148 LECTURES GREATLY PRAISED. 



The men of this period were lavish in their admiration 

 of the anatomical professor, whose lectures not only 

 created an exaltation of feeling that pervaded the whole 

 school, but are still spoken of among the memorabilia 

 of the University in the last decade. All his energies 

 were brought into play to render this course of lectures 

 worthy of himself and the high position he occupied. 

 Every alumnus could see in the shaky limbs and pallid 

 visage the overtaxed man of labour struggling with 

 giant efforts to carry on a special class, and to conduct 

 it in a special way ; for Goodsir's zoological views were 

 presented to the observer as so many facets — new, well- 

 defined, and prismatic. 



On referring to the titles of these lectures, it will 

 be seen that he had taken a wide and comprehensive 

 ground for illustration. It was not anatomy, not zoo- 

 logy per se, or as embracing principles of classification, 

 but the psychological conditions of man as compared 

 with the brute, and the highest exercise of the human 

 faculties — perception, logic, and science. Here he was 

 touching the heels of the metaphysician — only, how- 

 ever, as collateral to the strictly physiological and 

 psychological. The Scotch pupils, cautioned by their 

 kirk against the scepticism of science in general, and of 

 anatomical teachers in particular, were struck with the 

 pious exhortations of the professor as much as the whole 

 class was delighted with the zoological course, illustrat- 

 ing his fine acumen, individuality, and broad general- 

 isations. These lectures cost him an infinite amount of 

 thought and labour, and at the end of the course he 



