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Article THE SONGS OF MASONRY. Page 1 of 7 →
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The Songs Of Masonry.
THE SONGS OF MASONRY .
BY THE REV . 0 . OLIVER , D . D .
My dear Sir and Brother . —I had been deeply engaged the other day in the pages of a favourite author for several hours , when a sensation of weariness suggested the desire of exercise and change of scene ; but , on turning to the window , I was presented with a spectacle which rendered a change of scene impracticable . A continuous drizzling rain obscured the bright crystal with its ocean of minute specks , that formed an impervious sheet of haze ; and no symptoms appeared of the return of fair
weather for the day . The lawn in front of the house , viewed through such a medium , changed its colour ; the 2 sh and elm trees in the distance , wreathed in mist , appeared gaunt and shadowy ; and I could almost have fancied them so many giants , with distorted bodies and outstretched arms , ripe for mischief , and dealing forth blight and mildew amongst the surrounding vegetation . The scene cast a sudden damp upon my spirits . " Yet why should it unhinge me ? " thought I . "I
am happy . I possess every comfort which sweet home can afford . " At this moment my eye rested on Brother Rosenberg ' s ingenious combination of diagrams { Le Miroir de la Sagesse ) which decorates one of the walls of my sanctum . This was enough . The glorious subjects there embodied , soon put to flight all inferior considerations , and I was plunged into a delicious reverie on the order and harmony which prevails throughout part of the Masonic scienceand cements the whole
every , into one magnificent and stupendous system . The Gown of Glory by which the chart is surmounted , points out the paternal government of the Deity , whose All-seeing Eye penetrates to the centre , and brings " all hidden things to light ; " and this sublime idea suggested to my mind Brother Dunkerley ' s beautiful anthem , which was frequently sung by the Brethren of a Lodge over which I had the honour to preside for several successive years .
" Hail , universal Lord ! By heaven and earth adored ; All hail great God ! Before thy NAME we bend ; To us thy grace extend , And to our prayer attend ; All hail great God !"
Under the influence of such an agreeable subject of meditation , my ideas multiplied rapidly . By-gone scenes of Masonic happiness revisited my mind , in which the lectures , intellectually superb , and the scientific conversations , which distinguished the hours of labour—the decent convivialities—the social interchange of kindness and esteem—the union oi music and poetry—the fraternal harmony— " the feast of reason and the flow of soul" which zest to that portion of our time which was
, gave a devoted to refreshment—pressed themselves , in turn , on my recollection . The vision was crowded with reminiscences of the great and good , who occupy a prominent place in our records as lights and benefactors of the science . I saw before me the eminent Masons of another century . Ashmole and Locke , whose merits are so well known , my creative fancy conjured up . Denham the poet—would that he had employed his taleul VOL . iv . 2 A
Note: This text has been automatically extracted via Optical Character Recognition (OCR) software.
The Songs Of Masonry.
THE SONGS OF MASONRY .
BY THE REV . 0 . OLIVER , D . D .
My dear Sir and Brother . —I had been deeply engaged the other day in the pages of a favourite author for several hours , when a sensation of weariness suggested the desire of exercise and change of scene ; but , on turning to the window , I was presented with a spectacle which rendered a change of scene impracticable . A continuous drizzling rain obscured the bright crystal with its ocean of minute specks , that formed an impervious sheet of haze ; and no symptoms appeared of the return of fair
weather for the day . The lawn in front of the house , viewed through such a medium , changed its colour ; the 2 sh and elm trees in the distance , wreathed in mist , appeared gaunt and shadowy ; and I could almost have fancied them so many giants , with distorted bodies and outstretched arms , ripe for mischief , and dealing forth blight and mildew amongst the surrounding vegetation . The scene cast a sudden damp upon my spirits . " Yet why should it unhinge me ? " thought I . "I
am happy . I possess every comfort which sweet home can afford . " At this moment my eye rested on Brother Rosenberg ' s ingenious combination of diagrams { Le Miroir de la Sagesse ) which decorates one of the walls of my sanctum . This was enough . The glorious subjects there embodied , soon put to flight all inferior considerations , and I was plunged into a delicious reverie on the order and harmony which prevails throughout part of the Masonic scienceand cements the whole
every , into one magnificent and stupendous system . The Gown of Glory by which the chart is surmounted , points out the paternal government of the Deity , whose All-seeing Eye penetrates to the centre , and brings " all hidden things to light ; " and this sublime idea suggested to my mind Brother Dunkerley ' s beautiful anthem , which was frequently sung by the Brethren of a Lodge over which I had the honour to preside for several successive years .
" Hail , universal Lord ! By heaven and earth adored ; All hail great God ! Before thy NAME we bend ; To us thy grace extend , And to our prayer attend ; All hail great God !"
Under the influence of such an agreeable subject of meditation , my ideas multiplied rapidly . By-gone scenes of Masonic happiness revisited my mind , in which the lectures , intellectually superb , and the scientific conversations , which distinguished the hours of labour—the decent convivialities—the social interchange of kindness and esteem—the union oi music and poetry—the fraternal harmony— " the feast of reason and the flow of soul" which zest to that portion of our time which was
, gave a devoted to refreshment—pressed themselves , in turn , on my recollection . The vision was crowded with reminiscences of the great and good , who occupy a prominent place in our records as lights and benefactors of the science . I saw before me the eminent Masons of another century . Ashmole and Locke , whose merits are so well known , my creative fancy conjured up . Denham the poet—would that he had employed his taleul VOL . iv . 2 A