390 THE LIFE OF JAMES D. FORBES. [CHAP. 



most delightful of my life. I have vividly before me 

 the form and features of our then very youthful Pro- 

 fessor, as he commanded with hi dignified bearing the 

 respect of a large and miscellaneous class of somewhat 

 rough students, while he charmed all by a most elo- 

 quent, polished, and skilful exposition of his subjects. 

 It was quite the kindling of academic life for me, and 

 I doubt not for many others ; and it was not only by his 

 lectures and examinations, but by the most constant 

 and varied endeavours to interest and attach his 

 students, that he inspired into very many of them an 

 enthusiastic love of the studies he so delighted in him- 

 self. I well remember the evening gatherings at the 

 Dean House, and those delightful breakfasts there, to 

 which his students were by turns invited, and how he 

 was ever stimulating us by exhibiting his apparatus and 

 objects of scientific interest, by walks in the neighbour- 

 hood to test philosophical instruments, and by stirring us 

 up to form societies among ourselves for scientific experi- 

 ment and research. I was deeply impressed with his 

 kindness to myself, as I had no introduction to him but 

 the class-ticket, and ultimately our intercourse ripened 

 into a lifelong friendship.' 



Mr. J. T. Harrison, civil engineer, says : 



'LONDON, July 31st, 1871. 



* ... As Professor of Natural Philosophy, Mr. Forbes 

 not only gained the esteem of all the students by the 

 great interest he evidently took in them, and by the 

 great pains he bestowed in the preparation of his lectures, 

 and on the experiments, illustrations, and mathematical 

 solutions, which enabled all those who were really anxious 

 to do so thoroughly to master the subjects of them, but 

 he endeared himself to them by his kindly and genial 

 manner, and by the assistance he was ever ready to 

 afford those who asked for further explanation of any 

 difficulty they were unable to overcome. 



6 It was, I believe, his greatest pleasure to see his 

 pupils striving to acquire information, and to help them 



