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exist at the time . Seeming to refer to the confidence which the Assyrian had in his strength and impregnability , the prophet says , "The Lord is good , a strong hold in the day of trouble , and

he knoweth them that trust in him . But with an overrunning flood he will make an utter end of the place thereof , and darkness shall pursue ( or go with ) his enemies . What do ye imagine

against the Lord ? He will make an utter end ' ( Nah . i ., 7—9 ) . And again more precisely : — " He shall recount his worthies : they shall stumble in their walk •they shall make haste to

the wall thereof , and the defence shall be prepared . " But "the gates of the river shall bs opened , and the palace shall be dissolved . Nineveh is of old like a pool of water •yet they

shall flee away . " ( Chap , ii ., 5—8 . ) Diodorus Siculus relates that the king of Assyria , after the complete discomfiture of his army , confided in an old prophecy , that Nineveh would not be

taken unless the river should become the enemy ef the city •and that after an ineffectual siege of two years , the river , swollen with tempestuous and long continued torrents , inundated part

ofthe city , and threw down the wall for the space of twenty furlongs ; so that the King , deeming the prediction accomplished , despaired of his safety , and erected M \ immense funeral pile ,

on which he heaped his wealth , and wilh which , himself , his household , and his palace were consumed , ( Lib . ii ) . JJ nt the prophet adds the precise circumstances under which this fatal flood

should burst in upon the confiding and selfassured king and people : " While they be folden together as thorns , and while tbey are drunken as drunkards , they shall be devoured as stubble

full y dry ( chap . i . 10 ) . Now , in the same book of Diodorus to which reference has just been made , we read that the king of Assyria , elated with his former victories , anil ignorant of

the revolt of the Bactians , had abandoned himself to scandalous inaction ; had appointed a time of festivity , and supplied his soldiers with abundance of wine : and that the general of the

enemy , apprised by deserters ol their negligence and drunkenness , attacked the Assyrian army while the whole of them wet efe . nhsslv giving way to indulgence , destroyed the great nartoflhem

and drove the rest into the ciiy , ( Diod . b . ii ) , And notwithstanding that the King , when he was driven to despair , attempted to destroy his great wealth of gold and silver , etc ., the historian adds

that many talents of gold and silver , preserved from the lire , were carried to l- ' . cbatana The promise ofthe prophet , that there should be

much spoil lor the enemy , was thereb y fulfilled : "Take ye the spoil of silver , take the spoil of gold ; for there is none end ofthe store and glory out of all the pleasant furniture , ( Nah . ii ., 9 ) .

I have not space to refer to the descriptions which modern writers give of the country once possessed by this mi ghty empire . It has become " the field of Nineveh . " So completely has the

great capital and other once celebrated cities been swept away , that , of a large space which the plough has passed over for ages , it is said that what part was covered by ancient Nineveh it is

now nearly impossible to ascertain . Xo more ol its name is sown , as the prophet predicted . The town near to its site is called by another name . " But , " says Dr . Keith , "its name , written in the

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word of God , shall not pass into oblivion till tongues shall cease and prophecy fail . " [ On the subject of this paper , the student may refer to Rawlinson ' s Five Monarchies ; Layard ' s

Nineveh and Babylon ; Smith ' s Ancient History of the East ; and , I have no doubt , to his Dictionary of the Bible , but as I have not an opportunity of referring to it , I do not speak positively . ]

Bro. Hughan's "Old Charges Of British Freemasons. ''

BRO . HUGHAN'S "OLD CHARGES OF BRITISH FREEMASONS . ''

BY BRO . J ACOB NORTON ( BOSTON , U . S . ) . ( Continued from page 672 . J As to the law of" frceborn , " that is here universally regarded as thc landmark of landmarks ,

and our jurisprudence luminaries affect hoiror at thc sacrilege committed by the Grand Lodge of England in its removal . When questions of that nature are sometimes brought to the notice

of any of our Grand Lodges , it is amusing to see the G . M ., or some other local celebrity , seize the opportunity of displaying his knowledge of Masonic jurisprudence , bv citing from the 926

Constitution , the Edward 3 rd Constitution , besides glibly enumerating the dates of a dozen 01 so other old constitutions . If I venture to inquire of that orar'ie , where those constitutions were to

be found r—he will either put on bluffing airs , 01 he mar condescendingly say , " in the British Museum , " and that somebody said , that somebod ) - said , that it was so . < ) f course that settles

the question . 'W ho would dare to doubt it Thus , as long as those MSS . remained unpub lished , charlatanism could carry its head defiantly The publication of these documents by Bro

Hnghan , in his" Old Charges of British Freemasons , " must tend to dethrone that class of pretenders . Henceforth , sectarianism " freeborn , ' and kindred anti-Masonic practices , laws ,

or usages , can no longer be defended with the charlatans' plausible plea of " ancient landmarks . " We are certain now , that there are no such constitutions as of ' ji 6 , Edward 3 rd ,

. \ re . We are also satisfied now the old operatives were an ignorant and credulous body of men ; that the biblical , historical , and chronological knowledge of even their most learned

men , would be laughed at by our school misses of a dozen years of age . We know , now , that their . Masonry is not onr Masonr )* ; that their laws are not necessaril y our laws ; and that

we are indebted to the old society merely for the name , and a few antiquated phrases and forms in our ceremonies . Their object and aim was mutual protection , similar to those of our modern

trade-unions •but our aim is , or should be , to unite the good and true of all denominations , races , ami nationalities into a brotherhood ; to inculcate the trlorious doctrine of the fatherhood

of God and brotherhood of man , to teach and enforce ethical princi ples , such as " brotherly love , relief , andtruth . " In short , Our "blazing star" should ever be I low best to work , and best to agree .

hut opposed , as 1 am , to set np the ideas ol the old organisation as a model for our imitation , yet , the very fact that our society is a

development ul ' thv old fraternity of builders , should induce us to di g further and deeper , and endeavour rationally to ascertain how far the old Masonic fraternity differed iu ideas , customs ,

Bro. Hughan's "Old Charges Of British Freemasons. ''

laws , superstitions , & c , from kindred sodalities , who have co-exrsted and flourished side by side with the Masonic fraternity of the mediajval times . This , I believe , can be accomplished b y

a little exertion on the part of our Masonic students , by exploring and excavating from the old English writers the information they possessed relative to the old guilds , and make The Freemason

our British Museum , wherin to deposit for exhibition our new species of fossils ; and when a sufficient number shall be collected and arranged , lam certain that many points in Masonichistory ,

and many phrases in our ritual , which are now obscure , will become clear and comprehensible . Agreeable to the above suggestion , I herewith send the first specimen for examination , in which

certain resemblances to the old fraternity of Masons may be noticed therein ; such , for instance , as the names of its ollicers , the attachment of a priest , or priests ; and although they did not

pretend to be in posssesion of any speculative somethings , yet those societies were patronised by nobles and bishops . It also shows that the taking of an oath , to observe the laws and regulations

was not exclusively peculiar to the Masonic fraternity . But here it is : — " Lady Margrate Bedingfeld , by will , dated

12 th January , * 1513 , gives to the gilds of the Holy Trinity , St . Thomas and Corpus Christ ! here 6 s . 8 d . each , and legacies to the Hi gh Altar of several neighbouring churches . "

They were called gilds from the Saxon word g ild , or geld , which signiiies money ; because a guild is a society or fraternity , associating themselves either upon thc account of charity , religion ,

or trade ; and they contribute money , goods , and often lands , for the support of their common charges , and are said to be common , even in the Saxon times . These gilds had their frenuent

meetings , and their grand annual , on the day of the saint to whom they were dedicated , and maintained a priest , or ' priests , to sing mass and celebrate divine service , for the souls ofthe Kinsr

aud Queen , and for the souls of the living and dead of their fraternity ; from hence , the several companies in cities and corporations had theii

beginning , arrd the chief hall of the city of London , and that of Norwich , is called at this day Guildhall . Licence was generally granted from the Crown to found them . They consisted of

Gustos , Alderman , or Master , and as many persons , men and women , in the township or neighbourhood , as thought fit to be of the fraternity ; and thc Warden or Alderman , with the major

part ol the society , were empowered to choose annually a Warden and other ofiicers for the government ofthe same ; they , as a body corporate , had power to purchase lands , & c , for the

maintenance ol their chaplains , who were to pray at the altar belonging to them in the parish church . Divers of the nobility , bishops , and other eminent persons t ' rought it no dishonour

to be admitted into them , which admission was sued for with great reverence , and an oath was taken to be good and true to the masters of the guild , and to all the brethren . We have an

account of the festival of the gild of the Hol y Cross at Abingdon , in Berkshire . This fraternity held their feast yearly on the 3 rd o May

the invention of the Holy Cross , and then they used to have twelve priests to ' sing a dirge , for which they had given them fourpence a piece ; they had also twelve minstrels , who had as . 3 d .,