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Article ON THE MASONIC JEWELS. ← Page 3 of 3 Article ON PRESENCE OF MIND. Page 1 of 3 →
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On The Masonic Jewels.
betraying , or deceiving , but that we should act uorightly in all things , in that station of life , wherein Providence has placed us . By such tests let the mason be proved ; and let him testify that his emblematical jewels are ensigns only of the inward man : thence he will stand approved before heaven ancl before ^ men , purr chasing honour to his masonic profession , and happiness to himself . o .
On Presence Of Mind.
ON PRESENCE OF MIND .
MR . EDITOR , j [ T is an observation of a celebrated French writer— " That great - " ¦ men , like great objects , appear best , when viewed at a certain distance : " for , in considering the general beauty of the object before us , the less important parts escape our notice ; and in our wonder at the grandeur of the colonade or the porch , we forget the various
inferior offices the mansion contains ; but which are still necessary to the perfection of the whole . To apply this observation to human life;—Alexander the great did not , perhaps , appear so much of a hero to his valet , who saw him in his moments of privacy , and who knew every little foible and weakness of his nature , as he has since done to the many enthusiastic admirers of his character . Every man
we meet is composed of mixed materials ; and the love of fame mav urge many to deeds of public valour , who in their chamber would tremble at the rustling of the wind , or the buzzing of an insect . Nay so true is this , that I have read ( I cannot now recollect where ) of a soldier , who , after marchirg up to a breach exposed to the enemies'fire , with the greatest coolness , stood aghast at his own shadow .
In forming our estimate , therefore , of great men , we are not ' to judge of them altogether , from their public deeds : for vanity , may in them , urge them beyond themselves ; nor from their private life : for , among their intimates , they bring themselves clown to the level of their company . How then , it may be said , are we to form a true estimate of the human character ? To this , I think , it may be replied »—from the conduct of a man on occasionswhere vanity did not
ex-, alt , nor circumstances debase him ; where he could only act from— - himself . Thus in forming my judgment of the hero I have just mentioned ( Alexander the Great ) I should entertain a hi gher opinion of him from his prompt and intrepid conduct , in the moment of danger , when his Macedonians had' revolted , than I should from his exploits on the plains of Arbelaor the banks of the Indus .
, The Arabian writers record of Mahomet , that having promised as a miracle , that a mountain should move to his followers ; when it was discovered it remained fixed its base ,- — " If , said the Prophet , the mountain will not come to Mahomet , Mahomet will go tip to tbe mountain . " This instance furnishes a stronger proof of the greatness
Note: This text has been automatically extracted via Optical Character Recognition (OCR) software.
On The Masonic Jewels.
betraying , or deceiving , but that we should act uorightly in all things , in that station of life , wherein Providence has placed us . By such tests let the mason be proved ; and let him testify that his emblematical jewels are ensigns only of the inward man : thence he will stand approved before heaven ancl before ^ men , purr chasing honour to his masonic profession , and happiness to himself . o .
On Presence Of Mind.
ON PRESENCE OF MIND .
MR . EDITOR , j [ T is an observation of a celebrated French writer— " That great - " ¦ men , like great objects , appear best , when viewed at a certain distance : " for , in considering the general beauty of the object before us , the less important parts escape our notice ; and in our wonder at the grandeur of the colonade or the porch , we forget the various
inferior offices the mansion contains ; but which are still necessary to the perfection of the whole . To apply this observation to human life;—Alexander the great did not , perhaps , appear so much of a hero to his valet , who saw him in his moments of privacy , and who knew every little foible and weakness of his nature , as he has since done to the many enthusiastic admirers of his character . Every man
we meet is composed of mixed materials ; and the love of fame mav urge many to deeds of public valour , who in their chamber would tremble at the rustling of the wind , or the buzzing of an insect . Nay so true is this , that I have read ( I cannot now recollect where ) of a soldier , who , after marchirg up to a breach exposed to the enemies'fire , with the greatest coolness , stood aghast at his own shadow .
In forming our estimate , therefore , of great men , we are not ' to judge of them altogether , from their public deeds : for vanity , may in them , urge them beyond themselves ; nor from their private life : for , among their intimates , they bring themselves clown to the level of their company . How then , it may be said , are we to form a true estimate of the human character ? To this , I think , it may be replied »—from the conduct of a man on occasionswhere vanity did not
ex-, alt , nor circumstances debase him ; where he could only act from— - himself . Thus in forming my judgment of the hero I have just mentioned ( Alexander the Great ) I should entertain a hi gher opinion of him from his prompt and intrepid conduct , in the moment of danger , when his Macedonians had' revolted , than I should from his exploits on the plains of Arbelaor the banks of the Indus .
, The Arabian writers record of Mahomet , that having promised as a miracle , that a mountain should move to his followers ; when it was discovered it remained fixed its base ,- — " If , said the Prophet , the mountain will not come to Mahomet , Mahomet will go tip to tbe mountain . " This instance furnishes a stronger proof of the greatness