Delaware state journal. [volume] (Wilmington, Del.) 1870-1883, 1881-06-23

Exercises OF Commencement Week
at the Conference Academy.


Special Correspondence OF State journal.
DOVER, June 20.-The commencement
exercises of the Wilmington Conference
Academy began last Saturday night with
on address before the o. L. d. Society,
the orator being the Rev. q. K. Bristor,
D.. D., of New Castle.
MIR. Bristor chose as the subject OF his
address "The Elements of q Successful
Life" He had from the start the uudi-
vided attention Of the audience and kept
it through his entire speech. The orator
spoke from three general topics, namely,
the right conception of life, purpose OF
life, courage to carry out our liked pur-
poses
His remarks under the first topic in
nutshell were these: Ii We live only
for pleasure, the qualification of our lower
animal instincts, then the sooner We are
out OF this world, the better will it be
for ourselves and the world at large. This
life is one Of labor and every young man
should and must learn that ii he wishes
To make his lite successful he will have
to battle with many adversitits. But
after you have gained your goal then you
can bask in the sunlight which will amply
repay you for your severe struggles.
Under the second head, the speaker
struck vigorous blow at the handy man
and cautioned his hearers against imitat-
ing that kind Of u man. Men OF that
stamp, said the speaker, never succeed i'll
life they are not the men whose lives
and works are felt years after they have
returned to dust. Here the speaker re-
ferred to Martin Luther, saying that the
Martin Luther Of history has more effect
on the lives OF men to-day than the living
Luther had, when he shook the vine-ulad
hills of the Rhine with his eloqueuee.
The men who have left behind them
records which will last as long as time
itself are those no worked and studied by
the midnight lamp.
Every young man should mediate long
before choosing his occupation but alter
doing 50 he should have that project fixed
in his mind SO firmly that neither storms
nor whirlwinds could make him deviate
from it.. Having true conception OF life
and fixed purpose, we need just one
other thing and that is courage to carry
out our lifes work in spite OF all opposi-
ton. 1t requires some courage to be a
soldier, but 10 brave life's battles, when
you are beset with foes on every hand,
deserted by your boon companions, that
requires higher grade OF courage.
The speaker occupied about one hour
in delivering his address, but such was
the excellence Of his delivery that the
audience could have heard him for an
hour longer.
On Sunday morning, Prof. 7. A. Lip
pincott, of Dickinson College. preached
the bacoalaureate sermon to crowded
E,lI
the first chapter of Paul's epistle to the
Hebrews, the first aud second verses
''uod, who at sundry times and in divers
manners spake in time past unto the
fathers by the prophets, hath in these
last days spoken unto us by His son,
whom lie hath appointed heir of all
things, by whom also lie made the
worlds"
MIR. Lippinoott is pleasant and gifted
| speaker. He argued that if man was
,ett alone with no other guide but the
Book Of Nature, then he could never
discover the relations that exist between
himself and his Maker" 81 would like
To know" said the speaker, "what there
Is in nature that teaches man or gives
| him any reason to believe that there is
life which never ends y | answer moth
ing. Therefore revelation is most
necessary to teach man of a higher and a
better life than the present one. True it
IS, you can catch glimpse of the Creator
IN His works, but it is at the best only a
faint glimpse. But through the revela-
ton, man is brought face to face with his
Maker"
The speaker pursued the same train OF
thought to the end OF his sermon, demon
strating the necessity Of divine
| revelation.