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was seldom crossed in his childish demands The result was that he grew up to become a wild boy of nature, self-willed and strong He associated with street urchins and took part in their noisy quarrels He was a boy who would make trouble for the parents He received, however, his knowledge of the three R's at a local school
One incident, at least, of his Tumkur days deserves recording It has a psychological interest One evening he returned from school, tired and fagged out He felt sleepy and yet yielding to an impulse, he composed himself to read class lessons He pored over his task, but could not make head or tail of it His eyes were heavy, he dozed and was soon fast asleep He was still conning his lesson but when he awoke, he found to his surprise that he was really reading while slumbering He consulted the clock on the wall opposite, and saw that the minute hand had completed the circle For one whole hour, though asleep, yet he was awake in his mind This seemed odd to his boyish imagination It set him thinking The phenomenon served as an eye-opener He saw that there existed something else apart from physical senses and that gave continuity to our desparate actions We cannot expect a boy in the third form of the primary school to have given this experience a philosophic turn We refer to it only to show that it had made an impression upon the subconscious
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