1875.] Longevity of Brain-Workers. 441 
growing ; the plant which to-day looks stunted and dwarfed 
may hereafter quicken into life, rise into strength and beauty 
—to give fruit and shade to many generations. Scott, for 
example, though he stood low in his class at school, yet 
very early exhibited genius as an inventor and narrator of 
“tales of knight-erranty, and battle, and enchantments.” 
Newton, according to his own account, was very inatten- 
tive to his studies and low in his class, but a great adept 
at kite flying, with paper lanterns attached to them, to 
terrify the country people, of a dark night, with the appear- 
ance of comets; and when sent to market with the produce 
of his mother’s farm, was apt to neglect his business, and 
to ruminate at an inn over the laws of Kepler. 
It is fair to infer that the stupidity attributed to many 
other distinguished geniuses may be similarly explained. 
This belief is enforced by the consideration that many, per- 
haps the majority, of the greatest thinkers of the world 
seemed dull, inane, and stupid to their neighbours, not only 
in childhood, but through their whole lives. The brains as 
well as the muscles of men differ in the times of their growth. 
Of a dozen individuals of the same endowments and external 
conditions some will ripen early, others late. This is 
observed in colleges, where some who take the lead in every- 
thing make no further progress in after life. They “strike 
12thefirsttime.” Others who, between 15 and 25, are dul- 
lards, between 25 and 40 develop great powers. 
It is probable, however, that nearly all cases of apparent 
stupidity, in young geniuses, are to be explained by the want 
of circumstances favourable to the display of their peculiar 
powers, or to a lack of appreciation or discernment on the 
part of their friends. It is very difficult to find any college 
graduate of remarkable ability who did not, during his colle- 
giate course, in some way manifest the germs of that ability, 
but there are many who fail in the prescribed routine of 
studies in the race for literary honours, who yet, in some 
department or other, do attain distinction. As compared 
with the world, the most liberal curriculum is narrow ; to one 
avenue of distinétion that college opens the world opens ten. 
In order to learn the material of which a college class is 
made, it is necessary not only to look at the marks on the 
tutor’s book and scan the prize list of the societies, but also 
to go out on the ball ground and down the river—we must 
mingle in the evening carousal and study the social life of 
the students in their rooms, or their walks, and in vacation. 
Whether we regard those general considerations or not, 
the statistical fact remains that, in spite of the incomplete- 
