18%.] °t5 [Rothrock. 



mineral fertilizers in agriculture. Judge Peters wrote: "I have 

 heard of none who have been more remarkably successful in 

 the plaster system than Mr. West and Mr. Price." Philip 

 Price was the first President of the Chester County Agricultu- 

 ral Society. He was furthermore one of the earliest to apply 

 the vaccine crust in this community. With a firm faith in its 

 efficacy, he vaccinated all his children at a time when there 

 were more who doubted than believed in its power. Here he 

 stood out, not only as a moral hero, but as a public benefactor. 

 Moreover, it must be remembered, that in that early day there 

 existed, if not open opposition to vaccination, at least a very 

 strong popular prejudice against it. 



Neither of the parents of the young Eli was wealthy. Their 

 family was large; eleven in all, of whom he was the eighth. 

 They were industrious and frugal, though unable to give their 

 children what we should call a liberal education. But they did 

 what was perhaps almost as well in encouraging such a thirst for 

 useful knowledge that no' ordinary obstacles could quench it. 

 It is true that Eli entered Westtown school in 1812 (as number 

 T72 of the first thousand pupils), but the course there was 

 mainly what we should regard as the necessary, solid branches. Of 

 one thing, however, we may be sure — what was taught was well 

 taught. There was no more sham then than now in that most 

 admirable school. 



It may be worth the while to recall how much of our local 

 history and of our advance in the civilized arts Mr. Price was a 

 witness of. 



West Chester was not made into a borough until two years 

 after his birth. In the year 1800 the population was but 374. 

 This was more than thirty years before the late Dr. William 

 Dai'lington said he had hopes of the town because it had become 

 so large that the inhabitants could live off each other. Mr. 

 Price was thirty-five years old before the first railroad entered 

 the town, and this was about three years before there was an 



