The Washington herald., 1911-02-05
GREELEY FOREMOST JOURNALIST

Lincoln had once more quietly remove,
from his path the Jealous but rasl
journalist who was prone to point ou
short cuts to the goal the President wa
seeking.
The Davis Incident.
An incident still more discomforting TO
Mr.. Greeley, but one in which his par
was entirely cseditable. was his going t,
Richmond in the spring of 1867 to sigI
the bail bond Of Jefferson Davis. Never
was there an ,aft, Of greater or more un
sullied maenafit ity. 1t was shared By
such conspio601s Unionists as Gerri
Smith, the old-time Abolitionist: Augutu.
Schell. and Cornelius Vanderbilt, of New
York. But Mr.. Greeley alone was re.
warded by a storm of foolish indignation
and unbridled abuse. all the stored wrath
Of years Of personal conflict being let
loose upon his head. But any one who
will take the trouble to read the ad-
dress he delivered to an immense audi
ence in the late capital Of the Confed-
eracy. during his visit. will find 1t a
temperate. sound, patriotic, and manly
defense Of his policy Of Impartial suf-
frage and general amnesty" In the spirit
of which he had intervened to prevent
the martyrdom of the hero Of the Con-
federacy.
For the few years remaining to him
Mr.. Greeley made the adoption of this
policy the aim Of all his effort, and never
before in his long years Of effort did he
work with greater intensity and energy
1t was an ideal policy. Few of us, look
ing back on that trying period, would
now doubt that il 1t could have been i'm
posed by miracle it would have worked
miraculously. But nothing less would
have secured its adoption. The North
simply could not wholly and at once trust
the South. The South, from within the
shadow OF two centuries Of slavery, could
not accept even the best of the negroes
as their political equals. Mr.. Greeley's
position, however ideally just, brought
him more and more into anta4onism with
his party and with the great mass of
Northern opinion. His was not the tenn
perament that could smooth the rude DIFF
that arose. and In 1872 he be-
came the candidate Of q minority Of his
party. and Of the Democratic party for
The Presidency. There were many ele-
ments that entered into this situation be-
sides his particular Views on amnesty
and suffrage. One was the natural am
oition he had always shown to take the
ead In any movement with which he
vas in sympathy. Another was the very
dissatisfaction with the pol
cy and still more with the leaders OF the
Republican party under Grants first adj
Still another was the sim
IuIar demoraliSati0u that fell on the
Democratic party after the war. which
cd to the abandonment Of their own or
Isnisatton and the Endorsement Of Gree
ey at . moment when enlightened
craftsmanship might have led them to
cal victory. The net outcome was the
defeat Of Greeley. His per.
ona1 share in the canvass vas honor
'bls and disniaed. He traverssd the
'ountry. making . series sof brief ad-
ressea. which were remarkable for their
eif-respect. cAlmnesA sincerity, ana eIe.
'ation OF spirit. But from the first his
gure In the popular imasinaaiou was . |
ndtcrouD one. AZ Q protestant Of inde-
endent candidate II might have been
and In some d6gres noble. A
- Candidate Of the Demooratic party of |
bat Day. It was groteoque. He carried |
My Sfx States. All 9outhesu.
11r. 0rasley survived The e3eettnn bot . |
~ Wee1R. His strength had hoeo Sueosy
kxod oy Nh own lAbeeAs The oea&h of |
= Wtfo ea o. -Nv0 of tn N1oet3eA ofker /
lcne anA sspni11ng 1lpess. - - hlls I
eEu1hlnG b5ow. He A1eo olQQysnhGe ~ /
~ II 5000 o14tps(DG 1. ~ ~ Il