Bro. Sadler's Comments On Bro. Jacob Norton's Masonic History.

Ancient . " There may have been a few Arch Masons amongst the " Moderns , " such as Dunckerley , who was exalted in Portsmouth in 1754 , but if Spencer was justified in his statement , it was not officially recognised by the " Moderns , "—as I have shown that it was by their "Ancient" rivalstill late in the sixties .

( 3 ) It is clear from the statements bath of Dickey and Dermott that the Royal Arch Degree was worked by the " Ancient" lodges under the warrants which gave them power to make , pass , and raise Masons , and it is no more than reasonable to assume that it vvas not until the " Moderns " patronised the Degree lhat their rivals deemed it advisable to organise a Grand Chapler in order to regulate its proceedings . We are not , therefore , in a position lo form any opinion as to whether the Degree nourished or languished during the earlier career of the " Ancient " Society . What further I may have to say on this and other points in Bro . Sadler ' s Comments I will reserve for some future communication .

What Is Freemasonry ?

WHAT IS FREEMASONRY ?

Is Freemasonry an eleemosynary organisation , or a religious sect 1 Was it established , and is it supported for the purpose of giving alms , or spreading a religious doctrine ? Certainly , neither the one nor the other . What , then , is it ? It is a social brotherhood , having a social and religious aspect . It is meant , by bringing the best men of th e community together in social intercourse , to elevate thsir minds , and improve their manners . By bringing

all classes of the community together on a basis of social equality it tends to level upwards . It gives men of ordinary calibre and position an opportunity of mixing with the most refined , intelligent , and illustrious in the community . It teaches men that they can have social enjoyment and relaxation without excess . It teaches men that to gain the respect and esteem of ( heir brethren they must repress their evil propensities , and it forces them to see ,

whether they like it or not , that there are more noble aspirations in life than they ever dreamt of . It teaches them that while they themselves enjoy the material blessings of this life , they should not be unmindful of their less fortunate brethren , but give sympathy ] and support ; and that though alms-giving is one branch of the great Charity which all Masons should cherish , it is neither the cause nor the object of Freemasonry . There is no

association in the world which devotes so much of its funds to releiving the poor as FVcemasonry . Is net that enough for the most fastidious , without railing at those who spend a portion of their time and money in social intercourse . Once reduce FVcemasonry to a soup kitchen alms-giving organisation , and its doom is sealed . There are many noble institutions which give no alms at all , and yet benefit the human race . Wilh ourselves we have ~ our

University and public library , which would do credit to any city in the world . We have our friendly societies , whose benefits are boundless , and many others . Where , then , does alms-giving come in in Freemasonry ? Well , alms-giving is a branch of Charity , and Charity , in its widest acceptation , is one of its fundamental principles , if not the leading characteristic of

Freemasonry . Just this far and no further . So far from alms-giving constituting the sum total of Charity , we have the dictum of St . Paul , that a man may give his means lo ihe poor and yet have not Charity . Almsgiving , though one of the effects ot the beni'ficent influences of Freemasonry , is neither the purpose for which it was established nor the cause of its stability . —Australasiaii Keystone .

The Selfish Side Of Freemasonry.

THE SELFISH SIDE OF FREEMASONRY .

Judging from the number of articles that have lately appeared , a good deal of attention has been paid to the subject of woman in regard to FVee masonry . The subject is not one that can be lightly passed over , especially in these days , when women demand a somewhat higher platform of appreciation in an intellectual sense than in the past , albeit retaining an equal measure of woman liness and domestic virtue vvith their sisters of a bygone

era . A recent article , " Masonry and Matrimony , " taken from the Rough Ashlar and appearing in the Indian Masonic Review , dwells somewhat lengthily on a supposed antagonism of women in general to the Order . So implicitly does the writer appear to believe these sentiments , that he views the position of a man in the ( hroes of love before his marriage floundering between a veritable Scylla and Charybdis in respect to his Masonic duty and

the discovered dislike in the breast of his betrothed to his obligations to the Order ; on the other side , the husband in danger of being harassed by his wife on all occasions where the thought of the one secret she cannot share with him rises up in her mind . For the man who becomes a Freemason before hc marries , the writer apparently admits no medium . To the question " which obligation has the preference ? " follows the unequivocal reply

" that which was lirst assumed , " and he further adds , " unless his wife is prepared to countenance his membership in the Order if she will not agree to leave him his liberty in respect to such oaths he has no right to marry . " We cannot quite follow this line of argument . In our experience , the question , if he is a Freemason , would be one of the least likely to arise , and , even if it did , unless the lady be a Roman Catholic , and thereby under the influence of a priesthood

antagonistic to the Order , it would scarcely be taken into account . In courtship , there must always be more or less of the "give and take" element . If a man has not sufficient inlluence in an ordinary way to secure his Freemasonry from uncompromising situations , he would be in other respects a failure in his domestic relations . It is not our intention to enlarge upon ihe several points of argument brought forward in the article under notice , though the latter portions form a subject somewhat akin

to the basis of our paper . Our contemporary in the two concluding paragraphs in question dwells upon men who may be put down as " bad husbands" and "bad Masons . " Such would naturally form a "Selfish Freemasonry , " but we would view the "Selfish side of F ' reemasonry " judged from the standard of ordinary virtue where men are both good Masons and husbands . Our wives , sisters and sweethearts , chiefly the former , all resent Freemasonry , more or less , not so much on account of their not being able to

The Selfish Side Of Freemasonry.

participate in its secrets , as for its b « ing thoroughly selfish from a social point of view . They know full well that for every hour spent in lodge , three is spent in eating , drinking and making merry ! In numbers of instances the aid of woman is solicited lor the Order . How often do their apt fingers help us in making up portions of our regalia , when a concert or bazaar is to be organised for Masonic Charities ? Who are the first asked to assist

and whose services more ungrudgingly given 1 And yet we may goon from year to year depriving : our families of our society night after night , without once thinking of affording them a night ' s amusement or a day ' s pleasure . There are , of course , instances where a lodge has organised some kind of entertainment for lady friends , but the idea as a general one would be scouted , perhaps , from an apprehension that the Order would lose dignity

thereby , or that our wives and lady friends could not meet sufficiently on the level , even for the nonce , without compromising social position . It may bs safely argued , however , that if men can meet after lodge in social intercourse and , if need be , forget they ever did so in other places , the fair sex could do the same . The social side of Freemasonry has a mission to perform almost , if not quite , equal to the benevolent , the philanthropic , or the intellectual one .

1 hat mission falls very short of fulfilment if the social side of Freemasonry begins and ends at our banquet table , and its influence reaches no further than our stomachs . Many a man looks upon the time spent at lodge as a respite from the calls of domesticity . Does not this reveal a spirit of selfishness entirely unbecoming in a Freemason 1 Would not Freemasonry exert a better influence in the circle of our homes if a system of entertainment

existed in which the members of our families could participate from time to time ? By the everlasting banquet , a board lavish with luxuries few of us either get or desire in our private homes , our Order his often suffered in the estimation of the world , and resentment engendered in the bosom of our families . Our rites and ceremonies are held sacred from women , and we

Freemasons are naturally jealous to guard our secrets . But when the work of the lodge is over , vve should feel that the occasional presence of our wives , sisters , and lady friends would , rather than detract from the dignity of the Order , tend to elevate and increase its sphere of usefulness and rid it of the lasting reproach of selfishness . —Indian Freemason .

Another Celebration.

ANOTHER CELEBRATION .

lt seems that another of the Western Grand Lodges has started a movement for the Grand Lodges lo unite in celebrating the 100 th anniversary of the death of Bro . George Washington at Mount Vernon , where his body lies entombed . This is to be a sort of pilgrimage . The members of Grand Lodges in

full Masonic display are to gather at the tomb of that great patriot , and first among mankind , and a Mason , to do reverence to his character and memory . Such a movement has attractions for men , and Masons in many aspects of their lives are men like unto others , So it may be that many Masons will enthusiastically aid in starting this pilgrimage .

The " FVaternal Congress " at the World ' s Fair was stimulated by the desire of those brethren who were delighted with the idea of the puplic notoriety lhat attends such demonstrations to carry out the proposition of the meeting of such an assemblage of distinguished Masons . Of course it began in this enthusiastic feeling and ended like all public pretentious gatherings , in going back home .

True , that the Congress talked much , disputed lovingly , came to " certain conclusions " which were published to prove the members did something . The curious wonderingly stood by and looked , amazed at the Masons , And that was all of it thus far . What may yet come out of the meeting , either for the help or hurt of the Craft , is not yet fully known .

Now a gathering is suggested of a more sedate character . The Craft is to put on its sackcloth and reverently , and in silence , we hope , meet round the tomb of Washington and meditate on the character of Washington . It is his Masonic character that ought solely to be considered . Instances might be brought in silence , to the minds of the brethren of his distaste and ostentatious show . How reticent , and silent , and modest he was . When ,

in command of the army of patriots starving and suffering for their country ' s life he never deviated from that retiring disposition that was one of the real elements of his extraordinary power over men , and the directing force of his often ballled efforts for triumph . But it is not to be expected that theJGrand Lodge members gathered at ihe tomb of Washington will be at all satisfied with conforming to these traits of Washington's character .

Bands of music , regalia , speeches , banquets , parades , are far more likely to satisfy the Masons who thus meet at the hallowed spot . Would they deem their pilgrimage complete without much more expansive energy in their devotions at the tomb . Some Mason who is a Grand Chaplain would be sadly dissatisfied if he was not invited to speak , another who is a General would feel deeply slighted if he was not Grand Commander of the procession . Each Grand Lodge

that was present would expect some one of its members ( 0 be requested to make an address . Thus this tribute to the memory of George Washington might without much effort be an opportunity to give distinction to some distinguished Mason who else would not be known to have been moved by the due reverence to the memory of him , who was " first in war , first in peace , and first in the hearts of his countrymen , " and in the reverence of his brother Masons .

Profane associations of men , men who usually unite in them , are by these means made conspicuous . They never omit to unite in any demonstration in public that will bring them and their society before the public gaze . That is all right . Il is the best means to be adopted for the purpose . But we really think that . Freemasonry does not belong to this class .

There is a dignity , a power in unostentation , a force , an influence , a respect , true pervading influence in the retiring Masonic character that has made the Fraternity a name that it can never impair except by its spoliation by its following the profane examples that only serve for a time to popularise its ephemeral societies .

The thoughtful Mason who believes in its teachings , and is made true thereby , will not be carried away by these public demonstrations with which Freemasonry does not in spirit unite . Honour , revere , and testify-devotion to the memory of Washington , but do it in the tyled lodge where no doubt of the sincerity of the brethren can ever exist . — Keystone .