SKETCHES OF CHARACTER. Many noble characters were lost to the world in this great calamity. Very few disasters ever reached so far, or brought bereavement to so many communities. The breadth of the land was swept by it. There never was so widespread mourning for any death which brought loss to only private circles. It was more like the mourning which follows the death of some public officer--some great and good man--when a nation is called upon to weep. It was, indeed, almost a national calamity. The very mention of the names of the dead, and the places to which they belonged, shows how many communities were afflicted, and the very funerals which were held, indicate how many circles were bereaved. They were not all private mourners, nor were they merely different circles of friends sharing in a common sorrow. Churches mourned their beloved pastor or the most useful members; villages and even counties were made to feel the loss of the skilful physician; the whole land--yes, the world--has been impressed by the silence which came so suddenly upon the tongue of the sweet singer of Israel; and the various circles of society, from the highest to the lowest, were affected by the death which invaded so many classes. Out of this number of worthy characters who went down in that awful plunge where so many mourn, it is difficult to select, for it is easy to say many things in praise of all. Indeed, a volume might be written which should contain nothing but the memoirs of the lost. The following sketches are given out of regard to those who have so kindly encouraged the author in the task which he has undertaken, as well as from an admiration of the characters which have been so faithfully portrayed by those who knew the persons well. The name of E. P. Rogers has been mentioned. Of him, Rev. Dr. Collyer has spoken, and the following selection from a sermon preached in Chicago is given, as descriptive of his character. Speaking of all of those who perished in the train, he says: