Democratic Sentinel, Volume 5, Number 35, Rensselaer, Jasper County, 7 October 1881 — THE NATION’S LOSS. [ARTICLE]

THE NATION’S LOSS.

Arrival in Cleveland . Scenes. The funeral train met with no delay after leaving Altoona, and reached Cleveland at 1:17 p. m. of Saturday, Sept. 24. Immense throngs of Borrowing people gathered at the stations along the route, and at several points the track was strewn with flowers. The train was met by a vast concourse of people at the depot in Cleveland. The locomotive was heavily draped in deep black on the boiler-head, and all the cars were elaborately draped.' After the train stopped, the ladies were escorted to the carriages. The wives of the Cabinet officers went first; then the distinguished widow, supported oii one side by Secretary Blaine, and on the other by her son Harry. The ladies, having been placed in the carriages, were sent to the places provided for them at private residences, Mrs. Garfield and children being the guests of James Mason. The body of the late President was then taken from its car by a detachment of the regu’ar army, under Lieut. Weaver, and borne on their shoulders to a special hearse in waiting, followed by a distinguished guard of honor, marching two by two, an army and a naval officer abreast. Gen. Sherman and Rear Admiral Nichols were first; then Gen. Sher.dan and Admiral Rodgers, Gen. Hancock and Admiral Porter, and Gens. Drum and Meigs passed, with other naval officers not named. Then followed Chief Justice Waite and other Supreme CourJ Justices, members of the Cabinet, Gov. Foster' and staff and escort, and the committee. At 1:30 the coffin, on which were palms and a large wreath fragrant with tuberoses, was placed in a hearse, and the line of march formed in the following order : Col. Wilson and staff, Silver Greys’ band, First city troops. Hearse and horses, guarded by Knight Templars, in column of three, and flanked by ten horses of the City troop on each side. Cleveland Greys and Forty-second Ohio volunteers. Ths. Cabinet, Gen, Sherman and aids, and guard of honor composed of officers of the army and distinguished guests. Leaving the depot the cortege moved very slowly down Euclid avenue, the bells tolling, and people standing with uncovered heads. All the houses on the route of march were elaborately decorated. Arriving at Monumental Park, the remains were conveyed through the line of guards to the pavilion prepared for the lying in state until interment. The casket was placed by the pall-bearers on the dais underneath a canopy supported by four gilt Egyptian columns; On account of the feelings of the widow the face was not exposed, but instead was p'aced an admirable copy likeness, taken by J. F. Ryder on President Garfield’s return from the Chicago Convention—a most natural portrait. On tne shelves of the pavilion on either side were multitudes of floral offerings. The park had been inclosed by steel wires. Because the decorations were not entirely finished no one outside of the committee was admitted to the pavilion during Saturday night. During Sunday a double line of militia was so placed that the public could walk past the casket three or four abreast, a privilege of which at least 100,000 persons availed- themselves. A correspondent thus describes tiie impressive scenes of that memorable Sabbath in Cleveland : “The Sabbath day opened with rain, but the clouds soon dissipated, and until nearly dark it was clear, warm and windy. The main entrances to the public square were thrown open to the .public at 1 o’clock in the morning, and an hour before that time a procession began to form, which lengthened, and stretched westward for three or four blocks, like an enormous human anaconda, wriggling to make progress. As the word was given the throng kept in perfect order by the police and militia guardsmen, pushed forward to the catafalque. At first they moved slowly, thoee in front pausing at the catafalque to pay more than a passing tribute to the dead President; but gradually the impatient mass in the rear caused an acceleration in the movement, and by 10 o’clock the two lines were pouring through the pavilion at the rate of 400 or 51)0 every five minutes, a speed that was maintained with little letup until 9 o’clock at night. At times the lino of mourners was a mile in length, the f rther end of the procession being lost to sight around the curve in the great viaduct leading off Superior street There must have been 10,000 people in line most of the time, and there were counter processions of men, women and children leading from the square to the remote extremity of the line, where tney fell in place and returned. Men aud women of all classes and stations, as indicated by dress and appearance, were there, and there was no exhibition of ill-temper er impatience noticeable. Probably 45,(.00 pil- . grinis passed the shrine during the day and evening, and the streets and highways about the square and leading to it were packed all the time. It is no exaggeration to say that 125,000 people were on the streets within a radius of two blocks from the catafalque from sunrise to midnight. “ The catafalque at night was a citadel of glory. The ghastly glare of the electric lights, blending with the softer yet scarcely less brilliant flush from the monster headlight mounted on th j main arch, shed upon the palace of death a halo that transformed it into a temple of almost supernatural beauty. None could view the spectacle without emotion, and thousands massed in the streets in front, gazing upon it in rapt admiration. Never’ had it appeared to such advantage before. It was incomparably beautiful, and, as a spectatoa whose soul was moved by the sight observed, “ It is indeed befitting that a King of men should rest on such a splendid bier.” The bronzed columns of the dais, with tneir chivalric mountings, glittered in the night like burnished gold, making blacker the sable drapery of the tomb of a day. The shields and swords and massive emblems that adorned the corner pieces of the structure, together with the funeral wreaths and other floral wrappings, so placed as to relieve the background of melancholy black, made a separate picture by themselves, a magnificent frame for the central figure, the whole forming what might well be called the glorious creation of an artist’s dream.” On Sunday afternoon, Mrs. Garfield and her sons Harry and James visited Lake View Cemetery with Hon. J. H. Wade, and expressed her satisfaction with the site selected for the grave. The I.list Sad Rites—An Imposing Pageant. The funeral obsequies of the lamented James A' ram Garfield occurred at Cleveland, Ohio, on Monday, Sept. 26. The ceremonies began at the pavilion, in Monumental Square, at 10:30 o’clock. ’J he immediate members of the family and near relatives and friends took seats about the casket, and at each corner was stationed a member of the Cleveland Grays, each of whom stood like a statue during the entire programme. The members of the committee about the pavilion were almost cloaked in crape, their drapings being very heavy. The audience assembled to hear the last services of religion included Grandma Garfield, Mrs. Garfield, Miss Mollie, James, Harry, Abram and Irving Garfield. Following them were Mr. and Mrs. Rudolph, Colonel, Mrs. and Miss Rockwell, Gen. Swaim, Dr. and Mrs. Boynton, Captain and Mrs. Henry, Mr. and Mrs. Sheldon, Private Secretary Brown, and Mr. Warren Young, and *ll members of the Cabinet and their wives, as well as general officers of ihe army and navy, foreign Ambassadors, Governors of fourteen States, with staffs, and prominent citizens representing the large cities of the United States. Beside these there were an immense army, composed of the regular army,’ the citizen soldiery from various States, and a countless throng of secret and benevolent organizations. The service commenced with singing the hymn. ‘‘Thou Art Gone to the Grave” (by Heber), followed by three portions of Holy Scripture read by the Rt. Rev. Dr. Bedell, Bishop of Ohio. ' Rev. Ross C. Houghton, pastor of the First Methodist Episcopal Church, Cleveland, then offered prayer, after which the Rev. Isaac Errett, of the Church of Die Discinles, Cincinnati, delivered an eloquent address. Dr. Errett was listened to with a close and earnest attention. He spoke for forty minutes, and when he closed a hush for a moment hung over the vast audience. The Rev. Jabez Hale then read Garfield’s favorite hymn, which was beautifully sung by the Vocal Society, as follows : >to, reapers of life’s harvest, Why stand with rusted blade Until the night draws round thee Aud the day begins tp fade? Why stand ye idle waiting” I - For reapers more to come ? The gofrlen mbrii is paeslug, Why est ye idle, dumb ? Thrust in your sharpened sickle

And gather in the grain; The night is fast approaching And noon will come again. The Master calls for reapers, And shall He call in vain ? Shall sheaves lie there ungathered, And waste upon the plain T Mount up the heights of wisdom And crush each error low; Keep back no words of Knowledge That human hearts should know. Be faithful to thy mission In service of thy Lord, Anti then a golden chaplet Shall be thy just reward. Rev Charles 8. Pomeroy delivered the Anal prayer and bendecition, after which the Washington Marine Band played “ Nearer, My God to A few minutes before 12 o’clock the military bodyguard from Washington moved up the east incline, entered the pavilion, halted at the bier, lifted the casket containing the nation’* duat, ornamented only by the Queen Victoria wreath and John Hoey’s sage palms, and reverently bore it on their broad and powerful shoulders to the elaborate funeral car in waiting near the east entrance. Imposing as was the cenotaph in the park pavilion, this somber carriage of the dead was even more so. Massive in its proportions, rich in its decorations, and solemn suggestiveness in all its parts, its general effect was peculiarly and lastingly impressive. It was built in the canopy form, on ponderous trucks, and topped with a roof sloping to and ending in a parallelogram, on which rested the typical black urn. The lowest portion nearest the ground was trimmed in heavy black broadcloth. Edged at the bottom was g, massive black fringe and heavy cord. Behind a heavy crape hanging, set off with a silver fringe, were barely visible the star* and stripes of the national emblem. The black surface aoove was festooned with immortelles, ■while the three steps leading up to the floor of the car were edged with white, and the corner moldings covered with heavy black velvet. The catafalque proper, resting on the floor, was trimmed with heavy vertical folds of black broadcloth, the prevailing material throughout, edged at the top with silver fringe, and set off with heavy clusters of black crape. A white strap was attached to each of the four sides to hold the coffin in place. A black column, trimmed in bands of white, rose from each of the four corners of the car, and was supplemented by a draped battleflag carried through the dust and blood and heat of the day at Chickamauga. From the upper step rose the Egyptian columns, three qu a side, or six in all, supporting the canopy, Lnd trmimed with immortelles and heavy vertical folds of black. Black festoons, edged with silver, trimmed with rosettes and wreaths of immortelles, depended from the roof on the outer surface. The roof was covered with folds of heavy black, trimmed with white roseties and wreaths of immortelles, with a rayed ceiling of red, white and blue on the background. Biack and white plumes ornamented the roof and surrounded the urn, which rested on the top, while eight small wreathe of immortelles were attached to the sides. 'Some idea of the massive character of the car can be obtained from a statement of its dimensions. The distance from the ground to the urn. was twenty feet, while the platform itself measured eight hy sixteen feet, and the bier twenty-eight inches by seven feet. Four black guy-ropes depended from the corner posts, aud were held by black grooms, who were thus enabled to steady the motion of the car over rough places, and prevent its swaying to and fro on its journey to the cemetery. Twelve coal-black horses, four abreast, and covered with broadcloth neck and body cloths, edged with silver fringe, drew the. somber object. Black and white plumes waved from their heads, while a groom at the head es eacn outer horse controlled its progress by a black-and-white halter-lead. The only incident which occurred at the pavilion was the request of Grandma Garfield for a drink of water. Many persons construed this as an indication that the old lady was faint. Such was not the case, however. The remains liaving been placed in the funeral car, the mourners retired from the pavilion and took their places in the carriages assigned to them. Mrs. Garfield, heavily veiled, entered the first one with the dead President’s mother, and the boys, Harry, James and Abram. Col. Corbin, with Miss Mollie Garfield and young Irwin, entered the second. The relatives and friends came next, followed by the guard of honor, and the members of the Cabinet ahd their wives, exPresidcjit and Mrs. Hayes, ex-Secretary Evarts, the Judges of the Supreme Court, the members of the United States Senate and House of Representatives, the several State Executivrs and the remaining occupants of the platform, together with the Society of the Army of the Cumberland, the Mayors of cities, and the members of various Aldermanic bodies and the numerous local committees. The funeral-car proceeded beyond the City Hall on Superior street, and stopped until the first carriage started. As the remaining carriages followed up, it continued its journey anti it reached Erie street and the massive arch at that point. Turning into Euclid avenue, famous as perhaps the handsomest in the world, and decorated as it probably never will ha again, with all the badges of mourning and insignia of grief, it joined in the procession of military orgarfizations, Masonic societies and all the numerous civic and other organizations, and slowly wended its way, to the sound of funeral dirges, to the cemetery five miles away. Though the several divisions dropped rather promptly and gracefully into line, it soon became too painfully apparent that there was altogether too much of the procession, aud yet not a few societies were crowded out. owing to their late and unexpected arrival, or left with the cold consolation of being privileged to : drop in at the rear, when it was morally impossible for them ever to reach the cemetery, if they stayed there until the head had arrived at Like View, witnessed the obsequies, and should to turn round and come homo. As a matter of fact, the tail of the procession rested down town while the head was at the cemetery, while, if every society and club which wanted to march had persisted in doing so, the procession would have been swollen to unreasonable proportions. The military present' d a magnificent scene. The column was headed by that veteran volunteer organization, the Boston Fusileers, who had traveled from Massachustt s in order to pay a last tribute to their deceased comrade by participating in the obsequies. Arrived at the cemetery, the pall-bearers alighted and took their positions on e.ther side of the carpet walk to the vault,' while the ’ two eldest son* of the dead President, Harry and James, joined those on the right in company with the inevitable and omnipresent Rockwell and Swaim. Mrs. Garfield sat at her carriage window, her veil removed, and her tearless eyes reyealflag the mental struggle she wasr undergoing in her determination to bear up bravely under her load of grief. The steps to the vault were carpeted with flowers, and oa either side of the entrance were an anchor of tuberoses

and a cfoss, while amilax and evergreens Were festooned above. A heavy, black canopy was stretched over tho steps from which the exerciacs were to be conducted. At 8:30 o’clock the procession entered the gateway, which was arched over with black, with appropriate inscriptions. In the keystone wOre the words “ Come to rest.” On one side were the words, “Lay him to rest whom we have learned to love on the other, “ Lay him to rest whom we have learned to trust. ’’ A massive cross of evergreens swung from the center of the arch. The United states Marine Baud, continuing the sweet, mournful strains it had kept up during the entire march, entered ti rst. Then came the Forest City Troop, • of Cleveland, wh'ch was the escort of the President to bis inauguration. Behind it came the funeral car, with its escort of twelve United States artillerymen, followed by a ba taboo of Knights Templar and the Cleveland Grays. The mourners’ carriages and those containing the guard of honor comprised all of the procession that entered the grounds. The cavalry halted at the vault and drew up in line, facing it with sabers presented. The car drew up m front, with the mourners’ carriages and those of the Cabinet behind. The band played “Nearer My God to Thee” as the military escort lifted the coffin from the car and carried it into the vault, the local Committee of Beception, Secretary Blaine, Marshal Henry and one or two personal friends standing at either side of the entrance. • None of the President’s family except two of the boys left the carriages during the exercises, which occupied less than half an hour. Dr. J. H. Robison, as President of the day, opened the exercises by introducing the Bev. J. H. Jones, Chaplain of the Forty-second regiment, Ohio volunteer infantry, which. Gen. Garfield commanded. Mr. Jones paid an earnest tribute to the memory of the deceased, as .er which the Latin ode of Horace was sung by the United German Society, Translated into English, this beautiful ode reads as. follows: “The man of upright life and pure from wickedness, Q Fuscos, has no need of the

Moorish javelins or bow, or qnlver loaded with poisoned darts. Whether he is about to make his journey through the sultry Syrtes of the inhospitable Caucasus, or those places which Hydaspes, celebrated in story, washes. For lately, as I was singing my Lalage, and wandered beyond my usual bounds, devoid pf care, a wolf in the Sabine wood fled from me, though I was unarmed; such a monster as neither the warlike Apulia nourishes in its extensive woods, nor the land of Juba, the dry nurse of lions, produces. Place me in those barren plains, where no tree is refreshed by the genial air ; at that part of the world which clouds and an inclement atmosphere infest. Place me under the chariot of the too-neighboring sun, in the land deprived of habitation, there will 1 love mv sweetly-smiling, sweetly-speaking Lalage. 1 ' Mr. Robison then announced the late President’s hymn, “Ho, Reaperss of Life’s Harvest,” which the German vocal societies of Cleveland sang with marked effect. The exercises closed w<th the benediction by President Hinsdale, of Hiram College, who was introduced by Dr. Robison. Mr. Hiusdale said: “ O God ! the sad experience of this day teaches us the truth of what Thou has told us in Thy word. The grave is the last of this world, and the end of life. Earth to earth ; dust to dust; ashes to ashes. But-we believe in the doctrine of the immortality of the soul and in the power of the endless life. Therefore, O God! our Father, we look to Thee now for the greatest blessing. We pray that fellowship and salvation of the Lord Jesus Christ, our Savior, and the inspiration of the Holy Spirit, the Comforter, may be with all who have been in to-day ■ assembly. Amen.” The last words had no sooner died on his lips than those in the immediate proximity of the vault pressed forward and gathered up handfuls of flowers and hemlock twigs as precious mementoes of the solemn scene. A large rose, a geranium and a sprig of hemlock were carried to Mrs. Garfield, who pressed them to her lips and treasured them as a priceless boon. The general crowd broke in about this time, and in lesj time than it takes to tell it the rich carpet of flowers and sprigs had almost vanished, and was being carried off in pieces by the relichunters. A guard was left at the vault, the procession returned, and in a few moments more the line of mourners was wending its way back to the city, the Cabinet officers stopping at the Euclid Avenue Station, where they took their special train back to Washington, Mrs. Garfield returning to the residence of Mrs. James Mason, where she remained until the following day, when she embarked on the saddest journey of all, the trip to her once happy Mentor home. It is estimated that 500,000 people were in the streets of Cleveland during the progress of the funeral procession, and that from 100,000 to 150,000 of these were strangers. Homo of the adjacent towns were almost depopulated. At Mrs. Garfield’s suggestion, the casket containing the rate President will be inclosed in an iron cage. Then a cement wall will be built around this of sufficient strength to resist all attempts to remove the body, and of dimensions enough to form the foundation for the proposed monument. The Mayor of the city detailed a police force to be on duty continually until the final interment. A meeting of Governors of States present in Cleveland was held previous to the funeral obsequies, at which were present Govs. Cornell, of New York ; Bigelow, of Connecticut: Ludlow, of New Jersey ; Jackson, of West Virginia; Hawkins, of Tennessee ; Pitkin, of California ; Cullom, of Illinois; Blackburn, of Kentucky ; Smith, of Wisconsin; Gear, of lowa, and otheas. Gov. Blackburn, of Kentucky, was unanimously chosen Chairman, and, on motion of Gov. Cornell of New York, Govs. Bigelow, of Connecticut, and Hawkins, of Tennessee, were appointed a Committee on Resolutions. Alter a brief consultation the committee reported the following, which were unanimously adopted: “ We, the Governors of , assembled to assist in the funeral ceremonies of our dead President, resolve that, by his murder, our nation has lost a gallant, soldier, an unselfish patriot, one of the purest and ablest statesmen of the age, and a Chief Magistrate wiiose brief but brilliant administration commands the approval of al! secti >ns of the republic. “ Resolved, That we have observed with profound gratitude all citizens of the republic, regardless of rank, class or party, sharing alike iu the unbounded sorrow of our common country for the d jath of President Garfield, and in this sec the assnrau ;e of the peop'e of the nation that we are in the presence of an era of peace and fraternal friendship for many years past unknown in the republic. “ Resolved, That, while we bow in humble submission to the will of Him who doeth all things well, in this hour of our supreme sorrow we record our appreciation of his intellectual worth, his many great virtues, and his perfect Christian character. “ Resolved, That we tender our profound symuathy to the bereaved mother, widow and children of the illustrious dead in theiy terriblo affliction. “ Resolved, That wo extend to President Arthur our earnest sympathy, and we sincerely hope and believe the nation will unite in sustaining him in his noble and patriotic resolution to carry out the policy and measures of his lar. ented predecessor. “ Resolved, That a copy of these resolutions be transmitted to the bereaved family and to the press of the country.”

Memorial Services Elsewhere. All over the United States, in Canada and in many parts of Great Britain, business was wholly suspended, religious services were held in the churches in the morning and were very largely attended. In the evening there were meetings in halls and churches, at which the great public services of the illustrious dead were referred to, and in which his character was fittingly ‘ eulogized. The funerm procession in Chicago was the largest and, all considered, the most remarkable which ever occurred in that city. It consisted of all the military organizations, all the principal secret bodies, the postoffice ana other Governmental and municipal officers and subordinates, national ana benevolent societies, numbering not less than 15,000. men, and by some estimated at twice that number. The'grand array took nearly two hours to pass a given point. Tho city of Chicago never before experienced what may be termed h total suspension of businc ss. t There was not a transaction in financial or commercial circles; the Union Stockyards were utterly closed, for w the first time in history ; scarcely a saloon in the city opened rts doors during the hours occupied by the procession, and even drug stores added to the general quiet by ceasing to do business. In truth, in every city and village in the United States —Noith, South, East arid West—the solemn ceremonies enacted at Cleveland were remembered with less imposing, but not less earnest and regretful, services. In Great Britain, from one end of the island to the other, memorial services and meetings were held, bells were tolled, flags were displayed at half-mast, shops were partially closed, and private residences and hotels had drawn curtains. The bells at Windsor Castle were tolled for an hour, and there were services in Westminster Abbey, at which Canons Farrar. Duckworth and Cheadle assisted. The city of London was liberally draped in mourning and the Manchester Guardian appeared with mourning bordeis.