Waterbury Democrat., 1903-01-05
HAIR AND INTELLECT.
1nferemce@ About the SubsOn from the Top Crop-Artist@ and Chill
 drem Prove the Rule.

- Su1iouo SioOAAS oO hair have been collected by the school authorities at Lille. Thus, the auburn-haired boys are generally at the head of the recitation classes, and the blonde girls learn their les sons best, says London Truth. Au- burn boys and blonde 1asses come out highest as arithmaticians. But in composition they are nowhere. The dark-haired children of both sexes have the quality of imagination, and in their compositions know how not to fatigue the attention. They have movement and originality. In short, they seem, as compared to the au- burns and blondes, born stylists. Now, that I think of it, Sarah Bern hardt is, or was, auburn-haired, and Mime. Bartet had light brown hair 25 years ago-so light as to be almost fair. l should not call the late Mime. Jacques Stern (Croizette) in the hey dey of her charms & blonde. But she had darkish shade of fair hair that looked like heavy sheeny floss silk. and the ruddiness that one associates with auburn. Mme. Samary was also fair without being exactly a. blond.
 I daresay the auburn boys and blonde lasses in the Lille elementary schools are of Flemish, that is to say phlegmatic, race. Their brains do not grow at once congested when they stand up to recite and for that reason they keep the mastery of the vocal. organs. In short, they con- tinue to know what they are about. The dark children are probably of Celtic, that is to say Gallic, origin. The blood comes with a rush to their brains. and they grow confused, splutter, and break down. If they could only be taught to remain si- lent for a few moments, they would be all the better for this rush, as the confusion would have passed away, leaving only stimulated mental or gans. Goldsmith. who was dark, al ways began by being confused in conversation. O'ConnelI wore black wig, but his real hair in youth was auburn. recollect very old people who heard him plead in his prime speak of it as such. His readiness was wonderful. But perhaps he might not have recited so we'll what somebody else had written.
 I have rarely heard a great French orator recite. Grevy, the president of the republic, was one of the few, and he reached perfection in reciting Vol taire's verses to Emile Gambetta, in low, sweet voice, recitc6 some times passages from his favorite poets. Thiers could commit nothing to mem- ory in the way of poem or a speech by another orator. He had himself too much to say to incumber his mind with the writings of others. Louis Blanc shone, however, in reciting declama- tory passages from Corneille and Ra- cine, but his brother Charles--a fair, Jewish-looking man, not unlike the first Baron James de Rothschild-beat him in declamation at the ecclesiastic- al school where they passed their youth. Charles Blanc triumphed in both masculine and feminine parts, and drew tears from his reverend pre- ceptor's eyes as Andromaque. Louis was best as Polyeucte or the Cid. Imagine wee Louis Blanc giving the il fusion of that heroic warrior! Victor Hugo never seemed grander than in reading some noble work of his own. An old passport given to him in his twenty-seventh year speaks of him as having auburn hair, long and remark ably thick. l heard him recite the ITO be or not to be-" soliloquy as trans lated by his son Francois. Did he not throw expression into it!
 To come back to stage people, the two Coquelins are fair. Mile. Schnei- der, who rather recited than sang in the operattas of Offenbach, was re- markedly fair. It may be that the late Queen Victoria would have read her speeches less well had she been a bru- nette. Rachel is an illustrious instance on the other side. I do not know whether her rival and supplanter Ris- tori should be classed among the dark or fair actresses. When I made her acquaintance the early color of her hair and complexion had departed. She had fair-haired brother who sud- denly became white-haired. He used to teach Italian, however, in a singing school.
 Fipally, on the subject of hair, am sorry to say that the red-headed boys and girls in the Lille schools--les roux ct les rousses-are at the bottom in everything save in good conduct
 marks. Nor are they remarkable for good health. The dark boys behave better than the auburn or the fair, and are more sensitive to praise or blame.