"Hiram College Memorial," "General Garfield's readiness on all occasions
has often been remarked. Probably some have attributed this readiness to
the inspiration of genius. The explanation lies partly in his genius,
but much more in his indefatigable work. He treasured up knowledge of
all kinds. 'You never know,' he would say, 'how soon you will need it.'
Then he forecasted occasions, and got ready to meet them. One hot day in
July, 1876, he brought to his Washington house an old copy of _The
Congressional Globe_. Questioned, he said, 'I have been told,
confidentially, that Mr. Lamar is going to make a speech in the House on
general politics, to influence the presidential canvass. If he does, I
shall reply to him. Mr. Lamar was a member of the House before the war;
and I am going to read some of his old speeches, and get into his mind.'
Mr. Lamar made his speech August 2, and Mr. Garfield replied August 4.
Men expressed surprise at the fulness and completeness of the reply,
delivered on such short notice. But to one knowing his habits of mind,
especially to one who had the aforesaid conversation with him, the whole
matter was as light as day. His genius was emphatically the genius of
preparation."
Both in Congress and in the army Garfield gave a portion of each day to
the classics, especially to his favorite, Horace. He was always an
omnivorous reader.
In 1880, he was elected United States senator. After the election he
said, "During the twenty years that I have been in public life, almost
eighteen of it in the Congress of the United States, I have tried to do
one thing. Whether I was mistaken or otherwise, it has been the plan of
my life to follow my convictions, at whatever personal cost to myself. I
have represented for many years a district in Congress whose approbation
I greatly desired; but, though it may seem, perhaps, a little
egotistical to say it, I yet desired still more the approbation 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 approbation I should have had bad
companionship."
All these years the home life had been helpful and beautiful. Of his
seven children, two were sleeping in the Hiram church-yard. Five, Harry,
James, Mollie, Irvin, and Abram, made the Washington home a place of
cheer in winter, and the summer home, at Mentor, Ohio, a few miles from
Hiram, a place of rest and pleasure. Here Garfield, beloved by his
neighbors, ploughed and sewed and reaped, as when a boy. His mother
lived in his family, happy in his success.
When the national Republican convention met in June, 1880, at Chicago,
the names of several presidential candidates came before the
people,--Grant, Blaine, and others. Garfield nominated John Sherman, of
Ohio, in a chaste and eloquent speech. He said: "I have witnessed the
extraordinary scenes of this convention with deep solicitude. 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 witnessed these
demonstrations, it seemed to me you were a human ocean in a tempest.
"I have seen the sea lashed into fury and tossed into 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 are measured. When the storm has passed and the hour of calm
settles on the ocean, when the sunlight bathes its smooth surface, then
the astronomer and surveyor takes the level from which he measures all
terrestrial heights and depths.
"Gentlemen of the convention, your present temper may not mark the
healthful pulse of our people. When our enthusiasm has passed, when the
emotions of this hour have subsided, we shall find that 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. Not here in this brilliant circle, where fifteen thousand
men and women are assembled, is the destiny of the Republican party to
be decreed. 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 the republic, but by four million
Republican firesides, where the thoughtful voters, with wives and
children about them, with the calm thoughts inspired by love of home and
country, with the history of the past, the hopes of the future, and
reverence for the great men who have adorned and blessed our nation in
days gone by burning in their hearts,--_there_ God prepares the verdict
which will determine the wisdom of our work to-night. Not in Chicago, in
the heat of June, but at the ballot-boxes of the republic, in the quiet
of November, after the silence of deliberate judgment, will this
question be settled."
The thousands were at fever-heat hour after hour, in their intense
excitement. After thirty-four ineffectual ballots, on the thirty-fifth,
fifty votes were given for Garfield. The tide had turned at last. The
delegates of State after State gathered around the man from Ohio,
holding their flags over him, while the bands played, "Rally round the
flag, boys," and fifteen thousand people shouted their thanksgiving for
the happy choice. Outside the great hall, cannons were fired, and the
crowded streets sent up their cheers. From that moment Garfield belonged
to the nation, and was its idol.
On March 4, 1881, in the presence of a hundred thousand people, the boy
born in the Orange wilderness was inaugurated President of the United
States. None of us who were present will ever forget the beauty of his
address from the steps of the national Capitol, or the kiss given to
white-haired mother and devoted wife at the close. Afterward, the great
procession, three hours in passing a given point, was reviewed by
President Garfield from a stand erected in front of the White House.
Four months after this scene, on July 2, 1881, the nation was thrilled
with sorrow. As General Garfield and his Secretary of State, James G.
Blaine, arm in arm, were entering the Baltimore & Potomac Railroad
depot, two pistol shots were fired; one passing through Garfield's
coat-sleeve, the other into his body. He fell heavily to the floor, and
was borne to the White House. The assassin was Charles Guiteau, a
half-crazed aspirant for office, entirely unknown to the President. The
man was hanged.
Through four long months the nation prayed, and hoped, and agonized for
the life of its beloved President. Gifts poured in from every part of
the Union, but gifts were of no avail. On September 5, Garfield was
carried to Elberon, Long Branch, New Jersey, where, in the Francklyn
Cottage, he seemed to revive as he looked out upon the sea, the sea he
had longed for in his boyhood. The nation took heart. But two weeks
later, at thirty-five minutes past ten, on the evening of September 19,
the anniversary of the battle of Chickamauga, the President passed from
an unconscious state to the consciousness of immortality. At ten minutes
past ten he had said to General Swaim, who was standing beside him, as
he put his hand upon his heart, "I have great pain here."
The whole world sympathized with America in her great sorrow. Queen
Victoria telegraphed to Mrs. Garfield: "Words cannot express the deep
sympathy I feel with you at this terrible moment. May God support and
comfort you, as he alone can."
On September 21, the body of the President was taken to Washington. At
the Princeton Station, three hundred students from the college, with
uncovered heads, strewed the track and covered the funeral car with
flowers. At the Capitol, where he had so recently listened to the cheers
of the people at his inauguration, one hundred thousand passed in
silence before his open coffin. The casket was covered with flowers; one
wreath bearing a card from England's queen, with the words: "Queen
Victoria, to the memory of the late President Garfield, an expression of
her sorrow and sympathy with Mrs. Garfield and the American nation."
The body was borne to Cleveland, the whole train of cars being draped in
black. Fifty thousand persons assembled at the station, and followed the
casket to a catafalque on the public square. During the Sabbath, an
almost countless throng passed beside the beloved dead. On Monday,
September 26, through beautiful Euclid Avenue, the body was borne six
miles, to its final resting-place. Every house was draped in mourning.
Streets were arched with exquisite flowers on a background of black. One
city alone, Cincinnati, sent two carloads of flowers. Among the many
floral designs was a ladder of white immortelles, with eleven rounds,
bearing the words: "Chester," "Hiram," "Williams," "Ohio Senate,"
"Colonel," "General," "Congress," "United States Senate," "President,"
"Martyr."
After appropriate exercises, the sermon being preached by Rev. Isaac
Errett, D.D., of Cincinnati, according to a promise made years before,
the casket, followed by a procession five miles long, was carried to the
cemetery. It was estimated that a quarter of a million people were
gathered along the streets; not idle sight-seers, but men and women who
loved the boy, and revered the man who had come to distinguished honor
in their midst.
Not only in Cleveland were memorial services held. The Archbishop of
Canterbury spoke touching words in London. In Liverpool, in Manchester,
in Glasgow, and hundreds of other cities, public services were held.
Messages of condolence were sent from many of the crowned heads of
Europe.
Under the white stone monument in Lake View Cemetery, the statesman has
been laid to rest. For centuries the tomb will tell to the thousands
upon thousands who visit it the story of struggle and success; of work,
of hope, of courage, of devotion to duty. Like Abraham Lincoln, Garfield
was born in a log cabin, battled with poverty, was honest,
great-hearted, a lover of America, and, like him, a martyr to the
republic. To the world both deaths seemed unbearable calamities, but
nations, like individuals, are chastened by sorrow, and learn great
lessons through great trials. "Now we know in part; but then shall we
know even as also we are known."
"_The Best Book for Boys that has yet been written._ We say this with
Tom Brown's delightful School Days fresh in our recollection."--_Portland
Press._
CUORE.
_AN ITALIAN SCHOOL-BOY'S JOURNAL._
By EDMONDO DE AMICIS. Translated from the 39th Italian Edition by Isabel
F. Hapgood.
12mo. $1.25.
In this delightful volume, so unconventional in form, so fresh and
energetic in style, Signor de Amicis has given not only the heart
history of an Italian lad but also a very vivid and attractive picture
of modern life in Italy. He is a genuine boy who is supposed to write
the story, and all the events, incidents, and observations are seen
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"A charming and wholesome volume."--_Albany Journal._
"Just the thing for school-boys."--_Beacon._
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"Can not be spoken of in too high terms of praise."--_Boston
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"Filled with incidents delightfully described."--_Albany Press._
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edition."--_Norwick Journal._
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"A voyage into those wondrous regions, the heart, soul and pocket
of a school-boy *** Full of striking and beautiful
passages."--_Critic_, New York.
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13 ASTOR PLACE, NEW YORK.
SIX BOOKS FOR YOUNG PEOPLE
By J A K
12mo. Illustrated. $1.25 per Vol.
BIRCHWOOD.
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RIVERSIDE MUSEUM.
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THE FITCH CLUB.
"A very interesting and very profitable story."--_Hartford Post._
"The author has a happy way of telling a story in just the style
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"A pure and interesting story for the boys and girls. Ways and means of
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--_Kansas City Times._
PROFESSOR JOHNNY.
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WHO SAVED THE SHIP.
"Good wholesome reading."--_Milwaukee Sentinel._
"One of the brightest books of the season."--_Ohio State Journal._
"Admirable in tone and full of interest."--_Boston Traveller._
THE GIANT DWARF.
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Inquirer._
"The author of 'Birchwood,' 'Prof. Johnny,' and other tales, will always
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THOMAS Y. CROWELL & CO.
13 ASTOR PLACE, NEW YORK.
$1500 PRIZE STORY.
THE BLIND BROTHER.
_A STORY OF THE MINES._
By HOMER GREENE.
12mo, cloth. 230 pp. 14 illustrations. 90 cents.
"The recent prize competition for stories, held by the publishers of the
_Youth's Companion_, called forth about 5000 aspirants for literary
honors, among that multitude, Mr. Homer Greene, of Honesdale, Pa., whose
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"There are 4,000,000 boys in the United States from 10 to 16 years
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"It is a pleasure to think of anything at once so entertaining, so
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"Well conceived, prettily told, and enlivened with effective
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"A story of remarkable power and pathos."--_Chicago Advance._
"Replete with thrilling incidents."--_N. Y. Journal._
"Full of interest, full of information not usually stumbled upon,
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"The plot natural and arousing deep interest, whilst the story has
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"So sweet and touching that the moral is profound."--_New Haven
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FAMOUS BOOKS FOR YOUNG PEOPLE.
POOR BOYS WHO BECAME FAMOUS.
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portraits. 12mo. $1.50.
"It is seldom that a book passes under our notice which we feel impelled
to commend so highly to young readers, and especially to boys."--_N. Y.
Observer._
GIRLS WHO BECAME FAMOUS.
By SARAH K. BOLTON. A companion book to "Poor Boys Who Became Famous."
Biographical sketches of Harriet Beecher Stowe, George Eliot, Helen Hunt
Jackson, Harriet Hosmer, Rosa Bonheur, Florence Nightingale, Maria
Mitchell, and other eminent women. Illustrated with portraits. 12mo.
$1.50.
"Give this book to your daughter; she may, perhaps, never become famous,
but it will help her to do well her life's work."--_American Baptist._
FAMOUS AMERICAN AUTHORS.
By SARAH K. BOLTON. Short biographical sketches of Holmes, Longfellow,
Emerson, Lowell, Aldrich, Mark Twain, and other noted writers.
Illustrated with portraits. 12mo. $1.50.
"Bright and chatty, giving glimpses into the heart and home life of some
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FAMOUS AMERICAN STATESMEN.
By SARAH K. BOLTON. A companion book to "Famous American Authors."
Biographical sketches of Washington, Franklin, Jefferson, Hamilton,
Webster, Sumner, Garfield, and others. Illustrated with portraits. 12mo.
$1.50.
Such lives as are sketched in this book are a constant inspiration, both
to young and old. They teach Garfield's oft-repeated maxim, that "the
genius of success is still the genius of labor." They teach patriotism,
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some definite and noble purpose, is worth living.
BOYS' BOOK OF FAMOUS RULERS.
By LYDIA HOYT FARMER. Lives of Agamemnon, Julius Caesar, Charlemagne,
Frederick the Great, Richard Coeur de Lion, Robert Bruce, Napoleon, and
other heroes of historic fame. Fully illustrated with portraits and
numerous engravings. 12mo. $1.50.
"A capital book for youth. Each subject has a portrait and illustrations
of eventful scenes."--_Boston Globe._
GIRLS' BOOK OF FAMOUS QUEENS.
By LYDIA HOYT FARMER. A companion book to "Boys' Book of Famous Rulers."
Lives of Cleopatra, Queen Elizabeth, Catharine de Medici, Josephine,
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"Such a book for young people is worth a score of 'blood and thunder'
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girl."--_Washington Post._
LIFE OF LAFAYETTE, the Knight of Liberty.
By LYDIA HOYT FARMER. A glowing narrative of the life of this renowned
general, with 58 illustrations. 12mo. $1.50.
As a large portion of the material presented in this volume has been
gathered from French works never before translated and which are now out
of print, and also from original files of newspapers, and various
manuscripts written by members of the La Fayette family, a more complete
life of General La Fayette is here offered than has before appeared,
either in this country or in Europe.
THOMAS Y. CROWELL & CO., 13 Astor Place, NEW YORK.
* * * * *
Transcriber Note:
Minor typographical errors and inconsistencies have been corrected
without comment.