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 retired from the active duties of the pastorate. Public presentations were made to him in 1864, and in 1889 on the occasion of his ministerial jubilee. In April 1890 an ineffectual attempt was made in the Paisley presbytery of the united presbyterian church (into which the 'united secession' church was incorporated in 1847) to recall the sentence of 1841; but in July 1893 Morison received a complimentary address signed by over nineteen hundred laymen of the united presbyterian church.

He died on 13 Nov. 1893 at his residence, Florentine Bank, Billhead, Glasgow, and was buried on 16 Nov. in the Glasgow necropolis. He married, first, in 1841, Margaret (d. 1875), daughter of Thomas Dick of Edinburgh, by whom he had three children, the eldest being Marjory, married to George Gladstone, his assistant (from 1876) and successor; his eldest son, Robert, died of congestion of the lungs in 1873 on his passage to Australia. He married, secondly, in 1877, Margaret Aughton of Preston, who survived him. His portrait, painted by R. Gibb, R.S.A., was presented to him in 1889.

Morison was a man of real intellectual power and great gentleness of character. Probably of all Scottish sect makers he was the least sectarian. His personal influence and that of his writings extended much beyond the community which he headed, and, in a way none the less effective because steady and quiet, did much to widen the outlook of Scottish theology. Always a hard student, he had especially mastered the expository literature of the New Testament; and his permanent reputation as a writer will rest on his own commentaries, which are admirable alike for their compact presentation of the fruits of ample learning, and for the discriminating judgment of his own exegesis. The 'evangelical union,' which has been termed 'a successful experiment in heresy,' now numbers between ninety and one hundred churches, adhering to the well-marked lines of evangelical opinion laid down by its founder. Morison's original church removed from Clerk's Lane to Winton Place, Kilmarnock, in 1860; the old building was sold to a dissentient minority which left the 'evangelical union' in 1885.

He published: 1. 'The Question, "What must I do?"' &c., 1840; later edition, with title 'The Way of Salvation,' 1843, and 'Safe for Eternity' [1868]. 2. 'Not quite a Christian,' &c., 1840, often reprinted. 3. 'The Nature of the Atonement,' &c., 1841, often reprinted. 4. 'The Extent of the Atonement,' &c., 1841, often reprinted. 5. 'Saving Faith,' &c., 1844, reprinted. 6. 'A Gospel Alphabet,' &c., 1845. 7. 'The Declaration, "I Pray not for the World,"' &c., 1845, reprinted. 8. 'A Gospel Catechism,' &c., 1846, reprinted. 9. 'The Followers of … Timothy,' &c., 1847 (?). 10. 'An Exposition of the Ninth Chapter of Paul's Epistle to the Romans,' &c., 1849; new edition, re-written, with addition of tenth chapter, 1888. 11. 'Wherein the Evangelical Unionists are not Wrong,' &c., 1849. 12. 'Vindication of the Universality of the Atonement,' &c., 1861 (a reply to 'The Atonement,' by Robert Smith Candlish, D.D. [q. v.]). 13. 'Biblical Help towards Holiness,' &c., 1861. 14. ' Apology for … Evangelical Doctrines,' &c., 1862. 15. 'Questions on the Shorter Catechism,' &c., 1862. 16. 'A Critical Exposition of the Third Chapter of Paul's Epistle to the Romans,' &c., 1866. 17. 'A Practical Commentary on … St. Matthew,' &c., 1870. 18. 'A Practical Commentary on … St. Mark,' &c., 1873. 19. 'Exposition and Homiletics on Ruth,' &c., 1880 (in 'The Pulpit Commentary.') 20. 'St. Paul's Teaching on Sanctification,' &c., 1886. 21. 'Sheaves of Ministry; Sermons and Expositions,' &c., 1890. From 1854 to 1867 he edited and contributed largely to 'The Evangelical Repository,' a quarterly magazine.

 MORISON, JAMES AUGUSTUS COTTER (1832–1888), author, born in London 20 April 1832 (he generally dropped the 'Augustus'), was the only surviving child by a second marriage of James Morison (1770–1840) [q. v.] The father from about 1834 till his death resided in Paris, where he had many distinguished friends. His son thus learnt French in his infancy, and afterwards gained a very wide knowledge of French history, life, and literature. After his father's death in 1840 he lived with his mother near London. His health was delicate and his education desultory. After travelling in Germany, he in March 1850 entered Lincoln College, Oxford. He was popular in university society, a 'good oar,' fencer, and rider, and a wide reader, although not according to the regular course. His university careerwas interrupted by visits to his mother, whose health was failing. He graduated B.A. and M.A. in 1859, and left