and romantic personage, one who seems made I to tempt the pen of a Lenotre, was born at Basse-Terre (Guadaloupe), December 25, 1745, the son of a comptrollergeneral, M. de Boulogne, and a negress. He was given the Christian name of Joseph Boulogne Saint-George. Is this the origin of the surname "Saint-George" under which he became famous? No historical document exists which might authenticate the fact; but M. Roger de Beauvoir, who has written a lengthy novel 1 with Saint-George for its hero, one filled with detail which is not altogether inaccurate, furnishes a quite reasonable explanation of the origin of the name. "This name, Saint-George," he writes, "was not given the young mulatto as a mere matter of choice of name, as is so often tie case in the colonies. The handsomest vessel in the harbor of Guadaloupe, at the time the child was born, served him in the stead of a godfather." Brought to France by his father when he was very young, Saint-George soon gave proof of the extraordinary ease with which he learned. Placed in lodgings with the famous fencingmaster La Boissiere, he rapidly became a redoubtable fencer, and showed remarkable endowment for all forms of bodily exercise. The little mulatto's petulance, says Angelo, and his extraordinary vivacity greatly entertained M. de Boulogne, who said that instead of a man he had engendered a sparrow. 1 Before long La Boessiere's pupil had acquired great superiority, not alone in the handling of the foils, but as a marksman, skater, equestrian and dancer as well. At the same time his rare natural gifts for the arts, and notably for music, were carefully cultivated. Saint-George took lessons from Jean-Marie Leclair, and his talent for the violin soon made itself evident. In 1761 he was numbered among the gendarmes of the royal guard; yet his leisure hours
