850 



have mingled tlieir tones in mournful cadence, borne through 

 this land, and soon to be re-eclioed from Trans- Atlantic 

 shores, — it is eminently befitting the occasion furnished by 

 this sad event, that a sympathizing strain should emanate 

 from the midst of those who were privileged to behold the 

 rising dawn of the lu-ight spirit which, " Like an angel's wing 

 in the op'ning cloud," has blessed our sight for a little, and 

 then departed, leaving its beautiful impress on our souls 

 forever. 



It is fit that this assembly, standing over the spot on which 

 Prescott was born, should vindicate their right and claim, to 

 weave, among the memories and associations of Plummer 

 Hall, this signal event, — this undisputed historical triumph. 



We, most of us, knew little of the man, though we respected 

 the indomitable energy that conquered opposing and to most 

 men irresistible obstacles, to pour out the great effusions of 

 his teeming soul ; but uoav that the pure, the modest and 

 unassuming, the patient and cheerful, the disinterested 

 christian spirit gives its mild radiance in a brighter sphere, 

 the lips of his loved ones are unsealed, and they tell us all 

 their loss and our unspeakable gain, for it needed but Pres- 

 cott's death to enable all who read with instruction and 

 delight the luminous pages of his works — to mingle with 

 them, and every pause for digestive thought, the memory of 

 the qualities of the man, more to be loved and revered than 

 the fame of the historian. 



We have said what our hearts prompted us to utter. And, 

 while storing our minds with the treasures he has left us, 

 we would open our hearts to the wholesome influences of his 

 blameless life. 



And when succeeding ages shall bless the munificence of 

 the founder of this noble structure, may the names of 

 Plummer and Prescott evermore be blended, — the one as 

 the donor by whose beneficence, by a felicitous concurrence 

 of events, this Hall, with its surroundings, stands as an a]> 

 propriate monument of the birth of the latter. 



Prot.'ALPHEUs Crosby, of the State Normal School in 

 Salem, next addressed the meeting. 



Mr Crosby spoke of the various interesting associations 

 connected with Plummer Hall and the spot on which it is 



