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means. Two of the sons, James and Michaiah, were ordained 

 ministers in the Scotch church. At that tim^e, however, 

 the Irvingite schism was exciting the minds and engaging 

 the sympathies of many, especially the young, and it is 

 probable that the father as well as several of the sons felt 

 attracted by the doctrines promulgated by Irving, doctrines 

 which could not possibly find sufficient scope within the 

 somewhat contracted sphere of a Calvinistic communion. 

 So far as our friend is concerned it is certain that his 

 sympathies led him more in the direction of Anglicanism, 

 and from the hints he let drop at various times it seems 

 that it was only through circumstances that he was pre- 

 vented, when a choice was possible, from taking orders in 

 the English church. After passing through the usual 

 course at the Glasgow high school, and spending some time 

 at the University of Glasgow, a period of his life of which 

 he seldom spoke, simply perhaps because there was little to 

 say, Dr. Smith accepted a post as tutor to a family in the 

 Highlands, but was soon compelled to leave from ill health. 

 He then proceeded to England, where he was employed 

 in a similar capacity in families, whose peculiar religious 

 opinions give some indication of the direction in which his 

 sympathies at that time tended. With the Rev. and Hon. H. 

 E. Bridgeman he spent two years, and with him proceeded 

 to Germany. So far Dr. Smith's tastes and occupations had 

 been purely literary and theological. His education had 

 been entirely classical, comprising a knowledge of ancient 

 languages, such as was in his day thought sufficient for all 

 the purposes of life, an acquaintance with science, mathe- 

 matics, or modern languages being then considered of little 

 consequence. During his stay in Germany one of the 

 tendencies of his many-sided mind revealed itself Hearing 

 of Professor Liebig, whose fame was then spreading through 

 Germany, his attention was directed towards science, this 

 tendency being perhaps encouraged by tlie example of his 



