Rock Island daily Argus. (Rock Island, Ill.) 1886-1893, 1888-11-27

OF Every Day Life.
Courage, in any genuine sense, does not
wantonly court danger. On the other hand,
it does not shrink from or avoid danger,
when there is any occasion TO meet it. 1t has
worthy purpose and adheres to it unswery-
ingly, not counting cost or consequences.
More mental and moral than physical, it has
nothing in common with display or bravado.
1t is so quiet and modest that it might be
mistaken by surface seeFs for want of conf
dence, even for timidity 1t runs no risk for
the sake of risk; it wastes no ammunition to
make noise and smoke; it burns powder only
TO speed the bali to its mark The most
courageous do not advertise themselves be-
forehand; they calmly await the test, willing
that it should speak for them. They are sell
dom imagined to be what they are under or
binary circumstances They keep their own
secret, which they may not suspect them
selves until requirement calls it forth. They
are devoted TO duty; where it commands
they follow against fearful odds, leading for
lorn hopes, charging in the face of death,
sustained and stimulated by conviction Of
right.
Many peoples, Anglo-Saxons notably, at
tach undue importance &c what they esteem
TO be bravery, meaning combativeness in
general In our own country we are con
tinually hearing the expressions, He will
fight" They are fighters They won't
give it up without fighting as if combative.
ness were the highest human endowment
as If its possession would compensate for the
absence of any number of virtues. Combat
iveness is not an uncommon nor an exalted
quality. 1t belongs as rule to all savages
it is a physical trait of undevelopment The
tiger is neither noble nor intelligent, but il
fighting powers he is not surpassed by any
beast.
IDIoCY OF THE BULLDOG.
The bulldog is extremely repulsive in ap
pearance, and so superlatively stupid thai
he is generally regarded as a canine idiot
| But be has not an equal in the animal king
dom as to fighting propensity, being as desti
| tute of fear as he is of brains When b.
seizes anything with his teeth his jaws otter
| cannot be pried apart He has been known
to suffer death without losing his hold. H,
actually has not intelligence enough to de
sist from what he is doing. His instinct i
absorbed and exhausted by pugnacity H,
has been praised for his readiness to attacl
any animal whatever its size and strength
The impelling agency is not boldness, bu
| idiocy. BY the common estimate he shout
be chosen king of beasts Men who are per
petually prating Of their puguacity, anC
their joy in showing it, would be like tn,
bulldog if they We're not generally poltroons
They resemble him minus his ferocity
Bravery-temperame disdain of DANCE
or death-mav be, probably is, unusual, bu
courage belongs to nearly all educated men
to whole nations, even to races Its absenc
is with them an astonishing exception In
stead OF being heroic, it is really general
We must always judge of courage by its eff
feet. Men who have appeared dauntless in
score OF deperate battles have privately con
fessed that they were often timid. The,
doubtless told the exact truth. Courage i
frequently, if not commonly, a matter o
education of wontedness. This is seen in tn
! conduct of raw troops when first under fire
| They almost always are unsteady, liable t,
be thrown into confusion But after a Ger
tain amount of military experience they vii
charge battery without wavering
EVOLUTION OF COURAGE.
The soldier, at his virgin battle, Is Ikel,
to think that every shot fred brings down
man. He alters his opinion when he learn
that an amount OF metal equal to the averag
human weight is required to produce casu
atty. His whole military education concur
to increase his fr1nness. He who NAV ola,
the poltroon at the outset of a campaign ma
be hero at the close. Frederick II, tn
most eminent general OF his time, and one o
the most intrepid of men, ran away from hi
first battle. Mollintz was won, but the coru
mander had fed. Napoleon, who had IL
vincible faith in his star, who had change
the destiny Of nations, who was the creates
Of captains, lost spirit completely when b
saw himself hopelessly defeated at Waterloo
and was found wandering aimlessly on tn
field, daZed and stunned His prodigiou
courage had been driven out at last BY a
irretrievable reverse.
Courage varies with our mood and circuu
stances; but, backed by viii and pride an
faith in our cause, the outcome may b
trusted 1t is less demanded in war than i
peace, which is incesSant combat with III
martial weapons. Every day brings il
trials, its temptations its dangers, and I
oppose them courage is Indispensable. q
who is deficient in it must go the rear or /
drumned out Of camp The world will n,
keep those who skulk Or fly. The survival {
the fittest is but another phase for the bait
is TO the strong 1t is harder to live than
die; death is only q singiepang; life is ofte
a long series of woes Reason and scient
have robbed death of its theological terror
but modern civilization has made life SO cor
pick, wearing and arduous, that the exerci
of steady courage alone can sustain it. E
cry man who lives out his natural life us
, fully and houorably, however obscure !
may be, is hero. Only he knows what
is compelled to be, to do, to suffer, and
achieves the end solely by the evolution
: courage.-Junius Henri Browne in Gloh
, | Democrat