Can Roman Catholics Be Masons.

as though the rules established by them to render adoration to the Divinity were immutable and eternal . As it will be seen from the foregoing , the Mason and the Catholic profess very diverse ideas and pursue a distinct end , and it is therefore impossible for them to associate in their

labours . But there is still more ; the voice of the Roman Pontiff has been heard anathematising Masonry , and for that reason the Catholic is prohibited from joining our Lodges . Why then do many Catholics venture to solicit Masonic light ? Because perfidious and artful they desire to know our secrets

to immediately divulge them ; because astute hypocrites , not being able to overcome us on the grounds of legality and justice , they come to offer us their aid , pretending to introduce into Masonry dissolvent elements that later will end by debiliating its power , without considering that if at the expense

of their machinations' they manage to extinguish a , Lodge , to-morrow it will re-open full of life , because Masonry is the Phoenix which rises from its own ashes . We should not , therefore , admit Catholics to our meeting , and the Lodge that allows them to enter will only be harbouring the viper that will

subsequently poison it with its morsure . Thus , when a Catholic seeks Masonic light , we should give the alarming voice , because treason calls at the doors of our temple ; and ' ts precinct is going to be profaned . —Nicolas Perez Morales , in " Boletin Masonico " ( Mexico ) .

On To Labour.

ON TO LABOUR .

Y AC ATI ON ended , next week Labour will be resumed . Again will be heard the sound of the gavel in the East . It is a pleasing and commanding sound . It not only commands attention and obedience , but proclaims the summer months of refreshment are over and the autumn months of

labour are begun . Let us resolve , at the outset , that we will do everything in our power for the advancement of the best interests of our

several Masonic bodies : They made us Masons , they have conferred upon us instruction and pleasure , which all of us must be ready to acknowledge , and our loyalty to them is a debt of gratitude which each one of us owes to the Craft .

Prompt attendance at meetings is the first duty which Lodge , Chapter , Council and Commandery have the right to expect from every member who is not prevented by some physical disability . We may not justifiably ignore any meeting . There are applicants for initiation whose character it is

our duty to scan , current business to which we should pay attention , fraternal greetings which we owe to our Brethren and Companions who are faithful in the performance of their duties . We should contribute our share in looking after the

finances and in dispensing the charities of our several Masonic bodies . In a multitude of counsellors there is strength . The many , not the few , should , for example , " run " the Lodge . If the few do " run " it , it is because tire many resign their rights to them .

Work will now be the order of the day , and it should be duly performed . This cannot be done without conscientious effort . It is not easy to confer the degrees . It involves the acquirement of correct work , a faithful and labourious effort

to familiarise one ' s self with all of its parts , an attempt to deliver it in an earnest and impressive manner , and to have all of the Officers , elective and appointed , perform their parts in a workmanlike manner , so that there may be a harmonious mosaic , a complete presentation of the entire degree .

In order to perform good work there must be good material . Just as a decayed stone will mar and endanger an edifice , so an unworth y candidate will be unimpressed by the ceremony of initiation and injure the institution . He who is defective in intellectual or moral intelligence will not

be able to perceive the moral and intellectual beauties of the Craft . He who is morall y deaf and intellectually dumb is better fitted to be received into an asylum or a reformatory than into a Masonic Lodge . Freemasonry was not designed

to reform any man . It requires its initiates to be men , physically , intellectually and morally sound , upright and of good report , in order that they may enjoy and profit by the beautiful symbology and allegories of our Fraternity . How shall only such candidates be secured ?

Upon Committees of Inquiry on the petitions of applicants for initiation and membership rests the primary , and often the chief responsibility for ascertaining the fitness of their candidate ' s physical , intellectual , and moral prepar-

On To Labour.

ation . Ideals upon this subject are entirely too lax in the Cratt . You cannot determine all the questions involved simply by seeing the applicant . You are to learn his general reputation among those who know him best , his character among his business associates , his standing in society . We

owe it to our r raternity to see to it that it receives as much as it gives . The candidate should be an ornament to Freemasonry , no less than it should be an ornament to him . The Craft relies mainly upon the Committee of Inquiry to ascertain these facts , and they should do it thoroughly , so that no blame

may afterwards attach to them . Then no rough ashlars will be built into the Craft to mar its harmony and good order , no preparation will be made for future trials and possible

suspensions or expulsions . Look to it at the commencement of this autumn term of labour . that good candidates are offered , to have good work performed upon them , so that all things may be done ¦ ' decently and in order . "

Although we are called on to Labour , it will not be all Labour . This is not the system of the Craft . It designedly mingles refreshment with labour . Freemasonry emphatically believes that the labourer is worthy of his hire , and very often after he has well , performed his duty , he finds that he is

rewarded with a season of conviviality and good fellowship around the festive board . The one error with regard to this is having it at so late an hour that no one can adequately enjoy it . It is little or no pleasure to " eat and run . " The enjoyment consists in leisurely chatting with the Brethren between

courses , sharing in the creature comforts of the table , and participating in the post-prandial felicities of song , speech , and recitation . Thus , when we are called on to Labour we are called also to Refreshment . The two frequently go together .

Let us enjoy both . Let us be earnest , active , intelligent Freemasons , appreciating in the fullest manner the honour conferred upon us by the Craft , and striving to manifest this appreciation by our devotion to the Fraternity . — " Keystone . "

As A Garment.

AS A GARMENT .

rip RUE Masonry should fit as a garment . It should do JL tor every-clay as well as Lodge-night wear . True Masonry elevates a man to the dignity of manhood , and there are none so humble but that they are entitled to our tenderest

consideration . I have little patience with that variety of Masonry that only touches the high places . If a man be admitted into the ranks of our sacred Order it is an evidence , or should be , that he is entitled to our esteem .

We cannot all be on dress parade every day of our lives . The drum-major who has no other calling may do so , but there are a lot of us who are only soldiers in the ranks and we are obliged to get our uniforms soiled as we battle in the

fiejd . It does me good to meet up with one of those oldfashioned yeomen who are as brave as Cassar and as honest as the day . With them Masonry is no mockery , but an honest , earnest and glorious reality .

Such are the men who have been made Masons in their hearts , and it fits them like their garments , only it grows stronger and better the longer that it is worn . There is something sublime in the lives of those who endeavour to live up to the teachings of our sacred Order without making

any particular display of their attainments . They are the bone and sinews of Masonry . They may never sit in the East , but they are filled with the light that emanates therefrom . Masonry is not for a season , but for all time and for eternity as well . The time-server who goes into the Order

for the mere personal and selfish worldly benefits to be derived from it is no true Mason . Fie is only a makeshift whom our boundless charity tolerates while our better instincts deplore his shortsightedness . There is no selfishness in true Masonry , and its adherents are always ready to lend a helping-hand to a Brother in distress .

Then we are prone to construe the word " distress " into the ignobler meaning of financial embarrassment or the lack of funds with which to carry on the business of life . In its broader and more liberal construction the term means thai : we

should be ready with a word of cheer when we meet with a Brother who is downhearted and ready to give up to despair . A man may be worth thousands of dollars and yet be in great distress . Money is not all there is in life .

There come times m our lives when we walk in the valley and the shadow of some great sorrow . There are times when a kindlv word of cheer will come as a soothing balm to a heart that is sore . It is in such times of distress that temptations