His teaching, again, now worked energetically ou many young and ardent spirits gathered round him in his lecture-room. There is not evidence indeed that his logical lectures have as yet had much effect on his personal pupils. But the metaphysical lectures excited a keen interest in philosophy among all of his students who were qualified for severe abstract thinking; while they guided the thinking of not a few into channels in which it long or always continued to flow. He was, too, not less anxious in encouraging and directing for the young men wide philosophical reading, than in prompting them to active philosophical reflection and reasoning.
Sir William 'a studies seem to have been conducted, thenceforth, with a steadier view than before to systematic exposition and publication.
Still the.labour proceeded slowly. Academic business, and other temporary occasions of controversy, were somewhat ton apt to inter rupt the progress of one who was armed for warfare less ignoble.
Among other things, he, himself a Presbyterian, published a pamphlet on the schism which split the Church of Scotland in 1843. Very soon, likewise, after that year, his health began to fail ; and paralysis struck the right side of his body from head to foot. He was for a timo utterly disabled from teaching, and was afterwards able to lecture only with frequent assistance. But the vigour, both of intellect and of will, was as unimpaired as it had been with Dugald Stewart under a similar calamity. His reading and thinking were still carried on ; even his writing was so, not without very much aid from others. That more of his large designs were not executed, is a fact for which there were thus, in his latest years, but too sorrowful reasons. He had long worked at intervals on that which he had set himself as his first task, the annotat ing of the works of Thomas Reid. He aimed at showing the relations of Reid's system, both to older philosophical opinions on the one hand, and also to newer ones, especially to Hamilton's own metaphysical doctrines—doctrines which be himself always regarded, and firmly and thankfully represented, as having their essential germ and foundation in Reid, and as being merely a development of the com mon sense' philosophy to results made possible by a combivation of scholastic and German methods. Sir William Hamilton's annotated edition of The Works of Dr. Thomas Rcid ' appeared in 1846, much of it having been printed long before. But all that has been published down to this date (1856) leaves it lamentably incomplete. On not a few problems of deep interest—on not a few also bearing closely on our comprehension of Hamilton's own system of thought, we are left with references, in foot-notes, to supplementary dissertations, of which not a word is yet given us ; and a dissertation asserting his own peculiar theory of the Association of Ideas is broken off abruptly at the end of the volume. In 1852 appeared the first edition of a reprint, with large
additions, of his periodical articles—•Discussiona on Philosophy and Literature, Education and University Reform—chiefly from the Edin burgh Review.' Translations of several of the essays had previously been made into French, Italian, and German ; Peisse's French transla tion and notes are particularly valuable. Sir William's regard for the Scottish school in philosophy next showed itself, not (unluckily) in the completion of his 'Reid,' and those further developments of hie own doctrines which he had there promised, hut in a tribute to the memory of another of its celebrated masters, from whom be had neither derived, nor professed to derive, much if anything in his own opinions.
He uudertook to edite, with notes, the collected works of Dugald Stewart. The publication, begun in 1854, is still uncompleted ; and nothing has appeared of the biography which was to introduce it. In 1855, when in country-quarters, Sir William suffered fracture of a limb ; and he died in Edinburgh on the 6th of May 1856. He has left a widow and family. The manuscripts of his lectures, in both divisions, aro said to ho in such a state, that they may easily be prepared for the press.
As those who knew Sir William Hamilton through his writings only cannot do foil justice to the moltifarioutineas of his knowledge; so like %lie such as look chiefly to those of his writings which had personal bearings, will do positive lojustice to the real likeableness of his personal character. lie was undoubtedly a stern, and keen, and often eager controversialist, occasionally even a haughty one; in debate he never beat, about fur smooth words; and, absorbed to his love for reience and learning, he sometimes forgot to be gentle towards those whom he thought to be erring or knew to be comparatively ignorant. lie was watchfully jealous, also, (and once or twice, as in his centre Tony with Mr. De )(orgen, needlessly and BIN) of anything that looked like interference with his claims to originality in points he had thought out for himself. But even in controversy, if he did hit hard, he never struck a man from behind ; and tho same chivalrous openness marked all his dealings. Under the combative tendency, moreover, there lay great genoroelty, great kindliness and warmth of heart : he was invariably amiable when occasion did not force on polemics: be was an active and steady friend, beloved as well as esteemed by those who were admitted to his friendship.