Staunton spectator. [volume] (Staunton, Va.) 1849-1896, 1879-06-24
People WAC Delight in Imparting Sc
crets to Others.

Few people can keep a secret, but
most persons like to be happy posessors
of one. Thus the Confidential Man is
very popular, and patiently listened to
whenever he speaks. When he takes
you by your buttonhole, and leads you
in corner and arches his brows in a
significant manner, a sense OF enjoy
ment is accustomed to steal over you
and you prepare yourself for a grand
revelation. You have an inkling that
he has something "spicy" to tell you,
and the favor of which will be all the
more delicious or account of the mystic
nv surrounding it. And 1t must be ad.
mitted that generally your expectations
are not raised to be dashed to the
ground. Often he will pave the way
for what he has to state by administer
ing dose of indirect fattery of an ex-
tremely agreeable sort. You will learn
that you are the one person in the world
whom he would make a participation of
the magnificent secret he is about to
disclose, and that he wouldn't dare to
take you into his confidence if he were
not quite convinced, from his past ex-
perience of you, that you will not
breathe to a living soul-not even to
your wife-a syllable of what he is GO
ing to impart to you. This makes you
feel important and has the effect of in
ducing in you willingness to receive,
without the least reservation, whatever
may be poured into your ear. You fam
cy that the individual who can be so
extremely frank and ingenious would
be incapable of telling lies, or with ma
lice aforethought lending himself to the
dissemination of SANDER. Thus, when
you hear that Brown is tottering on the
verge of bankruptcy that Jones is on
the point of seeking divorce from his
wife that Robinson never goes to bed
sober that Smith, who makes such a
good appearance before the world in
general, is nothing more nor less than
swindler: or that Green is q regular
miser, and keeps his, family short of
even the necessaries of life-you are ap-
propriately shocked, but you are too
prone to receive all that you are told as
if it were gospel, and too unsuspecting
to ask if it is not possible that your in
formant has got grounds of grievance
maligns. Instead of making any at
tempt to sift his outrageous statements,
you gloat over the horrors which he dis
~, and join with him in expressing
sympathy with the unhappy be-
ing who are represented to be in such
sorry plight. You believe that you
alone will hear the terrible stories which
he has to relate. But this proves how
easily gulled yeu are. If you could fol-
low him from place to place you would
discover that what he imparts to you,
he imparts to scores of others, and that
he grows more and more exaggerated
the further he proceeds. Possibly, if
you found this out you would not make
him your confidant AS it is however,
you are accustomed to tell him a great
deal which you would do well to keep
to yourself Possibly you reveal your
family skeleton" If you do, he pro.
ceeds to exhibit it to his acquaintance
in general, and you suffer dearly for
your folly. It may be that people lock
askance at you, or that some of your
best friends shall give you. the cold
shoulder and your credit suffers. If so
you may be annoyed and grieved, but
1t is seldom that you recognize from
what source your trouble is springing.
AS you perceive only the effect without
the cause, the likelihood is that you go
on laundering as long as the Confiden-
tial Man will deem it worth while to
bestow attention upon you.
ONE OF RIvES'S JURORs.-Mr. B.
formerly resident OF this county, tells
the following in reference to converse.
ton that came off between himself and
one of his old servants soon after the
adjournment of the United States Court
in Danville that indicted several county
Judges for not putting negro jurors in
the box. Sam had served during the
court that "played the DEVIL with our
civil courts. He met the old darkey as
he was hobbling homeward and said,
"good morning, Sam. Where have you
been? ?"
Sam.-"Bin to cort sar?'
Mr.. B.-"And what were you up
for?'
Sam.-"Up fur? Lor, marsa! Use
jurur on Mr.. Reebs cort, vas sarn'
Mr.. B.-"You a juror! What fit are
you to serve on jury?"
SAM" Much as emmy man, white or
black. I knows all bout law, and can
DO well as you kim"
Mr.. B. brought fourth heavy sigh,
and his mind wandered back to the
days agone when integrity and intelli-
geace ruled supreme. And he thought
he would quiz the old negro on court
matters and jurors duties.
Mr.. B.-''Well, Sam, you think you
are complete juror and qualified to fill
the duty of a juror.
Sam.-"I'm jes dat kind Nv man I
tells you SOD
MIR. B.-sVery well. now If a case of