Grant County herald. [volume] (Lancaster, Wis.) 1850-1968, 1880-06-24
James Abraham GarnaId

| November, 1881, a little fair haired
German looking boy opened pair
OF wondering blue eyes upon tie
troubles and vicissitudes Of this life.
He found himself in small, homely.
looking farm house, near the village
of Orange, Cuyuhoga county, Ohio,
and he soon discovered that poverty
had been there before him. This boy,
the youngest of four children, was
named James Abraham Garfield. His
parents were both of New England
stock and hard working, upright
people, more remarkable for what
they had endured than for any thing
great they had achieved. Two years
after their youngest child James was
born, the father died, leaving his
widow very poor and in the back
woods, with her four children to sup.
port some way. Their troubles be-
gan at once. The American people
have occasion to be grateful to that
mother now, however, that, in the
midst of her sharpest trials, she did
not neglect to instil in her boys
mind lessons of stern integrity, and
to mould his strong, young charao.
ter uprightly. OF the three other
children there is little to be said.
The brother is quiet Ohio farmer
and the two sisters farmers wives.
To the youngest, however, the Re.
publican party has entrusted its all.
1t became early his ambition to gain
an education and he won it by man
ual labor, working on The farm and
at the carpenters bench. At one
time he was driving a team on the
Erie canal. and at another we find
him taking job of chopping TWEEN
ty-tve cords of wood. He went to
school when he could and read and
worked at all odd moments. When
about sixteen he started to school at
Hiram, furnishing little room and
dong bis own cooking to tighten his
expenses. He Taught school in the
winters, and at vacation times
worked at the carpenters trade. He
used to be rather short of clothes
sometimes, and one winter, when he
had no overcoat, few underclothes,
and but single coat of Jeans, he
was dismayed to see his one pair Of
pantaloons burst open at the knee.
The poor fellow pinned the garment
together as best he could then, and
that night the kind woman, with
whom he boarded, mended the rent
after he had gone to bed. She tried
to comfort him in his encouragement
by saying, "You shouldn't mind such
small matters as that, You'll forget
all about it when you get to be Pres.
ident.'
The hardships which the young
man endured. in getting his educa,
ton, would have broken down one
of frazier constitution bat he was
made of strong material. At twenty
three he entered the junior class of
Williams College, Massachusetts; but,
not having enough money to take
him through, be got life insurance
policy and assigned it to a gentleman
as security for the money he was
obliged to borrow.
He is connected with the Church
of the Disciples, and frequently spoke
in the meetings on Sundays, in those
days, though never an ordained min
lister. At that early age he pos.
sessed a great power over the hearts
of men, and was considered a mighty
revivalist 10 the church. After he
came out of college he became pro.
lessor of Greek and Latin and then
President of Hiram College, in Ohio,
where poverty ruled supreme, and
where it seemed to be the fashion for
both teachers and pupils to struggle
for their bread and butter. At Hiram
he married lovely, intelligent girl
and they began welded life poor and
in debt, but with heath and brave
hearts
His public career began in the
Ohio State Senate. Since then his
history has been SO close woven in
with that Of the country that II need
hardly be repeated here. In 1861 he
went to war as Colonel of the 42nd
Ohio. lie won, by his bravery and
heroism, tie title of Major General
and came out of the service to do
still further work for the Nation in
Congress. For eighteen years be has
been member of the House and last
winter was elected to the United
States Senate, in place of Allen 9.
Thurman, by 10000 majority. When
Blaine was Speaker OF the House he
was the leader on the floor; and
when that body passed to the Demo
Gratis and Blaine went into the Sen
ate, Gen. Garfield still led the Re-
publicans in the House with what
unerring judgment, honesty and
strength of character, and with what
clear decisive intellect, in all times
of debate and battle, needs but refer
ence to the volumes of the Congress
sional Record, on our shelves, to
show.
Gen. Garfield is now about forty
nine years of age and strong and
robust in health He is six feet in
height, OF commanding presence and
much personal magnetism. He has
a splendid voice, light brown hair q
little touched with gray, clear fasci.
mating .iue eyes, q wonderful breadth
of forehead, ana a rather prominent
nose. He is good talker aud has
an exceedingly kind and genial man
ner to all who approach him. When
away from Washington he resides
with his family (wife, FIVE children
and aged mother) in an old.fashioaed
story-and half farm house at Men.
tor, twenty FIVE miles fronI Cleveland.
There he spends bis days n reading.
studying, resting, and in superin.
tending the management Of his small
farm of which be seems very fond.
Such is a brief sketch of TIE life of
cur next President.
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A HOUSEHOLD NERD.
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