nments were such as should have qualified him for the
task, and in his public life he had shown firmness of character. His
courageous opposition to the greenback movement in Ohio had been of
great service to the nation in maintaining the standard of value. When
a party convention in his district passed resolutions in favor of
paying interest on the bonds with paper instead of coin, he gave a rare
instance of political intrepidity by declaring that he would not accept
the nomination on such a platform. It was the deliberate opinion
of Senator Hoar, who knew Garfield intimately, that "next to the
assassination of Lincoln, his death was the greatest national misfortune
ever caused to this country by the loss of a single life."

The lingering illness of President Garfield raised a serious question
about presidential authority which is still unsettled. For over two
months before he died he was unable to attend to any duties of office.
The Constitution provides that "in case of the removal of the President
from office, or of his death, resignation, or inability to discharge
the powers and duties of the said office, the same shall devolve on
the Vice-President." What is the practical significance of the term
"inability"? If it should be accepted in its ordinary meaning, a
prostrating illness would be regarded as sufficient reason for allowing
the Vice-President to assume presidential responsibility. Though there
was much quiet discussion of the problem, no attempt was made to press
a decision. After Garfield died, President Arthur, on succeeding to the
office, took up the matter in his first annual message, putting a
number of queries as to the actual significance of the language of the
Constitution--queries which have yet to be answered. The rights and
duties of the Vice-President in this particular are dangerously vague.
The situation is complicated by a peculiarity of the electoral system.
In theory, by electing a President the nation expresses its will
respecting public policy; but in practice the candidate for President
may be an exponent of one school of opinion and the candidate for
Vice-President may represent another view. It is impossible for a voter
to discriminate between the two; he cannot vote for the candidate for
President without voting for the candidate for Vice-President, since he
does not vote directly for the candidates themselves but for the party
electors who are pledged to the entire party ticket. Party