Theos-Talk Archives (August 2004 Message tt00559)

--- In theos-talk@yahoogroups.com, "Katinka Hesselink" <mail@k...> 
wrote:
> well, in a book called 'abridgement' one can expect this...
> 
> Katinka

That is true. The issue seems to be what the motives were for 
abridging the book. Had the editors prefaced the new edition with a 
statement that:

"The original of this book makes it clear Leadbeater was a crank and 
the editors wish to conceal that fact from the reader. In order to 
make it appear Leadbeater was a great clairvoyant on the threshold of 
fivinity and not a crackpot we have therefore deleted the more 
obviously ridiculous passsges. The rest of the book is questionable 
in the extreme but we are confident any reader sophisticated enough 
to figure that out would not read it in the first place."

"The editors also implore readers to ignore THE ELDER BROTHER by 
Gregory Tillett, which presents information Leadbeater admirers would 
prefer to ignore. The editors would abridge this book as well, but 
they do not control the copyright and in any event do not believe a 
title page would sell without an accompanying text. The editors also 
urge theosophists to ignore the books by Williams, King, and others 
which make it clear Leadbeater was a child molester. For crying out 
loud don't read about the fact that Leadbeater was a degenerate."

"In fact, don't read this disclaimer. It is too embarrassing."

If the editors had said all that, no one could impugn their honesty. 
The TPH did not suppress Subba Rao's statement that the mahatmas 
lived in trees and had green hair. They did not suppress the Hodson 
book about how the Cottingley fairies were real and not a hoax. Why 
wipe the egg off their faces where Leadbeater was concerned? Why not 
wear all this embarrassing stuff with pride?