“Then, if I were to tell you,” I remarked, “that I am at this moment supposedly insane—­at least not normal—­and that when I leave you to-night I shall go direct to the very hospital where I was formerly confined, there to remain until the doctors pronounce me fit for freedom, what would you say?”

“I should say that you are a choice sort of liar,” he retorted.

This genial insult I swallowed with gratification.  It was, in truth, a timely and encouraging compliment, the force of which its author failed to appreciate until my host had corroborated my statements.

If I could so favorably impress an intimate friend at a time when I was elated, it is not surprising that I should subsequently hold an interview with a comparative stranger—­the cashier of a local bank—­without betraying my state of mind.  As business interviews go, this was in a class by itself.  While my attendant stood guard at the door, I, an enrolled inmate of a hospital for the insane, entered the banking room and talked with a level-headed banker.  And that interview was not without effect in subsequent negotiations which led to the closing of a contract amounting to one hundred and fifty thousand dollars.

The very day I re-entered the hospital I stopped on the way at a local hotel and procured some of the hostelry’s stationery.  By using this in the writing of personal and business letters I managed to conceal my condition and my whereabouts from all except near relatives and a few intimate friends who shared the secret.  I quite enjoyed leading this legitimate double life.  The situation appealed (not in vain) to my sense of humor.  Many a smile did I indulge in when I closed a letter with such ambiguous phrases as the following:  “Matters of importance necessitate my remaining where I am for an indefinite period.” ...  “A situation has recently arisen which will delay my intended trip South.  As soon as I have closed a certain contract (having in mind my contract to re-establish my sanity) I shall again take to the road.”  To this day few friends or acquaintances know that I was in semi-exile during the month of January, 1905.  My desire to suppress the fact was not due, as already intimated, to any sensitiveness regarding the subject of insanity.  What afterwards justified my course was that on regaining my freedom I was able, without embarrassment, again to take up my work.  Within a month of my voluntary commitment, that is, in February, I started on a business trip through the Central West and South, where I remained until the following July.  During those months I felt perfectly well, and have remained in excellent health ever since.