Of Greek, mention has already been made. He employed his
late beginnings of the language not only to follow Aristotle's work
as an anatomist, but to aid his studies in Greek philosophy and New
Testament criticism, and to enjoy Homer in the original. In middle
life, too, he dipped sufficiently into Norwegian and Danish to grapple
with some original scientific papers. When he was fifteen, Italian as
well as German is set down by him in his list of things to be
learnt, though for some time the pressure of preparing for the London
matriculation barred the way; and on the voyage of the _Rattlesnake_
he spent many hours making out Dante with the aid of a dictionary.
No doubt, also, he must have read some Italian poetry with his wife
during their engagement and early married days, for she had a fair
acquaintance with Italian, as well as equalling his knowledge of
German. When he was past sixty and ill-health, cutting short his old
activities, had sent him to seek rest and change in Italy, he took
up Italian again, and plunged into the authorities on the very
interesting prehistoric archaeology of Italy.
To return to his early development. There is extant a fragmentary
little journal of his, begun when he was fifteen, and kept irregularly
for a couple of years. Here the early bent of his mind is clearly
revealed; it prefigures the leading characteristics of his mature
intellect.
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