Worcester daily spy. [volume] (Worcester [Mass.]) 1850-1888, 1872-11-16
SATURDAY. NOVEMBER 10, 1873.


In the death of Professor James Hadley, Yale
college has lost one Of its most competent in
structors. and the country one of its most ac-
compiished and accurate scholars. Professor
Hadley was born in Fairfield, New York, in
1921, and graduated at Yale in 1912. lie contin-
ued his studies at New Haven, except for a few
months while he was a tutor in Middlebury COL
leae, Vermont, until 1915, when he was appoint
ed a tutor in Yale college. He was chosen as
sfstaut professor of Greek in 1S4S, and in 1851
became professor Of that language, succeeding
President Woolsey. This prcfessorship he held
until his death. In 1866 he received the honor
airy degree of Ii. D. He married. in 1851, Miss
Ann Twining of New Haven, and had one son,
who is now a member of the freshman class at
Yale. Professor Hadley had suffered for years
from chronic complaint, which lately assumed
new and dangerous form, and brought his
life to a close at eleven o'clock, Thursday morn
inc.
Such is the brief record of life of assiduous
and successful labor, among whose fruits was a
varied and elegant scholarship, such as very
few American students have attained or APP
preached. In familiarity with the Greek ltera-
ture and mastery of the language, no American
can claim to he his equal. His mind was versa.
tile, as well as acute and tenacious; he was eager
for knowledge, and acquired it with astonishing
facility; and there was hardly any subject
among those which engage the attention of
studious men nowadays, in which his attain.
ments were not more than respectable He had
positive genius for mathematics, so that he
was accustomed to read the most abstruSe works
with pleasure, and if he had given himself pro-
fessionally 10 that department of science, he
would no doubt have attained distinction in it.
He was profoundly versed in the canon law, and
his lectures on that topic TO the Yale law school
were models Of sound learning and lucid state
ment.
But it was as philOlogist that he was chiefly
known among learned men, and here his emf
nence was universally acknowledged. His
knowledge of Welsh and other Kettle languages,
as well as of the Gothic and the Hebrew, was
hardly less thorough than of the Greek. Who
ever knew him, either personally or through his
writings, will understand that it was impossible
for him to be ill or specifically informed on
any subject to which be gave attention. Shall
low thinking and vague, uncertain knowledge
were his special aversion and in his own acqui-
sitous he aimed above all things at accuracy
and thoroughness. Among the works by which
he is known to scholars throughout the world
are his grammar of the Greek language, mod.
el text book his history of the English language
prcfXed to the latest editions of Webster's die
tionary, and some of his papers read before the
American Oriental society, of which he was
president, and the American pathological asso.
citation.
As an instructor Prof. Hadley is remembered
with great respect and admiration by all the
young and most of the midde-aged graduates
of Yale. Students at first usually thought him
cynical, and dreaded his searching criticism and
inevitable exposure Of slipshod scholarship; but
they soon learned that it was only shams and
pretence that he hated, and that Jealous pains
taking endeayor had nothing TO fear and every
thing to hope, in the way Of encouragement and
help from him. No superficial brilliancy in the
recitation room, no hasty examining could i'm
pose upon him. He seemed to see at glance
the weak points of an imperfect preparation
and he never spared them. He had keen and
biting wit the dread of which, if it did not
make all the members of his classes sound
scholars, at least kept them modestly sensible
of their deficiencies. The atmosphere of his
class.rooms was bracing and wholesome, admir-.
ably adapted to the development of manly in
telligenee and thorough scholarship. His sue
cessor, we suppose, will be Mr.. Packard, at
present assistant professor of the Greek Ian
guage and literature, unless the state of his
health, which unfortunately is feeble, should
prevent his undertaking the duties of the pro-
fesSorsh;n