Alexander Murray. 85 
Murray’s voice was seldom heard in public, yet he was a 
good speaker when occasion required. His speech at the 
Toronto banquet to Logan after his return, newly knighted, 
from the Paris Exhibition of 1855, was the best of the 
evening, and was regarded as a very fine effort. On 15th 
February, 1869, I had the pleasure of listening to his popular 
lecture on “The Economic Value of a Geological Survey,” 
delivered in the Atheneum Hall in St. John’s before a 
large and intelligent audience, which included the governor 
of the colony and most of the members of both branches of 
the legislature. The subject matter of itself, his method of 
treating it and the delivery, were all excellent and called 
forth a very hearty vote of thanks. _ 
Usually good natured and genial, Murray was, neverthe- 
less, quick-tempered, and in the heat of provocation some- 
times said or did what he immediately after repented. 
Many stories might-be told in illustration of this trait in 
his character, but two or three must suffice. 
On one occasion, when sitting beside Sir William Logan 
at a public dinner at the St. Lawrence Hall in Montreal, one 
of the waiters gave him some impudence. In a moment 
Murray was on his. feet and knocked the man’s head 
against the wall behind him. In the morning Murray, 
hearing that the waiter was about to take out a warrant 
against him for assauit, made haste to have him arrested 
for using insulting language. Whereupon the man was 
glad to compromise matters, and the affair dropped. 
In 1860, on our return from a coasting voyage along the 
south shore of Lake Superior, Mr. Murray and I were 
camped at the head of the portage on the Canadian side of 
the Sault Ste. Marie. One of our men, Pierre Pilon by 
name, a well known character in these parts, became 
somewhat the worse of liquor, and was seized with a desire 
to have a letter written to his wife at Shi-ba-o-na-ning, of 
whom he seldom thought when sober. Mr. Murray was 
lying on his back in his little tent reading a book and 
enjoying a much needed rest. Every little while Pilon 
would put his head into the tent door and again request 
