The McCook tribune. (McCook, Neb.) 1886-1936, 1886-04-01
HORACE GREELEY.
Some of His P~eculiarities as Detaiieo
by His Son-tn-Law.

Some of His Peculiarities as Detaiieo
bv His Son-fn-Law.
1.-THE peculiarities of Horace Greeley
have all been greatly overdrawn," SAID
his son-in-law, Col. Nicholas Smith, OF
New York, to a reporter. at is gen.
orally thought that Mr. Greeley was
very much given to profanity when ex-
: cited, but all the time that knew MN
1 never heard a single p~rofane word fali
from his lips, and my wife has often
said the same. His temperate habits
are well known; he never touched any
thing in the way of liquor. except cid
er, and, singularly enough. was very
fond of cider. 1 have a boy 8 years
! old, who is named Horace Greeley, and
he has inherited this love for cider and
dislike for other liquors from his grand
father, illustrating the great law OF
heredity. Mr.. Greeley was very posi-
tive in his convictions. To illustrate:
DR.. White, the late president of Cornell
university, tells this story of him. In
company with the professor of Latin
and Greek at Cornell university, DIR.
| White called upon Mr.. Greeley. The
professor rallied Nh. Greeley upon his
known objection to the dead languages
in the practical education of young
men, and a hot discussion was COM
menced. Mr.. Greeley piled argument
upon argument until the professor was
cOrnered.
"'You must admit, Mr.. Greeley he
finally cried, that the Latin and Greek
are the great conduits through which
the learning of the ancients have come
down to us?"
eyes said Mr.. Greeley, Il admit
that, but pointing to the water faucet,
you see that faucet; l drink three or
four glasses of water daily from that,
and the water comes there through the
Croton aqueduct. But, my dear sir, is
that any reason why L should chew so
much lead pipe?'
'Mr. Greeley was not very particular
in regard to his dress. Parton, in his
Life of Greeley tells q good story of
him. Webb, of The Enquirer. was
very neat in his dress, and was always
firing editorial shots at Mr.. Greeley for
his popularity in this respect. Webb
some time before had been engaged in
4 duel, and had been sentenced to the
penitentiary, but was pardoned by Mr..
Seward. Mr.. Greeley stood his re-
marks for some time without taking
any notice of them, but he finally be-
came tired, and answered through The
Tribune: 1t is true that / am not as
nartJo1l1 !. in nv HrosS nc = Gonna pna-
Pile, but [ can say for myself that l do
clemency of the executive when l
should be wearing the stripes of the
penitentiary garb.'
This caustic reply stopped the re-
marks from The Enquirer. Work was
Mr.. Greeley's nepenthe. My wife has
often told that he would 90 out to his
country house, Chapauqua, on Friday
evenlngt to remain until Monday and rest.
But Saturday, after working all morn
ing in his grove at his favorite pastime
of saving limbs off the trees, at noon
he would board a train for the CITY.
There are fifteen or twenty of his old
lying in the barn at C%hapauqua
now, some of them with candles forty
feet long, to reach the top limbs of the
trees. L believe he gave away more
money during his life than any man
ever lived. | have now at home
about a ton of worthless paper, and at
least a bushel of old watches, which
from the country had borrowed
money on.
1.-The old Quakers around Chapauqua
used to be very much amused over his
supposed gullibility. At one time an
old friend wanted to sell him a pair of
oxen for which he asked an exorbitant
price, but Mr.. Greeley, without saving
a word, gave him q check for the
amount. The Quaker, some time later,
was heard expressing q wish that he
mad asked twice as much for the oxen.
"When Mr.. Greeley was nominated
for president if the election had taken
place a week later he would have swept
the country. But the capitalists of
Wall street knew he would not serve
their interests and opposed him. His
of the civil war was being pub
lished by the Chase Brothers, of Hart
1t was being sold by subscrip-
lion, and they said they never had a
book which sold so rapidly. just at
this time Mr.. Greeley went on Jeff
Davis bond and he was set at liberty.
The book dropped dead in the hands of
The publishers just from this action.
Ten years later the country saw that
that was the only civilized way of dis
of Mr.. Davis. The work of Mr..
Greeley was all for his contemporaries,
ne did nothing to perpetuate his name
n the minds of posterity, and his name
will live only in the memories of the
as a great and good man."-SG
Louis Republican.
A Client Demands Protection.