416 BAPTIST CHURCH. arch of singular beauty and dignity of pro- to 1652. The name the visitor is sure to be a favorite resort in summer for parties, lunching at the base of the hill, climbing to the summit to see the panoramic view of this very rocky corner of Connecticut, and returning along the wood drives, and through the pleasant village of Old Mystic to follow the road by the river, coming home in the cool of the day. After viewing Mystic on the north from "RIVERVIEW." RESIDENCE OF CHARLES Q. ELDREDGE. 417 the old battle ground, one should turn south a half mile, and from the slope of Prospect Hill view the Sound, and the sea and the line of the coast. To the east, five miles away, white and shimmering in the afternoon light, lies Stonington. A few miles farther down to the east is Watch Hill set at the end of the Sound, a natural breakwater against the fury of ocean storms. Hotels and cottages lie massed in the distance over "the Hill" fortunate in its double outlook towards the rising and the setting sun. Yet farther away, on the blue horizon, Block Island may be seenthe farthest outpost towards the open sea. Then the eye turns to the south, following RESIDENCE OF DR. G. E. T. WARD. long, "the jewel of the Sound." At the west end of Fisher's Island are the hotels and cottages; and just off the north-west shore, where Captain Hardy's English fleet lay to blockade New London in 1814, the white ships of our own navy often ride at anchor in the summer. Far to the south-west Race Rock stands, a pile of gray masonry, and yet farther to the west are Gull Island and 419 red. Count them around from the east: Stonington Light, Watch Hill Light, Latimer's Reef Light, Montauk Point Light, Ram Island Light ship, North Dumpling Light, Race Rock Light, Little Gull Island Light, and just to the south-though it cannot be seen from the hill--Noank Light guards the mouth of the Mystic River. These are the coast fires that light the entrance to Long Island and Fisher's Island Sounds. The seaman steers by them with implicit trust, and the landsman feels their RESIDENCE OF E. B. NOYES. steady influence, year in and year out, until they seem to him kindred to the elements, uniting with moon and stars, and sky and sea to make night beautiful. HUMAN NATURE. BY FRANK L. HAMILTON. When fortune smiles, And with a quickening pulse, Our feet the goal attain, And stern endeavors, gain Success the while, Friends all about us stand, Eager with outstretched hand, When fortune frowns, And best endeavor fails, To gather aught but leaves, Where grim misfortune greaves. Fate, on our forehead, weaves Thorns for crowns, Plodding in vain erstwhile, Hungry for hand or smile, We are alone. THE NEW PRESIDENT OF YALE COLLEGE IN 1778. BY AMELIA LEAVITT HILL. the resignation of Dr. Naphtali Dag New gett, was left without a President. Haven was seeing troublous times. Fears were felt that the town would be attacked by the British, as they were constantly making descents upon the coast. The library and all valuable papers belonging to the college had been carried away, and the classes were being instructed in different towns in the interior of Connecticut where it was felt that there would be safety from the enemy's attacks. Under such conditions as these a new President was desired. All eyes turned toward Ezra Stiles, who was considered the most learned man of his time, and in that respect thought a desirable choice; but some apprehension was held regarding his theology, as he was what was called a "low Calvinist," and his religious opinions somewhat differed from those which prevailed in Connecticut at the time. He was in 1777 preaching in Portsmouth, N. H., his church in Newport having been broken up by the war. He writes in his Journal under Sept. 27, 1777, "This evening came to my house the Reverend Stephen Johnson of Lime, one of the Fellows of Yale College, sent by and in the name of the Corporation to wait upon me with their choice of me to the Presidency of that Society. The number of undergraduates there last year was 170 or 180, of which 40 or 50 received their degrees the 10th Inst., replaced by but a dozen or 15 Freshmen. Since last March classes have been kept Wethersfield, Glastenbury Farmington—the broken up and scattered thro' the calamities of the times. It has been a flourishing academy, having had a greater number of students for several years past than any College in America, though without funds. "Harvard College has had for a number of years past 160 or 170 students, undergraduates, at a time, now only 120. Jersey College reported to have 70 or 80. Dartmouth 60 or 70. The other colleges 20 or 30. The times have reduced all." Following this entry in the Journal is a copy of a formal invitation to Ezra Stiles to become President of Yale College. To this invitation he replied by letter under date of Oct. 2d, asking for a personal interview with the Corporation, which was granted, and he started for Connecticut on the 20th of the month, meeting the Corporation on the 5th of November. After the interview we read of his driving home through Lebanon and stopping to wait upon Governor Trumbull, as he says he "held it his duty to pay his respects to the first magistrate, and refer himself to his wisdom and advice in the affair." He also consults with the ministers of Boston and the ministers of his own (Rhode Island) Association, and finally decides to go to New Haven, believing, he writes, that the election is "agreeable to the Ministry, the General Assembly, the State and to God." His Journal under date of June 9, 1778, gives a picture of a family migration of |