SIR ARCHIBALD GEIKIE STRAHAN 593 



which I had dedicated my life, was not merely an industrial employ- 

 ment; the means of getting a livelihood; a pleasant occupation for 

 mind and body. . It often wore to me an aspect infinitely higher and 

 nobler. It was in reality a methodical study of the works of the 

 Creator of the universe, a deciphering of His legibly Avritten record 

 of some of the stages through which this part of our planet passed 

 in His hands before it was shaped into its present form" (A Long 

 Life's Work, pp. 55, 56). The deep joy that he felt in the study 

 of nature had to be shared with others, and in 1858 he i)roduced 

 a little book, "The Story of a Boulder," the first of a long series 

 by which he carried his message to all parts of the civilized world. 



In 1860 it fell to Geikie to complete the Life of Edward Forbes, 

 winch had been left unfinished through the death of Prof. George 

 Wilson. Some of Forbes's relations hesitated before intrusting the 

 task to so young a man, but the book, when published in 1861, showed 

 that the confidence felt in him had not been misplaced. This was 

 the first of several biographies in which Geikie, with many a kindly 

 touch, recorded the personalities and achievements of friends who 

 had gone before him. It was followed in 1809 by the life of James 

 David Forbes, in 1875 by that of Murchison, and in 1895 by that of 

 Ramsay. In all of them his close touch with current geological 

 research and his sound judgment enabled him to present a true 

 estimate of the progress in science due to each of these distin- 

 guished men. 



In 1871 the natural history professorship at Edinburgh University 

 was divided into two, and geology with mineralogy became the 

 subjects of a new professorship. Murchison offered to endow the 

 new chair, on the understanding that he should nominate the first 

 professor. He put forward Geikie's name, but the power to nomi- 

 nate was objected to by the Home Office as an infringement of the 

 prerogative of the Crown, and the Science and Art Department 

 considered it inadvisable that the posts of director of the geological 

 survey of Scotland and the professorship should be held by the 

 same man. The appointment was made nevertheless, mainly through 

 the exertions of Lyon Play fair, at that time member for the univer- 

 sity. During his tenure of this post, Avhich lasted till he was 

 appointed director general of the survey in 1882, Geikie did much 

 to revive the renown of the old Scottish geological school. He had 

 at first no lecture room to himself and no diagrams or specimens, 

 but made use of the exceptional advantages offered by the neighbor- 

 hood of Edinburgh to conduct geological excursions, which are still 

 gratefully remembered by his old students. 



In 1860 Murchison invited Geikie to accompany him to the High- 

 lands, with the object of following up the conclusions to be drawn 



