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the great metaphysician and philosopher wrote a pamphlet addressed 

 to the Lord Provost and Town Conncil, in whose hands was the 

 patronage of the chair, "on the election of a Professor of Mathe- 

 matics," in which he spoke very strongly in favour of the qualifications 

 of Mr. Gregory as against those of Mr. Kelland. Once in the Senatus, 

 however, Mr. Kelland's gentlemanly manner, not less than his eminent 

 ability as a teacher, soon converted former opponents into friends. 

 That he bore no malice — as indeed his nature was incapable of doing 

 so — to those who had opposed him is shown from the way in which 

 he speaks of Sir William Hamilton in connexion with later fights, 

 both in the Senatus and between that body and the Town Council. 

 " lean say" (he remarks), " who was witness and part-actor in all these 

 contests, that never did Sir William exhibit a shadow of self-seeking. 

 Not for his comfort or his gain he contended ; and although my own 

 department was the object of some of his best known attacks, I can 

 say that never for one moment did I feel towards him other than the 

 warmest personal regard — nay, more, attachment. He was indeed 

 one of my kindest, steadiest friends." On the retirement of Sir 

 William Hamilton as secretary of the Senatus, another controversy 

 arose. The Town Council proposed that the office should be merged in 

 that of a general secretary to the University ; but the Senatus carried 

 the day, and appointed Mr. Kelland their secretary — a position he filled 

 in a highly satisfactory manner until 1867. Official duty as well as 

 inclination, therefore, led him to take an active part in the movement 

 then going on in favour of University reform, which resulted in the 

 appointment of the Commission of 1858, and the ultimate release of 

 the University from what the Professor described as the " somewhat 

 imaginary despotism of the Town Council." When Professor James 

 D. Forbes, who occupied the Natural Philosophy Chair, was laid aside 

 from work through ill-health, Mr. Kelland came forward, and, with 

 the assistance of one of his students, discharged the duties of the 

 chair from 1852 until 1856. As a teacher he was exceedingly popular 

 with his students, and that the Mathematical class did not fall off in 

 his hands he proved with justifiable pride in the speech already referred 

 to, by an allusion to the fact that whereas in 1838 he enrolled 111 

 students, in the past year he enrolled 373. 



The year after he came to Edinburgh, Prof essor Kelland was elected 

 a Fellow of the Royal Society of Edinburgh, in whose welfare he ever 

 took the greatest interest, and to whose publications he largely con- 

 tributed. He became in time one of the vice-presidents, and last year 

 he was chosen to succeed Sir William Thomson in the presidential 

 chair, and opened the session in November last with the customary 

 inaugural address. The deceased Professor was also, for about ten 

 years from 1850, an active member of the Society of Arts, and he was 

 president of that Society also in the session 1853-4. An institution 



