San Marcos free press. [volume] (San Marcos, Tex.) 1877-1892, 1880-12-09
Precocious Celebrities.

Bryon "awoke one morning" at the
age of "a, "and found himself fa-
nous" by the publication of "Childe
Harold The next day he made a
speech in the House OF Lords against
the bill imposing severe penalties
upon the weavers who had broken
the new weaving machinery. One
listener pronounced it "the best
speech made by lord since the Lord
knows when," and another declared
that ''some parts" were very like
those of Burke. At 20, Shakespeare
had friends, fame, money, foes and
critics, and achieved all his success
before he was so. Bulwer was 20
when his early novels attracted at.
tention, and nearly oil his novels and
plays appeared within the succeeding
twenty years. Macaulay, even as a
boy in petticoats, was marvel. Al
4 years old, when asked if the hot
tea spilled over him had stopped
hurting, he replied: "Thank You, the
agony is much abated.' At ~ the
appearance of his essay on "Milton'
filed his card receiver with the cards
of many of the most distinguished
people Of London. Burns, between
is and 10, wrote his early poems,
John Barleycom" among them; Of
21 "Cotter's Saturday Night" and
was famous before he was 30. Be.
fore Goethe was 10 years old he
wrote several languages, invented
stories and meditated poems, and had
some knowledge Of art. At rs he
made o great sensation with the
Sorrows of Werther," but was 54
before his growing work of "Faust
appeared. Bryant wrote two poems
when he was IA, and his celebrated
"Thanatopsis' when he was 10.
Irving became known for his
"Knickerbocker's New York at rs,
at 81 for "Trip Van Winkle' and
kindred sketches. Dickens was rs
when his great success, "Pickwick,
appeared: Thackeray 80 when
"Vanity Fair" the first and greatest
of his works was born; but Trollope
was As before he achieved fame.
Bnnyan wrote "Pilgrim's Progress
at 49, Fielding was AZ when "Tom
Jones" introduced him; and De Foe
was So before he found time or occa-
sion to rescue "Robinson Crusoe..
from his shipwreck.
OF the four eminent female writer's
of fiction, Charlotte Bronte was At
when she wrote "Jane Eyre" George
Eliot was 30 when "Adam Bede" ap-
peared, Mrs. Stowe 39 when sine
gave ."Uncle Toms CABIN to the
world; but George Sand only ~
when sIndiana" mLde her famous.
She began early and left off late,
producing sixty stories and twenty
plays.
The great philosophers and inven-
tors are also on hand early with
their claims for immortality. Lord
Bacon from the first gave signs of
his great fertility of talent. Queen
Elizabeth asked him how old he was,
and he lisped, "two years younger
than your majesty's happy reign" In
his 18th year he specuiated on the
laws of the Imagination. He was o
member of Parliament at 32, and
Ben Johnson says of bis speaking,
that "the fear of every nun VINO
heard him was lest he should make
an end" He accomplished his i'm
mense work before he was 60. In
his Goth year Aristotle became known
as "the intellect of Piatos school,
and was SO famous at 40 that he was
made tutor of Alexander the Great
Sir Isaac Newton, instead OF playing
with his schooi-feilows, made me-
chanical contrivances, among which
was clock. Heinvented the binomial
theorem at 22, a rejecting telescope
at 26, and at % discovered the law
of gravitation.
Benjamin Franklin had read me-
taphyslcs and studied navigation by
the time he was 16; ut rs ne began
the publication OF "Poor Richards s
Almanac" at 46 made his famous ex-
pertinent with electricity.
Fulton conceived the idea OF the
steamboat at %, and at 81 invented
the submarine torpeo. Stephenson
made his first locomotive at the age
of 80; Arkwright invented the SPIN
ming machine at 3j, Morse the tele
graph at Al, and Watt was only IA
when he invented an electrical M
chime, and 20 when he made his first
steam engine.
The great statesmen and pohti
Clans are '.never backward Burke
was ~ when he wrote ms treaties on
the sublime Beludfui, which in
troduced him to the distinguished
literary circles of London, and at SO
was a member OF ParLament, his
maiden speech attracting the atten
ton Of the Ear o. Chatham Dem
osthenes at the age Of IL won a law
suit by which h. recovered has prop
erty from his ga rh.sn, and before
his 3Jth year nsi acquired a VIDE
reputation for AS s.O41sDce Cicero,
on the other a.a l. dlI not mature ~
dairy, and WI 40 osiOre ne becEme
eminent and 43 sIen ne Was made
consul Pitt w4s 81 VAN N4PJse
tainted him VITA Os.ng a yOdlg
m4a- to which ~ "a ig sae c=leJrAtsi