Evening star., 1926-02-02
THIS AND THAT
BY CHARLES E. TRACEWELL.

The poet Shelley was a hundred
years ahead of Luther Burbank ~
his opinion on religion. The difference
was that Shelley wrote his when ne
was but IS years old.
His drastic ideas Gncluding those
on marriage. diet. etc) were printed
as notes to his Queen Nab and may
be read there by any one interested.
Those who have been shocked by
MIR. Burbank'S reported utteranceS
ought to know that they are no new
thing in the world. Let me quote a
bit from Percy Bysshe Shelley:
"ChriStia nifty is now the established
religion. he who attempts to lmpusn
1t must he contented to behold lnur-
derers and traitors take precedence OF
him i'll public opinion; though, II ms
genius be equal to his courage, and
assisted by a peculiar coalition of cir
cumstances. future ages may exat
him to IL divinity, and persecute others
in his name, as he was prosecuted.
The same means that have sup
ported every other popular bellel nave
supported Christianity. War. fmpris-
onInent assassination and talsehood;
deeds of unexampled and .tncompara-
BILE atrocity have made 1t what It Is.
Analogy seems 10 favor the
Christianity has arisen ana augment
ed, so, like them, il Will decay and
perish. that, as violence, darkness and
conceit, not reasoning and persuasion,
have procured its admission among
mankind, so, when enthusiasm has
subsidized, and time, that tnfallible con-
troverter of false opinions. has in
volved its pretended evidences in the
darkness of antiquity it will become
obsolete"
II the plant-wizird was correctly
quoted, he said almost the same thing,
in different words.
The writer Of this column VIII
quote no more from Shelley on re-
ligion. His opinions We're written in
his immature youth the was but Is
years old when he wrote Queen
Nab" and its attendant notes). and
were never published by the poet, eX-
cept privately.
The world has long forgotten that
he wrote so radically; what il loves
to remember OF him are his singing
lines. so like life. that life which he
said lis Il dome Of many-colored
glass. staining the white radiance OF
eternity"
His wife. Mary. gives the following
on her husband In relation 10 his
advanced" opinions:
Shelley was Is when he wrote
Queen Nab he never published Il.
When ii was written. he had come 10
the decision that he was too young 20
be a Judge Of controversies, and he
was desirouS of acquiring that sobri-
ETY. OF spirit which Is the Characters
tic of true heroism.' But he never
doubted the truth or utility ,ot his
opinions; and printing and privately
distributing Queen Nab he believed
he should further their dissemination.
without occaSioning the mischief
either to others or himself that might
arise from the publication.
''In former editions certain portions
We're left out, az shocking the general
reader from the violence OF their at
tack on religion I myself had a
painful feeling that such erasures
might he looked upon as q mark OF
diSreSpect toward the author, and am
glad TO have the opportunity of re-
storing them. The notes also are re-
printed entire: not because they are
models OF reasoning or lessons OF
truth. but because Shelley wrote
them. The alterations his
opinions underwent ought to be re-
corded. for they form his history.
Those last two sentences are of
great significance to all lovers of the
poetry of this poet; for his wife,
Mary Wollstonecraft Shelley, in many
respects. had much more brilliant
mentality than her husband. The
keenness Of her intellect was what is
often called masculine; IT is. there