The Builder Magazine

January 1922 - Volume VIII - Number 1

 

The Lincoln Memorial

By The Editor

IN 1911 the Congress of the United States appointed a commission to erect in the city of Washington a suitable memorial to Abraham Lincoln. President William Howard Taft was made chairman. By the time these words appear in print the Memorial will have been opened to the public.

 

The Commission chose as chief architect Henry Bacon. Mr. Bacon selected as his co-workers Daniel Chester French, who was given charge of all sculpturing; and Jules Guerin, who was appointed to make the mural paintings. From the very first these three artists, each of international distinction in his field, worked in a spirit of unity so complete that it sets at naught the cheap canards about the temperamental egotisms of such men. Each linked hands with the other two, and the three together, after years of daily familiarity with the mind and soul of Lincoln, at last produced a new parthenon which will remain in the long hereafter of this nation an adequate and appropriate monument of him who is the chief treasure of these people.

 

The building stands in Potomac Park on a line due east and west with the Capitol and the Washington Monument. There is nothing of vulgar display about it, and it cost only about two million dollars, but every stone in it has been selected and wrought with loving care. Down to the last workman the great undertaking has come to completion unmarred by break or accident: there was no strike; no man was killed, or even seriously injured; not even when the great caissons were sunk beneath the ground, or when the twenty-three ton stones were brought from their quarries in the Colorado mountains. Artists and workmen wrought together in the fraternal spirit of the ancient guilds, as though the kindly and human presence of Lincoln himself were somehow real to every one of them.

 

The building is simple but impressive. The key to it is unity expressed through beauty and preserved in majesty. It is lovely to see from whatever point one may behold it, and the view from the old home of Robert E. Lee, as the writer himself will ever remember, is singularly appealing, especially as one bears in mind how much alike in soul were the two heroes whose paths diverged so widely. It is good to know that a bridge is planned to connect the site of the Memorial with the opposite shore, thus bringing the old north and the old south visibly and symbolically together, as they really are in these new times.

 

The central and dominating space in the Memorial building is reserved entirely for the great statue which has received from Lord Charnwood, the distinguished English biographer of Lincoln, the encomium of being the statue. It exhibits Lincoln as President, filled with unobtrusive but conscious power, a man who has grown up to his almost superhuman tasks, who neither shrinks nor blusters, and who easily passes from repose to action. The hands are expressive of capacity, but finely human; the feet are a little drawn together, as they always are in moments of urgent thought; the clothing is that of a man who cared little for the vanities, but who was not slovenly; and the great sculpturesque head, with its wide but sunken eyes, its familiar beard and its deep lines, is that of the veridical man, unspoiled by any attempt on the part of the sculptor to appeal to us by melodramatic exaggeration. The real Lincoln was not a man of over soft sentimentality and melancholy, with a weak body, but one consciously strong, whose secret was his magnificent mental power, and it is this Lincoln that inhabits the great Memorial.

 

The Gettysburg Address and the Second Inaugural are engraved in the walls. Their spirit and idea are translated into paintings by Guerin, and altogether speak the same word, that this man, who was neither a demi-god nor a demagogue, somehow embodied in himself that which this nation most seriously reverences in its secret soul.

 

The building as a whole, with its trees, its gradings and terraces, will become one of our national treasures, along with the Capitol and the House of the Temple. It is unspoiled by any exotic appeal, or by that which is merely flashy, temporary, and popular. It is, as John Hay said it should be, "isolated, distinguished and serene." To eulogize it is as vulgar as it is to eulogize the man whose name it has been set to commemorate forever.

 

OVERSEAS MASONIC CLUBS

 

ONE of the valuable labors of the Overseas Masonic Mission was its energetic campaign to secure the names and records of Military Masonic Clubs. Unfortunately but a few of the itinerant clubs were secured. Unless some active member of each of these clubs volunteers to forward the name and history of his organization Masonic Club its record will be forever lost. Many ot these clubs had an existence and did a splendid work. It is to be hoped that a movement may be started to preserve their records with those already registered.

 

These clubs in the Roster of the Overseas Masonic Commission are not chronologically placed. the oldest in time I have discovered in my search is the Knights of the Forest No. 102, Masonic Club. This club was within the 102d Regiment F. A. Its officers were designated as Chief-of-Section, Caisson Corporal, and Gunners. The club was organized at a camp in Brittany, on Oct. 30, 1917, during the final training for active service. As a part of the 26th Division, this regiment saw active service and the members of this Masonic Club acquitted themselves in true Masonic manner.

 

Most of the clubs were in permanent camps, depots, and headquarters cities. They were offered by brethren from high and low military rank, and from among welfare workers. One club - Gondrecourt Masonic Club, A.P.O. Kiowas offered by Salvation Army men - R.M. Dilley and a brother Hale. These brethren together with other brethren working in this welfare organization did awn active Masonic work for the Craft.

 

The following roster is as complete as any yet attempted by any Masonic writer. It comprises the list secured by the Overseas Masonic Mission together with nasnes of clubs secured by the writer through various channels. The rosters of these clubs are mostly in the hands of the brethren of Sea and Field Lodge No. 1, New York, from whom information can be had.

 

American Masonic Club	Nevers, A. P. O. 708	Pres., Lieut. Edgar Butler	Sec'y, Capt. Frank A. Starr
American Consistory Club, No. 1 Verneuil,	A.P.O. 772	Chrm., Maj. Earl H. Rosemere	Sec'y,
American E. F. Masonic Club	Marseilles, A. P. O. 5	Pres., C. M. Conant, Y. M. C. A.	Sec'y, F. G. Redwine, A. P.
Acacia Club	Tours, A. P. O. 717	Pres., Lt. Col. G. E. Newell	Sec'y,
American Masonic Club	LeMans, A. P. O. 762	Pres., Harry B. Meek	Sec'y,
American Masonic Club of Beaune	A. P. O. 909	Pres., Maj. Hotchkiss	Sec'y, A. Peterson, Y. M. C.A
Acacia Club, 110th Eng., Brest	A. P. O. 716	Pres., O. W. McLanahan	Sec'y, A. L. Moon
Masonic Club of Brest	A. P. O. 716	Pres., C. J. Irwin, Y. M. C. A.	Sec'y, H. H. Wallman
Masonic Club of 503rd Eng.	Pontex-les-Forges	Pres., Sgt. H. Stevenson	Sec'y, Pvt. L. C. Bowes
Masonic Society, Infantry School	Clamecy, A. P. O. 78	Pres., Maj. S. A. Merril	Sec'y, H. C. Bishop
Masonic Club, 114 Field Sig. Bn.	Souilly	Chrm., J. Cornish	Sec'y, W. C. Soab
Masonic Club, Evac. Hosp. 1	Toul	Pres.,	Sec'y, Lt. H. B. Pool
Masonic Club, Camp EIosp. 26	A.P.O. 727	Pres., Capt. C. B. Winn	Sec'y, B. Ettinger
Masonic Club, Base Hosp. 63	A. P. O. 738	Pres.,	Sec'y,
Masonic Club of Vichy	Base Hosp. Center 5	Pres.,	Sec'y,
Masonic Club of Verneuil	A. P. O. 772	Pres., Capt. Van Hise	Sec'y,
Middle West Masonic Club	3d Amer. Army, Gez	Pres.,	Sec'y, C. C. Kusick
Masonic Club, Lamadon De Bains	A. P. O.	Pres.,	Sec'y,C. Ferguson, Y.M.C.A.
Masonic Club of Camp Meueon	A. P. O. 779	Pres., W. E. Hunter, Y. M. C. A.	Sec'y, A. Wilson, Y. M. C
Montoir Masonic Club	A. P. O. 701	Pres., Chaplain C. F. Ir gin	Sec'y, Charles J. Novak
Montriehard Masonic Club	Montrichard	Pres., -	Sec'y, Lt. Wilkes, Q. M. C
Masonic Club of Angers	A. P. O. 733	Pres., Maj. V. A. Hall	Sec'y, Lt. H. G. Finley
Nettal Masonic Club	A. P. O. 740	Pres., Lt. Col. S. B. Philpot	Sec'y,
140th F. A. Masonic Club	Doubs	Pres., Chas. O. Jasp, Jr.	Sec'y, C. B. Jones
Peyru Masonic Club	A. P. O. 949	Pres.,	Sec'y,
Paulliae Masonic Club	A. P. O.	Pres.,	Sec'y,
Riviera Masonic Club	Nice, A. P. O.	Pres., J. C. Gipe, Y. M. C. A.	Sec'y, Lt. E. R. MacDonald
Overseas Masonic Club, Paris	A. P. O.	Pres., Col. H. H. Whitney	Sec'y, C. Connoway, Y.M.C.A.
Level of Line Masonic Club	A. P. O. 940	Pres.,	Sec'y, A. R. Hayes
Square and Compass Club	A. P. O. 713A	Pres., Capt. Holmes	Sec'y, W. H. Rigby
Square and Circle Masonic Club	Italy	Pres., Maj. Nels Rasmussen	Sec'y, Sgt. D. Jones
Sojourners Club	A. P. O. 735	Pres., Cpl. Beard	Sec'y, Sgt. Williamson
Social Ten Brothers	A. P. O. 730	Pres.,	Sec'y, R. S. Naresh
Square and Compass Club	A. P. O. 713	Pres., W. A. Weidel	Sec'y, H. G. Bergdoll
Stonewall Masonic Club	A. P. O. 791	Pres.,	Sec'y, Cpl. E. Youngs
St. Almond Masonic Club	A. P. O.C	Pres., ‑	Sec'y,
Sunset Overseas Masonic Club	A. P. O. 727	Pres., Maj. W. R. McCathran	Sec'y, Capt. A. D. Hathaway
Scottish Rite Club, Tours	A. P. O.	Pres., Col. Winton	Sec'y, Lt. Col. B. R. Gamble
Trowel Club	A. P. O. 713	Pres., W. R. Bristow	Sec'y, A. B. MacBean
Third Army Masonic Club	A. P. O. 927	Pres., Maj. W. S. Solomon	Sec'y, E. M. Myers
316th F. A. Masonic Club	A. P. O. 919	Pres., N. McMurry	Sec'y, Sgt. A. C. Stevens
23rd Engineers Masonic Club	A. P. O.	Pres., A. W. Provost	Sec'y, F. J. Welti
Washington‑Lafayette Masonic Club	A. P. O. 712	Pres.,	Sec'y, L. A. Wilcox
University de Toulouse Masonic Club	A. P. O. 948	Pres.,	Sec'y, L. A. Berlin
42d Div. Masonic Club (Rainbow Div.)	A. P. O.	Pres.,	Sec'y,
The Trowel and Triangle Club	A. P. O.	Pres., J. G. Pollard	Secjy, S. Morse
S. O. L. Dugout No. 1	A. P. O. 713A	C. O., M. B. Carman	Adj., H. H. Porter
S. O. L. Dugout No. 2	A. P. O. 713	C. O.,	Adj.,
S. O. L. Dugout No. 3 (Gievres)	A. P. O.	C. O.,	Adj.,
S. O. L. Dugout No. 4 (Paris)	A. P. O.	C. O.,	Adj.,
S. O. L. Dugout No. 5 (St. Nazaire)	A. P. O.	C. O., Capt. Robt. Murphy	Adj., Chas. H. Huntley
S. O. L. Dugout No. 6 (Brest)	A. P. O. 705	C. O., Chaplain C. F. Irwin	Adj., Lt. W. W. Preisch
Acacia Club, University Grenoble	A. P. O. 923	Pres.,	Sec'y, H. Manheim, Jr.
Amex. Masonic Club	A. P. O. 705	Pres., W. Boaz	Sec'y,
Aix Masonic Club	A. P. O.C	Pres., Senator Benson	Sec'y,
Bourges Masonic Club	A. P. O. 902	Pres., Lt. Col. E. G. Smith	Sec'y, B. W. Flack
Camp Villebernier Club	A. P. O. 718	Pres., Maj. J. F. McGill	Sec'y, Sgt.‑Maj. J. H. Hay
Craftsman Club	A. P. O. 721	Pres., P. A. Calkins	Sec'y, M. Shaw
Espoir Masonic Club	A. P. O. 741	Pres., Lt. G. S. Schaller	Sec'y, W. E. Shephard
East Sub‑Post Masonic Club	A. P. O. 713	Pres., M. T. Carr	Sec'y, E. S. Passwaiter
Fellowcraft Club, A. E. F.	A. P. O. 705A	Pres., J. D. Hatch	Sec'y, F. A. Kampfer
Fellowcraft Club, Montierchaume	A. P. O. 73	Pres., Sgt. T. J. Phillips	Sec'y, McKinstry
Good Fellowship Masonic Club	A. P. O. 73	Pres., Capt. A. C. Howard	Sec'y,
Gondrecourt Masonic Club	A. P. O. 703	Pres., R. M. Dilley, Salv. Army	Sec'y,Hale, Salv. Army
Gironde Club	A. P. O. 911	Pres., Capt. E. C. Lay	Sec'y,
Heather Hill Mas. Club (13th Eng.)	A. P. O.	Pres., Lt. Geo. S. Case	Sec'y, Sgt. A. G. Wyant
Isseudun Fellowcraft Club	A. P. O. 724	Pres., Lt. R. J. Williams	Sec'y, A. C. Eizenach
Knights of the Forest, No. 102	A. P. O. 709	Pres., F. W. Foss	Sec'y, Cpl. L. Pittman
Laigne Masonic Club	A. P. O.	Pres., Maj. F. W. Butler	Sec'y, Pvt. B. C. Rounds
Langres Masonic Club	A. P. O. 714	Pres.,	Sec'y, F. J. Stone
Libourne Craftsman's Club	A. P. O. 911	Pres.,	Sec'y, G. A. Nordgren
Masonic Club, A. A. A. P. 1	A. P. O. 702	Pres.,	Sec'y,
Masonic Club, Base Sect. 1	A. P. O. 701	Pres., Dr. Jouett, Y. M. C. A.	Sec'y, Capt. R. C. Murphy
Masonic Club of Blois	A. P. O. 726	Pres., E. Q. Jackson, Capt.	Sec'y,
Mon Rivage Masonic Club	A. P. O.	Pres., ‑	Sec'y,
Masonic Club	A. P. O. 740	Pres.,	Sec'y, Pvt. G. P. Eberle
Masonic Club, 66th Eng.	A. P. O. 702	Pres., R. E. McKee	Sec'y, G. A. McCollister
Masonic Society of Mars-sur-Allier	A. P. O. 780	Pres., Capt. James W. Loughlin	Sec'y, Cpl. P. Neu
Camp Gren Masonic Club, Base Sect. 1	A. P. O. 701	Pres., Chaplain	Sec'y,

 

----o----

 

THE POT OF INCENSE

 

BY BRO. FRANK C. HICKMAN, MICHIGAN

 

What beauty this that I behold!

What means this burning, smoking urn!

This carved and tasseled pot of gold;

Its meaning I cannot discern.

 

How fraceful, tho' inanimate!

So silent, yet bespeaking good, How stately too: I venerate!

I would I only understood.

 

Ah! Now I hear a still small voiee.

It whispers wisdom unto me.

Enraptured, oh, how I rejoice!

To learn the truth, to know, to see.

 

"An emblem of a pure heart;"

A token of fraternity.

"A sacrifice of good report;

"Acceptable to Deity."

 

"And as this glows with fervent heat,"

"Continually our hearts should glow,"-

"With gratitude" and love replete,

To Him from Whom all blessings flow.

 

----o----

 

"SKETCH FOR THE HISTORY OF THE DlONYSIAN ARTIFICERS" BEING REPRINTED

 

We have had many requests for copies of this work, which was published in London in 1820. It has been out of print since a short time after its publication and copies have been unprocurable at any price. Now those brethren who are interested in securing a copy may do so by writing the publisher of The Montana Mason, Great Falls, Montana, in which publication it being reprinted in serial form in the issues for November, December, January and February.

 

----o----

 

The fountain of beauty is the heart, and every genero thought illustrates the walls of its chambers. - Emerson.

 

THE DUE GUARD

 

BY BRO.  WILDEY E. ATCHISON, IOWA

 

IT IS OFTEN noted that Masonic writers hesitate to offer any explanation of the term "due guard," averring that it is merely a form of words which was once in use, but is now grown obsolete, as if that were genuine explanation.  Scholars should not close the book of interpretation merely because a thing has fallen out of use.  Mackey's Encyclopedia, so it seems, has dropped into this error.  On page 222 of the first volume of that useful compendium we read that "Due Guard" is a mode of recognition which derives its name from its object, which is to "duly guard" the person using it in reference to his obligation.  Dr. Mackey then goes on to say that this term is "an Americanism" and therefore of recent origin, though he refers to a ritual of 1757 in which it is used.

 

Now there is reason to believe that "due guard" goes back to a time long prior to 1757, or to 1727, or to 1717, and that it came very reasonably from a phrase which was once the name of a town, whereby hangs a long tale, too long for the telling here, though it may be attempted at a later date.

 

Those who have read aught of the history of book-and paper-making know that these two trades were in the very van of those enlightened ones who led that great movement against the papacy, and all connoted thereby, which resulted at last in the Reformation and the Renaissance.  Now it happens, as has been shown conclusively by various scholars working as specialists in this field, that these "Reformers before the Reformation" had to work in secret, and by means of signs and watchwords, lest they be detected by the authorities and therefrom suffer grievous evils.

 

Always there was a movement against the seven tyrannies of Rome but it was not until the beginning of the thirteenth century that this movement assumed such formidable movements as led the Holy Father to send out Bulls of destruction, which Bulls and their carrying out, left on the pages of history the reddest and angriest scars that Clio has to look upon.

 

Those who wrote books, those who printed books, and those who manufactured the paper and binding of these books, were naturally in the closest federation so far as all intellectual aims were concerned, and the members of these allied trades, so it may be safely said, formed a kind of great unorganized fraternity which worked underground in behalf of enlightenment.  The paper-makers were in the habit of watermarking their stock with emblematic devices which were understood by the initiated; and the printers used for head-pieces and tail-pieces, and for initial ornaments, such cunning figures as, to those on the inside, meant very much; and the authors themselves, by a clever use of capital letters and such makeshifts, were able to flash to the scattered friends of Learning that they had many brethren here and there though they might know it not.  A watermark was very often a call across the dark by one brother to another in order to carry a word of hope, recognition, and encouragement.

 

Now it happens that one of the towns at the very centre of the French paper-making trade was called "Dieu le garde," which, in our more familiar speech, connotes "God Guard It." In after years usage changed the name to various forms, such as Dulegard, Daulegard, etc., but it is evident that the French of that community never forgot the origin of the unusual name.

 

What more natural thing than that the Albigensian paper-makers should hit upon this name of one of their towns as an excellent device to use in their water-marks! Many such watermarks exist.  One of them, a copy of which lies before me as I write, carries an elaborate symbolism in which one may detect the emblems of Light, of Brotherly Love, of the Bright and Morning Star, of the Spirit of Truth, etc., with a band across the bottom in which are the letters that spell "Daulegard."

 

But what has this to do with Freemasonry? This, that it seems very reasonable to suppose that among the various institutions the members of which in those days had completely outgrown the puerile superstitions enforced by the papacy must have been the Masonic lodges.  I believe that this will some day be proved by documentary evidence.  I am convinced myself that others of the fraternities existing in secret at that time, such as the various schools of the Alchemists, and, later, the Rosicrucians, had some connections with the Masonic Fraternity, and left in its symbolism certain emblems and ideas of their own.  In other words, Freemasonry in the fourteenth, fifteenth, and sixteenth centuries was one of many secret fraternities the members of which were devoted to a campaign of enlightenment (which in those days meant anti-Rome) and it therefore fell heir to a whole stream of occult and symbolical lore which was devised to meet the situation at the time, which situation was that men could not, except at the peril of their lives, speak in public what every man of intelligence knew in his private mind.

 

Among these devices, symbols, or emblems thus inherited was this favourite paper-maker's device, "Dieu le garde," "God Guard It." This hypothesis seems reasonable to me; it has a host of facts behind it; and it gives to the expression as we have it a meaning and some significance, a thing that cannot be said of the Mackey hypothesis that "Due Guard" means to "guard

duly."

 

----o----

 

I hold that Christian grace abounds

Where chaity is seen; that when

We climb to Heaven, ‘tis on the rounds

Of love to men

- Alice Carey.

 

----o----

 

MASONIC BIBLIOGRAPHY BY BRO. SILAS H. SHEPHERD, WISCONSIN

 

The homely adage that one cannot make rabbit soup until he has captured his rabbit is brought home to the Masonic student times without number, for if there is anything difficult to capture it is a Masonic Bibliography. And they who undertake to fashion the same, and who succeed therein, even in small measure, deserve the plaudits of the Craft. All this by way of introducing one of the most successful essays in Masonic Bibliography that has ever come to the ink-stained ye editor. The literary engineer responsible for the success of this venture is Bro. Silas H. Shepherd who has been for years a member of the Committee on Masonic Research of the Grand Lodge of Wisconsin, and whose name is familiar to our readers, albeit not as familiar as it should be, and will be, we trust. "Masonic Bibliographies and Catalogues" is published in paper bindings by the above mentioned Committee, and is number 11 in the series of their publications. Bro. Shepherd has been assisted by Brothers Henry A. Crosby and George C. Nuesse, his colleagues on the Committee.

 

FOREWORD

 

NO PHASE of Masonic study is more fascinating than to acquire an intimate knowledge of its books, their authors, or the several editions of the more important works, such as the "Book of Constitutions," "The Pocket Companion," Preston's "Illustrations of Masonry," the "Old Charges" and the Webb "Monitors."

 

The following list of bibliographies and catalogues, and the few references to works containing information of bibliographical nature may be welcome to those who realize the importance of securing this information, not only for their own pleasure, but that they may be better prepared to lead those who are taking their first steps in the pursuit of Masonic knowledge. It may also be of assistance to lodge librarians with limited experience.

 

The compilation of the present list is the first of its kind since H.J. Whymper's "Catalogue of Bibliographies, etc.," issued in 1891. Only 100 copies of that work were printed, consequently it is very scarce and practically unavailable. The following list was first published in "Masonic Tidings" by our Committee, and has since been revised and enlarged.

 

"Bibliographie der Freimaurerischen Literatur," by August Wolfstieg, published by A. Hopfer, Burg, B.M. 1911-1913, 3 volumes, is the most complete Masonic bibliography ever compiled. It is printed in Roman type, with the titles and authors of the listed works given in the language they were written in, which makes the compilation of value even to those with a knowledge of English only. It was published at 73.50 marks, but is now quoted to American buyers at 850 marks.

 

Claude Antoine Thory, a French Masonic writer of the Nineteenth century, included in his "Acta Latomorum" (1815), a bibliography of the principal Masonic works from 1717 to that date, and was the pioneer in this field. H.J. Whymper says: "The bibliography in Thory's Acta Latomorum is the first genuine bibliography we possess."

 

Dr. George B. F. Kloss, a distinguished German Masonic writer, compiled "Bibliographie der Freimaurerie und der mit ihr in Verbindung gesetzten geheimen Gesellschaften" in 1844. This contained a list of over six thousand works in many languages, with critical notes on the more important, making it of great value even at present.

 

The recent production of Wolfstieg's Bibliography culminates a series of bibliographical works in France and Germany of which Reinhold Taute's "Maurerische Bucherkunde" (Leipzig, 1896), and Paul Fesch's Bibliographie de la Franc-Maconnerie" (Paris, 1912) good examples.

 

An English translation of Wolfstieg's work would receive a warm welcome, but a complete and thorough bibliography of Masonic literature in English would be of greater value if it contained ISCONSIN entary notes as have been given by Hughan, Dring, Carson, Whymper, Parvin, Mackey and others.

 

Many of the catalogues listed in this compilation are out of print and scarce. Copies of those marked * are possessed by the writer, and have only been acquired after several years of search and at considerable expense.

 

BIBLIOGRAPHY

 

Ancient and Accepted Scottish Rite

 

Ancient and Accepted Rite See "Supreme Council." See "England, Supreme Council."

 

Abell, A. G.

 

See "California, Library of the Grand Lodge of." (No 10.)

 

1. Adelaide

 

Catalogue of works in the Library of St. Alban's Lodge No. 38, Adelaide, So. Australia, 1899.

 

This catalogue is listed as "No. 295," in Wolfstieg's "Bibliographie."

 

Armitage, Edward

 

See "England, Supreme Council." (No. 33.)

 

2. Bain, George Washington

 

Catalogue of Masonic Books, Engravings, Medals, Jewels, Curios and Certificates in possession of George Washington, Bain, Durham. With interesting Archaeological Notes by W.J. Hughan and J.R. Riley. 8vo. Sunderland, 1893, 39 pages.

 

3. Bain, George Washington

 

Catalogue of Masonic Books offered for sale by Brother G.W. Bain. Sunderland, March, 1895.

 

Duplicate copies offered for sale.

 

Bangs, Merwin & Co.*

 

Catalogue of Important Masonic Books.

 

See"Steinbrenner, G. W." (No. 147.)

 

4. Barthelmes, R. (M. D.)

 

Bibliography of Freemasonry in America. New York, 1856. 8vo.

 

Baxter, Rodk. H.

 

See "Quatuor Coronati Lodge No. 2076."(No. 125.)

 

5. Bengal (India)

 

Catalogue of the Library belonging to the District Grand Lodge of Bengal, 1910. 26 pages.

 

6. Bernard

 

Catalogus Manuscriptorum Angliae, Oxford, 1697, contains earliest known record of the Regius MS.

 

Biggs, Rev. Henry S.

 

See "Leicester, England." (No. 84.)

 

7. Bombay Masonic General Library

 

Catalogue of the Bombay Masonic General Library, Bombay, 1868.

 

8. Bower, Robt. F.

 

A list of special Masonic wants of Robt. F. Bower. (MS.) Keokuk, Iowa, 1878.

 

9. Boyden, William L.

 

Classification of the Literature of Freemasonry and Related Societies. By William L. Boyden, Washington, D. C.,

 

Although this is not a bibliography, it shows the vast ramification of the literature of Freemasonry, and is intimately connected with bibliography. "A system of card membership record for Masonic bodies and a scheme of classification for Masonic books," by Frank J. Thompson, Fargo, N. D., 1903, and the "Librarian's Report" of the Grand Lodge of Iowa for 1918 may also be noted as of interest to librarians.

 

10. California, Library of the Grand Lodge

 

Catalogue of the Books on Masonry in the Library of the Grand Lodge of California. October, 1872. By A. G. Abell Grand Secretary, San Francisco, 1872. 8vo. paper, 17 pages.

 

11. California, Library of the Grand Lodge

 

Catalogue of Books on Masonry in the Library of the Grand Lodge of California. San Francisco, April, 1879. 41 pages.

 

12. California, Library of the Grand Lodge

 

Catalogue of the Library of the Grand Lodge of California, 1881. 62 pages.

 

13. California, Library of the Grand Lodge

 

Catalogue of Books on Masonry and Transactions of Masonic Grand Bodies in the Library of the Grand Lodge of Free and Accepted Masons of the State of California, as compiled by the Grand Secretary thereof. March, 1883. San Francisco, 1883. 59 pages.

 

The great fire in San Francisco destroyed the library and the Grand Lodge of California has not yet acquired many books.

 

14. Carson, Enoch T.*

 

A Bibliographical and Descriptive Catalogue of the rare and valuable collection of Books, Pamphlets, Manuscripts and Engravings, on the subject of Freemasonry and other Secret Societies, to be found in the Library of Brother E. T. Carson, Cincinnati, Ohio.

 

This catalogue was published serially in the American Freemason of Louisville, Ky., in 1864, and is the earliest descriptive catalogue we have noted. Carson's "Masonic Bibliography" (1874) is a more complete and longer work.

 

15. Carson, Enoch T.*

 

Masonic Bibliography, by Enoch T. Carson, Cincinnati, Ohio, 1874. 224 pages. From A to Picart.

 

Unfortunately, this work was never completed from Picart to Z. Its title is misleading, as it is a bibliography of the works in the Masonic Library of Brother Car on. His Library being one of the best of its time, it is a very valuable work, and made extremely so by the comprehensive and illuminating notes.

 

16. Carson, Enoch T.

 

Bibliography of Books and Manuscripts on the Orders of Knights Templar and of the Knights of Malta, etc., by Enoch T. Carson. Prepared and edited for and published by the Grand Commandery of Knights Templar of Ohio. Dayton. Dayton Journal Office, 1879. 55 pages.

 

This is a very complete and useful work to all who are interested In the older literature pertaining to the chivalric orders.

 

17. Carus, Dr. Paula *

 

A Catalogue of Books on Sciences, Religions, and Philosophies. Published by the Open Court Publishing Company, Chicago, 1916. 118 pages.

 

This catalogue is of particular assistance in the subjects closely allied to Freemasonry, and while not strictly Masonic, may he of exceptional value to many Masonic students.

 

18. Casley, David

 

A catalogue of the Manuscripts of the King's Library London, 1734. 8vo.

 

Contains a description of the Regius manuscript

 

19. Cassill, Austin A.

 

Catalogue Masonic Library of Austin A. Cassill, Mount Vernon, Ohio, 1885. 65 pages.

 

"This is a pamphlet of 66 pages, mostly books, circulars, and proceedings gathered by Cassill. No great value. Collection now boxed up in Southern Iowa, at Bedford."

 

20. Caxton

 

Caxton Celebration. 1877 catalogue, London. (Q.C. 681.)

 

21. Chase, George Wingate

 

Catalogue of Masonic Books, Magazines, etc., for sale by George Wingate Chase, Haverhill, Mass., May 1,1860. Haverhill, 1860. 32vo. 16 pages.

 

22. Cincinnati Masonic Library Ass’n

 

Catalogue of the Masonic Library of the Masonic Library Association; with an account of its Organization and By-Laws. Cincinnati. Caleb Clark. 8vo. paper, 19 pages. 1865.

 

23. Cincinnati Masonic Library Ass'n

 

Catalogue of the Masonic Library of Cincinnati, Ohio. Masonic Library Association. 1904.

 

One of the most ardent Masonic students and bibliophiles was Brother Scott Bonham, who for several years lent his real and ability to this association. This library had as its nucleus the small but well selected library of Cornelius Moore.

 

Clerke, Shadwell H.

 

See "England, United Grand Lodge." (No. 86.)

 

24. Crawley, W. J. Chetwode

 

The Masonic MSS. in the Bodleian Library. Reprinted from "Ars Quatuor Coronatorum." Margate, 1898. 42 page

 

25. Crowe, Fred J. W.

 

Catalogue of over 300 Masonic certificates in the collection of Brother Fred J.W. Crowe - with archaeological not and introductory notices by Brother W.J. Hughan and Brother J. Ramsden Riley. Torquay, 1894. 32 pages.

 

26. Day, Robert

 

Masonic book-plates. (Reprinted from the Ex Libris Journal, December, 1903.) 8 pages.

 

27. Devon and Cornwall Masonic Exhibition *

 

Masonic Exhibition for Devon and Cornwall, June 27th to July 1st, 1887. Catalogue of Exhibits. Edited by W J. Hughan. Catalogues 1s. each. 50 pages.

 

At this exhibition many rare volumes were included as loans from private collections of R.F. Gould. John Lane and many others. The bibliographical notes are in Brother Hughan's incomparable style of furnishing much information in few words.

 

28. District of Columbia Grand Lodge Library

 

Classified catalogue of the Library of the Grand Lodge F.A. A. M. of the District of Columbia. Wash., 1886. 48 pages.

 

Dixon, Miss Mabel K.

 

See "Oriental Consistory Library." (No. 114.)

 

29. Dring, Edmund H.

 

English Masonic Literature before 1751, with a tentative list of English references to and works on, Freemasonry before 1751. By Edmund H. Dring, London, 1913. 41 pages.

 

For bibliography of this era, this is indeed a splendid work which will long remain an authoritative reference work on the subject of early Grand Lodge literature. (Also in Ars Quatuor Coronatorum, vol. 25.)

 

30. Drummond, Josiah H.*

 

Masonic Historical and Bibliographical memoranda. Brookville, Ky., 1882, by Josiah H. Drummond. 127 pages.

 

This is a scarce work and a valuable one, containing a bibliography of the "Proceedings" of the Masonic bodies in the U. S., the Masonic periodicals: and monitors, manuals and constitutions. It is also rich in historical data.

 

Elliott, Agnes M.

 

See "Masonic Library Association of Allegheny Co., Pa” (No. 97.)

 

31. England, Supreme Council

 

Catalogue of books in the Library of the Ancient and Accepted Rite of the 33d, London. Collated BIBLIOGRAPHY r the Supreme Council by Ill. Brother H. W. Hemswort London, 1870. 32 pages.

 

32. England, Supreme Council

 

Catalogue of Books in the Library of the Supreme Council of the Ancient Accepted Rite 33d, London, 1874.

 

33. England, Supreme Council

 

Catalogue of Books in the Library of the Supreme Council 33d, Ancient and Accepted Rite, London. By Edw. Armitage, London, 1900. 111 pages.

 

34. England, Supreme Council

 

Catalogue of Books. (Masonic; in the Library of the Supreme Council, London.) Interleaved with manuscript catalogue of Masonic books in the British Museum. (No date.)

 

35. England, Grand Lodge

 

A list (MS.) of works on Freemasonry, in the library at Freemason's Hall. London, 1860.

 

36. England, United Grand Lodge *

 

United Grand Lodge of Ancient Free and Accepted Masons of England. Catalogue of Books in the Library at Freemasons' Hall, London. Compiled by order of the Grand Lodge, June 1st, 1887. Supplementary Catalogue containing the additions made from 1888 to 1895. Compiled by Henry Sadler, Grand Tyler and Sub-Librarian. 1895. 48 and 94 pages. The first part was compiled by Shadwell H. Clerke.

 

37. Finch, Nelson L.*

 

Catalogue of Scarce Books on Freemasonry. For sale by N. L. Finch, Broadalbin, N. Y. January, 1917.

 

In two parts. Part one, 6 pages, 61 books. Part two, 12 pages, 112 books.

 

38. Fitch, William E.

 

Catalogue of the Library of the late Col. William E. Fitch of Albany, N. Y., consisting of a large collection of works on Freemasonry (etc.), to be sold at auction February 4th and 5th, 1907, by the Merwin-Clayton Sales Co., N. Y. 52 pages.

 

Folkard, Henry Tennyson

 

See "Wigan Public Library, Reference Department." (No. 168.)

 

39. Gardner, F. L.*

 

A Catalogue Raisonne of works on the Occult Sciences, by F. Leigh Gardner. Volume 3 - Freemasonry. A Catalogue of Lodge Histories, with a preface by Dr. Wm. Wynn Westcott. London, 1912. 37 pages.

 

This Catalogue is well compiled and has many helpful reference notes.

 

40. Gardner, F. L. *

 

A Catalogue Raisonne of works on the Occult Sciences. Vol. 1. Rosicrucian books, with an introduction by Wm. Wynn Westcott. London, 1903. 82 pages.

 

Gardner, F. L.

 

Catalogue of Books from the Library of Wm. Wynn Westcott. '

 

See "Westcott, Dr. Wm. WYnn." (No. 168.)

 

41. Gasset, Henry

 

Catalogue of Books on the Masonic Institution in public libraries of twenty-eight states of the Union, Anti-Masonic in arguments and conclusions. By distinguished literary gentlemen, citizens of the United States, with introductory remarks and a compilation of records and remarks, by a member of the Suffolk Committee of 1829. 8vo. pp. XI - 270. Boston, 1852.

 

This work was published by Henry Gasset of Boston, and was widely distributed as Anti-Masonic propaganda. The catalogue contains the so-called exposes of that period. It is of little value, except as a curiosity.

 

Gouley, George Frank

 

See "Missouri, Grand Lodge of." (No. 103.)

 

42. Gowans, William *

 

A Catalogue of Books on Freemasonry, and Kindred Subjects, compiled by William Gowans, New York, 1854. 33 pages.

 

This Catalogue is bound up with "Jachin and Boaz" (a reprint).

 

43. Gowans, William

 

A Catalogue of Books on Freemasonry and Kindred Subjects, by William Gowans. New York, 1858. 59 pages.

 

It is interesting to compare the notes on this Catalogue in Enoch T. Carson's "Masonic Bibliography" with the article in the "American Bibliopolist" of March. 1872, on "the late William Gowans." Mr. Gowans was a dealer in second-hand books and had an immense stock.

 

44. Hanley (England)

 

List of books presented to the Gordon Lodge, 2149. Hanley, 1894. 7 pages.

 

45. Hanley (England)

 

Biographical and bibliographical catalogue of the Charlesworth Masonic Library at Hanley. Hanley, 1900. 122 pages.

 

46. Haigh, John *

 

Catalogue of the Haigh collection of Masonic Books, comprising the remaining portion of the library of the late John Haigh, 33d, of Somerville, Mass.; also Masonic engravings and prints, together with a small collection of Masonic pitchers (etc.). 76 pages.

 

Auction catalogue of C. F. Libbie & Co., Boston, Mass., 1901.

 

47. Hayle (England)

 

Catalogue of the Coombe Masonic Library, 1901. 22 pages.

 

Hemsworth, H. W.

 

See "England, Supreme Council." (No. 31.)

 

48. Hills

 

A Catalogue of Books on Freemasonry and Kindred Subjects, on sale by Hills & Co., Sunderland, Eng. May, 48 pages.

 

49. Hills

 

A Catalogue of Books on Freemasonry. Hills & Co., Sunderland, May, 1913. 31 pages.

 

50. Hodgson

 

Catalogue of an extensive Library of scarce and curious books - sold by auction by Messrs. Hodgson & Co., London August, 1885. 50 pages.

 

This wall A. F. A. Woodford's library.

 

51. Hodgson

 

A Catalogue of the Library of the late F.W. Lavender - comprising a collection of books on Freemasonry. Sold by Hodgson & Co., London. Feb., 1917. 37 pages.

 

52. Hodgson

 

A Catalogue of the Library of A. M. Broadley, comprising the collection of books on Freemasonry - sold by auction by Hodgson & Co., London. June, 1917. 35 pages.

 

53. Hogg

 

Catalogue of a valuable collection of books on Freemasonry - on sale by John Hogg, London, 1876. 22 pages

 

54. Hogg

 

Catalogue of a Valuable Collection of Books on Freemasonry - on sale by John Hogg, London, 1876. 10 pages

 

55. Hollings, Frank *

 

Catalogue of Rare and Beautiful Books, for sale at Frank Holling's Book Shop, 7 Great Turnstile, London. Cat No. 112.

 

Many of Holling's catalosues contain Masonic items of more than ordinary interest.

 

56. Hughan, William James *

 

Constitutions of the Freemasons. London: R. Spencer, 1869. 8vo. pp. XXX - 8.

 

The earliest bibliographical work of Hughan, whose many Masonic writings are particularly interesting to the bibliophiles.

 

57. Hughan, William James *

 

The Old Charges of British Freemasons, by Wm. J. Hughan, with valuable appendices. A Preface by the Rev. A.F.A. Woodford, M. A. London, 1872. 90 pages. Same, Second edition, 1895. 191 pages.

 

58. Hughan, William James *

 

Masonic Sketches and Reprints.

 

1. History of Freemasonry in York. 2. Unpublished Records of the Craft.

 

By William James Hughan, Hull and Truro, 1871 (American edition, New York, 1872.)

 

This work, and "The Old Charges of British Freemasons," are the best bibliography of the Old Charges we have. Hughan and Begemann made possible the study of the documentary history of Freemasonry before the Grand Lodge era. See "Begemann, W.” in second section.

 

59. Hughan, William James

 

Masonic Bibliography, London, 1892. 2 pages.

 

A reprint from The Freemason of July 30th, 1892. An article on the subject of bibliography.

 

60. Hughan, William James

 

Histories of Lodges (England), by W. J. Hughan, London, 1892. 8vo. 20 pages.

 

"The 250 copies of this Bibliography of Histories of English Lodges were all subscribed for within a few days of publication (sold on behalf of the Royal Masonic Benevolent Institution Jubilee Fund), and is the only compilation of the kind ever issued." (Gardner has since issued a more up-to-date work. (See No. 39.)

 

61. Hughan, William James

 

Supplement to Histories of Lodges (England). Reprinted from The Freemason, December 21, 1893. 4 pages

 

62. Hughan, William James

 

Histories of Lodges (Scotland), 1892, by W. J. Hughan

 

A catalogue.

 

63. Hughan, William James

 

Provincial Masonic calendars. (Reprinted from Freemason, December 22, 1894.) 4 pages.

 

64. Hughan, William James *

 

Reprints of Articles on the Constitutions of Freemasonry, by W. J. Hughan, P.G.D. Printed privately for Whymper, by Ram Saran. 1889. 31 pages.

 

A pamphlet containing the reprint of descriptions of the Book of Constitutions of 1723, and the editions thereafter authorized by the Grand Lodge of England, to and including the 1888 edition. The original articles appeared in The Freemason.

 

65. Hughan, William James *

 

Masonic Bibliography of Hughan. Chief Masonic Works. George Kenning & Son, London, 1896. 8 pages.

 

Reprinted from The Freemason, Christmas number, 1896.

 

66. Hughan, William James

 

Unidentified or missing MSS. (Reprinted from "Ars Quatuor Coronatorum.") Margate, 1891. 4 pages.

 

Hughan, William James

 

See "Lane (John) Memorial Library." (No. 82.)

 

See "Worcester, England." (No. 170.)

 

See "Worcestershire Masonic Library and Museum." (No. 172.)

 

67. Hurlburt, Frazier W.

 

Catalogue of Books on Freemasonry and Kindred Subjects, and including Masonic medals, badges, aprons, baldrics, etc., belonging to Frazier W. Hurlburt, of Utica, N. Y., 1889. 20 pages.

 

68. Hyneman, Leon *

 

Masonic Library of the late Leon Hyneman. New York, 1879. 46 pages.

 

Brother Hyneman was a Publisher and Masonic journalist of exceptional influence, and a perusal of the contents of his library is a pleasure every bibliophile will enjoy.

 

69. India, Stewart Lodge No. 1960

 

A Catalogue of the Library belonging to "Stewart” Lodge No. 1960, E. C., holding at Rawal Pindi and Muree, in the Punjab, compiled by Brother J. H. Leslie, up to November 30th, 1894. Calcutta, 1894.

 

Listed as number 128 in "Catalogue of Books on Freemasonry in the Library of Thos. M. Woodhead, 'Ver Mont,' Manningham, Bradford."

 

70. Iowa Masonic Library

 

A sketch of its collection of books and the contents of the museum, with a brief tribute to its founder, Dr. Theodore Sutton Parvin, by Herbert S. Fairall. Cedar Rapids, Iowa, 1899.

 

71. Iowa Masonic Library

 

Catalogue of the Iowa Masonic Library. By T. S. Parvin. 1st edition, 1849. 4 pages.

 

72. Iowa Masonic Library

 

Catalogue of the Iowa Masonic Library. By T. S. Parvin. 2nd edition, 1854. 9 pages.

 

73. Iowa Masonic Library

 

Catalogue of the Iowa Masonic Library. By T. S. Parvin. 3rd edition, 1858. 22 pages.

 

74. Iowa Masonic Library *

 

Catalogue of the Library of the Grand Lodge of Iowa. June 1st, 1873, by Theodore S. Parvin, Grand Secretary, Iowa City, 1873. 144 pages.

 

This catalogue is superior in some respeeb to the 1883 edition. The reproduction of title pages makes it very useful to the student. The distinguished compiler was an ardent book lover, and it was through his ability and zeal that Iowa took a foremost place in Freemasonry.

 

75. Iowa Masonic Library *

 

Catalogue of the Works on Freemasonry and Kindred Subjects, in the Library of the Grand Lodge of Iowa, A. F. & A. Masons. Fifth edition. (1849, '54, '58, '73) June 1883. To which is prefixed a Separate Catalogue of the Bower Collection. By T. S. Parvin, Iowa City, 1883. 135 pages.

 

The "Bower Collection" was a choice Masonic Library, collected by Robert F. Bower, of Eeokuk, who was an ardent collector and had many extremely rare and in some cases only copies of old Masonic books and manuscripts. This is the last catalogue which has been issued by the Iowa Manonic Library.

 

76 Jamaica

 

By-laws of the Jamaica Masonic Library and list of Masonic works Kingston, Jam., 1884 16 pages.

 

77 Kenning, George

 

Catalogue of Books and Manuscripts relating to Freemasonry, on sale by Geo. Kenning, London. 1878. 15 pages.

 

78. Kenning, George

 

Catalogue of valuable Books and Manuscripts relating to Freemasonry, etc., on sale by Geo. Kenning, London. 1886. 8vo. 32 pages. Same, 1887, 15 pages. Same, 1888, 28 pages. Same, 1889, 15 pages. Same, 1892, 31 pages.

 

79. Kenning, George *

 

A Catalogue of Books on Freemasonry, published or sold by George Kenning, Freemason office, 16 and 16a Great Queen St., London, W. C. March, 1893. 30 pages.

 

One of the best of the Kenning catalogues.

 

80. Kenning, George 12 Son *

 

Illustrated Catalogue of Masonic Clothing, Jewels, etc., by Geo. Kenning & Son, London, 1915.139 pages

 

Contains catalogue of Masonie publications. This is one of a long series issued by this old Masonic publishing and supply house.

 

81. Kloss, Dr. Geo. B. F.

 

Catalogue of the Library of Dr. Kloss of Frankfort, including many original and unpublished manuscripts, and printed books with ms. annotations. London, 1825.

 

The Kloss bibliography of 1844 is in German, but this is a rare and precious item.

 

82. Lane (John) Memorial Library

 

Catalogue of the John Lane Memorial Library, by Wm. J. Hughan, Torquay, 1902.

 

83. Lawrence, Samuel C.

 

Catalogue of the Masonic Library belonging to Samuel C. Lawrence, Medford, Mass. Printed by Carl H. Heintsmann, Boston, 1891. 320 pages.

 

This library is now a part of the Library of the Grand Lodge of Massachusetts.

 

84. Leicester, England *

 

A Catalogue of the Library in Freemason's Hall, Leicester. Compiled by Rev. Henry S., Biggs and J. T. Thorp. Leicester, 1891. 64 pages.

 

This library, though not large, contains a number of searce works, and with a number of well chosen works provides a splendid opportunity for the research work being done in Leicester.

 

Leslie, J.H.

 

here is anything difficult t 1960. (No. 69.)

 

85. Lervis, A.*

 

A. Lewis' Standard Masonic Rituals, London, 1916. 36 pages.

 

A catalogue of rituals of "Stability," "Oxford" and "Emulation" working.

 

86. Lewis, James & Co.

 

Catalogue of 4,000 volumes of works on Freemasonry, Astrology and Hermeticism, sold at auction by James Lewis & Co. London, 1885. 62 pages.

 

87. Libbie, C. F. & Co.*

 

Catalogue No. 931 of Masonic Books, 1920. 78 Bedford St., Boston. 32 pages. me to the I student times without number, for if there is anything difficult tuseum catalogue. Liverpool, 1909. 42 pages.

 

89. Liverpool.

 

Catalogue of Library and Museum of Prov. Grand Lodge of West Lancashire, Liverpool, 1912.

 

90. Los Angeles Masonic Library

 

Catalogue of Los Angeles Masonic Library, Los Angeles Calif., 1914. 2b pages.

 

91. Lurgan (Ireland)

 

Catalogue of the Masonic Museum in connection with the Lurgan Masonic Bazaar, by F. C. Crosse, Newry, 1895. 15 pages.

 

92. Luze, Z. C. '

 

Catalogue of standard and rare Masonic books, etc., contained in the library of Z. C. Luse, Iowa City, Iowa, 1881. 40 pages.

 

93. Mackey, A. G. *

 

Catalogue of Books on Freemasonry and Kindred Subjects belonging to the Library of the late Albert G. Mackey, M. D., and now offered for sale at the figures affixed. Washington, D. C. (no date). 46 pages.

 

This catalogue offers us an opportunity to know the main sources from which the foremost Masonie writer of his time drew his information and inspiration. He had access to the Library of the Supreme Council and many others, but it was the books which he deemed necessary for his private collection which best reflect the man. It appears strange to the collector of today to see "Acta Latomorum" quoted at $3, and the "New Book of Constitutions" of 1788, at $20.

 

94. Macoy Publishing & Masonic Supply Co. *

 

Books Masonic and Eindred Subjects, by Macoy Publishing and Masonic Supply Co., New York, 1920. 24 pages.

 

The catalogues of the firm have been issued regularly since the business was taken over from the Masonic Pub. Co.

 

95. Macoy Publishing & Masonic Supply Co.*

 

Books Masonic and Kindred Subjects (etc.), Macoy Publishing and Masonic Supply Co., New York, 1913. 30 pages.

 

This is the last catalogue of this firm which contains descriptive notes of value.

 

96. Marvin

 

Catalogue of Marvin's sale of Masonic Medals, 1881.

 

97. Masonic Library Association of Allegheny. Co., Pa.

 

Catalogue of the Library of the Masonic Library Association of Allegheny-County. Compiled and arranged by Agnes M. Elliott. Pittsburgh, 1897. 54 pages.

 

(To be Concluded)

 

----o----

 

DEATH, THE LIBERATOR

 

BY BRO. N.W.J. HAYDON, ONTARIO

 

The brethren who read this noble paper may care to pursue the meditation further by turning to "Our Eternity," by Maurice Maeterlinck, published by Dodd, Mead & Company, New York City; and to "The New Death," by Winnifred Kirkland, published by the Atlantic Monthly Press, Boston.  The latter first appeared as an essay in the Atlantic Monthly Magazine and there received so much commendation that the author enlarged her paper to make a book of it.  In this day of the free mind when men are learning to think by means of facts and ideas rather than by means of traditions the great and sombre fact of Death is receiving an examination hitherto undreamed of.

 

 FINALLY instructs us how to die." In common with the older Mysteries, so far as we have relies of their teachings, Masonry offers its votaries a method of approach to this final test of our philosophy of life, one worthy of human dignity and in harmony with our honored motto, "Follow Reason."

 

Alan Seagar wrote for all of us:

 

"But I've a rendezvous with Death At midnight in some flaming town, And I to my pledged word am true- I shall not fail that rendezvous."

 

We, too, have a rendezvous with the Reaper, by no means to be escaped, no matter how much science may help us to postpone it.  And though to but few is it given to meet him with those feelings voiced for us by Horatius

 

"How can a man die better Than when facing fearful odds For the ashes of his fathers And the temples of his gods?"

 

yet we need not watch his sure approach with only a bitter recognition of our human weakness.  Such an attitude is unworthy of those who truly follow reason, and have worked out a philosophy of life, which in death sees but a change of circumstance, however important that may be.

 

We should adapt to our own use the salute offered by the gladiators of old, save that instead of hailing a human Caesar who viewed their struggles as an amusement, we should as bravely regard the Ancient of Days, saying each one of us "Ave, Maoister Vitae, moriturus te saluto," and go forward fearing nothing.

 

There have been many noble expressions of attitude towards Death, and amongst them that remarkable poem, "Thanatopsis," written a century ago by a young man of 18, holds a high place with its sonorous phrases, its confidence that finds in facts a firm foundation for faith.  Naturally, it reflects at first the sombre New England upbringing of its author, but none surpass its conclusion in natural dignity:

 

". . . sustained and soothed By an unfaltering trust, approach thy grave, Like one who wraps the drapery of his couch About him, and lies down to pleasant dreams."

 

Let us examine our grounds for this trust, that our hope may be reinforced by reason as concrete as by iron rods and, to this end, let me draw attention to an essay by Maeterlinck, to which I am deeply indebted. ("Death," published by Dodd, Mead & Co., 1912.) He writes:

 

"It were a salutary, thing for each of us to work out his idea of death in the light of his days and the strength of his intelligence and learn to stand by it.  He would say to Death: 'I know not who you are, or I would be your master; but, in days when my eyes saw clearer than today, I learnt what you are not; that is enough to prevent you from becoming my master.'

 

"He would thus carry, imprinted on his memory, a tried image against which the last agony would not prevail and in which the phantom-stricken eyes would take fresh comfort.  Instead of the terrible prayer of the dying, which is the prayer of the depths, he would say his own prayer, that of the peaks of his life, where would be gathered, like angels of peace, the most limpid, the most pellucid thoughts of his hfe.  Is not that the prayer of prayers? After all, what is a true and worthy prayer, if not the most ardent and disinterested effort to reach and grasp the unknown."

 

Here is the key to our problem; let us learn what Death is not; by this time-honored method we shall strip off the masks wherewith our imagination has disguised it. It is not sickness, nor suffering, nor the stern agony.  It is not shroud, nor pall, nor grave, nor the horrors of disintegration.  All these have to do with the methds and usages of life. The errors and weaknesses of nature or science caused their beginnings; Death emphasizes their futility.  Should we convalesce, we forget them; should we not, our survivors abuse Death that stops them.

 

As Spencer so carefully explains, our life is a continual adjustment of internal relations to external relations, of growth from within to pressure from without; and when we can no longer adjust ourselves, why blame Death for clearing the board and giving us a new deal ?

 

Do we accuse Sleep for the fatigue which overwhelms us if we resist it? It seems that all our knowledge only helps us to die in greater pain than the animals that know nothing, and we add to our troubles by imputing to Death those salvaging operations whereby our elements are restored to usefulness in Life's workshop.

 

"... Earth, that nourished thee, shall claim Thy growth to be resolved to earth again, And. lost each human trace, surrending up Thine individual being, shalt thou go To mix forever with the elements."

 

We do not view. with horror or anguish the fading flower, or the crumbling wall, but, where our bodies are concerned, we usually strive to delay by all means possible their natural dissolution.  Embalmings, coffins, graves, and vaults are brought into action, and that which happens therein poisons our thoughts, offends our senses, daunts our courage.  Yet all this is of life and impossible without life. How much, then, has our boasted civilization increased the ethical value of our funeral ceremonies?

 

Remains then but one terror associate with Death, that of the unknown into which it seems to force us; but this also can be dissolved considerably if not totally, by following reason. There are at least four methods of solution open to us:

 

 Total annihilation. Survival with our present consciousness. Survival without consciousness. Survival with universal consciousness.

 

There is nothing to be gained by including any religious dicta herein, for the fact of Death is no more-and certainly no less-subject to that mode of thought, than any other of the activities of life. Birth is equally as important as Death, but only in some "pagan" and "uncivilized" peoples do we and the solemnity and dangers of birth regarded as occasions for priestly action, so we have still much to learn.

 

Annihilation is not only unthinkable, it is a blunder.  Infinite change, yes, surely

 

"Nothing of him that doth fade But doth suffer a sea-change Into something rich and strange."

 

Endless diversity of place and condition, but to suppose non-existence is to try to limit infinity, and since a state of nothingness cannot be at all, that at all events it cannot make Death terrible.  As Sir Edwin Arnold has written:

 

"Never the Spirit was born, the Spirit shall cease to be never;  Never was time it was not, end and beginning are dreams. Birthless and deathless and endless endureth the Spirit forever,  Death hath not touched it at all, dead tho the house of it seems."

 

The next alternative - survival with our present consciousness involves that ancient puzzle, "What am I?" For most of us, "I" becomes identified with memory.  "I" cannot be body or mind, for we know they are constant only in chaning.  The body provides, and the mind organizes, our sense perceptions, whereas our conscious memory preserves such residue of these as establish experience and build character. Memory seems to be a sheath for the "I," most easily disturbed by sickness, yet most clamorous for an unbroken existence.  What cares it that through the alchemy of Death, "I" can participate in the whole range of natural forces? Neither knowledge, nor beauty, nor power attract it, if they are not aceessible through its agency.

 

If "I" am greater than, and within, memory then bodily sufferings and desires must be petty to this surviving consciousness, for with the loss of body its services are lost too, deprived of sense perceptions on which to build them, mental and moral pains and changes must go, and the personal mind is dissolved. Remains then of our present consciousness, only memory, so pitiably finite and, cut loose from its former co-workers, how shall it continue to know itself ? We know how easily it fades while in full physical health, what then will it be like when the great change comes? Yet the hope that this alternative conveys has done much good service to the brave souls of our predecessors, and is well expressed in the "Song of Odysseus" as he lay awaiting death by torture:

 

"Endure my heart; not long shalt thon endure The shame, the smart. The gogd and ill are done, the end is sure; Endure my heart.

 

"There stand two golden vessels by the throne Of Zeus on high, From them he scatters mirth and moan To men who die. And thou of many joys hast had thy share, Thy perfect  part; Battle and love, and evil things and fair; Endure my heart. "Fight one last greatest battle under shield,  Wage that war well, Then join thy fellows in the shadowy fields  Of asphodel. There is the kingly Hector, there the men Who fought for Troy; Shall we not fight our battles o'er again,  Were that not joy? "Tho no sun shines beyond the dusky west, Thy perfect part, There shalt thou have of the unbroken rest!  Endure my heart."

 

(Translated by Andrew Lang.)

 

We approach, then, our third alternative, survival without consciousness.  This also contains nothing of terror, or even regret.  Dreamless sleep we welcome as "Nature's sweet restorer," but not as a lasting condition.  Such an expectation does not consort with ideals fit for ordinary healthy men and women much less for Builders.  A little further analysis shows us that by this alternative we imply really the direct negative of our second alternative; rather we feel opening to our vision that which contains the offly possible satisfaction for which all seem to be struggling, the only possible completion of that urge from within which is the mainspring of our evolution.

 

"Nay, but as when one layeth His worn out robes away, And, taking others, sayeth 'These will I wear today.'  So layeth off the Spirit Lightly its garb of flesh,  And passeth to inherit  A residence afresh."'

 

Here, then, we approach our fourth alternative, survival with the Universal Consciousness and at this point Maeterlinck's own words alone are adequate:

 

"Here begins the open sea.  Here begins the glorious adventure, the only one abreast with human curiosity, the only one that soars as high as its highest longing. Let us accustom ourselves to regard Death as a form of life which we do not yet understand; let us learn to look upon it with the same eye that looks upon birth; and soon our mind will be accompanied to the steps of the tomb with the same glad expectation that greets a birth. If, before being born, we were permitted to choose between the great peace of non-existence and a life that should not be completed by the magnificent hour of death, which of us, knowing what we ought to know, would accept the disquieting problem of an existence that would not end in the reassuring mystery of its conclusion? Which of us would care to come into a world, where there is so little to learn, if he did not know that he must enter it if he would leave it and learn more? The best part of life is that it prepares this hour for us, that it is the one and only road leading to the magic gateway and into that incomparable mystery where misfortunes and sufferings will no longer be possible, because we shall have lost the body that produced them; where the worst that can befall us is the dreamless slumber which we count among the number of the greatest boons on earth; where, lastly, it is almost unimaginable that a thought can survive to mingle with the substance of the universe, that is to say, with infinity which, if it be not a waste of indifference, can be nothing but a sea of joy."

 

It is to this that we, having "Followed Reason," make our approach, "sustained and soothed by an unfaltering trust." Heretofore we have seen through a glass, darkly; the narrow limits of our being conceal infinity from our view, as Pascal has said, or, to use a Western idiom, we cannot see the forest for the trees.  We must prepare ourselves in advance by learning how to change our focus.  For example, when we look through a screen door we see the garden through a faint blur of lines; or we can, instead, see the screen filling our vision with a faint blur of light and greenery filtering through.

 

For all of us Death is but a screen, and for most of us it fills our vision.  Can we readjust our focus, and strengthen our unfaltering trust, by attempting to understand infinity? The effort, even if unsuccessful at present, will be as useful as those of our talented brother of Rochester (Mr. Claude Bragdon) in his illuminating books on "The Fourth Dimension."

 

As an analogy let us condder the experience of the human embryo when the time of birth approaches.  How limited is its experience of life! A little space and power for movement, but in no other mode can its volition express itself! Sight, hearing, choice of food, protection from accidents, are all beyond its power.  It knows nothing but a soft, warm, darkness, and even these qualities are not so known to its consciousness, for it has no basis of comparison with anything different.  Could one communicate to it news of the great change soon to take place in its condition, with what terror and reluctance would it regard this entire loss of all it knows, for a state of being so much more comprehensive as to be incomprehensible! Yet we adults are in the same position as we approach the gateway to another life.  And if, as we know, the embryo by virtue of its inherent life-quality casn change from a speck of zooplasm to a human being, there appears no reason at all why it should not go on yet further and enter into tune with the Infinite.  Death to us can be no worse than birth to the embryo, and all evolution affirms that

 

"The soul's ephemerally housed in Nature's depths."

 

What then is this Infinite, as our reason tests it that is to say, as we compare it with life as we know it? Mostly negatives.  It has neither beginning nor end. It can have no purpose nor destination, for the one would have been accomplished and the other reached in the long train of ages that has passed, had it been other than self-contained.  If it be not conscious always, then it never will be, for it must know all or nothing since it has only itself to know.

 

If, however, we try to understand, Infinity through our senses, how different is the result.  At once the hard diamond becomes a mass of activities.  Every part is going somewhere, complete knowledge is endlessly experimenting for new discoveries, accomplished purpose seeks continually some new fulfilment.

 

Which is right, is this inconsistency real or only apparent? Here our limits force us to change from Operative to Speculative.  We are, for the most part unable to attain exact knowledge in advance of the fact but we can hope, for we have laid the foundation thereof.  We cannot deny infinity, but we can see that all its parts (for lack of a better word) must be of the same nature.  There would then be, as yet, no unchangeable finality of perfected knowledge or accomplished purpose.  Rather an infinite series of transformations and combinations, an ever growing consciousness striving to know itself, seeking to express an idea hidden in its own nature, requiring all the worlds of all the universes as fields for its experiments, all form of life as instruments, as coworkers to that discovery as pioneers in that great adventure.  Here is our hope:

 

"Small as man and his thought may appear, he has exactly the value of the most enormous forces that he is able to conceive, since there is neither great nor small in the immeasurable.  The mind alone, perhaps, occupies in infinity a space which comparisons do not reduce to nothing."

 

Is it not, then, childish to talk of eternal happiness or sorrow, where it is infinity that is in question? Our ideas of these conditions are so human so specialized, they are based so entirely on the implication that the laws of our life here shall govern our life under all other conditions.  Yet, we must admit that our ideas proceed entirely from the sensibilities of our nervous system, which is tuned to but a small range of perceptions, and which could as easily have felt everything the reverse way, and taken pleasure in what now makes pain.

 

Much wiser, then, is it to "Follow Reason," and recognize that it would need but a trifle, a few papillee more or less to our skin, the least modification of our eyes and ears, to turn the temperature, the silence, and the darkness of space into a delicious springtime, an unequalled music, a divine light. We can, then, readily persuade oursleves that the catastrophes we think we behold are the acts of life itself, that even the collision and pulverising of worlds marks the beginning of some new and marvelous, experiment, that all is but birth and rebirth, a departure into an unknown filled with the anticipation of thast far-off divine event to which the whole creation moves: some immense festivasl of mind and matter in which Death, the Liberator, thrusting aside at last our two enemies, time and space, will soon permit us to take our proper part, as Fellows of the Craft of which the Great Architect is the Master.

 

----o----

 

MASONIC RELIEF NEEDED AT FORT BAYARD, N. M.

 

BY BRO. FRANCIS E. LESTER, GRAND MASTER, NEW MEXICO

 

"To relieve the distressed is a duty incumbent on all men, but particularly on Masons, who are linked together by an indissoluble chain of sincere affection. To soothe the unhappy, to sympathize with them in their misfortunes, to compassionate their miseries, and to restore peace to their troubled minds, is the great aim we have in view. On this basis we form our friendships and establish our connections."

 

AT FORT BAYARD, New Mexico, is the largest government hospital of any kind in the United States and yet it is confined to the treatment of tubercular patients, of which there are at present 1075 under treatment. These men are nearly all veterans of the war and they come from almost every state of the Union. They are given good treatment and attention, so far as general conditions in Fort Bayard are concerned; and they are in all stages of tubercular condition. Masonic conditions at Fort Bayard constitute an appeal to the very heart and soul of Masonry.

 

Fort Bayard is a permanent institution. It is a city in itself. For the coming year, a total of approximately one million dollars will be spent by the government for additional permanent buildings alone which are needed to relieve the present crowded conditions. It is anticipated that these over-crowded conditions will continue for the next five years or more and the number of occupied beds increase to 1200; after which it is hoped to reduce the number of beds to about 700.

 

No Mason who takes his teachings seriously can visit this institution without wondering what Masonry is doing in the way of relief, for the need of the kindly word of encouragement, the handclasp of brotherhood, the little attentions that do so much to relieve the monotony of the invalid, and the assistance in a practical way that many of these boys need, was never greater, not even during the war that ruined their health. The excitment and stress of warfare is past and is succeeded by the deadly monotony of chronic invalidism; and many of these boys are thousands of miles away from home and relatives. The need for practical relief at Fort Bayard is a challenge to the Freemasonry of our country.

 

And what do we find? These brother Masons, flat on their backs in the wards, see fifty times more evidence of relief measures carried out by the Knights of Columbus than by their own brotherhood. The Knights of Columbus occupy one of the finest buildings of its kind at Fort Bayard, with large and well equipped entertainment hall, library, billiard tables and adjoining chapel, and a thoroughly organized relief force of salaried men who keep in daily touch with the patients in all the many wards. Flowers, fruit, and the many little attentions are dispensed by them to the sick, and the practical evidences of Knights of Columbus relief are seen everywhere. Is it any wonder that many a Masonic brother, helpless on his cot, seeing these things, questions the sincerity of his lodge teachings about relief and concludes that Masonry stands in truth for relief - on paper and in the lodge room only?

 

I found case after case where Masonic relief was needed. Here is one case typical of many. A brother comes as an inmate from a distant state, sent here by the Public Health officer for tuberculosis, in the hope and expectation that his application for government compensation would be promptly acted upon and funds made available for the support of his wife and children. His application is delayed, - by red-tape and congested conditions, - and before long our brother Mason receives letters from his wife back home advising that she and the children are in need of the necessities of life; and worry in its worst form is added to this brother's afflictions. It is little wonder that in some of these cases, the patient gives up his fight for life, or gets away, in one way or another, from the hospital in a last desperate effort to support his family.

 

What, you may ask, is local Masonry doing for these men? In view of the fact that the Freemasons of the United States are doing nothing, it is doing what it can. Some years ago a handful of loyal, large-hearted Masons organized what is known as the "Sojourners' Club" of Fort Bayard, similar in character to the organization by the same name at other government institutions. The Sojourners' Club of Fort Bayard has at present a membership of 165 Masons, representing forty-two different states, who pay their monthly dues to the club and work together as best they can to extend what help is possible to assist their brother Masons. All work is voluntary and given from the true Masonic hearts of these brethren, freely and unselfishly. If a member is unable to pay his dues, he still receives the benefits of his organization. All members are active so far as their physical condition permits. They raise their funds for relief purposes by appeals to Masons, and entertainments at nearby lodges, and by any legitimate means at hand; but the aggregate receipts of a year are but a drop in the bucket in comparison with the urgent needs of the conditions existing.

 

Here is one typical case of how these Masonic brethren work. A brother Mason patient, failing to receive the compensation due him from his government, was about to let his insurance policy lapse. The Sojourners' Club had no available funds, - its treasury is always in an "exhausted" condition, - so the boys went down in their pockets to make up their brother's insurance premium. That case is typical of what is going on practically every day in the Sojourners' Club of Fort Bayard, N. M.

 

There are some 200 Masons among the patients at Fort Bayard and about an equal number, or more, who are sons or brothers of Masons. There are a still larger number of those who, normally, would like to become Masons some day, and there are a still larger number, - all the remainder of the patients at Fort Bayard, - who see just how little Masonry is doing for even its own members who have been made invalids through service for their country. Is it any credit to Masonry to see the Sojourners' Club compelled to meet in a disreputable little shack, which constitutes its sole quarters, while the Knights of Columbus occupy ideal quarters? Is it any credit to Masonry to note the pitiably inadequate, though wonderfully faithful work of the Sojourners' Club, supported solely by voluntary local collections from men who can ill afford the expense, while the Knights of Columbus have ample funds, all kinds of equipment, and paid workers with private automobiles? And is it any credit to Masonry to find that we have no organization through which the needs of these Masonic war veterans are made known to their home lodges, and the crying need for organized relief made known to every Grand Lodge of Masons in our country? Conditions at Fort Bayard as they are today are enough to put Masonry to shame in the heart and mind of any true Mason who investigates them.

 

What can we do about it? For one thing, let's get back of the plan adopted by the Fort Bayard Sojourners' Club to erect a Club House. They have had their plans drawn for sometime for a permanent and attractive building. to cost $25,000. When erected, the maintenance expenses of heat, light, water, sewer connections, etc., will be provided by the government. We, the Masons of America, must see to it that not only is this building provided, but that finances are provided to properly conduct the work of relief. An appeal for aid in constructing the building has already been made to every Grand Lodge of the country. It should not fall on deaf ears. This is a national problem, not a local or state question; the patients at Fort Bayard are from all parts of the country. If Freemasonry does really stand for relief in any other form than a subject for ritualistic lip-service, here is a chance for its big heart to awaken and perform a real service.

 

----o----

 

Sometime when all life's lessons have been learned,

And sun and stars forevermore have set,

The things which our weak judgments here have spurned,

The things o'er which we grieved with lashes wet,

Will flash before us, out of life's dark night,

As stars shine more in deeper tints of blue,

And we shall see how all God's plans were right,

And how what seemed reproof was love most true.

 

- Bishop Huntington.

 

----o----

 

A PROGRAM OF MASONIC SERVICE

 

During the last sessions of its Grand Lodge, North Dakota Freemasonry issued an affirmation of belief and program of action well worth the careful attention of every Freemason in the land. The Craft in North Dakota is very much alive, as the citizens of the state are already learning, and the end is not yet, as this manifesto will indicate. The following Program of Masonic Service is a good one to model by, by Grand Lodges as well as by subordinate bodies:

 

The Grand Lodge of Ancient Free and Accepted Masonry of North Dakota recognizes and reaffirms its belief that the two great Masonic principles, the Fatherhood of God, and the Brotherhood of Man, form the only basis upon which social order can exist; the happiness of the individual and the welfare of the state depends upon the definite application of these principles to human conduct.

 

Therefore, it is the purpose of this statement to bring to the Craft in a concrete way, the means by which Masons individually and collectively can properly serve their fellow men:

 

1st. Loyalty to country is a Masonic principle, yet too frequently this is construed to refer only to times of war and national crisis. The Grand Lodge of North Dakota believes that loyalty carries with it the highest obligation of citizenship; obedience to law, respect for constitutional authority, a recognition of the right of every human being to the enjoyment of life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness. The rights we enjoy as citizens carry with them corresponding duties. Among these duties is the proper exercise of the franchise, the careful and intelligent consideration of men and measures coming before the people for approval. No good Mason will fail to be a good citizen, and to be found on the side of Decency, Civic Righteousness and Public Order.

 

2nd. Masonry believes in Democracy. Democracy depends upon the wide-spread intelligence among the people. Intelligence depends in America upon the Free Public School system. The Grand Lodge desires to record again its unswerving devotion to the American ideal of education; equality of opportunity for all children from kindergarten to university. We demand that in all elementary education one language only shall be used, and that the English as spoken by Americans, also that both private and parochial schools shall be subject to the supervision of the educational authorities, local and state. We record our unequivocal support to the Smith-Towner Bill, now known as the Towner-Sterling Bill, providing for national recognition and leadership in American education, not national control, and we pledge the efforts of the Master Masons of this Grand Jurisdiction to secure the enactment of this measure into law.

 

3rd. This Grand Lodge believes that the hope of any nation lies in its youth. In these days when there are so many ways of corrupting our youth, Masonry must stand back of any constructive effort to furnish the boys of our various communities the right kind of ideals and leadership, whether it be through the Order of DeMolay, the Boy Scouts movement or the effective work for boys done by city or county Y.M.C.A.'s. Where there are Chapters of the Order of DeMolay care must be taken to have them properly sponsored. In large communities the boys' work of the Y.M.C.A. and of the Boy Scouts is well organized. Masons should be generous supporters. In the small towns Masonic lodges should not hesitate to take the lead in these splendid enterprises. Any Masonic lodge could with profit and propriety get back of a Father and Son banquet and make it an annual affair. The boys of today are to be the men and Masons of tomorrow, and in saying this for boys, we recognize also the special need of the same right ideals and leadership as well for our girls. The future of. the race depends upon the character of the boys and girls of today.

 

4th. The first sentence of the Ancient Charges of a Freemason is that "A Mason is obliged by his Tenure to obey the Moral Law." The principle tenets of our order are Friendship, Morality and Brotherly Love. There can be no misconstruction or misunderstanding of the meaning of these Masonic Fundamentals. Therefore the Grand Lodge of North Dakota knows of no better way to serve than to summon its members to that high conception of personal and moral conduct which alone means stability in human society. Men and Masons must recognize that the same standards of conduct are expected of them as are demanded of our women, and if Masons fully realize the importance of high moral character, they will not condone the conduct or retain the membership of the profligate or the libertine.

 

5th. The Grand Lodge of North Dakota believes in the doctrine of the square deal; in social justice as opposed to the socialistic ideas of no God, and no law. Any theory, economic or governmental which fails to recognize the Supremacy of Almighty God and the rule of law is inimical to the welfare and happiness of mankind and ought not have the approval of intelligent Master Masons.

 

6th. Brotherly Love, the last of that great Trinity of Tenets of our Order, is not exclusive, it is inclusive. Brotherly Love includes all mankind; it carries with it Good Will, Justice, Tolerance, Forbearance and high regard for the rights of others. With this thought in our minds we deprecate the spirit of mobviolence that has flamed up in our country so often in the recent past. We are opposed to all efforts to stir up class or race hatred. We believe that any effort that would involve this nation in war with a friendly nation or nations is un-American and calls for most vigorous protest and denunciation. America has problems of her ovum to solve without attempting to solve the internal problems of other nations.

 

We have just come through a great World War, - its cost in blood and treasure to us has been enormous, but only a fraction of what it has cost other friendly nations. America is not too proud to fight for a great principle, but she is too just, and too honorable to wage war for mere gain.

 

The Grand Lodge of North Dakota desires to record its unqualified approval of any and all efforts designed to bring about World Peace and the reduction of the crushing burdens of armament which are now taking the very life-blood of the people of every nation. There will be no reconstruction, no return to normal life so long as the greater portion of the revenues of the nations of the world are absorbed by huge armies and navies. Let us see and think straight. No one is so visionary as to believe that the world has reached the stage when force is no longer necessary, yet the fact remains, that as Masons, we can at least show the power of Love - Brotherly Love - among men.

 

7th. "Masons are to work and receive Master's wages," therefore it naturally follows that as a body of Masons the Grand Lodge recognizes the dignity of labor. No Mason is worthy of that title unless he is making a real contribution to the upbuilding of his community, his state and his nation. We do not recognize any artificial distinctions, neither do we differentiate between those who work as the common laborer, the skilled mechanic, the professional man or the business man. So long as each acts on the square and is honestly striving to take his part, that is sufficient.

 

8th. Community betterment is a general term. It includes the best schools, opportunities for wholesome recreation, the spirit of cooperation and good will. Masons and Masonic lodges ought to identify themselves with any movement which means the improvement of the community of which they are a part, and where Masonic lodges have Temples or commodious lodge rooms, these should, so far as consistent with the necessary work of the lodge, be offered in service to the community. The more closely a Masonic lodge identifies itself with the highest welfare of the community the less will be the misunderstanding of and opposition to our great Fraternity.

 

9th. Leadership, not boss control, is the crying need of our day. Public Service needs real men. The Grand Lodge of North Dakota calls upon its membership to stand forth and lead the way to a better day. Any Mason who would refuse the call to serve has not learned the lesson which Masonry has to offer. The challenge to every Mason is clear-cut - it is Service. We can best serve our God by serving His children - our Brothers.

 

----o----

 

The best part of beauty is that which a picture cannot express. - Bacon.

 

----o----

 

REDEEMERS

 

BY BRO.LEWIS A. McCONNELL,COLORADO

 

With visions dark, and worldly strife,

Man's savage nature then instilled

With ignorance and passion rife

And mind with superstition filled;

Soon filtering through his teeming brain,

The Spirit, all pervading, spread

Until his faint, dim dream of God

From paths of savage nature led.

 

The firmament its lessons gave

With wonders to his eyes revealed;

Then man, from ignorance to save,

Evolved his mysteries concealed.

Then Isis sought her stricken spouse

As seeks the searcher after light,

And with her son, with typhon strove

And evil legions put to flight.

 

The Indian Prince renounced the throne

And with the lowly cast his life;

Inspired by that same spirit shown

Where peace and love have conquered strife.

And millions of his fellow men,

Redeemed by words and acts of love,

From sordid woes and vice, began

To raise their thoughts to things above.

 

And Brahma's faithful advocate

His mission served in love and peace;

'Mong shepherds born in humble state,

The world from bondage to release.

Redeemed by Chrisna's mission dear,

Who, dying on the cross of hate,

Made power of love and duty clear,

Mankind his chronicles relate.

 

Four centuries had passed away

And yet the Word was sparsely spread

When lo! Mankind beheld the light

Another fair Redeemer shed.

The Nazerene, like Chrisna born,

Through bigots' persecuting hate,

From love's sweet mission rudely torn

And shared the Brahmin's cruel fate.

 

Against Idolatry's conceit

The Moslem Prophet later strove

In Allah's name, his plans replete

With revelations from above.

Redeeming through their winning grace

The straying wanderers abroad

Of many a rude, benighted race

To worship one true, living God.

 

The fabled past the tale recites

In strange, mysterious writings shown,

And thoughts oft garbed in fancy's flights

Bring living truths to reason known

Yet though in allegory wrought,

They breathe of that inspiring power

Whose attributes are vainly sought

In meditation's holy hour;

And he who labors truth to prove

And spreads the light by tongue or pen,

Becomes the almoner of love,

Redeemer of his fellow man

 

----o----

 

"I count this thing to be grandly, true-

That a noble deed is a step toward God,

Lifting the soul from the common sod

To a purer air and a broader view."

 

- J.G. Holland.

 

----o----

 

THE TEACHINGS OF MASONRY

 

BY BRO. H.L. HAYWOOD, IOWA -

 

The following paper is one of a series of articles on "Philosophical Masonry," or “The Teachings of Masonry," by Brother Haywood, to be used for reading and discussion in lodges and study clubs - From the questions following each section of the paper the study club leader should select such as he may desire to use in bringing out particular points for discussion. To go into a lengthy discussion on each individual question presented might possibly consume more time than the lodge or study club may be able to devote to the study club meeting.

 

In conducting the study club meetings the leader should endeavor to hold the discussions closely to the tenet of the paper and not permit the members to speak too long at one time or to stray onto another subject. Whenever it becomes endent that the discussion is turning from the original subject the leader should request the members to make notes of the particular points or phases of the matter they may wish to discuss or inquire into and bring them up after the last section of the paper is disposed of.

 

The meetings should be closed with a "Question Box" period, when such questions as may have come up during the meeting and laid over until this time should be entered into and discussed. Should any questions arise that cannot be answered by the study club leader or some other brother present, these questions may be submitted to us and we will endeavor to answer them for you in time for your next meeting.

 

Supplemental references on the subjects treated in this paper will be found at the end of the article.

 

 

PART VII-MASONIC ETHICS

 

A MAN can never hurt or help natural forces.  He can spread his sail, but that does not affect the wind.  He can overturn the sod with his plow but the sod does not scream back at him with pain.  He can send his wireless messages through space but that does not change the structure of the atmosphere.  A man does not have much choice in his dealings with nature.  If he steps from a roof he immediately falls to the earth, whatever be his opinions of gravity.  The sun shines, night darkens, seasons change, rain falls, the ocean moves through its tides, but the will of man has nothing to do with all this.

 

A man's relationship with his fellow men is very different.  He can hurt or help them, bless or curse.  What he says may change the course of another's fortunes: what he does may be a matter of life and death to a fellow.  And all that he does to and with his fellows is largely under the control of his own will, for he can choose to act or not to act, to think or not to think, to speak or not to speak, and he can so choose when he knows that his thoughts, words, or deeds will influence them greatly one way or another.  This is also true of a man's own self, and his relationship with himself: he can make his own person the object of his thoughts and acts for good or ill, and, as these thoughts and acts are of his own choosing, he is responsible, and they become a part of his conduct.  All the ways in which a man affects himself, and in which men affect each other, for which men are responsible, comprise the materials of morality, of which ethics is the science.

 

Freemasonry has its own interpretation of the principles of morality. It has its own ideals of human conduct. For reasons of its own it emphasizes certain duties, and encourages certain ideals. In order to persuade men to act in a certain way it brings to bear up them certain influences and strives to neutralize other influences which may oppose its purposes.  It knows what it wants a man to be, and human society in general to be, and it bends its efforts towards that end. Masonic Ethics is ethics studied from this particular point of view, in the light of Masonic principles and ideals, and in behalf of Masonic purposes.  It is the study of ethics as it bears on Masonry and of Masonry as it bears on ethics.  Such a study bulks large in literature of the Craft, in its philosophy, in its teachings, its ritual, and its traditions, because Masonry is above all other things a moralistic institution, which strives to realize on earth a definite ideal of conduct, both private and public.  It is unfortunate that no modern Masonic scholar has yet attempted to make a careful study of Masonic history and literature in order to build a System of Masonic Ethics, in the same way that numberless other students have built up systems of Christian ethics, or Chinese ethics, or Jewish, etc.

 

Is there a difference between "morality" and "ethics"? Do you agree with the definitions given in the paper? Do you believe that every man is responsible for his acts? Could a man's acts be blameworthy or praiseworthy if be had no choice about them? What has the human will to do with morality? Does the Bible define morality? Does it anywhere define righteousness? How would you define "right" and "wrong"?

 

 

The majority of men know as little of moral science as of any other science, and their conceptions of "right" and "wrong" are, accordingly, often as valueless as their conceptions of astronomy, or physics.  From tradition,

from the church, or from hearsay, without ever having submitted it to careful scrutiny of sound thinking, they have accepted into their minds a rough code of morals. This code consists, for the most part, of two contrasted lists of actions: one, of actions permitted; the other, of actions forbidden. Whenever the question arises, Is such and such a proposed action good or bad? they refer the matter to their "lists" and act accordingly.  A man says to himself, Shall I gamble? Shall I send money to the missionaries? Shall I tell this untruth to my neighbour? Shall I use tobacco? If he finds gambling to be listed with his mental category of things forbidden he will look upon it as a sin. If missionary gifts are in the list of things permitted, such gifts are right, etc.

 

This procedure works satisfactorily until the man comes into conflict with an entirely different code. One example of this will suffice.  A Frenchman, let it be supposed a Christian also, finds that drinking wine is permitted by his own moral code.  An American Methodist, on the other hand, finds wine among the things most violently forbidden by his own code.  Who, or what, is to decide between them? The Frenchman may appeal to the authority of the New Testament: so may the Methodist.  The Frenchman may say, My church has long ago decided this matter: the Methodist may reply, Mine also has decided the matter.  If the Frenchman appeals to the tradition of his group, the Methodist can retort in the same way, and to an opposite conclusion.  It is plain that this simple-minded "list" or code system of morality is one that breaks down the moment a man seeks the ground that lies beneath it.

 

This is nothing other than the age-old search for the seat of authority in morals.  When a man is in moral predicament, and does not know whether or not a given course of action is right or wrong, to what final authority can he refer his problem? In the writer's opinion there can be but one answer.  Human experience, of the individual and of the race, is the one final authority in morals.  If a man does something that injures his own body; or needlessly, destroys something of human value; or hurts another in any way; or deliberately makes himself or others unhappy, that man does wrong.  Wrong is whatever hurts human life, or destroys human happiness; right is whatever helps human life, and tends to sustain or increase human happiness.  There is but one way to learn what it is that hurts or helps and that is by experience, and whenever one is not sure what experience has to say he is obliged to make a moral experiment.  Acts are not right or wrong intrinsically, but according as their effects are hurtful or helpful.  The purpose of right living is not in order to render obedience to some code, or to some supposed authority, but to enable a man to live richly, healthfully, happily.  A wise man may therefore often do something that may not be approved by others, but the man who does something which his own experience shows to be hurtful is a fool.

 

Does the Masonic Ritual anywhere define "righteousness"? How would you describe "Masonic ethics"? What duties are emphasized by the Craft? What ideals are encouraged? Is there such a thing as a Masonic Code? What is it? How do you yourself determine whether or not a thing is "right"? What is the conscious? Do you consider it a separate faculty? Should the paper have discussed the conscience in order to present the subject? Have you been unconsciously making use the of mental "lists" of right and wrong actions? Is that the wisest moral procedure? Or should a man prefer to trust his own "moral judgment" from time to time? What is meant by "moral judgment"? Are you acquainted with any Masonic book that interprets Masonic Ethics?. If so, will you write to THE BUILDER about it?

 

 

This does not mean that a man can safely trust to his own experience alone: far otherwise, for often a man's own experience is too meagre to be of any value.  Others have lived longer or more richly than he, or more wisely, and he can heed their counsels.  Others, by virtue of some special training, may better understand the effects of a given course of action, and consequently have a right to direct conduct, as a physician has a right to prescribe remedies.  Nor can a man dare to set his own private experience against the experience of a nation, or of the race, as may be proved by a reference to slavery days, when many planters found in their own experience that slavery seemed to be a good for themselves and their slaves, whereas the experience of the United States as a whole proved slavery to be a curse to all concerned.  But, whether the individual can trust to his own private experience, or must defer to the larger and wiser experience of the race, it is human experience which, in the last analysis, approves or condemns any given course of conduct.

 

Certain courses of action have always and everywhere been found to be hurtful or harmful.  Wilfully to deceive another will be found hurtful in China as in America, in the first century as well as in the twentieth: so also with habits of gluttony or intemperance that destroy health; with extravagance, laziness, cruelty, etc.  One, can't conceive of any social condition under which men would not find these things to make for unhappiness.  These permanent verdicts of human experience become at last crystallized into principles which nobody questions, and these principles, taken together, comprise a system of morality.  But, even so, all such principles are found to root in human experience and its verdicts.  Should the constitution of man come under some mysterious change so that men would be made happier by gluttony, and life made richer and stronger, then would gluttony become a good and not a bad.

 

The vast majority of moral problems, however, have not been, and never can be, permanently settled: always the individual, so far as these things are concerned, must decide for himself.  Is the use of tobacco injurious? Some physicians say it is, others say not: some men seem to smoke with impunity as well as pleasure: others get headaches and nights of sleeplessness after a few cigars: in such a case the individual must decide for himself, and, so long as the question remains strictly a matter of private experience, he has no right to decide for another.  It is not the submission to a traditional code of action that sets one apart as a man of principle and character; the strong man, from the moral point of view, is he who, when experience decides, abides the verdict, though it may oppose many selfish interests and interfere with many cherished pleasures.

 

How have you been in the habit of adjusting your own moral code to the moral code of others when the two conflict? How would you settle the controversy between the Frenchman and the Methodist given in the text? Do you agree with the paper in its description of "the seat of authority in morality"? Would the churches agree with such an interpretation? If not, why not? If so, which churches? Do the Roman Catholics teach such a doctrine? What moral authority is recognized by the Society of Jesus? Why do you disagree with it? Do you believe the Bible to be the final court of appeal in moral questions? If so, why? How would you justify that position to an intelligent Buddhist, Mohammedan, Confucianist, or to one who rejects the supernatural character of the Bible? Are all the moral teachings of the Bible consistent with themselves?

 

 

The test of experience is equally valid when applied to the more religious and idealistic questions of human conduct: self-sacrifices, heroisms, martyrdoms, these, like the more commonplace matters of daily life, are approved or condemned according as they make for or against human life.  The monks who went off to live cenobite lives in the Thebaid considered themselves very holy men, but the verdict of the subsequent centuries has been against them, for such a life proved itself to be harmful to the healthfulness and happiness of the world.  The thousands who went away to the Crusades considered themselves divinely commissioned, but today a saner judgment, though it admires the element of heroism in the Crusaders, condemns the enterprise as a whole as having been a useless piece of costly fanaticism.  Emerson and Thoreau, inflamed by the enthusiasms of the hour, hailed John Brown as the hero of the nation after his wild attempt on Harper's Ferry: James Ford Rhodes, in the light of the full consequences of the old Puritan's campaign, shows that John Brown let loose a train of bloody and unfortunate consequences, from which the slaves themselves were the chief sufferers.  All this is to say that ideals, aspirations, heroisms, self-sacrifices, and all other similar acts and aims are not in themselves any more "righteous" than are other more familiar matters of conduct, and that they are to be adjudged "right" or "wrong" only in light of the conditions under which they are done and the consequences that flow from them.

 

This philosophizing about moral conduct is of great value to us in our periods of leisure and reflection but a man can't stop to philosophize, often he cannot even stop to weigh probabilities, and to balance motives, while he is in the midst of his daily living, for usually decisions must be made on the spot, and often they are made unconsciously, like an instinctive action.  The thing that determines a man in all such decisions is his moral "nature," and that nature is the man's fixed system of habits, reactions, judgments, emotions, etc., that has been built out of all his past experience.  A good man is one who has in the past so lived that he habitually acts so as to be happy himself and make others happy (the word "happy" here is used in tis widest possible meaning). He may now and then do something that he knows to be wrong, but his "nature," the constant bias of his will, is toward those things that make for the welfare of human life.  A bad man is one whose very nature is such that he instinctively does things that hurt others or himself, though he often be capable of tenderness, self-sacrifices, or so momentary nobility.

 

A man acts from his nature.  This fact is recognized in the account of the conversation Jesus had with Nicodemus whom the Master told that he had first be "born again." This phrase has passed into theology as the doctrine of "regeneration," or "new birth," it is a sound doctrine, for many men are so ingrained with badness that their whole nature must be radically changed before they can be trusted to live in harmony and happiness with their fellows.

 

This doctrine of a "new birth" seems to lie at heart of Masonry's great drama of Hiram Abiff. Masonic interpreters have differed greatly among themselves as to the meaning of that acted parable, but they nearly all hold in common the belief that it somehow means that, in order to be a just and true brother a man must be "born again" so that his nature is changed to act in unison with a new world.  How can this be brought about? It is one of the points where morality melts into religion, for nearly all the religions have applied themselves to creating a new nature in man, they all seek to do it by bringing Divine Power to be upon the individual.  Freemasonry is here at one with religion, for it also resorts to prayer, to the seeking the will of God.  It also makes use of the powers brotherhood, of reasoning, of ritual, and all the offices of fraternity.  The whole ceremony is in itself an attempt to create a new nature in the candidate, and it is also, from another point of view, a symbol of those influences in this world which have such regenerative powers; these influences, of course, are numberless, and many of them have no direct connection with religion, as for example, the affection for a parent, education, misfortune, etc., any one of which may, under certain circumstances, bring about a profound change in some individual's moral nature.

 

What has been said of the individual's moral life may be said, in some degree or other, of society at large.  How is a great social institution judged? By social experience: by its influence on the life of the community.  If some institution, however long established, or however venerated, begins to cause unhappiness among men, dissension, unrest, poverty, or what not, that institution, though it may be sanctioned by the law of the land, becomes evil, and all right thinking men must become its enemies.  Whatever social force makes against the welfare of men and women, that social force is evil, though it wear the name of morality itself; whatever social force makes for the welfare of society, that is good, though it be as new as the morning.  That an institution is old, or religious, or legal, a fact to be taken into careful consideration, but such a fact has no weight as against the plain influences of that institution as it works among men. For this reason there is such a thing as a social morality. It is the study of social forces in the light of their results and effects in the community; it is the moral appraisal of social institutions.  It is the fostering of the forces that make for common welfare, and the opposition of those that make against life.

 

Always, morality is for the sake of men and women: it is here in order that they may have life and have it more abundantly.  Each man lives in a community where he acts and is acted upon, where he is influenced by others and himself influences others.  His own nature is a bundle of energies and influences upon which happiness depends.  To so adjust one's self to others, to so learn to govern one's self, and to so adjust one's life to the forces of nature, in order that one's life may be full, rich, happy, that is the aim of morality.  It is also the aim of Masonry, for that great institution exists in order that men may live happily together and in order that human life, individual or social, may evermore rise to high and higher issues.

 

What is meant by "experience"? How many thing, can you think of that have always and everywhere been wrong? Has slavery, according to the "experience doctrine" given in the paper, always been wrong? Has polygamy? Make a careful study of some important moral problem, such as the problem of the double sex standard, in the light of this doctrine.  Do you believe that John Brown did more harm than good? How would you decide on the prohibition question in the light of the interpretation of right and wrong given in the paper? Have you ever been "born again"? Are men ever born again as the result of Masonic influences? What is Masonry's ideal for human life? For society at large? Would it make men and women happier?

 

SUPPLEMENTAL REFERENCES

 

Mackey's Encyclopedia-(Revised Edition):

 

Ethics of Freemasonry, p. 253.  Treats of the service of the good, the teaching of moral duties, their formation, the distinction between acts obligatory and acts offending, the essence of initiation, and the vast scope of the lodge.

 

Eleusinian Mysteries, p. 237; Initiation, p. 353; Mysteries, Ancient, p. 497; Mystery, p..500. Describes the earliest uses of drama to teach philosophical truths by the rite of initiation, the obviously probable entrance to any secret society.  The power and prominence of such ancient organizations related to some extent with Freemasonry in performance and in purpose are described up to their decline when the work was continued by other agencies of like objects and of more successful plans.

 

Alchemy, p. 44; Morality of Freemasonry, p. 492.  Both of these relate to the lesson of Divine Truth and the formation for a system of morality taught by the old philosophers with whom we Freemasons are so much in accord by the use of a similar symbolism and having a like objective, the Fatherhood of God, the Brotherhood of Man.

 

Bible, p. 104; Scriptures, Belief in the, p. 672; Scriptures, Reading of the, p. 672.  These three references emphasize the meaning of the Bible to a Freemason, the Book of Books being to him a symbol and a guide setting forth the Divine Will as revealed to mankind.

 

Resurrection, p. 621; Landmarks, p. 421; Legend of the Third degree, p. 437; Aphanism, p. 68, Euresis, p. 254.  These five references treat of the essential features in the climax of the Craft ceremonies, the summing up for the individual candidate of the experience and the aims of those who are faithful even unto death.  Freemasonry rightly understood gains from ritual and monitor the spur of endeavour and the solace sure of reward.

 

OUR STUDY CLUB PLAN

 

"The Bulletin Course of Masonic Study," of which the foregoing paper by Brother Haywood is a part, was begun in THE BUILDER early in 1917. Previous to the beginning of the present series on "Philosophical Masonry," or "The Teachings of Masonry," as we have titled it, were published some forty-three papers covering in detail "Ceremonial Masonry" and "Symbolical Masonry" under the following several divisions: "The Work of a Lodge," "The Lodge and the Candidate," "First Steps," "Second Steps," and "Third Steps." A complete set of these papers up to January 1st, 1921, are obtainable in the bound volumes of THE BUILDER for 1917, 1918, 1919 and 1920, and the remaining papers of the series may be had in the 1921 bound volume which will be ready for delivery early in December. Single copies of 1921 back numbers are not obtainable, our stock having become exhausted.

 

Following is an outline of the subjects covered by the current series of study club papers by Brother Havwood:

 

THE TEACHINGS OF MASONRY

 

1. - General Introduction. - A. Reasons for a course explaining what the "teachings of Masonry" mean. - B. How one can arrive at his own Philosophy of Masonry. - Conclusion. The Philosophy of Masonry is not a study of philosophy in general, but a study of Masonry such as a philosopher gives to any great intellectual problem.

 

2. - The Masonic Conception of Human Nature.

 

3. - The Idea of Truth in Freemasonry.

 

4. - The Masonic Conception of Education.

 

5. - Ritualism and Symbolism.

 

6. - Initiation and Secrecy.

 

7. - Masonic Ethics.

 

8. - Equality.

 

9. - Liberty.

 

10. - Democracy.

 

11. - Masonry and Industry.

 

12. - The Brotherhood of Man.

 

13. - The Fatherhood of God.

 

14. - Endless Life.

 

15. - Brotherly Aid.

 

16. - Schools of Masonic Philosophy.

 

This systematic course of Masonic study has been taken up and carried out in monthly and semi-monthly meetings of lodges and study clubs all over the United States and Canada, and in several instances in lodges overseas.

 

The course of study has for its foundation two sources of Masonic information, THE BUILDER and Mackey's Encyclopedia.

 

HOW TO ORGANIZE AND CONDUCT STUDY CLUB MEETINGS

 

Study clubs may be organized separate from the lodge, or as a part of the work of the lodge. In the latter case the lodge should select a committee, preferably of three "live" members who shall have charge of the study club meetings. The study club meetings should be held at least once a month (excepting during July and August, when the study club papers are discontinued in THE BUILDER), either at a special communication of the lodge called for the purpose, or at a regular communication at which no business (except the lodge routine) should be transacted - all possible time to be devoted to study club purposes.

 

After the lodge has been opened and all routine business disposed of, the Master should turn the lodge over to the chairman of the study club committee. The committee should be fully prepared in advance on the subject to be discussed at the meeting. All members to whom references for supplemental papers have been assigned should be prepared with their material, and should also have a comprehensive grasp of Brother Haywood's paper by a previous reading and study of it.

 

PROGRAM FOR STUDY CLUB MEETINGS

 

1. Reading of any supplemental papers on the subject for the evening which may have been prepared by brethren assigned such duties by the chairman of the study club committee.

 

2. Reading of the first section of Brother Haywood's paper.

 

3. Discussion of this section, using the questions following this section to bring out points for discussion.

 

4. The subsequent sections of the paper should then be taken up and disposed of in the same manner.

 

5. Question Box. Invite questions on any subject in Masonry, from any and all brethren present. Let the brethren understand that these meetings are for their particular benefit and enlightenment and get them into the habit of asking all the questions they may be able to think of. If at the time these questions are propounded no one can answer them, send them in to us and we will endeavor to supply answers to them in time for your next study club meeting.

 

FURTHER INFORMATION

 

The foregoing information should enable study club committees to conduct their meetings without difficulty. However, if we can be of assistance to such committees, or any individual member of lodges and study clubs at any time such brethren are invited to feel free to communicate with us.

 

----o----

 

EDITORIAL

 

PAST ACCOMPLISHMENT AND FUTURE OUTLOOK

 

SURELY so dignified and conservative an organization as The National Masonic Research Society may for once be pardoned if it flourish its own trumpets, especially if it have so good cause as now. When the movement was launched in 1914 it was not at all certain that such an attempt could succeed, for there were many stum bling blocks in the path that led to the future, even ad numberless wrecks bestrewed the path behind. But the brethren who dedicated themselves to the attempt were of stout heart and daring spirit, so they went forward fearing nothing and working hard.

 

Beginning with the official endorsement of one Grand Lodge, and with only a few hundred members pledged to its support, the Society manifested remarkable signs of vitality from the first, so that within two short years it had become the largest association of Masonic students ever before enlisted under one banner, and THE BUILDER had made a distinctive place for itself. And all this was not a flash in the pan, or a sudden burst of sensationalism, for the stewards and editors had set before themselves in the very beginning the highest practicable standards and to these standards they adhered, even though there came times when it appeared as if less costly methods might attract more attention. The temptation to ride the pages of other journals was always resisted. The custom of publishing materials without consent from the authors was outlawed. No resort was made to advertising; and in the darkest days of the war the typographical attractiveness of the journal was sustained unimpaired.

 

There were some dark days during the war, especially after the United States had begun to mobilize its own forces. Prices on print paper, ink, and labor began to mount until it seemed at last as if the sky itself would be the limit. Multitudes of the young men among whom THE BUILDER had won its largest number of friends were drafted for some kind of service, civil or military, so that their attention became focussed on other matters, and heavy drains were laid upon their purses. Many Study Clubs necessarily went out of existence, and lodges everywhere became too absorbed with the unprecedented press of initiation to have time or thought for Masonic education. Nor was this all, for the war robbed the Society of the active assistance of some of its most valued and needed helpers. Nevertheless, work went forward in The House of Light at Anamosa, Iowa, and THE BUILDER appeared as regularly as any other of the most solidly established magazines. It is a record of which every member of the Society may feel justly proud: and when to all that is added the fact that the Society has just reached its very highest peak of membership, and THE BUILDER entered the lists thereby of the larger journals of the world, it is a record that should arouse all manner of enthusiasm the future.

 

If the reader could go through the editor's manuscript files would discover that there are now in existence very substantial reasons for such cheerful anticipations. The editor already has on hand awaiting publication a larger outlay of high class Masonic material than has ever before appeared in THE BUILDER, and there is more in the offing. The results of an intensive effort to mobilize the most expert group of contributors possible under the circumstances has met with success, and forthcoming issues of this journal will demonstrate as much.

 

Our readers will remember with pleasure the very intersting articles on Mormonism and Masonry published early the 1921 issues. In the February number we shall print an article by the author of the preceding ones, Brother Sam H. Goodwin, Grand Secretary of the Grand Lodge of Utah, to treating the subject from a different angle. Arrangements are being made with the Grand Lodge of Utah to reprint the entire series of these articles in pamphlet for for the benefit of members of the Society who may so desire it.

 

A few of the subjects to be covered in the 1922 issues are as follows:

 

The Holy Saints John.

The Divine Mystery.

Sketch of the Life of Confucius.

The Duke of Connaught, Grand Master of England

Further Notes on the Eleusinian Mysteries.

The Anglo-Irish Grand Lodge

American and French Masons Together

The Bulls of the Popes.

Co-Masonry.

The Cable Tow.

The Egyptian Influence on our Masonic Ceremonial and Ritual. (With about 50 illustions)

The Great Lights of Freemasonry.

Traveling Craftsmen

The Apprentice's Part.

Masonic Toleration.

A Short Sketch of the Life of Buddha

The Temple of Solomon.

The Masonic Career of Franklin.

 

Having prepared for itself so happy a New Year THE BUILDER can wish for all its readers, and that with the most sincere cordiality, a Hail and Good Luck for the twelve months to be. May they discover anew how good and pleasant a thing it is for Masonic students to dwell together, to work together, and to joy together, the while our great Fraternity lends its assistance to the rebuilding of the world.

 

* * *

 

THE MASTER AS A SOCIAL ENGINEER

 

The Worshipful Master of Blue Mound, Illinois, read a letter to his members which startled them very wide awake, as one may guess from this typical paragraph:

 

"Out of these 134 members I have checked the names of ninety-six who live within easy distance of the lodge. NOW MARK THIS STATEMENT! Out of those ninety-six I count nine men who have done ALL (note the capitals) ALL the degree work this year and I am counting myself as one of the nine. Do you not believe me when I say there is something wrong! What is it that is wrong? - that is what I have been asking myself all this year. Is it the Master? It might be the case this year but the Master was not the reason during the few years past and these conditions existed then.... The degree nights show an average of fourteen. Then out of the fourteen count out the nine who do the work. What does that leave ? How many of you members attended lodge just once during the past year?"

 

It would be impossible to put the problem confronted by the Master of the average small lodge more forcefully or more simply. It is almost entirely a question of keeping his membership in action.

 

When a Master finds his lodge lagging behind, it is a good thing for him to remind himself that human nature is as much subject to the laws of cause and effect as anything else, and that men and women, for all the capriciousness of their behavior, can be depended upon to react in a certain way under certain conditions. For this reason is it true that the management of a lodge may be considered as a piece of mechanics, and the Master as a social engineer. If he rightly understands the materials and forces with which he deals, and understands how to bring the right kind of pressure to- bear on that material, he will always gain a certain response and result. The thing will work with the inevitability of a natural law.

 

The science of social mechanics is as yet in its infancy, but it is one of which we already can know something, and it may be that a few suggestions of that order will not be altogether thrown away. Let it be supposed that a Master takes charge of a lodge in a city of 5,000 inhabitants, and that he is desirous of succeeding: the question arises, What can he do to succeed?

 

He can begin by ascertaining the just standard of success. What sized lodge should he have in a city of 5,000? Let him learn the total membership of his State, and let him divide that by the number of lodges to get the average size. In all probability he will discover that there is one Mason in every fifty of the total population, which would indicate a lodge of one hundred members for a city of 5,000. If a country population of 3,000 lies contributory to his lodge's territory he can add sixty to get the ideal size.

 

Then, if he wishes to discover if he is getting out a normal number of visitors and workers let him learn what is the average in his State. It will very probably run around ten per cent. Therefore if out of a membership of 160 all his meetings average sixteen in attendance he can feel that he is up to standard.

 

Next, he can learn from his Grand Secretary what is the total income of all the lodges in his State. Dividing this by the Masonic membership he can ascertain the per capita contribution of every Mason. This will very probably average about ten dollars, so that if his lodge has an income of $1600 per year it is doing what may reasonably be asked of it. The overhead cost of maintaining a lodge, the average of charity expenditures, etc., etc., all these figures may be discovered in the same way.

 

A master should make these investigations in order to know where he stands and what he should rightfully ask of himself for it is as unwise to ask too much as too little.

 

When it comes to the amount of work that he can justly require of his brethren it is not so easy to be guided by the law of averages, for conditions differ too much among various communities. But even so there is no need to trust to chance in this, and an intelligent Master can rather easily make out a form chart for his lodge.

 

He can go over his membership roll member by member and ascertain the number still in good standing but no longer residents: adding to these the infirm, the old, and those so situated otherwise as to make participation impossible, he can subtract this number from his total membership and thereby learn what is the amount of live material available.

 

Then he can take a good street map of his community and by a system of pins can form a graphic chart of the accessibility of his membership to the lodge room, and thereby learn who could come, other things being equal, if they had the incentive.

 

Next, he can analyze individual by individual the corps of potentially active men and, by conference with a group of brothers, preferably his wardens and deacons, can classify this list according to the character of the men so as to learn how many he can depend on for ritualistic work, how many for social activities, how many for sick visiting, etc., etc. Having made this classification he can next write letters to each individual thus classified and place upon his shoulders responsibility for doing some appropriate task.

 

All this done the Master can next make a thoughtful analysis of the general conditions in his town in order to discover what form of service his lodge can most successfully and fruitfully engage in. The town may have an unemployment problem; the lodge can undertake that: or it may have a poverty problem; or, if it should chance to be a health resort community, it may have an illness problem; or it may lack music; or its politics may be of the dirty variety; or it may lack a chamber of commerce, or what not: each and every one of these conditions constitutes an opportunity for a lodge imbued with the Masonic spirit, and it is at one of these points that a Master should attack.

 

Men are very much averse to wearisome repetition, to idly sitting about doing nothing: they take pleasure in activity, they like to see difficult things attempted, and they enjoy the zest of a conflict. It is not to be expected - for it is not in keeping with human nature - that grown men will attend a lodge night after night that does nothing but grind at the degree mill. Moreover, such a lodge becomes selfish, inbred, and seclusive, and that is the flattest contradiction to the spirit of Masonry, and every real man in the membership will have the half-repressed feeling that his lodge (as a lodge) is a  hypocrite, professing as it does an ideal of unselfish service but DOING nothing for the community which it professes to serve.

 

All this is to say that the majority of Masters fail (our energetic brother at Blue Mound is nowise included in this for he belongs to the successful side of the ledger) because they undertake their tasks blindly, vaguely, and without due and proper investigation of the conditions. A business man knows that a business cannot successfully be carried on "sight unseen": a lodge is equally subject to the ordinary laws of human society, and will fail as surely as any business despite its high ideals, if it is not goverened by the same common-sense, scientific manner. The wise Master will study social mechanics, and train himself to be a good social engineer.

 

* * *

THE OFFICE OF THE GRAND MASTER

 

Freemasonry as we now know it is only two hundred years old, which period though it would be long in the life of an individual, is a brief hour in the life of a race. It is difficult for us to realize how rapidly the Fraternity has grown, or from what meagre beginnings it has won its vast and indomitable power. We who belong to lodges numbering, perhaps, a thousand members, and who dwell in a jurisdiction which may contain five hundred subordinate lodges, find it difficult to imagine how it was in the early days of the eighteenth century when all the members living anywhere under the authority of the first Grand Lodge could be gathered together under one roof: when the Grand Master, as was often the case with any one of the first five or six of them, often made it his habit to go about from lodge to lodge and in his own person install the officers thereof! Oftentimes the Grand Master in those first decades didn't even concern himself with the duties of his office but left them wholly to a deputy, known as the Acting Grand Master. In many, many cases the Grand Master, - and this holds true of many Grand Masters of this country as some of the old brethren may still remember - was chosen, not for his abilities, but because of the prestige of his family, or because he was a fluent speaker, or a man of wealth and leisure, or what not.

 

But there was a secret of principle of growth in early Freemasonry; what that secret was a Freemason knows but finds it difficult to describe; and he finds it quite impossible to convey it to another. It is one of the mysteries which belong, not to the ritual or to the obligation, but to the very nature of Freemasonry itself. Whatever it is, that principle of growth was there, and a mighty thing it proved, for within a century of its origin this Fraternity was become a world power. It played such a part in the liberation and the consolidation of the Italian States that Pope Leo firmly believed it to have been wholly responsible for the isolation of the Vatican, and the complete loss of the church's temporal power. It was a leaven which worked through the German States until there arose the Kulturkampf, the war of a free culture against the culture propagated by the Jesuits at the behest of the Roman Curia. It worked like nitroglycerine in the hidden life of the French people and helped at last to wrest them loose from the dead ground of the Ancient Regime. It helped, its influence helped, to gain constitutional governments, or at least the beginnings of such, for Portugal, for Belgium, and Spain; and to gain self government for Brazil, Mexico, and many of the Latin countries to the south. It was a factor in the beginnings of the American Revolution. It would have broken the hands of the czar had it ever succeeded in gaining a foothold in Russia. It became a world-shaping power working about the roots of modern civilization to gain for the masses their liberty, their honor, and the freedom for the normal exercise of their human faculties.

 

To some it may seem that the entire history of this irresistible influence is one that is complete: one that may be written in the past tense. Not so. Masonry knows no past tense. Its work is scarcely begun. And that work is by no means to be confined to what is known as lodge work; for though Masonry is the Mother of Fraternities, and in this country alone has been the direct or indirect scource of more than six hundred other societies, its real arena is in the great world, where men live their lives in the open, and struggle to gain or to preserve their rights, their liberties, and their goods. In the larger areas of the world there is still a tragic lack of liberty; of enlightenment; of schools for the young, and self government for the adults: there are still vast mountain ranges of ignorance and superstition resting like titanic nightmares upon the lives of men. And in the more favored countries there is still, God knows, enough of the spirit of strife, of the law of the tooth and the fang, and brutish ignorance; there is still enough strength left among the enemies of constitutional government; there are still abroad so many enemies of the common weal; centuries of work remain before the Fraternity.

 

In short, Freemasonry is a world power, a national power, a social influence of incalculable potency. And such a power, as Freemasonry itself is ever teaching to each of its devotees, is something that must be thoroughly understood, sagaciously managed, and wisely applied. The energy tied up in the brains and the muscles of the builders will wreak havoc if left without direction: there must be a design upon the Trestle Board; there must be a Master to oversee and to direct.

 

The Grand Master, to a pre-eminent degree, occupies such an offlce. He is no longer a figurehead, a mere title bearer, to lead an idle parade; no longer a merely amiable personage with grace to propose the toasts at table; he is a man called to be a statesman, for a statesman is nothing other than a wise leader who understands to direct and shape the forces at work in society. He must be a social engineer. He must understand the Spirit of the Age. He must know the human world as it now is, so that he can know when, and how, and where to apply the titanic force of which he is the custodian.

 

----o----

 

THE LIBRARY

 

GOULD'S CONCISE HISTORY OF FREEMASONRY

 

GOULD'S "Concise History of Freemasonry" holds a unique place in our literature. It is far the best known of all the histories of the Craft: it is quoted more frequently than any other; and as a reference book it is more widely used, no doubt, than any other work save Mackey's Encyclopedia. Its sale, in spite of the dry and almost repellent nature of its style continues ever to increase. These facts show what an enviable position it holds in the minds of Masonic students the country over, and how great will be the interest in this "Revised Edition."

 

Robert Freke Gould bore the same name as his father, who was rector of Stoke Pears, Somerset. He was born at Ifracombe, Devon, in 1836. At nineteen he entered the army and saw many years of service, some of it in war time. He was variously stationed at Malta, Gibraltar, Cape of Good Hope, in India, and in China; while in the last mentioned country he took part in the famous Taiping Rebellion.

 

In the same year that he entered the army he was made a Mason at the Royal Naval Lodge No. 429 of Ramsgate, and during his military career was active in the affairs of the Craft wherever fortune might lead him. In 1870 he left army life to engage as a lawyer in London, but abandoned this career at the end of ten years in order to devote all his time to the study of Freemasonry, a task made easy by the nearness of the Grand Lodge Library and the fact that the subject had become a ruling passion. It was in 1880 or thereabouts that his Masonic career, specifically so called, began, and it did not end until his death, March 26, 1915. It was during this period that he won his fame as a Masonic leader of the first rank, as much by his multiform personal activities in English Masonic lodges as by his writings, for he was one of the nine men who founded the Quatuor Coronati Lodge of Research, an epochal event in the modern history of Freemasonry. Many honors were conferred upon him in recognition of these labors, among them Grand Lodge rank and honorary membership in many American Grand Lodges. He died full of years and greatly honored, and left behind him a name that will endure in our circles for generations to come.

 

We often hear it said that Gould is hard to read. This is true and untrue. He is not difficult in the same sense as Kant or Marx, both of whom were unable to clarify their thoughts sufficiently to achieve that simplicity which is the last grace of expression. But he is difficult in the sense that his style is obscure. He seemed wholly unconscious of the reader. He was a savant who wrote for savants - the generality of readers, who require of a book that its style flow on like a stream which floats them without much effort of their own, were always absent from his mind. "If you are interested in this, and know enough," he seemed to say within his own mind, "you can follow me. If not, so much the worse for you." But what of all that! Many a man puts more effort into one day's fishing than is required for the reading of Gould. After one has become accustomed to him and grown familiar with the little twists and quirks of his mind there is no difficulty in following him, and after one has read and reread him there is a pleasure in being able to keep pace with him. His style is abrupt, pebbly; he loves to take sly digs at others; his humor usually has a barb in it; he takes sudden leaps from topic to topic; and is never more happy than when wandering off in remote digressions. He is possessed of a hard Yankee-like shrewdness and dreads nothing so much as being taken in a sophistry. Like a man crossing a swamp he stops ever and anon to stamp the ground with his foot to see that he has something to stand on. The bishop who had carved on his tombstone that he had been an enemy to all enthusiasm was not more cold-blooded. Always he leaves a gate open behind him so that he can escape from an uncomfortable position, and he has a horror of selling himself out to any theory. His lawyer habit of mind permitted him to accept any probability as such but forbade him to call it a fact. The great jury of critics, who are always there ready to judge a learned book, seemed ever before his mind's eye, and no casuist could have been more careful not to transgress upon the canons of strictest reasoning and scholarship. Hence is it that often one is hard put to catch his point, as is well illustrated by the fact that one of our own most prolific American writers not long ago completely misinterpreted his well known chapter on the Rosicrucians. But he was no "materialist" as one critic has described him: nor was he a utilitarian preaching the "trade union theory of Freemasonry." He was a firm believer in the antiquity of the spirit and symbolism of the Craft, but he would commit himself to no position that did not base itself upon reasoning and sufficient proof.

 

One is astonished at the range of his Masonic interests. All phases and branches of Masonic history - ancient, medieval and modern - and anything and everything having a possible bearing upon the same: folklore, mythology, medieval law, occultism, theology, and military lore, one always finds him dealing with some one or more of these, or a dozen other subjects, and always as a man who knows whereof he speaks.

 

Equal to the range of his interests is the volume of his output. Beside his histories, one of which appeared in six volumes; there are "Four Old Lodges"; "The Atholl Lodges"; "Collected Essays," and numerous magazine articles to boot. To this must be added the great amount of work he did in the Quatuor Coronati Lodge of Research. To the Transactions of that learned body he contributed a dozen or so treatises of the first class, not to mention a score or more letters of critical comment, etc.; and in helping to organize it, in assisting in the management of it, and in his share of steering it through the first years of difficulty, he did enough real work to set up an ordinary man in a first-class reputation. Nearly all this was accomplished after his fortieth year. Measured by volume and quality alone this output, taking into consideration all the factors involved, reveals Gould as a tireless worker; measured by the effect it produced it proves that Gould was the maker of a new epoch in the intellectual life of the Masonic Fraternity.

 

Henry Hallam once wrote that "The curious history of Freemasonry has unfortunately been treated only by its panegyrists or calumniators, both equally mendacious." If that famous jibe has lost its sting it is owing to Gould more than to any other one man. When he arrived on the scene there had been no Quatuor Coronati at work, no group of scholars such as Hughan, Crawley, Lyon, Waite, Sadler, etc. There was only the jungle that had sprung up so luxuriously in the wake of Dr. George Oliver. What Niebuhr was to the writing of Roman history, Gould was to Masonic history, and the passing of our Dark Ages coincides with the advent of his "Complete History."

 

One form of our indebtedness to Gould has not been often noted, and this is of especial - interest to those of us who are members of the National Masonic Research Society. When he laid the true foundations for Masonic history he at the same time and by the same act laid the true foundations for Masonic symbology and Masonic philosophy. As he himself somewhere says, the study of the symbols and of the history of the Craft must be proceeded with conjointly. It is no longer in order for our symbologists to catch up with any idea that may chance to appeal to their fancy and apply it to a Masonic symbol: the truly Masonic meaning of a symbol, wherever that is possible of discovery, can be learned only through the history of its use by the Craft. Many of our symbols have been, or are, in universal use: surely it stands to reason that what one of these symbols means to us is determined by the interpretation that has been put upon it by the Craft itself.

 

Gould published the various parts of his complete "History of Freemasonry" between the years 1882 and 1887. This magnum opus almost immediately won a place among scholars and thereby gained the respectful reverence of the laity; but the work was too long for the latter, who demanded something more nearly inside the compass allowed by the reading time of busy men. To meet this command Gould prepared the "Concise." As he himself wrote in the preface: "There has been a demand for an abridged edition, or for a History of the Society on the same lines, but in a more compendious form." And then he goes on to say: "In the meantime, moreover, the boundaries of the historic domain embraced in my own work have been greatly enlarged, by the successful investigations of many distinguished contemporaries, and by the organized labor of the Quatuor Coronati lodge. In the preparation of the present volume, therefore, my object has been to reconsider those portions of the original Work which have been carefully criticized by careful writers since its publication, to illustrate and elucidate some passages which were imperfectly or obscurely treated, to incorporate the results of the latest discoveries, and to acknowledge with candor my own mistakes. In the execution of this design the whole subject matter has been entirely recast, rewritten and brought up to date."

 

This preface was written in 1903. The reader's attention is particularly called to the last sentence which makes it clear that the "Concise Edition" was not a mere condensation of the former work but a new book, complete in itself, and resting on its own foundation. This should correct the misapprehension, which is not uncommon, to the effect that the one-volume work is a mere abstract of the larger work, and is therefore not to be taken as seriously as the six volume History.

 

Although the larger number of Masonic savants with whom Gould was associated had passed away between 1903 and 1920, by the latter year a vast amount of research work had been done in addition to that done when the Concise History first appeared. Moreover, the Masonic Fraternity grew more rapidly during those seventeen years than ever it had grown before and this rendered useless, save for purposes of comparison, the statistics included in the Concise in 1903. This progress in knowledge and growth very naturally created a demand for a new edition of the work in 1920. Accordingly, the publishers, Gale & Polden, secured the services of one of the premier Masonic authorities of the day, Fred J. W. Crowe, and published "The Concise History of Freemasonary, by Robert Freke Gould, Revised and Brought up to Date by Fred J. W. Crowe," F. R. Hist. Soc., Author of "The Master Mason's Handbook," "Things a Freemason Should Know," "What is Freemasonry," etc., etc., (Bro. Crowe's little book on the Apron should have been listed.)

 

Bro. Crowe's own preface, dated June 1920, makes perfectly clear what he has done: "At the request of the publishers, I have brought the Concise History up to date, and made certain alterations in the body of the work. The alterations are mostly in the way of condensing the matter of the earlier chapters, which was often in danger of becoming tedious and irrelevant, but the principal change I have made is to rewrite the first part of Chapter VII. Since Mr. Sadler made his most valuable researches in the archives of the Grand Lodge and elsewhere, it has become clear to all students of our history that his view of the Irish origin of the Grand Lodge of the Ancients is the correct one, and I feel sure that I shall be supported by all lovers of truth in the changes that I have made.

 

"In regard to the 'Higher' or 'Additional' degrees, the notices of them are so meagre and so scattered that I have thought it advisable to add Chapter VIIa, giving a compact summary of the degrees usually worked in Europe and America and the Dominions and Colonies."

 

One can freely and safely award this venture one compliment in the very beginning: the new volume is a handier and more attractive book than the old; it is not so cumbersome, and it contains twice as many illustrations. Also, one can compliment Bro. Crowe on his brevity; he has succeeded in the art of condensation as well as Gould himself. As regards other compliments one cannot be so certain.

 

It was Chapter seven to ten inclusive which chiefly called for a "bringing up to date," for it is in these chapters that recent history and statistics are given, which history and statistics have necessarily changed during the past thirteen years. Brother Crowe's changes consist, for the most part, of alterations in statistics: except in a few cases very little history is added to the meagre facts given by Gould. The figures so far as I have been able to check them up, are accurate, with the exception of an item on page 349 where in the text Western Australia is given a total of thirty-six lodges while in the table above it is credited with ninety-four. I believe that a date should have been prefixed to the U. S. statistical table on page 345 which is described as "of date of writing": the reader has no way of knowing whether Brother Crowe wrote this in 1919 or in 1920. It would have been better still had he incorporated in the table itself the date for each state, because in this country the Grand Lodge sessions overlap the New Year, and therefore some of the membership data that he gives will fall in one year, some in another. He has made very few changes in the chapter on Masonry in the Far East; as one reads this section he has the feeling that much more has happened in that part of the world than is indicated in the Revision. Moreover, there are a few statistical records left as incomplete as when Gould wrote, Negro Lodges, the Fiji Islands, the Hawaiian Islands, etc.: surely, with a little more work the definite facts for these matters are obtainable.

 

Such defects, if they may be so considered, are in themselves trifling. I believe that the revisions made in the above mentioned chapters are in themselves of value sufficient to warrant a student in purchasing the new volume, even though he already possesses the old. But I am sure that the student (I here speak for the American) will in an equal degree welcome the changes made in "the first part of Chapter VII," and that for two or three reasons. The work done by Sadler has not yet made its way through the rank and file of American Masonic readers, and therefore these same readers will receive a distinct shock to find Gould's own interpretation set entirely aside and a new, and to them strange, account put in its place. I believe that Brother Crowe's innovation (it is the major change in the volume) would have met with a more kindly reception on this side had he left Gould's account to stand as it was and relegated his own newer version to an appendix: or, had he preferred the device, to a footnote. Also, many of these same readers have read Sadler's "Masonic Facts and Fictions" but are not convinced that Sadler was right, and they will feel that Brother Crowe is taking undue liberties with their own opinions by so summarily deciding the matter as to completely throw out the older, and more generally held theory. I speak here for the generality of readers, and I may presume on knowing something of what this generality reads and thinks because my work is of a character to put me in constant touch with the same. I myself agree with Sadler; and I am sure "that all lovers of truth" who are well informed on the matter will welcome the dissemination of the new theory. But even so I can't help but think that these same men will believe that the new account should have been placed alongside of the old instead of being made to replace it.

 

A far more damaging criticism of the Revision is that it mixes up Gould and Crowe in such wise that one can't be sure whether he is reading one or the other. The reviser has done something that very few revisers of books that are of such a standing have had the temerity to do: he has not added his corrections and revisions in footnotes and appendices where such matter should normally go; he has rewritten much of the text itself, and done it in such wise as to leave the reader quite in the dark as to which is the new and which the old. A quotation from each edition will tell its own story: The following is from page 349 of the original:

 

"In 1870, Lord Zetland retired from the Grand East, and was succeeded by Earl de Grey and Ripon, who, however, subsequently became a Roman Catholic, retired from Masonry in 1874. The office of Grand Master was then accepted by the Prince of Wales, who had been initiated by the King of Sweden in 1869, and the Heir Presumptive to the throne was installed amid the plaudits of a vast assemblage of British Masons in 1875. Two years later the Dukes of Connaught and Albany were invested as Senior and Junior Grand Wardens respectively, and in 1885 Prince Albert Victor, eldest son of the Prince of Wales, was initiated by the Grand Master in person. King Edward VII, on his recent accession to the throne, laid down the Grand Mastership, in which he was succeeded by the Duke of Connaught, but graciously consented to act as the Protector of the Craft.

 

"The number of lodges on the roll at the present time is 2,350. Of these 512 are held in the London District, 1,374 in the Provinces, and 464 (which includes three in Military Corps) in places beyond the seas.

 

So far Gould. In Crowe's edition the following paragraphs are inserted between the two paragraphs as given above:

 

"On his death in 1910, King George V became Patron of the Boys' and Girls' Institution, whilst Queen Mary became Patroness, and Queen Alexandra Chief Patroness of the Girls' Institution. Prince Arthur of Connaught was initiated in 1911.

 

"In 1913 Grand Lodge acquired the Crowe Collection of historical documents, warrants, diplomas, etc., the unique results of nearly thirty years' world-wide search and study.

 

"The Freemasons' War Hospital was opened in Fulham Road in August, 1916, and after doing invaluable work during that terrible period, is now a permanent Masonic Nursing Home.

 

"Especial Grand Lodges were held in the Albert Hall on June 24, 1917, to commemorate the bicentenarY of the forming of the First Grand Lodge of the World in 1717; and in 1919 for the celebration of peace; each being attended by some 8,000 brethren, and many deputations from other English-speaking Grand Lodges in the Colonies and America.

 

"The connection of our Royal Family with the Craft was further strengthened by the initiation of H. R. H. the Prince of Wales in 1919, followed after a short interval by his brother Prince Albert."

 

It will be interesting to note the changes in statistics since Gould wrote: "The number of lodges on the roll to June, 1920, 3,566. Of these 810 are held in the London District, 2,028 in the Provinces, and 728 (which included two in Military Corps) in places beyond the seas."

 

The reader of the Revised Edition will doubtless be grateful enough for the new information but what about the ethics of the thing? What right has one author to interpose his own material, without explanation or identifying marks, into the pages of another man's book? Once a reader of the Revised Edition learns what trick has been played on him he will be suspicious all through, and feel uncomfortable from not knowing, at any given point, whether he be reading Crowe or Gould. Brother Crowe could have placed all his new facts and figures in foot-notes and left the original text untouched, as it should have been especially since the man to whom it rightfully belongs can't now have a say concerning his own.

 

A more unfortunate thing still, according to my own view of the matter, is the fact that Brother Crowe has cut out of the original text some seventy-five or so pages of text! That appears to be a rather extraordinary liberty to take with a man's book! a book that has become a classic in its own field! Moreover, the ethics of the matter aside, the pages excised were entitled of their own right to remain where their author placed them. I cannot agree with Brother Crowe that they were "tedious or irrelevant." Consider, for example, the closing pages of Chapter II, which deals with Medieval Operative Masonry: Brother Crowe has completely dropped out there whole pages of Gould's text which dealt with the very important matter of the decline of the Operative Guilds and the reasons therefore, along with a brief criticism, often noted, of the views of Fergusson's "History of Architecture."

 

From the "great chapter" on the Rosicrucians - or rather the section of that chapter which deals with them - Brother Crowe has dropped twenty-one pages! Why, it is hard to guess, and I am sure that the great number of Masonic students in this country, who have access to few books, and who so frequently have only the Concise History to refer to, and who read so often in our journals that some things in modern Masonry have come from the Rosicrucians, will have just cause for complaint when they discover that the new edition gives them less information than ever on a subject on which it is so difficult to get any information at all.

 

Furthermore, the excisions just noted include most of what Gould had to say about the Kabbala (Cabala, he spelled it), and that also is unfortunate, especially since there seems to be a tendency on the part of scholars of the day to believe that from Kabbalism we have received certain of the major items of the Master's Degree, The Lost Word, Solomon's Temple, The Great Pillars, etc. Ever since I first tried to study the symbols of the Craft I have been convinced that we are greatly indebted to that strange literature, and I have been glad recently to see that gifted and well equipped contemporary students are holding the same positions. From a regular reading of the Masonic press of this nation I know that the Kabbala comes up for frequent mention and discussion, and I feel sure accordingly that many who purchase the Revised Edition of the Concise will feel a disappointment that Gould said so little about it, that most of what little he did say has been excised, and that the erudite editor has not added something on the subject by way of footnote or appendix.

 

A similar thing may be said about the Comacini. Gould himself believed the whole Comacine hypothesis to be a cloud castle, at least such is the impression I have gained from his too brief remarks on the subject. In the Revised his remarks are briefer still: they are brief almost to the vanishing point. Considering how the Comacines have come to the front of Masonic attention (I am speaking for this country) and how much has been said about them in recent books and outstanding treatises, it is a matter for regret that Brother Crowe, in bringing the Concise History up to date, did not give us a brief appendix on the matter. His presentation of the subject would have been richly worth while.

 

I came to the reading of the Revised Edition entirely predisposed in favor of Brother Crowe's efforts: first, because I was glad to see the old Concise once again brought to the attention of Masonic readers: secondly, because I have read enough from Brother Crowe's pen, and heard enough about his Masonic activities, to believe him abundantly capable of doing such a task as the Revision of Gould with entire credit to himself and satisfaction to us all. My dissatisfaction with his work, now that I have gone through it (and that with considerable care, if I may be permitted to say as much) rests not on grounds of personal feelings but on grounds of fact. He should not have mutilated Gould's own original work: changes, comments, corrections, additions should have been placed in footnotes and appendices, as is the rule in such cases. He should not have dropped anything from the original and should not have added anything in the body of the text. To bring the work "up to date" involved something more than merely changing the statistics. There has been growth in fact and theory as well as numbers. I can't use the Revised Edition with any comfort because I can no longer feel that it is Gould's book that I read: it is neither Gould nor Crowe, but a hybrid compilation that has done violence, I can't help but believe, to one of the master works of a Masonic teacher whose fame lengthens and broadens from year to year.

 

Having said as much, and turning from the unpleasant matters of criticism, the reader will be is ested to compare the Masonry of 1903 with the Masonry of to-day, as the latter has been made possible by Brother Crowe's revision. On relations between English and German lodges he writes (on page 283) as follows: "Owing to the Great War, and the attitude adopted by the German lodges, no intercourse between them and the Allies is allowed at present (1920), nor is this likely to be quickly altered."

 

Of equal interest is this paragraph describing the fortunes of Masonry in Hungary:

 

"Since the foregoing was written the present (1920) Government has suddenly closed all the lodges, and forbidden Freemasonry in Hungary. The furniture and properties have been seized, and the funds distributed in other directions, whilst all officials found to be members have been dismissed and imprisoned."

 

Freemasonry in Sweden has fallen off in membership but gained in number of lodges. Gould wrote in 1903: "The Crown Prince of Sweden and Norway is the National Grand Master, and there are in the jurisdiction twelve St. Andrew's and twenty-one St. John's Lodges, with a total membership of 10,985." On page 304 of the Revised Edition we read: "The King of Sweden, Gustav V, is the National Grand Master, and the Crown Prince his Deputy; there are in the jurisdiction thirteen St. Andrew's and twenty-eight St. John's Lodges, with a total membership of about 8,000."

 

Norway now belongs to the Masonic family as an equal among her peers: "The Grand Lodge, however, became independent again when the Kingdoms separated in 1905. The King is no longer Grand Master, but the rule is democratic. There are three St. Andrew's Lodges and thirteen of St. John, with a membership of 5,812" (Page 305).

 

Holland also furnishes an interesting contrast between 1920 and 1903: on the earlier date Gould wrote, page 387, as follows:

 

"The jurisdiction of the Grand Orient extends over ninety-three lodges, of which twenty-three are in South Africa, and seventeen in the Dutch Colonies. The membership is estimated at 4,269."

 

The Revised Edition, page 307, gives the present statistics:

 

"The jurisdiction of the Grand Orient extends over 108 lodges, of which thirty-one are in South Africa, and twenty-two in the Dutch Colonies. The membership is estimated at 4,800."

 

In 1903 Belgium's Grand Orient governed nineteen lodges with a membership of about 3,500: today "There are twenty-four lodges under its jurisdiction, with a total membership of about 4,100. There is also a Supreme Council 33/ which controls a few Craft lodges in addition" (Page 308).

 

Of Poland Brother Crowe writes: "The resuscitated Kingdom of Poland may again achieve a Grand Lodge, [the reader will recall that Freemasonry was destroyed in Poland in 1821. - H.L.H.] but at present things are in abeyance."

 

In Italy Freemasonry is on the up grade: the Grand Orient, with headquarters at Rome, has 482 lodges with 20,000 members. Freemasonry in Greece has dropped from 2,000 to a,000. Since Gould wrote, Bulgaria has joined the circle, with a Grand Lodge, which was founded in 1917, eleven lodges, and a membership of about 1,000. Servia, also, has joined the family of Grand Lodges: in 1903 there were a few private lodges in Belgrade but no Grand Lodge: in 1919 the Grand Lodge of Serbia, Croatia, and Jugo-Slavia was forrned, with seven lodges and 270 members.

 

It is of interest to note, on the basis of the new statistics furnished by Brother Crowe, that in Europe the tendency seems almost everywhere to be toward smaller lodges.

 

----o----

 

PUBLICATIONS WANTED, FOR SALE, AND EXCHANGE

 

We are constantly receiving inquiries from members of the Society and others as to where they might obtain books on Masonry and kindred subjects, other than those listed each month on the inside back cover of TEIE BUILDER. Most of the publications wanted have been out of print for years. Believing that many such books might be in the hands of other members of the Society willing to dispose of them we are setting apart this column each month for the use of our members. Communications from those having old Masonic publications will also be welcomed.

 

Postoffice addresses are here given that those interested may communicate direct with each other, no responsibility of any nature to be attached to the Society.

 

It is requested that all brethren whose wants may be filled through this medium communicate with the Secretary so that the notices may then be discontinued.

 

WANTED

 

By Bro. D. D. Berolzheimer, 1 Madison Ave., New York, N. Y.: "Realities of Masonry," Blake, 1879; "Records of the Hole Craft and Fellowship of Masons," Condor, 1894; "Masonic Bibliography," Carson, 1873; "Origin of Freemasonry," Paine, 1811.

 

By Bro. Ernest E. Ford, 30S South Wilson Avenue, Alhambra, California; Ars Quatuor Coronatorum, volumes 3, 6 and 7, with St. John's Cards, also St. John's Cards for volumes 4 and 5; "Masonic Review," early volumes; "Voice of Masonry," early volumes; Transactions Supreme Council Southern Jurisdiction for the years 1882 and 1886; Original Proceedings of The General Grand Encampment Knights Templar for the years 1826 and 1835.

 

By Bro. David E. W. Williamson, P. O. Box 764, Reno, Nevada: Perdiguier's "Livre du Compagnonnage," and W. H. Rylands' "Freemasonry in the Seventh Century," quoted in Gould's "Concise History of Freemasonry."

 

By Bro. E. A. Marsh, 820 Broad Ave., N. W., Canton, Ohio: "The Traditions of Freemasonry," by A.T.C. Pierson, published at St. Paul, Minn., January 1865.

 

By Bro. Silas H. Shepherd, Hartland, Wisconsin, "Catalogue of the Masonic Library of Samuel Lawrence," "Second Edition of Preston's Illustrations of Masonry."

 

FOR SALE OR EXCHANGE

 

By Bro. Silas H. Shepherd, Hartland, Wisconsin, "Stray Leaves from a Freemason's Note Book," by George Oliver. This volume also contains "Some Account of the Schism shoveling the presumed origin of the Royal Arch Degree." Univ. Mas. Lib. edition. Price $3.00. "Lights and Shadows of Freemasonry," by Robert Morris. (Fiction and anecdotes.) Price $3.50.

 

By Bro. F. R. Johnson, 3425 East 61st St., Kansas City, Mo., "The History of Freemasonry," by Robert Freke Gould, published by the John C. Yorkston Co., silk cloth binding, first-class condition, four volumes, $17.00; "History of Freemasonry," by J. W. S. Mitchell, P. G. M. of Missouri 1844-45, full morocco binding, $15.00; "The History of Freemasonry," by Albert G. Mackey, seven volumes, practically new, $30.00; "The Standard History of Freemasonry," by J. Fletcher Brennan, published in 1886, one volume; "Gems from the Quarry," by John H. Brownell, Editor of the American Tyler, 1893, $6.00; "Antiquities of the Orient Unveiled," by M. Walcott Redding, 1877, $5.00; "History and Cyclopedia," by Oliver and Macoy, full morocco binding, $10.00.

 

----o----

 

THE QUESTION BOX

 

THE BUILDER is an open forum for free and fraternal discussion. Each of its contributors writes under his own name, and is responsible for his own opinions. Believing that a unity of spirit is better than a uniformity of opinion, the Research Society, as such, does not champion any one school of Masonic thought as over against another, but offers to all alike a medium for fellowship and instruction, leaving each to stand or fall by its own merits.

 

The Question Box and Correspondence Column are open to all members of the Society at all times. Questions of any nature on Masonic subjects are earnestly invited from our members, particularly those connected with lodges or study clubs which are following our "Bulletin Course of Masonic Study." When requested, questions will be answered promptly by mail hPfere publication in this department.

 

HANFORD MacNIDER, NATIONAL COMMANDER OF THE AMERICAN LEGION

 

Is the newly-elected National Commander of the American Legion a member of the Masonic Fraternity? A good many of us in the Legion are anxious to know this.

 

D. F. W., New York.

 

He is.

 

Hanford MacNider, the newly-elected National Commander of the American Legion, was born at Mason City, Iowa, October 2, 1887. He attended the public schools in that city, and graduated from Milton Academy, Milton, Massachusetts, in June 1903, and from Harvard University in 1911.

 

MacNider was a member of the Iowa National Guard, and served as First Lieutenant in the Second Iowa Infantry on the Mexican Border. At the beginning of the World War he went to the Officers' Training Camp at Fort Snelling, Minnesota, and was given a commission as Second Lieutenant and assigned to the Ninth Regulars, U. S. Army. He was ordered to France and arrived there September 20, 1917. The Ninth Infantry fought through all the great battles of the War, alongside the famous Sixth' Marines, both regiments being in the Second Division of the U. S. Army.

 

He was promoted from Second Lieutenant to Lieutenant Colonel and Divisional Adjutant of the Second Division, and remained with the Army of Occupation, returning with his regiment at the same time that General John J. Pershing returned.

 

MacNider received many decorations, among them the following: Distinguished Service Cross and One Cluster, Chevalier d'Legion Honneur, Croix de Guerre (five citations, 5 palms, one gold and one silver star), Fourragere, and the Italian War Cross. In addition to these he was given three other citations in General Orders.

 

Hanford MacNider is a member of Benevolence Lodge No. 145, A. F. & A. M., Benevolence Chapter No. 46, R. A. M., Antioch Commandery No. 43, all of Mason City, Iowa; El Kahir Temple A. A. O. N. M. S., Cedar Rapids, Iowa, and DeMolay Consistory, A. & A. S. R., Clinton, Iowa. He is a Past Eminent Commander of his Commandery.

 

 

* * *

 

SENATOR MEDILL McCORMICK'S LODGE

 

Can you advise me whether or not Senator Medill McCorrnick is a Mason and, if so, the name and number of his lodge ?

 

J. B. F., Pennsylvania.

 

Senator Medill McCormick is a member of Albany Park -Lodge No. 974, A. F. & A. M., located in Chicago. Illinois.

 

* * *

 

THOMAS NAST, "FATHER OF THE AMERICAN CARTOON"

 

Was Thomas Nast, "Father of the American Cartoon" (1840-1902), a Mason?

 

"Thomas Nast," by Albert Bigelow Paine, (The MacMillan Co., 1904), contains many interesting cartoons. There are several of Giuseppe Garibaldi, one on page 457 commemorating his life and career. Nast fought in the Garibaldian expedition. On page 451 is another cartoon, "After All," commemorating the death of President Garfield. Can you tell me the name of the author of the poem contained in it, which is as follows:

 

AFTER ALL

Despite the prayers and tears and earnest pleading

And piteous protest o'er a hero's fall,

Despite the hopeful signs our hearts misleading,

Death cometh after all!

 

O'er the bright scenes are clouds descending;

The flame soars highest ere its deepest fall;

The glorious day has all too swift an ending;

Night cometh after all!

 

O'er bloom or beauty now in our possession

Is seen the shadow of the funeral pall;

Though Love and Life make tearful intercession,

Death cometh after alll

 

Of interest, too, is the cartoon on page 191, "The American River Ganges." Of this Paine says "Nast summed up the Ring's (Tweed) attempt to retain power through concessions to the Church in the 'American River Ganges' which stands today as the most terrible arraignment of sectarianism in the public schools, as well as one of the most powerful pictures that Thomas Nast ever drew."

 

J. J. T., Ohio.

 

The name of Thomas Nast does not appear on the membership rolls in the Grand Secretaries' offices in either New York or New Jersey.

 

Perhaps some of our members can enlighten us as to whether or not Nast was a Freemason, and also as to the author of the poem quoted by Brother J. J. T.

 

* * *

 

OPERATIVE AND SPECULATIVE MASONIC TEACHINGS

 

Through your efforts Masonry has been traced far back. Was original and ancient Masonry the same as we have it today ? I understand the ritual is not so old, but were the teachings the same and the lessons the same when it existed only in an Operative sense?

V. D. R., Illinois.

 

Your question covers so large a field that it is necessary to answer it in a very general way. Speaking in that fashion it may be safely said that the Operative Masons, so far as we have knowledge of them, taught the same things that we now teach: a high standard of morality; trust in a personal God; the broth erhood of man, and life eternal. But in a more specific way they differed much from us. They were attached to the Roman Catholic church, and accordingly made oath to be true thereto. They did not stress democracy and equality in political and social life as we do; neither did they strive to become a universal fraternity. The principal purpose of an Operative lodge was the erection of a building, and all other matters were naturally made subordinate to that. With us, on the contrary, the building process has been reduced to a system of symbolism, and our principal purpose is the building of men in moral, spiritual, and social life. Also, it should be ever borne in mind, at the time of the formation of modern Speculative Masonry many things came into Masonry from non-Masonic sources, and these greatly enriched the ritual and philosophy of the Fraternity so that, as compared with the Order as we now know it, the Freemasonry of the old Operative days was very meager.

 

* * *

 

THE "BLUE LODGE"

 

When, where, how, and by what authority did the first three degrees come to be known as "The Blue Lodge"?

 

C. P. D., Missouri.

 

Of this no man can be certain, though it is said, on the authority of Dr. Oliver, that blue was made the official color by action of the first Grand Lodge in 1717. Aprons were lined with various colors in those days and it appears that all officers of Grand Lodge were ordered to wear aprons lined with blue silk. It is quite possible that the term "Blue Lodge" thus originated. The majority of Masonic scholars believe that the blue used in this connection came more or less accidentally into use, and that the Fraternity never took formal action as to its official color symbolism. See THE BUILDER, Volume II, page 236, and Volume V, page 178.

 

* * *

 

ADMIRAL SIMS

 

The word is going the rounds with us that Admiral Sims is a Mason. Have we any way of being sure of this ?

 

W. R. A., Oregon.

 

Admiral Sims has answered this question for himself in a letter addressed to The Masonic Chronicler of Chicago. The pertinent portion of it is as follows:

 

"I am not a Mason. This is doubtless another mistake (on my part), but I have never joined the Society.

 

"I do not think the error of any particular consequence; nor do I think that the Sinn Fein attack is chiefly based upon a belief that I am a Mason. I do not even know that they have assumed this. Insofar as I am concerned, their stock criticism is that I have attacked the Irish people as a whole, both in Ireland and in America, which of course is wholly untrue. My criticisms were directed solely against the Sinn Feiners in Ireland and in America who aided our enemies during the Great War.

 

"No American citizen who is completely loyal to his own country can have any cause to complain of the manner in which I have denounced the disloyalty of those of our citizens whose activities endanger the peace of the world."

 

* * *

 

THE PAPAL BULL

 

I have been enjoying Bro. Wright's articles on Roman Catholicism and Freemasonry. In that connection may I inquire what is the meaning of the word "bull," as used by the Popes ?

 

A. W. R., Maine.

 

The term is derived from the Latin "bulla" which means a globular object. Inasmuch as the leaden seal used by the Pope is of that general shape it is called a "bull" and the document as a whole has come to take its name from that. Murray's English Dictionary, than which there is no higher authority defines it as follows: (1) A seal attached to an official document; especially, the leaden seal attached to the Pope's edicts. (2) A papal or episcopal edict or mandate.

 

* * *

 

CECIL RHODES

 

I am quite a hero worshipper of Cecil Rhodes. Was he a Mason? Also, while I am inquiring, I should like to ask if Dr. Jameson was a Mason.

G.T., Oklahoma.

 

The editor of The Masonic Journal of South Africa informs us that Cecil Rhodes was a Mason but that Dr. Jameson was not. Also, he says that he has been informed that John Hays Hammond was a member of Columbia Lodge, Johannesburg, but that of this he cannot be sure.

 

* * *

 

WHY WERE THESE VERSES DROPPED FROM OUR NATIONAL ANTHEM?

 

Brother E. M. Johnston of Texas, has sent the four stanzas which follow accompanied by a clipping from The Cambridge Tribune, Cambridge Massachusetts, which states that when first sung there were eight stanzas in "America" and that these four were afterwards eliminated. A search through biographies and histories of hymns and songs has failed to give us the slightest evidence to show that this is true, but it may be that our sources of information were inadequate. Can any reader throw further light on the matter?

 

Our glorious Land today,

Neath Education's sway

Soars upward still.

It's halls of learning fair,

Whose bounties all may share,

Behold them everywhere

On vale and hill.

 

They safeguard Liberty,

The school shall ever be

Our Nation's pride!

No tyrant hand shall smite,

While with encircling might

All here are taught the Right

With Truth allied.

 

Beneath Heaven's gracious will

'The stars of progress still

Our course do sway;

In unity sublime

To broader heights we climb

Triumphant over Time

 

God speeds our way.

Grand birthright of our sires,

Our altars and our fires

Keep we still pure.

Our starry flag unfurled,

The hope of all the world,

In Peace and Light impearled,

God hold secure!

 

* * *

 

THE OLD PROBLEM OF EXCLUSIVE JURISDICTION

 

Can you please explain to me why it is that our American Grand Lodges get so huffy when a foreign Grand Lodge tries to start a lodge in our territory, whereas our own Grand Lodges, New York and Massachusetts, for example, don't hesitate to charter lodges in other countries? It appears that what is sauce for the goose is not sauce for the gander!

 

D.W.A., New York.

 

That is a rather saucy question. In some cases it is quite true that our Grand Lodges are not consistent with their own practices, but after all there is usually a method in their madness. If an American Grand Lodge establishes a subordinate lodge in a foreign country it is in order to take care of American citizens who live in a locality where they could not otherwise enjoy Masonic fellowship. You speak of New York: I suppose you have in mind their Sea and Field lodges. Those lodges were organized in France because our American soldiers could not possibly have joined a French lodge, owing to the fact that so few of our Grand Lodges recognize the French bodies. Furthermore, the question is one of those that cannot be decided offhand or by means of a huge generalization: the fairness of it must be decided in each case, for in the last analysis it is really a question of Masonic efficiency. Each Grand Lodge in this nation is quite abundantly able to care for all residents inside its own jurisdiction, and any duplication of sovereignty would make for confusion and cross purposes. Usually the same facts and conditions that compel exclusive jurisdiction in this land, will justify one of our Grand Lodges in chartering a body in a foreign land. The inconsistency is more apparent than real.

 

* * *

 

PROSCRIBED AFFILIATION

 

Can a Grand Lodge prohibit a Mason from belonging to some other organization ?

 

D. F. H., Vermont.

 

That is a matter for Masonic common law, and therefore must be decided by each Grand Lodge in accordance with its own statutes. That it is constitutional for a Grand Lodge thus to act is affirmed by the Grand Lodge of England which in the famous case of Sir Robert Stout ruled that it constitutes a Masonic offense for a Mason to belong to an organization proscribed by Grand Lodge laws.

 

* * *

 

CIPHER KEYS

 

I have often wondered why Masonry is so strict in forbidding any use of printed ciphers. Take a man in my own situation for example. I have a poor memory and in order to learn even a small portion of the work I must go over it again and again. But that takes up too much of my friends' time and too much of my own. After coming home from a hard day's work I am too weary to go off down town again to study. But if I had the use of a key the matter would be much easier.

 

R. E. G., Iowa.

 

The fact that so many thousands of other busy men have learned the work without a key proves that your difficulties are not insuperable, and that you are not quite justified in asking for a complete reorganization of the laws, rules, and customs of the Fraternity. It may interest you to know the will of the Craft at large on this matter. While he was Grand Master Joseph W. Morris, of Oklahoma, made exhaustive investigations of the subject, during which he wrote to Grand Secretaries of all the Grand Lodges. A catena of the replies he received was printed in the Oklahoma Grand Lodge Proceedings: you will care to see the result. The question was, "Does your Grand Lodge permit the use of Cipher Keys?" The answers are condensed:

 

Washington - I am happy to say we do not.

 

North Carolina - We have no such thing and know nothing about it.

 

Massachusetts - Possession of one here is sufficient grounds for expulsion.

 

California - No, the obligation prohibits it.

 

Arkansas - No, we are drastically against it.

 

Wyoming - Yes, we have it. Don't like it very well.

 

Nevada - No, No, No!

 

Louisiana - Forbidden in this jurisdiction.

 

Alabama - No key of any kind is used.

 

New Jersey - We have none.

 

New York - Its use is prohibited.

 

Missouri - No.

 

Pennsylvania - Not in Pennsylvania.

 

Nebraska - An offense to use it.

 

Virginia - Our work taught orally. Opposed to key.

 

Delaware - We swore we wouldn't and we won't.

 

Maryland - We have no key in any shape or form.

 

New Mexico - Illegal in this state.

 

Minnesota - We have it here. The brethren in general know nothing about it, and I doubt if one in a hundred could make anything out of it.

 

Iowa - We have none.

 

Utah - Very much opposed to its use.

 

Illinois - If you decide to accept it, well and good, but we have always frowned on such action.

 

Wisconsin - I know my advice as Grand Secretary of Wisconsin does not amount to a great deal, but I would suggest to the brethren of Oklahoma to think a great many times before they permit an official key to the work.

 

Florida - Don't have it. Always voted down.

 

Colorado - Yes, we use them, but they are a ghastly thing. Old-fashioned enough down here to stick to the old way.

 

Kentucky - Grand Lodge has never authorized its use, and I hope it never will.

 

Brother Morris summed the whole question up in a forceful manner: "To adopt a key to our esoteric work would mean that eventually the conferring of the degrees would have little effect on the initiates and they would be possessed with the idea that Masonry is not such a hidden treasure after all; that their conception of its having been handed down to us from mouth to ear through the centuries past, is but a myth, and not a reality. Adopt a key; do away with our lecture force and schools of instruction and you will have dealt Oklahoma Masonry a blow from which it will never. never recover."

 

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CORRESPONDENCE

 

INDIAN MASONS

 

I was very much interested in Brother Skinner's article in the October number of THE BUILDER on "Little Wolf Joins the Mitawin.” It certainly would be interesting to know the names of Indians who were and are members of the Fraternity. We know that Red Jacket, Chief of the Six Nations of New York, was a Mason; and Eli S. Parker, a descendant of Red Jacket, was a Mason and at one time Grand Orator of the Grand Lodge of Illinois. The Indian Chief Tecumseh was also a member of the Order.

 

Will not the members of the Research Society add names to this list?

 

Of course, this has nothing to do with Brother Skinner's article, but the thought came to me as I read his article.

 

I have wondered if Black Hawk, Shabbonee, Logan and other prominent characters in history were members of the Fraternity.

 

O. B. Slane, Illinois.

 

* * *

 

MASONRY IN SOUTH AFRICA

 

Being interested to learn something about the status quo of Grand Lodges and other Masonic bodies in South Africa, we wrote for information to Brother William Morster, Editor of the Masonic Journal of South Africa, who was kind enough to send us the following:

 

ENGLISH LODGES

 

England has District Grand Lodges in Capetown, Natal, The Eastern Division of the Cape Province (known as the Eastern Division, South Africa), the Central Division, with headquarters at Kimberley, and Johannesburg, which takes in the whole of the Transvaal.

 

The Central Division has one lodge, I think, in the Free State, and is chiefly concerned with the northern part of Cape Colony - Vryburg, Mafeking, etc. The Eastern Division of South Africa takes in as far as Matatiele, in Griqualand East, and Heilbron, in the Free State. The Western Division (Capetown) naturally takes in the western portion of the Cape Province. Natal, of course, takes in Natal, but has also some lodges in the Free State, at Ficksburg, Bethlehem and Lindley. The Transvaal takes in only the Transvaal. Bulawayo and Rhodesian lodges work direct from England, Scotland or Ireland (I am not sure if there are any Irish lodges there), while the Netherlands lodges work from Capetown.

 

SCOTTISH LODGES

 

Theise are District Grand Lodges of the Cape, Natal, the Eastern Districts (called the District Grand Lodge of the Eastern Province, Cape Province), and the Transvaal. In the Transvaal we take in all the Free State as well. Natal sticks to Natal, and the Cape Districts to their respective territories.

 

IRISH LODGES

 

There is a Provincial Grand Lodge with headquarters at Johannesburg. There are some exceptions (some Cape lodges dealing direct with Ireland), but otherwise the whole of South Africa comes under R.’.W.’. Brother Dr. William Russell, Provincial Grand Master for South Africa.

 

NETHERLANDS

 

The Deputy Grand Master is Worshipful Brother Silberbauer, at Capetown, and he has the whole of the Union, excepting Transvaal which is under Provincial Grand Master, Brother William B. M. Vogts. There is also a Provincial Grand Master at Capetown.

 

ROYAL ARCH, MARK AND EXCELLENT MASTER DEGREES

 

These are worked variously. For instance, there are District Grand Chapters under the English, but Grand Superintendents, only, (as far as the Transvaal is concerned, at least), in the Scottish. I am at present M. E. Z. of a Chapter under the Scottish, a member of the Alpha 18d under the English, and a member of various Craft lodges under the English and Scottish Constitutions. We get somewhat mixed in the Royal Arch. In the Irish one has to take the Mark before the Royal Arch, but does not get the Excellent Master. In the Scottish you must have the Mark and take the Excellent Master before you can take the Royal Arch. Or, if affiliating, you must have the Excellent Master given you before you can remain in and see the degree worked in full. In the English you need not take either Mark or Excellent Master ( in fact the latter degree is not worked at all) before taking the Royal Arch. A lovely mix-up, and my idea is that one of the most useful things a Grand Lodge could do would be to simplify and standardize these things.

 

Wm. Morster, South Africa.

 

* * *

 

WHO WAS COUNSELLOR SCHOTT?

 

I have in my possession an old map of King Solomon's Temple that has been in my family for over seventy years, and as far as I know is the only one in existence, but I have been unable to obtain but very little information regarding it.

 

It is a map about 30 x 36 inches, and at the top is the following: "A BEAUTIFUL AND ACCURATE ELEVATION OF THE TEMPLE OF SOLOMON, TAKEN FROM THE CELEBRATED MODEL ERECTED BY COUNSELLOR SCHOTT AT HAMBURG, ORNAMENTED WITH THE MOST INTERESTING PASSAGES IN THE LIVES OF KING DAVID AND SOLOMON HIS SON."

 

Can any reader give me information as to who Counsellor Schott was, or regarding this map ?

 

It is considered a rare relic here, and I am desirous of learning more of its history if I possibly can.

 

John F. George, Pennsylvania.

 

* * *

 

DIVISION OF TIME IN THE REIGN OF KING ALFRED

 

I have in my library an edition of Hume's History of England, a work of six volumes, by David Hume, and I find on page 75, of volume 1, in his account of the reign of King Alfred, the following:

 

"He usually divided his time into three equal portions; one was employed in sleep and the refection of his body by diet and exercise; another in the dispatch of business; a third in study and devotion; and that he might more exactly measure the hours, he made use of burning tapers of equal length which he fixed in lanterns."

 

W. H. Stowell, Iowa.

 

* * *

 

THE TUPELO CROSSES

 

Behold how good and how pleasant it is for brethren to work together! Ye editor, who is not an ethnologist or the son of an ethnologist, was unable to explain the origin of the crosses concerning which a letter appeared on page 336 of this Department for November last, so he passed the problem on to the members of the Society. And now witness the results. Brother Thorp B. Jennings, Past Grand Master of the Grand Council of Royal and Select Masters of Kansas, writes that "The two crosses shown on page 336 of THE BUILDER for November, are religious crosses. The one with three arms is a Bishop's cross; the one with two arms, that of a priest, and such a cross with one arm is a layman's cross."

 

The following letter on the subject is from the Assistant Curator, Department of Anthropology of the Milwaukee Public Museum. on whose article in the October issue of THE BUILDER entitled "Little Wolf Joins the Mitawin," a large number of commendatory letters have been received from members of the Society:

 

In the Correspondence Department of THE BUILDER for November there is an interesting illustrated account of some silver crosses excavated near Tupelo, Miss., with some speculations as to their origin and use. As the writer has had the good fortune to see and handle a number of similar specimens in the course of his ethnological and archeological investigations he is taking the liberty of offering a little further light on the subject.

 

Crosses of this type came into considerable vogue among all the North American Indians under French domination about the close of the seventeenth century, and were largely made by silversmiths resident in Montreal for the Indian trade, and were not, as one would naturally suppose, given out by the early Roman Catholic missionaries, or at least not to any extent. They were made to be attractive to the Indians, quite without regard to religious significance, and were presented by traders and agents alike to Indians of influence, who were often pagans. A few of these still survive in the hands of living Indians, to whom they have descended as heirlooms, although by far the greater part of them have been found, as were the Tupelo specimens, in graves or on old Indian village sites. I have myself known them to have been found in the possession of Iroquois, Ottawa, Miami, Peoria, and Sioux Indians, and there are several double and single silver crosses in this Museum (Milwaukee Public Museum), mainly from Wisconsin and Michigan. I have seen a few that were undoubtedly made by native Indian silversmiths in imitation of the Montreal French work, but most have the hallmark, or in some cases the word "Montreal" stamped on them. The triple cross figured by Brother Riley from Tupelo has an indistinct stamp on it, which may well be a hallmark.

 

Francis Victor Malhiot, in charge of the North West Fur Company's Trading Post at Lac du Flambeau, Wis., in a statement of goods sent for trade with one snsuans, mentions under a list of silverware, "9 large double crosses," and "6 medium-sized do." Of these it is said that three of the former were brought back to the post by the trader's agent in May 1805, the Indians having bartered for the rest.

 

In his journal for Sept. 17, 1761, Sir Wm. Johnson notes that among the silver ornaments which he left at Detroit to be forwarded to Lt. Gorrell at the British Military Post at Fort Mackinac were ninety large silver crosses. Lt. Gorrell left Mackinac to take charge of the similar post at Green Bay, Wis., on the twelfth of the month following, and probably brought many of the crosses with him.

 

Further data on these interesting relics may be found in the Seventy-third Bulletin of the New York State Museum, "Metallic Ornaments of the New York Indians," by Bro. Wm. M. Beauehamp, and in Vol. 9, No. 4, (p. 104) of the Wisconsin Archeologist, where there is an article entitled "Silver Trade Crosses,'' by Chas. E. Brown.

 

In this connection it is interesting to note that the Iroquois Indians of New York State formerly had many Masonic brooches, beaten out of coin silver by their native smiths, two of which are even now in the possession of the writer. These emblem were also used without knowledge of their significance in most cases, the Indians often wearing them upside down. They also vary from realistic squares and compasses flanked by the two immortal columns to such highly conventionalized examples, with many embellishments, that the extreme forms are hard to recognize.

 

It is well known that the famous Mohawk Iroquois chief, Joseph Brant, who flourished during the period of the American Revolution, was a Mason, raised, if I remember correctly, in England, and it is also known that he was prompt to rush to the aid of worthy distressed brethren in time of battle or Indian raids. Red Jacket, the Indian Orator (Seneca Iroquois), is often claimed as a Mason, although I am not certain upon what authority, and doubtless there were others at a very early date.

 

At the present time the members of the Craft among various Indian tribes are legion, but I am not aware of any exclusively Indian lodge of Masons, all the Indian brethren whom I know personally belonging to regularly constituted white lodges. As I have shown in a recent number of THE BUILDER (for October) the elements of Freemasonry, of a primitive, and I do not in the least doubt, ancient sort, are widespread among our native tribes, quite independently of white influence.

 

Alanson B. Skinner. Wisconsin.

 

Just before we go to press comes another letter on the subject from a brother in Michigan:

 

In the November issue of THE BUILDER an article entitled "Crosses Excavated Near Tupelo, Miss.," notes the finding of several crosses and asks opinions as to their origin and historical value. The writer has made a considerable study of American Archaeology and has collected about five thousand or more articles from field and mound in his home county, ranging from broken arrow points to copper knives.

 

The crosses in question are undoubtedly of Roman Catholic origin, and similar crosses, especially those with two cross bars, are not infrequently taken from mounds or other burial places from Maine to the Mississippi, and from the Ohio to Duluth, with others occasionally found in the Spanish portions of the South, and up and down the Mississippi from the source to the mouth.

 

I know of at least four or five that have been found in this (Saginaw) county, and these finds, as in other places, have given rise to foolish tales of buried hoards of silver, and even gold. The crosses were distributed by missionary priests, and were held in more or less esteem by the Indians as charms or amulets. They were only presented to favored "converts" of influence or power, and were then, as now, symbols of the Christian faith.

 

The Roman Catholic faith appealed to certain tribes of Indians, as it does to certain nationalities of white people, for the Indians were as different, tribe from tribe, as the French are different from the Germans, the English from the Russians, etc.

 

To some Indians the ceremonies of the priests were more or less mummeries. Others grasped the spiritualistic significance of that same ritualism, this depending, as among the whites, upon the type of mind of the individual or tribe.

 

Brother Riley may be assured that there is no Masonic significance in these crosses, for Craft Masonry universal is not and cannot be sectarian. No Order which lays aside the lambskin and adopts so purely a sectarian emblem as the Latin cross can be Masonic in its best and noblest aspect.

 

Fred Dustin, Michigan.

 

----o----

 

A DEPARTMENT OF INDIAN AFFAIRS

 

This is to announce an addition to our staff of editors in the person of Brother Alanson B. Skinner, Assistant Curator of the Anthropological Department of the Public Museum of the City of Milwaukee. Brother Skinner is exceptionally well versed in Indian lore, especially as regards secret societies, initiations, and all that, and he is an earnest Masonic student.

 

If you have any question to ask about the American Indians and any connections they may have with Freemasonry and allied themes, address your queries to Brother Skinner, care THE BUILDER.

 

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