The daily dispatch. [volume] (Richmond [Va.]) 1850-1884, 1866-06-16
From our Special Reporter.
commencement Exercises
AT
HAMPDEN SIDNEY COLLEGE.
From our Special Reporter.
SECOND DAY.
Orations and Addresses by the Mas
ters Of Arts and Members Of the
Union SOciety-COncfusiOn of the
Exercises.

At ii o'clock, upon this, the Nth of
June, and second day of the llampdcn
Sidney commencement, the church near
the college was crowded with ladies, who
were anxious to hear the orations to be de-.
livercd by two of the alumni. The church,
which is a plain, red brick building, OF no
particular order, with portico and pillars,
was begun in 1860, and continued until
1862, when the war caused general ces-
Sation of all building operations. At the
close of the war the church fund, which
had been principally invested in bank
stocks, was entirely lost, and the congrega-
ton have not since that time had the
means to complete the edifice. Still, the
whole of the brick work, roofing and inte-
rior wood work is finished, and the build
ing is regularly used for divine worship.
IT., however, has q very bare and naked APP
pcarance, and, from its bad acoustic pro-
perties, is very unfavorable to the preacher
or orator.
In front of the platform on the present
occasion were handsome piano and the
students band, to which we have before
referred, and they performed good service
in filling up the gaps in the exercises OF
the morning.
THE ORATIoSS.
At few minutes after III O'Clock DR..
Atkinson, the President of the College,
came to the edge of the speakers stand,
and introduced Mr.. w. \. Murkland, Of
| Charlotte, who was to deliver an oration
upon the occasion of his receiving the de-
gree of Master OF Arts. The rustling OF
! fans and summer dresses ceased for few
moments, the low hum of conversation was
huShcd, and
Mr.. Murkland addressed the meeting
upon the following subject: Tie Influence
of Religion upon Ciuilizdtion. The speaker
alluded TO the universally Of religious
impulse, and said that religion was in spi-
ritual affairs that which gravity was in
things temporal. He described the duties
of man as an individual, and as 4 member
of society, and argued forcibly that feel
ing of religion cXertcd more power in ele
waiting q man than any other thought or
emotion. He then referred to the deep
I religious spirit which animated the worship
of ancient Greece and Rome, and also the
/ condition Of religious feeling AT the pre-.
sent dav. The speaker stated that the
! cornerstone of all American freedom was
! the love of religion, but that religion had
| become spiritlcsS and exhausted, and the
larger section of our beautiful land had ac-
quired a reverence for fanatical policy and
I material wealth. The representatives OF
the fanaticiSm and wealth of the north
were Jacob Astor and Charles Sumner
and against these the south could only
place her representative men: the mag
nanimouS chicftain who quietly pursued
/ l Ip and
/ earnest statesman, he who gave himSclfup
/ for his people, who, bowed down under
! age and intirmity, feebly tottercd along the
parapct Of Fortress Monroe. He then al
luded gracefully to the tributes that had
/ been paid to the Confederate dead, and
/ said that we must take courage and obey
the lessons of the hour. At some future
day, he said, our dream of greatness might
bc realized. We might not be able to
erect, as we had hoped, spacious temple
Of polished stone, which would be mar
vel and wonder to the world, but we might
become living tree, whose roots should
extend in every direction, with branches
reaching forth on every side, and gathering
beneath its shade all the nations of the
earth.
At the conclusion of his Grafton a num-
ber of handsome bouquets were presented
to Mr.. Murkland. The manner of the
speaker was good, his accent excellent,
and his isgcsticulation correct; but he missed
many strong and telling points by not being
more emphatic and deliberate in his dell
very. His Grafton was, however, fine
composition, and was loudly applaudcd.
The band again played some Sprightly
airs. and DR.. Atkinson then introduced MIR.
G.. Nash Morton, upon whom also the de-
gree of Master of Arts had been conferred.
The subject of Mr.. Morton'S Grafton was
The EngliSh Revolutions of l640 and 1858,
and consisted of a review of the causes and
effects of those two eraS, which have pro-
duced so mighty an effect upon the English
nation. OF course, the address afforded
many opportunities of drawing comparl-
sons between the struggles of the English
for liberty and that unsuccessful war
which has now been brought to close, and
every such allusion was instantly seized
upon and warmly applaudcd. The speaker
passed glowing culogy upon John Hamp-
den and Sir Algernon Sidney, after whom
old Hampden Sidney College was named,
and held UP their lives as an example to be
emulated 10y the students. In conclusion,
he urged the importance of patience and
fortitude, and expressed his confident be-
lief that the blood so freely shed i'll the
past four years would yet bring forth
rich harvest of freedom, glory, and truth.
A number of bouquets were presented to
the orator, and DR.. Atkinson then an
nounced that the exercises of the day were
over.
THE ADDRESSES AT NIGHT.
At night two orations were delivered in
the College chapel by members of the
Union Debating Society before large
audience of ladies and gentlemen. The
chapel was prettily decorated; and over
the speakers stand was the motto of the
Union Society, NE Socium Sun'aiS ad-
j,ngere rebuS.
The first Grafton was upon the subject,
Ambition is Less than Littleness, and was de-
livered by Mr.. G.. B. Morton, of Prince
Edward, who was introduced by Professor
Blair. Mr.. Morton delineated in lively
colors the effects of ambition in deranglng
and corrupting the mind, while it produced
no real happiness, citing numerous ex-
amples to prove its pernicious effects upon
the individual and upon the whole human
race.
The second Grafton was upon the subject,
Our Coamtry's Danger, or Our Duties as
american Citizens, and was delivered by
Mr.. w. C. Turnbull, of Baltimore, who
also was introduced by Professor Blair.
The subject of the address was strictly po-