The citizen. [volume] (Berea, Ky.) 1899-1958, 1911-05-18
The Center of
Things
By DIR. FRANK CRANE

universe. In a minute this morning
this flashed on me. and the puzzle OF
the ages was solved.
No more dispute as to whether the
earth goes round the sun. or the sun
round the earth, or both round the con-
steliation Of Hercules. for the whole
business revolves about me. ] am the
axis.
When Proctor Knott extolled Du'
iuth as the spot where the horizon
comes down at equal distance In every
direction. he spoke the sober. Gods
ruth. write these lines on ship q
thousand miles at sea: all around 10
water and sky; and right In the exact
geographical center of everything am
and my ship. Come to think of IL,
this has always been the case all my
life.
MY father and mother existed for
the purpose Of bringing me- into the
world: my brothers being byproducts
The old Third ward school house In
Springfield. ILL.,. was built THAT might
attend there, and 1T has since been
torn down. learn to spell; indeed. the
entire educational system came into
being IN order that might 20 10 that
school
Emperors die in China, and kings
are upset in Portugal: earthquakes
shake Sicily and panics Wall street.
and all simply that the news thereof
may be laid before me at the break
fast table.
The big and little dippers yhiri
about the pole star. Antares winks,
and Venus CLOVIS, and Halley's comet
comes and goes-for me.
And In all this there IL no egotism.
For in saying l am the center of the
cosmos do net at all imply that you
also are not the center Of the cosmos.
In fact. you are: everybody Is. There
are as many centers as there are con-
scious beings. The mistake we have
made all along is in supposing there
can be but one center. IL you look
through a window pane covered with
rain drops or frost crystals at n point
OF light. you will notice that any way
you move your head the light always
remains the center OF innumerable con-
centric rings formed by the glistening
reflections. II is even so In life. as you
move the center moves.
There are as many worlds as there
are creatures. As Zangwill says: The
scent world Of dogs, the eye world OF
birds, the uncanny touch world OF
bats. the earth world Of worms. the
water world of fishes and gyroscopic
world OF dancing mice. the flesh wcrid
of parasites. the microscopic world OF
microbes. interest one another mex.
tricably and with an infinite inter.
lacing. yet each is a symmetric sphere
Of being. a rounded whole. and to It's
denizens the sole and self-suficient
cosmos
The account OF creation as given In
the Pentateuch is therefore psycholog
Ically and essentially correct: God did
make the sun and give man light by
day. and the moon and stars TO shine
on him by night. as far as man is con
cerned.
II the Bible had been written for
angels II might have stated the case
differently When the penitent at the
mourner's bench Is told that he will
never find peace until he believes tina,
the son OF God came TO save him per
sonally. he Is told the plain truth: the
meaning Of which is that he Is TO move
In from the suburbs into the center Of
creation.
| a. 90 Nh ha
stars rise and fall about him orderly
angels and devils tugging at him. and
all creation recognizing his geocentric
supremacy. that he gets poise and
ceases TO be eccentric. Eccentric means
having the point about which a wheel
revolves at one side of the center.
There are so many discontinued. IN
happy people In the world. simply be
cause there are so many eccentric. lop
sided. bunny. fiat-wheeled. irregular
souls. Move In, Move in! Occupy
your due place In the spotlight OF des
tiny. Worms do It, why not you?
Philosophers have ridiculed this
homocentric theory. Goethe turned
from II In disgust. Pope wrote causti
cally:
-while man exclaims. See all thing,
for my use!
See man for mine!' replies the pam
pered goose"
But the instinct OF humanity Il
wiser than the wisdom OF the learned
Homer breathed truth when he repre-
scented the gods fighting for ant
against Troy. The Old Testament 1,
right when II shows Jehovah actively
interested In the chosen people. Ever,
people is a chosen people. and there II
no God but our own peculiar Jah Of
Elohim.
And Jesus was most right and true
Of all when he had us appropriate
each one of us. the special care of ths
Father OF All There Is no Providence
that is of any mortal use TO me bu
Special Providence; II It Is only gen
eral Il had as well not be at all. II Il
precisely because he clothes the lille,
OF the field that he will also cloth,
We. O We OF little faith. Because h,
notes the sparrow he will note you.
You have an inalienable right Il
| ,N,ur centricity occupy a Won can