340 
Proceedings of the Royal Society 
Elmslie W. Dallas, Esq. By General Robertson and 
Professor Piazzi Smith. 
Elmslie William Dallas, the second son of William Dallas 
an underwriter at Llyod’s, was born in London on 27th June 1809. 
He was educated at the Academy of Inverness, where he lived with 
his aunt, Mrs Sweetland, widow of General Sweetland ; afterwards 
for a short time he attended classes at a commercial academy in 
London. 
In his twenty-second year he decided to follow art as a profession, 
and was admitted a student of the Royal Academy in 1831. He 
completed his Academy studies in 1834. 
The next six years (1834-1840) were spent on the Continent. 
During this time he resided a winter in Munich, nine months in 
Venice, and three years in Rome and its neighbourhood; he also spent 
several weeks at Dresden and Florence, and visited many other Ger- 
man, Flemish, French, and Italian cities. Several portfolios filled 
with highly-finished water-colour copies of the most celebrated pic- 
tures in the galleries he visited, and also with original drawings, 
sketches, and etchings, remain to testify the industry and skill with 
which during these six years the young artist pursued his studies. 
In 1838 (set. 29) he exhibited his first picture at the Royal 
Academy — it represented the interior of a Roman convent. 
Soon after his return to England in 1840, he was employed hy 
Herr Griiner to assist in the decoration of the garden pavilion at 
Buckingham Palace. 
In 1841-42 he sent some pictures to the Royal Scottish Academy, 
which were well received and sold. In consequence of this success 
he resolved to settle in Edinburgh, and from 1842 until his death (i.e., 
from his thirty-third to his seventieth year) he continued to reside 
there. For the next sixteen years (1842-58) he was a regular con- 
tributor to the annual exhibitions of the Royal Scottish Academy. 
His chief pictures were highly-studied interiors and mediaeval sub- 
jects. There were also several landscapes, notably some views of the 
Campagna and its ruins. His last picture was exhibited in 1858 
(set. 50). 
On 17th June 1846 he was appointed-assistant master of thr 
architectural and ornamental class of the School of Design under 
