Death of Sir William Fairfax. 93 



Latin fluently, and Somerville, who was a good 

 Latinist, met with a Latin quotation in some book he 

 was reading, but not knowing from whence it was 

 taken, asked his friend Dr. Gregory. " It is forty 

 years since I read that author," said Dr. Gregory, 

 "but I think you will find the passage in the 

 middle of such a page." Somerville went for the 

 book, and at the place mentioned there it was. 

 ***** 



I had the grief to lose my dear father at this 

 time. He had served sixty-seven years in the 

 British Navy, and must have been twice on the 

 North American station, for he was present at 

 the taking of Quebec by General Wolf, in 1759, 

 and afterwards during the War of Independence. 

 After the battle of Camperdown he was nyide a 

 Colonel of Marines, and died, in 1813, Vice- Admiral 

 of the Red. 



***** 



Geology, which has now been so far advanced 

 as a science, was still in its infancy. Professor Play- 

 fair and Mr. Hugh Miller had written on the sub- 

 ject; and in my gay young days, when Lady Helen 

 Hall was occasionally my chaperone, I had heard 

 that Sir James Hall had taken up the subject, but 

 I did not care about it ; I am certain that at that 

 time I had never heard the word Geology. I think 



