308 MEMOIR OF GEORGE WILSON. CHAP. X. 



the President's Chair in the Royal Scottish Society of Arts, 

 in the prosperity of which he ever took a lively interest. 

 His addresses on entering office and quitting it, are to be 

 found in the Transactions of the Society. 1 While necessarily 

 containing many references of local interest only, some in- 

 teresting topics, expanded elsewhere, are touched upon. 

 The good offices of this body were by his efforts enlisted 

 on behalf of the new Museum. The meetings of such 

 societies being in the evening, called for an expenditure of 

 energy unfavourable to his health, yet he deemed it a duty 

 as well as a pleasure to frequent them occasionally. For 

 some years he edited the " Transactions of the Society of 

 Arts;" he was twice elected a member of the Council of 

 the Royal Society of Edinburgh ; he was a member of the 

 Council of the Chemical Society, London ; a member of 

 the Chemical Committee of the Highland and Agricultural 

 Society, and one of the examiners for the agricultural di- 

 ploma ; an honorary member of the Pharmaceutical Society 

 of Great Britain ; and corresponding member of the Medico- 

 Chirurgical Academy, Genoa. 



Of the voluntary labours which he failed not to add to 

 those imperative on him, we find mention in a letter to his 

 brother of March 26, 1857, "Little more than a fortnight 

 will bring my lectures to a close. I begin dyeing on Mon- 

 day, and we shall dye away till the middle of April ' finishes 

 our course.' I shall be thankful. I like work ; it is a family 

 weakness, though I don't pretend to lift your elephant load. 

 But one may have too much : we grieve when we read of 

 your labours. Even the Pagan Hindus put only one world 

 on the elephant's back, and gave him, moreover, a tortoise 

 to stand upon. The tortoise will rebel if you try to carry 

 another world, and infinite space will engulf you. 



1 "Trans. R. S. S. A." vol. v. pp. I and 43. 



