Recommended to Succeed Me as Secretary of the Treasury--Personal
Characteristics of Garfield--How He Differed from President Hayes
--The Latter's Successful Administration--My One Day out of Office
in Over Forty Years--Long Animosity of Don Piatt and His Change of
Opinion in 1881--Mahone's Power in the Senate--Windom's Success in
the Treasury--The Conkling-Platt Controversy with the President
Over New York Appointments.

In the latter part of November, 1880, General Garfield came to
Washington and called upon Mr. Blaine, who, it was understood, was
to be Secretary of State. Garfield came to my house directly from
Blaine's and informed me that he had tendered that office to Blaine
and that it was accepted. He said that Blaine thought it would
not be politic to continue me as Secretary of the Treasury, as it
would be regarded as an unfriendly discrimination by other members
of Hayes' cabinet. I promptly replied that I agreed with the
opinion of Blaine, and was a candidate for the Senate. It was then
understood that Garfield was committed to Foster for the vacancy
in the Senate, but this he denied, and, whatever might have been
his preference, I am convinced he took no part in the subsequent
contest.

On the 16th of December, Thomas A. Cowgill, speaker of the House
of Representatives, of Ohio, wrote a note to Governor Foster advising
his withdrawal "for harmony in our counsels and unity in our action."
On the next day, after advising with leading Republicans, Foster,
in a manly letter, declined further to be a candidate for Senator.

Prior to the withdrawal of Foster I received a note from General
Garfield from Mentor, Ohio, under date of December 15, 1880, in
which he said: "I am glad to see that the unpleasant matters
between yourself and Governor Foster have been so happily adjusted,
and I am quite sure that a little further understanding will remove
all dangers of a personal contest, which might disturb the harmony
of the party in Ohio."

I subsequently received the following note from Garfield:

"Mentor, O., December 22, 1880.
"My Dear Sir:--Yours of the 20th inst. came duly to hand. I
appreciate what you say in reference to personal and Ohio appointments.
The case of Swaim is so exceptional that I hope it will not be
taken as a precedent for what is to come. I am greatly gratified
at the happy turn which the relations between Foster and yourself
have taken.

"I will forward my declination of the sen