The times dispatch. [volume] (Richmond, Va.) 1903-1914, 1908-06-29
TOMS" CHILDHOOD
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Special to The Tlmes-Dispatch.J
COLUMBUS. GA. June 2S.-The pass
ing away Of 3"Blind Tom" the eccentric
negro musical genius. whose wonder
full initiative powers have been the
marvel of the scientific world for the
past half century, lends renewed In
terest to the scenes and incidents OF
his childhood. He was born on a
plantation Just a few miles from this
city. the son of slave. This city has
produced many notable men, and 1t
is rather remarkable that the native
of Columbus whose name Is best known
throughout the civilized world was
born a negro slave. almost blind and
more than half idiotic
"Blind Tom" was one of a family
of twenty-one children, of whom only
four are now living. The survivors are
a good type of the ordinary Southern
negro. and there is nothing about them
to indicate that they are so closely
related to one who was endowed with
such wonderful powers. One of them
is janitor. another Is veteran
livery stable employee. and the others
hold mental positions. They haven't
particle of musical talent, In fact,
they are not gifted in that particular
as Is the average negro. for all the
music and melody Of the whole family
seeIlS W IdVe sCelteTcQ III ~ BllnU
Tom"
Blind Tom was in early years lust
like any other young slave child, only
his condition in some respects was In
tinitely worse. He was almost wholly
blind and his talk was ldiotic jabber
without sense or reason, but all that
time his wonderful brain was storing
away records of sounds and impresi
sions fully as accurate and almost as
lasting as those which are preserved
in the phonograph. In the parlor Of
General Rethune. on whose place the
boy was raised there was a magnifi-
cent piano. and this was played very
often by members of the family and
visitors who were endowed with musi-
cal talent. The slave boy sat in the
negro quarters and listened to the
sounds of music that floated out on
the summer breezes from the old South
ern mansion. While there was on his
Taco half-idiDtic leer. yet the sound
records Were being registered in his
brain. One day while the family was
at dinner the little boy crawled into
the parlor and climbed upon the stool.
His fingers found their way to the
keys and instinctively and 1ntultiyely
ne began to play. reproducing pieces
that he had heard. The members OF
lHe ldllliy were aStOnlShed when they
entered the parlor and found who the
musician was.
1t was in this strange fashion that
the boys genius became discovered.
and 1t was not long before he was
widely known as a musical prodigy.
&c was carried all over America and
Europe, and his remarkable gift was a
matter OF supreme interest in both
musical and scientific circles. He re-
NAMED to the last the blind, half
idiotic person that he was in childhood,
but his genius abided with him until
death came at the age Of sixty-five
years. He could not only reproduce
faultlessly the most difficult pieces of
music from the great composers, but
could also repeat years afterwards adj
dresses that he had heard delivered in
foreign languages. not a word Of which
he uuderSt nnd ~ -.