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  • March 19, 1881
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Freemasonry In China.

FREEMASONRY IN CHINA .

A MOST interesting paper , by Bro . Herbert A . Giles W . M . Ionic , No . 1781 , was read before that Lodge on 1 st June 1880 , and has since , by permission of the District G . Master of Hong Kong , been published in book form . The title is , perhaps , a little misleading , in the sense , at least , that it does not treat of Masonry as now established in

China , bnt of a system which existed in that country ages ago , and which certainly justifies the opinion that something analogous to our Freemasonry was established there at a period very remote from the present . So interesting is it that we have thought it worth while to give an outline of the points which are especially referred to .

Bro . Giles first of all notes that , if by Freemasonry is meant the system now in vogue among western nations , with its ritual of doubtful date , its signs , constitutions , & c , then it certainly does not exist at the present time , and never has existed amon g this people . But if it " points

to that higher and more ethereal scheme of morality , veiled in allegory , and illustrated by symbols drawn from operative Masonry , which was initiated in pre-historic times , when the human race , emerging gradually from savagery and barbarism , first turned to contemplate the wondrous

works of the Great Architect of the Universe , and began to recognise the mutual obligations subsisting between man and man , " then he thinks it will be found that a kind of Masonic system undoubtedly existed in days long anterior to the Christian era . Thus , says Bro . Giles , " from time

immemorial we find the square and compasses used by Chinese writers , either together or separately , to symbolise precisely the same phases of conduct as in our own system of Freemasonry . " The order , however , is reversed , priority being given to the compasses . Other Masonic tools and

appliances are similarly used , the earliest passage within Bro . Giles ' s knowledge , which illustrates this statement , being in the Book of History , in which , in an account of a military exhibition , occurs the passage , " Ye officers of

Government , apply the compasses , " while in another part a magistrate is spoken of as " the man of the level , " or " the level man . " This book , we are told , extends over a period from the twenty-fourth to the seventh century B . C . Even if we take the latter period we note that curious Masonic

expressions were in vogue in the written language over seven centuries before the advent of Christ ; but as the authenticit y of the Book is not in question , this gives a far higher antiquit y to Masonry than has ever been claimed for it . J-n making this latter assertion the writer is so far in error

that enthusiasts as to the antiquity of Masonry , take us hack to the days of Adam and Eve for the origin of Freemasonry , though how sensible men could have advanced so strange a theory , in sober seriousness and in the sense in ¦ which they do advance it , is beyond ordinary comprehension .

Greater authorities still than tlie "Book of History " ^ e certain quotations the author makes , one from the -discourses of the great Philosopher Confucius , and the others from the works of his great disciple Mcncius , who ived two centuries later . In the former caseit seems

, wnen recounting his own degrees of moral progress in lte i the Master tells us that only at seventy years of age c ° nld he venture to follow the inclinations of liis heart without

fear of ' transgressing the limits of the square . ' " The Inscription of the passages in Mcncius is still moro curious , -or there he says , " we are taught that just as the most m ghl y skilled artificers are unable , without the aid of the

Freemasonry In China.

square and compasses , to produce perfect rectangles or perfect circles , so must all men apply their tools figuratively to their lives , and the level and marking-lino besides , if they would walk in the straight and even paths

of wisdom and keep themselves within tho bounds of honour and virtue . " In support he instances three passages from as many different Books by this celebrated writer , namely , Books IV , VI , and VII , respectively . We quote them in their order of sequence : —

( 1 . ) The Compasses and the Square aro the embodiment of the rectangular and tho round , jnst as the prophets of old wero tho em . bodiment of the due relationship between man and man . ( 2 . ) A Master Mason , in teaching his Apprentices , makes use of the Compasses and the Square . Ye who ore engaged in the pursuit of wisdom must also make use of the Compass and the Square .

( 3 . ) A carpenter or a carriage-builder may give a man the Compasses and the Square , but he cannot necessarily make him a skilful workman . These are curious , but equally so is a quotation or translation from " a famous canonical work , commonly

known to foreigners as the Great Learning , the actual authorship of which is a moot point among scholars , though it is admitted on all sides that the text dates from between three and five hundred years before Christ . " In this passage , which inculcates

"that a man should abstain from doing unto others what he would not they should do to him , " it is laid down that "this is called the principle of acting on the square . " Descending to a later period , Bro . Giles makes reference to the Sacred Edict , " a number of moral maxims addressed

to the people by the second Emperor of the reigning dynasty ( 1661-1723 ) , and expanded by the third Emperor , his son . Herein it is laid down that filial piety and fraternal love should be the chief objects in the moral education of children , and that those virtues must be taught by example

as well as precept , so that" the wisdom of our sons may ripen day by day , and they may walk within the limits prescribed by the compasses and the square . " A further point of great value is that " the proverbial philosophy of China teems with allusions of this kind , so that when

the Amoy Masonic Hall was erected , no difficulty was experienced iu finding mottoes for inscription on either side of the entrance door to the Lodge , and accordingly the meaning of those which were inscribed on the respective sides were as follow , namely : — That on the right— " The holy doctrine" —which in a

footnote we are told is " Confucianism "— " in its education of mankind makes use of the Compasses and the Square . " That on the left— " The genius of the sage in the administration of affairs takes the form of the rectangular or

the round . But these figurative expressions are to be found not only in the written language , but also in all the colloquial dialects in vogue at the present date . Thus in every day talk one " who has no ' square and compasses , '" or does

not understand them , is " oblivions of all moral and social obligations , and totally unfit for any society of men who prize honour and virtue above the external advantages of

rank and fortune . ' " The " Cash , " the one and only com current in China , being circular aud having a square hole pierced in it , is considered by the people as " the most perfect svmbol of a perfect man . "

Passing on to the " point within a circle , ' the author says the Chinese have this very symbol , " which is nothing more nor less than the ancient form of the character of

“The Freemason's Chronicle: 1881-03-19, Page 1” Masonic Periodicals Online, Library and Museum of Freemasonry, 12 July 2025, django:8000/periodicals/fcn/issues/fcn_19031881/page/1/.
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Title Category Page
FREEMASONRY IN CHINA. Article 1
THE APPROACHING SCHOOL ELECTIONS. Article 2
A RECORD OF FOUR DAYS' MASONIC WORK AT YORK. Article 4
ST. JOHN'S, No. 1343. Article 6
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CONSECRATION OF THE WALLINGTON LODGE, No. 1892. Article 9
CORRESPONDENCE. Article 10
THE BENEVOLENT FESTIVAL. Article 10
CHAPTER OF ELIAS ASHMOLE, No. 148. Article 11
CHAPTER OF HARMONY, No. 178, WIGAN. Article 11
REVIEWS. Article 11
DIARY FOR THE WEEK. Article 12
NOTICES OF MEETINGS. Article 12
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Note: This text has been automatically extracted via Optical Character Recognition (OCR) software.

Freemasonry In China.

FREEMASONRY IN CHINA .

A MOST interesting paper , by Bro . Herbert A . Giles W . M . Ionic , No . 1781 , was read before that Lodge on 1 st June 1880 , and has since , by permission of the District G . Master of Hong Kong , been published in book form . The title is , perhaps , a little misleading , in the sense , at least , that it does not treat of Masonry as now established in

China , bnt of a system which existed in that country ages ago , and which certainly justifies the opinion that something analogous to our Freemasonry was established there at a period very remote from the present . So interesting is it that we have thought it worth while to give an outline of the points which are especially referred to .

Bro . Giles first of all notes that , if by Freemasonry is meant the system now in vogue among western nations , with its ritual of doubtful date , its signs , constitutions , & c , then it certainly does not exist at the present time , and never has existed amon g this people . But if it " points

to that higher and more ethereal scheme of morality , veiled in allegory , and illustrated by symbols drawn from operative Masonry , which was initiated in pre-historic times , when the human race , emerging gradually from savagery and barbarism , first turned to contemplate the wondrous

works of the Great Architect of the Universe , and began to recognise the mutual obligations subsisting between man and man , " then he thinks it will be found that a kind of Masonic system undoubtedly existed in days long anterior to the Christian era . Thus , says Bro . Giles , " from time

immemorial we find the square and compasses used by Chinese writers , either together or separately , to symbolise precisely the same phases of conduct as in our own system of Freemasonry . " The order , however , is reversed , priority being given to the compasses . Other Masonic tools and

appliances are similarly used , the earliest passage within Bro . Giles ' s knowledge , which illustrates this statement , being in the Book of History , in which , in an account of a military exhibition , occurs the passage , " Ye officers of

Government , apply the compasses , " while in another part a magistrate is spoken of as " the man of the level , " or " the level man . " This book , we are told , extends over a period from the twenty-fourth to the seventh century B . C . Even if we take the latter period we note that curious Masonic

expressions were in vogue in the written language over seven centuries before the advent of Christ ; but as the authenticit y of the Book is not in question , this gives a far higher antiquit y to Masonry than has ever been claimed for it . J-n making this latter assertion the writer is so far in error

that enthusiasts as to the antiquity of Masonry , take us hack to the days of Adam and Eve for the origin of Freemasonry , though how sensible men could have advanced so strange a theory , in sober seriousness and in the sense in ¦ which they do advance it , is beyond ordinary comprehension .

Greater authorities still than tlie "Book of History " ^ e certain quotations the author makes , one from the -discourses of the great Philosopher Confucius , and the others from the works of his great disciple Mcncius , who ived two centuries later . In the former caseit seems

, wnen recounting his own degrees of moral progress in lte i the Master tells us that only at seventy years of age c ° nld he venture to follow the inclinations of liis heart without

fear of ' transgressing the limits of the square . ' " The Inscription of the passages in Mcncius is still moro curious , -or there he says , " we are taught that just as the most m ghl y skilled artificers are unable , without the aid of the

Freemasonry In China.

square and compasses , to produce perfect rectangles or perfect circles , so must all men apply their tools figuratively to their lives , and the level and marking-lino besides , if they would walk in the straight and even paths

of wisdom and keep themselves within tho bounds of honour and virtue . " In support he instances three passages from as many different Books by this celebrated writer , namely , Books IV , VI , and VII , respectively . We quote them in their order of sequence : —

( 1 . ) The Compasses and the Square aro the embodiment of the rectangular and tho round , jnst as the prophets of old wero tho em . bodiment of the due relationship between man and man . ( 2 . ) A Master Mason , in teaching his Apprentices , makes use of the Compasses and the Square . Ye who ore engaged in the pursuit of wisdom must also make use of the Compass and the Square .

( 3 . ) A carpenter or a carriage-builder may give a man the Compasses and the Square , but he cannot necessarily make him a skilful workman . These are curious , but equally so is a quotation or translation from " a famous canonical work , commonly

known to foreigners as the Great Learning , the actual authorship of which is a moot point among scholars , though it is admitted on all sides that the text dates from between three and five hundred years before Christ . " In this passage , which inculcates

"that a man should abstain from doing unto others what he would not they should do to him , " it is laid down that "this is called the principle of acting on the square . " Descending to a later period , Bro . Giles makes reference to the Sacred Edict , " a number of moral maxims addressed

to the people by the second Emperor of the reigning dynasty ( 1661-1723 ) , and expanded by the third Emperor , his son . Herein it is laid down that filial piety and fraternal love should be the chief objects in the moral education of children , and that those virtues must be taught by example

as well as precept , so that" the wisdom of our sons may ripen day by day , and they may walk within the limits prescribed by the compasses and the square . " A further point of great value is that " the proverbial philosophy of China teems with allusions of this kind , so that when

the Amoy Masonic Hall was erected , no difficulty was experienced iu finding mottoes for inscription on either side of the entrance door to the Lodge , and accordingly the meaning of those which were inscribed on the respective sides were as follow , namely : — That on the right— " The holy doctrine" —which in a

footnote we are told is " Confucianism "— " in its education of mankind makes use of the Compasses and the Square . " That on the left— " The genius of the sage in the administration of affairs takes the form of the rectangular or

the round . But these figurative expressions are to be found not only in the written language , but also in all the colloquial dialects in vogue at the present date . Thus in every day talk one " who has no ' square and compasses , '" or does

not understand them , is " oblivions of all moral and social obligations , and totally unfit for any society of men who prize honour and virtue above the external advantages of

rank and fortune . ' " The " Cash , " the one and only com current in China , being circular aud having a square hole pierced in it , is considered by the people as " the most perfect svmbol of a perfect man . "

Passing on to the " point within a circle , ' the author says the Chinese have this very symbol , " which is nothing more nor less than the ancient form of the character of

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