Of the classic tongues, he can be said to have learnt
only the Latin: the Greek was then little taught in any part of our
country. For the Positive Sciences he had much inclination; since it
is told, among other things, that he constructed instruments for
himself, such as an electrical machine, with the performances of which
he much amazed the people of Raleigh. Meantime he was forming at home,
under the good guidance there, a solid knowledge of all those fine old
authors whose works make the undegenerate literature of our language
and then constituted what they called Polite Letters. With these went
hand in hand, at that time, in the academies of the South, a profane
amusement of the taste. In short, our sinful youth were fond of
stage-plays, and even wickedly enacted them, instead of resorting to
singing-schools. Joseph Gales the younger had his boyish emulation of
Roscius and Garrick, and performed "top parts" in a diversity of those
sad comedies and merry tragedies which boys are apt to make, when they
get into buskins. But it must be said, that, as a theatric star, he
presently waxed dim before a very handsome youth, a little his senior,
who just then had entered his father's office. He was not only a
printer, but had already been twice an editor,--last, in the late
North Carolina capital, Halifax,--previously, in the great town of
Petersburg,--and was bred in what seemed to Raleigh a mighty city,
Richmond; in addition to all which strong points of reputation, he
came of an F.
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