have been told, by Mr Smith, but was nevertheless judged too young by Mr Dick, as he was not yet nineteen. The object to which his father, a man of exemplary piety, wished to direct his future prospects, was the Church, to which, however, he was at this time greatly averse, from motives which do not appear; but certainly not from any dislike to the objects or duties of the Clerical Profession. It was very natural for him to wish for some active scene, where his turn for Physical, and particularly Mechanical Science, might be exercised, and the influence of those indefinite and untried objects, which act so powerfully on the imagination of youth, directed his attention toward London. Professor Dick and Dr Simson joined in recommending him to Dr Blair, Prebendary of Westminster, who was then in search of a person to go to sea with Edward, Duke of York, and to assist his Royal Highness in the study of Mathematics and Navigation. When Mr Robison reached London in 1758, he learnt that the proposed voyage was by no means fixed, and after passing some time in expectation and anxiety, he found that the arrangement was entirely abandoned. This first disappointment in a favourite object could not fail to be severely felt, and had almost made him resolve on returning to Scotland.

He had been introduced, however, to Admiral Knowles, whose son was to have accompanied the

are left to conclude, from the history of the times, what were the events in which he must have taken part, or to gather, from the imperfect recollection of his conversation, the scenes in which he was actually engaged. I have heard him express great admiration at the cool intrepidity which he witnessed, when the fire-ships, sent down the stream against the English navy, at anchor in the river, seemed to present a wall of fire, extending from one bank to another, from which nothing that floated on the water could possibly escape. Without the smallest alarm or confusion, the British sailors assailed this flaming battlement in their boats, grappled the ships which composed it, and towed them to the shore, where they burnt down quietly to the water's edge.

An anecdote which he also used to tell, deserves well to be remembered. He happened to be on duty in the boat in which General Wolfe went to visit some of his posts, the night before the battle, which was expected to be decisive of the fate of the campaign. The evening was fine, and the scene, considering the work they were engaged in, and the morning to which they were looking forward, sufficiently impressive. As they rowed along, the General, with much feeling, repeated nearly the whole of Gray's Elegy (which had appeared not long before, and was yet but little known) to an officer who sat with him in the stern

be limited to two years, may well be considered as fortunate, in witnessing, during that short period, a series of events so remarkable as those which preceded and followed the taking of Quebec. Though great armies were not engaged, much valour and conduct were displayed; the leaders on both sides were men of spirit and talents; and, on the part of the English, the most cordial co-operation of the sea and land forces was worthy of men animated by the spirit of patriotism, or the love of glory; the fate also of the gallant leader, who fell in the moment of victory, and in the prime of life, by repressing the exultation of success, gave a deeper interest to the whole transaction.

Of the operations of this period Mr Robison was by no means a mere spectator. A hundred seamen, under the command of Lieutenant Knowles, were drafted from the Royal William into the Stirling Castle, the Admiral's ship. Mr Robison was of this party, and had an opportunity of seeing a great deal of active service. At this time, also, he was occasionally employed in making surveys of the river and the adjacent grounds; a duty for which he was eminently qualified, both by his skill as a mathematician, and his execution as a draughts

man.

It is, however, much to be regretted, that his papers, whether memorandums or letters, give no account of the incidents of this period; so that we

are left to conclude, from the history of the times, what were the events in which he must have taken part, or to gather, from the imperfect recollection of his conversation, the scenes in which he was actually engaged. I have heard him express great admiration at the cool intrepidity which he witnessed, when the fire-ships, sent down the stream against the English navy, at anchor in the river, seemed to present a wall of fire, extending from one bank to another, from which nothing that floated on the water could possibly escape. Without the smallest alarm or confusion, the British sailors assailed this flaming battlement in their boats, grappled the ships which composed it, and towed them to the shore, where they burnt down quietly to the water's edge.

An anecdote which he also used to tell, deserves well to be remembered. He happened to be on duty in the boat in which General Wolfe went to visit some of his posts, the night before the battle, which was expected to be decisive of the fate of the campaign. The evening was fine, and the scene, considering the work they were engaged in, and the morning to which they were looking forward, sufficiently impressive. As they rowed along, the General, with much feeling, repeated nearly the whole of Gray's Elegy (which had appeared not long before, and was yet but little known) to an officer who sat with him in the stern

of the boat; adding, as he concluded, that "he would prefer being the author of that poem to the glory of beating the French tomorrow.'

Tomorrow came, and the life of this illustrious soldier was terminated, amid the tears of his friends, and the shouts of his victorious army. Quebec fell of course; and soon afterwards the fleet under Admiral Saunders sailed for England. When they arrived on the coast, they were informed that the Brest fleet was at sea, and that Sir Edward Hawke was in search of it. Without waiting for orders, Admiral Saunders sailed to reinforce Hawke, but came too late, the celebrated victory over Conflans, in Quiberon Bay, having been obtained (on the 20th of November) a few days before he joined. Whether the Royal William accompanied the rest of the fleet on this occasion, I have not been able to learn. The body of General Wolfe was brought home in that ship, and was landed at Spithead on the 18th of November. From that date to the beginning of next year, I find nothing concerning the Royal William, when that ship, with the Namur and some others, under the command of Admiral Boscawen, sailed on an expedition to the Bay of Quiberon. On this service the Royal William remained between five and six months, having been twice sent to cruise off Cape Finisterre, for five weeks each time.

About this period, a series of letters from Mr