The Caldwell tribune. [volume] (Caldwell, Idaho Territory [Idaho]) 1883-1928, 1889-07-06
GOODNESS IN DANGER.
BY HARLEY HARKER.

"rhere is no great secret about it, -
said the old soldier to me. "You
must. think about the danger and
not about yourself See??"
At first glance 1 confess | did not
see. But upon further conversation
with the veteran l caught bis mean
ing. His idea was that panic was
caused by n sudden self conscious
ness. One begins to imagine that a
limb is crushed or the breath knock
ed out of him, or he forecasts the
pain or misery of his hurts before he
gets them. The danger itself, that
is, the thing that is about to hurt
you, possibly, but has not yet done
so; the thing that is to be confronted,
met and vanquished; this is put out
Of mind by the terror with which it
clouds itself, and SO it has you at a
disadvantage, Danger masks itself
in terror. The terror blinds our wit
and paralyzes our arm; we are thus
at the mercy of our destroyer, The
real danger we do not sco-that is,
the agent OF evil-unless we are cecil
headed.
There is a world Of truth in the
philosophy of this wel-known gen.
eral. Suppose one is in II theater ut
the time of an alarm of fire. Most
people do not even smell the fire,
much less see it. Most people ire
simply self-centered to that degree
that they know nothing out of per-
sonalularm. The real cause, Tho has
the GOODNESS to seek for it? Who in
quires, where is it? Or who asks,
what is your authority? Not one.
All are thinking of self. | do not
now mean to critise the Eplfishness
of it. the moral phase of the mat
l only point out that personality,
not the Cuuse, fills every mind.
Except of course the cool-headed
man here and there who thinks to
ask, "Now, ] wonder if it IL really so.
| would like to know who said so. ="
SUN a man Is not drawn into u vor
lex and trodden into the carpet.
He studies the danger itself, and, as
uslal, nine times out often, discovers
q way to match it.
A physician explains to Tile that
the heart action, under the terror
excited by danger, is in many cases
equivalent to apop!ectic paralysis:
The blood is left to gorge the poor
brain, and the person is insane. Or,
in the reverse case, the arterial blood
is not sent out, the brain isempty so
to speak, the suffer is powerless.
This is, in either case shock. Shock is
the result OF dread. Dread is the
minds action by imagination. The
thing to do is to break the spell of
Imagination. One may accomplish
this by resolutely putting away all
thought of self, and thinking, insist
ing on fastening the attention on
the cause of the alarm 1t must be
achieved early, before the heart is nf-
ferted. may be disputed rs to Inn
agination ofthe pangs of being hurt.
1t is not asserted that one is con-
scious of imagining, "Oh, / shall suf-
Ter so, if | am burned" No, that is
TOO long a sentence to be thought
out, consciously, ina moment of ter
ror, yet the impression, instantane-
Gus as lightning, is nevertheless
there. If you afterward recall your
thoughts, you will confess that | am
correct. In battle men do not think
of being hurt; the sight of shocking
wounds does not awaken any
thought of pain. 1t is before the bat
tie that legs trembIe and nerves of
the whole body culver with anticipa-
ted pains, till the man is q coward
in spite of himself. In action the
cause, those guns over there, those
lines of the enemy, fiji the mind'seye;
consequently the soldier is cool.
| recently heard a lady relate that,
when @ fire began in her room. the
blaze was so curious as it licked in
along the cornice that she found her.
self saying, ''How pretty that isl'
AS a result she was able to act cool.
ly in escaping from the chamber. In
case a gentleman was saved
from being run over by a horse from
the fact that, as the mad animal was
about TO spring upon him, he
thought, "What a close resemblance
between that animal and my off one
of q pair!" This gave him sufficient
self-control to grasp at q passing
and swing himself out of
harms way. Whereas it is a we'll
known fact that many people are
struck powerless" by the very sight
OF a frantic runaway, and SO neglect
the opportune second of escape.
have yet another case in mind.
A gentleman in the Wild West, about
to be assaulted by scoundrel in a
ranch, says: II saw him
draw the weapon. knew he was
crazy drunk, and that he had mis-
taken my peaceable, commercial self
for pal with whom he had had II
quarrel. AS he drew on me | thought.
Is he German or American? Ishouted
to him in German. When did you
leave Fatherland?" 1t struck his ear
in time. The next minute ! had what
they call out there the drop