Rock Island Argus. (Rock Island, Ill.) 1871-1872, 1871-07-10
The man who never Get mad.

Though the immediate friends, enemies,
and other connections Of Shakespeare
p~rincely Dane-with the exception oil poor
old Polonius, who admitted that the siiege0
insanity was, at least, one containing
"method"-united in denounoing aml Is
''mad," they did not mean mad in the sense
in which noe now do. They did not sllude
60 furious anger per Sc but, to the aberrs-
,;on of q disordered intellect an esSe. They
touched rather in their Judgment upon some
infAiuation which unsested the mind and
left il like q wreck picturesque or hideous,
as the case might be; than upon the vigor-
Gus outAaming of q healthy brain. We
have al, ssy-for the sake of illustration
once in our lives, listened to the sharp,
bitter words, or beheld the angry, violent
gestures Of some, provoked beyond present
endurance. In speaking of it afterwards we
said he, Tor she) 'got awfully mad Then
We al opened our eyes wider, as il in won
der q. such . catastrophe; or we looked
critically forbesring or smiled superior
each Of us catering ourselves that BY 80
doing we hid our own miserable little brown
paper secret that we had done suoh Q thing
ourselves, and don't know for certain but
that we might do again if. But we once
knew 3 man who nerer got mad. We don't
know how it was. We don't know ii it was
the result of judicious bringing up. We
can't say If his mother herself q noted
virAgol instilled forbearance into him with
his earliest nutrimeut; or whether his
father Ia man of most ungovernSble temper
initiated him, conseOutively, into the gar
meuts Of childhood, boyhood, hobble-de-hoy
hood, and young-mAnhOod, with the aid Of
clothing procured p~urpOsely from the estAb
lisAmsnt of 9 peaceful outftter. We can
sSy how il was We only know it was so
When q babe, if anything happened to mill
tate against his comfort, instead of yellini
feroely like q common babe, he would onl!
stifen his tiny body rigidly, and slide of hi
mothers knee, his small hands tightl
cleuchsd in the scanty tableolOth, which
with all the tea things and fathers lean b
of side-meat, would accompany him TO tn
floor, whence with his clean clothes coveret
with coffee grounds, he would be rescued
placid. When q schoolboy he would unre
s%is,ingIy take = msrited slap in the fac
from another boy, and only go and try t
destroy that boys character to everybody
pretending all the while to be his friend
Our want of space forbids us to follow hir
through the intervening stages between boz
hood and manhood. During this period h
was, however, immaculate. We met hir
onoe, when he was a full grown, hAndsom
man, on the East River road. 1t was 9 be
case Of spring thAW, and the roads "miring
deep in heavy, clay mud. he was a fgur
of fun-if possible. His horse, be said, Ia
"got mad fought awhile with the Bit au
then burst the saddle irth, finishing b
Sinking" him full length in the mud. b
was plastered with mud, in which be wa
walking, ankle deep, leading his ungoveru'
bic fearful horse-but pale and smiling
we DeRrd ~Att6rWkrus tnAE ne tleu MS MORE
UP in the stable, and tainted him for thre
days with hay and corn, just ont Of reac'
but We are sure that though he did not, j
addition, give ii any water during 'hos
three days, he did not get mad with it fc
spelling q forty dollar suit of black elotl
and bursting q forty cent girth. He kne'
the wioksdness and folly OF giving way I
passion. It was beautiful to see the care b
took Of that horse after wards, so that il
three days fast mightn't spoil its sale. Il
married, snd-but Why 90 farther he va
consistent, and is now semp@ eddem; lRstd
omrsfum. We were, AnecdotioGlIy, shown
that there are those who never get mad, a.
that we knew one who never did so, and u
was handsome. But it is 3 most curiou
fact that this man never had any specil
friends. No one seemed to care a red cen
for him zoe don't, and we don't want you Il
if ever you meet him.