tion; which ended, we passed to the
church, and there the Commencement was carried on. In which
affair, in the first place, after prayer an oration was had by the
saluting orator, James Pierpont, and then the disputations as
usual; which concluded, the Rev. Mr. Davenport [one of the
Trustees and minister of Stamford] offered an excellent oration in
Latin, expressing their thanks to Almighty God, and Mr. Yale under
him, for so public a favor and so great regard to our languishing
school. After which were graduated ten young men, whereupon the
Hon. Gov. Saltonstall, in a Latin speech, congratulated the
Trustees in their success and in the comfortable appearance of
things with relation to their school. All which ended, the
gentlemen returned to the College Hall, where they were
entertained with a splendid dinner, and the ladies, at the same
time, were also entertained in the Library; after which they sung
the four first verses in the 65th Psalm, and so the day
ended."--p. 24.

The following excellent and interesting account of the exercises
and customs of Commencement at Yale College, in former times, is
taken from the entertaining address referred to
above:--"Commencements were not to be public, according to the
wishes of the first Trustees, through fear of the attendant
expense; but another practice soon prevailed, and continued with
three or four exceptions until the breaking out of the war in
1775. They were then private for five years, on account of the
times. The early exercises of the candidates for the first degree
were a 'saluting' oration in Latin, succeeded by syllogistic
disputations in the same language; and the day was closed by the
Masters' exercises,--disputations and a valedictory. According to
an ancient academical practice, theses were printed and
distributed upon this occasion, indicating what the candidates for
a degree had studied, and were prepared to defend; yet, contrary
to the usage still prevailing at universities which have adhered
to the old method of testing proficiency, it does not appear that
these theses were ever defended in public. They related to a
variety of subjects in Technology, Logic, Grammar, Rhetoric,
Mathematics, Physics, Metaphysics, Ethics, and afterwards
Theology. The candidates for a Master's degree also published
theses at this time, which were called _Quaestiones magistrales_.
The syllogistic disputes were held between an affirmant and
respondent, who stood in the side