DR M'COSHS RECOLLECTIONS. 453 



Edinburgh, which I commonly did once or twice a year. 

 I took care not to intrude upon him the night before the 

 bi-weekly issue of his paper ; but I always found him 

 welcoming me on the Wednesday or Saturday night 

 when the hard work of composition was off his mind. 

 On these occasions he showed me his museum with the 

 feeling of a boy showing his toys to his companion. 

 We sometimes, but not often, talked of Church matters ; 

 but it was evident that having to write and speak so 

 much about them he rather kept off them with me 

 except, indeed, that he was ever ready to speak of the 

 great religious cause of the freedom of the Church, as 

 imbedded deep in the hearts, even as it was in the 

 history, of Scotchmen, and certain in the end to 

 triumph. Sometimes we talked of geology and religion 

 and the difficult problems which they started. At times 

 I introduced a topic new to him, as on one occasion 

 Comte's Classification of the Sciences and the Positive 

 Philosophy, not so well-known then as now. It was ex- 

 tremely interesting to watch his mind grasping the new 

 ideas, apprehending but not yet fully comprehending 

 them. In next paper he had an article on the subject, 

 but it is evident that his mind had not yet settled down 

 into clearness, and the written composition had not the 

 full expanse of the conversation. Had he lived he would 

 certainly have grappled with the Positive Philosophy as 

 he did with the Vestiges of Creation. 



' Having great confidence in his singleness of purpose 

 and his far-sighted wisdom, I consulted him when I 

 was about to be called to the Chair of Logic and 

 Metaphysics in Belfast, stating to him my difficulty 

 about giving up my pastoral work. He gave me a 

 clear and unequivocal advice. " If a man," says he, " has 

 decidedly a high heaven-bestowed gift, even if it 



