Shepherdstown register. [volume] (Shepherdstown, Va. [W. Va.]) 1849-1955, 1881-10-15
A. s. sToNEBRAKER,
GUiTEAU's CONFESSION.

The New York Herald of Thursday con-
tanned seven closely printed columns of
what purports to be an autobiography OF
Guiteau, as dictated to a stenographcr.
His story of the assassination or, rs he
prefers to style it, "the removal of the
President" is one Of the most cold blood
ed accounts of dreadful crime that has
/ ever been put on paper. my idea, SIM
ply stated" he remarks. "was to remove
rs easily rs possible Mr.. James A. Car
field, a quiet and good naturcd citizen of
/ Ohio, who temporarily occupied the posi-
ton of President of the United States, and
substitute in his place Mr.. Chester A. Ar
/ thur, of New York, a distinguished and
highly estimable gentleman. Mr.. Gar
field intended to quietly remove to Par
adise, (Which is great improvement on
this WORLDLY while Mr.. Arthur saved the
republic" And he adds: "Not a soul
in the universe knew of my purpose to
remove the President. If it has failed l
shall never attempt it again. My motive
was purely political and patriotic, and |
acted under Divine pressure. 1t was the
same kind Of pressure that led Abraham
to sacrifice his son Isaac"
After giving an account of his apDlica-
ton for either the Austrian mission or
the Paris consulship, and the little salts
faction he obtain d either from President
Garfield or Secretary Blaine in respect to
! those appointments, he asserts that the
rebuffs he met with chad not the slight
est influence on him one way or another
/ in reference to his removing the Presi-
dent" lie came, he said, to the bloody
determination pending the answer to his
request for the Paris consrlship, and for
I several weeks after being denied an inter-
view with the President he did not press
his application either 10 him or to Mr..
Blaine. In the meantime, according to
his story, he was brooding over the quar-
rel that had broken out between the stall
warts and the half-breeks in consequence
OF the resignation by Mr.. Conkling OF his
seat in the Senate.
My conception Of the idea of remov-
ing the President was this: Mr.. COnkling
resigned on Monday, May l6, 1881. On
the following wednesday | was III bed.
think retired about o'clock. i felt
depressed and perpleXed Oh account of
the political situation, and | retired much
earlier than usual. l felt wcaricd in
mind and body, and | was i'm my bed
about 8 o'clock, and was thinking over
the political situation, when the idea
flashed through my brain that if the
! President was out of the way everything
would 90 better. AT first this was Il
| mere impression. 1t startled me, but the
next morning it came to me with rehewed
force, and began TO read the papers with
my eye on the possibility that the Presi-
dent would have to 90, and the more L
read the more | saw the complication Of
public affairs, the more | was impressed
with the necessity of removing him. This
thing continued for about two weeks.
kept reading the papers and kept being
! impressed, and the idea kept bearing aud
bearing aud bearing down upon me that
the only way 10 unite the two factions of
! the republican party and save the repub-
| lie from going into the hands of the re bells
and democrats WAS TO quietly remove the
! President.
1.-Two weeks after / conceived the idea
my mind WAS thoroughly settled on the
intention. | never mentioned the concep-
ton to Il living soul. ! did most of my
thinking III the park and on the street, and
| used TO 90 to the Arlington and Riggs
House daily to read the papers.
AFTER | had made up my mind to re-
move him the idea when | should remove
him pressed me. and l was somewhat con-
fused OH that. | knew that it would not
do to 20 the White House and attempt it,,
because there were too many of his en-
ployces about, and | looked around for
several daysto try and get good chance
at him. and one Sunday tthe Sunday be-
fore lie went 10 Long Branchl went TO
his church in the morning. 1t is small
frame building, and stood there at the
door Il moment. | was little late; the
services had progressed about one-third.
noticed the President sitting near an
open window about three fee. from the
ground, and thought to myself, That
would be Il good chance TO get him. in
| tended to shoot him through the back Of
the head and let the ball pass through
the ceiling, in order that 10 one else
| should be injured, and there could not
| possibly be Il better place to remove man
than at his dcvotions. had my revolver
in my possession when first went TO the
| church, having purchased il about 10 days
before the Presidents going to Long
Blanch. This was the Sunday prior TO
his leaving tor Long Branch on Saturday.
During that Whole week read the papers
carefully. | thought it all over in detail.
| thought just what people would talk,
and thought what tremendous excite
ment it would create, and kept on
thinking about it all week. made UP my
mind that the next Sunday | would GER
tainly shoot him if he was in church and
got good chance at him. Thursday Of
the same week noticed IL the papers that
he was going TO Long Branch, and Oh the
following Saturday he did 90 TO the Branch
| for Mrs. Garteld's health, | went TO the
| depot all prepared TO remove him. / had
the revolver with me. | had all my pa2e's
nicely prepared. spoke to 4 man about
u carriage to take me, as / told him, over
near the Congressional Cemetery.
! d" 81 got to the depot about nine o'clock,
and waited there until the Presidents
White House carriage drove up He did
not Kill him at that time, he says because
he had not the heart TO fire while Mrs.
! Garfield was with him, clinging tendcrly
to his arm Learning that the President
was to return on the following Monday
Guiteau went again to the depot 10 watch
! for him, but when the President reached
! there so many persons were about him
/ that the time did not seem opportume. All
| that week, however, he says he watched
! for him and tried ut various times to get 4
| shot at him but did not succeed. How he
| logged him everywhere, day by day, is
infinitely told. Finally he heard from the
papers that the President was going to
Long Branch on Friday, and we give at
this point his own narrative of what be-
fell.
..1 took my breakfast he says, sat the
Riggs House about eight O'Clock. ate
well and felt well in body and mind. |
went into Lafayette Square and sat there
some little time after breakfast, waiting
for nine O'Clock to come, and then l went
to the depot, and got there about ten
minutes after nine. | rode there from the
park i'm bob tailed car. | left the c:r,
walked up to bootblack, got my boots
BACKED, and inquired for man named
John TAYLOR, whom, two weeks before |