Assassination!: The Brick Chronicle of Attempts on the Lives of Twelve US Presidents (11 page)

On the evening of July 1, Garfield exited the White House and went on a walk with Secretary of State Blaine. Guiteau followed them, gun in hand.

Although he did not take the opportunity to attack either man, Guiteau was outraged by the warm friendship on display between the president and the man who had personally rebuffed him, and he determined that the next time there would be no hesitation.

That night, Guiteau stayed at the posh Riggs Hotel where Garfield had stayed before his inauguration. The next morning, he ate a large breakfast and charged it to his room, never intending to pay, as was his custom.

Before leaving the hotel, Guiteau wrote a note he then put in his pocket. “The President’s tragic death was a sad necessity,” it read, “but it will unite the Republican Party and save the Republic. I presume the President was a Christian and that he will be happier in paradise than here.”

He then walked to the train station, where once again the president was expected to arrive any moment, this time to embark on a vacation, reunite with his wife, and attend his college reunion in Massachusetts.

At 9:30 AM, Garfield arrived at the station accompanied by Secretary of State Blaine and the president’s two teenage sons, Henry and Jim. They walked right past Guiteau.

This time, Guiteau did not hesitate. He drew his pistol and with a look of determination fired from three feet away. The bullet passed through Garfield’s right arm and then hit the toolbox of a workman.

Garfield threw his arms upward and cried out, “My God! What is this?”

Now panicking, Guiteau fired again, hitting Garfield in the back. This bullet missed the spine and vital organs, but fractured two ribs and came to rest just behind his pancreas.

The president collapsed to the ground. Guiteau put his gun in his pocket and attempted to leave but was quickly apprehended by the crowd.

As an angry mob began to shout, “Lynch him!” policemen quickly removed Guiteau from the station as he shouted, “I am a stalwart of the Stalwarts! I did it and I want to be arrested! Arthur is president now!”

In the carriage ride to police headquarters, Guiteau claimed to be good friends with Vice President Chester Arthur and said to the detective sitting next to him that if he were to assure Guiteau a choice jail cell, he would have him made chief of police.

Conscious, but in excruciating pain, Garfield was taken to an upstairs room at the station, where a series of doctors used their fingers and other unsterilized probes to search for the bullet.