ory
of the University of Glasgow, written by Dr. Thomas Reid, formerly
Professor of Moral Philosophy.--_Ed._]

96 [The day of his election was "iiij Cal. Nov 1646 (Annal. Colleg.)"
The _Nova Erectio_ or foundation charter, granted to the University
of Glasgow 13th July, 1577, in the minority of James VI, made
provision for the appointment of three Regents, or Professors, along
with the Principal. The first Regent was required to teach Rhetoric
and Greek, the second Logic, Ethics, and the principles of
Arithmetic and Geometry, and the third, who was also sub principal,
Physiology, Geography, _Astrology_, and Chronology (See Copy of the
_Nova Erectio_ in Evidence for University Commissioners for Scotland
vol. 8. p. 241 London, 1837). In the year 1581, the Archbishop of
Glasgow gifted to the University the customs of the city, which
enabled them to establish the office of a fourth Regent, to whom was
allotted exclusively the teaching of Greek, and, sometime previous
to the year 1637, a fifth Regent was chosen, who was Professor of
Humanity, "humanitarum literarum" (Old Stat. Acc. of Scot., vol xxi.
Append. pp 24, 25). This professorship however, was not permanently
established till the year 1706 (Rep. of Roy. Com. appointed in 1830,
p. 241). By the foundation-charter the Regents were restricted to
particular professions, or departments of academical instruction,
that they might be found better qualified for the discharge of their
different functions (ut adolescentes qui gradatim ascendunt, dignium
suis studus et ingenuus praeceptorem repettre queant). But this
practice, as will be seen from the following minute of a University
Commission, was changed in the year 1642. "The Visitat on after
tryall, taking to consideration that everie Regent within the
Colledge has beine accustomed hithertills to continue for more years
togithere, in and on the same professione so that the schollers of
one and the self-same class are necessitat yearlye to change theire
masters, have found it more profitable and expedient, that the
present course of teaching the schollers be altered, and that everie
master educate his own schollers through all the foure classes,
quhalk is appointed to begin presentlie thus that the classes, which
are taken