on the evening of march 3d, preceding the inauguration, the president-elect met twenty of his college classmates at supper at wormley's hotel, in washington, and mutual congratulations were exchanged. he was the first president of the united states selected from among the graduates of williams college, and all the alumni, but more especially the class of 1856, were full of pride and rejoicing. from none probably were congratulations more welcome to the new president than from his old academic associates. if i transcribe the speech which gen. garfield made upon that occasion it is because it throws a light upon his character and interprets the feelings with which he entered upon the high office to which his countrymen had called him:
"classmates: to me there is something exceedingly pathetic in this reunion. in every eye before me i see the light of friendship and love, and i am sure it is reflected back to each one of you from my inmost heart. for twenty-two years, with the exception of the last few days, i have been in the public service. to-night i am a private citizen. to-morrow i shall be called to assume new responsibilities, and on the day after, the broadside of the world's wrath will strike. it will strike hard. i know it, and you will know it. whatever may happen to me in the future, i shall feel that i can always fall back upon the shoulders and hearts of the class of '56 for their approval of that which is right, and for their charitable judgment wherein i may come short in the discharge of my public duties. you may write down in your books now the largest percentage of blunders which you think i will be likely to make, and you will be sure to find in the end that i have made more than you have calculated—many more.
"this honor comes to me unsought. i have never had the presidential fever—not even for a day; nor have i it to-night. i have no feeling of elation in view of the position i am called upon to fill. i would thank god were i to-day a free lance in the house or the senate. but it is not to be, and i will go forward to meet the responsibilities and discharge the duties that are before me with all the firmness and ability i can command. i hope you will be able conscientiously to approve my conduct; and when i return to private life, i wish you to give me another class-meeting."
this brief address exhibits the modesty with which gen. garfield viewed his own qualifications for the high office for which twenty years of public life had been gradually preparing him. while all are liable to mistakes, it is hardly to be supposed that a man so prepared, and inspired by a conscientious devotion to what he deemed to be right, would have made many serious blunders. during his brief administration he made, as the country knows, an admirable beginning in reforming abuses and exacting the most rigid economy in the public service. there was every probability of his being his own successor had his life been spared.
the inaugural ceremonies were very imposing. washington was thronged as it had never been before on any similar occasion. private citizens, civic bodies, and military companies were present from every part of the country. prominent among the eminent citizens present was the stately and imposing figure of gen. hancock, who had been the nominee of the opposing party, and who, with admirable good feeling and good taste, had accepted an invitation to be present at the inauguration of his successful rival.
and there were others present whom we have met before. the wife and mother of the new president, with flushed cheeks and proud hearts, witnessed the ceremonies that made the one they loved the head of the state. to him they were more than all the rest. when he had taken the oath of office in the presence of the assembled tens of thousands, garfield turned to his aged mother and imprinted a kiss upon her cheek, and afterward upon that of his wife. it was a touch of nature that appealed to the hearts of all present.
in the white house, one of the best rooms was reserved for his aged mother, for whom he cherished the same fond love and reverence as in his boyish days. it was a change, and a great one, from the humble log-cabin in which our story opens; it was a change, too, from the backwoods boy, in his suit of homespun, to the statesman of noble and commanding figure, upon whom the eyes of the nation were turned. the boy who had guided the canal-boat was now at the helm of the national vessel, and there was no fear that he would run her aground. even had storms come, we might safely trust in him who had steered the little steamboat up the big sandy river, in darkness and storm and floating obstructions, to the camp where his famished soldiers were waiting for supplies. for, as is the case with every great man, it was difficulty and danger that nerved garfield to heroic efforts, and no emergency found him lacking.
his life must now be changed, and the change was not altogether agreeable. with his cordial off-hand manners, and western freedom, he, no doubt, felt cramped and hampered by the requirements of his new position. when he expressed his preference for the position of a freelance in the house or senate, he was sincere. it was more in accordance with his private tastes. but a public man can not always choose the place or the manner in which he will serve his country. often she says to him, "go up higher!" when he is content with an humble place, and more frequently, perhaps, he has to be satisfied with an humble place when he considers himself fitted for a higher.
so far as he could, gen. garfield tried to preserve in the executive mansion the domestic life which he so highly prized. he had his children around him. he made wise arrangements for their continued education, for he felt that whatever other legacy he might be able to leave them, this would be the most valuable. still, as of old, he could count on the assistance of his wife in fulfilling the duties, social and otherwise, required by his exalted position.
nor was he less fortunate in his political family. he had selected as his premier a friend and political associate of many years' standing, whose brilliant talent and wide-spread reputation brought strength to his administration. in accepting the tender of the post of secretary of state, mr. blaine said: "in our new relation i shall give all that i am, and all that i can hope to be, freely and joyfully to your service. you need no pledge of my loyalty in heart and in act. i should be false to myself did i not prove true both to the great trust you confide to me, and to your own personal and political fortunes in the present and in the future. your administration must be made brilliantly successful, and strong in the confidence and pride of the people, not at all directing its energies for re-election, and yet compelling that result by the logic of events and by the imperious necessities of the situation.
"i accept it as one of the happiest circumstances connected with this affair, that in allying my political fortunes with yours—or rather, for the time merging mine in yours—my heart goes with my head, and that i carry to you not only political support, but personal and devoted friendship. i can but regard it as somewhat remarkable that two men of the same age, entering congress at the same time, influenced by the same aims, and cherishing the same ambitions, should never, for a single moment, in eighteen years of close intimacy, have had a misunderstanding or a coolness, and that our friendship has steadily grown with our growth, and strengthened with our strength.
"it is this fact which has led me to the conclusion embodied in this letter; for, however much, my dear garfield, i might admire you as a statesman, i would not enter your cabinet if i did not believe in you as a man and love you as a friend."
when it is remembered that mr. blaine before the meeting of the convention was looked upon as the probable recipient of the honor that fell to garfield, the generous warmth of this letter will be accounted most creditable to both of the two friends, whose strong friendship rivalry could not weaken or diminish.
so the new administration entered upon what promised to be a successful course. i can not help recording, as a singular circumstance, that the three highest officers were ex-teachers. of garfield's extended services as teacher, beginning with the charge of a district school in the wilderness, and ending with the presidency of a college, we already know. reference has also been made to the early experience of the vice-president, chester a. arthur, in managing a country school. to this it may be added that mr. blaine, too, early in life was a teacher in an academy, and, as may readily be supposed, a successful one. it is seldom in other countries that similar honors crown educational workers. it may be mentioned, however, that louis philippe, afterward king of the french, while an exile in this country, gave instruction in his native language. it is not, however, every ruler of boys that is qualified to become a ruler of men. yet, in our own country, probably a majority of our public men have served in this capacity.
