FALLEN IDOLS.

Hawke's Bay Tribune, Volume III, Issue 361, 21 February 1914, Page 4 (Supplement)

FALLEN IDOLS.

A FEW DAYS AFTER DINING WITH A KING, DR. COOK, TIE EXPLORER, WAS A DISOREI4TED iMAN.

To fall from being the popular idol of some forty million people, to having all kinds of abusive epithets and charges hurled at one, in just ever a minute, must be a record. . Up till the very hour o( his fight with Carpentier, Wells was not only the popular idol of the masses, but column after column was devoted, to. his doings, his training, his daily life, in the newspapers. Seventy-three seconds were sufficient time to make the fickle populace who had praised him, jeer at him, and even the very newspapers who had spoken of him as the coming champion of the world, could not retrain from sneeering at the Bombardier. An even bigger fall than that of Wells, though it took a little longer than seventy-five seconds, was that of the famous Dr. Cook. On Thursday, September 2nd, 1909, » brief telegram was received ’ that the Danish steamer Hans Egede. was steaming to Copenhagen with a Dr. Cook on board, and added: “Cook reached tho North Pole on April 21st, 1909.’’ The news created a frantic stir of enthusiasm throughout the world, and when Dr. Cook arrived at Copenhagen on the Saturday he was met by a cheering crowd of 50,000 persons. ROYALTY TO MEET HIM.

The Crown Prince of Denmark, the staff of the American Legation, and many fambus people were the first to step on board and hail him as the greatest explorer of modern times, while thousands of congratulatory telegrams were received from all over the world, from Royalty downwards. On the Sunday the explorer dined with the King of Denmark.

On Sentember 7th, exactly three days after Dr. Cook landed in Denmark, the blow fell which brought him from the height of fame to. the laughing-stock of two continents. The blow was a brief message from Commander Peary, and it ran: “I found the Pole. I reached it on April 6th, 1909.—Peary.” Dr. Cook had less than a w'eek’s fame. In a few days after dining with royalty he was a discredited man, and Commander Peary was the hero. It is curious that it was in the September of the previous year that one of Denmark’s most popular idols fell from his high estate in a night. This idol, too, like Dr. Cook, was the guest of the King of "Denmark, only a few days before his fall, a dinner at which King Edward was present. FROM MOST HONOURED TO MOST HATED. The man in question was Peter Alberti, the Danish Minister of Justice, who for sixteen years used his political positions to swindle and defraud the public out of nearly three-quarters of a million pounds. Yet in a few minutes he fell. One day, overcome by remorse, ho walked to a police-station and said: “I have come to give myself up,” and before that day was over he was the most hated, instead of being one Of the most honoured, men in Denmark. , Charles Stuart was probably one of the most loved, and one of tlhe most popular Irish leaders who ever lived. Everything Parnell said was enthusiastically received, and so great- was.his popularity, indeed that when a national subscription was opened to present, him with a sum of money, no less than £37,C00 was raised in a few months by Irishmen. One day, in 1890. however, when he was at the very zenith of his power and popularity, he was accused of carrying on an intrigue with another man’s wife.

The accusation, which was afterwards proved, caused a revulsion of feeling throughout the country, and in a few hours Parnell was disgraced and forsaken.