Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1872-12-14
MEMORABILIA.
Anecdotes, Beta Old and New, Of fhe
Late Horace Greeley
IFrom he Veg York World


IFrom ne Nslg York World.1
Ia r thought by some unssemIy to lest in the
near presence OF death--tO seek for that vhich
rs amusing N tile life of great man recently
decta-cd. But great men arc many-sided, and
IL Is impossible 10 present full length view of
thsm-such as the public demand when they
character When there is an eccentric or mirth-
provoking feature in . herot life manner the
Iaasees CT the people are more interested in it
than IN any other aspect which he presents.
1t is not, then, from any lack OF reverence for
tie boaeTed dead that the more laughable of
the following incidents In his life are printed
The bes. things that were said about Arte-
mus Ward" were contained in that poem so full
OF smiles and tears, by some unknown English
man, which began:
Has he gone to the land Of no lauguse-,
This man who made mirth for us all?
Aside from What was mirth-provokiHg in his
personal peculiarities, Mr.. Greeley was himself
full OF humOT. he we'll illustrated what Sxe-
oenbOrg said of children, and hence or all
ehIIdlike persons "Because they are in inn,-
cence, therefore they are in peace, and BEGAN 5 e
they are in peace, therefore all things are with
them full OF mirth."
Among the following "ans" some have had
extensive currency in books andothers are coin-
The early life of Horace Greeley. toiiny as
stckly child among the bleak hills OF New En- =
land, IS OF peculiar interest in this land of self
made men. He first shone a. a star OF the first
MAJ nitgde ia the spelling Glasses of the rou. D
New Hampshire village He has said OF him
IN the evening, when could not keep my eyes
open ard should have been in bed. Ii was often
Necessary 70 rap ne sharply when the word
came round 70 me; butt never failed TO respont
and II came to be said that L spelled as well
asleep a. awake"
FsIthfulness was the most striking moral trait
Come" his brother would say sometime
when the father bad set the boys task and had
gore from home, "CCme, HOt. let's 90 a-is,t-
ing" mo" Horace would reply, in his whining
voice, ''let's do our stint first de was ALWAYS
In school, though" says his brother, s'and "a we
heed down the rows or chopped at the wool
pile be was perpetGally talking about his les
sons. asking questions, and Darrating what he
read" when he fshed he fshed TOR FISH, nos
for sport. He could never be induced to shoot
anything. When he did accompany shooting
party he would never carry or discharge a gun,
ana when the game was found he would lie
Down and stop his ears till the murder had been
cone.
When his father was finally driven to bant-
ruptey on the barren New Hampshire soil,
Horace was TOO young TO understand the "jG :
fice' OF the sherif's visitation. The story il
that be seized Ratchet, ran to the neigh boring
field, and began furiously to cut down a favsr-
lite pear tree. saying, They shall not have that
any how" But his mother called him off, an I
tie pear tree still stands. Another story is tina.
he went TO one Of his mothers closets, and tai k
ing ss many Of her dresses az he could grasp IN
his arms, ran away with them into the woods
bid them behind a rock, and then came back 20
when Horace was ten years old the family,
after brief stay in Vermont, returned to New
Hampshire. One sleigh was sufficient to carry
all the little property the law had left the family.
The teanster well remembers the intelligent
white headed boy who was 50 pressing with his
questions as they rode along over the snow, and
geography Of the region in which he had lived
all his days. a. he asked me" he said, ga great
deal about Lake Champan, and no W far it was
from Plgttsburg to this, that, or t'other place;
Lord. lie told me sight more than could
tell him J" About this time his diet was beam
porridse, All the children dipping into one dish
Even as a boy young Greeley Was remarkable
for absent mindedness, and was often buried in
thought and dead TO the outside world for hours.
A curious incident is recorded of one of these
studies Horace was accustomed to speak Of his
father as "Sir." On one occ aston, as he was
cboppiDg WOOD BY the side of the road, q IN An
rode mp and inquired the way to q distant town.
The boy, who was As ignorant a. the stranger
IsferIed him to his father, saying, ASK Sir,
was the answer 81 am asking" roared the
man. "well, ask Sir - was Horace's response.
to ass ! TIE rode on To- the sn
tavern. and Indignantly asked who that stow
headed fooP' was down the road.
When ct school in West Haven, Vt, he was
always 81 the head of his clsss. He would be
terribly cut up IL he "missed a word" II see
HIM now says ctsssmste, AS he sat in class,
ample forehead, his pleasant, simple face his
coarse, clean. homespun clothes. His attitude
loosely folded. his head bent forward, his leg,
crossed, and one foot swinging. He did not
seem 20 pay attention, but nothing escaped
him"
He vas once told TO whip another boy. He
drew OF A. II he was going to deal Q terrific
blow, but il came down so gently on the boys
jacket that every one saw that Horace was
shsmDing The teacher interfered and told
hin 10 strike harder, and little harder he did
strike, but more harmless logging was never
administered He seemed not to have the power
any more than the will to in1ct pain.
He bothered his teachers. He was not to be
Put OF with commonplace solutions of serious
q - rtFhf To bara tOs rtar
and liked TO know how, IL this was true, hat
could be true also. at length one Of his teach
the honesty and good sense to go to his father
and ssy TO him point-blsnk that Horace
knew more than he did, ana it no use for
home. The bsys of the village would often
visit him az night 70 get him TO explain Their
lessons. Wien he was not assisting some be-
wiIdeTed arithme.Ician he lay on his back in taa
chimney-sorner reading by the fre-hght-sl-
IL was Mrs. Hsmans's poe ms which irst swak-
ened hi enthusiasm, the first writings that M sde
him aware OF the better impulses of his nature
lie was wi:e in his fears He obeyed nature 8
warning rot TO face what he could not master
He was match for a rustic auditory and Be
feared 70 not. He was not a match for Wild
beasts, 80 he ran sway II he supposed one was
old lie had started for home, bat soon returned
saying he had seen q wolf. There had been IA K
OF wolves IN the neighborhood, but Vernon,
Nys generally cared no more for them than
cats Two OF the elder girls OF the family had
10 accompany him home. He would never
eitner ssht sscrnn away when attacked by other
fet ne was not afraid OF the dark or OF ghost
stories, never was abashed IN speaking OF
reeiting, was not 10 be overs wed by supposeI
superiority OF knowledge or rank, woald taik uu
10 the teacher and question his decision with
perfect freedom, though never in spirit OF
impertinence. f -
Horace WAS a teetotalier before teetot stism
came up. IL happened one day that a nsiehbar
stopped 20 take dinner with the family ,ns a.
amatfer Of course, the bottle Of ram AZ brou1h,
our Ter Dis entertainment Horace. IL appears.
either tasted little or else took DISGUST n. ths
smell OF tie stun, or perh APPS was offended AZ
the effects witch he saw u produced. An ida,
struck BIN. he said, " Father what will Won
give me II 10 not drink a drop OF Hquor tin
am tsenty oner" His father, who took the
dollar" Its bargain" said Horace. Ar
~ vas bargain, az least on has side for he Kept
the pledge invioiate
When Horace went 10 East Poultney, VI and
applied for work in printing ONCE, the prO-
pTietor was astonished at first at his areearanca
a al 49, Naa- !.