Spirit of the age. [volume] (Woodstock, Vt.) 1845-1913, 1898-09-17

afs'--S W. 'Nzfs ot Ionat thourht
Mr.. Van Buren, Crofutt "A young man
who felt, from the hour he cast his
first vote, call to go up higher, and
take q prominent seat among the
rulers of tho land
Mr.. Crofutt was q reader of human
nature, with strong faith III policy,
and no iden of principle. lie was
crafty rather than wis, and saw no
differcuce between notorie.y and
fame.
To-bc-sure, he had some grounds
for his belief; for he saw the prom'-
nent officials in his county selected,
not with au eye to personal fitness,
but because they were popular with
the people.
Mr.. Crofutt deliberated on his
future, and, to achieve success, de-
cided to go to work Systematically, i'll
order to make himself popular. This
is how he reasoned:
"a popular man must be II man OF
the people, and, to be man of the
people, one must never sink below the
average, nor rise above the majority;
SO it is equally dangerous to be n
drunkard or a scholar! The popular
man should neither be sloven nor II
fop in dress, nor boor or courtier in
manner. He should know the people
hot only the voters, but their wives
and children, their hopes and fears,
their success or ill-fortune; and he
should ever comment on tho things
nearest to the heart of the man lie is
addressing. TO bepopular, one should
be active for the friends he hopes some
day to use, but never positive, SO as to
rouse the opposition against him. A
friend in the camp of the foe is pill
lar of strength to hepopular man"
This, and much more in the same
vein showed that Mr. Crofutt went TO
work with plan.
He had temper, but he kept it to
himself; and if he had any individual
views ON government, religion or edu-
cation, he never permitted them to in
terfere with his agreeing, in his very
indefinite way, with the views of peo-
pie diametrically opposite.
He cultivated memory for names,
and carried memorandum book, III
which each night he noted down the
name of every new acquaintance he
had met during the day, and every
circumstance connected with the intro
duction.
Therefore, he was continually COM
plimentiug people who had forgotten
him, and showing his interest in them
by curious knowledge of their
names, as we'll as the names of their
friends, and other matters that proved
he must have retained the most
pleasant remembrance of them.
Ho complimented the temperance
men by quietly wishing them success,
and publicly atteuding-their lectures
and open meetings, but at the same
time he took care to keep in with the
liquor dealers and men addicted to the
flowing bowl by an occasional mild in
diligence, to prove he was believer
in the virtues of modey ate drink.
All this tended to make Mr.. Van
Buren Crofutt very popular, but it
was not many years after his first
vote was cast that he discovered he
was still without the pale, and, be-
ycnd his captivating manners, had no
tie that bound him to men by the en-
dearing name OF "brother."
He belonged to no society banded
for special purpose, and to no order
united by mysterious ties for tho per-
petration of mystic ceremonies and the
deepening OF the channels of fraternal
love.
Mr.. Crofutt was member of the
bar, n nominal lawyer with small
patrimony that rendered him compare
lively Independent of fees; but the
legal profession, though very noble.
does not lead to strong fraternal feel
ings between its members in o small
country town.
Mr.. Van Buren, Crofutt decided,
after much thought, to become a
society man in the most liberal and
literal meaning of the word. Such e
course would enlarge the field of his
acquaintance, and enable him TO be
among brothers no matter where he
went
So Mr.. Crofutt began to take ode
grees," and to be initiated into the
mysteries of all the secret societies
that flourish with such vigor and va
riety.
The result of this was that, before
the year was over, Mr.. Crofutt's
jewelry answered double purpose,
and his mind was terribly confused on
passwords and grips.
His scarf-pin bespoke him an An
cient. and his finger-ring showed he
travelled as a Builder; his sleeve-but-
tons bore mystic emble,ns. and his
watch chain was decorated with society
charms.
After he had exhausted his iewelry
to prove the legality of his claims, lie