Bulwer, it is stated, was one of the occult society. In his case the pursuit was one of pure selfishness; his motives in his literary career were selfish and avaricious; his domestic life was detestable, and the use that he made of his knowledge in his literary labors was meretricious and fantastic. That noble-minded woman and gifted medium, the late Mrs. M. B. Hayden, M. D., was received by him at Knebworth, and gave him ample evidence of truths which he never publicly sustained. Whatever withdraws us from society and from the duties to fellow-beings which are incumbent upon all, is unworthy of encouragement. The noblest cultivation is symmetrical, and in its symmetry maintains the supremacy of the ethical sentiments, which recognize human fraternity. Nevertheless, this "practical occultism," abnormal and egotistic though it be, may develop marvellous powers, at which we may wonder as we do at the skill of an acrobat or the pugilism of Sullivan. It cultivates a will power and a spirituality by which miraculous phenomena may be shown, but they are of little real value compared to the nobler miracle of healing those whom physicians have surrendered to death, and bringing to the knowledge of mankind the entire truth concerning the future life, and the ennobling lessons derived therefrom, which bring earth life nearer to heaven. PSYCHIC PHENOMENA. The _New York World_ publishes a narrative of psychic experiments by its correspondent at Washington which may interest those who have not witnessed anything like it. They are just such as have been on exhibition publicly in this country for more than forty years, but owing to conservative prejudice have not received their due attention from the press. But as newspaper correspondents and reporters are a privileged class, they can bring before the public marvellous phenomena which would not be welcomed from other sources. The following is the letter from Washington: "You know what an excitement there has been about mesmerism in Paris this summer? A lion tamer, who was also a mesmerist, took into his cages a young lady whom he had mesmerized, and made his dentate pets jump over her on the floor. There was great excitement about it, and a law was passed in the French Congress, I believe, forbidding such exhibitions, even where the consent of the subject had been obtained previously to losing consciousness. "This letter will be in the nature of a confession. Last spring, discovering by accident that I could mesmerize, I took up mesmerism as a diversion for the amusement of myself and friends. I had long believed in it entirely and carefully watched its processes, but I wished to study its philosophy and find out, if I could, the cause and the limits of its mysterious phenomena.