He is only on the Birth Certificate so must have been present at the registration, as my grandfather was given his surname. He is not in Elgin in the 1881 Census or the valuation roll of 1885 for Elgin, he was proberbly a lodger in 1884 and I have looked at the tennants of where he lodged for 1881 and 1885 but can establish no connection. I have a spreadsheet of all Hugh Adams or Adam for 1881 to eliminate individuals and although there are some potential suspects through age or location, unfortunatley no hard evidance. family hearsay has Hugh Adams and my great grandmother being shipped of to relatives in South Africa, where he died and she returned to her family in Elgin, still single.
Thank you for the suggestion about the law firms I can get a list from an 1886 Elgin directory I have downloaded and cross reference it with current law firms in Elgin.