The daily dispatch. [volume] (Richmond [Va.]) 1850-1884, 1872-08-17
'Ehe MaH Wtio spoke riffy-six Ian
suaceg.

suaSes.
The american Educational Nonhiy for
August contains very readable sketch of
the most remarkable linguist that ever lived.
Giuseppe Gaspardo Mezzofanti, the prodigy
who spoke fifty-siX languages. was the son of
a poor carpenter Of Bologna. where he was
born in lt.4. He died in Rome in 1S49 His
father designed him for the paternal calling.
HiSwork-bench happening to be under the
window where Father Respighi was instruct
ing some private pupils in Greek and Latin,
young Mezzofanti picked up the words by
ear and surprised his unconscious teacher
When, one day, without knowing the Greek
alphabet, or ever having seen L Greek book,
he repeated and accurately explained a great
number of the words which had fallen on his
ears while at work. This anecdote is paral-
leled by one told by CoIcridge in his table
talk, where servant, employed by all Eng
lish clergyman, who was in the habit of
reading aloud his Hebrew Bible in his study,
actually repeated, during intervals of de-
lirium, whole chapters of the Old Testament
in the original teXt She, like MezZotanti,
had no knowledge Of the alphabet, grammar,
or dictionary, but the memory, which had
casually caught the words and their connec-
ton, tenaciollsly held them
This gifted young man desired to learn his
trade and enter the church. The kind-hearted
old oratoran assisted him. lie picked up
languages with wonderful facility. FIis
memory retained every word his car had
once heard. 1t was not only the words but
the conncCtion-in idioms he was peculiarly
stronS-and the intonation. lie learned in
college Latin, Greek, Hebrew, and Arabic.
His first lessons in German were derived
rom EulorncSe ecclcsiastc the Abbate
Thiu'i. He picked up French from hi old
priest Of Blos, swedish from Swedish ply
siclan who settled in Bologna, and Coptc
from Il learned clergyman, the Canonic0
Mingnrcli. In 1876 he obtained priests
orders, and shortly afterwards he was ap-
pointed professor OF Arabic in the University
of Bologna. He refused to take the oath OF
allegiance to the new ''Cis;lIpine Republic"
and III consequence lost his position. In 1901
he was restored, and in 1903 again de-
prived owing to his fidelity to Plus VII. In
1872 he obtained the position Of assistant
librarian of his native city, and two years AT
terwards he was chief librarian. Napoleon
endearored to lure him to Paris, Murat to
Naples, the Grand Duke of Tuscany to
Florence, the Emperor Francis to Vienna,
and even his Holiness Plus VII. to Rome,
but in vain. He remained at Bologna until
1882, when Gregory XVI, an intimate friend
Of his, after, as he lau@hngly put it, ga regu-
l;lr siege" finally succeeded in installing him
is Prebend of st. John Lateran's Church.
He was subsequently the successor Of the
celebrated Mai us librarian Of the Vatican,
and in 1S40 he and his predecessor were ele-
vatcd to the cardimlate.
1t was during the eighteen years which
Elapsed between McZZoanti's elevation to
the chief librarianshp and his removal to
Rome that he extended and perfected his
knowledge of the language. He was " for
eigncrS' contcSsor" III Bologna, II position
usually inrused to Il large statl in Roman
Catholic cities. lie visited the hospitals as
;iduously, and never failed to improve an
opportunity at picking up Il new language or
pcrlrctin@ his knowledge Of one with which
he was already familiar. 1t WAS not that he
had simply Il knowledge of the languages,
but he spoke them with llucncy, pronounced
them correctly, and wrote them diomati-
calIy. The reporters and runners at Bologna
always mentioned MeZZoI;tnti lis one OF the
wonders OF the town, and no literary for
cigner visited the city during his residence
there who did not call upon him. They
were all impressed with his proficiency.
Lord byron. Herr jacobs. Guido Gowe>,
Dr. BaineS Gu Miss Millurls RecolIection>),
md NJ. Malairt all bear witness to the
powers of this gifted priest, who, if he had
lived at Babel, would, ;s one Of them
has qlIlinlly remarked. have been
,blc 10 have acted ;S general inter
prefer. Dr. Blines says: . The last time
| was in Rome we went together TO the Pro-
raganda and heard speeches delivered in
thirty-vc on thirty-siX languages by converts
If various nations. Amongst them were na-
lives OF no less than three tribes Of Tartals,
zach talking his own dialect. They did not
understand each other, but the Cardinal I'M
derStood them all. and could tell with criti
al nicely the points in which each jargon
Uttered from the Others" He mastered Chi
nese late in life, and yet he WIS able not only
10 converse with the Chinese students in the
proWgandl, hut to preach to them and deli
.cr Il sci Of honlilcS in their own tongue.
Herr Gowes says that he spoke eight Ian
suages in his presence Of IN evening. and
changed from one to the other with the great.
EST facility, and without confoundng the
words or pronunciation OF one language with
those of another. He sent this same travel
Ter the name Of God written with his own
hand in hlty-SiX languages, Of which thirty
were European, not counting their sub
divisions into dialects; seventeen Asiatic.
without counting dialects five African !;
IOur American. MeZzoftnti'S life WAS sim
pie and childliks, and devoid of all preten-
SionS.