LD 3141 .M649 1851 Copy 1 ADDRESSES DELIVERED AT THE 5: OPENING OF MADISON COLLEGE, ^ ® S3 Q ® EI IF ® ^ EL I? A SEPTEMBER 1 , 1851 33 altimnr f: METHODIST PROTESTANT BOOK ROOMS, Fl " "•* £7l No. 2 Jarvis Building. CO I "t^ i = ^ 18 5 1. \J» \i j .... I, - r — / — \ /- — x x- — \ s — N \/'T^\/' — " /" — Nfl ADDRESSES DELIVERED ATTHE OPENING OF MADISON COLLEGE, iKia®^®^^ s>&. EPTEMBER 1, 1851 / '/£* '& IISS t^ $ 9Jttltirann: METHODIST PROTESTANT BOOK ROOMS, No. 2 Jabvis Building. 185 1. us* Sherwood & Co., printers. - ADDRESS OF MR, DEFORD ON BEHALF OF THE TRUSTEES OF MADISON COLLEGE, AT THE INAUGURATION OF REV. R. H. BALL. Ladies and Gentlemen: I rise on behalf of the Board of Trustees to congratulate you on the election of a President and Professor of Madison College, and the prospect you now have of its future useful- ness. And I am happy to be able to say to you, that with unanimity our choice has fallen on a gentleman of conceded qualifications, distinguished alike for his extensive literary acquirements, affability, politeness and high Christian char- acter. Upon the opening of the college, under new auspices, it may not be uninteresting, particularly to those concerned, who live at a distance, to refer briefly to some of the more important provisions of the chartered rights of this Institu- tion, which I regard as most liberal. The 3d article of the charter not only secures the perpetuity of the Institution to the Trustees therein named, and to their successors, but also gives to them, for its use, all lands, goods or moneys given to it by will or otherwise, allowing them to invest the same in such manner as they may deem most beneficial for the col- lege. The 5th article empowers the Trustees to appoint Professors, fix their salaries, and remove them for miscon- duct, &c. ; in short, to do all things necessary to promote the interests of the college. 4 INTRODUCTORY ADDRESS. The 6th article confers on the Trustees the power to grant and confirm " such degrees in the liberal arts and sciences to such pupils of the college or others whom by their proficiency in learning or other meritorious distinctions, they shall think entitled to them." The 9th article of the charter contains an unusual, but I think a very important provision, giving the Trustees power " to establish a department of agriculture in said college." This great interest has become so import- ant in our country, that the establishment of a chair in our colleges for its study, must be regarded with much satisfac- tion by a great portion of our citizens. And now, fellow- citizens, this college has been offered to and accepted by the General Conference of the Methodist Protestant Church, upon the terms of the very liberal charter, a part of which has been referred to, as a suitable place to locate a general institution of learning, which it proposes to establish in your midst. That offer has been carried out by the old Board of Trustees, so far as to justify the belief that it will ultimately be fully complied with— a sufficient number of the Trustees selected by the church having been already elected to enable her to take the control of the college and proceed to its organization. Located, fellow-citizens, as it is, in your midst, if successful, it will greatly advance the true interests of your town and country. How deep then is the interest you have in its prosperity. May we not confidently calculate on your aid in our endeavors to build up an institution of learning here; assuring you that on our part no effort will be want- ing, with a firm reliance on divine Providence, to make it a blessing to the country and to the church. As one of the literary institutions of the land, I trust that Madison College is yet destined to exert a powerful influence in sustaining all our social, civil and religious interests. What is it that mind, enlarged and enlightened by a good education, is not capable o^ accomplishing within human grasp, especially when pro- INTRODUCTORY ADDRESS. O perly influenced and controled by the principles of our holy religion ? Are the affairs of the state to be settled and safely conducted, the man of learning takes the lead in doing it. Are the masses to be properly directed ? it can be done best by the convincing powers and eloquence of the learned statesman, upon whose words a nation's destiny may depend. Education is not only necessary for the statesman, but also for the social circle. What an elevation of enjoyment does it bring here ! dignifying all its relations, soothing all its sor- rows and sweetening all its pleasures. No matter what may be our pursuit in life, education will dignify and render it more honorable and useful. How much has been done for the advancement of the arts by the learning and genius of the mechanic. Look at the magnificence of the steam en- gine, propelling our ships from shore to shore and from sea to sea. I might enlarge here, but time will not admit of it. J have said that mind, enlarged and enlightened by a good education, has a controling influence in the affairs of men, especially when properly influenced "by the principles of our holy religion." I wish it to be distinctly understood that, in my opinion, education that is not based upon proper religious principles, and that does not acknowledge Chris- tianity at every step, is essentially defective. That college in which Christ and Him crucified is not held up, on all proper occasions, as the foundation of all the hopes of the student, for time and for eternity, fails in the accomplishment of what ought to be its highest object; and while it stores the mind with learning, will not improve the heart. The claims of Christianity must not be disregarded by the college or the student. But while his mind is being enlarged by the great truths of science, they should lead him to look through them up to the greater Architect of the universe. The position of this college, the beautiful scenery that surrounds it, the fertile and healthy country in which it is 1* b Introductory address'. located, all conspire to make it a fit place for literary pursuits. It is your direct interest in any and every point of view to build up this college. Here your sons can be educated, with- out sending them away from under your own eye at great expense. In a pecuniary point of view, too, you are deeply concerned, as the students assembled here from time to time will not only consume the produce of the farmer, but also afford employment to the mechanic and business to the other citizens. To the Methodist Protestant Church, under whose par- ticular control Madison College now is, I would say a few words before I take my seat. To you, we, as the Trustees of this Institution and representatives of the church, look more particularly for its success and support— accepted as it has been, by our General Conference, and now being opened under its auspices, the honor of 'every member of the church throughout this Union is, to some extent at least, pledged to sustain it. It is the common property of the whole church, and it is for you to make it a blessing to the country and a credit to the church. All that is required to secure both is the united and steady support of the membership by sending their sons here to he educated and by a liberal endowment of it. Nothing will firmly establish it but such an endowment as will at all times secure the services of such a Faculty as will do honor to you and the college. We trust measures for this purpose will be speedily taken. But I must close this address in order that you may enjoy the intellectual repast that awaits you. I therefore tender a hearty welcome to the newly elected President of the Col- lege, assuring him of other aid in the discharge of the ardu- ous duties of the highly honorable post to which he has been unanimously called ; praying that He who controls the uni- verse may so direct us that we may accomplish our most ardent expectations and realize our highest hopes. ADDRESS BY THE PRESIDENT, REV. RICHARD H. BALL, A. M. Mr. President and Gentlemen Trustees; Ladies and Gentlemen : In entering upon the duties assigned me by the Board of Trustees in connection with the institution of learning about to be established at this place, it may be expected that I would make some remarks concerning its prospects and the means to be used most likely to insure its prosperity and success ; some on the general topics of literature and sci- ence, as branches of collegiate study; and some on their con- nection with the all-important subject of natural and revealed religion. This expectation J shall endeavor to fulfil. But I must advertise you that a full discussion of any one of these themes would require much more time than we can devote collectively to all of them ; and, therefore, I shall be able on the present occasion to present for your consideration but very few of the many thoughts and arguments that seem to demand our respectful attention. That branch of the Protestant Church of which I appear here as one of the humble representatives, has long felt the need of a high seminary of learning within her own fellow- ship, at which her sons could be educated in literature and science, morality and religion; to which she could point with a noble Christian feeling as a monument of usefulness of her own creation and endowment, and the object of her fostering regard, for the good of man and the glory of God ; and methinks she deeply deplores her hitherto seeming delin- o INAUGURAL ADDRESS. quency in this connection of Christian labor and enterprise. But it must be borne in mind that the Methodist Protestant Church is young in years ; and while the time-honored insti- tutions under the patronage and management of other denom- inations in our happy land, have been growing and thriv- ing — some for a score of years, others for half a century, and others again for more than two centuries — she has had an existence of but little more than twenty years ; and yet, such have been her zeal and activity, and so remarkably has she been blessed of the Lord, that from small beginnings she has multiplied her membership to well nigh one hundred thousand communicants. And while sister denominations are urging forward the car of improvement, and are dispens- ing the ineffable benefits of light and knowledge through Protestant Christendom and the world, she too would stretch forth her helping hand, and contribute her quota in this most glorious work. For patronage and endowment we look mainly to the church. Doubtless she has the ability and the willingness to meet our reasonable expectations in these respects. But she must be assured that her patronage will be properly be- stowed, and her moneys prudently appropriated, before she would be justifiable in granting the one or the other to that extent requisite to place Madison College on a firm and per- manent foundation. And the conditions implied in the fore- going remark are conditions with which the citizens of Union- town and its vicinity have much to do. A hearty, prompt and united co-operation — an identification of interest in the pros- perity of the College — a due respect to the peculiar feelings of students from distant parts of our country— a disposition and an effort " to make amends for the absent heaven of their homes:" these and other kindred particulars should ever be observed by the citizens of that place where a College is lo- cated. And are not the peculiar circumstances of Uniontown, JNAUGURAL ADDRESS. \f at this crisis in her history, such as to indicate, unmistakably, the wisdom of such an identification of interest ? The Col- lege flourishing, will not her beautiful and fertile environs find a ready market, with increasing demands, for their super- fluous products — her merchants for their commodities — her mechanics for their manufactures ? — and will not the archi- tect be in requisition to increase the number of her edifices and enlarge her borders, until her fair proportions shall rival those of Cambridge or Carlisle? And thus may not, will not Uniontown successfully vie with other places, the very life of which is their seats of learning? The kindness and cordial courtesy with which, as a stranger, your speaker has been received and welcomed among you by all classes, war- rants the belief that this hearty and prompt co-operation will be extended — this identification of interest established— this friendly feeling for students from a distance cultivated; and that there will not be found a man in the place so neglectful of his own interests, and so reckless of the welfare of his neighbors, as to discourage by word or deed this arduous yet glorious task of establishing an institution, the successful operation of which shall prove of such inestimable benefit to this community. On this point a word to the wise, it would seem, should be sufficient. And let it not be supposed that, because an institution is under the exclusive management of one religious denomina- tion, therefore u it is peculiarly liable to the operation of narrow and sectarian views." No supposition would be more erroneous. Those who would so conclude betray great ignorance of the principles which ordinarily govern human conduct. Thus organized and under the control of one branch of the church, all incentive to theological and con- troversial disputation, often so sadly detrimental to the spirit of genuine piety, is removed ; and no contest for the suprem- acy? by discordant and jarring sects, can ever obtain in its 10 INAUGURAL ADDRESS. peaceful precincts. But, on the contrary, the pure principles of morality and the great doctrines of the cross, with all their harmonizing and heavenly influences, and all their soul- subduing and soul-enkindling power, will become the theme of every appeal and the burthen of every precept, and the lines of sectarian demarcation gradually become fainter and fainter, till at last they are scarcely, if at all visible, amid the far greater glory of the surrounding splendor. As it regards endowment by individual contributions, it must be borne in mind that it is ever the work of time. The majestic oak that rears its towering trunk to the skies and spreads its giant arms far and wide, affording a cool, shady retreat for fleecy flocks and lowing herds, is not the growth of a day ; and, in boundless mercy to man, it is heaven's ap- pointment that it shall attain by easy gradations to its perfec- tion of beauty, and its maturity of strength. Man, God's no- blest creature, walks not abroad in the pride of his strength, and the power of his intellect, till he has passed through the periods of imbecile infancy, and complaining childhood, and joyous youth ; then comes the glory of manhood, with all its commingled sorrows and joys. And yet we fondly hope that the day is not far distant when Madison College will be suf- ficiently endowed. On this subject I have already addressed a communication to the ministers, members and friends of the Methodist Protestant Church, which may have met the eye of some in this auditory. This paper, it is intended, shall be speedily followed by another, submitting a feasible plan for raising the desired sum in a way so easy that the church shall neither feel nor fear any embarrassment in re- sponding to its details and fully complying with its solicita- tions. And here I think I may safely proclaim that the church will do her duty; and if so, the clear sunshine of prosperity will illuminate our toilsome pathway, and we shall ultimately be permitted to rejoice together in the full success of our cherished enterprise. INAUGURAL ADDRESS. 11 The general utility of classical learning with some has long been a matter of doubt ; but it may be well to notice who they are that oppose it. And here 1 boldly assert that they are generally men who are not at all prepared to judge of the merits of the question. Few indeed, if any, who have realized its advantages, ever raise their voice against it. Nor have its opposers distinguished themselves either in the sci- entific or literary world. Among the celebrated men of mod- ern times, perhaps ninety-nine hundredths owe their emi- nence in great part to their classical attainments. Am I re- minded of a Franklin ? True, in early life he possessed not these advantages; but he became sensible of his deficiency, and applied himself assiduously to the acquisition of the Latin tongue; and to this acquisition he is doubtless indebted for much of his greatness. But who can tell how much higher he might have risen — how much brighter he might have shone, had he received in youth a classical education. His fame might have eclipsed a Newton's ; he might have made discoveries in mathematics and astronomy, as grand and useful as those in physics, which so astonished, by their surpassing boldness, the philosophers of the Old World. The study of the Latin and Greek classics improves the memory, develops and refines the taste, strengthens the rea- soning faculty, enlivens the imagination, invigorates the power of perception, and in a word educates and cultivates the mind, to no inconsiderable extent, in all its faculties. Many persons of the most profound erudition assert that, for these purposes, no study in the whole circle of the sciences can be substituted in its stead. And while the abstruse the- orems and the puzzling scholia of mathematics would, like an avalanche, crush the budding intellect, this gently fills, and expands, and continues to enlarge its capacities, in their steady advance to maturity. And not only are its effects thus happy on the intellectual faculties, but it also furnishes 12 INAUGURAL ADDRESS. to the student the machinery if I may so speak, for the acquisition of sound scientific knowledge. The English language, as is well known, is almost wholly derivation, the number of primitive words being compara- tively few. And though the basis of the language is the Anglo-Saxon, yet since neither the Angles nor the Saxons were acquainted with the sciences as were the Greeks and Romans, therefore the terms used in science are derived from these, now denominated the learned languages ; and it is sus- ceptible of indisputable demonstration that these terms are rarely, if ever, well understood by other than the linguist. Again. One of the most ardent students and finished schol- ars of this or any other age, Lord Brougham, of London, declared that "to the models of ancient Greece and Rome we owe much of our civilization and refinement." And what are these models ? Look at their architecture — their statu- ary — their poetry — their oratory — their philosophy — are these not worth studying ? The mouldering ruins of Athens and Rome have furnished architectural and statuary models for the imitation of the world — their poetry and oratory stand, perhaps, unrivaled — and the Iliad of Homer and the Orations of Demosthenes will ever remain among the high- est standards of sublimity and elegance. O Genius ! ne'er enough can we admire Thy matchless gifts and unextinguished fire That in the master-works of Homer glow, Diffusing life and light around, below — To every age posterior to his day, And now his worth in modern bards display. Farther. He who aspires to distinction in either of the learned professions may never gain his object by taking the superficial course prescribed by some. If he would study his selected profession successfully, he must lay the founda- tion deep in classical learning; then the erection of the su- perstructure will be graceful, regular and stately. And where INAUGURAL ADDRESS. 13 is the aspirant for professional distinction who would not avail himself of its immense advantages ? who would volun- tarily close his eyes against the brilliant light it sheds upon his intricate and arduous pathway ? And where is the stu- dent of theology, who believes that it is in the arrangement of heaven that he shall officiate at the sacred altar, who would not consider it an inestimable privilege to study that w r ord which hath " brought life and immortality to light," in the polished language in which its heavenly pages were originally penned ? "Vague and uncertain translations," if such there be, might satisfy those who care but little for eternal things ; but he who appreciates the worth of the im*- mortal soul, and admires and adores the ineftable goodness of God in the gift of Revelation, would reckon it an advan- tage worth securing, to imbibe fresh from the original foun- tain the stream of consolation and wisdom which perennially flows from its inspired leaves. By universal consent a high place has been assigned to the science of mathematics in a course of collegiate education, Its practical applications are as various and multiplied as are the concerns of life. It is applied to almost all the useful and many of the ornamental arts, and to every branch of physical science. The merchant finds it indispensable in fixing the rate at which to sell his commodities, ascertaining the profits and losses of his business, and adjusting, balancing and settling his accounts. The manufacturer is compelled to avail himself of its deductions, in arranging the complicated affairs of his establishment and adapting the materials used to the purposes intended. The agriculturist calls in its aid for ascertaining the fertility of his soil by the amount of produce yielded, and for regulating the barter of his super- fluous effects for other conveniences and luxuries of life. It is indispensable to the geographer for determining the latitude and longitude of places, the height of mountains, the course, 2 14 iNAUGUKAE ADDRESS breadtli and velocity of rivers, the dimensions of oceans, seas, continents and islands ; for defining the boundaries of differ- ent countries, and measuring the solid globe of our earth ; to the optician, for understanding the phenomena and laws of light, its absorption, refraction and reflection T its velocity? the nature of vision, the doctrine of colors and the philoso- phy of the rainbow ; to the architect in constructing edifices? calculating the strength of timbers^ the form of arches and the proportion of columns ; to the civil engineer for locating roads and canals, leveling and tunneling mountains, filling up valleys, spanning rivers, and removing nature's eternal barriers from before the car of improvement ; to the mariner in direct- ing the course of his ship, estimating the effect of ocean cur- rents^ trimming his sails to the wind, finding his latitude and longitude, and taking celestial and terrestrial observations ; and to the astronomer for computing the magnitude and mo* tions of the heavenly bodies, their distances from the sun, their densities, the times of their revolutions, the elements of their orbits, and the force of gravity in " wheeling them, unshaken, through the void immense." Besides these practical applications, numerous others might be mentioned to other departments of industry and art ; but it is not from such applications and uses that the study of mathematics derives its noblest importance. It is to develop? invigorate and build up that splendid fabric, the human intel- lect, to discipline its modes and habits of thought ; to teach it to take the successive steps in the processes of reasoning ; to accustom it to analyze and to group, to compare and con- trast ; to fix it upon the intermediate stages in every course of rational investigation ; to shield it from the ruinous influ- ences of false doctrines and false philosophy, and from its proneness to credulity and superstition on the one hand, and apathy and skepticism on the other ; to subject it to deter- minate rules of action, and direct it to distinct objects of INAUGURAL ADDRESS. IS inquiry ; to enable it to trace out the analogy and relation of things; to observe and understand the connection of cause and effect ; and to wield, with the most efficient force, the implements of sound logic in the discovery and defence of truth; to accustom it to systematize, arrange and classify its subjects in the most clear and luminous order; and, finally, to supply to man what his infinite Creator designed he should possess, the power to see and admire and understand his marvelous works. Hence it has been justly remarked that no subject so appropriately exemplifies the rules of correct thinking; and that a more finished specimen of exact logic has never been produced than the Elements of Geometry by Euclid. The natural sciences, or physics, have a most extensive range, and include in their sphere of investigations all de- partments of the material universe. They seek to make us acquainted with matter in all its forms and phenomena, in all its affinities and combinations, in all the changes and modifi- cations of the organic and inorganic world. They aim to impart to us a correct knowledge of the laws, impressed by the great Architect of the universe, upon the minutest mole- cule, as well as upon the mightiest globe in his limitless do- minions. Matter, unorganized, in the incessant changes it spontaneously undergoes, and the multiplied modifications it -is made to assume, as subject to man's controling power — matter, modified by the principle of vegetable life, in endless variety of mosses, ferns, grasses, grains, shrubs, trees, with their countless variations of bloom and perfume, fruit and foliage, and their infinitely diversified adaptations to the wants of the animal world — matter, modified by the prin- ciple of animal life, in limitless succession of animalculae, insects, reptiles, fish, birds, beasts, in all their species, genera and classes^ and the purpose they subserve in the economy of nature — matter in any and all connections and relations, visible and invisible, is the subject o( physical investigation. 16 INAUGURAL ADDRESS. Of the various branches of the natural sciences time does not allow me to speak in detail. In general terms it may be observed that they are all important — are all connected, and most of them immediately with the comforts and conveni- ences of life, and all afford us direct intercourse and commu- nion with nature in her sublime and mysterious operations - y and through nature they lead, the mind and heart up to na- ture's God, proclaiming, as with one voice, through the multiplied millions of nature's works, from the smallest spire of grass to the innumerable worlds of the celestial scenery, "the hand that made us is divine. 55 Since such is physics, it; may appear surprising to the stu- dent that the most of its cognate branches are of modern date. But it must be remembered that the ancient philoso- phers, wise and distinguished as many of them were, busied themselves, for the most part, in speculations concerning the supreme good, the nature of the soul, and a pure and sub- lime morality ; while mere matter and its modes of existence they deemed subjects of too undignified and gross a charac- ter, with some exceptions, to become the themes and hypo- theses of their exalted contemplations. Besides, the Aristote- lian method of philosophizing proved an insuperable barrier to discovery, and precluded for the lapse of ages well nigh all improvement. But when Francis Bacon, Lord Verulam, pro- duced his "Novum Organon Scienliarum, 55 and taught the world how to pursue scientific investigations by a rigid ap- plication of the inductive method, then suddenly the dor- men t powers of men sprung into acthity and life, nature un- folded to their astonished vision her penetralia and disclosed her arcana, and revealed herself in her potent energies to bless mankind. Since then discovery has followed discovery, and invention has superseded invention, and the powers of nature have rendered themselves so obedient to man's control, that it has become proverbial with the wisest of men, that no pro- INAUGURAL ADDR'E'&S, 17 iessed invention or improvement, however surprising, shall be discredited till its absurdity is demonstrated. And yet how have men reluctated against the revelations of nature, A Galileo discovers some of her hitherto secret laws and principles calculated to pour unnumbered blessings on their heads, and a dungeon and excommunication are his reward, till solemnly he recants and swears on his knees in the pres- ence of an assembled multitude that her truth is a lie, and her sublime revelations a fable ! A Fulton, renouncing wealth, honor and glory, that he may subserve the cause of humanity and give to the world an application of one of nature's powers whereby the mil- lions of earth's population shall be benefited, is left to strug- gle on amid the taunts and jeers and ridicule and scorn of an ignorant multitude, and these are his guerdon. But now ten thousand steamers, monuments of his immortal genius, ride in grand magnificence over the tumultuous waters of a world, bringing, in effect, the remote parts of our earth almost into juxta-position, and furnishing undreamed of facilities to trade and commerce, arts and science, civilization and religion. And now, by this potent agent, the world is circumnavigated in the time of a summer's excursion. But steam does not exhibit all its power in the propulsion of boats. The astonishment of men at this god-like achieve- ment had scarcely subsided, before they were called on to witness a stranger wonder still — cars of the mightiest human construction driven over the face of the earth, with the velo- city of the wind in a violent hurricane, burthened with hu- man beings, and bearing from country to country the wealth of the world. Along the line of their iron track the angel of the Apocalypse flies, having the everlasting gospel in his hand, and aloft he holds the word of eternal truth, and high he rears the standard of the gospel to bless and to save man- kind. Ignorance, error, superstition, id6latry, heathenism, 2* 18 INAUGURAL ADDRESS. fall prostrate before its power; and love, peace and joy arise and flourish in their stead. And thus these, God's agents, shall subserve God's purpose in the salvation of the world. " Consider the steam engine. Jt is computed that the steam power of Great Britain, not including the labor economized by the enginery it puts in motion, performs annually the work of a million of men. In other words, the steam engine adds to the population of Great Britain another population, one million strong. Strong it may well be called. What a popu- lation I so curiously organized, that they need neither luxu- ries nor comforts, that they have neither vices nor sorrows, subject to an absolute control without despotism, laboring night and day for their owners without a complaining word ; a frugal population that wastes nothing and consumes no- thing unproductively; an orderly population, to which mobs and riots are unknown ; among which the peace is kept with- out police, courts, prisons or bayonets, and annually lavish- ing the products of one million pairs of hands to increase the comforts of the fifteen or twenty millions of the human population. Indeed it is wholly impossible to calculate the quantity of labor economized by all the machinery which the steam engine puts in motion." Mr. Baines, in his History of the Cotton Manufacture, states " that the spinning machinery of Great Britain, tended by one hundred and fifty thousand workmen, produces as much yarn as could have been pro- duced by forty millions of men with the one-thread wheel." Br. Buckland, in his Mineralogy and Geology, remarks " that it has been supposed that the amount of work now done by machinery in England, is equivalent to that of between three and four hundred millions of men by direct labor." If such be the estimate for Great Britain, at what should it be set down for our country and the world ? Who can calculate the pages of literary, scientific and religious intelligence which the steam power printing press annually, monthly, INAUGURAL ADDRESS. 9 weekly, daily, hourly pours forth upon the world, like a mighty flood of light and glory ? And still it is continually increasing, and will in God's good providence continue so to do, till there shall not be found one dark spot on all our globe ! The department of experimental philosophy is a spacious field ; and it is the spirit of the age to press forward in explor- ing its hitherto latent recesses and to bring to light its hidden mysteries. And the trophies which our own citizens have won upon this field of inquiry, are without parallel for bril- liance and utility in the history of the world. Visit the patent office at the seat of our national government, and examine the models which are there deposited by patentees, as well to secure to themselves the emoluments of their inventions and improvements as to guard the government from fraud, and you will find in those remarkable models — from the plow to the grist mill — from the whip-saw to the circular disk whiz- zing its fearless way through fifty square feet of timber in a minute — from the coffee boiler to the latest improvement of the steam engine — in every department of the useful arts a bold, impressive and instructive synopsis of our country's history, so far, in this most utilitarian age. Professor Morse, of electric telegraph notoriety, has in our times suspended the world of intelligence upon magnetic wires, and now you shall scarcely have matured a thought in your own mind ere you may publish it to the citizens of Boston and New Orleans ! In this astonishing and happy application of a natural agent, flashing intelligence along, its aerial track with a velocity of 200,000 miles in a second of time, who does not behold the safeguard of our liberties, and the perpetuity of our inestimable blessings ! who does not recognize and hail the dawning of that clay when intelligence and religion shall possess the world, when the nations shall learn war no more, and peace and happiness shall universally prevail ! 20 INAUGURAL ADDRESS. Had 1 time it would delight me much to speak particularly of Botany, Mineralogy, Geology, Natural History, Moral and Mental Philosophy, Ancient and Modern History, Chemistry, Meteorology, and especially of Astronomy, the most majestic and sublime of all the physical sciences, in which the student on a scale of unutterable grandeur scans the operations of God's marvelous works, and listens with a heaven-attuned ear to the music of the spheres, and hears u the heavens declaring the glory of God," and sees the firmament " show- ing forth his handy-work." And let it not for a moment be supposed that the study of material objects on a large or a small scale is calculated to make men materialists* no conclusion could be more preposterous. A man of profound erudition, whose judgment would not be here questioned, with truth as well as fervor exclaims, "An undevout astronomer is mad." And one of the most celebrated of English poets, on the theme of divine superintendence, in his sweetly flowing strain avers, "Nature and nature's laws lay hid in night, God said let Newton be, and all was light." Indeed, " if the moral and religious character be correspond- ingly developed ; if the religious affections be properly culti- vated ; if Christ but lay the hand of his healing power upon the human heart, then will the understanding be prepared to see in all things the finger of God, and to praise him not only in the firmament of his power, but in the tints and tex- ture of every petal that drinks the dew, and in the wings and antennae of every gnat that hums in the evening air ; or, as the inimitable Shakspear has it, to Find tongues in trees, books in the running brook, Sermons in stones, and good in every thing.' 1 To such an one the spire of grass, the whispering breeze, " the outgoings of morning and evening," the song of birds, INAUGURAL ADDRESS. 21 the deep voice of the thunder-peal, and the vivid blaze of the lightning-flash, all intelligently speak of a Spiritual Power, omnipresent, omnipotent, omniscient, presiding over all, con- troling all, sustaining all, constantly carrying forward to their consummation the purposes of infinite goodness and infinite wisdom. To the student about to enter Madison College I may remark that the rewards of industry in the pursuit of know- ledge are many and great, more valuable than the choicest gems, richer than the mines of Peru or California, more precious than the incense of Arabia, sweeter than honey and the honeycomb. Who can measure the ocean's depth, or estimate eternity ? Immense, boundless, infinite, eternal are the honors, the riches, the glories, the blessings, of him who successfully and devoutly studies the laws of nature and the works of God. Through the lapse of ages, through the in- terminable roll of eternity's years, shall these riches, and honors, and glories, and blessings, become higher and brighter and purer and holier. One of these rewards which may at present be mentioned and dwelt upon with satisfaction, is the conscious possession of a cultivated mind. Ignorance we instinctively feel is deep degradation, a pit of horror, the blackness of darkness, a region of loathsomeness and gloom and wretchedness, from which it is our duty and our interest to fly with all possible speed. The heart assures us every moment of our lives that knowledge is power of the most valuable character; and hence the natural thirst which all feel for its attainment, but which, alas ! is too often suppressed, stifled and utterly ex- terminated by indolence and vice. These, the vilest enemies of our best interests, foes to our welfare for time and for eternity, gain such a predominating influence over the hearts- and habits of a majority of our race, that the shackles of ignorance confine them in thraldom, till their period of pro- "22 INAUGURAL ADDRESS. bation in this world closes for ever ! But industry with her magic wand, stimulated by the encouraging voice of religion, subdues these foes and puts them to flight, and transforms that pit into a "Tempe's Vale," and that region of darkness into Eden's Paradise of delights ! Industry, persevering in- dustry, is the true philosopher's stone, that turns every thing to gold. It is to the mind what the air is to the body, the indispensable " pabulumvitae," without w hich all its energies are wasted, and its glory becomes a gloom*, without which midnight darkness takes the place of noon-day brightness, and life becomes a burden too intolerable to be borne ; with- out which the dazzling glories of the eternal world are con- cealed by an impenetrable cloud, and all hope of reaching its blissful abodes is for ever precluded ! Gladly would I rove farther in the extensive field before me did time permit; but I must forbear and content myself with the remark that to understand the sciences, as well as the languages, is indispensable to every well educated gen- tleman. The Mantuan bard, near two thousand years ago, felicitously sung in a strain of surpassing melody, " Felix qui potuit rerum cognoscere causas;" And the philosopher of modern times finds sterling truth as well as sublime poetry in his delightful song. Yet there are many who discourse learnedly and critically about books, after a hasty perusal of their title-pages and tables of con- tents ! many who with an assumed air of erudition and a son- orous volubility would overwhelm a man of reason, who can neither construct a syllogism nor distinguish between a the- orem and a corollary ! u many who assume as axiomatic truths those grand and essential principles which exact the patient industry and disciplined thought of the laborious mathematician to demonstrate to the understanding." Sci- ence, like fate, is inexorable in her mandates; and he who il\ AUGURAL ADDKCSTS. 23 would gain her richest rewards and win her brightest smiles y must be assiduous in his devotions and indefatigable in his^ zeal. To her high requirements his energies must be in per- petual subserviency. With patient perseverance he must ex- amine the microscopic world, learn the habitudes of the mul- tiplied millions of its animated beings, and make acquaintance as far as possible with the laws of their minute existences, He must handle the retort and crucible of the chemical labor- atory, investigate by analysis and synthesis the nature of com- pound and simple substances, carefully observe their affinities for each other, and ascertain the proportions with which they combine in the formation of the material objects every where surrounding him. He must study the mineralogical and geological characteristics of our earth ; the uses and value of the different metals, rocks, and gems of its numerous countries ; the curious and wonderful subject of crystal ogra- phy ; the strata of rocks, and the gradual progression by which our globe has attained to its present comfortable condition. He must traverse the flowery paths of the vegetable king- dom ; arrange in systematic order its numerous plants, vary- ing with every varying climate; and while he partakes of the luscious dainties of its fruits, he must make familiar acquaint- ance with the remedial agents of the botanical world. He must look with the eye of a naturalist at the different tribes of animated nature, see the handy work of God in fitting for its appropriate place each polished link in the great chain of being, from an insect to man, his noblest creature, and deeply study the physiological laws of his own mysterious consti- tution. As a mathematician he must "comprehend every proposition, solve every problem, and demonstrate every the- orem." He must understand the laws of motion, the com- position and resolution of forces, and the means by which velocity may be accelerated or retarded. He must be able to explain the philosophy of vision, the doctrine of colors, the 24 INAUGURAL ADDRESS. properties of light, its laws of reflection, its degrees of re- frangibility, and the diversified phenomena of visible objects* He must survey the starry heavens, watch the revolutions of the planets and satellites in their stately march, compute their velocities, observe their conjunctions and oppositions, mea- sure their distances from their centers of motion and the dimensions of their orbits, note the various phases which they exhibit, and through the medium of the telescope read the sublime revelations of those far-off worlds which the un- assisted eye hath never seen, nor can see, and hold high con- verse with the God of nature through the splendid and mag- nificent panorama of his works in the gilded decorations of the ethereal expanse. He must become familiar with the beauty, melody and power of language, understand and prac- tice the rules of correct composition, and be able to commu- nicate to others with attractiveness and elegance the treasures of his knowledge. He must thread the mazes of moral phil- osophy, seek familiarity with its profound precepts, and be prompt to apply them in his daily intercourse with men and in the government of his own conduct. He must study his own intellectual powers, the laws of association and sugges- tion, and perpetually aim at a higher elevation in the scale of intellectual life. The fields of science are not yet fully ex- plored. There are many California districts to reward the toil of their discoverers, many plains of verdant beauty still the land of fable and romance to make their explorers as re- nowned as the heroes of Phillippi, Waterloo or Yorktown ; many valleys in which lie imbedded diamonds of the richest hue and brilliancy ; many untrodden heights to which the aspiring genius of youthful America may climb with daring footsteps to gather flowers and wreath festoons to encircle with unfading glory her illustrious brow. LIBRARY OF CONGRESS 028 355 061 8