The Stourbridge Observer, Cradley Heath, Halesowen & District Chronicle.
Stourbridge, West Midlands, England, 1881-11-05 00:00:00

'rrlE STOURBRIDGE OBSERVER.

(Hear, hear.) But there is another thing most essen-
tial in warfare, and that is a reserve; and I think I
see before me a reinforcement in reserve.
.(Loud
cheers.) The right hon. gentleman in uttering his
last sentence waved his hands towards Sir Wilfrid
Lawson, and the act was construed by the meeting
into an intimation that the hon. baronet had been
selected as the second Liberal candidate for the
western division of the county.

At the close of Sir W. Ha-rcourt's speech, a resolu-
tion was passed inviting Sir Wilfrid Lawson to offer
himself as the second Liberal candidate for West
Cumberland at the next General Election. The hon.
Baronet acceded to the request.

THE LATE PRESIDENT GARFIELD.

The Times gives an extract from a letter recently ad-
dressed by an eminent American laner to a lawyer in Eng-
land :
"I am glad to read what you say about President
Garfield. His was the best possible case to present
to the European mind, and was impressed in the
most effectual manner by the circumstances. It has
helped to give the thinking European some new
idea of what the New England and Western work-
ing class' is from which he sprang, and which has no
parallel in Europe, and it helped to show what our
best type of self-made man is. It is men who find
indeed by their labour the means of getting an educa-
tion, but that which they do get is the best. The
college at which Garfield was taught was one of our
best. Its president, the Rev. Dr. Hopkins, was the
best teacher of metaphysics in New England; and it
was in metaphysical branches that Garfield excelled.
At the end of the third year he was offered the post
of master of a school in Ohio with a good salary. It
would have been a good thing for his mother and
family, but he refused it, because he was determined
to get the whole benefit of the college, and the fourth
year was that in which Dr. Hopkins gave his chief
instructions, and in that year Garfield came out
first in rank. Then he was diligent in Latin and Greek.
. . . . All America bows to the Queen, and her last
letter to Mrs. Garfield and her wreath on the coffin
won all hearts, and we all feel that the tribute from
England was genuine. I hope England will recognize
the salute at Yorktown. It was well meant.
"Mrs. Garfield was a daughter of poor parents,
but not of low-class people. Her parents belonged to
a class expired in England—the yeoman class. Her
father owned his farm, tilled it himself, could read
and write, read the Bible daily, voted conscientiously,
drank no strong drink, had a small collection of
useful books, subscribed for a monthly magazine, a re-
ligious weekly, and a secular semi-weekly, had family
prayers, dreaded death, but must see all his children
well educated, and let Lucretia stay on at school
to read Latin and Greek, and French and German,
that she might be equal to any teachership she might
apply for. What sort of 'lower class' people are they?
Perhaps Jeanie Dean's father was like it. But Mrs.
Garfield rose slowly, was at Washington with her
husband seventeen winters, was a lady in all respects,
and was relied upon to talk French and German with
the diplomacy. The feeling of the people of Garfield's
district for him was like that of Nelson's crew for
him."