"James Abram Garfield'' November 19, 1831 September 19, 1881 was a major general in the United States Army, member of the U.S. House of Representatives, and the twentieth President of the United States. He was the second U.S. President to be assassinated. Abraham Lincoln was the first. Garfield had the second shortest presidency in U.S. history, after William Henry Harrison's. In office for six months and fifteen days, President Garfield, a republican actually served for less than four months before being fatally shot on July 2, 1881.
In his “A 200 year salute to America in story and song” album, Johnny Cash tells a story of a man recalling the day President James A Garfield was assassinated. When I first heard this story portrayed while listening to it on his album, it brought back my own memories of the day President Kennedy was assassinated. What I was doing and how that particular day affected me personally.
James A Garfield
Like a young Colt the country was now growing fast
Passenger trains in the East were traveling a hundred miles an hour
People in the country could buy clothes by mail order
And get 'em back within two weeks
After twenty years or more the South was still mendin' its wounds from a Civil War
But with all the country's problems the Union was solid
Great American novelists and poets were comin' into their own
People were expressin' their love for America in song and poem
And in South Carolina a high-toned southern gentleman
Expressed his love and admiration for him President James A Garfield in such a way
Me and my brother was down close to the depot when I heard a report of a pistol
I hollered I wonder what was that he run out and come back and he said
That was a report of a pistol and I thought I's gonna faint when he said
Mr. Garfield's been shot down shot down shot down Mr. Garfield's been shot down low
Lord I knew the President was supposed to be down the depot that day
But I just would't let myself believe that he'd been shot
And my bother run out there and everybody was all confused
And hollerin' a runnin' round and I steeped up to this one lady and I said
Ma'm what was it that happened Ma'm and she said
Mr. Garfield's been shot down shot down shot down Mr. Garfield's been shot down low
Well that looked like everybody felt just about as bad as I did
And everybody started drift off to home and me and my brother did too
Then in a few weeks later I heard that the President was still alive
So I told my brother I said hey let's get on the train
And go the that Big House up there and see how the President is
Let's go up there to where he's laid up hurt and sick we'd see him
So we went on up there and that big White House
And there was a soldier boy standin' round outside
And I sidled up to him and I said to that soldier boy
I said who was it that did it who was it that shoot the President
And he said it was Charlie Guiteau that shoot Mr. Garfield
And I said Charlie Guiteau done shot down a good man good man
Charlie Guiteau done shot down a good man low
Charlie Guiteau done shot down a good man good man
That soldier boy said that Miss Lucretia Garfield was always at his bedside
In the heat of the day fannin' him when he was hot
And he said just that mornin' that he had been in
He'd overheard Miss Lucretia and Mr. Garfield talkin'
And Mr. Garfield said Crete honey - he called her Crete
He said Crete honey if somethin' worse happens to me
He said get yourself a good man
And she said now James - she called him James
She said James I won't hear to that now cause I love you too much
But he said you'll make some good man a good wife good wife
You'll make some man a good wife gal
Don't pull in single harness all your life good gal
Don't pull in single harness all your life
So what he said don't pull in single harness all your life
Well a little while later we come back around there and things have changed
The flag was hangin' halfway up the flagpole and everybody was cryin'
And standin' around sad
And I walked back up to this soldier boy and I said
Soldier boy is he is Mr. Garfield and he said yeah he's gone
Gonna lay him by that cold lonesome branch down low
Mr. Garfield's been shot down low
Oh Mr. Garfield's been shot down shot down shot down
Oh Mr. Garfield's been shot down shot down shot down
Mr. Garfield's been shot down low
Have you heard the news Mr. Garfield's been shot down shot down shot down
Mr. Garfield's been shot down low Lord
