HUTTON. 223 



School, and subsequently was entered at the Uni- 

 versity at the early age of fourteen. James was a 

 thorough student, and loved work, and his tastes 

 were directed rather to natural science than to 

 classics and the higher mathematics. He studied 

 mathematics under Maclaurin, and used to say 

 in after years that although he enjoyed Professor 

 Stevenson's teaching of logic, still he thought 

 more of him because a hint that was given in a 

 lecture led him to take a passionate interest in 

 chemistry. The fact that gold is dissolved in 

 aqua regia (a mixture of nitric and hydrochloric 

 acids), and that two acids, which can each of them 

 dissolve any of the baser metals, must unite their 

 strength before they can attack the most precious, 

 was mentioned by the professor, in illustration of 

 some general doctrine. Hutton was much im- 

 pressed with this fact, and was led to study it 

 further, and he got all the books on the subject. 

 This led to his love of chemistry, which never for- 

 sook him, and which really decided the course 

 of his career. But Hutton was destined for a 

 profession, and his mother did not intend him to 

 occupy himself solely with science. Consequently 

 he was articled to a writer to the signet, with a 

 view of becoming a lawyer. He had hard work to 

 do, and plenty of it ; it was mere routine work, 

 that of a clerk, and there was a possibility that he 

 would forget his scientific pleasures. His desire 

 for knowledge persisted, in spite of his monotonous 

 work, and occasionally he endeavoured to teach 



