Missouri Valley times. [volume] (Missouri Valley, Iowa) 1874-1931, 1908-06-04
DESIRE OF DISTINCTION.
Quaint Illustration Of Peculiar
Phase Of Human Nature.

Quaint Illustration OF Peculiar
Phase Of Human Nature.
In doc Gordon" by Mary r. Will
kins- Freeman, is quaint Illustration
of a peculiar phase of human nature
1t develops with the Wis Of the two
doctors to their poorer patients:
James drove all the morning with
Or. Gordon about the New Jersey
country. The country people were
either saturnine with an odd sllyness.
which had something almost hostile in
1t. or they We're etrusively hospi.able.
forcing apple jack upon the two doc
tors. james WIS much struck 10y the
curious ,inconcern shown by the rela-
tives of the patients and even by the
patients themselves. In only one case.
that Of IL child suffering from, had
case Of measles. was much interest
evinccd. The majority of the patients
We're the very old and middle aged.
and they discussed and heard discussed
their symptoms with much the same
attitude as they might have discussed
the mechanism of a wooden doll. III
any emotion WAS shown. 1t was that
Of singular Inverted pride II had IL
liz i.i:-llt. doctor" sail one old
"s;ls os'r: lrr ;l:li.'.i; i;;rr Yes mo H.
cr dill have i.i awful tight :" said her
married daughter. With II tiit!..'pAaut
expression. Even the chit!Ten cluster
Ing about the t.uctor looked uncu;l-
sciously l,road because their old sr;li!-
mother had had an awful night. The
call OF the two Goctors at the lin:lse
was positively hilarious Quantities OF
old apple jack were fo:v,.d upon them
The old woman IN the adjoining, bed
room. although she was evidently suf-
fering. kept calling ont Il feeble joke in
her cackling Old voice
"'i'lor people see:n positively clatcl
James when he and the doctor were
again i'm the buggy.
They are" said DR. Gordon: "evc.l
the OH woman herself. who Knows we'll
clo"sh that she has not long to live.
Ieil you ever think that the desire of
distinction WAS one of the most. per-
kaps the most. intense purely spiritual
emotion of the liunl:M soul! Look at
the way these people live here. grub
bling away mt the soil like ants. The
most OF them have in their lives just
three ways of attracting notice. the
mon:entlry consideration of their kind
birth marriage. sickness and death
ft,,f IA.
concerned; even With the second many
have nothing to do. There are more
women than men. as usual. and. al.
though the women want to marry. all
the men dO not. There remains only
sickness and death for II standby. so to
speak. IL one of them Is really sick
and dies. the people are aroused to
take notice. The sick person and tho
corpse have certain state and dignity
which they have never attained before.
Why. bless you. man. have one pa
tient, n middle aged woman. who has
been laid up for years with rheuma-
tism. and she is fairly vainglorions. and
SO is her mother. She brags of her in
valid daughter. If she had been mere
ly an old maid on her hands, she would
have been ashamed of her, and the wo-
man herself would have been sour and
discontinued. But she has fairly mar
ried rheumatism. 1t has been to her as
Il husband and children ! tell you.
young man, one has to have his little
footstool of elevation among his fell
lows. even if 1t is a mighty queer one
or he loses his self respect. and self
respect is the best jewel we have"