Wood County reporter. [volume] (Grand Rapids [i.e. Wisconsin Rapids], Wis.) 1857-1923, 1889-05-16
VALUE OF GOOD MEMORY.
Men Who Never Forget a tale or Fact Wonder
full Memorizin0

Men VINO Never Forget a tale or Fact Wonder
ful Memorlzing-
Phil Aruour, the great Chicago pork
packer is said to have remarked that a
memory is necessary to one who wishes
to succeed. There is no lack Of evidence
TO support the statement. Armour him
self Is an example of what good mem
DRY can do.
He is as wonderful in his line as cardi-
nal Mezzofanti was in his. He is said TO
carry the smallest detail of his immense
business in his head. He can remember
the date as well as of small business tran
saotions. He knows the names of pretty
nearly all of his army of employees After
the building OF the addition to his great
establishment in Chicago he sstonished
circle cf friends by rafting off hand
the number of bricks, car loads of sand
feet of timber, etc, that were used in the
construction. Armour's gift is natural
one. de had never cultivated it, but the
demands of his business have unouestion-
ably kept his powers of memory in active
training.
"Oid Hutch,'a the impertorbable
Chicago wheat manipulation is called, is
another man gifted with an extraordinary
memory He needs no books to carry his
transactions in, although, Of course, he
use them. With him, too, retentiveness
is natural gift. He remembers every
thing that he wants to remember, but
but says frankly he doseu't know how he
does it. He also possesses the gift of
not remembering things he dois not wish
to remember. But then that gift is not
rare.
The professional memory men say, that
among public men and speakers for good
ali around retentigness James g. Blaine
leads all the rest, for he car not only re-
me mber dates, figures and authorities
when debating, but in addition he has a
factuly for remembering names and faces
that is little short of the marvellous, and
many are the stories told of his exploits
in the lire.
In the domain of figures Samuel j. Ran
dali, when well, stood almost pre-eminsnt
His long service on those committees in
congress that controlled the finances OF
the nation gave him an immense knowl-
edge of such matters, which he retained
without an effort. 1t was no uncommon
thing for him to make long speeohes
without Using notes. He jugled figures
running at one time into millions of doll
ars and then into fractions of cenU with
out tripping as most men, however able,
would have done. It was the same faculty
that made Gladstone SO successful chan
oellor of the English exehequer.
Roscoe Conkiing was man of wonder
full memory. Whether dealing in figures
in legal argument or quoting from the
early English poets, he called forth seem
ingly without previous through, the rig ht
thing at the right time.
CONGRESSMAN Cox has also a remarka-
be memory, especially for things literary
and this has stood him in good stead in
rebate in congress, for MS opponents
never know when the general jester is
not about TO double them up with some
thing faon Shakespear. the Koran Burns
the B bic, or some old hymn book, 1t is &c
his memory alone is due, and of course
his wise study, that he is able to do this
in a running lmpromptu debate.
Among actors retentive memory or a
good study" is, of course, important
Bot II is not so necessary now in the
time OF combination, when the Same COM
pany plays the sane peace for a season
In the old dcys of stock companies ii
was common to present farce, a coined
and tradgy all in one night, and tC
change the bill nightly. A good mem
DRY gas an absolute necessity. No actor
can succeed without it, for it was no IN
common thing for play to bs put on al
few hours notice. Lester Wallack, in
mis- recolections of the stage attributes
much of his success to the fact that he
possessed a remarkable memory.
Edwin Forrest was wonder in his
prime. He would read over page of a
book and at once recite it off hand. H.
did it frequently for amusement as wei
as practice. In his later years he los
this faculty TO some extent.
The elder Booth stuedied everything
and remembered everything that hi
studied. The only language that he wa
unable to convuer WIS Russian Th'
great actor did learn Frenh well enough
to play In the French tragedy "Oreski" IL
New Orleans some time in 1851, and tt
| 90 il in Erect, too.-P hilad ely hia Times