Evening times-Republican. [volume] (Marshalltown, Iowa) 1890-1923, 1910-12-14
Outside Point of VIEW.

t/UfSlQe POlnt OF VIe1V.
Some Years ago rich Russian Count
resigned from the army. adopted the
dress OF the peasant, preached a doc
trine that made the Russian govern
ment prevent the sale of his written
works. and the Greek church excom-
municate him Inconsis tent. he lived
the life of the poverty stricken peasant
part of the time and at other periods
with his wife and family, receiving the
| benefits of his land possessions. He
procia ed that he wrote for the bene-
III of humanity. and Would not copy
right his writings. but allowed his Wife
10 do SO and collected the royalties. He
preached al all times the doctrine of
purity was severe on all transgressors
OF our moral laws. and YET wrote novels
that were denied shelf room in our
public libraries. Many, if not all of his
theories We're impract.cable. so much so
that the world al large doubted his
sanity Outside of some real reform
work in The public schools his whole
life was a succession of sensational ut
teranceS. contrary to sove:nn entail
ideas of good order. and so irreligous
liA1SA 4It IcG4t iitl icSci>e tIit SdtId-
rnents Of the church Yet he was a
follower Of Jesus Christ and insisted
that other christians were inconsistent
IN that they did not literally accept the
doctrin of turning the other cheek
He died a few weeks ago HIS name
was Tolstoi
And some years before Tolstoi was a
rl1lb1ir cha horn in
New England. commenced TO preach
new religion. Like Toistoi, Jesus Christ
was her pattern, bu, also like Tolstoi
she was convinced that christians did
rot interpret the bible correctly. She
taught christian science the doctrine Of
spirit and mind being the all in all Our
bodies We're only a temporary taber-
nacle. that were entirely subject 70
mental control. She defied all medica,
science. both of medicine and surgery.
She claimed that the outside world
calls miracles. were of daily occurrence
inside the ranks Of the ,rl!e church. She
died the other day Her name was
Mary G. Eddy
And in New York today lives the
greatest inventor the world has ever
known All Of his bus. life has been
devoted 10 practical work His inven
tions have been worth more to human
ity than any one other man. Lately he
mas engaged in controversy with the
New York preachers. Hear him:
Everything is material. We have no
thoughts They are simply impressions
that We get from outside Our brains
are like records that AXE impressions
from our environment We get nothing
from within. People say that I have
created things have never created
anything. I get impressions from the
universe al large and work them out.
but am only plate or record or
receiving apparatus-what you Will.
NO. don't believe a mans mind
lives after him. His work lives after
him. but his work is a material thing.
Shakespeare's plays live in book form.
He is dead and the man who printed
the book is dead and the book itself is
made of cellulose and lampblack and
other dead things open that book and
find these beautiful thoughts, all new to
me- If they influence me- I derive ben
! eft. not from Shakespeare's mind. but
from this dead material thing which
he has left behind him-this handful Of
/ printers ink and cellulose and lamp
{ black.
/ The Golden Rule is all that is need
| ed I'm dead five hours every night.
ard when l die and decompose I shall
i live only in photographs and tickers
and storage batteries. I shan't be play
! ing harp or boilin gin oil or haunting
any one. I shall be dead.
But I'm willing to take my chance
with all these people worried to death
! o bout their little present souls, who
write me abusive letters that fill up my
mail bags and worry my clerks. Ill
! take my chance.
They tell me I'm heading straight
for He'll Maybe I am. But I'll take
! my chances with the fashionable
minister. and if there is such spot as
Heaven. Til bet I'll get there first-yes,
even before DR.. Aked."
1t is almost unnecessary to add that
this inventors name is Edison.
| Tolstoi has thousands of admirers
and followers. Mrs. Eddy tens OF
thousands, and Mr. Edison how many?
! Some one OF the three must be mistak-
en-. 1t is possible all three are wrong
| in theory Not one of them could pro-
duce a stubborn fact to prove theory.
Their followers are in the same condi-
ton We have simply their assertions
to prove what they claim as facts. And
yet the world is better today because
all three have lived. And still, strange
as 1t may seem, hardly one Of the three
has followers that will admit such a
claim the other has. The doctrine Of
liberation has yet to have a prophet.
And as the world seems made up to-