Note: This text has been automatically extracted via Optical Character Recognition (OCR) software.
An Oration Pronounced At The Audit-House In Southampton, August 3, 1792,
the hig h and the low—the rich and the poor—the proud and the humble—cannot form an intimate bond of union of any considerable duration . —Every Brother , therefore , at his initiation , enters the Lodge , not in splendour of dress nor pride of heart , but in a garb of bumility- ^ - in a mind of lowliness ; and he finds , when admitted , that the laws of the Society have abolished , as far as order will permit , all adventitious
distinctions . . So , again , the Plumb-rule—an instrument of art , by whose application the building is raised in a perpendicular direction , is another of our symbols—It is figurative of a fairand honourable plan of life—and typically cautions us against any deviation from an upright conduct , in all intercourses and transactionswhether private or public .
our , The Compass is a mathematical instrument used to describe circles : this we adopt as an emblem of prudence—it symbolically instructs us to put moral restraints on our appetites *—to circumscribe , within rational bounds , our wants , our pleasures , our expences—warning us , that bv an opposite course , we shall endanger our quiet and our health ,
our reputation and our liberty . Freemasonry , therefore , we have seen , deals in hieroglyphics—symbols—allegories—and to be qualified to reveal their meaning , a man must know more than a mere nominal Mason : the full interpretation of them , like that of the mysteries of old ¦[ , is in select hands—has been committed only to those of tried fidelity , who conceal it with suitable othersif not deficient in intellectyet wanting industry or /¦"
-care : , , dination to explore the penetralia of the Temple , are not qualified , if willing , to betray it . —Hence the secrecy which has so long distinguished the Fraternity . This secrecy , however , has been urged against-our institution as a crime ; but the wise know that secrecy , properly maintained , is one of the best securities of social happiness : there is more private misery arising from an unqualified communication
of words and actions , than from the anger of the Heavens . Other objections have been invented against our Societ }/ -, but such as we do not condescend to combat—deeming it altogether a waste of time to wage war with surmises , and trusting to our conduct to repel the coarser shafts of malice . From what has been said it appears , that the doctrine of Freemasonry embraces all the natural , moral , and political obligations of Society . —•
Note: This text has been automatically extracted via Optical Character Recognition (OCR) software.
An Oration Pronounced At The Audit-House In Southampton, August 3, 1792,
the hig h and the low—the rich and the poor—the proud and the humble—cannot form an intimate bond of union of any considerable duration . —Every Brother , therefore , at his initiation , enters the Lodge , not in splendour of dress nor pride of heart , but in a garb of bumility- ^ - in a mind of lowliness ; and he finds , when admitted , that the laws of the Society have abolished , as far as order will permit , all adventitious
distinctions . . So , again , the Plumb-rule—an instrument of art , by whose application the building is raised in a perpendicular direction , is another of our symbols—It is figurative of a fairand honourable plan of life—and typically cautions us against any deviation from an upright conduct , in all intercourses and transactionswhether private or public .
our , The Compass is a mathematical instrument used to describe circles : this we adopt as an emblem of prudence—it symbolically instructs us to put moral restraints on our appetites *—to circumscribe , within rational bounds , our wants , our pleasures , our expences—warning us , that bv an opposite course , we shall endanger our quiet and our health ,
our reputation and our liberty . Freemasonry , therefore , we have seen , deals in hieroglyphics—symbols—allegories—and to be qualified to reveal their meaning , a man must know more than a mere nominal Mason : the full interpretation of them , like that of the mysteries of old ¦[ , is in select hands—has been committed only to those of tried fidelity , who conceal it with suitable othersif not deficient in intellectyet wanting industry or /¦"
-care : , , dination to explore the penetralia of the Temple , are not qualified , if willing , to betray it . —Hence the secrecy which has so long distinguished the Fraternity . This secrecy , however , has been urged against-our institution as a crime ; but the wise know that secrecy , properly maintained , is one of the best securities of social happiness : there is more private misery arising from an unqualified communication
of words and actions , than from the anger of the Heavens . Other objections have been invented against our Societ }/ -, but such as we do not condescend to combat—deeming it altogether a waste of time to wage war with surmises , and trusting to our conduct to repel the coarser shafts of malice . From what has been said it appears , that the doctrine of Freemasonry embraces all the natural , moral , and political obligations of Society . —•