414               THE BRICK CHURCH

one of the school's chief aims, the growth was steady
and marked, so that after a few years the need of
larger and more suitable quarters became urgent.
In 1870, the members of the Church of the Covenant
took steps to purchase land and erect a building.
"It seemed a great venture, considering the large
amount which the church had just raised for its fine
plant on Park Avenue, but the pastor urged that it
would be a shame for them to worship in such com¬
fort and leave their East Side brethren poorly accom¬
modated. . . . This was the first building of its
class to consider the matter of beauty and effective¬
ness. Up to this time it had been thought that
accommodation and shelter were all that was needed
in such buildings. But this was not the spirit of the
Church of the Covenant. It desired that the house
of worship which it erected for its East Side branch
should be the most attractive place its worshippers
should find in all the week." * In spite of the great
difficulty of an undertaking so large in itself and so
generously conceived, the Covenant people, led by
their pastor, accomplished their purpose, and in De¬
cember, 1871, the "Memorial Chapel," at 310 East
Forty-second Street, designed by Mr. Cady and
adapted most perfectly to the needs of the work, was
dedicated, f    Its name referred to a historic event

* From an address by Mr. J. C. Cady, quoted in the "Memorial of Dr.
Prentiss," published by Union Seminary, pp. 13 /.

fThe following "Dedication Hymn" was written for this occasion by
Mrs. Elizabeth Prentiss:

Thankfully, O Lord, we come
To this new and happy home;
Wilt thou not from heaven descend.
Here to dwell as friend with friend,
Granting us the wondrous grace
To behold thee face to face?