Candice Millard: "Destiny of the Republic"
http://thedianerehmshow.org/shows/2011-09-19/candice-millard-destiny-republic
Born into poverty in the woods of Ohio, James Garfield rose through the strata of American society on the strength of his intellect and strong work ethic. A civil war hero, he was elected the twentieth president of the United States in 1880. Just a few months later, a deranged office-seeker shot Garfield at a Washington train station. With the assassination of Abraham Lincoln still fresh in their minds, the American people once again watched helplessly as their president lay dying. The extraordinary life of James Garfield, the doctors who failed to save him from death, and how a senseless tragedy unified the country.
Guests
Candice Millard
New York Times bestselling author of "The River of Doubt"; former editor and writer at National Geographic Magazine
Program Highlights
Four months after President James Garfield took office, an insane officer seeker named Charles Guiteau shot him twice with a pistol. A team of surgeons, and even Alexander Graham Bell, could not save him. Author Candice Millard tells a story of President Garfield's inspiring life and tragic death - and why it was, in fact, a preventable infection and not an assassin's bullet that actually killed him.
Garfield "Absolutely Extraordinary"
According to Millard, Garfield was a brilliant man who was born into extreme poverty and ended up putting himself through college. His first year at college, he was a carpenter and a janitor. By the second year, he was made a professor of literature and ancient languages. And by the time he was 26, he was the university President.
He Never Sought the Presidency
Millard: "Garfield never had what he called 'Presidential fever.'" He traveled to the Republican convention in 1880 to give the nominating address for someone else. But his speech was so good that at one point during it, when he uttered "What do we want?" someone shouted, "Garfield!" and people started essentially writing him in to vote for him.
The Assassin's Profile
Garfield's assassin was a man named Charles Guiteau, who had tried many paths in life but failed at them all. Tragically, Guiteau was obviously mentally ill and delusional. He campaigned hard for Garfield and eventually came to believe that because of his work, Garfield would reward him with an ambassadorship or some appointment. Guiteau shot Garfield at point-blank range on July 2, 1881, at a railway station in downtown Washington D.C.
Lack of Medical Knowledge
Though Joseph Lister, a British surgeon, had already discovered antisepses, the medical community in the U.S. still did not really believe in germs, and Garfield's doctors "...certainly weren't going to go to all the trouble that antisepsis required." They didn't wash or change their surgical aprons, and sometimes if they driopped an instrument during surgery they would pick it up and keep using it. Some younger doctors in the states were more open to Lister's ideas, but many of the older, well-respected, more established doctors were not.
Botched Care
After Garfield was shot, his doctors probed for the bullet that had lodged in his back, causing an infection to spread and fester. In a real sense, the care he received was more traumatic to his body than the shooting had been. "He suffered incredibly," Millard said. "He would have been better off if they had just left him alone."
Read the full transcript.
Read an Excerpt
Excerpted from Destiny of the Republic: A Tale of Madness, Medicine, and the Murder of a President by Candice Millard Copyright 2011 by Candice Millard. Excerpted by permission of Doubleday, a division of Random House, Inc. All rights reserved. No part of this excerpt may be reproduced or reprinted without permission in writing from the publisher.
Comments
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A few weeks ago, I visited James Garfield's gravesite memorial in Cleveland. It's in a fascinating cemetery (Lake View Cemetery near Case Western Reserve University) and the docent was quite knowledgable. We stumbled on it quite by chance - through a recommendation from a concierge at a local boutique hotel/b&b - the Glidden House. Now I have to go read the book - quite a chapter in American history that is not well known or appreciated.
Hello,
Great show! However, I do take issue with the comment that still today physicians and other health care workers are just spreading disease like crazy because they don't wash their hands! Really???
Diane,
"You're such a young woman to have gotten so involved in history"
What??? can you be any more condescending to a historian and author?
Yes, really. That's why you see bottles of Purell everywhere in hospitals, clinics and doctors' offices. It's been established beyond question by multiple controlled studies going back to the 1800s that unwashed hands are exactly what transmits disease/infection. Also dirty surgical instruments, etc. A guy named Lister established it back then :). Now, with all the antibiotic resistant organisms around it is IMPERATIVE that doctors, nurses, all health care workers wash their hands or use the Purell-type cleansers between patients. If they don't, they should be called out on it. I would do so, in fact I have done so.
Delightful Show. I thought about calling in, but the ballad singer near the end of the callins was my talking point.
I remember my Grandfather of East Tenn, Born in 1895 singing the Ballad of Charlie Guitau to me when I was a boy. His tune was a little different than today's caller, but the words were about the same. East Tennessee inflected accent would lay down on the I sound of My Name is Charlie Guitau, My Name I'll never deny.
Imagine High Lonesome sound of the Appalachian Hollers.
Found out today my Grandfather stomped some of the same ground as President Garfield. One of his great stories was as young fellow recently married to my Grandmother wearing John B. Stetson Hat to Chicamauga Park; where I learned today Garfield was key player in that battle.
Great Program. Hope the author sees these comments as I hope to read her book soon.
Purell is a big part of the problem. People just slap it on there, and it's either that they don't use it well enough or that Purrell is just not up to the standards of bar soap. Everyone should really be using bar soap. And purell in between.
Yes, the singer who called in was excellent!
The author mentioned that they cut out the shooter's brain to study. It was mentioned quite casually, as if we are all supposed to know that insanity will show up in the brain. So let me casually ask: what were the results of that brain investigation? Was the brain/'insanity' connection established?
I was very disappointed by this interview. Like another listener I was annoyed by the condescending question in reference to the author's youth. Also, too much of the narrative facts were discussed revealing too much about the out come of events. A spoiler alert should have preceded the interview. I've had this book on order and looked forward to reading it, now I have lost interest.