BOY PRODIGY.

Star (Christchurch), Issue 11510, 5 October 1915, Page 1

BOY PRODIGY.

j ASTRONOMER. CHFMIST. HIS- :] I TORI AN. GEOLOGIST, i BOTANIST. j SAN FRANCISCO, August 7. j ! With no schooling except Nature and* ; books, supplemented by the help ot his 1 parents eight-year-old Rich- 3 rd i has left Irs father's isolated farm in ! the rugged s'opes back ot Santa iiosaj 1 and come to San Francisco, an astron-Jj i omer, chemist, historian, geologist audi ! botanist. ; ! The lad's extraordinary versati itv, r'earness of retcnt jvo memory and concept on ot serious^ sub--j ;ts is amazing Dr Frederic Biirk, principal of the San Francisco Normal : School, where ho is receiving special ! instruction durinc the summer months. ! Until little Richard enrolled at the i ; Normal School he had never attended. ! school. His extraordinary education is. the result oi application on subjects which he fancied and the assistance of his parents—teaching him how to study from Nature and boons. \t the ago of tire he collected 200.i i railroad timetables and studied them i [until he know every route and every] i time schedule. . . ' ! At six lie classified all the kings m I the world's history, inc'iiding those ' of the ancient empires and the chu dynasty. Has studied astronomy until he can ! name the planets of the first magnitude. the princ.-'pal #locate with a telescope all stars of irn-. portauee, and calculate win mi cometswill return. Studied chemistry, know? chemical; symbols, and understands many important chemical actions. lj":irne'| the namjes of all trees:, , shrubs, and flowers and calls them by I their Latin appellation*. | Studied geology and can describe end j distinguish rock formations. j Mas studied botany and now is trying to cross hollyhocks to produce bet- I ter llowej's. j