The Great Chemist, Joseph Block. 85 



of his character, he was in jjarticular a favourite with the ladies. 

 I could not but remark that they considered themselves honoured 

 by the attentions of Dr. Black, for these were not indiscriminately 

 bestowed, but exclusively paid to those who evinced a superiority 

 in mental accomplishments or propriety of demeanour, and in 

 grace and elegance of manners." 



Dr. Black was always of a very delicate constitution, and on 

 every occasion of a chill or cold subject to spitting of blood, yet 

 by care and abstemious attention to diet he maintained an equable 

 state of health until his seventy-first year. "The sedentary life 

 to which study confined him was manifestly hurtful, and he never 

 allowed himself to indulge in any intense thinking, or puzzling 

 research without his complaint being seriously increased." He 

 found his chief recreation in the society of his friends, and the 

 influence of these conversations is seen in the work of Dr. Black, 

 and also in the writings of those friends. In the earlier part of 

 my paper, for example, I have explained the relations between 

 the Doctor and James Watt, as well as Dr. Hutton. The man 

 had a genius for friendship, and many tokens of feeling were 

 lavished upon him by his associates. 



Joseph Black was an artist at heart. Robison tells us that 

 — " He had a fine accurate musical ear, and a voice that would 

 obey it in the most perfect manner. He was a very intelligent 

 judge of musical compositions, and I never heard any person 

 express so intelligibly the characteristic diff'erences of some of the 

 national musics of Europe. Without having studied drawing he 

 had obtained a considerable power of expression with his pencil, 

 both in figures and in landscape. His memorandum books are 

 full of studies of this sort, and there is one drawing of an iron 

 furnace, fitted up with rough hewn timber, that is finished with 

 great beauty, and would not disgrace the hand of a Woolet." 



I cannot omit the following naive remark, so characteristic 

 of Robison — "Naturally, therefore, the young ladies were proud 

 of Dr. Black's approbation of their tastes in matters of orna- 

 ment." 



