It gives me heartfelt pleasure to remember, and now to acknowledge, that the "Mathematics and Natural Philosophy" needed in these efforts to serve the country, involving the fundamental question of adequately meeting "stress" by “strength,”—the true secret of all well directed effort,—were accurately and thoroughly taught to the Class of 1814 by Professor DAY, afterwards the honored President of the College. Through a kindly Providence, that most venerable preceptor still survives, and is here to-day, in a very advanced but green old age, to cheer us with his benignant smile and countenance. His sun is slowly, calmly setting amid golden clouds, the harbingers of that brighter world, ready, in God's good time, to receive one so pure, so just, so gentle, so fully ripe for Heaven.

Among the memorable events of the last fifty years, I had also intended briefly to speak of the brilliant triumphs of electricity, in diffusing instantaneous intelligence among the wide spread nations of the globe; of our own alumnus, MORSE, whose scientific labors in this magnificent field of action, have done so much to elevate and equalize the condition of men and nations; of SIBLEY, whose matchless energy, in response to an invitation from the Emperor of Russia to "meet him half way," laid down in little over four months, a telegraphic line more than two thousand miles long, from the Missouri to the Pacific; of FIELD, whose indomitable perseverance is sounding and vanquishing the deepest depths of the Atlantic; of PERRY MACDONOUGH COLLINS, the civic hero appropriately bearing the names of the two victors of the Lakes, and now on his way to Behring's Straits to lay beneath the Polar circle his telegraphic wire, inter-continentally uniting the American Republic with all the civilization, ancient and modern, of the Older World.

The picture of our fifty years would be singularly incomplete were it to omit LOUIS NAPOLEON, that "mysterious and inscrutable" sovereign, who mainly governs France by governing himself, and preeminently the most commanding object within our

field of view, at the present hour. Whatever ultimate designs he may entertain in respect to America, and how much soever we may reprobate his manner of reaching the throne, or his recent interference with the affairs of Mexico, we cannot close our eyes upon the unexampled success of his civil administration. He has certainly signalized his reign beyond that of any preceding ruler of France, by the permanent improvement and splendid embellishment of its cities, the vigorous prosecution of its works of inter-communication, the canalization of its rivers, the rapid increase of its commerce, and the immense augmentation of the pecuniary value of the empire"; not to mention his political performances in the consolidation of Italy, and the recent, remarkable extension of the territory and power of France over the African coast of the Mediterranean. It may well be, that his very characteristic declaration, that "France makes it a point of honor! to keep rivers and revolutions in their

'The value of the real and personal estate of France, authoritatively stated in debate in the Corps Legislatif, May 7th, 1864, was 249,000 millions of francs, about forty-six thousand millions of dollars. In 1852, it was but 124,000 millions of francs, showing an increase, in twelve years, of about twenty-three thousand millions of dollars.

The taxed value of the real and personal property of the United States in 1850, was seven thousand one hundred and thirty-five millions of dollars. In 1860, sixteen thousand one hundred and fifty-nine millions. Increase in ten years, nine thousand and twenty four millions. During those epochs, the public works of both nations were vigorously prosecuted.

The 9,024 millions added to the pecuniary value of the United States, in the decade from 1850 to 1860, was occasioned largely by the increase of our population, shown by experience for seventy years, to vary very little from 35 per cent. for every decade. The increase in the last decade from 23,191,176 to 31,445,089, (being 8,254,209) compared with the 9,024 millions increase of value, shows a rate of $1,093 (in metallic currency) for each additional inhabitant.

The increase of population for the present decade from 1860 to 1870, may possibly fall somewhat short of the previous rate, but will not probably be less than ten millions for the whole United States, or seven millions for the loyal States. The latter number multiplied by only $800 (in metallic currency) for each additional inhabitant, would amount to 5,600 millions of dollars-nearly threefold our present national debt.

All we require is an honest administration of our national resources,—and a metallic basis for our national currency.

proper channels,"-condensing in a single phrase his whole policy at home and abroad,-has offended the lovers of the largest republican liberty, but every one will recognize his noble and comprehensive statesmanship, in seeking so earnestly not only to recover and reconstruct the canal of Suez, the work of Ptolemy and of Trajan, but to open through the central portion of America, by his proposed canal of Nicaragua, the way to the East Indies, which Columbus sought in vain to discover.

The fact does not seem to be generally known that Louts NAPOLEON, while a state prisoner of Louis Philippe, and actually immured in the prison of Ham, deliberately signed a contract to construct the canal of Nicaragua to pass vessels of 2,000 tons from ocean to ocean, and personally to expend on the work seventy-five millions of francs. It so happened that the progress of the public works of New York, with which I had been officially connected, having been unexpectedly and rather rudely stopped, I had gone to Europe; where my business was, to ascertain whether France and England would join the United States in constructing an inter-oceanic canal through the Isthmus of Panama, to be free to all the nations of the world, and to be forever consecrated to peace. It was on the suggestion, and indeed at the request of the Minister at Paris from Nicaragua, that I met Louis NAPOLEON, in London, in 1846, about a month after he had escaped from prison. To external observers, he certainly then appeared to be very far from the throne of France, so that the conversation between us was comparatively free and unrestrained, al

8 This imperial sentence so far as rivers are concerned, is a French paraphrase of Horace's compact description of the Tiber, controlled in its inundations by the vigorous arm of AUGUSTUS-"doctus iter melius." doctus iter melius." Every sovereign, ancient or modern, dignified by history as "the Great," has regarded the improvement of the rivers and the roads of his country, as a duty aud an honor. ALEXANDER THE GREAT, died at Babylon, while clearing the Euphrates from obstructions.

though his manner was at times, just a little imperial. On asking him if he thought that his proposed canal would yield an adequate revenue on its cost, he answered with a princely air"Perhaps not: but you now see me out of my true position; "and I must do something worthy of the name I bear." He was then writing a pamphlet, in which he fully and very ably set forth, not only the commercial but the high political importance of the proposed inter-oceanic canal. The pamphlet, a copy of which, bearing the autograph of the writer, is now before me, indicates so clearly the exalted objects which he then had in view, and which he has since acquired the power, in some degree, to accomplish, that I beg leave to read one or two brief extracts. They are of peculiar interest at the present time, not only in bringing boldly out the noblest features of the golden age of civilization we have just been reviewing, but also in manifesting the opinions then entertained by the present ruler of France, in respect to the abolition of Slavery, not alone in America, but throughout the civilized world.

"The geographical position of Constantinople," says this now imperial writer, "is such as rendered her the queen of the ancient world; occupying, as she does, the central point between Europe, Asia and Africa, she could become the entrepôt of the commerce of all these countries, and obtain over them an immense preponderance; for in politics, as in strategy, a central position always commands the circumference."

"This is what the proud city of Constantine could be, and this is what she is not, because," as Montesquieu says, "God permitted that Turks should exist on earth, a people the most fit to possess uselessly a great Empire."

"There exists in the New World a State as admirably situated as Constantinople, and we must say, up to the present time, as uselessly occupied; we allude to the State of Nicaragua. As Constantinople is the centre of the ancient world, so is the town of Leon or rather Massaqua, the centre of the new; and if

the tongue of land which separates its two lakes from the Pacific Ocean was cut through, she would command, by her central position, the entire coast of North and South America....The State of Nicaragua can become, better than Constantinople, the necessary route for the great commerce of the world, and is destined to attain to an extraordinary degree of prosperity and grandeur.'

"France, England, Holland, Russia and the United States, have a great commercial interest in the establishment of a communication between the two oceans; but England has, more than the other powers, a political interest in the execution of this project. England will see with pleasure Central America become a flourishing and powerful State, which will establish a balance of power, by creating in Spanish America a new centre of active enterprise, powerful enough to give rise to a great feeling of nationality, and to prevent, by backing Mexico, any further encroachment from the North."

"The prosperity of Central America is connected with the interests of civilization at large; and the best means to promote the interests of humanity, is to knock down the barriers which separate men, races, and nations. This course is pointed out to us by the Christian religion, as well as by the efforts of those great men who have at intervals appeared in the world. The Christian faith teaches us that we are all brothers, and that in the eye of God THE SLAVE IS EQUAL TO HIS MASTER,-as the Asiatic, the African, and the Indian are alike equal to the European."

"On the other hand, the great men of the earth have, by their wars, commingled the various races of the world, and left behind them some of those imperishable monuments which, in levelling mountains, opening forests, canalising rivers, has a tendency to upset those obstacles which divide mankind, and to unite men in communities, communities in people, people in nations. War and commerce have civilized the world. The time for war has gone by; commerce alone pushes its conquests. Let us then open to it a new route; let us approximate the people of Oceania and Australia to Europe; and let us make them partakers of the blessings of Christianity and civilization."