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Article THE OLD YEAR AND THE NEW. Page 1 of 1 Article THE OLD YEAR AND THE NEW. Page 1 of 1
Note: This text has been automatically extracted via Optical Character Recognition (OCR) software.
The Old Year And The New.
THE OLD YEAR AND THE NEW .
NOW thafc tbo " seasonable" festivities of Christmastitle are over , ancl a New Year opens np fresb hopes
and expectations and renewed activities to the work-a-clay world , wo may be allowed to pass on to our readers the compliments we have heard echoed at every street corner and in many a home within the last few dnys of " A
Happy New Tear . " We are accustomed nowa-days—at any rate since we have become familiar wifch the stern realities of life—to hear men of almost every grade give a
parting kick at the Old Year , as he goes out with the dirge of muffled peals , carrying with him all the joys and sorrows , the hopes and disappointments , which bave marked his " tenure of office . " lie is not liko our invariable
Worshipfnl Master , who retires from the scene of his year of labour " with all his blushing honours thick upon him , " and receives a jewel " in recognition of services well and faithfully fulfilled . " True , the departure of the Old Year
is heralded by the sounds of mirth and the festive clinking of glasses all round , and in every grade of society ; yet everybody seems to heave a sigh of relief when the old fellow has fairly gone from us amidst the " wild
bells" that are rung out "to the wild sky , " ancl has given place to the New Year , with all its maiden and hopeful anticipations . The pasfc year , if we may judge from the expressions we hear so universally around
us , has been anything but the " prosperous " one we all of us wished for each other when we stood upon its brink , just twelve months ago . In almost every department of trade , commerce and industry there have been
complainings of depression and stagnation without precedent for many years ; and that there has been a vast amount of suffering and hardship , not merely amongst the chronic poor , but in the ranks of those who are
conventionally designated the " well-to-do "—the tradesman , and the industrious professional classes—there can be very little question . We are perfectly aware that in every season of the year—and " out of season , " too , for that
matter—there are always grumblers and people to whom the cry of "hard times" is perpetual . But Eighteen Hundred and Eighty-five , which has been gone from us only a few brief hours , has undoubtedly been one iu which
more than ordinary justification has been furnished for " complaining in our streets . " Every department of trade and finance has been subject to an abnormal strain , and though probably failures in business have been equalled ,
if nofc surpassed , in some preceding years , yefc the effect of the depression has been more universal and homefelt in the past year than many of the oldest of us recollect for many a long day . Ifc may be that political complications , both
afc home and abroad , have had much to do with this unpleasant state of things , of a mixing up of national interests which have proved so general a source of perplexity with regard to foreign countries , and a change of Government
in our own ; though , as Masons , we trouble ourselves comparatively little with politics , pure and simple . Wifch respect to our Fraternity , there has been little to record except that ifc has pursued the even tenonr of its way ,
adding to its strength and gradually gathering to its numbers ; and , although probably the vicissitudes of life have thrown more than usual upon our charitable and benevolent resources , nevertheless , like the widow ' s cruise and barrel , the compensating results have not altogether
The Old Year And The New.
failed , albeit the demand may have far outstripped the charitable desires and intentions of tho Craft . Many new Lodges have sprung into vigorous existence , testifying to the ever-increasing vitality of our Order , and oir older ones have by no means relaxed their effort ? ,
or diminished in their power of rendering them more extensively useful to our fellow creatures . Let us hope that this spirit will continue to become more coi . * solidated in the year on the threshold of which we now
stand , and that the era which has jusfc been ushered in may witness the increasing solidity , usefulness , aud stability of those principles which we so deeply love and practise . May the principles of Brotherly Love , Relief , and Truth continue to exert themselves over the whole of
the human race , and particularly over those who are ranged under the banner of Freemasonry . We feel assured that they will do so , and that even should discords and difficulties arise in other mundane institutions , harmony and
progress will be the predominant characteristics of ye mystic tie . " Ifc may be that to many of us the " Compliments of the Season " are bufc remote probabilities of the aspiration being fulfilled—to whom iu a retrospect of the
dead year there is little to gladden the heart ; and though there may be faint glimpses of dawning light , a small riffc in the overhanging clouds , yet these aro hardly sufficient to make " the bosom ' s lord sit lightly on his throne . " But if
they cannot rejoice with a light heart , still they may have tho consciousness that they have borne up manfully against an almost overwhelming tide of evil ; they have striven bravely in the face of difficulties , and never given way to
despair , even in the most hopeless circumstances . To them at least there is the consciousness that they have done their best , and have only been conquered by the irresistible force of events . Happily the hand of Charity is never
closed in this blessed England of ours , and more particularly amongst Masons , and so let us hope that the tide may now have turned at last with the departure of the Old year and the advent of the New . We cannot leave the
subject without expressing an earnest hope that the year now commenced will bring forth more prosperity for all classes than that which has just drawn" its last breath , and
that when another twelve months have passed away we shall be able to wish our readers a " Merry Christmas " with some likelihood of its becoming a reality .
For ourselves it is only becoming that we should recognise fche many acts of kindly interest and support displayed towards us in the past year , and to assure our many readers that no effort shall be wanting on our part at least
to deserve a share in the greater prosperity which we wish for alt . In the past year it . haa been our duty and privilege to acknowledge many additions to the roll of our patrons
and friends , and it is our aim ever to do so , whilst still retaining the confidence and respect of old acquaintances . We are conscious of many shortcomings in our endeavours to make the FREEMASON ' S CHRONICLE a faithful reflex and
repertoire of all the most important events in connection with the Craft , but to these our friends have been " a little blind , " whilst to what virtues we may have displayed they have been " ever kind . " In the spirit of amenity which
pervades all classes afc this season , we reciprocate the many kindly wishes we have received for tbe future prosperity of our journal , and with genuine sincerity wish to each and all our
readers—%a §wtymxmmtirIpHpn$E*foKm
Note: This text has been automatically extracted via Optical Character Recognition (OCR) software.
The Old Year And The New.
THE OLD YEAR AND THE NEW .
NOW thafc tbo " seasonable" festivities of Christmastitle are over , ancl a New Year opens np fresb hopes
and expectations and renewed activities to the work-a-clay world , wo may be allowed to pass on to our readers the compliments we have heard echoed at every street corner and in many a home within the last few dnys of " A
Happy New Tear . " We are accustomed nowa-days—at any rate since we have become familiar wifch the stern realities of life—to hear men of almost every grade give a
parting kick at the Old Year , as he goes out with the dirge of muffled peals , carrying with him all the joys and sorrows , the hopes and disappointments , which bave marked his " tenure of office . " lie is not liko our invariable
Worshipfnl Master , who retires from the scene of his year of labour " with all his blushing honours thick upon him , " and receives a jewel " in recognition of services well and faithfully fulfilled . " True , the departure of the Old Year
is heralded by the sounds of mirth and the festive clinking of glasses all round , and in every grade of society ; yet everybody seems to heave a sigh of relief when the old fellow has fairly gone from us amidst the " wild
bells" that are rung out "to the wild sky , " ancl has given place to the New Year , with all its maiden and hopeful anticipations . The pasfc year , if we may judge from the expressions we hear so universally around
us , has been anything but the " prosperous " one we all of us wished for each other when we stood upon its brink , just twelve months ago . In almost every department of trade , commerce and industry there have been
complainings of depression and stagnation without precedent for many years ; and that there has been a vast amount of suffering and hardship , not merely amongst the chronic poor , but in the ranks of those who are
conventionally designated the " well-to-do "—the tradesman , and the industrious professional classes—there can be very little question . We are perfectly aware that in every season of the year—and " out of season , " too , for that
matter—there are always grumblers and people to whom the cry of "hard times" is perpetual . But Eighteen Hundred and Eighty-five , which has been gone from us only a few brief hours , has undoubtedly been one iu which
more than ordinary justification has been furnished for " complaining in our streets . " Every department of trade and finance has been subject to an abnormal strain , and though probably failures in business have been equalled ,
if nofc surpassed , in some preceding years , yefc the effect of the depression has been more universal and homefelt in the past year than many of the oldest of us recollect for many a long day . Ifc may be that political complications , both
afc home and abroad , have had much to do with this unpleasant state of things , of a mixing up of national interests which have proved so general a source of perplexity with regard to foreign countries , and a change of Government
in our own ; though , as Masons , we trouble ourselves comparatively little with politics , pure and simple . Wifch respect to our Fraternity , there has been little to record except that ifc has pursued the even tenonr of its way ,
adding to its strength and gradually gathering to its numbers ; and , although probably the vicissitudes of life have thrown more than usual upon our charitable and benevolent resources , nevertheless , like the widow ' s cruise and barrel , the compensating results have not altogether
The Old Year And The New.
failed , albeit the demand may have far outstripped the charitable desires and intentions of tho Craft . Many new Lodges have sprung into vigorous existence , testifying to the ever-increasing vitality of our Order , and oir older ones have by no means relaxed their effort ? ,
or diminished in their power of rendering them more extensively useful to our fellow creatures . Let us hope that this spirit will continue to become more coi . * solidated in the year on the threshold of which we now
stand , and that the era which has jusfc been ushered in may witness the increasing solidity , usefulness , aud stability of those principles which we so deeply love and practise . May the principles of Brotherly Love , Relief , and Truth continue to exert themselves over the whole of
the human race , and particularly over those who are ranged under the banner of Freemasonry . We feel assured that they will do so , and that even should discords and difficulties arise in other mundane institutions , harmony and
progress will be the predominant characteristics of ye mystic tie . " Ifc may be that to many of us the " Compliments of the Season " are bufc remote probabilities of the aspiration being fulfilled—to whom iu a retrospect of the
dead year there is little to gladden the heart ; and though there may be faint glimpses of dawning light , a small riffc in the overhanging clouds , yet these aro hardly sufficient to make " the bosom ' s lord sit lightly on his throne . " But if
they cannot rejoice with a light heart , still they may have tho consciousness that they have borne up manfully against an almost overwhelming tide of evil ; they have striven bravely in the face of difficulties , and never given way to
despair , even in the most hopeless circumstances . To them at least there is the consciousness that they have done their best , and have only been conquered by the irresistible force of events . Happily the hand of Charity is never
closed in this blessed England of ours , and more particularly amongst Masons , and so let us hope that the tide may now have turned at last with the departure of the Old year and the advent of the New . We cannot leave the
subject without expressing an earnest hope that the year now commenced will bring forth more prosperity for all classes than that which has just drawn" its last breath , and
that when another twelve months have passed away we shall be able to wish our readers a " Merry Christmas " with some likelihood of its becoming a reality .
For ourselves it is only becoming that we should recognise fche many acts of kindly interest and support displayed towards us in the past year , and to assure our many readers that no effort shall be wanting on our part at least
to deserve a share in the greater prosperity which we wish for alt . In the past year it . haa been our duty and privilege to acknowledge many additions to the roll of our patrons
and friends , and it is our aim ever to do so , whilst still retaining the confidence and respect of old acquaintances . We are conscious of many shortcomings in our endeavours to make the FREEMASON ' S CHRONICLE a faithful reflex and
repertoire of all the most important events in connection with the Craft , but to these our friends have been " a little blind , " whilst to what virtues we may have displayed they have been " ever kind . " In the spirit of amenity which
pervades all classes afc this season , we reciprocate the many kindly wishes we have received for tbe future prosperity of our journal , and with genuine sincerity wish to each and all our
readers—%a §wtymxmmtirIpHpn$E*foKm