Ixii Proceedings of Royal Society of Edinburgh. 
Edinburgh, where he received the education in classics which that 
institution afforded. Throughout, like many others of its scholars 
who in after life have distinguished themselves, his position was 
at best that of respectable mediocrity. Yet he succeeded in accom- 
plishing what, in those days at least, was not so very common. He 
carried away with him some knowledge of Latin, which he was 
able to revive and heartily enjoy in later years. A predilection for 
letters, although doubtless inherited, was, in spite of his stern dis- 
cipline, evoked into conscious activity by his master, Alexander 
Brown, and must have received further development at the High 
School ; for, from an early period, he displayed a noteworthy love 
of books, and early became an ardent book collector. In these days 
it was far easier than it now is to pick up old books at moderate 
prices ; and, even within the very limited means placed at his dis- 
posal, he evinced much good taste and judgment in his purchases. 
Among these was a copy of uEsof^s Fables with Bewick’s woodcuts, 
now in my possession. But his chief triumph was falling in with 
a copy of the excessively rare Croniclis of Scotland of Hector Boece 
(Edinburgh, 1527). 
In default of becoming an engineer like his father — an aspiration 
which as yet had received no encouragement — it was but a natural 
outcome of his love of letters, and still more of their material 
embodiment in the shape of books, that he should now have con- 
templated the calling of a printer as a possible alternative. In 
accordance with such prospects, about this time he had got made 
for himself a working model of a printing press. This was not a 
mere toy, but a regular “ Columbian ” press ; and his notion was 
to write essays of his own, and to print them. I remember one 
fragment which thus went through the press. It was written in 
typical Johnsonian English, due to the inspiration of Rassellas, 
Prince of Abyssinia, and other writings of the great lexicographer, 
caught under the contagious enthusiasm of Alexander Brown. But 
a ready use of his fingers, unless it were in writing, was not one of 
Tom’s natural gifts, and the work of compositor and pressman was 
speedily abandoned. 
But now it was time that he were choosing a calling for life. His 
tastes and aspirations were for his father’s profession. But already 
his elder brothers, Alan and David, had adopted it ; and it seemed 
