Rensselaer Republican, Volume 13, Number 26, Rensselaer, Jasper County, 17 March 1881 — Garfield to the Pulpit. [ARTICLE]

Garfield to the Pulpit.

A correspondent of the Cleveland Herald writes: Learning that Presi-dent-elect Garfield was at one time pastor of the Disciple churoh in Aurora, Ohio, and in fact the only one with which he was thus connected,a writer of the Herald called upon the Hon. C. R. Harmon, oue of General Garfield’s earliest and most influential friends, and . brought up the subject by requesting the narration of any facts “that he/might choose to make public.” . F “Yes,General Garfield preached here to the Disciple church in 1867-58, I think. He was elected to the state senate while preaching here, Garfield, when a boy, lived in town at different times, ana in haying time was a very desirable hand; out after he began to go to school was lost sight of. and when he came to the front at Hiram college this brought up the matter afresh, and the church here being rather small, and Garfield being somewhat at leisure on Sundays, it was fixed up for him to come here and preach every two weeks.” “It has been denied, has it not, tha(. Garfield was ever a reverend ?” “Yes. That arises from the fact that the Disciple church does not require a ‘license’ of their teachers, so that any member may conduct public services. I do not think that ne ever was a preacher in the frill meaning of the word.” ‘’Will you relate some of the cireumetamcea of h^grMchlnghere?” cloo6 h student of the tuctici ot the • (i „ IwMMub.

talk all night! would take hi treble and a few slips of note paper and go into tlje parlor by himself and ‘prepare something,’ as he styled it. He oould not have over the entire subject, simply ring out a point here and there ns ‘heads,’ but a half hour later from these points he would preaeh remarkable discourses, especially noticeable for their completeness and the clearness of the arguments, which must have been supplied from the speaker’s stock of general information.” “What was bis style c* pulpit oratory?” ‘‘Largely the same as now. The same easy grace and a vti"? that the rules of elocution have but slightly improved. He had a style then of wearing his hair somewhat long, and being very bushy and inclined to fall over his face he became very dextrous in combing the heavy, tawny looks with his fingers that made a somewhat original gesture to replace it.”