William Stevenson. By Professor Duns. 295 



When the results shall be published I shall have much pleasure in sending 

 you a copy. My impression is that of the Council the Geological would 

 probably not recommend the publication of your memoir in the present state 

 of the subject ; but if you wish to have it read there, I will with pleasure 

 forward it to the Secretary for that purpose. If not, shaU I return it to 

 yoiirself ? Your very obliged servant, 



W. HOPKINS." 

 The thorougli treatment of this subject implies both great 

 expertnesss in numerical calculations, and great mathematical 

 attainments. Mr Stevenson had natural powers which under 

 training would have fitted him for both. But he had entered on 

 his investigations without this advantage, and he was well aware 

 of his deficiencies in this respect. When the late 'Rev. John 

 Wallace, of Abbey St Bathans, a most accomplished mathe- 

 matician and most genial man, opened a class for Mathematics 

 in connection with the Dunse Mechanics' Institute, Mr Stevenson 

 became one of his most devoted and successful pupils, but the 

 circumstances were such that no great progress could be made. 

 He does not, however, seem to have sympathised with the esti- 

 mate which Hopkins had formed of his paper, because he after- 

 wards submitted it to a learned Society in competition for a 

 prize, with the title "Deductions from the hypothesis of the 

 internal fluidity of the Earth." It was returned to him bearing 

 the following pencil note, " I am of opinion this paper is not 

 entitled by its originality or importance to any prize. J.D.F.'' 

 Nevertheless, looking at this attempt to grapple with a great 

 subject in the light even of a somewhat full acquaintance with 

 its literature, and especially in view of Sir William Thomson's 

 papers " On the Secular Cooling of the Earth," and " On the 

 Doctrine of Uniformity in Geology," I cannot help bearing 

 testimony to the ability of its treatment, and the aptness and 

 originality of much of its illustrative matter. This list of geo- 

 logical papers conveys a very inadequate idea of the time and 

 attention devoted by Mr Stevenson to the statement of his views. 

 The correspondence referred to above is highly suggestive on 

 this point. In several cases he preserved copies of his answers 

 to queries by fellow workers, and these shew how heartily he 

 entered into even the minutest details of the matter on hand — 

 hastening to give far more information than was asked or 

 expected. One example may be given. A good many years ago 

 I had tried to work out the relations between deposits at AUanton, 

 Chirnside, Putton mill, Langton, Togo, &c., and having made up 



