The preacher was invited to speak to the patients at St. Elizabeth's Hospital, an institution in Washington, DC for the mentally disturbed. He came prepared for any reaction, and was scarcely surprised when the head psychiatrist warned him to disregard any comments that might be offered during his address.
About half an hour into his speech, one among the audience stood up and, in a loud voice, proclaimed,
"This is awful! I've never heard such a bad speech in my life."
Carefully ignoring the interruption, the preacher went on without a break. When he was through, the head ran up to him and warmly shook his hand.
"Parson," enthused the psychiatrist, "you have no idea how you've helped that poor man. Why, that was the first rational statement he's uttered in these three years ..."