The exercises were opened by a chant—the 121st Psalm—sung by the school; appropriate passages of Scripture were read by Rev. Mr. Walden, and prayer was offered by Rev. Mr. Ash. The little folks then sang “Marching On!” after which a short oration was delivered by one of the boys of the school, and an essay read by one of the girls. One spoke of the past, and the other, of the present and future of our school. After this, the principal gave a short history of the school, and in a few words explained the object for which it was established, and the aims of the American Missionary Association in the South. We told them that we are here for no political ends, but that our whole aim is to cultivate the minds and hearts of our pupils, to lift them up to higher planes of true manhood and womanhood, and to fit them for usefulness to themselves, to their people, to their employers, to all with whom they come in contact, to the world, and especially to God. That our aim is to send forth cultivated and Christian hearts, endowed with the nobler aims and aspirations in life, and fitted for efficient work in the vineyard of our Master. If mistakes had been made in the past by workers under the Association, it was not in accordance with the will of its officers, their expressed wish being that we ignore politics. That ours is a mission work, and finally, that if the people of the South and we have not fully understood each other in the past, we hope that in the future we may know each other better. As for us, we earnestly and sincerely ask the sympathy and co-operation of the Christian people of the South; we need it. The school then sang one of the Jubilee Songs, “We shall walk through the valley and shadow of death,” after which Mr. Alexander offered the dedicatory prayer. The original plan was to have one regular address, and possibly a few words from others present, but the plan was changed, and it was concluded to have an informal talk from the invited guests, the colored ministers present, and others, and as the programme was carried out it became more and more evident that the latter was a fortunate choice.