They were Scotsmen. And all common-sense philosophy, Wealth-of-Nations, builders-of business-empires,aside Scots are celts. And "a Celt is never far from tears" as the saying goes. It might just as well be "or visions".
Any random group of 1,000 Scots; footballers, shipbuilders, sheep farmers, or even Covenanters will contain a (much) higher percentage of people with "the gift" or "the sight" (as it's called in my family) then any other group of 1,000 europeans.
I know that this does not really explain it but in my mind this *emotionalism* is a much a part of our make-up as the tendency to red hair and a love of whiskey.