the delivery of General Garfield j 
 speech his suggestion to strike out the enacting clause was 
 carried into effect, upon motion of Mr. Conger, and the bill 
 was killed; yeas, 134; nays, 121. The majority against the 
 bill was only 13. 
 
 "During the recent session of Congress a vigorous effort was 
 made to break down the tariff by piecemeal legislation. Di 
 vide and ^conquer was the motto of the free-traders. They 
 were defeated in every effort to reduce duties, and in ever) 
 instance they encountered General Garfield s opposition. 
 Iron and steel manufacturers have good cause to remembei 
 his vote in the Ways and Means Committee last March on 
 the bill of Mr. Covert to reduce the duty on steel rails. Gen 
 eral Garfield voted with Judge Kelley and Messrs. Conger, 
 Frye, Felton, Gibson and Phelps against any reduction, and 
 
JAMES A. GARFIELD. 
 
 that was the end of Mr. Covert s bill the vote being seven 
 against to six in favor of it. Had the bill prevailed the en 
 tire line of duties on iron and steel and other manufactures 
 would have been seriously endangered." 
 
 A word on another question of political econ 
 omy to close this chapter appropriately, remem 
 bering the national work this year, is found in 
 General Garfield s speech urging the importance 
 of the last census : 
 
 " The developments of statistics are causing history to be 
 re-written. Till recently the historian studied nature in the 
 aggregate, and gave us only the story of princes, dynasties, 
 sieges and battles. Of the people themselves the great 
 social body, with life, growth, forces, elements, etc. he told 
 us nothing. Now, statistical inquiry leads him into the 
 hovels, homes, workshops, mines, fields, prisons, hospitals, 
 and all places where human nature displays its weakness and 
 strength. In these explorations he discovers the seed of na 
 tional growth and decay, and thus becomes the prophet of his 
 generation. 
 
 " Statistical science is indispensable to modern statesman 
 ship. In legislation, as in physical science, it is beginning to 
 be understood that we can control terrestrial forces only by 
 obeying their laws. The legislator must formulate in his sta 
 tistics not only the national will, but also those great laws of 
 social life revealed by statistics. He must study society rather 
 than black-letter learning. He must learn the truth that so 
 ciety usually prepares the crime, and the criminal is only the 
 instrument that completes it; that statesmanship consists 
 rather in removing causes than in punishing or evading 
 results." 
 
2 n O LIFE A.\ D PUBLIC CAREER OF 
 
 CHAPTER XXII. 
 
 ARRAIGNING HIS ENEMIES. 
 
 GENERAL GARFIELD has ever dealt 
 his enemies in Congress sledge-hammer 
 blows, and yet not with any malignity or 
 from the sly hand of revenge. His tongue has 
 only been moved by what he considered the ne 
 cessities of the situation. The inheritance of tra 
 dition from his district would, if no other cause 
 had prompted, have allied him with the North 
 when the Rebellion became a question for each 
 and every one. His vigorous, clear mind needed 
 no words to shape its course. Whenever the 
 Union was concerned he answered every call with 
 electric readiness. 
 
 One of his early speeches in Congress gave 
 him high oratorical rank. Alexander Long, of 
 Ohio, delivered in 1 864 an exceedingly ultra Peace- 
 Democratic speech proposing that Congress 
 should recognize the Southern Confederacy. The 
 speech attracted marked attention, and by com 
 mon consent it was left to the young member, so 
 fresh from the battle-fields of his country, to reply. 
 The moment Long took his seat, Garfield rose. 
 His opening sentence thrilled his listeners. In a 
 moment he was surrounded by a crowd of mem- 
 
JAMES A. GARFIELD. 
 
 bers from the remoter seats, and in the midst of 
 great excitement and wild applause from his side 
 he poured forth an invective rarely surpassed in 
 that body for power and elegance : 
 
 "MR. CHAIRMAN : I am reminded by the ocurrences of this 
 afternoon of two characters in the War of the Revolution, as 
 compared with two others in the war of to-day. 
 
 "The first was Lord Fairfax, who dwelt near the Potomac, a 
 few miles from us. When the great contest was opened be 
 tween the mother country and the colonies, Lord Fairfax, 
 after a protracted struggle with his own heart, decided that 
 he must go with the mother country. He gathered his man 
 tle *bout him and went over grandly and solemnly. 
 
 "There was another man, who cast in his lot with the 
 struggling colonists and continued with them till the war was 
 well-nigh ended. In an hour of darkness that just preceded 
 the glory of morning, he hatched the treason to surrender for 
 ever all that had been gained by the enemies of his country. 
 Benedict Arnold was that man. 
 
 "Fairfax and Arnold find their parallel in the struggle of 
 to-day. 
 
 When this war was begun many good men stood hesitating 
 and doubting what they ought to do. Robert E. Lee sat in 
 his house across the river here, doubting and delaying, and 
 going off at last almost tearfully to join the army of his State. 
 He reminds one in some respects, of Lord Fairfax, the stately 
 royalist of the Revolution. 
 
 "But now, when tens of thousands of brave souls have gone 
 up to God under the shadow of the flag; when thousands 
 more, maimed and shattered in the contest, are sadly awaiting 
 the deliverance of death; now, when three years of terrific 
 warfare have raged over us, when our armies have pushed the 
 rebellion back over mountains and rivers, and crowded it into 
 narrow limits until a wall of fire girds it; now, when the up- 
 
2Q2 LIFE AND PUBLIC CAREER OF 
 
 lifted hand of a majestic people is about to hurl the bolts of 
 its conquering power upon the rebellion, now in the quiet of 
 this hall, hatched in the lowest depths of a similar dark trea 
 son, there rises a Benedict Arnold and proposes to surrender 
 all up, body and spirit, the nation and the flag, its genius and 
 its honor, now and forever to the accursed traitors to our 
 country. And that proposition comes God forgive and pity 
 my beloved State it comes from a citizen of the tin^e-honored 
 and loyal commonwealth of Ohio. 
 
 "I implore you, brethren, in this House, to believe that 
 not many births ever gave pangs to my mother State, such as 
 she suffered when that traitor was born ! I beg you not to 
 believe that on the soil of that State such another growth has 
 ever deformed the face of nature, and darkened the light of 
 God s day!" 
 
 The speech continued in the same strain, 
 polished and powerful. Its delivery upon the spur 
 of the moment, in immediate reply to an elaborate 
 effort, which had taken him as well as the rest of 
 the House by surprise, won him a crowning 
 credit. 
 
 Four years ago he handles the same question, 
 as it reappears, in another and less objectionable 
 form. In the course of a speech, " Can the Dem 
 ocratic Party be Safely Intrusted with the Adminis 
 tration of the Government," in answer to Mr. 
 Lamar, the Great Republican said : 
 
 " I share all that gentleman s aspirations for peace, for 
 good government at the South and I believe I can safely as 
 sure him that the great majority of the nation shares the same 
 aspirations. But he will allow me to say that he has not fully 
 stated the elements of the great problem to be solved by the 
 
JAMES A. GARFIELD. 293 
 
 statesmanship of to-day. The actual field is much broader 
 than the view he has taken. And before we can agree that 
 the remedy he proposes is an adequate one, we must take in 
 the whole field, comprehend all the conditions of the prob 
 lem, and then see if his remedy is sufficient. The change he 
 proposes is not like the ordinary change of a ministry in 
 England, when the Government is defeated on a tax bill or 
 some routine measure of legislation. He proposes to turn 
 over the custody and management of the Government to 
 a party which has persistently, and with the greatest bit 
 terness, resisted all the great changes of the last fifteen 
 years changes which were the necessary results of a vast 
 revolution a revolution in national policy, in social and 
 political ideas; a revolution whose causes were not the 
 work of a day nor a year, but of generations and centuries. 
 " The scope and character of that mighty revolution must 
 form the basis of our judgment when we inquire whether 
 such a change as he proposes is safe and wise. But that is 
 not all of the situation. On the other hand, we see the 
 North, after leaving its three hundred and fifty thousand dead 
 upon the field of battle and bringing home its five hundred 
 thousand maimed and wounded to be cared for, crippled in its 
 industries, staggering under the tremendous burden of public 
 and private debt, and both North and South weighted with un 
 paralleled burdens and losses the whole nation suffering 
 from .that loosening of the bonds of social order which al 
 ways follows a great war, and from the resulting corruption 
 both in the public and the private life of the people. These, 
 Mr. Chairman, constitute the vast field which we must sur 
 vey in order to find the path which will soonest lead our be 
 loved country to the highway of peace, of liberty and pros 
 perity. Peace from the shock of battle, the higher peace 
 of our streets, of our homes, of our . equal rights, we must 
 make secure by making the conquering ideas of the war 
 everywhere dominant and permanent. But such a result can 
 be reached only by comprehending the whole meaning of 
 
LIFE AND PUBLIC CAREER OF 
 
 the revolution through which we have passed and are still 
 passing. I say still passing ; for I remember that after the 
 battle of arms comes the battle of history. The cause that 
 triumphs in the field does not always triumph in history. 
 And those who carried the war for union, and equal and uni 
 versal freedom to a victorious issue can never safely relax 
 their vigilance, until the ideas for which they fought have 
 become embodied in the enduring forms of individual and 
 national life. 
 
 "Has this been done? Not yet. I ask the gentleman in 
 all plainness of speech, and yet in all kindness, is he correct 
 in his statement that the conquered party accept the results 
 of the war ? Even if they do, I remind the gentleman that 
 accfpt is not a very strong word. I go further. I ask him if 
 the Democratic party have adopted the results of the war? 
 Is it not asking too much of human nature to expect such un 
 paralleled changes to be not only accepted, but in so short 
 a time adopted by men of strong and independent opinions. 
 This conflict of opinion was not merely one of sentimental 
 feeling ; it involved our whole political system ; it gave rise 
 to two radically different theories of the nature of our Gov 
 ernment : the North believing and holding that we were a 
 nation, the South insisting that we were only a confedera 
 tion of sovereign States, and insisting that each State had the 
 right, at its own discretion, to break the Union, and con 
 stantly threatening secession where the full rights of slavery 
 were not acknowledged. Thus the defense and aggrandize 
 ment of slavery, and the hatred of abolitionism, became, 
 not only the central idea of the Democratic party, but its 
 master passion ; a passion intensified and inflamed by twenty- 
 five years of fierce political contest, which had not only 
 driven from its ranks all those who preferred freedom to slav 
 ery, but .had absorbed all the extreme pro-slavery elements 
 of the fallen Whig party. Over against this was arrayed the 
 Republican party, asserting the broad doctrines of nation 
 ality and loyalty, insisting that no State had a right to secede, 
 
JAMES A. GARFIELD. 
 
 295 
 
 that secession was treason, and demanding that the institu* 
 tion of slavery should be restricted to the limits of the 
 States where it already existed. But here and there, many 
 bolder and more radical thinkers declared, with Wendell 
 Phillips, that there never could be union and peace, freedom 
 and prosperity, until we were willing to see John Hancock 
 under a black skin. Now, I ask the gentleman if he is quite 
 sure, as a matter of fact, that the Democratic party, its southern 
 as well as its northern wing, have followed his own illustri 
 ous and worthy example in the vast progress he has made 
 since 1859? He assures us that the transformation has been 
 so complete, that the nation can safely trust all the most pre 
 cious fruits of the war in the hands of that party who stood 
 with him in 1859. If that be true, I rejoice at it with all my 
 heart ; but the gentleman must pardon me if I ask him to 
 assist my wavering faith by some evidence, some consoling 
 proofs. When did the great transformation take place ? Cer 
 tainly not within two years after the delivery of the speech I 
 have quoted ; for, two years from that time the contest h is 
 arisen much higher ; it had risen to the point of open, terrible 
 and determined war. Did the change come during the war? 
 Oh, no; for, in the four terrible years ending in 1865, every 
 resource of courage and power that the Southern States could 
 muster was employed not only to save slavery, but to destroy 
 the Union. So the transformation had not occurred in 1865. 
 When did it occur? Aid our anxious inquiry, for the nation 
 ought to be sure that the great change has occurred before it 
 can safely trust its destinies to the Democratic party. Did it 
 occur in the first epoch of reconstruction the two years im 
 mediately following the war? During that period the at 
 tempt was made to restore governments in the South on the 
 basis of the white vote. Military control was held generally, 
 but the white population of the Southern States were invited 
 to elect their own legislatures and establish provisional gov 
 ernments. In the laws, covering a period of two and a half 
 years, 1865, 1866, and a portion of 1867, enacted by those 
 
296 
 
 LIFE AND PUBLIC CAREER OF 
 
 legislatures, we ought to find proof of the transformation, if it 
 had then occurred. What do we find ? What we should 
 naturally expect, that a people, accustomed to the domination 
 of slavery, re-enacted in almost all of the Southern States, and 
 notably in the States of Mississippi and Louisiana, laws limit 
 ing and restricting the liberty of the colored man ; vagrant 
 laws and peonage laws, whereby negroes were sold at auction 
 for the payment of a paltry tax or fine, and held in a slavery 
 as real as the slavery of other days. I believe this was true of 
 nearly all of the Southern States ; so that the experiment of 
 allowing the white population of the South to adjust that very 
 question proved a frightful failure ; and then it was that the 
 National Congress intervened. They proposed an act of re 
 construction, an act which became a law on the 2d of March, 
 1867. That was the plan of reconstruction offered to those 
 who had been in rebellion, offered by a generous and brave 
 nation ; and I challenge the world to show an act of equal 
 generosity to a conquered people. What answer did it meet? 
 By the advice of Andrew Johnson, a bad adviser, backed by 
 the advice of the Northern Democracy, a still worse adviser, 
 ten of the eleven States lately in rebellion contemptuously 
 rejected the plan of reconstruction embraced in the Fourteenth 
 Amendment of the Constitution. They would have none of 
 it ; they had been advised by their Northern allies to stand 
 out, and were told when the Democracy came into power they 
 should be permitted to come back to their places without 
 guarantees or conditions. This brings us to 1868. Had the 
 transformation occurred then? For, remember, gentlemen, 
 I am searching for the date of the great transformation similar 
 to that which has taken place in the gentleman from Mis 
 sissippi. We do not find it in 1868. On the contrary, in 
 that year, we find Frank P. Blair, of Missouri, writing these 
 words, which, a few^j ays after they were written, gave him the 
 nomination for the Vice-Presidency on the Democratic ticket : 
 "There is but one way to restore government and the 
 Constitution, and that is for the President elect to declare 
 
JAMES A. GARFIELD. 
 
 297 
 
 these acts and the Constitutional Amendment with them 
 to declare all these acts null and void, compel the army to 
 undo its usurpations at the South, and disperse the carpet-bag 
 State governments, and allow the white people t6 recognize 
 their own governments, and elect Senators and Representa 
 tives. 
 
 "Because he wrote that letter he was nominated for Vice- 
 President by the Democratic party. Therefore, as late as 
 July, 1868, the transformation had not occurred. Had it 
 occurred in 1872? In 1871 and 1872 all the amendments 
 of the Constitution had been adopted, against the stubborn 
 resistance of the Northern and Southern Democracy. I call 
 you to witness that, with the exception of three or four Demo 
 cratic representatives, who voted for the abolition of slavery, 
 the three great amendments, the thirteenth, the fourteenth 
 and the fifteenth, met the determined and united opposition 
 of the Democracy of this country. Each of the amendments, 
 now so praised by the gentleman, was adopted against the 
 whole weight of your resistance. And two years after the 
 adoption of the last amendment, in many of your State plat 
 forms, they were declared null and void. In 1871 and 1872 
 occurred throughout the South those dreadful scenes, enacted 
 by the Ku-Klux organizations, of which I will say only this : 
 that a man. facile princeps among the Democrats of the slave- 
 holding States Reverdy Johnson who was sent down to 
 defend those who were indicted for their crimes, held up his 
 hands in horror at the shocking barbarities that had been per 
 petrated by his clients upon negro citizens. I refer to the 
 evidence of that eminent man, as a sufficient proof of the 
 character of that great conspiracy against the freedom of the 
 colored race. So the transformation had not come in the 
 days of Ku-Klux, of 1871 and 1872. Had it come in 1873 
 and the beginning of 1874? Had it come in the State ot 
 Mississippi? .Had it come in one-quarter oi the States lately 
 in rebellion ? Here is a report from an honorable committee 
 of the House, signed by two gentlemen who are still members, 
 
298 
 
 LIFE AND PUBLIC CAREER OF 
 
 Mr. Conger and Mr. Hurlbut a report made as late as 
 December, 1874, in which there is disclosed, by innumerable 
 witnesses, the proof that the white-line organization, an 
 avowed military organization, formed within the Democratic 
 party, had leagued themselves together to prevent the enjoy 
 ment of suffrage and equal rights by the colored men of the 
 South. 
 
 " Mr. Chairman, after the facts I h ave cited, am I not war 
 ranted in raising a grave doubt whether the transformation 
 occurred at all, except in a few patriotic and philosophic 
 minds? The light gleams first on the mountain peaks; but 
 shadows and darkness linger in the valley. It is in the valley 
 masses of those lately in rebellion that the light of this beau 
 tiful philosophy, which I honor, has not penetrated. Is it 
 safer to withhold from them the custody and supreme con 
 trol of the precious treasures of the Republic until the mid 
 day sun of liberty, justice and equal laws shall shine upon 
 them with unclouded ray? In view of all the facts, consider 
 ing the centuries of influence that brought on the great strug 
 gle, is it not reasonable to suppose that it will require yet 
 more time to effect the great transformation? The gentleman 
 from Mississippi (Mr. Lamar) says there is no possibility that 
 the South will again control national affairs, if the Democ 
 racy be placed again in power. How is this ? We are told 
 that the South will vote as a unit for Tilden and Hendricks. 
 Suppose those gentlemen also carry New York and Indiana. 
 Does the gentleman believe that a northern minority of the 
 Democracy will control the administration ? Impossible ! 
 But if they did, would it better the case? 
 
 "Let me put the question in another form. Suppose, gen 
 tlemen of the South, you had won the victory in the war; 
 that you had captured Washington, and Gettysburg, and 
 Philadelphia, and New York ; and we of the North, defeated 
 and conquered, had lain prostrate at your feet. Do you be 
 lieve that by this time you would be ready and willing to in 
 trust to us our Garrisons, our Phillipses, and our Wades, and 
 
JAMES A. GARFIELD. 
 
 the great array of those who were the leaders of our thoughts 
 the fruits of your victory, the enforcement of your doctrines 
 of State sovereignty, and the work of extending the domain 
 of slavery ? Do you think so ? And if not, will you not 
 pardon us when we tell you that we are not quite ready to 
 trust the precious results of the nation s victory in your 
 hands ? Let it be constantly borne in mind that I am not 
 debating a question of equal rights and privileges within the 
 Union, but whether those who so lately sought to destroy it 
 ought to be chosen to control its destiny for the next four 
 years. 
 
 "It is now time to inquire as to the fitness of this Demo 
 cratic party to take control of our great nation and its vast 
 and important interests for the next four years. I put the 
 question to the gentleman from Mississippi, Mr. Lamar, what 
 has the Democratic party done to merit that great trust? He 
 tries to show in what respects it would be dangerous. I ask 
 him to show in what it would be safe. I affirm, and I believe 
 I do not misrepresent the great Democratic party, that in the 
 last sixteen years they have not advanced one great national 
 idea that is not to-day exploded and as dead as Julius Caesar. 
 And if any Democrat here will rise and name a great national 
 doctrine his party has advanced, within that lime, that is now 
 alive and believed in, I will yield to him. [A pause.] In 
 default of an answer I will attempt to .prove my negative. 
 
 "What were the great central doctrines of the Democratic 
 party in the Presidential struggle of 1860? The followers of 
 Breckenridge said slavery had a right to go wherever the Con 
 stitution goes. Do you believe that to-day? And is there a 
 man on this continent that holds that doctrine to-day? Not 
 one. That doctrine is dead and buried. The other wing of 
 Ihe Democracy held that slavery might be established in the 
 territories if the people wanted it. Does anybody hold that 
 doctrine to-day? Dead, absolutely dead! 
 
 " Come down to 1864. Your party; under the lead of Tilden 
 and Vallandingham, declared the experiment of war to save 
 
^00 LIFE AND PUBLIC CAREER OF 
 
 the Union was a failure. Do you believe that doctrine t( 
 day? That doctrine was shot to death by the guns of Farn 
 gut at Mobile, and driven in a tempest of fire from the valle 
 of the Shenandoah by Sheridan less than a month after il 
 birth at Chicago. 
 
 "Come down to 1868. You declared the Constitutions 
 Amendments revolutionary and void. Does any man on thi 
 floor say so to-day? If so, let him rise and declare it. 
 
 "Do you believe in the doctrine of the Broadhead letter o 
 1868, that the so-called Constitutional Amendments should b 
 disregarded? No; the gentleman from Mississippi accept 
 the results of the war! The Democratic doctrine of i86< 
 is dead ! 
 
 "I walk across that Democratic campaign-ground as in i 
 graveyard. Under my feet resound the hollow echoes of th< 
 dead. There lies slavery, a black marble column at the heac 
 of its grave, on which I read : Died in the flames of the civi 
 war; loved in its life; lamented in its death; followed to it 
 bier by its only mourner, the Democratic party, but dead 
 And here is a double grave : sacred to the memory of squat 
 ter sovereignty. Died in the campaign of 1860. On the re 
 verse side : Sacred to the memory of Dred Scott and th< 
 Breckinridge doctrine. Both dead at the hands of Abrahan 
 Lincoln ! And here a monument of brimstone : Sacred to th< 
 memory of the rebellion : the war against it is a failure ; 7/7 
 den et Vallandingham fecerunt, A. D. 1864. Dead on th< 
 field of battle; shot to death by the million guns of the Repub 
 lie. The doctrine of secession ; of state sovereignty, dead 
 Expired in the flames of civil war, amid the blazing rafters o 
 the Confederacy, except that the modern ^neas, fleeing ou 
 of the flames of that ruin, bears on his back another Anchise: 
 of State sovereignty, and brings it here in the person of th< 
 honorable gentlemen from the Appomattox district of Yir 
 ginia (Mr. Tucker). All else is dead. 
 
 "Now, gentlemen, are you sad, are you sorry for thes< 
 deaths? Are you not glad that secession is dead? that slavery 
 
JAMES A. GARFIELD. 
 
 is dead ? that squatter sovereignty is dead ? that the doctrine 
 of the failure of the war is dead ? Then you are glad that 
 you were outvoted in 1860, in 1864, in 1868 and in 1872. If 
 you have tears to shed over these losses, shed them in the 
 graveyard, but not in this house of living men. I know that 
 many a Southern man rejoices that these issues are dead. 
 The gentleman from Mississippi (Mr. Lamar) has clothed his 
 joy with eloquence. 
 
 " Now, gentlemen, if you yourselves are glad that you have 
 suffered defeat during the last sixteen years, will you not be 
 equally glad when you suffer defeat next November? But 
 pardon that remark ; I regret it : I should use no bravado. 
 
 " Now, gentlemen, come with me for a moment into the 
 camp of the Republican party and review its career. Our 
 central doctrine in 1860 was that slavery should never extend 
 itself over another foot of American soil. Is that doctrine 
 dead ? It is folded away like a victorious banner ; its truth 
 is alive for evermore on this continent. In 1864 we declared 
 that we would put down the rebellion and secession. And 
 that doctrine lives, and will live when the second centennial 
 has arrived. Freedom national, universal and perpetual 
 our great Constitutional Amendments, are they alive or dead ? 
 Alive, thank the God that shields both liberty and the Union. 
 And our national credit ! saved from the assaults of Pendle- 
 ton ; saved from the assaults of those who struck it later, 
 rising higher and higher at home and abroad ; and only now 
 in doubt lest its chief, its only enemy, the Democracy, should 
 triumph in November. 
 
 "Mr. Chairman, ought the Republican party to surrender 
 its truncheon of command to the Democracy ? The gentle 
 man from Mississippi says if this were England the ministry 
 would go out in twenty-four hours, with such a state of things 
 as we have here. Ah, yes ! that is an ordinary case of change 
 of administration. But if this were England, what would 
 she have done at the end of the war ? England made one 
 such mistake as the gentleman asks this country to make, when 
 
LIFE AND PUBLIC CAREER OF 
 
 she threw away the achievements of the grandest man that 
 ever trod her highway of power. Oliver Cromwell had over 
 thrown the throne of despotic power and had lifted his coun 
 try to a place of masterful greatness among the nations of the 
 earth ; and when, after his death, his great sceptre was trans 
 ferred to a weak though not unlenial hand, his country, in a 
 moment of reactionary blindness, brought back the Stuarts. 
 England did not recover from this folly until, in 1689, the 
 prince of Orange drove from her island the last of that weak 
 and wicked line. Did she afterward repeat the blunder?" 
 
 Combating Democratic measures, as Garfield 
 always has, the opportunity offered by the extra 
 session of the Forty-sixth Congress was not lost. 
 Concerning it, he said : 
 
 " Mr. Speaker, we have probably never legislated on any 
 question, the influence of which reaches further, both terri 
 torially and in time, and touches more interests, more vital 
 interests, than are touched by this and similar bills. No man 
 can doubt that within recent years, and notably within recent 
 months, the leading thinkers of the civilized world have be 
 come alarmed at the attitude of the two precious metals in re 
 lation to each other ; and many leading thinkers are becoming 
 clearly of the opinion that by some wise, judicious arrange. 
 ment both the precious metals must be kept in service for the 
 currency of the world. And this opinion has been very rapidly 
 gaining ground within the last six months, to such an extent 
 that England, which for more, than half a century has stoutly 
 adhered to the single gold standard, is now seriously medi 
 tating how she may harness both these metals to the monetary 
 car of the world. And yet, outside of this capital, I do not 
 this day know of a single great and recognized advocate of bi 
 metallic money who regards it prudent or safe for any nation 
 largely to increase the coinage standard of silver coin at 
 the present time beyond the limits fixed by existing laws. 
 
JAMES A. GARFIELD. 
 
 303 
 
 France and the States of the Latin Union, that has long be 
 lieved in bi-metallism, maintained it against all comers, and 
 have done all in their power to advocate it throughout the 
 world, dare not coin a single silver coin, and have not done 
 so since 1874. The most stenuous advocates of bi-metallism 
 in those countries say it would be ruinous to bi-metallism for 
 France or the Latin Union to coin any more silver at present. 
 The remaining stock of German silver now for sale, amount 
 ing to from forty to seventy-five millions of dollars, is a stand 
 ing menace to the exchanges and silver coinage of Europe. 
 One month ago the leading financial journal of London pro 
 posed that the Bank of England buy one-half of the Ger 
 man surplus and hold it five years, on condition that the 
 German Government shall hold the other half off the 
 market. The time is ripe for some wise and prudent 
 arrangement among the nations to save silver from a dis 
 astrous break-down. Yet we, who during the past two 
 years have coined far more silver dollars than we ever before 
 coined since the foundation of the Government ; ten times as 
 many as we coined during half a century of our national life ; 
 are to-day ignoring and defying the enlightened, universal 
 opinion of bi-metallism, and saying that the United States, 
 single-handed and alone, can enter the field and settle the 
 mighty issue alone. We are justifying the old proverb, that 
 Fools rush in where angels fear to tread. It is sheer mad 
 ness, Mr. Speaker. I once saw a dog on a great stack of hay, 
 that had been floated out into the wild, overflowed stream of 
 a river, with its stack-pen and foundations still holding to 
 gether, but ready to be wrecked. For a little while the ani 
 mal appeared to be perfectly happy. His hay-stack was 
 there, and the pen around it, and he seemed to think the 
 world bright and his happiness secure, while the sunshine fell 
 softly on his head and hay. But by and by he began to dis 
 cover that the house and the barn, and their surroundings, 
 were not all there, as they were when he went to sleep the 
 night before ; and he began to see that he could not com- 
 
n1 LIFE AXD ri BLIC CAREER OF 
 
 04 
 
 mand all the prospect and peacefully dominate the scene as 
 he had done before. So with this House. We assume to 
 manage this mighty question, which has been launched on the 
 wild current that sweeps over the whole world, and we bark 
 from our legislative hay-stacks as though we commanded the 
 whole world. In the name of common sense and sanity, 
 let us take some account of the flood ; let us understand 
 that a deluge means something, and try, if we can, to get 
 our bearings before we undertake to settle the affairs of all 
 mankind by a vote of this House. To-day we are coining 
 one-third of all the silver that is being coined in the round 
 world. China is coining another third ; and all other nations 
 are using the remaining one-third for subsidiary coin. And 
 if we want to take rank with China and part company with 
 all of the civilized nations of the Western world, let us pass 
 this bill, and then bay the moon, as we float down the 
 whirling channel to take our place among the silver mono- 
 metallists of Asia. 
 
 "Mr. Chairman, the dogma of State Sovereignty, which has 
 re-awakened to such vigorous life in this chamber, has borne 
 such bitter fruits, and entailed such suffering upon our people, 
 that it deserves more particular notice. It should be noticed 
 that the word Sovereignty cannot be fitly applied to any 
 government in this country. It is not found in our Constitu 
 tion. It is a feudal word, born of the despotism of the mid 
 dle ages, and was unknown even in imperial Rome. A 
 Sovereign is a person, a prince who has subjects that owe 
 him allegiance. There is no one paramount sovereign in the 
 United States. There is no person here who holds any title 
 or authority whatever, except the official authority given him 
 by law. Americans are not subjects, but citizens. Our only 
 sovereign is the whole people. To talk about the inherent 
 sovereignty of a corporation an artificial person is to talk 
 nonsense ; and we ought to reform our habit of speech on that 
 subject. But what do gentlemen mean when they tell us that 
 a State is sovereign ? What does sovereignty mean, in its ac- 
 
JAMES A. GARFIELD. 305 
 
 cepted use, but a political corporation having no superior ? 
 Is a State of this Union such a corporation ? Let us test it -by 
 a few examples drawn from the Constitution. No State of 
 this Union can make war or conclude a peace. Without the 
 consent of Congress it cannot raise or support an army or a 
 navy. It cannot make a treaty with a foreign power, nor 
 enter into any agreement or compact with another State. It 
 cannot levy imposts or duties on imports or exports. It can 
 not coin money. It cannot regulate commerce. It cannot 
 authorize a single ship to go into commission anywhere on 
 the high seas ; if it should, that ship would be seized as a 
 pirate or confiscated by the laws of the United States. A 
 State cannot emit bills of credit. It can enact no law which 
 makes anything but gold and silver a legal tender. It has no 
 flag except the flag of the Union. And there are many other 
 subjects on which the States are forbidden by the Constitution 
 to legislate. How much inherent sovereignty is left in a cor 
 poration which is thus shorn of all these great attributes df 
 sovereignty ? But this is not all. The Supreme Court of the 
 United States may declare null and void any law, or any 
 clause of the Constitution of a State, which happens to be in 
 conflict with the Constitution and laws of the United States. 
 Again, the States appear as plaintiffs and defendants before 
 the Supreme Court of the United States. They may sue each 
 other ; and until the Eleventh Amendment was adopted a 
 citizen might sue a State. These sovereigns may all be 
 summoned before their common*superior to be judged. And 
 yet they are endowed with supreme inherent sovereignty? 
 Again, the government of a State may be absolutely abolished 
 by Congress, in case it is not republican in form. 
 
 " And finally, to cap the climax of this absurd pretension, 
 every right possessed by one of these sovereign States, every 
 inherent sovereign right, except the single right to equal rep 
 resentation in the Senate, may be taken away, without its con 
 sent, by the vote of two-thirds of Congress and three-fourths 
 of the States. But> in spite of all these disabilities, we hear 
 
 1.8 
 
-.06 LIFE AND PUBLIC CAREER OF 
 
 them paraded as independent, sovereign States, the creators 
 of the Union and the dictators of its powers. How inhe 
 rently sovereign must be that State west of the Mississippi, 
 which the nation bought and paid for with the public money, 
 and permitted to come into the Union a half century after 
 the Constitution was adopted ! And yet we are told that 
 States are inherently sovereign, and create the national 
 government. Half a century ago, this heresy threatened the 
 stability of the nation. The eloquence of Webster and his 
 compeers, and the patriotism and high courage of Andrew 
 Jackson, resisted and for a time destroyed its powers ; but it 
 continued to live as the evil genius, the incarnate devil, of 
 America; and, in 1861, it was the fatal phantom that lured 
 eleven millions of our people into rebellion against their Gov 
 ernment. Hundreds of thousands of those who took up arms 
 against the Union, stubbornly resisted all inducements to that 
 fatal step until they were summoned by the authority of their 
 States." 
 
 A single bold passage (were it possible, we 
 would give in full,) from his speech on counting 
 the electoral vote must find a place here : 
 
 t When you tell me that civil war is threatened by any party 
 or State in this Republic, you have given me a supreme reason 
 why an American Congress should refuse, with unutterable 
 scorn, to listen to those whothreaten, or do any act whatever 
 under the coercion of threats by any power on earth. With 
 all my soul, I despise your threat of civil war, come it from 
 what quarter or what it may. Brave men, certainly a brave 
 nation, will do nothing under such compulsion. We are in 
 trusted with the work of obeying and defending the Constitu 
 tion. I will not be deterred from obeying it, because some 
 body threatens to destroy it. I dismiss all that class of mo 
 tives as unworthy of Americans. 
 
 "What, then, are the grounds on which we should con- 
 
JAMES A. GARFIELD. 
 
 307 
 
 sider a bill like this? It would be unbecoming in me or in 
 any member of this Congress to oppose this bill on mere 
 technical or trifling grounds. It should be opposed, if at all, 
 for reasons so broad, so weighty as to overcome all that has 
 been said in its favor, and all the advantages which I have 
 here admitted, may follow from its passage. I do not wish 
 to diminish the stature of my antagonist ; I do not wish to 
 undervalue the points of strength in a measure, before I ques 
 tion its propriety. It is not enough that this bill will tide us 
 over a present danger, however great. Let us for a moment 
 forget Hayes and Tilden, Republicans and Democrats ; let us 
 forget our own epoch and our own generations ; and, enter 
 ing a broader field, inquire how this thing which we are 
 about to do will affect the great future of our Republic ; and, 
 in what condition, if we pass this bill, we shall transmit our 
 institutions to those who shall come after us. The present 
 good which we shall achieve by it may be very great ; yet if 
 the evils that will flow from it in the future must be greater, 
 it would be base in us to flinch from trouble by entailing 
 remediless evils upon our children." 
 
 General Garfield s position on the Chinese 
 Question, is not stated in any speech of his, and 
 only lightly touched upon in his letter of accept 
 ance. The Wheeling (West Virginia) Intelli 
 gencer, printed, December 5th, 1877, an account of 
 an interview with the great Republican, which 
 more fully elaborates his views. Alluding to the 
 idea quite strongly held by many writers, that 
 the Chinese intend a conquest of Europe, General 
 Garfield said: 
 
 " The Mongolian race is capable of great personal prow 
 ess. Being fatalists, they dare everything for the end they 
 have in view. Their food is simple, easily supplied and 
 
* o g LIFE AND PUBLIC CAREER OF 
 
 easily transported. Their endurance of fatigue is proverbial. 
 Once organized and in motion they could swarm into Russia 
 as irresistibly as the locusts of Egypt, and upon the Pacific 
 coast of this continent as numerous and destructive as the 
 grasshoppers. Once started, where would they stop? Civili 
 zation would retire before them as from a plague. Look at 
 the plague spots in San Francisco to-day. Nobody lives in 
 them but Chinese. Nobody else can live in them. I 
 have seen in a space no greater than the length and height in 
 this sleeping-car berth, in a Chinese tenement quarter in San 
 Francisco, the home of twelve Chinaman. In that space 
 they actually lived yes, actually lived most of their time. 
 There they crouched (all doubled up), and there they cooked, 
 ate, slept, and, in a word, lived. They cooked with a little 
 lamp a mess of stuff that they import from China, which, 
 like their rice food, is very cheap, and a mere pittance in the 
 way of earnings on the street, will supply them food and clothes 
 for an indefinite time. A few cents per day is more to them 
 than a dollar to the commonest American laborer. Hence 
 the lowest grade of poor paid labor retires before them as it 
 would before a pestilence. 
 
 " This is not all. They have no assimilation whatever to 
 Caucasian civilization. The negro assimilates with the Cau 
 casian. He wants all that we want. He adopts our civili 
 zation professes our religion works for our wages, and is a 
 customer for everything that civilization produces. Hence 
 (using a figure of physiology) we can take him up in the cir 
 culation of the body politic and assimilate him make a man 
 and a brother of him, as the phrase goes ; but not so in the 
 least degree with the Chinaman. 
 
 " And this brings me to say that one of the great questions 
 that now press upon Congress and the country for immediate 
 attention and solution, is what shall we do with reference to 
 Chinese immigration? We have always refused to citizenize 
 them. Shall we continue the treaty under which they are 
 immigrating to our shores?" 
 
JAMES A. GARFIELD. 
 
 A single word concerning the policy of his 
 party and we have done for one cannot follow 
 him through his many spirited pleas for education, 
 the rights of woman, and hundreds of other ques 
 tions to which he has given his attention and in 
 fluence. In a speech, at Flint, Ohio, some years 
 ago, he gave, as it were, the secret of Republican 
 successes, and a sentiment very pertinent to the 
 present year: "Wherever the Republican party 
 has stood up with its head in the light, and ap 
 pealed to principles, it has won; wherever it has 
 been cowardly and truckled and let down, it has 
 lost, and it deserved to lose. Now then we say 
 in this fight, we will climb to the masthead, and on 
 the very top we will nail our flag ; and if go down 
 we must, the flag shall take the wave last." 
 
3 io 
 
 LIFE AND PUBLIC CAREEK OF 
 
 CHAPTER XXIII. 
 
 A VISIT TO LAWNFIELD. 
 
 t 
 
 " TV y/TENTOR! Mentor! All out for Mentor!" 
 \/ I called out the conductor, and satchel 
 ** -**- in hand I descended from the cars. 
 
 A scream from the locomotive, a puff of dust, 
 and the rushing and rumbling cars went out of 
 sight up the road, leaving me alone at a stupid- 
 looking depot on the Lake Shore Railroad, 
 twenty-six miles from Cleveland.* 
 
 "Any hotel here?" I inquired of a man who 
 seemed to "be ticket agent, expressman and tele 
 graph operator combined. 
 
 " Yes, over the road there," he replied, pointing 
 with his hand to a little building with the sign of 
 " Store " on its front. 
 
 I looked at it and then at the place around. 
 Crossing the road was a rude board arch bearing 
 the motto : " For President, Our Townsman, 
 James A. Garfield." I looked about, but could 
 see no sign of a town, though there were a good 
 many straggling buildings in sight and a church 
 spire in the distance. 
 
 * The purpose of my visit, the reader has already divined. And in relating it, the 
 author makes no apology for abandoning the impersonal style hitherto employed, believ 
 ing that the reader will relish his description all the better if the impressions are more 
 ninutely related through the agency of the personal pronoun. 
 
JAMES A. GAR FIELD. ^ l l 
 
 Entering the "store," which emitted "an ancient 
 and fish-like smell," evidently salt mackerel, I 
 inquired of a boy with a sore eye if " this " was a 
 hotel, and if I could have some breakfast. He 
 replied, quite cheerily; "Yes, sir," and opening a 
 door at the far end of the store, bade me walk in. 
 Entering I found a small dining-room, with a long 
 table and a dozen chairs for furniture, poor enough 
 to promise a very slim breakfast. The boy with 
 the sore eye accompanied me into the room arijd 
 hung about so persistently that I became imme 
 diately prejudiced against him, and was very glad 
 to turn away from the spectacle of his inflamed 
 optic to the face of a stout, motherly-looking wo 
 man, who now put in an appearance and asked 
 me if I wanted breakfast. 
 
 The reply was in the affirmative, and handing 
 me a morning paper, she said if I would " read a 
 little while, breakfast would be got ready." As it 
 was still quite early in the day, and I was in no 
 hurry, I went out into the store and again en 
 countered the boy with the sore eye t 
 
 " How far is it, boy, to Mr. Garfield s place and 
 how do you get there from here ?" 
 
 "The general s place is about two and a half 
 miles from here and we take people up. Do you 
 wish to go up ? if so, I will take you in a buggy. 
 Took two gentlemen up yesterday and was there 
 nearly all day. Drove them over to Willoughby, 
 so they could take the evening train for Cleve 
 land." 
 
- i -> LIFE AND PUBLIC CAREER OF 
 
 
 
 As I wished to go to Cleveland in the evening, 
 I inquired if I could not come back and take the 
 train at Mentor. 
 
 "No," he replied, "the express for Cleveland 
 does not stop here, only at Willoughby, four miles 
 below." 
 
 The boy was so intelligent and pleasant that my 
 prejudice against him began to give way, and I al 
 most forgave him for the misfortune of his sore! eye. 
 
 " Breakfast for the gentleman," said a cheery 
 voice, and I saw at the door for a moment the 
 head of the stout woman. " Thereupon the boy 
 showed me in with all the dignity of a landlord, 
 the stout woman all the while apologizing pro 
 fusely for the meagreness of the breakfast. The 
 " fresh meat had not come down from Cleveland," 
 where they got it; she was very sorry. I did 
 not mind this, however, as there were plenty of 
 poached eggs, hot biscuit, fresh butter, coffee and 
 bread, and all of country quality. 
 
 After breakfasting I examined the only two 
 pictures the room boasted rude paper cuts, of a 
 frontiersman s cabin and the "Arkansas Traveler." 
 I went out to find the boy all ready with his buggy 
 to convey me to Garfield s home. 
 
 The drive was over a flat country, which had 
 evidently once been overflowed, and a part of the 
 bottom of the lake now distant about two miles. 
 The boy told me all about it. It "was Mentor all 
 along there, not a regular town but a thickly 
 
GEN. GARFIELD S HOME, MENTOR, OHIO. 
 
JAMES A. GARFIELD. * T ,- 
 
 settled neighborhood." There were houses every 
 hundred rods or so, and little farms, orchards and 
 gardens around them. The General, as Garfield 
 was called, was the big man of the place, and 
 owned one hundred and sixty acres of land. 
 While driving along the Mentor road one day in 
 1877, ne observed the quiet country beauty of the 
 place, and thought he would like to live there. 
 He bought one hundred and twenty acres, and 
 afterward added forty. There was a cottage on 
 the ground, and it made a very comfortable home 
 for the family until the general went to Washing 
 ton, when he ordered it removed and a better 
 building put in its place. 
 
 We soon arrived at Lawnfield and my loqua 
 cious companion deposited me in front of the 
 house. I went to a little office just behind the 
 house, though in view, and inquired for the general. 
 
 "He s out on the farm/ replied one of the two 
 secretaries busy at work writing, "I will go and 
 find him." 
 
 During the minute the secretary was absent I 
 examined the house with my eyes. It was two 
 and a half stories high and in an unfinished state. 
 
 o 
 
 The walls were painted white and relieved by a 
 roof of a dark Turkish red. The lawn about was 
 liberally dotted with fruit trees, in the spreading 
 branches of one of which a cherry a boy was 
 busy plucking the luscious fruit. Several girls 
 clustered beneath sharing the work and the re- 
 
2 i 6 LIFE AND PUBLIC CAREER OF 
 
 freshment. A double row of noble elms was in 
 front of the house Not far off I noticed goose 
 berry and currant bushes, betokening a garden, 
 and just back of the house beyond the office a 
 commodious-looking barn. 
 
 Subsequently I learned other particulars. . 
 
 The cottage that stood upon the place when 
 the general purchased it proved altogether too 
 small and too barren of conveniences. A Cleve 
 land architect was employed for the metamor 
 phosis. He decided that the walls could be raised 
 and the building enlarged without pulling it down. 
 It was then rebuilt from plans prepared by Mrs, 
 Garfield, that is, in this way: A sketch was first 
 drawn by the architect; this Mrs. Garfield filled 
 out and then the general marked in various direc 
 tions with a bold pen. When the ideas of Mrs. 
 Garfield had been put upon paper the general 
 indorsed them in the following gentle hint to the 
 builders: 
 
 " These plans must stand as above, unless otherwise 
 ordered hereafter. If any part of them is impracticable, in 
 form me soon and suggest change. 
 
 "J. A. GARFIELD. 
 
 "Washington, March 6th, 1880." 
 
 The house stands upon a crest or ridge and 
 cannot be called grand in any sense of the word, 
 but certainly deserves the name of a very pleas 
 ant, comfortable-looking country home. The ar- 
 
JAMES A. GARFIELD. o j g 
 
 chitecture is composite, the Gothic sentiment pre 
 vailing. There are two dormer windows one in 
 front and one in the rear and a broad veranda 
 extends across the front and part of the side 
 toward Cleveland, affording opportunities to enjoy 
 the breezes, out of the heat of the sun. Lattice 
 work has been arranged for trailing vines. The 
 dimensions are sixty feet front by fifty deep. The 
 apartments are all roomy for a country house 
 and the hallway is so wide that it attracts atten 
 tion the moment you enter. The first floor contains 
 a hall, with a large writing-table, a sitting-room, 
 parlor, dining-room, kitchen, wash-room and pan 
 try. This last on the plan bears the generous 
 indorsement "plenty of shelves and drawers." 
 Up-stairs in the rear part of the second floor is a 
 room that on the plan is entitled "snuggery for 
 general." It is rather small, measuring only thir 
 teen and a half by fourteen feet. It is filled up 
 with book shelves, but it is not intended to usurp 
 the place of the library, a separate building out 
 side and to the north-east of the house. Two of 
 the best apartments in the eastern and front part 
 on this floor are especially filled up for occupancy 
 of the general s mother. The front room has a 
 large old-fashioned fire-place and the greatest 
 pains have evidently been taken to make this 
 room a Mecca of comfort. 
 
 The rooms are finished in hard woods, and 
 everything about the place, while plain and un- 
 
->2O LIFE AND PUBLIC CAREER OF 
 
 pretentious, gives it an appearance of quiet com 
 fort. There are very few of the timbers of the 
 old house, over which the new has been con 
 structed, visible at this time, and there will be 
 none in sight when the carpets are laid down. 
 The cost of the structure when finished will be 
 between three thousand five hundred and four 
 thousand dollars. The barn, at the rear, furnishes 
 accommodations for the two carriage-horses, the 
 single carriage-horse and the heavy working- 
 team. Of the one hundred and sixty acres com 
 prising the farm, the yard, garden and orchard 
 take up about twelve. Some seventy acres are 
 under tillage, and the rest are in pasture and 
 woodland. 
 
 About ten minutes slipped away, and then the 
 tall, broad-shouldered, full-chested, strongly-knit, 
 six-foot-two-inch form of Garfield came out from 
 between the buildings. Two telegraph men were 
 with him, and they were arranging for putting a 
 private wire into his office. With that charming, 
 unpretentious politeness for which he is distin 
 guished, he asked me to go to the front of the 
 house and sit on the broad veranda, where he 
 said we would find it much cooler and pleasanter 
 than within doors. While he sat on the porch, I 
 had a good opportunity to read and study the 
 man. His head is massive as well as his frame, 
 and his brain is gigantic. He has light brown 
 hair, reddish-brown beard, large blue eyes and a 
 
JAMES A. GARFIELD. 
 
 full, round, fair face. His weight is, perhaps, two 
 hundred and forty pounds. He dresses plainly 
 and prefers to wear a soft, slouch hat, with a 
 broad brim. 
 
 Visitors who come unannounced, often find him 
 working in the hay-field with his boys, with his 
 genial face sheltered from the sun under a big, 
 chip hat, and his trousers tucked in a pair of cow 
 hide boots. He is a thorough countryman, by in 
 stinct. The smell of the good, brown earth, the 
 lowing of cattle, the perfume of the new cut hay 
 and all the sights and sounds of farm-life are dear 
 to him from early associations. 
 
 He excused himself for a moment: the tele 
 graph men needed some advice. As I sat there, I 
 recalled some of the many things concerning the 
 man that had been told me during the last day or 
 two. 
 
 I could easily appreciate, seated on his veran 
 da, all I had heard about his fondness for the 
 country ; being, as I saw him to be, essentially a 
 home man, and, perhaps, he has never quite ap 
 preciated the possession of a home so much as he 
 does now, in his days of rest, after the bustle and 
 excitement of the past few weeks. His habits, I 
 am told, are regular and methodical. Rising early, 
 he frequently mounts his horse and goes over the 
 farm, directing the workmen and studying out 
 what suggests itself as a needed improvement. 
 Quite as often, instead of mounting his horse, he 
 
322 LIFE A ^ D PUBLIC CAREER OF 
 
 walks about the place and, if the fever seizes him, 
 jerks off his coat to hold the plow in the furrow, 
 or to rake hay. It reminds him of old times, and 
 is, of itself, invigorating exercise. He has a great 
 taste for improvements, and has made something 
 of a study of farming since his early experience 
 as a practical yeoman. He farms, therefore, sci 
 entifically. He interests himself in the affairs of 
 the village, and attends the Disciples Church, 
 where he sometimes speaks. The liberal people 
 of Mentor on one occasion invited him to say 
 something about the formation of a Murphy Tem 
 perance Society. They were much pleased when, 
 in his earnest, impressive way, he told them he was 
 not a believer in total abstinence, while cautioning 
 the young against the evil of immoderate drink 
 ing, and earnestly urging them to check and con 
 trol their appetite. 
 
 Garfield was fond of showing visitors over the 
 place, and especially fond of taking them down the 
 lane back of the house to the top of the ridge, and 
 explaining that the flat space below was once a 
 portion of Lake Erie before the blue waters re 
 ceded and left the sand and wave-washed pebbles 
 on the top of the ridge. 
 
 He is a hard worker, and punctual in perform 
 ance of promises and duty. One infallible rule of 
 his public life has been that every civil letter, on 
 whatever subject or from whatever source, de 
 mands an answer. His correspondence has, there- 
 
JAMES A. GARFIELD. 
 
 fore, always been large and exacting. The very 
 morning of my arrival ninety letters and over two 
 hundred papers were brought to the house, and 
 before night there were as many more. He han 
 dles them, however, with ease, for he is possessed 
 with what William Wirt entitled the " genius of 
 labor." There are few men living, or who ever 
 lived, that can or could endure more mental work 
 than he, and do good work. As a collegian, 
 twenty hours without sleep was common with him, 
 and not one of the twenty but had its stated task 
 of work or recreation. This, mind you, is all done 
 thoroughly. His work on the Fitz John Porter 
 case involved immense labor, and the references 
 and documents relative to that case, piled apart in 
 his library, at Washington, are appalling to a mind 
 of ordinary grasp. It takes all of one large closet 
 to contain the letters received and answers sent 
 about this case, which, with the multitude of docu 
 ments, were personally examined by the general. 
 
 Most of the letters received on the morning of 
 my visit, to which I have referred, were letters of 
 congratulation, but there were also requests for 
 offices in the event of an election, requests for 
 everything, from the delicately-hinted desire of a 
 seat in the new cabinet to an openly-demanded 
 place as a country postmaster. Others were 
 recommendations for some of those who asked, 
 who appeared, indeed, to be fit for anything ever 
 heard of beneath the broad panoply of heaven, 
 
*<>* LIFE AND PUBLIC CAREER OF 
 
 O-"T 
 
 and still others were full of political advice and 
 suggestions. 
 
 His work on the Fitz John Porter case recalled 
 again his giant-like capacity for mental labor. 
 But few, in comparison to the number delivered, 
 of his congressional speeches, have obtained wide 
 circulation in print. And yet, just look at the 
 titles of those that have so appeared and been cir 
 culated : 
 
 "Free Commerce between the States;" "Na 
 tional Bureau of Education;" "The Public Debt 
 and Specie Payments;" "Taxation of United States 
 Bonds;" "Ninth Census;" "Public Expenditures 
 and Civil Service;" "The Tariff;" "Currency and 
 the Banks;" "Debate on the Currency Bill;" "On 
 the McGarrahan Claim;" "The Right to Originate 
 Revenue Bills;" Public Expenditures;" "National 
 Aid to Education;" "The Currency;" "Revenues 
 and Expenditures;" "Currency and the Public 
 Faith;" "Appropriations;" "Counting the Elec 
 toral Vote;" "Repeal of the Resumption Law;" 
 "The New Scheme of American Finance;" "The 
 Tariff;" "Suspension and Resumption of Specie 
 Payments;" "Relation of the National Government 
 to Science," "Sugar Tariff." 
 
 What a record this is, even if it stood alone ! 
 What American statesman can show a better list 
 of titles ? Does it not read like a table of con 
 tents to the speeches of Daniel Webster? And 
 these speeches could not have been prepared with- 
 
 
JAMES A. GARFIELD. 325 
 
 out ability, knowledge and the intent of a states 
 man who works for his country s good to animate 
 their purpose. 
 
 They were the results of his deliberate and ac 
 curate foresight. For he saw, when the war was 
 over and reconstruction a fact, that American poli 
 tics were entering upon a new era. No man 
 could then serve the nation by rehearsing the old 
 anti-slavery debates, by fighting over the battles 
 of the war on the floors of Congress, by unduly 
 prolonging controversies that were forever settled. 
 He saw that what the country needed was wise 
 discussion and legislation on the civil service, the 
 revenue, currency, banking, resumption and the 
 hundred other questions that are by no means 
 sentimental, that do not appear to the imagina 
 tion, but are dry, statistical, unpoetic and distaste 
 ful to any speaker who has the God-given gift of 
 eloquence. In a noble speech on the currency, 
 delivered in 1868, Garfield said: 
 
 " I am aware that financial subjects are dull and uninviting 
 in comparison with those heroic themes which have absorbed 
 the attention of Congress for the last five years. To turn 
 from the consideration of armies and navies, victories and de 
 feats, to the array of figures which exhibits the debt, expendi 
 ture, taxation and industry of the nation, requires no little 
 courage and self-denial ; but to these questions we must come, 
 and to their solution Congress, political parties and all 
 thoughtful citizens must give their best efforts for many years 
 to come." 
 
326 LIFE AND PUBLIC CAREER OF 
 
 One would not suppose that, in the midst of the 
 busy life incidental to such public duties as are 
 lightly suggested above, and, later, the political 
 leadership of the House, General Garfield found 
 much time to devote to society and literature, yet 
 he has for a long period been an active and 
 honored member of the Washington Literary So 
 ciety, an organization embracing the most promi 
 nent men and women in music, art and literature 
 of the national capital. He is usually present at 
 their meetings, and takes an earnest yet modest 
 part in their discussions. During the last season 
 he was president of the society, and entertained 
 the members at his house. He was usually ac 
 companied by his wife, who has always been his 
 companion, counselor and friend. 
 
 His love of literature was early manifested, re 
 ceived a great impulse while at Williams College, 
 and grew steadily while professor of languages 
 and president of Hiram College. Even now his 
 most congenial recreation is the study of classical 
 literature, and it is related of him that during the 
 busy session he was found behind a big barricade 
 of books, which proved upon examination to be 
 different editions of Horace, and works relating to 
 that poet. " I find Fam overworked, and need 
 recreation," he said. " Now, my theory is that the 
 best way to rest the mind is not to let it lie idle, 
 but to put it at something quite outside the ordi 
 nary line of employment. So, I am resting by 
 
JAMES A. GARFIELD. 
 
 327 
 
 learning all the Congressional Library can show 
 about Horace, and the various editions and trans 
 lations of his poems." And an application of this 
 theory to his every-day life has made him a 
 student, and ripened a scholarship rare among 
 public men. The record of the Congressional 
 Library shows that he uses more books than any 
 member of Congress. The number of volumes 
 taken from the library last year and read and ex 
 amined by him, has never been exceeded by any 
 man who ever used the library except Charles 
 Sumner. He reads everything histories, novels, 
 newspapers, etc., and a wide range of miscel 
 laneous matter. Outside of the early classics, 
 Shakespeare is his favorite poet, and Tennyson is 
 oftener in his hand than any other song-writer of 
 modern times. His novel reading is a peculiarly 
 happy illustration of his character, as it is, so to 
 speak, confined to Thackeray, Scott, Dickens, 
 Kingsley, Jane Austen and Honore de Balzac. 
 His books all bear his library motto: "Inter 
 Folio Fructus," " Fruit between leaves." 
 
 The house at which I was is not the only prop- * 
 erty the general owns. He has a house in Wash 
 ington. Ten years ago, finding life in hotels and 
 boarding-houses particularly uncomfortable, he 
 bought a plot on the corner of Thirteenth and I 
 streets, and with money borrowed from a friend, he 
 built a substantial house. The money was repaid 
 in time, and was probably saved in great part from 
 
LIFE AND PUBLIC CAREER OF 
 
 what would otherwise have gone to landlords. 
 Five or six years ago the cottage at Hiram was 
 sold, and for a time the only residence the general 
 had in his district was a summer home he built on 
 Little Mountain, a bold elevation in Lake County, 
 which commands a view of rich farming country 
 along the shores of Lake Erie. I suppose, as to 
 his other possessions, he might be said to be in 
 comfortable circumstances. The Washington 
 house is owned clear of incumbrances, and is per 
 haps worth between ten and twelve thousand dol 
 lars. The Mentor Farm is valued at about nine 
 thousand dollars, but as yet is only partly paid 
 for. These two pieces of property, with the Little 
 Mountain home, form his whole material fortune, 
 and they might be disposed of so as to leave him 
 about fifteen to eighteen thousand dollars after 
 paying all incumbrances. The money with which 
 these purchases have been made has come from 
 his Congressional salary and his practice as a law 
 yer, mainly in the Supreme Court, at Washington, 
 where he has had about seven cases a year. 
 
JAMES A. GARFIELD. 
 
 329 
 
 CHAPTER XXIV. 
 
 THE FAMILY CIRCLE. 
 
 MY recollections were here interrupted by 
 the general, who came to excuse him 
 self, saying that the telegraph men would 
 be clone with him in a few minutes, when he would 
 be at my service. 
 
 Just as he had arranged where and how the 
 wire was to be put in, an old friend of his arrived 
 and wished to talk with him. I told him to go on, 
 as my business could wait. About an hour was so 
 taken up, during which I collated something I 
 had learned about his Washington residence. 
 
 o 
 
 This, a modest, unpretentious brick mansion, 
 plain and square built, stands, as I have said, on 
 the corner of I and Thirteenth Streets. The 
 house is square, with a wing on the east side, 
 comprising dining-room and library. The parlor 
 side-windows look out upon the pleasing prospect 
 of the park, while the front commands a corner 
 view of I and Thirteenth Streets. 
 
 On entering on the south side, the parlor is on 
 the left. It is small, comfortably, but by no means 
 lavishly furnished. An upright piano, a slate 
 mantel, a solemn-looking pair of Chinese vases, 
 three feet high ; a tall, narrow mirror, reaching 
 
/,//-: AND PUBLIC CAREER OF 
 
 almost to the ceiling, are the objects your eye first 
 rests upon. Then you note that the ceiling, as 
 well as the walls, is frescoed, the latter in indis 
 tinct panels, the ceiling light, with gilt borders. 
 Just over the grand piano hangs a picture of Gen 
 eral Garfield s mother, to whom he is most devoted. 
 The face is small, and beams benevolently from a 
 snowy cap. Opposite hangs a portrait of the gen 
 eral s first daughter, a face of surpassing sweet 
 ness. Two landscapes a farm and a mountain 
 subject count two more on the walls, and under 
 one of them hangs a photograph of the general in 
 camp, taken surrounded by his officers, who, like 
 himself, are in undress uniform. A few choice en 
 gravings complete the wall decorations. 
 
 To the right you are tantalizingly invited to 
 enter and rest by the comfortable, cozy look of a 
 small sitting-room, furnished in tasteful modesty. 
 A small walnut mirror-mounted desk, table and 
 whatnot, monopolizes one corner, and this is 
 strewn with books that make, to their owner, life 
 worth living. 
 
 In the rear of this, and occupying a portion of 
 the wing is a somewhat luxurious dining-room, 
 that is, it is luxurious in color and decoration. 
 The paper is a rich drab and brown, set off by a 
 dado of Japanese pattern. Over the mantel there 
 hangs a relic of an idea, a half portrayed inspira 
 tion. The general one evening, in the company 
 of some literary and artistic men, in the course of 
 
JAMES A. GARFIELD. 33 T 
 
 a discussion on Shakespeare, remarked that none 
 of the illustrations by Falstaff satisfied his concep 
 tion. An artist present begged him to describe 
 his ideal, and from the description then given at 
 tempted the picture now hanging over the mantel. 
 The artist dying before it was completed, the half- 
 finished sketch was framed by the general and 
 placed where it now is. The finished portion em 
 braces the figure of the rollicking knight leaning 
 his right arm on the inn table, and balancing in 
 his left hand an empty glass. In the background the 
 "drawer" is bringing in a fresh cup of sack. The 
 conception is quite effective even in its present 
 state. On the opposite wall is a large painting 
 of a hunting scene, with horses and slain deer in 
 the foreground. Here is a trout very cleverly 
 painted, there a walnut sideboard, and yonder 
 another book-case filled to bursting. Over it is 
 a copy of "Love or Duty." Much of the furni 
 ture of this room is of Austrian bent wood. 
 
 The particular shrine in the Garfield home to 
 which you will willingly hasten your steps is the 
 library, situated just over the dining-room. This 
 is the man of energy s workshop. It is here the 
 student and the scholar lives. It is here the poli 
 tician rests. The room is about twenty-five feet 
 by fourteen feet, three of its windows open on I 
 Street and one on the eastern side. The carpet 
 does not entirely cover the floor, a three-foot mar 
 gin of stained wood is visible all round. Occupy- 
 
332 
 
 LIFE AND PUBLIC CAREER OF 
 
 ing the centre is a double walnut office desk, with 
 the addition of pigeon-holes, and boxes, and 
 drawers on one end, while just above hangs a 
 heavy chandelier. It is very evident from the or 
 derly disorder of the room that the owner cares 
 far more for immediate convenience than general 
 symmetry. Half a dozen book-cases occupy the 
 available space around the walls, and three thou 
 sand volumes fill their shelves. No two of these 
 cases are of the same height, width or make. It 
 suggests to the visitor, that from time to time, as 
 the books overflowed their limits, another case 
 was hastily procured in which to accommodate the 
 surplus, and then when that was full another was 
 added, and so on. And, undoubtedly, the over 
 flow has been regular, as you can go nowhere in 
 the general s home without coming face to face 
 with books. They confront you in the hall when 
 you enter, in the parlor and the sitting-room, in 
 the dining-room and even in the bath-room, where 
 documents and speeches are corded up like fire 
 wood. And what is- a wonderful point in their 
 owner s favor, there is not one trashy volume 
 among them. They are law, history, biography, 
 poetry, politics, philosophy, government and stand 
 ard works of all sorts, the accumulation of 
 years of study and the patient research of the 
 scholar. 
 
 A few pictures catch the eye for a moment : a 
 portrait of Bismark, a gift from the Iron Count 
 
JAMES A. GARHELD. 
 
 333 
 
 dereiserne Graf- himself; one of General Thomas, 
 whom Garfield always loved; one of General Sher 
 man, and also Professor Agassiz and President 
 Hopkins, personal friends. 
 
 It is in this home that he has carried on his 
 correspondence with his friends, and here he 
 has received many of his acquaintances. The 
 leading officers of the army are his more particular 
 friends, General Sherman notably so. He still 
 keeps up a tender friendship for his old com 
 mander, Rosecrans. The late S. P. Chase was a firm 
 friend of his and was often his guest. Among 
 his correspondents the late Dr. Francis Leiber was 
 one of the favored, as he received during his life 
 time one hundred and seven letters from the 
 general. Among those who correspond with 
 him regularly are William D. Howells, Professor 
 Winchell, of Ann Harbor, and Andrew D. White, 
 President of Cornell University, and at present 
 American Minister to Berlin. Professor Hinsdale, 
 of Hiram, is also one of the regular correspon 
 dents. These are but a few of the many who 
 carry on active intercourse with the general, and 
 the reader can imagine to himself how busy this 
 man must be, what a world of labor he must 
 carry, Atlas-like upon his broad and willing 
 back. 
 
 By and by, the old man came out. He told me, 
 quite confidentially, that he had come for the 
 express purpose of advising the general about 
 
LIFE AND PUBLIC CAREER OF 
 
 the conduct of the campaign. Bidding him good 
 bye, the general set himself down beside me 
 and announced he was ready to have his life 
 taken. 
 
 Then I got at him in true interviewer fashion, 
 and he submitted most gracefully. 
 
 I asked him for a copy of one of his earlier 
 sermons or religious lectures. 
 
 "I have no copies/ he replied. "I did not write 
 my discourses in full, but merely made headings 
 or memoranda, trusting to memory and the in 
 spiration of the occasion to fill them out properly. 
 I have over a thousand of these briefs, but it 
 would be quite as difficult to fill one out as to 
 write a new discourse." 
 
 He then brought in a number of scrap-books, 
 in which he had preserved in the order in which 
 they had been delivered, all of his public speeches. 
 He also had a most elaborate index to everything 
 he had ever read, which must be invaluable to a 
 man hunting particular passages. Let me illus 
 trate this. Suppose you are keeping an index on 
 General Garficld s principle. You have been 
 reading that brilliant invective against treason in 
 Congress, and the paragraph on coercion strikes 
 you as being both sound and well worth remem 
 bering: 
 
 " No statute was ever enforced without coercion. It is the 
 basis of every law in the universe human or divine. A law 
 is no law without coercion behind it. You levy taxes 
 
JAMES A, GARFIELD. * ^ ? 
 
 O v) J 
 
 coercion secures their collection. It follows the shadow of the 
 thief and brings him to justice. It lays its iron hand on the 
 murderer, tries him and hangs him. It accompanies your 
 diplomacy to foreign courts and backs the declaration of the 
 nation s rights, by a pledge of the nation s strength. But when 
 the life of the nation is imperiled, we are told that it has 
 no coercive power against the paracides in its own bosom ! !" 
 
 This, then, you enter in your index thus: "Co 
 ercion under the Constitution. Opinion of James 
 A. Garfield Speech upon Treason in Congress, 
 House of Representatives, April 8th, 1864. Vol. 
 
 -,_page - -." 
 
 This the general has done for all the books he 
 has read, and the reader can imagine what a mine 
 of information he can prove on any subject at a 
 moment s notice. This system also permits him 
 to hoard to advantage fugitive scraps from news 
 papers, and in its maturity, is the pro.duct of his 
 thought. He ascribes to it much of his success in 
 extempore speaking, the like of which, for wealth 
 and information, and glowing illustration, are not 
 heard in either branch of Congress to-day, and 
 have not been for many years. There is a com 
 mon-place saying in the reporters gallery, that 
 when Garfield chooses to cram on a subject, there 
 is no man in Washington who can stand before 
 the deluge of facts with which he will overwhelm 
 all opposition. 
 
 In these books there were many hundreds of 
 pages filled with scraps, annotations, picked sen- 
 
336 ^ - ^ -0 ri GLIC CAREER OF 
 
 tences, incidents and witticisms, from a collectio 
 of authors and newspapers representing the be; 
 thought in literature, ancient and modern, of a 
 most the entire world. Besides these there wei 
 innumerable thoughts of his own upon the inm 
 merable things he had read in the course of h 
 prolonged studies, and which he had embalmed i 
 black and white while yet the "idea divine" ws 
 warm and living in his brain. 
 
 "It is perfectly astounding," said the genera 
 "how much we are indebted to other people fc 
 our opinions. Comparatively few men or wome 
 take the trouble to think for themselves. Mo: 
 persons frame their opinions from what they rea 
 or hear others say. I noticed this early in life, bi 
 never saw the evil of it until I went to Congres 
 Committees appointed to investigate particuk 
 subjects would meet together, and no one woul 
 say much at first. After a while some one woul 
 get up and state his opinion positively, give h 
 reasons for thinking so, and in nine cases out < 
 ten that man s opinion would be adopted as th 
 opinion of the committee. The other membe] 
 either had not or did not care to investigate tli 
 matter, and rather than take the trouble to loo 
 up the facts, would accept this member s opinio 
 as their own." 
 
 It was this that had made him such a close sti 
 dent, and caused him to read so much on mattei 
 that affected Congressional legislation. He warne 
 
JAMES A. GARFIELD. 
 
 very one against the pernicious practice of taking 
 ther people s opinions as correct, and holding 
 lat every man and woman should try and find 
 ut the fact and think for themselves. 
 His scrap-book offered abundant evidence that 
 himself followed this sound advice. All were 
 irranged in the nicest order, and through the en- 
 ire series I could follow the trail of the great de 
 bater s readings from their beginning almost to 
 :he present time. Thus, for the year 1859, I 
 bund the first annotation on financial subjects. 
 Fhese are at first somewhat straggling, .mixed in 
 vith more or less of the classic poets. Then they 
 Become more frequent, until finally they outnum- 
 )er all other topics, and are full of "Tooke s His- 
 :ory of Prices," and "Sir Archibald Allison," that 
 vere so useful when Garfield followed Pig-Iron 
 elley into the history of France and England last 
 vinter and fall, to the discomfiture of the old man 
 md his soft-money* friends. Re-enforcing his scrap- 
 x>ok, the general has a large case of pigeon-holes, 
 lolding, perhaps, fifty boxes; labeled " The Press," 
 French Spoliation," "Tariff," "Geneva Award," 
 General Politics," "State Politics," "Public Men," 
 Parliamentary Decisions," Anecdotes," "Elec- 
 :oral Laws and Commission," etc., etc. These are 
 illed with the choicest references and bits of cur- 
 *ent literature on the various special topics, and 
 ire continually replenished from every product of 
 :he printing press. 
 
338 1 - IFE AND PUBLIC CAREER OF 
 
 One of the children came and interrupted us * 
 this point. The general took the child, answere 
 all its questions and then tenderly sent it awa 
 with "there, my darling, go now and play. * Jus 
 then Mrs. Garfield came to the head of the stair 
 and the general called her in. After introducing 
 her, he put his arm about her and said, laugh 
 ingly, "you see, my dear, I am having my lif< 
 taken." He then went out with her, Mrs. Garfiek 
 saying she wished to speak to him about som< 
 household affairs. 
 
 Mrs. Garfield is not what would be called i 
 pretty woman, but she is tall, fine-looking, has i 
 kind, good face, and the gentlest of manners. She 
 has a slight but well-knit form ; small features 
 with a somewhat prominent forehec-d, and hei 
 black hair, crimped in front and done up in a mod 
 est coil, is slightly tinged with gray. A pair o 
 black eyes and a mouth about which there plays 
 a sweetly bewitching smile are the most attrac 
 tive features of a thoroughly expressive face 
 She is a quick observer, an intelligent listener 
 but undemonstrative in the extreme. When the 
 general was at Chickamauga, and everybody ai 
 Hiram was painfully anxious to get the latesi 
 news from the field of battle, she sat quiet anc 
 patient in what is now Professor Hinsdale s library 
 and was able to control the inmost emotions thai 
 swayed her breast. 
 
 She impressed me as a thoroughly domestic 
 
JAMES A. GARFIELD. 
 
 woman, who loves her home, her children and her 
 husband. Mary Clemner pays her the following 
 tribute : 
 
 " She has the philosophic mind that Wordsworth sings 
 of, and she has.a self poise, ^strength of unswerving absolute 
 rectitude. * * * Much of the time that other women 
 
 e to distributing visiting-cards, in the frantic effort to 
 make themselves leaders of society, Mrs. Garfield spends in 
 the alcoves of the Congressional Library, searching out books 
 to carry home to study while she nurses the children. You 
 may be sure of one thing the woman who reads and studies 
 while she rocks her babies will not be left far behind by her 
 husband in the march of actual growth. I have seen many 
 women come to the surface of capitolian life out of obscurity 
 and go back into obscurity again ; have seen hundreds of so- 
 called leaders of society shrivel and go out in the scorch 
 ing flame of fashion; while I have followed with a tender 
 heart this woman^the wife of a famous man a woman whom 
 nobody called a leader. She, meanwhile, has not been 
 lifted off her feet, as many women are, by her husband s 
 rising fortunes ; no spreading forth in style of dress or 
 living, no airs. And in Washington, in official life, that 
 means everything indicative of character. She has moved 
 on in the tranquil tenor of her unobtrusive way, in a life of 
 absolute devotion to her duty ; never forgetting the demands 
 of her position or neglecting her friends, yet making it her 
 first charge to bless her home, to teach her children, to fit 
 her boys for college, to be the equal friend, as well as the 
 honored wife, of her husband. Gentle, patient, unobtrusive 
 almost to timidity, keenly intelligent, liberally educated, con 
 scientiously devoted to everything good this is the woman 
 who will perpetuate the loving, consecrated life that to-day 
 abides in the White House, if as its mistress she enters it." 
 
 Of Mrs. Garfield the general said on his return, 
 and his voice had a touch of tenderness : 
 
340 
 
 LIFE AXD Pl lU.IC C./A /.V-.A OF 
 
 "I have been wonderfully blessed in the discretion of my 
 wife. She is one of the coolest and best-balanced women I 
 ever saw. She is unstampedable. There has not been one 
 solitary instance of my public career where I suffered in the 
 smallest degree for any remark she ever made. It would have 
 been perfectly natural for a woi^an often to say something 
 that could be misinterpreted ; but without any design, and 
 with the intelligence and coolness of her character, she has 
 never made the slightest mistake that I ever heard of. With 
 the competition that has been against me, many times such 
 discretion has been a real blessing." 
 
 She has borne the general six children. The 
 first, a daughter, who died in infancy. Two boys, 
 Harry Augustus and James R., aged seventeen 
 and fifteen respectively, are studying at St. Paul s 
 School, Concord, N. H., under the charge of the 
 Rev. Dr. Coit. Tlrey entered the school in Sep 
 tember last, and have already proved themselves 
 sturdy, manly boys, and good, faithful students. 
 At the close of the school this year (June 24th), 
 Harry won the prize for the best English decla 
 mation, the qualities for which he h^s no doubt 
 inherited from his father the Webster of the 
 West. The boys will both be in the fifth form 
 next year, and will be prepared to enter college 
 September, iSSi. The third child is Mary, a 
 rosy-cheeked, laughing-eyed girl of thirteen, who 
 is called " Mollie " by everybody. The next is 
 Iryin McDowell so named as a sort of protest 
 against the unwarranted abuse that General Mc 
 Dowell, Garfield s close friend, received during 
 
JAMES A. GARFIELD. 341 
 
 and after the war. The boy is nine years old. 
 The youngest is aged six, and named Abram 
 after his grandfather. This is the boy I noticed 
 up in the cherry tree, as I waited for the general 
 on my arrival. 
 
 " Have you met mother?" asked my host. 
 
 " No," I replied. 
 
 " Oh, I want to introduce you then ; you must 
 know mother." He spoke of her so often, 
 and so tenderly, I could not but see that she was 
 constantly in his thoughts. 
 
 I went down-stairs to see her. She is a very 
 small woman, and looks almost diminutive beside 
 her stalwart son. She is seventy-nine, quick in 
 her movements, and in full possession of her 
 mental faculties. She is thin, white-haired, rosy- 
 cheeked, and has a prominent nose like many 
 another who has adorned the pages of history. 
 
 On being introduced I found her rather reti 
 cent. She seemed to be most concerned about the 
 children and the work around the house, that it 
 should go on uninterruptedly and in the proper 
 manner. She was evidently a matter-of-fact, 
 common-sense old lady, and I could not but ad r 
 mire her, remembering her sacrifices for her 
 children, and how she had cared for her boy 
 James, laying for him the foundation of his 
 present eminence when she counseled him to "re 
 member his God and study books." 
 
 She did not once express the least surprise at 
 20 
 
LIFE AND PUBLIC CAREER OF 
 
 what had happened at Chicago, nor in any way 
 refer to the general as a public man. She called 
 him " my son," and remarked on the weather, 
 their new place, and asked if I was married and 
 how many children I had. I could not get her to 
 talk about politics in Washington, and I do not 
 believe she is over-well pleased with her son s 
 nomination for President. Of course, she is 
 proud of him, and desires his success, but he was 
 already a senator, and I think the old lady would 
 have preferred to have had him go no higher. 
 Now she knows he will be away from their rural 
 home most of the time, and, pressed by public 
 care and duty, she can have him less to herself. 
 
 When informed of the nomination, Mother Gar- 
 field and the general s -wife expressed to their in 
 timate friends, their fear that there was now "an 
 end to privacy for several years." Neither were 
 surprised from newspaper reading of the outcome 
 of the convention. They had both heard the talk 
 about the general s name, but had hoped it meant 
 nothing. In fact, they had come to the conclusion 
 that it did mean nothing, when suddenly, the news 
 came that he was nominated. 
 
 While I was talking with Mother Garfield, the 
 general s wife, clad in a plain, calico dress, came 
 in with a work-basket, and sat down to darn the 
 children s stockings. Presently, it began to rain, 
 and, to my surprise, the old lady went out bare 
 headed, and brought in a chair off the lawn. I 
 
JAMES A. GARFIELD. n .- 
 
 remonstrated, and desired to assist her, but she 
 only laughed and said: "Nevermind, it won t hurt 
 me." 
 
 At dinner, everybody was hunted up, and one of 
 the general s secretaries said: "It is the general s 
 orders everybody shall come; he would not like it 
 if any one went away hungry. * As there were 
 five or six of us, I thought it something of an im 
 position, and began to apologize, saying I could 
 wait until I got to Cleveland, but the general would 
 not hear to such a proposition, so I went in and 
 sat down. I found at the table before us a goodly 
 company of a dozen guests, among whom were 
 Colonel Rockwell, a school-mate of Garfield s, as 
 the general himself informed me, with his wife, 
 Hon. A. G. Riddle, of Washington, and Major 
 Bundy, of the New York Mail; both these gen 
 tlemen, like myself, engaged in writing a history of 
 Garfield s life. 
 
 I sat next to Mrs. Garfield, and she almost im 
 mediately began talking about the army, mention 
 ing her cousin, General Ingalls, and asking^me if 
 I had not often met, out in the West, an old friend 
 of hers and the general s General Hazen. 
 
 I found her a ready and charming conversation 
 alist, and withal, so easy, modest, gentle and at 
 tentive in her manner, it was a pleasure to be 
 beside her. 
 
 The children had a separate table, near Mrs. 
 Garfield, and they kept constantly speaking to 
 
346 
 
 LIFE AND PUBLIC CAREER OF 
 
 mamma, and breaking in on her conversation. 
 One of these wild, romping boys, came and put 
 ting his arm around her neck, whispered in her 
 ear. She tried to quiet them, but they were so 
 full of life and spirits they would not be still. 
 Turning to me, she said: 
 
 " What would you do with such a lot ?" 
 " Let them alone, and bless God for them." 
 " Ah, you have children," she continued, and 
 on my answering in the affirmative, she asked 
 about them, how many were boys, how many girls, 
 and then their respective ages, until she had learnt 
 all. And with such mutually interesting chat, the 
 dinner hour sped rapidly away. 
 
 After it was over, I went with the general to his 
 office, where, producing a handful of cigars, and 
 lighting one, he talked freely of many things. I 
 asked him about his early life, and he spoke 
 modestly and earnestly of his struggles with 
 poverty. The sea he mentioned enthusiastically, 
 as the memory of his first fancies came over 
 him. 
 
 " But even now, at times, the old feeling (the 
 longing for the sea) comes back," and, walking 
 across the room, he turned, with a flashing eye: 
 " I tell you I would rather now command a fleet 
 in a great naval battle than do anything else on 
 this earth. The sight of a ship often fills me with 
 a strong fascination, and when upon the water, 
 and my fellow-landsmen are in the agonies of sea- 
 
JAMES A. GARFIELD. 
 
 347 
 
 sickness, I am as tranquil as when walking- the 
 land in the serenest weather." 
 
 I saw from his conversation *he thought I had 
 been raised in a city or town, and knew nothing of 
 farm-life. I did not then undeceive him, for I 
 wished to hear his story, but after he had finished, 
 I remarked : 
 
 " I know all about that, and how hard it is ; for 
 I have been through it all." 
 
 " Ah," he exclaimed, " then you were raised on 
 a farm." 
 
 " Yes, and a poor one at that, at the foot of the 
 Alleghany Mountains, where we all had to scratch 
 to get a living." 
 
 Laughing heartily, he said, musingly : 
 
 " Tell me, now, do you think we can raise men 
 for high positions ? There are my boys, I am 
 educating them carefully, but I can t tell if they 
 will ever be heard of, and I question it. No doubt 
 you will do the same with your boys but will 
 they rise in the world? Won t it happen that 
 some poor and obscure little fellow,, who has to 
 scratch for every inch, will run ahead of them and 
 come to the front, while they will pass away un 
 known to fame ?" 
 
 " That is nearly-always the case." 
 
 " So it is ; and it makes me wonder if tender 
 rearing of boys, and giving them an elaborate 
 education, is so much of a benefit to them, after 
 all." 
 
348 
 
 LIFE AND PUBLIC CAREER OF 
 
 One of the lads about whom we had been talk 
 ing came in at the moment, to say the workmen 
 who were building a fence about the yard wished 
 to see the general. He put on his hat and went 
 out, first giving me his scrap-books, and asking 
 me to amuse myself by looking them over until 
 his return. He stayed so long, I lit a cigar 
 and went down into the hall to smoke. While I 
 was waiting, the same boy came back and told his 
 mother, papa wanted to see her about the fence. 
 She put on a hat and went out, and on going to 
 the door, I saw the general was himself helping 
 the workmen with the palings and posts. Seeing 
 me, he seemed to remember he had left me wait 
 ing, and at once came up to excuse himself: "You 
 see we have a new place here, and I am trying to 
 get it fixed up. I . came here expecting to spend 
 a quiet vacation, and when the nomination at Chi 
 cago dropped on me, it found us all up-side down. 
 So many people are coming constantly, I want to 
 get it in order, and am pushing it all I can by 
 superintending the work personally." 
 
 He then offered to go up to the office again and 
 give me all the time wanted of him, but 1 excused 
 him, saying I thought I had taken up quite enough 
 of his day already. 
 
 He expressed great willingness to attend to 
 me, but said if I did not want him he would 
 go up-stairs and do some writing. I went up 
 with him to get my hat, and he pointed to a 
 
JAMES A. GARFIELD. 349 
 
 sheet of paper lying on his desk which I saw, 
 from the different headings and divisions, was the 
 outline of his letter of acceptance, and that he was 
 hunting up authorities which he wished to consult 
 in preparing it. 
 
 "A tough job," I ventured. 
 
 "Yes, * he replied, laughing, "rather a tough 
 job," and with that I left him to his work, the gen 
 eral seeing me to the door and bowing me out. 
 
 Twice during the afternoon he came to ask if 
 there was anything further he could do to serve or 
 oblige me, and, on being assured there was not, 
 he went off to attend to other matters. 
 
 At five my young man with the sore eye came 
 to drive me to the depot, and I went to bid the 
 general good-bye. He said he did not like me to 
 leave without supper, and invited me to stay, but I 
 declined in order to catch the train. He then 
 called his wife, saying, " Come, mother, and bid the 
 general good-bye." I spoke to her of the impend 
 ing election : " I suppose we will see you in 
 Washington next winter?" 
 
 " Oh yes," she replied, " you know we go there 
 any way to attend the sessions of Congress." 
 
 " I hope we shall see you in the White House, 
 Mrs. Garfield," remarked a gentleman who was 
 leaving with me. 
 
 "Thank you," she replied, and laughing quite 
 heartily added, " we shall know better about that 
 by and by." 
 
350 
 
 LIFE AND PUBLIC CAREER OF 
 
 The general went with us to the carriage and 
 extending his great hand shook each of us 
 heartily by the hand, telling some to come and see 
 him in Washington, asking others to write, and 
 telling me to be sure and send him a copy of my 
 book with " the author s compliments " upon the 
 fly-leaf. 
 
JAMES A. GARFIELD. - 
 
 O J * 
 
 CHAPTER XXV. 
 
 TWO PEN PORTRAITS. 
 
 HIS home is about half-way between Men 
 tor and Willoughby, so that we had but 
 two miles to drive to the station. About 
 a mile and a half west of his home is a curiosity 
 in the shape of Joe Smith s first Mormon temple. 
 It is a plain, but queer-looking structure, that 
 served its purpose for a while, now only a curi 
 osity almost useless. This, however, did not de 
 tain me. It was but" a speck in the landscape 
 of a country that was quite attractive and enabled 
 me to realize why the general wished to reside 
 away from the city s bustling walls. His hard 
 student life and the incessant cares of public duty 
 in Washington could all be left behind, and he 
 always hastens to his home when Congress ad 
 journs. The house is sufficiently lonely to be out 
 of the way of idlers or mere curiosity callers, and 
 few would break in upon the rest of the great 
 statesman, unless they were called thither by im 
 perative business. He needs rest and leisure to 
 prepare himself for the winter sessions of Con 
 gress at Washington, and from the midst of this 
 beautiful scenery he returns each year to the 
 capital thoroughly invigorated. 
 
352 
 
 LIFE AND PUBLIC CAREER OF 
 
 My youthful companion spoke eloquently of 
 the general and seemed most anxious to convince 
 me that Garfield was really a great man. I asked 
 him if the general was very popular with the peo 
 ple of that section, and he replied: "Well, I 
 should say so, why they are all going to vote for 
 him." From others I learned about the same 
 thing, and came to the conclusion, that if a man is 
 best judged by the opinions of those among 
 whom he has lived, General Garfield is peculiarly 
 fortunate. From one end of his district to an 
 other, among Republicans and Democrats alike, 
 no one speaks of him but in the language of 
 praise, respect, love and admiration. The same 
 statement applies in a large degree to the State. 
 But in his own district, among his old friends and 
 neighbors, he stands as a synonym for all that is 
 manly, good and honest. The reader has men 
 tally photographed him from what I have related 
 above. He is equally interesting as others see 
 him. George Alfred Townsend drew this picture 
 of him in the Cincinnati Enquirer : 
 
 "The writer has known General Garfield pretty well for 
 thirteen years. He is a large, well-fed, hale, ruddy, brown- 
 bearded man, weighing about two hundred and twenty 
 pounds, with Ohio German colors, blue eyes, military face, 
 erect figure and shoulders, large back and thighs, and 
 broad chest, and evidently bred in the country on a farm. 
 His large mouth is full of strong teeth ; his nose, chin and 
 brows are strongly pronounced. A large brain, with room 
 for play of thought and long application, rises high above his 
 
JAMES A. GARFIELD. 
 
 clear, discerning, enjoying eyes. He sometimes suggests a 
 country Samson strong beyond his knowledge, but un 
 guarded as a school-boy. He pays little attention to the 
 affectation by which some men manage public opinion, and 
 has one kind of behavior for all callers, which is the most 
 natural behavior at hand. Strangers would think him a little 
 cold and mentally shy. On acquaintance he is seen to be 
 hearty above everything, loving the wife around him, his 
 family, his friends, his State and country. Loving, sympa 
 thetic and achieving people, and with a large, unprofessing 
 sense of the brotherhood of workers in the fields of progress, 
 it was the feeling of sympathy and the desire to impart which 
 took him for chief, while as to the pulpit, or on the verge of 
 it, full of all that he saw and acquired, he panted to give it 
 forth after it had passed through the alembic of his mind. 
 Endowed with a warm temperament, copious expression, 
 large, wide-seeing faculties and superabundant health, he 
 could study all night or lecture all day, and it was a provi 
 dence that his neighbors discovered that he was too much of 
 a man to conceal in the pulpit, where his docility and rever 
 ence had almost taken him. They sent him to the State 
 Legislature, where he was when the war broke out, and he 
 immediately went to the field, where his courage and pains 
 taking parts and love of open-air occupation, and perfect 
 freedom from self-assertion made him the delight of Rose- 
 crans and George H. Thomas successively. He would go 
 about any work they asked of him; was unselfish and enthu 
 siastic, and had steady, temperate habits, and his large brain 
 and reverence made everything novel to him. 
 
 "There is an entire absence of nonchalance or worldliness 
 in his nature. He is never indifferent, never vindictive. A 
 base action or ingratitude or cruelty may make him sad, but 
 does not provoke retaliation or alter that faith in men or 
 Providence which is a part of his sound stomach and athletic 
 head. Garfield is as simple as a child ; to the serpent s wis 
 dom he is a stranger. Having no use nor aptitude with the 
 
354 
 
 LIFE AND PUBLIC CAREER OF 
 
 weapons of coarser natures, he often avoids mere disputes, 
 does not go to the public resorts where men are familiar or 
 vulgar, and the walk from his home in Washington to the 
 Capitol, and an occasional dinner out, comprise his life. 
 The word public servant especially applies to him. He has 
 been the drudge of his State constituents, the public, the 
 public societies and the moral societies of his party and coun 
 try, since 1863. Aptitude for public debate and public 
 affairs are associated with a military nature in him. He is on 
 a broad scale a school-master of the range of Gladstone, of 
 Agassiz, of Gallatin. 
 
 "With as honest a heart as ever beat, above the competitors 
 of sordid ambition, General Garfield has yet so little of the 
 worldly wise in him that he is poor, and yet has been accused 
 of dishonesty. He has no capacity for investment, nor the 
 rapid solution of wealth, nor profound respect for the penny 
 in and out ot pound, and still, is neither careless, improvident 
 nor dependent. The great consuming passions to equal richer 
 people and live finely and extend his social power is as foreign 
 to him as scheming or cheating. But he is not a suspicious nor 
 a high-mettled man, and so he is taken in sometimes, partly 
 from his obliging, unrefusing disposition. Men who were 
 scheming imposed upon him as upon Grant and other crude- 
 eyed men of affairs. The people of his district, who are 
 quick to punish public venality or defection, heard him in 
 his defense, in 1873, and kept him in Congress and held up 
 his hand, and hence he is, by their unwavering support for 
 twenty-five years, candidate for president and a national 
 character. Since John Quincy Adams, no president has had 
 Garfield s scholarship, which is equal up to this age of wider 
 facts. The average American, pursuing money all day long, 
 is now presented to a man who had invariably put the busi 
 ness of others above his own, and worked for that alleged 
 nondescript the public gratitude all his life. But he has 
 not labored without reward. The great nomination came 
 to-day to as pure and loving a man as ever wished well of 
 
JAMES A. GARFIELD. 
 
 anybody and put his shoulder to his neighbor s wheel. 
 Garfield s big, boyish heart is pained to-night with the weight 
 of his obligation, affection and responsibility. To-day, as 
 hundreds of telegrams come from everywhere, saying ki-nd, 
 strong things to him such messages as only Americans, in 
 their rapid, good impulses, pour upon a lucky friend he was 
 with two volunteer clerks in a room, opening and reading, 
 and suddenly his two boys sent him one little fellows at 
 school and as he read it he broke down, and tried to talk, 
 but his voice choked and he could not see for tears. The 
 clerks began to cry, too, and people to whom they after 
 ward told it. This sense of real great heart will be new to 
 the country, and will grow if he gets the presidency. 
 
 "He is the ablest public speaker in the country, and the 
 most serious and instructive man on the stump ; his instincts, 
 liberal and right ; his courtesy, noticeable in our politics ; 
 his aims, ingenuous, and his piety comes by nature. He 
 leads a farmer s life, all the recess of Congress, working 
 like a field hand, and restoring his mind by resting it. 
 If elected, he will give a tone of culture and intelli 
 gence to the executive office it has never yet had, while 
 he has no pedantry in his composition, and no conceit 
 whatever. 
 
 A more elaborate analysis of the man was made 
 by Professor B. A. Hinsdale, President of Hiram 
 College: 
 
 "His power of logical analysis and classification is very great; 
 of rhetorical exposition hardly surpassed. He excels in the 
 patient accumulation of facts, and in striking generalizations. 
 As a student, he loves to roam in every field of activity. He 
 delights in poetry and other works of the imagination ; loves 
 the abstruse things of philosophy; takes keen interest in 
 scientific research ; gathers into his store-house the facts of 
 history and politics, and throws over it all the life and ^ 
 
35<5 
 
 LIFE AND PUBLIC CAREER OF 
 
 warmth of his own originality. Of course, he is not a Srali- 
 ger, a Des Cartes, a Newton ; no man in public life not 
 even Gladstone can be these. But his general culture is 
 broad, deep, and generous. He has the best instincts and 
 habits of the student and the scholar. Probably no man in 
 Congress these twelve years past has more won upon our 
 scientists, our scholars, and our men of literature. He was 
 the friend of Henry and of Agassiz : he is the friend of How- 
 ells, of Lowell, and of Parkman. Withal, he is an orator. 
 He has not the massive grandeur of Webster, the brilliant 
 declamation of Clay, or the fervid passion of Henry. But his 
 speeches are strong in fact, ribbed with principle, lucid in 
 argument, polished in diction, rich in illustration, and warm 
 with the vital power of a noble heart. 
 
 "His moral character is the fit crown to his physical and 
 intellectual nature. No man has a kinder heart or a purer 
 mind. His generosity of nature is unstinted; all his life, 
 public and private, is marked by great unselfishness. For the 
 most part, he has neglected material acquisition; but his 
 means, as well as his time and talents, are at the call of those 
 who need them. I fearlessly say that the nearer men have 
 come to General Garfield the greater has been their confi 
 dence. I may say that he has inspired unusual respect and 
 faith in all large-minded and generous men without regard to 
 politics. He has commanded success. His ability, knowl 
 edge, mastery of questions, generosity of nature, devotion to 
 the public good, and honesty of purpose have done the work. 
 He has never had a political machine. He has never for 
 gotten the day of small things. 
 
 " I am far from indorsing all of General Garfield s public 
 acts. Those who know me will hardly charge me with being 
 a fulsome eulogist. He has said and done some things that I 
 have been sorry to have him say and do. He has failed to 
 say and do some others that I have had much at heart. But 
 this I see : He has served the public with conspicuous ability 
 and a single eye. He has moved all the time in the right di- 
 
JAMES A. GARFIELD. 
 
 rection. He has striven to make the public service clean and 
 honorable; to make the government one of statesmen and 
 patriots, not of demagogues and place-men ; and in every 
 way to dignify and ennoble the republic. 
 
 "A newspaper man from a distant city asked me the other 
 day : How do you explain the common lack of confidence 
 in Mr. Garfield s courage? I said: Who doubts his 
 courage ? He answered that he had heard in Washington 
 and in other places that he lacked backbone. A few ques 
 tions revealed that those who held this opinion thought that 
 he did not denounce the Solid South with sufficient sever 
 ity, and was not properly active in stirring up the brigadiers. 
 If I may parody Madame Roland, O courage, what folly is 
 committed in thy name! I have known a minister of the 
 Gospel to be called a coward because he could recognize the 
 worth of those who did not worship in his conventicle. 
 Similarly, eager partisans charge with cowardice the man who, 
 loyal to his own convictions of truth and duty, dares to think 
 and act for himself. In both cases what is called cowardice is 
 the genuine moral courage. To go with the stream to bless 
 with your sect or to hurrah with your party is slight proof 
 of courage; but to stand out by yourself in moral isolation, 
 to bear the jibes of those whom you call your brethren, is a 
 very high proof of character. Such a man is General Gar- 
 field. He has uttered many noble words ; but none nobler 
 than these, spoken in the Ohio Senate Chamber just after his 
 late election : 
 
 " Let me venture to point a single instance in regard to 
 that work. During the twenty years that I have been in pub 
 lic (almost eighteen of it in the Congress of the United 
 States), I have tried to do one thing. Whether I was mis 
 taken or otherwise it has been the plan of my life to follow my 
 convictions, at whatever personal cost to myself. I have rep 
 resented for many years a district in Congress whose approba 
 tion I greatly desired, but though it may seem perhaps a 
 little egotistical to say it, I yet desired still more the appro- 
 
-1-8 LIFE AND PUBLIC CAREER OF 
 
 O \} 
 
 bation of one person, and his name was Garfield. He is the 
 only man that I am compelled to sleep with, and eat with, 
 and live with, and die with, and if I could not have his appro 
 bation, I should have bad companionship. 
 
 It is not necessary to supplement these with 
 the eulogy of the general pronounced by my 
 young companion. It was terminated by my 
 arrival at the station. 
 
 The train was there and an hour later drew 
 into the beautiful Lake City of Cleveland. 
 
JAMES A. GARFIELD. 
 
 CHAPTER XXVI. 
 
 PREPARING FOR BATTLE. 
 
 THE National Convention of the Republican 
 Party that nominated James A. Garfield 
 for the Presidency, was one of the most 
 important political conventions ever held in this 
 country. Aside from the ever-interesting issue of a 
 national convention a nominee this convention 
 was the battle-ground on which several questions 
 of the utmost importance to political life in this 
 country were settled only at the conclusion of a 
 hard-fought struggle. The unit rule, the third- 
 term issue, district representation, and the still 
 more vital issue of party managers trampling on 
 popular wishes and opposing the will of those who 
 placed them in power, made up a total of interest 
 never before equaled in the history of the party. 
 The struggle surpassed in fierceness the bitterest 
 fights on record. A brief history of this conven 
 tion is, therefore, valuable for present reading, as 
 it furnishes many a lesson for the campaign, and 
 most happily illustrates the peculiar fortunes of 
 General Garfield, who, while ever in patient wait 
 ing, has had his long succession of honors seek 
 him openly. It is a curious story of cause and 
 effect. 
 
 21 
 
5o LIF& AND PUBLIC CAREER OF 
 
 TJie convention assembled in the Exposition 
 Building, at Chicago, on June 2d. The great men 
 of the party were all there, and the list of those 
 who held seats is as follows : 
 
 ALABAMA. George Turner, J. H. Thomaston, B. S. Tur 
 ner, G. H. Brayton, James Gillette, Allen Alexander, Paul 
 Strobach, G. W. Washington, J. Heyman, William Young- 
 blood, W. J. Stevens, J. T. Rapier, L. E. Parsons, H. C. 
 Bryant, W. S. Byrd, N. W. Tremble, R. A. Mosley, A. 
 Bingham, A. McCulloch, J. M. Hines. 
 
 ARKANSAS. S. W. Dorsey, M. W. Gibbs, H. P. Robinson, 
 S. H. Holland, J. H. Johnson, O. A. Hadley, Powell Clay 
 ton, O. P. Snyder, Jacob Tireber, James K. Barnes, J. A. 
 Barnes, Ferdinand Havis. 
 
 CALIFORNIA. J. C. Wilmerding, Samuel Mosgrove, J K. 
 Doak, Creed Raymond, E. A. Davis, Joseph Russ, Alexander 
 D. Sharon, Socrates Huff, H. T. Fairbanks, John Mansfield, 
 D. S. Paine, F. M. Pixley. 
 
 COLORADO. Ex-Governor Rosett, Amos Sleek, J. A. El- 
 lett, L. Head, George T. Black, M. M. Megure. 
 
 CONNECTICUT. Henry C. Robinson, John M. Douglass, 
 Augustus Brandagee, Samuel Fessenden, Andrew S. Upson, 
 William M. Corbin, Hobart B. Bigelow, William C. Hough, 
 Daniel Chadwick, Jeremiah Olney, Edgar S. Tweedy, N. T. 
 Baldwin. 
 
 DELAWARE. Christian Febiger, Levi R. Clarke, N. B. 
 Smithers, James R. Lofland, Benjamin Burton, Albert Curry. 
 
 FLORIDA. W. W. Hicks, F. C. Humphreys, E. J. Alex 
 ander, R. E. Smith, Joseph E. Lee, V. J. Shipman, Sherman 
 Conant, James Dean. 
 
 GEORGIA. E. C. Wade, J. F. Long, W. A. Pledger, Ed 
 win Belcher, L. B. Toomer, Floyd Snelson, B. F. Brimberry, 
 John Fow, Jack Brown, Elbert Head, R. D. Lock, J. C. 
 Beall, A. E. Buck, H. A. Rucker, W. W. Brown, J. B. De- 
 
JAMES A. CARFIELD. 
 
 veaux, A. M. Middlebrook, H. B. Hickenbotom, C. H. Prince, 
 J. W. Lyons, S. A. Darnell, Madison Davis. 
 
 ILLINOIS John A. Logan, E. A. Storrs, G. B. Raum, D. 
 T. Little, John Wentworth, S. A. Douglas, A. M. Wright, R. 
 S. Tuthill, John L. Beveridge, L. J. Kadisch, N. C. Thomp 
 son, N. N. Ravlin, J. B. Brown, Miles White, Henry T. 
 Noble, W. H. Shepard, E. F. Bull, E. W. Willard, J. B. 
 Wilson, R. J. Hanna, Joab Mershen, R. H. Whitney, Hosea 
 Davis, F. B. Burgett, O. B. Hamilton, T. G. Black, G. M. 
 Brinkerhoff, C. M. Eames, John McNulta, Major V. Warner, 
 
 J. V. Harris, Hayworth, W. H. Barlow, A. P. Green, 
 
 J. M. Truitt, Lewis Krueghoff, A. W. Metcalf, Richard 
 Rowett, C. O. Patrel, J. M. Davis, C. W. Pavey, W. H. 
 Williams. 
 
 INDIANA Benjamin Harrison, George W. Friedley, Daniel 
 B. Kumler, James S. Collins, Alexander Gilchrist, W. M. 
 Hoggatt, John B. Glover, S. E. Kerchival, W. B. Slemmens, 
 J. H. Friedley, John H. Crozier, F. Adkinson, David A. 
 Beem, Joseph B. Homan, Milton Peden, T. M. Little, R. O. 
 Hawkins, J. B. McFadden, William R. McKeen, E. H. Ne- 
 becker, B. K. Higginbottom, G. F. Crittenden, F. S. Bedell, 
 John W. Wimer, J. J. Todd, J. F. Vail, W. M. Clapp, C. K. 
 Baxter, Clement Studebaker, B. F. Davenport. 
 
 I OWA j. s. Clarkson, S. M. Clark, D. B. Henderson, 
 George D. Perkins, J. S. Hurley, H. A. Burrell, H. C. Carr, 
 J. W. Thompson, George W. Bassett, P. F. Sturgis, H. L. 
 Huff, L. F. Butler, F. J. Upton, R. M. Haines, J. F. Green- 
 lee, George D. Wooden, J. S. Runnells, J. R. McKee, C. 
 W. Llewellen, W. P. Sharpe, B. F. Harkness, W. D. Lucas. 
 
 KANSAS John A. Martin, George H. Case, S. S. Bene 
 dict, B. W. Perkins, H. P. Walcott, Perry Hutchinson, 
 Simeon Motz, B. F. Simpson, P. B. Plumb, William 
 Thompson. 
 
 KENTUCKY Walter Evans, W. O. Bradley, John D. 
 White, John H. Jackson, J. R. Puryear, J. R. Happy, A. H. 
 Clark, E. C. Hubbard, W. G. Hunter, George F. Blakey, E. 
 
3 62 
 
 LIFE AXD rCBLIC CAREER OF 
 
 H. Hobson, John W. Lewis, Silas F. Miller, James F. Buck- 
 ner, J. E. Hamilton, John E. Barbour, R. P. Stoll, William 
 Brown, J. K. Faulkner, Logan McKee, A. E. Adams, A. T. 
 Wood, W. W. Culbertson, Morris Hutchings. 
 
 LOUISIANA H. C. Warmoth, John T. Ludeling, William 
 P. Kellogg, A. S. Badger, A. H. Leonard, J. S. Matthews, 
 David Young, J. Wharton, James Lewis, A. J. Dumont, 
 Richard Simms, Samuel Wakefield, William Harper, W. L. 
 McMillen, J. H. Burch, Don A. Pardee. 
 
 MAINE Eugene Hale, E. T. Gile, Joseph R. Bodwell, 
 Almon A. Strout, William W. Thomas* Jr., Jos. R. Libby, 
 William P. Frye, J. W. Wakefield, Joseph H. Manly, S. S. 
 Marble, Lewis Baker, Llewellyn Powers, L. G. Downs, John 
 S. Case. 
 
 MARYLAND James A. Gary, Jacob Tome, Lloyd Lowndes, 
 J. Morrison Harris, Charles T. Wescott, Samuel Mallalieu, 
 J. A. J. Cresswell, J. J. Weaver, D. R. West, W. W. John- 
 son, Dr. H. J. Drown, W. J. Hooper, Colonel J. Rowan 
 Crone, John W. Bell, Upton W. Boorman, B. H. Miller. 
 
 MASSACHUSETTS George F. Hoar, Charles R. Codman, 
 John E. Sanford, J. M. Barker, C. W. Clifford, A. Eldridge, 
 W. C. Lowring, F. A. Hobart, Phineas Pierce, C. Burnham, 
 Eustace C. Fitz, J. O. Wetherbee, Henrj- C. Lodge, Daniel 
 Russell, Dudley Porter, N. A. Morton, G. S. Boutwell, G. 
 A. Marden, R. M. Morse, Jr., G. W. Johnson, W. S. B. Hop 
 kins, William Knowlton, A. Harding, T. Merrick, W. Smith, 
 M. B. Whitney. 
 
 MICHIGAN James F. Joy, Perry Hannah, Omar D. Con 
 ger, E. C. Watkins, W. G. Thompson, D. O. Farrand, J. D. 
 Rowan, L. L. Penfield, C. D. Randall, Morgan Bates, A. H. 
 Morrison, J. W. French, George A. Farr, A. B. Watson, 
 Charles Kipp, E. M. Adams, B. W. Huston, William Jenny, E. 
 O. Avery, Thomas N. Stevens, J. H. Chandler, D. A. Blodgett. 
 
 MINNESOTA D. Sinclair, D. M. Sabin, A. O. Whipple, 
 Dorilus Morrison, A. C. Wedge, J. V. Daniels, Marcus John 
 son, George Bryant, E. F. Drake, C. F. Kindred. 
 
JAMES A. GARFIELD. 36 3 
 
 MISSISSIPPI B. K. Bruce, James Hill, George M. Bu 
 chanan, Haribee C. Carter, W. H. Kennon, George C. 
 McKee, Henry C. Niles, Joshua R. Smith, George W. Gales, 
 F. M. Libby, Samuel P. Hurst, W. W. Bell, Green C. Chan 
 dler, Charles W. Clarke, Richard F. Beck, R. H. Mont 
 gomery. 
 
 MISSOURI C. I. Filley, H. E.^Havens, David Wagner, R. 
 T. Van Horn, John A. Weber, Nicholas Berg, T. B. Rogers, 
 J. A. Wheeler, John H. Pullman, Thomas Gallen, William 
 Ballentine, James Lindley, J. G. Baker, T. A. Lowe, R. C. 
 McBeth, W. E. Maynard, A. D. Jaynes, A. G. Hollenbeck, 
 W. J. Terrell, L. C. Slavens, N. F. Essex, S. C. Closky, 
 Thomas D. Neal, George Hall, G. J. Whiteman, H. N. Cook, 
 H. N. Killer, J. E. Adams, R. A. Bucker, Stuart Cartaner. 
 
 NEBRASKA J. W. Dawes, L. C. Crounse, William Gastin, 
 J. L. Mitchell, N. Perringer, D. A. Lewis. 
 
 NEVADA E. Strother, C. C. Stevenson, M. D. Foley, W. 
 W. Bishop, J. J. Meigs, T. D. Edwards. 
 
 NEW HAMPSHIRE William E. Chandler, Ruel Durkee, 
 David H. Buffum, Benjamin F. Prescott, Charles H. Murphy, 
 Joel Eastman, Charles Holman, James G. Sturgis, Anson L. 
 Brown, S. W. Hale. 
 
 NEW JERSEY Judson Kilpatrick, George A. Halsey, Wil 
 liam J. Sewell, William Walter Phelps, C. H. Sinnickson, 
 Samuel Hopkins, John S. Irick, John S. Schultz, John F. 
 Babcock, Chffion Robbins, N. W. Voorhies, W. A. Stiles, H. 
 L. Butler, A. A. Vance, E. L. Joy, A. P. Condit, James M. 
 Gopsill, B. W. Throckmorton. 
 
 NEW YORK Roscoe Conklin, Chester A. Arthur, Alonzo 
 B. Cornell, James D. Warren, John Birdsall, S. L. Hawkins, 
 James Jourdan, Amos F. Learned, F. A. Schroeder, Alber 
 Daggett, Jacob Worth, Benjamin F. Tracey, Edwards Pierre- 
 pont, E. W. Stoughton, Charles E. Cornell, DeWitt C. 
 Wheeler, J. M. Patterson, Jr., J. J. O Brien, J. D. Lawson, 
 Charles Blaikie, Solon B. Smith, Bernard Biglin, Joel W. 
 Mason, S. B. French, Thomas Murphy, Jacob Hess, W. H. 
 
364 LIFE AND PUBLIC CAREER OF 
 
 Robertson, J. W. Husted, L. F. Payne, S. B. Butcher, M. 
 D. Stivers, B. G. Wales, George H. Sharpe, Rufus H. King, 
 Henry R. Pierson, C. P. Eaton, John M. Francis, Isaac V. 
 Baker, Jr., W. W. Rockwell, O. Abell, Jr., W. S. Dickinson, 
 H. R. James, Webster Wagner, George West, David Wilber, 
 Ferris Jacobs, J. P. Douglass, S. Sylvester, E. H. Shelley, 
 W. H. Comstock, George L. Case, C. L. Kendedy, D. 
 McCarthy, James G. Belden, W. B. Woodin, J. B. Murray, 
 
 F. O. Mason, G. N. Hicks, T. C. Platt, O. W. Chapman, 
 Justin S. Cole, C. J. Langdon, E. A. Frost, H. A. Brunner, 
 
 G. G. Hoskins, J. E. Pound R. V. Pierce, John Nice, N. 
 H. Allen, L. B. Sessions. 
 
 NORTH CAROLINA W. P. Canady, D. H. Starbuck, J. H. 
 Harris, Rufus Barringer, Poleman John, Samuel T. Carrow, 
 Israel B. Abbott, C. Faison, O. H. Blocker, George W. Price, 
 Isaac J. Young, Stuart Ellison, Thomas B. Keogh, J. H. 
 Hardin, O. J. Spears, W. R. Myers, W. W. Rollins, D. C. 
 Pearson. 
 
 OHIO William Dennison, Warner M. Bateman, James A. 
 GarfiekL Charles Foster, Benjamin Butterworth,- Albert 
 Schwill, Henry Kessler, C. Fleischmann, D. W. McClung, 
 A. R. Creamer, W. D. Bickham, F. G. Thompson, Joseph 
 Lawrence, J. W. Conklin, J. H. Ritchie, M. M. Fourelle, 
 Marcus Boggs, Alphonso Hart, C. B. Wright, J. F. Gotvery, 
 William C. Cooper, James Glover, I. F. Mack, D. M. Hark- 
 ness, William Nash, David Willetts, F. C. Sessions, John 
 Groce, A. W. Train, J. Buckingham, H. C. Hedges, S. H. 
 Hunt, R. M. Stevenson, J. L. Dougherty, J. S. Pierce, J. D. 
 Taylor, J. H. Tripp, A. W. Jones, W. H. Williams, L. A. 
 Sheldon, Evan Morris, J. C. Beatty, S. T. Everett, James 
 Burnett. 
 
 OREGON J. H. Mitchell, D. K. Hanna, J. M. McCall, N. 
 W. Scott, D. N. Ireland, O. P. Tompkinson. 
 
 PENNSYLVANIA Matthew S. Quay, Linn Bartholomew, 
 James McManes, Christopher L. Magee, William Elliott, W. 
 S. Douglass, W. R. Leeds, David H. Lane, William L. Smith, 
 
JAMES .-/. GARFIELD. ^ 
 
 David Mouat, W. Ellwood Rowan, H. Disston, Thomas J. 
 Powers, Adam Albright, Amos Gartside, W. B. Waddell, C. 
 N. Taylor, D. O. Hitner, Chester N. Farr, Samuel R. Deppin, 
 
 A. J. Kaufmann, William K. Seltzer, H. J. Reeder, Harrison 
 Bortz, S. V. Thompson, W. A. W. Grier, J. J. Albright, 
 Alexander Farnham, Samuel A. Losch, William S. Morehead, 
 J. D. Cameron, John K. Clement, O. D. Kinney, C. C. Jad- 
 win, W. H. Armstrong, Thomas L. Kane, John Cessna, David 
 Over, J. G. Isenberg, B. F. Wagenseller, James Hurst, John 
 Hays, James A. Beaver, M. L. Brosius, George Huff, George 
 S. M. Baile, W. C. Moreland, James D. McDevitt, William 
 
 B. Rogers, James H. Lindsay, J. H. Harrah, John McKinley, 
 Joseph Buffington, James E. Long, Thomas Robinson, John 
 T. Gordon, C. M. Reed, Harrison Allen. 
 
 RHODE ISLAND John P. Sanborn, Thomas W. Chase, 
 Isaac M. Potter, Almon K. Goodwin, Charles H. Handy, 
 David L. Aldrich, William A. Price, Horace A. Jenckes. 
 
 SOUTH CAROLINA E. W. M. Mackey, Samuel Lee, E. M. 
 Brayton, R. B. Elliott, D. D. McCall, W. A. Hayne, C. C. 
 Bowen, W. N. Taft, W. M. Fine, C. M. Wilder, Samuel T. 
 Poinier, Wilson Cook, W. F. Myers, W. J. Whipper. 
 
 TENNESSEE L. C. Houck, H. H. Harrison, J. M. Thorn- 
 burg, David Nunn, R. R. Butler, Jesse T. Rogers, E. T. San- 
 ford, J. N. Cordell, W. S. Tipton, W. T. Cate, H. L. W. 
 Cheatham, J. S. Smith, W. H. Wisener, W. Y. Elliott, S. O. 
 W. Brandon, W. H. Young, A. M. Hughes, Jr., B. A. J. 
 Nixon, T. E. Muse, E. G. Rigely, W. M. Hall, H. Summer- 
 ville, Larkin Williams, Fred H. Hunt. 
 
 TEXAS. E. J. Davis, Webster Flanagan, A. B. Norton, 
 W. H. Holland, G. M. Dilley, William Chambers, A. G. 
 Malloy, W. H. Hakes, C. C. Binckley, D. A. Robertson, J. 
 G. Tracey, W. R. Chase, N. W. Cuney, R. A. Harber, A. 
 Scimering, E. H. Terrell. 
 
 VERMONT. John Gregory Smith, John W. Stewart, Fred 
 erick Billings, George W. Hooker, J. G. McCullough, L. 
 Bart Cross, John B. Mead, Henry C. Belden, G. G. Bene 
 dict, C. S. Page. 
 
^66 LIFE AND PWL1C CAREER OF 
 
 VIRGINIA Sheffey Lewis, Peter J. Carter, Joseph Jorge 
 sen, J. W. Poindexter, L. A. Stewart, John W. Woltz, Ro 
 ert Norton, George E. Bo\vden, Otis H. Russell, Josk 
 Crump, W. L. Fernald, James D. Brady, H. C. Harris, V 
 H. Pleasants, J. F. Wilson, W. R. Watkins, F. T. Wan 
 John Donovan, William Brown, L. L. Lewis, H. O. Austii 
 C. C. Thompkins. 
 
 WEST VIRGINIA A. W. Campbell, S. P. McCormick, \\ 
 J. Burley, John H. Riley, C. D. Hubbard, A. C. Moore, J 
 T. Hope, J. M. Hagans, Z. D. Ramshell, L. A. Martin. 
 
 WISCONSIN T. B. Cassidy, Thomas B. Scott, Ed war 
 Sanderson, M. Van Steenwyk, J. V. Quarles, Charles Palmer 
 ter, A. J. Turner, George E. Bryant, W. E. Carter, N. L 
 James, F. C. Winkler, E. M. Rogers, W. H. Hempschc 
 rneyer, J. C. Wedge, Levi Rowland, Philetus Sawyer, J. M 
 Rush, F. L. Gilson, Isaac Stevenson, S. W. Hunt. 
 
 When the convention opened its doors, th< 
 three great political leaders who were expected t< 
 change every result, rather by opposition than ad 
 vocacy, were Senator Conkling, of New York 
 Senator Logan, of Illinois, and Senator Cameror 
 of Pennsylvania. These gentlemen were leader 
 of an alliance of the most formidable and aggres 
 sive character. Senator Cameron was absolut 
 master of the Republican organization in Penn 
 sylvania, Senator Conkling had almost as firm 
 hold upon that of New York, and Senator Logar 
 though not quite so thoroughly monarch of 111: 
 nois, sat far more securely upon his self-estat 
 lished throne than any one imagined. No one c 
 these men could give himself the nomination, nc 
 hand it over to anybody who would recognize th 
 
JAMES A. GARFIELD. 
 
 giver as the only power behind the throne. 
 Working together for a common end, to serve 
 their common ambition for political power, a vic 
 tory seemed easily possible. If they could not, 
 like Caesar, Cassius and Pompey, divide "this 
 great empire " between them, they might jointly 
 frovern it through a man of their own selection, 
 
 o o 
 
 and each be secured in the absolute patronage of 
 a State, so great as to be an empire in itself. 
 
 Ulysses S. Grant, already twice president, was 
 the fast friend of these three who were deter 
 mined to nominate him for the presidency, whether 
 it was the wish of the people or not. He was 
 their choice, and they recognized no other law. 
 The higher law of the nation s will was nothing 
 to them. The State conventions had been adroitly 
 managed, packed with Grant delegates, and with 
 these the great leaders went to Chicago, to force 
 Grant s candidacy. Arrayed against them were 
 the friends of James G. Blaine, John Sherman, 
 Elihu B. Washburne, Senator Windom, Senator 
 Edmunds, and a number of other gentlemen, who 
 were esteemed fit to fill the office of President of 
 the United States. 
 
 There was no waiting to begin the battle ; 
 as fast as delegates and delegation body-guards 
 arrived, they engaged at once. By Monday pre 
 ceding the Wednesday the convention assem 
 bled, Chicago was in a boil. The battle had 
 opened in earnest. The city seemed transformed, 
 
368 
 
 LIJ-J-: AXD PUBLIC (-.1 A /:/: A OF 
 
 it bubbled with an unknown excitement. Those 
 who had witnessed every convention of the Re 
 publican party, since it was a party, say that they 
 never had seen such a seething mass of political 
 wranglers as gathered in and around the palatial 
 Chicago hotels. Immense and numerous as these 
 hotels are, they were crowded to the utmost. 
 The more prominent of them were made dazzling 
 as the noonday sun with the un-sunlike glare of 
 electric lights. Statesmen, professional politicians, 
 carpet-baggers, all sorts, sizes and colors of men, 
 thronged the halls, dining-rooms, parlors, corri 
 dors and the stairs of acceptable rooms occupied 
 as head-quarters of regular delegations, com 
 mittees, clubs, and every possible form of organi 
 zation that gave any promise of hindering or pro 
 moting particular candidates. Indeed, the whole 
 battle seemed to be one of mean ambition, or 
 meaner cupidity, and candidates were favored or 
 opposed, as a rule, by the ruck not the great 
 men by those who hoped to profit by their 
 efforts. 
 
 The first effort of the anti-Grant men was to 
 break down the unit rule, by which the delegates 
 from New York, Pennsylvania and Illinois were 
 bound to the wish of Conkling, Cameron and Lo 
 gan. A meeting of the National Committee was 
 called, and all interest at once centred in the pro 
 ceedings. The corridors of the Palmer House, 
 leading to the committee-room, were choked by 
 
JAMES A. GARFIELD. -^ 
 
 earnest, eager, anx?ous people. The meeting of 
 the committee was secret. Senator Cameron pre 
 sided, and hardly had he called the committee to 
 
 order before the following resolutions were offered 
 
 <.> 
 
 by William E. Chandler of New Hampshire : 
 
 Resolved, That this committee approves ana ratifies the 
 call for the approaching Republican National Convention, 
 which was issued by its chairman and secretary, and which 
 invites two delegates from each Congressional District, four 
 delegates-at-large from each State, two from each Territory 
 and two from the District of Columbia, to compose the con 
 vention, i 
 
 Resolved, That this committee recognizes the right of .each 
 delegate in a Republican National Convention freely to cast 
 and to have counted his individual vote therein, according to 
 his own sentiments ; and, if he so decides, against any unit 
 rule or other instructions passed by a State Convention, which 
 right was conceded without dissent and was exercised in the 
 conventions of 1860 and 1868, and was, after full debate, 
 affirmed by the convention of 1876, and has thus become a 
 part of the law of Republican Conventions, and until reversed 
 by a convention itself, must remain a governing principle. 
 
 The first resolution was adopted unanimously. 
 Senator Cameron then showed his hand, and ruled 
 the second resolution out of order. An appeal 
 from his decision he refused to entertain. At this 
 there was much consternation among the anti- 
 Grant people, who for a moment seemed be 
 wildered. Representative Frye, of Maine, in 
 quired of the chair where he had learned parlia 
 mentary law, and William E. Chandler announced 
 
370 
 
 LIFE AXD PUBLIC CAREER OF 
 
 that if the chairman would not pay any respect tc 
 the committee, the same power that made hirrt 
 chairman would remove him. Mr. Filley, of Mis 
 souri, came to the chairman s assistance in a short 
 speech, that availed him nothing. The issue was 
 clear, Senator Cameron was determined on forcing 
 the unit rule, and refusing to recognize any motion 
 that would interfere with the enforcement of that 
 rule. But, unfortunately for him, the majority of 
 the committee were opposed to him. A commit 
 tee of six was appointed to nominate a temporary 
 chairman, and the committee adjourned for a 
 recess. 
 
 During this the determined purpose of the anti- 
 Grant men to depose Senator Cameron was made 
 abundantly apparent. They considered the crisis 
 reached, and when the committee again assembled 
 they had determined to deprive Cameron of his 
 power, or exact from him a promise. This plan 
 was, however, abandoned, Senator Cameron re 
 maining obstinate in his position and refusing to 
 give any promise that he would not enforce the 
 rule, as the committee had it in their power to ap 
 point an acceptable chairman. At midnight the 
 committee adjourned, the Hon. George F. Hoar, 
 of Massachusetts, was chosen temporary chairman, 
 he being acceptable to the Grant men. For further 
 protection, a resolution was adopted before ad 
 journment, that should Mr. Cameron be unable, 
 through sickness or any other cause, to present 
 
JAMES A. GARFIELD. -> 7 r 
 
 o / 
 
 the /name of Mr. Hoar to the convention, Mr. 
 ndler, as chairman of the committee reporting 
 name, should do so. 
 / The excitement over these proceedings was 
 ntense, and all night long the heated partisans 
 discussed Mr. Cameron s extraordinary ruling and 
 arbitrary action as chairman of the National 
 Committee. 
 
 Eighteen of Mr. Cameron s own delegation 
 from Pennsylvania protested, and twenty-two of 
 the New York delegates made haste to write out 
 
 o 
 
 and sign the following paper : 
 
 The undersigned, delegates to the Republican National 
 Convention, representing our several Congressional districts 
 in the State of New York, desiring, above all, the success of 
 the Republican party at the approaching election, and realiz 
 ing the hazard attending an injudicious nomination, declare 
 our purpose to resist the nomination of General U. S. 
 Grant by all honorable means. We are sincere in the con 
 viction, that in New York at least his nomination would en 
 sure defeat. We have a great battle to fight, and victory is 
 within our reach, but we earnestly protest against entering 
 the contest with a nomination which we regard as unwise and 
 perilous. 
 
 12. W. H. Robertson, 22. John P. Douglas, 
 26. W. B. Woodin, Sidney Sylvester, 
 
 33. Lorin B. Sessions, 13. John B. Dutcher, 
 
 14. W. D. Stivers, 19. Henry R. James, 
 20. Webster Wagner, Wells S. Dickson, 
 
 George West, 12. James W. Husted, 
 
 3. Albert Dagget, 21. Ferris Jacobs, Jr., 
 
 14. B. G. Wales, 18. Oliver Abel, 
 
 i. Simeon Shawkins, 33. N. M. Allen. 
 
 John Birdsall, 
 
272 i- WE AND FWTJC CAREER OF 
 
 The interest in the situation grew deeper ever 
 hour, the lines were sharper drawn, the leader 
 bent more stenuously to their wheels, upon which so 
 many of them were destined to be broken. Th< 
 long night of war and words faded into a morn 
 ing that promised relief to none, and victory t< 
 some leader yet in the shadow of obscurity. Th< 
 early morning was signalized by an open revolt 
 hitherto asserted by the anti-Grant men, an< 
 denied by their opponents in the Pennsylvania 
 delegation, headed by Mr. James McManes 
 Their protest was similar to that of the New Yorl 
 delegation, and was signed by the following: 
 
 Delegate-at-large James McManes. 
 
 1. W. S. Douglass, 10. Harrison Bortz, 
 
 2. W. R. Leeds, 20. M. L. Brosius, 
 
 4. W. E. Rowan, 24. J. McKinley, 
 
 5. Hamilton Disston, 18. B. F. Wagenseller, 
 25. J. E. Long, J. G. Isenberg, 
 19. John Hays, 8. S. R. Deppin, 
 
 12. Alexander Farnham, 7. C. N. Taylor, 
 
 15. O. D. Kenney, n. W. A. W. Grier, 
 
 C. C. Jadwin, S. Y. Thompson, 
 
 6. W. B. Waddell, 7. P. Wanger (sub). 
 A. Gartside, 
 
 Conkling, Cameron and Logan, and their ad 
 herents, had now reached a deadlock with the op 
 position. The situation was bitter in its intensity 
 and prodigal in stubbornness. An attempt at 
 relief was made by General Chester A. Arthur 
 and ex-Secretary Gorham, of California, who, in 
 
JAMES A, GARFIELD. 
 
 behalf of the Grant men, submitted the following 
 proposition : 
 
 "That Senator Hoar should be accepted as 
 temporary chairman of the convention, and that 
 no attempt should be made to enforce the unit 
 rule, or have a test vote in the convention, until 
 the committee on credentials had reported, when 
 the unit-rule question should be decided by the 
 convention in its own way." 
 
 A long conference ensued among the anti- 
 Grant men to debate this proposition, and late in 
 the afternoon this peace proposition was accepted 
 by all parties, and it was further agreed that the 
 regular delegates from Illinois and Louisiana 
 should be admitted to participate in the temporary 
 organization, and then take their chances with the 
 committee on credentials. 
 
 Amid the excitement and turmoil of these pre 
 liminary struggles, the spectator will have noticed 
 one incident of significance the bringing forward 
 as a candidate for the second honor on the Repub 
 lican ticket a colored man Senator B. K. Bruce, 
 of Mississippi. He was serenaded by his friends 
 from the Southern States, enthusiastic speeches 
 were made in his favor, and his "boom " assumed 
 quite respectable proportions. The attempt, how 
 ever, met with but little encouragement the time 
 for a parti-colored ticket has apparently not yet 
 arrived. 
 
374 
 
 Lll-E AND PUBLIC CAREK OF 
 
 CHAPTER XXVII. 
 
 THE BATTLE BEGUN. 
 
 WEDNESDAY, June 2cl, dawned in Chi 
 cago, amid an animation, a stir, a 
 mighty something in the air, only felt 
 upon great occasions. That morning the conven 
 tion met, and the hours before noon were devoted 
 to a grand struggle for tickets a struggle that, 
 in its brief intensity, quite overshadowed the 
 greater issue that hung upon the burdened air. 
 When Chicago bells chimed high noon, there were 
 not a thousand people in Exposition Hall, and 
 they resembled scattered pilgrims at a deserted 
 shrine. Not for long, however. The crowds 
 poured into the building like the whirl of autumn 
 leaves before the wind, and scattered to their 
 places. An hour later more than ten thousand 
 were within the building, and massed in every 
 inch of room. 
 
 By this time the delegates were due, and the 
 eager spectators craned their necks to catch a 
 glimpse of the early birds. One who was there 
 thus describes the assembling of the convention : 
 
 "The Alabama delegation was first to file in 
 as a body, and its two rows of President-makers 
 
JAMES A. GARFIE1D. 
 
 nestled down in front of the stage, displaying 
 every shade of complexion, from the pure white to 
 the genuine African. Arkansas fell in greatly be 
 hind Alabama, with the familiar face of ex-Senator 
 Dorsey at the head. Meantime the places allotted 
 to the various States were being rapidly filled up 
 by the rank and file of the delegations. But the 
 leaders were slow in getting to their respective 
 commands. The dignitaries who had been as 
 signed to the seats for distinguished guests began 
 to swarm in, and Frye, of Maine, and Chandler, of 
 New Hampshire, buzzed them as they gathered in 
 little knots to discuss the situation. General 
 Beaver, chairman of the Pennsylvania delegation, 
 swung himself along the side aisle on his crutches 
 and sat down at the post of honor for his State, 
 with Quay close by his side, and Cessna flitted 
 hither and thither as if uncertain that anything 
 would be well done unless he gave it a helping 
 hand. McManes dropped in late, a little paled by 
 illness, but with all his Scotch-Irish doggedness 
 written in his face. Jewell and Creswell, both of 
 the Grant Cabinet, came in about the same time, 
 ihe first hoping to look down on the defeat of his 
 old chief from the gallery of distinguished guests, 
 and the other marshaling his delegation to give 
 him back his Old Commander. 
 
 " Both look fresh and rosy as they did when 
 they hugged their portfolios and enjoyed the hol 
 low homage that is paid to honor at the capital 
 
 22 
 
376 LIFE AND PUBLIC CAREER OF 
 
 The tall, sturdy form of Long John Wentworth 
 towered over all as he joined his delegation. He 
 is stouter, redder, grayer and balder than eight 
 years ago, when he rebelled against Grant. He 
 had returned to his first love, and now wilts down 
 his collars early in the morning working and cheer 
 ing for the Silent Man. 
 
 "Just when the building had pretty nearly filled 
 up there was a simultaneous huzza throughout 
 the hall and galleries, and it speedily broke out in 
 a hearty applause. The tall and now silvered 
 plume of Conkling was visible in the aisle, and he 
 strode down to his place at the head of his delega 
 tion with the majesty of an emperor. He recog 
 nized the compliment by a modest bow, without 
 lifting his eyes to the audience, and took his seat 
 as serenely as if on a picnic and holiday. He has 
 aged rapidly during the last year, and his once 
 golden locks are thinned and whitened, while hard 
 lines dispel the brightness of his finely-chiseled 
 face. The Grant men seemed to be more com 
 fortable when they found him by their side and 
 evidently ready for the conflict The sable Grant 
 men from the South, who believe Grant to be their 
 political savior, look upon Conkling r as his prophet, 
 and they worship him as a demigod. Logan s 
 swarthy features, flowing mustache and Indian 
 hair were next visible on the eastern aisle, but he 
 stepped to the head of his delegation so quietly 
 that he escaped a special welcome. He sat aj if 
 
JAMES A. GARFIELD. **y 
 
 in sober reflection for a few moments, and then 
 hastened over to Conkling to perfect their counsel 
 on the eve of battle. The two senatorial leaders 
 held close conference until the bustle about the 
 chair gave notice that the opposing lines were 
 about to begfin to feel each other and test their 
 
 o 
 
 position. 
 
 " Cameron had just stepped upon the platform 
 with the elasticity of a boy, and his youthful but 
 strongly-marked face was recognized at once. 
 There was no applause. They all knew that he 
 never plays for the galleries, and that cheers are 
 wasted upon him. The man who can bring him 
 votes when he is in want of them, can make his 
 cold gray eyes kindle and his usually stolid 
 features toy with a smile, but no man in the land 
 more justly estimates the crowd that ever cheers 
 the coming guest than does Cameron. He quiet 
 ly sat down for ten minutes, although the time for 
 calling the convention to order had passed by an 
 hour, and. he looked out upon the body so big 
 with destiny for himself and his Grant associates. 
 As he passed by he was asked: What of the 
 battle? To which he answered: We have 
 three hundred to start With, and we will stick 
 until we win. 
 
 " It was said with all the determination that his 
 positive manner and expression could add to lan 
 guage, and it summed up his whole strategy. 
 While he waited the vacant places were fast 
 
^g LIFE AND PUJU.IC CARKF.R OF 
 
 filling up. Generals Sewell and Kilpatrick took 
 their posts at the head of the New Jersey men, 
 and just behind them the rosy faces of Garfield 
 and Foster, and the tall, spare form of Dennison 
 were holding a hasty last council of the Sherman 
 wing of the opposition. The youthful, olive- 
 shaded features of Bruce, of Mississippi, were 
 visible in the centre of his delegation, and the 
 dream of the Vice-Presidency made him restless 
 and anxious. 
 
 "At five minutes after one Cameron quickly rose 
 from his chair, advanced to the front, and brought 
 his gavel down gently upon the speaker s desk. 
 At once the confused hum of voices began to still 
 and the nearly ten thousand people present set 
 tled into perfect order. Cameron stood for half 
 a minute after silence had been obtained, appar 
 ently free from all embarrassment, and finally said, 
 in a clear voice: 
 
 " The convention will come to order, and will be 
 opened with prayer. 
 
 After the last words had fallen from the lips of 
 the clergyman and a moment more had been, 
 spent in silence, Senator Cameron rose and said : 
 
 "GENTLEMEN OF THE CONVENTION: Before the 
 convention enters upon the important duties that 
 have called it together, I ask your attention for a 
 single moment. During the canvass just ended 
 there has been manifested in many sections of the 
 country considerable bitterness, which, I trust, 
 
JAMES A. GARFTELD. 
 
 379 
 
 will entirely disappear before entering upon the 
 grave duties devolving upon us. Let there be 
 but one motive governing our action and let that 
 be a determination to place in nomination the 
 strongest possible candidates men strong in 
 themselves, strong in the confidence and affec 
 tions of the people, and men who will command 
 the respect of the civilized world. Our country, 
 of which we are justly proud, has grown so 
 rapidly in population, wealth and influence during 
 the existence of the Republican party that 
 we have attained a position as one of the 
 leading powers of the world. We cannot longer 
 be satisfied with our isolation. Recognizing the 
 changed condition, we must place in position men 
 whose familiarity with other nations will enable 
 them to direct our affairs so that we will take the 
 lead in commerce as we have in agriculture and 
 manufactures. Do not for a moment doubt the 
 strength of our institutions. They have been 
 tried in blood and came from the contest better, 
 stronger and purer than the most ardent patriot 
 dared to hope. No combination of circumstances, 
 no coterie of individuals, no personal ambition can 
 ever prevail against the intelligence and inborn 
 love of liberty which are implanted in the hearts 
 of Americans. When the nominations are made 
 and the convention has completed its work, let 
 there be but one sentiment animating all earnest, 
 sincere and unselfish Republicans, and let that be 
 
380 
 
 LIFE AND PUBLIC C./AY^A 1 OF 
 
 that each shall vie with the other in carrying our 
 grand old party through the coming contest to 
 victory." 
 
 Senator Cameron then presented the name of 
 Senator George F. Hoar as temporary chairman. 
 Applause greeted the announcement, which was a 
 distinct defeat of the senator who announced it. 
 No objection was raised, and Senator Hoar came 
 upon the platform, escorted by ex-Governor Davis, 
 of Texas, Congressman Frye, of Maine, and Reve 
 nue Commissioner Raum, of Illinois. 
 
 The chairman immediately delivered the cus 
 tomary speech, in which he grandly arraigned the 
 Democratic party for its sins of omission and com 
 mission. It confronted the Republican party to 
 day, unchanged in purpose, in temper, or in char- 
 acter, and united in nothing else, proposing no 
 other measure of policy than war upon the safe 
 guards which the nation had thrown around the 
 purity of elections. Then he continued : 
 
 "The Democratic party sees nothing of evil, 
 except that a free man shall cast a free vote under 
 the protection of the nation. In Louisiana and 
 Mississippi the Democratic party is the accomplice 
 of the White League and the Ku-Klux. In South 
 Carolina it took the honest ballots from the box 
 and stuffed tissue ballots in .their places. In New 
 York it issued fraudulent naturalization papers, 
 sixty thousand in number. In Maine its ambitious 
 larceny tried to pilfer a whole State, and in Dela- 
 
JAMKS A. CAR FIE I $ f 
 
 . . . 
 
 ware it stood accomplice by the whipping-post. 
 The Republican party has no such miserable his 
 tory. It speaks of rebellion subdued, slaves 
 freed, of great public works constructed, of debt 
 diminished, of sound currency restored, of a flag 
 floating long and everywhere honored and re 
 spected. The key-note of every Republican plat 
 form, the principle of every Republican union, is 
 found in respect for the dignity of the individual 
 man. Until that becomes the pervading principle 
 of the Republic, from Canada to the Gulf, from 
 the Atlantic to the Pacific, the Republican mission 
 is not ended ; the Republican party lives by faith 
 that every man within the borders of the Repub 
 lic may dwell secure in a happy home, may cast 
 his equal vote and have it counted, and may send 
 his children at the puplic charge to a free school. 
 Until these things come to pass, the mission of 
 the Republican party is not ended, nor its conflict 
 with its ancient adversary ended." 
 * Applause followed. When it had ceased, 
 Messrs. J. H. Roberts, of Illinois, and Christopher 
 Magee, of Pittsburg, were elected secretaries. 
 
 Eugene Hale then got up from the midst of the 
 Maine delegation and moved for a call of the 
 States and the naming of the several members of 
 the committees on permanent organization, reso 
 lutions, rules and credentials. This completed, 
 Congressman Frye, of Maine, from the platform, 
 desired that Utah should be represented upon the 
 
382 I WK --IM> /Y.7> /./r CAREER OF 
 
 credentials committee, and so moved, as it had 
 been left off. 
 
 Upon this Senator Conkling took the floor, and 
 in the midst of applause indicated with a flourish 
 that if the fight had opened he was ready for it. 
 He objected to Utah, as he understood it was a 
 part of the agreement for the preliminary organi 
 zation that it should not be called. He made a 
 point of order against it, and when that was over 
 ruled he asked if it would be in order to put in 
 Louisiana. 
 
 Mr. Frye here interrupted, explaining that he 
 had the authority of the secretary of the National 
 Committee for saying that Utah had been left off 
 by mistake ; and he did not suppose a Republican 
 convention would refuse to correct a mistake. 
 Utah thereupon secured its representation. 
 
 The roll of States was called for notices of 
 contests, of which there were a good many, and an 
 adjournment until Thursday morning at eleven 
 was carried on motion of Senator Conkling. 
 
 The adjournment was necessary in order to 
 give the various committees an opportunity to get 
 to work and complete their reports. The com 
 mittees now historical were composed as 
 follows : 
 
 States. Permanent Organization. Rules and Business. 
 
 Alabama Benjamin T. Turner J. II. Thomasson. 
 
 Arkansas ....O. P. Snyder J. H. Johnson. 
 
 California John Mansfield E. A. Davis. 
 
 Colorado John A Ellet M. N. Negroeve. 
 
JAMES A. GARFIELD. 
 
 States. Permanent Organization. Rules and Business. 
 
 Connecticut ................. John M. Douglas ............ Daniel Chadwick. 
 
 Delaware .................... Christian Febiger .............. Benjamin Burton. 
 
 Florida ...................... B. J. Shipman ................. James Dean. 
 
 Georgia ...................... Madison Davis ............... R. D. Lock. 
 
 Illinois ....................... Richard Whiting ............. Andrew W. Metcalf. 
 
 Indiana ...................... J. J. Todd ..................... Bryo W. Langdon. 
 
 Iowa .......... ............. John W. Sharp ............... S. M. Clark. 
 
 Kansas ...................... S. S. Benedict ................. George H. Case. 
 
 Kentucky ................... Morris C. Hutchins. ......... W. G. Hunton. 
 
 Louisiana ................... Contest ......................... Contest. 
 
 Maine ...... . ................ L. G. Dawnes ................. Llewellyn Powers. 
 
 Maryland ................... Charles T. Westcott ......... Jacob J. Weaver, Jr. 
 
 Massachusetts .............. William B. Hopkins ......... Robert M. Morse, Jr. 
 
 Michigan .................... E. C. Watkins ................. J. H. Chandler. 
 
 Minnesota ................... J. V. Daniels .................. E. F. Drake. 
 
 Mississippi .................. James Hill ..................... H. C. Carter. 
 
 Missouri ...................... Luther C. Slavens ............ Thomas B Rodgers. 
 
 Nebraska .................... V. L. Bierbower .............. J. L. Mitchell. 
 
 Nevada ...................... E. Strother ..................... W. W. Bishop. 
 
 New Hampshire ........... S. W. Hale .................... James G. Sturgis. 
 
 New Jersey ................. James Gopsill .................. C. H. Sinnickson. 
 
 New York .................. Henry R. Pierson ............ George H. Sharpe. 
 
 North Carolina ............ Rufus Barringer ............. O. H. Blocker. 
 
 Ohio .......................... Alphonso Hart ................ James A. Garfield. 
 
 Oregon ...................... O. P. Tompkins .............. D. C. Ireland. 
 
 Pennsylvania ............... Howard J. Reeder ........... W T m. H. Armstrong. 
 
 Rhode Island .............. Almon R. Goodwin ......... Thomas W. Chase. 
 
 South Carolina ............ W. J. Whipper .............. Charles M. Wilder. 
 
 Tennessee .................. W. E. Gate .................... J. M. Cordell. 
 
 Texas ................... .....W. H. Hokes ................. William Chambers. 
 
 Vermont ..................... Henry C. Belden ............ John B. Mead. 
 
 Virginia ..................... H. Clay Harris ............... W. R. Watkins. 
 
 West Virginia .............. J. H. Riley .................... A. C. Moore. 
 
 Wisconsin ........... , ...... Wm. E. Carter ............... A. J. Turner. 
 
 Arizona ...................... None ............................ J. S. Vosburg. 
 
 Dakota ....................... None ............................ C. T. McCoy; 
 
 District of Columbia ...... None ............................ John F. Cook. 
 
 Idaho ........................ George L. Shoup ............. George L. Shoup. 
 
 Montana ..................... Robert E. Fisk ............... Henry M. Blake. 
 
 New Mexico ........ ^ ...... William Breeden ............. Wm. L. Ryneson. 
 
 Utah... ...V. L. C. Silvos ....... None. 
 
334 
 
 J.IFE AND PUBLIC C.lKl .ER OF 
 
 States. Permanent Organization. Rules and Business. 
 
 Washington Thomas L. Minor Thomas H. Brents. 
 
 Wyoming W. A. Carter None. 
 
 States. Credentials. Resolutions. 
 
 Alabama Isaac Ileyman Wm. Youngblood. 
 
 Arkansas Powell Clayton H. S. Holland. 
 
 California Creed Raymond D. S. Payne. 
 
 Colorado George T. Clark Amos Steck. 
 
 Connecticut Samuel C. Fessendon H. C. Robinson. 
 
 Delaware James R. Lofland Levi G. Clark. 
 
 Florida Joseph E. Lee F. C. Humphries. 
 
 Georgia Edward Belcher A. E. Buck. 
 
 Illinois Green B. Raum E. A. Storrs. 
 
 Indiana B. K. Higginbottom George W. Fridley. 
 
 Iowa J. S. Clarkson George G. Perkins. 
 
 Kansas B. F. Simpson R. R. W. Perkins. 
 
 Kentucky Richard B. Stoll A. T. Wood. 
 
 Louisiana Contest Contest. 
 
 Maine A. A. Stroul Lewis Barker. 
 
 Maryland William J. Hooper J. Morrison Harris. 
 
 Massachusetts Charles R. Codman James M. Barker. 
 
 Michigan .... Homer D. Conger George A. Farr. 
 
 Minnesota E. M. Sabin D. Sinclair. 
 
 Mississippi F. M. Libbey Charles W. Clark. 
 
 Missouri Harrison E. Haven R. T. Van Home. 
 
 Nebraska N. W. Passenger J. W. Dawes. 
 
 Nevada M. D. Foley T. D. Edwards. 
 
 New Hampshire Wm. E. Chandler Charles Holman. 
 
 New Jersey Chellian Robbins William W. Phelps. 
 
 New York \ Benjamin F. Tracey Edwards Pierrepont. 
 
 North Carolina George W. Price, Jr James A. Harris. 
 
 Ohio Warren M. Bateman Rodney M. Stimson. 
 
 Oregon....! John H. Mitchell H. W. Scott. 
 
 Pennsylvania John Cessna W. B. Rogers. 
 
 Rhode Island John P. Sanborn Charles H. Ilandley. 
 
 South Carolina William N. Taft D. D. McCall. 
 
 Tennessee J. M. Thornburg Horace H. Harrison. 
 
 Texas Webster Flannagan J. G. Tracy. 
 
 Vermont John W. Stewart George G. Benedict. 
 
 Virginia C. C. Tompkins James D. Brady. 
 
 West Virginia J. M. Hagan C. D. Hubbard. 
 
JAMES A. GARF2ELD. og^ 
 
 States. Credentials. Resolutions. 
 
 Wisconsin Ed. Sanderson Joseph V. Quarles. 
 
 Arizona R. C. McCormick ...J. S. Vosburg. 
 
 Dakota..... Porter Warner C. T. McCoy. 
 
 District of Columbia Sayles J. Bowen John F. Cook. 
 
 Idaho George L. Shoup Jones W. Brown. 
 
 Montana Henry M. Blake Robert E. Fisk. 
 
 New Mexico William Breeden William L. Ryneson, 
 
 Utah None Presley Denney. 
 
 Washington T. L. Minor Thomas H. Brents. 
 
 Wyoming W. A. Carter W. A. Carter. 
 
LIFE AXD 1 L UUC CAREER OF 
 
 CHAPTER XXVIII. 
 
 THE SECOND DAY S FIGHTING. 
 
 EXPOSITION HALL, as the convention 
 began assembling on Thursday morning, 
 presented much the same appearance that 
 it did the day before. The attendance was, how 
 ever, much larger, and the anti-third-term people 
 had made arrangements during the previous 
 evening to secure a greater representation in the 
 spectators seats, and a better location for their 
 sympathizers. 
 
 The delegates, as the hour of eleven approached, 
 straggled slowly in. Many of them came fatigued 
 from committee work, and other matters not offi 
 cial but incidental to a gathering of the kind. By 
 the hour for assembling, every seat was occupied 
 in the galleries, and the floor was unusually ani 
 mated. There was a great deal of running round 
 among the delegates and their friends, but the 
 only outburst before the call to order was on the 
 first day, when Conkling came down the aisle at a 
 a quarter to twelve. He was euthusiastically 
 cheered, and moved slowly to his seat, his tall 
 figure rising above those who stood aside to let 
 him pass. He was the lion of the hour and the 
 
JAMES A. GARFIELD. 
 
 387 
 
 chief curiosity of the multitude was always to see 
 the silver-bearded senator from New York. 
 
 It was within a few minutes of high noon, when 
 Senator Hoar brought down his gavel upon his 
 bouquet-embellished desk. A momentary confu 
 sion was caused in the removal of outsiders, who 
 crowded into every possible place. All knew 
 that the Committee on Credentials, which had in 
 band the important preliminary work of the con 
 vention, would not be ready to report for several 
 hours. Consequently, as soon as the prayer was 
 concluded, Senator Conkling moved that a recess 
 be taken until six o clock. This motion was re 
 garded as an indication that he was not altogether 
 prepared for any test vote, but the fact was it was 
 impossible to reach a test vote until it came to 
 the report of the Committee on Credentials. 
 Eugene Hale, however, backed by the cheers of 
 the gallery, antagonized the motion for a recess, 
 and supported his wish with the precedent that 
 four years before the convention had effected the 
 permanent organization while waiting the report 
 on contested seats. 
 
 Senator Conkling dropped into the sarcastic in 
 his reply, congratulated the convention that it had 
 heard a speech from the gentleman from Maine, 
 and managed to sneer at New England as a sec 
 tion chiefly peopled by orators. 
 
 Mr. Hale returned to the charge, and made 
 great point, that in Congress business did not wait 
 
3 88 
 
 LIFE AND FL BLIC CAREER OF 
 
 for the settlement of contests. For this Mr. Hale 
 was rewarded by a wild burst of applause. The 
 crowds were ready and delighted to cheer, and 
 when Hale went on to say that if he appeared in 
 better humor that morning than the gentleman 
 from New York, the great audience understood 
 the reason why. The applause passed beyond all 
 bounds. It became a gale of hurrahs. 
 
 Mr. Conkling did not attempt a reply to this 
 and a vote being secured on his motion for a re 
 cess, it was lost. For several minutes after this it 
 was not quite certain what would be the next step. 
 Then Joy, of Michigan, sent up a resolution, to the 
 effect that the contestants from Illinois should be 
 allowed to be heard before the convention by such 
 counsel as they should select. This raised quite 
 a storm, and a motion to lay it on the table was 
 made. This was submitted to a viva voce vote, 
 and declared lost. A roll-call was ordered to sat 
 isfy the demands of some rash delegates, but this 
 was not acceptable to either side. Joy s motion 
 was then withdrawn at the request of Eugene 
 Hale. 
 
 Later, General Sewell, of New Jersey, intro 
 duced a motion that the Committee on Permanent 
 Organization be instructed to bring in its report. 
 This was adopted. The report continued Senator 
 Hoar as permanent president, and provided a 
 vice-president and secretary from each State. 
 
JAMES A. GAR FIELD. 
 
 After the report was read and corrected, Senator 
 Hoar said: 
 
 "GENTLEMEN OF THE CONVENTION: You have 
 
 manifested in the choice you have made for per 
 manent presiding officer a disposition to a wise 
 economy in the matter of opening speeches. 
 [Laughter.] One good reason occurs to me for 
 the selection which you have made, and that is, 
 that having heard one spQech from me, you have, 
 for reasons entirely satisfactory to each delegate, 
 no inclination to hear another opening soeech." 
 [Laughter and applause.] 
 
 The men from Maine were still anxious to go 
 on with business, and Frye put a motion that the 
 Committee on Rules be requested to report. 
 This brought General Sharpe to his feet the 
 New York member of the committee who said 
 he had been instructed to prepare a minority re 
 port, and as the committee was in session until 
 within a few minutes of the assembling of the 
 convention, he had no time to clo so. He also 
 announced it was understood that a report would 
 not be made until the Committee on Credentials 
 had presented their report. The chairman of the 
 Committee on Rules was then called upon by Mr. 
 Frye. 
 
 The chairman was General Garfield. As he 
 mounted a chair to have a better opportunity, he 
 was greeted with the most enthusiastic applause 
 yet heard in the convention. It was a magnificent, 
 
390 
 
 LIFE AND PUBLIC CAREER <>/ 
 
 spontaneous tribute to his worth and universally 
 recognized public services. General Garfield sai 
 the statement of the gentleman from New Yor] 
 was true. This satisfied everybody. Frye with 
 drew his motion to propose a recess until five P. M 
 Senator Conkling was immediately on his fee 
 
 to congratulate his friends from Maine that s< 
 & 
 
 much had been accomplished. It was a matter t< 
 stir the heart of every patriot to find the conven 
 tion, in its organized state, rising in its might, 01 
 being able to accomplish the momentous, the criti 
 cal, the portentous business that had been accom 
 plished since his (Conkling s) motion to adjoun 
 had been made. Mr. Frye returned the challenge 
 and drew wild cheering from the galleries by ex 
 pressing his thanks to the distinguished gentlemar 
 from New York, who, he hoped, would be as will 
 ing and as ready to congratulate Maine at the 
 conclusion of the convention. 
 
 There was no reply to make to this clever sail} 
 of the man from Maine, and the motion for a re 
 cess was adopted without dissent. The conven 
 tion stood adjourned until five P. M. 
 
 It was half-past that hour, however, before the 
 convention came to order again. The galleries 
 were packed as before with interested spectators 
 As soon as the convention was ready for business 
 Mr. Henderson, of Iowa, announced that the Com 
 mittee on Credentials would not be ready to re 
 port at that session, and moved that the Committee 
 
JAMES A. GARFIELD. 
 
 391 
 
 on Rules be requested to report, so that the con 
 vention could proceed to business. This again 
 precipitated a clash between the opposing fac 
 tions. . Senator Logan said the committee had 
 agreed to defer their report on rules and order of 
 business until after the action on contested seats. 
 (This, as it will be remejnbered by the reader, was 
 for the purpose of delaying everything decisive 
 until such time as all the delegates were in the 
 hall, the Grant men hoping to gain by the action 
 of the credentials committee). If the convention 
 desired victory for its work, it ought not to raise 
 too hastily the axe to the heads of their brethren. 
 The rules ought not to be adopted before they 
 knew who were entitled to seats as representa 
 tives in the body, especially as one of the rules to 
 be reported would limit the speakers to .five min 
 utes each. Let the compact be kept that was 
 agreed to by members of the committee, and let 
 the consideration of the rules be deferred until the 
 report of the Committee on Credentials was made. 
 He urged the withdrawal of the motion. [Cries 
 of "No."] Some gentlemen, he said, cried "no." 
 Was it because they were determined not to stand 
 by the agreement of the committee ? Did they 
 desire to ride rough-shod over members ? 
 
 The Associated Press report of this debate, 
 which led to the first test vote between the Grant 
 and anti-Grant men, continues it from this point, 
 as follows: 
 
392 
 
 LIFE AND PUBLIC CAREER OF 
 
 " Mr. Henderson replied that he was glad to 
 learn the sentiments of the distinguished gentle 
 man from Illinois. They would gratify the whole 
 country. From no gentleman was he more glad 
 to hear than from him that there must be no rough 
 riding over, this convention. [Tumultuous ap 
 plause.] He was glad to see the contending 
 columns here coming together in the field of fair 
 play. [Applause.] The gentleman asked why 
 this haste ? He, on the contrary, asked, why this 
 delay ? [Applause.] The chairman of the Com 
 mittee on Rules indicated here this morning 
 that there was no compact made in said commit 
 tee, such as Mr. Logan had asserted. On the 
 contrary, he said he was ready to report, but the 
 convention, by general concurrence, took a recess 
 to give a minority of the committee the time he 
 asked to prepare a minority report. But now the 
 convention was organized and ready for work, and 
 he must insist on his motion to proceed to busi 
 ness, in conclusion he stated, on authority of a 
 Kentucky member of the committee, who signed 
 the minority report, that it was in fact ready for 
 being reported this morning. 
 
 "Mr. Boutwell, of Massachusetts, inquired of the 
 chairman of the Committee on Rules whether it was 
 true that they would recommend the adoption of the 
 five-minute rule in the debate on contested seats. 
 
 The Kentucky member of the committee arose, 
 and announced as a misrepresentation Mr. Hen- 
 
JAMES A. GARFIELD. 
 
 derson s statement that the minority report was 
 ready this morning. 
 
 "Another cornmitteeman, rising, shouted excit 
 edly that Mr. Henderson s statement was accurate 
 and true. [Applause and excitement.] 
 
 "Mr. Boutwell, resuming, said that he would 
 vote against the pending motion if the five-minute 
 rule was to be applied to arguments on the ques 
 tion of contested seats. 
 
 "Mr. Harrison said, though he differed with Mr. 
 Logan on most of the questions, here he was with 
 him in opposition to the five-minute rule in the 
 discussion of the title of representatives to their 
 seats [applause], but he was not in favor of in 
 definite and unreasonable and endless debate to 
 tire everybody out. Even in that issue there 
 ought to be some agreement on this point which 
 would be fair and just to all parties. 
 
 "Mr. Henderson, of Iowa, said the arguments 
 presented against the five-minute rule would be 
 all right and proper and fair for consideration after 
 the report was made. It would then be subject 
 to discussion and amendment. He and his asso 
 ciates had no desire to take unfair advantage of 
 any one, but he wanted the business to proceed, 
 and the way to do these things was to receive the 
 report and act upon it. 
 
 "Mr. Clarke, of Iowa, said at the proper time 
 he would himself move to except the credentials 
 discussion from the five-minute limitation, and 
 
OQ* LIFE AND PUBLIC CAREER OF 
 
 pledging the entire Iowa delegation to support it. 
 [Applause.] 
 
 "Mr. Sharpe, of New York, said his minority 
 report was now ready, and it was signed by rep 
 resentatives of nine States, whose vote was neces 
 sary to the success of the Republican party if in 
 the comincr contest it was to succeed. The com- 
 
 > 
 
 mittee had agreed to postpone the enforcement 
 of the five-minute rule until the composition of the 
 convention was decided. If that agreement was 
 not unanimous, it had been at all events reached 
 without a dissenting voice. He now moved to 
 amend the motion by ordering the Committee on 
 Credentials to make its report. 
 
 "Mr. Garfield, of Ohio, who was received with 
 a storm of applause, said that there was no ground 
 for any charge of bad faith by anybody in the 
 Committee on Rules. He did not understand 
 that any such charge was made. The fact was 
 that the committee agreed that they would not, of 
 their own motion, present their report until after 
 the Committee on Contested Seats had reported ; 
 but whenever the convention chose to order the 
 report from his committee, the latter had no other 
 duty but to obey. He said, also, that the pro 
 posed rules were so drawn as to leave to the con 
 vention the power to extend any speaker s time 
 beyond five minutes whenever it should so choose, 
 even though the general limitation of each of the 
 speakers should be fixed at five minutes. 
 
JAMES A. GARFIELD. 
 
 "Mr. Conkling said that some hours ago the 
 convention had adjourned until five o clock, for the 
 purpose of giving the Committee on Credentials 
 time to report. The meaning of the recess was, 
 that when the convention came together again the 
 Committee on Credentials would make its report. 
 He had been told by members of that committee 
 that they were ready to report not on one or two 
 or three cases, but nearly every case referred to 
 it. Why should not that committee make such 
 report as it was ready to make, and let the con 
 vention pass upon it? He submitted that the 
 good fctith and good understanding of all con 
 cerned would be promoted and observed by pro 
 ceeding now to consider that report of the Com 
 mittee on Contested Seats. 
 
 "Mr. Henderson, of Iowa, replied that a good 
 reason why the amendment should not" prevail was 
 the fact, that while the Committee on Rules had 
 finished its work and was ready to report, the 
 Committee on Credentials had not completed their 
 work, and would probably not do so before to 
 morrow morning, and until then could not be here 
 themselves to explain and sustain their own action. 
 
 "The chair stated that the question was first 
 upon Mr, Sharpe s motion to amend so as to in 
 struct the Committee on Contested Seats to 
 report. 
 
 "Mr. Sharpe asked that the question be taken 
 by yeas and nays, and the chair, exercising his 
 
3g6 LIFE AND PUBLIC CAREER OF 
 
 own discretion in the absence of any adopted rules, 
 so ordered." 
 
 The roll was then called and Alabama led off 
 with 19 yeas. When this vote was announced a 
 delegate from that State rose and said he wished 
 to vote in the negative. 
 
 Senator Hoar: "If the gentleman wishes to 
 vote no his vote will be received and recorded." 
 
 At this announcement, which was an out-spoken, 
 manly declaration against the obnoxious unit rule 
 and one of the best principles of political faith that 
 the Republican party ever affirmed the absolute 
 inviolability of every man s share in the*govern- 
 ment of the governed the convention sent up a 
 great shout led by the galleries. This was ap 
 plause worth listening to, the echo of which went 
 through every State with the rapidity of great and 
 good news. 
 
 Alabama was therefore recorded "Yeas 18, 
 Noes i," and the vote was continued thus: 
 
 Arkansas Yeas, 1 2 ; California Noes, i 2 ; Col 
 orado Yeas, 6; Connecticut Noes 12; Dela 
 ware Noes, 6; Florida Yeas, 6; Georgia 
 Yeas, 6 ; Noes, 16; Illinois Yeas, 42 ; Indiana 
 Yeas, 6 ; Noes, 23 ; Iowa Noes, 22 ; Kansas 
 Noes, 10. Kentucky announced 24 yeas. 
 
 A Kentucky delegate arose and said there were 
 delegates from that State who desired to vote no. 
 There were four stalwarts who desired their votes 
 recorded "no." [Applause and hisses.] 
 
JAMES A. GARFIELD. 
 
 Because of the delegates excited and boisterous 
 manner the chair ruled that all debate on any 
 thing else than correction of the vote be out of order. 
 
 The chairman of the Kentucky delegation here 
 rose and said he would then give the names of 
 the four, but just then Senator Conkling went up 
 to him and said a word, which led him to forego 
 his purpose and take his seat. Then the four 
 Kentucky dissenters stood upon their chairs in the 
 presence of the convention amid great applause. 
 The vote of Kentucky was then recorded as 20 
 ayes and 4 noes. Maine, 1 4 noes ; Maryland 7 
 ayes, 8 noes ; Massachusetts, 7 ayes, 1 7 noes ; 
 Michigan, i aye, 20 noes ; Minnesota, 3 ayes, 6 
 noes ; Mississippi, 8 ayes, 7 noes ; Missouri, 29 
 ayes, i no ; Nebraska, 6 noes ; Nevada, 6 noes ; 
 New Hampshire, 10 noes; New Jersey, 18 noes; 
 New York Mr. Conkling, by instructions of his 
 delegation, cast 47 ayes, 23 noes ; North Carolina, 
 
 5 ayes, 15 noes; Ohio, 3 ayes, 41 noes; Oregon ? 
 
 6 noes; Pennsylvania, 29 ayes, 23 noes, Rhode 
 Island, 8 noes; South Carolina, 7 ayes, 5 noes,; 
 Tennessee, 1 5 ayes, 7 noes ; Texas, 9 ayes, 7 noes ; 
 Vermont, 10 ayes; Virginia, n ayes, 8 noes; 
 West Virginia, 10 noes; Wisconsin, 2 ayes, 18 
 noes; Arizona, 2 noes; Dakota, i aye, i no ; Dis 
 trict of Columbia, 2 ayes ; Idaho, 2 noes ; Mon 
 tana, 2 noes ; New Mexico, 2 noes ; Utah, 2 noes ; 
 Washington, 2 noes ; Wyoming, 2 noes. Total 
 Ayes, 316; noes, 407.. 
 
398 LIFE AND PUBLIC CAREER OF 
 
 Pennsylvania asked to cast two additional votes 
 aye of delegates who had just arrived. This gave 
 Pennsylvania 31 ayes to 23 noes. Michigan cor 
 rected its votes to i aye, and 2 1 noes. 
 
 Thus corrected, the chair announced the result 
 yeas, 316; nays, 406. Mr. Sharpe s amend 
 ment was rejected. 
 
 The result, an unquestioned and overwhelming 
 defeat for the Grant forces, was received with 
 tumultuous applause in the galleries and not a 
 little pleasure among the 406 victors on the floor. 
 For it showed just exactly how much Grant could 
 get on any one ballot and demonstrated beyond 
 peradventure that if the opponents of the third- 
 term stood together they could at any time defeat 
 their enemies. 
 
 The question now recurring upon the original 
 motion, Mr. Brandagee, of Connecticut, got up 
 and said he did so in the interest of order, 
 harmony and peace. He had voted against the 
 amendment just rejected, but he thought there 
 was a fair understanding in the Committee on 
 Rules, that their report should not be made until 
 after that of the Committee on Credentials. He 
 moved to lay on the table the pending motion in 
 structing the latter committee to report, with a 
 view to adjourning. This was agree d to, and on 
 motion of Mr. Metcalf, of Illinois, the convention 
 adjourned until fehe next day June 4th at ten 
 o clock, A. M. 
 
JAMES A. CAKFIELD. 399 
 
 CHAPTER XXIX. 
 
 WAR TO THE KNIFE, AND KNIFE TO THE HILT. 
 
 {T was readily seen by this time that the fight 
 was to be a long-continued one, inaugurated 
 and conducted on the basis of war to the knife, 
 and knife to the hilt. The country was aroused to 
 a deep and untiring attention to every detail of the 
 Chicago proceedings, and the newspapers were 
 devoured by their thousands of readers with an 
 avidity that spoke well for the political fortunes of 
 our country. For no people can come to great 
 disaster who show an intelligent, jealous interest 
 in the proceedings of those who govern them. 
 
 To return to the convention. The Committee 
 on Credentials had a hard time of it. At midnight 
 on Thursday it had been in continuous session 
 for six hours. It had settled the Illinois district 
 contestants at the expense of eighteen votes for 
 Grant (this was a question of whether delegates 
 elected by a gag-law convention or by the districts 
 should be seated), had agreed to the admission of 
 a divided delegation from Louisiana, and had 
 reached the Pennsylvania cases (the question here 
 was somewhat similar to that of Illinois a packed 
 convention instructing delegates the opposite way 
 
402 LIFE AND PUBLIC CAREER OF 
 
 the vote of that State, defended his position. H 
 had suffered contumely and violence for his Re 
 publican principles, and if he was now to be denie 
 the free expression of his opinion in a Republica: 
 convention, he was willing to withdraw from tha 
 convention. He had imbibed his Republican prin 
 ciples from the great New York statesman, Willian 
 H. Seward. He had been a newspaper edito 
 since the John Brown raid at Harper s Ferry, an< 
 had always consistently supported the nations 
 Republican nominee. But he felt that there wa 
 a principle in this question. He would never g 
 to any convention and agree beforehand that what 
 ever might be done by it should have his indorse 
 ment. He always intended to guard his ow 
 sovereignty. [Applause.] He never intende 
 that any body of men should take that sovereignt 
 from him. As he had not been afraid to stand u 
 for Republican principles in West Virginia, h 
 was not afraid to go home and face his cor 
 stituents. 
 
 Mr. Hale, of West Virginia, who voted aye, de 
 fended the right of his colleague to vote as he sa^ 
 fit, [applause], to utter his .own sentiments as a 
 individual delegate. 
 
 Mr. Brandagee, of Connecticut, said the que< 
 tion was not one of free speech. No man her 
 will seek to hinder any delegate s free speech, 
 was only a question as to what any man would d 
 for the support of Republican principles. He cor 
 
JAMES A. GARFIELD. 
 
 403 
 
 nued at considerable length until greeted with 
 isses. 
 
 Mr. McCormick, of West Virginia, avowed him- 
 elf one of the three dissenters, not because he 
 id not expect to support the nominee of this con- 
 ention, for he did intend to do that, no matter 
 ho he should be. He was as good a Republican 
 s the gentleman from New York, and whereas the 
 itter made only one speech for the nominee of 
 last National Republican Convention, he 
 Mr. McCormick) made one hundred. [Great 
 pplause and cheers.] He opposed the resolution 
 nly because it declares that men are not fit to sit 
 i the convention if they differ from other mem- 
 ers of it. 
 
 Mr. Garfield, of Ohio, who was received with a 
 lost flattering ovation, expressed his fear that the 
 onvention was about to commit a grave error, 
 le would state the case. Every delegate save 
 iree had voted for a resolution, and the three 
 ho had voted against it had risen in their places 
 nd stated they expected and intended to support 
 nominee of the convention. But it was not, in 
 leir judgment, a wise thing at this time to pass 
 resolution which all the rest of the delegates 
 ad voted for. Were they to be disfranchised 
 ecause they thought so ? [Cries of " No ! No!"] 
 That was the question. Was every delegate to 
 have his Republicanism inquired into before he 
 was allowed to vote ? Delegates were responsi- 
 
LIFE AND rCBLIC CAREER OF 
 
 ble for their votes, not to the convention, but 
 their constituents. [Cheers.] He himself we 
 never, in any convention, vote against his ju 
 ment. He regretted that the gentlemen fr 
 West Virginia had thought it best to break 
 harmony of the convention by their dissent. 
 did not know those gentlemen, nor their affi 
 tions, nor their relations to the candidates. If 
 convention expelled these men, then the conv 
 tion would have to purge itself at the end of ev 
 vote and inquire how many delegates who ] 
 voted "no" should go out. [Cheers.] He trus 
 that the gentleman from New York would w 
 draw his resolution and let the convention proc< 
 with its business. [Loud cheering.] 
 
 When this had subsided, Mr. Pixley, of Cali: 
 nia, moved to lay the resolution on the tai 
 [Applause.] 
 
 Mr. Conkling demanded the call of the r 
 [Hisses long and furious.] 
 
 A call of the roll was ordered. Mr. Conkl 
 inquired of the chair whether the three gentlen 
 from West Virginia did say that they would v 
 for the nominee of the convention. The cl 
 said it was not his province to answer the qu 
 tion. Mr. Conkling said he would not press 
 resolution if his question was answered in the 
 firmative, and finally he withdrew the resoluti 
 as he said there seemed to be some doubt. [J- 
 plause and hisses.] 
 
JAMES A. GARFIELD. * Qr . 
 
 General Sewell, of New Jersey, moved that the 
 Committee on Rules be ordered to report, with the 
 understanding that no action should be taken 
 upon the report until after the report of the Com 
 mittee on Credentials had been presented. During 
 the reading of this report, Senator Bruce, of 
 Mississippi, temporarily occupied the chair, and 
 was received with applause on taking it. The 
 rules were then read by the secretary ; the one 
 forbidding the employment of any unit rule was 
 received with great applause. This was Rule 8, 
 and provided as follows : " In the record of a vote 
 by States, the vote of each State, Territory and 
 District of Columbia shall be announced by the 
 chairman, and in announcing the vote of any State, 
 Territory and District of Columbia, the chairman 
 shall announce the number of votes cast for any 
 candidate, or for or against any proposition, but if 
 exception is taken by any delegate to the correct 
 ness of such announcement by the chairman of a 
 delegation, the president of the convention shall 
 direct the roll of such delegation to be called and 
 the result shall be recorded in accordance with the 
 vote individually given." 
 
 The five-minute rule was enforced by Rule 9. 
 
 Mr. Sharpe, of New York, presented a minority 
 report recommending the adoption for Rule 8 of 
 Rule 6 of the convention of 1876, as follows: 
 
 " In the record of votes by States the vote of 
 each State, Territory and the District of Columbia 
 
404 
 
 LIl-K AXD PUBLIC CAREER OF 
 
 ble for their votes, not to the convention, but 1 
 their constituents. [Cheers.] He himself woul 
 never, in any convention, vote against his judj 
 ment. He regretted that the gentlemen froi 
 West Virginia had thought it best to break th 
 harmony of the convention by their dissent. H 
 did not know those gentlemen, nor their affili; 
 tions, nor their relations to the candidates. If th: 
 convention expelled these men, then the conver 
 tion would have to purge itself at the end of ever 
 vote and inquire how many delegates who ha 
 voted "no" should go out. [Cheers.] He truste 
 that the gentleman from New York would witl 
 draw his resolution and let the convention procee 
 with its business. [Loud cheering.] 
 
 When this had subsided, Mr. Pixley, of Califoi 
 nia, moved to lay the resolution on the tabl< 
 [Applause.] 
 
 Mr. Conkling demanded the call of the rol 
 [Hisses long and furious.] 
 
 A call of the roll was ordered. Mr. Conklin 
 inquired of the chair whether the three gentleme 
 from West Virginia did say that they would vot 
 for the nominee of the convention. The chai 
 said it was not his province to answer the ques 
 tion. Mr. Conkling said he would not press hi 
 resolution if his question was answered in the al 
 firmative, and finally he withdrew the resolutior 
 as he said there seemed to be some doubt. [Ap 
 plause and hisses.] 
 
JAMES A. GARFIELD. 
 
 General Sewell, of New Jersey, moved that the 
 Committee on Rules be ordered to report, with the 
 understanding that no action should be taken 
 upon the report until after the report of the Com 
 mittee on Credentials had been presented. During 
 the reading of this report, Senator Bruce, of 
 Mississippi, temporarily occupied the chair, and 
 was received with applause on taking it. The 
 rules were then read by the secretary ; the one 
 forbidding the employment of any unit rule was 
 received with great applause. This was Rule 8, 
 and provided as follows : " In the record of a vote 
 by States, the vote of each State, Territory and 
 District of Columbia shall be announced by the 
 chairman, and in announcing the vote of any State, 
 Territory and District of Columbia, the chairman 
 shall announce the number of votes cast for any 
 candidate, or for or against any proposition, but if 
 exception is taken by any delegate to the correct 
 ness of such announcement by the chairman of a 
 delegation, the president of the convention shall 
 direct the roll of such delegation to be called and 
 the result shall be recorded in accordance with the 
 vote individually given/ 
 
 The five-minute rule was enforced by Rule 9. 
 
 Mr. Sharpe, of New York, presented a minority 
 report recommending the adoption for Rule 8 of 
 Rule 6 of the convention of 1876, as follows: 
 
 " In the record of votes by States the vote of 
 each State, Territory and the District of Columbia 
 
406 
 
 /.///; AXJ) 2 T/; L1C CAREER OF 
 
 shall be announced by the chairman, and in case 
 the vote of any State, Territory or the District of 
 Columbia shall be divided, the chairman shall an 
 nounce the number of votes cast for any candidate, 
 or for or against any proposition." 
 
 After this was buried in the adoption of the 
 majority report, the convention did nothing in par 
 ticular while waiting the long-delayed report of 
 the Committee on Credentials. At last it was 
 presented by Mr. Conger, of Michigan. 
 
 In Louisiana the committee recommended the 
 admission of the Warmouth delegation, excluding 
 the Beattie delegation, because the Beattie bolt 
 was without adequate cause. In Alabama they 
 recommended the admission of Mr. Rapier, 
 believing that the State Convention had no 
 right to override or ignore his selection by his 
 district because of his failure to approve the 
 condition that he should obey the instructions that 
 the State delegation should vote as a unit for 
 Grant. In the case of Smith and Warner, in Ala 
 bama, the facts were substantially the same as in 
 the case of Rapier. They were duly chosen by 
 their respective districts, and the State Convention 
 undertook to revoke their appointment because 
 they failed to accept the unit rule. The committee 
 recommended their admission. In Illinois the 
 committee recommended the admission of the 
 contestants to the seats of the sitting members 
 from the First, Third, Fourth, Fifth, Sixth, Ninth, 
 
JAMES A. GARFIELD. 
 
 407 
 
 Tenth, Thirteenth and Seventeenth Congressional 
 Districts. The committee also reported against 
 the contestant in the Second Illinois District, and 
 did not sustain the objections of the delegates-at- 
 large in the same State. They further reported 
 in favor of the sitting members from the Ninth 
 and Nineteenth Districts of Pennsylvania and 
 Third District of West Virginia. They also re 
 ported in favor of the contestants from the Second 
 and Third Districts of Kansas, and that the ten 
 delegates should be allowed to retain their seats, 
 but only six votes be cast. They recommended 
 that the delegates from Utah should keep their 
 seats. The committee suggested that the final 
 decision of many of these contests depended upon 
 the adoption by the convention of the principle of 
 Congressional District representation. This the 
 committee believed to be sound. The report cited 
 J. D. Cameron s support of the right of individual 
 district representations at the convention of 1876, 
 under precisely similar circumstances and a similar 
 call for a National Convention. The report did 
 not believe that the right of Congressional District 
 representation should be invaded for the first time 
 by the action of a National Convention. If the 
 State Convention could, by a bare majority, over 
 ride the will of the people, fairly expressed in the 
 selection of district delegates, it might as well ap 
 point at once all the delegates. Nominations 
 
 made through such misrepresentations were not 
 24 
 
4oS 
 
 LIFE AND PUBLIC CAREER OF 
 
 likely to be ratified by the people. It was the 
 duty of the convention to disapprove emphatically 
 all attempts to override the high moral customs of 
 the party. 
 
 The report was received with applause, and Mr. 
 Clayton, of Arkansas, presented the report of the 
 minority, which differed upon the vital question of 
 district representation. The recommendation of 
 the majority, if adopted, would, the minority con 
 sidered, \vork as an ex post facto rule, reversing 
 the long-established usage of the party in many 
 States. They urged that there was a vacancy in 
 the district claimed by Rapier, and that the sitting 
 members were entitled to the seats which the 
 majority report awarded to Smith and Warner. 
 The minority said that as Rapier refused to accept 
 the pledge exacted by the State Convention, he 
 was there without credentials ; also, that he was 
 not elected by his district, but only nominated, and 
 that, except through the action of the State con 
 vention ratifying his nomination, he had no au 
 thority whatever. It did not appear that there 
 had been any district conventions in Alabama at 
 which the Alabama contestants had been chosen. 
 Their authority there could rest only on action in 
 the State Convention. If the principle of district 
 representation was a sound one, then more than 
 half of the delegates sitting in the convention 
 were there without right, and if the rule was 
 rigidly applied the body would find itself without 
 
JAMES A. GARFIELD. 
 
 a quorum. In the ~ase of Illinois, the minority 
 report made an elaborate statement of facts, and 
 denied a charge made against the State Conven 
 tion that it entered into a gigantic conspiracy to 
 defraud 1 the electors. The State Convention de 
 clared its preference for Grant, and instructed the 
 delegates to vote as a unit for him. Was the con 
 vention to say that the majority of the convention 
 of the State of Illinois possessed no such power ? 
 Would the convention undertake to say, and 
 would the country justify it in saying, that the ma 
 jority of the people in so great a State should not 
 be permitted to express their preferences on ques 
 tions of this character, and that if they had clear 
 and distinct preferences they should be utterly 
 helpless in the selection of the methods by which 
 that preference was to be made effectual ? It was 
 absurd upon the face of it, to say that Illinois, or 
 any other State, had a right to instruct its dele 
 gates to vote for a particular candidate, and yet 
 had not the power to make such instructions ef 
 fectual and binding. The report took the ground 
 that local squabbles, as in the case of Cook Coun 
 ty, should be left to the State, and not transferred 
 to the National Convention. The report ended 
 with a recommendation that the sitting delegates 
 should be allowed to keep their seats. 
 
 Mr. Conger handed in the corrected list of 
 delegates as reported by his committee, and 
 moved the convention proceed to consider the 
 
LIFE AND PUBLIC CAREER OF 
 
 Louisiana cases. This was the signal for a run 
 ning fight in debate, and the delegates soon got 
 at it. 
 
 Mr. Cessna, of Pennsylvania, moved to adopt 
 all the report on which the committee haci agreed, 
 and then proceed to the separate consideration of 
 the disputed issues involving the contests in Ala 
 bama, Illinois, West Virginia and Utah. 
 
 Mr. Conklino- called for the consideration of the 
 
 o 
 
 questions which fell within the list of undisputed 
 cases. 
 
 Mr. Confer said this list embraced the cases of 
 
 o 
 
 Louisiana, the Second District of Illinois, the Illi 
 nois delegates-at-large, the Second and Fourth 
 Districts of Kansas, and the Ninth and Nineteenth 
 Districts of Pennsylvania. 
 
 Mr. Logan inquired how it happened that there 
 was any report as to the four delegates-at-large 
 from the State of Illinois. It was the first time 
 that he had heard of the right to their seats being 
 questioned. 
 
 Mr. Conger replied that petitions against the 
 right of the four delegates-at-large had been pre 
 sented to the convention and referred to the com 
 mittee, and hence it was necessary for the com 
 mittee to notice the subject in its report. Mr. 
 Logan indignantly protested against his right to a 
 seat being called into question, and intimated that 
 he perfectly well understood the object of it. He 
 submitted that he \vas entitled to fair play, and he 
 
JAMES A. GARFIELD. . j j 
 
 complained of the treatment to which he and the 
 man who had led the armies of the nation to vic 
 tory had been treated. [Cheers for Grant] Had 
 the Republicans of Illinois ever failed to do their 
 duty in the hour of peril, when the dark cloud 
 lowered over the peace and prosperity of the 
 country ? Had they not given their muscle and 
 nerve and soldierly qualities for the preservation 
 of the Republic? [Applause.] 
 
 A Kansas delegate objected to the inclusion of 
 Kansas in the list of undisputed questions." 
 
 Mr. Cessna modified his motion so as to give 
 separate action on the Kansas case. 
 
 Mr. Sharpe, of New York, moved to amend the 
 pending motion so as to strike from the majority 
 report so much of it as related to the Illinois dele- 
 gates-at-large. [Applause.] 
 
 Mr. Conger replied to Mr. Logan, expressing 
 profound regret that a gentleman whom he so 
 much loved and honored should have imagined 
 that the Committee on Credentials intended the 
 slightest reflection upon him. He reminded him 
 that the credentials of all delegates had been sub 
 mitted to the committee those of the high and 
 lifted up as well as those of the humblest delegate 
 from the wilds of the South. [Laughter and ap 
 plause.] It wonld have been unworthy of the 
 splendid Committee on Credentials not to have told 
 the convention in distinct words that the lofty and 
 distinguished citizen of the State of Illinois was 
 
412 
 
 LIFE AND PUBLIC CAREER 
 
 entitled to a seat in the convention. He made no 
 apology to that gentleman, or to the State of Illi 
 nois, or to this great body of people, for the moral 
 courage of the committee which enabled it to say 
 to the world that the gentleman (Mr. Logan) was 
 entitled to his seat. 
 
 Mr. Cessna s amendment was then adopted 
 without dissent. The question was then stated on 
 Mr. Sharpe s motion to amend, and Mr. Haywood, 
 of California, pointed out that if Mr. Sharpe s mo 
 tion should prevail, the seats of the Illinois dele 
 gates would be contested, while the committee 
 proposed to put their title beyond question or dis 
 pute in history. 
 
 After some personal sparring between Mr. Hay- 
 wood and Mr. Logan in regard to the latter s 
 action at Springfield, Mr. Sharpe s motion, modi 
 fied so as to strike from the majority report as 
 much of it as implied that there was any contest 
 regarding the Illinois delegation at large, was 
 adopted. So much of the committee s report as 
 was undisputed, was then adopted, and on motion 
 of Mr. Bruce, of Mississippi, the convention ad 
 journed until seven P. M. 
 
 The convention re-assembled at half-past seven, 
 and continued in session for several hours, during 
 which the debates were confined exclusively to the 
 question of contested cases, as reported by the 
 Committee on Credentials, and the interruptions 
 in the shape of applause were remarkable in their 
 
JAMES A. GARFIELD. . l ~ 
 
 singular spontaneity and prolongation when James 
 G. Elaine and U. S. Grant were mentioned by the 
 speakers. The brilliancy of the scene during this 
 session was remarkable, the unusual presence of 
 ladies in bright colors, the thousands of gas-jets, 
 the flowers, flags, banners and portraits, sur 
 rounded by the National bunting, framed in a 
 picture never to be forgotten by those who wit 
 nessed it. 
 
 In the contested cases, that of Alabama was first 
 taken up, and debate was limited to twenty min 
 utes on each side. The case of Mr. Rapier was 
 shown to be whether the State Convention had a 
 right to deprive him of his vote merely because he 
 refused to vote for General Grant. The same 
 point was the issue in all the Alabama cases. The 
 sparring continued to the time of limit of the de 
 bate, and the question having been stated to be 
 the motion to substitute the minority report for 
 the majority s, Mr. Boutwell, of Massachusetts, 
 moved the following : 
 
 Resolved, That all the cases of contested seats be decided 
 by adopting the usage of each State, and that in every State 
 where the uniform usage has been to elect delegates to the 
 National Republican Convention by the State Convention, 
 that usage shall be deemed binding, and the same shall be 
 true in respect of delegates sent by District Conventions 
 where that has been the usage. 
 
 Mr. Conger rose to a point of order, that the 
 resolution was not germaine to the pending ques- 
 
LIFE AND PUBLIC CAREER OF 
 
 tion, and the chair sustained the point. The ques 
 tion was put and decided viva voce overwhelm 
 ingly in the negative. A division was demanded, 
 and the result was, yeas 306, nays 449. The 
 announcement which settled the question of a State 
 Convention s power to compel a delegate to vote 
 as it directs, was received with tumultuous ap 
 plause. The majority report was then adopted. 
 
 The case of Illinois was then taken up, and Mr. 
 Quarles, of Wisconsin, moved that the debate be 
 limited to one hour, to be equally divided between 
 both sides. This brought the irrepressible Hot 
 spur of Illinois, John A. Logan, to his feet, who 
 urged greater allowances of time, and made 
 another reference to " the old soldier," that drew 
 applause. " If," he said, " you can beat the old 
 soldier, all right ; you beat the man who has been 
 recognized by every civilized nation of the world. 
 But do not by tactics drive Illinois down to prevent 
 the old soldier from having his share of the States." 
 Mr. Lo^an said he was informed that the Califor- 
 
 o 
 
 nia delegates were not awarded their credentials 
 until they had taken the pledge to support the 
 candidate for whom the State Convention in 
 structed them to vote. He asked the California 
 delegation to say what the fact was. 
 
 In a moment there was silence, followed by de 
 risive laughter, under the supposition that the 
 Californians could not deny the accusation. 
 
 Finally, Mr. Haymond, of California, got up on 
 
JAMES A. GARFIELD. 
 
 his chair and said the question could not be an 
 swered in one word, but he would be most happy 
 to respond if he could be allowed a little time in 
 which to do so. " California selected her -delegates 
 to this convention by the vote of each district 
 represented here ; their appointment was con 
 firmed by the State Convention, and that in order 
 that there should be no mistake about it, the State 
 Convention had then, with perfect unanimity, in 
 structed the delegates to vote first, last and all the 
 time, for the distinguished senator from Maine." 
 
 These last words proved the spark that had all 
 along been wanted to fire the train of dry Elaine 
 powder within Exposition Hall. His name acted 
 like an electric flash, and there followed Mr. Hay- 
 mond s allusion to the Maine senator such a scene 
 of excitement as has rarely been witnessed in a 
 political convention within the United States. 
 Three-fourths of the immense throng in the gal 
 leries and on the floor outside of the space allotted 
 to delegates, and fully one-half of the delegates 
 themselves, sprang to their feet, cheering, shout 
 ing, waving hats, handkerchiefs, umbrellas, for the 
 space of several minutes, before any attempt at 
 restoring order could make the least impression 
 on the excited mass. 
 
 Subsequently the time allotted to the Illinois 
 case was limited to an hour on each side, and Mr. 
 Conger opened the debate in favor of the majority 
 report, which he said asserted, confirmed and es- 
 
416 
 
 LIFE AND PUBLIC CAREER OF 
 
 tablished in that convention the rule that had pre 
 vailed in Illinois from the birth of the Republicar 
 party down to the present time, the rule of dis 
 trict representation. Mr. Raum replied for the 
 sitting delegates, but had no adequate argument* 
 against Mr. Conger s facts. Eliott Anthony spoke 
 for the opposition, and was succeeded by Mr. Storrs 
 of Illinois, who made a speech, the principal effec 
 of which was to cause wild bursts of applause foi 
 Blaine and Grant. The sentence, "Nominate 
 James G. Blaine if you will," was the signal foi 
 another grand outburst of applause, which wa< 
 renewed and intensified when he finished the sen 
 tence thus: "And then those who now shout ir 
 the galleries shall by and by be reposing undei 
 the influence of the summer sun ; but the followers 
 of the grand old silent soldier will still be founc 
 wide awake and watching by their camp-fires anc 
 carrying the banners of the sluggards." 
 
 The scene which followed and continued foi 
 several minutes was most exciting, the uproai 
 dying away, then breaking out again many times 
 a perfect epidemic of cheers. What came nexl 
 was thus described by a correspondent: 
 
 "Mr. Conkling was conspicuous in leading the 
 chorus, first by waving his handkerchief and late] 
 by standing on his chair and waving the illumina 
 ted little banner placed to designate the seats o 
 the New York delegation. Finally some one 
 started the campaign songs: We ll Rally Rounc 
 
JAMES A. GAltFIELD. ^j 
 
 ie Flag, Boys, Shouting the Battle-cry of Free- 
 om, and Marching through Georgia. 
 "At this time nearly every person within the hall 
 as on his feet, each cheering for his own favorite, 
 lags, shawls, parasols, hats and all other movable 
 lings within reach were swung furiously to and 
 o. Bob Ingersoll, seizing a lady s shawl, waved 
 frantically from the platform. In the centre of 
 ie stage, just back of the chair, a fine-looking 
 ady, with a flag in one hanrd and parasol in the 
 ther, swung them to and fro and repeated time 
 ind again, Hurrah for Blaine ! She appeared 
 :o be in company with Governor Jewell, of Con- 
 lecticut. Finally, she obtained two flags, and 
 ivith one in each hand continued her enthusiastic 
 efforts as long as the uproar lasted. It may 
 >afely be said that no public assemblage ever be- 
 bre witnessed such a scene. People seemed ac- 
 ;ually to have lost their senses in the giddy whirl." 
 For half an hour this continued before the chair 
 nade any effort to control the members. The 
 llinois cases were then disposed of in favor of the 
 najority, and, worn out with excitement, the con 
 tention shortly after adjourned to Saturday 
 norning. 
 
LIFE AND PUBLIC CAREER OF 
 
 CHAPTER XXX. 
 
 THE THUNDERS OF ORATORY. 
 
 THE weather, which till now had been aus 
 picious, changed its mood with the dawi 
 of the fourth day of the great battle, am 
 those who left their hotels and homes for Exposi 
 tion Hall had to face inclemency. Inside th< 
 Hall, however, there was but little change. / 
 distinguished editor, writing home to his paper 
 thus described the opening on June 5th: 
 
 " Cameron looked freshest of all the chie 
 gladiators. He wasted none of his vitality in ora 
 tory, and his energies had not been lavishl] 
 taxed, like those of Logan, Conger and others 
 He flitted about on the platform before the con 
 vention opened, visibly anxious, but calm and im 
 perturbable as ever. When the call to arms ran^ 
 out from the chair, he hastened down to his com 
 mand, where the Grant leaders were admirabl] 
 posted. Cameron, with his Pennsylvania phalanx 
 shattered, but yet defiant, was in the centre of th< 
 western block of the convention ; Conkling, witl 
 his better-preserved New York corps, in the cen 
 tre of the field, with Boutwell and his few Massa 
 chusetts followers, and with Creswell and his cun 
 ningly broken Blaine column of Maryland, anc 
 
JAMES A. CARFIELD. 
 
 410 
 
 his dozen of Ohio Grant men, forming a semi-cir- 
 He in the rear of the undisputed third-term chief 
 bn the eastern block. Within easy call of Ala 
 bama and Arkansas was the clouded face and burly 
 form of Logan. A brood of strangers sat with 
 kirn in his own delegation, whom he had rejected 
 Lt Springfield ; but he was their oracle neverthe- 
 ess, although he made discord in the Grant 
 melody that so uniformly came from Illinois when 
 [he roll-call was ordered. Logan was early at his 
 place ; his dark face was darker than ever, and 
 the nervous twitching of the right arm that he 
 twings so violently in debate told that he was im 
 patient for the final charge. His hand was 
 lammed into his wealth of Indian locks every few 
 moments and then would drop from force of habit 
 to adjust the right lapel of his coat. Creswell 
 tame in as serene as if a Grant victory were 
 gained ; but Boutwell betrayed the harassing con 
 flict going on between his hopes and fears. 
 tie has outgrown his amiability with departing 
 powers, and he is not vested with a command in 
 critical emergencies. Taft sat complacently be 
 tween the Sherman and Garfield expectants, pa 
 tiently waiting for the hour when he could take a 
 third or more of his delegation to his old com 
 mander. 
 
 " Conkling awaited, as is his custom, until the 
 ten thousand people had come and got clearly 
 seated, and then he strode down the centre aisle 
 
LIFE AND PUBLIC CAREER OF 
 
 in his imperial manner. He knew that his c 
 pearance would be the signal for a thunderi 
 salute to himself and the first round of party 2 
 plause for Grant, and he was not mistaken. I 
 played it nobly and smiled in his sweetest mann 
 to his worshipers. The Elaine leaders were f. 
 getyand flying hither and thither until they had 
 get in line for the battle. Hale and Frye look 
 worn with anxiety and seemed to be distrustful 
 themselves. They knew that they could croA 
 Elaine up close to and probably abreast wi 
 Grant on the first ballot, but they trembled wi 
 apprehension lest the Sherman wing should f 
 them in their extremity. They entered the cc 
 test hopeful on Sherman, preferring Elaine 
 Grant, but they knew that they had many da 
 gerous rocks and shoals to encounter in getti 
 their craft to shore. It is the day of fate 1 
 Elaine. His generals entered jhe fight this moi 
 ing conscious that if they lost, the execrations 
 Elaine s millions of followers would fall up 
 them. They had been reproached for two da 
 for missing the golden opportunity to nomine 
 Elaine on Thursday, when the Grant lines h 
 been broken and when a vigorous pursuit woi 
 have scattered them beyond the hope of conce 
 trating again under the flag of the old soldi 
 Just in front of Conkling sits the shrewdest a 
 most level-headed of all the Elaine leaders. / 
 though seldom seen at the front, General Sew< 
 
JAMES A. GARFIELD. 
 
 4 2I 
 
 of New Jersey, would have had Elaine nominated 
 on Thursday evening had he been in command ; 
 but Chandler, Frye and Hale spoke, and Chand 
 ler spoke away two hours of valuable time. 
 
 "The residuary legatees in expectancy sat at 
 long range from each other. The little Vermont 
 delegation was nestled down in the south-west cor 
 ner of the hall ; and they had the Yankee shrewd 
 ness that keeps its own counsels and throws its 
 tubs most judiciously to the jostling whales. They 
 made no speeches, played no tricks for the gal 
 leries, but patiently waited and hoped for the line 
 to be thrown to them by the snarling disputants 
 for its possession. They did not even boast of a 
 leader, although they have some of the Green 
 Mountain State s best men in their ranks. 
 " The other camp of expectants presented several 
 pretenders, each hoping to be preferred to the 
 others. Governor Foster stepped in quietly, and 
 sat down as serenely as if it was to be a day of 
 pleasure. He did not attempt to rival Garfield in 
 drawing the applause of the upper tiers, but he 
 had a quiet impression creeping over him that if 
 Sherman should be defeated, the governor of Sher^ 
 man s State would be made the Vice-President 
 to pull the ticket through the Buckeyes in October. 
 Dennison and Taft came in at the rear of the 
 herd, like the veteran bulls that have been dis 
 patched from commanding the younger and more 
 aggressive buffaloes. Bateman, the Sherman 
 
422 LIFE AND PUBLIC CAREER OF 
 
 strategists, dropped in early, and hastily visited 
 every outpost before the bugle sounded the at 
 tack; and Butterfield, handsome as a picture and 
 graceful and fluent on the floor, chose his position 
 where he could catch the eye of the chair. This 
 delegation was the centre of interest in the morn 
 ing, for all felt that it held the fate of battle in its 
 keeping. The correspondents came straggling in, 
 stiff and jaded, but they speedily forgot their 
 weariness as the brilliant sallies, which the rising 
 newspaper men can display, swiftly crossed their 
 crowded tables. The strong-minded women filec 
 in in good time and were cheered from the galle 
 ries, and the distinguished guests crowded theii 
 liberal space, and waited anxiously for the firs 
 gun of the decisive struggle. 
 
 "President Hoar did not call the convention to 
 order until a quarter before twelve. The Kansas 
 contest was the first business, and it was an em 
 barrassing issue to both sides. The Blaine-Sher 
 man men were compelled to vote out four of their 
 men and to give their seats to Grant men, to 
 justify their action in the Illinois case; and th< 
 Grant men had to vote against the admission o 
 their own friends to maintain their consistency 
 The Elaine-Sherman men preserved their inten 
 tion and voted out their own men, but some 6 
 the fiercest Grant men stood obstinately to their 
 guns, and voted against the addition of four to 
 their number. Logan rose and, in dramatic style, 
 
JAMES A. G. . 
 
 cast the votes of his Illinois followers against his 
 friends. The overwhelming vote of 476 to 184 
 showed, however, that separate district represen 
 tation is henceforth to be the accepted law of the 
 party. The next question brought about a sud 
 den change of partners in the national waltz. 
 Two Sherman men contested the seats of the 
 Elaine delegates from West Virginia, and the 
 Sherman men were thrown into an alliance with 
 Grant as if by magic. The cut came from 
 Massachusetts, and the Elaine leaders saw that 
 an unexpected and serious danger threatened 
 them. They threw out their flanks to stay the 
 union between the Sherman and Grant forces, 
 but it was Grouchy after Blucher over again. 
 The Sherman men piled in with the Grant army, 
 and Elaine was compelled for the first time to 
 face the field alone as Grant had to meet it in 
 several previous conflicts. An active rally was 
 made along the Elaine lines, but the vote of 
 every divided delegation proved that many who 
 were bitterly against Grant were as bitterly 
 against Elaine, and the ballot footed up 417 for 
 the new Grant-Sherman combination, and 312 
 against it." 
 
 o 
 
 After this the Utah contesting delegates were 
 seated by a vote of 426 to 312, and the contests 
 were finished. 
 
 Mr. Garfield, of Ohio, who on rising was re 
 ceived with great applause, inquired of Mr. Sharpe, 
 25 
 
424 LIFE AND PUBLIC CAREER OF 
 
 of New York, who made the minority report from 
 the Committee on Rules and Order of Business, 
 how much time he desired for the discussion of 
 the report. 
 
 Mr. Sharpe could not tell exactly, and the mi 
 nority and majority reports were then read. 
 
 Mr. Garfield moved the adoption of the ma 
 jority report. 
 
 The ensuing debate was thus reported by the 
 Associated Press: 
 
 Mr. Sharpe criticized the proposed amend 
 ment to the eighth rule, and moved to strike it 
 out, that amendment being "but if exception is 
 taken by any delegate to the correctness of such 
 an announcement by the chairman of his delega 
 tion, the president of the convention shall direct 
 the roll of members of such delegation to be called 
 and the result recorded in accordance with the 
 votes individually given." He reminded the chair 
 man of the Committee on Rules that the con 
 vention had been in session three and a half days, 
 and had had no trouble from the absence of that 
 rule, which he regarded as entirely unnecessary. 
 He was not here to seek further delay. The battle 
 was formed; each side was ready, and the people 
 were waiting for the verdict. [Applause.] They 
 all felt that whatever was to be obtained on the 
 skirmish line had been obtained, and that they 
 were standing in the ranks of battle opposite each 
 other, and ready to give the people news of the 
 
JAMES A. GARFIELD. , 2 - 
 
 contest. He therefore offered the following reso 
 lution: 
 
 Resolved, That this convention will proceed immediately 
 to ballot for a candidate for President of the United States, 
 and that one speech of fifteen minutes shall be allowed for the 
 presentation of each candidate, and one speech of ten minutes, 
 to second each nomination, and that after such nominations 
 are made a ballot .shall be taken by a call of the roll of the 
 States. 
 
 Mr. Garfield raised the point of order that 
 under the order of the convention the report of 
 the Committee on Rules was before the body and 
 Mr. Sharpe s motion, being for proceeding to en 
 tirely different business, was not in order. 
 
 The chair ruled Mr. Sharpe s motion in order. 
 
 A vote was ordered by call of States. 
 
 Mr. Sharpe modified his resolution so as to 
 provide that after the nominating speeches shall 
 have been made the ballots for Presidential nomi 
 nees shall be taken by call of the roll of the States. 
 
 Mr. Garfield pointed out that if Mr. Sharpe s 
 motion should be adopted the convention would be 
 without rules for its government and especially 
 without any rule prescribing whether or not the 
 unit rule shall prevail in the balloting or whether 
 the right of district representation shall prevail. 
 He reminded the convention that it had witnessed 
 a scene, which would be photographed in history, 
 of four delegates from Kentucky rising on their 
 
426 
 
 LIFE AND PUBLIC CAREER OF 
 
 seats and protesting against their votes being 
 counted in a way in which they had not cast them. 
 Let the rule be settled and he would be bound by 
 it. Let it be the unit rule or let it be the individ 
 ual rule and he would -feel bound by it, the latter 
 particularly, because he considered it eternally 
 right. [Applause.] 
 
 Mr. Frye (Me.) asked Mr.Garfield whether, with 
 out the adoption of any of the rules as reported, 
 and especially that one which made the rules of 
 the House of Representatives the rules of the 
 convention, there would be any such thing as a 
 previous question. 
 
 Mr. Garfield replied that there would not be. 
 
 Mr. Frye. If there be no previous question, 
 and if, after the first ballot is taken, as provided 
 in the resolution offered by the gentleman from 
 New York (Sharpe), another gentleman makes 
 another nomination, is there any rule by which 
 debate from that time forward can possibly be 
 stopped ? 
 
 Mr. Garfield. I take it that there is not. 
 
 Mr. Conkling. The gentleman from Ohio yields 
 a moment to let me reply to the closing words of 
 the gentleman from Maine (Frye). They seem 
 to have been pointedly aimed at me. I wish to 
 say to that gentleman that I do not clearly see the 
 "point" of his alarmed and anxious opposition. He 
 dreads the cross of bayonets, shrinks and wants 
 time. [Cheers and hisses.] 
 
JAMES A. GARFIELD. .^ 
 
 Mr. Garfield. I have only made the point that 
 we ought to have rules, and have them now to 
 conduct and control the future business of the 
 convention. 
 
 Mr. Sharpe replied, urging that the dangers of 
 trouble pointed out by Mr. Garfield, in the absence 
 of any adopted rules, were imaginary, and inti 
 mating distinctly that there would be no attempt 
 to prevent each delegate from expressing his in 
 dividual sentiments through the chairman of his 
 delegation. 
 
 o 
 
 The chair stated the question to be upon the 
 substitution of Mr. Sharpens resolution for the re 
 port of the Committee on Rules. 
 
 Upon a viva voce vote the negatives had it. A 
 call of States was demanded, and being taken, re 
 sulted: Yeas, 276; nays, 479. New York voted 
 48 yeas, 22 nays. The result was hailed with 
 great applause. 
 
 Mr. Garfield said the convention had wasted on 
 this vote time enough to have adopted the rules 
 and gone to work. He asked that the question 
 now be taken without further debate. 
 
 Mr. Sharpe moved to substitute the minority re 
 port, which was rejected. 
 
 Mr. Boutwell moved to amend the majority re 
 port by adding the following: " And said commit 
 tee (the National Republican Committee) shall, 
 within twelve months, prescribe a method or 
 methods for the election of delegates to the Na- 
 
428 
 
 LIFE AND Pi BLIC CAREER OF 
 
 tional Convention to be held in 1884, an d announce 
 the same to the country and issue a call for that 
 convention in conformity therewith." 
 
 Mr. Butterworth (Ohio) moved an amendment 
 by adding the following: "Provided, that nothing 
 in such rules or method shall be so construed as 
 to prevent the several Congressional districts in 
 the United States from selecting their own dele 
 gates to the National Convention. [Applause.] 
 
 Mr. Boutwell accepted Mr. Butterworth s amend 
 ment. 
 
 Mr. Garfield hoped the amendment would be 
 adopted, and it was so adopted by the convention, 
 and then the rules were adopted as a whole. 
 
 On motion of Mr. Garfield, the Committee on 
 Resolutions were ordered to report. 
 
 The committee having been ordered to report, 
 did so, and the platform was the first thing read, a 
 document presenting the issues of the hour. Its 
 full text is as follows : 
 
 The Republican party in National Convention 
 assembled, at the end of twenty years since the 
 Federal Government was first committed to its 
 charge, submits to the people of the United States 
 this brief report of its administration. It sup 
 pressed rebellion which had armed nearly a mil 
 lion of men to subvert the national authority. It 
 reconstructed the union of the States with free 
 dom instead of slavery as its corner-stone. It 
 
JAMES A. GARFIELD, 
 
 transformed four million human beings from the 
 likeness of things to the rank of citizens. It re 
 lieved Congress from the infamous work of hunt 
 ing fugitive slaves and charged it to see that 
 slavery does not exist. It has raised the value of 
 our currency from thirty-eight per cent, to the par 
 of gold. It has restored upon a solid basis pay 
 ment in coin for all the national obligations, and 
 has given us a currency absolutely good and equal 
 in every part of our extended country. It has 
 lifted the care of the nation from the point where 
 six per cent, bonds sold at eighty-six to that where 
 four per cent, bonds are eagerly sought at a pre 
 mium under its administration ; railways have in 
 creased from thirty-one thousand miles in 1860 to 
 more than eighty-two thousand miles in 1879; our 
 foreign trade has increased from seven hundred 
 millions to one billion one hundred and fifty mil 
 lions of dollars in the same time, and our exports, 
 which were twenty millions of dollars less than 
 our imports in 1860, were two hundred and sixty- 
 four millions of dollars more than our imports in 
 1879. Without resorting to loans it has, since the 
 war closed, defrayed the ordinary expenses of 
 government, besides the accruing interest on the 
 public debt, and dispersed annually more than 
 thirty millions of dollars for soldiers pensions. 
 It has paid eight hundred and eighty-eight millions 
 of dollars of the public debt, and, by refunding the 
 balance at lower rates, has reduced the annual 
 
LIFE AND PUBLIC CAREER OF 
 
 interest charges from nearly one hundred and 
 fifty-one millions to less than eighty-nine millions 
 of dollars. All the industries of the country have 
 revived, labor is in demand, wages have increased, 
 and throughout the entire country there is evi 
 dence of a coming prosperity greater than we have 
 ever enjoyed. Upon this record the Republican 
 party asks for the continued confidence and sup 
 port of the people, and this convention submits 
 for their approval the following statements of the 
 principle and purposes which will continue to guide 
 and inspire its efforts : 
 
 i st. We affirm that the work of the last twenty- 
 one years has been such as to commend itself to 
 the favor of the nation, and that the fruits of the 
 costly victory which we have achieved through 
 immense difficulties should be preserved ; after 
 that the peace regained should be cherished ; that 
 the dissevered Union, now happily restored, 
 should be perpetuated, and that the liberty secured 
 to this generation should be transmitted undimin- 
 ished to future generations ; that the order estab 
 lished and the credit acquired should never be 
 impaired ; that the pensions promised should be 
 extinguished by the full payment of every dollar 
 thereof; that the reviving industries should be 
 further promoted, and that the commerce, already 
 so great, should be steadily encouraged. 
 
 2d. The Constitution of the United States is a 
 supreme law and not a mere contract. Out of 
 
JAMES A. GARFIELD 
 
 431 
 
 confederated States it made a sovereign nation. 
 Some powers are denied to the nation, while 
 others are denied to the States, but the boundary 
 between the powers delegated, and those reserved 
 is to be determined by the national and not by the 
 State tribunals. 
 
 3d. The work of popular education is left to the 
 care of the several States, but it is the duty of the 
 National Government to aid that work to the ex 
 tent of its Constitutional duty. The intelligence 
 of the nation is but the aggregate of the intelli 
 gence of the several States, and the destiny of 
 the nation must not be guided by the genius of 
 any one State, but by the average genius of all. 
 
 4th. The Constitution wisely forbids Congress 
 to make any law respecting 1 an establishment of 
 religion, but it is idle to hope that the nation can 
 be protected against the influence of sectarianism, 
 while each State is exposed to its domination. 
 We, therefore, recommend that the Constitution 
 be so amended as to lay the same prohibition 
 upon the Legislature of each State and to forbid 
 the appropriation of public funds to the support 
 of sectarian schools. 
 
 5th. We affirm the belief, avowed in 1876, that 
 the duties levied for the purpose of revenue should 
 so discriminate as to favor American labor. That 
 no further grant of the public domain should be 
 made to any railway or other corporation ; that 
 slavery having perished in the States, its twin bar- 
 
**, 2 LIFE AND PUBLIC CAREER OF 
 
 barity, polygamy, must die in the Territories. 
 That everywhere the protection accorded to citi 
 zens of American birth must be secured to citizens 
 by American adoption, and that we esteem it the 
 duty of Congress to develop and improve our 
 water-courses and harbors, but insist that further 
 subsidies to private persons or corporations must 
 cease ; that the obligations of the Republic to the 
 men who preserved its integrity in the hour of 
 battle are undiminished by the lapse of fifteen 
 years since their final victory ; to do them per 
 petual honor is and shall forever be the grateful 
 privilege and sacred duty of the American people. 
 
 6th. Since the authority to regulate immigra 
 tion and intercourse between the United States 
 and foreign nations rests with Congress, or with 
 the United States and its treaty-making power, 
 the Republican party, regarding the unrestricted 
 emigration of Chinese as an evil of great magni 
 tude, invoke the exercise of those powers to re 
 strain and limit that immigration by the enact 
 ment of such just, humane and reasonable provi 
 sions as will produce that result. 
 
 7th. That the purity and patriotism which 
 characterize the earlier career of Rutherford B. 
 Hayes in peace and war and which guided the 
 thoughts of our immediate predecessors to him for 
 a Presidential candidate have continued to inspire 
 him in his career as Chief Executive, and that his 
 tory will accord to his administration the honors 
 
JAMES A. GARFIELD. 
 
 433 
 
 which are clue to an efficient, just and courteous 
 discharge of the public business, and will honor 
 his interpositions between the people and the pro 
 posed partisan laws. 
 
 8th. We charge upon the Democratic party 
 the habitual sacrifice of patriotism and justice to a 
 supreme and insatiable lust of office and patron 
 age ; that to obtain possession of the National 
 and State Governments and the control of place 
 and position they have obstructed all effort to pro 
 mote the purity and to conserve the freedom of 
 suffrage, and have devised fraudulent certifications 
 and returns, have labored to unseat lawfully 
 elected members of Congress to secure at all 
 hazards the vote of a majority of the States in the 
 House of Representatives ; have endeavored to 
 occupy by force and fraud the places of trust 
 given to others by the people of Maine and res 
 cued by the courage in action of Maine s patriotic 
 sons; have by methods vicious in principle and 
 tyrannical in practice attached partisan legislation 
 to bills upon whose passage the very movements 
 of government depend ; have crushed the rights 
 of individuals, have advocated the principle and 
 sought the favor of rebellion against the nation 
 and have endeavored to obliterate the sacred 
 memories of the war and to overcome its inesti 
 mable valuable results of nationality, personal 
 freedom and individual equality. The equal, 
 steady and complete enforcement of laws and the 
 
LIFE AND PUBLIC CAREER OF 
 
 protection of all our citizens in the enjoyment oi 
 all privileges and communities guaranteed by the 
 Constitution are the first duties of the nation. 
 The dangers of a solid South can only be averted 
 by a faithful performance of every promise which 
 the nation has made to the citizens ; the execution 
 of the laws and the punishment of all those who 
 violate them are the only safe methods by which 
 an enduring peace can be secured and genuine 
 prosperity established throughout the South. 
 Whatever promises the nation makes the nation 
 must perform, and the nation cannot with safety 
 delegate this duty to the States. The solid South 
 must be divided by the powerful agencies of the 
 ballot, and all opinions must there find free ex 
 pression, and to this end the honest voters must 
 be protected against terrorism, violence or fraud, 
 and we affirm it to be the duty and the purpose 
 of -the Republican party to use every legitimate 
 means to restore all the States of this Union to 
 the most perfect harmony as may be practicable ; 
 and we submit to the practical, sensible people of 
 the United States to say whether it would not be 
 dangerous to the dearest interests of our country 
 at this time to surrender the administration of the 
 National Government to a party which seeks to 
 overthrow the existing policy under which we 
 are so prosperous, and thus bring distrust and 
 confusion where there is now order, confidence 
 and hope. 
 
JAMES A. GARFIELD. 
 
 The following resolution was appended : 
 
 The Republican party, adhering to the principles affirmed 
 )by its last National Convention of respect for the Constitu 
 tional rules governing appointment to office, adopts the de 
 claration of President Hayes that the reform in the civil service 
 shall be thorough, radical and complete. To that end it de 
 mands the co-operation of the Legislature with the Executive 
 Departments of the Government, and that Congress shall so 
 (legislate that fitness, ascertained by proper practical tests, 
 shall admit to the public service. 
 
 The reading was frequently interrupted by 
 applause and cheers, and at its conclusion, Mr. 
 I Barker, of Massachusetts, moved to amend by 
 adding the following: 
 
 The Republican party, adhering to the principles affirmed 
 by its last National Convention of respect for the Constitu 
 tional rules governing appointment to office, adopts the de 
 claration of President Hayes that the reform in the civil service 
 shall be thorough, radical and complete. To that end it de 
 mands the co-operation of the Legislative with the Executive 
 Departments of the Government, and that Congress shall 
 | so legislate that fitness, ascertained by proper practical tests, 
 shall admit to the public service. That the tenure of admin 
 istrative offices, except those through which the distinctive 
 policy of the party in power shall be carried out, shall be per 
 manent during good behavior, and that the power of removal 
 for cause, with the responsibility for the good conduct of sub 
 ordinates, shall accompany the power of appointment. 
 
 This precipitated a debate upon the question of 
 civil service, in which nothing of particular mo 
 ment was uttered. Mr. Barker s amendment 
 
LIFE AND PUBLIC CAREER OF 
 
 was eventually adopted, then the resolution, as 
 amended, which omits the tenure of office clause, 
 and otherwise leaves it as introduced, was adopted, 
 and the convention, on motion of Mr. Creswell, 
 took a recess until seven P. M. 
 
 The evening session was particularly crowded, 
 as nothing now remained but to get the nomina 
 tions made, and then to ballot. The spectators 
 were full of the intensest enthusiasm, and the 
 crowd without lived upon every echo that came 
 from the convention hall. As soon as the dele 
 gates were ready, the chairman read a communi 
 cation from Mr. James P. Root, calling attention 
 to the historical associations connected with the 
 gavel used by the presiding officer of the conven 
 tion. Its head was made from a piece of wood 
 grown at the home of Abraham Lincoln, and the 
 handle from a cane grown on the Mount Vernon 
 estate, the home of Washington. It was pre 
 sented to the chair as a memento of the most re 
 markable convention ever held in the history of 
 the Republican party. 
 
 After this incident the battle was renewed. Mr. 
 Hale moved that the roll of States be called, for 
 the announcement of names of members of the 
 Republican National Committee. The roll was 
 called and Alabama named Paul J. Stoback ; Ar 
 kansas, W. Dorsey; California, Horace Davis; 
 Colorado, John L. Routt ; Connecticut, Marshall 
 Jewell; Delaware, Christian Febiger; Florida, 
 
JAMES A. GARFIELD. ,,,- 
 
 William W. Hicks ; Georgia, James B. Deveaux ; 
 Illinois, John A. Logan; Indiana, John C. New; 
 Iowa, John S. Runnelly ; Kansas, John A. Mar 
 tin ; Kentucky, W. O. Bradley ; Louisiana, W. C. 
 Warmouth ; Maine, William T. Frye ; Maryland, 
 James A. Gary ; Massachusetts, John M. Forbes ; 
 Michigan, James H. Stone ; Minnesota, D. M. Sa- 
 bin ; Mississippi, George McKee ; Missouri, C. J. 
 Filley ; Nebraska, James W. Dawes ; Nevada, 
 John W. Mackey ; New Hampshire, W. E. 
 Chandler ; New Jersey, George A. Halsey ; New 
 York, Thomas C. Platt ; North Carolina, W. P. 
 Canady ; Ohio, W. C. Cooper ; Oregon, D. C. 
 [reland ; Pennsylvania, J. D. Cameron ; Rhode 
 [sland, W. O. Pierce ; South Carolina, Samuel 
 Lee ; Tennessee, William Rule ; Texas, not 
 ready; Vermont, George W. Hooker; Virginia, 
 Samuel W. Jones ; West Virginia, John W. 
 Mason ; Wisconsin, Elihu Enos ; Arizona, R. C. 
 McCormick ; Dakota, unable to agree ; District 
 of Columbia, not ready ; Idaho, George L. Shoup; 
 Montana, A. H. Beatty ; New Mexico, S. T. EI- 
 dn ; Utah, W. Bennett ; Washington, S. T. Mi 
 ner ; Wyoming, Joseph L. Gary. 
 
 As the two delegates from Dakota were unable 
 to agree, Mr. Conger moved that the National 
 Committee should fill the vacancy. 
 
 Mr. Conkling objected. 
 
 The chair ruled the motion in order, and it was 
 adopted. 
 
438 LIFE AND PUBLIC CAREER OF 
 
 Mr. Drake (Minnesota) offered the following: 
 
 Re$ofotd % That in case of the death or resignation of a 
 member of the National Central Committee, the vacancy 
 may be filled by appointment by the Central Committee of 
 the State, territory or district. Adopted. 
 
 The most interesting work of the convention 
 was now close at hand. The ball was opened by 
 Eugene Hale, who moved a call of States for the 
 purpose of placing the various candidates in nomi 
 nation. Ten minutes was allowed for each nomi 
 nation, and five minutes to the seconder. The 
 roll was then called. 
 
 When Michigan was reached, James F. Joy took 
 the platform, and said: 
 
 "MR. CHAIRMAN: I shall never cease to regret 
 the circumstances under which the duty is imposed 
 on me to make the nomination of a candidate in 
 this convention. I have been absent from the 
 country for months. Since the convention has 
 been in session I have been continuously employed 
 on the floor. If, therefore, words of mine are im 
 portant for the candidate who shall be proposed 
 mine will benefit us not a little. I shall, however, 
 bring him before the convention in as brief a man 
 ner as possible. It was in 1860, I think, that a 
 young man, born in the old Keystone State, but 
 resident in the State of Maine, entered the House 
 of Representatives. That was a time when the 
 horizon was darkened with clouds indicating a 
 
 o 
 
JAMES A. GARFIELD. 
 
 439 
 
 coming tempest. It was just before the war; the 
 clouds burst over the country, and the war ensued 
 and raged for four long years. Fortunately for 
 us there were at the helm of the ship of State the 
 right men, and it was manned with the right crew. 
 Finally the strength of one of the contending par 
 ties gave way, and peace at last settled down on 
 the country. Then ensued the contest for recon 
 struction, and that occupied four years more. 
 During all that period of time that young man 
 always true, always brave, always eloquent ap 
 plied his talents in every way necessary either to 
 carry on the war or to bring about reconstruction 
 on a proper basis. His reputation grew and tow 
 ered all that time, until at last, when reconstruc 
 tion had been practically secured, he stood high 
 Before the country, and his name became a house- 
 lold word, familiar in every corner of the land and 
 ooked up to from all quarters. That name was 
 the name of James G. Elaine. [Cheers, applause 
 and waving of hats and handkerchiefs.] When 
 the nomination of General Grant was made, all 
 eyes in the northern section of the country were 
 turned on James G. Elaine, and he canvassed the 
 country from the Mississippi and beyond for that 
 candidate, so that the people of the North and of 
 the great West became familiar with him. He had 
 about him that wonderful power of attracting men 
 which another great man Henry Clay, of Ken 
 tucky possessed in an equally eminent degree. 
 26 
 
44 
 
 LIFE AND PUBLIC CAREER OF 
 
 " On the second nomination of General Grant, 
 Mr. Elaine was again called upon, and he again 
 traversed the country, exercising his eloquence 
 and powers. He had become so well known to 
 the people that when the last Republican Conven 
 tion was held at Cincinnati, four years ago, he had 
 become the leading candidate of the Northern 
 people for the Presidency. He was the favorite 
 candidate of the State which I represented in that 
 convention. The delegates from Michigan went 
 there with a view of urging and securing, if possi 
 ble, his nomination, and he came within a few 
 votes of getting it. But for some reason the 
 nomination of another candidate, who had been 
 before the country you all know, perhaps, the 
 astonishment created in some sections of the 
 country at that result and in the State which I 
 have the honor to represent here was considered 
 almost a calamity to the individual members of 
 the Republican pa-rty of that day ; they felt it al 
 most as a personal blow. But while he may have 
 been disappointed, still when the canvass came on, 
 and when it was doubtful whether the Republicans 
 would succeed in electing their candidate, he, al 
 though he had been repudiated in that conven 
 tion, buckled on his harness, entered the tracks 
 and again traversed the country, fighting man 
 fully, gloriously, vigorously, until the battle was 
 won." [Applause.] 
 
 The chairman announced that the speaker s 
 
JAMES A. GARFIELD. 
 
 441 
 
 time had expired, but, on motion of Mr. Garfield, 
 his time was extended. 
 
 Mr. Joy, resuming : " The result was that he 
 endeared himself to the Republicans of the North 
 west even more than before, and when this con 
 vention was called, the people of Michigan, who 
 so earnestly advocated him before, again turned 
 their gaze toward him. Michigan is not a doubt 
 ful State. It is a State which stands by its ban 
 ner ; that no matter who may be nominated in 
 this convention Michigan will stand by the Repub 
 lican banner whoever may be in the van. With 
 these remarks I have the honor to present to this 
 convention, as a candidate for the Presidency, the 
 name of James G. Elaine." 
 
 This was the signal for a wild scene of confu- 
 
 o 
 
 sion and excitement, the larger half of the audi 
 ence and all the Elaine delegates rising and 
 cheering vociferously, and waving flags, hats, fans, 
 umbrellas, anything obtainable, in the most frantic 
 fashion. After order was somewhat restored, 
 Mr. Pixley, of California, seconded Mr. Elaine s 
 name in a speech of considerable length. Its close 
 was the signal for another outburst of cheers. 
 Mr. Frye followed in an electric speech of ten 
 minutes, which set the galleries wild again. 
 
 Minnesota being called, Mr. E. F. Drake pre 
 sented the name of Senator William Windom. 
 There was no seconder. 
 
 When New York was called, Mr. Conkling rose, 
 
4^2 LIFE AND PUBLIC CAAEER OF 
 
 mounted the reporters platform, took a position 
 on a reporter s table, and began with great delib 
 eration in clear tones and with his usual impres 
 sive manner, the nomination of General Grant. 
 The speaker said: 
 
 "The need of the hour was not a candidate who 
 can carry States which are surely Republican, but 
 who can carry doubtful States, South as well 
 as North. Grant could carry the doubtful State 
 of New York and several in the South. [Ap 
 plause.] The calumny against him had all 
 been exploded; the powder had already been 
 burned once and left his name untarnished. When 
 those who have tried to tarnish that name shall 
 have mouldered in forgotten graves, General 
 Grant s fame will remain pure and bright in the 
 hearts of the people. Never elated by success, 
 he has manifested the very genius of success. 
 He commended his civic policy in establishing in 
 ternational arbitration, in opposing inflation and 
 paving the way for specie resumption. To him 
 unmeasurably more than any other is due the fact 
 that every paper dollar is as good as gold. With 
 him as the leader we should have no defensive 
 campaign. [Applause.] No ! Nothing to ex 
 plain away and no apologies to make. The shafts 
 and arrows have all been aimed at him and lie 
 broken at his feet." [Applause.] 
 
 He briefly reviewed the third-term objections to 
 Grant and urged that it was no objection to any man 
 
JAMES A. GARFIELD. 
 
 443 
 
 that he had been weighed in the balance and not 
 found wanting or that he had obtained experience 
 which rendered him better fitted for the duties con 
 fided to his care. When he had occupied thirty 
 minutes there were loud calls from the galleries of 
 "Time! Time!" but he paid no attention to them and 
 was soon permitted to proceed. A little later he re 
 ferred to General Grant as being without telegraph 
 wires running from his house to this convention, 
 which was evidently construed as an insinuation 
 against Mr. Elaine. This was greeted with laugh 
 ter and a storm of hisses and loud cries of "Time! 
 Time!" which continued until a delegate appealed 
 to the American people to listen to the gentleman, 
 who asked them to hear him finish. He was then 
 permitted to proceed until he referred to "elec 
 tioneering contrivances," which excited another 
 outburst of objection. 
 
 Mr. Conkling said: " When asked whence comes 
 our candidate, we say from Appomattox. [Ap 
 plause.] Obeying instructions I should never dare 
 to disregard, expressing also my own firm convic 
 tion, I rise in behalf of the State of New York, to 
 propose a nomination with which the country and 
 the Republican party can grandly win. The elec 
 tion before us will be the Austerlitz of American 
 politics. It will decide whether for years to come 
 the country shall be Republican or Cossack. 
 
 " The need of the hour is a candidate who can 
 carry doubtful States North and South, and be- 
 
444 LIFE AND PUBLIC CAREER OF 
 
 lieving that he more surely than any other can 
 carry New York against any opponent, and can 
 carry not only the North, but several States of the 
 South, New York is for Ulysses S. Grant. He 
 alone of living Republicans has carried New York 
 as a Presidential candidate. Once he carried it 
 even according to a Democratic count, and twice 
 he carried it by the people s votes, and he is 
 stronger now the Republican party, with its 
 standard in his hand, is stronger now than in 1868 
 or 1872. Never defeated in war or in peace, his 
 name is the most illustrious borne by any living 
 man ; his services attest his greatness, and the 
 country knows them by heart. His fame was born 
 not alone of things written and said, but of the 
 arduous greatness of things done, and dangers and 
 emergencies will search in vain in the future, as 
 they have searched in vain in the past, for any 
 other on whom the nation leans with such confi 
 dence and trust. Standing on the highest emi 
 nence of human destination, and having filled all 
 lands with his renown, modest, simple and self- 
 poised, he has seen not only the titled, but the 
 poor and the lowly, in the uttermost ends of the 
 earth rise and uncover before him. He has 
 studied the needs and defects of many systems of 
 government, and he comes back a better Ameri 
 can than ever, with a wealth of knowledge and ex 
 perience added to the hard common sense which so 
 conspicuously distinguished him in all the fierce 
 
JAMES A. GARFIELD. ,. - 
 
 light that beat upon him throughout the most event 
 ful, trying and perilous sixteen years of the na 
 tion s history. Never having had a policy to 
 enforce against the will of the people/ he never 
 betrayed a cause or a friend, and the people will 
 never betray or desert him. Vilified and reviled, 
 truthlessly aspersed by numberless persons, not 
 in other lands, but in his own, the assaults upon 
 him have strengthened and seasoned his hold on 
 the public heart. The ammunition of calumny has 
 all been exploded, the powder has all been burned 
 out, its force has spent and Grant s name will 
 glitter as a bright and imperishable star in the 
 diadem of the Republic when those who have tried 
 to tarnish it have mouldered in forgotten graves, 
 and their memories and epitaphs have vanished 
 utterly. Never elated by success, never depressed 
 by adversity, he has ever in peace, as in war, shown 
 the very genius of common sense. The terms he 
 prescribed for Lee s surrender foreshadowed the 
 wisest principles and prophecies of true recon 
 struction." 
 
 Toward the conclusion, Mr. Conkling said the 
 convention was master of a supreme opportunity. 
 It could make the next President, and also make 
 sure of his peaceful inauguration. It could break 
 that power which mildews the South. Democratic 
 success was a menace to order and progress, 
 which the convention could overthrow and eman 
 cipate a solid South. It could make the Republi- 
 
446 Z//V-* AND PUBLIC CAREER OF 
 
 \ 
 
 can army march to certain victory with its greatest 
 marshal at its head. 
 
 It was fully twenty minutes before order could 
 be restored. The Grant men in convention and 
 galleries took a regular jubilee, and President 
 Hoar had to sit down and let disorder tire itself 
 out. The Grant delegation " pooled " the flags 
 which marked their seats, marched round the aisles 
 and cheered and yelled as if they were dwellers 
 in Bedlam, just home after a long absence^ Fi 
 nally Mr. Bradley, of Kentucky, was allowed to 
 speak, seconding Grant s name, but it was as 
 nothing after Conkling s speech. 
 
 When Ohio was called Mr. Garfield rose, and, 
 amid tremendous cheering, advanced to the place 
 Mr, Conkling had just vacated. When order was 
 restored, he spoke in the following magnificent 
 strain : 
 
 "MR. PRESIDENT: I have witnessed the extraordi 
 nary scenes of this convention with deep solici 
 tude. No emotion touches my heart more quickly 
 than a sentiment in honor of a great and noble 
 character. But, as I sat on these seats and wit 
 nessed tfrese demonstrations, it seemed to me you 
 were a human ocean in a tempest. I have seen 
 the sea lashed into a fury and tossed into a spray, 
 and its grandeur moves the soul of the dullest 
 man. But I remember that it is not the billows, 
 but the calm level of the sea from which all 
 heights and depths arc measured. [Applause.] 
 
JAMES A. GARFIELD. 447 
 
 When the storm has passed and the hour of calm 
 settles on the ocean, when sunlight bathes its 
 smooth surface, then the astronomer and surveyor 
 takes the level from which he measures all terres 
 trial heights and depths. [Applause.] Gentle 
 men of the convention, your present temper may 
 not mark the healthful pulse of our people. 
 When our enthusiasm has passed, when the emo 
 tions of this hour have subsided, we shall find the 
 calm level of public opinion below the storm from 
 which the thoughts of a mighty people are to be 
 measured, and by which their final action will be 
 determined. [Applause.] Not here, in this bril 
 liant circle where fifteen thousand men and women 
 are assembled, is the destiny of the Republic to 
 be decreed [ That is so ] ; not here, where I see 
 the enthusiastic faces of seven hundred and fifty- 
 six delegates waiting to cast their votes into the 
 urn and determine the choice of their party; 
 [applause] but by four million Republican firesides, 
 where the thoughtful fathers, with wives and chil 
 dren about them, with the calm thoughts inspired 
 by love of home and love of country, with the 
 history of the past, the hopes of the future, and 
 the knowledge of the great men who have adorned 
 and blessed our nation in days gone by there 
 God prepares the verdict that shall determine the 
 wisdom of our work to-night. [Applause.] Not 
 in Chicago in the heat of June, but in. the sober 
 quiet that comes between now and November, in 
 
443 
 
 LIFE AND PUBLIC CARTER OF 
 
 the silence of deliberate judgment will this great 
 question be settled. [Cries of Good. ] Let us 
 aid them to-night. [Great applause.] 
 
 "But now, gentlemen of the convention, what 
 do we want? [A voice, Garfield. ] Bear with 
 me a moment. Hear me for this cause, and, for 
 a moment, be silent that you may hear. [Cries 
 of Good. ] Twenty-five years ago this republic 
 was wearing a triple chain of bondage. Long fa 
 miliarity with traffic in the bodies and souls of 
 men had paralyzed the consciences of a majority 
 of our people. The baleful doctrine of State sov 
 ereignty had shocked and weakened the noblest 
 and most beneficent powers of the national Gov 
 ernment, and the grasping power of slavery was 
 seizing- the virgin territories of the West and 
 
 o o 
 
 dragging them into the den of eternal bondage. 
 At that crisis the Republican party was born. It 
 drew its first inspiration from that fire of liberty 
 which God has lighted in every man s heart, and 
 which all the powers of ignorance and tyranny can 
 never wholly extinguish. [Applause.] The Re 
 publican party came to deliver and save the repub 
 lic. It entered the arena when the beleaguered 
 and assailed territories were struggling for free 
 dom, and drew around them the sacred circle of 
 liberty which the demon of slavery has never 
 dared to cross. It made th?m free forever. 
 [Great applause, and cries of Good. ] Strength 
 ened by its victory on the frontier, the young 
 
JAMES A. GARFIELD. 
 
 arty, under the leadership of that great man who, 
 n this spot, twenty years ago, was made its 
 .eader, entered the national capital and assumed 
 ;he* high duties of the government. [Applause.] 
 he light which shone from its banner dispelled 
 e darkness in which slavery had enshrouded the 
 apital, and melted the shackles of every slave, 
 nd consumed, in the fire of liberty, every slave- 
 >en within the shadow of the capitol. Our na- 
 ional industries, by an impoverishing policy, were 
 ;hemselves prostrated, and the streams of revenue 
 flowed in such feeble currents that the treasury it 
 self was well-nigh empty. The money of the 
 people was the wretched notes of two thousand 
 uncontrolled and irresponsible State banking cor 
 porations, which were filling the country with a 
 irculation that poisoned rather than sustained the 
 life of business. [Loud applause.] The Repub 
 lican party changed all this. It abolished the 
 babel of confusion, and gave the country a cur 
 rency as national as its flag, based upon the sacred 
 faith of the people. [Applause.] It threw its 
 protecting arm around our great industries, and 
 they stood erect as with new life. It filled with 
 the spirit of true nationality all the great functions 
 of the government. It confronted a rebellion of 
 unexampled magnitude, with slavery behind it, 
 and, under God, fought the final battle of liberty 
 until victory was won. [Applause.] Then, after 
 the storms of battle, were heard the sweet, calm 
 
LIFE AND PUBLIC CAREER OF 
 
 words of peace uttered by the conquering natioi 
 and saying to the conquered foe that lay prostrat 
 at its feet: This is our only revenge, that you joi 
 us in lifting to the serene firmament of the Const 
 tution, to shine like stars for ever and ever, th 
 immortal principles of truth and justice, that a 
 men, white or black, shall be free and stand equc 
 before the law. [Loud applause.] 
 
 "Then came the question of reconstruction, th 
 public debt, and the public faith. In the settle 
 mcnt of the questions the Republican party ha 
 completed its twenty-five years of glorious cxisi 
 ence, and it has sent us here to prepare it fc 
 another lustrum of duty and of victory. How sha 
 we clo this great work ? We cannot do it, m 
 friends, by assailing our Republican brethrer 
 [Great applause and cries of Good. ] God foi 
 bid that I should say one word to cast a shadow 
 upon any name on the roll of our heroes. Thi 
 coming fight is our Thermopylae. We ar 
 standing upon a narrow isthmus. If our Sparta 
 hosts are united, we can withstand all the Persian 
 that the Xerxes of Democracy can bring agains 
 us. Let us hold our ground this one year, for th 
 stars in their courses fiVht for us in the future 
 
 > 
 
 The census taken this year will bring re-enforce 
 ments and continued power. [Applause.] Bu 
 in order to win this victory now, we want the vot 
 of every Republican, of every Grant Republica: 
 and every anti-Grant Republican in Americ 
 
JAMES A. CARFIELD. ,-j 
 
 [great applause], of every Blaine man and every 
 anti-Elaine man. The vote of every follower of 
 every candidate is needed to make our success 
 certain [applause]; therefore, I say, gentlemen 
 and brethren, we are here to take calm counsel 
 together, and inquire what we shall do. [A voice 
 Nominate Garfield. Great applause.] We want 
 a man whose life and opinions embody all the 
 achievements of which I have spoken. We want 
 a. man who, standing on a mountain height; sees 
 all the achievements of our past history, and car 
 ries in his heart the memory of all its glorious 
 deeds, and who, looking forward, prepares to meet 
 the labor and the dangers to come. We want 
 Dne who will act in no spirit of unkindness to 
 ward those we lately met in battle. The Repub- 
 ican party offers to our brethren of the South the 
 >live branch of peace, and wishes them to return 
 to brotherhood, on this supreme condition, that it 
 shall be admitted forever and forevermore, that, 
 in the war for the Union, we were right and they 
 were wrong. [Cheers.] On that supreme con 
 dition we meet them as brethren, and on no other. 
 We ask them to share with us the blessings and 
 honors of this great republic. [Applause,] 
 
 "Now, gentlemen, hot to weary you, I am about 
 to present a name for your consideration the 
 name of a man who was the comrade and associ 
 ate and friend of nearly all those noble dead 
 whose faces look down upon us from these walls 
 
LIFE AND PUBLIC CAREER OF 
 
 . 
 
 to-night [cheers], a man who began his career of 
 public service twenty-five years ago, whose first 
 duty was courageously done in the days of peril 
 on the plains of Kansas, when the first red drops 
 of that bloody shower began to fall which finally 
 swelled into the deluge of war. [Cheers.] He 
 bravely stood by young Kansas then, and, return 
 ing to his duty in the National Legislature, 
 through all subsequent time his pathway has been 
 marked by labors performed in every department 
 of legislation. You ask for his monuments. I 
 point you to twenty-five years of national statutes. 
 [Cheers.] Not one great beneficent statute has 
 been placed in our statute books without his in 
 telligent and powerful aid. [Cheers.] He aided 
 these men to formulate the laws that raised our 
 great armies and carried us through the war. 
 His hand was seen in the workmanship of those 
 statutes that restored and brought back the unity 
 and married calm of the States. His hand was 
 in all that great legislation that created the war 
 currency, and in a still greater work that redeemed 
 the promises of the Government, and made the 
 currency equal to gold. And when at last called 
 from the halls of legislation into a high executive 
 office, he displayed that experience, intelligence, 
 firmness and poise of character which has carried 
 us through a stormy period of three years. With 
 one-half the public press crying crucify Him/ and 
 a hostile Congress seeking to prevent success, in 
 
. JAMES A GARFIELD. 
 
 all this he remained unmoved until victory crowned 
 him. [Applause.] The great fiscal affairs of 
 the nation, and the great business interests 
 of the country he has guarded and pre 
 served, while executing the law of resumption 
 and effecting its object without a jar and against 
 the false prophecies of one-half of the press and 
 all the Democracy of this continent. [Applause.] 
 He has shown himself able to meet with calmness 
 the great emergencies of the Government for 
 twenty-five years. He has trodden the perilous 
 heights of public duty, and against all the shafts 
 of malice has borne his breast unharmed. He 
 has stood in the blaze of that fierce light that 
 beats against the throne, but its fiercest ray has 
 found no flaw in his armor, no stain on his shield. 
 I do not present him as a better Republican or 
 as a better man than thousands of others we 
 honor, but I present him fcr your deliberate con 
 sideration. I nominate John Sherman, of Ohio." 
 [Great applause.] 
 
 Of this masterly effort, the Chicago Inter- Ocean, 
 a strong Grant paper, said the following morning: 
 
 "When Ohio is called, a form which probably 
 comes nearer the people s ideal type of a statesman 
 than any other in the convention arises near the 
 centre of the middle aisle and moves toward the 
 stage amid the sharp clapping of thousands of 
 hands, which increases, as General Garfield mounts 
 the same table upon which Senator Conkling 
 
454 
 
 LIFE AND PUBLIC CAREER OF 
 
 stood, to a roar of voices mingled with the noise 
 of stamping feet. It is noticeable that in this ova 
 tion a large number of delegates and alternates 
 have joined. To the attention which Garfield 
 always attracts is now added the romance of a 
 possibility that is in every one s mind, and when 
 ever he has moved into sight of the galleries 
 during this convention, he has been warmly 
 greeted. As he stands now on the table where 
 Conkling but a few moments ago stood, many 
 thousands are doubtless comparing the two men 
 who, among many great men, have almost mo 
 nopolized and about equally shared the attention 
 of the people. There is much of similarity, and, 
 at the same time, great dissimilarity between the 
 two men. Both are large in stature, and both 
 would be noted, if strangers, among thousands as 
 remarkable types of physical development. The 
 verdict of the great majority would be probably 
 that Garfield looks more like the statesman than 
 the New York senator. There is a grace and 
 eloquence in the person and manners of Conkling 
 that approaches too near airiness to be always 
 strong in its effect, but the figure we now see be 
 fore us is rough-hewn in form and rugged of fea 
 ture. The verdict of the ladies in the gallery, 
 many times during the convention, is that Conk 
 ling is so handsome/ and Garfield so plain. 
 But the Ohio school-teacher, minister, legislator 
 and statesman, is not plain-looking. To the 
 
JAMES A. GARFIELD. .- - 
 
 beauty of great strength is added the grace with 
 which an illustrious and radiant renown will clothe 
 any man. Large of form, with a huge head, the 
 figure fixed like a rock on that table, while the 
 building trembles with applause, is imposing, peer 
 less and grand. To all of this, Garfield s nature 
 adds a charm possessed by few men the beauty 
 of a generous and affectionate nature. A big 
 heart, a sympathetic nature, and a mind keenly 
 sensitive to everything that is beautiful in senti 
 ment, are the artists that shade down the gnarled 
 outlines and touch with soft coloring the plain fea 
 tures of a massive face. The conception of a 
 grand thought always paints a glow upon Gar- 
 field s face, which no one forgets who has seen 
 him while speaking. His eyes are a cold gray, 
 but they are often yes, all the time in this 
 speech lit brilliantly by the warm light of worthy 
 sentiments, and the strong flame of a great man s 
 conviction. In speaking, he is not so restless as 
 Conkling; his speech is an appeal for thought 
 and calm deliberation, and he stands still like the 
 rock of judgment while he delivers it. There is 
 no invective or bitterness in his effort, but there 
 is throughout an earnestness of conviction and an 
 unquestionable air of sincerity, to which every 
 gesture and intonation of voice is especially 
 adapted." 
 
 Whitelaw Reid telegraphed to the New York 
 Tribune his opinion of this effort : " It seems to be 
 27 
 
456 
 
 LIFE AND PUBLIC CAREER OF 
 
 the verdict of the majority that General Garfield 
 won the laurels of the night, as indeed he has of 
 the convention thus far. Mr. Frye s speech,; 
 though eloquent, was delivered without any pre 
 paration whatever. General Garfield s speech 
 was admirably adapted to make votes for his 
 candidate, if speeches ever made votes. It was 
 courteous, conciliatory and prudent. General 
 Garfield honestly did his best for Secretary Sher 
 man, and yet the general is so popular here that 
 the chief effect of his speech has been to increase 
 the talk and speculation as to the possibility of 
 his being made the nominee if the situation were 
 different." 
 
 The Chicago Journal said editorially: "The 
 supreme orator of the evening was General Gar- 
 field. He is a man of superb power and noble 
 character. The name of John Sherman could not 
 have been better presented. His claims upon the 
 good opinion of the American people and they 
 are very great were urged in a way worthy the 
 occasion. He indulged in no fling at others. It 
 was a model speech in temper and tone. The im 
 pression made was powerful and altogether whole 
 some. Many felt that if Ohio had offered Garfield 
 instead of Sherman, she would have been more 
 likely to win." 
 
 Sherman s nomination was seconded by Winkler, 
 of Wisconsin, and Eliott (colored), of South Caro 
 lina. Vermont being called, Mr. Billings rose to 
 
JAMES A. GARFIELD. 
 
 Iv) / 
 
 put in nomination Senator Edmunds, and said that 
 no State could have a better right to name a Re 
 publican candidate and none could name a better 
 man. Republicanism runs in Vermont s blood. 
 The man whom she named for the Presidency was 
 no longer hers he was the property and pride of 
 the nation. Vermont looked forward through the 
 years and saw the ignominy and crime of giving 
 up the Government to a revolutionary Democracy, 
 and she implored this convention to let nothing 
 put the Republican victory in peril, but to make 
 that victory secure by putting on the platform a 
 candidate far better even than the platform a 
 candidate weak nowhere, but strong everywhere 
 the incarnation of the principles of that platform. 
 Any other course foreboded disaster and courted 
 defeat. Such a candidate as was needed was that 
 brave, keen, vigilant man on whom rested no 
 shadow of evil report, the leader of the Senate, 
 George F. Edmunds. [Cheers and applause.] 
 Vermont nominated him for the Presidency, and 
 asked the convention to accept him. [Applause.] 
 The nomination was seconded by Mr. Sanford, of 
 Massachusetts. 
 
 Mr. Cassidy, of Wisconsin, then presented the 
 name of Elihu B. Washburne, of Illinois, who was 
 seconded by Mr. Brandagee, of Connecticut. 
 
 All the nominees being now named, and as it 
 was within a few minutes of Sunday morning, the 
 convention adjourned until Monday morning. 
 
458 
 
 LIFE AND PUBLIC CAREER OF 
 
 Half an hour later the great hall, that had re 
 sounded to the thunders of oratory, was empty 
 and silent as the great men s portraits on the 
 
 walls. 
 
2 AMES A. GARFIELD. ,._ 
 
 CHAPTER XXXI. 
 
 A DAY OF DOUBT. 
 
 SUNDAY at Chicago was passed in feverish 
 marches and counter-marches, combina 
 tions, plots, arguments, speeches, dining 
 and wining, rest for some and church for a few. 
 Every nerve was strained to correct badly-con 
 structed lines, to strengthen wavering delegates 
 to capture new ones and to repair every weak 
 spot in the chain of defenses. This, of course, 
 lent to the work of Monday only a problematical 
 outcome. No one could say exactly just what 
 would happen, or predict, with the same reasona 
 ble certainty possible to the prophets on Friday 
 night. Every one waited and hoped. 
 
 One of the clever correspondents at the con- 
 Vention, described the opening services of Mon 
 day morning in his special : 
 
 " The sun rose in a cloudless sky this morning, 
 and a gentle, cool breeze from the lake promised 
 a charming day for the great conflict. There was 
 active stir in all the camps at an early hour, and 
 spirited skirmishing began with cocktails and ex 
 tended throughout the halls, corridors, breakfast- 
 rooms and street corners. The crowd had been 
 
460 
 
 LIFE AND PUBLIC CAREER OF 
 
 considerably thinned out since Saturday night. 
 Many of the most boisterous elements, who were 
 too expensive as strikers to be continued on duty 
 indefinitely, had dropped out of the battle ; but 
 the effective soldiery of all sides remained, and 
 the rank and file seemed more impatient than the 
 leaders for the struggle. The hour of meeting 
 was the earliest that could be named, but most of 
 the crowd and many delegates were clamoring at 
 the barred doors long before. There was not 
 that effervescence of wild expectation that was 
 displayed when the same people first crowded into 
 Exposition Hall on Wednesday morning. Their 
 faces were freshened by rest, but they had been 
 sobered by the realities of the contest and the 
 gravity of its hue. When they first came to en 
 compass the convention and its multitude of 
 witnesses, they were ardent and reckless as en 
 thusiastic volunteers who expected a harmless 
 brush with the enemy and an easy victory. To 
 day they wore the calmer and disciplined marks 
 of veterans. It was plainly told on every face 
 that the battle must be desperate, and none felt 
 entirely assured of triumph. W r hen the doors 
 were opened hurried streams of humanity poured 
 in at every entrance, and when the hour arrived 
 for President Hoar to swing his gavel, all the 
 portions of the hall within possible hearing of 
 the proceedings were jammed to the uttermost. 
 Even the reserved platform of the correspondents 
 
JAMES A. GARFIELD. 
 
 461 
 
 was invaded by the crowd, until communication 
 with the- hundred batteries which maintained their 
 ceaseless clicking hard by was almost entirely 
 interrupted. The ladies gave their wealth of 
 smiles upon the conflict of the political giants in 
 greater profusion than at any previous session, 
 and the distinguished guests were wedged in 
 upon each other as if they were no more than 
 common flesh and blood. 
 
 "Hoar came in ahead of time, and looked serene 
 as a summer morning that Welcomed him to his 
 task, and his face was fresh as the roses which 
 shed their exquisite tints and fragrance on his 
 table. He has borne himself so well, so impar 
 tially, and so intelligently that all felt assured of a 
 faithful umpire in the desperation of the last 
 charge of the contending hosts. Alabama, as 
 usual, was first to present a full delegation ; and 
 Arkansas, just behind her, speedily followed. The 
 colored, troops were generally among the first to 
 the front, and they evidently meant to fight nobly. 
 Conkling was mindful of the potency of dramatic 
 strategy, and knew that he would meet his grand 
 est welcome as he passed before his allies to lead 
 them in the hand-to-hand struggle. He waited 
 until just before the time for calling to order, and 
 then strode into the hall with that magnificent 
 bearing that none of his rivals could imitate. As 
 soon as his tall form and silvered crown were 
 visible the shout went up that all understood, and 
 
^52 LIFE AND PUBLIC CAREER OF 
 
 it was heartier and longer than ever before. He 
 walked down the aisle with the utmost composure, 
 and gracefully bowed his recognition of the hom 
 age tendered him. Garfield is the member of the 
 convention who divides with Conkling the popular 
 welcome at every opening. 
 
 " He received a royal welcome when he entered, 
 and his strong, rugged features lightened like the 
 rippled lake with its dancing sunshine. Cameron 
 was active* silent and determined as ever. He 
 flitted hurriedly among the distinguished guests 
 before the signal-gun was fired, and then retired 
 to his immediate command. Hale and Frye were 
 among ^the first to take their position, and hope 
 and fear were plainly wrestling with each other on 
 their faces. Hale was pale with anxiety, and the 
 usually flushed features of Frye were redder than 
 are their wont. Both seemed well poised and 
 reasonably self-reliant, but the contrast between 
 their nervous apprehensions and the calm defiance 
 of Conkling was a study for the intelligent ob 
 servers of men. Chandler was restless, and his 
 little face seemed to have shrunk away behind his 
 eye-glasses. 
 
 " Logan was as calm as the dark cloud that is 
 just waiting to hurl its thunderbolt. He sat as 
 still as a statue, his swarthy features appearing 
 darker than usual, and his fierce black eyes now 
 and then darting out their most defiant flashes, 
 He seemed conscious that his leader was beaten. 
 
JAMES A. GARFIELD. 
 
 46. 
 
 but he was evidently resolved that there should be 
 a costly retreat for the pursuing hosts. Garfield, 
 Foster, Dennison, Bateman, Butterfield and other 
 Ohio leaders were to be seen in little knots of 
 their delegation, as if they feared defection at an 
 early stage of the contest, and there was evident un 
 rest among the Indiana men. General Harrison s 
 short form and sharply-cut features were shaded 
 with anxiety. He feared Grant, and now that 
 Grant seemed to be beaten, he was impressed 
 with the possibility of the grandson of a President 
 being the choice of exhausted factions. General 
 Sewell sat in front of Conkling and his youthful 
 face exhibited the coolness and determination 
 which characterized him in the heat of battle. As 
 far as faces could be distinguished in the great 
 arena, all seemed to be soberly anxious for the 
 order to advance. 
 
 "When President Hoar called the convention to 
 order there was a speedy hush, and the vast mul 
 titude was seated with wonderful alacrity. All 
 seemed anxious for the fight to begin. The min 
 ister who opened with prayer shared the general 
 appreciation of the value of the fleeting moments, 
 and his petition had the merit of brevity." 
 
 The chair, at the conclusion of the prayer, an 
 nounced that during the balloting he would not 
 allow any delay, debate or tricks, by changing 
 votes after they were once cast. 
 
 Eugene Hale thereupon moved: "That the 
 
464 
 
 LIFE AND PUBLIC CAREER OF 
 
 convention proceed to ballot." Senator Conkling 
 seconded the motion, and the roll-call was begun 
 in a silence that showed how intense was the 
 anxiety to know the worst or best The result 
 was announced by the secretaries, as follows : 
 
 States. Grant. Elaine. Sherman. Edmunds. Windom. Washburne 
 
 Alabama ........... 16 i 3 
 
 Arkansas .......... 12 ...... 
 
 California ............ 12 
 
 Colorado ......... 6 
 
 Connecticut ...... ... 3 ... 2 .. 7 
 
 Delaware ............ 6 
 
 Florida ............ 8 ............ 
 
 Georgia., .......... 68 8 
 
 Illinois ____ . ....... 24 id ... ... < ti 8 
 
 Indiana. ........... i 26 2 ... .., i 
 
 Iowa..... .......... ... 22 
 
 Kansas ............ 4 6 
 
 Kentucky ......... 20 i 3 
 
 Louisiana ......... 82 6 
 
 Maine ................. 14 
 
 Maryland ......... 772 
 
 Massachusetts 3 2 20 .,. i 
 
 Michigan ......... i 21 ... ... 
 
 Minnesota ................. ... 10 
 
 Mississippi ....... 64 6 
 
 Missouri ........... 29 ... ... ... .<. i 
 
 Nebraska ............. 6 
 
 Nevada ............... 6 
 
 New Hampshire. ... 10 
 
 New Jersey .......... 16 ... ... ... 2 
 
 New York ......... 51 17 2 
 
 Carried forward, 20 1 198 34 22 10 20 
 
 
JAMES A. G ARFIELD. 
 
 Statoe. Grant. Elaine. Sherman. Edmunds. Windom. Washburne. 
 
 Brought forward, 20 1 198 34 22 10 20 
 
 North Carolina.. 6 ... 14 ... ... 
 
 Ohio 9 34 i 
 
 Oregon 6 
 
 Pennsylvania.... 32 23 3 ... 
 
 Rhode Island 8 
 
 South Carolina... 13 ... I 
 
 Tennessee 16 6 i i 
 
 Texas n 2 2 ... .... i 
 
 Vermont 10 
 
 Virginia.. 18 3 i 
 
 West Virginia.... i 8 
 
 Wisconsin 17 3 ... ... 9 
 
 Arizona 2 
 
 Dakota i i 
 
 Dis t of Columbia i i 
 
 Idaho 2 
 
 Montana 2 ... 
 
 New Mexico 2 
 
 Utah i i 
 
 Washington i i 
 
 Wyoming i i 
 
 Total ....304 284 93 34 10 30 
 
 The incidents of this ballot were few and not 
 very remarkable. There was faint applause when 
 Arkansas voted solid for Grant, but all sides 
 joined in hissing it down. When Pixley announced 
 California s vote for Elaine, in a dramatic fashion, 
 and with a sentence thrown in for the galleries, the 
 President rose and notified the chairmen of dele 
 gations that no comment of any kind would be 
 
466 
 
 LIFE AND PUBLIC CAREER OF 
 
 allowed. When Conkling rose to announce the 
 vote of New York, every one strained forward to 
 catch his words. In a distinct voice he responded 
 "Two votes are reported for Sherman, seventeen 
 for Elaine, and fifty-one are for Grant." This 
 method of announcement was Conkling s inevit 
 able sneer for his opponents. Ohio threw a wet 
 blanket on the Sherman men by casting nine 
 votes for Elaine, and the announcement bright 
 ened the faces of a vast majority of spectators. 
 Pennsylvania was another of the States that si 
 lenced the audience when called, and she was 
 about to declare how Cameron had held the Grant 
 lines against the Elaine assaults. General Bea 
 ver thundered out: " Pennsylvania votes thirty- 
 two for Grant, twenty-three for Elaine, and three 
 for Sherman." After this there was but little in 
 terest, and the ballot closed in the most orderly 
 manner. The result brought shouts from the 
 Grant men, and some disappointment to the 
 Elaine leaders. The moment the vote was an 
 nounced the President ordered another, holding 
 that nothing was in order but voting; and before 
 the leaders could look to their lines they were in 
 action again by the prompt roll-call. The second 
 ballot was uneventful, the third and fourth thr 
 same. The changes in these, and the succeeding 
 ballots of the afternoon were very slight except 
 the nomination of Garfield by a vote from Grier, 
 a Pennsylvania delegate, and made without any 
 
JAMES A. GARFIELD. 
 
 467 
 
 particular idea of permanency. A recess was 
 several times proposed but voted down, and there 
 were a score of little incidents that were eventful 
 for only the brief minutes of their existence. 
 The last ballot taken at the morning session was 
 the eighteenth, and immediately after its an 
 nouncement, on motion of a Sherman man from 
 Mississippi, a recess was ordered until seven 
 o clock. The various ballots of this session were 
 as follows : 
 
 ist. 2d. sd. 4th. sth. 6th. 7th. 8th. gth. 
 
 Grant 304 305 305 305 305 305 305 306 308 
 
 Sherman... 
 
 T 
 
 93 
 
 94 
 
 93 
 
 95 
 
 95 
 
 95 
 
 94 
 
 .Wf 
 
 9 1 
 
 90 
 
 Edmunds.. 
 
 34 
 
 3 2 
 
 32 
 
 32 
 
 3 2 
 
 3i 
 
 32 
 
 3i 
 
 3 1 
 
 Washburne 
 
 3 
 
 3 1 
 
 3 1 
 
 30 
 
 3 
 
 3 1 
 
 3 1 
 
 3 2 
 
 3 2 
 
 Windom .. 
 
 10 
 
 10 
 
 10 
 
 10 
 
 10 
 
 10 
 
 10 
 
 10 
 
 10 
 
 Garfield... 
 
 ... 
 
 ... 
 
 i 
 
 i 
 
 i 
 
 2 
 
 2 
 
 i 
 
 2 
 
 Harrison., 
 
 
 
 i 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 xoth. nth. lath. isth. i4th. isth. i6th. ijth. i8th. 
 
 Grant 305 306 304 305 305 309 306 303 305 
 
 Elaine 282 281 283 285 285 281 283 284 283 
 
 Sherman... 92 92 92 89 89 88 88 90 91 
 
 Edmunds.. 31 31 31 31 31 31 31 31 31 
 
 Washburne 32 32 33 32 35 36 36 36 35 
 
 Wmdom... 
 Garfield... 
 
 10 
 2 
 
 II 
 2 
 
 10 
 
 I 
 
 IO 
 I 
 
 10 10 IO 10 10 
 
 Hayes 
 
 I 
 
 I 
 
 I 
 
 
 
 McCrary.. 
 
 
 
 
 I 
 
 
 Davis. . . 
 
 
 
 
 
 I 
 
 The evening session started rather noisily and 
 there was some slight trouble to keep order as 
 
468 
 
 LIFE AND PUBLIC CAREER OF 
 
 the call went on. The announcement of the first 
 ballot at this session was greeted by the Sherman 
 men with cheers, who saw their candidate was 
 making a hole in the Blaine column. There was 
 nothing of importance to disturb the situation of 
 the Grant people. They held their own through 
 the recess and came back showing their determi 
 nation to stick by their candidate to the last. It 
 was very clear there had been no wholesale re 
 pairing of fences since the adjournment, and it 
 began to look like an all-night siege. The vary 
 ing fortunes of the different candidates are shown 
 by the*votes tabulated below, it is hardly necessary 
 to summarize them in detail. 
 
 After the twenty-seventh ballot, Morse, of Mas 
 sachusetts, proposed an adjournment till the next 
 morning. It was nearly half past nine, and the 
 hall was excessively hot. Not less than twelve 
 thousand people were overlooking the progress of 
 the ballot, and at the conclusion of each call, while 
 the secretaries were footing up the totals, this im 
 mense audience would rise with one accord to 
 rest, by change of position, and the movement was 
 suggestive of the distant roar of a coming storm. 
 It was undeniably a brilliant scene at this time, 
 but nobody could shut his ear to the fact that the 
 multitude of spectators was a hindrance to busi 
 ness. Morse s motion to adjourn was withdrawn 
 .and another ballot was ordered, after which a mo 
 tion to adjourn was carried by 446 to 303, and the 
 
JAMES A. GARFIELD. 
 
 convention, at ten P. M., adjourned till ten A. M. 
 the next morning. The ballots cast at the evening 
 session were as follows : 
 
 igth. 2oth. 2ist. 22d. 23d. 24th. 25th. 26th. 27th. s8th. 
 
 Grant 305 308 305 305 304 305 302 303 306 307 
 
 Elaine 279 276 276 275 275 279 281 280 277 279 
 
 Sherman 96 93 96 97 97 93 94 93 93 91 
 
 Edmunds 31 31 31 31 31 31 31 31 31 31 
 
 Washburne 32 35 35 35 36 35 35 36 36 35 
 
 Windom 10 10 10 10 10 10 10 10 10 10 
 
 Garfield 1111222222 
 
 Hartranft.., i i i i 
 
47Q LIFE AND PUBLIC CAREER OF 
 
 CHAPTER XXXII. 
 
 THE PEOPLE S CHOICE. 
 
 THE convention had now been in session 
 for five days, and the result was not 
 reached ; the country was impatient, the 
 people were anxious for the termination of the 
 battle. All Chicago rose on June 8th, with a set 
 tled wish that "to-day might settle it." The wish 
 was father to the thought. The politicians be 
 lieved it would as they strolled out of their hotels, 
 boarding-houses and resting-places, and streamed 
 in the direction of the Exhibition building. 
 
 General Garfield came forth from the Grand 
 Pacific, arm-in-arm with his friend, Governor Fos 
 ter, of Ohio. The suspicion that he would before 
 nightfall be the nominee of the strongest party in 
 the country for its president, never entered his 
 head. 
 
 "I think, Charlie," said Garfield, "we shall get 
 through with this business of president-making, 
 to-day." 
 
 "Yes," returned Foster, "the delegates are all 
 getting tired and want to go home." 
 
 " I am quite sure they will select a candidate 
 before another adjournment," continued Garfield. 
 
JAMES A. GARFIRLD. 
 
 471 
 
 "I hope it will be our man," answered Foster. 
 
 " Honest John Sherman will be nominated, and 
 again Ohio will be made proud by the work of 
 the convention." 
 
 " Amen," said Foster, " let us all take heart and 
 work." 
 
 "Yes, that is the word," cried Garfield. "Work! 
 work ! work !" and the two friends continued on 
 down the street. 
 
 As Garfield turned a corner, one of the hundreds 
 of people who were thrusting advertisements, circu 
 lars and political squibs into the hands of passers- 
 by, pressed a little piece of paper upon him, which he 
 accepted mechanically, and as mechanically glanced 
 at. His eye caught "Acts iv, 11." Thinking he 
 would not throw a Bible-leaf into the mud, he 
 rolled it up and put it in his pocket, where he 
 afterward found it, and continued his walk. Had 
 he read it, the spirit of its prophecy would, no 
 doubt, have struck him, as the words of that verse 
 are these: "This is the stone which was set at 
 nought of you builders, which is become the head 
 of the corner. Neither is there salvation in any 
 other: for there is none other name under 
 heaven given among men, whereby we must be 
 saved." ACTS iv, 11-12. 
 
 These, however, are but curious coincidences 
 
 that, no doubt, would have exceedingly worked 
 
 upon people of a superstitious turn of mind. 
 
 But it was only the action of the convention 
 
 28 
 
A - 2 /// /i /f-VZ? PUBLIC CAREER OF 
 
 \ 
 
 which met an hour late that morning, that gave 
 them their value. When it was opened, the rev 
 erend gentleman who asked the blessing of the 
 Almighty, voicing the popular heart, prayed that 
 the delegates might soon be restored to their 
 friends. The call of the States was then ordered 
 for the twenty-ninth ballot, for president. The re 
 sult was 305 for Grant; 278 for Elaine; 116 for 
 Sherman; 12 for Edmunds; 35 for Washburne; 
 7 for Windom, and 2 for Garfield. 
 
 There were some indications as the thirtieth 
 ballot progressed that the lesser candidates were 
 giving way. Great amusement was created to 
 ward the close by the announcement of one vote 
 from Wyoming for General Phil Sheridan Sheri 
 dan was on the stage near the chair, and when he 
 was a moment after discovered by the people a 
 shout went up from all over the house. He 
 finally arose and said that he was very much 
 obliged, but he couldn t take the nomination unless 
 
 O 
 
 he were permitted to turn "it over to his best 
 friend. The galleries saw the point of this, since 
 Sheridan s best friend is Grant, and all the Grant 
 delegates made the best of the opportunity by an 
 outburst of enthusiasm. The chair also detected 
 the point, and said that while the distinguished 
 soldier had been given permission to interrupt the 
 order of the convention, it would be granted no 
 one else. 
 
 The next ballot demonstrated that the Grant 
 
JAMES A. GARFIELD. .*^ 
 
 lines could not be broken, and the Elaine lines 
 were at this time wavering. It was apparent the 
 convention was on the edge of a break. The 
 next ballot, which was finished by half-past twelve, 
 was without exciting event. The close of the 
 thirty-fourth was marked with some excitement, 
 growing out of a break to Garfield, Wisconsin 
 casting for him thirty-six votes. This was the be 
 ginning of the end. To make up this breach, 
 Washburne, Blaine and Sherman were drawn 
 upon. When it was declared, General Garfield 
 arose and addressed the chair. The chairman in 
 quired for what purpose the gentleman rose. 
 
 " To a question of order," said Garfield. 
 
 "The gentleman will state it," said the chair. 
 
 " I challenge," said Mr. Garfield, " the correct 
 ness of the announcement that contains votes for 
 me. No man has a right, without the consent of 
 the person voted for, to have his name announced 
 and voted for in this convention. Such consent I 
 have not given." 
 
 This was overruled by the chairman amidst 
 laughter against Garfield, who had jnade the point 
 on the vote cast for him by Wisconsin. 
 
 Then the thirty-fifth ballot was taken, and 
 proved the most interesting one of the day so far. 
 The call was quick, and the people began to show 
 better spirits. It was apparent that the Blaine 
 movement had broken up. The ballot resulted as 
 follows : 
 
A* A LIFE AND PUBLIC CAREER OF 
 
 s 
 
 S "^ 6 3 "O 
 
 STATES AND TERRITORIES. < 
 
 c . c c c "S f 
 
 23 III* 
 
 O c/5 W ? ? O 
 
 Alabama 16 4 
 
 Arkansas 12 
 
 California 12 
 
 Colorado 6 
 
 Connecticut 3 9 
 
 Delaware 6 
 
 Florida 8 
 
 Georgia 8 9 5 
 
 Illinois 24 10 8 
 
 Indiana i 2 27 
 
 Iowa 22 ... 
 
 Kansas 4 6 
 
 Kentucky 20 i 3 
 
 Louisiana 8 4 4 
 
 Maine 14 
 
 Maryland 7 3 2 4 
 
 Massachusetts 4 ... 21 i 
 
 Michigan i 21 ... 
 
 Minnesota i 6 3 
 
 Mississippi 8 4 3 i 
 
 Missouri 29 i 
 
 Nebraska 6 
 
 Nevada 6 
 
 New Hampshire 10 . .... 
 
 Newjersey 14 2 2 
 
 New York 50 18 2 ... .,. 
 
 North Carolina 6 ... 13 i 
 
 Ohio 9 34 i ;.. 
 
 Oregon 6 
 
 Pennsylvania 36 20 i i 
 
 Rhode Island 8 , 
 
 Carried forward 249 224 89 i 3 22 34 
 
JAMES A. GARFIELD. 
 
 . 
 
 STATES AND TERRITORIES. w . j j? 
 
 I I I I I I I 
 
 Brought forward ...... 249 224 89 i 3 22 34 
 
 South Carolina ........... n i 2 10 ......... 
 
 Tennessee .................... 17 4 3 ............ 
 
 Texas ...................... 13 i i ...... i 
 
 Vermont ..................................... .. 
 
 Virginia .................. 16 3 3 ............ 
 
 West Virginia ............ i 8 i ............ 
 
 Wisconsin ................ 2 2 ........... . 16 
 
 Arizona ...................... 2 ............... 
 
 Dakota .................... i i ............... 
 
 District of Columbia... i i ......... 
 
 Idaho ......................... 2 ............... 
 
 Montana ..................... 2 ............... 
 
 New Mexico ................ 2 ............... 
 
 Utah ....................... i i 
 
 Washington ................. 2 ............... 
 
 Wyoming .................. i i ............... 
 
 Totals .................. 313 257 99 ii 3 23 50 
 
 The call of the States for the thirty-sixth ballot 
 began amidst considerable excitement. A dele 
 gate thus described it: "Everybody saw that 
 Elaine was now out of the way, and it was a mat 
 ter of beating Grant, so far as the opposition was 
 concerned. It was evident, too, that it would have 
 to be done with Garfield, and Connecticut led off 
 on this ballot with eleven votes for him. The 
 most of the Washburne vote of Illinois followed 
 this, and when Indiana was called, General Har 
 rison cast twenty-nine of her thirty votes for Gar- 
 
476 
 
 LIFE AND PUBLIC CAREER OF 
 
 field. The storm at this point broke. The people 
 rose up and gave one tremendous cheer, and hats 
 and handkerchiefs were tossed high, as they had 
 so often been before. The confusion had not 
 fairly subsided when Iowa followed with twenty- 
 two votes for Garfield, and the outburst was re 
 newed and gained in force with every fresh start. 
 A little further down Maine cast her fourteen 
 votes for the Ohio man, and the cheering was 
 greater than ever. The confusion was so great 
 that it was almost impossible Jo go on with the 
 call. The delegations of Maryland, Massachu 
 setts, Michigan, Minnesota and Mississippi each 
 insisted on an individual roll-call, and the Elaine 
 and Sherman votes nearly all turned up for Gar- 
 field. Conkling was dodging about a good deal 
 at this time, but it dawned upon the Grant men 
 that all was up with them. They were, well dis 
 ciplined, however, and hung together all the way 
 down the call. It was getting down to Pennsyl 
 vania. Cameron sat imperturbable in the midst of 
 his delegates, and was repeatedly urged to cast 
 the solid Pennsylvania delegation for Elaine on 
 this ballot. This would have prevented the nomi 
 nation of Garfield on that ballot, at least, and 
 might have stayed the Garfield cyclone by getting 
 Elaine back on the track; but Cameron at this 
 time would not acknowledge that Garfield could 
 go through as he did go. 
 
 "Ohio was finally called. The delegation had 
 
JAMES A. GARFIELD. 
 
 477 
 
 been thrown into confusion and it was some time 
 in getting* around, but it finally turned up with 
 forty-three for Garfield, the missing delegate 
 being Garfield himself. The convention relapsed 
 into cheers again, but recovered in a moment to 
 hear General Beaver announce the Pennsylvania 
 vote as thirty-seven fqr Grant, twenty-one for 
 Garfield. Gordon had swung around to Grant, 
 and Hays, who had voted for Elaine, felt himself 
 released when Maine virtually put him out of the 
 field, and went with the Grant people. The 
 Grant men got in a little cheer here, but it was of 
 short life. As the call went on, as well as it 
 could in the confusion, the Elaine delegates 
 wheeled into line for Garfield. Vermont was 
 wildly cheered when the ten Edmunds votes 
 swung around, and Wisconsin s eighteen following 
 shortly after, gave the man from Ohio a majority 
 of the whole number. 
 
 "The thousands had kept tally and knew this. 
 There was a momentary hush, as if the seven or 
 eight thousand people were taking breath, and 
 then the storm burst, and while the cheering 
 went on the banners of the several States were 
 borne to the placed/where Ohio s delegation sat, 
 Garfield in the midst of them, and there was a 
 scene almost equal to that of mid-night on Fri 
 day. The band was playing The Battle-Cry of 
 Freedom at the lower end of the hall, and when 
 the cheerinof subsided for a moment the air was 
 
 o 
 
47 > 
 
 LIFE AND PUBLIC CAREER OF 
 
 taken up and sung in chorus by thousands of 
 voices. Everywhere flags were waving and on 
 the outside of the building cannon were booming 
 and thousands were cheering. This went on for 
 a quarter of an hour, during which time Conkling 
 sat in his place at the head of his delegation with 
 out show of emotion of any sort. Efforts were 
 made to get Garfield out, but he remained hidden 
 in the midst of his Ohio friends." 
 
 The ballot resulted as tabulated : 
 
 States. Vote. Grant. Blainc. Sherman. Washburnc. Garfield. 
 
 Alabama 20 16 4 
 
 Arkansas 12 12 
 
 California 12 ... 12 
 
 Colorado 6 6 
 
 Connecticut 12 ... i ... ... n 
 
 Delaware 6 ... 6 
 
 Florida 8 8 
 
 Georgia 22 8 10 3 ... i 
 
 Illinois 42 24 6 ... 5 7 
 
 Indiana 30 i ... ... ... 29 
 
 Iowa 22 ... ... ... ... 22 
 
 Kansas 10 4 ... ... ... 6 
 
 Kentucky 24 20 i ... ... 3 
 
 Louisiana 16 8 ... ... ... 8 
 
 Maine 14 ... ... 14 
 
 Maryland 16 6 ... ... ... 10 
 
 Massachusetts 26 4 ... ... ... 22 
 
 Michigan 22 i ... ... ... 21 
 
 Minnesota 10 2 ... ... ... 8 
 
 Carried forward, 330 120 40 3 5 162 
 
JAMES A. GARFIELD. ^ _ 
 
 States. Vote. Grant. Bbtae. Sherman. Wachborae. Garfidd 
 
 Brought forward,33o 120 40 3 5 162 
 
 Mississippi 16 7 ... ... ... 9 
 
 Missouri 30 29 ... ... ... i 
 
 Nebraska. 6 ... ... ... ... 6 
 
 Nevada. 62 i ... ... 3 
 
 New Hampshire. 10 
 
 New Jersey 18 ... ... 18 
 
 New York.... 70 50 ... ... ... 20 
 
 North Carolina.. 20 5 ... ... ... 15 
 
 Ohio 44 ... ... ... ... 43 
 
 Pennsylvania.... 58 37 ... ... ... 21 
 
 Rhode Island.... 8 
 
 Sooth Carolina... 14 * ... ... ... 6 
 
 Tennessee 24 15 i 8 
 
 16 13 _ 3 
 
 10 ... ... ... ... 10 
 
 Virginia 22 19 ... ... ... 3 
 
 West Virginia.... 10 i ... ... ... 9 
 
 Dakota 2 2 
 
 Dis t of Columbia 2 ... ... 2 
 
 Idaho 2 ... ... 2 
 
 M .r.:i-.: 2 ... ... ... ... 2 
 
 New Mexico 2 ... ... 2 
 
 Utah 2 ... ... 2 
 
 Washington 2 ... 2 
 
 ".Vy ^rr.ir.i- 2 ... ... ... ... 2 
 
 TofaL- 755 306 42 3 5 ::> 
 
 This was the thirty-sixth and last ballot taken, 
 
480 
 
 IFE AND PUBLIC CAREER OF 
 
 and completed a remarkable series of votes. In 
 detail they were as here given : 
 
 BALLOT. 
 I .. . 
 
 ! 
 
 
 
 7O4 
 
 a 
 
 *> Elaine. 
 
 c 
 
 jl 
 in 
 
 I 
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JAMES A. GARFIELD. 
 
 BALLOT. 
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 At the announcement of Garfield s nomination, 
 the people again stood upon the benches to hur 
 rah and yell in the old way. In the midst of it, the 
 tall form of Logan rose up and sought to catch 
 the eye of the President. Conkling was standing 
 in the aisle seeking the same thing. As soon as 
 order was restored, the latter was recognized, and 
 in a husky voice, sadly in contrast with his tones 
 before the result, he said : 
 
 " MR. CHAIRMAN: James A. Garfield, of Ohio, 
 having received a majority of all the votes cast, 
 I rise to move that he be unanimously presented 
 as the nominee of the convention. The chair, 
 under the rules, anticipated me, but being on my 
 feet I avail myself of the "opportunity to congratu 
 late the Republican party of the nation on the 
 good-natured and well-tempered disposition which 
 has distinguished this animated convention. [Cries 
 of Louder! from the galleries.] I should like to 
 speak louder, but having sat here under a cold 
 
482 
 
 LIFE AXD PUBLIC CAREER OF 
 
 wind I find myself unable to do so. I was aboi 
 to say, Mr. Chairman, that I trust that the zee 
 the fervor and now the unanimity of the scenes < 
 the convention will be transplanted to the field ( 
 the country, and that all of us who have borne a pa 
 against each other will be found with equal ze; 
 bearing the banners and carrying the lances < 
 the Republican party into the ranks of the enemy 
 [Applause.] 
 
 As he sat down, John A. Logan got up an 
 spoke: 
 
 " GENTLEMEN OF THE CONVENTION: We are to b 
 congratulated at having arrived at a conclusion i 
 respect to presenting the name of a candidate t 
 be the standard-bearer of the Republican part 
 for President of the United States in union an 
 harmony with each other. Whatever may hav 
 transpired in this convention that may have prc 
 duced feelings of annoyance will be, I hope, cor 
 sidered as a matter of the past. I, with th 
 friends of one of the grandest men on the face c 
 the earth, stood here to fight a friendly battle fo 
 his nomination, but this convention has chose 
 another leader and the men who stood by Gran 
 will be seen in the front of the contest for Mi 
 Garfield. [Cheers.] We will go forward in th 
 contest, not with tied hands, not with sealed lips 
 not with bridled tongues, but to speak the trutl 
 in favor of the grandest party that has ever beei 
 organized in this country, to maintain its prin 
 
JAMES A. GARFIELD. . g ^ 
 
 ciples, to uphold its power, to preserve its as 
 cendency, and my judgment is that, with the 
 leader whom you have chosen, victory will perch 
 on our banners. [Cheers.] As one of the Re 
 publicans from Illinois I second the nomination of 
 James A. Garfield and hope it will be made unani 
 mous." [Cheers.] 
 
 Two of the senatorial triumvirate, the grand 
 trio that had come to Chicago to nominate Grant 
 and had been defeated, had now spoken. Penn 
 sylvania was wanted to complete it. General 
 Beaver a minute later rose, stood in his delegation 
 and addressed the vast gathering: 
 
 "The State of Pennsylvania having had the 
 honor of first nominating in this convention the 
 gentleman who has been chosen as the standard- 
 bearer of the Republican party in the approaching 
 national contest, I rise to second the motion which 
 has been made to make the nomination unani 
 mous, and to assure this convention and the peo 
 ple of the country that Pennsylvania is heartily in 
 accord with the nomination [cheers]; that she 
 gives her full concurrence to it, and that this 
 country may expect from her the greatest major 
 ity that has been given for a Presidential candi 
 date in many years." 
 
 Then the defeated leader of the Elaine forces, 
 Eugene Hall, stepped into the line and spoke for 
 his friends: 
 
 "Standing here to return our heartfelt thanks 
 
LIFE AND PUBLIC CAREER OP 
 
 to the many men in this convention who have 
 aided us in the fight that we made for the senator 
 from Maine, and speaking for them here, as I 
 know that I do, I say this most heartily. We have 
 not got the man whom we hoped to nominate 
 when we came here, but we have got a man in 
 whom we have the greatest and most marked con 
 fidence. The nominee of this convention is no 
 new or untried man, and in that respect he is no 
 dark horse. When he came here representing 
 his State in the front of his delegation, and was 
 seen here, every man knew him, because of his 
 record ; and because of that, and because of our 
 faith in him, and because we were, in the emer 
 gency, glad to help make him the candidate of the 
 Republican party for President of the United 
 States ; because, I say, of these things I stand here 
 to pledge the Maine forces in this convention to 
 earnest efforts from now until the ides of Novem 
 ber to help carry him to the Presidential chair." 
 [Cheers.] 
 
 The nomination was then made unanimous, 
 amid the wildest excitement, and at half-past two 
 a recess was taken until five P. M. The evening 
 session was short, and resulted in the choice of 
 Chester A. Arthur, of New York, for the second 
 place on the ticket, and the convention adjourned 
 sine die, after one of the most gigantic political 
 struggles ever recorded. 
 
 Here, for amoment, we must turn aside to re- 
 
JAMES A. GARFIELD. 
 
 4S5 
 
 late a little incident, that had just happened in 
 another city. General Garfield owns a residence, 
 as the reader knows, in Washington. During his 
 absence it was occupied by his private stenog 
 rapher, Mr. George W. Rose. This gentleman 
 says: 
 
 "On the day of the general s nomination for 
 President, at about the very moment of absolute 
 time (as the Signal Service Bureau would say) 
 that the nomination was made , allowing for the 
 difference in longitude between here and Chicago, 
 a magnificent bald eagle, after circling round the 
 Park, swooped down and rested on the general s 
 house. One of my children was playing out of 
 doors at the time, and ran in to call the attention 
 of the family to this striking spectacle. Several 
 of the family and myself went out and saw the 
 source of the child s wonder. Before the eagle 
 rose from its strange perch a dozen people noticed 
 and commented upon it. An old Roman would 
 have seen in this an augury of the most inspiring 
 character. But we Americans are free from su 
 perstitions, and so it was a mere coincidence. 
 
 Yet, as a coincidence, a most inspiriting one. 
 
486 
 
 LIFE AND PUBLIC CAREER OF 
 
 CHAPTER XXXIII. 
 
 HOW IT HAPPENED AND WHAT WAS SAID OF IT. 
 
 THE nomination of General Garfield was an 
 entirely spontaneous movement. He was 
 not put in nomination with any thunders 
 of eloquence he had no long 1 list of politicians tc 
 urge and manage his candidacy. He did not seek 
 the place, it sought him. He was not a candidate 
 for the nomination. When his name first came 
 to be mentioned in connection with the office, he 
 caused to be published in. the Cleveland Herald 
 the following: 
 
 "We are authorized to say that all statements 
 made either in the press or by private persons, 
 that General Garfield has changed his views in re 
 gard to the canvass of Secretary Sherman for the 
 Presidency, are absolutely without foundation, 
 General Garfield is not, and will not be a candi 
 date for President, and stands squarely and flatly 
 upon his letter recommending the Republicans ol 
 Ohio to give their united vote in favor of John 
 Sherman for President. He believes that Mr. 
 Sherman is the choice of a large majority of the 
 party in the State, and that the highest political 
 wisdom, and best interests of the Republicans 
 will be advanced by sending a unanimous delega- 
 
JAMES A. GARFIELD. 
 
 4 ,s 7 
 
 tion from Ohio in his favor. We do not make 
 this statement because we needed any assurance 
 that General Garfield was the firm and devoted 
 friend of Mr. Sherman, or that he had changed his 
 views of the propriety and fitness of Mr. Sher 
 man s nomination, but as so many statements 
 have been made and telegraphic specials printed, 
 calculated to mislead the public, we desire to put 
 the whole question at rest by an authoritative 
 statement. 
 
 "General Garfield will continue to give Secre 
 tary Sherman his sincere, earnest and hearty sup 
 port, and will be personally gratified if all his 
 friends and those who are influenced by his wishes 
 or opinions, would aid in securing for Mr. Sher 
 man a united delegation from the State of Ohio." 
 
 In the convention all that was said about him 
 was when Grier, the Pennsylvania delegate, on 
 the second ballot, got up and said, "I nominate 
 and vote for James A. Garfield," an announce 
 ment perfectly in keeping with the character of the 
 man for whom it was made. This was all until 
 Wisconsin broke for him and the tide set in that 
 landed him in the victor s seat. A day or two 
 after the great event, an intimate friend of the 
 nominee related how it happened. "It was mani 
 fest from the start," said he, "that Garfield was a 
 favorite with a large majority of them. It was 
 also noticed that leading visitors at the convention 
 were talking in that direction 
 
 2Q 
 
488 
 
 LIFE AND PUBLIC CAREER OF 
 
 "Four days previous to the great upheaval, 
 Judge Hoar, one of the best informed men in the 
 country, and who had large personal acquaintance 
 among the delegates, remarked: If the delegates 
 were walled up separately and allowed no commu 
 nication with each other, following out the custom 
 at the Vatican in electing a pope, voting a secret 
 ballot, General Garfield would receive two-thirds 
 of the votes of the delegates present. The 
 friends of the several candidates, of which there 
 properly were three, seemed to lead out each 
 with the firm conviction that by a long trial there 
 would occur a break among the others. It be 
 came apparent that the contest would be one 
 simply of endurance. The forces were under a 
 remarkable discipline, a wave of a hand from Mr, 
 Conkling or the other leaders being enough tc 
 subside any one. Even Logan was in this wa) 
 motioned clown by a wave of the hand of the 
 Duke of New York. 
 
 " As Grant was in the lead, it was apparent 
 that his friends could not consistently break anc 
 go to any other candidate. It was clear after the 
 second day that Mr. Elaine and Mr. Sherman ^ 
 chances were hopeless. The friends of both, how 
 ever, you know, remained firm, hoping that eacl 
 other would give way. 
 
 " It was evident from confidential expression? 
 by many delegates that Mr. Garfield was reall) 
 the first choice of more than half of the delegates 
 
JAMES A. GARFIELD. 
 
 including many Grant men. He had placed him 
 self in the front squarely against the unit rule. 
 Blaine, Washburne and other anti-Grant men 
 came to Garfield s friends hourly and said, Why 
 don t you Ohio men take up Garfield ? We will 
 vote for him. In every instance they were met 
 with the reply, * We have come to urge the claims 
 of John Sherman for the nomination. We be 
 lieve him a strong candidate. The Blaine men 
 said : * Why ask us to turn to Sherman ? We are 
 more than three times your number. You, who 
 believing- with us that it would be unwise to nom- 
 
 o 
 
 inate General Grant, should unite with us and 
 nominate Mr. Blaine. 
 
 "The Sherman men counseled among them 
 selves and concluded to hold out still longer. Fi 
 nally, on the day preceding the final break, the Wis 
 consin delegates came to the Ohio men in a state 
 of excitement and determination, and said : If you 
 Ohio delegates will not bring out General Gar- 
 field, we shall ! Some of the Ohio people were 
 anxious to do this, but, under the circumstances, 
 simply replied: Garfield is a great favorite in 
 Ohio, and nothing would please us more than to 
 vote for him, but as we came here to urge the 
 nomination of Mr. Sherman, we shall use all hon 
 orable means to secure that end. 
 
 " At one or two ballats on the following morn 
 ing it became plain that something was about to 
 occur, and the convention had reached the begin- 
 
A go LIFE AND PUBLIC CAREER OF 
 
 ning of the end. The Elaine forces felt that they 
 had gone as far as the most ardent supporters of 
 Mr. Elaine could ask. All parties were anxious 
 to go home. Wisconsin s response, fourteen votes 
 for James A. Garfield, caused a ripple of surprise 
 and joy to sweep over the faces of the delegates, 
 and the cheers from the gallery demonstrated Gar- 
 field s popularity in that vast audience. When the 
 roll of States was called, a sudden stillness settled 
 over the audience, and as the State of Indiana was 
 called, General Harrison stepped upon the bench 
 and in a clear, ringing voice, said : Twenty-nine 
 votes for James A. Garfield. Iowa was called, 
 and another voice rang out : * Twenty-two votes 
 for General Garfield. 
 
 "The crowd then gathered around General 
 Garfield and attempted to get him up to speak, 
 but the general sat perfectly composed, and sim 
 ply replied : No, no, gentlemen ; this is no theat 
 rical performance, and their efforts were unavail 
 ing. The scene that followed has already been 
 described. 
 
 "As the convention took a recess previous to 
 nominating the Vice-President, a great crowd 
 gathered at the outer door, and it was with the 
 utmost difficulty that General Garfield gained a 
 carriage. An incident occurring there is worthy 
 of publication. As Garfield entered the carriage, 
 in company with Governor Foster, the crowd 
 surged around in a state of intense enthusiasm, 
 
JAMES A. GARFIELD. 
 
 49 I 
 
 and shouted : Take off the horses ; we will pull 
 the carriage. The driver, who at the time was 
 not aware whom he was carrying, whipped up to 
 get away from the men, who had already com 
 menced to unfasten the harness. He cleared the 
 space several feet, but was overhauled again, and 
 the dazed driver, now thoroughly frightened, ap 
 plied his whip with renewed energy, and clearing 
 the crowd, pushed for the Palmer House. 
 
 " General Garheld was unfeignedly surprised at 
 the turn affairs had taken in the convention, and 
 his countenance bore a grave and thoughtful ex 
 pression. He made but few remarks relative to 
 the causes leading to his nomination, and I know 
 
 o 
 
 positively that he would listen to no overtures 
 from the delegates who so heartily placed him in 
 nomination. He has not recovered from his sur 
 prise yet." 
 
 It was indeed a surprise, coming, as it did, so 
 entirely unsought. During the first minutes after 
 the result, and while yet the general was busy 
 shaking hands with the hundreds around him, he 
 turned to a correspondent of the Cleveland Herald, 
 and said : " I wish you would say that this is no 
 act of mine. I wish you would say that I have 
 done everything and omitted nothing to secure 
 Secretary Sherman s nomination. I want it plainly 
 understood that I have not sought this nomination, 
 and have protested against the use of my name. 
 If Senator Hoar had permitted, I would have for- 
 
492 LIFE AND PUBLIC CAREER OF 
 
 bidden anybody to vote for me. But he took me 
 off my feet before I had said what I intended. I 
 am very sorry it has occurred, but if my position 
 is fully explained, a nomination, coming unsought 
 and unexpected like this, will be the crowning 
 gratification of .my life." 
 
 The news carried by wire from Chicago, sent a 
 thrill of pleasure through the land. Everywhere 
 the nomination was received with manifestations 
 of great delight. Some forty telegrams reached 
 the nominee before he left the convention hall, and 
 before he slept that Tuesday night, more than a 
 thousand more had winged their w r ay to him. 
 This came from the White House: 
 
 EXECUTIVE MANSION, Washington, June 8th. 
 GENERAL JAMES A. GARFIELD : 
 
 You will receive no heartier congratulation to-day than 
 mine. This both for your own and your country s sake. 
 
 R. B. HAYES. 
 
 Ever}* member of the Cabinet, Senator Elaine 
 and hosts of other distinguished characters in the 
 councils of the nation, telegraphed most candid 
 congratulations. 
 
 The National House of Representatives, on the 
 last day of the convention, was occupied with a 
 discussion on the erection of a public building, 
 and a motion to adjourn was made. During the 
 calling of the roll there was a great deal of excite 
 ment shown by the members over the convention 
 
JAMES A. GARFIELD. 
 
 493 
 
 news, and when Garfield s name was called it was 
 greeted with applause on both the Republican 
 and Democratic sides of the chamber. The an 
 nouncement, which came in soon afterward, that 
 Garfield had been nominated, was received with 
 loud cheers and applause from the members, who 
 had assembled in the lobby back of the Speaker s 
 desk, and the confusion was so great that the roll- 
 call was interrupted. Members gathered in 
 groups and discussed the nomination of Garfield, 
 which appeared to meet with almost universal ap 
 proval from the Republicans and which was con 
 ceded by the Democrats to be a strong one. The 
 second call of Garfield s name was the signal for 
 a burst of applause from the Republicans. The 
 motion was finally carried and accordingly the 
 House at half-past two adjourned. 
 
 Cheers for Garfield were then given, while 
 cries of "Speech from Hawley," and " Hawley for 
 vice-president" went up, but that gentleman did 
 not respond. 
 
 Mr. Robeson. I move that General Hawley 
 take the chair. Carried unanimously, amid loud 
 cheers. When Hawley took the chair the House 
 presented a curious sight. Every chair was occu 
 pied, the seats of the absent members being filled 
 by spectators, who, upon the adjournment, had 
 crowded into the hall, while in the rear of the 
 seats were groups of men evidently full of excite 
 ment. 
 
494 LIFE AyD PUBLIC C A REEK OF 
 
 Mr. Hawley, on taking the chair, said: "I be 
 leave to say that we occupy the floor with the kinc 
 consent of our friends on the right, who will have 
 their opportunity by and by." [Laughter; cries 
 of "Speech! Speech!"] 
 
 Mr. Hawley. I have no speech to make. The 
 nomination made at Chicago is its own speech, for 
 every Republican of this House, and our personal 
 good-will goes with our old friend and associate, 
 General Garfield. [Applause.] I have no doubt, 
 from what I have seen and heard, that this event 
 this consummation is in the very highest de 
 gree satisfactory to every Republican here, what 
 ever may have been his personal preference. 
 [Applause.] We have been warmly divided in 
 the past ; we will be much more warmly united in 
 the future. [Loud applause.] I think one result 
 will be I am supposing that there are no Demo 
 crats here to compel an excellent nomination on 
 the other side, so that the country we all love will 
 be certain of a good President for the next four 
 years, personally, whatever his political opinions 
 may be. [Loud applause, in which the Democrats 
 joined.] 
 
 Mr. Robeson was then loudly called for, and 
 that gentleman responding, said: "As members 
 of the American Congress 
 
 A Democrat. Both sides ? 
 
 Mr. Robeson, continuing. Both sides I think 
 we have a right to congratulate the whole country 
 
JAMES A. GARFIELD. 
 
 495 
 
 that a man we all know to be a man of character 
 and capacity beyond impeachment has been nomi 
 nated by one of the great political parties for the 
 highest office in the gift of the people. [Ap 
 plause.] Therefore, Mr. Chairman, I speak in 
 acknowledgment on behalf of the House of Rep 
 resentatives that one of our number, conspicuous 
 before the people on account of his services on 
 this floor, has been selected as the standard-bearer 
 of the great political party to which I belong. 
 That is a sentiment which affects neither the poli 
 tics nor the feelings of anybody, and I ask every 
 body within the reach of my voice to join me in 
 giving three cheers for the candidate selected from 
 our body as the candidate of a great party. [The 
 Republicans rose and gave the three cheers with 
 a will, but the Democrats, though joining in the 
 cheering, retained their seats.] I move, Mr. 
 Chairman, that a committee be appointed, and I 
 suggest as its chairman the oldest member of the 
 House Judge Kelley, of Pennsylvania to send 
 by telegraph our congratulations to our fellow 
 ^Congressman on his nomination. [Applause.] 
 
 Cries then went up for "Kelley," and Chairman 
 Hawley stated that Mr. Kelley would have occu 
 pied the chair, but that he had not been present. 
 
 Mr. Kelley. I have been in that chair but once, 
 though I have been here nineteen years, and then 
 I felt so like a fool that I never got into it again. 
 [Laughter.] I thank the gentleman from New 
 
496 
 
 LIFE AND PUBLIC CAREER OF 
 
 Jersey (Robeson) and his associates on this floor 
 for having delegated to me the chairmanship of 
 the committee to which has been confided so 
 grateful a duty. I beg leave to inform the chair 
 man and the House that, taking advantage of cir 
 cumstances, I slipped out when Garfield was at 
 338 and sent the following telegram: "Accept 
 congratulations and pledge of earnest support." 
 [Applause.] I rejoice most heartily in this nom 
 ination. General Garfield is a man of rare force 
 of character, of wide attainments, of great simpli 
 city, and a man who adheres as firmly as a true 
 party man ever did to his personal convictions, 
 and our friends on the other side, in the dejection 
 which now overcomes them, while a bad nomina 
 tion for them is possible, will find satisfaction in 
 knowing that they know the man to be one who 
 will administer the government faithfully, fairly 
 and patriotically after we shall have inaugurated 
 him. [Applause.] 
 
 The chair appointed Kelley, Robeson, Browne, 
 Martin (N. C), Page, Richardson (N. Y.), and 
 Henderson (Illinois) as the committee to send a 
 congratulatory telegram to Garfield. 
 
 The happiness of the people was everywhere 
 echoed by the press. The New York Tribune 
 said : 
 
 " With its best judgment the Tribune approves, 
 with its heartiest enthusiasm the Tribune applauds 
 the work of the Chicago Convention. With 
 
JAMES A. GARFIELD. 
 
 whatever power it possesses it will commend that 
 work to the people, and labor unceasingly for a 
 triumphant ratification at the polls." 
 
 The staunch old Boston Advertiser, represent 
 ing the best element of the Republican party in 
 New England, thus spoke for its constituents : 
 
 "The Republican party has a candidate for Presi 
 dent of -whom it may be proud, a man of ability, 
 experience and conscience. The nomination of 
 General Garfield cannot be too heartily welcomed 
 by all who have the good of the party and of the 
 country at heart, not merely as the most satisfac 
 tory solution of the situation that was much to be 
 regretted, but as one thoroughly good in itself. 
 The nomination that has been made gives no such 
 triumph to either of the supposed factions, as will 
 excuse the other for manifesting the least hesita 
 tion in accepting the result. General Garfield is 
 not a man to excite antagonism. He has not al 
 lied himself with any factional party, except as the 
 supporter of the distinguished gentleman who was 
 presented by his State. His name may well be 
 the symbol of union and harmony which his can 
 didacy will secure. General Garfield is a politi 
 cian of the best sort a man with conscience. 
 He is under obligations to no corps of workers 
 for his nomination . He is bound by no pledge of 
 any sort. He is tied to no clique. He will be a 
 candidate of the whole Republican party, and 
 President of the United States." 
 
49* 
 
 LIFE AND PUBLIC CAREER OF 
 
 The New York Grant organ, the Times, took 
 this position : 
 
 "The Chicago Convention has followed sundry 
 familiar precedents in failing to select the strong 
 est of the candidates presented to it. But from 
 the second rank of available Republicans it has 
 made a very excellent choice and one which has 
 the great merit of uniting all sections of the party 
 for a harmonious, aggressive and probably suc 
 cessful, campaign. James A. Garfield has been 
 too long in public life to have escaped injurious 
 allegations against his personal character and bit 
 ter attacks upon his political course, but he is 
 strong in his freedom from intrigue to gain the 
 nomination and in being able to accept it abso 
 lutely free from disreputable alliances or embar 
 rassing pledges. There are no bolters, scratchers 
 or independents who bear the Republican name 
 who cannot earnestly work and honestly vote for 
 General Garfield, and there is no thorough-going 
 Republican who will not accept him as a fit repre 
 sentative of party principles, a faithful depository 
 of the party trust. Whatever wounds may have 
 been left by the nomination of the candidate for 
 President, in virtue of a combination between the 
 elements opposed to General Grant, ought to be 
 healed by the nomination for Vice-President of 
 that stalwart and steadfast Grant supporter, Ches 
 ter A. Arthur. The Times recognizes in him a man 
 eminently worthy of a wider spnere for his ability." 
 
JAMES A. GARFIELD. 
 
 The Cincinnati Gazette voiced Ohio : 
 " This decision, although quickly executed, was 
 the most rational and, in our view, the most suc 
 cessful conclusion- of the situation. It was no 
 blind impulse, no recourse of reckless disappoint 
 ment, no effort of revenge, no blindfold saddling 
 of a dark horse, no trifling with the fate of the 
 party by hasty resentment, no leap in the dark, 
 no straining of the allegiance of intelligent Repub 
 licans by jerking into the nomination a man un 
 known to fame ; it was the nomination of a man of 
 national reputation, whose abilities have earned 
 him the recognized place of leader of the House 
 of Representatives ; of a man than whom no one 
 could better harmonize all the contending factions 
 in the convention ; a man who is the peer of any, 
 who is himself a part of all that is good and glori 
 ous in the history of the Republican party, who 
 deserves all the honor that belongs to the patriotic 
 and successful soldier, who was a statesman thor 
 oughly identified with all civil institutions before 
 he left a successful political career to serve his coun 
 try in war, and who has in his character and pub 
 lic services as much of those qualities which draw 
 the intelligent enthusiasm of the people for the 
 man they have chosen for leader as any man 
 whom either of the several parties in the conven 
 tion could have named. Therefore do we hail the 
 nomination as a great deliverance and as a regen 
 erating triumph for the Republican party/ 
 
500 
 
 LIFE AND PUBLIC CAREER OF 
 
 From the Chicago Times came this outburst: 
 " In the language of the politicians, the nomina 
 tion of Mr. Garfield is a strong one, an uncom 
 monly strong one. It is one that brings together 
 and unites all the lately hostile factions of the 
 party and removes all the bitterness engendered 
 by the fierce contest among rival aspirants that 
 must have had effect on the result had the nomina 
 tion fallen to any one of them. It preordains the 
 electoral decision in Ohio and makes Indiana de 
 batable ground, even with the strongest man the 
 opposite party could present. It satisfies the 
 hard-money sentiment at the East, for Mr. Gar- 
 field is a supporter of an honest money system, 
 no less positive and uncompromising than Gen 
 eral Grant. Moreover, his election most probably 
 would continue Mr. Sherman at the head of the 
 Treasury, a consideration of much importance to 
 commercial and business interests. Those who 
 imagine that Mr. Garfield is a candidate to be 
 
 o 
 
 easily defeated will find that they are under a 
 serious delusion. His nomination is a much 
 stronger one than that of Grant, or Elaine, or 
 Sherman would have been. It is doubtful, indeed, 
 if the convention could have named a more avail 
 able man." 
 
 The Tribune, a strong Elaine paper, answered 
 for the country in this way: 
 
 "From one end of the nation to the other, from 
 distant Oregon to Texas, from Maine to Arizona, 
 
JAMES A. GARFIELD. 
 
 lightning has informed the country of the nomina 
 tion yesterday of General James A. Garfield, as the 
 Republican candidate for the Presidency. Never 
 was a nomination made which has been received 
 by friend and foe with such evidence of hearty re 
 spect, admiration and confidence. The applause 
 is universal. Even the Democratic House of 
 Representatives suspended its business that it 
 might congratulate the country upon the nomina 
 tion of the distinguished leader of the Republi 
 cans. James Abraham Garfield is, in the popular 
 mind, one of the foremost statesmen of the na 
 tion. He is comparatively a young man, but in 
 his service he commands the confidence and ad 
 miration of his countrymen of all parties. His 
 ability, his thorough study and his long practical 
 experience in political matters gives an assurance 
 to the country that he will carry to the Presiden 
 tial office a mind superior, because of its natural 
 qualifications and training, to any that has pre 
 ceded him for many years. He will be a Presi 
 dent worthy in every sense to fill the office 
 in a way that the country will like to see it filled 
 with ability, learning, experience and integrity. 
 That General Garfield will be elected we have no 
 question. He is a candidate worthy of election, 
 and will command not only every Republican vote 
 in the country, but the support of tens of thou 
 sands of non-partisans who want to see a Presi 
 dent combining intellectual ability with learning, 
 experience and ripe statesmanship." 
 
- 02 LIFE AND PUBLIC CAREER OF 
 
 In the other centres of the political and social 
 life of the land, the same flattering reception was 
 accorded the ticket. Many distinguished men 
 spoke of it heartily, commending the statesman 
 at its head. We have not, unfortunately, space to 
 print what was said. The nominee s old com 
 mander, General Rosecrans, remarked on hearing 
 the news: "I consider General Garfield head and 
 shoulders above any of the men named before the 
 convention, and far superior to any of the politi 
 cal managers upon the floor. He is a man with 
 broad views, has always been a consistent Repub 
 lican, and has a clean record. I cannot believe 
 that James A. Garfield was ever guilty of a dis 
 honest act. As the campaign progresses, it will 
 be found, if it is not now acknowledged, that Gar- 
 field is a hard man to beat." 
 
 Mr. W. D. Howells, the editor of the Atlantic 
 Monthly, wrote us : " Among all the classes whom 
 his nomination has gratified, I think the literary 
 class is first. We feel that all the good things 
 which the Hayes administration has done for 
 humanity and civilization will find their continu 
 ance and furtherance in his, and that he will per 
 petuate the order of perfect honesty, intelligence 
 and decency which Mr. Hayes has established in 
 public life. I may tell you that Mr. Longfellow has 
 repeatedly expressed his pleasure in Garfield s 
 nomination. I had once the fortune to bring them 
 together, and Mr. Longfellow was strongly im- 
 
JAMES A. GARFIELD. 
 
 503 
 
 pressed with the fine and generous qualities, men 
 tal and moral, which every one recognizes in the 
 candidate of our party." 
 
 At Williams College the students went wild 
 over the nomination, and within twenty-four hours 
 after the result was announced, a Garfield club 
 was organized, with a membership of three hun 
 dred. A ratification meeting was held in the even 
 ing, and the students sang, as a chorus to " March 
 ing through Georgia," the following: 
 
 tc Hurrah ! hurrah ! we ll shout for General G. ! 
 Hurrah ! hurrah ! a Williams man was he, 
 And so we ll sing the chorus from old Williams to the sea, 
 t And we ll cast a vote for General Garfield." 
 
 We have sampled the enthusiasm of the coun 
 try for the nominee, as it appeared in various 
 forms, and it will not seem mal a propos if we con 
 clude this chapter with a song that Garfield s nomi 
 nation called forth from Mr. W. O. Stoddard, in 
 allusion to Garfield s remark at the battle of Mid 
 dle Creek: 
 
 " In one h9t fight that Garfield won, 
 
 The loyal-souled commander 
 Sent back a word among his men 
 That stirred up all their dander. 
 
 " He was not quite so fast to cuss 
 
 And swear around as some be, 
 And all he said was, Come on boys ! 
 We ll give em Hail Columby ! 
 
 " He led, they followed, spreading wide 
 
 Among the rebels routed, 
 From rank to rank, in liberal gift, 
 The self-same thing he shouted. 
 30 
 
504. LIFE AND PUBLIC CAREER Of 
 
 " Year after year, a leader still, 
 
 In camp, and field, and forum, 
 His feet beside his colors tread 
 As when the bullets tore em. 
 
 " Year after year upon his lips, 
 
 Through every contest ringing, 
 The men who follow hear, as when 
 The shells were o er him singing. 
 
 " The words that harsh to many an ear, 
 
 But bugle-sweet to some be ; 
 For peace or war a charging-cry, 
 1 Boys, give em Hail Columby 1 " 
 
JAMES A. GARPIELD. 
 
 CHAPTER XXXIV. 
 
 A TOUR. OF TRIUMPH. 
 
 THE great result achieved, the nominee 
 placed before the country, the nation 
 began to demonstrate its satisfaction at 
 the selection. From the hall of the convention 
 the tide of congratulation followed General Gar- 
 field to his hotel. It had been announced that he 
 would leave Chicago for home at five o clock P. M., 
 and General Butterworth was assigned the duty of 
 providing a procession to accompany him to the 
 station. Wisconsin, the first State to break for 
 him, volunteered cheerfully, and the thousands of 
 Ohioans in town were no less ready. A band 
 was provided, and everything was prepared, when 
 the general decided to stay until morning. In 
 order to avoid the press of congratulations, he 
 engaged parlors on another corridor, the knowl 
 edge of which was confined to a few. The Wis 
 consin delegates, however, became apprised of it, 
 and soon a throng hundreds ^trong was marching 
 through the rooms for the purpose of shaking 
 hands with the distinguished man who was the 
 centre of all interest. 
 
 Among the callers was a tall, somewhat intoxi- 
 
506 
 
 LIFE AND PUBLIC CAREER OF 
 
 cated Ohioan, who, not content with a shake of 
 the general s hand, threw himself upon the neck 
 of the astonished candidate as though he had 
 found his long-lost brother. "I do it, general, 
 because I love you so. I can t help it," he re 
 peated several times before he relinquished his 
 close embrace. "The old Forty-second Ohio is 
 having things her own. way. A int she?" he ex 
 claimed enthusiastically, making a movement 
 toward repeating the embrace. The general de 
 clined with dignity. One of the Ohio men came 
 up wearing the red badge, which had already 
 been struck off, bearing the words : " For Presi 
 dent, James A. Garfield." The wearer called the 
 attention of the owner of the name. " That re 
 minds me of a saying of Holmes," the general 
 said. " He wrote that three things require age 
 wine, meerschaum pipes and poetry. That badge 
 might be added to the list. It s too new yet. I 
 can t realize it." When asked if he would re 
 spond to the demands that were already coming 
 in for a speech, he said, " There is not power 
 enough in Chicago to draw a speech out of me 
 to-day." 
 
 In the evening, after the second place on the 
 ticket had been filled, in deference to the wishes 
 of many delegates, the general held a reception. 
 A magnificent stand of flowers was upon the 
 table, and beside this the nominee stood for an 
 hour. The stream of congratulations was inces- 
 
 o 
 
JAMES A. GARFIELD. 
 
 507 
 
 sant many ladies in elaborate evening toilette 
 adding brilliancy to the event, and vieing with the 
 men in the fervor of their declarations of satis 
 faction. In accepting the. congratulations, the 
 general bore himself with quiet dignity, seldom 
 extending his replies beyond the hope that the 
 nomination might prove acceptable to the Repub 
 lican party and the country. Later a serenade 
 was tendered him, for which he merely bowed his 
 thanks. 
 
 Near midnight, Senator Hoar, at the head of 
 the committee appointed to notify General Gar- 
 field, appeared at the Grand Pacific, and notifying 
 the general of his nomination, received the follow 
 ing reply : 
 
 " MR. CHAIRMAN AND GENTLEMEN : I assure you 
 that the information you have officially given to 
 me brings the sense of very grave responsibility, 
 and especially so in view of the fact that I was a 
 member of your body, a fact that could not have 
 existed with propriety had I had the slightest ex 
 pectation that my name would be connected with 
 the nomination for the office. I have felt, with 
 you, great solicitude concerning the situation of 
 our party during the struggle ; but, believing that 
 you are correct in assuring me that substantial 
 unity has been reached in the conclusion, it gives 
 me a gratification far greater than any personal 
 pleasure your announcement can bring. 
 
 " I accept the trust committed to my hands. As 
 
5o8 
 
 LIFE AND PUBLIC CAREER OF 
 
 to the work of our party, and as to the character 
 of the campaign to be entered upon, I will take 
 an early occasion to reply more fully than I can 
 properly do to-night. 
 
 " I thank you for the assurances of confidence 
 and esteem you have presented to me, and hope 
 we shall see our future as promising as are indi 
 cations to-night." 
 
 The next morning, General Garfield started for 
 home. From the hotel to the station it was a con 
 stant ovation. He left for Cleveland in a special car, 
 accompanied by a number of intimate personal 
 friends, among whom were Governor Charles Fos 
 ter, of Ohio ; S. T. Everett, President of the Second 
 National Bank of Cleveland ; General Joseph Bar 
 rett, an old military friend of General Garfield, he 
 having been chief of artillery in the armies of Rose- 
 crans and Thomas ; Colonel D. G. Swain, Judge 
 Advocate of the United States Army, formerly 
 of the Forty-second Ohio Volunteers (Garfield s 
 regiment) ; Lieutenant-Colonel L. A. Sheldon, 
 Mayor W. H. Williams and Captain Charles T. 
 Henry, all of whom were also officers of Garfield s 
 regiment. At Laporte, Indiana, the first stopping 
 place of any consequence, many hundreds of peo 
 ple, with a brass band, had collected to salute him 
 as he passed. Governor Foster introduced him, 
 and he was received with deafening cheers. At 
 South Bend, at Elkhart, at Goshen, at Kendal- 
 ville, at Waterloo and at Butler, the scenes were 
 
. , JAMES A. GAR FIELD. c i i 
 
 repeated, the themehonor to Garfield being 
 ever the same. Crossing into Ohio, at Edgerton 
 the greetings broke out afresh. When he reached 
 Cleveland, an immense demonstration awaited his 
 arrival, and the whole city was alive with a glad 
 enthusiasm. Among the first of his callers there 
 was the Hon. Henry W. Payne. 
 
 Just before he left for Chicago he promised to 
 deliver an address at the commencement exer 
 cises of Hiram College. The morning after his 
 arrival in Cleveland he journeyed quietly to the 
 little village of Hiram, the modest little town 
 where he had been a bell-ringer, and a student, 
 and a college president. Here he met his wife, 
 for the first time since the acquirement of his latest 
 and greatest honor, and at the very house where 
 their acquaintance began. It was a touching 
 meeting ; his wife, his children, the students and 
 old friends gathered about him. Baring his head, 
 the great statesman said : 
 
 "FELLOW-CITIZENS, OLD NEIGHBORS AND FRIENDS 
 OF MANY YEARS : It has always given me pleasure 
 to come back here and look upon these faces. It 
 has always given me new courage and new friends, 
 for it has brought back a large share of that rich 
 ness which belongs to those things out of which 
 come the joys of life. 
 
 "While sitting here this afternoon, watching 
 your faces and listening to the very interesting 
 address which has just been delivered, it has oc- 
 
c j 9 LIPE AND PUBLIC CAREER OF 
 
 curred to me that the least thing you have, that 
 all men have enough of, is perhaps the thing that 
 you care for the least, and that is your leisure 
 the leisure you have to think ; the leisure you 
 have to be let alone ; the leisure you have to 
 throw the plummettinto your mind, and sound the 
 depth and dive for things below; the leisure you 
 have to walk about the towers yourself, and find 
 how strong they are or how weak they are, to de 
 termine what needs building up ; how to work, 
 and how to know all that shall make you the 
 final beings you are to be. Oh, these hours of 
 building ! 
 
 "If the Superior Being of the universe would 
 look down upon the world to find the most inter 
 esting object, it would be the unfinished, unformed 
 character of the young man or young woman. 
 Those behind me have probably in the main set 
 tled this question. Those who have passed into 
 middle manhood and middle womanhood are 
 about what they shall always be, and there is but 
 little left of interest, as their characters are all 
 
 p 
 
 developed. 
 
 "But to your young and your yet unformed 
 natures, no man knows the possibilities that lie 
 before you in your hearts and intellects; and, 
 while you are working out the possibilities with 
 that splendid leisure that you need, you are to be 
 most envied. I congratulate you on your leisure. 
 I commend you to treat it as your gold, as your 
 
JAMES A. GARFIELD. r l r 
 
 wealth, as your treasure, out of which you can 
 draw all possible treasures that can be laid down 
 when you have your natures unfolded and devel 
 oped in the possibilities of the future. 
 
 "This place is too full of memories for me to 
 trust myself to speak upon, and I will not. But 
 I draw again to-day, as I have for a quarter of a 
 century, life, evidence of strength, confidence and 
 affection from the people who gather in this place. 
 I thank you for the permission to see you and 
 meet yo.u and greet you as I have done to-day." 
 
 After a few days of rest at his winter home, 
 General Garfield journeyed on to Washington, and 
 everywhere along the route he was received with 
 enthusiasm. The night after he arrived he was 
 serenaded at his hotel, and the response to the 
 cheers which his presence evoked from the crowd, 
 was in these words: 
 
 " FELLOW-CITIZENS : While I have looked upon 
 this great array, I believe I have gotten a new 
 idea of the majesty of the American people 
 When I reflect that wherever you find sovereign 
 power every reverent heart on this earth bows 
 before it, and when I remember that here for a 
 hundred years we have denied the -sovereignty of 
 any man, and in place of it we have asserted the 
 sovereignty of all in place of one, I see before me 
 so vast a concourse that it is easy for me to 
 imagine that the rest of the American people are, 
 gathered here to-night, and if they were all here. 
 
CJ6 LIFE AND 2*UBLIC C ./AV./.A OF 
 
 every man would stand uncovered, all in unsan- 
 daled feet in presence of the majesty of the only 
 sovereign power in this Government under Al 
 mighty God. [Cheers.] And, therefore, to this 
 great audience I pay the respectful homage that 
 in part belongs to the sovereignty of the people. 
 I thank you for this great and glorious demonstra 
 tion. I am not, for one moment, misled into be 
 lieving that it refers to so poor a thing as any one 
 of our number. I know it means your reverence 
 for your Government, your reverence for its laws", 
 your reverence for its institutions, and your com 
 pliment to one who is placed for a moment in 
 relations to you of peculiar importance. For all 
 these reasons I thank you. I cannot at this time 
 utter a word on the subject of general politics. I 
 would not mar the cordiality of this welcome, to 
 which to some extent all are gathered, by any 
 reference except to the present moment and its 
 significance ; but I wish to say that a large portion 
 of this assemblage to-night are my comrades, late 
 of the war for the Union. For them I can speak 
 with entire propriety, and can say that these very 
 streets heard the measured tread of your dis 
 ciplined feet, years ago, when the imperiled Re 
 public needed your hands and your hearts to save 
 it, and you came back with your numbers deci 
 mated ; but those you left behind were immortal 
 and glorified heroes forever; and those you 
 brought back came, carrying under tattered ban- 
 
JAMES A. GARFIELD. - j 
 
 \J f 
 
 ners and in bronze hands the ark of the covenant 
 of your Republic in safety out of the bloody bap 
 tism of the war [cheers], and you brought it in 
 safety to be saved forever by your valor and the 
 wisdom of your brethren who were at home, and 
 by this you were again added to the great civil 
 army of the Republic. I greet you, comrades and 
 fellow-soldiers, and the great body of distinguished 
 citizens who are gathered here to-night, who are 
 the strong stay and support of the business, of the 
 prosperity, of the peace, of the civic ardor and 
 glory of the Republic, and I thank you for your 
 welcome to-night. It was said in a welcome to 
 one who came to England to be a -part of her 
 glory and all the nation spoke when it was said : 
 
 p " Normans and Saxons and Danes are we, 
 
 But all of us Danes in our welcome of thee. 
 
 "And we say to-night, of all nations, of all the 
 people, soldiers and civilians, there is one name 
 that welds us all into one. It is the name of 
 American citizen, under the union and under the 
 glory of the flag that led us to victory and to 
 peace. [Applause.] For this magnificent wel 
 come I thank you with all there is in my heart." 
 
 On the night following he was tendered a 
 grand banquet, and the day after he returned to 
 Mentor for rest. 
 
 Not for long, however, as on July 3d he was 
 present at the dedication of the Soldiers Monu- 
 
LIFE AND PUBLIC CAREER OF 
 
 ment at Painesville, where he. delivered the follow 
 ing magnificent address : 
 
 " FELLOW-CITIZENS : I cannot fail to respond on 
 such an occasion in sight of such a monument to 
 such a cause, sustained by such men. [Applause 
 and cheers.] While I have listened to what my 
 friend has said, two questions have been sweep 
 ing through my heart. One was, What does the 
 monument mean ? and the other, What will the 
 monument teach ? Let me try and ask you for a 
 moment, to help me answer what does the monu 
 ment mean. Oh ! the monument means a world 
 of memories, a world of deeds, and a world of 
 tears, and a world of glories. You know, thous 
 ands know, what it is to offer up yyour life to the 
 country, and that is no small thing, as every 
 soldier knows. Let me put the question to you : 
 For a moment suppose your country in the aw 
 fully embodied form of majestic law, should stand 
 above you and say : I want your life. Come up 
 here on the platform and offer it. How many 
 would walk up before that majestic presence and 
 say, Here I am, take this life and use it for your 
 great needs. [Applause.] And yet almost two mil 
 lions of men made that answer [applause], and a 
 monument stands yonder to commemorate their 
 answer. That is one of its meanings. But, my 
 friends, let me try you a little further. To give 
 up life is much, for it is to give up wife, and home, 
 and child, and ambition. But let me test you this 
 
JAMES A. GARFIELD. c j g 
 
 way further. Suppose this awfully majestic form 
 should call out to you, and say, I ask you to give 
 up health and drag yourself, not dead, but half 
 alive, through a miserable existence for long 
 years, until you perish and die in your crippled 
 and hopeless condition. I ask you to volunteer 
 to do that, and it calls for a higher reach of 
 patriotism and self-sacrifice, but hundreds of 
 thousands of you soldiers did that. That is what 
 the monument means also. But let me ask you 
 to go one step further. Suppose your country 
 should say, Come here, on this platform, and in 
 my name, and for my sake, consent to be idiots. 
 [Voice Hear hear. ] Consent that your very 
 brain and intellect shall be broken down into hope 
 less idiocy for my sake/ How many could be 
 found to make that venture ? And yet there are 
 thousands, and that with their eyes wide open to 
 the horrible consequences, obeyed that call. 
 
 "And let me tell how one hundred thou 
 sand of our soldiers were prisoners of war, and 
 to many of them when death was stalking near, 
 when famine was climbing up into their hearts, 
 and idiocy was threatening all that was left of 
 their intellects, the gates of their prison stood 
 open every day, if they would quit, desert their flag 
 and enlist under the flag of the enemy, and out of 
 one hundred and eighty thousand not two per cent, 
 ever received the liberation from death, starvation 
 and all that might come to them; but they took 
 
5-2O LIFE AND PUBLJC CAREER OF 
 
 all these horrors and all these sufferings in pre 
 ference to going back upon the flag of their coun 
 try and the glory of its truth. [Applause.] Great 
 God ! was ever such measure of patriotism reached 
 by any man on this earth before? [Applause.] 
 That is what your monument means. By the 
 subtle chemistry that no man knows, all the blood 
 that was shed by our brethren, all the lives that 
 were devoted, all the grief that was felt, at last 
 crystallized itself into granite rendered immortal, 
 the great truth for which they died [applause], 
 and it stands there to-day, and that is what your 
 monument means. 
 
 "Now, what does it teach? What will it teach? 
 Why, I remember the story of one of the old con 
 querors of Greece, who, when he had traveled in 
 his boyhood over the battle-fields where Miltiades 
 had won victories and set up trophies, returning 
 he said: These trophies of Miltiades will never 
 let me sleep. \Vhy, something had taught him 
 from the chiseled stone a lesson that he could never 
 forget, and, fellow-citizens, that silent sentinel, that 
 crowned granite column will look down upon the 
 boys that will walk these streets for generations 
 to come, and will not let them sleep when their 
 country calls them. [Applause.] More than the 
 bugler on the field from his dead lips will go out 
 a call that the children of Lake County will hear 
 alter the grave has covered us all and our imme 
 diate children. That is the teaching of your 
 
JAMES A. GARFIELD. 
 
 521 
 
 monument. That is its lesson, and it is the lesson 
 of endurance for what we believe, and it is the 
 lesson of sacrifices for what we think the lesson 
 of heroism for what we mean to sustain and that 
 lesson cannot be lost to a people like this. It is 
 not a lesson of revenge, it is not a lesson of 
 wrath, it is the grand, sweet, broad lesson of the 
 immortality of the truth that we hope will soon 
 cover as with the grand Shekinah of light and 
 glory all parts of this Republic, from the lakes 
 to the gulf. [Applause.] I once entered a house 
 in old Massachusetts where, over its doors, 
 were two crossed swords. One was the sword 
 carried by the grandfather of its owner on 
 the field of Bunker Hill and the other was the 
 sword carried by the English grandsire of the 
 wife, on the same field and on- the other side 
 of the conflict. Under those crossed swords, in 
 the restored harmony of domestic peace, lived 
 a happy, and contented, and free family, under 
 the light of our republican liberties. [Applause] 
 I trust the time is not far distant when, under 
 the crossed swords and the locked shields of 
 Americans North and South, our people shall 
 sleep in peace and rise in liberty, love and har 
 mony under the union of our flag of the Stars 
 and Stripes." 
 
 Once more he comes before the country, his 
 latest words, in the following sterling pronuncia- 
 miento of Republican doctrines and belief, his 
 
r 22 LIFE AND PUBLIC CAREER OF 
 
 letter of acceptance, which was given to the public 
 July i 2th. 
 
 MENTOR, Ohio, July loth, 1880. Dear Sir: On 
 the evening of the 8th of June last I had the 
 honor to receive from you, in the presence of the 
 committee of which you were chairman, the offi 
 cial announcement that the Republican National 
 Convention at Chicago had that day nominated 
 me for their candidate for President of the United 
 States. I accept the nomination with gratitude 
 for the confidence it implies and with a deep sense 
 of the responsibilities it imposes. I cordially in 
 dorse the principles set forth in the platform 
 adopted by the convention. On nearly all the 
 subjects of which it treats my opinions are on 
 record among the published proceedings of Con 
 gress. I venture, however, to make special mention 
 of some of the principal topics which are likely to 
 become subjects of discussion, without reviewing 
 the controversies which have been settled during 
 the last twenty years, and with no purpose or 
 wish to revive the passions of the late war. It 
 should be said that while Republicans fully recog 
 nize and will strenuously defend all the rights 
 retained by the people and all the rights reserved 
 to the States, they reject the pernicious doctrine 
 of State supremacy which so long crippled the 
 functions of the National Government and at one 
 time brought the Union very near to destruction. 
 They insist that the United States is a nation, 
 with ample power of self-preservation ; that its 
 Constitution and laws made in pursuance thereof 
 are the supreme law of the land ; that the right 
 of the nation to determine the method by which 
 
JAMES A. GARFIELD. r o -> 
 
 ~ v) 
 
 its own legislature shall be created cannot be sur 
 rendered without abdicating one of the funda 
 mental powers of the Government ; that the 
 national laws relating to the election of represent 
 atives in Congress shall neither be violated nor 
 evaded; that every elector shall be permitted 
 freely and without intimidation to cast his lawful 
 ballot at such election and have it honestly 
 counted, and that the potency of his vote shall not 
 be destroyed by the fraudulent vote of any other 
 person. The best thoughts and energies of our peo 
 ple should be directed to those great questions of 
 national well-being in which we all have a com 
 mon interest. Such efforts will soonest restore 
 perfect peace to those who were lately in arms 
 against each other, for justice and good-will will 
 outlast passion ; but it is certain that the 
 wounds cannot be completely healed and the 
 spirit of brotherhood cannot fully pervade the 
 whole country until every one of our citizens, 
 rich or poor, white or black, is secure in the free 
 and equal enjoyment of every civil and political 
 right guaranteed by the Constitution and the 
 laws. Wherever the enjoyment of this right is 
 not assured discontent will prevail, immigration 
 will cease, and the social and industrial forces will 
 continue to be disturbed by the migration of 
 laborers and the consequent diminution of pros 
 perity. The National Government should exer 
 cise all* its constitutional authority to put an end 
 to these evils, for all the people and all the 
 States are members of one body ; and no mem 
 ber can suffer without injury to all. 
 
 The most serious evils which now afflict the 
 South arise from the fact that there is not such 
 
524 
 
 LIFE AND PUBLIC CAREER OF 
 
 freedom and toleration of political opinion and ac 
 tion that the minority party can exercise an effec 
 tive and wholesome restraint upon the party in 
 power. Without such restraint party rule be 
 comes tyrannical and corrupt. The prosperity 
 which is made possible in the South, by its great 
 advantages of soil and climate, will never be real 
 ized until every voter can freely and safely support 
 any party he pleases. Next in importance to 
 freedom and justice is popular education, without 
 which neither justice nor freedom can be perma 
 nently maintained. Its interests are intrusted to 
 the States and the voluntary action of the people. 
 Whatever help the nation can justly afford should 
 be generously given to aid the States in support 
 ing common schools ; but it would be unjust to 
 our people and dangerous to our institutions to 
 apply any portion of the -revenues of the nation or 
 of the States to the support of sectarian schools. 
 The separation of the Church and the State in 
 everything relating to taxation should be absolute. 
 On the subject of national finances my views have 
 been so frequently and fully expressed that little is 
 needed in the way of additional statement. The 
 public debt is now so well secured, and the rate of 
 annual interest has been so reduced by refunding, 
 that rigid economy in expenditures and the faithful 
 application of our surplus revenues to the payment 
 of the principal of the debt, will gradually, but cer 
 tainly free the people from its burdens, and close 
 with honor the financial chapter of the war. At 
 the same time the Government can provide for all 
 its ordinary expenditures, and discharge its sacred 
 obligations to the soldiers of the Union and to the 
 \\idows and orphans of those who fdl in its de- 
 
JAMES A. GARFIELD 525 
 
 fense. The resumption of specie payments, which 
 the Republican party so courageously and suc 
 cessfully accomplished, has removed from the field 
 of controversy many questions that long and se 
 riously disturbed the credit of the Government 
 and the business of the country. Our paper cur 
 rency is now as national as the flag, and resump 
 tion has not only made it everywhere equal to 
 coin, but has brought into use our store of gold 
 and silver. The circulating medium is more abun 
 dant than ever before, and we need only to main 
 tain the equality of all our dollars to insure to 
 labor and capital a measure of value from the use 
 of which no one can suffer loss. The great pros 
 perity which the country is now enjoying should 
 not be endangered by any violent change or 
 doubtful financial experiments. 
 
 In reference to our custom laws, a policy should 
 be pursued which will bring revenues to the Trea 
 sury, and will enable the labor and capital em 
 ployed in our great industries to compete fairly in 
 our own markets with the labor and capital of 
 foreign producers. We legislate for the people 
 of the United States, not for the whole world ; 
 and it is our glory that the American laborer is 
 more intelligent and better paid than his foreign 
 competitor. Our country cannot be independent 
 unless its people, with their abundant natural re 
 sources, possess the requisite skill at any time to 
 clothe, arm and equip themselves for war, and in 
 time of peace to produce all the necessary imple 
 ments of labor. It was the manifest intention of 
 the founders of the Government to provide for 
 the common defense, not by standing armies 
 alone, but by raising among the people a greater 
 
526 
 
 LIFE AND PUBLIC CAREER OF 
 
 army of artisans, whose intelligence and skill 
 should powerfully contribute to the safety and 
 glory of the nation. Fortunately for the interests 
 of commerce there is no longer any formidable 
 opposition to appropriations for the improvement 
 of our harbors and great navigable rivers, pro 
 vided that the expenditures for that purpose are 
 strictly limited to works of national importance. 
 The Mississippi River, with its great tributaries, 
 is of such vital importance to so many millions of 
 people that the safety of its navigation requires 
 exceptional consideration. In order to secure 
 to the nation the control of all its waters, Presi 
 dent Jefferson negotiated the purchase of a vast 
 territory, extending from the Gulf of Mexico to 
 the Pacific Ocean. The wisdom of Congress 
 should be invoked to devise some plan by which 
 that great river shall cease to be a terror to those 
 who dwell upon its banks, and by which its ship 
 ping may safely carry the industrial products of 
 twenty-five millions of people. 
 
 The interests of agriculture, which is the basis 
 of all our material prosperity, and in which seven- 
 twelfths of our population are engaged, as well as 
 the interests of manufactures and commerce, de 
 mand that the facilities for cheap transportation 
 shall be increased by the use of all our great water 
 courses. The material interests of this country, 
 the traditions of its settlement and the sentiment 
 of our people have led the Government to offer 
 the widest hospitality to immigrants who seek our 
 shores for new and happier homes, willing to share 
 the burdens as well as the benefits of our society, 
 and intending that their posterity shall become an 
 andistinguishable part of our population. The 
 
JAMES A. GARFIELD. 527 
 
 recent movement of the Chinese to our Pacific 
 coast partakes but little of the qualities of such an 
 immigration, either in its purposes or its result. It 
 is too much like an importation to be welcomed 
 without restriction ; too much like an invasion to 
 be looked upon without solicitude. We cannot 
 consent to allow any form of servile labor to be 
 introduced among us under the guise of immigra 
 tion. Recognizing the gravity of this subject, the 
 present administration, supported by Congress, 
 has sent to China a commission of distinguished 
 citizens for the purpose of securing such a modifi 
 cation of the existing treaty as will prevent the 
 evils likely to arise from the present situation. It 
 is confidently believed that these diplomatic nego 
 tiations will be successful without the loss of that 
 commercial intercouse between the two great 
 powers which promises a great increase of recip 
 rocal trade and the enlargement of our markets. 
 Should these efforts fail, it will be the duty of Con 
 gress to mitigate the evils already felt, and pre 
 vent their increase by such restrictions as, without 
 violence or injustice, will place upon a sure foun 
 dation the peace of our communities and the free 
 dom and dignity of labor. 
 
 The appointment of citizens to the various exe 
 cutive and judicial offices of the Government is, 
 perhaps, the most difficult of all duties which the 
 Constitution has imposed upon the Executive. 
 The convention wisely demands that Congress 
 shall co-operate with the Executive Department, in 
 placing the civil service on a better basis. Expe 
 rience has proved that, with our frequent changes 
 of administration, no system of reform can be 
 made effective and permanent without the aid of 
 
528 
 
 LIFE AND PUBLIC CAREER OF 
 
 legislation. Appointments to the military and 
 naval service are so regulated by law and custom, 
 as to leave but little ground of complaint. It 
 may not be wise to make similar regulations by 
 law for the civil service, but, without invading the 
 authority or necessary discretion of the Executive, 
 Congress should devise a method that will deter 
 mine the tenure of office, and greatly reduce the 
 uncertainty which makes that service so uncertain 
 and unsatisfactory. Without depriving any officer 
 of his rights as a citizen, the Government should 
 require him to discharge all his official duties with 
 intelligence, efficiency and faithfulness. To select 
 wisely from our vast population those who are best 
 fitted for the many offices to be filled, requires an 
 acquaintance far beyond the range of any one 
 man. The Executive should, therefore, seek and 
 receive the information and assistance of those 
 whose knowledge of the communities in which 
 the duties are to be performed, best qualifies them 
 to aid in making the wisest choice. The doctrines 
 announced by the Chicago Convention are not the 
 temporary devices of a party to attract votes and 
 carry an election. They are deliberate convic 
 tions, resulting from a careful study of the spirit of 
 our institutions, the events of our history and the 
 best impulses of our people. In my judgment, 
 these principles should control the legislation and 
 administration of the Government. In any event, 
 they will guide my conduct until experience points 
 out a better way. If elected, it will be my purpose 
 to enforce strict obedience to the Constitution and 
 the laws, and "o promote as best I may the interest 
 and honor of the whole country, relying for sup 
 port upon the wisdom of Congress, the intelli- 
 
JAMES A. GARFIELD. r 2 g 
 
 gence and patriotism of the people and the favor 
 of God. 
 
 With great respect, I am very truly yours, 
 
 J. A. GARFIELD. 
 
 To Hon. George F. Hoar, Chairman of the Com 
 mittee. 
 
- , o LIFE AND PUBLIC CAREER OF 
 
 CHAPTER XXXV. 
 
 THE FUTURE. 
 
 WITH our readers we have gone over 
 General Garfield s career from its hum 
 blest beginnings to its present signally 
 distinguished h6nors. No one can follow the in 
 cidental steps in that career without being struck 
 with the intrinsic greatness of the man who so 
 won his way to the front. In all the long years 
 that stand behind him, his has been one continu 
 ous service to the country. Teaching, fighting, 
 legislating, he has had only the one aim, the good 
 of his fellow-men. Does not such a career de 
 serve reward ? If it does not, what meed of ser 
 vice, what tale of labor in behalf of the Republic 
 does? What course of training for the White 
 House is more exactly American than his has 
 been ? A poor boy fights his way inch by inch, 
 taking no fresh step forward until he has qualified 
 himself for the new position, until conspicuous 
 merit places him at the head of the column. A 
 brilliant soldier, a patriot, a statesman of great 
 constructive capacity and almost unequaled power 
 of expression; distinguished from the common 
 run of party men by broader views, a more liberal 
 mind, and a more intelligent statesmanship, is 
 
JAMES A. GARFIELD: 
 
 what James A. Garfield is to-day. And with a 
 record rarely equaled in its unique earnestness of 
 purpose, and unparalleled among 1 his immediate 
 contemporaries, he comes before the country for 
 its suffrages. 
 
 If General Garfield is elected President, he will 
 be in some respects a notable executive. He will 
 be the youngest man who has ever ruled in the 
 White House, except James K. Polk. He has 
 served more consecutive terms in Congress than 
 any man of his age that ever entered the House 
 of Representatives. He will be the first man ever 
 elected President who was a member-elect of the 
 Senate, and transferred to the White House be 
 fore he took his seat in the Senate. He is the 
 first man ever nominated for the presidency by a 
 convention wherein he was laboring to secure the 
 selection of another. He is the first man ever 
 nominated for that office who regularly appeared 
 in the pulpit of any church. He is the first man 
 ever nominated for that high office who once pre 
 sided over an institution of learning as its presi 
 dent. He is one of the finest scholars ever desig 
 nated by a party as a candidate for presidential 
 honors. He was as poor in his youth as Abraham 
 Lincoln, and his success in life is as much of an 
 encouragement to the young men of the nation as 
 that of any man who has come to the front in this 
 free land. And what is more to his credit, he was 
 nominated without being under obligations to any- 
 
r-2 LIFE AND PUBLIC CAREER OF 
 
 body for his nomination. He is not in debt for his 
 candidacy to the politicians he can enter upon 
 the discharge of his duties in the great office with 
 more freedom than any man who has held it, with 
 the exception of the Vice-Presidents who have 
 succeeded to the presidency. 
 
 The Chicago Convention could not have nomi 
 nated another man who touches the American 
 mind and heart at so many points. His early life 
 of labor, his sympathy with the working-classes, 
 endear him to the toiling millions. There is a 
 pathos in his history that touches the heart of 
 the humble worker. His masterly grasp of states 
 manship and his steady fealty to sound doctrine 
 during all the financial treachery of the last ten 
 years gain him the support of merchants, manu 
 facturers and bankers. The school-teachers of 
 the land count him as one of their number. He 
 is more acceptable to the religious element than 
 another could be. Enter the chill atmosphere of 
 the college and university lecture-rooms, where 
 men are not stirred by campaign stories, but who 
 respect character, thoroughness and scholarship, 
 and you find he is a favorite. He is a favorite 
 everywhere, even with his enemies. And the Re 
 publican party, reunited again, will press its army 
 of voters, with its proudest banners, its greatest 
 enthusiasm, straight on to the fight, for Garfield 
 and glory. 
 
 And the second of November will decide what 
 
JAMES A. GARFIELD. 
 
 533 
 
 value the American nation places upon a man who 
 served it all his life with unflinching generosity 
 and patriotism. Shall it be written, reader, that 
 merit was recognized in the crown of success, or 
 must future historians record that once again a 
 republic was ungrateful ? 
 
LIFE OF 
 
 HON. CHESTER A. ARTHUR. 
 
"If I misappropriated a cent, and in walking down town, 
 saw two men talking on the corner together, I would 
 imagine that they were talking of my dishonesty, and the 
 very thought would drive me mad." Letter from Chester 
 A. Arthur to a friend, written while holding the position of 
 Quartermaster- General. 
 

 GENERAL CHESTER A. ARTHUR. 
 
CHAPTER I. 
 
 ARTHUR S EARLY LIFE. 
 
 HE exodus from foreign lands to this 
 
 country has, at all times, since the early 
 years of the present century, been re 
 markable for its steadiness though varying dur 
 ing the decades. A home in freedom and a chance 
 for a fortune in climes where centuries have not 
 bound with iron every man s position, is always 
 an incentive to brave spirits. 
 
 Among those who took the tide in its flow, at 
 the beginning of the twenties, was a young Pro 
 testant Irishman, from Ballymena, County Antrim, 
 who bore the name of William Arthur. He was 
 eighteen years of age, a graduate of Belfast Col 
 lege, arid thoroughly imbued with the intention of 
 becoming a Baptist clergyman, and advocating the 
 cause of Christ. In this he persevered, was ad 
 mitted to the ministry, took a degree of D. D. and 
 began a career of great usefulness, which did not 
 terminate until he died, at Newtonville, near Al 
 bany, October 27th, 1875. He was, in many re 
 spects, a remarkable man. He acquired a wide 
 fame in his chosen career, and entered success 
 fully the great competition of authors. He pub 
 lished a work on "Family Names" that is to-day 
 regarded as one of the curiosities of English 
 
533 
 
 LIFE AND PUBLIC CAREER OF 
 
 erudite literature. From 1855 to ^63, he was 
 pastor of the Calvary Baptist Church, in New 
 York City, and he, at other times, filled pulpits at 
 Bennington, Hinesburg, Fairfield and Williston, 
 in Vermont, and York, Perry, Greenwich and 
 Schnectady, Lansingburg, Hoosic, West Troy and 
 Newtonville, in the State of New York. 
 
 He married, not long after entering the minis 
 try, an American, Malvina Stone, who bore him 
 a family of two sons and five daughters. Of 
 these, Chester Allan, the subject of this sketch 
 and, to-day, nominee for Vice-President of the 
 United States on the Republican ticket, is the 
 oldest. 
 
 He was born at Fairfield, Franklin County, 
 Vermont, October 5th, 1830. After the troubles 
 of infancy were over he encountered those of 
 school-life, the early days of which were passed 
 under the tutelage of his father. From his home 
 studies he went to a wider field of instruction in 
 the institutions of Schenectady, in the gram 
 mar school of which place he was prepared for 
 entering Union College. This he did at the 
 age of fifteen (1845), an< ^ took successfully the 
 regular course, excelling in all his studies and 
 graduating very high in the class of 1848. He 
 was a member and took a deep interest in the Psi 
 Upsilon Society. During this time, like many an 
 other boy who graduated with honors from an 
 American college, he eked out his funds by teach- 
 
CUES TER A. AR TIIUR. 
 
 ing a country school. A letter, written about this 
 period, presents a truthful picture of what it 
 meant to teach school and "board round" with the 
 parents of those taught: 
 
 "The committee-man soon arrived, to transfer me to the 
 scene of my future labors. The committee was a puny man, 
 and, as afterward appeared, everything had been spared in 
 his mechanism, ethically as well as corporeally. His principal 
 features were his boots, which, like all Yankee s, were blacked 
 only on the frontispiece, he not wishing to invest anything 
 where he could not see the benefit. They had tremendous 
 lurid soles, probably to keep up the equilibrium between his 
 moral and physical system. Just imagine a young man, with 
 hope and expectation beaming on his countenance, with an 
 unruffled mem, in a yellow wagon, striped with green, like 
 all down East vehicles. Before me and attached to the con 
 cern was a vertebrated quadruped, an amalgamated specimen 
 of comparative anatomy and animal manikinism. From its 
 size it seemed to have been bought by weight, and from its 
 condition its present owner must have had charge of it be 
 fore the sale, with an eye to its purchase. It seemed to have 
 lived in carnivorous times, for all its flesh had departed and 
 each moment, as it passed, had taken a hair as a memento. 
 But now these mementos were gone, and the wind could 
 only moan a peace to its mane. However, under all these 
 circumstances, we at last arrived at an old fabrication on one 
 side of the road, called a house, the only claim to the title 
 being the presence of an immense chimney. The animal 
 portion of our establishment had come to a standstill, and it 
 seemed to be conclusive that this was our destination. 
 
 " We entered the domicile. Everything was fixed up, and 
 the old trunk being placed in the best room, the process of 
 getting acquainted commenced. This is very simple. For 
 two little quids climb up on your knee, ask for your knife 
 and offer to swop at once on terms very disadvantageous to 
 32 
 
c 40 LIFE AND PUBLIC CAREER OF 
 
 you, as they think you are green. To convince you that 
 there is no gammon, they test the temper of their blades 
 upon all that connects your buttons with your garments. 
 The head of the family talking at the same time, I was con 
 vinced that there were some words in the English language 
 that they did not know, and many out of it that I did not 
 understand. At tea the character of the family was reviewed 
 and the biographies of individuals were related in the most 
 plain and unequivocal terms. The materfamilias had a tongue 
 as glib as a great ant-eater, and it was used to the particular 
 detriment of her neighbors and to the praise of her own do 
 mestic arrangements, which certainly needed all. 
 
 " I am not an epicure, and if I had been, the peculiar ar 
 rangements of the college clubs would have eliminated all 
 such superfluous proclivities. The daily mode of living at 
 the committee s was the antipodes of epicureanism. In my 
 opinion, the diet of the Grahamites was as much superior to 
 it, as the feasts of the gods were to the daily meals of the 
 lazarone, Lazarus. It caused me to think how the frugal fare 
 of Zeno, the stoic, would have appeared under the domestic 
 arrangements of the harpies. For their distinct dietetical 
 system was founded more in accordance with the price of 
 corn and the requirements of the law in respect to a peck of 
 dirt than the physical condition of the partakers. My ex 
 amination for a teacher s certificate took place on the night 
 of my arrival, and it was highly interesting to witness the 
 feats of erudition before unheard of since the dark ages. 
 For they, being untrammeled by most of the customary forms 
 of language, were in a good situation to excite the wonder 
 ment of one so unsophisticated. 
 
 " On the morrow the hour for commencing the literary in 
 struction came, and with it the scholars. The school-house 
 was an old red fabric, situated at the cross-roads. Just behind 
 could be seen a few birches a grove in which the shrine of 
 education is often placed and the numberless broken boughs 
 showed that the worship depended very much upon the nature 
 
CHESTER A. ARTHUR. c , j 
 
 of the surrounding scenery. It was an old building, and had 
 occupied the same position in the community for many years. 
 It had sent forth many enterprising young men, as vendors of 
 the multifarious modifications of time, and as itinerent physi 
 cians for the vagaries of lunatic time-pieces. It had given a 
 turn to many a youngster s life that had gone with him to the 
 end. Spelling-schools numberless had taken place within its 
 walls; hearts had been lost and won; innumerable swop- 
 pings had been transacted ; the aromatic bark of birches 
 had wasted its sweetness on the obdurate back of the inveter 
 ate rogue. In the plastering above were the remains of the 
 blank leaves of many books having been reduced to a pulpy 
 state, by a process well-known to idle urchins, and then pro 
 jected with unerring aim to their destined location. Here the 
 weary pedagogue had spent his energies, and counted the 
 dragging hours in pouring knowledge through youthful heads, 
 wondering why the alphabet was not innate as a matter of con 
 venience. 
 
 " However, my school commenced. It was composed of 
 motley races of brats. There were nearly all the goddesses, 
 all the saints, and many of the wise-men of antiquity nomin 
 ally present. There was an African damsel, a score of as 
 pirants for alphabetical mastery, and many a specimen of the 
 Yankee swop -jack-knives. The most prominent object was 
 the oldest boy in school descanting upon the merits of some 
 wooden combs, and endeavoring to negotiate a sale with some 
 small boys. I should be happy to give the experience in the 
 school-room if time and space would permit. There was but 
 one battle a strong farmer s boy endeavored to overthrow 
 your humble servant, and his authority at the same time, but, 
 thanks to agility and gymnastic practice, there was a triumph 
 for the teacher. Beware of trusting to the statistical calcula 
 tions of committee-men in respect to the number of the 
 scholars, for they are as fallacious as the idea of getting your 
 pay. And, when you have over forty youngsters learning the 
 rudiments of an education, do not delude yourself by com 
 plying with the directions to hear them four times a day." 
 
LIFE AND PUBLIC CAREER OF 
 
 CHAPTER II. 
 
 ARTHUR AS A LAWYER. 
 
 ON graduating, the predilection young Ar 
 thur had shown during his college course 
 was allowed its opportunity, and he en 
 tered the law school at Ballston Springs. Two 
 years of study here, and he gravitated back to a 
 former occupation, teaching, accepting the place 
 of principal at the North Pownal Academy, Ben- 
 nington County, Vermont. This was in 1851. 
 By rigid economy and hard work he had managed 
 to save five hundred dollars, and with this in his 
 pocket he went to New York, and entered the law 
 office of Erastus D. Culver, afterward minister to 
 one of the South American States, and a judge 
 of the Civil Court of Brooklyn. Soon after enter 
 ing Judge Culver s office, he was in 1852 ad 
 mitted to the bar, and formed the firm of Culver, 
 Partsen & Arthur, which was dissolved in 1837. 
 No sooner had he won his title to appear in 
 the courts, than he formed a partnership with 
 an old friend, Henry D. Gardner, with an in 
 tention of practicing in the West, and for three 
 months these young gentlemen roamed through 
 the Western States in search of a place to lo 
 cate. In the end, not satisfied, they returned to 
 New York, and began a practice, successful al- 
 
CHESTER A. ARTHUR. ~ . ~ 
 
 most from the start, and which lasted ten years, 
 till 1865, when Mr. Arthur continued on alone. 
 
 Mr. Arthur, soon after being called to the bar, 
 married a daughter of Lieutenant Herndon, who 
 died last January, leaving two children, a son of 
 fourteen, and a daughter of eight. 
 
 The law career of Mr. Arthur includes some 
 notable cases. One of his first cases was the cele 
 brated Lemmon suit. In 1852 Jonathan and Juliet 
 Lemmon, Virginia slaveholders, intending to emi 
 grate to Texas, went to New York to await the 
 sailing of a steamer, bringing eight slaves with 
 them. A writ of habeas corpus was obtained from 
 Judge Paine to test the question whether the pro 
 visions of the Fugitive Slave law were in force in 
 
 o 
 
 that State. Judge Paine rendered a decision, 
 holding that they were not, and ordering the Lem 
 mon slaves to be liberated. Henry L. Clinton 
 was one of the counsel for the slaveholders. A 
 howl of rage went up from the South, and the 
 Virginia Legislature authorized the Attorney-Gen 
 eral of that State to assist in taking an appeal. 
 William M. Evarts and Chester A. Arthur were 
 employed to represent the people, and they won 
 their case, which then \vent to the Supreme Court 
 of the United States. Charles O Connor here 
 espoused the cause of the slaveholders, but he, 
 too, was beaten by Messrs. Evarts and Arthur, 
 and a long step was thus taken toward the eman 
 cipation of the black race. 
 
CAA LIFE AND PUBLIC CAREER OF 
 
 Even as late as 1856 colored people were not 
 permitted to ride on the Fourth Avenue street 
 cars. Lizzie Jennings, a colored woman of excel 
 lent character, superintendent of a Sunday-school, 
 was roughly expelled from a Fourth Avenue car 
 because she was black. She brought a suit against 
 the railroad company, and applied to Mr. Arthur 
 for advice. He accepted charge of the case, and 
 managed it before Judge Rockwell, in a Brooklyn 
 court. The jury gave a verdict of five hundred 
 dollars damages in favor of the colored woman. 
 The five hundred dollars was paid by the railroad 
 company, and the next day the company issued an 
 order to permit colored persons to ride on their 
 cars, and the other car companies quickly followed 
 their example. Before that the Sixth Avenue 
 Company ran a few special cars for colored per 
 sons, and the other lines refused to let them ride 
 at all. 
 
 At the outbreak of the war E. D. Morgan was 
 elected Governor of New York, and in making 
 up his staff he appointed Mr. Arthur engineer-in- 
 chief. He had just before this held the position 
 of Judge Advocate of the Second Brigade, State 
 Militia. He was a little later appointed inspector- 
 general, and soon after, January 2/th, 1862, was 
 advanced to the very important post of quarter 
 master-general, which he held until the expiration 
 of Morgan s term of office. In these offices he 
 did yeoman s service for the Government in the 
 
CHESTER A. ARTHUR. r , r 
 
 545 
 
 equipment of volunteers. Of his services then a 
 friend wrote : 
 
 "No higher encomium can be passed upon him than the 
 mention of the fact that, although the war account of the 
 State of New York was at least ten times larger than that of 
 any other State, yet it was the first audited and allowed in 
 Washington, and without the deduction of a single dollar, 
 while the quartermasters accounts from other States were re 
 duced from one to ten millions of dollars. During his in 
 cumbency every present sent to him was immediately returned. 
 Among others, a prominent clothing-house offered him a mag 
 nificent uniform, and a printing-house proffered a costly 
 saddle and trappings. Both gifts were indignantly rejected. 
 When he became quartermaster he was poor. When his term 
 expired he was poorer still. He had opportunities to make 
 millions unquestioned. Contracts larger than the world had 
 ever seen were at his disposal. He had to provide for the 
 clothing, arming and transportation of hundreds of thou 
 sands of men. So zealous was he of his integrity, that I have 
 known instances where he could have made thousands of 
 dollars legitimately and yet he refused to do it, on the ground 
 that he was a public officer and meant to be like Caesar s wife 
 above suspicion. His own words in regard to this amply 
 illustrate his character: If I misappropriated a cent, and 
 in walking down town saw two men talking on the corner 
 together, I would imagine that they w6re talking of my dis 
 honesty, and the very thought would drive me mad. 
 
 In July, 1862, he was invited to be present at a 
 secret meeting of the loyal governors, held in New 
 York, for discussing measures to provide troops 
 to carry on the war. He was the only person pres 
 ent who was not a governor. In the same year 
 he was on duty on the staff of Major-General 
 
546 
 
 LIFE AND PUBLIC CAREER OF 
 
 Hunt, in the Army of the Potomac, as inspector 
 of New York troops in the field. At the expira 
 tion of Governor Morgan s term, he returned to 
 his la w practice, and business of the most lucra 
 tive character poured in. Much of this work con 
 sisted in the collection of war claims and the draft 
 ing of important bills for speedy legislation. In 
 consequence, a great deal of his time was spent in 
 Albany and Washington, where his uniform suc 
 cess won him a national reputation. For a short 
 time he held the position of counsel to the Board 
 of Tax Commissioners, at a salary of ten thousand 
 dollars per annum. In 1871, he formed a partner 
 ship with Mr. Ransom, and later with Mr. Phelps, 
 the present district attorney of New York City, 
 and he is now the senior member of the firm of 
 Arthur, Phelps, Knevals & Ransom. 
 
 Like his predecessor, he is an ardent disciple of 
 Walton, and a member of the Restigouche Salmon 
 Fishing Club. He is a man of great culture and 
 wide experience, with manners of the utmost 
 geniality. He and his home are thus described : 
 
 "In person he is over six feet high, but he does 
 not resemble overmuch the pictures that the papers have 
 published of him. In these, as in his lithographic likenesses, 
 he is given an Arthur Sullivan chin, that double fold, 
 English, beefy and unpleasant. General Arthur has not this 
 actually. His face is full, fat and fair. It is clean shaven 
 except for the thin gray whiskers. - No one feature is more 
 marked than another, and yet to look at his placid eyes, it is 
 most natural and easy to believe that a greater intellectual 
 
CHESTER A. ARTHUR. 
 
 force exists behind their somewhat listless gaze than is at 
 first apparent. Being a lawyer he has that sense of judicial 
 fairness, that poise of manner and judgment that always com 
 bines to make a good presiding officer of any legislative body. 
 There is nothing about him of the politician, as so many 
 might suppose from the career he has led. He does not talk 
 in offensive accents, his voice is low and gentlemanly. He 
 dresses in perfect good taste ; at present, entirely in black. 
 He is fairly corpulent as his pictures very well suggest. His 
 hair is dark, his eyes are brown. 
 
 "There is little in Lexington Avenue to distinguish one 
 block from another. No. 123 is just one of the dozen in its 
 own particular block near Sixteenth Street. Here Chester A. 
 Arthur lives. Inside the house is exactly what was. to be ex 
 pected. It is a house in which gold and white was selected for 
 the drawing-room. At present all the beauties of furnishing 
 are beneath the homely ban of furniture covers. The gilt 
 gasoliers are swathed in musquito-net, so are the pictures. 
 Enough of these can, however, be seen to testify that the 
 dweller here is a man of correct taste. The cattle pieces are 
 all better than Verbockhoven ever drew; the quaint bit of still 
 life beside the mantle, looks to be, from where you sit, a gen 
 uine Teneirs. Its companion is, perhaps, an Ostade. Upon 
 the low book-cases, that contain some handsome volumes, are 
 some excellent bronzes, one a spirited group just over your 
 host s shoulder looks to be Russian handiwork. It certainly 
 is a Cossack horse. General Arthur undoubtedly has been a 
 traveler in his fancies, and yet, he is a man who cares for 
 cushions and comfort. His parlor has no stiff furniture. The 
 tete-a-tete is a very easy one, the arm-chairs are generous in 
 in proportion, and generous in stuffing. Near the fire-place 
 a handsome silk screen shows a monogram in rainbow-colored 
 silk, the work of deft fingers. But it is impossible to take a 
 mental inventory and participate in your host s conversation. 
 Turn your attention to him rather than his." 
 
548 
 
 LIFE AND PUBLIC CAREER OF 
 
 CHAPTER III. 
 
 ARTHUR IN POLITICS. 
 
 MR. ARTHUR always took an interest in 
 politics and the political surroundings of 
 his day. His political life began at the 
 age of fourteen, as a champion of the Whig 
 party. He shared, too, in the turbulence of 
 political life at that period, and it is related of him 
 during the Polk-Clay canvass that, while he and 
 some of his companions were raising an ash pole 
 in honor of Henry Clay, some Democratic boys 
 attacked the party of Whigs, and young Arthur, 
 who was the recognized leader of the party, or 
 dered a charge, and, taking the front ranks him 
 self, drove the young Democrats from the field 
 with broken heads and subdued spirits. He was 
 a delegate to the Saratoga Convention that 
 founded the Republican party in New York State. 
 He was active in local politics, and he gradually 
 became one of the leaders. He nominated, and 
 by his efforts elected the Hon. Thomas Murphy a 
 State Senator. When the latter resigned the 
 Collectorship of the Port, in November, 1871, he 
 was nominated by President Grant to the vacancy. 
 The nomination came to him as a great sur 
 prise. The post was offered to ex-Congressman 
 
CHESTER A. ARTHUR. 
 
 John A. Griswold, of Troy, and, on his declining, 
 to William Orton, who also declined. They both 
 joined in recommending General Arthur. He 
 was appointed November 2Oth. Upon the expi 
 ration of his four years term, he had so accepta 
 bly filled the post, that he was reappointed and 
 unanimously confirmed by the Senate without the 
 usual reference to a committee, a compliment 
 usually reserved for ex-Senators. He was re 
 moved by President Hayes on July I2th, 1878, 
 despite the fact that two special committees made 
 searching investigation into his administration, 
 and both reported themselves unable to find any 
 thing upon which to base a charge against him. 
 In their pronunciamentos announcing the change, 
 both President Hayes and Secretary Sherman 
 bore official witness to the purity of his acts while 
 in office. A petition for his retention was signed 
 by every Judge of every court in the city, by all 
 the prominent members of the bar, and by nearly 
 every important merchant in the collection dis 
 trict, but this General Arthur himself suppressed. 
 In a letter to Secretary Sherman, reviewing the 
 work of one of the investigating committees, 
 General Arthur produced statistics to show that 
 during his term of over six years in office the per 
 centage of removals was only two and three-quar 
 ters, against an annual average of about twenty- 
 eight per cent, under his three immediate prede 
 cessors, and an annual average of about twenty- 
 
LIFE AND PUBLIC CAREER OF 
 
 four per cent, since 1857. Of the nine hundred 
 and twenty-three persons in office prior to his ap 
 pointment, five hundred and thirty-one were still 
 retained on May ist, 1877. All appointments 
 except two to the one hundred positions com 
 manding salaries of two thousand dollars per 
 year were made on the plan of advancing men 
 from the lower to the higher grades on the re 
 commendation of heads of bureaus. The reforms 
 which General Arthur instituted in the methods 
 of doing business in the custom-house were as 
 numerous as they were grateful to the mercantile 
 community. Since his removal he has been en 
 gaged in the practice of the law, and in the direc 
 tion of Republican politics in the State, being 
 Chairman of the Republican State Committee, 
 and has always contributed greatly, by successful 
 management, to the success of the Republican 
 ticket. 
 
 He was nominated at Chicago for Vice-Presi- 
 dent, at the evening session of the convention, on 
 Tuesday, June loth. The convention met with 
 out plan in regard to completing the ticket. No 
 body cared for delay and the roll was promptly 
 called for nominations for Vice-President. 
 
 California presented E. B. Washburne ; Con 
 necticut brought out ex-Governor Jewell; Florida 
 handed in the name of Judge Settle ; Tennessee 
 urged Horace Maynard. But these attracted 
 little attention. Then ex-Lieutenant-Governor 
 
CHESTER A. ARTHUR. ,- rr i 
 
 Woodford rose in the New York delegation, and 
 standing upon his seat, and after a brief reference 
 to the loyal support which New York had given 
 to General Grant, said that New York could not 
 be behind any in support of the candidate nomi 
 nated to-day, and he presented the name of Gen 
 eral C. A. Arthur for the second place on the 
 ticket. The nomination was received with a 
 good deal of applause in the New York dele 
 gation. 
 
 It was seconded by Governor Dennison, of Ohio, 
 and immediately supported by a speech from 
 Storrs, of Illinois, in behalf of Arthur and a sug 
 gestion from Filley, of Missouri, that the nomina 
 tion be made by acclamation, it was apparent to 
 every one what had been going on during the re 
 cess Arthur had become Garfield s choice for 
 Vice-President, and the Ohio men, with the help 
 of the old guard of the Grant hosts, had arranged 
 to put him through. As a general thing, the 
 crowd had very little interest for another candi 
 date. They were impatient for a ballot, and 
 hooted at succeeding speakers. Hicks, of Florida, 
 finally withdrew Settle s name, and was followed 
 by Cessna, of Pennsylvania, who said that the 
 great Keystone State seconded Arthur s nomina 
 tion. A ballot was finally reached. Its result 
 was so generally foreseen that no particular con 
 cern was manifested over it. There was some 
 cheering, but the enthusiasm of this extraordinary 
 
LIFE AND PUBLIC CAREER OF 
 
 convention had about worn out. The ballot stood: 
 Arthur, 468; Washburne, 19; Maynard, 30; 
 Jewell, 44; Bruce, 8; Woodford, i; Davis, 2. 
 The nomination of Arthur was made unanimous, 
 on motion of California, and then a committee 
 of one from each State, with Senator Hoar for 
 chairman, was appointed to notify the candidates 
 of their nomination. Filley, of Missouri, then 
 got in a motion to adjourn sine die, which was 
 carried. 
 
 General Arthur, in returning to his home, ar 
 rived in New York on Wednesday evening, at 
 seven o clock, and met with a highly-flattering re 
 ception from his friends and fellow-citizens. A 
 multitude filled the sidewalks and the doors of the 
 Forty-second Street front of the depot at half-past 
 six, a more influential assemblage probably than 
 ever before gathered at that place ; for, instead of 
 the curiosity-seekers that have followed in the 
 wake of Presidents of the United States who have 
 entered the city or departed from it through the 
 Grand Central Depot, the men who waited on 
 that sidewalk and in the corridors were of New 
 York s best, assembled to attest their grateful 
 sense of the honor that a national convention had 
 bestowed upon one of their neighbors. There 
 were thirty-five members of the Ninth Ward Re 
 publican Association, and the associations in all 
 the Assembly districts were well represented. The 
 moment General Arthur stepped from the train, 
 
CHESTER A. ARTHUR. 
 
 " Three cheers for the next Vice-President of the 
 United States !" was shouted. They were given 
 with a will, and with them a tiger. Three more. 
 Then three cheers and a tiger for General Chester 
 A. Arthur, and the cheering was continued. The 
 general greeted a relative, and then shook hands 
 with Mr. Thomas A. Acton, Superintendent of the 
 Assay Office ; then with Colonel Charles Rikel, 
 of the Army and Navy Club, and then with Mr. 
 George Bliss, Justice Morgan, Mr. Benjamin K. 
 Phelps and Assistant District Attorney Daniel G. 
 Rollins. 
 
 Then turning to the multitude, who had ceased 
 their huzzas and were waiting for a speech, he 
 said : " I thank you for this kind reception, and 
 am glad to see your familiar faces again." Cheer 
 upon cheer followed, and the general, supported 
 by Mr. Thomas C. Acton and Mr. Sheridan Shook, 
 walked out and drove home. At night the Re 
 publicans of New York serenaded him, the ren 
 dezvous being made at the plaza, in Union Square, 
 at nine o clock. There was an immense turnout, 
 and the line marched in procession to his resi 
 dence, in Lexington Avenue, with music and fire 
 works. 
 
 General Arthur s acceptance of the nomination 
 is as follows : 
 
 YORK, July i5th, 1880. 
 
 DEAR SIR: I accept the position assigned me by the 
 great party whose action you announce. This acceptance 
 
 " 
 
CCA LIFE AND PUBLIC CAREER OF 
 
 implies approval of the principles declared by the convention, 
 but recent usage permits me to add some expression of my 
 own views. The right and duty to secure honesty and order 
 in popular elections is a matter so vital that it must stand in 
 front. The authority of the National Government to preserve 
 from fraud and force elections at which its officers are chosen 
 is a chief point on which the two parties are plainly and in 
 tensely opposed. Acts of Congress for ten years have, in 
 New York and elsewhere, done much to curb the violence and 
 wrong to which the ballot and the count have been again and 
 again subjected sometimes despoiling great cities, sometimes 
 stifling the voice of a whole State ; often seating, not only in 
 Congress, but on the bench, and in legislatures, numbers of 
 men never chosen by the people. The Democratic party, 
 since gaining possession of the two houses of Congress, has 
 made these just laws the object of bitter, ceaseless assault, 
 and, despite all resistance, has hedged them with restrictions 
 cunningly contrived to baffle and paralyze them. This ag 
 gressive majority boldly attempted to extort from the Execu 
 tive his approval of various enactments destructive of these 
 election laws, by revolutionary threats that a constitutional 
 exercise of the veto power would be punished by withholding 
 the appropriations necessary to carry on the Government. 
 And these threats were actually carried out by refusing the 
 needed appropriations, and by forcing an extra session of 
 Congress, lasting for months, and resulting in concessions to 
 this usurping demand, which are likely, in many States, to 
 subject the majority to the lawless will of a minority. Omi 
 nous signs of public disapproval alone subdued this arrogant 
 power into a sullen surrender, for the time being, of a part of 
 its demands. The Republican party has strongly approved 
 the stern refusal of its representatives to suffer the overthrow 
 of statutes believed to be salutary and just. It has always in 
 sisted, and now insists, that the Government of the United 
 States of America is empowered, and in duty bound to effec 
 tually protect the elections denoted by fhe Constitution as 
 national. 
 
CHESTER A. ARTHUR. 
 
 555 
 
 "More than this, the Republican party holds, as a cardinal 
 point in its creed, that the Government should, by every 
 means known to the Constitution, protect all American 
 citizens everywhere in the full enjoyment of their civil and 
 political rights. As a great part of its work of reconstruc 
 tion, the Republican party gave the ballot to the emanci 
 pated slave as his right and defense. A large increase in the 
 number of members of Congress, and of the Electoral Col 
 lege, from the former slave-holding States, was the imme 
 diate result. The history of recent years abounds in evi 
 dence that in many ways and in many places especially 
 where their number has been great enough to endanger Demo 
 cratic control the very men by whose elevation to citizen 
 ship this increase of representation was effected have been 
 debarred and robbed of their voice and their vote. It is 
 true that no State statute or Constitution in so many words 
 denies or abridges the exercise of their political rights; but 
 the modes employed to bar their way are no less effectual. 
 It is a suggestive and startling thought that the increased 
 power derived from the enfranchisement of a race now de 
 nied its share in governing the country wielded by those 
 who lately sought the overthrow of the Government is now 
 the sole reliance to defeat the party which represented the 
 sovereignty and nationality of the American people in the 
 greatest crisis of our history. Republicans cherish none of 
 the resentments which may have animated them during the 
 actual conflict of arms. They long for a full and real recon 
 ciliation between the sections which were needlessly and la 
 mentably at strife ; they .sincerely offer the hand of good 
 will, but they ask in return a pledge of good faith. They 
 deeply feel that the party, whose career is so illustrious in 
 great and patriotic achievement, will not fulfill its destiny 
 until peace and prosperity are established in all the land, nor 
 until liberty of thought, conscience and action, and equality 
 of opportunity shall be not merely cold formalities of statute, 
 but living birthrights, which the humble may confidently 
 claim and the powerful dare not deny. 
 33 
 
556 
 
 LIFE AND PUBLIC CAREER OF 
 
 "The resolution referring to the public service seems to me 
 deserving of approval. Surely, no man should be the encum- 
 bent of an office the duties of which he is, for any cause, un 
 fit to perform, who is lacking in the ability, fidelity, or 
 integrity which a proper administration of such office 
 demands. This sentiment would doubtless meet with general 
 acquiescence, but opinion has been widely divided upon the 
 wisdom and practicability of the various reformatory schemes 
 which have been suggested, and of certain proposed regula 
 tions governing appointments to public office. The efficiency 
 of such regulations have been distrusted, mainly because they 
 have seemed to exalt mere educational and abstract tests 
 above general business capacity, and even special fitness for 
 the particular work in hand. It seems to me that the rules 
 which should be applied to the management of the public ser 
 vice may properly conform, in the main, to such as regulate 
 the conduct of successful private business. Original appoint 
 ments should be based upon ascertained fitness. The tenure 
 of office should be stable. Positions of responsibility should, 
 so far as practicable, be filled by the promotion of worthy 
 and efficient officers. The investigation of all complaints, 
 and the punishment of all official misconduct, should be 
 prompt and thorough. These views, which I have long held, 
 repeatedly declared and uniformly applied when called upon 
 to act, I find embodied in the resolution, which, of course, I 
 approve. I will add that, by the acceptance of public office, 
 whether high or low, one does not, in my judgment, escape 
 any of his responsibilities as a citizen, or lose or impair any 
 of his rights as a citizen, and that he should enjoy absolute 
 liberty to think and speak and act in political matters ac 
 cording to his own will and conscience, provided only that 
 he honorably, faithfully and fully discharges all his official 
 duties. 
 
 "The resumption of specie payments one of the fruits of 
 Republican policy has brought the return of abundant pros 
 perity, and the settlement of many distracting questions. 
 
CHESTER A. ARTHUR. 
 
 The restoration of sound money, the large reduction of our 
 public debt and of the burden of interest, the high advancement 
 of the public credit, all attest the ability and courage of the 
 Republican party to deal with such financial problems as may 
 hereafter demand solution. Our paper currency is now as 
 good as gold, and silver is performing its legitimate function 
 for the purpose of change. The principles which should 
 govern the relations of these elements of the currency are 
 simple and clear. There must be no deteriorated coin, no 
 depreciated paper. And every dollar, whether of metal or 
 paper, should stand the test of the world s fixed standard. 
 
 " The value of popular education can hardly be overstated. 
 Although its interests must of necessity be chiefly confided to 
 voluntary effort and the individual action of the several States, 
 they should be encouraged, so far as the Constitution permits, 
 by the generous co-operation of the National Government. 
 The interests of the whole country demand that the advan 
 tages of our common school system should be brought within 
 the reach of every citizen, and that no revenues of the nation 
 or of the State should be devoted to the support of sectarian 
 schools. 
 
 " Such changes should be made in the present tariff and 
 system of taxation, as will relieve any over-burdened industry 
 or class, and enable our manufacturers and artisans to com 
 pete successfully with those of other lands. 
 
 "The Government should aid works of internal improve 
 ment national in their character, and should promote the de 
 velopment of our water-courses and harbors wherever the 
 general interests of commerce require. 
 
 " Four years ago, as now, the nation stood at the threshold 
 of a presidential election, and the Republican party, in so 
 liciting a continuance of its ascendency, founded its hopes of 
 success, not upon its promises, but upon its history. Its sub 
 sequent course has been such as to strengthen the claims 
 which it then made to the confidence and support of the 
 country. On the other hand, considerations more urgent 
 
558 
 
 LIFE AND PUBLIC CAREER OF 
 
 than have ever before existed forbid the accession of its op 
 ponents to power. Their success, if success attends them, 
 must chiefly come from the united support of that section which 
 sought the forcible disruption of the Union, and which, ac 
 cording to all the teachings of our past history, will demand 
 ascendency in the councils of the party to whose triumph it 
 will have made by far the largest contribution. 
 
 "There is the gravest reason for apprehension that ex 
 orbitant claims upon the public treasury, by no means limited 
 to the hundreds of millions already covered by bills intro 
 duced in Gongress within the past four years, would be suc 
 cessfully urged if the Democratic party should succeed in 
 supplementing its present control of the National Legislature 
 by electing the Executive also. 
 
 " There is danger in intrusting the control of the whole 
 law-making power of the Government to a party which has 
 in almost every Southern State repudiated obligations quite 
 as sacred as those to which the faith of the nation now stands 
 pledged. 
 
 " I do not doubt that success awaits the Republican party, 
 and that its triumph will assure a just, economical and pa 
 triotic administration. I am respectfully, your obedient 
 servant, 
 
 "C. A. ARTHUR." 
 To the HON. GEORGE F. HOAR, President of the Republican National 
 
 Convention. 
 
APPENDIX. 
 
It is as much the duty of all good men to protect and de 
 fend the reputation of worthy public servants as to detect and 
 punish public rascals. 
 
 "A Century in Congress," by J. A. Garfield, in the Atlantic Monthly 
 for August, 1877. 
 
APPENDIX. 
 
 561 
 
 CHAPTER I. 
 
 A VICTIM TO SUCCESS. 
 
 PARTISAN malignity knows no rest, it is active as the 
 breeze and as omnipresent. No opponent is ever 
 allowed to live unmolested by its storm of abuse. If 
 nothing can be said against him with truth, some slender 
 thread of innocent fact is taken and twisted and woven into a 
 cloth of most damning color, from which allegations and 
 slanders illimitable are cut with wholesale recklessness. No 
 innocence of motive, no purity of action is ever allowed. No 
 matter, a long life of daily demonstrated honesty before 
 the action so frantically condemned ; no matter, a purity of 
 existence afterward, that is but a later link in the chain of a 
 perfect life, and a proof of the victim s integrity. He belongs 
 to a different party, and so belonging, must suffer. The ac 
 ceptance of office is the signal for the attack. Henceforth, 
 there is no peace, the word of the accused counts for nothing, 
 the defense of his friends is equally valueless, and should there 
 be those among his enemies who, believing, have the courage 
 to affirm his innocence, their testimony is jeered at by their. 
 own friends as being prompted by motives of personal feeling 
 rather than justice. Nothing is allowed to be true, honest or 
 decent. Everything on the opposite side is black, black, 
 black. Public virtue is a thing of the past, public vice the 
 only merit of the present. You are a pure, high-minded 
 statesman, if you are of my party ; if you are my enemy, you 
 are a thief, a liar and a perjurer ! 
 
 No man of abiMty ever passes through a term at the na 
 tional capital without knowing what partisan malignity means. 
 The little men of government may escape it, but not the 
 great. The very humanity of a great man leads him, now 
 
562 
 
 APPENDIX. 
 
 and then, into errors, the innocent commission of which will 
 prove the text for more personal abuse than he, in his opti 
 mism ever imagined to exist. He shoots his arrow in all confi 
 dence that he is doing no more than his ever-constant probity 
 directs as his duty ; he has not selected the arrow with suffi 
 ciently careful eye, it returns and wounds him. Because it 
 was a skillfully-arranged trick of his enemies. For trusting 
 too much to the honesty of others, for thinking that the great 
 men around him are men of character, for believing that this 
 world is good, rather than bad, he is tried at the bar of par 
 tisan public opinion, condemned with lightning-like parti 
 ality and execrated as a moral criminal for that he did not 
 hold his associates to be criminals, and consort with them 
 accordingly. 
 
 This was the experience of James A. Garfield at the na 
 tional capital. And we introduce here the subject of his con 
 nection with the Credit Mobilier affair, the De Golyer Pave 
 ment Contract and the Salary Grab, not because there is any 
 necessity for restating his innocence sufficiently established 
 over and over again but because, if we did not, there are those 
 so mentally lopsided as to hasten to affirm that we believed in 
 the charges, because we made no mention of them. Rather 
 than permit a misconception, we give the space necessary to 
 effectually lay the matters forever at rest. 
 
 The three matters to be examined are the Credit Mobilier 
 scandal, the De Golyer Contract and the Salary Grab. We 
 will take them in their order. 
 
 For the benefit of the reader, an explanation of what the 
 Credit Mobilier was, is necessary: The Credit Mobilier 
 Company was a corporation organized under the laws of the 
 State of Pennsylvania, and authorized by its charter to pur 
 chase and sell various kinds of securities and to make ad 
 vances of money and credit to railroad and other improve 
 ment companies. The class of business described in its 
 charter, was such as, if honestly conducted, the most upright 
 citizen might properly engage in. On the i6th of August, 
 
APPENDIX. 
 
 563 
 
 1867, Oakcs Ames made a contract with the Union Pacific 
 Railroad Company to build six hundred and sixty-seven 
 miles of road, from the one hundredth meridian westward, 
 for an amount aggregating forty-seven million nine hundred 
 and twenty-five thousand dollars in cash, or in the securities 
 of the company. On the i5th of October, 1867, a triple con 
 tract was made between Mr. Ames of the first part, seven per 
 sons as trustees of the second part, and the Credit Mobilier 
 Company of the third part, by the terms of which the Credit 
 Mobilier Company was to advance money to build the road 
 and to receive thereon seven per cent, interest and two and 
 a half per cent, commission ; the seven trustees were to exe 
 cute the Ames contract and the profits were to be divided 
 among them and such other stockholders of the Credit Mo 
 bilier Company as should deliver to them an irrevocable 
 proxy to vote the stock of the Union Pacific held by them. 
 The principal stockholders of the Credit Mobilier Company 
 were also holders of a majority of the stock of the Union 
 Pacific Railroad. On the face of this agreement, the part to 
 be performed by the Credit Mobilier as a corporation was 
 simple and unobjectionable, being simply to advance money to 
 the contractors and to receive therefor about ten per cent, as 
 interest and commissions. But the facts were that a ring in 
 side the Credit Mobilier obtained the control both of that 
 corporation and of the profits of the Ames contract. The 
 day after the triple contract was signed, by a private agree 
 ment made in writing, the seven trustees pledged themselves to 
 each other, so as to vote all the Pacific Railroad stock which 
 they held in their own right or by proxy, as to keep in power 
 all the members of the then existing Board of Directors of 
 the railroad company not appointed by the President of the 
 United States. By this agreement, a majority of the direc 
 tors were within the power of the seven trustees. 
 
 The result was that the Ames contract and the triple 
 agreement, amounted in fact to a contract made by seven 
 leading stockholders of the Pacific Railroad with themselves, 
 
APPENDIX. 
 
 so that the men who fixed the price at which the road would 
 be built, were the same men who would receive the profits of 
 the contract. Thus the guardians of a great public trust were 
 enabled to contract with themselves at an exorbitant price, 
 which virtually brought into their possession, as private indi 
 viduals, almost all the property of the railroad company. 
 The six hundred and sixty-seven miles covered by the con 
 tract included one hundred and thirty-eight miles already 
 completed the profits on which inured to the benefit of the 
 contractors. Before the connection with the Ames contract 
 the Credit Mobilier Company had already been engaged in 
 several non-remunerative enterprises, and its stock was below 
 par. The triple contract of October, 1867, gave it at once 
 considerable additional value. It should be borne in mind, 
 however, that the relations of the Credit Mobilier Company 
 to the seven trustees to the Oakes Ames contract, and to the 
 Pacific Railroad Company were known to but few persons, 
 and they kept them secret until long afterward. Nothing was 
 known of it to the general public until the facts were brought 
 out in the investigations. 
 
 In view of the facts as above stated, it is evident that a 
 purchaser of such shares of Credit Mobilier stock as were 
 brought under the operation of the triple contract, would be 
 a sharer in the profits derived by that arrangement from the 
 assets of the Pacific Railroad, a large part of which consisted 
 of bonds and lands granted to the road by the United States. 
 The holding of such stock by a member of Congress would 
 depend for its moral qualities wholly upon the fact whether 
 he did or did not know of the arrangement out of which the 
 profits, would come. If he knew of the fraudulent arrange 
 ment by which the lands and bonds of t>he United States de 
 livered to the Union Pacific Railroad Company, for the pur 
 pose of constructing its road, were to be paid out at enorm 
 ously extravagant rates, and the proceeds to be paid out as 
 dividends to a ring of stockholders made the Credit Mobilier 
 Company, he could not with any propriety hold such stock or 
 
APPENDIX. 
 
 565 
 
 agree to hold it or any of its proceeds. If it was morally 
 wrong to purchase it, it was morally wrong to hesitate whether 
 to purchase it or not. 
 
 That was the company and its operations, and we have 
 drawn the offense on its highest ethical ground. 
 
 Now, the charges against General Garfield, in connection 
 with the company, are as follows : 
 
 (i.) That Mr. Garfield, soon after the beginning of the 
 session of 1867-68, agreed to take ten shares of the stock of 
 the said company, at par and accrued interest. (2.) That 
 Oakes Ames paid to Mr. Garfield three hundred and twenty- 
 nine dollars, as a balance of dividends on stock in this dis 
 reputable transaction. (3.) That he was convicted of this by 
 the (Poland) committee that sat to investigate the Credit 
 Mobilier. (4.) That the committee, inferentially, in their 
 report accused Mr. Garfield of having lied in regard to the 
 affair. 
 
 In refuting these, let us take them up separately, as num 
 bered. First. On this point we have Mr. Garfield s testi 
 mony before the Poland committee (pp. 128, 129) : 
 
 "The first I ever heard of the Credit Mobilier was some 
 time in 1866 or 1867 I cannot fix the date when George 
 Francis Train called on me, and said he was organizing a 
 company to be known as the Credit Mobilier of America, to 
 be formed on the model of the Credit Mobilier of France; 
 that the object of the company was to purchase lands and 
 build houses along the line of the Pacific Railroad, at points 
 where cities and villages were likely to spring up ; that he 
 had no doubt the money thus invested would double or treble 
 itself each year ; that subscriptions were limited to one thou 
 sand dollars each, and he wished me to subscribe. He 
 showed me a long list of subscribers, among them Mr. Oakes 
 Ames, to whom he referred me for further information con 
 cerning the enterprise. I answered that I had not the money 
 to spare, and if I had, I would not subscribe without knowing 
 more about the proposed organization. Mr. Train left me, 
 saying he would hold a place open for me, and hoped I would 
 yet conclude to subscribe. The same day I asked Mr. Ames 
 what he thought of the enterprise. He expressed the opinion 
 
5 66 
 
 APPENDIX. 
 
 that the investment would be safe and profitable. I heard 
 nothing further on the subject for a year or more, and it was 
 almost forgotten, when some time during the long session of 
 1868 Mr. Ames spoke of it again, said the company had or 
 ganized, was doing well, and he thought would soon pay 
 large dividends. 
 
 " He said that some of the stock had been left, or was to 
 be left in his hands to sell, and I could take the amount which 
 Mr. Train had offered me by paying the one thousand dollars 
 and the accrued interest. He said if I was not able to pay 
 for it then, he would hold it for me till I could pay, or until 
 some of the dividends were payable. I told him I would 
 consider the matter; but would not agree to take any stock 
 until I knew, from the examination of the charter and the 
 conditions of the subscription, the extent to which I should 
 become pecuniarily liable. He said he was not sure, but 
 thought a stockholder would become liable only for the par 
 value of his stock ; that he had not the stock and papers with 
 him, but would have them after awhile. 
 
 "From the case, as presented, I probably should have 
 taken the stock, if I had been satisfied in regard to the extent 
 of pecuniary liability. Thus the matter rested for some time, 
 I think until the following year. During that interval I un 
 derstood that there were dividends due amounting to nearly 
 three times the par value of the stock. But, in the meantime 
 I had heard that the company was involved in some contro 
 versy with the Pacific Railroad, and that Mr. Ames right to 
 sell the stock was denied. When I next saw Mr. Ames, I 
 told him I had concluded not to take the stock. There the 
 matter ended, so far as I was concerned, and I had no further 
 knowledge of the company s operations until the subject began 
 to be discussed in the newspapers last fall. 
 " Nothing, was ever said to me by Mr. Train or Mr. Ames, 
 to indicate or imply that the Credit Mobilier was or could be 
 in any way connected with the legislation of Congress for the 
 Pacific Railroad, or for any other purposes. Mr. Ames never 
 gave, or offered to give, me any stock or other valuable thing 
 as a gift. I once asked and obtained from him, and after 
 ward repaid to him, a loan of three hundred dollars ; that 
 amount is the only valuable thing I ever received from or de 
 livered to him. 
 
 " I never owned, received, or agreed to receive any stock 
 of the Credit Mobilier, or of the Union Pacific Railroad, or 
 any dividend or profits arising from either of them." , 
 
APPENDIX. 
 
 567 
 
 Mr. Ames, on whose testimony all the charges against Mr. 
 Garfield are based, and about whose testimony we shall have 
 later to say a word, swore before the committee, four weeks 
 before Mr. Garfield gave his testimony: " I agreed to get ten 
 shares of stock for him, and hold it until he could pay for it. 
 He never did pay for it or receive it" (p. 21). Upon this 
 point, that the stock never was paid for or received, Ames 
 was always positive. On the first charge, therefore, that Mr. 
 Garfield agreed to take ten shares of stock, all there is to it is, 
 that he said he would consider the matter, and after consider 
 ing, told Mr. Ames that he concluded not to take the stock. 
 
 The second point enumerated against Mr. Garfield was 
 that Mr. Ames, in pursuance of his plan to continue the 
 legislation of Congress in favor of the schemes of the Credit 
 Mobilier, paid Mr. Garfield three hundred and twenty-nine 
 dollars. He is said to have done this because he desired 
 Mr. Garfield s influence. To do it, he considered the ten 
 shares offered to and refused by Mr. Garfield, as still stand 
 ing in his (Garfield s) name. The dividends on these, by 
 this time, amounted to the original purchase and three hun 
 dred and twenty-nine dollars additional. This three hun 
 dred and twenty-nine dollars additional, Mr. Ames then 
 says he paid to Mr. Garfield, telling him, of course, that his 
 stock was now all paid for. 
 
 We have above, Mr. Garfield s own sworn statement, that 
 he "never received any dividend or profits arising from the 
 Credit Mobilier or the Union Pacific Railroad." The tes 
 timony implicating the contrary is entirely from Mr. Ames, 
 and is as follows: 
 
 Page 28 Committee s Report: 
 
 Q. In reference to Mr. Garfield, you say that you agreed 
 to get the ten shares for him, and to hold them until he could 
 pay for them, and that he never did pay for them nor receive 
 them? A. Yes, sir. 
 
 Q. He never paid any money on that stock nor received 
 any money from it ? A, Not on account of it, 
 
568 
 
 APPENDIX. 
 
 Q. He received no dividends? A. No, sir; I think not. 
 He says he did not. My own recollection is not very clear. 
 
 Q. So that, as you understand, Mr. Garfield never parted 
 with any money, nor received any money on that trans 
 action? A. No, sir; he had some money from me once 
 some three or four hundred dollars and called it a loan. 
 He says that is all he ever received from me, and that he 
 considered it a loan. He never took his stock, and never 
 paid for it. 
 
 Q. Did you understand it so ? A. Yes ; I am willing so 
 to understand it. I do not recollect paying him any divi 
 dend, and have forgotten that I paid him any money. 
 
 Page 40 : 
 
 Q. Who received the dividends ? A. Messrs. Kelley and 
 Garfield never paid for their stock, and never received their 
 dividends. 
 
 Subsequently Mr. Ames, alleging that Mr. Garfield had 
 received three hundred and twenty-nine dollars from him as 
 dividend on his stock, attempted to prove it. He presented 
 to the committee a statement of an alleged acccount with 
 General Garfield, as follows : 
 
 J. A. G. Dr. 
 
 1868. To 10 shares stock Credit Mobilier of A., $1,000 
 
 Interest 47 
 
 June 10. To cash 329 
 
 Total $i>3?6 
 
 Cr. 
 
 1868. By dividend bonds Union Pacific Railroad 
 
 $1,000 at 80 per cent., less 3 per cent... $776 
 
 June 17. By dividend collected for your account, 600 
 
 Total i,37 6 
 
 This account he claimed to have made up from his memo 
 randum book, but when the memorandum book was subse 
 quently presented, it was found that the account here quoted 
 was not copied from it, but was partly made up from memory. 
 By comparing this account with the entry made in diary, as 
 
APPENDIX. 
 
 569 
 
 first quoted, it will be seen that they are not duplicates, either 
 in substance or form ; and that in this account a new element 
 is added, namely, an alleged payment of three hundred and 
 twenty-nine dollars in cash June ipth. This is the very ele 
 ment in dispute. The pretended proof that this sum was 
 paid General Garfield, is found in the production of a check 
 drawn by Mr. Ames on the sergeant-at-arms. The following 
 is the language of the check, as reported in the testimony : 
 
 "June 22d, 1868. 
 
 " Pay O. A. or bearer three hundred and twenty-nine dol 
 lars, and charge to my account. 
 
 " OAKES AMES." 
 
 This check bears no indorsement or other marks than the 
 words and figures given above. It was drawn on the 226. of 
 June, and, as shown by the books of the sergeant-at-arms, 
 was paid the same day. But if this check was paid to Gen 
 eral Garfield on the account just quoted, it must have been 
 delivered to him three days before it was drawn for the ac 
 count says that he received payment on the i9th of June. 
 
 Furthermore as to the check. There is absolutely nothing 
 but the testimony of Mr. Ames to connect Mr. Garfield with 
 it. Let us look at Mr. Ames testimony. After he had testi 
 fied that he paid Mr. Garfield the three hundred and twenty- 
 nine dollars as dividends on stock, he (Ames) was asked : 
 
 Page 295 : 
 
 Q. How was this paid ? A. Paid in money, I believe. 
 
 Page 297: 
 
 Q. You say that three hundred and twenty-nine dollars 
 was paid to him. How was that paid ? A. I presume by a 
 check on the sergeant-at-arms. I find there are checks filed 
 without indicating who they were for. 
 
 Page 353 : 
 
 Q. This check seems to have been paid by somebody, and 
 taken up by the sergeant-at-arms. Those initials are your 
 own ? A. Yes, sir. 
 
 Q. Do you know who had the benefit of this check? A. 
 I cannot tell you. 
 
APPENDIX. 
 
 Q. Do you think you received the money on it yourself? 
 A. I have no idea. I may have drawn the money and 
 handed it to another person. It was paid in that transaction. 
 It may have been paid to Mr. Garfield. There were several 
 sums of that amount. 
 
 Q. Have you any memory in regard to this check ? A. I 
 have no memory as to that particular check. 
 
 Page 35 4: 
 
 Q. In regard to Mr. Garfield, do you know whether you 
 gave him a check or paid him the money ? A. I think I did 
 not pay him the money. He got it from the sergeant-at-arms. 
 
 Page 355 : 
 
 Q. You think the check on which you wrote nothing to 
 indicate the payee, must have been Mr. Garfield s? A. Yes, 
 sir. That is my judgment. 
 
 Page 460 : 
 
 A. I am not sure how I paid Mr. Garfield. 
 
 Page 471 : 
 
 Q. In testifying in Mr. Garfield s case, you say you may 
 have drawn the money on the check and paid it him. Is 
 not your answer equally applicable to the case of Mr. Col- 
 fax? A. No, sir. 
 
 Q. Why not? A. I put Mr. Colfax s initials on the check, 
 while I put no initials on Mr. Garfield s and I may have 
 drawn the money myself. 
 
 Q. Did not Mr. Garfield s check belong to him? A. Mr. 
 Garfield had not paid for his stock. He was entitled to three 
 hundred and twenty-nine dollars balance. But Mr. Colfax 
 paid for his and I had no business with his twelve hundred 
 dollars. 
 
 Q. Is your recollection in regard to this payment to Mr. 
 Colfax any more clear than your recollection as to the pay 
 ment to Mr. Garfield ? A. Yes, sir. I think it is. 
 
 Finally, Mr. Dillon, cashier to the sergeant-at-arms, testi 
 fied. Page 479": 
 
 Q. There is a check payable to Oakes Ames or bearer. 
 Have you any recollection of that? A. That was paid to 
 himself. I have no doubt, myself, that I paid that to Mr. 
 Ames. 
 
 Now we ask the reader to remember that there is not one 
 jot or tittle of corroborative evidence. Everything injurious 
 to Mr. GurfK-ld is given above, and all of Mr. Ames s testi- 
 
APPENDIX. 
 
 mony concerning Mr. Garfield is quoted. Consequently, we 
 are asked to believe that he was guilty of bribery and corrup 
 tion because Mr. Ames says in one of seven paragraphs quoted 
 that he paid Mr. Garfield money; in another that he may 
 have paid Mr. Garfield the money ; and in three of them he 
 thinks or presumes that he paid Mr. Garfield a check ; and 
 in the other two he says he doesn t know. 
 
 Is this any kind of evidence to any fair thinking man ? 
 
 On the contrary, Mr. Garfield " affirms with perfect dis 
 tinctness of memory" that he "received no check from Mr. 
 Ames." 
 
 The only money he ever received from him was in cur 
 rency, a loan of three hundred dollars, which he repaid him, 
 and which Mr. Ames acknowledged in a note to Mr. Garfield 
 on January i5th, 1873. 
 
 Now, as to the third and fourth accusations that he was con 
 victed of this by the committee, and that that committee infer- 
 entially charged him with lying. The report, on pages viii and 
 ix, says of Representatives Elaine, Dawes, Scofield, Bingham, 
 Kelley and Garfield, that " the committee do not find " that 
 " they were aware of the object of Mr. Ames, or that they had 
 any other purpose in taking this stock," so far as any of them 
 did take it, "than to make a profitable investment;" that "the 
 committee have not been able to find that any of these mem 
 bers of Congress have been affected in their official action in 
 consequence of their interest in the Credit Mobilier stock," 
 so far as they had any interest ; that " the committee do not 
 find" that any of them, "in contracting with Mr. Ames," so 
 far as they did contract, "had any corrupt motive or purpose," 
 or were " aware that Mr. Ames had any." That is to say, the 
 committee holds all the members named, with the two excep 
 tions specified, guiltless of bribery and corruption. But, say 
 the accusers, the committee, while it reports Garfield to be 
 innocent in this respect, inferentially declares him to be guilty 
 of lying. Here is the passage referring particularly to Gar- 
 field (p. vii) : 
 
 34 
 
APPENDIX. 
 
 "He (Garfield) agreed with Mr. Ames to take ten shares 
 of Credit Mobilier stock, but did not pay for the same. Mr. 
 Ames received the eighty per centum dividend in bonds, and 
 sold them for ninety-seven per centum, and also received the 
 sixty per centum cash dividend, which, together with the 
 price of the stock and interest, left a balance of $329. This 
 sum was paid over to Mr. Garfield by a check on the ser- 
 gant-at-arms, and Garfield then understood this sum was the 
 balance of dividends after paying for the stock. Mr. Ames 
 received all the dividends, and the committee do not find 
 that, since the payment of the 329, there has been any com 
 munication between Mr. Ames and Garfield on the subject 
 until this investigation began." 
 
 This is all that there is in the report reflecting injuriously, 
 even by inference, upon Garfield. The committee, as we 
 have already seen, specifically acquits him of all wrong-doing 
 in the matter. So far as the report reflects upon him at all, 
 it does so by adopting the view of Oakes Ames rather than 
 the view of Garfield of the negotiation of contract between 
 them a vague negotiation and a skeleton contract even upon 
 Ames own showing. 
 
 Our readers can judge for themselves which view to take ; 
 Mr. Garfield s direct denial or the hazy, everyway contradic 
 tory presumptions of Mr. Ames. 
 
 It was but natural that Mr. Garfield should defend him 
 self from the accusations. He did so vigorously and 
 thoroughly, leaving his record as unstained as it was before he 
 entered Congress. He said : 
 
 "That I neither purchased nor agreed to purchase the 
 Credit Mobilier stock which Mr. Ames offered to sell me, nor 
 did I receive any dividend arising from it. This appears not 
 only from my own testimony, but from that first given by Mr. 
 Ames, which is not overthrown by his subsequent statements, 
 and is strongly confirmed by the fact that in the case of each 
 of those who did purchase the stock there was produced as 
 evidence of the sale either a certificate of stock, receipt of 
 payment, a check drawn in the name of the payee or entries 
 in Mr. Ames diary of a stock account marked adjusted and 
 < luscd, but that no one of these evidences existed in reference 
 
APPENDIX. 
 
 to me. This position is further confirmed by the subsequent 
 testimony of Mr. Ames, who, though he claimed that I did 
 receive three hundred and twenty-nine dollars from him on 
 account of stock, yet he repeatedly testified that beyond that 
 amount, I never received or demanded any dividend, that 
 none was ever offered to me, nor was the subject alluded to 
 in conversation. Mr. Ames admitted in his testimony that 
 after December, 1867, the various stock and bond dividends 
 amounted to an aggregate of more than eight hundred per 
 cent., and that between January, 1868, and May, 1871, all 
 these dividends were paid to several of those who purchased 
 stock. My conduct was wholly inconsistent with the suppo 
 sition of such ownership, for during the year 1869 I was bor 
 rowing money to build a house in Washington, and securing 
 my creditors by mortgages on my property ; and all this time 
 it was admitted that I received no dividends and claimed 
 none. The attempt to prove a sale of the stock to me is 
 wholly inconclusive, for it rests, first, on a check payable to Mr. 
 Ames himself, concerning which, he said several times in his 
 testimony he did not know to whom it was paid ; and, second, 
 upon loose undated entries in his diary, which neither prove 
 a sale of the stock nor any payment on it. The only fact 
 from which it is possible for Mr. Ames to have inferred an 
 agreement to buy the stock was the loan to me of three hun 
 dred dollars. But that loan was made months before the 
 check of June 22d, 1868, and was repaid in the winter of 1869, 
 and after that date there were no transactions of any sort be 
 tween us, and before the investigation was ended Mr. Ames 
 admitted that on the chief point of difference between us he 
 might be mistaken. 
 
 " That the offer which Mr. Ames made to me, as I under 
 stood it, was one which involved no wrong or impropriety. 
 I had no means of knowing and had no reason for supposing 
 that behind this offer to sell me a small amount of stock lay 
 hidden a scheme to defraud the Pacific Railroad and imperil 
 the interest of the United States, and on the first intimation 
 of the real nature of the case, I declined any further consid 
 eration of the subject. That whatever may have been the 
 facts in the case, I stated them in my testimony as I have al 
 ways understood them ; and there has been no contradiction, 
 prevarication or evasion on my part." 
 
 In winding up his review of the whole matter. General 
 Garfield uses the following language : 
 
APPENDIX. 
 
 "If there be a citizen of the United States who is willing to 
 believe that for three hundred and twenty-nine dollars I have 
 bartered away my good name and to falsehood have added 
 perjury, these words are not addressed to him. If there be one 
 who thinks that any part of my public life has been gauged on 
 so low a level as these charges would place it, I do not address 
 him. I address those who are willing to believe that it is pos 
 sible for a man to serve the public without personal dishonor. 
 I have endeavored in this review to point out the means by 
 which the managers of a corporation, wearing a garb of 
 honorable industry have robbed and defrauded a great na 
 tional enterprise, and attempted by cunning and deception, 
 for selfish ends, to enlist in its interests those who would have 
 been the first to crush the attempt had their objects been 
 known. 
 
 "If any of scheming corporations or corrupt rings that 
 have done so much to disgrace the country by their attempts 
 to control its legislation, have ever found in me a conscious 
 supporter or ally in any dishonorable scneme, they are at full 
 liberty to disclose it. In the discussion of the many grave 
 and difficult questions of public policy which have occupied 
 the thoughts of the nation during the last twelve years, I 
 have borne some part, and I confidently appeal to the public 
 records for a vindication of my conduct." 
 
 All minor charges growing out of the above principal ones, 
 it is not necessary to discuss, as they naturally fall to the 
 ground with the collapse of the main accusations. 
 
 Perhaps the reader may say to himself here, that the au 
 thor s admiration for the subject of his sketch has colored 
 his views in regard to this transaction. To meet this we 
 oppose, first, the absolute faith and confidence in General 
 Garfield held by all Republicans, notably so those of Ohio, 
 who investigated their representative, only to reaffirm their 
 belief in his positive consistent integrity. 
 
 Judge Poland, chairman of the investigating committee, 
 expressed himself the other day thus : 
 
 "At the time of the investigation the public mind was 
 greatly excited on the subject, and it involved the character 
 and reputation of so many prominent men, that probably no 
 
APPENDIX. 
 
 mere personal matter ever was so thoroughly canvassed and 
 discussed by the reading and intelligent people of this coun 
 try. After the most exhaustive discussion and reflection, the 
 judgment of the people of this country was made up as to each 
 man who was named as connected with it. Saying nothing 
 in regard to any other man, I think I may most truthfully say 
 that this public and popular judgment fully and absolutely 
 acquitted General Garfield of all wrong, either in act or in 
 tent, in relation to the matter. No man could have been 
 continued in public life, and constantly risen in public stand 
 ing and in the public estimation, by the consent and approval 
 of the best men of both parties, as General Garfield has, if 
 there existed a suspicion of wrong-doing against him. I re 
 gard this popular and continued verdict of the people as con 
 clusive." 
 
 Second, we oppose the opinions of some of the more 
 prominent Democrats. The Hon. Henry B. Payne, of Cleve. 
 land; the Hon. Allen G. Thurman, of Ohio; Henry Watter- 
 son, of Kentucky, and others equally prominent, have all 
 declared their belief in General Garfield s absolute incor 
 ruptibility, and his entire integrity, during his long public 
 career. That they are in good company in so believing and 
 testifying, the following letter will prove : 
 
 " PHILADELPHIA, Februrary i5th, 1873. 
 
 "Mv DEAR SIR: From the beginning of the investigation 
 concerning Mr. Ames use of the Credit Mobiiier, I believed 
 that General Garfield was free from all guilty connection with 
 that business. This opinion is founded not merely on my 
 confidence in his integrity, but on some special knowledge of his 
 case. I may have told you all about it in conversation, but I 
 desire now to repeat it by way of a reminder. 
 
 "I assert unhesitatingly that, whatever General Garfield 
 may have done or forborne to do, he acted in profound igno 
 rance of the nature and character of the thing which Mr. 
 Ames was proposing to sell. He had not the slightest suspi 
 cion that he was to be taken into a ring organized for the pur 
 pose of defrauding the public, nor did he know that the stock 
 was in any manner connected with anything which came, or 
 could come, within the legislative jurisdiction of Congress. 
 
576 
 
 APPENDIX. 
 
 The case against him lacks the scientcr which alone constitutes 
 guilt. 
 
 " In the winter of 1869- 70, I told General Garfield of the 
 fact that his name was on Ames list ; that Ames charged him 
 with being one of his distributees ; explained to him the char 
 acter, origin and objects of the Credit Mobilier; pointed 
 out the connection it had with Congressional legislation, and 
 showed him how impossible it was for a member of Congress 
 to hold stock in it without bringing his private interests in 
 conflict with his public duty. That all this was to him a per 
 fectly new revelation I am as sure as I can be of such a fact, or 
 of any fact which is capable of being proved only by moral cir 
 cumstances. He told me then the whole story of Train s offer 
 to him and Ames subsequent solicitation, and his own action in 
 the premises, much as he details it to the committee. I do not 
 undertake to reproduce the conversation, but the effect of it 
 all was to convince me thoroughly that when he listened to 
 Ames he was perfectly unconscious of anything evil. I 
 watched carefully every word that fell from him on this point, 
 and did not regard his narrative of the transaction in other 
 respects with much interest, because in my view everything 
 else was insignificant. I did not care whether he had made a 
 bargain technically binding or not; his integrity depended 
 upon the question whether he acted with his eyes open. If he 
 had known the true character of the proposition made to him 
 he would not have endured it, much less embraced it. 
 
 "Now, couple this with Mr. Ames admission that he gave 
 no explanation whatever of the matter to General Garfield, 
 then reflect that not a particle of proof exists to show that he 
 learned anything about it previous to his conversation with 
 me, and I think you will say that it is altogether unjust to put 
 him on the list of those who knowingly and willfully joined 
 the fraudulent association in question. 
 
 " J. S. BLACK. 
 " HON. J. G. ELAINE, Speaker of the House of Representatives." 
 
 And one further word, from Bonn Piatt, who went into this 
 matter thoroughly : 
 
 "General Garfield, personally considered, is singularly 
 pure and upright. He is one of the few men in public life 
 who can look his beautiful little wife and lovely children in 
 the face without shame. We say this advisedly, for we have 
 
APPENDIX. 
 
 known General Garfield intimately all his public life, and we 
 can advise the mud machine, called partisan papers, that at 
 tempts at blackmailing Garfield s character will be signal 
 failures, and will be met by protests from such eminent Demo 
 crats as the Hons. Jeremiah Black, Allen G. Thurman and 
 Justice Field, who have already put themselves to record in 
 his behalf. Garfield s purity is so thorough that it gives him 
 a perilous confidence in men, and has gotten him into trouble, 
 precisely as a confiding boy gets into scrapes. In that Credit 
 Mobilier affair, for example, we know, and have so testified, 
 that at the very time it was claimed he was scheming to en 
 rich himself through Ames rascality, he was shinning 
 about Washington, striving to borrow $300 to pay house rent, 
 and so ignorant of the commonest financial process that he 
 did not know how to negotiate an ordinary note of hand. He 
 has not only lived in the open air, but has occupied positions 
 where, like other leaders, he could have winked himself into 
 millions. He holds to-day the honored position of being the 
 only poor man among the political leaders." 
 
 Republican papers have naturally acquitted him, openly, 
 frankly, fully. Such of the independent papers as are entitled 
 to that name, and have not adopted it as a cover to obtain a 
 wider publicity for doctrines that do not thrive when printed 
 in an openly Democratic organ, have also acquitted him. 
 One of the best of the honestly independent papers is the 
 Boston Herald. It said of Garfield, and its words may be 
 taken as representing that class: "Nobody but an idiot, 
 moved by partisan rage or the necessity for bread and butter, 
 would dare accuse Garfield of dishonesty. 
 
5/3 
 
 APPENDIX. 
 
 CHAPTER II. 
 
 WE will now consider the rest of the charges. The 
 second set relate to the De Golyer Contract for 
 wood pavement in the city of Washington. 
 
 The charges are: (i.) That in the year 1872 General 
 Garfield received a counsel fee of five thousand dollars from 
 De Golyer and McClelland, the owners of a patent for wood 
 pavement which was laid down at a great cost in the streets 
 of the city of Washington, under a contract with the Gov 
 ernment of the District of Columbia. (2.) That he did no 
 counsel work in the case. (3.) That the money was paid for 
 no other purpose than to influence his conduct as a member 
 of the Congress by which an appropriation for this wood 
 pavement was made, and especially as Chairman of the Com 
 mittee on Appropriations of the House of Representatives. 
 
 In regard to them, General Garfield testified before the In 
 vestigating Committee : 
 
 "The whole story is plainly and briefly told. A day or 
 two before the adjournment of the Congress which adjourned 
 in the latter part of May or the first part of June, 1872, 
 Richard C. Parsons, who was a practicing lawyer in Cleve 
 land, but was then the Marshal of the Supreme Court, and an 
 old acquaintance of mine, came to my house and said that he 
 was called away summarily by important business; that he 
 was retained in a case on which he had spent a great deal of 
 time, and that there was but one thing remaining to be done, 
 to make a brief of the relative merits of a large number of 
 wooden pavements ; that the board of public works had 
 agreed that they would put down a certain amount of wooden 
 pavement in the city, a certain amount of concrete, and a 
 certain amount of other kinds of pavement ; that they had 
 fixed the price at which they would put down each of the dif 
 ferent kinds, and that the only thing remaining was to deter- 
 
APPENDIX. 
 
 mine which was the best pavement of each of these several 
 kinds. He said he should lose his fee unless the brief on the 
 merits of these pavements was made, and that he was sud 
 denly and necessarily called away home ; and he asked me to 
 prepare the brief. He brought his papers to my house, and 
 models of the pavement. I told him I could not look at the 
 case until the end of the session. When Congress adjourned 
 I sat down to the case in the most open manner, as I would 
 prepare a brief for the Supreme Court, and worked upon this 
 matter. There were, perhaps, forty kinds of wood pavement, 
 and several chemical analyses of the ingredients of the differ 
 ent pavements. I went over the whole ground carefully and 
 thoroughly, and prepared a brief on the relative claims of 
 these pavements for the consideratipn of the board. That 
 was all I did. I had nothing to do with the terms of the con 
 tract ; I knew nothing of its conditions, and I never had a 
 word to say about the price of the pavement. I knew noth 
 ing about it. I simply made a brief upon the relative merits 
 of the various patent pavements; and it no more occurred to 
 me that the thing I was doing had relation to a ring, or to a 
 body of men connected with a scheme, or in any way con 
 nected with Congress, or related in any way to any of my. 
 duties in connection with the Committee on Appropriations, 
 than it occurred to me that it was interfering with your per 
 sonal rights as a citizen. I prepared the brief and went 
 home. Mr. Parsons subsequently sent me a portion of his 
 own fee. 
 
 "A year later, when the affairs of the District of Columbia 
 came to be overhauled, Congress became satisfied that the 
 government of the District had better be abolished, and this 
 whole matter was very thoroughly investigated by a commit 
 tee of the two Houses. They went into the question of the 
 merits of this pavement, some claiming that it was bad, and 
 some claiming that the Government had paid too much for it. 
 Mr. Chittenden was called as a witness. I ought to say here 
 that I never saw Mr. Chittenden until about the time I made 
 the brief; I did not and do not know De Golyer and McClel 
 land ; I would not know them on the street; I am not aware 
 that I ever saw Mr. Nickerson before; and if anybody in this 
 business had any scheme relating to me, it was never men 
 tioned to me in the remotest way. It never was suggested to 
 me that this matter could relate to my duties as a member of 
 Congress in any way whatever. All that I did was done 
 
APPENDIX. 
 
 openly. Everybody who railed upon me could see what I 
 was doing, and, if there was any intention or purpose on the 
 part of anybody to connect me in any way with any ring or 
 any dishonorable scheme, it was seduously concealed from 
 me. As I have said, three years ago a joint committee of the two 
 Houses investigated this matter thoroughly. Mr. Parsons was 
 summoned, was examined and cross-examined ; Mr. Chitten- 
 den was examined ; Mr. Nickerson was examined. When I 
 heard that my name was being used in the matter, I went to 
 the chairmen on both sides for it was a joint committee. 
 Senator Thurman, of my own State, was on the committee; 
 Mr. Jewett, now president of the Erie Railway, was on the 
 committee. I said to the chairman that, if there was any 
 thing in connection with the case which reflected upon me, 
 and that they thought I ought to answer, I would be obliged 
 to them if they would inform me. The chairman, on the 
 part of the House, Mr. Wilson, said that he had looked the 
 matter all over, and that what I had done was perfectly 
 proper; but if anything should occur to make any explana 
 tion necessary, I should appear before the committee, he 
 would send me word. He never did send for me. 
 
 "In the course of the campaign of 1874, a gentleman from 
 my district wrote in regard to it to Mr. Wilson, the chairman 
 of the joint committee on the part of the House, and received 
 a letter in reply, which I read : 
 
 " CONNERSVILLE, Ind., Aug. ist, 1874. Hon. Geo. W. 
 Steele. Dear Sir: To the request for information as to 
 whether or not the action of General Garfield, in connection 
 with the affairs of the District of Columbia, was the subject 
 of condemnation by the committee that recently had those 
 affairs under consideration, I answer that it was not ; nor was 
 there, in my opinion, any evidence that would have warranted 
 any unfavorable criticism upon his conduct. 
 
 " The facts disclosed by the evidence, so far as he is con 
 cerned, are briefly these: 
 
 " The Board of Public Works was considering the question 
 as to the kind of pavements that should be laid. There was 
 a contest as to the respective merits of various wooden pave 
 ments. Mr. Parsons represented, as attorney, the De Golye-r 
 & McClelland patent, and being called away from Washing 
 ton about the time the hearing was to be had before the 
 Board of Public Works on this subject, procured General Gar- 
 
APPENDIX, 
 
 581 
 
 field to appear before the board in his stead and argue the 
 merits of this patent. This he did, and this was the whole of 
 his connection in the matter. It was not a question as to the 
 kind of contract that should be made, but as to whether this 
 particular kind of pavement should be laid. The criticism of 
 the committee was not upon the pavement in favor of which 
 General Garfield argued, but was upon the contract made with 
 reference to it ; and there was no evidence which would war 
 rant the conclusion that he had anything to do with the latter. 
 Very respectfully, etc., J. M. WILSON. 
 
 "I want to say this, further. That if anybody in the world 
 holds that my fee in connection with this pavement, even by 
 suggestion or implication, had any relation whatever to any 
 appropriation by Congress for anything connected with this 
 District, or anything else, it is due to me, it is due to this 
 committee, and it is due to Congress, that that person be 
 summoned. If there be a man on this earth who makes such 
 a charge, that man is the most infamous perjurer that lives, 
 and I shall be glad to confront him anywhere in this world. 
 I am quite sure this committee will not allow hearsay and con 
 tradictory testimony to raise a presumption against me. Now, 
 I will say very frankly to the committee that, if I had known 
 or imagined that there was an intent such as this witness in 
 sinuates, on the part of anybody, that my employment by a 
 brother lawyer to prepare a brief on a perfectly legitimate 
 question a question of the relative merits of certain lawful 
 patents had any connection whatever, or any supposed con 
 nection in the mind of any man, with my public duties, I 
 certainly would have taken no such engagement. I would 
 have been a weak and a very foolish man to have done so, 
 and I trust that gentlemen who know me will believe that I 
 would at least have had too much respect for my own ambi 
 tion to have done such a thing." 
 
 Garfield further showed and this is the only important 
 fact in the whole case that Congress did not make any ap 
 propriation to pay for the pavement and was not asked to 
 make any, and that therefore the official conduct of Garfield 
 could not be affected by the fee because he could have no 
 official relations to the matter. The contract for the pave 
 ment was made by the Board of Public Works and was paid 
 
eg,, APPENDIX. 
 
 lor by a general local loan already authorized by law and by 
 a tax or assessment levied by the Government of the District 
 of Columbia just as local improvements in other cities are 
 paid for by the property which they are supposed to benefit 
 Congress might be called upon to meet general deficiencies in 
 the revenues of the District, but this contingency was remote 
 and did not form a condition of the De Golyer and McClel 
 land contract. With this only the Board of Public Works 
 was concerned. Garfield *s story was supported by the testi 
 mony of Commissioner Shepherd before the committee. He 
 says that Congress was not in session when the contract was 
 awarded ; and further: "We had ample appropriations for all 
 the work we had awarded, including that, without regard to 
 any appropriation from Congress. All these contracts were 
 awarded on the basis of the four million loan, and the assess 
 ments by the city which were authorized by that law. They 
 were not at all contingent upon Congressional appropriation." 
 One further point. This was not an exceptional thing with 
 General Garfield the brief before the Supreme Court as he 
 had argued on an average during his Congressional career 
 about seven cases a year. 
 
 THERE is but one more matter to be taken up that has 
 been misconstrued against General Garfield. Happily 
 it can be as effectually disposed of as the other two, and 
 in fewer words. We refer to the " Salary Grab :" 
 
 General Garfield is called a "salary-grabber," and it is 
 charged that he was mainly influential in the passage of the 
 retro-active law of March 3d, 1873, by which the pay of mem 
 bers of Congress was largely increased. This charge is easily 
 refuted. The bill first made its appearance, together with a 
 report submitted by Mr. B. F. Butler, from the Judiciary 
 Committee of the House of Representatives, on the yth of 
 February. On the loth of February, Mr. Butler moved to 
 suspend the rules and adopt a resolution directing the incor- 
 
APPENDIX. 
 
 583 
 
 poration of this bill with the Miscellaneous Appropriation 
 bill. The motion was lost, Garfield voting in the negative. 
 (See McPherson s "Hand-Book of Politics," for 1874, p. 9). 
 It came up again in various forms on the 28th of February, 
 and Garfield voted against it five times. (See pp. 14 and 
 15.) Finally the measure came before a conference commit 
 tee of the Senate and House. Of that committee Garfield 
 was a member. He opposed in the conference that part of 
 the appropriation bill which related to salaries of members 
 of Congress, but signed the report for reasons which he gave 
 in a speech in the House, on the 3d of March. " I was op 
 posed," he said, " to the increase in the conference, as I have 
 been opposed to it in the discussion and in my votes here ; 
 but my associate conferees were in favor of the Senate amend 
 ment, and I was compelled to choose between signing the 
 report and running the risk of bringing on an extra session of 
 Congress." In answer to questions, he said that it would in 
 volve "an additional expenditure of about one and a quarter 
 millions" for that Congress, and that he thought "the House 
 ought to know all the facts." This showed that he was still 
 unfriendly to the measure, and only agreed to it under stress 
 of circumstances. For the same reason he voted in the af 
 firmative on the final passage of the bill. In the list of rep 
 resentatives who redeposited their back pay, or "covered it 
 into the Treasury," according to the technical description of 
 the process, Garfield s name stands fourth, opposite the date 
 April 2d, 1873. Garfield also voted for the bill to repeal the 
 Salary act. (See McPherson, pp. 20-23.) Comment upon 
 these facts is unnecessary. 
 
 In a letter upon this subject, written by General Garfield 
 to a friend, in 1873, ne tnus re f ers to th* 5 measure: 
 
 " When I went into the army I did so expecting to follow 
 the path of duty, whether it led me to life or death. In en 
 tering Congress I undertook to follow the path of duty there, 
 whether it led to political life or political death. I have cast 
 many thousands of votes during my ten years of service, and 
 
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