The Vermont transcript. [volume] (St. Albans, Vt.) 1864-1870, 1868-04-10
4 fer Facts about Celebrated ben.

Some literary men make good men of
business. According to Pope, the prin-
cipal object of Shakespeare in Guilt
waiting literature was to secure an honest
independence. He succeeded sowell in
the accomplishment of this purpose,
that al a comparatively early age, he
had realized a sufficient competency to
enable him to retire to his native town
of StratfOrd-upOn-AvO Chauncer was
in early life a soldier, and afterwards a
commissioner of customs and inspector
of woods and crown lands. Spenser was
secretary to the Lord Deputy of Ireland,
and Is said to have been shrewd and sa-
gacious in the management Of affairs
Milton was secretary to the Council Of
State during the Commonwealth, and
abundant evidence Of his energy and
usefulness in that office. Sir Isaac New
ton was u most efficient Master of the
Mint Wordsworth was a distributor of
stamps, and Sir Walter Scott clerk to
the Court of SessiOns-bOth uniting
genius for poetry with punctual and
practical habits as men of business
ricardo was no less distinguished rs a
sagaciOus banker than lucid expOunder
OF the principles of political economy
Grote, the most profound historian Of
Greece, is also q London banker. John
Stuart NH, not surpassed by any living
thinker in pTOfoundness of speculation.
lately retired from the examiners de-
partment in the East India Company,
with the admiration of his colleagues'for
the rare ability with which he had con-
Quoted the business of the department.
Alexander Murray, the distinguished
linguist, learned to write by seribbling
his letters on an old wool card with the
end of a burnt heather stem. Professor
Moore, when young man, being too
poor tOpurchase Newton $. Principles, -
borrowed the book, and copied the whole
of il with his own hand. William Cob
bett made himself master of English
grammar when he was private soldier
on the pay of siXpence day. The edge
of his berth or that of his guard bed was
his seat to study in bit of board lying
on his lap was his writing table; and
the evening light of the fire his substi-
tute for candle or oil. Even advanced
age, in many interesting cases, has not
proved fatal to literary success. Sir
Henry Spelman was between fifty and
sixty when he began the study Ofscience
Franklin was fifty before he fully en-
gagged in the researches in natural phil
OsOphy which have made his name inn
mortal. BOccacciO was thirty-five
when he entered upon his literary ca
reer; and Alfieri was forty-siX when he
commenced the study of Greek Dr.
Arnold learned German AT forty, for the
sake of reading Niebuhr in the original
James Watt, at about the same age.
while working at his trade of an instru-
ment maker in Glasgow, made himself
acquainted with French, German and
Italian, iii order 10 peruse the valuable
works in those languages on mechami-
cal philosophy. Handel was forty-eieht
before he published any of his great
works. Nor are the examples of rare
occurrence in which apparently natural
defects. in early life, have been over
come by "a subsequent devotion to
know ledge Sir Isaac Newton. when at
school, stood az the lowermost form but
one. Barrow, the great English divine
and mathematician, when at the Char |
ter House school, was notorious for his |
idlenes- and indifference TO study
Adam Clark in his bOyhoOd was pro- !
claimed by his father to be greivOus |
Ounce. Even Dean Swift made disas- !
trOus failure at the university. Sheri- |
dan was presented by his mother to a |
tutor as an incorrigible Ounce. Walter !
Scott was dull boy at his lessons, and |
while astudent at Edinburgh University |
received his sentence from Professor |
Dalzell, the celebrated Greek scholar. |
that ''dunce he was, and Ounce ne /
would remain Chattert0n was re- !
turned on his mothers hands, a. "a /
fool, of whom nothing could be made /
Wellington never gave any indications |
Of talent until he was brought into the
field of practical effort, and was des-
,ribed by his strong minded mother, |
who thought him little better than an
IDIOT, a. tit only to be food for powder"