The Newberry herald. [volume] (Newberry, S.C.) 1865-1884, 1881-07-13
Some Incidents Of the Attempt
ed Assassination.


President Garfelds fortitude
and bravery under his severe afflic-
tions have been heroic. Shortly
after he was shot he asked the Doc
tors what they thought Of his con-
dition. One of them replied, You
have a chance for recovery" Then,
said the President, Ill take that
chance" It is said that his strong
will and cheerfulness have done
much towards bringing him
through.
If the President had not been q
man Of regular habits and strong
constitution he never could have
survived; he would not have raj,
lied from the first shock.
Mrs. Garfield has borne herself
bravely through the trying ordeal.
Though just recovering from a long
and severe illness she has done a
great deal by her quiet cheerfulness
and self control to encourage hef
husband and keep him in o hopeful
frame of mind. Had she given
way to her grief the effect on her
husband might have been very Sc
| rious.
Amid all the sadness and horror
attending the shooting Of the Pres
ident there is one comforting re.
| fection the occurrence has created
a bond of sympathy and fraternal
| feeling between all sections of the
country that nothing else could
have done.
Another good that may flow from
| this evil is, that it is a solemn warn
ing against the spoils systematic
bitter contest for Offices. There
seems little doubt that this dread
ful calamity was the natural out
come of the bitter, partisan feelings
engendered By the war on the ad'
ministration. This miserable wretch
Guiteau, unbalanced in mind, and
frenzied by refusal of Office, i'm
agined he was doing the country a
service by removing the President
out of the way and thus bringing in
| to power Arthur, Conkling and that
faction. If Conkling and his parti-
sans were in the line of duty in
their fight against the administra-
ton then they are entirely blame
less; but if their opposition to the
administration was simply fight
for place, as we believe it was, then
they are, in some degree, RESPONSE
bic for the result, though no fair
minded man will accuse them of in.
tending, or even desiring, such an
occurrence as has happened.
When President Lincoln was as
sassinated by Southern man the
enemies of the South characterized
the act as the embodied spirit of
slavery and rebellion, anil the
South was held responsible for the
crime. When the attempt was
made to assassinate President Gar
field enemies of the Conkling,
Grant and Arthur faction charged
them with being responsible for
the crime. The charge was natu-
raj in both instances, but in both
unjust. Booth did not represent
the South, any more than Guiteau
represents Conkling and his fac
ton. There is this difference be-
tween the two cases: The South
had nothing to gain by the assassi-
nation of Lincoln Conkling aud
his crowd had everything, political
ly, to gain by Gargeld's assassina.
ton. The Southern people have
felt the gross injustice done them
in holding them responsible for
Booths crime: they should there
fore be very slow to charge Gui-
.teau's crime upon the anti.Adminis.
tration faction without any evi-
dence and there is certainly none
so far.
The New York Methodist says:
However we may glaze it over,
this assassination is a fruit of our
strife over the miserable spoils Of
Office"