 He has been described as "the main carrier of esoterica into Russia" and an "emissary of Boehmist theosophy".He joined forces with Nikolay Novikov in founding the Society of Friendship, a bulwark of Russian Freemasonry that held secret meetings at the Menshikov Tower.Schwarz and Novikov moved the Masonic centre of Russia from St. Petersburg to Moscow, helping emancipate their compatriots from the Swedish Rite and Yelagin's antics.