Masonic Antiquity.

MASONIC ANTIQUITY .

An Extract from an Oration by Brother George W Warvelle , Grand Orator , before the Grand Lodge oj Freemasons in Illinois , in Chicago , 7 th October 1 S 91 .

POSSIBLY no topic has more frequently engaged the attention of Masonic orators or writers than the Antiquity of Masonry . Its elucidation has called forth the best thoughts of the brightest intellects of this and of

pasfc ages , and upon it the student and philosopher have written tomes almost innumerable , and yet , after two centuries of research , thought , and discussion , ifc is the ono topic of all others concerning which tho great body of tlie Craft entertain the most hazy , indistinct , and incorrect ideas .

LEGENDS OP MASONIC HISTORY . The legendary history of Freemasonry locates its origin afc or immediately anterior to the building of King Solomon ' s temple afc Jerusalem , while numerous learned and industrious brethren have endeavoured to demonstrate tho fact of its existence for thousands of years prior to

thafc event . Now , I do not propose to enter iuto any controversial arguments to show the truth or falsity of theso claims , nor am I inclined to striko with iconoclastic hand the cherished idols nnd traditions of the Craft . I only s . iy thafc no evidence , to my mind , sufficient to substantiate tho truth of these assertions has over been

brought to my attention , and every attempt to show a line of nnbroken continuity between tho temple-builders and the Masons of to-day has resulted , so far as my observation goes , in utter failure . And because we are unable to prove by irrefutable evidence that this Grand Lodge , sitting in

Annual Communication on the banks of Lake Michigan , is the direct descendant and lineal successor of Kino * Solomon ' s artificers afc Jerusalem threo thousand years ago , no inconsiderable number of the Craffc have conceived an idea that we have no past ; thafc our claim of antiquity is a

fable , and that our title of " ancient" is based on no better grounds than simple priority over the numerous imitative societies that have followed us . But in reply to this I can say : If our claims of remote antiquity are doubtful , assertions of modern origin are absolutely false , and in

making this statement I am prepared to fully sustain the position I have taken by evidence of undoubted authenticity . Freemasonry is an ancient societ y , with a long and honourable record , and the contemplation of its

development from the guilds of humble artizans to tlio powerful influential and far-reaching organization of to-day is , to my mind , a spectacle of far deeper interest than all its mythic glory under the patronage of Israel ' s wise king .

Society in the tenth century was just emerging from the lethargy , gloom , and barbarism of fche dark age . Individual liberty , so long restrained , now began to be asserted ; the liberal arts , for ages preceding fche sole property of the church and confined to monastic

communities , gave faint evidence of an existence among the people , and while the cloister still directed the hands of the workman , ifc no longer held him in a tenacious grasp . In the eleventh century fchd spirit of progress was still more manifest in the revival of commerce , the extension of

manufactures , and the cultivation of handicrafts , and about this time occurred fche organization oi the guilds o £ artificers which were afterwards to play such important parts in the political drama . In the twelfth century these guilds had spread wifch marvellous rapidity over the greater part of

Europe , embracing nearly every trade and occupation , and from that time until the present Freemasonry in some form has been a living , potential energy in the social life of the civilized world . Of the progress of the Masons '

guild npon the continent of Europe , its trials , its triumphs , and its glorious achievements , time does nofc permit me to speak , and I shall confine the remainder of my remarks to a very brief summary of its career in England the birthplace of Speculative Masonry .

PRINCIPLES OP OPERATIVE MASONRY . From the best attainable sources of information ifc would seem that the principles of the operative art were derived from France , and numerous examples of medifcval architecture are still extant in various parts of Great Britain which bear upon them the name of the French master who

Masonic Antiquity.

directed the work . In England , as upon the continent , the early policy of the Craft was shaped by the church , under whoso protecting care it flourished and waxed

strong , and the titles still employed in the nomenclature of some of the officers of the Lodge are directly attributable to fcho ecclesiastical supervision of that period .

Ifc is a matter of congratulation for us that in tracing our Masonic genealogy , and proving our descent from the English Craftsmen , we are compelled to rely on no doubtful theories or unsubstantial legends . Fortunately there exists authentic data in the shape of contemporaneous

documentary evidence , upon which we may with confidence rely , and which fully confirms all our claims of ancient and honourable lineage . These documents , for the mosfc part , consist of manuscript versions of what are known as the Old Charges , or the regulations for the government of the Craffc ,

and of these there are some thirty-one copies in existence , of undoubted antiquity . They are deposited in the British Museum , the Grand Lodge of England , and in the archives of its constituents , and may be seen by any person who may desire to investigate for himself the stability of our claims .

The earliest document yet brought to light connected with the progress of Freemasonry in England is known as tho Halliwoll Manuscript , dating from tho fourteenth century —November , 1388— and is supposed fco have been mado in obedience to an ordinance of Richard II . calling for

returns from the guilds and Crafts . Ifc is in every respect a remarkable document , and the most precious heritage that has come down to us . It is written on vellum , n , nd its composition is in metre or a sort of rude verse . From international evidence it is supposed to be the work of a

poet priest or monk of that day , a supposition that is strengthened by the well-known facts of early ecclesias - tical patronage , and the probable dearth of clerical attainments among the workmen of thafc period . Here , fchen , we have authentic evidence five hundred years old of the

existence of a Masons' guild afc that time in full and vigorous lifo , and in those days of mushroom societies with doubtful pedigrees , five hundred years is not too short a

period on which to predicate the term " ancient . " Tho nexfc in importance is known as the Coke Manuscri pt , which , like the one I havo just describod , is contained within the archives of the British Museum . It is in a fine state of

preservation , and its original cover of wood still remains , together with the rough twino connecting the vellum sheets , apparently as it was sewed four hundred years ago . Then there u the Landsdowne Manuscript , datirjg from tho sixteenth century , written upon threo and one-half sheets

of stoufc paper , and the parchment roll in tbo custody of the Grand Lodge of England , bearing date 25 th December 1583 . There are , besides , a large number of other ancient documents , many of which bear evidence of being copied from others still older , all tending to indicate the existence of fche society at a very early date .

These documents have reference to Masonry as an artificer ' s guild only , and « uch it continued to be until late in the sixteenth century . Prior to the year 1424 it was strictly an operative association , working privately wifch closed doors and sedulously guarding the secrets of fche

trade , and Scotch Masonry so continued long after ifc ceased in England . Afc this time , however , occurred a most remarkable circumstance that completely changed the character of the association as well as its future destinies , and to which we owe the fact of onr assembly here to-day .

It would seem thafc the power and influence of the trades union were not unknown even in those days , and that our ancient operative brethren had arrived at a full understanding of its value , for we find thafc in this year , being the third year of Henry VI ., an enactment was made , called

fche statute of labourers , whereby Masons were no longer permitted to assemble as a body of operative workmen , or to exercise their handicraft with guarded doors , nor ware they permitted to fix the price of their labour or establish ordinances affecting apprentices . The object of the statute

was to break up the guilds by denying to them the benefits of combination , but , like many other attempts of suppression , the results were far different from the expectation , for , notwithstanding this prohibition , the society continued to exist as a benevolent and fraternal association , with its

membership confined to workmen actually engaged in Operative Masonry . But during the sixteenth century , while it still continued to be a trade societ y , its benefits and advantages were no longer confined to Operative Masons , and workmen in other lines were received , until