Weekly Indiana State sentinel. [volume] (Indianapolis [Ind.]) 1853-1861, 1855-07-26
Sixteenth Commenc ement OF the IN :
diana Asbury University

20 the assembled auditors. The Anniversary
exercises of the PIatonean and Pathological
Societies were fraught we are told, with
much that was beautiful, and attended with t
accidents of thrilling interest. The Piatone-
an Society was addressed on the evening OF
the 18th inst, by an Alumnus of the Institution
Hon. JAMES HARLAN, the young and ia
Tented United States Senator elect from the
State Of Iowa.
In Mr.. HIS address which, it is said, was
one of great beauty and elegance, the legal
urofession was ably defended against the as
pensions not unfrequently thrown upon 1t by
the Clergy of the country who too often AFRO
gate to themselves the tOislO1a and virtue which
NAV not unfairly be presumed to be divided
between them and their learned cotempora-
ries. OF course, zoe would not venture to IN
sinuate, that eitherof those essential attributes
of character are enjoyed by persons outside oil |
the t,OO professions; to the fomerof which Mr.
HARLAN, with great plausibility, attributed
the credit of making our laws, and testing them
of purifying our laws and deciding them
We reached Greencastle on the afternoon
of Wednesday, 18th, too late to hear the In
auguration address of President CURRY, but
during the progress Of the graduating exer-
cises of the Law Department Only three
of the graduates, Messrs. T. w. BENNETT, oil
WAYNE county, and JAMES A. CRAwLEY and
MARK t. De Motto, of Greencastle, were
nresent on the occasion. The speeches de-
liyered by these young gentlemen embraced
many matters of fact, which possessed the
credit of commences if not of novelty, al
though all bore inexcusable marks OF haste
and the consequent evidence Of imperfection
of composition. Taking Mr.. CRAwLEY's ora
ton as standard of the man, we should
Judge him to be possessed of some force OF
character and much originality OF intellect
Let him fearlessly launch his bark upon the
untried ocean of real life, and trust for his
support to the God-sent impulses Of his own
intellect and he will ride the raging waves,
and reach, without ship-wreek, the haven oil
reasonable and laudable ambition.
On Thursday evening the Pathological Socl-
ety was addressed by another Alumnus OF the
Institution, our young fellow-citIzen, MIR. )
3. HARRINGTON. The speaker discussed ms
subiect-"Our Political Conscience''-in a
mastery manner, dealing Herculan blows
where the iron mettle of fact afforded him
theme, and painting in rainbow tints, with thu
PENCIL of an artistic the objects OF hv'n
thought, brought into existence through
vivid and well educated Imagination. MI
HARRINGTON controls rich voice, oorrec
meditation, and an elegant gesture. lie be
yond doubt, is the making of one OF tn
prominent orators Of the State of Indiana.
TIE COMMENCEMENT EXERCISES, proper
were undergone during the forenoon
Thursday, the 18th inst. The graduatIn
class consisted Of eight young gentlemen
each of whom addressed the assembled mu
titude upon the subjects and in the ord'
following:
Mr.. B. w. SMITH, of Monticello, spoke {
the "Tiunpphs Of Revelation" Mr. HAEvE
II. KEITH. of Bloomfield, selected 'Aetion-
Our Duty for his subject-Mr- JOHN
RoUs, of Vevay, spoke of the Mystery
Lffs,-JAMEs R. BAXTER, of Jefferson coul
ty. treated upon the Science Of Government
Will L. LITTLE, Of Newport, spoke
"Our Age" whilst "To ConquOr-the brit
r;oh of the Soul" and 81 he Laeficlency
unaided Genius were the subjects, resPe'
lively. of Mr.. W. B. BIDDLE, of New May
Vile. and J. d. A. WARssoN, Esq, of Wav'
land. The Haledictory was delivered by III
Patterson McNUTT, of Posey Hills.
The writer is half disposed to slight
criticise the performances enumerated
We would not unnecessarily wound tn
sensitive feelings of the young gentl
men Just emerging from the sacred Halls
Learning, with their "blushing honors thic
upon them" and could, with more ca
and comfort, pass them by with little fai
praise. than attempt to impress upon the
minds an oil maxim, which the Facult
should have taught them, and the observan6
of which, in the future, may prevent the Il
trnsion of petty sorrows to themselves an
disappointments to their friends. Had the
remembered that " tChateUer IS north doing I
all IS soorth doing right" the orations the
ATTEMPTED to deliver-that part Of the Con
mencement exercises in which they were eN
pectei to display whatever genius they Pc:
sessed-would, at least have been perfect
committed to memory. We listened to n
speech within the College walls which, i
close consecutiveness of thought and fore
of reason, was such as to justify the expecta
tons we had INDUCED; yet, many truth
were uttered, and many thoughts, teemin
with the vital essence Of beauty, were throw
in ftful showers upon US, bathing the sou
with spiritual dews, and giving birth, in
moment, to those celestial flowers of tn
heart whose seed arc found in the divinely il
herited and impulsive sentiments of you'll
The effect of all, however, was destroyed an
the auditor made painfully conscious of h
sublunary existence, by the frequent cessation
of the speakers voice in the midst of
picture of sublimity, and the repeated consul
tation of that very material object, the eve
ready manuscript. We can scarcely imagir
in what way the boosted benefits of the mel
tai discipline, cultivated by long and ardl
Gus study Of the Latin and Greek, is to
turned to a practical use, if the recipiel
shall lack the capacity to hold in his memo
the substance and the words of little speed
of fifteen minutes duration.
Our remarks here are designed to lie gen
raj and not to apply particularly and spcci
cally to the graduates at the Sixteenth Cor
mencement of the Asbury University. The
young gentlemen, we are told, are men