and before Lord Bute's energetic reign, the Rector had little to do,
but to make a speech, and give a prize. I vaguely remember
proposing the author of Tom Brown long ago: he was not, however, in
the running.

Politics often inspire the electors; occasionally (I have heard)
grave seniors use their influence, mainly for reasons of academic
policy.

In December 1887 Murray writes about an election in which Mr. Lowell
was a candidate. `A pitiful protest was entered by an' (epithets
followed by a proper name) `against Lowell, on the score of his
being an alien. Mallock, as you learn, was withdrawn, for which I
am truly thankful.' Unlucky Mr. Mallock! `Lowell polled 100 and
Gibson 92 . . . The intrigues and corruption appear to be almost
worthy of an American Presidential election.' Mr. Lowell could not
accept a compliment which pleased him, because of his official
position, and the misfortune of his birth!

Murray was already doing a very little `miniature journalism,' in
the form of University Notes for a local paper. He complains of the
ultra Caledonian frankness with which men told him that they were
very bad. A needless, if friendly, outspokenness was a feature in
Scottish character which he did not easily endure. He wrote a good
deal of verse in the little University paper, now called College
Echoes.

If Murray ever had any definite idea of being ordained for the
ministry in any `denomination,' he abandoned it. His `bursaries'
(scholarships or exhibitions), on which he had been passing rich,