THE SOUTH.

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DEDICATION OF CHANDLER NORMAL INSTITUTE.

BY DISTRICT SECRETARY C.W. HIATT.


The tenth of February was a great day in Lexington, Kentucky. It marked
two special events, the dedication of Chandler Normal Institute, and the
opening of a great "Hoss sale." Anybody who knows the "Blue-grass
region" will understand what the latter means. The world flocks to
Lexington on such occasions in quest of thoroughbreds, and the country
rids itself in consequence, at fabulous prices, of droves of genuine
Kentucky plugs. Buyers go home wiser, sellers richer. But not everybody
on this day was discussing "Abdallah" and "Hambletonian." Long before
the appointed hour, a stream of people began moving to a part of the
city where two pikes intersect, the point of attraction being a fine
three-story red brick structure known as the "Chandler Normal
Institute." This building occupies a commanding position on a hill which
overlooks the city. It was erected and furnished by the liberality of
one esteemed lady, Mrs. Phoebe Chandler, of Andover, Massachusetts, at
an outlay of some fifteen thousand dollars, and is given to the cause of
Christian education under the care of the American Missionary
Association. On this particular day, the building was formally
consecrated to its work with appropriate and impressive services. At two
o'clock in the afternoon the spacious chapel was filled to its utmost by
crowds of colored people, some of whom had come for miles in carriages,