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MARTYN’S LETTER TO ANNIE BESANT


 
 
Previously editor’s note
 
There has come into my possession, without restrictions as to its use, a copy of a letter written to Mrs. Besant, May 20, 1921, by Mr. T.H. Martyn, former General Secretary of the Australian Section, Theosophical Society, former Corresponding Secretary of the Australian Esoteric Section, a member of thirty years’ standing, who has done more than any other one person to build up the Society in Australia. This is one of the most important and significant documents which has yet appeared, bearing on the present crisis in the Theosophical Society Copies of this letter can be obtained from this office by properly accredited Theosophical Society members.
 
It is quite evident from the letter that the writer is addressing Mrs. Besant in great spiritual perplexity over some damning facts concerning certain Theosophical Society members of high standing. It appears among other things that Wedgwood, Presiding Bishop of the Liberal Catholic Church, is wanted by the police on charges of sodomy that his colleagues Bishop King, and Priests Farrar and Clark, of the same church, were wanted on similar charges, and that Farrar and Clark had to flee from England to escape arrest. It further appears that Leadbeater, self-confessed teacher of immoral practices to boys prior to 1906, was at that time wanted by the British police, and that much later he was a guest in Martyn’s house in Sydney, but that having to leave temporarily he had to be refused permission to return because (1917-1919) it transpired that naked boys had been found in his bed and that other matters of a compromising nature had occurred, of which he “touches merely the fringe.”
 
It appears also that Mrs. Besant ordered that Wedgwood must leave the Theosophical Society and the Esoteric Section in order to protect the good name of the Society, but that she cancelled this order on representation of Mr. Jinarajadasa that this would reflect on the infallibility of Leadbeater, who had proclaimed Wedgwood to be an initiate. The cable correspondence between Mrs. Besant and Jinarajadasa on the subject is given. Mr. Martyn further states that to his own know ledge Leadbeater is a sex pervert, and he wants to know how the various matters referred to above are to be reconciled with the protection and holding up as leaders and spiritual examples of the persons mentioned. Mr. Martyn’s well known characteristic of conservatism and moderation is well illustrated in the tone of the letter, which should be read by all who are interested in maintaining the purity and good name of the Theosophical Society.
 
(O.E. Library Critic, vol, 11, No. 10, December 21, 1921, p.4)
 
 
 
 
 
Letter from Mr. T. H. Martyn to Mrs. Annie Besant
 
Note: the writer of the following letter, Mr. T. H. Martyn, of Sydney, Australia, has been a member of the Theosophical Society for thirty years, has recently been President of Sydney Lodge, the largest Theosophical Society lodge in the world, General Secretary of the Australian Section Theosophical Society, Corresponding Secretary of the Australian Esoteric Section and a close associate of Mrs. Besant and Mr. Leadbeater. No one person has done as much to build up the Society in that part of the world.
 
 
« Private and Confidential
May 20th, 1921.
 
Dear Mrs. Besant:
 
Yours of April 4th asking me to hand over the office of Corres. Sec. E. S. to Mr. Leadbeater duly received. I have carried out your wishes and he is now in charge.
 
Though in your circular to members giving as your reason for this change the high occult rank of Mr. Leadbeater, in your letter to me you indicate that you make the change because questions have arisen in which you and I are on opposite sides. Much as I dislike putting you to any trouble I think I am entitled to ask you why you say this, for I do not know of any differences. You have complained of none, indeed there has been no correspondence (except on formal business) since we met in England and then we seemed to be working and thinking on almost identical lines.
 
I wrote you on March 14th on some difficulties of the Theosophical Society work here but you would hardly have had that letter by April 4th or if you had it I cannot read into it any motive for what you now do. Is it quite fair of you to arrive at such conclusions condemning me on I presume statements of other persons without affording me an opportunity to state my own case? That does not seem quite like the Mrs. Besant I have pictured for the last 30 years. However I am glad enough to be relieved of the Esoteric Section Corresponding Secretary ship, and I could not have held it much longer without a candid exchange of views in any case.
 
Now I want to ask you first one little favor and that is to try and help me in the greatest perplexity of my life. For thirty years I have regarded you as my spiritual leader, my soul’s friend and am grateful for all I have gathered by way of help from your writings and your advice but only on one occasion so far as I remember have I sought your counsel because of my own difficulties and that was at our first interview in London in Sept. 1919. I thought then you would help me in my perplexity and began to explain it to you, but you cut me short and we passed on to general topics. Will you dear Mrs. Besant now read with patient sympathy what I have to say— it is all true as to fact— and then see if you can help me to find a solution to my particular problem. You have taught me to endeavor to seek truth, to think truth and to live truth and now after long years of earnest effort its logic pursues me. I cannot evade it.
 
This is what I want to tell you. In 1906 I was in London fighting your cause and Leadbeater’s police proceedings against the latter were seriously threatened. One of his boys in desperate trouble urged me to try and prevent them being proceeded with and admitting that the only evidence he could give confirmed Leadbeater’s immoral practices. The police proceedings did not eventuate. I went away to Africa soon after and on returning I tried to forget what this confession involved, to explain it away: and succeeded. In 1914 Leadbeater came to live with us in Sydney. I took him at his own valuation and yours, regarding him as an Arhat; permitted myself to come sympathetically under his influence and gladly made effective all his plans. As time went on I certainly got many little shocks. He would for instance explain in private that you were deluded about your Indian work, and the belief that it was at the wish of the Hierarchy that you should work for Home Rule. He did not hesitate to hint that your actions in India and advice to Indians were disloyal to the Empire. Mrs. Martyn could confirm this and many other things said in private, that puzzled us, though always everything said in public was loyal and flattering to you.
 
Meanwhile I was personally favored and I suppose felt flattered. For many years I had followed your Esoteric Section training conscientiously and results had followed. When you gave concrete expression to my experiences I tried to live up to a still higher standard, but later on the casual way in which these overnight ceremonies were regarded after the first occasion or two became very marked. As an instance on a certain date in July 1917 five of us were told we had taken various initiations. No one remembered anything in the morning —, some had hardly slept feeling rather excited. I do not remember at any time anyone remembering any real experience or anything of what happened on any of these occasions. All the same I took all that quite seriously. By this time (1917) Mrs. Martyn had become intensely unhappy about C. W. L. in the house. She had seen naked boys in his bed and other facts had come to her knowledge. I refused to sympathize with her views and for my sake she kept her peace and I held things together.
 
Later (1918-19) scarlet fever in the house caused Leadbeater and his boys to move out temporarily and all my persuasions were insufficient to induce Mrs. Martyn to have him back again. She point-blank refused —though again in consideration for my own feelings— she told me nothing of what she knew. I only learned that on my return from America, 1919-20.
 
In 1919 I went to America. Young Van Hook was in New York. He talked freely of Charles Webster Leadbeater’s immorality and about faking the “lives” of people. In your reviews of some letters sent you by Raja which reached him from America things which Van Hook says about the “lives” you credit me with —that by the way. Now here is the evidence of two Leadbeater boys (my 1906 experience— I can give you the name if you want it — and young Van Hook) both subsequent to the 1906 inquiry and subsequent both to the confessions of all the American boys and to C.W.L.’s admissions at the enquiry of 1906. I have put these pieces of evidences together and add to them the compromising facts of life in my house (I am only touching the fringe of this in this letter) and find staring me in the face the conclusion that Leadbeater is a sex pervert, his mania taking a particular form which I have— though only lately— discovered, is a form well known and quite common in the annals of sex-criminology. There are some I know who think C. W. L. may have brought over old sex weaknesses and still be chosen by the Masters to do certain work for them. I have found comfort in the possibility up to the time of my last Interview with you in London.
 
This brings me to 1919 and my visit to London. A week before you sent for me and gave me your message in October 1919 I called on Mrs. St. John. She was in great trouble because the police were taking action (so she told me) against four Liberal Catholic Church priests. Wedgwood, King, Farrar and Clark. She wanted to warn Wedgwood in Australia and did not know how to without incriminating herself by compounding a felony. Farrar she told me she had got out of the country and she was sure the police would not find him. King had decided to remain in London and see it out as Farrar was out of the way etc. Mrs. St. John told me that though Wedgwood seemed to be compromised she herself did not believe him to be guilty of the charges.
 
Of course while in London I heard about charges of sodomy with boys being made against Wedgwood (by Major Adams and others) and reports about him had also reached me from Sydney, but what Mrs. St. John told me came as a complete surprise. A week later Graham Pole sent ms word to say you wished to see me urgently and I called. You then told me that you wished to communicate with Wedgwood in Sydney but by so doing directly you would be compounding a felony and you gave me the message for Raja that Wedgwood must leave the Esoteric Section and the Theosophical Society, etc. You explained that he had seriously compromised himself and you felt it your duty to protect the good name of the Society. I happened to think of an Esoteric Section talk you had given on a previous Sunday about black magic and sexual excess and asked you if you were referring to Wedgwood’s case in that talk and you said yes, that Krishna, who was very intuitive at times had in a comment suggested the explanation. Now you will see that this went much further than implying that Wedgwood had compromised himself— a good man may do that and be innocent of evil. It meant to me that on your own evidence and that of Krishna, Wedgwood was guilty of sex depravity. Then there cropped up the matter of Wedgwood’s initiation. You told me he was not an initiate. I could not be surprised at that, naturally, if the other was true how could he be?
 
The statement prompted me to wonder to what extent you confirmed or otherwise all the many other declarations of Leadbeater about various other people being disciples, initiates etc. My notes (written down immediately after I left you) remind me that I asked you what I was to do with regard to them and of your reply.
 
After my interview with you I left London immediately for Australia via America, and for a couple of months was busy readjusting my own ideas about things as well as I could. I found comfort in certain help which I believed my Master (M) gave me. I understood I was to do all I could to support you in a difficult crisis. To me you had committed a distinct breach by discarding blind subservience to Leadbeater’s every word. It was easy for me to do this where in view of what I am telling you it would be impossible to accept Leadbeater’s infallibility in all things. In America after leaving you certain people came to me and told me they had heard that the truth about Wedgwood was coming out at last and explained that he had in London admitted his trouble to one of them (or both I am not sure); that great efforts were made to help him overcome it; that things went on well for a time, but that later on he dropped back again into his evil ways. I can give you names if you want them. When I reached Sydney Raja accepted the message with evident reluctance, and rather foolishly I repeated bits of your conversation in addition to the directions. The central point with Raja became your denial of Wedgwood’s initiation and I soon saw that the breakdown of Wedgwood involved to him nothing short of the collapse of Leadbeater as an Arhat; of the divine authority of the Liberal Catholic Church; and of all reliance on the genuineness of reported initiations, discipleships, etc, in which great numbers of people are supposed to have participated. Prom Raja's viewpoint this must not be permitted at any cost for the sake of the peace of mind of members and of the cause in general and he just became the politician pure and simple scheming to maintain what to me was —on the evidence available— a falsehood; he showed no desire at all to find the truth and follow it. I may have been a little unfair in this conclusion because I afterwards found that Raja is an echo of C.W.L. and that he takes his occultism directly from what the latter says without question. For some time until I could no longer stand his attitude up to a certain point.
 
Then followed the cable to you from Raja explaining what your statement —that Wedgwood was not an initiate—involved. He made no reference in the message to the immorality — that was apparently unimportant and you replied accepting Leadbeater's statement about the initiation as decisive and cancelled your instructions. But I will repeat the cables to make this point clear.
 
Sydney Dec. 17. 1919. to Besant, Adyar.
 
“Martyn reports you said Wedgwood not initiate. Leadbeater asserts you were present at initiation. Am most anxious members sake there should be no fundamental divergence between you and him on such important occult matter since at same time. . . . and . . . . took second . . . . and . . . . first. Do you mean that since you have no recollection you cannot assert Wedgwood initiate but do not wish to be quoted as saying that he is positively initiated.”
 
Dec. 22, 20. Bombay.
 
“Brother’s statement enough accept fact, cancel message sent.”
 
Before Raja’s cable was sent I had interviewed Leadbeater alone. He wanted to hear all he could. I told him about the evidence thrust on me in America about Wedgwood having confessed and he said “well we had better get rid of him then.” I have often since remembered this incident. If Leadbeater knew Wedgwood to be innocent because he was an initiate why should he have said that?
 
I am telling you the truth without any exaggeration and if this or any other statement is denied to you by others involved as it might well be that cannot affect my knowledge of its truth.
 
You told me in 1913 at Adyar about the Triangle. C. W. L. has never so far as I know made any reference to this in private or public. You also told me then that you knew C. W. L. to be a very high initiate. Your statement then __ always remembered by me— has done much to keep me constant when things have happened in my house that I could not understand. Leadbeater has frequently stated that you permanently cut yourself off from physical brain intercourse with the Masters when you took up the Indian work. Raja has to some extent confirmed this but at our Convention last Easter Leadbeater stated that you and he exchanged notes by physical plane means when anything happened on the other planes affecting the work. He stated then that when the directions about starting a church were given you sent him word and he you, the communications crossing one another or to use his precise words “I sent her (A.B.) that original communication about the Three Activities; but she at the same time took down the points and sent them to me. It was not done on my remembrance at all but on a careful combination of the two.” (Convention Number T. in A. May 1921, page 56).
 
Here is a contradiction of the other statement that you had broken the super physical line of communication and the real facts if known might make things a little easier to understand. As it is I have been forced by mere pressure of circumstances, to certain conclusions particularly in view of your repudiating your own and Krishna’s judgment about Wedgwood merely because Leadbeater stated he was initiated in July 1917.
 
1.   That Leadbeater is not always reliable.
2.   That you have been relying upon C. W. L. as sole intermediary between the Hierarchy and yourself — for many years.
3.   That you have not been kept fully acquainted by Leadbeater with what the Hierarchy is doing.
4.   That C. W. L's word is final, and his seership infallible to you.
 
This last is Raja’s attitude I know. I never could however make it mine and have always maintained my faith by regarding you as independently aware of everything that the Masters did in connection with the Esoteric Section etc. Like many of the older members I have known how you and others for quite a long time regarded Chakravarti as a Master in the flesh and later had to repudiate him when certain facts indicate the mistake. Naturally one must leave a loophole in one’s consciousness for mistakes of this kind being made and that mistake has made no difference to my attitude to you, nor to my appreciation of the splendid gifts you have lavished upon the cause you serve; but all the same the incident has a bearing in the case of Leadbeater.
 
Will you tell me where I have gone wrong —from your point of view. I can with least difficulty regard the solution —already mentioned— that sexual irregularity is a matter of the personality and does not prevent a person being used by the Masters even as Their sole agent. That explanation would leave room for the acceptance of both C.W.L. and Wedgwood. The order regarding the church I should regard seriously if you independently received it but actually I have never resisted that in any way, what I have struggled against is the dumping on the Theosophical Society of a host of priests designated by such addresses as “Father” etc. to the bewilderment of people in and outside our non-sectarian movement. I can see that an “Order” might have been genuinely given which did not necessarily involve a foolish way of carrying it out. I really do want to maintain an open mind on this and every subject (likewise an eager intellect and unveiled spiritual perception) and I am sure you can help me if you will. Will you?
 
I really do not want to have to think of Leadbeater and Wedgwood as monsters veiling their illicit practices under the cloak of humanitarian interests and acting with the clever ingenuity and cunning sometimes met with in such cases. That is the viewpoint of lots of people however. The last thing I want is to have to join such critics and I will gladly catch at any straw which offers a reasonable explanation of the facts on other lines.
 
Finally please my dear friend do not be so unjust to me as to believe I want to make trouble between you and Leadbeater, you hint at something of this sort in your Disciple talk. I have no grudge against Leadbeater, nor against Wedgwood, nor against Raja, nor against any person mentioned in this letter, on the other hand I want to believe in them all if facts will permit me. We have been told over and over again that occultism is common sense and that Buddha taught his disciples to believe nothing because He said it. My difficulties summed up seem to arise because I am asked to put all evidence and all reason on one side and believe because someone does say it. So I leave it to you in your wisdom to show me the way out o f the tangle and I will be everlastingly grateful to you if you can. It is not easy to go back on the grooves formed by thirty years of thinking and working.
 
Thanking you in anticipation,
Yours very sincerely»
 
(O.E. Library Critic, vol, 11, No. 11, January 4, 1922, p.4-8)
 
 
 
 
 
 

OBSERVATIONS
 
If Mr. Martyn had study true Theosophy, then he would have realized that Leadbeater was a big charlatan and that Annie Besant had allowed herself to be completely manipulated by him.
 
And the proof is that Annie Besant not only did not listen to Mr. Martyn's arguments, but she also removed him from his post as Secretary of the Esoteric Section in Australia to put Leadbeater in his place.
 
Which shows how fanatical Annie Besant was, for she shunned anyone who said the slightest negative thing about Leadbeater, not caring that person had done more than any other member to expand the Theosophical Society in Australia, worked hard to this organization for 30 years and have carried out a thorough investigation with witnesses and evidence.
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 

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