4 Caroline Lucretia Herschel. [1743-1754. 



ledge by attending out of school hours to learn all 

 that his master could teach of Latin and arithmetic. 

 At fourteen he was an excellent performer both on 

 the oboe and violin. 



The first serious calamity recorded was the irrepar- 

 able injury caused to the father's health by the hard- 

 ships of war. After the battle of Dettingen (June 

 16th, 1743) the troops remained all night on the field, 

 which was soaked by heavy rains. The unfortunate 

 bandmaster lay in a wet furrow, which caused a 

 complete loss of the use of his limbs for some time, 

 and left him with an impaired constitution and an 

 asthmatical affection which afflicted him to the end 

 ol his life. During the dark times of the Seven 

 Years' War, the little Caroline, then her mother's sole 

 companion, often heard this grievous trouble spoken 

 of, and the shadow of it cast a gloom over her childish 

 recollections, most of which are of a sombre character. 

 At three years old she was a deeply interested partici- 

 pator in all the family concerns, and of that period she 

 writes : 



" It must have been in 1758 when my brother [Jacob, 

 aged 19] was chosen organist to the new organ in the 

 garrison church ; for I remember my mother taking me 

 with her the first Sunday on its opening, and that before 

 she had time to shut the pew door, I took fright at the 

 beginning of a preludium with a full accompaniment, so that 

 I flew out of church and home again. I also remember to 



