Although Schlitzie was rightly classifed as microcephalic due to the shape and circumference of his head and his below average intelligence, it must be remembered that quality of the brain is an important factor as well as quantity. And in Schlitzie's case what little he had was very active.
Little Schlitzie, who was only about four feet tall, walked with a stoop which made his arms appear to be too long. Also when walking you can notice a looseness in his joints and that when standing his knees are slightly bent. He was probably nearsighted which, like everybody else, only got worse with age.
Although Schlitzie could only speak a few monosyllabic words or formulate only simple phrases it is believed he understood most of what was said to him.
Some people thought Schlitzie was more intelligent than he was given credit for because of the quickness in his reactions, in his powers of observation and his ability to mimic but in fact these are traits shared by others with his condition.
Schlitzie must have been raised from infancy by someone who loved him. It can be difficult to raise a person with microcephaly not just because of the lower than average intelligence but also because of their limited attention span and high distractibility. Somebody with a lot of love and the patience of Job trained Schlitzie through constant repetition to form good behavioral habits and to do simple tasks such as washing, dressing and feeding himself. This would later prove to make him attractive to showmen as he was for the most part well-behaved on stage although he was known to get angry when he was abused and taunted by the patrons. But then who wouldn't?
At times Schlitzie could be restless and at other times he would get tired and run out of energy. He had an excitable and vivacious personality and loved to laugh. This along with the quickness in his reactions to the people or things around him amused and endeared him to his audience.
Many children born with microcephaly die young and in a sense this was true of Schlitzie too. You see, Schlitzie was a three-year-old child who never grew up - even after 70 years of life on this earth. He is missed by all those who knew him and by all those who have come to know him since his passing in 1971. |
