The Kenosha telegraph. [volume] (Kenosha, Wis.) 1860-1888, 1881-09-23
The NATIONS CALAMITY.

b dent for Life-Ehe Sufferers Last
a Moments Marked by Visions of That
Il Happy Home at MentOr-A Bliss
& full Dream of LOng-GOne Joys That
a Robbed the Hour Of Half Its Terror.
q LONG BRANCH, Sept. 10.
a President James A. Garfield died at the
E Francklyn cottage, at Elberon, at s. minutes
3 after 10 this evening. His death was SO sud-
1 den and unexpected that when the family was
! summoned the President was unconscious.
/ From this he did not rally. He died few
4 moments after Mrs. Garfield entered the room.
( From what can be aseertained, his death
y was from sheer exhaustion. At the
/ Presidents bedside, holding his poor
& enaciated hand in her own, and watching with
anguish unutterable the fast-vanishing sands
& of life, sat the faithful, devoted wife during
/. the closing hours of the Presidents career.
y Around him were other weeping friends and
( physicians, lamenting their powerlessness in the
Il presence of the dark angel of death. Toward
3 the last the mind of the sufferer wandered He
B was once more back in Mentor amid those scenes
u where the happiest hours of his life were spent.
4 He sat in the dear old homestead again with the
y loved ones around him, his aged mother so
& proud of her big boy his faithful wife and be-
s loved children. 1t was blissful dream that
& robbed death of its terrors and rendered the
q dying man for the moment unconscious of the
u cruel rendlng of his once-vlgorous frame that
Eawas constantly going on. The moan of the
& restless ocean mingled with the sobs of the
4 loved ones as the lamp of life fickered and went
y out forever.
81 Nearly every one around the President chung
4 to hope to the last, and refused to believe the
y approach of death until the shadow deepened
& and the destroyers presence could be no longer
Y unfelt
u Flags hang at half-mast from every house
i on Ocean avenue, and the gayety of this ia
vorite watering place is followed by the deepest
I gloom.
Il The struggle is over, and death is the victor
~ This morning the physicians thought that
q the President was o little better. He seemed
G to have some appetite, and no indication of any
q chill or any disturbance was noted. The in
y sidious nature of these attacks was again made
/ manifest soon after s O'Clock. The President
4 had been very quiet and seemed comparatively
b comfortable. Suddenly he complained of chill
1 ness, and, although his body was wrapped in
i warm flannels, and within half an hour he had
Il been bathed in hot alcohol, it was found that
4 his feet and hands were cold. and.
i in moment, there was marked rigor. He
& shiyered and every muscle in his body was
/ rigid. The pulse went up to 40, and even
higher, but it was SO thready and feeble that it
q was impossible to count the beats. After it
\ had passed that figure there was great danger
4 that he would sink into o comatose state after
I the rlgor had passed, and every exertion was
q made to induce reaction. Hot flannels were apa
/ piled to the feet and poultces of raw onions
( cut fine and stepped in alcohol were placed
I upon his stomach. In addition cooling lotions
4 were applied to the head, and the arms and
L limbs were rubbed vigorously. The result was
:. that p reaction was established much sooner
4 than the physicians expected. After fifteen
4 minutes had elapsed, DR.. Bliss noticed increas-
i ing warmth in the feet and at the same time
Il the rgidity of the muscles was observed to be
4 relaxing. 1t was evident that the rgor was
4 passing away in about half the time which the
I first one had lasted. That one, in spite of the
most vigorous treatment, had only yielded un-
der half an hour.
eE ylhe vitality of the President once more aston
ished the physicians-so much SO that DR.. Ag-
I new said, when he came from the sick-chanber,
1 as he has said before; "The vitality of the
| President is something more remarkable than
have ever met with in all my practice" This
4 was said to Mrs. Garfield and Private Secretary
/ Brown, and the great surgeon also added that
Y " if it was not for his wonderful evidence of
! constitutional strength, he should feel as
& though it was folly to indulge in any hope"
4 After the rigor had passed the President fell
/ asleep, and, although his pulse was still beat
I ing above 120. yet his temperature had not de-
G creased more than a tenth of degree or so
( below normal point
Hn in oh
: first words he said showed that the mind was
more active than his bodily strength. He said
i to DR.. Bliss " Doctor. ] feel very comforta-
Bile, but also feel dreadfully weak. I wish
/ you would give me the hand-glass and let me
h look at myself"
y Gen. Swain said "Oh, no, don't do that
Mr. President. see if you can't get some more
sleep. 20 want to see myself, the President
replied. Mrs. Garfield gave him hand-glass
!. He acid it in position which enabled him to
3 see his face. Mrs. Garfield, DR.. Bliss, DIR.
4 Agnew, Gen. Swain and DR.. Boynton stood
around the bed saying not word, but looking
at the President. He studied the reflection Of
his own features at length. He YEARLY let the
glass fall upon the counterpane and with q
/ sigh said to Mrs. Garfield ''Crete, I don't see
I how 1t is that man who looks as well as do
& should be 80 dreadfully weak"
RI In moment or two he asked for his daugh-
Il ter, Miss Mollie. They told him that she would
$ come to see him later IN the day. He said
4 however, that he wanted to see her then.
Thereupon Rockwell went to the beach where
n Miss Molhe was sitting with Miss Rockwell, and
told her that her father wanted to see her.
& When the child went into the room she kissed
/ her father and told him that she was glad to
3 see that he was looking so much better. The
: President said "You think do look better,
4 Mollie?" She said ST do, papa
b And then she took a chair and sat at the foot
ton noticed that Miss Mollie was swaying In
4 the chair, he slipped up to her. but before
he could reach her she had fallen over
y IN dead faint. In falling her face struck
i against the bedpost, and when they raised
Is her from the floor she was not only uncon-
sclous, but also bleeding from the confusion
d which she had received. They carried her
Z from the ocean, and, after restorstlves were
3 applied, she speedily recovered from the faint.
u The room was close, the windows were closed,
g and Miss Molie had not been very well, and all
NJ these causes, combined with the anxiety, I'M
Il duced the fainting fit. The President, they
L thought, had not noticed what had happened
Ii to his petted child, for he seemed to
e. have sank into the stupor which char
y acterized his condition most of the time.
Is But when DIR. Boynton went back into the
s. room he was astonished to hear the President
II say Poor little Mollie. She fell over like q
& log. What was the natter" They assured
q the President that the fainting ftiyas caused
81 by the closeness of the room, as well as the
d delicate constitution of the girl, and when he
e had that assurance he again sank into stupor
Il or sleep, which lasted until the noon examina-
q ton. This stupor was not healthy sleep.
u The President frequently muttered and rolled,
81 and tossed his head upon the pillow.
NJ After the noon examination there was very
81 little change in the Presidents condition, ex-
g eept that it was noticed that there was more
s. mental confusion. The fear of a rigor about
& that hour was not realized, but there was a
ri fear that a rigor would occur IN early evening.
Il At the same time the President was doing SO
NJ well, comparatively, that the physicians enter
NJ tanned a slight hope that the eTening, and
i possibly the night, would pass without
j any recurrence of the rigors.w The Cab
N met who are all here with the excep-
8 ton of the Secretary of State and
4 Secretary of War, asked the physicians for an
& honest prognosls of the case. They were told
D that the case was almost hopeless; that per-
s son who had less vitality than the President
1 has shown would be pronounced by the at
& tending physicians to be beyond hope. DIR.
Il Agnew said that the Presidents condition was
! bad as bad could be, but that he was not yet
q quite prepared to say that there was abso-
lutely no hope. At the same time the Cab
/ met heard that which satisfied them that
the President was now suffering from acute
pyRmia.
q At the evening bulletin his condition was