34th 35th 36th
Ballot. Ballot. Ballot.
Grant ……… 312 313 306
Blaine …….. 275 257 42
Sherman ……. 107 99 3
Edmunds ……. 11 11
Washburne ….. 30 23 5
Windom …….. 4 3
Garfield …… 17 50 399
Mr. Garfield was nominated, and the convention gave way to almost twenty minutes of cheering and enthusiasm, at the conclusion of which Roscoe Conkling moved that the nomination be made unanimous. As a concession to the disappointed Grant forces, Chester A. Arthur, of New York, was nominated for Vice-President on the first ballot over Elihu B. Washburne, Marshall Jewell, Thomas Settle, Horace Maynard and Edmund J. Davis, the ballot standing 468 for Arthur and 193 for Washburne, his nearest competitor, with scattering votes for the rest.
Although the nomination of Mr. Garfield, like that of Mr. Hayes, was totally unexpected, he was not unknown, and had already, by his services and career, earned for himself an enviable place in the nation's history. Born in Cuyahoga county, Ohio, in 1831, he had risen from an honorable poverty to the presidency of a College at the age of 26. He served one term in the Ohio Senate, and at the opening of the Civil War he was commissioned a Lieutenant-Colonel of Volunteers, and without any military experience and with a small force he routed a large body of Confederates at Middle Creek, Ky., in January, 1862, for which he received the highest praise from his superiors and the rank of Brigadier-General from President Lincoln. The rest of his military career was equally satisfactory and prominent, and he reached the rank of Major-General after Chickamauga. Resigning his commission, he took his seat in the House of Representatives in December, 1863, and immediately became a leader of the Republican forces, and his legislative work had been most conspicuous. He served from the Thirty-eighth to the Forty-Sixth Congresses inclusive, was on the Electoral Commission of 1877, and at the time of his nomination had been elected from Ohio to the United States Senate, but had not yet taken his seat.
The Greenback-Labor Convention met at Chicago, June 9th, and nominated James B. Weaver, of Iowa, for President, and B. F. Chambers, of Texas, for Vice-President, declaring in its platform that all money should be issued and its volume controlled by the Government; that the public domain should be kept for settlers, and that Congress should regulate commerce between the States. The Prohibition Convention at Cleveland, June 17th, nominated Neal Dow, of Maine, for President, and A. M. Thompson, of Ohio, for Vice-President. The last of the great party conventions, that of the Democrats, met at Cincinnati, June 22d, and nominated General Winfield S. Hancock, of Pennsylvania, for President, on the second ballot, and William H. English, of Indiana, for Vice-President by acclamation. The Democratic platform was concise, and in sharp contrast to the verbose platform of 1876; it demanded an honest money of gold and silver, and paper convertible into coin on demand; tariff for revenue only; and that the public land be given to none but actual settlers.
For the first time since 1844 there was no agitation in any of the party platforms of the slave or southern questions, and all parties agreed on the Chinese question. The campaign opened with defeat for the Republicans in Maine, but this led to greater efforts in the West. Late in the canvass the tariff issue became the most prominent one, and the declaration of the Democratic party for a tariff for revenue only was used against them with tremendous effect by the Republicans. Special efforts were made to gain the October States, and the Republican cause was greatly strengthened and perhaps won in them by several speeches delivered by General Grant and Senator Conkling. In desperation the Democrats, near the end of the canvass (October 20th), published broadcast a letter purporting to come from Mr. Garfield and addressed to "H. L. Morey." The letter stated opinions on the Chinese question which, if true, would have cost many votes, but the letter was promptly shown to be a contemptible forgery, and so plain was the evidence that the letter was disavowed by most Democrats. The election on November 2d was a victory for Garfield and Arthur, who received 214 electoral votes to 155 for Hancock and English. The popular vote was:
Garfield ………… 4,454,416 Weaver ………….. 308,578
Hancock …………. 4,444,952 Dow …………….. 10,305
An analysis of the popular and electoral vote disclosed the fact that every former slave State was carried by the Democratic Party, and the "Solid South" for the Democrats again became a factor in national politics.
Mr. Garfield was inaugurated March 4, 1881, and almost immediately was involved in the controversy between the "Stalwart" and the "Half Breed" Republicans in New York, the former being led by Senators Roscoe Conkling and Thomas C. Platt, and the latter being those who were opposed to the machine-like politics of the State. The "Stalwarts" had gained great strength during Gen. Grant's administration, but had been checked by President Hayes; they were the strongest advocates of Gen. Grant for a third term, and were greatly disappointed over his defeat in the convention, but had loyally supported the nominee, and had now made up their minds to control the Federal patronage in New York. President Garfield was drawn into the muddle by his appointment of William H. Robertson, a "Half Breed," to the Collectorship of New York. This called forth a protest signed by Postmaster-General James, Vice-President Arthur and Senators Conkling and Platt, the Senators announcing that they would oppose the confirmation in the Senate. This caused the President to withdraw all New York appointments until the matter should be settled, and as it was seen that the nomination would be confirmed, Senators Conkling and Platt resigned (May 16th), and appealed to the New York Legislature for re-election, but they were defeated, Elbridge C. Lapham and Warren Miller being elected in their places. The controversy excited the whole country, and it was believed by many to have influenced the deplorable tragedy which took place July 2, 1881. About 9:30 a. m., on that day, the President and Mr. Blaine entered the Baltimore & Potomac station in Washington to join a party which would leave that morning for Long Branch, where the President was to join his wife. The President and Mr. Blaine entered the Ladies' Waiting Room, and shortly afterward two shots, fired by Charles Jules Guiteau, were heard, and the President fell mortally wounded. He lingered in great suffering until September 19th, when he died at Elberon, New Jersey, whither he had been removed from Washington.
[Illustration: Chester A. Arthur.]
Vice-President Arthur was at his home in New York City at the time of President Garfield's death, and there took the oath of office as President in the early morning hours of September 20th, and took the formal oath in Washington on September 22d. It is of interest to know something of the man who was called, by these distressing circumstances, to the presidential chair.