The Norfolk Virginian. [volume] (Norfolk, Va.) 186?-189?, 1898-03-06
Infant prodlgles Whose Early Life Gave
Promise Of Subsequent Greatness.
The GENIUS OF WILLIAM PIT
WHO Eccnmc tho most Powerful, sub
Ject In EngInnd-The Remarkable
Youth OF Christian 8Icnry Heink-
sen, Who wna styled tho Learned
Ch.id OF Iubeck.
(London Stndard.)

Inc study OF biography has the ad-
vantage OF making us familiar with the
cnlluhood Of those who have afterward
attained to greatness and whose names
| have been inscribed on the imperishable
records of history &r fame. Select
great man, and we are Immediately re-
lerfed TO instances Of precochty in his
! infancy or childhood, which were the
| precursors of his future celebrity or the
guide post which pointed to his genius.
Ihere have, no doubt, been many in
| rant prodigies, and there have been
some who have been palmcd off as such
who have NO claim whatever to The
| distinction. Miss Minerta Crummles
| was described by her father, Mr.. Vim
| cent Crummlcs-of theatrical fame-as
the infant phenomenon, whose talent
was ZOO great for words, and who must
! we seen to be ever SO family appreciat-
| ed. Miss Crummlcs was rather an ell
| derby infant Her father confessed to
NlcholaS Nickleby that She had turned
| ten. but this was rather too modest an
| estimate, for her age had remained
stationary for several years.
/ There are, however, many well-au-
Ithenticated instances of youthful pre-
| cocty which may he held ito have
| preSaged subsequent greatness. Take
the case of William Pitt. His genius
| asserted itself with an almost uneX-
| ampled quickness. When he was but
| Twelve years of age, his mCi.her wrote
| OF thim The fineness Of Williams
mind makes him enjoy with the great
est pleasure what would be above the
reach OF any other creature of his
| small age" Being Of an extremely del
icatc constitution. it was deemed mad
Visable to send him to n public school
| anu his education was conducted pri-
| Fateiy at nome. When he went IN TO
! cambridge i'll 1913 his knowledge of the
| ciaSs!cs is Stated to have surprised
| veteran critics, although this was of
the most superficial character. At
twenty-thec years of age he was made
chancellor OF the fXchequer. and n year
later First Lord of the Treasury. Thus
| at about twenty-five years of age. he
became the most powerful subject in
england, and for many years held his
great position as the ruler of cabinets
| the favorite of the sovereign. the hero
OIL farilament and the idol Of the natjon
Another state sman and politician who
gave an early indication of such talents
which were to gain him such distinction
tater on was Macaulay. AS a child
| ne had contempt for toys a passion
| Tor books, and the vocabulary of a nod
! aSoEuc. at 1.-THE mature age of four
| years ne was on a visit to Lady Waldo
| grave at Strawberry Hill, where n serv-
ant Spit some hot coffee over his legs
| ''N''' ai'ti d"Hllt, inc hostess asked
| the lLitle fellow ltCw he felt he repliad
with great dignity: Thank you. madam
! thc agony has ahated" 1t was about
'his i!me that maid had thrown away
as RUBBISH certain oyster shells with
| Which he used to mark his own little
| piot OF ground at The back of his
ia'hers house at Clapham IIav-
ing discovered the sacrilege. Ma
caulay at once repaired to the
/ l..
was entertaining some guests
and walking into the circle, he some
! what startled the visitors by saving.
| Cursed be Sally; for it lis written:
! cursed ne he that removeIth his neigh
! Dor's landmark" When, as n very
small boy, he was about TO be sent to
School, MS mother tlcld him that for the
iuture he would have to learn to study
M!Phout the solace of bread and butt
The reply was prompt and pompous:
| Yes. mamma, industry shall be nv
bread. and attention my butter" When
ne was barely seven, Macaulay showed
his bent for historical studies by writ
| ing compendium OF Universal History
| which, his mother stated. gave a toll
| efabiy connected view OF the leading
| events from the creation down to tho
! authors own tine. In poetry Macau-
lay was equally ambitious in his child
! h".d days, and his whole youth was
| tu!l of examples of his clevcrncss which
ne afterward displayed as statesman,
historian. poet. critic, and orator.
TO turn. for moment, from politics
70 literature, pure and simple, we get
| me name of Samuel Johnson. who, as a
| hoy. Leslie Stephen tells us, was re-
| ESirGed as something of an infant prod
| ICY. His great powers of memory
CHARACTERISTIC OF mind singnlarly re-
| tentiVe of all impressions was early
| developed. He seemed to learn by in
| tuition" His early plwers were I. houpht
10 be traceablc to the following epitaph
which he was said to have composed nj
thc age of three:
Here lies good master duck
Whom Samuel Johnson trod on:
III II mad lived ut had been good Iuck
For then we had had an odd one
II does not detract from the Doctors
reputation when the confession is made.
that the verses were not his but his
fathers, and that the tokens he gave
OF his future em!nence were much more
striking than dosgerel of this kind
IheSe examples pale into utter insic-
nificance before some others chat can he
cited. In Il German work nuhlishna
at Lubbock in Gottingen, the most won.
deriul case OF precocity ever heard Of is
related Christian Henry Hejnksnr Who
was born in Lubbock in 1921. on tha cnm-
pletf2n OF the first year Of his ago had
committed to memory and could reci,c
the principal facts contained in the five
books OF Moses. with n number OF verses
| on the Creation. In his fourteen u
month, 50 we are assured, che knew all
| the history CT the Bible; in his tb;r.
teenth month the history of the ma
| tons of antiquity, geography anatomy
the use OF maps, and nearly 5000 Latin
| words; before the end Of the third wear