Spiritist burial.

Under this title, the Monde musical of Brussels, of the 5th of March, 1865, describes in the following terms the obsequies of Mrs. Vauchez, mother of one of our excellent brothers in Spiritism:

“The Vauchez brothers, our friends and collaborators, lost their mother a few days ago. The care with which, of late, both of them surrounded that respectable lady was the sign and the effect of a tenderness that there is no occasion to describe.

“The two brothers are Spiritists. Gathered with friends who hold the same belief, they accompanied the body of their mother to the tomb. There, the eldest son expressed, in words as simple as they were just, to the Spirit of his mother, who, in his Spiritist faith, was present and heard them, the sadness that this separation produced among them, even though, on the other hand, they were persuaded that she, entering into a better life, would not fail to communicate with them and would inspire them, strengthening them continually in the way of good. He repeated the certainty that her dying wishes would be carried out by the consecration to two good works, besides the expenses saved on the burial, which was purely civil and without any ceremonial. These wishes are: that a foundation be established in favor of the crèche of Saint Josse-ten-Noode, and a charitable allowance in favor of destitute old age. “After this kind of conversation between the son and the soul of his mother, Mr. Herezka, one of the Spiritist friends of the family, expressed in verse, with the same simplicity, a few words, the reproduction of which will make known a part of what there is of good and of right in a belief that, daily and everywhere, becomes that of a greater number of men, and which counts among educated persons. Here are the words of Mr. Herezka to the soul of the departed: Already the great grave is open, Soon this dark and subtle tomb Will be the chamber of your remains;

But, free then from the vile burden, You shall go gliding through space, Following the trace of progress.

Enough of doubt, of pain!

From evil you have already broken the prison, Leave in your body the lovelessness, And only the good in the heart.

May only love and charity Guide you through eternity!

Carry to the brothers of the other worlds Our fraternal wishes;

Tell them that fruitful beings, Ripe eternal fruits, Have shown us there from the ethereal, The graceful mystery of death.

Tell them! “There your friends “Against ignorance, still proud, “Will give battle to its perils;

“For a cause so glorious, “Behold they invoke you with ardor, “Give them, Spirits, love!”

Come to calm our torments, Oh! come to make us see the heavens In our swoonings;

And before our eyes let shine Some celestial spark That emanates from an immortal source.

After these words, the Vauchez brothers and their friends withdrew without noise, without ostentation, without painful emotion, as if they had come to accompany someone undertaking a long journey, in all the desirable conditions of well-being and security. Even without being a Spiritist, we took part in the procession. Here we are no more than the narrator of a fact: the ceremony as touching as it was remarkable for the simplicity and the sincerity of the belief and of the intentions. Roselli.

Mrs. Vauchez succumbed after thirty-two years of an illness that for twenty years had kept her confined to her bed. She had accepted with joy the Spiritist beliefs and from them had drawn great consolations in her long and cruel sufferings. We saw her on the occasion of our last journey to Brussels and were edified by her courage, resignation, and confidence in the mercy of God. Here are the first words that she dictated to her children shortly after having breathed her last:

“The veil that still covers the extraterrestrial world from us has just been lifted for me. I see, I feel, I live! Almighty God, thank you! You, my guides, my guardian angels and protectors, thank you! You, my children, you, my daughter, resignation, for you are Spiritists; do not mourn me: I live the eternal life, I live in the ethereal light; I live and I suffer no more; my pains have ceased, my trial has ended. Thank you, my friends, for having thought to evoke me soon; do it often. I will assist you and will be with you. “God had pity on my sufferings. Oh! my friends, how beautiful is the life of the soul, when freed from matter! Good Spirits watch over you; make yourselves worthy of their protection. At this moment I am assisted by your protector, the good Saint Vincent de Paul.” Marguerite Vauchez.