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THE POPULAR SCIENCE MONTHLY. 



the Croton by three different routes, one of 

 a little less than fifteen miles, another near- 

 ly twenty-seven miles, and the third forty- 

 one miles. The shorter route is regarded 

 as impracticable, as the water would have 

 to be raised one hundred and six feet to the 

 conduit. The third route, though the long- 

 est, is considered the best for a permanent 

 work of this character. It would consist of 

 thirty miles of open canal, two and one half 

 miles of tunnel, and eight miles of natural 

 watercourses. The area drained by the 

 Housatonic above the point where this con- 

 duit would join it is six hundred and thirty- 

 one square miles, and the water that could 

 be delivered into the Croton is estimated at 

 one hundred million gallons daily. The 

 cost of this work to the head of the Croton 

 River is estimated at a little over two mil- 

 lion dollars. It is considered that, with the 

 auxiliary supply which this river would fur- 

 nish, the water-supply of New York would 

 be assured for a number of years. Mr. 

 Campbell urges the necessity of early action, 

 that a work which will necessarily consume 

 a considerable time may be commenced in 

 season to meet the continually augmenting 

 demand for water. 



The Theosophist. A Monthly Journal de- 

 voted to Oriental Philosophy, Art, Lit- 

 erature, and Occultism : embracing Mes- 

 merism, Spiritualism, and other Secret 

 Sciences. Conducted by H. P. Blavat- 

 sky. Subscription price, 10 rupees. 

 Published, 108 Girgaum Back Road, 

 Bombay, India. 



This periodical, which was started last 

 October, seems to be the organ of the Theo- 

 sophical Society that has existence both in 

 New York and Bombay. Colonel Henry S. 

 Olcott is its president and Madame Blavat- 

 sky its corresponding secretary. Bombay, 

 we suppose, is now headquarters, as the 

 parties mentioned have recently left New 

 York and established themselves in Bom- 

 bay, where their organ is now printed. 

 " The Theosophist " is printed in English, 

 but claims to have a universal patronage, 

 being subscribed for in every part of India, 

 in Ceylon, Burmah, on the Persian Gulf, 

 in Egypt, Australia, North and South Amer- 

 ica, and the chief European countries. Of 

 its contents it is somewhat difficult to speak. 

 A large proportion of its contributions are 



from writers whose names betray an English 

 origin, but there are many from learned na- 

 tives of India. We should say that the 

 journal is devoted to mysticism, and is 

 perhaps the purest and most perfect anti- 

 scientific periodical that has ever been 

 started. 



Its ideal virtue is evidently to believe. 

 We can gather no intimation that there is 

 any check to this process, nor anything too 

 wild, absurd, or extravagant to be credited. 

 One would think that Colonel Olcott and 

 Madame Blavatsky could have found exer- 

 cise enough for credulity in New York. But 

 they have sought an Oriental sphere where 

 they can revel in a far richer and wider 

 field of superstition. 



It seems there is a Hindoo spiritualism 

 akin to American spiritualism, but still ar- 

 rogating superiority over it. Mr. Rao Ba- 

 hadur Janardhan Sakharam Gadgil, LL. B., 

 F. T. S., in a communication to the Decem- 

 ber " Theosophist," thus contrasts the two 

 systems : 



The spiritualists of America and Europe have 

 this truth (the survival and return of spirits) 

 phenomenally demonstrated to them, and so far 

 Eastern philosophy welcomes the movement. 

 But beyond this it can not go ; for it finds lit- 

 tle reason to congratulate the spiritualists upon 

 the new ideas and aspirations they put forth. 

 That death is the mere separation of the cor- 

 poreal from the Jira, or soul, that animates it, is 

 a truth admitted in all schools of Oriental phi- 

 losophy. The Bbagwatgita says that the Jiva, 

 which is a part and parcel of myself, that is, 

 Brabm, leaves the corporeal body at the time of 

 death, and it draws in and takes with it the 

 mind and the senses, just as the breeze of airthat 

 touches and leaves a flower bears off its perfume. 

 So far Oriental philosophy and Western spirit- 

 ualism are at one. But it appears that Western 

 spiritualists are drifting into the belief that 

 every human soul, after its severance from the 

 corporeal body which it animated on this earth, 

 remains for ever without another corporeal body; 

 that all human souls can and some do make them- 

 selves manifest to living human beings either 

 through the bodies of mediums or by assuming, 

 temporarily, objective forms themselves; that 

 this state of existence is better than the earthlv 

 one; and that in their corporeal existence they 

 will develop and attain to the degree of final per- 

 fection. Now, Hindoo philosophy and religion 

 teach differently on every one of these points. 

 Though they admit that some human souls may 

 continue for a long time without another corpo- 

 real body, still this is the lot of comparatively a 

 few of those only who, during their existence on 

 this earth, led a life of sensual appetites and who 

 died prematurely with the intensity of those car- 



