321 



teen. He then became an associate of the principal of the 

 Eclgehill School at Princeton, where he remained until 1830, 

 when, at the early age of twenty-one, he was chosen adjunct 

 professor of languages in the College. Here he remained till 

 1833, when he resigned his post, which he had filled with 

 signal success, and sailed for Europe, where he spent a year 

 in prosecuting his studies, chiefly at Halle and Berlin. On 

 his return home he completed his theological course, as he had 

 begun it, with his eminent father. In the year 1838 he was 

 licensed to preach the Gospel, and in 1839 was ordained to 

 the full work of the ministry. But several years before his 

 licensure, he began to assist in the instructions of the Theolo- 

 gical Seminary at Princeton, and in 1839 was elected Profes- 

 sor of Oriental and Biblical Literature in that institution, by 

 the General Assembly of the Presbyterian Church. In 1851 

 he was transferred by the Assembly to the department of Bibli- 

 cal and Ecclesiastical History ; and by the Assembly of 1859, 

 his professorship was entitled that of Hellenistic and New 

 Testament Literature. It was while occupying this post that 

 death found him, and closed his mortal career. 



This cursory enumeration of the official positions which he 

 filled with eminent, and without exaggeration it may be said, 

 unparalleled ability, though indicative of the high estimation 

 in which he was held, gives, however, a Avholly inadequate idea 

 of a man who, beyond all question, was one of the most 

 extraordinary this country has ever produced. From his 

 childhood he exhibited a remarkable precocity. He scarcely 

 needed schools or teachers, such was his passion for knowledge. 

 His facility in the acquisition of languages seemed almost to 

 approach intuition. When but a boy of twelve years, finding 

 an Arabic grammar in his father's library, he commenced 

 studying it, and at fourteen had so mastered the language 

 that he read the Koran through in the original,— a linguistic 

 feat in all probability which has no parallel. From Arabic he 

 turned his attention to Persiac, after which he acquired He- 

 brew, Syriac, and Chaldee, and this before he had fairly 

 reached the age of manhood. Later he familiarized himself 

 with Sanscrit. As for Greek and Latin, they were almost 



VOL. VII. — 2 Q 



