Litchfield enquirer., 1860-11-29
ILLUSTRIOUS OUNCES.

An interesting chapter might be written on the subject of the 1llustrious Ounces dull boys but brilliant men. We have room, however, for only few instances. Pietro al Cortona, the painter, was thought so stu pid that he was nicknamed Ass Head" when boy and Tomaso Guido was gene rally known as Heavy Tom" (Massocca Tomasaccio,) though by diligence he after wards raised himself to the highest emi- nence. Newton, when in school, stood at the lowest form but one. The boy above Newton having kicked him, the dunce show cd his pluck by challenging him to fight, and beat him. Theu he set to work with a will, and determined to vanquish his antag- onist as scholar, which he did, rising to l the top of his class. Many of cur greatest diyines have been any thing but precocious. Isaac Barrow, when at the Charter School house, was notorious chiefly for his strong temper, pugnacious habits, and proyerbial ldleuesS as U scholar, and he caused such grieis to his parents, that his father used to say that if it pleased God to take from him -any of his children, he hoped it might be Isaac, the least promising of them all Ad- am Clarke, when boy, was proclaimed by his father to be a grievous dunce." though he could roll large stones about. Dean Swift, one of the greatest writers of pure English, was "pIucked" at Dublin Univer. sty, aud only obtained his recommeudatieu t, Oxford, "speciala gratia." The we'll known Drs. Chalmers and Cook were boys together at the parish school of St. An drews :; and they were found so stupid and mischievous, that the master, irritated be- yond measure, dismissed them both as in. corrgible dunces
 The brilliant Sheriden showed SO little ca- pacity as boy, that he was presented to hls tutor by his mother with the complimen- tary accompaniment, that he was the incor. rgible dunce. Walter Scott was all but dunce when boy, always much readier for a " bicker' than apt at his lessons. At the Edinburg University, Professor Dalzel pro nounced upon him the sentence that ' Ounce he was, dunce he would remain." Chatter ton was returned on hls mother's hands as "a fool, of whom nothing could be made. Burns was a dull boy, good only at athletic exercises. Goldsmith spoke of himself as . plaut that lowered late. Alferi left col lege as wise as when he entered it, and did not begin the studies by which he distin- guished himself, until he had run over half of Europe. Robert Give was dunce, if not a rcprobate, when youth but always full of energy, even in badness. His fsmi- | ly. glad to get rid of him, shipped him oH to Madras and he lived to lay the founda- ton of the British power in India. Napo- leon and Wellington were both dull boys, not distinguishing themselves ill any way at school Of the former, the Duchess of d'Abrantes says: He had good health, but was in other respects like other boys" John Howard, the philanthropist, was an- other illustrious duncc, learning next to nothing during the seven years he was st school. Stephenson, as youth, was dis tinguished chiefly for his skill at putting and wrestling, and attention to his work. The brilliant Sir Humpherey Duvy was no clsv- erer than other boys his teacher, Mir. Da- vies Gilbert, says of him, While he was with me, could not discern the qualities by which he was most distinguished" In- deed, he himself in after life, thought itfof- tunate to enjoy so much idleness at school. Watt was dull scholar, notwithstanding the pretty stories told about his precocity {; but he was, what was better, patient and perseverant, and it was by that means, and by his carefully cultivated inyentiveuess, that he was enabled to perfect his steam engine.