WILLIAM SMELLIE. 43 
racter, as a husband and parent, is represented 
to have been peculiarly estimable. 
Like many other learned men, Mr Smellie’s 
opinions in religion and philosophy have occa- 
sionally been misrepresented by well meaning 
but somewhat narrow-minded people. In fact, 
opinions in regard to religious doctrines and 
forms, on which many good and wise men have 
disputed almost with rancour, and seldom in the 
spirit of charity, are manifest to all ; but the 
following pious sentiment, with which he con- 
cludes his first volume of the Philosophy of 
Natural History, we think ought not to be 
omitted : 
“ Let mas be contented. His station in the 
universal scale of Nature is fixed by Wisdom. 
Let him contemplate and admire the works of 
his Creator ; let him fill up his rank with 
dignity, and consider every partial evil as a 
cause or an effect of general good" 
His works have been for many years extolled 
both by domestic and foreign authors ; and 
latterly by Lords Brougham and Althorp, Miss 
Edgeworth, &c. 
The following picture of Mr Smellie is from 
the pen of Burns, in a letter, accompanied with 
a present of a cheese, to the late Mr Peter Hill. 
“ Dear Sir, — I know that you are no niggard 
of your good things among your friends, and 
some of them are much in need of a slice. There 
in my eye is our friend Smellie ; a man posi- 
