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With regard to the above circumstance, and the many such which are familiar to the experience of almost every one, I would remark that there exists a wonderfully beautiful but mysterious sympathy between nature and humanity. It is as a glorious musical instrument, every string of which is in perfect accord. Thus-but how, who can say? the dove, which typifies the spirit, is drawn into mysterious rapport with the quivering human soul; both are seeking for rest; both are seeking for a home. The home eternal with God and Christ is the quest the yearning necessity of the higher existence, whilst the lower, the typical dove, is satisfied with the caress of the human hand, with a home under human care.

Happy the inquiring soul which has gone on into that sphere of life and light where the great mysteries of existence are solved!

We are glad to find that Mr. Thos. Heaphy, the well-known artist, took a very successful portrait of our friend shortly before she left this life. Being himself intimate with the family and recognising, we believe, some of the spiritual truths which hallowed her dying chamber, a portrait taken under such circumstances will be doubly valuable.

Her mortal remains are now laid in Norwood Cemetery, and the following is, we understand, the appropriate inscription intended to mark their resting place:

In memory of ELISA, the beloved wife of BENJAMIN COLEMAN, of Upper Norwood. On the 28th of September, 1868, in the 64th year of her age, her bright spirit left its earthly tenement in the full assurance that

"There is no death-what seems so is transition!

This life of mortal breath

Is but a suburb to the life Elysian,
Whose portal we call death."

MARY HOWITT.

DANIEL FRANK COX.

ON the 11th of October, in Jermyn-street, Daniel Frank Cox, aged eight years and six months, left the earth form, and "entered the portals of the Summer Land." He was the youngest son of the late Mr. Cox, of Jermyn-street, whose name was so well known as a seeker after and lover of truth-one of the first in England to espouse the cause of Spiritualism, and in every way to aid in advancing it. His removal from earth, five years ago, was deeply felt. Mr. Cox ever felt that mankind had become too much the slaves of forms and useless ceremonies; and amongst other reforms which he advocated was that of dispensing with the useless mummeries and hollow shows attached

to funerals. His philosophy taught him not to murmur against the providence of an all-wise God of love, nor would he show such discontent by clothing himself in the sable costume usually worn on such occasions. Whatever uses it may have, he saw that its abuses were predominant, and that many families could not in reality afford to put on the mourning required by society, yet were compelled to do so, rather than shock the feelings of those who in reality had no claim on them, and could in nowise share the deep grief of their bereaved hearts-they were, in many cases, obliged to stint themselves even in their food, that they might purchase "decent mourning." He also felt that it is but a sorry compliment we pay to those we love in mourning them "deeply" the first six months, and "half mourning another six months, and then not at all. Mrs. Cox had the courage in her hour of affliction to break through the usual routine of funerals, and we will hope that others may follow her example. Crape was dispensed with, much to the evident discomfiture of the undertaker, who thought it would be a "bad thing for business" if the whole world were Spiritualists. Previous to the funeral, phenomena of a very extraordinary character occurred, some of the details of which we hope to give to our readers in our next number.

Correspondence.

PERSONAL EXPERIENCES IN CALIFORNIA.

To the Editor of the " Spiritual Magazine.”

Napier, California, July 25th, 1868. SIR,-With your June number before me, I cannot resist the impulse of laying before you a few incidents of my own experience, illustrative, in a personal way, of the cui bono" of Spiritualism, although I think that the proofs(for which Plato which would have given the world)—that Spiritualism affords of immortality were "bono" enough.

I have been acquainted with the facts and phenomena for nearly twenty years: and in 1852 a brother, whom I shall call Frank, became very much alarmed by seeing what he supposed to be apparitions-other well-known spiritual phenomena also occurring in his presence. I have said that at first he was alarmed, because he thought that he was going crazy; but as soon as he became clairaudient, and could converse with these strange visitants, he becam perfectly reconciled, and we used to converse daily with our friends and relativ of the Summer-land up to the day of his departure, when he said to me," I all right, dear brother; they never leave me now, and it is always light "so he passed into the spirit-land.

But to my facts. I will only instance two, as I do not wish to trespa your space.

On one occasion, walking arm in arm on Broadway Wharf, San T suddenly stopped, and apparently conversed with some one invisible I observed his face brighten. I said, "What is it, Frank ?" here, and tells me, that a vessel outside has letters on board with

us."

I thought this an excellent opportunity for a test, and requested the name of the vessel. He apparently put the question, and replied, "the Archibald Gracia. Write and let me know." He was about to start on the Sacramento steamer, and the bell was ringing. I then returned to our place of business, and sent a clerk to the Telegraph Office, where he found reported a barque outside the Heads. That night the Archibald Gracia came in, and next morning I received a letter from Honolulu, releasing us from a 5,000 dollar note which my brother Frank had endorsed without my knowledge, and which had therefore greatly troubled him, the parties having become insolvent. The "good news" was, that the holders of the note had attached sufficient property to cover the debt, and liberate the endorsers. Dr. Fish, whom we had learnt to love for his kindness as much as if we had known him when on earth, seeing his patient's depression, had said, "Cheer up, old fellow; it will be all right"-which little kindly act proves that death, as the " departure" is erroneously called, does not destroy the human sympathy even for our petty earthly troubles.

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Another instance. I went home shortly after this occurrence (in 1853), and returned around the Horn, with my wife. After being out a few weeks, we heard the raps about the bulkheads of our state rooms. I told my wife their import, for she had never heard of Spiritualism before, and instructed her in the modus operandi of communicating through the alphabet, so that she finally looked upon the spirits as her guardians amidst the dangers of the seas, and frequently converse with her mother through the whole night, when rough weather precluded sleep. One night, off the Cape, she roused me out of the next cabin, where I slept, saying, "You are wanted on deck. They have spelt out, "There is danger near, and no head on deck.'" Meaning by no head," no captain on deck. I said, "What is the danger the raps spelt out ?" ship Sabine is near you." I immediately hurried on deck-for I had been once run down at sea-and asked the mate if he had a good look-out forward, and persuaded him, by relating my desperate disaster in the ship I had commanded, to go forward and see if the watch were not asleep, which, he found they were. I remained on deck till nearly daylight without seeing anything, but about daylight the mate came down, and asked if I would like to see the ship they were about to speak. When I got on deck, a ship on the opposite tack had her burgee displayed on the poop with her name-Sabine. We had, probably, been beating about in company all night. Next day, in talking over the occurrence with our invisible friends, we asked them how they would warn us in future from danger of collision? They replied, "We will give five loud raps in the direction from which the ship may approach"-and on request a specimen was given us loud enough to wake the watch.

These are experiences selected from thousands of occurrences which have displayed the loving kindness of our friends; and in all communications which I have received, the most striking feature to me is the intense kindness expressed. I am, respectfully, A. G. EASTERBY.

CONFUCIUS ON THE POWER OF SPIRITS.-Twenty-five centuries ago, Confucius wrote:-"How vast is the power of spirits! An ocean of invisible intelligences surrounds us everywhere. If you look for them you cannot see them. If you listen you cannot hear them. Identified with the substance of all things, they cannot be separated from it. They cause men to purify and sanctify their hearts, to clothe themselves with festive garments, and offer oblations to their ancestors.

Worship the gods as if they were visibly present. Sacrifice to ancestors as if they were here."

THE

Spiritual Magazine.

DECEMBER, 1868.

HAYDON THE PAINTER'S SPIRITUALISM.

To the instances of spiritual perception and reception in Raffaele, Michael Angelo, Mozart, Beethoven, &c., we may add the same peculiarity in Haydon. Haydon was one of the most impassioned and impetuous-spirited men that ever lived. With great pictorial genius, but with much egotism and self-estimation, he had an enthusiasm for high art and an independence of spirit which made his life one great battle with the Royal Academy, with the prejudices of the age, with reluctant statesmen, and with pecuniary embarrassment, which at length caused him to commit suicide. His life, by Tom Taylor, is one of the most awful and harrowing stories of a human existence ever perused, and the bulk of it is penned by the unfortunate man himself. There is no question that Haydon was right in his ideas of artand it was very much by his exertions that Government was at length induced to introduce the pictorial embellishments of the Houses of Parliament, and to extend the little patronage to high art that it has done; but by his incessant appeals to ministers and noblemen on the subject, and for advances of money to extricate him from the terrible difficulties into which his pursuit of high art in the face of public apathy had led him, he had made himself to them, in plain language, a bore. This, in addition to a defect of sight, which made the colouring and finish of his pictures very defective, excluded him from a share of the public works which his single-handed labours had induced the Government to commence, and, no doubt, led to his final catastrophe. In the course of this stormy life, Haydon was often worked up into that nervous condition when the inner senses are preternaturally excited, and he dreamed, or saw things which belong to the spiritual world.

N.S.-III.

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In his love and perception of the beautiful and poetical, Haydon was amongst the first to discover, across the fogs of public prejudice, the genius of Wordsworth, Leigh Hunt, and Keats, and he became a zealous and firm friend of these celebrated men, all of whom have paid the warmest tributes to his fame and public services. Living, therefore, in the constant atmosphere of poetry and painting, it was but another short step into the spiritual. In his journal of February 13, 1840, he says:

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"After the investigation of the Convention of Cintra, and when the Duke of Wellington had proved his genius to my mind, I lay in bed one morning, and clearly saw in my mind's eye his triumph in Spain, and the crossing the French frontier. I got up, and determined, young as I was, to write to him, to tell him my conviction, and to add, that if it turned out as I said-as my views in art were as grand as his in military matters-I hoped he would allow me, in the hour of victory, to remind him of my prophecy. Subsequent reasoning made me believe this to be absurd, and to the regret of my whole after-life, I gave up the notion.

"This morning I had similar foreshadowings about the affairs of the East, the complications of which I clearly unravelled.

"March 8, 1830.-Few men have the courage to say they believe in dreams. Last night I dreamed the King told Seguier he did not like my picture, and would not have it. I got up this morning greatly distressed in mind about it, and said, 'If this prove true, is there not something in dreams?' It has proved true.

"Feb. 6, 1831.-I dreamed Napoleon appeared to me, and presented to me a golden key. This was about a month since. It is curious. I have lately had singular dreams; as Achilles says, 'The shades of our friends must be permitted to visit us.'

He was painting his picture of Napoleon musing at St. Helena, and argued that it must be a success from his dream. It was not only so, but the painting of copies of it of a less size, of which he did nearly thirty, was a golden key to him. He adds: "Dreamt that Michael Angelo came to me last night in my painting room. I talked to him, and he shook hands with me. I took him to the small medallion over my chimneypiece, and said, 'It is very like, but I don't think your nose so much broken as I had imagined.' I thought it strange in my dream; I could not make it out how he came there. He had a brown coat and complexion. I certainly think something grand in my destiny is coming on, for all the spirits of the illustrious dead are hovering about me. * * * I seem as if I were seized

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