It is quite ironic that Vermont, which is perhaps the most liberal state in America, was the birth state of Republican President Chester Arthur (1829-1886). Arthur, who was the 21st president, got his promotion to the oval office rather quickly as his predecessor James Garfield was assasinated by Charles J. Guiteau, who was later hanged in Washington, DC, in spite of considerable evidence that Guiteau was mentally ill.
Garfield was shot in Long Brnach, New Jersey, on July 2, 1881, but the 20th president remained alive until Sept. 19.
Arthur would only serve out the remainder of Garfield's term, and his own would end abruptly as he died on Nov. 17, 1886, at age 57, a mere 103 days after leaving office on March 4th of that year.
This quote illustrates that some of the men who were president in the 19th century may have problems coping with the modern presidency:
"I may be president of the United States, but my private life is nobody's damned business."
This month, we hope to quote famous New Englanders around Monday of each week. Last week, we quoted poet E.E. Cummings.
SIDEBAR: Though I missed the film's screenings in North Carolina, I am very interested in a new documentary film by Trenton, NJ, filmmaker Kevin J. Williams called "Fear of a Black Republican" even though I'm neither African-American or a Republican. As one might expect, the very conservative Supreme Court Justice Clarence Thomas is featured in the film.
The documentary will be screening in Wilmington, Del., on July 28 at 7:00 p.m.
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