The Somerset herald. [volume] (Somerset, Pa.) 1870-1936, 1882-03-08

tiou. and this latitude of doubt
Garfield came back always with
! freshness and delight to simpler In
stincts of faith, which earliest Inn
planted longest survive. Not many
weeks before his assassination
walking on the banks of the Poto
mac with a friend and conyersina
on those topics of personal religion
concerning which noble natures
have an unconquerable reserve, he
said that he found the Lords Pray.
er and the simple petitions learned
in infancy infinitely restful to him
not merely in their stately repetition
! but in their casual and freqent re-
call as he went about the daily du-
! ties of life. Certain texts OF scrip
lures had a very strong hold on
his memory and his heart. He
heard while in Edinburgh some
wears ago an eminent Scotch preach
er who prefaced his sermon with
reading the eighth chapter of the
Epis,ic to the Romans, which book
I had been the subject of careful stu
dy with Garfield during all his re-
lligious life. He was greatly impress
ed bv the elocution of the preacher
and declared that it had impaired a
new and deeper meaning to the ma
iestic utterances Of st. Paul He
referred often in after years to that
memorable service, and dwelt with
exaltation of feeling upon the radi-
ant promise and the assured hope
with which the great apostle Of the
Gentiles was ''pursuaded that neith-
er death. nor life, nor angels. nor
principalities, nor powers, nor things
present, nor things TO come, nor
height, nor depth, nor any other
creature, shall be able Ito separate
us from the love of God, which is In
Christ Jesus our Lord"
The crowning characteristic OF
General Garfeld's religious opin-
ions, as, indeed, of all bis opinions,
was his liberality. In all things he
had charity. Tolersuce was of his
nature. He respected in Others the
qualities which ne possessed himself
sincerity of conviction and frank
ness of expression. With him the
inquiry was not so much what Il
man believes, but does he believe it?
The lines of his friendship and bis
confidence encircled men of every
creed, and men of no creed, and TO
the end of his life, on his everlength-
ening list of friends, were to be
found the names Of a pious Catho-
lie priest and of the honest minded
and generous hearted free thinker.
One the morning of Saturday, Ju-
ly second, the President was hap
py and contented man-not in az
ordinary degree, but joyful, almost
boyishly happy. On his way to the
railway station, to which he drove
slowly, in conscious enjoyment of
the beautiful morning, with an un.
wonted sense of leisure. his talk was
all in the grateful and gratulatory
vein. He felt that after four months
of trial bis administration was
strong in its grasp of affairs, strongin
popular favor and destined to grow
stronger; that the grave difficulties
confronting him at his Inaugural
ton had been safely passed; that
trouble lay behind and not before
him; and he was soon to meet the
wife whom he loved, now recov-
ering from an illness which had but
lately disquieted and at times al
most unnerved him; that he was
going to his Alma Mater to renew
the most cherished associations of
his manhood, and toexchange greet
ings with those whose deepening
interest had followed every step of
/ his uDward progress srom the day
he entered upon his college course
until he tad attained the lo.tiest
elevation in the gift Of his country
men.
| Surely ii happiness en- ever come
from the honors or triumphs of this
world, on that quiet July morning
James A. Garfield may well have
been a happy man. No forebod-
ing Of evil haunted him; no slight
CO.. premonition of danger clouded
his sky. His terrible fate was upon
him in an instant. One moment
he stood erect, strong, confident in
the years stretching peacefully out
before him. The next be lay
wounded, bleeding, helpless, DOOM
ed to weary weeks Of torture, to ST.
lence, and the grave.
Great in life, he was surprisingly
great in death. For no cause, in the
very frenzy of wantonness and
wickedness, by thered hand ofmur-
der. he was thrust from the f1ll tide
of this worlds interest, from its
hopes, its aspirations, lis victories,
into the visible presence of death
and he did not quail. Not alone
for the one short moment in which.
stunned and dazed, he could give
up life, hardly aware of its relin-
quishment, but through days ofdead-
4 ly languor, through weeks of agony,
that was not less agony because 81
lently borne, with clear sight and
calm courage. he looked into his
open grave. What blight and ruin
met his anguished eyes, whose lips
may tell-what brilliant broken plans,
what baiiled, high ambitions what
saudering ofstrong, warm, ,manhood's
friendships, what bitter rending of
sweet household tiesl Behind him
a proud. expec;ant ration, great
host of sustaining friends, 4 cherish
ed and happy mother, wearing the
full. rich honoIs of her early toll
and tears the wife of his youth,
whose whole life lay in his; the
little boys not vet emerged from
childhOod's day of frolic the fair,
young daughters the sturdy sons
Just springing into closest compan-
ionship, claiming every day aad
every day rewarding fathers l,se
and care; and in his heart the ca
ger, rejoicing power to meet all de-
mand. Before him. desolation and
great darkness ! And his soul was
not shaken. His countrymen were
filed with instant, profound, and
universal sympathv. Masterful in