GARDINER GREENE HUBBARD 65 



edge upon the history and resources, as well as the topography, 

 of the regions treated by him. 



It is pertinent for me to mention here, as an example of the 

 thorough method of Mr Hubbard in treating the history of any 

 subject, the elaborate article furnished by him to the Atlantic 

 Monthly for January, 1875, entitled " Our Post-office." This 

 historical article contains an admirable condensation of the facts 

 regarding the postal system of the United States and its prede- 

 cessors, the colonial and British post-office establishments. It 

 draws many instructive parallels and points out the departures 

 from the true objects of a governmental postal system, the quick 

 and cheap diffusion of the people's correspondence and period- 

 icals, through the carriage of mere merchandise in the mails, 

 leading to large annual deficits. The article, although appear- 

 ing in the pages of a periodical, is of great and permanent value. 



The same may be said of another of Mr Hubbard's studies, 

 upon a subject of greatest practical interest to the people, namely, 

 his article on " Proposed Changes in the Telegraphic System," 

 published in the North American Review for July, 1873. This 

 presents a history of the various American lines of telegraph up 

 to its date, and is a close and careful analysis of the whole sys- 

 tem, with comparative statistics of the telegraph as managed by 

 governments in foreign countries and by corporations in the 

 United States. 



Of Mr Hubbard as book-collector, art lover, and connoisseur 

 others will doubtless make fitting record. His library was large 

 and select, and his refined taste led him to make choice always 

 of the best editions. Like most bibliophiles, he read many sale 

 catalogues of books, imported liberally from many of the best 

 book-houses in London and on the continent, and had a marked 

 liking for fine bindings. In the graphic arts his knowledge and 

 taste were of the first order, and his large collection of early and 

 late engravings, etchings, etc., was one of the finest gathered by 

 a private individual. These were the recreations of a busy man 

 of affairs, and the collection, study, and illustration for the ben- 

 efit of others (which he sometimes consented to offer in the form 

 of an art lecture) were a source of constant gratification to his 

 generous spirit. 



President Bell : The Honorable John W. Ross, Chairman of 

 the Board of Commissioners of the District of Columbia, will 

 speak on behalf of the city of Washington and the District of 

 Columbia. 



