the inevitable sequence of the triumph of the slave power upon that occasion; but he never wavered in his course in this trying crisis. He was outspoken and most earnest in the support of every measure of the Government to protect itself and put down insurrection. In the work of raising forces, furnishing supplies, and caring for the families of volunteers, he engaged with untiring devotion; and, whilst in the Senate, every measure calculated to advance these results received his cordial support. Upon one occasion, after the war, the House had stricken from the Appropriation Bill the provision for the Soldiers' Orphan Schools; Dr. Worthington, in the Senate, at once sought to have it re-inserted, and, after a hardfought struggle against that influence, which, under the specious plea of economy, had sought to rob these wards of the nation of their dearly-bought inheritance, the point was carried, and our State saved the dishonor of stopping these schools that have made the name of Pennsylvania honored and respected throughout the land. In 1866 Dr. Worthington was re-elected to the Senate, serving in all six years. At the session of 1869 he was chosen Speaker. In the discharge of the delicate and responsible duties of this position, his course was such as to secure the confidence and respect of all parties. At the close of the term he received a handsome testimonial, in which all the members joined.

To his work in the Senate we have not the space or material at hand to do full justice. We hope others will feel this duty resting upon them. Our sketch of it must be brief. To all measures calculated to advance the interests of his profession, and through it the welfare of the people, he yielded a willing and always influential support. The bill legalizing the supply of material for dissections was carried through mainly by his efforts. The deficient provision for the insane, and especially the insane poor of the State, claimed his attention, and his labors did much to inaugurate that benevolent policy which has resulted in the establishment, in different sections of the State, of institutions for the reception of this unfortunate class who were, until recently, the neglected inmates of county almshouses. He was chairman of the Senate committee to visit the penal and charitable institutions of the State, and to inquire into the expediency of establishing a board of public charities. This committee did its work so well that this board was the next year appointed; and though it has not escaped the shafts of criticism, it is we hope established upon a secure base as one of the institutions that do honor to our commonwealth. George L. Harrison, Esq., President of the Board, in speaking of the work accomplished by Dr. Worthington in behalf of the State and its dependent classes, says: "This was not wrought through selfish or ambitious purposes, but solely from a love of right and justice, and by the impulse of a far-reaching sympathy with misfortune and distress of every kind."

Dr. Worthington was appointed a member of the board, and was almost immediately selected its general agent and secretary. During the first year of his service in that capacity he travelled over eleven thousand miles, and gave at the close of the year an exhaustive account of a majority of the almshouses and jails in the State, com

pleting this survey during the following year. The result of this laborious work is set forth in his voluminous report to the board, and through it, was conveyed to the legislature and the public. He continued actively engaged in this work until failing health rendered it impossible for him to travel. In the spring of 1873 he tendered his resignation, which was accepted, and the board, at a special meeting held May 1st, 1873, unanimously adopted the following resolutions:

WHEREAS, The Hon. Wilmer Worthington, by letter to the President of this Board, has tendered his resignation of the office of General Agent for the reasons assigned therein, be it

Resolved, That the Board accepts the resignation of Dr. Worthington with great reluctance, and solely for the reason that he declares himself unable from failing health and strength to fulfil its duties with the completeness that his sense of duty demands.

Resolved, That the Board desires to record its sincere and cordial appreciation of the valuable services of Dr. Worthington in the position he has held since the creation of the Board, recognizing in him a faithful, conscientious, and devoted servant in the cause of humanity and practical reform, and part with him in that relation with deep and heartfelt regret.

Resolved, That the President of the Board be requested to convey to the Governor of the State the desire to have the late General Agent associated with the other members upon the commission.

And, on the occasion of his death, the Board, upon the motion of its President, Mr. Harrison, adopted the following resolutions:Resolved, That in the death of Dr. Worthington we are sensible of the serious loss, not only of a personal friend and fellow-worker, but also of a faithful and wise counsellor in the cause of true reform and genuine philanthropy.

Resolved, That we here declare our conviction that the services of Dr. Worthington to this Board, in the work committed to it, have been most faithfully and unselfishly rendered, and that a debt of gratitude is due to his memory for the large and self-denying labors which he performed during the entire period of its existence.

Resolved, That we honor the memory of Dr. Worthington as of one devoted to every effort which could advance the cause of religion, the interest of the State, and the well-being of every citizen.

Resolved, That a minute be made of these resolutions, and that the President be required to transmit a copy of them to the family of our deceased friend and fellow member, with the warm expression of our heartfelt sympathy with them in their severe affliction.

We have spoken of his devotion to professional and charitable objects whilst in the Senate. Reformatory and educational institutions were no less the objects of his care. As has been remarked by Prof. Wickersham, "Dr. Worthington was the chosen advocate and spokesman of the educational and charitable institutions of the State." During his whole term in the Senate, he was on the Educational Committee, and much of the time its Chairman. In the establishment of the State Normal Schools he was constantly inter

ested, and at the time of his death was President of the one located at West Chester. He had given this much thought and labor, and he enjoyed the satisfaction of seeing it in successful operation.

The religious affiliation of Dr. Worthington was with the Presbyterian Church, which he joined in early life. In 1834 he was elected an elder and one of its trustees, which positions he held until his death. There was, however, little of sectarianism about him, having the utmost toleration for the religious opinions of others, and uniformly treating them with respect.

The physique of Dr. Worthington is familiar to you all. His portly form, benign genial face, cannot soon pass from your memories. Although generally in the enjoyment of robust health, he had several serious attacks of illness. Besides that at the Lazaretto, already referred to, he had in 1826 an attack of dysentery, and again in 1859 a most violent one in which his life for many days was despaired of. In 1838 he was ill several weeks with inflammation of the brain. About the year 1864 he began to suffer occasionally with attacks of pain in the chest. During the winter of '67 and '68 he had a severe attack at Harrisburg, which prostrated him several weeks. This left him with a settled difficulty with the heart, which prevented active exercise. On the evening of January 25th, 1873, he was seized with a violent paroxysm of angina pectoris. The pain was intense, extending through the chest, down each arm to the tips of the fingers, with a most intensely anxious expression of countenance. The hypodermic use of morphia promptly controlled the violent symptoms. This had to be repeated occasionally for three or four weeks, after which the suffering was less violent, although the train of symptoms belonging to a feeble and dilated heart with more or less valvular incompetency gradually increased. Edema, dyspnoea, slight obtuseness of the mental faculties, and a remarkable impairment of vasa-motor action in the skin, were the prominent symptoms. There was apparently at times great dyspnoea, manifested by extremely rapid respiration, but of which he was singularly unconscious, for when asked about it, in the midst of an apparently severe attack, he would seldom admit any difficulty of breathing. About three weeks before his death, he had a severe epileptic convulsion; this recurred two or three times, and on the evening of September 11th, 1873, he passed quietly and peacefully to rest. All through his illness he was an example of gentleness, patience, and quiet resignation. He was interred in Oakland Cemetery on the 16th of September, upon which occasion were assembled, besides his relatives, neighbors, and friends, many with whom he had been associated in public life.

The life and character of Dr. Worthington are worthy of our careful study: whether we follow him as the child, honoring his parents; as the husband and father, meeting the trials and responsibilities of domestic life; as the physician, incurring the toils and anxieties of his arduous profession; as the citizen, striving to do his whole duty to his neighbor; as the legislator, mindful of the rights of the weak, the sufferings of the distressed, the training of the young, unscathed by the corruptions of place; or as the Chris

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tian, earnestly seeking to discharge every duty, we find this good man, without pretension to genius, or the insatiate reachings of ambition, steadily doing the work he found for his hands to do, and doing it so well that the world is wiser, better, and happier for his having lived.

JACOB PRICE, Chairman of Committee.

REPORT OF THE CUMBERLAND COUNTY MEDICAL SOCIETY.

MATTHEW FULLERTON ROBINSON, M.D., 1820-1873.

It is now the fourth time since its organization that this Society has been called upon to chronicle the death of one of its original members.

MATTHEW FULLERTON ROBINSON, the eighth son of Robert and Annie Fullerton Robinson, was born April 26th, 1820, at the farm home of his parents near Greencastle, Franklin Co., Penna. His ancestry dates to the Scotch-Irish, who were the first white settlers of his native county, and to whose strict Presbyterianism he was indebted for a healthy mould of moral and religious character, and the virtues of his manhood.

Dr. Robinson's preparatory education was received in the academic schools of his native place; and he afterward read medicine with Dr. Davidson, still actively engaged in his profession in Greencastle at this time.

After attending the regular courses of medical lectures at Washington University, Baltimore, Md., he won his diploma from that institution at its commencement in the spring of 1847. Returning from his Alma Mater, he was associated in the practice of his profession during one year with his preceptor, in which time he was also united in matrimony with Martha Rankin, daughter of A. B. Rankin, Esq., of Greencastle, in whom he ever found the sterling qualities of a most estimable and faithful wife and sympathizing companion amid the arduous toils of his profession.

Five or six years of his professional life were spent in Adams Co., whence he removed to Newville in December of 1854. Finding this place a suitable field for his labors, and its society congenial to his tastes, he remained here in active practice until forced to relinquish its burdens by the infirmities of his person.

Dr. Robinson inherited, from the maternal side of his ancestors, the tubercular diathesis, and, as a consequence, suffered more or less from indigestion for a number of years before his decease, and finally the assimilative functions of his body became so much enfeebled as to be unable to maintain the necessary tissue repair, and his vitality slowly ebbed away until January the 7th, 1874, when he expired.

Sad as is the duty to record the departure of those smitten down in the very heat of life's battle, whose death wounds deeply and sorely a loving wife and fond children of the home circle, and