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Page 7
On the morning of Saturday, July 2, President Garfield was to start from
Washington by the morning limited express for New York, en route for New
England and a reunion with his old college mates at the Williams College
commencement. His secretary of state accompanied him to the train, and
has recorded the great, almost boyish, delight with which the President
anticipated his holiday. They entered the waiting-room at the station,
and a moment later Guiteau's revolver had done its work. The country
still vividly remembers the devotion with which the head of the Cabinet
watched at the President's bedside, and the calm dignity with which,
during those long weeks of suspense, he discharged the painful duties of
his position. On September 6 the President was removed from Washington
to Elberon, whither he was followed the same day by Mr. Blaine and the
rest of the Cabinet. The apparent improvement in the President's
condition warranted the belief that he would continue to gain, and Mr.
Blaine went for a short rest to his home in Augusta. He was on his way
back to Elberon when the fatal moment came, and reached there the next
morning. It is the universal testimony of the press and people that,
during the weary weeks which intervened between the President's injury
and death, Mr. Blaine's every action and constant demeanor were
absolutely faultless. Selected by Congress to pronounce a formal eulogy
upon President Garfield, Mr. Blaine, on February 19, 1882, before
President Arthur and his Cabinet, both Houses of Congress, the Supreme
Court, the foreign legations, and an audience of ladies and gentlemen
which crowded the Hall of Representatives, delivered a most just,
comprehensive, and admirable address upon the martyr's great career and
character.
Since his withdrawal from President Arthur's Cabinet and his retirement
to private life at Augusta, Mr. Blaine has busied himself with his
history, entitled Twenty Years of Congress, the first volume of which
was given to the public last April. When finished, this work will cover
the period from Lincoln to Garfield, with a review of the events which
led to the political revolution of 1860. The story he tells in his first
volume is given with the simplicity and compactness of a trained
journalist, and yet with sufficient fulness to make the picture distinct
and clear in almost every detail. The book is as easy to read as a
well-written novel; it is clear and interesting, and commands the
attention throughout, the more for the absence of anything like
oratorical display or forensic combativeness. In literary polish it is
not beyond criticism, though occasional infelicities of expression and
instances of carelessness do not outweigh the general clearness and
force of style. It is not at all points unerring in portraiture, nor
infallible in judgment, though the writer's impartiality of spirit and
desire to be just are conspicuous, and he gives cogent reasons for
opinions expressed. But in broad and comprehensive appreciation of the
forces by which the development of public opinion has been affected, the
work is one of great merit. It seems to be entirely free from those
personal qualities which have characterized Mr. Blaine in politics. It
is very remarkable that a man so prominent as a partisan in political
affairs could have written a book so free from partisanship.
Mr. Blaine is now in his fifty-fifth year. Although above medium height,
he is so compactly and powerfully built that he scarcely seems tall. His
features are large and expressive; he is slightly bald and his neatly
trimmed beard is prematurely gray; his brows are lowering--his eyes
keen. On the floor of Congress he manifested marvelous power and nerve.
His voice is rich and melodious; his delivery is fluent and vigorous;
his gestures are full of grace and force; his self-possession is never
lost. He has appeared on the stump in almost every Northern State, and
is an exceedingly popular and effective campaign speaker. But it is not
when on the platform, speaking alone, that he has shown his greatest
strength. He is strongest when hard pressed by opponents in
parliamentary debate. He is a thorough believer in the organization of
men who think alike for advancing their views. He believes that in order
to carry out any great project it is necessary to have a party
organization, not for the purpose of advancing individual interests, but
to push ahead a great line of policy. He is a positive with the courage
of his convictions, and believes in aggressive politics. As a
consequence of this he has always had both very strong friends and very
bitter enemies. It is probable that no man in this country has had a
stronger personal following since the days of Harry Clay.
Blaine is a man of great physical capacities. He has great powers of
application. His mind works quickly. He is as restless as the ocean and
has the power of accomplishing an immense amount of work. Another
quality which he possesses--rare but invaluable to a public man--is that
of remembering names and faces, of remembering men and all about them.
This ability is partly natural, partly the result of his training. He
has made it a study to get acquainted with men.
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