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“ A n Uncommonly Sensible Little Pamphlet”— O ccult Review.The Rational Basis of BeliefBy C. F. J. GALLOWAY,B.Sc„ F.R.G.S., F.R.C.I.In this booklet the Author summarizes the main objections that have beenurged against a belief in the spiritual realm and the investigation of occult pheno mena.He clearly shows that all knowledge, except the knowledge of one’sown existence, and purely mental abstractions, falls short of absolute certitude.Scientific proof deals always with probabilities, and the observations and experi ments on which the proof is based must be undertaken by skilled workers. . . .The work of a d ear and level-headed thinker, it deserves to be widely read.Price 6d. each.T o be had from thePublisher:W. MCLELLAN & CO., 240 HOPE STREET, GLASGOW.THE PATH OF VICTORYByHENRY THOMAS HAMBLINAuthor of “ Within You Is the Power,” “ The Power of Thought,” “ TheWay of Escape,” etc., and Editor of “ The Science of Thought Review.”WITH FOREWORD by Her Excellency The PRINCESS KARADJA,Founder of The White Cross Union.“ The chapters on The W ay to Liberation and The Path to Victory, are equalto any of the teachings of the Gnostics, and being presented in simple languagethe reader has a clear idea of what ‘ Victory ’ really means. His principles ofthe methods to be used b y those walking the Path to Victory are simple, clear,ogical and true to the highest spiritual vision." I have personally read the book with much pleasure and profit, and canstrongly recommend it to all seekers after the Wisdom of God.”— W. G. H o o p e r ,F.R.A.S., in The Rally.Price in paper covers, 2s. 2d; post free.Price in cloth boards, 3s. 2d. post free.Direct from THE SCIENCE OF THOUGHT PRESS, 28 BoshamHouse, Chichester, or through booksellers, who m ust get suppliesthrough L. N. Fowler & Co., London, E.C.4.Descriptive Price List, post free, on applicationto the Publishers, Tbe Science of Thought Press.

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THE EARLY DAYS OF THEOSOPHY IN EUROPEBy A. P . SINNETT,4s.Late Vice-President of the Theosophical Society.A posthumous volume of reminiscences.Boards(Postage 4d.)N IG H TM A RE TA LES. By H . P. B lavatsky. Shorty stories . . . “ only the hand of an occultistfci.ffl. could have added some of the touches to the pictures.** 138 p p ., 7 by 5, cloth. 3s. 6d. Postage 3diT H E D REA M E R AND T H E BU TTERFLY. By W. L oftus H are. A Philosophical Fantasycompiled from the Chinese Classics. 52 pp., 7 J by 4}, wrappers, 2 . Postage 2a.S O M E CH A R A C TE R IST IC S O F T H E IN T E R IO R C H U R C H . By I. V. L opukhin. T ran siated from the French of D . H . S . N icholson. ** It is eminently a book for those who seek for theinterior meanings of religious truth by study—in a word, by die intellectual method.*’—Light. 135pp., 7 i by 4}, 2s. 6d. Postage 4 d.M YSTICISM . By M ary P ope. T h e author points o u tb o w th e unrest which is to be found in thechurches may find its culmination in a revival of mysticism. 40 pp., 8& by 5 , wrappers, 6d. PostageIKT H E S O N G O F T H E FLAM ING H E A R T . By A . H . W ard . An embodiment in verse of some othe abstract truths oil the higher life. 100 pp., 7 by 5. 2s. 6d. Postage 3d.S T U D IE S IN T H E L E S S E R M Y STE R IES. By Rev. W. M ontagu Powell. T h e author dealswith the mystical traditions of the ages in a most lucid and sympathetic manner. *24 PP* 6J X 5,doth, 3s. 6d. Postage 3d.THE THEOSOPHICAL PUBLISHING HOUSE, LTD.9 ST. MARTIN’S STREET, LONDON, W.C.2And at 43 Great Portland Street, London, W .l.The first work yet published in English on Chinese Mythology.B y E. T. C. W ER N ER , Author of China of the Chinese, etc.MYTHS AND LEGENDSOF CHINAW ITHTH IR TY -T W O ILLU ST R A T IO N S IN COLOURSAN D GOLD B Y CH IN ESE AR TISTSSize 9} X 7 inches, 450 pages, 25/ - net." We are indebted to Mr. Werner, who has had a long and honourablecareer in China, for the only monograph on Chinese mythology inany non-Chinese language. Out of the wealth of existing materialhe has selected that which lives in the minds of the people andwhich is referred to most frequently in their literature. The talesreek with the fantastic and marvellous. ’ ’— The Nation and A thenesum.Write for tree Dlustrated Booklet and for com plete list of Harrap’s FamousMyths Series, which includes M yths and Legends of Ancient Egypt.GEORGEG. I f3 9 -4 1ST. APARKERAAOUiA1\M \A*aO& COMPANY.LTD.AK IN G S W A Y ,LONDON.

OCCULT REVIEWA M O N T H L Y M A G A Z IN E D E V O T E D T O T H E IN V E S T IG A T IO N O F S U P E R N O R M A L P H E N O M E N A A N D T H E S T U D Y O F P S Y C H O L O G IC A L P R O B L E M S .E d i t e d b y R A L P H S H IR L E Y“ Nuttius addidus jurare in verba magistri ”Price O ne S hilling n et ; post free, O ne S h illing and T w o pen ce . Annu alSubscription, T w el v e S h illings (Three DoEars).A m erican A gents : The International News Company, 85 Duane Street, NewY o rk ; The Macoy PubUshing Company, 45-49 John Street, New York ; TheWestern News Company, Chicago.Subscribers in India can obtain the Magazine from A. H. Wheeler & Co., 15Elgin Road, AUahabad; Wheeler’s Building, Bom bay; and 39 Strand,Calcutta ; or from The Theosophical PubUshing House, Adyar, Madras.All communications to the Editor should be addressed c/o the Publishers,W illiam R id er & S on , L t d ., Cathedral House, Paternoster Row, London, E.C.4.Contributors are specially requested to put their name and address, legiblywritten, on all manuscripts submitted.Vol.X X X Y IIA P R IL 1923No. 4NOTES OF THE MONTHA PICTURE once appeared in Punch of a very strait-laced oldlady who was accosted in the street by one of those terrible news boys with strident voices whom we know so well. He was holdingup for her delectation a copy of an evening paper with full detailsof the latest society scandal, and screaming in her ears, “ ’Ere y ’are,miss, horful revelations ! ” This picture was recalled to my mindby the publication of the late Mr. A. P. Sinnett’s book of veryfrank disclosures with regard to the personalities,THEcharacteristics and foibles of the most prominentFOU N DERSfigures in the early days of the Theosophical move OF THEment.* It must be admitted that the peopleTHEO to whose initiative the foundation and building upS O P H IC A Lof the Theosophical Society was due, from MadameS O C IE T Y .Blavatsky downwards, are by no means depictedas saints from stained-glass windows in this very frank and inti* TheLondon :E a rlyD aysofTheosophy inTheosophical Publishing House.197E urop e,By A.Price 4s. net.P . Sinnett.

198TH E OCCULT REVIEWmate record. We see their characters, to be sure, as colouredby the preferences and prejudices of the author, and Mr. Sinnettwith all his estimable qualities was something of an egoist andfound it difficult to realize that there were other view-pointsthan his own, and it is necessary therefore to take his portraitsand descriptions with the proverbial grain of salt. Mr. Sinnett,indeed, had the qualifications of a first-class journalist, and pos sessed an eminently perspicuous style, and few could put theircase with greater lucidity and force. But it must be allowedthat the poet’s verse was true of h im :—T h ey see not clearliest who see all things cle a r .*With this proviso it cannot be denied that the revelations inquestion, for revelations they most undoubtedly are, throwremarkable sidelights on the early days of the Theosophicalmovement, and provide most entertaining, and indeed spicy,reading. One may be permitted an expression of some surprisethat a book of the kind should have been issued from the leadingTheosophical publishing house in this country. It may be sus pected, indeed, that the incident of its publication points to certainrifts and divisions in the Theosophical Society itself, some mem bers of whom are of Paul and some of Apollos. A t least, itwould surprise me if it were not resented in quarters where MadameBlavatsky’s memory is held in reverence to the depreciation ofother and later leaders of the Society.Mr. Sinnett in those early days did yeoman’s work for themovement. Nothing tended so greatly to popularize Theosophyamong the general public as the writing of the Occult World andEsoteric Buddhism. Isis Unveiled (with all its defects) and TheSecret Doctrine were monumental works stamped with the geniusof their writer, even if her responsibility for their contents wasof a partial character. But these ponderous tomesHR.would never have introduced the main tenets ofs in n e t t ’sTheosophical doctrine to the man in the street inPROPA the way that Mr. Sinnett’s lucid if sometimes some GANDA.what superficial expositions most undoubtedly did.But Mr. Sinnett, who knew Madame Blavatsky well, feared aboveall things her imprudences and indiscretions, and dreaded, as itproved not without some valid reason, that they might bring dis aster upon the movement. He attempted accordingly the impos sible task of keeping the High Priestess of the movement in thebackground, an attempt somewhat similar to producing Hamlet* Sir W illiam W atson.

NOTES OF TH E MONTH199while excluding the Prince of Denmark. Needless to say the effortwas foredoomed to failure, and it is not at all surprising that itled eventually to a considerable coolness between Mr. Sinnettand H. P. B., and to our author pursuing his special work in themovement on somewhat independent lines to the rest of theSociety.It will be within the knowledge of most of my readers thatwhen Mr. Sinnett first got in touch with Madame Blavatsky andthe Theosophical Society, he was editor of The Pioneer, the wellknown Anglo-Indian daily newspaper, a position which, indeed,he had occupied for some eight years previously. Both Mr.Sinnett and his wife were interested in spiritualism, and hearingthat Madame Blavatsky and Colonel Olcott had arrived in Indiait occurred to them that it would be a good ideaTHEto make their acquaintance. The head-quarters ofSINNETTSthe Sinnetts were at Allahabad, and this was whereMEETColonel Olcott and Madame Blavatsky eventuallyMADAMEmet them after an extended tour in Southern IndiaBLAVATSKYand Ceylon. They came as visitors to the Sinnetts’ANDhouse, the invitation having been extended, in whatCOLONELmight appear a rather rash manner, to total strangers.OLCOTT.Mr. Sinnett notes the impression of H. P. B. firstconveyed as entered in his wife’s diary for the day, December 4,1879: “ A most original old lady who promises great amuse ment.” The first subject discussed was of course spiritualism.Madame asked if they had tried any experiments. Sinnettreplied that they had done so, but without any results, “ noteven so much as a rap.” “ Oh,” replied H. P. B., “ raps are theeasiest things to get,” and thereupon put her hand on the table.“ At once,” says Mr. Sinnett, “ raps of the genuine spiritualisticorder were heard all about it.”A day or two later an incident occurred which Sinnett suggestscreated a rather disagreeable impression, but it certainly appearsto me that his attitude towards the incident is difficult of explan ation. They were sitting round the fire and Colonel Olcott hadbeen talking about Madame Blavatsky’s magical performancesin New York. In this connection it was suggestedTHEthat she should materialize something for themINCIDENTthen and there, and Mr. Sinnett proposed a cigarOF THEholder as the object to be produced. “ MadameCIGARBlavatsky,” says the author, “ went through someHOLDER.preliminaries, rubbing Colonel Olcott’s meerschaumpipe in her hands, and then simply putting her hand into

200T H E OCCULT REVIEWher pocket produced a cigar-holder.” “ The performance,” com ments Mr. Sinnett, “ as an exhibition of magic was so absurd, sogrotesquely destitute of any evidential value, that it was difficultto know what to say.” In spite of this observation, however, Mr.Sinnett offers no solution of the problem of how Madame Blavatskywas able to produce out of her own pocket a cigar-holder, theprecise object for which Mr. Sinnett had just asked, without anyapparent means of obtaining it anywhere. Had it been a cigaretteholder the matter would have been very different. MadameBlavatsky was of course an inveterate cigarette smoker, and thatshe should have a cigarette-holder in her pocket was by no meansunlikely. In asking for a cigar-holder, however, Mr. Sinnettpresumably chose an object which it was almost inconceivableshe could have about her person. Ladies even now do not smokecigars, and I have never heard it alleged of Madame Blavatskythat she was ever seen smoking one. The choice was Sinnett’s.What, one may ask, were the mathematical probabilities againstMadame Blavatsky having such an article in her pocket ? Cer tainly, I should imagine, millions to one. What the actualexplanation of this incident was we can only conjecture. Surelyin any case it argues considerable stupidity on Mr. Sinnett’s partA p o s s i b l e n o t t0 ave keen pressed by it.I would suggestthat the most probable solution is that MadameexplanaB ia v a t sk y had deliberately put the cigar-holderinto her pocket beforehand, and led the conversationup to the question of the test, and that she had then willedMr. Sinnett to ask for the very object that was in fact alreadyin her possession. Other explanations may be possible, but thiscertainly seems to me the most plausible. Actually Mr. Sinnettwrites: " When my wife and I were at last alone together welooked at one another. No words were needed. Were we reallyin the hands of a clumsy impostor ? ” Mr. Sinnett seems tothink it the most natural thing possible that Madame Blavatskyshould take out of her pocket an article which perhaps she hadnever had in her pocket in her life before, and which was preciselythe object chosen apparently at random by Sinnett himself asthe test of her genuineness !It has, of course, been confidently maintained that MadameBlavatsky materialized articles or duplicated articles already inexistence. I confess, however, that I find it difficult to creditsuch performances. “ As time went on,” says Mr. Sinnett, “ thedisagreeable impression produced by this incident faded away,”and they became greatly attached to the old lady. She was

NOTES OF TH E MONTH201unquestionably good company, though she gave considerableoffence by the rude treatment which she meted out to ColonelOlcott, and the manner in which she abused and tyrannized overhim. Mr. Sinnett narrates that the Colonel asked on one occasion :“ Do you think I would stand going about with that mad French woman if I did not know what lies behind her ? ”MadameBlavatsky, of course, like most aristocratic Russians, used Frenchas a conversational language.Anyhow, in spite of rather mixed feelings, the Sinnetts wereinduced to throw in their lot with the Theosophical Society.It was very early days then with the Society, its alleged founda tion in New York

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