d'origine francaise," he writes, "jouissait d'une mediocre
fortune; de la, peut-etre, certains froissements dans
l'organisation nerveuse et la vive sensibilite de l'enfant,
sentiments qui devaient plus tard se refleter dans ses oeuvres,
empreintes generalement d'une profonde melancolie." If the writer
of the article in question had gone a little farther back, he
might have found a sounder basis for his theory in the extremely
delicate physical organisation of the man, whose sensitiveness
was so acute that in early infancy he could not hear music
without crying, and resisted almost all attempts at appeasing
him.

The last-mentioned fact, curious and really noteworthy in itself,
acquires a certain preciousness by its being the only one
transmitted to us of that period of Chopin's existence. But this
scantiness of information need not cause us much regret. During
the first years of a man's life biography is chiefly concerned
with his surroundings, with the agencies that train his faculties
and mould his character. A man's acts and opinions are
interesting in proportion to the degree of consolidation attained
by his individuality. Fortunately our material is abundant enough
to enable us to reconstruct in some measure the milieu into which
Chopin was born and in which he grew up. We will begin with that
first circle which surrounds the child--his family. The negative
advantages which our Frederick found there--the absence of the
privations and hardships of poverty, with their depressing and
often demoralising influence--have already been adverted to; now
I must say a few words about the positive advantages with which
he was favoured. And it may be at once stated that they cannot be
estimated too highly. Frederick enjoyed the greatest of blessings