Verse of the Year [pp. 429-436]

Verses of the Year.
"And so," outspoken Hareth answered to
Ihis fellow ang(ls, "every time that man
Would speak with Him he must spread misery
By killing something. I don't know how you
May feel about this, but it seems to me
'A fo,lish pride to gi-atify, a thirst
F'or glory that would drink the very blood
Of every creature just to satisfy it. Once
I loved that Voice, or He who owns that Voice,
Or whatsoever He or It may be,
But this seems so unkind and heartless that
I don't know if I ought to love It more."
Blut they said, " Hush, thou shouldst not talk that
way,
\We do not understand."
Hareth, who is the friend of man,
somewhat after the Prometheus-Satan
order, cannot cease to brood and talk
over his humble friend's misfortunes.
" But Adam," answered that once holy thing,
True yet and loving, "how can I be glad
When thou art sorry? how can I behold
A needless sorrow heaped upon thy head,
(Or for that matter on whosoever head)
By any One or Thing, and not be stirred
Against the giver of this evil, woe?
And since the power to overcome it lies
Within my reach,
[he has offered to take them back to the
Garden, if they will risk it,]
endeavor to restore
The bliss my eyes have seen?"
"Oh, Hareth, don't"
Cried Eve and Adam.
Some of the angels, who heard of this
interview, were foolish enough to admire
the spirit and humanitarianism of their
comrade;
So this new movement, termed philosophy,
The higher thought, justice and charity,
Augmented and grew big, till loyalty
In word and thought was reckoned bigotry.
This is obviously to the address of
some of our modern followers of humanitarian delusions and similar devices of
Satan. Cain became infected with these
speculations, and it really disgusted him
to see
His parents crawling on their knees before
A smoking altar, where the stench of flesh
Came seething forth, death being the loathsome link
That bound them to the Voice.
He made up his mind to sacrifice only
fruits, and remonstrated with his brother
for the "butchery" of his lambs. Abel
answered that death must be, in consequence of sin. Cain asked if the lamb
was the sinner, and said he would be
ashamed to shirk off his sins upon an
innocent lamb. He asked Abel at least
to take the bloody rite away out of his
sight. Abel refused bluntly: as they
were brothers, their altar smokes ought
to go up together. Cain said he would
move away himself, then, out of the
smell of "heavenly cruelty"; but Abel
moved about after him with lamb and
knife, evidently feeling that his heresies
should not be indulged, until in an exasperated moment Cain picked up a
brand and felled him,- horrified to find
that his scruples over killing a lamb had
betrayed him into killing his brother.
Thus Mr. Phifer points out to us the results of weakly merciful philosophizing,
it is of the school of Satan and Cain.
Later, Hareth does in fact lead a host
of angels to recover Paradise for man,
and this attempt completes his breach
with Jehovah. The march is described,
with the following of the hutnan horde:
a multitude of lazy folk,
Careless and vicious, with their droves and goods,
(Such as to Oklahoma later drew)
Ready to occupy as soon as war
Should open up the gates.
But we cannot follow this very entertaining book any farther. We have
found it amusing enough to pay for the
reading; and if a copy of it should stray
within reach of any of our readers who
take an interest in curious workings of
the human mind, we can advise him to
open it.
. The Finding of the Gnosis' is as curious, but not as readable. It is published
by the Occult Publishing Company, is
announced on the title-page as "An Interior Life Drama, Wherein is Brought
to Light the Inmost Secret of all Veritable Religion: The Mystery of the Divine Self;" and on the cover as "A
1The Finding of the Grosis. Boston: Occult Pub
shing Company: r890.
434
[October,