his own people.

McNair belonged to a department which is not great in distinctions and
decorations, and is connected with no celestial brotherhood. Indeed, it
has no dealings with stars but such as are of God's own making--and he
belonged to what by grace of official courtesy is called the
"subordinate" branch. Out of it he never rose, though had he lived on
the Russian side of the border his career might well have brought him
high military rank and decorations in strings across his uniform. They
say that decorations are "cheap" there. Yet it should be remembered
that zeal, industry, enterprise, and patriotism are "cheap," too, if
they are to be won by them. Perhaps we manage better. The good old
copybook maxim, "Virtue is its own reward," must be McNair's epitaph,
whilst we cannot help feeling that India could have better spared many
a "bigger" man.




_Extract from_ "THE STATESMAN," _August 27th_, 1889.

By the death of Mr. McNair, of the Survey Department, a most valuable
officer has been lost to the Government of India, and a contributor to
our geographical knowledge of Afghanistan. It is difficult to estimate
the value of his services, as they have never been brought prominently
into notice like those of others who have lived in the sunshine of
official favour. We believe that, as in many similar cases, the public
record of his work was nothing to what he really did in the service of
geography, without any official publicity or recognition of the fact
whatever. From what we know of his life's work, we can gather