The Emporia news. [volume] (Emporia, Kan.) 1859-1881, 1880-06-18

/ Ps'AhhIu yEEEtlS7Ht vi Tic CpftCSt- l1iT
am > Il lonesome country village, tire,
miles frum railroad, built upon a hisI
hill, overlooking twenty miles of chees,
making country la the southwark 1
contains fifty or sixty houses clustered
around the green, in the center of which
stands the hOmely red brick college
structure. Plain living and high think
ing WIS the order of things at Hiram
college in those days The teachers
were poor, the pupils were poor and the
institution was poor, but there was ii
great deal of hard. faithful study done
and many ambitious plans formed. The
young president taught, lectured, preach
ed, and all the time studied as dilligent
ly as any acolyte in the temple OF
| knowledge. He frequently spoke on
Sundays in the churches of the towns
in the vicinity, TO create an interest in
the college. Among the disciples any
one can preach who has a mind to, no
ordination being required. From these
| Sunday discourses came the story that
| Garfield at one. time was a minister
He never considered himself as such
! and never had any intention of finding
a career in the pulpit. His ambition,
if he had any outside of the school, lay
in the direction of law and politics.
HIS MARRIAGE.
1
married Miss Lucretia Rudolph, daugh.
ter of farmer in the nelghborhood,
| whose acquaintance he had made while
at the academy, where she was also pu-
! pill. She was quiet, thoughtful girl, OF
| slngularly sweet and refined disposition,
fond of study and reading, possessing a
warm heart, and a mind with the capa-
city of steady growth. The marriage
was love affair on both sides, and has
been thoroughly happy one. Much of
| Gen. Garfield's subsequent success in
| life may be attributed to the never fail
| ing sympathy and intellectual compan-
ionship of his wife and the stimulus of
| a loving home circle. The Young couple
bought Il neat little cottage fronting on
the college campus, and began their we'd
| ded life poor aud in debt, but with brave
| hearts.
In 1859 the college president was elec-
ed to the state senate from the counties
of Portage and Summit. He did not re-
sign his presidency, because he looked
upon few months i'll the Legislature as
an episode not likely To change the
course of his life. But the war came in
to alter his plans. During the winter OF
1861 he was active in the passage of
measures for arming the state militia,
/ and his eloquence and energy made him
u conspicuous leader of the Union party.
Early in the summer OF 1861 he Nas cleo
ted colonel of an infantry regiment Qhe
! 42d.) raised in northern Ohio, many of
the soldiers in which had been students
at Hiram. He took the field in eastern
kentucky, was soon put in command OF
u brigade, and by making one of the
hardest maches ever made by recruits
surprised and routed the rebel forces
under Humphrey Marshall, at Pike
| ton.
From eastern Kentucky, Gen. Garfield
was transferred to Louisville, and from
that place FASTENED to join the army oil
Gen. Buell., which he reached with his
brigade in time to participate in the ser
cOnd days fighting at Pittsburg Land.
ing. He took part in the seige of Cor
inlh, aud in the operations along the
Memphis u Charleston railroad. In Jan.
uary, 1868, he was appointed Chief OF
Staff of the Army of the Cumberland, and
bore prominent share in all the cam
paign in middle Tennessee in the spring
and summer Of that year. His last consplc,
iOus military service was at the battle OF
| ClIickamauga. For his conduct in thai
battle he was promoted TO Major Gener
alship. 1t is said that he wrote all the
orders given TO the army that day, and
submitted them to Gen. ROsecrans fol-
| oH'S OAANs AhO OhC hC dlu uOl
write was the fatal order to Gen. Wood
which was so worded as not to correctly
convey the meaning to the commanding
General, and which caused the destruc
ton of the right wing of the army
ELECTED TO CONGRESS
The congressional district IN which
Garfield lived was the one long made ia
nous by Joshus X. Giddings. The old
anti-slavery champion grew careless Of
the arts of politics towards the end OF
his career, and came to look upon 4
nomination and reelection as matter
of course. His over confidence Wa:
taken advantage of in 1853 by an ambi
tious lawyer named Hutchins to carry
convention against him. The friends Of
Giddings never forgave Hutchins, anC
cast about for means of defeating him
The old man himself was comfortably
quartercd in his consulate at Montreal
and did not care to make a fight to ge
back To congress. So his supporter.
made use of the popularity of Gen. Gar
field, and nominated him while he wa.
in the field, without asking his consent
That was In 1862. When he heard o
the nomination Garfield reflected that i
would he fifteen months before the con
gress would meet tn which he would b,
elected, and believing. as did every ont
else, that the war could not possibly las
Il year longer, concluded to- accept
have often heard him express regret tha
he did not help fight the war through
and say that he would never have lief
the army to go to congress had he fore
seen that the struggle would continu,
beyond the year 1868. He continued hi
military service up to the time congress
met
On entering congress, in December
1868, Gen. Garfield was placed upon til,
committee on military affairs, will
Schenck and FarnswOrth, who were al
so fresh from the field. He took an nc
tive part in the debates of the house, ant
won a recognition which few new mem
hers succeed in gaining. He was no
popular among his fellow members dun
something of a pedant because he some
: tunes showed his scholarship in hi
speeches, and they were jealous of IN
prominence. His solid attainments ant
able social qualities enabled him to over
come this prejudice during his secont
term, and lie became on terms of clos
friendship with the best men in boil
houses. His committee service duFinj
his second term was on the ways ant
means, which was quite TO his taste, 70
it gave him an opportunity TO prosecute
his studies in finance and political econ
omy, which he had always felt Il fond
ness for. He was a hard worker and
great reader in those days, going hOm
with his arm full of books from the con
, gressiongl library, and sitting up lat
nights to read them. 1t was then tina
. he laid the foundations of the cOnViC
tlons on the subject Of national finance
which he has since held to firmly amii
. all the storms OF political agitation. Ii
was r9nOminated IN 1864, without oppC
sition, but in 1866 Mr. IIutchins, whom
/ he had supplanted. made an effort to DE-
! feat him. Hutchins canvassed the di.
trict thoroughly, but the conventio
nominated Garfield by acclamation. ii
| has had no opposition since in his ow
party. In 1872 the Liberals and Demo
Gratis united to beat, him, but his major
: ity was larger Than ever. In 1874 tn
: Greenbackers AMI Democrats combine
; and put up a popular soldier agains
him, but they made no impressiOnOn tn
result. The Ashtabula district, as il
generally called, is the most faithful
, its representatives of any in the nortl
. II has had but four members in half
: century.
HIS WORK IN CONGRESS.
4 In the Fourtieih congress Gen Ga
, field was chairman Of the committee o
/ military affairs. In the F0rty-first d
was given the chairmanslIip of bankin
and currency, which he liked much he
{ ter, because it was in the line of hi
| financial studies His next PROMOTE
: was To the Craftsmanship of the appr
e priatIOns committee, which he held III
D til the Democrats came into power
! the house in 1875. His chief work q
!. that committee was a steady and jud
= ciOus reduction of the expenses of Il
r government. In all the political strui
!. giles in congress he has borne a leadin
T part, his clear, vigorous and modera
J. style of argument making him one I
e the most effective debaters in eth
e house.
4 When James G. Blaine went to Il