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CARROLL AND HARRISON COUNTIES - 477 CHAPTER XXXVII DAYS OF MOURNING MEMORIAL SERVICES FOR PRESIDENT ABRAHAM LINCOLN, 1865 MEMORIAL SERVICES FOR PRESIDENT JAMES ABRAM GARFIELD, 1881 -MEMORIAL SERVICES FOR PRESIDENT WILLIAM MCKINLEY, 1901 -DEATH OF PRESIDENT U. S. GRANT, 1885. This nation has seen its own peculiar days and seasons of sorrow. Commencing with the closing of the Civil war, with the sudden cutting off of the immortal Lincoln, the country has been called upon to mourn the death by assassination of three Presidents, besides those who died as ex-Presidents while living in private life. That the people, regardless of political party lines, felt deep sorrow, here in Harrison County, as well as throughout the nation, the following items concerning the various memorial services held at the county seat-Cadizare here given, the same taken largely from the facts stated at the time of these sad services, in the local newspapers : THE ASSASSINATION OF LINCOLN Leading up to the memorial services held for the lamented President, Abraham Lincoln, April 14, 1865, the following bit of history, which was noted in the Cadiz Republican, in substance was the following intelligence : On the outside pages of the local newspaper just named, printed the day before the death of Mr. Lincoln, was the Washington correspondence dated April 10, in which was the following—"Washington is intoxicated with joy over the news of the surrender and early prospects of peace. The merchants have closed their places of business and the workmen and mechanics have left their shops and are marching the streets of Washington, with bands of music and banners flying. The town is a perfect babel of excitement, such as has never before been witnessed. All the departments are closed and the clerks are participating in the general rejoicing. Several popular demonstrations were made in front of the Executive mansion. The mechanics and working men from the Navy Yard, with their cannon, saluted the President by firing 100 guns, immediately in front of the mansion. At 12 o'clock noon, the President made his appearance and was received in the most enthusiastic manner. At the request of Mr. Lincoln, the band played "Dixie," as he said it had always been a favorite of his, and now that legally we had captured the Confederacy that this, of course, was captured with it and now belonged to us. The inside pages (the latest printed) of this same Cadiz Republican, (on its fiftieth anniversary day) had an account of the assassination of the President on the night of the 14th of April, at Ford's Theatre, by J. Wilkes Booth. 478 - CARROLL AND HARRISON COUNTIES At noon on Wednesday, the city of Cadiz and immediate vicinity, according to arrangements made a day or two before, assembled at the Methodist Episcopal church to testify their respect for the late President, who had fallen by the hand of a rebel assassin. At 11 o'clock, the business houses were all closed and nearly all went to the church by noon. The house was draped in mourning and sorrow was depicted on the faces of most every person who attended the services. The services were conducted by Rev. S. Grimes, Reverend Frazier and Reverend Carr. Hon. John A. Bingham made a speech-brief but very eloquent and impressive, and in closing he said: "Our patriotic President, though dead by the hand of a traitor, will live again, and be honored in all the hereafter— `,For humanity sweeps onward where today the martyr sleeps "On the morrow, crouches Judas, with the silver in his hands. "While the hooting mob of yesterday, with silent awe returns, "To glean up the scattered ashes, into history's golden urn. "Aye, on tomorrow, the hooting mob who but yesterday laid in wait for our President's life and with suppressed breath cried, crucify him, crucify him, will, consumed by remorse, in silent awe return, to pay that homage to his perished dust which they denied to his pure gentle spirit." The same file of the Republican had an item showing that Bishop Simpson preached an eloquent sermon at the tomb of Lincoln at Springfield, Illinois, upon the arrival of the remains—one of the gems along that line of sermons ever preached in America. There are numerous people residing in Cadiz today who in their youth recall that day of National sorrow. GARFIELD MEMORIAL SERVICES Not having any night telegraph operator in the summer of 1881 at Cadiz, the news of President Garfield's death was not received until Tuesday morning after the sad event. The President's lamp of life had been flickering for several days and when finally it flashed out, the people were prepared for the shock. They were not dumbfounded like they were when on the fated day on which he was shot, July 2, more than two months prior to his death. But deep sorrow was depicted on the faces of every loyal American citizen upon receiving the intelligence of the good President's death. The bell began tolling and flags draped in mourning were soon seen flying throughout the town of Cadiz. At the Central Hotel a long festoon of evergreens and crape was suspended on the outside below the second story windows. The public schools were closed during the entire day, and business generally suspended. A proclamation was issued by the mayor calling for a general memorial service to be held at 10 o'clock at the Presbyterian church. None of the business houses opened that morning in Cadiz. The church was packed long before the hour set for the services. The building was appropriately decorated and draped in emblems of deep mourning. The arch in the rear of the pulpit was spanned with two CARROLL AND HARRISON COUNTIES - 479 immense flags draped and festooned in back of the space. Beneath this hung a large portrait of Garfield, also heavily draped. The windows, at the side of the organ loft, were likewise festooned with crape and decorated with flags. On a table in front of the pulpit was an elegant bouquet of tube roses representing a broken column over which hovered a white dove. Dr. Dickerson lead in prayer. Among the speakers recalled were: Messrs. Estep, Colonel Pearce, James Moore, W. H. Lucas (colored) who was very eloquent on behalf of the colored people of this community, who had ever found in the lamented President a firm friend ; he placed Garfield alongside Lincoln and Washington. The Cadiz local papers mentioned the fact about the date of this memorial service an incident in the career of Garfield which may be here mentioned as an historic fact : "James A. Garfield, about 1858, applied for a place in Hopedale Normal School, as its president, and all arrangements were made, as the offer was accepted, but for some unknown reason he never came on to take his chair at Hopedale, but did accept the presidency of Hiram College. If Garfield had come to Harrison County as he intended, he might never have been President of the United States, but remained among our peaceful citizens ; it is not likely that he would have been shot at the hand of a crazy assassin." WILLIAM MCKINLEY MEMORIAL SERVICES President William McKinley, the third President of the United States to be killed by an assassin, fell while attending the Pan-American Exposition at Buffalo, New York, in September, 1901, a few months after his second inaugural. No deeper grief was ever felt at the death of any American citizen, save possibly that of President Lincoln. Appropriate memorial services were held in Cadiz on Thursday afternoon. All schools were closed as well as all business houses. In the afternoon the tolling of the bells proclaimed the fact that the funeral cortege had started for the cemetery in Cleveland, Ohio. At 2 o'clock the services were opened here in the Presbytrian church. The interior of the building had been neatly and impressively draped for the mournful occasion. The audience room was filled to its utmost capacity and the services were very impressive. The program as arranged the Saturday evening previous was as follows and was carried out for the most part : Rev. J. S. Plumer presided. Organ voluntary by Miss Isabella Houser. Reverend Butler read the Scriptures and offered prayer. Music—"Lead Kindly Light." Speakers included—W. H. Arnold, Rev. H. F. Fox, W. B. Hearn, Col. J. S. Pearce, D. A. Hollingsworth, with "McKinley as a Man." W. C. Bigger—"McKinley as a Citizen." Music—"Crossing the Bar." Miss Harriet Lemmon, on the Home' Life of McKinley. Benediction by Dr. J. S. Plumer. 480 - CARROLL AND HARRISON COUNTIES GENERAL GRANT'S MEMORIAL SERVICES Thursday, July 23, 1885, at eight minutes after 8 o'clock in the morning, the spirit of U. S. Grant—the great American chieftain and ex-President—passed from the mortal body (which had been racked with pain so many long, weary months), finding peace in another realm. Saturday, August 8, 1885, the day on which Grant's funeral was being held in New York City, the self-same hour was observed in a memorial service in Cadiz. It had been planned at a preliminary meeting held a few days before and committees had been appointed as follows: Committee on arrangements—D. Cunningham, J. M. Garven, W. O. Potts, Rev. S. M. Bailey, Rev. W. T. Maxwell, Rev. S. Kennedy ; on finance—J. C. Carver and J. M. Garven ; committee on securing a church—Reverends Kennedy and Bailey ; on drapery—Mrs. Captain McCready, Mrs. W. S. Cessna, Mrs. Ephriam Clark, Mrs. J. M. Sharon, Miss May Welch, Miss Annie Knox and Messrs. Clark Jamison, J. R. Christy and Frank Fogle ; the committee on music was-Dr. H. H. Harrison and W. B. Hearn. The program included the members of the J. S. McCready Post of the Grand Army of the Republic and drum corps to meet in full uniform at the courthouse at 1 o'clock. The memorial services were .to commence at 2 o'clock at the Presbyterian church. The program there was—Music ; reading of the burial service of the Grand Army of the Republic ; music ; address by James Moore : address by W. H. Lucas ; music ; address by Gen. D. A. Hollingsworth on "Grant as a Statesman"; address by J. M. Estep. on "Grant in His Domestic Life." Each speaker was limited to ten minutes. All business in Cadiz was closed; public offices were draped and a profusion of flags and crape were seen throughout the town. Among the features of decoration at the church is recalled the large-sized portrait of General Grant festooned in flags and crape above and to the interior of the pulpit. The entire exercises consumed about two hours, each part being complete and impressive in itself. At the village of Bowerston at 2 o'clock on Saturday a procession formed on Main street, headed by the New Hagerstown band and Bowerston drum corps, followed by members of the Grand Army of the Republic and citizens. Bells tolled and the procession moved to the Methodist Episcopal church on Jarvis street. Rev. H. A. Dowling of the United Brethren church delivered a well-timed address. The choir sang "The General's Grave." Next was an address by Reverend Taggart of the Presbyterian church of New Hagerstown, Ohio. Reverend Dowling also talked touchingly concerning the departed chieftain. The places of business were 'generally closed throughout the exercises. All places were heavily draped in mourning emblems, paying great honor and respect for that bright star of the Civil war period who after the war ended said, "Let us have peace." CARROLL AND HARRISON COUNTIES - 481 FASTING DAY In the month of June, 1865, through a proclamation issued by President Andrew Johnson, a day of fasting and prayer was called throughout the country and the same was observed in Cadiz. Business places were generally closed and at 11 o'clock in the morning the citizens repaired to the United Presbyterian church where an eloquent sermon was listened to from the then recently appointed minister, Reverend Meloy. |