St. Johnsbury Caledonian. [volume] (St. Johnsbury, Vt.) 1867-1919, 1893-08-03
ST. JoHNsBURY SIXTY YEARS AGO.
fwrltlcn for the cALrnoNIAN.

vim were both men Of mark in the time
we write OF. Both were physicians; a
least both wore the prefex Of Or ID
Luther had ceased to be practicln
physician, but kept drug store in 1T
tie shop somewhere in the vicinity OF tn
North church. He was also license
preacher, though think not ordained
He must have been about fifty years oil
when first knew him, had given himse
topolitics, had been something ola poiti
clan, and had been honored by his distrlc
witha seat in congress.
He was man Of decided opinions, ant
quite free, and sometimes a little curt, Il
expressing them, and 50 provoked tn
likes and dislikes of his townsmen an(
acquaintance.
He had earned, know not how, the so
briquet Of" Old Jupiter" perhaps from thu
trenchant pen he used, which was not al
ways dipped in honey. He was editor o
the Farmers Herald, the first newspaper
printed in st. Johnsbury, from which the
sturdy CALIFORNIAN has been evolved. AT
that time Masonry and anti-Masonry
very heatedly divided the politics of the
state The doctor was not an adhering Ma
son, but one who favored the order, and
such were dubbed Jack Masons.' He
opposed the election of n. A. Palmer,
the anti-masonic candidate for governor,
who was, however, elected. The Herald
was not success, and shared the fate OF
the party it espoused, to the pecuniary
loss of those concerned in it, which was
said to have fallen most heavily upon
the head of DR.. ].
In person DR.. ! was tall and slim; his
features were small and Irregular from
some injury to one of his feet, he could
not bring his heel to the ground; and the
irreverent lads, who 50 often are gifted
to note and characterize the peculiariticS
of their elders and betters, iacetiously
named him CDR. Tip-toe;' perhaps i'll
marked distinction from his brother, who
was man of perfect and striking
physique.
DR.. Luther had sons and daughters.
His daughter Betsey was my teacher in
the cold Branch" district, and won my
perpetual admiration and love by her
kindness. He had three sons, Mr.
Ephr1im Jewett, who will be remembered
by many of your readers as leading
citizen and a successful merchant Dan
iel, who died, while yet youth of seven
teen, and whose death made strong i'm
preston upon the young people, among
whom he was leader. remember so
well the funeral and the sermon preached
by Rev. Mr. Johnson, his pastor, to
large and deeply affected congregation.
The text and impressive exhortation re-
main with me to-day
The young son, Samuel, lived to middle
manhood, as one of your citizens, an
honored man, devout Christian and
Office bearer in the church of his father.
He was of my own age and we became
fast friends. recall a little episode,
when we were perhaps twelve years Of
age. We had been egged on to a fight
by some chip on the shoulder affair,
and in the melee which ensured the tug
of war" was the hair. His had been
closely cropped, while mine had become
untowardly long, and when the conflict
had reached this acute stage, the odds
were all against me. How we'll | remem-
Der the despairing slips ofmy fingers from
his Uranium, and the diabolcal shakes
my head underwent with the vicious
clutch of his fingers intert wined in my
sunny locks, though the ups and downs
OF more than sixty years have interviewed.
We made up, however, and recounted the
affair in many hearty laugh after dea-
Gun Hdu DecH plellAcu 10 HIS name, ana
Rev to my own.
DR.. Calvin Jewett was eminent in his
profession; a gentleman of the old school;
dignified and scrupulously exact in dress,
speech and manners. He had several sons
who had come to manhood and left st.
Johnsbury before my recollection; one of
whom in after life became acquainted
with-viz., Prof. Milo P. Jewett. He was
the first president of the celebrated Vas.
sar college, at Poughkeepsie, n Y, and
afterward leading educator in the state
of Wisconsin.
He was led, quite early in life, to a
change in his UNCONVENTIONAL views, and
made a corresponding change in his
church relations. He published small
volume entitled 'Jewett's Letter or
Baptism" He sent copy of it to hi.
father, and, as the story goes, his father
when he had read it, laid it down some
what vigorously upon his desk, with tn,
ejaculation, 81 ought to have taught tn,
boy better!" s. C.