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Thos S Cummings The subject of this memoir has been so closely connected with the advancement of art in this city, and his deserts are so generally known and appreciated, as to render any record of his fame only necessary as a tribute to his merits [[strikethrough]] themselves [[/strikethrough]] rather than as an exposition of them- Professor Cummings exhibited a love for art in his early boyhood, and his leisure hours after a regular attendance at school, were devoted to drawing as an amusement, and many recollect with pleasure, the dawning of his early genius. About the year 1817 Mr Augustus Earl, whose sketches from the life are well remembered [[strikethrough]] water colored pictures were the best of that day [[/strikethrough]] visited New York and his [[strikethrough]] unqualified [[/strikethrough]] praise of young Cummings drawings gave a new impetus to his advancement, he now made rapid strides toward that eminence which he has since achieved- How uncertain are all the [[strikethrough] fates [[/strikethrough]] dreams of childhood, and how many trivial circumstances occur to change [[strikethrough]] our [[/strikethrough]] their destinies; the father of our [[strikethrough]] [[illegible]] [[/strikethrough]] artist decided that he should educate his son as a merchant and the youth, enamored of the pencil was compelled to change it for the quill, [[strikethrough]] and [[/strikethrough]] instead of reading the effusions of the poet in praise of the painter he forthwith mounted the high stool of the counting room and with an industry which has always characterized his