Freemasons You Have Met.

that one might b 8 justified in thinking that reading with them was a lost art ; some are dominated by the principles of the Fraternity , others are known to bo Masons only by their Masonic jewelry ; some always greet their brethren with fraternal cordiality , others are as cold as an

iceberg and as distant as a star ; some are u full" of Masonry , others are as empty of it as a drum ; some find their chief pleasure in it , others find nothing . All of thpsR . and more than these , compose the Masonic world . ¦

Bro . Bones is a Freenaion . 0 ! but he is a dry onebones , bones , nothing but bones . He sees nothing in tho ceremonies except ceremonies—they too are bones , dry bores . To him they are pimply the fraternal machinery for making Masons . The thought never entered his mind i

( and evou if it shonld , he would give it speedy exit ) , that Freemasonry was intended to teach anything . Why does he , a fall-grown man , need a teacher ? Can't he see , and isn ' t eeeing believing ? The only Freemasonry he has any acquaintance with is surface Freemasonry , that which

can be seen and heard , while all that wealth of Masonic knowledge which is only indicated and symbolised by what is seen aud heard , he is totally ignorant of . Bro . Banjo is a Freemason . You know the inclination of a banjoist to bo always thrumming his instrument .

1 hat ' s Bro . Banjo in the Craft . Freemasonry to him is a harp of a thousand strings . He cannot tire of it . To him it never jangles out of tune . Day and night , summer and winter , ho is always at either Masonic work or Masonic refreshment . Freemasonry is the air he breathes ,

the food he eats , the wife he loves , the children he kisses , the business ho conducts . He has too much of a good thing—far more than his share . 0 ! that some of his enthusiasm might be dispensed to certain of his fellow . - ' , for both would be the better for it . It is contagious , but

some peoplo won't "take" anything , not even Freemasonry if they are Masons . This species of gripjw never sweeps through the Fraternity . The wave of enthusiasm runs high in individual cases , but the Masonic sea is not composed of such waves . There are more placid millponds than there are rolling seas in the Craft .

Brother Mean is a Freemason . We would not imply that he is a mean Brother , or at least not without an all-important qualification , for he is a " golden mean . " Therein lies the best of everything . In conservatism there is wisdom and strength , in radicalism danger and error .

Brother Mean is an all-round Mason . He divides his time according to the twenty-four-inch guage . He uses Freemasonry without abusing it . He loves it without

worshipping it . One thing is certain , he means what he says , and when he bound himself to be obedient to the tenets of the Craft , he fully intended to keep his promise . No one better than Brother Mean knows that

Freemasonry has a meaning , -which is wido as the universe , deep as the sea , and hidden from the majority of Craftsmen as tho mines of earth are from those who thoughtlessly walk over the surface If this article has any meaning , it consists in the expression of the ardent desire and prayer that the tribe of Brother Mean may

increase . Brother Society is a Freemason . ' Of course he is . He may have been born alone , but he has been in society ever since . He is never , so happy as when in secret conclave with some of his fellows . He is a Freemason , an

Oddfellow , a Red Man , an American Mechanic , a Golden Eagle—bub space would fail us to mention all of his organisations . He can't go anywhere , not even to prison , without meeting a Brother . He is surrounded by them , weighed down by them ; and yet he is happy . Enough

secret knowledge has been imparted to him to render an ordinary man insane ; but he is an extraordinary man . He uses both his ears , one for the entrance of knowledge , the other for its exit . All knowledge with him has rapid transit . Brother Society is a " joiner , " and goes into

everything , but nothing remains with him . We will stop here , and let the reader extend for himself the classification of Freemasons in the Masonic world . In the Craft , as in the world , there are many men of many minds . We cannot all see , hear or think alike ; but there

should be , in Freemasons more than ^ n profane , a community of character , interest and purpose , a determination to be what we profess , and to fully understand the secret art and mystery entrusted to our keeping . There is such a wealth of moral and intellectual instruction , and such a fund of social enjoyment in store for every Brother

Freemasons You Have Met.

Mason , that every one should gladly accept his share of the inheritance which the Craft is ready to bestow upon him Freemasonry has no favourites , all are on a level , and all may be equally rich in Masonic pleasure , Masonic privilege and Masonic knowledge . —Keystone .

American Masonic Notions In The Second Decade Of This Century.

AMERICAN MASONIC NOTIONS IN THE SECOND DECADE OF THIS CENTURY .

BY BRO . JACOB NORTON .

WHILE in the course of conversation with some brethren , at the Boston Masonic Temple , I happened to say , that I had read some years ago , in the Masonic Token , that when the Grand Lodge of Maine was organized , in 1820 , an effort was made to turn tho Grand

Lodge into a Bible Society . As this information was new to the brethren present , all kinds of questions were of course asked about it . So I suggested to take down from the shelf the Grand Lodge of Maine Proceedings of 1820 , and there we found that a brother of high standing had

read several paragraphs , each beginning with " Whereas , " followed by other paragraphs , each beginning with " Resolved , " and in one of these it was proposed that the Grand Lodge should devote a tenth part of its income for

the purpose of having the Bible translated into all the languages in creation , to distribute the Bibles , and also to assist missionaries in preaching the Bible , & c , and these Resolutions were referred to a Committee , of whioh Bro . Simon Greenleaf was chairman .

Now , Bro . Simon Greenleaf was a very distinguished lawyer ; he was , later on , Professor of Law in the Harward University , in Cambridge , Massachusetts ; he wrote several works on Law ; his work on Evidence is still regarded as tho best of its kind , and his name is known to every law

student in the United States , and probably in England too . Bro . Greenleaf was an out and out Episcopalian , and wrote a work about tho Evangelists , the Trial of Jesus , & c , and for years he was President of the Massachusetts Bible Society . With such religious propensities , Bro . Greenleaf

or course reported in favour of the resolutions . But , on the other hand , while his opponents earnestly admitted that Masonry was the " handmaid of Christianity , " and that it

was the duty of the handmaid to do all it could for its mistress , yet , for some reason or other , they were opposed to having a cent of the Grand Lodge Funds devoted for Bible Society , purposes .

Siuce the said conversation , I got hold of a book , viz ., " A Brief Inquiry into tho Origin and Principles of Freemasonry , " by Simon Greenleaf , printed in Portland , Maine , in 1820 . Its title page is adorned with a crown and a large crop , and its contents consist of several lectures ,

delivered by Bro . Greenleaf , in 1817 and 1818 , to the Lodges of what was then called ;< The Ninth District of the Grand Lodge of Massachusetts , " which was located in what is now ' called the State of Maine , of which district Bro . Greenleaf ' was , before 1820 , District Deputy Grand Master , and from

, the appendix to the said lectures I learn , that in 1818 " the | present and past District Deputy Grand Masters and Masters of Lodges " of the same Ninth Masonic District of Massachusetts petitioned the said Grand Lodge to devote

a portion of its revenue " to the translation , printing , and distributing the Bible . " But here again , while the writer expresses himself very pleased at the piety of the Grand Lodge of Massachusetts , nevertheless the said Grand Lodge would not make the desired appropriation .

Our author further informs us , that about the same time a mission to Jerusalem , for converting the Turks , was proposed by the Rev . Bro . Pliny Fisk , who appealed to the Grand Lodge of Georgia for aid . The said Grand Lodge

gave nothing , but earnestly recommended its Lodges to give ; but whether the Lodges gave anything I know not . The Grand Officers of North Carolina also piously recommended their Lodges , as follows , viz .

" To translate , print , and distribute the Bible . " But here again I cannot say that anything was given . In June 1818 the Grand Master of New Hampshire addressed his Lodges to induce them to donate for *

" The gratuitous distribution of the Holy Scriptures ; for assistance to young men of onr Fraternity , in completing education which will qualify them for public usefulness ; also encouragement to those pious Masons who have goue , or who may go , as missionaries to tho heathens , are certainly subjects which deserve the attention of onr charitable Order . "