The Point Pleasant register. [volume] (Point Pleasant, W. Va.) 1909-1939, 1910-06-15

the frontier life. lost neither
truth or color By their verbal re
petition. Thus.t was. the pic
| ture of the Battle of Point
Pleasant was wildly painted,
first upon the mind of the artist
and later its Interpretation so
ably conveyed to this canvas.
Who that knew Doctor Knight
but can in fancy see him, brush
in hand, pouring out his soul in
homage as the graphic scene
passed before him, feeling, in
deed, its transmission was a
labor of love. The story to him
was more thrilling than romance,
demonstrating that Truth is
stranger than fiction"
1t was but another link in the
fortunes of fate that DR..
Knights advent to the world
should have been on Christmas
day, the year 1928, land that his.
like unto all true greatess found
its fountain in humility. A log
cabin on the Thomas Hogg
place at the head of six mile
Island, in what is now Mason
County, West Virginia, built in
1875, was the scene of his firth.
Measured in tangible riches, he,
like many of his neighbors. was
the child of poverty, but not so
as reckoned by the wealth of
nature. 1t was often said of him
God had given him ten talents.
Added to a richly endowed
brain was bestowed the wealth
of a great heart. His remarka-
bly, retentive memory is best
demonstrated by the fact he
fully remembered the occasion
of his father carrying him
aboard steamboat when he was
but two years of age, TO meet
the distinguished Gen. Lafay.
cite, upon his return trip to
America. When but fourteen
years of age, having attended
the schools of antebellum
days but nine months all told,
and that but few weeks at a
time, when the teacher boarded
around among the pupils, he
was able to take up the studies
of Geography, English Grammer
English Literature. Composition
and Higher Mathematic; remark
able Developments measured by
opportunity. His teachers had
been Mr.. Buchard, Thomas G.
Hogg, Calvin Somerville, Jacob
Gibbs and John Ball. Now his
teacher was Mr.. James Minturn.
About this time he found access
to his first book on Astronomy,
in which he was intensely inter.
ested and which he mentally
devoured. Learning that Mr..
James Craig, living at Buffalo,
rs miles distant across the
country,) had constructed a
planetarium, he walked that dis
lance bare footed boy hungry
to learn more of the mysteries
of the science of Astronomy.
He never ceased to be greateful
to Mr.. Craig for his warm re-
ception and the two days in
which he taught him so much of
the mysteries of nature as
revealed by the study of
Astronomy.
Young Leighton, when IF
teen years of age, had read
all the books covering diversi-
fed line of thought, in the library
of Hon. John Hall, then the best
library in the country. At 10, he
become teacher and finding
himself in a German neigbbor-
hood in three months had ac-
CURED a knowledge of the Ger
man language. He continued to
teach until 20 years of age, when
he become a pupil Of Prof.
Alexander H. Porter, graduate
of Cambridge, England. In two
years time he had concluded a
course equal to that required
for Bachelor Of Arts degree.
During this time he became
familiar with the Latin and
French languages. He showed a
wonderful talent for math-
ematics and early displayed a
talent for art, recreation as it
were to embelish his strenuous
life. In 1S45 be became medi-
cal student under. DR.. Daniel
Couch, of Mason County. On
March 8, 1850, graduated from
the Medical College, Western
Reserve, at Cleveland, Ohio.