The Caucasian. (Clinton, N.C.) 188?-1913, 1910-10-13
MAJOR BILKINS WRITES.
Tells of Cranks-Says That Cranks
Move the WOrId-Some Great and
Famous Cranks.


Move the World-Some Great and
Famous Cranks.
Correspondence of The Caucasian
Enterprise)
Bilkinsville, N c., Oct. 1O.-I've
| erbout cum ter the conclusion that
the cranks air goin' ter take this
country an hold hit in spite ov awl
that kin be done or sed. They hev
got hit now, in fact. OV course hit
liz not cranks with great big cracks
| in their heads that air creatin' so
much cOmmOtion. It liz the fellers
who start out to do things an won't
let up till they do 'em or bust. An
j hit liz a pity that aw1 ov us wuz not
made out ov that sort ov clay, sand
or mud. But we can't aw1 be smart,
an we can't awI hit the rite nail on
| the head at the rite time.
guess that the real trouble liz that
! the crank an the genius air general
! ~ one an the same, an that makes
, the difference. An the difference liz
not so great after awl. I hev read
poems submitted the manuscript to
, one ov the Lords of England, man
| who WIZ crank On the subject of
poetry. The great EngIishman read
| a few pages ov the poem an then or
/ dered hiz servant to- give the writer
ov. the poem one hundred dollars.
He read on and soonsoFdered another
-
verses, he excIaimed.s 'sGo turn that
poet out ov the house for if I read
further I'll be ruined financially"
Now poetry il worth very little.
But the crank made hit valuable in
; that case, an that goes to prove the
value ov cranks-if you hev guide
poetry for sale. The poet mite hev
visited hundreds ov rich business
men who didn't care a red fer poetry
an probably would hev failed to sell
hiZ poem for ennuff to buy a dinner
But when he steered hiz boat up be-
side a crank on poetry he landed in
a gold mine an everything turned out
lovely. The rich lover ov poetry wuz
ready to exchange hfz gold for poet
ry regardless ov eonsequences-and
that wuZ what made a crank ov him.
/ Cranks hev held top-notch posi-
lions ever since the world began. An
, I wish to say here an now that /
: don't mean any disrespect when ]
speak ov really great men az cranks.
am glad they wuz cranks.
> Po1issy toi1ed an persevered in the
. face ov poverty to discover the Sc
I crets ov white enamel. Some one
? had learned how to manufacture
I white enamel, an Polissy saw a spec
D linen ov hit. Then he became :
e crank. Hiz whole study wuz how tt
y duplicate the article. The man wht
e had made the first specimen didn'
S care much about hit; he wuz not
0 crank. But the other man-Poliss,
/ I-wuz, an he persisted in learnin
}. awl erbout hit. AZ a consequence b
: won fame an fortune just because b
n persisted.
RI CHRISTOPHER Columbus wuZ cram
l. on the subject ov new continents. Fl
% finally found the new continent
America-an' then met the fate tina
n frequently awaits cranks; he died i
Of prison before he had time to be hoI
n ored az he should hev bin. But CT
at lumbus made a name fer himself al
re will be remembered an honored Ion
t. after hiz prosecutors air forgottel
Fulton wuZ a crank on steam navig;
ar ton, an first applied steam to boat
W Morse. wuz likewise a crank on tt
ue subject ov telegraphy.
n John Jacob Astor wuz a crank {
the subject ov furs. He would get
s. fine specimen, hang hit In hiz stor
Of an then show hit to each custom
ne an praise it's beauty until he wou
be find pleased customer who had
&c, plenty ov money an then he'd MAJ
good sale sooner or later.
le- Henry Clay often forgot himself
M hiz cranky moods on the floor ov t
ng United States Senate, an so earne
wuz he that hit wuz not unusual
in him to advance to the chair ov {
,re Vice President while delivering /