368 LIFE OF BENJAMIN SILLIMAN. 



Tontine Hotel for a little quiet before lecture. His appear- 

 ance before the audience was very impressive. Although, 

 I believe, then in his seventy-third year, his appearance was 

 almost youthful. He wore a blue coat with yellow buttons : 

 he had a slight tint of red upon his cheeks, and as he 

 kindled with his subject, he forgot his years, rose on his 

 feet with energetic and graceful action, and spoke eloquently 

 and beautifully upon the progress of human society from 

 barbarism to Christian civilization. He spoke emphatically 

 of what woman had gained by passing from the condition 

 of a mere chattel, liable to be bought and sold, to the con- 

 dition of the rational and cherished companion of man, and 

 the wise guardian and instructor of his children. 



There was little time for repose after our return from 

 Nantucket, September 28, 1835. The past year had been 

 one of incessant labor. In addition to all the College 

 courses, which were given in full, I had given four extra 

 popular courses of geology with full illustrations, both pic- 

 torial and chemical, in Lowell, Boston, Salem, and Nan- 

 tucket. Now, with scarcely a breathing-spell, we returned 

 to the chemical course in Yale College, occupying the 

 months of October, November, and December, and a few 

 days in January. This course is always arduous, and ex- 

 aminations were held weekly with both the Senior class of 

 the College, and the Medical class. Still, there was to be 

 no rest. I was called to New York in the January vacation, 

 1836, the College recess of two weeks, to give a brief course 



of geology The lectures were generally two hours 



long, or nearly so, and the last exceeded two hours, so great 

 was the pressure of the subject; but no restlessness was 

 manifested. At the concluding lecture there were, as was 

 supposed, thirteen hundred people. I might fairly infer 

 the approbation of the public from the increasing num- 

 bers, and from the zeal and enthusiasm which they man- 

 ifested. 



