Sacramento daily record-union. [volume] (Sacramento [Calif.]) 1875-1891, 1882-03-25

| y
more and more astonished. His progress
these last six months would be alarming,
were it not SO well sustained. 1t is de-
monstrated beyond all possibility of doubt
the boy has extraordinary ability"
, A proposition SO crudeIy stated, in terms
of unmitigated certainty, has at all times a
distressing effect on me. Nothing could
, have more wildly brought home to me the
instability of the speakers position. and at
the risk OF wounding parental partiality, /
!, felt bound to protest
You look dubious" said his Grace.
"WhaU is in your mind p
: "For me to indorse so positive state
ment. | confessed, "the point must first
be established, that the effect-these school
exercises-ean be due to one cause only
native cleverness. 1t is impossible by
merely contemplating phenomenon to say
what was the cause.
"To what else could it possibly be due F"
he asked, perplexed. Take his mastery
of the classical languages, as it appears in
his translations. Could any ordinary
school boy, without the help cf first.
rate crib, he said laughing, "have done
anything approaching to it ;"
1.-THE use of TRANSACTIONS. I ventured,
"is, | fear, very frequent among school.
boys, and is certainly not regarded as a
heinous crime. | would rather, of course,
suppose your son had never availed himself
of one That ne should do so habitually
is in the highest degree improbable. Still,
| think it best to exercise no such strict
surveillance as would put the possibility
out of the question; and by inference alone
we can arrive at nothing stronger than
probability"
Well, said his Grace, smiling, per-
haps at some Renaissance of his own
school days, ''let us come to his compost.
tions, prose and verse. 1t is not beyond
question that the subjects, treatment,
ideas, form, style, versifcation, show
amazing preeocity, when we consider that
these are the original poems and essays of
a boy of fourteen p
Assuming that original they are
your Grace must pardon me"
He had half started to his feet, in evil
dent displeasure, and sharply interposed !:
You cannot surely mean to iusinuate
that he has deliberately borrowed copied
from other sources?"
mot for an instant" i fastened to re-
spond. "This, in so apparently truthful
disposition, is remote and absurd posi-.
bility not worth consideration. But there
is not uncommon phenomenon by which
much that seems marvellous in his work
may be accounted for He reads good
deal, and 1t is conceivable that his brilliant
essays and poems may be due i'll great
measure to unconscious recollection Pas.
sages he has read, and forgotten he has
read, may linger in his memory, and he
reproduce them in all good faith az his own
Thus we may be admiring as the extempo-
raneous emanations of budding intellect
what are in fact the studied productions of
a practiced aud matured brain"
He seemed annoyed and to understand
me very imperiectly. Yet it was clear
there was no logical necessity for assuming
Lord Herbert to be a genius-merely a
strong probability to that effect. The as
sumption might be tested by various
methods, as was about to suggest, but he
cut me short, saying:
g 1t would be impossible for me to be-
lieve that my sons productions are merely
echoes, or that his good work can be due
to anything but genuine eleverness. The
suggestion strikes me rs monstrous 1
could not contemplate it for moment"
How had he, unconsciously, laid bare
the weakness of his position
81 must venture to remind your Grace,
l objected. respectfully, chow far the
statement that we are incapable of disbe-
lieving this or that is from showing we
ought to believe it, though it may show
that we must do so. a psychological
necessity is no logical justification. -
Explain yourself, Mr.. Andrews" he
said dryly.
proceeded to lay before him the theory
of the evolution of belief, of which, for a
man of letters, which Lord Herbert s
father had some pretensions to be, he
seemed curiously Ignorant. | intimated in
the most delicate manner how far | was
from wishing to press the present appiica-
ton, or officiously to impair his agreeable
conviction that his son was an exceptional
genius. It was only when this was put
forward as a dogmatic assertion and my
unconditional ratification called for that
the sincerity of my disposition compelled
me TO represent how far this was from hav.
ing been scientifically demonstrated. Even
this mild dose of skepticism / softened
) down by pointing out how every year must
bring a nearer approach to certainty. In
} stances might increase to the point of elm
mating chance or the possibility of impo-
sition, conscious or unconscious. So occu-
pied was with my arguments that it was
) only when had concluded that / noticed
he was regarding me with an ominous
, frown. He gave his ultinatum
1t would be as easy for me to doubt
the fact OF my own existence as that my
belief in the boys rare talents is well
founded"
GAN beliefs are caused, urged. "The
consideration in each case is whether there
, is anything in the causes to make them
true. So many erroneous beliefs have ex-
listed. People have been deceived, may be
again, and wherever personal feeling
comes into play, as here, we should be
, doubly cautious. Extreme fondness, a
trusting disposition, personal incapable.
ity of deceit, leading US to transfer our
own virtues in Imagination to others, tend
to bias us. Then we are convinced where
we should not be, because we start from an
implicit and indestructible confidence in
the facts that have to be proved.
"That will do, Mr.. Andrews" said his
, Grace. CURLY, in tone that put an end to
the discussion.
The marked GOODNESS of his manner did
not escape me. Still, the vexatious sequel,
few days hence, took me completely by
surprise. / received courteous but dig
, tinct intimation that, after certain period,
my services would no longer be required.
That my dismissal was Immediately pro-
: voked by my conscientious frankness it
, was not permitted me to doubt. However,
, my pupils health had SO improved of late
that his father was able to put forward his
intention of sending him TO public school.
= "No partiality there, Mr.. Andrews" he
observed at parting. "By and by we shall
t have proof positive what his talents are
worth.
| Proof positive, as / could not ferbear re.
minding him, is so rare as to be well nigh
unattainable. Still, l must applaud the
step, as one likely to strengthen the evi.
|. dence on one side or the other and the