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Article TO THE EDITOR. ← Page 2 of 2
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To The Editor.
( Lodge ) , and the full amount of which he had been robbed was presented to him . As soon as he arrived in England he remitted the same sum to his Brethren . " ANECDOTE , NO . 3 . — " At the battle of Dettingen , one of the king ' s body guard had his horse killed under him , and found himself so entangled in the animal , that he could not disengage himself . An
English dragoon approached , sabre in hand , to finish him , which he would have done , had not the guardsman , who was a Freemason , accidentally made the sign of the Order . Happily for him the English dragoon was also a member of the Order . He dismounted , helped the Frenchman to extricate himself , and although , as a Brother , he saved his life , nevertheless he made him his prisoner , because" ( we quote the exact words ofthe author ) " a Freemason never loses sight ofthe duty he owes his own prince . "
At page 104 , the writer says , alluding to his intention of giving , some day or other , a complete history of the Order , " Then will be read its origin , progress , and vicissitudes ; perhaps also what is passing under our own eyes will furnish me ivith its decay and ruin . " It is ninetytwo years since this " decay and ruin" of Freemasonry was predicted , but to-day it is more alive than perhaps in any former period , and exhibiting signs of vitality which promise duration to its system
co-equal and co-ordinate with the great princi ples its mysteries inculcate and its signs typify . At the close of the volume under notice , are some Masonic songs , which mi ght afford a few hints to our intelligent and useful Brother , Dr . Oliver . These songs are fifteen in number , one being a translation of tho following piece of latinity , entitled
" NORMA MORUM . " " Fide Deo , diffide tibi , fac propria , castas Funde preces , paucis utere , magna fuge . Multa audi , die pauca , tace abdita , disce Parcere minori , cedere majori , ferrc parem . Tolle moras , minare nihil , contemne superbos , Fer mala , disce Deo vivere , disce mori . "
In the following translation I have studied to be as literal as the trammels of rhyme would allow me , aware that any attempt to render the sententious brevity and terse neatness of these lines into equivalent English woulcl , on my part at least , be hopeless .
" RULES FOR THE BRETHREN . " Trust God , distrust yourself , do all that ' s right ; Pray chastely , frugal live , avoid expense , Hear much , speak little , bring not into light The hidden ; spare the humble , yield obedience To all superiors , with your equals bear ; Avoid delay , ne ' er threaten , but decry The haughty ; do no evil ; learn by prayer To live for God , and also learn to die . " M N .
Note: This text has been automatically extracted via Optical Character Recognition (OCR) software.
To The Editor.
( Lodge ) , and the full amount of which he had been robbed was presented to him . As soon as he arrived in England he remitted the same sum to his Brethren . " ANECDOTE , NO . 3 . — " At the battle of Dettingen , one of the king ' s body guard had his horse killed under him , and found himself so entangled in the animal , that he could not disengage himself . An
English dragoon approached , sabre in hand , to finish him , which he would have done , had not the guardsman , who was a Freemason , accidentally made the sign of the Order . Happily for him the English dragoon was also a member of the Order . He dismounted , helped the Frenchman to extricate himself , and although , as a Brother , he saved his life , nevertheless he made him his prisoner , because" ( we quote the exact words ofthe author ) " a Freemason never loses sight ofthe duty he owes his own prince . "
At page 104 , the writer says , alluding to his intention of giving , some day or other , a complete history of the Order , " Then will be read its origin , progress , and vicissitudes ; perhaps also what is passing under our own eyes will furnish me ivith its decay and ruin . " It is ninetytwo years since this " decay and ruin" of Freemasonry was predicted , but to-day it is more alive than perhaps in any former period , and exhibiting signs of vitality which promise duration to its system
co-equal and co-ordinate with the great princi ples its mysteries inculcate and its signs typify . At the close of the volume under notice , are some Masonic songs , which mi ght afford a few hints to our intelligent and useful Brother , Dr . Oliver . These songs are fifteen in number , one being a translation of tho following piece of latinity , entitled
" NORMA MORUM . " " Fide Deo , diffide tibi , fac propria , castas Funde preces , paucis utere , magna fuge . Multa audi , die pauca , tace abdita , disce Parcere minori , cedere majori , ferrc parem . Tolle moras , minare nihil , contemne superbos , Fer mala , disce Deo vivere , disce mori . "
In the following translation I have studied to be as literal as the trammels of rhyme would allow me , aware that any attempt to render the sententious brevity and terse neatness of these lines into equivalent English woulcl , on my part at least , be hopeless .
" RULES FOR THE BRETHREN . " Trust God , distrust yourself , do all that ' s right ; Pray chastely , frugal live , avoid expense , Hear much , speak little , bring not into light The hidden ; spare the humble , yield obedience To all superiors , with your equals bear ; Avoid delay , ne ' er threaten , but decry The haughty ; do no evil ; learn by prayer To live for God , and also learn to die . " M N .