The daily dispatch. [volume] (Richmond [Va.]) 1850-1884, 1861-03-16
Hours with the NysficsA

This is the title of a work written by Mr..
| VAUGHAN, and published in England, where 1t
| has gone through several editions. OF course
| it must be interestin to the general reader,
| which makes us wonder that il has not been
| reproduced in this country. The English
| Reviews speak of it in high terms, and from
| some of them we CLEAN an outline of its con-
| tents.
| Apart from the accidental advantages de-
| rived from the style in which its history may
| be narrated by particular author, the sub
| iect of mysticism itself has high claims
upon our attention. t has lain at the foun-
| datiou of many of the most remarkable char
acters that have made their mark upon the
| different ages that gave birth to them. We
| are apt to laugh at it: to treat 1t with con-
tempt We regard mystic as man who Is
so entirely absorbed in the contemplation OF
the invisible world, that he has no Afternoon
to bestow upon the things of earth. we nave
only to read history to be convinced that thls
is a great mistake? No other agent has pro-
dueed so many changes in society, III religion
and in politics. rs mysticism. The |hole
earth has been more than once revolutioniZed
by it, and the possibility is that it may be
again. States have been annihilated by its
breath Kings have been pulled down from
their thrones The religion of whole nations
has frequently been changed. 1t has carried
fire and sword into peaceful nations. Ii mas
cong uered armies, taken cities, and suodued
the proudt st monarchies. All the creeds OF
the earth have their foundation in it.
To prove all this, let us notice few OF the
men 10 whom 1t has given renoWn. PETER
the Hermit was mystic. 1t was the force OF
mysticism that impelled him to preach the
first crusade-"to precipitate Europe upon
Asia''-to naugurate those wars which lasted
for q century and half, and changed the as
pect political. social, and commercial OF the
entire Western world.
Before him, MAHoMET was mystic. 1t was
the spirit of mysticism that made the simple
camel-drver of Mecca the prophet of the
whole OF Western Asia. 1t was the strong
belief in his mystical revelations that made
his followers and successors swarm like 10
Gusts over the Eastern portion of the Roman
Empire, and finally plant their standards
upon the walls of Constantinople.
LUTHER was mystic-he was, at least, a
man whose thoughts were turned more than
the thoughts of other men to the invisible
world He shook the power of the Roman
Church to its very foundation
1GNATIUs SoYoLA was mystic. He turned
back the tide which LUTHER had cast loose,
and prevented it from overwhelming the
Church of Rome.
Joan of Arc was a mystic. She saved the
monarchy of France, when it was on the
point of extinction But for her full faith in
her own divine mission, she could never have
accomplished the task which she laid down
for herself.
CROMWELL was a mystic of the highest or
der But for his prayers, his groanings, his
weepings, his supposed communion with the
beings of the invisible world, he would never
have obtained opportunity of showing his
great military talents. 1t was his charact ter of
saint that enabled him to establish his repu-
tation soldier.
CoRTaz was mystic. ST.. JAMES more than
once appeared to his heated Imagination, in
the midst of doubtful battle, cheering him
on, and poiu ting out the road to victory.
In a word, mys ticism has not only been
characteristic of some of the greatest men the
world ever saw, but it has wrought changes
and is still working changes, which could be
wrought by no other principle. JOE SMITH
was mystic. Can anybody tell where
his teachings are TO lead, or what is to be the
end of them .?