The Cook County herald. [volume] (Grand Marais, Minn.) 1893-1909, 1899-06-10
CHRIST rs HIS MODEL.
PROF. WHEELOCK DAZES OLD
TIME PREACHERS.
Relieves That the Teachings Of Jesus
Should Be Made the Law OF the
! Land-He Is Consequently Hated by
the Plutocrats.

=.
Mr.. Spurgeon once said that a ser
mon which neither converted nor an
>gered any one was q failure. It ts 'evi-
dent from the number and earnestness
of his critics las Well as the number
who rush to his defense that Prof.
HERON, the great philosopher of Iowa,
is doing good work. DR.. Josiah Strong
says he speaks like tone of the old
prophets, and the INTENSITY with which
packed houses in :Chicago hang on his
words werifies DR.. ?Strong's statement.
1T is mot to be expected that man
who speaks like that will please every
one. The history (of prophets is identi-
'cal-stoned by ignorance, by Mammon
and by fecclesiasticism; welcomed by
common folk and sainted after death.
1t is well that prophets do not live for
ever. 1t is we'll that truth does.
Here is "a man who from a poor boy,
earning his living on the streets and
later earning his education with his
own hands, has come to be a public
teacher, greatly beloved by thousands,
and who actually takes Jesus teach
1ngs seriously and dares to demand
that all the affairs of human society be
organized and conducted in accordance
with those teachings. (His PROPOSE
tion has dazed many old-line preach
ersD
Prof. Herron's critics are found in
the usual classes, but a surprising ig-
norance Gharacterizes them all. Many
of them know him only through the
echo which pervades any community
where he e'speaks-nearly all have heard
him little and read him less, and some
have only the 'mishappen report of "a
religious weekly.
A Kansas preacher pitches into him
for 'defaming the church-a thing the
professor never 'did-and for wearing
a good coat-which every man might
do If the professors teachings pre-
vailed, This minister evidently got his
report of the professors speech at Sec
ond hand (probably from a Chicago
paper), and is certainly unacqua1nted
with the professors everyday clothes.
4 Trustee Meyer of Prof. Heron IS col
.a4s &c uses nearly two olumns in what
is intended as "a savage attack, but
which in reality speaks loudly in his
praise. The professor could hardly
have a better recommendation than
the distribution of Mr.. Meyers letter.
IF he really teaches the things which
Mr.. Meyer says he does, then he should
be heard from one end of the land to
the other. Mr.. Meyer says much about
the college being 'congregational,a but
little about 1T being Christian. He
goes into the professors financies and
tries to make him out as something of
a plutocrat with his salary of 81, 800,
and falsely says this is increased by
his lecture work. # he knew as much
about Mr.. Herron's work as he should
he would aythat large percentage of
the salary is used up in the expenses
of vofuminous correspondence from
all parts of the, world Furthermore,
instead of his lecture work adding to
the professors income, it is a drain
on it, for he refuses to take pay for his
lectures, and often does not receive
enough to cover his expenses.
1t is we'll known that Prof. Heron
does not cost Iowa college cent, as
his endowment went to the college
with him and for him, and it is safe
to say that the college is better known
through his work.
Mr.. Meyer goes into statistics to
show the ba1eful influence of Heron
ISM on Iowa college. He shows that
during the five years ended with 1898
the college lost thirty-fve students
from it's average for the preceding five
years, which, however, was $50 greater
than the average had ever been be-
FORE If this is the case, and Mr.. Meyer
: is of course authority on the statistics
of the college, it proves, ""Herronism"
to be a strong influence for holding
students. Scarcely a college in the
land has lost SO small a percentage of
it's students during the last five years
of hard times. Mr.. Meyers entire let
ter is such a. labored plea from pure
ly dollars-and-cents standpoint as to
make it evident even to outsiders that
Iowa college needs change of at least
one trusteeship more than the profess
sorship of applied Christianity. T.
Mr.. J. V. Farwell also had a criticism
in the Record. We must give Mr.. Far
well credit for sincerity and for writ
ling less intemperately than some of
the other critics. I am amazed at his
ignorance Of the meaning of the terms
HE uses and the questions he discusses.
He speaks of Industries which cor
!porate wealth has inaugurated for the
benefit Of the Masses while. the mass
es are still earning an average OF So
cents day in coal mines or 81 a day