on board a steamer i once met an elderly man , with such a merry face that , if it was really an index of his mind , he must have been the happiest fellow in creation . indeed he considered himself so , for i heard it from his own mouth . he was a dane , the owner of a travelling theatre . he had all his company with him in a large box , for he was the proprietor of a puppet - show . his inborn cheerfulness , he said , had been tested by a member of the polytechnic institution , and the experiment had made him completely happy . i did not at first understand all this , but afterwards he explained the whole story to me . here it is:--
tested him .
what did the member of the polytechnic institution do to the elderly man ?
what did the member of the polytechnic institution do to the elderly man ?