[ ? r ] and Scientist
Luther Burbank: His Religion of Humanity. By Frederick W. Clampett. Macmillan.
[It is?] probable that the greater [portion?] of the newspaper public has already forgotten the [tem-?] of opinion that resulted from [the?] announcement that Luther Burbank, “the plant wizard,” was [an?] “infidel.” He had said it himself in an unguarded moment, [so?] it was therefore not to be doubted, though just what he himself meant by the term few paused to ask. When Burbank died shortly afterward, there were not lacking those who were convinced that outraged divinity had acted with commendable promptness.
Luther Burbank is dead, but the practical benefits he bestowed upon mankind are incalculable. His accomplishments will constitute a benediction upon the generations of men so long as vegetable life is essential to human welfare. Since this is unquestionably true, it does not really matter what the misinformed may think about the man when they think of him at all. Certainly it was not in the philosophy of Burbank himself to care much, so long as he could serve mankind creatively. Nevertheless, it is true that figs can not grow from thistles, and in view of this truth, it may interest those who do not know all about God and the universe to know what sort of human personality resulted in the [good?] life that Luther Burbank lived. It is the purpose of the volume here presented to reveal that personality, with especial reference to the religious attitude that strengthened and made gentle the whole life of the man.
Those who may suspect that Burbank had horns should not try to read the book, for it would simply prove unintelligible to them. But there are thousands who have come to realize that it is in the life of a man and not in his professions that his religion is revealed, if he happens to have any; and the life of Burbank was strangely saint-like, both in the serene trust that characterized all his activities and in the spirit of benevolence that all who knew him felt in his presence.
Frederick W. Clampett, the author, is a veteran clergyman of the Pacific Coast and an old friend of Burbank. An introductory note and an epilogue are by David Starr Jordan, himself a great scientist and one of the finest spirits of our time. Dr Jordan was intimately acquainted with Burbank for 30 years.
