7fi A SKETCH OF THE CAREER OF THE TATE J. R. LOGAN. 



J. R. Logan was some three years older than myself ; hence, 

 during the years 1830, 31 and 32, when we sat in the same 

 school-room as boys, we arrived at no close intimacy. But the 

 course of events brought us together in another part of the globe, 

 by different routes and dissimilar adventure, it is true, yet the year 

 1839 found us as guests of the late amiable and kind-hearted pro- 

 prietor of Glugor, Penang, and Longformacus, Berwickshire — the 

 late David Wardlaw Brown, Esquire. Here a friendship and 

 mutual confidence was established, that flagged not till death. 



After leaving Dunse Academy, J. E. Logan proceeded to Edin- 

 burgh as pupil to a cousin of the same name, by profession an 

 Advocate or Barrister. After fulfilling his time, he proceeded to 

 Bengal, at the invitation of another cousin named Daniel Logan, 

 of whom he used always to speak with the highest regard, 

 where he * was engaged in indigo-planting for a short time, after 

 which he accepted the invitation of his friend and schoolfellow, the 

 late Mr. Forbes Scott Brown, to join him at Penang. Here he 

 soon found an opening in his profession by the departure for Europe, 



a Mr. Belhetchet. Solicitor, who practised in the Penang 



so mu l ** 



->rk ™ 



But an obstacle in the way of his entering the Bar suddenly and 



■ unexpectedly presented itself in the shape of a most extraordinary 



freak on the part of the political rulers, who were at that time 



officials of the Hon'ble East India Company. The then Governor, 



Mr. Bonham, and his coadjutors, taking advantage of the absence 



of the Judge, Sir William Norris, abolished the Bar with three 



objects in view. First, retrenchment ; secondly, an addition to their 



power ; and thirdly, a saving of trouble to themselves. On these 



three grounds the young Advocate was refused admission. But so 



well was he supported, and so highly were his abilities appreciated 



by the inhabitants of the Settlement — European and Native — that 



the authorities had to give way, and thenceforward he became a 



Member of the Straits Bar. 



In our frequent intercourse at Penang, I early observed Lis habits 



of close application and enquiry, the first instance of which was 



his sitting down beside a Kling shop at Sungei Kluang and 



obtaining from the owner, not only a list of all the various native 



products sold, but an account of their uses, places of growth. 



