Theos-Talk Archives (July 2003 Message tt00191)

Bart wrote:

Frank Reitemeyer wrote:
> 2. A Theosophist becoming a rioter, encouraging revolution and
> MURDER, a friend of Communists is no fit member of our Society. HE
> HAS TO GO." H.P.B.'s Scrapbook Vol. VII, p. 258, B:CW I:404, emphasis
> H.P.B.; Cranston has "Communards" for Communists (p. 169).

<<<THAT's the one I was looking for. Thanks; you saved me a trip to the
library.>>>

And what would have been a wasted and misleading trip, as HPB didn't use the
word COMMUNISTS. That was Boris de Zirkoff's editing. It happens a lot
in "THE COLLECTED WRITINGS of HPB (all 14 volumes), his edition of THE
SECRET DOCTRINE, and so on.

Thanks are to Frank for giving the reference to Cranston. She references to
Michael Gomes' "The Dawning of the Theosophical Movement (page 156):

"A Theosophist becoming a rioter, encouraging revolution & MURDER, a friend
of Communards is no fit member of our Society. HE HAS TO GO." In note 102.,
page 227 he writes: "In the transcription of H.P.B.'s comments printed in
B:CW I: 404, 'communists' is substituted for 'communards'."

In the Shorter OED Communard is defined as "an adherent of the Commune of
Paris of 1871."

In the Eleventh edition of the "Encyclopaedia Britannica" vol. VI, p. 784:
"'The Commune' is the name given to the period of the history of Paris from
March 18 to May 28, 1871, during which the commune of Paris attempted to set
up its authority against the National Assembly at Versailles. It was a
political movement, intended to replace the centralized national
organization by one based on federation of communes. Hence the "communists"
were also called "federalists". IT HAD NOTHING TO DO WITH THE SOCIAL
THEORIES OF COMMUNISM." (The last sentence my caps.)

It is therefore INCORRECT to quote HPB as saying: ". . . a friend of
Communists [rather than Communards] is no fit member of our Society," as she
never wrote it.

Tony