184 Proceedings of the Royal Society of Edinburgh. [Sess. 
was gifted with strong common sense, which made him an efficient 
organiser and a sound man of business. He had an extraordinary aptitude 
for getting down to the bottom of any question that came before him, and 
for facing and overcoming any difficulty, whether engineering or admini- 
strative, that he encountered in the course of his work. He had the faculty 
of drawing round him men of great ability to assist him in his work, and 
of getting from them ready and loyal assistance. He was deeply interested 
in the welfare of his workmen, of whom he often had thousands in his 
employment at one time. 
In a word, he was a great and successful Contractor, and the works 
he executed will form a worthy and lasting memorial of his useful and 
busy life. 
In his private life his friends found him broad-minded, kind-hearted, 
and generous. He had a large circle of friends to whom] he was fond of 
extending hospitality when occasion offered, and by whom he will be 
greatly missed. Rowing, yachting, and small-boat sailing were his 
favourite pastimes, and he was a member of the Royal^Yacht Squadron 
and other yacht clubs. 
After the Armistice, Sir John had begun to gather up again the threads 
of business and prepare for undertaking further large schemes of work, 
when he died somewhat suddenly on December 14, 1919. He was elected 
a Fellow of the Society in 1894. 
