The magisterial views seem to have prevailed in the professoriate, which formally in March 1642 expressed its disapprobation of the new philosophy as well as of its expositors.
All these works, from the Higher English Grammar downwards, were written by Bain during his twenty years' professoriate at Aberdeen.
In 1864 he became docent of the university of Berlin, but, in consequence of a quarrel with the professoriate, was deprived of his licence to teach in 1874.
During his professoriate he wrote many scientific and popular works, besides contributing largely to the Botanical Register, of which he was editor for many years, and to the Gardener's Chronicle, in which he had charge of the horticultural department from 1841.
These changes included the transference of the initiative in university legislation from the sole authority of the heads of houses to an elected and representative body, the opening of college fellowships and scholarships to competition by the removal of local and other restrictions the non-enforcement at matriculation of subscription to the Thirty-nine Articles, and various steps for increasing the usefulness and influence of the professoriate.
