CALIFORNIA-1892 449 



in these buildings at Palo Alto, planned and executed un 

 der the direction of Governor and Mrs. Stanford. These 

 two groups, one in Virginia and one in California, with, 

 perhaps, the new university buildings at Philadelphia and 

 Chicago, are almost the only homes of learning in the 

 United States which are really satisfactory from an archi 

 tectural point of view. 



The &quot;City of the Saints, &quot; which I saw on my way, 

 had much interest for me. I collected while there every 

 thing possible in the way of publications bearing on Mor- 

 monism, beginning with a copy of the original edition of 

 the &quot;Book of Mormon&quot;; but nothing that I could find in 

 any of these publications indicated any considerable intel 

 lectual development, as yet. 



More encouraging was a rapid visit, on my way home, 

 to the Chicago Exposition buildings, which, though not yet 

 fully completed, were very beautiful ; and still more plea 

 sure came from a visit to the new University of Chicago, 

 which was evidently beginning a most important work for 

 American civilization. Its whole plan is remarkably well 

 conceived, and with the means that it is rapidly accumulat 

 ing, due to the public spirit of its main benefactor and a 

 multitude of others hardly second to him in the importance 

 of their gifts, it cannot fail to exercise a great influence, 

 especially throughout the Northwestern States. First of 

 all, it will do much to lift the city in which it stands out of 

 its crude materialism into something higher and better. 

 It is a pleasure to note that its buildings are worthy of it : 

 they seem likely to form a fourth in the series of fit homes 

 for great centers of advanced education in the United 

 States, Virginia, Stanford, and the University of Penn 

 sylvania being the others. 



Having returned to Cornell, I went on quietly with my 

 work until autumn, when, to my surprise, I received no 

 tice that the President had appointed me minister to St. 

 Petersburg ; and on the 4th of November I arrived at my 

 post in that capital. Of my experience as minister I have 

 spoken elsewhere, but have given no account of two 



II. 29 



