HORACE GREELEY - AUTOGRAPH NOTE SIGNED - HFSID 1778

HORACE GREELEY
He signs a short note on a 7½x2½ piece of paper.
Autograph Note signed: "Horace Greeley", 1 page, 7½x2½. No place, no date. To J.R. Young, Esq., Tribune Office. In full: "Try also to [illegible] or condense something else, and give the Peat article this week." Greeley (1811-1872, born in Amherst, New Hampshire) founded the New York Tribune in 1841 and edited it until his death. His newspaper, competitive in price with the "penny press" but less sensational, was the first to give its writers individual by-lines and the first with a literary and book review department. The Tribune had wide readership and influence, and many of his editorial quips - like "Go West, young man" - became famous. He was steadfast in support of many causes, such as antislavery, temperance, and the rights of labor, but he could be mercurial at times. (His swift reversal of opinion on the secession of the southern states is reflected in two 1861 Tribune editorials: Go in Peace, Errant Sisters, followed shortly by On to Richmond) He served as a Whig in Congress for three months (1848-1849)to fill a vacancy and did not seek reelection. As the Democratic and Liberal Republican parties' presidential nominee in 1872, he was defeated by President Ulysses S. Grant, who was seeking reelection. On Nov. 28, 1872, just 23 days after the election, Greeley, worn out by the grueling campaign, died at the age of 61. Folds, vertical fold touches the "c" in Horace. Lightly soiled, stained at blank right margin. Fine condition.