Christian Churches and Churches of Christ; Lutz, Henry Frey, 1868-1926 -- Biography; Restoration movement (Christianity)
How expectant attention can deceive us was illustrated a few years ago
when Crystal Palace, London, was on fire. A large throng of people were
in distress because they saw a favorite monkey burning on the roof. The
monkey was later found safe in an adjoining building. It was an old
coat that the imagination of the crowd had transformed into a monkey.
Thus it is that people see ghosts, and almost anything they are looking
for, through a vivid imagination.
In multitudes of cases people are divided because they use words in a
different sense, or misunderstand their significance. Years ago, when I
was keeping my father's books, there used to come into the office a
bright young man who had more natural ability than education. We were
both fond of discussion, and often had informal debates. One day we
debated on "Woman suffrage." I opened up on the subject and as I
proceeded my opponent got restless to reply. When he took the floor he
exploded something as follows: "I am opposed to 'Woman Suf-fer-age'
with every drop of vitality within my skin. I will use hand, tongue and
purse against 'Woman Suf-fer-age.' In short, I am so bitterly opposed
to 'Woman Suf-fer-age' for the all-sufficing reason that I don't want
women to suffer." I said, "Amen!" and we were agreed for once. You
smile, and yet three-fourths of our differences would vanish if we
patiently conferred together long enough to understand each other
clearly.
The courts recognize that the best of people are blinded when their own
interests are involved, and reject jurymen on this basis. Who expects
parents to be perfectly impartial in their judgment when their own
children are involved?
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
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