Intelligence and an English village

[Christine]

I think it's kind of interesting where our intelligence comes from. Nature or nurture and all that. Sometimes in an English village there is a child who outshines all the rest.
This is particularly noticeable in the county of England were I was born, as rumour has it there had been a lot of inbreeding for centuries. This would seem to be the case as men didn't even go to the next village to find a wife. Churchyards are full of people with the same surname and when I traced my ancestors I realised mine had all stayed in one village for three generations!
So in this particular village there were a lot of 'slow' thinkers. Children with a dazed look on their faces whose mouths usually hung open and who didn't seem to rush about anywhere, some would say they were a bit 'thick'. Anyway Freddie was born into this village. Freddie's mum and dad (my distant relatives) were fairly poor but very nice, the local butcher and his wife.
Freddie was very bright and soon became top of the class and ended up going to Cambridge the top English University. His parents were very proud, but Freddie was in fact ashamed of them and wouldn't let them attend his graduation ceremony. This fact was talked about endlessly by all my relatives who said it was a disgrace that stuck up Freddie wouldn't even let his dear mum and dad have the honour and joy of seeing him graduate.
Anyway when I traced my ancestors and met some long lost relatives I found out that Freddie was actually the grandson of the local squire. The squire had had a fling with a maid. When she became pregnant, the gardener was made to marry her and keep it all quiet and the child that was born was Freddie's mother.
So it could be said that Freddie's intelligence came from his grandfather the village squire.
Freddie obviously didn't use his intelligence wisely though. He ended up being a cold hearted barrister and they still talk badly of him to this day. "That poor little butcher and his wife scrimped and saved to send Freddie to University, and look how he re-paid them".
Moral of the tale is: don't be so 'clever' that you forget your poor little old mum and dad.

[ArizonaBob]

Freddy is an idiot.

[Christine]

@ ArizonaBob, yes indeed! He was one of those tall dark and handsome men who became very rich, but what use is that with a cold heart !!