West Virginia freeman. (Parkersburg, W. Va.) 1881-1886, 1882-03-08

voters recalled the unfortunate AL
ALBANIA letter, in which Mr.. Clay
was supposed to have signed his
political death warrant. They re-
membered also the hot-tempered
efusion by which General Scott
lost large share of his popularity
before his nomination, and the un-
fortunate speeches that rapidly
consumed the remainder. The
younger voters had seen Mr.. Gree
ley in a series of vigorous and orr G.
inal addresses, preparing the path
way for his own defeat. Unmindfu!
of these warnings, unheeding the
advice of friends, Garfield spoke to
large crowds as he journeyed toand
from New York in August, to a
great multitude in that city, to del
egations and Populations of every
kind that. called at Mentor during
the summer and autumn. With in
Vulnerable critics, eager and watch
ing to catch a phrase that might
be turned into odium or ridicule,
or sentence that might be distort-
ed to his own or his party's injury,
Garfield did not trip or halt in any
one of his seventy speeches. This
seems all the more remarkable
when it is remembered he did not
write what he said, and yet spoke
with such logical consecutiveness
of thought and such admirable pre-
cision of phrase as to defy the ac-
cident of mis-report and the malig-
ity Of misrepresentation.
In the beginning of his Presiden-
tial life, Garfeld's experience did
not yield him satisfaction or pleas
ure. The duties that engross SO
large a portion of the Presidents
time were distasteful to him, and
were unfavorably contrasted with
his legislative work. "Ihave been
dealing all these years with ideas"
he impatiently exclaimed one day,
"and here | am dealing only with
persons. l have been heretofore
treating of the fundamental princi-
plies of Government and here | am
considering all day whether A Or B
shall be appointed to this or that
office" He was earnestly seeking
some practical way of correcting
the evils arising from the distribu-
ton of overgrown and unwieldy
patronage-evils always appreciat-
ed and often discussed by him, but
whose magnitude had been more
deeply impressed upon his mind
since his accession to the Presiden-
cy Had he lived, a comprehensive
improvement in the mode of APP
pointment and in the tenure of Of
flee would have been proposed by
him, and with the aid of Congress
no doubt perfected.
But, while many Of the Execu-
tive duties were not grateful to him
he was assiduous and conscientious
in their discharge. From the very
outset he exhibited administrative
talent of a high order. He grasped
the helm Of office with the hand of
a master, In this respect he con-
stantly surprised many who were
most intimately associated with
him in the Government, and espec-
tally those who feared he might be
lacking in the executive faculty.
His disposition of business was or
derby and rapid. His power of an
alysis, and his skill in classical
ton enabled him to dispatch a vast
mass of detail with singular
promptness and ease. His Cabinet
meetings were admirably conduct
ed. His clear presentation of off
cial subjects, his well-considered
suggestion of topics on which dis
cussion was invited, his quick de-
cision when all had been heard,
combined to show thoroughness
of mental training as rare as his
natural ability, and his facile adap-
tation to a new and enlarged field
of labor.
With perfect comprehension of
all the inheritances of the war,
with a cool calculation of the obsta-
cles in his way, impelled always
by generous enthusiasm, Garfield
conceived that much might be done
by his administration towards re-
storing harmony between the diff
ferent sections of the Union. He
was anyiOu tO 90 So1th and cnaa l.