arch 2, 1871.]

The occasion which calls us together reminds us not a little of that
other ceremony which unites a man and woman for life. The banns have
already been pronounced which have wedded our young friends to the
profession of their choice. It remains only to address to them some
friendly words of cheering counsel, and to bestow upon them the parting
benediction.

This is not the time for rhetorical display or ambitious eloquence. We
must forget ourselves, and think only of them. To us it is an occasion;
to them it is an epoch. The spectators at the wedding look curiously at
the bride and bridegroom; at the bridal veil, the orange-flower garland,
the giving and receiving of the ring; they listen for the tremulous "I
will," and wonder what are the mysterious syllables the clergyman
whispers in the ear of the married maiden. But to the newly-wedded pair
what meaning in those words, "for better, for worse," "in sickness and in
health," "till death us do part!" To the father, to the mother, who know
too well how often the deadly nightshade is interwoven with the wreath of
orange-blossoms, how empty the pageant, how momentous the reality!

You will not wonder that I address myself chiefly to those who are just
leaving academic life for the sterner struggle and the larger tasks of
matured and instructed manhood. The hour belongs to them; if others find
patience to listen, they will kindly remember that, after all, they are
but as the spectators at the wedding, and that the priest is thinking
less of them than of their friends who are kneeling at the altar.

I speak more directly to you, then, gentlemen of the graduating class.
The days of your education, as pupils of trained instructors, are over.
Your first harvest is all garnered. Henceforth you are to be sowers as
well as reapers, and your field is the world. How does your knowledge
stand to-day? What have you gained as a permanent possession? What must
you expect to forget? What remains for you yet to learn? These are
questions which it may interest you to consider.

There is another question which must force itself on the thoughts of many
among you: "How am I to obtain patients and to keep their confidence?"
You have chosen a laborious calling, and made many sacrifices to fit
yourselves for its successful pursuit. You wish to be employed that you
may be useful, and that you may receive the reward of your industry. I
would take advantage of these most receptiv