works which owe their origin to his genius and perseverance."

It

That better day has not yet arrived, though it is a consolation to know that the materials for the pen of the historian are abundant. The mellowing hand of time has even now softened and removed most of the party and political asperities of the times of De Witt Clinton. was his good fortune that his fame rested not upon the basis of party success or political triumph. His success was in the efforts of talent, and genius, and perseverance in the promotion of education, the diffusion of benevolence, and the increase of wealth and prosperity. His triumph was that of art over nature-in the creation of new channels of trade, and in opening new fields of enterprise. Neither his successes nor his triumphs were the results of party ascendancy. In reference to the cause of internal improvements, Mr. Clinton was, doubtless, much favored by an early acquaintance with the condition and prospects of the central and western parts of the State. His grandfather, his father, and his uncle had all been officers in the Provincial army, and the two latter in the Continental army, and from their position and employment, had extensive opportunities of becoming familiar with the natural advantages possessed by the State for the construction of canals, and with the probable effect of such improvements upon her trade and population. De Witt Clinton did not claim to be the originator of these State

works. But it was mainly owing to his energy and perseverance that the State entered upon that great career of prosperity. In the language of one of his friends :— "In the great work of internal improvement he persevered through good report and through evil report, with a steadiness of purpose that no obstacle could divert; and when all the elements were in commotion around him, and even his chosen associates were appalled, he alone, like Columbus on the wide waste of waters, in his frail bark, with a disheartened and unbelieving crew, remained firm, selfpoised and unshaken."

De Witt Clinton.

COLUMBIA COLLEGE.

ADDRESS TO THE ALUMNI, MAY, 1827.

THE commune vinculum, as applied by the great orator of Rome to the liberal arts and sciences, may be properly extended to their votaries and cultivators, who, whenever they appear and wherever they exist, are combined by kindred ties and congenial pursuits, into one great intellectual community, denominated the Republic of Letters. If this alliance is cultivated with so much zeal and with such distinguished honor to its members, with how much ardor must its principles be cherished, on a more limited scale and with more concentrated power, by those disciples of the same great seminary, who have derived their intellectual aliment from a common parent, and who have received their education from the same source; all who are assembled at this place, and on this occasion must feel the full force and bow to the controlling ascendancy of this sentiment; and I know of no assemblage which is better calculated to awaken the enthusiasm of our youthful days, and to brighten the rays of our setting sun, than a convention of the members of three generations, constituted like

the present, and called to sacrifice under the protecting roof of our Alma Mater, at the altar of science and literature, to recal to our recollection the transporting scenes of our Collegiate lives, and to realize and renew those friendships which were formed in youth, and will last as long as the pulsations of the heart and the operations of memory.

In making my appearance before this enlightened and respectable audience, I might with great truth find ample room for apology in suggesting the little time which my public avocations have left for suitable preparation, but I shall rely on your kind consideration, and I trust that you will judge of me by my motives, not by my performance; and when I assure you that nothing but an ardent desire to evince my respect and devotion to our Alma Mater could have induced me to comply with your request, I feel persuaded that you will overlook every deficiency, and that, in recognizing those delightful recollections and brilliant anticipations which surround her, I shall not be deemed in what I say, entirely undeserving of your regard.

The germ of our Alma Mater is noticed by William Smith in his interesting continuation of our Colonial History, which the public spirit of our Historical Society has given to the world. This year" (1732), says the historian, "was the first of our public attention to the education of youth; provision was then made for the first time to support a Free School, for teaching the Latin and Greek tongues and the practical branches of the Mathematics, under the care of Mr. Alexander Malcolm, of Aberdeen, the author of a treatise upon Book-keeping. The measure was patronized by the Morris family, Mr. Alexander, and Mr. Smith, who presented a petition to the Assembly for that object. Such was the negligence of the day, that an in