One of the first attempts he made to make sure of food while he studied, was to secure the place of janitor of the building, where he might build the fires, sweep the recitation rooms, and ring the bell for a small sum per month. He that afterwards became a professor in the same rooms he had swept as a young man; he that was to be the President of that college, the bell of which he was glad of a chance to ring, began at the very lowest and stooped to conquer.

The good Christian people who took an active share in supporting the institute, noticed his meekness. and recognized his superior abilities. They regarded him as providentially adapted to the work of preaching the gospel, and repeatedly urged him to follow that profession. They did not find in him any disinclination to do his duty; but there was at one time a hesitancy, on his part, about entering the ministry, owing to his distrust of his ability and fitness. He began, however, as early as his twentyfirst year to fill the pulpits in various churches of his own denomination; and before his graduation or departure from Hiram, he was in most flattering demand to supply vacant pastorates in the vicinity.

Some urged him to be satisfied with the instruction at the institute, which was not for many years after a college, and to abandon his plans for a collegiate course. But no offer, however large, and no place however high, could induce him to rest satisfied with anything less than the highest educational culture.

Living upon the simplest farmer's fare, and sleep

ing in the humblest and plainest of the basement rooms in the college, he kept steadily before him the hope of being able to stand among the highest and best in the land. He was a lover of college sports, and was eager to win the games in which he took part.

But the place he loved most to visit was the debating club which was to him both a recreation and a study. The debates were always vigorous and scholarly on the part of a portion of the students. and somewhat light and jocose on the part of others; and it appears that the debating club to which James belonged had a serious division, owing to a difference in the tastes of the members. As is usually the case, those who enjoyed frivolity better than sound sense were in the majority and could carry by a preponderance of votes any measure which they brought before the club.

The contest over some matter concerning a public debate, become so serious and bitter that young Garfield arose, in considerable anger, and declared that sooner than be compelled to waste his time in such nonsense as the majority proposed, he would form another society, if he had to debate alone with himself. Believing the minority had rights which the majority were bound to respect, he demanded concessions from the party in power, or he would withdraw. The concessions were not made, and he set up the standard of revolt. To his colors the leading students flocked, and a second society was

formed with him for President which long outlived the one from which they withdrew.

It is said that he did not confine himself to the regular studies of the institute, but used his extra hours in reading history and theological works. The work which he accomplished must have been nearly double that of many students. Yet he found time for many vigorous games. He soon left many of the classes behind, and at the opening of his second year he was appointed as a teacher of some of the lower classes. In that way, by doubling his hours of work, and taking for study, many hours of the night, he was able to keep on in his recitations with the advanced classes, while he taught the lower grades. The way did not open for him to secure the funds with which to go to college, at the time when he had prepared himself for the Freshman classes, and so he kept on teaching, and preaching, and studying the text books of the regular college courses. It was for a long time in doubt whether he would be able to enter any college, his financial means were so limited. But he never abandoned the hope, sooner or later, in some way, to obtain the money. He was not one of those young men who wished to graduate from college for the social standing which it was supposed, through the ignorance of the public, to give a man, whether he had learned little or much. He desired the opportunities which colleges, libraries, and learned men could give to enlarge the field of his study. He knew that he could obtain elsewhere all that the colleges could give, and

more, by persevering hard work over the books, and actually did secure for himself the first two years' course of college classes. Yet he saw that he could progress faster with congenial associates and among men more learned than he.

One day, he thought of his uncle, Thomas Garfield, whose various enterprises had been successful, and who had acquired a fortune. It occurred to him that his uncle might be willing to lend him enough to enable him to attend two years at Williams College in Massachusetts, where he heard that the expense was not great, and the standard of scholarship high. He had studied so faithfully that he felt very sure of entering two years in advance.

But he disliked very much to ask any person to lend him money. It was a most humiliating step to take. He sought advice from relatives, and they told him to try it. So he reluctantly went to his uncle, and asked for the use of five hundred dollars, until he could finish his college course, and earn that sum by teaching. His uncle had always been kind to him, and had seemed to take a friendly interest in his welfare; but yet the nephew had the strongest doubt regarding the success of his petition for so large an amount of money. It was a large sum for a poor young man to borrow, but a very small sum on which to undertake two years of college life, five hundred miles from home.

His uncle met him in a generous manner, and saying that he felt sure of his pay, if his nephew lived, loaned young Garfield the sum for which he asked.

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The young man, conscientiously desiring that his uncle should be secured in case of his death while in college, procured a policy on his life, in a Life Insurance company, for five hundred dollars, payable in case of his death to his uncle.

Thus the way opened to him, at last, for a collegiate education, and young Garfield, full of joy and ambition, took leave of his mother at Orange, and of his school-mate, Lucretia Rudolph, at Hiram, and with the sum his uncle had lent him, slightly augmented by a little sum he had saved, started on his long journey toward the classic Berkshire hills of the old Bay State.

Just before his departure for Williams he wrote a private letter to a friend, explaining his reasons for choosing Williams rather than the college of his denomination at Bethany. A part of it was as follows:

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"After thinking it all over I have made up my mind to go to Williamstown, Massachusetts. There are three reasons why I have decided not to go to Bethany. Ist. The course of study is not so extensive or thorough as in Eastern colleges. 2d. Bethany leans too heavily toward slavery. 3d. I am the son of Disciple parents, am one myself, and have had but little acquaintance with people of other views; and, having always lived in the West, I think it will make me more liberal, both in my religious and general views and sentiments, to go into a new circle, where I shall be under new influence. These considerations led me to conclude to go to some New England college. I therefore wrote to the President of Brown University, Yale and Wil