ical charge, his practice allowed afterwards, and secured, to all who came under his official superintendence. No one of them could pretend to say, that he ever attempted to bend them to an influence in favor of his own views on the debated questions of the time; and this forbearance, right in itself, was also, in the existing divisions, of the first importance to the prosperity of the institution, through its enjoyment of the public confidence.

"The President's mind, less inclined to system than to excursiveness and freedom, to individual action than to influence, to fervors than to realities, was undoubtedly one of rare penetration, sagacity, and extent and vigor of grasp. No wordy subtleties foiled his keen, shrewd, just observation; no affectations of profession or of conduct perplexed it. Seeing so clearly as he did, and so many things, he could not fail to have, at easy command, rich resources for illustration in the mutual analogies which they presented, and so to be able to flash into another's mind a conviction of truths, which many might have understood as well, but would have known no better how to combine and set forth than by weaving them in a colorless tissue of abstractions. Human nature was, above all, perhaps, his study and his science; and it was wonderful how, in single weighty periods of a set discourse, or in the playful freedom of conversation, he would throw light upon its mysteries, reconcile its contradictions, disentangle its blended impulses, lay bare the structure of the soul, and expose its morbid anatomy and its disordered functions. Nor less was this true of his perceptions of the diseased structure and action of institutions, and of the distemperatures of society, than of those of individual men. The conditions of social well-being, and the prevailing infringements of those conditions, stood clear before his view; and, in many an exigency of the state, did those who guided its affairs borrow light from his pregnant exhibitions of the causes and consequences of what engaged their concern. Scarcely was it possible for any one to part from him, after the most hasty interview, without carrying away something well deserving to be remembered. A sportive wit continually conveyed sense of the most solemn wisdom; and, indeed, one might hesitate to deny, that it was to the action of his mind in social intercourse, that its influence, and the estimate of its greatness among those who understood it best, are chiefly to be ascribed. And, as he taught and acted in society, so he studied there. While he was conversant with books, he also understood the valuable secret of making others, of more recluse habits, do much of his studious labor for him. Nor, while he made their minds tributary, were they less gainers than himself, — more than repaying, as he did, the knowledge of recent acquisition which he extracted from them, by those comments which showed them, in turn, how to regard it in interesting relations, and apply it to advantageous use.

"As far, it would seein, as man could well be, the President was free from selfishness. His disinterestedness was alike manifest in every form that can be named. He had no love of gain, none of advancement, none of display; and, if he had love of ease, he constantly denied it indulgence. Hence came the singular naturalness of his character. There was no consciousness to perplex and disable himself, and annoy the beholder with the artifices by which affectation applies for esteem and applause. There was no part to act, and therefore the part which

the moment required was acted freely and well. There was no thought of exhibition, and therefore the faculties always wrought with their whole, easy, unembarrassed, graceful power. Hence, too, it was, that, while there was no parade of courage, nothing was ever done, or left undone, under the slightest influence of fear. Calculation of personal consequences, bad or good, is a thing, which they who knew the President do not think of as dictating any part of his course; and this perfect disembarrassment from the pursuit of personal objects, in a man high in public station, may be thought, in self-seeking days, a quality the more attractive for its rareness, and for its use as an example.

"To a man so disinterested, it was, of course, all the easier to be actively benevolent. Through its steadiness, and its study of occasions and means, his benevolence was seen to be a principle. In its promptness, ease, and universality, it looked rather like an instinct. To say that he was a liberal giver, is to say what is consistent with the rest, but every way less remarkable. His bosom was a perennial fountain of gentle, generous, joyous affections. There are those who have seen him, for a moment, annoyed and unbalanced; but they told of it with astonishment, and were listened to with incredulity. His was the benevolence of hearty communion with associates; of genuine sympathy with the happy and the sad; of gracious condescension to the humble; of patience with the perverse and the tiresome; of fitly-chosen encouragements to the dispirited; of prudent counsel to the perplexed; of seasonable, wholesome warning to the tempted; of courteous manners, and kind thoughts, words, and deeds, as varying occasion allowed, to all. It was an agreeable accident that brought any man in his way for a service, an interview, or a passing salutation. A perfect trust in the divine goodness-oftener expressed, and with as much glow and cheerfulness, as ever, in the time of his calamity, and a faithful application of that Christian discipline, which, in one of his early letters, he declares himself to be directing to this special end, these, added, no doubt, to an uncommonly happy natural constitution of mind, gave him a rare capacity for enjoying the good of life, and superiority to its evils and anxieties. And how far from superficial that discipline was, how thoroughly that temper had been kneaded into the soul, was seen, when, in the grasp of a disease which peculiarly is wont to make the years of its aged victim years of labor and sorrow, the temper was unruffled, the aspect was serene, the interest in others' welfare was quick and considerate, and, if the slow voice labored, it was but struggling for a greater fulness of placid and kind expression.

"So tranquil and self-possessed, - so sustained in great affliction by sufficient resources stored in other years, went down our master to the tomb, which has seldom received a trust so precious."― pp. 51-61.

We are happy to be able to conclude this article with the following beautiful tribute to the memory of Dr. Kirkland, from the late Poem of Mr. Gray.

"Few - Ah how few! - can write a deathless name

On the proud fabric of a nation's fame,

Yet many, doomed at last to sleep unknown,

May bring, to swell the pile, a nameless stone,

VOL. XXIX.

3D S. VOL. XI. NO. II.

31

And all may give support to freedom's cause,
By favoring virtue, learning, and the laws,
Against each low intrigue their voices raise,
And cheer on merit by a generous praise;
Few can adorn the annals of an age,

But all may see they do not stain the page,
And each resolve, whate'er his lot may be,
My country's cheek shall never blush for me.
So will she honor him, till life is done,
And o'er his ashes mourn a worthy son.

"Such she now mourns, and more, since he is gone,
Who o'er yon halls so long illustrious shone,
Kirkland: in wisdom clad, by genius graced,
And sportive humor, and unerring taste,
With power at once to rule, instruct, and please,
Mild dignity, and unaffected ease.

He stooped to lead the humblest on his way,
His bounteous hand was open as the day,
He roused indifference, recklessness controlled,
And cheered the timid, and o'erawed the bold;
In swift obedience all were proud to move,
The bonds of discipline made light by love.

"And in the sacred desk, how apt to teach? Clothing in rare felicity of speech,

His thoughts, original, acute, profound,
He seemed to scatter truth and wisdom round,
While every ear in rapt attention hung,

1

To catch the treasures dropping from his tongue.

"In social life not less his worth appeared, By all, who knew him, honored and revered; With careless air, yet penetrating ken,

Gifted to look quite through the deeds of men,
Their hidden feelings, motives, thoughts, he knew,
Measured their strength, and saw their weakness too;
Yet ne'er how few thus gifted so refrain,

Ne'er did he touch that weakness to give pain,
Nor rend its veil away but all the while
Saw through its folds with pity or a smile.

-

"His writings with his character agree, Stamped with an elegant simplicity.

And though clouds gathering o'er his closing day,
In darkness hid the intellectual ray,

The brief eclipse is now forever past,
And his worn spirit finds its home at last.
The record of his mild and brilliant reign

In Harvard's annals will its rank retain,

And while her walls shall stand or name survive,

So long his memory and his praise shall live."-pp. 31-33.

The Life of Alexander Hamilton. By his Son, JOHN C. HAMILTON. Vol. II. New York. 1840.

WE welcome with much pleasure, this new contribution to American history, which has at length appeared, after the lapse of six years since the publication of the first volume. The labor of compiling a work of between five and six hundred pages, consisting principally of a history of political debates, will probably account for this delay. Every addition of this kind, which throws light upon the views and motives of those, who bore a prominent part in the events which immediately succeeded our Revolution, and particularly in the establishment of our present form of government, must be of great value. It is by a careful study of the motives and actions of these men, and of the results of their, proceedings as far as they have occurred, that the lover of his country is to guide his course in relation to the future. We live still too near their time to judge them with perfect impartiality. A writer, who certainly cannot be suspected of too strong a bias towards the subject of these memoirs, has called Hamilton the champion and representative of the principle of law; whilst Jefferson was the representative of the principle of liberty. Both of them, in his opinion, possessed first-rate talents, and the most elevated private character; they were both devoted heart and soul to the cause of American Independence, and evinced the sincerity of their patriotism by their unwearied and effectual exertions. If this is a correct view of the case, it will remain for the future history of the republic to show whether, in the zeal of the advocates of law to infuse sufficient vigor into the constitution, they gave it too much of a monarchic, or consolidated' character; or whether the fears of the advocates of liberty rendered it too feeble, and the bonds of confederation too loose. Men, who are influenced by their prejudices, will adopt one or the other of these opinions, according as their love of order or their admiration of liberty leads them to one or the other ex

treme.

In the debates which arose in the very moment of peace, we may trace the origin and operation of the same principles and views, which have since prevailed in the country; and it is by the careful study and comparison of those debates, that an opinion should be formed of the measures which the welfare of the country now requires. If it be found, on careful examination, that the leaders of the two parties were equally pure in their motives; then the only question to be considered is in regard to the correctness of their judgment. Many of the tenets of these parties have already been tested by experience, and their failure

or success may serve as criteria of the principles in which they originated.

The first volume of this work was more exclusively a biography, and will, therefore, be of more interest to the general reader. It is occupied with the early life of Hamilton, and his conduct during the Revolution; in which his services as the aid-decamp and counsellor of Washington were conspicuous. Forming a part of the family of Washington, he was constantly engaged in active service, both of a civil and a military nature. The political events of this period are too well known to need detail; and the biographer passes rapidly over this portion of his history. As soon as his services in the field were no longer requir ed, Hamilton left the camp, and applied himself to the study of law, never ceasing, however, to take an active interest in public affairs. The volume now published is rather a record of the public proceedings immediately subsequent to the Revolution, than a biography of Hamilton. In the questions which arose on the ratification of the treaty with England, the states of America were much in the condition of an unorganized body of men, who have assumed responsibilities and incurred debts, for the fulfilment and payment of which no one thinks himself responsible. In this juncture, Hamilton appeared as the ardent advocate of the observance of the treaty, particularly in regard to the treatment of British adherents; of the payment of the troops; and of the principles of confederation. He was warmly opposed by those who regarded with jealous eyes the expression of any favorable feeling towards their recent enemies; any action which might give strength to the military; or any attempt to draw closer the bonds of union, as tending to merge the separate sovereignty of the states in a general government. Anything like general action, however, was impossible, in the state of things which then existed. As the public debts were equally binding upon all, it was not to be supposed that, while some states refused to raise funds, the example would not be followed by others. It soon became evident that the nation must lose all the respect and confidence of sovereign powers, if some steps were not taken to produce united action; and finally, the exertions of Hamilton and others resulted in the assembling of the convention, in which our present constitution was formed. The exposition of his views and those of others in regard to the principles of confederation and the general government to be formed, will be read with much interest. With this exposition, the second volume terminates.