The Salt Lake tribune. [volume] (Salt Lake City, Utah) 1890-current, 1910-11-10
TODAY IN HISTORY
THURSDAY. NOVEMBER 10, 1910.
Birthday OF oliver Goldsmith.

Today is the birthday of Oliver Gold
smith Q72s), who was one OF the most
uea sing OF the English writer's OF MS
century. His father was partly curate
and partly farmer, and between The
two made 3 scant living in the little
town of Palas. whore Oliver was born
AS a youth he was taught his letters by
q maid servant. and when was sent TO
the yilNgc SCHOOL At he entered the
short time. and made a number of
changes before he was ready Tor col
lego, This was due to the fact that he
was extremely homely, small OF stature
and with limbs Ill put together. The
rjdicuc among tho boys at poor divers
appea rance was heightened by peculiar
simplicity and disposition to blunder
which he retained 10 the last He be-
came the common butt Of boys and mas
ters was pointed TO as a fright In the
playground. and flogged as Ounce In the
When Goldsmith had risen to eminence.
those who had once derded him ran
sacked their memory for the events OF
es Saty ycb ro hm
and which. though little noticed at the
tire, were supposed; qaurter OF cen
tury later :.- to Indicate the power ~hica
Tho Deserted Village"
At Trinity college, Dublin. he sup
ported himself by doing chores He lived
name. scrawled by himself is still read
with interest. Here at college he led a
life divided between squalid distress and
S t. AorK one n ms
and another never succeeding at any
thing. and finally. with his flute as his
only asset. he started on q foot ramble
through Flanders. France and SwitZer-
land, playing tunes which everywhere set
the peasantry dancing, and which often
produced for him supper and a bed.
EVERYWHERE he lived on the aims he was
able to obtain
Finally in 1855. when he was 2S years
old, the wanderer landed back at Dover
without calling. He turned strolIing
usher In a school, and finally. In despair,
took Garrct in miserable court and
settled down to literary work, lie wrote
much, little of which was accepted at
first, He gradually got a foothold how
ever, and became known, He was intro
duced to johnson. who was then consid-
became intimate with eminent men. who
looked upon him Is clever. He moved to
better quarters.
Toward the close of 1854 his rent was
morning called In the help OF a sheriff's
OFFICER The debtor, in great pcrlexity,
dispatched messenger to Johnson. and
Johnson, always friendly. though often
surly. sent back the messenger with a
guinea, and promised TO follow speedily
He came, and found that Goldsmith had
the landlady over a bottle OF Madeira,
Johnson put the cork Into the bottle and
entreated his friend to consider calmly
how money was to he procured. Cold
smith said that he had a novel ready
for the press. Johnson glanced al the
manuscript saw that there were good
things in II, took 1t TO a bookseller. sold
II for $500 and soon returned with the
money. The rent was paid and the shcr-
IFS officer withdrew. According TO one
story. Goldsmith gave his landlady A
sharp reprlmand for her treatment OF
him: according 10 another. he insisted
on her joining him in bowl Of punch
Both stories are probably true. The
novel which was thus ushered into the
world was ''Irhc Vicar OF Wakefield 5,
From this on Goldsmith rose rapidly
In public opinion and literary mportance.
Goldsmith was undoubtedly one Of the
most brilliant writer's OF his day, but he
Is credited with being equally as stupid
as conyersationalist. I'm spite OF the
fact that he associated with johnson,
Burke. Beauclerc and Garrick. tho great
est wits of his day. So extraordinary was
the contrast between GoldSmith's pub
llslicd works and the silly things which he
said that Horace Walpoa described him
as an inspired idiot ''Noll, said Gar
rick, wrote like an angel and talked like
poor Poll" Goldsmith died on the 3rd
of April, 1I7i, in his forty year In
the few years after hc had turned over
the proverbia new leaf" he had accom-
pllshed wonders.
On November 10, 1920 the May1ower
arrived at Provicetown. Hampton Sidney
college was opened in 1775. and Napoleon