Sectarian Bigotry.

adopted by the church , and from the spirit of the pastor and people , appeared to be as firm as the laws of the Medes and Persians , incapable of chaDfe or modification . Of course he was deeply depressed in spirit , and at a loss what - „„ 1 CP to uursue . His advisory friends seemed

to be few , and he waited with as much patience as he could muster up , to see the cloud blow over , but it was all in vain , for when he was at work one day in his shop , he received the following note from his pastor , which he saw at once meant business of the most serious

character : — " Pastor ' s Office , Fairfield , March 25 , 1849 . " Bro . Josep h Grafton , —Our Congregational Association which held its session for this State during the past year , declared that no Christian could remain a member of a secret society , and 01 tne iviasoniu

as you are a memuer rraieruity , my church demands that you withdra w from such fellowship , or they will have to exclude you from the church . " Your brother , WM . THOMPSON .

" The reception of such a note from his pastor brought great sorrow to the heart of ' Brother Joe , " as he was called generally among his brethren , and after a night of deep thought and sound sleep he returned to his pastor the

following answer : " Fairfield , March 26 , 18 49 . "To the Rev . Wm . A . Thompson , —Dear Sir , —I have been rcquestedTto meet you and the brethren in church meeting to-day , in order to explain the cause of absenting myself from the

meetings and ordinances of the church . I will endeavour , my dear brother , to doso , simply , in writing . It is well known to you all that I am connected with one of the secret societies of the day , and it will also be remembered that the Association of the Congregational Church ,

which held its session in this place in 1848 , passed a resolution denouncing such societies in the strongest language , and condemning all members of the church who were connected with any such secret organization . I look upon these resolutions as a direct vote of censure upon

myself and others , but being conscious of my own integrity in the matter , and that the church , in this particular , has stepped aside from the path of duty to aim a blow at an institution whose princi ples are drawn from the Great Light of all Truth , I have and still feel a reluctance in continuing my connection with the church . You

will remember , brethren , that atthe time of my connecting myself with the church it was well known to some of you , if not to all , that I belonged to the Order of Freemasons , and as such I was admitted among you . As it is now thought that a secret society man cannot be a Christian , I would respectfully ask of you a certificate of dismissal from the church .

"JOSEI-H GRAFTON . " Such was the result of a crusade of ignorance and bigotry against secret societies . Brother Joe to this day is still an " outsider , " running the risk of Heaven on the broad common of Masonic humanity . " What do our

readers think of this little story ? They will , we fancy , agree with Channing , as quoted by the Masonic Advocate , who says : — " Misanthropic bigots are always mental monstrosities , unfitted for useful lives or honorable histories . They contradict the genius of humanity and make

but sorry members of society anywhere . " They will concur also with the Alasonic Advocate itself , in its very pertinent remarks : — " Ignorance and bi gotry are twin associates . They have a common ori gin and a common affinity . Legitimate in their antecedents , and uniform in their

moral deformities , they are always of the same progeniture . The one has no knowledge of progressive life , while the other sees but little outside of itself . The former lacks capacity to know its own duty , while the latter claims to know it all . Both make pretentions to knowledge with assured effrontery .

The one condemns what it does not comprehend , while the other , full cf self-conceit , never tolerates anything but its own opinions . With the one , light is darkness , but the other often calls darkness light , and li ght darkness , because it does not know the one from the other . " And what more remains for us to say ? Must we not all regret to know and to realize , that' in 1877 so

Sectarian Bigotry.

much bigotry remains amongst the professors of religion > Must we not deplore the fact thaf so many who talk a great deal about religion have not apparently mastered the first principles of that message of love , and peace , and mercy , and

goodwill to man they hold forth so glibly about ? We will consider in our next issue the alleged unlawfulness of secrecy on so-called Scripture principle , on the "dictum , " that is , whether of infallible or fallible teachers of religion to mankind .

The Happy Despatch.

THE HAPPY DESPATCH .

We give our readers to-day a most interesting and touching extract from the Japanese newspaper Tchoya Chimboun , duly chronicled b y the Putt Malt Gazette , and also in the Times , which we think will affect them as it did us on our perusal of it . " Some curious details are given by a

Japanese paper , the Tchoya Chimboun — as to the manner in which some of the ' aristocrats of the old school' in that country , who were condemned to death for the part they took in the late insurrection , but who preferred hari kiri to decapitation , spent the last few hours of their

lives . Four Samourai insurgents of Koumanote , who escaped on the night of the 24 th of October , assembled at the house of one by name Yonemara for the purpose of ending their existence by the ' happy despatch ' in his hospitable dwelling . Before , however , giving themselves over

to death they gave themselves over to a regular jollification—drinking , dancing , and singing , as though on a festive occasion . Their hostess , without any wish necessarily to curtail their enjoyment , with much tact and good feeling advised them not to keep up this revelry too long , as

the police could hardly fail to hear the disturbance caused by their songs and dances . They turned a deaf ear , however , to her kindly warnings and continued to amuse themselves for the whole day , saying that if the " shizhou " arrived they were prepared to fight them . The hours

thus passed pleasantly away until sunset , when the party arrayed themselves in the robes which , according to old Japanese fashion , are appropriate for the ceremony they were about to perform , and , having offered up their prayers to the gods , ' happily despatched' themselves without further

delay . We shall be glad to learn if the similar thought occured to any of our readers which was ours on realizing this very remarkable " mise en scene , " as the French say ; " what a valuable institution " we mentally exclaimed , and " how useful and important even in a civilized

community like ours . " When we remember the bores who bore us , and the rascals who cheat us , when our memory summons up vividly before ourgroaning recollection , all those who render life miserable , or trying , or wearisome , or depressing in many ways , often in all things , we are tempted to

ask , is there no means by which some one of our distinguished statesmen could apply the princi ple of this great and grave institution for the needs and necessities of our Anglo-Saxon race ? Jobbins , who has had a row with his dear Angelina about his shirt buttons and her weekly

expenses : Popkins , who is so dreadfully afraid of his mother-in-law ; Timmins , who is anxiousl y looking out for that " little bill ; " which he does not know how to meet ; Tocnkinson , who bores everybody , the foolish young men ' , the disappointed young women , " blase old .

scapegraces , and scandal loving "old gals / j . ' jajj ^ we are tempted to think , might take ,, a . ' . leaf out of this wise Japanese code ; ¦ and relieve themselves , their friends , ' - and the world at large of much anxiety on their behalf , of an untellable amount of alarm and boredom combined . For think how easy and how happy

the " little event " would be . A small amount of " sentiment , " and a good deal of " liquoring up " a tender leavetaking of Mary , and a stern adieu to your own " dear , dear , Jezabel , " and you would leave this festive and mortal scene , amid no mourning neighbours , and no weeping friends ,

' * No female even with dishevelled hair , To feign or feel decorous woe . " Surely here is a note to be noted , a wrinkle to be improved by us . all . There are so many people who are so useless to everybody , such bores , such nuisances at home and abroad , so

The Happy Despatch.

very greatly in the way of something or somebody , that we are perfectly persuaded , if Sir Henry Thompson , who is so friendly to cremation , " would only present a plan to a thoughtful and admiring public of a " Happy Despatch , " it would at once chime in with that semi

sentimental , semi-morbid state of mind , into which many of us appear to be drifting just now . And sure we are !' of this , at any rate , that it would be a very legitimate reform , in the changing times , and bring about , perhaps , a happy alteration alike in manners and morals . No doubt

some serious thoughts and memories intrude perforce amid these lighter words of ours , but "what ' s the odds as long as you are happy . " ' ' Don ' t let ns , in these enli ghtened days , trouble ourselves too much about scruples or religious consideration . Life is life , ' dum vivamus

vivamus ; ' we will leave regrets and hesitation to the old , the highly respectable , and the well behaved . " Such is the song of this world ' s . " syrens , " too often the prelude to unmitigated bitterness of memory , and lasting sorrow of mind . Let our good old Craft teach us higher truths , and a better

philosophy . This life is not all , nor all in all , to any of us . Its golden hours may be wasted , its glad privileges may be abused , for far too many the hour of the " happy despatch " may practically seem to sound to-day or to-morrow

but beyond everything lies that great Future in which we shall all one day alike be found , high and low , rich and poor , learned and unlearned , and where no more escape is possible from the omniscient gaze of Perfect Wisdom , or the Solemn Justice of Perfect Goodness .

The Grand Secretaryship Of Scotland.

THE GRAND SECRETARYSHIP OF SCOTLAND .

In another column appears a letter from Bro . D . Murray Lyon , who is a candidate for the office of Grand Secretary to the Scottish Grand Lodge in the place of Bro . Laurie , resigned . We all of us remember Bro . Laurie ' s long services to Freemasonry in Scotland , and hope that

he may see many years of health and happiness . We beg to offer our hearty sympathy and good wishes to Bro . D . Murray Lyon , and we ' shall be glad to hear that the choice of the Grand Lodge has fallen upon one whose Masonic qualifications are so very distinct and distinguished .

Original Correspondence.

Original Correspondence .

[ We do ntst hold ourselves responsible for , or even as approving of the opinions expressed by our correspondents , but we wish , in a spirit of fair play to ' all , to permit—within certain necessary limits—free discussion . —ED . ] . ¦ ,

HISTORY . OF FREEMASONRY IN FRANCE . ' To the Editor , of the "Freemason . " . Dear Sir . and' Brother;—¦ . ¦ !¦ * la ' m-sure'that good will eventuate from the discussion , ; inaugurated , by yourself and Bro . Hughan ;

but I write now to ' p ' ut' the brethren on their guard against drawing , h- ^ ty ' conclusions from the absence of documents , as'there is a chain of circumstantial evidence pointing to the ' general" correctness of the views of the French Masonic hi-jtbrians . *' - ¦ ,. . ¦¦¦

I think'with Bro . Leon Hyneman , in his History of our Grand Lodges , that there were independent lodges of socalled York Masons'in-London in and before 172-5 , and not working under the G . L . of 1717 . I believe also that there were lodges of Scottish nationality in . London , working Craft and Rosy Cross Degrees , and not unlikely in alliance with the Stuart party in Fiance . The hermetic

work of 1721 ( Long Livers ) seems to have been an aU tempt to force the degrees of this English and Scottish combination , which formed the germ of the continental High Grades , upon the notice of the G . L . of 1717 , which , however , refused all countenance to anything but the three degrees until the latter part of the 18 th century , when influential " Moderns " established separate' Grand

Chapters and Camps . I do not believe in the antiquity of the present ceremonies of the Royal Order of Scotland , but I consider that there is evidence of the existence of a system of Scottish Royal Order or Art Lodges and Chapters in London , contemporaneously with the establishment of the G . L . of 1717 . Yours truly and fraternally , J YARKER .

LODGE OF ISRAEL , No . 1474 . To the Editor of the " Freemason . " Dear Sir and Brother , — On the 12 th instant , at a regular meeting of this lodge , Bro . S . Lyon , W . M ., in the chair , letters were

read from the following lodges : — The Harmony Lodge , 156 , Plymouth , Lodge Erme , 1091 , ; , Lodge-St ; John , 70 , Plymouth , Lodge . Brunswick , 159 , Plymouth , also . 1 The Right' Honourable the Earl of Mount Edg