RT Journal
A1 Koepsell TD
T1 REmbrandt peale (1778-1860)
JF Archives of Pediatrics & Adolescent Medicine
JO Archives of Pediatrics & Adolescent Medicine
YR 2005
FD December 1
VO 159
IS 12
SP 1100
OP 1100
DO 10.1001/archpedi.159.12.1100
UL http://dx.doi.org/10.1001/archpedi.159.12.1100
AB 
Rubens Peale, however, was cursed with bad eyesight and frail health as a young boy. Barely able to see the letters in books, he struggled in school and at drawing. Encouragement to persist in his efforts came from no less a source than Benjamin Franklin, a visitor to the Peale household, but Rubens came to realize that his natural gifts lay elsewhere. As early as age 10, he showed unusual talent at growing plants and raising birds. The portrait shows him gently probing the soil around a rare variety of geranium with 2 fingers of his right hand, a keen sense of touch helping to compensate for his poor vision.