512  Memoir  of  Prof .  Wm.  Procter,  Jr.  {^o^^r 
inch  in  length,  and  rarely  exceeding  one-eighth  of  an  inch  in  diameter, 
also  averaging  over  two  ounces  to  the  pound  of  serpentaria. 
Chicago,  October  7,  1874.  P.  L.  MlLLEMAN. 
MEMOIR  OF  PROF.  WILLIAM  PROCTER,  Jr.* 
The  paternal  ancestry  of  William  Procter,  Jr.,  can  be  traced  by 
the  family  records  to  the  County  of  York,  England.  Thomas  Proc- 
ter, who  appears  to  have  been  the  great-great-grandfather  of  the 
subject  of  our  memoir,  was  an  officer  in  the  army  of  Oliver  Cromwell. 
His  descendants  were  converts  to  the  doctrines  of  George  Fox,  and 
at  an  early  period  are  recorded  as  members  of  the  religious  Society 
of  Friends.  Isaac  Procter,  the  father  of  William  Procter,  Jr.,  was  a 
man  of  exemplary  worth ;  and  we  deem  it  interesting,  as  a  prelude  to 
the  memoir  of  the  son,  to  give  a  short  sketch  of  the  life  of  so  worthy 
a  sire. 
The  father  of  Isaac  Procter  resided  in  the  city  of  York  ;  he  was  a 
man  in  humble  circumstances,  but  always  maintained  a  high  character 
for  sterling  worth  and  integrity  ;  his  family  connections  were  highly 
respectable,  and  their  acquaintance  was  among  those  more  favored  in 
temporal  circumstances ;  among  these  was  Lindley  Murray  (the 
grammarian). 
Isaac  Procter,  after  such  home  instruction  as  his  parents  were  able 
to  give  him,  was  sent  to  Ackworth  School  for  one  or  two  years,  and 
afterwards  he  learned  the  trade  of  a  carpenter.  After  a  great  fire 
in  London,  he  went  to  that  city  for  employment.  While  there,  it  is 
recorded  of  him,  a  that  his  best  suit  of  clothes  was  stolen  from  his 
chamber  closet  a  few  weeks  after  his  arrival — no  small  loss  to  one 
whose  means  were  so  limited.  It  was  months  before  he  could,  with 
the  utmost  economy,  replace  them,  and  yet  he  conscientiously  con- 
tinued to  attend  the  religious  meetings  of  Friends,  without  reference 
to  his  appearance.  It  was  full  six  months  before  a  single  individual 
shook  hands  with  him,  or  took  the  least  notice  of  him ;  so  keenly  did 
he  feel  his  isolated  state,  that  he  then  firmly  resolved  that  should  he 
ever  be  placed  in  a  situation  of  influence,  no  one  attending  the  meet- 
ing to  which  he  belonged  should  have  the  like  experience  ;  a  resolu- 
tion fully  carried  out,  as  many  can  testify.''  He  continued  to  live  in 
London  two  or  three  years,  when  he  returned  to  York.  Soon  after, 
a  minister  of  the  religious  Society  of  Friends  from  America  mak- 
*Read  at  the  Semi-annual  Meeting  September  28. 
