elder in the church. When the question of establishing a Presbyterian college at the University of Melbourne was raised in 1877, he pledged £10,000 to the appeal. At the opening of the college on 18 March 1881, it was announced that it would be officially named Ormond College in honour of his major contribution. Over his lifetime, Ormond donated almost £40,000 towards its complete construction. First wife's death Ormond's wife, Mary Ann, died on 6 July 1881, at their home in Toorak. His late wife was a member of the Church of England and, in memoriam, he anonymously donated £5,000 towards the construction of St Paul's Cathedral in Melbourne. The donation financed the completion of its central tower and its western tower. In 1881, he purchased a large section of James Balfour's "Round Hill Station" near Albury in New South Wales, naming his section "Kirndeen Station". He also further expanded his Victorian land holdings at his "Bangal Station" in Skipton. In 1881, Ormond was appointed a member of the Royal Commission of Inquiry into the Education Act. He refused the position of Commission Chairman, due to his advocacy of religious education in state schools, but accepted a general position with the commission. Ormond encouraged the creation of the Technological Commission, which was later responsible for the introduction of technical education into state schools. He also proposed the idea of a technical college for Melbourne. He pledged £5000 towards the proposal, on the provision that the government supply a site and trade unions contribute the majority of funds. However, the proposal was met with little support from the commission, and was subsequently dropped. Election to parliament Ormond also tried to establish a music college in Melbourne, in 1882. However, like his technical college proposal, it was met with little support. He stood for the Parliament of Victoria in 1882, and was subsequently elected the Member of the Legislative Council for the South-Western Province. With his new political status, Ormond revived his technical college proposal, which received approval in late 1882. He remarried on 1 October 1885, to Mary (née Oliphant) in London, while visiting technical colleges and music colleges in Europe to examine their methods and practices. Also in 1885, he became a key contributor of the proposed Gordon Memorial Technical College in Geelong. Ormond's "Working Men's College" During his first four trips to Europe, Ormond visited a number of technical