Evening times-Republican. [volume] (Marshalltown, Iowa) 1890-1923, 1911-09-13
Outside Point of View

It IS very much Of q question wheth-
or the individual known as q crank Is
fully appreciated BY the community in
which he lives or by the people gener-
ally. We term our idea men extrem-
lists, and all Offering extravagant rene
! dies for public ills, cranks. Roosevelt
is a crank Billy Sunday is crank.
Bryan is u crank. What we really
! mean is such men do not accept the
common, the everyday views of the
majority. We happen to belong to the
majority. they step on our pet corns.
and it hurts our feelings. So we dub
them cranks and strive to ignore the
noise they make. II the cause they
shout so loudly for really is a panacea.
If instead OF their being dema gogs they
are honest, one idea men, it Is only a
short time before the crank becomes
the statesman. Mr.. Bryan is an exam
pie to prove this statement. 1t is true
he has changed in many ways. he IL
illustrates in his career the evolution
Of the crank into the statesman. La
Toilette was and is a crank but as in
Bryans case. there is something marc
than mere noise In his cranky revolu
lions.
When a crank becomes a reformer
one would suppose the people would
have more confidence in them. But
the mere fact that such cranks advo-
cate such reforms. makes the masses
suspicious Of the proposed reform. Ere
quently. as in the case Of Henry
George. they die leaving behind them
GROWN gsentiment. But Ingersoll was
a crank that made stir in the relig-
ious world in his day, few Of his pro-
phesies have come true. but he was a
tremendous factor in removing cher
ished bigotries. He cleared church
mem bership OF many hypocrtsies. What
is trying to be brought out here is that
the good these cranks accomplish more
than Offsets the present evil OF their
extreme views. 1t is true any and all
era nks offer to the public reform meas
ures dangerous and impra cticabie. 1t
is just as true out Of all the chaff many
grains OF sound wheat are saved and
used
And not altogether in national and
state affairs is the crank getting IN
his or her god work. Many a small
neighhorhood has conn letely changed
its position by the persis cent words
and wor kof some crank. The writer
calls to mind the active work OF one
woman in an Iowa town over such
little thing as cows running at large
She accomplished revolution in that
town. Mass meetings were held. suits
at law were threatened. Men waxei
eloquent over the rights of the poor
mans COW. Men fought in the streets
over the COW illegally removed from
the pound. One man lost his church
III, 80 @t,1 iS
sue before the public. But this cranky
woman in season and out of season
kept mp the agitation with the result
that the poor mans COW went to the
pasture. She proved to the community
that the greatest good to the greatest
number was in keeping cows of the
public streets. Bryan. Roosevelt and
are all trying to keep the
COWS off the public streets.
1t is unfortunate that cranks before
and after they become reformers find
barnacles attached to them. DemagogS
everywhere steal their thunder" our
temperance friends are particularly
unfortunate in this respect There is a
small army of professional workers to-
day in Iowa, making good living and
in some cases a big income by work
ing the temperance racket" Our labor
unions are cursed by such unworthy
men. using the union as a means to
an end. Our churches every little
while are called upon to expose same
evangelist. so-called. that takes up the
profession for what there is in it, All
this breeds distrust in the minds of the
public. but only retards the movement
that possesses real good. real reform.
In fact it would seem that no great
change in public sentiment can come
only by the words and work OF the ex
tremist and the accompanying evils.
Wendell Phillips and John Brown had
no idea that Abraham Lincoln would
finish their work Harriet Beecher
Stowe waited a long time before
Uncle Toms Cabin affected public sem
timent into action. Perhaps some
qualifications should be added. All
cranks are not reformers. Some never
become reformers.