Holiday Gifts Worthy of a President by Peter Rexford on Creators.com

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Holiday Gifts Worthy of a President

As nice as traditions may be, over time some tend to diminish while others disappear altogether. For instance, for as long as I can remember the absolute indication that Christmas was finally here was when I saw the Norelco shaver commercial with Santa riding on the razor head down a snow-covered hill. For the past few years, I haven't seen Santa on a razor.

Of course, new commercials are replacing traditions like the Norelco ad. One of those could be the holiday catalog from the U.S. Mint, which is hawking its line of coins and collectibles. It comes every year, though, this year, some prices are staggering considering the precious metals market.

From the mail I get, it's clear another holiday tradition for many has been the giving or receiving of vintage U.S. silver dollars as stocking stuffers. Naturally, the Mint no longer sells those. They've been replaced by the Presidential Golden Dollars. These are struck from copper, nickel, manganese and zinc. Granted, it's not as sexy as silver, but it is substantially more affordable.

Some of the better additions to the catalog are the sets of Presidential Golden Dollars available. For 2011, the coins featured Andrew Johnson, Ulysses S. Grant, Rutherford B. Hayes, and just out last week, James Garfield.

I've already written about the first three, but I really have to give Garfield his due considering what he went through and his eventual fate. A hint of his ordeal is in his quote pertaining to the office of president, "My God! What is there in this place that a man should ever want to get into it?"

Like others before him, Garfield hadn't specifically sought the presidency but was cajoled to it by his party. Much like we seem to need today, Garfield was seen as a compromiser who could reach between those serving in the Capitol and the White House.

Garfield had something very much in common with so many of today's politicians — an extramarital affair. Not only that, but his wife Lucretia knew of it. (Sound familiar?) Here's the best part, to end the affair, Lucretia demanded Garfield visit his lover one last time and reclaim every love letter he had sent her.

Then, all evidentiary letters would be destroyed so as to maintain the Garfield's reputation. It was done and the Garfields spent the rest of their lives together, short as his would prove to be.

Another tradition, back in the 1800s, was an open door policy at the White House. Amazingly, even after the assassination of Lincoln, people with minimal credentials could enter the residence. A man by the name of Charles Guiteau took full advantage of that. He was pushing Garfield to make him U.S. Consul General in Paris. Initially, polite and affable, he eventually began to pepper Garfield with written requests and even badgered members of his cabinet. Most detested Guiteau and made every effort to stop him. That didn't sit well. Guiteau grew very angry.

His next stop was at a gun shop to purchase a pistol. Knowing what he was going to do, he, I'm not making this up, visited the local prison to see where he would be incarcerated. Then, while Garfield was waiting for a train, Guiteau walked up and twice shot the president. It wasn't over.

Garfield suffered on his deathbed for months. A cavalcade of doctors poked and prodded with many an unsanitary instrument, surely adding to the infections and injury. Even telephone inventor Alexander Graham Bell was brought in with an alleged metal detector to find the lodged bullet. No luck. Garfield finally died 80 days after being shot. Guiteau didn't get to live out his days in prison as he expected. He was deemed fully sane and hanged in June 1882.

OK, it's not a cheery Christmas story. But, the lore behind the presidency of Garfield and the three other chief executives honored on this year's Golden Dollar coins is historically fascinating.

The coins are available in traditional Mint sets and Proof sets containing all U.S. coins issued in 2011 or in sets featuring just the Golden Dollars along with custom folders containing detailed information about the presidents. If you didn't get one of the Mint's holiday catalogs, you can see all that's available and place an order on the Mint's website at: USMint.gov.

The coins aren't Santa sledding on a razor, but seeing how they will be issued for years to come, they could become a new holiday tradition.

Editor's Note: A JPEG visual of the new James Garfield Golden Dollar Coin has been sent with this column.

To find out more about Peter Rexford and features by other Creators Syndicate writers and cartoonists, visit the Creators Syndicate Web page at www.creators.com.