A Public Reception To Horace Greeley

Nbw YotiR, Juno 12. A public reception to Horaoe üreeley by the Union Bopublican General Committeo of thi city, of which he is ohairman, on tho occasion of bis return from Texas, oocurred this evening in Union Square, front rooms of the Lincoln Club. Having boenfomially weloonied and introduced to the largfi psseniblj by Enos. L. Fancher, Mr. GreeJey proeeedod at onco to comparo thn oxisting stato of tffuirs witïi ten yoars apjo beforo the war, dccJaring that tho robellion and its su-jritioo of tr.lf a miJlion of the bo8t &nd bravet Jives of tbe country iright all havo been spared had the ïïorth and. South only understood tuch othor, and freo spoech and a fair interchango of opinión prevailed throughout the enÜM country. Two months ago he ..as iirut invitad to o to Te j-a? to deliw n agricultura! address, and though at iirst determined to decline, yielded to the advice of Lis friends, who tolcl him they tboaght hc could do tho wholo country good by going down to Texas. " Now," suid Iilr. Greeley, " I hear it said thai I wcut to Texas with too much parado and circumstanou ; that thero was too much making speeches ficm tho platforms of cars and froui the balccnies oi' hotels, anú I fully concur in that critieism, but the inritatious cfiiue from all quuTtnrs, and I feit it my duty to speah wordsof uoneiliiition. I responded when I conld and for the rest kept silence." Mr. örecley sail ii was also urged in javcvnl journabj tüat Lis name was too often menfcioned as a candidato for ofHcc, aud he fully ooncurred in that sugges tion. But he wan in a certain sensê ft public man, identifled with party oontests and psrty principie. He had often reproved and reproached better men than himself beciiuse they would not accent offices, and left seoond rate men to fill thein. During the last twenty years, Mr. üreeley said, he had been defeated several tunea - twice for Congres, once for the Constitutional Convention, and once on the State ticket - but never had he sought a nomiuation and rarely was ho consultod in regard to it. ' I am not at all gratuful," said he, " to the Kepublican party for these nominations. I accepted theni as I would any other duty, but for its support I am grateful. But thj past is past, and let the deud bury the dead. I am perfcctly willing to pass recaipts with the Kepublican party. I could not help boing a Kepublican. For tho futuro I need no office, desiro no offic, and though I shall not decline a nomination which ha not been giveu mo, shall sek no office. I am, howover, willing to do my duty. I have work enough for which I am reagonably well paid, and too much notoriety, and tha moro quiet and peaceful my remaining days shall be the bettor I shall be satisfled." With these few remarks Mr. Greeley left tho subject of his own political future and reviewed at length the principal incidents of his journey Houth, his impressions of Southern politics and society, and urging earnestly his familiar views of a liberal and generous treatment of the conquered Stiltes. He spoke in severe torins of the Ku-Klux, which he said tho government ought to extírpate at once and forever, and in severe and more sarcastic condemnation of the thieving carpet-baggers, who he said were a curse to the South and a disgrace to the North, whence they carne. The carpet-baggers, who plunder and prey upon the negroes and poor whites while pretending to be anxious for their education and the salvation of their souls, he said, were the greatest existing obstado to Republican ascendency in the South, and so he denouuced tliem. Alluding to his speech at Vicksburg, Mr. Greeley eaid he did not sa he trusted the time would come when we of the North would honor Lee and Jackson as we honor Grant and Sherman, but that hc hoped the time would come when all Aiik ricaus, North and South, will feel a just pride in the military character and achievoments of Lee and Stonewall Jackson, just as we of the North now take ju ido in tho character and achievenients of Grant, Sherman and Thomas. "Possibly," added Mr. Greeley, " this is too strong for somo of you, but I can wait. I can wait." Concerning the new departure, Mr. Greeley said ne thought it was fully justified. The Demócrata had done well to dopart from the foolish old business of ruiming their heads against a stono wall, but it had ulways been a rule of his life to never conjure up a bad motive for. a good action. Tho Douiocrats see where they had botter not be, and that they had better depart. He was glad of the new departure, and glad to see thnt the Democrats had got a new political religión, and hereafter would carry the ax under their coats instead of on the ir shoulders when they went out chopping Sundays. It would be better yot to leave it in the woodshed, and go out and treat the black mun as a brother, and he believed that the Domocrats, meant to do this and uiake Democracy something more than skin deep. He would not, however, make too much of the new departure. He did not understand that it professed any sorrow for past warfare against tho riglits of man, nor made any promise not to renew it, but if the Demócrata udmit that the Republican amendments to the Constitution are finally and irrevocably ratified and must be got out, if at all, in the same way they wero got in, by majorities in Congress and the vote of three-fcurths of all tho States we shall feel safe, and all we have gained is secure under the Federal Constitution. " For," suid Mr. Greeley, recalling his experiences at the polls in this city twenty-fivo years, and luter twelvc years ago, when he eould not induce Democrats to accept a bullot in favor of ecjual rights, " I bcliovo men are wiser and better to-day than they were u dozen years ugo. I am weiivy of this sterüo strife conconiing tho fuitdaiuuntal prinoiples of our Constitution. I am tired of teaching Domocrats the abc of Democracy. I rujoico thafc they have taken a íiew deportare. 15ut will it not put the ltepublican party iminediately out of power, is aekod. Burlce says ' coniidriici! isa plant of slow growth,' and it will tako souio time for the people to liave ïnucli fuitli in tho new creed oí' the Demócrata. It will takc some time for their own folks to lx;lit!vo it. Ultimately I beliove it will strcngthen the Dumoorucy. But I u willing to go out of power and livo in the minority forever, if necessory. The downfall and ovorthrow of Amcricun slavery is the grandest work of any generation since the povernment was foinidid. Let us remember the grand old Bible iniunction, ' Spcak to tho children of Israel tlwt they go forward.' We ought long ago to have endod tlns trouble by universal amnesty anti inipartial suffragc, and if the Dcmoonits concedo the latter, tho Bepnblicans must grant the former." In conclusión, Mr. Groeley suuiinoued all around hini to prepare for tlio new issues itnd ncw struggles which open befor us. Question8 of industrial policy, uatioiuil advancement andproierity, are now moro impoíftttTe and demand the bust and most honorable servico of the American citizon. Mr. Greeley closed with an eloquent apostrophe to a ncw and broader departure which ho hoped for the whote con-, try in peace, unity and ptosperity, und retirud unid hesrty cheers froni thousands u round the platform.