Page:History of the University of Pennsylvania - Montgomery (1900).djvu/201

Rh his chamber at rising from Bed," and "An Evening Prayer to be used by every Scholar in his chamber at going to Bed," besides " Publick Prayer," for both Morning and Evening in the chapel, each consisting of Sentences, Exhortations, and Prayers; and in addition, embracing The Ten Commandments, The Apostles' Creed, and the Duty to God and towards my Neighbour, from the Church of England Catechism. An Evening Prayer is the following: Be favourable to all Seminaries of sound Learning and virtuous Education; vouchsafe to shower down thy peculiar Blessings on all those who are in the Trust, Direction and Management of this Academy, upon the Institution itself, and upon all those who are in any ways concerned in or related to it. Help them to put it upon the best Foundation, and to form from Time to Time such Orders and Regulations in it as will best promote thy Glory, and the Establishment of solid and useful Learning. ' a Thus the first visit of William Smith to Philadelphia created and secured impressions which left no room for other wish than that he might be induced to make the city his home, and the evidence presented him as to the stable foundation of the Academy and its bright promises of future usefulness and reputation left no doubt that he would accept a connection with it. Nothing official appears to have passed, neither records nor correspondence affording us any information on this. His visit to Philadelphia was brief, as he says in his dedication of the Poem, "The Performance is far inferior to the Subject; but an Apology will not mend it. As I have no time to improve it during my Stay in America," &c., thus he may have at once sailed for home, and this explains why he left his young pupils in Philadelphia at this time. He could have made but a brief visit to Scotland, for we find him again in New York by October; and his biographer tells us he sailed thence again on 13 October, 23 The University recently came into the possession of one of the two only copies of these Prayers known to us of these days. The publication is not referred to by Dr. Smith's Biographer, and was also unknown to Mr. Hildeburn when printing, in 1 885, his Issues of the Pennsylvania Press, 1685-1784. Could the seed of this have been Bishop Ken's Manual of Prayers for the use of the Scholars of Winchester College? A copy of the edition of 1700 of this little formulary was in the Library of the late Professor Henry Reed.