218 Idle Days in Patagonia. 



timid man has had an experience of this kind he 

 looks back on the day that brought it to him as 

 the happiest he has known, one that stands out 

 brightly and shines with a strange glory among his 

 days. 



When we are suddenly confronted with any 

 terrible danger, the change of nature we undergo 

 is equally great. In some cases fear paralyzes us, 

 and, like animals, we stand still, powerless to move 

 a step in flight, or to lift a hand in defence of our 

 lives ; and sometimes we are seized with panic, and, 

 again, act more like the inferior animals than 

 rational beings. On the other hand, frequently in 

 cases of sudden extreme peril, which cannot be 

 escaped by flight, and must be instantly faced, 

 even the most timid men at once, as if by miracle, 

 become possessed of the necessary courage, sharp, 

 quick apprehension, and swift decision. This is a 

 miracle very common in nature ; man and the in- 

 ferior animals alike, when confronted with almost 

 certain death " gather resolution from despair." 

 We are accustomed to call this th5 " courage of 

 despair " ; but there can really be no trace of so 

 debilitating a feeling in the person fighting, or pre- 

 pared to fight, for dear life. At such times the 



nightly Review for August, 1889, there occurs the following 

 passage, descriptive of the state of mind experienced by men in 

 fight: "All maddening pleasures seem to be compressed into 

 that very short space of time, and yet every sensation experienced 

 in those fleeting moments is so indelibly impressed on the brain 

 that not even the most trifling incident is ever forgotten in after 

 life." 



