St. Landry democrat. (Opelousas, La.) 1878-1894, 1881-10-01
RiOIrayDflicaI.

: James Abraham Garfield was born No
- vemhcr ID, 1881. in the Township of Orange,
e Cuyahoga County ohio, about fifteen miles
: from CIcvclanl. His father, Abraham Gar
field, came from New York. but like his
mother, was Of New England stock. James
was the Youngest of four children. The
. father died in 1898, leaving the family de-
f pendent upon a small farm and the rXer-
tlons of the mother. There was nothing
about the elder Garfield to distinguish MIN
from the 9th farmers of the rather sterile
township OF Orange. No one could discern
any qualities in him, which, transmitted to
, the next generation, might help to make a
statesman, unless it was industry: bat his
WIFE, who IS still living at an advanced age,
was always fond of reading when she
could get leisure from her hard house
hold duties, and was thoroughly capable
woman, OF strong Will, stern principles, and
more than average force Of character. The
older brother is IA farmer in 3Irbiyan and
the Two sisters are farmers wives. James
had hard time of it as Il boy. He tnilel
harI on the farm early and late in summer,
and worked at the carpenters bench in
winter. The best Of it was that he liked
work. He had an absorbing ambition TO
get an education, and the only road oy7n to
this end seemed that of lnanna labor
Ready money was hard to GET in those days.
The Ohio Canal ran not far from where he
lived, and, finding that the boatmen got
their pay in cash and e1rned better wages
than lie could make at farming or earpentrv,
he hired out as Il driver OH the tow path and
soon got up to the dignity OF holding
the helm of boar. Then be de-
| termined to ship rs sailor on the
| lakes, but an attack Of fever
and asue interfered with his plans. He was
! i'll three months, and when he recovered he
| decided to go to Il school called Geauga
Academy, in an adjoining county. His
mother had saved small sum OF MONEY.
which she gave him, tOgether with a few
cooking utensils and stock OF provisions.
He bred small room AMI cooked his own
/ food 10 make his expenses as light a posi-
bic. lie paid his own WAY after that, never
calling on his mother for any more assist
ance. BY working at the carpenters bench
mornings and evenings and vacation times.
and teaching country schools during the
winter, he managed to attend the Acadc-
my during the spring and fall terms and
to save little money towards oOiucr to col
le@e. He had excellent health, a robust |
frame, and Il eanial memory, and the at
tempt to combine mental and physical |
work, which has broken down many farmer /
boys ambitious to get an education, did rot /
hurt him.
When he was twenty-six wear. of age he
concluded he bad got about all there was to
be had in the obscure cross roads academy.
lie calculated he had saved about half enough
money to get through college. provided he
could begin, as he hopeed, with the Junior
year. He got a life insurance policy, and
assigned it to a gentleman as security for a
loan to make up the amount he lacked. In
the Fall of 1854 he entered the Junior Glass
OF Williams College, Massachusetts,. and
graduated in 1856 with the mntaphysicai
l0nors OF his class. 4 daguerre0type of
him, taken about this time, represents
rather awkward youth, with q shock Of
light hair standing straight up from a big
forehead, and a frank, thoughtful face, OF a
very marked German type .szt
Before he went to college Garfield had
connected himself with the Disciples. sect
having numerous membership in Eastern
and Southern Ohio, West Virginia and Ken
lucky. where its founder, Alexander Camp
bell. had travelled and preached. The prin-
cIpal pecnliarities of the denomination are
their refusal to formulate their beliefs into
a creed, tue independence Of each conerega-
tlon the hospitality and fraternal feeling of
the members, and the lack Of regular min
lstry. When Garfield returned to Ohio it
was natural that he should soon gravitate to
the struggling little college of the young |
sect at Hiram, Portage County, near his bow
hoods home. He became Professor OF Latin
and Greek, and threw himself with the en-
ergy and Industry which are leading traits Of
MS character into the work of building I'D
The institution. Before he had been two
years In his professorship he was appointed s
President Of the college. Hiram is a lone S
some country village, three miles from [
abroad, built upon high hill overlook S
ng twenty miles OF cheese making country G
% the southwark. 1t contains fifty or sixty l
houses clustered around the green, in the {
center Of which stands the homelv red brick /
oliege structure. Plain living and high ! s
mixing was the order of things at Hiram '
College in those DAYS. The teachers were /
'oor but there was q great deal of hard, !
aithful study done, and many ambitious I
'ians formed. The Young President taught, I
ectlred and preached, and all the time r
tudled as diligently as any acolyte in the a
emple OF knowledge. He frequently spoke
n sundays in the churches of the towns in t
ne Vicinity to create an interest in the col t
ege. Among the Disciples any one can J
reach who has mind to, no ordination | ii
eng required. From these Sunday discus t
ions came the story that Garfield at one o
me was minister. He never considered h
lmself as such, and never had any nten- h
on Of hnqlng career in the pulpit. His o
mbltlon, II he had any outside Of the school, ii
" in the direction Of law and politics. Il
During his professership Garfield married I
llss Lucretia Rudolph, daug hter of farmer l,
the neighborhood, whose acquaintance he =
al Vaudeville at the academy, where she
as also pupil. She was quiet, thought
Il girl, of singularly sweet and refined ii
sposition, fond of study and reading. pos NJ
ssing warm heart and a mind with the si
pactty OF steady growth. The marriage Z
as love affair on both sides. and has been Ca
happy one. Much of General st
afheld's subsequent success in life NAV be T.
trlDuted to the never-fai!ing sympathy M
ia intellectual companionship of his wife ca
The campaign. that followed the nominal .,
ON OF Garfield at Chicago and Hancock at tb ~,
lnclnnati was holly contested. The first ri
oubtful State, Maine, was carried by a.
lson OF Democrats and Greenbackers Sep ~, ~,
'mber 10. against the Republican candi- dc dc
stes; and it was believed for a time that ~
lie election of Hancock was assured. But :.
e Republicans rallied in Ohio and In ~
ana. and carried both those States Octo- IN
IF II. The election November , resulted "
the choice of PA Garfield and Arthur w
lectors, and los Hancock and English va va
ectors. The Electoral Colleges voted ac- NJ. NJ
rdingy December 5. General Garfield w w