Modern English biography

portraits_ (_Boston_ 1854) 228–55; _John Evans’s Lancashire authors and orators_ (1850) 182–9; _Orators of the age. By G. H. Francis_ (1847) 406–15; _J. Grant’s Portraits of public characters_ (1841) 239–50; _E. M. Roose’s Ecclesiastica_ (1842) 420–4; _Church of England photographic portrait gallery_ (1859), _portrait_ 36; _Christian cabinet illustrated almanack for 1860 p._ 30; _Drawing room portrait gallery 3 series_ (1860), _portrait_ 11; _Dublin univ. mag. xxix_ 462, _portrait_; _I.L.N. lxxiv_ 105 (1879), _portrait_; _Graphic_, _xix_ 241 (1879), _portrait_. M’NEILL, ALEXANDER DUNCAN (1 son of Alexander M’Neill, advocate). _b._ Edinburgh 1829; ed. Edinb. high sch. and univ.; an actor in the English provinces; played at Drury Lane, at Lyceum and at Birmingham; manager of old Theatre royal, Aberdeen 1862 and lessee 1869; manager of Royal Princess’ Edinb. 14 Sep. 1868 to death; first appeared as Richelieu 28 Sep., and first time in Edinb. as Rob Roy 7 Nov. 1868; also directed Theatres royal Dumfries and Dundee, and the Gaiety theatre Glasgow; a good actor as Rob Roy, as Jacques in As you like it, and as sir John Falstaff; made his last appearance as Rob Roy at Lyceum, Edinb. 21 July 1884; wrote The gloamin’ and the mirk, a story of modern Athens, a drama at the Princess’ 8 Feb. 1869. _d._ 4 Buccleuch place, Edinb. 7 Nov. 1884. His son W. A. M’Neill was lessee of the Princess’ Nov. 1884 to 22 May 1886 when the house closed. _J. C. Dibdin’s Edinburgh stage_ (1888) 482–7. M’NEILL, ARCHIBALD (5 son of John M’Neill of Colonsay, Argyllshire). _b._ Colonsay, Sep. 1803; writer to the signet 18 June 1829; director and principal clerk at chancery office Edinb. 24 March 1843 to 1858; one of the principal clerks of session 6 July 1858 to death; took great interest in the breed of the deer hounds possessed by his family, and contributed to W. Scrope’s Days of deer stalking 1883, An account of the original Scotch greyhounds and details of deer coursing; author of Notes on the authenticity of Ossian’s Poems. By a member of the Society of antiquaries of Scotland 1868. _d._ Edinburgh 2 June 1870. _Journal of jurisprudence_, _July 1870 p._ 375. M’NEILL, ARCHIBALD. _b._ 1852; ed. at Baptist theological coll. near Birmingham; connected with Birmingham Daily Mail, and Birmingham Morning News; leader writer and dramatic critic on Newcastle chronicle; came to London 1878, writer and dramatic critic on The Sportsman from 1882; sent on 18 Dec. 1887 to Rouen to report the prize fight between James Smith and Jake Kilrain 19 Dec., missed at Boulogne on 20 Dec., found drowned on the beach near the jetty on 6 Jany. 1888 having probably been murdered. _I.L.N. 21 Jany. 1888 pp._ 57, 58, _portrait_; _Daily Graphic 10 Dec. 1891 p._ 9, _view of house where he is said to have been murdered_. MC NEILL, SIR JOHN (brother of Archibald Mc Neill 1803–70). _b._ Colonsay, Aug. 1795; ed. at univ. of Edinb., M.D. 1814; assistant surgeon Bombay army 6 Sep. 1816, surgeon 1 May 1824, retired 4 June 1836; attached to H.E.I.Co.’s legation in Persia 1824–35; secretary of special embassy at Teheran 30 June 1835; minister plenipotentiary to shah of Persia 9 Feb. 1836, envoy and min. plenipo. 25 May 1836 to 5 Aug. 1842; notwithstanding his protests Herat was besieged by the Persians Nov. 1837 to Sep. 1838; he concluded a treaty of commerce with Persia 11 Oct. 1841; F.R.S. 5 April 1838; chairman of board of supervision entrusted with working of Scottish poor law act of 1845, 1845–68; sent to the Crimea with A. M. Tulloch, Feb. 1855, to report on the commissariat department, &c., their final report was signed in London, Jany. 1856; knight of Persian order of the Sun and Lion 1835; G.C.B. 15 April 1839; P.C. 6 May 1857; the last survivor of original members of Royal Asiatic Society 1823; F.R.S. Edinb. 1840; D.C.L. 24 June 1857; author of Progress and present position of Russia in the East 1836, another ed. 1854. _d._ Cannes 17 May 1883, bust in National portrait gallery, Edinb. _Kinglake’s Invasion of the Crimea 6 ed. vol. vii passim_ (1877); _I.L.N. lxxxii_ 549 (1883), _portrait_; _Sir A. M. Tulloch’s Crimean Commission_ (1880) _with preface by Mc Neill pp. v–xiv_. MACNEILL, SIR JOHN BENJAMIN (son of Torquil P. Macneill). _b._ Mount Pleasant, Dundalk 1794; lieut. in Louth militia 29 April 1811; one of principal assistants to Thomas Telford the engineer, having the turnpike roads in north of England entrusted to him; a consulting engineer in London and Glasgow about 1834; constructed the Wishaw and Coltness railway and other small lines in Scotland; conducted a series of important experiments in canal-boat traction; made known his system of sectio-planography 1837, adopted for railway plans by standing orders of house of commons; surveyed North of Ireland for the Irish railway commission; professor of civil engineering, Trinity college, Dublin 1842–52; completed the Dublin and Drogheda railway; completed first section to Kildare of Great southern and western railway 1844 for which he was knighted by earl de Grey 1844; F.R.S. 5 April 1838; author of Tables for calculating the cubic quantities of earthwork in the cuttings for canals, railways and turnpike roads 1833, 2 ed. 1846; translated C. L. M. H. Navier’s On the means of comparing the advantages of different lines of railway 1836. _d._ 186 Cromwell road, South Kensington, London 2 March 1880. _Min. of proc. of instit. of C.E. lxxiii_ 361–7 (1883). MAC NICHOLAS, PATRICK. Professor of Greek in Maynooth college; bishop of Achonry 23 Feb. 1818 to death, consecrated 17 May