Colonel Clerke's Ms. ("Old Charges.")

afe Ihe Arms of the City of London , and those of the Masons , within ovals , making together an elegant adornment to the Text proper , besides indicating the probable period of its transcription . The initial letters to the various paragraphs are rubricated ( given in text in the following reproduction . ) From these particulars it will be at once seen that the Scroll is one of the most beautiful of the many traced of later years .

Singular to state , Colonel Clerke ' s MS . bears the same date as that of the "Antiquity MS ., " given in my " Old Charges of British Freemasons , 1872 " ( with a fac-simile ) , which document is adorned with the several coats of arms aforesaid . The latter MS ., however , recites an unusual form of opening invocation , contains an extract from the Book of Ecclesiastes peculiar to itself , besides other variations from the ordinary class of versions to which both belong .

The text of the roll is similar to what is known as '' Dowland s MS ., published in the " Gentleman ' s Magazine " for 1815 , though I do not think the former is the orig inal of the latter , not simply because of the portions absent from the MS . of 1686 , to be found in the other , but it appears to me lhat the document from which the "Dowland" version was transcribed was of an earlier period . The conclusion to the latter reads" Ye shall keepe soe helpe your God ,

and your holydome , and by this booke unto your power , Amen ! " This will be found to contain an additional clause as compared with the MS . of 16 S 6 . They preserve , however , substantially the same text . Bro . Gould , in his "History of Freemasonry , " vol . 1 ., numbers these MSS . as 24 and 39 respectively , and p laces the former in the third division of his

most suggestive classification , an arrangement in which I fully concur , as there is no evidence at present beyond the strongest probability that it was used for Lodge purposes . As the "Qualuor Coronati" Lodge , No . 2076 , promises us the whole of the known copies of the " Old Charges of British Freemasons , " in one noble volume , I shall be glad to communicate with anyone who can in any way assist in such a magnificent enterprise .

COLONEL CLERKE ' MS . ( Illuminated ) . "j 2 dR . 1 GS 6 . " XEbC ^ IfMObt of the Father of Heaven with ye VVisdome of the glorious Sonne through the Giace and ye Goodnesse of ye Holy Ghost that be three persons in one Godhead be with us at our begining and give us Grace So to governe Us here in our life that wee may come to his eternal ! blisse that never shall have ending . AMEN .

© 00 b JSVCt . bl'CH and Fellowes our purpose is to tell you how this worthy Science of Masonrye was begun , and in what manner and afterwards how it was founded by worthy Kin ^ s and Piinces , and by many other honourable and worshipfull men . And also to those that be here we will declare the charges that belongeth to every true Moson to keep . For in good faith and if you lake good heed thereto it is well worthy to be

kept for a worthy Craft and curious Science . jfOK there be Seaven liberall Sciences of the which Seaven it is one . And the names of the Seven Sciences be these 3 f Il'St is Grammar and that teacheth a man to speak truly and wiite truly , tlfoG Second is Khetorick and that teacheth a man to speak fair in subtile terms .

{ TbC third is Dialeclick and that teacheth a man for to discrn for know Truth from falshood . WOZ fourth is Arithmetic ! : and that teacheth a man for to reckon and count all manner of Numbers . tTuC rift-is callr " - ^¦ -- .. •.. Lrie , . ma tuat teacheth a man mete and measure and all other things . tlbC Sixt is called Musick , and that teacheth a man the perfect Method of Song and voyce of Tongue wth Instruments as Organ Harp and Trumpett . S () C Seventh is called Astronomie and that teacheth a man the course of the Son Moone and Slarres . These be the Seven Liberall Sciences ihe which Science take their foundacon

of Getmtttie . For Geometrie teacheth a man mete and measure and weight of all manner of Things on Earth . For there is no man that norketh any Science or Craft but he woiketh by some Mete some Measure or Weight . And all this is Geometrie , and Merchants and ail Craftsmen and all other of the Six Sciences , especially the Ploughman and Tillers of the Earth for all manner cf Grain , Seeds , Vines , Plumb trees , or Planters of Fruit . For neither Grammar Arithmetic ! : nor Astronomie nor none of the other Sciences can a man find Mete or Measure in , without Geometrie , Wherefore me thinketh that the Science cf Geometiie is moit woithy from whom the other proceed .

"IfoOW that this woithy Science was first begun 1 shall tell you . Before Noah ' s Flood there was a man that was called Lamech , it is written in the Bible in the 4 th Chap , of Genesis , and this Lamech had two Wives , and the one wife ' s name was Ada and the other Sella . By the first he had two Sonnes , and the one was called Jaball and the other Juball . And hy the other Wife Zil ah he gotte and daughter , and these loure Children founded the begining of all the Sciences in the World . And the Elder Son Jaball founded the Science of Geometrie and he departed flocks of Sheep and Land in the Field and first wrought Houses of Stone and 1 imber as it is noted in the Chapter ahovesaid . And

his Brother Juball found the Science of Musick , as Song Harp and Organ , and the Third Brother Tubal-Kaine found Smiths Ciaft of Gold Silver Copper Iron and Steel ; and the Daughter found the Craft or Knowledge of weaving . And these Children knew well that God would take Vengeance for sinne either by Fire or Water , wherefore they writ their Sciences that they had found in two Pillars of Stone , they they might be found out after Noah ' s Flood . And the One Pillar of Stone was of Marble , for that it would not be burnt with five , ar , d the Stone whereof the other Pillar was made was called Laterns and that would not drowne in any water .

© ill' intent is to tell you truly how ana in what manner these Stones were found that those Sciences were written in The Great Hermermes that was the Son of Cub was the Son of Shem who was the Sonne tf Noye . The same Hermermes was afterwards called Hermes the father of the wise men . He found out the two Pillars of Stone and found the Science wiitten there and he taught it to other men . And at the makeing of the lower of Babylon there was Masonrye liist made much of . And the King of Babylon who was called Nembroth was a Mason himselfe and loved well the Science as it is said

with Master of Stories , and when the City of Ninivee and the other great Cities of the East should be made Nembroth the King of Babylon sent thither 60 Masonsattherequestof the Kin <* of Ninivee his Cosen , and when hee sent them , hee gave them a charge in this manner " ( Cfoflt they should be true each of them to other and that they should live truly together and that they should serve their Lord truly for their pay , so that the Mar . may have Work and all that belong to him , and other more Charges hee gave them 21110 this was the first time that ever Mason had any

Charge of his Science or Craft . Moreover when Abraham and Sara his wife went into Egypt , and there taught the Seven Sciences unto the Egyptians and he had a worthy Schuller named Kwclid and he learned right well and was a Master of all the 7 Liberall Sciences and his dayes it befell that the Lords and States of the Realm had so many Sonnes , that they had gotten , some by their Wives and some by other Ladyes of iheRcalm , for that land is a hott land and plenteous of Generation , and they had not competent maintenance wherewith to find their Children : wherefore they

had much care . And then the King of the Land made a great Counsel ! and a Parliament to understand how they might find their children honestly like Gentlemen , and they could find no manner of good way . And they did cry through all the Realm , if there were any man that could informe them , that hee should come to them and hee should be rewarded for his travail , that hee should hold himselfe well pleased . After this cry was made , then came the worthy Clark Ewclid and said to the King and all his great Lords , If yee will take mee for to Governe your children and to teach them one of the Seven

Sciences wherewith they may live honestly as Gentlemen should under a Condicon that you will . giant mee and them a Comission , that 1 may have power to rule them after the manner that the Science ought to be ruled , in all things belonging thereto which the King and his Counsell presently granted him and sealed him a Comission , And then this worthy Doctor tcoke to him these Lords Sonnes , and taught them the practice of Geometric in practice for to worke in stones all manner of worthy worke that belongeth 10 building of Churches , Temples , Castlef , Towers and Mannors , and all other manner of ! uildins- and hee gave them a charge after this manner .

SbC First was that they should be true to the King , and the Lord they should serve , and that they should love well together , and be true each one to other , and that they should call each other Fellow or else Brother , and not his Servant nor his Knave or other

fowle name , and that they should truly deserve their pay of the Lord or Mastr . that they Serve , and that they should ordaine the wisest among them to be Master of the worke and neither for love nor great Lineage , neither for riches nor for favor to Sett another that hath little cuning for to bee Mastr . of the Lords work whereby the Lord should be evill served and they ashamed . And also that they shall call the Governor of the worke Master , the time that they worke with him , and other many more charges that

were too long to tell . And to all these charges hee made them to Swear a great Oath that men used in that time and Ordained for them reasonably pay that they might live honestly by , And also that they should come and Assemble together every year once , how they might worke best to serve the Lord for his proffitt and to their owne worship and to correct within themselves him that had trespassed against ye Craft , And thus with the Craft grounded there And that worthy Mar . Ewclidgaveit by the name of Geometrie , and now is called through all this land Masonrye . ( To be continued . )

The History Of The Royal Masonic Institution For Girls

THE HISTORY OF THE ROYAL MASONIC INSTITUTION FOR GIRLS

FJIOM ITS ORIGIN , 1788 , TO ITS CENTFuYAKY , 18 S 8 . ( Continued from page 31 ) . In 1823 , in order to still further ensure the trustworthiness of petitions , an old rule , requiring the recommendation of the candidate by one or more Governors , was revived , and it was determined that henceforth no petition should be received without the

reconimendation of two Governors . It was also resolved that petitions should not he received in the ease of children under seven years , and that when received and approved , the names should not he entered on the list of candidates till three months after acceptance , or till they had attained the age of seven and three-quarter years . In April , 1824 .,

Mrs . Crook , who had held the office of Matron for 17 years , was presented hy the House and Audit Committees with a silver tea service in recognition of her valuable services to the Institution . In the August following , a petition , presented on behalf of a child whose

father " had never been in a Mason ' s Lodge , except on the — " and "had not subscribed to any lodge at all , " was rejected , and at the Quarterly Court in October , on the motion of Bro . T . Harper , it was resolved that , except in the case of an orphan , no child should be received as a candidate whose father had not been a subscribing

member to some lodge tor at least two years . In January , 1825 , the House Committee adopted the unusual practice of accepting the contract of a Bro . Lancefield to supply the School with meat in preference to that of a rival butcher , on the ground that the former was a Freemason , and " mi ° 'ht bo

induced from that circumstance to take a greater interest in the well supplying of the Charity , as well as from his well-known respectability , " the new butcher at once paying down his £ 10 10 s . in . order to constitute himself a Life Governor . An equally unusual circumstance occurred a lew months later , at the General

Committee on the 28 th April , when ' •a Petition was presented by Daniel Line ! L in behalf of his daughter Ann Linch ; not having the Certificate of Birth and Baptism in consequence of the Priest of the Roman Catholic Chapel at Deptford where the child was baptized refusing to give it on . the ground that the child was about to be

brought up 111 another Religion , the Committee accepted his affidavit of the Child's age in lieu thereof . " The month following , on the strong recommendation of the Matron , that " from her Talents and good conduct" she would be "a great acquisition to the School if kept therein as an Assistant , " E . W . Jarwood , who would otherwise have left the School , was apprenticed to the Institution .

In 1826 we meet with further cases of children rejected as candidates , because one or other of their parents , or both , were not considered to have any claim upon the Institution . Thus , in February , a child ' s name was removed from , the list because on inquiry , it transpired that her father was and always had been a bricklayer ' s

labourer , while 111 June two were refused , because in the one case the father was a journeyman and her mother had been in receipt of parochial relief ; and in the other , because the father had always been a ticket porter . In March , 1827 , also , a petition was rejected , because the child ' s father was a journeyman stonemason . In An < mst , 1826 ,

the House Committee recommended that the number of girls should bo augmented to 70 , but the General Committee , after carefully examining the receipts and expenditure for the preceding 10 years , came to the conclusion that the proposal was unwise , while , as regards its inexpediency , there can bo no question , seeing that two or

three years later on , and for some time subsequently , there were as many vacancies as candidates , and therefore the elections took p lace without ballot . In December the death of the Marquis of Hastings , Past A . G . M ., and one of the Trustees , was reported , and Bro . Lord Dundas , D . G , M . was elected to till the vacancy ; the body of Trustees ,

as reconstructed , consisting of the Duke of Sussex , G . M ., Lord Dundas , D . G . M ., and Bros . W . Williams , M . P ., L . Hayes Pettit , and W . W . Prescott . In April , 1827 , Bro . Williams , to whom a vote of thanks was passed for his services at the Festival for the year , resigned the Treasurership , aud was succeeded by Bro . John RamsbottomM . P .,

, and at the close of the same year the Secretary , Bro . John Hair , whose repeated absence from his duties had been the subject of comment , tendered his resignation , and on inquiry it turned ' out that he was a defaulter , and one of his sureties was called upon to make good a moiety of his defalcations . But whether the balance of

Hair ' s deficiency was ever made good or not by him or his otlici surety does not appear in the Minutes , which tell ' us nothing further than that Bro . W . Fletcher Hope was elected to the vacant office at the Quarterly Court in January , 1828 , and there is no doubt as to the business of the Institution having been ably and honourably conducted during the years of his Secretaryshi p . ( To be continued . )