The Trial of the Assassin Guiteau: Psychiatry and Law in the Gilded Age (review)

BOOK REVIEWS61 tually no entries in his diaries from December 3, 1860, to July 28, 1866. The editors found only three entries for the war years( June 22, 23, and 24, 1863), which have very little value for students of the war. The editors, in their fine introduction, note that Garfield raised and commanded the 42nd Ohio Volunteer Infantry; served as a brigade leader in the Army of the Ohio; participated in the Shiloh and Corinth campaigns; took part in the Fitz John Porter court martial; became Chief of Staff to Rosecrans and participated in the battle of Chickamauga. After more than two years of army life and a promotion to major general, Garfield retired to Congress, assigned to the Committee on Military Affairs. Unfortunately, Garfield recorded none of this in his diary. And almost as unfortunately , the diary has other gaps as well. Garfield recorded practically nothing of his two years at Williams College, which was, in some ways, an important period in his life. After the Civil War, his entries for the early years of reconstruction are few. The 1867 diary deals with his European trip—a most interesting account—but not with the domestic scene; and the entries for 1868, 1869, and 1871 are scarce. Garfield recorded almost no strong political opinions during the years he served in Congress. He emerges in these later years as a conservative, worried about the growing economic and political power of business on the one hand, and agrarian and labor movements on the other. Garfield as a student is more frank and open in the diary than Garfield the congressman, unfortunately for anyone looking for personal evaluations of other national figures. And yet, these first two volumes of his diary are an important source of American history. Garfield's connection with Ohio's Western Reserve, his lasting interest in religion, his work in education, and his years in national politics show not only three quite different, sometimes conflicting facets of Garfield, but also illuminate these areas of American life in his time. Although the diary is uneven—perhaps a reflection of Garfield's changing interests—certain aspects of the man emerge clearly. There is no doubt that Garfield was a seriousminded, introspective person. There is no doubt that Garfield had ambition: the ambition to make something of himself, to be a top student, to be effective in his chosen religion, to be an educator of note, to be a military commander of distinction, and to have command of his political assignments . Probably few other congressmen in United States history have been more informed or capable than Garfield was as chairman of the Appropriations Committee. Technically, the editors have done an effective job of presenting the diary. The introduction is balanced and perceptive, and continues with Garfield to his death— beyond the scope of the two volumes so far published. The editors make an especial attempt in the introduction to fill in the gaps in the diary, certainly a very necessary function. Their footnotes are adequate in every way, not only supplying identification for the characters Garfield introduces, but also in filling out the story. One might wish that the index were more complete ( each volume is indexed separately ) to allow the researcher to look under subject headings such as "tariff" or "pension bills", to name a couple of examples. While Civil War scholars may lament the omissions, these are nevertheless very useful volumes, worthy contributions to the growing list of printed sources, and as such, welcome additions to any historical archive. Robert Huhn Jones Case Western Reserve University The Trial of the Assassin Guiteau: Psychiatry and Law in the Gilded Age. By Charles E. Rosenberg (Chicago: University of Chicago Press, 1968. Pp. xviii, 289. $5.95.) Murder trials whose issue is death have always held the attention of mankind. When the crime is regicide the stage becomes larger and the drama more pronounced. 62CIVIL WAR HISTORY The ordeal of Charles Julius Guiteau in the white glare of publicity following his assassination of President James A. Garfield is no exception. A defendant with a long history of eccentricity, instability, and fraud, who participates freely in the courtroom proceedings; a defense consisting mainly...