The weekly tribune., 1894-10-19
AMBITIOUS GIRLS.
some GREAT WOMEN WHO WERE
PRECOClOUS CHILDREN.

Some Notable Examples Which Go to Prove
That Ability Is Apt to Reveal Itself as
Early With Girls as with Boys-some Of
Them Had to Struggle.
"I wonder if most famous women
were as ambitious and gave signs Of fu-
x ture greatness in their early youth as
4 1amous men?" asked a thoughtful look
/, IL girl, dropping her book, 1.-THE Lives
the Great Musicians, in which with
light she had been reading of the boy
art.
Most great women have been pre-
ous," answered her aunt, whose
brain possessed the charming fac
IL of storing up all manner of inter-
Ing information against a rain Of
f1tions from her clever niece. LET
y 10 back to that sweetest character in
& flish history, Lady Jane Grey, and
A fill find she was only 13 years old
that learned scholar and fine gen.
IN. Roger Ascham, found her read
Plato's 'Phadon' in the original
K while the rest of the family were
- hunting party. But it was not
q a knowledge of Greek little Lady
~ was satisfied. She spoke French,
F&A1ln and Italian fluently, writing them
b o1G hnd translated easily from Hebrew,
s( {lee and Arabic. When her father
a her to court, they found with as
I4hment that this demure country
AtGirl was far finer scholar than
&Uuue Edward vi, then q clever boy
tn{iar the first tutors in England. Yet
Win alI her knowledge of literature and
YES Lady Jane embroidered
Ugly. sang to several instruments
played very well, danced and
Asily and gracefully.
Y icia Hemans published her first
4: E1on OF poems when she was only
s2ngelica Kaufman, the beautiful
1h and gifted artist, who painted
~ rQftraits of royalties, when only II
6d her brush far better than her IA
lSbt who was an artist by profession.
&sMme. Roland never remembered
when abe learned to read, for at years
az ~ fahe was greedily perusing any
ho61ri Vt came to her hand. Dancing
I'M 3sic she readily acquired, but
bhy and Latin were her favorite
AS girl of she would eager
II f1&6t B O'Clock in the morning to
lGpt 1oher books, and SO dearly did she
HI x4ading she carried her volume of
.SElptnnch's Lives to church when she
21Kas ~ years old and secretly read it
aapxing the long prayers.
Il There is not more touching story
u child's quick mind starved of its
roper food than Caroline Herschel.
[ek mother was stupid woman, who
lept her daughter purposely so busy
bout household work she could neither
otudy nor practice ON her violin she dear
loved and in which her father wished
~ instruct her. 1t was with an aching
h4art and fearful eyes Caroline piled
ih6r needle, while her father and his
ms held their little family concerts in
\ hich the girl longed to join. She beg
d to be allowed to study French with
brother, and dancing also, but this
mother forbade, though her gentle,
Ter father was anxious his Caroline
aid have a good education. 1t was
until later in life, when her beloved
ther William, the great astronomer,
1t for her to join him in England,
b had any opportunity to exercise her
Ne mind.
sS' Mary Somerville says that as a lit
tie girl she had very bad memory, and
1T 10 years of age was sent to board
ing school, where tho chief lesson for
each day was page of Johnson's Die
tionary committed to memory. She
never excelled at school, and yet at home
no one sympathized little later with
III desire to study Latin eXceI5 an un-
<1e, who gave her some valub in
1Fuction. She was very much interested
two celestial globes the village
hoolmaster taught her to use, and yet,
the whole, she was rather in awe of
big consultations, whose brightness
minded her Of lightning, of which she
3 desperately afraid. At length she
(suaded her brothers. tutor to buy her
algebra and Euclid, which she
died at night until her mother, in
kror at the idea of girl wasting
We on studies meant for boys, deprived
~ of candle to read by, and her IA
ther feared she might 60 crazy. 1t was
long after that she really found the cour-
40 and sympathy to take up her great
s1qdies in earnest.
'4twas as pianist George Eliot was
nu1oQ at her school, and with the most
al41eing ease she acquired languages,
)ias very little girl she showed no
~ promise, much preferring romp
fh her brother to her books.
Fannie Burney, who is also known
fme. d'Arblay, published her first
cleverest novel when she was only
md yet she was s years old before
hing her alphabet and scarcely re-
Nd any regular education at all
eachel, you must remember was a
5ust turned into her teens when she
bo11Qwed volume of Racine from q
JqWt4h peddler in old clothes On read
tn9 the great French tragedies she de-
0ed to become an actress, and this
pretty little Jewess, the youngest |
wen children, who had begun life |
etreet singer, ON her second appear
on the French stage was greeted as
BAT genius. So, you see, my dear,