is house was their home, and they were always welcomed to
his table. Many a young minister in the service of the church to-day
will recall his relations to Dr. Purves, and the hospitality of his
home, as the brightest memory of his seminary days.

It is rare that we find a man equally capable to do the work of the
pulpit and the professor's chair. And while each sphere furnishes ample
opportunities for anyone, still, in rare cases, it is perhaps well to
allow those who are fitted to do so to fill both positions. When,
therefore, Dr. Purves, as stated supply to the First Presbyterian
Church of Princeton, and afterwards its pastor, added the duties of the
pulpit to those of his professorship, it was felt to be advantageous to
the best interests of all concerned.

During his life in Princeton he had frequent invitations from prominent
churches to become their pastor, but he declined. Through all, I
believe, he felt that his heart was in the work of his chair, and that
with a dual position of pastor and professor, he had the widest scope
for the exercise of his best powers, and the fullest opportunity for
the realization of his highest ambitions. I think I do not misrepresent
him when I say it. But when the pulpit of this church became vacant,
the eyes of the congregation turned to him. Occupying a foremost place
in the denomination to which it belongs, it called for a strong man who
could administer with great ability its affairs and maintain the high
standard of spiritual preaching set by Dr. James W. Alexander, Dr.
Rice, and Dr. Hall.

You made no mistake, my dear friends, when you felt that the one man to
fill this vacant place in the American pulpit, and to be added to his
great succession, was Dr. Purves. We were loath to have him leave
Princeton, and there were some, perhaps, who were never satisfied
respecting the wisdom of his decision, but most of us thought that the
interests of the Church at large transcended all local interests, and
that they would be best subserved by his acceptance of its call. He
entered upon the duties here with enthusiasm. His heart and his head
were enlisted to their utmost efforts in the work of this church, and
he soon found himself absorbed in the many religious and philanthropic
enterprises that consume the time and exhaust the energy of ministers
of large churches in great cities. I do not think he worked harder in
New York than he did in Princeton, for Dr. Purves was a man who did