The Lancaster gazette. [volume] (Lancaster, Ohio) 1863-1886, 1869-01-14

pess Sf moBarch, you and they
had better DO q hundred miles
apart. ..'' 80 SEXTUS. ,
Ec!rdcf Jfon7- Eminent IFoalen Of
the Age
Miss Dickinson's Childhood.
! When about twelve years ola
I Anna entered "Westown Boarding.
School Of Friends" in Chester
County. and remained there two
years; from. this she went 10
Friends Select School, in phiIa-
deipl,ia, where she applied herself
50 diligently TO her Studies, that,
Rhhough she pursued over n dozen
4 branches at one timo, she seldom
failed in recitation.
] During all her school. days, she
read with the greatest avidity
every book that she could obtain.
| Newspagers speochess tracts, his Z
Asety. 5stfy .noveis ara
4 fairy tales were all alike read and
reIished. For weeks and months
together her average hours for
sleep were not FIVE in the twenty.
-four. She wopid often read uniiI
Que o'clock ip the morning, and
Acn seize her school books and
learn her lessons for the next day.
She did not study her lessons, Tor.
with hcr rctontive memory, what
she read once was hers forever
The rhymes and compositions enc
wrote in he- young days bear cvi-
dent marks Of genius. When four.
teen years old she published an
article headed Slavery" in the
t"Liberator." / She early determin-
ed that she woaId be q public
speaker. One Of her greatest
I pleasures was 10 get a troop Of
children about her and tell them
stories; if she could fix their atten
ton AMI alternately convulse them
with laughter, and melt them with
tears, she was perfectly happy
She loved to wander all over the
city alone, to think her own
thoughts and see what was going
on in the outer world. One Of
her favori!e rendezvous was the
Anti.SIGyery Office IN Fifth Steet;
where she would stay for hours to
hear people talk about the horrors
of slavery, or to read papers, tracts,
and books on tia. subject. AT
fourteen she left school.
She was ski!lfui in all kinds Of
housework, and orderly in her ar
rangements. She was willing 10
do any kind OF work 10 make an
honest living. No service however
hard, or humble, seemed meninl TO
her. Being queen born, she felt
she dignifed whatever she touched;
even the broom became a sceptre
of royalty in her hand.
When about thirteen wears old
she visited lawyers Office one
day, on her way from school, and
asked for some copying. lie, pleas
ed with the appearance Of the bright
child, asked her If she inten led to
do it herself: she said Yes. He
gave her some, which she did so
well that be interested himself at
once in her behalf, and secured
her work from other Offices Gs we'll
as his own. How she could get
money TO by books was the one
thought; next to lelping her moth,
er, that occupied her m nd To
this end she would do any thing
run errands, carry bundles, sweep
waIks,-and as soon as she had
obtained tho desired sum, SIC
would buy book, read it with the
greatest avidity, then take it TO "A
second hand book store and sell it
for fraction Of its cost and get
another. When seven years old
she would take Byron's works,
secrete herself under tho bed that
she might not be disturbed, and
read for hours. There was some.
thing in the style, spirit, and
rythm, that she enjoyed, even be.
fore the thought was fully under.
stood. She had a passion for ora
tory, and when Curtis, Phillips, or
Beccher lectured in Philadelphia,
she would perform any service to
get money enough to &c. On one
occasion she scrubbed sidewalk
for twenty-five cents to hear Wen
dell Phillips lecture on "The Lost
Arts There are many very inter.
esting anecdotes OF her life during
this period, illustrating her forti.
tudc under most trying circum,
stances and her strong faith IN a
promising future. Through her
magnetism and self confidence she
went forward and did many things
gracefully and unchallenged, that
others of her sex and age would
not have had the courage or pre-
sumlionp to attompt. There was
something SO irresistible in her face
and manner that entire strangers
would yield her privileges, which
others would not dare TO ask. II
her fourteenth year, while with re-
latives in the country, during the
holidays, she attended a Methodist
protracted meeting and was deep
rIiy moved on the subject OF re!'giUn'
was converted and joined the
church. Her mind, however, was
much disturbed on theological ques'
, tiors for several years, but after
Great distress and uncertainty,
with the opposing doctrines and
opinions she heard on all sides
she found rest at last in the liberal
views Of those who taught thai
religion was llfe,-faith in thl
goodness, aud wisdom of Gods