Democratic Sentinel, Volume 2, Number 51, Rensselaer, Jasper County, 31 January 1879 — That Excited Idiot. [ARTICLE]

That Excited Idiot.

He is always on the street, and if you walk much you will be sure to meet him at least once a week. He bears down at a rapid pace, and appears to be going to pass on your left, but at the distance of two feet he suddenly ducks to the right. You put on your brakes and try to veer to the east; he veers to the east; you try the west; he tries the west; you try the gutter side; he tries the gutter side; you try the inside; he tries the inside; you become excited and jump for an opening on his right; he flushes up and jumps in the same direction. There are but two ways to get by this excited idiot. The one is to right-about face, and go round the block; the other is to grab him around the waist and hold him till a policeman comes up and lets you go by. The expenditures at the Institution for the Education of the Blind, in Wisconsin, the past year, have been $20,000. The average number of pupils in attendance was 77, and the total during the year 90. The Trustees ask an appropriation of $18,500 to enable them to meet the expenses of the present year. At the Wisconsin Institute for the Education of the Deaf and Dumb 180 pupils were enrolled, and the average number in attendance was 140. The expenditures were $29,522.45, and the Trustees ask an appropriation of $30,000 for the current year.