FIRST CHAPEL SERVICE.

Last night in Appleton Chapel the opening service of the year was held, a large congregation listening to a sermon from the Rev. President William J. Tucker, D. D., of Dartmouth, and to short addresses by the Rev. Endicott Peabody, and the Rev. George F. Moore, D.D.

President Tucker spoke from a text taken from Romans XII-15: "Rejoice with them that rejoice." For the average person it is harder to rejoice with others than to share in their sorrows. It is of course true that one is as much a duty as the other, bnt rejoicing is often a matter of conscience, and the dictates of conscience are never so strong as those of the heart. It has been said that "Life is neither a pain nor a pleasure, but a serious duty to be taken up, carried out and laid down." This is not true. Life must have in it both pain and pleasure.

At first the joy in our lives must be that of hope, of mere unfulfilled promise. Youth abounds in those qualities which are essential to this--that is, a sense of humor, unfailing sympathy, and faith. Hard it undoubtedly is to live almost wholly in what the future may bring. Much of the life about us seems vain and useless, and cannot help but be discouraging. Yet at heart the world is really hopeful, and the power to aspire remains with us long after we seem to have lost all ambition.

This joy of promise is valueless, however, when it does not lead to something higher--the joy of attainment. Here the satisfaction lies in the powers within us, for we begin to realize that to be weak is to be miserable. This we must bear in mind to avoid turning side and wasting our vitality on superficial pleasures. This joy of attainment is the possession of the scientist, of the deep thinker, even of the man who has gained wealth; but it is only the stepping stone to the greatest of all joys--that of ministration. However grand the attainment, it must always seem cheap unless made glorious by a noble use. This is why unselfishness should be cultivated at all times, lest we discover too late that it is a trait which cannot be extemporized. It must be made a part of our nature if we are to possess it at all. This joy of unselfishness is perhaps the greatest blessing given by God; and through its means we may be sure that steady progress will always continue in the world.

Dr. Moore spoke briefly on the power derived from the knowledge of men which may best be had at college. The summit of this knowledge is a fuller acquaintance with our own selves, for we constantly meet with forms of excellence which are not our own but which we may imitate. Even the temptations we meet with help us to a fuller self knowledge, for in mastering them we are mastering our own natures.

Mr. Peabody spoke of the need today of aggressiveness in our religious life. Many men adopt a negative view of religion, avoiding evil and slipping through their daily existence in a neutral way. This is better than positive sin, no doubt, but it is a poor way of living. The need of good men in the world is greater now than ever before, and surely they ought to be found in such an institution as this where men come to develop and broaden their ideas and their field of usefulness.