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Article MASONIC ARISTOCRACY. ← Page 5 of 5
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Masonic Aristocracy.
important portion of our system . It is not during the performance of the mystic rites in Loclge that men can become acquainted , or ever exchange their feelings , or show jthat a noble heart may beat in an ignoble breast ; this can only happen at the banquet , when the labours being at an end , social intercourse is free , and pleasure and profit are the results . It is the duty of those Masons who by Providence are placed high in the scale of intellect and rankto encourage those less blessed in these
, respects than themselves to frequent the Masonic assemblies ivhich they attend . It is their duty by example to instruct , and by their superior knowledge , displayed in their conversation , to improve the minds of their humbler Brethren . Can any man be bold enough to say that the poor Mason who beholds the efforts made by his rich Brother to raise him in the scale of humanity , or the humble Mason who sees how anxiously the great man strives to exalt his intellectual powersby
con-, versing with him on subjects before possibly unknown and unthought of , can it be asserted that these men , and they are not individuals but types of great classes , will feel the less respect for their superiors who thus seek their good , or will dream of trenching on the necessary difference between them which the laws of society have established ? It is not to be believed that auy man , still less any true Mason , will answer yes ! Many ills in this our world are caused by thoughtlessness , as many
accidents arise from negligence . Far be it from us to be so forgetful of the spirit of the Craft we love , as to attribute to those who support these gentlemen ' s Lodges , the guilt of premeditatedly and advisedly breaking the ties of Masonry , and violating its ancient landmarks ; but we only wish to recal them to a sense of a duty to which they have carelessly , not intentionally , ran counter . In conclusion , let us once more state the important principle for which we are contending . It is thisMasonry is freedom itself ; but it leaves
, its members , when in the world , to hold their respective ranks in the world ' s estimation . It requires them , indeed , to cast them aside when in Lodge or when a Brother in distress claims their aid , but never else . It teaches all its members to be exemplary in the performance of their civil and social duties , and with these any equality in society , such as our enemies accuse us of favouring , would , as the ivorld is now constituted , be incompatible . Away then with such terms , such distinctions ,
and such exclusiveness . In Lodge , and for a Brother in danger or necessity , let us forget that we are anything but Masons ; in other places , at other times , let us not forget that we are men living in a state of society which requires that we pay honour and respect to those to whom Providence has allotted a higher rank than we hold . May the few lines which serve as our motto be imprinted in the heart and manifested in the actions of every Freemason , and let us hear no more of " gentlemen ' s Lodges , " no more of Masonic aristocracy . LATOMUS .
[/ The letter of " Latomus" strikes at the root of a serious evil ; of all nations the English are proud of their aristocracy ; but it is because , in every station , however humble , the just and virtuous man feels that he is not precluded from the attainment of the highest honours . The observations on the II . A . are strictly true ; we ourselves would even go further , and state our opinion , that every Lodge should from its qualified Past-Masters be permitted to form a Chapter , and therein ( without expense ) perform the promise solemnly given . —En . l
Note: This text has been automatically extracted via Optical Character Recognition (OCR) software.
Masonic Aristocracy.
important portion of our system . It is not during the performance of the mystic rites in Loclge that men can become acquainted , or ever exchange their feelings , or show jthat a noble heart may beat in an ignoble breast ; this can only happen at the banquet , when the labours being at an end , social intercourse is free , and pleasure and profit are the results . It is the duty of those Masons who by Providence are placed high in the scale of intellect and rankto encourage those less blessed in these
, respects than themselves to frequent the Masonic assemblies ivhich they attend . It is their duty by example to instruct , and by their superior knowledge , displayed in their conversation , to improve the minds of their humbler Brethren . Can any man be bold enough to say that the poor Mason who beholds the efforts made by his rich Brother to raise him in the scale of humanity , or the humble Mason who sees how anxiously the great man strives to exalt his intellectual powersby
con-, versing with him on subjects before possibly unknown and unthought of , can it be asserted that these men , and they are not individuals but types of great classes , will feel the less respect for their superiors who thus seek their good , or will dream of trenching on the necessary difference between them which the laws of society have established ? It is not to be believed that auy man , still less any true Mason , will answer yes ! Many ills in this our world are caused by thoughtlessness , as many
accidents arise from negligence . Far be it from us to be so forgetful of the spirit of the Craft we love , as to attribute to those who support these gentlemen ' s Lodges , the guilt of premeditatedly and advisedly breaking the ties of Masonry , and violating its ancient landmarks ; but we only wish to recal them to a sense of a duty to which they have carelessly , not intentionally , ran counter . In conclusion , let us once more state the important principle for which we are contending . It is thisMasonry is freedom itself ; but it leaves
, its members , when in the world , to hold their respective ranks in the world ' s estimation . It requires them , indeed , to cast them aside when in Lodge or when a Brother in distress claims their aid , but never else . It teaches all its members to be exemplary in the performance of their civil and social duties , and with these any equality in society , such as our enemies accuse us of favouring , would , as the ivorld is now constituted , be incompatible . Away then with such terms , such distinctions ,
and such exclusiveness . In Lodge , and for a Brother in danger or necessity , let us forget that we are anything but Masons ; in other places , at other times , let us not forget that we are men living in a state of society which requires that we pay honour and respect to those to whom Providence has allotted a higher rank than we hold . May the few lines which serve as our motto be imprinted in the heart and manifested in the actions of every Freemason , and let us hear no more of " gentlemen ' s Lodges , " no more of Masonic aristocracy . LATOMUS .
[/ The letter of " Latomus" strikes at the root of a serious evil ; of all nations the English are proud of their aristocracy ; but it is because , in every station , however humble , the just and virtuous man feels that he is not precluded from the attainment of the highest honours . The observations on the II . A . are strictly true ; we ourselves would even go further , and state our opinion , that every Lodge should from its qualified Past-Masters be permitted to form a Chapter , and therein ( without expense ) perform the promise solemnly given . —En . l