322 DIRECTOR-GENERAL OF THE SURVEY CHAP, x 



ment. His personal familiarity with the men in the 

 field and their work enabled him to attack the most 

 difficult part of the task with spirit and success. In 

 these labours of routine, and indeed in all the official 

 work of his office, he received constant loyal and 

 efficient aid from Mr. Edward Best, who, originally 

 appointed as an assistant geologist for service in the 

 field, had been transferred early in his career to the 

 office in Jermyn Street, where he acted as general 

 secretary in charge of the correspondence and the 

 issue of publications. Mr. Best's long experience 

 made him familiar with all the details of the history 

 and progress of the Survey. He was a general 

 favourite among the staff, and for many years served 

 as the right hand of his chief. 1 



Ramsay still occasionally contributed an article 

 to the Saturday Review, and gave a Friday evening 

 discourse at the Royal Institution. In the pages of his 

 favourite 'weekly' he wrote pleasantly about the history 

 of Great Britain, taking a much wider view into the 

 past as well as into the future of the subject than the 

 ordinary historian is content with, and adding a caution 

 to our statesmen for the benefit of their successors fifty 

 thousand years hence, when a new glacial period shall 

 begin to banish man from the northern half of Europe. 

 ' It behoves the Minister for the Colonies,' he con- 

 cludes, * to see that our inter-tropical possessions are 

 kept in good order for the coming migration, for the 

 fortunes of the British Islands will then be far below 

 zero. One cold comfort remains the universal 

 northern ice-sheet may possibly solve the Irish diffi- 

 culty.' 



1 He joined the service in 1855 under De la Beche, and retired from it on 

 3 1st March 1893, carrying with him the affectionate regard of all his colleagues. 



