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ADDRESS 
 
 DELIVERED BEFORE THE 
 
 AMERICAN WHIG AND CLIOSOPIIIC SOCIETIES. 
 
 or the 
 
 COLLEGE OF NE\V JERSEY. 
 
 JUNE 24th, 1851. 
 
 BY THE 
 
 Hon. ABRAHAM W. VENABLE. 
 
 Jprimeton, 3X. 1.: 
 
 PRINTED BY J. T. ROBINSON. 
 
 1851. 
 
IS , 
 
Extract from the Minutes of the Cliosophic Society, June 24th, 1851. 
 
 Resolved, that a committee of three be appointed to tender 
 the thanks of the Society to the Hon. A. W. Venable, for 
 his able and appropriate address delivered before the Ameri- 
 can Whig and Cliosophic Societies on yesterday ; and to re- 
 quest a copy of the same for publication. 
 
 a. Mcdonald, ) 
 
 J. T. DUFFIELD, V Committee. 
 H. G. HALL, J 
 
 From the Minutes of the American Whig Society, June 25th, 1851. 
 That the thanks of this Society be respectfully tendered to 
 the Hon. A. W. Venable, for his eloquent address, and that 
 a Committee be appointed to request a copy of the same for 
 
 publication. 
 
 R. S. McCULLOH,) 
 
 F. L. R. KING, V Committee. 
 
 J. T. JONES. J 
 
ADDRESS. 
 
 Gentlemen of the American Whig and Cliosophic 
 
 Societies : 
 
 The claims of the world upon the citizen-scholar, 
 the educated man, is my subject. The occasion, as 
 well as the audience, renders it peculiarly appropriate. 
 This is no mere gala-day ; neither should it be an 
 empty and formal celebration of an anniversary, a 
 simple demonstration of respect for a time-honored 
 usage. It should be an occasion for the renewal of 
 our obligations to be useful to our generation, an ac- 
 cumulation of our offerings to the passing age, as well 
 as to posterity. Their claims are founded in justice ; 
 to acknowledge them is duty, to repudiate them is 
 criminal. " No man liveth to himself." None can 
 divest themselves of the relations arising out of their 
 social constitution ; neither can any of us withhold 
 our efforts to increase the stores of knowledge, or to 
 advance the enterprise of civilization, without incur- 
 ring the censure of the living and dishonoring the 
 memory of the dead. If we consider the peculiar 
 constitution, intellectual, moral and physical, which 
 
6 
 
 man received from Ills great Creator, it would be 
 nothing less than the perversion of gifts, and the 
 neglect of duty. The principle of individuality pre- 
 pares him for self-preservation, and endows him with 
 all the impulses which concentrate his energies and 
 call forth his efforts to secure his comfort and his 
 safety. He was also supplied with those sensibilities 
 which unite him with his race, which induce him to 
 seek associations with them, from which the highest 
 and most exquisite enjoyments of which he is suscep- 
 tible are derived, and to which all the enduring 
 improvements, as well as the embellishments of human 
 character, must be referred. This is the social prin- 
 ciple, a combination of intellectual power, moral 
 feeling and physical instinct. In these two principles 
 originate all that is valuable and ornamental, as well 
 as all that is odious and depraved, in the character of 
 man. Individuality in excess is cold selfishness, a 
 turning in' upon the heart of all the fountains of 
 social feeling, until the sensibilities perish in the 
 stagnant pool, from which no healthful and refreshing 
 streams flow out. The social feeling in excess is 
 reckless prodigality, the neglect of individual duty, 
 and the unwise and wasteful expenditure of the 
 elements of high civilization. Individuality, modified 
 by the social principle, promotes industry, concentrates 
 power and accumulates wealth ; thus combining all 
 the influences indispensable to the fullest development 
 of human capacity, as well as the highest attainments 
 of human happiness. It suggests, as well as secures 
 
safety to the persons and property which constitute 
 social organization. These principles, by mutual 
 reaction, restrain the excesses of the one, and modify 
 the sternness of the other ; a process, by which the 
 vices, that deform the character and disturb the 
 peace of society, are divested of their odious aspect, 
 and stand forth, in bold relief, acknowledged virtues, 
 the sources of general comfort and prosperity k Thus, 
 by the conditions of our creation, we are made mem- 
 bers of the great family of men, and whilst all others 
 are under obligations to promote our good, we are 
 equally bound to them for the performance of a 
 similar duty. We admire the harmonious action of 
 these apparently opposing principles, in the organiza- 
 tion of communities, resulting in the greatest good, 
 as we look with wonder at the varied rays of the 
 rainbow, by a law of their nature " softly blending 
 every color into one." 
 
 But whilst admiring, let us ask what is our personal 
 interest in this subject? In what way are the res- 
 ponsibilities of our situation to be met, and the 
 legitimate claims of our fellow men upon us to be 
 discharged? These are grave inquiries and imply 
 serious duties. It becomes us honestly to seek for 
 the truth and, having found it, to obey its directions. 
 
 The first duty of the citizen-scholar, is to add to 
 the stores of knowledge, to avail himself of all that 
 has been accumulated, to combine the discoveries of 
 the past with the improvements of the present, to 
 concentrate the ravs of intellectual light for the 
 
illustration of truth, and to remit to posterity a 
 legacy of practical wisdom : to add to the empire of 
 Science, which is knowledge founded on demonstra- 
 tion and reduced to certainty: to encourage and 
 cherish the efforts of Art, the great agent in all human 
 progress, the production of human ingenuity, as 
 contradistinguished from natural causes, the exhibi- 
 tion of the inventive faculty, a combination of mental 
 skill, and physical power. All of the present, and 
 much of the past is our own. Memory, the con- 
 sciousness of that which has gone, like a picture 
 gallery, places before us the experience and wisdom 
 of our predecessors, as well as their folly and their 
 crimes. It arrays facts unconnected with associations 
 and prejudices, which too often mislead. The light 
 of reason discovers the truth, and the judgment 
 guides the mind to proper conclusions. With the 
 duties of the present, and the learning of the past, 
 the educated man cannot be indifferent to his obliga- 
 tions to posterity without justly incurring censure. 
 The waste of mental culture in useless investigations, 
 or in defence of error, or the sordid avarice which 
 would turn in upon the individual mind, the riches 
 acquired by industrious application, are infinitely 
 more criminal in the intellectual than in the social 
 world. The money of the spendthrift, after passing 
 from his possession, performs its proper functions in 
 the hands of succeeding owners ; the hoards of the 
 miser, wrested from his grasp by the hand of death, 
 are distributed to others who use them : whilst the 
 
9 
 
 ingenious, and it may be able defence of error, or the 
 literary trifling, which, to say the least, is mental 
 dissipation, like counterfeit coin is worthless in itself, 
 and mischievous in its circulation ; and death over- 
 takes the literary miser with a menstruum that 
 dissolves all his jewels, and pours them into his grave, 
 as lifeless as his sensibilities, and as cold as his heart : 
 a practical demonstration of the mischievous and the 
 useless ; a blot and a blank upon the page of history. 
 The high duty of the scholar is industriously to 
 elaborate truth. He should collect and preserve the 
 scattered gems which he finds in his path. He should 
 cultivate the flowers of nature, as assiduously as he 
 accumulates its treasures. The certainties of Science, 
 he should deliver over to her handmaiden, Art, to 
 aid in those combinations, which both increase the 
 power, and add incalculably to the comfort and hap- 
 piness of man. His aim should be Truth, lovely for 
 its own sake, too sacred to be trifled with, the only 
 source of improvement, the foundation of all that is 
 valuable. No toleration should be given to error, for 
 error never can be harmless. It is cumulative in its 
 nature, and although it may not entirely disarm, 
 uniformly diminishes the force of truth. The at- 
 tainments of the age are referable to the refutation 
 of a few errors in Chemistry and other branches of 
 physical science, which taken alone, would not seem 
 capable of arresting the progress of philosophical 
 research. But they stood in the way, like the pebble 
 which dried up the stream, by obstructing and pre- 
 
10 
 
 venting its flow from the fountain. Art was left to 
 work alone, with a few facts ascertained by observa- 
 tion ; for Science,, groping in error, could not come to 
 her aid with the laws, which by their operation pro- 
 duced those facts. The field of enterprise was nar- 
 rowed down into a few incidents, instead of great 
 general laws. Error stood in the gate with a drawn 
 sword, and excluded all who desired to enter, until 
 overcome and displaced by the power of Truth. The 
 great practical utilitarianism of the present age is 
 the result of the successful efforts of the friends of 
 Truth, to displace and explode errors which in former 
 times degraded physical science into alchemy, astrol- 
 ogy and necromancy. 
 
 The power of truth is also cumulative. Its con- 
 quests are permanent, its triumphs enduring. Error 
 distorts the mental vision, contracts the horizon of 
 observation, and finally sinks into absolute darkness. 
 Truth rises with the light, enlarges its horizon with 
 its development, and with an eye which perceives 
 more clearly, as the brightness is more intense, ap- 
 prehends and appropriates all within the scope of its 
 perception. It is from this cause that we find our- 
 selves surrounded by such remarkable circumstances. 
 The first developments of scientific truth, like steps 
 cut in a mountain of adamant, were the fruits of 
 intense and unassisted labor ; each law of physical 
 Science was a detached principle, which had attracted 
 the inquirer ; like the casual ray of light, reflected 
 from the diamond and falling upon the eye of one 
 
11 
 
 accidentally passing across its direction, it caused 
 him to pause, to catch the ray again, and to follow its 
 guidance to the jewel. The diamond was found, 
 before the geological laws regulating its location were 
 determined ; the locality disclosed those laws, and 
 couducted future researches to successful results. 
 Each law of science discovered, carved out another 
 step on the mountain's adamantine face, leaving it easy 
 of access to those who came after. Each step en- 
 larged the horizon, and gave new subjects of observa- 
 tion, a place to stand upon and cut still another step. 
 Step after step has been hewn out ; one after another 
 has ascended to renew observations, and continue the 
 work, until objects which, some time since, seemed 
 scarcely perceptible by the telescope, are brought to 
 actual inspection. He, who was once only familiar 
 with the valley, now ascends the mountain side, to 
 survey the rich and varied scene which spreads out 
 before his view. The art of printing, and the gener- 
 osity peculiar to intellectual and scientific attainments, 
 forbid and prevent the obliteration of what has been 
 achieved. In geometrical progression, the discoveries 
 of science are combined, manipulated, and applied by 
 art ; until it is almost as unphilosophical to be in- 
 credulous, as it used to be esteemed unwise to believe. 
 With a rapidity unequalled, discoveries burst upon us, 
 scarcely announced before realized by experiments, 
 until we have ceased to express astonishment at 
 suggestions, which a few years since would have 
 scarcely caused an inquiry, or perhaps excited a smile. 
 
12 
 
 The horizon of observation is extending. Truth rises 
 on an untiring wing. Free views of the dignity of 
 human nature are adopted, and the claims of the 
 world upon the citizen-scholar, the educated man, 
 promise to be realized. 
 
 This is an obligation, which attaches to you, as 
 members of the great literary commonwealth. The 
 world requires a return for the privileges enjoyed by 
 you ; it will be your honor to acknowledge the claim, 
 and satisfy the demand. 
 
 Let no one suppose that he can escape the respon- 
 sibility, by concluding that he is not called to the 
 high investigations of Philosophy, that an humble 
 and more secluded walk in life is for him. Admit 
 this to be so, it should be remembered, that the ac- 
 cumulation of the learning of the world, like its 
 wealth, is from minute beginnings. All truth is 
 valuable, and every occupation in life may lead to its 
 development. The grains of gold washed from the 
 sand, are as pure and as precious, as any equal amount 
 found in massive pieces in the earth. The laws of 
 nature, the benevolence of the Creator, shine out as 
 brightly in the blade of grass, as in the most stately 
 tree ; in the opening of the smallest bud, as in per- 
 fection of the richest flower ; in the economy of the 
 minutest insect, or smallest reptile, as in that of the 
 eagle or the elephant ; in the dew-drop as in the 
 shower ; in the trickling rill, as in the majestic river. 
 The operations of the laws of nature are uniform ; 
 whether they relate to things small or great ; the 
 
inquirer may detect them as readily in the one as in 
 the other ; and the most important contributions to 
 scientific truth, the richest gifts to art, have been 
 received from those whose minds have been led to 
 discoveries, by observations made whilst engaged in 
 the ordinary pursuits of life. These are unostenta- 
 tious, but inestimable gifts into the treasury, like 
 the widow's mite, given freely and from the highest 
 motives. Should you do all in your power for the 
 increase of knowledge, you will have discharged your 
 duty ; less than this should not be your aim. 
 
 But whilst it is incumbent on you to make positive 
 additions to the amount of knowledge, you are equally 
 bound to expose error, and aid in the formation of 
 sound public opinion. What are called popular errors 
 have always been the most serious obstacles to the 
 progress of discovery, and the increase of knowledge. 
 Proverbs, dogmas, and certain pithy sayings, have 
 often paralyzed the energies of the inquirer ; and, when 
 uttered by those who add age and experience to igno- 
 rance and folly, they produce most mischievous results, 
 They prevent the progress of discovery, by limiting 
 the field of research. Vain and conceited men, as 
 well as some who are better disposed, have always 
 been the foremost in this kind of opposition to truth. 
 Possessing some knowledge, and but little wisdom, 
 they have not learned the important lesson, that he 
 who relies exclusively upon his own learning or ex- 
 perience, can never make extensive acquirement. 
 Human life is so short, and the means of observation 
 
14 
 
 with any individual are so limited, that a great deal can- 
 not be usually effected by such isolated and unassisted 
 efforts. It is our duty, as well as our privilege, to 
 take possession of the literary and philosophical 
 wealth of our predecessors ; to examine the titles by 
 which it is held, and to ascertain the real value at 
 which it should be estimated; to assay the coin, 
 which has descended to us by inheritance ; to purify 
 it from alloy, and to discard all that is spurious. 
 Nothing should be rejected because it is old ; or re- 
 garded with suspicion, because it is new. A mere 
 reverence for antiquity should not induce us to 
 underrate that which modern researches has added 
 to the resources of science and of art. It is no 
 disparagement to the acuteness or the learning of 
 Aristotle or Archimedes, that Bacon, Newton, Watt 
 and Fulton, have accomplished much that they left 
 undone. It would be strange, if we should close our 
 eyes upon the wonders disclosed by Morse in the 
 electric telegraph, because Franklin was ignorant of 
 this undiscovered secret. This would be as unwise 
 in the scholar, as it would be unpatriotic in us, 
 who enjoy the ease, luxury and refinements of the 
 present day, to forget our hardy ancestors; who, by a 
 successful conflict with the savage, the forest and the 
 elements, subdued a wilderness, and gave it to us for 
 a home. The traveller would not refuse to be re- 
 freshed by water from a solitary well, in the desert, 
 if ignorant of the motives which induced those who 
 dug it to select that particular location. Neither 
 
15 
 
 would he denounce the enterprise of preparing others 
 in the vicinity, because preceding generations had 
 neglected to do so. The scholar should thankfully 
 receive all of truth, and all of the useful, which has 
 been discovered or effected by those who have gone 
 before him, and seek to avoid their errors, in the 
 appropriation of their work to the interests of the 
 age in which he lives. It would appear strange that 
 such a suggestion should be needed, but we are often 
 admonished of the propriety of watchfulness against 
 the effect of popular errors on the mind. The most 
 brilliant discoveries of modern times were seen, in the 
 distance, centuries ago ; and the principles upon which 
 they depend were strongly indicated ; but the shackles 
 of false philosophy trammelled the inquirer, and often 
 sheer mental timidity prevented their development. 
 The suggestions, however, of master minds, left indi- 
 cations on record; and these have been pursued to 
 consummations which they merely supposed to be 
 possible. The startling discoveries of Galileo operated 
 alike upon some, who, supposing themselves in pos- 
 session of all real knowledge, regarded him as an 
 innovator and intruder, and on many others, who 
 apprehending injury to the cause of revealed religion, 
 deemed him an infidel. Thus wicked and designing 
 men originated, and the ignorant, but well disposed, 
 adopted and gave influence to an error, which has 
 been in all time most mischievous in its effects on 
 the popular mind, namely : " That freedom of inquiry 
 may result in injury to Truth" Men are taught to 
 
16 
 
 worship the temple instead of him, who sanctifies the 
 temple. They act as if their veneration gave dig- 
 nity to Truth, forgetting that truth confers dignity 
 on all who venerate it. Truth invites, never avoids 
 investigations. The rocky shore does not retire from 
 the approaching wave, but meets its stroke, and 
 retains its position. The tide washes the face of the 
 mountain, and retires ; the storm may force it higher 
 upon its side, but can neither remove nor destroy it, 
 for it rests upon the foundation of the very basin in 
 which the ocean floats. Truth is always developed 
 by the most searching scrutiny. No one truth can 
 be opposed to another ; composed of simple elements, 
 it must be consistent with itself, and wherever there 
 is an apparent conflict, it is because error has intruded 
 itself into the array, and so presented facts, that they 
 have been referred to causes which have not produced 
 them. Principles are nothing but great facts, the 
 materials with which reason operates to illustrate 
 Truth. The relations of these facts to each other, 
 and their operation when brought into combination, 
 the results which are produced, and the certainties 
 which are attained, all taken together constitute 
 Philosophy, scientific knowledge, the ascertained laws 
 of nature. These subjects of demonstrative certainty 
 include much, but not all of the vast field before us 
 for investigation. New facts are continually discovered, 
 but their relations to other facts are not certainly 
 ascertained. Being still subjects of speculation, they 
 add to the amount of knowledge, and are preparing 
 
17 
 
 the way for further advancements of science. They 
 furnish a first meridian, from which calculations may 
 safely commence, and in the present state of civiliza- 
 tion can never be lost to mankind. Science and art 
 hold their titles by more enduring evidences than the 
 perishable devices by which men seek to perpetuate 
 their claims to estates. Ee volution, corruption, fraud, 
 or the brute force of conquest, overthrow and destroy 
 the one, whilst the claims of the other are inscribed 
 on the marble and the granite, on the Temple and the 
 Pyramid. The march of invaders, or the extermina- 
 tion of the possessors, transfers the title of property, 
 and the dominion of the soil ; but the achievements 
 of intellect and genius, have survived the inroads of 
 barbarism, the fury of bigotry, the invasion of the 
 sands of the desert, as well as the silent decay of 
 time. The butcher, whose name would pollute the 
 page of history, but for a popular error which overrates 
 military renown and underrates all that is truly 
 valuable to man, has cursed and scourged his gener- 
 ation, and sunk into forgetfulness ; his wealth and 
 his honors live only in tradition ; while there is 
 scarcely a comfort, a luxury, or an application of the 
 principles of science to the practical purposes of civil- 
 ized life, which is not clue chiefly to the unobtrusive 
 and often unknown scholar. His name may be for- 
 gotten, but his work remains. The benefactor of his 
 race leaving the impression of his mind upon the gen- 
 erations who succeed him, has achieved the highest 
 purpose of the good and the great ; he has done good. 
 
18 
 
 he has added to the stock of knowledge and happi- 
 ness ; and curtailed instead of increasing the sorrows 
 of his race. Such are the claims of scientific practical 
 truth. Such are the evidences that it avoids no 
 scrutiny, shrinks from no investigation ; enduring in 
 its nature, it is unmoved, although subjected to con- 
 stant assaults ; progressive in its operations, although 
 beset by enemies ; sure of its conquests, because they 
 are self-protecting. Evidences which shall remain 
 until time shall destroy the monuments of the past, 
 and the present, until civilization shall change its 
 direction, and turn towards barbarism. 
 
 We need not, therefore, be concerned lest the dis- 
 coveries of science should unsettle or destroy anything 
 that is true. There is no ground for the fears which 
 have recently seized many good men, lest the specula- 
 tions of ethnologists, or the lucubrations of antiquari- 
 an travellers, should render doubtful the revealed, the 
 inspired history of the human race. If the Bible 
 cannot withstand such scrutiny, it is unworthy of our 
 faith. Purporting to be but the history of the crea- 
 tion, the fall, and the redemption of man, it is a sys- 
 tem neither of philosophy nor of astronomy. It re- 
 cords facts, with the brevity, simplicity and dignity 
 of Truth, and all the facts necessary for a perfect il- 
 lustration of the purpose for which it was written. 
 All on either side of this, is left for human intellect 
 to examine and unfold ; to bring the result to the 
 landmarks which inspiration has established, as a 
 test of the truth or falsehood of its conclusions. De- 
 
19 
 
 tached facts of doubtful dates, and of unknown 
 connection with other facts, may at first seem incon- 
 sistent with each other, but when the hiatus is filled, 
 all is consistent, all is explained. No man who 
 properly reverences revealed truth can fear the effect 
 of disquisitions upon the unity of the human race, or 
 tremble for the consequences to scripture history, or 
 scripture chronology, from the revelations made by an- 
 tiquaries, whose witnesses are mummies rolled in pitchy 
 garments, and whose records are obscure hieroglyphics 
 faintly traced on the bark of trees. It is desirable 
 that these investigations should be made without 
 reference to Bible history. In the end, the whole 
 truth will but confirm it, and afford that support 
 which the testimony of unwilling witnesses always 
 gives. True science shines with reflected light, and 
 its lustre is bright but mild, intense, but not painful. 
 The rays which illuminate, are from the sources of 
 truth ; and it often bows in adoration, to catch more 
 and brighter beams ; it comes with all its conquests, 
 and places its honors where they alone are due, 
 owning that name at which every knee must bow. 
 Infidel science mingles with the light, that which comes 
 from sparks " of its own kindling;" it has long main- 
 tained a controversy with revealed truth ; materialism 
 and rationalism, its two phases, as old as the first 
 transgression, have, through all ages given complexion 
 to the history of man. The one gross, the other more 
 refined, each in its turn has been antagonistic to the 
 self-denying, chastening system, taught by revelation. 
 
20 
 
 In all their mutations, it is easy to perceive the 
 fundamental error of each ; conscience announces 
 human responsibility to our Creator, and experience 
 denies the perfectibility of human nature. As distinct 
 systems, each has been a formidable foe to the progress 
 of truth. When exposed, the peculiarities of each 
 have been combined, and the elements being irrecon- 
 cileable, are self-destroying; a hybrid is produced, 
 incapable of continuing its race. 
 
 There is then nothing to be feared from learning, 
 knowledge, science, — No! in the conflict between 
 truth and infidelity, the victory must be with Truth. 
 In whatever form the assailant may come, his dyiug 
 exclamation will but re-echo that of the royal apostate, 
 % Thou hast conquered, Galilean." 
 
 I have been led to these remarks by some striking 
 developments, which are now in progress. There is 
 a peculiar character manifested in the literature, as 
 well as the philosophy, of the present time, which is 
 worthy of particular consideration. Errors have, in 
 a great measure, controlled the popular mind; and 
 we are perceiving the consequences in the state of 
 public opinion. The light and frivolous productions, 
 which teem from the press, costing but little thought 
 in their creation, and requiring as little in their 
 perusal, have debauched the public taste, and created 
 a morbid appetite for mere reading. It is erroneously 
 supposed, that mental discipline and proper education 
 are to be attained by the quantity which is read, the 
 mass of current literature which is consumed. Intel- 
 
21 
 
 lectual indigestion and mental dissipation are the 
 consequence ; the idea has usurped the place of the 
 substantial, and the stern realities of life are regarded 
 as either too common-place to attract interest, or 
 unworthy of the attention of refined and cultivated 
 minds. Much of the philosophy of the times has 
 partaken of the same character; the two classes of 
 writers catering to the same corrupted taste. A kind 
 of transcendental theorising, a sentimental rational- 
 ism, has filled the world with associations and sects, 
 whose vagaries are well calculated to excite appre- 
 hensions with all who desire the permanence of our 
 institutions, or the best interests of mankind. This 
 evil originated in improper views of education, an 1 
 the manner in which it should be conducted. Those 
 educated according to such erroneous doctrines, extend 
 the mischief incalculably by their influence, because 
 in their turn they become instructors of others. Here, 
 as in other instances, mere learning has been mistaken 
 for science, the accumulation of ideas for education. 
 Minds, trained to the consideration of detached truths, 
 without reference to their connection with, or depen- 
 dence upon, other truths, have been infected with 
 monomania ; and the whole host of isms, which have 
 been sprung upon us, manifest the extent as well as 
 the character of the evil. A hasty perusal of the 
 various schemes for education, would satisfy any 
 judicious thinker of the truth of their suggestions. 
 It is assumed, and granted, that education is desira_ 
 ble, but it should be proper education. Correct mental 
 
22 
 
 discipline, instruction not as to words but as to things. 
 Words should be regarded only as the signs of things. 
 Facts and principles ought to be impressed upon the 
 memory, the storehouse from which reason draws its 
 choicest treasures. I would not be understood to ap- 
 prove of a system of education which seeks to make 
 a community of philosophers, a nation of savans ; 
 neither have I adopted that educational fanaticism, 
 which is restless, unless every mind in the country is 
 cultivated to its full capacity of acquiring knowledge. 
 For this literary Fourierism, I have no greater tolera- 
 tion, than for the same system applied to society. 
 Whilst every good man ought to endeavor to place 
 the means of elementary instruction, within the reach 
 of the youth of the country, I utterly dissent from 
 the propriety of making instruction an eleemosynary 
 institution. I cannot approve of a policy which 
 authorises a state to superintend and control the 
 education of youth, nor do I perceive the wisdom of 
 making them scholars by statute, or philosophers by 
 act of Assembly. 
 
 Janissaries, whether military or literary, add nothing 
 to the safety of the rights of the people ; in any crisis 
 they would lean to the power that fed them. Educa- 
 tion is a high privilege; knowledge is power, and like 
 every other advantage in social life, it ought to require 
 virtuous efforts to enjoy the one, or to wield the other. 
 The necessities of human life are indispensable to the 
 perfection of human character, and we are so con- 
 stituted, that those things which cost nothing, are 
 
23 
 
 usually estimated accordingly. It will add nothing 
 to the valuable organization of society, to place the 
 formation of public morals or public opinion in the 
 control of the government. According to the theory,, 
 as well as the practice, of our institutions, power is 
 the prize in a party struggle. Those who obtain it,, 
 seek to perpetuate its possession, by influences upon 
 the popular mind. The government which directs 
 the details of education will always be sufficiently 
 sagacious, to secure those who hold their opinions as 
 directors of the instruction of youth. Those agents 
 select teachers, who indoctrinate pupils, imbue their 
 minds with the fanaticism and monomania which 
 prevail with themselves; inspire them with the 
 belief, that progress in a given direction, is the only 
 way to the perfection of human character, and the 
 advancement of human right ; and thus surround the 
 poicers that be with a force so potent for evil, that the 
 general safety forbids its existence. It is no more a 
 primary duty of government to educate its citizens in 
 literature and philosophy, than to furnish them labor, 
 to instruct them in mechanical trades, or to give 
 direction to individual industry. The exercise of 
 either power is tyrannical, because it operates unequal- 
 ly. The former is the most mischievous because it 
 places a more efficient engine in the hands of the 
 government. The Jesuit has never asked for more 
 than the schools of a country, to dictate the religion 
 and the government of the people. The Fourierite, 
 the Mormon, and the Socialist, will do the same ; and 
 
24 
 
 there is no counteracting agency, beside the practical 
 good sense of individuals ; who, rightly appreciating 
 its value, are willing to pay the price of sound educa- 
 tion acquired under their observation and control. 
 This they may successfully do, unless the civil power 
 monopolizes all the resources of instruction, and thus 
 effectually destroys conservative competition. 
 
 The simple elements of education are within the 
 reach of most virtuous and industrious persons, and 
 those inclined to enconnter the labor of thorough, 
 mental cultivation, will usually accomplish for them- 
 selves all that is necessary. Superficial attainments 
 are by no means valuable, as to their effect on either 
 social relations or individual happiness. It is true 
 that " a little learning is a dangerous thing ;" it 
 gives an impulsive, as well as unsteady action, to the 
 public mind ; and, like the stimulant which excites 
 nervous sensibility, without a permanent increase of 
 muscular power, is productive of no salutary result. 
 In the mental twilight, subjects are perceived out of 
 their fair proportions, principles are mistaken or 
 misapplied, and the skilful and designing are enabled 
 to concentrate a most dangerous force. Men are 
 taught to reason in the circumference, and not from 
 the centre. They may accidentally take a right 
 position, but it is lost as soon as attained. It is no 
 answer to this objection, that the evil will be removed 
 by thoroughly educating the whole community. This 
 necessarily implies the propriety of legislative coercion. 
 The thing is impossible, and not desirable if it were 
 
25 
 
 • 
 
 attainable. The physical and moral condition of men 
 
 is the same, despite of science, learning, art, manufac- 
 tures, commerce and improvements, or even forms of 
 government. Those superior in natural powers, or 
 physical endowments, always have controlled, and 
 always must control, the less favored in those quali- 
 fications. This is a law of matter, as well as of mind. 
 Nothing can be so cone. . ructed, but that it must have 
 a bottom and a top. There must be something to be 
 moved, as well as a motive power. Intellectual su- 
 periority operates on the minds of men, just as 
 physical force impels the motions of matter. Nor 
 does this exclude the idea of liberty and equality. 
 For liberty is the equality of rights, not of condition; 
 condition is the result of progress, and is an artificial 
 element, developed by social relations. The wants, as 
 well as the adaptation of the faculties of men to 
 various pursuits, render a correspondent variety of 
 training indispensable ; and the whole error concerning 
 the peculiar dignity of scientific and purely intellec- 
 tual pursuits arises from underrating other employ- 
 ments. An aristocracy is created upon a mere 
 speculative assumption of superiority, and men are 
 taught to look to the acquisition of knowledge by the 
 process of literary education, as an end, and not as a 
 means. Mechanical and agricultural labor are under- 
 rated, and persons engaged in certain professions, 
 esteemed honorable or literary, are placed greatly in 
 advance of those, who are more usefully employed, 
 whether we estimate the effect of their labor on indi- 
 
26 
 
 vidual comfort, or national wealth. It is a mistake 
 that the scholar in his study, the statesman in his 
 avocation, the professional man in his employment, 
 the author at his pen, or the officer in military com- 
 mand, are either more useful, more honorable, or 
 fulfilling a higher calling, than those whose mechani- 
 cal skill, or agricultural enterprise, are giving the chief 
 impulse to the work of human civilization. The 
 pressure and universality of human wants demand 
 that such a portion of labor should be constantly 
 employed for their relief, as to render it impossible 
 for the general application of so much time, as is 
 requisite for high scientific attainments, or literary 
 acquisition with the masses. He is a patriot, and a 
 well disciplined man, who effects the greatest good to 
 his generation by virtuous industry, under the direc- 
 tion of a mind, fired in the purpose of promoting 
 truth. And when we remember that all the luxury, 
 elegance and comfort, which we possess, is referable 
 to mechanical and agricultural labor, we should put 
 honor upon those employments which are most fruit- 
 ful in blessings. The civilized world are now looking 
 on with profound interest, at the most remarkable 
 exhibition of the trophies of mechanical skill and 
 agricultural industry, which has ever been made in 
 the history of man. For once, we have forgotten 
 the trappings of military heroes, whose honors dyed 
 in blood, were purchased by groans, and tears, and 
 the anguish of broken hearts ; we have overlooked 
 the wonders of abstract science, the fame of authors, 
 
27 
 
 and the reputation of statesmen; the lawn, the 
 ermine, and the gown, titles of nobility, and badges 
 of distinction, all pale before the wonders of mechan- 
 ical creation, and the fruits of the earth perfected by the 
 farmer's skill. It is a proud day for them ; the world 
 underwrites their patent of nobility, and owns its 
 allegiance to them as the dispensers of unmixed good. 
 Literature, science, philosophy, wealth and power, 
 unite in an intense curiosity to examine, and to learn 
 at the " World's Fair," in London, what progress 
 labor, honorable and ingenious labor, has made in 
 promoting the high interests of our race. It is right 
 that it should be so. The achievements of the ar- 
 chitect and the sculptor are their temples and statues ; 
 the artist, catching nature's fleeting beauties, trans- 
 fers the landscape to the canvass, or fixes the 
 features of the great and good, so as to make them 
 present to all after times. The building of houses for 
 men to dwell in, and all the innumerable appliances 
 by which the comforts as well • as the refinements of 
 social life are attained, the means of communication 
 by which mankind are brought into association, and 
 the interchange of the productions of the physical, as 
 well as the intellectual world, are the boon which 
 mechanical labor bestows upon man. To it the 
 astronomer is indebted for the telescope by which he 
 unfolds the wonders of the heavens; the naturalist 
 and the chemist, for all the means of development 
 which their pursuits demand. By it the mineral, 
 the vegetable, and the animal world are subsidized to 
 
28 
 
 produce the useful and the ornamental. In the 
 wonderful results of mechanical labor, we perceive 
 the clearest demonstrations of the great truth, that 
 with reason, God gave to man dominion over the 
 creatures : all creation has felt the power, and in its ac- 
 commodation to his purposes has owned that dominion. 
 The marble, the granite, the forest and the mine, are 
 the store-houses from which mechanical labor and 
 ingenuity have drawn their materials. Agricultural 
 industry, walking side by side in all its progress, 
 receiving improved implements, and labor-saving ex- 
 pedients, has caused the earth to smile in plenty, and 
 the heart of man to rejoice in abundance. In this 
 peaceful march, streams have gushed out in the de- 
 sert, and the solitary place has been glad for them. 
 The world's fair now in progress is no collection of 
 military heroes, enthroned on pyramids of human 
 skulls, assembled to recount scenes of butchery and 
 bloodshed ; no congress of political economists and 
 statesmen to ascertain how much may yet be wrung 
 by taxes from a burdened and down-trodden people, 
 or what is the point of oppression which may be 
 approached without incurring the hazard of rebellious 
 uprising; no council of ecclesiastical dignitaries to 
 devise means of " lording it" over men's consciences. 
 It is no assembly of wild fanatics and canting hypo- 
 crites, proposing to speak for mankind in matters of 
 morals, politics and religion. It is the spontaneous 
 acknowledgement of the civilized world, that all 
 avocations are indeed secondary to those two great 
 
29 
 
 and leading ones, which employ mechanical and ag- 
 ricultural labor. It will do much to explode the 
 popular error, which has heretofore degraded them, 
 and whilst I have with pain observed authors and 
 philosophers, whose genius had inscribed their names 
 in the high heraldry of immortal fame, kneeling to 
 receive titles and knighthood from sovereigns, whose 
 history ma} r be well written in the annunciation of 
 their birth, accession and death, it is cheering to 
 record the name of the illustrious and modest Watt, 
 who, declining that empty distinction, preferred to be 
 regarded the great machinist, the steam-king of his 
 age. 
 
 "What is noble ? that which places 
 Truth in its enfranchised will, 
 Leaving steps, like angel traces, 
 That mankind may follow still. 
 E'en though scorn's malignant glances 
 Prove him poorest of his clan, 
 He is noble who advances 
 Science, and the cause of man." 
 
 I rejoice that our countrymen have been called 
 a nation of utilitarians. It becomes our peculiar 
 position and the nature of our institutions. The ex- 
 pensive luxuries, th lastles and the palaces of senile 
 Europe, would be as much out of place in America, 
 as the gray hairs of old age on the temples of youth. 
 I am content to leave fur clothing and satin slippers 
 to enfeebled bodies and goaty feet. They do not 
 become the hardy possessors of a fertile country, but 
 little more than three hundred years old. I do not 
 underrate the literary pretensions of our historians 
 or -our philosophers, living or dead. Bowditch, Pres- 
 
30 
 
 cott and Bancroft, with a host of others, need no 
 praise from me to confirm their titles to the high 
 position which they have won. But whilst our pride 
 is gratified by the distinction of our countrymen, I 
 would never feel pain at purchasing the literature, 
 and hiring the genius of the rest of the world. It is 
 because labor can be more profitably employed, that 
 it is not thus directed; a vast country, to be occu- 
 pied by man, is before us ; and to complete this great 
 enterprise is our destiny. The poet, the philosopher, 
 the artist and the historian, are flowers which orna- 
 ment the sides of this great highway of commerce, 
 mechanical labor, and agricultural enterprise. They 
 refresh the eye, and cheer the heart. But civilization 
 cries out Onward, and labor only can respond to the 
 call. You may look in vain for any rational scheme 
 for this great work, in the reports of school commis- 
 sioners upon the perfectibility of human nature or 
 universal equality. It will be found only in honest 
 labor, the source of all that gives permanent value to 
 social institutions. 
 
 A striking characteristic of the present age, and a 
 part of their official education, is the tendency to 
 bring all action under the power of associations. The 
 effect of combined and associated effort has long been 
 known, and to a certain extent is irresistible. As long 
 as there is anything to act upon, which is susceptible 
 of direct influence, it must be effective. When under 
 the control of wise and prudent men, and directed to 
 legitimate objects, the effects are valuable, and the 
 
31 
 
 effort worthy of all praise. But so liable is such ac- 
 tion to abuse, and so uniformly is it abused, that it 
 becomes a grave question, whether more evil than 
 good has not resulted from the expedient. It merges 
 individual responsibility ; men vote for resolutions, pro- 
 nounce denunciations, and absolutely calumniate their 
 fellow men, in the proceedings of societies and con- 
 ventions, who would shrink from the vulgarity, as 
 well as recoil from the rudeness, of a personal applica- 
 tion of the terms employed. I do not speak of the 
 personal liability which would be incurred, but mere- 
 ly observe that societies are not responsible, nor con- 
 ventions amenable to the individuals on whom they 
 have ejected their malignant slanders. They fire from 
 behind the battlements, which have always protected 
 those whose nerves are too weak to encounter the 
 consequences of saying individually what their malice 
 dictates ; whilst insincere professions of regard for 
 truth and virtue, induce them to make the reports 
 and resolutions of societies and conventions, the occa- 
 sion of relieving their hearts of the bitterness they 
 contain. This tendency to transfer individual duties 
 to the action of societies is exceedingly dangerous. It 
 places idlers in the lead, in the formation of public 
 opinion. It is easier to lecture, than to labor ; to de- 
 nounce vice, than to practise virtue ; to eulogise jus- 
 tice, than to answer its demands. Noisy 5 restless, and 
 often worthless men, whose chief recommendation is 
 pertness, and whose most striking qualification is impu- 
 dence are sent forth to illustrate the beauties of tempe- 
 
32 
 
 ranee, or to enforce the great claims of humanity, en- 
 dorsed by associations who become responsible for all 
 they say and teach. Individual virtue, and individu- 
 al duties are overlooked and forgotten ; and the coun- 
 try is agitated, concerning the necessity of some great 
 enterprise of doubtful practicability, and not desirable 
 if practicable, whilst claims present and urgent are 
 overlooked. The surface of society is agitated and 
 its repose disturbed ; and moral reform is placed in the 
 hands of those, who seem to forget the extent of human 
 depravity, or the value of true reformation, if we may 
 judge from the motives on which they rely for its 
 production. The usual result is, that either insincerity 
 is superadded to the views which are sought to be 
 eradicated, or a temporary reformation gives place to a 
 permanent and manifest deterioration in the character 
 of those who have been the subjects of this influence. 
 There is but one mode of effectually liberating the 
 mind from error, or the heart from vice : " The 
 power of truth." To live virtue is to rebuke vice. 
 He who illustrates, both in action and opinion, 
 the purity of a christian, and the refinement of a 
 scholar, will satisfy in the best manner the claims of 
 the world upon him. We are bound to aid in the 
 formation of sound public opinion, and in extending 
 its influence. It is not less our duty to oppose that 
 opinion, when perverted by error, or unsound in prin- 
 ciple. The tricksters, who seek to make merchandise 
 of men's opinions and influence, have certain cabalistic 
 terms which do them great service in their games. . 
 
When hoary error perpetuates an abuse by which 
 they are benefited ; they denominate it conserva- 
 tism, and denounce those who would remove it as ra- 
 dicals. Does any new fanaticism or current of popu- 
 lar feeling set against institutions necessary for the 
 peace and quiet of society, if their interest can be 
 promoted by sailing on that current, or directing that 
 fanaticism, they throw themselves on it and shout — 
 progress, progress ! The rights of property, the pun- 
 ishment of crimes, and the institution of the Sabbath, 
 have recently been compelled to defend themselves 
 against the war-cry of "progress." The authority of 
 laws sought to be subjected to the " higher law" of 
 human conscience wages a doubtful war with pro- 
 gress. There is a progress backwards, as well as for- 
 wards, downwards as well as upwards. The concen- 
 trated action of associations and conventions has 
 incalculably increased the power of agitation ; and 
 there is no evil under which the country suffers that 
 is productive of greater practical nrischief. Associa- 
 ted mischief-makers are doing the work of the dema- 
 gogue, on a scale more extended and operating on an 
 amount of popular impulses greatly exceeding that 
 which any individual can compass. Their Shibboleth 
 is progress and the nineteenth century; watchwords 
 which assemble all who, either too indolent to main- 
 tain themselves by honest labor, or under the instincts 
 of a low ambition for temporary distinctions, disturb 
 the peace and endanger the existence of communities. 
 We hear much of the danger of demagogues. These 
 
34 
 
 are they from whom the greatest mischief is to be 
 feared. I warn you not to countenance such dema- 
 o-oo-ues. If they are ever comparatively harmless, it 
 is in the presence of the courageous friends of right, 
 like serpents deprived of their fangs, overbearing to 
 the unresisting or the timid, but cowering before the 
 eye of honesty and truth. The aid derived from the 
 press, the ready diffusion of corrupt influence and the 
 almost instantaneous effect of dangerous sentiments 
 upon the minds of a community, who with scarce an 
 exception read, disclose an element in our progress 
 well calculated to create anxiety in the minds of all 
 who desire public tranquility or the preservation of 
 liberty. Mere education, and nothing else, will but 
 increase the evil, by increasing the mass of excitable 
 materials. Human depravity has always perverted 
 blessings and turned the most benign influences into 
 the greatest calamities, — great, just in proportion to 
 their capabilities of doing good, when moving in a li- 
 gitimate direction. You will live to see this problem 
 worked out. In the operation you will have your 
 parts. It will be your duty to acquire influence over 
 your fellow men, by all proper means, in order to be 
 useful to them. But never seek that influence by 
 flattering vice, or justifying wrong. That popularity 
 is only valuable which arises from a just appreciation 
 by our fellow men of our love for justice, our sincerity, 
 and a determination to do right. Expedients wear 
 out and pretences fail, but truth and justice are eter- 
 nal. 
 
I have said nothing of the claims which the coun- 
 try may have upon her citizen scholars and educated 
 men, as the resource upon which she may draw for 
 statesmen to direct her counsels and protect her in- 
 stitutions. There is fortunately no great need for 
 such a reference. The young and aspiring are suffi- 
 ciently prompt to acknowledge this claim, however 
 others may be forgotten. There is no scarcity of in- 
 dividuals, out of whom the people may select their 
 rulers, and who are entirely willing to be the subjects 
 of choice. Indeed it is a source of regret, that so 
 many young and inexperienced, but otherwise accom- 
 plished gentlemen, seek public life, before time and 
 observation have matured their opinions. And there 
 is perhaps no better evidence of the power of our in- 
 stitutions to withstand the elements of destruction, 
 than the manner in which they have resisted the 
 effects of juvenile legislation. The scholar just 
 from college is less qualified for legislation than the 
 practical self-educated man, with more limited literary 
 attainments. He has won his way to preferment by- 
 surmounting obstacles, by associations with men and 
 in collisions with necessity ; he has learned firmness 
 by trial, prudence by defeats, and perseverance by 
 want ; he has analyzed the elements of society by ex- 
 perience ; and the fact of his surviving the struggle 
 with superior mental training on the part of his com- 
 petitors, bespeaks the presence of high intellectual en- 
 dowments. Such men are eminently practical, close 
 observers, and remarkable for the accumulation of 
 
36 
 
 useful knowledge. Much of life has passed in the 
 training of such a man, and time has been his faithful 
 and competent teacher. The young scholar, on the 
 other hand, has studied books and theories, and is de^ 
 ficient in experience. He can use more tools, but 
 is unable to wield any of them with the skilly with 
 which the other employs those which use has render- 
 ed familar. 
 
 The truth is that statesmen and speech-makers are 
 indigenous, the spontaneous production of our coun- 
 try. We are astonished at the labors of a convention, 
 representing way-farers and emigrants, adventurers 
 and foreigners, who have called a government into 
 existence, in the midst of a prairie, on the banks of a 
 river, or at the foot of a mountain range. Surrounded 
 by deer and wolves, panthers and herds of buffaloes, 
 and reconnoitred by bands of hostile savages, they as- 
 semble with their arms in their hands, and form a 
 constitution, the fundamental laws of a great people, 
 containing more practical wisdom, better securities to 
 the rights of persons and property, than all the learn- 
 ed statesmen of the rest of the world, aided with the 
 lore of ancient, and the experience of modern philoso- 
 phers, politicians and philanthropists, have been able 
 to attain. They make a government and set it tcf 
 work, whilst the diplomatists of a few European. prin- 
 cipalities are framing a protocol, preparatory to a ne- 
 gotiation, which may end in a league of confederation; 
 and which, when agreed upon, has still to be revised 
 and approved by all surrounding governments. They 
 
37 
 
 have no old ulcers to conceal, or to cure ; no old abuses 
 to preserve ; no paper walls, which entrench privilege 
 and call for more efficient ramparts to protect them 
 against those who suffer therefrom. Tyranny and 
 oppression derive no respectability from being hoary 
 with age. The disposition prevails to overthrow theni 
 the sooner, because suclTlong and insufferable trespas- 
 sers. Indeed such is the general familiarity with the 
 great principles of the common law, throughout our 
 whole population, that there is scarcely any man of 
 practical sense, who cannot sit down at his table and 
 currente calamo produce a constitution, under which any 
 people, indoctrinated as ours are with fixed opinions 
 of civil liberty, may live, flourish, and grow great. 
 Learning and education, scholars and educated men, 
 perform a most valuable office in giving the capability 
 a proper direction. When the educated man is also 
 a practical and experienced one, his advantages over 
 all competitors, who have not his attainments, are in- 
 calculable. But practical utilitarian statesmen are the 
 hope of the country, and the people have sufficient 
 sagacity to discover those qualifications and call them 
 into their service. The hour of peril will disclose 
 those who are competent to the crisis, just as a com- 
 pany of strangers will select their commander, in a 
 moment when all must be lost without concert. There 
 is an unfailing instinct upon this subject, and which 
 pervades masses whenever circumstances call it in- 
 to action. To be such a statesman as the country 
 demands of the citizen-scholar, he must to learning- 
 
38 
 
 add practical wisdom, high purposes of justice, un- 
 wavering adherence to honest principles, the courage 
 to rebuke popular error, throw himself in front of 
 popular prejudice, and encounter all its assaults, rath- 
 er than sacrifice truth or surrender the right ; a firm- 
 ness which far exceeds the courage that sustains the 
 soldier in the noise, the clamor and the fury of battle; 
 he is buoyed up by excitement, and fall or triumph, 
 he wins his meed of glory. The statesman who is 
 compelled to oppose the policy of the dominant party, 
 to rebuke his countrymen for wrong and injustice, 
 must look coolly and calmly upon the withdrawal of 
 confidence, the loss of fame, and the ability to do 
 good, until time shall disclose the depth of his sagaci- 
 ty, and the purity of his motives. It required much 
 more courage to encounter the ostracism of his coun- 
 trymen by Aristides, than the perils of Thermopylae 
 by Leonidas. The statesman who looks much beyond 
 the rewards of an approving conscience, and the lega- 
 cy of a good name to his family, has not considered 
 maturely the mutations in public opinion. He who 
 seeks public life merely for its emoluments or rewards, 
 manifests the avidity of the gambler, without the 
 trickery and skill necessary for success. They seek 
 for wealth where, we are thankful, our economical an- 
 cestors determined it should not be found, and for re- 
 wards to labor in a field far inferior to any that agri- 
 cultural, mechanical, or professional enterprise pre- 
 sents. It is honorable to serve the country well, 
 whether in public or in private life. No man should 
 
39 
 
 refuse the call of his fellow-citizens to serve them, un- 
 less considerations of the highest kind should prevent. 
 Neither should he desire to continue in their service 
 an v longer, than he is satisfied that he can do so with 
 a conscience sustaining him in the convictions that 
 truth, justice, and the public welfare are his only mo- 
 tives. The man at peace with himself, should trem- 
 ble at no external commotion. 
 
 The habits of collegiate life give direction to the 
 mind, and control the current of thought. The schol- 
 ar just from his books feels that the contemplation of 
 abstract propositions, and purely scientific principles, 
 have made him something of a stranger to the real 
 business of life. It is on this account, that some avoid 
 the collisions which social institutions generate, retire 
 from active association with the masses, and cultivate 
 literature as a luxurious recreation rather than a du- 
 ty. That intellectual pleasures are both refined and 
 fascinating cannot be denied, but it is equally true 
 that they are greatly enlarged by sharing them with 
 others, to say nothing of the obvious duty of contri- 
 buting to the improvement of our fellow men. The 
 attainments which are reached in the course of colle- 
 giate education, are only the beginning of the great 
 work of mental discipline. If the scholar has learned 
 the powers of his own mind, and how to concentrate 
 them on any subject, he has made a large and valua- 
 ble acquisition. To array and combine our thoughts 
 with accuracy and ease, is the great end of mental 
 training. It is not the reading of many books. It is 
 
40 
 
 not seclusion and study alone, which constitutes the 
 ripe scholar, the practical man. A writer of much 
 celebrity for wisdom has long ago remarked, that " of 
 making many books there is no end, and much study 
 is a weariness to the flesh." The same is true of 
 reading the books when made, and much, very much, 
 of the study which consumes health and time is a 
 mere unprofitable weariness. The habit of much and 
 promiscuous reading is a bad one. Thoughts and 
 ideas pass across the mind, and leave it unimpressed and 
 unimproved ; like the desert over which the caravan 
 passes, laden with jewels and wealth, it leaves it a de- 
 sert still. But there is this difference, the desert road 
 leads to the desired mart, the caravan may profitably 
 pass and return. Not so with one who reads from habit, 
 and without digesting what is read. Rich thoughts 
 and brilliant ideas flit across his mind but leave no trace 
 of their passage, neither increasing his own intellectual 
 wealth, nor enabling him to contribute to that of others. 
 This is the error of some, while others conceive that the 
 collection of libraries is a very indispensable portion of 
 the duties of an educated man. A good library is a 
 most valuable acquisition, a good thing. But there is 
 much of literary foppery in connection with this sub- 
 ject- It is not often that the collector of books reads 
 the books which he collects ; he is useful in his. way 
 however, as the freight-train laden with merchandise 
 is drawn by the engine to the market where the de- 
 mand for it is to be supplied. Others may read some 
 of the books and be profited. It is not the man of 
 
41 
 
 many books and wearisome study of whom you should 
 be afraid, in intellectual competition ; but I will tell 
 you who is always formidable, the man who reads a 
 few good books and reads them well, who relies much 
 upon the conclusions of his own mind, and thinks for 
 himself. Read books, but study men. Read books, 
 but study nature. Read books, but study your own 
 heart and mind ; and you will acquire all that is use- 
 ful and valuable, you will find a profitable employ- 
 ment for all that you may learn. 
 
 I have thus, gentlemen, made some remarks on your 
 duties as citizen-scholars, and educated men ; the 
 subject is copious, and all that I proposed was an 
 allusion to some of the prominent claims of the world 
 upon all who have enjoyed the facilities of mental 
 cultivation. Permit me to add that mental without 
 moral culture is a great calamity, both to the indivi- 
 dual and to society. Learning, or knowledge, in the 
 possession of a wicked and unscrupulous man, is a sword 
 in the hands of a maniac, the means of destruction 
 in the possession of one reckless of the mischief he may 
 perpetrate. Should you return to this place, after an 
 absence as long continued as my own, you will be 
 deeply impressed with this truth ; you will have 
 seen the extended ruin which corrupt and wicked 
 talent and learning has effected ; you will perhaps be 
 constrained to drop a tear over the melancholy histo- 
 ry of some, whose early promise gave tokens of much 
 good. Thirty-two years ago, I passed from the con- 
 trol of the faculty of this venerable institution, into 
 
42 
 
 life. Many and varied have been the scenes through 
 which my path has led me ; and many of the feelings 
 of that day, though long since fled, return and cluster 
 about my heart. I remember faces beaming with 
 hope, and bright with genius, minds rich in learning, 
 and hearts kind and generous ; but to remember is to 
 mourn. The lessons of self-denial and self-control 
 were never learned, and early promises were not 
 fulfilled. If you would ascend in your progress, draw 
 your motives from the skies. Our race is peculiar in 
 this, it is endowed with reason, a faculty by which 
 the unknown is discovered and revealed by combina- 
 tions of things which are known. It would not be 
 reverential to attribute reason to our Maker, because 
 it would suppose that there are things unknown 
 to him. But he has created orders of intelligent 
 beings, who are doubtless greatly the superiors of man 
 in the perception of truth, but who, if not the subjects 
 of progress, must ultimately be greatly his inferiors. 
 The powers of reason increase and expand, and with 
 it our capacity of enjoyment, as well as our intellec- 
 tual dignity. If reason receive its illumination from 
 heaven, the light will draw us there, and education 
 on earth will be only a pupilage for the skies. The 
 christian scholar is prepared for the humble as well as 
 the higher employments of life, and is always ready 
 for the calls of duty. Each moment has its claims 
 upon his best and noblest powers, and to recognise 
 and satisfy them is his highest enjoyment. H' 
 devotes his life to the greatest of all enterprises, th ' 
 
43 
 
 promotion of the good of his race, and lays down 
 that life without a murmur, when he has notice that 
 his work is done. Years have passed away since, a 
 few hours before my departure from this place, I wit- 
 nessed a striking illustration of this remark in the 
 death of such a christian scholar. I stood by the 
 bedside, and saw the last moments, of the venerable 
 Samuel Stanhope Smith, who yielded to the stroke 
 of death, full of years and honors. Bound to him by 
 ties of hereditary affection, I called to take my leave, 
 and saw him quietly passing away, the tide of life 
 slowly but gently ebbing ; conscious of his approach- 
 ing end, but calm and composed ; preserving the 
 affability of the gentleman, the refinement of the 
 scholar, and the dignity of the christian, in circum- 
 stances which threw a lustre over each. With kind 
 courtesy, he said : " Farewell, my young friend ; may 
 many useful happy years be yours ! remember that 
 your time and your talents belong to God and your 
 country. You have come in time to see the end of many 
 days, and the close of all my sorrows. Say to my 
 friends, your parents, I shall reach heaven before 
 them." I looked upon his fine features, becoming 
 rigid in death, but brightened by genius, like the 
 radiance of the wintry sunbeam, flashing against an 
 icicle, which it may irradiate for a moment but cannot 
 melt. I saw the last moments of one, who was iden- 
 tified with the earliest efforts to secure classical learn- 
 ing to the land of my birth; whose name was 
 associated with all that was elevated and pure ; under 
 
44 
 
 whose influence and by whose agency, this college 
 rose like a phenix from its own ashes. 
 
 Nor can I forget the distinguished gentlemen, who 
 presided over this institution, whilst I was a student. 
 In singleness of heart, purity of motive, and firmness 
 of purpose, combined with all that was necessary to 
 qualify him for the station which he filled, Dr. Ashbel 
 Green had no superior. To know him intimatety, 
 was to love and to venerate him ; and it was refresh- 
 ing to meet with him, and perceive the overflowing of 
 his kind heart towards his former pupils, years 
 after he had retired from the government of the 
 college. 
 
 In looking around me, I perceive but a single indi- 
 vidual who was one of the faculty in 1819, and still 
 continues that relation to my venerable Alma Mater. 
 In him, I recognise a valued friend, who will excuse 
 this reference to former days, because it calls up a 
 friendship of early date, and which has grown with 
 an esteem that his usefulness has fixed in the minds 
 of all who can appreciate worth. 
 
 My connection with this institution was one of 
 uninterrupted pleasure, and I trust that I may be 
 excused for this reference to its details. I should be 
 insensible to the feelings common to our nature, if I 
 should fail to remember the friends and the benefac- 
 tors of my youth ; it would be strange, indeed, if I 
 refused to taste the cup of joy, which memory now 
 presses to my lips. Youth with those of my years is 
 a matter of historical recollection, and I confess the 
 
45 
 
 pleasure which the diorama of its scenes communi- 
 cates. I see around me some who were young when 
 I was young, and parties to the incidents which 
 interested us all. There is a feeling awakened by 
 such reunions which tell of mirthfulness unrestrained 
 by care, the overflowings of guileless hearts, of times 
 and scenes which haunt us through life, and in the 
 passage of fleeting years, linger on the memory like 
 " the notes of some wild melody." We condense the 
 experience of years which have passed since we 
 mingled in the academic throng. We remember the 
 feelings and the impulses which gave activity to our 
 energies then, and since, and now ; and the landscape 
 of life presents all the varied lights of morning, noon 
 and evening. Each congenial to the time of life, each 
 becoming in its season, and each instructive in its 
 progress. All of us rejoiced in youth. We remember 
 that then " joy waved over us his sun-woven wing," 
 and the grave pursuits of mature years have deprived 
 us of none of the zest with which we catch the 
 fragrance of the zephyr that flies over the flowers of 
 youth, increasing their beauty, whilst it but gentry 
 agitates their surface. We have seen its genial 
 influences cause a smile to steal over the brow of 
 care, and gild even the face of age with an auroral 
 light. 
 
 It is not my purpose to undervalue the joys or 
 the pursuits of the young or to cloud their pros- 
 pects by raven croakings of future disappoint- 
 ments. Far from it : 
 
v %:. 
 
 46 
 
 " For youth no less becomes 
 The light and careless livery that it wears, 
 Than settled age his sables and his weeds, 
 Importing health and graveness." 
 
 There are none of us but have been often refreshed 
 by turning back in the path of life to catch the sun- 
 light of our early days. Those rays now give me 
 light, and have presented before me some of the 
 visions I have so imperfectly revealed, some of those 
 hopes which I then, and now, and shall ever cherish ; 
 and the associations of this hour will leave a fragrance 
 which " shall breathe of it many a year." A return 
 to these scenes, the presence of the distinguished 
 societies to which you belong, the competitions high 
 and honorable, which they have always produced, 
 and the useful results which have been realized by 
 our great confederacy, through the instrumentalities 
 here, cannot fail to call up peculiar emotions in the 
 bosom of one who, for the first time for thirty-two 
 years, witnesses the ceremonial of your commencement. 
 I congratulate the country upon the continuation of 
 the renown of this seat of learning. I congratulate 
 you upon the prosperity of your societies, which 
 cradled in the revolution have given to the country 
 a bright succession of learned and patriotic citizens, 
 whose names and characters shall adorn its history. 
 May they long continue to prosper, and although my 
 heart may warm peculiarly to the touch of my own 
 clan colors, I know you will excuse the weakness if 
 it be one, when I assure you that I have ever regarded 
 the training acquired in the American Whig and 
 
47 
 
 Cliosophic societies as equal in importance, to any 
 advantage of education enjoyed here. In the language 
 of the venerable Smith — " May many happy and 
 useful years be yours, remember that your time and 
 talents belong to God and your country." Let your 
 lives be marked by a patriotic devotion to that coun- 
 try, in preserving the principles of the constitution, 
 doing justice, preventing wrong and defending the 
 right. Let no temporary advantage, no hope of 
 individual advancement, pervert your judgment, or 
 control your action ; for " time overthrows the 
 speculations of men, and confirms the judgments of 
 Truth."