James Garfield: Assassinated
2023-07-16
LRC
TXT
大字
小字
滚动
全页
1VOA Learning English presents America's Presidents.
2Today we are talking about James Garfield.
3He was the 20th president of the United States.
4Garfield is not one of the best-known presidents.
5He served only 100 days before he was shot.
6Eleven weeks later, he died from his wounds.
7But even during Garfield's short time in office, historians say his presidency had problems.
8Like the president before him, Rutherford B. Hayes, Garfield was from the state of Ohio.
9Garfield's father died when he was very young.
10The future president was raised largely by his mother, two older sisters and a brother.
11Among all the presidents, Garfield probably was the most poor in his early years.
12Growing up, he worked as a farmer, a sailor, a carpenter, a teacher and a janitor.
13Finally, he earned a position as a student at Williams College in western Massachusetts.
14Garfield loved learning. He eventually taught at a school called the Eclectic Institute. Later, he became its president.
15Garfield married one of his students at the Eclectic Institute, Lucretia Rudolph. She became a teacher, too.
16The future president and his wife went on to have seven children.
17Four sons and a daughter survived to adulthood.
18In time, Garfield moved out of education and into law and politics.
19He was an anti-slavery activist who did not think the Southern states had a right to withdraw from the Union.
20When the Civil War came, Garfield welcomed it.
21During the war, Garfield served in the military as an officer.
22He won awards for his bravery.
23While still a young man, he was appointed to the position of major general.
24His image as a war hero was so great that Garfield did not have to campaign for a seat in the U.S. House of Representatives.
25He was elected on his name alone.
26Garfield's way of thinking changed while he was in Congress.
27He began as one of the most extreme Radical Republicans.
28He wanted to punish former Confederate officers severely.
29But, in time, Garfield softened his positions.
30He learned to compromise with other groups in order to achieve results for his state.
31But he did not always represent the interests of workers or farmers in Ohio.
32Garfield supported business interests that wanted to limit the country's money supply.
33He opposed labor unions and cooperative farm programs, called the Grange.
34Garfield also became linked to a corruption case.
35He accepted stock shares in a company that was building a railroad across the country.
36In exchange, Garfield and other top officials eased government rules so businessman could earn higher profits for their work.
37Although Garfield's political career sometimes drew criticism, he continued to rise in government.
38When Garfield became president in March 1881, he did not have what Americans call a mandate - the approval of a large part of the population.
39Instead, he needed to make compromises with lawmakers to help win their support.
40As a result, the first weeks of his presidency were a political struggle to appoint members to his cabinet of advisors.
41Garfield also clashed with a powerful senator from New York State.
42The senator wanted to continue the tradition of permitting senators to choose who got government jobs in their states.
43But President Garfield wanted to put someone who shared his own beliefs in some of the top positions in New York.
44Finally, the senator resigned in protest.
45But the issue set the tone for Garfield's short time in office.
46Elected officials battled each other for advantages and financial gain.
47Officials in Garfield's party were accused of corruption and wrongdoing.
48And before Garfield could really suggest any ideas for government reform, he was shot by someone seeking a government job in exchange for his political support.
49On July 2, 1881 - fewer than four months after he took office - Garfield was leaving for a short trip with two of his sons.
50They were going to take a train to Williams, the college Garfield had attended and loved.
51The president was supposed to give a speech there.
52But as he walked through the train station, a man with a gun stepped behind Garfield and shot the president twice.
53One bullet touched Garfield's arm.
54The other went into his lower back.
55Garfield did not die immediately.
56Instead, he was taken back to the White House, where doctors tried to remove the bullet.
57One of the men who tried was Alexander Graham Bell, the inventor of the telephone.
58Bell tried to find the bullet by using a device like a metal detector that he had invented.
59But the springs on Garfield's bed interfered.
60Neither Bell nor the doctors were able to remove the bullet.
61And, some historians say, their efforts may have made the situation worse.
62Garfield suffered for more than two more months.
63At one point, he seemed to be recovering.
64But on September 19, he finally died. He was 49 years old.
65As for the gunman, he was captured shortly after the shooting. His name was Charles Guiteau.
66Guiteau was a lawyer with little money, but many mental problems.
67During the election of 1880, he had first supported the candidacy of former president Ulysses S. Grant.
68When Garfield won the Republican nomination instead, Guiteau supported him.
69Guiteau did not have an official role in the election campaign, and Garfield did not know him.
70But over time, Guiteau came to believe that he was responsible for Garfield winning the presidency.
71As a result, Guiteau thought Garfield owed him a government job.
72Guiteau wrote the president several letters requesting positions as a diplomat in Europe.
73When Garfield did not write back, Guiteau grew angry.
74He believed Garfield was ruining the Republican Party and destroying the country.
75For weeks, Guiteau followed the president and plotted to kill him.
76When he succeeded in shooting Garfield, Guiteau believed he had performed a great service.
77At his trial, a jury decided that Guiteau was sane - in other words, he was not too mentally unbalanced to be responsible for his crime.
78Almost a year after he shot the president, Guiteau himself was hanged.
79Thus the most dramatic event in James Garfield's presidency came to an end.
80I'm Kelly Jean Kelly.
1VOA Learning English presents America's Presidents. 2Today we are talking about James Garfield. He was the 20th president of the United States. 3Garfield is not one of the best-known presidents. He served only 100 days before he was shot. Eleven weeks later, he died from his wounds. 4But even during Garfield's short time in office, historians say his presidency had problems. 5Early life 6Like the president before him, Rutherford B. Hayes, Garfield was from the state of Ohio. 7Garfield's father died when he was very young. The future president was raised largely by his mother, two older sisters and a brother. 8Among all the presidents, Garfield probably was the most poor in his early years. Growing up, he worked as a farmer, a sailor, a carpenter, a teacher and a janitor. 9Finally, he earned a position as a student at Williams College in western Massachusetts. 10Garfield loved learning. He eventually taught at a school called the Eclectic Institute. Later, he became its president. 11Garfield married one of his students at the Eclectic Institute, Lucretia Rudolph. She became a teacher, too. 12The future president and his wife went on to have seven children. Four sons and a daughter survived to adulthood. 13In time, Garfield moved out of education and into law and politics. He was an anti-slavery activist who did not think the Southern states had a right to withdraw from the Union. When the Civil War came, Garfield welcomed it. 14During the war, Garfield served in the military as an officer. He won awards for his bravery. While still a young man, he was appointed to the position of major general. 15His image as a war hero was so great that Garfield did not have to campaign for a seat in the U.S. House of Representatives. He was elected on his name alone. 16Congress 17Garfield's way of thinking changed while he was in Congress. He began as one of the most extreme Radical Republicans. He wanted to punish former Confederate officers severely. 18But, in time, Garfield softened his positions. He learned to compromise with other groups in order to achieve results for his state. 19But he did not always represent the interests of workers or farmers in Ohio. Garfield supported business interests that wanted to limit the country's money supply. He opposed labor unions and cooperative farm programs, called the Grange. 20Garfield also became linked to a corruption case. He accepted stock shares in a company that was building a railroad across the country. In exchange, Garfield and other top officials eased government rules so businessman could earn higher profits for their work. 21Although Garfield's political career sometimes drew criticism, he continued to rise in government. 22Presidency 23When Garfield became president in March 1881, he did not have what Americans call a mandate - the approval of a large part of the population. 24Instead, he needed to make compromises with lawmakers to help win their support. 25As a result, the first weeks of his presidency were a political struggle to appoint members to his cabinet of advisors. 26Garfield also clashed with a powerful senator from New York State. The senator wanted to continue the tradition of permitting senators to choose who got government jobs in their states. But President Garfield wanted to put someone who shared his own beliefs in some of the top positions in New York. 27Finally, the senator resigned in protest. 28But the issue set the tone for Garfield's short time in office. Elected officials battled each other for advantages and financial gain. Officials in Garfield's party were accused of corruption and wrongdoing. 29And before Garfield could really suggest any ideas for government reform, he was shot by someone seeking a government job in exchange for his political support. 30Assassination 31On July 2, 1881 - fewer than four months after he took office - Garfield was leaving for a short trip with two of his sons. They were going to take a train to Williams, the college Garfield had attended and loved. The president was supposed to give a speech there. 32But as he walked through the train station, a man with a gun stepped behind Garfield and shot the president twice. 33One bullet touched Garfield's arm. The other went into his lower back. 34Garfield did not die immediately. Instead, he was taken back to the White House, where doctors tried to remove the bullet. 35One of the men who tried was Alexander Graham Bell, the inventor of the telephone. 36Bell tried to find the bullet by using a device like a metal detector that he had invented. But the springs on Garfield's bed interfered. 37Neither Bell nor the doctors were able to remove the bullet. And, some historians say, their efforts may have made the situation worse. 38Garfield suffered for more than two more months. At one point, he seemed to be recovering. But on September 19, he finally died. He was 49 years old. 39As for the gunman, he was captured shortly after the shooting. His name was Charles Guiteau. 40Guiteau was a lawyer with little money, but many mental problems. 41During the election of 1880, he had first supported the candidacy of former president Ulysses S. Grant. When Garfield won the Republican nomination instead, Guiteau supported him. 42Guiteau did not have an official role in the election campaign, and Garfield did not know him. But over time, Guiteau came to believe that he was responsible for Garfield winning the presidency. As a result, Guiteau thought Garfield owed him a government job. 43Guiteau wrote the president several letters requesting positions as a diplomat in Europe. When Garfield did not write back, Guiteau grew angry. He believed Garfield was ruining the Republican Party and destroying the country. 44For weeks, Guiteau followed the president and plotted to kill him. When he succeeded in shooting Garfield, Guiteau believed he had performed a great service. 45At his trial, a jury decided that Guiteau was sane - in other words, he was not too mentally unbalanced to be responsible for his crime. Almost a year after he shot the president, Guiteau himself was hanged. 46Thus the most dramatic event in James Garfield's presidency came to an end. 47I'm Kelly Jean Kelly. 48Kelly Jean Kelly wrote this story for Learning English. George Grow was the editor. 49______________________________________________________________ 50______________________________________________________________ 51Words in This Story 52carpenter - n. a person whose job is to make or fix wooden objects or wooden parts of buildings 53janitor - n. a person who cleans a building and makes minor repairs 54achieve - v. to get or reach (something) by working hard 55drew - v. caused to come 56tone - n. the general quality of a situation 57advantages - n. something (such as a good position or condition) that helps to make someone or something better or more likely to succeed than others 58detector - n. a device that can tell if a substance or object is present : a device that detects the presence of something 59thus - adv. in this way or manner : like this 60dramatic - adj. attracting attention : causing people to carefully listen and look 61We want to hear from you. Write to us in the Comments Section.