Obituary Notices, xxxiii 
he was sent to the High School 6f this city, and afterwards 
attended the University, both in Arts and Divinity. His career 
there was marked with distinction, especially in the field of Classics, 
and in Greek he was a class-fellow and rival of Dr William Yeitch 
of Jedburgh, the learned author of the well-known work on the 
Greek irregular verb. It was a tradition that, at least in one 
session, James Grant succeeded in standing first, while Yeitch was 
second in the Greek class. 
He was licensed by the Presbytery of Edinburgh, and almost 
immediately thereafter, in 1824, was ordained minister of the first 
charge of South Leith. There he remained with much acceptance 
to the large congregation for nineteen years, notwithstanding some 
tempting offers of translation. He early was acknowledged as a 
leader in the Church Courts, and in 1837 was one of a deputation 
(which included Dr Chalmers and other eminent divines) who 
presented in person the congratulatory address from the Church of 
Scotland to Queen Yictoria on her accession. In the same year he 
was one of a deputation sent by the General Assembly to inquire 
into the religious condition of the people of the Island of Skye. 
By this time the troublous events of the “ ten years’ conflict ” 
had commenced, and Dr Grant was much engaged in its various 
controversies. Many of these are now matters of somewhat remote 
history, and it would be improper in a notice such as this to stir 
embers of former fires. It may be enough to mention that when 
the party opposed to those with whom Dr Grant acted proceeded to 
the extreme act of deposition of some ministers in the Presbytery of 
Strathbogie, Dr Grant and his friends denied the legality of the 
proceedings, and deliberately visited Strathbogie for the purpose of 
holding ministerial communion with the deposed ministers. For 
this ecclesiastical offence the majority of the Assembly inflicted the 
nominal punishment of suspension from judicial functions for 
nine months. During his suspension he received a largely-signed 
address of confidence from his flock, and the same year (1842) the 
University of Glasgow conferred on him the degree of D.D. At 
this time also he was appointed chaplain to the Highland and 
Agricultural Society of Scotland, an honour which he much valued, 
and which he retained till his death. Hext year (1843) saw the 
end of the ten years’ conflict. The parish of St Mary’s, Edinburgh, 
