GARFIELD 



2390 



GARFIELD 



drive the Confederates out of Eastern Ken- 

 tucky. A fortnight later Garfield won the 

 Battle of Middle Creek (January 10, 1862), on 

 a field chosen by the enemy, who also had 

 the advantage of superior numbers. This vic- 

 tory, followed by General Thomas's success 

 at Mill Spring, nearly ended Confederate hopes 

 in Kentucky. Garfield's services were acknowl- 

 edged by the President in a general order to 

 the army, and he was appointed brigadier- 

 general. He reached Shiloh in time to take 

 part in the second day's battle, was prominent 

 in all the operations around Corinth, and 

 showed considerable engineering skill in re- 

 building bridges and the fortifications of Hunts- 

 ville. 



During the winter of 1862-1863 he was in 

 Washington as a member of the court which 

 court-martialed General Fitz-John Porter, but 

 in February, 1863, he rejoined the Army of the 

 Cumberland as chief of staff to General Rose- 

 crans. During the Battle of Chickamauga, 

 when a blunder caused the defeat of the Fed- 

 eral right, Garfield rode under fire to carry 

 the news to Thomas, and under Thomas's 

 orders helped to save the left from rout. For 

 his services in this battle Garfield was com- 

 missioned major-general. Shortly afterward 

 Thomas took command of the Army of the 

 Cumberland and asked Garfield to take com- 

 mand of a division. Garfield was only thirty- 

 two, with every prospect of a brilliant military 

 career, but at the earnest request of President 

 Lincoln and Secretary of War Stanton he re- 

 signed from the army and took his place in a 

 new field. 



Garfield in Congress. In i862, while still in 

 active service in the army, Garfield was elected 

 to Congress; he took his seat in December, 

 1863. Lincoln urged him to take this step, 

 with the plea that he could be of greater serv- 

 ice to the Union while in Congress than in 

 the army. Garfield's reputation as a soldier 

 secured for him a place on the Committee on 

 Military Affairs, an unusual honor for a new 

 member, for the committee was at that time 

 the most important in Congress. His authority 

 on military matters won quick recognition, and 

 his opinion was frequently sought as that of 

 an expert. 



At the close of the war he was transferred, 

 at his own request, to the Committee on Ways 

 and Means. His reason for choosing this new 

 field was that^ the war being ended, financial 

 matters would demand first attention, and he 

 wanted his share in their treatment. His ca- 



pacity for hard work later won him a place as 

 chairman of the Committee on Banking and 

 Currency and of the Committee on Appropria- 

 tions. Throughout the Reconstruction period 

 Garfield was allied with the radical Republi- 

 cans. He opposed Johnson's policies and voted 

 for his impeachment. He was from the first 

 an advocate of sound money, and never lost a 

 chance to tell Congress and the country the 

 necessity of saving the country's financial 

 honor. 



In 1876 he went to New Orleans, at President 

 Grant's request, to watch the counting of the 

 Louisiana vote, and in the next year, although 

 he had been opposed to an electoral commis- 

 sion in the Hayes-Tilden controversy, was him- 

 self chosen a member by acclamation (see 

 ELECTORAL COMMISSION). After Elaine's trans- 

 fer from the House to the Senate in 1877, 

 Garfield became the undisputed leader of the 

 Republicans in the House. In January, 1880, 

 the Ohio legislature elected him to the United 

 States Senate, but he never took his seat. 



The Election of 1880. In the national Re- 

 publican convention at Chicago, in June, 1880, 

 James A. Garfield sat at the head of the Ohio 

 delegation. Ohio wanted the nomination of 

 John Sherman, and Garfield nominated Sher- 



Republican 

 Democrat 

 D Territories (no vote) 



ELECTION OF 1880 



Garfield and Arthur received 214 electoral votes 

 from Republican states ; Hancock and English 

 received 155 Democratic votes. 



man in a remarkable address. But a large 

 number of delegates were pledged to James G. 

 Elaine, and a still larger number wanted to 

 nominate Grant for a third term. The Grant 

 adherents were the "stalwarts," led by Conk- 

 ling and Arthur of New York; the opposition 

 to Grant gloried in the name of "half-breeds." 

 For thirty-three tiring ballots Grant had 306 

 of the 700 votes in the convention, the re- 

 mainder being divided among Elaine, Sher- 

 man and George F. Edmunds. Garfield had 



