PRESIDENTIAL ADDRESS. 47 



One of Jefferson's first official acts was to throw his presidential 

 mantle over Priestley. Two weeks after he became President of 

 the United States he wrote these words : 



'It is with heartfelt satisfaction that, in the first moments of 

 my public action, I can hail you with welcome to our hind, 

 tender to you the homage of its respect and esteem, cover you 

 under the protection of those laws which were made for the wise 

 and good like you, and disclaim the legitimacy of that libel on 

 legislators which, under the form of a law, was for some time 

 placed among them." 



* * * " Yours is one of the few lives precious to mankind, 

 and for the continuance of which every thinking man is solicitous. 

 Bigots may be an exception. What an effort, my clear sir, of 

 bigotry in politics and religion have we gone through. * * * 

 All advances in science were prescribed as innovations. They 

 pretended to praise and encourage education, but it was to be the 

 education of our ancestors. We were to look backwards, not 

 forwards for improvement ; the President (Washington) himself 

 declaring in one of his answers to addresses that we were never 

 to expect to go beyond them in real science. This was the real 

 ground of all the attacks on you ; those who live by mystery and 

 charlatanerie fearing you would render them useless by simpli- 

 fying the Christian philosophy, the most sublime and benevo- 

 lent, but most perverted system that ever shone on man, en- 

 deavored to crush your well-earned and well-deserved fame."* 



XIII. 



With the close of the third decade ended the first third of a 

 century since the Declaration of Independence. We have now 

 passed in review a considerable number of illustrious names and 

 have noted the inception of many worthy undertakings. 



" Still, however," in the words of Silliman, " although indi- 

 viduals were enlightened, no serious impression was produced 

 on the public mind ; a few lights were, indeed, held out, but 

 they were lights twinkling in an almost impervious gloom. "f 



This was a state of affairs not peculiar to America. A gloom 

 no less oppressive had long obscured the intellectual atmosphere 



"Jefferson's Works (T. J. Randolph ed.)> 1830, iii, 461. 

 t Silliman, i, 37. 



