ELIHU BOOT 431 did not escape. In this instance the real name itself afforded too good an opportunity to be passed by. The professor was always known among the boys as * * Cube Boot, ' ' and Elihu as v
- Square Boof
It was the professor's earnest desire that his son should follow in the paternal footsteps^ and become a teacher. At first it seemed as if the wish were to be gratified ; for immedi- ately upon graduation Elihu secured the position of principal of the academy at Bome, New York. The administrative du- ties of this position were not very arduous, and much of his time was devoted to teaching mathematics and the classics. His work as a teacher was distinguished by the same earnest- ness and thoroughness which had characterized his career in college, and as a result the pupils made good advancement under his direction. He could not have been a hard master, however, for it is recorded that he was very popular with the students. After teaching one year he abandoned the teaching pro- fession, to his father's great disappointment, and never after- ward returned to it. For a long time he had had it in mind to enter upon the study of law, and to make the legal profes- sion his vocation. This cannot be wondered at, for to a mind like his, earnest and thorough-going by both nature and train- ing, the legal profession has strong and peculiar attractions. While he enjoyed teaching he felt that the law would afford him a far wider field of usefulness. While making preparations to enter upon a law course in New York City, his father, wishing to be helpful, offered to supply him with letters of introduction to a number of people of influence living in the metropolis. * * No, ' ' the son answered,
- I am starting out to do this thing myself. I am going to
make my own friends without any family pull. I want to find out whether I am a man or a mouse. ' ' If the father had any feeling of resentment at being rebuffed for his well-meant kindness, it must have been dispelled by admiration for his son 's grit and determination. Thus Elihu Boot entered upon the study of law at the age of twenty-one in the University Law School of the City of
