‘15th Oct. 1673.
‘The said day, Master Alexander Skene, ane of the regents of Saint Andrewes signifying to the councell that Master James Gregorie, professor of Mathematics ther, that ther was ane considerable work intendit in that airt, which before being brought to ane perfectione woulde stand considerable moneyes and that severall incorporations and Universities hade contribuit therto, and seeing the said professor was ane town’s man heir, it was expectit by all concernit, and humblie desyrit be him, that this burgh wold contribute to the furtherance of the said work: All which the councell considering, finds it incumbent upon them not to be wanting for advancement of the said effair in so far as they are lyable, and therfor appoynts ane collectione to be at the Kirk dores ... the nixt or subsequent Lord’s day for the forsaid effect....’
Things were going very smoothly—success was absolutely fawning upon Gregorie—he was getting money as he wanted it, and the instruments he had bought were entirely to his mind; but on his return from London, where he had gone to fulfil his commission, he found everything changed, and his colleagues, who had once been so kindly to him, had ceased to regard him as their friend. He was in the curious situation of being paid by all three colleges, and that in itself would make his position somewhat difficult, but this difficulty had always existed. The real cause of dissension was that in his absence the students had been making popular demonstrations against some of the other teachers, and citing his lectures as opposed to the theories propounded by them. It was most uncomfortable for everybody, and everyone in authority determined to make it most uncomfortable of all for Gregorie. His salary was suspended, the university servants were told to take no notice of his orders, and the students were commanded not to attend his lectures, for certainly the mathematics as taught by him had turned their heads, they had shown distinct signs of madness. The attitude of the professors was not unlike that taken up by the country doctor, who when asked to fill in a form, certifying one of his patients to be insane, put as evidence observed by himself, ‘he called me a fool!’
In the midst of all the turmoil came a flattering invitation to James Gregorie to become Professor of Mathematics in Edinburgh University. After the treatment he had received this was a most blessed chance and with great joy he left St Andrews, and came to Edinburgh.
The whole story was written to James Fraser, then at Paris:—
‘Much honoured Sir,—I received some days ago your very obliging letter, and not long after your arrival at Paris I had another from you, to which the truth is I was ashamed to answer, the affairs of the St Andrews Observatory were in such a bad condition, the reason of which was the prejudice the masters of the University did take at the mathematics, because some of their scholars finding their courses and dictates opposed by what they had studied in the mathematics, did mock at their masters, and deride some of them publicly. After this the servants of the college got orders not to wait on me or my observations, my salary was also kept back from me, and scholars of most eminent rank were violently kept from me, contrary to their own and their parents’ wills, the masters persuading them that their brains were not able to endure it. These and many other discouragements oblige me to accept of a call here to the College of Edinburgh, where my salary is here double, and my encouragements much greater.’