26 
Proceedings of the Royal Society 
nephew. In this duty he was conjoined with the late Lord 
Meadowbank and Dr Abercrombie; but the chief part of the work 
fell on Mr Sinclair. 
He mentions that it was in the year 1828 that he became 
acquainted with Dr Thomas Chalmers, when the latter resigned 
his professorship of Moral Philosophy at St Andrews, to become 
Professor of Divinity in E linburgh University. Having a great 
admiration for the doctor’s character and writings, he attended his 
first course of lectures, and describes the intense interest with 
which he and the other students listened to the professor’s exposi- 
tions. The salary of the professors being then very small — only 
£200 — the idea of offering a testimonial to Dr Chalmers, at the 
end of his first course, occurred to Mr Sinclair. According^ a 
sum of £200 was raised from the voluntary students, and presented 
to the new professor. 
In the year 1839 Mr Sinclair went to London, apparently to 
consult Mr Wardrop, the celebrated occulist, about his eyes. He 
had to submit to a painful operation and to severe discipline, 
which confined him to a room in London for some weeks. 
Whilst he was there, a vacancy occurred in the office of Secre- 
tary to the National Society — a great Society, established, among 
other things, for the encouragement and support of schools con- 
nected with the Church of England. Mr Sinclair was asked to 
fill the vacant office. At first he refused, as it would oblige him 
to leave Edinburgh altogether, and he could not be certain of being 
so well received in London as he had been in his own country. 
But finding that the two London Archbishops and other persons 
of influence were anxious that he should accept, he consented. 
He was at the same time appointed to be examining chaplain to the 
Bishop of London. 
Immediately after entering on this new office, he found himself 
involved in a great public controversy, which called for the utmost 
exertion, with great tact on his part. The controversy had reference 
to the schools of the National Society receiving aid from Gfovern- 
ment. After the administration of the Education Grant was 
transferred from the Lords of the Treasury to the Privy Council 
Committee, a system of inspection, to see that the schools were 
properly conducted as regards teaching, was resolved on. The 
