ALCYONE AGAIN.

NZ Truth, Issue 443, 13 December 1913, Page 3

ALCYONE AGAIN.

Annie Besant's Appeal Dismissed

The Fate, of- the 20th Century^l-ofd Christ. r^..;- 1 ::

The ' cause celebre ..in the^toadraj^ High Court of late has been,tHs action^ taken by. G. Narainiatfr agshist tltt£ world famous Annie Besant :; -f or the> custody of his. two" sons, Krishna-* moorti— esoterically known as Alcyone — and Nityananda. The cifcumstanr ces, under which Mrs. Besant obtained the 1 guardianship of the two boys, and by' which they came under < the influence of one Leadbeater, will be still fresh m the minds of our readers, ate "Truth" has dealt at length -with this^ remarkable case! It has been all tKe more interesting from the fact that, m the opinion of Theosophical devotees, the elder boy, KrishnamoorU, is, or' is going to be' < . : Z.. THE LORD CHRIST ' or Lord Maitreya, to whom the world must look for light, and trom whom it must receive its emancipation, if ever It wishes to be divestad of. the chains of slavery, witli which .t has been invested by a modern unscientific econumic system. , Latest Indian files to hand give m full the concurring judgments of the Chief Justice and Mr. Justice Oldfleid In the Madras High Court when Mr?. Besant appealed against the decision ordering her to hand over the two boys to their father, G. .Narainiah. Leadbeater's position was a. serious one, inasmuch as' indecency had been imputed to him m his intercourse .with his charges. In his judgment, the Chief Justice said, "I do not say that his conduct was criminal, I do not say that acts of gross indecency have been proved,, but I do say, that, m my judgment, his behavior m connection with these boys . WAS UNSEEMLY AND INDECOROUS." Froni the evidence it appeared -that tli© tw<f~boys had been sent by Mrs. Besant to the Oxford University, for the purpose of obtaining a thorough English education:' The re-adoption of the sons by the father would, of course, put a stop to all this. In dealing with this point his Honor " said, "The father appears to be a respectable Hindu gentleman, and ho is a retired Government servant. Ho was deemed by Mrs. Besant to be fitted to fill the office of Assistant Corresponding Secretary of the Esoteric section of the Theosophical Society. At one time he was in' entire sympathy with the tenets and beliefs of the society of' which Mrs. Besant is President 1 There is iio evidence that he is not so still. .; v i! . With grdat eloquence and with great earnestness' Mrs. Besant pressed upon us what she ascribed as the miserable future which awaits the boys if they are to be restored to the custody of their. father. There can bo no question that the training which they are now undergoing m England would make it difficult for -tt(em to re-adapt' themselves to what 'was at one time, at any rate, their natural environment. " " Amongst other matters dwelt upon by Mr§. Besant it was suggested (hat ceremonies OF A DEGRADING CHARACTER would have to be undergone before the boys could bo restored to caste. . . . As regards the. question of the obtaining of a degree by the ycunger boy, I should be the last to Utempt to belittle the advantages of an Oxford degree, but there are universities In India where academic distinctions can be won. . . . I have como to the conclusion that we ought not to disturb the order of the learned Judge appolnting^the father the guardian of the two boys. ... The appeal will be dismissed with costs." "The Hindu," an Indian newspaper, m a leading article dealing with the case, says:— -"Mrs. Besant has thus lost all along the line m respect of litigation m which she did not desorve to succeed, and which she has carried on with a degree of obduracy "* and nforal obliquity which must have shocked many of her warmest adherents. ... Having gone as far as she could, hitherto, m pursuance of her legal rights, Mrs, Besant would now, if she Is well advised, accept loyally the decision of the High Court and restoro th*e youths to their father. In view OF THE IMPORTANT ROLE which,- by her recent pronouncements, she seeks to fill m Indian Society m association with Indian leaders, '< any other course on her part must, In our opinion, bo deemed unthinkable and indecent"