坐落在纽约City Hall Park的Horace Greeley塑像

黄安年文  黄安年的博客/2015年7月29日晚上美东时间;30日上午北京时间发布

Horace Greeley(1811-02-03--1872-11-29)是美国近代史上的著名政治家、政治评论家和报纸编辑，在美国内战时期发挥了重要的影响。在Chappaqua, NY有他的故居还有以他命名的高级中学,该中学在一次前100名高级中学排名中名利第一。在纽约市的市政大厅(City Hall)外的City Hall Park

有他的塑像，在Greeley Square, New York还有另一座他的塑像。他葬于Brooklyn'sGreen-Wood Cemetery.

照片4张是今天上午在纽约市政大厅前拍摄的。

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Horace Greeley

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Horace Greeley (February 3, 1811 – November 29, 1872)was editor of the New-York Tribune, among the greatnewspapers of its time. Long active in politics, he served briefly as acongressman from New York,and was the candidate of the Democraticand LiberalRepublican parties in the 1872 presidential election. He wasdefeated by President Ulysses S. Grant,and died before the casting of the electoral vote.

Born to a poor family in New Hampshire, Greeley was apprenticed to a printer in Vermont,and in 1831 went to New York Cityto seek his fortune. He wrote for or edited several publications, and involvedhimself in Whig Party politics, taking asignificant part in William Henry Harrison's successful 1840presidential campaign. The following year, he founded the Tribune, whichthrough weekly editions sent by mail became the highest-circulating newspaperin the country. Among many other issues, he urged the settlement of theAmerican West, which he saw as a land of opportunity for the young and theunemployed. He popularized the phrase "Go West, young man, and grow up with thecountry," although it is uncertain whether it originated with him.^[a]

Greeley's alliance with William H. Seward and ThurlowWeed led to him serving three months in the House of Representatives, wherehe angered many by investigating Congress in his newspaper. He helped found theRepublican Party in 1854, butabout then broke with Seward and Weed, backing other presidential candidatesagainst Seward at the 1860 Republican National Convention,and supporting the nominee, AbrahamLincoln. When the Civil War broke out, he mostly supported Lincoln, though urginghim to commit to the end of slavery before the president was willing to do so.After Lincoln's assassination, he supported the Radical Republicans in opposition to President AndrewJohnson.

Leading against the corruption of Grant's Republicanadministration, Greeley was the new LiberalRepublican Party's candidate in the 1872 U.S. presidentialelection. Despite having the additional support of the Democratic Party, helost in a landslide. Devastated at the defeat, he died three weeks later. Greeley is the onlymajor-party presidential candidate to have died prior to the electoral votebeing cast.

Early life[edit]

Horace Greeley Birthplace in Amherst, New Hampshire

Horace Greeley was born on February 3, 1811, on a farm about five milesfrom Amherst, New Hampshire. He could not breathefor the first twenty minutes of his life. It is suggested that this deprivationmay have caused him to develop Asperger's syndrome—some of his biographers,such as Mitchell Snay, maintain that this condition would account for hiseccentric behaviors in later life.^[1]

Greeley was the son of poor farmers Zaccheus and Mary (Woodburn) Greeley. Zaccheuswas not successful, and moved his family several times, as far west as Pennsylvania. Horaceattended the local schools, and was a brilliant student.^[2] He was of English descent, and his forebears included early settlers of Massachusetts and New Hampshire.^[3]

Seeing the boy's intelligence, some neighbors offered to pay Horace's wayat Phillips Exeter Academy, but the Greeleys were too proudto accept charity. In 1820, Zaccheus's financial reverses caused him to flee New Hampshire with his family lest he be imprisoned fordebt, and settle in Vermont.Even as his father struggled to make a living as a hired hand, Horace Greeleyread everything he could—the Greeleyshad a neighbor who let Horace use his library. In 1822, Horace ran away fromhome to become a printer's apprentice, but was told he was tooyoung.^[4]

In 1826, at age 15, he was made a printer's apprentice to Amos Bliss,editor of the Northern Spectator, a newspaper in East Poultney, Vermont. There, he learnedthe mechanics of a printer's job, and acquired a reputation as the townencyclopedia, reading his way through the local library.^[5] When the paper closed in 1830, the young man went west to join his family,living near Erie, Pennsylvania. He remained there onlybriefly, going from town to town seeking newspaper employment, and was hired bythe Erie Gazette. Although ambitious for greater things, he remaineduntil 1831 to help support his father. While there, he became a Universalist,breaking from his Congregationalist upbringing.^[6]

First efforts at publishing[edit]

Early depiction of Greeley's first arrivalin New York

In late 1831, Greeley went to New York City to seek hisfortune. There were many young printers in New York who had likewise come to themetropolis, and he could only find short-term work.^[7] In 1832, Greeleyworked as an employee of the publication Spirit of the Times.^[8] He built his resources and in that year set up a print shop. In 1833, hetried his hand with Horatio D. Sheppard at editing a dailynewspaper, the New York Morning Post, which was not a success. Despitethis failure and its attendant financial loss, Greeley published the thrice-weekly Constitutionalist,which mostly printed lottery results.^[9]

On March 22, 1834, he published the first issue of The New-Yorker,in partnership with Jonas Winchester.^[8] Less expensive than other literary magazines of the time, it bothpublished contemporary ditties and political commentary. Although circulationreached 9,000—then a sizable number—it was ill-managed and eventually fellvictim to the economic Panic of 1837.^[10] He also published the campaign news sheet of the new Whig Party in New York for the 1834 campaign, and came tobelieve in its positions, including free markets, with government assistance indeveloping the nation.^[11]

Soon after his move to New York City, Greeley met Mary Young Cheney. Both were living at aboarding house run on the diet principles of SylvesterGraham, eschewing meat, alcohol, coffee, tea, and spices, as well asabstaining from the use of tobacco and intoxicants. Greeley was, at the time, subscribing toGraham's principles, and to the end of his life rarely ate meat. Mary Cheney, aschoolteacher, moved to North  Carolina to take a teaching job in 1835. They weremarried in Warrenton, North Carolina on July 5,1836—an announcement duly appeared in The New-Yorker eleven days later.Greeley, who had stopped over in Washington, D.C. on his way south to observeCongress, took no honeymoon with his new wife, returning to work, while hiswife took up a teaching job in New York City.^[12]

One of the positions taken by The New-Yorker was that the unemployedof the cities should seek lives in the developing American West (in the 1830s,the West encompassed today's Midwestern states). The harsh winter of 1836–1837and the financial crisis that developed soon after made many New Yorkershomeless and destitute. In his journal, Greeleyurged new immigrants to buy guide books on the West, and Congress to makepublic lands available for purchase at cheap rates to settlers. He told hisreaders, "Fly, scatter through the country, go to the Great West, anythingrather than remain here ... the West is the true destination."^[13] In 1838, he advised "any young man" about to start in the world,"Go to the West: there your capabilities are sure to be appreciated andyour energy and industry rewarded."^[a][14]

In 1838, Greeley met Albany editor ThurlowWeed. In his newspaper, the AlbanyEvening Journal, Weed spoke for a liberal faction of the Whigs. Weedhired Greeleyas editor of the state Whig newspaper for the upcoming campaign. The newspaper,the Jeffersonian, premiered in February 1838, and helped elect the Whigcandidate for governor, WilliamH. Seward.^[10] In 1839, Greeley worked for severaljournals, and took a month-long break to go as far west as Detroit.^[15]

Greeley was deeply involved in the campaign of the Whig candidate for president in1840, William Henry Harrison. He published the majorWhig periodical, the Log Cabin, and also penned many of the pro-Harrisonsongs that marked the campaign. These songs were sung at mass meetings, manyorganized—and led—by Greeley.According to his biographer, Robert C. Williams, "Greeley's lyrics swept the country and rousedWhig voters to action."^[16] Funds raised by Weed helped distribute the Log Cabin widely.Harrison and his running mate, John Tyler,were easily elected.^[17]

Editor of the Tribune[edit]

Early years (1841–1848)[edit]

Photograph of Greeleyby MathewBrady, taken between 1844 and 1860

By the end of the 1840 campaign, the Log Cabin's circulation hadrisen to 80,000 and Greeleydecided to establish a daily newspaper, the New-YorkTribune.^[18] At the time, New Yorkhad many newspapers, dominated by James Gordon Bennett's NewYork Herald, which with a circulation of about 55,000 had more readersthan its combined competition. As technology advanced, it became cheaper andeasier to publish a newspaper, and the daily press came to dominate the weekly,which had once been the more common format for news periodicals. Greeleyborrowed money from friends to get started, and published the first issue ofthe Tribune on April 10, 1841—the day of a memorial parade in New Yorkfor President Harrison, who had died after a month in office and been replacedby Vice President Tyler.^[19]

In the first issue, Greeleypromised that his newspaper would be a "new morning Journal of Politics,Literature, and General Intelligence".^[19] New Yorkers were not initially receptive; the first week's receipts were$92 and expenses $525.^[19] The paper was sold for a cent a copy by newsboys who purchased bundles ofpapers at a discount. The price of advertising was initially four cents a line,but was quickly raised to six cents. Through the 1840s, the Tribune wasfour pages, that is, a single sheet folded. It initially had 600 subscribersand 5,000 copies were sold of the first issue.^[20]

In the early days, Greeley'schief assistant was Henry J. Raymond, who a decade later founded The New York Times. To place the Tribuneon a sound financial footing, Greeley sold a half-interest in it to attorney Thomas McElrath, who becamepublisher of the Tribune (Greeley was editor) and ran the business side.Politically, the Tribune backed Kentucky Senator Henry Clay,who had unsuccessfully sought the presidential nomination that fell to Harrison, and supported Clay's American System for development ofthe country. Greeley was one of the firstnewspaper editors to have a full-time correspondent in Washington, an innovation quickly followedby his rivals.^[19] Part of Greeley'sstrategy was to make the Tribune a newspaper of national scope, notmerely local.^[21] One factor in establishing the paper nationally was the Weekly Tribune,created in September, 1841 when the Log Cabin and The New-Yorkerwere merged. With an initial subscription price of $2 a year,^[22] this was sent to many across the United States by mail, and was especiallypopular in the Midwest.^[23] In December 1841, Greeleywas offered the editorship of the national Whig newspaper, the Madisonian. He demanded fullcontrol, and declined when not given it.^[24]

Greeley, in his paper, initially supported the Whig program.^[25] As divisions between Clay and President Tyler became apparent, hesupported the Kentuckysenator and looked to a Clay nomination for president in 1844.^[24] However, when Clay was nominated by the Whigs, he was defeated by theDemocrat, former Tennessee governor JamesK. Polk, though Greeleyworked hard on Clay's behalf.^[26] Greeley had taken positions in oppositionto slavery as editor of The New-Yorker in the late 1830s, opposing theannexation of the slaveholding Republicof Texas to the United  States.^[27] In the 1840s, Greeleybecame an increasingly vocal opponent of the expansion of slavery.^[25]

Greeley hired Margaret Fuller in 1844 as first literary editor ofthe Tribune, for which she wrote over 200 articles. She lived with the Greeley family for several years, and when she moved to Italy, he madeher a foreign correspondent.^[28] He promoted the work of Henry David Thoreau, serving as literary agentand seeing to it that Thoreau's work was published.^[29]Ralph Waldo Emerson also benefited from Greeley's promotion.^[30] Historian Allan Nevins explained:

The Tribune set a new standard in American journalism by itscombination of energy in news gathering with good taste, high moral standards,and intellectual appeal. Police reports, scandals, dubious medicaladvertisements, and flippant personalities were barred from its pages; theeditorials were vigorous but usually temperate; the political news was the mostexact in the city; book reviews and book-extracts were numerous; and as aninveterate lecturer Greeleygave generous space to lectures. The paper appealed to substantial andthoughtful people.^[31]

Greeley, who had met his wife at a Graham boarding house, becameenthusiastic about other social movements that did not last, and promoted themin his paper. He subscribed to the views of CharlesFourier, a French mathematician and social thinker, then recently deceased,who proposed the establishment of settlements called"phalanxes" with a given number of people from various walks of life,who would function as a corporation and among whose members profits would beshared. Greeley, in addition to promoting Fourierismin the Tribune, was associated with two such settlements, both of whicheventually failed, though the town that eventually developed on the site of theone in Pennsylvania was after his death renamed Greeley.^[32]

Congressman (1848–1849)[edit]

In November 1848, Congressman DavidS. Jackson, a Democrat, of New  York's Sixth District was unseated for electionfraud. Jackson'sterm was to expire in March 1849, but during the 19th century Congress convenedannually in December, making it important to fill the seat. Under the laws thenin force, the Whig committee from the Sixth District chose Jackson'sreplacement and they chose Greeley,though they did not select him as their candidate for the seat in the followingCongress. The Sixth District, or Sixth Ward as it was commonly called, wasmostly Irish-American, and Greeley proclaimed his support for Irish effortstowards independence from Great  Britain. He took his seat when Congressconvened in December 1848.^[33] Greeley'sselection was procured by the influence of his ally, Thurlow Weed.^[34]

As a congressman for three months, Greeleyintroduced legislation for a homesteadact that would allow settlers who improved land to purchase it at lowrates—a fourth of what speculators would pay. He was quickly noticed because helaunched a series of attacks on legislative privileges, taking note of whichcongressmen were missing votes, and questioning the office of HouseChaplain. This was enough to make him unpopular. But he outraged hiscolleagues when on December 22, 1848 the Tribune published evidence thatmany congressmen had been paid excessive sums as travel allowance. In January1849, Greeleysupported a bill that would have corrected the issue, but it was defeated. Hewas so disliked, he wrote a friend, that he had "divided the House intotwo parties—one that would like to see me extinguished and the other thatwouldn't be satisfied without a hand in doing it."^[35]

Other legislation, all failed, introduced by Greeley included attempts to end flogging inthe Navy, and to ban alcohol from its ships. He tried to change the name of theUnited States to "Columbia", abolish slavery in the District of Columbia, and increase tariffs.^[34] One lasting effect of the term of Congressman Greeley was his friendshipwith a fellow Whig, serving his only term in the House, Illinois's AbrahamLincoln. Greeley's term ended after March 3,1849, and he returned to New Yorkand the Tribune, having, according to Williams, "failed to achievemuch except notoriety".^[36]

Influence (1849–1860)[edit]

New-York Tribune editorial staff. Greeleyis third from the left in the front row.

By the end of the 1840s, Greeley's Tribunewas not only solidly established in New  York as a daily paper, it was highly influentialnationally through its weekly edition, which circulated in rural areas andsmall towns. Journalist Bayard Taylor deemed its influence in the Midwest second only to that of the Bible. According toWilliams, the Tribune could mold public opinion through Greeley's editorials more effectively thancould the president. Greeleysharpened those skills over time, laying down what future Secretary of State John Hay,who worked for the Tribune in the 1870s, deemed the "Gospelaccording to St. Horace".^[37]

The Tribune remained a Whig paper, but Greeley took an independent course. In 1848,he had been slow to endorse the Whig presidential nominee, General ZacharyTaylor, a Louisianan and hero of the Mexican-American War. Greeleyopposed both the war and the expansion of slavery into the new territoriesseized from Mexico, andfeared Taylorwould support expansion as president. Greeleyconsidered endorsing former president MartinVan Buren, candidate of the FreeSoil Party, but finally endorsed Taylor, who was elected; the editor wasrewarded for his loyalty with the congressional term.^[38] Greeleyvacillated on support for the Compromise of 1850, which gave victories to bothsides of the slavery issue, before finally opposing it. In the 1852presidential race, he supported the Whig candidate, General WinfieldScott, but savaged the Whig platform for its support of the Compromise."We defy it, execrate it, spit upon it."^[39] Such party divisions contributed to Scott's defeat by former New Hampshire senator FranklinPierce.^[40]

In 1853, with the party increasingly divided over the slavery issue, Greeley printed aneditorial disclaiming the paper's identity as Whig and declaring it to benonpartisan. He was confident that the paper would not suffer financially,trusting in reader loyalty. Some in the party were not sorry to see him go: theRepublic, a Whig organ, mocked Greeley and his beliefs: "If a partyis to be built up and maintained on Fourierism, Mesmerism, MaineLiquor laws, Spiritual Rappings, Kossuthism, Socialism, Abolitionism,and forty other isms,we have no disposition to mix with any such companions."^[41] When in 1854, Illinois Senator StephenDouglas introduced his Kansas-Nebraska Bill, allowing residents ofeach territory to decide whether it would be slave or free, Greeley strongly fought the legislation inhis newspaper. After it passed, and the BorderWar broke out in Kansas Territory, Greeley was part of efforts to sendfree-state settlers there, and to arm them.^[42] In return, proponents of slavery recognized Greeley and the Tribuneas adversaries, stopping shipments of the paper to the South and harassinglocal agents.^[43] Nevertheless, by 1858, the Tribune reached 300,000 subscribersthrough the weekly edition, and it would continue as the foremost Americannewspaper through the years of the Civil War.^[44]

The Kansas-Nebraska Act helped destroy the Whig Party, but a new party withopposition to the spread of slavery at its heart had been under discussion forsome years. Beginning in 1853, Greeleyparticipated in the discussions that led to the founding of the Republican Party and may havecoined its name.^[45] Greeley attended the first New York stateRepublican Convention in 1854, and was disappointed not to be nominated eitherfor governor or lieutenant governor. The switch in parties coincided with theend of two of his longtime political alliances: in December 1854, Greeley wrote that thepolitical partnership between Weed, WilliamSeward (who was by then senator after serving as governor) and himself wasended "by the withdrawal of the junior partner".^[46] Greeleywas angered over patronage disputes, and felt Seward was courting the rival TheNew York Times for support.^[47]

In 1853, Greeley purchaseda farm in rural Chappaqua, New York,where he experimented with farming techniques.^[48]The Tribunecontinued to print a wide variety of material. In 1851, its managing editor Charles Dana recruited Karl Marxas a foreign correspondent in London.Marx collaborated with Friedrich Engels on his work for the Tribune,which continued for over a decade, covering 500 articles. Greeley felt compelled to print, "Mr.Marx has very decided opinions of his own, with some of which we are far fromagreeing, but those who do not read his letters are neglecting one of the mostinstructive sources of information on the great questions of current Europeanpolitics."^[49]

In 1859, Greeleytraveled across the continent to see the West for himself, to write about itfor the Tribune, and topublicize the need for a transcontinentalrailroad.^[50] He also planned to give speeches to promote the Republican Party.^[51] He went to Chicago, then to Lawrencein Kansas Territory, and was unimpressed by the localpeople. Greeley took one of the firststagecoaches to Denver, seeing the town then incourse of formation as a mining camp of the Pike's Peak Gold Rush.^[50] Sending dispatches back to be published in the Tribune, Greeleytook the Overland Trail, reaching SaltLake City, where he conducted a two-hour interview with the Mormon leader, BrighamYoung, the first newspaper interview Young had given. Greeley encountered NativeAmericans, and was sympathetic, but like many of his time, deemed Indianculture inferior. In California,he explored widely and gave many addresses.^[52]

1860 campaign[edit]

Main articles: 1860 Republican National Conventionand United States presidentialelection, 1860

Although he remained on cordial terms with Senator Seward, Greeley never seriously considered supportinghim in his bid for the Republican nomination for president. Instead, during therun-up to the 1860 Republican National Conventionin Chicago, he pressed the candidacy of former Missouri representative EdwardBates, an opponent of the spread of slavery who had freed his own slaves.In his newspaper, in speeches, and in conversation, Greeley pushed Bates as a man who could winthe North and even make inroads in the South. Nevertheless, when one of the dark horse candidates for the Republicannomination, Abraham Lincoln, came to New York to give an address at CooperUnion, Greeley urged his readers to go hear Lincoln, and was among thosewho accompanied him to the platform. Greeleythought of Lincolnas a possible nominee for vice president.^[53]

Horace Greeley

Greeley attended theconvention as a substitute for a delegate from Oregon who was unable to attend. In Chicago, he promotedBates but deemed his cause hopeless and felt that Seward would be nominated. Inconversations with other delegates, he predicted that, if nominated, Sewardcould not carry crucial battleground states such as Pennsylvania.^[54] Greeley'sestrangement from Seward was not widely known, giving the editor morecredibility.^[55] Greeley (and Seward) biographer Glyndon G. Van Deusen noted that it isuncertain how great a part Greeley played inSeward's defeat by Lincoln—hehad little success gaining delegates for Bates. On the first two ballots,Seward led Lincoln,but on the second only by a small margin. After the third ballot, on which Lincoln was nominated, Greeleywas seen among the Oregondelegation, a broad smile on his face.^[56] According to Pulitzer Prize-winning historian Doris Kearns Goodwin, "it is hard toimagine Lincoln letting Greeley's resentment smolder for years asSeward did".^[57]

Seward's forces made Greeleya target of their anger at the senator's defeat. One subscriber cancelled,regretting the three-cent stamp he had to use on the letter; Greeley supplied a replacement. When he wasattacked in print, Greeleyresponded in kind. He launched a campaign against corruption in the New York Legislature, hoping voters woulddefeat incumbents and the new legislators would elect him to the Senate whenSeward's term expired in 1861 (senators were until 1913 elected by statelegislatures). But his main activity during the campaign of 1860 was boosting Lincoln and denigratingthe other presidential candidates. He made it clear that a Republicanadministration would not interfere with slavery where it already was, anddenied that Lincolnwas in favor of voting rights for African Americans. He kept up the pressureuntil Lincolnwas elected in November.^[58]

Lincoln soon let it be known that Seward would be Secretary of State, meaning hewould not be a candidate for re-election to the Senate. Weed wanted WilliamM. Evarts elected in his place, while the anti-Seward forces in New York gathered around Greeley. The crucial battleground was theRepublican caucus, as the party held the majority in the legislature. Greeley's forces did nothave enough votes to send him to the Senate, but they had enough strength toblock Evarts's candidacy. Weed threw his support to Ira Harris,who had already received several votes, and who was chosen by the caucus andelected by the legislature in February 1861. Weed was content to have blockedthe editor, and stated that he had "paid the first installment on alarge debt to Mr. Greeley".^[59]

Civil War[edit]

Main article: American Civil War

War breaks out[edit]

After Lincoln'selection, there was talk of secession in the South. The Tribune wasinitially in favor of peaceful separation, with the South becoming a separatenation. According to an editorial on November 9,

If the Cotton States shall become satisfied that they can do better out ofthe Union than in it, we insist on lettingthem go in peace. The right to secede may be a revolutionary one, but it existsnevertheless ....And whenever a considerable section of our Union shall deliberately resolve to go out, we shallresist all coercive measures designed to keep it in. We hope never to live in arepublic where of one section is pinned to the residue by bayonets.^[60]

Similar editorials appeared through January 1861, after which Tribuneeditorials took a hard line on the South, opposing concessions.^[61] Williams concludes that "for a brief moment, Horace Greeley hadbelieved that peaceful secession might be a form of freedom preferable to civilwar".^[62] This brief flirtation with disunion would have consequences for Greeley—it was used byhis opponents against him when he ran for president in 1872.^[62]

In the days leading up to Lincoln's inauguration, the Tribuneheaded its editorial columns each day, in large capital letters: "Nocompromise!/No concession to traitors!/The Constitution as it is!"^[63] Greeley attended the inauguration, sittingclose to Senator Douglas, as the Tribune hailed the beginning of Lincoln's presidency.When southern forces attacked Fort Sumter, the Tribuneregretted the loss of the fort, but applauded the fact that war to subdue therebels, who had formed the Confederate States of America, wouldnow take place. The paper criticized Lincolnfor not being quick to use force.^[64]

Through the spring and early summer of 1861, Greeley and the Tribunebeat the drum for a Union attack. "On to Richmond", a phrase coinedby a Tribunestringer, became the watchword of thenewspaper as Greeley urged the occupation of the rebel capital of Richmondbefore the Confederate Congress could meet on July 20. Inpart because of the public pressure, Lincolnsent the half-trained Union Army into the field at the First Battle of Manassas in mid-July whereit was soundly beaten. The defeat threw Greeleyinto despair, and he may have suffered a nervous breakdown.^[65]

"Prayer of Twenty Millions"[edit]

Restored to health by two weeks at the farm he had purchased in Chappaqua, Greeley returned to the Tribune and a policy ofgeneral backing of the Lincolnadministration, even having kind words to say about Secretary Seward, his oldfoe. He was supportive even during the military defeats of the first year ofthe war. Late in 1861, he proposed to Lincolnthrough an intermediary that the president provide him with advance informationas to its policies, in exchange for friendly coverage in the Tribune. Lincoln eagerly accepted,"having him firmly behind me will be as helpful to me as an army of onehundred thousand men."^[66]

By early 1862, however, Greeley was again sometimes critical of the administration,frustrated by the failure to win decisive military victories, and perturbed atthe president's slowness to commit to the emancipation of the slaves once theConfederacy was defeated, something the Tribune was urging in itseditorials. This was a change in Greeley'sthinking which began after First Manassas, a shift from preservation of the Union being the primary war purpose to wanting the war toend slavery. By March, the only action against slavery that Lincoln had backedwas a proposal for compensated emancipation in the border states that had remainedloyal to the Union, though he signed legislation abolishing slavery in the District of Columbia.^[67] Lincolnsupposedly asked a Tribune correspondent, "What in the world is thematter with Uncle Horace? Why can't he restrain himself and wait a littlewhile?"^[68]

Greeley's prodding ofLincolnculminated in a letter to him on August 19, 1862, reprinted on the followingday in the Tribune as the "Prayer of Twenty Millions". By thistime, Lincoln had informed his Cabinet of thepreliminary Emancipation Proclamation he hadcomposed, and Greeleywas told of it the same day the prayer was printed. In his letter, Greeley demanded actionon emancipation, and strict enforcement of the ConfiscationActs. Lincolnmust "fight slavery with liberty", and not fight "wolves withthe devices of a sheep".^[69]

Lincoln's reply would become famous, much more so than the prayer that provokedit.^[70] "My paramount object in this struggle is to save the Union, and is not either to save or to destroyslavery. If I could save the Union withoutfreeing any slave, I would do it, and if I could save it by freeing allthe slaves I would do it; and if I could save it by freeing some and leavingothers alone I would also do that. What I do about slavery, and the coloredrace, I do because it helps to save the Union; and what I forbear, I forbearbecause I do not believe it would help to save the Union."^[71] Lincoln's statement angered abolitionists;William Seward's wife Frances complained to her husband that Lincoln had made it seem"that the mere keeping together a number of states is more important thanhuman freedom."^[71] Greeley felt Lincoln had not truly answered him, "butI'll forgive him everything if he'll issue the proclamation".^[70] When Lincoln did, on September 22, Greeley hailed theEmancipation Proclamation as a "great boon of freedom". According toWilliams, "Lincoln's war for Union was nowalso Greeley'swar for emancipation."^[72]

Draft Riots and peace efforts[edit]

Horace Greeley honored on a1961 U.S.postage stamp

After the Union victory at Gettysburg in early July 1863, the Tribunewrote that the rebellion would be quickly "stamped out".^[73] A week after the battle, the New York City draft riots erupted.Greeley and the Tribune were generally supportive of conscription, though feeling thatthe rich should not be allowed to evade it by hiring substitutes. Support forthe draft made them targets of the mob, and the Tribune Building was surrounded,and at least once invaded. Greeleysecured arms from the Brooklyn Navy Yard and 150 soldiers kept thebuilding secure. Mary Greeley and her children were at the farm in Chappaqua; amob threatened them, but dispersed without doing harm.^[74]

In August 1863, Greeley was requested by afirm of Hartfordpublishers to write a history of the war. Greeleyagreed, and over the next eight months penned a 600-page volume, which would bethe first of two, entitled The American Conflict.^[75] The books were very successful, selling a total of 225,000 copies by 1870,a large sale for the time.^[76]

Throughout the war, Greeleyplayed with ideas as to how to settle it. In 1862, Greeley had approached the French minister toWashington, Henri Mercier, to discuss a mediated settlement.However, Seward rejected such talks and the prospect of European interventionreceded after the bloody Union victory at Antietam in September 1862.^[77] In July 1864, Greeley received word thatthere were Confederate commissioners in Canada, empowered to offer peace.In fact, the men were in Niagara Falls, Canadato aid Peace Democrats and otherwise undermine the Unionwar effort. but they played along when Greeleyjourneyed to Niagara Falls, at Lincoln's request: the president was willingto consider any deal that included reunion and emancipation. The Confederateshad no credentials and were unwilling to accompany Greeleyto Washingtonunder safe conduct. Greeley returned to New York, and theepisode, when it became public, embarrassed the administration. Lincoln said nothing publicly concerning Greeley's credulous conduct, but privatelyindicated that he had no confidence in him anymore.^[78]

Greeley did notinitially support Lincolnfor nomination in 1864, casting about for other candidates. In February, hewrote in the Tribune that Lincolncould not be elected to a second term. Nevertheless, no candidate made aserious challenge to Lincoln, who was nominated in June, which the Tribuneapplauded slightly.^[79] In August, fearing a Democratic victory and acceptance of the Confederacy,Greeley engaged in a plot to get a newconvention to nominate another candidate, with Lincoln withdrawing. The plot came tonothing. Once Atlanta was taken by Union forces on September 3,Greeley became a fervent supporter of Lincoln. Greeleywas gratified both by Lincoln's re-election andcontinued Union victories.^[80]

Reconstruction[edit]

As the war drew to a close in April 1865, Greeley and the Tribuneurged magnanimity towards the defeated Confederates, arguing that makingmartyrs of Confederate leaders would only inspire future rebels. This talk ofmoderation ceased when Lincolnwas assassinated by JohnWilkes Booth. Many concluded that Lincolnhad fallen as the result of a final rebel plot, and the new president, AndrewJohnson, offered $100,000 for the capture of fugitive Confederate presidentJeffersonDavis. After the rebel leader was caught, Greeley initially advocated that"punishment be meted out in accord with a just verdict".^[81]

Through 1866, Greeley editorialized that Davis, who was being heldat Fortress Monroe, should either be set free or puton trial. Davis's wife Varinaurged Greeleyto use his influence to gain her husband's release. In May 1867, a Richmond judge set bailfor the former Confederate president at $100,000. Greeley was among those who signed the bail bond,and the two men met briefly at the courthouse. This act resulted in publicanger against Greeleyin the North. Sales of the second volume of his history (published in 1866) declinedsharply.^[82] Subscriptions to the Tribune (especially the Weekly Tribune)also dropped off, though they recovered during the 1868 election.^[83]

Beginning as a supporter, Greeleysoon became disillusioned with President Johnson, whose Reconstruction policies allowed thequick formation of state governments without provision for suffrage for thefreedman. When Congress convened and gradually took control of Reconstruction, Greeley generallysupported their actions, favoring universal malesuffrage and, his anger against the Confederates having cooled, amnesty. While Greeley generallysupported the Radical Republicans, he did not like theharshness of Thaddeus Stevens. Greeley ran for Congress in 1866, but lostbadly, and for Senate in the legislative election held in early 1867, to bedefeated by Roscoe Conkling.^[84]

As president and Congress battled, Greeleyremained firmly opposed to Johnson, and when the president was impeached in 1868, Greeley andthe Tribune strongly supported his removal, strongly attacking Johnson.Nevertheless, the president was acquitted by the Senate, much to Greeley's disappointment.Also in 1868, Greeleysought the Republican nomination for governor, but was frustrated by theConkling forces. Greeleysupported the successful Republican presidential nominee, General UlyssesS. Grant in the 1868 election.^[85]

Grant years[edit]

Greeley at his Chappaqua farm in 1869, photographed by his friend George G. Rockwood.

In 1868, Whitelaw Reid joined the Tribune 's staffas managing editor.^[86] In Reid, Greeleyhad found a reliable second-in-command.^[87] Also on the Tribune's staff in the late 1860s was Mark Twain;^[88]HenryGeorge sometimes contributed pieces, as did Bret Harte.^[89] In 1870, Lincoln'sassistant private secretary, John Hay, joined the staff as an editorial writer. Greeley soon pronouncedHay the most brilliant at that craft ever to write for the Tribune.^[90]

Greeley maintained his interest in associationism. Beginning in 1869, he washeavily involved in an attempt to found a utopia on the prairie in a scheme ledby NathanMeeker. Named Greeley, Colorado Territory, its namesake served astreasurer of the town association, bought two lots there, which he inspected in1870, and lent Meeker money to keep the colony afloat. Greeley's close friend P. T.Barnum also interested himself in the project, and built a hotel there.After early struggles, the colony survived under Meeker's leadership, thoughadopting a normal municipal government. In 1871, Greeley published a book What I Know AboutFarming, based on his childhood experience and that from his country homein Chappaqua.^[91][92]

Greeley continued to seek political office, running for state comptroller in 1869 and the House ofRepresentatives in 1870, losing both times.^[93] In 1870, President Grant offered Greeleythe post of minister to Santo Domingo (today,the Dominican Republic), which he declined.^[94]

Presidential candidate[edit]

Greeley/Brown campaign poster

Main article: United States presidentialelection, 1872

As had been the case for much of the 19th century, political partiescontinued to be formed and to vanish after the Civil War. In September 1871,Missouri Senator Carl Schurz formed the Liberal Republican Party, founded onopposition to President Grant, opposition to corruption, and support of civilservice reform, lower taxes, and land reform. He gathered around him aneclectic group of supporters whose only real link was their opposition toGrant, whose administration had proved increasingly corrupt. The party needed acandidate, with a presidential election upcoming. Greeley was one of the best-known Americans,as well as being a perennial candidate for office.^[95] He was more minded to consider a run for the Republican nomination,fearing the effect on the Tribune should he bolt the party.Nevertheless, he wanted to be president, as a Republican if possible, if not,as a Liberal Republican.^[96][97]

The Liberal Republican national convention met in Cincinnati in May 1872. Greeley was spoken of as a possiblecandidate, as was Missouri Governor Benjamin Gratz Brown. Schurz was ineligible asforeign-born. On the first ballot, Supreme Court Justice David Davis led, but Greeley took a narrowlead on the second ballot. Former minister to BritainCharles Francis Adams took the lead, buton the sixth ballot, after a "spontaneous" demonstration staged byReid, Greeleygained the nomination, with Brown as vice presidential candidate.^[98]

ThomasNast cartoon for the 1872 campaign alleging that Greeley was contradicting his earlierpositions

The Democrats, when they met in Baltimore inJuly, faced a stark choice—either nominate Greeley, long a thorn in their side, or splitthe anti-Grant vote and go to certain defeat. They chose the former, and evenadopted the Liberal Republican platform, calling for equal rights for AfricanAmericans.^[99] This was the first time one man had been nominated for president by twopolitical parties.^[100] Greeleyresigned as editor of the Tribune for the campaign,^[101] and, unusually for the time, embarked on a speaking tour to bring hismessage to the people. As it was more usual for candidates for major office tonot actively campaign, he was attacked as a seeker after office.^[102] Nevertheless, in late July, Greeley (and others, such as former Ohio governor Rutherford B. Hayes) thought he would verylikely be elected.^[103] Greeleycampaigned on a platform of intersectional reconciliation, arguing that the warwas over and the issue of slavery was resolved. It was time to restore normalcyand end the continuing military occupation of the South.^[104]

The Republican counterattack was well-financed, accusing Greeley of support for everything fromtreason to the Ku Klux Klan. The anti-Greeley campaign was famouslyand effectively summed up in the cartoons of ThomasNast, whom Grant later credited with a major role in his re-election.Nast's cartoons showed Greeley giving bail moneyfor Jefferson Davis, throwing mud on Grant, and shaking hands with John WilkesBooth across Lincoln'sgrave. The Crédit Mobilier scandal—corruptionin the financing of the Union Pacific Railroad—broke in September,but Greeley was unable to take advantage of the Grant administration's ties tothe scandal as he had stock in the railroad himself, and some alleged it hadbeen given him in exchange for favorable coverage.^[105]

Greeley's wife Maryhad returned ill from a trip to Europe in lateJune.^[106] Her condition worsened in October, and he effectively broke off campaigningafter October 12 to be with her. She died on October 30, plunging him intodespair a week before the election.^[107] Poor results for the Democrats in those states that had elections forother offices in September and October presaged defeat for Greeley, and so it proved. He received2,834,125 votes to 3,597,132 for Grant, who secured 286 electors to 66 chosenfor Greeley.The editor-turned-candidate won only six states: Georgia,Kentucky, Maryland,Missouri, Tennesseeand Texas.^[108]

Final month and death[edit]

Greeley resumed the editorship of the Tribune, but quickly learned therewas a movement under way to unseat him. He found himself unable to sleep, and aftera final visit to the Tribune on November 13 (a week after the election)remained under medical care. At the recommendation of a family physician, Greeley was sent to the asylum of Dr. George S. Choate at Pleasantville, New York.^[109] There, he continued to worsen, and died on November 29, with his twosurviving daughters and Whitelaw Reid at his side.^[110]

His death came before the Electoral College convened. His 66 electoralvotes were scattered among four others, principally Brown.^[111]

Although Greeleyhad requested a simple funeral, his daughters ignored his wishes and arranged agrand affair. He is buried in Brooklyn'sGreen-Wood Cemetery. Among the mourners were old friends, Tribune employees includingReid and Hay, his journalistic rivals, and a broad array of politicians, led byPresident Grant.^[112]

Appraisal[edit]

Monument of Horace Greeley in Green-Wood Cemetery

Further information: Tributes to Horace Greeley

Despite the venom that had been spewed over him in the presidentialcampaign, Greeley'sdeath was publicly mourned. Harper'sWeekly, which had printed Nast's cartoons, wrote, "Since theassassination of Mr. Lincoln, the death of no American has been so sincerelydeplored as that of Horace Greeley; and its tragical circumstances have given apeculiarly affectionate pathos to all that has been said of him."^[113]Henry Ward Beecher wrote in the Christian Union, "when HoraceGreeley died, unjust and hard judgment of him died also".^[114]Harriett Beecher Stowe noted Greeley's eccentricdress, "That poor white hat! If, alas, it covered many weaknesses, itcovered also much strength, much real kindness and benevolence, and much thatthe world will be better for".^[114]

Greeley's view of freedom was based in the desire that all should have theopportunity to better themselves.^[115] According to his biographer, Erik S. Lunde, "a dedicated socialreformer deeply sympathetic to the treatment of poor white males, slaves, freeblacks, and white women, he still espoused the virtues of self-help and freeenterprise".^[116] Van Deusen stated: "His genuine human sympathies, his moral fervor,even the exhibitionism that was a part of his makeup, made it inevitable thathe should crusade for a better world. He did so with apostolic zeal."^[117]

Nevertheless, Greeley'seffectiveness as a reformer was undermined by his idiosyncrasies: according toWilliams, he "must have looked like an apparition, a man of eccentrichabits dressed in an old linen coat that made him look like a farmer who cameinto town for supplies".^[118] Van Deusen wrote, "Greeley'seffectiveness as a crusader was limited by some of his traits andcharacteristics. Culturally deficient, he was to the end ignorant of his ownlimitations, and this ignorance was a great handicap."^[117]

The Tribune remained under that name until 1924, when it merged withthe New York Herald to become the New York Herald-Tribune, whichceased to publish in 1966.^[119] The name survived until 2013, when the International Herald-Tribunebecame the International New York Times.^[120]

There is a statue of Greeleyin City Hall Parkin New York,donated by the Tribune Association. Cast in 1890, it was not dedicated until1916.^[121] A second statue of Greeleyis located in Greeley Square in Midtown Manhattan.^[122] Greeley Square,at Broadway and 33rd Street,was named by the New York City Common Council ina vote after Greeley'sdeath.^[123] Van Deusen concluded his biography of Greeley:

More significant still was the service that Greeley performed as a result of his faith inhis country and his countrymen, his belief in infinite American progress. Forall his faults and shortcomings, Greeley symbolized an America that, thoughoften shortsighted and misled, was never suffocated by the wealth pouring fromits farms and furnaces ... For through his faith in the American future, afaith expressed in his ceaseless efforts to make real the promise of America,he inspired others with hope and confidence, making them feel that their dreamsalso had the substance of realty. It is his faith, and theirs that has givenhim his place in American history. In that faith he still marches among us,scolding and benevolent, exhorting us to confidence and to victory in the greatstruggles of our own day.^[124]

See also[edit]

• Rehoboth (Chappaqua, New York)

Notes and references[edit]

Explanatory notes[edit]

1.                       ^ Jumpup to: ^abThe origin of thephrase "Go West, young man, and grow up with thecountry" and its variants, which Greeleypopularized and with which he is closely associated, is uncertain. The Tribunealleged that the phrase was "attached to the editor erroneously" andaccording to his biographer Williams, Greeleyprobably did not coin it. There are many tales regarding its origination:minister Josiah Grinnell, founder of Iowa'sGrinnell College, claimed to be the young man whomGreeley firsttold to "go West". See Williams,pp. 40–41

Citations[edit]

Horace Greeley Statue
City HallPark

Horace Greeley Statue
GreeleySquare, New York

Bibliography[edit]

• Bonner, Thomas N. (December     1951). "Horace Greeley and the Secession Movement, 1860-1861". Mississippi Valley Historical Review38 (3): 425–444. JSTOR 1889030. (subscription required)

• Goodwin, Doris Kearns (2005). Team of     Rivals: The Political Genius of Abraham Lincoln. Simon & Schuster.     ISBN 978-0-684-82490-1. 

• Hale, William Harlan (1950). Horace     Greeley: Voice of the People. Harper & Brothers. OCLC 336934. 

• Lunde, Erik S. (February     2000). "Greeley,     Horace". American National Biography Online. Retrieved     January 16, 2015. 

• Lunde, Erik S. (1981). Horace     Greeley. Twayne's United States Authors Series (413). Twayne     Publishers. ISBN 0-8057-7343-6. 

• Nevins,     Allan (1931). "Horace Greeley". Dictionary of American     Biography7. Scribner's. pp. 528–34. OCLC 4171403. 

• Seitz, Don Carlos (1926). Horace Greeley:     Founder of The New York Tribune (1970 reprint ed.). AMS Press. OCLC 27401223. 

• Snay, Mitchell (2011). Horace     Greeley and the Politics of Reform in Nineteenth-Century America.     Rowman & Littlefield Publishers Inc. ISBN 0-8057-7343-6. 

• Stoddard, Henry Luther     (1946). Horace Greeley: Printer, Editor, Crusader. G. P. Putnam's     Sons. OCLC 1372308. 

• Taliaferro, John (2013). All     the Great Prizes: The Life of John Hay, from Lincoln to Roosevelt     (Kindle ed.). Simon & Schuster. ISBN 978-1-4165-9741-4. 

• Tuchinsky, Adam (2009). Horace     Greeley's New-York Tribune: Civil War–Era Socialism and the Crisis of Free     Labor. Cornell      University Press. ISBN 978-0-8014-4667-2. 

• Van Deusen, Glyndon G.     (1953). Horace Greeley: Nineteenth-Century Reformer. University of Pennsylvania Press. OCLC 2225788. 

• Williams, Robert C. (2006). Horace     Greeley: Champion of American Freedom (Kindle ed.). New York University     Press. ISBN 978-0-8147-9402-9. 

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Horace_Greeley