Ancient And Modern Mysteries.

ANCIENT AND MODERN MYSTERIES .

BY BRO . ROBERT WENTWORTH LITTLE , Provincial Grand Secretary , Middlesex ; President of thc London Literary Union' , Editor of'" Thc Rosicritcian , " & ° c . ( Continued from page no . ) In fact , Hassan played the part of a treacherous friend . Everything that occurred in . the divan

was carefully reported to the sultan , and the worst construction put upon it , and hints of the incapacity and dishonesty ofthe vizir were thrown out on the fitting occasions . The vizir himself has left us an account of what he considered the worst trick which his old schoolfellow attempted

to play him . The sultan , it seems , wishing to see a clear and regular balance-sheet of the revenues and expenditure of his empire , directed Nizam-al-Moolk to prepare it . The vizir required a space of more than a year for the accomplishment of the task . Hassan deemed this a good

opportunity for distinguishing himself , and boldly offered to do what the sultan demanded in forty days , not more than one-tenth ofthe time required by the vizir . All the clerks in the finance department were immediately placed at the disposal of Hassan ; and the vizir himself confesses that at

the end ofthe forty days the accounts were ready to be laid before the sultan . But , just when we might expect to see Hassan in triumph , ancl enjoying the highest favour of the monarch , we find him leaving the court in disgrace ancl vowing revenge on the sultan and his minister . This

circumstance is left unexplained by the Ornament of the Realm , who however acknowledges , with great naivete , that , if Hassan had not been obliged to fly he should have left the court himself . But other historians inform us that the vizir , apprehensive of the consequences , had recourse to art

and contrived to have some of Hassan ' s papers stolen , so that , when the latter presented himself before the sultan , full of hope and pride , and commenced his statement , he found himself obliged to stop for want of some of his most

important documents . As he could not account for this confusion , the sultan became enraged at the apparent attempt to deceive him , and Hassan was forthwith obliged to retire from court with precipitation .

Nizam-al-Moolk determined to keep no measures with a man who had thus sought his ruin , and he resolved to destroy him . Hassan fled to Rei , but , not thinking himself safe there , he went further south , and took refuge with his friend the reis Ahoo- 'l-Fazl ( Fatherof Excellence ) ,

at Isfahan . What his plans may have hitherto been is uncertain ; but now they seem to have assumed a definite form , and he unceasingly meditated on the means of avenging himself on the sultan and his minister . In consultation one day with Ahoo- 'l-Fazl , who appears to have

adopted his speculative tenets , after he had poured out his complaints against the vizir and his master , he concluded hy passionately saying , " 0 that I had but two faithful friends at my devotion ! soon would I overthrow the Turk and thc peasant , " meaning the sultan and the vizir .

Aboo- 'l-Fazl , who was one of the most clearheaded men of his time , and who still did not comprehend the long-sighted views of Hassan , began to fancy that disappointment had deranged the intellect of his friend , and believing that reasoning would in such a case be useless ,

commenced giving lain at his meals aromatic drinks ancl dishes prepared with saffron , in order lo relieve his brain . Hassan perceived what his kind host was about , and resolved lo leave him . Aboo- 'l-Fazl in vain employed all his eloquence to induce him to prolong his visit ; Hassan

departed , and shortly afterwards set out for Egypt . Twenty years afterwards , when Hassan had accomplished all he had projected , when the sultan and the vizir were both dead , and the society of the Assassins was fully organized , the reis Aboo- 'l-Fazl , who was one of his most zealous partizans . visited him at his hill fort of Alamoot .

" Well , reis , " said Hassan , ' * which of us was the madman ? did you or I stand most in need uf the aromatic drinks and the dishes prepared with saffron which you use . 1 lo have served up at Isfahan ? You see that I kept my word as soon as I had found two trusty friends . " C To be colli lined . )

Leaves From My Library.

LEAVES FROM MY LIBRARY .

BY MARMADUKE MAKEPEACE . ( Continued from page no . ) "I repeat that he is about to appear ; but tell me , has the Supreme Council ofthe Sages yet prepared the grand charter ?" " Yes ; the fundamental compact is drawn out

and completed . *" "Then , " cried the LadyofSt . Chrisogone , " may the reign about to commence bc at length that of justice May man no longer be the slave of man ! May the dignity of humanity be no longer degraded by absolute authority ! May the sacred tabic of the laws ,

like the star of day , shed its rays alike and equally on all ! May the people be no longer a flock , the pastor of which is a butcher , and sells at his pleasure their flesh and blood ! May talent bc the only patent of privilege , and virtue the sole title to nobility ! May the burthen of public duties rest

with a just balance upon all the subjects of the kingdom ! and may the sovereign sceptre , bending with holy reverence before the power of the law , never become thc rod of tyranny !" As she spoke , the majesty of her deportment , tlie fire of her glances , the seductive magic of her words ,

and the sublimity of her sentiments , inspired a strange admiration in the young Orphan of Aiguemar . The sarcastic laugh which he had before with difficulty restrained was replaced by a reflective gravity . Ipsiboe * had assumed a different character in his eyes : she appeared of a magnanimous genius ;

and veneration , rather than curiosity , rivetted him to the spot ; he remained motionless . The Grand Master only replied to the Lady of St . Chrisogone by respectfully kissing her hand . They then departed slowly , the guard following them . Soon he could scarcely perceive the warriors

through the thick mist which seemed to enwrap their flaming torches ; he then quitted the thicket where he had lain hidden , and drew near the habitation of Ipsiboe " , which was lighted feebly by a flambeau placed against the wall . He soon heard the hasty tread of horses on the soft ground , and in a few minutes the Duke and his numerous train had

quitted the morass . Alamede feared that his protectress had followed the illustrious stranger , and he stopped , anxious and thoughtful , near thc iron gate : he dared not penetrate the mysterious dwelling , but contented himself with stealing a glance at thc interior .

By the dim light of a bronze lamp which hung against one ofthe inner pillars , he perceived in the middle of a round hall , thc walls of which were moulded and naked , a table of black shining marble surrounded by several chairs . A statue , representing the repentcnt Magdalen , stood upon thc

table ; and around this symbol of Christianity were scattered , without any apparent order , a celestial globe , a triangle , an antique censer , a bishop's crazier , a mirror , a brazen serpent , a shrine containing relics , a cylinder , a royal bust , a cup , a diadem , a bible , an axe , and a crucifix .

This room , without cither windows or chimneys , was cold as a cavern ; and damps streamed thickly down thc walls , and the floor was quite wet . Thc youth distinguished in thc distance , to the right of thc large table , some lances and a bundle of arms ; on the left an open trap-door discovered the steps

of a subterranean passage ; and opposite thc entrance a long black curtain concealed some mysterious object . The funereal lamp was flickering , ancl at length by slow degrees expired . Furniture , instruments , and drapery , all were blended and lost in the shade . But Alamedc ' s imagination , piercing thc darkness ,

created new shapes ; it appeared to him that thc black curtain raised its threatening folds ; he fancied that he saw indistinct and shapeless forms issue from its recesses ; a dagger , with a blood-stained blade , seemed to bc reflected upon the wall : he thought he heard a low murmur ; at length , though still intrepid , he could not help shuddering .

Turning from this melancholy chamber , he looked round upon the external objects ; but without thc gloomy building all was as sombre as his own ideas . Thc resinous torches had been long burning there ; and their thick smoke , mingling wilh thc humid exhalations of the marsh , pictured in the air a

sort of vaporous and magic cloud which was in harmony with thc place . The croaking of aquatic animals , a strong wind blowing through the thick reeds and tall rushes of the neighbouring pools , the solitude surrounded by abysses , thick ruins covered with briars , a desolate spot , seemingly fit only for

thc habitation of magicians and spectres , every thing around presented to his disturbed imagination cabalistic emblems and supernatural objects . Alamede was in the situation of a man half awakened from a painful dream ; he was collecting

his ideas with difficulty , when a prolonged and hoarse bleating , accompanied by a shrill ringing of bells , roused him from this stupor . A sight anything but frightful , and as naw as it was strange , was presented to him . The I . adv of St . Chrisogone advanced haslilv .

Leaves From My Library.

With one hand she led in a cord an unruly white goat , whose beard touched the earth , and whose curling horns terminated in sharp points ; the other hand was filled with herbs and a knot of flax . A black and untamed falcon stood upon her shoulder equipped with jesses , having rings attached from which hung small bells . ' Lastly , she held beneath

her arm , and wrapped in the folds of her large shawl , a brood of small squirrels , which were endeavouring to escape at every moment . Ipsiboe * was in the utmost embarrassment : on one side thc rebellious goat was dragging her , on thc other the savage falcon was scratching ; and thc mischievous squirrels , by repeated springs ,

tormented her without ceasing . Terrified at the sight of Alamede , the falcon uttered a wild cry and flew away , jingling its bells ; but its talons caught by mishap in his mistress ' s shawl , and carried away with them a part of the floating veil which hung upon her shoulders . While Ipsiboe " held by the other end of the drapery which the

noble bird was flying off with , a member ofthe captive squirrel family effected his escape ; but having leaped into the knot of flax , he was taken as if in a net , and remained hanging to it by the paw . In the meanwhile the unconquerable goat , frightened by the cries and the bells of the falcon , stuck one of his horns through thc robe of his conductress , and ,

entangled in its long train , bounded on the slippery earth . Thc undignified mischance of a fall seemed to threaten , at each plunge , the tottering sovereign of this insurgent people . All Alamede ' s dismal thoughts were dissipated at this unexpected scene , and his gaity returned . The Lady of Chrisogone perceived the Orphan . In the

transports of her joy she abandoned her cord to the goat , her shawl to the falcon , her flax to the squirrels . Each of the animals fled away delighted with its ficcdom . Ipsiboe * thought neither of herself nor of them ; her arms were clasping her beloved Alamede . After thc departure of the Templar ancl his suite , forgetting for awhile her vast political and religious

plans , she had repaired to a small building near her dwelling , where her favourite animals were kept ; and turning to more gentle occupations , she presented herself to Alamdde—not as the fanatical head of a clandestine society , but as thc simple inhabitant of a solitary country dwelling . " Alamdde , dear Alamdde ! " cried she , with joyful emotion , " at length I see and embrace you once more . " ( To bc continued ) .

Consecration Of The Pembroke Lodge (No. 1299),

CONSECRATION of the PEMBROKE LODGE ( No . 1299 ) ,

A meeting of this lodge was held at the West Derby Hotel , West Derby , near Liverpool , on Thursday , the 24 th February , at three o'clock . Present : Pros . Thomas Wylie , Presiding Officer , Worshipful P . G . R ., & c . ; thc Rev . II . G . Vernon , M . A ., P . G . Chaplain ; James Hamer ,

W . P . G . T ., D . of C . on this occasion ; Thomas Marsh , W . P . G . A . D . ofC . ; Alpass , P . G . Sec . ; Robert Wylie , P . G . D . C ; Armstrong , P . P . G . D . ; Doyle , P . M . 667 ; S . Peck ( 241 ) , llingliam ( 241 ) , Pickup ( 1094 ) , R . R . Martin ( 1094 ) , Pearson ( 1094 ) , Pemberton ( 1264 ) , Spcer ( 1094 ) , Widdows ( 673 ) , Larson ( 594 ) , Haswell ( 216 ) , Balshaw ( 1035 ) , Langley ( P . M . 477 and S 23 ) , Haswick

( 292 ) , Tavlor ( 1182 ) , Wood ( 1094 ) , P . Thorn ( 1182 ) , E . Hughes ( 249 ) , Bartlett ( 673 ) , Clegg ( 220 ) , J . Scllars ( S . W . 220 ) , | . Cook ( P . M . 220 ) , So ., etc . Pro . Joseph Skeaf , P . G . O ., presided at the Organ . Bios . William Crane , W . M .. J . Cool ; , S . W ., and John Sellar , J . W ., were the officers named in ihe warrant . Tliefol ] owingwasthepiogramme : tlicbrethren assembled

in ihe lodge room ; a voluntary was played ; the Presiding Officer took thc chair , and appointed his Wardens , Bros R . Wylie , S . \\\ , and Marsh , J . W . ; the brethren of the new lodge were llien arranged in order ; the lodge was opened in the three degrees ; opening prayer by Bro . Hamer , P . G . T . ; a piece of solemn music was then played ; the presiding officer addressed the brethren on the nature

of the meeting ; the Prov . G . Secretary addressed ihe Presiding Officer ; the Presiding Officer replied , and gave directions as to working ; the Prov . G . Secretary read thc petition and warrant ; the Presiding Officer inquired of the brethren if they approved of the officers named in the petition and warrant ; the brethren signified their approval in due form ; an oration by the Prov . G . Secretary , Bro .

Alpass ; an anthem was sung ( 133 rd Psalm ) , Skeaf ; the consecration prayer , by Pro . Hamer ; Omnes—Chant , "So mote il be ; " Sanctus— "Glory bc to Thee , O Lord ;" the invocation by the Prov . G . Keg ., Bro . T . Wylie ; Omnes—Chant , " So mole il be ; " ihe lodge board was then uncovered , aud the four P . M . ' s , Bros . Marsh , Wylie , Crane , and Alpass , carried the cornucopia , wine , oil , and

sail three times round the lodge ( solemn music being performed during the procession ) , then halted in the Last ; Anthem , — " Glory be to God on High ; " ihe censer was then carried three limes round the lodge by Bro . Alpass , ( solemn music being performed during the progress ) ; Omnes—Chant , "So mote it be ; " Anthem ; the

Presiding Officer then dedicnleil and coiisiluted ihe lodge in a mosl solemn maimer ; closing prayer by Pro . I lamer , P . O . P . ; Omnes -Chant , "So mole il be ; "Anthem , " Hail uuUcrsal Lord ; " Hallelujah Chorus . Pro . William Crane was then presented by Bro . Hamer lo the Installing Master , Bro . Thomas Wvlic . The