For me Mr. Leighton's character was as memorable as he would have the lessons of history.  Am I mistaken he had been a marine, or is this a summarizing false memory?  I clearly recall his glowing pleasure as the free time of summer approached because he loved so much  to read. I do also recall the excitement of learning from a man who had actually been an elected member of the New Hampshire legislature.  He had been disillusioned there somewhat, but still spoke with the shining eyes of American freedom.  I could never forget his story one Monday how an encounter in front of his home in teacher-affordable Norwalk led to being threatened by a youth gang with weapons, and its rapid dispersal, as he waded right into them swinging the lawn sprinkler around his head for his own defense.  I think of him as a marine but also an intellectual who had discovered things are more complicated and burdensome than they might seem.  For me there couldn't have been a better teacher.