The Ottawa free trader. [volume] (Ottawa, Ill.) 1843-1916, 1881-09-24
DEATH OF PRESIDENT GARFIELD.

diately teegraphed all over the country an
the world, and through the ringing Of mi
lions Of bells In every city, town and villag
throughout the land few people on Tuesda
morning remained IN Ignorance Of the sa
intelligence.
The incidents Of the last day were brief
these: While at o'clock in the morning tn
surgeons were dressing the presidents woun'
he suddenly turned his head and vom,ed tn
porIidge that had been given him. Then fol
lowed convulsve rIgor (chilD lasting hfteeI
minutes The pulse ran up to 143 and the pa
TENTS mind wandered. He imagined him
self at Mentor with his loved ones arount
him, and "babbed of green fields and brooks.
When the chill passed away his pulse became
more frequent and feeble The balance Of the
day passed off uneventfully. At 10 in the
evening the pulse was at 1906 with indications
of quiet night. A few minutes later, how
great plain, placing his hand over his heart
1T hurts" he said, and they were his las,
words DIR. Bliss was summoned and on en-.
tcring the room found the president substan.
TALLY without pulse. He said at once he was
dying, and directed the other doctors and Mrs
Garfield to be called. At 0:35 the president
was pronounced dead.
He passed away quietly and without pain.
At his bedside holding his poor, emaciated
hand in her own, sat his faithful devoted wife,
who continued to chafe his hand unable to re.
alize that the vital spark had gone out. The
weeping friends and physicians stood around.
Then Mrs. Rockwe placed her arm around
Mrs. Garfield ard led her quietly from the
room. She uttered no sound and there was
absolutely no scene. One by one the specta
tors left, the doctors alone remaining to close
the windows.
All the members Of the cabinet except
Blaine and Lincoln were at Lang Branch at
the time and at II Is p. NJ went In body to
Francklyn cottage, where the president lay.
Attorney General McVeagh, who summoned
them, had already telegraphed the presidents
death over the country. The first thing the
L
thur of the event and request HIM to immedi.
ately take the oath of office of president and
come to Long Branch in the morning.
The news reached Gen. Arthur at his home
in New York before eleven o'clock, the dis.
patch of the cabinet having been anticipated
by a Sun reporter. "My God" said he, 81
hope 1t is mistake" HIS voice broke at the
last words, and his eyes filled with tears. He
then retired to the back room, where Elihu
Root and Daniel g. Rollins were awaiting him.
They say he Is dead" said Gen. Arthur. "a
dispatch has been received at the Sun office"
A deep silence ensued. A moment afterward
the telegram from the cabinet was received.
Gen. Arthur broke it open slowly After read.
ing it he buried his face in his hands, and re-
manned in this position for a long time.
II was nearly two o'clock IN the morning
before Gen. Arthur became sufficiently collect.
ed TO act on the advice of the cabinet to take
the oath of Office. Messengers were sent to
the residences of different justices of the SUI
preme court, the first one who was found and
brought in being Judge Brady, by whom the
oath was administered. 1t is needless to say
that Gen Arthur slept little the balance of the
night.
Early IN the morning Secretaries Blaine and
Lincoln, who had arrived IN tie night from
Boston, drove up to his house and at o'clock
proceeded with him to Long Branch.
Tho nf Drooidopt ror6nld -
death, were placed IN charge of the village
under'akeruntil an embamer and undertaken,
who had been telegraphed for, arrived from
New York. Before embalming, however, an
AUTOPSY
took place, under the direction of DR.. Curtis
Of Washington, all the surgeons in the pres
dents case beng present. The repor, OF the
post morton examination is too long to be
copied here but it disclosed various things
that rather surprised the surgeons. For in.
stance, the ball was found In place (ncar the
haarD never for moment suspected by any
Of The eminent surgeons. Thus DR.. Hamilton
who had found it near the groin, was mistak.
en-, and the electric indicator that was said to
have found it Is humbug. The supposed
ball was in reality pus sac and was foot
out of Its reckoning. Then the track of the
ball, which shows the wound TO have been in.
evitably mortal, from which nothing could
ave the victim, was entirely different from
hat supposed. What the distinguished sur
seons attempted regularly to drain as the track
Of the wound was in reality a passage burrow-
I'd by the vicious matter dropping from the
real track and working down IN obedience to
he law of gravitatIon. And il was from this
poisoned canal that the bulletins drew their
'laudable pus."
THE FUNERAL.
The arrangements for the funeral, which
we're superintended by Gen. McVeagb, were
as follows: The remains were