Very little constructive legislation could be developed against the combined opposing elements which maintained their hostility throughout his term. He vetoed the Bland-Allison Bill, which pledged the government to the purchase of silver to the extent of $24,000,000 yearly to be turned into dollars. Congress passed the bill over his veto. Specie payments were resumed, and a Chinese treaty negotiated which exercised control over the immigration from that country. President Hayes did not seek a renomination, but returned to his home to indulge in various forms of philanthropy and to plan and have constructed under his own direction a monument that should serve as his memorial. With the death of Mrs. Hayes and her interment in the spot he had chosen, this memorial became a hallowed and sacred project to develop into a memorial park. He did not survive his wife long. His death occurred quite suddenly, on January 17, 1893, shortly after he had remarked that he had “rather die at Spiegel Grove than live anywhere else.” CHAPTER V ADMINISTRATION OF JAMES ABRAM GARFIELD _March 4, 1881, to September 19, 1881_ From a frontier log cabin in the wilderness to the White House was the alpha and omega of James A. Garfield, whose brief régime lasted just two hundred days. The inauguration of James A. Garfield, twentieth President of the United States, on March 4, 1881, was a great pageant, notwithstanding the cold, dismal rain that followed the light snow of the night before. By noon, the sun had come out bright and warm, and before the parade was over, the streets were dry. Escorted by twelve companies of regular artillery, six companies of marines, and a like number of infantry, President Hayes and President-elect Garfield rode together with the members of the Senate Committee in a four-horse carriage, with the Columbia Commandery of Knights Templar, of which General Garfield was a member, as a guard of honour. An armed guard had been posted about the Capitol, and no one without the proper credentials was admitted. Mrs. Hayes escorted Mrs. Garfield and General Garfield’s aged mother, a venerable white-haired lady, to the gallery seats reserved for them. Following the installation of Mr. Arthur, the new Vice President, and the new senators, the Senate was adjourned to witness the ceremony on the East Portico. At the East Portico, the chair once used by General Washington had again been placed in the centre of the raised stage. General Garfield was shown to this as the seat of honour. Chief Justice Waite administered the oath. During the inaugural address, “Mother Garfield’s” undisguised pride and delight in her son awakened the sympathetic appreciation of all who saw her; she was the first mother ever to have the privilege of witnessing her son sworn in as President of the United States.