I Knew An Honest Man

I Knew An Honest Man

Someplace, somewhere, there are still men and women of honor. There are people who don’t steal, don’t lie, don’t cheat, don’t hate, and put politics aside in favor of doing the right and honorable thing. There are people who don’t betray the confidence others have placed in them. There are people whose word and handshake are stronger than a one hundred page contract written by a thousand lawyers. Their actions and thoughts are governed by “the right thing to do,” and not by what is most profitable and best for them. There are people who really do concern themselves with the welfare of others and live by the golden rule “Do unto others as you would have them do unto you.” There are people who are “trustworthy, loyal, helpful, friendly, courteous, kind, obedient cheerful, thrifty brave, clean and reverent.” There are people who did not abandon the values with which they were raised. There are, then, people who understand the meaning of civility, and the need for people to live according to shared and well understood values. They are people who believe and live with the moral precept “What is left when honor is lost?” (Publilius Syrus, circa 42 B.C.)

Someplace, somewhere, there are men and women who set the standard and live the standard of honesty and accept the responsibility of doing the right thing because it is the right thing. Honesty, truth, morality and ethics are not given a second thought by these people because these values are inherent in their very nature and the code by which they live. They are honest to the point of accepting they are not perfect, that they also make mistakes because they are human. But they are also honest in accepting responsibility for their missteps and holding themselves accountable for their failures. They punish themselves in agonizing over their failures but work hard to not fail again.

Someplace, somewhere, there are men and women who realize that the cure for the catastrophic financial meltdown and Depression the country is experiencing is a strict prescription of honesty, integrity and truth. On an even greater stage, these same men and women know this same prescription of simple honesty is also the cure for most of the ills of the world. While this may appear to be simplistic and preachy, in fact, the necessity of pure honesty in the conduct of all men and women is quite profound. This is because an equally simple requirement of our own human nature is confidence. People must be confident in their country and its leaders, the country’s social and economic systems, and their neighbor. Confidence means that people can believe in a person or institution that consistently lives and operates according to specific rules of conduct and standards of truth. In short, people need to know what to expect. They need to know they can rely on being dealt with fairly and treated with sincere respect by their leaders who are constantly mindful of the trust placed in them. To betray that trust would be to dishonor and debase themselves. “”A good reputation is more valuable than money.” (Publilius Syrus, circa 42 B.C.)

There is a legend that Abraham Lincoln once walked twenty miles to return a penny to a woman who had overpaid him when he was serving as postmaster. Maybe honesty is so important to me because I always remember and greatly value that story of Lincoln, first told to me by my mother. Maybe honesty is so important to me because I always admired, even loved, Lincoln because of his character. As a twelve year old Boy Scout, I walked the twenty-one mile “Lincoln Trail,” from Lincoln’s home in New Salem to Springfield, the same trail Lincoln had walked. My great grandfather worked in the construction of the court house in Carlinville, Illinois where Lincoln sometimes practiced law. Many times I have walked toward the Carlinville town square where, just past the court house, the old hotel where Lincoln stayed is still standing, yet another reminder of Lincoln. And, not coincidentally, my mother was born on February 12, Abraham Lincoln’s birthday. I wish I could have known Abraham Lincoln in person. I wish I could have known him in person not because he was a great man but, because he was an honest man. His honesty was the foundation of his greatness.

But I did know an honest man once, a man much like Abraham Lincoln. This man, too, was from Illinois. This man, too, was a great man. This man, too, was a politician and went to Washington. And, this man too, represented Abraham Lincoln’s old district. Peter F. Mack, Jr. was a seven term congressman from Carlinville, Illinois. He was born on November 1, 1916, one of eight children of Peter F. Mack Sr. and Catherine Kelly Mack. As is unfortunately true with many honest and great men, they don’t tell you that they are honest and great. Hopefully, most of us are smart enough to figure it out for ourselves. But, unfortunately, some of us are not. Of course, the fact that they don’t tell us is part of their greatness and their honesty. While they are here with us, we tend to take them for granted. It is only when they are gone do we realize what a bright beacon of honor and hope they were. And as we miss them, we try to remember all they taught us and pray, just maybe, we can be like them, if only just a little.

Peter Mack was also a commander in the U. S. Navy, a veteran aviator who solo-piloted a single engine airplane, the “Friendship Flame,” on a round the world flight called the “Abraham Lincoln Good Will World Tour.” I saw his plane take off from Springfield, Illinois on a cold, grey day October 7, 1951 in weather he described as “abominable with only a 700 foot ceiling.” I saw him land at Springfield when he returned 111 days later. He flew along the same route Amelia Earhart had flown in 1937, a short fourteen years earlier. His goal was to convince people around the world that the United States was interested in peace and friendship with everyone.

Peter Mack, like Lincoln, inspired people around him with his confidence, honesty and goodness. He lived a life which others would reference, as people have long with Lincoln, as the example of what we all should be. People might know they may not be able to themselves reach that high level of honor, integrity and honesty, but Peter Mack inspired all who knew him to try. You did not want to disappoint him by doing the wrong thing. It was not that he would get mad, rather he would just look you in the eye and you knew he was disappointed. You wished that he would get mad and yell but, he never did. He never had to say anything. Just his look of disappointment and knowing he expected more from you was all that was needed. And, it was punishment enough because you knew you had let him down and he deserved much better.

On one occasion, when I was fifteen years old, I got into a small disagreement with another boy my age. While it didn’t amount to much, relevant adults in the vicinity didn’t appreciate our, shall we say, “athleticism?” It was a day later and I was walking through the tunnel from the U. S. Capitol to the House Office Building where the congressmen’s offices are located. I saw him (Peter Mack) walking in my direction. I hoped he didn’t see me but, of course, he did. Then I hoped he hadn’t heard about the fight. But, of course, he did. He stopped me and said he heard I had a little incident and asked what happened. (I felt really badly about it. I was sure he never had a fight in his life. I let him down.) I then told him what took place. The other boy and I had a difference of opinion, on what, I do not now even recall. The other boy then took two swings at me with his fists. I grabbed him by the back of his neck, threw him down and jumped on top of him and it was over.” “Did he get you?” he asked. “No, I ducked and he missed,” I replied. “Good,” he said. He smiled, and turned and walked away. He knew I felt bad about letting him down but, he didn’t press it. He knew he didn’t have too. He had a quiet assurance about him that clearly conveyed the sense that a person knows what is right. Therefore, everyone can and should do what is right.

Another time, I stood with him on the front porch of the funeral home in Carlinville. His father had died a few days before on Halloween. He was running for Congress that year and the campaign was nearing an end. His opponent for Congress and a long parade of cars with his opponent’s supporters were driving by the funeral home. Some of these supporters apparently had been tearing “Peter Mack for Congress” signs down and replacing them with their candidate’s signs. They had also been pasting their bumper stickers over “Peter Mack” bumper stickers already on cars. Being young, I was very upset about this. I asked him if I could go do the same to his opponent’s signs and bumper stickers. He quietly looked at me and said, “No, Jimmie, we don’t operate like that.” He smiled, and I knew once again he had taught me another lesson in honor.

Peter Mack enlisted in the Navy in 1942 and spent four years in the naval air force. He spent most of his time as a pilot instructor. He wanted to serve in combat overseas but the Navy’s need for trained pilots was too great, and, because he was an instructor, they wouldn’t let him go. He cried when he was told he couldn’t serve in combat overseas. He was also a true patriot. While a congressman, each year, and at his own expense, he brought 100 high school students to Washington to see how government operated.

Peter Mack was a man so honest and so good that anyone who knew him had to wonder if the world really needs such words as steal, lie, cheat, hate, and “politics” in the negative context in which it is too often used today. Unfortunately, as our country is painfully aware and suffering greatly, those very words are used more frequently now than ever before in the history of the United States. Men of honor such as Peter Mack know the root basis of all evil is the absence of honesty and truth. Can we not learn from such men? Socrates (470-399 B.C.) emphasized the absolute human need for truth and the consequences of deceit. “False words are not only evil in themselves, but they infect the soul with evil.”

One of Peter Mack’s thoughts about his 223 hours flying alone on his “Abraham Lincoln Good Will World Tour” concerned peace in the world. He said, “I looked down upon mile after mile of serene mountain, forest and plain. From where I sat, I could see no international boundaries and no squabbles among nations. During those lonely hours, I thought more and more of peace and of the folly of man fighting man, and wherever I went I found people echoing my sentiments.” The very price of world peace is that people must be able to have confidence in the honesty and truthfulness of their countries and leaders. That confidence can only come when people have complete assurance of honesty among their leaders, government and business. Countries, businesses, leaders, and all of us must live in honor and with honesty if nations are to live in harmony and our own country is to recover from crises and even survive over time.

Aeschylus (525-456 B.C.) described Peter Mack 2500 years before he was born: “It is not the oath that makes us believe the man, but the man the oath.” Sadly, as the song goes, “and the good, they die young.” So it was with Peter Mack. I visited with him shortly before his death. As sick as he was, he maintained his bravery and honor. He insisted on kidding me as was his custom. He kept his sense of humor even in the darkest of days.

When he was in Luxembourg on his globe circling flight, he met the Jubilee singers, formerly of Fisk University. They composed a new verse to an old spiritual in his honor and sang it to him as he taxied for take-off. He said “It was one of the most inspiring experiences I have ever had.” The verse went:

“The man who loves to serve the Lord,
‘Way in the middle of the air,
Will surely get his just reward
“Way in the middle of the air,
As he carries far God’s great command,
Peace and good will to all mankind,
‘Way in the middle of the air.”

Uncle Pete died July 4, 1986. Peter Mack was an honest man!


In Peter Mack’s Honor,

Jim Mack Wharton